✰ Jason Ackerman ✰

Location: Central City

As the Charizard roared, Jason hurriedly considered his options. It was at times like this that survival mode brought out his analytical side. Two of his Pokemon were weak against fire, but Dragon types resisted it.

"Fraener!" he shouted, sending out the Fraxure. "Dragon Pulse!" Opening his jaws wide, Fraener unleashed a brilliant green energy pulse that slammed into the Charizard. Spinning round in the air, the fire lizard dived and bit down with flaming teeth. Jason watched in shock, but Fraener remained standing, his dragon-typical toughness allowing him to shake off the Fire Fang attack.

"Now, Iliana! Confuse Ray!" Struck by a shadowy beam, the Charizard wobbled as it flew, crashing into a rocky wall and falling to the ground with a thud.

Letting out a huge sigh of relief, Jason grabbed onto a rock and pulled himself up. "Owww..." He'd sustained quite a few cuts and bruises, but thankfully nothing worse. "This might be a good time to get out of he-"

Another cry, more enraged than ever, ripped through the air as the Charizard clambered to its feet. It spread its wings, ready to fly back up above its prey.

"Tibert! Hit with Psyshock!" Jason called out. The Espurr, standing by his trainer behind the Light Screen, launched an orb of purple light at the Charizard. "Amyntas, quick! Rollout!" Before the dual Fire-Flying type could take off, the Golett curled into a ball and sped at it with considerable force.

"Keep at it!" the trainer urged. Picking up momentum, Amyntas hurtled at the wild Charizard once, twice, three times. Finally, with a frustrated growl, the fire lizard collapsed.

After keeping his eyes on it for a few more moments, watching for movement, Jason turned his attention to his team. "Whew... That was close. You all ok?" Fraener nodded, despite his charred scales. Iliana and Amyntas drew closer, making sure their trainer was alright. Tibert simply gave Jason his usual look of contempt.

"Well, I guess that's our training done," Jason said with an awkward laugh. "Let's go rest up." Returning his Pokemon, he left the fainted Charizard behind him. Visibly bashed up, covered in soot and dirt, he hoped he wouldn't run into anyone from his guild as he hurried into the city.

---

♪♫♪ Cecilia "Cici" Taylor ♪♫♪

Location: Tefan Village

@Zarkun


A series of shrill rings and cries jolted Cici from her sleep. "Wha...?" She sat upright to see not just one, but three of her Pokemon jumping around, joyfully signalling the start of a new day by making as much noise as possible.

"Oh, you three," she laughed, climbing out of bed and approaching Ligeia, Cadence and Allegro. Her movements, although still stiff, were much less painful. "What am I going to do with you? Al, I can already tell you'll get along with the others."

Allegro let out a chime-like giggle. Forte and Dulcet glared at their new teammate with sleepy mumbles. "Forte, don't you think I've forgotten the time you did that," Cici said, earning another mutter from the Whismur.

"Well," she said, glancing out of the window at the sun rising over the mountains, "it'll be time to take a proper look around this place soon."

---

♥ Ellanor "Ella" Beaufort ♥

Location: Stillwater

@Dusksong @Lugubrious

One moment, Ella stood bracing herself. The next, she looked up in confusion at Darkrai's words, reeling back from a sudden blinding light. Regaining her balance, she stepped forward into the yellow grass, her movements oddly fluid.

Her legs, instead of bending at the knee, had become unusually supple throughout. It was as if they no longer had bones, but still somehow supported her weight. Looking down, she gasped as she saw they'd become two slender, transparent tendrils. More tentacles hung around her, growing until they brushed against the grass. Like hair, she thought, or a long dress. Raising her arms in front of her, she saw that the same thing had happened to them. She didn't even know how she could see, as she didn't seem to have any eyes.

"W-What is this?" she stammered, although instead of a mouth, she had some kind of opening under her head. If it could even be called a head any more. Lifting up her arm-tendrils, she felt a frill protruding around a bell shape.

She had no idea what her current form was, but she intinctively knew what she was now capable of. All her life, she'd encouraged people, cheered them on, only to watch them leave her in the dust. Bitterness seethed through her at the thought, consuming her like spreading poison. Now, she could build people up... and then destroy them, leave them shells of who they once were.

The idea sickened her. And yet... For the first time in her life, she was strong.

---

Leisy watched in horror as her friends sprouted monstrous features, growing bigger and bigger as they did. Wait — they’re not getting bigger, Leisy realized, looking around at herself in horror. I’m getting smaller!

A squeezing pressure could be felt throughout her body almost as if some impossibly heavy weight were laid upon her, flattening Leisy and causing her to sprawl to the ground in shock. Slowly, the pressure eased off, and Leisy hopped back up onto her feet with remarkable ease, legs and clothes folding and securing themselves into place. I can feel the air moving past me, she thought, revelling in the bitterly cold breeze that took away what little warmth she had left. Neither cold nor hot — lacking temperature of any sort.

Giving her arms a flick, Leisy found that she could no longer retract them as she would before; rather, they bent as they came towards her, splitting the wind as they did. Light reflected off of her arm in proof of how impossibly smooth and fine her limb had become, and a light turn showed her that her arm was now alike paper — two-dimensional and so thin every movement seemed to stir the currents of that air around her into a light gust.

An idea entered her mind, and before she could resist it Leisy knelt down and slashed at the yellowing grass beside her, her arm moving through the patchy grass so easily that at first it didn’t seem like the movement had any effect. Then, almost like after a moment of thought, the blades of grass folded upon themselves and fell, creating a smooth lawn of yellow. Looking over it, Leisy felt a surge of fear and pleasure. The world was in her hands, able to be trimmed and cut however she’d like.

---

@luckyblackcat @lugubrious

---

“Right,” Marvin Terra said, setting his elbows on his desk and knitting his fingers together. “The mission.”

“… Marvin, what are you doing here? Where’s your father?” Shanae asked, sighing. While she had time on her hands, she’d rather not spend it amusing some spoiled fifteen-year-old that sat in his father’s chair and pretended to be mature all day long.

“I’m asserting my status as company president. Duh?” Marvin asked. Shanae mentally face-palmed.

“Marvin, you’re not going to be president until your father returns. And he’s not about to if you keep on goofing around in his workplace,” Shanae chided. “Give him a call and tell him that I’m here about his mission. Go on — if you do, I’ll even let you tag along on the mission,” she said. “If your father agrees, that is.”

---

---

131 CP

---

Tora tilted her head at both of her companions surprised, seeming a bit oblivious over why they were exactly surprised. "...Yes?" she hummed a little in reply. Did people not usually buy what they wanted? Granted, most of the cash on her was what she brought with her. If she ran out, she probably could sell some of her jewelry. "I'm not too worried. Archie is quite good at driving people off. Plus I have my other Pokemon like Sirius and Pezi." she said softly before looking to Juana as she offered to get them some drinks.

"Roserade Tea please." Tora smiled, reaching in her backpack and handing some hefty Poke to her friend.

"Perhaps Rotom can give out a electric shock. It might shock the Porygon-Z out of the computer." she suggested.

---

---

“Sounds like a good idea,” Juana remarked, before turning to Rotom. “If you see anything, use Thunder Wave, ‘kay?”

Rotom’s screen flashed a thumbs-up graphic, before returning to the loading bar.

Juana walked up to the café’s barista. “Hi, welcome to Sawsbuck’s, what can I get started for you today?” he asked. He was a pleasant-looking fellow in a green apron.

“A couple of Tapu Cocoas and a Roserade Tea, please?” Juana replied, holding up two fingers on her left hand and one on her right.

“Whipped cream on the Tapu Cocoa?”

“Just on one.”

“Okay, that’ll be 1178 Poké.”

Juana dug through her tool belt for her wallet, and paid for the drinks.

She leaned against the bar and looked out at the station. People and Pokémon were milling about; a man and his Dhelmise were busy fixing something near the platform, assisted by a pair of Gurdurrs. A girl was playing jump rope with a Spiritomb, which Juana found amusing given the dark 108-souls-of-the-damned schtick the Ghost/Dark type had going on. (Spiritomb was holding one end of the rope and whirling it around its core, with the other end tied to a lamppost.)

“Five little Mankeys jumping on the bed!
One fell down and bumped its head!
Primeape called Audino, and Audino said:
No more Mankeys jumping on the bed!” sang the girl.

Spiritomb was making these disturbing whistling noises, but they were in time with the girl’s chanting. Clearly they were close.

The mall was certainly nothing if not bustling; completely different from Central City, and yet worlds different from Feyhollow as well. Juana looked down at Steenee, who was cuddling Togepi. Togepi seemed to be warming up a bit to Steenee, especially since the Grass-type was willing to play with it. (The nice sweet scent helped a lot as well.)

“Here you go,” the barista said, sliding a cardboard tray with the three drinks. “We’d like to offer your Pokémon something on the house; Poké Beans are legally mandated as a complimentary Pokémon snack for every purchased drink.”

“Gracias, señor,” Juana thanked, tipping the barista before taking the drinks back to her friends. She took the whipped-cream Tapu Cocoa for herself and gave Cillian the other, and handed the Roserade Tea to Tora.

“Okay, Rotom, find anything?” Juana asked, sitting down at the table and looking at the screen.

The screen display read “UR MOM LOL”

“Hilarious,” Juana muttered, rolling her eyes.

Juana turned towards the window, and noticed that there were lines of Shuppets staring into the café, hanging from the awning.

“Weird,” she remarked.

She turned back to Rotom.

“Find anything now?”

“ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US.”

“Rotom…”

“CASH ME OUSSIDE, HOWBOW DAH?”

“Arceus dang it Rotom…”

“ROTOM USED THUNDER WAVE!”

Rotom suddenly jumped up and shuddered; an electrical whine emitted from the laptop as Rotom’s eyes rolled around haphazardly. Suddenly, the display flickered, and a spasming Porygon-Z appeared on the screen. Juana quickly yanked the power cord and clicked to turn the Wi-Fi off; because the Porygon-Z was paralyzed, it did not have time to escape the computer.

“Rotom, use Thunderbolt!” Juana ordered.

Rotom’s face clenched as if it were using the restroom, and another electrical pop emitted from the computer. Juana pulled out an empty Poké Ball and hurled it at the computer, causing the Porygon-Z to shudder and disappear. Meanwhile, a red bolt emitted from the laptop’s USB drive, and flew into the Poké Ball.

The capsule didn’t so much as shake once when its hinges and latch burst and the Porygon-Z popped out; apparently the ball did not function correctly, as it was smoking.

The other patrons of the café did not know what to do. Some brave souls sent out their Fighting-types; there were some management folks who had come in with their Conkeldurrs ready to beat down this culprit.

“I think we’ve got our quarry,” Juana said.

As soon as she said that, the Shuppets hanging from the awning phased through the wall, cackling as they swirled around and around. ”Kekekekekekeke! Keekkkkkekekekekeke!!!!!” they chortled.

“¡ARCEUS MIO! Están fantasmas!” Juana yelled. She pulled out Honedge’s Poké Ball. “Honedge, go! Cut ‘em up!” she ordered.

The ghostly blade appeared from the Poké Ball, and drew itself from its sheath. Honedge glared at the Shuppets, before going to town Dynasty-Warriors-style, slashing and hacking at the puppets by passing through the shadows cast on the ceiling. Juana knew that she’d need as much backup as she can get to stop this dastardly digital delinquent. “Steenee, go! Double Slap that Porygon-Z silly!”

Steenee ran up to the Porygon-Z and smacked it repeatedly with hard sepals. Porygon-Z, however, retaliated with a Thunderbolt that knocked Steenee back. Steenee got up and fired off Razor Leaves at the virtual Pokémon.

---

CP: +1, total: 10

---

---

Morning was here; Charlotte had to leave for Stillwater. The first thing she needed to catch was a bus.

“A’ight, Charjabug, wake up,” Charlotte insisted, rolling her electric bug awake. She hadn’t gotten dressed herself; she was wearing her nightclothes, which consisted of a baggy pair of shorts and a black tank top, both of which conveniently fit into her briefcase when properly rolled up. Charjabug snapped its mandibles and licked its chops, still getting used to the morning, before wriggling up Charlotte’s leg and onto her shoulder.

“Hold up, buddy, I gotta get dressed,” Charlotte said, plucking Charjabug off her shoulder and setting it down on her bedside table, before throwing on her coat, pants, gloves, shoes, and hat. She put her nightclothes into her briefcase, and packed up her notes.

Charlotte then walked out of the Aether building; she was glad to have room and board whenever she came back here, though it was certainly not often, as she lived somewhere else.

And thus, she had no idea which bus to take to get to Stillwater.

She chanced upon a fellow who was returning from the mountains, presumably from some late-night training (one Mr. Ackerman, though Charlotte did not know his name at this point). “Excuse me,” she said, waving a hand to Jason. “Do you know which bus to take to the train station? I’ve got to make a couple transfers to Stillwater.”

@LuckyBlackCat

The morning started as it usually did for Tommy, with the trumpet player greeting the sun with a smooth jazz tune that also woke up his Pokemon, except for Amica, who was awake with her trainer at the same time each day. Beta and Jerus danced with the tune while Epsilon looked on in tired entertainment. After a few minutes, the aspiring trainer put down his trumpet and got ready for the day, which took just over half an hour to do. When all was said and done, he headed out after returning everyone but Amica and approached Cici's door, knocking on it. "Hey Cici, you up yet?"

---

“Your Rotom is a riot!” Cillian said, guffawing when he saw the rows of text. “Guess that’s what internet teaches Pokemon these days.”

When the Porygon-Z appeared, Cillian immediately looked to his Scraggy. “How about a Low Kick?” he asked the fighting-type.

The yellow lizard glanced a nod at his trainer before launching himself at the Porygon-Z, sending the paralyzed Pokemon reeling back before the virtual Pokemon could recover itself. The attack itself, however, seemed to lack in effect despite doing twice as much damage as it would have, and Cillian figured that this was as good of a time as any to trade out Pokemon.

“Good job, Scraggy. ” he said, returning the fighting-type and placing the Pokeball back onto his belt before reaching for two other ones. “Let’s try this again. Hazmat, Kelby, come’on out!”

The two Pokemon appeared at their trainer’s side, eyes zeroing in on the Porygon-Z and then the Shuppet floating over. “Alright. Hazmat, go help Juana’s Honedge out with a Flame Burst. Kelby, Whirlpool on the Porygon-Z.”

His Pokemon nodded, running in their respective directions. The Charmander fired a burst of flame at the nearest Shuppet that splashed off onto some nearby Shuppet, causing the group to reel back briefly. On the other side of the street, Kelby had surrounded the paralyzed Porygon-Z in a torrent of fast-moving water, entrapping it and keeping it in place.

“Juana, is your Rotom still up and running?” Cillian asked, nodding at the whirlpooled Porygon-Z. “I’m pretty sure I’ve been through enough school to know that water’s a pretty good conductor, so let’s use that to our advantage.”

---

@silver fox@toadropes

---

“Alright alright,” Marvin said, grumbling under his breath as he picked up the ornate dial-phone stationed on a corner of the desk. Spinning the dial around, the boy pursed his lips before looking at the woman again. “Seriously though — what mission?”

“I’ll show you the notice after you make the call,” Shanae said flatly. The boy pouted but instantly brightened up.

“Dad! How are you?” he exclaimed into the phone. Shanae resisted an amused smile, opting for a blank expression instead of one that Marvin might take offense to. “Yep, I’m good. Ah, so Shanae dropped by — you know, Shanae Eller? The Pokecorp lady from Central City,” the boy continued.

Shanae smiled this time, amused at what she’d been labelled. I suppose I should be glad it’s not worse, she thought, watching as Marvin listened intently to his father’s words.

“Yes father,” Marvin said, surprising Shanae with how mature he sounded. “Right away, father. I’ll send her now. Yes. Yes. Alright, take care. Bye.”

Marvin paused, frowning as he set down the phone. “He said you should meet him at one of our factories,” he said, concern etched across his features. “Apparently there’s been another case.”

---

---

132 CP

---

“I didn’t know Pokémon browsed dank memes,” Juana remarked. However, her Rotom memelord was needed for another task. While Porygon-Z was stuck in the whirlpool, Juana seized the chance to order a powerful Thunderbolt.

However, Porygon-Z, while stuck in the whirlpool, sparked and twitched, as its colors changed to a brown-and-orange scheme. The lightning bolt struck with no effect, and Rotom was quite confused and frustrated.

“Aw, milkduds; did it just change to a Ground type? Can Porygon-Z even learn Ground moves that it can use Conversion into?” Juana groaned, holding out her Pokédex to check the Porygon-Z’s status.

The Porygon-Z did not seem to be taking the turbulent Whirlpool vortex very well, however, and because it had converted to Ground-type, it was more vulnerable to the other Pokémon.

“Steenee, use Razor Leaf!” Juana ordered. Steenee fired off the usual flurry of bladed leaves, which embedded themselves into the lambert flesh of the digital Pokémon.

Juana turned to Cillian and Tora. “There’s no telling what type it’ll turn next if it just randomly changed to Ground-type! We gotta be on our guard!”

---

CP: +1, total: 11

Kelby sprang back from where the Porygon-Z stood entrapped by the Whirlpool, watching the virtual Pokemon carefully as it swapped color schemes. Upon Juana’s declaration that the Pokemon had transformed into a ground-type, Cillian looked to his Mudkip again.

“Kelby, let’s switch to Water Gun then to buff up the Whirlpool,” he called to the blue-and-orange water-type. The Mudkip nodded, springing back into action and releasing a torrent of water from his mouth that hit the Porygon-Z, bouncing off and refueling the Whirlpool.

Alright, it’s trapped, Cillian thought before tacking on, for now. It’d only be a matter of time before the Porygon-Z swapped types again — next time to one Kelby couldn’t deal with well. We’ll worry about that when it happens, he thought firmly, turning around to check on his Charmander.

On the other side of the street, Hazmat — as well as a few Pokemon from onlookers — were trying to keep the Shuppet crowd at bay. However, it seemed that the two Cronkledurrs were the strongest Pokemon around, and it just so happened that ghost-types couldn’t be hit by fighting-types — and vice-versa.

“Hazmat, try switching to Dragon Rage!” Cillian called. The Charmander gave his trainer a nod before jumping up into the air and launching a stream of purple fire from its mouth onwards towards the Shuppet flock.

---

@silver fox@toadropes

---

133CP

✰ Jason Ackerman ✰

Location: Central City

@ToadRopes

Just as he reached the city, Jason's Pokedex beeped. He checked it to find a newly-posted request. "Yeesh..." he said with a grimace as he read it. He wasn't the only one to have had a recent run-in with a wild Pokemon.

A close call with a swarm of Beedrills... No wonder this child kept having nightmares. The first legendary Pokemon he thought of who could help was Cresselia, but as he read on, it turned out the parents sought out one closer to their home of Feyhollow. Lunala, in Stillwater.

He'd just registered his acceptance and sent a message back when somebody called to him. Looking up, he saw a young woman waving. With a glance down at his dirty clothes, Jason cringed. He'd just had to end up looking like this in front of a girl. Nonetheless, he forced a smile, feigning confidence.

"Stillwater? I just got a request to go there myself... uhh, once a few things are sorted out," he replied, attempting to brush the soot from his face, but only succeeding in smearing it around more. "It's the seven you'll want, it's pretty regular." He hoped this girl wouldn't ask any questions about his current state.

---

♪♫♪ Cecilia "Cici" Taylor ♪♫♪

Location: Tefan Village

@Zarkun

Cici had just showered and dressed when she heard a knock at the door. "Yeah. I'll be right out," she said, gathering up her belongings, returning all her Pokemon except Forte. Stretching and yawning, she shuffled towards the door. Being up this early would take some getting used to, but at least being a trainer gave her something to get up for.

Opening the door, she looked with tired eyes at her travelling companion, smiling despite the lingering fatigue. "Hey. Once we've had breakfast, I've thought of a way we could decide where to explore first," she said. The thought of her plan scared her a little. It was a way to grow closer to people, after all, and getting close to others had its risks.

Even so, this was something she had to do if she wanted to stick to the Helping Hand Guild's principles - and progress as a trainer.

---

Marvin paused, frowning as he set down the phone. “He said you should meet him at one of our factories,” he said, concern etched across his features. “Apparently there’s been another case.”

Those words were enough to send Shanae on her way, hitching a ride on one of the factory’s rentable Lairons. Marvin was tagging along as well, proving to be quite the capable trainer himself as he rode alongside Shanae on a capable-looking Onix.

“How’s your Rhydon doing?” Shanae asked as the rock-types they sat on bounded along. “She alright?”

“Father gave me an evolution shard on my birthday, but I’m still beginner rank,” the boy said, frowning. “I promised her we would get stronger together, but father doesn’t want me venturing out…”

“But you can venture around town,” Shanae concluded. Marvin gave the woman a hopeful glance, and Shanae nodded. “You can come along — no problem. Just don’t get in my way! Let’s go, Lairon,” Shanae said, winking at the boy before patting the Lairon into a bounding sprint. Behind her, Marvin’s Onix slithered faster to catch up.

---

---

134 CP

Not even a second passed before Olivie almost fell over. So light and lithe was her knew form that every action she took went faster than she anticipated, but even as she staggered and steadied herself over the course of a few moments, she could feel the changes sinking in. Her mind adjusted at a remarkable rate. The moment of relaxation allowed her a chance to witness the final phases of her acquaintances' own changes. In Ella's place, a tentacled monstrosity that did not give so much as a hint of humanity now floated, and Leisy had shrunk down into a minuscule being of what looked like origami. Olivie flinched, backing away. A dispassionate look crossed her new, wide-eyed face. ”Yech! Just what you'd expect of losers--a jellyfish and a piece of paper. This is all your fault. If Barnie was with us when we came, we'd be able to beat this thing.” A pointed, azure-blue glare swept over both Leisy and Ella, but she couldn't even tell where their faces were. Conflicting thoughts swirled in her head. So much strength filled her limbs that she could hardly bear to stay still, just as one could barely keep themselves from moving when filled with hype. However, the two looked so stupid and unclean that she could find almost no desire to hit them at all, no matter how much they deserved to be punished.

The noise of feet against the ground caught her attention. In from the left sprinted a blue-scaled reptile, its pink head awash in flame and its eyes narrow slights of gleeful eagerness. Olivie started to move, and in stunning feat of unnatural acceleration skidded to a halt a few feet behind the druddigon a split second later. Confounded, the dragon turned to attack, but Olivie had already lunged for him. She struck him across the jaw with her slim golden knuckles, and the force of the blow caused his head to whip around the other way. Filled with energy, Olivie attacked again, delivering a brutally swift Triple Kick that bowled her enemy over. As he sprawled on the ground, still not sure what hit him, Olivie dashed to his side and raised her leg to Stomp down on his face. The next second, she turned around in a flash to see who else wanted some. More pokemon were on their way; evidently, the members of the grand free-for-all had realized that a few more opponents were hiding on the sidelines like cowards. The first to attack, an Octillery, stopped at a safe range before unloading shells of water from her cannon-shaped mouth. With exceedingly little trouble, Olivie dodged past them all and closed the distance in only a handful of seconds. She planted a foot right in the cephalopod's cheek and shoved, sending the Octillery flopping end over end like a half-inflated balloon.

Darkrai's smug satisfaction could be heard in its voice as it murmured, ”Yes, give it all you've got!Show them all that nobody can mess with you—that you're the toughest there is! I can see your desires...you want to be so strong that all will respect you and look up to you. This is the place where you will prove your strength, and where everyone else, too busy and selfish in their daily lives, will give you what you deserve!”

Its gaze had already shifted to Ella and Leisy. it wondered what it was they wanted to prove, but it suspected it wouldn't have to wait long to find out.

♥ Ellanor "Ella" Beaufort (?) ♥

Location: Stillwater

@Dusksong @Lugubrious


The bug's look of disgust fuelled something inside Ella. She was used to that look, from her mother, from her sisters, from passers-by as her Pokemon accompanied her. That resentment, that venom, bubbled to the surface, coursing through her crystalline body, becoming part of her to be used as a weapon. She wasn't weak any more. The poison melted away her self-doubts and inhibitions.

A growl drew her attention towards a huge, long-whiskered dog charging at her, fangs bared. With a flick of her tentacles, Ella launched a purple orb into it path. The orb exploded on the ground, wilting the grass and leaving poisonous spikes scattered everywhere. The Stoutland howled and staggered as it ran straight into the barbs. Watching it try to shake them from its thick fur, Ella spewed a glob of purple liquid from her mouth-like opening. The Venoshock brought her opponent crashing down onto its side.

She'd won a fight... She'd actually just won a fight. Marvelling at how easy it had been, Ella faced the other Pokemon, many of whom shrank back from her. Only one advanced, a scruffy white bear lumbering towards her, swiping with its claws. Ella leapt out of its way, graceful as a dancer as she twirled in the air. Crystals appeared around her, shooting out beams of light that slammed into the Beartic. It growled and toppled to the grass, unconscious.

Ella could feel her power growing with every victory. Her new form shifted, her tendrils becoming thick and black, spikes sprouting from their tips. She towered over the tiny creature in Leisy's place, even over the lithe being Olivie had become. Just a few minutes ago, she'd envied them. Now, it seemed she was the strongest of all. Nobody would dare ridicule her.

A squeak distracted her. Jumbles, drifting up to her, put up a Reflect. For a few seconds, the being that was once Ella froze.

In the glass-like surface, she could see her new body. A mass of obsidian-coloured tendrils, and underneath its bell-like cap was... A girl. Trapped. Unmoving. Black hair that had not always been that colour floated around her head like a dark halo. Unassuming doe eyes stared blankly ahead. A dress of rags hung around her dangling legs.

All the being could do was remain in place, taking in the corrosion of her humanity. The next thing she knew, she was flying away from the mirror, through the air and down to the ground with a painful crash. No! She wouldn't be that useless little wretch any more! She was so much more than that! Floating back up, she faced the Xatu hovering in front of her. Before it could use Psychic again, she struck with another Power Gem attack, knocking it from the sky.

Why had she been so disturbed just now? Like this, she had nothing to fear. She could skip and dance, carefree as a child. She could reach heights she'd never thought she would, if she embraced the poison taking over her mind and drew strength from it.

Yet the being that was once Ella couldn't ignore the Inkay's cries.

---

---

"The seven, huh?" Charlotte asked. "Alright. Thanks. Hey, might I ask, what's bringing you to the old fishery, huh?"

Charlotte deduced that a brush with a wild fire Pokémon of some sort accounted for Jason's grunge, though she did not want to pry.

"I myself am studying the ecosystems in a habitat that's not too affected by urbanization," Charlotte added. "Evidently the bus I gotta get on leaves in about an hour. Maybe we'll run into each other again, I dunno. Just in case though, I'm Charlotte. Charlotte Carver. I'm with the Aether." She politely tipped her bowler hat.

Some might brush her off if she said that, but helping restore the Foundation's reputation in other regions had to start somewhere, right?

---

CP+1; total: 12

✰ Jason Ackerman ✰

Location: Central City

@ToadRopes

"A researcher?" Jason raised an eyebrow slightly at Charlotte's mention of Aether. While looking up information about Solgaleo and Lunala, he'd heard some rather dubious things about the Aether Foundation, but apparently their rules were much stricter now and there hadn't been an incident like that since. He decided not to say anything about the organisation's history.

"Well, I'm doing research of my own. I'm Jason Ackerman, head of Legendwatch." There was a hint of smugness in his tone, but before he continued, his face became serious. "Somebody wants me to investigate the presence of a legendary Pokemon. Lunala. Apparently, it can bless people with pleasant dreams."

He took another glance down. "Though I can't exactly go like this. Well, see you, possibly." With that, he headed to the Pokemon centre. The first thing to do was get his team healed up.

He wondered if mentioning being the leader of a guild had made up for his current state, or just made things worse - some representative he was right now. At least Charlotte hadn't made any comments.

---

Leisy paused at Olivie’s words — she figured the spindly-looking white insect-type ought to be Olivie, especially considering the disdainful look it had on its face — but wasn’t affected. The tall white-and-yellow bug could think what it wanted; Leisy was too engrossed in her new body to care. Her arms — in appearance — were white and fragilely thin, almost paper-like in feel. However, Leisy knew differently; the exceedingly thin and flat limbs were were made of steel rather than paper, tapering off on every surface to form impossibly sharp blades that began but never seemed to end along the edges of her body.

Around her, battles broke out between the strange beasts she assumed were her friends and the nearby wilds. Of the ones she could identify, she knew her Pokemon wouldn’t be able to defeat them in a fair match. But now, she thought, springing up into the air above the fray. From her vantage above, she could spot the Octillery dragging itself towards Olivie and the Xatu flying towards Ella.

Looking to her left, Leisy — rather than dodging — spun towards the approaching Togetic, stretching her arms out towards the blue- and red-speckled normal-type before retracting them in the blink of an eye. The winged white Pokemon flinched back in alarm, two long lines forming on either side of its body as it fell. The lines lengthened and their borders of red widened until the gashes split open, bawling blood as the Pokemon splattered to the ground. Leisy landed delicately next to the mess, sidestepping the liquid in favor of dry land. She was to remain clean — as clean as her cuts were.

The ground below her shook as a orange, rock-humped mammal stomped towards her, shaking the earth and spewing a mixture of smoke and fire. To Leisy, the Pokemon might have seemed rather large, but size was irrelevant to her now. Well, not completely irrelevant, she thought, stretching her arms out at her side. A bigger target is always welcome.

The Cut-fest that began featured an array of Sacred Swords, Air Cutters, Fury Cutters, and Razor Leafs. Her opponents may have been bigger or faster than her, but their physical attacks were all met head-on by Leisy’s blades. Special attacks were hard to shake off, but that was only if they hit. And most of the time they didn’t.

A fluttering of wings announced the arrival of a new opponent, and Leisy spun around in glee at the prospect of a new sculpture. Which cut had been the most fun — the bloody ones or the ones that made them squeal? But, facing the bird Pokemon in front of her, the steel origami paused — and then was alarmed that she did so. What — what’s wrong with me? she thought, looking at the larger orange-and-black bird in front of her. Why can’t I attack it?

---

@luckyblackcat @lugubrious

---

The destruction was clear, even from a distance: beams — some singed and some melted through entirely — had failed to support the rest of the structure properly, leading to the partial collapse of the roof. The eastern side saw the most damage, being nearly reduced to molten rubble, whereas the western side looked mostly intact and rather ornate despite being entirely of steel.

“What is this place?” Shanae asked as the Lairon she was riding on slowed to a steady trot.

“It’s a shrine to Registeel, the iron Pokemon in legends,” Marvin said as the pair slowed down to a stop in front of the partially-molten building. “Registeel’s body represents what every metalworker aspires to since it’s said that its body is harder than any metal on this planet.”

“Huh. So like a honorary statue? Are there legends about it around the area?”

“No. It’s just a shrine,” the boy said, walking towards the building with Shanae in tow. “All the metalworking names in the area put money into the construction of this shrine. Making a building completely of metal costs a lot more than you’d expect.”

“I can see that happening,” Shanae said, resting a hand on one of the nearby steel beams. The steel was cold to the touch, sucking the heat from her palm. “Solid steel… How extravagant.”

“That’s what the other owners told me, but they all pitched in in the end,” a baritone voice said. Shanae looked up to see Markus Terra standing at the top of the short staircase, mustache and bowtie as perfectly arranged as ever. “Nice to see you again, Ms. Eller. It’s been a good year or two, hasn’t it?”

---

---

135 CP

@LuckyBlackCat

Tommy smiled and nodded, following Cici. "Really? I'm all ears then. Though speaking of breakfast, what were you thinking? I'll pay." Amica followed on the ground for for a few minutes, hopping along before jumping up and taking up a seat on her trainer's shoulder. Of course, Tommy already had an idea of where he wanted to go look, though he wasn't sure that finding a Gible would happen over the course of the first day, but he was already dedicated to finding one anyways.

The group walked, Amica keeping watch, when a loud roar echoed through out the area around them, many of the locals stopping to stare at the volcano. Tommy, on the other hand, looked around confused. "What in the hell was that?!" A moment later the question was answered as a ball of brown fur and white fur with a red mask over it's eyes flew into the village, unleashing a Fire Blast that destroyed a, luckily, empty house. Another roar unleashed before it turned it's anger-filled eyes on both Cici and Tommy, earning a gulp from the latter. "Uh, he doesn't look happy." With another roar, the Pokemon charged them, fire filling it's mouth as it prepared a Fire Fang. Thinking fast, Amica countered, an Aqua Jet slamming into it's chest.

The Pokemon, surprised more than anything, stumbled back, allowing Amica to follow it up with a Cut. Tommy grinned as the Froakie leaped back to avoid a retaliatory Slash. "Well, guess we stop a rampaging...well, Fire type for sure, but I don't recognize it. Do you Cici?"

---

♪♫♪ Cecilia "Cici" Taylor ♪♫♪

Location: Tefan Village

@Zarkun

"Thanks. But you don't have to every time," Cici replied, already starting to feel bad. Travelling with someone shouldn't mean becoming dependent on them. As a member of the Helping Hand Guild, she had to accept help sometimes, but she was supposed to assist others in return instead of inconveniencing them. Hopefully, by tomorrow, she'd be up to booking a gig and earning her own money.

"Anyway," she continued, "my idea was, how about we battle? The winner gets to choose where to go first."

Before she could say anything else, a roar caused her, Tommy and many of the locals to freeze in their tracks. The next second, something sped through the village. A blur of red, brown and white, spewing fire.

"Forte! Use Supersonic!" Cici commanded once Tommy's Pokemon had held off a Fire Fang attack. She covered her ears as the Whismur released a shockwave that sent the beast reeling back.

"Eheh... I'm afraid not," she responded to Tommy's question, shaking her head as she kept her eyes fixed on the chaos in front of her. "Can't say I've ever seen a Pokemon like that before."

---

---

Tora didn't particularly understand what her friends were talking about with these... 'memes' as they call them. Still, it was apparent Juana's Rotom had a sense of humor. For now however, they had bigger problems as the Porygon-Z appeared and started blitzing out of control. Everyone trying to join in to help control the glitching Pokemon. Nodding to Juana's warning, she released Sirius and Orion. "Sirius, use water gun on the whirlpool! Archie, Orion! Bite and roar on Shuppet! Help drive them off!" she called.

The timid Staryu gave another 'HYAH' before spinning its star shaped body towards above the whirlpool, jets of water spraying out of its limbs towards the whirlpool and down below towards the Porygon-Z. Archie gave a understanding yip before charging forth, fangs glowing a dark glow. Leaping and snapping her jaws at the ghost types. Orion chirped and did the same, running in a confident manner, willing to impress. However the Shinx did trip a few times. Still he managed to snap his fangs at his opponents. They snarled before puffing their chests and releasing loud roars, warning the crowd of ghosts to buzz off or else.

---

---

The Shuppets scattered wildly, some toppling to the ground due to the strength of the Dragon Rage (probably the most overpowered move in the early game).

The Porygon-Z began to spasm as three orbs of energy appeared around it, firing erratically at its assailants. One orb hit one of the Conkeldurrs, badly poisoning it. Thankfully, that Conkeldurr had the Guts ability, so it was only more furious as it swung its concrete pillars around to Knock Off the Shuppets.

"Skorupi, help those Conkeldurrs," Juana ordered. The scorpion Pokémon skittered up the back of the other Conkeldurr, jumping on its concrete slab, and reaching out to nip a Shuppet with its mandibles.

Juana focused her attention back to Porygon-Z; its colors flashed again, signaling another Conversion attack. It was now a dark green. It was able to bear the whirlpool, which meant...

"It's a Grass type now!" Juana called. "Steenee, enough with the Razor Leaves! Rotom, back in the toaster!"

Rotom sparked and zipped through the air, before taking control of the toaster oven once more. Its eyes blinked open, and its electric mitts rubbed together in glee.

"Rotom, attack!" Juana shouted.

Rotom floated into the air and strafed side to side, firing off miniature thunderbolts to dizzy the Porygon-Z's attention. Rotom, with a flash, appeared directly over the eye of the whirling vortex.

Rotom's door opened up, and from the heat coils belched a 430°F inferno hot enough to bake a toaster pastry... and a digital Pokémon.

Meanwhile, the Shuppets were scattering, panicked, fleeing the sound of the roaring Growlithe and Shinx. Honedge, too, was warding them off, but it was beginning to show signs of tire. It was using Shadow Sneak so many times in a row, after all, and there were a lot of Shuppets.

Porygon-Z came out of the Overheat attack singed, but it wasn't done yet. It flashed and turned a gleaming silver - Steel type. Rotom was too tired to let out another burst of flame, and Porygon-Z caught it in mid-air with a Thunderbolt. Juana ran to catch Rotom.

"Shoot, I don't have anything to hit that guy with," Juana muttered, calling Rotom back to its ball.

---

---

---

"Legendwatch? Hmm, okay, cool. Legendary Pokémon are pretty interesting, though in the end, a Pokémon's a Pokémon, huh?" Charlotte remarked. "What we make of 'em, I suppose depends on what we think, where we come from, all that."

As Jason left, Charlotte waved. "Yeah, probably see you 'round." She then turned to walk to the Poké Mart; she purchased a Poké Ball just in case she had to capture anything. Then, she started towards the bus station.

"The number seven..." Charlotte mused. "Man, I really gotta get myself one of those fancy folding bikes you can fit in a bag."

The buses' routes were clearly labeled, and Charlotte had a bit of time to spare before the scheduled departure time. She decided to buy a bagel while she was at the station.

Charlotte sat down at one of the benches with the bagel in her lap. She unwrapped the bagel, tore off a bit, and handed the piece to Charjabug. The bug ate it in a couple snaps of its silvery mandibles.

"It's pretty funny, those buses look kind of like you do," Charlotte remarked, poking Charjabug. Charjabug looked at the buses, and couldn't help but note the similarity. Charjabug turned back up towards Charlotte and nodded, giving an accordion-like hum in response.

---

CP + 1 total = 13

✰ Jason Ackerman ✰

Location: Central City

@ToadRopes

After getting his Pokemon healed, Jason let out Iliana and Tibert. "There's been a change of plan," he said as he made his way towards the organisation's headquarters. "We're going to be looking into a different legend." Tibert seemed indifferent, but Iliana bounded along, letting out enthusiastic yips.

As the automatic doors closed behind the three, Jason sneaked past the few people gathered in the lobby, hoping they hadn't seen him in his less than presentable state. He hurried to his room, where he showered and changed before sorting out the belongings he'd need. "Up for more adventure?" he asked, petting Iliana on the head. The fox responded with a happy squeal, while Tibert, who'd had rather enough excitement for one day, gave a mildly exasperated "Purr...".

"Aw, don't you worry," Jason said with a chuckle as he left the room. "I won't be getting myself into any more scrapes." Tibert simply gave him a look that, by now, he was used to.

Once he'd explained to the group in the lobby that he'd be away for some time, Jason took a quick detour to the mart. It had been a while since he'd bought a Pokeball. He'd been so focused on setting up his guild and training the six Pokemon he had, he'd put aside his goal of catching more. Still, if he was going to become a master, this was a responsibility he'd have to take on.

Leaving the mart and putting away his newest purchase, he used his Pokedex to notify other guild members of his plans, then headed towards the bus station. As soon as he arrived, he noticed Charlotte sitting at a bench, feeding a Charjabug, which had more than a slight resemblance to the nearby buses.

"Ah, hey again," he called as he took a seat. Charlotte hadn't seemed particularly impressed that he was the leader of Legendwatch, but it could have been worse. He was glad she hadn't reacted badly to his love of folktales.

---