ITT: We are all Pokémon Trainers

=Mt. Coronet, Past=

The rocks that would fall on the group are stopped by Mireille's telekinesis, but the Geodude still continues using Magnitude, putting the integral stability of the cave at risk

Aurum: ~Fantastic Mireille, now, I have a plan, we shall carefully move from boulder to boulder while using our psionic powers to protect the main team, we have to move slow and steady so that the trainers can be in our range of-~

Zachary: "T-There's no time for that! Look!"

The Geodude is getting closer to the stairs as he keeps on using Magnitude to cause falling rocks

Zachary: "W-We need to hurry up or else he'll get away and our exit will be blocked! I'm going after him!"

Aurum: ~Zachary, no! Listen to me for once and FALL BACK!~

Zachary ignores Aurum and runs while avoding the falling rocks, dodging most of them except for one which ends up hitting his leg and causing him to fall to the ground as falling rocks and stalagmites surround him

Aurum: ~ZACHARY, YOU IDIOT, THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I NEED MY STRESS RELIEF TOYS~

Aurum angrily sinks back into his hiding boulder and hyperventilates as he summons a small Exploud toy which he starts rythmically pressing, causing it to squeak

Aurum: ~Oof, okay, okay, i'm more calmed down now, Zachary, please try to get back here as carefully as you can...~

Zachary: "Um...too late for that I guess..."

Aurum looks at Zachary and notices that he is crawling slowly towards the Geodude rather than getting closer

Aurum: *sigh* ~I'm sorry Tex and Sergey but i'm going to be having a bit of an outburst, you'll be your own for the next minute or so...starting from now~

Aurum starts flailing his arms around as he spouts incrompehensible gibberish in anger

Hearthome

Helian: <...> -Looks at the Larvitar-

Galahad: <...?> -Looks at Helian-

-They then switch who they're looking at, then back again, then they both look at the Larvitar, then at each other-

-Then they tackle the Larvitar-

Eterna

-Jacob bursts out into the city frantically looking around when his eyes fall on a particular navy Gothitelle-

"... You?"

Margaret: -Looks up from the manga she was reading, her usual tome set to her side- <Mister Iridis. You're late.> -She returns to her reading-

-The Larvitar is tackled-

Larvitar: <Agh! Hey, what's that for?>

Old Chateau, 40 minutes until sunset

(Simon's response is immediate.)

Simon: Moby Dick by Herman Melville.

International Police Bureau

In the waiting room outside the offices on the second floor, a receptionist sits idly at her desk, watching other staff hurry past on their own urgent business. Among the special agents and uniformed officers, one individual stands out - a boy no older than fifteen, wearing a navy blue suit and matching hat. He walks up to the desk, doing his best to look dignified despite the fact that he can barely see over it. He clears his throat and speaks.

Shun: I'm here to see Inspector Lex.

Receptionist: Name, please?

Shun: Shun Hontou.

Receptionist: Hontou? Really?

Shun: Everyone seems to think that's amusing for some reason.

Receptionist: No no, it's just that you-

Shun: Seem a little young to be a detective?

Receptionist: No. I was going to say that you don't have an appointment.

Shun sighs.

Shun: He's expecting me.

Receptionist: Even so, you're going to have to wait here until he's free.

Resignedly, Shun nods, and takes a seat in the waiting room. A Elgyem floats up to his shoulder.

Morstan: ~Does he always leave you waiting like this?~

Shun: For about fifteen minutes, on average.

Eighteen minutes later, the door to Lex's office opens.

Lex: Come in.

Shun steps into the office. Sat behind the mahogany desk is a large, well-built man, about fifty years of age, with a pair of reading spectacles perched on the end of his nose. He looks down at Shun through them with a bored look in his eyes.

Lex: You know, Hontou, you don't have to give your reports to me in person. They have this thing called "email" now.

Shun: I'm aware, sir. I assumed you would rather evaluate my response on a face-to-face basis.

Lex: You shouldn't come to conclusions based on assumptions. That's Detective Work 101, Hontou.

Shun remains quiet and hands over his report, which Lex flips through disinterestedly.

Lex: ...You've used an awful lot of words to tell me that you have no idea who's behind the murders in Hoenn.

Shun flushes red.

Shun: The case is highly unusual. I need more time to-

Lex: You know what I think you need, Hontou? A vacation. Rather than burn yourself out, take a few weeks off. Go somewhere nice. Make sure those finely-honed instincts of yours don't get worn down to nothing.

Shun: ...Sir, I really don't think that's necessary. I am perfectly-

Lex leands forward with his fingers arched, cutting Shun off.

Lex: Do you know why I had you taken off the Blaise case in the first place, Hontou?

Shun: No, sir. I assumed that you needed my expertise elsewh-

Lex: "Expertise"? Don't make me laugh.

He leans towards Shun.

Lex: Listen, kid, you can cut the "sir" crap. You don't have to pretend to like me. The feeling is all too mutual.

Shun remains silent, his mouth drawn into a thin line.

Lex: You think I still can't take you seriously, and you know what? You're right. I don't take you seriously, because you've never given me a reason to take you seriously. I don't care what sort of child prodigy you're supposed to be - I need to see results, Hontou. Earn your badge or you'll be stripped of it. Is that understood?

Shun: ...Yes, sir.

Lex: Good. You're dismissed. And if you know what's good for you, you'll take my advice.

Shun turns and walks out of the room without another word. Morstan floats up to him again.

Morstan: ~Do meetings with the boss always go that badly?~

Shun: On the contrary. Compared to the usual standard, that meeting was positively diplomatic.

He shakes his head exasperatedly and slumps into one of the waiting room chairs.

Morstan: ~You're still bothered by the Allen case, aren't you?~

Shun: ...I miss the days when you were less talkative.

Morstan: ~So yes, in other words.~

Shun: I go where the job takes me. With hundreds of crimes committed every day, I can hardly afford to get hung up on a single unsolved case.

Morstan: ~Even when that case involves one of the only friends you've ever made?~

Shun: Are you planning on saying something helpful, or simply trying to provoke some kind of reaction from me?

Morstan: ~Mostly the former.~

Shun: As I suspected. In any case, dealing with deranged supervillains and vigilantes of ambiguous identity was tiring me. I much prefer cases that are more eminently logical.

He sighs.

Shun: Perhaps Lex is right. Maybe it would be better for my health if I were to return home to Sinnoh for a while. I can leave Sholto to handle my affairs in my absence.

Morstan: ~He's been handling your affairs in your absence for months now.~

Shun: That is true. Once I arrive in Eterna, I will make sure to check in with him as a matter of haste. At the moment, however, we should be seeing to travel arrangements.

He gets up and starts to head downstairs, Morstan following behind as he struggles through the crowds.

edited 13th May '16 1:01:55 PM by Herbert40k

Hearthome

Helian: <You caused an Earthquake!>

Galahad: <What he said!>

Helian: <You've terrified the innocent civilians of this city and our skittish partner Ferris!>

Ferris: -Still cowering with a bench sitting on her back- <Is it over yeeeet??>

Helian: <EXPLAIN yourseeeeeelf!!>

Eterna

Jacob: "... Excuse me?"

Margaret: -She looks up again- <You're late. You're supposed to be moving on from here.>

Jacob: "Well I can't exactly do that, I'm missing my whole team!!!"

Margaret: -She looks back down- <Your Gardevoir is still in the city.>

Jacob: "... Why are you even here?"

Margaret: <Research.>

Jacob: "... Margaret, that's manga, not research."

Margaret: <...> -She looks up again-

Jacob: "..."

Margaret: <...>

Jacob: "..."

Margaret: <...> -Jacob's pants are suddenly aflame-

Jacob: "Dammit."

Mt. Coronet - Past

Sergey sprinted after Zachary, mostly evading the stones thanks to Mireille, as he was there he clung to him - half to get him to stop, half out of fear since he was in one of the darker areas again.

Sergey: "No, please stop, I beg you! You're getting yourself hurt!"

He looked back

Sergey: "Mireille! Stop the Telekinesis on the rocks, lift the Geodude up so they can't use Magnitude anymore, PLEASE!"

Mireille: ~I... as you wish.~

The rocks came clattering down, one or two hitting Sergey and Mireille, though nothing too bad as Mireille changed the target of her Telekinesis, trying to instead make the Geodude levitate.

Ack, I'm sorry, I totally forgot MajorProblem, so last post for a while... sorry

edited 13th May '16 1:22:09 PM by Sergey_Smirnov

Tex: Bulldozer, use bullet punch.

Bulldozer: ~TIME TO HIT ROCK BOTTOM!~

Tex: "Wow, that was bad"

I was going to have Bulldozer assist Mireille by using telekinesis, but I ended up having to spend an hour fixing my internet. Can we pretend he helped?

Eterna Pokémon Center

Sakura is currently talking to Lyuri and Duke in their room. All of them eating cake

"So Tagg figured it out huh?" asked Lyuri

"Well he never directly said anything to me but he's smart so he probably figured it out already, Sarah... She didn't help much, she tried, but... She's not the best at lying." said Sakura

"That secret is becoming less and less secret huh," said Duke, with a chuckle

"Anyway, sorry for not being around for your birthday, sis," said Sakura, sighing

"Nah, that's all right. You not giving me anything to me on my birthday means I can skip out on your birthday too!" said Lyuri looking almost satisfied

"Fair enough," Sakura shrugged.

edited 13th May '16 1:29:26 PM by FullMoon

Larvitar: <U-uh, I didn't do that! It's Not My Fault!>

Hearthome

Helian: -Picks up the Larvitar by the head-horn and Happy Mask Salesman shakes them- <THEN PROVE IT>

Eterna Pokemon Center

-A pantsless Jacob enters, then exits properly pantsed-

Eterna

Jacob: "Well, she told me it was time to move on, so, time to move on?"

-Regina appears- <Not taking the gym challenge, then?>

Jacob: -He shakes his head- "Not this time. We're here for business."

Regina: -She shrugs- <Okay, well, where to?>

Jacob: "Um. South? I guess."

Minutes Later!

Cycling Road

Jacob: ".... I..."

Regina: <Oh just go ask for help it's not that bad.>

Jacob: "But... I don't know how to ride a bike. And...I mean... I could just go east more then circle south but..."

??? - Neo-Illusion Facility

In the corridors of one of Neo-Illusion's various bases, a nondescript, aging man in one of his organisation's signature silver suits is talking to a haggard-looking grunt.

Mr Smith: I'm afraid I don't see the problem. According to my reports, we're on track to meet all our production quotas for this quarter! To use the urban vernacular, that is "wicked groovy".

Neo-Illusion Grunt: Well... there seem to be some morale issues amongst the staff.

Mr Smith: What? How can that be? I have my very own motivational self-help tape playing over the PA system during all working hours!

Neo-Illusion Grunt: That would appear to be the crux of the issue, sir.

Mr Smith: This simply won't do. What's your name, kiddo?

Neo-Illusion Grunt: Bill, sir. I... I've been your assistant for six months now.

Mr Smith: Ah, of course! I knew I'd seen you around somewhere. Biff, would you be so kind as to grab the CD lying in my office? If my words don't inspire, then my experimental hip-hop/disco fusion album will!

Bill: ...I don't think that's-

Mr Smith: Hop to it, Bert! Time is money, and money buys honey!

Bill hurries off, grumbling to himself.

Bill: Who even uses CDs anymore?

Mr Smith turns and walks off in the opposite direction, eventually coming to a security door that he opens with a keycard. Behind that door is another, thicker door, currently being guarded by a woman in a silver suit and her Malamar. An opaque visor covers her eyes and upper face, and long blonde hair in a ponytail protrudes from the back. She holds a bowl of indistinct liquid in one hand.

Mr Smith: Good to see you, Janis! And you brought breakfast as well! This kind of diligence is what earns you the big bucks.

Janis: ...You don't pay me.

Mr Smith: Regardless. Let's see how our guest is doing, shall we?

He punches a twelve-digit code into the keybad next to the door. The door slides open to reveal a large, circular chamber, at the centre of which is a metal sphere suspended in place by a number of segmented tubes. Some sections of the tubes are translucent, and within them a viscous black substance can be seen being pumped through at semi-regular intervals. The only sounds in the room are the hum of electronics and a thumping noise not dissimilar to a distorted heartbeat.

Mr Smith: Ah, the Obscura Generator. One of my better projects, if I do say so myself. Technically the "Generator" part is a bit of a misnomer, but don't tell that to the marketing department! Open her up, Janis.

With her free hand, Janis presses a few buttons on the sphere's control panel. The thumping noise abruptly cuts off, and with a hiss, the top half of the sphere rises to reveal its contents. Inside is a boy in medical scrubs who appears to be connected to the machine by a number of tubes attached to his back and arms.

Mr Smith: Rise and shine, sleepyhead! Breakfast's here!

The boy in the machine groans and looks up at Mr Smith. Short and thin to the point of emaciation, he looks younger than his eighteen years. His messy black hair has grown down past his shoulders, and the beginnings of a scraggly beard are starting to form on his chin.

Lucius: About time. I called room service about an hour ago. What's for breakfast today? Wait, don't tell me - is it thin, watery gruel? I bet it's thin, watery gruel.

Mr Smith sighs, then takes the bowl of thin, watery gruel from Janis and hands it to Lucius.

Mr Smith: You know, you really ought to try and be more grateful. There are starving children in Johto!

Lucius: They can have this stuff if they want it.

He drains the bowl in one gulp, then shudders in disgust.

Lucius: Have you ever tried asking your cafeteria staff to make something that doesn't taste like it came from the rear end of a Tauros?

Mr Smith: Now now, there's no need to be so hostile! Remember what I keep telling you: Corporation is just an anagram of Cooperation!

Lucius: ...No it's not.

Mr Smith: See? You're just being a negative Nancy for the sake of it! You really ought to try and focus on the positives in your life.

Lucius rolls his eyes.

Lucius: Oh yeah, the positives. Between being abducted by some sinister megacorp and held against my will for months on end, getting strapped into a machine that's literally draining the life from me as slowly and painfully as possible, and the fact that everybody I know probably thinks I'm dead - again - I'd almost forgotten about the positives. I'll try to keep them in mind.

Mr Smith: That's the spirit! Anyway, whilst we're on the subject of cooperation, I was wondering if you and I could have another quick chat. Imagine that we're "hanging it out", as you young people say.

Lucius raises an eyebrow.

Lucius: You've already had your little gremlin poke around in my head half-a-dozen times now. What more do you think you're going to learn by just talking to me?

Janis: ...Not just talking.

Pink lines of energy begin to come together in a blade-like shape around her arm, but Lucius looks unimpressed.

Lucius: Yeah, no, still not intimidated. Like I keep telling you, I've seen the "mysteriously monosyllabic masked mook" act too many times to be freaked out by it.

He looks between his two tormentors and sighs.

Lucius: You just don't get it, do you? See, the problem with 24/7 torture is that you can't really step it up from there. I guarantee you that no matter what you have in mind, it's not gonna compare to the last time I was in this kinda situation. I mean, you need me alive for this machine to work, right?

Mr Smith: Yes, but-

Lucius: There we go. You can't kill me and you can't break me, so whatever you end up doing, it's just gonna be a waste of time for all of us.

Mr Smith: That kind of attitude will do you no favours in the world of business. You're rejecting my offer before you've even heard it!

Lucius gives an exhausted groan.

Lucius: Alright, I'll humour you. What's the offer?

Mr Smith: Your end of the bargain is simple as pie. All you have to do is tell us where your redhaired friend is. My employer is a very pragmatic individual-

Lucius: You keep threatening me with this employer of yours. Am I ever going to get to meet them?

Mr Smith: Oh, they'd love to chat! They just don't like talking face-to-face. Social anxiety, you see.

Lucius: ...Right.

Mr Smith: As I was saying, my employer is a very pragmatic individual who recognises that Obscura does funny things to mind-readers. They also recognise that as long as we only have one of these fancy machines, we only need one person with your unusual properties, so to speak.

Lucius: So what you're saying is that if I tell you where to find the only other Obscura zombie brought back from the dead by Legendary intervention, you'll let me go?

Mr Smith: Oh, goodness no! But we'd unhook you from that machine and move you to a bigger cell. You might even get a PSBox so that you can play your RPG games.

Lucius: ...Wow. You guys really know how to sweeten the pot.

He laughs.

Lucius: Well, I'm terribly sorry, but I'm going to have to say no. Even if I had the kind of mental conditioning you need to resist psychic invasions of privacy, I couldn't tell you anything anyway. You'll never find Alice. Not if she doesn't want to be found.

Mr Smith: That's a crying shame. Still, the offer stands if you ever change your mind. You can't say we're not being perfectly reasonable!

Lucius: ...You're asking me for information you know I don't possess in exchange for moving me down the hall. Yeah, perfectly reasonable.

Mr Smith: We'll come back and see how you feel about it in a few hours. Hit the on button, would you, Janis?

Janis nods, then steps forward and hits a few more buttons on the control panel. The machine whirrs into life, and the thumping noise begins again. Lucius grits his teeth and manages to hold himself together for about five seconds before he starts to scream.

Mr Smith: Let's give the boy some privacy. After all, I know what I was like at his age!

He walks out of the chamber, humming merrily as Janis seals the sphere and the door behind them.

Mr Smith: I'm your only friend
I'm not your only friend but I'm
A little glowing friend but
Really I'm not actually your friend
But I am

Larvitar: <Er... I don't know Earthquake! Bulldoze is the closest I can do!>

Hearthome

Helian: -Continues the shakening- <THEN YOU USED BULLDOZER!! FIEND!>

Larvitar: <Agh! Fine! Okay, I used it! Just let go of me!>

Hearthome

-Helian gingerly places the Larvitar on the ground-

<Excellent! NOW! Apologize to Ferris! That poor Aggron. You gave her anxiety!>

-Ferris' arms are curled around one leg of the bench- <I-Is it o-over?>

Cycling Road

-Riding by Jacob and Regina on a bike-

You know, speaking of Lucius, I haven't seen him for a while. Hopefully nothing's happened to him, I don't think I can persuade Yveltal a second time.

Eterna City

- DS is wondering if she should be heading somewhere else -

-The Larvitar is let down-

Larvitar: <F-fine...>

-to Ferris- <...Sorry.>

Cycling Road

Jacob: ".... Regina, was that-"

Regina: <Yes it was.>

<...>

<... Jacob.>

Jacob: "I can catch up to him."

Regina: <Jacob this isn't a good idea->

-Jacob has already pulled four things out of his gauntlet PC, a large slab of raw iron, a single skateboard wheel, a pair of boots, and a welding torch-

Jacob: "Give me three seconds."

Regina: <Jacob->

-And he's standing on the plate of iron, wearing the aforementioned boots-

Regina: <Jacob!>

Jacob: "Shush you can teleport! Wait. Doesn't that mean you could just teleport me-"

-And gravity takes over, yanking Jacob on his uniboard down the cycling road- "HEELP MEEEEEEEEEEEEE-"

Regina: -She sighs, resting her face in her hands-

Hearthome

-Ferris eeps at the Larvitar and scoots back, pressing her hind legs and tail up against a building- <S-Sorry? For what? Oh Arceus I'm sorry I didn't mean to make you apologize!> -She hides her face in her arms-

edited 13th May '16 2:14:02 PM by Verax

Jubilife Condominiums

An exhausted-looking man steps through the front door of one of the building's many apartments into a living room engulfed in darkness, letting out a long exhalation as he shuts the door behind him.

Man: It's official. I hate my job.

He flicks the light switch. Nothing happens.

Man: Ugh, power's out too. As if today couldn't get any-

Something sharp and indistinct lashes out at him from the darkness, knocking him to the floor. A black-clad figure swathed in shadow steps over him, wisps of purple energy swirling menacingly around them.

Man: P-please, don't hurt me! I have t-two Purrloin to take care of!

Shadowy Figure: I'll make this very simple. Tell me where you're holding my friend, and I'll tell my Cradily not to eat you.

Man: W-what?

Shadowy Figure She's very hungry.

Cradily: <It's true. I haven't eaten in, like, an hour.>

Man: I have no idea what you're talking about!

Shadowy Figure: Then let me explain. You're an engineer who works for Neo-Illusion on a contractual basis. I have good reason to believe that your organisation is holding a boy by the name of Lucius Cain against his will. Tell me where he is, or I feed you feet-first to my mons and start working my way through your friends.

Man: L-look, I... I don't know what you think I do, but they don't tell me anything! They just b-brought me in to work on some kind of machine, that's all I know!

The shadowy figure presses a purple claw against his throat.

Shadowy Figure: What kind of machine?

Man: I d-dunno! Smith kept calling it a-an "Obscura Generator" or something, but I have no clue what it does! I d-don't-

The claw pulls away.

Shadowy Figure: Who's Smith?

Man: He... he's one of the guys in charge. Except he's not, he's just m-middle management or something, but he runs the facility. It's c-complicated.

Shadowy Figure: This facility is here in Sinnoh, correct?

Man: I t-think so. Somewhere up n-north, if I had to guess. They had me b-blindfolded on the way over, so I couldn't really t-tell.

The shadowy figure turns to the Exeggcutor and Roserade behind them.

Shadowy Figure: Is he telling the truth?

Exeggcutor: ~As far as I can tell.~

The figure turns back to their unfortunate interrogation subject.

Shadowy Figure: Thank you for your cooperation. I can promise that neither you nor your Purrloin will come to any futher harm. Arsenic, put him to sleep. Belladonna, make sure he forgets the last two hours. Or two weeks. I'm not picky.

The Roserade dusts the man with Sleep Powder, and within moments he is soundly unconscious. With their quarry incapacitated, the shadowy figure pulls down the hood of their cloak, revealing a shock of red hair and a freckled face.

Alice: Well, that was unusually informative.

Arsenic: <We ready to start storming the place now, ma'am?>

Alice: Not yet. We need to determine the exact location of the facility before we can take any action, and even if we had that information, a direct assault would almost certainly be suicidal. But we are making progress. Slow progress, but progress nonetheless.

Belladonna: ~Are you sure we should be doing this alone? You could call upon-~

Alice: No. This is something that I need to do myself. Lucius is my friend, and thus it is my responsibility to help him. Besides, at this stage Neo-Illusion are likely looking for me as well. We can trust nobody.

She pulls up her hood again and turns to the window.

Alice: Enough talking. Time to leave.

Cradily: <Can I eat him now?>

Alice: No, Cyanide, you cannot eat him.

Cyanide: <Awwww.>

The shadowy figure and her three Pokemon disappear as stealthily as they came.

Hearthome

-Etran is training with Eggshell in the city.-

Larvitar: <Uh, they wanted me to apologize for the Bulldoze thing.>

Hearthome

Ferris: <W-What about a Bulldozer? S-Sorry I just d-don't understand...>

No problem, Major

Zachary notices Mireille levitating the Geodude mid-air and sluggishly (because of his damaged leg) walks towards it

Zachary: "T-Thanks, man, I don't know what came over me, I guess I just...was afraid of my dad losing his job because of me, well, at least we have that rock now!"

Zachary tries grab the parcel from the Geodude's hands and after a bit of struggling, he manages to retrieve it, he then raises it up in the air with pride

Zachary: "ZACHARY CHATTABIE, VIC-TORYYYY!"

Aurum: ~I have no idea what that was meant to be but I want you to never do that again~

Zachary: "Okay then, how about....PARCEL! GETTO DA ZE!"

Aurum: ~What does that even mean?~

Zachary: "Uhhh....no idea really..."

Aurum: ~....How's your leg~

Zachary remembers when the boulder hit his leg and instantly clings to it in pain as he falls to the ground

Aurum: ~Yeah, we're going to a Pokémon Center as soon as we get to Eterna City~

Aurum puts Zachary's arm around his shoulder and helps him walk over to the stairs

Zachary: "Aurum, wait.....Hey, you two! ...Thanks a lot, i'm sure my team and I would be in a much worse spot right now if it weren't for you guys....Now, uhh, what was the way to Eterna City's entrance?"

Aurum: ~Let's get out of this Arceus-forsaken underground segment before it falls down first~