4356 replies to this topic

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan
"I slept great," Ryan said, helping himself to some of the French Toast. "I never thought sleeping on the floor would be so comfortable. What about you? I'm surprised you're up so early."

Just then, Ellen wandered into the kitchen, wearing her pajamas, her hair suffering from a mild case of bed-head. "'Morning, everybody," she yawned. "So Sonja, did you find that Pokemon you were looking for?"

OOC: It feels really weird to be writing about the morning right before I go to bed... the same thing happened with my last IC.

[Mega Man: The Blue Bomber]

IC: Zac and Shadows

Shadows looked back to the shadowy region, and then back at Zac, "Zac... Your father will understand, he gave Bladesman to you to protect you, I doubt he would get mad, Shadows said as he placed a hand on Zac's shoulder.

Zac looked back up at Shadows and nodded and then turned his focus to the dashboard, and started the motorboat. He grabbed the throttle and pushed it foward and sent the ship off, away from the Region of Darkness, and back into the light.

[Constructman: Black Knight]

OOC Am I allowed to train my character to be an Aura Guardian? Or meet up with Riley?

IC Vincent (Snowpoint City, Sinnoh)
I was meditating. Focused in a deep trance, I was nearly totally unaware of my surroundings. Beside me, Lulu was practicing a kata and Mikaruge, well what do Spiritombs do when they're in their keystone? Well, at least that's where they were last time I checked on them.

OOC Open for interaction

Edited by Constructman, Nov 10 2012 - 08:42 AM.

[Nara]

IC - Eric Spiros/Pierce Aderia, Abyss, Johto
"So," Eric started. "Now what?" The two were sitting on the lakefront, watching Magikarp swim by. "We got Juan to the base safely, though it was more like a kidnapping than a recruitment."

"I wouldn't say that." Pierce retorted. "He came with us willingly." He stared out into the lake for a while. Then he jumped up. "Might as well get Snorunt now. Long way to the daycare."

OOC: To update the first post, Juan is recruited to Rockets, and this: "Evolution via Trade w/Certain Pokémon: Either trade those two Pokémon with each other or do 12 battles with at least two beside the other Pokémon (EX: Kapurumo and Chobomaki into Shubarugo and Agirudaa, respectively.)" You probably want to use their English names. Things I noticed while looking for stuff. =P

[BZP Blade]

OOC: I get the feeling people are now waiting on me. =P

-==IC: Ray//Village Bridge==-

As the two continued the rest of the trip in silence, and barely took time to rest due to the snow covering most of the route by then, Ray and Gold reached Village Bridge by the morning, since it had been getting late already by the time they left Lacunosa, and the snow in darkness made traversing the route slightly more dangerous than normal.
"... I wonder where the others are...?" Ray asked with a slight frown, as he looked around the village-on-a-bridge, admittedly curious about the layout of the town.

-==IC: Zach//Iccirus City==-

As Zach and the others made their way through the crowd, they emerged near a group of people with cameras, which were focused on a very oddly dressed person.
"Begone, foul creature!" The person shouted out, as he sent a Cryogonal to attack a Haxorus quickly.
"Ice Beam!" The person yelled out, as the opposing trainer, a person with oddly shaped blue hair, and wearing a cloak with a red shirt, stayed calm, even as his Haxorus staggered back, heavily damaged by the attack.
"You should know better, than to expect to counter my dark powers... Night Slash!" The trainer with the Haxorus yelled out. The Haxorus slashed the Cryogonal, which seemed to deal some damage... Though not enough to faint it.
"Justice always prevails! Ice Shard!" The oddly dressed person exclaimed, as the Cryogonal quickly shot forward, and slammed into the Haxorus, finally fainting it.
"Impossible! How... How could my dark powers be stopped?! I must make my escape..." The person with the cloak stated; however, the odd person quickly dashed forward, and grabbed onto the fleeing person.
"I cannot allow you to do that! You will be brought into custody now!" The man said, who looked rather old now that he could be seen better. The cloaked man sighed, and nodded slowly, as one of the people behind the cameras yelled out.
"Cut! That was fantastic! We shall review the footage, and this might just be a hit. Thank you for lending your talents." The person said, as the two trainers nodded. The crowd began to slowly dissipate, along with the crew with the cameras, eventually just leaving Zach, Summer, and Kyle. At that point, the two trainers noticed the trio.
"Oh, hello there. What did you think?" The cloaked man asked, as Zach nodded.
"It was very good! ... Err, what was it, though?" Zach asked curiously, which seemed to startle the two.
"You don't know? Why, it's the filming for a new movie of ours! We decided to film on location; 'Brycen vs. the Dark Terror'." The cloaked man explained, and the older man nodded.
"It'll be much better on the actual screen; however for a battle, it was pretty good for bystanders. I guess it also helps that we're both Gym Leaders..." He said, and the older man nodded once more, but then paused.
"You don't recognize us, which means you're new. I am Brycen, the Gym Leader here. I am retaking my position temporarily because my trainee became sick recently. This is Hugh; Opelucid's new Gym Leader." The older man explained, and Zach nodded, though he noticed that Brycen didn't seem to talk much, compared to the other guy, apparently named Hugh.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Zach, and this is Summer and Kyle." Zach said with a nod as he introduced the group, as Hugh paused upon hearing the name.
"Zach... I see." Hugh said, as Brycen looked over at him, a perplexed look on his face. Noticing that, Hugh decided to explain.
"This is that 'chosen one', that everyone seems to like to talk about. Personally, I think Caitlin's insane again. But... It looks like some things might be true." Hugh said, and mused for a moment.
"Would you be up for a double battle with us? If they want, one of your friends there could join you in the battle." Hugh offered, and Zach nodded, but paused.
"Would you give me a moment to discuss this with them?" Zach asked, and Hugh nodded, and Zach lead the other two a little ways away.
"Well? What do you think? I know you two think my constant gym battles a waste of time, but the others don't seem to be anywhere near here, and we could end the fight at any time... It's up to you guys, though." Zach said, not sure what they thought. Besides, though he could just use his psychic abilities, he figured they wouldn't appreciate that as much.

[Constructman: Black Knight]

OOC where is everybody right now? Where's the primary action taking place?

[BZP Blade]

OOC: Unova, but that place is a little crowded at the moment. I'd suggest somewhere in Johto; there might be some things happening in Olivine eventually.

[Hades]

IC: Feral

Feral dodged the slice and punched the Gallade and followed up with a kick, causing the Gallade great pain and knocking him down.

"What's the matter?", Feral said, grinning big, "Are you just all talk? Let me show you why you should have run off!"

Feral started to laugh, as he aura began to go wild. It rippled with spacial power and howled.....

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent (Snowpoint City, Sinnoh, headed to Castelia City, Unova)
I awoke from my trance. Sure enough, the Odd Keystone was still in between the bladed prongs of my staff and Lulu was practicing her kata. "Lulu," I said. "We're calling a ship. "Lulu?" She asked in confusion "Castelia city," I replied. My staff coursed with energy. "And what are we going to do there?" Mikaruge asked. "I don't know. But I do know that whatever's over there, it's important." I boarded the ship bound for Unova...

[Konuju]

OOC: Woah, woah, hold up! My Rocket character, Dack, is headed to Snowpoint, but he's been inactive ever since Ajad Prime, who's Rocket character was also in that group, became inactive. So far I've been waiting for Ajad to come back (or for the Darkrai plot to get moving a bit) but I'd be willing to get his plot moving again if you'd like him to meet up with Vincent. (Also, that might be for the better, since, as Blade said, Unova is pretty crowded at the moment.)

On a completely unrelated note: Hugh's a Gym Leader?

Edited by Konuju, Nov 10 2012 - 02:11 PM.

[Constructman: Black Knight]

OOC Oh, ok. He's anti rocket BTW

IC Vincent and NPC sailor (Snowpoint City, Sinnoh)
"Sorry kid, but we don't sell tickets at the port; you need a pass." The sailor was sympathetic, but firm; no way for me to get on. "Oh," I replied. "Ok. Looks like I'm stuck here for awhile." I walked away from the docks and sat down on a bench. Lulu sat down next to me. My staff crackled with energy and Mikaruge emerged from the Odd Keystone. "What now?" Lulu asked though it sounded like "Lulu?"; most pokemon can only say their name after all. "I don't really know; I'm not in the mood of trekking all the way through Route 27 and through Mt. Coronet again." "Was it really that bad?" Mikaruge replied. "Hey," I said turning to the Spiritomb next to me. "You very well remember what happened." "I only seem to remember kicking the butts of every pokemon we came across while you two where shivering in the cold." "Lulu! Rio ri-lu lu rio!" Lulu replied angrily. "We are Spiritomb," Mikaruge said smugly. "We don't share your weaknesses. Goes to show-" Lulu's eyes flashed. "Uh oh," Mikaruge gasped. It began to charge a Faint Attack but Lulu suddenly used a force palm on it, sending it flying back ten feet. "How dare you!" Mikaruge boomed angrily and charged back, sending Lulu staggering back with a shadow sneak. Even though Lulu was a fighting type, she was still hit hard. "Rio!" she yelped. "Guys, enough," I said, coming in between the two. "You two should really try to get along with each other." "Lu," Lulu snapped angrily. "I know, but you shouldn't lose your temper so much. Remember the training. And for you," I said turning to Mikaruge. "Keep the deadpan snarking to a minimum. Please." "Hey, it's in our nature." "That doesn't mean that you can't change it." Mikaruge simply rolled it's eyes and floated over to the bench. "Hey," I said. "If you wouldn't mind," and I dettached the Odd Keystone from the staff. Grabbing the staff, I sat down on the bench, Lulu next to me. Pulling my hood over my face, I sat there, and sat there...

[Konuju]

OOC: Ah, right, I hadn't thought of that. But Dack isn't in Snowpoint on Rocket business, he's there for personal reasons. Long story short, all of Sinnoh and by now practically all of Hoenn has been taken over by a powerful group of ten Ancient Darkrai. When Dack heard about this, he was horrified, as his hometown is Snowpoint. Snowpoint had already suffered from a massive avalanche caused by Team Liberty earlier in the RPG (in the previous topic). So Dack recruited Karen of the Johto Elite Four and is headed to Snowpoint to see if he can do anything to help his friends, who are likely all asleep, trapped in the Ancient Darkrais' nightmares.

IC: Dack
Dack, Ben, and Karen emerged from Mount Coronet, shielding their eyes from the blanket of white. Dack's Luxray, who he was riding on, quickened his pace as he recognized the landscape of Route 216. Karen's Absol and Ben's Honchkrow struggled to keep up. As they trekked along the snowy route, Dack thought back to how they had gotten here.

***

After struggling to make it through the incredibly foggy Route 210, the group had been forced to stop and rest at Celestic Town. When they resumed their journey, they saw a large flash of firey light in the skies and what looked almost like a meteor crashed down on the other side of Mount Coronet.

"What on earth was that?" Ben asked.

"My guess would be some sort of natural disaster caused by the Darkrai, like that storm in Sunyshore," Dack replied. "It doesn't matter, though. Whatever it was, it looks like it landed near Eterna City. We're headed north -- to Snowpoint." With that, the trio made their way through the mountain that divided Sinnoh between east and west.

***

The northern point of Sinnoh had always been cold, but with the powers of the Darkrai blotting out the sun, Snowpoint City had become a frozen, desolate wasteland. And the fact that it was the middle of winter didn't help, either. Even Dack, who was used to the cold, found himself shivering uncontrollably.

"I don't see how anyone could survive here," Ben muttered. "Sunyshore is much more pleasant."

"Yeah, those thunderstorms were real nice," Dack rolled his eyes. "You know as much as I do that this is the work of those Darkrai. But you're right... I don't see anyone around here."

"Except for him," Karen said, pointing to a young boy sitting on a bench off to the side.


OOC: Oh, and for the record, Parugi, Karen has been recruited for Team Rocket.

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent
I looked up and saw several beings approaching. Hood still over my face, katana hidden in my cloak, I risked a glance at them. "Behave," I whispered to Mikaruge and Lulu.

[Nara]

IC - Eric/Pierce, Route 34, Johto
Pierce opened the door to the daycare, Eric not far behind. "I'd like to pick up my Snorunt now," Pierce said. The person behind the counter, a younger boy, looked up from a magazine.

"Hm?" he asked. "Oh, you dropped off a Pokemon? Name and trainer ID?"

Pierce, who didn't give either to the old couple before, was surprised by the sudden request. "Uhm.. I didn't give either to the old people before. Why's it necessary now?"

"Oh, someone went into Goldenrod a few days ago and blew up a water hydrant." Eric's face went red. "Security cracked down." The boy lowered his voice and leaned forward. "Don't tell anyone I said this, but I think that people are being paranoid." He then resumed his composure. "But anyway, if you talked to my grandfolks, you shouldn't have a problem retrieving your Snorunt. Gimme a sec."

He went out the back door and returned a few minutes later with the old woman from before. "Oh yes," she said. "You're back. You're here earlier than most other people would be; I don't think Snorunt got more than a handful of experience."

"That's okay with me," Pierce said.

"Fine, fine," the woman replied, and went to fetch the Pokemon. She returned with the Snorunt in her arms. "That'll be 200 Poke." Pierce handed her the money, and she gave him his Pokemon.

"Thank you," they said simultaneously, and Pierce and Eric returned outside.

[Konuju]

IC: Dack
Dack looked at the boy, surprised to see that someone in Sinnoh was awake and hadn't fallen victim to the Darkrai. If he managed to escape the Darkrai, then maybe my friends have, too, Dack thought with a surge of hope. "Excuse me," he said, hopping down off his Luxray. "I'm looking for my friends, Madison and Luke. Do you happen to know them?"

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC: Vincent
"Sorry? I do not know who you speak of."

[Konuju]

IC: Dack
Dack sighed impatiently. "Almost everyone in Sinnoh is asleep thanks to those Darkrai," he said. "How did you escape?"

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent (Snowpoint City)
"Darkrai? They put everyone to sleep? I just came here from Slateport City; I came here to take a tour of a temple of some sorts. I had planned to go to Canalave to visit the library but I got diverted somehow, and I must have dropped my pass somewhere because now they won't let me back on!" Mikaruge snickered. "He's like that," the Spiritomb said/telepathed/whatever. "Excuse me," I said turning around. "But you're stuck here too." "Oh yeah, didn't think about that."

[Konuju]

IC: Dack
"Great," Dack muttered, turning and walking away. If this kid had actually survived the Darkrai's attack on Sinnoh, then there was a chance that Madison and Luke were awake as well. But the kid had come from Slateport, just as he, Karen, and Ben had come from Johto. There was nothing more the kid could offer him.

"Sorry about that," Karen said, getting off her Absol. "Dack can be pretty moody. Anyway, have you not heard of those Darkrai? Last I heard they were taking over the Hoenn region. It looks like you were lucky to get out of Slateport when you did. You're welcome to come with us if you like. It's not very safe to be wandering around Sinnoh by yourself right now."

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent
"What! They're in Hoenn as well? What about Kanto, Johto, the Fight Area, the Hoenn Battle Frontier-is anywhere in Japan safe?!" I then noticed Lulu walking off. "What is it?" I asked. Following her, I saw her poking at something in the snow. I bent over and took a look. "My ferry pass!" I said in relief. Putting it back in my bag, I turned back to Karen. "So yeah; is Unova the only safe place? I can't believe that I never heard of this..."

OOC Is training your human character to use Aura allowed? If not from a Guardian, then from a Lucario?

[Konuju]

OOC: I don't see why you wouldn't be able to learn Aura, although it might be best to get a difinitive answer from Blade or Parugi first.

IC: Karen
"Woah, calm down, kid," Karen said. "I think think the Fight Area is under the control, and probably the Hoenn Battle Frontier as well. But as of now they aren't in Kanto or Johto yet. Although if things keep going at the rate they've been, then soon Unova will be the only safe place."

"Also, it doesn't look like any of the Darkrai are in Sinnoh at the moment," Ben said, jumping down from his Honchkrow and landing in the snow. "They're all in Hoenn, which is why Sinnoh is slightly safer than Hoenn right now."

"Although not by much," Karen said, recalling the enraged Gyarados they had encountered earlier. She looked at the boy's ferry pass, realizing what he was planning. "If you want to head to Unova, that would probably be your safest option. Otherwise you could travel with us -- we're looking for a way to wake up the victims of the Darkrai while they're all busy in Hoenn."

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent
For a moment, I was tempted to simply take the ferry to Unovaa. But then something stopped me. I heard a voice whisper in my head. "Justice is about doing the right thing, not because it's easy but because it's ethically and morally correct. No matter the result, one does not lose face when tempering justice." Finally, I said, "I'll go with you. Somebody has to help."

[Konuju]

IC: Karen/Dack
"Glad to have you," Karen nodded. "Now, we'd better catch up to Dack, before he leaves us all behind."

***

It didn't take long for them to find Dack, who was standing at the doorway to an abandoned house.

"Is this one of your friends' homes, Dack?" Karen asked.

"No," Dack shook his head, his voice sounding strained. "It's my home. When I came here after the avalanche about six months ago, it was completely buried. It looks like someone's unearthed it."

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent
Lulu on my shoulders, the Odd Keystone resting in between the three tines of my staff, and the family katana at my hip, I stood at the side, looking on. "Who could have unearthed it?" I finally asked.

[Konuju]

OOC: For the full effect, listen to the song from the end of The Dark Knight Rises (which, as far as I can tell, is simply called "The End") while reading this.

IC: Dack
"You're still here?" Dack asked, turning to see the boy with his staff and his Riolu.

"He's agreed to help us," Karen explained.

"Fine," Dack muttered. "Just be sure not to slow us down. As for who dug out my home, I would assume it was the people working in rescue operations. Last time I was here was six months ago." The Rocket Agent stepped inside his home, looking around. Most of the furniture in place, but a few things, like the kitchen table, lay in a pile of rubble in the corner. The window curtains among other things were stained from being buried in the wet snow. Walking over to a shelf, he picked up a photo of himself as a young boy with his parents and the Tailow he had received for his tenth birthday.

Karen and Ben waited outside, not wanting to disturb Dack as he reminisced. Luxray, however, walked up to Dack and purred softly. Although he had never been to Dack's home before the avalanche, the Luxray knew how much his trainer had cared for his family.

"...There's nothing we can do here," Dack said after several minutes of silence. Pocketing the photo, he walked out of the house. "Let's try Madison or Luke's house... it's possible they were able to avoid getting trapped in the Darkrai's nightmares."

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent
Still clothed in my black cloak, I held my staff in both hands, looking around "When did these attacks start, and why?" I asked.

[Mega Man: The Blue Bomber]

IC: Zac and Shadows

When the boat was a meat 50ft away, Zac imediatly turned it around and back to shore,

"Zac, wrong way!" Shadows said as held on tight to the boat as it quickly turned,

"Bladesman is family, and I treat all my pokemon like that. We are going back for him!" Zac said as the boat came back on the shore.

Shadows looked at Zac with intrest and confusion. He was willing to risk his life, for his dad's Pokemon? When said pokemon was chosen to protect him?

Humans. So confusing, so ignorant and stubborn...but their stubborness has helped them grow, become smarter, and know more about the world around them.

Zac, was one of them.

[Konuju]

IC: Dack
"It must have started a month or two ago," Dack shrugged. "I'm not sure... I myself didn't find out about it until recently. I'm not really sure why, either, but I'd say it's a pretty good guess that these Darkrai want to take over the world."

[Parugi]

OOC: Nara/Konuju: Duly noted. Perhaps I'll get to updating the first post within the month....

Konuju: I suppose the Hugh thing makes sense--Draydan is apparently old enough to have retired in Black 1/begin preparing to retire in White 1, and Iris is the Champion in B/W2, and I'm not aware of any huge developments in Hugh's future, personally.

Good thinking, Blade, is all I can say.

Constructman: See my reply to your PM.

IC - Sonja Baron - Burks' House: Sonja shrugged, idly stirring her hot chocolate before taking a quick drink of the warm liquid. "Coming in to a warm house after a couple of hours in the cold is a good way to get to sleep," she said. "It was nice. But, yeah, I had some stuff to do--like wait for a reply from Ray--and it's Christmas Eve, so that's why I'm up." She ate some of the French Toast on her plate, waving to Ellen as she came downstairs. In response to her question, Sonja's face lit up.

"See for yourself," she said, reaching into her left jacket pocket. She produced a Net Ball, as well as Athena's Pokéball, both of which opened. From the former, a Totodile appeared, who looked around in surprise for a moment before jumping up in the air in glee, hugging the person nearest to him. Athena the Pidove, meanwhile, fluttered up to Sonja's shoulder, where she perched herself. Her trainer smiled, rubbing her head and feeding her some food. "His name is Neptune. Athena helped me catch him."

IC - Kyle Eston - Iccirus City: Kyle had been staring at Brycen for several minutes, seeming to not be paying attention to Zach as he talked. After a moment, he smiled broadly, looking at his partner in crime. "First off, if that's the same Brycen from the Brycenman series, I want an autograph," he said. "Regardless, I think a regular battle would be nice--considering what happened at the tournament, I need something to get myself back in the game. What does Hugh mean by 'chosen one,' though?"

IC - Ethan Gold - Village Bridge: "Hm... No idea," Gold said. "They might have tried to contact us, though, so that would be a good place to start."

IC - Mewtwo/Rockets - Strange Forest: Ethan nodded. "Let's get to it, then. Good luck, everyone."

Lafoyae and Jackson moved next to Mewtwo, bringing their Pokémon with them. Jackson threw a short, two-fingered salute to Ethan. "We'll try to get back and help you guys as soon as we can," he said. "Keep him busy until then."

Ethan nodded. "Will do," he said. With a nod from Mewtwo, the three teleported. Ethan looked at Gavin, Lucia, Jamie, and Chaz. "We'll wait by the edge of the forest; as soon as a reasonable number of those things pass by, we'll move out."


There were murmurs of surprise as Mewtwo and the two assassins appeared back in the clearing, though the nature of the whispers changed--for better or for worse--as the people realized that there was now a mysterious Pokémon standing in their midst, with no sign of the other Rocket agents from earlier.

"People, calm down, would'ya?" Jackson said to them, his serious expression catching enough of their attention to make them settle down. "The others are fine; while they continue investigating the Déoza agents' operations, we've found a way back into our home dimension." He looked at Mewtwo, ignoring the estatic rumble through the crowd. "You ready?" Mewtwo nodded. "A'ight. Get it open."

The Genetic Pokémon obliged, turning around and hodling his arms out. Focusing his psychic powers, he did as he had done for Adams, forcing a large, swirling vortex to appear in front of him. Briefly, it shook, and for a moment appeared to be on the verge of collapse. After a second or two, however, the portal stabalized. Jackson and Lafoyae moved to either side of it, forming a pair of openings between the two humans and the Genetic Pokémon for people to pass through orderly--as well as giving Jackson and Lafoyae a line of sight encompassing the entirety of the clearing.

"Let's get moving people; the quicker you're out of the here, the better you'll feel!" Jackson called loudly, his voice seeming to act as a jolt of thunder as the crowd began to move. At the front of the group, passing between Mewtwo and Lafoyae, was a woman with her son and daughter, who cast a short, slightly fearful look at Mewtwo as they walked by, recognizing him from the initial takeover. Mewtwo looked back at them, feeling a pang of what he knew to be regret in his chest as he realized what they must have felt back there, a feeling that was only amplified as he saw the cuts and bruises that were present on their arms and faces from the crash.

Perhaps it was a blessing that they passed through the portal as quickly as they did...

Meanwhile, Jackson and Lafoyae continued to keep watch, the former sending out all three of his Pokémon for extra security. So far, there was no sign of movement, though that would change shortly...


The Masked Man opened his eyes as the pool reached out to him. He did not know how it had happened, but it seemed that it was finally time, and he would not miss this chance. His children sensed it too, as they ceased their actions, all eyes turning to him in anticipation. The cold of the mask burning into his flesh, he looked back, staring through the chill.

"Time..." he said simply. "Go."

A great shuffling. Almost two dozen creatures swept forth from the cave, the tendonous trails connecting them to the pool extending as they descended down the mountain. The Masked Man remained behind, seating himself on his rock, turning his attention back to the slowly churning, newly energized pool. He could not leave. Not yet. Not until it was finished...


It was virtually a stampede; that was how Ethan would have described it. The creatures paid virtually no heed to them as they passed, heading in the direction of the clearing, stumbling like zombies through the trees and foliage. He waited until they were well away from the Rockets before moving out of the forest, walking toward the base of the mountain.

"Let's get this done quickly," he said, beginning to climb up a fairly stable almost-trail that traced up the mountain--evidently a result of constant use by Pryce and his creatures. The others followed quickly.

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC: Dack
"It must have started a month or two ago," Dack shrugged. "I'm not sure... I myself didn't find out about it until recently. I'm not really sure why, either, but I'd say it's a pretty good guess that these Darkrai want to take over the world."

IC Vincent
I nodded slowly. "World conquest; seems to be a trend these days. But shouldn't someone have stopped them by now? Lugia, Ho-Oh, Kyogre, Groudon, Rayquaza, Jirachi, Deoxys, Dialga, Palkia, Giratina, Reshiram, Zekrom, Kyurem, Genesect; wouldn't they be able to stop them? And why does the God who created this realm and all realms, the Alpha, the Original one Arceus hold his silence?"

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan/Ellen
"Woah!" Ryan stumbled back as the Totodile latched on to him. "He's an energetic little guy, isn't he?"

"It's nice to meet you, Neptune," Ellen grinned, patting the Totodile on the head. As quickly as he had leapt onto Ryan, Neptune turned to Ellen and gave her a hug as well.

Ryan smiled as he watched Ellen play with the Totodile. "So did you end up getting a reply from Ray?" he finally asked.

IC: Dack
"Your guess is as good as mine," Dack shook his head. "But I've heard that these Darkrai are far more powerful that any normal Legendary Pokemon. As for Arceus... I don't think anyone's heard anything from him in ages. You would think that he'd do something about all this, but as for now, it looks like we're on our own."

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent
How could they be that strong? And why would Arceus forsake us? I looked down uncertainly. Finally, I said "Well, where pokemon fail, tempered steel and unbreakable resolve must take it's place. As for awakening the victims, wouldn't 10 times the normal dose of full restore or a Lunar Wing suffice?"

[Parugi]

IC - Sonja Baron - Burks' House: "Not yet," Sonja said. "To be honest, I'll be surprised if they have a good enough signal to receive my message in this weather--I had to try half a dozen times for it to finally go through."

[Konuju]

IC: Dack
"I don't know about a full restore, but we were thinking some Lunar Wings might work," Dack said. "Either that or we could try finding a Cresselia. But first I want to find my friends... I need to know whether or not they've managed to escape the Darkrai."

IC: Ryan/Ellen
"So I guess we'll have to wait around here until he does respond," Ryan shrugged.

"We don't just have to wait here," Ellen shook her head. "I need to go Christmas shopping... after all, Christmas is tomorrow!"

"Shopping in this weather?" Ryan asked, looking out the window at the blowing snow.

[Constructman: Black Knight]

IC Vincent
"Hm,"I nodded. Lulu looked around anxiously. A riplle of energy came down my staff about every two seconds. "Hm."

[Nara]

OOC: I realized I have absolutely no idea what happened to Justin, so..

IC - Justin Icewater, PNT, Unova
"Good luck Zac!" Justin yelled out, before walking down the stands and into the main lobby of the National Tournament. He didn't know what happened to any of the others who were here, but he decided not to make it his concern. "Plush," he said, opening the Munna's Pokeball. She looked up cheerfully. "We're making a trip to the Dream World.

He walked into the bathroom with Plush trailing behind, and got into a stall. "Okay," he said. "Open the portal." The Munna nodded, and a sizeable portal opened on the stall door.

IC - Eric/Pierce, Route 38, Johto
"So, now what?" Eric asked. It seemed to be his favorite question. The pair was heading for Olivine City. "There's nothing on this side of Johto."

Pierce scoffed. "Olivine and Cianwood are on that side." he said. "Not to mention the Safari Zone, though, to be honest, I'm not sure if it's still running."

[Mega Man: The Blue Bomber]

IC: Bladesman

Bladesman saw the "demon" charge up with power, and imediatly jumped back and kicked Feral before he could do anything,

I don't care if I die! I will do what I can to help my master escape, by now he is long gone from Sinnoh!

IC: Zac and Bladesman

The two ran across the beach and into the town, if they couldn't save Bladesman, well...who knows. Shadows tossed Zac onto his back, and fly off faster, now that the two weren't walking beside each other, it made things faster.

[Hades]

IC: Feral

Feral was kicked, but he did not budge. Instead, he headbutted the Gallade viciously. He, while the Gallade was stunned, repeatedly punched him for a while, then, oddly enough stopped.

"I'll let you go now.", Feral said, opening a portal, "There'd be no point in killing you, espcially since you aren't the one I want to suffer. In commemoration of your bravery, I will spare you. This portal will take you to your friend."

With that, Feral and his pokemon vanished, leaving the portal and Bladesman behind......

IC: Lafoyae Belrose

Lafoyae sent out her Accelgor and Conkeldurr, who stood at attention, waiting for orders.

"Accelgor, Spread spikes around the area, we'll need them.", Lafoyae said, "Conkeldurr, stay with me."

The Accelgor dashed around the area around the clearing, throwing a flurry of spikes, which sunk into the ground. Her conkeldurr, with his tree canes, stood close to Lafoyae, eyes alert....

[Parugi]

IC - Sonja Baron - Burks House: Sonja looked out the window. The falling, swirling snow was like a white kaleidoscope outside, blurring the images of the surrounding village and the Christmas lights present on numerous buildings. Yet, even then, it was a beautiful sight.

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Sonja said. "Look--other people are out right now, and this probably isn't something Ellen hasn't dealt with before, right?" She stood up, bringing her plate and mug to the sink. "Probably a good idea to check with your mom, though, Ellen, just to be sure."

IC - Jackson Sang/Mewthree - Strange Forest Clearing: As Accelgor rushed around the clearing, Jackson spotted the first sign of movement--a group of four large, Gyrados-esque creatures pushing through the foliage, numerous other creatures behind them. He recognized them from where they had found Mewtwo--the dead body of one of them had been present, killed by Adams' group. It had been the only remaining casualty of the battle.

Jackson glanced at the people entering the portal behind them. There were about twenty left to go, including the Liberty trainer from earlier. They wouldn't be able to get through before the things got there... Looking at his Pokémon, he nodded, looking to Mewtwo.

"Lafoyae, let's go," he said. "We'll keep them busy for another few minutes."

I will assist you momentarily, Mewtwo said. A word of warning: Avoid the one that looks like mist.

"Duly noted," Jackson said. "Tracer, stay near Mewtwo; make sure nothing gets too close."

"Will do," his Ditto--having taken his typical human form--replied.

As the creatures entered the clearing--getting stuck with numerous spikes in the process--Jackson, Walker, and Claire charged...

[Mega Man: The Blue Bomber]

IC: Bladesman

Bladesman grimaced as he got up to his feet and looked at the portal. He was confused, but he had to get back to Zac. He hobbled into the portal and then was gone...


IC: Zac and Shadows

The two were flying through the town, heading towards Jubilife City. Then...THUD! Bladesman somehow appeared before them and they all crashed into each other. Zac got up and saw Bladesman in major pain.

"BLADESMAN!!" Zac yelled as he picked him up, "Are you okay?!"

Ill...I'll be fine...we need to leave....

Zac looked at Bladesman and then looked towards the road that would lead them to Junilife City.

"No. No. I won't let him get away!" Zac said as he returned Bladesman to his pokeball and said, "I'm avenging my family,"

He grabbed another pokeball and sent out Braviary, "Valor! Search for that guy with powers, Jubilife and we are gonna go run and find a place to stay! We are gonna protect Sinnoh,"