As the pokemon and weapons are issued the trainers of the town would be split up and brought to different tents to speak with officers there. The trainers would find themselves staring at a series of pokedex’s that double as cellphones and had rough maps of the southern Capasia. The officer spoke up as these items were handed out. “You have been split into groups.. Though you do not have to stay as such. If you wish to wander off in pairs of on your own that is your choice! Though by being in groups you are better protected against possible enemies who have made it through the front line. Also you will be able to train against one another which will increase the speed at which you can compete with each gym. What gyms you choose to go in what order is up to you. This group will meet up at the fountain at Eight AM. You are DISMISSED! Return to your homes. When you arrive here in the morning decide among yourselves what to do! We will have nothing more to do with you until you succeed or fail.”

---

At eight am soldiers walked around the town placing boxes in trucks that were preparing to leave as the draft was over. Some soldiers stayed behind and they stood by the doors of the pokemon Gym that the fountain stood in front of. They were there to restrain and transport any trainers who failed immediately to the front lines. Light billowed over the tops of buildings illuminating the streets with it’s soft light. People walked around town going about their normal business as the soldiers had become a common happening over the past two years.

The alarm clock had woke up Apalacia at seven in the morning. She showered and dressed grabbing her bag full of pokeballs and set out the door for the fountain. it wasn’t long before she found herself standing at it about fifteen minutes early. With a sigh she sat down placing her face in her hands for a moment before looking up. With light movements she pulled her machete free of the sheath and looked it up and down and sighed some before sliding it back in. “I can’t believe this is happening” She said more to herself than anyone else. She was in her own little world and would likely be unaware of anyone around her as her blue and green hair fell to frame her face

The morning had come all to quickly. It had taken a long hot shower to get her to take up all the way, and her long red hair was heavy with the water by the time she'd felt alert enough to get out.

Serenity had struggled to sleep the night following the announcement. The war was not news to her, nor was the knowledge that soldiers had to come from somewhere. She had even become used to the idea that someday she might be faced with the reality of joining herself. And yet, none of that had prepared her for having to begin her Pokemon journey under the threat of deployment. It wasn't that she wasn't ready to leave home and explore the world, or even that she wasn't looking forward to finding and capturing Pokemon of her own.

But there was a decent chance that none of that was going to happen. She and her ponyta had been together for years, and they were good together. Her charmander, though, was new. He seemed to have a pleasant personality, but he wasn't trained yet. And she would have to use both of them to grow her colletion, and then train those to the best of her ability. And her survival- and that of her pokemon- would depend on her skill in that area.

Breakfast was a tough affair. Her brothers-twins and only 7- wept against her legs as she made pancakes for the last time. Her father paced the front room the entire time she was cooking and making sure the boys ate, and only when she had gathered her pack onto her back did he stop her. His hug was firm, and the wallet he tucked into her hands was heavy with the savings that could be spared for her.

And that parting- so like her mothers from almost a year ago, weighed heavily on her. She'd dressed for travel though, in sturdy black and blue pants and tank top. There was a jacket in her pack, along with a few changes of clothes and the freeze dried food that served as the staple for most Pokemon trainers.

Her Pokemon were both in their pokeballs on her belt as she approached the fountain, staring around at the familiar town square as though she'd never seen it before-- for she might not see it again.

Reggie left his house that morning to the memory of saying good bye to his mom as she desperately tried to hold back her tears. He had wanted to comfort, to tell her that he'd come back when this is all over . . . but he couldn't. That was what his dad had told them both before he had gone off to fight, and those words haunt him to this day. He didn't want to add onto her burdens by weighing her down with a promise he couldn't keep. He said nothing to her, just a hug that didn't last long enough.

A yawn escaped his lips as he made his way to the fountain, still feeling exhausted from the events of last night. He hadn't been able to sleep, so he had gone into the woods to get used to training with pokemon, as well as get them more used to him. The Froakie, who he had decided to call Reign due to how snobbish he acted, was still wary of him, but the Axew, who had the super creative name of Axia, seem to have warm-up to him. That same Axew also tried to bite his Mom a couple times whenever she got close, which might've been a sign of it being a very protective pokemon. That was cute now, but when it evolved into a Haxorus. . . things could get ugly if he didn't break that habit.

As he neared the fountain, he noticed that he wasn't the first one to arrive, and did his best to wipe his dace clean of any residual traces of the second activity he did that night. If one looked close enough, they'd see the faint streaks that ran down from his eyes, and his hands were wrapped in bandages, the knuckles slowly turning red as the blood seeped through. By the time he was within sight of those around, he'd look like he always did, laid-back and without a single care in the world. As he approached he gave a small wave to the Red-haired girl who was looking around as if she might never see this place again. A sentiment he could relate to.

He recognized Apalacia rather easily, not many people had her awesome hair style( if he thought he could pull it off, Reggie would've totally died his hair the same color). He could also see that this whole thing was getting to her a bit as well. He didn't say anything as he walked over, just gave her a nod if she looked up to acknowledge his presence, just walked over to where she was sitting and took a seat next to her. He made sure to give her some space though, in case she wasn't in the mood for company. Reaching for his belt, Reggie let out Reign and Axia into the fountain pool.

Axia was less than pleased with the sudden transition, unlike Reign who took to swimming laps around the small pool, and she immediately exit the fountain in a hurry. After climbing out she quickly shook herself dry, which would cause both Reggie and Apalacia to get splattered with the run-off.

"Not a fan of swimming are ya Axia?" He chuckled as he picked up the little dragon type, pulling out a towel to help dry her off. As he dealt with the Axia's struggling, he finally addressed Apalacia in his usual cheerful tone. "So, Apalacia . . . what pokemon did you pick out? As you can see, I got these two little trouble-makers, the Froakie is Reign and this is Axia. Watch out, though, she's a bit . . . aggressive towards other females, so she might nip ya if you try to pet her." He laughed at his comment for a short while, but again his thoughts drifted toward what this adorable little creature evolved into.

"Ya know, if you coukd help me work on breaking that habit now, that'd be a big help. I'm kinda afraid of what'll happen in the future if we don't straighten her out while she's still little." Once Axia was dry again, he let her down on the ground, where she would waddle around for a bit until it was time to go. Reign was sitting on top of the fountain at the moment, looking over the plaza as if it were his own personal kingdom. Reggie looked over the plaza as well, and while his face never changed, his hands slowly clenched into fists as he felt an indescribable mix of emotions flood through him.

"I'm really going to miss this place." He said out loud, though it was clear to whoever listened that it was more to himself than anything else.

@TauGirl

Trystan had gone to bed early the night previous and had woke up just as early. Around 5'o'clock Trystan rose from his bed and dressed in a heavy sweat suit. He was going for a morning jog and he wanted a good workout before leaving. Exiting his apartment he jogged around the block a few time before jogging to the town park. As he ran in the empty park as the sounds of the waking wildlife greeted him he thought of his parents. He thought of his brother and sister. He even thought about his newly accuired pokemon.

This damned war had killed his folks and took his siblings away from him, but he understood it. He understood it as soon as he introduced himself to his pokemon. Something about having your own changes your whole outlook on them. The north was known for using them as simple means to an end, but they are more than that. He knew it just from knowing his own for this short time. That is why he vowed to end this war by any means nessisary.

As the morning sun rose Trystan continued his workout. Using the playground equipment to his advantage he did pull ups and other manuevers. An alarm on his watch sounded alerting him it was half past 6 and time to go home and get ready to go. When he returned home he released his pokemon from their pokeballs. "Rise and shine you two. Got a long and exciting day ahead of us. Who wants breakfast?" He asked with a smile. His Zubat and Sandile cried out excitedly. They were young and hopeful, but Trystan knew they were strong and eagar to please. Good traits in pokemon ment for war.

Trystan made a big breakfast for the three of them. Eggs, sausage, Blukberry pancakes, and potato and mushroom hash. It was probably going to be their last true meal in a very long time so he wanted it to be memorable. After breakfast Trystan took a long hot shower. Another luxory he wanted to remember while on the road. When he finished he dressed in his father's old military fatigues and packed a spare set in his pack. Strapping his belt on he returned his pokemon to their balls and secured them to it. Finally he gave his rifle a once over and stepped out the door.

Oddly enough he sort of blened into the crowd as no one recognied him in the uniform he was wearing. He just looked like another soldier walking among them. It sort of made it easy on Trystan. Not really wanting to go through goodbyes with people he knew he walked on to the fountain square they were ordered to meet at. Already a few trainers had arrived. Some he knew more than others, but one stood out with her long red hair. Serenity was an old friend. They met on the primary school playground years ago. He walked up behind her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

"Hey Serenity. You look like we ain't coming back. Don't be so pessimistic. You got nothing to worry about. I got your back." He said with a smile. Sure they could never come back, but Trystan wasn't much of a negative thinker. To him you think about the negativity you get the negativity.

Jessie awoke the next morning feeling sick he rolled in his bed to stare at two pokeballs. He forced himself out of bed to have a shower the sickness seemed to have disappeared finally. He left the shower and got changed to here his mother calling him for breakfast.

Jessie sat eating his breakfast alone his mother was up stairs whispering to his sister to stop crying also making sure he couldn't hear but it was easily heard. He had a sportsbag sitting next to him packed with clothes money and pokemon. "Alright I'm gonna head out now" he said shouting up the stairs. "WAIT!" His mother shouted back she ran down stairs and hugged Jessie, he felt the tears of his mother, he however would not cry it would only make her sadder.

He left with the sportsbag full of the essentials he waved goodbye to his home to see his sister waving back. He headed towards the fountain to see some familiar faces. He sat at the fountain by himself, he knew he was not the kind of person to be sitting alone but he had to think about some things.

He looked around as he sat there and brushed his hair with his hands and just looked straight forward.

Null

Since day one, the morning had always been Jericho’s favorite time of day. No alarm was needed to pull him out of his bed, no coffee needed to rouse him from the remnants of sleep. Today was the day, and he would have been lying if he said he wasn’t excited for it. He was ready for it; that what it was. The young man was ready to begin his ascension to glory. There was a quick breakfast with his parents, no tearful goodbyes, no worry from either his mother or his father. He had promised them that he would bring nothing but glory back; and they had believed him. Why wouldn’t they? He hadn’t failed them before, and this wouldn’t be the beginning of that.

Carrying his backpack filled with the essential supplies he felt he’d needed, Jericho tapped the Pokéballs hanging off of his belt and smiled to himself. This was it, his chance for greatness. And he would grab the brass ring that had been presented before him and he would never ever let it go. Looking up, he could see the fountain he was meant to meet his ‘group;’ only one of which he really knew, despite all of them living in the same town.

The one that he knew, he knew very well. He’d known her since she’d moved here over a decade ago, and briefly they’d had a ‘thing,’ but it hadn’t lasted and had been mostly sexually charged in nature. Smiling as he drew closer to the group, Jericho nodded to them, giving Apalacia herself a wave. “I’m here, the party can start,” he said, a sarcastic tone in his voice. Looking at the ones he didn’t know, Jericho decided it would be a good idea to introduce himself. “Hey. I’m Jericho.”

As the others arrived Apalacia seemed deep in her own thoughts only really listening to Reggie as he spoke to her. With a easy hand though she pulled two pokeballs free from her bag and released her evees to sit at her feet and smiled down at them. “Sam and Cali.” She takes a deep breath and leans down stroking their ears. “I’m hoping to get more. I want to have all their evolutions.” She says with a smile. With a easy movement she stands and looks down at Reggie’s pokemon and stares at them for a few moments as Reggie talks about her helping break bad habits. “I’m not sure how I’d do that…” She chews her bottom lip and looks at the others for a moment. “Maybe we should start trying to figure out where we..” She stops speaking as she sees Jericho walking towards the fountain.

She turned and ran towards Jericho stopping just short of tackling him. With a gentle pat she put her hands on his chest for a moment before hugging his neck. ‘I”m excited about this aren’t you?” She says before settling on her feet. “Not so much about Drogos though.” Jericho would likely get what she mean’t by that though the others would likely not. Meanwhile Sam and Cali were keeping fairly to themselves around the other pokemon seeming a tad shy.

[/i]God, she's beautiful when she smiles, if we weren't about to embark on this stupid quest I'd . . . . probably still wouldn't have the gut to tell her how I feel. By Arceus, why is it so hard to say 3 simple words. Simple Reggie, beause you're fucking incompe-WHOTHEFUCKISTHIS!!!!!!!![/i]

Reggie's thoughts were interrupted by the appearance of Jericho, or more importantly, Apalacia's reaction to seeing Jericho. While on the outside he seemed completely unperturbed, on the inside he was cursing himself for not confessing sooner and this random guy who seemed to be someone she heldna great deal of affection towards. After a few moments of internal panic, he simply sighed before standing up, scratching the back of his head as he approached.

"Hey Apalacia, who seems to be your friend here?" Reggie reached out towards the guy with his other hand. Whether he was Apalacis boyfriend(good god that just hurt thinking about it) "Well, Nice to meet you, man, name's Reginald, but please just call me Reggie. So, since I think everyone's here, where do you guys think we should go first?" As Reggie was speaking to the two, a noise could be heard coming from the fountain. When looking back, it seemed that Reign was now trying to get Axia to serve him, only for the dragon-type pokemon to suddenly started chasing him around the fountain in a blind rage. "You know what, hold that thought, I've got to make sure Axia doesn't make Reign in to a Kalosian éntree."

And with that, Reggie ran back to the fountain to try and calm Axia down. A few minutes and a lot of painful nips later, Reggie would return with the dragon pokemon struggling in his arms and a face devoid of any amusement.

"You know, my mommalways said raising pokemon was like raising children, but more dangerous. I think I'm starting to see why, especially when these to don't get along. And Axia, be reasonable and stop growling at Apalacia." Axia, who has been growling at the green-haired trainer as soonnas she had been brought over, ceased the threstening noise with obvious reluctance. She was still giving an supposedly intimidating stare, but given the current look of Axia, it was nothing short of adorable.

"I don't know what'll get to me first, those northern assfuckers or these guys, just that both will be giving me enough stress ver the course of this adventure to turn my hair completely fucking white within the year. Anyway, what gym do you guys think we should hit up first, I was thinking the ground-type one in Appalata, since it's closer and there is a decent amount of land between there and here for us to catch new pokemon."

@TauGirl

[@Jordon]

Jessie watched as the some of the people who he knew looked as if there was no war. He didn't mind the war but he worried for his pokémon, and his friends. He stood up to greet the one, who wasn't talking "Hey how's it going!" He said to talk to the boy with the Turtwig, he let out his Tyrogue and Aron. Aron walked around Jessie's legs while Tyrogue did push ups. "Show off..." He said under his breath. "Anyway, name's Jessie".

Maybe just talking will make him feel better then just staying to himself, he thought anyway. He couldn't help keep thinking about his sister and it seemed to start showing, due to his facial expression. What would this war bring? He had to forget that and stay in the present.

This boy seemed to be a honest person, hopefully he could read people correctly. If so maybe this might not be as bad as he thought luckily he knew a few familiar faces.

@Javier

Null

Jericho almost fell when Apalacia jumped into him, wrapping her arms around his neck as he looked down at her, shaking his head. “Good to see you too, babe.” He teased, hugging her back in a tight embrace for a moment, giving her lips a kiss that lingered maybe a little too long, before letting her down as she unlocked his neck. When she mentioned Drogos, Jericho just shrugged and patted his friend on the back. “Don’t worry about it, I’ve got ya,” he said with a smile before turning to address the boy(Reggie, his name was) who’d complained about the northerners, and suggested a town they could travel to first. Frowning now, Jericho folded his arms over his chest. No way he was taking orders from someone else… but Applalta was where he had been planning to go anyway. Looking over at Apalacia, then back at Reggie, Jericho’s frown faded and he took Reggie’s hand firmly in his own, giving it a shake before he let it go.

“Well, Apalacia and I are going to Applalta--whether you guys follow my lead or not, is up to you.” There. Very plain, very clear: if they were in his group, they were following him. Glancing around the group, Jericho listened in on the separate conversations. Barry, Jessie. Easy; if he knew their names, surely they were more likely to listen to him. “By the time we get there, I plan to have at least three Pokémon--preferably three, to be honest.” He looked down at the Pokéballs hanging on his belt and shrugged. He was satisfied with what he had, and would simply capture whatever he saw first. There was nothing he was particularly pining after. He just wanted Pokémon.

Reggie, to his credit, held in his internal breakdown rather well, given the circumstances. After seeing this random guy kiss Apalacia and hold her in a rather familiar fashion, he was actually able to keep his cool very well, the only sign of the amount of cursing that was spouting out from his mind was a slight twitch of his left eyebrow. Well, that was a stab in the heart if I've ever felt one. Man, I really want to not like this guy, but that would be petty of me. Who knows, he mighht be a col guy and they could become the best of friends on this quest. That was him trying to make the best out of what could only be a heartbreakingly depressing situation, but his self-loathing and denial was soon forgotten were soon forgotten when the other guy spoke to him, the emphasis he put on the word 'my' not being lost on him. Oh, so he's one of those super territorial Alpha-dog types who feel they have to be in charge of everything. Hmph, I take back what I thought earlier, I'm almost sure that we're not going to get along if he keeps up this posturing bit the whole trip.

If Reggie disliked any kind of person, it's those who feel an incessant need to be in charge. Reggie wasn't going to call him on his shit, nor was he going to make any snark comments. He would just set back and watch the guy, chose his moment before he decided to push him off his pedestal. Did he want to lead the group, not really, but he wasn't about to follow this asshole blindly just because he tried to flex his muscles a bit. He simply offered a non-committal shrug to the guy's comment, and walked away from the two, setting Axia back by the fountain, and giving her a strict order not to get into another fight with Reign. He did the same with the Froakie as well, but Reign didn't even seem to acknowledge he was their, something that drew a rather peeved look onto Reggie's face, but he decided he'd deal with the snobby frog prince later. Looking around the place, his eyes quickly fell on carry, and his face quickly broke into a wide grin as he walked over, locking the younger boy in a headlock from behind and giing him a playful noggie as his own form of greeting.

"Hey, Golden Boy, whose your new friend here? I hope you mean to introduce me to him, cause I think I've forgotten my own name at the moment." Reggie chuckled a little more before releasing Barry, taking a second to look at his two pokemon. "Oh, you got a dragon pokemon too, uh, well, we've got a tough road ahead of us now. Dragon types take forever to evolve."

@Jordan
@Javier

Jessie acknowledged Jericho and nodded at him using body language to say "I'll stick by you guys". At a moment later he seen a boy come over, Sadly He forgot his name. The boy, seemed to know Barry as if they were close friends. Reggie asked Barry Jessie's name, Jessie thought it would be good for Barry if he spoke for himself so he decided Barry would answer the question. The thought of the war zone frightened Jessie.

He looked around and seen all these soldiers just young soldiers. He couldn't help but think that they could just be Canon fouder. He shook his head and looked at Barry waiting for him to introduce Jessie to the boy.

Null

Serenity had jumped slightly at the hand on her shoulder, but she turned to look at the person behind her and smiled. Tristan was an old friend, for all that he was a few years older than her, and having him on the trip would do a lot to raise her spirits. He was an optimistic, steady presence that would work well to balance out her more realistic mentalities.

"Hey, we're leaving home-- I'm allowed to be wistful." But her smile only lasted a few moments as she looked over the gathering crowds, and the various personalities gathering there. "This is going to be rough, man, no lie. We might have each other's back, but I think that's all we can trust."

If she were to be perfectly honest, Serenity would have to say that she didn't trust most people easily. And even though she had lived in the same town for most of her life, and knew at least most of the people around her by name, they were practically strangers. And strangers, she had always believed, could not be trusted with safety or the security of her person.

Nodding at the rifle over his shoulder she patted the gun and attached scope that was against her pack. "So, Zubat and Sandile ready to go? You know that Ponyta will be happy to help carry some of your things if you need us to."

When Serenity started Trystan removed his hand only to be met by her sweet smile. Returning it with his own he nodded to her words. "I suppose so, but still if were gonna make it through this we gotta stay focused." He said matter of factly patting her back assuringly. He then followed her gaze over the rest of the crowd and he shared her concerns.

As he watched on the happenings about the crowd he couldn't help but damn the government and their damned war. Sure recruiting kids like him and Serenity might make a difference, but Trystan just couldn't see the potential in the others. Well maybe a couple, and he wanted to be hopeful for the rest, but Serenity made a good point.

"Rough no doubt. I feel ya, but like I said we gotta stay focused and a positive outlook just might help. Sure things look grim, but that doesn't mean we shouldn't trust others. We're all this town has. That practically makes us family. Sure a bit dysfuctional for now, but I'm sure it'll get better. We gotta believe it will." He said trying to keep Serenity positive. If they were going to have an eye out for each other their vision needed to be clear and one in the same.

Trystan knew most if not all the others personally more or less. He had either seen them around town while on one of his odd jobs or done a job for their folks or even done a job for someone else that involved them in some way like deliveries. He could trust them as far as he could throw them, but he certainly hoped for more for most of them.

Serenity shook him from his thoughts asking about his pokemon. "Oh yeah, they're itching to go. Eager little buggers. Could barely keep them still for breakfast. I'll be fine. I've hauled more than this from one side of town to the other perfectly fine on my own. Speaking of Ponyta how she and your Charmander getting along?" He asked as he adjusted his pack and rifle to show he was perfectly capable of carrying them on his own.

"I don't trust them, Tristan."

Serenity's voice was low as she glanced around. Her eyes rested on Jericho the longest, uneasy. He was too brash, in her mind, too eager to make them either accept his leadership or go their own way. But none of them knew each other, and none of them had worked together before. For the most part they had grown up in the same town, and most of them knew each other if only through primary school, but that did not let them know each other's proficciency with pokemon.

Annoyingly, Applatta was a good starter gym. She wanted to catch a few water and ground pokemon to balance out her fire style pokemon, but that didn't mean she wanted to sacrifice her own autonimy to do so.

"I think we should travel in at least three man groups, but I do not want to follow his lead." She nodded her head to Jericho. "I don't like him, and I don't trust him."

"Pleasure to meet'cha Jessie, here to hoping we make it to the end of this road trip from hell." Reggie said with a smile as he gave a quick salute to the other boy. When Barry asked if they were going to go with Jericho and Apalacia, which caused Reggie's eye to twitch again, this time a little more violently than before. He sighed as he finally released Barry and thought of their options. He personally wanted nothing to do with Jericho's Alpha male bullcrap, plus he didn't want to see Apalacia and him getting all couplely and what not. However, he didn't want to leave her with just that guy as back up, and he also knew that the more people in a group, the better chance they had at surviving an attack.

_{"I'm going to regret this oh-so-much,"} Reggie muttered under his breath before speaking up again. "I think it would be best to travel with them, strength in numbers and all that. We'll stick with them for the first few gyms at the very least, until are little guys get a little bit more experience and we're sure we can fend off an attack on our own. Until then, we'll be following them. Also, Jericho's friend is also my friend as well, her name's Apalacia. I'll introduce the two of you later when we're on the road.'

Turning to Jessie, Reggie gave him a once over before he offered his hand out in greeting. "You want to come with, or are you going with those two over there," He pointed his head at Serenity and Trystan, having eavesdropped enough on their conversation to know they weren't to stoked about being around Jericho either. "Either way, it was nice to meet you, brief as it was, and I'll see you in Appalta if we're going our separate ways soon."

@Javier
@ChronoBovino

Jessie listened to how Reggie went on, and how annoyed he was at sticking with Jericho Jessie sniggered. Then Reggie said "You coming with or are you going with those to over there?" He looked at the other too then to Apalacia and Jericho, then to Reggies hand layed in front of him as a symbol of Choice. He remembered the events that just happened.

Jessie acknowledged, How easily Jericho took to leadership, it didn't make him hate him but he felt as if he was untrustworthy. "Um yeah" he grab Reggies hand and shook it but replied " I'm gonna ask can I tag along with these guys" he looked at Apalacia and Jericho and walked over to Trystan and Serenity he felt bad for leaving BARRY and Reggie. But he felt as if he made the right choice. "Hey Trystan? And Serenity?" He said with a smiling yet confused face "I heard you were looking for a third member of your party?" He said looking from one person to another.

He just thought what might happen to Barry, Reggie, Apalacia and Jericho and if splitting up was the right choice. But nevertheless he knew he had to make the right decision.

@Raijinslayer
@eternityinblue
@Bigg Slamm