Parugi

Behind the Scenes: Unova Arc Edition. Bonus:

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, R&D Training Facility: Sonja nodded to Ryan. Whatever had happened, at least they had some sort of a time frame for it--from when they left the Alamo to go to Opelucid and now. That left hardly a day or two in which the incident had occurred. Considering that she hadn't seen Vert at the dance, she briefly considered the notion that the attack could have happened during it, though pushed this thought aside when she realized that the Executive of Research likely wasn't the kind of person to attend dances to begin with. "To the auditorium, then," Sonja said, following after Ryan. "Even if she's not there, then Goldhawk will be--as we've already established. So we'll get answers one way or another." IC - Goldhawk/Blackskull/Silvermind/Joker/Ethan Worth/Gavin Braner/Skye Hall/Jamie Arthur/Lucia Zyther/James Arthur/Cyan Vero/Roderick Krane/Drake Masters/Zack Furler/Ryan Hikari - The Alamo, Command Center: "I'll take care of that," Blackskull assured James. He nudged Silvermind's elbow, gesturing to the rest of the assembled Liberty Agents. "Mind dispersing the rest of these guys and gals? Doesn't sound like their services will be needed after all." If he meant it in jest, the words felt somber and tired, a dull sensation that only pressed harder as he stepped away from the group to radio in as many healing Pokémon as could be afforded from the Alamo's Pokémon Centers. For a moment, Silvermind did not move, merely watching the Dark-Type specialist. Then she sighed, and turned to the Liberty Agents who had responded to Goldhawk's call. Many of them had jumped up at the sight of James's group's return, as well as the sight of Joker and the other Rockets. Now they looked around at each other, at their leaders and allies, with justifiably stunned expressions as they processed what they had just heard. "You're all dismissed," she announced, surprised to find her own voice stalling with the words. "If you can help with damage recovery, then please do." With quiet murmurs, the group began to thin. Only a few remained behind, sending out a total of four Pokémon possessing various healing moves. These eased their way through the crowd, providing preliminary healing for the most injured of those who had fought against the Hojohsin Agents. Goldhawk leaned forward in his seat, eyes closed and a hand pressed to his forehead. He took a deep breath, opened his eyes and lifting his head so that it was his mouth that was covered by his hand. "So Ford's officially back," he said. "And he's playing for keeps now." The Liberty Leader sighed. "And here I had thought that Castelia might've been the end of it . . ." "No one should have to tell you how foolish that sounds, Aleivy," Joker said. Silvermind took an agitated step forward, stopping only when Goldhawk raised a hand again. "What would have ever given you that idea?" "Ford's activity since then, as far as we've been able to tell, has been minimal, if not non-existent," Blackskull said, returning from his call. "Though considering President Pierce seems to be a puppet of his, it seems we can add a lot more to our list of things he's been doing. But as far as typical Ford affairs have gone, there hasn't been a lot--no bombings since then, no small-scale attacks, threatening messages or ominous computer hackings . . ." Joker furrowed her brow. Behind her, Ethan and Gavin exchanged looks with Lucia and Jamie. "Then it might interest you to know that Team Rocket has been involved in stopping, or else attempts to stop, several outings since the incident in Castelia, all led by Quincy Adams," she said, more than a hint of condescension in her tone. "I suggest you do your homework more thoroughly from now on." "And I suppose this was just another one of those involvements?" Silvermind asked. "Strange coincidence, I'd say." "Adams tried to kill me in Goldenrod, Ashera, and if this McKinley character had not arrived when he did, I can guarantee that she would have had neither the freedom nor the opportunity to pull any further plays like that," Joker said flatly. "Add that to your list--the incident in Goldenrod? Adams's doing." She paused, looking away. "Primarily." "So you're tracking Adams," Goldhawk said. Joker nodded. "If she can cause this much damage alone, then it would seem logical that Pierce could do the same. Perhaps more, since he's gone so long without being checked." He sighed. "I suppose that's Team Liberty's job to handle, then." This prompted surprise looks from Blackskull, Silvermind, and Joker. "And how do you propose going about that?" the Shadow Admin asked. "I don't know yet," Goldhawk said. "But we'll figure something out." "Hm." Joker adjusted her bangs. "Well, knowing what we know, Team Rocket has more than enough reason to help, if you need it. Have Bounty shoot us a call." Both sides fell silent for several moments. During this time, the Liberty Chanseys arrived, accompanied by several medics. They set about gathering the injured Pokémon in the room, as well as the unconscious Team Magma agents. As one approached Ryan, he briefly paused, as if recognizing him, but pushed this aside so as to tend to his injured Pokémon. As they brought them into the hallway to be healed, Goldhawk looked at James. "You said McKinley had a kid with him?" "McKinley called him 'Calvin Truman'," Joker cut in. "Just another code name. His real name is Levi." "How do you know that?" Ethan asked. Joker turned, shooting daggers at him. "All due respect, ma'am, I'm all for saving a kid from the terrorists, but I'd personally like to know why they have him to begin with, and the fact that you know each other . . . I mean, it can't just be that, can it?" "That's not important to you," the Shadow Admin said. "We're acquainted. McKinley having him is not a good thing. If you run into them, try to get him back. That's all you need to know." "What a handy way of not actually answering the question," Drake muttered. Joker sighed in aggravation, pinching the bridge of her nose. After a moment, she turned to the Liberty Leaders. "Look," she said. "I'll send you an explanation. Or you can ask Bounty. You can do with it what you wish, but until you get it, you won't understand. In the meantime, my group needs to keep moving, so if you'll allow us to wait outside until our Pokémon are healed, it would be very appreciated." "Right that way," Goldhawk said, gesturing to the east door. Joker nodded her thanks, and gesturing to the Rocket Agents to follow, headed out. After watching her for a moment, Goldhawk shifted his gaze back to James and the other three Liberty Agents. "You three are excused," he said to Cero, Zack, and Drake, who departed after a few moments. To James, he nodded. "I can't say I'm pleased to hear that Maxie is dead, but after an encounter like that, I can't question your loyalty anymore, now can I? Consider yourself off of probation." He pushed himself up from his seat. "So, what do you make of this situation with Pierce?" IC - Joker/Ethan Worth/Gavin Braner/Skye Hall - The Alamo, Hallway: Joker waited until they were out of earshot of any nearby Liberty Agents before addressing her own. "I don't appreciate being disrespected like that in front of Liberty personnel, Worth," she said sharply. "But I do agree that if nothing else, you've earned a bit of honesty." "I apologize, and thank you, ma'am," Ethan said. "So what's the deal, then?" Joker stopped walking and took a breath. She turned around to face them. "'Calvin Truman', as McKinley called him, is Levi Alaric," she said. "Sleight's son. If he hadn't said anything, I likely wouldn't have known--the entire family is a total dead spot when it comes to telepathy--but I never forget a voice, and that boy only vanished a few months ago. If you've been to Chapel recently, then you know that things have been . . . chaotic. And that's the reason--Sleight's been searching up and down all across Kanto looking for him." "That's so sad," Skye said, her soft voice hardly audible as she breathed the words. "Why would these people want a little kid like him, though?" "That's the question of the century," Joker said. "Team Rocket's been dealing with Ford for a long time, so I can't say I'm too surprised by this. But every time this kind of thing happens, it changes the board. Like you can never truly understand what it is that he is looking for, what kind of power he's trying to use for whatever goals he's aiming to meet." Gavin nodded. "Sounds like Team Liberty," he said, though did not elaborate, nor did he seem to notice the questioning gaze that Joker gave him. "Either way, I'm sure Sleight would like to know about a lead like this, right?"

More BTS stuff...

Non-faction specific, mm... Can't say I know of anything right now outside of the Alamos plot or possibly what's going down in Celadon, but you'd have to talk to JiMing, Ehks, or Sonyaxe about the former and Konuju, Blade, or JiMing for the latter. Mangs and I are also working through a plot in Kalos, so that's a possibility, but I'd be cautious with it since it's going a bit slow. X3 Continuing BTS stuff...

More behind-the-scenes PM stuff from like, forever ago: Parugi/Umbra of Doom conversation regarding the proposal for Dara Trina and her group:

IC - Esen Windred/??? - Lumiose City, Streets: Nidoqueen slouched forward, eyes locked squarely on Krow as she gathered electrical energy around her body. The Honchkrow hovered in the air, eyes narrowed and body ready to react to the coming attack. With a growl and then a roar, the Drill Pokémon straightened up, unleashing a storm of lightning at the Flying-Type. Krow responded with a caw and a forward thrust of his wings, summoning a mirror-like shield around him. Upon striking this, the Thunderbolt rebounded, deflected back at Nidoqueen. Though the attack itself had no effect on her owing to the species' Ground-Typing, the flash from the lightning temporarily blinded her. Nidoqueen covered her eyes, and after lowering her arms, squinted to see through the bright spots swimming in her vision. From amidst the sea of swirling nonsense, she was able to make out the approaching form of Krow. She stepped and turned, locking eyes with the Big Boss Pokémon for a moment as he passed. Spinning around to face him, she thrust her head forward, launching a Sludge Bomb attack at Krow's retreating form. The Honchkrow rolled sideways in the air, narrowly avoiding the poisonous substance. He tilted upward, adjusting his course to turn around for another attack. "Nidoqueen, Protect!" the woman called. The Drill Pokémon spread her arms out, summoning forth a green shield. Through its shimmering surface, she watched Krow's approach, fully prepared to retaliate against the stunned Flying-Type once he crashed into the field. This plan did not come to fruition, however: With a whistle from Esen, Krow banked to the left, barely skimming the Protect. As he shield dissipated, he charged from the back, slamming into the now-defenseless Nidoqueen with a Wing Attack. The impact knocked her forward, allowing him to come in at a different angle again and again. As he approached from the front again, ready to finish the fight, the injured Nidoqueen threw her hands up, catching Krow's legs. The two struggled against each other for several moments, before Nidoqueen's superior strength began to show itself, allowing her to pull the Honchkrow in for a flip above her head. Esen frowned, rapidly considering her options, but had no time to give an order before the situation changed. Krow's claws suddenly began to glow with the energy of a Foul Play attack, allowing him to siphon Nidoqueen's own power and use it against her. Just as she began to attack, he managed to push forward, thrusting his talons against her head and knocking her down and out. With a turn of his head and a scoff, he flew back to his trainer. The other woman recalled her fainted Pokémon. "Nidoqueen is unable to battle," the referee called. "Round three goes to Esen and Honchkrow!" Esen's opponent looked at him. "Please select your next Pokémon." "Nidoqueen was the last Pokémon I had," she said. "So I guess I lose." The referee nodded. "Then that's the match! Esen is the victor!" The crowd broke into applause. Esen glanced around at the gathered people for a moment, betraying her discomfort towards them once again. Luckily, she had something of a distraction in the form of what she had observed during the battle. She looked back at her opponent, who likewise seemed to be ignoring the crowd in favor of sizing up Esen. Three Pokémon down--her entire team--and I didn't lose a single one, Esen mused. How hard was she actually trying to win? Recalling Krow, Esen turned and descended the steps from her platform, ignoring a call from the referee regarding the participation prize. As she turned to head in Kyle's direction, she noticed the other woman continuing to watch her. Just as she began to disappear into the crowd, a sudden jolt seemed to jump through the woman, prompting her to throw a harried wave in Esen's direction before she turned around to descend from her own platform. Esen's last view was her disappearing into the crowd, seeming to be trying to cut her way through it as quickly as possible. Huh . . . Esen shook her head, turning around and continuing on her way. OOC: Krow: Wing Attack > Foul Play IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, R&D Training Facility: "I would think if this thing was still a threat, Goldhawk and the others would've let us know," Sonja agreed. "Doesn't mean this isn't a cause for concern, though . . ." She stopped in front of the left-hand throne. It was significantly larger than the other, which itself appeared to have been partially eaten away on one side. Sonja rested on hand on the throne, the cold metal surface conflicting with the warmth of her palm. "It's so weird--why thrones? And how did they even get here?" She looked to the other side of the room. A twisted mass of metal and broken glass, barely maintaining its original rectangular shape, lay on the floor across from the thrones--evidently what had been the observation deck. Spots of blood dotted the metal tiles near one of the windows, a short trail leading to a larger pool that appeared to mark one end of the battlefield. Of everything that she had seen, this was perhaps the strangest; for what sort of power could have caused such a structure to collapse a full story like that? "There's not much else to get from here, I would think," she said. "So maybe we ought to try and find Executive Vert."

IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: "Nice work, buddy!" Kyle called, voice overlapping with the referee's as he announced the victory. A moment later, Cero had sent out his third Pokémon, a Lillipup who almost immediately launched into an attack--with great success. Electricity coursed through Kovian's body as Viajero latched onto his arm. Amidst his confusion, the Dewott somehow managed to shake the Normal-Type off, though not before paralysis had taken a solid hold over his body. Head still spinning, he fell down, legs locking as he attempted to push himself back onto his feet. It was already clear that this wouldn't go over well. Kyle raised the Dewott's Poké Ball. "Kovian, return!" he said. Once the Water-Type had vanished into the sphere, the Liberty Agent pulled out another one and tossed it forward. "Go, Sanshou!" The Mienfoo emerged onto the field, immediately shifting into a combat pose as she sized up her opponent. Without breaking eye contact with the Normal-Type, she craned her neck and lightly stretched her arms and legs, readying herself for the fight. "Sanshou, let's start out with a Force Palm!" The Fighting-Type nodded. She ran forward, lean body almost parallel with the ground. Focusing energy into the palm of her hand, she flipped forward, aiming to slam the attack down on Viajero . . . IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, R&D Department: There wasn't much to see within the department's main lobby--it looked just as bad on the inside as it did from the outside. So instead of lingering, Sonja approached the stairwell leading to the training center, Ryan and Ray in tow, all the while remaining silent as she observed her surroundings. Within the training center, she discovered the thrones, just as Ryan had described. She wasn't sure what to make of them. The sight was indeed eerie, but somehow they seemed bereft of the power she had assumed they would hold. Even entering the training room and approaching them felt much different than what she had expected. And it wasn't a natural voidness of sensation, it seemed. At least to her, the very room itself felt . . . drained, somehow. "What do you make of this?" she asked the others, looking around even as she walked a wide circle around the two metal seats, trying to indicate just what it was that she was talking about. IC - Quincy Adams/Ryan Hikari/Joker/Ethan Worth/Gavin Braner/Skye Hall/Jamie Arthur/Lucia/James Arthur/Cyan Vero/Roderick Krane/Drake Masters/Zack Furler - Havoc: Joker shifted her gaze between James and Adam at the former's request, her expression cold and calculative regardless of where it fell. Finally, she settled on the Liberty Agent. "I'll help you find anyone left alive here," she said, producing a second Poké Ball. "But in exchange, you're going to let me take Adams into my custody." "We can't agree to that," Cyan said. "Team Magma was the main victim here, and they're a direct ally of Team Liberty, not Team Rocket. We're responsible for handling this murderer." "How do you plan to do that?" Joker asked. "Can you prove anything about her involvement here? As far as the outside world knows, this was a Team Energon attack gone wrong, not a Hojohsin League attack--the bodies can certainly prove that, should any survive the base's destruction. And if they don't, you have no proof. I, however, can prove that she was directly involved in an attack my both my life and on a city within my jurisdiction, on top of having eyewitnesses who can attest to her involvement on a certain train hijacking that took place seven or so months ago. You hand her to me, and I will guarantee that she receives her just reward--for both this, and other transgressions." Cyan looked as if he wanted to say something, but after a moment of contemplation, he could only nod, knowing that Joker was right. Glancing back at him, she released her Hypno from its Poké Ball, directing it and Seer to assist the other Psychic-Types in their endeavor. The sight of the Hypnosis Pokémon sent unnoticed shivers down Gavin's spine as he recalled his last interaction with the species. Nonetheless, he moved forward and, without a word, released Evris, giving the Claydol similar instructions. There appear to be six living beings within our combined range, all Team Magma, Seer reported after several moments. Even pushing our limits . . . They seem to have done a very thorough job of clearing out this facility, particularly their Energon pawns. "Work on teleporting them here, then," Cyan said. "There's no sense in leaving them." Wasting no further time, the group turned back to Adams. Joker pointed a metal-clad finger at her. "Now," she said. "Quincy Adams, you are hereby under arrest by the region of Johto. Return your Pokémon to their transports and we can resolve this peacefully. Otherwise, the use of force will resume." "Don't make this any harder for yourself, Quincy," Ethan said. "You said it yourself, you can't do anything else here." Adams glanced at her team, seeming halfway between resisting and complying. Finally, with a defeated sigh, she reached down to her belt to retrieve her Poké Balls. "Are you giving up so easily, Third Child?" an echo of a voice called out, seeming to reverberate around the group. "Ford wouldn't appreciate that, would he?" Adams gasped in surprise, eyes widening as a portal opened beside her. From it emerged a yellow-eyed young man with a black bandanna adorned with a white skull. Golden blond hair cascaded down his back, barely visible in the front through the dark fabric on his head. A small smile stretched one corner of his virtually flawless face, a smugly amused expression that conveyed all the same emotion as the condescending tone of his voice. A scarred Wobbufet, much taller than the norm, accompanied him. "After all, you're no use to us in prison," he said, crossing his arms as the portal closed behind him. "Or dead, as is likely to be the case if she gets her hands on you." "And just who are you?" Joker demanded, clenching her fists threateningly. Behind her, Ethan and Gavin both pulled extra Poké Balls from their belts. "Tyler McKinley, Fourth Child," the man said. "I would go so far as to pretend like I was someone else, but I'm afraid I'm a bit short on time." "Yeah, you are," Adams said. "What are you doing here?" She seemed genuinely surprised by his appearance. "Rescuing you, of course," McKinley said. "Isn't that what siblings do for each other?" His smile cracked, becoming even wider as he turned to look at his Pokémon. "And, of course, I just had to bring our newest recruit along for the task, as well. Say 'Hello', Calvin." He hadn't been visible from the get-go owing to Wobbufet's presence, but seeing him now sent a ripple of shock through the crowd of Hojohsin's opponents. Timidly, a young, masked boy peered out from behind the Psychic-Type. Black hair swept across the white forehead of his mask, behind which stared bright, terrified eyes. He wore a similar outfit to the one possessed by McKinley, though where the man's gloves were golden, the boy's were a light, forest green. He scanned the crowd for a moment, and upon seeing Joker, made as if to move forward, though was stopped as McKinley placed a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Cal, I said to say 'Hello', not to attack," he said. "I swear we've talked about this, Eighth . . ." McKinley sighed, shaking his head. "Why would you bring him here!?" Adams said sharply, slapping a hand to her forehead. "How much time is left on the countdown?" "I'd say about seven minutes. Maybe ten," McKinley said, smile never faltering. "But, look--that's why." He referred to Joker's slightly raised arm, a signal to her allies not to attack for fear of accidentally catching Truman in the cross-fire. It was clear even without the casual dialogue between the two Hojohsin Agents that the boy was not there of his own free will. McKinley chuckled. "I swear, kids are like free passes when it comes to this kind of thing: Bring one along, and no one can hurt you . . ." He glanced at Joker. "Must be that parental instinct, eh? Tell me, Joker, how're Sam and Will doing?" The Shadow Admin clenched her fist. "If you think this is some sort of game--" "Leave it," McKinley interrupted. "I have reasons for being here, as I've said already. First and foremost being Adams--but since it was also brought up, yes, I'm afraid it's true: Pierce is ours, as well." He chuckled. "Not that that matters--I'd wager we won't be needing the benefits of that position for much longer." The base rumbled violently around them, throwing Calvin Truman off-balance and nearly succeeding with the rest of the assembled, sans McKinley. The Fourth Child caught the Eighth, pulling him back to his feet. "Welp, I would think that's our sign to leave. Wouldn't you agree, Adams?" As Adams withdrew her Pokémon and made to move next to McKinley, Cyan managed to regain his balance. "You're not taking either of them," he snapped. "She needs to pay for her crimes, and the kid . . ." He couldn't put the anger he felt at the sight of the helpless boy into words. McKinley laughed. "You couldn't stop me if you tried," he replied. He smiled, walking backwards amidst another rumble of the building as a portal opened up behind him. Adams moved past him, disappearing into its depths with only a final, solemn look at the group. The Fourth Child pulled the Eighth with him, though the boy visibly struggled as he continued to stare desperately at Joker. As the shadowy fingers of the portal reached him, he finally snapped out of his trance, finding the strength to suddenly push against McKinley's hold and stumble forward a step before being grabbed again. "Mrs. Moreno!" he yelled. "H-Help--Don't let him--!" Joker's face paled as she recognized the voice. "Levi?" McKinley's smile flickered, though it quickly reappeared as he placed a hand over the blank space of the mask that covered the boy's mouth, other arm circling his midsection. Both vanished into the darkness of the portal, followed by the Wobbufet. It closed a second later, just before a psychic pulse could sweep through it. Joker stomped a foot against the ground, uttering a sharp curse. "I cannot believe it," she muttered. "I can't believe that just happened . . ." The ground shook again. She looked to her group. "We need to get out of here." "What about the Magma survivors?" Ethan asked. "And that boy--'Levi'? Do you--?" "I'll explain later," Joker said, with such conviction that even the Liberty Agents did not question her. "Seer, grab the survivors and let's go, but do it quickly--we don't have much time." The Alakazam nodded. Communicating silently with the other Psychic-Types, they reached out, creating a teleportation field around their allies and trainers. Several of them quickly dispatched to the locations of the survivors, injured or otherwise, before returning to the main group; and from there, with Celebi as the lead, they headed out, the group of Liberty and Rocket agents vanishing from the facility just as dozens of explosions began to tear it apart. Soon enough, the crumbling debris of Havoc was devoured by the very volcano that had once offered Team Magma its unquestionable protection, as the legacy of the organization became its own undoing. Teleportation tended to be rough on its own, but in this instance, the trip was even worse. Even Joker's head pounded as she struggled to regain her footing, the bright lights and unfamiliar faces around her swirling together into an endless sea of color. When at last she regained her bearings, she became aware of the fact that she had appeared in the midst of a large number of Team Liberty agents, including the three Liberty Leaders whom she had spent so long fighting against (sans Silvermind, she silently corrected.) It occurred to her that the last time she had been here, it had been in the middle of Team Rocket's assault on the facility. How ironic. "Agents Vero and Arthur," Goldhawk said after a moment, raising a hand behind his back as an order to some of the more zealous Liberty agents to stand down. "First off, welcome back. Second--" "Where'd the Shadow Admin come from?" Silvermind cut in. "I was going to say, 'What happened?' and 'Where's Maxie?'," Goldhawk said. "But that is also a valid question." OOC: Save for the inevitable conversation betwixt Joker, Final Rockets, James, and the TL leaders, Havoc is officially done. Arrangements regarding Ryan getting to where he needs to be will likely need to be figured out OOC--but we'll have to talk on Skype tomorrow, Blade. Hopefully this gave you all a bit more of a look into McKinley's character. And as for Calvin Truman... If you guessed his identity, congrats--you were right. Merry Christmas, everyone.

I'd personally be really excited to play this. I haven't read through it fully, but I love Persona so whatever's there is automatically fantastic by default. : P As far as explaining what the Arcana are and what they symbolize--since there does seem to be multiple people asking about it, it might be a good idea to include some brief descriptions of each. Barring that, you could include a section on it and link to the wiki article about it, as that then links to the individual pages with overviews of what constitutes each. Just a suggestion.

IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: The Supersonic struck just as Kovian raised his scalchop for another attack. The Water-Type reeled, head spinning as he tried to make sense of his surroundings again. "Come on, Kovian, focus!" Kyle called. "You've almost got him!" The Dewott squinted. Multiple Tympole seemed to occupy the space where there ought to have only been one. Shaking his head, he lunged forward with another Fury Cutter, doing his best to aim for his opponent amidst the confusion. IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Halls: Hurried stride had quickly transformed into a full-blown run. Sonja could not explain the sense of urgency that had taken hold of her. All she knew was that the more she thought about everything that had transpired within the past few days, the more serious the situation seemed to become. The attack in Opelucid, on Team Galactic, in Goldenrod, now the Alamo itself, and finally some unknown crisis that had resulted in a building-wide call from Goldhawk . . . It was as if everything that had happened had meant to occur during the last six months, that odd period where everything had gone silent, undisturbed, too perfect to last, and instead had been forced to catch up in the span of a few weeks. Her feet seemed to carry her of their own accord, leading her through the halls and toward Research and Development. She hardly registered the few people she passed by, several of whom gave an odd look at the sight of her. She brushed them off without a second thought. The only one who truly broke Sonja's focus was a jogger whom she nearly crashed into, but after haphazardly slowing down and moving around him--as well as offering a quick apology--she continued on, not waiting to hear his reply. Finally, she arrived--and it was the sight of the department's interior itself that forced her to a stop. Police tape blocked the doors. Beyond that and through the windows looking into the R&D lobby, the place was wrecked, like someone had gone through and torn the place apart. Almost like a tornado, but also perhaps like an earthquake . . . Pushing aside specifics regarding the natural disaster used to destroy the place, Sonja approached slowly, grabbing Sheik's Poké Ball and easing her way under the police tape, wary of any alarms that might have been set around the doorway . . . IC - Jackson Sang/Eileen Alaric - Alaric Estate, Fireside Lounge: "Mr. Sang? . . . Mr. Sang, it's time to get up." Sang awoke with a start. Summer light streamed through the open windows, drawn-back curtains shifting lazily in the slight breeze that accompanied it. He shifted groggily, realizing as he did so that someone had draped a thick blanket over him while he slept. A pillow, too, had been given to him in the night, which he seemed to have rested his head upon at some point in his slumber. He took a moment to appreciate its softness, a fluffy grace like no other. Slowly, he pushed himself up, recalling the previous night--Felix's venture into his memories and all--and he realized that he must have fallen asleep soon after. Eileen stood nearby, sleeves rolled up her crossed arms, and a worried expression on her face as she watched him rub the bridge of his nose. "Are you alright, Mr. Sang?" "Never better," he said, voice raspy from the sudden emergence from sleep. "Had a rough night, is all." "I see," she said. "I was going to say that you looked a little out of it. At any rate, Alexis is cooking brunch now, so if you want to take a shower and get ready to continue our search in a few hours, you're more than welcome to." "Right," Sang said, pausing for a moment. "What time is it?" "Five after ten," Eileen said. That seemed to jolt Sang awake, as he threw the blanket aside and pushed himself up onto his feet. "Please, don't feel rushed. I know it's a bit later than you had meant to leave, but Elijah sent word asking us to wait here for something." She sighed, glancing out the window. "He did not specify why, but it sounded urgent, so I'm willing to humor him for now." "Alright," Sang said. He had already gathered up his things, and now moved past Eileen on his way to the nearest restroom. "I guess I'll take you up on that offer, then. Mind letting my team out while I'm away?" "I'd be more than happy to get them fed," she called back. Sang's four Poké Balls had been left beside his bag. Carefully, Eileen stooped down, picking up each one and releasing the Pokémon it held into the lounge. Each one stretched as they adjusted to the morning, only to quickly shift into a confused stance as they realized that someone other than Sang had let them out. Walker and Claire both stepped back, as if ready to fight, prompting Eileen to hold a hand up. "Hey, relax--it's just me," she said. "Sang's friend, Eileen." They slowly calmed down upon recognizing her, which was helped by a nod of approval from Trace. Eileen managed a motherly smile, gesturing to the kitchen. "Sang asked me to feed you all while he gets ready for today. So if you'll just follow me . . ." She did not have to lead--the three senior Pokémon moved in front of her, already keen to locate the food they were smelling. Eileen couldn't help but chuckle at them as they disappeared through the door. As she moved to follow them, however, she realized that Felix was still with her. Looking at him, she found the Elgyem floating at eye level with her, his head tilted to the side in silent contemplation. Eileen couldn't help but stare back at him, wondering what he was thinking. The Psychic-Type approached her with a clear sort of hesitation, reaching a hand toward her forehead. She furrowed her brow, momentarily stalling his movements, but after a moment of no further confrontation, he seemed compelled to continue forward. Eileen said nothing. Gently, the Elgyem placed his hand on her head, focusing his power. The world seemed to fade around them. A maze-like world composed of past voices and faces, past experiences that begged to be relived. She walked among them, following naught but her own way, compelled forward by some unknown force. All around, Levi's face seemed to stare out at her, his voice calling for her, dozens of cries and exclamations that seemed almost maddening. Where to go, where to go, for none seemed to draw her in. The maze led to a gate, a door of wood and leaves that led into an unknown darkness. Blue eyes stared out from the depths, four of them wide with terror, each indistinguishable from the next in color. Flames burned above, illuminating nothing but clasped hands. Her eyes widened as she realized where she was going. The compulsion lifted her hand, pushing against the gate, and forcing it open despite its protesting creaks. She stepped inside. All became as a fog, memory and reality indiscernible from each other . . . Eileen stepped back, emerging again into the real world. Felix blinked in surprise, looking from his hand to her. A cold sweat dotted her face. She moved carefully over to a chair, slowly lowering herself onto it, hands shaking with every movement. Felix floated nearby, a hand to his mouth as he watched her. "Go eat," she said quietly. The Psychic-Type nodded, quickly following after his teammates. Eileen merely stared at the floor. OOC: Felix learned Confusion . . .

Yeah, when will this be? If it's after Christmas then I can defs participate, but if its before, that'll be a bit more iffy. =)

IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: The Tympole's hasty movements allowed it to move out of the way of Kovian's attack, but there were more to come. The Hydro Pump following close behind, the Dewott wasted no time in shifting his course as he landed, shooting off with Aqua Jet and randomizing his pattern again to come at the Water-Ground-Type from a new angle with his Fury Cutter--this time from the back. IC - Esen Windred/??? - Lumiose City, Streets: Krow's patience paid off. Eventually Golem had expended all of the available rocks in its immediate area, and in doing so had tired itself out. The Honchkrow was able to dive in and charge, taking advantage of the Megaton Pokémon's moment of fatigue to fire a solid volley of Dark Pulses into the crevices of its shell. At long last, the Ground-Rock-Type fell, forcing Esen's opponent to recall it. The referee raised a hand into the air, prompting the woman to look at him. "Golem is unable to battle! Round Two goes to Esen and Honchkrow!" The crowd cheered, drowning out the man's call for the next Pokémon. Esen furrowed her brow as her opponent stepped back, that odd mixture of expressions present on her face again. She seemed trapped between wanting to continue the battle and wanting to say something, and either way looked as if she couldn't bring herself to act. Finally, she bowed her head, taking a deep breath and stepping forward again. With a clear air of hesitancy, she pulled a third Poké Ball from her jacket, throwing it forward and sending out a Nidoqueen. "Nice work so far . . . Esen?" the trainer called. "Let's see if you can pull a three-for-three." Esen cocked her head to the side. ". . . Thanks," she said. She looked at Krow, who could only shoot her a look equal to a shrug. "Krow, Air Slash." The Honchkrow swooped down, falling back on the strategy that had won him the last two fights. Esen watched him go, and then turned to look at the Nidoqueen. Another Physical attacker, most likely. Still a Ground-Type, meaning that she is most definitely a Type-Specialist--not very lucky for her, frankly. Defenses are nothing to rave about, meaning that if I can keep up with-- "Nidoqueen, Disable!" Krow had just managed to fire off a single Air Slash when the Disable took hold, at which point he found that he could not produce the blades of wind. Undeterred, he simply switched to Dark Pulse, gathering shadow energy to launch forward-- "Disable again!" --only for the attack to fizzle out. The Big Boss Pokémon cawed in surprise, before shooting a death glare at the Drill Pokémon, who merely smiled back at him. Esen watched with curiosity, trusting Krow to make the right move while she waited to see what her opponent would pull out next. "Alright," the woman said. "Let's see if we can't get it with a Thunderbolt!" Clever. For perhaps the second or third time, Esen could say she was impressed by her opponent. Nidoqueen were not typically utilized for their special capabilities--generally it was their physical power that was taken advantage of--and so finding one that was was a genuine surprise. Now the question was whether that was its only trick, or if it was a mixed bag. Either way, disabling Krow's attacks would not do a whole lot. Sooner or later the effect would wear off, and in the meantime, the Honchkrow had other tricks. IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Water Arena: "Executive Vert," Sonja answered, already walking through Ryan and his team. If things were as bad in R&D as Ryan said, then there was no time to waste talking when they could also be walking. She opened up her Pokétch, checking for any updates from Goldhawk or the other leaders. "Goldhawk wanted people in the Command Center, and there haven't been any new reports since then. If we can't find someone in R&D, then logically we can find someone there, right?" She was already out of the arena and exiting the hall that led to it, seeming to go on faith that the others were actually keeping up with her. IC - DÉOZA AGENT NAUM RHODES - Beheeyem, Walrein, Throh, Venusaur, Scolipede, Dodrio Gavin Braner (Vel/Mandibuzz)/Lucia (Clawitzer, Gothara/Gothorita)/Roderick Krane (Wattling/Rotom, Harmonics/Beheeyem)/Zack Furler (Glalie) - Central Hall, Havoc: Just as Venusaur began to aim its attack, it found itself on the receiving end of a Psybeam. It roared from the Psychic assault, fully intent on completing the attack. The addition a sudden Ice Beam from behind, however, slowed it down, as well as diverted its attention away from its intended target. Finally, getting hit by Wattling's Hex stopped it in its tracks, and with a final roar of outrage, it collapsed, its energy fully spent. The Beheeyem cut off its Synchronoise just in time to dodge around one of the Dark Pulses. The second, however, struck it squarely in the chest, knocking it backwards and off-balance. It spun around to face Harmonics at the exact moment that the Liberty-Beheeyem unleashed his own Hyper Beam, catching the enemy Psychic-Type point-blank and driving it into the ground at Rhodes's feet. The force of the attack was enough to knock the Déoza agent backwards, though he managed to use the momentum to roll backwards onto his feet. A moment later, Vel flew by, dropping the bloody and unconscious Throh in front of him. And just like that, the battle was over. Rhodes surveyed the field, recalling his last three, fainted Pokémon and straightening up, turning to watch his enemies as they converged on his location. Gavin paused for only a moment, recalling Talsim. Then, a fiery fury burning in his eyes, he began to run at Rhodes. It was only by Zack's intervention, grabbing the Rocket agent mid-run, that he did not tackle the Déoza agent to the ground. "Let me go!" the Rocket agent shouted. "He nearly killed Dothe!" "I get that," Zack said. He nodded at Rhodes. "But look at him. You really think anything good is going to come out of assaulting him?" Gavin paused long enough to look at the Déoza agent. Indeed, he was standing up straight, his face still covered by his helmet. The man radiated an air of power even in spite of his loss; the longer Gavin stared, the more obvious it became that anyone who neared him would likely end up dead, whether by a broken neck or by some other means. "Smart move," Rhodes said. "But it doesn't affect me either way." Before his opponents could question his meaning, the world began to spin around them. Their arena began to collapse and distort as time and space repaired themselves from Wizard's influence. This did not direction affect the Liberty and Rocket agents. Rhodes, however, was pulled into the mess, his very being torn apart and disassembled into atoms as penance for his loss. The group's last image of him before everything turned to black was the sight of his skull-like helmet, staring out at them from the void . . . IC - DÉOZA AGENT DRAGAN ARGALL - Beheeyem, Muk, Sawk, Diggersby, Camerupt, Aegislash Skye Hall (Torchic)/Jamie Arthur (Pelleas/Heracross, Lucan/Vanilluxe, Tristan/Metagross)/Cyan Vero (Typhlosion, Gallade)/Drake Masters (Goodra) - Central Hall, Havoc: The attack on Sawk seemed almost superfluous, as--though it knocked him out--the Fighting-Type had essentially been down for the count, anyway. Still, seeing him actually go unconscious likely did more to boost the team's morale than most of what else had occurred in the battle. Muk's Acid Armor could do little to protect it from the attacks being launched at it. In the end, liquefying itself only served to allow the assault to splatter the Poison-Type that much further throughout the room. And with Muk taken out with ease, the others were free to take on Beheeyem--which they did. One combination attack from the assembled Pokémon later, and the blinded Psychic-Type was left fainted on the ground, recalled just like its fellows. For some time, Argall showed no outward signs of how she felt about this outcome--it seemed she was simultaneously shocked and amused. After a few moments, however, she began to laugh. "What's so funny?" Drake asked. "You're beaten, you're defenseless, and you're about to be arrested--you have nothing to laugh about here!" "You wouldn't understand even if I tried to explain," Argall said. As she continued to laugh, the room they were in began to swirl, tearing itself apart at the seams as time and space seemed to become nothing. The Déoza agent's voice faded into nothingness as she, too, dissolved, leaving the team of Rocket and Liberty agents to witness the restoration of the hall that they had originally been in . . . IC - THIRD CHILD QUINCY ADAMS - Beheeyem/Wizard, Gothitelle/Doll, Abomasnow/Ent, Sudowoodo/Chan, Banette/Voodoo, Mismagius/Witch Ryan Hikari (Dewott, Porygon-Z)/Joker (Seer/Alakazam)/James Arthur (Lancelot/Scizor, Percival/Chandelure)/Ethan Worth (Tox/Beedrill) - Central Command, Havoc: "Our goal has always been to end the war, Executive Arthur, in order to protect the rest of the world," Adams said, gripping the railing tightly and leaning forward. "Whether you people believe it or not, that has always been our intention. Through our blood or yours, the purpose was always the same: Bring your war to an end before it was too late. If either team had stepped down when they had the chance, all of this could have been avoided--Hayes's bombing of Castelia, Pierce's mass arrests of Liberty and Rocket agents, all of it." Her hand shook against the metal. She looked down at it, surprised by the feeling and unable to explain what was causing it. Adams shook her head, and gritting her teeth, looked back at her opponents. "But now, it's too late. It doesn't matter what we say or do to you people, because we're out of time. We must do what is necessary to protect everyone, regardless of whether the world understands or not." Any attack would have knocked out Chan. A lack of an attack would likely have done the same, considering the sheer amount of damage that he had taken. As things stood, whether necessary or not, Dewott struck the Rock-Type, knocking him back and knocking him out. He did not even struggle to pick himself back up as Adams recalled him. With Percival paralyzed, he was easy prey for Wizard, who drew his arm back in order to launch a finishing Thunderbolt. But he never finished the move. Numerous factors had weakened him--most significantly the effort and energy put into splitting the initial group apart into their own side-dimensions--and Porygon-Z's Signal Beam had been charging for quite some time. That coupled with the earlier Shadow Ball, and the result was not pretty. The attack struck and knocked the Psychic-Type into the wall, where he then fell toward the ground. He barely clung to consciousness, and as that faded, so, too, did the arena. The world began to warp. The remainder of Adams's team, seeing what was happening, fell back, forming a protective wall in front of Wizard. Adams's platform shifted away from the others, slowly beginning to descend. Everything began to vanish around the numerous trainers and Pokémon, slowly dumping them into a void as Havoc's hallway began to reconstruct itself around them. But they did not seem to notice, so focused were they on what was being said. "What are you talking about?" Ethan asked. "The Darkrai are gone. Team Rocket and Team Liberty aren't fighting anymore. So . . .?" "She's insane," Joker said. "Just like Ford and the rest of his 'children.'" Ethan waved an aggravated hand at the Shadow Admin. "Quincy," he said flatly, staring straight at her. "The Unown aren't a threat anymore. The Darkrai aren't a threat anymore. The only antagonistic machine right now is the Hojohsin League, as far as we can see, outside of a few . . . isolated incidents. What are you trying to protect people from?" Adams stared back at him for some time, seeming to genuinely feel the earnestness behind his question. Her expression, however, had turned blank, as if she were no longer inhabiting her own body. "Worth," she said, her voice quiet, barely audible over so great a distance. "You don't know . . . There's no way to . . ." She took a breath. "There are worse creatures out there than the Unown or the Darkrai. And what you call 'isolated' . . . we don't." IC - Quincy Adams/Ryan Hikari/Joker/Ethan Worth/Gavin Braner/Skye Hall/Jamie Arthur/Lucia/James Arthur/Cyan Vero/Roderick Krane/Drake Masters/Zack Furler: It seemed that in the blink of an eye, the world had returned to how it had been mere moments before Wizard had disrupted time and space. Yet there were a few noticeable differences. The hallway was much more crowded than it had been before, courtesy of the numerous Pokémon that were now out of their containers. Quincy's team, too, was out, sans Chan and Witch. And her flunkies, the two Déoza agents, were nowhere to be found. She did not seem to fully snap back to herself even when the facility became whole again. Instead she stood with her eyes closed, silent as could be. After a moment, she opened her eyes, looking up at her numerous adversaries. "Ball's in your court," she said. "Maxie and Travis are dead; I did what I came to do. Wizard is out and I have no means of escape. And I know that against this many opponents, my team is completely outmatched." She straightened up. "But whatever you do, you'd best do it quickly--those bombs aren't going to wait much longer, and neither will that reactor . . ." IC - Jackson Sang - Alaric Estate, Fireside Lounge: Felix approached Sang slowly. With an encouraging smile, the mercenary nodded, allowing the Psychic-Type to gently place his hands on either side of his head. The Elgyem's fingers felt warm against Sang's temples, radiating with power as he activated his Telepathy ability. Sang's world went dark. The mind was as a maze, winding and twisting in all sorts of different directions. Memories came and went, past experiences that he had fondly remembered . . . or else had chosen to forget. He did not choose where he went; it was as if he had been placed on a track, one that wound its way slowly but surely through random passages and tunnels, forcing him to watch and listen to whatever happened to pass by. Many of the memories were unremarkable. In some, he walked, either alone or with Tracer beside him, a constant companion through innumerable adventures. He stood at the ticket booth of a train station, glancing about as he purchased a ticket. Now he stood upon a building's edge overlooking the streets of some unknown city, eyes closed and wind flurrying about. The moon shifted and then it was day, and now he stared at the back of a blond-haired head . . . There! He tried to turn, to pursue the memory. But it, like so many others, merely passed by, leaving him to walk the track in front of him. Instead he found himself walking into another memory, one that had not crossed his mind for a very, very long time. Castelia's streets were dark, glistening ebony from the light rain that had fallen for the past week. The light of streetlamps shone like phantoms in the gathered pools of water, rippling with the sprinkles of water in the air. Every step elicited a small splash against his shoes and pants. He shivered despite the warmth of his coat, his small, prepubescent body unused to the cold that permeated throughout the streets. Beside him, another boy walked, the same age and height. His skin was darker, his eyes bright, and his steps more comfortable, as if used to traversing Castelia City so late in the night. "We really shouldn't be out here," he said. "Oh, stop worrying, Jack," the other boy said. "How often do we get to walk around the city alone? Never." He didn't wait for an answer. "Yeah, but there's nothing open right now, anyway." He watched a car drive by, sending a spray of water into the air behind it. "Besides . . . What if your parents decide to check on us?" "This late? Fat chance. You said it yourself, it's late enough that nothing's open." The boy adjusted his hood. "That doesn't mean we can't explore a bit, by the way." "I'm just saying, Emre," he said, coming to a stop. He was freezing at this point, the thick, expensive coat he was wearing doing little to actually keep him warm. That was the problem with so many of the designer clothes his parents adored: They were more for looks than actual function, and in this case, it was the best he had. "It's cold, it's late, and . . ." Emre paused, actually curious now that he had stopped talking. "And what?" "I mean . . . you know." He looked around, and then lowered his voice. "What they say about those people from the other regions . . . They're all over the city, and they're dangerous. And what about wild Pokémon, and . . . and . . ." "Jackson Sang," Emre said, a smirk crossing his face as he stepped closer to his friend. "Are you telling me that you're afraid of your parents' spooky scary stories? You know they just tell you that stuff so you won't run off, right?" "No!" he said, indignant. He looked away. "I just . . . don't like it here." Emre sighed. "Alright, fine. You wanna go back, we can go back." He breathed a sigh of relief as Emre turned and walked past him, leading the way back. The boy continued to walk several steps ahead of him, continued to glance about and behind him on occasion. After some time, Emre came to a stop next to an alleyway, peering into the shadows within. He stopped as well, watching Emre with a dreading confusion. The words "What are you doing?" had barely escaped his lips when, with a smirk, Emre took off running into the alley. He gasped, and after a moment's hesitation, took off after him. "Emre!" "Sorry, Jack, but I gotta poke around a little bit!" Emre called back. "We never get to see these kinds of places during the day!" "Emre, stop being stupid and slow down!" he yelled, to no avail. Try as he might, Emre simply kept on running ahead, putting a sizable distance between the two of them. He only stopped when he came to a locked fence and gate, but even this would not deter him. He watched as Emre stepped back, surveyed the obstacle and his surroundings for a moment, and then began to climb. He had to slow down to catch his breath. And with no way to catch up, he could only watch as Emre expertly constructed a path over the fence--climbing onto a dumpster (disturbing a large pile of trash in the process), jumping up and grabbing the ladder of a fire escape (which rattled dangerously, as if it would break under his weight), climbing up this and picking his way down (it continued to rattle), until he had dropped back behind the gate. He approached, one hand still nursing the stitch in his side, and placed his free hand on the cold metal, gripping it tightly. "Great . . . job . . . Emre," he gasped. "Now . . . can we . . . head back . . .?" Emre leaned against the gate, still smirking to himself and looking about. His hood had come off over the course of his shenanigans, and his dark hair had been plastered against his forehead by the rain, but he did not seem to mind. "In a bit," he said. "You should check it out back here--it's a lot different on the other side." "You know I can't climb that fence," he replied with an exhausted sigh. When he looked up, he saw that Emre was still smirking at him. He straightened up, face burning with anger. "Alright, genius, why don't you tell me exactly how you did it so that I can come over there and join you?" "Why, Jack, it's simple," Emre said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You just gotta--" A sudden growling caught their attention from behind Emre. By virtue of already facing that direction, he was the first to see what was happening. From a number of boxes and crates within the alley, a pack of around ten Mightyena had begun to emerge, their eyes glinting in the moonlight. Emre turned to look, and upon seeing the Dark-Types, immediately backed up against the gate, paralyzed by fear. They continued to growl, several of them lowering their bodies to the ground, others beginning to bark at the intruder who had disturbed their sleep. "Emre," he whispered through the fence, voice quivering with equal fear. "Emre, I . . . You need to . . . I'm . . ." Try as he might to come up with a solution, something that either of them could do, he couldn't. He, like his friend, was rooted to the spot, unable to process the situation that had so rapidly developed before him. Ten minutes ago, the prospect of being attacked had seemed like only a distinct possibility. All too quickly, it had become a terrible reality. He took several breaths to steady himself, and then glanced at his Pokétch. "Emre . . . I'm going to call for help . . ." He began to slowly step away from the gate, gradually loosening his grip on the metal bar. "No--Jack!" Emre pressed a hand tightly against his. If he had been able to, he would have turned to look at him, to implore him with every minutia of desperation that he could summon. "Jack, don't leave! P-Please--don't leave me alone here!" He felt his heart drumming in his chest. Blood pounded in his ears, a noise so loud it seemed to drown out the noises of the alleyway and rain, coming from all around. He could not move. "Emre . . . it's--" He gasped. One of the Mightyena had howled, and a moment later, had pounced. He opened his mouth, intending to yell . . . something. "Look out!"? "It's pouncing!"? What did it matter now? The wolf had made its move. It shot toward the boy with a feral glint in its eye, fangs bared and ready to kill. Emre screamed, throwing his arms in front of his face in a futile attempt to defend himself. In the end, his warning became only another scream, and he could only watch as death descended upon his friend. The gate rattled as something landed on it, resting there for only a split second before vanishing just as quickly. The next instant, a sharp crack sounded as a small, white and purple figure slammed its fist into the Mightyena's head, sending it crashing into the ground. It took a moment for him and Emre to register what had happened. When it did, the other boy slid to the ground, shaking from the shock of what had just happened. He watched as the Pokémon kicked the Dark-Type back toward its brethren, before jumping back toward the gate. Still keeping its eyes on the pack, it threw a hand back, breaking the lock on the gate. The sound snapped him out of his own trance, and he quickly opened it, allowing the Pokémon to pull Emre through. With a threatening hiss and a crack of the whip-like fur covering its paws, it managed to drive the Mightyena away, the Bite Pokémon clearly aware of the danger they were in. He watched this exchange through a fog, thankful yet disbelieving of the how close they had come to . . . He shook his head, pushing the thought away. Emre had managed to push himself up with a hand, though his arm shook weakly and his typically-dark face now glistened like a ghost's in the moonlight. He stumbled over to Emre, arms and legs shaking as he glared down at the boy. His throat felt tight, and the urge to strike out at him felt almost overpowering. In the end, he simply fell to his knees beside Emre, barely managing to keep a hand pressed to his face. This did nothing to stop him from crying. "You idiot . . ." Emre did not respond. For several moments, both fell silent, as did the Pokémon. At the sound of approaching footsteps, the latter perked up, quickly running to meet the newcomer. He turned his head, following its movements, and watched as it stopped in front of a young man in a blue coat. He stooped down, petting the Pokémon's head. "Nice work, Shao," he said, allowing the Mienshao to climb onto his shoulder. Standing up straight, the man walked forward, stopping next to the two boys. He brushed his brown bangs aside, smiling down at them. "Hi, there. I take it I don't need to explain that you two shouldn't go places like this at this time of night?" Both managed only a tired nod. The man chuckled. "What're your names?" He looked at Emre in surprise. "I'm . . . I'm Jack," he said. "This is . . . Emre." "Jack and Emre . . . I'll remember that," the man said. "Well, nice to meet you. I'm Blair." He adjusted the edge of his hood. "Hey, listen, it's getting pretty late. Give me a minute to fix this gate and then I'll walk you two back home; make sure those Mightyena don't come back. Alright?" They nodded again, thankful for the short respite. Blair stood up, quickly doing what he could to fix the gate. Emre and he both remained where they were, still processing the events of the night. Around them, the rain continued to fall . . . With a sharp intake of breath, the mercenary shot back into reality, jerking his head back. Felix pulled away in surprise, a worried look appearing in his eyes at the sight of Sang's pale, wide-eyed face. After several moments, Sang took a deep breath, holding a hand to his chest while he patted Felix on the head with the other. "It's fine, friend," he said, managing a reassuring tone. "Those weren't the memories I wanted, but . . ." He shook his head. "Don't worry about it." Felix seemed happier as Sang recalled him. As soon as the Psychic-Type had been put away, Sang dropped his head into his hands and closed his eyes, forcing himself to take several deep, shuddering breaths. "I don't want to think about you . . ," he muttered. "Why am I thinking about you . . . Why am I thinking about you . . .?" OOC: Felix learned Miracle Eye . . .

IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: Well, Cero wasn't wrong. After several moments, Kovian's dance came to a halt, and his scalchops bristled with increased power as he shifted them into a ready position. "Kovian, Aqua Jet!" Kyle called, plugging his ears just as the Tympole began to sing. Kovian nodded, and with a running start shot forward, cloaking himself in a shroud of water that helped to lessen the amount of noise reaching his ears. Using the attack to speed himself forward, he darted about the field, aiming to confuse Tympole with his randomized pattern. Once he had moved close enough, he shot forward, jumping over Tympole and aiming a Fury Cutter attack at the Water-Type as he passed overhead . . . IC - Esen Windred/??? - Lumiose City, Streets: At the sight of the rock flying toward him, Krow slowed, dipping underneath the attack with hardly a glance. And then he cawed, pulling forth shadow energy again and unleashing it in a hail at his opponent. Seeing this, the woman thrust a hand forward. "Golem, defend!" The Megaton Pokémon threw its arms together just as the attacks began to collide, striking the ground around it. A cascade of dirt erupted, a curtain that blocked both trainers' view of what was happening even as the shadow bolts continued to hit. After some time, Krow flapped his wings, bringing the volley to a halt. With the crackling and crashing of the bolts now gone, Esen could hear a soft hum emanating from the center of the cloud; this allowed her to guess the presence of the Protect before she saw it. As the dust settled, revealing Golem, the Ground-Rock-Type uncrossed its arms, allowing the shield to dissipate. Krow scoffed, turning his head slightly to the side as if to demonstrate that he was impressed. The Golem grinned, and then looked back at its trainer. "Golem, roll and see if you can get up to it." The Megaton Pokémon nodded. Curling up, it began to spin and roll forward, quickly gaining speed. It shot toward the same rock-ramps that Donphan had used, clearly aiming to emulate its teammate. This prompted a raised eyebrow from Esen. "That's not going to work," she called. Her opponent said nothing, seeming too focused on her own Pokémon to say anything. Esen rolled her eyes. "Whatever . . . Krow, Dark Pulse on the ramps." As soon as the first strike had hit one of the ramps, sending a cascade of rock flying into the air, the other woman stepped forward. "You know what to do, Golem!" And apparently it did. The Megaton Pokémon uncurled, sliding to a stop amidst the hailing rocks and began striking any shards within reach, launching them toward Krow. The Dark-Type immediately cut off his assault and fell backward so as to avoid the Smack Down attacks, clearly caught off-guard by the improvised attacks. For the moment--until Golem ran out of ammunition--it seemed he would have to remain on the defensive, only having enough time to continue dodging and blocking the hail of rocks. Esen watched this display with a marked curiosity, shifting her gaze between Krow's movements and her opponent. She had always been taught to search her opponents, to figure out what sort of plans they could bring into the fight before they actually did so. Even action had a reason, whether obvious or not. And so Esen could not help but narrow her eyes suspiciously. You're so focused . . . and you don't make your moves until Krow starts to attack . . . she mused. Just what are you playing at, lady? IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Water Arena: And just like that, the exhilaration of two evolutions faded. Sonja's smile faltered as she turned to actually face Ryan, hoping for some indication that he was joking. As things stood, nothing about his posture or tone suggested that he was. Loki looked at her with a grim expression, shambling over to stand next to his trainer. Poseidon poked his head out from beneath the water, shifting his gaze between Ryan and Sonja. Is that what Goldhawk's call was about? She looked at Loki and Poseidon, and then at Ray. Without waiting for a word from him, she recalled her Pokémon, turning around and descending the steps that led up to her platform. "Show me. And then--if you don't know what happened," she said, inwardly sighing as she heard her own voice take on that curt, ready-for-danger tone that she had become so accustomed to over the past year. "then we should probably find someone who does." IC - Goldhawk/Blackskull/Silvermind/Others - The Alamo, Command Center: Goldhawk paced around the room. How long had it been since James and the others had departed--since Maxie's message? At least two hours, likely more. Too long, it seemed; for if they had not yet reported back as instructed, then that had to have meant that they had run into danger. Yet, what could have possibly held them up for so long . . .? The Liberty Leader was not the only one getting anxious. Many of the assembled agents had taken seats by now, warily watching the technicians and Executives as they waited for something to get back to them. A few had even slipped out, either abandoning the mission or else going off to get resources--more items, different Pokémon--in order to more effectively combat the malevolent forces that had taken Havoc. Some had been dismissed, reassigned to different tasks, or else evaluated and deemed too inexperienced to risk endangering should Havoc's channels open up again. Blackskull, for his part, seemed to have maintained a cool head, which also had the side-effect of calming a number of the other agents in the room. He stood with his arms crossed on the central platform, watching the screens with a careful eye. Silvermind sat in one of the seats behind him, chin resting on her hand as she scrolled through a data pad. Silvermind furrowed her brow, looking up from the tablet. "Kane," she said, her voice just low enough that it went unheard by the majority of the other agents. The Liberty Leader turned to her. "Does it strike you as odd that barely a few days after Team Liberty is attacked by two Unusuals, Havoc comes under attack by an equally ambiguous party?" Blackskull shrugged. Silvermind frowned, dropping her gaze. "It's strange to me. Team Galactic gets attacked, no survivors except for Jupiter. Goldenrod gets attacked--massive population center for Team Rocket; Joker's Golurk goes berserk, but otherwise gets defeated, along with the anomaly there. Team Liberty gets attacked, massive damage done to R&D, ultimately the attackers get destroyed--but only in an isolated encounter. Now Team Magma gets attacked, no one can get in, communications are cut off . . ." "What are you saying?" Blackskull asked. "I can't help but feel like this might be another Sin attack," Silvermind said. "It'd explain a lot, to be honest. Only question is which Sin it is. Maybe Sloth, if there's a Sloth in the group--Team Magma hasn't been the most active around here . . ." Blackskull sighed. "Hopefully not," he said. "I'd hate to think what kind of damage it's doing to cause this long of a delay . . ." He paused. "Maybe it's Hojohsin?" "Maybe," Silvermind said. "They haven't been very active lately, either . . . Heck, I mean, of anyone, I'd've expected them to make use of the situation in Goldenrod--use it as an opportunity to attack Team Rocket while one of its Shadow Admins were busy, right? They didn't even respond when Galactic went dark . . ." "You're right . . . That is a bit weird," Blackskull said. He turned away again, crossing his arms and sighing. "All I know right now is that whatever is happening isn't good. Unfortunately there's not a ton we can do about it until those teleportation channels open up . . ."

IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: "Kovian, dodge it!" Kyle called, though he needn't have bothered: The Dewott knew what was coming and had the foresight to jump out of the way before he could become confused. He now watched his opponent carefully, thinking. In all honesty, Kyle hadn't expected a switch--it occurred to him that he really had not run into many situations where such a thing had actually occurred, unless it was a result of the trainer's Pokémon actually fainting. But this was not an issue. With Aridez gone, the sandstorm would soon peter out, and with it would go the gradual damage that he knew it was dealing to the Dewott. In the meantime, he would just have to get creative and do what he could to take out the Tympole. As things stood, Water-Type attacks were out, and that meant that half of Kovian's move set would be ineffective. Given that Tympole itself was a pure Water-Type, that was more of an inconvenience than anything. So, given all other options, it seemed the best route would be to ensure that whatever hits Kovian managed to land would be good and solid--something more than could be recovered from with just an Aqua Ring. "Kovian, Swords Dance and Focus Energy," Kyle said. "Keep an eye on Tympole's movements while you work." Kovian nodded, and half-closing his eyes as if in a trance, he began to focus, simultaneously going through the slow motions that would increase his attack power . . . IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Water Arena: "Nice, yourself," Sonja called back. Sacred Fire. Now that was unexpected. Ryan's sudden appearance--flanked by his entire team of Pokémon--was also unexpected, but somehow less dazzling than the sight of a Togepi spitting forth such a powerful fire attack. Seeing such a spectacle almost made Sonja sad to see that Poseidon soon overpowered the Normal-Type, swiftly removing her from the battle. Even so, the feat was impressive. "Alright," she said. "One down, one to go. Poseidon, help out Loki with a Signal--" She stopped talking as she saw what was taking place between Loki and Aizen. Aizen's Ice Punch was blocked by Loki slamming his other girder into the ground in front of him, allowing it to take the hit. At the same time that he did this, an overpowering light engulfed his body, and he began to grow larger. His perfect hour-glass figure shifted into the more top-heavy shape characteristic of a Conkeldurr, his arms becoming massive and muscle-bound and the purple bands around his body expanding to match. When he had finished evolving, the Conkeldurr towered over the Kadabra. Now he grinned, and drawing an arm back, launched a Dynamic Punch straight at the Psychic-Type. If Aizen's intent was to find out who had the stronger punch . . . Well, Loki was all too eager to make that bet. "Heh. Two evolutions in one battle," Sonja said, crossing her arms and smiling. "I should do this more often." At that moment it fully registered that Ryan had arrived, and that he did, in fact, have his entire team out around him. "Oh, hi, Ryan. Enjoying the show?" OOC: Species: Conkeldurr Nickname: Loki. Trainer: Sonja Baron. Appearance: Loki is still fairly youthful, and thus looks a lot less grumpy than a number of other Conkeldurr. Personality: True to his nickname, Loki is quite impish, always ready to pull a prank at a moment's notice. He is also a bit of a show-off, striking dynamic poses for no particular reason and always attempting to add an extra flair to his attacks in battle, a trait he mimicked from Evan Tierra. Past experiences have allowed Loki to get past his own vanity and accept his new appearance with relatively open-arms, recognizing the need for his new form's increased power if he intends to continue protecting his trainer and teammates. Ability: Guts. Specialty: Loki is most skilled when it comes to physical attacks. Evolving into a Conkeldurr has also increased his durability by a large amount, allowing him to defend better against attacks. He is still rather slow all around, however, and because of this does not fare well against fast opponents. Known Moves: Stone Edge, Bulk Up, Endure (EM), Reversal (EM), Focus Energy, Dynamic Punch. Rock Slide > Stone Edge Low Kick > Endure Wake-Up Slap > Reversal

OOC: Just to clarify/expand on this--don't forget that RotR is its own separate entity. That's why the manga, games, and anime all converge the way they do--this essentially just means that the world mechanics as they are presented in Gens. 3 through 5 are the default in the RotR universe, with other changes (like Megas and type retcons post Gen. 5) not being a natural part of the universe. That is not to say that those changes will not occur--because they will--but they require a bigger explanation before they can be implemented, as the explanations presented by XYORAS do not mesh with what has been established thus far in the RPG. IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: Lyxek made to go after Aridez, but gritted his teeth and fell to a knee before he could do anything. Even from a distance, and in spite of the sandstorm swirling around them, Kyle could tell that the damage done by Ice Fang had done more than the Dragon-Type had let on. At this point, any further efforts to defeat the Hippowdon--or, really, participate in the match to any meaningful extent--would end in failure. "Lyxek, fall back," he said. The Fraxure looked back at his trainer in surprise, and looked for a moment as if he would adopt a look of insistence. However, the expression faltered with another visible flash of pain. Kyle held out his Poké Ball, recalling the Axe Jaw Pokémon. "Fraxure is unable to battle!" the referee declared. "Please select your next Pokémon!" Already on it. "Kovian, come on out!" Kyle called, tossing the Dewott's Poké Ball into the air. Kovian emerged, flipping onto the field and drawing his scalchops, silently assessing the large hippopotamus before him. He squinted against the sandstorm, bothered by its presence and yet clearly doing his best to ignore it. After a moment, he flipped forward, launching a Water Pulse attack at the Ground-Type. IC - Esen Windred/??? - Lumiose City, Streets: Stone spikes rising out of the ground were of no concern to Esen, nor to Krow. She did not even need to direct the Honchkrow in order to combat this: Through their training, he already knew what to do. Without missing a beat, the Dark-Flying-Type weaved in and out of the obstructions, gracefully avoiding any and all contact with the dangerous stones. Every so often one would emerge right in front of him; he took care of these with a swift Air Slash, slicing them in half and clearing his way. Instead of watching her own Pokémon, Esen turned her attention to her opponent. The woman did not appear to be able to contain her surprise at the ease with which Krow was handling the attack. Esen could not blame her: Used of many other opponents, ones much slower than Krow, that sort of technique probably tended to work. Then again, those opponents did not share the schooling she had received . . . It felt as if a haze had come over her. One moment she had been thinking about . . . What had she been thinking about? . . . The next, the sudden eruption of cheering, distant at first and steadily growing louder. Esen had to blink several times, shake her head slightly to clear her vision, before it registered to her that she was still battling her sunglass-appareled opponent. The field gradually came into focus. Krow stood upon one of the stone spikes, glowering down at the fainted Donphan. The marks on his body suggested the Krow had hit him with a Dark Pulse. When had that happened . . .? "Donphan is unable to battle!" the referee called. "Round One goes to Esen and Honchkrow!" He looked to Esen's opponent, whose eyes must have been fixed on the Flying-Type Trainer as she recalled her Pokémon. "Please select your next Pokémon." She did not send out another, at least not at his word. Though the audience watched the blonde-haired woman, Esen shifted uncomfortably on the spot, noting what they were not. A look had started to appear across her face, visible even with the sunglasses obscuring most of it. Ace's daughter could not put a name to it. Was it awe? Uncertainty? Was there even a hint of . . . recognition . . .? The spell was broken as a Battle Expo official approached the woman, tapping her on the shoulder. Esen could not hear what was said, only capable of noticing the amount of gesturing going on between them. After a moment, the official stepped away, and the woman straightened up. The look had mostly vanished, but a trace of it was still there; that did nothing to help Esen's nerves. Only when her opponent sent out a Golem did Esen start to feel comfortable again, though not by much. Needing a distraction, she cleared her throat, pointing. "Krow, use Dark Pulse," she called, perhaps less certainly than she meant to. She didn't know what was going through her opponent's head, but by now, a few things were all but fact. First was that her opponent's team could not be anything but Ground-Types; this had become self-evident, and Esen was willing to bet a limb that such was the case. Second was that physical attacks wouldn't be useful here. Luckily Krow still had his boosts from the earlier Nasty Plots, but Esen knew she was going to need to get creative in order to defeat a defensive Pokémon like Golem . . . The woman did not give an order until she saw Krow zeroing in for another volley of Dark Pulses. "Golem, Autotomize followed by Smack Down!" Golem stepped back, and flexing a muscle, loosened one of the rocks composing its shell. This fell to the ground, allowing the Megaton Pokémon to grab it and hurl it at Krow . . . IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Water Arena: "Poseidon, dive underwater and avoid the attack!" Sonja called. "Loki, dodge the flames!" Loki did so, kicking off from where he been standing. This did nothing to help him avoid Aizen's Psychic attack, which caught him in midair and sent him flying to the side. He skidded to a halt, and from there forced himself back onto his feet, grimacing from the super-effective attack. In response to the damage, he drew an arm back, and then with all of the strength he could gather post-Charm, launched one half of his broken girder at the Psychic-Type. Poseidon, meanwhile, merely had to dive to avoid the flames coming toward him. Instead of reappearing elsewhere, however, he stayed underwater for some time, long enough that Sonja had started to take a step forward to call for him. At that moment, however, a blinding light flashed from beneath the waves, and then a much larger fish erupted from the depths, flying into the air amidst a rain of droplets. Poseidon, it seemed, had evolved; and as he fell back toward the water, the now-Lanturn thrust his head forward, crying out in blissful amusement. "Wow," Sonja said, stricken by awe at the sheer majesty of her newly-evolved Pokémon. It occurred to her then that this evolution must have been in the making for some time--and for as much care as she showed her other Pokémon, she had not done the same for Poseidon. How much sooner could this have happened had she made a point of using in any of her more recent battles? So distracted was she by these thoughts that she did not notice the Hydro Pump now shooting toward Orihime . . . OOC: Species: Lanturn Nickname: Poseidon. Trainer: Sonja Baron. Appearance: Poseidon's lamps can shift between different colors. Personality: Poseidon is quiet. So quiet that, much to her embarrassment, Sonja often forgets that Poseidon is a member of her team. Upon realizing her mistakes and negligence towards him, she has vowed to help him reach his full potential as a battling Pokémon. For his part, Poseidon doesn't seem to mind--his evolution has brought him quite a bit of happiness, and he is content to simply entertain others using his lights. Ability: Volt Absorb. Specialty: Poseidon is best when it comes to nonphysical attacks, as well as Special Defense. In water he is incredibly fast and strong, which has only been amplified by his evolution. Paradoxically, the same evolution has allowed him to last longer and move somewhat better on land, though not nearly to the extent that he would be able to in the water. Known Moves: Signal Beam, Hydro Pump, Thunder Wave, Discharge, Confuse Ray, Charge Supersonic > Confuse Ray Bubble Beam > Hydro Pump Charge learned IC - DÉOZA AGENT NAUM RHODES - Beheeyem, Walrein, Throh, Venusaur, Scolipede, Dodrio Gavin Braner (Dothe/Dusknoir, Talsim/Alakazam)/Lucia (Clawitzer, Gothara/Gothorita)/Roderick Krane (Wattling/Rotom, Harmonics/Beheeyem)/Zack Furler (Predator/Staraptor) - Central Hall, Havoc: Scolipede had actually uncurled as it managed to take hold of the washing machine. And though Wattling no longer occupied it, the Megapede Pokémon seemed content to tear at the machine anyway, utterly decimating it within seconds. Those seconds spent attacking inanimate objects, however, proved to be fateful: As soon as it had discarded the pieces of the machine, both the Thunderbolt and Psybeam attacks hit, and their damage combined with the earlier Hydro Pump-Thunderbolt combination caused it to faint on the spot. Sensing the attacks aimed at it, Rhodes's Beheeyem looked to its trainer, who merely nodded. The Psychic-Type turned around, and with a swipe of its hand, launched a Signal Beam to intercept the Dark Pulse. The Ancientpower it avoided by teleporting, and when it reappeared, it immediately lashed out with Synchronoise. Though it was difficult to tell whether the Aura Sphere had actually fainted the Walrein--it still continued to snore, after all--it did manage to knock the Ice Break Pokémon back towards Rhodes. The Déoza Agent swung one of the stringed Poké Balls that he held towards the sleeping walrus, recalling it back to its container before it could land on him. All the while, he merely continued to watch his opponents . . . Zack quickly recalled Predator, and knowing that there was nothing to be done at this point, merely braced for the inevitable impact from Venusaur. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes, and waited-- Only instead to hear a shout, and then immediately afterwards feel the sensation of being grabbed and teleported. When he opened his eyes, he found that Talsim had appeared beside him, getting him out of Venusaur's path before he could be hit. Now the Grass-Poison-Type lumbered to a clumsy halt, searching for a suitable target. He found it in the form of Clawitzer, who was closest, and began to charge a Solar Beam attack . . . Talsim suddenly doubled over, clutching his head as Beheeyem's attack hit. Zack watched in shock as the Psychic-Type fell to the ground, swiftly losing unconsciousness. The only thing he could think to do was send out his Glalie, setting the Ice-Type up as a guard in case anything came near. In order to protect the fainted Alakazam, he refrained from ordering the Ice-Type from attacking Venusaur, lest it divert its rage toward them . . . Gothara's split focus, meanwhile, proved beneficial to Throh. The Fighting-Type took the lull in activity as an opportunity to use the remnants of the energy it had gathered through Bide to charge toward Dothe. Caught by surprise, the Ghost-Type moved back, barely blocking an Ice Punch from his opponent. The next moment, however, Throh had deflected Dothe's defenses, slamming a frozen palm into the Dusknoir's gut. Time seemed to slow down as Gavin turned just in time to watch the scene. Icy crystals rapidly spread over Dothe's body, finishing the job that Dodrio's Mirror Move had started. Soon enough he had been frozen solid, stuck in place before the enemy Throh. And then he saw the Fighting-Type's arm pull back, gathering energy for a punch-- "DOTHE, RETURN!" A red beam of light shot forward from the Poké Ball in Gavin's hand, pulling Dothe back into it just a split second before the attack would have connected. By some miracle, he had been fast enough, and so the Throh's attack simply struck empty air. Gavin almost threw up, unable to help but think about what would have happened had he been just a second slower. And as this registered, he felt a righteous fury flare up in his chest, one unquenchable even by the look of fury in the eye of the approaching Fighting-Type. "You," he said. "are not getting away with that." He dropped a shaking hand to the Poké Balls lining his belt. Grabbing one at random, he held it forward. Vel appeared. Gavin wasn't sure what he had been hoping for--Evris? Kora?--but it did not matter. Whoever he used, he knew that they shared his anger, and he knew that they would not let this Déoza agent walk free from here. And Vel was no exception. A soft chuckle emerged from Rhodes. "Come on, kid," he said. "Can't you tell? That thing's not nearly powerful enough to stop us." "Don't you know?" Gavin responded. "Mandibuzz are a sign of death. And I'd say yours is right around the corner. Vel, take him down." Vel cawed loudly and flapped her wings, and for a moment, Gavin thought she was going to launch an Air Slash attack. What came instead, however, was a bigger surprise. Her body became engulfed in a black aura, and before his very eyes, she grew. Bone armor shifted, becoming a bone skirt, and her neck and beak elongated. Before long the covering had vanished, revealing a newly-evolved Mandibuzz. Without a moment's hesitation, she charged, claws glowing as she descended upon Throh . . . Dodrio: Fainted Walrein: Fainted Scolipede: Fainted Beheeyem: Synchronoise > All Psychic-Types Venusaur: Solar Beam > Clawitzer Predator: Fainted Talsim: Fainted Throh: Ice Punch/Bide > Dothe Dothe: Fainted Vel: Evolved. Attack > Throh OOC: Species: Mandibuzz. Nickname: Vel. Trainer: Gavin Braner. Appearance: Standard Mandibuzz. Personality: Vel is, for the most part, a calm Pokémon--unless she is injured or otherwise severely stressed, she is capable of maintaining an impressive cool about herself in the face of troubling circumstances. Noticeably patient and clever, her general personality is one of technician versus performance--she prefers to wait out problems and use situations to her advantage, as opposed to getting directly involved and attempting to speed up the process of whatever is occurring. Perhaps because of the circumstances of her evolution, Vel has become noticeably darker and more willing to utilize force, particularly to protect her teammates. Ability: Overcoat. Specialty: Vel's specialties lie in her defensive abilities. Those, coupled with her support capabilities and fairly impressive speed, generally allow her to outlast her opponents, causing them to wear themselves down with minimal effort on Vel's part. When she gets angry, she is also fully capable of putting all of her power behind an attack, to devastating effect. Known Moves: Flatter, Defog, Tailwind, Foul Play (EM), Air Slash, Mirror Move. Feint Attack > Foul Play Scary Face > Mirror Move IC - DÉOZA AGENT DRAGAN ARGALL - Beheeyem, Muk, Sawk, Diggersby, Camerupt, Aegislash Skye Hall (Torchic)/Jamie Arthur (Pelleas/Heracross, Lucan/Vanilluxe, Tristan/Metagross)/Cyan Vero (Typhlosion, Gallade)/Drake Masters (Goodra) - Central Hall, Havoc: Perhaps it was the surprise of realizing the exact same thing as Lucan. Perhaps it was simply that it wasn't used to opponents not fainting from a single attack. Whatever the case, Diggersby had just enough time to very slightly open its eyes in surprise before the Ice Beam struck it dead on, instantly freezing the Normal-Ground-Type where it stood and taking it out of the fight. Pelleas's plan worked. The Sawk found itself on the receiving end of the very same tactic he had used a few moments before. Unable to stop himself, he was launched into the air towards his Beheeyem ally, who had just gathered energy for another Shadow Ball. Instead the energy fizzled out before it as it was struck, and the Fighting-Type was left to fall to the ground, directly in the path of the Sludge Wave. He could do nothing until the attack had passed, and when it did, it was very clearly disoriented and damaged--not to mention poisoned. Jamie, Cyan, and Drake, meanwhile, were all protected by the wave of poison by a Protect from Goodra. Now they rallied to strike the offending Muk with everything they had, Gallade launching a Psycho Cut at the Poison-Type and Typhlosion a Flamethrower, while Goodra sent an Aqua Tail attack forward. The Muk, meanwhile, activated Acid Armor in an attempt to defend itself . . . As soon as it had recovered from the impact, Beheeyem had moved to gather energy for another Shadow Ball. But it had not noticed the Torchic who now stood upon Tristan's head. With a defiant cry, the small Fire-Type had launched an Ember attack straight at Beheeyem, hitting it right as it prepared to focus. The flames struck it square in the face, badly burning it, and so it fell instead into a series of pained cries as it tried to gather the focus necessary to activate Recover. "Torchic!" Skye gasped, grabbing her Pokémon and pulling him back behind cover. "I . . . I don't know whether that was incredibly brave or incredibly stupid . . ." She sighed. "But good hit, either way." The Fire-Type chirped happily. "That should show 'em. Right, Tristan?" Camerupt: Fainted Aegislash: Fainted Diggersby: Fainted Sawk: Thrown at Beheeyem, stunned/poisoned by Muk Goodra: Protect > Self, Drake, Cyan, Jamie; Aqua Tail > Muk Gallade: Psychot Cut > Muk Typhlosion: Flamethrower > Muk Muk: Acid Armor Beheeyem: Shadow Ball Torchic: Ember > Beheeyem Beheeyem: Stunned/burned IC - THIRD CHILD QUINCY ADAMS - Beheeyem/Wizard, Gothitelle/Doll, Abomasnow/Ent, Sudowoodo/Chan, Banette/Voodoo, Mismagius/Witch Ryan Hikari (Tyranitar, Porygon-Z)/Joker (Seer/Alakazam)/James Arthur (Lancelot/Scizor, Percival/Chandelure)/Ethan Worth (Suya/Victreebel, Kada/Torterra) - Central Command, Havoc: There was little Chan could do to avoid the Hyper Beam--he had been seconds away from striking Tyranitar with Hammer Arm, after all. All he could do was throw his arms over his face to at least attempt some form of defense. When the beam of energy finally subsided, Chan still stood, though smoke rose from everywhere on his body, and it was very clear that he was on the last throes of strength that he had left. But that was little problem, because that attack had now left Tyranitar a sitting duck while he recharged. With one final push of strength, Chan charged and leaped toward his opponent's head, resuming the Hammer Arm attack that he had been unable to finish before . . . Percival's Shadow Ball struck Wizard dead-on, sending the Psychic-Type flying back and into the floor behind Quincy. Even as he recovered and pushed himself to his feet, his trainer glared at the Chandelure, a look entirely devoid of amusement covering her face. Reaching into one of the pouches on her belt, Quincy stepped back. "Wizard," she said. "Cover your eyes and get ready." The Psychic-Type nodded. The next instant, Quincy had thrown her hand down, hurling a handful of Brightpowder at the ground, and a bright flash erupted around the three of them. When the flash faded, Wizard and Quincy were gone. Wizard appeared from one of the higher balconies, and from his position in midair, directed a Thunderbolt at Percival. Voodoo and Witch were badly damaged at this point. And as Seer continued to advance on them, all they could do was launch Shadow Balls and Will-o-Wisps in his direction. Most of these were diverted using Psychic or Protect; those that struck were quickly rendered meaningless by Recover. The one solace that the two Ghost-Types could gather was that Voodoo's Cursed Body had taken effect as soon as Seer had touched him; if they could at least burn and distract him, then his disabled-Magic Guard would not be able to defend him from taking continued damage. Granted, such was easier said than done, and the constant attacks were wearing the pair down themselves. At last, Seer appeared to grow tired of the barrage, and teleported again to a different location. From there, he made short work of Witch, quickly taking hold of her with Psychic and launching her against the walls and floor until he was certain she had lost consciousness, at which point he released her. Seeing this display of brutality, Voodoo drifted backwards, activating Phantom Force and vanishing into the shadows--whether to hit Seer or someone else, no one could know . . . Power Whip or not, Ent intended to hit Suya--and hit him, he did. The Victreebel's vines tore from the effort of trying to restrain the Abomasnow, and in the resulting haze of pain that followed, Suya was left wide open. The Hammer Arm struck, launching the Flycatcher Pokémon into the air. But Ent was not done. Several of the vines that Suya had produced still remained connected between them, and the Frosted Tree Pokémon wasted no time in reaching up and grabbing one, pulling Suya back. Still disoriented from the Hammer Arm, Suya did not have time to muster another attack before he was driven into the ground with an Ice Punch. With the Victreebel fainted, Ent was free to concentrate on other targets, and his first choice was Lancelot and Kada. The Frosted Tree Pokémon lumbered toward their battle against Doll, drawing a hand back and charging up an Ice Beam attack. As Lancelot's attack hit, knocking Doll backwards, Ent unleashed the attack, aiming it toward the ground at Lancelot's feet in an attempt to trap the Steel-Bug-Type. Doll, meanwhile, struggled to stand up following Lancelot's strike. Unlike most of her allies, she was not primarily a battling Pokémon, and so was unused to handling an attack like that. As she recovered, she became aware of the Torterra charging toward her. Not keen on being struck a Wood Hammer attack so soon after U-Turn, she threw her hands up, Protecting herself from the impact, which in turn stunned Kada long enough for Ent to send a massive Ice Beam towards the tortoise. For perhaps the fifth time that day, ice covered the Pokémon's body where the beams had struck--which, in this case, included both of Kada's left legs--taking the Torterra out of the battle. "I guess I did speak too soon," Ethan said as he recalled both Kada and Suya. His voice didn't show it, but the sweat dotting his face betrayed the Rocket Agent's uncertainty over how the battle was going. He seemed to consider his options, and finally released Tox from his Poké Ball, directing the Beedrill to stay by his side for the time being. Taking a momentary reprieve from the fight, he looked around, searching for Quincy. "Hey, Adams, can I ask you something?" Even over the din of battle, the Rocket agent could hear the Ford Agent's annoyed sigh. "A question from a forgettable pawn in the game of the war," she said. "Please, by all means, what can I help you with?" "Geez, so rude," Ethan muttered. "I'd just like to know what the point of all this is--what you and Ford and whoever else hope to gain by wrecking Havoc." He glanced over at his teammates, all of whom were shaking their heads disapprovingly at him. Realizing why, he chuckled awkwardly, holding a hand up. "No pun intended." "Please, do you even have to ask?" Adams responded, revealing herself at the balcony where she had started. "Why was Soil Colossus destroyed, Worth? Why were the Searchers? If you're going to fight for something, it needs to be for a worthwhile cause, and none of these people--" She gestured around. "--have had one. Their beliefs aren't based on the greater good of the world--Maxie, Travis, Sandrock, they all fight for themselves, for petty revenge and power-grabs for the sake of power-grabs." "Ironic that one of Ford's is saying this," Joker said. "If anyone has less of a right to make those kinds of judgments, it's Ford, egocentric maniac that he is." "If that's the only impression that you've gathered about him in the past thirteen years," Adams said, a dagger of venom hidden in her tone. "then I'm afraid your research has been very, very poor, Joker." Chan: Last Push Hammer Arm > TyranitarWizard: Teleport, Thunderbolt > PercivalWitch: FaintedVoodoo: Phantom Force > ?Suya: Fainted Ent: Ice Beam > Lancelot, Ice Beam > Kada Doll: Protect > Self Kada: Fainted IC - Jackson Sang - Alaric Estate, Fireside Lounge: Previous Post For some time after Eileen's story, Sang had remained in the lounge. He sat on the floor in front of the fireplace, directly across from his newly-acquired Elgyem. With the rest of his team stored away, he was able to focus fully on the Cerebral Pokémon, studying it, pondering the mysterious power it held. The Psychic-Type watched him curiously, as if trying to decipher his intentions. Sang did much the same. After several dozen minutes of this, Sang spoke. "Alright, Felix," he said. "Let's start simple--see what, exactly, you can do . . ."

Ahh, I see glad we're on the same page ther. Same. Always nice to have a calm discussion. I think it can also have a really positive impact, perhaps if some artists wanted to represent the character as he/she is in the actual story. Know what I mean? And again, if there even is room for snobby members to come in and say "hurr durr it's not canon" then that's a problem within the individual members themselves, and should be treated as such. I don't think anyone should feel that their stories are "invalited", because it's their own universe after all! Also, correct me if I'm wrong I don't spend too much time in the Library section, is the population of people who would be hurt even considerably large or no? Actual question haha I can see that, for sure, but I feel like it would really depend on which character they are trying to depict--particularly since, if this hypothetical artist is taking the time and energy to create fanart of, say, the Toa Mangai of Earth, they've likely already come up with their own ideas of what the character looks like, how they act, and what mask and weapons they have. Applying their headcanon, as it were. =P But yeah, I can see some people preferring more specifics--it's a bit of a gray area, admittedly. Which brings me to a point I wanted to make in my last post--if these kinds of things are going to be added, they at least need to be added and approached responsibly, and not railroaded into the blank spaces. Hopefully the guidelines for future polls helps out with that. Yeah, there's not a really effective way to deal with those kinds of people, unfortunately. But my goal in bringing them up is just to correct this belief that ignoring canon aspects is so simple, because in a lot of cases, it really isn't. And as far as the library goes--at this point, in BZPower's library/RPG forums, I can't imagine there would be a lot of people who would be totally offended or hurt. But there are also non-BZPower fans to think about, and in any case, it's still infringing somewhat on the fanbase's ability to develop their own beliefs if it happens to contradict canon--if I were a new or younger BIONICLE fan, personally, I know I wouldn't feel as comfortable as I do ignoring certain aspects of what is now considered canon, like the Toa Cordak's name, for instance. Heck, I would feel weird now if I were to decide to write a story about the Mangai and change up their elements--and chances are that if I did, the story wouldn't even take place in the main BIONICLE universe, which makes things even more upsetting, to an extent. See that's the thing with you imaginative types: you have a gnarly enough of an imagination for headcanons. I honestly envy you, because as a person who can't come up with good headcanons unless discussed throughoutly with other members, I don't really have anything to headcanon, thus leading me to seek for a canon explaination to facts. And again, if people seriously bully other members over what's canon or canonize things for fame or lordship, then they really meed to reconsider their motives and if they're on the right forum. I can't personally guarantee to punish those people in anyway since I don't have thoe privelagea, but I can guarantee that I will keep my fellow members in check and hold them accountable for their words. Again, I'm sorry to any artists if these minor canonizations are messing with your art, and I invite you to join us when the new polling practices are established. Expect that topic to be up Wednesday.I can definitely understand the struggle with coming up with headcanon stuff--I have that problem with other stories that I'm invested in, though BIONICLE... not so much. X3 That does raise a question from me to you, however, as well as to anyone else with a similar take to that--isn't the fact that a lot of this stuff is ambiguous, and thus encourages discussion about it, preferable to having an absolute answer that cannot be disputed? Personally speaking, I'd much rather be able to give and adopt interpretations of what masks the Toa Mangai wore than bring it up and have someone point to a list of what's been officially decided, but I'm curious as to what you all feel regarding that. Again, I agree about those kinds of people, although I wouldn't say "bully" is necessarily the appropriate word to use for their behavior. At any rate, they are, thankfully, fairly unheard of at least on BZP, so far as I've seen. And I appreciate the willingness to hold them accountable when they do pop up.

ET has pointed out the problem with this reasoning several times and it doesn't seem to have stuck, so maybe an actual example will help to demonstrate why this is far more easily said than done. You can tell people to "ignore [the aspects they don't like]" all you want, but that does not work when you have the same people pushing for all of these canonizations simultaneously correcting other fans' interpretations as if they are wrong. And speaking as a role-player, writer, and MOCer, I can tell you that it happens a lot, and there is no logical way to conclude that adding in more details like the Mangai's masks and tools is going to make it happen any less or that it'll be any easier to just "ignore" those details--it can only exacerbate the problem since there'll be more and more details for fact-purists to "correct." I think that this one example of a certain, generally overzealous member (which still blows my mind but whatever), doing something that is unacceptable should not be taken harshly and applied to the rest of the community of fans who would like to know such little details. Boidoh is... an outlier. For lack of a better term. Most of us, such as myself, do not want to bother anyone in the art department with these little details or stunt anyones creativity, I will assure you of that. I personally believe that if you want to present Tahu as wearing a Kanohi Jultin in one of your shorts stories, well go ahead! ###### what is or isn't canon, if it's your art you have ultimate control, and that's just the way I see it. I really don't think that these canonizations should affect anyone's art at all, and if any members scrutinize said art due to what is canon, then I believe certain action should be taken to assure that said member does not repeat something like that again. I agree it wasn't necessarily the best example, but it was fairy convenient to use since I happened upon it earlier. And I don't mean to imply that everyone who is for canonizations is like that--not by a long shot--so I apologize if my wording came off that way. But the fact does remain that these canonizations have more of a negative impact on the imagination-inclined side of the fandom than a lack of canonizations has on the fact-based side. Leave a blank space blank and a given fan's interpretation is just as valid as anyone else's--there is no room for someone to come in and tell that person that their interpretation is "wrong and this is what the canon actually shows." When something like the Mangai's masks and tools suddenly become set in stone, you now have that issue. Not everyone will do it, and not everyone will feel that their stories are invalidated now that there's a canon description, but the fact that it happens at all is a problem that cannot be fixed or helped by more of these out-of-the-blue additions, only worsened. bonesiii keeps on saying that people can stick to their headcanons, and that's all well and good, but the same exact thing can be told to many of the people wanting to canonize little details like the Mangai's masks and tools. All things considered, it's fairer to the fanbase as a whole to keep those details unspecified--at least then no one can lord their interpretation over anyone else if it happens to match with what is officially decided, or obnoxiously correct other people who personally decide on something different.

ET has pointed out the problem with this reasoning several times and it doesn't seem to have stuck, so maybe an actual example will help to demonstrate why this is far more easily said than done. You can tell people to "ignore [the aspects they don't like]" all you want, but that does not work when you have the same people pushing for all of these canonizations simultaneously correcting other fans' interpretations as if they are wrong. And speaking as a role-player, writer, and MOCer, I can tell you that it happens a lot, and there is no logical way to conclude that adding in more details like the Mangai's masks and tools is going to make it happen any less or that it'll be any easier to just "ignore" those details--it can only exacerbate the problem since there'll be more and more details for fact-purists to "correct."

IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: The sudden burst of sand--and the accompanying evolution--caught Lyxek off-guard, and he was forced to cover his face in order to protect his eyes. Only by engaging Endure at the last moment was he able to avoid instantly fainting from the amount of damage given to him. As he staggered and tried to pull away, he found that his arm was still caught in the Ground-Type's massive jaws, ice slowly creeping up his limb. Seeing the bind his Pokémon was in, Kyle stepped forward. "Lyxek, use Reversal!" With a roar, the Dragon-Type gathered power in his free fist, and clenching it, aimed a downward palm smash straight at Aridez's snout . . . IC - Esen Windred/??? - Lumiose City, Streets: Esen's opponent was another woman. She wore a black long coat with a fur collar over what was either a yellow dress or a yellow skirt--the top portion of her outfit was covered by the buttoned-closed coat, and so Esen was not entirely sure. Sandy-blonde hair covered her head, shorter in the back and styled into long, flowing spikes in the front, some of it cascading over the sunglasses that covered her eyes. She held herself with a confident posture, the extra inch or two from her heels making her seem far taller than she truly was. She did nothing for several moments, and then finally nodded. The entire time, Esen felt as if she, too, were being analyzed, though not in the same battle-sense with which she had examined her opponent. The referee's voice suddenly sounded as he announced the rules, though neither combatant responded with more than a short nod in each other's direction. After several moments of looking between them, the referee himself nodded and stepped back, visibly unnerved by the intensity displayed by the pair. At long last, Esen removed a Poké Ball from her belt, tossing it into the air. Krow appeared, flapping his wings and hovering quietly in place as he joined in the stare down. The other woman smiled, unclipping her own Poké Ball and sending out a Donphan. Esen showed no outward sign of her puzzlement at this choice. Either the woman had intentionally set up a type disadvantage, or she had no other option. Given the circumstances--particularly her entire demeanor--the former seemed like the most likely case, and that had to mean that she had some sort of plan. If so, then Esen knew that she would just have to avoid giving her the opportunity to implement it . . . "Krow, use Nasty Plot followed by Dark Pulse!" she ordered. The Dark-Type glowed with a nasty aura as he concocted a malicious scheme, flying into position soon after and gathering energy for his attack. With a caw, the Honchkrow let the attack fly, sending a rain of dark energy upon his opponent. "Donphan, use Rollout and get out of there," the woman said. The Ground-Type curled up, spinning like a wheel and speeding out of the way. A cloud of dust trailed behind him, spit up both by his spinning and by the many Dark Pulses slamming into the ground. Try as Krow might, the attacks simply would not hit--at least until he suddenly dived, trailing only a few feet above his target and launching a volley directly in front of the Donphan. The Ground-Type was caught off guard and swerved out of the way, skidding toward the middle of the battlefield, where he uncurled. The woman smiled, hidden gaze set on the low-flying Honchkrow. "Nice job," she said. "Now, Donphan, use Stone Edge." The Armor Pokémon leaped forward, driving his feet hard against the ground. Large spikes of rock erupted upward in a haphazard line, dozens of obstacles in Krow's path . . . IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Practice Arenas: Sonja smiled, and throwing the Poké Ball in her hand upward, released Poseidon into the water. The Chinchou surfaced, splashing about as--for what felt like the first time in ages--his skills were finally being put to use. "I guess I'll get us started," she said. "Loki, use Rock Slide! Poseidon, use Signal Beam on Aizen!" The Fighting-Type stomped, creating a number of stones that he hurled at the opposing duo. Poseidon dived, and then leaped from the water, launching a beam of energy at the Kadabra . . . IC - DÉOZA AGENT NAUM RHODES - Beheeyem, Dodrio, Walrein, Throh, Venusaur, Scolipede Gavin Braner (Dothe/Dusknoir, Talsim/Alakazam)/Lucia (Bayleef, Gothita)/Roderick Krane (Wattling/Rotom, Harmonics/Beheeyem)/Zack Furler (Predator/Staraptor) - Central Hall, Havoc: The enemy Scolipede could not move quickly enough to avoid the torrent of water headed for it. As a result, the attack connected, washing over it and barely giving the massive insect time or space enough to breathe. Coupled with the burst of electricity that followed seconds later, which was amplified by the soapy water, the attack left the bug staggering on its feet as soon as it got the chance. It took several long moments for it to regain its composure, but when it did, it did so with anger, curling up and barreling toward Wattling with Steamroller. Gothara's Psybeam sent another sharp wave of pain through Throh's mind, though still the Fighting-Type managed to hold on. As the attack subsided, he suddenly broke his stance, eyes glowing as he became wrapped in an aura of jagged energy. With demonic speed, he charged, moving so quickly that it was almost impossible to follow his movements with the naked eye, the pent-up energy from Bide serving as fuel for his retaliation. He appeared to keep the type advantages of the field in mind, choosing not to target his attacker--Gothita--but instead her ally, Baya, letting loose a flurry of powerful kicks and punches that threatened to knock out the Grass-Type in one swift blow. It was pure luck, then, that this happened only after the Bayleef had used her Grasswhistle--and by extension, after the enemy Beheeyem's earlier Safeguard had been Disabled. Walrein attempted to gather energy for another Ice Beam attack, but found itself falling asleep too quickly to unleash it on its opponents. The result was a fizzling-out of the energy in its jaw, dissipating into the air as the walrus's head dropped to the floor, fast asleep. Seeing an opportunity, Gavin pointed. "Talsim, send it at Dodrio!" Talsim did not need to be told twice. Though still recovering from Dodrio's attack, he thrust his hands forward, focusing a Psychic attack on Walrein. The Ice Break Pokémon was lifted into the air, and with a massive heave, hurled toward the resting Dodrio. The Triple Bird Pokémon responded with a level of surprise appropriate for the sight of a flying walrus, and quickly kicked off from the ground to avoid Walrein's impact. The next moment, however, it found itself on the receiving end of a Thunder Punch from an equally-appropriately-angry Dothe, eliciting a loud squawk of pain from the bird. It landed solidly against the wall, and after struggling for a moment to lift itself up, collapsed onto the ground, forcing Rhodes to recall it. Predator landed heavily following Venusaur's surprise attack, and struggled to get up even as Zack ran to his side. Seeing an opportunity, the Seed Pokémon roared and charged, aiming a Take Down attack at the pair . . . Beheeyem silently glanced at Rhodes. It was clear to both of them that the battle was not going well, though the Psychic-Type could not discern why its trainer was not as worried expected . . . Scolipede: Defense Curl/Steamroller > Wattling Throh: Bide > Baya Walrein: Sleeping, Psychically-punted > Dodrio Dodrio: Fainted Venusaur: Take Down > Predator/Zack Beheeyem: Analyzing the battle IC - DÉOZA AGENT DRAGAN ARGALL - Beheeyem, Aegislash, Muk, Sawk, Camerupt, Diggersby Skye Hall (Torchic)/Jamie Arthur (Pelleas/Heracross, Lucan/Vanilluxe, Tristan/Metagross)/Cyan Vero (Typhlosion, Gallade)/Drake Masters (Goodra) - Central Hall, Havoc: Pelleas found himself facing an equally wary Sawk, the Fighting-Type staring down his opponent with an analytic determination not typically known for the species. They circled around each other for several moments, each waiting for the other to move. Finally, the Karate Pokémon bounced forward, thrusting out flame-covered at Pelleas as he combined Dual Chop and Fire Punch into a lightning-fast combination attack. The Diggersby couldn't suppress a smirk at the sight of his attack connecting. Lucan's Uproar, however, quickly wiped that expression away, replacing it with a grimace of pain as the bunny tried to plug its ears. Upon realizing the futility of this action, both due to the shortness of its arms and the sheer sensitivity of the hearing appendages, he settled instead for a Double Kick aimed at the ice cream cone's face. Skye had covered her face in terror at the sight of the Thunderbolt, and only uncovered it when she heard Tristan's declarative roar of protection. She gripped the Human Torchic close to her chest, feeling her own fear radiating from the small Fire-Type's body, and could not utter so much as a "thank you" to her guardian. What she could see was the darkly contemplative look that appeared on the Beheeyem's face across the field as it considered the Metagross's words. It seemed to decided that they were a challenge, as--with an approving chuckle from its trainer--it used Nasty Plot again, and instantly followed that up by launching a Shadow Ball at Tristan. Seeing his allies' current situation, Drake issued a quick set of directions to Goodra. The Dragon-Type smiled, bouncing forward. Using Power Whip, it picked up the still-dazed Camerupt, who half-heartedly fought against the action by kicking weakly at the empty air. This did very little to deter the Goodra, who spun around and launched the camel at Aegislash. The Royal Sword Pokémon's eye widened at the sight, and it activated King's Shield to protect itself; a moment later the Camerupt slammed into it, dealing no damage to the Ghost-Steel-Type but getting knocked out itself in the process. Noting Aegislash's momentary immobility, Gallade telepathically connected with Typhlosion, quickly warning him of what he was about to do. Seconds later, the Fire-Type appeared behind the enemy sword, unleashing a point-blank Lava Plume from below. A torrent of lava enveloped the phantom sword for several long moments, finally dispersing and allowing the fainted ghost to fall forward, limp hands dropping to its side. "Would you still call that luck?" Cyan asked their opponent, nodding in approval to the Team Liberty Pokémon as they came to a short rest in front of him. Argall gritted her teeth, though the action slowly shifted into a dark smile. "Don't pat yourselves on the back yet," she said. "Muk, Sludge Wave!" At her order, the Poison-Type reformed itself. It pulled forth as much energy as it could muster, unleashing it in a massive wave of poisonous liquid that spread out around itself, creating a powerful, vile whirlpool that threatened to encompass all around it--friends and foe alike--stopping only at the Protective sphere that appeared around Argall at her Beheeyem's behest . . . Sawk: Dual Chop/Fire Punch Combination > Pelleas Diggersby: Double Kick > Lucan Beheeyem: Nasty Plot, Shadow Ball > Tristan Camerupt: Fainted Aegislash: Fainted Muk: Sludge Wave > All IC - THIRD CHILD QUINCY ADAMS - Beheeyem/Wizard, Gothitelle/Doll, Abomasnow/Ent, Sudowoodo/Chan, Banette/Voodoo, Mismagius/Witch Ryan Hikari (Tyranitar, Porygon-Z)/Joker (Seer/Alakazam)/James Arthur (Lancelot/Scizor, Percival/Chandelure)/Ethan Worth (Suya/Victreebel, Kada/Torterra) - Central Command, Havoc: A storm of Ice Beam attacks was not something that a normal Grass-Type would want to embrace, but Suya seemed determine to. The Victreebel move forward, screeching in furious challenge at the attacks as they neared. Only when Kada reached forward with a vine, pushing the Flycatcher Pokémon back with a gentle shake of his head, did Suya quiet down. Ethan's proximity to Suya and Kada put him in just as much danger of the onslaught at it did the two Pokémon; for that reason, they--or, at least, Kada--was even more compelled to block the attacks. The Continent Pokémon stepped forward, rooting himself firmly into the ground and issuing a deep bellow. Hundreds of leaves erupted from the interior of his shell and from the tree on his back, condensing into a spinning tornado of leaves around Suya, Ethan, and himself. The Leaf Storm attack proved to be an effective shield, blocking the Ice Beams wherever they hit and instead causing frozen piles of leaves to cascade to the ground. Only when the onslaught stopped--at the forceful prompting of Lancelot, who managed to clip Ent in the jaw despite a sudden Mean Look from Doll--did Kada actually use the move for its intended purpose, sending the storm of leaves flying toward Ent and Doll. The projectiles virtually danced around Lancelot as they flew toward the Abomasnow and Gothitelle, knocking the two back and allowing Kada and Suya to advance forward. As they neared, and as the Leaf Storm began to subside, Ent shook his head, gathering his wits about him in preparation to retaliate. He started to roar, eyes glowing as his Snow Warning ability began to kick in, but a sudden Gastro Acid attack from Suya stopped the incoming hail in its tracks. Ent glared, and then charged, aiming a Hammer Arm at the Victreebel. In response, Suya lashed out with Power Whip, aiming to entangle the Frosted Tree Pokémon before the attack could connect . . . No longer protected by Ent, Doll moved back, quickly sending a Heal Block attack at Lancelot and a Signal Beam at Kada while she waited for another of her allies to assist her. Kada threw himself to the side, moving in front of Lancelot and taking both hits, momentarily grimacing as the latter whittled at his health. . . Stone Edge was one reason to Protect; Smog was another. Add in the presence of Chan and Adams, both susceptible to either attack given a poorly planned deflection, and the protective field became only more lucrative. And so Wizard did, summoning the green field of energy around himself, the Sudowoodo and their trainer. The Stone Edge exploded against the shield, sending shards of rock flying in all directions, while the Smog attack dissipated against it. The Protect only dropped once the latter had fully dispersed, allowing Wizard to move back and open the door for Chan to launch forward with a Hammer Arm at Tyranitar. This left Wizard to keep a watchful eye on Percival, as well as a short opportunity for the ghost to get an attack in if he moved quickly enough . . . The Shadow Ball from Witch proved to be little more than a momentary distraction--a split-second Protect proved that well enough. The shadowy energy bounced harmlessly off the shield, and had not even fully dissipated when Seer moved forward, speed accelerated by psychic energy. Witch eyed the Alakazam uncertainly, realizing at that moment just exactly whom it was up against. She tried to remain calm, focusing on pulling forth another Shadow Ball-- --only to find the energy evaporate before her just as quickly as it appeared. Seer didn't so much as smile at the sight, already knowing that his Disable had taken hold. Lowering that hand, he focused his mind on Witch, enveloping her with his and Joker's signature violet aura, and launched her upward. She barely managed to regain her balance before she slammed into the ceiling, stopped both by her timely recovery and by Voodoo, who had moved to catch her upon noting the Mismagius's plight. Together, they descended, bracketing the Alakazam. Joker scoffed at the sight. Show them why that isn't an effective strategy, Seer. The Alakazam closed his eyes, waiting. When he made no other movements, the two ghosts quickly acted. Witch flashed a crazed grin, sending a flash of energy at the Psi Pokémon, while Voodoo launched a Shadow Claw attack forward. An instant later, Seer vanished. The two Pokémon barely registered this in time to dodge each other's attacks, and then moved back to back, searching for their opponent. He reappeared on top of them, landing with one foot on each of their heads and driving them into the ground. This briefly stunned them, allowing the Alakazam to jump upward and send both skidding against the ground a second later with Psychic . . . "Nice work so far, everyone," Ethan called to his teammates. "If we keep this up, she'll be down in no time." Ent: Hammer Arm > Suya Doll: Mean Look > Lancelot, Heal Block/Signal Beam > Kada (Hit) Wizard: Protect > Self, Adams, Chan Chan: Hammer Arm > Tyranitar Witch: Shadow Ball (Disabled), Confuse Ray > Seer (Missed) Voodoo: Will-o-Wisp > Seer (Missed)

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Practice Arenas: "Oceanic it is," Sonja said, leading the way into the proper tunnel. They emerged in a large pool-like arena, not unlike the battlefield in many a Water-Type Gym. Sturdy platforms jutted out from fairly deep water, providing a field perfect for either land or water-based combat--or both, depending on preferences. Sonja wasted no time in moving to the far end of the field, Loki following her and jumping forward into the fight zone. "You know," Sonja said. "I haven't gotten a chance to use most of my team in a while." She bounced another Poké Ball in her hand. "Why don't we do a Double Battle, four Pokémon each?" IC - DÉOZA AGENT NAUM RHODES - Beheeyem, Dodrio, Walrein, Throh, Venusaur, Scolipede Gavin Braner (Dothe/Dusknoir, Talsim/Alakazam)/Lucia (Bayleef, Gothita)/Roderick Krane (Wattling/Rotom, Harmonics/Beheeyem)/Zack Furler (Predator/Staraptor) - Central Hall, Havoc: Venusaur: Paralyzed, Sweet Scent > All Dodrio: Mirror Move (Ice Punch) > Dothe Walrein: Ice Beam, Iron Tail > Predator There were a number of pressing matters at hand, but the Sweet Scent was making Gavin too light headed to effectively weigh them all. He pulled his jacket sleeve over his hand and covered his mouth, noting the subtle effects that it appeared to be having on his team. For the moment, he pushed this aside, opting to deal with it after assessing the current damage. "Dothe!" Gavin yelled. "Are you okay?" The Ghost-Type looked to him and nodded, a grimace of pain accompanying the motion despite his best efforts to stop it. Though not convinced, his trainer could see the determination in Dothe's expression, and so sighed. "Alright. Stay back for a minute, though. Talsim!" The Psychic-Type teleported back to his trainer. "Disable that Dodrio!" "Not on your life," Rhodes growled. "Dodrio, Agility followed by Feint Attack," The three-headed bird rushed forward, vanishing against the backdrop of battle before Talsim could get a lock on it. Instinctively, the Psychic-Type moved to teleport away, though the Dodrio had reappeared before he could do so, slamming into him. Gavin knew that the drop in evasiveness from Vanusaur's Sweet Scent had certainly not helped there. Still, all was not lost, as Dothe took the opportunity to fire a Will-o-Wisp at the Triple-Bird Pokémon, severely burning it and forcing it back. Talsim pushed himself to his feet, taking a moment to Recover from the attack. Seeing this, the Déoza Agent threw a hand forward. "Walrein, hit it while it's down!" Rhodes ordered. The Ice Break Pokémon snarled, gathering an Ice Beam attack in its mouth and launching it at the enemy. With little time to respond, Gavin reached for Talsim's Poké Ball, hoping to recall the Psychic-Type before the attack could hit. As luck would have it, he did not need to. With a short whistle, Zack had sent Predator forward, the Staraptor conjuring up a Tailwind behind it to drive it forward. It managed to get between Talsim and Walrein in the nick of time, throwing up a Protect that dispersed the Ice Beam into nothingness. With a thankful nod, Talsim rose, fully healed now, and teleported away, looking for a new position to attack from. Predator took flight again, aiming to attack again, but was struck mid-movement by a Power Whip from the now-risen Venusaur . . . Venusaur: Sweet Scent > Talsim, Dothe Dodrio: Agility/Feint Attack > Talsim Dothe: Will-o-Wisp > Dodrio Walrein: Ice Beam > Talsim Predator: Tailwind > Allies, self Predator: Protect > Talsim, self Venusaur: Power Whip > Predator IC - DÉOZA AGENT DRAGAN ARGALL - Beheeyem, Aegislash, Muk, Sawk, Camerupt, Diggersby Skye Hall (Torchic)/Jamie Arthur (Pelleas/Heracross, Lucan/Vanilluxe, Tristan/Metagross)/Cyan Vero (Typhlosion, Gallade)/Drake Masters (Goodra) - Central Hall, Havoc: Muk: Acid Armor, Gunk Shot > GalladeAegislash: King's Shield, Sacred Sword > Typhlosion Camerupt: Earth Power > Goodra "Gallade, Typhlosion, back to me!" Cyan called. The Pokémon did so, stepping away from their targets. "Alright; that didn't seem to go over that well, so let's switch it up. Typhlosion, Extrasensory! Gallade--you know what to do!" "Goodra," Drake said. "Aim again and use Power Whip!" "You can keep trying, kids--nothing's going to work," Argall said. "Muk, Mud Bomb! Aegislash, Night Slash! Camerupt, use Curse and Take Down!" Don't be so sure about that, Cyan thought, smiling in amusement as he watched Argall's half-hidden reaction to what transpired next. Typhlosion breathed a plume of fire forward, disintegrating the Mud Bomb before it could hit, and then sent out a psychic wave that struck Muk and momentarily stunned it. Even when it managed to send out a Gunk Shot, cutting off the Extrasensory, it did little to damage the Fire-Type, who merely dodged out of the way. Gallade charged at Aegislash. The Ghost-Type responded by switching into Attack Forme, and then swinging its bladed body at the Blade Pokémon--only to find that it had cut through thin air. Gallade had teleported behind it, and using his opponent's concentration on attacking to his advantage, unleashed a Will-o-Wisp at it, burning it and sharply hindering its attack capabilities. Aegislash whirled around just in time to catch the Gallade's side with Fury Cutter before he teleported away again, though the attack did not do as much damage as it might have before. Goodra opted to stay back this time, launching a whip-like hand at Camerupt from afar. With an animalistic bellow, the Eruption Pokémon summoned phantom runes across its body, which heightened its defenses and offenses and gave it leave to charge forward with Take Down. It barreled through the Power Whip attack--which merely glanced off of its head--and continued straight toward its attacker, slamming into it. This time, however, Goodra was ready, and as soon as the attack connected, it slammed a glowing fist down on the Camerupt's head, Countering the attack. The Fire-Ground Type slammed face-first into the floor, knocking Goodra back in the process. Argall took a moment to compose herself, and then merely chuckled. "Nice moves," she said, watching as her Pokémon all struggled with their new injuries. "But you just got lucky that round . . ." Muk: Mud Bomb > Typhlosion Typhlosion: Dodge/Flamethrower, Extrasensory > Muk Muk: Gunk Shot > Typhlosion (Missed) Aegislash: Night Slash > Gallade (Missed) Gallade: Teleport, Will-o-Wisp > Aegislash Aegislash: Fury Cutter > Gallade Goodra: Power Whip > Camerupt Camerupt: Curse/Take Down > Goodra Goodra: Counter > Camerupt

IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Kalos: It would have been nice to say that where Cero found some sort of poetic meaning in the Battle Expo, Kyle could find only the joy of battle. But that was not necessarily true. Time and again, seemingly meaningless matches had proven instrumental in deciding the outcomes of hitherto unforeseen situations. So it was understandable that the Liberty Agent was long past the point of taking things easy--as much as he wanted to. Whether for fun or for real, he would give it his all. "Lyxek," Kyle said, lifting an arm to shield his face from the growing sandstorm. "Use Dragon Dance, followed by Dragon Claw!" The Axe Jaw Pokémon swayed on the spot, sizing up the hippo before him as his movements became smoother, more elegant. Then, with a roar of challenge, the Dragon-Type ran forward, leaping at Aridez and swiping with a set of glowing claws . . .

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Halls: Sonja looked at Ryan as he left. "Catch up whenever you can!" she called, though couldn't be sure as to whether or not he had heard her. With a shrug to Ray, she continued toward the arenas. It did not take long to get there. Once again she and Ray found themselves at a crossroads, given the option of choosing one of several specialized arenas--an Ice field, a Meadow field, a Volcanic field, or a Water field. "I'll let you pick," she said, leaning against Loki as she contemplated the options herself. IC - Kyle Eston - Lumiose City, Streets: Kyle couldn't say for sure whether he was surprised or not by this coincidence. Either way, he wasn't one to complain. He gave Cero a short salute and a friendly nod. "Glad you made it," he said. At that moment, the battle announcer stepped up to the field. "Attention, trainers," he said. "As per Battle Expo rules, this will be a traditional singles match. Each side will send out one Pokémon at a time, using no more than three Pokémon each." Both trainers nodded. "If you both are ready, you may begin." Kyle grabbed a Poké Ball from his belt. "Hope you're ready!" he called, and with a flick of his wrist had sent Lyxek, his Fraxure, onto the field. IC - DÉOZA AGENT NAUM RHODES - Beheeyem, Dodrio, Walrein, Throh, Venusaur, Scolipede Gavin Braner (Dothe/Dusknoir, Talsim/Alakazam)/Lucia (Bayleef, Gothita)/Roderick Krane (Wattling/Rotom, Harmonics/Beheeyem)/Zack Furler (Predator/Staraptor) - Central Hall, Havoc: Bayleef: Poison Powder > Beheeyem Gothita: Confusion > Throh Rotom: Thunder Wave > Venusaur Beheeyem: Psychic > Venusaur Alakazam: Disable Dusknoir: Ice Punch > Dodrio Staraptor: Close Combat > Walrein Gavin nodded to Lucia. "Dothe, Ice Punch on Dodrio!" he called. "Talsim, prepare a Disable, on my mark!" "Predator, use Close Combat on Walrein!" Zack ordered. The thin Déoza Agent chuckled as he watched his opponents mobilize before him. "Team," he said, that same, distorted tone of lethality lingering on his voice. "Respond." Just like that, his Pokémon charged forward to meet their attackers. Beheeyem floated just on the outer peripheral of the poisonous cloud, raising a hand forward. Its eyes glowed as a protective blue light surrounded itself and its teammates, the Safeguard ensuring that such tricks would not work against it--at least for a split second, as in the next instant Gavin had directed Talsim to Disable the other Psychic-Type's protective field. Afterward, it flicked a finger forward, directing a Signal Beam at its Grass-Type opponent. Venusaur tensed up as the Thunder Wave paralyzed its body, rendering it temporarily immobile. Harmonics's Psychic quickly followed, knocking the Grass-Type back several steps and clearly injuring it. With little it could do physically, the Seed Pokémon settled on releasing a Sweet Scent into the room, concentrated enough that it would hopefully affect most of its enemies. At the same time, its Scolipede ally noted the trouble it was in, and with a shrill screech charged toward Harmonics with a Megahorn attack. Throh had charged forward, only to be stopped in its tracks by Gothita's Confusion. It appeared to endure the attack, though made no further effort to move for the time being, merely closing its eyes and concentrating. Though Dothe had slipped into the shadows in his attempt to attack the Dodrio, its watchful nature proved keen enough to sense the direction from which he would attack. Thus it was able to dodge his Ice Punch, dancing around the larger Pokémon with frightening speed before lunging forward, a glossy coat of energy appearing around it with the movement. In an instant it had landed a Mirrored Ice Punch on Dothe, knocking him backwards and with a partially-frozen midsection. Walrein wasted no time in launching a stream of Ice Beam attacks at the approaching Predator, though the Flying-Type managed to dodge around these with ease as it closed in. The attacks came to an abrupt halt as the Staraptor landed a solid hit on the Ice Break Pokémon, darting around the larger opponent and slashing at it each time. Though these stunned it for several moments, the Ice-Water-Type eventually managed to steel itself, and then retaliated with an Iron Tail attack that knocked Predator several feet away, grimacing in pain from the impact. Beheeyem: Safeguard (Disabled), Signal Beam > Bayleef Venusaur: Paralyzed, Sweet Scent > All Scolipede: Megahorn > Harmonics Throh: Halted Dodrio: Mirror Move (Ice Punch) > Dothe Walrein: Ice Beam, Iron Tail > Predator IC - DÉOZA AGENT DRAGAN ARGALL - Beheeyem, Aegislash, Muk, Sawk, Camerupt, Diggersby Skye Hall (Torchic)/Jamie Arthur (Pelleas/Heracross, Lucan/Vanilluxe, Tristan/Metagross)/Cyan Vero (Typhlosion, Gallade)/Drake Masters (Goodra) - Central Hall, Havoc: Vanilluxe: Ice Beam > Diggersby Heracross: Aerial Ace > Sawk Typhlosion: Flamethrower > Aegislash Gallade: Double Team, Psycho Cut > Muk Goodra: Aqua Tail > Camerupt "Typhlosion, Flamethrower!" Cyan called. "Gallade, Double Team and Psycho Cut!" On it! Gallade replied. The Blade Pokémon charged forward, psychic powers working to create illusionary copies of itself nearby. Typhlosion reared his head back, gathering forth powerful flames within its jaws. "Goodra, take out that Camerupt with Aqua Tail!" Drake said. The Dragon-Type nodded and moved as fast as it could, leaping up and preparing a powerful Water-Type attack for its target. The Déoza Agent responded swiftly. "Muk, Acid Armor!" she ordered. "Diggersby, power through with a Bounce and Hammer Arm combination! Camerupt, intercept with Earth Power!" In roughly that order: The Muk dissolved into a puddle at the exact moment that Gallade and his clones would have struck. As the Blade Pokémon regained his bearings, the Poison-Type suddenly reformed behind it, launching off a Gunk Shot straight into the small of Gallade's back. The blow knocked him forward, though he managed to roll back onto his feet using the attack's momentum. With a wide grin across his face, the Diggersby leaped toward Lucan, using its massive ears to cover its face as it plowed through the Ice Beam attack. Though the beams appeared to damage it, it did not slow down, and as it got within range of its attacker its left ear began to glow, coming down hard in a powerful Hammer Arm attack. Sawk waited, watching Pelleas with a cold eye. As soon as the Heracross had struck, dealing damage to Sawk in the process, the Fighting-Type's eyes flashed, and it locked its arms around the beetle's horn. He spun on the spot, hurling his opponent away with Counter. The plume of fire slammed harmlessly against Aegislash's shield, appearing to deal little to no damage to the Royal Blade Pokémon. As soon as the assault had subsided, it lunged forward, shifting back into attack mode and swinging at Typhlosion with Sacred Sword. The Fire-Type barely managed to dodge, and even then still suffered a noticeable hit from the phantom sword. With a roar of challenge, Camerupt prompted the ground beneath Goodra to explode before its attack could connect, sending the Dragon-Type flying into the air. It managed to right itself and land on its feet, though now watched the camel with a far more cautious eye. The Beheeyem, meanwhile, hovered back, watching and waiting, devising a Nasty Plot in its head. As it scanned the field, it noticed the lone trainer contributing nothing to its opponents efforts. And with a maniacal little giggle, it summoned another bolt of energy in its hand, launching it toward Skye and The Human Torchic . . . Muk: Acid Armor, Gunk Shot > Gallade Diggersby: Bounce/Hammer Arm > Lucan Sawk: Counter > Pelleas Aegislash: King's Shield, Sacred Sword > Typhlosion Camerupt: Earth Power > Goodra Beheeyem: Nasty Plot, Thunderbolt > Skye/Torchic IC - THIRD CHILD QUINCY ADAMS - Beheeyem/Wizard, Gothitelle/Doll, Abomasnow/Ent, Sudowoodo/Chan, Banette/Voodoo, Mismagius/Witch Ryan Hikari (Tyranitar, Porygon-Z)/Joker (Seer/Alakazam)/James Arthur (Lancelot/Scizor, Percival/Chandelure)/Ethan Worth (Suya/Victreebel, Kada/Torterra - Central Command, Havoc: Ethan was about to reply when a sharp laugh emerged from the other side of the field. He shifted his attention back to Adams just in time for Kada to pull him out of the way of a Shadow Ball from Witch. "You talking doesn't mean I'm waiting!" Adams called. And she was right, for her other Pokémon were also moving. Doll's eyes glowed as she focused on Ent, using Helping Hand to power up the Frosted Tree Pokémon's attacks. He took full advantage of this, taking the opportunity to launch a flurry of Ice Beam attacks at Suya and Kada, his recognition and dislike of Ethan evidently fueling the assault on his Pokémon. Chan hung back towards Adams, swaying back and forth on the balls of his feet, seeming to wait for something. Appearing to find that something, the Rock-Type swung its fists into the ground, prompting an explosion of dozens of spiky rocks from the ground around hismelf, Wizard, and Adams, as if trying to hit something that may or may not have been there . . . Voodoo floated forward, high above the battle field, and scanned the ground for suitable targets. Noting Lancelot and Tyranitar's presence, he gathered up dark fire in his hands, raining Will-o-Wisps down upon these two enemies in an attempt to weaken them. Witch appeared before Joker and Seer, chuckling as they both readied themselves to fight. With a suitable cackle, she gathered up dark energy, launching it forth in a sphere at Seer. Meanwhile, Wizard, too, remained by Adams's side; and as he scanned the field, he suddenly focused on Porygon-Z, eyes glowing as he attempted to mark the Normal-Type with Miracle Eye. Gothitelle/Doll: Helping Hand > Abomasnow Abomasnow/Ent: Ice Beam > Suya, Kada Sudowoodo/Chan: Stone Edge > Percival Banette/Voodoo: Will-o-Wisp > Lancelot, Tyranitar Mismagius/Witch: Shadow Ball > Seer Beheeyem/Wizard: Miracle Eye > Porygon-Z OOC: Now would be a good time to mention that I'll let you guys count these battles as 3. And I don't know if I ever gave that same confirmation for the Sootopolis Battle against Groudon--but same deal there.

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Hallway: "That's good," Sonja said. She stood there for several minutes, waiting for someone to break the silence. Loki soon took notice and glanced at her, and then at Ray, and then at Ryan, utterly confused. Finally, the Liberty Agent cleared her throat. "Well. We were going to go have a practice battle." Pause. "So . . . If you want to tag along, feel free to--we'll just be in the arenas. And such." After bouncing on her heels for a few moments, Sonja forced a thin smile-like expression, and clapping her hands together before walking forward. IC - Kyle Eston/Esen Windred - Lumiose City, Streets: The interruption had actually come from outside, where a loud, booming voice had begun to sound. Kyle's attention was immediately drawn toward it, away from his and Esen's conversation. She briefly paused with her mouth still open, hesitant to continue speaking, before deciding to wait and pick up the topic later. In the meantime, she glanced down at her plate as Kyle turned back to her, nodding toward the door. "Sounds like that battle expo is getting started," he asked. "Wanna check it out?" Esen thought it over. "Sure," she said at last, figuring that there was little else to do. Plus, it might give her an opportunity to forcibly get his undivided attention. She followed his lead, pushing herself to her feet and heading outside, into the chaos of the parade and hullabaloo that had accompanied the expo's organization. What happened from there could only be described as a whirlwind. One moment it seemed that they were watching an opening speech of some sort; the next, they had been pulled over to a sign-up table by an over-excitable volunteer, who practically signed them up as soon as they had bumped into them. In virtually the blink of an eye, they had been split up and escorted to separate battle fields, each taking a spot at one end of their respective arenas. For Kyle, the feeling was both exhilarating and terrifying. On the one hand, he almost felt as if this was a second chance at the public tournament that had gone so poorly in Driftveil City, and in that way he was excited to try his hand at public battling again--no tricks, no stakes, purely for fun. Yet, on the other hand, he hadn't done anything "for fun" in so long, outside of attending the dance . . . And the old woman's vision still hung heavily on his thoughts . . . Only the sight of his approaching opponent could help to distract him from its weight. He took a moment to observe them . . . Esen, too, felt apprehensive about participating in such a public battle, though for entirely different reasons. She had never set foot on a stage before--in fact, all of her life up to this point, up to the night of the dance, had been spent trying to avoid them. Out of the public eye, she was at her most comfortable, for it was all that she knew. That coupled with the nature of this expo . . . Ace's daughter shuddered to think of a worse combination of factors. Her opponent soon appeared, and it was the sight of them that made her realize the utter futility in trying to escape. So, instead, she chose to try to put aside her misgivings, scanning her target to determine which of her Pokémon to use . . . OOC: Vs. Quincy Adams Part II IC - Quincy Adams/Maxie/Michael Travis/Lidiya Vasilyev/Ryan Hikari/Joker/Ethan Worth/Gavin Braner/Skye Hall/Jamie Arthur/Lucia/James Arthur/Cyan Vero/Roderick Krane/Drake Masters/Zack Furler: "Surrender?" Adams chuckled at the word. It was a dangerous sound, a breath so light yet heavy enough that it might sink its fangs into one's throat as soon as it reached them. The Third Child unclasped her hands, slowly moving them from behind her back. "But . . . The fun's just starting." As if on cue, two armored Déoza agents appeared on either side of her, one easily six feet tall and towering over the other two, the second a thin individual only slightly taller than Adams with a frame evoking a the form of skeleton. Both were accompanied by their own Beheeyem, and both immediately moved to fight. The larger agent's Psychic-Type pulled its hands back, cupping them together and launching a bolt of electricity toward the group, while the smaller's Analyzed the group, briefly connecting its mind with its allies. At the same moment, Adams took a step back, a small smile etched across her lips; Joker took a step forward, signaling for her allies to attack; and from atop the iron prison, Wizard lifted a hand, his eyes glowing an ethereal white. Tapping into an untold power, the Beheeyem appeared to freeze time and warp space for what felt like eternity, but was in reality only the briefest of moments. In that span, the group divided and the halls within Havoc twisted, expanding and transforming around the fighters . . . IC - DÉOZA AGENT NAUM RHODES - Beheeyem, Dodrio, Walrein, Throh, Venusaur, Scolipede Gavin Braner/Lucia/Roderick Krane/Zack Furler - Central Hall, Havoc: The white faded from Gavin's eyes at a slow pace. When everything had cleared, he found that he had more or less remained stationary, though the world around him appeared to have changed completely. The walls and floor seemed to expand forward upward and outward, with no end in sight to the place; and yet the metal of the floor seemed the same as it had been before. Around him, three others--Lucia, and two of the Liberty Agents, whose names he did not know--were recovering from the . . . The what? The teleportation? Reality shift? He did not quite know what to call it. And with the disappearance of the others--including Jamie, Skye, Ethan, and Joker--he was not entirely sure if he could think of a proper name for what had happened, or for the mixture of emotions in his gut. But what he did know was that the tall and thin Déoza Agent stood several meters in front of them, swinging in wide circles what appeared to be five Poké Balls attached to strings. He eyed the group coldly, expression invisible behind his helmet, though his posture did more than enough to spell out the disdain with which he viewed his opponents. Behind him, his Beheeyem hovered, fingers slowly cycling through different colors. When at last the group had all recovered, he straightened up. "Team Rocket and Team Liberty," he said, voice heavily distorted by a device within his helmet. "Two sides of the same coin, so perpetually ill at ease, so sorry in their story . . ." In a series of six flashes, his entire team had emerged onto the field before him. "And so the story will end, though not happily . . ." Gavin slowly reached to his belt, unclipping two Poké Balls of his own, noticing that Zack, too, had chosen a Pokémon. "I dare you," he said. "To try whatever you think will work." Zack nodded. "We won't go down so easily." Almost in sync, the two released their Pokémon, bringing Talsim, Dothe, and Predator the Staraptor to the field. IC - DÉOZA AGENT DRAGAN ARGALL - Beheeyem, Aegislash, Muk, Sawk, Camerupt, Diggersby Skye Hall/Jamie Arthur/Cyan Vero/Drake Masters - Central Hall, Havoc: Where Gavin was confused, Skye was terrified. This mission had gone badly. This mission had gone so badly. She virtually quaked in her boots as the odd reality unfolded around her, as she realized how utterly unprepared for this kind of situation she was. It took all of her willpower to avoid collapsing to the ground in fear at the sight of the hulking, armor-clad woman striding toward her and the other three trainers around her. The Déoza Agent came to a heavy stop not far away, a wide grin spread across the exposed lower-half of her face as she observed her prey. Her Beheeyem hovered nearby; it occurred to Skye that it seemed to radiate with a burnt orange aura, a color unpleasant at best. "Can't say I'm disappointed in my share of the crop," she said, her voice a harsh sound that almost seemed out of place even coming from her figure. The Déoza Agent threw her hands forward, launching five Poké Balls into the air. From them, five Pokémon emerged, joining her Beheeyem. "Prepare to die." "Hope you Rockets are ready," Drake said, eyes set determinedly on his opponents as he released his Goodra. "We're going to need to work together here, Drake," Cyan cautioned, even as he sent out his own Typhlosion and Gallade. He looked at Skye, noting her hesitance, and gave her a reassuring nod. "Let's not lose sight of who our enemy is, right?" Skye nodded back, though still quivered in fear. Nonetheless, she lifted a Poké Ball, releasing The Human Torchic onto the field. And as the Fire-Type realized just what kinds of odds it was up against, so, too, did Skye fully understand just how out of her element she was. IC - THIRD CHILD QUINCY ADAMS - Beheeyem, Gothitelle, Abomasnow, Sudowoodo, Banette, Mismagius Ryan Hikari/Joker/James Arthur/Ethan Worth - Central Command, Havoc: They were no longer in the hall. A control central buzzed all around them, littered with Magma bodies and broken computers, though the entire place seemed to waver and warp as they looked around. The unconscious form of Guinevere lay near James, the Psychic-Type having taken the Thunderbolt meant for Jamie beofre the teleportation. But it was not the surroundings that concerned Ethan, the odd reality nor the bodies--it was the disappearance of his allies, his friends. Joker may have been okay, but that was not enough, and this certainly proved true as panic began to rise in his chest. Skye? Ethan looked around. Gavin? Lucia! Jamie! "Adams!" he called. "What did you do!?" "Save your energy," Joker snapped to his left, though she, too, appeared somewhat unnerved as she rubbed her head. "Something tells me we're going to need all the strength we can muster . . ." "I'd say that's an accurate assumption." The four trainers looked up. The iron prison holding Maxie, Vasilyev, and Travis swung like a pendulum from a massive chain above; from a nearby balcony, Adams looked down at them, Wizard floating just above her shoulder. "Though, to answer your question, Worth, it's simple: I called back-up and split you up. I wasn't about to make the same mistake as Hayes, after all." Ryan tensed at this. Adams chuckled, and smirked at Joker's reaction to her next comment: "Or Leviathan." The psychic pulse sent by Joker dissipated harmlessly around the Ford Agent. Adams jumped over the edge, letting her Pokémon carry her to safety. When she had landed, she tossed the remaining five Poké Balls on her belt, releasing her team. "But enough with that," she said. "You're not going to win tonight. Even if you beat me, those three--" She gestured to the cage. "--are all dead." With a snap of her fingers, the container vanished, teleported away by Wizard. Adams laughed. "Just like that--three ants, gone into the volcano. What fun!" Her eyes narrowed. "And once we're done here, you four can join them." "I can't believe you . . ." Ethan growled, his hands shaking. He could only stare at Adams for several moments, before forcing himself to send out Kada--and, after a moment's hesitation, Suya. "Normally I don't threaten people . . . but you need to pay for this, Quincy. All of it." "Try me," she replied. "Use as many Pokémon as you want. You're still going to lose." "No," Joker said. She held a hand out, sending forth Seer. "I only need one. I suggest you prepare yourself, you insolent brat."

So I'm going through old PMs and I'm finding that there are a looot of recaps and misc suggestions that could be helpful/interesting/logical and yet never made it into the public eye. So I'm going to post them here for future use/compilation. =) Also note that some information is contradicted by more recent story. In those cases, it's probably a better idea to go with the more recent things than what was said in the past, especially if evidence of the older explanations never actually made it into the story. Or you can always ask--that works, too. Misc Suggestions/Recaps That's about a page's worth of information. Will add more in a separate post. EDIT: More.

IC - Joker/Ethan Worth/Gavin Braner/Skye Hall/Jamie Arthur/Lucia Z./James Arthur/Cyan Vero/Drake Masters/Zack Furler/Magma Scientist - Havoc, Main Halls: The group of trainers had made their way up several stories, still encountering no living beings, when they finally happened upon something. It occurred as they were coming out of a stairwell near the main hall. The sound of rapidly-falling footsteps announced the approach of the man before anyone saw him; before long, he had rounded the corner, running full speed, and passed them by. His white lab coat indicated that he was a scientist, and the look of utter terror on his face--particularly the way he looked over his shoulder, as if to make sure he was not being followed--indicated that something was not right in the place he had come from. The sound of shattering ice that came from that direction a moment later piqued the group's interest even further. "Let's go," Cyan said. "I'd bet money that that's where we'll find our target." And so they went. IC - Quincy Adams/Maxie/Michael Travis/Lidiya Vasilyev - Havoc, Central Command: "Cute analogy," Adams said. "But you forgot the part where the monster squashes the bug." Doll readied herself for the attack. As the Signal Beam struck, a mirror-like wall of energy appeared around her. Though the force of the attack forced her to take a step back, she regained that ground when she redirected the energy back at Porygon-Z, her Mirror Coat attack putting an extra push behind it. Luckily for the Normal-Type, it had plenty of time to see the attack coming and was able to dodge, though could only avoid the attack by moving backwards. A moving green monkey was not difficult to spot, and so Ent was able to prepare for Simisage's attack with a degree of ease. Instead of aiming to intercept the Acrobatic assault with a swing of an arm or a burst of energy, the Abomasnow stepped back, slamming his hand against the floor and unleashing an Ice Beam attack. Spikes of solid ice sprung up from the ground, a barrier between himself and the enemy Grass-Type that would stop any direct hits. As Simisage landed against the spikes, Abomasnow pulled his arm back, throwing a Focus Punch at the ice just as Simisage pushed off from it. Though splinters of crystal shot off in every direction, it was likely that actual damage to the newly-evolved Pokémon would be minimal. Tyranitar's interception likely would have worked, had Wizard been slightly further back. But, as things were, it floated directly in front of Vasilyev and her Meowstic, Synchronzied waves of psychic energy bearing down on them with agonizing force. That was not to say that the Armor Pokémon did not manage to interrupt the Beheeyem, oh no; it simply meant that the Tyranitar itself was behind its target. The same target that quickly teleported away, leaving Meowstic to take the hit. The Psychic-Type was thrown back into her trainer, knocking Vasilyev off her feet and several meters back from the impact. Luckily, it seemed that the two were not dead, only dazed--for now. A moment later, Wizard appeared above the pair, enveloping them in psychic energy and disappearing again, prisoners in tow. They materialized again behind Quincy, who approached the unconscious woman and, taking Meowstic's Poké Ball from her belt, recalled the Psychic-Type. Vasilyev soon found herself planted to the wall in the same manner as Maxie and Travis, both of whose mouths were now covered by twisted sheets of metal. "You know what's sad about all this?" Adams asked, her question directed at no one in particular. "Everything could have gone so much more smoothly if you all had simply sat down and accepted your fate." She sighed, turning to face Ryan. "What a shame." The wall and door rumbled as Wizard took hold of its numerous components. With a horrid screech, the metal bent and twisted, forming a massive cocoon around Adams's three prisoners. A flood of light accompanied this due to the sudden removal of a barrier between the hallway and the command center; when Ryan's vision cleared, he would find Adams standing in front of a large, egg-like block of metal, from which her prisoners could be heard, futilely hammering their fists against the walls of their prison. Past this, the Magma command center loomed like a ghost town, littered by the bodies of dozens of Magma agents, taken out by Wizard's earlier mental strike. Whether they were alive or dead could not be determined from such a far distance, though the likelihood of their being alive was, admittedly, fairly low. "Of course," Adams said, walking slowly around the prison pod. "Tougher situations are more fun, so who am I to complain?" She laughed. "Wizard, I think it's about time we get rid of these three. Teleport them outside, won't you?" The Beheeyem nodded, focusing on the prison. Psychic energy began to envelop it once again, as he prepared to transport it outside, into the volcano that surrounded Havoc. A sudden flash cut him off. Wizard beeped in confusion, finding that his teleportation abilities no longer worked, having been Disabled. Adams had just opened her mouth to say something when a new voice cut in, this one lined with a deadly edge: "Not on your life." The Ford Agent turned back toward the hallway, exasperated at the thought of yet another distraction. Behind Ryan, a large group at arrived, Joker at its head, along with her Alakazam. There appeared to be ten or so trainers in total, several of whom she recognized--particularly Ethan Worth, the puppet she had used to seal the Unown away. And now that she had a face to put to the voice, she knew that it had been Cyan Vero, agent of Team Liberty, who had spoken. Adams trained a careful eye on the group, cupping her hands together behind her back and stepping toward them. Doll and Ent moved beside her, while Wizard hung back, Analyzing the situation and keeping a psychic field around the egg in order to block any . . . intrusions. "Well," Adams said at length. "This is . . . unexpected." Behind her back, she pressed a button on her Pokétch. "Evidently you were serious when you announced your ceasefire . . ." OOC: Going to have to request for my sanity that each individual character use only one or two Pokémon at any given time for this upcoming battle.

IC - Sonja Baron - The Alamo, Hallway: Well. That was unexpected. When the door opened, Sonja had not expected Ryan to come out. Immediately following that, he ran into Loki, which would have been awkward enough without the stunned look that appeared on his face when he saw Sonja and Ray. All things considered, Sonja could not blame him--she, too, could not quite find a proper greeting for the occasion. Luckily, she didn't have to. After getting over his initial surprise and recognizing Ryan, Loki gave a laugh of joy, and after dropping the two halves of his girder to the ground, pulled Ryan into a friendly hug. The action pulled Sonja back to her senses, enough that she was able to shake her head clear. "Ryan," she said, keenly aware of how much effort she was putting into speaking in a normal manner. "What's up?" IC - Quincy Adams/Maxie/Michael Travis/Lidiya Vasilyev/Styles - Havoc, Central Command: A protective field suddenly arose before the smirking Doll, deflecting Dewott's Night Slash with an air of boredom. The Protect quickly dissipated, and as soon as it did, the Gothitelle slid her hands forward as if she were giving the Water-Type a gift. A Signal Beam shot forward, aimed directly for Dewott. Styles's Pangoro roared out in pain. It did so three more times as Ent slammed three more Focus Punches into its side, before hefting the Daunting Pokémon into the air and launching it back at its trainer. In the process, Pangoro's body flew into the path of Porygon2's Tri-Attack, whose freezing effects quickly took hold. The Fighting-Dark-Type froze solid in the air, and a moment later landed with a horrid crash in front of Styles. The Energon Agent could hardly process what had just happened. "Pan . . . Pangoro . . ." he stammered, brain stuck halfway between shock and anger. He had barely managed to return his Pokémon to its container when a heavy and rapid thudding began to worm its way through his ears, the sound of something very large running his way. "Styles!" Vasilyev called. Then, more frantically, "STYLES, GET OUT OF THERE!" But it was too late. By the time Styles looked up, Ent was already upon him. The Frosted Tree Pokémon threw a hand forward, catching the Energon Agent's face in its grip. Ent lifted him off the ground, claws shimmering with icy power. Styles struggled the entire way. With a flash, he stopped moving, his body freezing utterly solid from the Abomasnow's point-blank Ice Beam. With a firm squeeze that elicited a sharp crack and a spray of splintered ice, Ent nonchalantly tossed the body aside. "A monster, huh?" Adams repeated. She shrugged. "I would think that depends on your interpretation of the word. Then again, I suppose you would know all about that, wouldn't you?" The Third Child smiled. "Besides, better a monster than an insect, am I right?" Vasilyev pushed herself up, immediately sending out her Meowstic. "Meowstic, use Shadow Ball, now!" The Psychic-Type did not need to be told twice. Gathering energy in her hands, she launched the attack at Adams herself. The Ford agent merely chuckled at this, sidestepping out of the way of the attack. In retaliation, she directed Wizard forward, the Psychic-Type teleporting in front of Vasilyev and Meowstic and unleashing a direct Synchronize attack upon both of them . . . IC - Eileen Alaric/Jackson Sang - Alaric Estate, Fireside Lounge: Previous post The roaring fire cast the finely-decorated sitting room with a yellowish tint. Sang and Eileen sat in separate armchairs before the flames, angled slightly so that they could still see each other. On the low table before them lay a tray with hot water and various drink mixes. Sang sipped carefully from his mug, the sweet taste of hot chocolate daring to bite at his tongue. Eileen simply stared into the fire, eyes glossily reflected the thoughts swirling in her mind. She held Levi's drawings close to her stomach, fingers loose around the paper. Sang's team snoozed around the room, providing obstacles for the Alarics' maid as she went about tidying up the room. It did not take long for her depart. At the sound of the door closing, Eileen took a long, slow breath, as if realizing where she was. "I don't know where to begin . . ." she said, her voice quiet. She leaned forward, resting a hand against her face and shifting her gaze to the floor in front of her. "I really don't . . ." Sang remained silent, only watching as Eileen composed herself, gathered her thoughts in a series of small head shakes and false starts of speech. At last, pictures grasped tightly in her hand, she looked at him. "I guess . . . the war's as good a place as any, isn't it? That's how these stories always start . . ." Eileen shook her head. "Mr. Sang . . . I mentioned that Levi likes the forest, didn't I?" Sang nodded. "I meant it. That's his place--his home, I'd even dare to say. It's the only place he's ever felt truly comfortable, so he spends a lot of time out there. I'm not one to stop that. But Elijah . . ." Eileen looked down at her hands. "Elijah worries. This war with Team Liberty, with Ford, with everyone else--it's made our family a lot of enemies. And at any time, someone could come and attack one of us. Elijah and I can handle ourselves, but Levi . . . He's so young . . ." "Even kids can be strong," Sang said. "But I understand where you're coming from." "You say that now . . ." Eileen said, unable to hold back a short, bitter laugh. "I wish I could believe that . . . Times have changed, Mr. Sang. The world is more dangerous now. And while it's slightly better today than a year ago . . ." She paused. "A year ago . . . That's about when it happened. Things were getting bad. Team Liberty was getting more desperate; I remember the Shadow Admins talking about how they were on the verge of victory, how one more push would end the war. But that was before things exploded in ways that no one could have imagined . . ." A sigh. "With desperation comes hostility. That's what Elijah said. He wanted to protect Levi, and so told him that he was not to leave the house unless one of us were with him. And that might have been fine, if we weren't so ###### busy. If Levi had actually followed that, then the poor kid would never have been allowed out of the house . . . so I can't blame him for disobeying. Can you?" "I can see why something like that might be an issue," Sang said. There was a lengthy pause. "So what did he do, exactly?" "The same thing as always: He went into the forest. Same, predictable Levi, spending his time out there in the deep brush, away from the house and yet so close by . . ." Eileen sunk into her seat, gazing forward with cloudy eyes. "I don't know how the fire started, that day. I don't remember a lot, in all honesty--everything's a blur. Perhaps it was an accident; perhaps not. Whatever it was, it was bad--worse than anything he could have been prepared for." She lifted her hands to her face, covering her eyes. Her voice shifted into a weak tone, shaking as the fear and horror came rushing back to her. "Can you imagine something like that? Being alone in a burning forest, surrounded by fire on every side? Choking on smoke, blinded . . . If it weren't for his Phantump, he might not have made it out alive. Even then . . ." Eileen took a deep breath, steadying herself. "Something caught fire, something volatile, and it popped right as they were passing by it." Sang's jaw clenched. Eileen straightened up in her seat. "I'll never forget those burns . . . that pain . . ." She moved her hands, indicating the exact spots as she spoke. "Left side, base of the neck down to the bottom rib--shoulder included, going midway down his arm--that entire section of his body . . ." Eileen shuddered. "We found him by the tree, just . . . lying there in shock, not responding . . . I thought we'd lost him . . ." Her left hand started to shake. She gripped it tightly with her right, holding it close as she struggled to keep talking. "Elijah was furious. And things . . . things took a turn for the worse after that. And the entire time--the entire time that the war was beginning to fall apart--all I could think about . . . those burns . . . I don't know if he . . . if he ever really recovered . . ." She trailed off. The crackling fire punctuated the weight in the air, as not even Sang's Pokémon moved anymore, enthralled as they were--as Sang was--with what they had heard. Eileen closed her eyes, clearly working as hard as she could to keep her emotions under control despite the pain she felt. The only other sound was the ticking of a tall grandfather clock, which chimed as it struck the hour. After a while, Sang shifted in his seat. "I'm sorry you're having to go through this again," he said, very quietly. "But I think this might make it easier to understand what's happening with him now, if we can find the rest of the puzzle pieces." He sighed, shooting a glance at Eileen. "Um . . . If you need to cry, I can . . . you know . . . step out . . ." She shook her head, pressing a steadied hand to her eye. "How will that help anything?" Eileen asked. "I don't want to mourn anymore--I don't have time for that. I just want to find him." She pushed herself back onto her feet, grabbing her coat and walking to the door. "Crying can wait until the end."