ITT: We are all Pokémon Trainers

Hia Valley

Jason:Iunno. He seemed like he knew a few J-Teamers though.

-He looks at Duke.-

He said he knew a Lucario named Duke too.

Elsewhere

-14!Lane nods.-

14!Lane:Yeah!

-Something buzzes in his pocket.-

That's probably Maria...I should get back home. It was nice meeting you! C'mon Hugo!

-The Eevee trots off after the boy, they both disappear into the snow, like they were never there.-

edited 23rd Jul '14 3:09:54 PM by Skyzerk

Hia Valley

9!Joseph: ...you can't be me though, can you? Unless you're from the future!

Joseph: ...I think I am, though!

9!Joseph: Coooooool...

Hia Valley

Zeal: ...This is really weird. I wonder if we'd be able to find a past-ish me.

Hia Valley

<Mmmm... I dunno if I want to stick around here.>

Hia Valley

"... I don't know any cowboys." said Duke, it was clear the he was being sincere

"Yeah, that's kinda out-of-place." said Lyuri.

Hia Valley

Oh? Why's that?

Hia Valley

Emily: It seems Orin is quite interested in your Quilava. That is the most he has said since we arrived in Almia.

Hia Valley

"Have fun then!"

-Tori waves as the boy disappears into the snow, then begins walking-

"Well, that was unusual..."

Hia Valley

Melanie: Oh, Fajro's Chary's Quilava! Wait, the most he's said? That's not a whole lot...

Hia Valley

Jason:I think his name was...

-He thinks for a moment.-

Des! That's it. His name was Des. Ring any bells?

-He seems genuinely curious.-

Elsewhere

-Maria walks back over.-

Maria:@_@ What just happened?

Hia Valley

<There's a lot of stuff from my past I'd rather not run into.>

Some indeterminable point in spacetime

Pueltown - Last night

-Somewhere amidst the darkened streets of Pueltown, the Auric Avenger and Fulgrim are talking to a sceptical-looking Pokemon Ranger.-

The Auric Avenger: ...that's all I know, unfortunately. I figured I ought to keep the authorities posted, given that Neo-Galactic is as much your problem as mine.

Ranger: And why should we take your word about this? Chief says that we shouldn't be working with you people.

The Auric Avenger: Your loss if you don't.

-The Ranger glares at the Avenger for a moment, before turning and walking away at a brisk pace. Fulgrim gives his back a withering look.-

Fulgrim: <...Idiot.>

The Auric Avenger: No need to go that far. Sure, he was uncooperative, but he's got good reason to be. Something tells me that he'll pass on the information anyway, even if he doesn't mention where he heard it from.

-He stretches his arms, yawning almost absent-mindedly.-

The Auric Avenger: Things sure have quietened down recently. Almost makes me miss the high-octane battles with ridiculous wannabe supervillains... at least those had a way of distracting me from my more mundane problems.

Fulgrim: <Don't start encouraging them.>

The Auric Avenger: Wouldn't dream of it. My job is to discourage them, after all. It wouldn't...

-He trails off as he feels his Aura Sense begin to flicker and die, causing a shiver to run down his spine. He sighs and addresses the darkness around him.-

The Auric Avenger: ...Shingeko, you know what I said about Aura Jammers. Put the damn thing away. You have that Disruptor I gave you, use-

-A Stone Edge goes flying down the street, the hail of razor-sharp rocks knocking Fulgrim off of his feet and narrowly missing the Avenger himself.-

Fulgrim: <Urngh!>

The Auric Avenger: ...Okay, not Shingeko. Where the hell did that come from?

-As if to answer his question, a Claydol comes floating into view, accompanied by a figure that initially looks like a Neo-Galactic Grunt. Upon closer inspection, however, a number of differences soon become apparent - unlike most Grunts, this one wears a full helmet with a tinted visor, and their suit appears to be fully sealed. A baton in their right hand crackles meanacingly with electricity.-

Grunt(?): ...

The Auric Avenger: You lot again, huh? I didn't think you'd have the guts to show yourselves around here after we-

-Something hard strikes him in the small of the back and sends several thousand volts coursing through his costume.-

The Auric Avenger: GAAAAAH!

-He collapses onto all fours, smoking slightly, but maintains enough presence of mind to roll over onto his back. As he does, he catches sight of his attacker - a second helmeted figure in the same attire as the first, similiarly armed and accompanied by a Xatu. A familiar fear begins to take hold of the Avenger.-

The Auric Avenger: (Dammit, no... I can't let these memories paralyse me, not now...)

-He kicks out at his assailant, using the momentum to surge to his feet. Nearby, Fulgrim also rights himself, and together the two shift into combat stances.-

The Auric Avenger: Any ideas, Fulgrim?

Fulgrim: <Run away?>

The Auric Avenger: ...Let me rephrase that. Any ideas that don't suck?

-Fulgrim falls silent, facing down the "Grunt" with the Claydol whilst the Avenger turns to the one with the Xatu.-

The Auric Avenger: I'll take that as a no. Looks like we're doing this the old-fashioned way, then...

Hia Valley

Ah...I can understand that. Especially after what I've seen in here. Hopefully we won't be here too long. I dunno if the nearby castle and the research camp aren't affected, though.

edited 23rd Jul '14 3:18:36 PM by strawberryflavored

Hia Valley

Tori: "Uh, I just talked to a younger version of your brother just after he had his arm broken by a Klink. I think?"

Hia Valley

Maria:@_@

-She shakes herself.-

But that was two years ago!

Pueltown - Last night

-Both figures dart towards the Avenger in unison, their Pokemon taking to the air and floating above the fight. Thinking quickly, the Auric Avenger grabs a flashbang off of his belt and tosses it at his opponents, briefly blinding himself with the flash from his own attack. Despite the disorienting explosion, the two figures continue to charge forward regardless, visors glinting.-

The Auric Avenger: Wait, wha-

-He is cut off by another stun baton blow and staggers backwards, grunting. Fulgrim hits one of the "Grunts" with a Dark Pulse, knocking them away, but finds himself on the receiving end of a Thunder Wave from the Xatu in return.-

Fulgrim: <Gnrrk! Can't move...>

The Auric Avenger: How do you think I feel? I've been hit with two of those!

-The "Grunt" that struck him swings again, but this time he manages to catch the baton in his insulated gauntlets. Instead of allowing themselves to be disarmed, however, the spacesuit-clad attacker simply lets go of the baton's handle and delivers a sharp elbow strike to the Avenger's nose.-

The Auric Avenger: Oof! I... I don't suppose I have the option to surrender peacefully, do I?

Grunt(?): ...

-Their only response is a punch to the stomach that causes the Avenger to drop the baton he was holding.-

The Auric Avenger: I'll t-take that as a no... (What the hell are these guys? I can't use Aura and my gadgets are useless against them... but there's gotta be some way to take them down...)

-As the "Grunt" facing him stoops to pick up their stun baton, the Avenger pulls another grenade off of his belt - this one a smoke one - and sets it off. The street fills with smoke almost immediately, causing the Avenger to lose sight of his opponents and gain the advantage of a brief moment of respite.-

The Auric Avenger: Smoke... though those helmets probably filter out gases, they can't seem to see through smoke...

Fulgrim: <Neither can we. That doesn't help.>

The Auric Avenger: Quiet for a moment, I'm thinking. We need to-

-A blast of concussive force erupts beneath his feet, sending him flying a good two or three feet in the air before landing in a sprawled heap on the ground. Bruised and battered, he struggles to get standing again, coughing as he does. Fulgrim is nowhere to be seen amidst the smoke.-

The Auric Avenger: Urgh... what the hell was that...? Some kind of concussion grenade, maybe...

-His musings are interrupted by a kick to the ribs. He glances upwards to see one of the "Grunts" standing over him, stun baton raised, and suddenly what little fight was left in him finds itself giving way to an all-too-recognisable terror.-

Grunt(?): ...

The Auric Avenger: N-no... no, you c-can't... Titan wouldn't put me through this all again...

-Before the "Grunt" can strike, however, they are knocked off their feet by their Claydol being thrown bodily into them. Fulgrim pounces a moment later, tearing at the attacker and their Claydol with Night Slash after Night Slash, seemingly unfazed by his paralysis.-

Fulgrim: <The pack I run with may be morons to a man, but they're pack nevertheless. And hunting a Zoroark's pack is a particularly bad idea.>

-Unable to withstand the ferocity of the Zoroark's attacks, the Claydol blips away along with its trainer. Slowly, the Auric Avenger gets to his feet, swaying unsteadily on his feet.-

The Auric Avenger: I... they were about to... thanks, Fulgrim.

Fulgrim: <Save your false gratitude for an occasion that truly warrants it, human.>

-The Avenger nods, not in possession of enough of his faculties to object to Fulgrim's comment, before glancing around hurriedly as if suddenly remembering something.-

The Auric Avenger: Two... there were-

-An avian shape bursts out of the smoke and slashes Fulgrim's chest with an Aerial Ace as the second "Grunt" emerges to take a swing at the Avenger. Staggering backwards, Fulgrim fires off another Dark Pulse at the Xatu as the Auric Avenger prepares a counter, but before either attack lands both targets vanish with a blip. Fulgrim is the first to react.-

Fulgrim: <They're behind->

-Without needing the prompt, the Auric Avenger jabs his elbow backwards as the "Grunt" reappears, catching them off-guard and disarming them. He hastily snatches up the baton as it falls and lashes out at the "Grunt". Though their insulated suit protects them from the electric shock, they still keel over from the sharp blow to the stomach and are promptly blipped away by their Xatu. Several seconds of hasty, panicked breathing from the young superhero follows.-

The Auric Avenger: ...Is that it? Are they really gone?

Fulgrim: <Looks like it.>

-With a ragged sigh, the Auric Avenger drops to his knees.-

The Auric Avenger: Damn, I can't belive I'm still in one piece... those guys were something else...

Fulgrim: <And yet we still beat both of them.>

The Auric Avenger: I get the feeling that they could've fought for a lot longer and done a lot worse to me if they'd tried... that was a warning. Telling us that Neo-Galactic's got it out for us...

Fulgrim: <As if we didn't already know that. Who'd have thought that blowing up their bases might've set them off?>

-The Auric Avenger heaves himself upright, though it's clear that doing so takes him a great deal of effort.-

The Auric Avenger: Let's just head back to the cave before any more of them show up. Man, I am gonna have some really impressive bruises in the morning...

-He sends out Maul and blips away.-

Rasp Cavern - Today

-Sure enough, Lucius is still lying on his bed, nursing his bruises with one hand whilst typing out a text on his Pokegear with the other.-

edited 23rd Jul '14 3:49:23 PM by Herbert40k

Hia Valley

Emily: Yes, he does not speak much. I have yet to figure out why, though. And if you don't mind my asking, who is this Chary?

Hia Valley

<Ugh, maybe I should wait at the... um, clubhouse. Until you guys are done here.>

Hia Valley

"... Des?" asked Lyuri, raising an eyebrow "The only Des we know is supposed to be dead!" she exclaimed, looking completely lost.

"I guess this must be all an extremely strange coincidence." said Duke, looking just as confused.

Hia Valley

-She laughs and points to Zach.-

Melanie: Ah, right! That's what I usually call my brother.

Zach: ...I'm still not sure whether I find it grating or adorable.

Hia Valley

-Tori shrugs-

"Hey, last night I met Jason's Great-Great-something Grandfather. I dunno what's going on, but things are weird around here"

Somewhere, probably near the outskirts of Wintown

-And probably while watching his team spar, Blitz gets the message-

edited 23rd Jul '14 3:32:22 PM by BlitzTrain

Hia Valley

If you have to, go ahead. I can always let you know once we're out of the area.

By the way, what's this clubhouse?

Hia Valley

-As Morgan is walking through the snow, somewhere else an older trainer (about 19) and a girl in a nurse's uniform (about 18) are wandering aimlessly. The trainer has short red hair and wears a straw hat. The girl has pale skin and black hair. They may be noticed.-

Hia Valley

<Um... not something I'm supposed to tell you.>

Hia Valley

I see. I'm guessing this is more of that secret stuff?