At first, Deneb didn't really know what Charlie saw when he told him to follow along. Honestly, this close from death, Deneb wouldn't have been surprised if they had both been hallucinating. As they walked, however, Deneb noticed the antenna. It was out of place. Extremely out of place, actually. The type of out of place that his father would tell him to avoid if he were there.
"I feel like this is going to be bad. We better be careful when we get nearer."
The antenna felt ominous. As if the area it was based around would have something dangerous in hiding. He didn't quite know what they were heading into, but it couldn't be good.
Lillipup Name: Scrappy Level: 9 Gender: Male Ability: Vital Spirit Moveset: Leer, Tackle, Oder Sleuth, Bite
750p 10xPokeballs Map Pokedex 3xPotions
Micky had decided to part ways with the small group of heroes after their short talk. He could kinda guess they already knew each other and didn't want to make it awkward in case they didn't want him tagging along. He picked a small grassy area near the Oasis to call his bed for the night. He called Ampar and Scrappy from their Pokeballs and told them to get a good night's sleep.
The next morning Micky woke up pretty early. Not because he wanted to but because Squirt kinda forced him to. Apparently, Micky had accidentally grabbed the little tadpole during his sleep and started using him as a pillow. Obviously Squirt did not like this one bit, and he clobbered Micky upside the head with his tail.
"OW! Squirt, don't do that again. That stinkin' hurt." The small Poliwag responded in his own words which probably meant something along the lines of, "Then don't use me as a pillow." Micky didn't know that though. He had yet to fully bond with the little guy.
Micky just grunted at the creature and tried his hardest to go back to sleep but to no avail. He was awake for the time being and it would stay that way thanks to his other Pokemon waking up and wanting to get moving. Realizing sleep was not in his foreseeable future, Micky decided that now was a good time as any to do in this town what most young trainers would do. Challenge the gym.
However, Micky was very unlucky. From somehow getting lost on multiple occasions and helping the elderly around town it took him a few hours to get to the gym. By that the time he arrived another battle was just ending. It was one of the kids from last night. The one with the Sneasel.
Micky watched as the guy was handed a badge and a TM. This made Micky's excitement grow even higher. He quickly walked up Ian and said, "Congratulations. Now it's my turn." Before the guy could say or do anything Micky darted over to the Gym Leader and said, "Hello, sir. Name's Micky Hill. I come from the outskirts around Estoria City, and I've come here for my first gym battle. It's a pleasure to meet ya."
"It's a pleasure to meet you to, kid. You just made it easy for me. All I got to do is heal these guys and then we can begin." Homer walked over towards his healing machine and placed his Pokeballs inside. "Umm, sir, by any chance could I use that healing machine? After the fight last night I haven't had the chance to heal my Pokemon."
"Ah, so you were around to help out last night as well. A lot of kids have been coming to my gym this morning. Sure, kid, you can use the machine." Once both had finished healing their Pokemon they both took opposite sides on the battlefield. "Ready, kid?"
"Ready as I'll ever be."
Homer threw out his first Pokeball, and a Drilbur popped out, eager for its fight. Homer looked at the boy in front of him, awaiting what he would send out.
Micky grabbed a Pokeball off his belt and looked at it before throwing it to the field. His Ampar is what emerged from the light.
"Alright, kid. I'll let you move first. Make it count," He said, staring at the Ampar, already planning strategies on how to take the electric bird down. It was electric, but it could easily avoid ground type moves because of its flying type, this was going to be an interesting fight.
Micky quickly thought over a plan of attack then said, "Ampar perch on a rock away from Drilbur and Focus Energy." The Ampar swiftly flew to a rock towards the edge of the battlefield and eyed Drilbur as it prepared to strike.
"Alright Drilbur, Fury Swipes on the ground! Kick up as much dust as you can." The shrew's claws glowed a bright blue before it strikes the ground rapidly and repeatedly, using the dust to give itself cover.
"Ampar, fly up and use Gust and aim it towards the center of the sand cloud." Ampar flew up off of the rock to be above the cloud of sand and flapped its wings towards the center moving the sand around.
"Alright Drilbur, quick use dig!" The Drilbur jumped up into the air spinning like a corkscrew before diving down into the ground. When the Ampar's gust blew the dust away, there was nothing but small hole in the ground where the Drilbur was. "Now, Fury Swipes!" The Drilbur busted out of the ground in front of the Ampar, it's glowing claws moving rapidly as it slashed at the bird.
"Quick, Ampar. Counter it with Wing Attack!" Ampar quickly swung one of it's wings at the Drilbur in a way that caused both Pokemon to get hit. Ampar took the hit as best it could and flew down to the ground to stabilize. "Follow up with another Gust Ampar." Ampar then slightly lifted itself in the air and flapped its wings hard in the direction of Drilbur.
Drilbur took the gust and was blown back by the force of the air. It caught a rock with one of its claws to keep himself from being blown back any further. "Alright Drilbur, Hone Claws!" The Drilbur stood by a nearby rock, moving its claws up and down until they were visibly sharper that before. "Now, charge at it with a fury swipe!" The little mole ran at the Ampar swinging its claws rapidly, before jumping at it its claws together in front of it light he was a spear flying through the air.
Micky watched what Homer was doing and when he gave a command to Drilbur Micky quickly said, "Ampar Focus Energy again. Get ready to strike right back at him." Ampar calmed itself down and breathed slowly stretching it's wing slightly for an attack. When Drilbur was commanded to attack Micky gave Ampar a similar command to use Wing Attack. The two darted towards each other and when Drilbur jumped Ampar angled her body to land the wing attack on the underside of her opponent.
Drilbur was knocked back by the bird's attack to its stomach. It was disgruntled, but it still had the energy left to keep the fight going for a little longer. "Alright Drilbur, hang in there. Use dig!" The mole once again corkscrewed into the dirt. "Now, metal claw!" The Drilbur jumped out this time behind the Ampar, and slashed its metal-coated claw against the back of the small birds head.
The claw to the back of the head knocked Ampar pretty far forward. The small bird could barely pull itself to its feet. It stared at Drilbur waiting for a command. Micky quickly tried to think of something to do. If Ampar took one more hit it would be over for the bird ao no more sacrifice strikes. Micky then realized that however slight it was they had an advantage of speed above ground. Micky gave Ampar the final order for this part of the fight, "Ampar, fly high and use Agility. Make sure you go as high as you can. Then dive done and use Quick Attack on Drilbur."
Ampar lifted off the ground into the air and flew straight up. When it stopped it used Agility. The small bird then looked down to locate his opponent so that he could strike it.
Options were limited now as Homer weighed up what to do next. "Drilbur, Metal Claw as a shield, get ready to counter", the Drilbur took its now glowing claws and held it up as a shield, peeking through it so that it can react to the Ampar's next move, and counter-attack accordingly. Using Dig will do no good, as Ampar was able to fly, and Drilbur himself couldn't chase it into the air, only option was to wait for it to come to it.
Ampar saw her opponent standing there waiting for her to strike. She dove down as fast as possible picking up speed to go as fast as she could and then zoomed straight for the Drilbur at her top speed.
"Stand your ground and trade with Metal Claw!", the Drilbur would purposely take the attack head on, but it would deal the Metal Claw in return. The Hone Claws from earlier enhanced the damage of the attack, enabling Drilbur to leave a lasting blow.
Ampar had connected with the Quick Attack, but didn't expect to be hit with another Metal Claw. The small bird Pokemon was hurting.
"Now let's keep going while it's close, Fury Swipes!", in an attempt to keep the Ampar from leaving it's range, the Drilbur turned towards it and charged it down with a flurry of claws.
"Ampar, quick use Gust!" Ampar turned it's full body towards the oncoming Drilbur. She pulled her wings back and then sent a ferocious gust of wind at the Drilbur.
As Drilbur was quite close, the Gust just barely managed to go off as the Fury Swipes nicked it, landing only one blow, the Drilbur forced to halt and stand its ground else it would lose even more distance. "Piercing thrust with Metal Claw", he ordered. There was additional range to this, as the Drilbur lunged forward, trying to catch the Ampar one last time before it would inevitably be able to move well away.
"Ampar! Dodge it then use Wing Attack!" Ampar stopped using Gust in order to try and dodge the attack, but still got nicked on one of her wings. Then like a boxer brought up her wing like an uppercut.
The thrusting Metal Claw would overextend the Drilbur and allow Ampar a clean hit as it came in for a counter-attack. The Focus Energy from before would pay off as the clean hit was amplified, knocking Drilbur out in a sudden and quick trade. The Drilbur rolled backwards before being unable to get up again as it was returned to its Pokeball.
"Hm, not bad. Alright, your turn Diglett", Homer returned the Drilbur to its Pokeball before throwing out another, calling forth his Diglett.
"Alright, submerge then Scratch", was his first order. The Diglett's speed was comparable to some of the faster Pokemon out there, allowing it to close distance with Ampar with surprising ease as it came up with claws to strike its opponent.
Ampar was winded. That fight with Drilbur took a lot out of it, "Ampar fly up quick." Ampar was fast, but not fast enough when tired. The small bird Pokemon tried to get away, but took the Scratch right on.
Ampar tumbled backwards and tried to get up before she fainted. "Crap, Ampar. Return." Micky called back Ampar and then pulled out another Pokeball, "Squirt, let's finish this." The small tadpole Pokemon appeared on the battlefield and stared right at Diglett. "Watergun quick." Squirt huffed and then unleashed a precision water attack towards the mole Pokemon.
"Dodge then Scratch", with Diglett's speed, and the projected attack, it was easy to duck under the ground and evade while moving to use Scratch again. The Diglett as before re-emerged to the side of Poliwag to strike it with a Scratch.
"When it gets close use Bubble." Squirt watched as Diglett came towards him and released bubbles just as it was getting scratched.
The trade was in the Poliwag's favor from type advantage alone, but in response Homer made another order, "follow up, Scratch again!", the trade should be a bit more in the Diglett's favor after following up with yet another Scratch on top of the first. Diglett wouldn't want to trade blow for blow, but in this case the odds need to be kept as even as possible.
"Back away and use Hypnosis." Squirt jumped backwards but the scratch had gotten a little of his chest. However, the tadpole stood up straight and launched a Hypnosis attack at the mole Pokemon.
"Quick! Astonish!", the Diglett unable to have the time to run would attempt to startle the Poliwag with Astonish, trying to prevent the Hypnosis. It worked, as the attack managed to surprise it. Still, the Astonish wouldn't deal any damage and only startle the Poliwag.
"Alright, now Sand Attack", regardless of the next action taken by Poliwag, it would attempt to keep the pressure on with a Sand Attack.
Micky grunted trying to think of the best way to get this fast Pokemon then he said, "Squirt, hit your tail against the ground and launch your self on top of one of the rocks. Then use Water Sport." The Poliwag hesitated for a second then went through with the plan. It smashed it's tail on the ground and lunged itself towards one of the higher up rocks. Then as it used Water Sport some of the earth around the rock was becoming more noticeably muddy.
Though the Sand Attack did land, the Poliwag's next move was a little concerning. While Water Sport weakened fire attacks, it also affected to field. The water was turning some parts of the arena into mud. Though this might work in the Diglett's favor, "Use Mud-Slap", the Diglett suddenly appeared to the Poliwag's flank, throwing up a wad of mud, a rather large wad of it, making it more difficult to avoid. The Diglett's re-positioning was noticeably a bit more delayed than previously, but the larger Mud Slap was what it gained in return.
The mud did give Diglett more ammo to use from range, but if it was slow enough the loss of accuracy wouldn't be to bad, "Try and deflect it with your tail then follow up with Watergun." Squirt did as he was told and use his tail as a semi shield. The attack still hurt, but not as bad as if it had been his body. Then as soon as it found an opening the Poliwag shot a powerful Watergun in the direction of Diglett.
The Diglett wasn't going to be able to do anything about the Water Gun, so instead it was told to evade. The rock from which Poliwag fought from was a problem. "Use Dig on the rock!", he ordered, the Diglett disappeared for a short moment before the Poliwag would experience a tremor below it as the rock quickly crumbled below it.
"Now Scratch!", taking advantage of the moment, the Diglett attempted to sneak in an attack while the Poliwag was mid-air.
The small tadpole Pokemon tried to ready itself for the attack, but it completely lost it's footing when the rock broke apart. As it tumbled towards the ground Micky yelled, "Look out! Use Hypnosis." The Poliwag quickly looked for Diglett and as it was right on it Squirt used Hypnosis while being Scratched.
While the Scratch would land, Hypnosis took Diglett by surprise, as it required no physical movement other than to make sure both are in eye contact. The Diglett while dealing a fine blow, did not manage to finish its opponent with it, and had fallen asleep to the Hypnosis. The battle was essentially decided now.
"Finish it off with a close range Watergun." Once the two hit the ground Squirt rushed over to the sleeping Diglett and launched a direct Watergun attack.
Homer returned Diglett to its Pokeball easily moments after the Water Gun hit, he knew the result too.
"Well done, and good work Diglett, you did your best", he said.
"Great work, kid. You definitely have a way with strategy. Just don't let it get to your head. Anyway, for successfully beating my gym I present to you your first Gym Badge." Homer walked towards Micky pulling out two items. The Desert Badge of Dune Town's Gym and TM28 Dig. "Have fun collecting the other badges. It gets harder as you go. Use the TM wisely, and stay away from danger as best you can. Good luck, kid."
Micky took the two items and cheered at his accomplishment. He parted ways with Homer and decided to try and find those other kids from earlier. He darted out of the gym to see if he could find any of them. Eventually he found the guy who had challenged the gym before him. Micky ran up to the guy and said, "Hey, what did you think of Dune Town's gym?"
"So, this is Estoria..." the young teenage girl muttered, stopping right in front of the city gate on Route 1, a short green surface tunnel that led into the city, staring up at the few skyscapers scattered around Estoria. Nellie had arrived by boat from Harport in the dawn, just in time to see the sun rise above the city. It reminded her somewhat of Jubilife. Oh right...I need to call my parents to tell them that I've landed before they start panicking, she thought, glancing at Checkers, who was leaning on her shoulder. With the few days she was with her, Nellie found out that the Minccino didn't like to get its tiny paws and tail too dirty, and usually climbed onto her whenever he had the chance.
Route 1 was a straightforward path and an easy one for Nellie and Checkers; there weren't that many Pokemon on the route, which was unusual for the amount of tall grass it had. It didn't really matter though, since she didn't have any Pokemon of interest she wanted to catch there. Checkers himself was fine as well, being easily able to defeat the wild Pokemon on the route. At this time, Nellie was still trying to learn what Checkers could and couldn't do, and a few times Checkers had to face a few blows, though it was hardly enough for him to be injured. Nellie hoped that her Minccino would heal up in a Center, however, just to make sure they're ready for the next route.
As she entered the city, however, the gate's security guards immediately moved out of the counter, with Pokemon at the ready, stopping her from entering the city; one of them was a young male with hair combed outward and his hat tipped on one side with a Timburr, and an older female officer with a Growlithe and Herdier. It seemed like the younger officer was a recruit, especialy since he had less chevrons on his shoulder badge. "We're going to have to stop you there, miss," the elder officer said calmly but with a hint of sternness in her voice. Something is definitely not right here... Checkers was as visibly uncomfortable as his owner, clenching against Nellie's shoulder and staring at the officers.
"Before you go on, you must show us your trainer card, if you have one, and if you are a newly applying trainer, you must fill in certain paperwork. You may be patted down if we have reasonable suspicion," the younger officer added, his Timburr jumping onto the counter and observing them with great vigilance. This only served to confirm Nellie's own concerns. Something bad had to have happened if officers had to stop trainers, especially with their Pokemon out.
But the teenage girl complied and quickly unzipped her backpack and took her Trainer Card out, handing it to the older officer, who read it thoroughly. "So you're a foreigner from Sinnoh, yes?" Nellie nodded, though the officer was far from done. "Why do you have a Minccino with you, then?"
Checkers frowned at that statement, though Nellie had kept a straight face. The worst thing they could do now was to defy a trained officer. She had seen delinquents in Jubilife mess around with law enforcement and swiftly get a well deserved ass-kicking. "Parents' gift. They worked at the Pal Park Preserve in Sinnoh. We haven't received any badges there; I decided to come to Fordis to challenge the League here," Nellie explained in deep detail.
The elder officer raised an eye. "Well, I didn't ask you about your reason for coming here just yet, but thank you for telling us," she replies, returning Nellie her Trainer Card. Both of them appeared relieved – that was a good sign. "Your information checks out and you are ready to go. You will need to go to the police department here, however, before you leave the city, to receive your regional Pokedex and other items if you need it."
Nellie blinks and slides her Trainer Card back into the front pocket of her backpack, zipping it shut. "Wait, isn't there supposed to be a PokeLab here?" Nellie asked.
The younger officer spoke up this time, crossing his arms and shaking his head. His face returned from relief to distress once more. "The Pokemon Lab and Center here have been destroyed by unknown assailants. They set the place on fire and may have directly killed or injured some of the people there; some of the injuries caused are not from burns. We have casualties numbering by the dozens." This kind of news was enough to cause Nellie to frown and bite her lip, before pushing her glasses and staring at the officers.
The younger man wasn't finished, however. "There's been reports of a similar case in Dune Town, where multiple buildings, including the Pokemon Center there, has been burned down and with casualties there as well, but a few of them seem to be caused by poisoned fresh water...we don't have any issues with our fresh water supply here and it is safe, but I would advise you do not drink directly from the sink or fountains. Drink water only from fountains. If you see anyone in visible distress...call us immediately."
Nellie nodded slowly and passed through the gate, glancing at Checkers uneasily. Less than a day here and there were already reports of not just violence, but outright mass arson and murder. This was beyond to what she had normally heard of in Sinnoh. She pulled out her Poketch – it was a newer version that now allowed extra functions such as phone calls, short messages, and location tracking, and had a larger screen, making it a bit similar to Unova's C-Gear. She immediately called her parents, and unsurprisingly they picked up after a few rings.
"Cornelia dear, are you alright? I know you may have just gotten off, but we just heard of what happened there on the news!" her mother was obviously distressed, if not more than the officers by the tone of her voice.
"I'm...I'm doing alright, Mom. I just arrived at Estoria, they're checking every Trainer there that's coming in, and maybe out, of the city. There's some bad things happening around here..." Nellie took a long pause, giving her mother time to respond back.
"S-Should you book a trip back home, dear? This region sounds dangerous...what if you get hurt?" her mother was getting frantic, speaking faster. "People have been dying, dear Cornelia. These people aren't afraid to hurt or even murder other people. I...I d-don't want that to be you. I've heard of children getting killed. They aren't beyond you..."
Nellie bit her lip again. She perfectly understood what her mother was thinking. What if she met up with these assailants? Could she defend herself? And should she give up on challenging the League here? There was again a long silence, before Nellie broke it. "...No, Mom. I'm not leaving now. I can take care of myself and keep myself safe...whoever they are, I'll avoid them. I'm not going to give up my challenge because of obstacles on the road. And I'll...travel with friend. Most likely. Don't worry," she responded, her sentences cutting more frequently with short pauses in-between. Her mom remained silent, and Nellie spoke up again. "Love you, Mom."
She ended the call seconds later and moved on towards the police department, muttering to herself as she went. Checkers looked around this time for anything suspicious. Nellie wondered what were the assailant's motives; surely their efforts would gain the attention of more trainers, law enforcement, and other people, and they couldn't expect their actions to last. At the same time, both Checkers and her felt a little bit paranoid. Maybe their method is to get people to suspect each other, create more chaos when there is currently none.
Nellie cut her thoughts right there when she entered the police department. Inside, a man in a brown trench coat with a black shirt inside was talking to two officers, crossing his arms and shaking his head. "They appear to be a terroristic organization. Witnesses say people of those organization dress a specific way; solid black clothing with blue sleeves and a letter 'N' on their bags, with blue shades," one of the officer mutters.
"Interesting..." the man combs his brown hair with his hand. "They also seem to have less pattern in picking what Pokemon they use, more varied than the likes of Team Galactic and Plasma, it seems. And more violent as well. They are not afraid to actively terrorize the populace and actively murder people. And there seems to be no motive why at the moment."
"Is there something you need, miss?" Nellie's eavesdropping was cut off, and she looked up at the female officer. She had several stacks of Pokedexes behind her, all of the newer generation.
Nellie nodded and walked toward her. "Oh...I have just been asked to come here by some gate officers to receive my Pokedex," she explained, taking out her Trainer Card once more.
The officer smiled slightly and nodded, taking out a Pokedex Generation 25 right in front of her. "Here you go, Miss...Nellie. If you need any help healing your Pokemon, feel free. Also, make sure to download certain apps for whatever Poke-device you have on you. Unfortunately these Pokedexes are not of the newest generation, but its Pokemon data is up to date; it was a rectangular red device with a large Pokeball insignia on the front, and a locked slide; pulling it out revealed an extra screen that could be hinged at another angle to view it more comfortably.
She didn't really care what generation she had received or not, as long as the Pokedex worked. "Thank you, officer," Nellie smiled and looked at Checkers, then putting her down on the front. "And I would like her to receive some treatment as well. He isn't doing that bad, but we're about to leave for Route 2, hopefully before noon."
The officer nodded while Nellie returned Checkers temporarily to her Pokeball, picking Nellie's sole Pokeball and placing it into the healing machine the department had. It wasn't as state-of-the-art as the Pokemon Center's, but it could do, and a ten minute rest was all the Minccino needed before the Pokeball was handed back to her. "Your Pokemon is back to full health. Be safe out there...and watch out for those ruffians," the officer reminded, to which Nellie smiled and left the department with, again, a bit of unease. Already this was totally different from what she was used to. "Great start to a long journey...I guess."
"I have no idea what compound they put in the water, but it spreads like a virus... It doesn't just mix into the water, but spreads... This is going to take days to fix. For now we've got the town hooked up with the old water plant", things didn't seem promising as they weighed the numbers. They'd need to filter the water, then evaporate it with Fire Pokemon, and then clean the entire facility with extreme detail, to ensure there was not even a trace left. The water had a visible murky texture, that also seemed to be somewhat alive... The water was dead still, but it seemed to be moving beneath the surface.
Though as the scientists began to walk towards the door, a flint of ice blue light drew their attention. No one present could believe what they were seeing. The legendary Pokemon, Suicune, had appeared. The moment it landed upon the surface of the water, the area below it became crystal clear, before it gave off a brief howl, and within moments the murky appearance had disappeared. It shot a look over to the route overlooking the area, before it disappeared in a blue flash, jumping off into the distance.
"Hey what happened?! The-the readings are all clear!", the door was slammed open as someone came out to see Suicune's handiwork, the legendary already long gone.
Route 3, the way to it at least. It always passed by the water reserve that was nestled below the hill and against the coast. Regardless of where you wanted to go next along Route 3, through the caverns, over the desert road or up against the mountain and dry forest, you would always pass by a birds eye view of the water plant, and thus everyone at this moment bore witness to it...
"Is that... Suicune?", the Johto native was familiar with the words, as this was a legendary well known in his region, seeing it here of all places was amazing, it was rare to even see it in Johto after all.
Everyone watched as the water at the water plant shone with glistening light, before the legendary disappeared into the distance.
"Suicune can purify water, or so some legends I've heard say... Was that what happened...?", he questioned himself.
"Well, I think it's a good omen seeing it before we go onto this route right guys?", unknown to him was that this route split into three areas, caverns, desert road, and mountain path that followed the foot of the mountain.
ability Flash Fire Level 11 Size: Medium Item N/A Moveset Smog - Ember - Howl - Headbut
PokeWallet: Empty 4x 5x 5x Bottled Water 3x Lemonade
After she had spent a good amount of her reward money for beating the gym she had a little bit more supplies for the journey ahead. Her bonnet on top of her head as she wondered off with the others. Then Rylen drew their attention to something else off in the distance. "Is that Suicune?" He asked. She turned her head to see out into the distance of the water plant and saw the mystic pokemon of the johto region. She moved quick to pull out her camera to try and get a picture but by the time she had taken it out and adjusted it to get a clear picture the pokemon was gone. She sighed and let her shoulders drape. She noticed it took past the route and wondered if it was possible to run into it again. It then came to her. The poisoning of the water supply by Team Nexus was just undone in a matter of seconds by a pokemon. She could picture them fuming over the whole situation. All that work and getting their asses kicked by a bunch of kids and they have nothing to show for it.
She looked towards their destination and took note that there were three routes to the next town. There was a tunnel going underneath the ground, a path through the desert and a road that led into the mountains. She looked to the fellow members and shrugged. "Well I dont see a point in us all going the same route. We are a pretty big group now and that would make pokemon stay much more far away from us. We should split up here and meet up at the next city again. I am taking the desert path of course for the ruins. I will get me a Baltoy and a Duskull."She said. Whoever decided to come with her was free to it. However they had to accept the fact that she was stopping at the ruins for just a bit to do some catching. Possibly a little training along the way as well.
