Pokémon: Rise Of The Rockets

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra

Evan was literally dragged away from his thoughts of what to do, by Jenny of all people. The Hero hadn't expected her to pull him away or lead the way back to the ship. He'd noticed Jenny's torn clothing, and wondered if that had anything to do with her absence at the battle between Aspen and Xander.

The Plasma Agent wondered if Jenny had gotten into a fight somehow. Evan knew Jenny was strong, thanks to training her in Nimbasa City, he just wasn't sure how strong she really was.

Whatever it was, it certainly hadn't sapped Jenny of her strength, as her dragging Evan had proven. "Mind telling me what's up?" Evan asked playfully, as they approached the boat. "You look like you've fought a war! Mind looping me in as to why?"



 

Edited April 4, 2016 by Hades

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan/Paul

Ryan and Mr. Burks had followed shortly after Aspen and Aria to the Pokémon Network Center. When they arrived, the glass doors slid open to reveal an exhausted Xander sprawled across three chairs, presumably waiting for Sylph to be healed. Aspen was still at the counter, handing a Pokéball to the nurse. Ryan sat down across from Xander and waved the Seaton boy over. "Any idea why Aria didn't offer to use her aura powers earlier?" he asked as Aspen approached.

 

"I'm still kicking myself for not thinking of it sooner," Paul said heavily, flopping down in a seat next to Ryan. "Imagine if Ellen was still in Hoenn; we'd have wasted this entire trip to the Sevii Islands when we could have just been scouring the region we were already in."

 

"With the presence President Pierce has in Hoenn, it wouldn't surprise me," Ryan said darkly. "But at the same time, it almost feels too obvious, like Ford would expect that to be the first place we'd look."

 

IC: Togie

Unbeknownst to most of the onlookers, Togie had watched the entire battle between Aspen and Xander. When the fight had finished, the Togekiss wanted to make his way back to Ryan. The firm hand of Ray held him back.

 

Togie beat his wings in protest, but a soft cooing from Orihime gave him second thoughts about abandoning the orange-haired trainer. Ryan's instructions had been clear: the pair of Togekiss were to look out for Ray and keep him company. If Ray didn't wish to see Ryan at that moment, then neither could Togie. With a frustrated sigh of indignation, the Togekiss sat himself on the ground and trained a sour look on Ray. The trainer was really living up to the name of his faction, separating himself from the others.

 

After several moments of silent pouting, the sound of battle reached Togie's ears once more. He glanced up and saw Dahlia battling against a girl he didn't recognize. He also noticed that everyone besides the two girls had disappeared from the battlefield. The Togekiss looked over at Ray and cocked his head, silently asking if they could come out of hiding now.

[MELON LORD]

IC: Belle LaDonna and Alma Mason

 

The two girls stood next to each other on the deck of the ship. They weren't leaning over the railing -- they were nowhere close -- but they stared out at the ocean all the same. Belle kept the girl in her peripheral vision at all times, still not quite trusting the tiny assassin.

 

Alma, for her part, was having a fantastic time. She had only been on a couple of boat rides in her life, going to Hoenn, and coming back a year later. She was loving the gentle rocking motion of the waves, the feel and the smell of the cool and salty breeze, the sound of Wingull on the wind. She inhaled deeply. "I want a boat," she declared, smiling widely.

 

Belle barked out a laugh, startled enough to put a hand on Alma's head. "You and me both, kid." She glanced down and removed her hand quickly, worried she'd stepped over a line. Alma didn't seem to mind, though, still smiling widely.

 

"Is that what you're gonna do with the Snag Machine? Get rich and buy a boat for yourself?"

 

Belle chuckled, shaking her head. "Nah, first thing I'm gonna do with it is capture some more rare and powerful pokémon. Then I'll get rich and buy everything I've ever wanted."

 

Alma nodded, her small face suddenly serious. "Well, if we're going to do that, we'll both have to get stronger before we get to Nuvema Town. Your team is impressive, but they could all use work, as could mine."

 

Belle raised an eyebrow. "What are you suggesting, here?" She felt a weight settle in her stomach as Alma stared up at her with her blood-red eyes.

 

"Belle, i challenge you to a pokémon battle. Our teams are even in numbers, so let's use them all."

 

The collector swallowed nervously and nodded. "Deal. One at a time, and the last person to have all their pokémon withdrawn or unable to battle wins."

 

Alma smiled. "Deal."

 

The two made their way along the deck until they got to a small area that was roped off for just such matches.

 

"Let's start with the newer ones, that need the most work, so they don't get completely destroyed later on."

 

Alma just nodded, and they each drew their first pokéball.

[JiMing]

IC: Aspen Seaton

"Your guess is as good as mine. I've only had Aria for the last while or so." Aspen mumbled, putting his hand in his pockets. "And it's not like we chat a lot or anything... Aria just does her own things sometimes. I can't ever get a read on her either, she seems to be a lot more intelligent than me." he said, looking to the side distractedly. "Maybe that's why Alistair rolled her Pokeball to me. So she could knock some brains into my moronic head."

A nearby trainer tapped the youngest Seaton on the shoulder and let him know the nurse had his Pokeball ready. He quickly turned around and retrieved the Pokeball, releasing the Lucario inside the Pokemon Center. "Alright. These two want to ask you a few questions, Aria. You know what to-"

"Yes yes, I'll handle it from here." she muttered. Aria turned to Ryan and Paul, raising an eyebrow. "You wish for me to explain my reasoning for not communicating earlier, is that so?"

[MELON LORD]

IC: Belle LaDonna VS Alma Mason

 

Round 1

 

Two pokéballs flew into the air, opening to shoot their occupants forth in beams of white light. Belle raised an eyebrow as she saw her opponent's first pick. Orange body with a spike on top, surrounded by crackling purple energy. "Rotom, huh?" Well, that was irritating. Rotom was on her list of rare pokémon she wanted to capture.  They were versatile. And this one was even oddly colored.

 

Alma gave a soft smiled. "His name is Freq." She eyed Belle's first pokémon, an angry looking Bagon that Belle had called out as 'Arsenic.' She'd already met Hemlock and Cyanide, so she had to ask, "Are all of your pokémon named after poisons?" As her opponent nodded, she let out a childish giggle. "You're going to run out fast."

 

Belle shrugged. "Enough talk. Cyanide, let's start this off right. Go for an Ember!" As the dragon spat the flames, Alma retaliated.

 

"Ominous Wind! Blow it back!" Freq's purple glow dimmed a bit as the wind kicked up around them. It shot upwards, seeming to drift as a gust blew past it, scattering the embers back into the Bagon's face, along with the less-pleasant smells of th ocean. Arsenic got a faceful of fish stink, tar, and salt.

 

"Not bad. Arsenic, recover with a Headbutt!" As the dragon type lowered his head and charged, Alma shook her head.

 

"Freq, show them their error. Once it passes through you, use Uproar." The little ghost cried out happily, bracing itself for Arsenic to run right through.

 

It pulled up short however, as Belle gave her next command. "Bite!" was all she said. The Bagon lunged the last few feet and bit down hard, sharp fangs glowing as it did. Freq cried out in pain this time. It struggled to get rid of its assailant, but the Bagon hung on doggedly, even as Belle ordered another Ember attack that passed through Freq's body.

 

The Electric type managed to slip through the mouth and head of its opponent, but doing so caused its plasma to dim, and it dropped to the deck.

 

Alma nodded, returning it. "Not bad."

 

"Arsenic, c'mon back! You made me proud!" The Bagon ran towards his trainer, slamming his head into her knee cheerfully.

 

***

 

Round 2

 

"Buckthorn!" This was the one Belle was most nervous about. The Goomy was the newest addition to her team, and had the most passive move pool, with Rain Dance, Protect, and Bide being making up half of its set. Still, it had three other good attacks to make up for it.

 

Alma, for her part, let Howler out to play. The Poochyena barked cheerfully, greeting its opponent. Belle felt envious. Another oddly-colored pokémon, this one with a gold stripe down his back, something that stood out.

 

Alma made the first move this time. "Howler, Bite!" The move that had ended the last round would start this one. The Poochyena shot forward, surprising the opposition with how quickly he moved. Belle barely shouted out an order to set up a Protect before the dark type was close enough to land his attack.

 

To Buckthorn's credit, he started to put up the defense before Howler tore through it, clamping his jaws on the Soft Tissue pokémon. The Goomy felt the fangs sink in to skin and . . . not puncture. Buckthorn was too squishy, too pliable to penetrate, no matter how Howler chewed.

 

It did hurt, though. Belle laughed. "Let's go for a Dragon Breath, point blank!" she yelled. The Goomy inhaled, and Howler released it. Alma didn't have to order him to dodge; he'd been on the receiving end of this attack before, and wanted no part of it now. As the blast of hot air was launched, Howler dodged nimbly to the side.

 

"Let's go for a Fire Fang, Howler," Alma commanded, and her Poochyena obeyed. Fire flared around his teeth as he lunged in and bit again. Buckthorn flinched, but didn't mind too much. Fire was less than pleasant, but not entirely effective. Still, it felt a burn form around its cheek and it reeled back.

 

Belle frowned as she saw the burn. "Lucky hit. Buckthorn, Rain Dance!" The Goomy's Hydration ability would let it shed that burn quickly enough. As a drizzle started over their arena, Alma smirked.

 

"Excellent. Howler, Thunder Fang!" Belle's eyes widened. Thunder Fang on a freshly watered Goomy.

 

"Buck, Protect!" she shouted frantically. If that connected, it was over, even with Buckthorn's resistance to electricity. Alas, Protect was Buckthorn's worst move, breaking almost every time it was used.

 

This time was no different. Howler broke through the barrier, and he bit down with the power of a lightning bolt. Buckthorn screamed and went limp. Howler set him down and barked, bounding back to Alma.

 

The assassin scatched him behind the ears and grinned. "That's one to one, Miss Nightshade. Shall we go for round three?"

 

Belle returned her Goomy with a curse.

 

***

 

Round 3

 

Cyanide floated in front of her, trying to look as fierce as possible while still being thrilled to battle. A straight-up fight, that was what he was made for. None of this confusing stuff with four other pokemon involved, no guessing as to whom he was supposed to hit. This was what he lived for.

 

His opponent stared him down with gem-like eyes. Belle and Cyanide had fought Sableye before, but neither had seen one so red, nor so big. It was nearly twice its normal size, and it bent to rest on its large hands like an Infernape. No doubt, it could hit hard with those fists.

 

Even with that and the type disadvantage, Belle felt confident. Cyanide was a good combination of strong, fast, and tough. He would be more than enough to deal with this little nuisance. "Forget the psychic attacks, let's start off with a Bullet Punch!"

 

The Metang shot forward quickly, arm lashing out like the bullet this move was named after. The Sableye tookt he hit and skidded back a bit, but didn't even flinch otherwise. It was like hitting a doll, or a dummy.

 

Alma smiled. "Retaliate with Confuse Ray," she calmly ordered. Garnet's eyes lit up, shooting forth a beam of incandescent light. Cyanide floated backwards, wobbling in the air. It attempted to raise a hand to its face, to rub the light away, but ended up raking its claws along its body instead. It screeched, and Belle flinched.

 

"Cyanide! C'mon, snap out of it! Meteor Mash, now!" she yelled, attempting to salvage the already-bad match. Cyanide seemed to get his bearing for a moment, but instead slammed straight down onto the deck, jarring himself.

 

Garnet jumped forward, landing on his back. Alma gave another calm order, Foul Play, and Garnet grabbed one of Cyanide's mighty arms, lifting it overhead. As Cyanide fought, pushing its arm back down with all its strength, the Sableye let go. The arm whipped around, smacking Cyanide's side hard enough to dent.

 

"One last move, Garnet. Shadow Sneak!" The red pokémon seemed to darken and stretch out, and then it was under Cyanide. It dug its claws in roughly, rending the metal. As it solidified, it managed to leverage Cyanide into the air, and then toss it down. The Metang skidded and rolled to land at Belle's feet, and the collector quickly returned it.

 

Note to self, she thought, do not mess with the Sableye.

 

***

 

Round 4

 

It all came down to this. Hemlock against Shadow, the very best in their trainers' aresnals. Belle felt confident, but she had felt confident about Cyanide, too. Alma was standing across from her serenely, smiling.

 

Belle had flinched when the Gengar had slipped from underneath her. It was almost like a void, sucking in all the light and returning only darkness. To say she was intimidated was a bit of an understatement.

 

Strange, faceless men . . . She shook off the thought as Hemlock prepared for the final round of the match. Belle didn't know if she should give orders or not. On the one hand, she and Hemlock worked pretty well in sync, had been together for years. On the other hand, Alma Mason had proven how tricky she was.

 

Better to give orders and not need to, she decided. "Dragon Dance, Hem!" As the Dragonair started twisting and writhing around herself, Belle eyed the opposition. As Alma opened her mouth, Belle started giving another order.

 

As soon as the girl commanded, "Shadow Sneak," Belle was shouting, "Move and use Dragon Tail!" because Dragon Tail was fairly safe. It left most of Hemlock's long body away from an opponent's path.

 

The Gengar was quick, however, and grabbed the lashing tail as he appeared from Hemlock's shadow. With a growl, he tugged on the Dragonair. Hemlock turned, screaming in fury. She lunged forward, horn glowing, and hit Shadow with a Dragon Rush.

 

The Gengar flinched, releasing her tail, and floated backwards. Alma frowned. "Put her to sleep, Shadow! Hypnosis!" Shadow complied instantly, releasing a wave of sleep-inducing sensations.

 

Hemlock's eyes drifted shut. Alma smirked. "Now use Dream Eater," she ordered. As Shadow opened his mouth and lunged forward, he was taken by surprise by a pair of dragon eyes. Hemlock's skin had peeled away, leaving a fresh-looking Dragonair staring him down.

 

He was moving forward too quickly to stop, and so could only watch in horror as Hemlock spun in place, snapping her tail like a whip. The Dragon Tail sent him reeling, but the second effect was even worse. With the spinning movement, she had whipped up a small Twister. This collided with him, spinning him about and slamming him into the ground.

 

He phased down, popping up back beside Alma. Despite taking his lumps, his grin was as wide as ever. It was refreshing to have a good, powerful opponent. Alma smirked, silently imposing her will. He acquiesced, forming a ball of shadows in his hands. He launched the attack and quickly formed another one, releasing it slightly to the right of the previous.

 

As Hemlock attempted to dodge the first one, her long, slender body was instead hit with both of them. She reeled, twisting to right herself in the air directly in front of Belle. She snorted, lowering her horn in defiance at her opponent.

 

The Gengar cackled. As Hemlock rushed him with another Dragon Rush, he raised his hand into the air. The claws flashed for a moment before he sunk them into his stomach. Pain ripped through him, but he channeled that, lashing out with it at his opponent.

 

Hemlock was sent reeling for the second time in as many seconds. Pain unimaginable washed through her, like her stomach was being split from tail to chin. She could almost feel her entrails dropping out.

 

But it was illusion, she told herself, nothing but illusion. Still, she had trouble focusing through that pain. She would have to end this with her next attack. She attempted another Rush, horn gleaming in the light.

 

The Gengar cackled, red eyes glowing like hot embers as he used his next move to cast a Hex. Hemlock screamed in agony as the attack ripped into her. As her eyes shut, her momentum carried her forward, and her horn slammed into Shadow, releasing the energy gathered there.

 

Shadow stared down in shock at the horn buried in his chest, and then he seemed to dissolve, turning into hardly more than a smoke cloud as he, too, fainted.

 

The two trainers stared at each other in shock, and it was Belle who recovered first. "So . . . Call that a draw, then?"

 

Alma could only nod mutely as she pressed the button to return Shadow to his pokéball. The Gengar had been knocked unconscious before, of course, but she'd never seen him fall apart like that. "Yes," she finally replied, "I suppose we shall."

Edited April 8, 2016 by A Conversation

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ray==-

 

Ray nodded, as he stepped out, toward the path to the boat. His face was mostly unreadable, but his whole spirit seemed to be overall broken. He slowly padded away toward the boat. For a moment, he hesitated and looked to the Pokemon Center, but instead continued on his path. He paused long enough to look over at Togie, and nodded to him.

 

"You head back..." Ray smiled slightly, though his exhaustion could still be seen. "I'll manage things fine from here on, k?"

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan/Paul

"Frankly, yes." Paul gave the Lucario a look not of anger or impatience, but rather the look of a man heavily burdened. "With every passing day my daughter is in more danger. The only reason we're traveling all the way to Four Island to seek out this aura wielder is because it will save us time in the end, being able to pinpoint Ellen's location. But now to realize that we've been traveling with an aura wielder for the past few days, who knew the reason for our journey yet chose not to speak up..."

 

"It can't help but make us curious." Ryan jumped in before the blacksmith's words became too rude to maintain Aria's cooperation. "Surely you must've had a reason for keeping quiet."

 

IC: Togie

The Togekiss hesitated. He'd been tasked with keeping Ray company. For the past half hour, Togie would have gladly abandoned the Separatist to reunite with Ryan. And yet now that Ray was offering him a chance to leave, Togie found it hard to actually make that choice.

 

Ray was persistent though. Ryan had tried being friendly to him, only to cause the orange-haired trainer to walk away for some time on his own. Alone time it was not, for Togie and Orihime had loyally followed him every step of the way, trying to achieve what Ryan could not. Perhaps what Ray really needed was some actual time on his own, without anyone -- human or Pokémon -- to disturb him from his thoughts.

 

Togie lifted off the ground, hovered for a moment over Ray's spiky head, then flapped his wings and soared toward the Pokémon Center. The only other sound on the wind was Orihime patiently flapping her wings beside him.

[JiMing]

IC: Aspen Seaton

 

Aria nodded, turning her green-grey eyes towards Paul and Ryan. "Two, actually. Frankly, you both massively overestimate my aura abilities. Do you truly believe I could track Ellen's location anywhere on the planet that easily?" she asked, shaking her head. "No. My aura tracking abilities are highly limited. Whatever trail I could dig up as a high probability of turning up cold, like it or not. What I need is a booster, such as the ones you humans use for wireless signals. If Colette's aura truly surpasses that of even a Pokemon such as myself, that greatly expands the range in which I have to search for your daughter, Mr. Burks."

 

The Lucario then turned her head to Ryan, raising an eyebrow. "And you... Convincing her to help find Ellen is not your only motive to meet with this Colette. You two have sour interactions in recent times, no? That is why you purchased the Squirtle doll in Lilycove." Aria pointed out, closing her eyes. "Currently you are a guilt-ridden and unstable individual due to the weight of your past actions. Quite frankly, I would bar you from the search in your state if there were more stable individuals available. There are not however, so what you need is closure." she said, opening her eyes as they glowed a soft blue.

 

"I know you wish you could apologize to one individual in particular, but your love isn't here I'm afraid. But you still wish to make up for recent events with Colette. Upon doing so, a weight would be lifted from your shoulders. That is not to say you will have no burdens to concern yourself with, far from it. It will however, put you in a more productive state of mind, thereby aiding in the search more effectively." Aria explained, cocking her head to the side sloghtly. "So then. Was that a satisfactory explanation?"

 

Aspen blinked, not having expected Aria to bring up the points she had. Ryan had trouble with this Colette? And another girl...? the youngest Seaton thought curiously, anticipatig a quick reaction from his fellow Liberty agent.

Edited April 8, 2016 by JiMing: Joining Sectors

[MELON LORD]

IC: Zander and Sylph

 

With a quite sigh, Xander rolled to his feet and made his way over to the nurse's station to retrieve Sylph's pokéball. The pain had worn away while Sylph was being healed, but it had left in its place a profound exhaustion, the likes of which he could not remember feeling before. With a press of a button, he freed his companion from her confines, and the two moved to sit near the others again.

 

The two had a short mental exchange, but Xander was having trouble focusing and switched to a low whisper. After all, he didn't want to interrupt the others' discussion. "What the heck happened out there? I was feeling your pain."

 

Sylph nodded softly. I might have known something like this would happen. When a person opens their mind as you have, things can sometimes slip through without your control. Stray thoughts, which you've had, emotions, physical sensations. A person who trains these sensations is an Empath. They aren't always able to hear thoughts, but they can usually get the gist, and it's helped by knowing the emotions of the person they're targeting. Unfortunately, this isn't something you can close off entirely, now that it's begun. We can, however, train you so that you feel as little as possible.

 

Also, keep in mind that it's stronger with those you are closer to. If it had been Ellen or Vixen, you may have felt a small portion of that pain. If it were Paul, you might not have felt anything.

 

"Alright, so how do we begin closing it off?" Xander asked. Two steps forward, one step back, it felt like. He could be telepathic, but it opened him to unpleasant sensations as well. He could be telekinetic, but he would rip a door off its hinges if he weren't careful.

 

Unfortunately, it needs to get worse before it can get better. You have to learn to recognize these feelings for what they are before you can begin to narrow them down.

 

In other words, she didn't say, it was going to be another unpleasant experience.

 

Once you do, however, you will be able to hone in on a person's feelings, surface thoughts, and physical sensations pretty easily, unless they are also psychic. Then, you will be able to feel it if they open themselves. Powerful empaths can even use the abilities in the opposite direction, so consider this another bonus.

 

Xander sighed, leaning back. "We'll start that after we rest up some more," he said, louder than he'd intended.

Edited April 8, 2016 by A Conversation

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan/Paul

Ryan flushed as he felt the eyes of Aria, Aspen, and even Paul boring into him. The Lucario's words rang more true than he liked to admit. Regardless, he didn't want the others to think he was letting his personal problems get in the way of rescuing Ellen. "E-Ellen's still the priority!" he stammered, taking a step back defensively. "I wouldn't have tried to drag us all the way to Four Island if I didn't think it would help us in our quest!"

 

For his part, Paul was torn between impatience and understanding. He tried to fight back his annoyance at the thought of Ryan having ulterior motives to finding this aura wielder, and it took every ounce of will not to lash out at the boy for leading them astray. No, he thought, closing his eyes. I'm part of a team now. We have to work together, and I can't get mad at the others for not thinking only of Ellen.

 

It was then that Xander spoke up, and Paul was about to say he could get his rest on the boat when the doors to the Pokémon Center slid open and a pair of Togekiss fluttered to Ryan's side.

 

"Togie? Orihime?" Ryan blinked in surprise as the Pokémon tugged at his shirt sleeve to lead him to the door. "Where's Ray? I thought you two were..." Orihime thrust a wing toward the clock on the wall, and Ryan turned back to the others, forgetting all thoughts about Sonja or Colette. "We've lost track of time; our boat will be leaving soon. Your Pokémon are all healed, yes? Let's not waste any more time, then. Sorry, Xander, but your rest will have to wait until we're back at sea."

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Jack/Ryan==-

 

As Ryan headed back toward the ship, unaware that the others were slowly beginning to congregate back at the vessel, he stopped for a moment. Movement caught his eye, as he noticed the captain headed back. Ryan walked over, as Jack seemed almost to be struggling with the heavy chest of food he was carrying.

 

"Need some help?" The black haired trainer offered, as Jack seemed surprised by the man's sudden appearance. As Ryan took hold of the chest with a wince, Jack nodded.

 

"Ah, yes yes... it was a lot heavier than I expected." Jack stayed quiet after that, and it looked to Ryan as if he were lost in thought over something. Whatever it was, however, Jack wasn't saying it. Ryan himself thought for a moment.

 

"Say, we brought someone else on. Is that an issue? Will we need to pay extra?" Ryan asked curiously, and Jack looked up, startled. The man shook his head, however, his grin seeming a little different than usual.

 

"No, no, that's quite alright. It's just one more person? Then that's fine, I'll just take care of that." The two finally reached where the chest needed to go, and Ryan set it down. As the black haired trainer was about to reply, however, he suddenly noticed that Jack had vanished. Ryan scratched his head with a confused frown, as something had seemed weird about the captain's behaviour then. He shrugged it off, however, and headed back to his room and closed his eyes for a nap.

 

A little while later, after everyone had gotten onto the boat, Ryan opened an eye. He could feel the ship starting to move, and knew that they were once again on their way. Yet, he couldn't shake the feeling that something was bugging him all of a sudden. Despite that, however, he had no clue what it was, and brushed it off as worry over what had happened to Shannon.

Edited April 8, 2016 by Destined Blade

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan

Ryan had found Ray alone in his room. The Separatist cracked the door open and gave him an sullen look before telling him to go away. For a moment Ryan wanted to force his way in and knock some happiness into his friend, but a gentle tug from Orihime convinced him that what the Separatist really needed was some time to mull things over himself.

 

And so it was that the Liberty Agent took to pacing the deck, lost in his thoughts. Thoughts of Sonja, thoughts of Ray, thoughts of Colette. He didn't like how easily Aria had been able to read him, and suddenly he felt way too unqualified to be leading this group. After an afternoon of silent brooding that made him ironically similar to Ray's current state of mind, Ryan headed down to the kitchen for dinner. The kitchen was mostly empty still, but he could already smell Dahlia's cooking.

 

He paused at the entrance to the kitchen. Leaning against the wall, arms folded across her chest, was Aria. The Lucario's eyes were closed, and he would have thought she had fallen asleep had she not opened a piercing green-grey eye at his approach. The Liberty Agent froze, feeling his stomach twist at the thought of her rummaging through his troubled mind.

 

Deciding his best option was to approach the issue directly, Ryan cleared his throat and took a step toward the Lucario. "Er, I'm sorry about overestimating your aura powers." He shuffled his feet, fighting the urge to dart into the kitchen as quickly as possible. "I, um, guess I never considered the fact that your powers aren't limitless."

 

Aria's cold eye continued to stare at him in a heavy silence.

 

"...Right, er, see you at supper, then." Averting his eyes, Ryan started to walk past the Lucario, eager to be out from under her watchful gaze. For as well as she could read him, he could read her no better than he could read a steel wall.

[JiMing]

IC: Aria/Ryan Sanders

 

"...Ryan Sanders. Agent of Team Liberty and the self-proclaimed leader of the search party." Aria said, closing her eyes once more while not budging an inch from her current stance. "Ryan Sanders, the surrogate elder brother to Ellen Burks, whose world feels incomplete without his younger sister. Ryan Sanders, who bore witness to the rise of the Ancients, who slew the Seventh with his own hands. Ryan Sanders, who yearned for the affections of his colleague, and looked at disgust towards his rival in love. Ryan Sanders, who allowed his resentment to reject and shatter a new friendship. Ryan Sanders, who confronted the weight of his hunger for approval, superiority, and affection, and triumphed over it. Or did he?" she continued, opening both her eyes, both glowing a pale blue.

 

"Ryan Sanders, who never had the chance to apologize to those he distressed. Ryan Sanders, a deeply self-loathing individual who regrets his past gluttony, and yet still hungers. He hungers for penance, he craves to make his world at peace again." the Lucario muttered, the blue glow intensifying for a moment, before fading soon afterwards. "Hello. It is very nice to meet you."

 

Halfway through the kitchen door, Ryan froze, feeling the knot in his stomach grow tighter. For several uncomfortable moments he stared at the Lucario in utter shock, unable to speak. When at last he found his voice, he could only stammer, "I... wha... h-how did you do that...?"

 

"Hmmph. And now you underestimate my abilities? It was merely the range of my aura tracking powers that I said were limited. When you are but half a foot in proximity, your thoughts, your experiences, your emotions, all are an open book for me to analyze." Aria replied, her green-grey eyes boring into his own.

 

"You say you do not let anything else hinder the search for Ellen? Utter nonsense. Everyone here is dragging the weight of whatever baggage they may have, and it holds them back. And that means you, you who have broken your relations with two females thus far. One you are eager to encounter and earn her approval. The other you wish to encounter at the same time with Ellen, and have her wipe away your sins." the Lucario said, shaking her head. "Living beings can never truly be free of bias from their past experiences. We are all far more limited than we seem."

 

"If everyone carries this baggage as you say," Ryan said through gritted teeth, "then why should my making peace with Colette be more important than everyone else's needs? Why is my problem so drastic that you feel the need to ensure we make it to Four Island?"

 

"Honestly, it isn't. It just lines up very nicely with my current goal of bolstering the 'signal' we have to work with when searching for Ellen. You get to make peace and clear a part of your conscience, and I get a booster. Two Spearow with one stone, as they way." Aria said, shrugging. "Though, as a warning, you may not get what you were looking for when searching for Ellen. She joined with Ford willingly... And the last time I was in her presence, I found a large capacity for darkness in her aura. She is far more open than others, and under the right circumstances... That sweet, loving girl could turn into our worst nightmare." the Lucario warned, crossing her arms again.

 

Ryan stared at the Lucario in surprise and shook his head in defiance. "You clearly don't know her as well as I do. Ellen, having a capacity for darkness? That girl is anything but."

 

"Do you truly think that you can fully understand a fellow human being simply based on a few interactions here and there? No, you merely see a snapshot of who they are at that moment." she countered, holding her head down with her eyes closed. "I looked into her heart. Ellen is malleable, moreso than any other human being I've met thus far. She carries the potential to become anything, both good and evil, or something beyond such labels. That could be the simple, kind girl who hails from Village Bridge you remember her as, a paragon of virtue and an inspiration for all, or the representation of humanity's most sinister vices and sins." Aria muttered, shaking her head.

 

"With the right experiences and influences, anything could happen. And given the current circumstances... I have reason to suspect your precious little sister is slipping ever closer to the third option."

 

"No..." Ryan clenched a fist. "You're wrong! I lived with her for six months, and she wouldn't hurt a Kricketot... how dare you call her a representation of sins!"

 

"You're projecting." was all Aria said in response, as she looked up at Ryan. "I did not ever state outright I saw Ellen as 'a representation of sins'. I merely stated I saw the capacity for her to head down such a road, and fear that may be what is happening right now. Your slip reveals a lot about yourself, it shows how low your self-image has fallen in recent times." the Lucario said, shaking her head. "Is it Sonja? Is it how your hunger for her affection has broken your relationship with her and Ray? I suspect it to be a major factor, at least. Or maybe you feel you've failed Ellen; that you abandoned her, led a pure, innocent child astray. Well? Which is it, Ryan Sanders?"

 

The Liberty agent flushed angrily. "Get out of my head, Aria!" he said in a low voice. Her words stung as sharp as if she had raked her claws across his face, and their implications seeped into his mind like a poison. "Ford manipulated Ellen, he's the one to blame!" But even as he spoke, he knew that it was he who had left her all on her own. He might not have led her down the path she took, but it was his negligence that had allowed her to wander so close to the darkness. The thought that Aria might be right sickened him.

 

The Lucario was quiet for several tense seconds, before shaking her head. "I didn't have to read your mind for that one. I could feel your sorrow; I could feel your regret. Your doubts, your fears, your aura paints a picture of hardship." Aria muttered. The Lucario pushed herself off the wall, and turned her gaze to the Liberty agent afterwards. "It gets repetitive making logical conclusions, deducing the reasons behind one's emotional states and their unconscious motivations. But it never gets easier when you're the one experiencing the emotions of everyone around you at the same time, so much sadness and anger is out there, even within the person who has the biggest smile. It's just as visceral the hundred thousandth time as the first." she continued, shaking her head. "My condolences. Hopefully you're one of the individuals that bounces back quickly."

 

Ryan flushed again, this time from embarrassment and shame for his rashness. "I... I'm sorry. I had no idea... You're right, though. That's the worst of it. Everything you've said about me, as much as I hate to admit it, you've hit the nail on the head. Which makes me fear you could be right about Ellen, too..."

 

The Lucario nodded some more and closed her eyes yet again. "I'm well aware the implications my prediction may have. I know the devastation it would bring to those who care about Ellen. The possibility of my deduction being correct is painful, painful on such a level it would shatter your spirits." Aria said. "It's not rewarding to be the one who brings up such disturbing possibilities. I merely hope that it can lessen the pain should the prediction become reality."

 

Ryan sighed and looked down in defeat. "Suddenly, I'm not hungry anymore."

 

"You should eat regardless. Skipping out on nutrition isn't something you should do if you can help it." Aria responded flatly, turning around. "Well, I hope that was an enlightening discussion. I'll see you at dinner, Sanders." the Lucario said, walking down the hall, leaving Ryan to his own devices.

Edited April 9, 2016 by JiMing: Joining Sectors

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra

 

While the group had boarded the boat earlier, Evan had been dragged to his and Jenny's quarters on the boat. He knew Jenny was spirited, but this seemed almost unnatural for even her. After explained that he needed a rest, the Plasma Agent walked towards the bed. As he began to lay down, he noticed that Jenny was doing the same. The Hero smiled warmly at her as he turned his head and let his exhaustion finally overtake him.

Sometime later, Evan had woken up, stretching his arms. "Hey, Jenny, time to wake up." Evan said as he ruffled Jenny's hair. "Sorry I had to be rather short back there, but I had to get some rest. I'm more than willing to hear the story behind how you looked back there, though....."

 

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Jenny/Evan(Jam)==-

 

Jenny smiled with a yawn, as she woke up and giggled slightly. The girl sat up, and thought for a moment, before smiling mischievously. "Are you sure you wanna know? It could be totally not what you expect." She teased, an amused grin on her face.

 

Evan noticed Jenny's grin, and knew it probably wasn't a bad thing, but he decided to play Jenny's game. Just to see how far it would go. "Is it that bad?" Evan asked, smiling himself. "Was there any trouble?"

 

"Oh, yes, yes." The girl nodded in agreement. "There was a bunch of trouble! A raggedly old serpent dragged me off to the mountains. I fought back, and she decided to fall back, but I still had to sic my other Pokemon on her. Gnip helped too." Jenny spun the tale wide with an amused smile. From the belt that hung on the chair, however, came a grumbling protest.

 

"But then! After she was driven off, I decided to do some training... But then! It was interrupted! A raggedly old man wandered onto the field, his black hair blowing in the wind... He tried to defeat us, but, alas, Gnip and I teamed up, and we drove him away too. It was rather sad, actually." The girl giggled again, amused at her tale, and wondering if Evan believed her or not.

 

There was no two ways about it. Jenny was not only trying to mess with Evan's head. She was trying to royally mess with it as well. "But, Jenny, don't most old men have grey hair?" Evan asked, setting the figurative bait. "To add to that, if you fought something and had Gnip help, wouldn't your clothing be less damaged?"

 

"Well, I guess this old man coloured his hair! It was the deepest shade of black ever. I could have sworn it was just shadows until it moved... And I had to fight as well! The wind looked like it had turned to razors, too... That's how my clothes were slashed!" Jenny seemed proud of herself. "And that's not all, the man... he seemed like he was glowing! Like at any moment, he would incinerate me, like magic."

 

"And I suppose he was a terribly powerful foe!" Evan said in an over the top voice, striking a silly pose as he spoke. "With the strength enough to bring even the mighty Gnip to her...............gnees! What a formidable old man!"

 

Jenny giggled and nodded. "Yeah! But she finally managed to take the old man down. She even took a laser beam, and just shrugged it off!" Although Gnip was simply nodding up until this point, she paid more attention now, and seemed proud at her supposed feat. It was merely stretching the truth in a way anyway. She softly growled with a smile, and the Garchomp laid near the two.

 

Evan proudly petted Gnip on the head at the mention of her feat. "She shrugged off a laser beam?!" Evan said, with mock surprise in his voice. "Such power! Such stamina! Only the great Gnip could do such a thing!" Evan stroked the Garchomp's dorsal fin gently. "But could she dare match the foe Landorus and I fought?"

As Evan and Jenny exchanged tall tales, Feral stirred in Jenny's mind, growling slightly irritated with how utterly silly these two dunces were being. He just hoped it would end soon, lest he snap like a harp string......

 

"Oh wow..." Jenny seemed surprised. "Dare you mean to say that you fought someone stronger? Then let us hear of this opponent that could make the mighty Landorus be matched!" The girl, now, was just letting herself be hammy, knowing the two were attempting to outdo the other.

 

"There I was on the foothills of Mount Ember!" Evan said loudly letting the silly act take hold. "We had been challenged by an old man ourselves! He had a master swordsman with him. Such was his skill, that he himself was one with the sword! Never had I seen such bladework! I truly thought it was the end for me!"

 

"Truly you must have been amazing, to overcome such a foe!" Jenny clapped, letting her expression to be one of awe, despite her wide grin. "A master swordsman... Well, the old man sent a master drillsman after me too!" She boasted, a loud giggle in the process.

 

"Were it not for Landorus, there wouldn't have been enough of me to fit in a poke ball!" Evan said, bowing as he spoke. "But, a master drillsman, you say? How are you not swiss cheese!? This perplexes even I!"

 

"Well, you see-!" Jenny was about to start, but then got rudely cut off.

 

"ENOUGH, YOU ENORMOUS DORKS!" Feral rasped out in Jenny and Evan's minds. "You're bothering me with all your tall tales and nonsense!. What this airhead  is trying to say, is she challenged that edgy moron with the black hair and beat him down near flawlessly! Sheesh!"

 

 

 

"Ah, well, yes, that is to say..." Jenny paused with an awkward grin. "I fought Ryan and utterly trounced him. Most of those things were true, though."

 

"Well, I took on Paul and had a nice fair fight with him." Evan said sheepishly. "The battle was tough, but it was also fun!"

Evan looked at Jenny, giving her a very warm smile as he sat back down onto the bed. "You utterly trounced him? That sounds like it would be hard to do, honestly..." Evan remarked. "How did you do it, Jen-Jen?"

 

"Well, for one, Gnip helped out. Plus, I've been training." Jenny giggled with an amused smile. "She pretty much stomped Ryan's Tyranitar. The rest was a bunch of luck... Like his other Pokemon just getting unlucky with some hits, or where they land. I managed to win both overall, and the last round, though... Last round, Boarlite actually stayed standing against Sammi for a good thirty seconds, before falling down." She chuckled slightly. "He keeps trying to get me to say it was a draw just because she toppled eventually."

 

Evan scratched Gnip's head as he cocked his head at Jenny. "Training, huh?" Evan remarked in a surprised tone. "So that's why I haven't seen much of you lately, eh? Seems Gnip has done a good job of helping you!"

"It's good to know you're trying to get stronger, Jenny." Evan remarked as he drew close to his fellow plasma agent. "Especially since it seems our foes are only getting tougher and tougher. I admit that I need to get back to training myself...."

 

Jenny giggled, as she nodded. "Yeah... But hey, I'm sure we can handle ourselves! I think our battles today proved that a lot, even..." She giggled again, a warm smile on her face. "And Gnip really did tank a Hyper Beam! I've been practicing with that, actually, today... I had Gyaralite use Hydro Pump, and had Gnip use Flamethrower to try and weaken it... Really helped in the end, I think!"

 

"Incredible, Jenny!" Evan said, clearly in awe of the feat. "I knew Gnip was tough, but you've somehow made her even tougher! I'm glad that she lent her strength to you! It shows that you can always improve, no matter how good you think you are."

As Evan spoke, Gnip growled softly under her breath, enjoying all the attention focused on her. The Garchomp prided herself on being the apple of her master's, no, masters' eyes. She would improve more and more, no matter what. She had to make sure she had fun while doing it, though. Gnip then got up, and walked towards a corner of the room, and laid there, seeming perfectly content with what she had gotten out of Evan and Jenny.

 

Jenny giggled, and then nodded with a smile. "Agreed. Plus, I actually outwitted Ryan with Sand Veil! You should've seen the look on his face, it was amazing. At some point there, he just lost all hope for that round. Might've been when I showed off another variant of Draco Meteor..." She giggled some more, seeming pleased with herself.

 

"Wait, another variant?" Evan asked, raising an eyebrow. "There were variants to begin with? You'll have to tell me more later. Right now, I think I need to get back to sleep. But, I am still so happy with your newfound ability to read the battlefield!"

Before Jenny could respond, Evan gave her a kiss on the lips as he began to embrace her. The Hero of Space squeezed her tight, chuckling when their lips had parted. There was no better reward for Jenny, than what he had given her, and she had paid him back double.

 

Jenny seemed caught off guard by the suddenness, but giggled before returning the kiss. "Sleep definitely does sound good..." She giggled with a yawn, and leaned back down to the bed, and closed her eyes with a smile.

[JiMing]

IC: Olivia Seaton
 
Three days after Chloe's last message, Olivia walked up the stairs to her room. Heather followed her heels and squeaked in a panic, scrambling up to the trainer's shoulder. The Pikachu nuzzled her head against Olivia in an attempt to get her to pay attention. The eldest Seaton looked over and smiled slightly, before picking up the electric mouse and setting her down on the floor of her room.

"Thanks Heather, but I know what I'm doing. Just trust me on that, okay?" she said. Chloe's Pikachu looked up doubtfully and pressed her ears down against the side of her head nervously, but scampered to the side afterwards, worried for what was to come.

"You got everything you need, right?" Amethyst asked, sitting on the bed. "It's already been a few days, sure Chloe's been sending you messages here and there, but no indication of when she'll be back. We'll have to find her as soon as we can." the Gardevoir muttered,shaking her head.

"I know that, but we've still got about an hour before the plane to Nimbasa departs. So right now it's just waiting, and more waiting..." the red-haired trainer muttered, sighing. "I can't believe I let my guard down again. I thought I've learned since four years ago, really... Turns out I haven't." she said, shaking her head. "Guess I got too comfortable."

Amethyst crossed her arms and frowned. "Last time wasn't your fault, and neither was this. Guy seems to be around every corner lately, there's no telling where he'll come from..." she said gravely. "Don't worry. This time we know exactly where she is, and how to get to her. You're not going to wait another four years to see Chloe." 

Olivia looked down at her feet silently. "...Yeah. No more sitting around and crying into a pillow. This time I've got a plan, and I'll make Guy pay dearly for what he's done." she said in a low voice, her expression shifting into a scowl. However, something crossed her mind to knock her out of those thoughts, and she turned to Amethyst afterwards. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask, what the heck has been happening with you lately? Seems like I've missed a lot."

"...What do you mean?" 

The eldest Seaton put a finger to her chin and thought. "Hmm, well you and Alvis seem a bit strange with one another as of late. And your Mom's from Snowpoint and was with you until she decided to stay with Anna. What's up with that?" Olivia asked.

"Well... I guess I couldn't keep you in the dark forever." Amethyst said, shrugging. She went on to explain how she debated with the Gallade over their available paths, her sordid childhood that Alvis found out about, and how it all came to a head when encountering her father in the forest that one Snowpoint night. The Gardevoir went on to describe the jubilee she felt upon seeing her beloved mother again, and how relieved she felt to finally gain closure on that chapter of her life. 

"...Huh. You've been through pretty much the same amount of stuff I have that week, really." Olivia muttered, blinking a bit from taking in her story. "Though... Am, didn't you hate Alvis' guts at first? Nowadays you really seem to enjoy his company, and I haven't seen you spar with anyone else. What's going on?" 

The Gardevoir's eyes darted back and forth as she sat there in silence, before shaking her head. "I'm not about to confirm or deny anything... Other than I don't hate him anymore. Okay, yeah, maybe I got a little close." she admitted, rolling her eyes. "What are you gonna do about it?" 

The eldest Seaton cracked a grin at that, chuckling lightly. "Well then. We really are alike in a lot of ways, huh? Guess that means we've both got people we want to see again." she said, sighing. "Unova's pretty far away, isn't it? If only this trip could be a bit shorter..."

"Maybe we should get moving now." Amethyst replied, standing up from the bed. "It's better to be early to the airport than late."
 
"Yeah, you're right about that. Gimme a moment." Olivia said, stepping off the bed to gather her bag. Before she followed the Gardevoir down the stairs however, the red-haired trainer took a moment to get out her Pokegear and type a short message to her beloved.
 

I'm on my way.

Edited April 10, 2016 by JiMing: Joining Sectors

[MELON LORD]

IC: Sylph

 

The first thing Xander had done on returning to the ship was lie down and take a nap. Sylph, for her part had grabbed Ellen and Vixen and retreated upstairs to let him rest. The two foxes followed her happily, taking turns chasing each other around the area. The Gardevoir kept one eye on them as she sat against the wall of stairwell leading to the cabins. Otherwise, she watched the sky, and the sea, and the people on deck.

 

They were only a couple of days from Four Island and their goal of grabbing an aura tracker. That was two days for Xander to get a grip on his empathetic abilities, before they were in another population center. She worried, sometimes, about him, both as her trainer and as her lover. It was always a delicate line between the two, and she wasn't sure which he qualified at in this case.

 

Technically, she supposed, she was training him, but he still held the ability to call it quits whenever he felt no progress was being made. At the same time, the intimacy held between them was more pronounced when they tapped into each others' beings and worked on his abilities. She sighed a bit. When Ellen looked over, she shook her head.

 

I just do not know, Ellen. Where does one begin and the other end? Are they actually the same thing?

 

The small fox was incapable of responding directly, so she squeaked to show her confusion.

 

Never mind. Perhaps I am just being too introspective. She stood gracefully, smiling. I am going to wander. You two stay away from the railing, and try not to get in anybody's way.

 

As she started roaming the deck, she determined that being her trainer was not the same as being her love. He trained Vixen and Ellen, after all, and while he loved them, he didn't love them. A small smile played on her features. She was the only one who had that distinction.

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Ryan/Ray/Jenny/NPC: Jack==-

 

The rest of the night was without much event, and the next morning also came peacefully enough. Ryan stared out over the ocean, as he leaned against the railing. He thought over the past few hours, and noted that he hadn't actually seen Ray since the boat had left. He had missed dinner and breakfast from what Ryan could tell. The black haired trainer sighed, and looked to the sky with a frown.

 

----

 

Jenny walked along the deck, humming along to a song in her head. She was headed to the front of the ship as usual, intent on starting her training again earlier. She may have reached one goal, but she wanted to keep working to get even stronger. She briefly thought of asking Ryan to help with the training, so he could benefit too... however, as she reached the front of the ship, she suddenly stopped.

 

"Something doesn't seem right..." She murmured, as she looked around. She couldn't see anything amiss, but a sudden forboding sense fell over her. She slowly began to walk toward the front railing, when the ship suddenly began to shake, knocking the girl off her feet.

 

----

 

Ray landed with a thud, as a string of curses rang out in the air. The separatist rubbed his head with a grimace, as he stood up, and looked around. "What just happened...?" He muttered, as he barely managed to keep his balance as the ship shook once again. The thundering of footsteps outside showed that others had noticed this odd event too.

 

----

 

Ryan stood up, as he rubbed the back of his head. He had not seen what it was that had caused the boat to rock, but certainly felt it. He glanced behind him, however, as he saw Ray and Jenny show up. The worried expressions on their faces said it all. However, the next person to show up wore an even more grim look on his face.

 

"Are you alright?" Jack asked, as he glanced over at the ocean. He winced, as a splash of water signaled the appearance of a Whiscash. Before anyone could say anything further, however, more and more Pokemon began to appear at the surface. Two Poliwrath in particular leaped on board, and a Gyarados appeared in the water. Around them, Pelliper and Swanna crowded and swooped at them. Jack grimaced, as he looked over the side, and noticed more and more Pokemon showing up. "Tentacruel, Alomomola, Floatzel, Sharpedo... I think I even see an Octillery in there." The captain frowned grimly. "But why are they gathered here...? And why are they-" He got cut off, as a Sharpedo rammed the side again, knocking the group gathered to the floor once again. "There's no time for talk. We must do something about this."

Ryan looked around, on guard because of all the Pokemon that looked like they would attack at any moment. "Something seems wrong with them... as if something stirred them into a frenzy." He noticed that the look in their eyes looked almost crazed, but couldn't figure out what that could mean. He sent out his Pokemon with a frown. A glance around showed that Ray, Jenny, and Jack had all sent out their Pokemon. However, when he looked back, the Pokemon had begun to attack.

 

-==IC: Vermillion==-

 

The group reached the gates of the mansion after a little while of traveling. The imposing building stood over them, yet Payton simply strode toward the gates, and looked around.

 

"How odd..." The woman murmured, and turned to the rest of the group. "There are no guards here, yet there should be..." She frowned, and glanced to her right. "Come, this way. Even if there's no-one visible, it's not worth chancing it... Let's see if there's another way in." Payton didn't stop to check if Mercury and Lachina were following, but didn't go far. A little way along the wall, she noticed a hole at the bottom.

 

"Hmm..." She stayed quiet as Matt approached. "What do you make of this? This is conveniently placed, and only guarded by these ferns... could someone have used it to escape...?"

"Or could it be a trap?" Matt finished, a grim look on his face, as he examined it, but sighed. "Regardless... it looks like the best option we have right now. We have to risk it." Payton nodded in agreement with the companion, and waved over to Lachina and Mercury to come and investigate. She wondered if the Aura Wielder might have another idea, but figured that this was their best hope.

 

-==IC: Chloe==-

 

Words flew through Chloe's mind, as she poured over the different tomes that laid in front of her. The girl held back a sigh, as she scanned the pages again and again. It was her dedication to her training that kept her glued to the books, even when it felt boring, and she wanted a break. Eventually, however, she gave in, and leaned back to stare at the ceiling.

 

Telekinesis. Telepathy. Teleportation. Synchronization. Healing. Hypnosis. Barrier. Burst. Sense. Empathy. Her mind spun, as she struggled to fully understand the terms mentioned. The first three were basic to her, though she was hesitant to practice teleportation after the incident that had led her to Unova carrying a tree. Synchronization, she had inadvertently already discovered with Alvis, and had more or less gotten that down well.

 

Healing, and creating barriers, were not things she realized she could do. Burst seemed easy enough, although it appeared to go by different names in the books, the most common calling it "Psionic Burst". Sensing and empathy seemed more or less straight forward, but she was having trouble actually understanding the instructions there.

 

What intrigued her the most, however, was hypnosis. The power sounded like it was a simple one, like a Pokemon's move would allow. However, as she read more, she became more and more curious about the category. It was not a simple thing by any means... at least to learn. It allowed many creative usages, according to the research papers that Guy kept bringing in to her; however, in practice, she was lucky if she could even put her own Pokemon to sleep. In fact, she even wondered a time or two, if the three times she had succeeded were merely because she had bored them half to death.

 

 

 

Finally, however, after a day of research, she felt confident enough to at least attempt to put things into practice. Truth be told, she was not confident at all, as proven by the fact that she balanced her book in her left hand, while she stared down a training dummy. Her main goal at that moment, was to attempt to practice her telekinetic powers. She succeeded in lifting the dummy a few centimeters off the ground for a moment, but winced as she let it fall.

 

Her other first attempts didn't go much better, other than the ones she had already practiced with in the past. The barriers weren't solid at all, she was warned against trying Psionic Burst until she had grasped the concepts more. Healing also didn't work that well. She had attempted to heal herself after accidentally cutting her knee, but it had failed to work at all, much to her dismay.

 

After a total of three days at the Desert Resort, Chloe was out of breath. Currently, she laid on the ground, staring up at the ceiling. She wasn't sure how much progress she had actually made, but was slightly dismayed. She could lift the dummy up further into the air, for longer... however, it was disheartening, since the girl realized that the actual task she had would be a lot harder, due to the castle being larger and much much heavier. Chloe blinked, however, as her Pokegear began to beep. She reached over and looked at the message.  The girl seemed surprised at the contents, but then forced herself up with a smile.

 

"Well then... looks like I have to prepare, then..." Chloe smiled. She wanted to finish off her training in time, though she knew she had much to do. She wasn't sure how long it would take Olivia, but wondered if it would even be possible for her to develop her powers enough to help with Guy's project in time...

Edited April 10, 2016 by Destined Blade

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra

Evan heard what may have been others going topside as the ship shook more and more, wondering what was going on. The Plasma Agent exited, readying his Poke Balls. As he moved forward, thoughts of Jenny entered his head, and for once, the Hero pushed them away. She's proven she can take care of herself. Evan continued his urgent pace as he reached topside, where the sight of many water-type pokemon of all shapes and sizes expanded before him. Evan noticed Ryan, Jenny and others, and saw the pokemon closing in on them.

"Monstro, Wide Guard!" Evan commanded as he threw his Swampert's poke ball. "Give the others some time for reinforcements to arrive!" As soon as Monstro materialized in a flash of light, the Mud Fish Pokemon summoned an expansive wall of energy, aiming to stop the oncoming water pokemon. Evan walked towards the group, the only words that communicated how he felt being....


"Garcha~!"

Edited April 10, 2016 by Hades

[MELON LORD]

IC: Xander Cruize

 

Xander was making his way to the galley for a late breakfast when the ship rocked hard enough to send him into one of the walls. He winced and reached out mentally. He had spent most of the night with Sylph, stripping away his defenses to fully open him to emotions, so it wasn't hard to feel the . . . Well, none of the others were seeming to panic, but there was definitely stress there.

 

He cursed himself for leaving his team in the cabin, and sent a quick message to Sylph as he rushed for the stairs. The Gardevoir appeared on deck just as Xander was thundering through the door, Ellen and Vixen looking confused on either side of her. Xander scooped up both the first-stage pokémon, putting them on his shoulders as he ran towards the others.

 

His eyes widened at the mass of water pokémon swarming the ship. Evan's Swampert had already set up a barrier, but that was the full extent of their defenses, it seemed. Xander and team moved beside Evan. "What's going on?"

 

IC: Mercury

 

The Aura trainer walked over quickly and quietly, trying to keep low to the ground in case there were guards or cameras they were missing. On seeing the hole, he frowned, glancing at Lachina and Anubis. "It seems a bit too convenient, but if it's either crawl through that hole or climb over the wall . . ." He scowled, wishing they had some way of seeing what consequences would come from this.

 

Anubis focused his attention on the hole, looking for traces of aura. He knelt quietly to try and peer through the tunnel, pushing the ferns aside carefully.

[Konuju]

OOC: With the permission of JiMing, I'm doing some slight bunnying (heh) of Coco and co. (heh)

 

IC: Paul

"Thanks again for breakfast, Dahlia," Paul said as he stood up and moved to wash off his plate. "It really does make life at sea feel that much more homey."

 

A low growl pierced the air, and the blacksmith turned to see the stalwart Absol in the corner bare its fangs. Paul cast a questioning glance at Dahlia and was about to ask why her Pokémon was suddenly so agitated when a thundering impact rocked the ship. Coco, who had been helping carry Terry's food bowl over to the sink, went sprawling, the dish in her hands clattering across the floor. Terry rushed to the Buneary's side to help her up, bracing himself as another impact shook the vessel.

 

Hands already flying to the Pokéballs at his belt, Paul rushed toward the door. The Absol was already two steps ahead of him, darting up to the deck. When Paul caught up, he took one glance at the multitude of Water Pokémon and sent out both his Bisharp and Skarmory. He didn't know why these Pokémon were so agitated, but he was not about to let a bunch of sea creatures halt their search for Ellen.

 

IC: Ryan

A loud thud startled Ryan from his sleep. "Urgh... why do Evan and Jenny always choose the worst hours of the day to do their training?" he groaned, trying to muffle the sound of the impacts with his pillow.

 

Another thud hit, this one rocking the boat enough to nearly toss Ryan from his bed. The Liberty trainer stood up and looked around as he heard footsteps rushing down the hall. He had a bad feeling this wasn't just Gnip getting a little too excited in her training exercises. Barely taking the time to throw on some more respectable clothes, Ryan rushed to the deck, Togie and Orihime trailing behind him.

 

Nearly everyone it seemed was already on the deck, locked in combat with at least a dozen water-type Pokémon. Evan's Swampert had already cast a Wide Guard to protect the group from the assault, but that didn't stop Paul's Bisharp from exchanging blows with one of the Poliwrath. A quick glance over the railing showed Paul's Skarmory had also flown out to sea and was using Air Slash to try to stop a Sharpedo from slamming into the ship.

 

In the few moments it had taken for Ryan to size up the situation, he had already grabbed Ampere's Pokéball and tossed it toward the railing. The Mareep emerged at the edge of the vessel and on Ryan's command, unleashed a Thundershock at the Gyarados.

 

"Why are these Pokémon attacking us?" Ryan called out as he moved toward the rest of the group to be under the cover of Monstro's Wide Guard.

 

OOC:

Summary of attacks, a la Celadon:

 

Bisharp: Locked in combat with a Poliwrath

Skarmory: Air Slash - Sharpedo

Ampere: Thundershock - Gyarados

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC: Jamie Arthur - Boat

 

Jamie woke up on the boat to the boat shaking and knocking her right out of bed. She was still in the clothes she had been wearing yesterday and really regretting that she still had no change of clothes to bring with her. She would remember this lesson after the venture ended: when going on heroic adventures, always bring several change of clothes. As the boat shook again, she decided she'd figure out what to do with the clothes problem later.

 

When she stumbled her way onto the deck, she found that the source of the shaking was due to a great deal of water-type Pokemon. Many of them were adorable in Jamie's eyes. If she had any Pokeballs on her, she would be tossing them like mad. Sadly she did not. The others already there had begun sending their Pokemon out against them, so Jamie figured she had to do so as well. She didn't have any Pokemon that were particularly well suited to fighting Water-Types so she figured that she'd best fight water with water (that's how the saying goes right?).

 

So she sent out Grummore, Lamorak and Bedevere to fight the oncoming horde of water types. She considered using Lamorak and Bedevere's Whirlpool to try and keep a number of the Pokemon trapped, but she had no idea how that would fare with them being on a boat. So she decided to play it safe and focus on bringing down some of the flying types to their level.

 

"Grummore use Psychic on Swanna and Pelliper to bring them down. Bedevere, use Icicle Spear on anyone Grummore brings down. Lamorak, prepare and Aqua Ring for any injured allies."

 

Grummore nodded as he began to activate his Psychic power. He chose a Swanna and Pelliper as Jamie asked and through his power brought them down to their level. As they fell to the boat, Bedevere launched numerous spears made of ice at that them in hopes of keeping them down.

 

OOC:

 

Grummore: Psychic -> Swanna, Pelliper

Bedevere: Icicle Spear -> Same

Lamorak: Aqua Ring

Edited April 10, 2016 by Minun of the Fourth Choir

[MELON LORD]

IC: Kalos Quartet

 

As the others were coming up, Xander started giving orders to his team. Sylph jumped ahead to launch a Dazzling Gleam at a small cluster of pokémon, a group of Staryu and Starmie that were spinning forward. The attack stopped most of them, but one Staryu managed to get past her. Xander was keeping Ellen and Vixen nearby. Ellen cried out, using Helping Hand to boost Vixen's attacks before rushing forward to tackle a Poliwhirl that got too close. Vixen launched a Psybeam at that same opponent, causing it to stagger back

 

OOC:

 

Sylph: Dazzling Gleam - 2 Staryu, 2 Starmie, Missed 1 Staryu

Ellen: Helping Hand - Vixen, Tackle - Poliwhirl

Vixen: Psybeam, Poliwhirl

[Parugi]

IC - S.S. Coral:

 

A bird flew over the boat.

Edited April 11, 2016 by Parugi

[JiMing]

OOC: In exchange for bunnying my characters (and making that awful pun), Konuju has given me permision to briefly bunny Terry.

 

IC: Dahlia Seaton

 

Dahlia turned around in the middle of drying her hands to look at Paul, smiling at his comment. "You're very welcome, Mr. Burks." she said. Before she could utter another word however, Asriel suddenly went on edge, growling at nothing in particular. That left the middle Seaton quite confused before the boat tipped to the side hard, causing her to yelp as she slammed into the floor, hard. The gardener groaned and looked up to see the Absol already bounding away, Paul in close pursuit.

 

Coco fell flat on her face when the first impact struck the boat, though she was quickly helped up by Terry. She gave the Loyal Dog Pokemon her thanks, and promptly slammed on her back when the boat was struck a second time. The Buneary hopped back onto her feet and was feeling quite annoyed by this turn of events, and squeaked for the Herdier to follow her up the deck. The two of them bounded through the halls and up the stairway, seeing the chaos up on the deck. Coco looked around and spotted a Poliwrath looking to cause some trouble. The Rabbit Pokemon leered and quickly closed the distance with Agility, her fist crackling with electricity. She unleashed the Thunder Punch at close range in a standing uppercut motion, aiming to hit her opponent upwards for a juggle.

 

By the time Dahlia made it onto the deck, Asriel had fired a Razor Wind at a Jellicent hovering menacingly nearby. He snarled at it and then leaped forward with a Night Slash from his horn. Dahlia grabbed three Pokeball, releasing her Bellossom, Dragonair, and Turtwig. "Laurel, Magical Leaf! Dracos, Thunderbolt! Nutmeg, Razor Leaf!" she called out, frowning at the current situation and hoping it would be resolved quickly.

 

Laurel nodded and gathered leaves around her, jumping up to fire them at the Whiscash nearby. Dracos flicked his tail and gave a noble roar, summoning a bolt of lighting above to strike a Swanna above the boat right as it was about to make another pass for the deck. Meanwhile, little Nutmeg remembered her training with Axel, and eyed an Alomomola to the side. The Turtwig attempted to time it just right so that the Pokemom would swim right into the path of the singular, high-speed leaf fired towards it.

 

OOC: Coco: Thunder Punch -> Poliwrath

Asriel: Razor Wind + Night Slash -> Jellicent

Laurel: Magical Leaf -> Whiscash

Dracos: Thunderbolt -> Swanna

Nutmeg: Razor Leaf -> Alomomola

 

IC: Aspen Seaton

 

The youngest Seaton was laying in bed and relaxing. Just as he sighed contently, the boat rocked and he yelled out while being flung off the bed into the wall. A second impact came soon after, with Aspen standing to his feet soon after. "What the-?! What's going on?!"

 

"We're under attack, clearly." Aria replied, quickly running out of the room. Her current trainer was left blinking for a moment, looking at the space where she was a moment ago. He shook his head however, and grabbed three Pokeballs to release Flare, Meadow, and Torrent.

 

"We gotta see what's going on! Up the stairs!" the trainer called out, with all three of his Pokemon nodding as they ran through the hall. Before he could follow them however, Aspen turned around to find Saya darting through his room in fear, and almost about to run outside into the hallway. "Sorry about this!" he muttered under his breath, scooping up the startled Eevee with one arm, running after his Pokemon and doing his best to ignore the kicking and scratching fox in his arm.

 

Aria fired an Aura Sphere at an advancing Barbaracle, while Flare crackled with electricity and launched himself at a Dewgong in a Wild Charge. Meadow took aim with a Magical Leaf at an Octillery, the leaves scattering towards the octopus. Torrent spotted a nearby Floatzel and immediately scowled, puffing up his chest. The Buizel charged up and launched an Ice Beam at the more-evolved Pokemon, intent on challenging it to a one-on-one duel.

 

OOC:

 

Aria: Aura Sphere -> Barbaracle

Flare: Wild Charge -> Dewgong

Meadow: Magical Leaf -> Octillery

Torrent: Ice Beam -> Floatzel

[MELON LORD]

IC: Kalos Quartet

 

After seeing that the two Staryu and Starmie weren't pushing forward anymore, Sylph turned her attention to other opponents. While she was blasting another group with Dazzling Gleam, she saw a blur move out of her eye. Her arm came up defensively, and she staggered back as the Staryu she'd missed earlier slammed into her with a Gyro Ball. It's concealed itself somehow, she thought. She launched another Dazzling Gleam, but it didn't seem to phase the Star Shape pokémon, and she had to jump aside to avoid its next attack.

 

As it spun past, she realized that Xander was in its path. Crying out in warning was all she could do. The trainer spun, taking the Rapid Spin to his gut. He hit the deck hard, skidding a bit on the surface made slick by multiple water moves. Vixen and Ellen paused in their two-pronged attack on a Poliwag to face their new assailant. As Ellen used Helping Hand, Vixen rushed forward angrily. She opened her mouth, spitting flames that cloaked her body as she slammed into the almost-invisible opponent.

 

The Staryu reeled back, and Sylph issued another attack that sent it onto its face on the deck, where it stopped moving.

 

Xander sat up and tossed a pokéball, just to try and keep the Staryu from rejoining the fray. The ball didn't so much as shake after encapsulating it.

 

OOC;

Sylph: Dazzling Gleam - Assorted Pokémon

Staryu: Gyro Ball - Sylph

Sylph: Dazzling Gleam - Staryu

Staryu: Rapid Spin - Hits Xander

Vixen: Psybeam - Poliwag

Ellen: Tackle - Poliwag, Helping Hand - Vixen

Vixen: Flame Charge - Staryu

 

Xander:

Species:  Staryu
Nickname: Astraea
Trainer: Xander Cruize
Appearance: Gem is red-orange instead of red.

Personality: Astraea doesn't seem to have much of a personality, for the most part staying in one place and reacting to things around it rather than taking any direct action. If it has any thoughts or feelings, it keeps them hidden deep behind its blank gem.

Ability: Analytic
Specialty: Excels at counter-attacking.
Known Moves: Rapid Spin, Gyro Ball, Hyrdo Pump, Swift, Power Gem, Camouflage

[Blessed Blade]

 

It had quickly turned to chaos atop the deck of the S.S. Coral. Jack bit his lip, as the place quickly started to become crowded by all the people and Pokemon that were joining the fray. He frowned even more as Xander's capture confirmed his suspicions.

 

"Spread out!" He cried out, taking a Pokeball from his belt in the process. "They may be wild, but that doesn't mean they aren't dangerous still!" The captain raised an arm to protect himself, as a wave of water splashed over the deck. He grimaced, wondering if they could actually drive these Pokemon off. Attacks flung across the ship, as more and more Pokemon joined the fray. The Swampert the Captain sent out attempted to counter the Pokemon by sending them off with Surf. However, even that did not help much, as the opposing Pokemon were steadfast, and simply continued to swim closer. Some of the Pokemon again slammed into the ship, rocking it once more. However, one voice rang out above the rest.

 

"Are we to run away? Hah!" Jenny smiled with a triumphant smile, as she sent out her Gyarados and Eelektross. "I don't think you get it... A Hakuda never halts!" The girl's Pokemon rushed forward, as they knocked some of the boarding Crawdaunt off the side of the vessel. If her optimism was faltering, she was not letting that show. Over on Ryan's side, as well, his Pokemon were fighting valiantly. To the small bird's credit, Anna the Natu was doing rather well for being so outmatched. Her biggest help was flitting around, giving support, and launching off Future Sight attacks at the feral Pokemon, all while the Simisage and Samurott protected the tiny, overconfident Pokemon.

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra

Evan heard Jenny's statement and laughed heartily, as he sent out Vlad and Behemoth. "Well, a Tierra never trembles!" Evan shouted fervently. "Monstro, dive into the water and take care of the Sharpedo down there. Behemoth, Ice Shard to weaken any of them. Vlad.........let's give our pals a little boost, eh? TAILWIND!"

Nodding, Vlad flapped his membrane and conjured up a great gale, hoping to raise everyone's speed, as well as somewhat mitigate water attacks. The Gliscor felt a little intimidated by the sheer amount of foes to fight, but believed they would win the day.

Behemoth, flash froze several blocks of ice in front of him and launched them, making sure not to hit any allies with them. He would hate to have to apologize for collateral damage caused by himself. The Mamoswine took special care not to hit any of the younger pokemon, to ensure they too got in on the fun.

Meanwhile, Monstro broke the Wide Guard and dove off the side of the ship, where a frenzy of Sharpedo awaited the Swampert. As soon as he made contact with the water, Monstro unleashed a Hydro Pump to himself from the Sharpedo group, his arms glowing white to show he was prepared to use Hammer Arm. The Sharpedo zoomed towards the Mud Fish, fangs bared........

OOC:

Vlad: Providing Tailwind support

Behemoth: Ice Shard > trying to hit the enemy

Monstro, drawing fire from Sharpedo group, and preparing Hammer Arm counterattack

[Metal Gear Minun]

IC: Jamie Arthur - on a boat

 

The Pelipper fared better against Grummore and Bedevere's assault then the Swanna did. As the two landed on the deck, bits of ice stuck in them, the Shellder launched a Rock Blast at the Swanna, hoping to take out at least one bird with that stone. The intended target fell to the rock, but the other lashed out with Air Slash at both Grummore and Bedevere. The wind current brought up by Vlad, however, served to weaken the blow.

 

Jamie smiled brightly at Evan and Jenny's declarations. Heroic declarations were a true hallmark of a hero. She thought of her own response to it quickly.

 

"Well an Arthur never yields! Lamorak, slick a path for Bedevere. Bedevere use Shell Smash and charge!" Jamie called out.

 

The Shellder shed what shell he could as Lamorak used Water Gun to make a path for Bedevere to follow. Between the Shell Smash and the Tailwind, the Shellder accumulated a suprising amount of speed, enough to evade a second Air Slash. With five icy spears in front of him, Bedevere charged to combat the Pelipper. Lamorak however had no time to rest as a Tentacruel reached out and grabbed Lamorak. Lamorak instinctively used Iron Defense upon being grabbed. The move helped protect the Clamperl from the Tentacruel's initial lashing but then the Tentacruel decided to try and melt through the shell with Acid Spray.

 

"Grummore! Help out Lamorak!" she called causing the Slowking to turn.

 

Grummore turned about and turned his Psychic prowess towards the Tentacruel. The pain caused by the Super-Effective attack caused the Tentacruel to toss Lamorak into the air.

 

"Now Lamorak, Clamp!"

 

Lamorak guided his fall and slammed his shell shut onto the Tenatcruel's head. In response the Tentacruel began to bash on Lamorak, hoping to knock the Clamperl loose. The Tentacruel's efforts to remove the Clamperl from its head only served to tighten Lamorak's grab on it. Grummore began making calculations with Future Sight to prepare to strike the Tentacruel in a way that would not harm Lamorak.

 

OOC:

 

Bedevere -> Rock Blast (one hit) -> Swanna KO

Pelipper -> Air Slash -> Grummore, Bedevere (both hit)

Bedevere -> Shell Smash, Icicle Spear -> Pelipper

Tentacruel -> Constrict, Acid Spray -> Lamorak

Grummore -> Psychic -> Tentacruel

Lamorak -> Clamp -> Tentacruel

Grummore -> Future Sight -> Tentacruel

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra

Evan looked around at the fighting going on, and noted there were still more Water-types invading. In particular, a few Dewgong had found their way onto the boat. That wouldn't fly with the Plasma Agent. Or was it swim? He didn't care about that. All that mattered was thinning the horde. But the Hero couldn't use Earthquake currently, with everyone around. Then it hit him like an Iron Ball. "Vlad, Swords Dance, then push Behemoth!" Evan shouted, his eyes aflame. "Behemoth, use Superpower to knock those Dewgong off the deck! Try not to hit anyone, you two!"

Vlad flew upwards, spinning as he used Swords Dance, his limbs feeling twice as strong. The Fang Scorp performed a loop and swooped down towards Behemoth, who had been stamping his foot, waiting for the right moment to start charging. As Vlad made contact, the Mamoswine charged, the Tailwind and Vlad only adding to the intensity of the Superpower. As he bore down upon the group of Dewgong, they attempted to fire Ice Beams at him, with little effect due to his thick hide. The last thing they saw before they were knocked away into the water, were the eyes of a very spirited Mamoswine......

Meanwhile, Monstro was feeling the effects of his fight. The Sharpedo were fast and ferocious with their attacks. Their fangs dug deep into Monstro's hide with every bite. The Mud Fish pokemon had taken a few of their Number out with Hammer Arm, but as a result, was feeling quiet heavy. He had to figure out a way to take care of the rest, or there could be trouble. Monstro then thought of what happened back in that place with the treehouses, and had a bright idea. These Sharpedo were focused on him, and him alone, so he would make them pay for making him go all out. Monstro started to bide his time, aiming to take what they gave him, and dish it right back. Monstro struck a dynamic pose, disappointed that his master couldn't see him execute such a good plan, but happy to finally put his strength to use........

Edited April 11, 2016 by Hades

[MELON LORD]

IC: Xander Cruize

 

After securing his new capture on his belt, Xander continued shouting orders to his team. He could see Vixen getting tied, but knew that they needed every available pokémon. Ellen was still faring well, and Xander realized that she had used most of her pool of moves by this point. "Ellen, start using Last Resort on anything Vixen weakens with Psybeam! Vixen, keep it up, you're doing fantastic!"

 

The fire fox perked up at the praise, a bit of her weariness ignored. She launched her attacks with a little more vigor, though they were still weaker than when the battle had started. Combined with Ellen's attacks, however, they were doing the job needed. A Politoed had climbed on board and was acting like a general for the various Poliwhirl and Poliwrath. That stopped with two quick Psybeams, followed by Ellen leaping into the air and slamming into it with full force. The Frog pokémon flipped over the railing with a splash, and Ellen looked down to see still more pokémon swarming below. As she was turning away, a tentacle reached up.

 

Sylph was launching another Dazzling Gleam, wearing through the crowd, when Ellen's cry caught her ear. She turned just in time to see the Eevee dragged overboard by what looked like a Tentacruel. She and Xander ran forward at the same time. As Sylph launched a Psychic to fell the poison type, Xander dove into the water and mass of pokémon below.

 

OOC:

Vixen: Psybeam - multiple pokémon, Politoed

Ellen: Tackle - multiple pokémon, Last Resort - Politoed (KO)

Tentacruel: Wrap - Ellen

Sylph: Dazzling Gleam - various, Psychic - Tentacruel (KO)

Edited April 12, 2016 by A Conversation

[Parugi]

IC - S.S. Coral:

 

A large shadow passed underneath the boat.

[Konuju]

IC: Ryan/Paul

Bisharp was at a disadvantage. He excelled at slicing and dicing, but his opponent held a major type advantage. One hit from the Poliwrath's Dynamic Punch would leave him crippled in more ways than one. With so many allies around, Bisharp could not afford to succumb to the confusion he would sustain from one of those punches. And so even as he struck out with Metal Claw, Bisharp was more focused on avoiding his opponent's attacks than dealing damage himself. More than once he had to nimbly dodge out of the way of the Tadpole Pokémon's fist with the aid of Vlad's Tailwind, turning his swift movements into a frenzied Swords Dance.

 

His luck could not last forever. Bisharp misjudged how quickly he could attack and retreat, and as his blade swept in for another Metal Claw, the Poliwrath hit him square in the jaw, sending him sprawling. Out of the corner of his eye, Bisharp saw Coco slam into the second Poliwrath with Thunderpunch. Moments later, Terry charged at the Poliwrath that had been assaulting Bisharp. The Herdier didn't hold anything back from his Take Down, and the force of his impact sent the water-type flying over the edge of the ship. Terry barked a greeting to Bisharp, who held a hand to his head as the world spun around him.

 

Seeing Monstro was taking care of the Sharpedo, Scar set his sights on a Cloyster attempting to blow a hole in the hull with a Spike Cannon. The metallic bird screeched as he placed himself between the ship and its assailant, glaring as the blasts bounced off his sturdy hide. When the Cloyster paused in its attack, Scar struck it with Steel Wing. His sharp feathers grazed off of the Cloyster's thick shell, and the Bivalve Pokémon resumed its attack with renewed strength. This would not do.

 

The Cloyster was too defensive for Scar to take out easily, but something had to be done before it tore the ship to shreds. Seeing no other option but to remove it from the battlefield completely, Scar spread his wings and raced toward the surprised water/ice type, talons outstretched. Once he had secured the Cloyster, shell and all, Scar took to the skies, picking up speed before tossing his opponent as far away as he could. Given time, it would return, but Scar hoped the Sky Drop would give the Cloyster second thoughts about returning to the battlefield.

 

Meanwhile, Togie and Orihime found themselves in something of an aerial battle against a Mantine that kept Bouncing out of the water. Orihime directed an Ancient Power at the Kite Pokémon's leathery wings, while Togie held back lest he get hit by Orihime's attack and chose to lash out mentally with Extrasensory. The Mantine fell back into the ocean, leaving the pair of Togekiss to anxiously eye the crashing waves.

 

Without warning the Mantine burst out of the water, firing a Water Pulse at its opponents. Togie deftly darted out of range, but his eyes widened in surprise as the Mantine banked in the air, revealing a Remoraid attached to its wing. The Remoraid had a clear shot and was not about to miss it. A rapid Ice Beam shot from the smaller fish's mouth, striking the unsuspecting Togekiss on his right wing.

 

Numbness spread throughout the wing as the super effective hit took its toll. Togie spiraled down to the waves, his body glowing as he attempted to turn his descent into a vengeful Sky Attack.

 

The Gyarados let out a mighty roar as Ampere struck it with another Thundershock. Pleased with herself, the Mareep tried to spice things up by directing a Confuse Ray at the Atrocious Pokémon. Before the attack could hit, the Gyarados slunk back to the outskirts of the battlefield, eyeing the boat with an uncurbed fury.

 

Seeing her opponent was now too far away to reach, Ampere turned her Thundershock on a Seaking that had flopped its way onto the deck.

 

Ryan watched as his Pokémon battled of their own accord, and grimaced as he looked around at the army of water Pokémon. "There has to be a way we can calm them down!" he cried, striving to make his voice heard above the fray. "Otherwise they'll just keep on coming!"

 

OOC:

Bisharp: Swords Dance + Metal Claw - Poliwrath

Poliwrath: Dynamic Punch - Bisharp (confused)

Terry: Take Down - Poliwrath (KO)

Scar: Steel Wing + Sky Drop - Cloyster

Orihime: Ancient Power - Mantine

Togie: Sky Attack - Mantine/Remoraid

Mantine: Water Pule - Togie and Orihime

Remoraid: Ice Beam - Togie

Ampere: Thundershock - Gyarados and Seaking

[JiMing]

IC: Dahlia/Aspen Seaton

 

Coco smiled when she saw the Poliwrath get launched upwards into the air. The Buneary immediately followed up with another upwards Thunder Punch, this time knocking the Water-type even further up in the air. To finish off her juggle, she Bounced up in the air and aimed downwards with a Jump Kick, sending her opponent plummeting off the ship towards an approaching school of Sharpedo, with the Rabbit Pokemon springboarding off safely and landing on the SS Coral. However, a Seismitoad ran at her from the side with a Drain Punch, with Coco turning to face her new opponent and running forth with her own Ice Punch prepared.

 

Asriel lept forth at the Jellicent, only for the Pokemon to use Acid Armor and turn its body into an extremely dense liquid, with his attack being deflected and the Absol left buffeted. The Floating Pokemon took advantage of this to Constrict him and slowly squeeze tighter on him. Asriel struggled valiantly, lashing out with Night Slash after Night Slash until the tentacles gripping him had their shape disrupted long enough for the Disaster Pokemon to break free. While his opponent scrambled to solidify once more, the Absol launched a Razor Wind and moved in once more. 

 

Nutmeg was pleased to find that the Alomomola was struck by her Razor Leaf and turned away when the Pokemon began to approach the ship from a different angle. The Turtwig wanted to try out her new trick some more and fired a high-speed leaf at the fleeing Gyarados, ignoring the large discrepancy in power and the wrath it could wreak on the vessel.

 

Meanwhile, Laurel being preoccupied with the Pokemon in the water made it the perfect opportunity for a nearby Gastrodon to Body Slam the Bellossom. She cried out in pain, but recovered quickly, turning around and retaliating with a Leaf Blade, watching as the two of them healed, the Gastrodon with Recover and Laurel with Synthesis.

 

Dracos had succeeded in angering nearby Swanna, with three of them diving down with an Aerial Ace at the Dragonair. The elegant Pokemon scoffed and whipped them out of the air with a Dragon Tail, conveniently sending them straight into an Eelektross who had just boarded the ship. 

 

Dahlia looked around with a frown, grimacing every time the boat was rocked. "No... What do we do..." she muttered, too wracked with worry to join her fellow heros in their battle cries. Nearby was a group of agitated Staryu and Starmie who began getting too close for comfort towards her and the others. "Gerri, Signal Beam!" the gardener cried out, releasing the Surskit onto the deck. The Pond Skater Pokemon glared at her opponents and blasted as many Water-Psychic types as she could with Signal Beam. 

 

Aria ran forth at the Barbaracle with an Extreme Speed while her opponent moved in with a Cross Chop. Their attacks collided and left both Pokemon staggered, though before her opponent could pull off a Rock Polish, Aria lashed out with Close Combat and finished by punching it off the SS Coral and into a gathering swarm of Basculin. She observed the Mantine Togie had set his sights on with a Sky Attack and decided to assist, with her eyes glowing blue. Said Mantine was suddenly pulled straight into the Togekiss' revenge strike. 

 

Flare struck the Dewgong with his Wild Charge, causing the Pokemon to wail out in pain and slide away. Before it came to a stop, the Pokemon unleashed an Aurora Beam at the Quilava. Aspen's Brave Pokemon revved up while igniting, fearlessly ramming through the beam in a Flame Wheel, aiming to strike his opponent once more. 

Two Quagsire jumped onto the boat and began lobbing Mud Bombs at the defending Pokemon. Finding their presence unpleasant, Meadow shook her head and leaped up to douse the new threats with Stun Spore. Their assault stopped, leaving the Roselia to blast them back with a Magical Leaf. 

 

Torrent succeded in catching the Floatzel's attention, with the latter being quite annoyed at that attack from a weaker evolutionary stage. And so when the Buizel charged mindlessly forward in an Aqua Jet, it clamped down with a Crunch. Torrent grimaced in pain but managed to free himself by aiming a point-blank Ice Beam in the Floatzel's face. With both of them quite angry, the two of them launched forward at each other in a clash of the Aqua Jets. 

 

Aspen struggled to keep a panicking Saya under control, eventually forced to use both of his arms to prevent the Eevee from wriggling free into the chaos. "Not good... Not good at all..." he said, not looking forward to the challenge ahead. Something seemed odd however, the youngest Seaton being rather confused on that feeling. It suddenly hit him however, causing his eyes to widen. "Wait... Where's Xander?!"

[MELON LORD]

IC: Xander Cruize

 

Xander took a deep breath just before hitting the water, but he hadn't accounted for the height from ship to water, or the mass of pokémon below. He hit the water hard, and was instantly forced under by the horde of water-types. He felt the breath trying to force its way from his lungs, but he didn't have time to go up for air. He could see Ellen through the stinging salt water, and she was sinking.

 

Kicking hard, Xander managed to close the distance and grab onto the Eevee. As he was starting to kick back up, his breath coming short, another Tentacruel lashed out at him from nearby. It wrapped one limb around Xander's chest and squeezed. The last of Xander's held breath escaped, bubbling in the water. As he started inhaling water, Xander was split into two parts.

 

One part of him struggled, panicking, against the tentacle wrapped around his torso. The other half ignored that in favor of saving his pokémon. He snatched Ellen's ball from his belt and returned the Eevee quickly. Focusing on the item in his hand, he managed to launch it out of the water towards the ship.

 

The tentacle squeezed harder, and Xander let out a bubbling scream as he felt several things crack in places they shouldn't. His vision was growing dark, and he realized that he had made a big mistake. I am a fool, he thought. Sylph is going to yell at me . . .

 

Sylph. The thought of her held the darkness at bay. He stopped inhaling water, fighting not to cough as he held no oxygen. He focused on the pokémon holding him. If he could launch a pokéball, why couldn't he try the same here? He put his hands on the tentacle and let loose. The poison type reeled from the unexpected attack, its tentacle going slack. Xander kicked for the surface, breaking free with a loud gasp. Coughs racked his body.

 

Sylph didn't waste time jumping. She teleported just a short distance above the water, grabbed Xander, and teleported again, onto the deck of the ship. She let him drop,and turned to continue doing battle, leaving her trainer to recover next to Ellen's abandoned ball.

 

Vixen stayed near her trainer, ready to defend him from any more wild pokémon.

 

OOC:

 

Tentacruel: Wrap - Xander

Xander: Psychic? - Tentacruel

Sylph: Teleport, Teleport.

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: Wild Gyarados==-

 

The Gyarados had roared out, as it twisted out of the way of the attacks. The Thundershock stung, but it had more important things to attend to. It coiled back in the water, retreating for the moment, but kept its watchful eyes out. A frenzied roar rang out across the ocean, as the others seemed almost to be spurred on more. Three Politoed leaped onto the ship, attacking out at the other Pokemon gathered around where the Absol was. Four Quilfish appeared and launched off attacks at where Jenny and the others were, barely being blocked by a Stone Edge from Ryan's Tyranitar.

 

And then there was the Azumarill. It had blasted out of the sea, like a shell from a howitzer. It had discovered its target, and blindly rushed toward the person in question. The Aqua Jet hit, and Evan Tierra was sent flying.

 

The Gyarados's eyes blazed, as it slithered its way through the water, back toward the ship. The puny ship and its inhabitants would pay the price for daring hurt it. And they would pay dearly.

[Dr. Hidaka]

IC: Evan Tierra

The Hero of Space was sent flying by the Aqua Jet, feeling a cracking feeling in his right shoulder joint as he landed roughly on the deck.. Pain upon pain washed upon him, drowning him in a miasma of agony. The last time Evan felt something much worse, was when he was electrified by Zekrom. Evan opened his eyes, the sheer overload of pain making his eyes tear up. He noticed all the chaos going on. For the first time in a while, he felt useless. Evan felt the warm embrace of unconsciousness wrap around him as his eyes began to close. But then, something echoed in his mind.


But even if I feel useless, doesn't mean i am.

I have to do something. My friends need me.

Evan, with clenched teeth and great effort, raised himself up. His breathing was harsh and ragged, as if each moment was a struggle to stay conscious. with each inch he rose, he felt like he was going to fall, the pain rising higher with him. The Plasma Agent had managed to reach standing level, but felt like the slightest breeze could knock him down. Nevertheless, he had a misson, and he was going to complete it, heck or high water. Evan took a deep breath, making sure not to lose his precious footing.

"All right, that's it!" Evan spoke in a loud powerful voice. "Keep fighting! At the end of the day, we're gonna win this fight. Granted, every part of me wants to collapse in a heap. But I refuse to fall down right now. Not when my friends need all the help they can handle!

"

 

As Evan spoke, Landorus had erupted out of his Poke Ball, his eyes aglow with fury as he scanned the wartorn ship. He noticed the Gyarados rushing towards the ship. The Abundance Pokemon, with a cry of rage, flew towards the Gyarados, aiming to make it pay for it's brethern's most grievous mistake. "You may have not harmed my friend, but you intend to harm everyone on this ship." Landorus roared. "I swear it on my lifeblood that you will not harm anyone!" With his arm drawn back for a mighty punch, Landorus preapred to make contact......

Edited April 12, 2016 by Hades

[Blessed Blade]

-==IC: War==-

 

Jenny and Ryan gasped in shock at the events that occurred. Locked in battle, they could only watch as the Hero of Space was sent flying. The two attempted to fight back harder, to end things fast enough so they could actually help out... However, as they watched, they noticed Evan slowly rise. Jenny smiled in triumph, as she herself seemed to get inspired. "Right! We can do this... we can succeed!!" Jenny met that with the whip of a tail from a Golduck that climbed on board; but as she gripped the floor to stop herself from sliding, she looked up with a wide grin. A flick of her wrist had her Eelektross attack with a Crush Claw that sent the duck flying off the deck once again with a mighty quack.

 

Ray stood in shock. Not even a second before, the Separatist had thought the fight hopeless. The Hero of Space, the one he admired so much, had fallen in a scene that eerily reminded him of six months before. Yet, as with that time, the hero stood once more. Ray's eyes slowly became unclouded, as he began to smile. And yet, one thing bothered him...

 

"Uncool..." Ray mumbled to himself, his smile growing wider and wider. "I'm so uncool..." He clenched his fist for a moment, as he strode forward. He sent out Hozukimaru and Zangetsu in the process, as the two dashed forward with a war cry of a roar, aiming for the nearest targets. The fire had been reignited in the separatist, and the opponents would rue the day they tried to stand against them. Frenzied or not.

 

The Gyarados' eyes flashed, as it roared out. The feral Pokemon had seen the legendary appear, and rush toward the serpent. The Gyarados took the punch with another roar, and then gave Landorus a piercing glare, before snapping out at Landorus with its teeth. The feral serpent had one goal; to drive the Abundant Pokemon down. The Gyarados continued snapping its fangs at the legend, and then suddenly whipped its tail at the Pokemon, to drive Landorus into the water. Satisfied with its work, the serpent reared back for a moment, and then lunged toward the one who stood out the most... Ray Hakuda.

[MELON LORD]

IC: Sylph

 

Curse him for the fool that he was. If he insisted on jumping into danger, she would have to start remaining even closer to him. For now, he was still regaining his breath, and that allowed her to take her eyes off of him while she dealt with invaders. A launch of Psychic, a Dazzling Gleam, a Magical Leaf. Each attack hit something or several somethings, and she was angry enough that she wasn't holding back even slightly.

 

She saw Evan Tierra's fall, and his subsequent rise, and snarled. That was how one went about getting injured, taking damage they could come back from quickly. She turned, launching a Moon Blast at an opposing Crawdaunt, sending the dark-type for a loop. She teleported to land on it, driving it into the deck of the ship as she lashed out with Dazzling Gleam at more opponents. The horde of pokémon seemed to be thinning out a bit, but there were still plenty of targets to choose from. She repeated the teleport maneuver, this time using it to kick a Seaking that had missed its jump back into the water.

 

IC: Xander

 

The trainer sat up slowly, gasping and wincing as agony shot through him. He was no expert, but he didn't think ribs were supposed to slide like that. He wrapped one arm over his chest, holding tightly as his other arm reached for the nearby pokéball. He winced again and released Ellen, who was wet and angry. "Stay close, don't go near the rail," he managed to wheeze out.

 

The two foxes nodded and continued battling anything that slipped by the larger, tougher pokémon on deck.

[Parugi]

IC - S.S. Coral:

 

Its eyes glowed with a burning rage, and its instincts repeated a simple message in its head: Kill . . . Kill . . . Massive jaws, frothing with feral ferocity, descended toward Ray, threatening to snatch him up from where he stood, to shred bone and blood and flesh, to swallow him like it had done so many others.

 

It could not.

 

Blink of an eye, and a green field of energy materialized around Ray. The bird had descended, appearing in front of him--a ragged Xatu marked with lines of stitch-like scars whose eyes glowed in its perpetually frozen stare, locked with those of the Atrocious Pokémon. Beside it, a man, one with golden hair cocooned in a black bandanna, his arms crossed in front of his chest and a smirk etched into his face.

 

He wagged a finger at the Gyarados.

 

It pulled back, teeth scraping and cracking against the shield and sending green sparks into the air with its movement. It roared, a thunderous bellow that would have deafened unprotected ears. Then, as it had done before, it reared back, thrusting the weight of its body forward as it aimed to take advantage of the dying shield, to finish what it had started.

 

It could not.

 

Something erupted from the sea. A massive something--something that, amidst the explosion of water that rocked the boat and the dozen or so Water-Type Pokémon that were sent flying by its movement, could not be clearly seen, save for a brief flash of pale, white skin encased in a glimmering glove of saltwater. This something rocked the boat with its appearance, throwing the occupants off-balance. It slammed into the Gyarados's neck, thick fingers closing around its face and pulling the massive serpent underneath the surface. A panicked roar echoed, cut off midway with a crunch and the pull of the body back into the depths.

 

It happened in an instant.

 

 

 

McKinley remained standing, smiling at the spectacle. He looked to Ray, who had lost his footing in the sudden struggle, and held out a hand. "Miss me?"

 

 

 

A shadow passed beneath the ship, disappearing into the darkness below.