[PKMN FULL] Airborne: A Hoenn Journey (IC)

Ozymandias · Jun 2, 2018

Airborne: A Hoenn Journey

Intro

Welcome to the Hoenn Region, a vast tropical land, filled to the brim with exotic locations and boundless oceans. This beautiful region, created by the legendary pokémon, Groudon and Kyogre, is a treasure trove of fun and adventure just waiting for eager pokémon trainers to explore its riches.

It has been exactly fifteen years, since the legendary trainer May thwarted the nefarious schemes of Teams Aqua and Magma, which threatened the entire pokémon world. She has since been hailed as one of the greatest trainers the region had ever seen and thrived in her role as the Poké-League champion. However she has mysteriously gone missing for the past year, leaving Elite Four member, Winona, to take her place.

Regardless of league matters, Hoenn is as prosperous as it has ever been. Today marks a special day in which a number of aspiring trainers in Rustboro City are to receive their starter pokémon... including you! The leading pokémon researcher of the region, Professor Roxanne, has promised to entrust you with a pokémon and a pokédex in return for your participation in her studies. With your starter in hand, and an entire world to explore, who knows what sort of experiences are waiting in store for you out there?

Are you ready? Your very own adventure is about to unfold! Be courageous and leap into the world of pokémon where dreams, adventures, and friendships await!

The Workings

It's been 15 years since the events of Emerald (NOT ORAS). As stated before, the pokémon champion, May, has gone missing for quite some time. Gym Leaders have come and gone with the years, technology has advanced and with it towns and cities have blossomed. Gym Leaders will, for the most part, be original NPC characters, controlled by the GM. However, you'll see a number of familiar faces around the RP :3

For the sake of not making things a pain, there will be no levels or IV/EV system. The RP will take a very anime-style approach on pokémon. Since there are no levels, the Pokemon can earn new moves whenever the roleplayer sees fit, but please be reasonable about this. Also, since there are no levels, pokémon evolution is one of the few things that must be checked for approval with the GMs. PM me first before making your pokémon evolve.

The diversity of Pokémon in Hoenn has changed dramatically over the passing years with the growing popularity of pokémon training. The release of pokémon throughout the region and daycare center have introduced different species into the ecosystems of Hoenn, making the fauna the most diverse it has ever been. Basically, there will be pokémon from all the regions available during this rp, not just the ones native to Hoenn.

You do not need the GM's approval to capture wild pokémon. However, while there may be exceptions, for the most part you are limited to catching one pokémon per route. You can go ahead and capture any pokémon in the given area that you want. Just try and be reasonable with it (making a long detailed post if the captured pokemon is rather rare or hard to catch) Available wild Pokémon, and their attacks will be in the chapter description.

This roleplay will be broken up into a multitude of chapters. Each one will have a number of different events that you may choose from, each event warranting a reward for its completion. However, there will be an overarching story that may take the place of these events. All the chapters will also have a main objective that you much complete by the end, such as making it to a certain town.

The RP will be accepting characters on a "first come-first serve" basis with a limited number of spots. Right now i'm thinking around 9, but that number may expand depending upon interest. However, because of this I will be judging a little harsher than other journey rps may be. If I don't accept your character at first, it's nothing personal and I will work with you in expanding upon your application if you'd like. :D

The starter pokémon that your character receives is up to you! As long as it is a base pokemon with at least one evolution, you're good to go. Also note that you may not have the same starter as any other players. If you submit an SU with the same pokémon as another player who has yet to be accepted, it will be considered a competition and I will accept whichever character I believe to be a better fit for the RP. ~~If this ever happens you could just switch your pokémon to a different one :p~~

Each starter will start off knowing four moves with a maximum of six learned at any one time. The starters may come knowing a single egg move of your choice. They may also have an ability of your choosing from the list of abilities that they can have naturally.

The Rulez

1. Follow all PokeCommunity/RPC rules and guidelines
2. The GM ruling is law :3
3. The rating is T for Teen, don't go too crazy. Leave all that for the fan fictions.
4. Try to be as active as possible. I understand that we can all be busy and such, but we gotta move on. If you won't be posting as much, let the GM know in advance. However, you will be booted off if you do not return or if you go inactive without messaging me.
5. Be respectful to one another, and have fun cause isn't that what it's all about? ~~lolno~~

Sign Up

Name: (anything you want it to be)

Age: (14-19 not too old, not too young)

Gender: (pretty self explanatory)

Appearance: (what does your character look like? what do they wear? Picture would be great, but even if you have one you must write at the very least a paragraph)

Goals and Interests: (some aspiration or dream they strive to achieve along with a hobby or something they like to do in their spare time. Does not need to be too long)

Strengths: (what are they good at? What good qualities do they have?)

Weaknesses: (what are they bad at? What are some flaws in their personality?)

Brief History: (a short synopsis of your character's life before the journey. At least 2 paragraphs)

Chosen Starter: (nickname, moveset, and ability go here. Check the rp workings for the details :3)

Other: (anything else you would like me to know)

RP Sample: (just so i can see how you write IC and such)

Cast

doge as Willie Dong

Spoiler:

Pudding as Varianna "Vivi" Sochi

Spoiler:

SkyStrike as Trent Marsh

Spoiler:

Godzil as Wilfred Stanford

Spoiler:

Magnificent Magilou as Naomi Junn

Spoiler:

Shak as Blaire Summerfield

Spoiler:

PastelPhoenix as Marcus Wells

Spoiler:

LinearAxel as Rosa Summers

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Sephear as Jeffery Miles

Spoiler:

Dragon as Serene Linge

Spoiler:

Alyssa Hawkins

Spoiler:

Ozymandias · Jun 3, 2018

Route 116
♫ Another Sunny Day - Belle and Sebastian ♫

"They look like quite the promising group, if I do say so myself"

A familiar voice rang out from behind Roxanne, prompting her to whip around so fast that her glasses almost fell out of place. A grin spread across the young professor's face as she recognized with whom she was speaking with.

"Flannery! it's been too long."

"Too long, my ass. If you actually wanted to see me you'd get out of this hellhole you call a lab for once and come visit Kanto. You're always welcome to come by and watch me whoop down on trainers in Cinnabar."

Giggling at just how unchanged Flannery's fiery personality was, Roxanne gave her old friend a hug. "I was just about to ask how you and the twins were doing over there, but I suppose there's my answer."

Giving the shorter girl a pat on the head, a pouty expression spread across the red head's face. "Well you know those two. Liza and Tate never come around to visit me anymore, they're too busy up there in the Indigo Plateau to ever see their auntie Flannery. I always have to go up there to check up on them myself."

She sighed before leaning up on one of the various contraptions that took up the lab's interior. "You already know that they can handle themselves just fine. The only one of us that I'm worried about is Brawley, I haven't even heard from him since then."

A troubled look made its way onto Roxanne's face, before she caught herself. "I'm sure that he's fine. As irresponsible and reckless as he can be, he's always come back home in one piece."

"I suppose so..." Not allowing her mind to remain caught on disconcerting thoughts, Flannery changed the topic of discussion by pulling out her pokénav. "I'm assuming you got Winona's message?"

"The one concerning the reunion?" The professor pushed up her glasses before crossing her arms. "I've already responded, I can't make it due to some new findings that popped up. Make sure to apologize to her in person for me."

Giving a hearty laugh, the fiery gym leader nodded. "Of course you're not coming. We're sure gonna miss you, Norman, and Brawley, but we'll be sure to party it up in Evergrande to make up for you guys!" After mussing up her friend's hair, Flannery gave her a farewell hug. "Well I gotta get going. Be sure to send the strongest youngsters of the batch my way. It's been a little while since I've had a good battle."

"I'll be sure to, my friend." Returning the embrace, Roxanne smiled. It had been a while since she'd had a chance to have a face to face discussion with any of her old friends.

After waving goodbye to Flannery outside the lab, Roxanne returned to her place behind a desk filled to the brim with various notes and sheets of paper scrawled with writing. "Now... where was I?"

The Route

After receiving your starter pokémon, a number of pokéballs, and a shiny new pokédex from Professor Roxanne, you're all set for taking the first steps of your adventure! You've already had the past couple of days to explore Rustboro City, so it's not as if there's much left to do here. The former pokémon gym that was converted into a state of the art laboratory, serves as a precursor of what is to come along your journey. The Professor has already mapped out your passage to Verdanturf Town, home of the closest gym, and recommended starting point for all rookie trainers.

The first stop on that path is Route 116, running east of the city, straight into Rusturf Tunnel. It is a popular area for beginner trainers to develop their battling skills, so you'll be sure to see quite a number of kids running around, challenging everyone and everything they lock eyes with to a battle. A few areas of the pathway are covered in light tree cover, but otherwise it's a single stretch of fresh, green grass. At the end of the route there is a small building, which is a rest house for the construction workers who are working in Rusturf Tunnel. .

Available Pokémon

Missions

You can choose out of any of the missions below. Be sure to claim missions in the OOC thread to let me and the other players know which one you are doing. You may joint post or collaborate on these missions with other players, but two players may not write for a single mission separately. Also, know that you aren't limited to just these missions. You can make posts catching pokémon, battling a trainer or exploring the route for yourself. I purposefully made fewer missions than there are players because I'd like for you guys to have some fun with this and not be restrained by these things. The missions are only here to serve as a prompt for you to write off of :3

Mission 1: A number of baby Taillow are wandering about on the ground, not above in their nests like they should be. Looking around, there doesn't seem to be any up in the trees. Where is the mother Swellow in this situation? Could this involve that group of kids you saw earlier, playing with the slingshot? Reward - Muscle Wing

Mission 2: Nora's mother always told her, never go out into the tall grass without a pokémon. Well, Nora was feeling rather brave today and decided to venture out into the tall grass... without a pokémon. Now she's found herself surrounded by a small number of Poocheyana. A helping hand from a passing trainer would be much appreciated. Reward - 500 P + 1 Great Ball

Mission 3: After a long night, the construction workers within Rusturf Tunnel have returned to their rest house for the day. However, the horde of Seedot outside of the building are making so much noise that it's impossible for any of them to get any sleep. As they're too tired to fight their own battles, a trainer's help is needed. Reward - 1,000 P + TM Rock Smash

Mission 4: Ryker and Audrey are in the midst of a couple's argument for the ages. The normally loving pair's dispute has resulted into a pokémon battle that is not only harmful to the pokémon of the route, but to their blossoming relationship as well! A third party is needed to end this confrontation through peace or violence, either would work. Reward - 3 Potions + 1 Super Potion

Mission 5: Forty-five year old Jimmy thinks that he's real tough, picking on beginner trainers with his Loudred. He's positioned himself in the middle of the route, challenging unsuspecting trainers to a battle. Someone needs to put this middle aged delinquent in his place. Reward - 600 P + 1 Potions

Mission 6: While many hold the belief that bug pokemon are gross and icky, the silk that Wurmple create is a beautiful commodity desired by many. Unfortunately, the illegal trade for this silk has been on the rise recently. Some unprofessional goons on the outskirts of the route have been going through its Wurmple colonies and trying to get them to produce this valuable resource by force. A trainer could teach them a thing or two about respecting wild pokemon. Reward - Silk Scarf

Groc · Jun 3, 2018

It was finally time for Wilfred to start the first day of his new life! He had a Pokemon in his pocket, a goal in his mind, and a song in his heart! (and one playing over his headphones) He walked proudly down the trail, deliberately skirting around the grassy areas where wild Pokemon would hide.

"Hey mister, wanna battle with me?" a small voice inquired from up ahead. A young boy was holding a Pokeball eagerly.

"And a good morning to you too, young man!" Wilfred replied cheerily, not having heard the boy clearly. "No time to stop and play, I'm on my way to Verdanturf Town!" Without slowing, he walked past the boy, his gaze set on Rusturf Tunnel up ahead. The tunnel connected the two towns, and had a bit of a reputation for both convenience and inconvenience, due to the frequent closures it suffered on account of cave-ins. Luckily, a full-time team was employed to keep the tunnel open, so there should have been no issue today!

Instead, Wilfred found the road covered with small Grass-type Pokemon, wandering back and forth while chattering at each other. He let his headphones hang around his neck while he checked his Pokedex. "Hmm... Seedot, huh? Strange to see so many all at once..." His musings were interrupted by a gruff shout from the nearby building.

"'ey, yo, buddy! Ya got a minute?" a surly-looking construction worker called to him. Wilfred was surprised, but didn't want to be rude. "Me? Uh, sure I do! What can I do for you?"

"I see you gots one o' them fancy Pokedex things what the Professors like to hand out. My experience is, most types who get one o' those are real problem solvin' types. Me and the boys just got off our shift, but it gets real hard to relax with those stinkin' Seedots wandering around, MAKIN' SO MUCH RACKET!" He shouted the last bit, causing the Seedot to make more noise in response.

"Yeah, I can see your problem..." Wilfred rubbed his chin in thought.

The man cleared his throat, making a visible effort to calm himself. "So I's thinkin', if you can get these little punks to either keep it down or pack it up, we'd be grateful for your consideration. Think about it, and let me know when it's done, yeah?" Without waiting for a response, he went back inside the house, leaving Wilfred looking at the pack of Seedot in confusion.

"Okay, sure... I'll see what I can do!" Wilfred said it more to assure himself than the construction worker, looking out at the swarm. With them moving around like they were, it was hard to get an accurate count, but there had to be about 20 of them. He decided to just walk out into the group, talking to them as he did.

"Hey, guys! How are ya, having a good time? Listen, I know you're all having fun, and hey, who could blame you? But, do you think that maybe you could all keep the noise down, or maybe take the party somewhere else? Please?" He now stood in the approximate center of the group, who had all stopped milling about to look at him as he spoke. They all looked at him in silence for a moment... then went back to wandering, chattering just as loudly as before.

"Okay, so that didn't work." Wilfred thought, his heart sinking just a bit. He perked back up with a snap of his fingers as a thought crossed his mind. "Oh, of course! They'd respond better to a Pokemon than a human! I'm so silly." He opened up his ball, sending out his Alolan Geodude. "Come on out, Roxbury!" The boulder Pokemon landed on the ground with a low rumble, stretching lazily as he did.

The behavior of the Seedot changed drastically at Roxbury's arrival. They all turned to face him, shouting warnings at him. Some started to glow green, absorbing sunlight and bolstering their Special stats. Others took defensive stances, their outer shells hardening as they defended themselves. A few seemed to just stand there, as though biding their time. Roxbury, despite his usual relaxed demeanor, looked a bit nervous at the situation.

Wilfred winced, checking the Pokedex. "...yeah, this was a bad plan." To his relief, it appeared the Seedot only knew Bide, Harden, and Growth, so as long as Roxbury didn't antagonize them, they couldn't hurt him. "Okay, guys, let's just talk about this, alright?"

As though in response, another Seedot dropped out of a nearby tree. The others made room for it, backing away from Roxbury. "Oh, good." Wilfred grinned hopefully. "This must be their leader. Sorry for the ruckus, Seedot, but if you and your friends-"

The Seedot began glowing white (which the Pokedex helpfully identified as Nature Power) before firing off a a glowing green globe (which was amended to Energy Ball) at Roxbury. The attack struck true, sending the Geodude tumbling end over end. If not for his Sturdy ability, that attack would have surely knocked him out in one hit. "Roxbury!"

Wilfred ran over to his friend, who managed to prop himself up on one stony elbow. He slung off his backpack (bigger on the inside), pulling out a 24-case of refreshing mineral water, a parting gift from his uncle. "Here. Drink this, and you'll feel better in no time!" Indeed, the refreshing beverage seemed to restore Roxbury to full strength! The Seedot, upon seeing this, all began calling out to their leader. The leader jumped up in down in joy, getting Wilfred's attention. "Huh? You guys want some water?"

He was met with a chorus of joyful Seedot, who crowded around him. Unable to deny them such a simple request, Wilfred started cracking open bottles. After drinking a whole bottle each (the leader drinking two), each Seedot waddled back toward the trees, looking flushed and happy. Wilfred drank the last bottle himself, making sure to collect all the trash. "I guess the little guys were just thirsty! Strange... There has to be water around here somewhere, right?"

Roxbury shrugged.

Wilfred nodded, his mind racing. "Good point. So if they have a regular water supply, the only reason to gather outside the tunnel looking for more would be..."

Roxbury scratched his head, having no input.

"Maybe! Someone or something must be preventing them from drinking as much as they want to. And that's just not very nice! Come on, Roxbury! Let's get to the bottom of this." Wilfred picked up his Pokemon, taking a minute to look him in the eyes. "You know, this conversation would be less absurd if I could actually understand you."

Roxbury blinked.

"I hadn't considered that. Let's go!" Wilfred left the path, looking around the area for the Seedots' water supply.

(To be concluded...)

forg · Jun 4, 2018

Varianna "Vivi" Sochi

"Oh yes yes yes yes!" Outside a local shop stands an ecstatic young woman with a hot cup of coffee. The boiling insides had burnt her tongue, yet the overabundance of joy masked over the stinging pain. Sips were taken here and there, all the meanwhile she fantasized of the journey ahead. "Oooooooo all the bug types that are just waiting for me, EEK!" The caffeine, on top of her already energetic nature, caused her to begin slightly hopping. It was enough to release the built up urge to run and holler out words of glee.

What partook was a few minutes of her rambling and leaping before she suddenly halted, switching gears. "Gotta start moving if I don't want to be the last silly trainer to go, mmmmm?" With that said she began to saunter towards the route, despite of the urgency in her prior statement.

Buildings slid past her and the wind gently caressed her skin. The frequency of trainers increased the further she progressed until the route was reached, where she smirked at the plethora of rookies dotting the horizon.

"Yeh, here goes nothing!" she hollered in glee with her arms stretched in front. But little did she know a zigzagoon was approaching.

She didn't even finish taking the first step and the critter carelessly ran under her to get to the other side. She tripped, faceplanting with arms outstretched. Not a peep escaped from her lips as the spilled coffee pooled beside her.

However, instead of lifting herself back up Vivi rolled over and stared at the clear blue sky above. "...didn't they say mocha was being sold cheaper today?"

• • •

Her hand firmly griped at the newly obtained mocha drink. An ahh was released out of delight, the chocolate mixture refreshing.

The spilled coffee from minutes ago was an eerie reminder of the cruelty of life. Fortunately, the new cup of coffee was better tasting than the last. "What a lovely memory we have here." She drank while staring down at the menacing spill.

During her last slurps she took a good glance at her vicinity; trainers, the occasional Pokémon and- ah, wait. Is that... a bug? "Weedle!" she blurted out the obvious before tossing her unfinished coffee aside to begin a sprint. She comes to a halt before the tree carrying the poison critter, pokéball already in hand.

Ah, this is so exciting!!!!

With a swing of her arm she released Anorith from his captivity. The creature landed before the young woman, slightly bewildered about the sudden change of scenery. Clearly it has been a while since he smelled fresh air.

"Attack!" Vivi commanded, finger pointing towards the unsuspecting Weedle. It continued to eat, starving, while the Anorith slowly turned to squint at his new trainer. "Ah, hahaha, gotcha, you got moves and stuff. Alrighty then."

A quick check of her pokedex unveiled her companion's moveset. From that she began to blurt out an order, "Scra-", but was stumped upon realizing the weedle had vanished. "Ah, guess it's playing hard to catch," she mumbled while scanning around her. "But little does that thing know that I find it veryyyyyy fun~!" The Anorith kept studying his trainer. Without a command to execute it was left to stand there. But as soon as she gave him the go to follow her, he jolted after her, not wanting to be left alone.

Skystrike · Jun 6, 2018

Trent Marsh

*bulbagarden.net image removed*

The Poochyena Predicament, Part 1

It was finally time for Trent Williams to set off on a Pokémon adventure of his own. The goodbyes to his grandparents had been said, and soon enough, the fledgling trainer had set off on the road to Verdanturf Town, the starting point of all trainers, as recommended by Professor Roxanne. Despite not having slept at all last night, the youngster was full of energy, and marched down the bumpy Route 116 path with what seemed to be without a care in the world. As he walked down the worn trail, he took in the surroundings of the area. Other rookie trainers roamed about the area, searching for Pokémon or battles with other new trainers. Bird Pokémon took flight from their treetop perches and soared across the sky unrestricted. It felt good to finally be free from the confines of Rustboro City, away from the hustle and bustle of the urban area.

"Oh man oh man what should I do first?" Trent exclaimed to himself. Getting to Verdanturf was relatively easy—there was a tunnel that connected both towns, though often it was closed due to cave-ins. But if such an event had taken place, it wasn't apparent, as no such news was shared with him. But there were so many other things he could do too! He and his new partner could probably use the experience from a battle or two with other rookie trainers. Perhaps he should start adding to his team? Perhaps none of this was worth doing and--

Something black and white fluttered by in the corner of his left eye, interrupting his flow of thought. "Wh... what was that?" he said, slightly startled. Then he realized that he had a device to find out just what it was. Quickly he withdrew his Pokédex from his bag, scanning the black and white bird Pokémon as it flew farther away after him.

"A Starly, huh... It says here that they usually fly together in flocks. So I wonder what's that one doing alone? But then, since it's alone, here's my chance!" Curious, the boy tried to follow it, but it was much more agile than him. A jog became flat out running, and soon Trent was running through the tall grass chasing the lone Starly. It came to him as a realization that he should probably use his new partner to engage it in battle. Taking a red Poké Ball from his bag, he tossed it in the air. "Alright, let's go, Dennis!" Trent called out as the electric-type leaped from its ball onto the ground.

There was a brief moment of silence between the two. Dennis looked in Trent's direction expectantly, folding his arms.

"Hunh... Oh yeah, I should probably command you to use an attack," Trent realized. He took a quick glance at his Pokédex. "Alright, Dennis, use your Quick Attack to--"

Before he could finish his sentence, Dennis bolted at an incredible speed towards the airborne, unaware Starly, pouncing on top of it and sending both towards the ground. The Starly struggled to get free, but Dennis kept all of his weight on top of it.

"Good job, Dennis! That should be enough--" Trent began to say, but once again Dennis cut him off. It got off the Starly and began winding its arms, generating electricity at the top of its head. What's it doing? Trent wondered, but he soon found out as the Starly lifted itself off the ground and began to retaliate. It too seemed to know Quick Attack, as it moved at such a speed that it easily closed the distance between Dennis and itself. But Dennis would have none of that; as the Starly moved to strike him, Dennis's whole body became awash in yellow as he fired a golden bolt from his horns directly at the Starly without being told, sending a jolt of electricity coursing through the bird Pokémon's body.

"So that was your Thunder Shock, huh," Trent said. He hadn't commanded the Elekid to do that, though... "Okay, Dennis, chill out. That should be enough," he tried to command Dennis to prevent any further actions. "I'm gonna catch it now!" the trainer began rustling through his bag for a Poké Ball.

Perhaps Dennis took "chill out" as a command, or just wasn't listening to Trent, but Dennis's right fist became surrounded by an icy glow. The electric Pokémon charged to the Starly, who was still trying to recover, but upon noticing the attack directed at it quickly moved to the left to get out of the way, making Dennis miss its attack completely. While Dennis was distracted, it flew away as fast as it could, although its flight was hampered by the earlier Thunder Shock.

"Alright, I found a Poké Ball," Trent looked up from his bag to see Dennis scowling at the retreating Starly. "...Wait, it's getting away! Dennis, what did you do?"

Dennis shrugged at him.

"Dang it, you probably went to go attack it again or something... You're a tricky one, you know," Trent sighed. "But that's okay, we'll go after--" Suddenly there was a yelp from something—someone. Immediately he looked in the voices direction and five gray Pokémon yelping and barking at something in the tall grass. They seemed quite agitated by it... But the Starly was getting away. He was going to have to make a choice here.

It'd be really nice if I stopped getting interrupted by everything. "I can't just ignore that," Trent spoke, annoyed. Maybe he could find a different Starly later...

Quickly he jogged closer to the group of Pokémon and saw that the Pokémon seemed to be surrounding a brown haired little girl with a pink ribbon tying her hair into a pony tail, knee deep in the green turf. She looked to be no older than eight. She didn't seem too afraid, but her body said otherwise, it shaking in fear. The Pokémon got closer to her and as they did, she backed up. That's when she noticed Trent jogging over to the situation. "Hey, mister!!" she yelled out, distressed.

"What the hey is going on here?!" Trent hollered at the top of his lungs, not realizing that perhaps drawing too much attention to him wasn't such a good idea. The little girl, free from the paralyzing binds of the Pokémon's glares, ran over to Trent's side. "Thanks, mister!" the girl said to him.

"What the hey are you doing out here by yourself? Where's your Pokémon?" Trent asked her. The Pokémon began edging closer to the two.

"I... don't have any..." the girl spoke, a little embarassed.

"That's really dangerous, you know... but I understand! It's fine! What's your name?"

The girl seemed a little taken back by Trent's cheerfulness, as well as how calm he seemed to be. "My name's Nora, and... oh my goodness! Look out!"

"Eh?" Trent turned his attention back to the Pokémon as one of them leapt at him. He threw himself at the ground to dodge the Pokémon's attack, narrowly avoiding getting hit. This seemed to send the group of Pokémon into a frenzy and they all began to hurtle towards Trent, throwing themselves at him.

"Mister, don't you have a Pokémon to fight with?" Nora called out.

"Oh, right, duh!" Trent stood up and took out Dennis's Poké Ball again. "Show 'em what you're made of, Dennis!" Out came the electric-type from his Poké Ball, crackling with electricity. He wore a smug look on his face, an aura of conceitedness emanating from him. The Poochyena stopped in their tracks, slightly intimidated by Dennis's appearance. While they were distracted, he also took out his Pokédex to scan them.

"Aha, so these are Poochyena! Man, they're vicious!" Trent mused, absorbing the valuable information the 'dex gave him. "Alright, Nora, it seems like all I have to do is scare them a little bit and they'll go back crawling wherever they came from. You should probably run on home now!" Trent began swelling with confidence.

Nora nodded, but then pointed at the Poochyena. "Umm... they're getting ready to attack again!" she cried.

As if she was commanding the Poochyena herself, the four this time Tackled Dennis, sending the Electric Pokémon slamming on his back. Trent flinched a little, like he felt the pain from the Tackle attacks itself. "Ummm... right! I've gotta tell Dennis to use something...!" Trent said. He looked through his Pokédex for information on his Pokémon. Once he found out what techniques the pluglike Pokémon could use, he shouted out, "Dennis, how about you shock 'em with a little Thunder Shock!"

As the four Poochyena prepared for their next attack, Dennis stood up on command, heeding Trent's command. The Elekid spun its arms in a circular motion, causing the prongs on top of his head to begin crackling. From its horns it released a yellow blast of light at one the Poochyena, knocking it a few feet into the tall grass. The remaining Poochyena, startled, ran off into the tall grass, howling and yelping.

"Alright, Dennis, you got 'em!" Trent said, doing a fist pump. The Elekid crossed its arms, pleased by its work. "Alright, Nora, let's take you home now, alrighty?"

Nora nodded. "Thank you so much, Mister.... um..." The girl turned around, and shuddered because of what she saw.

"The name's Trent! Trent Marsh!" Trent exclaimed boldly, not realizing she had turned around.

"Ummmmmmmmm," was her response.

"What is it? We chased the Poochyena away. We can go now," Trent said, slightly tugging her on the arm.

"Mister Trent... I think we have a bigger problem now!" Nora's voice trembled.

"What could you possibly mean? We chased 'em all off and..." Trent turned around and got an eyeful of the pack of Poochyena that were now in front of him. There seemed to be at least ten of them. "Ohhhhhhh," he said, a low moan escaping his lips.

"Dennis, I think things just got a lot worse for us!"

To be continued...

Groc · Jun 6, 2018

Wilfred made his way through the tall grass, Roxbury clinging to his shoulder. They could hear the sound of water up ahead, most likely the main source of hydration for Pokemon on this route. Pushing through some trees and grass, Wilfred came up along the outer wall of the cave Rusturf Tunnel ran through. A thin stream ran out of the rock, probably from an underground spring. It appeared as though a rock slide of some sort had blocked up much of the water, leaving only a slight trickle of water.

"Eureka!" Wilfred exclaimed, crouching down to look at the water. "No wonder the Seedot are looking for more. I'll have to alert those workers about this. That should not only fix the Seedot issue, but benefit all the Pokemon on this route!" Roxbury nodded in agreement, water is good.

As he stood up, he heard rustling from the grass behind him, and a small mushroom looking Pokemon came waddling out. It bobbed from side to side at the sight of Wilfred, as though waving hello. "Oh, hey there little guy! You're kind of adorable, aren't you?" He scanned the creature with his Pokedex. "Or little girl, I guess. Sorry, Shroomish, I didn't mean to offend."

Shroomish scuffed the ground with her foot, apparently not too concerned with the mix up, but appreciative of being called adorable. Wilfred tried to step around her, but she moved back in front of him, excitedly pointing to Roxbury. "You... want to battle?" Wilfred guessed. Shroomish nodded, smiling widely. "Maybe some other time. We should be going."

Shroomish again stepped in front of Wilfred, not letting him go. She made sad eyes at him, pleading for a fight. Wilf sighed, offering a smile back as he set Roxbury down. "You're not going to let us escape, are you?" Shroomish shook her head "no", smiling. "Okay. Then let's have a battle!" Shroomish jumped for joy while Wilfred queued up some fight music on his music player.

Shroomish went first, spraying Stun Spores at Roxbury. Normally a good tactic, but as an Electric type he was immune to paralysis, so Wilfred instructed him to respond with Rock Throw. The rock bounced off Shroomish's spongy body, leaving her no worse for wear. They both rushed at each other with Tackle, with Roxbury coming out the winner in that clash. Looking at his Pokedex, Wilfred noticed Shroomish starting to tire, while Roxbury was still doing fine. "Another Tackle or two and this fight is over. You wanna keep going?" Shroomish hopped up and down, clearly enjoying herself. Roxbury just shrugged.

"Well then, let's rock! Use Tackle!" Before Roxbury could follow through, Shroomish fired a red laser from the top of her head, striking Roxbury. Consulting his Pokedex, Wilfred watched as that one Absorb turned the tables, hurting Roxbury and healing Shroomish. Then Roxbury Tackled Shroomish, and they were both hurt. Roxbury looked tired and grumpy, while Shroomish looked tired and happy. "Whoa, okay kids, maybe it's time to stop!" Wilfred stepped forward, both Pokemon looking to him. "Shroomish, you're one hit away from knockout, and while Absorb was a great move, it just wouldn't heal you enough. How'd you like to come with us? We're going on a cross country trip."

Shroomish considered the idea, traveling around, seeing new sights, getting in fights all over the country... A huge grin spread across her face, and she nodded energetically. Wilfred pulled out a Pokeball, tossing it at her. She went inside without complaint, the ball clicking shut. He pulled her right back out, putting Roxbury away so he could rest. "Welcome to the team, Shroo- uh, I guess you'll need a name, huh?" Shroomish nodded, looking at Wilfred expectantly. "Well, you're a mushroom... you're a lady... I'll call you Bella. You like that?"

Bella nodded, smiling happily at her new name. "Okay then! Let's go talk to those construction workers." Returning Bella to her ball, he made his way back to the main path.

Spoiler:

By the time Wilfred got back to the tunnel, the construction worker he'd talked to earlier was waiting for him outside the small shack. "'ey, yo, look who it is!" The man greeted Wilfred warmly. "I sees ya got them Seedots to quiet down and go away. We owes you a debt, my friend."

Wilfred waved a hand dismissively as he approached. "Oh, no, it was nothing. They were just looking for water, since the stream over there got blocked by rocks. Speaking of which, you might want to send someone to fix that. It should prevent this from happening again."

"Makes the problem go away, and he knows how to prevent it happenin' again! I love this guy!" The worker fiddled with his hard hat before handing Wilfred an envelope. "We'll get on that. But I was serious about that debt. Me an' the boys rounded up a collection, all ten of us pitched in. You earned this, kid." Inside the envelope was 1,000 P and a small disk. "Oh, uh, thank you." Wilfred stammered. "That's so kind of you..."

"'ey, yo, don't worry about it! Listen, that there disk is a technical machine fer the move Rock Smash. A little somethin' to remember us by! Soon you'll be breakin' rocks and clearin' paths just like us, eh? Now, they got machines what can teach your Pokemon that move, but your fancy Pokedex comes with one o' those already inside, I hear. Just pop in the disk, run the program, and 'ey yo! You know the move!"

He shook Wilfred's hand and clapped him affectionately on the shoulder. "Now go on, I'm sure you gots places to be, and me and the boys are on our lunch break. See ya around, kid." Wilfred thanked him again, and the man lazily waved goodbye as he went back in the house. Wilfred set off for the tunnel again, taking a minute to teach Roxbury the TM move before he went inside.

doge · Jun 6, 2018

Willie Dong

Neck scrunched back into his shoulders, swaying side to side with each shuffle, Willie lazily dragged his feet along the path towards Verdanturf Town. Biting softly onto his tongue, the young teen lamented over another failed attempt at wooing his crush, Professor Roxanne. Like always, she kept their conversations friendly, but brief and professional, at times playfully platonic at best. Being called "kiddo" once again and having to endure another dismissive pat on the shoulder put a sour start on what was supposed to be the beginning of a grand, amazing journey filled with wondrous sights and the literal stuff of legends, legendary Pokémon. Alas, that paled in comparison to the feeling of absolution he felt in Roxanne's actions. He began to think, for the first time, that perhaps this crush of his was just not meant to be.

Down on the woes of his heart, Willie nearly didn't realize the pain striking his toes. "Ow!" The teen yelped reflexively. Glancing down, he managed to identify the brown, furry behind of a creature before it darted off into the tall grass. "What the hell!?" He shouted in frustration, his voice cracking. Normally, something like that would be just a minor annoyance, but already annoyed, fed up with it all, Willie couldn't help himself. He dove right into the tall grass, wadding through it as fast a pace he physically could, chasing after the Pokémon. "Hey!"
"HEY!" He shouted again, as if it would have any affect on the fleeing Pokémon. Craning his neck as he ran, Willie tried to get a glimpse of the Pokémon that had set him off, but with his height it was a futile effort. From the shuffling of the grass, Willie knew he was closing in, but there wasn't much left until open plain, and the teen wondered what stunt this Pokémon would pull next when they crossed into it.

A moment later, he saw it. Bounding out into the open field of grass, its fur dirt speckled, with its three brown fluffs of a tail, the Bidoof landed smoothly on all fours, it's stout body no hinderance to the Pokémon's agility.

It turned around leisurely, stopping in its tracks to take a look at the trainer now clearing the tall grass that had been chasing after it. Turning its head to the side, it walked up to Willie, eyeing him with curiosity.

"You have no idea, do you?" The teen said, not sure what to do anymore. He had been angry, that was true, but after seeing this silly looking creature, its two buckteeth protruding from its mouth and puffed out mane, there was hardly any anger left, not to mention, he had spent most of his pent-up energy running after it!

Willie crouched down, a hand slowly and carefully extended out to the Pokémon. It gave his hand sniff, and then opened wide. His eyes wide, Willie pulled back his hand sharply. He heard the sound of teeth clanking against each other. "Alright, that's enough out of you." Willie reached for his pokéball.

Lott was now on the scene, happy to answer his trainer's summons. Glancing back at Willie, it let out a triumphant little battle cry, as if declaring victory on the spot. "Time for you to show off, Lott. Tackle!"

Seeing another Pokémon appear in front of it, the Bidoof instinctively prepared for battle, widening its stance. Lott charged at the wild Pokémon and it leapt to the side narrowly dodging the attack. As both Pokémon regrouped, a low growling sounded from the Bidoof, although it did little as Lott began to charge again. Taken aback from the Bulbasaur's persistence, the strike landed cleanly as Lott barreled into the brown mouse Pokémon.

The Bidoof rolled back, the impact of the attack leaving it sprawled on its belly a few feet away. "Tackle, again!" Willie had no intention of relenting, not after he almost had his fingers bitten off.

Lott trotted back a yard as the disoriented Bidoof lifted itself up, and then for the third time, charged. But this time, before he had even made half the distance to his target, Lott was struck from the side, throwing him off his feet. "Quick Attack?" Willie was surprised, he didn't think a Pokémon that compact could learn or use a move predicated on speed, but his eyes had seen the blur as it smacked its head into Lott's midsection. The grass Pokémon groaned, his turn to regroup after an unexpected attack.

"Don't worry Lott, this win is yours!" Willie called out confidently. That bit of reassurance helped the Bulbasaur to prop himself back up, both him and his trainer waiting patiently for the opponent's next move.

In a burst, the Bidoof sprinted to the side in what seemed like to Willie, an attempt at escape. "Don't let it…" Willie cut himself off short as the Bidoof made a sharp turn back towards Lott and curled into a ball, rolling towards his Bulbasaur with increasing momentum. "Giga Drain!" He finally called out. The bud on Lott's back opened, beams of green energy pouring out from its center. The green energy encircled the Bidoof, its momentum noticeably slowing before all such movement stopped entirely, sprawling out onto its stomach once again. Grinning, Willie tossed out a pokéball, and three clicks later it was time to welcome a new member to his team.

Lott, refreshed from fight, prodded the pokéball containing his new teammate as Willie took off his bag and began searching through it.

"Here they are," he said, pulling out two basic potions, the only two he had. Picking up the ball, Willie released his new Bidoof, making quick with the potions to heal it. "You're one of us now, so let's start over, yeah?" The wag of its stubby tail was enough of an answer for Willie, if that could be considered wagging. "How's Buck for a name?" The wagging stopped abruptly. "No good? Whatever, you'll get used to it eventually."

He studied Buck's face for a moment and then pulled out his PokeDex. "I don't really know too much about your species…" He trailed off, murmuring along as he read.

"… Round tufts of fur form its tail with five on the male and three on the female."

Three on the female.

"Oh." There would be no getting used to Buck. "You know, how about- "

Before Willie could finish, the PokeDex was snatched from his hands, now in the clutches of a squawking Starly's talons.

"Seriously? Why? Why did you do that?"

Without even an answer, it started to fly away. And so, returning his Pokémon to their balls, leaving the matter of Buck the Bidoof's real and true name unresolved, Willie began to run, chasing after a bird of all things.

"Heyyyy! HEYYYY!" Willie felt a sudden sense of déjà vu. This was a bit much, really. He had been running, no, sprinting for how long now? His legs ached, and his bag was only getting heavier to hold. Then in the distance, he saw it. Two people and one Pokémon surrounded by a pack of wild, and probably not so friendly, Poochyena. Willie looked back up at the Starly, curious as to whether this was mere coincidence or something else, only to discover that he had lost sight of the bird.

"No way…" He sighed, turning his attention back to the pack of wild Pokémon and began reaching for his pokéball, now pokéballs, once again.

Spoiler:

Skystrike · Jun 7, 2018

Trent Marsh & Willie Dong

Trent's Pokemon

*bulbagarden.net image removed*

Willie's Pokemon

*bulbagarden.net image removed**bulbagarden.net image removed*

The Poochyena Predicament, Part 2

"Well, dang, this escalated quickly," Trent said. "What are we going to do? They've got us surrounded... I guess we don't have any choice but to fight our way through, huh? Dennis, are you ready?"

The Elekid jumped to the front of Trent and Nora, still wearing his confident grin.

"Alright, Dennis! Attack them with Thunder Shock!" Trent commanded, and the electric Pokemon fired a yellow beam towards one of the Poochyena, shocking it. It didn't seen too phased by the jolt, though, and being attacked didn't seem to scare any of its friends off, either. The pack seemed to look at each other briefly, wondering if that was all that the Elekid was going to send at them... and then they all lunged towards Dennis.

"Shoot, Dennis can't possibly hope to dodge them all," Trent hissed. "Dennis, do whatever you can to get out of the way! At least try to avoid some of them!"

The electric Pokemon seemed to have a different plan, though. As the Poochyena came to Tackle him, he met one of them head on with Quick Attack, knocking it away and breaking the pack's formation. The other remaining Poochyena all pounced on top of him, though, sending the electric-type to the ground. Trent winced at the sight, slightly balling his fists.

"Dammit! Get off of him!" Trent cried out. He went to go join the fight himself, but Nora stopped him. "Don't do that! That's really dangerous, isn't it?" she said to him.

Witnessing the struggle ahead, Willie felt new life in his legs as he sprinted harder to narrow the distance. With a quick gather, hop, and step, he tossed out his pokeball, throwing it as far as he could manage. He wasn't sure if it was the pokemon he hoped it would be, but any worries he had about that were soon dispelled. He grinned, relieved, and called out to Buck(?), "Rollout!"

Using the extra distance from her and the pile up, Willie's Bidoof kicked up momentum, curling up and thrusting herself at the pile of Pokemon. Willie heard a loud smack as Buck(?) made contact, and howls as the other Poochyena scattered, taken aback from the unexpected reinforcements. Hoping to use the momentary confusion to his advantage, Willie shouted out another move.

"Quick Attack! Hit any of 'em!" Another kick of the ground, and Buck(?) was off flying, smacking into another Poochyena. Unforunately, another had landed nearby, and using that moment of preoccupation, landed a vicious bite on her snout. She coiled back, reflexively curling her body with a yelp before making a retreat back to Willie, who had finally made it to the fray, another pokeball in his hand.

"Hey, I'm here to help!"

Suddenly, the Poochyena backed off of Dennis, distracted by a Bidoof. It thrusted itself towards the Poochyena, scattering them and drawing all attention away from the electric-type. Trent kneeled beside the battered Pokemon, who seemed to have fainted during the ordeal. "Dennis, we really bit off more than we could chew, huh?" he said to the Pokemon.

By now, Willie had called out Lott as well, issuing the grass Pokemon to stand guard over the other trainer and little girl. Although Willie had just arrived on the scene, even he felt backed into a corner, with the odds so stacked against them. At this point, eight, maybe seven of the Poochyena remained standing, more than enough to take down just two pokemon from a beginner trainer. Willie gritted his teeth, going with the only solution he thought possible. As Buck(?) shot off again in another Rollout, Willie turned to the two besides him, one holding his fainted pokemon. "Let's run!" he said, hoping Bidoof could provide a suitable distraction for their escape.

Trent nodded at the mystery trainer that had came to their rescue, and ran ahead with Dennis in his arms. Nora followed, uttering a small "Thank you" to Willie before running ahead.

Willie turned his attention back to Buck(?) and the Poochyena. He knew he had to buy a bit more time, if Trent and Nora were to make their escape unharmed. "Lott, get up here," he called out to his Bulbasaur. "Giga Drain, on the closet one" The Poochyena, being preoccupied chasing a rolling Buck(?) around, Lott was able to land a clean hit onto one, slimming the number of foes they had to deal with. Still, Willie knew sticking to fight was a fool's errand. He looked around desperately, hoping to find something.

"Oh, that might work!" He beamed, dashing off in the direction of a tree. "Buck! Get over here!" But there was no Buck, so Buck didn't come. "Buckerella? Buckerina? OVER HERE!" He shouted, this time waving his arms frantically. Zooming by the pack of Poochyena, their attention split between both of Willie's pokemon, Buckerwhatever was by her trainer in a zip. "Chew this bit out for me, will ya?" He asked, pointing to a few different spots on the bark before picking her up in his arms.

Willie gave one more glance to Lott and the rest of the Poochyena gang, and seeing all of them rushing him right behind Lott put the fear in his bones. He urgently grabbed a hold on to the incisions in the tree, nearly slipping as he climbed up the trunk and onto a tall branch. At times like this he was glad to be small. He held out Lott's pokeball ready to return him, only to find the Bulbasaur perched up on the branch right next to him, a vine retracting into it's body. "Oh, so you can do that now? That's bull."

Directly underneath him, the Poochyena snarled and scratched at the tree with their paws. "We're safe here, right?"

To be concluded...

Sephear · Jun 7, 2018

A Squirmy Start

Current Party:

Looking at the road ahead and thinking of all the adventures waiting for him made it hard not to start dancing then and there, he was positively giddy! Romanov, however, had no such sense of shame. The energetic little Munchlax was spinning and humming while they made their way out of Rustboro and onto route 116. The itch of adventure continued crawling down his back even after they'd gotten deep into the woodland between Rustboro and Rustsurf tunnel.

Whistling a happy tune came naturally to the young man, the merry melody carrying on the wind. A few pokémon could even be seen poking their heads out of nearby bushes or trees, bobbing them happily to Jeff's tune. It was all so idyllic it finally distracted him from that crawling sensation on his back! That is...until something metal THUNKED into the back of his head hard enough that he lost his balance and stumbled forward, only avoiding a faceplant because Romanov grabbed his hand and pulled hard enough to keep him upright.

The surely-bruised trainer spun a 180 on the heels of his feet and began to voice his displeasure only for a higher-pitched voice to mirror his own. "Hey, what's the big idea?!" A pair of yells sounded out in unison. Jeff's eyes widened at the sight of a girl short enough that she looked like she could be half his age, her size slightly offset by the large straw hat on her head, she actually looked angrier than he did! Jeff picked up the pokéball he noticed lying at his feet and held it in front of the girl's face accusingly. "You can't just go around chucking pokéballs at people's heads, missy. That's mean and even if it is funny, these things aren't rocks! They may not hurt too bad thanks to being hollow, but they're complex machines, you might break them!"

"It's your fault for getting in my way!" Jeff's mouth hung open in shock but the girl pressed on and smothered whatever response he had coming in her own unjustified indignance. "I've been tracking my prey this entire day and I was finally ready to get it but you just haaad to stick your nose in my business! And then you couldn't even stand still afterwards!"

"Huh?" Was all the boy said at first. "How could I possibly have gotten in your way? All I've been doing is walking along about my own business." It was at that moment that the itch of adventure returned...yet this time it was much more irritating...and it seemed to be moving up Jeff's spin instead of down it. He moved his hand to scratch his head when the itch inevitably reached it and felt his fingers hit something soft and squishy. Jeff grabbed it and held it in front of himself, eyes narrowing at the Wurmple wriggling around in an attempt to escape his unamused grip. "Aha! I see it now, that's what's been feeling so weird today, I've had a stowaway this whole time, hitchhiking on my back. Well mister, I've had just about enough of y-"

Jeff had no chance to chastise the poor little bug because at that moment it slipped out of his hand and even managed slip into his shirt, crawling and squirming this way and that, tickling the new trainer so badly that he began to giggle and scrabble helplessly at himself to get the unwanted visitor out. His supposed relief came quite unrelievedly in the form of the same pokéball that had konked him on the noggin' smacking his stomach and the Wurmple crawling on it, stunning the little pokémon and dropping it to the floor with a twitch. "That's not how you catch a pokémon!" Jeff grunted painfully, rubbing the sore spot on his tumtum.

"Whatever, you're just jealous because I'm such a pro!" The girl yelled, hefting another ball, ready to throw it. "Now get out of the way so I can finally catch Princess Melissa!" She threw the ball and this time the trainer who now had two fresh bruises thanks to the brat stood in her way on purpose, smacking the metal orb away before it could hit the Wurmple.

"What kind of name is Princess Melissa?" Jeff questioned in annoyance. "And how do you even know that thing's a girl? Ugh, whatever, that's beside the point. You've been enough of a troublemaker today and I think it's pretty clear this little fella doesn't wanna go with you!" Romanov let out a supportive "Munch!" At Jeff's side and stood firm.

The Bug Catcher - who's name Jeff had never bothered to find out was Winnifred - grit her teeth and tossed a pokéball with a sticker of a net on it into the air. "Fine then, if you wanna be that way...Come out, Duchess Zenobia!" The pokéball burst open, releasing a beam of light that coalesced into a Weedle, which wiggled threateningly in Jeff's general direction. "Duchess, Tackle those idiots out of the way so I can catch Princess Melissa!"

"Duchess Zeno-what?" Jeff queried, quickly realizing he didn't have time to ponder the ridiculous name or what brought it about as the Weedle charged at him. "Whatever, Romanov, give'em a Chip Away, then Lick!" The little Munchlax stepped casually forward with a bored yawn and simply swatted away the little bug when it reached him, sending it soaring into the trunk of a tree, the difference in size, weight and strength didn't make for a fair right, partially thanks to the fact that the poor Weedle had only been caught earlier that morning and was barely more than a baby. While Winny frantically shouted orders at the stunned Weedle Romanov waddled over to his victim and loomed over it. He opened his mouth and the creature begged for mercy, sure it was about to be eaten.

The Weedle and its trainer were both in for a thankful - or horrendous, depending on how you feel about germs - surprise when Romanov's tongue lolled out of his mouth and he drew it mostly harmlessly over the Weedle's body, his powerful saliva sending shocks through its system. In fact, actual sparks of electricity seemed to coat the creature and it froze in place, unable to move a muscle. "Ah!" Winny shouted. "You paralyzed the Duchess!" She returned the Weedle to its ball and looked like she was about to throw it angrily at Jeff but instead tears began to well up in her eyes. "You big jerk! First you steal my pokémon and then after I tell you she's mine you won't even give her to me! I'm gonna go tell my mom on you!" And just like that she was gone, sobbing melodramatically while she ran home, leaving Jeff to rub the back of his head awkwardly.

Romanov nodded sagely and pat his trainer on the leg, reassuring him that he'd done nothing wrong. "Welp...that was a trip and a half." Jeff said. "Now let's see how our charge is doing." He turned back to where the Wurmple had fallen only to see that it was gone, he was a bit disappointed but he was glad enough with how things ended. "Okay, buddy. Onward to Rustsurf? I can't wait to see what els - guh!" He'd been too lost in his thoughts of the journey ahead to notice that creeping sensation from earlier returning until his vision was blocked by something covering his face. Jeff poked at the thing that had blinded him, really hoping it wasn't some sort of alien parasite about to lay eggs in his stomach but one touch was all it took to realize it was that Wurmple again.

"Oh, hi there. I guess you wanna hang around with us for a while, huh?" The Wurmple trilled happily and crawled back down happily to Jeff's belt, booping its nose against a pokéball and disappearing just like that. Jeff smiled down at his belt as he felt the ball rumble within its clasp a few times before drawing still with a satisfying 'click'. "Cool! I guess that's that! Ok, now are we ready to keep going?"

"Lax!"

forg · Jun 7, 2018

Varianna "Vivi" Sochi

Vivi chased down the weedle through a stretch of grass and into a small group of trees, the light trees spotting the ground beneath with shade.

The bug climbed up a tree, leaving Vivi to stare from below. "Awe, c'mon, you'll have fun with us!" she breathed out as she began to leap as high as she could, arms flailing about in an attempt to grab the weedle. "That's okay, I got my bug too-" Anorith was snatched from the ground and held for the enemy to see. It startled him, making him scramble in her grip. "-so, Anorith, use scratch!" she commanded at last, hurling him towards the bug on the higher branches. It panicked as Anorith approached at an immense speed.

The two collided, puck, and fell down to the ground beneath. Vivi didn't hesitate to catch her Anorith midfall. She was about to give a command until the sight of an injured wurmple caught her attention. Its labored breathing, apart from the bruises, overrode Vivi's current actions.

"Hey hey hey, are you okay?" she asked of the wheezing bug, running over to its aid. Her intentions are genuine, but there was a small, selfish voice whispering behind her ear; you can catch it in this state.

Anorith glanced down, whispering out to the injured bug for answers. Alas the wurmple did not reply.

Rustling on the bushes beside Vivi directed her attention to them, which revealed a group of young adults in the distance. A small truck is parked near enough for them to hurl into its bed what seems to be... wurmples.

The bodies slammed against the vehicle's bed, their grunts and cries ignored. Apparently there was a trainer amongst them, for a red-collared Staraptor loomed over them menacingly. "Yo, look at this one! It won't let go!" a different voice bellowed out. It belonged to a tall, scrawny brunette. With one hand he tightly held a small, squirming wurmple. Wrapped around its lower half is a weedle, who refused to detach itself.

"You stay here," she ordered the wurmple wheezing behind her. Not that it could do anything, it was sprawled on the ground.

Vivi tip toed closer to the racket, Anorith now clinging to her back. The brunette shaked the duo, but Weedle refused to budge. It was holding on to dear life. "Awwwww, don't wanna let go, huh? How 'bout that." One massive tug separated the bugs, who began to cry out for each other.

"Clean up. We're going," a third, deep voice spoke. The other two hurried with the bugs, leaving weedle and other bugs behind on the dust and dirt the vehicle kicked up.

And then they were gone.

Vivi seized the opportunity and approached the frustrated Weedle, who was failing at attaining help from his own. "Hey!" she initiated conversation without warning, startling the bug. "I'm so sorry about your wurmple friend. I bet you really liked them, hm?" At first the poison critter hesitated, studying her as she knelt down. Anorith's head popped into view from above her shoulder, curiously eyeing the weedle.

"We wee. We we," the bug responded back with a dejected tone.

"Do you need help?" Weedle's eyes twinkled with hope, but before they could nod she thew in a little something extra. "Agree to be in my team and we will." Anorith slowly turned himself to stare at his trainer, surprised by her cynical ways. However, Weedle wasn't taking any of it.

"Dle." The orange bug glared and replied with a raspberry before leaving the premises in fumes.

"Well. They'll come around maybe," she convinced herself, letting out a sigh of relief upon stretching. "Oh wai-!" She dashed off towards the injured wurmple she had encountered earlier in her travels. Unfortunately they, too, had disappeared. Anorith was relieved, not wanting another bug to suffer being thrown against an enemy. Literally.

• • •

Trainer after trainer refused to acknowledge the pleading Weedle. Were one to notice, they wouldn't lend a hand. Some found the bug disgusting, even. Oh the perks of being a bug. Weedle kept forcing herself on to more trainers and Pokémon, hoping for somebody to accompany her on her way to save her dearest friend.

There was one, but they couldn't quite piece together what Weedle was trying to get across. How could a human get I need sleep and I need it now from help my friend is kidnapped and I need help. The more she struggled the more frantic she became. Going to that human with the cruel deal was the last thing she wanted, but will she really be desperate enough? Couldn't she be a hero on her own?

"Hai!" a female voice suddenly made an entry from behind, sending the weedle into a state of shock. "No luck, huh? It's pretty sad seeing you try this hard when you got me and this guy right here. Yep. Right here." Weedle refused to make eye contact, frustrated she wasn't getting help or a better offer from anybody, or any Pokémon, else.

The stubborn weedle scoffed, putting several yards of distance between them prior to attempting to catch anybody's attention once more. "Good luck!" Vivi hollered out with hands cupped around her mouth.

• • •

Vivi soaked in the pride of being sought out for. Weedle has had no success. In fact, a few attempted to capture her whilst some wild Pokémon attacked in response.

Her body stayed firmly in place before Vivi, eyes lacking the twinkle they once had. "How about this," the trainer began, hoping to ease the transaction, "I won't capture you until we rescue your friend, hm?" She clasped her hands together, gently pressed against her face in eagerness.

"Wee!" Weedle at last agreed with a single nod, sending the woman into a leap of glee. Anorith nearly fell off from the sudden jump, but managed to keep himself hoisted in place.

"Omg, this is what I call a Pokémon journey! Let's do this."

Skystrike · Jun 7, 2018

Trent Marsh

Trent's Pokemon

*bulbagarden.net image removed*

The Poochyena Predicament, Part Final

Trent and Nora hauled themselves back to Rustboro City as fast as they could. Eventually they were surrounded by Rustboro's rustic gray brick buildings. Trent was panting heavily; they hadn't stopped running since that short guy helped them out of that situation.

"Trent, what happened to that Trainer?" Nora said, regaining her own breath. "I don't think he ran like he said he would..."

Trent looked behind him. Indeed, that guy seemed to have stayed behind. Did he really tell them to run and leave himself with those wild Poochyena? He wondered if the trainer would be okay... he seemed to be on the short side, after all, and although he seemed to be a capable trainer, he was still outnumbered. The boy took out his Elekid's Poke Ball and recalled it.

"C'mon, let's get you home," he responded, avoiding Nora's question. He didn't want to really have to answer her question himself. "Lead the way."

"So this is where you live? I've never been inside of Rustboro Condominiums before," Trent said. As they walked down the 3rd floor hall of the apartment building Nora was silent, looking down at the patterns etched into the carpet.

"Hey, what's got you so quiet? Cheer up!"

Nora shook her head. "My mom's always told me to not go into the tall grass. What is she going to say when she's found out all the trouble I've caused?"

"Don't worry, I'll explain everything to her! And, besides, it's not all your fault. I could've handled that situation a lot better. I know there's something I could've done different, but I couldn't just leave you there with those Poochyena," Trent told her. He understood the feeling of wanting to go outside of Rustboro City to go play in the wild, although he always had Pokémon at his side when he did it.

Nora seemed to perk up when he said that. "Well... I still think I should say 'sorry' to you, Mister Trent. Your Pokémon got hurt and--"

"I'm telling you! Don't worry about it!" Trent smiled. "Dennis will be fine. He's pretty tough, so again, just relax."

The little girl nodded, returning the smile. Then she ran and knocked on a door marked with the numbers 323. "Mom, I'm home!"

A brunette-haired woman opened the door. Upon seeing Nora, her face shifted from a look of relief, to anger, to a smile all at once. Then she sighed and said, "Nora, where were you? I was so worried!"

"Mom, I--"

Trent stuttered. "S-She was hanging out with me," he said quickly.

Nora's mother looked up, placing her hand on her hip. "Oh? And who might you be?"

"I'm Trent Marsh! Please to meet you!"

Nora's mom tilted her head. "Are you one of the trainers Professor Roxanne recruited to help her with her research?"

"Yeah, that's me," Trent said. "What about it?"

Nora's mom looked a little red. "Nora, you didn't go out into the tall grass like I told you not to, did you?"

"Really, she didn't, you see we were just--"

Nora raised her hand and turned to Trent. "Mister Trent, it's just like you said... don't worry," she spoke, and then turned to her mom. "Yes, I went into the tall grass. Some wild Poochyena started attacking me... but luckily Mister Trent was passing by," the little girl explained, telling her all what happened on Route 116.

Nora's mother huffed, but she seemed to have calmed down. "Nora... I hope you've learned a valuable lesson about heading into the tall grass. What if Trent wasn't there? What then?" She began to launch herself into a lecture, but she stopped herself and opened the apartment door more to let Nora run inside. "Thank you for helping my daughter out of trouble," she said. "I'm not sure how to thank you, though..."

Trent scratched his head. "I couldn't have done it alone. Not without Dennis, or that guy that helped me." He was still wondering what happened to the guy. While he was here in the safety of the city, who knows what was happening to him?

Nora ran back to the doorway. "Here, Mister Trent! This is for you!" She handed the boy 500P and a Great Ball. "My dad works at the Devon Corporation, and he's always bringing home his work," she told him.

"Thanks, Nora!" he responded. "Okay, I have to get Dennis to the Pokémon Center, now. Make sure you stay out of the tall grass, Nora!"

Nora waved, but part of her wondered if she'd be able to ever thank the mystery trainer. "Bye-bye, Trent!"

After getting Dennis healed at the Pokémon Center, Trent let him out of his Poké Ball.

"Listen... I'm sorry I let that happen, Dennis," he said, kneeling to Dennis's level. The Elekid looked at him briefly, and then looked away from him, uttering a dissatisfied "Ele..." in response to Trent's apology.

There was a long, unfilled silence between the two...

Soon enough, Trent was back on the road towards Verdanturf. The sun hung overhead, dipping slightly to the northwest, a sign that it would be evening soon. Trent was still determined to make it to Verdanturf on the same day, considering it was just a stone's throw away. The trainer was minding his business when suddenly something from above dropped on him with a sharp thwack, then plummeted to the ground.

"Owww, what the heck? Who did that?" he barked, slightly annoyed. He looked down on the ground and picked up the red object that had cracked him squarely on top of his head, and was surprised to find out it was a red Pokédex the same model as his, perhaps belonging to another beginning trainer. He reached out to pick up the device when a Starly landed on it. It tilted its head, studying Trent.

"Did you steal this from someone, you mischievous little thing?!" Trent demanded.

"Staaar!" Starly squawked back.

"Well this won't do at all, now someone's out there without their Pokédex!" Trent looked the Starly over. Its feathers were a little ruffled and it had some burns in some places—as if something shocked it. "Hey, you wouldn't happen to be the Starly me 'n Dennis battled earlier, would you?" The Starly didn't respond, only staring at Trent. "Well," Trent started, taking out a Poké Ball, "I guess you're going to have to come with me so we can return this Pokédex to whoever it belongs to. You don't have any objections, do you?"

The Starling Pokémon chirped and ruffled its wings. Then it fluttered over to the Poké Ball and tapped it, sucking it inside the ball. It shook once... twice... three times, and then made a satisfying ding sound. "Alright, I got Starly!" Trent exclaimed. "Welcome to the team, Garu!" He placed the now inhabited Poké Ball and the Pokédex into his bag and did a fist pump. "Now I can move onwards to Verdanturf Town!" Hopefully he'd be able to find the owner of the Pokédex sometime.

New Pokémon:

Garu (Starly)
Male / Keen Eye / Tackle, Growl, Quick Attack, Wing Attack

Stinging Bea · Jun 8, 2018

Naomi Junn

Route 116

Chapter 1-1 | Humble Beginnings

Current Party:

Naomi really didn't know just how to feel as she finally set foot onto Route 116. For most of the others who had visited Professor Roxanne's lab and received their first Pokémon, a Pokédex, as well as several poké balls, it was a feeling of absolute elation. They were finally armed and full of energy to begin a journey of self discovery and friendship across the expansive region, all with their eyes set on a prize. She imagined some of them were absolutely tickled with the idea of taking on the Hoenn's Pokémon League. Perhaps some of them had hopes of trying to catch them all. Maybe there were even a few who hoped to become some sort of famous Pokémon Idol. Just thinking about those new, adventurous trainers made Naomi somewhat reminiscent of her younger days, back to a time when she too was a naive, stupid kid who thought everything was going to be coming up sunshine and rainbows all because she believed in the powers of friendship and had some sort of magical little creature with the ability to shoot fire, electricity or whatever else out of their furry, little buttholes.

To be quite honest, it made Naomi's skin crawl that there were really people out there that dumb still. It made her sick that she too used to be such a way.

Kids these days, none of them knew what the real world was really like. The crimson-haired girl would never actually say it, what on account of wanting to try and keep from being overly cliche, but it truly was a Houndoom eat Houndoom world out there. She could easily tell that it wouldn't be long before the little idiots would find themselves being force fed this harsh reality, most likely within a matter of days. Of course, the young woman could honestly care less about that looming reality setting in. Naomi had no intention of becoming some sort of babysitter for them, nor did she find it any of her concern to give them some sort of warning before she rather hastily made her exit from the lab.

The red-haired woman paused her thoughts for a moment, taking a deep inhale off of her cigarette to try and focus on the task at hand. Her pale-blue eyes slowly drifted down to the single poké ball she was carrying in her hands. Inside this ball, was a Pokémon. It was the first one she had ever owned and it would be serving as a tool for the girl to carve her own way in the world.

It was an odd feeling, to be honest. When she was young, Naomi had thought a time or two about becoming a Pokémon trainer. It was never a serious thought, mind you. Rather, it was something the girl tossed around in her brain, often whenever she had to fill out one of those "future career" type assignments back when she was in school. Of course, it (just like about anything else) was mainly a pipe dream. Growing up dirt poor and seemingly responsible for the life of another was a constant. That made entertaining such thoughts more or less pointless, which caused Naomi to push the thought of being a trainer back into the deepest depths of her mind.

Yet despite it all, here she was. Standing out in the middle of no where with a poké ball in her hand, a Pokédex in her pocket, and a backpack strapped across her back. She supposed that in a sense all that she was missing was a couple of dotting parents telling her to be careful and give them a call whenever she happened to reach the next town, but at the same time she knew it was pointless to wish for a such a thing. Wishing was pointless. Results came only from brute force and determination.

"Welp... might as well get this crap started," Naomi muttered allowed, tossing the poké ball in her hand forward.

The ball bounced against the dirt path before snapping open, releasing a bright, white beam of that quickly took the shape of a rather unique looking creature. Thin and black, the creature resembled some sort of strange... cat looking thing... all with several red feathers sticking out of her backside and even one from her head. She appeared even more intimidating thanks to the white, sharp claws she had. The Pokémon took a brief look around, gathering her bearings before letting her eyes come to rest upon Naomi.

"Not bad... You're definitely a lot cooler than that name the professor called ya... What was it...? Sneasel or somethin'...?" Naomi mused, taking another drag off of her cigarette. "Well... Whatever... Point is, ya need a better name... How about Sheena, yeah?"

The Sneasel remained quiet, crossing her arms and closing her eyes for a moment as she began to mull over the name in her mind. Eventually, a small smile crept its way to her lips before she gave a small nod in agreement.

"Good, now let's get movin'... I've wasted enough time standin' around out here anyways," Naomi commanded, rather abruptly. The red-haired girl began to make her way across the route, all the while the newly dubbed "Sheena" followed closely behind. "This ain't no game for me... Hang on, Charlie... We're gonna be together again..."

PastelPhoenix · Jun 9, 2018

PastelPhoenix said:
Marcus Wells

The Utterly Gutsy Flying Type

"Look, all I'm saying is that I really don't think you can take on three Dragonites at once."

For the first time in forever Marcus didn't have a plan for the day. He had graduated, admittedly not with the grade he wanted at all, but what do you call the trainer who graduated last in his class? Well, you still call him a trainer. His battle grades were all to blame for this anyways. Not his fault he isn't a star student there, being great in literally every other category should honestly count for something.

Speaking of fights, the little pink puff ball he received as his first Pokemon seemed to want nothing but fights. Maybe it was the vigor of youth; he had received a baby pokemon and it was going to be full of energy. He just feared leaving her alone. Thankfully the only real aggression she showed was towards her apple, for crimes of not being already eaten.

"As I said earlier, that Pachirisu was a freak of nature and I imagine much older than you are. At the very least he had a berry to help him."

The sun was shining, and the route was predictably packed with people. He probably looked odd having such an animated conversation with his Pokemon, but it helped keep anyone from walking up and asking him to battle or harassing him for help with something or another. Plus, Lua was surprisingly understandable. He'd never taken a class on sign language in his life, but the gestures of the tiny Cleffa was often enough to catch her meaning. That and her cute little enactments of the Pokemon.

"No, I don't think two is really a compromise. My problem isn't with the number of them as much as the species. And before you say it, yes I am aware that you are a fairy type. The books aren't that outdated."

WHOOOOSH

And like that, there was suddenly an appleless Cleffa. What exactly happened was a mystery, but the look of surprise on Lua's face meant she didn't see what happened either. Someone shouted about a missing sandwich next to him, and soon the air was full of shouting about stolen food. No one was able to name a purpetrator it seemed, however.

A brief period of respite, and then some more scattered yells started up. It seemed that every scrap of food on the route was going to be taken before long, and a few people shouted to put away anything edible. A sudden blur caught Marcus's eye, shooting past and nabbing a boiled egg from the hands of a young man on what appeared to be a picnic date. The small, dark figure was flying toward a nearby cluster of trees and if he didn't follow it now it would probably disappear for good.

"Lua," he shouted at his companion, already moving for the trees, "want that apple back?" The little puffball seemed a little too eager to respond, smacking her fist together and taking off behind him.

The grove itself was odd for the middle of the route. The path split around it, possibly because of how thick the trees were here. Although he could walk through it in less than a minute, the trees here were clustered tightly together and gave the illusion that he was teleported to the middle of an ancient forest. It was downright impossible to run here, if you somehow slipped through the trunks you were bound to get snagged by an errant root.

The first sight of life in this pocket of the world came within mere seconds, and Lua was all too ready to fight the fruit thief. It wouldn't be such a bad idea, if the Pokemon she was currently harassing was actually capable of stealing the food. A poor Wurmple crawled out of a pile of leaves and immediately caught a verbal barrage from Lua, squeaking in anger. He was almost worried that Lua was going to end up hit by the caterpillar's small horn and even poisoned, were it not for the fact the Wurmple withered under the mere murderous glare the Cleffa emitted.

"Leave it alone Lua, our perp was flying. Unless he somehow turned back time and devolved twice he can't be our guy."

This evidence abated Lua, but just barely. She shot one more glance that all but said she would be watching him and turned back to the investigation. The little bug Pokemon visibly sighed and dove back into its leaf pile.

A few more seconds of walking revealed a massive piece of evidence, and the first break in the case. At the foot of one of the thicker trunks lie a the wrapper for one of the more popular fruit pies around the region. It was possible that someone had a reckless disregard for nature, but traveling this far into a random grove to wantonly dispose of a such a light piece of garbage when there were plenty of trash cans on the path seemed unlikely. That kind of hatred was uncommon, most often found on old men who had nothing better to do than yell at clouds, and the only way to reach this exact area would be too dangerous for their shaky balance and fragile bones. That, and there was still about half a fresh pastry in it so it can't be that old.

Bringing this up to Lua, it seemed that she agreed. Or should would agree with anything he said so long as it meant she could punch whoever stole her food.

Just as he was about to calculate what the perp's next move would be after disposing of the evidence, a loud tweet of satisfaction rang out from above and an empty bag of chips fluttered to the ground. Right above both of them sat a rather large Taillow sitting atop a larger pile of food. The bird Pokemon looked over his haul and lunged for a powdered mini-donut, somehow swallowing it in one bite. Marcus would be impressed by the sheer efficiency the bird had for eating, where he not so perplexed at where all that food went.

"Uhh, Lua… I think we found the thief." He could swear that where just mere moment ago was a Pokemon now sat a cloud shaped pile of dust, and Lua was somehow halfway up the tree. Well, at least she was a go getter.

Pulling herself onto the final branch, Lua began to slowly approach the Taillow. It seemed she wanted to get the drop on it, and giving any kind of command now would just give her away. Halfway to the stash she accidentally cracked a twig, letting out a snap just loud enough to be heard over the rustling of plastic wrappers. Taillow whipped around, suddenly aware of the intruder to his golden (fried) horde. Giving a death glare of his own, the flying type puffed up his feathers and let loose a loud twill, causing Lua to take a step back out of reflex. Now stuck without a plan, she could only watch as the Taillow took flight.

"Did he… run away?" No sooner did Marcus speak and Lua took a cautious step forward then a black blur shot out at the position Lua was just standing at.

"Wow, was that a quick attack?! I could barely see it!" Another strafing run came from the shadows, this time clipping Lua and causing her to stumble back a few steps. The footing on that branch was too precarious, one good hit would knock her down. "Uhhm, you gotta go fast like that. You probably won't be able to hit him otherwise… Wait! You've seen that move, you can copy it, right?"

Nodding and emitting a very faint pink glow, Lua secured her footing and began to scan the area for her target. The forest suddenly became dead still, the wind dying out and the clattering of wild Pokemon silenced by the nearby fighting. When, all of a sudden, the branch behind her rustled.

"I think he's behind you, look out!" Fearing his companion smashing against a hard root below, Marcus rushed forward to catch her. To his amazement, Lua not only managed to turn around in time to see her foe, becoming a pink blur, but it looked like she was the one who made contact. The Taillow caught a stubby fist to the back and plummeted down, stunned at being hit. Right before he made impact, he managed to get a bit of lift with his wings and slow his fall enough to land on his feet.

Before her trainer could issue any orders, Lua jumped after him, fist primed. It seemed she was going for a knockout hit. The bird jumped backwards once her course was set, buffeting her with strong strokes of its wings when she was in range. The hits looked like they hurt, and Lua was forced to roll backwards to escape the torrent of feathers. Regaining her footing, she looked up and connected eyes with the winged menace.

And like that the two leapt at each other. Lua began a barrage of pounds, while Taillow fluttered close to the ground and shot his head out to peck at Lua. Pound landed on Taillow's body, but a Peck landed on her forehead. She glanced his wing and dodged a jab of the beak. He pushed aside her fist with a wing and connected two quick Pecks to her ear.

"Yeah… Just keep using Pound I guess." Moments like these made Marcus feel left out. The two were so enthralled in the fight that they were just letting their instinct go. He could barely see the attacks, much less predict where they were aimed when they let them loose.

Pound, Peck, Peck, Pound, Pound, Pound, Peck, Pound, Peck, Peck. The two of them were running each other ragged, yet neither wanted to give in. There had to be something he could do, right?

And then his hand accidentally brushed the very solution to his problem.

-----------------------------------

Lua was in the zone. Sure, the beak hurt when it made contact, but the stupid bird was losing way more stamina than she was. He had to fly, but she only had to take an occasional step. She was landing more hits than he was, and that damage was only going to stack up.

Well, until a bright flash of light blinded her. At first she feared she was getting recalled to her Pokeball just when she was winning, but the weirdly calming feeling that the Pokeball gave never came. Instead the bird was gone, and in its place was a wildly wiggling Pokeball.

Oh no… He didn't.

----------------------------------

A ding confirmed the capture, and for the first time in his life Marcus really felt like a trainer. That Taillow was a wild Pokemon… and he caught it. He would jump for joy, but the footing would probably cause him to fall and hurt his back.

Ignoring the dumbstruck look on Lua's face, he grabbed his prize. His finger hovered over the release mechanism, surely Pokemon can't immediately attack their trainers? Why would anyone even catch a pokemon if that was the case?

A brilliant light surrounded the forest, and Taillow re-emerged. After a cautionary look it locked eyes with Lua again, tensing up.

"Hey, Taillow! Please don't do that. We're all friends here now. No need to fight friends." Inspiration struck, and Marcus retrieved a small piece of dried meat, offering it to the newly tamed Pokemon. "See, friends!"

Taillow carefully eyed the offering and then gingerly took the meat. Gobbling it down swiftly. That alone seemed enough to placate the hot headed bird, and his shoulder was swiftly claimed as a perch. For just threatening to poke out Lua's eyes earlier, he sure seemed friendly.

"I guess you need a name now. You sure seem to like food… Souffle? Omelette? G… Grape? Goo… Gula? Actually, Gula seems perfect for you."

Gula seemed to enjoy his name, rubbing his head against his new trainer's cheek. Laughing from the overt display of affection, Marcus missed Gula open one eye and give a sly smirk to Lua.

Caught:

Spoiler:

Gula the Taillow
Male // Guts
Peck / Quick Attack / Growl / Wing Attack

Shak · Jun 11, 2018

Blaire Summerfield

The Longshot - Route 116 (Main Path)

Blaire?s feet bounded on and off the grassy terrain of Route 116. At her brisk pace, each step sprang her across the trail. If she put a little more bounce in her step, she?d practically have been skipping. Her cap was clasped over her head, cutting any peripheral vision into a razor sharp gaze. Forward. Now that she had started her journey, she wasn?t allowing herself to look back.

A rush of wind hissed past her head. A stone.

Blaire froze. She could hear the pestering cackles of children behind her. She clenched her fist. While she desperately wanted to ignore the issue, how could she let the elderly couples and young schoolgirls fall victim to whatever tomfoolery she was about to let slide. Even if just an innocent prank. With a deep breath, she spun on her heel and faced the trouble makers. As she looked them up and down, she noticed one of them holding a slingshot.

?Excuse me, would you mind not firing that?weapon in a public domain? She lectured, waving her finger at the group of boys.

The one holding the slingshot glanced past Blaire, before looking back to her with a frown. ?Hey, why don?t you mind your own business, lady? I?m busy catching pokemon.? The group of friends, chuckled, egging on their friend.

?The nerve.? Blaire huffed. Curious though, she turned to see just what he was referring to. His slung rock had just missed the head of a skeletal looking dark hound. Blaire frowned on the scrappy looking Poocheyena. She sighed and turned back to the boys. ?There are citizens walking this path, who would prefer not to be pelted by projectiles, and this Pokemon clearly isn?t going to be able to handle whatever impetuous lunacy you have in store for it. Take your mischief somewhere else!?

The boy looked past her again. ?Fine, moody old zubat. Boys, let?s go find some rattata in the forest or something.?

As she turned to watch the boys filter into the forest, she noticed the group of young schoolgirls heading off in the same direction. She frowned. If they were doing that to impress those girls, then her word certainly wasn?t going to stop them. She shook her head. If she was honest, she really didn?t have time to be thinking about that. It was time to prove that she would be the one to dethrone May. She couldn?t do that by giving courting advice to a bunch of twelve year olds. She wasn?t going to defeat Poppy with just Karma. The Mareanie had already proved herself considerably inept in battle. Blaire couldn?t rely on just her. She had to catch a second Pokemon.

That thought was cut short by a tugging on her leggings. The Poocheyena was gripping her onto her with its dirty fangs. Blaire resisted the urge to heave. ?I take it you haven?t eaten in a while. I suppose I don?t mind sparing what?s leftover of my breakfast.? She sighed, digging into her bag for some food. ?Here. I?m sure your species doesn?t feed on seafood regularly, you don?t seem like your very par?? She paused as the pokemon devoured the prawn sandwich in seconds. ?I see. Well that?s all I have.?

?That?s very generous of you.? The voice of an old man croaked from behind her. As she turned to face him, she instantly noticed the bag of meat in his hand. ?It?s not often others take the time to feed ol?Scrappy over here. Poocheyena are usually seen as savages after all.?

?ol?scrappy?? Blaire sneered.

?Well that?s just my name for ?im. I assumed you were trynna catch him, since you?ve got them pokeball on ya. Would be good for him to have someone, ya know??

?Sorry, but I don?t intend to catch this thing. Ignoring his desperate need for groom, difficult as it may be, he?s far from impressive.? Blaire scoffed over the sound of defeated whimpering. ?Sorry, sir, but I really should get going. This is cutting in to the time that should have been spent defeating the Verdanturf gym leader. Good luck with?ol?scrappy. Farwell.? Without another word to the man or Pokemon, Blaire marched off into the deep of route 116.

Dragon · Jun 12, 2018

Lady in Blue
Route 116

In the midst of route 116, one of the more traveled routes for adventure in Hoenn, there was a Wurmple who crawled and waddled on a lone tree. It seemed to be wanting to snack on the leaves that the tree sprouted; thanks to its natural structure, it could crawl through each thin branch without falling. As it finally reach its meal, it was attacked. Sudden barrages of spitfire spread through the branch of the tree, causing the lone Wurmple to lose balance, falling to the grassy area on the ground.

As it regained it's balance and managed to stand back up, it got a good look to its attacker. It a fuzzy, moth larva-like Pok?mon. - a Larvesta. The horns on its head started to spew frequent amounts of fire, as the sounds of footsteps approached it. It was a young woman, who had blue hair, and wore a white cotton sweater with black sleeves, with a white dress over that sweater, that has grey and black lace, all complete with a black bow. She gave the wild Wurmple a warm, sincere, smile.

"It looks like I finally found you, my little new friend..." she said to it. It was none other than the holy trainer, Serene Linge. Serene was as caring and friendly as one would imagine, but in a sense, she could be also be seen as mysterious, and and bit of a schemer in the long term of things. The Wurmple gave its enemy a forceful look, ready for battle. It reared its head slightly, as it attempted to ram it's foe with a clean Tackle attack.

"Hmm. I was hoping we could of settled this peacefully..." Serene said in disappointment, sort of oblivious to the fact that she initiated the fight first. "However, if this is your strength, I shall receive and respond to your strength in kind! Go Ruby, spread your judgment in kind! Flame Charge attack!"

Ruby was Serene's first partner: a faithful Larvesta. She treated her as if Ruby was her own sister, but in this case, she was more like a partner in crime. Either way, she imagined various adventures with her friend, as this was the start to many. Ruby started to wrap flames all over its body, as it charged in against the Wurmple's Tackle attack, easily managing to overpower it because of its type advantages. The Wurmple was knocked down to the ground, seemingly burnt.

"...Oh dear," Serene looked on with a sigh. "Ruby honey, did you overdo it again?" It seemed as though this wasn't Serene's first attempt at catching a wild Pokemon - though, she only went after bug type Pokemon. For some reason, before this journey began, Serene decided to only capture bug type Pokemon. Why? Well... one would only have to look at Serene's eyes as she saw the wild Wurmple struggling to get back up. Being enigmatic as she is, you can't tell at first glance what Serene was actually thinking. Was it pity she felt, watching these weak bug type Pokemon going against a Pokemon they stood no match against?

Or was it... curiosity? Curiosity on how the weak could fare against the strong. No matter what one would think of Serene, she always had this view: the Pokemon and humans of this world were very interesting. That's because, they were all unpredictable. Will they result in an orderly manner in order to deal with certain situations at hand? Or will it be chaotic?

She watched on as Ruby blocked the wild Wurmple's Poison Sting attack with her powerful barrages of Ember, charring the bug pokemon until it stumbled on the grass, seemingly submitted. Serene calmly clasped her hands together and closed her eyes, seemingly in a prayer. "Disappointing..." she said softly, yet discerningly. "May the Goddess of Light help you grow ever stronger, little one."

She remembered that feeling. That scene of hopelessness upon a world who only favored the strong, and the chaotic. All she really had back then was herself, and her prayers. It was then she made a vow: she must become strong herself, thus to make her an even kinder person. She got out one of her pokeballs, and threw it at the wild Wurmple. The pokeball burst open, as the energy materialized the Wurmple, sucking it inside.

The pokeball dropped to the grass. it shook once. Then twice. A third time. Finally, it stopped, sealing the wild Pokemon in place. She calmly took up the pokeball, observing it. "I'll dub you, Sapphire," Serene called it. "The first of many. Bug pokemon... you are certainly tragic creatures."

With that, she and Ruby marched on.

May the Goddess of Light bathe Hoenn a deep cool blue.

forg · Jun 12, 2018

Varianna "Vivi" Sochi

Weedle led the way. Had she been held by Vivi the trek there wouldn't have eaten up more time than necessary, yet Weedle refused to touch the trainer.

Their final destination turned out to be on the outskirts of the route, in a small wooden cabin partially engulfed by flora. "It is exactly what I expected," Vivi commented behind a large bush. Weedle glared through its branches, unwilling to forgive those who separated her from Wurmple.

There was no truck. Through tainted windows there was a lack of light. Nobody is inside...?

"Okaaaaay. So. This is the thing we'll do," Vivi began, waving her hands about. With a small bounce to her walk Vivi made her way towards the shed's door and slammed it open, much to her Anorith's surprise. But upon scanning the inside there wasn't a soul in sight.

"...just lovely bugs. Bugs bugs bugs. Yep. Bugs," she muttered as she meandered, admiring the hideout's innards. Weedle immediately found her dear comrade amongst the many Wurmples, instantaneously cuddling them. "Awwwwwwe, cuuuuute."

Anorith observed as his master gingerly toyed with a set of matches on the tables. "Anooooo," he complained to himself, already well-aware of what she might be thinking.

???

"AHAHAHAHA!" The fire licked and flickered before them, a victorious chant emanating from the group of bugs surrounding the doomed cabin. It had been nearly half an hour and the burning was as alive as it had been when it began.

Vivi no longer found it amusing. "I guess we're done. We can go." Anorith clinged to her back, expecting her to remind Weedle of the promise made... yet nothing. He didn't halt her either, the distance between Vivi and Weedle increasing.

That is, until Weedle spoke up. "WEE!"

"I was kidding," Vivi hollered back without slowing her pace, swiveling to face the bug. "Fun, wasn't it, hmmmm?" Regardless Weedle didn't slow her sprint. Her small shrieks and hollers, demanding Vivi's attention, baffled Anorith. Why would they want to tag along? Let alone continue to want her attention?

Nah, maybe they just wanted to say thank you. "WEEEEEEEEE!"

At last Vivi stopped in her tracks, a smirk plastered across her face. "What's that~?" Once Weedle had caught her breath, she let out a single squeak and pointed at her pok?balls with the stinger, chest puffed out in anticipation afterwards.

"Aw jeez, you really don't mean it, do you?" Vivi replied to the gesture, hand playfully shooing them away. "You don't wanna tag along silly, trust me. I'm something else hahaha."

They didn't budge.

Wurmple approached Weedle, slightly hurt by their want to leave. "Wurm?"

"I know right. Tell 'em. Missing out on being free and ready to mingle." Again Weedle didn't display second thoughts, set on their course. This baffled Vivi, albeit she didnt demonstrate how touched she was. "Well, okie dokie! Don't say I didn't warn yooooouuuuu~" She withdrew an empty pok?ball, body trembling from both excitement and adoration for the critter. "Uh... ready?"

Weedle nodded despite Wurmple's protests. Vivi easily ignored the bug's pleas as she hurled the sphere on to Weedle, slapping them with a splat prior to acting up.

A ruby red silhouette took Weedle's place for a mere second before vanishing, having been sucked by the pok?ball. No resistance was displayed, shown by the lack of three clicks that most pok?ball go through. One click and Weedle was her's.

Anorith leaped off her back and plopped himself beside the new companion, unable to wrap his head around the desire to join the duo. "Nor."

"eeeeeEEEEEEE I GOTZA BUG!" she blurted out, ecstatic about the new addition, hopping towards the pok?ball. "I'm going to call you... Weedle!" The wurmple curled around the pok?ball, refusing to let go.

Vivi knelt down, hands propping her head up to get a good view of the scene from above. "May I, por favor~?" Wurmple did not comply. In response Vivi began to toy with the creature, poking them here and there.

"W-w-wurm!" The poking only intensified, slightly tickling the bug.

"Boingboingboingboingboingboing-" Vivi drones on, relentless in her execution. Until.

Wurmple gave in, bursting into a laughing mess. Vivi took the opportunity and snatched up the pok?ball before dashing away, hands polishing the red. Anorith apologized to the Wurmple before chasing down after his trainer.

In the background a pickup truck rushed past them, the trainers inside panicking in response to the fire in the distance.

Stinging Bea · Jun 13, 2018

Naomi Junn
& Jeff Miles

Route 116

Chapter 1-2 | Troll And A Toll

Current Party:

Naomi?s mind began to wander as she and Sheena made their way across Route 116. As the trainer and her Sneasel finally set off from Rustboro officially, it quickly dawned on the young woman that she really had no idea just where to properly begin her new career as a trainer. She knew what sort of activities it would involve? Naomi knew that battling against both trained and wild Pok?mon alike was part of the equation. She also could only assume that catching one or two of the wild Pok?mon was also part of it, otherwise the professor would not have given her a few pok? balls to get her journey properly underway. The question Naomi found herself mulling over was what she should do next.

Of course, the first option would be to just start battling against various trainers along the route. While she was fairly certain that her Sneasel was probably not the most battle-hardened creature around, the red-haired girl was fairly certain that most trainers were likely in the same boat. While that did provide some incentive to just go hog wild in some battles against trainers, there was always that nagging feeling in the back of Naomi?s head that warned her that there could be some Pok?mon that might have an advantage against Sheena.

?If I remember what that Roxanne lady said, you?re supposed to be an ice-type or somethin?, right?? Naomi mused, glancing down at the Pok?mon in question. Sheena glanced up at Naomi as she spoke, eyeing the trainer carefully as she did so. Naomi wasn?t really sure why she even bothered asking the Sneasel such a question. She was fairly certain that most of the human language went right over her head. ?So I guess that means you don?t like fire then? We need to find somethin? else to add to the team just in case you have to fight somethin? that uses fire.?

?Alright, kid! Pay up!? a sudden voice called catching the attention of both Naomi and her Sneasel.

The duo turned to see a small child, probably no older than ten or so, kneeling on the ground. Worry was stretched across her face as she gently held her fainted Lillipup close to her body. Across from her, stood a rather gruff, somewhat rotund, middle-aged man. He looked rather intimidating, standing at a height of 6?1?. A brown, scraggly beard graced his face, obscuring most of the lower half of it, with his hair starting to recede, clearly a sign of his age. He was dressed in a less than impressive way. A pair of worn, weathered jeans graced his legs with a pair of dirty sneakers on his feet. The man wore a dingy, white t-shirt with what appeared to be a dried and faded ketchup stain on the collar. Over this shirt he was wearing a heavy, leather, black jacket.

?B-But? But I don?t have that kind of money?? the little girl protested. Her eyes were starting to tear up as she sniffled. ?B-Besides, you said that this b-battle was gonna be f-free!?

?I changed my mind, kiddo! Life?s tough,? the man sneered. A proud smirk graced his lips as his eyes motioned towards rather ugly, big-lipped, gray Pok?mon to his side. ?Now, cough up that dough. You?re starting to make Gary mad? and you ain?t gonna like him mad.?

?...This has nothin? to do with us? Let?s go, Sheena?? Naomi muttered quietly, turning to look away from the scene and resume her trip up Route 116.

The young woman only managed to take a few steps however, before a piercing scream echoed out through the area. Turning quickly, Naomi?s eyes widened at the sight before her. The older man?s Pok?mon had grabbed hold of the little girl by the scruff of her dress and was practically lifting her off the ground. Her eyes narrowed at the sight, her fist clenched in anger.

?Sheena? Ice Punch.?

With absolute glee, the Sneasel charged straight towards the Loudred. A frosty, blue aura began to glow around her right paw as she jumped into the air and slugged the unsuspecting Loudred right across its face. The Loudred, in a state of pain and surprise, dropped the little girl roughly on the ground. Anger was quick to overtake the Pok?mon?s emotions as it turned to face Sheena, while its trainer turned to face down Naomi.

?What the hell? Who are you supposed to be, kid? Can?t you see I?m busy right now?? Jimmy sneered.

?Shut up?? Naomi muttered, lighting up a cigarette as she stared at the man in absolute hate. ?So ya won a Pok?mon battle, eh? Now you?re sittin? there threatin? to hurt a little kid?? I bet ya think you?re such a big man??

The little girl looked up at her saviors in surprise. She really wasn?t sure what to do at this point. ?L-Lady???

?Get lost, kid? Take your Lillipup and scram,? Naomi muttered.

The little girl blinked and quickly scooped up her Lillipup. She offered another thank you to Naomi before running off towards Rustboro. With the little girl now gone, Naomi and her Sneasel were the only targets for the older man and his Loudred.

?You sure you wanna go around and play hero?? the man asked. ?You won?t be the first ol? Jimmy?s crushed and you sure won?t be the last.?

?Talk is cheap? now put up or shut up,? Naomi retorted.

Frantic breathing and loud, sob-laden sniffles rang from the woods just as a little girl game running into Jeff?s view. For a second he was worried it was the return of that bug brat but this appeared to be a regular little girl...and she had an injured Lillipup! ?Mister! Mister! There?s sniff th - there?s some big jerk blocking the road to Rustsurf tunnel! He won?t let anyone pass without a battle! His Loudred beat up Lily and then he demanded a ?toll? a-and-and my parents didn?t give me enough allowance to pay it!? The girl blurted out all in a mess, trying not to burst back into crying while she spoke,

?Oh my geeze, you poor thing! Your Lillipup?s in rough shape...Nurse Romanov, if you would?? The Munchlax saluted crisply, then approached the little girl demurely, as if he imagined he was wearing a Nurse Joy costume. He laid his hand on the pummeled pouch for a moment, then reached into his fur and pulled out a Sitrus berry, holding it up to Lily?s mouth. The wounded pok?mon lapped up the berry and chewed it gratefully, seeming to regain a decent chunk of its energy before barking happily. ?Good, good.? Jeff muttered. ?I?ve always read that Sitrus are the best berries for restoring a pok?mon?s strength. Missy, you and Lily need to get to the nearest pok?mon center right away, your friend will be fine for now but be careful, you wouldn?t want to get ambushed by wild ?mon on the way.?

The little girl stammered out her thanks and rushed off back towards Rustboro. She?d forgotten in all the hurry, of course, to tell Jeff there was some lady dealing with the big tool that had battled her. It made little difference, some things could not be left to stand even if Jeff hadn?t needed to go that way anyways - which, of course, he did. Before long, Jeff was back properly on the road to Rustsurf Tunnel and it took little time after that for him to find the disturbance: a massive, unkempt blob of a man and a Loudred staring down what looked like a teenage girl and a Sneasel.

?Wow, that didn?t take long at all, did it? Already trying to pick on someone else, are we? Nobody told me this road had trolls demanding tolls, you?ve even got the warts to make it really authentic!?

Naomi glanced over in the direction of the voice, eyeing the owner of the voice carefully. He looked to be roughly her age, give or take a year, and seemed to be accompanied by a Munchlax. She was about to question what he was doing here, not to mention just how he knew what was going on, but the girl quickly remembered the fact that she sent the little kid and her Lillipup running off back towards Rustboro. Regardless, he was here now? and it seemed like whatever the kid had blabbered off to this trainer was enough to make him feel like he needed insert himself into the matter.

Jimmy seemed to be slightly annoyed by the boy?s presence as well, though not for the same reason as Naomi. Rather, the man seemed to be understandably angry as a result of the string of insults being hurled in his direction by the newcomer, and it was something that the older man seemed to have no intention of just letting go.

?I dunno who you think you are kid, but you got a lot of guts to think you?re gonna go running your mouth off like that!? Jimmy threatened, cracking his knuckles for emphasis as if he planned on beating the boy down himself. The man glanced between Naomi (who still was staring at the teenage boy with mild curiosity) and the newcomer before a sudden thought crossed his mind. A somewhat twisted smirk came to grace his bearded mouth.?Wait a minute? You two know each other I bet, don?tcha? I bet you?re both some kinda lovey-dovey couple, right?!?

For a split second Jeff?s face began to heat up but he shook it off quickly enough. ?Never seen her before in my life - not that I?m not sure she?s a nice enough person, she?s standing up to you, after all. I just don?t like jerks who pick on kids. Plus it sounds like you would have been in my way soon enough regardless.? Romanov waved at the Sneasel next to the girl before he stepped next to Jeff, ready for a fight.

?Munch!?

?You tell him, buddy.?

Naomi huffed, rolling her eyes before she returned her focus back towards Jimmy. ?Like this kid said, we don?t know each other. In fact, I?m pretty sure he was just about to pass through and not stick his neck out into stuff that ain?t got anythin? to do with him?? she paused, her eyes narrowed a bit as she took a drag on her cigarette. ?...Right???

Sheena glanced between the two trainers curiously, before glancing towards the Munchlax. She wasn?t quite sure of what to make of her fellow Pok?mon, but he seemed to be at least decently strong? Maybe she could get a chance to battle against him soon, if she played her cards right.

That statement really put Jeff in a mental bind. He was naive, sure but not tone-deaf. It was clear what she wanted but she seemed to be around his age and he had a feeling she was a new trainer just like him...if so, it really wouldn?t be a fair fight. What would he do if he let her battle alone and then the big galoot blocking their way pulled some dirty trick and Jeff was left to take him on alone in an equally unfair fight?

?I suppose I could?? He began to acquiesce. ?But you seem like a busy gal, wouldn?t you rather get on with your journey? Romanov and I could save you a bit of time. Besides...If I just leave I?m gonna keep thinking about that little girl crying all the way to Verdanturf. So what?dya say??

Naomi opened her mouth to reply, but was cut-off by a growingly impatient Jimmy. ?Ah, the hell with this. I?ll just take both of your brats down at the same time. Gary, attack both of their stupid Pok?mon with Bulldoze!?

The Loudred wasted no time in letting out an excited growl as he quickly began to charge towards both Naomi?s Sneasel and the boy?s Munchlax. The ground around him began to shake and tremble as he did so, with both of his arms flailing all the while. Naomi quickly turned to face her opponent properly, but unfortunately she did not have the time to give out a command as the Loudred crashed right into Sheena. The Sneasel went flying back, a mixture of shock and pain as she hit the ground a few feet back rather roughly.

?Romanov, block it!? Romanov had kept his attention focused on the Loudred and was ready, barely managing to cross his arms in front of his face in time to blunt the attack. He was a lot heavier than the Sneasel but he still skidded far enough to leave an ugly rut in the dirt. ?Now, show them your Zen Headbutt!? Jeff ordered. Romanov?s head coated itself in a hypnotic purple aura and he flew at the Loudred like some sort of living air torpedo.

?Pfft, is that supposed to scare us?? Jimmy mocked, smirking while his Loudred held its hands out and simply caught Romanov, attack and all.

?Lick!? was Jeff?s only retort. Romanov jerked his head within Loudred?s grip, a big goofy smile on his face and let his tongue loll out of his head, seemingly doubling its size as he dragged it across the Loudred?s face. It gasped in both surprise and revulsion, throwing Romanov aside and trying in a slight panic to rub the spit off of its face.

Naomi was quick to follow up while the Loudred was distracted. ?Sheena, attack it with Ice Punch again!?

Sheena had a wide grin on her face as she began to charge towards the Loudred. A cool air began to circle around her right paw as she leapt high into the air and slammed down on the Loudred with as much strength as she could muster. The Loudred?s eyes widened as he began to feel his body stiffen and slowly began to grow quite cold. A look of dread took Jimmy?s face as he watched this, the man?s anger seemingly reaching a boiling point.

?Gary! Punch it or somethin?! What are you doin??!? the man shouted.

?It looks like yer mighty Pok?mon decided to chill out?? Naomi said rather bluntly. ?Sheena, hit it with another Ice Punch!?

Romanov stood up and shook some dirt off of himself, then pulled an Oran berry casually out of his fur and swallowed it. ?Chip away!? Romanov charged back at the Loudred, ready to slam his shoulder into it.

The Loudred had become too stiff from the last Ice Punch to react before it was struck by the next one, stiffening it worse and finally freezing the slobber Romanov had left on its face. Thanks to the convenient Munchlax-breath facemask Romanov had no trouble ramming into the Loudred, shattering the ice and sending it staggering backwards.

In contrast to Gary?s chills, Jimmy was practically steaming. ?I?ve had enough of you little shits! Gary, start an Uproar!? Gary the Loudred howled his approval and began to stomp, and shout, and bang on his chest like a bongo, growing louder and louder till it was physically hurting the ears of pok?mon and trainers alike. Then, suddenly it stampeded at Sheena, not letting up on its noise-making in the slightest.

?Ack! Intercept it with Zen Headbutt!? Damn, I bet she?s gonna be mad for this. Romanov replied an affirmative and flew like an air-torpedo again, flying between Sheena and the Loudred just before they clashed. Gary winced slightly but didn?t slow down at all and it didn?t take long for Romanov to be overpowered and left standing there, inching backwards as he took the onslaught head on.

?Sheena, hurry up and save that little runt! Scratch at the Loudred,now!? Naomi ordered.

Sheena nodded quickly in response. She dashed towards the distracted Loudred, quickly raking her claws right across the Pok?mon?s eyes. Gary fell back from his onslaught against Romanov, letting loose a very angry, pain-filled growl.

?Romanov, give it one more Zen Headbutt!? So the living torpedo launched again, this time hitting home directly on the head of the large, loud pok?mon frantically rubbing at its own eyes. Gary flinched at the impact. ?Now, Lick again!? As Romanov fell back towards the ground he stuck his tongue out and coated the entire front half of his opponent in thick saliva. He caught himself and rolled back towards Jeff, who smiled at the girl with the Sneasel. ?I think you should do the honors.?

?Ya bet I am?? Naomi muttered. ?Sheena, one last Ice Punch!?

Sheena charged forward once more, her fist glowing in that pale, blue light just like before. Without a moment?s hesitation, she slammed her frigid fist into Jimmy?s Loudred with all she was worth. Naomi watched with amusement while Jimmy in horror as his Loudred toppled over, hitting the ground with a solid thud and fainting right on the spot.

?And that?s? that,? Naomi stated, spitting at the fainted Loudred with contempt.

Jimmy grabbed his head and would veritably had been ripping out his own hair if he had enough left to do so. ?Gary, no! My mealticket!? He took a step forward, attempting to loom over his opponents as best he could.

Jeff scoffed. ?What? Are you gonna try fighting two pok?mon bare-handed?? That checked The large man.

?You stupid kids?? He muttered angrily, recalling Gary to his ball and taking a step back. ?Just you morons watch, I?ll be back before long and with way stronger pok?mon and I will find my fortune in thuggery!? Just like that the big lug was abmling off back towards town.

Jeff couldn?t help smiling wide at the jerk getting his comeuppance. He turned to the girl, still smiling. ?That was great! You two are naturals at battling, I hope I never have to face you down!? Romanov approached the Sneasel and pulled another Oran berry out of his fur, offering it to her with a celebratory ?Lax!?

Sheena eyed the Oran Berry with a small smirk, casually placing a hand on her hip before happily accepting the berry. Despite her previous thoughts, this Snorlax seemed to be pretty strong after all, or at the very least durable. She?d have to be careful if she wanted to beat him in a battle. It was clear brute force wouldn?t do it.

?I?m Jeff, it?s nice to meet you, however strange the circumstances may be. My buddy here is Romanov. Mind if I ask your own names??

Naomi rolled her eyes, but not without blowing a cloud of smoke in his direction. ?None of your business, kid.?

Jeff shrugged and leaned away from the smoke, a little disappointed but unsurprised given her attitude until then. ?Alright then, good luck with your journey. I?m sure that little girl really appreciates your help.? He said, beginning to walk down the path towards Rustsurf Tunnel again. ?See ya if I see ya!? He called back while Romanov rushed to catch up with him, waving back to Sheena on the way.

?W-Wait!? a sudden voice called out, catching the attention of both trainers and their Pok?mon. Naomi turned to see the little girl that had been the victim of Jimmy suddenly running up to them as quickly as her little legs could carry her. Her beloved Lillipup was running right behind, her face beaming with excitement. The little girl finally came to a stop just short of Naomi, taking a moment to catch her breath before speaking. ?Did? did you two get rid of that bad man???

Naomi sighed, slowly starting to curse her luck. Just how long was it going to take to get this journey going, already? ?...Yeah, I did. I got a little? unexpected help, but that jerk is gone now??

The young man made his way back, a tad embarrassed that he hadn?t managed to make his exit before this happened. He had to admit he was glad to see the girl with a smile on her face and her Lillipup looking happy and energetic again. ?Looks like Lily?s feeling great again! That?s wonderful.? He knelt down to be eye level with the little girl and smiled warmly at her.

?Yeah, she is!? The girl agreed excitedly, beaming while the Lillipup ran in a little circle and barked. ?Oh, I almost forgot!? She exclaimed, beginning to dig through the bag hanging from her shoulder. ?My mommy and daddy said I should always thank people who help me, they even gave me some extra allowance so I could ?reward my heroes? I think daddy called it.? She removed 1,200 pok? and a pair of potions from her bag, holding out 600 and a potion to each trainer.

Jeff found it hard to even consider the offer because at that moment Lily decided to jump on his bent leg and reach up to lick his face. He didn?t really like the thought of accepting money from a little girl but...it was money her parents had given her specifically to thank her helpers and he knew very well he was going to need money on the road ahead. He accepted his share of the reward gratefully, petting the Lillipup until it hopped off of him and he stood up fully. ?Thank you very much -?

?It?s Penny!? The girl interrupted him with a grin of pride. ?My name, I mean.?

?Well, thanks, Penny, I?m glad I could help.? Jeff finished with a chuckle.

Penny beamed at Jeff before turning her focus over towards Naomi. She stared up at the red-haired girl with glee as she held out her share of the money and a potion. The young woman stared back, her brain running in overtime while questioning whether it was actually alright to accept these gifts. Naomi had sort of made it her personal code to not really accept gifts like this. Ever since she was a little girl, she never wanted to be reliant on others for something like this? much less did she want Charlie to grow up and think it was okay. Then again? this little girl? she reminded Naomi of her brother so much for some reason.

Reluctantly, Naomi slowly reached her hand out and took the reward from the girl. ?Thanks, kid??

?Thank you, nice lady,? Penny replied with a giggle.

Naomi paused, another sigh escaping her lips. ?...Naomi. Just call me that, okay???

?Okay, l- I mean, Naomi!? Penny answered.

With a smile and a giggle, the girl and her Lillipup turned and began to make their way back to town. Naomi glanced down at the money and potion in her hand, before sighing and tucking them away into her trainer?s bag. She suddenly felt several pairs of eyes on her, turning to see both Sheena and Romanov staring up at her? and for a moment, she swore Jeff was as well.

?Ya?ll got a problem or somethin?...?? she questioned.

?Pfft...Nope!? Jeff struggled not to laugh, entirely too amused by the exchange and how thoroughly it confirmed his suspicions. He nudged Romanov and bobbed his head back towards the path. ?Hope to see you again some time, ?nice lady?~? He continued, intentionally leaving out her name since she hadn?t chosen to give it to him. With a wave he began to jog towards Rustsurf Cave, the poor Munchlax at his side doing his best to keep up with the human?s much longer legs.

?How about never??? Naomi scoffed, glancing back down at her Sneasel again. The ice Pok?mon was having quite the giggle fit at all of this. Whether or not Sheena actually understood or not was none of Naomi?s concern, however. The trainer merely rolled her eyes and started moving along the path at her own pace. ?Come on? we?ve wasted enough time??

Shak · Jun 13, 2018

Blaire Summerfield

Forest Trials and Tales - Route 116 Offtrail

?Professor Roxanne must be some sort of sadist to knowingly put me through this.? The pink cladded trainer sighed at the sorry sight before her. She had battled with plenty of pokemon before this, but somehow, the one she was given to start her journey with had to be by far the most infuriating. ?Kamra, you can mourn over it after, just attack the bird with poison sting, please.? Blaire pleaded. The pokemon refused however. Instead, the Mareanie shouted to the unsuspecting Pidgey, startling the bird and provoking him to flee. She turned back to her trainer with an apologetic pout on her face. Blaire scowled. ?Don?t give me that pathetic look, you knew exactly what you were doing! If you were really sorry, you wouldn?t have sabotaged my last four attempts to capture a Pokemon!?

?Reanie.? The tiny water pokemon cried, begging for her trainer?s forgiveness.

?No.? Blaire growled, returning the baby pokemon to her ball. ?If she refuses to refuses to contribute to my cause, I?ll just have to request a new starter pokemon from the professor. It?s not like a replacement would just coincidentally fall out of the sky.?

Almost in response to her bemoaning statement, a heavy rustling in a nearby tree caught her attention. ?Why does life have to be so facetious? I didn?t mean that literally.? She sighed, resisting the urge to follow through on the obvious coincidence.

She wasn?t given the chance to ignore the issue, as she was almost immediately confronted a very frantic baby Tailow. Blaire gave the pokemon little chance to explain its plea, instantly shooing it away. The pokemon was persistent however. It continued to pester the innocent trainer. A frustrated Blaire picked up her things and headed toward where the bird had come from.

As she arrived on the scene, she felt her will wash away. The same annoying kids from the route pathway, were now firing their slingshot at the poor Tailow nest. Of course Blaire had to be the one to stop them.

?Hey, cut that out! Why do you insist on terrorizing innocents with your Neolithic weapon?? Blaire huffed, snatching the slingshot from the boy?s hand.

?My?what weapon? Hey! You again? Stop following me! Your nagging is really getting on my nerves!? The boy spat, reaching for his slingshot.

?And your delinquency is starting to get on mine. Get out of here, before you irritate some Beedrill.? Blaire hissed back.

?B-beedrill?? One of the girls enquired, a croak of fear breaking through her voice. ?Isaac can catch it though?right??

Blaire glanced back at the girl. She resisted the urge to smirk. ?Oh, so you heard of Beedrill??

?I haven?t. You?re making it up.? One of the boys butt in.

?Oh, they?re real. They usually come after children causing trouble in the forest. They?re like Combee, but bigger and meaner.? She could feel a sadistic streak growing over her as she watch the kid?s faces contort into fearful frowns. ?I don?t suppose you?ve heard of Vespiquen.? The kids shook their heads. ?Vigroth?? This time she got a few nods. ?Vigroth don?t dare mess with Beedrill, they?ll be torn apart by their giant stingers in an instant.?

?Something like that?is here??

?Oh yes, certainly.? A few trees rustled above them as she spoke. ?Watching.? Without another word, the kids tucked tail, not even caring about his leftover slingshot. As Blaire stood alone and triumphant, she was unwittingly standing over the fallen nest, slingshot in hand and right in front of the mother Swellow.

The baby bird that called on her was quick to explain what had happened to his mother. Without so much as alerting the trainer, the Tailow hopped on their mothers back and took off together. Blaire turned to nothing more than a muscle wing laying on the ground.

The trainer stepped over the gift and headed through the rest of route 116. ?Hmmm?perhaps this really could be an effective tool for catching pokemon. It?s not as if tossing stones isn?t commonplace in safari zones.? She mused as she inspected the slingshot.

Ozymandias · Jun 13, 2018

Rusturf Tunnel

? Drunk in LA - Beach House ?

As with much of the Hoenn Region, Rusturf Tunnel has changed quite a bit over the years. Instead of the straight shot cavern that it used to be, it has been expanded into a series of various tunnels and passages for mining purposes. It can be quite easy to get lost within the cave's long and winding paths, and the rocky terrain certainly doesn't make walking around easier.

For all of its problems, the Tunnel has become quite popular with Rock Pokemon enthusiasts and explorers in general, as there have been rumors that some have found the fossilized remains of ancient pokemon within Rusturf Tunnel's walls. It is also a popular place for Hiking Trainers to both train themselves and their pokemon, as the difficult terrain provides a challenge for both.

The cave's selection of pokemon does no favors for aspiring trainers, as it leads directly to Verdanturf Town, the home of Poppy, the region's grass-type gym leader.

Available Pok?mon

Special: may only be caught in specific mission

Missions

You can choose out of any of the missions below. Be sure to claim missions in the OOC thread to let me and the other players know which one you are doing. You may joint post or collaborate on these missions with other players, but two players may not write for a single mission separately, unless it is a repeatable quest. Also, know that you aren't limited to just these missions. You can make posts catching pok?mon, battling a trainer or exploring the route for yourself. I purposefully made fewer missions than there are players because I'd like for you guys to have some fun with this and not be restrained by these things. The missions are only here to serve as a plot point for you to write off of :3

Mission 1: A group of construction workers are blasting their way into finishing a new tunnel. Problem is, they've run into a rather large colony of Whismur. Now it's a battle for the colony's home vs. the progression of the tunnel. It's up to you to decide on which side you take. Reward - 5,000 P (Workers) or Choice of Evolutionary Stone (Whismur)

Mission 2: Near the front of the tunnel, a rather crazed looking man runs up to you with an offer of adventure and excitement in exchange for your protection from the cave's wild pokemon. Who is this man? Why it's the Fossil Maniac of course. Join him on a journey into the caverns of Rusturf Tunnel to find the fossils that he so loves. Reward - Choice of Fossil

Mission 3: Little Joey was dared by his friends to journey to the other side of the tunnel by himself. Unfortunately for him, he came with no pokemon... or map. This calls for a trainer's assistance. Reward - 2 Great Balls + 2 Potions

Mission 4: The former Sinnoh gym leader, Roark, has journeyed to Rusturf Tunnel for some research on the cave environment's recent expansion. If you talk to him and impress him, he may have a gift for you. Limited to 1 Character Reward - Larvitar

Mission 5: Deep within the tunnel there have been a series of unnatural rumblings. Rumor has it that a pokemon, not normally found in the tunnel has taken up residence in the cave's lowest caverns. Whatever it is... it sounds big. Limited to 2 Characters Reward - Onix or TM Stone Edge

Mission 6: Star pupil of the trainer school, Alyssa Hawkins, is usually upbeat and raring to go. However, you stumble across her in a hidden tunnel talking anxiously to a mysterious figure. When you approach, the figure is nowhere to be seen. When questioned, she feigns ignorance and instead challenges you to a friendly battle and she's not taking no for an answer. (check OP for team details) Limited to 2 Characters Reward - 500 P (Win) or Ultra Ball + TM Dragon Pulse (Lose)

Stinging Bea · Jun 14, 2018

Naomi Junn

Route 116

Chapter 1-3 | Bird Is The Word

Current Party:

Thankfully, the rest of the walk along Route 116 proved to be a rather easy journey for Naomi and Sheena. Despite the fact that the route was used as a major travel path between Rustboro City and Rusturf Tunnel, the trainer and her Pok?mon had managed to make it to the tunnel outskirts without so much as a single skirmish after the incident with Jimmy and his Loudred. As the duo traveled, Naomi had her face buried in the Hoenn map. The young woman was currently busy planning the route that she and the Sneasel would travel to reach their various destinations. A half-finished cigarette hung limply from her mouth, occasionally taking small nibbles on the butt of the cigarette as she concentrated.

"Alright... it looks there's no way around it," Naomi finally spoke, folding the map up and placing it back in her backpack. "We're gonna have to cut through Rusturf Tunnel up ahead to get to Verdanturf Town. The first gym is there... Our first goal... While I'd rather avoid goin' through this cave if we could... Well, I guess it'll be good trainin' for ya, right?"

Sheena seemed to give Naomi a confident smirk in response to her question. Even though she hadn't known the Sneasel for too long, there seemed to have been a sudden shift in the Pok?mon's attitude after their encounter with Jimmy and his Loudred. After the battle, Sheena seemed to grow quite excited. Her eyes were constantly darting about as the duo traveled across the route. A part of Naomi began to wonder if Sheena was going to outright run off and leave her stranded while she tried to pick a fight with various trainers and wild Pok?mon. Thankfully, Sheena seemed to be able to keep herself mostly in control.

"Hold on a moment, Sheena..." Naomi called out, suddenly coming to a stop. The Sneasel turned to face her trainer, a curious look in her eyes as the red-haired teenager began to dig around in her bag. A small smile graced Naomi's lips as she pulled out two red, shiny apples. Without so much of a word, Naomi tossed one to her Pok?mon before taking a moment to shine the other against her shirt. "Let's take a breather... We've been movin' all day and I wouldn't mind a snack break, ya know?"

Sheena's eyes narrowed, clearly she wasn't too keen on the idea. However, she seemed to relent when the sound of her grumbling stomach came to both her and Naomi's ears. The trainer could have sworn that she saw a faint blush grace her Pok?mon's cheeks, but the Sneasel was quick to turn her back to the trainer and hide it if it did. Naomi chuckled to herself lightly at the sight, before taking a bite of the apple in her hand.

Naomi had to admit that this trainer thing was turning out to a bit more interesting than she initially thought. There was something about the encounter and battle against the goon and his Loudred that made her feel so invigorating. That said, she wished that kid and his Munchlax wouldn't have gotten involved. While they both proved to be more than a bit useful in that battle, it was a situation that the girl would have much rather handled on her own. It was Naomi's personal preference that people not really get involved in her struggles... Now she felt like she had some sort of debt to pay back to the boy, much to her dismay. It was a debt that she most likely would never get to pay back thanks to how large Hoenn was.

"Moron..." Naomi sighed, taking another bite of her apple. As she chewed, she glanced down at Sheena. The Sneasel had already finished her own, and was staring up at the teenager with hungry eyes. Clearly her appetite had yet to be settled. "Ya ain't gettin' mine, pal... But here..."

Much to Sheena's delight, Naomi reached back into her bag and pulled out another apple. "But this it. We gotta make these last until we get to Verdanturf's Pok?mon Center and get some real grub."

The trainer prepared to toss the apple in her Sneasel's direction, when the sudden rustling of leaves caught their attention. Sheena's eyes narrowed, the ice Pok?mon turning away from the teenager slowly. Quietly, Sheena made her way towards a nearby tree, her eyes never blinking once all the while. The only sound that either Naomi or the Sneasel seemed to acknowledge was the rustling leaves of the tree. As suddenly as they started, the rustling of the leaves seemed to come to a rather abrupt stop. Neither one of the duo seemed to adjust their gaze however, and it was something that proved most beneficial to them.

Without warning, a wild Pidgey suddenly dove out of the tree! With wings spread and eyes focused, the bird Pok?mon seemed to be homing in straight for the trainer... or rather, the apple in her hand. Unfortunately for the Pidgey, Sheena was ready to counter this assault. The Sneasel jumped towards the diving Pidgey, slamming into the wild Pok?mon's back with a frosty Ice Punch. The wild Pidgey squawked in pain, flailing about as it came to land on the ground before her. Both of the Pok?mon stood silently, glaring at each other for the audacity that they both had. The wild Pidgey had dared to try and take her apple, a crime that the Sneasel had no intention of forgiving. Meanwhile, Sheena had attempted to stop the Pidgey from getting a delicious apple that it saw was rightfully its own.

Without warning, both of the Pok?mon suddenly launched at each other. The Pidgey slammed its body right into Sheena, causing the Sneasel to fall back in surprise from the force of the blow. Sheena was not about to let that shot go unrewarded, however. She quickly dashed forward, swiping at the Pidgey with sharp speed. Pidgey winced in pain as the razor-sharp claws scratched against its belly. The bird screeched angrily, quickly flapping one of its wings and kicking some dirt into Sheena's eyes.

The Sneasel fell back, furiously rubbing her eyes to try and get the sand out. Taking the distraction as a cue, the wild Pidgey made for another attack. It quickly flew at Sheena, slamming her body into the Sneasel with ease. Sheena fell back, growling in agitation as she tried to keep her footing. The Sneasel took a wild swing at the Pidgey as the bird began to fly towards it again, however the dirt in her eyes made it rather difficult for the Pok?mon to keep the wild Pok?mon in focus. The Pidgey dodged the attack with ease, and slammed its body into the ice Pok?mon once more.

Growing more and more angry, Sheena ran forward and took another swing at the wild Pidgey with her claws. The bird Pok?mon let out a jubilant tweet as it easily flapped out of the way again, almost as if it was laughing at Sheena's futile attempts at hitting it. Rather than being angry at the miss and would be taunting however, Sheena seemed to be suddenly... confident. A smirk graced her lips, albeit small, one that Naomi did not miss. Without warning, Sheena suddenly launched herself up into the air and slammed an icy, frigid fist right into the unsuspecting Pidgey's gut. The Pidgey's eyes went wide, squawking in a mixture of pain and disbelief at the sudden, frozen, powerful blow. Time seemed to stop as the blow connected, with the wild Pidgey finally falling to the ground in defeat.

Not wasting a single moment, Naomi took a pok? ball and quickly tossed it at the defeated Pidgey. The ball smacked up against the Pidgey, encompassing the Pok?mon in a red light before pulling it inside of the ball with ease. Naomi stared at the ball intently as it shook once... twice... three times... before coming to standstill. She smiled softly at the sight, slowly rising from her seat on the rock. The Pidgey had been caught... Naomi had caught her first wild Pok?mon.

"Not bad, Sheena... Not bad at all," Naomi mused, as she made her way to the pok? ball and picked it up off the ground. "I didn't know ya were so into fightin' like that... I didn't even have to give ya any commands..."

Sheena, though tired and winded, smiled proudly at the compliment. The Sneasel crossed her arms across her chest, striking a pose as if trying to impress the teenager. Naomi rolled her eyes at the sight, kneeling down to the Sneasel's level with a potion in hands.

"Yeah, yeah... Now hold still while I fix ya up, tough girl..." Naomi muttered.

Talon the Pidgey
Male / Rash / Likes To Fight
Tacke / Sand-Attack / Gust / Quick Attack

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