Beginner RP: Rick [Enigma]

@Rick; Here we go! If you have any questions, please let me know! If you could mention me when you post, that'd be great! And ensures I see it right away.

NBP#1

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Ivy took one last swing with the mallet, satisfied that the new sign she put in would stay where it was even if a storm blew through. She took a step back to admire her work and brushed her long, red hair behind her. Sweat was gathering at her nape.

The signs were part of their new initiative to guide newer adventurers—they'd found that some of the new Trainers were getting lost once they arrived on the island.

This wasn't such a big deal if they traveled by boat from the mainland since the docks had a lot of helpful individuals and signs pointing the way. It was the Trainers who chose to fly or swim in on their Pokemon who ended up coming onto the land in weird places. She was putting up signs along the path, but someone else had drew the short straw and was drafted to put in signs along the buoys to direct Trainers to proper landing points.

As a rule, people weren't allowed to just run around the Park willy-nilly. This was a nature preserve of sorts, after all. Some of the Pokemon were volatile and some areas weren't safe and were marked off for all of them to avoid. Hopefully, this new program would help Trainers find the outposts easier.

Ivy dug into her vest pocket to check her phone—it was just about time for a run she was taking.

Before she could even think of it, Haji, her Espeon, was at her side. It was a handy thing sometimes, him being able to read her mind. They made pretty good partners here in the Park.

Ivy wrinkled her nose as she crouched down, the long, canvas vest trailing in the dirt. “Alright, let's get this over with,” she said, putting her hand on Haji's back.

She felt his amusement through their psychic connection and she rolled her eyes. What? So she didn't like to teleport places. The sensation of nothing—of essentially being nowhere—even if it was just for a few seconds, made her uneasy.

The act itself didn't take long, and before she could really mentally gripe about this particular way of travel, they were already at their destination. Ivy rose and shook her limbs out. The light tingling was always disorienting too.

They popped out next to the Enigma Ruins outpost, finally built after some rush construction. When the Outer Heavens collapsed, none of them had expected to find the complex hidden underneath the ground. Something so advanced was really strange considering the history of the island, and there was still some mystery surrounding it. Since then, Trainers had flocked to the Park to explore through the underground building, and they hadn't had much time to build another outpost until recently. It wasn't as big as the main one, as none of them were, but it housed a couple ranger offices and staffed a few secretaries.

Ivy tended to avoid any of the offices as much as she could, preferring the outdoors to paperwork. Going on runs was a great way to spend time. She got to show wide-eyed and eager people around this great place while enjoying the elements herself.

Today she was taking someone named Rick through the complex on one of their beginner-style runs. It was meant to be a cost-effective way to introduce people to the Park who were new or unsure of it. It had began as just a promotional event, but after some discussion among the higher-ups, they had decided to keep it as a permanent fixture. So far, it had worked pretty well.

Ivy slid onto one of the benches against the outpost wall, settling back to enjoy the sunshine until her Trainer arrived. If he came by boat or otherwise, the outpost attendees would direct him the right way to meet her here.

Haji jumped up and curled next to her, content to wait, as he always was.

---

Current Encounter Stats: N/A

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 5
Area Effects: It's sunny.
Pokemon Encountered: None
Pokemon Captured: None
MCR: 0

Items: Park Ball x3, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

After a few days out, I was back home. Some battles at the Trainer Station paid well and we were in a winning streak, but now was time for some deserving rest in the plains. Though it was just a small cabin, it had the perfect location for those who want to live a life away from the stress of great cities.

Some of my friends have always asked how I could live such a solitaire life. Well, it's not like I was really all alone after all. I have my Ponyta by my side at all time, she doesn't even get into her ball unless asked for, and despite not being a human, she was easily my best friend. Not just that, the peaceful environment of the plains was so rewarding! We had a clear river running byside, the forest a few miles away, and of course other pokémon living nearby.
Yep... everything someone like me would want... except that maybe we could get some more company. Me and Iris have been living here for so long, it became a bit monotonous. I still had my free coupon to get another partner pokémon, but that's a 1 time privilege that I didn't want to blindly use right away.

I knew there was a National Park full with wild pokémon, and they allowed trainers from all over the regions to get there and catch a limited number of pokémon per run, provided they would be acompanied by a ranger. Those runs are usually quite expensive if we count that you have to buy all the supplies. Fortunately, they had a trial run for newer trainers... and it so happens that I was eligile for one of those runs. It's been a few days since I've sent the application for the National Park, and I couldn't wait to look into that mail box. I open it up, and there was the letter I was waiting for. I started to read it right away:

"Trainer Rick;
We would like to inform you that your aplication for the National Park has been approved. As such, you are now invited to partake a trial run in the Enigma Ruins as your request. The way you get to the island is up to you, but if you don't have other means, a boat sails daily to the island every morning. A supply kit will be given to you as part of the trial run. Search for Ivy Forest in the Outpost #10, as she will be the ranger in service that will guide you trough the park. We await your arrival. The National Park staff"

At this point I couldn't contain my excitement. "Hey, Iris! Come on there, we have just been accepted for the Trial Run!" Honestly, I usually don't like to ruin one's breakfeast, but this was a special case. Even though we have just arrived from the city, it wasn't such a huge distance we couldn't do a second time in a day. A few minutes at full gallop and we would be at the Port.

We arrived at the bay and got on board. Sailing was never on my list of favorite things to do. I always felt sick everytime I tried to catch a glimpse of the sea, which was quite hard to avoid. Looking at Iris, I felt she was a bit dizzy. Not sure if it was due to the running or the balancing of the ship. "Iris, I'll go down to the cabins, and you should do the same and take some rest" - I said to her. Trial Runs were supposed to be easy, but it was still our first one. As she would be the only pokemon in action for the whole run, I wanted her at her max potential once we arrived. Also, the Enigma Ruins were not even a predictable place, for what I've heard.

About an hour of sailing, we were finally ashore. "This is a paradise here." - I said to myself while looking at the sky, with the Sun shining bright. "I hope all areas of the Park to be just like this!". The forest had a few trails, which I supposed would lead to each one of the Outposts. There were signs anyways, so I headed to the Outpost #10 as indicated on the letter they sent me, while searching for the guide ranger. We kept following the path until we came across a huge gate. "Umm... is this really an Outpost?". Looking around, I noticed someone relaxing in a bench. "Excuse me. I'm Rick, and this is Iris." The little pony made a bow as a form of greeting. "And we're searching for the ranger Ivy Forest, which is supposed to be our guide. I assume would be you, righ?".

(Word count: 802)
(Character count: 4,107)​

@WinterVines ;

 

@Rick;

NBP#2

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

It wasn't too long before Haji detected someone approaching and passed that through their mental link. Ivy responded in kind—non-verbally, since she was resting her eyes. The heat was making her drowsy since she had spent the early morning working.

She may have even dozed in and out before she heard the crunching of boots on the gravel. That roused her enough to open her eyes and sit up fully.

A young dark-haired man dressed in matching gray was walking toward her with a Ponyta in tow. They made an interesting contrast with his monotone to the horse's bright colors.

“Excuse me,” he said as he approached, “I'm Rick, and this is Iris. And we're searching for the Ranger Ivy Frost, who is supposed to be our guide. I assume that would be you, right?”

Ivy stood and nodded, holding her hand out to shake. “Yeah, I'm Ivy,” she said. “This is Haji.” She nodded her head to the purple cat still on the bench, though standing now. “We'll be guiding you guys through the Ruins.”

Introductions out of the way, she waved them to follow her as she headed down the slope to reach the complex itself, being careful not to skid on the dirt and rocks. It was strange how the building was semi-underground—made her wonder how it got that way. They hadn't dug any evidence about it up yet.

Once she was in range of the doors, they whooshed open automatically with a technology that was much more advanced than it should be. It was a little unnerving honestly. Ivy made sure to keep an eye on the light above the door, hoping it would stay green. On some past runs, the doors had malfunctioned and sealed shut on them, blinking red instead. That wasn't a deal-breaker for a Psychic-type, but it was still annoying.

“Okay, here's how this place works,” she started, stepping through the doors with a narrowed gaze at them. After a second she cleared her face and smiled back over her shoulder. “It's pretty amazing actually. This was once used as a research facility and many of the rooms have transporters that are linked to spots around the Park.”

She waited until the doors whooshed shut behind them to continue, waving down the hall. The Ponyta's hooves made sharp clacks against the floor. Stretching out before them was what looked like a regular hall that ended at a T junction a ways down. There were four rooms along the walls—two on each side. They all had green lights above them, signaling they were working. For now.

“That being said, this place was buried for a long time so the teleporters don't always work—that means random Pokemon are wandering around down here pretty often. A lot of the rooms have simulators to recreate environments but—”

Before she could finish, there was a loud, echoy boom that captured all of their attention. It sounded again, and then a third time. After that, it went quiet. It sounded like something... had been hit? But because of the way the hall was structured, she couldn't quite tell where it had come from.

“So... Rick,” she began. “You do much exploring?”

She supposed his answer would determine whether he wanted to investigate or not.

---

Current Encounter Stats: N/A

Effects: There was a couple loud banging noises.

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 5
Area Effects: In the first hallway.
Pokemon Encountered: None
Pokemon Captured: None
MCR: 4,108

Items: Park Ball x3, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

"I'm Ivy,” she said. “This is Haji, and we'll be guiding you guys through the Ruins.” She was acompanied by a cat-like pokemon with a small jewell on its forehead, and although I didn't see the species before, I knew since my days of learning that it was the psychic evolution of Eevee. A psychic type for support, this was getting better. Those things don't even need to hit their opponents, and have teleporting abilities, so we knew from that point we were in good hands. Not that I wanted to be reliant on outer help, but just for an emergency.

We reached the facility down a slope, and the gates started opening automatically just by standing close to it. Ivy went ahead, explaining the particularities of the place. "This was once used as a research facility and many of the rooms have transporters that are linked to spots around the Park.” I followed behind while taking a look at the hall. It was a little bit different of what I expected, starting with the number of choices we already had with 4 possible doors to go into. If this place was really used as a laboratory once, people working here would probably need a map. At least I would, but I assume it would be just a temporary issue until they memorize the whole facility.

While the ranger was telling us about the simulation system - the most interesting part, by the way - a loud noise could be heard down the hall. It happened three times before stoping, not enough for me to understand exactly where it came from. Not sure if either pokemon were able to figure it out either, but so I hoped. As it seemed it wouldn't happen again, Ivy turned to me. “So... Rick." Though I was a bit distracted, I quickly turned my attention to her. "You do much exploring?”

After a brief delay, I answered: "Yeah, I do exploring.... but mostly in open spaces. Caves and confined spaces are new to me, especially one that changes everytime." I waited for a moment before finishing, trying to figure out where did the noise come from. "But hey, there's a first time for everything! Plus, now i'm intrigued to know about what was that sound." If it was a pokemon already, then that came fast. We had just started and would have some action right away.

Though having to choose between 4 paths without any clues where to start was a bit annoying, and I was not whiling to split to find out. This place looked like a labirynth, at least in the first hallway. Either the source would be right next to a door, or we would probably miss this one by going further in the wrong corridor and finding something else. It probably wouldn't be all that bad anyways, but I never liked to ignore those kind of mysteries, mostly for curiosity.

The fact it was an underground facility with a simulation system also made me think on a few issues I didn't plan before. So, before we ended up finding it too late and regret later, I would rather clarify it right away. "Actually, before we go, this is pretty much a cave with an artificial environment that is not real, isn't it?" I said to the ranger, before taking a look at the ceiling. "So, if we want to take on the sunlight, how do we do?"

I wondered how good the simulation actually was. If it had some sort of solar radiation built in, we would probably be fine. If not, well, I'm pretty sure we could come up with other soluctions. We shouldn't be always dependant on perfect condictions anyways. Iris, giving a few steps ahead in the hall, looked back to Ivy waiting for her answer, with one ear pointed towards the ranger, and the other trying to catch any sound that could possibly come from any of the corridors.

(Word count: 663)
(Character count: 3,611)​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick;

NBP#3

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

The Ranger waited, but that sound didn't crop up again. She narrowed her eyes. Good thing she could think on her feet.

With a mental nod to Haji, she asked him to cheat a little bit and try to scan the complex for something nearby that could've made the noise—it was a gamble either way. Sometimes the crazy wiring and room specs interefered with the Espeon's mental prowess, great though it was.

“Yeah, I do exploring... but mostly in open spaces,” Rick answered. This type of thing was pretty new to him. “But hey, there's a first time for everything! Plus, now I'm intrigued to know about that sound.”

Ivy nodded. That was exactly the right attitude for the Park. “Well, you never know, some of the technology could mimic some open skies and such.” She paused as Haji relayed what he found to her; Ivy waved the group forward was she headed toward the second door on the left. “Seems like Haji's picked up some stray energy that could be a Pokemon—or maybe just some faulty do-dad. It seems to be coming from over here...”

As they were walking, Rick had another question. The Ranger heard the clip-clop of the Ponyta's hooves as they caught up to her. He was wondering about the environment in the complex. “So, if we want to take on the sunlight, how do we do?”

Ivy kept a wary eye down the hall at the T junction—she didn't want anything sneaking up on them. Then she answered Rick as they reached the door. She frowned at it; the light above it was red.

“Well, if you're talking for battling purposes,” she started, digging in her vest pocket for a key card, her brow still furrowed, “Pokemon usually manage with those kinds of skills that use light with or without it. It usually takes a little more energy if you're not outside or anything.” With a swipe through the reader, the door actually opened when she wanted it too. She frowned again. “But you never know—the room could simulate some bright sun too.”

Before them was debris piled almost as high as the ceiling. Desks, chairs, crates, and a multitude of other things barred their way. How in the world had all that gotten there?

Ivy scratched the top of her red-colored head. “If someone was doing redecorating and didn't put it on file, I'm going to roll some heads,” she said casually. “Haji, you sure this is right?”

And when she would've steered them away, there came a noise—a very faint one—from further inside the room. Ivy sighed.

“This seems to be one of the bigger rooms.” She stood up on her tip toes to try to see over the pile, but it did no real good. “I think there might be space at the end, or it might even connect to another room that's less... crowded.” She took a good look at the doorway and spied what looked like a small crawl-space on the lower left. It seemed... mostly safe. It was big enough that both of them could probably fit through in single file.

“We could maybe use that,” she said as she pointed to the hole. “Well, most of us,” she added, nodding toward Iris. The horse wouldn't fit. “Still wanna check it out?”

---

Current Encounter Stats: N/A

Effects: There's a room full of debris, but there's a crawl space. Something made noise in the room.

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 5
Area Effects: In the first hallway.
Pokemon Encountered: None
Pokemon Captured: None
MCR: 7,720

Items: Park Ball x3, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

The guide waved us to follow to the second door on the left. Aparently, her Espeon was detecting some sort of energy coming from that room. I was just hoping Haiji's tracking abilities would really lead us in the right direction and we could solve this quick. The chances of finding a pokemon in there were getting higher now.

She also mentioned about the simulation system before. It could simulate open sky and sun shine aparently, though we were still not sure how well it would really work. Sun-based moves don't necessarily become useless without its source, but their efficiency becomes pretty much halved for the same effort. So, we would just put those aside and try not to rely too much on artificial sources while we where here.

She picked on her card and swiped it in the door's reader. At the same time, I was also concerned about the possibility that, if it was a pokemon, it could be hurt. That concern became even bigger when we actually got inside the room. It was actually quite large, but whatever was in there, we couldn't figure out imediately.

"Someone was quite busy here, huh..." I said, while looking at what was standing between us and the source of the noise. A huge pile of debris was blocking the way, too tall for us to see over it. Looking at Ivy, she seemed to be just as upset as I was. We were so close, and now something like this gets in our way?

Taking a closer look around, the ranger spoted a small hole through the pile of trash. It was big enough for two humans and an Espeon to get through it. Unfortunately, it wasn't tall enough for Iris to fit. I mean, she could fit if she were able to crawl, but the anatomy of her legs would make it almost impossible to do so. Not to mention the risk of seting the pile on fire while we were geting through.

"I really want to get trough, but..." I replyed to Ivy as she asked me if I wanted to investigate further. "If there's indeed a pokémon in the other side, and it decides to be less friendly towards us than we are, I'' end up being just a spectator." I started thinking about possibities. The easiest way to get through this without leaving Iris behind - even if just for a few minutes - would be to just burn the pile into ashes. But seriously, seting up a fire indoors would probably give us a bigger trouble since then we wouldn't be able to cross it. Plus, the National Park had strict rules about damaging any of the areas, altough in this particular case, they would probably thank me for that. But we never know, maybe this trash mount would be usefull for something else.

Then I remembered that Iris could defenitely jump at top of the debris. There was a risk of it colapsing with the impact, but I assumed she didn't have the necessary weight to make that happen. Even Rapidashes are very light compared to other pokemon of their size, so a Ponyta would be even safer. "Hey Iris" I called, while turning towards her. "Can you handle on the weight of two person and one pokemon?" Quickly figuring out what the plan was, the mane flared for a second, as if someone droped fuel on it, while she made a few steps backward.

"Ok, I'll take that as a No..." Thinking again, I really don't know why I came up with that idea. Riding a few kilometers with a guy like me, and trying to jump 10 meters with three individuals on her back were very different things. "You'll be able to do that on day, but not now."

It seemed like going through the small hole was the only way possible. So, I decided to make a few changed to the initial plan. "Ok then, here's how it's gonna work." I turned to Ivy. "We go through that hole and check what's in the other side." I then turned to Iris, while poiting to the debries "And Iris, go over that pile!" With an impulse of her hind legs, she was able to get to the top in one leap. The pile of debries seemed to hold perfectly... aside from a few objects that were less tight and rolled down.

"Now you stay over there and wait for further orders. We meet in the other side of the room." She nodded, before turning and looking down at what was in the other side of the debris. We would find out soon aswell. After all, we were all still in the same room, so it's not like it would be a never ending tunnel. "So..." I turned back to Ivy. "...who goes on front?"

(Word count: 812)
(Character count: 4,293)​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick; The junk pile is actually near the ceiling so Ponyta can't fit on top of it!

NBP#4

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Rick looked as about as unimpressed as Ivy was—although it was slightly more awkward on his part since he didn't deal with this sort of thing on a semi-daily basis like she did. He seemed agreeable about checking out the room, though, so it was nice to see his adventurous spirit wasn't easily deterred by a couple of obstacles.

“So... who goes in front?” he asked, looking between his Ponyta and the mess.

Ivy made sure all of the pocket and odds and ends were straight on her vest so they'd have a lower chance of snagging. She looked up and said, “I will. Safety reasons and all that.” If there was something nasty on the other side, it was the Ranger's job to head off too much danger—especially in one of these Beginner runs. Trainers were meant to see more docile Pokemon only on this type.

While she wasn't looking, Rick said something to his Pokemon that she missed. She did, however, hear the clattering as the Ponyta tried to scale the debris. However, as it was too close to the ceiling, Iris just didn't have enough room to maneuver, and her hooves slid on the surfaces, spilling her back down to the hallway, thankfully unhurt.

Ivy shook her head. “That's probably not stable enough anyway, even if there was room. I wouldn't risk it. You'll have to recall her if she's not waiting here,” she added.

Everything settled, she ducked down to reach the whole, wrinkling her nose. Scaling trees and trudging through the mud was no problem, but this sort of thing, with man-made litter in confined spaces, was less fun. “If we're careful, I think we can get through to problem. There's a table in this mess that has a big opening underneath. Just watch for the chair legs poking out,” she warned.

Then, they climbed through. It was a little slow going, but the further in they got, the more Ivy could hear something on the other side.

Thankfully, the clutter opened up, and there was actually a way to get out of the pile on the other side—some Pokemon or person must've been using it. The rest of the room was long; it sort of looked like it was once a cafeteria or study room or some other place where a bunch of people gathered. That would explain all the debris at least.

The sounds of struggling caught her attention then as she climbed out of the hole and finally got to stand up again. A humanoid Pokemon that looked sort of like a football player was trapped underneath a desk. It looked like it had been partially responsible for the mess—at least that what it seemed like with fist-sized holes in some of the tables.

Normally, the Fighting-type Pokemon wouldn't have had a problem lifting stuff like this, but she saw that a stack of chairs had also fallen in weird ways, trapping its foot from getting good leverage. Nearby, a few chairs were bent, and another table had a few dents in it. Ivy shook her head.

The Pokemon saw her, looking from upside down as its back was to the floor. It wasn't alarmed, and it didn't get angry, so she imagined this Tyrogue was good-natured.

“Good thing you decided to check it out, Rick,” Ivy said. “This Tyrogue seems to have gotten itself into a bit of a tricky situation—although maybe deserved,” she added. At that, the wild Pokemon grinned at her cheekily. “Wanna give me a hand getting these things off it? Then maybe it'll want to battle you or something.”

---

Current Encounter Stats:

??? M Tyrogue: 100% [Stuck]

Effects: There's a room full of debris, and Tyrogue is trapped under some of it. He doesn't seem angry.

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 4
Area Effects: In a room half-filled with desks, chairs, and other debris.
Pokemon Encountered: Tyrogue
Pokemon Captured: None
MCR: 12,014/4,000

Items: Park Ball x3, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

Ivy decided to go on front for safety reasons. It's okay, actually I feel much more confortable this way. If something really bad happened and we had to turn back, I would be the first one to get out! Silly things to think about now, but we need it to relief the stress.

Before we could go further into it, however, some debris started to fall down of the pile. "Guess I spoke too soon! Iris, get out of there!" She actually didn't need to do much, as it was a safe slide towards the ground. I was really frustrated because I though it was more stable than that. From where we were, it wasn't very clear that the debris almost touched the ceiling... until that.

"You're okay?" I asked as she standed up. She nodded, assuring everything was fine. At least it was a relief she didn't get hurt before even getting to fight any pokemon in this place. We were back to square one, and it seemed the only way was Iris waiting there. "You'll have to recall her if she's not waiting here" Ivy told me. Having heard that, I slaped on face. "Why didn't I think of that earlier!"

I pulled out Iris's pokeball, poiting it towards her. "It's been a long time since you've been inside this little friend, hasn't it?" She droped her head while looking at the capsule. Though Iris was not very used to be encased, circumstances like these would give us no option. Shooting a beam of light, she was back to her ball. "The good news is that you'll probably be out once we get to the other side, so it won't take that long." People always told me pokemon can hear voices from the outside, so it was just an assurance.

Now we were good to go. As agreed, Ivy went first while I followed behind. It was somewhat dark down there, though not completely pitch black as there was some space between the stacked objects were light could go through. It still felt a bit claustrophobic in some zones, especially for someone who's used to be in open areas. "I'm starting to understand pokemon a little bit more, now..." I muttered to myself. "This may probably be like being in a pokeball..."

As we were expecting though, it didn't take long until we reached an opening and got to the other side of the room. And what did we find! So it was a pokémon after all! He didn't seem hurt, which was good. But it seemed to be in some trouble he couldn't solve by himself. Looking at him, I felt like he was waiting for us to free him from all those chairs.

“This Tyrogue seems to have gotten itself into a bit of a tricky situation" Ivy said. “Wanna give me a hand getting these things off it? Then maybe it'll want to battle you or something.” It's not like we would leave this little one here, after all. It was fun how a Trial Run became some sort of recue mission, though. I sent Iris out of her ball in case we would need some extra hands... kind of...

"I told you it wouldn't take long, didn't I?" Back to her material state, she neighed in happyness. "But don't worry, you didn't lose anything special. Plus, it wouldn't be so different being inside the ball or under tons of trash..." Enough of little talk, we focused on the trapped Tyrogue. "Ok, let's just take these things away and free this little guy."

(Word count: 598)

(Character count: 3,185)​

​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick;

NBP#5

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Rick was mumbling to himself as he cleared the debris pile, but he wasted no time in releasing his Ponyta from her Pokeball as soon as he was free. The fire horse shook her head as if she had been cramped—she must've been one of those who hated saying in their ball. Ivy could relate, as she had never returned Haji to a Pokeball of any sort ever since she met him.

As soon as the Trainer saw the Tyrogue, he nodded. “Okay, let's just take these things away and free this little guy.”

The wild Pokemon was surprisingly patient as they started removing objects. They lifted the biggest table together and leaned it up against another pile, watching it closely so that it didn't fall on them or the still-pinned Fighting-type. “Careful with those chairs,” she warned, waving at the ones stacked behind the one trapping Tyrogue. “I'll hold them while you take this one off his foot.”

Tyrogue made a crow of triumph when he was finally free, getting up and carefully stepping on his foot just in case it was injured. After a few seconds, he moved around as normal. Ivy was relieved—technically, they weren't supposed to interfere with Pokemon too much, even if they were in danger. Natural circle of life and all that. She, however, didn't always heed that rule. Especially not in places like this, which had clearly been man-made.

Ivy stretched out her own limbs, reaching her arms forward and rolling her shoulders. Thankfully, she was used to working some manual labor here, as on slow days, they often sent Rangers out to do things like repair, paint, or re-pot plants.

Motion at the corner of her eye caught her attention as the Tyrogue noticed Iris for the first time. His eyes got wide and his mouth made a little o of surprise. Normally living on Mount Oktori, he probably didn't get to see Fire-types all too often. He took one curious step forward, and immediately Ivy knew that this would not turn out well.

Before she could fire off a warning, the Fighting-type reached out to touch the horse, mesmerized by the flickering flames. And, as Ponyta were wont to do when confronted by strangers, the fire flared up, engulfing the offending hand.

Tyrogue howled and snatched back his hurt limb running around in a circle for a second before retreating back to the farther debris pile, holding his hand to his chest. Even from where she was, she could see it was slightly blackened—probably burnt.

Iris snorted and pawed at the ground in casual offense. The Tyrogue glared at her, and after a moment, picked up a piece of broken ceiling tile and chucked it at her. The agile horse easily stepped out of the way, but Tyrogue was still upset. He pointed his unhurt hand at her and made an angry call, looking over at the humans to do something about it. He puffed up his chest and stomped in place, as if he wanted to duke the problem out.

Ivy sighed. Fighting-types.

“Well that went poorly,” she said. “What do you think Rick? Do you wanna try to clear this up? A battle might appease him, as he's a bit... offended.” At that, the Tyrouge made another noise, as if offended was an understatement. Ivy shook her head. “Alternatively, you could apologize and we might be able to retreat and leave him be. It's your call.”

---

Current Encounter Stats:

??? M Tyrogue: 100%

Effects: Tyrogue seems offended. He might be burned?

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 4
Area Effects: In a room half-filled with desks, chairs, and other debris.
Pokemon Encountered: Tyrogue
Pokemon Captured: None
MCR: 15,200/4,000

Items: Park Ball x3, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

It took a few minutes before removing all the stuff off of that Tyrogue. He remained surprisingly calm during the whole proccess, even though he didn't know us from nowhere. We were just strangers passing nearby. Thinking back, he was quite lucky. Who knows how long he would stay there if we weren't there

He happily walked away from the debris. I thought we actually wouldn't need to fight this guy. Maybe he would want to join us as a way to show his gratitude. Plus, he was so lonely, wouldn't it be better to actually have a company? Fighting-types are the closest we get from a human being, save a few exceptions. As I was about to make an invitation though, it was when he noticed Iris for the first time. He was so focused in our work that probably didn't noticed her.

He looked surprised, as if it was the first time he came into contact with a Ponyta. He started to take a few more steps towards her out of curiosity. Iris was staring at him aswell, though she looked much more suspicious as the Tyrogue was getting close, until he was just in front of her.

I frowned as the Tyrogue started reaching his hand to Iris's mane. "Don't do it... " I muttered to myself. I knew there was a chance the mane wouldn't burn the Tyrogue, but as Iris has just met this one less than 5 minutes ago, it was unlikely. As I was about to warn him, the mane flared up, burning the Tyrogue's hand which backed away imediately.

He defenitely never came into contact with a fire-type pokémon, and that is if he ever got into contact with fire at all. "Yeah, I was about to tell you not to touch the mane... nor everywhere else actually". In contrast to his initial state of mind, he was really angry now, with the burned hand close to his chest. He defenitely wasn't expecting it. Plus, fighting types usually have a very competitive nature. If someone hurts them, they probably won't let it be.

"Sorry kid, she can be very suspicious to strangers..." I started talking to him, trying to appease, even if it was just for a bit. "I really expected you to know fire burns. She meant no harm," I've never been very good calling mad pokémon to reason. It usually backfired. But since we had a good start by freeing him from that rubble, I thought I should give it a try. I never liked to see people angry at me, and pokémon were no exception.

The Tyrogue was still standing in its corner, mumbling towards us while holding his burned hand. Meanwhile, Iris was just snorting and pawing the ground repeatedly at the same time, which clearly didn't help making it any easier. "Why don't you two just calm down and make..." Before I could finish, the Tyrogue decided to put words into action, grabing a piece of chunk and throwing it into Iris, which she nimbly dodged. This act changed everything to me.

“What do you think Rick?" Ivy called "Do you wanna try to clear this up? A battle might appease him, as he's a bit... offended.” I made a few steps closer to the angry pokémon. "Alright little one, here's how things work." I speaked to him, now in a more serious tone and with arms crossed. "First, no one attacks my pokémon. And secondly..." I claped my fingers before finishing, sinaling Iris to prepare. "You have an issue with her? Well, we can solve that." Saying this, Iris made a small leap to my front, while the mane grew in size.

"You could apologize and we might be able to retreat and leave him be." Ivy added. "I already tried that. It didn't work." I answered, before turning my atention to the Tyrogue. "That little burn was nothing. We'll show you what a real burn is about!" I pointed at the Tyrogue, giving the attack order. "Go get him! Flame charge!" Iris neighed while rearing in her hind legs. The flames on its body covered her entire body as she sprinted towards Tyrogue.

(Word count: 698)
(Word count: 3,789)​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick; Oh and just so you know if you didn't see, all posts after Jan 1, 2106 count toward the legend tracker, so if interested, keep track of word count and link your posts somewhere (most do in their stats)—eventually you can earn yourself a legend!

BP#1

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Rick tried to warn the Tyrogue, but it was too late. Pontya just didn't get comfortable with strangers that quickly—Ivy saw the same behavior in wild ones too.

And what was worse was that Rick himself got offended when the Fighting-type threw the piece of ceiling tile. This wasn't going to go well, was it?

“First, no one attacks my Pokemon,” he said, stepping up more boldy. Iris seemed to respond in kind.

Ivy thought the rest of their journey today was going to be interesting if he got upset every time his Pokemon was attacked. Some of the wild Pokemon here liked the thought of Trainers coming through—others, not so much. But what was in common for both parties was that battles were often used as a test of strength. Sometimes playfully, sometimes seriously.

Sometimes Ivy really loved her job.

“Secondly,” Rick said, making his Ponyta flare her mane and jump in front of him, facing off against the wild Pokemon. “You have an issue with her? Well, we can solve that. Flame Charge!”

The Fire-type snorted and darted off, flames having to flare up quickly in the semi-condensed space. On instinct, Ivy and Haji backed up toward the nearest wall. Thankfully, it didn't have too much debris so they could give the battlers as much space as possible. She casually leaned against it with her arms cross. Haji lay down, although he was alert and mostly upright.

This was the part that she tried to absorb. She didn't battle much on the regular circuit, but in theory she saw enough action and strategy here in the Park that she should've been able to mimic it a little bit. When she got low on cash sometimes she partook.

The flame horse ran up to the Tyrogue, feet covered in searing flames that licked up her legs. The Fighting-type didn't flinch, which is what she expected—most of them took fighting literally head-on. It tried to dodge, but the horse was too close. There wasn't a lot of room to maneuver in here.

As he tried to duck to the side, the horse barreled into him, sending him sprawling to the floor. He winced as he was forced to use its burnt hand to get up, and from the new angle, Ivy confirmed that it was indeed burned for real. That was going to impede his battling ability a little.

However, the Ponyta had to suddenly veer before she hit the wall, her speed increased by the attack. Her hooves tried to backpedal and she was forced to turn sharply lest she hit a pile of desks.

The Tyrogue took advantage of her less than steady gait. Quickly, he dropped down and kicked his own legs out, using strength to knock Iris off balance. Thanks to her speed and her trying to change directions, it had the intended effect.

The Ponyta went crashing to the ground, slipping down as her feet were knocked out from under her. The front end went down first, making her connect with her shoulder and keep sliding forward as momentum dictated. Her body slid across the tiles, slightly swinging so that her backside hit a pile of chairs first. They toppled over onto her, and Ivy winced. That was going to be difficult to get out of.

However, the Tyrouge was not taking advantage of Iris' vulnerable state. He was dashing toward the exit!

Holding his hand close to his chest, Ivy spotted him running for the way they had come in—the tunnel under the debris.

Ivy called to Rick, “Quick, he's trying to get away. If you want to capture him and not let him go, I would do something immediately.”

---

Current Encounter Stats:

??? M Tyrogue: 59% [BRN]
Hardy F Ponyta: 89%

Effects: Tyrogue might be getting away!

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 4
Area Effects: In a room half-filled with desks, chairs, and other debris.
Pokemon Encountered: Tyrogue
Pokemon Captured: None
MCR: 18,990/4,000

Items: Park Ball x3, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta @ 89%
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

OOC: Eh... I'll leave that for when I find an easy way to count words on a text, instead of characters...


I don't know what this Tyrogue have fought before, but he knew some neat tricks. For a supposedly first time he might be battling a Ponyta, he went right for the weak spot, hitting Iris' legs and knocking her out of balance.

Hooved feet don't have much grip to tile floor either, and trying to change direction at high speed just make matters worse. The momentum did the rest, as she crashed onto the ground and kept slidding against a pile of chairs, which tumbled over her. She stayed down for a few moments before trying to step up, raising the head first.

Taking a quick look at the debris and seeing them shaking just made me remember what happened a few minutes ago when she tried to climb one that seemed more stable than this one. And if it looks stable... it probably isn't! And we can't risk much when we are the ones that are actually underneath that pile.

"Wait, don't move!" I said before she could start moving the rest of her body. This is probably the worst position she could be. Most fast pokemon can't take much hits and rely on speed and dodging skills to stay in battle. Being trapped like this left her completely vulnerable if that Tyrogue were to take advantage of the situation.

While I was staring at Iris, I lost focus on the Tyrogue for a moment, until Ivy called me. He did in fact took advantage of it, though not in the way we expected. Instead of taking on Iris now, he just turned back and tried to run away through the hole we came in. "Hey, you're running away now?!" I shouted at him, which he apparently ignored.

My head started racing. At the time we would free Iris, crawl into that tunnel and look for him again, this encounter would be gone, and probably laughing of us for the failure. I wondered if throwing a Ball now would be enough to capture him if I were able to hit him with it. He was running quite fast for a weakened pokemon. I picked one of the Parkball that were offered as the starting pack from my pocket.

"You're not getting anywhere, budy!" I yelled at the fleeing pokemon, while preparing to throw the Ball. Before I could throw it however, a fireball passes through me by my side, flying towards the Tyrogue, though it seemed to go a bit above his head. At first I thought Iris just had a bad aiming derived from the position she was layed down, but it was heading slightly above the tunnel's hole.

"Are you blocking his way out?" I questioned, while looking at her at the corner of my eye. She defenitely didn't want to let this one go away with this. At least it would prevent him from running away if it worked as intended. "I just hope you know what you're doing!" I said to her, while still holding the Parkball ready in my hand.

(Word count: 506)
(Character count: 2,701)​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick;

BP#2

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Rick called to his Pokemon from underneath the pile of debris, warning her to hold off moving. That was probably wise, as she could get tangled in the chairs and end up hurting herself more—the legs in particular hurt if hit just right, and bruises would show up fairly easily on her cream-colored skin.

Then, the Trainer noticed the Pokemon, making a startled noise and calling to him. Naturally, the Tyrogue ignored everything else going on as he sprinted toward the exit.

Quickly, Rick withdrew a Park Ball from his pocket and expanded it, getting ready to throw. Before he could, however, Iris made a sound, and suddenly, a small chunk of fire came hurtling from her direction, sailing toward the Fighting-type.

But it didn't hit him. Instead, the fire flew high, knocking into the debris pile.

Chairs and tables scattered, raining down to the floor. Tyrogue was forced to skid to a halt as a piece of a table—half of it—came slamming down sideways in front of him, covering up the bolt hole and his only way out.

Fire licked at some of the objects as the embers scattered upon impact, singing ends to a darkened soot that made Ivy wrinkle her nose with the scent. She really hoped the fires would die out soon.... There was no telling what sort of damage fire would do to all of the things here. Not to mention that they were in an enclosed space—the fumes alone would start getting to them. Haji stood; Ivy pushed off the wall.

The wild Pokemon took a wild look back at them. He focused mostly on Ponyta, still covered in rubble that her Trainer told her to be careful with. Tyrogue could've rushed in and continued the fight, taking advantage of his foe's predicament.

But Ivy could tell he wasn't interested in that—most Pokemon in the Park weren't malicious by nature, although there were a few exceptions. This one had been cheery at the start. She suspected he had just gotten scared and reacted how most wild creatures would. They were encroaching on his territory—not the other way around.

Instead of fighting, the Tyrogue whipped his attention back to the table half that had fallen over the exit. Quickly, he rushed around to the side of it and tried to grip it and push. His burned hand, however prevented him from getting a good hold. Instead, he had to put his shoulder to it, and because the slab was heavy, his feet slipped a little as he tried to get traction to push.

Ivy thought he wasn't going to manage it at first, but then the table budged. If he was persistent enough, Tyrouge would be able to clear enough space for him to squeeze out.

Something continued to burn in the pile, which worried the Ranger. She covered her nose with her turtleneck as she tried to spot where it was. She had no luck. They were going to have to figure that one out really quick too, or else they would be scrambling just like the Tyrogue.

---

Current Encounter Stats:

??? M Tyrogue: 49% [BRN]
Hardy F Ponyta: 89%

Effects: Tyrogue might be getting away! Ponyta is still pinned.

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 4
Area Effects: In a room half-filled with desks, chairs, and other debris.
Pokemon Encountered: Tyrogue
Pokemon Captured: None
MCR: 21,692/4,000

Items: Park Ball x3, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta @ 89%
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

The flame hited the debris, knocking down some tables that blocked the way out for the escaping pokemon. The Tyrogue became flustered with his only escape route now blocked. He turned back and took a look at us, with special focus towards Iris. I was afraid he would just rush into her now, as she was the one that has been giving him the most trouble since the beginning.

But he wasn't giving up on the escape, yet. Intead, he tried to lift the table out of the way, though this time it would take him some time. He could probably do it easily in normal circumstances, but not with a burned hand. Meanwhile, I was looking at the pile that was now catching fire. We couldn't prolong this much more, as now we had another problem to solve after this, and that's two already.

"Stop right there! You're really persistent, aren't you?" I called the Tyrogue, while he was still trying to move the tables out. "Before you attacked her, I was about to propose you a peaceful catch for a chance of picking you at the end. I actually didn't really want to fight and risk injury when we had sush a good start" I continued, and for the first time, he actually seemed to be listening.

"We can still redeem ourselves. Plus, both of you are incapacitated, so there's no point on continuing this." The Parkball was still in hand, and I started raising it. "Trust me, it's much better than living in a ruined facility. This is your last chance: stay in this ball, or break free if you can. Your choice!" As I said this, I threw the ball at the Tyrogue. Hiting him converted the pokemon into energy, opening up and closing tight, before start shaking.

I tried to focus on the ball, eager to know if it would catch or not. But my concern was quickly turning towards an eventual fire from the last attack. Almost all of those objects were flammable, so I just hoped the flames would be too small to spread and we could put it out with little effort. Otherwise, we would have to come up with something more creative, as we didn't have water-types with us.

(Word count: 378)
(Character count: 2,039)​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick; Just as a sidenote, there are some extra rules to befriending captures, and one of them is going through 5 encounters I believe, so that may not be an option for this run. However, there are other things to take place of a “battle” if you so desire! A Trainer and I once had a snowball fight in place of her interaction.

Also, be careful about how much you say happens—saying the Park Ball connects is usually a no-no. It's like a move outcome. Ranger decides that sort of thing (especially because capture could fail and the mon knocks the ball away or something, etc).

NBP#6

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Rick didn't see much reason to continue. The Tyrogue was still trying to push the table out of the way, but it was in vain. Ivy could see the wild Pokemon was losing momentum fast. The short burst of the battle plus the burn it had gained from touching the Ponyta was beginning to be too much for it. The young ones always tired out quicker.

The Trainer pointed to the wild Pokemon and spoke to it. It gained the Tyrogue's attention but to Ivy, seemed sort of like a lecture. She wasn't sure how much the Pokemon understood, as that communication between human and Pokemon seemed to improve after some time was spent. With wild ones it was hard to tell. Some caught on pretty quickly, like understanding battle commands voiced out loud, while others didn't have much of a clue.

When he was done, Rick threw the ball. The Tyrogue had pretty much ran out of steam at that point, with all the excitement, so he didn't even bother to dodge. The Park Ball bounced off him lightly, sucking the Pokemon up in a red-tinted light. The capture device shook once, but then it went quiet.

Now they had the real work cut out for them.

“Aight,” Ivy said, heading over to pocket the ball in one of her zippered pockets. “I'll hang onto him so he doesn't get lost. We have three objectives right now: unblock the escape, free Ponyta, and to find the rest of that fire that I can still smell.” Her eyes were starting to burn now that she was close to the pile.

Haji had moved too, and through their mental bond, she could feel him probing the room. His hidden power was the element of fire, so maybe that waas helping him locate their problem. After a moment, he had the answer. She nodded.

“Seems like the fire is near the top, not visible from out here. It's back about a foot or so—must've been just a fragment that caught once the attack hit. That one probably wasn't the best idea.” Ivy rolled her shoulders as she moved to the side as the Tyrogue had done—except she was a little bigger so wouldn't have much issue moving the table.

“I'll get this while you help Ponyta, and then we need to tackle the fire,” she said.

---

Current Encounter Stats: N/A

Effects:The fire needs to be put how and Ponyta uncovered.

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 4
Area Effects: In a room half-filled with desks, chairs, and other debris.
Pokemon Encountered: Tyrogue
Pokemon Captured: ??? M Tyrogue
MCR: 0

Items: Park Ball x2, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta @ 89%
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

OOC: I had an idea actual befriending wouldn't be possible, but here I knew I had to battle anyways. But for the ball, I thought the ranger's decision of success/failure started once the pokemon was already inside. *-*The more you know*-*


Haji quickly managed to find the source of the fire, near the top of the pile. "I'll get this while you help Ponyta" Ivy told me while heading towards the table that was now blocking the tunnel. "Then, we'll tackle on the fire" She added.

I turned back to Iris, still laying down in the same position as when she hit the debris. "Alright, let's see how is all this stuff stacked..." At this point I was trying to hide a faint smile. Irony of fate, she made me remember someone I had just caught and who she hated. Except she was in a bit worse position. I didn't want to spend much time on this when we have a fire behind us, even if it was a small one. But when I actually started trying, it was easier said than done.

The first few chairs that falled over her were easy to take out. Those were just loose pieces. But for the other ones, it was diferent. "It's no use! I can't take any of these without it crumble on top of us..." It was like playing pick-up-sticks and start from the bottom. The only thing that was preventing everything to fall over was Iris' body. I have no problem lifting one or two chairs at once, but I can't take on the weight of a whole bunch of them.

Instead of using strenght, I would rather go for the easiest, effortless route: recalling. I left this one pass by the last time, and it wouldn't happen again. "So..." I said to her while steping up. "Guess how we're gonna do it..." She narrowed her eyes as I showed her ball for the second time in a short time. She would have to get into the ball later when we crossed the tunnel anyways.

However, as the beam shot and touched her, it was just like hiting any other object. Nothing happened! And, of course, there's only one that was happy with this. So, apparently, all pokeballs are programmed to not recall pokemon that are trapped, regardless of whatever is trapping them. It was a system to prevent cheating in official matches, but in more serious situations like this, it was a flawed system.

"Don't be so happy Iris, you know you'll have to get in here sooner or later" I said to her, as she was making a faint smile. Without the ball option, it seemed I would have to do some heavy lifting. I standed closer to the chair that was right on top of Iris and started holding it up, using both hands, leaning my head down so I could help support it with my shoulder.

Now with something holding the pile in place, Iris was free to go. Still, she was taking longer to get up than I expected. The time she was under the weight of the debris had left her body numb. "Come on... I can't hold this forever" I said, trying to insentivate and doing slight pushes with my legs. She eventually managed to get up and step back. But, in the end, it was just an exchange of places, as now I was the one that was under the pile, and I was starting to loose strength already.

"Ugh... ok, who's gonna take me out, now?" I called a little worried. Iris steped up, grabed and pulled me by the shirt's collar, stepping back quickly. The rest of the chairs collapsed having no more support. "I'm alright!" I assured, lifting my arm. The sudden pull made a little pressure on my throat, making me gasp for air, but it was still a relief.

I did a quick check on Iris' shoulder, as it took to greatest impact. But other than a few bruises, it was alright. Turning back now for the last issue: the fire. Taking a look at the debris, I couldn't see any flames, though the smoke was noticeable. "If it's just one or another object that is catching fire, can't we seperate those from the rest?" I suggested to Ivy that was moving the table out of the hole. "Eventually, it will die out if it has nothing more to burn. We just have to get there." I added.

(Word count: 711)
(Character count: 3,720)​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick; Yeah, befriending isn't really common since most people prefer to just battle and run from mons pretty quickly. Some like to take their time, but it doesn't happen that often—I prefer the casual method myself. Reading the Park Encyclopedia might be helpful for learning some of the small details.

Also, if you didn't see, we've recently started using Discord, a web/client/mobile chat provider. If interested, sign up in this thread and we'll send you an invite!

NBP#7

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Ivy put her shoulder to good use and slid the table out of the way fairly easily—she hadn't been injured like the Tyrogue had and she was taller. Rick went to work trying to free his Pokemon.

He cleared away the first few chairs pretty easily but then slowed down. A lot of Trainers weren't used to regular physical labor, and some of this was pretty delicate work—if he made a bad move, his Ponyta would get hurt.

Finally, he managed to clear enough of it away that when he held up the last piece, Iris was able to wiggle out of the debris. He was breathing heavily but seemed alert enough when they wandered over, asking about the fire.

“If it's just one or another object catching fire, can't we separate those from the rest?”

Ivy shrugged. “It depends—Haji says it's about a foot or so back, but it's not visible from here.” Again, she tried standing on her toes to see into the pile more, but she just wasn't tall enough. “In theory, we can indeed separate it—if we can get at it. It's probably not a good idea to grab something burning bare-handed, though.”

The Trainer then said, “Eventually, it will die out if it has nothing more to burn. We just have to get there.”

“Sure,” Ivy said, “If it doesn't catch anything more on fire while it sits there. There looks to be a lot of wood in this pile. That'll ignite, unlike some of these metal legs on the chairs.”

A lot of the rooms were decked out in steel desks and such down here, but those were usually in the labs and other places of study, since it was fairly high-tech. In her exploration, she'd found that a lot of the common areas like cafeterias had wooden surfaces—maybe they wanted a bit of color and variation. This place could be pretty repetitive even now when it was abandoned.

“If you want to try looking for it,” she began, “go ahead. You may get some additional height off of Iris.”

---

Current Encounter Stats: N/A

Effects: The fire needs to be put out.

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 4
Area Effects: In a room half-filled with desks, chairs, and other debris.
Pokemon Encountered: Tyrogue
Pokemon Captured: Naive M Tyrogue
MCR: 3,721

Items: Park Ball x2, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta @ 89%
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

We could separate the burning pieces from the pile, as Ivy said, provided we could find the source and reach it. "You may get some additional height off of Iris." She added. None of us were tall enough to see exactly where the fire was set, though maybe I could spot something by getting up on Iris. That would be 1 meter higher if I were to stand on her on foot.

"Alright, I never tought I would have to ride indoors, but I guess we have no choice here" I said, while looking at Iris at my side. I got up on her, and from there I could finally see something ablaze. If it was a chair, a table, or anything else, I wasn't sure. The small gap was covered in smoke, which didn't allow to see much more. I just hoped it was small enough so we could pull it out.

But Ivy made a good point before: you can't grab something that might be at over 50ºC with your barehands, even if wearing gloves. I might have a fire-type, but that didn't make me much more tolerant to high temperatures than other people - at least not that much - especially when the fire-type's flames don't burn you. "I'll do nothing if I get there" I said. "I could squeeze and reach the chunk of furniture, but then what?"

Iris' weight was also enough to make her fall the last time. With more than double the weight, it would probably have the same result, if I didn't fall off of her first - I never did well with vertical surfaces. "You can stand the heat pretty well. Go over there and see what you can do." I asked to Iris. We were fortunate that the injury wasn't in her hind legs. That would compromise her jumping abilities.

She tried to get hold on some debris close to the gap where the fumes were coming. But every time she landed on something, she was sent back down. If we kept like that, she would have no more platform to land, as more debris started shacking and falling from the pile with each failed attempt.

"Okay, stop!" I called. She turned to me, while laying down on her belly. All those jumps, plus an injury after the fight was starting to exhaust her. If something doesn't work, we shouldn't be constantly doing the same mistake. Not to mention we were attempting the exact same thing we tried a few minutes ago that didn't went well.

I started thinking, and she has been doing only vertical jumps. While she did make it that way in various field trainings we had before, all the places she had to reach in the outdoors were firm soil - you don't find chairs and tables piled on each other in forests nor mountains. She never had problems where what she had to land on was unstable or fragile like this, so any jump works provided you get there.

"I'm not a physicist, but I think you're falling because you're applying too much downward force when you land." I said to her. "So go over there," I pointed towards the corner of the room "take some balance, and do a long jump."

Iris nodded, getting up and walking further from the pile. "Oh, and if you manage to get inside that gap, even better... though it probably won't fit more than your head..." I added. She made a few strides before giving the final impulse. That way she managed to cling to the debris - though only hanging by her fetlocks - close to the crevice where a clapboard was burning.

I went nervous at this point and just wanted her to get down. "It doesn't matter if something falls now, just pull it and we'll do some cleaning afterwards" I called. The sooner that piece would be put away from the rest of those objects, the better. She stretched to reach the burning chunck, grabing it with her mouth. It seemed to be somewhat stuck by the other debris.

As she started to force it and her mass was changing, however, the table where she was hanging on started budging. "Alright, I can't watch this!" I winced and narrowed my eyes. There wasn't much support from the beginning, and now it was even less. Foreseeing an eminent fall, Iris plucked out the burning clapboard and quickly threw it away before her last support got loose and she went in a free fall.

"Done! Now come back!" I yelled, while pulling the pokeball and quickly shooting the retract beam, trying to catch her in mid air.

(Word count: 781)
(Character count: 4,161)​

@WinterVines

 

@Rick;

NBP#8

Ranger Ivy Frost

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Rick seemed to like the plan and clamored up onto Iris. From there, he spotted what the problem was—although he couldn't quite reach it or discern what exactly it was. The smoke was getting thicker, curling out like heavy plumes of cigarettes from the casino that Sam, the on-site medic, tried to drag Ivy too once in a while.

Ultimately he determined he couldn't grab it himself, but maybe the Ponyta could do something. She struggled with trying to hop up on the pile—thankfully, it was slightly more sloped on this side and not as close to the ceiling—but she kept hitting the debris and sliding back down to the floor, sending loose pieces scattering. That was wasn't working.

However, Rick was on top of that, rethinking what he told his horse to do. Then, he instructed her to try a softer, long jump instead. This time, she hit the pile and stayed there—mostly. The platform she was standing on was a bit wobbly. The Trainer cringed.

Quickly, Iris reached in to bite the edge of whatever was burning and flung it outward just as her footing slipped. Rick reacted instantly, snatching his Pokeball and recalling her so she didn't get more hurt. Ivy reacted to the debris.

As the burning piece—what she could see now as a part of a table plank—went clattering to the ground, she quickly whipped off her long vest and turned it back-down, chasing after the wood and smothering it, slapping down on the sheet until the fire had died out.

When it was done, she took her vest off of it and shook it off with a little laugh, watching charcoaled pieces fall to the floor. “Heat-proofing was one of the best investments I've made, I think,” she said, admiring how there were only minute scorch marks; the vest had seen worse, and she might be able to get these out. “You never know when something fiery will fall on you.”

As she stood up, she coughed a little bit and slid her vest back on, brushing her hair out of the collar. The air was still filled with a bit of smoke. The pile looked like nothing else had caught aflame, though, which was excellent. She was pretty sure the other Rangers wouldn't have been amused if part of the complex had burned down on her watch.

“Let's get out of here,” she told Rick. “You first this time.” Just in case something bad happened behind them.

They headed back the way they came, through the crawl space, and ended up back in the hallway. Ivy frowned. Some of the smoke had leaked out here too, although it was only in tiny wisps. She could still smell it, however—although some of that had to do with her clothes. Creatures more sensitive to that than her would probably be able to pick up the scent too.

Just then, she heard a tiny mewing. It sounded like it was coming from down the hall, past the T-junction, though she wasn't sure from which direction.

---

Current Encounter Stats: N/A

Effects: Something is meowing down one branch of the T junction--perhaps from the smoke?

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Rick
Place: Enigma Ruins
Encounters Remaining: 4
Area Effects: In a room half-filled with desks, chairs, and other debris.
Pokemon Encountered: Tyrogue
Pokemon Captured: Naive M Tyrogue
MCR: 7,884

Items: Park Ball x2, Energy Powder x1, Lava Cookie x1, Pokedoll x1

Pokemon Stats

Species: Ponyta @ 89%
Nickname: Iris
Gender: Female
Ability: Run Away
Nature: Hardy
Taught Moves: Sunny Day; Solar Beam; Morning Sun

 

I recalled Iris to her ball safely - that was a close one. We can't risk too much injury when only a fraction of the run has passed. "You'll have to forgive me, but you'll probably stay in for a bit longer this time." I said. She wasn't one of those pokemon that jump out of their balls whenever they see fit, though she could very well do that. She was still patient enough to wait for her time, though.

Meanwhile, Ivy was slapping the burning piece with her vest, trying to put down the flames. She started laughing at this point, saying how heat-proofing was a good investment from her part. "She has fire-proof wearing, and I don't?" I muttered to myself. "That's it, I'm gonna order something alike once I get home...".

"Let's get out of here" she told me. I nodded back. "Yeah, my eyes can't see anymore furniture for the next few days...". Too bad the only way out was through the small hole under the rubble, again. "You first this time" she said. That one was odd. I thought the ranger would always take on the lead. But since nothing special happened last time, she probably wouldn't be expecting any problems now.

We went through the hole once again, Ivy followed. Being on front at least had the advantage of being able to see the end of the tunnel, which was quite motivating, especially since it was darker this time. Some of the debris that fell from the pile had covered some of the gaps from where light could pass. Still not a big issue.

We reached the hallway, and we were back to square one. We had already checked one of the rooms, so it was one option out of the way. I didn't know if the remaining ones would be just like the last one - with less trash preferably - or if they would split into more rooms. It was most likely a combination of the two. This thing would be too small for a research facility with just 4 rooms, a corridor and an entrance hall.

It was in the hallway that, most like when we started, we heard some sort of meow from one of the rooms. And just like before, we didn't have any clue from where it came in, though this time it really sounded like a pokemon. I turned to Ivy which had just left the crawl hole. "Alright, do your trick!" I said. "Let's just hope this is not another one trapped in a pile of chairs...".

(Word count: 431)
(Character count: 2,269)​

@WinterVines