Pokémon: Rise Of The Rockets

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra, Nimbasa City

 

Evan grabbed the Xtransciever, curious about what Ray would want from him. It had been a bit since he had spoken to any of the others....

 

"Yeah?", Evan said, having just finished eating, "Did you need something, Ray?"

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

Dahlia was about to agree with Zach's response to Terry, but the shockwave sent her onto the ground. Getting up afterwards, she looked down at the Herdier. "I promise we'll find Ellen and Aspen soon, bur right now, that Groudon's not letting up right now..." Dahlia said, sighing. "We should probably get Chrono somewhere safe, though...." she noted, holding out a hand, offering to take the Purrloin's weight off Terry's back.
Laurel finished healing the small amount of health she could in the hail, looking back at the incensed Groudon, despwrately firing off even more Magical Leaves, hoping something could make the legendary finally back down. Gerri frowned at the Magma Storm melting the ice coating on both legs, firing another Hydro Pump in am attempt to rectify that issue. Coco saw the massive foot coming down and was about to Jump Kick away, but the Buneary was suddenly grabbed by something, and was in an entirely different location in a flash. Looking up at her savior, the Raikou dashed forth at the Groudon once more. 

Olivia yelped when the massive tremor made her topple over, though the impact wasn't as tough as she was expecting. When Zach asked her if she was okay, Olivia realized what he did and slowly looked up with a groan. "Y-Yeah, I am...." she muttered, before suddenly finding herself face to face with Zach and unable to look away. After several moments, she realized what she was doing and got off completely. "Uhh.... What about you...?" Olivia asked, blushing.

Dune flew up and attempted to find the Gardevoir, seeing Blade and Katie tag team against it. Feeling they didn't need his help, the Vibrava looked down to see the Rapidash attempting to charge at Meadow. With a cry, he set up a Rock Slide to interrupt the fire horse's path.
Amethyst scowled and was about to search for the other Gardevoir, until the Groudon's tremor sent all the Trainers down to the ground. Urgh, we're running out of distractions, and we need to take this thing out FAST.... Amethyst thought, not liking the direction things seemed to be heading at the moment. But the armor on that Groudon means our attacks are barely doing a thing against it, and we don't have anything else that can really match that.... Unless... the Gardevoir pondered, her lips quickly forming into a smirk. "Cover me!" she told Toxin, while the Gardevoir's eyes glowed purple. Setting her sights on the behemoth's arm, any Sootopolisians turning that way would be greeted with a most unusual sight. For some reason, Groudon, the master of the land who threatened to use its mighty strength to wipe Sootopolis from the map reared its arm back, and began punching itself repeatedly in the face. 

 

Meadow slid to the side of the charging Rapidash with the movements of a dancer. She fired off another Venoshock, hoping the poison effect was still there and able to multiply the damage of the attack considerably. Torrent was very sick of the flaming stallion, and fired off another Water Gun, before realizing suddenly that the Groudon had broken free of his icy shackles. Frowning at the revelation, the Buizel fired off yet another Ice Beam, not wanting it to be free to move. Jet had been flying through the clouds at breakneck speed, until he saw something coming up from up beneath him. Using U-Turn to avoid the object, it turned out to be a chunk of building. Seeing an opportunity, the Braviary flew forward and dug his claws into the rubble, all those days spent practicing by carrying cars turning out not to be for naught. Faintly hearing the screech of the Noivern, Jet flew in that direction, until the noise was more tangible. With a screech, the building chunk was thrown in that direction, with Jet speeding forward with a Tailwind to find see the results.

 

Shade frowned once the ice covering both legs was melted off, and even while stepping back, fired off more Icy Winds, especially as Gerri launched a Hydro Pump. Finally near the object that he had seen, the Sneasel worked at clearing away the rubble surrounding it. Seeing fragments of a sign mixed in with the wreckage, it was clear this building used to be a shop of some sorts.... And once all the rubble cleared away, the object revealed itself as a Razor Claw. Taken aback by the discovery, the Sneasel quickly snatched it up, a bright light erupting from that spot. Once it dissipated, a cackling Weavile stood triumphantly, looking back at the beast, and quickly sent an Icicle Crash down on the legend's leg. 

Aria frowned at the Groudon's release from its icy shackles, and sent even more building chunks towards it. Suddenly, the beast began socking itself in the side of the face, which caused the Lucario to raise an eyebrow.

 

IC: Aspen Seaton

 

Aspen crouched near the Eevee while Ellen looked for something to free the terrified Pokemon, watching with concern as the room was once more pelted with fiery meteors. "Hurry up, Ellen!" he cried, just as she came over with a metal bar and slowly lifted the broken support beam up. At that moment, Aspen stopped caring and quickly grabbed the Eevee, sliding it out and putting it close to himself. The Eevee struggled. swiping and kicking at Aspen repeatedly, which resulted in getting several cuts to the cheek and arm, weakly crying out all the while. Ignoring that, Aspen looked over to Ellen and paused.

 

".....How are we gonna get outta here?!" he realized with panic, as there were simply too many flames to run through near the stairs. Looking around panickedly, the Eevee coughed again, as did Aspen, despite the scarf covering his mouth. Things were not looking good for any of them.....

 

"What do we do what do we do what do we do...." he muttered, eyes darting around everywhere. But each moment he dwadled, the fire simply got more intense, and the air harder to breathe. The ceiling once more came crashing down, missing Aspen by a few inches. "Argh! There's gotta be something...."

Edited August 29, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ray==-

 

Ray paused, as he held the phone. Inwardly sighing, Ray realized it was too far now, so he had to follow through on his questions and the rest of the conversation.

"Well, I was just wondering like, well, what you were up to, and when you might visit, and you know, that sorta stuff, since you were kinda enigmatic when you left..." Ray said, trying to both stay a bit vague about the fact that he and Sonja were both confused and wanting to know, but also hinting at it while asking what he meant to ask.

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra, Nimbasa City

 

"Well, Jenny and I were eating just now and getting ready to relax for a bit.", Evan said, reaching for his pokegear, "We've been training for a bit, to toughen ourselves and our pokemon up."

 

As Evan spoke, he was typing a message into his pokegear made out to Ray.

 

"You should try doing the same, Ray.", Evan said, "I did say something was coming, right?"

 

Evan continued to type out the message, making sure that what he was trying to explain clear.

 

"Ray, you do recall I perished during my fight against Zach, and how I came back, right?

As I was coming back, I was overcome by an overwhelming sense of malice. Something horrifying is coming.

I am not sure what it could be, when it will appear. But I do know that it will not be pretty. Keep your eyes peeled.

Try to ready yourself. Relay this information to everyone. I have to tell you this via typed message so no one else in this place hears me."

 

"Tell me, did you wanna meet up or something?", Evan asked, "While it has been two days, it honestly feels like ages. What do you think, Ray?"

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ray==-

 

Ray was about to reply when he heard the new message beep, and then looked at the message, and raised an eyebrow at the contents, planning to read it more thoroughly after the call ended.

"That might be a good idea, yeah." Ray said with a nod. "Maybe tomorrow, sometime?" Ray suggested, as that would let them finish up what was needed, and it would hopefully give Ray enough time to go check out different places.

[Konuju]

IC: Dack/Madison/Luke
Dack and Swellow kept their eyes peeled on the shadowy clouds for any sign of the Noivern. Nothing appeared. "Alright, new plan," Dack said. "That Noivern always screams its Boomburst attack. We'll have to use that to our advantage and locate it by sound. Then we'll attack it with Brave Bird. Ready to head back into the clouds, Swellow?"
 
The dark bird nodded, and suddenly Dack's vision was quite literally clouded once more. Dack and Swellow remained completely silent, listening for the Boomburst. When they heard it, Swellow darted in the direction the attack had come from -- only to get smashed by something large and heavy that fell from above. Although it was impossible to tell in the darkness, Swellow had flown right in between the chunk of building that Jet had thrown and its intended target.
 
As Swellow fell, however, he fell into the Noivern. Blindly grappling with his talons, Swellow managed to grab onto the Noivern and take it down with him. Dack, Swellow, and Noivern all fell out of the clouds, and that was when Dack got his first glimpse at the magma storm Heatran had created.

"No..." Dack gasped as he and Swellow fell from the skies, glimpsing an aerial view of the now-burning city. "No.... No. This is all wrong." Dack fumbled for his Ultra Ball as they plummeted.
 
Just then Jet, still following the sounds of the Noivern, dove from the clouds, screeching as he grabbed Noivern with one talon, Swellow with the other. Determined to finish off his enemy (as well as the supposed ally who had got in his way) the Braviary tightened his grip, locking both his victims in a vicious Crush Claw. Noivern responded with Boomburst after Boomburst, although Dack and Swellow slightly cushioned Jet from the brunt of the attack.
 
The sudden assault nearly caused Dack to lose his grip on the Ultra Ball. In no state to recall the Heatran, he wisely replaced the ball back on his belt. Dack closed his eyes, bracing himself for the impact that would come all too soon. Fire and ice continued to rain down from the sky, striking all three of the flying (more accurately, falling) Pokémon.
 
They crashed a few blocks east of the rest of the trainers, with Noivern landing on the bottom and taking the brunt of the impact. Dack and Swellow quickly rolled away and Jet continued to strike at the Noivern with Crush Claw after Crush Claw, his eyes bloodshot and his beak open as he uttered a savage war cry. Thankful for the distraction, Dack wearily got to his feet and held out the Ultra Ball to the Heatran that stood on the southern mountain slopes.
 
"Heatran, return!" Dack cried. The Lava Dome Pokémon disappeared in a flash of light before it could cause any more damage.
 
Madison saw Dack falling through the sky and started to run out from under Raikou's protective Reflect. "Madison, wait!" Luke shouted, grabbing her by the shoulders and holding her back. "It's too dangerous out there! We need to-"
 
"Dack's our friend!" Madison cried, angrily twisting out of Luke's grip. "We need to help him!" Before Luke could stop her, Madison ran out into the fierce storm, racing toward where she had seen Dack crash. Shaking his head, Luke followed her.
 
"I'm fine," Dack nodded when he saw Madison approaching, already reading the question on her lips. "Heatran's contained. But we need to do something about this lava. Get everyone with Water- or Ice-Types to help stop this storm!"

"Already on it," Madison cried as Anzu started shooting Ice Shards at the lava droplets. With a cry of relief, Teddy leapt out of Madison's arms and happily crawled onto his trainer's shoulders.

"I'll go tell the others, then," Luke sighed, turning on his heels, running back to Zach and the Seatons. 
 
Once Luke had disappeared, Madison threw her arms around Dack. "Don't ever do that to me again!" she sobbed.
 
"I-I told you, I'm fine," Dack stammered, shocked to see that tears were welling up in Madison's eyes. He softly returned the embrace, but let go after a few seconds. "I'm sorry I worried you," he said softly. "But now's not the time for this. We've got a Groudon to worry about."
 
IC: Groudon/Gardevoir/Rapidash/Terry
Groudon's day had gone from bad to worse. He had managed to swipe away two of the Weather Balls, but the Raikou's Extreemespeed attack caused him to stumble into the third (flattening a building in the process). As powerful as the Continent Pokémon was, even legends wear out eventually. Groudon found himself battered by a Magical Leaf, Hydro Pump, Ice Beam, and Icicle Crash, all in quick succession. The chunks of building the Lucario was hurling at him blocked some of the attacks, but each of them landed in some degree.
 
With a furious roar, the Groudon bent down to uproot another building -- only to find that he couldn't move his arm. Against his will, his hand balled up in a fist, which came flying toward his face. Groudon glared at his opponents, quickly spotting Amethyst's glowing eyes. Realizing that she was the one responsible for the public humiliation of a renowned legend punching himself repeatedly in the face, Groudon's eyes narrowed in a sharp glare. He caught a handful of the building chunks Aria was tossing at him and threw them back at Amethyst. Even if the chunks didn't hit the Gardevoir, they would at least distract her concentration long enough to free the Groudon from her psychic grip. Meanwhile the colossus lashed out with his feet, aiming to kick several chunks of debris at the other Pokémon who had attacked him.
 
Terry nodded in gratitude as Dahlia picked up the fainted Chrono. Artemis and Maturin drew near, their faces grim. None of them had seen where Ellen had run off to, but they decided that sticking together was a better plan than losing more of their group. Only Duo remained distant, focused on firing Signal Beams at the falling hail and magma. Terry barked, indicating to the other Pokémon that finding Ellen was more important right now than stopping the Groudon -- Zach and the Seatons and their Pokémon had the colossus covered. The Herdier tried sniffing the ground, but the stench of smoke was too powerful. He glanced over at Aria, wondering if the Lucario could spare a moment to track Ellen down via aura.
 
Rapidash was too fast for Luke's Force Palm, but Heather's Thunderbolt slowed her down enough for the Volt Tackle to collide. Torrent's Water Gun missed due to the Buizel turning too quickly to focus on Groudon, but Dune's Rock Slide hit its mark. Falling to her knees, the Rapidash stood no chance against Meadow's Venoshock. She was starting to succumb to the poison as well, and it was with great effort that the Rapidash created another Inferno, aiming to envelop the small army of Pokémon that surrounded her.
 
The Gardevoir watched Rapidash fall to her knees and Noivern plummet from the sky, and she knew that the battle had been lost. The sad fate of Groudon was not a good sign, either. At that moment, Blade and Katie appeared behind her, lashing out with a double-Night Slash. The Gardevoir cried out as she fell to her knees. She would have fainted then and there had the Wish not come into affect, enveloping her in a dazzling light and restoring at least some of her health. Aiming Shadow Balls at both of her attackers, the Gardevoir teleported away, reappearing next to the Rapidash.
 
Gripping all of the Rapidash's attackers with a powerful Psychic, the Gardevoir aimed to do as much damage as she could before teleporting herself and the Rapidash over to where Noivern had fallen. Jet was so engrossed in striking the fallen Noivern that he never noticed the Thunderbolt aimed from behind until it was too late. Panting from exhaustion, the Gardevoir rushed forward to grab her other teammate and teleported the three of them back to their trainer.
 
My apologies, the Gardevoir said sadly. They proved too much for us to handle.
 
"You did your best," the cloaked figure said with a hint of a smile. "Besides, our Groudon looks like he's on his last legs as well. I didn't expect such a resistance, but I think it's safe to say that we've achieved what we wanted to here. Remember, this is only the beginning..."
 
IC: Ellen
Ellen breathed a sigh of relief as Aspen cradled the Eevee in his arms. The moment was short-lived, as another section of the burning roof suddenly collapsed, landing right in between the two trainers, missing Aspen by mere inches. Ellen looked fearfully at Aspen. She was starting to grow lightheaded from the smoke. "Follow me!" she coughed.

The two trainers ran to the stairs, Ellen desperately hoping they could somehow dart around the flames. But as soon as they approached the rubble of the railing, the entire stairwell became enveloped in hungry flames, licking away their only chance of escape.

“This way!” Ellen cried, thinking quickly and she rushed toward a nearby window. Duo! she gave a mental shout. I need you to catch us!

Where are you? The Duosion's voice asked frantically. There's a ton of people here, and I don't know which one's you!

The burning building to the right of Zach and Olivia! Ellen screamed. Second floor window!

What? Duo asked in confusion. There's no burning building on their right...

Their OTHER right! Ellen cried. NOW! Grabbing Aspen, Ellen leaped out the window, cringing as the shards of glass dug into her shoulder. She felt an odd sensation of weightlessness as she, Aspen, and the Eevee fell from the window.

One telepathic word echoed through her mind: Duo's frantic scream of ELLEN!

The Psychic-Type's telekinetic hold managed to cushion their fall, but they still hit the rocky ground hard. The two young trainers lay side by side, stunned, in the middle of a small crater. The fires raged around them, reflecting off Aspen's black hair and giving it an almost auburn hue.

IC: Paul
Paul Burks awoke to the sound of curtains flying open. "Augh, not so bright!" the blacksmith cried, shielding his face from the intense sunlight.

"Sorry to wake you, young man, but you're going to want to see this," the Berry Lady said. Her usual sweet tone was gone, replaced with an air of anxiety. That alone was enough to let Paul know that something was very wrong. Mr. Burks got dressed and hurried into the living room, where he found the Berry Lady sitting in front of an old television.

"...Breaking news from Sootopolis as the Legendary Pokémon Groudon inexplicably emerged from beneath the city early this morning," the news anchor was saying. "Countless have been left homeless after the Legendary Pokémon uprooted their homes from the ground. We're awaiting word on how President Pierce plans to respond, but in the meantime it appears a ragtag group of trainers is bravely attempting to defend the city." The camera zoomed in on a brown-haired trainer in a green-and-black tank top, standing next to a red-haired girl, both shouting orders to various Pokémon.

"They just appeared out of nowhere," a woman being interviewed said. "From all over the city, from all walks of life, these trainers just stepped up to the plate to defend our city. It really restores my hope in humanity."

"They have a psychic Pokémon with them -- I can't tell if it's the Lucario or the Gardevoir," another interviewee exclaimed. "But whoever it is, they're making Groudon punch himself in the face! It's the most amazing thing I've ever seen!" The interviewee held up his PokéGear, snapping a selfie with the Groudon in the background. The camera panned up to show the colossal Pokémon was indeed hitting itself repeatedly, growing more enraged each time.

"Kids these days," the Berry Lady muttered as she muted the volume. "Their world is coming to an end and all they care about is taking pictures with their phones."

"But Sootopolis..." Paul stammered, at a loss for words. "That's where... where you..."

"That's where I sent Ellen, yes," the Berry Lady nodded gravely. "I'm terribly sorry. If I had known something like this would happen, I wouldn't have sent her out there on her own. That red-haired girl was my great-granddaughter, too. I had no idea Olivia was even in Sootopolis, let alone fighting for her life. Oh, I wonder if Kiri's alright..."

"It's not your fault," Paul sighed. "You've already done more than I could ask for. But now it's my turn. I'm going to Sootopolis. If Ellen is in danger, it's my responsibility as her father to keep her safe."

"From here, the fastest way to get to Sootopolis is the submarine-ferries from Lilycove," the Berry Lady said, following the blacksmith outside. "But I don't know if they'll still be running, given the current crisis."

"Oh, I think I can do better than that," Paul said with a smirk. With a flick of the wrist, Scar emerged from its ball. "I'll explain along the way," Paul told the metallic bird as he hopped onto its back. "But we have to get to Sootopolis as soon as possible. Ellen's there!"

The Berry Lady placed a hand on Paul's side. "While you're there... can you check and see if my great-granddaughter's safe? I nearly lost one great-granddaughter six months ago. I couldn't bear to lose another."

"I can't thank you enough for all you've done, ma'am," Paul said as his Skarmory lifted off the ground. "You have my eternal gratitude. If it is in my power to find your great-granddaughter, I'll make sure that she's safe." Mr. Burks turned to give a final nod to the Berry Lady before Scar accelerated eastward. As the ground beneath them became a blur, Paul could only hope that he'd find his own daughter before it was too late.

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach slowly stood up with a wince after Olivia got up, but smiled, even as his face seemed to be slightly redder than before.

"I'm fine; I'm just glad you weren't hurt." Zach said, and then looked over in amusement at the Groudon, and then looked over, and saw Am as the culprit. "Am's doing pretty well, huh?" Zach said, as he pointed to the Groudon. "Elsa! Keep up the attack; Ice Shard, Ice Punch, Blizzard, use everything you've got!" Zach called out, as the Weavile looked back for a moment, having stayed back after the Raikou showed up, and rushed forward, after the Groudon broke free and shot debris around. The Weavile then quickly launched off the three successive attacks; however, she used Blizzard second, and ended the chain with a direct punch to the Groudon's knee.

Raikou himself was slightly preoccupied with quickly dodging the debris, sidestepping back and forth so much that it looked like he was simply moving left and right instead of zig-zagging. Once a good distance away, and having accidentally run into some debris because of having to look back, Raikou swung himself around, and fired off a charged Aura Sphere at the Groudon's face, followed by two Weather Balls, and trying to confuse the Groudon's senses with an Extrasensory. After all of the successive attacks, Raikou panted, the Reflect starting to fade over where Zach was. To try and keep it stable for the next little while at least, the Raikou shrunk the barrier slightly to account for Madison and Luke's disappearance as the Raikou looked back and saw them missing.

 

Blade and Katie were caught off guard, and despite guarding, both were hit for heavy damage. Blade was fainted in the process, and Katie gripped her shoulder, not doing much better, as she dragged Blade over her shoulder, moving to look at the other battle, which was ending after the Gardevoir went over there too.

Heather was caught off guard by the two quick attacks, and was launched off, rolling across the ruined battlefield, fainted from the two attacks and the recoil damage. Luke fared slightly better, having taken more damage from the fire than the subsequent psychic attack, however, he was still heavily damaged, and simply fell to a knee. Cyndy, meanwhile, simply scoffed at the attempt to use fire on her, and when the Gardevoir appeared and used Psychic, she tried to use Eruption, however, the quick teleport after made that attack miss, and Cyndy simply dashed forward and took the attack herself, simply rendering it ineffective, as she frowned at the spot where the two opponents had been.

 

Zach sighed, as he turned, and saw the attacks on his Pokemon, and then winced, as he recalled them all quickly except for Cyndy. Zach was lucky that Katie had moved Blade forward, because he'd just barely caught sight of them.

Well, they did pretty well, consider... Zach thought, when he suddenly yelled out and grabbed his head.

"ELLEN!!!" A scream rang through Zach's mind, and he looked up, and looked around for the source of the voice. However, when he looked to his right, what he saw made him pale and catch his breath.

"No..." Zach mumbled numbly, as he caught sight of the two kids and the Eevee. Speechless, Zach ran toward the crater, and then slid down, as he looked down in horror. This is just like that dream... But how...? Zach wondered, as he ran forward again. "Ellen! Aspen!" Zach called out, hoping that the worst hadn't just happened, and then looked up, at a broken window in a burning building nearby. Did... They jump out of there...? Zach wondered in shock, not sure what to do as he simply looked down at the two, shaking slightly, still trying to figure out what was going on. I... I... I should've just looked for them... Zach thought, still trying to process just what he was looking at.

[JiMing]

IC: Aspen Seaton

 

Aspen had his hand suddenly grabbed by Ellen, who led him towards the stairs. Keeping one arm around the Eevee who still determinedly swiping away at him, Aspen sighed in frustration as it seemed all exits were sealed off. Doing his best to ignore the numerous small cuts all over himself, Aspen was yanked off into yet another directionl When Ellen darted towards a window surrounded by flames, his eyes widened.

 

"Are you insane?!" Aspen cried out in protest, though nothing could deter the little girl. Unfortunately, she took the brunt of the damage but several shards of glass still rushed by and cut Aspen as he fell. Closing his eyes when the weightlessness kicked in, he waited for the sudden and swift impact.

 

Only.... Something seemed to slow down their tumbling from the second story, which only did so much to cushion the tough impact. After the ringing in his head quieted, Aspen blinked and slowly got up with a groan, checking to make sure the Eevee was still okay.

 

Understandably, the weakened Pokemon had fainted from the sharp and sudden impact even though Aspen shielded it from the worst shock, leaving it still in Aspen's arms. He could barely make out the sound of ragged breathing, but despite all that, its expression was serene, a sharp contrast to the previous terrified expression it had back in the building. Coughing slightly, Aspen couldn't help but smile at this, glad he managed to save one soul from the carnage going on....

 

"I-I'm good...." Aspen responded, coughing again. Blinking, he saw the Groudon hit itself. Ignoring the ludicrous sight, Aspen saw that it seemed to be tiring at last. "Alright then!" Aspen called out to his Pokemon. "Let's end this!"

 

IC: The Seatons

 

Dahlia turned around to the sound of shattering glass, eyes widening to find Aspen and Ellen crashing down a window. "No!" she cried, immediately rushing over to the two, making sure not to drop Chrono. When she got there, her eyes widened as she saw Aspen cradling an Eevee in his arms, similarly to the way she was gripping the Purrloin. Though he coughed and seemed slightly cut, Aspen was thankfully still in working order, as did Ellen. As Aspen called out to his Pokemon, Dahlia turned to hers. "This is it!" she cried out with confidence, face brightening. "Don't hold back!"

Laurel turned to face the Groudon, wondering if things really were almost over, and fired off a Leaf Storm regardless. Gerri became psyched by her trainer's words, and launched off what would hopefully be the last Hydro Pump. Coco Bounced over to the behemoth's leg, unleashing an Ice Punch directly on its knee. Dracos closed the distance with an ExtremeSpeed and leaped up, uttering a cry as the Dragonair lashed out with an Outrage, battering the Continent Pokemon as much as possible.

 

Olivia, with a little red on her face, nodded at Zach's words. "Huh?" she uttered, when Zach mentioned Amethyst, and looked over at the Gardevoir, then at the Groudon punching itself, connecting the dots. "Wow.... I mean, she's always been creative, but this is..." she said with a slight giggle, looking over at Raikou. "But your Raikou's been doing pretty well too...." she said, but for some reason turned away and sighed slightly. However, Zach quickly ran off while Olivia hear shattering glass, turning around to see Ellen and Aspen tumbling to the streets below. "Oh no!" she cried, following Zach and examining the two, who turned out to be okay. After both her siblings commanded their Pokemon to go all out, Olivia turned to hers. "....Okay everyone, now its time to finish this!" Olivia called out, watching as all her Pokemon responded, as well as another Weavile rushing forward. "Huh.... Guess he found a Razor Claw..." she muttered in response.

Shade darted forward with Agility several times, firing Icicle Crashes all the while. After finally nearing the Groudon, the Weavile leaped up, forming several more icicles than normal for the attack, and slammed them down into the legend's leg. Amethyst at first laughed maniacally at the success of her plan. "Why are you hitting yourself? Why are you hitting yourself?" she repeated over and over. However, she was shocked at the rubble and nearly let go, only for those pieces to stop mid-flight, and rise upwards. "....Okay, not complaining." the Gardevoir said. "Oi! Green bean!" she cried, wanting to attract Duo's attention. "Grab the other arm on that thing, will you?" Amethyst requested, continuing to force the legend to pummel itself. Toxin ran forward and leaped, bringing down a fist to strike the legend with a Drain Punch. Dune rose once more, charging up and firing a Dragon Breath. Even Willow finally sprung up, seeing attacks fly at the Groudon. Not to be left out, the Nincada vibrated her wings to send a Bug Buzz towards the beast.

 

Flare looked over as Willow attacked, seeing the Legendary appearing to falter. Flames welled up inside the Quilava, but instead of a normal Flamethrower shooting from his mouth, the fiery mane around Flare's neck ignited further, sending a might Eruption attack towards the Groudon, in a much more controlled fashion than Heatran's previous attack. Torrent was gripped tightly by the Gardevoir and winced, falling to his knees. However, a bright light shone from there, and what was once a Buizel now stood a confident Floatzel. Turning back to the Groudon, Torrent used his newfound strength to fire off a Hydro Pump. Meadow was also gripped and fainted, but not before weakly sending one final Magical Leaf towards the behemoth. Jet was struck from behind by the Thunderbolt, and felt his strength sapping away. With a triumphant cry and spreading of his wings, the Braviary collapsed, fainted. Aria had ran out of building pieces to chuck for the moment, and pointed in the direction of the sound of shattering glass. Closing her eyes, the Lucario emptied her mind of all distractions and searched out with her mind. The rubble kicked by Groudon and thrown to Amethyst stopped in place and rose upwards, as did scattered pieces from around the area, in time with Aria raising her arm. Concentrating hard, the rubble gathered began to converge in one spot directly above Groudon, eventually forming a massive sphere of building the size of the Groudon's head. Snapping her eyes open, Aria still managed to glare at the Continent Pokemon despite a strained expression from keeping the rubble together. "Now then, back to the depths with you...." she muttered. "Return from whence you came!" the Lucario cried triumphantly, lowering her arm and sending the massive meteor of rubble down on the legend....

Edited August 29, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Konuju]

IC: Ellen/Dack/Madison/Luke/Palmer/Groudon
Ellen wearily picked herself up to see the battle still raging around her. Madison's Froslass and Palmer's Milotic were doing the best they could to stop the rain of magma and put out the fires that had started to spread throughout the city. A loud wail off in the distance signaled that Rugissement's Aegislash had run out of energy, leaving the expansive mansion open to the elements. Groudon seemed to waste no time in hurling a chunk of rock at the house (with the hand that wasn't hitting himself), flattening the north wing. With a stamp of the Continent Pokémon's foot the pipeline leading to Rugissement's pool burst, sending thousands of gallons of water back into the city's lake. Ellen was struck with a sudden weariness. She just wanted to close her eyes and wake up from this horrible nightmare.

Terry, Duo, Artemis, and Maturin had all stopped fighting, instead gathering around Ellen with a worried look. Terry gave a whine and started to lick Ellen's face. Ellen's entire body ached from the fall. She gave a hoarse cough as she turned around to see that Aspen was getting up as well. Ellen sighed with relief when she saw that the injured Eevee was still in the boy's arms. "Are you alright?" she asked Aspen. "How's the Eevee?"

"We're both fine...." Aspen said, smiling softly at the Eevee he held in his arms. "Kinda banged up, but still kicking...."

Suddenly, Ellen noticed Zach, Dahlia, and Olivia looking at the two youngest members of their group, their faces looking horrified. "I-I'm okay..." Ellen assured them as she painfully got to her feet, leaning on Terry for support. She walked up to Dahlia, who she saw held Chrono in her arms. "C-chrono... is he okay...?"

Dahlia looked down at the Purrloin and nodded. "Terry saved him and brought him here," the middle Seaton explained.

"T-thanks.... Terry...." Ellen smiled weakly. "I knew I could always count on you...."

"Alright then!" Aspen cried out, his voice suddenly filled with energy. "Let's end this!"

Zach and the three Seatons all sent out their Pokémon to blast Groudon with everything they had. Palmer's Dragonite was flying in circles above the monster to distract it, while Rhyperior launched boulders from a high point on the city's wall. Dack's Servine sent a Leaf Tornado at the colossus, while his Bastiodon attacked with Ancient Power.

"Yeah!" Luke cried as his Machoke rushed toward the Groudon. "Finish it off!" The Machoke leapt from a nearby cliff and smacked the Groudon in the thigh with a DynamicPunch.

Ellen found herself too weary to shout attacks out to her Pokémon. Taking Chrono from Dahlia, she merely watched as the attacks made their way toward Groudon. At Amethyst's request, the exhausted Duo reached out with what little energy he had left. At the beginning of the battle, he had been unable to hold the entire Groudon still. But somehow he found the strength to hold onto a single arm. Although Duo was not able to make the Groudon punch itself repeatedly like Amethyst had, he was at least able to render the towering giant helpless against the array of attacks headed straight for it.

Groudon found himself pelted by all sorts of attacks, and with both his arms held against his will, he could do nothing to stop them. The behemoth roared when the volley had ended, rearing back a foot to bury the entire group under a pile of rubble. Before it could follow through with its attack, Aria dropped her own meteor of rubble right on the monster's head.
 
Dack and Madison rounded a corner and reunited with the rest of the group just in time to see Aria's final attack. The massive sphere of rubble crumbled with a horrible crunching sound as it struck Groudon square on the head. The Continent Pokémon's form began to waver. At first Dack thought it was just an optical illusion caused by the heat from Heatran's Magma Storm. But it soon became clear that something was very wrong with Groudon. The beast gave one final roar, weaker than the others, and started to shrink. Dack was still trying to process this when he felt the familiar sensation of Cresselia's mind touching his own.

Dack, I've found the culprit! Behind Groudon, hurry!

"Swellow, get me over there!" Dack cried. Although the bird Pokémon had already suffered many injuries, it managed to pick up its trainer (along with Teddy, who was happily resting atop Dack's head) and beat its wings as hard as it could, drifting toward the rapidly shrinking Groudon.

Only it wasn't a Groudon at all, as Dack soon discovered. The bright red armor faded to pink even as creature lost the distinct shape of the Continent Pokémon. When Dack arrived on the spit of land he faced not a Groudon, but a Ditto. He barely had time to register this before the Ditto disappeared in a trail of light. Following the beam, Dack saw a hooded figure standing on the top of the Cave of Origin, holding out the Pokéball that had just recalled the Ditto.

"You!" Dack cried, face contorting with rage. The figure took one look at Dack and turned around to run, but Swellow was too fast, flying Dack up to the top of the cave as well. "You're the one responsible for this, aren't you?!" the Snowpoint trainer roared as he dropped from his Swellow, tackling the figure to the ground. "I don't care who you are, but I'm going to make you pay for what you did to Snowpoint!" As Dack gripped the culprit by the neck of the cloak and raised his fist to punch his opponent, the hood fell back, revealing long brown hair and deep brown eyes that glared up at Dack with a bitter hatred from a face that was all too familiar. Dack paused, his rage giving way to shock.

"Hannah?"

[Parugi]

IC - Quincy Adams/Michael Travis/Team Energon/Déoza - Titan, Launching:

 

It was with a great shuffling of feet, the thunder of boots on the ground, and with (to Adams, at least) surprising efficiency that Team Energon's forces assembled into even ranks. She had to admit that, for the remnants of an oft-forgotten resistance group, Travis at least had them trained well when it came to organization. Whether that would prove useful or not for their present operation was another question entirely.

 

Adams lifted her helmet up and onto her head, fastening it in place. "Déoza!" the Third Child yelled. Her own soldiers straightened up. "Take up positions and begin teleportation procedures!"

 

With herself at the forefront of the group, Adams watched as the armor-clad Déoza Agents spread out, forming an evenly-spaced circle around the Energon forces. She held up one hand, and with the other, reached for a Poké Ball magnetized to her armor. The others followed suit, each of the eighteen Déoza agents holding still once they had taken up this stance. Adams did nothing. Travis watched them with a careful eye, wary of the synchronized movements he was bearing witness to, and slowly and quietly reached for a Poké Ball on his own belt, resting a hand on it for security's sake.

 

And then, there was a dazzling flurry of movement. With stupefying speed, the Déoza Agents had all released the Pokémon that they held in their hands. In one blinding flash of light, eighteen Beheeyem had materialized, all of them taking up position by their trainer, all of them turning around to face Team Energon's forces. And with a simultaneous glow of the hands and eyes, they had enveloped the strike force in a psychic bubble.

 

What happened next--at least for those unprepared--was a total blur.

 

IC - Kyle Eston/Esen Windred - Lumiose City, Wandering:

 

For how busy it had appeared from far away, it seemed that the nights in Lumiose City were not nearly as suffocatingly active as the days. From their arrival to now, Kyle and Esen had taken to wandering the city streets, peeking into shops and dabbling around whatever areas happened to catch their interest. Though there had been a decent amount of variation thus far, it did not take long for them to notice the sheer abundance of boutiques and restaurants around them--it seemed as if every other shop was one or the other, with smaller, more unique shops sprinkled in between.

 

All in all, there was not much to take note of.

 

In fact, it was not in one of these many shops that something interesting finally occurred, but rather during the walk down yet another block of Lumiose's downtown area. At this point, the pair of wanderers had grown all but lost, and now searched for someplace to stay for the night. The longer they walked, the less sense the roads seemed to make. Eventually, they came to a stop in front of a nondescript alleyway, taking time to gather their bearings.

 

"I swear," Kyle said. "We passed by a Pokémon Center a few streets back. Let's just turn around and stop there for the night."

 

"There has to be one closer than that," Esen said, shooting Kyle a glare when he sighed in tired frustration. "Come on--let's just see if there's a map around or something. This place is big enough to need one, after all . . ."

 

Kyle crossed his arms, watching Esen scan the ground--on the street, on the sidewalk, in the alley--for a map. He, too, kept an eye out, but the only thing that managed to catch his attention was a day-old paper on which he managed to read "Agitations On the Rise as" before Esen inadvertently kicked it away and out of sight. This continued on for several moments, the search becoming more and more clearly futile the longer it went.

 

"Might I offer my assistance, dearies?"

 

The voice came out of nowhere, belonging to a small, hunched old lady who approached from the alley, and it startled both trainers in equal amounts. The distinct shape of a Gothitelle followed close behind her, psychically pulling a beaten-up cart alongside it. Instinctively, Kyle grabbed a Poké Ball, ready to defend himself from the pair if needed; he was surprised to see that Esen had done much the same, much more quickly than he had.

 

The woman chuckled at the pair's actions, a warm huffing sound that instantly dispelled any sense of danger. "Feisty kids . . ." she said. "Understandable, of course--I wouldn't take too kindly to a stranger in the dark, either."

 

"I'm glad we don't have to explain ourselves," Esen said. She lowered the Poké Ball she was holding, but did not replace it on her belt. "I'm sorry if we disturbed you--I didn't think anyone would be living around here."

 

"Oh, don't you worry about it at all," the old woman said, waving her hand dismissively. "Really, after living in the city for as long as I have, I'm used to it. Might I ask for your names?"

 

"I'm Esen," Esen said. "This is Kyle."

 

"A pleasure to meet both of you. My name is Satomi."

 

"Nice to meet you, too," Kyle said, more quickly than he had meant to. "Did, uh . . . Did you say you could help us?"

 

"I do believe I can yes," Satomi said, rubbing a wizened hand on her chin. "I do have a favor to ask of you in return, however." Kyle and Esen glanced at each other. This prompted another chuckle from the old woman. "Oh, it's nothing big, my dears, I can assure you of that. No, I have an . . . interest, you could say, in fortune telling, specifically reading personal histories. Past, present, future . . . It's fascinating to me." She cast her dark eyes up to the sky. "So, if you are interested, I really would like to have the two of you sit down with Gothitelle here and let her peer into your timeline. You never know what you might learn about yourself, you know . . ."

 

IC - Meghan Vert - The Alamo, Infirmary:

 

For some time, there was no response, the room beyond the door sounding so quiet that it seemed no one actually inhabited it. Then, with a sudden creak of movement, the door opened. A woman with short, spiky black hair stood in the doorway, her expression utterly stoic as she sized up James. Perhaps sooner than later, he would recognize her as Danielle Ladon, Executive of Special Operations.

 

"James Arthur," she said, a vague disinterest present in her tone. "I was not informed that you were approved to visit with Vert."

 

 

IC: Zoe

It ended up taking an entire half hour and multiple wrong turns for the Llyan sisters to eventually find the Liberty Leaders' office. Had Colette been on her own, she probably would have knocked first. However, much to the Aura reader's disdain, Zoe barged right in, dragging her sister behind her. "Here we are!" she said happily. "I knew we'd find it eventually!"

 

-==IC: Colette==-

"Y-yeah, that's true." Colette said with a nod, as she blinked at Zoe's... forcefulness at going right inside. However, she wasn't quite sure what this place was, as she curiously looked around, since it seemed they had a tiny bit of time.

 

IC - Goldhawk/Jayron Aaron - The Alamo, Conference Room:

 

Perhaps, then, it was lucky that the Llyan sisters arrived when they did, for as they entered the conference room they found that it was, in fact, empty. With the newly-polished windows glinting in the bright sun overhead, and the spotless table with its neatly arranged chairs waiting to be used in the middle of the room, it was clear that the conference room had just recently been cleaned by the custodial staff. There was no sign that Goldhawk was there.

 

That did not last long. Just as the two girls decided to take a seat, the door opened, signalling Goldhawk's arrival. He gave them a short wave and a smile (as well as a briefly confused look at the sight of Zoe) as he entered. Behind him, another Executive in a green coat and hat followed, a younger boy who looked hardly older than Colette herself. And behind him, a Lucario followed, one who walked with a careful, but confident stride. As he entered, the Pokémon looked at the two girls, intense eyes giving off a feeling of great power, as if he were reading their very souls.

 

The two sat down towards the middle of the table, on opposite sides. "Good morning, Miss Llyan--both of you," Goldhawk said. "I hope your morning has gone well. Before we get started, I'd like to introduce Executive Jayron Aaron. He's another Aura user, a seasoned veteran of Team Liberty, and will be accompanying you on your induction mission."

 

IC - Jackson Sang/Eileen Alaric - Alaric Estate:

 

It had been a rather long drive from Chapel, but at last, Jackson and Eileen had arrived at their destination. They paused briefly at the gates to the estate; and as they did, allowing Eileen to input the code that would let them through, Jackson was granted an opportunity to observe the great mansion that lay before them. He was surprised to find that it was not nearly as grandiose as one might have expected. Indeed, it blended well with the surrounding forest, which appeared to have been minimally cut in the mansion's building process, providing a natural habitat that surrounded the place on every side--save for the road that carved its way toward the dwelling.

 

The rest of the drive did not take particularly long. Soon enough, they had parked, Eileen turning off the car and exiting the vehicle. Jackson followed suit, stepping out onto the paved driveway. Up close, the mansion appeared disconcertingly dreary, as if all the life it could have held no longer existed within it--a reflection, perhaps, of what its owners currently felt. The juxtaposition between its general elegance and its utter loneliness proved, in the simplest of terms, to be . . . haunting. That was the only word that Jackson could think to apply to it.

 

Feeling a questioning gaze on him, he looked at Eileen, who was, in fact, looking at him with an air of quiet curiosity. He forced a small smile, turning to follow her up the steps and through the front door. "Nice place you've got," he said, nodding toward the plants dotting the front flowerbeds. "I can appreciate the attempts to keep things more down to earth--a lot of people would've imported palm trees or something to decorate their gardens."

 

"I've never seen the need for that kind of materialism," Eileen said. "Large houses are difficult enough to take care of without the needs of exotic plants." She paused. "Not to mention, it's better for Levi . . ."

 

Jackson looked at Eileen, tilting his head. "How so, if you don't mind me asking?"

 

She took a deep breath, thinking hard about how to answer the question. "Levi," she said, slowly. "is a very nervous child. He doesn't take well to unfamiliar surroundings, and since he likes the forest, we figured it'd be nice to bring a little bit of it into the boundaries of the yard--bring it a little bit closer to him for when he gets stressed out. And that's on top of . . ." She fell silent, as if barely managing to catch herself before sharing something she would have regretted. ". . . on top of his health problems. Between his asthma and other allergies, there's no benefit to risking an adverse reaction to something foreign. It's an unnecessary risk."

 

Jackson nodded slowly, not entirely convinced. He said nothing else until they had entered the house, at which point it was suggested that the two split up to search around for anything the investigators may have missed. Offering only a reassuring smile, Jackson headed up the stairs, expression dropping as he considered how to go about approaching whatever topic Eileen Alaric seemed to be avoiding . . .

 

IC - Quincy Adams/Michael Travis/Team Energon/Déoza - Havoc, Various:

 

Energon Agent Otto Lorenz could remember naught but a blur.

 

His memory was fuzzy, an image distorted by light and darkness until nothing remained distinct. His vision was broken, a cracked picture that tried its hardest to convey its message, yet could do nothing but send a formless message into the abyss of the mental plane. He blinked. He shook his head. Nothing seemed to help his vision clear--nothing but time.

 

And it did. It felt like an eternity had passed before he became aware of his surroundings, the dark, metallic walls that radiated with an unnatural cold. Faces slowly emerged from the darkness, confused, baffled faces that appeared frozen in surprise at the sight of Otto Lorenz's presence. Then, with the force of an armored truck, it struck him, and he became aware of the fact that he was not alone, that five others stood with him, each of them equally as dazed as he was.

 

All but one.

 

This person strode forward, their movements slow progressions that seemed to slide into one another. With growing swiftness, he shifted onto one leg, hoisting a long-barreled rifle up and toward the faces. He steadied the gun, and with a squeeze of the trigger, fired six times, laying one bullet into each of the men and women before him. One by one, they fell, all dead with the first shot, dead before they had truly registered what had hit them. He lowered his gun, looking back at Lorez and and the other Energon agents, and smiled.

 

In that moment, Energon Agent Otto Lorenz knew only one thing: The overwhelming thirst for blood.

 

* * *

 

Groups of five and six had become the norm, all a mixture of one Déoza Agent and the rest from Energon. But to every norm, there was an exception, one example that broke the trend. For this, there was Adams's group. It consisted of only two people--herself and Michael Travis. They appeared--and they emerged, quite deliberately, with more force than any of the others had--in one of the eastern hallways, out of the way of normal activity, but close enough to where Adams knew that she needed to go. It was lucky for her in that it was out of the way. In that same vein, it was unlucky for the Energon Leader.

 

Travis stumbled from the impact, landing with enough force that he lost his grip on the Poké Ball he was holding. His knees ached from the force of the landing, enough to stun him for several moments, leaving him all but helpless as Quincy Adams loomed over him. She unclipped the buckle of her helmet, removing it from her head and glaring down at him, eyes alight with a deadly curiosity. She only broke the eye contact when she nodded at her Beheeyem. The Psychic-Type raised his hand, focusing his power. Instantly, Travis's Poké Balls were pulled into orbit around his hand, spinning slowly through the air.

 

"I should have known this would happen," Travis said, his voice hardly more than a growl. "Make a deal with Ford, get the short end of the stick, that's how it always goes."

 

"Well, I guess that's your fault for not trusting your gut," Adams said. She stooped down next to Travis, pulling a knife from a hidden sheath in her armor. "Don't worry--we'll take good care of Energon in your absence."

 

Travis stared at her for a moment, before a dark smile crossed his lips. "I don't think so." A burst of energy shot forth from the power-draining gun underneath him, whose line of fire Adams had put herself into. She gasped in surprise, falling back and raising a hand to shield her face from the blast. Before any severe damage could be done, however, Adams's Beheeyem had reached out with his psychic abilities, tearing the gun in half and throwing the Energon leader back.

 

The older man used this to his advantage, using the momentum from the throw to roll onto his feet. With his knees still injured, he could only hobble away, though Adams's distraction proved ample time to do that. She righted herself, scooping up her knife just as he rounded a far corner, and chased after him, Wizard following close behind.

 

"You can run, but you can't hide, Travis!" she yelled, her voice cutting through the sound of her boots slamming against the metal floor. A wide grin forced its way onto her face, and she felt the beginning tremors of a deranged laugh in the pit of her stomach. "Come back here and maybe this'll end quickly!"

 

* * *

 

There was precisely one group whose minds had not been muddled with the mixture of teleportation and mental influence that had afflicted their peers. They appeared in a room containing dozens of massive computers, whose combined systems managed the entirety of Team Magma's electronic grid. As it happened, this group of five was the one containing Ryan Hikari and his watchers--and every single one of them was quickly realizing that their attack force had been forcibly and unexpectedly split apart by their own transports.

 

This did not bode well for the Déoza agent in their midst, who--after a few stupefied moments, in which no one quite knew how to react to their current situation--barked for his Beheeyem to focus a Psychic attack on the Energon agents. It worked--partially. With the quickest application of its powers, the Psychic-Type managed to pick up one unfortunate soul, slamming them through the body a large power box. In the explosion of sparks and agonized screams that followed, the Energon agents managed to respond, quickly aiming and firing their power-draining guns at the enemy Pokémon. It shrieked, instantly falling to the ground as every ounce of energy vanished from its body.

 

It was a prettier picture than the one produced by the same actions taken against its trainer.

 

Lieutenant Colonel Lidiya Vasilyev stared down the barrel of the gun, her gaze set on the sizzling, motionless body before her. For several moments, she merely stood there, slowly processing what had just happened, eventually closing her eyes and forcing herself to focus again on the situation at hand. Lowering the gun to her side, she turned to face the three remaining Energon agents behind her. "Styles, see if you can get in contact with anyone else," she said. "Abbing, scan for a teleportation barrier--if they brought us in like this, there's a good chance they won't want us getting back out."

 

As Styles stepped away, turning on and speaking into his radio, Vasilyev approached the burnt body of their fifth agent, careful not to touch it lest she, too, get electrocuted. Abbing pulled a device from her bag, shifting her gaze between it and her leader's back. "Lieutenant, what do we do if there is a barrier?" she asked.

 

"If there is," Vasilyev said. "then we're going to have to kill as many Déoza as possible until we can get out." She paused. "Granted, we're going to have to find one to get us out of here even if there isn't one . . ." As if to punctuate her sentence, Abbing's device beeped.

 

"Psychic barrier detected, with fluctuations in this area," she said. "It's weak enough here that teleportations could go through." Abbing looked at the unconscious Beheeyem nearby. "It seems as if the Beheeyem were meant to be spread out, each one supporting the block in a different location."

 

"They're doing a good enough job even without this one," Styles said, returning at that moment. "Ma'am, communications are down--too much psychic interference to send anything out of the base or around it."

 

"I guess we've got no choice, then," Vasilyev said. Standing back up, she turned to her subordinates, looking squarely at Ryan. "As for you, Hikari--given the odds stacked against us, I'm willing to give you a chance, even taking into account your actions yesterday. So, if you want to slip away and test your own chances, fine--if you want to stick around, even better. But be aware that if you try anything against Styles, Abbing, or myself, I will personally end you. Understood?"

Edited September 2, 2014 by Pears Nivans

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

Upon the crack of Aria's meteor falling, all three Seatons watched in anticipation to see whether that would finally be enough to end this. And it did, but any sense of triumph was cut short by the waving form of the Groudon. Soon, it was clear that what they had been battling was not Groudon, but simply a Ditto mimicking its form. The three siblings looked on in horror to see that such a simple looking creature could be the one to have caused the destruction and chaos that had befallen Sootopolis this day.....

 

All across the field, Pokemon started collapsing left and right. Their adrenaline rush gone, many felt lightheaded and could barely support their own weight. Aria in particular was completely drained from the effort needed to keep her meteor of rubble together. As she collapsed, the Lucario got a glimpse at the true form of their opponent, chuckling quietly. "I had a feeling that this had been all too easy...." she muttered, finally fainting.

 

Dahlia looked over worriedly, turning to her siblings and the others. "Um, excuse me but... Could I get a few volunteers to help out with making sure our Pokemon are still okay?" she asked, getting Aspen and Olivia to nod in return. The Seatons moved around, using Sitrus Berries to Super Potions to bring weary and injured Pokemon back to consciousness, though Aspen had to recall Meadow and Aria, and did not revive the Eevee to give it a period of rest after the horror of the pseudo-Groudon's attack.

 

As he reached Jet though, Aspen saw the form of Dack on his Swellow pass by, seeing them aim for a figure on top of the Cave of Origin. Narrowing his eyes, he gave the Braviary a few spritz of Super Potion, and shook it awake with one arm. "I know you're tired, but I've just seen who was behind this...." he said quietly, Jet following his line of sight and standing up. Mounting the eagle Pokemon, Aspen gripped on with one arm, gently holding the unconscious Eevee in the other. Reaching the top of the cave as Dack tackled the culprit to the ground, Jet descended slowly, just as the hooded figure's face was revealed.

 

"Well? Hannah who?" Aspen asked in a flat voice, stepping off Jet and walking forward to Dack gripping the culprit by the neck. "I'd like to know just who could destroy an entire city purposefully, putting countless innocents, including the people I love in danger." he spoke with seemingly no emotion, but the rage and indignation he truly felt still managed to leak through. "My aunt lived here.... If we hadn't decided to come and visit...." Aspen muttered, suddenly looking down at the Eevee in his arms. "And this Eevee... While that fake Groudon of yours wrecked Sootopolis, it nearly died in a burning building..." he said. "Who knows how many loved ones were put in danger, or Pokemon trapped and faced with death...? How many of them were as lucky as this Eevee? How many weren't....?"

 

With a slight scowl, Aspen looked down at Hannah. "But you don't feel a thing, do you....? No regret for all the families you've hurt...? No. If you had a shred of humanity, this disaster wouldn't have happened..." he said quietly. While his hair was matted and wild and his body marked with cuts and scratches, Aspen's tone gave the impression that he was so filled with hatred and anger for the culprit that he had no way of expressing just how furious he was. His glasses reflected off light, obscuring his eyes, complementing his scowl. Despite his fury, Aspen had been holding the injured and fainted Eevee close all that time, cradling the Pokemon like a child, running a finger through its fur softly when it coughed again. "Well?"

 

Olivia knelt down in front of Amethyst, feeding her a Sitrus Berry and supporting the Gardevoir. Looking up, Olivia looked up to see Dack fly by, and Aspen shortly after. Looking over to where they were headed, her eyes widened as there was a hooded figure on top of the Cave of Origin. Scowling, Dack tackled the figure to the ground, Aspen landing shortly after.

 

"Hey Am..." Olivia started. "That has to be the one who caused all this... Find out who they are and what's going on back there... And make sure they suffer."

 

Amethyst nodded, extending an arm to reach out for all the minds on top of the Cave of Origin. At the same time, the Gardevoir psychically grabbed the hooded figure's arms and began to twist them back, hoping to put the culprit through a fraction of the pain they had caused to the Sootopolisians...

 

Meanwhile, Dahlia continued healing the Pokemon around the field, typing up a massage to Kiri on her Pokegear.

 

We're all fine. Where are you?

 

Looking up, she glanced around the wrecked area, frowning. "Anyone see where Aspen and Dack went....?"

[Konuju]

IC: Zoe

Zoe had just started spinning her chair around when Goldhawk entered with an air of authority. When he introduced the green-coated Aura user and his Lucario, Zoe suddenly stopped spinning. She had been excited to go on a mission go on a mission with her sister, but in the presence of Team Liberty's leader and an Aura-wielding executive, Zoe felt very small. She subtly nudged Colette, figuring that her sister would be the best person to ask about the younger Llyan tagging along on the official mission.

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ryan==-

 

Ryan raised a skeptical eyebrow on how it would ever be a good idea to do any of what the lieutenant suggested he might try and pull, but nodded to confirm he wouldn't try it.

"After what I've seen just now, I'm willing to back you up. I was wrong, and I'll admit that... I've seriously gotta stop overreacting..." Ryan mumbled, as he sighed, ignoring the fearful mental chirping from Anna. "What happened here... can't be forgiven." Ryan said, and thought for a moment. "We do need a plan, though. I'm not sure how well we could teleport out without a Beheeyem, but it is a possibility, but I doubt in any way that's truly useful to us... Not unless there's an evolution in the time between now and when we have to leave." Ryan said, as he wasn't certain how many people his Natu could teleport at a time; since it had only been him and said Natu every other time.

 

-==IC: Colette==-

 

Colette smiled at the two as they entered the room, however she had been confused as to who the other person was, before he was introduced. Colette briefly showed a lot of confusion, as she looked over at Jayron when Goldhawk explained who he was.

Another... Aura user? Colette wondered, slightly confused. But... How was that... Wasn't that her...? Colette mentally shook her head, as in a way, it was a good thing, right? Less pressure on her, right?

"Ah, hello, nice to meet you. I'm Colette Llyan..." Colette introduced herself with a slight smile, feeling a subtle nudge, as she tried to figure out what Zoe... oh, right. "So, is it just a two-person mission, then?" Colette asked, unsure of how missions around here worked.

 

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach sighed, as he looked up in confusion.

It was... a fake? Zach thought, shocked that something like a Ditto could cause so much destruction like happened. However, it made sense, since the Ditto hadn't really done much more than just stomp around. You'd think the real Groudon would have tried to attack more seriously... I should've known something was up... Zach thought with a sigh, as he scratched his head, recalling Elsa, Cyndy and Raikou, healing them up, as he walked over to Olivia with a smile, glad that things had ended well.

"...Find out who they are... and make sure they suffer." Zach stopped in his tracks, as he tilted his head, as Am began to act and do what she was trying to do.

"Liv...?" Zach asked, unsure what that was all about, as his face showed that same conflict.

While the person has caused so much destruction and pain... Is it really right to do the same to whoever this is? Wouldn't that not make us any better than them...? Zach wondered, as he continued to look at Olivia, wondering if she had a better explanation.

[Konuju]

IC: Kiri
"See? Look at that." Kiri smiled at the young child she held in her arms as the final attacks struck the Groudon. "I told you things would get better." Kiri's smile turned into a frown as the 'Groudon' started to shrink. Before her eyes, the colossus took on its true form, that of a small, pink Ditto. "This whole time, that was a Ditto masquerading as our ancient legend?" she muttered. Before she could think through things more, her PokéGear beeped, indicating a message from Dahlia. Still holding the child in her arm, Kiri one-handedly typed out a response.
 

I'm safe; Over by the Pokémon Center. There's a lot of people here so it'll take some time for me to make it back home. Mickle's safe, too.

The Pidgey on her shoulder cooed as Kiri sent the message. Then the Sootopolisian stood up, turning to the small child. "Let's see if we can find your parents, okay? They're probably worried sick about you."
 
IC: Ellen/Madison/Luke
Ellen fell to her knees as the Groudon was defeated. Only it turned out it was not a Groudon at all. Somehow finding the strength to stand, the young girl followed Dahlia, helping her tend to the injured Pokémon, all the while cradling Chrono in her arms. Her eyes lingered on the spot where the Ditto had disappeared.
 
How can one small creature cause so much destruction? she wondered. And why?
 
Having not heard Cresselia's mental shout, Madison gave a cry of frustration as Dack flew off without warning. "I swear, sometimes it feels like that boy just acts on impulse, without ever thinking." Anzu gave a silent nod as she shot Ice Shards at the last few remaining chunks of magma.
 
"Maaan, you mean to tell me that what we fought wasn't really a Groudon?" Luke cried. "Guess I'll have to put that back on my bucket list. Come on, Madison, let's see what Dack's up to. I want answers."

 

"Good idea," Madison said with a nod. "Dack really needs to learn not to run off ahead of the group." Shaking her head, Madison started making her way around the rubble and toward the Cave of Origin.

IC: Dack/Hannah

"Oops," Hannah said slyly. "Cat's out of the bag."

"Hannah?" Dack repeated in disbelief. "Hannah Wright? Miss Goody-Two-Shoes? It... it was you the whole time? How is that even...?"

"Surprising, isn't it?" Hannah sneered. "It's always the quiet ones. Or in this case, the compulsive rule-followers." She glanced at Aspen, appearing only half-interested when he ranted on about the disaster she had just caused. "You have some rather rude friends, you know that, Dack?" Hannah said with a frown. "Sounds like that one needs to learn a lesson in respect." Teddy leaped from the top of Dack's head, touching his claws against Hannah's exposed neck and making the most menacing face he could muster. "Cute cub," the Rocket agent smirked. "Although I don't think that's your style. He seems more like a pet than a Pokémon worthy of your team. You've grown soft since we last met, Majors."

"Why?" Dack asked, still trying to wrap his mind around the culprit's identity. When Hannah didn't answer, he slammed her against the rocks, tightening his grip on her cloak. "Why did you attack Snowpoint?" he yelled.
 

At that moment, Amethyst took hold of Hannah's arms, twisting them behind her back. The girl screamed in agony, but her face slowly twisted into a wicked grin. "Why did I attack Snowpoint, you ask?" Hannah said through a grimace. "To recruit you to my cause, of course." The Rocket agent seemed unusually calm for having her arms twisted and finding herself pinned to the ground by someone who was ready to punch her into oblivion. "After you ignored my multiple attempts to contact you via PokéGear, I decided I needed something a little more... dramatic to get your attention."

"Recruit me to your cause?" Dack frowned. "And what cause might that be?"

"To bring back the war!" Hannah laughed, despite her pain. "You see, all that rule-following, the reputation I formed for never placing a toe out of line, it finally paid off." She rolled to the side to allow her cloak to fall back -- not an easy thing to do when Amethyst had her arms pinned and Dack still held a firm grip on the fabric at her neck -- revealing a Rocket Executive uniform. "That's right," Hannah gloated, taking Dack's dumbfounded expression for unspoken praise. "I finally became an executive, which places an entire army of grunts at my disposal!"

"And just what are you planning to do with this army?" Dack glared. "These lands are enjoying their first taste of peace in years. What do you hope to gain by returning to the war we've known almost our entire lives?"

"It's quite simple, really," Hannah smirked. Her voice grew icy cold. "My goal is one I think you are all too familiar with, Dack Majors. Revenge."

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

Dahlia breathed a sigh of relief when Kiri responded. Upon seeing the message saying she was fine, Dahlia typed out a response.

That's great to hear. We'll be waiting for you, stay safe!

Once she sent the message, Dahlia's Pokegear rang, so she picked it up. "Hello?"

"Ohmygosh, Dahlia!" Rose cried in a concerned voice. "Y-Your father and I, we saw it all on TV, Sootopolis..."

"Don't worry Mom.... It's all over now. Aspen, Olivia, Zach, and a few others, we're all fine...." Dahlia replied, trying to calm her panicking mother. "Kiri's also fine, she just messaged me...."

On the other end, Rose let out a worried sigh. "I-I'm so, so, so glad to hear that.... But why did you three think to fight that thing?!" she cried indignantly. "I nearly lost one child six months ago... A-And I almost lost three..."

"I'm sorry, we didn't mean to worry you so much...." Dahlia replied with a sad sigh. "But we had Zach helping us, and he's done gone through similar situations before... Not to mention, four other trainers, Dack, Madioson, Luke, and even Palmer of the Sinnoh Battle Fronteir seemed to know what was going to happen and came just in time to stop it...."

Dahlia saw several people looking in a certain direction, following their eyes to the top of the Cave of Origin. When she saw Dack, Aspen, and another figure up there, she gasped quickly. "I'm sorry, but I'll have to call you back quickly. Something's happening...." she said, abruptly hanging up on her mother, walking over to Zach and Olivia. "What's going on...?"

 

Aspen listened on quietly, the slight scowl on his face deepening slightly. "I'm sorry, but after all you've done, respect is the last thing you're getting from me...." he said with a flat tone, before cocking his head up, light reflecting to obscure even more of his eyes. "Actually, I take that back... I'm not sorry at all. Rule following? Just think about how many crimes against humanity you made, just now...." the boy continued to mutter, looking down at the Executive.

 

"You're cold, heartless, soulless, sociopathic.... I've just run out of adjectives. Huh." he said. "But most of all.... You're selfish." Aspen growled, a small amount of his undiluted rage seeping out and filling his voice with poison, while he lashed out with one leg, sending a kick towards Hannah's head. "All those people and pokemon injured and dead.... All the homes destroyed.... You don't have an ounce of regret, do you?!" he said again, lashing out with his foot once more. "Continuing this war, just for your petty revenge?? I'm almost impressed you aren't spewing drivel about the greater good...." Aspen muttered quietly, having continued to stroke the Eevee comfortingly while he lashed out at the Rocket Executive.

 

Amethyst frowned as it seemed Hannah was taking the pain remarkably well. Tightening her grasp, the Gardevoir twisted the arms further, stopping just before the point the bones would break, hoping to keep the culprit in as much constant agony as possible. Meanwhile, she transferred the conversation occurring to Olivia, whose eyes widened as it became clear who that figure was.

 

"A Rocket Executive, huh...." Olivia muttered curiously, before realizing Zach had called out with concern. "....There's our culprit." she said at last, pointing to the top of the Cave of Origin. "....I know you won't agree with what I'm doing, but.... There's just no way I can let her get away with demolishing the city and putting countless of lives at risk....." she growled, balling up a fist. "And even if its cruel.... I will do anything to make sure that Executive will never be commit an atrocity of this scale again..." Olivia finished, holding a hand out to Zach. "What do you say....? Shall we head over and make her pay...?" 

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach still seemed kinda surprised and unsure, as he looked over in the direction that Olivia indicated, then thought for a moment or two more.

"Well... I don't like the idea of needless harm, when she could just be locked up... but, she did cause all this destruction and mayhem, and just... craziness..." Zach said, but paused, as he got an idea, and then closed his eyes. If I don't 'know', then I can avoid any moral issues! Zach reasoned with himself, as he plugged his ears with his fingers, and nodded to Olivia. Olivia looked over with a frown, as she was utterly confused at what Zach was up to.

"......What the heck are you doing......?" Olivia asked, and then waited for a few seconds, and as Zach was about to respond, spoke again. "Locking her up wouldnt do that much.... She could always break out to strike again later. We need to make sure she knows the consequences of commiting such a disaster...." Olivia finished, and Zach nodded again, as Olivia waited for a moment.

"Well, if there's a moral dilemma, then obviously it didn't REALLY happen if I don't see or hear, right?" Zach reasoned, and Olivia looked over at him with a slightly blank look.

"I..." Olivia said, trying to understand how that worked, as she caught a hint of a smile on Zach's face, and then sighed with a bit of a grin herself. "Oh, you..." Olivia said, as she shook her head slightly, and then was about to motion to Amethyst.

[sonyaxe]

IC: Jake

 

Pikachu faltered, and when he landed on the ground he was moving quite a bit slower.

 

""Pikachu, use Agility then Quick Attack to avoid the rocks!" Jake called to his Pokemon. Even with the speed boost from Agility and Quick Attack, the Electric-type was hard pressed to avoid the various falling rocks. Until an extremely large, fast, and unavoidable rock came straight at Pikachu.

 

"Bat that rock right back with Iron Tail!" Once again, Pikachu's tail glowed with a white light, and with a spin and flip to gain momentum Pikachu sent the rock straight back towards Cranidos.

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC: (James)

 

As James recognized Executive Ladon, he made a few guesses as to what her guarding the door meant.

 

“And I was not informed that there was a need for approval… My apologies I shall see that corrected post-haste.”

 

As James pulled out his cell phone, he quickly considered his options. Goldhawk was right out and Blackskull was not likely to grant his request either. So there was really only one option.

 

“This is Silvermind.”

 

“This is Agent Arthur. I’m calling to request permission to visit Ms. Vert in the hospital."

 

“Arthur… I’m afraid I’m going to have to deny that. Goldhawk requires your presence for a mission. Report to the conference room as soon as possible.”

 

James was silent for a moment before responding, “Understood madam,” he before the call terminated.

 

I suppose I was too late then… James thought as he put his cell phone back into his pocket.

 

“If you would, tell Ms. Vert that I intend to speak with her after I get back from a mission, please.”

 

“Of course. Though that falls on our leaders’ jurisdiction," Executive Ladon responded.

 

James nodded though he was confident that he could receive permission, provided the mission went well, “Thank you very much,” he said before turning around and walking away.

 

-----

 

As James approached the conference room he noticed the door was open.

 

“Pardon,” he started as he entered the room, “I was informed that I was to receive a mission from you, sir,” he added as he saw Goldhawk.

Edited September 1, 2014 by Claus Von Minun the 4th

[Konuju]

IC: Ellen
Ellen followed Dahlia over to where Zach and Olivia stood. They arrived just as Hannah let out another bloodcurdling scream. Ellen took one look at Amethyst's glowing eyes and realized what was happening.
 
"No, Olivia!" she cried, running up to the fiery redhead. "Please, stop this!" Tears started to run down her face as she grabbed Olivia by the shirt and begged her to call Amethyst off. "I don't care if she deserves it... enough people have suffered today."
 
IC: Dack
"Aspen, stop!" Dack shouted, holding out a hand to block the kid from aiming another kick. "I want to hear what she has to say." He turned his attention back to the executive he had pinned to the ground. "Revenge?" he pressed, still trying to fit all the pieces of the puzzle together. Behind him, Madison, Luke, and Palmer arrived. None of them knew who Hannah was, apart from being the culprit behind the attacks on Snowpoint and Sootopolis.

Hannah screamed again as Amethyst tightened her grip. "Don't act like you haven't had the same goal in mind, Majors," the Rocket Executive grimaced through clenched teeth, blood pouring out of the side of her mouth where Aspen had kicked her. "That time in Jubilife, when you ignored orders and chased down a single Liberty agent -- Adam, was it? -- which ended up costing us the entire mission. Ever since then, it's been clear to me that you hold a long and bitter grudge against that man, and would stop at nothing to exact your revenge."

"I remember Adam," Luke interjected. "He was the reason you first joined Team Rocket, right, Dack?"

"Yeah, but you're over that grudge now, aren't you?" Madison added, shooting an accusing glance at Dack. "Aren't you? He was nothing more than a childhood bully."

"Not helping, guys," Dack muttered under his breath.

Despite her pain, Hannah gave a sinister grin. "You and I, we're not all that different, Dack Majors. You see, I also have someone from my childhood I'd like to blot out of my life. My neighbor, Shannon. She was always one step ahead of me. Anything I could do, she could do better. I was sick and tired of always living in her shadow. One of the things that aggravated me the most was that she was always bragging about her parents being high-ranking Liberty agents, as if her parents' success somehow reflected her own. After she moved away, I thought she had left my life forever. Then Team Liberty ran a raid on my hometown. My friends and I spotted Shannon's parents among the ranks, commanding the attack on the city. After that, I had made my decision. I joined Team Rocket, followed every rule to a T, and quickly climbed in the ranks to where I am now: an executive."

"So this army you have," Dack said slowly. "You're planning to use it to attack Shannon's home?"

"And prove my worth in the process," the executive smirked. "I'll run my own raid on Celadon, hitting Shannon where she lives. Shannon thought she was oh, so great because her parents were powerful Liberty agents. But wait until she learns that I myself have become not just a Rocket agent, but a Rocket Executive! I'll finally have my revenge, for her parents' attack on my home, and for all those years of living in Shannon's shadow. I'll prove once and for all that I'm better than she ever was!"

"So why all the secrecy?" Dack asked. "If you have your own army now, why do you still hide in the shadows?"

"Because of the Ancient Darkrai!" Hannah spat blood, her face contorting in both anger and pain. "Or their demise, to be specific. When the Darkrai were defeated, The Shadow Admins and Liberty Leaders got together and formed a little peace treaty. That was just after I became an executive, and it threw a bit of a wrench in my plans. You see, I need the war if I'm to launch my attack. You can't send in an army during peacetime. And so I waited. And waited. For six long months, I waited as the peace dragged on and on. Eventually I decided to take matters into my own hands. So I sent the Heatran to Snowpoint, hoping you would think it was Team Liberty again. Hoping everyone would think it was Team Liberty ruthlessly making another attack on your poor hometown."

"And the Groudon?" Dack pressed. "Last I checked, Groudon doesn't belong to any factions. Did you really expect to frame Team Liberty for this, too?"

"Simple," Hannah smiled. "I dropped a message into the Rocket Database. A forged message, mind you, between two Liberty officials. When Team Rocket reads it, they'll believe that they intercepted Liberty's communications. And they'll believe that Team Liberty used Kyogre to enrage Groudon and cause him to attack Sootopolis. And then it'll be lights out for the ceasefire!"

Dack's mouth fell open. For a long moment, he could not find the words to describe the ludicrousness of Hannah's plan. "That's crazy," he finally said. "Do you really think they'll believe something like that?"

"Maybe not -- ow! -- at first," the executive said as Amethyst gave a particularly painful twist. "But once they hear of what happened in Sootopolis today, they'll have no choice but to end their treaty with Team Liberty. Who knows? If word gets out that Rocket Agent Dack Majors fought valiantly to defend the city from Team Liberty's cunning attack, you might even get a promotion."

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I've left Team Rocket behind me," Dack glared.

"Not officially," Hannah reminded him. "And luckily for you, I have the perfect opportunity for you to come back." The Rocket Executive lowered her voice, so that only Dack could hear her next words. "You haven't really given up on your revenge, have you? No, I can see it in your eyes: that burning desire to protect your friends. That's what motivates you, isn't it? Adam wasn't just a bully to you; he hurt your friends as well. Join me in Celadon, help me achieve my revenge, and I can help you exact your own. I'll even put in a good word for you to Sleight. Imagine how much better you could protect your friends and your hometown with the powers of an executive."

Dack paused, loosening his grip on Hannah's cloak. He had promised Madison that he was done with Team Rocket and his futile attempts at revenge. But if what Hannah claimed was true, he wouldn't be spending another three years biding his time, slowly letting his thirst for revenge build up inside him. He’d be spending about three months at most planning a single attack. Then Adam would be defeated, his revenge would be satiated, and he could go back to spending time with his friends.

But wait. The Snowpoint trainer glanced behind him, seeing the anxious faces of Madison and Luke. His two best friends were nothing close to being powerful, respected trainers, yet both had played an integral role in their ragtag group that had saved Snowpoint and followed Hannah's trail to Sootopolis. And then there was Aspen, standing angrily next to him. It seemed like the injured Eevee he held in his hands was the only thing keeping him from flying into a rage and beating Hannah into a pulp. As the ex-Rocket looked into Aspen's eyes, he saw a fury he knew all too well. But Aspen's sisters, and Ellen, and Zach: they all had a chance to back down when Dack had arrived. But they had refused, insisting on staying to fight to defend Sootopolis to the bitter end with every ounce of strength they possessed. If they could do that, could he do any less? Dack felt the familiar touch of Cresselia's mind against his own. The Lunar Pokémon conveyed no words, only emotion. The mental prodding held a small warning, reminding Dack of the selfish desire he'd had to save only Madison when all of Sinnoh had fallen to the Ancient Darkrai. But the Legendary Pokémon sent no accusations; she merely gave an overwhelming feeling of trust.

Dack lowered his gaze back to the Rocket Executive, his decision already made. "Destroying someone's home isn't a really good way to try and get them on your side," he growled, tightening his grip on Hannah's cloak. "I don't need your help. I don't need your schemes. I don't need to become an executive in order to protect those closest to me. I only need my friends, and my Pokémon, and the bond of trust we all share. We may come from similar backgrounds, Hannah, but we couldn't be more different."

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra, Nimbasa City

 

"Yeah, I think we can do that.", Evan said, "Mind telling me where you are, so Jenny and I can estimate when we'll have to depart?"

 

As Evan finished speaking, a thought came to mind. He started to type out another message on his Pokegear. He had to make sure Ray knew what happened at Route 4.

 

"Jenny and I encountered Gerald again in Route 4, after everything in Opelucid.

He's not really much of a threat anymore, but be on the lookout just in case.

I did force him to release most of the Pokemon he had. But again, do not take him lightly if you see him.

Thought you should know."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ray==-

 

"We're back at Four Island, s-" Ray said, as he got cut off by the beep of his Pokegear, and then checked it with an astonished look.

"Really?!" Ray said in shock, totally surprised at everything in that second message.

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra, Nimbasa City

 

"All right, see you tomorrow or even later today.", Evan said as he started to hand the Xtransciever to Jenny, "Keep in touch if anything else comes up, kay?"

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Roark==-

 

Roark seemed utterly surprised by the move, which slammed right back into the Cranidos, and sent it flying back into a wall.

"It's not over yet; Chip Away!" Roark called out, as the Cranidos slowly got to its feet, and then ran forward, attempting to make use of a hole in the Pikachu's defenses.

 

-==IC: Ray==-

 

Ray nodded, despite Evan still not being able to see him.

"Gotcha." Ray said, as he heard Jenny on the line then.

"So, uh, I guess I'll be seeing you later, then, little brother." Jenny said with a chuckle when she got back on the line, and Ray smiled.

"Yeah... And it's only in age!" Ray said, knowing that jokes were something Jenny probably would have wanted at that point.

"Suuuure, whatever you say, little brother..." Jenny laughed back, as she hung up, and Ray looked over to Sonja.

"So, long story short, Evan and Jenny will be heard later today, or tomorrow, so, yeah. He also sent some info..." Ray said, frowning slightly, especially about what he'd been told in the second message.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

Dahlia heard Hannah's cry of agony, and like Ellen, saw Amethyt's glowing eyes and put two and two together. Eyes widening with surprise, she looked back at her sister. N-No......

 

"Please...." Dahlia begged, after Ellen made her own plea. "Even though she's done this to Sootopolis.... It's not worth it to stoop near her level."

Olivia looked back at Ellen and Dahlia, who both wanted her to stop. That makes three people who don't want this.... But..... The redhead struggled with herself, not wanting to put her sister and new friend in distress, but also wishing to make the culprit pay.....

 

"....Fine. Am, let her go...." she decided with a sigh, the Gardevoir acknowledging that and releasing Hannah from her psychic grip. "But we've still got a few messages to send her.... First of all, tell her what she's done is unforgivable, but that this is her one chance of mercy.... If she tries to continue her plans, that mercy is gone..." Olivia said, her voice trembling slightly with anger. "Tell her the pain she just felt is only a fraction of the agony she deserves, and that if there's a next time, there won't be any holding back.... Next, tell her that everything in the conversation has been recorded, including her confession. And if she tries to follow through with her plans, I WILL leak everything out." she muttered, before looking down. "Lastly..."

Olivia quietly murmured in a tone no one around her could make out. "...Tell her I quit."

 

"Alright then." Amethyst said, her eyes glowing once more. Instead of grabbing Hannah's arms and forcing them behind her back though, she psychically transmitted Olivia's words into the head of the new executive. As she did that, the Gardevoir continued transmitting the conversation from the Cave of Origin's top to her trainer, both listening on with curiosity. Olivia then looked at Zach, and reached for his hand once more. His presence comforted her, and she began to breathe deeply, attempting to clear her head from being clouded with rage.

 

Aspen stood nearby as Dack stopped him, seething with pure rage and looking down at Hannah with hatred. When he heard about Dack coming from Rocket and his motivations for joining the team, the boy frowned and looked over at the supposedly ex-Rocket with a skeptical look. The motivations between Dack and Hannah were so close... Both were out for petty revenge against one person, and seemed to be willing to go to any lengths to achieve it. Was there anything that truly separated them...?

 

Hannah's plan also baffled Aspen. Who would go to such lengths, just to get back at a childhood bully....? he wondered, unsure of whether he could really trust Dack now as well. Both of them seemed to be highly intelligent... Intelligent enough to get what they wanted with enough time. The Seatons, Zach, Ellen, and the Snowpoint trainers stepping up to defend Sootopolis was likely just an unexpected wrench in the plan. Had they not been there..... 

 

".....I see." Aspen muttered, quickly adjusting his glasses which reflected enough light to obscure his eyes once more. "This is a fight between the two of you.... I guess I'll just finish things off with giving some advice." he said, clearing his throat, quickly coughing from the residual smoke. "Hannah, was it? I think you should step back from your delusions and pause your insane plan, and just think of what kind of person is willing to put countless lives in danger and restart the war to put countless more in danger, just to get some petty revenge on someone from your childhood...." he muttered, shaking his head slowly. "I'd say you should rethink your life, and try to get on track, put that ambition and passion somewhere that won't threaten to hurt people... Who knows? If you did that, you might become a better person than all of us..."

 

The trainer then scowled, and started speaking again darkly. "...But if you ignore my advice and try to go through with your plans... There will be people there to stop you. We know what you're planning, we could tell others. But if that fails... Then we've got friends." Aspen warned. "Of course, you don't care about that probably... Until I mention that one of them is particularly powerful. What happened today is small fry compared to what they've dealt with before... You're just lucky they're a nice person. That is... Unless you push them too far. Then you'll quickly come to regret everything you've done...."

"And you...." Aspen said, looking straight at Dack. "You'd better be as different as you say... If you change your mind and go down that path... You wont get any mercy either." he warned darkly, the Eevee in his arms coughing softly again. Looking down immediately, Aspen turned around and stroked its fur comfortingly. "It's alright now..." he whispered, sighing in relief as the Pokemon rolled off to sleep again. This tiny, tattered Eevee... It was a victim of Hannah's plan, one of thousands... Yet it reminded him that everyone suffering needed help, and just looking at the Eevee brought an overwhelming sense of compassion and love to the boy who burned with anger....

Edited September 1, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach opened his eyes, as he heard Dahlia and Ellen approach and make their own pleas. Zach looked over at Olivia's face, as he saw a lot of conflict on it, and felt bad for her. Zach also noticed the slight tremble in her voice, and so, when Olivia reached for his hand, he took it, and moved to hug her, as he tried to help her calm down more, as he thought that what she needed was a way to focus on something other than the situation at hand.

Why did this person want to do all this, though...? Zach wondered, as he had missed the memo. He wasn't about to ask Olivia, though; she was distressed enough as it was.

"We should like, have a vacation somewhere soon." Zach said with a hint of a giggle, trying to get the mood into a slightly less depressive and angry mood.

[Parugi]

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Courtyard:

 

"Gonna be honest," Sonja said. "I am legitimately surprised that that worked." 

 

IC - Kyle Eston/Esen Windred/Satomi - Lumiose City, Alleyway:

 

Kyle looked at Esen, half-expecting her to look back at him with the same, confused expression that he was now wearing. She instead stared at Satomi, her face betraying a clear sense of hesitation. It was not at all difficult to guess what it was that she did not want this older woman to discover, given the risk of her Gothitelle peering into her life--what might happen if it came to light just what connection Esen held to the Rocket-Liberty War. To Kyle's surprise, she eventually steeled herself, and with only the merest lift of her hand and the briefest of pauses, speaking up. 

 

"Yeah . . ," she said, clearly forcing herself to speak. "Yeah, I'm up for it."

 

Satomi nodded, and then looked at Kyle. "And you?"

 

"Uh . . . Sure," he said, aware of a growing sense of unease brewing in his stomach. He said nothing, however, merely watching as Gothitelle approached Esen. The Psychic-Type held up her hands, making eye contact with the girl, gazing intently into the sea of emotions that her eyes possessed. Esen stood very still, simply looking back, her body language slowly growing more at ease. After several moments, whatever had come over her seemed to pass, and she stepped back, staring at the Gothitelle apprehensively.

 

The Psychic-Type slowly stepped back from her, and then approached Kyle. She did much the same as before, holding her hands up around his face, locking eyes with him. The longer Kyle stared at those powerful orbs of energy, the more and more drowsy he felt. Around him, colors began to spin, Esen, Satomi, and Gothitelle fading from his sight. A sensation of lightness overcame him, as if he were suddenly floating in a vat of nothingness,

 

The world became a blur.

 

 

 

You lie on a beach.

 

Soft waves of manic divinity lap at your feet and hands.

 

The sun is a messy splotch of red in the sky, sinking into the horizon just beyond your sight.

 

You breathe in the smokey ocean air.

 

Your chest aches; torn and rattling, it rises and falls, ebbing and flowing with uncertain cadence. 

 

The sand is red, a smattering of ruby color that should not be.

 

Eyes like diamonds gaze upon you with murderous intent.

 

Soft red gives way to the endless black.

 

You fall.

 

 

 

Kyle blinked, feeling himself return to the world. A disturbed sensation had lain itself upon him, and he realized that he suddenly felt very cold, and very clammy. The large scar on his chest and back ached. The vision felt as if it had lasted an eternity; yet, according to his watch and Esen's expression, it could not have gone for more than a few moments, much like hers.

 

Satomi slowly opened her eyes, letting out a slow breath. "I see . . ." she said. "Thank you for that, my friends--these treks into the minds of others are always so . . . revealing, as confusing as they may be. Nevertheless . . ." She held up a hand, pointing back down two streets. "The nearest Pokémon Center is that way--you were right in thinking you had passed it by." She drew her jacket closer to her body, turning and gesturing for her Gothitelle to follow. "I wish you two luck in your travels. You're going to need it, I think . . ."

 

"Thanks, ma'am." The pair watched her go, waiting until they could neither see nor hear the departing woman before turning and heading in the direction she had pointed them. Briefly, Kyle glanced at Esen, trying to make sense of what he had been shown as well as wondering what she had seen. From her uncomfortable silence, it seemed that her vision lingered on her mind, as well.

 

He pushed the thought aside as they arrived in the Pokémon Center, the need for sleep now fully catching up to him.

 

In the distance, a mournful cry sounded.

 

IC - Goldhawk/Jayron Aaron - The Alamo, Conference Room: 

 

"Pleasure to meet you," Jayron said, giving Colette a curious look before settling into his seat. His Lucario took up a spot behind him.

 

Goldhawk waited until Jayron had gestured to him before responding. "No," he said. "As it happens, a third agent will be accompanying you and Executive Aaron. His name is James Arthur. I'll spare you the details of why he is being included--if he wishes to share that information with you, that's his business--but suffice it to say that this will serve as something of a refresher course in what it means to be a Team Liberty agent."

 

Hardly a moment later, the sound of footsteps could be heard from the hall, and soon after, a knock sounded at the door. It swung slowly open, granting entrance to a well-dressed man. “Pardon,” he started as he entered the room, “I was informed that I was to receive a mission from you, sir.”

 

"That's correct," Goldhawk said. "Blackskull should have sent you a message earlier today. Regardless, Colette Llyan here will be embarking on her induction mission soon. You and Executive Aaron will be accompanying her to--"

 

A sudden buzzing filled the air, cutting off Goldhawk's speech. It was followed almost immediately by a voice. Turning to the back of the room, the group was see the back wall transform into, essentially, a holographic screen, on which the face of Team Magma's leader appeared.

 

"Goldhawk!" Maxie cried. "Finally! We've been trying to get through to you for at least an hour!"

 

"Maxie?" Goldhawk said, surprised and confused. "What's going on?"

 

"Someone has launched an organized attack on Havoc," Maxie said. "They've set up barriers around the entire base--we can't get in or out of the facility. Whoever it is is using a large number of Beheeyem against us--every time we down one of them, two more of our soldiers are brainwashed into replacing them. The situation is deteriorating fast."

 

"Just hang on," Goldhawk said, rising from his seat and pulling out his Poké Gear. "We'll send reinforcements to help you out. In the meantime, see if you can't open up a few holes for us to slip through."

 

"We'll certainly try," Maxie said, expression turning disturbingly grim as his communication channel blacked out.

 

Goldhawk looked at the assembled group, rubbing his chin. "Executive Aaron," he said after a moment. "Can I trust you to take care of Colette's mission?" Jayron nodded. "Good. Arthur, come with me--you're being reassigned."

 

IC - Lidiya Vasilyev/Abbing/Styles - Havoc, Moving:

 

"It would take a powerful Psychic-Type to get in and out of here more than once or twice," Abbing said. "Probably something more than a base-stage Pokémon can offer."

 

"I wasn't asking for a confirmation on that barrier so that we could leave," Vasilyev pointed out, prompting a confused look from Abbing. "For all we know, Executive Travis is still in this facility. As well as that, our orders to eliminate Team Magma still stand, as much as we can given the current circumstances. Those are our objectives, in order. The way I see it, we don't have much of a choice until we can start taking out those Beheeyem, anyway." She shouldered her weapons. "So let's get a move on--the sooner we can get Travis and the others all gathered together again, the soon we get out of here."

 

Without waiting for a response, the Lieutenant moved forward. After a moment of hesitation, Abbing and Styles followed.

 

IC - Joker/Ethan Worth/Gavin Braner/Jamie Arthur/Lucia/Skye Hall - Abyss, Leaving:

 

The recuperation period following Team Zephyr's defeat had been . . . relatively short when the message came in. Roughly two days after the team had returned from Celadon City, one of Zephyr's own in tow, they each awoke in the late morning to discover a message on their Poké Gear. It was nothing extraordinary--rather simple, really--merely a short, single sentence that one could instantly understand given that they were in the loop, cryptic enough to go unnoticed for anyone out of the loop who might intercept it.

 

I've found her.

 

What followed next was little of particular note--simply a visit from a Joker-appointed Agent tasked with retrieving one of the four designated agents. From them, instructions were given, a meeting place assigned, and--in the case of Ethan--permission granted to bring along a protégé.

 

And so they went.

 

 

 

"Glad to see you're all still on-board for this little excursion."

 

It was not the warmest greeting, but from Joker, it might as well have been a celebratory feast. She stood in the hangar, the sole leader standing distinct from a group of twelve Rocket Agents--Joker's personal vanguard, from the looks of them. Joker's armor had been repaired from the damage that it had incurred in Goldenrod; all but one of her Poké Ball slots were filled, the last remaining as a solemn reminder of past losses.

 

The group was directed toward a cache of equipment--protective vests, healing items, any weapons that they felt comfortable carrying. Joker brushed her hair aside, nodding to the Celadon group before addressing the team as a whole. "Listen up, everyone," she said. "This is a simple mission: Search and subdue. Our target's name is Quincy Adams, a Ford Agent recently discovered to be responsible for the disappearance of the Rapidash late last year. We've spent quite a bit of time searching for this person, so she is our number one priority. Scans thus far have indicated general activity in Hoenn and Kanto, and more recently--what allowed us to finally pin her down--she participated in and perhaps facilitated a large-scale teleportation to Mt. Ember on One Island. We don't yet know what we're going to find there, but whatever it is, be sure to keep your eyes and ears open and be ready to fight back as the need arises." She looked around. "Any questions?"

 

When the assembled agents answered in the negative, she nodded. "Let's get going, then!" Once the smaller group of five agents had joined with the other twelve, Joker sent out her Alakazam. Others, too, sent out teleporting Pokémon--including Gavin, who released both Evris and Talsim--and on the count of three, initiated the transportation process.

 

 

 

They appeared in a large cooling facility--a strange contrast to what one might have expected from Mt. Ember. The fact that there was a facility here to begin with was not lost on Joker and the others, all of whom immediately readied themselves for an alarm to sound or attackers to emerge. None did, though it was several moments before this, too, became obvious.

 

"Hackett," Joker said to one of her Elites. "I thought we were following Adams's coordinates?"

 

"We did, ma'am," Hackett said, showing the Shadow Admin the computer he was holding. "It seems we hit a teleportation barrier in the process and were forced into the closest available space." He looked around. ". . . Wherever this is."

 

"I guess we'll find that out soon enough," Joker said. "Everyone, split into three groups of six. We'll spread out and sweep this place as quickly as we can. Take out any threats you come across and report back when possible on who or what we're up against." She looked at Ethan's group as the other twelve agents divided themselves. "You five are coming with me."

 

"Any particular reason, ma'am?" Ethan asked.

 

"Fate has a way of making people cross paths more than once," she said. "And four of you, at least, have had significant contact with Adams in the past." She looked ahead, beginning to walk. "If I'm going to find her, you're my best bet for doing so."

 

IC - Hannah Wright/??? - Sootopolis City:

 

For the briefest of moments, time itself seemed to freeze. Dack, Aspen, and Am's words seemed to cut through Hannah, at least in the sense that she did not immediately respond, instead taking a few seconds to process what she had just heard. Before long, however, the mask of uncertainty that had etched itself into her face warped, giving way to an expression closer to annoyance than anything else. In that moment, it seemed almost as if Hannah had become something else entirely, a mere figurine overtaken by an abominable force that reflected itself in a purplish hue momentarily present in her eyes--a force that simultaneously cleansed the bleeding and growing bruises from her face. At the same time, that force clamped down on the psychic link that connected Hannah to both Am and Olivia, lashing out with a fury so cold that it drove both the Gardevoir and her trainer to their knees.

 
Hannah shifted her gaze to Aspen. "I'd suggest you take a hard look at yourself, kid. You may color it in hues of righteousness and justice, but your violent actions are motivated by the same revenge that's spurred Dack and me." She laughed as she turned her attention back to the trainer at her neck. "You all think you're above me?" she said with a sneer. "We'll see about that." Lifting a leg, the Rocket Executive kicked Dack in the stomach, knocking him to the ground as he lost his grip on her cloak. Hannah stood up, grabbing a Poké Ball from her belt and opening it before anyone else could react. "That was a one-time offer, Dack Majors, and you'll come to regret your decision." She glared as her Gardevoir appeared at her side. "For the moment, I'd suggest you stay away from Celadon if you know what's good for you."

"Aurgh!" Dack grimaced, gripping his stomach as he tried to stand. Seeing what was about to happen, Teddy rushed toward Hannah, claws outstretched, growling a pint-sized battle cry. But the Teddiursa was just a moment too slow, and he landed empty-handed in the spot where Hannah and Gardevoir had vanished in a flash of light.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

Olivia breathed heavily when Zach hugged her, managing a nervous chuckle when he suggested a vacation, her thoughts still elsewhere. However, she cried out as the psychic link shattered and she stumbled down, Zach hopefully able to stop her from collapsing fully, as Amethyst had.

 

Aspen turned around in surprise when he heard his sister cry out, and looked in a mixture of confusion and horror to process what happened to Hannah. When she spoke directly at him, the trainer's blood chilled, but he immediately scowled and clenched his fist. Before he could react though, the executive teleported away in an instant, leaving Aspen to stare at where she had just been. .....No. I'm nothing like her... he thought with a scowl. I'm not trying to get back at some bully from childhood, and I'm definitely not a murderer....

 

Dahlia gasped when Olivia collapsed, rushing forward and looking up at Zach. "Is she okay?!" she cried out, just as Aspen landed next to everyone on the ground, jumping off of Jet and walking over to his siblings and Zach.

Edited September 2, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ray==-

 

"Well, yeah, though there admittedly wasn't too much, but it does explain the crypticness." Ray said, and then told her about what happened quietly, especially about both messages.

 

-==IC: Ryan==-

 

Ryan stood there with a blank expression, and then looked at the Lieutenant incredulously as she started to walk away.

There's no way she doesn't know this was a setup by now... There's no way that it couldn't be blatantly obvious... So why is 'destroy Magma' still an objective? Ryan thought, thinking it was pretty easy to tell that when the people apparently trying to help you and who likely started the mission suddenly turned on you, things weren't quite so peachy. However... He kept quiet, because he had no proof that's what happened, and he had to agree about the Natu, as that's what he was thinking too.

"Is she... always like this?" Ryan mumbled quietly to Abbing, just finding the attitude a bit out of place, considering what was going on; but also relieved that it wasn't total chaos.

 

-==IC: Lucia==-

 

Lucia was slightly worried. Not about the mission; with Joker around, combined with their own experience, she was worried entirely... But, this would be Skye's first real mission, and... Well, she wasn't absolutely certain if her team was ready. However, she'd never gotten a chance to actually bring up the concern with Ethan, and now was simply walking alongside the rest of the team, a frown on her face.

Let's hope that Skye really can handle herself... Lucia thought, not wanting to see the happy go lucky trainer get hurt because of being brought on a mission like this. Lucia would obviously worry about the others too, but... She knew they could handle themselves, as Lucia typically was the weakest link, until recently. But... She wasn't so sure of Skye's battle capabilities.

 

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach smiled when Olivia had chuckled nervously, but paused in alarm when she cried out. Unsure what happened, Zach quickly caught his friend, supporting her against himself, as he tried to look and see what had just happened. However, he noticed Amethyst collapsed on the ground nearby, and seemed even more confused.

"I-I'm not sure, she just..." Zach paused, and looked back to the collapsed Gardevoir, who was in a similar state. "Wait, she was giving commands to Am right before, right...?" Zach frowned, unsure what exactly happened, but wondering if they were linked up or something like that...

[Konuju]

OOC: Permission to take control of Jayron Aaron for this mission granted by Parugi.

 

IC: Zoe Llyan/Jayron Aaron
Jayron watched James and Goldhawk as they hurriedly left the conference room. Once the door shut, he turned his attention back to Colette. "Well that was unexpected," he said. The Liberty Executive leaned forward and folded his hands on the table, gathering his thoughts as he suddenly found himself thrust into Goldhawk's position of debriefing Colette for her first mission. "Earlier today, we picked up a distress signal coming from Seven Island. It was a very distorted signal, and our attempts to respond have only been met with static. I'm no expert in radio, but the Liberty Techs said it didn't seem like it was a weak signal, but that there was some sort of interference. Satellites and navigation systems also don't seem to be working around the island, so there's no way of knowing what's going on there."
 
Jayron grabbed a file and pulled out a map of Seven Island with a large circle covering the southern half of the mountainous island. "The techs were able to determine that the distress call came from somewhere around here, but they're not sure where exactly. That's where we come in. Radios and satellites aren't working, but you and I can still navigate through Aura. Our mission will be to travel to Seven Island and find out what's going on, and track down and help whoever sent the distress call."
 
Zoe chose that moment to speak up. "Um, Executive Aaron, sir...?"
 
"Call me Jayron," the executive said with a friendly smile.
 
"Sorry, Jaryon, sir.... well, with what's-his-name gone, you have an open slot in your three-person mission. Can I fill that spot?"
 
The Lucario behind Jayron turned its head to look at Zoe in surprise, then looked to his trainer to see what he would do.
 
It took Jayron a moment to realize that the younger Llyan was talking about James. "Hm," he said with a hint of a frown. "You're not an official Liberty agent yet, are you, Miss...?"
 
"Zoe." The beige-haired girl shrunk back in her seat. Although she had refused to dwell on it, she had been afraid that her not-yet-an-agent status might come up.
 
"Well, Miss Zoe, under normal circumstances, I wouldn't have a problem with letting a junior agent tag along on a small mission to gain a bit of first-hand experience, given permission from your instructor, of course. However, this is a rather unique mission. We don't know what's happening on Seven Island. Acting in Goldhawk's stead, I'm going to have to ask you to stay on Four Island."
 
Zoe gave a quick nod before lowering her head to hide her watering eyes. "I-I understand..." she said softly.
 
Jayron gave Zoe an apologetic smile, then turned back to Colette. "Because we don't know what's happening on Seven Island, it's too dangerous to teleport there," he said. "Besides, the radio interference could mess with the teleport. Instead we'll be taking a small boat to the island, docking at the west port. Oh, and I should also let you know that this mission is sort of like a final exam for you, Miss Colette. I will be writing a report based on your performance, which must be adequate enough for you to be officially inducted into Team Liberty. I know that Lucina has already graduated you from her training -- a very impressive report, by the way -- but Goldhawk wanted a Liberty-sanctioned review before you became an official agent."
 
Taking a deep breath, Jayron leaned back in his chair, eyeing Colette curiously. "That's pretty much it... do you have any questions?"

IC: Dack/Ellen
Dack punched the ground when he saw Hannah had gotten away, cursing himself for not being fast enough.

"Hannah..." Madison frowned, still trying to piece together what she had just seen. "She was your partner in Team Rocket, right?"

"Off and on," Dack replied, still holding his stomach where the Rocket Executive had kicked him. "I sort of abandoned her when I found out about the Snowpoint Avalanche. She repaid the favor when she abandoned me before I went to Sinnoh to try and save you. Needless to say, we haven't exactly been on the best of terms."

"So Celadon," Luke said, folding his arms. "It sounds like that's her next target. Are we going after her?"

"You bet," Dack growled. "I don't know when she plans to launch her attack, but I suspect she'll have to gather her army first... and probably heal her Pokémon as well." He looked down at the assorted trainers that had helped fight against the false Groudon, now gathered a few blocks away. "We could probably use their help, too."

As the Snowpoint trainers started to make their way down the cliff, Ellen looked worriedly from Amethyst to Olivia. "What just happened?" she asked. Before she could get an answer, Aspen landed, still cradling the Eevee in his arms. Ellen rushed over to him, an anxious look on her face. "Is the Eevee doing any better?" she asked.

Edited September 3, 2014 by Konuju

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

".....Nnnrgh...." moaned Olivia, who looked back at Zach, who had made sure to catch her. Blinking, Olivia shook her head in frustration. "I-I don't know... I was listening to the conversation going on while Am was relaying them to me... A-And then...." she muttered, unable to say anything else.

 

"...We were cut off." Amethyst finished, slowly getting up with a groan, looking gravely at everyone gathered. "I'm not sure what exactly it was, but it was a kind of malevolent force.... It clamped down on the psychic connection and severed it with imputiny...." the Gardevoir said, as bewildered as her trainer. "...Whatever the cause... I hope to never meet with the source face to face."

 

"H-Huh?" Aspen muttered, lost in thought as Ellen asked about the Eevee. "....I-It's doing alright, I mean, its still out and coughing.... And we still need to take care of that leg...." the boy muttered, just as the Eevee let out a soft moan, stirring slightly, though not waking up. Aspen paused, and panicked, quickly reaching for the empty Pokeball on his belt he kept for emergencies, while the Eevee was still struggling to wake up. But then the boy paused, unsure of whether catching the Eevee would help it any, or if he even could help...

 

"S-So....." Dahlia said meekly, trying to break through the tense atmosphere. "....N-Now what? I mean, we should probably find or wait for Kiri to come back...." she muttered, shifting her gaze towards Dack, Madison, and Luke. "But what about them.....?" she muttered, as they seemed to be fretting about what had just occurred....

Edited September 3, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[sonyaxe]

IC: Jake

 

"In that case, use Electro Ball!" Jake called to Pikachu. Without further ado, the Electric-type back flipped into the air, charging up a ball of pure electrical energy before firing it straight towards the charging Cranidos.

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

Colette winced slightly, as she felt Zoe's disappointment, and wasn't even utilizing her Aura powers to do so.

I'm sorry, but he has a point... Colette thought, as she knew that all Zoe wanted was to be able to be an agent, and even go with her. Colette wasn't totally certain about what she thought about this guy, but she had no questions. She was, on the other hand, a bit annoyed at the fact that they needed to go on a boat, but it was a rather obvious thing, since the place was surrounded by water.

"When do we leave?" Colette asked, getting straight to the point with a slight frown, accepting the rest of what Jayron had said. She half wondered if there would be enough time for her to rest a bit, but she hadn't had much for breakfast anyway, so there shouldn't be that much of a problem... And besides, this was a distress call, so obviously there'd be a rush, right?

 

-==IC: Zach==-

 

Zach frowned, not exactly liking the sound of what Olivia and Amethyst had described. When Dahlia spoke up, though, he followed her gaze, noticing the three standing around as if they were trying to decide what to do next, as he saw a distinct lack of the cloaked figure.

"Hmm... we should probably see what's up, I don't like the look of that person being gone..." Zach mumbled, but then turned his attention back to Olivia. "You okay, though?" Zach asked, as he looked at Olivia to make sure she was alright, as that was a rather sudden collapse, after all.

 

-==IC: Roark==-

 

Roark winced, as the Electro Ball slammed into the Cranidos after that. Try as the Cranidos might, when it stood up, it simply fell back to the ground, fainted from that ordeal. Roark sighed and recalled his Pokemon with a smile, and nodded to his challenger, as he walked forward, and held out a badge.

"Congratulations. Here is the Coal Badge, as proof that you beat me."

[Ehksidian]

IC: Arius

Arius watched the battle in near silence, taking mental notes of how everyone fought. As soon as JAcob finally defeated Cranidos, Arius started clapping.

"Nice job Jacob!" he yelled while clapping...maybe a bit too enthusiastically.

[Konuju]

OOC: Music for Colette and Zoe's moment.

IC: Zoe/Jayron
Jayron cracked a smile at Colette's forthright question. "I like the way you think," he chuckled. "We'll be leaving as soon as you're ready, Miss Llyan. But we don't really know what's happening on Seven Island, so we can't afford to waste any more time than we absolutely have to. It looks like you came to this meeting prepared for a mission, and I take it your Pokémon are already fighting-fit."
 
"It's not fair," Zoe said, her eyes still hidden in the shadows of her beige-colored hair.
 
Jayron's smile faltered as he turned toward the younger Llyan. "I'm sorry, Zoe, but--"
 
"It's not fair!" Zoe cried, glaring right at Jayron through the tears in her eyes. "Collie just came home, we've barely spent a day together, and already you're... y-you're..." The girl threw her arms around her sister and sobbed into her shoulder, her next words sounding muffled. "You're taking her away..."
 
The executive was taken aback by the sudden outburst. He really didn't know what to say. He sat in silence for a moment, struggling to find the right words.
 
It was his Lucario who broke the silence, stepping away from the wall as he extended his telepathy to the distraught young girl. You are not yet ready for this task, Zoe. As much as you wish to be with your sister, understand that this could be a dangerous mission, and Colette cannot afford to be worrying about you. Remain here. Be diligent in your training. Your studies are different from your sister's, but you should put forth no less effort in them. Your time will come.
 
"Well, said." Jayron nodded. "We'll give you two some time alone -- Lucario and I will be making the final preparations for our boat. Meet us by the northern docks when you're ready, Miss Llyan." The Aura Wielder gave another small nod before heading out of the conference room. His Lucario gave one final look at the two sisters and followed suit. As soon as the door shut, Jayron gave a heavy sigh. He had never thought the job of being an executive could be so hard.
 
The gentle click as the door closed broke the remaining dam. Zoe bawled even harder into her sister's shoulder, refusing to let go of her tight embrace. "P-please don't leave me, C-Collie!" she managed through her tears. "Don't l-leave me again... You just got back Collie, please don't go! C-collie...." At that point Zoe lost the ability to form decipherable words. She could only cry, her shoulders heaving with every sob, as burning tears streamed down her face.
 
IC: Ellen
Ellen sighed, glad to know that the Eevee wasn't suffering too bad. "We need to get her to a Pokémon Center," she said. As she gently stroked the Eevee's fur, Ellen glanced over to where the easily recognizable red-roofed building stood. Hundreds of survivors crowded around the Sootopolis Pokémon Center, seeking what medical treatment the Center could offer. "On second thought," Ellen muttered. "Maybe she needs more immediate attention."
 
She dug in her pack for some berries, only to remember that they had all fallen out when she had gone over the waterfall near Fortree. The only berry she had left was the Tamato Berry that the Berry Lady had given her, which would be useless for the injured Eevee. Ellen looked back up to see that Aspen was holding an empty Pokéball.
 
"Good idea," Ellen said. "When I found Chrono battered and bruised on the side of the road, I put him in a Pokéball to keep him safe. It might not do anything to heal the Eevee, but you can at least protect her from further harm."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Colette==-

 

Colette seemed utterly surprised by Zoe's reaction, and the sheer sadness emanating from her younger sister, but she understood, and after a second or two of shock, wrapped her arms around Zoe, and smiled sadly, as she looked down, unsure what to say, as she caught sight of the two lockets, and then smiled a little more.

"Zoe... It's okay..." Colette said warmly, as she tried to gently move Zoe's chin up so that they could see each other. "We're never very far apart, after all, right?" Colette said, as she pulled out her locket to show the younger sister. "Always close by... No matter what." Colette said, as she sighed. "I know what you mean... This is a rather abrupt thing too, but..." Colette frowned slightly, as she wasn't sure what else to say, since she had her own doubts. However, she smiled reassuringly.

"But I'm needed... And this is me we're talking about; I'll be back before you know it, right?" Colette said, and then hugged her sister back. "This time, it won't ever be a year. I'll never let that happen again... Promise." Colette tried to keep herself calm; but the truth was, she wasn't sure if she was ready. She wasn't sure if she could handle herself, not after the night before, and especially not now. It was taking effort to keep a brave face, but she did so, especially for Zoe's sake. Ready or not, she was needed now, and it was something she'd been training effectively her whole life for. There was no backing down now, and Colette figured that deep down both of them knew that, no matter how sad it was that they had to part already.

"Just remember... There's no breaking a sister's bond... Not really." Colette said with anther reassuring smile, hoping that Zoe would be okay with this.

[JiMing]

IC: The Seatons

 

Olivia weakly lifted her head, breathing deeply for hopefully the last time.

"Y-Yeah.... I should be...." she groaned, tentatively testing a foot, before nodding to Zach, hoping he would still support her just in case.

 

Aspen's eyes widened in surprise, looking down at the Eevee in his arms. He stared silently for a second, marveling at Ellen's good eye.

"So she's a girl....?" Aspen muttered quietly, continuing to look down at at stroke the Eevee softly. He realizrd if he was to keep her safe for now, he needed a name for her...... But what? Aspen wracked his head, never one to be good at coming up with names.

The Eevee stirred once more, struggling to open her eyes. Aspen quickly snatched the Pokeball in his hand, and tapped it on the Eevee's forehead.

"How about..... Saya?" Aspen whispered, just as the Pokeball clicked.

 

IC: Ruth Fishers

 

Upon the Cranidos' defeat, Ruth clapped much more moderately than Jake, giving over a congratulatory smile.

"Nice job!" she said honestly. "I can tell everyone gave it their all....."

The girl looked around awkwardly for a moment, before looking over at Jake and Arius in turn. "So..... Didn't we say I'd go next or something?"

Edited September 5, 2014 by Phoenix Zero

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC: (James)

 

As James followed Goldhawk, he pulled out his cell phone and called back to his office. He did not expect anyone to pick up but he knew at least one of the three Pokémon that were in the office would have been awake and hear the message... unless Goldhawk had evicted him from the office, since he left the place earlier that morning. The message he left was short, merely asking for whomever heard the message was to gather the other members of his team, and where he was currently heading.

 

I shall hope that whoever heard that message can find the rest in time... and that the rest shall go with them... and with me.

 

IC: (Jamie)

 

Jamie unfortunately did not notice her companion's worry, as she was currently inspecting the Pokeball over her team's sixth member, a source of both comfort and worry at the moment. Tristan on the other hand seemed to pick up on it, perhaps due to Psychic advantage.

 

The best part of having a healer join us in the midst of a battle, is that even the weakest links are bolstered by the strength of the healer, the Metagross told her, in Psychic fashion.

[Ehksidian]

IC: Arius

"Uh, I guess so...but wouldn't it be a bit unfair? I'd think he needs to let his Pokemon recover a bit before battling him again." Arius shrugged. "Really, it's up to Roark if he wants to battle again."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Roark==-

 

"I'm up for it." Roark said with a nod, as he quickly began to heal his Pokemon while they were discussing who was going to be fighting next. Roark was very intrigued to see who would fight next, but was planning on using this team for everyone, since no-one seemed to have the requirements for his other teams.

 

-==IC: Lucia==-

 

Lucia was surprised by the sudden contact in her mind, but nodded, though a look on her face showed that she still wasn't entirely sure.

"True... Let's hope that works out, then..." Lucia responded, figuring that Tristan was still listening, as she hoped that was how things would go; though her loss the other day had still increased her worries slightly, despite the win afterward.

[Konuju]

OOC: "Will We Ever Meet Again?"

IC: Zoe
Zoe sniffled, wiping her tears on her sleeve. "Y-you're right," she said, returning her sister's smile. "I just wish you didn't have to leave again so soon..." She instinctively reached for her own locket and began twirling it between her fingers. Though she couldn't stop her tears, she softly recited the poem Collie had told her long ago.
 
"Though oceans and regions may keep us apart,
I'll always be with you, right next to your heart.
 
This locket's a symbol, that even when shut,
I'm always close by... no matter what.
 
On your cheek I plant a kiss, and in your hair, a lily.
Know that there's no breaking a sister's bond... not really."
 
Zoe embraced Colette once more. "Thank you, Collie," she said. "Just promise me one thing: that you'll hurry back home."

IC: Dack/Ellen

"Saya..." Ellen repeated, a smile forming on her lips. "I like it."

 

At that moment, Dack, Madison, and Luke arrived back to where the others were. "The culprit was Hannah, someone I knew from Team Rocket," Dack said. "She used her Ditto to create the Groudon we fought. She's headed for Celadon now for another attack... there's no telling when she'll get there. If any of you want to help stop her, you're welcome to join us."

Madison went over to Aspen and Ellen, placing a hand on the young girl's shoulder. "You were both very brave going up against that Groudon," she said with a weary smile. "Even if it did turn out to be a Ditto in disguise. We could probably use people like you in Celadon."

Ellen started to respond, but paused. She had been gone from Fortree for a few days now. She didn't know when Ryan was planning on returning from The Alamo, but since she had no Pokégear or Xtransceiver, if Ryan had gotten back he'd probably be worried sick at her disappearance. Ellen shook her head sadly. "I'd love to help in any way I can, but I really should be heading back to Fortree. Actually..." Her eyes brightened. "I might be able to find a way to help. My friend in Fortree is a powerful trainer. I'll let him know what's happening and see if we can meet you there."

"Sounds like a plan," Dack nodded. He turned to the rest of the group. "What about the rest of you? Anyone have any teleporters? It would be a good idea to heal our Pokémon, but the Sootopolis Pokémon Center seems to have their hands full right now." He pointed off in the distance, where hundreds of injured or concerned people gathered around the red-roofed building. "I'm thinking we could teleport directly to the Celadon Pokémon Center and plan our strategy from there."