Ah, geez, Juana thought to herself as the sky began to gray, signaling the beginning of daylight. "Tora, Cillian, wait up," she called, dashing after Tora.
The forest was filled with the chittering of bug Pokémon in the early morning light. The Pikipeks' beaks were thut-thut-thutting against the sides of the trees. There was the low droning of Beedrill and Combee; Juana made sure to stay away from the bushes.
Juana patted her hands against her cheeks to slap herself awake. Corphish scuttled by her side, giving a leering glare to each passing bush, daring anything to leap out at them.
"I'm not sure which way the Granbull went, but given that it's a strong Pokémon, we can probably look for thrashed bushes and stuff," Juana surmised.
This area of the forest was quite unharmed, however.
Eventually, the three of them would come to a clearing, where a couple of Parases were resting at the base of a tree. Beyond one side of the tree, Juana, Tora, and Cillian would be able to see a slight ethereal glow. From the direction of the other, however, there was rustling and crunching, as if something heavy were making its way through the brush.
"So," Juana said, "which way do we check? I'm leaning towards the crunching noises; if that Butch is on the move then we'd better go after him."
Raven laughed, "What a cute little thing, however I won't be outdone!" He proclaimed and activated a pokeball of his own, releasing his Eevee. "Oliver, that's Tori and she's Shanae." Raven explained, pointing at both respectively. Oliver looked at both of them with beady brown eyes before flicking its gaze upwards. Another drop of rain landed onhis ear, which flicked to shed the drop and Oliver quickly, deciding that he didn't want to be in light rain anymore, swarmed up Raven's body and weaseled under his hat. "Doesn't seem to like the drizzle very much. Straight ahead is right, wouldn' t be any fun otherwise!" Raven announced and began walking forward casually, arms behind his neck as he turned up his face to the sky enjoying the water. The city was lit up with streetlights all over the place, though how intact those streetlights were varied practically from block to block. There were plenty people still on the streets, stepping into brightly lit food places proudly proclaiming their 24 hour service, drinking establishments, and places to stay, ranging from seedy to ritzy. Raven's eyes roamed over it all, taking everything in. However in no less than 3 blocks they found only ever other streetlight worked, there were no more bright buildings, and the amount of people had dwindled. Then the sound of metal screeching against metal sounded along with Pokemon cries came from somewhere a nearby building. "Whoa, I wonder what that is!"" Raven said excitedly and broke into a jog, not going far before ducking into a building that looked like it was used as a car lot. Several abandoned vehicles were still here, with large bite marks taken out of them. The source was presumably one of the two Larion clashing up ahead. Raven found a car to hide next to in order to get closer and watch. "Huh, I guess they must be fighting over territory." he said to himself, finding the whole thing to be extraordinarily cool.
"I'm so, so sorry..." Ella said to the man, digging through her bag for her wallet. He'd said he could replace everything, but she still felt she should pay. "They just started fighting, and I froze up... Please tell me they're alright!"
The old man gave her that gap-toothed grin. "Ah, don't ya worry," he said, giving her back the three Pokeballs. "Yer team's all right as rain. And really, I won't be needin' payment."
Ella sighed in relief as she took back the Pokeballs. "Thanks. I'll try not to let anything like that happen again." How would she, though? This Pokemon training thing was even more difficult than she'd thought.
"And I'm ok," she reassured Leisy, even though she wasn't. She was still jittering from the nightmare, and from what had just happened. "So, uh..." She glanced at the window, which showed a pink-and-gold, brightening sky. "Where to now?" Her enthusiasm to explore the beach and caves had turned into cautiousness. Her Pokemon needed training, but what if she got them into even more trouble?
"Yes, especially for the more opulent citizens. Snubbull are usually kept more as a pet rather than the evolved form Granbull. Though, Furfrou has become quite the popular Pokemon for pets. It is good to see someone who enjoys Granbull as well though. They look fierce but they are quite usually quite timid and friendly." Tora responded to Cillian's question on Snubbull being the preferred pet. Continuing to follow Archie who was sniffing around ahead to try and track down the other dog like pokemon.
Glancing back toward Juana as the younger woman dashed to keep pace with them, Tora's blue eyes softened in concern but continue venturing forth. She was exhausted as well, she could feel it. Her throat was feeling clogged up again, and she could feel a chill run through her body. However, she was better at putting up a good front, especially when she was determined to get something done. She would not allow her cursed body to cease in her goal. To lend a helping hand. She had to be useful. She was already useless for all of her life, so she wasn't just going to sit around again.
Archie paused in her search as the Charmander was sent out, ears twitching at the fellow fire type and giving a bark in greeting before turning her head between the two directions. As if a little confused.
Tora sighed before nodding in agreement with Juana's preferred choice. "That sounds reasonable. We should remain a bit cautious." she said, glancing up, seeing a slight glimmer as the sunrise's light peaked through the leaves. Her eyes glancing to her Pokeball's. Her Pokedex buzzing as it notified her that Archie, Pezi, and Rachni got a little bit stronger. She probably should have stopped at the Pokecenter to let Rachni rest, but she'd just let the bug/poison type rest in his Pokeball for now.
+1 post +1HHG = 26 (+3 Sunrise) = 29 +1CP = 35
Pokemon:
Archie the ♀Growlithe: Level 10 (LVL UP +1)=11/Healthy
Sirius the Staryu: Level 4/Healthy
Pezi the ♂Skiddo: Level 3(LVL UP +1)=4/Healthy
Rachni the ♂Venipede: Level 1(LVL UP +1)=2/Burned
Inventory: 4x Pokeball 1x Potion
-Continued interaction with @ToadRopes's character Juana. -Continued interaction with @Dusksong's character Cillian.
As she woke, Cici wondered why she felt strange. She sat up, groaning as every muscle complained, looking at the dirty clothes she'd fallen asleep in, the mud and leaves all over the bed. Then it all came rushing back.
She'd nearly died. Less than a week into her journey, and she'd nearly died.
Letting out a hoarse laugh at the absurdity of it all, she slowly climbed out of bed. She was too sore and shaken up to get back to sleep. Her aching legs wobbled, but supported her without giving out. That was an improvement, at least.
Staggering over to the window, she opened the curtains and slumped into the chair by the desk. Here she was, able to watch the sunrise, the start of a new day. She was safe, and so were those two children.
"Hey," she said, letting out her Pokemon. "I'm guessing you're hungry, after all that." Her voice was rough, her throat hurting from all the singing and shouting over the past two days. She wouldn't be able to sing for a while. She'd be just about able to play the guitar, despite the bruises on her hands from falling over, but only for so long at a time.
She dug some Pokefood from her bag, watching her team tuck in as she drank from her water bottle. "Uh-uh," she said as Dulcet eyed Forte's food. "Just because you helped save me doesn't mean you can get away with that."
The musician couldn't help but smile, though. Things were back to normal.
“Thank you!” Leisy told the man who ran the Pokemon Center before turning to Ella. “Let’s go find the river?” Leisy suggested, thinking back to the information she’d read that morning. “Apparently the shoreline is riddled with interesting debris and secret hideaways for Pokemon. Maybe we’ll be able to meet a few rare ones — after picking up some breakfast, that is.”
The two trainers dropped by a nearby marketplace. While quite small, there was still a variety of food, ranging from some uncommon berries to the regular of the town: fish and rice. Leisy picked up some Kebia berries, putting them into one of the empty boxes in her bag before getting a roasted fish on a stick for herself. “Kinda interesting,” she said, spinning the crispy food on the stick and examining it all over. “Where do I begin eating though?”
After getting food, the girls dropped by the Pokemart. As it turned out, the antiquated shop lacked most supplies found in larger cities, instead hosting a group of interesting objects for sale. The Twisted Spoon was especially interesting, contorted in all directions as if some spiritual entity had projected its rage onto the defenseless piece of cutlery. Although the shopkeeper said only Psychic-type Pokemon could tap into the spoon’s true powers and Leisy didn’t own any Psychic types, she still went ahead and bought the interesting artifact.
Impulse buy, Leisy told herself as she pocketed the item. Turning, she noticed a worn-looking board on the side of the wall with a single piece of weathered paper tacked to it. “What’s this?” Leisy asked, turning to the shopkeeper.
“My sister owned a Skitty — terribly loud when it wanted something, always pawing at people and jumping all over the place,” Cillian remarked as the trio ventured forth. Tora’s Growlithe was leading the group, his nose twitching vigorously as he tried to pick out the correct scent. “I’ve always been a more Arcanine sort of guy,” he remarked, watching as the Growlithe greeted Cillian’s happy-go-lucky Charmander.
The Charmander, however, was more interested in the Corphish that was scuttling beside Juana, waddling over with a broad grin on his face and a “Char!” He backed off slightly when the Corphish noticed him, seeming to realize that he was dealing with a Water type and should probably take a little caution. “Play nice,” Cillian said, smiling.
A clearing soon opened up, seeming to allow for two paths — one side with a strange glow that Cillian didn’t like at all, and the other with heavy crunching noises like a large Pokemon moving through the dense undergrowth. “The crunching noises it is then” Cillian said, heading in the direction of the sounds slowly and carefully. When he was near enough, Cillian peeled back the fronds to see a herd of purple and blue Pokemon. A closer look made him realize that it was a herd of Nidorino and Nidorina, intermixed with some Nidorans. “Purple Pokemon, but not the right one. Or ones,” he said, looking back at Tora and Juana. “Either of you interested in Nidorans? Or anything along that line?”
A thought made Cillian whirl back around to peer into the clearing, realizing that the heavy crunching noises were coming closer. “Crunching noises probably not the Granbull,” he said, motioning for his friends to duck as a Nidoking stomped into the clearing, sniffing the air.
“Aw, it’s an Eevee!” Shanae said, seeing the adorable evolution Pokemon. Shanae had only ever met two Pokemon enthusiasts, and one of them had been fanatic about Eevees. The man had two dreams: to travel to every region, and to collect all the Eevee evolutions native to that region. He was half complete with his collection last time Shanae had met with him, and he was busy trying to befriend a rather spoiled Eevee he’d acquired in hopes of evolving her into an Espeon. “Have you thought about which evolution you want your Eevee to evolve into?” Shanae asked Raven as they walked through the streets, rather unaffected by the rain.
Central City saw decent amounts of rain, and Shanae rather liked the sound of rain clattering against her window when the wind blew it sideways towards the glass. Looking through rain-splattered glass was like looking into another world — one that was contorted and odd, but nonetheless interesting and rather creative in its own right.
Shanae had been busy staring at street vendors — quite a few of them were selling sculptures made of scrap metals, and Shanae was tempted — when Raven interrupted her thoughts and ran off promptly. A grin on her face, Shanae picked up her Jigglypuff and jogged after him, hiding on the other side of the weathered car and peering at the Pokemon behind it. “I think so,” she said, watching as the Larion got into position to launch another pair of Headbutts at each other. With a snort and a nod, the two charged, heads clanging together loudly. The screech of metal on metal sounded as the Larions slid past each other, neither giving up as they lined up again to give it another go.
“Let’s hope Turris never gets into that faze,” Shanae joked to her Jigglypuff. Amatorius responded with a series of brisk nods, agreeing completely. The small yet bullishly heavy Steel-type was mean enough as is, and Tori didn’t want to have to deal with Headbutts in his direction, never mind an Iron Head. Spotting what seemed like a junkyard up ahead, Shanae pointed it out to Raven. “Wanna head over there and see if there’s some Aggron hiding?” she joked, hoping that it’d remain as just a joke. She was in no way prepared to take on a pair of Larion, much less a few fully-matured Aggron.
Rank: Skilled Organization: Helping Hand Guild [Founder]
“Thank you!” Leisy told the man who ran the Pokemon Center before turning to Ella. “Let’s go find the river?” Leisy suggested, thinking back to the information she’d read that morning. “Apparently the shoreline is riddled with interesting debris and secret hideaways for Pokemon. Maybe we’ll be able to meet a few rare ones — after picking up some breakfast, that is.”
The two trainers dropped by a nearby marketplace. While quite small, there was still a variety of food, ranging from some uncommon berries to the regular of the town: fish and rice. Leisy picked up some Kebia berries, putting them into one of the empty boxes in her bag before getting a roasted fish on a stick for herself. “Kinda interesting,” she said, spinning the crispy food on the stick and examining it all over. “Where do I begin eating though?”
After getting food, the girls dropped by the Pokemart. As it turned out, the antiquated shop lacked most supplies found in larger cities, instead hosting a group of interesting objects for sale. The Twisted Spoon was especially interesting, contorted in all directions as if some spiritual entity had projected its rage onto the defenseless piece of cutlery. Although the shopkeeper said only Psychic-type Pokemon could tap into the spoon’s true powers and Leisy didn’t own any Psychic types, she still went ahead and bought the interesting artifact.
Impulse buy, Leisy told herself as she pocketed the item. Turning, she noticed a worn-looking board on the side of the wall with a single piece of weathered paper tacked to it. “What’s this?” Leisy asked, turning to the shopkeeper.
Rank: Beginner > Skilled Organization: Helping Hand Guild
“My sister owned a Skitty — terribly loud when it wanted something, always pawing at people and jumping all over the place,” Cillian remarked as the trio ventured forth. Tora’s Growlithe was leading the group, his nose twitching vigorously as he tried to pick out the correct scent. “I’ve always been a more Arcanine sort of guy,” he remarked, watching as the Growlithe greeted Cillian’s happy-go-lucky Charmander.
The Charmander, however, was more interested in the Corphish that was scuttling beside Juana, waddling over with a broad grin on his face and a “Char!” He backed off slightly when the Corphish noticed him, seeming to realize that he was dealing with a Water type and should probably take a little caution. “Play nice,” Cillian said, smiling.
A clearing soon opened up, seeming to allow for two paths — one side with a strange glow that Cillian didn’t like at all, and the other with heavy crunching noises like a large Pokemon moving through the dense undergrowth. “The crunching noises it is then” Cillian said, heading in the direction of the sounds slowly and carefully. When he was near enough, Cillian peeled back the fronds to see a herd of purple and blue Pokemon. A closer look made him realize that it was a herd of Nidorino and Nidorina, intermixed with some Nidorans. “Purple Pokemon, but not the right one. Or ones,” he said, looking back at Tora and Juana. “Either of you interested in Nidorans? Or anything along that line?”
A thought made Cillian whirl back around to peer into the clearing, realizing that the heavy crunching noises were coming closer. “Crunching noises probably not the Granbull,” he said, motioning for his friends to duck as a Nidoking stomped into the clearing, sniffing the air.
“Aw, it’s an Eevee!” Shanae said, seeing the adorable evolution Pokemon. Shanae had only ever met two Pokemon enthusiasts, and one of them had been fanatic about Eevees. The man had two dreams: to travel to every region, and to collect all the Eevee evolutions native to that region. He was half complete with his collection last time Shanae had met with him, and he was busy trying to befriend a rather spoiled Eevee he’d acquired in hopes of evolving her into an Espeon. “Have you thought about which evolution you want your Eevee to evolve into?” Shanae asked Raven as they walked through the streets, rather unaffected by the rain.
Central City saw decent amounts of rain, and Shanae rather liked the sound of rain clattering against her window when the wind blew it sideways towards the glass. Looking through rain-splattered glass was like looking into another world — one that was contorted and odd, but nonetheless interesting and rather creative in its own right.
Shanae had been busy staring at street vendors — quite a few of them were selling sculptures made of scrap metals, and Shanae was tempted — when Raven interrupted her thoughts and ran off promptly. A grin on her face, Shanae picked up her Jigglypuff and jogged after him, hiding on the other side of the weathered car and peering at the Pokemon behind it. “I think so,” she said, watching as the Larion got into position to launch another pair of Headbutts at each other. With a snort and a nod, the two charged, heads clanging together loudly. The screech of metal on metal sounded as the Larions slid past each other, neither giving up as they lined up again to give it another go.
“Let’s hope Turris never gets into that faze,” Shanae joked to her Jigglypuff. Amatorius responded with a series of brisk nods, agreeing completely. The small yet bullishly heavy Steel-type was mean enough as is, and Tori didn’t want to have to deal with Headbutts in his direction, never mind an Iron Head. Spotting what seemed like a junkyard up ahead, Shanae pointed it out to Raven. “Wanna head over there and see if there’s some Aggron hiding?” she joked, hoping that it’d remain as just a joke. She was in no way prepared to take on a pair of Larion, much less a few fully-matured Aggron.
Rank: Skilled Organization: Helping Hand Guild [Founder]
"My family has a Slurpuff and an Alolan Raticate," Juana said to Cillian. "They help out around the house. We treat them almost like people, haha."
Corphish gave Hazmat this blank derpy glance, before going back to threatening whatever came from the bushes.
Juana walked over to Cillian and gazed at the herd of Nidos.
"Hm. Well, I'll probably have to pass. Don't wanna anger a Nidoking and get a poison spike driven up my rear," Juana replied.
The crunching noise was turning into a heavy plodding. Juana spotted a huge tree moving amongst the--
"Oh, wait, that's a Torterra," Juana said, whapping her forehead.
The Torterra appeared to be quite placid, with several smaller Pokémon resting its tree's branches, as well as on the miniature mountains jutting out of its shell. There was a flock of Spritzees perched in rows on the rim of Torterra's carapace.
Trailing behind Torterra was a limping Togepi.
"Twee-pee!" Togepi wailed, limping along as it scampered after the Torterra. But the little spiky egg Pokémon was too slow, and fell flat on its face. It wanted to ride, but couldn't.
"Aww," Juana said. "It's sad."
Suddenly, a Nidorino broke from the pack, a wild look in its eyes. It rammed into the Togepi, launching the poor Fairy-type into the bushes where Juana, Tora, and Cillian were. The Nidorino locked eyes with the three Trainers and pawed the ground furiously.
"Uh-oh," Juana gulped. She gritted her teeth and pulled out her Poké Ball with Skorupi. "Skorupi, let's go!"
The scorpion Pokémon popped out of its ball as the Nidorino made rounds toward the small Togepi. Skorupi lashed out and pinced the Nidorino's snout, causing the larger Poison Pokémon to veer off and crash into a bush. The Pokémon flitted off from the Torterra's back in shock.
Juana instinctively pulled out one of her empty Poké Balls and hurled it at Togepi, encapsulating it where it would be safe from getting mauled by the wild, and apparently raving, Nidorino. Juana dashed to pick up the ball as Nidorino turned around and tossed Skorupi away.
"Skorupi, get up! Leer!" Juana called, scooping up Togepi while the ball was still shaking and flashing.
Skorupi skittered up the tree and gave Nidorino a menacing glare. The Nidorino returned with a mangy stare.
"Bounsweet, back up Skorupi!" Juana said. Hopefully Skorupi will keep Nidorino occupied, I don't want Bounsweet getting poisoned.
She tossed Bounsweet's ball, and the grass Pokémon popped out and fired off Razor Leaves at Nidorino.
The food, as well as the atmosphere of the simple yet lively marketplace, cheered Ella up a little. So far, apart from the nightmare problem, Stillwater was turning out to be exactly her kind of place. Maybe she'd be able to meet someone here who'd teach her how to train Ghost types properly.
Letting her Pokemon out one at a time to avoid a repeat of the earlier incident, she fed them berries, and gave Treasure her cardboard fish-and-rice container once she'd finished her own breakfast. The Trubbish gobbled down the empty box with delight.
Returning Treasure, she followed Leisy into the open-air store. One of the items in particular caught her attention. "Black Sludge? That'd be perfect! But..." She saw the note by the item. She wasn't a high enough ranking trainer yet. "This is something I'll be coming back for," she said to Leisy.
Watching Leisy purchase the Twisted Spoon, her eyes went wide as she realised what this meant. "You went up a rank, didn't you?" she said, the excitement in her voice tainted by a hint of something else. Envy. "Congratulations!"
This was no reason to feel inadequate, she told herself. She'd catch up... wouldn't she?
Noticing a piece of yellowed paper on a board, she took a closer look. "This explains it..." she muttered to herself, thinking back to what she'd read about Stillwater. "Leisy... You didn't have any weird dreams last night, by any chance?"
When Cici headed to her room, Tommy did the same, making a joke about how afternoon sounded like a good plan as they split for the night. When he entered his room, he took the time to change his clothes into his PJs and wash up a little before passing out on top of his covers. He could remember his last thought being that he wished he could find the trainer who left that Sylveon alone and kick them up and down the length of Central City.
When Tommy woke up the next day, he was surprised to find it was close to his normal time despite not getting any sleep the night before last. As he stood and stretched, he scooped up his Pokeballs and released Amica and Epsilon, who both also yawned and sat on the bed. "Tell ya what, that was a crazy night huh?" Epsilon gave a nod while Amica frowned slightly.
"Froak Froakie ie." Tommy, who had been in the middle of changing his shirt, turned to frown at his first partner.
"It wasn't that I didn't think you couldn't win a fight, Amica. Those Fairies would have put you to sleep and I didn't want to risk you getting hurt because of that." The Froakie takes a moment to consider before turning and conversing with Epsilon. Shaking his head with a light chuckle, the trumpet player finishes getting dressed for the day before beckoning his two friends out the door of their room and towards Cici's room. Upon arriving, he knocks before speaking. "Hey Cici, you awake yet?"
While waiting on her to answer, he makes sure he has his trumpet with him and then hands Amica and Epsilon some food, since he knew they would both be hungry by this point.
For quite some time she put it off, but eventually Olivie couldn't shut out the sunlight any longer. She pulled herself into a sitting position, her movement slow to prevent the crick in her neck from causing her any further discomfort. Through her bleary eyes, the room came into focus. A bug buzzed near her head, forcing the brunette to flail her arm around in attempt to slap it away. The first thing she spotted was the round form of Gespenst sitting in the window, soaking up the morning rays. His shriveled, black flower drank in the light and restored energy to his body. Buck, meanwhile, Olivie discovered curled up right next to her. ”Betcha could go all day, huh?” she mumbled with a craggy smile on her face. After she rubbed her eyes, she extracted herself from her bed and stood up to stretch. Once content that she'd worked out all the kinks she'd accumulated overnight, she put on her clothes and prepared to depart. Verrine and her Nidoran, stood on either side of the door, stolid as trained sentries. Before she approached them, Olivie wondered why she felt so drained. A muddled memory of something frightening needled her, but she couldn't remember a thing.
Putting it aside, she knelt down in front of her Nidoran. ”A'right. That was one crazy night at Feyhollow, and after that, you've earned yourself a name. I thought it up yesterday while walking. Bifrons, a dark spirit in the culture of my ancestors. Pretty badass, yeah?” If he understood, the Nidoran did not give any indication of approval. Perhaps he simply didn't know what to think; a name was, after all, a thing of vital importance. Regardless, Olivie left the room soonafter, with all four of her Pokemon in tow.
She stopped by the front desk on the way out. The old clerk remembered her face. “Oh! G'mornin', missie. Headed out fer the day?”
While irked by the codger's nickname, Olivie nodded before replying, ”What's there to do around here? I'm happy to explore, but...”
Eager to share his knowledge, the man interjected as his guest trailed off. “There's heaps o' stuff! All kinds of rare pokes and mighty mysterious goin's-on by the seaside. Plus, we got a mission for any trainers what might like to earn a li'l reward. Pay Mr. Wernicke a visit at the Pokey Mart 'cross the river if ya like.”
It sounded like a plan to Olivie. ”Might as well. D'you need me to pay for my room?” A quick consultation of her pokedex later, she added, ”I have tons of Trainer Points.”
Her acquaintance shook his grizzled head. “Nah. Outside the Pokey Mart, we here in Stillwater do our tradin' with stuff a li'l more real. Sand dollars is what we use for currency. Although, iffen ya do somethin' 'bout all the bad dreams, I'll later ya stay for free as long as ya want.” He gestured to the rooms again to emphasize his reward.
Bad dreams? For a moment, Olivie was silent. Though she remembered little, she felt as though bad dreams might have hit her hard last night. She certainly felt as though she'd been tossing and turning for hours. The old man's phrasing, too, caught her off guard. Typically there wasn't much people could do about bad dreams, but from the way the guy spoke about them, they sounded like a sickness that could be cured. Strange. Olivie turned to go, giving a little wave as she did, for she could appreciate a hospitable, no-nonsense attitude. The elderly deserved more respect than the young and foolish in her book. ”I'll check it out. Later.”
One creaky, water-soaked, plank bridge later and Olivie stood outside the Poke Mart with her party. The open-air establishment, styled much like an enormous stall at a county fair, afforded her a good look at the people inside as she entered. A solitary table with two chairs stood on the boarded floor, and at it sat a middle-aged man and woman. The man, a heavyset fellow with a receding sandy-colored hairline and spiky beard, wore a set of beige waders and a dark blue cotton shirt. Across from him, his companion wore jeans, a flannel shirt, and a faded orange shawl to match her bright red hair, tied in a ponytail. Neither could be said to be particularly good-looking or friendly, but they gave off the air of absolutely average, approachable, down-to-earth people. At the moment, both were playing cards, but Olivie's approach caused them to look up. In an instant, a wide smile appeared over the woman's face. In an accent as thick and sweet as honey she exclaimed, “Well, ain'tcha a purdy gal! An' slap me sideways if ya ain't a pokeymon traina! Behin' the counta, dear,” she added, turning to her husband. “Barely open five minutes an' ya gotcha first sale a' the day!” The unexpected compliment brought a stormy frown to Olivie's face, and she made as if to turn around. When did people get so personal?
But the shopkeeper was already on his way. Oddly silent, she shuffled behind the counter, then altered his countenance. In a very official manner he clapped his hands and declared, “Welcome ta the Stillwata Pokey Mart, young lady! What can I getcha this fine mornin'? We got run-a-the-mill pokey balls, great balls, antydotes fer what ails ya, and a buncha local goods with the amazin' ability to raise yer pokeymon's power. Goober! C'mon out, ya hear?”
From behind the counter, an odd shape emerged. A creature that could only be described as a living top inside a blob of green jelly levitated up, a look of dull surprise on its face. The shopkeeper laid his hand on the top of the creature and squeezed it, and much like a dog getting scratched, the Pokemon closed its eyes and tilted its head back. Olivie watched with eyebrows raised. ”Uh, I just want a pokeball.” After making the transaction, Olivie found herself confronted by the shopkeeper's wife, who was eager to show her a new pokemon item she was working on. So genuine was the woman's enthusiasm to share with her that Olivie couldn't bring herself to deny her. According to the craftswoman, when finished the item would power up a pokemon's ghost-type moves by half.
During this time, some other girls entered the shop, but the brunette didn't pay them much attention. Only when she'd been shown every detail on the so-called 'Spell Tag' did she get the chance to look away. Immediately Olivie recognized one of the girls as the annoying goodie-goodie who she'd been forced to get some directions from back in Central City. Ugh. More than prepared to leave and explore Stillwater, Olivie started toward the door only to pause when Leisy asked about a paper attached to a sort of notice board.
The shopkeeper wasted no time responding. A serious look had come over his face, and he removed his hand from his Duosion's head. “People been havin' weird dreams lately. People have lots a' vivid dreams in this place, but in the past couple a' weeks it's been more nightmares. Some poor folks wake up screamin' in the middle of the night, an' some won't wake up fer hours in the daytime no matter what noise ya make. There's sleepwalkin' too. Mrs. Valerie Winterbrook thinks it's a pokeymon makin' trouble—a real strong'un. We put up a reward for any trainers what help us out, an' most townfolk would be awful grateful too. Maybe...?”
At that point, Olivie crossed her arms and stepped forward. ”Hey, if you're lookin' for someone to give some rotten monster a royal beatdown, I'm your girl. I bet me and Barnie can kick this thing's ass in a day flat.” She glanced at Leisy and Ella, her eyes challenging, then back to the shopkeeper. ”Let me have the job, chief. We'll have you all sleepin' like babies in no time.”
“Everything around here is so interesting!” Leisy said, peering at the jar of black goop Ella was holding. “You have a few Poison-types now, right? You should definitely come back and get it when you can.” Hearing Ella’s remarks on her new ranking, Leisy smiled a small smile. “Thank you. Sadly it isn’t all that amazing at all — it’s just a word change on your Pokedex and some new options in the Pokemart. I guess the latter’s pretty nice, but still,” she said trailing off, “I’m still not strong enough for a lot of things. We both have to get stronger for when Vivian gets back,” Leisy told Ella, remembering the girl that she’d been unable to help.
Turning back to the paper, Leisy listened intently as the shopkeeper told the tale behind the paper. “No, actually, I didn’t,” Leisy said, eyes wide in surprise. “Did you? I usually sleep pretty soundly.”
Doing a double-take on the girl who’d joined them by the Mission Board, Leisy realized that it was Olivie — the girl who’d jumped right off the bridge to save her Bidoof back at Central City. “Olivie!” Leisy exclaimed, surprised to meet the girl again. “It’s me, Leisy. We met in Central City. It’s so nice to see you again!” Leisy paused, remembering how their last meeting had ended — with Olivie storming out of the Pokemon Center, irritated at her. Hopefully she’s forgiven me for that by now, Leisy thought, a little worried that the brown-haired girl still held some sort of grudge against her.
Hearing Olivie volunteer the group for the mission, Leisy nodded as well. “We’ll investigate around town. It’s terrible that Pokemon are attacking humans in their sleep — perhaps there's some sort of explanation for it all.” Leisy paused, thinking about what she’d read about Stillwater. There hadn’t been that much out of the ordinary — just a normal fishing settlement plagued by massive amounts of wild Pokemon due to its excellent location. “Would you happen to know some places that we should check out? Like where something our of the ordinary happened recently?”
Cillian’s eyes widened when he saw the large Grass-Ground dual type., staying ducked in the bushes as Juana leaped forwards into motion, capturing the injured Togepi and launching into battle with one of the wild Nidorino. “Hazmat, Ember!” Cillian called as his Charmander rushed forwards, flame spewing from its mouth and towards the pink horned Pokemon. Hearing the commotion, a few other Nidoran broke away from the herd and charged over as well.
“Haz, Smokescreen!” Cillian shouted. The Charmander spewed forth a dense, heavy smoke that obscured the vision. “Juana, Tora, if we wanna make a run for it, now’s the time!” he shouted, ordering his Charmander to launch a Flame Burst that knocked the first Nidorino out before picking up his Fire-type and making a break for the trees. Depending on what Tora and Juana would do, he’d either release his party and fight or keep carrying Haz and running.
Cici frowned at her Pokedex. She'd been looking up rumours about Feyhollow, in case there was anything to watch out for during the day. What she'd found were all manner of stories about similar disappearances.
Apparently, there had been another musician, a violinist. His friends had found him in the forest, playing to the fairies in an enthralled state, and rescued him, getting him to leave town. Even after distancing himself from those Pokemon, though, he'd never been the same. He'd longed to go back, constantly playing that eerie music his friends had heard, composing songs for the fairies every day and night until he wasted away.
It wasn't clearly stated whether or not the story was true, but Cici could believe it, going by that urge she'd had yesterday to return to the woods, and that song she'd kept singing. Her grip on her Pokedex tightened. She and the children had been lucky, but there were many others who hadn't. At least that Shiinotic wouldn't be claiming any more victims.
She looked up as she heard Tommy knock on the door and ask if she was awake. "Yeah, just in dire need of coffee," she replied. "I'll be ready in a moment." Returning her Pokemon, she went and showered off all the mud, putting on a set of clean clothes and stuffing her dirty ones into a plastic bag. If they weren't completely ruined, she'd find somewhere to wash them later on.
Once she had her guitar and her bag over her shoulder, she opened the door. "I don't know about you," she said to her travelling companion, "but I'd be happy to check out another town. This place has ever so slightly lost its appeal. Which is a welcome change." She gave a rough laugh, thankful that the compulsion to stay was completely gone. "You ok with that? Anywhere in particular you want to go?"
"But..." Ella said, remembering her sisters' gleeful reports about their progress as trainers. "Think about it! Those new items can be really useful, and evolved Pokemon will listen to you! You're doing great!" She wouldn't stand for talented people putting themselves down like that.
Before she could make any further attempt to boost Leisy's confidence, or say anything about her nightmare, another girl entered the stall. A girl whose appearance slightly reminded Ella of her sisters, apart from the brown hair and the lack of makeup. She'd never met her before, but it turned out Leisy had, and didn't seem too sure about her.
The newcomer, though, was more concerned with the piece of paper than with Leisy. As the shopkeeper explained the strange goings-on in Stillwater, Olivie strolled forward, taking up the chance to help out without hesitation.
Wow... brave, the pink-haired girl thought. As Leisy accepted the mission, Ella piped up. "I'll come along too!" No sooner than she'd spoken, she wondered if it was a good idea. She only had three Pokemon, and she barely knew how to train them. Could she really take on not just one, but two missions?
In any case, she couldn't just ignore this. Or refuse to assist her friend.
"Turris? Another one of your Pokemon?" Raven asked. Now that he thought about it he really didn't know how many Pokemon she had. Hm... maybe he'd ask later. "You really think there'll be an Aggron hanging around?" Raven asked excitedly, though still keeping his voice down before his face fell a little. "Nah I read somewhere that they're super territorial, I doubt one would be this close to these Larion's and humans." Still that didn't stop him from skirting around the Larions, making sure they didn't see him and popping out of the building to head towards the junkyard. "I don't really care what Oliver turns into, I'm sure he'll tell me what he wants and we can go with that." said quietly as they approached the junkyard and he peeked in. The sound of crunching metal could be heard and at first the source couldn't be determined. However an Aron waddled into his field of view and chomped on an old bicycle. Oddly enough it seemed to be taking pretty much one bite out of everything and quite enjoying it too. However it's movements were somewhat furtive and it glanced towards the clashing Larions from time to time. Combined with the heavy footsteps on the ground the Aron couldn't have made it could be assumed this was part of what the Larions were fighting over and this little bugger was sneaking in a quick meal. "Ooh what a cute little guy, I'm gonna see if he wants to come with me." Raven said eagerly, before pausing and looking back at Shanae, "Er, unless you want to?"
Tora listened to the two explain pets they have or knew of before they had to get down to avoid angering a Nidoking. However it seemed a Nidorino had been annoyed with a Togepi, and butted the fairy pokemon into the group's hiding place. Juana caught the Togepi, which caught the Nidorino's attention and charged at them. Both of her human companions sent their pokemon to fight, course that attracted the whole herd. Cillian suggested they run for it, and Tora quite agreed. Especially she saw the Nidoking turn his head around and glare at them, giving a ferocious roar before thundering toward them. Pausing as the smokescreen blinded his sight but only snarled as his thundering steps rapidly thrashed, large body flailing to try and rid of the smoke. Though she herself couldn't run very far. Taking a pokeball, she let out Pezi and climbed on. She would have to give Archie as much candy as she wanted for catching the Grass Pokemon.
"Pezi, Vine Whip." Tora instructed, fingers lacing around the goat like pokemon's horns as Pezi chirped. Vines whipping out of his neck and trying to lace around Juana, Cillian, Skorupi and Bounsweet in order to drag them along for the ride.
Archie barked snarling and fur puffing threateningly before turning and following after her trainer. Faintly, she could hear a faint rumbling. Glancing back, she took a breath as it seemed they had lost the herd, hopefully. "That was a little close." she murmured as Pezi slowed to a trot. She could feel her heart pound against her chest to the point that it was a bit painful. "Everyone alright?" she asked.
+1 post +1HHG = 31 +1CP = 36
Pokemon:
Archie the ♀Growlithe: Level 11/Healthy
Sirius the Staryu: Level 4/Healthy
Pezi the ♂Skiddo: Level 4/Healthy
Rachni the ♂Venipede: Level 2/Burned
Inventory: 4x Pokeball 1x Potion
-Continued interaction with @ToadRopes's character Juana. -Continued interaction with @Dusksong's character Cillian.
“Yep — my Aron,” Shanae said, a proud grin on her face. If there was one thing she wouldn’t mind taking all the credit and admiration in the world for, it was her Pokemon, and Shanae wasn’t afraid to admit this rather vain fault of hers. “Not sure, to be honest, but if there’re Larion fighting each other for territory, chances are a few of them probably picked enough fights to evolve naturally. Let’s hope we don’t actually meet one,” she said. Hearing Raven’s reasoning, Shanae nodded in agreement, figuring it made sense and she ought not to push her luck.
On Oliver the Eevee, Shanae had to hand it to the boy. Having met a few too many trainers that had a set plan for their Eevee — okay, practically every trainer who owned an Eevee, in Shanae’s experience — Raven’s answer came as a rather surprising and interesting one. Team building was a very real thing, as Shanae found with her own team and with many expert-rank trainers’, but those that were able to disregard the rigorities of the system always got Shanae’s respect. Raven’s answer reminded her of a Pokemon Breeder she’d met towards the beginning of her journey — a kind lady who’d had no plans whatsoever for her Eevee. In fact, the kindly woman had expressed desire for her Eevee to remain an Eevee — a point that Shanae, at the time, found rather stupid and uninteresting. Shanae knew better now, of course. The immaturity had faded with her first wipe-out, and she’d learned to look at Pokemon differently.
The junkyard was a rather interesting landscape. While in some parts it was scattered with shattered bottles and empty cans that could alert every Pokemon in a mile radius around them of their presence, other parts of the junkyard saw little to no debris at all, even sprouting grass at times. Raven’s comment called Shanae’s attention away from the yard and back towards the headbutting Larion, specifically towards the tiny speck-like Pokemon between them. “Oh, and Aron?” Shanae asked, recognizing the familiar Pokemon. While it looked quite a bit smaller than her own Aron — probably because it was younger and didn’t stuff itself chock full of berrie every chance it got — it was an Aron nonetheless, and Shanae wasn’t about to let her new friend tackle two Larion on his own.
“Okay. I’ll distract the Larion while you see to the Aron,” Shanae said, returning her Jigglypuff — who disappeared with a relieved look on his face when he realized that he wouldn’t have to deal with two sized-up Turris’ — and called out her Houndour. “Ebon, Oti, I’m going to need your help with the two Larion over there,” Shanae told the two Pokemon she’d called out. The Houndour glanced at the two Larion and nodded resolutely while the Lotad next to him did a little dance on its four feet — which Shanae knew was a yes, in Otiosus’ own special way. “Ebon, lead them over with a Growl and then some Embers. Otiosus, wait here and ambush them with Bubbles when they come close.”
The Houndour nodded again, charging over and starting the chain of events that resulted in two very irate Larion bounding over at the fastest speed they could manuever their heavy metal-shelled bodies. “Here’s your chance!” Shanae said, turning to Raven and pointing to the other side of the stack of cars they were hiding behind. “Loop around them and go catch that Aron!”
Rank: Skilled Organization: Helping Hand Guild [Founder]
Juana held on tight to her Pokémon. The Nidorino, shaking its head and recovering from the Flame Burst it took, shot out a bunch of poisonous barbs that scattered on the ground in front of Pezi. "Shoot, it's Toxic Spikes," Juana muttered. "Nobody move!"
The Nidorino charged again, scattering the poison barbs as it ran towards the Trainers.
"Skorupi! Stop it!" Juana called. Skorupi let out a hiss, pulled itself out of the vines, and landed on Nidorino's face, obstructing the angry Pokémon's vision. The Nidorino veered off and tripped into a bush, tangling itself in brambles. Skorupi wasn't bothered due to its hard exoskeleton, but Nidorino struggled to escape.
"Okay. Bounsweet, Rapid Spin. We gotta get rid of those spikes," Juana said.
Bounsweet whirled around and around, blowing the barbs away where they wouldn't harm anyone.
"Great job!" Juana shouted, calling Skorupi back. Bounsweet grabbed onto Juana with its mouth as she passed by, and the three Trainers were able to escape.
When Pezi let go, Juana collapsed on her bottom and took a deep breath. "That was way too close," Juana agreed. "Nice save, Tora."
She looked back at the direction from which they came. "That Nidorino... I know muy loco when I see it, and lemme tell you, that Nidorino was definitely muy loco. I'm beginning to suspect there's a little more going on here than a dog running off. Because that wild look in that Nidorino..."
Juana stood up. She pressed the button on her newly-captured Togepi's Poké Ball, and the spiky Pokémon popped out.
"Togi-togi..." Togepi whimpered, rocking back and forth on its side and shivering.
"Poor guy..." Juana muttered, picking up the frightened Togepi and cradling it. She checked her Pokédex.
"Togepi. The Spike Ball Pokémon. Fairy-type. Ability: Serene Grace. Nature: Timid. Often lost in thought.
"As its energy, Togepi uses the positive emotions of compassion and pleasure exuded by people and Pokémon. This Pokémon then stores up feelings of happiness inside its shell, then shares them with others."
Juana gave Togepi a concerned look. "Sure doesn't look very happy right now," she said. She looked up at Tora and Cillian. "Okay, um, so do you guys want to take a break right now? Our Pokémon look kind of winded, and quite frankly I'm a bit fried after almost getting gutted by a Nidorino."
Gotta be more careful next time, Juana thought to herself.
To calm Togepi down, Juana dug into her tool belt and produced one Rare Candy. She unwrapped the candy and fed it to the Togepi. The fairy Pokémon's shivering slowed a bit as it lost itself in the sweetness.
Given the fact that stuff like Torterra and Nidorino exist in this place, Juana thought it best to raise Bounsweet's level one as well, and as such, she fed a candy to the fruit Pokémon.
"Is everybody else feeling alright?" Juana asked. "I hope that wasn't too much... trouble. Phew."
Ahead of the three Trainers lay two more branching paths. One led across a small brook, and the other through a thick grove of trees.
“Whoa!” Cillian said, surprised when a pair of vines wrapped around him and picked him up. Realizing that the vines belonged to Tora’s Skiddo, he hurriedly returned Hazmat before steadying himself on the Grass-type and hanging on from the ride. “I gotta get myself one of these,” he joked with a grin when the Skiddo started up, prancing away from the scene of crime. “Large Pokemon that I can ride on, I mean.”
Noticing Juana’s shivering Togepi, Cillian nodded. “A break it is,” he said, releasing his newest Pokemon — a Bulbasaur. “Hey, how’re you holding up?” he asked, kneeling down to the Grass-type’s level. The Bulbasaur looked around, taking its surroundings before taking a seat and yawning. “Bored already?” Cillian asked, smiling in amusement. “Well. I’ll be sure to pull you out the next time we come across some wild Pokemon, alright?”
The Bulbasaur nodded as Cillian returned him, disappearing with a red flash as Cillian straightened up and looked out at the road in front of them “Crossroads. Typical,” he said, a wry grin on their face. “I’ll cast my vote for the trees — I don't think a Granbull would be able to get across a river easily, and it definitely wouldn’t be its first choice of paths.”
The outburst from Olivie's acquaintance almost made her skin crawl. Leisy's surprise struck the brunette as so overdone as to be cheesy; what was so remarkable about seeing another trainer in a popular stopover after a few days? Plus, the two girls weren't exactly friends. Nobody Olivie knew of would have declared meeting her again 'nice' after a dismissal like the one she'd given last time the other trainer crossed her path. Clearly, she hadn't been curt enough. Right now, Leisy constituted nothing more than a competitor to Olivie, and not only did she intend on winning any competition she chose to partake in, but she also wanted to make sure this twit knew it.
”'We?' Hope you're referring to the scene girl there.” An irate look flew Ella's way. A sleepless night had left bags under Olivie's eyes, making her glare nastier than usual. ”I don't waste time searching every nook and cranny, 'specially with sissy chicks. Mess around all you want, but I'm gonna follow my gut to the finish line. That reward's good as mine! Later, losers.” Without a second to waste, she dashed out of the shop, her crowd of Pokemon right beside.
A moment passed in silence, during which the shopkeeper remained silent. Then, glancing at the remaining trainers, he gave a whistle of disbelief. His wife, still seated, shook her head. “Poor dear. Wonder what happened t'make 'er so ornery. That kind of attitude don't suit a pretty face at all.”
Her husband shrugged. “Not our business, Em.” His focus returned to Leisy and Ella. “Yer best bet is the shoreline. All kinds o' strange stuff happens in them grottos 'n ravines. Whole place is worse 'n a maze with all its twists 'n turns 'n walls. Don't know if it's worth it t'look 'round town, since there ain't many places t'hide, but could be there's clues the rest of us are missin'. Good luck!”
Moving with practiced speed, the woman sped over to the main shelf. It didn't take much to deduce that Ella had her eye on the Black Sludge. The shopkeeper's wife picked up the heavy, squishy globule and held it out for the pink-haired trainer to take. “Here, if ya like this ole thing, ya can borrow it for the mission. If there's bad pokeymon out there, ya need all the help ya can get.” She put her hands on her hips. “Oh, an' one more thing. If ya see that angry girl again, why doncha battle 'er? Bet she'll respect someone who gives her a wallopin'.”
-=-=-
Before Olivie lay the river, and she veered right toward the rest of the town. A large, wooden ramp structure suspended like scaffolding traced the side of the bluff near the waterfall, and with a spring in her step the bruiser descended. The instant she passed out of sight from the shop, she slowed down. Despite her convincing blustering, she had no idea where to go to hunt down the critter responsible for the town's bad dreams. Since poking around until she stumbled on something didn't seem like an option, the only choice that remained would be to find Bernard and see what he could figure out. Her inability to tackle the problem right away irritated Olivie, but she rationalized that her part would come when the time to kick ass did.
With a plan in mind to loop through the town and back to the Poke Center, Olivie set off again. This time, she swung Verrine up on her shoulder to give the bug a birds-eye view. Stillwater town proper, situated at the seaside, had three distinct sections. The middle of town, arranged in a crude circle, lay atop a cleared stretch of earth. On one side lay a stretch of sand that separated society from sea, and buildings lined its outer edge in a crescent. Finally, the outer circle of Stillwater stood on log pylons rising from the marsh, a multi-layered and somewhat clustered affair that gave the impression of a village built on docks. An immense amount of walkways and bridges connected the various buildings, in some cases rising over larger canals of water to permit the passage of round, woven boats. Olivie's worry that the walkways might be creaky and unreliable soon proved unfounded—everything was remarkably sturdy. Then again, it wouldn't be much of a town if its foundations weren't. Another notable feature of Stillwater was its Pokemon. Simply put, the place was alive with them. In particular, she found a surprising amount of big, fearsome-looking bug pokemon prowling the swamp, sometimes right beneath the bridges. Her Pokedex identified them as Araquanid, dual bug and water types that the town was apparently famous for. As nasty as they looked, their entry described them as caring. Heh, she thought, don't judge a book by its cover. After a few minutes, and receiving only a few curious, inquisitive, or admiring looks from the townsfolk, Olivie arrived at the other side of the waterfall's base.
On this side, a ladder led up to the top of the bluff, and the Pokemon Center stood not far away. Olivie put both hands on the ladder before realizing that not one of her Pokemon would be able to get up on its own. ”Hum. Well, we'll find another way. Why don't you lead, Buck?” With a determined look, the Bidoof turned tail to patter across the planks. Olivie, Verrine, Gespenst, and Bifrons followed his lead.
