Pleased the authorities have the Pangoro situation under control, Beatrix breathes a sigh of relief. At least the citizens of Kalos can rest easy knowing the threat of an imminent Pokemon brawl will not be a likelihood in the future.
She answers to Prof. Sycamore’s message with a response.
Thanks! This’ll come in handy! Au Revoir!
The young detective took the professor’s advice to heart. I guess could try and be a good role model to it. Hmmm, he said something about training. That gives me an idea. But for now… I got a case that needs solving!
Beatrix enters the Pokémon Center, and makes her way to the center desk, awaiting her partners’ recovery. As she makes her way, she skims the room, looking for anyone suspicious or having the look of someone who has been here for awhile. Maybe she could try asking around if any of the relaxed and resting trainers about Officer Shirley, or if anyone so much as glanced at the direction of the shopping clerk during their exchange. Maybe someone saw what the card looked like.
She looks forward to cracking this assignment and continuing on with her quest to become champ.
Frederick calls out a pair of orders to his two Bug Types, gesturing tellingly at Jim's Litwick, and the wriggling opponents respond with respectable speed. Seems a Bug Trainer has good reason to be concerned about a Pokemon that is literally on fire.
Sending out twin strands of silk, the Caterpie and Weedle tug on the lines to propel themselves at Eli, striking high and low in a well-practiced coordinated attack.
Leaping high, the Caterpie pecks at Elijah's ghostly form as it passes. It does its damage, but its hard for the Worm Pokemon to nibble away at defenses that aren't there to start with, and the candle-like Pokemon merely reforms its damaged bits at the cost of spectral stamina.
Caterpie used Bug Bite!
Eli took 3 Damage!
Eli's Defense can't fall any more...
Coming in low, the Weedle throws itself at the Ghost Type in a body tackle. Possibly unaware that he's facing a Ghost type, Frederick has made the mistake of using a Normal type move, and Elijah is easily able to shrug away about half of the blow with only minimal disruption of his phasing form.
Weedle used Tackle!
Eli took 2 Damage!
It wasn't very effective...
While neither blow was truly telling on its lonesome, the pair taken together have put the Litwick in something of a pickle. Penned into his starting corner by the pair of agile Bugs, the Candle Pokemon responds with a point blank gout of flame across the nearby Caterpie, its Weedle associate forced to leap aside from its ally to avoid the clinging flames that spray across the ground.
Eli used Ember!
Caterpie took 3 Damage!
It's Super Effective!
Rushing to her partner's aid, Lotty flings herself across the arena, aiming her bulk at the dodging Weedle. Whether more by luck or design, she manages to smash her tail into the juking Hairy Bug Pokemon, her superior bulk sending her target tumbling. Rolling back to its feet, it doesn't seem to have been terribly phased by the impact.
Lotty used Flail!
Weedle took 1 Damage! (Lotty may Shift elsewhere)
Frederick looks a little concerned by the round's outcome, perhaps thinking he may have been going in a little too hard for his opponent, especially since he started what might have been a friendly battle off by focus-firing.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
- Eli [ |||----- ]
- Lotty [ |||||| ]
- Caterpie [ ||||||--- ]
- Weedle [ ||||||- ]
Other Quadrants
- Empty
"Yeah, you too," the woman replies, stuffing her laptop into a messenger bag at her side, before realizing the incongruity of her response with a wince. Aleksandr isn't the only one with social deficits, clearly.
"I mean good luck on your Challenge. Have fun."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The nurse at the desk is the same one that accepted Beatrix's Pokemon earlier, and apparently recognizes her, having a tray with her two Pokeballs ready by the time she steps to the front of the line.
"All healed up and ready to go! Have a nice day!"
This side of the Pokecenter has several trainers likely waiting for their Pokemon to heal up and having nothing to do in the interim. Young and old, scruffy and presentable, the lineup of seated and leaning individuals is a tidy example of the many sorts you might find on a Pokemon journey, though nowadays of course a good three-quarters of the crowd is engrossed in their Pokedex, at least where they aren't working at building bonds with Pokemon healthy enough not to need of a trip behind the Pokecenter counter.
Many of them might have been here five minutes, or five hours, and none stick out as particularly suspicious. Beatrix might try her luck with a little old-fashioned gumshoeing and just ask a few folks at random and hope for a lucky break, or perhaps she's content to stick around a bit longer and get a better read on the crowd.
On the other side of the room, closer to the Shop, Beatrix does notice a young woman looking a little nervous and jittery, but she also appears to be talking with Richter and Aleksandr, so that might be a normal reaction to interacting with the two... slightly odd trainers.
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KayWhat we need...Is a little bit of PANIC.Registered Userregular
"Thank you!" Aleksandr replies, honestly. Volnoy tips the young woman a salute, then regards the floating Magnemite again for a moment. His eyes narrow. Maaaaaybe he could take it. "Volnoy, come," Al continues, as he heads towards the exit. On the way, however, he notices Beatrix. "Oh, hello, Bea," he says, before pressing the one-use Steel Wing TM into her hand. "I was thinking this might help improve Moriarty's combat skills." He then waves, and heads out, saying, "Paka!"
The one-two punch from the Bug Pokemon make Jim wince, as no amount of getting caught up in battle is enough to miss that. But if the attack threw Jim off his game, then the unfortunate Eli is even worse. Cornered now between a brace of brawny bugs, with a mere minnow as his mate, the Litwick does something undesirable, but understandable.
"Lii!" Eli cries, flying into an abrupt panic. He backs away in terror from the two bugs and covers his eyes in fright, as the flames on both his wick and the ground rapidly soar out of control, sending licks of fire across the field and up to the rafters.
"Oh, no!" Jim gasps. He calls out desperately to his friend. "Eli! Listen to me, Eli! Listen to the sound of my voice!" The terrified Litwick pauses for a moment at the sound of his trainer's call. "Eli, focus on my voice!" Jim calls again. "You are the flame's master! You control it! It doesn't control you!" he shouts. "I know you can control the flames! Now control them!" he commands, in perhaps the most forceful tone he's yet used.
Eli responds to Jim by uncovering his eyes and taking whatever a ghostly candle takes for a deep breath, and the flames respond in turn by quickly petering back down to their typical purple glow. The brief inferno is insufficient to cause any damage to the field or its inhabitants, and once again the flickering remnants of the previous Ember attack are the only other fire in the area.
The flickering... purple... remnants. Jim snaps his fingers. "Eli, use the flames to cloak yourself and pull away!" Eli fades into the lambent flames, floating away from the double trouble without giving them a chance to respond. (spending 1 Voltage to shift Eli to Quadrant
His Pokemon momentarily out of danger, Jim doubles down on his attack plan. "Okay, Eli, you've got your breathing room, now put it to good use with some more of those flames on Caterpie! Lotty, keep up the attack on Weedle!"
Eli will use Ember on Caterpie from Quadrant B, and Lotty will use Tackle on Weedle, still in Quadrant A.
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Tommy2Handswhat is this where am iRegistered Userregular
"Oh shit, sorry, I mean, uh..Pardon! Je suis vraiment désolé!", Alex exclaims, turning away from Holly to look at the collection of psy-wielding pickpockets on the ground next to him, "Hey! Oeufs de démo-er, uh, stop! Moe, Curly, please, get the others to leave her be! I'm trying to give you all a chance to explore a nice, new town, not to rob people!"
Recognizing the genuine nature of their newest accomplice's words, the majority of the eggs lay off, with some of the more cracked of the bunch still seeming incredulous. Or as an incredulous as an seed-egg can seem, anyway.
Turning back to Holly, Alex begins to apologize profusely as he attempts to list off as many french synonyms for "sorry" as he remembers. He's pretty sure he might have accidently mixed some italian in there as well.
Meanwhile, with Alex's attentions focused on covering for them, the Eggs split up to look around the gym for other potential suckers.
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Tommy2Handswhat is this where am iRegistered Userregular
I only just realized you guys have been sneaking music into the note tags next to the location title
I thought that was just a recent aesthetic choice that we were all going with
Dragging North to the counter on the far side of the room, Richter presents himself to the nurse. "So the one in the ball needs a full checkup, whereas this one", hefting the rock onto the counter, "I need some advice about."
North looks around innocently.
Richter sighs, decompressing a bit. "So we had an issue earlier where he had a bad rash of silicate crystals. Do I need to worry about it at all?"
The nurse smiles. "Oh no, silicate crystals shouldn't harm your Geodude at all, and.."
Her voice trails off as she notices the metallic protrusions on the Geodude's brow.
Pulling out her Physician's Guidebook, she hurriedly looks up the Alolan variant.
She taps on North's outer shell a bit, and then disappears out the back of the surgery.
Coming back, she hands another container to Richter.
This one much the same as the anti-queeziness medication he was given back in the previous city.
"Iron supplements.", she states. "Your Geodude is very off-colour. Clearly not enough metallic minerals in his diet.
Give him two of these a day, and he should be right as rain."
"Err... thanks. But what about the silicates?"
"I can't see any at the moment, unless they're under the hat.".
The nurse rests her hand on the ragged remains of the bandage that Richter had once placed on North's head. "May I?" "By all means."
Lifting the bandage reveals a glittering array of glass crystals forming a crest of short spikes between North's anodes.
The nurse pokes at the side of the crystals with a tongue depressor.
North does not appear to be irritated by the pressure at all. "So.. this is not a problem. At least not one that couldn't be solved with a good polish.
The crystal appears to be big enough to be stable, but it's likely to be quite sharp and may fragment if handled incorrectly.
Perhaps leave the hat on?
If you want to remove it, it would probably be a matter of setting your Geodude on a strict diet and waiting for the crystal to simply grow out of his shell."
Richter's somewhat lost in his own world at this point. I guess the mud prevented the silicate from growing out everywhere but the top of his head?
How do I polish that thing?
"If there's nothing else, your other Pokémon will be ready in 15 minutes.
Next waiting!"
Richter puts the hat back on North, takes the tub of pills, and heads off to book a room in the Center.
All the while wondering where he might be able to get a belt sander from.
“Oh thanks, Alex. That’s mighty kind of you. Ummm… what’s it do?” She responds to Alex, before he leaves the Center, uttering something foreign before he was gone. “Pack of what? Cards?” Beatrix questions. “Then again, isn’t it considered a deck of cards?” She mumbles to herself. She looks back at the TM the Ace Trainer left for her. Steel Wing? I guess Moriarty could use some extra firepower. Think I’ll hold onto this for now. She pockets the TM into…well… her pockets.
She takes a gander at the current crop of trainers nearby: A young man with a Chespin. A teen with a Scatterbug. A young woman with a magnemite.
The woman looks to have the jitters at the moment. Makes me wonder what those two DID to put her in that mood. Probably won’t get any info out of her… yet. Maybe let her mellow out for a bit. As for the teen… looks to be too busy talking shop with his partner there. Doesn’t mean I can scratch him off my list yet. That leaves us with…
She looks back at the young man with the Chespin. Guess I gotta start somewhere…
After ordering a cup of coffee of her own, she makes her way to the young man. She indicates to one of the empty chairs of the table. “Hi there! This seat taken?” she asks, trying to appear as cheerful as possible.
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TiamatZGhost punsThe Banette of my existenceRegistered Userregular
Easy access to theme music and having time to pick the perfect ones is one of the things I like about PbP. Getting to subtly put it in the post with a handy emote is sprinkles on top.
Like man, having a 'shit just got real' banger to go with a 'shit just got real' post is one of life's finer pleasures.
Attn: @Terrendos I screwed up in the last post and gave the Weedle STAB on its tackle when it should not have had that. It only dealt 1 Damage, and Eli is at 4/8 Stamina, which is now reflected in the summary below. Bit of a buffer, but probably not enough to change your mind on getting Eli out of the Area, pronto, especially since Frederick won't make that mistake twice.
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~ Richter, Aleksandr
Something was off about that woman, and you never got her name... Oh well, ships in the night!
(Survived an Encounter with a member of the Rival Five: 3 Trainer Exp Each!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Beatrix
"Hmm?" the young man says, looking up from his cup of what seems to be hot chocolate. "Oh! No, please go right ahead," he replies enthusiastically. He may have the wrong idea about why Beatrix wants to be seated near him, and his Chespin may be thinking the same thing from how it gives her a cautionary stare.
The other trainers in the room are already alert and wary from the secretary's outburst, but that doesn't really stop The Devil's Eggs from trying their luck at snatching at pockets or yanking Pokedexess out of hands, to little success but much ill-will towards the impolite Exeggcute and their profusely apologizing trainer.
"S'il vous plait, Monsieur," Holly demands, firmly. "Si vous ne pouvez pas contrôler votre Pokémon, je devrai vous demander de partir."
His expression inscrutable, Frederick shouts out commands of his own:
"Chenipain! Aller au poisson! Dartgarçon..." he hesitates. "Dard-Venin! Le fantôme!" he calls out decisively.
The Caterpie charges at the flailing Feebas, ducking in to avoid her fins as it chips away at her scales with deft snips of its mandibles. It doesn't do a lot of damage thanks to her Bug Resistance, but subsequent attacks will likely be slightly more effective.
Caterpie used Bug Bite!
Lotty took 1 Damage!
Lotty's Defense fell!
It's not very effective...
Scuttling towards its target, the Weedle is startled when Eli disappears into the flames before it can strike. Looking around in confusion it finally notices the Ghost Type reappear in another section of the arena. Changing direction, it tries to take up the attack once more but the leaping and flailing Lotty keeps getting in its way before it can get anywhere.
Voltage Spent!
Eli shifted to Quadrant B!
Frustrated, the Weedle eventually decides to forget about the Litwick and just headbutt the annoying Feebas instead, striking Lotty with its poisonous horn.
Weedle used Poison Sting!
Lotty took 2 Damage!
Lotty's Speed Fell!
It wasn't very effective...
Battered and weakened, Jim's two Pokemon steel themselves for a counter-offensive. Now at a more preferential range for his conjured blaze, Eli flings fire across the intervening distance he created to splash over the Caterpie, now rather crispy from its second close encounter with ghostly flame.
Eli used Ember!
Caterpie took 3 Damage!
It's Super Effective!
Having gained the Weedle's attention, Lotty uses her opponent's closeness to launch a more focused tackle, though honestly it seemed like the random leaping and tail swinging was more effective, or at least not as bland.
Lotty used Tackle!
Weedle took 1 Damage!
And nothing else happened...
Battle Status
Quadrant A
- Lotty [ |||--x ] -1 Df, -1 Sp
- Caterpie [ |||------ ]
- Weedle [ |||||-- ]
Quadrant B
- Eli [ ||||---- ]
Other Quadrants
- Empty
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Tommy2Handswhat is this where am iRegistered Userregular
edited July 2017
~Santalune Gym~
"Huh", Alex says quizzically, the majority of his attention on Holly. He turns around to see his egg friends wrecking havok on the various trainers in the gym and before groaning. He turns back to Holly, one hand partially covering his face as the other hits the recall button on the Devil's Eggs ball. With a flash of red light, the scattered egg pokemon disappears.
His head propped on the desk, he appears to rub his face for a moment.
"Je suis...vraiment désolé. Un instant s'il vous plaît."
He scurries out of the gym and towards the courtyard in the center of the small town, where he takes a sunny seat at the old fountain. Sending out both Pidgey and the Eggs, he gives the collective latter a very stern look.
"I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed", he starts. The Breeder looks up at the picturesque sky, before sighing. His look softens back to his normal, more gentle demeanor.
"...but I guess I really have no right to be."
"We", he gestures to Pidgey and himself, "...took you all in. Admittedly, by force. And I can't force you to change. But maybe we can work together?"
Pidgey, not really understanding what all the hoopla is about, sways back and forth, absentmindedly looking around at the various objects around the fountain. A few seconds later, and a vaguely-metallic waste bin hangs out on the cobblestone next to the eggs.
"Take a breather, think about it. Enjoy the sun. I'm just gonna send off a text message to the Professor, and then we're headed back in there to apologize and maybe they'll let us get some actual training in, okay?"
I wish to let you know that I've added another friend to our party. They are a small group of seeds that my Pokedex informs me are known as Exeggcute! Unfortunately, they seem to be a little...devious. I'm sending this message to you on the heel end of an incident in which they were attempting to steal trinkets from strangers. I wanted to ask you if you had any advice to give for a trainer looking to raise such a...miscreant-natured pokemon.
Edit: Oh wait, the initial posting was a half-hour earlier. Phew.
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KayWhat we need...Is a little bit of PANIC.Registered Userregular
~Santalune Gym~
Aleksandr finally makes his way to the gym, and pauses at the door. He takes a slow look around the visible town from his position, then boldly enters, with Volnoy at his heel. If he had been minutes earlier, perhaps he would have bumped into Alex.
Once inside, he heads towards the information desk, and the woman the Devil's Eggs had been harrying. Not that he has any idea, of course.
"Hello," he says, after waiting to catch her attention. "I was here to work my way through the gym challenge, if there is space permitting."
I'm gonna take a guess that the Trainer XP for surviving an encounter with part of the Rival Five was for Richter and myself, rather than Richter and Jim, @Marshmallow?
"Oooooh yeah! That's the way to do it, both of you!" Jim cheers, the pendulum of battle moving back his direction. "Let's start wrapping this up! Eli! Lotty! You ready?"
Eli stretches out with his senses, remembering the feeling of the Caterpie's bite, and how it seemed to sap his corporeality in a way that he'd never experienced before. It was like the shadows that made up his body were somehow dissipated... it was a wholly unpleasant feeling. And yet, it gave him an idea. Perhaps by gathering those shadows together, he might be able to permanently augment his own ability to affect the physical world. A novel idea, to be sure, but no less worth the effort. The little ghost focuses his will, broadening his own shadows in a way he's never tried before, with remarkable results.
Elijah's Defense increased to 2! (2 exp spent!)
"Nice job, Eli!" Jim calls. "Now let's show those bugs who's boss! Bring down that Caterpie with your scorching flames!"
The Litwick nods in confirmation, steadying his flame and refocusing it for a final strike at the wounded bug. "Lii!" it shouts, sending out a final gout of violet flames to put the Caterpie out of commission.
"Lotty! You're doing wonderfully!" Jim says, turning to his favorite fish. "Now, build up all the strength you can in your tail. The next time you get attacked, smack the ground as hard as you can to flop out of the way!"
Lotty temporarily ceases her flipping around and swings up with her tail, ready to dodge the next attack that comes her way. (Spending 1 Voltage to dodge the next attack, assuming it comes.)
When the next bug comes at her, she smacks the ground with a surprising amount of strength, shooting up into the air.
"The Weedle, Lotty! The Weedle!" Jim calls.
The Weedle, indeed. An unnecessary command, for Lotty was already aiming that way. Such an incorrigible young bug... there's only one way for a proper lady to respond to such an egregious slight.
Smack.
Bouncing off the bug, she flips back over and lands in Quadrant C.
Eli uses Ember on Caterpie! Lotty uses Flail on Weedle and shifts to Quadrant C.
Nah Kay, pretty sure Eli gets that experience. He was there... in spirit.
Waka waka!
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TiamatZGhost punsThe Banette of my existenceRegistered Userregular
edited July 2017
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~
“Thank you,” she responds in kind. She takes a gander behind her, making sure no one was noticing them. Satisfied she wasn’t being spied upon, she take a seat, sipping some nice, warm coffee.
"Say, you wouldn't know of any strange goings-on here in town? I heard through the grapevine that there was a law enforcement agent in town around askin’ questions ‘bout missin’ or stolen items. That true?” She asks, straight to the point.
She takes a peek at the nearby Chespin, who seemed to be wary of her. Is he on to me?! Is my cover blown?! Gotta think fast!
“My, you’re quite the cutie!” she said in a faux enthusiastic tone. “That your partner? It looks mighty adorable! Mind if I take a scan of the lil' 'mon?” She asks, as she pulls out her Dex. Partly to scan information on the little scamp, but really just an excuse to write down notes in case the young man does manage to offer her any evidence to aid her case.
Richter and North head back down from the accommodation desk after securing a room.
North has had his 'hat' re-strapped. "Just until we can find someone to polish it", Richter had said, whilst tentatively recharging the Pokémon and trying to avoid the glass spikes.
Walking back up to the nurses' desk, Richter retrieved Keyanu's ball. ...
I can't very well work with this Pokémon without its co-operation.
Richter tosses the ball back and forth. Perhaps a battle would do Keyanu good?
Looking around the center, Richter starts to appraise the other trainers, before he notices the Magnemite from before wobbling ominously in the air, fretting a bit at the instability.
Richter pinches his nose. "Alright, let's go to the Gym then, North."
North lowers his arm, grinning at the promise of getting to see the rest of this village.
~ Santalune Gym ~
Pushing open the large double doors, Richter takes in the entrance foyer of the gym.
It doesn't seem to be as busy as it could be, but that might just be because people are starting to head home.
A rather uncomfortable set of bug noises also appears to be filling the room.
And they're all speaking in their language...
Richter looks at North, who just shrugs. "Um...", Richter approaches the nearest trainer, or at least person with self-evident Pokémon. "Uh.. Pardon... battle?", Richter volunteers, indicating North and waving a Pokéball around.
Heads up I got some time off around the 8th to the 11th. Good time to catch up on things via irc if that needs doing, or maybe just catch up on posts if I happen to be awake when everyone else is, again.
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~ Beatrix
The young man stares at Beatrix blankly for a few moments, before his eyebrows rise with a sudden connection. "Oh," he replies. "So that's who that was."
"I was at the Trainer's School earlier checking in on some old teachers, and there was some woman, all dressed up, wandering around asking questions. The way she acted I thought she was a League Rep or something. Especially since she asked me about anything unusual in the nearby routes, or if I had seen any suspicious strangers. Keeping tabs on anything that could be scary or harmful for the participants, right?"
He leans back in his chair. "I was like, lady, it's the start of the Pokemon League. I wouldn't even know where to start with odd folk and strange happenings." He stoops back forward to cradle his cocoa in both hands. "I guess that didn't impress her much. So I guess whatever she's looking for is something really wild. Like 'you'd know it if you saw it'."
"Go right ahead," he responds to Beatrix's request to scan his Pokemon. "I'm Anton by the way, and that little scamp is Blitz."
Her Pokedex beeps as it brings up data on the critter. Blitz is apparently a Lichen-bred Chespin, a Grass/Rock Type subspecies known for its increased hardiness, more cynical attitude, and its powerful Rollout attack. Various breeds of Chespin are commonly given as starter Pokemon in Kalos, thanks to its easygoing nature and trainability - though Lichen-bred are a bit tougher to train than usual, thanks to being more suspicious than curious, and more quiet than optimistic.
The Spiny Nut Pokemon continues to glare Beatrix's way, its feet swinging back and forth under the chair beneath it, as it patiently decides on whether it's going to tolerate her or not.
~ Santalune Gym ~ Alex
Oh dear, that sounds rather serious!
Professor Sycamore texts back in reply to Alex.
It seems like the behavior may be somewhat set at this point, but I would caution you against using punishments to try to mitigate this behavior, including returning the Pokemon to its Pokeball any time it acts out. It's a poor method, that often yields poor results.
If the Exeggcute is smart enough to understand you, you may be able to appeal to their intelligence, by explaining how the behavior reflects badly on both it and you as its trainer, and how it will ultimately stand in the way of your mutual goals.
If not, I would suggest seeing if you can distract the Pokemon with other activities that give it little chance to act out until the behavior passes naturally. Or supplant it with something more constructive, like a game or exercise that can satisfy the same needs of the Pokemon without imposing on others. Perhaps something like "find the treat" in your own belongings if this is seeking behavior, or having a puzzle handy for it to solve, like a Rubik's cube or a rope puzzle, to challenge their coordination and cognition.
Hope this is helpful! Let me know how things go, and bon chance, Alex!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Aleksandr
"Oui, monsieur. You may scan your Pokedex here, if you please?" the attendent replies to the Ace Trainer, gesturing to a wireless device on the counter. After doing so, she squints at a small display, no doubt alerting her to Aleksandr's progress on his League Challenge and the general status of his team of Pokemon.
"You are Rank 10 Trainer," she says. "Your first Badge. You may challenge the Gym Leader directly, with one Pokemon, two Pokemon, or in a double battle with two Pokemon. We have openings later in the afternoon, or early tomorrow morning. I may schedule you, if you wish to register the Pokemon you will use, and which format you prefer," she continues, gesturing once more where Aleksandr can scan his Pokedex.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Richter
The trainer looks Richter up and down, affording him the chance to do the same, noting her long brown hair pouring over the shoulders of her green Gym Student jacket, freckled face, and the yellow, larva-like Pokemon, with a large leaf serving as a hood-slash-collar, holding tight to her sleeve like an oversized wrap-around-eraser critter on a very big pencil.
"I'll battle," she says mildly, jerking her head to the left side of the foyer. "Training room?"
Frederick seems to be struggling to keep up the shifty tactics Jim is employing.
"Chenipain, Gaz Toxik! Dartgarçon, après le fantôme! Vite!" he calls out, confidently despite appearances.
Drawing close to the flopping Feebas, the Caterpie shakes its head adornment back and forth, sending forth a foul-smelling cloud to billow towards the Fish Pokemon.
Caterpie used Poison Gas...
Responding to the enthusiasm in her Trainer's voice, Lotty violently leaps away before the cloud before it can engulf her, avoiding the stinky attack.
Voltage Spent!
Lotty Dodged the attack!
Using Lotty's distance and distraction as a chance to slip away, the Weedle makes a multi-legged charge towards the ghostly Eli, the effort taken to close the distance forcing it to use its quickest attack, even if that's already proven less-than-effective against the elusive specter.
Weedle used Tackle!
Eli took 1 Damage!
It wasn't very effective...
Even less effective than before, now that the Litwick is holding his physical form together that much better, with a swollen shield of gathered shadows to help protect him.
Retaliating, not against the one who struck him, but the Weedle's farflung and weakened ally, Eli flings another flash of fire at the near-stricken Bug Type, taking it to fully-stricken status in an explosion of flame.
Eli used Ember!
Caterpie took 3 Damage!
It's Super Effective!
Reaching his hand out, Frederick returns his fainted Caterpie with a frown. "N'abandonnez pas!" he shouts to his Weedle firmly. "Tu peux le faire, Dartgarçon!"
Caterpie Fainted!
Unhindered by any intervening opponents, Lotty is free to leap and bound across the area, tackling the Weedle from behind with a body slam that does little but make the Weedle wobble a bit in place, but nevertheless manages to propel her across to the other side of the arena in a few bouncing arcs.
Lotty used Flail!
Weedle took 1 Damage!
Lotty shifted to Quadrant C!
For the first time since the start of this battle, it looks like Jim's team has finally managed to eke out a stamina advantage, but will the two badly weakened Pokemon be able to take on the injured Weedle to close this out, or will a few lucky first-hits carry Frederick to a narrow comeback victory? This one looks like it'll come down to the wire.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
- Caterpie [ --------- ] Fainted
Quadrant B
- Eli [ |||----- ]
- Weedle [ ||||--- ]
Quadrant C
- Lotty [ |||--x ] -1 Df, -1 Sp
Quadrant D
- Empty
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KayWhat we need...Is a little bit of PANIC.Registered Userregular
~ Santalune Gym ~
"I think I shall try the double battle," Aleksandr replies, scanning his Pokédex and selecting Volnoy and Borzoi for the battle. "This afternoon, hopefully. In the meantime, are there Gym members I may train against? Or other trainers that may wish to practice before challenging the gym?"
He looks around the place as he speaks, waving his hand towards Richter in greeting as he sees the scientist enter.
"I have friends that may be here already. A young man, pleasant, with a Ditto and Exeggcute. Another young man, abrasive, with a Litwick and, ah, Feebas."
"All right team, great work! Now let's wrap this up!" Jim shouts excitedly. "Eli, throw those flames, make it count! Lotty! Bring it home with another fantastic flop!"
Eli prepares his final attack, swirling his wick to gather flames once again, but this time, he pauses. Instead of launching them at the foe, he instead begins spinning around, drawing in air and surrounding his body with purple flames. The strange twirl seems to have a similar effect as when Eli lost control earlier, the smoking embers of previous attacks suddenly flaring back up. But this time it's clearly intentional, controlled, focused. Suddenly, the odd dance stops, and the flames surrounding Eli flee outward... directly at the belligerent bug.
Eli learned Fiery Dance [Special/Boosting(SA)/Fire] (1 EXP spent)! Eli used Fiery Dance on Weedle!
Lotty, for her part, complies with Jim's command without comment. Lotty moves to Quadrant B and uses Flail on Weedle!
Is Jim coming off as abrasive? I'm aiming for "boisterous and aggressively friendly."
"Um, sure.", says Richter, embarrassed.
He's not entirely sure why he assumed that the trainers here wouldn't speak his language as well. "Double battle fine? I have a new Pokémon that I need to iron out.
... I'm not really sure how it will react on the field by itself." ~ Santalune Gym - Training room ~
Standing on his side of the arena, Richter is flipping Keyanu's Pokéball, steeling himself for the inevitable release. "North, you got me if things go bad?"
North nods.
And with that Richter releases his new.. partner?
TiamatZGhost punsThe Banette of my existenceRegistered Userregular
edited August 2017
“Please to meet you, Blitz!” She offers a friendly hand wave to the adorable Spiny Nut Pokémon. She focuses her attention back to Anton.
“You don’t say? Did she have auburn hair with a bob cut by any chance? Dark jacket and slacks?” she inquires, making sure it was the Officer in question. Were Officer Shirley's questions about the missing items and equipment all an elaborate smokescreen? Was she REALLY just looking for unusual suspects? Or were these two connected somehow?
“Was she asking anything specifically on the strangers? Did she like... give exact details of said suspects in question? Names? Or was she deliberately being vague? A friend of mine was concerned she might be up to no good, so I was asked to look into it.”
Bea sighs. “Not that it’s what the lady was looking for, but if it’s something wild or unusual that happened on the Routes... I guess my incident this morning could count.” When Anton’s curiosity was piqued, Beatrix continued. “On my way from Lumiose City, I stumbled into a gang of Pancham and their leader in one of the hedge mazes in Route 4. Quite the bruiser, seven foot tall. Managed to get out of there with some quick thinking, and also this little guy...” the young detective pulled out one of her Pokéballs. With a press of the button, Vance materialises out of it and looks about in confusion (not being used to being in a Pokeball, by the looks of it), before setting his sights at the Spiny Nut Pokémon.
She waited to see what the Chespin's response would be. "Welcome back, Vance! Feeling any better?" she calls out to the Playful Pokémon.
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TiamatZGhost punsThe Banette of my existenceRegistered Userregular
The Chespin blinks slowly at Beatrix, the whiskery spines atop its head drooping slightly in reply. "Be nice to the lady," Anton says, ruffling Blitz's head until the Pokemon frowns, its spikes standing on end once more. It gives a half-hearted wave back.
Anton nods at Beatrix's description, taking an awkward sip of his drink during. "Yeah, yeah, something like that," he agrees readily. "I didn't think anything about the vagueness since I figured she was just looking for trouble to report to the League, not looking for someone or something specific." He thinks it over for a few moments. "If that was the case, maybe she didn't want to influence answers, like if you ask 'did you see someone with purple hair,' some people say 'yeah' even if they maybe aren't sure, but if you ask 'hey did you see anyone weird looking' and you get a 'yeah, I saw someone with purple hair,' without prompting, you know you've got the real deal." He seems really pleased at this deduction.
"That or she knows someone's onto her, like you are, and didn't want to give away what she wanted to find just yet. I mean, a crooked cop up to no good? That sounds like serious stuff. Oh my gosh, are you with Interpol? Or the Rangers? Am I gonna get deputized?"
As the Call To Adventure resounds throughout the young man's personal universe, Beatrix releases the woozy Pancham from his ball. Rubbing at his eyes, Vance takes in the scene, his gaze lingering in an unfriendly manner on the seated Chespin, which returns the look with equal temerity.
Beating at his chest with a paw to prove himself hearty and healthy in reply to Beatrix's question, Vance wastes no time clambering up on to the last free chair, intent on not being the only one left standing on the floor while all the action appears to be happening over the top of the table.
~ Santalune Gym ~ Aleksandr
"Oui, monsieur," she replies to the Ace Trainer, pressing a few buttons on her device that prompts a brief electrical whine from below the counter.
Reaching down to retrieve the printed slip of paper, and folding it with brief, practiced movements, she tears away the bottom half and presents Aleksandr with a reminder slip for his Gym Challenge, with the time, format, and registered Pokemon all helpfully noted.
"You may approach any of the trainers and students in the building for a battle, though I expect the most willing will be found either waiting here in the lobby, or in the training rooms that way," she says, pointing towards the hallway to the left. Good luck with your Challenge, monsieur."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Richter
"'Kay, then," the student replies, turning and heading towards the training rooms leaving Richter to follow, the Sewaddle riding on the trainer's arm turning around to peer at the Scientist with its head half-buried into the cloth of her jacket.
...
Keyanu appears in a flash of light, the Klefki's metal accouterments rattling as it turns to look around the room, at its new trainer and battling partner, and the dubious Gym Student on the other side of the arena.
Shaking, it gives a whistling shriek of irritation. Clearly it hasn't calmed down all that much while it was being handled at the Pokecenter. We can all consider it a blessing that at least it isn't using that Screech Move it learned somewhere along the line. Yet, anyway.
Holding out one arm with her clinging Sewaddle, and the other with a clenched Pokeball, his opponent releases both her Pokemon. The Sewaddle crawling along her outstretched forearm before flipping to the ground like a swimmer off a diving board, while the other merely appears in a flash of red light.
"So-so. Barb. Let's do this," the trainer addresses her Sewaddle, and the hump-backed magenta Pokemon standing next to it on stubby black feet.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
-North [ ||||||| ]
Quadrant B
- Keyanu [ |||||| ]
Quadrant C
- Sewaddle [ |||||| ]
Quadrant D
- Venipede [ ||||||| ]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jim
Pumping his arm, Frederick shouts out an encouraging "Dartgarçon, mordrez le fantôme, finissez-le!"
Now in close combat, the Weedle is able to bring its jaws to bear, snipping at bits of shadow-stuff to strip away Eli's newly found defenses.
Weedle used Bug Bite!
Eli took 2 Damage!
Eli's Defense fell!
The shade does its job well enough, however, staving off enough damage to allow the Ghost to continue the feverish minuet with his flames as his partner, the deadly dance's finale found in an explosive charge that both enhances Eli's powers, as well as homes in on the attacking Bug Type.
Eli used Fiery Dance!
Weedle took 4 Damage!
Eli's Special Attack rose!
It was Super Effective!
Scorched, the Weedle drops to the ground, exhausted and beaten despite it's best effort. Hanging his head, Frederick raises a Pokeball to return his second defeated Pokemon.
Weedle Fainted!
Raising his head, Jim's opponent favors him with a smile, and an outstretched hand. "Good battle! Your tactics, great! Very strong Fire Type! Water Type..." he makes wooshing sounds as he describes the leaps Lotty had made around the arena with a palm-down hand. "Very agile!"
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KayWhat we need...Is a little bit of PANIC.Registered Userregular
~ Santalune Gym ~
"Merci beaucoup," Aleksandr replies in the slow, measured tones of someone who really doesn't know much Kalosian at all. "I shall return for the challenge later." He inclines his head towards Volnoy, and starts towards the training rooms, as directed. On the way, he reaches down to scratch fondly at the Buizel's crest. "How about you go looking for a 'mon that wants to train?" he asks Volnoy. "I will see if there are any trainers that feel that way too."
Volnoy nods with an assertive 'Bui!, and dashes off into the crowd, looking for Pokémon that want to spar. Maybe an Oshawott, for some of that river-vs-sea otter rivalry.
Aleksandr, on the other hand, looks for likely trainers on his way, especially those talking to their Pokémon about the need for training and practice.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
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TiamatZGhost punsThe Banette of my existenceRegistered Userregular
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~
“That’s… classified.” She sighs and stares for a moment at the ceiling. Great, quite the pickle you’ve gotten yourself into. This kid knows how to keep a low profile and deduce better than you could as a detective. Good job, Beatrix… Wait… as a detective? Hmmmm...
The thought of deputizing him without Emma’s approval didn’t cross her mind, but Bea knew such deceit would only benefit her in the short run, and haunt her in the long run. A solid establishment of trust is not built on a foundation of lies, her father always said. Then again, if she was to invite him to the ranks of the Looker Bureau, it might carry unforeseen consequences for either herself or Emma in the future. Then again, if he IS as passionate about becoming one as he looks to be…
~ Challenge ~:whistle:
She looks back at Anton, a shrewd but welcoming smile forming on her lips. “I tell you what though. I heard being an ‘agent’ or a ‘ranger’ isn’t just all street smarts and book smarts, you know? Sometimes it requires in fully trusting your partners and having their backs, and vice versa. Up for a Pokémon battle? Let’s test that bond between you and your partner. If you can show me what you and Blitz can do together, I might tell you more. You interested?”
She turns her gaze to her newest partner. “Vance, you ready to scrap with the rest, and show who’s the best?” she gives the Pancham a wink and a hearty thumbs up.
All that pent-up energy flees Jim the instant the Weedle falls to the ground, and Jim does likewise, falling backward into seated position. "Whew!" Jim exclaims, breathing heavily. "Whoa boy, I'm gonna need a minute." He runs a hand through his hair and exhales deeply.
Frederick walks over, and Jim climbs back to his feet. He takes the clasps the proffered hand with his own and gives it a hearty shake. "You sure didn't make it easy on me! That's the toughest Caterpie I've ever seen! And I've seen a few!" he insists. Eli floats over to his trainer, landing on his right shoulder, while Lotty flops over in his general direction. "Believe me, that really could have gone either way."
He thinks for a second. "Come to think of it, maybe you could give me some advice. Clearly you've got a knack for training challenging Pokemon." He indicates the Feebas that's just reached them. "I just caught Lotty here today. As you can see, she's built like a tank..." he pauses for a moment, "A very sweet, feminine tank..." he corrects, "But she doesn't do a lot of damage. How did you train your Caterpie to hit so hard? Or really, just any tips at all you happen to have, since you clearly know what you're doing much better than I do."
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Borzoi shall become Dusk Form, yes.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
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TiamatZGhost punsThe Banette of my existenceRegistered Userregular
Richter steeples his fingers as he watches Keyanu pensively.
Richter shouts over the arena, "Look. I'm going to apologise in advance if things get a little.. loud.
Um, good luck and uh, let's have fun."
No time like the present I guess..., Richter muses, meeting Keyanu's stare. "Alright Keyanu, let's start things off with that fairy trapping move on the leaf cocoon Pokémon, and North", pulling his backpack around to his front, "use Earthquake on the red one."
I wanted orange Dusk Form. It gave me lemon-lime Midnight Form.
He asked for a Weedle, but they drew a Nidoqueen.
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~ Beatrix
Anton's expression is a sight to see after Beatrix's offer of an inside scoop, the Junior Detective has clearly made the young man's day. After a few moments the caveat sinks in and his sunny disposition seriouses up.
"Yeah," he replies, placing his hands flat on the table and half-rising from his seat. "I think I'm interested."
"C'mon, Blitz," he says, turning to address his watchful Chespin. "Let's show her what we're made of!"
~ Santalune Gym ~ Aleksandr
While Volnoy patters off and around the lobby, Al's search eventually turns up a girl who'd he suspect to be too young to be training here if she weren't struggling with a tree-stump-headed Pokemon with a hazy black body.
"You need to listen to orders," she suggests firmly to the sulking spook. "It doesn't matter if you want to do a different Move, I can't become a better trainer if you just do your own thing every battle."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jim
Frederick's smile slowly fades as Jim's reply gets longer and longer. Eyes searching back and forth as he tries to understand his opponent and formulate a proper reply, he eventually settles for resuming his brittle smile.
"Ah, t-thank you?" he says hesitantly, in his broken english.
(Lotty and Eli get 4 Exp each! Jim gets 2 Trainer Exp!)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Richter
"Screech the 'dude, Barb. So-so, take the keys with a Bug Bite," Richter's opponent calls out in clipped tones.
The venipede reacts the quickest, scuttling across the floor to approach North. Once in range, its carapace shivers as it lets out a haunting, high-pitched scream that echoes loudly in the room. Let's hope Keyanu didn't take that as a challenge.
Venipede used Screech!
North's Defense Sharply fell!
Weighing its chances of getting away with mischief, the Klefki seems to be content to vent its sour attitude on an acceptable target. Flitting in jerks and starts across the room as it sways with the weight of its keys, Keyanu jingles angrily and threads of chain flow out of thin air to ensnare and entrap the hesitant Sewaddle.
Keyanu used Fairy Lock!
Sewaddle took 1 damage!
Sewaddle was Trapped!
Fighting against the clinging chains, the Sewaddle manages to wriggle close enough to lunge out and nibble at the hovering Key Ring Pokemon, taking a bite out of Keyanu's considerable defenses.
The Klefki shivers with rage.
Sewaddle used Bug Bite!
Keyanu took 0 damage!
It wasn't very Effective...
Keyanu's Defense fell!
Slowest to react, North finally brings his strength to bear on his foe, fists slamming down to explosively shower the Venipede in dirt, as well as blasting himself into (or out of) more trouble, if he so wishes.
North used Earthquake!
Venipede took 1 damage! (North may shift to another area.)
You might want to grab a snack, this looks like it'll take a while.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
-North [ ||||||| ] -2 Df
- Venipede [ ||||||- ]
Quadrant C
- Keyanu [ |||||| ] -1 Df
- Sewaddle [ |||||- ] Trapped
Other Quadrants
- Empty
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TiamatZGhost punsThe Banette of my existenceRegistered Userregular
edited August 2017
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~:whistle:
Vance replies to his trainer’s request with his own hearty bellow. “Pan! Cham!” It seems challenging others makes the young woman excited. Guess he could try and emulate it as well.
“Great! That’s good to hear, Vance!” Beatrix responds. She didn’t know what the little Playful Pokémon said, but it probably wasn’t something offensive. Maybe if she keeps this level of excitement it might encourage Vance to do the same.
Maybe.
Probably.
She looks back at Anton. “Good to hear it! Meet you outside the Center then. Can’t fight inside the center, you know.”
Before she could wait on an answer, she hurries out of the center. Vance follows in tow, not really sure WHAT he got himself into with this strange lady. Maybe leaving the maze was a bad idea after all?
As Beatrix heads out, Anton lags behind to take a moment to lean in towards his Chespin, speaking quietly, chopping one hand into the other as he delineates a plan, or just offers encouragement. The Chespin simply nods once, and slips from its chair. The pair follow Beatrix outside...
~ Outside the Santalune Pokecenter ~:whistle: "So, how's this going to work?" Anton addresses Beatrix from behind his taciturn Pokemon. "Just a normal battle, or...?"
"Just a simple one on one fight. First ‘mon to faint loses. Y'know... like they do it in all the those classic stories and tales of old. Like two gunslingers at dawn, or two duelists preparing to avenge a slight wrong, or like two gallant knights fighting to gain the love of a damsel. You just can’t beat the classics, y’know?” Beatrix calls out.
She retains a ‘tough guy’ act for the battle, keeping her eye out on the nearby clock above the Pokemon center. Vance copycats Beatrix, also impersonating a tough guy act, though he does this seriously, whereas the young lady does it just as an act. “We release on three… got it?" She holds three fingers up in plain view between the two trainers.
"One" One finger goes down.
"Two" The second goes down.
"Three! Let's do this! Vance, let's goooo!" she shouts, as the final finger goes down, transforming her hand into a fist, and points said fist towards Alton: their opponent.
Marsh Notes:
<Marsh-PC> (Battle Status: Not worrying much about areas - Opposing Chespin has [ ||||| ] (5 stam))
-Chespin [ ||||| ]
~ Pokémon Battle Begin! ~:whistle:
On three, Anton wastes no time throwing a hand out and shouting an order to his Chespin. "Blitz, Bulk Up! Like we practiced!"
Widening its stance, the Pokémon tenses, leaving itself open for Beatrix and Vance to make the first move.
Vance jumps into the fray! He's pumped up, but seeing Chespin start bulking up and looking somewhat intimidating, he wavers a bit.
"Looks like Blitz is showing off, show him we mean business! Gonna show him you ain't someone to mess around with! Show him a good leer, Vance!" Beatrix winks at the Pancham.
Crossing his arms and giving the other Pokemon a sharp look, Vance turns on his tiny heel, putting his back to the powering up Pokemon in a show of haughty disregard for his opponent.
[Vance uses Leer]
[Chespin's Defense Sharply fell!]
The Chespin's eye twitches at this disrespect, but Anton steps in. "Don't let him get to you, Blitz! Finish Bulking up and then get ready for a Vine Whip!"
Muscles warmed-up, the Chespin slips out of its tense state, a pair of vines snaking from the sides of its spiky "hat".
Realizing what Blitz was about to do, Beatrix calls out to Vance. "Don't be scared by his attack. Get in, dodge if you can and hit him hard with your Arm Thrust!"
Vance huffs, and rushes into the fray, proceeding to unleash his inner pint size pugilism at the Chespin.
[Vance uses Arm Thrust]
The impasse at an end, Vance dashes towards his opponent, juking to the side as each vine slashes downward at him. Reaching the Chespin, tint fists a-flurry as he keeps the Spiny Nut Pokemon off-balance with practiced blows.
[Chespin took 4 damage!]
Marsh Notes:
<Marsh-PC> (Shit, that hit harder than I thought it would)
After several pummels, Vance is brought up short by a tug at his ankle, looking down the Pancham sees that a vine has pushed from the ground and slipped around his foot, stopping his advance.
"Now!" Anton says to his Chespin, one of its vines now burrowed into the ground next to it. "Take him down!"
Unable to dodge the second vine sent flinging towards him, Vance's arm is ensnared, the Chespin using the leverage from the two grapples to fling the Pancham back towards Beatrix with a huff.
"That's the stuff!" Anton crows. "Use the distance to your advantage! Get in there with a Rollout!"
[Chespin uses Rollout]
"Good job Vance!" Beatrix cheered on. It was cut short when a vine burst from the ground and caught Pancham by surprise. As the Chespin comes a barrelin' Beatrix yells out. "Don't waste energy going after him! Let him come to you Vance! Ready a Crushing Claw and strike when he comes into range!" Beatrix holds her ground.
Vance, copying Beatrix, also holds his ground. He readies a stance, holding out a claw in front with a 'come and get me' gesture.
[Vance uses Crushing Claw]
With a brief hop, the Chespin tucks its legs and arms in and begins rolling across the turf towards Vance, blurring as it gathers speed.
Hunkering down and digging his toes into the ground, Vance braces for impact, and moments later the rolling Chespin smashes into the Pancham's outstretched arms, grinding against both Playful Pokemon and the ground below as it spins harshly in place, throwing up a dense cloud of dust around the grappling pair of Pokemon.
[Chespin took 3 damage! It wasn't very effective...]
As the dust clears, Vance is slowly revealed, holding the Chespin firmly in his grip. After a brief pause, Vance lets the unconscious Pokemon slip to the ground, stretching out his arms and crossing them over his chest. He throws a casual smirk over his shoulders towards Beatrix. Easy.
[Chespin Fainted] [Chespin was Finished! +1 Trainer Exp] [5 Exp for Vance there for battle]
~ Trainer Victory! ~:whistle: "Aw, Blitz, no," Anton says, sighing before holding up a Pokeball and returning his defeated pal. "Well, that sure was a gunfight," he says, approaching Beatrix. "Quick and furious."
Beatrix returns Vance smirk with her own, as well as an accompanying thumbs up. "You did good, Vance! Congrats!" She makes her way to the Pancham, crouches, and rubs his head, ruffling it.
Looking at Anton, she stands up and makes her way to him. “Just like the classics, kid. Two gunslingers go in, one makes it out.” She offers a handshake at the novice trainer.
“I know a friend who's probably an expert on fighting Pokemon battles. Chances are he'd probably write a thesis or two on what happened today. Me? All I gotta say is... I was VERY impressed." She smiles. "You're good in improvising in a fight. That Vine Whip from the ground trick? Never would have expected that. Caught me and Vance here by surprise, that's for sure."
"And that's honestly what makes a good agent on the field. Work with what you got, improvise on the rest."
"Not bad for a first try, right," Anton says sheepishly, accepting Beatrix's handshake before kicking lightly at the ground. "We practiced a lot of, uh, tactics that might be useful in a pinch, but I guess you never know how they'll work out in a real battle until you get to try 'em."
"There's an old saying I read somewhere a long time ago, kid. ‘No battle plan… no matter how thought out and prepared,’ the advice starts out with, ‘survives contact with the enemy. What matters is how quickly you adapt afterwards’” Beatrix retains her self-confident posture.
Slowly, Beatrix's actual words impact, and the lad looks up in shock. "Wait, so, you think I'd make a good agent? Does that mean..."
~ The Matter’s Settled! ~:whistle:
She grins at Anton’s realization. “What can I say? You certainly managed to impress ME. If you’re as headstrong as your partner, I’d say you got quite the future ahead. But know that it’ll be a loooong (and maybe even dangerous) road. Maybe even longer than Victory Road, if you get my drift. But I’m certain it’ll be quite the adventure. If you’re as deadset on becoming a field agent of Kalos (and maybe even the world), make way to Lumiose City.”
She pulls out her Pokedex, and, after getting Anton’s contacts, sends him the location of the Looker Bureau on his PokeNav. “Make your way to Looker Bureau... over here on your map. You’ll meet up with one Director Emma. Tell her Field Agent Beatrix sent you. I’m certain you’ll be able to convince her to help train you. Along with the others she is already training, mind you. With how small the Agency is at the moment, I figure you’d be a huge asset in her team.” She places her Dex away. “And who knows, maybe if I see you again someday, you might actually become an even better agent than ME!” She giggles.
Here's lookin at you, kid." she winks at him, cliche as it sounded. Gotta respect the classics, after all.
Anton, for his part, is multiple galaxies of starstruck at this point. He stammers out his excessive thanks and promises to be the very best, before excusing himself to return to the Pokecenter and heal his worn out Chespin.
"Oh well... good luck with your travels then... I guess?" She calls out, but it turns out it was mostly to herself as Anton was long gone back into the Center. "Excitable kid, don't you think Vance?" She looks back at the Pancham. "Hmm... but he's got the right idea. Need to go back to the Center and get healed? Or are you alright to continue?"
With no further need to keep up appearances, Vance lets his tough guy facade fade enough to wince and roll his shoulders. Seems like he trusts Beatrix enough to let her see that the vine toss gave him a few bruises he wouldn't mind getting patched up.
Bea giggles at Vance's attempt to remain tough. "Yeah, think you deserve some time off for that fight. You done good too. But remember we're not done yet. We need to train tonight for the Gym Battle tomorrow." She picks up the tired Pancham and carries him back inside the Center proper.
Less than fifteen minutes later, she steps out. With Moriarty now comfortably perched on her shoulder, she makes way to the Trainer's School. There was still a whole lot of questions she still needed some answering.
OOC:
This has been a #Voltage Productions. Directed by Marshmallow and starring TiamatZ as Beatrix. No Chespins have been harmed in the making of this presentation.
Richter looks up from his bag as Keyanu locks down his leafy opponent. ... Well in that case...
He quietly palms the keys for the padlocks he installed in his room earlier.
'Okay, Keyanu! How about you let him have it with your fairy-light-ball attack!' .. I probably should name these attacks later. How do the other trainers know what moves their new Pokémon have?
Meanwhile, a Pokédex flashes sadly in his lab coat pocket.
Meanwhile, North connects with his Earthquake, causing him to disengage into Quadrant D.
He looks visibly shaken from the auditory attack. 'North! Use Electroplate to pull yourself together!'
The Geodude concentrates, as he attempts to consolidate his defenses once more. Looks like it's going to be slow going, if we're just going to be bouncing back and forth..
The Venipede should have a damage on him too from the Earthquake I think...
~ Training Room (Santalune Gym) ~:whistle: Richter
"Both of you, while the Geodude's weak," the young woman commands, addressing both her Pokemon. "Infestation and Energy Ball."
Skittering after the rebounding Alolan Geodude without hesitation, the Centipede pulls up short, much like it did when it used its Screech attack, claws clattering harshly against the floor as it grinds to a stop. A shadow on the floor continues along its path, however, or not a shadow, but a thin layer of crawling, black motes that appear to flow up and onto North, infesting the Rock Pokemon with a bad case of mites.
Venipede used Infestation!
North took 2 Damage!
North was Infested!
Still playing along for now, Richter's Klefki transmutes its wrathful shimmering into a bright glow, that it fires off at its nearby foe with a harsh jingle and a noise like breaking glass.
Keyanu used Flash Cannon!
Sewaddle took 1 damage!
Sewaddle's Special Defense Fell!
Its arcane defenses somewhat tattered after being bathed in Keyanu's white-hot rage, the Sewaddle nevertheless turns its attentions to a distant foe at its trainer's order. While its still a bit tied up in spectral chains, this doesn't stop the creature from writhing back, then flinging its head forward to whip a ball of roiling, verdant energy at the distracted North.
Sewaddle used Energy Ball!
North took 3 damage!
It was Super Effective!
While the Alolan Geodude is rocked by the impact of one of its elemental weaknesses, the temporary chains Keyanu summoned slowly slip away, back into whatever dimension they were strung from, releasing the Sewaddle to move freely once more.
Sewaddle is no longer Trapped!
Distracted by the crawling and biting of his dozens of miniscule, unwanted passengers, North struggles to pay attention to his trainer, and perform the requested move.
North took 1 Damage from his Infestation! (2 turns remain)
Finally focusing enough to work past the irritation, North draws on his electrical powers, plating over his wracked defenses and building them up stronger... better than they were before.
North used Electroplate!
North's Defense Critically Rose!
Battle Status
Quadrant C
- Keyanu [ |||||| ] -1 Df
- Sewaddle [ ||||-- ] -1 SD
Quadrant D
-North [ |------ ] +2 Df, Infested
- Venipede [ ||||||- ]
Other Quadrants
- Empty
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Don't forget you can use Voltage/Tokens to attempt to dodge attacks, cheerlead to heal stamina a bit, and do other minor adjustments like Terrendos did in his Trainer battle.
Usually along the lines of a +2/-2 to something once, a +1 that lasts the entire battle, a free movement or shift, and stuff like that. For instance, you could cancel the remaining count on North's Infestation with some clever thinking, which might be a good idea, considering.
(Also, you were correct about Venipede taking 1 damage. Fixed.)
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KayWhat we need...Is a little bit of PANIC.Registered Userregular
~ Santalune Gym ~
Aleksandr squats down next to the girl and her Phantump. "Got a willful battle partner?" he asks, slipping into the big-brother role without really realising. "They're all different, some respond well to discipline, others to being made to think it was their idea all the time, and some," he says, as a disgruntled Buizel appears, bounding around trainers and 'mons alike with a little less spring in his step now, "always insist on rising to the challenge. What sort is your ghostly treestump? They're real spooky, I've heard scary stories about lots of Ghost types. How'd you meet yours?"
The second-most impressive building in town, the Trainers' School, is a simple, blocky building of white brick, with a gently sloping brown-shingled roof, just north of Santalune's central courtyard.
It looks like classes are wrapping up for the day, with students milling around near the entrance. Approaching the students (who look to be around 8-12 years of age) would be relatively easy if she wants to ask some questions. If she'd like to go inside, it would probably be best to check in with the visitor's center first to obtain a pass and establish what she's going to be doing on the school grounds (whether she wants to admit to being simply a nosy stranger, or decides to construct some sort of plausible cover story, is up to her whim).
The girl's nose scrunches up as Aleksandr speaks to her. "Hora is a jerk. An unpredictable jerk," she asserts, as the Ghost Type takes her distraction to begin sidling behind her. Without looking, she turns a foot and steps on the lingering wisp of shadowstuff serving as the Phantump's 'tail' and it jerks to a stop, wooden helmet rattling as it giggles, caught in the act. "If I knew what kind of Pokemon he was, I would have devised a training method by now."
"But I'd almost think he has a Need for chaos, and how am I supposed to work with that? Pokemon Battles are not chaos. They are Shogi - Chess - move and countermove. Precision is needed to execute strategy."
Content her Pokemon has been put on sufficient notice, she removes her foot and allows it to float free, then answers Aleksandr's follow-up question. "I live near a big forest. We met. We got along. I can handle mischief any other time, but insubordination in battle is too much."
The Phantump, Hora apparently, cackles softly. It seems to enjoy getting a rise out of its trainer.
KayWhat we need...Is a little bit of PANIC.Registered Userregular
~ Santalune Gym ~
Unpredictability can be a strength," Aleksandr assents, grinning widely as the girl steps on Hora's wispy tail. "But you're right - you and Hora both need to work together in that unpredictability. You need to counter your opponent in a way they are not expecting. He seems to like jokes. Pranks. Maybe if you work that into your battling he would be more inclined to agree with your commands."
The Sinnoh trainer extends a hand towards his Buizel, who is, of course, grumbling and looking more than a little disgruntled. "This is Volnoy, he likes to challenge himself, fight the best, never give up, and always go for the win. He is good under pressure. I have a Rockruff, Borzoi, who treats battles as a game, like she is playing. She performs better in battles when I present it more like playtime, or a game. Maybe Hora needs to make a battle feel like chaos and confusion, but controlled chaos, where you and he dictate the unpredicability."
Volnoy perks up a little at the praise. He jerks a thumb at his chest, and flashes the girl and her Phantump a surprisingly dashing smile.
Al offers a hand to shake. "I am Al, I am visiting here for the League Challenge. Are you also taking part?"
If it was Physical, that would put Sewaddle at 2 damage+STAB in order to deal three damage to North at Super Effective with a -2 Defense, which is plausible, considering the Bug bite did 0 damage to Keyanu (though even 4 damage+STAB would do 0 damage against Keyanu at NVE, so that's not necessarily a given [this assumes Bug Bite was Physical, which is overwhelming likely considering it lowers Defense and lowering the opposite defense you're attacking is a very weird choice]).
If it was Special, that would put Sewaddle at 3 damage+STAB to deal 3 Damage versus North's unaltered Special Defense. Plausible for this level of challenge, given that would be either 4 or 5 Exp invested into damage.
Can't really nail down things stat-wise, so the other option is to decide if Sewaddle being a mixed attacker is likely (again, assuming Bug Bite dealt Physical damage). Richter's opponent's team seems to value lowering Defenses, so it would seem counter-intuitive to invest Exp in Special Moves. By that same logic, it would seem odd to have the Sewaddle's Attack stat at a meager 2 - that's not really the kind of investment you'd see in an aggressive debuff team, though Sewaddle may be a mixed/Special tank, given how little Damage Keyanu is dealing - merely additional bulk and defense lowering while the Venipede is the main attacker. There's really too many variables and options to really get a firm clue through team composition.
So finally, Energy Ball is a Special Move in the games, unless I'm specifically changing it up to take advantage of the "defense lowering" strategy, it's probably still Special.
Posts
Pleased the authorities have the Pangoro situation under control, Beatrix breathes a sigh of relief. At least the citizens of Kalos can rest easy knowing the threat of an imminent Pokemon brawl will not be a likelihood in the future.
She answers to Prof. Sycamore’s message with a response.
The young detective took the professor’s advice to heart. I guess could try and be a good role model to it. Hmmm, he said something about training. That gives me an idea. But for now… I got a case that needs solving!
Beatrix enters the Pokémon Center, and makes her way to the center desk, awaiting her partners’ recovery. As she makes her way, she skims the room, looking for anyone suspicious or having the look of someone who has been here for awhile. Maybe she could try asking around if any of the relaxed and resting trainers about Officer Shirley, or if anyone so much as glanced at the direction of the shopping clerk during their exchange. Maybe someone saw what the card looked like.
She looks forward to cracking this assignment and continuing on with her quest to become champ.
Jim
Frederick calls out a pair of orders to his two Bug Types, gesturing tellingly at Jim's Litwick, and the wriggling opponents respond with respectable speed. Seems a Bug Trainer has good reason to be concerned about a Pokemon that is literally on fire.
Sending out twin strands of silk, the Caterpie and Weedle tug on the lines to propel themselves at Eli, striking high and low in a well-practiced coordinated attack.
Leaping high, the Caterpie pecks at Elijah's ghostly form as it passes. It does its damage, but its hard for the Worm Pokemon to nibble away at defenses that aren't there to start with, and the candle-like Pokemon merely reforms its damaged bits at the cost of spectral stamina.
Caterpie used Bug Bite!
Eli took 3 Damage!
Eli's Defense can't fall any more...
Coming in low, the Weedle throws itself at the Ghost Type in a body tackle. Possibly unaware that he's facing a Ghost type, Frederick has made the mistake of using a Normal type move, and Elijah is easily able to shrug away about half of the blow with only minimal disruption of his phasing form.
Weedle used Tackle!
Eli took 2 Damage!
It wasn't very effective...
While neither blow was truly telling on its lonesome, the pair taken together have put the Litwick in something of a pickle. Penned into his starting corner by the pair of agile Bugs, the Candle Pokemon responds with a point blank gout of flame across the nearby Caterpie, its Weedle associate forced to leap aside from its ally to avoid the clinging flames that spray across the ground.
Eli used Ember!
Caterpie took 3 Damage!
It's Super Effective!
Rushing to her partner's aid, Lotty flings herself across the arena, aiming her bulk at the dodging Weedle. Whether more by luck or design, she manages to smash her tail into the juking Hairy Bug Pokemon, her superior bulk sending her target tumbling. Rolling back to its feet, it doesn't seem to have been terribly phased by the impact.
Lotty used Flail!
Weedle took 1 Damage!
(Lotty may Shift elsewhere)
Frederick looks a little concerned by the round's outcome, perhaps thinking he may have been going in a little too hard for his opponent, especially since he started what might have been a friendly battle off by focus-firing.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
- Eli [ |||----- ]
- Lotty [ |||||| ]
- Caterpie [ ||||||--- ]
- Weedle [ ||||||- ]
Other Quadrants
- Empty
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~ :whistle:
Aleksandr, Beatrix
"Yeah, you too," the woman replies, stuffing her laptop into a messenger bag at her side, before realizing the incongruity of her response with a wince. Aleksandr isn't the only one with social deficits, clearly.
"I mean good luck on your Challenge. Have fun."
The nurse at the desk is the same one that accepted Beatrix's Pokemon earlier, and apparently recognizes her, having a tray with her two Pokeballs ready by the time she steps to the front of the line.
"All healed up and ready to go! Have a nice day!"
This side of the Pokecenter has several trainers likely waiting for their Pokemon to heal up and having nothing to do in the interim. Young and old, scruffy and presentable, the lineup of seated and leaning individuals is a tidy example of the many sorts you might find on a Pokemon journey, though nowadays of course a good three-quarters of the crowd is engrossed in their Pokedex, at least where they aren't working at building bonds with Pokemon healthy enough not to need of a trip behind the Pokecenter counter.
Many of them might have been here five minutes, or five hours, and none stick out as particularly suspicious. Beatrix might try her luck with a little old-fashioned gumshoeing and just ask a few folks at random and hope for a lucky break, or perhaps she's content to stick around a bit longer and get a better read on the crowd.
On the other side of the room, closer to the Shop, Beatrix does notice a young woman looking a little nervous and jittery, but she also appears to be talking with Richter and Aleksandr, so that might be a normal reaction to interacting with the two... slightly odd trainers.
"Thank you!" Aleksandr replies, honestly. Volnoy tips the young woman a salute, then regards the floating Magnemite again for a moment. His eyes narrow. Maaaaaybe he could take it. "Volnoy, come," Al continues, as he heads towards the exit. On the way, however, he notices Beatrix. "Oh, hello, Bea," he says, before pressing the one-use Steel Wing TM into her hand. "I was thinking this might help improve Moriarty's combat skills." He then waves, and heads out, saying, "Paka!"
And off he trots to the gym, Volnoy in tow.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
The one-two punch from the Bug Pokemon make Jim wince, as no amount of getting caught up in battle is enough to miss that. But if the attack threw Jim off his game, then the unfortunate Eli is even worse. Cornered now between a brace of brawny bugs, with a mere minnow as his mate, the Litwick does something undesirable, but understandable.
"Lii!" Eli cries, flying into an abrupt panic. He backs away in terror from the two bugs and covers his eyes in fright, as the flames on both his wick and the ground rapidly soar out of control, sending licks of fire across the field and up to the rafters.
"Oh, no!" Jim gasps. He calls out desperately to his friend. "Eli! Listen to me, Eli! Listen to the sound of my voice!" The terrified Litwick pauses for a moment at the sound of his trainer's call. "Eli, focus on my voice!" Jim calls again. "You are the flame's master! You control it! It doesn't control you!" he shouts. "I know you can control the flames! Now control them!" he commands, in perhaps the most forceful tone he's yet used.
Eli responds to Jim by uncovering his eyes and taking whatever a ghostly candle takes for a deep breath, and the flames respond in turn by quickly petering back down to their typical purple glow. The brief inferno is insufficient to cause any damage to the field or its inhabitants, and once again the flickering remnants of the previous Ember attack are the only other fire in the area.
The flickering... purple... remnants. Jim snaps his fingers. "Eli, use the flames to cloak yourself and pull away!" Eli fades into the lambent flames, floating away from the double trouble without giving them a chance to respond. (spending 1 Voltage to shift Eli to Quadrant
His Pokemon momentarily out of danger, Jim doubles down on his attack plan. "Okay, Eli, you've got your breathing room, now put it to good use with some more of those flames on Caterpie! Lotty, keep up the attack on Weedle!"
Eli will use Ember on Caterpie from Quadrant B, and Lotty will use Tackle on Weedle, still in Quadrant A.
"Oh shit, sorry, I mean, uh..Pardon! Je suis vraiment désolé!", Alex exclaims, turning away from Holly to look at the collection of psy-wielding pickpockets on the ground next to him, "Hey! Oeufs de démo-er, uh, stop! Moe, Curly, please, get the others to leave her be! I'm trying to give you all a chance to explore a nice, new town, not to rob people!"
Recognizing the genuine nature of their newest accomplice's words, the majority of the eggs lay off, with some of the more cracked of the bunch still seeming incredulous. Or as an incredulous as an seed-egg can seem, anyway.
Turning back to Holly, Alex begins to apologize profusely as he attempts to list off as many french synonyms for "sorry" as he remembers. He's pretty sure he might have accidently mixed some italian in there as well.
Meanwhile, with Alex's attentions focused on covering for them, the Eggs split up to look around the gym for other potential suckers.
I thought that was just a recent aesthetic choice that we were all going with
Dragging North to the counter on the far side of the room, Richter presents himself to the nurse.
"So the one in the ball needs a full checkup, whereas this one", hefting the rock onto the counter, "I need some advice about."
North looks around innocently.
Richter sighs, decompressing a bit.
"So we had an issue earlier where he had a bad rash of silicate crystals. Do I need to worry about it at all?"
The nurse smiles.
"Oh no, silicate crystals shouldn't harm your Geodude at all, and.."
Her voice trails off as she notices the metallic protrusions on the Geodude's brow.
Pulling out her Physician's Guidebook, she hurriedly looks up the Alolan variant.
She taps on North's outer shell a bit, and then disappears out the back of the surgery.
Coming back, she hands another container to Richter.
This one much the same as the anti-queeziness medication he was given back in the previous city.
"Iron supplements.", she states.
"Your Geodude is very off-colour. Clearly not enough metallic minerals in his diet.
Give him two of these a day, and he should be right as rain."
"Err... thanks. But what about the silicates?"
"I can't see any at the moment, unless they're under the hat.".
The nurse rests her hand on the ragged remains of the bandage that Richter had once placed on North's head.
"May I?"
"By all means."
Lifting the bandage reveals a glittering array of glass crystals forming a crest of short spikes between North's anodes.
The nurse pokes at the side of the crystals with a tongue depressor.
North does not appear to be irritated by the pressure at all.
"So.. this is not a problem. At least not one that couldn't be solved with a good polish.
The crystal appears to be big enough to be stable, but it's likely to be quite sharp and may fragment if handled incorrectly.
Perhaps leave the hat on?
If you want to remove it, it would probably be a matter of setting your Geodude on a strict diet and waiting for the crystal to simply grow out of his shell."
Richter's somewhat lost in his own world at this point.
I guess the mud prevented the silicate from growing out everywhere but the top of his head?
How do I polish that thing?
"If there's nothing else, your other Pokémon will be ready in 15 minutes.
Next waiting!"
Richter puts the hat back on North, takes the tub of pills, and heads off to book a room in the Center.
All the while wondering where he might be able to get a belt sander from.
“Oh thanks, Alex. That’s mighty kind of you. Ummm… what’s it do?” She responds to Alex, before he leaves the Center, uttering something foreign before he was gone.
“Pack of what? Cards?” Beatrix questions. “Then again, isn’t it considered a deck of cards?” She mumbles to herself. She looks back at the TM the Ace Trainer left for her. Steel Wing? I guess Moriarty could use some extra firepower. Think I’ll hold onto this for now. She pockets the TM into…well… her pockets.
GAINED ITEM: TM – STEEL WING!:whistle:
She takes a gander at the current crop of trainers nearby: A young man with a Chespin. A teen with a Scatterbug. A young woman with a magnemite.
The woman looks to have the jitters at the moment. Makes me wonder what those two DID to put her in that mood. Probably won’t get any info out of her… yet. Maybe let her mellow out for a bit. As for the teen… looks to be too busy talking shop with his partner there. Doesn’t mean I can scratch him off my list yet. That leaves us with…
She looks back at the young man with the Chespin. Guess I gotta start somewhere…
After ordering a cup of coffee of her own, she makes her way to the young man. She indicates to one of the empty chairs of the table. “Hi there! This seat taken?” she asks, trying to appear as cheerful as possible.
Like man, having a 'shit just got real' banger to go with a 'shit just got real' post is one of life's finer pleasures.
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~
Richter, Aleksandr
Something was off about that woman, and you never got her name... Oh well, ships in the night!
(Survived an Encounter with a member of the Rival Five: 3 Trainer Exp Each!)
Beatrix
"Hmm?" the young man says, looking up from his cup of what seems to be hot chocolate. "Oh! No, please go right ahead," he replies enthusiastically. He may have the wrong idea about why Beatrix wants to be seated near him, and his Chespin may be thinking the same thing from how it gives her a cautionary stare.
~ Santalune Gym ~ :whistle:
Alex
The other trainers in the room are already alert and wary from the secretary's outburst, but that doesn't really stop The Devil's Eggs from trying their luck at snatching at pockets or yanking Pokedexess out of hands, to little success but much ill-will towards the impolite Exeggcute and their profusely apologizing trainer.
"S'il vous plait, Monsieur," Holly demands, firmly. "Si vous ne pouvez pas contrôler votre Pokémon, je devrai vous demander de partir."
~ Training Room (Santalune Gym) ~ :whistle:
Jim
His expression inscrutable, Frederick shouts out commands of his own:
"Chenipain! Aller au poisson! Dartgarçon..." he hesitates. "Dard-Venin! Le fantôme!" he calls out decisively.
The Caterpie charges at the flailing Feebas, ducking in to avoid her fins as it chips away at her scales with deft snips of its mandibles. It doesn't do a lot of damage thanks to her Bug Resistance, but subsequent attacks will likely be slightly more effective.
Caterpie used Bug Bite!
Lotty took 1 Damage!
Lotty's Defense fell!
It's not very effective...
Scuttling towards its target, the Weedle is startled when Eli disappears into the flames before it can strike. Looking around in confusion it finally notices the Ghost Type reappear in another section of the arena. Changing direction, it tries to take up the attack once more but the leaping and flailing Lotty keeps getting in its way before it can get anywhere.
Eli shifted to Quadrant B!
Frustrated, the Weedle eventually decides to forget about the Litwick and just headbutt the annoying Feebas instead, striking Lotty with its poisonous horn.
Weedle used Poison Sting!
Lotty took 2 Damage!
Lotty's Speed Fell!
It wasn't very effective...
Battered and weakened, Jim's two Pokemon steel themselves for a counter-offensive. Now at a more preferential range for his conjured blaze, Eli flings fire across the intervening distance he created to splash over the Caterpie, now rather crispy from its second close encounter with ghostly flame.
Eli used Ember!
Caterpie took 3 Damage!
It's Super Effective!
Having gained the Weedle's attention, Lotty uses her opponent's closeness to launch a more focused tackle, though honestly it seemed like the random leaping and tail swinging was more effective, or at least not as bland.
Lotty used Tackle!
Weedle took 1 Damage!
And nothing else happened...
Battle Status
Quadrant A
- Lotty [ |||--x ] -1 Df, -1 Sp
- Caterpie [ |||------ ]
- Weedle [ |||||-- ]
Quadrant B
- Eli [ ||||---- ]
Other Quadrants
- Empty
"Huh", Alex says quizzically, the majority of his attention on Holly. He turns around to see his egg friends wrecking havok on the various trainers in the gym and before groaning. He turns back to Holly, one hand partially covering his face as the other hits the recall button on the Devil's Eggs ball. With a flash of red light, the scattered egg pokemon disappears.
His head propped on the desk, he appears to rub his face for a moment.
"Je suis...vraiment désolé. Un instant s'il vous plaît."
He scurries out of the gym and towards the courtyard in the center of the small town, where he takes a sunny seat at the old fountain. Sending out both Pidgey and the Eggs, he gives the collective latter a very stern look.
"I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed", he starts. The Breeder looks up at the picturesque sky, before sighing. His look softens back to his normal, more gentle demeanor.
"...but I guess I really have no right to be."
"We", he gestures to Pidgey and himself, "...took you all in. Admittedly, by force. And I can't force you to change. But maybe we can work together?"
Pidgey, not really understanding what all the hoopla is about, sways back and forth, absentmindedly looking around at the various objects around the fountain. A few seconds later, and a vaguely-metallic waste bin hangs out on the cobblestone next to the eggs.
"Take a breather, think about it. Enjoy the sun. I'm just gonna send off a text message to the Professor, and then we're headed back in there to apologize and maybe they'll let us get some actual training in, okay?"
What the fuck.
Edit: Oh wait, the initial posting was a half-hour earlier. Phew.
Aleksandr finally makes his way to the gym, and pauses at the door. He takes a slow look around the visible town from his position, then boldly enters, with Volnoy at his heel. If he had been minutes earlier, perhaps he would have bumped into Alex.
Once inside, he heads towards the information desk, and the woman the Devil's Eggs had been harrying. Not that he has any idea, of course.
"Hello," he says, after waiting to catch her attention. "I was here to work my way through the gym challenge, if there is space permitting."
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
"Oooooh yeah! That's the way to do it, both of you!" Jim cheers, the pendulum of battle moving back his direction. "Let's start wrapping this up! Eli! Lotty! You ready?"
Eli stretches out with his senses, remembering the feeling of the Caterpie's bite, and how it seemed to sap his corporeality in a way that he'd never experienced before. It was like the shadows that made up his body were somehow dissipated... it was a wholly unpleasant feeling. And yet, it gave him an idea. Perhaps by gathering those shadows together, he might be able to permanently augment his own ability to affect the physical world. A novel idea, to be sure, but no less worth the effort. The little ghost focuses his will, broadening his own shadows in a way he's never tried before, with remarkable results.
Elijah's Defense increased to 2! (2 exp spent!)
"Nice job, Eli!" Jim calls. "Now let's show those bugs who's boss! Bring down that Caterpie with your scorching flames!"
The Litwick nods in confirmation, steadying his flame and refocusing it for a final strike at the wounded bug. "Lii!" it shouts, sending out a final gout of violet flames to put the Caterpie out of commission.
"Lotty! You're doing wonderfully!" Jim says, turning to his favorite fish. "Now, build up all the strength you can in your tail. The next time you get attacked, smack the ground as hard as you can to flop out of the way!"
Lotty temporarily ceases her flipping around and swings up with her tail, ready to dodge the next attack that comes her way. (Spending 1 Voltage to dodge the next attack, assuming it comes.)
When the next bug comes at her, she smacks the ground with a surprising amount of strength, shooting up into the air.
"The Weedle, Lotty! The Weedle!" Jim calls.
The Weedle, indeed. An unnecessary command, for Lotty was already aiming that way. Such an incorrigible young bug... there's only one way for a proper lady to respond to such an egregious slight.
Smack.
Bouncing off the bug, she flips back over and lands in Quadrant C.
Eli uses Ember on Caterpie! Lotty uses Flail on Weedle and shifts to Quadrant C.
“Thank you,” she responds in kind. She takes a gander behind her, making sure no one was noticing them. Satisfied she wasn’t being spied upon, she take a seat, sipping some nice, warm coffee.
"Say, you wouldn't know of any strange goings-on here in town? I heard through the grapevine that there was a law enforcement agent in town around askin’ questions ‘bout missin’ or stolen items. That true?” She asks, straight to the point.
She takes a peek at the nearby Chespin, who seemed to be wary of her. Is he on to me?! Is my cover blown?! Gotta think fast!
“My, you’re quite the cutie!” she said in a faux enthusiastic tone. “That your partner? It looks mighty adorable! Mind if I take a scan of the lil' 'mon?” She asks, as she pulls out her Dex. Partly to scan information on the little scamp, but really just an excuse to write down notes in case the young man does manage to offer her any evidence to aid her case.
Because that is simply...
Richter and North head back down from the accommodation desk after securing a room.
North has had his 'hat' re-strapped.
"Just until we can find someone to polish it", Richter had said, whilst tentatively recharging the Pokémon and trying to avoid the glass spikes.
Walking back up to the nurses' desk, Richter retrieved Keyanu's ball.
...
I can't very well work with this Pokémon without its co-operation.
Richter tosses the ball back and forth.
Perhaps a battle would do Keyanu good?
Looking around the center, Richter starts to appraise the other trainers, before he notices the Magnemite from before wobbling ominously in the air, fretting a bit at the instability.
Richter pinches his nose.
"Alright, let's go to the Gym then, North."
North lowers his arm, grinning at the promise of getting to see the rest of this village.
~ Santalune Gym ~
Pushing open the large double doors, Richter takes in the entrance foyer of the gym.
It doesn't seem to be as busy as it could be, but that might just be because people are starting to head home.
A rather uncomfortable set of bug noises also appears to be filling the room.
And they're all speaking in their language...
Richter looks at North, who just shrugs.
"Um...", Richter approaches the nearest trainer, or at least person with self-evident Pokémon.
"Uh.. Pardon... battle?", Richter volunteers, indicating North and waving a Pokéball around.
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~
Beatrix
The young man stares at Beatrix blankly for a few moments, before his eyebrows rise with a sudden connection. "Oh," he replies. "So that's who that was."
"I was at the Trainer's School earlier checking in on some old teachers, and there was some woman, all dressed up, wandering around asking questions. The way she acted I thought she was a League Rep or something. Especially since she asked me about anything unusual in the nearby routes, or if I had seen any suspicious strangers. Keeping tabs on anything that could be scary or harmful for the participants, right?"
He leans back in his chair. "I was like, lady, it's the start of the Pokemon League. I wouldn't even know where to start with odd folk and strange happenings." He stoops back forward to cradle his cocoa in both hands. "I guess that didn't impress her much. So I guess whatever she's looking for is something really wild. Like 'you'd know it if you saw it'."
"Go right ahead," he responds to Beatrix's request to scan his Pokemon. "I'm Anton by the way, and that little scamp is Blitz."
Her Pokedex beeps as it brings up data on the critter. Blitz is apparently a Lichen-bred Chespin, a Grass/Rock Type subspecies known for its increased hardiness, more cynical attitude, and its powerful Rollout attack. Various breeds of Chespin are commonly given as starter Pokemon in Kalos, thanks to its easygoing nature and trainability - though Lichen-bred are a bit tougher to train than usual, thanks to being more suspicious than curious, and more quiet than optimistic.
The Spiny Nut Pokemon continues to glare Beatrix's way, its feet swinging back and forth under the chair beneath it, as it patiently decides on whether it's going to tolerate her or not.
~ Santalune Gym ~
Alex
Professor Sycamore texts back in reply to Alex.
Aleksandr
"Oui, monsieur. You may scan your Pokedex here, if you please?" the attendent replies to the Ace Trainer, gesturing to a wireless device on the counter. After doing so, she squints at a small display, no doubt alerting her to Aleksandr's progress on his League Challenge and the general status of his team of Pokemon.
"You are Rank 10 Trainer," she says. "Your first Badge. You may challenge the Gym Leader directly, with one Pokemon, two Pokemon, or in a double battle with two Pokemon. We have openings later in the afternoon, or early tomorrow morning. I may schedule you, if you wish to register the Pokemon you will use, and which format you prefer," she continues, gesturing once more where Aleksandr can scan his Pokedex.
Richter
The trainer looks Richter up and down, affording him the chance to do the same, noting her long brown hair pouring over the shoulders of her green Gym Student jacket, freckled face, and the yellow, larva-like Pokemon, with a large leaf serving as a hood-slash-collar, holding tight to her sleeve like an oversized wrap-around-eraser critter on a very big pencil.
"I'll battle," she says mildly, jerking her head to the left side of the foyer. "Training room?"
~ Training Room (Santalune Gym) ~ :whistle:
Jim
Frederick seems to be struggling to keep up the shifty tactics Jim is employing.
"Chenipain, Gaz Toxik! Dartgarçon, après le fantôme! Vite!" he calls out, confidently despite appearances.
Drawing close to the flopping Feebas, the Caterpie shakes its head adornment back and forth, sending forth a foul-smelling cloud to billow towards the Fish Pokemon.
Caterpie used Poison Gas...
Responding to the enthusiasm in her Trainer's voice, Lotty violently leaps away before the cloud before it can engulf her, avoiding the stinky attack.
Lotty Dodged the attack!
Using Lotty's distance and distraction as a chance to slip away, the Weedle makes a multi-legged charge towards the ghostly Eli, the effort taken to close the distance forcing it to use its quickest attack, even if that's already proven less-than-effective against the elusive specter.
Weedle used Tackle!
Eli took 1 Damage!
It wasn't very effective...
Even less effective than before, now that the Litwick is holding his physical form together that much better, with a swollen shield of gathered shadows to help protect him.
Retaliating, not against the one who struck him, but the Weedle's farflung and weakened ally, Eli flings another flash of fire at the near-stricken Bug Type, taking it to fully-stricken status in an explosion of flame.
Eli used Ember!
Caterpie took 3 Damage!
It's Super Effective!
Reaching his hand out, Frederick returns his fainted Caterpie with a frown. "N'abandonnez pas!" he shouts to his Weedle firmly. "Tu peux le faire, Dartgarçon!"
Caterpie Fainted!
Unhindered by any intervening opponents, Lotty is free to leap and bound across the area, tackling the Weedle from behind with a body slam that does little but make the Weedle wobble a bit in place, but nevertheless manages to propel her across to the other side of the arena in a few bouncing arcs.
Lotty used Flail!
Weedle took 1 Damage!
Lotty shifted to Quadrant C!
For the first time since the start of this battle, it looks like Jim's team has finally managed to eke out a stamina advantage, but will the two badly weakened Pokemon be able to take on the injured Weedle to close this out, or will a few lucky first-hits carry Frederick to a narrow comeback victory? This one looks like it'll come down to the wire.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
- Caterpie [ --------- ] Fainted
Quadrant B
- Eli [ |||----- ]
- Weedle [ ||||--- ]
Quadrant C
- Lotty [ |||--x ] -1 Df, -1 Sp
Quadrant D
- Empty
"I think I shall try the double battle," Aleksandr replies, scanning his Pokédex and selecting Volnoy and Borzoi for the battle. "This afternoon, hopefully. In the meantime, are there Gym members I may train against? Or other trainers that may wish to practice before challenging the gym?"
He looks around the place as he speaks, waving his hand towards Richter in greeting as he sees the scientist enter.
"I have friends that may be here already. A young man, pleasant, with a Ditto and Exeggcute. Another young man, abrasive, with a Litwick and, ah, Feebas."
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
"All right team, great work! Now let's wrap this up!" Jim shouts excitedly. "Eli, throw those flames, make it count! Lotty! Bring it home with another fantastic flop!"
Eli prepares his final attack, swirling his wick to gather flames once again, but this time, he pauses. Instead of launching them at the foe, he instead begins spinning around, drawing in air and surrounding his body with purple flames. The strange twirl seems to have a similar effect as when Eli lost control earlier, the smoking embers of previous attacks suddenly flaring back up. But this time it's clearly intentional, controlled, focused. Suddenly, the odd dance stops, and the flames surrounding Eli flee outward... directly at the belligerent bug.
Eli learned Fiery Dance [Special/Boosting(SA)/Fire] (1 EXP spent)! Eli used Fiery Dance on Weedle!
Lotty, for her part, complies with Jim's command without comment. Lotty moves to Quadrant B and uses Flail on Weedle!
"Um, sure.", says Richter, embarrassed.
He's not entirely sure why he assumed that the trainers here wouldn't speak his language as well.
"Double battle fine? I have a new Pokémon that I need to iron out.
... I'm not really sure how it will react on the field by itself."
~ Santalune Gym - Training room ~
Standing on his side of the arena, Richter is flipping Keyanu's Pokéball, steeling himself for the inevitable release.
"North, you got me if things go bad?"
North nods.
And with that Richter releases his new.. partner?
“You don’t say? Did she have auburn hair with a bob cut by any chance? Dark jacket and slacks?” she inquires, making sure it was the Officer in question. Were Officer Shirley's questions about the missing items and equipment all an elaborate smokescreen? Was she REALLY just looking for unusual suspects? Or were these two connected somehow?
“Was she asking anything specifically on the strangers? Did she like... give exact details of said suspects in question? Names? Or was she deliberately being vague? A friend of mine was concerned she might be up to no good, so I was asked to look into it.”
Bea sighs. “Not that it’s what the lady was looking for, but if it’s something wild or unusual that happened on the Routes... I guess my incident this morning could count.” When Anton’s curiosity was piqued, Beatrix continued. “On my way from Lumiose City, I stumbled into a gang of Pancham and their leader in one of the hedge mazes in Route 4. Quite the bruiser, seven foot tall. Managed to get out of there with some quick thinking, and also this little guy...” the young detective pulled out one of her Pokéballs. With a press of the button, Vance materialises out of it and looks about in confusion (not being used to being in a Pokeball, by the looks of it), before setting his sights at the Spiny Nut Pokémon.
She waited to see what the Chespin's response would be. "Welcome back, Vance! Feeling any better?" she calls out to the Playful Pokémon.
Beatrix
The Chespin blinks slowly at Beatrix, the whiskery spines atop its head drooping slightly in reply. "Be nice to the lady," Anton says, ruffling Blitz's head until the Pokemon frowns, its spikes standing on end once more. It gives a half-hearted wave back.
Anton nods at Beatrix's description, taking an awkward sip of his drink during. "Yeah, yeah, something like that," he agrees readily. "I didn't think anything about the vagueness since I figured she was just looking for trouble to report to the League, not looking for someone or something specific." He thinks it over for a few moments. "If that was the case, maybe she didn't want to influence answers, like if you ask 'did you see someone with purple hair,' some people say 'yeah' even if they maybe aren't sure, but if you ask 'hey did you see anyone weird looking' and you get a 'yeah, I saw someone with purple hair,' without prompting, you know you've got the real deal." He seems really pleased at this deduction.
"That or she knows someone's onto her, like you are, and didn't want to give away what she wanted to find just yet. I mean, a crooked cop up to no good? That sounds like serious stuff. Oh my gosh, are you with Interpol? Or the Rangers? Am I gonna get deputized?"
As the Call To Adventure resounds throughout the young man's personal universe, Beatrix releases the woozy Pancham from his ball. Rubbing at his eyes, Vance takes in the scene, his gaze lingering in an unfriendly manner on the seated Chespin, which returns the look with equal temerity.
Beating at his chest with a paw to prove himself hearty and healthy in reply to Beatrix's question, Vance wastes no time clambering up on to the last free chair, intent on not being the only one left standing on the floor while all the action appears to be happening over the top of the table.
~ Santalune Gym ~
Aleksandr
"Oui, monsieur," she replies to the Ace Trainer, pressing a few buttons on her device that prompts a brief electrical whine from below the counter.
Reaching down to retrieve the printed slip of paper, and folding it with brief, practiced movements, she tears away the bottom half and presents Aleksandr with a reminder slip for his Gym Challenge, with the time, format, and registered Pokemon all helpfully noted.
"You may approach any of the trainers and students in the building for a battle, though I expect the most willing will be found either waiting here in the lobby, or in the training rooms that way," she says, pointing towards the hallway to the left. Good luck with your Challenge, monsieur."
Richter
"'Kay, then," the student replies, turning and heading towards the training rooms leaving Richter to follow, the Sewaddle riding on the trainer's arm turning around to peer at the Scientist with its head half-buried into the cloth of her jacket.
...
Keyanu appears in a flash of light, the Klefki's metal accouterments rattling as it turns to look around the room, at its new trainer and battling partner, and the dubious Gym Student on the other side of the arena.
Shaking, it gives a whistling shriek of irritation. Clearly it hasn't calmed down all that much while it was being handled at the Pokecenter. We can all consider it a blessing that at least it isn't using that Screech Move it learned somewhere along the line. Yet, anyway.
Holding out one arm with her clinging Sewaddle, and the other with a clenched Pokeball, his opponent releases both her Pokemon. The Sewaddle crawling along her outstretched forearm before flipping to the ground like a swimmer off a diving board, while the other merely appears in a flash of red light.
"So-so. Barb. Let's do this," the trainer addresses her Sewaddle, and the hump-backed magenta Pokemon standing next to it on stubby black feet.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
-North [ ||||||| ]
Quadrant B
- Keyanu [ |||||| ]
Quadrant C
- Sewaddle [ |||||| ]
Quadrant D
- Venipede [ ||||||| ]
Jim
Pumping his arm, Frederick shouts out an encouraging "Dartgarçon, mordrez le fantôme, finissez-le!"
Now in close combat, the Weedle is able to bring its jaws to bear, snipping at bits of shadow-stuff to strip away Eli's newly found defenses.
Weedle used Bug Bite!
Eli took 2 Damage!
Eli's Defense fell!
The shade does its job well enough, however, staving off enough damage to allow the Ghost to continue the feverish minuet with his flames as his partner, the deadly dance's finale found in an explosive charge that both enhances Eli's powers, as well as homes in on the attacking Bug Type.
Eli used Fiery Dance!
Weedle took 4 Damage!
Eli's Special Attack rose!
It was Super Effective!
Scorched, the Weedle drops to the ground, exhausted and beaten despite it's best effort. Hanging his head, Frederick raises a Pokeball to return his second defeated Pokemon.
Weedle Fainted!
Raising his head, Jim's opponent favors him with a smile, and an outstretched hand. "Good battle! Your tactics, great! Very strong Fire Type! Water Type..." he makes wooshing sounds as he describes the leaps Lotty had made around the arena with a palm-down hand. "Very agile!"
"Merci beaucoup," Aleksandr replies in the slow, measured tones of someone who really doesn't know much Kalosian at all. "I shall return for the challenge later." He inclines his head towards Volnoy, and starts towards the training rooms, as directed. On the way, he reaches down to scratch fondly at the Buizel's crest. "How about you go looking for a 'mon that wants to train?" he asks Volnoy. "I will see if there are any trainers that feel that way too."
Volnoy nods with an assertive 'Bui!, and dashes off into the crowd, looking for Pokémon that want to spar. Maybe an Oshawott, for some of that river-vs-sea otter rivalry.
Aleksandr, on the other hand, looks for likely trainers on his way, especially those talking to their Pokémon about the need for training and practice.
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
“That’s… classified.” She sighs and stares for a moment at the ceiling. Great, quite the pickle you’ve gotten yourself into. This kid knows how to keep a low profile and deduce better than you could as a detective. Good job, Beatrix… Wait… as a detective? Hmmmm...
The thought of deputizing him without Emma’s approval didn’t cross her mind, but Bea knew such deceit would only benefit her in the short run, and haunt her in the long run. A solid establishment of trust is not built on a foundation of lies, her father always said. Then again, if she was to invite him to the ranks of the Looker Bureau, it might carry unforeseen consequences for either herself or Emma in the future. Then again, if he IS as passionate about becoming one as he looks to be…
~ Challenge ~ :whistle:
She looks back at Anton, a shrewd but welcoming smile forming on her lips. “I tell you what though. I heard being an ‘agent’ or a ‘ranger’ isn’t just all street smarts and book smarts, you know? Sometimes it requires in fully trusting your partners and having their backs, and vice versa. Up for a Pokémon battle? Let’s test that bond between you and your partner. If you can show me what you and Blitz can do together, I might tell you more. You interested?”
She turns her gaze to her newest partner. “Vance, you ready to scrap with the rest, and show who’s the best?” she gives the Pancham a wink and a hearty thumbs up.
All that pent-up energy flees Jim the instant the Weedle falls to the ground, and Jim does likewise, falling backward into seated position. "Whew!" Jim exclaims, breathing heavily. "Whoa boy, I'm gonna need a minute." He runs a hand through his hair and exhales deeply.
Frederick walks over, and Jim climbs back to his feet. He takes the clasps the proffered hand with his own and gives it a hearty shake. "You sure didn't make it easy on me! That's the toughest Caterpie I've ever seen! And I've seen a few!" he insists. Eli floats over to his trainer, landing on his right shoulder, while Lotty flops over in his general direction. "Believe me, that really could have gone either way."
He thinks for a second. "Come to think of it, maybe you could give me some advice. Clearly you've got a knack for training challenging Pokemon." He indicates the Feebas that's just reached them. "I just caught Lotty here today. As you can see, she's built like a tank..." he pauses for a moment, "A very sweet, feminine tank..." he corrects, "But she doesn't do a lot of damage. How did you train your Caterpie to hit so hard? Or really, just any tips at all you happen to have, since you clearly know what you're doing much better than I do."
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
Richter steeples his fingers as he watches Keyanu pensively.
Richter shouts over the arena, "Look. I'm going to apologise in advance if things get a little.. loud.
Um, good luck and uh, let's have fun."
No time like the present I guess..., Richter muses, meeting Keyanu's stare.
"Alright Keyanu, let's start things off with that fairy trapping move on the leaf cocoon Pokémon, and North", pulling his backpack around to his front, "use Earthquake on the red one."
~ Santalune Pokecenter ~
Beatrix
Anton's expression is a sight to see after Beatrix's offer of an inside scoop, the Junior Detective has clearly made the young man's day. After a few moments the caveat sinks in and his sunny disposition seriouses up.
"Yeah," he replies, placing his hands flat on the table and half-rising from his seat. "I think I'm interested."
"C'mon, Blitz," he says, turning to address his watchful Chespin. "Let's show her what we're made of!"
~ Santalune Gym ~
Aleksandr
While Volnoy patters off and around the lobby, Al's search eventually turns up a girl who'd he suspect to be too young to be training here if she weren't struggling with a tree-stump-headed Pokemon with a hazy black body.
"You need to listen to orders," she suggests firmly to the sulking spook. "It doesn't matter if you want to do a different Move, I can't become a better trainer if you just do your own thing every battle."
Jim
Frederick's smile slowly fades as Jim's reply gets longer and longer. Eyes searching back and forth as he tries to understand his opponent and formulate a proper reply, he eventually settles for resuming his brittle smile.
"Ah, t-thank you?" he says hesitantly, in his broken english.
(Lotty and Eli get 4 Exp each! Jim gets 2 Trainer Exp!)
Richter
"Screech the 'dude, Barb. So-so, take the keys with a Bug Bite," Richter's opponent calls out in clipped tones.
The venipede reacts the quickest, scuttling across the floor to approach North. Once in range, its carapace shivers as it lets out a haunting, high-pitched scream that echoes loudly in the room. Let's hope Keyanu didn't take that as a challenge.
Venipede used Screech!
North's Defense Sharply fell!
Weighing its chances of getting away with mischief, the Klefki seems to be content to vent its sour attitude on an acceptable target. Flitting in jerks and starts across the room as it sways with the weight of its keys, Keyanu jingles angrily and threads of chain flow out of thin air to ensnare and entrap the hesitant Sewaddle.
Keyanu used Fairy Lock!
Sewaddle took 1 damage!
Sewaddle was Trapped!
Fighting against the clinging chains, the Sewaddle manages to wriggle close enough to lunge out and nibble at the hovering Key Ring Pokemon, taking a bite out of Keyanu's considerable defenses.
The Klefki shivers with rage.
Sewaddle used Bug Bite!
Keyanu took 0 damage!
It wasn't very Effective...
Keyanu's Defense fell!
Slowest to react, North finally brings his strength to bear on his foe, fists slamming down to explosively shower the Venipede in dirt, as well as blasting himself into (or out of) more trouble, if he so wishes.
North used Earthquake!
Venipede took 1 damage!
(North may shift to another area.)
You might want to grab a snack, this looks like it'll take a while.
Battle Status
Quadrant A
-North [ ||||||| ] -2 Df
- Venipede [ ||||||- ]
Quadrant C
- Keyanu [ |||||| ] -1 Df
- Sewaddle [ |||||- ] Trapped
Other Quadrants
- Empty
Vance replies to his trainer’s request with his own hearty bellow. “Pan! Cham!” It seems challenging others makes the young woman excited. Guess he could try and emulate it as well.
“Great! That’s good to hear, Vance!” Beatrix responds. She didn’t know what the little Playful Pokémon said, but it probably wasn’t something offensive. Maybe if she keeps this level of excitement it might encourage Vance to do the same.
Maybe.
Probably.
She looks back at Anton. “Good to hear it! Meet you outside the Center then. Can’t fight inside the center, you know.”
Before she could wait on an answer, she hurries out of the center. Vance follows in tow, not really sure WHAT he got himself into with this strange lady. Maybe leaving the maze was a bad idea after all?
As Beatrix heads out, Anton lags behind to take a moment to lean in towards his Chespin, speaking quietly, chopping one hand into the other as he delineates a plan, or just offers encouragement. The Chespin simply nods once, and slips from its chair. The pair follow Beatrix outside...
~ Outside the Santalune Pokecenter ~ :whistle:
"So, how's this going to work?" Anton addresses Beatrix from behind his taciturn Pokemon. "Just a normal battle, or...?"
"Just a simple one on one fight. First ‘mon to faint loses. Y'know... like they do it in all the those classic stories and tales of old. Like two gunslingers at dawn, or two duelists preparing to avenge a slight wrong, or like two gallant knights fighting to gain the love of a damsel. You just can’t beat the classics, y’know?” Beatrix calls out.
She retains a ‘tough guy’ act for the battle, keeping her eye out on the nearby clock above the Pokemon center. Vance copycats Beatrix, also impersonating a tough guy act, though he does this seriously, whereas the young lady does it just as an act. “We release on three… got it?" She holds three fingers up in plain view between the two trainers.
"One" One finger goes down.
"Two" The second goes down.
"Three! Let's do this! Vance, let's goooo!" she shouts, as the final finger goes down, transforming her hand into a fist, and points said fist towards Alton: their opponent.
Marsh Notes:
-Chespin [ ||||| ]
~ Pokémon Battle Begin! ~ :whistle:
On three, Anton wastes no time throwing a hand out and shouting an order to his Chespin. "Blitz, Bulk Up! Like we practiced!"
[Chespin uses Bulk Up]
[Chespin's Stamina increases greatly!]
Widening its stance, the Pokémon tenses, leaving itself open for Beatrix and Vance to make the first move.
Vance jumps into the fray! He's pumped up, but seeing Chespin start bulking up and looking somewhat intimidating, he wavers a bit.
"Looks like Blitz is showing off, show him we mean business! Gonna show him you ain't someone to mess around with! Show him a good leer, Vance!" Beatrix winks at the Pancham.
Crossing his arms and giving the other Pokemon a sharp look, Vance turns on his tiny heel, putting his back to the powering up Pokemon in a show of haughty disregard for his opponent.
[Vance uses Leer]
[Chespin's Defense Sharply fell!]
The Chespin's eye twitches at this disrespect, but Anton steps in. "Don't let him get to you, Blitz! Finish Bulking up and then get ready for a Vine Whip!"
Muscles warmed-up, the Chespin slips out of its tense state, a pair of vines snaking from the sides of its spiky "hat".
[Chespin uses Vine Whip]
Status:
-Chespin [ ||||| ] + [ ||-- ] -2 Def
-Vance [ |||||| ]
Realizing what Blitz was about to do, Beatrix calls out to Vance. "Don't be scared by his attack. Get in, dodge if you can and hit him hard with your Arm Thrust!"
Vance huffs, and rushes into the fray, proceeding to unleash his inner pint size pugilism at the Chespin.
[Vance uses Arm Thrust]
The impasse at an end, Vance dashes towards his opponent, juking to the side as each vine slashes downward at him. Reaching the Chespin, tint fists a-flurry as he keeps the Spiny Nut Pokemon off-balance with practiced blows.
[Chespin took 4 damage!]
Marsh Notes:
After several pummels, Vance is brought up short by a tug at his ankle, looking down the Pancham sees that a vine has pushed from the ground and slipped around his foot, stopping his advance.
"Now!" Anton says to his Chespin, one of its vines now burrowed into the ground next to it. "Take him down!"
Unable to dodge the second vine sent flinging towards him, Vance's arm is ensnared, the Chespin using the leverage from the two grapples to fling the Pancham back towards Beatrix with a huff.
[Vance took 3 damage!]
Status:
-Chespin [ ||||| ] + [ || -- ] -2 Def
-Vance [ |||||| ]
"That's the stuff!" Anton crows. "Use the distance to your advantage! Get in there with a Rollout!"
[Chespin uses Rollout]
"Good job Vance!" Beatrix cheered on. It was cut short when a vine burst from the ground and caught Pancham by surprise. As the Chespin comes a barrelin' Beatrix yells out. "Don't waste energy going after him! Let him come to you Vance! Ready a Crushing Claw and strike when he comes into range!" Beatrix holds her ground.
Vance, copying Beatrix, also holds his ground. He readies a stance, holding out a claw in front with a 'come and get me' gesture.
[Vance uses Crushing Claw]
With a brief hop, the Chespin tucks its legs and arms in and begins rolling across the turf towards Vance, blurring as it gathers speed.
Hunkering down and digging his toes into the ground, Vance braces for impact, and moments later the rolling Chespin smashes into the Pancham's outstretched arms, grinding against both Playful Pokemon and the ground below as it spins harshly in place, throwing up a dense cloud of dust around the grappling pair of Pokemon.
[Chespin took 3 damage! It wasn't very effective...]
As the dust clears, Vance is slowly revealed, holding the Chespin firmly in his grip. After a brief pause, Vance lets the unconscious Pokemon slip to the ground, stretching out his arms and crossing them over his chest. He throws a casual smirk over his shoulders towards Beatrix. Easy.
[Chespin Fainted]
[Chespin was Finished! +1 Trainer Exp]
[5 Exp for Vance there for battle]
~ Trainer Victory! ~ :whistle:
"Aw, Blitz, no," Anton says, sighing before holding up a Pokeball and returning his defeated pal. "Well, that sure was a gunfight," he says, approaching Beatrix. "Quick and furious."
Beatrix returns Vance smirk with her own, as well as an accompanying thumbs up. "You did good, Vance! Congrats!" She makes her way to the Pancham, crouches, and rubs his head, ruffling it.
Looking at Anton, she stands up and makes her way to him. “Just like the classics, kid. Two gunslingers go in, one makes it out.” She offers a handshake at the novice trainer.
“I know a friend who's probably an expert on fighting Pokemon battles. Chances are he'd probably write a thesis or two on what happened today. Me? All I gotta say is... I was VERY impressed." She smiles. "You're good in improvising in a fight. That Vine Whip from the ground trick? Never would have expected that. Caught me and Vance here by surprise, that's for sure."
"And that's honestly what makes a good agent on the field. Work with what you got, improvise on the rest."
"Not bad for a first try, right," Anton says sheepishly, accepting Beatrix's handshake before kicking lightly at the ground. "We practiced a lot of, uh, tactics that might be useful in a pinch, but I guess you never know how they'll work out in a real battle until you get to try 'em."
"There's an old saying I read somewhere a long time ago, kid. ‘No battle plan… no matter how thought out and prepared,’ the advice starts out with, ‘survives contact with the enemy. What matters is how quickly you adapt afterwards’” Beatrix retains her self-confident posture.
Slowly, Beatrix's actual words impact, and the lad looks up in shock. "Wait, so, you think I'd make a good agent? Does that mean..."
~ The Matter’s Settled! ~ :whistle:
She grins at Anton’s realization. “What can I say? You certainly managed to impress ME. If you’re as headstrong as your partner, I’d say you got quite the future ahead. But know that it’ll be a loooong (and maybe even dangerous) road. Maybe even longer than Victory Road, if you get my drift. But I’m certain it’ll be quite the adventure. If you’re as deadset on becoming a field agent of Kalos (and maybe even the world), make way to Lumiose City.”
She pulls out her Pokedex, and, after getting Anton’s contacts, sends him the location of the Looker Bureau on his PokeNav. “Make your way to Looker Bureau... over here on your map. You’ll meet up with one Director Emma. Tell her Field Agent Beatrix sent you. I’m certain you’ll be able to convince her to help train you. Along with the others she is already training, mind you. With how small the Agency is at the moment, I figure you’d be a huge asset in her team.” She places her Dex away. “And who knows, maybe if I see you again someday, you might actually become an even better agent than ME!” She giggles.
Here's lookin at you, kid." she winks at him, cliche as it sounded. Gotta respect the classics, after all.
Anton, for his part, is multiple galaxies of starstruck at this point. He stammers out his excessive thanks and promises to be the very best, before excusing himself to return to the Pokecenter and heal his worn out Chespin.
"Oh well... good luck with your travels then... I guess?" She calls out, but it turns out it was mostly to herself as Anton was long gone back into the Center. "Excitable kid, don't you think Vance?" She looks back at the Pancham. "Hmm... but he's got the right idea. Need to go back to the Center and get healed? Or are you alright to continue?"
With no further need to keep up appearances, Vance lets his tough guy facade fade enough to wince and roll his shoulders. Seems like he trusts Beatrix enough to let her see that the vine toss gave him a few bruises he wouldn't mind getting patched up.
Bea giggles at Vance's attempt to remain tough. "Yeah, think you deserve some time off for that fight. You done good too. But remember we're not done yet. We need to train tonight for the Gym Battle tomorrow." She picks up the tired Pancham and carries him back inside the Center proper.
Less than fifteen minutes later, she steps out. With Moriarty now comfortably perched on her shoulder, she makes way to the Trainer's School. There was still a whole lot of questions she still needed some answering.
OOC:
Richter looks up from his bag as Keyanu locks down his leafy opponent.
... Well in that case...
He quietly palms the keys for the padlocks he installed in his room earlier.
'Okay, Keyanu! How about you let him have it with your fairy-light-ball attack!'
.. I probably should name these attacks later. How do the other trainers know what moves their new Pokémon have?
Meanwhile, a Pokédex flashes sadly in his lab coat pocket.
Meanwhile, North connects with his Earthquake, causing him to disengage into Quadrant D.
He looks visibly shaken from the auditory attack.
'North! Use Electroplate to pull yourself together!'
The Geodude concentrates, as he attempts to consolidate his defenses once more.
Looks like it's going to be slow going, if we're just going to be bouncing back and forth..
Richter
"Both of you, while the Geodude's weak," the young woman commands, addressing both her Pokemon. "Infestation and Energy Ball."
Skittering after the rebounding Alolan Geodude without hesitation, the Centipede pulls up short, much like it did when it used its Screech attack, claws clattering harshly against the floor as it grinds to a stop. A shadow on the floor continues along its path, however, or not a shadow, but a thin layer of crawling, black motes that appear to flow up and onto North, infesting the Rock Pokemon with a bad case of mites.
Venipede used Infestation!
North took 2 Damage!
North was Infested!
Still playing along for now, Richter's Klefki transmutes its wrathful shimmering into a bright glow, that it fires off at its nearby foe with a harsh jingle and a noise like breaking glass.
Keyanu used Flash Cannon!
Sewaddle took 1 damage!
Sewaddle's Special Defense Fell!
Its arcane defenses somewhat tattered after being bathed in Keyanu's white-hot rage, the Sewaddle nevertheless turns its attentions to a distant foe at its trainer's order. While its still a bit tied up in spectral chains, this doesn't stop the creature from writhing back, then flinging its head forward to whip a ball of roiling, verdant energy at the distracted North.
Sewaddle used Energy Ball!
North took 3 damage!
It was Super Effective!
While the Alolan Geodude is rocked by the impact of one of its elemental weaknesses, the temporary chains Keyanu summoned slowly slip away, back into whatever dimension they were strung from, releasing the Sewaddle to move freely once more.
Sewaddle is no longer Trapped!
Distracted by the crawling and biting of his dozens of miniscule, unwanted passengers, North struggles to pay attention to his trainer, and perform the requested move.
North took 1 Damage from his Infestation!
(2 turns remain)
Finally focusing enough to work past the irritation, North draws on his electrical powers, plating over his wracked defenses and building them up stronger... better than they were before.
North used Electroplate!
North's Defense Critically Rose!
Battle Status
Quadrant C
- Keyanu [ |||||| ] -1 Df
- Sewaddle [ ||||-- ] -1 SD
Quadrant D
-North [ |------ ] +2 Df, Infested
- Venipede [ ||||||- ]
Other Quadrants
- Empty
Don't forget you can use Voltage/Tokens to attempt to dodge attacks, cheerlead to heal stamina a bit, and do other minor adjustments like Terrendos did in his Trainer battle.
Usually along the lines of a +2/-2 to something once, a +1 that lasts the entire battle, a free movement or shift, and stuff like that. For instance, you could cancel the remaining count on North's Infestation with some clever thinking, which might be a good idea, considering.
(Also, you were correct about Venipede taking 1 damage. Fixed.)
Aleksandr squats down next to the girl and her Phantump. "Got a willful battle partner?" he asks, slipping into the big-brother role without really realising. "They're all different, some respond well to discipline, others to being made to think it was their idea all the time, and some," he says, as a disgruntled Buizel appears, bounding around trainers and 'mons alike with a little less spring in his step now, "always insist on rising to the challenge. What sort is your ghostly treestump? They're real spooky, I've heard scary stories about lots of Ghost types. How'd you meet yours?"
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
~ TRAINERS' SCHOOL ~ :whistle:
Beatrix
The second-most impressive building in town, the Trainers' School, is a simple, blocky building of white brick, with a gently sloping brown-shingled roof, just north of Santalune's central courtyard.
It looks like classes are wrapping up for the day, with students milling around near the entrance. Approaching the students (who look to be around 8-12 years of age) would be relatively easy if she wants to ask some questions. If she'd like to go inside, it would probably be best to check in with the visitor's center first to obtain a pass and establish what she's going to be doing on the school grounds (whether she wants to admit to being simply a nosy stranger, or decides to construct some sort of plausible cover story, is up to her whim).
Aleksandr
The girl's nose scrunches up as Aleksandr speaks to her. "Hora is a jerk. An unpredictable jerk," she asserts, as the Ghost Type takes her distraction to begin sidling behind her. Without looking, she turns a foot and steps on the lingering wisp of shadowstuff serving as the Phantump's 'tail' and it jerks to a stop, wooden helmet rattling as it giggles, caught in the act. "If I knew what kind of Pokemon he was, I would have devised a training method by now."
"But I'd almost think he has a Need for chaos, and how am I supposed to work with that? Pokemon Battles are not chaos. They are Shogi - Chess - move and countermove. Precision is needed to execute strategy."
Content her Pokemon has been put on sufficient notice, she removes her foot and allows it to float free, then answers Aleksandr's follow-up question. "I live near a big forest. We met. We got along. I can handle mischief any other time, but insubordination in battle is too much."
The Phantump, Hora apparently, cackles softly. It seems to enjoy getting a rise out of its trainer.
Unpredictability can be a strength," Aleksandr assents, grinning widely as the girl steps on Hora's wispy tail. "But you're right - you and Hora both need to work together in that unpredictability. You need to counter your opponent in a way they are not expecting. He seems to like jokes. Pranks. Maybe if you work that into your battling he would be more inclined to agree with your commands."
The Sinnoh trainer extends a hand towards his Buizel, who is, of course, grumbling and looking more than a little disgruntled. "This is Volnoy, he likes to challenge himself, fight the best, never give up, and always go for the win. He is good under pressure. I have a Rockruff, Borzoi, who treats battles as a game, like she is playing. She performs better in battles when I present it more like playtime, or a game. Maybe Hora needs to make a battle feel like chaos and confusion, but controlled chaos, where you and he dictate the unpredicability."
Volnoy perks up a little at the praise. He jerks a thumb at his chest, and flashes the girl and her Phantump a surprisingly dashing smile.
Al offers a hand to shake. "I am Al, I am visiting here for the League Challenge. Are you also taking part?"
3DS FCode: 1993-7512-8991
If it was Special, that would put Sewaddle at 3 damage+STAB to deal 3 Damage versus North's unaltered Special Defense. Plausible for this level of challenge, given that would be either 4 or 5 Exp invested into damage.
Can't really nail down things stat-wise, so the other option is to decide if Sewaddle being a mixed attacker is likely (again, assuming Bug Bite dealt Physical damage). Richter's opponent's team seems to value lowering Defenses, so it would seem counter-intuitive to invest Exp in Special Moves. By that same logic, it would seem odd to have the Sewaddle's Attack stat at a meager 2 - that's not really the kind of investment you'd see in an aggressive debuff team, though Sewaddle may be a mixed/Special tank, given how little Damage Keyanu is dealing - merely additional bulk and defense lowering while the Venipede is the main attacker. There's really too many variables and options to really get a firm clue through team composition.
So finally, Energy Ball is a Special Move in the games, unless I'm specifically changing it up to take advantage of the "defense lowering" strategy, it's probably still Special.
tl;dr - It's Special.