Pokémon: Neo Genesis

[Scarlet Weather]

So does this mean that Mark finally gets to show his Rock-Type sklizz? t3h 4w3s0m3orz. *shot'ed*[/OOC]

Mark sat back as the plot unfolded like that of a cheap sci-fi novel mashed together with "Satoshi's Adventures" and "The Elite Four", with a side order of "Pokerus- The Beginning". It was at times like these that he fervently wished that when the Powers That Be had been organizing the being that would eventually become Mark, they hadn't included something he liked to term his "nerd gene", which automatically drew paralells in situations like this. Then again, the situation itself was completely insane. An evil team had somehow blacked out an island and proceeded to implement their plans by superpowering every Pokemon that came within their range before a bad guy turned good guy with scientific know-how and his partner, a snarky, mistrusting dude with well-trained Pokemon, had set the project back long enough to call in a few rookies in order to train them to become the saviors of the world. Well, at least aliens hadn't arrived and people hadn't been fused with Pokemon yet. Still, with the way things had gone so far, Mark wasn't sure that any predictions leaning in that direction would be too far off. On the other hand, at least Lucifer was being honest about the whole thing. Mark was still debating on whether or not he should dismiss this whole thing as being too incredibly cliche and leave before the camera guys came out of the woodwork and announced the whole thing to be a fake or accept Lucifer's offer and take his chances when the apparent multimillionaire spoke the magic words:

"I shall also place all the resources I can spare at your disposal, and regardless of what happens, the pokémon will be yours to keep."

Mark's willpower crumbled. He had wanted a Pokemon since he was old enough to travel, and though he never let on, he wanted one still. Lucifer Ashton was definitely banking on Mark when he said that. Slowly, the red-capped teenager raised his hand. "I-I'm not sure that I'm really going to be all that much help unless we end up needing to run around underground or whatever we're doing involves fossils," he stammered, "But I'm in. I don't know exactly why, but something's telling me that if I don't accept this offer now, I'll never have another chance to work with Pokemon." His speech thus made, Mark stepped up to the suspended egg of his choice, a smooth, grey one, like pebbles in a stream. Placing his hand on the button, he gently depressed it and the fluid fell away from the case.

The egg cracked almost immediately, sending shards of shell hurtling across the room, including one very sharp piece that embedded itself in Mark's hand momentarily, forcing him to remove it and lift the wound to his mouth, instinctively sucking the blood for a moment. He immediately regretted that particular decision. Well, if this NG virus is transferable to humans, I guess I'll be the first to know, he thought grimly as he stared at the tiny creature dislodging itself from the egg white.

The first thing that was obvious about this creature was its shape, somewhat akin to a miniature tyrannonosaurus with the sharp teeth replaced by a hard, domelike skull that was ringed with a set of short horns. The creature's skin was also a definining feature, grey and rocklike for the most part with a few blue patches located on the body which shone like lacquered gems as the liquid surrounding the Pokemon evaporated or ran off. Reaching out his hand tentatively, Mark touched the skull of the creature. Could it be? In all his wildest dreams he had hoped for it, but he had never dared suppose... a Cranidos? A real, live Cranidos? How the hell had LA got his hands on fossil DNA, let alone bring a living one into existence? Mark rubbed his hands along the little creature's head, tentatively daring to suppose this whole thing was not some kind of fantastic dream, and he would not be waking up at home soon enough. Satisfied that the whole thing was real, Mark stood for a moment and faced LA, his voice choked with emotion. "Sir..." he gushed, "Thank you so much. This... this is amazing. I never dared hope... freaking Kyogre, this is awesome."

Mark had hardly finished his sentiment of gratitude when, with the speed of a blazing bullet, the small creature he had been admiring moments before hurtled into his back like a cartridge from a hair-trigger gun, headfirst. Mark sprawled across the floor, the wind leaving his system in a rush of air. By turning his head, he could just barely make out the small dinosaur dancing happily beside his head, happily growling and chanting its name. Feeling some wind return to him, Mark pulled himself to his knees. "Playful, aren't you..." he managed to stutter, his back still aching. He couldn't bring himself to be angry at the critter, after all, it was only just born and it didn't really mean any harm. It probably assumed that Mark was another Cranidos or something. He remembered that before Roark had managed to bring his under control, the Pokemon had been almost impossible to bring to heel, butting everything in sight. Well, at least that made the naming job easier. Something or someone with a lot of energy... Mark made his decision quickly. "How 'bout I call you 'Gon'?" he asked the tiny terror.

The Pokemon answered by charging forward and playfully butting Mark again, sending the red baseball cap that ordinarily graced his head flying across the room as he went crashing into the wall. "Okay... you win..." he groaned painfully, "Gon it is, then..."

The dinosaur continued dancing madly, completely oblivious to the fact that it had probably bruised Mark severely.

OOC: And this concludes my session of comic relief. BTW, no, I don't think Mark has the NG virus. If anything, he may get sick or something, but I doubt he'll reap any positive benefits from his little accident. 0_o

 

[Random_Fan]

OOC: And thus, meh post! Hazah!

IC:

It was not quite what Johnny had in mind. In fact, it was so far from what he was originally thinking this trip could have been. This news given, he knew was only going to be released to himself and these other people he barely met. No one else would know. He had been recording the entire thing, and now, his batteries were at an even lower all time low. The question still lingered; what was he going to do? Would he accept this, and go along with it? He knew a thing of this, but never really pictured himself doing something like training before. And in reality, all he knew was how to yell out a command in battle. Anyone could do that. But was there a secret trick to it? Did you have to do it in such a way that would ensure that your Pokémon followed your command? He wasn't so sure about that one, and never had he really been very curious to find out. He had always been more curious about current events and newer models of recording devices.

Lucifer's words stung him; especially the last few he had to say. By speaking of only a few, he basically just told him what his job would be in this if he would stay. He would be recording data…and that is all he would be good for. Looking around at the others, he realized how much he was also going to have to rely on the others if they stayed. But ever since he arrived, everything had been not so good. Well, towards him, that is. First of all, there would be an eternal flare with him and Alex; he could foretell this in the near future if he stayed. What else could he pick on? To him, it didn't matter really. He can work with others if he wants to, prefers alone though. So they were a team; he could deal with that. But could they deal with him?

Well, they were going to have to. Lucifer had called upon him. Of ANYBODY in the world he could have picked, he picked him. Johnny felt special with this. He never felt this feeling in his life before; or at least, as far as he could remember. The answer of being there or not was resolved quickly; he would stay.

"…and I will do my best at this job given," Johnny said to himself, but more to his dying camera.

He walked towards the left most egg, and walked down the line, just pointing his camera as if those were his eyes. And an egg stopped him; a dark shaded egg of black; or was it silver? He couldn't tell. Either way, it was a dark shade. The color never really struck him as a favorite, but it was his school colors. Slightly. His camera died out that second, power completely shutting.

"Damn," he said to himself, putting the camera to his side. It would have been so great had he caught the hatchling hatch on film. Not even thinking twice, he pressed the button to de-liquefy. Immediately after, the hatching process began.

At first, he thought it would be a very slow process. It started out that way. Johnny moved closer, very anxious to see what he had just picked. It was like that game show he used to watch where those losers (in his eyes) would pick a random door and see what they got as a prize of sorts, never really being anything special. But this was something special. To him, at least. It was what he was going to keep for…a long while. A journey with a companion. He never would have thought that statement would be directed towards himself.

SMACK!

He wasn't quite ready for it. He had gotten so close and was in deep thought of what he would have that he didn't realize the sudden agility of a clawed arm break right through the egg and literally punch him. He bleed on his cheek lightly; and all he could think about was how adorable it all seemed at a time. A little hatchling thought it would be strong enough to take him down. Laughable, but he wasn't smiling. Just in awe.

It shook itself out of its shell. It gave a slight cry, finally revealing its true species along with it by the words screeched. To be honest, he expected something more. But at the time, he didn't care. It was so adorable looking with the eyes so shut tight, trying to adjust to sudden light and flailing around.

The Sneasel, as he could now tell, fell onto him. He caught her; he could tell it was female now by how close he was to her. The feeling of holding a newborn was like no other. It was so adorable. For possibly the first time in his life, Johnny was left speechless on how to react. He just sort of stood there, not saying a word as the creature observed him.

It cried out adorably, clawing away at Johnny's so neat shirt. A Pokémon was clawing away at school property. Later, Johnny decided that he would change back into his casual clothing in the bathroom. For now, it was huggle time. But there were eyes upon him; or, at least he had that feeling of them. He carried the Sneasel out of the way and placed her down, still in awe. He petted the top of her head, and she sort of yawned.

"What a cute little thing, aren't you?"

She liked this compliment, and immediately pulled herself onto him, riding onto his shoulder. Her claws dug in and hurt lightly, and she kept a firm hold once she was at the position she was comfortable with.

A name. He should call her something. But what? He should call her…he…wasn't quite sure.

"What should I call you?" he asked himself. He randomly said the first thing that came to mind, and it was a very strange first though considering how unique the name sounded to him. "Athabar?"

He wasn't sure why, but the Sneasel gave a nodding glee at it. He figured she would; based on many other documentaries he had seen on Pokémon, if a human is the first a Pokémon sees, the first name given to them would be the best suited. Even if he said 'Garbage,' she would have loved it.

"Athabar…sounds cool…but weird too…let's stick to Atha; how about that?"

And she still agreed with it.

 

[Kogenta]

"You're insane," Stray muttered, staring at Lucifer Ashton with a mix of disbelief and condemnation. After the frustrating wait, the irritation of watching his fellow guest's interactions, and the realization that he could only fulfill Ashton's request of not glaring by not looking at the man, Stray had already been prepared to snap. But after watching the recorded battle and hearing the host's story . . . Stray did not read many books and watched movies even less, yet this entire situation still had an element of unreality and prefabrication. Though he had not eaten before out of suspicion, the traveler found that by now he had fully lost his appetite. It all just comes down to Pokemon again--everyone's obsession. If Ashton actually knew anything about us, he'd know why it is that I'm not a Pokemon trainer. Stray's icy eyes narrowed momentarily as he dispelled undesired memories from his mind, before pushing his chair back and standing. "Your idea of taking down a gang is to train a group of half-mental, inexperienced asylum-escapees from scratch and to send them out to fight with a bunch of souped-up baby Pokemon?" This is stupid. I'm out of here. That was what Stray wanted to say, but some unknown force irresistibly compelled him to leave his last two sentences unsaid. An awkward moment of silence indicated the words that had not been spoken. Finally, Stray shook his head slowly. "You've got some imagination, Ashton--and some nerve to feel fine about messing around with lives like this." But if I think that, then why am I still here? I don't care for Pokemon, I don't like or trust this Ashton, and my main reason for coming to this seminar was that I had no cause not to. But now that I'm here . . . Now that I'm faced with something, I don't want to back down. The boy grimaced. Tch. I wonder if that was part of Ashton's plan. He despised being manipulated.

As he looked up, Stray found himself inexplicably by the row of remaining eggs. How did I get here? Staring at the unhatched life now floating before him in suspended animation, Stray felt himself reach for his scar, but suddenly realized and disguised his movement by brushing aside his bangs. If this Pokemon kills me, I'm going to be seriously ticked off. He pressed the red button.

The first thing Stray noted about the egg was that it was warm and growing steadily warmer. Still, considering the reddish orange colour of the object, this did not seem too unexpected. From the bottom of the egg, a black, star-like design stretched upward in a manner that reminded the youth of a lotus; but no other mark adorned the fiery-tinted surface. As Stray began to feel that the egg was becoming too hot to hold, the egg suddenly burst into flame--shattering apart even as its scattering pieces fell to ash. Automatically, Stray's hands pulled away from the fire, only to move forward again just as automatically to catch the small bundle that fell from the smouldering shell.

An ebony-striped, orange-furred puppy lay in Stray's hands, still warm from the hatching and damp from the egg. The creature was partially curled and breathed slowly and deeply, apparently in slumber. Stray lifted the Pokemon for closer inspection, glancing at it somewhat critically from various angles. Looks like a Growlithe. Then, an unexpected realization dawned on him. And its not attacking me. Opening its mouth for a squeaking yawn, the infant Growlithe turned in its sleep. Stray stared at it in silence--uncomfortable, confused, and unhappy, but also becoming somewhat resigned. So, no turning back now, right?

Still asleep, the Growlithe sank its needle-like teeth into Stray's hand. Stray glared. "I hate you."

 

[Nigma]

Susan listened mindful to everything what Mr. Ashton told them. A Virus… She repeated his words. Then Mr. Ashton started the video, this unbelievable pokemon fight. At first Susan got frightened. If this Virus is infecting pokemon and forcing the host to such power… but they are just exhausted. A protection for the infected pokemon? But what is the negative aspect of the virus? There must be such an effect. No virus in the whole world would do such a thing like making pokemon stronger… her thoughts rushed in her mind. She noticed too late that the others had already begun to unleash the pokemon from the container.

Was that right? Could she take the responsibility for such a virus hold inside such a little creature? After all, she was a nurse, living to protect pokemon from wounds, illness and… viruses… It was hard to decide such a thing. Su stood up and went to the exit. By the exit she stopped again, to over think her reaction. She was about to leave. Virus pokemon… she thought again. Why should she do such a thing? But somehow somebody had to stop these… virus creators. She looked at the few "trainer" as you could call them now. The little baby pokemon were already attached with the virus. Nothing would change that.


It couldn´t be helped, but… what would Sister Joy do in such a case? She would… care for the pokemon and do everything to stop the virus… that means I have to… she looked at the existing eggs. Just do it… her other mind said her. Take one of them and save everyone… "I have to…" she mumbled and went to the container. The others were already happy with their pokemon. Sweet things, just got out of the eggs and looking for a parent. She looked at the eggs again in the container, walking around it. She knew already that she would join the group to stop this incredible but also dangerous virus. Fearing secret behaviors of the virus, her decision was clear. She also tried not to show her thoughts and smiled again. For sure Mr. Ashton had already found out what was she thinking about.

"Mr. Ashton…" Su begun, "… it´s fearsome to hear about such things and to get the possibility to stop such a crime is very good, but…" she stopped for short. "…If you are so good informed about everything, I have some questions about this Virus. What other side effects does the Virus have? A Virus for usual tries to do much possible damage to its host. If you have some medical documents, it would help if I could look at some of them…" Su said in a calm voice. She didn´t except that Mr. Ashton would answer at once, so she went over to one egg which observed a small time. It was angel white with some red stripes on it. "It´s a very healthy one… I think I´ll take this…" She pressed the button and looked at the egg with a mother like expression to see what was happening. Of course she already knew what for an egg it was, and she already knew that it was the pokemon she wanted. But just being a nurse wasn´t the same as being an owner of a pokemon.

The egg hatched with a loud crack and a little Zangoose rolled out of the egg. The tiny fur knot fell into Susan´s open hands. The ball unfurled and the little Zangoose looked into the face of it´s "mother". The big eyes fixed this big mommy and the pokemon yawned explicitly. "You are such a sweet… " Su whispered. She looked at it and found out something. "A girl? Sweet!" She stroke the tiny thing over it´s belly and it started something about laughing and grumbling together. Then it bite soft into mommy´s finger. "How should I name you, huh?" The Zangoose started to play with Su´s finger. "So you like your little claws eh? What´s about Razor?" Again the Zangoose laughed and growled together. "Ok, than it´s Razor from now on…"

So Razor started to inspect her mommy and climbed up to her shoulders, trying to cuddle with Su´s ear. "That tickles!Watch out fur ball!" she laughed. Razor just started a little growl about that "fur-ball" verbalism. Not that she probably could understand such a thing, she just didn´t like wordings.

 

[Alter Ego]

OOC: Well, I should hope that Mark didn't get it because-

Nah, better leave that for another time. Bottom line is that the NG-virus is only compatible with pokémon hosts so it wouldn't survive within Mark. So sorry, but he won't be mutating into Cranidosman. ;3

...

Now there's a mental image I won't forget in the first place. o.o At any rate, since Aegis has already informed me that midterms will keep him busy for a couple of weeks more and that only leaves chomp unaccounted for, I'm going to kick off the action part of the RP now. :3 The characters I'm bunnying to leave at the moment are not kicked out of the RP; this is just my way of placing them aside so we can move the plot on. So yeah, missing peoples, just let me know if/when you're ready to rejoin and we'll work out a plot path to make it happen. ^^

Oh, and Nigma: I thought your sign-up said Nidoran, not Zangoose. o.O Please go edit your profile, for coherence's sake. ^^

IC:

Quite frankly, Alex was shocked at the lack of hesitance that some of his fellow guests were exhibiting when faced with this proverbial devil's deal, one after the other stepping forward to claim the egg of their choice and thus sealing their fate. Even the cynical Stray agreed to it, though he made a point of protesting about Ashton's methods before doing so.

Don't you all realize that this whole thing is freaking crazy?!

That's the question Alex would have posed, but the words clung to his throat like so many hatchling Slakoths, stubbornly refusing to come out. Would he, the redhead who had so proudly proclaimed his crusade against any and all who dared mess with his homeland now back out or whine like a sissy? Was he really less of a man than the camera boy, the fossil geek, or the crazy government lady? The boy's hands balled into fists as he rose up from his seat, still struggling with the decision. Only three people around the table had yet to claim their eggs; Alex, the guy who had freaked out back in the caves and whose name the redhead couldn't recall, and Melissa, the latter two looking just as disturbed by the whole scenario as Alex felt. The islander's gaze then shifted to their host, Lucifer Ashton, hoping to discern even a slightest hint of treachery in the professor's features. Much to his dismay, Ashton returned the gaze calmly, however, still maintaining his polite little smile, though Alex could have sworn that there was a tinge of smugness hidden right beneath it.

"Alright, fine." the redhead snorted at last, stomping over to the remaining eggs, "I promised I'd do whatever it takes to help my folks out, and I'm not going back on that. But let's make one thing perfectly clear, Ashton..." he shot a glare at their host, "This doesn't mean I'm signing up to be one of your cronies; I'm saving Traverse Island and working with you for as long as you want to do the same; that's it."

His speech thus finished, Alex turned to the remaining four eggs, scrutinizing them intensely. 'Come on...' he thought for himself, his right hand hovering over the release buttons as he tried to make up his mind, 'I need something strong.' . After a few more painstaking moments of indecision, the boy finally settled on the largest egg off the lot. It was purple in color, its shell dotted with yellow patterns that consisted of three rings, each located within the other. There was something different about this egg, Alex noted, it seemed more...alive, somehow, seeming to pulsate ever so slightly even within the liquid, as if the egg itself was an organic being. As the fluid drained away and the redhead grasped the egg, he noticed another peculiar feature; the shell wasn't hard like he had expected, but had a slightly soft, leathery feel to it, and as the teen held it in his hands, he noticed that it was indeed pulsating, the surface heaving back and forth in a rhythmic pattern, as if following the lungs of the creature within. As Alex held the egg in his arms, the pulse seemed to intensify, the egg growing ever warmer in his hands until it finally burst open, the remnants of the shell spreading out like the petals of a flower and releasing a translucent liquid of some kind that effectively sprayed the youth, much to his displeasure.

Wiping the indeterminate slime from his eyes, Alex surveyed the pokémon that was to become his partner. It certainly wasn't what he expected, in fact: it wasn't even something he recognized right away. The creature in front of him bore closest resemblance to a goblet shape-wise, with four, stubby legs connected by a thin stalk to the creature's cup-shaped head. The creature bore much the same coloring as its egg, its body purple in color, complete with a set of yellow triple circles around the side of its head, and from what would have been the brim of the cup, a number of light orange tentacles sprouted. Within the rim, the creature's features were completely obscured in darkness, save for its eyes; two pupil-less yellow spheres that shone brightly from the black surrounding them, peering intently at Alex.

"Lii-u!" the peculiar creature intoned, stretching out one of its tentacle-like feet and wrapping it firmly around the transfixed youth's left arm, the other three following suit as it clambered onto Alex. For being a newborn, the creature had a very strong grip, and as Alex felt the damp suction cups clutching his arm, he had the distinct feeling that dislodging it would not be an easy matter. The creature's touch was lightly uncomfortable, but at the same time there was something strangely endearing about it and the redhead couldn't help smiling just a little. Thought he refused to admit it, Alex had always been a big softie when baby pokémon were concerned.

"Well, you're not what I expected." the redhead conceded, "But it looks like I'm going to be your dad all the same." he chuckled, reaching out his free hand to pat the creature, a gesture to which it immediately responded by reaching out the tentacles around the top of its head, wrapping the firmly around the boy's index finger and causing him to wince slightly.

"Whoa, easy." the boy said as a tickling sensation spread from the captive finger, "There's no need to get all fuzzy on me."

"Actually, Mr.Maxwell..." Ashton interjected in his usual infuriatingly polite manner, "...I do believe that she is trying to digest your finger."

"Say what?!" Alex's brief moment of cooing ended as suddenly as it had begun, the boy yanking his hand back in a violent motion, dislodging it from the tentacles. Aside from some minor reddening, there didn't seem to be any damage, however.

"There's no need to panic." the professor remarked, "Your Lileep is still a newborn, so her acid glands haven't developed yet. I simply thought it prudent to inform you of this habit will this is still the case."

"Gee, thanks." the teenager replied in a tone that was still far from grateful before turning to give his newly acquired pokémon a reprimanding glare, "As for you, let's get one thing straight: no eating your dad, alright?"

"Lil-ee?" the creature replied in an angelically innocent voice, the stare of its yellow eyes as intense as ever as it tilted its head quizzically.

"Guess you're too young to understand yet." Alex sighed in forfeit, brushing some of the remaining fluid away from his clothes, "So anyway, Lileep, was it?" he shrugged, "Guess that's as good a name as any. Climb up here, will you?" he pointed at a place on his unoccupied shoulders, "You're killing my circulation."

"Lil-ee..." the Lileep replied, leaving the question of whether or not it had understood the request entirely open. After a while, though, it complacently relaxed the grip of one of its feet, beginning a slow but steady ascent up its new trainer's arm, which was definitely an improvement seeing as how said arm was already numbing at an alarming rate. There were many other problems to consider, though, the first of them being that he didn't know anything whatsoever about this pokémon he had just acquired. Heck, it was a blessing that Ashton had let the species name slip so Alex hadn't come off as a complete buffoon. The redhead was rather annoyed at this, with all his experience from helping out at a daycare sentence, not to mention the endless classes at the trainer school, he had thought that he knew all there was to know about pokémon care, but this creature...he cast a sideward glance at the Lileep, now happily perched on his shoulder and peering intently at the others in the room, he had never seen its like before. Still, if the grips which it could already produce were anything to go by, this one had potential to become a powerful pokémon indeed. Reluctantly, the boy allowed himself to smile just a little, in the end he supposed that that was what counted right now...the rest could be sorted out at a later date. He turned back to their host, just in time to catch his response to some less-than-favorable feedback, this time from Susan's side.

"As I said, miss Sherman, my research on the NG-virus is still incomplete." the professor replied calmly, "And let me assure you, as a virologist I am well aware of the possible dangers involved. However..." the familiar smile appeared on his lips once more, "...I feel inclined to correct you on this point: a virus' primary aim is to ensure its continued existence; the harm and diseases are merely...unpleasant side-effects. It has long been my hypothesis that under appropriate conditions, it would be possible to cultivate a strain that is symbiotic rather than viral in nature, and given the reasons behind the creation of this virus, I consider it a fair assumption that our dear adversary would not wish to infect his creations with a virus that cripples them to any serious degree." he paused, staring off into space, "I realize that this answer may seem unsatisfactory, but it is the best I can offer at the moment. I would gladly relinquish what little information concerning the virus I hold, but I doubt that it would be of any use for anyone save a specialized virologist, which, with all due respect, you are not." he met Susan's gaze calmly, "Please trust me on this matter, miss Suman, I assure you that determining the full effects of this virus shall be my primary objective, right after stopping further spreading of it, of course. Now, then..." he turned to face the remaining two, both still seated, "Mr. Sanpetr, miss Queens, I realize that this is a difficult decision, but I am going to have to urge you to make it. Garland's henchmen are undoubtedly searching for these eggs as we speak, and I do not wish to keep them in plain view any longer than necessary."

"I'm sorry." the girl replied, trembling ever so slightly as she rose, "But...I think, I think I'm going to pass up on your offer. But thank you...both for placing such trust in me and for your hospitality." she bobbed a polite curtsy, "It's been...enjoyable." there wasn't much conviction behind those last words, Alex noted, "I'm sure you will do perfectly fine without me. Excuse me." with that and a last curtsy to the group, she turned away from the table, walking towards the door.

"I'm with her." the boy chimed in simply, nodding towards their host. He too looked displeased with the situation, though whether this was because of the information he had just received or the thought that he'd have to traverse the tunnels that had caused him such discomfort once more was anyone's guess, "Thanks all the same."

Ashton nodded in response to the two, though he was decidedly less pleased with this outcome than that of the ones who had acceptance, "Regrettable." he replied, "But completely understandable. I said that the choice was yours, and I'm a man of my word. Jade..." he turned to address his grouchy complement, "...please escort these two safely to their homes."

Jade gave an indistinguishable grunt in response, ceasing to lean on the wall and nonchalantly wandering over to the two deserters, wordlessly gesturing for them to follow as he strode towards the staircase they had all ascended a while ago.

The professor, meanwhile, proceeded to snap the case with remaining eggs shut, remaining silent until the door was firmly shut, at which point he turned to address the group once more.

"Now then," he began, "as our first step we should-"

CRASH!

Alex, much like the Lileep on his shoulder, turned around to face the new source of commotion, the former half-expecting to see Plum out and about again, wooden sword in hand. Much to his displeasure, the redhead came to find that while no less than five people stormed the room, none of them was a sexy samurai chick. Instead, teenager found himself facing a number of men, all of whom seemed to be in their early twenties. They didn't seem to have any definite uniform, but all of them were clad primarily in black leather, with various pieces of shiny metal protruding from clothing and assorted bodily parts alike, the colors and styles of their hair ranging from daring to downright ridiculous. Some were rather lanky in body shape while one was a towering giant, but as a badge of identification - as if metal in your face didn't already serve that purpose - they each had a dark red 'GG' symbol sewn onto some visible part of their clothing. Alex felt the grip of his newly acquired pokémon tighten around his shoulder, the barnacle pokémon apparently having picked up on the hostility of these newcomers, and the redhead's hand instinctively curled into fists again, though considering the pokéballs that each of the men had on their waists - not to mention that they all seemed far taller and stronger than Alex - it would probably be a pretty one-sided fight.

As soon as they had entered the room, four of the intruders quickly spread out in a semi-circle, while the last - presumably their leader - stepped forward. Surprisingly, he seemed to be the youngest of the group - looking about Alex's age, or possibly a little bit older. The male was a rather lanky one to boot, his skin far paler than the standard islander pigment, though this could just have been because the of the clothing he wore. The stranger was clad in a black tank top emblazoned with the GG logo and a pair of black leather trousers. Not one but two dark red belts were wrapped around his thin waist, apparently more for aesthetic purposes than anything else, and three single earrings penetrated the left one of his thin, elfin ears. The stranger's lips were thin and pale, currently curled up into a triumphant little smirk, above which resided a decidedly pointed nose, accompanied by a pair of cold, light blue eyes. His hair was a quite obviously dyed shade of red and hung over his head in a half-messy mop and a pair of fingerless black gloves resided on his hands. He had what Alex had heard referred to as a "pretty-boy face" and were it not for his sinister expression, the man could well have been on route to a gay bar.

"Professor Ashton..." the young man intoned in a voice that brought to mind the hiss of a Seviper poised to strike, "I'm so sorry to intrude on your little...unlawful gathering?" he let his glance travel across the occupants of the room, pausing at each in turn as if to memorize the faces, "Such colorful company you keep...and at your age too." his smirk widened as he turned back to facing Ashton, the professor still retaining his calm, "It's quite impressive."

"You must be quite easily impressed then, Darian. But then again..." Ashton gave him a little smile of his own, "...the simple-minded tend to be. I hear that's why Garland made you executive; too dumb to mutine."

Darian's smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a murderous scowl, "Watch your tongue, old man." he hissed, taking a threatening step forward, "Your connections may have kept you safe this far, but this time you've crossed the line." he slowly began regaining his composure, "Lucifer Ashton, by order of the supreme ruler you and your little assembly here are hereby placed under arrest on charges of conspiracy, theft, and high treason towards the sovereign state of Traverse Island. Surrender your illegally obtained pokémon and come peacefully or we shall be forced to resort to...more forceful measures." he reached for one of the pokéballs at his belt, his four flunkies following his lead.

"Threats, is it?" Lucifer retorted calmly, "Once a brute, always a brute. Again you fail to surprise me, Darian. And given that your 'supreme ruler's' acquisition of this island is equally illegal, I'm afraid that we shall have to politely decline your request for a surrender." he locked eyes with the youth in front of him, casually leaning on his walking stick, "It seems like you and I will have to settle this by battle."

"I expected no less, you old goat." Darian replied, his self-satisfied smirk back in its full splendor, "Men, seize these criminals and confiscate the specimens immediately!"

The grunts were quick to oblige, four pokéballs quickly flying into the air. Just as Alex was about to send his newly obtained pokémon into battle, however, something that put the exhibition tape to shame occurred in front of his eyes.

Ashton raised his cane, firmly tapping the tip against the floor, a bright light immediately emerging around him, "Syldra, assistance, if you please."

The precise proceedings were a blur, and all Alex managed to catch was a brief glimpse of a creature resembling a gold-colored hippo with a thick tail, a pair of beige feelers at the top of its head, and a pair of peculiarly small, dark teal wings at its back. The creature's arrival was heralded by a resounding cry, reminiscent of a ship's horn, which shook the windows of the manor, soon buried under the high-pitched howl of a powerful gale as the battlefield dissolved into a mess of white. When the wind died down, the once stately room looked like a disaster area. Several bookcases and ornaments had been knocked over, papers and shards of broken ornaments littering the floor, and the entire back half of the room was covered in snow and frost, four unopened pokéballs landing on the floor with loud clunks, their locking mechanisms firmly frozen shut, trapping the pokémon within. The force of the attack had sent the four grunts on a one-way trip to the nearest wall or other object capable of withstanding the force, but their leader remained upright, a huge, steel-plated serpent whose head nearly brushed the ceiling coiled protectively around him.

Alex could do nothing but gape in awe, but Ashton seemed completely calm as he observed the situation, the hippo-like creature standing beside him, ready for battle.

"Perhaps I didn't make myself clear enough." the professor remarked in a voice as chilling as his opening attack had been, "You and I will be battling, Darian."

Ashton briefly turned his gaze to the stunned Alex, "Mr.Maxwell." he remarked calmly, "I would be most obliged if you could see your fellow guests out. There is a staircase behind that bookcase to your left which connects to the common tunnels. You should know your way from there, correct?"

"Yes." Alex managed to reply, "But where do we-"

"You should know the place well." Ashton replied, his familiar smile returning, "After all...some things are best kept in the family, wouldn't you agree?"

Alex's eyes narrowed in suspicion, "You don't mean..." he began, receiving a nod in confirmation. He would have wanted to scream and shout in protest, but there was no time right now, "What about Plum?"

"I shall look after Meiling-san myself." the professor replied, "You have my word that she will not come to harm. Now please hurry, I do believe that our dear guests are getting restless."

"Right." Alex replied, though Ashton's word really wasn't much reassurance for him, "This way, everyone!" he called to the others, finally finding his legs as he charged towards the denoted bookcase and opened the heavy, metal door behind it, revealing another tunnel, though one far less dark and gloomy than the ones they had come in through.

Darian, meanwhile, was clearly frustrated with the whole process, "Get up, you fools!" he snapped at his underlings as they slowly began recovering from the shock, "I'll deal with the old man, you head down to the tunnels and stop that lot! Now!"

"As for you, Ashton..." the youth continued, turning his glare back to Ashton as people began filing out of the room on both sides, "You just made the last mistake of your life."


OOC: Awwright, chase time! :3 So basically, I left the grunts largely undescribed (except for very general terms) because those are up for you to decide. They'll come around to chase the group in the tunnels, so we can have some battles, but keep in mind that the pokémon are still newborn, so even with the virus boost they won't be doing anything spectacular as of yet. ^.^

 

[Scarlet Weather]

The arrival of the thugs wasn't what caused Mark to scream, persay, but more the fact that immediately after pulling himself to his feet after recovering from the injuries inflicted by his new Pokemon, he was literally a foot away from one of them, an older guy who apparently thought that going without a shirt made him look much cooler, kind of like the red "GG" logo painted across his pectorals. Under any other circumstance, Mark probably would have burst out laughing, but this was a different matter. Without warning, the screech burst from his lips, causing his oppressor to wince momentarily and giving Mark enough time to put the rock hammer still clipped to his belt to good use. The Garland thug reeled backward as the small but powerful excavating/sculpting tool contacted his skull, sending him, black leather shorts and all, tumbling head-over-heels to the floor just as Lucifer Ashton revealed a slight secret: the presence of a large, and apparently very well trained, Dragonite. While he wished that he could stop and help, Mark felt it prudent to get moving along with the rest of the group, especially since the man he had just knocked down was back on his feet, and was now removing a small switchblade which he meaningfully tested against his finger. Whistling, Mark attracted the attention of the small Pokemon on the floor next to him and shouted, "Gon, let's go! We can play later!" before racing towards the exit. The Pokemon, on the other hand, seemed completely bemused with its situation, forcing Mark to double back and grab it. Grunting with the added weight of the baby Cranidos, Mark raced out the door.

Cursing, Mark stared at the grunt following behind them, knife still in hand, removed a small red-and-white sphere from his belt and hurled it into the mouth of the tunnel. The sphere burst into white light, releasing a small, bat-like creature with bluish skin, large fangs, and no noticeable eyes or legs. Mark recognized the Pokemon from the Oreburgh mines. Zubat weren't exceptionally powerful, but they were annoying and tended to flock together. One single Zubat though... Mark had always wanted to fight a battle. The Zubat was probably more experienced then Gon, but Mark had the type advantage, and besides, he was delaying the enemy, wasn't he? Signalling Alex to keep going, Mark whirled, placing Gon gently on the ground. "See that Zubat, Gon?" he whispered to the Pokemon, "It wants to play a game with you. You can play with it like you did with me, right?" Gon nodded in agreement, snorting playfully. Mark smiled once again. "Good. Now, first I want you to- hey wait!" he shouted as his Pokemon raced towards the Zubat, head outstretched, and leapt into the air. The Zubat dodged gracefully, causing the Cranidos to come smashing to the ground in a less-then spectacular manner. Mark cursed under his breath.

The Garland Gang thug smirked, returning his weapon to his pocket, before rubbing his orange, obviously well-dyed and styled hair, back into place. "You know somethin' loser?" he sneered, "I think I'll have some fun with you. Zubat, Aerial Ace!" he commanded. The Pokemon complied, performing a graceful loop in mid-air before rushing towards the defenseless Cranidos on the ground at a speed that put most baseball pitchers to shame. Gon had barely risen to his feet when the incoming bat missile knocked him over again, sending him skidding across the floor towards Mark. The attack wasn't particularly effective, but Gon was injured nevertheless, and only moments after his birth. Screaming in pain and anger, the rock-skinned beast attempted another leaping headbutt, once again evaded by the Zubat. The thug laughed gleefully once again before issuing another order. "Zubat, Leech Life!" The Zubat descended, clamping its fangs onto Gon's skin before leeching energy from the baby Pokemon. Gon had had enough. Wailing like a newborn (which he was, of course,) the Cranidos raced away from the Zubat and leaped into Mark's arms. The GG thug continued his laugh, a harsh, monotone chuckle that seemed to indicate lack of intelligence, wits, or both. "Ha-ha! Look at that, the little dinosaur wants his Mommy!" he taunted.

Mark's face was grim. This was how his big adventure was supposed to end? His chance at being a Pokemon Trainer was about to be precluded by a two-bit thug with a Zubat? His first Pokemon was about to be taken before it even had a name? No way. Not gonna let that happen. Mark told himself, placing Gon gently on the floor once again. Leaning close to his Pokemon's ear, Mark whispered to him gently. "Hey, Gon. Don't worry, you're doing fine. Just listen to me. You've got to do what I say. I'm your leader alright? Do what I say. The rules say that you've got to do what I tell you. Got it?" he whispered. The Pokemon stared back, confused. Sighing, Mark moved on to a different tack. "Listen, I can help you beat that guy, but you've got to trust me, Okay? I can make sure that he never hurts you again, but you've got to help me out." This sales pitch didn't pan out either. Mark then realized what was happening. His Pokemon had yet to develop any parental attachments. Cranidos, as far as the evidence showed, were raised away from their parents, and were fiercely independent. Gon, however, was only a baby, and hadn't developed this nature fully. He didn't quite understand the concept of authority or following instructions yet, though. Because Mark had been the first image in Gon's mind the baby Pokemon thought of him as a fellow Cranidos, someone to respect and defend. It was then that Mark remembered how Roark had brought his own Cranidos to heel. Gripping his rock hammer firmly, Mark tapped the skull of the baby Pokemon gently, but with enough force to knock it over. The Pokemon was stunned long enough for Mark to say "I'm bigger, and older. Listen to me."

The thug, meanwhile, had had enough of this whole waiting around and taunting business. It was time to wrap things up. "Zubat, take them out!" he commanded. The Pokemon responded, launching itself forward.

Mark took the oppurtunity to respond. "Gon, hit it!" he commanded. The Cranidos leaped at his opponent again, forcing the Zubat to veer off course momentarily. This was the oppurtunity Mark had been waiting for. Zubat, he knew, relied on their senses of hearing and smell to navigate, mostly on hearing. Now, while the Zubat was confused, he hammered into the wall of the tunnel with his tool of choice, hoping the noise might confuse it momentarily. Without missing a beat, he pointed at it and commanded "Gon, Headbutt!"

The Pokemon seemed to understand, leaping one last time at the Zubat. This time it struck true, the Zubat's senses confused as it attempted to dodge. Both Pokemon tumbled to the ground, the Zubat pinned beneath its antagonist. It was no contest- one was a frail-bodied bat, the other a dinosaur made of rock. Weight was all that was needed to ensure a knockout. Without waiting for the thug to respond, Mark grabbed his Pokemon and ran once again. Not too shabby for his first time out.

OOC: I know, strange logic. I'll explain why Gon calmed down enough to listen after Mark hit him at my next oppurtunity, but right now I need a shower.

 

[Kogenta]

Stray pried the Growlithe pup's jaws from his hand without much effort towards gentility. Then, staring at the tiny blood spots already beading atop his skin, he murmured, "You're not making a very good first impression, you know." The infant merely whined.

As Ashton prepared to address the group again, Stray glanced up, only to have his attention abruptly drawn elsewhere. Five darkly-clothed men, each with their loyalty to the Garland Gang somehow stamped upon them, crashed into the room. The youth's eyes narrowed, his grip unconsciously tightening upon the Growlithe he held, causing it to squeak its protest. During the confrontation that followed, Lucifer Ashton summoned a Dragonite from seemingly nowhere, using it to disarm all but one of his opponents. Shock reformed Stray's features--shock not from the appearance of the dragon Pokemon, nor at his host's unexpected skill, but at the implications of each of these realizations. I knew I recognized the old man! He's a Pokemon trainer--and a good, one, too. Ashton used to be a Pokemon champion . . .

Alex's voice broke the wanderer's reverie, and he followed after the red-haired boy with a single glance back. Experience had taught him when to run without shame. Seeing Mark fall behind to delay one of the gang members, Stray did not argue, but continued down the tunnel, calling back, "Don't linger any longer than you have to, kid." He had another thought. "And don't get pulverized." Turning back forward, Stray tucked his by-now fully awake Growlithe under one arm, telling the others, "We're at a serious disadvantage here, people." He turned toward Alex. "Ashton seemed to think you know these tunnels pretty well. Can you think of anywhere we can make a stand--or at least gain some advantage? Narrow points, uphill slopes, sharp corners?" Hearing approaching footsteps, he glanced back. Tch. It's not fossil-man. I was afraid of that.

Once he deemed the enemy close enough, Stray brought himself to an abrupt stop--altering his stance to brace himself while leaning downward and raising one elbow to drive it into the front man's stomach. Though he did not bother to look up into the man's face, he did recall hoping that his opponent did not have armor hidden beneath his shirt and that some of the other pursuers would trip over him. He did not, but they did not either. Hearing the baby Growlithe at his side whine, Stray responded, "I'd like to see you do better." Not giving the injured man a chance to recover and do something equally unpleasant to him, Stray sprang forward after the rest of the group. Who knew that my experience in being chased would come in handy at a seminar? Life really is a strange thing.

 

[Nigma]

OCC: Sorry for the pokemon change, i was confused with another roleplay. I won´t change anymore! I promise... >_<;

I hope it´s alright to post it that way. *pokes at Alter*

IC:

There wasn´t enough time to react for Su. Suddenly the 5 black young man came into the room and the situation got worse. The only thing she noticed was that Alex shouted something like following him into the tunnels to escape. As she ran out she realized that Mr. Ashton was a pokemon trainer too. He surely knows what to do…

The group did run into the tunnels to escape. Mother like Susan covered Razor within her clothes, so the young Zangoose tried to dig deep into mommy's safety. It noticed that her Mother was up set, so it got some kind of unsure too. After a while, running to this cave like tunnels, Su turned around to see if anyone had followed, and saw for real that some of the black covered men were following. She did want to turn around again to look in which direction the group went, but accidently went into a wrong tunnel.

It was just too late to turn around, and she noticed that one man had followed her. She stopped after some minutes of running and turned around, so the young man stopped either. He quickly released a young Cubone. It wasn´t fully grown up, but too much to handle for her little Zangoose now. "Time to fight, girlie." The man said with a harsh tone. Su took Razor to set her down on the floor. "Here young lady, it´s time for you…" she said calmly. Razor just looked at the Cubone and then back to mommy. Fast the Zangoose seeked cover behind mommy´s leg.

"Aww, how sweet!" the harsh voice of the young man shouted. "Little baby has too much fear to face my little Cubone… May be it´s like her trainer, eh?" Su slowly got angry. Of course the young pokemon didn´t know how to fight or to follow commands. She probably didn´t know what to do in this unknown situation. "It´s alright, Razor…" Su said calm to the little. "… just watch mommy fighting and learn some stuff eh?" She said, and Razor understood. "Cubone, charge!" the man commanded and the enemy pokemon jumped at the two. Su fast got around and held the arm of the pokemon to defend herself. Even if it was a young one, it sure was very strong. Su didn´t imagine that she would have a change to fight this pokemon to win the fight, but the little Zangoose had to learn from mommy´s moves, and because she had often fights when she was young against stronger boys, she was trained already for situations like that. She has just to see what mommy does, cause she hasn´t seen a fight yet. If she watches me, she will try to imitate my combat moves. That´s the way pokemon parents show their kids how to defend themselves. Her thought ended.

Susan´s rebelish and strong side took command of every move; the fine lovely nurse was gone. "Kyaaa!!" a head nut for the Cubone was something unexpected for the pokemon. It went backwards. "Oww! I´ve forgotten he has a protection there..." Su said holding her head. She got ready for another attack, so she dashed towards the pokemon. Of course she didn´t want to hurt any pokemon, but in this bad situation nothing else could help. She prepared a kick, but the pokemon was too much in advantage. It easily evaded the kick and gave Su a punch in her chest. With a loud "Ooof…" she flew back near the little Zangoose. What am I doing? I am fighting a pokemon, to learn another pokemon how to fight. It´s just not what my job wants from me. But can I protect any pokemon as a nurse? It will attack me for sure… Su got up, confident that the little Zangoose watched everything she did. If I show weakness, the Zangoose won´t survive in freedom. I… I have to… the ground type run towards her to punch her again. But Su instead of evading the attack, she started a counter attack into the attack of the Cubone. She jumped a bit towards the pokemon, turned her body slightly and kicked it with a sidekick, so it flew backwards onto the ground with a big thud. As it got up, Su was already there with a cumulative fist and punched it direct into its chest, same way as she got punched earlier.

"Enough! Cubone, use your bone attack!" the enemy trainer screamed, and so the pokemon ran towards Su. So it came that Su was attacked by much attacks with this club. Su managed to evade some of them, but got hit to often. She fell down from the mass of attacks and found herself lying in front of the Cubone which got ready to finish her of. It happened everything so fast that Su couldn´t react, just watch. But instead of getting a final knock-out hit, she saw that Razor had jumped in front of the ground type and did a "mommy-wide-sidekick" direct into the face of the Cubone. It got hit and did some steps backwards, holding its head. Not that it seemed to hurt it very much, more it was the shock that suddenly the little Zangoose was appeared in front of it. "It seems you are ready for your first combat…." Su said calm, and Razor nodded.

 

[Alter Ego]

OOC: Okay, Nigma...I'm all for creative battling, but let's try to keep this as sensible as pokémon battles can conceivably be. I can support Mark's first battle win since Gon had the advantage in both mass and type and the opponent was a freakin' Zubat, but an Electabuzz (even a young Electabuzz) getting KOed by a newborn Zangoose? Even with human assistance, I find that very hard to believe. How the heck did Susan dodge a Thunderbolt (huge electric discharge occurring in a split-second) and how come Electabuzz couldn't dodge Claw's attack? Come to think of it, why the flip did the Electabuzz even bother with melee combat when it could just have given both of them an electric shock and been done with it? Sorry, but I'm going to have to ask you to edit that to something a bit more credible. Try making it a pure melee-fighting pokémon of a weaker species.

Incidentally, peoples: keep in mind that the thugs can't follow the group through the same entrance they used because there's a big bad Dragonite up there laying a smackdown on anyone who tries. The grunts actually have to get down into the tunnel network via an alternate entrance. O=

IC:

At Stray's question, Alex's face split into a grin, "Oh, you bet." he replied, "I used to play hide and seek in these tunnels when I was a kid; know them like the back of my hand. Just give me a moment to figure out our location and then we'll-" it was then that he noticed that their rag-tag group had already split up. The fossil guy was nowhere to be seen, and neither was the punk nurse.

The islander swore under his breath, glancing back to address the people who had still had the sense to follow him.

"Where did the nurse and the fossil guy go?!" he shouted, frustration evident in his voice, "Well, regardless: the rest of you stick together! There's no telling how many of these thugs will come down here, so the last thing we want is for someone to get lost and-"

The redhead's lecture was cut short as he suddenly ran into something definitely solid, his body forced backward by a mass far greater than its own and tossed to the ground like a rag doll, the Lileep on his shoulder letting out a surprised little noise. Struggling to get back onto his feet, Alex squinted at the figure towering above him. Needless to say, this was not a pleasant sight. It was the abnormally large grunt from before, a hulking figure whose sheer bulk gave him an imposing look as he stood in their path, an indomitable meat wall whose width almost matched that of the tunnel. Unlike his commander, the grunt didn't wear the usual skin-tight leather trousers; instead, a pair of jeans occupied his legs. Despite undoubtedly being the largest size available, they seemed to be stretched to the very limit of their seams as they tried to contain the mass of muscle and flab within them. A dirty white shirt with a red GG logo on the front covered his chest, a black leather jacket that looked at least two sizes too small for his shoulders slung on top of it. What really caught Alex's attention was the man's face, not the bald head with the cut right ear, piggy little brown eyes and huge wart on the right side of the potato nose, however, but the metal ring that ran through it, giving him an appearance somewhat similar to that of a bull.

Make that an evilly smirking, tunnel-blocking bull.

"Well look what we have here." the grunt sneered, gruffly grasping Alex by the collar and lifting him up into the air, "If it ain't the leader of Ashton's little flunkies.". The boy kicked and flailed furiously in response, but his blows were simply drowned in the grunt's mass, and the man returned the favor by tightening his grip, threatening his airflow and roughly pinning him against the tunnel wall, "Now let's cut us a deal here, shall we?" the grunt continued, turning to face the redhead's remaining companions, while continuing to pin Alex against the wall, "Surrender now and I won't have to snap the neck of your little friend here."

A barely audible groan escaped Alex's lips.

"What's that?" the grunt inquired, his face now mere inches from Alex's, "Got a heroic last speech to make, leader-boy?"

The islander merely glared in return, even though staying conscious was a feat on its own at this point, slowly raising his right hand as far as he was able to, pointing a weak finger at the man's nose ring, "Lileep, food!"

"Wha-?"

The grunt was not even given enough time to finish his sentence as something small and purple lunged at him, howling in pain as countless little orange tentacles grasped his nose ring and began pulling it with all their might. The grunt fumbled desperately, one hand attempting to dislodge the persistent little barnacle from his nose while the other sought the pokéballs on his belt.

Alex, meanwhile, slid down the wall, gasping for air. He wasn't about to let his opponent's moment of weakness go unexploited, however, pulling back his right leg as far as his location would allow and bringing up his knee straight into the man's crotch before following it up with a kick at his right shin that knocked the grunt off balance, sending him down to the tunnel floor with a loud crash. Apparently, there were some places whose endurance you just couldn't train up. Alex was not nearly naive enough to believe that this would keep the hulking beast of a grunt down for long, however, and the sheer amount of noise they were making - the sounds of the struggle still echoing down the tunnels - would undoubtedly draw more grunts to the area.

"Everyone!" Alex called, grasping his throat with one hand as it gave off a little jolt of pain. It would probably be swollen after this incident, but right now that was the least of his worries, "This way, quick!" with that, he charged straight over the grunt, making a point of treading down on his stomach with all his might. As Alex let his glance travel across the walls, now and again casting it back to make sure that everyone was still with him, the memories came flooding back. Once upon a time, he had memorized the layout of these tunnels right down to every conspicuous crack and marking on the wall and though it felt like his last visit had been ages ago, there were some things you never quite forgot, and the distant sound of running water confirmed his assumption.

"Rhydon!" bellowed an all too familiar voice behind them, "Go get them!"

Alex bit his lip. As pokémon went, Rhydons might not have been the brightest crayons in the box, but what they lacked in brains they more than made up for with brawn...and running speed. There was no way their little group could beat such a thing in battle, virus-boosted pokémon or no, but with their pursuant this close on their heels, running away did not seem like a likely formula for success either, besides...he was responsible for the group, wasn't he? That meant he would have to go back for the two missing members. As they came to a junction that branched off in three different directions, Alex finally came to a decision, grinding to a halt and turning to address the ones who had still followed him one last time.

"Alright, listen up." despite Alex's best efforts, his indecision could be discerned from his voice, "Take the tunnel on the right and follow it straight forward until you reach a point where someone has sprayed "TiIM AQUA rUlz" on the left-hand wall. There you turn left, then take the third tunnel on the right. There should be an oak door there; it's probably locked, but try knocking and tell them-tell them you're with me. If I got Ashton's message right..." there was a hint of anger in his eyes at this point, "...then that should get them to open the door for you. Just make sure no-one sees you going in through that door, alright?" he paused, taking a deep breath as the grunts of their pursuant grew ever closer, "I'd lead you there myself, but I've got some stuff to take care off." at this point, he strode over to take the tail of the group, standing in plain view in the tunnel, even as the frustrated grunting of their pursuant grew ever closer. He could do this; these tunnels were his childhood playground, and once he got the others off his tail, Alex would treat these punks to a game of hide and seek they wouldn't soon forget.

Stubbornly ignoring the thoughts of all the things that could possibly go wrong with his plan, the redhead cast one last glance at the others, "Go on ahead; I'll cover you."

 

[Nigma]

Occ: I never thought of winning, Alter... But if you want me to win, i´ll change my entire post... and of course i choose another pokemon-enemy. *keeps writing* Oh, and i´ll continue my post in this little thing later, k?

 

[Random_Fan]

Between the time it took to run out of the grand meal he hadn't been able to take, and the time when Alex decided to act the hero, Johnny could barely keep his attention at one place. Fingers on his camera of no batteries and Atha on his shoulder, probably as equally confused as he was, Johnny continued with the dizzying tunnels that seemed to make no sense no matter how you looked at it; yet Alex knew every twist and turn to be conceived.

Was there a spark of admiration suddenly? No, no, no; that couldn't be. The last thing Johnny wanted to do on this trip so far was to look up to Alex, even though it was him who was saving them all. Had Alex not been there, they would have lost themselves in the tunnels and been stopped by the grunts long ago.

When Alex stopped, Johnny had to force a sudden halt all the same, forcing him forward and onto the floor in a face-fault. Those stupid shoes; had he not believed this was something formal, he would have picked better preferred shoes for such situations. Then again, he never expected this to be happening to him; never to him. If any of this were to involve him, he'd expect to be filming it all on his out of juice camera.

"What's—grugh—what's with the hold-up?"

He pushed himself off the ground while Atha easily jumped back to her standing position, brushing off dust from the dirty floor from her fur. She turned on Johnny, jumping right onto his leg and pulling her way back up by digging her claws into his clothing. The only word to describe the feeling was uncomfortable, and Johnny flinched a few times, but he did not push Atha away; as much as he wanted to, he refrained himself.

He looked around the current tunnel location. There was something missing; no, someone missing. Scratch that; two missing, not counting the Samurai, the piano girl, and that other anomaly of a person. Johnny would have questioned it aloud, but was interrupted in his first letter as Alex decided to explain.

"Sneasel?"

It was Atha, of course, who had spoken the words right into Johnny's ear.

"Huh—oh, uh, what is it?"

Johnny wasn't sure how these conversations between companion and trainer were supposed to move, as he surely had never had a Pokémon to practice with on these things.

She jumped off of him, onto the dirt floor just as Alex finished his explanation on what was supposed to happen now. Johnny was clueless on where he was supposed to go; the others were not following Alex's lead as he forced his way to the back.

"We just came from over there!" Johnny tried to tell Alex. He looked down to find Atha rush alongside Alex. He knew not of where she was going, or of what she was doing. "Atha, come on over here…please?" she did not respond to him, but stayed beside Alex, like as if he was the one she had first seen.

Having no other choice, Johnny rushed beside her picking her up and going the other way. But she persisted, breaking free of his arms and continued to stay behind Alex.

"What are you doing?"

What Johnny didn't know in this, what he had no idea, no clue as to what Atha was actually trying to do, was lead him back to the others that were missing. She wanted to go back and fight, most likely. And to do that, she needed to follow Alex so he could lead the way.

In nature, Sneasels would have wanted to take part in battle at any challenge available. The battles that were occurring in the other room beyond the tunnel system were calling her, and she felt she needed to be there.

But all Johnny that of it was that she liked Alex better.

"Agh, this is so unfair!"

It was his first outburst of the like, and he didn't care how he sounded; he just wanted Atha to obey his command.

 

[Kogenta]

[OOC: How does one pronounce odd capitalization and misspellings (TiIM AQUA rUlz)? Just curious.]

Stray glanced from Alex to whoever else remained in the group, all the while factoring in and weighing information in his mind in ways he had no comprehension or awareness of. All this took only a moment, after which he made a quick decision. Stepping forward, he made a snatch at the back of Atha's neck--hoping she would not slip away from his grasp as Sneasels were so adept at doing. Then, tossing her lightly in Johnny's direction, he said, "Hold on to it this time. Depending on how things turn out, we might need whatever help we can get." While accustomed to running for his life, leaving others behind was something Stray had never had to face before. Still, the weight of the situation and necessity for action pressed the wanderer to action.

Thus, though he was growing uncomfortable with the number of people constantly being left behind, Stray started toward the tunnel Alex had directed the group to. He doubted that a teenager and a newborn Lileep would be much of a match for a Rhydon. However . . . Well, he was rather sure that Alex heard the sound of water as well as he did, if not better. As Stray entered the tunnel, a set of teeth suddenly sank into his hand, accompanied by a soft growl. When the youth looked down, he found his Pokemon staring intently up at him--now silent, but with dark eyes steadily meeting his own. Stray was surprised at the effort he had to exert to avert his gaze, and even more surprised that he felt the need to. Finding he had nothing to say, but inexplicably feeling the burden of giving some sort of reason to the creature that so depended on him, Stray finally muttered, "He doesn't need us. Let's go," and dashed down the tunnel. He made no attempt to remove his hand from the Growlithe's mouth.

"Graffiti on the left wall, left wall . . . " Stray mentally repeated to himself, his pale eyes alternating between watching the path ahead and searching for the signal to take a new passage. As a patch of colour loomed ahead, Stray slowed his pace before coming to a stop. He ran his hand over the spray-painted words of narrowly-angled corners, curved lines, and two shades of blue. This is it, alright. But that's not how you spell 'team,' is it? He could not quite remember. Glancing back to see who--if anyone--had followed him, Stray then ducked into the next left tunnel and moved on.

 

[Alter Ego]

OOC: Very carefully. *Shot*

Seriously, the same thing occurred to me the morning after I had made that post. xD Just think of that as visualization aid and leave it at that.

IC:

Alex had to suppress a growl of frustration as camera-boy seemed incapable of following simple instructions and instead charged towards him, though the reason for this soon became apparent as he spotted the wayward Sneasel. He did not, however, understand why Johnny was lagging behind even after Stray had sorted out that problem.

"Look, I really need you to go." he repeated for emphasis, "I've got a plan, but I can't do it with others on my tail, and if you don't go now he might-" the redhead gave up on reasoning when he noted that the noise of the Rhydon's footsteps was right around the corner, unceremoniously shoving Johnny down the tunnel to shield him from view, hoping that he'd have the sense to stay that way.

"Took you long enough." the islander remarked casually as his winded adversary came into view, his cheeks flushed and his Rhydon trotting beside him.

"You." the flabby grunt sneered, glaring at Alex, "Think you're going to be the hero and beat me all on your little lonesome?"

"That's the plan."

The words were intended to rile his opponent up, and they certainly struck their mark, "Cocky brat!" the towering meat wall roared, "You should have scuttled off with the rest of your little friends! Rhydon, Hammer Arm!"

Inwardly, Alex was going 'yes!', but outwardly he was far too busy dodging the hulking beast that was currently charging him to celebrate. An emergency dive into his chosen tunnel had saved him from direct impact, but the attack connected with the nearby wall, sending a shower of rock fragments towards Alex, one of them striking his arm and eliciting a groan from the teenager as he struggled back up onto his feet, clutching his wounded appendage. His expression didn't betray any weakness, however; if there was one thing Alex knew it was how to play the tough guy role.

"That the best you got?" he scoffed, "Pathetic."

"Oh, there's plenty more where that came from." his opponent replied maliciously, too triumphant over the situation to notice Johnny as he began moving towards Alex, his Rhydon following suit, "Horn Attack!"

As the giant rhinoceros stamped on its place a few times, preparing to charge, the redhead got ready for the fastest sprint of his life, rushing down the tunnel. The brute had played right into his hands this far, but whether or not his plan would succeed hinged on whether he could outrun that damn Rhydon.

'Oh well...' Alex concluded as he charged down the tunnel, pokémon and trainer in pursuit, '...there's only one way to find out.'

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------​

"Ice Fang!"

"Dragon Dance."

Once more, Dragonite and Steelix clashed, their resounding cries rattling the windows of the mansion and causing the chandelier above to sway threateningly. The steel-plated serpent lunged towards its hippo-like foe, its flauntingly displayed fangs laced with a veil of biting cold as it aimed for its opponents throat, only for the other to soar gracefully out of the way.

"I believe a Fire Punch would be in order now." Ashton continued calmly, flames gathering around his pokémon's fist as it made use of the momentum its previous attack to land a devastating right hook on its opponent's cheek. The serpent reeled back in pain as part of its plating dissolved, but still managed to swing its heavy tail in retort, catching the Dragonite in the stomach.

"Well, well..." the professor remarked, observing his opponent, "It seems that you have learned a trick or two since we last met, Darian."

"How ironic." his opponent sneered, "You on the other hand seem to have gotten slower, old man. Is your age catching up?"

"Perhaps." Ashton replied with a light shrug, "Or perhaps neither I nor Syldra see the need to flaunt our full strength in such an infantile manner."

"You never run out of those little phrases, do you?" Darian scoffed, "Midgard, let's cut him down to size!"

The Steelix let out a roar in response, unleashing another thunderous roar and rising up to its full height, despite the numerous molten wounds on its body.

"Oh my, you're not going to learn this the easy way, are you?" the professor remarked, shaking his head in distaste, "Syldra, shall we oblige them?"

The Dragonite nodded vigorously as she, too, rose up to her full stature, apparently not wanting to let such an opponent upstage her.

"I thought as much." Ashton remarked, leaning against his walking stick as he peered at Darian, "Well then, let's get this over with, shall we?"

 

[Phanima]

The last thing she could remember was the soft texture of grapes creating a lubricant beneath her feet and the back of her skull striking the delicately-looking yet sturdy tabletop. There was a sore numbness that crept over the back of her head and the soles of her feet remained wet and cold as she begun twisting in her place, stirring from her sleep, as she found herself curled up on a single-sized futon, positioned in the centre of a new room. A brilliant light shone down upon her from the ceiling, causing her pupils to dilate as she struggled to regain her absentminded consciousness while taking in her new surroundings. Valuable-looking furniture decorated the room; from the large mass of wood in the corner that made up a five-drawer brass-handled dresser, to the elegantly twisted glass that encased itself around the ceiling light. Everything that surrounded her was in little less than pristine condition, making her feel nothing more than just…dirty. This feeling was further emphasized as she discovered her unconscious restlessness had caused most (or what little) of her clothing to fall to her waist, leaving her completely bare from the stomach up as she finally came to.

"Crap!" she exclaimed in a heated tone, as she struggled to recover her crumbled garment. "And where the hell am I? What am I doing here?"

Suddenly pausing as if she was expecting the answers to her questions to be revealed, the teenage brunette continued to compose herself as she struggled to recall how she had come to be in a place such as this room. As she did so, something else caught her attention and she couldn't help become distracted.

"Hunh? What's that smell?" Sniffing the sleeve that adorned her newly dressed arm, the girl's face suddenly flushed as the familiar scent struck her sensory glands. A smile spread across her lips as she happily pressed the sleeve up to her cheek and quite literally hugged herself, taking in as much of the smell as she could gather from the worn robe. There was nothing else like it, the scent that covered her clothes was instantly recognisable, it was distinct and strong, and thinking about it only aroused her even further. "Angh, Jade-kun's smell! But how…? Ah! He must have been the one who brought me here!"

As the last words parted from her lips, the girl suddenly realised her situation and abruptly stood up in her place, her mood now worriedly serious. Where was Jade? In respect, where was that L.A. character that she had just now remembered opposing? And in addition, where were all the other people who had travelled with her to this very island? As each thought suddenly processed through her unreliably short attention span, the reawakened warrior hastily grabbed what was remaining of her garment, wrapped it loosely across her chest, before grabbing her wooden shoes and sword and ran out the nearest door without even a backwards glance.

Her mind was set and any other distractions were nothing but a waste of time. She had to find out where the others had gotten to; the other passengers, Jade, and the man who was responsible for everything…L.A.. Finding them was her only priority and as she continued crashing down the circular stairwell that had greeted her as she left the room, any signs of such a goal were quickly disappearing.

There was no one around. Everything blurred around her as she bolted down the stairs two to three steps at a time, hoping to run into somebody or something that could direct her in the right way. Unknown to the others, and even consciously to herself, this teenage brunette felt her very worst when she was alone. And it wasn't because she was scared, and it wasn't because she was some attention-seeking show-off either, it was simply because that when she was alone, she felt helpless, and that was definitely something she hated.

Furrowing her brow as her grip tightened against her trailing belongings, the tanned teen plunged down the stairwell until she finally reached what appeared to be the ground floor. The room she was now in was much more worn down, its appearance taking on a fusion between the continuing expensive décor and then the natural and rough design of the island, as last seen in the cave entrance from which she had first arrived. In the room, there was nothing but a single door and the beginning of the stairwell that led her back up from where she came. Then, without hesitation, with a powerful yet unnecessary kick, the girl busted down the last obstacle and entered the next room in a cliché dust-settling scene. What she had not comprehended was that the dust was not caused by her brash entrance, it was caused by the fury of two clashing Pokemon, one that resembled an orange hippo-like creature with wings and a longer tail, while the other took on an appearance much closer to that of an overgrown metal-encased snake.

Taking in the new scene, the girl quickly realised that she had finally returned to her destination. The dangerously swaying chandelier hanging from the ceiling, its lights flickering out of cut wiring, the broken and no longer unscathed table cracked and ruptured, and the luxurious amount of food sitting wasted on the ground, were more than enough to convince her that she had finally arrived at the means of answering all of her questions.

The two Pokemon she had just encountered were now beginning to retreat to the ends of the dining room where two figures now stood in plain sight, one at each end.

Smiling as she carelessly adjusted the loose garment that covered her bare top, no longer taking on the appearance of her original attire, but more to the design of a toga robe, the brunette threw her shoes to the ground as she raised her bamboo sword in hand, her eyes waiting on each of the two figures. "Okay…now what the hell's going on here!?"

OOC: Lul...I'm so far behind, but rest assured, Phanima is back and so is the butt-kicking Plum! Time to bring on the whoop-ass on all of you! X3 Kidding of course.

 

[Alter Ego]

OOC: Wow, what a flurry of activity we've had here.[/Sarcasm] Ah well, welcome back all the same, Phanima. Since I've finally managed to pull my muse out of the rut, it's super special awesome IC time. ^0^

Well, IC time anyway. xP

IC:

There weren't many things that could break up a dramatic face-off the likes of which was about to erupt between the two figures in the dining room of Ashton's manor, but you had to admit that a half-dressed teenage girl barging in and loudly demanding answers at the point of a wooden sword was quite distracting. The professor himself merely quirked an eyebrow at the sight, but his opponent looked basically stunned.

"Ah, Meiling-san..." Ashton began calmly, offering her a polite smile, "It's good to see you up on your feet again."

"Once again, Ashton." his adversary interrupted, his expression fading from shock to mild disgusts, "I didn't expect that from someone of your age."

"Courteous as ever, Darian." the professor remarked, "I will have you know that a Meiling-san is a guest of mine and by no means associated with whatever filthy fantasy you seem to be entertaining, And incidentally..."

Darian's attention was quickly turned away from the newcomer as his pokémon let out a rumbling cry of pain, the executive turning around just in time to see Midgard reeling backwards under the devastating force of the blow that Syldra had landed during the conversation.

"...what ever made you think that you had the luxury of looking away? Syldra, another Fire Punch if you please."

"Midgard, prepare to counter!"

"Now, Meiling-san." Ashton continued calmly, apparently continuing to conduct the battle with occasional motions from his hands and cane as he addressed the brunette, the battle thundering on on the side, "I'm afraid you have caught me at a rather inconvenient moment. Though I'm certain that you still have many questions to pose, I'm afraid I must make this quick for now." the professor merely took a step to the side as the Steelix lunged past him, in close pursuit of Syldra who kept dancing out of the serpent's way with far more grace than one of her stature should have possessed, "You see, a number of black-clad gentlemen from an organization known as the Garland Gang seem to have some objections to my little seminar. As such, I would be infinitely obliged if you took that suitcase." he nodded towards the case with the eggs, still propped up on the end of the table, "To a more secluded place for the time being. There are eggs of pokémon within and you may claim one of them as your own if it behooves you." the chandelier rocked violently once more as Syldra launched another counter-attack on her foe, "Now I do believe that Darian is getting a tad jealous of the attention you are receiving, so it would probably be for the best if you took that suitcase and headed to the tunnel over there." he nodded towards the door behind the now capsized bookshelf, "Mr.Maxwell and the others should be found there; I'm sure they'll fill you in and lead you to a safe place. I shall contact you as soon as I can, but as you can see..." he turned to face the battle again, "I have a minor inconvenience to deal with first."

 

[Random_Fan]

"Wow—Atha—come on—I—I can't—,"

No matter how much Johnny tried, Atha was one strong Sneasel. She was trying to dig herself out of Johnny's grasp and seemed to have this as her determined goal. Johnny was trying to take her to the others without any harm done, and that was pretty hard to do when she was allowed to harm him. His arms were adorned with minimal blood crease scratches, and his shirt was getting slashed up by her kicking feet.

"Atha, come on—stop—!"

He had been carrying her and walking backwards. Through this process, he had somehow managed to step on himself and flip him over. He landed hard on the ground and was forced to let Atha go. By this time, he was already caught up with the others.

Johnny sat up sharply, brushing off some rough cuts. Atha was standing right there, not moving. She also seemed to brush off some dirt from herself, making them both seem synchronized to each other's movements. For a moment, Johnny thought he lost his camera. It was still there with him. It was good enough to work.

"Uh…alright…" he was digging for a place to put down his camera, but there was none. He'd have to carry it, along with his Sneasel. "Um…come on then, uh—let's go." He was motioning for Atha to climb onto his shoulder again. Although he indeed felt uncomfortable the last time, he felt that it was his duties as a trainer to do so; at least, to do so if he had no Pokeball at hand.

"Where are we going?" Johnny asked, just passing the graffiti written wall. More than anything, he was very anxious to keep on going. Passing Stray, he made his way to the…door? He slightly smirked; he wasn't expecting this to be at the end of the road. Then again, this trip was full of so much unexpectancy that he didn't really care. "Why hasn't anyone opened the door yet?" His first move was turning the doorknob. That didn't help much. He shook more furiously.

"It's locked!" Johnny exclaimed, stating the obvious.

 

[Phanima]

Whatever the two older coots were rambling about didn't concern her, but the mere notion that she was apart of their conversation kept her from completely losing control. Their accompanying Pokemon wasn't helping her recently awoken mood either and she had half a mind to join in the continuing fray. Seeing the old man known as L.A. standing firmly in his place as he instructed his partner's attacks however, she found herself watching the scene in very subdued admiration.
Despite his appearance, the old man could actually hold his own, but she was certain that all he was good for was barking orders at overgrown hippos to do his dirty work for him, although it was impressive nonetheless. In the opposing coot's case, although younger in appearance and clad in black, since they had never met he held no relevance to Plum's attention, so she did what she did best, became oblivious to his existence.

It was then that the L.A. geezer directed her attention towards a fairly large suitcase, sitting atop of what was left of the grand table that had previously filled the room, its upper case propped open, its contents sitting in full view. Three eggs sat in the case's holding and just as her suspicious gaze fell upon them, L.A. continued explaining that they were in reality, Pokemon eggs, as in, there were actually real Pokemon inside each of the remaining shells.

"That's just stupid!" the samurai chick cut in, waving her arms frantically as if the man' statement was deeply insulting. "Even I know that Pokemon can't fit in eggs this small! What are you trying to pull, bastard-chan?!" Her waving motions ceased and with a finger pointing at the oversized suitcase, she glared down her target who continued with his explanation, unfazed by her sudden objection.

Ignoring someone when they were talking to you was just rude, but in this case, it just pissed her off, more so than usual. Surprisingly however, she found herself forgetting her rage when the subject of the whereabouts of the others was brought to light, in conjunction with L.A.'s previous request of secluding the eggs somewhere safe and out of reach from this, Garland Gang. It was also then that bastard-chan directed her attention once again to another exit, one that apparently led to such whereabouts.

Finishing his brief briefing, L.A. returned his full attention to the ensuing battle that had been playing out in the background. Seeing the current situation, the chic samurai finally breathed a frustrated sigh but nodded in agreement as if everyone could see such a subtle gesture.

"Alright, I'll do it! But only because I care more about finding Jade-san than kicking your old ass for answers!" she exclaimed with a wicked smile as she dashed under the charging Steelix, gripping the open case under her arms, and made her way towards the appointed exit. "But don't forget that I'm coming back for you bastard-chan, so I don't want to come back and find you gone, alright?!" With that, she bashed the semi-open door and bolted down the cavernous decor tunnel.

~

It had only been five minutes before she found herself propped up against the cold rocky wall, her head hung and her breathing staggered. During those five minutes, she had run nonstop and despite covering quite a bit of ground, she realised that doing such a thing was exceedingly difficult in an enclosed area with very narrow ventilation and with a pair of getas nonetheless.

Looking over at the case from which she had kept open in order to maintain a suspicious watch over, she again found herself debating what her next step should be. It was another one of those situations in which she had rushed into, without thinking about the consequences. For now she was lost, tired and susceptibly grumpy, and not just at L.A. but at the others too, for running away in the first place. If it were her, she would've stayed and fought, regardless how precious these stupid eggs were.

"Ugh...what's the big deal with these things anyway?" she huffed, adjusting her slipping top as she bent over the open case. "Stupid bastard-san, Pokemon can't fit inside eggs...but I guess they are pretty looking..."

It was then that the destined pale yellow braised and biggest of the remaining eggs caught her attention, and not because she had acknowledged L.A.'s explanation of them harbouring genetically altered Pokemon, but because of the simple fact that she had not eaten since she had arrived on this cursed island.

Her stomach growled as she surveyed the egg and recognised it as the largest of the lot. The bigger the egg, the more it would satisfy her hunger, and that was all she cared about right now. So without hesitation or any moral objection, she gripped her bamboo sword in hand and with a reckless yet powerful blow, she struck the capsule encasing the yellow egg. What followed such an action knocked her clean off of her feet and back against the rocky wall as any hopes of filling her growling gut disappeared.

Shattered glass and egg shell littered the dirt ground as a suspicious fluid spilled from what remained of the capsule. In place of what the teen samurai had hoped for, which was an already boiled egg, a petite fuzzy yet dangerously armed creature appeared.

Swearing under her breath as she rubbed the back of her head, the teen quickly got to her feet as the newly hatched creature struggled to do the same. It was no taller than her waist, what stood in place of her desired meal, but it did have two abnormally sized...

"Wait, what the hell is this thing?" she exclaimed, staring at the green creature that had finally gotten onto its clawed feet, its arms piercing the ground in an effort to support its weight. In addition to its overly green colour scheme, bug hinge limbs and clear bee-like wings, what drew the most attention to the creature were the two clean arch blades that hung from its arms. They were very much like scythes that the farmers back in her village used to use for harvesting. They made quite good tools for farming back home, but in this case, it was as if the creature had been born with two swords in place of hands, as if it was designed to use them as weapons.

The Bug Pokemon growled as it steadied itself into a full standing position, its blade-like hands waving dangerously in front of it. Just what had that old bastard done? Prodding the creature's blades, the teen samurai watched as it fell to the ground after attempting to resist its unknowingly new partner's pushing. It was then that the bladed bug's wings began to beat, an instinctive reflex that inevitably allowed the monster to maintain its balance.

"Whoa! You can fly?" she exclaimed as she watched the Pokemon hover awkwardly onto its feet.

The Scyther barked in response to its new partner's comment, as if attempting to communicate with the scarcely covered samurai, who suddenly seemed uncharacteristically pleased in discovering such a creature.

Despite her earlier thoughts and disappointment of not having anything to eat for hours, hatching the green bug with blades turned out to be more fun then she could have expected, despite not expecting it at all. Her sudden change of interest in the creature was quickly overshadowed by the realisation of her mission in safeguarding the eggs as well as finding the others.

So without hesitation, the chic teen samurai wrapped the remaining two eggs and case under one arm while grasping her getas and sword in the other before turning to who was to be her new partner.

"Let's beat it Sharpy," she said with a furrowed smile, pulling out the first nickname she could think of, "we've got some asses to kick!"

OOC: Sorreh bout the delay Alter, I don't know what happened but I found myself away from the computer a lot more than I would've liked with my whole comeback in mind, so I guess the inactivity is partly my fault. Hope things pick up. >>

 

[Alter Ego]

OOC: Right, I've been putting this off way too long, thinking that I might come up with some clever way to keep this semi-animate RP alive during my absence, but I think it's about time I got realistic about it.

Sorry guys, but this RP is now officially dead. This is not a decision I liked making, but I honestly won't have the time to arrange things in a fashion to keep this up and most of the people who signed up seem to have forgotten about this already.

So yeah, thanks for the interest, especially you lovable people who came back. I had fun while this lasted and I...well, I like to hope that you found something enjoyable in this, at least. xD When I return from my constitutionally enforced exile, I hope to start up something new to commemorate the occasion and you are more than welcome back then, but until then...take care, guys. :3

 

[Loki]

Closed upon request, and Alter Ego?

You can just PM me next time. xD;