Pokémon: Rise Of The Rockets

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach frowned at Aspen's comment, and was about to leave, when Dahlia stopped him, and he blushed slightly.

"Uh, w-well, yeah, I mean, I've been calling her that f-for a while, right...?" Zach said, obviously catching her intention with the question, as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his head, not sure exactly what to say right then, since he hadn't actually followed through on anything... yet.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

Dahlia nodded to what Zach said, a small smile still on her face. "....It's a cute nickname." she chuckled, turning to walk away. "Remember what I said last night, by the way......"
Meanwhile, Olivia exited the hotel, relieved she would not have to go back to the Couple's Lounge ever again. At that moment though, a familiar voice rang out in her head. "Well? I said things would be easier if you listened to your true emotions. And it seems like you just have....."
"Yeah yeah, Amethyst." Olivia responded mentally, exasperated already. "You were right....."
"Indeed I am." the Gardevoir replied, still in her Pokeball. "Now what?" 

Olivia paused for a moment, before looking down and sighing. "....It might be too late, now....."
"Did he not throw an arm around you while sleeping?" Amethyst asked.

"Y-Yeah, but.... He wasn't conscious!" 

"You weren't conscious." Amethyst responded simply. "What does that mean?"

Olivia stopped responding, and continued to look down at the ground, cheeks flushed as thoughts and worries bounced around her head, unsure how things would go on from here.....

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach paused, as he did recall what she said last night, and wondered if it really was good advice... And then recalled what Olivia had said had happened that morning. He knew the dream had to do with their childhood, but it was still rather fuzzy... Could the two things have been related? Did it have anything to do with what he kept wondering about since the previous night, when Dahlia had mentioned things for the first time?

Hmm... Zach thought, as he pushed the thought away for that moment, and walked outside.

 

As the group walked down the street, they noticed Darach heading toward them with a grin on his face.

"Well, hello again. Glad to see I actually caught up with you." Darach said, and Zach frowned in confusion.

"Darach, right? What are you doing here?" Zach asked, and Darach adjusted his glasses with a smile.

"Well, you see, Caitlin wanted me to check and see if you had taken up the offer we suggested yesterday, because she realized that you would otherwise have to go through Victory Road... And it doesn't look like your companions might be all too keen on that." Darach explained, as he glanced at Olivia, Dahlia, and Aspen.

"So, I thought I'd help out with teleportation, if you didn't mind. We need to go to the Badge Check Gate first, for formalities, but, after that, it's a quick stop at the Pokemon League." Darach said, as he nodded to his Gallade. Zach looked back to the others, and then nodded, since they seemed to be on board.

"Alright, sounds good." Zach said, and Darach snapped his fingers, and the five vanished from Opelucid shortly after.

 

When Zach opened his eyes, he noticed they were in a grand hall-like area. There were many symbols on the walls, and patterns of the different types on the floor.

"This is the badge check gate you were talking about...?" Zach asked, and Darach nodded.

"As you pass through the gates ahead, your badges will resonate and activate the gates. Visitors are allowed to follow, so we can just go as a group without worry." Darach explained, and Zach nodded, and bravely walked forward. As he did so, the gates slowly lit up in response to the badges which rested on the inside of his backpack, and lit up symbols on the large gate in front of them. Zach continued to walk forward, and as he passed the final gate, all of the symbols glowed, and then flashed, as they began to open the final door. Darach smiled with a nod, as they traveled through that one last gate, and then nodded to his Gallade.

"Next stop, Pokemon League." Darach said, as the group vanished once more.

 

Zach looked up at the colossal building in front of them as they appeared in front of the Pokemon League. To the group's left was a Pokemon Centre, however, Darach chuckled, as he noticed the group looking at it.

"Today, we are following Facility rules; your Pokemon will be healed before and after each match, so that you're at your best. I wish you good luck, and your friends can watch from the seats we have set up inside." Darach explained, and then began to walk away, as Zach looked forward, and then nodded.

"Well... Here I am; can't back down now..." Zach said with a slight chuckle, as he frowned, and then nodded, and began to take the first step forward to his challenge.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

The three siblings looked up at the stands, with their eyes widening at the audience gathered to watch Zach's match.

"Cilan... Cress... Chili... Lenora... Burgh... Elesa... Clay.... Skyla... Brycen... Hugh.... Cheren.... Roxie.... and Marlon." Aspen thought to himself, as he glanced through at each Leader seated. There were three other in the stand, a brown haired man and woman, with another man with a cap and green ponytail next to the both of them. "....They also seem familiar." Aspen thought, soon furrowing his brow at the sight of all the authorities of the Unova Pokemon League gathered around to witness Zach's battle. 
".....If you'll excuse me, I'll just buy some Technical Machines, will just be a second...." Aspen muttered, heading off to the Pokemon Center to purchase them, his scowl hidden from the rest of the audience. 
"You must be all the Unovan Gym Leaders..." Dahlia said with awe, soon nodding with a smile. "I'm Dahlia, that's my sister Olivia. My brother Aspen's the one who just head off to buy some TMs." she confirmed. "We were just traveling with Zach, and I must say, it is an honor to be sitting among legends." Dahlia finished.

"It is kinda surreal, isn't it?" Olivia said with a chuckle, shrugging. "I mean, you are all pretty famous and well known... And we're just ordinary people." Olivia finished, blinking. 

Not long after, Aspen returned to the stands, sitting next to his sisters, releasing Flare and Torrent to work with the new TMs he had purchased, before glaring at each and every Gym Leader around him. ".....So, I guess Zach is this important, huh?" he muttered hatefully.

 

OOC: Exchanging 2 points for Wild Charge and Ice Beam TMs, will go to Flare and Torrent respectively.

Edited July 12, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach walked through the rest of the building, to reach the battlefield. Zach turned his eyes up to the stands, noting a number of the viewers scowling down at him. Zach flinched slightly, and looked back to the middle of the field, where three of the Elite Four waited. The one who was missing was Caitlin, of course, and it made him wonder if that was always planned.

"Well, well; it took you six months, but it looks like you answered my call for a rematch." Grimsley said with a smug smile, as Zach paused, but nodded. Grimsley sighed, as he looked up at the crowd in annoyance for a moment.

"Yeah, you're not their biggest fan right now. I think you realize that, and why, do you not?" Grimsley mused, as Zach nodded again.

"Well none of that matters to me right now. All I care about, is whether or not you can fight. So show me a good battle." Grimsley said, as he sent out his Bisharp first.

"Facility rules! Each opponent uses three Pokemon each. This will be a one on one fight! Items are prohibited, but switching is allowed. Battle ends when one or both opponents are unable to fight." Grimsley called out.

"Right. I don't know if this will work... But I have to give it a shot." Zach said, as he mentally chose his three Pokemon for that fight.

Luke, Katie, and Blade... How will they fare, though...? Luke couldn't win against Liv's Nincada last night, and struggled against Liv's other Pokemon the day before... Zach thought, and said, as he switched the order of his Pokemon.

"Come on out, Blade!" Zach called out, as he seemed to resort to his most powerful Pokemon first.

 

Zach frowned, as he suddenly realized that the moveset he was planning on using was not suited to this at all. At most, this would be a stalling technique for him to figure out how the fight would go, with a handful of moves that might work... And then he'd have to resort to another Pokemon.

"Well? Not gonna move? Then I will." Grimsley said with a shrug, as his Bisharp dashed forward, breaking through the Zoroark's illusion easily, as Zach's eyes widened. Katie launched off a desperate Flamethrower in return, as Zach remembered that his opponent was a steel type.

So I have more of a chance than I thought. Zach contemplated; as he and Katie recovered from the sudden Aerial Ace.

"Right, now push back!" Zach called out, as Grimsley raised an eyebrow. The Zoroark dashed forward and smirked as she plotted out her next moves nastily; and then fired off a point blank Flamethrower at the Bisharp. The Bisharp reeled from the attack, and then swung around with an X-Scissor and sent Katie flying back. The Zoroark tried to stand up, but the two quick, strong, successive hits proved to be too much for her, and she fainted rather quickly. Zach frowned, as he recalled the Zoroark, as Grimsley just shook his head.

"Is that really all you have to offer? No wonder things happened the way they did." Grimsley said with a waiting smile, and Zach froze for a moment, and closed his eyes, as he gripped Luke's Pokeball.

"Let's go, Luke... Let's show them what you can do..." Zach said, as he sent out the Riolu, who seemed surprised that Zach actually called upon him, but stared at the much taller Bisharp, and then nodded confidently.

 

-==IC: Gym Leaders==-

 

Clay looked over at the young kid, as he had a look that showed that he wasn't impressed with what seemed to be implied.

"What did you just say, kid?" Clay asked, as the other Gym Leaders looked over in confusion. Meanwhile, a woman with blonde hair and glasses ran in, and then started panting.

"I'm sorry... I was... late..." The woman said, as Cheren groaned.

"Bianca, could you be on time for once...?" Cheren asked, as the newly recovered Black and White laughed to themselves, amused at the shenanigans their friend was still getting into.

[Parugi]

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Liberty Ball:

 

For some time, Sonja had continued to stare out into the sea of dancers, letting the music and the swaying of the masses to envelope her senses. Only when she had turned around, noticing Ray's silence, did she realize how troubled he look--as if something were on the edge of his mind. In fact, it looked like he wanted to say something, though he glanced away before she could be sure.

 

Sonja paused, rubbing her wrist and briefly looking back at the dancers before returning her attention to Ray. She cleared her throat quietly. "Um . . . Ray," she said, her own voice barely audible over the volume of the music. "Did you want to . . .?"

 

She was interrupted by Ryan's sudden arrival. Perhaps it had been intentional, perhaps not--she really couldn't tell--but it felt like, in the span of three seconds, he had arrived, complimented her, and then slipped into a request to dance, catching her completely by surprise--and skipping a greeting, at that. The rapid sequence of events momentarily stunned her. "Uh . . ."

 

Behind Ryan, she could see Ray turn around in his seat and retreat into his drink, rendering her completely blind to his expression. She couldn't tell if he was angry or annoyed or apathetic, and that in turn caused Sonja to hesitate for a brief moment, wondering . . . But, then, if Ray had wanted to dance with her, he would have asked, right . . .?

 

"Uh . . . S-sure, Ryan."

 

She took his hand. As he led her out to the dance floor, she looked back over her shoulder at Ray, waving with her free hand.

 

". . . We'll be back," she called, to little response. Frowning, Sonja turned back around, staring at the floor as she followed Ryan out . . .

 

IC - Kyle Eston/Esen Windred - The Alamo, Liberty Ball:

 

The music consisted of a flowing melody that virtually carried the dancers upon the elegant arms of a twirling, flowery voice. As he and Esen swayed and occasionally spun to the sound, more enjoying the sensation of letting the music carry their movements than anything, Kyle couldn't help but briefly close his eyes, imagining the dance floor as a spinning platform on a string, rising and falling, tipping and turning with the brush of the wind. He smiled, letting out a sigh of contentment.

 

Esen looked up at him, a small smile on her lips. "You enjoying this?"

 

"Of course," Kyle said, opening his eyes and matching her gaze with his own. "Are you?"

 

She thought for a moment. "Yes, I think so," she said. "I've never gone to something like this before, so it's . . . different. But it's nice." Esen looked around them. "Very peaceful . . ."

 

Kyle nodded. "I know what you mean," he said. "It feels like I'm always so busy, either with actual work or stressing out over . . . well, everything, you know? So it's nice to finally get a chance to set everything aside and just breathe for a little while." He felt his face light up with a smile. "Like you said, it's different, but nice." She blushed slightly, dropping her gaze to the ground, as if making sure neither of them would stumble. After a few more seconds of silence, Kyle spoke up again. "So . . . Esen . . ." She looked up. "That's an interesting name."

 

"Thanks," Esen said. She fell silent again for a moment; then, "My mother named me. She was an . . . interesting person."

 

"Yeah?" Kyle said. "What's she do?"

 

"What did she do," she corrected. Kyle blinked, his smile flickering. "She's . . . no longer around."

 

"Oh," he said, feeling their movements begin to slow. "Sorry, I . . . I shouldn't have assumed . . ."

 

"It's okay," Esen said, though Kyle did not seem that reassured. "Trust me, you're not the only one. Besides, I hardly knew her by the time she died . . ." She looked away, taking a moment to brush her hair aside. With a self-conscious smile, she looked back. "Anyway, my mom . . ." Esen appeared to be searching for the right way to word what she wanted to say. ". . . She, uh, she was a politician, I guess you could say. In Hoenn. Pretty powerful, so her job kept her away from . . . home." Kyle tilted his head when she got caught on the word, though said nothing as Esen continued with a sigh, looking off to the side. "At any rate, things happened, she was betrayed, and, well . . . the rest is history." Thoughts seemed to cloud her eyes. "It's been about a year since she died now . . . Kinda wish I had gotten a chance to say 'good-bye', but . . ." She trailed off.

 

Kyle stared at her. A growing sense of kinship had began to build in his chest the more she had spoken, and by the end, all he could do was avert his gaze, uttering a quiet, "I'm sorry to hear that . . ." After a while, he spoke up again. "It's a weird coincidence, and I won't be surprised if you don't believe me," he said. "but something similar happened to my mom." Esen looked at him. "When Team Rocket first came to power, my parents were contacted by Liberty's leadership and asked to join in the rebellion. They accepted after a few initial declines, and when they did, Team Rocket came down on them. Hard." He shook his head, a half-frown stretching the corner of his mouth for a brief moment. "My dad and I were fine, but my mom was injured. Fell into a coma. She finally passed away back in December." He sighed. "Probably better that way, in all honesty . . ."

 

"Yeah," Esen said, her voice quiet. "I guess we're two fish in the same school . . ." They fell silent for some time, until the song began to fade. As they slowed down to match the music's end, she looked up, smiling again. "Well . . . There goes the peace, I guess."

 

"I guess," Kyle said, chuckling. "Sorry about that . . ."

 

"Oh, it's no big deal," Esen said, shrugging. "I talked, too." She began to pull away. "I enjoyed it, at any rate." They stared at each other for several seconds, before looking away--Kyle placing his hands in his pockets, Esen crossing her arms in front of her. "Well . . . I guess I'll . . . see you back at the snack bar?"

 

"Sure," Kyle said. "I'll be there in a bit. Just, uh . . ." He gestured to the door to one of the patios. "Just gonna get some fresh air first." Esen nodded, giving him a wave before disappearing back into the crowd.

 

Kyle waved after her, taking a moment to gather his bearings before heading in the direction of the outer door . . .

 

OOC: As a note to Kon--I know I say the song ended during this dance, but I imagine it'll actually have switched about half-way through Sonja and Ryan's dance since it was still playing when they started. But we'll sort that out in chat tomorrow.

 

IC - Goldhawk/Blackskull/Silvermind - The Alamo, Boardroom:

 

The three Liberty Leaders had listened in almost complete silence as James recounted his story. The only sound accompanying his voice was the scritch-scratch of of pen on paper as Blackskull took notes on what was said, to be reviewed later. At the mention of Lust and Greed, all three visibly reacted, pausing and giving each other brief glances before settling back in to James's story. When all was said an done, they remained silent for some time, Blackskull setting down his pen and shaking his hand, Silvermind looking to Goldhawk with raised eyebrows, and Goldhawk simply leaning back in his seat, eyes closed and arms crossed.

 

After several moments, Blackskull looked at the Executive. "That's . . . quite a tale, James," he said. "Wish I could say it's the strangest one we've heard, but, uh . . ." He shrugged, looking at Goldhawk.

 

The Liberty Leader sighed. "Lust and Greed, huh?" he said, opening his eyes. "Executive, you weren't there when Jupiter came to speak to us, were you?" James confirmed his absence. "As it happens, Team Galactic was recently attacked by a woman calling herself 'Envy'. And we've heard inklings of rumors from Team Rocket that a man called 'Wrath' appeared in Goldenrod around the same time--the same man, it seems, who destroyed much of Ecruteak half a year ago." He pushed a file forward, staring at its cover. "All of these trainers, then, appear to share a number of similarities--incredible power, unlike anything that has been seen up to now, characteristics and names in line with a specific and individual sin . . . and no trace left behind upon defeat." Goldhawk looked up. "Given that these Lust and Greed figures disappeared in the manners that they did, and that Wrath supposedly disappeared in fire, it seems likely that our Envy will or may have already been defeated."

 

"Excuse me for interrupting, Goldhawk," Silvermind chimed in. "But this doesn't have a lot to do with Executive Arthur, does it? Perhaps we should get back on track?"

 

Goldhawk paused, shaking his head slightly, the motion indicating exhaustion. "It's not a direct connection, no," he said. "I just think it's important for the Executive to know that what happened to him and Vert is not an isolated incident. But, I suppose we can discuss that later . . ." He pushed the file aside, leaning back and looking directly at James. "At any rate, I appreciate you clarifying what happened, Executive, as well as your overall honesty regarding everything you've told us. Hopefully it won't be long before we get R&D back up and running. Unfortunately . . ." He pulled two more files out of the pile next to him. "I can't say I appreciate your involvement in Projects HARMONY and . . . WEAVER, was it? Particularly not when you knew I ordered the former to be shut down."

 

He pushed WEAVER's file forward. "You're aware that HARMONY was canceled because of its high risk of fatality among test subjects, correct?" he said. "I'd like to know, then, what made you think that providing intel on cloning technology was a justifiable means of getting around that, because as it stands, the blood of countless Pokémon--cloned as they were--is on your hands just as much as Vert's and whoever else was involved. Not to mention, by extension, what occurred to Officer Ross as a result of your use of the Normal-Type suit."

 

IC - Ethan Worth/Windy - Celadon Department Store, Roof:

 

"You're forgetting, Lucia," Ethan said, whipping out his sunglasses again. "So am I."

 

For perhaps the first time in their life, the sunglasses were dawned at an appropriate time and for an appropriate reason. Between the electrical auras of the Rotom and the blaze of the sun in the sky, the glasses actually proved useful in assisting Ethan in battle, by cutting out the excess light that would otherwise have served to blind him.

 

And so it was that he was able to react to the attacks that the Electric-Types were launching at his Pokémon.

 

Ethan threw a hand forward. "Kada, Paruk, there're no obstacles out here!" he called. "Let 'em have it--don't hold anything back!"

 

They did.

 

Twin Shadow Ball attacks flew toward the Rocket Pokémon. Unlike their last battle, however, they were no longer obstructed by rows or fragile electronics. Kada was able instead to leap out of the way, Paruk riding on his back; the dark energy struck the ground where they had stood, shattering the concrete of the roof. In retaliation, Kada immediately aimed upon landing, letting loose a barrage of Bullet Seeds. Paruk, too, grabbed his shell, launching it in a wide spin at the two electrical ghosts.

 

And there was more.

 

They had been distracted in the electronics store for many reasons--lack of room to move, conscientiousness of their predicament. But there had been another reason, a growing energy that had seeded itself in the very core of their beings and extended from there, until it had threatened to envelop them. And they had fought it, knowing that in the other stage, they would have only been hindered. But here? Here, they were free.

 

And here, they were ready.

 

So they let loose, loosening their restraints, and began to glow, both Kada and Paruk growing larger and larger in size, until their spots were occupied by a large, tree-bearing tortoise and a solid block of rock and crab, both raring for a final battle against Team Zephyr . . . 

 

OOC: Yup.

 

Species: Torterra.

Nickname: Kada.

Trainer: Ethan Worth.

Appearance: The tree on Kada's back has small, blue flowers sprouting from it and his eyes are dark green.

Personality: Kada has become an incredibly devoted member of Ethan's team, extremely determined to carry out tasks and ensure that his trainer defeats whatever is thrown his way. Though his body has slowed down, his mind has not, and Kada thus possesses a sharp mind in battle and out. Incredibly friendly and generally jolly, Kada finds it easy to make friends, and further acts as the core parental unit among Ethan's team.

Ability: Overgrow.

Specialty: Kada's evolution has provided him with immense strength that he can take advantage of through physical attacks. The strengthening of his shell has also provided him with incredibly sturdy defenses, such that he can survive most attacks directed at him. However, his large size takes a large toll on his speed, and fire attacks are still capable of inflicting a great deal on damage on him--particularly when aimed at the foliage on his shell.

Known Moves: Leaf Storm, Earthquake, Wood Hammer, Body Slam (Egg Move,) Synthesis, Mega Drain.

 

Total EXP: 19/16

Razor Leaf > Leaf Storm

Bite > Earthquake

Bullet Seed > Wood Hammer

 

 

Species: Crustle.

Nickname: Paruk.

Trainer: Ethan Worth.

Appearance: Paruk looks like a normal Crustle, although his shell tends to have sharper edges.

Personality: Paruk is rather impish in nature, as he tends to play small pranks on those around him--especially his enemies. He has adapted quickly to life in Ethan's team, not particularly questioning his new position, though he has enjoyed the new opportunities to mess with people--especially his new trainer. Paruk is a bit cruel in battle; while not as overboard as Suya tends to be, he has become something of a bulldozer, doing everything in his power to end things as quickly as possible in an attempt to outshine his opponents. Results tend to vary.

Ability: Shell Armor.

Specialty: Paruk is primarily defense based, using his shell as a shield -- naturally. He also tends to try and catch his opponents off-guard, by digging underground and disguising himself as a rock; this strategy tends to work better in rocky areas, where he can splash sand into his opponent's face and then do the above. His evolution has also provided a significant boost to his offensive abilities.

Known Moves: Sand-Attack, Smack Down, Rock Wrecker, X-Scissor, Slash, Stealth Rock.

 

Total EXP: 8/7

Rock Polish > Rock Wrecker

Bug Bite > X-Scissor

N/A > Stealth Rock

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ray==-

 

Ray thought over what had happened. He'd had the chance to ask, but he'd blown it, figuring that she'd say no. But yet, as he started to think over everything, Ray paused, as he thought sure he had heard something in the seconds before Ryan showed up. Something that wasn't music... Ray turned around uncertainly, as he couldn't be sure of what Sonja had actually said... But... Although he had barely registered the aftermath of the question, she had definitely seemed hesitant.

But I'm... just in the way, aren't I... Ray thought, as he turned back, not seeing any sight of the two, and now felt worse than he had before; but yet, a strange clarity began to form, which confused him more. He liked it better when he was too confused to even think, because it could actually justify him not doing anything at all, as he simply put his head down, tired and just feeling as if he had messed everything up in that moment.

 

-==IC: Lucia==-

 

Lucia smiled, as she noticed the two newly evolved Pokemon.

"Guess I'm not the only one who's been training in secret, huh?" Lucia asked, as Skyle looked between the two and scowled.

"Why must you even talk so much?" Skyle muttered, as Lucia heard, and shot him a glare.

"Hey, I wasn't the one monologuing the last time." Lucia retorted, and Skyle simply rolled his eyes.

The Xatu was definitely feeling something. While the electric attack hadn't really done much, the follow-up Dark Pulse definitely had. The Xatu was currently on the ground, wondering about the number of the freight train that had hit it, and was rather slow to get up. Too slow, one might say, as a second Dark Pulse slammed into it quickly, dealing more damage. However, that left the Tropius unchecked... And Lucia smiled. The Clawitzer noticed out of the corner of her eye, and then jumped straight up, and fired a Water Pulse at the ground. Under normal circumstances, that'd seem like a waste, except the added force from the pulse flung the Clawitzer up and over the Tropius... Who was right in the target path of the Dedenne.

 

"Parabolic Charge, Dragon Pulse!" Lucia called out quickly, as the Dedenne let off a shock of energy that hit both the Tropius and the poor Xatu, and sent the Tropius spiraling into the side of the nearby air vent, as Lucia winced.

Well... Hopefully that can be fixed. Lucia thought, as the follow-up Dragon Pulse was launched at the winded Tropius. In response, Lucia simply turned around, and started to walk toward Skyle, as the Dragon Pulse created a small explosion where the Tropius was.

"So... What was that you were saying last time?" Lucia asked, turning her head as the Tropius flew out of the smoke and toward her.

"Aura Sphere." Lucia said, as the Clawitzer, who had just landed from earlier, aimed quickly, and fired off a point blank Aura Sphere at the Tropius' face, causing it to slam into the ground; if not fainted, very close to it.

"You caught me off guard last time, and with a half-health Pokemon. This time, I know your tricks." Lucia said, as Skyle recalled his two current Pokemon with another scowl, and then reached for two more...

Edited July 12, 2014 by Colette Llyan

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

"Oh, sorry about that, sir." Aspen muttered sarcastically, rolling his eyes and glancing down at the fight. "I guess I'm just not sure why Gym Leaders-the ULTIMATE authority of the Pokemon League and respected by hundreds of thousands of aspiring trainers as the some of the strongest trainers in the region, seem to have dropped everything to watch Zach's impulse battle." he said contemptibly, before glancing questioningly at each of the Gym Leaders. "Don't you people have DAY JOBS besides being a Gym Leader too? Like, running a restaurant, managing a museum, flying a cargo ship, or lounging in a comfy chair counting your money all day?" Aspen said, glaring at Clay when he finished especially. "......And yet, it seems that watching the match of someone who committed genocide is more important than any of that. Huh, I guess there must be something special about him that makes him far better than the rest of us plebeians..." Aspen finished with poison in his voice, looking back down at the match. "I may not have any special powers..... But I am a person. I should matter too.... But apparently not." Aspen muttered quietly to himself, glaring down at Zach with anger.

 

Meanwhile, Olivia silently looked on at the battle. Looking over, Dahlia grinned as she got an idea. "Hey, Olivia.... Don't you think Zach could use some cheering on during this fight?"
Looking over, Olivia tilted her head in confusion before what Dahlia was implying became clear, causing Olivia to blush. ".....Why can't you do that?" she retorted.

"Oh, I certainly could." Dahlia agreed. "But maybe, just maybe, Zach would feel more motivated if it was someone else who cheered him on....." she said with a grin.

Olivia looked away from Dahlia and back down at the match, seeing that Katie was already out of the fight. "......Is that the best you can do?!" she shouted, as though she were disappointed with his performance. "Pick up the pace, can't you do better than that?!"
Dahlia blinked at Olivia's choice of encouraging words, then shrugged. "Close enough, I guess....."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Gym Leaders==-

 

Clay, Cheren and Hugh all looked over in varying levels of shock or utter annoyance, as Clay gave Aspen a glare.

"Listen kid, do you think I necessarily want to be here? That kid, I had high hopes for. He seemed a talented fighter. Then he went and let me down. Me? I'm here partially to see him crash and burn as he should." Clay growled, as Cheren and Hugh walked over with a frown.

"What's going on here...?" Cheren asked, obviously confused as to why there was a sudden shouting match, and why anyone would try to get Clay mad, on purpose or not.

 

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach looked up at the stands, as Olivia luckily drowned out Aspen's rant.

"U-uh, thanks...?" Zach mumbled, looking a little confused, but thought for a moment, as he nodded.

She has a point... But how... A look dawned on Zach's face. He smiled confidently, and breathed in.

"Luke, dash to the side, three Aura Spheres!" Zach called out. Luke turned to him as if he were crazy in response, since his Aura Spheres were barely even formed enough to travel two feet... However, as he did so, Luke felt himself... Moving faster almost. Realization started to dawn on Luke's face, as the Elite Four member looked over curiously.

What is he up to...? Grimsley mused, as he paused, and then smiled in amusement, as the Riolu launched three Aura Spheres at the Bisharp. Two of them fizzled out before even reaching the Bisharp; however, the third had to be blocked quickly, to prevent more damage than it already did.

"Now then... Evolution!" Zach called out, as Grimsley smiled, his suspicions confirmed. A brilliant blue-white glow surrounded the Riolu, and then moments later launched out from around it, as the Riolu was then replaced by a confident looking Lucario.

 

Zach looked ultra focused for a moment, as the two stared each other down.

"Luke, Extremespeed, then Aura Sphere!" Zach called out, as the Lucario dashed forward, and then jumped into the air, as he fired off three shots at the Bisharp quickly. These Aura Spheres weren't as strong or large as normal ones individually; but collectively they added up to about the same amount of damage as if there were only one. However, none of these stopped before their target, and the Bisharp was barely able to cushion the damage. However, as the cloud of dust faded, the Bisharp looked ahead to see the Lucario in front of him, preparing a Force Palm, which sent the Bisharp flying back. The dark type spiraled across the ground, not expecting the power from the newly evolved Pokemon, but then slowly stood up, as the Lucario sped in front of the Bisharp, and slammed into him again. The Lucario kicked the Bisharp away, and then followed up the attack with three more Aura Spheres; the rapid attacks not giving the Bisharp much of a chance at all to respond. As the Bisharp staggered to his feet after that attack, Luke appeared in front of him again, and unleashed one final Force Palm on the poor Pokemon; finally knocking it out, as Grimsley sighed.

"Well done, Bisharp, return." Grimsley said, as Luke returned to the centre of the battlefield with a new confidence. Zach smiled at the Lucario with a nod, as Luke smiled back. The two then focused their attention on Grimsley, as he selected his second Pokemon.

"Come on Houndoom, let's show him the error of his ways." Grimsley said with a smug grin, as he sent out the dark/fire type, Zach nodding in response, as neither he, nor Luke, were about to give up.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

"Oh, okay. That's one out of...." Aspen muttered, looking around the audience and counting off the people he saw. "....Seventeen or so people? And this is quite the audience....." he said, before Cheren spoke up. 
"Nothing, nothing's going on. Except for the fact that the highest authorities of the Unova Pokemon League seem to have dropped everything in their certainly busy schedules to watch Zach's match, which I'm sure came out of absolutely nowhere." he said with a growl. "But I guess he just matters soooo much more than the rest of us, that he's excused for genocide and can have his matches celebrated....."

"Yeah! That's what I came to see!" Olivia continued cheering. "Now do more of it!"

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Gym Leaders==-

 

Hugh and Cheren gave each other an uneasy look, as Aspen would have suddenly felt the glance of about four certain leaders from southeast Unova, while Clay just indignantly huffed and turned away, finding Aspen's attitude to be annoying. The two had also heard about the events, and although had been told to keep it a secret, wondered if explaining it would help here.

"This has been in the works for at least a month, you realize, right?" Cheren asked, a skeptical look on his face, as he frowned slightly.

"Plus, the Gym Leaders usually watch all Elite Four matches; the League pretty much requires it... Usually it's a League match, which is why it doesn't seem so out of place, but..." Cheren explained, and Hugh thought for a moment, and then laughed nervously.

"Saaaay, it's like a reunion here, doesn't it? You, me, Bianca, the two over there..." Hugh said, as he motioned to Black and White, trying to change the subject.

"Of course, Nate and Rosa are no-shows like usual..." Hugh muttered, and there was a 'hem hem' behind them.

"'Like usual'?" A voice called out, and Hugh inhaled quickly, and nervously turned around, as Nate and Rosa were indeed standing right behind him.

"Okay, okay, late as usual, is that better?" Hugh mumbled, as Nate looked amused.

"Fine; but hey, I gotta keep training, you know? Someone's gotta keep you on your toes, after all." Nate said, and Rosa simply sighed and shook her head.

[JiMing]

IC: Aspen Seaton

 

Upon seeing the two new arrivals, Aspen sighed again, and rolled his eyes. "Make that nineteen people, then." he said, glaring back at Cheren again. "....Oh, so your presence is required? Then this shouldn't have happened in the first place." Aspen said bitterly. "He's a mass murderer of a million people. A million. I think having an audience of this magnitude would be stroking his ego, and quite frankly, that is the LAST thing Zach needs right now." Aspen warned, before looking around again. "....Not everyone here is even a Gym Leader. There's Bianca, I think I heard you call her. Saw her in a news article related to science before. Those three over there." Aspen said, pointing to Black, White, and N. "I'm not sure of their names but I have a feeling they are important. And lastly, Nate and Rosa, I think it was?" Aspen said, looking back at Hugh. "Definitely don't recognize them, but they're your friends, so I'm sure they did SOMETHING that was noteworthy. All in all, still quite the pantheon of important people." Aspen finished, shrugging. "And I don't think they were required to be here...."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach smiled at the encouraging words from Olivia again, as he pointed at the Houndoom.

"Aura Sphere!" Zach called out, getting into this mood, and slowly leaving his doubts behind, as the Lucario strafed around the Houndoom, and fired off three more of the aura attacks quickly. The Houndoom dodged the first two, but was hit by the last one; having noticed the Lucario's fighting style the first time. The attack, while still powerful, was seemingly just shrugged off by the Houndoom, as said Pokemon launched off a Fire Blast at Luke. Luke narrowly dodged to the side, as Zach nodded, having seen that coming.

"Keep it up, this isn't going to be an easy fight; but we can manage!" Zach said, as Luke nodded with a smile, and considered his new moves. Luke used ExtremeSpeed to dash forward and around the Houndoom, which succeeded in making the Houndoom be surprised. The Lucario then used a close Force Palm, and knocked the Houndoom away... However, it then turned, and dashed at Luke, and bit down on him with lightning coated fangs. The Lucario winced, as it repeated the Force Palm on the Houndoom's face... Which got it to release the Lucario, however, it also freed its mouth for a close range Fire Blast.

 

"Luke!" Zach called out in shock, as the Lucario was doused in the flames. The Steel type winced, as the flames burned badly. However, Luke dashed forward, his palm glowing, as he fired off a charged Aura Sphere at the Houndoom, knocking the dark dog back. The two combatants seemed rather beaten up at that point, however, neither seemed to be giving in.

"I must give your Lucario credit. Not many newly evolved Pokemon would just stay standing in this situation. Why won't it give up?" Grimsley mused, and then frowned.

"Inferno." Grimsley stated, as the Houndoom roared, and generated a great fire around the Lucario. Luke tried to hold on, but fainted after the attack was through, and Zach recalled the Lucario, even as the Houndoom staggered. As the fire had erupted around Luke, he had fired off another three Aura Spheres at the Houndoom, and it was finally taking effect, as the Houndoom fainted, much to Grimsley's intrigue. Zach grabbed Blade's Pokeball, and nodded, as he sent out the Gallade to face the opposing Tyranitar; which whipped up a sandstorm; a barrier preventing said sand from reaching the stands, luckily.

 

-==IC: Gym Leaders==-

 

Cheren and Hugh just stared at Aspen as if he were crazy, and Nate scratched his head, obviously having missed a memo. Rosa was about to say something, when the green haired man, N, finally had enough, and stood up, and walked over to Aspen.

"You don't know the circumstances behind this. Any of this." N said, as he looked at Aspen with a frown.

"Can you let your Pokemon out? I would like to hear their voices." N said, wanting to hear that before making any further comment.

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC (Claus):

Claus finished the last bite on his plate as he was dragged away by the older Llyan sister. He had actually tried to dissuade the man that had approached her, but it seemed that everyone had managed to completely ignore him.

Nice to know about my power of invisibility. I should try sneaking into hostile territory sometime, he thought sarcastically.

 

But to be fully honest, Claus was beginning to sense a pattern here, and it wasn't one that he wanted to deal with.

Edited July 12, 2014 by Claus Von Minun the 4th

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan
Ryan faced the Unovan girl, his heart beating rapidly. Here he was, dancing with Sonja. It was like something out of a dream. Part of him couldn't believe this was really happening. But the rest of him was completely ensnared by Sonja's astounding beauty.

He had longed for this opportunity to talk with Sonja one-on-one, with no outside distractions. But now that he was here, he found that he couldn't find the words. For a while he danced silently, simply listening to the music; the words almost seemed to speak for himself, voicing his thoughts for him. He smiled at Sonja, content to simply enjoy the moment.

Eventually, he cleared his throat, focusing on a spot on Sonja's shoulder. "So... um, rough day yesterday, huh?" he said. "After six months of rebuilding the broken cities, it was... a little disheartening to see one almost get destroyed." He looked into Sonja's eyes and smiled sadly. "I'm sorry... I shouldn't have brought up such a depressing subject."

IC: Zoe
Zoe sighed as they moved their dancing to a different part of the ballroom. She glanced behind her to make sure the man didn't follow them. She was in luck -- the man was in fact walking the other way, hanging his head in a dejected fashion. Zoe smirked at the man, then looked up at her sister.

"Why do all these guys want to dance with you, anyway?" she asked. "I've never had a guy ask me to dance. So far they've all but ignored me!"

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

"I don't know..." Colette said with a slight frown, as she looked over at Claus, who seemed a bit annoyed as well.

"I hope this doesn't continue though." Colette said with a sigh, as she wasn't really keen on being asked to dance by five thousand people.

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC (Claus):

 

Claus had a view on why Colette was the one who was getting approached (not bringing up the fact that he wasn't getting approached by anyone either), but he decided not to say the main point of it to Zoe.

"Well... to be fair, the age group in here is kinda closer to Colette's than yours," Claus offered, in an attempt to keep a positive view on the affair.

 

And that was true, Claus thought as he looked around the ballroom. The age group was overall significantly higher than what he assumed Zoe's to be.

[Konuju]

IC: Zoe

Zoe nodded as they started to spin to the music once more. "Yeah... a lot of the kids my age went as a group. They didn't invite me, though. Not that I mind, really. I couldn't ask for a better date than my amazing sister!"

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

"No-one invited you...?" Colette asked, as she slightly frowned, recalling her own issues with things like that.

"Even still, that's too bad..." Colette said, but inwardly figured it was for the best that she didn't go with anyone, as that would help put off her realizing how badly things could go.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

When the green haired man spoke to Aspen, the only thing he received in return was a roll of the eyes. "Right right, of course there would be 'circumstances' that excuse the genocide of a million people. Yeah, no, not buying it." Aspen said with a huff. "Zach is a threat to all of us and if it were up to me, he would be somewhere far, far away from anyone else, especially my family." he resolved firmly, quickly looking down at Zach with pure hatred, before looking back up at N. "....But you know what? I'll entertain the possibility just for the heck of it. Flare! Torrent! Come over here quickly!" Aspen called, while releasing Meadow, Jet, and Aria as well. "You wanted to hear their voices? Here you go then." 
Flare looked up at N sadly, shaking his head and sighing. Meadow shook her head slowly, eyes on the ground. Torrent closed his eyes and crossed his arms, unsure of what else to do. Jet tilted his head for a moment, before seeming to shrug slightly. Aria, on the other hand, faced away from the rest of the group and looked down at the battle, frowning at Luke's evolution.
"Oh fantastic! Now I get to share breathing space with another of my own species." the Lucario said with a roll of her eyes. "Now this, this is just lovely. Oh, the petty competitions and arguments to look forward to....." she muttered, smirking once she saw Luke faint.

[Konuju]

IC: Zoe

"It doesn't matter," Zoe shook her head with a smile. "I'm with you, aren't I? And Claus. I've got two dates, and all my classmates only have one! And if one of them had asked me to the dance, I'd be stuck with some boy who probably wouldn't even want to be with me anyways." She shrugged. "So it's for the best, really."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

Colette smiled in amusement at Zoe as she explained how it didn't matter, and she nodded.

"I guess you are one up on them, huh? Good way to be." Colette said, as she finally was starting to forget the whole thing that had happened moments before.

 

-==IC: N/Gym Leaders==-

 

Hugh growled at Aspen's refusal to listen to anything they said, as Cheren and N held up their arms to make him wait. N listened carefully to the voices of Aspen's Pokemon, and then nodded, as he turned to each one.

"Your Pokemon seem to agree that you're not a bad trainer." N said, finally, but frowned at Aspen.

"However, you can't seem to look at the whole formula. To you, to get 300, you just add together 150 and 150; when reality is much more complex than that, and you must multiply and subtract things." N explained, and then looked at Cheren and Hugh for a moment, and then looked back to Aspen.

"Zach was under mind control by his father, Gerald Hikari at the time; which allowed the Legendary Pokemon Kyurem, who hungered to feed on the power of Zekrom, to take over Zach's mind temporarily." N said, and Cheren nodded with a frown.

"Yeah... You talk like he's the one who's behind all this, and should be locked up... The real danger is still out there. This would be like saying someone who was hypnotized by a criminal to rob a bank should be put behind bars." Cheren said, and Hugh looked to the ground.

"Or that a Pokemon who was used for over two years for crimes should be released..." Hugh added, and N turned back to Aspen once more.

"That's not to mention those who could not read the whole formula, and was manipulated into thinking that 2a + 2b = 5ac by their own father, who simply wanted the world to himself." N said, and Cheren and Hugh simply looked at him, both thinking that he talked about math too much.

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC (James):

 

The Seven Sins... James thought as he heard the explanation of Envy and Wrath. He had sort of assumed from the beginning that the two were part of the set, but here was the confirmation.

 

Goldenrod... So Wrath would have been the cause of that day's events.
 

As Goldhawk asked his much more pointed question, Arthur chuckled slightly in his head. If the James went into the R&D department had heard the one who had came out of it speaking right now, he would have been horrified at the Executive's addition of details.

 

"To add onto that sir, I had to steal that data from a Rocket facility without informing any of Team Liberty, except when I put another agent at risk to do so, while not informing him that what he was doing would have been against your orders, had you known of it. And that I caused domestic disturbances to ease the task."

 

"As for what I considered my justifications to be: I had considered the potential advantages that the Power Suits could have provided in the war to outweigh the crime of both insubordination and the lives that they were built upon."

 

James would have taken the time to quell a certain nervousness, but he did not know how much time would elapse before Goldhawk would respond. "And might I ask, what did occur to Officer Ross?" he said knowing that the three people across from him, had to have known what the answer was. And perhaps he had guessed it too.

Edited July 13, 2014 by Claus Von Minun the 4th

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

Aspen took a moment to ponder as everyone finished, ignoring N's math speak for that moment. Without warning, Aspen looked up yet again and took a deep breath. "Okay, you know what? Fine. He was under mind control, alright. But having the blood of a million people on your hands will certainly change someone, I'm sure...." he muttered, pausing again. "....How do we know there isn't a part of Zach that enjoyed the killing? That isn't showing itself now, but would make him commit those same kind of atrocities a hundred times over?" Aspen questioned, eyes narrowing into a venomous glare. "And even if he really feels bad, am I the only one who isn't CONCERNED with letting him off scott free with no supervision or monitoring?" he said, glaring again. "Anyone with that potential for destruction and death needs to be attended after to make sure they don't do those kind of things again, not hailed as a hero!" Aspen declared angrily, eyes widening as something dawned on him. ".....Wait, you wanna know how we even got in Unova? I mentioned the name of the region once, and all of a sudden Zach starts speaking like a computer with his eyes glowing, next thing I know, everything around us is suddenly in Striaton...." Aspen muttered, before looking back at N and the other Leaders. "....How do you know he isn't still under some form of control?"
Aria turned around at the exclamation, staring blankly. ".....It seems as though I have missed something, yes?"

"Hey! Be careful now!" Olivia warned. "Treading thin ice now, don't you mess up now! If you do, this will be the worst battle I've ever seen!" she warned.

Edited July 13, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Gym Leaders==-

 

The Leaders seemed confused about that, as Cheren considered that for a moment.

"From what I've read of psychics, that sounds like someone's programmed a trigger in his mind for something; though most are one use only, and have to be done recently or they wear off..." Cheren said, and mused over it for a moment.

"Has there been anything odd happening recently?" Cheren asked the trio, addressing Dahlia and Olivia for the first time as well.

 

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach focused, as he nodded to Blade.

"Let's do this!" Zach called out, as the Gallade shot forward. By now, Blade knew Zach's battle style, and how to fight effectively. The Gallade approached the Tyranitar, who quickly launched her stone covered fist toward the Gallade in a Stone Edge. Blade leaped up, and landed on the Tyranitar's arm, before he flipped over the Tyranitar again, and then whirled around before the Rock/Dark type could react, and drilling the Tyranitar in the side with a quick Close Combat punch. The Tyranitar flew back, winded, as she tumbled across the ground with an annoyed look on her face. The Tyranitar slowly stood up, and stomped the ground. The Earthquake caused spikes to erupt around Blade, with one knocking him back with a blunted point. The Earthquake also had the unfortunate side effect of rendering the Gallade unable to regain his footing; which was bad, because the Tyranitar had jumped into the air, and then landed around Blade, keeping the Gallade trapped.

 

Blade struggled against the hold as the Tyranitar leaned over him, and prepared a point blank Dark Pulse. Blade looked back in desperation, and picked a nearby spot, and then focused. Making sure to only target himself, Blade vanished right before the potentially devastating Dark Pulse hit, though it still left him winded on the ground nearby for a moment, as he slowly stood up, not having expected that to happen. Blade made sure to keep his distance for the moment, as the Gallade prepared a number of Magical Leaf projectiles, and then threw them at the Tyranitar quickly. The Tyranitar seemed to be caught rather off guard, as it didn't have much of a chance to react, and was pushed back as the Magical Leaves dealt their damage. Breathing in, the Tyranitar prepared her final attack, as she realized that the Gallade would be a lot less defensive as it probably would be otherwise. The Tyranitar fired off a quick Fire Blast at the Gallade, who nimbly dodged to the side, and looked up with a frown, understanding exactly how this could go badly. Preparing a few more Magical Leaves, Blade ran around the Tyranitar, and began to launch off the leaves at the Tyranitar as he did so. The Tyranitar, however, was more than ready this time, and covered her fist in stone again, and simply began to swat the Magical Leaves out of the air.

 

The Tyranitar roared to the sky, as it suddenly got brighter within the battlefield area. Zach frowned at the implications, as the Tyranitar began to charge up another Fire Blast slowly.

"Straight ahead!" Zach yelled out suddenly, as Blade looked at him in shock, but nodded to his trainer, as the Gallade dashed forward quickly. Grimsley smiled, and snapped his fingers,as the Tyranitar finished the charge of the deadly blast, and then launched the ball of heat straight at Blade. Blade, however, had other plans, as he vanished again as the attack was passing over him, and appeared to the Tyranitar's side; much more prepared after this teleport...

"Close Combat!" Zach called out, as the Tyranitar slowly turned... Grimsley stared in shock, as the Tyranitar laid on the ground with a groan; a heavily singed Gallade standing next to her, as the sand storm began to subside. Grimsley recalled the fainted Tyranitar, as he looked over to Zach, still in shock, as he had not expected anything like that at all.

"How..." Grimsley said, but then shook his head.

"No matter. A win is a win no matter how close it comes." Grimsley said, as he turned and waved as he walked off. Zach sighed, as he recalled the burnt Gallade, and walked over to the healing station, as he waited for his next opponent to appear.

[Parugi]

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Liberty Ball:

 

Sonja, for her part, had remained quiet for the majority of their dance. Perhaps as a result of the silence between them, she found it difficult to find a resting spot for her gaze. Occasionally she would glance up at Ryan's face, though for the most part found that she was more comfortable staring into the distance over his shoulder.

 

Altogether, something didn't quite sit well with her. The music, the atmosphere, everything about the situation virtually begged to be seen as perfect, but try as she might, Sonja couldn't put her heart into it--her presence at the dance felt less like a girl having fun and more like a clockwork machine going through the motions programmed into it. Thus, it was somewhat a relief when Ryan finally said something, though his choice of subject matter came off as . . . exceptionally questionable.

 

She looked at him in surprise. "It . . . It's fine, I guess?" Sonja said. "I mean, I agree, but . . . I don't really think this is an appropriate place to talk about that, though, so . . ." She paused for a moment, shifting her attention back to the side. "I'd rather . . . not talk about it right now."

Edited July 14, 2014 by Pears Nivans

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan
"Y-you're right, I'm sorry..." Ryan muttered, looking down at the ground. His face started to turn red from embarrassment. He couldn't believe he'd already screwed up the conversation. For a moment he simply stared at his feet, focusing on dancing. Then looked up. "I never finished telling you about my Pokédex, did I?"
 
Sonja looked at him curiously. "That's right, you said you found it in your parents' bag, didn't you?"

 

"That's right," Ryan nodded. "When Team Rocket captured my parents, they were arrested under the pretense of giving aid to Team Liberty. I thought it was all bogus, a phony reason to arrest innocent people. But that Pokédex would say otherwise." Ryan looked straight into Sonja's eyes. "As it turns out, that Pokédex belonged to Brendan Ruby."

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

Dahlia and Olivia both looked over, taking a break from cheering on Zach and watching said attempts at cheering respectively. "Strange behavior?" Olivia mused. "....Hmm....." she muttered, realizing something, only to get cut off by Dahlia. 
"Well, two nights ago..... I heard a scream, and it was definitely from Zach." she said, Olivia's eyes widening in response. 
"Wait wait wait, you mean you heard him that night too?" Olivia questioned, shocked. "Th-Then why didn't you do anything?!"
"I tiptoed out out of my room to see what happened, but then I noticed you were already on it." Dahlia responded simply, Olivia only able to blush and turn around, completely flustered.

"Mm-hm, yep, I heard that scream too." Aspen said, looking back at Cheren and the others. "Again, what if Zach has more triggers like that waiting to activate? And with more..... Explosive results than just teleporting an ordinary family like us to another region." Aspen muttered, eyes widening. "....What if defeating the Elite Four is a trigger?" Aspen said with horror, looking down at Zach again. "Until you can prove that Zach's brain isn't waiting for the right circumstances to blow us to kingdom come, then I will not trust being around him one bit." he asserted, returning to his previous stubborn outlook.

"Aspen.... We don't know that he's not about to do any of that, right? It goes both ways." Dahlia noticed, looking apologetically over at the Gym Leaders and N.

Aria sighed at the conversation and rolled her eyes. "For someone who seemingly despises that Zach boy, you devote an awfully large amount of your focus to him." the Lucario noted, Aspen turning around.

"Oh, of course I'm in the wrong here, huh?" he said with contempt.

"I never said anything of the sort. I was just making an observation. In fact, if I had to say anything, it's that you are all simpletons who can't see five feet in front of themselves." she said folding her arms, going to look at N. ".....Except that man, he's just..... Different." Aria finished, unable to put her finger on what exactly she saw in N's aura.

Edited July 14, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: N/Gym Leaders==-

 

Cheren mused over it for a moment, as N simply smiled at Aria in response to what she said.

"Well... From what I've heard from Caitlin, there's not really too much that can be done at once for stuff like that." Cheren explained, but frowned.

"However, that is... discouraging. That event could have been placing the trigger..." Cheren said, and thought things over, as he noted Aspen's behaviour.

"If you really don't trust Zach, then why not fight him? Pokemon battles aren't just to prove who's stronger, after all; they're for exchanging the emotions of each other." Cheren explained, and then chuckled.

"I once thought that it was just to become stronger, myself... Then, the former champion Alder showed me how misguided I was to think that." Cheren said, as he smiled at the memory.

"That was around the time Unova's first crisis happened, too. Luckily, it was stopped by Black and White over there." Cheren said, as he motioned to the trainers who simply was watching the conversation with intrigue.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

"Black and White, very creative names." Aspen muttered quickly under his breath, Dahlia catching that and throwing a stern glare his way. Ignoring his sister for a moment, Aspen turned back to Cheren. "Look, I don't exactly care how many morals or anecdotes Pokemon League officials seem to insist forcing down my throat, winning battles makes the winner feel better about themselves." he said, emphasizing his words as though they would be difficult to understand otherwise. "And I know that I am not strong enough to stand up to the Elite Four. So if I tried battling Zach now, I would lose horribly and he'd get a sense of victory. And I won't be giving him any victories anytime soon." Aspen declared, growling an the thought of fighting just to lose.

"Then how do you explain me winning against Zach twice?" Olivia challenged. "Contrary to your belief, he is not a super ultra infinity god plus, in fact, some of his Pokemon are quite pathetic, if I do say so myself. He's just been using the few Pokemon that can actually do things in these fights so far." Olivia said simply.

"......How utterly bizzare, your aura is almost unreadable to me and I cannot discern much from examining your appearance...." Aria muttered to N, utterly baffled. "....The only thing I can make out is that you devote a large amount of your schedule with being around Pokemon, judging from the various hairs scattered over your clothing....." Aria noted, before pausing. "....Just who, or what are you?"

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Cheren/Hugh==-

 

"Those are their last names." Cheren pointed out to Aspen's first point, and then nodded at what Olivia said.

"Everyone has their own chance; and I know for a fact that you're wrong, and it's precisely why I kept losing whenever I fought certain people." Cheren said, and then took a step forward, but was stopped, as Hugh smiled, and walked forward himself.

"How about we prove this, here and now? Three vs. three match, you and me." Hugh suggested, as he frowned at Aspen.

"Because honestly, you're not really being all that polite about this at all, and I'm not impressed about that." Hugh explained, as he sighed.

 

-==IC: N==-

 

N smiled mysteriously at Aria, as he thought for a moment.

"I wonder the same thing sometimes; I consider myself a friend to Pokemon." N said enigmatically, as he looked back to Aspen for a moment, and then once again at Aria.

"There's more to you and him than meets the eye as well, isn't there?" N asked, curious to that.

 

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach walked back to the challenger spot, as he considered things.

First match down, at least two more to go... They said Caitlin was considered a victory already, right? Zach thought, as he frowned for a moment, and then paused, and looked up at where Olivia was for a second.

She's cheering me on so much... I guess I really am that good a friend, huh? I just hope I'm not taking up time she'd rather spend with others by all this happening... Zach mused for a moment, as he shook his head, and focused again, as a purple haired woman walked out.

"Hello. My name is Shauntal..." The woman introduced herself, and then mused for a moment.

"'The challenger with the greenest of eyes stood, waiting to see how his destiny would fare against the Elite Four...' Hm. That could use a little revising." Shauntal said, and Zach looked a bit confused, but nodded, as Shauntal wrote something down in a book, and then grabbed a Pokeball, and then sent out her first Pokemon; a Golurk.

Hm... I don't think, based on what the last two Elite Four members were like, that this is a Ground specialist... But, I'll just have to rely on Smugleaf, Katie, and Blade this time. Zach thought, as he sent out his Snivy first. Zach wondered how exactly the Pokemon would fare in this fight... However, he also realized that Snivy had been in a lot of fights in the last little while, and then smiled, wondering if this would be another evolution that he desperately needed on his team, as he waited for the battle to begin...

[Parugi]

OOC: Song 3 of Official Dance Playlist.

 

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Liberty Ball:

 

"Ruby, huh . . ." Sonja looked away again, uncomfortable with the direct eye contact but curious as to the implications of the PokéDex's ownership. "Interesting . . . He went missing last year with Ethan Gold, didn't he? And Gold wound up being trapped in that side-world with Blackskull . . . Maybe Ruby's in there somewhere, too?" She frowned, tilting her head. "Though, that couldn't have happened if they disappeared before your parents were arrested--how would his PokéDex have ended up with them? Hm . . . I wonder, then, why he didn't go to retrieve it after their arrest--or why he hasn't contacted the Alamo since . . ."

 

 

 

Edited July 15, 2014 by Pears Nivans

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan
"I've been asking the same questions myself," Ryan admitted as the next song started to play. He lowered his voice. "I don't know how much of this is supposed to be confidential, but I heard that Ruby was last seen being chased from Paradise by some large dragon-like Pokémon. Apparently he was investigating some project of Ace's. Something went wrong, and the dragon Pokémon started chasing him. No one knows what species the Pokémon was, but I noticed in the Pokédex that Hydreigon had been marked as 'seen' ... and as you mentioned earlier, we never saw a Hydreigon when we were in Unova." The Liberty agent shrugged. "Maybe it's a lead, maybe it isn't. I'll have to follow up with the Liberty tech I talked with, see what clues we might be able to uncover. But if Ruby is still out there, I intend to track him down. And if he isn't..." Ryan gave a grim look. "I'd at least like to know what happened to him, and what my parents were doing with his Pokédex."
 
IC: Zoe
The Llyan sisters began dancing again when the new song started, still keeping Claus in the middle of their erratic spinning. As they spun, a muscular man approached them. "Hey, sweetheart!" he cried out in a deep voice. "Why don't you ditch that kid sister of yours and let me show you a real - ow!"
 
As Zoe spun around, she extended her foot, giving the man a sharp kick in the shin. She spun away without losing stride, turning her head only to stick out her tongue at the man who was profusely cursing as he hobbled on one foot. Zoe then turned back to Colette, the wry smile on her face the only sign that anything had ever happened.

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

Colette smiled in an amused way at Zoe, having a hunch at what happened as well; as she frowned at the man.

"How about you just leave me along and hang out with the rest of your 'bros'?" Colette suggested, though the others probably had a feeling that she held herself back.

[Konuju]

IC:Zoe

Zoe hastily led Colette away as the man continued to limp, unable to speak any coherent words through his pain. "I don't know about you, but this is starting to get really old," Zoe shook her head with a frown.

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

"Yeah; I definitely agree..." Colette said with a sigh, as she frowned.

"Why did it have to be me, anyway? Aren't there others here...?" Colette said with an uncomfortable look on her face about all this.

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC (Claus):

Claus had an idea why they were pestering Colette specifically. For one, Colette was well... what's a phrasing that wouldn't get me killed by Colette or Richard... stunning? Claus thought. For two, the fact that she was dancing with her kid sister (and the fact that he was invisible) meant that they all assumed that she was 'open' as it were.

 

Of course, Claus was silent on that point.

 

"Should I go get Flint to dance on the head of the next person who tries?"

[sonyaxe]

IC: Jake

 

Jake's mind almost froze up as he saw his Pokemon's plight. Key word being almost.

 

"Machop, use Bullet Punch!" Jake called out, his voice a touch panicky. Machop, though plummeting towards the ground and with one arm stuck in the Fuerte's grip, still managed to bring back one arm and started hammering it as quickly as he could, over and over, into his opponent's face.

 

OOC: I am back!

[Konuju]

IC: Zoe

Zoe broke down into a fit of giggles at Claus' suggestion. "Now I almost want someone else to try, just so I can see their reaction!" she laughed. She turned to Colette and her smile faltered somewhat. "I'm sorry, Collie. I shouldn't wish you to be a target. I don't know why everyone seems to be singling you out."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

Colette shrugged, as she smiled slightly at the suggestion as well.

"It'd certainly teach them, that's for sure." Colette said, as even though she didn't want to be targeted either, she certainly wanted to see that outcome.