Posted February 26, 2016 Lacie and Kit both froze at the sound of a person talking to them, close to them, Kit sucking in too much air at once and beginning to cough violently. Please don't hit me with pokeballs, please don't hit me with pokeballs... Lacie chanted in her mind as she regained use of her arms and pushed herself up quickly, so she was sitting up. She blinked up, wide eyed and innocent, at the other person. Instead of getting out a pokeball to hit her with, this person had bent at the waist to help her out. Huh. How nice. She didn't realize humans could be this nice. This person was special then. She beamed up at the man who looked vaguely familiar. Well, more like his dress reminded Lacie of something. Another Pokemon, that was it. That odd Pokemon that had petals around its neck. That Pokemon smelled really nice and Lacie liked it. She had no idea why though, since she couldn't remember anything. Either way, she was already liking this person. "I'm fine, thank you!" She chirped up at the other, before Lacie's head tilted at the proffered hand in confusion. Well, she'd love it if she was helped up, but why the hand? Was this a human ritual she didn't know off? Was she supposed to do something with the hand, like nuzzle it? Lacie frowned at the hand in deep contemplation. Humans were sooooo confusing. Suddenly, a small ball of black fur latched onto her shoulder. "Psst! Lacie!" Kit whispered, "Grab his hand with your hand and use it to pull yourself up!" "Why?" Lacie hissed back, confused. "Just do it. It's a human thing." Well... Kit knew more about humans than Lacie did. If she had any memories of humans before, she must have not been paying attention to what the humans were doing. She kind of did want her memories back... But this was okay, too. Destroying that Team Helix thing sounded really troublesome. Mentally shrugging, Lacie grasped the offered hand with a smile and pulled herself up with a small gasp of surprise. Wow, that was the fasted she had ever gotten up. She staggered a bit as she got used to her legs before releasing the other's hand. "Thanks for that! I'm a little clumsy because of the dress!" She explained happily, tilting her head up to look at the kind stranger. It was a total lie, but one that Kit had was adamant about her using. "You're really nice!" After saying this, she went and hugged him around the waist tightly, because he was really tall and she knew that this was a way humans expressed affection and happiness. Still clinging onto her shoulder, Kit sighed. Suddenly, a roar reverberated throughout the building. Lacie squeaked in surprise and let go, looking around in curiosity. Kit almost fell off her shoulder as she looked around wildly. Apart from a few people and Pokemon running out, nothing happened. When it was obvious there was no angry, and therefore annoying, pokemon nearby, Lacie returned her attention to the stranger. "So, I'm Lacie!" She introduced herself, "Who're you?" - "Oh? What's this?" Nero hummed quietly in curiosity, tilting his head to the side like a bird. Quick to anger, he noted, thoughts running quickly through his mind, or perhaps just easily threatened. Maybe it was because of me and my body language. He was in a rather arrogant and threatening stance. Shoulders squared, head tilted just enough so it gave an illusion of looking down on whoever he was looking at, legs braced and muscles coiled as if ready to attack. In front of him, the Tyrantrum (male, most likely, Rock and Dragon type, both of which he had a type advantage against, being Ground and Dragon) had first turned to look at him curiously before coming to show signs of anger and irritation. Then came a ferocious roar. Nero smirked, mouth quirking slightly oddly. Thrill and excitement ran through his veins as he stared the larger Pokemon down. "Are we all this violent and quick to anger?" He questioned out loud with a mock disappointed look on his face. "How disappointing. And here I came hoping for intelligent conversation," he sighed dramatically. His eyes flickered around as he spoke, cataloging what was around him. Relatively small space, good for him because he had more maneuverability. Glowing claws, possibly a Dragon Claw, which was bad for him. Could he intercept it? Possibly. On average, Garchomps had higher attack and speed than Tyrantrums. A few possible weapons over there, height of jaw just low enough to land a roundhouse kick without - wait. Nero blinked, flexing his claws. Ah, this wasn't good. He was thinking like a human, not a Garchomp. Man, this being a Pokemon thing was hard. He had no opposable thumbs and could not use his head to swing around a weapon. If he didn't be careful, he'd revert to capoeira again and trip, falling onto his back. "Nero, this is a very, very bad idea," Killa commented, slightly nervous as she climbed off his back. "You know how good you are with fighting in your human form. Unfortunately, you should also know how absolutely dismal you are in your Pokemon form. Techniques? Yes, I'll admit that you mastered them well. More than well. But movement and experience? Sorry, it really isn't in my nature to say this but, you suck, and this Tyrantrum obviously doesn't. You are no where near as powerful as you could be, but he's obviously very good." Okay, so it wasn't like Nero hadn't considered the possibilities before. It wasn't like Nero hadn't gauged his potential opponent's potential before landing. However, Nero was intelligent, and intelligence did not equate reasonable. Plus, he was doing this for fun, and could easily put himself in denial at the very high possibility that he was about to get his ass kicked. He opened his mouth to throw another taunt and tell Killa to stay out of this, but he was interrupted by the arrival of a smaller, seemingly argumentative Pokemon. An Azumaril? Who was looking for a fight? How strange. You sure didn't see that every day. "Huh. So is everyone a brute around here or do some people actually use their brain to think clearly? Perhaps I've just stumbled on a bunch of people with more brawn than brain," He snarked. Of course, he was a little hypocritical. He wasn't someone who really thought before they acted either, but he was intelligent, and able to think without being controlled by his emotions, which put him at a level above everyone else (in his mind). But this was a little not good. Azumaril was practically born to fight Dragon types. It would be an interesting experience though. It would be fun, and that was what mattered to Nero. "Nero, please stop making things worse!" Killa pleaded, "or, I swear, I won't give you back those cigarettes!" Dang, Killa was getting better at blackmail. Oh well, he could always steal those cigarettes back while she was sleeping. Share this post Link to post
Posted February 27, 2016 (edited) "Someone tell the human I gots something to show him!" "Sorry to break it to you," Lambert interrupted, "but I can understand pokemon." Murkrow froze, and melodramatically fell off his shoulder. Lambert didn't try to catch him -- those tricks didn't work on him anymore -- but the pokemon righted himself before touching the ground. There was no use hiding that fact, nor the shifter business. Murkrow -- he hadn't thought of a nickname yet -- was now part of his team now, and if he didn't want to always rely on moody shifters, he'd have to build his own party from scratch… again? It was no surprise to him that this felt familiar, and that he knew what to do. He found it strange, however, that the bird didn't comment on Z's transformation before they bolted out after Rhapsody. The pokemon brushed it off, saying that the Zoros did it all the time. By Zoros, Lambert figured he meant Zorua and his mom, and the implied army of Zorua moms Hygre had at her disposal. "Anyway," his pokemon continued without skipping a beat, "I gotta show you my stash! I've been collecting these things for years, you know…" Lambert raised an eyebrow. Maybe there would be something useful at Murkrow's nest? "I guess we could afford a detour…" he muttered to himself, looking at the sky briefly. He had a feeling that whatever he said, the group would be going to see the 'stash' simply because Murkrow was the only one who knew the way. "It's near a berry patch, too! It's a popular spot for passing trainers so we might not find a lot of berries to eat and…" …Yet somehow, he thought the guide was more lost than they were. With a wing, Murkrow suddenly pointed out a tree in the forest that, to Lambert, really looked like any other tree (although it might have been a little more gnarled with thick knots and some holes in the trunk…). The bird pokemon flew to a spot near the top, poking his head through one of the holes before scooting back out and addressing the group. Well, mostly Lambert. "What are you waiting for, come up! You don't have wings but…" Lambert looked up. He knew how to do it, but he also knew he hadn't done this in ages. He grimaced, paused, and grabbed the first branch to haul himself up. ~ When he reached the spot where Murkrow was perched, his breath was coming in deep gasps, and the ground was a dizzying distance below (at least, a dizzying distance without the safety of Fly). From there he could see the sun beginning to set and turn the sky pink, and it wouldn't be long before they would need to settle for the night. Thankfully, there was no sign of rain in the sky. "Do you mind?" Lambert reached a hand out to the nest, but stopped himself to ask for permission. He figured the pokemon's vigorous nodding meant yes, and peeked in for a look. He parted the dry leaves littering most of the hollow and heard the jingling of metal that got him excited, but quickly realized that the hole contained nothing but old bottlecaps. Many old bottlecaps. Maybe some that would have fetched an average price from a collector, but most of them were from common brands that people threw away every day. Caps that would easily be found if they rummaged through the dump -- and not even the good garbage where one might find valuable rocks. Lambert was torn between pitching all the bottlecaps out of the tree, or letting himself fall off the branch. Murkow was oblivious to his crushing disappointment, and he didn't have the heart to say that the collection was worthless. "I think we'll leave your treasure to yourself. It'll still be here later, right?" "I mean, I wouldn't be against you taking some to help on our journey, but if I'm honest I'd really prefer to keep them to my--" "That's alright with me," Lambert interrupted. "The others are probably waiting for us. Let's go." ~ They made quite a bit of progress to Vertia, according to Murkrow. Lambert had picked up and carried with him some dead branches, setting them down in a clearing. "I think this is as good a spot as any. Pooch, could you light a fire for us?" Thank Arceus for fire types. It would at least make the night better than his first night, and to him, berries tasted better cooked than raw. Now that they had another break, it was time to do a little more housekeeping. Lambert beckoned Murkrow over and whipped the gifted TM out of his pocket, pressing it to the pokemon's forehead. "Wing Attack, Feint Attack, Night Shade, Confuse Ray, correct? Overwrite Night Shade with Thief." Letting the pokemon fly away after he used the Technical Machine, he hoped this wasn't one of those decisions he would regret nearly immediately. "With the memory hiccup," he addressed whoever bothered to listen, "I doubt any of us know much about Team Helix. Vertia would therefore be our best bet. However, I did search them up on the computer and they don't seem to match my feeling of what a 'Team' is. Their website looks professional, and it looks like they're some sort of scientific research group. Naturally, it didn't say what exactly their research was, nor where their base is located." ((Feel free to do your own thing/collect berries during Lam's tree shenanigans.)) Edited February 27, 2016 by TehUltimateMage Share this post Link to post
Posted February 27, 2016 Z swooped down and landed on a nearby log, sighing in relief. They had accidentally transformed a few more times on the way, and while they could more or less manage walking without falling over now, it was still incredibly draining. Was there something they still weren't getting? Most humans could manage this all day, it seemed. They wondered if they should ask about it, and how they would even go about doing so if they did, when Lambert interrupted their thoughts by reminding everyone of their task. Right - Helix. It seemed Lambert had the same idea about the 'Team' aspect as they had; perhaps they should have brought it up when Rhapsody had asked, after all. But if it really was just a research group... what would the organizer of this game have to gain from destroying its work? And how would they even go about... Wait. "The computer"... "Oh!" Z exclaimed, launching themself two feet into the air. "I-I can't believe I forgot! The internet - " they swiveled around to face Lambert - "excuse me, could I see one of those phones?" The man brought one out and, without waiting for him to hand it to them, they sped toward it and dove into the screen. A second later, they emerged, looking disappointed. "These don't have internet access," they muttered, then more cheerfully, "but the Pokemon Center computers! Ah - I suppose it's a little late to backtrack - but I'll be able to in Vertia, for sure." They blinked at the others, then, realizing they'd yet to explain what they were talking about, sheepishly lowered their head and darted back to their place on the log. "Uh, that is to say - the Porygon line has cyberspace interfacing capabilities. If there's something hidden in the website itself, well... I d-don't know if I can... promise anything, really, but, I could take a look at it." "Plus... Silph keeps track of Porygon-line serial codes, and I still have one in my records. T-there might not be much information, and the rules seem to imply I won't be able to actually remember anything, but..." They trailed off. Why were they telling the others this? It wouldn't benefit them, and Z themself certainly had nothing to gain from letting the others know they might be leaving the group soon. Their gaze slowly dropped to the floor. Well, it was too late to turn back now. "I mean... that's... worth a try." Share this post Link to post
Posted February 27, 2016 Emil waited patiently until the girl finally took his hand and pulled herself up. She stated she was fine but then seemed to focus on something else. The Zorua on her shoulder, maybe? It looked almost like they had been whispering to each other but his imagination could be overworking. Smiling, he started to respond to her thanks but was cut short as she hugged him. It wasn't expected but Emil only blinked in reaction. "You're welcome," he replied simply. A roar carrying in from outside caused the girl to jump away in surprise, squeaking as she did so. Once more, Emil tugged on his earlobe, chuckling as he turned his gaze on the doorway. About half of the Center's occupants ran out, including a man covered in dirt and an Azumarill. How strange. Both of them seemed rather excited about the roar but their expressions gave the idea of two different reasonings. "So, I'm Lacie! Who're you?" Hm? Blinking, Emil turned his gaze back to the girl - Lacie. Right, he guessed they were still in the middle of an interaction. "Oh, Emil," he stated in response. "Who's your friend?" he asked, pointing at the Zorua. "Are you from around here?" Emil hoped so. Maybe Lacie could direct him to the Gym. If she wasn't, however, he'd have to make sure he spoke with the nurse at some point today. ~~~~ Lambert didn't respond much to her about taking too long but Gaes continued to feel guilty about it and almost sulked for the rest of the day. With Rhapsody and Z back, the group started on their way. It was too late to make it to Vertia before the day ended so a night in the forest was required. Of course, there was the brief detour the Murkrow wanted to make in order to show Lambert his stash. Whatever was in it, she kind of hoped it was worth it for everyone. So, off went Lambert at the present moment, climbing a tree that looked just about the same as any other. As he disappeared into the canopy, Gaes grew bored and began to look around until something in the grass caught her attention. It was just a little piece of red that she could see until she was closer. "Hey! Look what I found!" She crouched down to pick up the Pokéball, pushing the button to see if there was anything inside. Nope. It was empty. "A kid probably dropped it and didn't notice," she commented idly, not caring if anyone actually listened to her. "Well, it's mine now," she sang, a yawn escaping at the tail end of her words. She didn't realize how worn down she was getting to feel until now. Maybe the events of the afternoon had kept her going and, with nothing to really focus on, her body's need for rest was catching up. But, Lambert was back now and she stuffed the Pokéball into one of the small pouches of her new belt, shrinking it down to fit better. Curiosity rose again about the little bits of metal on the left side of the belt and she poked one. "Hey, do any of you know what these are for?" --- As they walked, Gaes had been informed that the metal pieces were actually claw-like holders, intended to hold the Pokémon in her party. Wanting to see if it was true, she had moved her newly acquired pokéball to one of them, jumping with excitement when it held securely. "This is so exciting! I look just like a trainer!" she beamed, posing for a few heartbeats to look like a professional battler. Of course, no one else was excited as she was but that was their own problem. For most of the trip before they settled for the night, Gaes chatted away, making idle conversation about random bits and things that might have been trivial to the others. Now and again, she - like Z - would end up changing form without meaning too and she quickly came to realize it was largely influenced by spikes in her emotion. Gradually though, she actually started to try and change willingly. However, between the accidental changes and the events prior, she was too tired to try more than once. By the time they were setting camp, she was ready to sleep. Her hair was down once she figured out how it was staying up and how to remove the tie. She practically collapsed against the closest tree to the fire she could find; the bark was hard against her back but she didn't care. At this point, Lambert tried to refocus the group's attention on just why they were there to begin with and going to Vertia. Helix, right. Z remembered the Internet (whatever the hell that was), and pulled some fancy trick with one of the phones. He zoomed towards it and then disappeared with a spark of electricity, reappearing from the phone in the next moment. "That's pretty neat," Gaes yawned, presently not in the mood or state of mind to bother with comprehending what she'd witnessed. "That's all fine and well but, I'm going to sleep. Talk to me about things when I'm more awake," she mumbled, promptly falling asleep afterward. --- She was on her side, the tree still at her back, when she woke the next morning. It was early but some of the others were already up. Picking herself up, Gaes stretched out her arms and then her back. Stretching was rather satisfying and it helped to push away her grogginess. As she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, she yawned. "Do we know what time it is?" she mumbled, her words partly slurred. Hair tumbled over her shoulders and it coaxed her to examine it, running her fingers through the dark locks to realize it was all tangled. She grimaced when a twig snagged her skin and she tugged it out, hissing faintly with pain as it got caught in knots. "Next time, I'm sleeping as a Mawile," Gaes grumbled sourly. Once everyone was awake enough to start traveling, they began walking again. Gaes wasn't as talkative this morning as she had been last night - probably due to a grumpy mood. Why did the ground have to be so uncomfortable? It didn't make for good beauty rest! She didn't bother to think about why that seemed important to her - they were traveling after all. Did she expect there to be cushioned beds in the forest? They walked for awhile and her feet were starting to hurt. Earlier, she thought changing into a Mawile would be helpful and she managed to do just that on her own but she couldn't turn back into a human once she realized it didn't solve her problem. Fortunately, she became human again eventually (although, it took her getting frightened when she tripped and tumbled down a small hill into a creek). Soaked, her mood was now greatly soured. "Watch out!" She didn't have time to properly react before something pink collided with her chest, knocking her down into the water again where stones made enemies with her back. "Sorry! the pink thing exclaimed, starting to zip away. "Oh no you don't!" Gaes shouted, scrambling to her feet. She was enraged and she wasn't planning on letting the Pokémon just get away with knocking her down. Though she intended to catch it in her hands and throw it at a tree, she ended up changing again. Fine! Outright attacking it would work just as well! She jumped and, at the same time, her body began to glow white. The Iron Head connected, sending the Pokémon flying into a tree trunk with a cry. When it hit the ground, Gaes snatched it up in her jaws, using Crunch to keep it in place. "Just what in the world were you doing that you couldn't stop from hitting me?" she demanded, throwing the pink creature to the ground. It picked itself up, cringing as its body ached from the assault. Floating up to the Mawile's height, it seemed to pout. (It was hard to tell since Gaes couldn't see a mouth or anything similar.) "I said sorry! I'm late to getting back home! If I don't go now, I'll be in bigger trouble!" It - he, Gaes was sure - bobbed with nervousness, gaze cast downward. Gaes felt just a little bad for him but her anger was stronger. Still... "Hey, how about you just come with me instead?" That got his attention. He looked at her but she couldn't tell if he was shocked, surprised, or what. "W-Why?" "Because you owe me. Since you hit me instead of just going around me, I get to decide how you compensate me," Gaes replied, resting a hand on her hip. "Of course, I get to catch you with a pokéball first!" she added. The Pokémon seemed confused, blinking his large eyes before finally responding. "Pokémon can't own Pokémon! You're confused!" "Nope! I'm not a normal Pokémon," Gaes explained, frowning. Didn't he remember that she was human just a moment ago? "Anyways, are you going to fight me proper so I can catch you or not?" "C-Can I just go into the ball... You already hurt me so I'm not as strong as I could be..." "Well, okay." The Mawile shrugged, turning around as she tried to figure out how to become human since she didn't have the pokéball in this form. After a few frustrating moments, there was another flash and everything didn't look so big anymore. "There we are! Now," she started, grabbing the ball off her belt. "Exactly, what are you anyways?" "I'm a Spritzee!" he informed happily, tapping the button with his nose. A beam of red light shot out to surround him, sucking him into the ball. It quivered a few times, slowly coming to a rest and a click could be heard. "Great! I'll call you... Bree." --- After what could have been hours, the forest began to noticeably become less dense. Gaes started to get excited. "Are we almost there?" she pipped up. Her clothes had dried (unfortunately with some mud splattered across that she couldn't romove) but her hair was still damp, a lingering reminder of her earlier fumble. Without waiting for much of a response, she started jogging ahead, reaching the edge of the forest within moments. Ahead, the route continued on and Vertia could easily be seen. "We're here!" she called back, grinning. "Where do we start in Vertia?" [[Team information update for Gaes: -Spritzee (Bree), Male, Naive (+Speed, -Sp. Defense), Aroma Veil, Sweet Kiss/Calm Mind/Draining Kiss/Echoed Voice]] Share this post Link to post
Posted February 27, 2016 (edited) Anhew squeaked and hid under something as a loud roar was heard. She had followed the footsteps of Sweet Voice, the one who sniffed her earlier and into something. What was it? A building? She covered her head with her paws and whimpered. Where was Sweet Voice? "S-Sweet Voice?" she asked, hoping to gain the attention of the nicer voice. She shakily came out of her hiding place. What was going on? What was that roar? She wanted to investigate, but she was scared of that roar. It sounded angry. "Sweet Voice?" she asked once again. -------------------------- Zoey took Tama's Poke Ball back as the nurse fully healed him. She looked at the two others in the Pokémon Center, one was female and a had a black Pokémon on her shoulder and the other was male. Eh, she couldn't care less about those two. She wanted to find out about that roar. She walked outside to see Laren talking to another girl, a Dunsparce, and Jasper talking to this gigantic Pokémon that looked like it could destroy the entire city. She whistled. Man, that would be a great sell if she managed to catch it. The only problem? All she had was Tama. He couldn't take on a Pokémon that big. So she decided to just hang back and watch the battle as the big Pokémon roared again. --------------------- Chompers turned his head to see a human chatting excitedly about him. It spooked Chompers, it was like he was almost scared of how he talked about him. He growled. He was trying to make a very clear warning to the human who studied him. He didn't know why he did that, but he did. He then turned back to the purple Pokémon who was trying to stare him down. A really tiny Pokémon then jumped of it's back and landed on the ground. Before he could do anything, a blue Pokémon arrived on the scene and demanded a battle. If every instinct wasn't telling him to fight the purple Pokémon, he'd be laughing at the less intimidating Pokémon. There was too many things going on around him. He roared once again and lifter his tail and slammed it to the left, leaving a big hole in the wall. "Chompers!" Dunsparce squeaked, flapping his wings. Why was everyone challenging Chompers to a fight? He looked up at Sine. "We have to do something!" Edited February 27, 2016 by Raptor of Dragons Share this post Link to post
Posted February 27, 2016 (edited) Pooch trotted towards the branches Lambert had collected, lighting them up with a small Flamethrower and curling up next to the flames, at a distance where it would be too hot for anything without a Fire typing to be in. Lambert had started talking, but if she was honest, she didn't understand much of what the man was saying. A quick glance at her trainer confirmed that Rhapsody was probably as lost as she was - she at least knew what a door was, so there was no way he'd understand words like 'website' or 'computer' when Pooch herself wasn't too sure about their meaning or use. Z then perked up and suddenly disappeared inside one of the phones in less than a second. Pooch immediately stood up, barking loudly and repeatedly until the Porygon-Z went out again. What was that? A move? Whatever it was, it seemed normal for Z, though Pooch didn't understand much of what they were saying. "Freaking warn before doing something like that, jeez," Rhapsody muttered. He had been startled too by the sudden teleport Z seemed to pull. Stretching his shoulders, he started walking off, speaking in a higher volume so they could hear. "Know nothing of Helix so can't help there. I'll be back after dinner." He was not going to admit both that he didn't get what Lambert or Z had said, or that Gaes' belt did look very useful. ----------------------------------------------- The next day started marginally better. Rhapsody and Pooch were both accustomed to sleeping on the ground, with Rhapsody not even knowing of the existence of camping gear, so neither of them was bothered or sore. Rhapsody even got a good laugh when Gaes fell and then got tackled into the same creek, even though Pooch glared at him for it (didn't help that his answer was "What? She deserved it"). Either way, the end of the forest soon came to sight, making Rhapsody glad he had snatched a Pecha berry the previous day before coming back to sleep. He could snack on it later now. "The Pokémon Center would be a good idea," Pooch commented, running ahead to where Gaes was. She had never been to Vertia before, and was curious about the new town and all the new smells she had yet to encounter, her short tail slightly wagging. "It should have a red roof here too, if I'm not mistaken?" --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "You found him in a dump!?" Laren nearly screeched, grabbing the girl by her shoulders. "That's cruel! Real cruel!" Anoma whimpered. "Where was it!? Tell me immediately!" Oh, as soon as he got the Kabutos back to safety, he was going there, finding who in heavens would leave a poor defenseless dinosaur in a dump, and declaring them Rhyn's new chew toy and dinner. There was a growl then, and his attention switched to the Tyrantrum again. Ah, with Laren and the trainer on this side, the other two Pokémon on the other, and the arrival of the Azurill, the Tyrantrum was probably feeling surrounded. As a predator he most likely wouldn't back off from the threat unless the personality was such that it overrode the instincts. There was another roar, and the sound of shattering bricks as the Rock-type slammed his tail into the wall. "Wait, you can answer later, it looks like he's going into a rampage," he mused, taking another few steps back. He didn't know about the other Pokémons, but that Azurill over there had a pretty big advantage, so the Tyrantrum would get serious, and- Anoma tapped him on the head, whining. "The walll, the wall!" "Huh? Anoma, what's the matter?" "The wall! The wall!" she repeated, pointing at it. It was just then that Laren realized that as Gym Leader, he kind of had the duty to prevent the town's destruction. Ah, dammit. I wanted to see him in action. He sighed, tapping some Poké Balls secured to the inside of his vest. Three white lights flashed, letting out three of his strongest Pokémon. "Noida, Karis, defensive positions. Kargo, try talking." Noida, his Cradily, stood at her full height in front of the Azurill as she raised her head. "You're not getting past me, small one," she said, her pink tentacles flaring out to give her a bigger appearance. Karis, his Armaldo, appeared in front of the blue Pokémon, crouching and with her claws in a cross position in front of her. "Now now, if we fight here we'll be taking down the surrounding buildings. I'm very sorry, but would you please back off?" she calmly commented, tail raised. Finally, his Omastar Kargo materialized in front of the Tyrantrum, blue tentacles swaying faintly as he lowered them to not look threatening. Laren was banking on the fact that both the size difference and the fact that Omastar rarely ventured out of water and had a disadvantage when fighting on land would be enough to not make the Tyrantrum feel challenged. "We're not gonna attack you, big guy. Chill out and let's all get along," Kargo spoke in what he hoped was a soothing tone. "Our trainer really likes Fossil Pokémon, so your safety is guaranteed if you don't put others in danger." Laren himself moved to the side, clearing the mouth of the alley to not be in the Tyrantrum's way as he spoke to the girl. "You should get him back to his Poké Ball now, in case he's too agitated to listen." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ((Note: Shifters are not yet strong enough to pose a threat to a Gym Leader's true team. If you challenge any of the new 3 Pokémon, you ARE getting your arse very kicked very quickly)) Edited February 27, 2016 by Puredark006 Share this post Link to post
Posted February 28, 2016 "I'm Kit! Nice to meet you Emil!" Kit introduced himself from his position on her shoulder. Lacie paused. She was pretty sure she was meant to do something right now. Kit had told her. What was it...? "Lacie! You dolt! You're meant to introduce me!" Kit reminded her, nudging her head. "Most humans can't understand a word of what Pokemon are saying." Lacie gasped a little and fumbled with her words. Dang, she would never get used to this would she? Being a human was weird as hell. "O-oh, r-right! This is Kit! My best friend. It's nice to meet you, Emil!" She eventually got out with easy cheer. Her failure to react didn't bother her in the slightest. She would get used to it, she was sure. Just like how she got used to the feeling of her clothing, because Kit said humans always wore clothes and it would be weird if she didn't. Lacie hadn't even thought of that, even though she knew how fond humans are of wearing clothing. Perhaps she would get a clearer picture of things if she regained her memories? But then she'd have to fight Team whatchamacallit. And fighting was troublesome. Contesting, on the other hand, was even worse, but she had the urge to enter and show off if she could. Weird. Perhaps it was an acquired taste of her yet-to-be-know past? "Lacie!" Kit hissed, jolting the shifter out of her thoughts. "Answer the question!" "What question?" Lacie whispered back. "'Are you from around here,' he asked," Kit informed his shifted with a sigh. "Oh! Right!" Lacie smiled at Emil, "No. I don't know where I'm from." Kit resisted the urge to facepalm. "Can I stay with you? You're nice," Lacie continued obliviously. It really made Kit wonder how she had survived until now, being so relaxed and naive. - Nero's face darkened at the sight of more people. What he wouldn't do to be a bird right now so he could whirlwind them all away... He opened his mouth to voice his displeasure, but before he could do so, something struck him on the head. It didn't hurt, but it made him turn his head. It was Killa who had just psychic'ed a piece of wood at him. He scowled, but he knew that Killa always had something reasonable to say. "Nero, use that big brain of yours and tell yourself what, exactly, your chances of winning are. Mentally, if you have to," Killa ordered gently. Nero frowned and looked back towards his steadily increasing number of opponents. He shook his head. Alright, so Killa wanted him to be smart, he could do that. Against the Tyrantrum, Nero would say his chances were around fourty percent, and that was with his ground type moves. If Killa helped out, it would increase his chances to around half half. The Tyrantrum didn't seem very bothered by the Azumaril, a mistake on his part. Azumaril had a type advantage against both of them. Either, the Tyrantrum was really just that stupid, unlikely, the Tyrantrum didn't know about Fairy types, probably, or he found Nero to have a more threatenening baring, maybe. A three way battle's results were really vague. But his chance of winning was less than ten percent. The thought made him sulk. The new Pokemon that the guy just called out were small... But dangerous. The Azumaril held itself aggressively, but in a way that said 'born for fighting'; the Tyrantrum held itself similarly, if not as controlled. He was definitely not a trainer's Pokemon. But the new Pokemon were carefully confident and calculatedly calm that probably meant they were more powerful than they portrayed. So, his chance of getting out of this without getting his ass kicked was less than one percent. Unless he waited and let them fight it out without him. A scowl settled on his face and he looked back at Killa. Getting his ass kicked and losing his cigarettes in one day wasn't worth the entertainment that fighting would bring him. "Fine," he muttered, "At least there's still the game." But the game was boring so far. Nothing interesting had happened except for finding other shifters. He hadn't been sure if there was others, but it was a probability. Team Helix... He had spent a few hours on pondering about them, wondering what to do that would give him the most entertaining outcome. Eventually he decided to just wait and see. He had the urge to join them just to be contrary. He relaxed his stance with a huff and almost leaned against the wall before realizing he had a dorsal fin and couldn't do that. He instead lazily approached the Pokemon who had asked him to stop. "Hey, how much do you want to bet that they won't listen?" He asked at random. Watching a fight was just as fun as participating, with a much smaller chance of getting your ass kicked. Share this post Link to post
Posted February 29, 2016 Sine shrunk back at the man's… violent reaction to her lie. She slid down the wall so that she was now squatting in the corner. While she was at Dunsparce's level, she figured she'd the opportunity to talk to snake. "The blue rabbit's got an advantage over both types," she told the pokemon. Leaning to the side to get a better look at the dark blue creature, the young lady added, "An advantage over both types over both of them." If her knowledge of semi-rare pokemon was correct, that was a Garchomp, dragon and ground? The now three-way standoff didn't look good, and Chompers made the first move by smashing one of the alley walls in a show of strength. She didn't quite understand his sudden shift in attitude, but the young man made a smart call by sending out his own team -- all fossils, but not in the elderly sense -- to defuse the situation. Sine doubted it might be enough. All his pokemon were… small in size compared to the two dragons. "Ah, he doesn't like his ball so I don't carry it with me…" Sine straightened back up slowly and scratched the back of her neck, hoping the second lie would be sufficient. "Kind of a bit hard to go into buildings," she hurriedly added, ending with a nervous laugh and trying to avoid eye contact from both the guy and the googly eyes of his pokemon, "so he gets a bit antsy." The Garchomp was content with backing off as its posture straightened and relaxed a little. That left two. Sine touched the bridge of her nose with two fingers and swung her other arm out in a dramatic motion, stepping forward with her cape billowing behind her. "Hey Azumarill!" Sine shouted, cupping her hands around her mouth to project her voice. "It ain't a fun fight if you kill everything in one hit!" ~~~~~~ Lambert fumbled the phone as -- his mind's best interpretation was the pokemon dissapearing into it -- as Z vanished. He nearly dropped the thing into the fire, but a split second later they reappeared. Pooch was barking her head off and Murkrow was cawing his throat out and the human felt shock prickle through his hands. He struggled to regain his composure, running a hand through his hair reflexively. "Uh, yes. I doubt there's internet in the wilderness." Not that he needed internet in the wilderness. There was no need to stay connected all the time, if one had the right books. ~~~ The next day, the older man was a bit sore after spending the two previous nights in an actual bed, sleeping on the ground wasn't an unfamiliar task to him. He got up early and did some stretches before the others woke, just to warm up for the day. Some people were more grumpy than others, though his own mood was pretty good overall. They'd reach the next gym by noon, according to Murkrow. There was a kid who challenged them in the forest. Lambert made quick work of them. (Well, Rhapsody and Gaes helped.) Honestly, he expected more trainers in the middle of the forest as the location seemed to be a popular hunting and training spot, but maybe they just picked a route that people travelled less. He returned Murkrow to his pokeball after the battle to let the bird rest. It wasn't before long that the next town came into view and Gaes, still soaked from an earlier encounter, ran ahead. (So much childish energy for a woman of her appearance, but he wasn't sure how old she actually was.) Z had passed out from exhaustion earlier, probably not used to such long trips, and Lambert was carrying the kid in his arms. He wasn't sure if they were alright with physical contact, but he couldn't have just abandoned them. When they reached the town, he saw that Vertia was bigger than Kusba, but still pretty small. "Seems like there's some sort of commotion over there," Lambert remarked, "though it would be smarter to head to the pokemon center first to regroup. Red roof, yes." ~~ In the pokemon center, Lambert stepped around the two kids and the Zorua -- arceus that was a huge Zorua, were they a popular pokemon in this region? -- put Z down on a couch, and then went over to place Murkrow's Dusk Ball on the counter to get healed. Share this post Link to post
Posted February 29, 2016 Z slowly regained consciousness, moaning into the forest litter. How had that happened? They'd gone to sleep perched on that log, then... They lay motionless for a few minutes as they tried to piece everything together. Judging by the fact that they had hands now, they'd reverted to human form sometime during the night, and - ah, that would make sense; they were bigger in this form, and so now they were draped awkwardly across the log as opposed to on top of it. Mumbling inarticulately under their breath, they pulled themself upright and brushed a few leaves out of their face. What Rhapsody had said about Pokemon form having a time limit was true, then, as inconvenient as it was. Everyone else was already awake, so the group continued toward Vertia, Z shuffling along in the back in a daze. Morning had brought with it a whole host of new sensations, none of them pleasant or comprehensible. It hurt to move - and more alarmingly, they were finding it difficult to focus on any particular thought for too long. It was all they could do to keep walking, and to their frustration they stumbled twice as much as they had last evening. Lambert and Rhapsody stopped to have a battle with a passing human and they leaned against a nearby tree, staring blankly at the Pokemon. And then it was time to go, so they took a step forward, their foot snagging on a root - they pitched forward, but their arms seemed unwilling to help regain their balance or even to move at all, and they were unconscious before they hit the ground. ----- The next thing Z knew, they were staring at a Pokemon Center's ceiling. With a grunt, they shuffled into a sitting position on the couch they'd apparently been placed on, and looked around. The nurse was at the counter, talking to Lambert, and three other humans and a few unfamiliar Pokemon were scattered about. The PC was where it should be, in front of the counter, but with so many strangers around they couldn't risk shifting to check what Lambert had said last night. They frowned at their muddy clothes. Their brief spell of unconsciousness hadn't helped any, and they still felt - they weren't sure how to describe it - vaguely sick? Perhaps they should be worried (humans could die in a shockingly large variety of ways, they knew), but they wouldn't be able to run a diagnostic or check with the internet until the group left the Center. With a quiet sigh, they leaned back against the cushions of the couch and waited for the others to finish their business. Share this post Link to post
Posted February 29, 2016 Chompers looked down to see an Omastar talking to him. There was also an Armaldo and a Cradily! Why could he recognize these three? It was like he saw them before. He looked up at the purple Pokémon to see it backing off. Chompers relaxed before turning to look at Sine, completely ignoring the blue and white Pokemon. Chompers blinked. "Sine," Chompers said, lowering himself so his belly was scrapping the ground. "How can a small nonthreatening Pokémon kill me?" "Chompers, Sine can't answer you," Dunsparce hissed. "Why not?" Chompers asked, looking at Dunsparce. "There's a non-shifter here," Dunsparce said. "He believes you are her Pokémon." Chompers blinked. "So do follow her command and you should be good." Chompers resisted the urge to growl. He was wild, he could feel it in his veins. He looked back at Sine and sighed. "Might as well," Chompers said. "What is you command?" "That's a good start," Dunsparce said fluttering his wings. ------------------------------- Zoey clicked her tongue. Darn, she was going to be laughing when Jasper got his tail kicked, but instead the Tyrantrum whacked his tail into the building and the gym leader interfered. The Tyrantrum back down and she could see a dark blue Pokémon standing in the alley with a Ralts behind it. Sighing, Zoey went back into the Pokémon Center and noticed new people in the center. She then heard a click and a bright light appeared in front of her. It was Tama. "Tama?" she asked confused. "People!" Tama exclaimed happily as he went to the guy to the counter. "Hi! I'm Tama! My trainer's name is Zoey and she can turn into a Purrloin!" Zoey paled before going up to the guy in white. "I am so sorry if my Litleo is bothering you," Zoey said. "Tama, stop bothering people!" "B-But, people!" Tama explained before noticing the two people she had observed earlier. "Hi! My name is Tama! My trainer is Zoey and she can turn into a Purrloin!" Zoey resisted the urge to face palm. That Litleo was going to be the death of her. If she said something to Tama now, her secret would be exposed. Anhew sat on the floor. Someone had passed her. Footsteps she did not recognize. Luckily, the owner of the footsteps ignored her and she wanted Sweet Voice. She wanted an explanation. "S-Sweet Voice?" she called out once again. "I need answers. Please." Share this post Link to post
Posted March 1, 2016 (edited) What Jasper expected to be a fun little throw down with two intimidating foes turned into a confusing mess that made his head hurt. The blue land shark just had to spout a snarky comment about everyone being a brute although his companion didn't seem to appreciate his statement. "Big words for someone whose 'bout to become well acquainted with the ground," Jasper snapped back with a snarl on his face. A Play Rough to the face would teach the overgrown lizard a lesson, but, of course, before Jasper could put the angry blueberry in his place, the other overgrown lizard decided that standing still didn't quite match his fancy as he swung his great tail and rammed it into a wall. While Jasper saw this as a great opening for a fight, the stick in a mud gym leader thought otherwise and sent out a Cradily who, much like the aggressive blueberry, decided to make a snide comment. "Small?" Jasper barked, his eyes narrowing. "Who do you think you're talking to, punk?" Jasper wasn't buying the little tentacle display the Cradily was giving him. If she wanted to fight, she didn't need to try and make herself look bigger. All she needed to do was actually fight which was exactly what Jasper was looking for. Yet again, before Jasper could actually use a move, someone distracted him, but this time, Jasper's initial response wasn't to huff in aggravation. ""Hey Azumarill! It ain't a fun fight if you kill everything in one hit!" The word "kill" is what struck out most to Jasper. He loved to fight, heck, fighting was his entire life, but killing? No, taking another's life was out of the question. In his sudden revelation, Jasper took a step back and reevaluated the situation. Now that he thought about it, the biggest lizard smashing a wall probably could have injured quite a few people. If he kept going on a rampage, he'd probably end up hurting someone gravelly or potentially kill someone. The situation had turned from a nice clean brawl to a complicated production that hurt Jasper's head just by thinking about it. He couldn't enjoy a fight if he was too busy trying to wrap his head around what was going on. "Bah!" Jasper growled throwing his arms out in a dramatic fashion. "Do what you will, this whole situation got too convoluted for my liking." With that said, Jasper turned around and began marching back to the pokemon center, too flustered with himself to bother figuring out what the heck was going on. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- "S-Sweet Voice? Sweet Voice?" Garrett spun her head around, ears pricked upwards as the blind pokemon called for her attention. "I'm coming!" she called as she trotted over towards the Deino and gently rubbed her nose against the poor thing's head. "What is it, little one?" Garrett asked as she gave Anhew a proper sniff. "Is something the matter?" Garrett swore internally as she glanced at the front door. Of course Jasper had decided to run off and fight whatever had made the loud noise. He probably wasn't even thinking about helping the poor pokemon who had been dragged along with them. "Are you alright, darling?" Garrett asked as she craned her neck up so she could see Ev on top of the counter. Much to the Deerling's displeasure, other people began pouring into the Pokemon center. Garrett lowered her head as a man came to the counter and glanced back at the door as she silently willed Jasper to come back in. Her hopes were dashed away as Zoey marched back into the door with Tama pouncing out of his pokeball before running up to the people who had entered, claiming Zoey was a shifter to everyone in earshot. Before Garrett could scold Tama for shouting such important information aloud, Anhew began crying for "Sweet Voice" again. "Hush child, I'm here," Garrett said as she leaned down and gently rubbed her forehead against the dragon's. Though she despised the angry blue rabbit, Garrett was still bound to him whether she liked it or not. If he didn't come back soon, she'd just march outside and drag him in if he could muster the courage to do so. Edited March 4, 2016 by Doctortear Share this post Link to post
Posted March 1, 2016 (edited) The Armaldo dropped her stance when the blue shark Pokémon dropped his, lowering her claws. "I'd say it would depend. Regretfully, we'll have to stop them if they truly won't listen - a fight here not only would be pointless, but dangerous," she commented in a friendly tone, tail up and swaying. Her trainer, meanwhile, was nodding at the girl's answer. "Ah, I get it. Some of them enjoy freedom too much to take it away. It's the same with Anoma here." "Yip yip! Don't like balls! View's nice from here!" The Anorith chirped. The girl started yelling at the Azumarill, who luckily had backed off too and was storming away, making the Cradily relax her tentacles with as much of a smug expression as her features allowed. The Omastar, on the other hand, was just glad this was all over when the Tyrantrum calmed down. He didn't even mind being ignored as he curled one of his tentacles into a circle to show his trainer all was under control. And even though he heard the bigger fossil and the Dunsparce saying something about 'shifters' (whatever those were) and 'pretending to be her Pokémon' (whatever that accomplished), he didn't react. Why stick his tentacles in someone else's business? Nah, he'd rather let it all defuse and go home to nap in his pool, thank you very much. Laren clapped his hands twice to get his Pokémons' attention. "Alright guys and gals, good work! Remind me to give you all blocks later!" he said as he held up a Poké Ball and two Repeat Balls, each shooting a red beam and returning the Omastar, Armaldo and Cradily inside. "Talk about tense," he said, pinning the capsules to the inside of his vest along with the other three. "So glad Tyrantrum decided to not start attacking everything! This is a public place, and time spent repairing the damage caused is time not spend studying." He had gone back to his overly cheerful demeanor, and didn't waste time to address the girl again. "My name is Laren, the Gym Leader here, and this Anorith here is Anoma. I happen to specialize in Fossil Pokémon so if you want to talk about Tyrantrum I'm all ears. Ah, and please don't forget to tell me exactly where you found him! I'll take a look myself so no more Pokémon are left in such a place." --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rhapsody mostly didn't pay attention to the strangers inside the Pokémon Center - though he did notice a female Deino that looked way too young to be without her parents, he guessed she was someone's Pokémon so he let it be. Pooch seemed alright after the night of sleep too, so instead of following Lambert to the counter he stayed by the couch, leaning on the wall. Shouldn't take long for them to be done here - those machines were freaking fast. "Why, welcome back to the world of the living," he said in a teasing tone as the Pory started making sounds before seemingly deciding to give up on standing. Pooch trotted next to Z's head, sniffing them a bit. "How do you feel? Need water?" she asked, standing so her front paws were resting on the sofa. Some girl entered the Center then, releasing a small brown lion not even two steps in. Was she planning on getting it healed? Wouldn't it be faster to give the nurse the ball instead of- wait a friggin minute what did that cat just say. And as if to answer the rhetorical question, the lion went and repeated it to the guys by the door. Rhapsody exchanged a look with Pooch. First Kusba, now here - were they going to keep finding Pokémon-human pseudo-Dittos in every town or what. "You take care of this," he whispered to her, who for some reason lowered her ears as if she didn't want to. He raised an eyebrow and she sighed, putting her paws back to the ground and trotting over to the brown lion. Alright. I'm not a wild Pokémon anymore. Rhapsody might not be a typical trainer, but he looks human, and we're in a human building. I must contain myself and be civilized and polite, and must under no circumstance chase that cat up a tree no matter how fun it would be, Pooch told herself, clearing her throat and speaking in a hush while hoping very hard the feline wouldn't make any sudden movements. "Hello. You may not want to say that out loud where other Pokémon can hear you, but is what you said about your trainer true?" she asked, ears forward as she crouched a little. Edited March 2, 2016 by Puredark006 Share this post Link to post
Posted March 1, 2016 (edited) Situation defused. The blue bunny stormed off, convinced that it wasn't going to be a fair fight. Sine let out a long sigh. "Oh you big baby," Sine hugged Chompers' snout when he crouched down, taking the chance to explain to him under her breath, "the tiny blue one looks harmless but its species' ability makes them super strong. I don't remember how because of the memory thing but I just know one Azumarill could take three Dragonairs in a fight and win. I take it you used to be a pokemon so, trust my judgement as a human." She gave him a few gentle pats, and backed off to give him space. "Oh and uh, no commands for now," Sine added, twirling to face the fossil pokemon again. "Just be yourself, but don't destroy anyone or uh, anything! We can head out to the forest again to train later, if you want! Now to handle the other guy. "My name is Sine, and that's Chompers," Sine said to Laren, "and that's Dunsparce." She a had a feeling he wouldn't really care about Dunsparce. Laren was all-eyes for the Tyrantrum from the way his eyes glittered dangerously when looking at him. "And by the dump I mean," Sine backpedaled furiously, "I mean that we found his fossil there, where it probably got mixed up in the debris from a recent landslide. One revival later and-- tah-dah!" she gestured to the fossil pokemon with both arms. "Oh and, you're the gym leader?" It was Sine's turn to get starry-eyed. He wasn't that flashy in dress, though, which defied her expectations. He was the opposite of flashy, with dirt on every inch of his body, obscuring whatever shiny clothing he might have worn. If he hadn't told her, she wouldn't have guessed. Not that she was complaining; the dirt was an aesthetic familiar to her, somehow. That meant his team was ridiculously strong despite being rather small, and they collectively dodged a major bullet by avoiding a battle. The young lady then remembered with a snap of her fingers why they were so worried about finding for the gym leader in the first place. "We were just looking for you a minute ago, actually! We're looking for info about Team Helix, and we heard there might be suspicious activity around town involving them..." Well, the last part was a lie, but she knew that a good way to get information was to be corrected. Edited March 1, 2016 by TehUltimateMage Share this post Link to post
Posted March 2, 2016 "Mm," Z grunted at their shirt, not turning to face Pooch as they answered her question. "I... don't know. Maybe? I - I don't think I really have, any sort of... point of reference, for this kind of thing... hm." They curled their arms around their stomach. "A little sick, I suppose. Hard to focus. I can't - " A voice near the entrance of the Pokemon Center interrupted their thoughts, and upon realizing what it was saying they twisted around to face its owner. Another wave of dizziness washed over them and they nearly collapsed onto the couch again, managing to catch themself with an elbow at the last second. Near the door was a girl in purple, desperately trying to make her Litleo shut up. Another shifter? There were more of them than they imagined. The girl clearly hadn't planned this, but Z found themself wondering if something like that couldn't be a viable strategy for identifying other shifters in a place with fewer Pokemon around. Any real humans would just hear whatever sounds the Litleo was making, after all... Well, Pooch was handling it, and they certainly couldn't shift to join in. They would just have to stay put for the moment. They blinked up at Rhapsody, making sure to turn their head slowly this time. What had they been talking about...? Right. "Uh, what Pooch said... water for what?" Share this post Link to post
Posted March 2, 2016 (edited) Chompers wagged his tail as Sine hugged his snout. Why was his tail wagging? He was a big, proud Tyrantrum and he was wagging his tail!? "What are 'Dragonairs?'" he asked before before straightening back up. He listened to Sine as she talked to the gym leader. He literally jumped when Sine mentioned the word revival, making the ground shake in process. He didn't know why, but the word terrified him. Why am I scared of that word? he asked himself. "You okay?" Dunsparce asked, craning his head to look up at Chompers. "You nearly squished me flat." "S-sorry," Chompers replied. "I'm okay, just don't mention that word again, please." Dunsparce blinked. "Uh...." he said. "Okay?" It was then Chompers noticed the Anorith on the gym leader's head. Curious, he only recognized certain Pokémon, but the ones he's seen so far, he had no idea what their names were. "Yes," Chompers said. "We're looking for Team Helix. Maybe you and your trainer has heard some stuff about activity in this area?" He was hoping the young Anorith and its trainer would know more about who Team Helix was. ---------------------------------- Zoey resisted the urge to face palm one more time before a Houndour of all things trotted up to Tama. "Hi!" Tama said, wagging his tail. "Why not tell everyone? And yes, Zoey can turn into a Purrloin!" He was oblivious to the fact that the Houndour was a dog. Zoey blinked, she recognized this Pokémon but it displeased her for some reason. She narrowed her eyes, but didn't say anything to disrupt their conversation. -------------------------- As soon as Sweet Voice touched her forehead, Anhew relaxed. She liked Sweet Voice. "I still don't know what's going on," Anhew said, clearly stressed by all the new voices. "When I woke up earlier, I was in the woods without any memories except for the rules. And when I awoke, I certainly didn't have this tail." What did Hissy Voice call her? Deino? Yes, that sounded familiar. She then focused on the more excited voice. Tama, it was calling itself. "Sweet Voice, Tama sounds, young. Like he...oh...I don't know, he sounds like he was separated from his mother before he could actually learn about not to blab." Anhew paused. Where did that come from? she thought. She then heard another voice. Female, by the sound of it. She was asking someone if they needed water. She then listened as the same voice trotted over to Tama and asked it a question. "I'm scared Sweet Voice," Anhew whimpered softly so only Sweet Voice could hear. Edited March 2, 2016 by Raptor of Dragons Share this post Link to post
Posted March 3, 2016 (edited) They made it to the Pokemon Center, Lambert depositing Z onto a couch before going to the counter to get Murkrow healed. Gaes, in the meantime, contemplated getting Bree healed up right after but Z's curious state distracted her. They looked paler than yesterday. Pooch was asking after their wellbeing, offering water before stepping away to talk with the obnoxious yapper that had been shouting at everyone about his trainer. The woman would have blocked him out completely if not for the term "shifter" flying off his tongue. Z was confused about the water and Gaes decided it was her time to contribute a bit of help. "Water for you to drink. Have you eaten at all today? I don't think I've seen you gobble down some food actually. When's the last time you ate?" she inquired, moving towards a vending machine close by. It looked familiar, dominantly black with a glass front and a colored label at top. She just didn't know how it actually worked. There were food and drink items inside but she needed to somehow get one out. A number pad was on the right of the glass, a little green screen flashing with letters she couldn't read. There were numbers under every item inside, and she frowned in thought. Glancing at the number pad, she pressed one, causing the machine to beep and the small screen to change. After a moment when nothing happened, the screen reverted back to how it had been. Maybe she needed to do something more? Inhaling, she shifted her weight and lifted back her leg, swinging it forward so her foot connected with the machine. Hard. The machine shook, a dull thump reaching her ears. At the same time, her foot began hurting and she grimaced, hopping back as she whimpered. Owowowowowowowowowow! It only took seconds before the pain eased into a faint throb and she put her foot back down, scowling at the vending machine. "Hey! You break it, you buy it! Got it?" Gaes jumped at the raised voice, glancing over her shoulder to see the clerk glaring at her from across the Center. "Sorry!" Gaes bit her tongue, trying to keep the venom out of her voice. Break it? It was more likely that the machine would break her foot than her foot break it! Muttering under her breath, she focused on the machine again. Inspecting the number pad closer, she noticed a small slot next to it and what looked like a picture of a coin being inserted. Oh. It took money. Digging out the money she'd earned between two battles (and what remained after getting her belt), she looked at the items inside and noticed what looked to be prices beside each one. Water. She wanted the water and it would take 200 of her money. Okay then. But what was the other number with it? Maybe... Pressing the same number on the pad resulted in another beep from the machine. Did she put the money in now? The screen changed back as she did so and started counting the amount of currency she inserted. Pressing the number one more time, the machine beeped and made a different sound. The metal spiral around the water bottle began to move and down it toppled, clanking against the bottom. Grinning with triumph, Gaes crouched and pushed back the metal door, her fingers grasping the plastic bottle before freeing it. "Finally! Here," she stated, twisting open the cap as she handed it to Z. A small amount of water sloshed out when she did, splattering the back of her hand. "Kind of messy so be careful not to spill it," she commented. ~~~~ "Lacie, it's nice to meet you," Emil replied. It seemed to take the girl awhile before finally giving him the Zorua's name. With quite a bit of whispering in between. "Is everything alright?" he asked her mildly. A curious expression crossed his face as he tried to sort out what all of the whispering was about. Was she possibly talking to Kit? Maybe? He couldn't tell. Perhaps the girl was just nuts and always acted like this. "No. I don't know where I'm from. Can I stay with you? You're nice." "Uh, sure," Emil responded, slowly. He didn't think being nice was a good reason to stay with someone but he wasn't going to deny the girl company if she wanted. It was only too bad that she wasn't from Vertia. Oh well. He'd ask the clerk or the nurse later. Though, he wasn't certain about what he should do now. Fortunately, the girl who had left earlier returned and a Litleo popped out from her pocket. Shortly after his appearance, he started running to the man at the counter, yelling excitedly in greeting. His trainer was a shifter, too? Or maybe he thought she was but she really just had a job as an actor or something? After all, the Litleo was rather young it seemed... He was tugging on his earlobe again, staring at the energetic Pokemon for awhile and following him as he sprinted towards Lacie and Emil. "Oh, hello there," he greeted. His voice was nearly drowned out by the Litleo's. Emil's unexpressive face gave no indication that he understood the Pokemon. Tama's trainer really looked displeased with him, coaxing the man to frown. Did she not like his energy? Then, why keep him around? Movement caught his gaze as a Houndour came over, distracting Tama for the time being. "It's rather busy in here..." he commented idly, voice hushed without him intending it to be. Someone kicked something and he looked up at a woman in yellow to see her hopping on a foot in front of the vending machine. "Hey! You break it, you buy it! Got it?" "Very busy," Emil mumbled, glancing between the woman and the clerk for a moment before refocusing his attention on Lacie. "I have to ask the Nurse a few questions and then I'll be moving around the town," he informed her. She wanted to stay with him right? "Is that okay with you?" Emil asked. Edited March 3, 2016 by Narvix Share this post Link to post
Posted March 3, 2016 Z flinched when Gaes spoke and blinked up at her uncomprehendingly. Their gaze followed the woman as she turned and walked off and they only processed what she had said when she reached the vending machine. "...Oh." Somehow, it hadn't occurred to them that they would have to drink and eat to survive now. They've been in the game for most of a day, and they've spent more than half that time human; no wonder they were more than a little uncomfortable now. They kept watching Gaes as she began poking buttons on the vending machine, seemingly at random. Porygon-line Pokemon could digitize and process food as an entirely optional function, they knew, but the idea hadn't even crossed their mind until someone else told them. They must not have done it very often in whatever existence they had before the game. For some reason, Gaes decided kicking the machine would be the best course of action. They jumped at the noise, then jumped again when the clerk yelled across the room at her for the action. They wrapped their arms around their legs and frowned. Was she trying to buy something? Apparently so, they learned a minute later when she succeeded and stuck the resulting bottle of water under Z's nose. They stared at it, then at Gaes. It took several seconds for them to realize that she was giving it to them. But then... why? She had used her own money to buy it, and it wasn't as if she had no need for water. Hesitantly, they reached both hands out and took the bottle from the woman, still staring at her intently. Well, their travelling companion's intentions aside, water from a vending machine was probably safe, and since they'd watched Gaes bring it over she couldn't have tampered with it. And they did need it, after all. "Yeah, you're right," they muttered into the bottle. "I don't think I've, uh... consumed anything. Since waking up. Er, the f-first time, I mean. Yesterday. So... thanks." Now how were they supposed to do this? They knew swallowing was an automatic reflex since they'd caught themself doing it several times already (and they did so again, just to make sure). So other than that, they would just have to get the water into their mouth? They could do that... probably. They stretched their legs out to make sure they wouldn't interfere with the action, raised the bottle to their lips, and tipped it upward. They managed to swallow a few drops before bumping the bottle against their upper lip, spilling its contents onto their vest before they frantically shoved it forward into an upright position. "Sorry," they squeaked instinctively at no one in particular, and began tugging ineffectually at the buttons on their vest in an attempt to get it off before the water soaked through to the shirt underneath, the bottle clutched tightly in their other hand. "I-I, I don't think I've d-done this before... ah..." Share this post Link to post
Posted March 3, 2016 Three days. Three entire consecutive twenty-four hour periods of travel with the redhead talking nonstop about absolutely nothing. Allison rubbed at her temples while her companion carried on. This time the topic of the one-sided conversation revolved around Cassandra's speculation of their lost memories and the identities that disappeared with them. At this point, Allison learned to tune out Cassandra's constant blather, but this particular subject was giving her a larger headache than most of the other woman's interests. She sighed under her breath when Cassandra commented, "Who am I? Who was I? Do you think this 'Team Helix' knows anything about our pasts?" Allison didn't know. Part of her wasn't particularly keen on finding out, either. Ever since waking, she felt like a shadow was lurking in her heart, twisting at random times of the day as a reminder that part of her had been cut away. Not just the memories-- that bothered her, of course-- but something else was missing, and it weighed on her like lead in her chest. Cassandra, obviously, wasn't affected by the same affliction. The words "Who am I?" echoed in Allison's ears with a bizarrely familiar throb of pain. She hadn't realized she had stopped until she felt Cassandra's warm hand flutter across hers as a gesture of tenderness. Why this strange woman felt the need to comfort Allison was a mystery to her, yet the flicker of calm that settled into her gut in response was equally as mystifying. It was the same feeling she had when they first discussed the terms of their arrangement and whether or not they would continue to journey together. When Allison finally decided to stay, that feeling had reared its head and caught her off guard in the same way. It had returned on the second morning of their travel, when Allison found Cassandra curled up against her backside again, even though she had seen the other woman fall dead asleep between the tree roots nearly three meters away the night before. Regardless of how and where they dozed off, Cassandra always somehow found her way to Allison's little patch of ground in the middle of the night and snuggled in close. Even this morning, Cassandra's arm was strewn over Allison's face while she snored quietly in Allison's ear. Allison side-glanced her companion as Cassandra resumed her conversation. Perhaps the talk was almost therapeutic-- maybe it helped whatever nerves Cassandra battled with in the wake of their uncertain future. She certainly didn't seem to prefer the silence like Allison. "Is that a path up ahead?" A squeaky, tiny voice piped from its perch on the shoulder of Allison's leather jacket. Both women paused and gazed over at the parting of trees to their left. As the fuzzy spider pointed out, there was a path; it snaked by the thinning trees like a river of white-gold sand, and old tracks littered the sand like miniature waves on an ocean of dirt. Cassandra moved toward it first, and Allison trailed after her while the Joltik on her shoulder babbled on about a nearby town. Cass brushed a few loose strands of crimson hair from her face and exhaled noisily from her mouth. "Looks like we finally found ourselves a road," she said cheerfully. She wiped at the small beads of sweat on her forehead that had gathered during the trek. The road was a promising sign; where there was a road, there was a town sure to follow, and a town meant showers. Cass was dying for a shower, and she didn't doubt Allison was silently begging for the same. The other woman adjusted her long white ponytail over her shoulder and pursed her lips. She, Cassandra figured, was less excited about the prospect of a town because to her, a town meant people. It hadn't taken long for Cass to figure out that Allison was not a fan of other people, particularly strangers. Cass was thankful at least that Allison agreed to stick around. Though she couldn't remember a damn thing beyond "The Rules," she knew that having a companion was probably the only thing keeping her from losing her mind in that forest. She only hoped that despite entering civilization again, Allison would continue to hold to their agreement. They walked along the road in moderate silence. Occasionally Cass made a remark about a Pokémon flitting through the trees close by or the shape of the clouds drifting slowly over the spanse of blue above their heads. Allison remained quiet, though Cass found that with enough effort, she could wheedle a small, brief smile out of her. By the time the rooftops came into view, Cass had made a total tally of three and a half smiles. Cass nearly sprinted for the red roof when it appeared. Allison and her Joltik friend followed behind silently, and while Cass flashed friendly grins at the passerby, Allison's expression was carefully blank. The fiery redhead excitedly explained the situation to the nurse at the counter-- whom Allison was sure didn't care in the slightest about their travels-- and then just about yanked Allison's arm out of her jacket sleeve to haul them toward the back of the hospital where the showers supposedly awaited them. A long, hot shower helped ease some of the tension that coiled in Allison's shoulders; upon exiting, she discovered Cassandra felt likewise, for she was sprawled over a bench looking quite relaxed and less like a firecracker ready to explode. Allison prodded her companion awake with a toe. "Your hair is getting tangled," she said simply, lifting an eyebrow at the wet mess of red and gold hair that draped all around Cassandra's resting figure. "And your make-up's a mess." Cass frowned and sat up, wincing when some strands caught in the planks of the bench. "Yours doesn't look much better," she pointed out, and Allison turned to see her face peering out from a curtain of steam, the yellow and black from her eyeliner smudged nearly half-way across her cheeks. She grimaced at her reflection. In the three days wandering the forest together, the two women discovered that transformation often helped refresh their appearance to be more presentable. She had no tools to fix the wreckage that was her face unless she planned on shifting in the middle of a bathroom. Cass grabbed a wash cloth and scrubbed off the remnants of dark brown blotches around her eyes before rinsing it and handing it over to her new friend. Allison managed to fix her make-up with a lot more finesse. The last part involved several hair driers in order to dry out the clothes they had both worn into their showers, because surprisingly enough, Pokémon Centers didn't offer laundry services. At least, not to those with absolutely zero cash. By the time they were finally finished (and the Joltik had stopped flipping out over the fact that he was "INSIDE A HUMAN DEN AHH"), both Cass and Allison were mulling over the next steps of their plan when a bellowing roar made them jump in simultaneous surprise. Lucky for them, as they were standing next to the counter in the front lobby, the past couple days granted them enough control over their transformations to keep themselves from shifting right then and there. Cass was practically bouncing on her feet in eager curiosity. "I'm gonna go check that out," she announced to Allison, "You comin?" The other girl glanced around for a moment, as if debating on staying behind. The other people inside the Center didn't appear all that thrilling to her, except for a handful that were strangely dressed (though she really had no room to judge, given the attire she'd been blessed with). Pursing her lips, Allison waved at the doors and muttered, "After you." Cassandra trotted through the streets searching for the source of the noise until they happened across a gathering of people and shockingly dangerous-looking Pokémon in an alley not too far off from the Pokémon Center. Allison hung back by the entrance, eyeing a rotund blue Pokémon looking quite peeved as it waddled by. The Joltik on her shoulder squeaked its awe at the Tyrantrum towering over the others in the alley, and Allison realized with a jolt that it had been the first Pokémon she'd recognized without skipping a beat. She stared at it for a long moment, the gears of her mind spinning in confusion and curiosity. Cass, on the other hand, jogged closer to where a young woman and a man were talking. It was clear she was late to the party, for the tension melted away into the wind once she arrived. "Looks like I missed all the fun," she said, gazing around at those that still remained. "Whose Garchomp is that?" There couldn't be a wild Garchomp just wandering the streets, right? He seemed smart enough, having backed down without much issue, something Cass was intrigued to see. For some reason, she expected the Garchomp to persist with another dragon rival present. She tapped a forefinger on her chin thoughtfully. He looked...intelligent for a Garchomp (though why she thought they'd be otherwise baffled her, too). The other humans appeared preoccupied with the Tyrantrum for the moment, and so Cass focused on the shark-like dragon with unbridled interest. "What are you up to?" she wondered aloud, her bright blue eyes tracing the dragon for clues. Clues for what, she had no idea. Share this post Link to post
Posted March 3, 2016 (edited) Lacie beamed up at the taller man when he agreed. How nice! She didn't know humans could be this nice! But this human was. He helped her up and let her come with him. She rocked on her heels in happiness and hummed. If she were in her Dragonair form, she'd be swaying. And if she had looked at Kit then, she'd realize that he was twitching and barely holding himself back from banging his head against the nearest hard thing (Lacie's head) in exasperation. Kit may be young, but he wasn't that naive! Lacie was then distracted by yelling, a Litleo was running around chattering about how it's trainer could turn into a Pokemon. She perked up in interest, especially as it came running to her, them, rather. It greeted them with enthusiasm and repeated what it had previously said. "Hello!" Lacie replied, "I'm Lacie! And this is Kit and I-ow!" She was cut off as Kit bit her ear. "Wh-what was that for?" She whined, pouting at the black fox. Kit looked pointedly at the people around him and Lacie suddenly realized that going around saying she could turn into a Dragonair probably wasn't a very good idea. Especially since she wasn't a Pokemon like the Litleo, Tama. She smiled back sheepishly and had the feeling that Kit sympathized with Tama's trainer since the other gave said trainer an understanding look. Lacie huffed. She wasn't that bad. Was she? Lacie listened interestedly to the hound our before her attention immediately returned to Emil when he began speaking again. She glanced around. He was right. So many people! Doing so many different things! She looked back at Emil when he asked for her opinion. Her eyes lit up in awe. He cared about her opinion! Wow! That was significant for some reason, but she wasn't sure why. Quickly, Lacie nodded. "Yup! I'll follow! I really like you!" This time, Kit did not refrain from banging his head against hers, causing her to wince. - Yup, Nero thought as he heard the other question 'Sine' about the Azumaril, that Tyrantrum is clueless. He turned to the Armaldo when it replied. Staring for a moment at the answer, Nero snorted in amusement when the other was placed back into its pokeball. Pointless and dangerous? More like entertaining, and who cared about safety anyways? He vaguely registered the Azumaril storming off and wondered if he should just start a fight for the heck of it. His entertainment was now officially gone. The thought of nicotine stopped him. With a sigh, he decided to eavesdrop on these other people and shifters instead. It appeared that shifters generally wore clothes corresponding to their Pokemon form. The glimpse he had caught of the Tyrantrum made the theory viable, as well as all the people who looked like they were cosplaying, but a lot of people were flashy as hell... So... Of course, this was all game logic, but there was a sixty percent chance they were a part of this game, too. Games generally had the players start in around the same place, around the same time, at around the same power level. Add that to the Tyrantrum's odd behavior (asking questions then suddenly turning and asking for commands when he obviously didn't want them) and the girl's odd behavior (replying to the command comment, though that could've been by chance) and it made it likely they were both shifters and a part of this game. When they started talking about Team Helix with the Gym Leader and each other, it confirmed his theory. It didn't seem like the guy with the Anorith on his head - he was a gym leader right? - was a part of the game. Team Helix... He was vaguely aware of Killa following him as he walked towards the others so he was next to the Tyrantrum. "You really are quite clueless, aren't you?" He drawled quietly in the direction of the dinosaur, though his eyes were fixed on the Anorith, trying to gauge how powerful it was. "There's a sixty percent chance that you lived in a laboratory for most of your life, a fourty percent chance you haven't seen the outside world before, and a ninety percent chance you had never become accustomed to the modern, outside world after your revival," he theorized, he stepped away slightly after saying that to avoided being bumped if the other had another violent reaction to the word 'revival'. "Dragonairs are serpentine, blue dragons who are known for their grace and rarity. And there's only a fifty percent chance Anorith could tell you about Team Helix," he informed the Tyrantrum. "I suppose you're a part of this odd game, too, hm? There's a seventy percent that Team Helix's research is about DNA, a seventy it involves Pokemon, a fifty it involves humans and a thirty it is related to what we are. I don't think it's a coincidence that we were told to destroy Team Helix's research and subsequently woke up as beings who can shift from human form to Pokemon form." He made several assumptions, like that they were operating on the same rules and given the same goals, but there was only a ten percent he was wrong. Unfortunately, before the Tyrantrum could give any response, two more people arrived. They looked like cosplayers, too. A seventy five percent chance of being shifters then. And Nero really needed nicotine, but he couldn't smoke in Pokemon form. He was tempted to shift right then and there, but he felt like being difficult and only giving information to the most ignorant of the group. The girl could handle herself fine, but there was a high chance that the Tyrantrum couldn't fully understand what he had been saying. He stared at the newcomer who was also staring at him. Nero smirked at her question before jumping up and soaring over the building to land out of sight. He quickly transformed back into his human form and looked around, groaning. Great, a dead end, and the only way out was the way he came. He walked down the alley and turned so that he was right back in the same alleyway that he had just flown from. He raised an eyebrow at Killa, who sighed and gave him back his cigarettes. Immediately, he lit one up and sucked in a breath from one end. Oh, sweet nicotine! Yes! Acting nonchalant, as if he had just stumbled upon this odd scene, he scooped Killa up and raised an eyebrow, approaching the others. Act like you were your own trainer! Killa urged with her telepathy. Mentally rolling his eyes, Nero obeyed. "Hey," he called out, cradling Killa in one arm and using his free hand to hold his cigarette. "Anyone seen a Garchomp round here?" Edited March 3, 2016 by SoiledLove Share this post Link to post
Posted March 3, 2016 "You'd be in a really bad position if I knew what you were saying," Lambert warned the Litleo, but the small pokemon had already bounded off to tell other people about shifters. This was ten times worse than his fears with Zorua, and Tama's poor trainer must have been ready to strangle the pokemon. She looked pretty nochalant, though, when she approached him to apologize. Maybe she was just good at hiding her emotions. The dusk ball on the counter -- returned fully healed only a minute ago -- chose that moment to explode in a flash of white light. "Hi, my name is Murkrow and my trainer can also--" Lambert muffled the rest of the words by clamping his hands around his pokemon's beak. "Blab to him and the rest of the town'll know," he hissed. "Seems like everyone I've met so far is in the know…" Lambert said to Zoey, his voice lowered. "Be glad I'm not involved with Team Helix, since apparently we are trying to destroy something of theirs." His eyes shifted around the room, taking into account the people and pokemon -- some of which looked like they were waiting for their trainers -- present. The two trainers he passed upon entry looked pretty flashy; one kid looked like a grass type trainer, the one following him perhaps a water or ice type specialist with her traditional clothing… Maybe there was a Contest Hall nearby? Though, he himself looked pretty flashy, too… It would be hard to pick out the Gym Leader if everyone was dressed like that. At that moment he had a small epiphany when he saw Gaes kicking the vending machine (he flinched, wanting to tell her to stop, but the clerk beat him to the punch). It was the circle pattern in her hair that tipped him off, but her human appearance correlated with her shifted form. It was the same for him -- at least for his jacket. Z's clothes, too, were the same shades of red and blue of their… whatever that pokemon form was. Provided that a shifter didn't get rid of their clothing, it would be easy to identify them without using the code word. The obvious flaw of that plan was the fact that there were too many pokemon he didn't know of. But, it would be a useful bit of extra information; he'd need to ditch his ever-useful jacket if he wanted to lay low for a while. "Join us if you want, Zoey, was it?" Lambert finally said quietly, his expression still a little suspicious. "I'm Lambert, and my companions are also 'in' on it. Just tell Tama to shut up, alright? We don't want the wrong pokemon -- or people -- to know. Better yet, don't tell him at all. About this." Addressing the muffled cawing between his hands, Lambert told Murkrow, "That goes to you, too, or I'm taping your beak shut." The bird nodded, and the man let go of his pokemon. Share this post Link to post
Posted March 4, 2016 "Ah, that's a relief. I thought someone was leaving Pokémon in the trash," Laren said, relaxing. At least Rhyn would still be content having only his co-worker for dinner (since the man had yet to explain why would one have kids if you can't even prevent them from sneaking into the labs and scaring the Pokémon there, Rick). "In any case, it's nice to meet you and Chompers." "Hi hi!" Anoma chirped from her perch. Sine's exclamation made him raise an eyebrow in confusion. "Team Helix? Ah, no, they might look like a shady bunch with the uniforms and admins and all of that, but everything they do is completely legal. Their only crime is their incredibly misleading naming sense." As he was talking, Anoma was staring at the Garchomp, head tilted. When the blue Pokémon left, she blinked, looked at the Tyrantrum, and said in an even tone, "That guy is a jerk." Laren didn't notice the Pokémon leaving or the two other people that had arrived. He had crossed his arms with a thoughtful expression, gauging how long the conversation would take. "Let's see... if it's general information, I can tell you all I know. But I haven't been a member in months so I don't know what they've been up to recently." "Can help! Was born there!" Anoma piped up. "But they not here. Nope nope," she cheerfully informed. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Well, you see," Pooch started, gaze drifting towards the cat's trainer who had gone up to Lambert. She didn't want to scare the kitten, but explaining their reasons to a cub would not only take long but it also came with a high risk of the young one not understanding or getting distracted. So she lowered her ears and resumed her whispering so the Zorua nearby wouldn't hear her. "There might be bad people or Pokémon around who might want to hurt your trainer for being different. It's better to not say it to everyone you meet." Share this post Link to post
Posted March 4, 2016 (edited) Chompers was vaguely aware of the blue Pokémon coming up to him. He turned and blinked at the strange Pokémon as it rambled on. Chompers then roared in the Pokémon's face after he said the word that terrified him, stomping ramming one of his spikes into the ground. He asked nicely for them not to use that word. Even though he may not look like he was threatening, this Pokémon was threatening him. He snorted before turning to Sine. "Can I please kill that thing?" he asked, shooting the Pokémon a nasty look before he noticed two other humans walking up to the situation. Great, just what he needed. What was it with everyone today? He barely heard what the Anorith said as the strange blue Pokémon flew off. "I need some room," Chompers said as another human came up and was asking about a 'Garchomp'. Without further hesitation and order, Chompers started to walk from the ally and started going back the same way he entered town, back into the mountain. The crowd was stressing him out and he really was in a sour mood. If his primal instinct took over, he'd probably destroy half the town. ----------------------------------------- Zoey blinked slowly and listened as the guy she was standing next to started talking. More shifters? Zoey asked herself. The Murkrow had also started to blab, but the guy firmly held its beak shut. So he knew about Team Helix too. Interesting. She looked over to see a woman in a yellow sundress trying to kick a vending machine open. Luckily, the lady figured it out and managed to get what she needed and handed it to someone on the couch. "Right," Zoey said softly enough so only this guy- Lambert- could hear. "I only know of two other shifters besides you. One of them I don't like...at all. And the other is sitting by the Deerling." Zoey didn't want to reveal too much about them just in case these people were tricksters. Besides, why should she care about the two? "But you're right about Tama, I found him curled up sleeping under a rock." She watched as Tama blinked at the Houndour. Tama slowly titled his head back and forth. "So, you're saying that bad people might hurt my trainer if I go blabbing that out?" he asked, a bit confused. "Why would they want to hurt her for being different?" Tama blinked again. He really didn't understand what the Pokémon was trying to say. Just because his trainer could shapeshift didn't mean that she was going to get hurt. Edited March 4, 2016 by Raptor of Dragons Share this post Link to post
Posted March 5, 2016 (edited) "We're looking for info about Team Helix, and we heard there might be suspicious activity around town involving them..." As soon as the term "Team Helix" was mentioned, Jasper halted his march back to the Pokemon Center and pricked his ears in anticipation. Thanks to how sensitive Azumarill ears were, Jasper had heard everything the others were saying although he didn't care to pay attention until Helix was mentioned. Cocking his head around, Jasper stood still and listened for several moments as he clicked his tongue thoughtfully. According to the rules that were burned into his mind, Jasper, had to locate and terminate Team Helix's research in order for his memories to resurface. Considering the gym leader seemed more than happy to give away information about the team, tagging along long enough to learn what he knew didn't seem like the worse of ideas. Then again, Garrett was still in the Pokemon Center along with Zoey, her little bundle of annoyance, and the other two Pokemon they had encountered along the road. Suffice to say, Jasper didn't want to bring Zoey along and he didn't care enough about the other three to consider adding them to his merry little band. It didn't take long for Jasper to shrug off his worries and decide that, hey, if Garrett didn't want to get left behind, she'd go looking for him on his own. His mind made up, Jasper spun around and casually strolled up to Laren and the other people just as the giant fossil, who had a quick and hilarious temper tantrum, stomped off in a hurry. "Hey, you're trainer was a part of Team Helix, eh?" Jasper asked the enthusiastic Anorith as he walked up to Laren, making sure to keep a respectable distance from the other humans and Pokemon. "I got some, uh, interest 'bout that team. Would you mind if hanged out with ya until my, ah, trainer shows up?" ------------------------------------------------------------------ "Oh darling, everything will be alright," Garrett assured Anhew as the Deino confessed her worries. There was no doubt in her mind that Anhew was a shifter although she had no idea what to do with that information. It didn't look like Anhew had anywhere else to go so she obviously needed to be watched over, but that task could not be easily accomplished. Garrett could easily keep an eye on her if she came along with her, but Jasper was by no means hospitable and would probably end up giving her a hard time. Zoey, while perhaps better than Jasper, had a few problems of her own. The way she treated Tama didn't exactly make her out to be a great caretaker and she and Jasper didn't see eye to eye. Garrett wasn't even sure if the two of them were going travel together for much longer anyhow. Finding another shifter was incredible in itself, but Garrett would have never imagined that Jasper and Zoey would have gotten along with one another so poorly in such a short length of time. If they stayed in the same room for long enough, they'd probably be at each other's throats and, considering just how violent Jasper was, Garrett doubted that it would end well in anyone's favor. While Garrett was debating as to what she flickered her gaze over to Zoey who seemed to be preoccupied by a man in a fancy jacket. After a Houndour unsuccessfully tried to shut Tama up, a Murkrow popped out of his pokeball and began to blab his mouth before being promptly silenced by his trainer. Both the man and Zoey began talking to each other in hushed voices, signaling to Garrett that trying to talk to Zoey was out of the question. "Can you wait for just a moment?" Garrett asked Anhew as she took a step backwards. "I'll be right back." Moving away from the Deino, Garrett trotted over to the front doors and poked her head out. Much to her displeasure, she couldn't find Jasper anywhere. Garrett waited a few minutes, staring outside the Pokemon Center, before giving a defeated sigh and walking back in. Garrett marched back towards Anhew, completely ignoring the other humans and pokemon within the center, and touched the dark-type's head with her nose in greeting. "I need to go outside and find someone," Garrett said softly in a soothing tone. "Would you like to come along with me? You don't have to if you don't want to, but you're more than welcome to come along with me if you so desire." Edited March 5, 2016 by Doctortear Share this post Link to post
Posted March 5, 2016 (edited) Sine felt a tremor under her feet at the word revival. Hm. So that set him off. She made a note of not mentioning it again and immediately after the Garchomp taunted Chompers about his fear. While she empathized with him, they didn't need more property damage. At least he was asking for permission before trying to destroy the town again. "Why you asking me?" Sine told the fossil, crossing her fingers behind her head in a nonchalant pose. (People talked to their pokemon all the time; if Laren asked, she could always claim that she was good at reading fossil pokemon.) "We'll beat that son of a Swinub real good next time we see him outside of town. It'll be an advantage to you to be in a wide open space." Speak of the devil, and its trainer shall appear. "So, you're one of those weirdos who dress like their lead pokemon," Sine jeered to Nero. "Keep your Garchomp on a leash next time." And teach him better manners, she wanted to add, but left it at that for now. "Anyway, thanks for the info, Laren, and I'd love to chat more but I gotta take big boy for a walk," the young lady cut in before either of them could respond, stretching her arms over her head and choosing that moment to leave, chasing after Chompers and bounding past the two girls. More people usually meant more trouble. "Gotta bounce!" Even though the trainer thing was an act, she had faith in the Tyrantrum; if it weren't for that Azumarill threatening to beat both of them up, then the guy would be picking up the fainted corpse of his partner -- which actually might have been a better outcome in the end. Though, at least she got a little info out of it -- namely, that if the Anorith was right, they were just some company doing fossil research. It explained the Helix part, at least. Probably referred to both Helix, the fossil, and helix of the DNA used to revive the pokemon. She was no expert in biology, but she knew that much. Then the research… Was the team attempting to revive something that the players had to ultimately destroy…? And drat! She forgot to ask about the library. Oh well, the pokecenter staff might know. "Can't stay still, can you?" Sine commented to Chompers as she caught up and kept pace with him, two of her steps for one of his. If only he broke that habit of wandering off every five minutes, maybe they'd have enough time to stage an actual conversation. A pause. She kept walking. "Don't you think that it was kind of weird that neither of the blue pokemon had trainers around? The dark blue one did, but he didn't show up until it already left the scene, and came from the same direction where his pokemon went." ~~~~~ "Tama's not the brightest candle in the box, huh?" Lambert made a poor attempt at light humor and chuckled to himself. "Hopefully he learns." So the wandering blue dinosaur (who looked similar to Rhapsody's pokemon form for Lambert to assume they were in the same evolution family) didn't have a trainer after all. Was the deer pokemon the same, or was it under the shifter's care? The deer pokemon began to leave with the shifter following -- while it could be interpreted as them searching for their trainer, knowing that one of them was a player changed the situation entirely. The knowledge that there was at least a third one in town was good information. He wanted to follow the two pokemon, but he felt it was his responsibility to take care of his own group of players, first. He convinced himself that it would be impractical to collect every shifter he met, if this trend continued. Louder, this time, Lambert ended the conversation. "Well, we'll keep in touch." He grabbed the Dusk Ball and slipped it back into his pocket. "We gots some stuff to take care of in town later, but we'll probably be here for a while," Murkrow turned and said to Zoey while Lambert approached the rest of his group. Z was awake, but apparently wasn't doing too well. Poor kid was gripping the water bottle hard enough to dent the plastic and water had spilled all over their shirt. Lambert didn't really know what to do in this situation. Z reminded him a little of a toddler, and he had little experience with toddlers (other than letting them win if they challenge you to a pokemon battle). He felt a little insensitive remaining silent in the group's presence, but he really didn't know what to say. Edited March 5, 2016 by TehUltimateMage Share this post Link to post
Posted March 5, 2016 The dragon-shark made a strange face-- was that a smirk?-- at Cass before launching itself over the building, out of sight. Cass squinted after the Garchomp before frowning and turning to Allison, who had taken her position to Cass's left. None of the other people and Pokémon even seemed to register that they had appeared. While that was all good and dandy for Allison, Cass was less than thrilled that they'd been practically ignored. Cass did not like being ignored. "This isn't the party I was hoping it'd be," she muttered, loud enough for the taller woman beside her to hear. She combed her fingers through her hair absentmindedly and sighed. At the very least, she was content that racing over there wasn't all for naught-- the man with the pokemon on his head mentioned Team Helix, so there was some hope for excitement after all. Allison scoffed under her breath. "Life is full of disappointments." Such as the name of that Tyrantrum, she added silently, faintly lifting an eyebrow at its trainer. Just then, another man waltzed toward them and scooped up the Ralts that had been left behind by its Garchomp friend. Allison noted the cigarette in his hand and felt a pang of longing. Was she a smoker? The thought of it almost disgusted her, but then again, as soon as she smelled the smoke wafting from him, the desire increased tenfold. She watched him carefully as he took a drag and moved closer. So he was the Garchomp's trainer? How strange. "You just missed him," she said coolly, looking absolutely unimpressed, "by a few feet, it seems. He left in your direction." Cass glanced around the small gathering. The big dinosaur thing (was that a Tyrunt? No, that didn't seem right) marched away, and the human girl followed shortly after. The guy covered in dust and dirt and the smoker were left. She whistled softly and said, "Well, at least those dragons had enough sense not to brawl right here and now. Are you damage control?" With a chuckle, she extended her hand to Laren and added, "I'm Cassandra, by the way. New in town. This is my...friend, Allison." Allison glanced over at them at the sound of her name. She'd been focused on the man's Anorith, for the sight of it felt peculiar, like deja vu. Why she could so easily identify fossil Pokémon was another mystery she needed to unravel. "Pleasure," she said in a tone that suggested otherwise. The Joltik on her shoulder fluffed out its fuzz and clambered up Allison's ponytail to sit atop her head, much like the man's Anorith. The shadow of a scowl crossed her face in response. Instead of humoring the bug, who was excitedly chirping his hellos at Anorith, she raised her voice slightly to be heard over the chattering Pokémon and said, "You mentioned Team Helix, I noticed. What type of 'legal' activity is involved with this organization? Are their headquarters accessible to the public?" Cass looked thoughtfully at Laren at Allison's inquiry and then back to her companion. She'd noticed Allison's gaze flicker more than once toward Garchomp's trainer, whose cigarette smoke was blowing generously into their faces. Surprisingly, Cass found she didn't mind it all that much. Probably had to do with the whole "breathing fire" thing. She nodded at the smoker and said, "A Ralts and a Garchomp? That's an interesting combination. They seem like good friends though. By the way, did you need some help tracking him down? He seemed pretty smart for a Garchomp at least. And I really have nothing better to do at the moment." Almost immediately, Allison shot Cassandra a dark look, and the redhead grinned. Share this post Link to post
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