Dr. Hidaka

IC: Klim Prizak He had been silent for most of the trip, but as soon as he had heard "Sic 'em." Klim sent Moriarty out from his Dusk Ball. "Get that Ralts!" The Gripper Pokémon looked at the small Pokémon and determined he'd rather not fight it, but rushed towards them, aiming to grab them and gently toss them out of the fray. He couldn't bring himself to attack at full power with such an opponent.

IC: Klim Prizak "There's definitely a lot more for me to teach you, but......" Klim said, smiling. "You do realize that we don't start as masters, right?" The young man chuckled. "Let's just take the wins we get, and go from there. Now, let's see you do it again! Flex those Reverse muscles!"

IC: Klim Prizak Klim felt the power flow into him, and then gently brushed away Dahlia's hand from his shoulder. "All right, let's see if I can how you my way of doing things." Klim said as he looked at the water. "Prepare for a show unlike any other!" He stuck his hand out towards the water, focused his mind on reversing the mixture back into it's component bottles. A golden aura surrounded the young man for the briefest of moments, before the water began to flow out of the bottle, each stream of water entering it's former container, as if by magic. When it was over, Klim grabbed his head and sighed. "I forgot how powerful this power was." Klim said, panting a bit. "But, the basic principle is.....you are Matter's guide, as you reverse it's flow, be it unmixing water, or reducing something to it's components." Klim then faced Dahlia. "You supposed to be asking it to work with you, not commanding it to work for you. That's how it's worked for me."

IC: Klim Prizak The former Hero frowned at Dahlia's words, taking note of the woman's doubts. "I'm not gonna lie, it's tough, but........I may have an idea on how to help you." Klim siad, smiling a knowing smile. "Mind sharing a bit of your power so I can demonstrate how I could use the power of Reverse? I'm not sure if it'll work for you, but, maybe it'll give us a hint of how you can do it?"

IC: Klim Prizak Klim didn't need to be told twice. He went back to his seat and politely ate his food, glad to have finally found his successor. Though he wished it was under......less conspicuous circumstances, but beggars couldn't be choosers could they. The talk of Team Flare troubled the young man as he didn't know who the heck they were, but they'd cross that bridge when they got to it, wouldn't they?

IC: Klim Prizak So many things at once, and so little time... Klim thought as he thought of who to address first. He decided that it'd be best to go some order, starting with Jared. "It's true I don't have the power, and that I could temporarily share it with people when I had it." The young man said, chuckling a little as he faced Zoe. "As for sharing the power, I have to agree with Dahlia there." The Trainer then faced towards Jamie. "So! Dialga found a new Hero, or should a I say Heroine, to fill Seth's shoes! It is good to meet you, Jamie." He pondered for a moment about what he could say to Jamie's request. "I can't say I'd know toooooo much about being a Hero, but I'll do my best later, all right?" Lastly, Klim faced Dahlia. "Well, I mean, I wouldn't mind joining the mission you are on, but....." The young man said, smiling. "Before things got crazy, Giratina told me to keep a lookout for someone like you, saying you might need some guidance on how to use your powers. They said that Evan's style....might not work for someone like you. Granted........it's kinda hard to find one person in this world, especially when you are cut off from the one being who -could- tell you where they are. But that's neither here nor there." He then focused his eyes on Jared, sizing him up as the possible leader of the group. "So you mind telling me what this mission is?"

IC: ???, Resturant, Geosenge Town As the group began to squabble, a young man was settling into his meal. Near him was a Dusknoir, who floated near him, observing the group of arguing trainers. "Easy now, Moriarty, it's all good." His friend said, as the Gripper Pokémon tensed up at the group. "We'll be on our way before things reach a fever pit-" Then he heard a girl's voice yell at everyone to shut up. "-Ch." The young man said, groaning. "Well, we'd better intervene before they spoil anyone else's meal. C'mon, Moriarty." The trainer, decked out in a jacket and hat, seemingly themed after his Pokémon, walked over to the group's table, and began to speak. "Hey now, I've got to agree with her, at least on being quieter. You're bugging the other patrons...." The trainer drifted off as he looked at Dahlia, recalling a conversation he had with something great and powerful in the past. "Pardon me, but are you Dahlia Seaton?" The young mystery man asked, looking a little amazed at his luck. "I just want to know, because.......someone you know told me about you. Someone called.......Giratina?" Before Dahlia could reply, the trainer continued. "As for who is asking......." He bowed, before saying in a voice that echoed some degree of pride. "I'm Klim Prizak, Pokémon Trainer, and.....former Hero of Reverse."

-==IC: Evan Tierra/James Arthur/Jenny Hakuda/Masked Royal/??? - Battle Royal, Alola - [26]==- Lancelot took a few hops, side to side as he planned his next attack. “Lancelot. Attack from the left,” Avalon said to the Scizor. Lancelot saw that Monstro had less room to dodge if he followed Avalon’s instruction. Not that he expected the Swampert to dodge, but it was good to limit Monstro’s options. The Scizor hopped forward in a zig-zag pattern. He landed right near Monstro and let forth a left corkscrew at Monstro. Terra Incarnate, during the lead up to Lancelot’s attack, had noticed the crowd wasn’t exactly fired up. Sure, they were excited, but they could stand to be even moreso. When he saw Lancelot rushing towards Monstro, the Villain grinned menacingly. “Monstro, Hydro Pump when he hits you!” Evan said, deciding it was time to amp up the heat of the crowd. As soon as Lancelot’s gauntlet made impact, Monstro released a great deal of pressurized water from his mouth, aiming to push away the Scizor with it. Lancelot raised his other gauntlet to guard himself, but plenty of water hit before he could do so. Even after his guard was raised, the pressure of the water pushed him back to the edge again. He was soaking wet when the attack subsided. He moved to create a sword, when James cleared his throat to catch Lancelot’s attention. Lancelot looked to him and then to the crowd where James was pointing. It had gone into a stunned silence when Monstro had used Hydro Pump, causing Evan to step forward. “YES, ALOLA, I HAVE COME, WITH THE PRINCESS OF PERIL, TO DETHRONE THE MASKED ROYAL. FOR YOU SEE, WHAT BETTER TIME TO TAKE HIM DOWN, THAN WHEN HE HAS NO POWER, AND I DO?!” Terra Incarnate said, making sure to ham it all up for what it was worth. “SO YOU’D BETTER GIVE UP, AVALON, BEFORE YOUR PRECIOUS SCIZOR GETS HURT! MONSTRO, ICY WIND!” Monstro then rushed towards the steely bug and exhaled a chilling gust of breath at the Scizor, having the time of his life. The crowd was booing the villain’s heinous action and monologue. Avalon managed to look thoroughly surprised as he called out, “Lancelot, dodge!” The Scizor didn’t need to be told twice. He spread his wings and flew to stay away from the chilly wind. Bullet Punch could counteract the slowing effect of Icy WInd. But James wasn’t letting him use his moves yet. Has Lancelot told you how frustrating that is? The answer is very. He decided to go in for an attack regardless of the disadvantageous state. The crowd still needed a show. He flew in to try and hit Monstro’s head once again. “Monstro, batter him away with Hammer Arm!” Terra Incarnate said, laughing maniacally at the boos he was getting from the crowd. “Smash him like the bug he is!” Monstro was struck on the head once more, but heard his friend’s command, and battered his foe with a power Hammer Arm strike to the thorax. “Nothing personal, buddy.” Monstro growled at the Scizor as the Mud Fish struck him. As the two fire types continued to strike at each other, the Masked Royal focused on the Swampert's usage of powers with a shocked look on his face. However, he grinned, as it looked like a fire had been lit underneath him. Perfect! This might just work… The Masked Royal suddenly understood the meaning of Kris's words and glanced over to James. "Avalon!" The wrestler bellowed out to his partner, as he punched upwards in the air. "You can make a difference! Show the people of Alola what you can do! You too, Incineroar, turn the tides!" The tiger roared in acknowledgement. With a flying leap, he bounded out of the range of Boarlite's attacks, then landed on the ropes. "Now!" Using the ropes like a springboard, the Incineroar leaped up, as if he were using an unpowered version of Malicious Moonsault. The Emboar seemed surprised as she tried to dodge, but her foe landed directly on top of her. She struggled to escape, but she had been pinned to the ground rather successfully, much to the cheers of the crowd. "Now! See how your villainy fairs against the power of justice!" The Masked Royal cried out as Boarlite continued to struggle. Subtly, the Masked Royal began to motion to Evan, even as he held his hands up in the air in victory. The Princess of Peril looked in shock - these were amazing moves. "Tenlite, you seeing this?" She mumbled as she glanced down to her Poké Ball. She couldn't see the Litten's reaction, but could just bet that she was amazed by what was going on as well. Still - was there really no way to get out of that pin? Boarlite kept trying her best, but at this rate, it would take a miracle. *** While all this was going on, the blonde-haired woman from earlier watched from the shadows of the entrance with a grin. So… how are you gonna get out of this one, Princess of Peril? *** Lancelot’s movements became more cautious. James still hadn’t given the go ahead to use his moves. He really didn’t want to take another Hydro Pump or a Hammer Arm without anything to show for it. He ran in for a quick jab, intending to clear out as soon as the blow hit to avoid retaliation. Terra Incarnate saw the motions the Masked Royal had given him, but he didn’t need to be told twice. The audience needed more heat, and what better way to do that, by resorting to dirty tricks? “MONSTRO, BLOW THEM ALL AWAY WITH HYDRO PUMP.” The Villain cried out. “I’m certain the Princess of Peril won’t mind if her Emboar gets a little wet!” At his friend’s command, Monstro fired another blast of pressurized water, aiming to hit Lancelot, Boarlite, The Royal’s Incineroar, and most importantly, the Royal himself. “I WOULDN’T GET TOO SECURE, MASKED ROYAL!” Terra Incarnate said, as the crowd began booing him again. “Lancelot!” Avalon called. “Defend Incineroar. Use your full ability, I believe you can do it!” Finally. Lancelot began to run. His run turned in a blazing fast dash carried by Bullet Punch. He outpaced the water by running diagonally, placing himself directly between the torrent of water and Incineroar. Earlier, he could’ve Roosted with no one the wiser. But now he was gonna make sure everyone knew that’s what he was doing. He began to glow as he braced himself for the impact. His old wounds began to disappear as he took new ones. “A true ally of justice never abandons his comrades! And a true warrior has no need of underhanded tricks!” Avalon managed to say with a completely straight face. As the attack subsided, Lancelot began to twirl. As he span, an ethereal yellow blade formed. Lancelot grasped that blade before letting out a loud chirp. The real battle would begin from here. The torrent had been blocked for the most part. The swaying motion of the Hydro Pump had been mostly blocked, though through no fault of Lancelot's, part of the attack had made it past his guard. The Masked Royal hid a grin as he watched it come straight for him. When the attack landed, the wrestler made an exaggerated motion as if the attack had more strength behind it than it actually did, then fell backwards to the ground. He made sure to have his foot land in a way that made it seem worse than it was. The aftermath was a mixture of cheers for Lancelot, then murmurs as the crowd realized that the Masked Royal was holding his ankle and not standing up. A couple people walked over toward the ringside where the Masked Royal was and began to talk with him for a little bit. "WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE RING?! THIS IS SOMETHING WE'VE COME TO KNOW, BUT THIS IS STILL CHAOS NOW!" The announcer yelled out, shocked speechless from the events that happened. "The Scizor has regained their powers, and the Masked Royal seems to be down for the count! What does this mean? Does the Masked Royal have to give up the match? Does this mean that he will lose his title?! What will happ-" "Evil will not prevail!" A speakerphone signaled the arrival of a masked woman on one of the runways to the stage. "The title only gets lost if the Masked Royal forfeits or loses the match. But!" The woman pointed to the stage with enthusiasm. "If he tags out… then the title is preserved!" She smiled confidently as she stepped toward the stage, then held her hand out to the Masked Royal. With a nod, the other wrestler tagged her hand, as the other two people helped him out of the ring. "MY name… is Blaze Dark! The fiery anomaly championed by the forces of darkness!" The woman said as she climbed into the ring. Fetching a Poké Ball, she quickly sent out her Cranidos to take the stage. "And I will never let evil prevail! I will bend darkness to my will to ensure that!" "This is unprecedented! This is incredible! A new wrestler has taken the Masked Royal's place, and she seems out to get these challengers no matter the disadvantage!" The announcer looked over to Lancelot, who again seemed to be pumped up. "And on the other side of the ring, Avalon seems to be just as fired up as Blaze Dark! Will these two newcomers make the most unlikely pair to take down the challengers?!" As the Masked Royal walked off stage, he grinned back. Blaze Dark had requested to enter in earlier, but he hadn't quite expected the payoff to be like this. "Kukui, sir, careful on your foot." The aide cautioned, to which the wrestler laughed. "Don't worry! I simply used the trick of the eyes. I'm fine." To emphasize, he put his full pressure on his foot for a moment with a grin. "I must ask, though, who is Kukui?"

IC - Lafoyae Belrose/Executive Scott Stone - Streets, Lavender Town: Lafoyae was already wide awake and raring to go. She had showered, dressed up and done her morning stretches. Her rest had been less than ideal, and she only had her mission to blame for it. With a soundless sigh, the Rocket Agent grabbed her Pokégear and sent him a message asking if he was ready. It took only a few seconds for Scott to reply: "Waiting in lobby." With the Executive's reply, Lafoyae hurriedly packed what few belongings she had brought with and exited her hotel room. The woman made her way to the lobby, where she saw Scott Stone. "My apologies for my tardiness, sir." The assassin projected to the Executive. "I had to make sure I was ready for the next leg of our investigation." "Don't worry about it." Scott shouldered his bag. "Next is Vermilion, right? Did you want to grab something to eat before we go?" "If that isn't a problem, then I'd have to say yes." The woman projected to the Executive. "After we are on our way, we should review the facts of our case, just so we have them for the Vermilion Branch's assistance." "Sounds like a plan." Scott pulled his notepad from his pocket, flipping it open as he followed Lafoyae back into the buffet area. "They've got some quick options that you can grab to go, so just let me know when you're ready." With Scott's OK, the woman grabbed a Miltank Breakfast Pizza, smiling as she did so. She made sure to grab some Oran Berry Juice as well. With that settled, Lafoyae headed over to Scott. "I think this will tide me over until we make our next stop, sir. Shall we then?" Scott nodded and led Lafoyae out of the hotel. In theory, daytime should have dispelled some of the inherent eeriness of Lavender Town; in practice, the morning mist served to make it just as unsettling as it had been the night before, hardly helped at all by the sun shining through the clouds. It reminded him of something out of a long-forgotten video game or horror movie. With a barely-contained grimace, he turned down the road heading south, taking note of the signs around them. Eventually they would need to start heading west. He wasn't sure exactly how long it would take to reach Vermilion on foot, but he knew for certain that it would not be a short trip. He held up his notepad. "Alright," he said, reading through what he had written down up to now. "Where to even begin . . ." "Well, we could start with the fact that someone appears to be targetting Team Liberty agents." Lafoyae projected, as she enjoyed her pizza slice. "....and that there have been six murders of such individuals committed thus far." "Right." Scott flipped the page. "Jeremy Anton, Jason Hemming, Virden Kennings, Tim Vandius, Kai Stone, Drake Masters, and Roderick Krane. Six murders across Rocket territory, all performed in locations with virtually no witnesses--until Masters." He flipped back. "Method was extremely barbaric in nature, to the point where initial assumptions indicated that feral Pokémon were responsible. But we now know that that isn't the case." Lafoyae nodded."The killer appears to be a young girl with an affinity for ghost-types." She projected into Scott's mind. "Drake and his Pokémon's bodies showed signs of electrical burns and shadow damage, suggesting an Electric or Ghost-Type's involvement, or both." "And in a great twist of irony, one of those very ghosts confirmed her involvement. Additionally, surviving records from Masters's Poké Gear seem to indicate that she is acting on behalf of the deceased Shadow Admin Ace." Scott flipped the notebook closed. "Are we missing anything?" Lafoyae thought for a moment. "I believe that's what we have for now." The psychic projected. "We're heading to Vermilion to hopefully find out where she went after Lavender Town, with the aid of Team Rocket's surveillance system. Hopefully they can provide us with a clue or two..." "Am I safe to assume that you have access to said surveillance?" Scott asked. "Of course, Executive Stone." Lafoyae answered. "I've got the proper clearance, seeing as I've used it for my missions." Scott nodded. "Then I guess all we've got left to do is . . ." He held a hand out in front of him, gesturing to the road and falling into silence. This did not last; before long, Scott glanced at Lafoyae, sighed, and shook his head slightly. "So, I have to know . . . Why is an assassin, who is often hired for hunting Team Liberty Agents, now going after another assassin hunting Team Liberty Agents?" "I've been hired by James Arthur." Lafoyae projected, a little caught off guard. "Ever since the ceasefire I've been more of a hunter of rogue Team Rocket Agents. However, as an assassin, I, like the rest of my family are for hire in times like this." "A family of assassins, huh?" Scott whistled. If he was alarmed by any part of this conversation, he wasn't showing it. "Not sure what to think about that." "It's not as cruel as you'd believe, Executive Stone." Lafoyae replied. "The Belrose family is like any other family in Kalos. We just prefer to get our hands dirty so no one else has to." "If you say so." He did not sound convinced. "Are you all telepathic? "I'm the only one of my family who is telepathic." Lafoyae projected. "I was born mute, but gifted with psychic abilities. However, my family had me focus on telepathy, so I could still communicate." "So, theoretically, you could do other things with your abilities?" "Of course. I just haven't had the time or training for other applications." Lafoyae projected to Scott. "Though, with how things are going, I may need to fix that. I can't just rely on my martial prowess against.....those things." "Yeah. Now if Pokémon powers came back, that might be a different story. Who knows when that'll happen, though." Truthfully, he was not holding out hope that that would happen anytime soon. It'd been, what, two weeks since they had first gone out? And still, nothing had come back yet. The closest they had seen was the Gengar, but even then . . . "Well, at any rate, I'm sure there are some psychics back on Four Island who might be up for training with you," he said. "But for now, we'll still got this walk ahead of us."

-==IC: Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur/Masked Royal - Battle Royal, Alola - [25]==- As Jenny entered the waiting room, she immediately noticed Evan in his fancy new costume. With a grin, she approached with a small wave. "So! Ready to beat up some weakling goodie two shoes?" Jenny asked in her best attempt at a tough, evil voice. However, the attempt simply resulted in her laughing. "Okay, okay, maybe I could use a bit of practice there, but still! The Princess of Peril is ready for action!" “Terra Incarnate is ready to shake things up” Evan said, grinning. “I'm not gonna lie, playing a villain is kinda new, but I'm sure I can pull it off!” Jenny was about to reply, when a voice over the speakers in the room announced that they were to get ready to head onstage. "Right! Let's give everyone here who's watching a show they won't ever forget!" The villain grinned fearsomely. “By the time we're done here, the memory of our fight will be burned into their minds!” Evan said menacingly. The four combatants were called to the stage slowly. First, the Masked Royal was called to the stage to many cheers. Then, suddenly, the bright lights all cut out. "Here come the challengers… here to take advantage of the power outage…! Could they be the ones responsible? Was this all a ploy to steal the Masked Royal's title…?!" At that prompt, Evan and Jenny stepped onto the stage with menacing auras, as their best attempts at an evil grin didn't completely succeed. Still - the stage was set, with this seeming to be a 2 v 1 fight. "The Masked Royal seems to be backed into a corner…! Can anyone help him fend off these two villains?!" “It seems you are in quite a bind, Masked Royal,” a voice called out from the final corner. The spotlight came down to the final corner. James stood there in his costume, the upper-half of his face hidden by his mask. He was holding a prop sword in his right arm, as he stood at attention. “I will not allow you to fight this battle alone. I have come to lend you my aid!” James shouted, shifting his stance to point his blade towards Evan. "Oh!" The announcer sounded surprised by the sudden appearance of James, but Jenny could tell it was just them acting like the rest of them. Still, she grinned as she looked between the two. "I'll take the Masked Royal, sound good?" Jenny whispered to Evan, as she chose her Emboar's Poké Ball with an excited look on her face. “You've got it, Princess.” Evan said, eying James with anticipation. "Right then." Jenny didn't pay any more attention to the announcer - things were all ready, now it was simply time to fight. It felt like forever, but the bell finally rang out to signal the start of the fight. The redhead threw Boarlite's Poké Ball forward, as she grinned. As she did so, the Masked Royal met that with an Incineroar. With powers out, this felt like it would be even more evenly matched than normal. Evan faced James as Jenny sent out Boarlite. The Executive was a truly magnificent fighter, which made the man excited. “Well, while my Princess fights the Masked Royal, IT FALLS TO ME TO DESTROY YOU!” Terra Incarnate roared as he sent out Monstro, who flexed fearsomely at James. James made a long sweeping motion of tossing his hair with his hand dramatically. With a flourish, he tossed an Ultra Ball to the ground. Lancelot appeared and adopted a defensive stance from the get go. Was this to be powers or no powers? It barely mattered to Lancelot, but both had their special flavor of pain to give. “I swear on the name of Avalon, that the Masked Royal shall not be bested this day.” “We’ll see about that!” Terra Incarnate as he made a powerful flourish of his own. “Monstro, strike this fool down with your mighty body!” Monstro growled as he rushed towards Lancelot, aiming to use his weight to slam into the Scissors Pokémon. “The dance begins,” Avalon replied. “Respond in kind my champion!” The Scizor spread his wings. He kicked off the ground and flew towards Monstro, one gauntlet being pulled back, ready for a punch. Monstro slammed into the knightly Pokémon, aiming to pin him from the get-go. He had been told by Evan to not exert -all- of his effort into this, saying that the crowd wanted a spectacle, and that was what they were going to get. The two bodies flew back towards Avalon a brief distance, but the moment Lancelot’s leg touched the ground, the Scizor shifted his weight and jabbed his gauntlet straight into Monstro’s face as hard as he could. James may have told Lancelot not to use his moves unless Evan did, but he was not going to hold back in any other regard. Monstro felt the heavy impact of Lancelot’s gauntlet on his face and flew back a ways, down, but not out. “My dear Monstro, are you really going to let this puny bug stand in your way?” The Villain asked his Swampert. “I know you are definitely more than able to stomp him!” The Mud Fish thought about how hard Lance had hit him. Despite what Evan had told him, this show would be a flop if he didn’t exert more effort into this fight. That thought in mind, Monstro attempted another slam, this time putting his all into it. Lancelot hopped backwards, leading the Swampert towards the boundary of the stage. As the Swampert attempted his slam, Lancelot hopped up onto the ropes. Using his wings to grant himself just a bit of extra height, the Scizor leaped over the Swampert and attempted to slam his gauntlet onto Monstro’s head. Yet again, Monstro was struck on the noggin, and was getting quite annoyed with Lancelot’s acrobatics. “No time to dawdle, Monstro!” Terra Incarnate yelled fiercely. “Bat him away with your mighty arm!” Monstro roared as he turned around, a little dazed from the attacks to his head, and using the momentum from his turn, the Mud Fish slammed the entirety of his forelimb into Lancelot, joyful to have finally struck his worthy adversary. Lancelot slid back from the force. He grabbed onto the rope to slow himself down. For a brief moment, the Scizor internally compared Monstro to Gawain. The Swamperts moved differently in combat. But both were quite fun to hit. And they could both pack a punch. Lancelot considered cheating at that moment. He could’ve Roosted with no one the wiser, but this was a show. And if the hero didn’t take a battering, it wasn’t a show was it? Meanwhile, the two fire types rushed toward each other, a wide grin on each of their faces. Boarlite did her best to make her grin seem evil, but as the Emboar and Incineroar circled each other, it was obvious that she was enjoying the situation a lot more for just an evil Pokémon. The two grappled each other briefly, both trying to overpower the other. After a couple moments, the two broke out of their mutual grasp and backed up, eying down the other's stance. As the two continued to stare each other down, the Masked Royal's Incineroar dashed forward, aiming to grab for Boarlite. She was caught off guard by the sudden move, and was unable to dodge as the Incineroar grabbed onto her and threw the surprised Emboar against the ropes. The Emboar thought it was a tactic to catch her off guard to the point where she didn't expect to see a flying tiger's feet headed right toward her face the next moment. Boarlite tumbled to the ground for a few moments, stunned after the unconventional-to-her attack. The Emboar got up, a puff of smoke emanating from her mouth as she growled. The crowd cheered on the successful hit by the Masked Royal - but it was her job at the moment to get the crowd even more pumped up. Roaring out, she ran forward toward the Incineroar once more, pulling back her fist in the process. The Emboar stepped to the side quickly as the Incineroar tried to grab her once again, then planted her fist right in the side of the fiery tiger's face. She was getting booed now - but that was all part of it. Boarlite grabbed for the Incineroar, then leaped up and tried to body slam him from above, starting to catch onto the fact that in this arena, any sort of unconventional attack was considered proper. The Incineroar took the attack due to his own surprise at how quickly his opponent caught onto the Battle Royal's fighting style. However, he quickly kicked Boarlite off of him, then jumped up and got into a fighting stance with a taunting growl, waving his hand toward himself. "Well well, excellent play, Princess of Peril… But I won't go down that easily! Thank you, my masked friend!" The Masked Royal called to James with a smile. "Let's show them what the power of good can do!" “Those who have justice on their side shall never lose,” James said smiling. Lancelot was having a blast. He didn’t know what would come of Evan and Jenny’s plans for this battle, but to see Lancelot happy was reason enough for this battle.

-==IC: Kris Homura/Jenny Hakuda/Evan Tierra/James Arthur/??? - Royal Avenue, Akala, Alola - [24]==- The day had come. Kris glanced around nervously as she tapped her foot on the ground. The crowd was slowly trickling into the building, but despite that, there was not nearly as many people gathered as she had hoped. The blue-haired woman anxiously looked around as the small crowd of people began to make their way toward the stands. To the side, she saw the three people that she had been training, who would be partaking in the match an hour from then. "So, those are the people in this event?" A masked man grinned as he glanced over to Evan, Jenny, and James. "They look strong! Strong enough to take on the Masked Royal." "That's my hope. I think this could inspire everyone again in these trying times." Kris smiled at the wrestler, as she thought over the events of the past few days. "It's possible that this could end up surprising, depending on how things go, too." "Oh? Really now?" The Masked Royal asked as he glanced over with a raised eyebrow. Kris was about to respond, when she caught a glimpse of a blonde woman. She didn't stand out among the crowd, but as their eyes met, something felt… familiar. Kris unconsciously took a step forward, even as the younger woman averted her eyes intentionally, moving to vanish into the crowd further. "Who…?" Kris mumbled as she shook her head, trying to focus back on the conversation. "Is something the matter?" The wrestler asked with a frown, as he noticed how distracted Kris seemed to have gotten in the matter of seconds. Kris shook her head again, though wore a frown as if something was still on her mind. "No, I thought I saw someone I recognized, but I don't know how I recognize them, as I don't know who they are." There was silence for a few moment, but the Masked Royal grinned. "Well, it's something to think about! Maybe they're a big fan and you'll get some answers after the match! If you think the match will be surprising, then I'm as fired up as a Flare Blitz! We should start to get ready - you should gather the others to the dressing rooms." The wrestler laughed heartily, then walked off toward the private waiting areas to prepare. Kris watched the Masked Royal go, then searched the crowd once again. There didn't seem to be any sign of the woman she had seen, so she gave up for the moment and walked over to where the other three were. "Oh, hey Kris! How are the preparations looking?" Jenny asked cheerfully, as she noticed her mentor approaching. "Pretty good." Kris replied with a smile, as she tried to not seem either worried about the current crowd or distracted by the mystery woman. "We should be all set-up soon, so it sounds like it's time to get our costumes ready in a moment." “I’m feeling ready. A bit nerved up, but the stage awaits us!” Evan said, flashing a grin. He wasn’t sure what to expect from his costume, but was sure it would be fit for the man who would call himself Terra Incarnate. “Costumes…” James said, also wondering what exactly he had gotten himself into. Although, after being seen by Vert in THAT piece of extremely vintage, highly prized among collectors, monstrosity, he wasn’t sure how embarrassed he could be. "Alright, I'm ready too!" Jenny grinned, as she seemed curious about what her costume would be like. With a pleased look on her face, Kris led the way to where the dressing rooms were, leading Jenny into the women's room, while Evan and James were led into another room by an assistant. *** Evan was suiting up into his costume, making sure that every detail was all right. Given how it looked, at least to the Hero of Space, he’d probably ask to keep it. He looked over at James, after adjusting his mask for the last time. “How you feeling, sir?” The Plasma Agent inquired. “Costume fitting ok?” James was still getting dressed. He had requested a few… alterations. There was getting into character, and then there was abandoning all your standards entirely to wear something ridiculous. It was still pretty ridiculous by modern standards, but on the stage it would do. “It will do,” James said at last. Thankfully they were all wearing masks anyway. *** "Are you nervous?" Kris asked Jenny as the younger woman checked to make sure her costume was okay for about the tenth time in a row. "A little… I haven't really done anything on this scale before, and I hope I can manage to fill my role properly. Then again, I think anything at this point would do well to help." Jenny chuckled, as she abandoned her attempt to adjust her mask again. "Well, that's definitely fair. I mean, I feel nervous and I'm not even the one fighting--" Kris's reply was cut short as the door to the dressing room opened again. A masked woman was outside the door, trying to enter despite one of the attendant's protests. "I'm here officially; check your records if you need to." The masked woman said as she held up a piece of paper to the attendant. After a moment, the protests stopped, and the woman entered the room. Jenny looked curiously at the blonde-haired woman, though she also noticed that Kris was just standing there, eyes fixed on the woman. "Kris, are you okay?" Jenny asked, though she got no reply. The redhead poked her mentor in the shoulder, but again got no response. The only indication that she was still awake, was her head moving as the blonde-haired woman approached. "Princess of Peril, isn't it?" The newcomer asked with a grin. Jenny's eyes widened behind the mask as she recognized the voice and outfit from the day before. A subtle shake of the woman's head stopped Jenny's question before she could ask it. "Hope you'll put on a good show today." Jenny spotted a bag on the woman's shoulder, but she began to walk off with a grin. However, after a moment, the masked woman turned around, a concerned look on her face as she stared at Kris's back. Kris turned around, then, a troubled look on her face. "... Who are you?" "Sure you want the answer to that question…?" The masked woman asked with a frown before turning her head down to the ground. Kris said nothing for a moment, as she began to hear the five minute warning get ready. "... Jenny, you go ahead. I… need some answers here. I'll catch up when I can." "Alright… I hope you have good luck with those!" Jenny gave her mentor a smile for a moment, before she headed off to the waiting room where Evan would be headed to.

-==IC: James Arthur/Evan Tierra/Kris Homura/Jenny Hakuda - Haina Desert, Alola - [21]==- The group waited for their enemies to be long gone before they left. Percival and Monstro reverted to their normal forms. The Chandelure promptly collapsed. Ghost chandeliers don’t have adrenaline, but whatever they do have ran out. James reminded himself to shower the Chandelure with affection when he had a free moment. Find out what he likes and bury him in it. For now, he was content to retreat Percival while saying a quiet “Well done.” Evan promptly gave Monstro a thumbs up, who upon reverting, fell down in a satisfied heap on the ground.”I knew you had it in you!” Evan said, as he recalled the Mud Fish to his Poké Ball. When the group stepped out of the ruins and into the sandy wastes, all three cars were long gone. James was almost a little impressed they had actually managed to get their bodies together long enough actually drive all three cars. It was a shame though, he’d been hoping to rummage through one of them for evidence. Or even just use it to drive back to civilization. Now they’d have to walk back again. James was about to take a step when something caught his eye. The remains of the first assailant’s gun was by his feet. He pulled a plastic bag from his briefcase. He’d rather not have it on him for long, but it’d be preserved until he could have it analyzed. All the while, Kris had stayed quiet, thinking back to her finding back at the end of the battle. "I managed to get something earlier." The blue-haired woman spoke up, as she looked at the rest of the group. "I was trying to find the name of the man who ran the opposite way from the others, and I succeeded. His name was Lohe Mahina." “Lohe…..Mahina?” Evan inquired, recalling the appearance of the man who told them about Alola. “Jenny and I know a Lohe Mahina, but……….he didn’t look like that man.” Jenny nodded to confirm what Evan said. James pondered the name for a moment. “Where did you meet this ‘Lohe Mahina’?” James asked. “On Four Island.” Evan said. “He’s the one who told us about Z-Moves and about Alola.” “He is on Four Island?” James said, parroting the words back. “I understand. I will inquire about him. The name may be a coincidence. But it also might not be.” James began to scratch his chin. “Just trying to confirm this but have any of you heard of a power set quite like that one before?” “I’ve seen a lot in my time, but nothing like -that-.” Evan said, recalling the numerous powered foes he had fought in the past. “Moonlight, beams of light, appearing from shadows, maybe, but regeneration? That’s something I haven’t exactly heard of in people…..” Kris and Jenny both shook their heads too, to confirm that neither of them had heard of such a type of power either. "It was super weird, too, like how were they able to just regrow their limbs so quickly?" Jenny wondered, as she frowned in contemplation. "Plus, how they kept shrugging off things like those bullets that were sent back to them…" “I thought as much,” James said. “That is something else I will have to look into.” Without knowledge of what exactly it was that they were dealing with, it would make things more difficult to report to the Alolan authorities. Such abilities weren’t so beyond the pale as to be unbelievable, but it would strengthen their claims if they knew what they were. “And lastly, there is Tapu Bulu,” James said, turning around. Tapu Bulu was observing the damage that had been dealt to his shrine. “I cannot say that these assailants will not return to attack Tapu Bulu again. If they have allies, or even if their regeneration allows them to heal all of their wounds, they might try again. I think we need to have a talk with Tapu Bulu.”

-==IC: Kris Homura/Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur - Ruins of Abundance, Alola - [19]==- The Kommo-O turned suddenly at the sudden light that flung toward her. Without much time to react at all, the orb struck her hard, sending the dragon flying through the air and into the wall. Winded, the Kommo-O could only glare back at her assailant, a look of anger at how much damage the odd human did. Monstro howled in pain as the Marowak’s club made its mark on the Mud Fish Pokémon Growling weakly, the Water-Type attempted to swing his left forelimb into the Bonekeeper to knock it away, only pausing for a moment when Tapu Bulu made the scene. Meanwhile, Vlad had been bitten by the Lycanroc, and shouted in pain. The Fang Scorp decided to give it a taste of it’s own medicine, and attempted to bite back right on it’s muzzle. The knife lodged itself into Landorus’s shoulder, as he turned in fury towards the thrower, and was immediately rendered drowsy by her hypnotic gaze. "Tapu Bulu?" Kris could only stare in amazement at the island's guardian as they appeared. She noticed the expression on Bulu's face and felt it was only natural, considering the damage that had been dealt to the Ruins up until now. Still, she couldn't find the words to actually say anything more - and could only hope that Bulu was there to help the hapless group of trainers-turned-investigators. Jenny felt mostly the same, as she stayed quiet, keeping hope that Bulu would recognize that they were wanting to stop these desecrators too. Evan looked on in amazement as Tapu Bulu made their appearance, and they didn’t look happy with the damage done to their shrine. In fact, the man hoped that they wouldn’t turn their anger on the group of trainers. ”I guess we’ll find out sooner than later.” The Plasma Agent thought. The old one created another orb of light. The light span in a less controlled look than the one before, belying the man’s unchanged expression. He rushed Kommo-O a second time with the orb, intending to incapacitate the Kommo-O quickly so he could turn his attention to more important matters. Celebi backed up slowly as the Dhelmise’s whirling anchor kept getting closer. She backed up to a wall, but the Dhelmise approached her carefully. Hoping that it would lodge itself in the wall wasn’t going to work. There was a point to effectively pinning herself against a wall, however. She would need to take a hit for this to work, but it might just force the Sea Creeper Pokemon to play by her rules. She waited until the anchor passed her once more, and then moved into the anchor’s path. When the chain came around again, she turned and shot back towards the wall. She grabbed the anchor and with her strength, altered its path. She was almost immediately knocked away by the chain, but inertia took care of the rest. With its path altered, the anchor slammed right into the wall and got stuck. It would be able to pull itself, given some time. The real prize was in order to do that, it was either gonna have to scrape the seaweed in between the wall and the anchor, or loosen the seaweed so that she could strike. The second option meant she wasn’t free to help the others, but it gave her some breathing room. The Salazzle rubbed her neck, glad to be freed from the Kommo-O’s grasp. She decided the old one had the Kommo-O under control, so she decided to help the Crabominable. The Ice-Fighting type was warily guarding itself against Boarlite and Scizlite. The leader sent out a Drampa that also approached Boarlite and Scizlite. The Crabominable continued to wait for his allies to get closer to attack. The assailant hypnotizing Landorus into his current state pooled a small amount of moonlight into her palm. She silently placed her palms together. The light in one hand tore through her other palm, tearing open the area that had healed wrong. And while it began to bleed again, she opened her mouth and moved near Landorus. She wanted to consume his dream to guarantee the correct healing of her hand this time. The Araquanid quickly backed off of the legendary. As quickly as it could, considering the state of his leg. He started moving in the direction of Monstro to help Marowak. The Marowak just got smacked. His ghost typing helped, but he still got hit. He twirled his bone as he regained his footing. He then approached Monstro and attempted to hit him again. Meanwhile, the Lycanroc was still engaged in his mouth to mouth combat with Vlad. At this point he was attempting to force Vlad’s mouth open while he continued to bite Vlad. At the same time, Gawain was trying to crush the Persian with a bear hug, while the Persian slashed at his face. The leader stared down Tapu Bulu, who stared right back at him. The leader pulled moonlight into his hand, causing the room to briefly dim once again. He shot the light out in a beam straight at Tapu Bulu. The guardian was ready and moved out of the way. Only the very edge of the beam managed to clip Tapu Bulu. The guardian charged his opponent. He braced himself and dug his heels in. Tapu Bulu was able to slowly push the leader back, but little else. The guardian knew that, but this was a matter of buying time. The other two assailants appeared, one struck Tapu Bulu from behind with ghastly power, while the other took a few shots at it with his submachine gun. The bullets bounced off Tapu Bulu’s body, causing some minor bruising but little else. James was still processing what was going on. They had guessed they wanted something with Tapu Bulu. That was the reason why they chose to follow this group in the first place. But there was no attempt to capture Tapu Bulu. The implications that began to reveal themselves to James were disturbing. The wall began to pound. It caught James’s attention. The leader frowned as he heard it. It didn’t sound like Wearbear pounding, and Frankenstein would’ve phased through the wall. That meant it had to be... Lancelot broke through the wall and stepped into the entryway. He picked up the ethereal sword as he did so. James began to beam, though he wondered why he was carrying a small bug type on his head (as did Lancelot, but the bug refused to let Lancelot go alone). The leader cursed softly as he let Tapu Bulu go, before disappearing. If the Scizor had his power, and could beat Frankenstein, he was now the top priority. The Kommo-o growled as she saw the light in the man's hands. She tried to dodge the orb, but was too slow in reacting. The orb smashed into the dragon, and knocked her out quickly - a beam of light shot forth from the Poké Ball in Kris's hand to make sure that the Kommo-O didn't take any more damage than she needed to. However, Kris swapped that Poké Ball for two more, deciding to send out her Pidgeot and Shuckle instead. The Pidgeot let out a loud "caw!" before attempting to divebomb the man in retaliation for the attack. The Shuckle quickly moved forward as well, though she attempted to act more as a distraction than anything here. Jenny watched as Scizlite and Boarlite stared down their approaching opponents. She thought to give orders, but saw that the Scizor and Emboar were already running toward the Crabominable to do a tag-team attack before the reinforcements could get there. She thought about sending out a third Pokémon to help out, but Lancelot's appearance changed her mind on those plans. She grinned, as she turned to Evan. "I've got an idea." She said, quiet enough for only the other three to hear. "Pass." The old one’s ear twitched. His mouth began to move softly. Evan nodded with a grin as he got the gist of what was meant. As he focused on the barrier a little, he moved his hands to the right. Jenny felt the power of Space shift to her and figuratively leaped into action as the barrier began to fall. Motioning very slightly with her hands to not tip off the opponents to what was going on, she did her best to attempt to try something that in theory could work - creating a barrier that went through one of the opponents - specifically the one who had struck Tapu Bulu from behind. It was not the best idea in concept, she even had to admit that, but this was past the point of dealing with good concepts. Once it had been set up, she left it there for a split second, before she sent the Power of Space back to Evan so the normal barrier could go back up again; the pink energy surrounding them once more. The moment the man felt a thing, his entire body disappeared into the ground. The old one smiled at this. He shouldn’t be surprised they’d heard his warning, but with young ones it was always a gamble. He vanished as well, as the Pidgeot tore through the spot where he had been. Whether he needed to or not was out of the question. The group of trainers was proving to be a problem. Evan frowned at what the old one did, but then focused his attention on the battle at hand. Tapu Bulu wasn’t a capture target, given what these assailants were using on them. They had to turn the tide, lest something awful happen to Tapu Bulu. The Hero then saw his Pokémon fighting valiantly, but focused his eyes on Landorus, with the woman who tried to stab him doing something that appeared to be very painful, then on Monstro, who, despite everything, was still on his feet, despite the duo that was ready to finish him off.”C’mon, Monstro! Show them what you can do! You’ve taken on worse than this, and I know that, despite everything, you can beat them!” Vlad was determined not to let the Lycanroc win this duel of fangs and teeth, and so, he lashed his tail out towards the lupine Pokémon, hoping to catch them off guard with a two-pronged attack. Monstro on the other hand, was not having a good time with how much damage he had taken. His body was hurting everywhere, this accursed Marowak just would not let up, and he was going to get yet another friend to help beat up the already battered Swampert. ”It goes to show you, I’m just a punching bag, even with what I had before.” The Mud Fish thought as he recalled all the times he had been effortlessly been beaten or hadn’t done much in a fight. Be it back in that city with all the trees, or that weird egg, he just felt like he couldn’t do much of anything.. ”Why does he keep me around, when I can’t seem to do more than get beat up?” Then he heard it. He heard his master, no, his friend, behind his bubbly-looking shield, urging him to continue fighting. Despite all his failures, this man had kept him around. Not only that, but he adored him for all that he’d done. There was no questioning it. He could do this. Suddenly, a sphere of blinding light encompassed the Swampert, lighting the gloomy ruins up even moreso than before. The Marowak’s strike bounced off the cocoon of light, which then broke with a sound like glass shattering. Before the Araquanid and Marowak, stood Monstro, and yet he was different. His hind legs looked more muscular, with an even-larger tail. His upper body swelled with more musculature and definition than before, arms adorned with orange swellings and power hands. His head fins had shrunken and gone down the length of his back, along with a third dorsal fin. He eyed his new form, and grinned at the feeling of immense power swelling within him. He then looked at the Marowak who had caused him so much grief, decided to test something.raising his mighty left fist, he propelled it forward, but as he did so, jets of water shot out of the swellings on his arm, adding even more speed and force to his punch. It was his time to shine and he was gonna start it off right. The Marowak went flying clear across the field of battle. He slammed clear into the wall on the other side of the room. He wasn’t quite out yet, but even he knew another one of those and he was gone. He propped himself up with his bone. He might not have been out, but he had to switch opponents or he was gone. The assailant who ate Landorus’s dream and one of the two assailants still clashing with Tapu Bulu immediately shifted their focus. The latter pooled moonlight into his hand and shot it at Monstro, while the other ran to get into his face so she could put him to sleep the way she had Landorus.

-==IC: Kris Homura/Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur/Lancelot - Ruins of Abundance, Alola - [18]==- Lancelot stared down the Bewear. A task that would be simpler if it wasn’t staring back with such a cutesy expression albeit one belied by the many sewn up scars that were visible underneath all the fuzziness. James hadn’t given an explicit order telling him that his earlier order of ‘no moves’ was over. However, James had told him not to let himself be overwhelmed. And James hadn’t told Lancelot explicitly to not use moves. Lancelot spread his wings. He took off, into the air. White streaks formed around him, and a golden blade began to form that one of his gauntlets grasped. With great speed, he rushed the Bewear to strike it with Aerial Ace. Between the two of them, the Golurk seemed more shocked at the reveal of Lancelot’s powers than the Bewear did. The patchwork bear brought up an arm to defend itself. With superb deftness, it allowed the sword to roll across his hair. Some of it was cut off, but the worst of the attack was negated. The Bewear immediately slugged the Scizor. The force was dulled by Lancelot’s steel shell. He rolled with the punch. Despite the lack of power, his opponent was formidable. Lancelot considered an air battle with the Golurk. It was hovering in front of the hole in the ceiling. Beating the Bewear would take time. He had to make his way back to James and the others. With a jump, Lancelot took off, turning towards the Golurk. He did not get far before a massive weight attached itself to him. The Bewear had jumped from standstill onto the Scizor. He tried to knock off the Bewear by using Aerial Ace with his wings. But despite the pain, the Bewear held on and the pair crashed to ground. With several knocks off his gauntlet, he managed to dislodge the Bewear. But the message was made clear. He was not leaving until the Bewear was dealt with. The Golurk placed one arm on the ceiling. Lancelot had a guess of what it was about to do. Something similar to what James and Agravain did. The Bewear approached him. If they thought were being clever, they had another thing coming. The Bewear threw a massive punch and the Golurk threw a stone he broke off the roof at the Scizor to disorient him. Lancelot sidestepped the stone, but allowed himself to be hit by the punch. Because that gave him an opportunity to use Counter. He threw his own punch at the Bewear, landing it square in the Bewear’s face. It felt that one; as the Bewear nursed its nose, Lancelot felt joy overtake him. The Bewear stumbled backwards to the edge of the platform. Lancelot could barely see from his position, but a figure was beginning to emerge beneath where the Bewear was about to fall. A tiny bug, a Grubbin to be exact was climbing out of the ground. Right as the massive bear fell over. Lancelot activated Bullet Punch. Beating 9.81 m/s^2 to the ground was a daunting task. One Lancelot was capable of, if only barely. He scooped the bug, right before the Bewear would’ve fallen on top of it. He got covered in sand for his trouble. The Grubbin barely registered what just happened. He saw the Bewear and the Scizor all at once. He crawled this way to get away from conflict, and he had just ran right into it. He’d only peaked his head out to see what the noise had been. What had he just gotten himself into? Lancelot placed the Grubbin on his shoulders. Until he could find a place for it that it would be safe, that was the best place for it. The Grubbin could only try to hold on, and spit out a bit of web to keep himself attached to the Scizor. A rock fell from above. Lancelot could’ve smashed, but out of consideration for the smaller bug on his shoulder, he dodged instead. The Golurk broke off another piece of the ceiling. The Bewear leaped back onto the central platform. So did Lancelot. ---- The group walked with bated breath through the entrance room. If nothing else, the barrier proved effective as a deterrent. Wherever their hidden enemies were, they remained patient. That lasted until both Swampert reached midway through the building. Then the explosions started. A blast occurred near the Swamperts, launching both of them, with shrapnel tearing into both of them. During the explosion, several Poke Balls were dropped onto the field. The assailant from earlier reappeared with a large crab Pokemon and a gray coated Persian. Three more similarly clad people appeared. With them were a Marowak that wielded a bone that was on fire, a wolf that stood on its hind legs, a massive spider coated in bubbles, a great lizard, and seaweed that had an anchor. The last one floated above Monstro and attempted to drop it’s anchor onto the Swampert. There was one person that had no Pokemon before them. That one held a submachine gun, and he immediately decided to test the durability of Evan and Kris’s shield by firing at the group. There wasn’t enough time to worry about Monstro, not as the submachine gun unleashed a lethal torrent of bullets on the combination Spacial-Psychic Barrier. Evan’d have to hope that Monstro, as he so often had, would survive this. As his thoughts turned to the Mud Fish Pokémon, said creature was left bleeding in a few places, shrapnel embedded in his blue skin, and countless cuts on his skin. “Why does this always happen when he sends me out?” The Swampert thought as he eyed the increasing amount of enemies warily. “Guess I’ve got no choice, as usual.” He then roared for Gawain and Kris’s Kommo-O, hoping they could aid him in this desperate looking fight. The Kommo-O growled warningly to the group's opponents. Once it was obvious that they were not at all planning to listen, the Scaly Pokémon dashed forward and swung out with her tail at the anchor. With an attempt to use momentum to her advantage, the Kommo-O used the whirling motion to attempt to punch the bubble spider in what she presumed was its face. "Hero of space!" Kris whispered intensely. "Can you do anything about the bullets other than stopping them?" She glanced forward as she focused on the barrier. "Depending on your answer, I can do one of two things here." Evan thought for a moment, and grinned. “I can definitely do more than stop them!” With his hand, Evan created a hole in front of the shielded group, and quickly created a hole behind their current assailant. “Have a taste of your own medicine!” Kris nodded as she grinned. She moved her barrier further back so that the bullets would not be stopped by the psychic force, then watched to make sure everything would work out. The bullets flew into the hole and back behind the man without Pokemon. He realized too late to disappear. The first bullet speed reduced to zero when it touched the man’s back. Leaving only the smallest wounds. The others were not slowed. The bullets pierced his side, knocking him over and causing him to roar in pain. The eldest of the group let out a soft laugh at the other man’s pain. Each of the three standing began to speak quietly. The old man and the woman who had been the first to fight disappeared again. The Dhelmise and the Araquanid reeled from the Kommo-O’s blow. The anchor, though not the main body of the Pokemon, dragged the seaweed along with it. The water slowed down the fist that punched the spider’s face, but it still hurt. The Salazzle came to the Araquanid’s aid, and together they both attempted to sweep it’s legs. While the Kommo-O would be distracted, the remaining human opponent raised his rifle and attempted to shoot the Kommo-O. As the Dhelmise righted itself, the Lycanroc and the Marowak approached Monstro. The Lycanroc held off a bit, looking for a chance to grab Monstro, while the Marowak took a swing at the Swampert. Things had not been better for the other Swampert. The blast had left injuries on Gawain similar to what Monstro had suffered. The first assailant’s Crabominable was currently assailing the Swampert with massive punches that forced him onto the defensive. It took most of his might to block these punches, which the Persian took advantage of to slash its claws on the Swampert. James said, “Mr. Tierra, take over on defense. Ms. Homura, focus on breaking their guns. I would suggest all of you send out Pokemon that are fast and physically sturdy. We need to take away their numbers advantage.” James held up one Ultra Ball in front of him, and held one behind him. The Pokemon in the Ultra Ball wasn’t normally what one thought of as a physical fighter, but it’s physical capabilities were at least theoretically solid. Desperate times call for desperate measures, as it were. And more importantly it would distract them while he sent the other Pokemon to go find Lancelot. As Celebi came out of her Ultra Ball, even the legendary narrowed her eyes as something felt off. “If you are not above getting your hands dirty Celebi, we could use your help.” The time traveler whistled slightly. It had probably been centuries since the last time she’d focused on physical fighting. Maybe it only felt that way. Not living concurrently with time made it hard to keep track. But there was more punch to her punch than her appearance would suggest. “All right, Executive Arthur.” Evan said as he raised up the Spacial Shield once more with his right arm. With his left, he threw out Landorus and Vlad’s Poké Balls. “Go help out, you two, by any means possible!” The man said, hoping these two could deal with these enemies. Landorus, rumbling with rage at the foolishness of these foes, rushed towards the Araquanid and attempted to slam both his fists down onto one of it’s legs, hoping that his immense strength could cause more damage to it while it was distracted with the Kommo-o. Meanwhile, Vlad glided over to Monstro, who looked like he wasn’t doing very well against his foes. The Marowak’s swing connected with his head, leaving the Mud Fish wide open to be grabbed by the Lycanroc. To the Fang Scorp, this wouldn’t do. “I’ve gotcha, pal!” The Flying-type exclaimed in his language, as he clamped his pincers on the Rock-type’s lanky forelimbs. “Deal with that spooky looking fellow!” Monstro, a little loopy from the head trauma, shook his head, and rushed towards the Marowak, aiming to try and disarm the Bonekeeper Pokémon. He -wouldn’t- let it get another strike like that again. Kris and Jenny nodded as they prepared themselves to go on the offensive. Jenny sent out her Emboar and Scizor to help deal with the Pokémon opponents, while Kris's eyes glowed as she set out to try to pull the exploding gun trick she had done not long before on the assailant that was trying to shoot her Kommo-o. The two Pokémon that had just joined the fray ran forward to attack the Crabominable while Evan's two Pokémon were focused on the Marowak. The Kommo-o simply looked over in slight annoyance at the silly human who had decided to shoot her with bullets. The Bulletproof dragon ignored the silly human and instead focused on the Salazzle, as she grabbed out for the lizard's neck. The Kommo-o wasn't entirely sure the idea would work, but as she saw Landorus coming she aimed to grab the Salazzle's neck and pin the lizard to the ground in front of her. The Crabominable backed off of Gawain and raised its massive arms to protect itself as it bided for time. This gave Gawain a more even fight against the Persian. It still managed to get a solid slash on him, but not without getting a punch to its face for the trouble. The punch was dulled by the Persian’s fur, but still it reeled from the punch. With every other Pokemon opponent currently engaged, Celebi chose the Dhelmise to fight. She was familiar with the fact that the seaweed itself was the main body of the Pokemon. The wheel spun around, causing the anchor to start spinning. It was equal parts defense and offense. To hit the seaweed she would need to get near the anchor. Unfortunately, that meant she would need to get near the anchor. She drew the Dhelmise away from the other combatants. She needed to approach this methodically. “Two legendaries?” the assailant with the rifle said. He was so dumbfounded that he pulled the trigger to his gun without thinking, despite having been warned about Kris’s trick. He reacted quickly when the rifle experienced a minor explosion. He escaped the explosion with only minor injuries. Pulling out a knife, he quickly disappeared. The other visible assailant, who had been shot with his own gun, stood up. He looked thoroughly cheesed off, but no worse for wear given that he had been shot with his own gun. He too quickly disappeared. The Marowak deftly avoided Monstro’s grab. He shifted his stance and attempted to strike the Swampert’s leg. The Lycanroc began to try and bite the Gliscor that was holding onto him. As the battle unfolded, another figure silently materialized onto the field. He pressed a button that caused a minor explosion on a wall. The blast caught James’s attention. It was odd in that the blast was nowhere near anyone. All it served to do was make a hole that let in the sand and the moonlight. The man held up one hand and what light there was from the moon began to fade away. Light began to pool into several streams circling the man’s hand. The man was the only thing visible in that moment. His eyes were closed and his hand was level with the group of trainers in the barrier. He waited. There was but the faintest crack of fire, but without any light accompanying it. His arm immediately changed direction. From the center of his arm came a great of light shooting towards apparently nothing. Nothing, until it connected in mid-air, knocking Percival from the sky. “Percival!” James yelled as he saw the Chandelure fall to the ground. Several things happened at once. Landorus had smashed the Araquanid’s leg and Kommo-O had pinned the Salazzle to the ground. Both were recoiling in pain when the lights dimmed. When they realized two of their human allies had appeared in the darkness near them, they both grabbed their assailants as best they could. When the lights reappeared, the old one also bent the moonlight around him. His didn’t form into a stream like the other one. It instead formed into an orb, a reflection of the moon that he threw at the Kommo-O. The female assailant on the other hand, threw a knife at Landorus. Not to damage him, but to grab his attention as her eyes turned to crimson. The man who shot Percival out of the air was staring at the Chandelure to see if it would get up again. His ears twitched at the arrival of another figure at the entrance of the ruins. “He’s here,” he said turning to the entrance. His sight confirmed his suspicions. “Bulu,” he spat out. Indeed, floating in the entrance way was the guardian of Ula’Ula island. He seemed… unhappy.

-==IC: Kris Homura/Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur - Haina Desert, Alola - [16]==- They had lost the scent. Try as Gnip might, she couldn’t get an accurate reading of their quarry. James didn’t blame her. Between the delay, the return of the sandstorm once they left the canyon, and the disorienting nature of the desert, it was a wonder they had tracked their targets as long as they did. But that left them with a conundrum. How to proceed. There was general agreement that they should keep heading towards the Ruins of Abundance where Tapu Bulu lived. They walked towards the only the visible landmark they could barely make out through the sand. A wall of rock that split into four different paths. In front of each path was a pile of stones. “Is this supposed to be some sort of puzzle?” James asked to no one in particular. “Some riddle for us to figure out which path is the true way?” Kris walked forward with a small frown as she looked at each of the piles of stones in turn. Each one had a different look to them. "Tell me, what do you all see in these stones?" Evan carefully observed the stones, checking what the piles of piles of stones had to offer. He noted that one of them had what appeared to be a beaky protrusion. “Is it…...the way they are shaped?” The Plasma Agest queried. “Because otherwise, I’m at a loss at what else….” James looked between two of the stacks of stones. One seemed to have a horn protruding from it, while the other seemed to have wings on its back. “I think you are onto something, Mr. Tierra. I do not know what these represent exactly. But, there are four of them…” James said as he took a closer look at the statue Evan was looking at. “Four guardian deities, four statues?” James offered. The man considered what James had to say and grinned. “So it’s a matter of picking the right statue to lead us to the Ruins, right?” Evan said, amazed at how simple the puzzle may have been. “But which one do you feel will lead us there? I’m not exactly familiar with the Guardian Deities…..” "This one." Kris said as she pointed to one of the stone piles that had horns. "This one seems to represent the Guardian Deity Tapu Bulu." Normally James would advocate caution. However, as he had no better ideas, and there was a risk of danger in taking too long, he said, “Alright, let us take that path.” With no objections, the group followed down the path marked by the horned statue. The path eventually came to another set of four statues. This time the identifying element was a nose ring on the correct statue. They found a total of four sets of such puzzles. Thankfully, not much time was spent on each individual puzzle, thanks to Kris’s knowledge on the Guardian Deities. Which was quite fortunate, considering each moment they spent was another their quarry had to prepare.

-==IC: Kris Homura/Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur - Haina Desert, Alola - [15]==- James took a brief peak through a hole in the storm. It wasn’t something he focused long on, but the setting sun’s direction felt very different than it had done five minutes ago. However, Gnip had not lost the trail, so they were not lost. He was however beginning to wish that they had a vehicle to ride in. The lash of the sand beat on relentlessly. And he had to keep his arms raised to protect his eyes. So there was a slight sense of relief when he saw that they were entering a canyon. The canyon’s walls were enough to block some of the worst of the sandstorm. They had not taken ten steps into the canyon when a rock slide started to barrel towards them. With a deft motion, Evan sent out Bertha’s Hippowdon, who alongside Gnip, assumed a steady stance, and took the rock slide head on. To lessen the blow, Kris reached out to the more dangerous rocks that had more momentum and gripped those ones with telekinesis to slow them down. Jenny sent out her Scizor, as Lancelot charged forward to intercept rocks that were headed towards James. Both Scizors began to pulverize rocks to dust with their metal pincers. Even though Scizlite didn’t show signs of gaining her powers back, the pair of Scizors were effective at their task. Rocks broke to dust at their claws. “Thank you Lancelot,” James said as he took a look at where the rock slide had occurred. “It would be wise to treat that as an attack.” He couldn’t see any opponents, but the timing was too perfect. “But we cannot delay. If we lose their scent now, forget tracking them, we will be lucky if we leave the desert alive.” James knew that they entered the desert unprepared as they did because they didn’t have time to prepare. But he couldn’t help but reemphasize the danger they were putting themselves into. They group retook the positions that they entered the canyon in, with the exceptions of Scizlite and Hippowdon remaining out of their Poke Balls. Despite James’s warning, the first rock slide seemed to be the only one that was going to occur. They made some progress as they neared a sandy area. James was grateful for the brief respite. The canyon, despite the danger, was a solid shelter from the worst parts of the desert. The sandstorm didn’t reach this far into the cave. And the sand stopped earlier, so his shoes weren’t getting dirtied by the endless layers of sand. The last thought struck James; the sand had stopped. He looked ahead and saw where Gnip was about to walk. He noticed that the sand made a perfect ellipse. An unnatural pattern. “Gnip, watch out!” he yelled to the dragon. Gnip’s eyes widened as James called out to the landshark. With what little reaction time she had, she leapt away from the sand, but not before what appeared to be an arm reached out of the pile of sand to grab at her tail. The Mach Pokémon yelped as she was yanked back towards the sand. "Scizlite, help Gnip out!" Jenny's Scizor nodded and quickly sped off toward the pile of sand. She reached an arm back, then attempted to punch at the arm so that Gnip could be released. The punch made a dent in the sand arm, but not enough to make it let the Garchomp go. Grains of sand flowed into the arm to reform what had been lost. A tower began to form in the center of the sand. A tower with eyes. Lancelot made a move to help but James called to him. “Wait.” The Scizor turned around, wondering what James wanted. “Fight subtly,” he said. Lancelot figured the intended meaning to be ‘without revealing his powers’. He was correct in that assessment. James wanted to keep his ace in the hole a secret until they were fighting the full enemy. This presented a complication in the present, but he could still use Bullet Punch if he were subtle enough. “And keep an eye on the w-” Before James could even finish his warning, another rock slide began. Rocks fell towards Gnip. If whatever hidden foe was worried about hitting their ally, it didn’t show. Lance sprang into action. Mixing urgency with patience was a difficult task. He was moving faster than he could without Bullet Punch, but not fast enough to raise suspicion. The Steel type move shattered a rock that was heading straight for Gnip, and he used his body to shield her from the debris. He could always Roost off any damage that he took. Gnip didn’t have that luxury. “We need to find what is causing the rock slides,” James said. With a nod, Kris grabbed a Poké Ball off her belt and flung it into the air, sending out her Pidgeot to go search for whatever was behind the attacks. Gnip growled painfully at not only the damage that had been done to her, but at the struggle she was having trying to shake her tail loose from the sand tower’s grasp. No sooner had it formed, then Evan shouted to Hippowdon. “Smash the sand so Gnip can get loose.” Grunting, Bertha’s prize Pokémon stomped towards the pile of sand, and proceeded to slam her head down where Gnip’s tail was being grabbed, hoping to disperse the sand. The massive force broke off the hand in its entirety, letting the Garchomp go free. The hand rejoined the main body of the sandcastle, as it formed two smaller towers to both of its sides. The Palossand had regained its full form. With a shout, bits and pieces of its body fell off and formed into smaller hands. The hands began to flow rapidly across the ground to grab whatever was in their path. Lancelot slammed his gauntlet on a sand hand that was heading towards James. While he was still leaning over, he ran towards the Palossand and punched it square in its face. He held back the power in his punch. But the Steel-type Bullet Punch left a mark in its target. Gnip roared triumphantly as her tail was freed from the Palossand’s sandy grasp, turned to the elderly Hippowdon, and barked thankfully to her. “Gnip, watch out!” Evan exclaimed as he saw many more hands reach out for the Pokémon. The Garchomp, rather than running from the many arms, ran towards them, and glided past them. She determined that Lance had the Palossand dealt with, and so flew up, aiming to provide back up to Kris’s Pidgeot if she needed it. Hippowdon, however, stood her ground towards the many hands, and slowly opened her maw wide open. If they drew any closer, she’d make their source regret it dearly. The hands drew close enough, and without missing a beat, the Ground-Type’s upper jaw crunched down on several hands, gravity powering the powerful strike. The hands turned to, well, sand that tripped from the Hippowdon’s mouth. At about that moment, a head full of hair popped out of the side of the canyon said, pushing out rocks down onto the fighters below. It quickly retreated as quickly as it came, but two more heads followed after it. When the two other hairy heads popped out, the Pidgeot flew down quickly toward where they were and attempted to grab hold of one of them. Gnip saw the Bird Pokémon swoop towards the heads, and did so herself. However, she didn’t have proper claws, and so….she used the one thing she could use to grab the other head: her mouth. She bit down on the head, making sure to be swift about it, lest her shared target get away. The third head popped out of the canyonside and slammed itself onto Gnip. The Pidgeot was a problem, but a Garchomp’s teeth were deadly. Meanwhile, the Palossand shook off Lancelot’s blow. It shifted the two sides towers in between its main body and Lancelot. With Swords Dance, he would easily be able to cut through them to attack the main body. Without, he had to be a bit more tricky. Lancelot jumped back and landed next to Scizlite. If the Palossand didn’t know that his punch hurt because he had his power back, then it should think Scizlite capable of the same thing. So Lancelot told Scizlite of his plan to double team their opponent. Scizlite agreed with a nod as she prepared to go forward. The two Scizors rushed the Palossand from opposite angles with the intent to distract the sand Pokémon enough to reveal a weakness. As they circled around the Palossand, they noticed that it kept one tower blocking each of them from the main body. Before either of the Scizors could make a plan to deal with the towers, they noticed hands of sand reach out toward them. The two Scizors dodged the hands as best as they could with what they had, though it was starting to get to the point where they couldn't attack. Recognizing that they needed more, Lancelot sped up with Bullet Punch and landed a solid blow on the Palossand. Meanwhile, Gnip felt the force of the third head’s strike knock her away from the Dugtrio, which was backed up by unexpected strength. Growling, the Mach Pokémon decided to strike back with a slash of her claw, hoping that by doing that, it would distract this menace from dropping rocks on those below. All three heads yelled out simultaneously, wresting themselves away from their assailants and pulling back into the canyonside. After a moment, the entire section of the canyon wall began to shake. The Dugtrio abandoned all sense of aim. Rather than risk attack, they began to destabilize the entire wall to try and bury the attackers below. As the rocks began to fall, the Palossand flattened its body to disperse the damage that was about to occur. In any other situation, Evan Tierra would have been worried, but at this moment, he smirked confidently. “All right, you’re up, Lazengann!” Evan said as he threw out the Drill Pokémon’s ball. “Pierce the wall and finish this!” Appearing in a flash of light, Lazengann spun furiously as he folded up into his drill form, and bored into the wall. He went where the vibrations were strongest, aiming to hit the source. “Lancelot, destroy the rocks!” James yelled as he braced himself. As much as the Scizor would’ve loved to hunt down the Palossand and bash his gauntlets into its body, James was right. He was gonna have to get dangerously close to flashy for this, but time was of the essence. Spreading his wings, he backed up to get a good angle. When he had his angle, he took off, bashing rock after rock to pieces. The shards of rock were an issue, but had far less force than the boulders that were falling. After Evan had sent Lazengann to finish the job, he whistled to Gnip. “Gnip, let’s get out of here!” The Trainer said, looking quite certain of what to do. “Pick two people and get them going!” The Garchomp roared as she flew down towards Jenny and Kris, and barked at them to get on. The two returned their Pokémon to their Poké Balls, and mounted the Dragon-Type, who then flew off towards the canyon’s exit. Evan then returned Bertha’s Hippowdon to her capsule and followed his prized Pokémon out of the Canyon. James grunted as the shards cut into him but he was more or less fine. His suit however had several cuts in its jacket. The tailors were going to charge a lot for this venture. As there was no time to mourn, he yelled to Evan and Lancelot, “Let us follow after them,” before heeding his own words. The Palossand was still a worry, but they had already wasted too much time. As for the hairy Dugtrio, Lazengann was homing on their position very quickly when he, quite literally, struck gold. The Dugtrio had no time to react, and fainted from their wounds. His job complete, the Excadrill bored out of the walls, towards the group, and when the coast was clear, he pointed his right claw up in the air, and posed, grinning at a job well done. Evan returned the triumphant mole to his Poké Ball, trying to hide his grin. The remaining three ran to follow the Garchomp. The Palossand seemed to have completely vanished. James kept trying to suss out its location while Lancelot tossed aside rocks to clear the path. What James didn’t notice was a faint, imperceptible line of sand that trailed up his pant leg. The sand crawled grain by grain up his back, sliding in between his vest and his jacket to not touch skin. Evan and Lancelot were quicker than James, so the sand merely waited for them to pass James before it began to coalesce in a sharp claw. “Lancelot, smash the largest shard you see.” The hand stopped for a brief moment as the words were said. Lancelot reacted in that moment. The largest shard that had broken off of the rocks that Lancelot shattered was in the middle of where all the rocks had fallen. There was a gap between Lancelot and the shard, but he closed the gap in an instant. The claw tried to dig into James’s neck, but when Lancelot smashed the shard, a wave of pain was sent through every grain of sand in the Palossand’s body. Under the shards of the shards was the face of the beast. Various shards began to collapse all over the center of the canyon. James felt sand fall down his back. He was impressed that the Palossand managed to hide every grain underneath all the various shards of the debris that Lancelot had created. It would’ve had to switch hiding spots during the confusion, but that also meant the shards were less likely to be considered. The lower weight of the shards also meant they could’ve been easier to strike from. However, because so much volume had to be stored in such small individual pieces, a number of the shards were at odd angles. While the Palossand had hidden it earlier, James guessed that while it could disperse its body, it had to keep its face mostly intact. He decided not to voice out loud how glad he was his hunch was correct. The sand on his back would’ve completely blindsided him. “Excellent work Lancelot,” James said as the Scizor stood over his fallen opponent, snapping the Scizor out of a brief trance as he stared at his foe’s literally broken body. Nothing their trainer couldn’t fix, but a rare treat to see a metaphor so literally applied. The three didn’t stop after that. When the group was long gone, a figure stepped out of the shadows. He held up two Poke Balls and retreated both of his fallen Pokemon. He had failed to defeat him. However, the figure turned to the west, as the sun’s last light finally died. He had bought enough time. All that was left was to wait for his allies return at the desert’s entrance.

-==IC: Kris Homura/Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur - Haina Desert, Alola - [14]==- The jeep convoy did not stay for long. When Percival was sent to scout one more time, he found only tracks where the cars had been. They were heading north into the desert, as Kris had feared. The group likewise went north into the desert. They did not get far, however, when sand began to blow into their faces. “Do we have a way of reliably tracking them?” James asked. “If we got lost in the sandstorm, we will not be able to catch up to them.” If only Pokemon had their power, Galahad would have been able to track them by aura. Evan smiled confidently at James’s question. It was his time to shine. “I’ve got this, sir.” Evan said as he threw out Gnip’s Poké Ball. “If I recall, Garchomp have a good sense of smell, so we should be able to keep track of our quarry.” Gnip growled softly, happy to help her masters and their friends. James nodded. He walked over to one of the still visible car tracks and bent over to inspect them. “Gnip, was it not? Can you lift a scent from these tracks? Either of humans or of cars.” Gnip growled affirmatively, and began to sniff at the car tracks. It didn’t take long for her to catch the scent of the people that were in the jeeps. She looked at James and barked, as if to say. “Ready when you are!” Evan picked up on this and his grin became wider. “Looks like she’s struck gold. Shall we get a move on?” "Sounds good to me!" Jenny grinned as she stepped forward. She kept a hand on her Scizor's Poké Ball with one hand, then did her best to shield her face with her other arm. Lancelot spread his wings to afford James some minute protection. A Steel type like him was well suited to desert sandstorms. James retreated both Galahad and Percival, who were less suited to the conditions. “Very well. Gnip, please take point.”

-==IC: Evan Tierra/Kris/Jenny - Ula'Ula Beach - [12]==- “It’s not impossible.” Evan said, a pondering look on his face. “The mere existence of Palkia has proven that alternate worlds is possible. At least the legends say that…..” "Why did I end up in Sinnoh, though? I don't understand a lot of these memories still…" Kris frowned with a slightly frustrated look on her face. Meanwhile, however, Jenny seemed lost in thought as she stared at the drawing a little more. The man thought for a moment, before smiling. “Maybe….it was after that incident with the Other Jenny?” Evan thought aloud. “But, from what I know of that incident, thanks to Jenny, it took place four years ago, but that other Jenny looked younger than the Jenny here…..” "Four?" Kris frowned, a puzzled look on her face. "I've been here for the past five years though, I know that for a fact." “Well, you were at Spear Pillar, which is not only connected to Palkia, but Dialga as well.” The Plasma Agent said, intrigued by the train of thought which he was riding. “It could be that Dialga….could have done something about time in your world.” He then added, chuckling. “It’s certainly not impossible, considering what I know it can do.” “World?” a voice called out from behind. Further down on the beach was the Aether Foundation boat that had taken James away. James himself had been walking towards them during their conversation. Lancelot was following behind him, while Galahad was soaring above him. He had only caught the last brief snippet of their conversation. “Should I ask for context?” “Not unless you want your mind bent, Executive Arthur.” Evan said, chuckling. “How was your meeting, if I may ask?” “The details are classified but I would say I have a good feeling,” James said. His smile was just a bit smug. Not as smug as he actually felt, but a smile that smug wouldn’t be appropriate in public. And things could still fall apart between now and things being finalized. But for now, James felt pretty good about his performance. “And your search for Z-Moves, how is it progressing?” “We’ve got an idea of how to procure what we need for them, but it hinges on getting the trust of the people of Alola, as well as one of the…..’Tapus’ of the islands.” Evan said, recalling what Kris had told the couple. “It may not be an easy task, but Kris says that maybe firing up the people with a showy battle may help us with all that.” “The Guardian Deities. Well it seems like a fun idea you have planned,” he said trailing off for a moment as he looked back at Lancelot. They still had to master the evolution that Lancelot did on One Island. It was possible that an intense battle might help. “I would be willing to join in on your project. When did you plan to have the fight occur?” "It's been scheduled for two days from now. That should be enough time to prepare for most people involved, I feel." Kris glanced at James curiously. "Did you wish to partake in the battle?" James closed his eyes and rubbed his chin. Two days. It was longer than he hoped. He had his meeting with Colress tomorrow. If he hadn’t mastered the evolution by then, an ally Liberty needed would slip through their fingers, and he’d lose his bargaining chip. Still, the point was moot. James felt that he wouldn’t want to stay in Alola much longer. He had to tend to matters back at Four Island. But then James looked at Lancelot and Galahad. If this was going to be a fight worthy of the Guardian Deities, well they deserved to be a part of it. “I do,” James said at last. "Alright. That sounds good. Would you like to join in on a practice session again before the battle begins?" Kris asked, a smile on her face at how that worked out. That grabbed Lancelot’s attention. Even Galahad began to float nearer. “Very well, what do you have in mind?” "Well, since it is getting a little late, I figured that we would head toward my home, but then…" Kris' smile grew slightly wider. "How about you battle me? Evan and Jenny got a taste of my strength yesterday, so I feel it's only fitting." The woman paused for a moment, as she thought over the day before again. "Oh, right. Yesterday, you asked my name. Well, with the help of our two heroes here, my memory's been coming back slowly. My name is Kris Homura; once champion of another Johto." “Another… Johto?” James stumbled back slightly. He remembered the tail end of the conversation that he overheard. “I… might want to ask you more about that later. For now, Lance-” James stopped. Lancelot was in a fighting mood. His wings were spread and he was hopping from side to side. The Scizor was surprised to hear James stop. Were they going to fight her or not? “Lance, could you observe me? I need to train Agravain and,” James paused for a moment. “And I was hoping you could comment on my ability as a trainer. You never really get a chance to observe. I would like your input.” Lancelot cocked his head. Commentary on strategy wasn’t normally his thing. But he relented. “I have a young Karrablast here,” James said tossing out an Ultra Ball, sending Agravain out into the open. “He could use some more training. Is that alright?” "That could work, I believe." Kris nodded, as she considered her options. "I believe that I have a Pokémon that could work well enough with even a young Pokémon. Should we stay here for now, then?" “Hmm, we had a battle near here earlier. You said you were going to bring us to your home? How is the terrain around there?” James asked. "It's somewhat rocky and grassy. I live near an oasis just outside the desert nearby It's not too far from here either." The blue haired woman thought things over, then nodded. "Yes, that would work best I feel. When you're all ready, I'll lead the way, and we'll pick up Evan and Jenny's Pokémon in the process."

-==IC: Kris/Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda - Ula'Ula Beach, Alola - [10]==- Training on the posing took longer than it was expected to. Evan seemed to have a grasp on the basics of what was needed for most of the moves they were taught, but Jenny was having some slight trouble with repeating the exact poses for the ones she had been assigned. "Well, we can take a break there." Kris said to the two of them as she took a seat. "It usually is tough to get the idea behind it down the first time anyway; I've seen people take a good couple of weeks to do that before." Evan nodded and took a seat himself. “I’m thinking that too.” The man said, as he looked like he was doing some deep thinking. “Each pose reflects the type of move that’s being powered up. It’s not just something you do, but something you feel, I think…” "That is correct." Kris nodded as she smiled. Jenny seemed to reflect on that quietly as Kris explained about the history of Z-Moves for a while. "It is said that the Z-Moves were considered to be something akin to how in fantasy materials, you sometimes make a rune to channel magic. I've only heard rumours of that sort of talk, though, so I can't judge how accurate it is." “So…..in essence, the pose is the conduit the channels Z-Power into the Pokémon using it…..” Evan said, smiling. “If we wanted to be silly, we could say Posing in itself is a kind of magic. Joking aside though, you definitely know a lot about how these moves work, Kris, but…….how would one get the necessary things needed to make the power real? I don’t think they’d give away something that powerful for free….” Kris frowned slightly. "Hm. That's tough to say." She reached into a bag she carried with her, and pulled out a small black bracelet that glimmered in the sunlight. "I was given this a while back for completing a personal trial, because I'd been here for a few years and everyone knew me. I don't quite know what would have to be done to get a Z-Bracelet or Z-Crystal at this point, though…" Jenny looked at the bracelet with intrigue. "What was your trial?" Kris glanced over at Jenny in surprise at that comment, as if she had not expected it. "Oh. I helped out a girl who was visiting the region. It was a weird situation; it felt like she knew me, but I didn't recognize her at all. Well… it was more than just that, we hiked up to Wela Volcano and I saved her from some thugs in the process, but it's a long story that I don't remember all the details of. In the end, we both were awarded Z-Bracelets… I think…?" The woman looked back down at the bracelet, staring at it in confusion. "But, wait, that doesn't make sense, I specifically remember my bracelet being silver, and hers being gold… did I get mine replaced at some point and forget?" Jenny seemed confused about the oddities that Kris noted, but stayed quiet for a few moments. "Well, maybe it just got upgraded or something? Like how a Poké Gear does?" "Maybe…" Kris didn't look too convinced as she kept just staring at the bracelet for a few moments. "Either way…" She looked up to Evan and Jenny. "I feel like a big thing could get you recognized. It might take you time to complete your own personal trials, but… I believe it can happen." “A big thing……..” Evan said,mulling over what Kris had said. “If there’s anything big in Alola, would it be the Battle Royal? You said ever since Pokémon lost their power, it’s been closed.” The man thought for a moment, before adding more to his train of thought. “Tell me, have the people of Alola been feeling not as fired up since it closed?” "Hm." Kris thought for a moment as she caught the drift of what Evan was planning. "Sorta, yeah. There's been some uncertainty for sure, especially with the people around Royal Avenue and Heahea City." “Well, we were planning on fighting in the Battle Royal, right?” The Hero asked. “Well, provided we raise the spirits of the people with a heated and showy match…….maybe that’ll be cause for them to grant us Z-Rings.” "Hmm… I mean, I wouldn't rule it out, but you might need to catch the attention of one of the islands' Tapus too, plus also draw the attention of one of the Kahunas. It's hard to say what would work exactly." The blue-haired woman frowned in deep thought. "It's still a good idea regardless, though. If nothing else, then at least it was tried, and at least the spirits were raised." Evan smiled. “We can only try.” The man said cheerfully. “It’s a hero’s job to not only protect the people, but to raise their spirits. If I can make the people happy, then my role is complete, regardless if I I get a Z-Ring or not.” Kris nodded. She pulled out her Poké Gear to begin to send a message to someone, but as she did so, the drawing held in its case fell out. The man frowned. He looked at the drawing. It appeared to be a badly illustrated drawing of three girls, it appeared, with the words "You can't forget. Don't forget." written on it. “What’s this from, Kris?” Evan asked, genuinely curious about it. “Is it a keepsake of some sort?” Kris bit her lip as she finally realized the drawing had fallen to the ground. She hesitated before she went to pick it up. "I don't remember exactly." She finally said with an uncertain look on her face. "All I remember is some blonde girl gave it to me. I don't know why she did, but I keep it because something just feels… familiar about it." “Well, I guess you screwed up not forgetting, but…” Evan said mischievously, aiming to bring some amusement to otherwise serious discussion.. “Maybe…….this girl was looking out for you?” "But… why?" Kris frowned, but then shook her head. "It's not really anything to worry about right now, but… I don't understand what that girl would have wanted me to not forget." She sighed slightly. "But maybe I only can't understand because I don't remember what it was." “Well, I think you’ll figure it out eventually.” Evan said, facing his girlfriend. “Jenny here had a case of amnesia, but she’s managed to remember quite a lot.” Evan then faced the blue-haired woman. “So if she can do it, with as bad as it was for her, I know you can do it!” "I just worry about why I can't remember anything. Especially since it almost… feels like that's not the first time I've had this happen to me. What if my memory is just that badly damaged?" Kris bit her lip, as she looked down and to the side. Upon seeing his teacher look so forlorn, Evan rose up and started speaking. “I may have not gone through what you have, but I know that there’s always a way to make things work.” After saying his piece, the man assumed the Psychic Z-Pose. “You’ve definitely have the willpower to do that, Kris!” "Yeah! You've just gotta keep pushing through, right?" Jenny added cheerfully, though she still wore a slightly worried look on her face, as she knew exactly how the older woman felt. "One way or another, we'll try our best to help get you to a point where you can get your memory back." Kris listened for a few moments, but then nodded with a smile. "Thank you, you two. I'll do what I can to try and get my memory back, even if I still don't know why it's gone in the first place." Evan sat back down, smiling. “I’m sure you’ll find that out yourself eventually. After all, Jenny found out her amnesia was because of a madman who sought the ruin of her family, I think.”

-==IC: Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/Kris -- Ula'ula Beach -- [8]==- When he got back to catching tires, Evan noticed that the tires felt easier to catch. Each time he threw it back, he caught it deftly. He pondered the idea of catching it with one hand, but then recalled the last time he got cocky. Despite that, he could help but chuckle at how much fun he was having. “It feels so light now! That drink worked wonderfully!” Kris hid a smile at that, as the light from the sun did well to hide the brief glow of the tires each time they began to slow down slightly. "That's good. Now keep it up a little longer, then we'll take another break before the next activity." “Will do!” Evan said as he focused back on the tire-catching, and what Kris said during the first break. Each time he caught the tire, his desire to find out what to do to go beyond who he was grew. He was so absorbed into his thoughts, that he didn’t catch the glow of the tires. After a bit, he was panting, but grinning nonetheless. He caught sight of Jenny and shouted as he walked away from his swinging tire.. “How’s it going, Jenny? You getting a good sweat going on?” Jenny seemed to not hear Evan at first as she slowly made her way in a circle around the tire swing. At last, however, she gave a thumbs up. She looked to have very literally have worked up a sweat, but seemed determined to keep going. After a few more minutes, however, she stopped to pant and wipe the sweat off her forehead the best she could. Unlike last time, however, she didn't collapse afterward. "Well done so far." Kris smiled as she walked forward, drinks already in hand. These looked to be more water than anything this time, but Jenny seemed to almost teleport from the spot she was at to get the water, even with the tire still being dragged along behind her. The redhead downed the water quickly, though she took care to not drink it too fast. "How are you feeling?" Evan zoomed to Kris, a fire in his eyes, towards the delicious water she had. The man drank down the water, making sure to, despite his thirst, not appear rude towards his gracious master. “I feel as strong as a Machamp and as light as a Joltik.” The man said after he downed about half of his drink. “Those tires packed a wallop before, but now I think I’m getting the hang of this.” Kris chose to not comment on that. Instead, she seemed lost in thought. "Have either of you two ever surfed before? Or any similar activity?" Evan frowned, as he couldn’t exactly recall doing anything like surfing in a good long while. “I…..can’t say I have. I’m a bit of a landlubber, so I haven’t tried it in Undella Town before……” Jenny shook her head as well, which prompted Kris to think for a moment. She walked away for a moment, then returned with some wooden planks that she set up on the sand in a way that would mimic the balance required. "Here, you should test this first before setting foot on the water." Evan gulped, then stepped onto his plank, assuming a stance on it, before falling onto his back in the process. “Well, I can tell this is gonna be a -fun- time.” The man said, chuckling as he got back onto the plank. “Well, I won’t be beaten by a piece of wood!” This time, he had a much better balancing act on the plank. He looked at Kris, keeping his stance low and relaxed. “Like this, Kris?” "That's better, yes. You still have a way to go, but that is a very good start to not falling off instantly." Kris said with a nod. She looked over to Jenny, who was having a bit of trouble as well, but noted that her stance was a lot more… refined than Evan's. The blue-haired woman walked over with a curious look on her face. "A little more like this, dear." Kris said, as she placed her hands on Jenny's arms to try and help guide her. *** Jessica stepped on to the board that was in front of her with a wide but nervous grin. She looked back to her mother to make sure that it was alright. When the older woman nodded, the young girl hopped onto the skateboard. She wobbled somewhat as she tried to balance on the moving board, but tried her best. Despite that, she fell backwards with a wince as she stepped on the wrong part of the board. "Here, more like this." Another woman's voice called out from behind Jessica. The young girl looked up to see a smiling woman whose face was otherwise covered in shadow because of the sun behind her. "You have to have your feet planted like this, and your arms like this…" The girl was helped up as the woman placed her hands on Jessica's arms to try and help guide her. *** Evan watched Kris help Jeny’s posture and began to imitate the redhead. He then noticed that the two were spacing out. Taking a moment to think about this, the man then decided to find out if things were OK. “Hey, um, you two doing alright? You seem to be zoning out..” The Hero said, giving the two a confused look. Jenny blinked confusedly as Evan spoke up. As the woman looked up, Kris appeared to be just as confused. The redhead thought for a moment as she tried to gather up words to explain what just happened. "I think I just suddenly remembered something, but it was really… weird how it happened. It felt like that time back on Four Island, Evan, before the Darkrai." Kris looked over in intrigue at the mention of the Darkrai, but stayed quiet about that for the moment. However, she chewed on her lip slightly. "Was it something about how similar this situation was to the thing you remembered?" The blue-haired woman questioned slowly. When Jenny nodded, the mentor frowned slightly and took on a contemplative look. "Just now, I had that same sort of… dream?" “Before the showdown with the Darkrai….” Evan said, recalling how he shared his memories of the final battle with Kyurem, and inexplicably knocked some of Jenny’s memories loose. What perplexed him even more was how Kris had the same dream. He looked at the blue-haired woman curiously. “I’m not sure what is happening, but it seems that you two may be connected in some way that we don’t understand yet…” The brown-haired man said, still a little boggled at this turn of events. The two women seemed equally confused. "I can't say I remember much about my time in Johto…" Kris started to say slowly as she looked over at Jenny. "But I also can't say that she looks familiar at all. Maybe… I only allowed her to retrieve that memory, then got sent it because I was standing next to her?" The woman's frown deepened. "It could have been my powers activating without realizing it." “.....Powers? What powers, if I may ask, Kris?” Evan said, looking even more confused at what the woman was saying. “I’m beginning to wonder if you are someone…..special like us, if that makes any sense?” "I have psychic powers." Kris said simply, as she held out her hand toward the tire nearby that Jenny had been dragging around. It floated into the air with a faint crystal blue glow, until it hovered between the three of them. "I don't often make them known, but I figure that a hero of Space should be safe to tell this to." She glanced at Jenny as she mentioned that, however, as if she realized that it wasn't just Evan with those powers. Evan thought about what Kris said. “A Psychic user, huh?” The Hero said, his thoughts turning to another person as he spoke. “Not the first we’ve known, and certainly not the last.” Before he could go on, the man realize he was still balancing on the board, an action that had taken a backseat to the far more interesting discussion the blue-haired teacher had to offer. “Well, your secret is safe with us, Kris.” Kris nodded, then cleared her throat. "Right then. Shall we get back to work? We still have a lot to do, after all, before your training is complete."

-==IC: Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/Kris -- Alola -- [6]==- After James had left with the Aether Foundation employee, Evan focused back on Kris, relaxing his posture. “Sorry about the whole show there, but, I kinda wanna keep what I truly am under wraps for now.” The man said, grinning. “I’m a Hero, alright, but I am Palkia’s Hero of Space. It is my, and two other Heroines’ job to protect this world.” "Palkia's Hero of Space, huh?" Kris nodded slowly. "I can see that. I didn't think that the legendary Creation dragons had anyone like that, but you learn something new every day." The woman said, as she beckoned the other two with her hand to follow her to elsewhere on the beach. "Well, 'Hero', do you think you have what it takes?" The “Hero” gave Kris a determined look as he followed her. “Of course. I’ve seen the other side of life and death, I’m sure I’ve got what it takes. What about you, Jenny? You think you have the guts for whatever she’s gonna dish out?” Jenny clenched her fist and put one foot forward with a wide grin as she struck a pose of her own. "Definitely! I'll break through whatever barriers stand in my way. I may have to take it easy at times, but I know I can handle this." Kris smiled at the answers, then stopped at one of the booths set up on the beach. Despite the lack of Pokémon Power, this part of the beach was still pretty packed with tourists and Mantine Surfers. After a little while, she grunted as she dragged four tires out. "Could you help me with this?" Evan looked at the tires and grinned. “With pleasure.” The man said as he helped lug out the tires with Kris. “So, what do tires have to do with Z-Moves, Kris? I’m sure there’s good reason, but bear with me.” The man said, winking, as he continued exerting his strength to get the tires out in the open. "These will help with making sure that you can handle and control the power to flow it into your Pokémon." Kris explained, as she dragged them back to where they were, with the help of Evan and Jenny. "These will train your bodies to have higher stamina. In theory. The person who taught me about this said that was how it worked, and it seemed to work for me. I'll be able to keep things from getting as dangerous as it was with my master, but with the same outcome." “Dangerous, huh?” Evan remarked, and he thought about Kris’s plan. “I -do- need to work on my stamina, seeing as I’ve kinda lost myself in everything that’s gone on.” Evan looked around curiously, seeing only a lone Berry Tree. “So, are we lifting these things even more or is it something else I can’t seem to see, Kris?” "Wait, wait! I know this one!" Jenny exclaimed excitedly as she grinned. "There's a tree, isn't there? I saw a show about this once!" As she looked around the beach, she paused, however. "Wait, but I only see one tree, will that really be enough? Why did we get so many tires if that's it?" Evan eyed Kris, a little bewildered by what Jenny had said. “She’s….right, there’s only one tree.” The man said, sounding a little hesitant. “I think I know what she’s talking about but, why did we lug more than one tire over here…...?” Kris chuckled with a smile. "There's two extra tires because wearing them might help with the exercise. There's some lighter tires depending on needs and building up, but I chose those two in particular since they looked like they would fit you two." She glanced over at the tree afterward. "That tree won't help anyone, though. There's a sturdy metal pole that can support two swinging tires past that. Only two, though; if there were tires swinging back and forth and the poles were like, plus shaped, then the tires would just continually crash into each other or hit other people training." "I get it…" Jenny nodded with a smile, then thought for a moment. "What about our Pokémon, though? How will they get stronger by this?" "Well…" The blue-haired woman thought that question over for a moment. "They could benefit from this too, I feel, but right now I think the biggest concern I have is making sure you two are strong enough stamina-wise to handle the Z-Power. I'll pay in the currency of the beach for your teams to train up while you're working on this. I don't think the Move Tutors are quite used to this sort of training-while-Pokémon-have-no-power stuff, but, I don't see it being an issue." Kris took a moment to glance out over the ocean. "There's two more things, however - one, I request that you leave your newer Pokémon here. I want to see them get trained up personally through normal fighting. But two… I might as well explain other parts of your training." She smiled as she motioned toward the water. "We'll be switching between training like this on the different beaches depending on which island we're on… and surfing. Surfing is a key component as well - not just for stamina, but for balance. It will make it easier to use the poses that are required for your Z-Moves." Evan considered what the woman had to say and smiled. “I can agree to your terms, Kris. My team’s had a lot of time in the sun, but I need to focus on my newest friend. As for the surfing and training……” The man looked at the vast and unstill ocean. “I can’t say I’ve surfed before, but if it’ll help my posing game…..” The Hero posed dynamically. “Then I’m totally in!” "Alright." Kris glanced over to see Jenny nodding eagerly, then smiled. "Alright," she repeated with more enthusiasm. "Let's bring these tires over to the pole, then we'll get your Pokémon set up with the Move Tutors." *** "Absolutely not!" The man at the move tutor booth exclaimed as Kris explained the situation and saw the twelve Pokémon standing behind Evan and Jenny. "I don't think I could take on that many Pokémon alone even in the best of times, and you're asking me to train them up like this? When we have no means of properly teaching anything and knowing it'll work? I know we can teach the ideas behind the moves, but that would be one at a time! I can't handle twelve of them by myself!" "Then why don't you get Marina to help out, Alphonse? I'm sure you of all people can get help from the others here." Kris crossed her arms with a frown. "I'll even up how many Beach Points I give if you do this." "Look, I know that you're a regular, Kris. I get it. I know very well how much you surf here, always trying to improve yourself. But this is a bit much even for me." Alphonse glanced around nervously. "You know I don't get along well with a lot of the vendors here. You'll have to give a whole lot of Beach Points to make it worth it." "10,000?" "Holy--" Alphonse cut himself short as his eyes widened. "... You drive a hard bargain. I'll talk it over with the others. Uh, leave them, uh, here with me for now, I guess…" The man appeared to be a bit uncertain on how well this would work out, but as Jenny watched him walk off, she noticed he appeared to have steeled himself for this. "Well then," Kris looked over to Evan and Jenny once that was over, a smile on her face. "Shall we begin?" Evan threw a smile of his own back at the blue-haired woman. “As a Unovan Gym leader once said.….bring it!” He then looked at the tires and the metal pole with interest. “I’ll take your challenge, and surpass your expectations!” Jenny seemed lost in thought for a moment, but then nodded with a grin. "I'll do my best too."

IC: Lafoyae Belrose, Lavender Town Lafoyae faced Executive Stone as he exited the Memory House, her brow furrowed as she thought. "Rocket keeps has security cameras all over Kanto, and there is a Rocket Outpost in Vermilion City. We can head there next." The woman projected to Scott, before she herself made a yawning gesture. "That encounter in the Memory House took a lot out of me mentally. Perhaps we could stay at a hotel and catch our breath there?"

-==IC: Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur/Kris -- Alola -- [4]==- Evan marveled at the beautiful Alolan Sea, being captivated by the sheer amount of Pokémon life that it cradled within it’s azure waves. The boat continued it’s uneventful trip, and arrived at one of Ula’Ula’s beaches. Upon making landfall, the Plasma Agent looked in awe at how different it was on this island. “This is……...amazing.” "Whoa! Nice, this is pretty different from Akala, but it's cool." Jenny grinned as she stepped off of the boat. She looked around at the rocky cliffs nearby, amazed at the mountains in the distance. Kris led the group to a secluded spot near a trail to the north that was sufficiently rocky for the type of training that James asked about. James and Lancelot looked around. On a whim, Lancelot looked towards a rock and took a swing at it with his gauntlet. With a crack, the rock broke. Lancelot considered how tough the rock was. Not too fragile. It would make a good training ground. “This will serve well, I think,” James added as he took in the landscape. He began to consider what strategy would best serve Lancelot when fighting among the rocks. Evan took a moment to appreciate the training ground Kris had picked out for them, and considered who he’d send out, when Gnip suddenly appeared from her Poké Ball, and gave one of her trademark barks. “Well, you seem to like this place, huh?” The man said to the Mach Pokémon, who nodded at her friend, a look of determination in her eyes. "Alright, since we have three people here, and because you two already have your Pokémon out, let's take turns. Evan and James can go first, switching back and forth between who's defending during the first portion of this class." Kris explained, as she eyed the Scizor in particular. "Does that sound alright to everyone?" Evan nodded, before noticing Gnip eyeing Lancelot intently. “It’s fine with Gnip and I.” The man said, before looking at the Scizor himself. He felt an intense fighting spirit burning within the Scissors Pokémon, much like Gnip’s. "Well this is going to be interesting." The man thought. James likewise nodded. “I suppose we will get that promised battle after all,” he said, as he beckoned Lancelot closer to him. When the Scizor was close enough to whisper he added, “Do not use moves… yet,” he said to the Scizor. James figured that they could have probably gotten away with using Roost and not be noticed, but he did want to figure out how Lancelot stacked up to the Garchomp that beat Gawain. “All right. We are ready,” James said. “As are we. Attack or defend, Sir?” Evan said, grinning in anticipation at the battle ahead. Gnip herself looked at the Scizor. Compared to Scizlite, he was on a different level. Whether or not she’d win this, she would accept the outcome as it came. “I choose defend,” James said surveying the landscape one final time. He’d learn all he could from Gnip’s first attack. Lancelot adopted a defensive stance while surveying his opponent. She looked sturdy. It would be joyous to bring pain to such an opponent, the Scizor thought. “Then that puts us on the offensive, Gnip! Do your best, girl.” Evan said as he petted his star Pokémon on the head, before she moved onto the battlefield. The Garchomp gave Lancelot a challenging look, before roaring in his direction. Kris nodded as the two prepared for the fight. She raised a hand as she stood on the sidelines, acting as referee. "Alright… three, two, one… begin!" As the countdown finished, the blue-haired woman lowered her hand quickly, signaling the start of the fight. “Let’s start this off simple with a slash, Gnip.” Evan ordered. At her master’s command, The Garchomp rushed towards Lancelot, and readied a claw strike towards him, ready in case the Scizor countered her strike. If James had not explicitly banned moves, Lancelot would have used Counter right now. Instead he waited for James’s order. “Use the rock at 10 o’clock,” the order came. The Scizor saw the rock and dashed around it. He put the rock in between himself and the Garchomp. If the Garchomp came close, he’d use it like the other rock. Gnip saw the Scizor dart behind the rock and growled at her miss. Roaring once more, the Mach Pokémon rushed towards the rock and slashed at it, her strength cracking it in a major way. “Fight me, coward!” The Garchomp roared in her language, as the cover began to crumble. James was slightly surprised with the ease that matched Lancelot’s earlier crushing of the rock. He intended to use the structure as a weapon. But in that moment, “Strike now!” James called. Lancelot had ducked low to keep away from the slash. Using his wings to propel himself, he rose for a quick uppercut at the dragon. It came too fast for Gnip to evade, so she took the uppercut directly. She had the wind knocked out of her, as she was sent back a ways from the Scizor, gasping for breath. “Easy, Gnip.”Evan said, winking at his friend. “Just do what feels natural for you to do.” Nodding and catching her breath, the Garchomp faced Lancelot, and rushed at him again, aiming to slash at him with her right claw again. Lancelot felt satisfaction through his whole body. The impact felt so perfect. The joy of pain flowed through him. James had scanned the terrain when he first made Lancelot duck. There were no easy rocks to use this time. “Lancelot, guard while stepping back,” he said to the Scizor. Lancelot took one look behind him before complying. He brought his heavy gauntlets in front of his body, ready to guard against the Garchomp’s attack. The moment Gnip’s claw swept towards Lancelot, Evan knew what to do next. “Now, trip him up with your tail!” He commanded the Land Shark with a fiery tone.. Eyes blazing with fury, the Garchomp used the force from her horizontal slash to spin her stance, so that her tail could impact on the Scizor’s unguarded legs. Lancelot could not lower his arms to protect his legs quick enough, and James knew that. Even as the Scizor was being lifted from the ground, James called out, “Lancelot, aerial maneuvers!” Lancelot wished he simply said Aerial Ace at the moment, but was content to merely spread his wings to use as stabilizers to keep him from slamming into the ground. Just as well, considering the ground that he had led Gnip to. The terrain turned from rough to nearly impassable, with sharp inclines and jagged rocks. Using his wings, he hopped from rock to rock, challenging the Garchomp to come after him. Gnip grinned at the challenge the Scizor extended to her, and flew after him, eyes aflame. When she drew closer, she attempted to slice at the Scissors Pokémon with her left fin. Despite this being a training battle, it was one of the most thrilling sparring matches she’d ever had. As soon as Gnip entered his battle field, Lancelot got to work. He would use the field itself as his weapon. With a kick, he broke the top of a rock free and with a lightning fast punch, launched the free rocks at the dragon. He punched at several more large jagged rocks, to create shards to launch at the Garchomp. The rocks didn’t hurt Gnip a whole lot, thanks to her rather tough hide, but the pain was enough to distract her for the next barrage, which disrupted her flight, forcing her to land. The Garchomp looked up at the flying Scizor, and roared at him. If she had Draco Meteor or Flamethrower, this fight would have been cake for her. But there’s was no use crying about lost moves, she thought as she roared at Lancelot to do his worst. At the Garchomp’s beckoning, the Scizor broke off a long sharp rock. If Swords Dance was not allowed, then this rock would be his spear. Underneath that rock, a small pair of jaws peaked out of the ground. Small eyes looked in shock at suddenly being unearthed. With one gauntlet for a shield and the other holding the spear, the knight charged forth to face the dragon. He leapt from one rock to another to keep the Garchomp guessing, before throwing his might into a powerful thrust at the dragon’s belly. A loud gasp escaped the Garchomp’s mouth as the “spear” was slammed into her belly. Catching what miniscule amounts of breath she could, Gnip growled defiantly to her new rival. “I know I can’t beat you, but you won’t beat me.” With that, Gnip stayed in place, still breathing harshly as she eyed Lancelot, eyes still burning with draconic rage. She refused to budge anymore for the Knight, to show her resolve to him. Lancelot stared straight back in Gnip’s eyes. He had fought enemies that were truly stronger than him and overcome them. Ones that had the strength to push him back, given by the great size nature had bestowed them. So why was this dragon, barely greater than his size, not bending? Lancelot with joy tried digging the spear into his opponent, but the very rock kept falling apart as he pushed into it. Eventually he left with just his gauntlet again, trying to push the dragon into submission. Using the last of her dwindling strength, Gnip pushed herself against the gauntlet, and decided if she was going to fall, that she’d make it hard for this most worthy foe to get her to. She closed one eye due to the exertion of effort, among other things, and put her all into not buckling to Lancelot’s might. "Alright, I think that's about it for now." Kris said with a slight cough. "If this keeps going any longer, we might just all die of old age. You two did a pretty remarkable job, however." She eyed the Scizor with intrigue. "Is it just me, however, or did that Scizor seem to just get stronger as time went on?" “All right, Gnip, you heard the lady.” Evan said, impressed that his Garchomp lasted so long against such a mighty opponent. The man returned the panting Garchomp to her Poké Ball, where she tiredly winked at her friend. He then faced James. “I was wondering the same thing. It seemed like each time he hit Gnip, his attacks had more and more force….” James looked at Lance. He could tell the bug was both happy from the fight, and frustrated that he couldn’t finish it. “A consequence of his personality I am afraid. Something we try to turn towards constructive purposes. I was not able to accurately test it during the Pokemon power blackout because well…” Lancelot looked at James. “Lancelot, Swords Dance.” With a spin and twirl, the Scizor created two ethereal swords that he grasped with each gauntlet. “Lancelot. Lunge.” With one thrust, Lancelot shattered a nearby boulder, reducing it to rubble. “Because by the time we had a chance to, his abilities had already started to return.” Evan’s jaw dropped at this revelation. He had seen the stream while trying to sleep the day before yesterday, and was amazed at the Scizor’s new forme, but what was more surprising was that James’s partner Pokémon was that same Pokémon, and that he had his Move Power back. “That’s…….wild.” The man said, in awe of this reveal, before focusing on what the Executive had said. “That…...sounds like something I may have to look into for the Battle Royal, that is the personality thing…..” "I had a feeling." Kris said, though marveled at the Scizor's returned powers nonetheless. "This is a very good sign. How many people know of this other than us?" The woman asked, as Jenny approached Lancelot and looked him over in awe from many different angles. “Well apparently somebody was streaming when it happened,” James said choking down the urge to say it with more anger. “And we also caused a bit of a stir yesterday when Lancelot used his Swords Dance and drew some considerable attention.” James paled slightly at how his meeting with Colress ended, breaking eye contact for a moment. When he did, he spotted a small grub like Pokemon watching Lancelot. It seemed it too was impressed by Lancelot’s display of power. Display of having any power at all was the actual reason. But it looked to James that the grub was impressed by the amount of it. “Well, who are you?” James said walking over to the grub and leaning down to look closer at it. “Ms. Kris, do you know what kind of Pokemon this is?” "Yes, that is a Grubbin - it's a bug Pokémon native to Alola." Kris smiled at the interest that James was showing to the small bug. "When it evolves, it gets an electric type too. It can be a pretty strong Pokémon if you know how to use it. I've personally considered adding one to my team sometimes, but I haven't really felt like it works for me yet." “A Grubbin,” James repeated while placing his hand to the small bug type. “Are you curious about Lancelot, little fellow? Would you like to watch him longer? If you came with us, you could do that.” The Grubbin looked up at James. It watched him for a little while, before running past his hand, and around James, heading north and away from the group. James watched the bug go with a slight frown. “I guess that is a no,” he said. He didn’t particularly want to let the bug go, but it didn’t seem willing to join him either. And unlike a certain Weavile, that shall remain nameless, it didn’t lead him into a blizzard. He wasn’t going to force the matter. "Alright… now, back to work. I'll start to teach you some techniques that could help with your defensive maneuvers. Defense really is a big key for fighting, even for offense-based Pokémon like Lancelot and Gnip. Mastering these techniques should help you in the future." Kris explained, as she sat down on a nearby rock. "Some might even allow a flow to your attacks that you've never had before." Evan’s interest was piqued by the last thing Kris said. “Oh really now? So, putting the saying ‘The best offense is a good defense.’ to good use, eh?” The man said, smiling at the possibilities Kris was presenting. “What are some examples you can think of?” "One example to start this off, is parrying your opponent's attacks, if possible. Some attacks could be parried to stop them from being as strong as they usually are, in theory. Not all attacks are like that, but it's easier to practice them like this, as attacks are locked off from accidental use. Lancelot, would you be willing to be the one who first learns for now?" Kris glanced over at the only Pokémon at that moment who still had powers, knowing that he would be the most viable to not get hurt by accident. Lancelot looked at Kris, his eyes faraway for a moment. It had been a long while since he had a true combat lesson. He gave one glance to James, who nodded, prompting the Scizor to step forward. Kris smiled, then sent out her Kommo-o to act as the combat teacher. "Alright… let's begin."

-==IC: Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur/Kris -- Alola -- [3]==- After all was said and done, Evan and Jenny retired to their hotel room in Tide Song Hotel, the excitement for the day having worn them out. The next morning, the couple were peacefully dozing in their beds, at least until Evan’s alarm on his Pokégear went off. Blearily, the man looked at the time. It’s 7:30 in the goshdarn morning. The man thought as he silenced the beeping. An unspecified time later, the Plasma agent was finishing getting himself ready, when he saw that his girlfriend was still sleeping. Life’s not fair at all. As Evan approached Jenny’s bed, he was ready to rouse her from her sleep, when Feral’s voice whispered in his head. ”Don’t worry, Space Boy, I’ve got this. Hey, crimson wonder, it’s time to wake up already!” It was so early in the morning, the man couldn’t decide how to feel, be it exasperated at Feral’s “shouting” or ready to die laughing at his shadow’s new nickname for his girlfriend. Jenny, in return, groaned as she sat up and looked at the time. "... what the heck?" She mumbled with a closer look at the time, wondering if she had read it wrong. "Who's the wise guy who woke me?" Evan suppressed a laugh at Jenny’s reaction. “Well…….it -was- going to be me, buuuuuuut….” The man said, smiling. “Tall, dark and gruesome decided to take the wheel. Sorry about that!” At that moment, Feral cackled. ”Well, I’m -not- sorry at all!” "Well, whatever, better question is why I'm awake right now." Jenny left that question hanging in the air for a moment as she moved to get up, though was certainly wondering what the reason was. Evan sighed playfully. “Don’t you remember? James has a meeting on Ula’Ula Island, and we’re supposed to bring Kris along for training.” The man said, grinning. “You -do- wanna train with Kris, right?” Jenny paused for a moment, then groaned. "That's true… I don't know why it needs to be so early…" She let out a long sigh, but then stumbled off to get ready. James was standing with his coffee on the pier near the ferry he was scheduled to take. Lancelot was standing with him, pretending the early hour wasn’t an issue. After a while of preparation, and a hurried breakfast, the couple headed out of the hotel, looking for James. Evan finally caught sight of the Executive at the pier, but realized he had to contact Kris. He turned to Jenny, looking nervous. “She did give us her number, right?” Then the man recalled that there was a rendezvous set up near the pier. “Nevermind, I guess I forgot she said she’d meet up with us.” With that, the man headed to the pier, his groggy girlfriend in tow. As it was, Kris showed up roughly at the same time that Evan and Jenny did. The redhead waved sleepily to the older woman, who seemed rather amused at the state that she was in. "Mornings aren't your forte, are they?" Kris asked with a humourous tone as she approached. "Not really…" Jenny admitted with an awkward chuckle. "But I can definitely pull myself awake at some point. It'll happen aaaany second now." Kris smiled at that, then glanced around at the other two. "Everyone ready to head out, then?" “I am ready to depart,” James said after swallowing another sip of coffee. “Did you have a place in mind for our training?” “I’m definitely ready, but I echo Executive Arthur’s question….” Evan said, smiling curiously. “You know Alola better than us, so you’d definitely know a choice place to train, right?” The Hero faced James. “Actually, for that matter, where is your meeting taking place, sir?” “...” James was rather unwilling to outright say where his meeting was to take place. “I am going to take a boat from Ula’Ula beach to the meeting’s location. I would rather not say any more.” Evan nodded. “I’m sure you have your reasons, sir.” The man said, before facing Kris. “Well, there you have it. Anywhere on Ula’Ula we can train up at?” Kris considered that for a little bit. "Okay, when do you have to be at your meeting by? There's a few good places, especially by the beach, but it depends on when you'd have to leave by." “I was told the boat ride would take about an hour. The meeting is scheduled for 3:30 in the afternoon. So I will need to be back on the beach by 2:30 P.M.” James said. "Alright. If we leave now, we should be able to get to a place close enough within a few hours, which should leave a good couple hours at the very least." “Very good… Since you suggested defensive training, might I suggest we use a location with rough terrain?” James added. "That sounds good." Kris nodded with a smile. "There's a lot of rough terrain right outside of the area where the beach is, so that should work pretty well." Evan smiled at Kris’s idea. “Well, there we have it.” The man said, a cheery aura around him. “We get to have our cake and eat it too! So, shall we get a move on?” Meanwhile, inside her Poké Ball, Gnip the Garchomp had been thinking about her most humiliating loss the other day. Despite the fact that powers were gone, she should have been strong enough to take on that Meganium. Perhaps…...she had to reinvent herself? The landshark started ponder ways to change her fighting style. “No time like the present,” James agreed. “I had a boat chartered last night to take us to Ula’Ula Island,” James said pointing over to boat a short ways off. “The captain is ready to leave as soon as we’re aboard.” “Don’t have to tell me twice, sir!” Evan said as he made his way to the boat, for an instant becoming a purple blur as he got onto the vessel. James followed, taking one look back. As he did, he noticed the well-groomed man he had met earlier board a different boat. James chalked it up to coincidence, but kept looking for a moment longer. The two women boarded the boat shortly after. Jenny watched the waves as the ship departed, marveling at the beauty of the water. "This is pretty cool…" James was reading a book. He hadn’t finished this translation of La Morte d’Arthur yet. The constant fighting kept him from finishing it, even with the cease fire that had taken place since he started. Lancelot was looking towards Jenny when she made her comment, so he tapped James. “Hmm? Oh, yes,” James said looking out towards the sea. There were plenty of water type Pokemon visible just beneath the waves as the boat moved. James set the book down for a moment to take a closer look. “I suppose it is.”

-==IC: Kris/Evan Tierra/Jenny Hakuda/James Arthur -- Heahea City -- [2-2]==- The Meganium was surprised by the sudden shift in direction that Gnip was moving, but attempted to use the tug of war to his advantage, as he tried to pull back while flipping his head back. The grass type didn't know quite how well this would work, but hoped that the Garchomp could be slammed down by the momentum. Evan noticed the Meganium tried tugging back harder, and focused my sights on Gnip. “Gnip pull harder!” The man said, hoping to egg on his Pokémon Partner. “You’ve totally got this!” Growling with renewed vigor, Gnip countered the tugging and yanked her head, only for her to finally dislodge her precious snout from the Cloyster. The shock caused the Dragon-Type to fall on her back a little bit, before quickly getting up. The Meganium and Cloyster had not expected this sort of idea. Meganium tumbled backwards, while Cloyster was sent flying off - it's possible that the Bivalve Pokémon could have become a brand new star if Kris had not had the foresight to recall him in that moment. Evan couldn’t believe that Gnip’s plan would work so well, but look so silly. The man clapped his hands at his Landshark’s prowess, before focusing once more. “I think Scizlite’s got this now, Gnip, but….” The Hero said, grinning. “It’s best to help her out nonetheless! Pounce on the Meganium to pin him down!” Gnip roared loudly, before rushing towards the Herb Pokémon and leaping at him. The Meganium pushed himself to his feet and whipped the Scizor away with his tail. As Gnip approached to try and pounce on him, the Meganium let her. However, as soon as she tried to pin the herbivore, the Meganium surprisingly nimbly moved to try and pin her instead, having shocking success. At the same time, Kris sent out her next Pokémon with a smile, a Kommo-o. "Let's see how you fare against this!" She said, as the armoured Pokémon roared out, aiming to go help out her companion. Try as she might, Gnip couldn’t break free from the pin, growling in defeat. “It’s OK, Gnip!” Evan said, not letting this get him down as he returned the pinned Mach Pokémon to her Poké Ball, and threw out Behemoth’s Poké Ball. Almost immediately, the Ice-Type began to charge at the Herb Pokémon, fury burning in his eyes. The Meganium seemed surprised as the Mamoswine began to charge at him. Seeing the danger, the Kommo-o came to his aid, reinforcing the Meganium as the Mamoswine crashed into the two of them. It was a stalemate for the three Pokémon, but not an outright loss for Meganium yet. Despite being stopped cold, Behemoth couldn’t help but feel invigorated by the challenge these two were presenting. The Mamoswine eyed Scizlite, and gave the Scissors Pokémon a wink as he began to feel himself inching forward, little by little. Evan saw the slow advancement and began to look awestruck, before fist pumping. “Yeah, attaboy!” He cheered the Twin Tusk Pokémon on. “Show ‘em what you’ve got!” Spurred on by his master’s words, Behemoth put more oomph into his advancement, hoping Scizlite got his signal, before he went……. Full Boar. Scizlite charged forward, as she slammed her fist into the Meganium's face. It wasn't meant to deal any damage this time - merely to distract. She then hopped away, and nodded. Seeing the plan come together, and the Meganium’s focus broken for a second, Behemoth bellowed a loud cry. He then charged full force into the pair of pokemon, the duo being pushed by the sheer strength of the Ice-Type. Normally the Twin Tusk Pokémon wouldn’t be so agitated, but one of these two took down a teammate, and that wouldn’t do. The two opposing Pokémon were sent flying in opposite directions, and both landed on the ground hard. Kris smiled as she recalled her Meganium, seeming impressed by the combinations. She slowly clapped, as she recalled her Kommo-o as well. "Well done. I wasn't expecting such a strong performance. I see some things that could stand to be worked on… but I think that with some practice, you could be standing on the Battle Royal stage soon enough." Evan recalled Behemoth, smiling at the Poké Ball before looking at Kris. “You trounced my star Pokémon, so I definitely agree there’s work to be done on my technique. That said, I’m not surprised, seeing as you definitely have exceptional skill in battle. Mind giving us a few pointers, so when we are on that stage, we give a proper show?” “I do not know, you gave a pretty good show right there,” James commented walking forward with Lancelot in tow. “Forgive me for spying on another one of your battles, but I did not want to interrupt.” Lancelot eyed the older trainer as he imagined how he would’ve handled her Pokemon. He had an unfair advantage right now, which caused him to imagine scenarios where he either pressed that advantage or chose to ignore it. Both were interesting prospects, for different reasons. Evan recognized the voice, and was suddenly a lot more self-conscious. “Well, yeah, but a good battler thinks of ways to better themselves…” The man explained to the Executive, smiling a little nervously. “....So they can put on a better show the next battle! That aside……” The Hero gave James a bow with a flourish. “I’m glad we could entertain you, James.” That whole ‘first-name’ basis thing again. It still felt wrong to James somehow. He let it slide. “My meeting went well, but I had to make a sudden exit, due to a certain Scizor,” he said laying the blame at Lancelot’s feet. Lancelot would’ve retorted that he was the reason why James made any entrance to that meeting at all, but Guinevere wasn’t here to gave the smack for him. Thus Lancelot leaned on a tree with vague amusement. Evan chuckled at James’s explanation, but stopped when he realized there was something he had to do. “Oh, where are my manners?” Evan said, motioning to to the older trainer. “Executive Arthur, meet our opponent, Kris!” Kris raised an eyebrow at the mention of Executive, but walked forward to hold her right hand out. "Alola to you." She gave a smile to him, though otherwise let James take the initiative in the greeting. James raised his hands in front of him before moving them both in semi-circle pattern, “Alola,” James said in response, before noting the right hand. He had missed it. Internally he felt a bit Mareepish. He shook her hand gracefully after finishing the motion. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Kris…?” he said trailing off, hoping she would finish with a last name. Kris seemed lost in thought for a moment. "You know, it's been so long that I don't actually remember what they call me around here. I'm sorry for not being able to tell you that right now." “Er,” James started. Well that was awkward. “I see. My apologies for bringing it up.” "Not to worry, it isn't your fault." The woman gave a kind smile as she glanced around at the group. "Since all three of you seem to know each other, how would you all like defensive training lessons?" “Considering I have a little trouble with defensive Pokémon, I’m totally down!” Evan exclaimed, grinning as he turned to Jenny and James. “How about you two?” James contemplated the issue. “Lancelot and I need to figure something out rather quickly. If you do not mind me using him, I could join for a while.” Lancelot stood up straight. He didn’t know if this would trigger the bond between James and himself, but he was up for training. Jenny grinned in response. "I'm in too!" She said as she gave a thumbs up. Kris smiled as she glanced around at the three trainers. "Excellent - we'll start tomorrow. How does that sound?" The blue-haired woman asked, as she began to pocket the minimized Poké Balls that were still in her hands. "I'll leave the time of when we start up to you, if there's no problems." James crossed his arms and closed his eyes for a moment. He began to tap one of his fingers on his other arm. “That might be a problem. I have a meeting tomorrow. I will need to travel to my meeting from Ula’Ula Island. Unless the training was early in the morning, or on Ula’Ula Island, I am not sure I will be able to make it.” "We could train on Ula'Ula." Kris nodded. "There might be some stuff to work out to make that happen, but, I think that I can handle that. Are there any other problems?" “No, I think I can make it in that case,” James uncrossing his arms and opening his eyes. Evan thought for a moment, and shook his head. “No problems that I can see.” The man said, grinning. "Excellent. Let's meet up tomorrow, then." Kris said with a smile as she looked at Jenny for a moment before she turned and began to walk off. "Um, Ms. Kris, thank you for this!" Jenny called out quickly. Although the older woman had already gotten a little ways away by then, Jenny received a word of thanks in response. The redhead turned to the other two with a grin. "Things are getting fun, huh?" Evan nodded at Jenny, still wearing his grin. “I’d say they’re getting more than fun, honestly. What do you think……...Executive Arthur?” James thought about it for a moment. His mission had been going not great or badly. It had been going interestingly at least. “I doubt it will be boring at least. How is your mission to learn about Z-moves going?” Evan’s grin faltered at James’s inquiry. “We haven’t…..exactly got there, but I think getting to know one of the locals, like Kris, will help us get in the know.” The Hero said, confidently. “Just because we’re on a mission, doesn’t mean we can’t have fun, right?” James stared back at Evan for a moment. The disbelief at the lack of planning nearly visible on James’s face. But he didn’t judge. Out loud.