Artazon Streets
Kec continues to attack Khione, using Shadow Claw and Foul Play to give himself a dual typing that isn't vulnerable to any of her attacks. He's out of practice, but old instincts quickly returned in the heat of battle and she's having trouble staying away from him. She doesn't have time to duck into the snowstorm to get away.
Whitt isn't doing much better. Hoops is fast, using their bandages to guide the movement of their own limbs in a perfectly coordinated dance, dodging all of Whitt's ice attacks. When Whitt's guard lowers for a second, they wrap the bandages around him and launch themself into the air, spinning a few times before slamming him hard into the ground. Whitt does the anime cough thing.
"You're really annoying, you know that right?" Whitt asks.
Hoops' bandages return to floating around them. "I have heard that before."
"Well." Whitt's hands are behind his back, all the best to hide that Horus is going into his grip. "How's this for annoying!" He lunges, swinging both blades as Horus uses Shadow Claw. Hoops had been expecting this, however. They release Sud from her ball, who blocks the attack and uses Counter to send Whitt flying.
Whitt hits a fountain, cracking it. A moment later, Khione is thrown into the freezing water next to him. Of course, neither one really cares about the cold.
"They're really starting to piss me off," Whitt growls.
Khione looks over at him. <So stop fucking around.>
Whitt sighs. "Okay." He coats Horus in ice and charges again.
Some Rando
Hamlet Past
She winced in disgust, popping open the vial of poison with on hand while readying a flame with the other. Making the container float in a psychic grip, she splashed its contents onto the mass, not giving it much room to dodge as the flame in her hand arced around to produce a somewhat rudimentary Fire Spin.
[Insert Unoriginal Stinger Here]
Wyatt's Runegrigas started firing an ice beam, Khan darted to the side and spitting a flamethrower. Silas clenched his fist watching, this should be easy... it should be.
"Ice wall!" Wyatt cried.
"Wait that's not a mo-" Silas tried to protest, only to watch Khan smack into a large pillar of ice that had appeared before the Runegrigas.
"Heat wave," Silas commanded, Khan following through, letting out a roar as the area started to dry out.
Wyatt was unaffected, he stood there, as if he could ignore the heat... either that or lower his own temperature. Khan tilted his head, Silas had to ponder this harder.
Flying Colors
South Paldea Area 1
"Prez": <What the hell was that?!>
Kai: Oh, uh. That's a long story. The J-Team's weird.
-The cat pauses.-
-Then turns around, walks a few paces, and swears up a storm. We'll spare you from the transcription.-
Kai: ...Um?
"Prez": -dramatically turns around and hisses- <You listen here, were-frog.>
Kai: Were-frog????
"Prez": <Today, you've made enemies. The Snack Pack never forgets, and the Snack Pack never forgives.>
Kai: The Snack Pack?
"Prez": <So while you're out parading our dear Spree around, senorita, remember that Pretzel's got her eyes on you. And if you're not careful, she'll have her teeth on your throat.>
Kai: This is the first time you've spoken Paldean, three words before you said your name was a [German] snack.
Pretzel: <Teeth on throat, capisce?>
Kai: That's [Italian] now.
Pretzel: <Stop nitpicking when I am threatening you!>
Kai: Sorry, sorry! Warning duly noted.
-Pretzel narrows her eyes.-
Pretzel: <You're on thin ice.>
Kai: The ice is making uncomfortable cracking noises under my feet as we speak.
Pretzel: <Good. Good. Let's go, Sp— >
-Pretzel pauses, then realizes Spree is not available for a sufficiently threatening leave right now.-
Pretzel: <...I guess I'm walking.>
-She walks. Kai just stares until Pretzel is out of sight.-
Mesagoza, J-Con 2023
Stewart nods at Lian's actions. He and Beck knew better than to probe further. Something about Lian, however, made Stewart more comfortable in letting her pass. He couldn't get a good read on her, but he could feel that it wasn't the School who was looking after her. That was good enough for now.
Beck: Hmph, not the most chummy of the bunch, innit.
Stewart: I wouldn't worry too much. They'll usually come around when they're good and ready.
Beck: Lotta risks, innit?
Stewart goes silent.
Stewart: ~Like you wouldn't believe. They could still have their handlers with them; that could escalate, and we're not exactly equipped for it the way the J-Team seems to be. It ain't easy coordinating a rescue the way we did for my sister. We did start as a therapy group. ~
Beck: Don't ever do that again, Stew.
Stewart: Do what?
Beck: You know what I bloody meant.
Stewart, mentally: ~Well, soh-ree. I am trying to keep everything under wraps. ~
Beck, mentally but only Stewart could hear: ~A head's up would be appreciated next time. You do have a flier with you, right?~
Stewart, mentally: ~Yeah, I've always got a few.~
He turns to Iridium, who he hears offhand telepathically. Iridium in turn might not be able to read much about Stewart in turn, owing to strong mental defenses and an as-yet invisible psychic interference. If she tried reading Beck's mind, she'll get a loop of an event she wouldn't understand involving what he calls a washing machine.
Of course, a subtle nudge from Beck made sure he wasn't gonna try talking mentally.
Stewart: Howdy there.
Edited by MasterJayAM on Nov 20th 2023 at 4:04:57 AM
The Wanderer
J-Con, past
Iridium: -Doesn't bother trying to read anyone's minds and stares back at Stewart, body slightly tensed up like she's considering bolting too, but subtly enough that the average person probably wouldn't notice- Hi.
-To Mitchell-
It's fine.
-Her own mental armor starts to assert itself-
Aurum: -Has still been on hanging out on Iridium's shoulder the whole time- <Careful you don't knock me off kid.>
Edited by rmctagg09 on Oct 5th 2023 at 5:22:51 AM
Eating a Vanilluxe will give you frostbite.
Person, or Idea?
Mitchell: -to Lian- "Right, it is rather cramped here. I can find a path to more open space. If you want, you can follow me."
Esmeralda: -gesturing at Beck, Stewart, and 'Sally'- <They're acting strange, Master. Like when you and Christine 'think' to each other.>
Oliver: <Oh, is it telepathy? Professor, perhaps Christine could eavsdrop, if she were here.>
Mitchell was rather irritated by the implication in Oliver's comment.
Mitchell: -to Oliver- "She isn't a sneak, all right?"
Oliver: <Ah. Sorry!>
Mitchell: -to Esmeralda- "So, Es, how about you get a bird's eye view of the situation?"
Esmeralda understands the implication of the statement, and takes off.
Mitchell: -to 'Sally'- "Glad to hear that. You hear for a class trip, or just for fun?"
Mitchell: -to Beck and Stewart- "And who would you two be?"
Artazon Streets
While Whitt and Hoops continue to fight, Xaster is caught up in his own battle. For every ice type that he manages to fell with his team, another one is there to take its place, while his team just keeps getting weaker.
What's even worse, those two clones are doing something, releasing cold energy that gets the ice types back on their feet - though they look pained by it. This isn't healing, just pushing them even further. It stabs at his heart. He needs to stop this.
"Ele! Mag!" They're the only pokémon who aren't currently engaged in fights, so he calls specifically to them. They run to join him.
"I have to stop those two," he says. The only problem is that in between him and them is a Glaceon, Darmantitan, Sandslash, Avalugg, and Walrein. And all of them look like they're ready to fight.
What would Hoops do?
Xaster takes a deep breath. "Let's go!" He starts to run forwards, his pokémon on his heels. Glaceon reacts the quickest, releasing an Ice Beam in his direction. Xaster dodges, but is thrown aside by the column of ice that sprouts from the ground where the beam hit. He loses his footing and when he looks up Sandslash is bearing down on him.
"Mag, use Flamethrower!" he shouts. His Magmar shoots flames from her mouth, knocking Sandslash away. Darmanitan comes at him next, but a Thunderbolt from Ele repels it.
Xaster climbs to his feet and keeps running. Battles rage around him. Walrein tries to hit him with a powerful Hydro Pump, but then Chuchu is there, shielding him. He stumbles as Sandslash comes at him again, almost hitting him before Lulu catches the attack and throws it away.
More running. Got hit somewhere. Pain in one leg. And it's bleeding. The blood freezing as soon as it hits the ground. Ele and Mag with him. More attacks. His pokémon, all of the pokémon he raised from eggs coming to rescue him. He would cry if it wasn't too cold.
But Avalugg is still there. His pokémon are too far away. Chuchu is down. Lulu is down. Chichi is down. Riri barely standing. Vision going dark. Avalugg is using Gyro Ball, no-one will be here on time.
A Sudowoodo catches it. Xaster thinks of Hoops, but this one isn't shiny. He turns and sees the gym leader, Brassius. He is here, and others have come to.
"Go!" the gym leader shouts.
"Mr. Brassius..."
"Go!"
Xaster goes. And with his two pokémon behind him, bruised and battered, he reaches the clones.
There was something wrong, Wyatt seemed... to emit cold around him, this was- WRONG
ИoЯmal, it wɒs completely normɒl. The kid was probably just a psychic of some sorts, Silas had met a bunch of them, and he wasn't about to lose now. this isn't real.
"Okay... Khan... jump."
Khan smiled and did as told, clearing the ice wall. "Flamethrower!"
And spat right into the Runegrigas's face, it tried to block, only for Silas to shout. "Claw em."
Wyatt watched as his Runegrigas collapsed, Silas wearing a confident smirk. "Alright kid, I won."
Wyatt recalled the Runegrigas and kicked the dirt annoyed a little, he walked off. "I'll become the king one day! My greatness cannot be contained!"
Silas shook his head and looked back to the house. WAKE UP!
Somɘtʜing waƨ oʇf... No more.
Edited by EchoingSilence on Oct 6th 2023 at 10:56:04 AM
Druid Dude
Desmond Sanderson, J-Con, Mesagoza
Desmond blinks as, during his brief separation from Atrin, He is talking to... well he didn't know exactly who.
Desmond: I think J comes from Jewel. They are heroes, and perhaps they are considered as such to the regions.
Morgan: <That sounds stupid.>
Desmond: Ignore her. Nice to meet you. I'm Desmond.
You piss off the Venom T-Rex. Roll initiative.
Person, or Idea?
Mitchell's Pokemon are in a bit of a predicament, to put it mildly.
Christine never got the chance to try to attack the clones directly. A Glalie chomped on her tassel before she could strike. Now, she struggles to break free from the Face Pokemon's toothy grip.
Edmond is caught in a duel of fists against a vicious Crabominable, match the Woolly Crab Pokemon blow for blow by the slimmest of margins. He's being pushed back, though, as his energy reserves are sapped away from the extended fight and the cold.
Oliver, with few effective options for attacking the Ice-types, resorts to throwing Ancient Power rocks all around him, unaware of the Beartic about to strike him down from behind.
Vasilissa is all too quickly running out of stamina, pursued as she is by a surprisingly quick Cetitan. She just barely manages a sharp turn and rushes through the Cetitan's legs, which she knows will only buy her a few seconds before the Terra Whale Pokemon is on her again. What she sees on her return trip, though, is the sight of her three allies in trouble, as well as Xaster's desperate charge at the two clones controlling the Ice-types.
At this moment, despair seizes Vasilissa's heart. Is this it?, she wonders. Are we all gonna fall here, against these meanies?
As she thinks this, though, images flash through her mind. They are images of those she cares about, in some small way.
The herd of Ponyta and Rapidash she was born into, to which she shared the many tall tales she overheard from passerby Trainers and Pokemon.
The seven Pokemon with who she shares a Trainer, both those absent and those present from the current battle.
And last but not least, Mitchell, the human who caught her. He has some words to say to her, even as an image from her memory.
"I'll listen to all the stories you want to tell," the Mitchell image says, "but only after this is done. Promise me you'll all come back safe, okay?"
That's right!, Vasilissa realizes. I promised Pops that. And what kind of salesmon would I be if I broke a promise?
With that thought, Vasilissa's resolve, courage, and body exploded.
Vasilissa's body rapidly matures, growing in size, shape, and musculature from that of a small pony into that of an adult horse. Her fiery mane, once made of patches of embers, now extends into a solid row of orange flames extending from the top of her head, all the way down her spine, and tapering off in a majestic tale of flame.
At each of her four legs, gouts of flame burst forth from points just above her hooves, threatening to burn any combustible that gets close.
The flame covering her forehead moves to the back of her skull, revealing a small, sharp horn atop her head. Her eyes narrow into a determined expression, and her ears extend and sharpen at the tips.
With this change in her body comes a shifting in her mind. No longer would she be as carefree as she was in her past. Now, she would carefully guard what is hers, and strike down those who would steal from herself or from others.
With improbable speed, a streak of orange fire moulded into a Flame Wheel peals across the battlefield. The Beartic, Crabominable, and Glalie are sent flying, and the Pokemon they were fighting disappear as the fire passes over them. The fire then disperses as it approaches the Avalugg locked in combat with Brassius' Sudowoodo, revealing Christine, Oliver, and Edmond riding atop a Kantonian breed Rapidash.
The Rapidash prepares to trap the Avalugg in a potent Fire Spin, as if to buy time for Xaster to duel the clones. As it does so, the Rapidash speaks a boast, as if to engrave it's own name in history.
<Step right up, ya jerks! Come and get your complementary serving of Vasilissa's Special Clobberin'!>
Student 2: "Yeah, that sounds right... Jane or something?"
Trill just gives a shrug.
Trill: "Uh, yeah, loose group of traveling trainers or something?"
Edited by CorvusAtrox on Oct 6th 2023 at 12:30:22 PM
"life is just a series of increasingly canon-eluding ao3 tags" ~ everydunsparce "Keep your hellfruit away from me, tempter" ~ also Every
Artazon Streets
The clones deploy only a single pokémon to defend both of them - a Jynx, which Xaster can tell right away is far stronger than the average of its species by the way it cracks the ice around where it stands with a single step.
Ele and Mag move to stand in front of him, raising their fists. They're as battered as him, but still willing to fight. They couldn't have learned that from him.
"Mag, use Fire Punch!" he yells. "And Ele, use Thunder Punch!" His pokémon charge their foe, coating their fists in their respective element. The Jynx glares at them.
"Use Psychic," the clones say, speaking as one. Jynx's hair raises into the air as she uses her psychic power to paralyse the two pokémon. Xaster feels it too - like a pinching on his nervous system that turns even the smallest movement into a battle.
"Blizzard," the clones say. While still holding the psychic power in place, Jynx summons a storm of snow and hail which envelops Xaster and his pokémon. All three of them yell in pain as they take heavy damage.
"Use Flamethrower! And Thunderbolt!" Xaster directs his pokémon to fight back, but their attacks are swallowed by the blizzard, which Jynx easily moves into their path.
"Psychic," comes the next unison command. Once again, the pokémon are lifted into the air. They float above the ground for a few seconds before Jynx slams them into the ground hard enough to crack the street. They rise again, and once again are slammed back down.
"Stop it," Xaster says, his voice trembling.
Lifted into the air. Slammed back down.
"Stop it." Louder this time.
Lift. Slam.
"Please, stop it." The desperation creeping into his voice.
Lift. Slam.
"STOP IT!" This time it's a scream. And it does stop, because Jynx is looking at something behind Xaster. He turns and sees the glow of Vasilissa's evolution, followed by the streak of fire that follows. Those flames warm Xaster's face, the first warmth he has felt since this whole experience began.
It reminds him of a time years ago, of a winter in his home town when he returned to his house after playing in the snow for hours and hours. His father had given him a hot chocolate, and they had snuggled under blankets while watching a recording of one of his favourite contest performers. He hasn't thought of this in years.
He turns back to the clones. "I know you're listening through them, Whitt. You sac à merde. I'm going to bring back the warmth."
Then he calls out to his pokémon, who have seen him stand and are ready. "Ele! Mag! Get ready!" He spreads his arms like a performer, even though no-one is watching. "Get ready, everyone, for the finale of this battle! Ele, use Light Screen!"
Ele coats himself and Mag with a sheen of reflective light.
The clones, controlled as they are by the part of Whitt's consciousness not focused on fighting Hoops, scoff. "A bit late for that."
"Now, Mag!" Xaster continues. "Use Fire Spin on Ele!" Mag releases spinning fire from her mouth, pointed at Ele. It is diverted by the Light Screen and spins around her, before returning to Mag who is continuing to produce more fire. Those flames surround Mag, and once again orbit her before being sent back.
"Now, Ele, use Shock Wave!" Xaster yells. Ele begins to release electricity. It does the same as Mag's flames, merging the two moves into an ever growing vortex of fire and lightning.
"This shouldn't be possible!" the clones yell.
Xaster grins. "This is contests. I call this one, Contest Combo Spectacular: Blazing Thunder!" As he says this, the two pokémon direct their moves forwards. The attack surges forwards, rearing up like a snake as it battles against the blizzard.
"Make it stop!" the clones shout. There is nothing that Jynx can do. It is hit by the full force of the combo move. The blizzard is dispersed, leaving in its wake the swirling fire that melts much of the surrounding snow. When it clears, Jynx and the two clones are unconscious.
Xaster grins. "Yeah. Screw you, connard." Then he and his pokémon collapse from exhaustion.
Meanwhile, Whitt gets the psychic kickback from losing the last of his clones. He grits his teeth and turns his full attention to Hoops. "I will peel the skin from your frozen corpse."
Hoops meets his gaze. "Try it."
Not A Lawyer
Galar, Wild Area - Blooming Grove, it's been 3000 years...
-Alice smirks at Abilene's parting remarks, before remembering that image needs to be maintained and scowling at Malaise upon return.-
Alice: Tell her that I'm not in need of any patronising charity from the landed gentry. To accept the stolen wealth of the robber-barons is tacit acquiescence of their authority.
-She hands the ₽10,000 back to Malaise, but keeps the Berries. And the card. And the coupon.-
-...there also seems to be a quickly-written scrap of paper bearing a number in the stack of notes that's handed back.-
Alice: When we meet again, I do hope that it's a proper challenge. I imagine that we will find ourselves in many disputes that require settling in such... physical contests.
Mesagoza J-Con
-Bailey, unfortunately, does not understand Monese, nor is she telepathic. Therefore, she is unable to answer Ecto's question.-
-She is, however, able to give him some surreptitious belly scritches before standing up. She definitely got away with doing that without anyone else noticing. She hardly seems fazed by MIRACLE!STAR's dramatic declaration, responding to them in the same flat monotone she seems to use for everything.-
Bailey: ...The J is for Jane, yes. It was the name of a former member. I don't know much beyond that, however. Is it possible to meet any of them here? If not, I would still very much appreciate any information about them.
-She's also wearing Vulcan elf-ears. This wasn't mentioned earlier, nor is it relevant to... anything, really, but it is being mentioned now.-
Edited by Herbert40k on Oct 7th 2023 at 3:45:53 PM
Trans rights are human rights. JK Rowling preaches hate. If you sit at a table with five bigots and say nothing, there are now six bigots.
Artazon Streets
"You've been a fun detour," Whitt says. "But I'm afraid that I have to bring this to an end now." He reaches into the holster at his side and pulls out the syringe of Ferocaine.
Hoops looks blankly at it. "What's that?"
"A boost," Whitt says, and jams it into his thigh. It spreads through his body and the cold passes beyond him, spreading out like the yawn of a sleeping giant. Like winter freezing the water within stone, several of the stone houses around him start to crack, accompanied by screams.
"Damn it!" Hoops looks at Kec. "We have to get him out of the city! It isn't safe here!" They gesture to Sud. "Stay here and help with search and rescue. In fact..." They release all of the rest of their pokémon. "Help out here! Kec and I will finish this!"
They reach for Whitt with their bandages. Still in the middle of having his body warped by the Ferocaine, he doesn't consciously react, but the bandages start to crystallise before they even touch him. Nevertheless, Hoops manages to grab them, and they start running, dragging Whitt along.
<Stop that!> Khione yells, releasing a Shadow Ball at Hoops. Kec cuts it in half with his Shadow Claw, stopping her from interfering.
Artazon Outskirts
Hoops makes it to one of the fields just outside of Artazon just before Whitt's change finishes. As soon as he has conscious thought again, the bandages simply shatter into pieces, causing Hoops to cry out in surprise.
"The amount of Ferocaine that I used," Whitt says, flexing one of his fingers and listening to the cracking sound within, "will be more than enough to kill you, undead brat."
He holds out his hands, about a foot apart from one another. "Absolute Zero River."
This attack creates a powerful blast of frozen wind that lifts Hoops off their feet and throws them into a nearby stone, which shatters - along with several of Hoops' bones.
<Hoops!> Kec yells.
But Khione is suddenly next to him. She creates a Shadow Ball that's larger than he is, and slams down on top of him, burying him in a small crater.
<How are you suddenly more powerful?> Kec asks.
<My soul is bound inextricably to Whitt's> Khione explains. <Just as the Ferocaine removes his limits, it does the same for me.> She punctuates this by slamming Kec with a blast of ice that freezes his lower half in place. <And now you'll die together.>
Person, or Idea?
The battle raging in the streets comes to a sudden halt when Xaster's special combination banishes the blizzard and knocks the clones unconscious. Without the clones to direct them, the remaining Ice-types are left leaderless, almost certain to be swiftly brought to heel by Artazon's defenders.
However, in a more pressing matter to them, the four of Mitchell's Pokemon that fought alongside Artazon's defenders divide themselves up for the purpose of getting aid to Xaster and his Pokemon. Christine and Vasilissa head for the unconscious Xaster, Ele, and Mag, while Oliver and Edmond intend to help Riri collect and treat the rest of Xaster's unconscious Pokemon, along with anyone else that needs aid.
When Christine and Vasilissa reach Xaster, Christine begins loudly chiming to all and sundry. <HELP!>, she cries. <HUMAN IN TROUBLE!>
Meanwhile, Vasilissa sits down near Xaster, Ele, and Mag, sharing her warmth with them. <Stay with us, y'all.,> she whispers. <This can't be your final performance, right?>
As Oliver searches the ground for supplies and keeps an eye on the unconscious and wounded Pokemon, Edmond spots some figures approaching in the distance, roughly from the same direction Hoops and Whitt departed earlier. Suspecting that these may be Hoops' Pokemon, or perhaps some other friendly allies, he waves them down. <Oi!>, he calls out. <We've got some KO'd mons over here! Can you help?>
Among the many stalls in the J-Con selling various themed merchandise, one in particular stands out as particularly suspicious. It is a simple stall manned by a Galarian gentleman in his mid-thirties, incongruously dressed like an Unovan carnival barker, and assisted by a Chatot and a Galarian Meowth.
Barker: "Come one, come all, ladies and gents!"
Chatot: -meaningful look-
Barker: "And enbies!"
Chatot: -approving nod-
Barker: "Get your finest, gen-u-ine J-Show mem'rabilia at unbelievable prices! We've got shirts, fridge magnets, keychains, bottle openers, even body pillows!"
Galarian Meowth: -points to each item as Barker names them-
Barker: "All at a special one-day-only bargain, exclusive to this here J-Con! What are you waiting for?"
This stall isn't getting much traffic, if at all, but perhaps someone there might be curious about what this loudmouth is talking about.
Mesagoza
Poppy had wandered on the battle floor right in the middle of Mesagoza.
Poppy: And here we are in Mesagoza! I wonder what we'll see here! First, I wanna know how we try out some Terastallisation...
She looked up the answer on her phone.
Poppy: Apparently we need a Tera Orb, and those are hard to come by... Dang it. Well, time to explore Paldea and see what we find!
Poppy then set off from Mesagoza. What she didn't realise, however, was that a Wattrel was perched on a roof, watching her from above.
Wattrel: How interesting... perhaps she is the Trainer for I, the grand Thunderbutt! ...No, that's not it. I need a better name - and a Trainer - fast.
Wattrel then took off, flying in the sky above her, even though Poppy did not notice him - yet.
Artazon Streets
Xaster slowly opens his eyes and sees Christine and Vasilissa looking down on him. He groans in pain. "Hello. You're Mitchell's pokémon, right? How's it going?" Then he falls asleep again - probably not a good thing in these temperatures with these injuries. But, now that Whitt is occupied and the clones are gone, the snow has finally stopped falling, and the ice is no longer resisting Vasilissa's flames. It's finally melting.
Sud approaches at the head of Hoops' pokémon, and hears the call from Edmond. <We're happy to help> she says. <There may also be injured people in the buildings. We should split up and check it out.>
A cold wind tickles the back of her neck, and she turns to look at the distant snowstorm.
Outside Artazon
Hoops pulls themself out of the rock as their bones pull themselves back together. "Kec," they say. "I think we need a boost."
Kec dodges away from Khione and stands in front of Hoops. <I agree. Ready?>
"Ready!" Hoops confirms. They pull a spherical object out of their pocket.
Whitt looks at it impassively. "Where did you get a Tera Orb?"
Hoops grins.
Flashback: Artazon Hotel
Xaster looks down over Hoops' sleeping form. They look so peaceful right now. Kec sits on the head of the bed, looking down.
"I want to stay and look after you," he says. "But I have to go now. Someone needs to go and fight back against these clones. At least until you can wake up." He takes the Tera Orb out of his pocket and sets it down next to Hoops on the pillow. "I think you'll be able to use this better than I could."
Kec looks at him with wide eyes. <That's a Tera Orb! Where did you get that?>
Xaster doesn't understand him, but he flashes back to the memory regardless.
Flashback: Artazon Plaza
"Okay!" Xaster says. "I need to go and look after my partner."
"Wait!" Brassius calls out to him, stopping him in his tracks just as he's about to leave. "If you're a member of the J-Team, then you may be able to make use of this." He takes out a Tera Orb and gives it to Xaster.
"Is this yours?" Xaster asks.
"My spare," Brassius explains. "You'll only be able to use it once, I'm afraid, but it will give you a big power boost. But I want it back if we survive this, along with a tale that I can turn into a heroic sculpture."
He turns away from Xaster, contemplating the time when he was first given a Tera Orb.
Flashback: Ten Years -
Outside Artazon
Whitt stares at Hoops. "That felt like a flimsy justification for something that was supposed to be set up earlier but was forgotten about by a writer."
Hoops nods. "It would be, but this is real life. Kec!" They hold out the Tera Orb, and it begins to glow and shake slightly in their hand, almost like it's trying to break free. A small burst of wind tousles Hoops' hair.
Whitt frowns. "Absolute Zero Prison." He creates a giant sphere of ice which begins to close around Kec. At the last second before it closes, Hoops throws the Tera Orb, and it showers light over Kec. Giant crystals envelop him, breaking through the ice like it was cheap glass, then shattering itself.
Kec stands, glowing even in the harsh light created by the snow. He is now covered in a thin layer of silvery refracting crystals, which somehow do nothing to impede his movements. Above his head, attached and yet free from the rest of him, is a sharp, crystalline axe head.
Kec Terastalized into the Steel Type.
Hoops grins. "Sorry, Whitt. Looks like we're winning this battle."
Silas stared at the house It was empty it was looking... off. Come on...
He scratched his head a bit and stepped forward, he looked to Khan. Hɘ wɒsn't tʜeɿɘ. He remembered that he had recalled Khan. Silas let out a chuckle, he was getting forgetful. You're noticing.
He stepped into the house, and called for Roxy. She's not here. There was no answer. Come on you're so close!
The house... it was gray... he didn't remember it, the colour seemed to be fading. How did he get here? Hɘ ʜad ʇlown homɘ. Wrong answer.
Silas gripped his head, a migraine forming in his skull. What was going on? Who was that Wyatt kid? Yes... YES!
He felt a burning in his chest, he scratched at the scar on his torso, clutching at it. Why couldn't he breath? He looked around, his team was gone, the house was empty. Nobody was here, the colour had vanished.
He thought the adventures were over, he had retired.
Retired
Rɘtirɘd
Яɘtired
Яetiɿed
Rɘtirɘd
You never retired. This isn't real, fuck that noise. You're Silas Grant, the Jackal, the Mandacario, Coyote, Stylus... you are so much and more. Nobody is holding us, we're not done!
What was that? Who said that?
Wake up. We're not done here.
Silas blinked, and looked about, the pain was gone. This was not his home, it was... fake.
Good, we've got a lot of work to do.
Edited by EchoingSilence on Oct 9th 2023 at 5:14:57 AM
Outside Artazon
Whitt smiles. "Is this light show supposed to intimidate me? Khione!" Khione begins to create another powerful Shadow Ball.
"Iron Tail!" Hoops yells. Kec moves - quicker than he was moving before, becoming a blur that's suddenly right in front of Khione. She reacts with shock and tries to hastily throw her attack before it is fully ready, but Kec dodges it and knocks her into the air with Iron Tail.
Khione hangs in the air for a few seconds, looking up at the falling snow. <What is this power?> she asks herself, in the few moment before Kec appears above her as if from nowhere and slams his tail into her midriff. The attack sends her rocketing towards the ground, her impact kicking up a cloud of snow.
She lies there for a few seconds, silently fuming, before picking herself up. <Whitt!> she snaps. <You had better start producing some results, you worthless little rat!>
"Right!" Whitt answers. He turns to Hoops and extends one hand. "Absolute Zero Lance." A long spear of glowing ice extends from his hand and impales Hoops through the stomach.
Hoops grunts briefly, then reaches down and snaps the spear in half before sliding it out of their body. "You've impaled me once before," they say. "Get some new tricks." Then they spin the spear around and swing it at Whitt. It breaks against his side, shattering the instant before it makes contact.
"Idiot," Whitt says. "Did you really think ice could hurt me? I am the apex of all that is cold."
Hoops shakes their head. "You are seriously messed up. I'm sorry that I have to put you down." Bandages burst from beneath the snow. Whitt realises too late that he wasn't paying attention to the snow's movement, and so he is grappled and held in place. Hoops then pulls him towards them and delivers a powerful punch to his midriff.
Whitt reacts quickly, breathing out a torrent of cold air that freezes Hoops' left side. Their bandages writhe beneath, trying to free them, but it's not quick enough.
But Whitt is still grappled, so he aims a punch at Hoops. Hoops catches it easily, and then starts to twist the arm. There is a crack as something goes where it shouldn't, and Whitt's scream freezes the rest of Hoops' body. But a moment later Kec slams his tail into them and sets them free, allowing them to swing Whitt around and throw him into Khione. They fall in a heap together.
<Whitt!> Khione screams. <You aren't being what I need you to be! Stop being a coward that holds yourself back!>
Three Years Ago
A younger Whitt (who looks pretty much exactly the same) has just finished being reprimanded after a mission. Not that it was a failure, per se, as the objective was technically fulfilled, but there were more murdered bystanders than what was strictly necessary, and that calls bad attention to things.
As he stands outside of the School hideout, he picks up a stone and throws it, hard. It goes over the lip of the quarry and falls for several seconds before hitting the bottom with a loud noise.
<Wouldn't it be better if it was all ice?> a voice asks.
Whitt turns to see a Froslass floating next to him. It's strange - they aren't native to this area, after all.
"Probably," he admits. "You got enough cold in you to make that happen?"
<Do you?> the Froslass asks.
Whitt smiles. "Whatever do you mean? I'm just a regular human without elemental powers." He doesn't put much effort into the lie.
<I saw you in that city> Froslass explains. <The way you killed those people. Frozen blood vessels - very creative.>
"Are you a cop?" Whitt asks. "You have to tell me if you are."
Froslass laughs. <You have a great deal of potential> she says. <The cold within you is like a polar storm. One that I would like to see cover everything.>
"Even if people get hurt?"
<Especially.>
"And what's in it for you?" Whitt asks.
Froslass shrugs. <I would make a deal with you. You may know that I am a ghost type as well as an ice type. I simply attach my soul to yours, and the greater your power grows, the greater does my own. It's a simple transaction.>
"And what do I get?"
<A guide> Froslass says coldly (pun intended). <I make sure that you stay on your path. I make sure that you never forget our goal. I make sure...>
Back in the present
<... that you are ready to throw aside everything to bring about our world of ice!>
Whitt reaches into his pouch and pulls out the last of the Ferocaine. As he is now, he's used enough to bring him to about fifty percent of his limit. Taking the rest would bring him the rest of the way. Perhaps further. Except, if he doesn't win with it very quickly, it could destroy his body and mind. But to feel that power for a moment...
Hoops' eyes widen. "Oh no."
That expression of fear is the last piece of persuasion that Whitt needs. He stabs the syringe into his leg, and pushes down the plunger.
Curious Mind
Mesagoza J-Con
As Ecto is happily scritched, he smells someone else coming. A man in a lab coat from the Academy runs up. He looks at Atrin.
Man: Excuse me, are you Atrin? I'm Jacq!
Atrin looks a bit confused.
Atrin: That's me, yes. Did I do something wrong?
Jacq: Nothing of the sort. Glad I found you! An old friend of mine from college wanted me to give you something.
Atrin: An old friend?
Jacq: Yes! A Dr. Holloway?
At the name, Mimir seems to look up at Jacq curiously.
Jacq: I won't bother you long, but I was told to give you this egg by him.
Jacq takes the Pokemon Egg inside of an incubator out of a bag that he's holding. He hands it to Atrin.
Atrin: Wow, this is...thank you! I look forward to seeing what hatches from it.
Jacq smiles, before turning to the students.
Jacq: Ah, and don't let J-Con get in the way of your studies, of course!
Outside Artazon
The whites of Whitt's eyes disappear, subsumed entirely by the purple. He doubles over in pain, veins bulging all over his body as the Ferocaine forces its way violently through his system. It hurts moving through, but leaves behind power. A lightness. A feeling that things that were once thought impossible were now doable.
Whitt looks at Hoops and smiles. He tries to speak, but only a growl comes out. The Ferocaine amplifies all of the things given to Whitt by the School. His humanity, such as it was, is not one of those things.
But the hatred is. The desire to kill Hoops, that is.
<Very good> Khione says, examining her hands. She also receives power through the bond, but it doesn't hurt for her, nor drive away her reason. <This is power.>
Kec shakes his head. <You don't have to go this far. Even I can see that it's killing him.>
Khione shrugs. <Then it just means that he wasn't strong enough. I can live for a very long time - I'll find someone else who can freeze this world for me.>
Hoops scowls. "Kec, there's no reasoning here. Use Iron Tail!" Kec tries to charge Khione, but now she is easily able to blow him away before he can even get close.
<Whitt!> Khione barks. <Finish this!>
Whitt growls in the affirmative and raises his hands. Ice gathers at the tips of his fingers - a lot of it. It grows and grows, forming a gigantic spear of ice that's at least a hundred feet tall. The sky darkens as the clouds become more intense, and Whitt rises into the air with his lance. It aims squarely at Hoops.
Khione floats next to Whitt. <In case it wasn't clear> she says. <This lance holds enough power to drop the south of Paldea into an ice age. They're probably getting snowfall all over this pathetic region. Whether you dodge it or not, you're dead.> She puts her hand on the ice and concentrates. It grows further, seeming to double in size.
Artazon Streets
Xaster sees the huge construct in the distance. He clasps his hands together across his chest. "Hoops," he says. "Please be okay."
Outside Artazon
Hoops looks at Kec. "I think they're exaggerating a little bit. But still, I think the only option we have is to face that head on."
Kec looks up at them. <Are you mad? There's no way I can smash through that!>
"Even with this?" Hoops holds up their Z-ring.
Kec pales. <Hoops, using a Z-move already takes a huge amount of energy, something we're both running low on. Not to mention now that I'm terastalized it'll probably require more than ever!>
Hoops kneels down to be at Kec's level. "We have no other choice."
Kec meets his trainer's gaze. They both know that they're right. <Okay.>
The lance begins to move. Slowly at first, but it's picking up speed fast. Hoops places their steel type Z-crystal on the ring and twists it so that it locks in place. As they do Z-power flashes across their vision in yellow and orange. They feel it flow through their bodies, warming their frozen limbs.
Hoops steps back and grins. "Let's do it!" They channel the Z-power into their fists and bang them together twice, before making a motion like they're punching forwards with both hands. This sends their power to Kec. It mixes in with his tera armour, and gives him the appearance of a glowing crystal, filled with power. He looks up at the falling lance, and jumps into the air. He starts to use Iron Tail, but starts to spin as his does - the tail and the axe blade on his head mix together in a storm of metal, creating a giant drill shape in the air.
"Now!" Hoops yells. "Kec! Terastalized Corkscrew Crash!"
Kec slams into the falling lance, stopping it in its tracks. This massive thing is, for a moment, being held back by a single pokémon. Then it starts to move forwards again. Kec's power isn't enough.
<Yes!> Khione gloats. <Push all you like! There's nothing that you can do!>
"Kec! It's not just you pushing!" Hoops' bandages subconsciously form into a drill. They realise what they've done and roll with it, slamming their drill into the lance. "Whatever you and I do, we do it together!"
The lance stops again. Then starts to move upwards.
<No!> Khione screeches. <Work harder, Whitt you - > She looks over and sees that one of Whitt's arms has completely become ice. His mouth is open in a wordless scream that's somewhere between pain and joy, and his eyes are lifeless. The Ferocaine has pushed him too far.
<No!> she screams. <This can't be it! I have to make the world the way I want it to be! To take away this ridiculous warmth! Why won't you let me!?>
The tip of the lance breaks. Kec's drill splits the whole thing down the middle, and he keeps on going. Rising up like bullet towards Whitt and Khione, her scream barely audible over the sound of the steel against ice.
There is an explosion so strong that the clouds are blown away. Sunlight streams through the gaps, illuminating the meadow and letting the snow begin to melt away. Hoops stands looking up, Kec next to them. Whitt is nowhere to be seen, but a hand made of ice lies melting on the ground. Khione, likewise, is gone.
Hoops collapses, with no strength left. Kec's tera form breaks and he collapses too. It's cold here. But it's warming up. For now, that feels good. Because they won.
Person, or Idea?
Vasilissa lies down a bit closer to Xaster and tries nudging him awake. <Hey now, stranger,> she says, <stay awake, why don'tcha? You'll catch something nasty if you sleep out here.>
<We're doing fine, but-> Christine starts saying to Xaster, only to notice that he was falling asleep. Moving quickly, she floats down and tries to prop up Xaster into a recovery position that Mitchell had taught her.
Meanwhile, Edmond ponders Sud's request. <Hmm. Who should go where?>
<I'll stay with the unconscious here,> Oliver volunteers. <Ed, you're better suited for searching the buildings than me.>
<I see,> Edmond says. <Best of luck over here, Olly.> Then, he joins Sud and the rest of Hoops' Pokemon in searching the city.
Some time later, the sky suddenly darkens, and a ridiculously large lance of ice appears in the sky, pointed at some unknown target.
<What in tarnation is that?>, Vasilissa says, clearly perturbed.
Edmond catches a glimpse of the lance while clearing rubble away from a trapped civilian. His heart suddenly pounds in dread.
Oliver, ferrying the injured and unconscious to safety along with the others still standing, desperately tries to avert his gaze from the sight of the lance.
It is Christine, transfixed in horror at the emotional signature emanating from the lance, that voices the answer to the question on all four of their minds.
<Hatred. Pure, insane hatred!>
In certain other tales, this would be the moment where the four Pokemon, and the whole of Artazon and its environs, would be made to confront their inevitable demise, and make peace with what they made of their life as the prepare to receive judgement in the next life.
Fortunately, this is not one of those tales.
As the lance begins it's rapidly increasing descent, it was suddenly stopped by a counter force rising from below. It was too small to see clearly from so far away, but it clearly meant to halt and shatter the lance.
Vasilissa, Edmond, Oliver, and Christine all see the lance stopped, then slowly pushed back by the counter force. Thought they are in separate places, their hearts begin beating as one. They cry out, praying for their unknown hero.
<Come on, buddy! You got this!>
<Smash that thing up!>
<Please, protect us all!>
<End this terror, I beg you!>
As if in answer to these cries, and countless others like them, the counter force at last penetrates the lance of hateful ice, splitting it apart and causing an explosion in the sky. The shockwave parts the clouds near that area and allows rays of sunshine to illuminate a nearby meadow.
The four Pokemon are transfixed at the moment, barely able to comprehend what they just saw.
Mitchell was studiously listening to Hassel's lecture, along with the rest of the classroom, when he suddenly saw something in his mind's eye, and he felt an ache in his heart. He composed himself, hoping that nobody in the classroom noticed.
It was then that Hassel called on Mitchell. "Mr. Rhodes," he says, "what makes something beautiful?"
"Er, well," Mitchell stammers, "I don't know. B-but I'm eager to learn what that is!"
Hassel gives an enigmatic sigh, then segues into the next part of his lecture. All through the rest of the class, Mitchell grows increasingly anxious about what he had seen. His thoughts turn to a prayer for safety.
Christine. Edmond. Vasilissa. Oliver. I hope you all get back here soon. May the Dragons guard you in your hour of need.
Silas blinked once more, feeling himself reassert control. This wasn't his house, he had one but it wasn't in Kalos, it was out in Galar... and it wasn't even his it was the family's. Arceus he had been through so many adventures, the Paiges and the Grants summoned trouble. As always.
He flexed his fingers as he looked around the area, the life having drained from the environment, grayscale around him. This is not my beautiful house!
He entered the living room, nobody was there... where was Roxy? This is not my beautiful wife!
Where was his team, he had been separate from Hacks several times by now but he was sorely missing him. What was this anyways? It felt so real, but illusions could be made to feel incredibly real.
Was it an illusion? He was a blank so this shouldn't affect him. Exactly.
A frown crossed his face and he marched out of the building, the world was slowly twisting around him... alright... he was ready for this trippy adventure. I'm right here.
Whatever this was, he'd break out, and he'd make whoever stuck him here sorry they ever did so.
Mesagoza, today
Iridium: -Walking out of a food store- The Treasure Hunt's supposed to be starting soon so...
-She's so trapped in thought that she stumbles and the sandwich she's holding falls-
Crap!
-But before she can try saving it herself it disappears into a small rift-
Huh?
-The sandwich then drops out of another rift and into the hand of a tall (Around Zee's height, if a bit slimmer in build), sunglasses wearing woman with pale skin and dark hair-
???: This yours?
-Handing it back to Iridium via another rift-
Gotta be careful out there kid, this part of Mesagoza's a little rough terrain-wise.
-Looking at Iridium a bit more closely-
You remind me of someone I used to know.
Iridium: -Eyes narrow as she can probably guess who she's alluding to-
???: You have a bit more fire in you than she had though, but then, considering what she is now, maybe we just all judged poorly back then.
Iridium: -Getting a odd vibe- Who... are you?
She's not a Templar, I don't think.
???: -Lifting her sunglasses down enough to reveal her purple eyes- It's probably best for both of us that I don't answer that question kiddo. But if you want something, some would refer to me as the Last.
-She starts walking away, leaving behind a bewildered (and somewhat frightened) Iridium-
Stay safe out there.
So I found back the contingency, but I don't have any orders from No Heart to take her in, so I don't need to mention this, and she can stay free a little longer. Longer than us anyway...
Edited by rmctagg09 on Oct 2nd 2023 at 6:33:05 AM
Eating a Vanilluxe will give you frostbite.