Posted May 19, 2016 Chompers nodded his head before stiffening. The tall dark one was making eye contact. A small growl was emitting from the back of his throat. This guy yelled threat, but luckily for the sake of the Pokécenter, he broke eye contact and looked over to another girl in yellow. Before he could speak, Chompers turned on his heel when he heard Sine squeak. "Sine!" he said, bounding over to her. "Are you okay?" As Chompers picked her up, he looked up at the black bird which startled her. Was it a threat to Sine? "What's your problem?" Chompers growled at the bird. "Can't you see she was working?" "Hey, tall, dark and scary," Driller muttered to the guy, not minding the butt sniff from the black dog. "It's best not to hold eye contact with my boss. From what we figure, he was returned to this world from the ancient times. We already had a run in where he smashed through a brick wall with a flick of his tail from another Pokémon he considered a threat. Luckily, the gym leader was there to break it up. But believe me, if you hold eye contact, he will be a loose canon. And what ever you do, don't mention the word 'revival around him." With that, Driller turned and slithered over to Chompers to see if he could help. Share this post Link to post
Posted May 19, 2016 As Jasper launched towards Cass, an arrogant grin slapped onto his face, a sudden bellowing roar erupted from the Pyroar. Blue tinted shockwaves emitted from her mouth as the ferocity of her roar shook the roar around her. The sheer power of the Hyper Voice rammed straight into Jasper. He let out a grunt as his body ached from the impact. The water around his body began to disperse just as Jasper sped past Cass, grazing her side before landing onto the ground in a most ungraceful manner. The water evaporated from Jasper’s body as he was flung onto the ground, rolling to a stop before scrambling onto this legs. He could feel the adrenaline rush through his body as stood and stared at Cassandra, anticipating her next move. This was much more like it. That battle with the Kabutos had been short-lived and Jasper hadn’t gotten the chance to fight the dragons after realizing that someone might get mortally wounded. He had been (or rather, always was) aching for a thrilling fight that would get his heart racing. Cassandra appeared to be just as pumped for the fight as he was. Hopefully, she’d prove to be a worthy challenge. While Jasper stared at Cass, preparing himself for another Aqua Jet, she suddenly bolted. Her mouth opened wide as flames began to dance within her jaws. She leapt forward, causing Jasper to take a step back, before darting to the left as the Heat Wave exploded from her mouth and began to surge towards the Azumarill. Jasper silently cursed himself as he realized he wouldn’t be able to simply launch another Aqua Jet. Although he had the type-advantage, ramming straight into an oncoming Heat Wave was not the smartest decision in the world. He had to think fast if he wanted to escape without too much damage. Just as the Heat Wave flew towards Jasper, he suddenly buckled down and began to hastily dig into the dirt. Although using Dig did save him from the brunt of the Heat Wave, his tail had been caught in the fire. The blue ball was had a dark burn mark on it and a sharp pain shot through Jasper’s body. A small hiss escaped Jasper’s lips as he continued to dig underneath the earth, trying to ignore the aching pain from his tail. It was only after a moment did he realize that, just like in the battle with the Kabutos, he had no idea where Cass was. He paused, listening attentively as he tried to locate Cass’s location. No doubt she would be waiting for him to resurface with some sort of counter ready. All he needed to do was find her and hit her before she could retaliate. Digging through the earth, Jasper moved towards a spot where he knew something was on the surface. Was it Cassandra? Was it an unfortunate Pokemon who hadn’t gotten the memo or was it possibly a rock and Jasper was just terrible at using Dig in a fight. Either way, he didn’t get. Racing towards the surface, Jasper leaped out of the ground and spun around and slammed his tail down towards whatever he had resurfaced near. Share this post Link to post
Posted May 22, 2016 (edited) Had that guy growled at him? He was pretty sure that guy had growled at him. Rhapsody took a step forward when the guy retreated to where another human was, but stopped when Pooch quickly positioned herself in front of him with a pointed look on her face. He glared right back. The yellow Pokémon spoke then. So, first the other guy started radiating hostility out of nowhere, then he growled when Rhapsody wasn't fazed, proceeded to completely ignore him, and now the snake was implying Rhapsody should be intimidated by the brick wall thing (whatever brick was)? What, was he supposed to act differently only because the guy was a Fossil? Tough luck. They weren't in ancient times anymore, and if Big Guy refused to stop acting like he needed special treatment, then Rhapsody was more than happy to teach him a lesson or two about the present. Something in his eyes and expression must have been broadcasting his intentions, as Pooch crouched, tail and ears lowered and fur standing on end. "Rhapsody, no." He walked past her, towards the two new shifters and Qrow. His shoulders were tense and arms relaxed with open palms as he took deliberate steps, eyes narrowed as he smiled in a way that showed his teeth. "Didn't anyone teach you not to run off after picking a fight, Big Guy?" he said in a low and even tone. No matter what Pooch thought, he refused to back down like a coward when it was the other guy the one who had started acting aggressive first. Edited May 22, 2016 by Puredark006 Share this post Link to post
Posted May 22, 2016 (edited) Allison still held Anhew by the elbow as the young girl attempted her first few steps as a human. She wondered how Anhew didn't know how to walk in the first place; when she and Cass had awoken, walking had been no problem. It was the Pokémon form that gave her trouble... Allison blinked, startled. She glanced back down at Anhew with sharpened curiosity. Was this girl a Pokémon before all of this? That would explain how that odd man from before couldn't figure out a doorknob. What a strange game, she thought, pursing her lips. Cass might have broken out into a smile at Anhew's question, but Allison remained stoic, only the hint of a smirk flitting over the corner of her mouth. "Considering humans don't walk on all fours, yes, that would strange," Allison answered idly, flexing her grip slightly as Anhew moved forward, just in case the Deino-shifter happened to pitch forward on her unsteady feet. Allison remained quiet for a moment and looked over at Evelyn. Ev seemed to be more accustomed to the human body and human mannerisms, so she must have been a human before like Allison and Cassandra. Allison wondered about both girls as Anhew continued to talk. Finally, Allison looked back down at Anhew. "These are your arms," she answered simply, giving Anhew's small arm a little squeeze with her long fingers. "You'll have to get used to them. Your Deino form doesn't last forever, and Cassandra can't carry you around all the time." Though, Allison didn't doubt that Cass would volunteer to do so regardless. After a moment, Allison took Anhew's other elbow, though not unkindly, from Ev. "Here, Evelyn, why don't you show Anhew how to do it," Allison instructed, gesturing toward the open floor space with an incline of her head. She glanced toward the door. She thought about Cass, and wondered how she was faring against the wildlife. Hopefully she was having a better time than Allison. The Heat Wave cascaded across the field, leaving behind patches of incinerated grass and small, flickering flames on the dried twigs. Cass suddenly realized that in her eagerness to pour the fire over every inch, she'd lost track of Jasper. The lioness paused. Damn! Her nose twitched and her teeth were partially bared as she looked around. There-- she saw the hole that Jasper must have disappeared into, and her bright eyes widened in surprise. Double damn! He knew Dig, too? Cass growled, bracing herself on the blackened earth. Jasper could come out of no where, and by the time she'd felt him coming through the ground, it would be too late. The Pyroar sprang forward into an agile sprint, keeping her big paws from staying on the earth for longer than a couple seconds at a time. She wanted to throw him off, but there was the risk that he'd feel the vibrations of her pawsteps and catch up. Sitting around for him to find her felt like the worse option. Not being able to see him made her uneasy, and a growl rumbled in her chest in response. Something rippled beneath the ground. Cass hissed as the dirt and stone burst to her right, and out popped the Azumarrill at full force. Before she could stop herself, her snarl of surprise translated into a actual Snarl; it reverberated out from her throat with intensity that pulsated through the air, and then abruptly cut off with a strangled grunt as Jasper's tail slammed into the side of her face. Cass was thrown sideways by the strength of his attack and slid over the charred grass on her side before landing in a wheezing pile under a tree. Lights flashed behind her eyelids as she fought to catch her breath. Cass staggered back onto her paws. "That--tickled--" she rasped between breaths, squeezing her eyes shut to fend off the pounding ache in her head. She gave herself a thorough shake and gnashed her teeth together, fire flickering through them again. Then, at last second, she changed her mind, and loosed another bellow of bluish shockwaves at Jasper; the Hyper Voice ripped through the earth again, churning the ash and charcoal with fresh dirt and stone. Edited May 22, 2016 by Shiny Hazard Sign Share this post Link to post
Posted May 22, 2016 ((Oh god I haven't posted in forever forgive me Anyway tell me if I need to edit anything)) The gym battle went well, despite the group's earlier difficulties with the challenge at Kusba; Z supposed the training had paid off. Rhapsody shifted back to human form the moment the referee was out of sight, and they followed suit (mostly involuntarily, upon remembering how long they'd been in Pokemon form already, and immediately crashing into the floor in what was quickly becoming a tired old gag). Then it was back to the Pokemon Center, and trying to hover unobstructively in the back while people who actually knew what they were doing discussed things. So, unless Rhapsody had any serious objections to staying the night, they would have the time to check the internet again before the end of the day. Before they'd been interrupted by - that unpleasant incident, they had meant to look a few more things up. Maybe download a map, see if any players have been spotted anywhere else - A man dressed uncannily like the Tyrantrum Gaes and Rhapsody had faced in the gym battle approached the group at that exact moment, and they faintly noted that this would be a textbook opportunity to use the phrase "speak of the devil". They scooted forward, wondering if they should make a token self-introduction or something, when the man began growling. They glanced at Rhapsody, then the new guy, then back, and took on an expression of abject panic when it became apparent that Rhapsody wasn't backing down even if the other man was. "H-hang on," they squeaked, shuffling over to position themself between the two. Their eyes met Rhapsody's and they flinched backward, swallowing hard. Well, this was familiar. What now? "T-there - there's - this, this r-really isn't - there are a lot of people - unrelated people, here," they managed to get out, most of it in a shaky whisper. "Might not be the best time?" Share this post Link to post
Posted May 23, 2016 (edited) Chompers narrowed his eyes as the guy who had held eye contact with him spoke. Before he could stop himself, Chompers turned around and lunged forward, biting the guy on the shoulder, moving around another person in the process to get to the threat. To him, Sine was more important then a fight, but the guy called obviously called him a coward and that irked Chompers. It was then he realized wasn't in his Tyrantrum form and wouldn't be in that form for the rest of the day. Chompers didn't move, the only thing he tried to do is keep clamping down. Although, the clothes the guy were tasted horrible to him. --------------------- Anhew listened to Allison as she replied. Ev hadn't talked in a while, so Anhew came to the possibility that Ev was just being quiet or the girl had fallen asleep. "Ah," Anhew said. "So it is another word for my front legs." Anhew then carefully spread them to keep balance. She took her left paw and carefully lifted it and then placed it firmly back on the floor. "So, what's another name for my paws and claws?" she asked. "If I'm human now, I don't think I can start going around saying my paws hurt, not that they are." She paused for a moment. "To be honest, I've never heard the word human before." It did ease Anhew that Sweet Voice and Ev were around. Edited May 23, 2016 by Raptor of Dragons Share this post Link to post
Posted May 23, 2016 (edited) Qrow tilted his head to the left, pretending to not understand what exactly Chompers was getting at. "Working? I barely did anything. It's the kid's fault for being so jumpy." Sine squeezed her fingers into claws and pulled herself up, steadying herself on the chair and then the computer table. Chompers stood protectively in front of her, until he lunged forward with glowing teeth bared. The move might have worked better as a pokemon, Sine figured, but like how she had to learn to fly, many pokemon were probably foreign to the concept of fists. Speaking of fists, she would have punched the bird, but it had already flown up and away. Looks like it might have belonged to the guy in black and blue (it matched his aesthetic), or one of the other people over there. She could probably make a quick buck if she sold the Dusk Stone to them. ...Wait. She pat her pockets with a rising sense of panic. Other than the sticky clay, the rest of her items were gone. She picked up the two revives scattered on the ground, but the rock was nowhere to be found. She found it pretty quickly, though. ~ The tension escalated between the two shifters. Having either of them turn into a pokemon would mean a fight which Lambert had no intention of cleaning up (even though the pokemon center was high enough to house the dinosaur pokemon). And despite the combined efforts of the group, there was no way Rhapsody was going to back down now. Lambert lunged forward and gave Chompers a shove with his shoulder to try and dislodge him, then placed himself between the two dragons. Cold air and small flurries of snow swirled through the room, bringing the temperature of the center down a few noticeable degrees. "Stop. Outside, both of you." He whistled for Qrow to come back and stop harassing the girl at the PC. He was justifiably startled when a black shadow tried to land on his shoulder, its dark wings slapping him in the face as the Honchkrow tried to get a better hold on his perch. "You've gotten heavy," Lambert choked out to his pokemon. Qrow's new form weighed as much as a well-fed pellipper. It hadn't been a minute and his arm was already sore. Edited May 23, 2016 by TehUltimateMage Share this post Link to post
Posted May 25, 2016 "Oh, it's okay," Emil assured. He couldn't blame Styg for her natural method of saying 'hi' but his body certainly did. Idly rubbing at the offended area, he hummed faintly as the Pokémon asked her question. "Items. We're just looking for a couple of items. Maybe one or two more before we leave," he replied. Glancing over at his discarded bag, he frowned slightly and started walking towards it. Some of the items had tumbled out, now laying strewn about the ground. He crouched down, beginning to gather up what was displaced. Nix flicked their tail, darting over and snatching the Escape Rope with their teeth. "You don't happen to know of a good place to dig up items, do you?" they asked the Rampardos. ~~~~ Seriously? Gaes had barely left the group, moving five feet away, and Rhapsody was already getting into a fight with someone? Lambert and Pooch were trying to cool the situation before it heated up any further. But the freaky-tall guy was picking a fight without cause and already made the first attack: a bite to Rhapsody's shoulder. Poor Z was trying to help stop the fight but the kid only went ignored. Lambert got physical, separating the two and causing a flurry of snow to blow through the Center, causing the temperature to suddenly drop. She bit her lip, glancing in the direction of Matthew and the Nurse. Their attention was certainly focused on the growing commotion and it wasn't hard to miss the abnormal effects. "Don't worry!" Gaes shouted, waving her hands above her head and jumping about to distract the pair. "Old guy's got it under control! Sorry about the ruckus!" she said quickly, moving closer to Matthew and grabbing his wrist. She tugged him towards the Nurse, stepping around him to start pushing her hands against his back. "Don't mind them!" she laughed forcibly, trying to play the situation off. "I think I heard something fall in a back room. You should go check it out!" Matthew wasn't happy with being man-handled by a woman who was shorter than him. However, he moved at her insistence, the Nurse following along. Share this post Link to post
Posted May 25, 2016 "Let's see..." Styg said as she closed her eyes and thought. She knew the thing Laren and his team valued the most were fossils, but they already got all of the ones in the public areas. Laren didn't pay attention to most of the other items, so she didn't really know their value... She had seen some of the workers take small yellow and shiny stones, but when she saw Laren find one he threw it over his shoulder without a second look, so... "Ah, I know!" She exclaimed, tail hitting the ground. There weren't specific places full with items since trainers wandered across the entire digging site, but that meant there'd be items in places were trainers usually didn't go. And trainers couldn't go to the rocks between tunnels. She repeatedly scratched the ground with her foot, crouching, before suddenly going into a full run. She ran past Emil and Nix with her head down and rammed against a wall with all her strength. The whole tunnel seemed to shake as the wall crumbled around the Rampardos, rocks and debris falling with deafening crashes as she went through the wall and into an adjacent tunnel. She hit the second wall too, but by then her run had lost enough power that she only managed a crack before stopping completely. She huffed and shook her body to rid it of the rocks and dust that had fallen on her, and looked back through the new connection she had made. There was still some dust and small rocks falling from the ceiling, but she saw among the scattered rocks at the bottom something shiny and turquoise. "Oh, that's a Dawn Stone!" she cheered, making her way back through the hole into the tunnel were Emil was. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The guy seemingly decided the time for speaking was over and charged towards Rhapsody. He didn't dodge, waiting until the other was close enough to whip out his right arm and grab the other's throat with his hand, digging his nails in. The other guy bit him on the shoulder, forcing him to take a step back or risk losing his balance, and he was so sick and tired of this stupid human body why the hell didn't he remember he didn't have fangs at the end of his arm anymore dammit. He was starting to raise his other arm to go for the eyes, but stopped when he felt the tingling sensation that had collected on his shoulder blades expanding and going through his whole body. He had only felt it once before, back in that first day when he woke up in the arceusforsaken forest, but it wasn't easy to forget something that brought up one of the worst moods he had been in that day. The Thunder Wave didn't last long; maybe it was the shock of the electricity (literally), maybe it was Lambert's interference, but the other guy had let him go, something the old man took advantage of to place himself between the two quarreling shifters. At this point, Rhapsody didn't even care. All the anger he was feeling right now was directed less at the other dragon and more at the fact that Rhapsody had used that move. And the worst part was, as always, that he couldn't even remember why in Mew's name he hated it so much. He exhaled a shaky breath that would have been a growl in his other form, eyes narrowed and shining with the need to beat something up until he got that frustration out of his system. The room had gotten colder, but he was starting to feel the back of his throat doing the opposite and growing hotter, knew if he left it unchecked it would end in wisps of smoke coming from his mouth due to the fire Flamethrower would collect there. But the other guy hadn't used any of his shifter powers yet, so Rhapsody took a breath, swallowing the hot sensation until it faded to a manageable warmth. "Outside, huh?" he spat, the violent grin from before returning to his face as he did the human equivalent of baring his fangs. He didn't notice Gaes pushing the eyewitnesses out of the way, all his attention concentrated on the other guy's black eyes as he took a step back with arms half-raised in a 'come at me' position. "Fine by me, if Big Guy here has the guts to finish what he started." Share this post Link to post
Posted May 26, 2016 Chompers noticed the guy going for his throat. A growl emerged as he continued clamping down on the guy's shoulder. What good would his hand do? Before he could realize what happened, something hit him making his body feel all weird. Yelping in surprise, Chompers let go as he got pushed back by the other dude and the temperature lowered, making Chompers shiver. Why did his body feel weird. The guy spoke. Outside? Was it to be a fight then? "I would if I could," Chompers wheezed out. "I already used my form for the day." He noticed the bird had underwent a change, but was no longer bothering Sine. Chompers turned, with his body still feeling really weird, to Sine. "You okay?" he asked. Before he could say anymore, he flinched, the feeling he had was overpowering him. "What did you do?" he managed to ask. Share this post Link to post
Posted May 28, 2016 Jasper's face contorted in discomfort as Cassandra's Snarl hit him full on. His sensitive ears were ringing from the distorted sound and it was only after his tail collided with the side of the Pyroar's face did his pain expressed vanish. A twisted grin grew upon Jasper's face as Cassandra flew away from the sheer force of the blow. Jasper landed on to the ground on all his hind legs glancing up at Cassandra as he watched her pick groggily get back onto her paws. "That--tickled--" Tickled? Those deep raspy breaths of hers would say otherwise. Cass didn't look like she was doing as well as she proclaimed, but, to be fair, Jasper wasn't exactly in a great state either. It would be hard to ignore his ragged breaths and the way his ears began to droop. His entire body was aching from exhaustion and the leg that caught flame sent a wave of pain whenever he moved it. At this point, it didn't look like either of the two would be able to last for much longer. How exhilarating! This was perhaps the most fun Jasper had ever since he woke up. If only he had met Cass and Allison on that road instead of Zoey. His overall view of other shifters just might have changed if that was the case. Not that any of that mattered now; he needed to focus on the battle. After rolling his shoulders, Jasper began to sprint towards Cassandra. As fire began to dance in her jaws, he readied himself for his oncoming Play Rough. Just as he jumped up, flipping over so his glowing tail would be slamming down onto Cass's face, the flames dispersed from her mouth and she instead roared as blue shock waves flew towards Jasper. Completely unprepared, Jasper let out a cry of surprise as he was suddenly flung backwards. A strangled groan escaped his lips as he was thrown onto the ground several feet away, rolling on the ground until he finally stopped, his face flat on the ground. He was quiet for several seconds before a hoarse giggle erupted from his throat. "You really liking roaring, don't ya, Cass?" Jasper asked as he lifted his face off the ground and began to steady himself onto his feet. "Come on, don't ya have any other moves to show me?" After finally regaining his sense of balance, Jasper looked over at Cass with a calculating look. "Quit playing with me," he challenged. "Show me what else you have in that arsenal of yours." Running towards Cass once again, Jasper leaped into the air again as he brought his white glowing tail over his head and swung it down towards Cass as he attempted to hit her with Play Rough one more time. (When I asked about Play Rough in chat a while back, I was told to just what I could since there are no anime depictions of it and the game just has a big cartoony cloud show up. I hope that clears up any confusion.) Share this post Link to post
Posted May 29, 2016 (edited) Lambert felt a jolt of static, as if he had touched a charged doorknob; the taller man seemed to have felt it as well. If they intended to duel it out as dragons, they would have to go more than just outside; they'd have to go out of town. Thankfully, the dinosaur shifter seemed to have exhausted his form for the day, and Rhapsody didn't seem like the type to make cheap shots. "That's that, then," he concluded. "There's a time and place for everything... but not now." He plucked Qrow from his sore shoulder. "How...?" He flipped the bird around. "Why...?" It was evolution, yes, but what was the trigger? ~ Sine adjusted her face, trying to force her expression of horror into something more neutral. She just shook her head when Chompers asked about her, and focused her stare on the Honchkrow's trainer, rolled her sleeves up, and marched towards Lambert. She tilted her head to look up at the older man, nostrils flared. "You owe me 3000p because of your stupid bird," she hissed. "Stole my evolution stone." Lambert stepped back, but the girl stepped forward. Qrow rustled his feathers. So much for Super Luck. The best thieves didn't get caught, but the best way to not get caught was to never thieve in the first place. He couldn't exactly get the crow to cough it back up, but paying the 3 thousand dollars didn't seem like an option either. He was planning to get a bag with that money. "I'll pay you back later," Lambert finally said. "You have my word. I truly apologize." Sine narrowed her eyes, then turned around. She didn't really trust this guy, even if he acted all honest and upfront. "See if you find anything valuable at the dig site, or else I'll be forced to follow you around the region until you pay up." "Alright, feel free to come along," he sighed. "Let me just get a few pokeballs for my friend." Sine raised an eyebrow when Lambert went over to the Mart counter and took out 800 to pay for four pokeballs, which he handed to the man in black and blue (who she was pretty sure that he used to be a pokemon). She followed him over, watching the money he slipped back into his pockets. Might need to find a proper wallet or bag somewhere, if only to prevent more of her things from being stolen. She put the two revives and the clay on the mart counter and asked for two pokeballs. The clerk looked like he got this kind of stuff all the time, and she wondered if worthless stuff was just reburied into the dig site. He handed her 1200p and the items, giving one of the balls to Chompers. "You can exchange your items for money to buy more things. But sometimes it's useful to keep them." Edited May 29, 2016 by TehUltimateMage Share this post Link to post
Posted May 29, 2016 'Already used his form for the day?' Seriously? And knowing that, the guy had still acted so confident? Either he was really brave, really dumb, or both at the same time. Rhapsody could feel his mouth twitch, the dangerous smile from before getting a mocking edge as he let out a laugh. "You were careless enough to reach the limit? What, is this your first day, or do you just like being weak?" "Rhapsody, that's enough," Pooch barked, fur still on end as she looked at him. He'd have ignored her and continued taunting Big Guy, but then the other seemed to flinch. Rhapsody's eyes narrowed at the question, glinting with anger as his lips curled in a soundless snarl. He would have attacked the other again, consequences be damned, had Lambert not chosen that moment to hand him four red and white balls. It took him a second to remember he had asked for them earlier, before they had been approached by the fossil shifter. "Whatever," he huffed, pocketing the Poké Balls. "Not gonna waste any more time on someone who can't even fight back," he growled in a low tone, heading towards the doors and out of the Pokémon Center. He barely heard the footsteps of Pooch and Bugface following him outside, the Houndour whispering an "I'm very sorry about his attitude" in the lowest tone she could manage to not draw suspicion from the uninvolved humans. He was still tense, shoulder throbbing from the earlier bite. Might have to take a look at it later to check if there was bleeding, but for now that was so low in Rhapsody's priority list it might as well be nonexistent. He needed either something to maul, or a distraction - and considering his mood, if the fauna around was as useless as the one back in Kusba, he'd only be even more frustrated if he picked such an easy fight. "Oi Pooch. Ya know where Zoey went?" She eyed him warily, gauging if he had any intention of making the girl's life hard. She had known from the beginning she wouldn't be able to always stop her trainer, if only because they both knew he'd resort to violence if she crossed a line, but she could still try to prevent as many conflicts as she could before they got out of control. "...I could try tracking her scent, but I didn't get a chance to properly sniff her," she carefully said. "Try it anyway." Pooch looked at Bugface, who just shrugged in an I-haven't-known-him-long-enough-to-know-what-he's-going-to-do way. Considering the way things went... it could have been worse. Lambert prevented a physical fight from occurring, and both shifters had backed down. And, even if Rhapsody hadn't handled it well and had said some unnecessarily cruel things, in the end he had done as the yellow snake had asked. For all his bad attitude, he hadn't said the word 'revival'. "Alright," Pooch ventured, sniffing the ground and going in the direction with the strongest scent, figuring the girl had been the last one to pass through. Share this post Link to post
Posted May 29, 2016 The Tyrantrum man walked around Z to attack and, despite themself, a twinge of annoyance wormed itself in between the anxiety. "Hey," they protested weakly, taking half a step forward before thinking better of it. What were they going to do, fight both of them? They desperately tried to think around the panic filling their mind as the man lunged for Rhapsody's shoulder - And before they realized what had happened, Lambert was standing between the two dragons and ordering them both outside. A few tense seconds later, Rhapsody obliged, exiting the Pokemon Center with his Pokemon in tow. Z let out a breath they didn't know they were holding. "I'll, uh," they began, turning to look at Lambert, but he seemed to be occupied arguing with the girl who was on the PC when they came in (and was that his former Murkrow he was holding?). "I'll... I'll be outside, too," they mumbled to nobody in particular instead, and shuffled after Bugface. Outside, they fell into step with Rhapsody. "Hey," they said. Then, a few seconds later, "s-sorry - about, uh. Back there." Share this post Link to post
Posted May 30, 2016 Chompers growled at the guy again who was now teasing him. Something about the way he teased both angered and frightened him. "I feel comfortable in the other form," Chompers snarled, ignoring the protest from the kid. Oh, how he wanted to transform and just toss this guy to the sky! He it was in that moment when the other man handed the threat some Pokeballs and that's when he finally turned to Sine where he saw her get some Pokeballs as well. He nodded a thanks to Sine as she handed him a Pokeball. "You mean like a revive?" Chompers asked, holding the Pokeball. He had managed to put his items from earlier in his pockets. He looked over at Driller who seemed to be pale. "You okay?" he asked curiously. "I may be the cause of that fight," Driller said. "Sorry boss." "It's his fault as well," Chompers said. "He held eye contact." "So if Pokemon or human hold eye contact with you," Driller said. "They are a threat? Nice to know." ------------------------------------ Zoey put the backpack on and adjusted the strap accordingly before browsing the shelves, now having time to actually think. She thought back to the gym battle. She was pretty sure she never seen a gym battle, but looking down from the balcony felt familiar. A rush of emotions hit her like she was on the verge of something rather important from her past. She hissed in annoyance as the feeling quickly faded. She did kick on of the shelves, but grumbled when she also stubbed her big toe. She ran a hand through her hair before turning her thoughts to being a gym leader. So, a background check was needed. Maybe if she applied to become a gym leader, maybe she can learn who she was before this game. She had a pretty strong idea about who she was, a con artist. Why else was he try to sell Pokemon and try to get more money? The question is, would she be able to stop? She sighed as she started looking at the hats. Share this post Link to post
Posted June 1, 2016 "What're ya even apologizing for?" Rhapsody asked. Maybe a bit more snappish than what he intended, but he was still pissed enough to not care right now. Pooch had trotted up ahead, peeking inside one of the stores. It looked very similar to the one where Gaes had bought her belt, with many different clothes for humans neatly arranged. "Zoey? Tama?" The Houndour called, padding inside with ears perked. Share this post Link to post
Posted June 1, 2016 Z blinked. "For, um. Well - you know - I didn't..." They furrowed their brow at the ground. It had seemed perfectly straightforward at the time, but now that they were actually trying to put it into words, their reasoning no longer made any sense to them. "Uh. N-never mind." Pooch had reached the clothing store, and Z took the chance to end this awkward conversation, catching up and entering behind her. They gave the mannequins on either side of the entrance a nervous look and skirted past them, staring at the racks of clothing further in. "Zoey? Are we looking for Zoey?" They asked Pooch, though an odd unshakable sense that they didn't belong here made the question come out an inaudible whisper. They knew what stores were - or at the very least, they'd recognized the sign outside indicating this building was one - but somehow, this wasn't what they'd expected being in one was like. Dismissing it as another frustrating effect of the memory loss, they tried to focus on the merchandise itself. A shelf on the wall was stocked with hats of different shapes and colours. They reached up and pulled out the nearest one, a plain beige cap with a white band. They turned it over in their hands, feeling the texture of the cloth - then, on a whim, tugged it over their head. They turned to look back at Rhapsody when movement caught their attention from the corner of their eye. Standing at the other end of the aisle was a girl with purple hair - Zoey. How long had she been there? "Oh! H-hey!" They squeaked, hands still gripping the sides of the hat, and stumbled several steps backward in surprise, swerving to the side just in time to end up beside Rhapsody instead of crashing into him. "It's - it's you!" Share this post Link to post
Posted June 2, 2016 (edited) Zoey was looking at a random hat before snapping out of her thoughts when she heard someone call her name. Then she facepalmed as Tama came out of his Pokeball. It was then she noticed the kid fooling with a hat. She stared at them before they finally turned towards her. "Friends!" Tama said as came out of his Pokeball and ran around the Houndour. They seemed to hold that hat a little to tight with their hands. Did they like hats? "Yes," Zoey said politely. "It's me." It seemed as if they were nervous, maybe a little too nervous. Did they like the hat? "You like the hat?" she asked them. "Did you want it?" She looekd over at the other guy, Rap, who seemed a bit irriated. Better not mess with him for a while. "Sorry about Tama," she said as Tama ran around before Zoey returned him. "So, what is your species? I never seen a Pokemon like you before." Edited June 2, 2016 by Raptor of Dragons Share this post Link to post
Posted June 3, 2016 Rhapsody raised an eyebrow at Z's stuttering. The other shifter seemed to be nervous enough to flee the first chance they got, entering the store Pooch had disappeared into. He looked at Bugface, who tilted her head and commented, "Z seems to be bad at conversation." "No kidding," he huffed, going inside the building too. He was just in time to see the white light that signaled a Pokémon going out of its Poké Ball, quickly followed by the cheerful cub as Tama went to greet Pooch. "Hello there," the Houndour greeted back, tail wagging slightly in response to the other Fire-type's enthusiasm. She took the chance to get a good sniff of the feline's behind, too, before he was returned. Well, goal accomplished. They found Zoey. Rhapsody didn't have a clear idea of what to do now, but it couldn't be worse than the Pokémon Center fiasco. Even though Z had decided to use Rhapsody as a wall he found he didn't mind as much as he had back in Kusba. At least the girl took the initiative to strike up a topic that didn't irk him. "Hydreigon. Dark Dragon," he clarified. "Maybe you two shouldn't so openly talk about it like this," Pooch muttered, casting a nervous glance around in case there were other people nearby. Rhapsody shrugged, remembering he should pretend he didn't understand the barking. "What's that for?" he asked, making a head movement towards the new item Zoey was carrying, which seemed to be using the same color scheme as her clothes. Share this post Link to post
Posted June 11, 2016 She huffed and shook her body to rid it of the rocks and dust that had fallen on her, and looked back through the new connection she had made. There was still some dust and small rocks falling from the ceiling, but she saw among the scattered rocks at the bottom something shiny and turquoise. "Oh, that's a Dawn Stone!" she cheered, making her way back through the hole into the tunnel were Emil was. Emil started as Styg's tail struck the ground, her excitement easy to read but intentions unclear. He frowned when she scratched a foot against the ground, her claws digging up dirt and leaving gouges behind. Then she was charging again. Fearing for his life, the man shouted and leapt out of the way. Nix did the same, yowling and darting in the other direction. Covering the back of his head with his arms, Emil heard the Pokémon crash through the wall. Debris scattered about the tunnel, several chunks pelting his curled form. A sizable rock struck his head and he was grateful that his hands took most of the impact. He heard her strike a second wall but there wasn't the same noise as when she crashed through the first. For a moment, he remained where he was, listening to broken wall crumble to the ground and dust settle. Coughing slightly to clear his lungs, waving away the dust floating in his face, Emil picked himself up and brushed dirt off his green clothes. When he looked over, he could see Styg eying something on the ground before she spoke up again. Nix shook themself once they were on their paws, fur ruffled and making them look slightly bigger. They sat and began licking down their fur hurriedly. "A little warning next time, if you please?" the Shinx muttered at Styg. Emil stepped towards the gapping hole in the wall, his gaze following Styg's and falling upon the Dawn Stone. Crouching down, he picked it up and carefully dusted any dirt off before stuffing it into his bag. "Thank you, Styg," he said. Shifting through the dirt, he found a few more items: a Light Clay, a Revive, and a second Dawn Stone hidden by pebbles and dust. With everything settled in his bag, he stood straighter and idly brushed dirt off his clothes again. "We should leave now. It was nice to meet you, Styg," Emil stated, lightly tugging on his earlobe. ~~~~ Gaes had ushered Matthew and the Nurse into a back room, improvising to distract them for a few minutes until she realized she didn't hear the telltale signs of a battle in the main lobby. Quickly covering up with a "Whoops! I was imagining things!", she left the humans in confusion and hurried back to the group. She scowled, ready to be irritated at the males for making her make an idiot out of herself. However, only Lambert remained inside - with a pissed off woman watching him intently. "What'd I miss?" she asked, her own anger quickly evaporated. Share this post Link to post
Posted June 11, 2016 Cassandra's breaths were ragged as they wheezed in her chest. Her legs quivered slightly with exhaustion, but she stubbornly kept her tail and chin aloft, fighting back the physical toll of her exertion as much as possible. Her teeth bared slightly as Jasper was thrown backward from the force of her Hyper Voice, and then again as he staggered back onto his feet. A flare of pride rose in her. Perhaps this battle wasn't as one sided as she thought. "Aw, what's the matter? Can't handle my beautiful voice?" Cass laughed, bouncing on her paws as a surge of anticipation flooded her veins. She had been saving this move for last, and it seemed Jasper suspected she was holding something back from him. Considering how spent she was already-- no matter the second wind, Jasper's attacks had blown a considerable chunk of her energy away and it was frankly a miracle she was still conscious at all-- this would be a good time as any to give him one last dazzling surprise. The muscles beneath the Pyroar's frazzled coat flexed and tensed as she braced herself for Jasper's next attack. He seemed to be using the same move he attempted last time, though she wasn't quite sure what it was. Fairy, maybe? That was fine by her, given it wasn't very effective against fire-types. It wouldn't make a difference anyhow with what she was about to try. Cass snarled a challenge and lunged into a sprint at Jasper. As he leapt upward, his tail glowing, the Pyroar's blue eyes flashed and a suddenly forks of golden lightning sprang from her fur and danced wildly across her lithe body. The crackle and hum of the lightning intensified as Cass crouched and leapt for Jasper, just as his tail came slamming down at her. She threw herself at him with everything she had, and the electricity burst with a thunderous crash as his tail made contact with her shoulders. A pained gasp caught in her throat as light flashed behind her eyelids. Her vision blurred, and then darkened; she faintly registered her body flinging into the dirt and whatever remaining wind in her lungs was forced out in a hiss of pain. Cass groaned and lifted her head slightly off the ground. "That was kick ass," she said, and then flopped back onto the dirt, unconscious. When was Cass getting back? Allison didn't know the first thing about talking to children. The teacher act was definitely not her strong suit. She glanced over at Ev, waiting for the girl to say something, but Ev seemed to be content in her silence. Which left Allison to the explaining. Again. She observed Anhew taking more steps before acknowledging the girl's questions. Holding back a sigh, Allison answered in her same toneless voice, "The paws on your arms-- front legs-- are called hands. You can pick things up with them because you have thumbs now." Just in case Anhew wasn't certain what that meant, Allison took one of Anhew's hands in her own and wiggled the girl's thumb. "These are your fingers." She touched Anhew's fingers as she spoke. "Your...paws on your hind legs, which are just called legs, are your feet. The 'claws' on your feet are called toes." Allison didn't bother touching those, and then added, "Any additional questions can be directed to Cassandra. Whenever she decides to return." Allison wasn't sure what to make of Anhew's comment about humans. She hadn't thought that some wild Pokémon probably had never come across a human before if they lived deep in their habitats, but to never hear of a human? She wondered if Pokémon perhaps had their own word for them. Either way, being blind and a human was probably more than a little disorienting for the poor kid. A brief twinge of sympathy took her by surprise and then faded as quickly as it had appeared. Share this post Link to post
Posted June 14, 2016 (edited) A grin spread across Jasper's face as he watched Cass charge towards him. Good, she wasn't going to back down. It would certainly be disappointing if she gave up now. Jasper spun forward, aiming his glowing tail downward as he fell towards Cass. Through the rush of adrenaline shooting through his body, Jasper scarcely noticed the sparks of electricity pouncing off the Pyroar's body until his tail made contact with the shifter. Jasper was flung backward, flying through the air before unceremoniously crashing into the ground. He rolled in the dirt for several seconds before settling down to a stop. Vaguely, Jasper recognized the blurry shape of Cassandra plowing into the ground in in the same fashion that Jasper landed. The water type lifted his head off the ground to peer at Cass through a hazy gaze. He could hear her quietly mumble her approval of the battle before resting her head onto the ground. Jasper couldn't stop the joyful, if not pained, chuckle that escaped his laps. "I haven't had a fight as good as that since I woke up," he admitted as he looked over at the now unconscious Cassandra. Darn, his entire body was throbbing with pain. He wasn't going to be able to fight again until he got patched up. Momentarily, Jasper considered simply following Cass's lead and flopping down the ground to give into unconsciousness. Alas, Jasper was stubborn and even if he couldn't fight anymore, he could at the very least try to drag Cassandra as far as he could to the PokeCenter before he inevitably followed her lead. Wobbling onto this feet, Jasper trekked towards Cass's side, breathing heavily all the while. His body was briefly enveloped by a white light, causing his shape to grow. Once the white disappeared, Jasper was standing in front of Cassandra as a human. "Thanks for the fight," he said to his unconscious sparring partner. "Now, how are we going to get you back to town?" (I'm going off the assumption that since Pokemon can use HMs even when fainted, they could feasibly still be awake, but unable to battle, after losing a fight.) Edited June 14, 2016 by Doctortear Share this post Link to post
Posted June 14, 2016 Something was making noise. Cass's face twitched slightly in her slumber. She was warm, and laying on something soft-- sand? Was she on the beach?-- and the smell of charcoal and dirt faintly filled her nose. Her ear was being tickled by something small and thin, and she lifted a hand to swat it away, only to groan when a sharp twinge of pain shot through her shoulder. Her face scrunched unhappily. Finally, after a long moment, Cass's eyes opened in a bleary squint. Someone was standing over her. A boy? Cass groaned again. What'd I get myself into... she thought, brushing a leaf out of her face. A leaf? A second passed and then Cass's eyes opened wide. Oh! She was in the forest! She rubbed at her eyes. "Jeez, that really knocked me out, huh?" she commented, peering up at Jasper. A human Jasper. Cass realized that she was also human, though didn't recall making the change from Pyroar to her current form. It must've happened when she lost consciousness. She chuckled lightly and slowly sat up, wincing when a stiff ache throbbed through her back. Her face felt swollen on one side, and she touched her cheek gingerly to find it bruised and tender. Her bottom lip was busted; she tasted the dried blood and grimaced. "This will be fun to explain to Nurse Joy," she said, managing a small smile through the bruising. It took her several tries, but Cassandra finally pulled herself onto her feet, though she caught herself with a hand on Jasper's shoulder when her head swam. "Oops, sorry," she said, withdrawing her hand quickly. She motioned toward the town; it could be seen slightly through the open space that had been cleared by her previous Hyper Voice. The sky was getting dark, and only a few lights from the buildings twinkled to show the way. "Let's head back. I'm just dying for a hot shower and a bed." Share this post Link to post
Posted June 15, 2016 (edited) ((Recap as we agreed on the chat: -Chompers, Gaes, Lambert and Sine reunited with Rhapsody, Z and Zoey. Lambert bought Z the hat they were holding with Rhapsody's money (cost: 800). -Lambert bought a bag for himself (cost: 3000) -Chompers, Gaes, Lambert, Rhapsody, Sine, Z and Zoey went to the underground. Objects gained: --Chompers: Light Clay, Moon Stone, Escape Rope, Dawn Stone --Gaes: Damp Rock, Heat Rock x2, Light Clay --Lambert: Iron Ball, Revive, Escape Rope, Float Stone --Rhapsody: Shiny Stone, Damp Rock, Light Clay, Smooth Rock, Revive --Sine: Heat Rock, Iron Ball, Revive, Heat Rock, Oval Stone, Thunder Stone --Z: Star Piece, Revive x2, Water Stone, Float Stone, Heat Rock --Zoey: Shiny Stone, Light Clay x2, Iron Ball After finishing the day, the shifters went to the Pokémon Center to sleep. Allison booked two rooms which had 2 bunk beds each, meaning 8 shifters got to have beds and the other 5 slept either in the sofas in the Center or outside. I’ll be assuming everyone finished introducing themselves and shared info at the sleepover. Small note: you guys can skip the rest of this post, which is just Rhapsody training and catching an Axew)) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It wasn't a hard choice to pick the mountain for his little night training, after the reunion ended and everyone went to bed. Rhapsody landed by the entrance of a cave, letting Pooch and Bugface climb down from his back before shifting to his human form again. "Ya ready?" He got two nods in response. "Then let's move." The mouth of the cave was quiet as they made their way in. Bugface seemed comfortable, though Pooch's fur was a bit bristled. Considering she was a Fire-type and they were inside a place Rock-types preferred, it was understandable. "How long are we doing this?" She asked in a hushed voice. "Long enough for the others to be asleep when we return," Rhapsody answered. His stupid human eyes weren't getting accustomed to the darkness fast enough; he considered closing them, but his hearing in this form wasn't good enough to listen for the echo of his footsteps against the walls. "Oi Pooch, give us some light." The Houndour nodded again, opening her mouth and releasing a Flamethrower towards the ceiling that illuminated the surrounding area. Rhapsody had time to see that there was no one around yet and to check the layout of their surroundings before Pooch closed her mouth again, ending the attack. Time to go deeper then. They repeated the routine every time they reached a place that hadn't been reached by the previous Flamethrower. It didn't take long for the fire to reveal the first two still forms resting upside-down on the ceiling, forms which turned towards them when illuminated by the flames. Pooch ended her attack, and Rhapsody heard the rustling of wings and a chorus of 'Intruders!' as the two blue bats Z had called Zubats descended to attack. If they were anything like Woobats, they'd be Flying-types. That left only one move Bugface could use. "Both of you, use Crunch." Pooch didn't waste time and jumped, grabbing one of the bats in her mouth and throwing it to the side. Bugface didn't move, waiting until the other got near enough and attempted a Wing Attack to suddenly snap her massive jaws so fast Rhapsody almost missed it; for a second there he thought she had swallowed the Zubat in one bite, but then she opened her mouth and the Pokémon fell out, the wings of its fainted form twitching slightly. He raised an eyebrow. "Ambush predator?" "My species digs pits and waits for prey to fall in. Our legs might not be fast, but that can't be said for our necks and mouths," she commented, stepping around her opponent. Rhapsody didn't miss how Pooch's ears and tail lowered, and he snorted. "Alright, next pair." The next two times they found more wild Pokémon, the wild ones ran away, and Rhapsody didn't bother chasing them (he could tell Pooch wanted to, for reasons that were less 'I want to fight' and more 'that is small and it is moving and I want to chase it'). Eventually, they ran across another Zubat and a Woobat who didn't run, instead screeching and flying towards them. "Same as before, two Crunches." Bugface got in position again, and Pooch jumped and caught the white fuzzball this time, who didn't stand a chance due to its Psychic typing. The Zubat, however, didn't go towards Bugface, instead hitting Pooch with a Leech Life. Rhapsody clicked his tongue. They should agree what to do in this kind of situation next time, but that was precisely what this training was for. "Pooch, Flamethrower." The stream of fire hit the remaining bat, which slumped to the ground a bit black and smoking. "Sorry," Bugface apologized, trotting back to where her trainer was. "Eh, it happens." "Both Lambert and the Gym Leaders also ordered targets for their Pokémon moves," Pooch mused, one ear up and the other down. "Perhaps we should try that?" "Wouldn't the commands take too much time then?" "The others seemed to usually shorten them. Sometimes they didn't even have to call the names. Then again, we haven't seen the Leaders use any kind of combo or maneuver yet..." Rhapsody stayed quiet for a while, thinking. "Alright, let's try it. I'll tell you two the targets by saying their position." The chance to try the new strategy came when Pooch accidentally tripped over something, which unburied itself to reveal some sort of floating rock with arms. "That hurt, you jerks!" it yelled, making the ground move in other four different places as more of the same kind of Pokémon unburied themselves. Rhapsody considered trying Earthquake - a Pokémon levitating didn't necessarily mean they could evade it -, but Pooch would get mad if he unleashed that on her. "Pooch, Crunch to the front. Bugface, Dig to far left." Pooch raced towards the one right in front of her, biting it on one of the arms as Bugface quickly dug a hole and disappeared from view. The attacked Pokémon shook its arm with a yelp, until Pooch let go and landed on her feet, fangs bared. It didn't surprise Rhapsody it survived the hit. It definitely looked like a Rock-type, and those had high defense. He'd have to remember to teach Pooch something she could effectively use against them later, but for now, they had a little problem which was more urgent. Namely, that now she was the only target for 5 Rock opponents. Maybe he should have thought of that. Three of the Pokémon crossed their arms, a shine passing through their rocky bodies. Harden probably, or another status move, considering it didn't seem to do anything to Pooch. The other two dug their hands into the ground and opened their mouths, shooting rocks from it to the Houndour. She tried to dodge, but as she moved to evade the first attack, the second one hit her and sent her back, giving the first Rock-type the opportunity to correct the move and hit her. "Go on, finish the one from earlier!" Pooch shook herself and again ran towards the one she had bit before, getting it on the other arm and shaking her head to the sides in wide movements. The Pokémon screeched as she suddenly let go, and it got thrown back to the ground where it didn't rise again. Bugface also emerged from her place underground, getting one of the ones who had used the defensive move. Seemed that if they had a secondary type it wasn't resistant to Ground, as that sole Dig was all it took to make it faint. The three remaining ones dug their hands on the ground at the same time. "Get behind me!" Bugface yelled. Pooch took cover behind the bigger Pokémon just as the others started firing those rocks again, hitting Bugface's jaws. Damn, at this rate, it'd take forever. If they could knock them all out at the same time... He remembered Gaes riding his back at the Vertia Gym, avoiding the damage by Surf. "Pooch, when the attack finishes, balance on top of Bugface's jaws." "What!?" Pooch yelped back, as Bugface took on the next rounds of rocks. "You heard me, we're using Earthquake." "We haven't done this before, I'd fall!" "Fine then. Bugface, get Pooch inside your mouth." "Rhapsody I swear-" She didn't have time to say anything else as Bugface turned around too fast to let her react, scooping her up in her jaws much to the Houndour's dismay. Rhapsody separated his legs and lowered his stance for balance, as Bugface stomped the ground, making the whole section of the cave shake and causing rocks to fall from the ceiling and walls. Bingo, Rhapsody thought as the ground cracked and rose, getting their remaining opponents. Little by little, the ground settled in again, and the tremors stopped. Rhapsody relaxed as Bugface opened her mouth and let down the tense dog, whose fur was completely bristled. "Do not. Do that. Again," Pooch barked, voice cracking a bit at the end as her legs failed and she slumped to the ground with a whine. So of course Rhapsody burst out laughing, causing the Houndour to send him one of her nastiest glares. "It worked, though," Bugface commented, slightly poking Pooch's side with her head. "She's right. So if you don't wanna go through that again, practice not falling," Rhapsody snickered. Pooch whined and hit her forehead against the ground. "I hate you two." It took a few minutes, but eventually Pooch recovered her ability to walk without shaking, with her motivation being 'forcing Rhapsody to stop snickering'. She refused to try that again for the rest of the day, so it was time to head back towards the entrance. "Are you sure this is the right way?" Pooch asked, trotting next to her trainer. "Pretty much." "How can you even tell?" "I just know." Pooch lowered her ears. "Don't worry, I recognize some parts of the walls and floor," Bugface said to appease her companion, trotting at a faster pace so her short legs could catch up with the other two. "Rhapsody seems to have a good sense of direction, so we should be fine." Pooch still wasn't convinced, but didn't ask any more questions. "I just don't want to spend the night here. I come from a forest, I prefer being in places where you can see what's around you." "Eh, what's the worst that could happen," Rhapsody shrugged. The ground started shaking, making Pooch jump with a yelp. There was a sound like shifting rocks and one of the walls broke, a massive grey head poking out, followed by a long, serpentine body divided in irregular spheres. The snake saw them. "This is my territory. Strangers are not welcome!" it yelled it a powerful voice as it dug into the ground, making everything shake. "I'm blaming you for this," Pooch hissed at Rhapsody with a glare. He ignored her and shifted, grabbing each of the smaller Pokémon with a secondary head and taking flight, right as the rock snake executed the Dig attack right where they had been before. Now that he had his Hydreigon eyes, he could clearly see the rock snake, along with a pair of Woobats who had flown from the hole the snake arrived from. Three versus three, he thought with a smirk. "Please tell me we're not fighting that," Pooch whined, ears flat against her skull. "Relax. Follow my commands and I'll make sure you don't get hit with a Ground move." "I'm... not good with flying..." Bugface faintly said, small legs frantically waving around but unable to loosen Rhapsody's grip. "Deal with it. Now get ready, here they come!" The snake hit the walls with its tail, loosening the rocks and making the ones over Rhapsody fall. Wings extended, he shielded his secondary heads under his body, making sure the only parts of Rock Slide that hit their target got him in the back and didn't hit any of the females. He flew past the snake, evading its trashing body and getting closer to the pair of bats. "Flamethrower, Crunch!" "How am I supposed to-" Bugface started, when Rhapsody threw her against one of the Woobats. She screamed, mouth wide open as she collided with the Flying one and instinctively latched onto it, making it yelp and fall to the ground as Pooch released her stream of fire towards the second bat. "What the hell, Rhapsody!?" Pooch yelled after the attack. "Come on, we all can take a little fall", he replied as he did a U-turn and dived, slamming his tail against the ground. The cracks of Earth Power appeared and rapidly extended, erupting right below the snake - it screeched, trashing around and making parts of the walls and ceiling fall, until the attack ended and it slumped in defeat. Rhapsody landed, placing Pooch on the ground. "We're never training in caves again, and that's final," she declared. "As if you're the one in charge," Rhapsody retorted. "Now come on. With all the loose rocks and that snake blocking the way, we'll have to find another route back outside." "Then why don't we just use Dig?" Pooch grumbled unhappily. "Too easy. Now let's move." "Hey, you three!" Ugh, what now, Rhapsody mentally complained, glaring at the owner of the new voice. A brown Axew, who was glaring right back. "I had to talk to that Onix! You pick a fight with it, you pick a fight with me!" "Not interested, kid. We were about to leave," he said, turning and starting to fly away. Until he got hit on the back of the head by a Dragon Rage. "Don't ignore me! And I'm not a kid!" The Axew huffed, crouching and ready for a fight. "Rhapsody no," Pooch hissed, as the Hydreigon slowly turned with a look that could send smaller Pokémon running away for cover. "Rhapsody, that's overkill," she hissed harder as his main mouth started to glow with the energy of Dragon Pulse. Pooch groaned and jumped, tackling the dragon as he fired. While not enough to damage him or even get him off balance, it was enough to divert the Dragon Pulse sphere enough that it hit the ground in front of the Axew. It still sent a wave of energy when it imploded that sent the smaller dragon back with a yelp, but it was better than a direct hit. "The hell was that for," Rhapsody snapped at Pooch, fangs bared. "That Onix looked strong enough so I didn't say anything, but you shouldn't be picking fights with Pokémon so much weaker than yourself! What if you seriously injure them?" she snapped back. "Do I look like I care? That runt was the one who picked the fight." "And you were the one who continued it." "Um, excuse me!" came the Axew's voice. "What," Rhapsody growled, "do you want more?" "Yes, please!" ...Well, that shut him up. The Axew took a few steps forward, looking at Rhapsody straight to the eyes of his main head. "I'm not very good at fighting, so I wanted to ask Onix to teach me. You defeated him before he could, so now take responsibility and teach me instead." Rhapsody stared at the small one for a few seconds. "The hell." "Teach me Dragon Pulse!" "Axews are physical attackers, it won't be a good move for you." "Then, teach me Dragon Claw!" "Do I look like I have friggin' claws." "Then Dragon Dance!" "Hell no. What moves do you even have anyway?" "Only Dragon Rage!" He guessed now he knew what Pooch felt like when she said talking to him made her want to hit her head against something hard. The Houndour looked at him with a pointed look, quickly glancing at the Axew before looking at him again. He rolled all six of his eyes. "Fine. But you must always do exactly as I say and never contradict me." The Axew jumped and bowed. "Yes, Master!" He was already regretting this. "Oi Pooch, tell the kid about our group." "Alright. We can explain everything on the way back," she sighed, trotting towards their newest member to get a good sniff at him. "Then let's go back, we've wasted enough time... Bugface, let that thing go already, jeez." The Trapinch slowly opened her mouth, the fainted, drool-covered Woobat from before falling from it with a wet 'plop'. Edited June 15, 2016 by Puredark006 Share this post Link to post
Posted June 15, 2016 ((Note: events described in this post concerning other characters were agreed upon while on chat))) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Darkness all around. Now this seemed familiar somehow, though Rhapsody couldn’t really remember when he had been in a similar situation. He tried looking around, but it was the same black background everywhere; either that or he wasn’t turning around at all. He couldn’t even see or feel his own body, which was… kind of disturbing, honestly. Trying to speak yield no result either, as if he had been reduced to a floating pair of eyeballs. He was either dead or dreaming. He remembered going back to the Pokémon Center after properly getting the brown Axew inside a Poké Ball, shifting into his Hydreigon form before going inside the room where Lambert was. He also remembered inhaling deeply, carefully hovering towards the man until Rhapsody was right behind his sleeping form, and letting out the loudest, most threatening roar he could manage with all three of his heads. He remembered the man getting up so fast he smacked his head against the top bed, though he didn’t transform, which was what Rhapsody had been wanting (he still had to think of something else to discover which Pokémon the man transformed into). He remembered Z falling from their bed and landing on Rhasody’s back, and Gaes laughing. He remembered going outside after a while, to sleep outside the town, along with his three Pokémon… and nothing else. He guessed he did fall asleep, and since he’d rather think he wasn’t weak enough to be killed in his sleep without noticing, that only left the ‘dream’ option. He didn’t remember ever being able to think this clearly inside a dream, though. Curious. “Nice to meet you, Players.” Now, that definitely wasn’t any voice he recognized. The ‘who the heck is talking’ question got answered as soon as he thought it; part of the darkness in front of him flickered and seemed to rip open, a human walking through the crack and towards him. Female, by the looks of it, a bit older than any of the female shifters, and with the darkest skin he had seen in a human. It made a big contrast with the pure white of her clothing – an elaborate dress with straps that showed off her shoulders and arms, a long cut on the side that revealed most of her left leg, the tail of the dress always flowing and twisting in some kind of wind he couldn’t feel. The shoes were stilettos, with fancy straps that wrapped around her calves, not making any sound as she gracefully walked on invisible ground. Her hair was long and wavy, reaching the point where the ground should have been, framing her face and the white pupil-less eyes that nevertheless still gave the impression of looking directly at him. He tried to speak again, but no sound came out. The human didn’t react to his furious thinking either. “Congratulations on the progress some of you are making,” the woman continued, smiling in a way that reminded him of a Liepard after getting a particularly tasty meal. Her voice was smooth and flowed melodiously, and Rhapsody had a feeling that if he still had his body, his fur would be on end. She sounded like the kind of person one would gladly lower their guards in front of, only for her to take advantage of it and stab you in the back. “I’m sure you have some questions, and they’ll all be answered… eventually.” The last word was emphasized by a slight tilt of her head as she grinned. “For now, I merely came to correct one of the rules.” She pressed her fingers together. “You see, we discovered the fourth rule might not be very… attuned, to our original intention. But worry not, it will not affect your current mission. It is but the changing of three words to two: from ‘You will only start to remember when Team Helix’s research is destroyed’ to ‘You will only finish remembering when Team Helix’s research is destroyed’. Doesn’t change anything, does it?” “Now, we will let you have this.” She extended her hand, a puzzle piece materializing above her palm, floating as it let off a white glow. “The first piece of your memories. Consider it the start of some small apology gifts for the change.” She smiled once more as she slowly closed her palm, the puzzle piece disintegrating into something akin to dust. “That was all I wanted to say. So…” “See you around, Players.” Share this post Link to post
Recommended Posts