Gen VI Run - Elysia

BP3 (vs Honedge)

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere

*~~~~~~~~~*


Alyssa looked just as startled as Rikishi at seeing Honedge's attack. I can't say I blamed her though... it wasn't every day that one saw an animated sword shoot a beam of light out of its pommel. That was one of the features of the Park that made it both unique and more than a little annoying; the battles were bound to be interesting, but it also meant that the Trainer would have to think more outside the box.


“Back off, Rikishi,” Alyssa warned the Absol. “We'll try picking it off at a distance, so try to stay as far away from it as possible.”


Her Pokemon just got hit with a long-ranged attack, and she still wants to keep her distance? I tried to puzzle out Alyssa's strategy, watching as Rikishi began to back away once more. Absol were best at close-quarters fighting, and their strength with long-distance attacks was passable at best. I took at look over at Gaard, seeing that his eyes were glued on the fellow Absol. Instead of looking worried though, he seemed to show extreme interest in what attack the other Pokemon would use.


Thankfully, it didn't take long for the Trainer to decide her next plan of attack. “Start charging up a Razor Wind, but lace in a Thunder Wave as well when you've got the energy. If the Honedge tries to attack you, force it back as best as you can with the wind, okay?”


Rikishi complied, his fur rustling slightly as a breeze began to gather around his form. Over time the wind would increase in strength, and launch towards a specified target. The big downside was, of course, that the move required a bit of time to charge before striking at full power.


Upon seeing the starting sparks of electricity being woven into the wind, Honedge finally let its Reflect drop. Instead, a metallic sheen covered its form instead, increasing defense in a way that didn't require holding a barrier for a long amount of time. Once this was done, the blade charged towards Rikishi, switching once more to close combat.


With his opponent moving in to attack, Rikishi unleashed his attack in an attempt to repel the wild Pokemon. At the last moment, Honedge swapped tactics; rather than move in for the kill, it unsheathed and dropped straight to the ground in front of the Absol, its blade cracking the tile as it slammed down. The sheer force from the gale battered on its form, but it managed to hold fast. As for the interwoven electric current, it seemed to have little to no effect.


“Did it just ground itself?” I wondered aloud, watching the electricity dissipate. I had heard stories where Pokemon had managed to become immune to Electric attacks, but I had never seen it in person until just now. Blade or not, this thing had some tricks up its nonexistent sleeves.


With the gale passed, Honedge dislodged itself from the ground and charged its blade with a shining amber aura. Still trying to recover from unleashing his earlier attack, Rikishi could only attempt to parry the attack once more with his horn. While unsuccessful, the slash only struck his left shoulder instead of the Absol's midsection. The attack clearly hurt, but thankfully Honedge's burn made the attack far weaker than normal.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Battle Statistics:

Serious Male Absol: 72%, EVA+1, SATK-1, (used Razor Wind, Thunder Wave)
??? Male Honedge: 60%, BRN, DEF+2 (used Iron Defense, Sacred Sword)


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 12 Encounters remaining
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow
CC since last Encounter: 20,651/25,000

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x2), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

Alyssa mentally cheered as the Reflect barrier dropped--

--and she mentally cursed as the Honedge paused, braced itself, and coated itself in a thick, metallic sheen that she recognized as Iron Defense--she'd seen that move far too often to know that Iron Defense would have the same effect as a Reflect barrier would, with the added bonus that the Honedge wouldn't have to devote a constant stream of energy into keeping itself protected from close-ranged attacks. No more trying to run out that time-clock. Alyssa half-opened her mouth, trying to see if she could maybe shout out to Rikishi to disrupt the Honedge before it could finish, but she knew that the Absol wouldn't be fast enough to react in time, occupied as he was with charging his Razor Wind and purposefully being far away from the fight in the first place.

The Honedge, too, managed to zip forward before grounding itself, protecting itself from the paralysis as Rikishi released his charged Razor Wind, cracking the tile in the process.

Alyssa raised her eyebrows, trying to hide how impressed she was. She'd seen some interesting battles were Pokemon managed to ground themselves using steel-typed moves; the Honedge, as a steel-type, could not doubt do the same, but the difference was that she'd discovered the technique while watching a champion battle, whereas the Honedge spent most of its time chilling in an abandoned mansion and such. It was quite smart; she'd give it that.

Rikishi, thankfully, once again managed to repel the bulk of the attack with his scythe, and that, combined with the burn damage, kept him from being stabbed through the middle with some attack that Alyssa didn't quite recognize (probably that sword-based one that she formerly thought only legendary Pokemon could learn, but apparently this sword was tricky). He hissed in pain, taking a few steps backward, but Alyssa knew that they weren't quite out of the fight yet. From the looks of it, both Rikishi and the Honedge were still fairly strong, and between the Reflect and the burn, neither Pokemon had been able to get off a devastating blow.

But now that the Honedge was in close range, Alyssa could turn that around. She'd preferred fighting the Honedge where it was--getting in close or backing off to keep Rikishi out of range wasted precious time; if the Honedge was far away and they could pick it off from a distance, she'd do that; if not, she wouldn't. "Future Sight, defensively if you can, and then use Bite." Alyssa paused and considered the ramifications of commanding her Pokemon to eat a sword. "On the sheath, mind you, and try to keep your horn up like you've been doing."

Rikishi closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them, the crimson irises had turned bright blue, indicative of the psychic power he was exerting. Alyssa had always been in awe of Absol--their ability to sense incoming disaster, along with their pariah-like status, had made them something of a legend in her area. A sort of legend that tended to come before tidal waves and volcanic eruptions and general destruction, but it was fascinating nonetheless. Rikishi, like most of his species, was a sort of harbinger, a black cat of the Pokemon world, and it almost felt a little cheap to use such a creature as a petty battler, but Pokemon was Pokemon and she'd heard of a guy who had used Lugia, God of the Sea, as a way to joke around with inexperienced players (and, you know, crush their souls and dreams).

But, point being, when combined with Rikishi's latent ability to predict the oncoming storms, Future Sight had downright weird affects. Sometimes, the Absol summoned a massive blue sphere of energy from the sky (although it took a little while for heavenly smiting to occur); sometimes, he managed to dodge an incoming attack from his knowledge of the future. Alyssa had never been able to understand exactly what the move did, although she'd tried several times; from the best that she could gather, he utilized his disaster-seeking abilities as best as he could to sense oncoming danger--not the big, catastrophic stuff like earthquakes or tornadoes, but smaller things like another attack. Whether the oncoming danger was an attack aimed at him, though, or one of his own creation, tended to vary. From what Alyssa had seen, he had some degree of control over it, and he tended to prefer using the defensive variant to dodge the disaster rather than create it, so there was that.

Whatever ended up happening in the stratosphere, the Absol quickly took a step backward to prepare himself and reared back on his haunches, his mouth open and beginning to crackle with dark, fizzling energy. Rikishi's teeth elongated as well, growing from small white stubs into intimidating fangs, and he silently plunged back down, preparing to lock his iron jaws around the sword. The blade, Alyssa knew, was definitely off limits--dark-type energy or no, she didn't want to have her Absol eating any steel, or anything of the extremely sharp and dangerous variety, really. The sheath, however, was an entirely different matter. If things got mixed up, though, and the Honedge didn't decide to be a good target (which, her brain told her belatedly, was about ninety-five percent likely), there was always the hope that the Future Sight gave them an edge, or that the dark-type energy on Rikishi's fangs gave him some degree of protection from the blade.

 

BP4 (vs Honedge)

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere

*~~~~~~~~~*


Despite all the tricks that Honedge had managed to pull off so far, both Rikishi and Alyssa didn't seem disheartened in the least. If anything, the Absol took his injuries for granted and looked ready for more.


“Future Sight, defensively if you can, and then use Bite.” There was a moment of pause between the two, as if both were forgetting something vital. Finally Alyssa added, “On the sheath, mind you, and try to keep your horn up like you've been doing.”


Perhaps it was some trick of the light, but Rikishi seemed to roll his eyes upon hearing the last part. Beside me, Gaard gave a light snort as well- after all, few Pokemon were dense enough to lunge and attack the sharp point of any opponent's body. Still, it was a good thing Alyssa said to target the sheath rather than the blue tassel that dangled from the blade.


Rikishi's eyes began to glow a light blue color, the Absol using his powers of prescience to look forward in time and plan a future attack. While he set up though, Honedge wasn't going to just lie about and wait- seeing that Rikishi was distracted, it landed another slice on the white-furred Pokemon. While this one didn't appear to be affiliated with any element, its burn seemed to empower the blow to deal more damage.


Rikishi flinched from the blow, but refused to let it break his concentration. Moments later, the blue glow from his eyes faded and the Absol whipped his head around to land a powerful Bite. Honedge attempted to back up, alarmed by his opponent's quickness, but was unable to move away in time as the Disaster Pokemon sunk his fangs in the sheath it was holding onto. It began to attempt ripping the object from Rikishi's grasp, but the Dark-type had a solid grip on it.


I watched the two Pokemon in their little tug-of-war, wondering why Honedge didn't simply release its hold. The sheath was not attached to its body, and the Ghost's spirit was likely in the sword itself- it had an eye on it, after all. Alexander had been the same with his sheath, even after he had evolved- maybe it held some of the Pokemon's power? Either way, Rikishi didn't look to be letting go anytime soon.


Honedge looked to be growing desperate, letting out little sounds that sounded almost like two swords clanging among one another. Finally, the noise volume increased to a shriek, letting off small sound-waves like Murkrow's Round from earlier. Unlike that attack, this one seemed more determined to make Rikishi break his hold.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Battle Statistics:

Serious Male Absol: 65%, EVA+1, SATK-1, SDEF-2 (used Future Sight, Bite)
??? Male Honedge: 41%, BRN, DEF+2 (used Facade, Metal Sound)
SIGHT-1


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 12 Encounters remaining
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow
CC since last Encounter: 26,058/25,000

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x2), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

OOC: I wasn't sure exactly when my Absol lets go of the Honedge--it felt sort of like god-modding to say, given that the Honedge could force him to let go earlier, so I tried to leave it open for you. I'm aware that he probably can't hold on the entire time, though.

Rikishi didn't manage to dodge the next oncoming attack, but there was always that coin toss with Future Sight. Although she couldn't see the signature blue glow of an incoming projectile, Alyssa wasn't worried; it took a little while for heaven's wrath to respond to the Absol's call and whatnot. The Honedge had gotten off another glancing blow--Alyssa couldn't quite recognize what, exactly; it looked somewhat like a supercharged Tackle--before Rikishi clamped his fangs onto the sheath. Alyssa had been mildly afraid that the Honedge would manage to redirect itself to impale Rikishi down the throat, which would be gory and violent and how did she even get these thoughts anyway, but, luckily, the Absol managed to fasten his jaws around the cursed sword's sheath. His body had inflated like a furry balloon, all snowy white hairs standing on end, but he managed to grit his teeth and stand his ground even as the Honedge attempted to pull away.

The stalemate held for a moment, great white beast and cursed sword locked together. It was almost amusing to watch the sword try to pry itself free from the jaws of the Absol, except Alyssa knew that the longer they held this position, the more likely the Honedge was to fire off some sort of counterattack. The blade was starting to look worse for the wear, what with still being on fire and such, but Rikishi was starting to show a little bit of fatigue as well. Alyssa knew that it was in his nature to push himself seriously to the furthest of his abilities, but she didn't want any of her Pokemon getting badly injured at the Park. Worst case scenario, she could switch him out for Astrid or Icarus and let them finish off the fight, although she knew that Rikishi wouldn't want to back down if there was strength left in his body.

It was times like these when she had to wonder about the ethical nature of catching Pokemon. The Honedge didn't seem particularly thrilled to come along with them, given that it was fighting tooth and nail (sword and sheath?) to get away and avoid capture. It'd probably been having a nice nap, too, before Alyssa and Rikishi had come along and decided to light it on fire. And now here she was, taking her prized Pokemon and risking its life by having it fight an undead sword about which she knew absolutely nothing, partially in the name of science and partially just for the cool points of it.

She was going to have to do some serious ethical pondering about raising Pokemon at some point, and--

--now was clearly not the time, because the Honedge was starting to act once more. At this point, seeing that mere struggling was futile, the Honedge began to shriek desperately from its (non-existent, maybe?) mouth, the echoing clangs of metal upon metal emanating from the epicenter and nearly sending Rikishi reeling back in pain. Absol had fairly sensitive ears, and the din was loud even for Alyssa, who was standing quite far away from the battle.

She was reminded of the Murkrow's shrieks from earlier, although those had forcibly battered Icarus around for damage, and these seemed to serve to unnerve Rikishi and get him to back off.

"Use Feint!" she called, raising her voice to be heard over the clashing metal sounds. "Let it think that you're only going to focus on attacking it, and then follow it up with a Pursuit if or when it tries to back away from you!" Shouting commands felt weird, but she had no choice over the Metal Sound attack. Perhaps she should try this more often.

Rikishi inclined his head gravely to indicate that he had heard, and then he slipped into motion, rearing back in one smooth motion with his left paw, black claws fully unsheathed, in preparation to swipe at the sword Pokemon. It wasn't a full-powered attack, and Rikishi wasn't burdened by trying to put any sort of elemental power into it, so he could act with increased speed compared to normal (apparently--they hadn't run the full speed tests, yet, so she wasn't quite sure). Feint was a pretty weak move, but it wasn't meant to be a show of power: it was intended to trick the opponent into believing that they were going to be hit, and it tended to work best on Pokemon who were trying to use Protect or Detect.

The Honedge seemed pretty keen on running away, so Alyssa would let it. Sort of. If it sensed Rikishi was on the offensive, she theorized, it would try to back off and redouble its efforts to get away, at which point the Absol would be prepared to leap after it. Pursuit was a sort of strange move; it worked better on fleeing opponents, for some reason, and Alyssa was intending to exploit this fact now. Rikishi was ready to snap into action and lunge at full speed, his claws once again imbued with dark-type energy; even if the Honedge decided to remain in place, he'd still be ready to hit it with an (albeit weaker) attack.

 

BP5 (vs Honedge)

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere

*~~~~~~~~~*


Thanks to the awful din Honedge was making with Metal Sound, I was forced to cover my ears to weather the assault. Looking back on it, it may not have been the most professional thing to do in case Alyssa tried to ask me a question, but for the moment I didn't care; there was no chance in the abyss I was going to lose my hearing due to fixing someone else's problem. Not for the first time today, I silently cursed Makina for asking me to help out. The front gate didn't likely have any shrieking swords, which is where I would have been in the first place!


I looked over at Alyssa, and saw that the Trainer was trying to shout out a new set of commands to Rikishi. Due to not being much of a lip-reader, I had no idea what she was telling the Absol to do. Fortunately for her though, the Dark-type appeared to have heard his partner.


As suddenly as he had latched on, Rikishi released his hold on Honedge. The blade fell backwards out of surprise- thanks to having no resistance, it was jerked back. Before Honedge could recover, the Absol swiped with one of his claws in a quick tagging gesture, as if trying to smack the blade before retreating.


Once Honedge had gotten its bearings, it swiped at Rikishi for the third time, this time its blade shimmering in a lime-green aura. While the blow looked weak, it shone with increased strength as the attack landed on the Absol's front right leg. Seeing that its strike had struck true, Honedge began to back up once more... and was hit immediately after by Rikishi, the Dark-type appearing as a pitch-black blur for a split second. Startled, the wild Pokemon staggered in place as it hovered.


As if Murphy's Law was striking back with a vengeance on the Ghost, a prism-hued orb of energy launched out what seemed to be thin air and shot towards Honedge, knocking the blade back a few feet. As the Wild Pokemon shakily picked itself off from the floor, Rikishi watched his opponent's actions with a smug look. The look was quickly wiped off his face though, for Honedge charged up his own sphere-shaped attack, this one a metallic silver color, and lobbed it forward.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Battle Statistics:

Serious Male Absol: 56%, EVA+1, SATK-1, SDEF-2 (used Feint, Pursuit)
??? Male Honedge: 21%, BRN, DEF+2 (used Fury Cutter, , hit by Future Sight, using Gyro Ball)


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 12 Encounters remaining
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow
CC since last Encounter: 30,900/25,000

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x2), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

Wow (of the much excite, so capture, very park, wow, variety).

Alyssa had, in her excitement, apparently failed to notice the fact that the area was still reverberating with deafening noise, to the point that Akinai had to cover her ears. Not only that, but she had also tried to shout her commands, shouted her commands, and then ignored the fact that, despite the fact that Rikishi was cleverer than the average Beartic, was not a wizard and could not manipulate sound, and probably couldn't hear the shouted commands when she could hardly hear them herself.

Miraculously, though, he understood, which was exceptionally useful. He immediately let go of the Honedge and swiped at it with the Feint, taking another blow cloaked in lime-green energy (perhaps this was a bug-typed attack; it certainly didn't look like a grass-typed one and she couldn't draw to mind any other sort of green-lighty-attacks short of Avada Kedavra) in the process. This battle really needed to end, quickly; the Absol was starting to look a little weather-beaten. The Honedge tried to rear back for another bout of his green-wizardy attack, but Rikishi blurred forward, bursting out of the shadows at supernatural speed and catching the blade with the full force of his Pursuit.

Well-played.

A few seconds later, Alyssa finally discovered the answer to her question: Rikishi had inadvertently created the attacking form of Future Sight, as indicated by the giant ball of blue heavenly light that appeared from nothing and smashed into the Honedge, knocking it back a few fee. The Honedge would reciprocate, no doubt, but Alyssa had no plans of letting that happen. Between taking damage from the Feint, the Pursuit, and the final launching of the Future Sight, the blade Pokemon was looking pretty exhausted. Oh, and it was still on fire; that had to be a hindrance to its ability to resist capture.

"Back off and use Detect to dodge whatever's coming," Alyssa called out, grateful that the clashing of the Metal Sound had subsided and she was able to hear herself think (and command) again. Rikishi nodded grimly and bent his legs, sensing all forms of energy through his scythe and preparing to dodge out of the way of an incoming attack. The move wouldn't work too well in succession--there was only so much psychic cheating that could be handled at a time--but, hopefully, it would buy Alyssa enough time to get out a Pokeball why hadn't she thought of this earlier. She fumbled through her backpack and pulled out another Park Ball, fingertips sliding over the cool metal surface before she lobbed the green-tinted ball in the direction of the weakened Honedge, which had just begun firing off a silvery attack of its own.

 

BP6 (vs Honedge)

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere

*~~~~~~~~~*


“Back off and use Detect to dodge whatever's coming,” Alyssa called out to Rikishi, seeing the charging attack. Afterwords, she began to dig through her pack for something- likely something to capture Honedge in, since the sword looked ready to fall in a metal heap at any second. Its burn was definitely sapping its energy, and the Absol had landed quite a few hits that dealt serious damage.


Rikishi stood his ground, all four paws firmly gripping the tile as he waited for Honedge to launch his attack. He didn't have long to wait, for moments later the Steel-type released the sphere and shot it towards the Absol. At the last second, the Disaster Pokemon nimbly dodged out of the way, earning a indignant shriek from his opponent.


By this time, Alyssa had managed to fish out a capture device... another Parkball, by the looks of it. She lobbed the sphere forward, and the surprised Pokemon was sucked into the Ball almost immediately. It fell to the ground, barely moving before it gave off a soft ping. Honedge had given it, and the battle was over.


“Nicely done!” I was unable to hide my surprise as I went over to retrieve Honedge's Ball, placing it inside the pack beside Murkrow. For a newcomer, the girl had taken on a dangerous Ghost and came out the victor. “Would you like to take a moment to rest your Absol? I don't believe there are any more Ghosts in the immediate area, both Gaard and Rikishi look pretty calm.”


*~~~~~~~~~*

Battle Statistics:

Serious Male Absol: 56%, EVA+1, SATK-1, SDEF-2 (used Detect)
??? Male Honedge: 21%, BRN, DEF+2 (used Gyro Ball)


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 12 Encounters remaining
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow, Sassy Male Honedge
CC since last Encounter: 33,612/25,000

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol (56%)
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x1), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

Rikishi nimbly dodged out of the way, reacting with more speed than Alyssa had expected, given how long the fight had been going. Although the Absol remained as serious as ever, his snowy flanks heaved and his head hung a little lower than before. Battling the cursed blade, it seemed, had tired him out greatly, although with any luck, the battle would end fairly soon.

Sure enough, the Park Ball hit the Honedge and sucked it inside. The sphere wobbled gently for a moment and then gave a soft 'ping,' indicating that the Pokemon had been captured. Alyssa let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, although she was hardly surprised--the Honedge had been fighting Rikishi for a long time, and it hadn't shown signs of being weakened up until the last moment. Still, she was relieved that they had gotten through this fight mostly in one piece--given that she knew very little about the newly-discovered Pokemon, she had been surprised by some of the tricks it had pulled, such as grounding itself. She was curious, too, to see what other aces the blade would have up its metaphorical sleeves, assuming she ended up taking it out of the Park.

"Nicely done!" Akinai called, retrieving the Pokeball, and Alyssa had to hide a little blush. In the heat of the moment, she'd forgotten that the Ranger was even there, and the realization had that weird sort of feeling that she might've had if the Ranger had walked in on, like, a sudden outburst of singing and dancing.

(Icarus calmly exited the plothole into which he had fallen during the battle) (Or, really, he decided that it was now a safe time to bother his Master once more). "Icarus could've done faster!" he crowed.

The Absol inclined his head and made a gesture that might've looked like he was raising one eyebrow derisively. His expression, however, remained as impassive as ever.

"“Would you like to take a moment to rest your Absol? I don't believe there are any more Ghosts in the immediate area, both Gaard and Rikishi look pretty calm," Akinai added, stowing the Park Ball in her bag.

Slowly, Alyssa allowed herself to disengage from crisis mode. "Rikishi, how are you holding up?" she asked quietly. The coast seemed clear, and both he and Gaard seemed to have relaxed considerably, as Akinia had pointed out moments before.

In response, the Absol merely tilted his head and padded back into position next to Alyssa, gravely dipping his scythe in form of greeting to Akinai's Absol before sinking into a sitting position by Alyssa's feet. She hoped that the other Absol wouldn't be offended by Rikishi's lack of interest--he was always a serious one, and it took him a while to get used to strangers. Absentmindedly, she ran her fingers through the Absol's snowy fur, and then she remembered where she was. "Rikishi hasn't learned any moves to recover his health yet," she said, thinking aloud.

"Kekeke, Icarus has!" the Murkrow crowed, while Rikishi endured the annoyance like Icarus was no more than an irritating fly (and, to the Disaster Pokemon, he probably was).

She debated using one of her items already, but she'd been saving it for something more dangerous, in case there was a more intense fight up ahead. She hadn't purchased much in the way of health-healing, and while Astrid and Icarus could take care of themselves, the Absol was mostly left on his own. (Alyssa made a mental note to teach Rikishi a health-healing move before they entered the Park again). "You're okay, though, right?" she asked, looking down at her Pokemon.

Another stoic nod.

"Right, then." Reaching for the Absol's Pokeball, Alyssa gently tapped the red and white sphere on the side of Rikishi's head, recalling him in a flash of red light. If she wanted to use him in battle again, she didn't want him to stress out any of his injuries walking around the Manor; if she didn't end up using him in battle again, she still didn't want him to stress out any of his injuries walking around the Manor. And besides, Icarus was a trouble-magnet enough. "I think we're good here," she said to Akinai. "I guess you lead the way?"

 

NBP6

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere

*~~~~~~~~~*


It seemed to take a moment for Alyssa to absorb the fact that her battle with Honedge was over. Slowly, the young woman began to relax once the realization hit that the danger was gone. “Rikishi, how are you holding up?” she said, the words so quiet that they were almost lost. As the Absol padded over to her, the Trainer checked the Pokemon's wounds, remarking that the creature possessed no healing moves.


“Icarus has!” the Murkrow called out mockingly, the bird reappearing from whatever crevice it had hidden away to. During the fight, I had not even paid attention to the Pokemon, keeping an eye on the obviously far more dangerous Honedge. Either way, Icarus had returned to add his own “unique” opinion to everything.


Alyssa appeared to ignore Icarus for now, focusing her attention on Rikishi instead. Absol or not, he had taken quite a few blows in the fight. After asking if her Pokemon was all right (and earning a short nod from the Absol,) she recalled the Dark-type. “I think we're good here. I guess you lead the way?”


I nodded in reply, trying to keep my face neutral. Due to never being here before, I had absolutely no clue on where to go. The building was large, and it was obviously home to multiple types of Pokemon- so far we had run into a Dark, Psychic, and Ghost-type in succession. While we could just simply follow Gaard and see which direction seemed the most dangerous, I didn't want to lead Alyssa into a deathtrap. Granted, there were other options open. “Are you after any type in particular? Depending on what you're looking for, we can search specific areas.”


While waiting for Alyssa to come to a decision, we looked about the main hall for the time being. With Honedge taken care of, Gaard barely gave anything a second glance, meaning no more swords were going to come to life off the walls. While examining one particular picture, a landscape painting of a winter wasteland, a lime-green arachnid crawled down from the wall.


“Spinarak, if you're interested,” I noted, nodding over at the Pokemon. It didn't look to interested in us for the moment, and was appearing to be spinning a web.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 11 Encounters remaining
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge, Spinarak,
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow, Sassy Male Honedge
CC since last Encounter: 4,096

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol (56%)
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x1), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

Akinai calmly lead the way ahead, Gaard padding at her heels and occasionally pausing to examine a particular painting. There was no bristling or intense reaction as there had been before, though, so it seemed as if the area had calmed down a bit. That was a relief. “Are you after any type in particular?" Akinai asked as they walked. "Depending on what you're looking for, we can search specific areas.”

Alyssa followed, keeping an eye on the walls as they entered the main hall. There was some truly fascinating artwork hat matched the oil paintings she'd seen in the main lobby, although there didn't seem to be an enchanted sword in this section if the Manor. "I'm somewhat of a dark-type trainer, I guess," Alyssa said after a moment's hesitation. Icarus squawked proudly in confirmation. "Although I'm open to a bunch of different types. I heard that there are a lot if newly-discovered Kalos Pokemon here, and those are always interesting. Like the Honedge, for instance--they're so rare that only a handful of trainers have captured them right now, although I'm sure time will change that."

"Sableye," Icarus reminded her sagely.

"Oh, right, and Icarus wanted another little trickster to mess around with, and he heard Sableye were seen here sometimes, so there's that," Alyssa explained.

Gaard, however, had discovered a new arrival. Alyssa glanced over to see a bright green spider by a landscape painting, he former which she recognized as a Spinarak and the latter which she recognized as... a bunch of snow, really. She was always quite rubbish at art.

"Spinarak, if you're interested," Akinai explained.

"I think I'll have to pass," Alyssa said, slipping her backpack off of one shoulder and fumbling through it for money with which to pay for a doll, if necessary. She could deal with spiders, but Ariados had never really appealed to her. "I hope he doesn't mind."

 

NBP7

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere


OOC: Escape failed, subtract money.

*~~~~~~~~~*


“I think I'll have to pass,” Alyssa replied, pulling her pack forward in case she would have to access it. “I hope it doesn't mind.”


Unfortunately, the small Bug-type appeared to have noticed them. Abandoning its web-building, the Spinarak gave a tiny hop over from the wall to the Trainer's backpack to get a closer look at the human. Even though it had yet to make any aggressive gestures, it was clear that Spinarak wasn't going to move away anytime soon.


“Looks like it does mind,” I remarked. This time it was my turn go go through my pack; why the Dolls had been all tossed in at the bottom of the bag was beyond me. After some sifting about, I managed to pull out a half-squashed Jigglypuff plushie. After waving about the toy enticingly to get Spinarak's attention (which didn't take long, the Bug seemed to notice every miniscule movement around it,) I placed the Pokedoll on the ground. The wild Pokemon eagerly jumped from its perch to the Doll, embracing it in a spider-hug.


“Right, that was easy... now, you said you were after a Sableye?” I asked Alyssa once I had accepted the Doll money from her. “They tend to like shiny objects and dark areas, so we'll probably find one holed off somewhere.” It wasn't surprising to hear that Alyssa liked Dark Pokemon- she did have an Absol and a Murkrow after all. “We can look for other Dark-types in the meantime, but to be honest I have no idea where they could be hiding.” If we were going to be wandering aimlessly, may as well admit it.


Gaard, who had been looking at the paintings with dull interest, whirled about to face the way they had originally came. Instead of growling like before when he had sensed Honedge, the Absol seemed to cringe in fear and back away. The whole time he shook his head back and forth, as if trying to shake something out of his thoughts.


“Gaard, what's wrong?” I pulled out the Absol's Pokeball, ready to call him back; I had been mulling it over anyways if we were going to be searching for a Ghost, but if something was mentally attacking my Pokemon... without warning, Gaard bolted away, back towards the main hall. I took a few steps to follow him out of instinct before stopping to remember that I was technically a Ranger for this Run, and still had to look after Alyssa. “I need to follow him,” I said, trying to explain to the Trainer. “If anything attacks I won't ask you to jump in, and it's probably not smart to stick around an area that even an Absol is afraid of. We'll just get within range, I'll recall Gaard, and we can move on.”


It didn't take long to catch up to Gaard. The Disaster Pokemon had stopped at the foot of the staircase, looking upwards at whatever lay waiting at the top. Curious, I followed Gaard's gaze as well- and had to prevent bolting out of the manor right there and then. Standing at the top of the staircase was a humanoid Pokemon with a mostly gray coloration, its arms crossed in contemplation. While its gaze was originally unfocused as it stared off in the distance, when we had approached Gaard the creature had immediately looked our way. Of all the Pokemon that could have migrated here, we had to run into this one?


“By all the gods, let's hope it's in a good mood,” I muttered, stepping away from Mewtwo. With any luck, Alyssa wasn't handling this any worse than me.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 11 Encounters remaining
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge, Spinarak, Mewtwo
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow, Sassy Male Honedge
CC since last Encounter: 0

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol (56%)
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x1), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

OOC: 950 - 500 = 450

"Looks like it does mind," Akinai said, and Alyssa turned around to see the Spinarak on her backpack. At closer inspection, she could see the bright purple chelicera waving instinctively in synch to the spider's heartbeat, and she knew that even an accidental jab on, say, the back of her neck would prove quite fatal. She made a mental thanks that she'd gotten her money out before the bug Pokemon had taken up residence atop her bag; otherwise, moving it to get out money to pay for a doll would prove quite problematic.

Icarus squawked in annoyance and shuffled to her other shoulder, his feathers bristling. He was clearly not amused to give up his spot, but Alyssa noticed with a wry smile that he hadn't outwardly fought the tiny spider--perhaps he was afraid of something, after all. "Prophet!" he squawked anxiously, flapping his wings in alarm. "Thing of evil!"

Of course, there was now the problem of--

Akinai, thankfully, produced a Jigglypuff doll from her own backpack, which the Spinarak happily gave up its temporary home for. Its head whipped over, fastened on the large, pink plush, and before Alyssa could say much else, it had already scuttled down and was snuggling with its newfound toy. It looked quite cute, actually, and she absentmindedly stroked the nervous Murkrow on her shoulder. "Look at you, afraid of a little bug. You do know that wild Murkrow eat those on a daily basis, right?"

"Prophet, still!" he screamed, shuffling his feet and refusing to look her in the eye. "If bird or devil!"

That was... odd.

"Right, that was easy," Akinai continued briskly, pocketing the money Alyssa had handed her for the doll.

Easy for you to say, Alyssa almost said aloud, frowning. Something was off here, almost as if a great spectre of doom hung over them, but she couldn't... quite... place the feeling.

"So you said you were after a Sableye? They tend to like shiny objects and dark areas, so we'll probably find one holed off somewhere," Akinai was saying, walking along and (thankfully) unaware of Alyssa's sudden doubts. "We can look for other dark types in the meantime, but to be honest, I have no idea where they could be hiding."

"That's fine," Alyssa said weakly, still trying to place her finger on why exactly she felt like they were all going to die. "I'm not exactly dead set on finding a Sableye, either, and I'm okay with just wandering around the Mansion for a while." She paused and glanced around. "First time in the Park and all, you know. I don't mind just looking around for a bit."

On second though, it might be a good idea to poke around and see what--

There was an subtle ripple through the air, almost like a ghost of psychic energy trailing through her mind, gentle as a leaf on the breeze but undeniably there. There was violence carried on that wave, bloodshed, and the undeniable urge to--

{Killllllllll}

Well, shit.

Alyssa paled immediately, and it was clear that Icarus and Gaard had sensed something as well. The words had come so softly she almost couldn't be sure she'd heard them, but the effect on the two dark Pokemon was clear. The Murkrow was flying tight circles around her head, much like a moon would orbit a planet, screaming, "Be that word our sign of parting!"

And she would've loved to run then and there (but she didn't even know why; why was this bothering her so much?), but Akinai was already running after her Absol--"Gaard, what's wrong?"--, which had leapt toward the main hall once more. He looked afraid, and that made Alyssa even more unsettled: Absol were not prone to fear. They were creatures of the supernatural, the makers of the things that went bump in the night rather than the victims, and to see one bolting away was almost terrifying in itself.

Akinai was explaining something, no doubt about how this wasn't exactly protocol or whatever, but Alyssa was already ignoring it, torn between running away from the Disaster Pokemon and its find or running closer, her own Pokeballs in hand.

"Other friends have flown before!" Icarus was shrieking, his feathers in a flurry as he shot like a black arrow after the Absol and the Ranger. "Take the form from off my door!"

And at the foot of the staircase, Alyssa saw it.

Her thoughts came in fragments.

Mostly grey in color, with tinges of purple around its head and tail, arms folded as it studied the scene below. The Absol, bristling but afraid. Icarus, above her, crying like he was on fire. But the eyes, the blue eyes...

She knew this Pokemon. She'd seen it before, she'd recognized it, but where?

"Get thee back into tempest and the Night's Plutonian shore!" screamed Icarus, and Alyssa felt a chill run through her veins.

Where?

"Respite and nepthene from the memories of Lenore! Forget this lost Lenore!"

She'd seen this Pokemon before. That feeling was unshakable, but why?

They couldn't stay here for long. That much was certain--Alyssa didn't want to understand exactly why this Pokmeon filled them all with dread. But, at the very least, she needed to research it more, and, given that her memories would no doubt be influenced by the amount of stress she was feeling right now... with shaking hands, Alyssa pulled out her digital camera and tried to focus on the Pokemon's face. It took her three tries to get the image in focus, and then she finally managed to take the picture.

Beside her, Icarus hissed, the sound long and low from his beak: "Quoth the Murkrow, nevermore."

 

NBP8

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere


*~~~~~~~~~*


Above us, Icarus circled about. The Murkrow had taken to the sky soon after Gaard's sudden retreat, and was now squawking out the lines to an old poem. While it was interesting to see the normally foul-mouthed bird recite something halfway familiar, the fact that he was clearly distressed was more important. I looked over at Alyssa, seeing what her reaction to this whole situation was.


Oddly enough, Alyssa looked more confused than afraid, staring at the Legendary Pokemon as if she had seen it somewhere before in the distant past. Finally, the young woman pulled out a digital camera and pointed it at Mewtwo, trying to line the creature up in the shot despite the fact that her hands were trembling. After a few moments, the device gave a click as the shot was taken.


As the flash faded, Mewtwo blinked in indifference. There was a long pause as the powerful Psychic-type did nothing but stare at our group, though if it was just sizing us up or simply curious why we were here I had no idea. Finally, it did something completely unexpected- it laughed. It was a derisive, chilling sound, as if it judged us and found the outcome lacking.


“We should probably get out of here,” I said quietly, taking a quick look towards the entrance. The way was clear, so Alyssa and I could likely make a run for it. “Gaard, we may need you to use a move to cover our escape--”


That idea was soon proven pointless, as Mewtwo vanished in the blink of an eye. The danger wasn't over yet though- in the Legendary's place, there was an ear-piercing shriek and a large winged shape darted town from the rafters. While the creature was shorter than both of us, its large wingspan and fearsome appearance made it seem much larger.


“What in the world is that?” I asked aloud. It looked nothing like any of the creatures I had seen in the Park in the past. While it was bat-like in appearance, the Pokemon possessed a dignified aura one usually felt around Dragon-type Pokemon.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 11 Encounters remaining, Mewtwo picture taken
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge, Spinarak, Mewtwo, Noivern
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow, Sassy Male Honedge
CC since last Encounter: 5,448

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol (56%)
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x1), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

The grey Pokémon blinked. Blinked. Alyssa wasn't entirely familiar with the rules of dealing with legendary Pokemon villains, or even villains in general, but she had a feeling that anything that blinked in the face of a bristling Absol and some terrified-but-angry humans wasn't exactly something that she felt confident facing. Then again, she wasn’t confident in facing these things in general. Above her, Icarus was still shrieking bloody murder, but, for once, she thought the bird’s actions were entirely justified.

Wow, said Alyssa’s brain helpfully. That’s a weird thought we’re probably never going to have again.

Then again, she was currently facing a large, omnipotent psychic pseudo-deity that made her feel like they were all going to die, so this wasn’t even the weirdest thing that had crossed her mind yet.

By the way, if you make me think about anything stranger than this, I quit.

Yes, this was a totally sane conversation that was not at all induced by stress created from meeting this terrifying, psychic monster.

The camera flash faded, and Icarus finally sunk his talons into Alyssa's shoulder, puffing out his chest and screeching as loud as he could, his own feeble battle cry. His presence back on his traditional perch reassured her a little, but Alyssa knew with a sinking feeling that if she tried to fight the psychic for any reason, they would not win. Rikishi, even if he weren't injured, would be no match for this monstrosity, and Icarus would go down with a single solid hit. Astrid would probably fare no better--it wasn't that her Pokemon were weak or anything; they were just nothing compared to the epicenter of psychic power that she saw before her.

Alyssa saw a blinding flash of white, and she gritted her teeth and swayed, almost falling over from the stab of pain she felt in the center of her mind. She couldn't cry out now--not out of some foolish notion to be brave in front of Akinai or Icarus, as all such reservations had just about vanished by this point--but because her body wouldn't respond, her limbs feeling as useless as slowly-melting wax and her muscles failing to respond.

Help me out here, brain, she thought weakly. Stop slacking, we're trying not to die.

Nyuggggghhhh, her brain replied, and promptly overloaded. I hate you.

Well, shit.

"Nevermore, nevermore!" Icarus was shouting, although he sounded distant and far away, as if he had been shoved to the bottom of a long well.

{Oh, right, you're the one who's allergic to psychics,} a condescending voice, male, deep, intimidating said in her head. {Tell me, do you really do this every time? I can’t imagine how you functioned, and yet here we are again.}

Nyuggggggghhh.

She felt what was probably the equivalent of a mental smirk, but the pain diminished considerably.

The feeling of their imminent doom, however, was still there in full force.

{Are you playing dumb with me, girl?}

There wasn’t really a good way to answer that, no, because he’d probably just—

{Fascinating.}

There was a flash of a memory, barely tapping the surface of her stream of consciousness.

“Artemis, it’s on you, now!” a voice was screaming, and there were two flashes of red light. The first enveloped the downed body of an immense, black and blue Pokémon with two snapping dragon heads instead of arms, recalling it into the relative safety of its Pokéball. The second burst of red light released a small, bipedal Pokémon that was mostly black in color, with a crest of red, feather-like appendages on its head and razor sharp claws on all four of its paws. The Weavile hit the ground lightly, landing on nimble feet and squaring off against its opponent. There was a visible sigh of relief, although the reason wasn’t apparent first.

“Dead Pokémon can’t be recalled,” a bored voice said from across the battlefield. “I guess I’ll have to finish off your Hydreigon later, then.”

A surge of fear. “Ice Beam!” came the nervous command, and the Weavile sprung into action, racing around the field and preparing to—

“Aeroblast!”

The surge of icy energy tore forth from the Weavile’s mouth, rocketing toward the colossal white dragon before it. The other Pokémon took to the sky, spreading enormous wings that were unhindered beneath the broken ceiling tiles (that, from the looks of it, had been burned off in an enormous fire of some sorts), and it hovered high above the ground as the Weavile’s attack barreled under it, freezing a section of the wall solid.

Another curse, and the Weavile craned its neck upward to adjust for its mistake. By the point, though, the massive white Pokémon had gathered up energy of its own, forming a massive orange sphere in its beak-like mouth. The ball of energy crackled with an energy that could hardly be contained, and the white dragon launched it outward in an enormous beam of light and wind toward the Weavile on the ground, which seemed tiny by comparison.

This was cheating. This had to be cheating. There was no possible way that he could just use a sea god against her and completely tear through everything she had. It wasn’t fair. She couldn’t be expected to fight a god; it would—

“Artemis, get out of there!” the girl shouted, one hand outstretched, but a Pokéball on her belt was already wiggling and then exploded open, a tiny, pink, cat-like Pokémon unfolding in a flash of red light and rushing forward before its comrade, its black eyes glowing with blue psychic energy and the air around it rippling ominously as it prepared to do something, anything, to deflect the attack. “Cassie, wait!”

The beam of energy connected, the flash of light obscuring the two grounded Pokémon from view, and—

Alyssa blinked, rocking on her feet. What the hell?

The girl in her vision had looked like her. ‘Looked like’ wasn’t even a proper word. Same green jacket, same close-cropped dark hair, same eyes, nose, mouth, face, build, height. If anything, the girl in the vision looked a couple of years younger, but—

Are you doing this? she asked the psychic Pokémon, not sure what it would even do in response.

She received no answer, and then—

“Icarus, no!”

There was a high-pitched scream.

A Murkrow, feathers singed and generally looking a lot worse for the wear, threw its head back and emitted a fierce, achingly-familiar battle screech, black energy trailing from its wings as it shot forward, beady red eyes glinting with determination. It shot across the field, its passage stirring up a stream of dust behind it.

“Nevermore!” the Murkrow was shouting hoarsely, almost desperate, but—

It was too far away. Twenty feet from where the Murkrow still tore through space, a tall, grey and purple bipedal Pokémon with a long, snake-like tail and blue eyes the color of death turned around with disinterest, looking almost bored. It casually threw the limp body of the pink, feline Pokémon to the ground. The Espeon skidded but did not move where it landed, inky black eyes lifeless and chest completely still.

“Cassie!” the girl screamed, something like tears slipping into her voice, but there was a complete sense of desolation as well amidst the anguish. And then: “Icarus, pull back! You can’t—” She cut herself off, quickly seeing it was useless, but she reached for her belt and pulled out a Pokéball, aiming it at her rebel bird and trying to recall him before something terrible happened.

She pulled out a second Pokéball, pointed this one at the downed Espeon, but there was no reassuring red beam of light. She didn’t have time to feel nervous, to feel fear, to make the connection that no recall beam meant no Pokémon to latch onto meant that—

{This petty fighting bores me,} the grey Pokémon said, kicking the downed Espeon aside and turning its gaze to look at the Murkrow still racing toward it, one three-fingered hand rippling with psychic energy.

“Icarus!” A pause. “Stop it!” Another pause. “Fuck!” Another stream of mumbled curses, and the girl grabbed all of the remaining Pokéballs from her belt and threw them into the air. Red jets of lights showered down from the candy-cane colored spheres.

The psychic Pokémon’s eyes narrowed. It cupped its hands in close to the center of its chest, visibly storing up energy. The air around it began to shimmer from the outflux of power, ripples of condensed air swirling around the powerful psychic.

There wasn’t much time. “Go!” the girl screamed, though her remaining Pokémon were racing forward as fast as they could. They didn’t have enough time. They weren’t going to make it, but they had to, or else all would be for nothing and—

There was a blinding flash of light.

“Nevermore,” Icarus said, bowing his head gravely.

Alyssa frowned. This wasn’t real. It couldn’t possibly be real. She didn’t remember having an Espeon, for one thing, and she’d certainly never managed to capture a Weavile—

She locked her jaw in determination. This wasn’t the time for fear.

If the girl she’d seen had been her, then that was really, really odd, but there was nothing to worry about. She’d battled this monstrosity before, and she’d clearly escaped in one piece, or at least alive enough to walk through the Park with Icarus.

And if the girl hadn’t been Alyssa, then there was absolutely nothing to be afraid of.

Yeah. That was entirely believable and didn’t make her any more unnerved than she had been before.

The psychic began to laugh, and the sound was completely and utterly terrifying.

{It has been a long time since I dealt with someone as foolish as you, Hamartia.}

Hamartia? Alyssa asked her brain, suddenly confused. Sorry, did you we something important here that I missed?

Hell if I know, her brain responded.

She’d defeated it before, she reassured herself. She’d faced this pokémon before, and she’d lived.

More laughter.

The next string of images came by in a series of flashes with no reasonable form or shape. Alyssa was aware of a flash of sensations, nothing more.

Screaming, again, this time sounding inhuman and torn from its creators lips like a prayer to an unknown god, torturous sounds echoing in a confined area.

“Fuck, Icarus! Don’t you dare die on me!”

A spurt of warm blood. Tumble of black feathers to the ground. Desperate pulse of blue energy. Crackle of heat. Blast of icy wind. Fear. Sweat. Blood.

Searing pain, burning like a fire, and then darkness.

That made... absolutely no sense, actually.

{Who said that you lived?} the psychic asked, still laughing.

At first, Alyssa felt a chill, but she dismissed it with a burst of logic. There had to be an explanation. Both she and Icarus were currently here, Weavile and Espeon-less, with nothing but the smallest hint of recollection.

But the memories felt so real.

Her brain quietly imploded. Screw this shit, I quit.

“We should probably get out of here,” Akinai said, breaking into Alyssa’s thoughts. The Ranger was edging nervously toward the entrance. “Gaard, we may need you to use a move to escape.”

{I can’t say that this conversation wasn’t nice or anything, but the forest queen wants me gone now. I’ll probably see you in a couple of years, when we were truly fated to meet. This was a nice coincidence, though. A shame. Parsing your mind was never easy.}

Alyssa didn’t even bother questioning who this forest queen was or why she had a knowledge of the future at all, but—

There was another bright flash of light.

[hr][/hr]

Alyssa Tanenbrae found herself standing in the lobby of the Mansion again. That was odd. She vaguely remembered chasing Icarus and Gaard out here, although she couldn’t remember why.

Her palms were sweaty, too, and she was out of breath for some reason. And on her shoulder, Icarus seemed terrified.

Odd.

Any ideas, brain?

Her brain, quite regrettably, was silent.

There was a shrill shriek, and a large spectre dropped from the shadows of the rafters above. Each individual wing was a long as Alyssa was tall, immense and membranous. The Pokémon itself was mostly purple in color, with dark black patches on the rest of its wings, and Alyssa was reminded of an overgrown Crobat.

“What in the world is that?” Akinai asked, and Alyssa wished she had some sort of answer.

Well, there was a surefire way to find out.

“Icarus, would you mind having another flying friend?”

She got a muted squawk in response. Alyssa raised one eyebrow out of curiosity. Odd. The Murkrow was rarely silent.

The wild Pokemon looked like a dragon of some sort, although it wasn't one that Alyssa had ever seen before. Probably another one of those Kalos types. The question, then, became how to combat it properly if she didn't even know what it was. And were those boomboxes instead of ears?

Alyssa reached for a Pokéball on her belt, pausing for a moment. Icarus had already had his fight for now, so she was hesitant to use him again—both because he was probably still a little worn out, no matter what he said, and because he tended to get a little chaotic after battling too long on end. Rikishi was pretty worn out from his battle with the sword from before, so she wasn’t keen on forcing him back into battle this soon.

That left Astrid.

“Astrid, it’s on you, now,” she said.

Huh. That sounded really familiar, for some reason.

Her Starmie appeared in a flash of red light. The ten-pointed double-star spun gently on its ruby axis, sending a purple, iridescent sheen onto the Mansion’s high ceiling.

“Start things off with an Ice Beam.”

Huh, that sounded really familiar, too.

For some reason, Alyssa felt adverse to the massive feeling of déjà vu that she couldn’t quite shake, so she added, “Uh, use it while using Rapid Spin, like we practiced.”

The Starmie chirped gently in response—those were Astrid’s communications of choice, and the spinning around its axis intensified, until it made quick circles like the rotor of a large machine. The large ruby in the center of the ten-pointed start began to glow, icy blue energy gathering in the nexus of the gem.

Physics was complicated. Pokémon Physics, however, was a lot less complicated. Things that spun did weird things. Pokémon attacks when spinning, naturally, tended to go way out of control.

But if chaos was what Alyssa wanted, this was a very good way to get it.

You have no idea, her brain said weakly.

The star-Pokemon spun on its axis, remaining mostly stationary as it hovered above the ground, but when it finally released the icy energy it was gathering in its core, the beam of ice would have a random, branching trajectory that made dodging the attack difficult. There was a downside in that splitting the path of the Ice Beam by spinning also diminished the power of the attack--less of it made contact, and that difference often became noticeable.

Still, it felt like a good way to start off the battle.

Alyssa realized belatedly that she was holding her camera in her hand, and it was on. Interesting; she didn't remember getting that out either.

Well, there were bigger things at hand. She could probably look into this in more detail after the battle.

 

BP1 (vs Noivern)

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere


OOC: Noivern gender?

*~~~~~~~~~*


Alyssa looked just as confused to see this strange, avian creature. Granted, she also seemed to be dazed as well- from the way she stared forward with a blank look it was possible she was having trouble comprehending anything going on at the moment. Seeing Mewtwo must have scared her more than I thought. Finally, she managed to say something. “Icarus, would you mind having another flying friend?”


Icarus, who had landed on his usual perch on his Trainer's shoulder, merely gave a quiet squawk in reply. This response didn't seem to cheer up Alyssa in the least; considering the Murkrow had been a loudmouth this entire Run I could only guess that the bird being silent for once was a very bad sign.


As Alyssa mulled over what Pokemon to use, I headed over to Gaard. The Absol looked completely shell-shocked from the Legend's appearance earlier, shaking slightly as he stared into nothingness. While he was giving a low growl thanks to this new Pokemon's appearance, he didn't look up for any more surprises for today. With that in mind, I recalled the Disaster Pokemon for now.


“Astrid, it’s on you, now,” Alyssa said, tossing a Pokeball forward. The sphere opened to reveal a celestial-shaped Pokemon with a shimmering red gem in the center of its body- a Starmie. The creature didn't seem too worried about its opponent... then again, with it having no face it was impossible to tell just what it was thinking.


As for the wild Pokemon, it was still flapping its wings lazily as it stayed aloft at the top of the stairs. Astrid's appearance hadn't fazed it at all. If anything, it looked down upon our group with a regal, composed appearance. Seeing that the Starmie was to be its opponent, the flying bat screeched out a short statement to its opponent. It didn't sound threatening, however.


“Start things off with an Ice Beam,” Alyssa began, but her voice seemed to falter towards the end, as if hesitant to issue such an order. “Uh, use it while using Rapid Spin, like we practiced.”


I puzzled over Alyssa's apparent fear of ordering her Pokemon to use Ice Beam. After all, Ice-type attacks were an excellent choice against Flying Pokemon, which this creature probably was. If it was also Dragon-affliated as well, which its appearance hinted at, the technique would do massive damage. The only issue I could think of was that the Trainer was worried of knocking it out in a single blow, but Park Pokemon were made of sturdy stuff. Unless Starmie had Blizzard in its arsenal (if the creatures could even learn it,) there would be no risk.


Astrid hopped into the air, its form spinning at a high speed in an attempt to either confuse its foe or knock away any nearby hazards. At the same time, the Starmie's gem briefly glowed before a thin stream of ice shot towards the wild Pokemon. Thanks to Rapid Spin, the Beam went in a bizarre zigzag pattern, leaving an icy rime on the stairs as it shot upwards.


The frigid attack managed to land on the wild Pokemon, making the bat shriek in pain. In retaliation, it began to flap its wings faster to summon a gale around its form in an attempt to ward off any more errant Beams that headed its way. With a single stronger flap it sent the wind downwards, knocking Astrid to the ground.


With its opponent stunned, the Flying-type began to create a windstorm around it, the breeze swirling about only making the job easier. Once the storm was of sufficient strength, it sent the gale towards the Starmie, slamming it into the opposite wall.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Battle Statistics:

Gentle Genderless Starmie: 85%, (used Ice Beam/Rapid Spin combo)
??? ??? Noivern: 77%, WIND (used Tailwind, Hurricane)


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 9 Encounters remaining, Mewtwo picture taken
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge, Spinarak, Mewtwo, Noivern
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow, Sassy Male Honedge
CC since last Encounter: 20,447/25,000

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol (56%)
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x1), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

OOC: MALE I'MMA CALL HIM BRUCE

The Noivern got hit with a fair portion of the Ice Beam, screeching in pain as the cold air froze on its scaly skin. The rest of the attack went wild, leaving frosted tracks around the staircase of the Manor. Alyssa bit her lip nervously. Hopefully there was nothing that wouldn't enjoy being wet. Or frozen. Or generally hit in the crossfire of whatever was going to come next.

Whatever came next, as it turned out, happened to be a hurricane. A small one, at least, but it was powerful enough to knock back the majority of the Ice Beam and then knock Astrid to the ground. The Noivern, looking pleased, flapped its leathery wings once again, creating a miniature cyclone that it used to slam Astrid into the wall.

Yeeks. Alyssa bit her lip again, cringing--that looked like it hurt a little. Also, she desperately hoped that the lovely oil paintings from before weren't going to get completely demolished by the two clashing Pokemon. That would be awkward.

There was something else she was supposed to remember, something about lots of things getting destroyed and maybe some death, but Alyssa wasn't quite sure what it was. Maybe she'd ask Icarus, but--

Ooh, there was a shiny battle to attend to.

Alyssa frowned. The Noivern didn't seem at all adverse to getting stuck in the center of its own gale. If anything, it seemed to benefit from the raging winds, moving faster than normal thanks to the metaphorical and literal wind beneath its wings. Yeeks again. She needed to slow the thing down, if possible--otherwise, she'd have a rampaging pseudo-maybe-dragon on her hands that could hit her with powerful attacks that were probably dragon-typed or flying-typed or oh god what if it created another hurricane again.

"Indoor Surf, and then when it's drenched, use Thunder Wave."

She'd been using, or trying to use, Thunder Wave quite a bit so far, or so it seemed, but these were for different reasons. Last time, she'd tried to use the shock induced by Thunder Wave to paralyze the Honedge and make it less likely to attack; this time, she hoped that the painful jolt would slow down the Noivern sufficiently for Astrid to keep pace with it--otherwise, they'd just be blown away, literally and figuratively.

The Starmie nodded, or might've nodded if it had a head, or inclined its little finger arms, or something, and then it leapt foward, levitating once again on its psychic energy and spinning gently on its central axis, as it tended to do. That was a good sign, at least: the near-constant movement meant that Starmie was still doing relatively well. The large ruby in Astrid's core glowed briefly, and then a large sphere of water formed in front of the Starmie, pulsing and rippling as it expanded until it was nearly the size of the purple starfish.

Now that she considered it, Alyssa would have to ask her Starmie how it could so easily violate all of the laws of physics and produce matter from nothing.

Simple solution, water moisture from the air, Alyssa's brain said helpfully. And then: I still quit, you know.

Huh?

A pause. I don't know, either.

In the half second that Alyssa had spent consulting with her brain, Astrid released its sphere of water. They'd had to modify Surf attack to work inside--the truest form of the attack involved summoning a giant tidal wave and smashing it into the opponent, but Alyssa felt like that would be a bit disruptive indoors. Instead, Astrid condensed the brute force of the attack into a narrower form, allowing the attack to be launched like a cannonball toward the opponent while still striking with the force of a tidal wave. The sphere tended to expand as it moved (there was too much sheer energy for it to stay compact forever, and the further it got from Astrid, the less control the purple star had over it), giving it a weaker but wider hit range.

Alyssa wasn't really going for aggressive damage, though. The Noivern seemed like a dragon-type, so it wouldn't take too much damage from a water-type move. The Surf, however, would get Noivern drenched, which would help the incoming Thunder Wave immensely.

Speaking of which, its first attack complete, the purple star began gathering up more energy in its core, this time electrical, and prepared to fire the weak jolt of energy toward its opponent.

 

BP2 (vs Noivern)

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere



*~~~~~~~~~*


Keeping an eye on the wild Pokemon, who was clearly enjoying the windstorm surrounding it, Alyssa seemed confused by the sight. After giving the matter some thought, called out another set of commands to Astrid, “Indoor Surf, and then when it's drenched, use Thunder Wave.”


… I was starting to see yet another reason why Rangers chose to enter into this profession. Being able to work with Pokemon on a daily basis was likely rewarding in its own right, that was true, but there looked to be other quirks that came along with the job as well. Escorting Trainers on their Runs also allowed one to see what tactics others used in battling, along with seeing just what highly experienced Pokemon would do when forced to act. Using a Water attack on an opponent would make them weakened to any Electrical attacks, and combined with a status inflicted move was pretty clever.


No wonder so many Rangers ran a Gym on the side.


Astrid began to call forth a large sphere of water, directing the aquatic blob directly above its opponent. The water swirled about from the winds, almost losing its form, but the Starmie was able to keep it all in place before allowing it to crash down on the wild Pokemon. Shocked from the sudden onrush of water, the Dragon-type crashed to the ground. As for the remaining water, it trickled down the stairs and created a slight puddle by our feet.


At that moment, something clicked. If the water, which was now trailing directly by us, was about to be electrified... before Astrid could begin her second attack, I tossed one of the Pokeballs I had on hand upwards. “Lia, Teleport us! Just a couple meters to the right, way is clear.”


A brief flash of light later, the world quickly dematerialized and reappeared around us as Alyssa and I were moved off to the side. Between us, the slender form of a Gardevoir stood, looking about in open wonder. It wasn't long before I heard her voice ask on the link, clearly curious. <What's going on? Are we helping that star out?>


We're just here to watch the battle, Lia, I silently replied, then explained the situation to Alyssa. “We would have been caught in Astrid's attack if we had stayed put, so I had Lia here to Teleport us to safety. Don't think you would have liked being shocked, so...”


By this time, Astrid had begun letting off sparks of electricity as she charged the Wave. The pulse of electricity honed in on the wild Pokemon, making it convulse as the energy surged through its form. Remarkably though, it managed to pust itself back on its feet using its wings. Facing its head towards Astrid, the Dragon-type shrieked and released a massive sound-wave from its ears, knocking Astrid back once more and actually leaving a crack on the wall.


Hopefully the Rangers won't get too angry about that, I thought, wincing a little. They had to expect some damage at least; it was an old building filled with powerful creatures.


Seeing that it opponent had been successfully knocked back, the wild Pokemon began to call out something in a jeering tone to the Starmie, clearly trying to rile it up. By the time Astrid managed to face its opponent once more, the red gem in its center was blinking in a dangerous fashion.


*~~~~~~~~~*

Battle Statistics:

Gentle Genderless Starmie: 70%, TNT (used Surf, Thunder Wave)
??? Male Noivern: 68%, WIND-3, PRZ (used Boomburst, Taunt)


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 9 Encounters remaining, Mewtwo picture taken
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge, Spinarak, Mewtwo, Noivern
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow, Sassy Male Honedge
CC since last Encounter: 24,731/25,000

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol (56%)
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x1), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

Starmie nearly lost control of the sphere of water in the swirling winds, the sudden bursts sending water sloshing everywhere. However, when its attack finally hit the Noivern, the dragon crashed to the ground and the rest of the water splashed everywhere, pooling to the ground and trickling down the stairs to rest around Alyssa and Akinai's combined feet.

You know, if you'd let it remain airborne, this wouldn't be a problem, Alyssa's brain told her unhelpfully.

Alyssa frowned, trying to ascertain the problem at hand; by then, Astrid was already preparing the burst of electricity of Thunder Wave, the electricity swirling around her nexus like--

Oh, shit. What was the conductivity of water?

Alyssa's brain happily replied, Distilled is somewhere from point five to three microsiemens per centimeter, while saline water is probably--

Yeah, that was bad, but what were they going to--

"Lia, Teleport us! Just a couple meters to the right, way is clear," Akinai's voice shouted out over Alyssa's inner turmoil, and there was a flash of light and a dizzying spin that Alyssa vaguely recognized as teleportation. She stumbled for a moment as the ground disappeared and then reappeared beneath her, her knees nearly giving out as nausea overtook her mind, but she managed to catch herself before doing anything embarrassing like falling to the ground or vomiting all over her ranger. “We would have been caught in Astrid's attack if we had stayed put," Akinai explained, motioning to the Gardevoir she had just called out from a Pokeball (the motion had been so fast she hadn't even seen), "so I had Lia here to Teleport us to safety."

Akinai trailed off, leaving Alyssa to mentally berate herself in silence. She hadn't been expecting the Noivern to crash to the ground after taking the brunt of the attack, so Astrid would've been aiming for an airborne target. Air, as a relatively awesome insulator, would've prevented them from feeling the jolt at this distance. With the Noivern's falling to the ground, though... Alyssa had a mental image of a circuit snapping shut, current successfully running through it.

Well. That could've been disastrous. Were Rangers supposed to save their trainers from obvious stupidity? Would she get a penalty?

Akinai seemed to be conversing with her Gardevoir for half a moment (telepathy, no doubt), and then: "Don't think you would have liked being shocked, so...”

"I've taken worse," Alyssa said with a weak, tired smile, and then she stopped herself, frowning. The action and the response had both felt incredibly genuine, as if she actually had taken worse, but clearly she hadn't actually been electrocuted, right? That would be--

Oh, Arceus, that probably sounded really rude. "Um, I mean, but thank you very much for that," Alyssa amended hurriedly, suddenly sheepish. "I hadn't thought that the water and then the Noivern with the falling to the ground and the electricity and, uh... yeah."

"Master very eloquent," Icarus said from atop her shoulder.

Bastard.

She had a witty response of some sort prepared, maybe, but by that point, the Noivern reared its head back and screamed, sending Alyssa's ears reeling back in panic for, like, the third time all day. Astrid flew into the wall, and at some point, there was a massive crack in the plaster-stone surface.

She was really going to benefit from investing in some earplugs, Alyssa thought, nursing her tender ears and wincing. Starmie didn't even have ears, from what she could tell, but the sea star didn't seem to particularly enjoy being thrown into the masonry.

Icarus, who didn't seem to be as fussed about the sudden wave of sound that had washed over the Mansion, and by the time Alyssa had finally cleared the ringing from her ears, he was already flying into the sky that couldn't be good. Alyssa's hand reached up instinctively, and she grabbed his feet, pulling him back down to her shoulder.

"Batman calls that taunting!?" the Murkrow was shouting, feathers flying indignantly. "Icarus show you what mocking should really--"

Alyssa tapped him on the beak, hopefully before he raised his voice any louder and attracted the Noivern's attraction. At the very least, it was probably cheating to engage a wild with two Pokemon at once; furthermore, she really didn't want the Noivern looking in this direction at the moment. Thankfully, Icarus hadn't really projected his voice all that loudly, and if she could just distract the bat wit Astrid again, things would be fine.

However, Icarus's comments were pretty useful--it seemed that the Noivern, too, knew Taunt, which meant that Astrid probably wouldn't be able to use any non-attacking moves for a while. That took out about half of their arsenal, which was a bit unfortunate. Plus, with the water still sloshing around and the Noivern still on the ground, electric-moves were probably out of the question, dragons had a natural resistance to water-typed moves, and using Ice Beam again was painfully tempting but probably foolish, since the Noivern had seen that attack before, which left--

"Psychic; try to get it airborne if you can, and then fire off a Power Gem," Alyssa said calmly.

Astrid, its gem still blinking in what might've been rage, gave an eager nod. That seemed to confirm it--the Starmie was normally gentle-tempered, so seeing it so eager to attack was unusual. Hopefully the effects would wear off soon; in the meantime, waves of blue energy began pulsing around the blinking ruby. The Starmie was focusing its mind on the Noivern, picking out its mental signature (which, given that the other occupants of the room were two humans, a bird, and a Gardevoir, probably wouldn't be too difficult); once Astrid had locked on to the Noivern, it would be able temporarily to control the bat's movements via telepathy.

Hopefully, they'd be able to pin it down for a while, making it a decent target while Astrid released the pent-up energy in its gem--Power Gem, which was apparently a rock-type move, even though it tended to appear as a brilliant red beam of light the same color as the core of the Starmie's ruby.

 

BP3 (vs Noivern)

Ranger Sub Akinai Sere



*~~~~~~~~~*


Alyssa looked a little jarred from the Teleport, clearly not expecting to be displaced in such a matter. She also looked a little pale, as if trying not to be sick- in my rush to move us, the fact that some people experienced nausea while teleporting had completely slipped my mind. “I've taken worse,” the Trainer began to reply, then immediately stopped as if she had said something offensive. “Um, I mean, but thank you very much for that. I hadn't thought that the water and then the Noivern with the falling...”


“Don't worry about it,” I said, waving off Alyssa's hurried explanation. It felt strange having the situation reversed; usually I was the one apologizing or trying to brush off a situation as not too terrible. To hear it from someone else almost made it an ironic echo.


While Icarus had something else to add (as always it seemed,) a remark from Lia focused my attention elsewhere. <What is a knave?>


Such an off-the-wall question completely took my mind off what could have been an awkward situation. An archaic insult, last I checked. Where did you learn such a word?


<That bat over there said it,> the Gardevoir replied, pointing at the wild Pokemon, who was still shouting insults at Astrid. <He's going on about how his pride of a Noivern shines far greater than any half-witted star.>


Well, that solved what the name of this Pokemon was at least. “Lia says that Pokemon is a Noivern,” I said to Alyssa, seeing that she was currently giving Icarus a look that could freeze lava. “Seems very old-fashioned as well, judging from the insults it's tossing at your Starmie.”


With that, Icarus shouted out towards the Noivern. “Icarus show you what mocking should really--” he began, beginning to lift off from his perch- and was immediately grounded by his Trainer. Once the Murkrow was silenced, Alyssa took a fearful glance towards Noivern, as if afraid it would turn on her instead.


Fortunately for everyone involved, Noivern was completely focused on Astrid. The wild Pokemon was still shouting insults that seemed to date back in centuries according to Lia's translation, and doing a very good job in riling up the Starmie further.


Alyssa, unlike Astrid, was handling things calmly despite being forced to placate Icarus. “Psychic. Try to get it airborne if you can, and then fire off a Power Gem.”


Astrid looked all too happy to comply, immediately outlining its target in a light blue glow. The Noivern looked startled to be lifted into the air against his will, and was actively fighting to regain control of his body once more. As he battled with the raw psychic power wracking his body, his limbs twitched about in pain.


An idea must have surfaced in the Noivern's mind, for he began charging his own attack. A dark surge of energy began to emanate from the bat, battling to overtake the blue that outlined Astrid's attack. The move sliced through the former easily, and shot towards Astrid with impressive speed thanks to the Tailwind still swirling about. The pulse rattled the Starmie enough to cancel the Psychic, as well as leaving the star to shudder in place. Free from the Psychic assault, Noivern managed to take to the sky once more on his own terms.


Astrid wasn't finished yet. As it shook off the sinister feeling that Dark Pulse usually left in its targets, the Starmie shot a solid-looking ruby beam towards the Noivern, slamming into the bat. This time it was the wild Pokemon's turn to be forced back, nearly falling out of sight.


Whatever calm the Noivern once had was gone once he finally reappeared once more. Still aloft, he looked down towards the Starmie, clearly planning sinister- when all of a sudden the winds that had been in effect suddenly died down. In addition, the bat dropped like a rock as if something had seized his form without warning.


“Paralysis...” I said aloud, realizing just want made Noivern freeze up in such a fashion. “Now is the time to act if you have something impressive planned!”


*~~~~~~~~~*

Battle Statistics:

Gentle Genderless Starmie: 59%, TNT-2 (used Psychic, Power Gem)
??? Male Noivern: 40%, PRZ (used Dark Pulse, fully paralyzed)


*~~~~~~~~~*

Trainer Stats:

Name: Alyssa Tanenbrae
Location: Ruined Manor
Area Effects: 9 Encounters remaining, Mewtwo picture taken
Weather: Indoors
Pokemon Encountered: Murkrow, Woobat, Honedge, Spinarak, Mewtwo, Noivern
Pokemon Captured: Bashful Female Murkrow, Sassy Male Honedge
CC since last Encounter: 30,845/25,000

Pokemon Statistics:

Pokemon: Murkrow
Nickname: Icarus
Gender: Male
Ability: Prankster
Nature: Quirky
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Toxic, Thunder Wave, Substitute, Protect, Roost

Pokemon: Absol (56%)
Nickname: Rikishi
Gender: Male
Ability: Super Luck
Nature: Serious
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Thunder Wave, Will-o-Wisp, Stone Edge, X-Scissor


Pokemon: Starmie
Nickname: Astrid
Gender: GL
Ability: Natural Cure
Nature: Gentle
TM/HM/BM/SM/MT: Surf, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt, Thunder, Psychic, Thunder Wave, Hidden Power (Fire), Psyshock


Items: Lava Cookie, Energy Root, Park Ball (x1), Super Ball (x3), Hyper Ball (x3), Digital Camera


*~~~~~~~~~*

 

It seemed that irony was having a lovely time at her expense--while Alyssa had attempted to paralzye the Honedge in order to temporarily disable its movements and had attempted the same attack on the Noivern in the name of slowing it down. Instead, the Honedge had been slowed down a bit (not that it had been particularly fast to begin with, but any respite was welcomed), and the Noivern was sent crashing to the ground, wings spasming painfully.

The Noivern had been frozen in place by Astrid's Psychic, leaving it twitching and attempting to free itself for a moment. Alyssa flinched.

The feel of a psychic's mind upon her own, forcing her limbs to move against her will, sending her crashing to the ground as she tried to move her fingers in response and failed, eyes frozen, mouth silent--

Okay, that was weird.

That, combined with the sweeping feeling of deja vu over her, was seriously convincing Alyssa to take a break after this encounter. Adventuring be damned, she had her three Pokemon already--and a mystery to solve, to boot.

“Lia says that Pokemon is a Noivern,” Akinai explained. “Seems very old-fashioned as well, judging from the insults it's tossing at your Starmie.”

Interesting. A regal attitude to suit a regal Pokemon. Alyssa was suddenly struck with the image of the large dragon, wearing a top hat and monocle.

In the interim, the bat Pokemon had managed to free itself with a massive onslaught of black energy that Alyssa recognized as a creative use of Dark Pulse (it was one of the few attacks she could safely identify on sight alone). The dark-typed attack easily disrupted the blue light surrounding the Noivern, freeing it from the Psychic and allowing the black and purple dragon to take to the air once again, wings flaring wide. The rest of the attack rocketed toward Astrid, knocking the Starmie back and breaking whatever concentration that remained, allowing the Noivern to completely shake itself free--

--just in time to receive the brunt of Astrid's Power Gem attack head on, almost knocking the bat completely out of sight. It shrieked in pain, rearing its head back and preparing another devastating attack--

--just in time for the winds buoying it to peter out and for the spasming grasp of paralysis to kick in.

Alyssa almost whistled. That was lucky. Astrid was looking a little worse for the wear after the most recent exchange of blows, and the Noivern was certainly no gentle hitter. “Paralysis...” Akinai said, confirming Alyssa's suspicions. “Now is the time to act if you have something impressive planned!”

Right. Something impressive. She totally had something impressive planned.

However, if she stopped to analyze the battle in full, the Noivern would probably recover in time and the advantage would be lost.

"Brine, but use Psyshock to give it an extra kick," she said quickly. It probably wasn't impressive, and it certainly wasn't planned, but at least she was acting. With any luck, the Noivern would only need to take a little more damage before she could attempt a capture.

Starmie once again began focusing energy in its gem (when did it not?), this time creating a handful of miniature blue and purple orbs of psychic energy that orbited around the purple star like planets might orbit a sun. The spheres stretched and glimmered of their own accord, as if made of liquid, but pulsated with random undulations of their own. Alyssa knew that the spheres weren't made of liquid, but of condensed psychic energy, meant to slam into the opponent with force comparable to a cannon-ball--thus utilizing the wielder's ability to create long-ranged attacks while hitting the defender with close-range damage.

A few moments later, the Starmie produced a large sphere of water in front of itself, whose motion seemed to follow an actual sphere of liquid. Alyssa didn't need to taste the liquid or anything to know that it was extremely salty, laced with minerals from the Starmie's internal stores. When an opponent was injured, a Brine attack would actually do more damage: the salts would, quite literally, be rubbed into old wounds, causing more pain than normal.

Astrid focused on more time, and the psychic orbs slowly converged upon the large sphere of water, dividing it up until each fragment of Psyshock had enveloped part of the Brine attack. Its preparation done, the Starmie prepared to lob its combined attacks at the Noivern.

Alyssa began rifling through her backpack for a Pokeball. Unlike last time, she wanted to be prepared in case the opportunity for a capture presented itself.