The Uprising: Fighting the Pokémon Extermination

[Skymin]

Josh felt a little better as he watched Sar walked away. Ashi's voice still lingered in his head but it was small and almost too faint to hear. He turned to his Pokémon, they all having a conversation with eachother and two newcomers, a Totodile and a Pikachu. Josh chuckled and got up, leaving them be and getting some food for himself, he was starving.

"... Thanks," He smiled at the Nurse, who replied with a short "no problem," and scurried off to the other side of the counter to fix up other Pokémon. Josh smiled and quickly ate what he was given. He grabbed a fair amount of Pokémon food (enough for his, Sar's and the new Pokémon that had joined theirs) and left it on the table. He walked back to the table, finished his food and sighed.

"Excuse me miss, that girl with the blue hair came up before, where did she go?" Josh asked the Nurse. She muttered something like, "Downstairs," and hurried back to what she was doing. Josh shrugged his shoulders and followed the stairs down. Sar was down there in what looked like a hurricane or a bomb had blown up, it was torn to shreds. She was talking to someone Josh hadn't seen before, about the Uprising. A Raichu stood by her side too.

"Uprising? I'm part of that," Josh piped up. "New members? Well, um, really Isabel's the only one to really accept them, or... Ashi, I think," he trailed off.

*

Knight thanked his trainer as he placed the food on the table and continued conversation.

<Nope, nothing really. We joined straight away, well, maybe because Joshua is related to a high ranked member of the Uprising,> he nodded. <And your trainer is especially nice. Tell her thanks later, Joshua hasn't been this sad since he split from his parents to come here. And even then, he's usually bright and happy.>

<Yeah, tell her thanks,> Bon said. <Joshua is particually emo when he wants to be and can't get out of the mood. It takes a special someone to perk him up.>

(crap forgot that Burr was a Raticate, I thought he was a Rattata.)

<

 

[dream's-epilogue]

"My name's Sar. Yours?"

Ikiji looked hard at her, and recognized her expression. It was strong, but slightly arrogant. He had to fight a sneer; he knew her type. She was one of those trainers who thought they knew everything, the bold, intelligent type. Someone after his own heart.

Hmph. Someone with intelligence. The Uprising seems to have a surprising shortage of that. This could be very interesting...I shall have to keep an eye on her...

He fought to keep himself from smirking. "...Ikiji."
-------------------
She felt like she'd been hit in the head with a sledgehammer. She managed to climb to her feet, and let out a low groan. She heard a familiar voice.

"Hmph. Awake again?"

She looked up at Ikiji, who was staring at her, his face unreadable. An unfamiliar woman stood near him, and the Raichu they'd rescued stood by her. She smiled weakly in his direction, and he returned the grin. Her head throbbed again.

<Ow...my head...what happened?>

"You fought a Meditite and threw all of your training out the window. Honestly, you made so many amateur mistakes, I don't know where to begin."

<Excuse me?>

"Allow me to walk you through it. First of all, you let that Meditite pull off Meditate without so much as a threat. And Mind Read. Mind f*****g Read! Did those weeks of training specifically for that move fly right out of that thick skull of yours?"

<Sorry, but I'm not psychic. And in case you didn't notice, I DID counter it just as I learned.>

"Right. When it made no difference."

<Besides, I managed to tie it, didn't I?>

"Last time I checked, a tie isn't winning. If we 'tie' with the PXs, that would just mean all of us would be dead. That does not strike me as a victory."

<Well, if I screwed up so much, why didn't you step in and say anything?!>

He sighed. "Because, I wished to see how you'd carry yourself in a two-on-two." He shook his head. "Not as well as I'd hoped, it would seem."

<And the fact that I've NEVER fought a two-on-two before had nothing to do with it, right?>

He looked at her sternly. "You have more than enough experience to compensate for that. You simply made mistakes; mistakes, I might add, that would be fatal in a real battle."

<Fine. So what are you suggesting?>

"Rest up and recover. Come morning, I'm going to run you ragged with training." He smirked. "I do hope you can handle it."

<Don't insult me. I can handle anything you can dish out, and more. But I don't see why I have to break my back training and you get to sit around and laugh at me.>

"Are you slow? This isn't a pleasure battle. This is a war. I will be training as well. Now, I suggest you spend the next few hours wisely."

<Whatever.> She turned and limped off.
---------------------------
Ikiji returned his attention to the woman. He narrowed his gaze. He spoke in a low voice, making sure no one was listening.

"Listen. You seem a cut above the others here. That trainer, Kensai, is more than competent. He and I returned from a raid on the PXS assault camp, after causing quite a bit of damage. Afterwards," he smiled slyly, "we had a rather...destructive training battle. I felt it would be a good chance to gauge his skills as a trainer; that, and we needed to blow off some stress from the raid. He exceeded my expectations.

"However, I cannot speak for the rest of the Uprising. In fact, I have yet to see more than a handful of members; I am beginning to think that joining might not be such a great idea. I have no wish to take orders, and I do not want to have to hold the hand of every inept trainer who thinks he knows what war is.

"On top of that, the PXS invasion force will be here in a matter of days. Kensai and I leveled their camp and slowed them down, but at most we have only three or four days to prepare.

"Consider your choice. This may very likely end up being a massacre. I sense you have your own reasons for fighting, and I have mine. But I am no fool. If this battle goes poorly, my companion and I will flee. 'Run away, and live to fight another day,' or so they say. I would prefer to avoid the deaths of the Uprising members, but I will not consign my partner and I to death to prevent it.

"I am not telling you to abandon this war. However, I have no concrete knowledge of the capabilities of the Uprising.In any war, allies are preferable. Should you wish to join, speak to Isabel. She is the leader, and, I believe, can admit new members, though," He smirked again. "I am in no hurry to join."

Another member walked up; Ikiji wondered how much he'd overheard.

"Uprising? I'm part of that. New members? Well, um, really Isabel's the only one to really accept them, or... Ashi, I think."

 

[Sweet Dreams]

His expression wavered as if he were fighting the urge to show some emotion, a satisfactory gleam in his eyes. He had labeled her personality, something everybody unconsciously did in the first few minutes of conversation with a person.

"Ikiji," he said, a smug tone entering his voice. Then the Pikachu awoke, causing him to look over. The pair bickered for quite some time, the guy appearing quite brutal. However, among the constant 'Pika's which were starting to give Sar a headache and his own comebacks, she thought they seemed rather comfortable, as if this was routine. She lost interest.

The Raichu was still hovering around her, staring from her, to the Pikachu, to Ikiji and back again. She sighed for what felt like the millionth time that day. "Go back, or do whatever. Go away," she told the orange and brown mouse Pokemon. The Raichu shook its head stubbornly, making a sound in its throat to emphasize his decision.

Then the boy, having finished his argument with his Pikachu, turned back. "Listen. You seem a cut above the others," Ikiji started, eyes narrowed. She raised her eyebrows at the comment. He's only known me for, what? A minute? And he's making so many snap judgments and actually confiding them to me, comparing me to other people he barely knows. Does he expect me to be pleased about that? She was getting slightly annoyed. A typical person - he spoke a lot, he judged her from her first four words, and he seemed to ooze overconfidence and arrogance from every pore of his body. Still, she listened, trying to avoid being hypocritical.

He continued on to assure her of his hesitation at joining and the Uprising's impending doom and the likely massacre that could occur, and of course how he would flee if his life was on the line, leaving other members to their fate. And he really meant what he said. Is this how he plans to get my trust? Sar thought bitterly. He was acting like how her father probably would, which was already a strike against him. She suddenly felt a need to escape outside so she could breathe.

Then Josh seemed to suddenly materialize beside them. She had to admit that she had never been so glad to see another person to distract her.

"Uprising? I'm part of that. New members? Well, um, really Isabel's the only one to really accept them, or... Ashi, I think," he said his sister's name distantly. Sar could've sworn if she was the type. He was completely undoing whatever she had tried to do when she talked to him before. He needed to get his mind off his sister before he could confront her about whatever the problem was. And she was not going to go touchy-feely again; especially not in front of Ikiji.

"Fine," she sighed, ignoring the Pikachu's owner. "Where is this 'Isabel', Josh? And what would you do if a PXS member in disguise wanted to join?" She asked him.

*

<Um, okay. Straight-off join, and Sar being 'especially nice'... I'm glad you think so, because she is. I'm just warning you not to re-think that the next time you meet her. I think she's embarrassed. And, you know what? She doesn't get embarrassed about anything. Except being nice to humans. She's almost as weird as Tock,> Burr rambled on in an amenable tone.

<Mm-hmm> Tock agreed in a distracted hoot, nodding. Her head swiveled around and her bright red eyes focused on them again. <Oh look, there's a scratch mark on the chair,> she continued in the same tone.

 

[dream's-epilogue]

After his little speech, he could tell he'd won no brownie points with her. He gave a small shrug.

Ah, well. I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to win a war. If she wants to blindly follow them to her demise, that's her decision.

"Fine. Where is this 'Isabel', Josh? And what would you do if a PXS member in disguise wanted to join?"

Matsuko, who had stuck around for the conversation, said something to Ikiji. He snickered.

"Really...you don't say..."

No standards, not even a test of allegiance. It seems I'm losing more faith in this leader with evry passin moment.

He turned to the newcomer. The one called Josh.

"So, my companion tells me she oversaw a complete stranger ask your Isabel for admittance...and the newcomer was admitted immediately and without even a sliver of suspicion. Care to explain that?"

 

[Mira]

(OOC: Isabel came in sometime during the posts to get the PXS person and only the last little bit is actually now. Sorry I got behind, but now I'm home =3)

Isabel sighed and was about to enter the Pokemon Center when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She jumped and was about to order Flareon to attack, but she found that it was only Sue.

"Brad wishes to speak to you," she said, her voice slightly distorted through the tinted visor of her helmet. "He says to bring the man who attacked you with."

Isabel nodded and they made their way around back. Isabel figured that it would be more inconspicuous to bring him around back rather than throw everyone into an uproar when a man was dragged through the room. Isabel made a motion through the window and Fay walked over and undid the lock with a psychic stream.

"Hey Ashi," Isabel said casually after sliding the window open. "I hope you don't mind me borrowing him for a moment. I'll be back in a flash."

Fay lifted up the man with another psychic stream, chair and all, and carefully lifted him out the window, jumping out after him. Umi followed, staring murderously at the unconscious man.

Sue led them down the snow-covered roads and Isabel realized that it had stopped snowing. Much to Isabel's surprise, Sue wasn't leading her to the Gym, but to Frosty Gorge's walls. Isabel was about to ask Sue what they were doing, when her eyes widened and her mouth fell open.

Before her was what seemed an entire work-force of Ice Pokemon. Trainers dressed in Guardian uniforms instructed the Pokemon where to move the snow. Rows of Piloswine were pushing the snow up against the walls, an enormous Mamoswine overseeing their work. A group of Snover were working on the walls as well, freezing the snow in place with an Abomasnow working along with them. Spheals fired water at the wall and Sneasels froze it in place with an Icy Wind while a Weavile and Walrein directed the attacks. Isabel looked up and saw to her astonishment a Glaceon perched on top of the towering walls. As it stood still, a huge block of ice began forming in the air. It grew until it was twice as large as the Pokemon itself and brought it slamming down into place in front of the wall before moving to the side a bit and beginning the process again. Sneasels leapt up and cut the ice shard into shape.

"This is her, Brad," Isabel heard Sue say.

Isabel turned and saw a tall man smiling down at her. He was dressed in an outfit similar to the Guardians', except that the pale snowflake-pattern on his clothing set him apart. His face was tanned slightly from the sun reflecting off the snow and his deep blue eyes stood out against his white hair with a blue steak. His frame was rather thin, but he seemed rather sturdy. He couldn't have been older than twenty-five.

"So," he said in a surprisingly low voice. "This is the young leader of the notorious Uprising. How old are you, Miss Evans?"

"I'm sixteen, sir," Isabel answered, managing to keep an embarrassed flush off her face.

"Could be worse," Brad said, his voice calm and warm. "I heard a rumor that you were twelve."

Isabel didn't comment and instead looked back at the working Pokemon.

"So... You build up the walls every time there is a blizzard?" she asked.

"Actually," Brad said, turning to look at the walls as well, "there hasn't been enough natural snowfall lately, so we scheduled a Pokemon Blizzard today so that we could repair Frosty Gorge's walls. We send out warnings to the townspeople well in advance. You didn't happen to get caught outside, did you?"

Isabel ignored his question and motioned Fay over. She carried the man, who remained unconscious, before them and set him on the ground. Umi growled and Isabel sensed that she was starting a Dark Pulse, but Isabel halted her with a hand.

"This is the man who attacked me early this morning," Isabel said, turning to Brad. "Do you have any idea how he got into Frosty Gorge?"

"The only way he could have would be to fly. We had patrols set on the walls that night, so he couldn't have scaled it," Brad explained. "We give our most sincere apologies for the attack, Isabel. We don't know what we can do to make it up to you and your team for what has happened to you under our protection."

"There is nothing you can do," Isabel said. "All we can do now is try to figure out what PXS is up to. We know now that they are aware of our position in Frosty Gorge..."

"Weav! Weav!" The Weavile that was working on the wall was now standing beside Brad, pulling on his sleeve and pointing to Frosty Gorge's entrance.

Isabel looked through the gap in the wall and at first saw nothing, but as she watched, she could make out a white shape moving against the snow. It quickly approached and Isabel saw that it was a Guardian on a snowmobile.

"Brad!" the Guardian shouted as it clamored off the snowmobile, its voice clearly female. "PXS... It's here!"

"Calm down," Brad said firmly. "What's their status?"

"It looks as though they had been attacked," she said.

Brad and the Guardian turned to look at Isabel, who shook her head in disbelief.

"I-I didn't authorize any attack," Isabel stuttered.

"Well, now they have been provoked," the Guardian said. "They will be here in a matter of hours!"

"Nothing..."

Everyone looked over to see the man looking up at them wild-eyed.

"Nothing... you can do," he coughed, almost sounding as if he were laughing.

Isabel's eyes widened. She kneeled next to him and motioned for Umi to come next to her. Umi began preparing a Dark Pulse.

"You will tell me everything you know about PXS," Isabel spat, more hate burning inside her than she ever knew before.

Now was the time for action.


***

The door to the Pokemon Center burst open. Umi leapt through, carrying a crazed man with her and pinning him down with her forepaws as dark energy pulsed out of her. Isabel stood in the doorway, Flareon and Fay standing behind her. Sue stood next to her, her helmet now removed and under her arm.

"PXS is coming," Isabel said. "They'll be here by dusk."

(OOC: It has begun.)

 

[doomagedon]

Kensai had decided to let his pokemon take a break from training. He brought them inside for food and warmth. When he made it inside, he found the pokemon center in chaos, and the leader seemed to have returned. He made his way to the leader, "What is going on here?" He asked. He was worried by the fear on some the trainers eyes. (OOC: welcome Back)

 

[Zeph.]

(OOC: Yaay! Guess we can cancel that battle...)

Just as Greg lined up next to Vic about to battle, Blade paused and turned to the entrance.

"What's up Blade?" he asked the pokemon, before he heard a thump. Blade quickly darted up the stairs and stood at the top. Greg watched him, then turned to Vic, Kez and Charlie, "Sorry guys, another time?"

Greg followed Blade to the top of the stairs and saw an Umbreon pinning down the man from earlier, releasing some sort of dark energy. In the doorway stood Isabel, a Flareon and Espeon, and another girl with a helmet under her arm.

"PXS is coming," Isabel said. "They'll be here by dusk."

Oh boy...

"I'll go let the others know!" Greg replied with a sense of urgency. He and Blade ran back down to the battle arena, "Guys! Did you hear that? PXS are gonna be here by dusk!"

 

[Kez_2007]

Just as Greg lined up next to Vic about to battle, Blade paused and turned to the entrance.

"What's up Blade?" he asked the pokemon, before he heard a thump. Blade quickly darted up the stairs and stood at the top. Greg watched him, then turned to Vic, Kez and Charlie, "Sorry guys, another time?"

"Dude that was so not cool." Said Kez returning Rocky to it's pokeball, glancing to the nearby bench he thought he would rest his legs but he barely had time to sit down as Greg and Blade rushed back down into the battle arena. "Guys! Did you hear that? PXS are gonna be here by dusk!"

"WHAT!" Kez Exclaimed before he flew up the stairs, Upn seeing Isabel He asked her "Is this True?" Her reply confirmed his fears... "Everyone listen to me If you have not healed your pokemon, form an orderly line and i will treat them as quick as possible, Don't push or i will throw you out of the centre, If you have had your pokemon healed then get some rest, your pokemon are not the only ones who have a battle to face!" and with that Kez set out trying to do his part, after that all he could hope is that they would prevail and that beo... would be safe..

 

[lochnessoon]

Tabby had just brought Kyndle to the pokemon center and she was sleeping off the aftermath of the battle they had tied with Kensai.

"He still owes me a rematch," she muttered darkly.

Suddenly someone she had never seen before came shooting down the stairs.

"Guys! Did you hear that? PXS are gonna be here by dusk!"

"WHAT???" Tabby jumped up and looked around incredulously. She'd known that PXS would find them someday, but she really wasn't prepared for it to be so soon. She jumped over to the bed where Kyndle was asleep and shook her vulpix awake, to freaked out to be gently. Kyndle woke up and looked at her indignantly.

"Sorry," she told her pokemon. "Wait! What am I saying? The PXS are going to be here by dusk!" she told the vulpix. "We've gotta get ready!"

She jumped up and checked her supplies. Backpack, check. Food, check. Pokeball, check. Potions and other healing items, check. Baseball bat in case Kyndle fainted (just in case), check. It seemed like she had everything.

"Kyndle! Come on!" she told her vulpix, then ran outside to get ready.

 

[dream's-epilogue]

He'd heard.

PXS at dusk. He smiled coldly.

"And so it begins."

He didn't wait to hear the man's response, but instead left the two there to ponder his question. He caught up with Matsuko.

"The battle will start soon."

<...yes.>

"This does not leave us time for training. We must focus on treating your injuries. They are not severe, and the center will likely be filled with people wanting to get thier own pokemon treated. I shall deal with your wounds myself."

<Hey, Kij?>

"Yes?"

<What was with that monologue you gave that girl back there? That wasn't like you at all.>

He just smiled.

<Well? ARe you going to answer me?>

His smiled grew wider.

<Kij! Answer me!>

"You really didn't see through it?"

<Through what?>

"I'll take that as a 'no.' At first, I thought her to be like me. Strong. A worthy fighter. But, I had to be sure. I had to test her.

"So, I gave that little speech. I wanted to gauge her reactions. And it would seem I was wrong."

"I saw the apprehension in her eyes when I mentioned the part about fleeing if the battle seemed lost. If she knew what real war was like, she wouldv'e felt sympathy, or at least indifference, at my comment there. Instead, she distrusted me for it. That tells me she knows nothing of the true horrors of war. I doubt she's ever actually killed, or at least as personally as any soldier has. For her own sake, she'd best leave. This war might break her.

"If she were an intellectual equal, she would've seen through the ruse. She would've noticed I was lying, manipulating her. Instead, she took everything I said at face value. She earnestly believed me. I feel a little guilty, it was almost too easy. But, that isn't the best part."

<'Best part?'>

"That look in her eyes. It was pity. She saw my past in my eyes. I've seen that expression a thousand times before.

"She thinks she can use my history to control me, bend me to her will." He let out a cruel chuckle. "Why can these fools not understand that such a past is a strength, not a weakness?"

"Nevertheless, she thinks she can use me to her own ends. Humorous, considering how thoroughly she bought my little ploy." His smile was chilling, and he let out an icy laugh. Matsuko replied.

<Well, what will you do?>

"For now? Nothing. Let her delude herself into thinking I'm just some angsty preteen with a haunting history. Let her think she can manipulate me.

"Then, when the time is right, I shall take that delusion and turn it to my advantage." He gave another sinister chuckle. Matsuko hesitated a moment before replying.

<That's cold, Kij.>

"Welcome to the world, Matsuko. It's a cold, cruel place."

They arrived back at the empty room from before. Ikiji lifted Matsuko onto the cot, and found a medical kit nearby. He opened it, and set to work treating her injuries. She winced when he touched her neck.

<Ow! Damn...>

"Oh, hold still, will you? You have no one to blame for these injuries but yourself..."

 

[Skymin]

"Fine," Sar sighed, turning and facing Josh and putting her back to the guy with the Pikachu. "Where is this 'Isabel', Josh? And what would you do if a PXS member in disguise wanted to join?"

"Uhh..." Josh started before he was cut off.

So, my companion tells me she oversaw a complete stranger ask your Isabel for admittance...and the newcomer was admitted immediately and without even a sliver of suspicion. Care to explain that?" the other guy said, smirking slightly. Josh hesitated a few times.

"I'm not really a high member so I'm really in no position to say anything, so-" Josh was cut off again by a shout from the top of the stairs.

"Guys! Did you hear that? PXS are gonna be here by dusk!" the voice called before disappearing. Josh gasped and spun around, facing Sar.

"Sar, Isabel's upstairs. You can talk to her and I'm sure she'll be glad to get all the members she can right now. I've seen what the PXS can do and it's not pretty. Follow me!" Josh waved a hand towards upstairs and sprinted up. Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap was the only thing Josh could hear in his head right now. His Pokémon were all exactly where they were, wide-eyed and full of shock. He quickly returned them back in their balls and nodded at Sar's Pokémon.

"You guys better get back to her, there'll be real trouble soon, we need to prepare!"

* * *

Ashi spun around as the window flung open. She almost flung a PokéBall at the intruder until she realised it was Isabel. She smiled and waved casually, greeting her then pulling the man (with help from Fay) out the window. Umi followed, jumping out of the window after Fay. Ashi shrugged and followed them, climbing out the window. She followed them along the path until she was behind some trees, 10 or so metres away. She could barely see anything, but she could hear Isabel okay. She listened to Isabel talk to some man called Brad, who was with the guardians. Ashi let all the information casually float into her head until -

"Brad! PXS... It's here!"

"Calm down. What's their status?"

"It looks as though they had been attacked."

"I-I didn't authorize any attack."

"Well, now they have been provoked. They will be here in a matter of hours!"

"Nothing... Nothing... you can do."

Ashi stood at the window, wide-eyed. The PXS? Here? Obviously not a pipsqueak team of 3. Twili tugged at the legs of her pants, moaning at her. Ashi blinked, nodded, and ran back down the path and back into the Centre, into the chaos of trainers, gathering around. Obviously, none of them had heard the news yet, as the centre would have been pulled apart by screams by now. Isabel walked in shortly after, Fay, Flare and Umi by her side, as well as the man that Ashi had taken the liberty in torturing before.

"PXS is coming," Isabel said, the darkness clear in her tone and her expression. "They'll be here by dusk."

"Oh fack," Ashi breathed, before the centre exploded into screams.

 

[Sweet Dreams]

Sar didn't even glance at Ikiji as he left, a part of her relieved to be out of his presence. A very large part of her. He had also left Josh stumbling for answers, wide-eyed. Then a voice called out, informing them of the looming arrival of PXS. Damn, Sar thought, curling her hands into fists. She had spent the last few weeks doing everything in her power to avoid PXS through any means possible. Burr had seemed unusually agitated as they traveled through the snow-covered ground as if some smell had bothered him. It was just like the Raticate to keep something as important as an army from her to keep her from worrying.

Her Pokemon weren't strong - far from, actually. It was a miracle they had even survived for so long by themselves. And now they were going to face them head-on? Here? Absolute insanity.

"Sar, Isabel's upstairs. You can talk to her and I'm sure she'll be glad to get all the members she can right now. I've seen what the PXS can do and it's not pretty. Follow me!" Josh yelled, breaking her out of her thoughts. He ran up the stairs quickly, not looking back to see if she was even following. For a moment, Sar contemplated fleeing to avoid this 'war' - Sar snorted at the term - between a group of teenagers and another group of well-equipped government officials. She dismissed it, running up the steps after Josh. Where would I flee to, anyway? I'd probably die before I ever reached the coast. And I know that no ships are leaving from here to any other region, dammit! If I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die fighting those stupid cowards that make up the government. Besides, running is what my father'd do. She thought furiously, racing up in time to hear Josh tell her Pokemon to get back to her. As if they didn't know that.

The Raichu's ears twitched. <PXS? They're coming?> He said apprehensively. He had comrades in there, and he didn't want to hurt them, even if they were being forced to try and exterminate him. He wanted to free them, like Ikiji and Matsuko did for him.

Burr dropped from a standing position to all fours, cringing with an apologetic face. He'd known they were nearby, and now he knew that Sar knew he'd known. She glared at him but refrained from saying anything else. This wasn't the time. Tock was still staring indifferently at everybody, even though she knew what trouble PXS would cause.

And of course, it was pure pandemonium everywhere else in the Pokecenter. Except for the girl who seemed to have yelled the fact out in the first place. Sar stepped forward, since she ad an authoritative air about her that Sar instinctively loathed.

"If you're Isabel, I want to join," she told her.

 

[Mira]

The Pokemon Center exploded into chaos. Isabel hadn't expected anything different, of course. She had tried to think of a way to inform them of PXS's approach without causing an uproar but found that this was the best way. There was no time to waste trying to break it lightly.

"What is going on here?" one person asked.

"Pokemon Exporting Services. They are close and they are beginning to approach. We only have until dusk before they arrive. I was told that their original plan was to come tomorrow... But now they have been provoked," Isabel said, looking around at all the surrounding trainers on the last word.

"Is this true?" Kez asked fearfully and Isabel nodded.

"Everyone listen to me! If you have not healed your pokemon, form an orderly line and i will treat them as quick as possible. Don't push or i will throw you out of the centre! If you have had your pokemon healed then get some rest. Your pokemon are not the only ones who have a battle to face!" Kez announced.

"If you're Isabel, I want to join," a girl said, looking at Isabel with loathing plain in her eyes. Isabel raised an eyebrow.

"Everyone here has the common goal of fighting PXS and therefore will fight alongside us," Isabel said. "But I'm afraid I cannot let somebody join the Uprising who resents me even though she doesn't know me. At least not unless said person has a viable reason to dislike me and wishes to make it known so that we may move on to more important matters concerning PXS's attack and concentrate on fighting a war to save the Pokemon of this region rather than our own petty arguments, hmm?"

 

[Angry Ampharos]

Name: Toran Wilson

Age: 10

Gender: Boy

Appearance: The only clothes he wears are Shorts as thats all he had but even in the present day he wears nothing else. He is used to them attactched to them because of everything he's been through. He has a scar under his left eye and long black hair that is never tidy which covers his forehead. He has multipule cuts and bruises but doesn't care. They toughened him up and now he's as strong as a Machoke and as fas as a Weavile. He takes hard hits like they were nothing at all, then he takes the momentum of the hits and sends them back double power. There is a huge scar down from his left shoulder to his elbow from when he was seven and attacked by a Scizor, but treats the event as if it didn't matter.


Personality: Cautious, Determined, Serious, Curious, all because of his past (even though it was in the future) he developed those traits and survival skills. His only Pokemon is a Larvitar (Kris) who supported him and Toran supported it back. They went through alot together. From the experiences from the future he honed his senses and is practicly a pokemon. When he sets his mind on something he won't stop for a second thought, no matter what the odds he never gave up and came out OK. He is an outlaw in the future because of this

Background: Toran comes from 50 years in the future, the war is over. Only a few of each side remain. Ho-oh, the guardian of life, has been killed in the struggle so no new life can come. It seemed as if life was about to end when the last ones had gone. Two Pokemon that survived are Celebi and a severly weakened Dialga. Dialga could barely keep the time portal open for thirty seconds with Celebi's help and neither can travel through the portal in their condition so they sent Toran knowing his resolution to do everything he can to stop it, even if he has to give up his own life.

Additional Information: Toran can instantly gain a pokemons trust.

RP Sample: (My acount on Neoseeker) The man gaped "OMG what is that" "Flygon, throw Machamp now!!! Then use dragonbreath" the speedy dragon scored a direct hit and was ready to attack again. "Ice Punch with all your hands machamp!" "Sandstorm, then double team attack" The real Flygon barely dodged the attack. "This isn't good. I'm giving Flygon too much of my energy and if I don't finish it soon it's over, he'll take all my pokemon and go free too. It's all or nothing." Thought Emile "Finish it with DynamicPunch" "Steel Wing! Give it everything you've got!" Suddenly Emile begins to glow too and Flygon KOs Machamp and Emile climbs on its back and Flygon fly's away while Emile passes out on it's back.

 

[dream's-epilogue]

"There."

Matsuko stood. He left leg was still a little stiff, but other than that she felt fine.

<So. The PXS at dusk.>

"Correct. On the downside, that gives us less time to prepare. On the upside, I sincerely doubt they could've replaced all the hardware we demolished in such a short time, so we'll likely be dealing with a smaller force than the one we saw at the camp.

"They're getting hasty and sloppy. If we can keep them disorganized like this, we may stand a chance of actually winning this war, Uprising or not."

He stood, and started to make his way to the lobby, Matsuko following. She noticed a concerned look on his face. Matsuko questioned him increduously.

<Kij, what's with you?>

"What are you talking about?"

She hesitated a moment, then took a guess.

<Don't tell me...Kij, are you....worried about the Uprising members?>

"Don't be dense! They are just a means to an end, that is all." But his eyes told a different story.

Kij, you really ARE concerned for them, aren't you? You,ve....changed. And not for the worse, I think.

He looked over and caught her staring at him. He scowled.

"What?"

<Nothing....nothing...>

They entered the lobby, where it seemed that every Uprising member was in attendance.

Fewer than I thought...

Her heard the voice of Isabel, the leader. She was explaining the situation; she not-so-subtly implied that it was Kensai's and Ikiji's fault that the PXS were attcking early.

If we HADN'T done that, you'd all be facing a force three times as powerful a few hours later than now. Does no one here have any tactical sense?!

The woman, Sar, approached the leader. She saked to join, to which Isabel gave a stinging reply. Ikiji hid his laughter at the woman's expression, and waited to her Sar's response.

 

[Wolf in the Rain]

(OOC: ACK! THEYre here!!! Sorry, i would've posted yesterday, but I had to drive 12 hours to NC then fly to CA (:P) so, last night, I was exhausted...)

Sakura cocked her head sideways and looked strangely at the Raticate and Hoot-Hoot for their comments. "Right... Well, we should probably go. See ya!" She said as cheerily as possible, before turning to Dile and saying in a low rushed voice. "Come on Dile."

"What!?" Dile exclaimed. "But we just got here!"

"Come on Dile..." Sakura hissed, before turning to leave. Dile sighed and ran to catch up to her. "They're kinda weird..." Sakura said, looking around for Chris.

"Really? I thought they were kinda funny."

"You would..." She replied before they both ran over to Chris.

----------
Chris laid in front of the television, really only half-way watching it. This was the first time in a long time that they had had a chance to rest, and he wasn't about to waste it. Char laid next to a heater alongside where Silver was perched, Ivy was asleep next to Chris, and Dile and Sakura were playing with some other Pokemon. For the first time in a long time, everything seemed calm, like the new law had never been past.

Suddenly, Isabel burst through the Pokemon center doors in a panic. And, just as suddenly, that feeling was over.

Chris quickly jumped off of the couch causing Ivy to fall off. Char and Silver flew over to him as Chris rapidly walked over to see what was wrong. He got there just in time to hear Isabel say the words he least wanted to hear.

"PXS is coming," Isabel said. "They'll be here by dusk."

Chris was taken aback by the news for a moment, stunned for how long, he couldn't tell by the fact that this was happening, that this was real. Frosty Gorge could be their last foothold in the region, and the PXS was about to wipe it out.

Dile ran up and tugged on the bottom of his jeans as Sakura stood next to him. Chris slowly looked down. No, this wasn't the time to freeze up and loose all that they worked for and lost. He looked around the crowd, and all he could see was panic and fear. If they didn't get the situation under control soon, they would have no chance.

"Isabel." Chris said, walking over to her. She was talking to some girl, but right now, Chris didn't care, interrupting. "We need to prepare for this now. I don't want another disaster, do you?"

 

[doomagedon]

When kensai heard that the PXS was coming he had mixed feelings. Part of him was fearful of the upcoming battle, but part of him was excited to get to finish what he and Ikiji had started. There is no way that they have replaced all the damages we did to them, are they stupid?!?

None the less, he didn't want to take any chances. He made his way around the pokemon center till finally found Ikiji. If he was going to rely on anyone in this battle it would be him. He was tough, he wouldn't go down easily. "Ikiji...whats the plan? how should we handle this upcoming attack?" He wasn't trying to go against the uprising, but so far Ikiji has shown more relyability than anyone else. Kensai's pokemon werent hurt anymore, just tired. He was letting them all rest in their pokeballs until the battle had begun.

While he was waiting for a reply, kensai was busy trying to think up strategies for the up coming battle. One of which was to let his vibrava and any other pokemon that could use dig to allow for all the trainers present to surround the force, using the snow as cover. It would make the enemy think they were facing alot more trainers then there really are. And if nothing else with them surrounded the pokemon could attack at full force without any worry of friendly fire.

 

[The warden]

Paul was sat in the entrance of the Pokemon centre, alone, I really need to start talking to people more often and get to know some names.

"Pokemon Exporting Services. They are close and they are beginning to approach. We only have until dusk before they arrive. I was told that their original plan was to come tomorrow... But now they have been provoked," Isabel said, looking around at all the surrounding trainers on the last word.

"Is this true?" Kez asked, Isabel nodded.

"Everyone listen to me! If you have not healed your Pokemon, form an orderly line and I will treat them as quick as possible. Don't push or I will throw you out of the centre! If you have had your Pokemon healed then get some rest. Your Pokemon are not the only ones who have a battle to face!" Kez announced. Paul got up and pushed his glasses on to his nose.

Paul turned to face Bolt and crouched down next to her. "Can you go get my bag please?" Paul asked her, Bolt turned and leapt on to a near by chair and away in the direction of the room where Paul had slept the night before. Paul walked over to Kez.

"Kez can I do anything to help?" Paul asked.

 

[Sweet Dreams]

"Everyone here has the common goal of fighting PXS and therefore will fight alongside us, but I'm afraid I cannot let somebody join the Uprising who resents me even though she doesn't know me. At least not unless said person has a viable reason to dislike me and wishes to make it known so that we may move on to more important matters concerning PXS's attack and concentrate on fighting a war to save the Pokemon of this region rather than our own petty arguments, hmm?" The younger girl said, confidence oozing out of every syllable.

Sar sighed. "Look, I don't dislike you, personally, although I'm well on my way there after that speech. And, obviously, I'm trying to put aside my 'own, petty arguments' if I'm talking to you. However, there are some people in the world that can't manage to hide every single emotion they feel. I assure you that I'm not stupid enough to let any of my emotions hinder me or your team on the battlefield," Sar said, voice tight. Here was another person who thought that they knew everything about everybody. If this went on for much longer, she'd ditch them despite the wishes of her Pokemon and try to find a way to survive this screwed-up region.

"Besides, I have no choice to fight whether I'm in your team or not, and anybody can tell that there is more chance of surviving if there are other people looking out for me. Obviously, you aren't interested, so I'll just go and leave you to find and reprimand Ikiji and... Kensai, I think it was, for 'provoking' the PXS," she turned around to her Pokemon and the Raichu. Burr and Tock were staring at her in amazement - this was a day of firsts for Sar.

Her anger had been tightly bottled inside for a her whole life. Before, she had let a fraction of that out in defying orders from both her father and the school in as many ways as possible. When she had gone on the run, that pastime had stopped. Her stress level had increased remarkably while on the run, and then she had learnt of the Uprising, had a little talk with Ikiji, learnt that Burr had kept a complete army of PXS a secret, and then tried to talk to some young upstart to join, making a huge effort on her part to try and not loathe the girl on sight... and faced rejection. Fantastic.

"Josh, you're on your own there, buddy. It's a no-go for joining, so bye. Stay alive," she called out to the boy, waving. Most of her supplies had been left a block away from the Pokemon centre last night due to sheer exhaustion, numbness and relief at the sight of it, so she returned Tock into her Pokeball for a rest and called Burr over, turning to the Raichu.

"Listen, go follow some other random person or something. You'll be killed," she told the Pokemon. He shook his head adamantly. Sar sighed in frustration, shrugging to herself before getting out of the centre. She spotted her supplies lying forlornly on the side of the road and checked it. Water, clothes, food, lengths of rope, my dad's four guns, ten clips of bullets, holsters, a couple of Pokeballs, some Super Potions... Against an army. Great. I hope somebody finds my body and buries me, she thought morbidly to herself. Working quickly, as though she'd practised, she put on the holsters and slid guns through each of them. Two went around her waist, one smaller one tied just abover her knee, hidden under her lond-shorts, and the other wrapped around her shoulder so that she could reach it through her neckline. She'd practised with these a lot. Both at home, and while traveling. She was certain she could shoot within a centimetre (2/5 inches) of her bullseye. Then again, she knew that targets didn't move, and that they weren't people.

So, she'd never fatally shot anybody in cold blood. She kind of just tied the few PXS members she had confronted to trees, knocking them unconscious, gagging them, shooting their feet, and leaving an apple just out of reach. She was certain that after a few days at least, that they would be driven mad.

She straightened and looked around. What now? She thought, slightly desperately. She was, almost certainly, going to die. The thought calmed her slightly. She wasn't all too afraid of death, which was strange for a girl with relatively peaceful background. Her Pokemon were pretty much the only reason she was alive.

 

[dream's-epilogue]

Ikiji fought the urge to laugh when Sar was rejected, but inside he felt relieved.

It's for the best. If she were to fight, she'd likely be killed.

He stopped, shocked at himself, and gave himself a mental slap.

What the HELL is wrong with you, Ikiji?! Concern for a girl you barely know?! Damn, all this PXS nonsense is making me soft...

She made on elast futile effort to ditch the Raichu, then left the center with it in pursuit.

He sighed. He felt suddenly weary.

Everything's changing. I'm beginning to think that getting involved in all of this was a big mistake. I'm feeling...ugh...compassion for people I don't even know. And, I can't believe I'm saying this, I'm actually starting to fear for their lives. They should mean nothing to me. Why is this happening...?

A voice snapped him out of his reverie. It was Kensai, asking for a plan. Ikiji couldn't answer for a moment.

Kensai. You've fought well, and proven you're a capable warrior. But, this isn't the same thing. This is a war. There will be casualties. I cannot help but wonder; will you be one of them?

He spoke, his voice heavy and tired.

"Truthfully, I do not know. Even with all of my experience, I have never faced a situation as severe as this. We are outnumbered and outgunned. I'm afraid I can't think of anything that wouldn't be shaky at best.

He looked away, out at the falling snow.

"Kensai. Know this. I am not a member of the Uprising. I have my reasons for fighting, but I am not your comrade. You have others to fight with, and a leader to folow. But," he hesisted, and a flicker of sadness crossed his face. "Matsuko and I have only each other. We shall fight alone. Just as we always have."

He turned back, and offered his hand once again.

"You earned my respect in that raid. You've proven yourself a capable fighter. But now, the end is in sight, whatever lies at that end. Should neither of us return, it was an honor to fight beside you."