I N N O C E N C E ☆ (IC thread)

[Miss Doronjo]

.:: I N N O C E N C E ::.
A Pokemon Journey Roleplay w/ Tales of Innocence and Tales of Vesperia themes
< theme >
Rated T

“Someone was hurt before you, wronged before you, hungry before you, frightened before you, beaten before you, humiliated before you… yet, someone survived… You can do anything you choose to do.”

–Maya Angelou

MAP & TOWNS OF INTEREST

Spoiler:

• Imperial Capital, Zaphias
• City of Guilds, Dahngrest
• Secretive Town, Lark
• The Holy City, Naohs
• Town Beneath the Sand, Kurado
• The Colosseum, Triumphos
• Heliord, City of Blossoms
• Ashihara, the Imperial Stronghold
• Garam, Town of the Market
• The Port City, Galpos
• City of the Ancients, Mamut
• The Southern City, Tenos

P R O L O U G E

Long ago, the Kingdom of Zaude were in a state of a war. Powerful war beasts known as pokemon used their power to claim glory, and dominance. Their goal is to acquire the Manifest, an incredibly powerful artifact that can unite the heavenly domain of Devaloka and the earthly plane of Naraka into one paradise... or destroy both. The powerful generals of this empire included the tactical pokemon, Virizion, the headstrong general pokemon, Cobalion, and its leader, the powerful pokemon, Terrakion. Zaude, however, powerful had a powerful enemy: the Ratio. The Ratio wanted to dominate their competition in order for them to be the most powerful force in the world, using the Manifest to carry out the task of having both worlds in one fist. These pokemon included: the pokemon of water, Suicune, the pokemon of lightning, Raikou, and the general, the pokemon of fire, Entei. They also believed that you should not run away from your beliefs that can only be defended by fighting. While these legendary pokemons' ideals conflicted, each were right in their own way.

One day, beneath a foreign sky, the mighty legendary pokemon Terrakion leads a charge against the armies of Ratio. Finally, the battle comes down to a duel between Terrakion and his greatest rival, Entei. Terrakion uses its most powerful move, The Sacred Sword attack, to defeat his enemy. With his last breath, Entei swears to evaluate the results of Entei's campaign in another life.

With the war over, The Imperial Capital of Zaude kept itself in peace. Pokemon and humans grew better and better relationships with each other, and re-made Zaude into a more safe, and peaceful society. Professor Vayne, a pokemon professor who studies the legendary 6 pokemon who watched over Zaude during the war, spent years, and years of searching for records of these beats, but so far, nothing, other than a small painting of what these beats might of looked like. What happened to these pokemon after the events that transpired into peace?

That question soon led her to the ancient temples of Zaude, where it had the only record of these pokemon, painted on the walls. Soon, it dawned on her - what if these pokemon weren't pokemon at all? In fact, what if they were at one point--

However, her thought was interrupted by footsteps. It was then that she saw him. A man who beared a strange red and blue mark on his face. He stared at Vayne with emotionless eyes, but he then turned and walked away out of sight...



THE PLAYERS

Ericka "Eri" Kenway

Pokémon on hand:

Spoiler:

N/A

Aina Martis

Pokémon on hand:

Spoiler:

N/A

Timothy "Mothball" Collins

Pokémon on hand:

Spoiler:

N/A

Kaiba Swordkin

Pokémon on hand:

Spoiler:

N/A

Josè Relámpago

Pokémon on hand:

Spoiler:

Zorua
Lv. 10
Male
Moves: Dark Pulse, Bounce, Scratch, Shadow Ball, Extrasensory, Fake Tears

Samuel Davi

Pokémon on hand:

Spoiler:

Trapinch
Lv. 10
Male
Moves: Bite, Faint Attack, Sand Tomb

☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆



Arc One: The Guilds' Battle


☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆



The Imperial Captial, Zaphias

Setting: Zaphias, being the capital of Zaude, is of course the largest city in all of Zaude. The first settlers of Zaphias made their homes on a rim that was created from a meteor storm that was said to be created by a legendary pokemon, but later began developing the inside of the crater to obtain a more comfortable environment. Over many years, the seawater dammed up, and a port was built. Buildings grew higher as they searched for sunlight. Eventually, when LATIOS was established, the installation of machines were produced throughout the city, including the photon barrier that surround the city, protecting the citizens from wild, vicious, pokemon. This industrial activity and the wideness of the land drew people from around the world, resulting in the city becoming the capital of the kingdom.

Zaphias is a tiered city with separate living areas for different social classes. The nobles and royalty live on the top tier, where the shopping district is. It is also where Professor Vayne's Pokemon lab is located. More importantly, this is where the castle of Zaphias is, where the Prince, the heir to the throne, lives, along side the Zaude knights, watching over Zaude for security reasons.

The people who are middle and lower class live in the lower tier of Zaude. While the people of the nobility and royalty often look down on the people living in the lower tier, the middle and lower class people didn't mind it at all; they still continued to live peaceful lives. The problem is, their problems in the city whenever it came to being bled dry of wealth ad food because of taxes, or sometimes from lack of water, is often ignored by the Zaude Knights, since the Zaude knights look after the nobility more often. Fortunately for them, Professor Vayne's laboratory in the higher tier is open for everybody - even for people living in the lower tier, since Vayne is pretty open to people when it came to new trainers of helping her of meeting new pokemon.



Story: It became mid-day in the busy city of Zaphias, where people began shopping, people trained and battled their pokemon, and even a couple of knights in the kingdom preparing for their next mission. Meanwhile, Professor Vayne, a professor who eccentrically studies the ancient legendary pokemon that were in the fabled war, was busy in her lab, preparing for the arrival of her invited trainers. Soon, her lab front door knocked. When she opened the door, she was soon face to face with a familiar figure.

"Commandant Varus!" She addressed with an open smile. "This is quite the surprise! Shall I bake you up a batch of Raikou claw cookies over a nice batch of hot-tea? Or no; how about an Orange drink? I actually hate tea."

"I'll have time for that some other time," replied the commandant as he stepped right in the lab. "I was just around, and I was just wondering; how goes your research in the Forest of Mov Gropth?"

"Er..." said the professor as she fiddled with her glasses. "I.. haven't actually gotten around to do that yet. BUT! I have Intel that a lone green figure was seen floating around there. It was... something similar to a spit -- I mean, spirit."

"That's quite the Intel," Varus commented. "I trust that you will investigate this further?"

"Well... um..." Vayne began. "Maybe?"

"You are a researcher in an imperial pokemon laboratory," Varus explained. "You must undertake the tasks assigned to you."

"You see," Vayne replied. "I.. I kind of figured that the new pokemon trainers will handle it--"

"No," Varus insisted. "This is an important task for someone that is well suited and experienced in this field. We have reports of high concentration, and mutation of plants in the area."

"I'm sorry but... plants is sort of not in my specialty."

"Consider the connection to pokemon there," Varus explained. "Pokemon aggressiveness has also increased in that area as well. What if this is caused by a separate power? I imagine that is in your league?"

"I... um..."

"It seems that I can take that reply as an indication of your agreement," Varus said as he re-opened the door. "By your leave then."

"Wait," Vayne called after him. "There's still the matter of handing out the pokemon for the new trainers. After that, I'll go to the forest via way of Dahngrest."

"Very well." Varus agreed as he finally stepped out the lab, leaving Vayne behind.




Mission: It's time to get your starter pokemon! Feel free to explore around Zaphias. Whenever your ready, head towards the lab where you'll meet Professor Vayne.


She's... a little weird, and pretty much a crazy eccentric, especially when it comes to pokemon. Like her or not, she'll introduce you to your starter pokemon, as well as explain her field of researching legendary pokemon. She'll also give you your pokedex, a hi-tech pokemon encyclopedia developed by LATIOS.

After that, feel free to exit Zaphias whenever you want, and I'll post up the next area! By the way, you're allowed to bunny Professor Vayne.



Optional:

The nobles and some of the kids in the lower tier of Zaphias has pokeon ready for battle too. After you've gotten your starter pokemon, you can, of course, battle any of these nobles or the people of the lower tier you want:




If you do wish to battle them, (and btw, you can choose what pokemon they have) your pokemon can receive a nice level boost!


What you may, must, can try, and may not do in Zaphias in a nutshell:

- You must come to Vayne's lab (that's where your starter is!)
- You may create NPC's.
- You may interact with other characters in this RP, since it is possible to be around the same area at a same time~ (as long as it's okay with whomever your interacting with!)
- You may do the optional mission.
- You may exit Zaphias any time you receive your starter, and I'll post up the new area.

[Sweet_Dreams]

Timothy, or, as he had fashioned himself one afternoon in a flight of fancy, "Mothball", panted as he scrambled up the steep streets. Inevitably, he stubbed a toe against a losse bit of pavement and fell, scraping the palm of his hand and his already-bandaged left kneecap. He sighed, wiped his hand against his shirt a little, and retrieved a bandaid from his rucksack. He just thanked whoever was watching out for him that he didn't manage to break his glasses. Again. Scrapes, he could handle. Glasses were expensive and didn't heal.

It wasn't that there weren't other ways to reach Professor Vayne's lab. There were plenty of convenient forms of transport in the city, what with LATIOS being around to make life easier. It was just that Mothball knew he would probably end up accidentally giving somebody a black eye, or catching the wrong train or whatever, and end up getting there late. And he really, really didn’t want to be late. Besides, he thought he could use some exercise.

It definitely didn’t have anything to do with the fact that his sister was taking the train to go to her oh-so-prestigious job at LATIOS.

When he finally arrived in one of the main streets of the top tier, he stopped for a moment to catch his breath. It really was beautiful up here. The view was magnificent, and the buildings were all so stately. He reached an arm up to run his hand through his hair and somehow ended up whacking someone in the arm.

"Sorry!" he said, cringing away from the person only to walk into somebody else. “Sorry,” he repeated, smiling nervously at the man who simply shot him an irritated look and left. The streets were more crowded than he was used to, which didn’t bode well for him. He took a deep breath, steeled himself, and walked forward.

He promptly tripped over somebody’s shoe and cracked his head against the pole of a streetlamp.

"Sorry," he said automatically, and then winced in embarrassment when he realised he was talking to an inanimate object again. In an attempt to make himself seem like less of an idiot, he looked at his watch before starting in alarm. He really had to go, because if there was just one thing he didn’t want to be late for, it was this. It was a chance to get his very own Pokemon!

Mothball had absolutely no idea why the Professor invited him for this project. He was still waiting for someone to tell him the whole thing was a prank, or a misunderstanding.

Or that the invitation was really meant for his sister.

That would be okay. Certainly more understandable than him actually getting the chance to go on an adventure and do wonderful, brilliant things with his life. But, well. If there was even just one chance that this was real...

"Right," he said to himself and barged forward into the crowd. A moment later, a thump could be heard, followed by a muffled shout of "sorry".

~*~

To his surprise, he arrived at the lab a little early and with only one new bruise. His forehead was bleeding a little, but he failed to really notice. He fidgeted a little, feeling rather lost. Maybe it was rude to be early? He’d never actually been early anywhere before, so he wouldn’t know.

He looked for a doorbell or something, stumbling a little but righting himself. Man, he hated his growth spurt. He wasn’t half this bad before puberty hit and he shot up like one of the high-rise buildings that were everywhere in this part of the city.

He adjusted his glasses and decided to maybe wait for other people to show up first. He settled himself in a spot near the entrance of the lab, but far enough away that he didn’t look as though he was waiting on the doorstep like a desperate puppy. Even though, really, he was.

[Skymin]

The city of Zaphias itself was an entirely new experience for Ericka Kenway. Having been born and raised in a seaside town, everything here was a new sight, a new smell and a new sound. It was as if she had fell through a black hole and this was a completely different universe to the one she knew. Even the people were different; rather than the friendly, small-town of greeting everyone who passed you, people seemed to act stand-offish and avoid you totally. Ericka didn't mind too much, though. She was far too busy taking in the sights than to do her usual thing.

A map helped her find her way to a place known as "Vayne's Labratory", though Ericka took several detours, briefly stopping in some shops along the way. Everything seemed a little expensive, but far cooler looking than the clothes she was used to. What Ericka adored more was the cute Pokémon that helped the shop keepers. She couldn't name them all, but they all looked so friendly and amazing. She couldn't wait until she had her own.

"Can I help you with anything, miss?" the shopkeepers would say when Ericka found herself staring too long.

"No, thank-you. I'm just looking. But thank-you!" she looked a little disappointingly down at the sack of coins her mother had given to her before she left. For her, it was a good lot. Maybe a month's worth of pocket money, maybe a little more?! But here, it was probably small change.

Thankfully though, nobody had offered her a lift home or asked where her parents were. Were people less judgemental in this city or did they just not care?

"Hello! You look a little out of place, little miss," a man standing by a market beckoned Ericka over as she strode through the streets. She walked over to him, map outstretched, pouting slightly. "Do you need any help?"

"Actually, yes," she turned the map around so the man could see it. "I'm looking for... Vaan's labratory? That one," she pointed at the red circle around a point on the map.

"You definitely are not from around here, I can see that!" the man chuckled, pushing the map back to Ericka. "You were heading in the right direction. See, up there? That building? That's Vayne's labratory. Just walk up the street and turn right, alright?"

"Thank you very much, sir! I'm Ericka!" she reached out to shake the man's hand, which he accepted.

"Vincent," he said through another chuckle. "Are you staying in the city long?"

"I'm not sure, but I'm sure I'll see you again, Vinny! Thanks again!" and with a wave, she was off again.

She followed the directions perfectly; up the street and to the right. Indeed, what she recognised from pictures was the lab. It was... she couldn't contain her excitement any more, and rushed up the stairs to give the front door a big knock. She stood still for half a minute then stepped back. Maybe Vayne wasn't home? She turned around to find a place to wait, her eyes meeting with another boy around her age. Without hesitation, she strode over to him, waving to catch his attention.

"Hi!" she said when waving wasn't enough. "Do you know where Professor Vayne is?"

[Sweet_Dreams]

Mothball had been waiting what felt like ages and was starting to get restless. It was probably all the excitement he still felt at the thought that maybe he would get a Pokemon! And whatever he got, it would be awesome. Because it would be a Pokemon and it would be his friend. It would be a Pokemon friend.

And then someone actually arrived. He watched curiously as a short girl with red hair approached the lab and ran unflinchingly towards the door of the laboratory, knocking on it with a confidence he could never really master. After a small pause the girl looked around and spotted him. He blinked when she immediately headed in his direction and waved. He glanced behind him, wondering if maybe she'd seen one of her friends or something, but there was nobody around except them.

"Hi! Do you know where Professor Vayne is?" the girl asked. He couldn't bring himself to call her a woman, because she was just so small and youngish. But he didn't think that Professor Vayne would invite someone too young, would she? It was still pretty dangerous out there for anyone of any age.

"Uh, hi!" he said, raising his hand up to wave and hitting his chin a little in the process. He gave her a sheepish smile. "Were you invited here too?" he asked. After all, it was possible that she was here for some other reason. Maybe she had a research paper or was bringing stock over or was the Professor's long lost daughter or something. Admittedly, that last one wasn't quite as likely.

Then he realised he was still sitting and quickly scrambled to his feet. During which he almost fell over himself and dislodged his glasses so that they hung askew. He smiled apologetically, as though he was sorry she had to bear witness to his clumsiness. And then he realised he hadn't introduced himself, proceeding to thrust out a hand and beam.

"Hi!" he said again. "I'm Timothy, but you can call me Mothball!" Then he thought that Mothball was probably a weird name and maybe she wouldn't want to call him Mothball. It's not like anybody else did. "Um, only if you want. You could just call me Timothy. Or Tim. Or 'hey you' if you forget my name or something, which is fine because names can be hard," he tried to reassure her.

Wait, she'd asked a question. He should probably answer the question.

"Sorry," he said earnestly. "I've got no more of an idea than you. Honestly, I didn't even knock at the door because it might be rude to be early. Um. Or something," he laughed self-deprecatingly.

[Icy Burn]

Sorry for not posting anything, my connection hates me and died.

Sam Davi - his name at birth had been Samuel Davi, but he hated that name with a passion. If you call him Samuel, he will not be responsible for his actions - bundled through the streets Zaphias. It was finally the day, the day when he would get his first Pokemon. Being a 19 year old, many would think Sam would already have a Pokemon, but no. He had always wanted one, but because of his clumsiness and shyness and him staying inside mostly, that never happened, but his Mum, Julie, was a past friend with the Professor, so she managed to get him a spot. The only bad part about getting his Pokemon was that he had to moved from his home town down south, to Zaphias.

Dashing down to the Merchant's Stall, Sam was buying his last few ingredients. Since he had moved to Zaphias, Sam had became good friends with the Merchant, despite him being 40 years older.

"Morning Sam! What can I do for a fine young man like you today?" John, the Merchant asked joyfully.

"I'm here to buy my last few supplies before I go on my journey." he said. "Just the basics, Potions, Poke Balls, Paralyz Heals and Antidotes. I don't think I'll need the more advanced potions like Burn Heals and Full Restores for a while."

"Of course, I agree. You can have 5 Potions and Poke Balls, and 3 Paralyz Heals and Antidotes for a total of .... 3000 Poké!" the Merchant calculated.

Sam fumbled through his bag, counting the money as he did. "There you go, good seeing you!" and he bolted in the direction of the Lab.

***

He had arrived, this was it. Sam had waited for this moment all his life. He barged through the door, and shouted, "I'm Sam Davi, and I'm going to be the Pokemon Master!".

"Ah, Sam. Welcome to the world of Pokemon!" Professor Vayne exclaimed. She beckoned Sam to come closer. "Many of the others have already came, so there is not as much as a huge choice. But I assure you, they are all great Pokemon!"

"I know they'll be amazing!" Sam said. "I've wanted a Pokemon all my life, I don't care what I get!". He grasped a one of the Pokeball's laid out, and his face lit up.

"I think you should look at the selection first ..." Vayne said quietly.

"I don't mind ..." He flung his arms into the air. "I'll be the Pokemon Master!"

He then clumsily lost his grip of the Pokeball, sending a Trapinch flying out.

There was then a white flash in his head, and he then saw the destruction, the horror. It was flashing past him, images that he had not seen before in any previous dreams, and then he was back with Professor Vayne in the Lab.

"Are you all right? You seem a bit ... dazed." she asked in a worried tone.

"Err, yeah, sure ...

***

[Miss Doronjo]

Geez, Sam is quite the fast one.. xD

Samuel Davi recieved a Trapinch! (LV 10, M)

I'll post up the new area tomorrow, just in-case you want to head out right away.

[IceFyr1928]

José strutted through the familiar streets of Zaphias, as he lived nearby. He saw the LATIOS corp. building rising in the background, and various bird Pokémon. He took in a deep breath, and continued walking. He soon reached his goal, Professor Vayne's place.

The first thing that José noticed when he walked in was the amount of technology put into this research. Many instruments, gauges and dials lined the back wall, and the tables were no less cluttered. He stepped over what appeared to be a model of a Pokéball, complete with a working button. He soon came to the bqck, and saw who he was looking for.

"Morning, Professor. Came to get my Pokémon." José said, focusing on his hands. He didn't want to be messing with these instruments.

"Good Morning! You must be José! Please, come back here." Vayne said energetically. José followed, being careful not to step on anything. They soon reached a machine with quite a few Pokéballs on it.

"Well, Here's your Pokédex, now just choose a Pokémon from those!" Vayne said, handing José the high tech encyclopedia.

José nodded and was reaching out when he felt something stir inside of his mind. José stood for a moment, confused, before continuing. He felt it again. It seemed to be telling him to take the bottom-right ball. He picked it up, and read the lettering.

"Zorua?" José said, quite confused that it wasn't an electric type. He had always felt gravitated towards electricity and technology. He thanked the professor and went outside, still confused.

He released Zorua, and gasped.

"A Shiny!!! No. F***in'. Way. This is awesome! I'm callin' you Zephyr." José said to the shiny Zorua, who nodded, and then transformed into a perfect copy of José.

"Seriously? You can shapeshift? This day keeps getting better and better!" José shouted as the imitation José nodded. José then set out for the outskirts of the city, intent on finding out just what Zephyr could do.

[machomuu]

Aina Martis

--Freedom--

"D-dear, are you sure you want to go in something that light?" Haynie, Aina's mother asked in a daze.

"It's Summer, dear. She'll catch a cold if she wears anything more," the frazzled mother's loving husband Kain reassured.

"W-what about tissues? Do you have enough tissues?" Haynie asked, running left and right looking for tissues. "Kain, dear, where are the tissues."

Glimmering Aina, standing at the doorway ready for departure, moved the cold mask from her face to her chin and said, "Mother, I'm fine. You helped me pack, remember?" Haynie stopped in her tracks and sighed. She looked to her daughter and held her close. "I love you mom, I'll be alright," Aina confidently assured her.

"Sometimes I worry about you. I always worry about you." Haynie said, still with her daughter between her arms. Tears started to stream down her cheeks and Kain promptly put his arm on her shoulder to comfort her. Haynie sighed again and released her daughter, stepping back a few steps and wiping her wet face. "I love you, too, Ai." The name "Ai" was a nickname her mother and father called her. Aina put on a hearty smile and waved to her parents. The two of them waved back and watched as their daughter headed out into the world for the first time.

As Aina stepped passed her normal boundaries, she felt something she'd never felt before. It was calming feeling that quickly filled one with ecstasy. It frightened her, but at the same time she enjoyed the feeling. It felt as if the bonds of her sickness were gone, that she was no longer restricted to the isolated and repetitive life that she would have otherwise led until she died. She felt free, and that freedom allowed her to see the world in an entirely new light. Grass was greener, voices were more distinct, and everything was more vibrant. Before she knew it, she had arrived at the lab.

She stepped towards the door and put her hand on the handle when a voice from behind her said "Aha!" Aina let out a quick scream in response, startled by the sound. She turned around to see a woman in a lab coat.

Professor Vayne

"What's a pretty little flower like you doing at my doorstep?" The woman said, looking at Aina with a grin. Aina's cheeks became a bright red color from embarrassment. She tried to talk, but wasn't really sure what to say. "No, wait, don't say anything," The professor said. She looked at Aina for a few seconds, and then she walked around her, keeping her eyes trained on the sickly young girl as she rounded her. "Hmm...blue hair, bronze skin, skinny, and a cold mask...you must be Aina Martis, right?" A spot on deduction for someone she'd never met. Aina opened her mouth to agree, but before she could say anything the good professor broke in. "I knew it, I knew it!" she said, pushing her glasses up and shining a victorious smile. "Professor Vayne pleased to meetcha. Please, call me Vayne, but just don't call me Vain." She laughed to herself very briefly and went on. "Very good, c'mon in and I'll let you meet your pokemon." The professor then made her way into the laboratory. Aina couldn't help but stand there in a daze, and after a few minutes, she joined the professor.

[Icy Burn]

"Are you sure, Sam?" she questioned.

"I'm fine, Vayne. 100%!" Sam went back to his normal tone. "Is there anything else I need before becoming the worlds Pokemon Master?"

"Yes there is, but slow down! You can't be the best just like that. You must catch and train your Pokemon, battle others and battle the Gym Challenges across Zaude." Vayne explained. "I am happy to present you, the Pokedex! This machine will record the data of Pokemon you see and catch, every single one!"

"Finally! I'm on the road to become the best!" Sam laughed. He ran out the door in joy and he sprang into the air. His newly acquired Trapinch plodded along behind him.

"Trap, Trapinch!" Trapinch cried in joy.

"Hmm, I guess you'll need a name ..." Sam murmured, "Hmmm ... How about Mercury?"

"Trapinch!" he exclaimed.

"Well, that's settled! You're my first ever Pokemon, Mercury!"

***

Sam skipped through the streets in glee, with Mercury clinging on to his shoulder. His head still hurt from his vision from earlier, but that didn't matter right now. First of all, he wanted to have a battle. He didn't care against who, he just had to test Trapinch's strength. Mercury knew 4 moves, Bite, Sand Tomb, Mud Bomb and Faint Attack. Sam though that was an awesome moveset, an all hitting, all punching Pokemon, the perfect battler!

"Oi, you! I've been waiting for someone with a Pokemon around here." Sam heard from above. A shadow sharply leaped from the building above, making Sam jump.

"Who are you?" Sam inquired.

"Me? I'm the best of the best." he sneered. "Marvin Jones, and I'm declaring rivalry against you!"

"Ok? ..."

"And that means, we must battle!" he bellowed.

Sam thought about this carefully. Marvin Jones looked like a Tough Cookie, and he had only just got his Pokemon. He had never battled, not even a wild Pokemon, and this guy looked like he had done it all and got the T-Shirt. He had brown wavy hair and a posh, white jacket that looked in perfect condition. He had matching shoes and trousers, and he looked like one someone like Sam shouldn't be battling, but you can never judge a book by the cover.

"Well, ok!" Sam said quietly, thinking about whether he had just made a huge mistake.

Sam sent Mercury into battle as he shouted, "Go, Mercury!", his opponent then sent out a Croagunk, a poison and fighting type. He knew Poison types were weak against Ground types, and Trapinch knew Sand Tomb.

"So ... you only just got your Pokemon?" he sneered a disgusting sneer. "This'll be like taking candy from a baby ... Croagunk, use Poison Sting over and over again!" Croagunk repetitively jabbed Trapinch, in the shoulder, his left leg and a pounding blow to his head, however, Trapinch was hardly effected. "Huh?!"

"I may be new to battling, but I do know that Poison type moves are hardly effective against Ground types." Sam laughed. "Trapinch, use Sand Tomb!" A tornado of sand whipped up, trapping Croagunk inside. Dust flew up from the ground, causing both Sam and Marvin's vision obscured. They could both hear the cries of Croagunk, over and over. The dust and sand slowly faded away, revealing Croagunk limping slowly towards his trainer.

"What's wrong, how did you hurt him?" Marvin cried. "We're meant to be invincible! No one should be able to hurt us! You'll never win!" But he then swallowed his words, as Croagunk slowly collapsed.

Sam's jaw dropped. "Wow ..." he was lost for words. "We won, Mercury ... We won!" they both bounced with glee, realising that they had won.

"NO!" Marvin yelled at the top of his lungs. "How?! This is not over, Samuel Davi!"

Sam flinched as he called him that, he hated that name. But he calmly brushed it off without a care. And this was only the start of a great adventure.

***

[Skymin]

"Sorry. I've got no more of an idea than you. Honestly, I didn't even knock at the door because it might be rude to be early. Um. Or something."

"I'm Ericka!" she said, stepping forward to shake the boy's hand. "Or Eri. Or Kenway if you want to call me by my last time. I don't think I'd respond to 'hey you'," she said with a giggle. She was about to continue with her conversation, perhaps suggest to just go check to see if the door was unlocked before she distracted by other people around her age, just walking up and walking inside. She stopped and stared for a few moments, watching as, without much time inbetween, they walked in and out.

Ericka looked back to Timothy with raised eyebrows. She didn't really want to intrude like that, like this was some kind of video game and intruding into people's houses and rummaging through their things was considered normal and not impolite but it seems that was the go at the moment. Maybe Vayne didn't hear her knock before or maybe she was busy or maybe knocking on the door was like knocking on the door of a Pokémon Centre; everyone knew it was open, so nobody would really respond to a knock.

With a shrug, she started to walk towards the lab doors.

"Should we go... just go look inside?"

[Sweet_Dreams]

Mothball stared as well when people just seemed to go through so... professionally. Maybe it had said on the invitation what kind of etiquette was required? None of them seemed to notice the two of them there. It's not like he could blame them; he was almost excited enough about getting a Pokemon that he might accidentally walk himself off a cliff.

Huh. Note to self: don't walk off a cliff after getting a Pokemon.

Eri looked unimpressed at their unhesitating actions. Mothball marvelled at it. He would probably marvel at a sneaker at that point, because everything was just stoking the fires of his anticipation higher.

"Should we go... just go look inside?" Eri asked, walking away. It startled him a little but then he beamed.

"Yeah!" he said enthusiastically, scrambling to catch up. He tripped at the doorway, but managed to grab the frame in time to keep himself from falling flat on his face. That would have been an auspicious start to his adventure. Then again, falling on his face pretty much defined his life at this point.

The laboratory was awesome, Mothball thought. There was a sense of chaotic order, with cool gizmos cluttered everywhere. And... he squinted. There seemed to be a purple bunny slipper poking out from one of the piles lying around, which made him smile.

There was another girl with Professor Vayne, and Mothball was torn between being scared of interrupting and pleading with the Professor to tell him that yes, he really did get to have his own Pokemon and that yes, it will be epic.

"Should we wait?" he asked Eri with a hint of nerves. He knew he probably wouldn't want someone else to just barge in and interrupt him when he was receiving his very first super-mega-awesome Pokemon. He waved a little at the girl talking to the Professor in case she was looking their way.

[Miss Doronjo]

Professor Vayne

"Ah, come in, come in!" the jolly professor called out to the two new trainers. "You must be the ones I've been waiting for!"

The professor then placed rectangular machinery upon the table, next to what it looks like a tray with pokeballs. She then coughed as she addressed the trainers once again. "Welcome everyone," she said with an open smile. "As you know, I am Professor Vayne, the official researcher of the Zaude kingdom. And here is my haven. My laboratory to be exact! But... 'laboratory' is quite a boring name, don't you think? How about... A clinic? A loveeeeee clinic..."

She then let loose a cherry chuckle. "Indeed, a love clinic designed to match make you trainers of course~" she explained. "Here, there is only one match of love that I'm going to assign to you all; a quest! Whether it be for love, or... for glory, it's up to you to decide!"

She then made another chuckle as she then pointed to the trays of pokemon. "As you can see, this tray contains pokeballs that release certain pokemon," she explained as she adjusted her glasses. "These pokemon are going to be your first pokemon partners! Or should I say... pokemon love partners?" She let loose a louder laugh.

(OOC: Juuust to help you guys out with the interaction a bit. ^_~)


~~~~~

José received a Zorua! (LV 10, M)

Hehe, almost forgot about this~ It's okay if it's shiny btw; I...kind of don't mind. I can't wait to see what you come up with on your adventures!

[IceFyr1928]

José was walking down the street, Zephyr on his head, when he saw another trainer, this one with a Trapinch, looking absolutely delighted.

I'd like to see the look on his face once I get Lapras back... He thought. José fell in behind him, and began tailing him. Zephyr leaped off of José's head, and transformed into a duplicate of him. The two then sped up, and José tapped on his shoulder.

"What, may I ask, has gotten you into such a gay mood, punk?" José said. Zephyr nodded in agreement, still an exact copy of his master. José nodded at the trainer's trapinch. "And what's up with the oversized hedge clipper?"

[Icy Burn]

"What, may I ask, has gotten you into such a gay mood, punk?" he heard someone say. "And what's up with the oversized hedge clipper?"

Sam turned around in anger. "Excuse me?" he spat in disgust. "I'm happy - or as you, thinking your some sort of gangsta, say it, a "gay mood" - because I just got a Pokemon and just won my first battle, is that a problem? And he's not an oversized hedge clipper he's Mercury, or Trapinch to you, and-" he then realized that there was two of this arrogant brat. TWO of him. "How is there two of you?!"

Sam looked at both of them, trying to decide which was the real person, or if they were both replicas. "Maybe it's a Ditto? Or a Zorua?" he thought to himself. He poked them both, to feel which one was more real, they both felt the same.

[IceFyr1928]

José laughed at this boy's confusion. He snapped, and Zephyr changed back into a shiny Zorua, who climbed onto José's arm, where he giggled maniacally.

"I would like to introduce Zephyr." José said. Zephyr grinned, revealing fangs. He then turned into the Trapinch and proceeded to make a fool of himself. This made José laugh even more, and he playfully nudged him.

"Perhaps you would like to prove your point with a duel." José said. He then the took a few steps back, and Zephyr jumped down in front of him.

"Whenever your ready." José said.

Time to show him just what an amazing trainer I am...

[Sweet_Dreams]

The brightest and most excited smile spread across Mothball's face when Professor Vayne beckoned for them to join her. He thrilled a little inside. Actually, he thrilled a whole lot inside. He took extra care not to knock into anything on his way there, grinning triumphantly when he succeeded in not causing some kind of catastrophe.

When the Professor placed a tray of Pokeballs on the table, Mothball tried to pay attention to what she went on to say, he really did, but his attention kept getting drawn to the shiny, shiny Pokeballs on the desk which contained a Pokemon that he might get for his very own self. The only words that he registered were 'love' and 'clinic' and later on 'Pokemon love partners' which caught his attention a little because, wait, what?

The professor was laughing, so he figured it probably wasn't anything important. Watching Professor Vayne for any signs of reprimand, he reached out for a Pokeball. He pressed the button in the middle and startled at the bright white light that erupted from the Pokeball and then formed into the shape of a small green Pokemon.

"Lar!" the Pokemon cried. Mothball, crouching in front of the Pokemon, was entranced. The smile on his face was bright enough to power the city.

"Hey there, uh... boy?" he tried, and immediately had his finger bitten for his efforts. "Girl? Girl!" he cried out, and the pressure was gone. He shook his hand a little but otherwise ignored it in favour of reaching out to stroke the Pokemon. Its skin was smooth but hard, like polished stone.

The Pokemon cocked its head to the side, inspecting him. She seemed unimpressed but allowed the petting to continue.

"Look, Eri, she's wonderful," he cooed. "Eri! This is so awesome! What're you getting?" He tried to gather the Larvitar into his arms, but couldn't lift it. Okay, that should have been obvious. Instead he turned his head to beam at Eri, still crouched on the ground.

[Skymin]

Ericka basically skipped her way after Vayne, hanging onto every single word that came out of the Professor's mouth. She didn't really understand everything that she said, but listened none the less as if each word was made of gold. When Vayne offered, Timothy was first to get his Pokémon. Ericka wasn't sure what it was called, only that it looked pretty cool, was a she and had a bit of a temper.

"Look, Eri, she's wonderful. Eri! This is so awesome! What're you getting?" he looked up at Ericka, who stepped forward and looked into the tray of PokéBalls. She didn't look through them all to try and find one she liked, but instead closed her eye, shoved her hand in and grabbed one and random. She pulled it out when she had a firm grip and mimicked Timothy, pushing the button on her PokéBall and releasing her own. At first, she expected one just like Timothy but instead, a blue... lizard eel snake thing appeared. It wasn't that she was disappointed, but she had no idea what to call it. Did they get a PokéDex too? Is that what it was called?

It purred at her and Ericka stepped forward to give it a scratch. It seemed to enjoy that. Good!

"This is awesome!" Ericka squealed a little, the scratch turning into an extreme patting session. "Look! Look what I got, Timmy!"

"Great!!" Vayne said, clapping her hands together excitedly. "There's one more thing you need!" She picked up the devices she had placed earlier and practically threw it them at Ericka and Timothy. Ericka caught hers in her left hand, it flopped open in her hand and data showed up immediately. Two Pokémon appeared on screen, almost identical to the ones now belonging to Timothy and Ericka.

... Larvitar and Dratini. Interesting! So hers was a Dratini! And under closer inspection, it was a Female. Not only that, there was an option to replace the name.

"Ruby!" Ericka stabbed in the name. "I'll call you Ruby!"

[Icy Burn]

"Well ... I'll ask Mercury." James turned his head towards Mercury, and raised his eyebrow. Mercury jumped a bit, and then plodded forward. "Wait, wait! Let me heal you first!

He fumbled through his bag, and dropped most of his things, "I look like a fool ..." He thought. When he ecentually found one of his Potions, he dashed up to Mercury and healed him. Mercury's energy then instantly boosted and he leaped up high.

"Ok, try me!" Jose looked like he was thinking, "How pathetic!"

"Ok, here it goes ..." James muttered quietly.

***

[machomuu]

[SIZE="4"]Aina Martis

Needless to say, Aina was incredibly shocked by such a display of eccentricity. She was like no one Aina had ever seen, nor was she like anyone she'd ever read about. She was truly unique in Aina's eyes, and this made her wonder about how secluded she actually was. Were most people outside of her house so interesting? Was this normal and she was the eccentric one? Were the people in the books the fantastical ones, the ones purely born from fiction and exagerrations of the real human? Her face turned red with embarrassment, thinking she would stand out for her quietness and disorientation.

She looked to the tray and scanned over the pokeballs that had been presented to her. The one that stood out to her was a rather interesting one, at least, to her. Its color scheme was simple, black and blue, but she found it to be so interesting. Few pokemon looked like this one, and it certainly looked strong enough to protect her. She picked up the pokeball from the tray and the pokemon, from inside, seemed to smile. She looked at the nameplate and it said "Riolu". She sounded out the name several different ways, unsure exactly which one was correct.

"Just give it a name, then you won't have to worry about pronouncing it." Vayne said without looking back, seemingly giggling at Aina's failed attempts to pronounce the pokemon's name. "It's pronounced "R eye O lU' is how it's pronounced, by the way."

"O-oh..." She said, jarred by her mistake. "Um...how about..." She tried to decipher gender. She studied its mannerisms, the way it moved, smiled, and talked, to figure out what it was. She then made a guess and said, "I've got it, Matei, it's nice to meet you." The Riolu, now named Matei, looked at Aina with a curious look about it. "I-I'm sorry, did I guess wrong?" Matei continued to simply look up at Aina until finally it smiled in approval. Aina smiled in return and walked over to Professor Vayne. "Um...miss...er...Professor Vayne, I've chosen my pokemon."

[Miss Doronjo]

It's been a while!

Mothball obtained a Larvitar! (Lv.10, F)

Ericka obtained a Dratini (Ruby)! (Lv.10, F)

Aina obtained a Riolu (Matei)! (Lv.10, M)

Professor Vayne

"Ah, perfect!" the professor smiled as the young trainers acquired their pokemon. "Each with you with your partner pokemon... especially you, Mr. Mothball with your Larvitar... what a cute couple! Now, as for your children... take a look at these babies!"

She held out one of the pokedex machinery that was on the table next to the tray that was filled with pokeballs. "This is LATIOS's state-of-the-art pokedex!" she explained. "With this, you can record pokemon data! That includes checking your pokemon's moves, abilities, as well as gender! You can even record the data of other pokemon you have encountered! Treat this well - like a baby, you need to nurture it, and feed it... but remember: the only food it will take is the data you have collected, so be sure to fill it up with a lot of pokemon pages!"

She put down the pokedexes in a row, available for each trainer to pick up. "It also includes a town map, juuuust in case you get lost," she said. "Speaking of places... I recommend you all check out Dahngrest first, just beyond Sahra Woods - it's where you can geeeeet... annnnd drum roll: a symbol! I'm sure it'll help you and your pokemon grow - not to mention fill out a lot of pokemon pages! Ah, in fact... I may see some of you there; I'm going to be travelling there soon. Well, anyway, pick up your pokedexes! Don't be shy now~"

Sahra Woods

Setting: Legend says that the legendary forest god who was said to fill the world with vegetation, created this ancient passageway, connecting the souls of the people from Zaphias, to Dahngrest. This passageway is first connected to a stable bridge that crosses from the outerlands from Zaphias, to the city of guilds, Dahngrest. A lot of pokemon who like the grass, the trees, and the small hills that fill this place like to make their homes here.


Story: Noble knights of Zaphias rode on their trusty steeds through the thick of the woods. Their destination was Dahngrest, where the captain of this platoon was handed what it seemed like a letter of sorts. On the front of the letter, it reads, "from the prince".

"It's been far too long since we have made contact with the guilds," the captain said as he traveled with his platoon. "I hope they will listen this time..."

Little did he know, he was being watched. He was being by a set of blue, soulless eyes...

"Is the deed done?"

"Yes sir. It's going exactly as planned..."

Then the eyes disappeared.


Mission: Make it through these woods to reach Dahngrest! Feel free to make
any adventure here you want; whether it be catching new pokemon, battling trainers, or anything else you want to do. The optional missions are also welcome for you to do.

Pokémon available for capture: (Levels 7-10)
Their evolutions and prevolutions can be seen but are generally more rare and you won't manage to capture them.


Butterfree
Bug / Flying Type
Moves: Confusion, Tackle, Signal Beam


Vulpix
Fire Type
Moves: Ember, Quick Attack, Tail Whip, Roar



Mareep
Electric Type
Moves: Tackle, Growl, Thundershock


Beedrill
Bug / Poison Type
Moves: Focus Energy, Poison Sting, X-Scissor


Nidoran (M)
Poison Type
Moves: Leer, Peck, Double Kick, Focus Energy


Oddish
Grass / Poison Type
Moves: Seed Bomb, Absorb, Acid, Sweet Scent


Nidoran (F)
Poison Type
Moves: Growl, Scratch, Double Kick, Iron Tail


Pidgey
Normal / Flying Type
Moves: Tackle, Sand-Attack, Gust


Shroomish
Grass Type
Moves: Seed Bomb, Absorb, Tackle, Stun Spore


Pansage
Grass type
Moves: Vine Whip, Leer, Lick, Vine Whip


Taillow
Normal / Flying Type
Moves: Peck, Growl, Quick Attack, Focus Energy


Pansear
Fire type
Moves: Scratch, Leer, Lick, Incinerate


Starly
Normal / Flying Type
Moves: Tackle, Growl, Quick Attack, Wing Attack


Panpour
Water type
Moves: Scratch, Leer, Lick, Water Gun


Pidove
Normal / Flying Type
Moves: Gust, Growl, Leer



GIGANTO POKEMON: (Lv. 15-18)

Snorlax
Normal Type
Moves: Fire Punch, Rest, Water Pulse, Headbutt



*** Big note on Giganto pokemon (har, har, pun intended): There is only one in an given area. So, that means it's first come, first grab! BUT since they are really, really, really strong, I expect a really creative, and really well done wild battle RP post If you want to catch one! Also, if you do manage to catch or beat one, your pokemon will gain up to three bonus levels! ***

Optional Mission:

There are some knights from Zaphias in this area. You can choose to battle them for a little experience.



They might also talk about how after a few decades, the guilds and the empire had finally decided to sign a peace treaty between them. However, they don't take too kindly towards the guilds, because of the prejudice they have against them (they think they are law-breaking, dark, and sinister people).



What you may, may not, can try, and must do in the Sahra Woods:

- You may catch a pokemon you've battled
- You may encounter one of the knights
- You may create NPCs
- You may interact with other roleplayers here; as long as both of you agree.
- You may also create your own sidequests if you wish


Notes on catching a Pokémon:

- You must end an attempt to catch a Pokémon with the throwing the Pokéball, I will decide whether you catch it or not.
- The better your post is, the higher the level of your Pokémon.
- You'll also have a better chance on catching a pokémon on how well your post is.
- Your pokémon could also get an egg move, also depending on how well your post is.

[Icy Burn]

James vs Jose (Joint Posted)

"Zephyr, Extrasensory" José said. Zephyr nodded, and blasted the Trapinch with telekinetic energy. Zephyr giggled, and José gestured at the other trainer.

"So, its your turn. Don't worry, you'll lose soon." José said, laughing slightly.

"You little ... !" Sam exclaimed, "Now, Mercury, use Sand Tomb so Zorua can't see!" Mercury did it instantly, stamping the ground, bring up sand that blocked Jose's and Zorua's vision.

"Now, Bite down hard on Zorua's tail!" and so he did, and Jose and Sam heard Zorua yelp.

"Don't worry," Sam grinned. "This will be all over soon, I'll win, and you can just cry away."

"Ah, but you have forgotten that Bite is a dark type move, and therefore isn't very effective! Zephyr, use Bounce!" José said. He smiled in the direction that the other trainer was in, even though he couldn't see him. Zephyr jumped out of the sandstorm, rising out of sight.

"Oh yeah ..." James face palmed as the Zorua soared through the sky. "Mercury, because your other two moves are only dark type moves, use Sand Tomb to protect yourself from Bounce!"

Zorua flew down from the sky, making both James and Mercury jump, but Mercury did do what he was told, and Jose's Pokemon bounced off of the Sand shield.

"I might start calling your Pokemon Zephyr, Jose, and with the colour and it all disappearing I think it suits it, saying Zorua all the time is boooring..."

José nodded, and seeing that the Trapinch was weakening, cracked a smile.

"That would be his name. Zephyr, Faint Attack." José said. Zephyr disappeared, and then suddenly reappeared, attacking the Trapinch. He ran back to his position in front of José.

James saw he was grinning, just because Mercury was weakening. He was weak and tired already from the last battle, so this was hardly fair.

"Crap ..." he muttered, "Mercury, use Faint Attack to confuse Zorua, and then use Sand Tomb."

"Also, Jose, your Zorua is only winning for one reason - we had only just finished our previous battle, so I wouldn't be that bothered if you win because this has been pretty much unfair."

"You're Pokémon was at perfect health. The only thing unfair is type disadvatage. Zephyr, watch for him." José said. His body language was that of someone calm and sure of himself, but his insides were alive with the electricity of adrenaline. Zephyr took the hit, and got up. He was reasonably hurt, but not near as much as the Trapinch.

"Finish him with Dark Pulse." José said. He then nodded at the trainer as Zephyr glowed, and smiled as the pulse of dark energy hit the Trapinch, making it faint.

"Nice battle. I didn't get your name. I'm José." José said, walking up to the trainer.

"My name is Sam, Sam Davi." he grinned happily as he slowly picked up Mercury. "That was a great battle, we should travel together sometime."

Sam walked slowly away, smiling to himself. "He," he thought, "is not too bad ..." And he healed Mercury up with his potion.

[KingKaos]

Kaiba's was walking down the stairs after finishing a shower, while he was walking down the stairs he thought "Man that dream was really weird I can't believe that I woke up with burns but more importantly what was a Haxorous trying to say to me." as Kaiba thought about the situation that happened he found himself falling down the stairs at a very fast speed. He wasn't paying attention and he tripped which was very unfortunate. When he opened his eyes he saw that his parents were glaring at him with judging eyes because there's son had fallen down stairs. That's when his father said "Kaiba, hurry up and get ready to go on your journey" Kaiba got up and that's when his mother gave him a backpack. She then said to him "Never come back home until you become a Pokémon master champion whatever" following that little talk Kaiba headed for the door. That's when his family's Hitmonchan stopped him and his parents told him to take Hitmonchan with them for protection. As they were walking Hitmonchan made Kaiba practice jabs.While practicing his jab he accidentally hit a guy walking out of a bar, which then knocked that guy into three other people and that was just bad news Bears for Kaiba from there. Following that the three guys plus the guy that was jabbed were going to be beat up Kaiba, but before they could Hitmonchan came to the front to Kaiba and nodded for him to attempt to go away. Kaiba would agree and made his way to the lab hoping to get back in time to help Hitmonchan if possible. When Kaiba finally arrived at the lab he collapsed from exhaustion. He was very tired and that's when he opened his eyes and looked up and saw the professor leaning over him. "please give me a Pokemon" said Kaiba. "I need to help my Hitmonchan." Kaiba looked up again and saw a Axew come down from the professor's table. It grabbed a leaf off the professor's plant and started to fan the exhausted Kaiba. Then with a strong second wind, Kaiba grabbed the Axew and hoisted it into the air. "I want this Pokémon and no other!"

[Sweet_Dreams]

"Look what I got, Timmy!" Eri was petting her blue eel thing, who looked like it enjoyed it much more than his Pokemon had. Maybe he just had bad technique? And he sighed forlornly. It appeared as though nobody liked to call him Mothball. He couldn't understand why.

The other girl was gazing intently at her Pokemon and giving it a name that sounded like "Meta" or something. It looked awesome. Everything was just so fantastic, it was a brilliant day.

Mothball couldn't help but puff up his chest - what there was of it - proudly when the Professor proclaimed him and his Pokemon to be a cute couple, even if he wasn't quite sure what she was talking about. What did she just call the Pokemon? Larvitar? That was so cool.

He stood back up when the Professor began to talk about the pokedex. State of the art technology? He really, really hoped he wouldn't somehow break it. It must be expensive, and it sounded really impressive. He kinda couldn't believe that they would just hand it out to a bunch of kids.

He looked kinda confused when Professor Vayne began to talk about "symbols". Did he miss something? Oh shoot. Maybe it was like an orienteering exercise or something, where you had to travel to places and get a stamp to say you'd been there. That sounded plausible, didn't it? Before he could ask if Eri knew what she meant by symbols, the Professor invited them to take a pokedex. Shakily, he reached out to get one. It wasn't as though he was going to say "no" or something, so he might as well just hope for the best. It was surprisingly light in his hand, but that might be because he'd just tried to pick up a Pokemon which seemed to be made completely out of stone.

He watched as Eri used hers. It appeared to work just by opening them and maybe pointing it. With a sense of nervous anticipation, he did so and pointed it at his new companion.

"Larvitar, the Rock Skin Pokemon," the machine intoned, startling him quite a bit. "A dual Ground and Rock type Pokemon. It feeds on soil until it turns into a pupa. This Larvitar's moves are Bite, Sandstorm, Ancientpower, and Screech."

Mothball looked a bit overwhelmed. He stared at his Pokemon, who merely stared back. Then, quite suddenly, he joyfully threw his arms around the Larvitar who proceeded to look at him as though he was crazy. "You are the best, you really are," Mothball said happily. It was then that he noticed the words displayed on the screen of his Pokedex, asking him whether he wanted to change his Larvitar's name. Personally he thought Larvitar was already wicked cool, but both Eri and the other girl had changed the names of their Pokemon, so maybe it was a very common practice.

Mothball looked thoughtful. "I should call you... Boom!" he said with a wide grin. "Then everytime I send you out, I could be like... 'Go Boom', which, you know, sounds like I'm telling you to explode when in reality..."

Larvitar bit him on the finger again. "Okay!" he yelped. "Fine, not Boom." When the Larvitar let go, the two of them realised that she'd accidentally drawn blood. Immediately, the Larvitar looked apologetic, but Mothball simply reached into his bag and absent-mindedly began to wrap a bandage around it.

"Fine, okay. You're a girl. What's a nice girl's name?" he wondered, and made a face when his mind immediately supplied him with his sister's name, Maria. No, just... no. "If I call you Eri, I'm sure everyone would just get confused, right?" he mused aloud. "Um... well, she named her Pokemon Ruby, so I guess the green version would be Emerald, right?"

Larvitar looked unimpressed once more. "No, you're right," Mothball said, "Ruby isn't red, so I suppose it might be better to call you Sapphire." When the unimpressed look didn't abate, he shrugged. "Alright, not the way to go. Even though you're, you know, a rock. And gems are stones, and they're pretty and girls like them, so it would have been totally suitable."

He sat and thought some more. Secretly he thought calling her Onyx would be all kinds of fun, but he suspected that the Larvitar wouldn't agree. What was a nice name? "Shuriken!" he said eagerly.

Larvitar brightened at that one. She wasn't sure what shuriken meant, but it sounded better than any of the alternatives that he had put forward thus far. "Lar!" Mothball grinned triumphantly and entered the name into his pokedex.

"Alright, off to the Sahra Woods! Eri, you coming?" he exclaimed, full of energy. So full of energy that, when he began to walk towards the door, he tripped over a stack of things which then proceeded to crash down onto him. "Sorry!" he said, voice muffled, before getting up and trying to pick up everything that fell and placing them back on the desk. "Right, off we go," he said again, more sheepishly this time as he carefully walked out the door.

[Skymin]

So, he named his Larvitar Shuriken? That was so cute! Ericka gave her Dratini another pet and turned her attention back to the PokéDex she had received from Professor Vayne. From her advice, she quickly looked through some of the options. There, she could see the map now. And there was her home town! She swiped through other options, including Ruby's moveset, which didn't make much sense to her anyway (Wrap? Leer? What?). Since PokéDexes could store data, she pointed it at Timothy. When that didn't work, she pointed it at his now named Larvitar, Shuriken. It seemed to make noises almost immediately.

"Larvitar, the Rock Skin Pokémon. A dual Ground and Rock type Pokémon. It feeds on soil until it turns into a pupa."

The voice was definitely the same as Timothy's and so was the explanation. Neat! At least she knew there was no difference between them, not that it mattered anyway.

"Alright," Timothy exclaimed, seeming to be heading off towards the door, "off to the Sahra Woods! Eri, you coming?" He turned around and fell over straight away. Ericka, though she knew it may have been a little mean, giggled at his face plant. Travelling with Timothy would be hilarious from the get-go if this was to go by.

"Yep!" she said, picking up Ruby and cradling her in her arms. "Onwards we go! To Sahra Woods!" She darted past Timothy before he fell over again and with her spare arm, grabbed him as Shuriken jumped on him and climbed to a safe distance, like his shoulders. When she thought Shuriken was safe, she pulled Timothy along and ran for the woods, laughing while she did.

[Sweet_Dreams]

Mothball tried his best to keep up, but Shuriken was actually very heavy and the added weight unbalanced him even more than usual. It didn't take long before his arm slipped from Eri's grasp and he began to slow down, his shoulder feeling very sore. Shuriken took this as her cue to jump back onto the ground with a thump.

Mothball winced a little and laughingly said, "I think that it might be best if you walked by yourself for a little." Shuriken dutifully began to plod alongside him. By that point they were already in the woods. Huh. It was amazing how much less time it took Eri to navigate their way down here than it took for Mothball to figure out how to get to the Professor's lab. Then again, she didn't stumble into a fruit stall every second step either. Just picking up all the oranges alone took him a really long time.

"I love the air," he said excitedly, looking up at the trees. He wasn't sure he'd ever seen this much green in his life. "This is so cool. We've got real live Pokemon and we're going on an actual adventure. Are you excited? Because I'm excited." He kept chattering away, keeping an eye on Shuriken because a part of him was afraid that she would run away or something the moment he turned his back. "Oh right, you should tell me about yourself! For all I know, you could be a psychopath." He paused for a moment. "Wait, you're not a psychopath, are you?"

He probably shouldn't have been splitting his attention between his Pokemon and trying to hold a conversation instead of looking ahead. Maybe then he would have avoided smacking his face into a tree branch, stumbling backwards a few paces, bumping into Shuriken, and then flailing his way into a bush.

Where he was promptly electrocuted.

The bright yellow light startled Shuriken, who proceeded to ready herself for battle. She ignored Mothball as he crawled out of the bush in favour of concentrating on the possible threat.

Mothball slowly got back to his feet and shook himself out. "That," he said, "was awesome."

The bush rustled a little before an irritated Pokemon jumped out. Underneath the creamy wool it had a blue body, other than the ears and tail which were striped black and yellow. Mothball fumbled for his Pokedex, which he dropped. Hurriedly, he picked it up and opened it before pointing it at the Pokemon. "Mareep, the Wool Pokemon. This Electric type Pokemon stores static electricity in its body. If this builds up, its fleece doubles in volume and its tail glows more brightly."

This Mareep, despite normally being as placid as any Mareep, was severely ticked off. She had had a very bad day already, and now something just fell on her right when she had just managed to drift off to sleep. "Reep!" she baa'd angrily, unaware just how adorable Mothball, the cause of her ire, found her. Without much warning, the Mareep began to charge forward towards Shuriken.

"Woah, wait, what are you doing?" Mothball said, suddenly sounding panicked. "We don't want to fight! I'm sorry about landing on you, I didn't mean it, I swear."

Mareep took no notice of him, concentrating on her attack. The impact slid Shuriken backwards by a little, but seemed to do little damage. The Mareep, on the other hand, staggered backward slightly and shook her head. Bashing skull-first into something literally as solid as rock was a little bit disorienting.

"Oh man, what am I supposed to do?" Mothball wondered, chewing his lip. He didn't want to fight. Did they have to fight? But he didn't want Shuriken to get hurt or anything, either. Shuriken, to her credit, was waiting for a command from her trainer. But she wasn't going to wait too much longer.