Individual RP Axion ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

NBP #1

Ranger: Jay

Flecks of snow shifted lazily down from the dull sky above as I shuffled my way through the snow already lining the ground. I raised two gloved fingers to my mouth and whistled. The sound echoed around the base of the mountain until it was responded by a cheerful bark. A shot of yellow was all I saw before the little spikey yellow hound charged into me. Rubbing its head and smiling, I told him that we were going to be rangering again. It was the first time in a long time.

Jolteon lopping by my side, we made our way through the snow that was packed down below. A gentle breeze picked up, but I just wrapped the jacket around myself tighter. I forgot how cold it can get up here in an instant. Suddenly, Jolteon's head pricked up and he stood stock still. With a playful yelp he sped forward towards a shape standing a little ahead. A few minutes later, I arrived to see a man standing there, looking at the yellow dog bounded around the snow.

"Hey, I'll be your ranger today," I said, extending a hand to greet the man.

--

Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 15
Area affects: Slightly chilly, nothing unusual

-Park Ball x3
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

Axion stood in the snow, surveying his surroundings excitedly as Scizor and Empoleon frolicked about in the wet powder surrounding them. A single snowflake, barely visible among the white surroundings, silently landed on the tip of his pale nose and created a moment of col wetness there before the arm of Axion’s heavy jacket wiped it away. It was a cold day, and the last lazy snowflakes of what had probably been a mild snowfall last night still lingered in the air, not yet ready to end their long journey.

Scizor, wings retracted due to the surrounding temperatures, looked around anxiously as if preparing for imminent danger. Without any sound of warning, a snowball launched from behind a rock placed at the side of the path. Axion heard Empoleon’s peals of laughter suspiciously travelling out from behind the same stone. He himself joined in the laughter as Scizor angrily shook himself free of the now loose flakes, launching in the direction of the concealed penguin pokemon. Transparent insect-like wings expanded faster than the eye can see, and the red-armored mantis pokemon glided over the stone barrier. Empoleon’s laughter abruptly ended, and it came around the small boulder in an attempt to outrun its new adversary.

While Axion watched this with casual detachment, the chase had soon become one that he felt the need to end. Feeling around his belt, the small capsule quickly found his way into his grasping palm. “Scizor, that enough for now” he voiced loudly as the red beam of energy made contact with the pokemon, enveloping it in it’s brilliant glow before whisking the pokemon away to the safety and security of its poke ball. Looking sternly in Empoleon’s direction, the blue and black aquatic bird bowed his head in shame. “Its okay bud, Scizor will calm down. He didn't really like the cold anyway, so I’ll just let you walk around for now.” As he said this, he grabbed a small handful of snow, throwing it as Empoleon’s head returned from its downward position to see what was happening. The crystallized water spread across the entirety of the pokemon’s beak-crested face, eyes blinking in surprise.

Hearing the sound of snow crunching, Axion turned towards the direction of where he assumed the ranger’s hut was. He saw a tall blonde-haired individual in a black coat heading towards him, with a Jolteon leading at a brisk pace a short distance ahead. Axion knelt down to give the electrical fox pokemon a pet, carefully attempting to pet the hyper Jolteon as it bounded about. After an unsuccessful moment, he stood back up and dusted the snow off his knees before noticing the now outstretched hand before him. He vaguely noticed that the man had said something before his attention had been fully attuned. Firmly grasping the man’s hand and giving a brief shake, he replied to the unknown question with just “I’m Axion”.

@Synthesis

 

NBP #2

Ranger: Jay

After having greeted Axion, we began to make our way into the Park itself. We walked for a bit along the snow-caked paths before reaching the twin pillars ghat marked the entrance to Mount Oktori. A small wooden sign, covered in a layer of ice dictated that this was in fact Mount Oktori.

As we walked, I asked Axion did he have any Pokemon in mind that he'd like to catch here. The wind picked up a little and I found myself shivering. Jolteon however, seemed unaffected by the bitter howling wind and marched alongside myself and Axion, watchful of any Pokemon that may be nearby.

Just a short time later the ground began to get a little rocky and the white snow became patchy as small and large black rocks became more and more evident. Jolteon paused, ears pricked up as if he had just heard something. His head turned a little to our right and myself, Empoleon and Axion looked towards a large pile of rocks. Then I heard it too: a faint sorrowful song - it almost sounded like a song of mourning.

Nodding at Axion, we began to creep towards the pile of rocks. The voice getting louder as we drew closer to whatever was producing the sound. The singing stopped suddenly as the singer realised that it had company. A petite Smoochum popped up and looked at us, clearly startled.

"A Smoochum," I noted. "Have any interest in this particular Pokemon?" I asked Axion.

--

Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 14
Pokemon Encountered: Smoochum
Area affects: Snow-covered ground, rocky.

-Park Ball x3
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1

Current encounter: Smoochum
Character Count: 2862


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

The preliminary introductions took no more than a moment; soon after, Axion, Jay, and their pokemon companions began trudging off to Mt. Oktori itself. The peak of the mountain loomed high above them, casting its shadow as the morning sun gradually rose in the sky behind it. The snow crunched and compressed beneath the boots and feet of the travelers, creating a number of rhythmic sounds that faintly echoed before dying off in the quiet of the morning. Eventually the party arrived at the gateway. Two massive stone pillars rose directly in front of them, forming a natural doorway to the snow-capped peaks ahead. Barely readable, a sign was hung between the monoliths; the words “Mount Oktori” poked through where the continual weather and ice had not covered or stripped the paint from the thick wooden plank. With a hint of reverence at the pure scale of it, Axion walked under the natural arch, prepared for what the adventure would now bring that they’d officially entered the park.

As the wind picked up, Axion felt a cool chill seep through his coat and blow across the back of his neck. Reaching behind, he removed the band holding his ponytail back, releasing the light brown hair that easily went beyond the coat’s collar. The hair took away the bite of the wind, and Axion continued travelling in quiet contemplation.

After a short while, Jay broke the silence by asking “So was there anything you wanted to look for here? Or are you just here for whatever comes first?”

Axion thought about it for a moment. “I had considered hunting for Riolu or his evolved brethren, it’d be a useful addition to my team. Other than that, I’m open to a lot of the ice types I saw listed on the Park Guidebook. I’m sure whatever we run across will be worth it, considering.” After Jay nodded, the two continued on in relative silence, marveling in the beautiful landscape almost untouched by humans.

The gentle blanket of snow that covered the ground slowly gave way to rocks that steadily grew in size, replacing the white patches with grays and browns. The footing became easier as Axion’s feet stopped sinking into the snow, now hitting the stone path more often. The trees were also seeming to thin out, giving land over to the rock face completely. As Axion looked at Empoleon, his partner seemed sad due to the decrease in beautiful fluffy snow.

As they approached an open area populated by numerous rock piles of varying sizes, Jolteon seemed to stiffen, its ears dotting around before finally zeroing in on one particular pile. Jay, Axion and Empoleon all focused on the pile themselves, eventually picking up the faintest of songs. With a nod, Jay moved closer to Jolteon, who in turn started creeping towards the suspicious pile. The vague tune evolved from generic sound into a sorrowful melody that pulled at emotions throughout the travelling party. As Axion watched, Empoleon’s foot stepped into a deep patch of snow with a notably loud crunch. Startled, the Smoochum that had been singing poked its head out from behind its previously secure pile of rocks.

Jay, seeing the pokemon, looked at Axion, the question all over his face. “A Smoochum. Have any particular interest in this pokemon?”

Axion nodded. “Smoochum’s perfect.” He turned to Empoleon. “Okay bud, your time to shine. Lets see if we can’t get Smoochum a little mixed up first. We don’t wanna hurt her too much or knock her out, so we’ll both have to be careful, alright?. So I need you to hop over there and give it a really good Swagger! Get close to her fast. Then look as confident as you can, really make her feel like you're the boss of her. Big confident smile, cross those fins, those condescending eyes looking down, that better make it work.Then, try to slow it down with bubblebeam, knock the wind out of it instead of knocking it out. Try to run around in circles to surround it with a cascade of bubbles. I would bet a nice round wall of them might make it hard to hit what she can't see. Let’s do this, I know you can do it!” Axion could easily imagine this, Smoochum wobbling around as Empoleon sent a constant barrage of bubbles spewing from his beak, the light playing off them in their deadly dance of silent energy.

With a jolly smile and a nod, Empoleon rushed towards the pile of rocks, the most confident grin trailing along his wide yellow beak as a blue blue appeared around his body and a stray bubble or two seemed to sneak from his mouth..

@Synthesis

 

BP #1

Ranger Jay

Axion nodded, while looking at the little yellow-and-pink Pokemon. “Smoochum’s perfect,” he replied, before turning to his Empoleon. “Okay bud, your time to shine," he continued as the giant Emperor Penguin Pokemon looked at him, ready for battle. "Lets see if we can’t get Smoochum a little mixed up first. We don’t wanna hurt her too much or knock her out, so we’ll both have to be careful, alright?" he said aloud, and Empoleon nodded, fins raising as it prepared for commands from its trainer. "So I need you to hop over there and give it a really good Swagger! Then, try to slow it down with bubblebeam, knock the wind out of it instead of knocking it out. Let’s do this, I know you can do it!”

Smoochum's head cocked to one side as it looked at the much larger Empoleon, its large round eyes looking serenely at the Empoleon as it began its attacks. The penguin puffed outs its chest as its fins pulled back. Empoleon raised its beak upwards and lowered it, fins flapping suddenly. The Smoochum looked startled and fled behind the rock it was originally hiding behind. Empoleon, not realising that its opponent was no longer in front of it continued making crude faces and striking intimidating poses as it performed its Swagger move. This was an extremely unique move that varied from Pokemon to Pokemon, but generally it involved the Pokemon making strange and intimidating facial expressions and poses in an attempt to enrage and confuse the opposing Pokemon. It tended to have varying successes but this time was definitely not a successful one as the Smoochum easily dodged the attack, perhaps having seen this strategy before.

Smoochum popped out from behind the rock as Empoleon's attack had finished. "Smoochum," it teased, pulling a funny face at Empoleon. The Water/Steel type looked a little disgruntled by this, but it wasn't until Smoochum was making even more ridiculous faces and poses, all the while giggling at Empoleon. Smoochum climbed up on to one of the larger rocks, poking its tongue at Empoleon, before hopping from rock to rock jeering the Empoleon.

"Ah, seems like Smoochum's using its Copycat move," I noted. "Very clever."

The attack seemed to work this team around as when Empoleon began using Bubblebeam, it was clearly enraged. As the jets of bubbles shot forward, Smoochum leapt from rock to rock, taunting the Empoleon. However, Smoochum was a Pokemon that was easily distracted and soon found itself on the snow again, looking at one of the larger bubbles as it drifted away. Empoleon took its chance and fired the powerful torrent of bubbles at Smoochum, knocking it face first onto the snow.

"Ouch..."

--

Current battle stats:

Empoleon 100% [ENRAGED]

Vs.

Smoochum 56%

Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 14
Pokemon Encountered: Smoochum
Area affects: Snow-covered ground, rocky.

-Park Ball x3
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1

Current encounter: Smoochum
Character Count: 7,314/4,000


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

At first, Axion felt that all was going fine. He had seen Empoleon use taunt before, and had normally been quite pleased with the results. While not in his normal style, he had recently discovered the usefulness of confusion, and had been planning to attempt this strategy elsewhere. Empoleon had started by making himself look somewhat larger, puffing his chest out and pulling his fins back. The innocent pokemon blinked, its blonde hair contrasting with its bright pink skin as it watched Empoleon inquisitively. With a sudden jerk, Empoleon’s head snapped forward and his flippers waved erratically, which scared the Smoochum behind the nearby rocks again. Unbeknownst to the penguin pokemon, Empoleon continued on his dance, its effectiveness now nullified by Smoochum’s evasion. Axion shook his head as Empoleon continued on, oblivious to the target’s escape.

When the embarrassing failure had finally come to and end, Smoochum poked its head up and started mimicking empoleon. As Axion watched somewhat dumbfounded, he caught Jay muttering and managed to hear “...copycat. Very clever.” Apparently the plan had backfired, and now he had to come up with something new on the fly. As he watched on, he saw the bubblebeam now flying around erratically due to Empoleon’s confusion. Smoochum easily avoided them as she used her acrobatics skills to hop and dodge repeatedly. However, a stray bubble finally caught its attention, the light reflecting around on its mirrored surface. A line of bubbles broke Smoochum’s concentration, and appeared to drain a lot of health. The small dancing pokemon fell to the ground.

Axion ran up to Empoleon, getting a stream of bubbles in his face as he did so. The small projectiles stung, but Axion was determined to get close to the emperor penguin. As the stream ended he grabbed Empoleon’s shoulders. “Come on Empoleon, focus! I need you to whittle down Smoochum’s health if you can. Try to catch it off guard, it already seems to be slowed down. Just give it a good pound attack. Use those flippers and smack that last bit of energy out of it once and for all. Bounce it between them if you have to, its a simple enough move. But just a light pound; I still wanna catch it. I know you can do this, don’t let that taunt get to you!” While he was unsure that he had actually managed to get his intentions through, he moved back a bit in order to avoid any potential repercussions. He then stood up and waited to see if his plan was successful at all, a park ball from his pack now rolling about in his hand.

@Synthesis

 

BP #2

Ranger: Jay

As the little Smoochum squirmed back up t its feet and suting the snow off, Axion began to make his plan for the next attack. Smoochum was a rather fragile Pokemon, especially compared to the Empoleon. It didn't help that the Empoleon now had a raised attack stat but hopefully the Pokemon would cool down under Axion's guidance. The Smoochum shook its head tiredly. The blast of bubbles had worn it down a good bit.

“Come on Empoleon, focus!" Axion shouted in an attempt to calm the enraged penguin. "I need you to whittle down Smoochum’s health if you can. Try to catch it off guard, it already seems to be slowed down," he added as the dizzy Empoleon tried its best to listen carefully to him. "Just give it a good pound attack. Use those flippers and smack that last bit of energy out of it once and for all. Bounce it between them if you have to, its a simple enough move. But just a light pound; I still wanna catch it. I know you can do this, don’t let that taunt get to you!” Empoleon nodded before it leapt forward, flippers flying up and down gently enough as it approached Smoochum.

Smoochum began to giggle at the Empoleon as it advanced, perhas not realising the imminent danger. "Smooch" it cried gleefully as it ran towards the fins, before a fin knocked it in the stomach, winding the poor Smoochum. Smoochum hit the ground hard and sat still for a moment before wailing out loud all of a sudden. Tears streamed down the baby Pokemon's face as it sat on the snow, looking weak and vulnerable. Empoelon seemed distracted by this and a certain pity seemed to take over its face.

"Uh, oh," I said to Jolteon. "Fake Tears. And it appears that the Empoleon is too confused to realise what's going on."

The Empoleon advanced, lowering its head inquisitively. Smoochum's crying stopped suddenly and a rueful smirk took over its face. Smoochum leapt up and its mouth opened wide. A cyan coloured mist oozed out and struck Empoleon in the face. Empoleon shuddered as the icy cold Frost Breath attack took over its body. Empoleon began to shiver as it slowly retreated away from the Smoochum that had tricked it. Empoleon did not look like it would be able to battle until it had defrosted a bit.

"Perhaps now would be a good opportunity to use a pokeball," I advised Axion.

--

Current battle stats:

Empoleon 64% [semi-frozen, possibly unable to battle]

Vs.

Smoochum 18%

Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 14
Pokemon Encountered: Smoochum
Area affects: Snow-covered ground, rocky.

-Park Ball x3
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1

Current encounter: Smoochum
Character Count: 9,864/4,000


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

As he finally returned his full attention back to SMoochum, he was surprised to see the baby pokemon giggling at the approaching penguin, who had a playful expression on his face. Empoleon’s fins were imitating a flapping motion, as if the pokemon expected to gain the ability to fly. However it seemed to be working, as Smoochum ran around him while hopping, trying to grab at the fins. When the moment appeared right, Empoleon’s left fin deftly altered its angle, and the large flat flipper gave a light yet solid hit on Smoochum, with a wet ‘thunk’ sound reverberating. The snow-covered landscape was silent for a moment, before a piercing wail echoed around everyone assembled. Axion covered his ears in automatic response to the unexpected sound, then watched Smoochum leak tears across her face. Empoleon apparently felt bad, for he started moving towards the small injured pokemon.

As Axion anxiously watched, preparing for the moment to strike with the ball, he saw Jay say something to Jolteon. Smoochum’s injured cries masked the sound, until a positively evil smile crept over the baby’s face. A wisp of whitish-blue mist enveloped Empoleon’s lowered face, forcing a knee-jerk reacting backwards. But the damage had been done. Empoleon seemed rather cold, if the shivering meant anything at all. Axion waited no more than a second before tossing the park ball towards the offending Smoochum, before it had a further chance to injure his companion. “Park Ball, go!”

@Synthesis

 

NBP #3

Ranger: Jay

Axion made the right decission to call back Empoleon away from harms way as it appeared to be shivering quite badly, clearly having a bad reaction to the icy attack it had just endured. Seeing the opportunity before them, Axion whipped out a spherical capturing device. I saw it was a Park Ball as it enlarged in his hand. He held it a moment, taking time to aim at the weakened Smoochum, before throwing the pokeball at the baby Pokemon.

“Park Ball, go!" Axion shouted as he hurled the red ball forward. It sailed through the air before pausing about a metre away from Smoochum and hovering for a split second. A red beam of energy shot out and sucked up the Pokemon. The ball dropped onto the soft snow below with a soft thud. I watched excitedly as the ball rolled over on the snow.. once.. twice.. and paused, flashing red briefly. Then the Park Ball made a pinging sound, signaling capture.

I scooped up the ball and pocketed it.

"Congratulations on your first captured Pokemon here at the Park. Bear in mind that I'll have to keep it on me until the run ends of course," I reminded Axion, stowing the ball away in my backpack. "Let's continue on the way we were going," I suggested, before we both began walking onwards. "Oh, and, maybe call Empoleon back into its ball. It could probably use a break."

We continued onward, the ground sloping upwards slightly as we advanced into the Park. The snow was becoming a lot more tightly-packed as we travelled upwards and our movement became a lot slower. The snow was a little above boot high and becoming quite difficult to stay in, I found. I was glad I had just summoned Jolteon back or we could have lost him in the thick snow. Scanning our area, I decided that we needed to make a decission.

"Our progress isn't great going this way. Perhaps we should head either due West or North-east," I said to Axion, glancing at my compass. "If I recall correctly, West would bring us much lower down the mountains and away from this snow. That way we could see the frosted caverns and perhaps glimpse the lake that few know about. North-east would bring us to the cablecar after a little while longer. We could take that up to the top of the mountains. Where would you rather go?"

--

Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 14
Pokemon Encountered: Smoochum,
Pokemon Captured: Sassy Smoochum
Area affects: Snow-covered ground, rocky.

-Park Ball x2
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

As the ball flew from his hand, Axion’s mind was fraught with anticipation and concern. On the one hand, he could successfully capture Smoochum right now, and his first encounter at the National Mark could be chalked up as a pure success. But, on the other hand, Smoochum might still have enough energy and drive left in it to escape the spherical containment vessel known as a poke ball, and therefore potentially cause further harm to Empoleon. Looking at the penguin pokemon itself, Axion was almost surprised to see it still standing. It appeared oddly cold despite its Antarctic avian origins, and such would never bode well for a pokemon. Smoochum could instead decide that it had dealt with enough this morning and run off to other regions in the park. Thinking about it, Axion definitely preferred that option over a continued battle at this rate. EMpoleon needed a break, not another fight right now. There would be later battles that could use his jolly upbeat manner; he had brought Scizor for that reason.

The aim of the camouflage-topped poke ball was true, and it lightly tapped Smoochum’s small pink head. With a look of surprise and alarm, the kiss pokemon gave a silent yell as crison energy surrounded and enveloped it, dematerializing it and converting to energy as the data stream was swallowed into the ball itself. The moment of truth came now, as the ball wiggled; Smoochum’s final protests now changing to visible instead of audible. At last, the ball’s erratic motions ceased, the button on the front rapidly fading from red-hot to a dull gray.

Axion suddenly released the breath he had unintentionally held in up until now. Inside, his mind was racing, excited that he had already caught a pokemon in the National Park. However, he refrained from any outward expressions beyond his familiar lopsided smile. Jay quickly scooped up the ball, saying “Congratulations on your first captured Pokemon here at the Park. Bear in mind that I'll have to keep it on me until the run ends of course.” Axion nodded in confirmation of this pivotal rule as the poke ball was secured in Jay’s backpack, to remain there until Axion had finished his run or caught all three potential pokemon.

Turning now from the first of hopefully many captures today, Axion set his sights on his friend Empoleon. The pokemon was still shivering, and in the moments since the original attack from Smoochum had made contact, the shivering had seemed to have gotten worse. Axion quickly moved to the injured pokemon. “Bud, you okay?” While in a frozen and yet still mildly confused state, Empoleon was able to nod his head an inch or so. A weak “Empo-leon” came from its mouth. From behind, he heard Jay’s voice say “maybe call Empoleon back into its ball. It could probably use a break.” Axion’s hand reached for the net ball securely hooked to the side of his belt. “its time you got a rest bud, you were great out there. You completely deserve a break after that stellar performance you put out. After we’re done here you and Smoochum can go play in the snow.” The beam of light that protruded from the poke ball’s button transferred the pokemon into the ball’s storage center, where Axion hoped Empoleon would feel warmer, or at least not so uncomfortable.

Making sure nothing had been left behind, Axion returned to see Jay and Jolteon, the latter appearing restless after the short yet heated battle. “I’m ready to go if you are” he said, looking at the Ranger. With silent agreement, the three remaining party members began trekking up a mild incline. Axion marvelled at the sheer beauty unravelling before him, the slow rise giving ways to seemingly endless valleys filled with lightly frosted pine trees, and white expanses threatening to blind whoever looked in that direction as the sun came into focus above them. As the trio crossed a bridge, Axion looked down into the crystal clear river a few meters below. He saw swarms of small Remoraid with an occasional Basculin intermixed as the schools rapidly dashed down the stream, to locations unknown and unseen by Axion.

The path continued, a long yet almost leisurely stroll that roughly appeared to follow the circumference of the massive mount Oktori. The mountain itself still loomed high above them, Axion spying numerous cave entrances and game trails that potentially held a number of unique, rare, or exciting pokemon. He wished that they could visit them all, but he understood that time was limited, and he could not monopolize a Ranger for such a long time. It would also break the three pokemon limit that was so rigidly enforced here. Axion had read many of the details of the park on the ride here, and definitely agreed that the limit was needed, and therefore he would have to pick and choose wisely as to which Pokemon he inevitably decided to capture in the end.

The path slowly slid upwards, a miniscule yet noticeable increase in slope causing Axion, Jay, and Jolteon to gain altitude at a faster rate. Coming with the increased altitude was thickness and density of snow. Axion began to watch as Jolteon struggled to keep up, the snow easily going from paw depth to knee depth in spots. Jay noticed this as well, recalling Jolteon to its poke ball as Axion had earlier done to Empoleon. The now shrunken party gazed about at their current location, the path ahead looking no better in terms of snow depth, if not worse. Jay and Axion trudged on as the snow continued to get deeper, changing the leisurely stroll into a constant battle for the next step. This continued on for about half an hour, before the two stopped at an intersection.

Axion set his pack down for a moment, digging around in all the various supplies he’d packed for the trip. Many would say he had overpacked, but at the moment he was glad for some of the stuff he removed from the depths of the sturdy bag. Out came a thermos that still had some sense of warmth to it, two small cups, as well as two somewhat squashed snack bars. The hot chocolate that poured out from the thermos was hardly what could be considered hot anymore; the drink was now more closely related to chocolate milk that had previously been heated. However, the drink and its little remaining heat felt refreshing to Axion’s parched mouth and throat. “Jay, care for a drink? Its not overly warm, but it definitely hits the spot right about now.” Finding a rock just off to the side of the path, Axion brushed off the majority of the snow covering the gray blob-like extrusion and sat down, allowing a moment to rest up.

Jay stood reasonably close to Axion's makeshift seat, accepting the liquid chocolate and viewing the surroundings as if looking for specific landmarks that Axion was unaware of. Jay glanced at his compass, sipping at the luke-warm beverage. "Our progress isn't great going this way. Perhaps we should head either due West or North-east," Taking another swallow, the Ranger looked towards a route that seemed to level off before descending. "If I recall correctly, West would bring us much lower down the mountains and away from this snow. That way we could see the frosted caverns and perhaps glimpse the lake that few know about.” He then looked at another branching path that seemed to be more well utilized. It was wider and included a nearby sign with a painted-on symbol denoting an uphill cable car track. “North-east would bring us to the cable car after a little while longer. We could take that up to the top of the mountains. Where would you rather go?"

Axion considered the question for a moment before answering, taking a bite of one squashed energy bar. “With all the snow down here, I’m not overly loving the idea of the top right now, probably be knee-deep in white powder. Not overly comfortable. And the way you described it made this lake path far nicer. So, I think I’d prefer the low road as opposed to the high road.” With that said, the much lighter canteen and empty food wrappers were returned to a pouch in the bag which was then placed back on Axion’s back. Standing upright and stretching a bit, he waited for Jay to lead the way to these frosted caverns.

@Synthesis

 

NBP #4

Ranger: Jay

Axion decided that now would be a good time for an energy bar, and I didn't really blame him at all. It was a great idea to be fully alert in the Park - you never know when the wits will come in handy. I looked over at Empoleon, and was glad to see that it looked a lot better now. The thermos had really seemed to help and I was fairly certain that Empoleon would be alright to battle the next time it was needed. If not, Axion would be free to purchase some supplies from me that I had saved up just in case.

“With all the snow down here, I’m not overly loving the idea of the top right now, probably be knee-deep in white powder," Axion said, taking his last bite of the bar. I immediately agreed with him, and listened as he continued. "Not overly comfortable. And the way you described it made this lake path far nicer. So, I think I’d prefer the low road as opposed to the high road," he added.

"Good choice. Hopefully my descriptions didn't affect your decission-making," I said with a smirk. Although, to be honest, it was definitely the better move. If we made it to the lake before it had grown too dark, there would surely be some rare and interesting Pokemon around. As it was deep into Mount Oktori, many Pokemon tended to stay there away from the majority of the tourists.

"West it is," I said, glimpsing at the compass before we began trecking through the snow. We weren't struggling through the snow for too long when we came across a narrow, icy path. The snow hadn't stuck to the path, thankfully, so we could see a good way down the path that passed by many caverns on both sides. The path seemed to be nestled tightly between two mountains and was quite a famous one here at Mount Oktori. "Watch your step," I added as we made our way along the slippery path.

We weren't walking for long before I noticed something sticking out of the mountain o the left. It looked like a bright red ribbon. "How peculiar," I said, reaching out for it. As soon as I touched against it, my hand went right through the ribbon-like thing and a shrill cackle echoed from what seemed like inside of the mountain. The ribbon disappeared for a split second before a Froslass burst out of the mountain wall. It looked at us with an evil grin, clearly glad it tricked unaware passer-bys.

"A pesky Froslass. Any interest in this Pokemon?" I asked Axion.

--

Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 13
Pokemon Encountered: Smoochum, Froslass
Pokemon Captured: Sassy Smoochum
Area affects: Slippery path
Character Count: 9,460/45,000

-Park Ball x2
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

As Axion was finalizing the cleaning of the momentary camp, Jay’s head nodded in agreement with his statement of direction. "Good choice. Hopefully my descriptions didn't affect your decision-making.”

Axion spoke as he stood up; “Nope, just seemed right, its a feeling.”

“West it is.” Pulling his backpack’s thick padded straps tighter, the ranger and trainer set off towards the more level trail as the sun finally made its way fully over the oppressive monolith that was Mount Oktori.

The snow-covered path began its almost unnoticeable descent downward, and the thickness of the white carpet also began a miniscule yet eventually notable decline. The trees, which before had been sparse to nonexistent in portions of the morning’s travels, were now appearing with an increasing frequency. Axion was mildly enjoying the changes, the landscape’s more varied and comfortable appearance bringing feelings of home in the winter time. Olivine had extremely mild winters, but the coastal city saw its share of ice and snow. Axion had always enjoyed playing with his friends in the winter time, and treasured many of the memories that came about during that time of the year. He almost began to forget where he was and what he was doing, some of the sights rejuvenating feelings that had been missing for months. It was one reason he was primarily traveling in the warmer months of the year. To him, Olivine was ironically warmest and most inviting when the temperatures were at their coldest.

Despite the generally motionless surroundings save for the light breeze that enabled the tree branches to gently dance about, the trainer heard a number of small footsteps, rustles and pokemon calls to break the scenic trail. Axion attempted multiple times to actually see what was making these noises, and almost always coming up short. While not straying far from the well traveled trail itself, a quick foray into the bushes often proved fruitless. Tracks of what appeared to be snorunt and swinub would be all that remained of the pokemon that Axion had caught a glimpse of not a moment before; Eventually he gave up trying to find them himself and strode in mute fascination at the beautiful landscape surrounding them.

A short time period later, the two humans came to the bottom of a deep rift that naturally occurred between the base of Mount Oktori and one of its minor brethren. Unlike the snow-covered path and the nearby trees, this area seemed to be mostly bereft of snow; the close proximity of the stone monoliths had protected the narrow trail from the worst of the weather. However, the accumulation of melting water and compression via the occasional passerby had reduced the split to somewhat of a slipping hazard, the icy road a dangerous yet potentially worthwhile risk. The chasm was fairly straight, and Axion saw a number of depressions that could easily be caves. The possible pokemon that could be hiding in those caves gave him chills, and he was excited when Jay spoke up from right beside him. “Watch your step, this is a fairly good passage to go down. Its just icy this time of year.” With that, he led the way down the narrow trail, and Axion followed close behind.

After a number of minor slips, the process of walking on the treacherous ground became second nature to the two beings that had invaded the silent crevasse’s domain. A cave entrance popped up every few hundred feet, and Axion occasionally spent a moment or two travelling inside just a hair,and seeing what could be seen. The rough stone that created the base of the massive mountain chain shone with a complexion approximating rusted steel underneath the snow’s complete cover. Crimson veins ran throughout the cave’s rugged walls, with occasional silver specks dotted about that shone like diamonds. Some of the caves consisted of only a singular tunnel, looking very much like an onix’s home. Other had a more natural sponge-like structure, some so complicated Axion felt lost only a matter feet inside the gaping maw.

A number of times, Axion believed that he had seen something moving inside many of the caves. A rapidly moving white blur would travel around the empty cave for a moment, and then would disappear as soon as it had appeared an instant later. Seeing these mysterious flashes brought to mind such phantoms from the stories of ghosts, those dead spirits that haunted the spirit’s final resting place. A freezing-cold shivered crept down his spine, and neither temperature nor the wind were the cause of it. Removing himself from the cave, he spoke up and asked Jay about it. “Do you know of any possible ghost sightings around here?”

Jay looked thoughtful for a moment before replying. “Ghosts? Not that I know of. At least not around Mount Oktori. Most if not all of the ghost-type pokemon that inhabit the island tend to stay near the Meteor Valley.”

Axion nodded, then continued. “Well, what about deaths maybe? I know you guys try to keep this place safe, but accidents can happen.”

Jay shook his head in a strong negative. “Nobody has died to my knowledge, and something like that would get around.”

Axion then dropped the matter, putting the deathly visage he had seen in the back of his mind for processing later. Pulling out his recently replaced pokedex, he kept it ready in case another phantasm appeared. As Jay and Axion rounded a corner along the slick path, the ranger obviously spotted something, stopping to bend down to examine the curiosity in greater detail. Axion heard him exclaim “How peculiar,” before a hand was outstretched, grasping at the small red object that seemed to be sprouting directly from the mountainside. The hand however made no contact with the object. Instead, it passed through as if the red ribbon-like entity was no more than a shadow of the real thing. A cackle began to echo throughout the cavern, a shrill sound that brought further chills down the spines of both people.

From the solid rock face, a phantasm floated out, continuing its shrill laugh. The creature had a generally feminine appearance, and floated through the air with ease. Two small crystalline horns sprouted from its purple covered by white head. The red object Jay had been toying with now appeared in full, a bow that wrapped around the waist of the wraith in front of them. Ready this time, the brushed steel pokedex was aimed directly at the floating life form. “Froslass, the Snow Land pokemon.” As the metallic-sounding female voice continued on, Jay interrupted with “A pesky Froslass. Any interest in this pokemon?”

Ignoring the continual stream of audible information, Axion skimmed over the typing and statistics. “I didn't expect to run into something this powerful during the run. But I think Scizor can handle a little challenge. Game on, Froslass!” With a flick of the wrist, Scizor’s poke ball flew from the trainer’s location, and the red armored insect appeared in a coalescing flow of crimson energy. “Scizor, its your time to shine today.” With a quick look at the narrow surrounding walls, Axion had devised a simple plan. “Okay. Start off by hopping around from wall to wall, build up your speed via agility. The more you move, the harder you’ll be to hit. Don’t stop until you've can run circles around Froslass there.” The steel-type pokemon nodded, a prepared look on his face. “Then, use pursuit just to damage it a it. With your increased speed, you should be able to speed ahead of her intedned destination and use those massive red claws of yours to nick it.”

@Synthesis

 

BP #1

Ranger: Jay


Axion had taken the time to remove his Pokedex and soon had it directed at the Froslass before us. As it fed him information, he looked to be thinking hard, before he finally came to a decission: to battle the Froslass and hopefully capture it.

“I didn't expect to run into something this powerful during the run. But I think Scizor can handle a little challenge. Game on, Froslass!” Axion said, flinging the Pokeball forwar. A red beam of light emerged which took on a semi-humanoid shape before the Scizor became apparent. "Zor," it said, brandishing its large steel claws. It stared at the Ice type before arranging itself into a fighting stance. Scizor tend to be very competitive and fierce Pokemon. This was no exception.

“Scizor, it's your time to shine today.” With a quick look at the narrow surrounding walls, Axion had devised a simple plan. “Okay. Start off by hopping around from wall to wall, build up your speed via agility," Axion commanded initially before moving into the finer detail of his plan. "The more you move, the harder you’ll be to hit. Don’t stop until you've can run circles around Froslass there.” Scizor nodded before locking its eyes on the opposing Froslass, claws at the ready to begin its attack. “Then, use pursuit just to damage it a it. With your increased speed, you should be able to speed ahead of her intended destination and use those massive red claws of yours to nick it.”

Speed was always a great ally in a battle and it was clear Axion realised this. However, I saw a certain cunning in the Froslass' mischievous face and I knew that things wouldn't work out quite as well as he'd hoped if this Froslass was on the ball. Scizor, the determined fighter that it was, began the move Agility. Scizor leapt upwards, darting from left to right and back again as it nimbly hit moved from wall to wall. A thin beam of light extended from Froslass' body and attached onto the jumping Scizor. Scizor, ignoring the beam, continued to leap, however, the beam connecting the two Pokemon seemed to draw Froslass closer to Scizor, like it was being pulled closer by a string that was being shortened. I watched slightly perplexed until Froslass shot forward suddenly, grasping onto Scizor with cold hands. Scizor paused, mid-air for a split second, before he fell down, landing gracefully on the snow.

Froslass zoomed down to the ground lightning-quick. Its head jerked from Axion to Scizor rapidly and then my suspicions were confirmed. Snatch. Scizor's move effects had been stolen by the sly Froslass.

Froslass, aware of its new-found speed began to quickly slide back into the wall, yet Scizor was surprisingly quick, despite the regular speed. Its right claw slammed into Froslass just before it hit the wall. The force of the blow knocked Froslass into the wall and right through it.

"It looks as though you'll need to find a way to lure Froslass out. This won't be easy with its boosted speed, though... It appears to be testing your capabilities as a trainer."


--

Battle stats:

Scizor 100%

Vs.

Froslass 64% [boosted speed, hiding in wall]


Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 13
Pokemon Encountered: Smoochum, Froslass
Pokemon Captured: Sassy Smoochum
Area affects: Slippery path
Character Count: 16,984/45,000

-Park Ball x2
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

As Axion’s commands began to register in the predatory insect’s mind, Scizor gave a mighty leap upwards, effectively utilizing its vestigial wings to quickly reorient itself for a leap off the nearby rock wall that was bearing down quite rapidly. Before Axion could even register the pokemon’s foot landing on the rock face, Scizor had launched itself towards the opposite wall, gaining speed as it did so. Up and down the canyon walls, the red pokemon’s increasing velocity turned it into a red rocket, and finally a ruby-red blur of living steel.

Froslass casually watched these events unfold, an almost undetectable smile appearing on the Snow Land pokemon’s face. The mischievous femme fatale was obviously planning something, if that look could tell a story. A moment later, a razor fine ray of bright bluish-white light sprouted from the ghostly ice-type’s forehead, zeroing in on the jumping Scizor and firmly tracking the faster insect’s rapid movements between the rock faces. Scizor, apparently too focused to notice or care about the light beam stuck to his dancing form, continued his agile motions, using the landscape to ever increase his momentum. As each pokemon continued their moves, the beam connecting the two opponents grew ever shorter, Froslass slowly floating towards the speeding Scizor, hardly visible now with its incredible velocity. Axion stared in silent confusion, not recognizing the more or its intended effects. It did not seem to adversely affect his pokemon at the moment, though he worried as to what might happen when the beam became short enough for physical contact. He looked at Jay who had a similar confused and concerned look on his face, and that made Axion’s feelings of concern double in magnitude.

At last Froslass came near enough to Scizor, and in less than a split second the two white, feminine hands securely fastened to the generally unprotected abdomen of the steel-type pokemon. Scizor’s gathered speed suddenly disappeared, and it began falling. Using its wings to more gracefully maneuver down, the steel-plated mantis managed to land on its feet. Where Scizor had lost its now considerable speed, Froslass had gained, the ghostly maiden now zooming around the impromptu battlefield, a nearly undetectable flash of purple and white surrounded by red-grey stone and white powder. Using its new found agility to the fullest, the icy ghost-type pokemon began to fade from view, once again melting into the rust-colored stone’s impenetrable face.

Just as the last extremities of Froslass were disappearing, Scizor’s right claw jutted towards its fleeing opponent, the air around it almost becoming steam from the air’s friction. The speed of the claw allowed it to make contact, delivering a surprisingly devastating Pursuit attack, Scizor’s anger at the retreating pokemon evident in its mannerisms and eyes and fueling the speed and ferocity of the attack. A look of surprise and pain shot over Froslass’s face as it finally finished its disappearing act, momentarily protected from further harm. Scizor continued to look for a target to release its rage upon, to no avail.

"It looks as though you'll need to find a way to lure Froslass out.” Jay noted, moving to momentarily inspect the rock face where Froslass had figuratively been absorbed into the non living stone. “This won't be easy with its boosted speed, though... It appears to be testing your capabilities as a trainer."

Axion nodded in solemn agreement. “And what kind of trainer am I if I do not at least attempt to rise to such a challenge? Not one worthy of a pokemon such as Froslass.” His mind was rapidly calculating possible different ways of luring the fiendish pokemon out of hiding. Different strategies Scizor and himself had used in past battles came into focus, their varying successes being heavily weighed against each other. Scanning through the pokedex information again, he ruled out his previous tactic of scaring the pokemon out via imitating one of its local predators. Froslass wasn't really on the low end of any other pokemon’s food chain here that he could see, and such a plan would have likely just driven the wild Froslass deeper into the protective stone. It had worked before against the highly territorial Skarmory, but in this case it would end up to be an utter failure. Befriending the Froslass, be it real or under false pretenses, ran across his mind for a moment, but this also seemed doomed from the start. Froslass seemed far more mature and knowledgeable than the adorable yet naive Smoochum that was currently stored in Jay’s backpack. That left fewer options available to Axion until he remembered one trick that he could use. Waving Scizor over, he allowed the pokemon to calm for a moment before describing his plan in detail, the specifics not yet quite ready.

“Scizor, we need to trick Froslass into coming out. So, we’re gonna bring back a little something we did a few months back in Cerulean City with some variations.” Continuing, he pointed into the cave entrance directly next to them. “First off, I need you to look like you’ve absolutely lost it. Make it appear as though you have gone insane with rage and have no idea what's going on around you. You need to look like an easy target. Maybe if you use fury cutter on the rock wall once or twice, just give Froslass a good show without actually hurting the cave wall too much, because it's generally we are not allowed to cause massive damage and I don't want to be kicked out prematurely. Standing just inside the cave, any noise you make will be reflected, and Froslass will definitely hear you.” He paused for a minute, finalizing the now cohesive strategy in his head. “As soon as you see Froslass coming in to attack, you will probably only have a second to do complete this next part. Use double team and make yourself into a whole bunch of nice delicious targets all nicely spread, so Froslass can’t hit all of you at once.” In the past, Axion and the then Scyther had used a much simpler version of this strategy on a swarm of Magnemite, confusing many of the lazily drifting magnet spheres and corralling the lucky one that was now a Magnezone safely at home right now. But back then the move had not been perfected, so he hoped it would now be more effective of a ploy on the more intelligent pokemon adversary they were now facing.

Axion gave one more command to Scizor before allowing the plan to initiate. “Once Froslass is lured out, I want you to use a mild bullet punch. All we need is for Froslass to be knocked away from the closest cave walls, so we can face it more head on. Just a single slap of that claw ought to do it, I know you can still out-speed that feisty pokemon even after she snatched your speed away. Lets show her that we are worthy of catching her, so follow the plan and catch ourselves a Froslass.”

@Synthesis

 

BP #2

Ranger: Jay

“And what kind of trainer am I if I do not at least attempt to rise to such a challenge?" Axion said akoud, more to himself than to me it seemed. "Not one worthy of a pokemon such as Froslass," he finished before pausing a moment, deep in thought. He seemed to be analyzing the situation carefully and it was several moments before he spoke again.


“Scizor, we need to trick Froslass into coming out. So, we’re gonna bring back a little something we did a few months back in Cerulean City with some variations," Axion said before pointing a finger at one of the many cave entrances in the wall Froslass was hiding in. “First off, I need you to look like you’ve absolutely lost it. Make it appear as though you have gone insane with rage and have no idea what's going on around you. You need to look like an easy target. Maybe if you use fury cutter on the rock wall once or twice, just give Froslass a good show without actually hurting the cave wall too much, because it's generally we are not allowed to cause massive damage and I don't want to be kicked out prematurely," Axion added and I grinned a little. "Standing just inside the cave, any noise you make will be reflected, and Froslass will definitely hear you.” He paused for a minute, finalizing the now cohesive strategy in his head. “As soon as you see Froslass coming in to attack, you will probably only have a second to do complete this next part. Use double team and make yourself into a whole bunch of nice delicious targets all nicely spread, so Froslass can’t hit all of you at once.”

“Once Froslass is lured out, I want you to use a mild bullet punch. All we need is for Froslass to be knocked away from the closest cave walls, so we can face it more head on. Just a single slap of that claw ought to do it, I know you can still out-speed that feisty pokemon even after she snatched your speed away. Lets show her that we are worthy of catching her, so follow the plan and catch ourselves a Froslass.”

It was certainly a well-thought out plan, but perhaps Scizor would have benefitted from a little more description in how to use its attack. Scizor looked a little perplexed initially as it jabbed at one side of the wall lightly, before hitting the other side slightly harder. Scizor looked confused but continued onwards duifully. The Fury Cutter attack continued as a head slid out of the mountain, followed by the rest of Froslass's body. It peered curiously at the Scizor before gliding forward, snister grin etched onto its face. Frosslass continued forward until it was about five or six feet away from the Scizor. Froslass lurched forward but when straight through the Scizor, Scizor disappearing permanently. With a startled grunt she looked around to see six more Scizor around her. It seemed as though Froslass fell for the ploy and was surrounded by the Scizor army now, a little taken-aback.

"Bullet Punch now!" cried Axion and the six Scizor shot forward, dominant arm of each outstretched. I'd seen enough Double Team clones to know that only the real Scizor would do any damage and the others would fade as soon as they made contact with the Froslass. Froslass, lightning quick, sent out several waves of weak electricity, shooting away from her in an increasing radius as she tried to identify the real Scizor. The sparks destoryed the clones as they advanced, leaving only the one Scizor, which grunted a little from the pulse of electricity as it passed through him. However, Axion's Scizor was too close and too far into the move for Froslass to be able to react. The hardened claw whacked into her, knocking her backwards a little. Before Scizor could reel away a look of shock filled his face and he was momentarily confused. He looke at its large claw in an odd manner before hopping back to Axion.

I wondered whether Axion noticed what had happened. Having a Froslass myself, I was well aware of this tactic, but perhaps Axion would be a little lost.

--

Battle stats:

Scizor 93% [Potentially disoriented and forgetful]

Vs.

Froslass 52% [boosted speed]


Name: @Axion ;
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 13
Pokemon Encountered: Smoochum, Froslass
Pokemon Captured: Sassy Smoochum
Area affects: Slippery path
Character Count: 23,852/45,000

-Park Ball x2
-Super Ball x2
-Hyper Ball x1


Gender: Male
Nature: Bold
Ability: Technician
TM Hidden Power - Fighting, TM Roost


Gender: Male
Nature: Jolly
Ability: Torrent
TM Earthquake, TM Ice Beam​

 

Despite Axion feeling that his attack had been described well enough to Scizor, there were both good and bad elements of the actual execution that occurred. Scizor’s confused face gave away more than Axion had originally intended, giving more honest confusion than the confused anger and rage he had tried to paint for the red-shelled pokemon. Eventually the fury swipes intensified, doing little damage to the stone itself, merely leaving scratches that would fade away over time due to natural erosion and the severe weather. Scizor’s intensity grew continuously as the attack attempted to lure the offending Froslass into a false sense of superiority. Axion tensely watched for the telltale sign of a head or body poking out from the solid rock surrounding the three assembled beings.

As Scizor’s fury cutter reached its approximately maximum intensity and the pokemon itself appeared to be tiring of this repetitive task, the efforts were rewarded. Froslass, be it in annoyance, confusion, or curiosity began to materialize itself out of the mountainside. The head extended out first, and the rest of the body soon followed, until the icy maiden was fully exposed and close to Scizor. She cautiously moved towards the attacking pokemon, a sinister grin spreading across her face, the facial expression truly haunting in Axion’s mind. However, he was convinced that the next sequence of events would be more to Scizor’s liking, more offensive and less of the underhanded tactics; the bug-type was far more favorable to the direct assault in the end.

While Axion’s pokemon was still putting on its false show of rage for Froslass, the ghost-type had been inching ever closer to her opponent. It stopped approximately five feet from Scizor, pausing there as if to judge the distance to its intended victim. As if shot from a cannon, Froslass launched herself towards Scizor. However, her confidence was replaced by confusion when Scizor no longer appeared in her line of fire. Instead of one Scizor there were now six distinct Scizor, all aiming directly at the helpless pokemon centered in the deadly ring. A high pitched sound escaped from Froslass’s agape mouth as she desperately attempted to change her strategy.

Before she could adequately respond, Axion yelled out “Bullet Punch now!”, the ferocity of his voice so high as to give the attack extra strength merely by the volume of his command. With practiced speed and precision aiming, Scizor rocketed forward at his opponent. The five copies did likewise, rapidly condensing the circle that surrounded Froslass. In the moments that the Scizor army moved towards Froslass, small sparks of seemingly electrical energy spouted forth from the ghost pokemon in an erratic defense. These wayward bolts of energy shot towards the attackers, destroying many of Scizor’s body doubles as they finalized their group attack. Axion realized that Froslass had at least gleaned some small part of his strategy, and he gave her credit for the cunning that obviously existed within her mind. Of course, such defenses were in vain; As the electrical spark sent towards him made contact, the bug-type pokemon releasing no more than a barely audible grunt in reaction to the weak pulse. Despite being the only Scizor left attacking, it was far too late for Froslass to dodge, and the bullet punch made contact with the sound of metal pinging against something solid. The sheer force of the impact stunned Froslass and pushed her backwards, nearly returning her involuntarily within the wall.

Scizor gave a speedy leap backwards, landing at Axion’s side. As the trainer looked at his pokemon for possible damage, he saw an extreme sense of bewilderment and confusion as the Claw pokemon started intently at the pincer it had so recently bonked its Froslass enemy with. The disoriented look was so overpowering that Axion had to closely inspect the affected claw for a moment. Seeing no damage or notable marks that would cause the look, Axion became stumped. He rapidly ran through the information on Froslass, the pokedex’s screen almost flowing too fast for many people to read anything, much less comprehend. There was much data on the mysterious ice maiden before him, but nothing that he found to explain Scizor’s facial expression.

While almost as confused as Scizor, Axion decided that it wasn’t important at the moment. There was still a battle to be fought, and Froslass was mildly taunting him just floating there in a pose of confidence and superiority. Yet behind all that, Axion felt he could see that the Froslass might be wearing down. The subtle ways its form moved around the ravine implied a sluggish sloppiness that had not been there upon the initial encounter. Axion felt like he could win, if his pokemon could hold in for a little longer. And while Scizor seemed to be unable to understand what his claw could possibly be doing at the end of his arm, there were other methods of attack.

The pokemon’s trainer waved his hand in front of Scizor’s eyes, vying for attention. “Scizor, for the next move you’re gonna have to use all your nimbleness and agility.” Pushing the claw down from the still stupefied pokemon’s vision, he continued. “What you need to do now is attack from a different direction. So, I want to try for an aerial assault using your speed and amazing aim. First, you are going to use the same method you used earlier in your agility attack. Bouncing across the two rock faces, but get a modest amount of height this time instead of pure speed. Your goal is really to constantly keep your eye on Froslass and gauge when she seems ready to attack you. Hopefully the height you gain will allow you to dodge a wayward ranged attack or two.”

Looking up at the canyon’s walls, Axion appreciated their existence. They had been invaluable so far today, and stood for a moment thinking before offering his next instruction. He didn’t want the instructions to be amazingly complex, or Scizor in its current state might have difficulties executing the plan to its fullest potential. He hoped that Froslass would mistake the plan for another attempt to gain speed through agility, but the pokemon had thus far been quite crafty in realizing his plans before they came to fruition. “When Froslass goes to attack, you are going to immediately aim towards her from whatever angle you can. Drop down to gain more speed with gravity, then extend those wings of yours to hit Froslass full on with a strong wing attack. Then, hop back over here so we can assess the damage. The combination of your speed and power, mixed with the element of surprise might be enough to get in some good damage.” Axion was imagining the steel-coated insect wings both battering the Froslass and blowing it away with the mixture of grace and speed, both of which Scizor excelled at. He watched as Scizor gazed at the walls, seeming to calculate jumps and angles. Axion just hoped that the confusion he had seen in Scizor’s face would not get in the way of the plan he had carefully outlined.

@Synthesis

 

@Axion; As requested!

BP#1

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

The snow crunched under her boots as Ivy left the snow-covered wasteland above and ducked into the caves on Oktori. Her phone beeped rhythmically, set to GPS mode. Jay, one of the Rangers, had something come up and needed to go, but his Trainer didn't want to leave the Park yet. She was going to take over so... Axion, she read on the digital file, could finish up. It happened a lot really.

She flicked the phone to silent mode as she traversed through the caves—the noise was starting to echo off the walls and she didn't to attract any attention of possible. The map on her phone showed a flashing dot for her destination, and they were drawing near.

Haji, her Espeon, followed swiftly beside her, easily maneuvering the paths they traveled so often. Other than Deckbi, the cold mountain was probably her most-visited area. The purple cat glided through the rock-strewn and icy paths with ease, while Ivy had to be a bit more careful. More than a few times she needed to steady herself with a hand against the rough stone wall.

“I guess they were heading to the lake,” she told the Psychic-type after a few minutes, checking out the map on her phone. “We haven't been there in a while.”

They continued through the tunnels until Ivy heard a shrill cry. The path rumbled just faintly—she could see tiny stones wobbling on the floor. Looking at her map, she figured that was their destination. With quicker steps, they kept going.

When Ivy knew they were close, she put away her phone. She could hear the sounds of something scraping against stone. The Trainer she was going to overseer was probably in a battle. Before she could turn the bend in the path, Haji suddenly pushed forward and planted himself in front of her, bracing his feet in a battle post and facing their destination. She could feel his unease rippling through the air and across their mental bond.

“You will not like this,” he said. The Espeon was blocking out what he was thinking, so she couldn't cheat and see what had him concerned.

“Well, we have to go see, whatever it is,” she said.

Haji gave her a long look, but eventually he nodded. She felt a few of his filtered thoughts, and the gist of it was that he was confident he could protect her if necessary. As Ivy caught up to him, she rubbed his ears, and then her Ranger face came on.

The next corridor was halfway between an open room and a hallway. It looked like the jagged path had been squished in from the sides at odd angles. It wasn't wide-open, but it was spacious enough that a battle could be waged. And that was a good thing, because there was a battle going on.

The first thing she noticed as a red-plated insect next to a Trainer in grays with bright almond hair. The upright bug she noticed right away as a Scizor—one of the most sought after Steel-types. She had brought Chainy's brother, Jathan, into the Woods where he battled one. Both the man and the Pokemon looked a little dazed and concerned, but they were working out some kind of plan that she wasn't close enough to hear yet. She did see the cause of their worry, however.

A ghost was floating further down the path, hovering above the floor. She was semi-translucent, and even though Ivy's heavy red vest kept her warm, she still shivered and sent the hairs underneath her three-quarter sleeve on edge. The Ice-type was also sought after—a Froslass. Her body swayed from side to side, with two sleeve-like appendages to match the sort of dress the rest of her body was made up with. She had a red sash tied around her waist.

Ivy remembered Froslass well. On the last midnight run she embarked on, she had gotten possessed by one of these. The ghost had had a grudge since her previous Trainer had passed away, and she was causing a bunch of Pokemon in Oktori to become enraged and attack each other. While it wasn't the same one, Ivy was still unnerved a bit, but she kept that to herself.

“Hey, Jay, I can take over now,” she greeted as she approached the other Ranger. With a nod, he headed off the way she had come in to go do whatever he needed to.

“The combination of your speed and power, mixed with the element of surprise, might be enough to get in some good damage,” she caught, just as the Scizor nodded and braced himself.

Then, with a burst of speed, he jumped up to the wall. It was like watching a ping-pong ball as he bounced off the rock faces, working his way down the hall toward the ghost. He was pretty fast too, which surprised a lot of people not used to working with Steel-types.

The Froslass watched closely, her eyes glued to the bright red bug. Her hands twitched like she was going to take action, but her eyes never moved from the Scizor's form. Had she seen the technique before maybe?

The ghost was tense and seemed to be waiting to strike, perhaps with some sort of trick. The Scizor was watching the ghost closely too, however, and as he inched closer, she saw the slight shift of his muscles. The Froslass suddenly tensed, and Ivy saw her grin, but that was when the red Pokemon chose to strike.

He kicked off the wall, and instead of swinging his body feet first into the next wall, he angled downward and twisted. His wings made a shing! sound as they slid out, and then he let himself fall. Due to his careful watching, he came down right on the Ice-type.

The Froslass shrieked as he slammed into her, knocking her to the floor as he hit the bulk of her body. She struck out, her plans ruined, but she managed to throw the Bug-type slightly off balance. Instead of twisting so he landed on his feet, the Scizor rolled and hit the floor, coming to a stop when his back hit the cave wall.

From the floor the ghost cried out again unhappily, and Ivy's skin started to prickle as the temperature dropped. An icy wind blew through the tunnel, and the Ranger ducked down so Haji could be concealed in her long vest. She shivered, and ice began to form in her long, red hair. Tendrils of white and light-blue energy whispered through the cave, thick enough so they could see them, and she saw the Scizor's joints gain a slight sheen as he laid against the wall. The red plates on his body were starting to pale and gain a white-ish coat as well.

Ivy had seen this technique used many times before, particularly on Steel-types who usually were fairly protected against most Ice attacks. She was trying to freeze his joints and prevent him from moving. Axion was going to have to stop it if Scizor was going to protect himself.

“Careful,” Ivy said, hoping she didn't startle the Trainer with the change of guard. “I've seen this done before. If you don't get him moving, she's going to try to freeze the vulnerable joints between his limbs. I'm Ivy, by the way. Jay asked me to take over.”

Then, the wind blew harder as the Froslass got up. She kicked backwards and floated further down the cave and out of reach of the Scizor. The ice chunks in the wind picked up speed, and it was harder to see. The tiny pellets made small dings off of the red bug's armor. It was possible the Froslass was getting ready to change attacks, like maybe to a Blizzard or something similar. In a hall this small, that could be bad.

However, she decided to do something much worse. When she was a safer distance away and the wind was an acceptable barrier between the two fighters, she straightened up and opened her mouth. At first it was just a low hum barely audible over the gusts, but then it got louder.

“Cover your ears!” Ivy yelled, already acting to cover her own. “She's starting to Sing. If Scizor doesn't stop it, we're all going to fall asleep!”

She could already see Scizor slightly nodding off. His head jerked as he tried to stay awake, but his eyes kept fluttering. He was closest and at the most risk, but they all had a chance of freezing to death if they conked out. Axion would have to act fast or they were all in trouble.

---

Current Battle Stats:

??? F Froslass: 39% [Spe+2][Used Icy Wind. Using Sing]
Bold M Scizor: 89% [Spe-1][Used Wing Attack]

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Axion
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 13
Area Effects: In a jagged cave.
Pokémon Encountered: Smoochum, Froslass
Pokémon Captured: Sassy F Smoochum
MCR: 30,896/45,000 [Special Rank]

Items: Park Ball x2, Super Ball x2, Hyper Ball x1

Pokémon Stats

Bold M Scizor @ 89%
Ability: Technician
EMs: Hidden Power Fighting, Roost

Jolly M Empoleon @ 64%
Ability: Torrent
EMs: Earthquake, Ice Beam

 

@WinterVines

As Axion and Scizor were quietly conversing over the details of the latest plan in the grueling battle, he had noticed out of the corner of his eye that someone, a human, had shown up quite unexpectedly. The ranger, for that was all he could assume she was, spoke with Jay for a moment or two before he rapidly retreated from the battle, taking a similar route to the one the female had just appeared from. Froslass seemed uninterested in the humans as they switched places, however the ghost did take special notice in the Espeon that followed calmly. Axion assumed it was this new ranger’s primary companion, and returned his attention to his pokemon, and the battle at hand. “The combination of your speed and power, mixed with the element of surprise might be enough to get in some good damage.” Standing back, the trainer waited for Scizor to begin, anticipation in both ready to burst. The battle was long and tough, and Axion himself was enjoying the challenge that had presented itself so early in their run, while his pokemon still had sufficient energy to deal with it.

Axion watched as Scizor flew off, his even now reduced speed impressive for the bug type. The red blur gained speed, as well as gaining altitude a foot at a time. Bouncing from wall to wall, Scizor tried to confuse Froslass while simultaneously preparing for the what could possibly be one of the final attacks for this encounter. The deadly dance continued for only moments, however it felt like a long drawn out waiting game. Axion specifically observed the ice maiden, standing there impassive for the first few seconds. Her eyes then began to train on Scizor, preemptively following his ascension along the walls, her hands twitching on occasion. Axion thought it looked vaguely similar to the snatch that Froslass had tried to pull earlier, but this time there would be nothing to snatch; merely the power of a full on attack, a contact of steel and ice.

He took a moment to look over at the ranger that replaced Jay while Scizor was building up power. She was about average height, bright red hair, and was wearing a red vest over her jacket to identify herself as a ranger. His distracted attention was short lived, however, as Scizor reached his peak just moments after he had looked away. With grace uncommon to many steel types, Scizor launched himself downward, towards the unforgiving rust-red stone and their pokemon opponent below. As Froslass’ face started to show a hint of unexpected panic, a vicious sound sliced through the frigid air like a knife as Scizor’s paper thin wings appeared from their stored position. Down came Scizor, the force of gravity and mass behind him, as he slammed flat into the much smaller ice-type pokemon. A shrill shriek escaped from Froslass’ diminutive mouth, sending small jolts of pain through Axion’s ears as the sound echoed through the caves, amplifying the terrible sound. As Scizor disengaged from his target, the small hand-attached-to-an-ear struck out on impulse. The slight contact was enough to twist Scizor’s flight path. Instead of landing gracefully a fair distance away from Froslass, he instead barrel rolled, landing with his red hard-shelled back flat against a wall of the cave. Instantly, the wings retracted to their former position, safe from further harm.

Froslass’ wail of pain and alarm, which had until now merely been an annoying noise that Axion had attempted to block out from his conscious mind, now greatly intensified and changed pitch to something far more ominous as it bounced through the caverns, calling upon some unknown force. The temperature of the cave dropped sharply as a freezing cold wind was forced through the narrow cavern tunnels that surrounded the impromptu battlefield. He saw the new ranger duck down, offering warm and protection against the sudden wind chill to her partner pokemon, who gladly hid under the safety of the proffered vest. Axion felt his own hair gathering thin beads of ice, weighing his head down as he attempted to bunch himself closer together against the increased frigidity in the air. Scizor was not untouched, wraithlike white and blue tendrils that swooped through the air wrapping around him like vicious alien tentacles, focusing on the vulnerable joints in his arms and legs that allowed Scizor his freedom of movement. Surrounding these points, the red carapace itself was beginning to change from ruby red to a frosted pink appearance, and snowy white in others, the icy wind coating Scizor’s near-helpless form with layers of ice crystals.

“Careful,” the new ranger suddenly interjected, breaking Axion’s concentration on the events unfolding in front of him. “I've seen this done before. If you don't get him moving, she's going to try to freeze the vulnerable joints between his limbs. I'm Ivy, by the way. Jay asked me to take over.”

Axion nodded but didn’t say much, his attention far too intent on watching Froslass do her deadly work. The frost inched around the joints, attempting to lock them completely. His mind was furiously racing, attempting to decide what the best way to get Scizor moving would be. Before he could attempt to call out the chosen move, Froslass changed tactics. Floating slowly away from the almost immobile steel bug, the wind wrapped around her like a cloak, swinging minute chunks of ice around in circles throughout the cave. The visions within became worse, and Axion had trouble making out the semi-transparent ghost that had now begun to produce a noise. It was fairly calm at first, nothing more than a gentle note that contrasted with the harsh weather she had created around them. As the volume of the single tone rose, one tone became two, and the notes increased in a fairly geometric progression. Eventually, Axion could hear a full song escaping what passed for Froslass’ lips.

“Cover your ears!” Ivy yelled, already acting to cover her own. “She's starting to Sing. If Scizor doesn't stop it, we're all going to fall asleep!”

Axion’s mind registered that with some difficulty,his eyelids having already begun to act on the hypnotic pattern of notes that danced throughout the ice-covered cave that they were all inhabiting. In all reality, sleep would probably feel good. But some part of his mind drug him back long enough to realize that a battle was still going on, and Scizor was currently stuck against a wall about to be put to sleep. Dredging up his wakefulness by planting his hand firmly against the frozen wall, the spike of cold brough momentary clarity to his befuddled mind. “Scizor!” he yelled through cracked lips, every word an effort now. “You need to get up long enough to use vacuum wave! We need your two claws to create enough of a pocket to envelop Froslass for just a few seconds.” Before he continued, he placed his other hand against the wall to add more power to his somewhat awakened state. “If you can just block her sound off for those few moments the spell will be broken! You aren’t allowed to sleep until you’ve shown Froslass you’re better than her!”

While Axion knew that vacuum wave was a fighting type move and thus useless against Froslass herself due to her advantageous ghost typing, he planned on isolating the pokemon from the surrounding air waves, not hitting the pokemon with a force itself. Instead of a direct attack, remove the medium that the music was travelling through and thus stop the problem before it became too much to bear. He hoped Scizor could stay awake long enough to use it, but he hoped the minor motions the move needed would be easy enough for the drowsy insect. “If this works,” he continued, slowly losing the will to fight against the drowsiness creeping in from all sides, “You need to nick Froslass with another light pursuit, as she’ll probably try to get away from you as quick as possible. You need to move before you get stuck there and Froslass wins. I know you’re strong enough to beat her, now prove it to her!” His legs failed him as he sat kneeling in the snow-covered cave, waiting and desperately hoping to see if the plan succeeded.

 

@Axion;

BP#2

Ranger Ivy Frost

---

Ivy wasn't sure Axion heard her at first. He turned to look, but his eyes looked far away, and his head kept jerking like he was nodding off. He was going to have to really focus for a few minutes if he wanted to get an order out to Scizor.

The Ranger could feel the cold biting at her skin and knew that even if they didn't fall asleep, they still had a very real chance of freezing. She had seen many pictures of frostbite during training, and she wanted no part of that. Axion's clothes looked pretty matched for an Oktori expedition, which was a step up from a lot of other Trainers (particularly Chainy's brother, Jakk, who was bare-chested), but the wind was biting and ice was beginning to cling to the garments. Even Ivy, who was used to extreme conditions, didn't like it.

“Haji,” she said, ducking her head down so he would hear. It wasn't necessary, because he could read her thoughts, but it was habit. “Can you gather some heat here? Just a little bit so that we don't freeze while they finish.”

As she felt the Espeon's energy spike, she checked out the field. The Froslass's song was rising in pitch, and she could see frosty cracks starting to trace patterns on the Scizor's red armor. Axion noticed this too, and Ivy watched him struggle against sleep as he called out to his Pokemon. He braced a hand against the icy cave wall and shouted, “Scizor!”

The next words came out slightly distorted—either by the wind or that it was hard for him to speak. “You need to get up long enough to use Vacuum Wave!” he called. “If you can just block her sound off for those few moments, the spell will be broken! You aren't allowed to sleep until you've shown Froslass you're better than her!”

The last was a jibe to the bug's natural competitive spirit. The last one Ivy had seen had almost been a tribal prize from the way she had fought. They had had an arena hidden away in the Woods and everything. While Pokemon were individuals, some things remained the same too.

The Scizor struggled, but she could see his limbs start to move. There was a faint creak as he bent the limbs that threatened to freeze over. One of his pincers slowly tried to close and open again, and the red plates shifted like he was going to get up. In the background, the Froslass sang louder.

Ivy shook her head to chase the drowsy feeling away, and then, Haji's energy spilled forward. His eyes glowed and eerie blue as five orbs of a glowing warm color formed around him. They moved slightly closer to the Trainer so that he could share in the warmth, and that dancing energy followed, hovering as the Espeon moved them into place. Red-orange flames licked the walls of the invisible spheres, and Ivy could feel the heat radiating off of them. While heat could lull someone to sleep too, the cold was worse. If his plan went well, they wouldn't have to worry about sleep any longer anyway.

“If his works,” the Trainer added, “you need to nick Froslass with another light Pursuit, as she'll probably try to get away from you as quick as possible. You need to move before you get stuck in there and Froslass wins. I know you're strong enough to beat her, now prove it to her!”

The red-colored bug nodded, and Ivy watched as he slowly dragged his limbs where he wanted them. His legs moved to face the other wall, and then using the rocks, he pushed himself up as his plates groaned in complaint. He stayed leaning against the wall, but Ivy felt the wind slightly change.

The Icy Wind was still coming down, but there were now pockets where the air didn't blow quite smooth. Suddenly, Scizor jerked his claws up, still supported in back by the cave wall, and the wind responded. She saw the snow and debris in the air halt for a moment, as if jerked in the opposite direction. Then, there was a swirl near the ghost.

With a whoosh, the Froslass choked, her air sucked out of the room by the Vacuum Wave. She staggered and fell, brushing at her throat. Ivy imagined it was much like taking a drink and swallowing down the wrong tube. It wasn't pleasant.

To make matters worse, the Vacuum dislodged a few loose rocks with its force, and guided by the Scizor's current, they came crashing down toward the Froslass. She cried out as one struck her on the back, and thanks to that and the urge to dodge the rest that fell, she pitched forward, even closer to the Bug-type.

Scizor pushed himself off the wall and took a couple of staggering steps. He shook himself off, and then he seemed to steady himself as he honed in on the ghost. Bursting forward, he made a swipe at the ghost as she shrieked, trying to get away from him. The red-plated insect wouldn't give up, however, and followed, chasing her back and swiping.

Eventually, the Froslass gathered energy to herself. A ball of green and yellow energy formed in front of her, and with a savage cry, she threw her arms forward as the orb morphed into a beam. Scizor stopped chasing just in time to throw up his arms in an X in front of him as they took the blow. The beam gleamed in reds, purples, and blues in an almost box-like pattern—a Signal Beam.

As Scizor shook off the attack, the Froslass retreated further. Unfortunately, n the cramped hallway, there was nowhere else to go. She glared at the bug and then moved her limbs together. She swung outward, paused for a minute, and then hauled her body against the side of the cliff. Some of the rocks loosened from the Vacuum Wave began to give, and there was a slight rumble.

“If she doesn't stop that,” Ivy warned, warily watching the ceiling. Small rocks and bits of snow were raining down on them. “She might cause a cave-in. I don't really want to be stuck in here, do you?”

---

Current Battle Stats:

??? F Froslass: 24% [Spe+2][Used Signal Beam. Using Avalanche]
Bold M Scizor: 80% [Spe-1][Used Vacuum Wave and Pursuit]

---

Trainer Stats

Name: Axion
Location: Mount Oktori
Encounters Remaining: 13
Area Effects: In a jagged cave.
Pokémon Encountered: Smoochum, Froslass
Pokémon Captured: Sassy F Smoochum
MCR: 38,982/45,000 [Special Rank]

Items: Park Ball x2, Super Ball x2, Hyper Ball x1

Pokémon Stats

Bold M Scizor @ 80%
Ability: Technician
EMs: Hidden Power Fighting, Roost

Jolly M Empoleon @ 64%
Ability: Torrent
EMs: Earthquake, Ice Beam

 

@WinterVines

As the commands to Scizor faintly rung out in between waves of sleepiness that constantly threatened to overcome him, Axion felt a warmth that enveloped him momentarily, boosting his remaining energy. He saw Ivy’s Espeon generating small spheres of heat energy that surrounded the three beings on the outside of the battle violently raging within the cave. Despite having picked comfortable and appropriate attire for the trip through a mountainous region, the outerwear seemed ineffective against such an onslaught of power that Froslass controlled. Figuring that the pokemon had saved them for another precious few seconds, Axion remembered to thank the psychic pokemon as he struggled to keep his attention on the bug pokemon that was attempting to defeat his opponent, the crafty Froslass.

With obvious difficulty, small cracks began to appear in the layers of frost that coated Scizor’s body, that had until now given him an appearance not unlike a seated snow-pokemon that children were known to build in winter. The cracks grew larger, tracing thin lines that surrounded the stiff joints and showing a slow but definable progress towards movement and eventually freedom. Pincers that had been frozen shut were now beginning to inch open, and the red armor began to reappear as the ice flaked off in small bits that shattered as they hit the rock floor. The left arm finally broke free of its frigid confinement with a loud crack, which allowed it to stiffly move and assist in clearing the ice from the other arm. The arms then moved in unison, dragging Scizor’s body gently up to rise from its seated position, using the solid stone wall behind him to remain upright as his body began to take control over its movements again. Groans erupted from the steel plates as they were forced to move despite the layers of ice that still threatened to immobilize the Steel-type pokemon.

In response to Scizor’s defiance against the winter-like offensive by Froslass, the music that hauntingly echoed through the corridors had risen in volume. it was now as if the air was palpable, and movement occurred in slow motion, as if one could literally swim in the heavy emptiness surrounding them. Her face mirrored the concentration and focus that was being poured into the lullaby she weaved in complex patterns to envelop the four beings that had unintentionally intruded into her home. But as the song continued, there were variations now that occurred in the cave , mainly near Scizor. The wind that still whipped through the tunnels bringing the ice crystals with it was now being deflected, as if Scizor’s claws were deflecting the air itself. These pincers were now moving in simple, rapid movements, while the deflected region appeared to grow larger. In a flash, the ruby pincers shot forward, bringing with them a sphere of nothingness that barreled towards the singing pokemon. With no time to react, the evacuated region covered Froslass, instantly choking off the song of sleep. Axion felt his wits slowly returning to him as the last residual effects of the ghostly lullaby faded away. Now the trainer could finally observe and command at peak efficiency.

Scizor’s vacuum wave, while not directly damaging Froslass, had other advantageous effects. As Axion watched the Froslass gasp for air in the empty space around her, she began to grasp for her throat. The writhing form continued to grow more anxious, the grasping becoming almost violent. Scizor watched, a satisfied look spread across his red and white streaked face. With some of the energy from the attack remaining, the pokemon idly waved the vacuum balls at rocks that hung above the ghost type pokemon. They fell, hitting the Froslass and adding damage to the otherwise ineffective attack. The hit forced Froslass closer to Scizor, despite her desire to move in the opposite direction. Taking advantage of its returned motion and vigor, Scizor aimed to complete the attack pattern offered by his trainer. The first few steps were uncertain, as if the pokemon was learning to walk again. Once balance was regained, the crimson insect darted forward, missing by mere millimeters as the vacuum finally dispersed, giving Froslass the ability to scream once again. This ability was well utilized as she released a howl that shook the very rock walls in its pitch. Scizor, ignoring the harsh voice that had torn through the cave, again threw his pincer forward in an attempt to make contact, being rewarded with the smallest of hits. Froslass rapidly retreated, however Scizor had regained the lost speed from being frozen, and effectively utilized it to give chase to the fleeing maiden.

After Froslass finally managed to free herself from Scizor's endless pursuit, she reached out to the walls of the room and began a low chant. As the chant continued, a ball of energy rapidly grew in front of her. It bathed the mostly white pokemon as well as her surroundings with waves of alternating green and yellow light, hypnotic in the darker cave. Before Axion could yell for Scizor to dodge, Froslass savagely cried out, throwing her arms forward as she did so. The sphere instantly stretched itself, becoming a beam of stored energy that aimed directly at Scizor. The helpless bug pokemon only had time to defend himself with crossed arms as the beam impacted, glowing in shades of blue that changed to purple then red faster than the eye could fully comprehend. Its rectangular form gave the move away, a bug-type move that thankfully did not inflict serious damage to the also bug-typed Scizor. He shook off the shock, and prepared for his next instruction. To Axion, this attack seemed to be one more of desperation than of careful planning. Perhaps Froslass was finally becoming desperate, he thought to himself.

In response to his thoughts, Froslass again began acting up. She further retreated into the narrow hall behind her, then gave a vile look at her opponent, shining from the melted ice that still remained in spots. He hands went together, and a violent lurch towards the otherwise innocent cavern wall caused a quiet rumble. Rocks that had been loosened by the earlier vacuum wave also stirred, forcing a foreboding look in the ranger’s eye. “If she doesn't stop that,” Ivy warned, warily watching the ceiling as small rocks and bits of snow rained down down on the two trainers, “she might cause a cave-in. I don't really want to be stuck in here, do you?”

Axion nodded, understanding apparent in his eyes and motions. From his belt, he plucked a very special ball he had bought in preparation for the run. Unlike the mottled reddish ball he had caught Smoochum with, this ball had a more vibrant pattern on blacks and yellows, meant to look like the ultra ball it was likely built after. He looked at it, anticipation the potential capture of such a powerful pokemon, and the friendship and trust they could possibly build up. Axion felt the sphere grow in his hand upon contact with the button, and he muttered “I really hope this works” just loud enough for the ranger to hear. He then pulled his arm back, lobbing the special Hyper Ball in the direction of the Froslass that threatened to end their lives so suddenly.