One moment, Olivie stood in a maelstrom of action. The pokemon attacking her alone or in pairs were no match, and with a cruel smile on her face she began to grow careless. Could any of these unclean buffoons even compare? She altered her movement, shifting towards form over function. A true paragon of beauty and strength could, after all, effortlessly claim victory and do it in a stylish manner. So caught up was she in this endeavor that she did not notice a dark shape, hidden by the black sky, swooping in from above. In a split second, the steel talon raked across her face, and in the next its owner disappeared again. Olivie cried out in pain stumbling backward in an attempt to keep her balance only to trip and fall flat. Clutching her bleeding face, she rolled onto her from and pushed herself onto her knees. It hurt more terribly than she could have imagined. Even as she utilized them to their utmost, she hadn't thought that her incredible offensive powers might imply that her defenses were paper-thin. None of this occurred to her at the moment, though; all she could think about was the pain. It wasn't going away, either, and when she tried to open her right eye she was greeted by a stab of agony and nothing else. The terrifying word blind echoed through her head.

In the background, Darkrai's mood did not change. ”Then again, deep down you're still a pathetic wannabe. Never has a softer heart blustered harder. Didn't I say this place shows you for what you truly are? All bark and no bite.”

Half-hearing her captor's condemnation through the thick haze that assailed her brain, Olivie tottered to her feet. The pokemon that had attacked her must have thought her defeated and turned to deal with a more pressing foe. With her one good eye, she gazed around, trying to find an escape. Tears clouded her vision, but she could make out one odd thing in the chaos: a giant creature, like a four-legged spider made of teal steel, sitting on the earth with its eyes scrunched closed. A couple pokemon were attacking it, but as Olivie watched, two grew bored and picked a fight with each other, leaving only a beat-up, puny-looking Ursaring to smack its tough exterior halfheatedly. Something clicked in Olivie's mind, and she cautiously made her way over. In this place, sneaking would avail her radiant white form none at all, so she resorted to simply dashing her way over. The Ursaring flinched when she approached, but remained still when it became clear Olivie didn't want to attack. Having sensed a new arrival, the Metagross mumbled, ”Get on with it. I'm not fighting back.”

Even with the heavy metallic distortion, Olivie recognized the voice. She reached out to touch its forehead and involuntarily stopped halfway. Her instincts screamed at her to leave the filthy thing along. You are better than in every way! Stronger! More beautiful! Don't bother with the lesser creatures! But the pain made them hard to listen to. Olivie gingerly laid her slender golden fingers on the steel surface and uttered in an odd croon, “Barnie. Get up...you doormat.”

The pokemon's eyes blinked open. They were green, not like Bernard's eyes, but perhaps like he'd want them to be. Olivie could visualize the gears turning in his mind before he said, ”Olivie?”

Withdrawing her fingers, Olivie stared at the ground. Knowing his eyes were on her made her ashamed—she could see the intimidation within them, startled at how amazing she was. Part of her reveled in his realization that she was beyond him, but part of her hated that. ”How...did you shut it out? These new feelings...like I wanna lose myself...so hard to think.”

A creaking noise rang out as Bernard hoisted himself to his feet. As best he could, he shook his head. ”It just wasn't hard for me. But I can see you struggling, so listen. What you are now came from what you really are, but its not the real you. Its like a virus trying to take control, but one that your body wants to embrace, like eating potato chips when you know you shouldn't. But you can beat it. That's what strength is: not beating someone down, but standing up for what you believe in. That's what you've been trying to teach me on our journey, right?”

A tear, as blue as the sky, dripped between Olivie's fingers. ”You're...right. Man...this is so...soppy. Gotta wake up...gotta wake up.” She looked around. Back near where she'd been fighting, Leisy and Ella were still fighting. Behind them, Darkrai lurked, but he'd risen so he could see what Olivie was doing. Even from this distance, the pheromosa could see that his eye had narrowed. Why? she wondered. Didn't the monster have complete dominion over this dreamscape? A new thought occurred to her.

Bernard raised a claw like a student lifting up a hand to ask his teacher a question. ”How about you give him the business, instead? If by some miracle we faint him, the nightmare should end, right?”

A tentative smile crept onto Olivie's face. She allowed a touch of her anger to return. As if she'd flipped a switch, gray energy started to form around her. Still holding onto her eye with one hand, she directed the other outward, and the gray energy turned vivid scarlet before shooting out as a blast. It soared toward Darkrai and hit him dead-on, causing him to recoil.

Calm malice filled his tone as he stared at her from across the distance. ”Clever kid.” Suddenly, everything had grown quiet; the other pokemon could barely bring themselves to keep fighting. ”You sure you want to do this? Look, if you don't like this way this is going, I can change things up a bit. This is supposed to be the place where you're free. Where everything is as you want it. Everyone wants to be a monster...don't make me the bad guy, little lady.”

♥ Ellanor "Ella" Beaufort ♥

Location: Stillwater

@Dusksong @Lugubrious

Something caught the parasitic Ultra Beast's attention a second too late.

A Gyarados, a torrent of water spiralling around its serpentine body, lashing with its tail. Before the poisonous parasite could do anything, a small Pokemon darted in front of her, taking the Aqua Tail attack with a cry that pierced through the air.

"No... Jumbles, no!" Ella screamed, staring in horror at the barely-conscious Inkay writhing in the withered grass. His lights had faded to almost nothing. He looked exactly like he had after the Malamar's attack, when she'd caught him to protect him... Some protector she was now. So powerful, yet so helpless.

Rising up into the air, she sent a burst of light slamming full-force into the Gyarados. It let out a furious roar before collapsing to the ground. "Oh, Jumbles, I'm so, so sorry, I can't believe I let this happen," she blurted, floating down, sounding just like herself again. Her usual, weak self.

All her victories felt hollow. This wasn't strength. This was giving in to underlying emotions that spread like an infection, rotting away everything she was. She'd wanted to become a better fighter, but not like this. She didn't want power for its own sake. She wanted power so that she could be helpful for once.

As she overheard the oddly familiar voice of the Metagross, a new feeling coursed through her. Now she knew who to direct that venom at. Flying over to the wounded bug's side - to Olivie's side - she sent a purple sphere exploding into toxic spikes at Darkrai. Globs of noxious liquid swelled around her, which she launched at the wraith. The Venoshock struck with a hiss.

"This isn't what we want!" Ella shouted at the nightmare creature. "This isn't what we want at all!"

---

"Then I doubt our Pokedex will be of any help. But either way, we need to drive it out of town. Amica, Watergun!" The Froakie immediately did as her trainer called, leaping back into the fray and unleashing a watergun on the mysterious, but angry, Pokemon. It dodges and unleashes a Flamethrower, forcing Amica to leap back to avoid the attack. "Water Pulse!" Dodging another burst of flame, Amica sends the triple pulsed attack at the beast, forcing it further back. The creature, still staggering around from the Supersonic attack, tried to leap at Forte, only to crash into a wall in its confusion.

"Now use Astonish!" Cici called. The beast flinched back, startled by the little Whismur's surprisingly loud shout. The musician thought fast. Two of her Pokemon weren't exactly fighters, and one had a weakness to fire, so there was only one more she could send out. "Dulcet, use Dragon Pulse!" she said, letting out the Swablu.

Opening her beak wide, Dulcet fired a turquoise energy ball at the rampaging Pokemon. Even with all the hits it had taken, though, it didn't seem particularly weakened. The attacks only appeared to be angering it further. While the Pokemon didn't seem particularly weakened, it seemed to decide that getting ganged up on was no fun and disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, leaving Tommy and Cici with their Pokemon, waiting for some kind of long range attack. After a few minutes, it became apparent one wasn't coming and Tommy relaxed. "Well, THAT was an eventful start to the day, huh? Wonder if there's something on the mission board about it."

"Whew... So much for no major Pokemon-related trouble," Cici commented, keeping a look out in case the creature reappeared, which it thankfully didn't. Thoughts of breakfast and battling had left her mind. She picked up Forte and let Dulcet settle on her head. "Yeah, let's go check."Tommy nodded and headed to the mission board with Cici, finding only one posted upon reaching it.



Reading it over, Tommy frowns and looks at Cici. "So then, that Pokemon we just fought...that was Entei? No wonder he just seemed to shrug everything off."

♪♫♪ Cecilia "Cici" Taylor ♪♫♪

Location: Tefan Village

@Zarkun

"Wow, this journey really is one thing after another," Cici said, forcing a slight laugh. "What next? ... Actually, that's just tempting fate, isn't it?"

As she quickly bought a takeaway sandwich and coffee from a nearby shop, she thought over the situation. Two beginner trainers, faced with a berserk legendary beast and something bad enough to set it off. They'd defeated those fairy Pokemon in Feyhollow, but that had been mostly a matter of luck and type advantage, and this was going to be a much tougher challenge. Was it one they could take on?

"We vow to treat all with respect and never turn away from a fellow trainer in need..." Cici muttered to herself. She turned to Tommy, her expression determined.

"Are you still up for a battle?" she asked. "I mean, if we're going to do this, we'll have to train up a little." Trying to keep the mood as relaxed as it possibly could be given the circumstances, she added, "It'll still just be an informal training session."

Maybe Sarah had been right. Maybe she did have to take her duties as a trainer more seriously - well, now was a good time to start.

---

Hearing Juana’s exclamation about the Porygon-Z’s type change, Cillian snapped around to his Charmander. The orange fire lizard was in the middle of blasting away Shuppets with fiery purple flames from his Dragon Rage — and doing a good job of it too.

“Haz, trade places with Kelby and sic the Porygon-Z with a Fire Fang,” Cillian shouted. “Kelby, keep the Shuppet at bay with some Waater Guns!”

The two Pokemon bounded across the clearing, launching at their respective assignments. On the Charmander’s side, the Whirlpool did little to hold the now grass-type Porygon-Z in place and quickly fizzled away. The disappearance of the watery vortex, however, made for better entry for Hazmat, and the Charmander easily launched himself at the recovering Porygon, flame-covered jaw grazing the blue-and-pink Pokemon to create a scorched streak across the digital Pokemon’s body as it dodged out of the way. On the Mudkip’s side, a few more Water Guns were all it took to send the ghost-types scattering.

“Kelby, come here and help Haz out with a Mud-Slap!” Cillian called to the blue Pokemon before turning back to the battle beside him. Cillian’s Charmander bared its teeth at the now steel-type Porygon-Z, flames tickling the edges of his mouth where his teeth parted. The Porygon-Z, however, was not daunted, flashing again just as Kelby arrived on scene with a Mud-Slap to the Porygon-Z’s back.

“Get out of there, Haz! It’s water-type now!” Cillian yelled at his Charmander. Throwing himself to the right, the orange Pokemon barely avoided a deadly Hydro Pump to the torso, and Cillian started breathing again. “Shoot, neither of my Pokemon are effective against water-types,” Cillian said, looking to Juana and Tora.

---

@silver fox@toadropes

---

136 CP

---

Charlotte looked up from her bagel. “Hey, Jason, what's--” she said, flashing a tight-lipped smile (it wasn’t polite to open your mouth with food in it and she was quite certain that Jason did not want to see her half-chewed bagel). She paused, swallowed the bagel, and said, "What's up?" Charlotte scooted over a bit to give Jason a little more room to wait comfortably for the bus. She went over her notes about the Pokémon population of Stillwater again, checked her watch, and looked back towards Jason. “Gonna be a bit ’til the bus comes, eh?”

She patted Charjabug on the head, then turned back to Jason. “So what do y’all at Legendwatch do? Are there just physiological or behavioral differences between what folks know as ‘Legendary Pokémon,’ or somethin’ else entirely?” Charlotte twiddled her thumbs. “Like for instance, some Sinnoh myths say that Giratina lived in a world not of our own. Pretty well-known story. Like, does its body composition and all that have to change when it comes to our world?”

She thought for a second. “Say, do you think you’d consider the Ultra Beasts to be legendary Pokémon? I’m sure you read about the… incident involving the Alola branch a while back. LIGHTING… BLASTER… ABSORPTION… All those Beasts lost in a dimension outside of their own. Kinda like that Giratina story if you ask me. Maybe they’re just lost Pokémon that are pretty common where they’re from?” She shrugged. “On the other hand, Aether reports state that they are extremely strong…”

Charlotte paused. “Rambled on for a bit there,” she remarked. “I just like talking about Pokémon a lot.” She chuckled. “Fascinating creatures, they are.”

---

CP +1 total = 14

Further chirping from the sharp-billed bird in front of Leisy piqued a peculiar feeling inside her. Pity? she wondered, relaxing her muscles and letting her mind wander. No. That’s not right. This is… Her eyes widened, and she leaped back in alarm, legs scoring streaks in the dirt below as she landed. B—Bidein?

The Fletchinder paused his chirping, seemingly picking up on the fact that the Kartana had recognized him. In his relief, however, the ember Pokemon neglected to stay aware of his surroundings, leaving him the prime target for an approaching Gliscor. Upon noticing the unsuspecting fire-type, the purple-blue Pokemon’s eyes gleamed in delight as it adjusted its flight pattern as to take aim at the Fletchinder. Launching itself through the air, it bared its fangs and widened its pincers, eyes engulfed in desire for blood.

A slew of deadly-sharp leaves knockd the Gliscor from its trajectory, sending ti reeling back. Leisy was at her Fletchinder side in a heartbeat, arms thrown up possessively. “Back off,” she told the ground-type.

The Gliscor’s eyes narrowed as it weighed its options, flicking its tail back and forth as it did. The little origami Pokemon didn’t look like much, but it’d alerted the Fletchinder to its presence. Hadn’t it been a free-for-all? That was what it seemed like around here — kill or be killed, so you might as well test your claws and teeth while you were at it. Muscles tensing, the Gliscor prepared to strike again.

“You’re going to regret that,” Leisy said, readying her blades. On a whole, she was pleased that the Gliscor was challenging her. It wasn’t her choice the ground-type was so reckless as to challenge an enemy it couldn’t gauge properly. On the other hand, however, a small part of Leisy was calling it quite, protesting loudly in a corner of her mind. Why the bloodlust? Why the needless violence? the voice demanded, sounding rather naive but cross at the same time. What will you possibly gain from hurting so many Pokemon?

I — I, Leisy thought, blinking rapidly. Beside her, a faint warmth reminded her that Bidein was with her. I agree, she realized, letting her blades drop to her side. THe Gliscor, sensing the lack of killing intent from the opposite party, prepared to strike, but a warning look from the Fletchinder told it off.

“Thank you for not giving up on me, Bidein,” Leisy told her fire-type, sliding the flat of her arm over her Fletchinder’s head feathers Looking around, she spotted Ella, Olivie, and a Metang forming a circle around the Darkrai. “Over here. But be careful,” she said, motioning towards the group before jumping over with her Pokemon following behind her. “You’re manipulating our minds — our desires!” Leisy shouted at the Darkrai as she landed beside the large, jellyfish-like creature that was Ella. “We might want to be stronger, but the strength that we seek isn’t all physical strength.”

---

@luckyblackcat @lugubrious

---

137 CP

✰ Jason Ackerman ✰

Location: Central City

@ToadRopes

Sitting down next to Charlotte, Jason leaned over, petting Tibert and Iliana. The Espurr quickly decided he'd had enough, but the Vulpix rolled onto her back, letting her trainer tickle her tummy.

Looking back up, Jason listened to Charlotte's Ultra Beast theories. "It's ok, talk about Pokemon all you want," he said with a slight chuckle. "And about legendary Pokemon, their differences and abilities... That's what we're investigating. There are many stories about them that sometimes contradict each other. For example, one story says Entei is a Pokemon who died in a burning tower and was resurrected by Ho-oh, and another says it was born from a volcano. There are even theories that several exist across the world. As for Giratina, its form is said to change between dimensions."

Pausing before continuing, he thought over a different rumour. "And it's funny you say that about the Ultra Beasts. I mean, I take it you've heard of Necrozma? Some people believe it to be similar to the Ultra Beasts, or even to be one. So they could be legendaries of sorts."

He leaned back. "Yeah, Pokemon are pretty fascinating," he said. "I wonder what we'll find in Stillwater?"

---

---

Archie and Orion were doing well at assisting driving off the Shuppets, but the Porygon-Z kept changing types which was making it a little difficult keeping up. Luckily, between the three trainers, they had at least a good variety of types. Or Pokemon who could learn some useful types as well. As the typing was switched to water and Cillian called that he didn't have a Pokemon for it, Tora looked to her Pokemon.

"Orion! Use Spark on the Porygon-Z" she called, watching the Shinx perk his round ears, grin at Archie like he was showing off before running over, body sparking with electricity before a charge of elecricity shot from the cat like Pokemon and to its opponent. The black haired woman then tossed out Pezi. "Pezi! Use Razor Leaf!" she called, the goat like Pokemon giving a cheer before leaves jetted from the Skiddo's neck and toward the Porygon-Z.

It screeched at the onslaught, ducking away from the onslaught of razor leaves before switching to a Fairy Type.

---

“Markus! Still looking as young as ever,” Shanae said, grinning and running up the rest of the steps. “I see the company is going well — read the news on your expansion,” she continued.

“Oh, the deal,” Markus said, waving a hand. “That’s all happened already. We should stay in the present, which reminds me — what brings you all the way here to Ironforge, Shanae? And what’s this I hear about a trainer wanting to take on the mission request I put out — surely it’s not you?”

“I’m taking an extended vacation — rediscover myself as a person and trainer. All that good stuff,” Shanae said, flourishing a hand at the belt of Pokeballs at her waist. “It’s been a while since I’ve gone out under the simple title of a ‘Pokemon trainer,’ and I miss it.”

“Indeed,” Markus said, stroking his mustache. “It’s been a while for me as well. Maybe I’ll borrow your idea one day and take to the road? But that’ll have to wait until I can confidently hand the company over to Marvin — which,” he said, throwing a pointed look at his son, “seems a little far off at the moment. Anyways, about the mission — are you sure you want to take it on, Shanae?” the man asked, frowning. “You just said it’d been a while since you’d been out and about, and I’d hate to see you take on something you aren’t prepared for.”

“Markus, I’ve already dropped by Mt. Atana — and caught myself a Lapras,” Shanae said, indicating her seventh Pokeball. “So I think it’s about time to shake off the final bits of rust and kick into full gear as a trainer.”

“Atana? Well then, this should be somewhat of equal difficulty,” Markus said. “Now, let me fill you in on the details…”

---

---

138 CP

Darkrai's warning went unheeded as the rebellion spread to the other two turned trainers. The tentacled one struck first, her bundle of toxic spikes scattered beneath the specter's floating form. Baleful but tranquil fury glowed in his eye as he held up an arm to block Ella's Venoshock, which dribbled down the limb accompanied by the sound of eggs cooking in a frying pan. Darkrai waited one moment before it began to move forward at a purposeful slow pace. ”You reveled in it a moment ago.” The wraith's tone reeked of condescension and incredulity. ”Did you forget that you can't actually hurt anyone in this dream? You must learn to tell the difference between dreams and reality.” He waved his hand, and the figure of Jumbles disappeared with the shimmer of a mirage on a hot day.

A moment later, Leisy made her pronouncement, and the Darkrai shook with anger. How could these humans be so stupid!? ”This isn't physical, you imbecile! This is only one facet of the endless fulfillment dreams could bring you. I'm offering you the chance to live lives greater than your own in the hours of night, and you accuse me of manipulation?” A sudden change entered his body, and if he could have smirked, he would have. ”You think I'm the bad guy for giving you the power to do what you want, but I know what you want. You want to be a hero. To make a difference. To be respected. Well, you can still prove me right.”

Spreading his arms apart, he dared the trainers to strike him again. ”If you want out of this place, you'll have to go through me. Use your new power to beat this story's villain down, and make your escape!”

Without any hesitation, Olivie bunched her muscles together to leap forward and attack. However, the cold metallic touch of Bernard's leg against her own forced her to pause. ”Hold on! Didn't you hear him say that attacking him will prove him right? The only way we can show him we're not who he thinks we are is to abstain.”

Olivie frowned and replaced her hand over her eye. Uncertainty could be seen on her face, making hazy her eagerness to fight. She glanced between the trainers and Darkrai, whose eye gleamed with intent. ”But if we don't faint him, we could be stuck in here forever! Unless the morning sun wakes us up, or something.” Her mind raced. Could she claim victory by merely outlasting the nightmare, by waiting until the sunlight banished the dream?

”No, no, no.” Darkrai swiped at the air with his dark talons, dismissing the thought. ”My Dark Void can keep you here as long as I want. There's only one way out, but you all don't seem eager to fight. Perhaps you're afraid—that no matter what power or resolve you have, you still won't beat me. You're right, of course; now that you've refused my hospitality, I don't think I want to let you go. But you could still try!” His resounding cackle, full of gleeful malice, filled the air. Swirling energies of black, purple, and red surrounded his hands, and he added, ”Perhaps you need some encouragement.” When he pushed his hands outward, a gigantic pulse of dark power blasted out, crashing into everyone present like a wave against the shore.

---

“Necrozma? I believe reports stated that it was a creature that came from the Ultra Wormhole eons ago,” Charlotte replied.

Just then, a booming announcement came over the intercom. ”All passengers boarding the route 7, please have your bus fare or ticket ready.”

“Looks like that’s our bus,” Charlotte said, getting up. She glanced down at her Pokémon. “C’mon, Charjabug,” she said. The Charjabug hummed and hopped off the bench, crawling next to Charlotte’s leg.

A bus ride, a necessary transfer, and a train ride later, the passengers had arrived at a dusty path leading down to Stillwater.

Charlotte looked around; the sun had gone down, and night had fallen upon the sleepy waterfront.

There was a humid aroma permeating through the air, and the gentle hum of gas lamps hissed dully in the air. There were some chirping Kricketunes over on a rock, and near a dock there was a lazy-looking Tyranitar wading through the bayou. The creaking of wild Dhelmises mingled with the floorboards as Charlotte walked to the town.

“Seems like the marine ecosystem’s pretty untouched here, outside of some fishing and some catching,” Charlotte remarked, watching a school of Magikarp swim through the water. “It looks like since they don’t have to maneuver around so much human activity, the Magikarp are a whole lot healthier.”

Charlotte looked up to Jason. “You know, Aether did a lot of research on Cosmog, Solgaleo, and Lunala,” she remarked. “There’s some theorizing that Cosmog is also a type of Ultra Beast, since it’s capable of opening Ultra Wormholes. It would only do so under a lot of stress, and… well, that was sort of what the issue was during the incident.”

---

---

---

“Pastel-pink, like Slurpuff’s fur… It’s gotta be a Fairy-type now,” Juana muttered, before thrusting her hand out to the Porygon-Z. “Skorupi, Poison Sting!”

Skorupi skittered over to the Porygon-Z and jabbed its stinger into the virtual Pokémon’s tail. Porygon-Z whipped around and flailed wildly, attempting to throw the scorpion off. But Skorupi held fast, and swung up and around, stabbing its claws into Porygon-Z’s back.

The Porygon-Z flashed colors again, and turned brick-red, before punching Skorupi off its back.

“It’s a Fighting type now!” Juana shouted. “Uh…”

She pulled out Togepi’s Poké Ball.

“I’ve gotta try. Go, Togepi!”

Juana sent out Togepi, and the spike ball Pokémon sailed into the air and landed in front of the Porygon-Z. The Pokémon began to nervously waggle its arms.

It didn’t notice that the tips of those arms was glowing.

“Wait, what?” Juana asked.

Suddenly, Togepi pointed its hands forward, and a blast of pink energy fired from its stubby palms, tearing into the Porygon-Z’s chest.

Juana looked at her Pokédex. Apparently, the move her Togepi just used was Metronome. But… what move did it become?

Togepi looked significantly tired after using that move; clearly it was a Fairy move with some recoil, given the effectiveness it had upon the Porygon-Z. Togepi wasn’t hurt, of course, but it was certainly winded.

Juana checked her Pokédex again. “That was Fleur Cannon,” she remarked. “…Wow, I got lucky with that Metronome.”

She turned towards Cillian and Tora. “Let’s tie that thing up before it comes to,” she suggested.

---

---

CP +1 total = 15

♪♫♪ Cecilia "Cici" Taylor ♪♫♪

Location: Tefan Village

@Zarkun



After the two had gotten their Pokemon healed, Cici stopped by the mart to pick up a few items she'd need for the quest. "If only I had as much money as I had Trainer Points," she laughed, stuffing the purchases - six Rare Candies, a Pokeball and a Potion - into her bag. "I guess we'd better ask people around about the Entei situation."

Hours passed, though, and the travelling companions were no closer to finding out what was going on. "Wow, where did the day go?" Cici said, glancing up at the deep grey-blue sky. The smoke from the volcano obscured the stars and moon, so the only light came from the village. "I need to keep better track of time - I wonder if any Pokemon could help me do that?"

Right on cue, there was a hooting sound behind her. Turning round, Cici chuckled. "Of course," she said, watching the little round bird tilt its head from side to side in perfect rhythm. She'd heard of some people in Central City learning music by playing in time to a Hoothoot's movements.

The brown bird hopped over to her, its big red eyes on Dulcet as it let out another hoot. Returning the gaze, Dulcet fluttered down from Cici's shoulder. The Hoothoot hopped up and down on its one visible foot, challenging Dulcet. "Another battle already?" Cici glanced from one Pokemon to the other. "Ok, Dulcet, Fury Attack." The Swablu sped at her opponent with a volley of pecks.

It seemed to be working, until a wall of light appeared in front of the Hoothoot, knocking Dulcet back. "Try using Sing!" Cici commanded. Flying back over, Dulcet whispered a soothing song to the Hoothoot - which did absolutely nothing. Hovering in place, the owl remained as alert as ever.

Before Dulcet could do anything else, the Hoothoot's eyes glowed gold, and it blasted her with a rainbow-coloured beam. Cici gasped and stared. Was that some kind of Psychic-type attack? Dulcet rolled across the ground, then jumped back up, looking at her dirtied wings and giving an angry chirp.

"Ok, no more physical attacks. Use Dragon Pulse!" Cici said. Taking to the sky, Dulcet unleashed a turquoise energy wave that knocked the owl from the air. Lying on the ground, it gave a resigned hoot.

Grabbing the empty Pokeball at her belt, Cici threw it and watched the Hoothoot vanish inside. Her hands clenched slightly, then unclenched as the bruises twinged. Would this Pokemon come along with her? The capsule became still, indicating it would.

"So that's a full team now," Cici laughed, picking up the Pokeball and reattaching it to her belt. That was when she realised something. "Hey, wait..." She'd travelled outside of Central City, she'd battled, and she'd caught six Pokemon. She checked her Pokedex. "I... ranked up? I actually ranked up?"

---

✰ Jason Ackerman ✰

Location: Stillwater

@ToadRopes


"Oh yeah. I heard about that," Jason replied, walking along the seafront beside Charlotte. "It's a possibility... Well, this will hopefully be a chance to investigate Lunala."

There was something a little off about this place. Jason looked from side to side, taking in the quiet, shadowed surroundings. A Liepard prowled around the harbour, scavenging for fish, turning tail and running as soon as it spotted the two humans. In the murky water, a Golduck surfaced, the gem on its forehead flaring brilliant red before the water Pokemon submerged.

"Golduck. Now there's an interesting Pokemon," Jason commented. "A pure Water type, but with psychic abilities." A slight frown creased his face. "Hmm, some of the Pokemon here seem a little skittish..."

Now he thought about it, he realised the only activity was that of Pokemon. He and Charlotte seemed to be the only two people around. Yes, it was late, but it wasn't that late... surely some people would still be up...

Tibert gave a low, growling purr. Looking down, Jason saw the cat's fur standing on end. "Oh, geez, something's not right here," he said. "Really not right."

---

Leisy had been just as prepared as Olivie when she heard Darkrai’s pronouncement, but the Metang’s statement stopped her. Bernard? she thought, remembering that Olivie was originally travelling with another trainer. If he’s been turned into a Pokemon as well, she thought, frowning as she thought, then… How many other Pokemon are actually people?

Darkrai’s next statements chipped away at Leisy’s hope in what Bernard had stated, but the Darkrai’s Dark Pulse knocked her into the air before she could respond. The impact was like that of a wall, solid and never-ending despite its lack of actual mass. While she was sent flying through the air, Leisy found that her new form was light enough to drift in like a bird rather, so that she did. Still, the impact had sent her flying through the air, and she skidded to a halt about fifty meters away from the Dark-type, arms carving deep cuts into the earth below in the process of braking.

Landing, Leisy found that her steel, origami-like body had suffered a major blow and been bent out of shape. Funny — I don’t feel any pain, she realised, straightening up and examining her body with a newfound curiosity. Slowly, she bent the folds of steel back into place, each curving back into shape with seeming ease. Rustling noises around her snapped her out of her engrossment, and Leisy looked up to see Darkrai drifting over.

“What should we do then?” Leisy whispered to the other trainer-turned-Pokemon. “We can’t just not do anything — who knows what will happen if we die in this ‘Dark Void?’”

---

@luckyblackcat @lugubrious

---

“The first attack was around last month or so. Everyone — that is, all of the industry heads — had thought it a freak accident of sorts. Maybe some inexperienced trainer who lost control of his Charizard, or something of the sort,” Markus said, eyes dropping to the steel tiles below his feet. “That had been the first in a slew of attacks, and the most gentle one at that. Injuries are our main concern at this point, civilians and workers both. Steel is easily replaceable, and — while not exactly cheap — factorable into our ‘incidental expenses’ budget,” Markus said, waving a hand for Shanae and Marvin to follow. “But injuries — and even casualties — aren’t common, especially with all the advances in technology and technique as well as guidelines on how to work with fire- and steel-types,” he said as the trio rounded the corner.

At the other end of the building — the end with the collapsed roof — a few flashing ambulances were parked haphazardly, hospital personnel tending to what looked like the last of the injured with bandages and reassuring words. Uniformed construction workers were standing around, either talking amongst each other or speaking with someone on the phone.

“I’ve already made all the speeches I could there,” Markus said, voice weighed down by fatigue and sorrow. “There were eleven injured this time. Two of them are still in the ER, and one of them left the scene yelling that he couldn’t feel his legs.” The man fell silent, eyes drifting to the steel flooring underneath his feet. “As much as I love Pokemon and wish to respect them, I cannot fathom why a fire-type is going around doing this. So I’m sending a trainer after it to bring it down. And by ‘down,’ I mean dead or alive because,” Markus closed his eyes briefly before opening them and looking up at Shanae, “I’m no longer so sure that those clamouring for its death are wrong.”

“Oh Markus,” Shanae said, her heart breaking for the man’s plight. “Pokemon judged as people — it’s always been a grey area. Unfair too.” She paused before continuing. “I’ll bring the perpetrating Pokemon back alive. Perhaps there’s a good explanation for all this. If not… Well, the two sides deserve to get a glimpse of each other at least.”

Nodding after a brief silence, Markus saw Shanae off with a folder of information and a heavy heart. Shanae too was feeling rather down now, and Marvin too, considering how the boy had stayed silent the entire time. When she’d left, Marvin had stayed behind, quiet by his father’s side. A humbling experience for a carefree boy, Shanae thought as the Lairon carried her to a location on the outskirts of the city she thought isolated enough to be suspicious.

---

---

139 CP

---

"Golduck is quite interesting," Charlotte agreed. "The development of its psychic powers stems from the rudimentary powers displayed by Psyduck, and are likely an adaptation designed to allow Golduck to fight off predators. In any case, that also makes Golduck pretty cool."

Charlotte watched a Sharpedo dart around in strange patterns in the water. "It doesn't appear to be mating season," she noted. "Otherwise Sharpedo would not swim around like that." Charlotte dug into her broefcase and produced a Poké Ball containing her Wimpod.

She released the isopod onto the ground; Wimpod looked around skittishly for danger.

"Wimpod has some pretty sensitive antennae," Charlotte pointed out. "That's how it detects danger and runs away."

Wimpod perked up its antennae, waggling them a bit and searching for anything that might potentially cause harm to its trainer/eat it.

"What do you think's going on?" Charlotte asked Jason.

---

---

CP +1; total=16

✰ Jason Ackerman ✰

Location: Stillwater

@ToadRopes

"I have no idea." Watching the Sharpedo's frantic swimming patterns, Jason wondered what could be agitating the wild Pokemon like this. "Let's go ask about this at the Pokemon centre," he suggested. His shiver wasn't just from the cold sea air. "Surely somebody knows something."

The walk took them along a deserted street. The only sounds were their footsteps against the path, and the scurrying of wildlife in the shadows. Iliana and Tibert kept a look out for any hostile Pokemon, but thankfully none appeared.

Pushing open the creaking door of the old building, Jason was only half-surprised to find nobody inside. "Hello?" he called. "Anyone here?" No response. He turned to Charlotte, a confused look on his face. "This keeps getting weirder by the minute."

---

♥ Ellanor "Ella" Beaufort ♥

Location: Stillwater

@Dusksong @Lugubrious

The mass of darkness crashed into Ella, sending her flying like a thrown ragdoll. She slammed against the ground, a tangled heap of tendrils, as Leisy braked with her blade-like arms.

As she drifted back up into the air, her movements sent twinges of pain through her new body, but didn't hurt as much as she'd thought they would. It seemed this form could withstand energy attacks - for a while.

She spread out her tentacles, the eyes on them allowing her to see all around her. Darkrai drifted closer, over the slumped forms of Pokemon on the ground. No - of humans given the bodies and abilities of Pokemon, if the Metagross was who she thought he was. They weren't just illusions. The realisation brought a jolt of horror. Just how badly hurt were they? Were they all still alive?

"We can't hurt anyone in this dream..." she tried to reassure herself. But if they couldn't hurt anyone, that meant they were powerless against Darkrai.

Remembering the Metagross' warning to Olivie, Ella thought fast. "Does anyone know any defensive moves?" They couldn't fight Darkrai, but they could at least resist it - couldn't they?

---

“Good job!” Cillian called, grinning as he walked over to the fainted Porygon. Leaning down to check the virtual Pokemon out, Cillian was impressed at how glossy its red-and-blue exterior felt. “Huh, it feels rather… Perfect,” he said, frowning and retracting his hand before shrugging. “Well I guess that, since Porygon-Z’s a virtual Pokemon, the fact that it’s impossibly smooth isn’t that strange. After all, rendition on the computer can make things seem perfectly smooth that way.”

“Bulbasaur, lend us a hand — er, vine,” Cillian said, calling out his Bulbasaur. The grass-type came out with a happy cry, looking at his trainer inquisitively. “I need help carrying this Porygon-Z back to town, and I was wondering whether you could lift him with a vine,” Cillian explained.

The Bulbasaur nodded, turning to the normal-type Pokemon in question. Stretching his vines towards the slumbering Pokemon, the bud-topped grass-type gently picked the Porygon-Z up with his vines, wrapping vines together to create thicker, stronger ones.

“Careful little Pokemon, aren’t you?” Cillian asked, watching as the grass-type tightened the vines’ grip on the Porygon-Z, not so much trying to keep the virtual Pokemon bound as to make sure that it didn’t slip. “How about I call you… Mitis? ‘Mitti’ for short,” Cillian said, thinking over the name in his head. The Bulbasaur beamed up at his trainer waving a loose tendril at the human before wrapping it up in the mass of vines around the Porygon-Z.

“Alright then, that’s settled,” Cillian said, looking back at Juana and Tora. “So, back to town we go?”

---

@silver fox@toadropes

---

140 CP

A few moments of tense conversation passed between the trainers, and Darkrai waited. As the seconds passed, however, his countenance grew more and more unhinged until finally he reeled back, clawing at his face. ”URGH! Why don't you do something already, you morons!? I'm the villain, and you're the heroes, so fight me! I thought for sure when you started to rebel that you would be the ones, but lo and behold, it's another grand disappointment!”

Purple and black energy surrounded him in a terrific maelstrom, but it lacked any direction. It raged with magnificent fury, but not so much to attack as for the sake of raging itself. Darkrai thrashed from side to side, snarling and muttering curses, until it straightened up with sudden stillness as through shocked. ”What?!” A second of silence passed before it exploded in a tumultuous wrath, ”Shut up, you hypocrite! You don't know what it's like to be bored to death! What I'm trying to do is create a story that nobody will ever forget—a legend, fit for the ages! What the hell is our power and status for if all we do is wait around in some cave until some idiot with a Master Ball comes along and consigns us to servitude?”

Another few seconds' interlude passed, during which Olivie could only stare in confusion, before Darkrai growled and pointed a clawed finger at the four trainers. ”Of course I can force it! Why do you think I'm playing the villain? But these stupid humans can't play along, same as all the rest. They don't want to go wild with power, they don't want to take a stand and defeat me, they don't do anything! What kind of story is that? Just stagnation and disappointment, summarizing my life perfectly.” His cyan eye turned upward, staring straight into the Stygian dark above. Still baffled, Olivie imagined that he must be communing with some being beyond her awareness or comprehension. She did take a quick look around, though, and found that the dreamscape was a little...off. Objects, like rocks and the grass, were losing their definition. Everything was getting hazy, even Darkrai himself. The wraith hissed, shaking his fists in wrath, but in him, too, something changed. A lethargy came over him, and he lowered his hands. His sharp tone, formerly derisive, now came bitter and cynical. ”It's useless.” His eye, making contact with Olivie's, held more hopelessness than anything. ”The sun is rising. What a waste of a night. I will let you go now, but listen to this: I might not be able to make a good legend out of it, but people are going to keep looking for escape in their dreams, whether from misery, monotony, or responsibility. Or people who are dying—one final dream before they pass on. I won't stop giving them this release, and even if you could find me in the waking world, there's not a damn thing you can do to stop me, either. Get lost.”

Without a second's delay, the pitch black of the sky collapsed, falling upon the trainers like a tsunami and washing each one away into darkness. Olivie, full of questions and confusion, tried to hold on, but the world slipped away with dizzying speed. Only one sensation remained: rising, like a balloon, or a diver shooting to the surface.

Olivie awoke with a gasp, making a piece of grass to fly in her mouth, and she immediately set to hawking it up. The tears on her eyes from all the coughing, added to the sheer suddenness of the light blasting her retinas, prevented her from seeing well for half a minute. When she blinked away the wateriness, though, she found herself in a sitting position, greeted by a beautiful orange sunrise on the ocean horizon. A quick look around turned up Leisy, Ella, and the girls' Pokemon, but no other people save Bernard, zonked out about twenty meters away. She appeared to be on the sea stack where the dream began last...night? Olivie rubbed her eyes. Her head hurt from everything she remembered, and she couldn't even remember that much. All she could recall was a black void, a blue-eyed specter, a bunch of Pokemon, and...not much else. The entire ordeal stank of anticlimax, but then again, what else were dreams good for?

With shaky knees she got to her feet. Buck, sprawled out on his back, rolled into his belly and stood up. He stared at her with a bewildered expression on his chubby features, and chattered. Nearby, her other Pokemon were waking too. Olivie scratched her head as she developed a scowl. ”Freaky dream. Hey, Barnie! Get up!” She walked over to give the dozing boy a hefty kick. ”We're outta here!” Without any further ado, she marched back toward the natural arch that connected the seastack to the mainland. She only paused long enough to glance at Leisy and Ella, and to give the two a stiff nod.





In the depths of the secluded seashore, a great, empty cavern turned even the slightest of sounds into an echo. Right now, it resounded with the irate sigh of a wraithlike creature, dejected and alone, laying against a stalagmite on the cave floor. He stared upward at the place's only source of light: an elegant creature radiant with white and violet light, trimmed in gold. She hung from the ceiling, looking back down at him. A soft croon issued from her throat, causing her inky counterpart to snicker. ”Hmph. I'll admit I haven't been the most...vocal about what's been eating me. I did not think that you would even want to help me, given our dichotomy. The moon shines through the darkness, after all. Jealousy, of your purity and popularity, made me think that we were enemies, but you may be right in saying the solution is to come together. Perhaps I don't even need a legend to keep me from losing it."

The bat gave a light chuckle, and the specter crossed his arms. ”So, 'friend'. What's the plan?"

---

Tora sighed in relief as Juana managed to finish it off with her Togepi with a lucky roll of the dice with Metronome. "Indeed. I always get a little nervous with that move. Never know if you get Explosion." she said with a soft chuckle. As Cillian had his Bulbasaur pick up the Porygon-Z, the tall woman returned her Pokemon besides Archie. Whom she knelt to pet the beige fluff on top of the pup's head. Glancing to Cillian as he questioned, she nodded as she stood up again.

"Yes, it's probably within our best interest to return. Hopefully they can find a way to not have this Porygon-Z cause so much problems and damage. It took all of us to just knock it out." Tora answered as she started off back to town.

---

---

Juana nodded to the others. She picked up Togepi and patted it on the head, before calling all her Pokémon besides Steenee into their balls (they all needed to rest).

Upon returning to the mall security office with the amuck Porygon-Z in tow, the three Trainers were rewarded with showers of verbal gratitude, 23 Trainer Points, and a Heal Ball each.

The Porygon-Z was quickly restrained for study and repair.

Juana, while there, picked up a brochure detailing the other things that Zephyr Strip had to offer. “Hey, check it out,” Juana remarked, pointing to an image of an old-looking colossus covered in moss. “The captions says it’s a statue of an ancient Pokémon.” She looked up at Cillian and Tora. “You wanna check it out?”

---

---

CP +1; total=17