ITT: We are all Pokémon Trainers

Mitchell nods in reply to Abilene's nod, and give a thumbs-up in reply to the Breloom's shrooms-up. Then, he takes Abilene's advice and, using the tools provided to him, carefully and gently sands down the mating edges of his Pokéball.

There would be time to boast or debrief with his team, but that would have to come after the lecture was over, and not a moment sooner.

Treasure Eatery, yesterday

-As the eating area converts into a battle arena-

Well, that's certainly convenient.

Larry: -Walking up to me- We already met before, but to reintroduce myself, I'm Larry. I'm assigned to work as the Gym Leader of the Medali Gym. And you're Dr. Tagg, who the boss is trying to court. Good job on making your way through the Gym Test, but I guess that's to be expected.

-Simply nods-

Larry: And, well...maybe try the other dishes on the menu too sometime. Everything's good here.

-Taking a bite of the rice balls-

Seems so.

This guy's got Tracer's genericness going on...

Larry: -As we make our way to either side of the arena- Well, neither of us are much for idle chitchat, so let's do what you came here for.

-To Larry-

Yeah, let's.

Larry: -Sends out a Komala-

Go Pelly!

Pelly: -Appears, having evolved into Kilowattrel-

Edited by rmctagg09 on Mar 10th 2024 at 8:45:07 AM

La Academia de Naranja y Uva, Lecture Hall

-before long, everyone had submitted something, to the approval or dismay of the teacher-

Abilene: Alright. Most of you have achieved a craft…adequate. Workable. For the remainder, and those interested in advancing the art, workshops will be held as scheduling allows.

Abilene: Specialty balls such as Lure and Wing will be taught, as well as the integration of scavenged iron and lacquer coating.

-she folds her fingers, tapping the tips of her thumbs together-

Abilene: But advanced studies and ornamentation are…secondary, to this introduction, and indeed to why I desired this workshop to begin with.

-she sits back on her desk, folding her hands-

-nearly twiddling her thumbs-

Abilene: This class might save you money, for your time and pains. It may render personal that omnipresent tool. One may argue, from fortune and modern convenience, that this knowledge is obsolete. "We have Pokéballs at home."

-her moving thumbs slow with each pass, drawn absently to her-

-finally pressing together, near her heart-

Abilene: But if…your home is not a home. If you haven't enough ₽ to subsist on, let alone tend to your sport…if you find yourself lost.

-she leans back-

Abilene: Among family.

-she twines a finger through a strand of her hair-

Abilene: In School. In society.

-then brushes it off her suit, worn still beneath the apron of the Pokéball-crafter-

Abilene: Under a broken sky.

-she settles that hand in her pocket, stroking a Pokéball-shaped, winged badge-

Abilene: ...you know, surely. Pokémon will stand by you when no one else will. When failed, and failed utterly, you will find friends in the woods - in the caves - in the grass too thick to perceive. Alone we starve, yet with Pokémon we eat. Plummet into the sky, and Pokémon may catch you as you fall. So long as you care in turn. So long as you are ready.

-then strikes her cane against the ground, throwing up sparks-

Abilene: This is what I offer. A friend for the friendless. A little independence. May its circumstances never find you, but if found you they have…

-she takes the pieces of the Pokéball she herself worked—its upper half lacquered a gentle yellow-green, with four red markings embossed around a yellow dot—and snaps them together-

-she holds it up to the room-

Abilene: Make use of your environment. Seek that which calls to you. Be generous, and diligent, and kind. Reach out.

-she stops, and stands-

-her domineering presence, looming since her students entered the room...subsides-

-her attention narrows, leaving her seeming…almost vulnerable-

Abilene: ...well, Hyphatus?

Breloom: <...I can't say you don't know your own human art. Weak though it may be.>

Abilene: Sticks in a bundle. So too with Life.

Breloom: <Would one know it, to look at you?>

-Abilene stands, patient, while the Breloom chuckles and shakes her head-

Breloom: <...why not. It's more lively than Zen's pontificating.>

-she pushes off the wall, pointedly clattering-

Breloom: <Challenge me, then.>

-Hyphatus catches the ball as Abilene throws it, vanishing inside-

-the Pokéball tings off the floor, rolling to a stop-

-Abilene bends over and picks it up, regarding it for a long moment-

Abilene: Rising stars, I hope this serves you well.

-and she sets to packing away her workstation-

Abilene: Hasta la vista.

Paldea, Montenevera

Hiro: I won't say money is no object…but it's several kebabs'.

-even if, hypothetically, Moss doesn't have parents…he surely knows by now how to recognize a parental thread or two-

-two empty voids of these threads stretch west—across the sea, into the dark-

-they separate easily from the mass, tinted by Hiro's yearning-

-and where separated, away from their brighter fellows, their ends clearly plunge into the sun the others skirt-

Hiro: …anything?

-it's red, and white, and…somehow fundamental-

-the shadows cast by it are burnt into the lens-

-at the first tug: nothing-

Edited by Asterisk395 on Mar 10th 2024 at 7:35:11 AM

Montenevera

Moss?: "... Right, sure, that's-"

In the middle of whatever snide comment he was going to make, his stomach rumbles.

Moss?: "Never mind."

He grumbles to himself, pulling a bit harder. He notes the seeming importance, but people usually put a lot of value on their parents right? He finds it a bit odd that he's seeing the reliefs left by the bond rather than the bond itself, but... well, he doesn't want to pry too much. And there's enough left to follow, anyway...

Day 466

In the last year, Hoops has done a lot. They travelled much of the world, an undeveloped world that is infested with wars large and small. The regions as they will come to know them don't really exist yet - they're more like city states or fiefdoms, each with their own ruler and problems.

A sort of legend is already spreading amongst the people of what will be Paldea, Kalos, and Galar - of a wandering figure who summons pokémon as if from nowhere to fight injustice. No, not even injustice. Arseholes, would be the better description.

But through all that time, they knew there was a time limit. That they had to be back at the cave for this day. It's strange, really, because they have no guarantee that AZ will be here after what will have happened to him in the interim. But at the same time, they're certain that they'll come, because there's only one person in the world right now who has answers to his questions.

Hoops is waiting in the cave at around midday, with Vul and Sud napping close to them, when a shadow falls across the entrance and AZ enters.

It doesn't take a genius empath to know that the last year has not been kind to him. His hair, which was dark and rich in colour when they last met, has already begun to turn white, and is left unkempt shaggy. Lines that were not there a year ago cover their face, and a soreness around the eyes shows that he has been crying often and recently. There is overall a despair about him, that changes into an anger when he sees Hoops. He crosses the cave in an instant, grabbing Hoops by the front of their shirt and, with an incredible strength, slams them into the wall.

Vul's hackles rise as he growls, and Sud leans forwards, but neither of them make a move. If Hoops wanted to stop this, they would.

"You knew," AZ hisses. It isn't a question, or even a statement, as much as it is an accusation.

"Yes," Hoops says, keeping their face placid.

"And you said nothing!"

"I didn't."

AZ presses them harder against the wall, enough that it actually starts to hurt a little. "What twisted game do you play, one who comes from the future!? You could have warned me what would happen to my Floette. She might still be alive now, if you had warned me."

Hoops shakes their head. "I couldn't," they say. "It won't come as any comfort to you, but because of what happened to Floette, the world I knew - the one I left behind - it still exists. All the people, the pokémon that I've met during my life, good and bad, I doubt any of them would be alive if it weren't for what happened."

AZ punches them. "Should I be satisfied with that? The knowledge of a world I'll never see is nothing to me. I have only your word to go on that such a world even exists."

"I have more," Hoops says. "The weapon. The one that I told you about, the one with the power to return me to my time. It has the power to bring her back."

AZ's eyes widen with shock. "You..." he says, placing the pieces together in his mind. "I understand now. Floette's death... you required for it to happen to achieve your own goal. So that I would build this weapon for you, so that you could go home."

"Yes."

AZ shakes his head in disgust. "You think that I am just a regular man, but I am not. I have some aura sense, you know. Raw, hardly trained, but it is there. It's how I knew what had happened to my dear Floette, even as it happened. And when I met you, when I saw your aura for the first time, it was all I could do not to be sick." He smiles in a way that shows he has nothing to smile about. "There is a rotten stench to your aura, like something that shouldn't exist. Death and Shadow placed over the top of what was once a human, blackened like a fruit left out for too long. But I thought that perhaps you had been made this way. That then forces of this world had changed you, but that you might still be good. But it's clear now that your heart is as black as your aura."

At this point Sud steps between them and spreads her arms. <You will not speak to them that way> she says. <You don't know what they've been through. All the pain. How can you say that to them?>

AZ looks down at her. "And yet her aura is a golden one," he says. "Like a beacon of protection and goodness. That someone like her defends you is the only reason I don't strike you down."

He turns around. "I wish that I had the power to deny you your wish. And yet, if this weapon will allow me to see my Floette again, then I must create it. I suppose that my soul shall be as black as yours, stranger from the future."

Hoops sighs. "I'd tell you that I wish there was another way, but you wouldn't believe it. But I will say that I'm sorry this had to happen to you, AZ. And I say sincerely that I hope one day there will be a happy ending."

AZ hesitates before leaving. "I will see you once more, I assume," he says.

"You will."

"Very well."

And he leaves without another word. Only when he's definitely gone, and far beyond earshot, does Hoops scream.

The Orthworm gets hit by the Flamethrower through the flowing sands and collapses, then digs away, the sandstorm dissipating.

Sweet Kicks: <Well, glad we got through that, that was starting to wear me out.>

Trill returns her for a rest.

Trill: "Well, time for the second one... how are you and your team doing, Sally?"

East Province Area Three, far past

Iridium: -To Trill as the Orthworm- We're fine.

Ammit: <Yeah!>

-Thinks about it a little more-

<...Actually, I feel a little funny right now.>

-She immediately starts glowing-

Treasure Eatery, past

Pelly, use Electro Ball!

Pelly: -Fires a ball of electricity at Komala-

Larry: -Unenthusiastically- Komala, use Sucker Punch.

Komala: -Suddenly smacks Pelly with her log just before the Electro Ball connects-

Pelly: -Is hit- <Oof!>

Agility into Electro Ball!

Pelly: -Starts moving at high speed before firing another Electro Ball at Komala-

Komala: -Faints-

Trill: "Oh, hey!"

Quack Parade: <Ah my dear, you're sure to shine even more brightly now!>

East Province Area Three, far past

-When the glow subsides, a Skeledirge is left in Ammit's place-

Skeledirge!Ammit: -A bird made of flame atop her snout- <This feels different.>

Iridium: One step closer...

-To Trill-

Let's get that Herba Mystica.

Treasure Eatery, past

Larry: -Sends out a Dudunsparce-

Dudunsparce: -Uses Rock Slide-

Pelly: -Is hit-

Agility into Electro Ball!

Pelly: -Finds herself unable to move and gets hit-

Fuck.

Pelly: -Manages to dodge the next Rock Slide and do another Agility + Electro Ball combo before fainting to another-

Edited by rmctagg09 on Mar 11th 2024 at 10:49:28 AM

Trill nods and they and Quack Parade head in, looking to the white shining sprigs of Herba Mystica.

Trill: "Hmmm... this one should be salty so it should be good for good old peanut butter and noodles again... or do you have something else you wanna try for this one?"

East Province Area Three, far past

Iridium: -To Trill- Hmm... why don't we add some Klawf Sticks?

Treasure Eatery, past

-Throwing an Ultra Ball-

Okay Tercio, your turn!

Tercio: -Appears-

Use Raging Bull!

Tercio: -Bellows as he charges at high speed towards Dudunsparce-

Dudunsparce: -Takes major damage-

Larry: Use Zen Headbutt.

Dudunsparce: -Head glows with Aura as it attempts to headbutt Tercio-

Dodge and use Raging Bull again!

Tercio: -Jumps out of the way before ramming Dudunsparce-

Dudunsparce: -Faints-

Edited by rmctagg09 on Mar 11th 2024 at 11:10:24 AM

Trill: "Good by me, let's do this!"

They get out the peanut butter, bread, noodles, and one of the sprigs of Salty Herba Mystica for the sandwich.

East Province Area Three, far past

Iridium: -Gets out the Klawf Sticks-

Treasure Eatery, past

Larry: -Recalling Dudunsparce- Even with all this it's still better than getting cornered by my boss. Okay Staraptor, let's wrap this up.

Staraptor: -Is released and glares at Tercio-

Larry: -Pulling out a glowing Tera Orb- Well, you're probably going to win this anyway, but the good folks here still deserve a show.

Staraptor: -Is enveloped in crystal and bursts out wearing a Tera Gem resembling a giant diamond-

-Pulling out my own Tera Orb-

A show, huh?

-Tera Orb glowing-

Tercio, let's give them a show they won't soon forget!

Tercio: -Is enveloped in crystal and bursts out wearing a Tera Gem resembling a boxing glass-

And together they make a salty sandwich!

Trill: "Here we go, Bone Apple Teeth!"

The view switches briefly to show their disembodied head coming and taking a chomp out of it with eyes closed.

East Province Area Three, far past

Iridium: -Takes a bite- Hmm...

-It's of course salty, but also...-

My hands and feet feel kinda tingly.

Treasure Eatery, past

Larry: As we adults know, real life isn't all about being true to yourself. Now Staraptor, let's show them your Facade.

Staraptor: -Tera Jewel flashes as they slam into Tercio-

Tercio: -Takes more damage than he was expecting-

Raging Bull!

Tercio: -Tera Jewel flashes as he bellows before cloaking himself in Aura and charges at Staraptor-

Staraptor: -Takes major damage-

Larry: Use Aerial Ace.

Staraptor: -Slashes Tercio at high speed-

Tercio: -Is brought down to the red-

One more Raging Bull!

Tercio: -Rams Staraptor-

Staraptor: -Tera Jewel shatters as it faints-

Edited by rmctagg09 on Mar 12th 2024 at 10:13:57 AM

Trill nods.

Trill: "Yeah, apparently it helps with aches in wings and feet and helps with things like muscle extremities."

East Province Area Three, far past

Iridium: -To Trill- I see. So that's two down, three to go right?

Treasure Eatery, past

Larry: -Recalling Staraptor- I guess that's that then. I'll give you your Badge after we get some grub.

Larry: -While eating- There was a challenger who came here not too long ago, a very strong one. Impressed the chef here enough to partake of the Eatery's special dish. Reminded me a lot of you, same sort of eyes for one. Not that it's any business of mine, but she wouldn't happen to be your-

-Also eating, but stops-

She doesn't know about that, I'd prefer to keep it that way for the time being, I have many enemies.

Larry: Fair enough. You know Dr. Tagg, children shouldn't have to wear a facade like us adults. But her, she definitely wearing a mask to withstand this world's hardships.

-To Larry-

Yeah, I've noticed...

Larry: I'd suggest telling her the truth sooner rather than later Dr. Tagg.

-Standing up-

But as for me, I need to get back to work. We'll be seeing each other again, in a way we're basically coworkers for as long as you're in this region.

-He then leaves-

Edited by rmctagg09 on Mar 12th 2024 at 11:23:29 AM

Outskirts Of Medali

~CrobatOfTheStars

Mithos: "All right! Take my hand. Hopefully the someone I mentioned earlier doesn't find out."

-he extends a hand-

West Province Area Three, past

Lilligant: -Tera Jewel shatters shortly before she faints due to Stellamaris' Aurora Beam-

Stellamaris: -Tera Jewel simply dissipates-

Chiyo: That was weird.

-Looking at the ground, where a number of rainbow colored shards lie-

That Lilligant didn't seem to have a changed typing, but its moves hit like it did, so what did that Tera Jewel do exactly?

-She decides to start taking the Shards up-

Levincia

"I hear you call yourself Mid-Knight." Said the Night Mankey with all the pomposity he can muster. "I've fought my share of mid villains before, though I deign to admit that your presentation would be cut slightly above most mediocre evildoers."

The Night Mankey looked at the Pokémon trying to talk to him in disbelief.

"Amigos, settle down!" he said, "You are aware that I cannot understand the Pokémonese language."

The Rillaboom and Palafin looked at each other incredulously and shrug, while the Annihilape facepalmed. This lapse of their guard, however, rendered them all too vulnerable. Almost embarrassingly so, as for all his bravado, the Night Mankey had no superpowers to speak of, at least not one that wasn't endemic to a human with above average physical fitness. He soon found himself on the path of a rampaging Midknight, whose attacks were narrowly parried by the Annihilape and Palafin he was with.

In that moment, the Rillaboom grabbed his trainer and made a run for it.

"<Look, Tim, I know you can't understand us, but you have to listen to what I'm about to say right now.>" Said the Rillaboom. "<This is why you should've taken that elective in uni.>"

"Listen, Vybrashun, I respect your feedback but I cannot act on it unless I know what you're—"

Before he could finish, the Rillaboom started what appeared to be a game of charades, pointing at Midknight as her increasingly angry attacks were blocked by the Palafin and Annihilape. He pointed at his left arm, and then did a fist punching gesture.

"Well why didn't you just say so?" Replied a relieved Night Mankey. "Go for the left arm. I see. Gracias, my friend."

With that in mind, Night Mankey once again made his way to the heat of the battle, eyeing Vybrashun sighed and followed his trainer. Once they returned to the fray, they noticed the feather in the villain's left hand. Its striking coloration, especially in contrast to the baddie's aesthetic, made it stand out.

"So is it as simple as plucking that thing out? Well, I don't have any tools for that."

Vybrashun nods in agreement.

He points at the retreating Annihilape and Palafin.

"<Well, about time.>" Muttered the Annihilape. "<What's the next thing we should do?>"

"<Make it quick.>" Responded the Palafin, <"She's coming back this way.">

"Grudgefyst, Thea." Night Mankey commanded, "See that feather over there? We take it out. You try to get behind our evil little friend there and I'll pluck out. By hand if I must!"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

He turned to his younger companions but was instead greeted by someone in a strangely polished form-fitting purple suit with an oddly colored spinarak on his left shoulder. He was not pleased to see him.

"Arceus mio, are you kidding me right now?" Yelled the Night Mankey in a faint voice that just barely disguised his contempt. "Are you here to kill-steal?"

"Not the term I would use, and also not the point." Said Arachna-Guy, who had suddenly jumped from out of nowhere. "I'm pretty sure you'll need all the professional help you can get with a baddie of this magnitude"

"Late to the party and now you're trying to tell me how to do my job. Typical Unovan. All this showboating may work where you're from, amigo, but it takes a bit more than showmanship to solve the kind of villainy that finds its way to Paldea."

Vybrashun coughs at that bit about showmanship.

"This coming from a guy who's entire schtick is doing El Zoroark with a different Pokémon as a theme. Look, can we argue about this later, I'm pretty sure we have a Dondozo to fry."

"And here I thought she was themed after Swellow."

"It's an idiom."

"The only idiom I see around here is you."

"I mean, it's a figure of— Agh! Wow, this was a lot of fun to watch in the movies but in real life it's just frustrating."

"<Tell me about it.>" Muttered Aranos the Spinarak in response. "<The Avengers (2012) lied to us.>"

"I know right." Arachna-Guy responded, casually firing shots of polymers at Midknight's feet in an attempt to slow her down.

"Wait, you can talk to Pokémon? Is that one of the powers you got from some cliché origin story."

"Pffft, I wish. I just took a class."

Vybrashun did a shrugging gesture as he tossed a razor leaf at Midknight.

"Well, if you're gonna butt in you might as well make yourself useful," Said Night Mankey. "That villain draws power from the feather somehow."

"Yeah, I know. I fought one of these types of villains before in Celestic Town. Bad idea to touch it, though. Making contact with it will turn you into a villain."

"How'd you figure that out?"

"Long story. But here's the gist of it. There's this psychic villain named Pavo who just sends these feathers to complete randos and then somehow uses psychological trauma or subconscious desires to take control over them and turn them into villains, complete with big scary sidekick Pokémon formed from a dark aspect of their psyche. Don't ask how I know; I did my research and it's a long story. The control over them is predicated on the presence of a feather lodged somewhere in an object on their person."

He sees that the feather is literally on Midknight's hand.

"Or in this case, a body part." He adds. "It won't do a thing while it's attached to someone but once it isn't and it's on you or anything you're wearing, it will try to take control of you instead. The only way to truly stop it is to smash it with a heavy object. Preferably in a way that leaves a nice audible crunch sound."

Beat.

"That... that is the plot of Miraculous Ledyba!"

"Ugh, I know, right?! But yeah, it's a bad idea to hold it physically. You can hold an object that you can use to hold it. Don't ask me how that works since you can get enthralled by objects you're wearing. Maybe it's the extra layers but the last time we had one of these baddies run amok the feather lodged into a lanyard of a guy wearing a collared flannel shirt. How thick are those gloves?"

"Thicker than flannel, I would hope. Think your tight tights are up to the task?"

"Whatever."

"Do you have anything that can be used to get a hold of it? 'Cause I don't. A bolas can only go so far"

"Wh... What did you think my entire deal was?" Arachna-Guy responded as he brandished his wrists in a spritzing gesture.

"Being a ripoff of someone else. Well, if you're adamant at flouting copyright laws, Mr. Spinarak, now would be a good time do your infringing. I suppose you'll just—" At that point, Night Mankey stopped talking and started doing spritzing motions with his gloved hands. His new frenemy nodded sagely in response, all while the both of them tossed polymers and a bolas at Midknight's feet respectively.

"Where do you keep those things?"

"This is why I have a lot of pockets. Unlike you, my conceited friend, I do not preoccupy myself with public displays of vanity. I plan my super suits around ''practical'' superheroing, not flexing for the press like some comic book character."

"Alright, alright. I get it, [Casey Jones]."

"Really, cotton swab head? That's what you're calling me? Wait, it's the hockey mask, isn't it?"

"Yeah.The Annihilape brand was making me think "oooh, you're trying to be edgy and grimdark" but then you chose the kind of accessory that says 'I work for the Ninja Squirtles'."

"Like a balaklava with lenses is any better? Seriously, the full-face concealing headcover thing is used by the bad guys for a reason. No wonder you get picked on by Hank Harvey. And people say I have branding issues. And you're wrong. [Casey] does not work for the Ninja Squirtles; he works with them. Arceus Damn it you can't even nerd right."

"Don't we have a baddie to take on?"

"Yeah, if there's anything we have in common besides the uncomfortable realization that this feels like a parody of a Miracle Comics movie is that we're both apparently good at multitasking."

"Task-switching, actually. Multitasking doesn't actually work."

"Ha! Nerd."

All the while, the duo have been tossing their respective attacks at Midknight.

Of course, with the feather in full view, there's not much they can do to stop Midknight from trying to defend it. Especially since it's such an obvious target now. Now, sufficient overwhelming force has done the trick before, coupled with a little mental appeal to the recipient.

As it went down, Arachna-Guy sent out a mental message to the psychic young people.

~Oh hey. You kids probably figured it out by now that we need to get rid of the feather over there. Yeah, you probably know of the precedent behind it. I'm getting way ahead of myself. I'm Arachna-Guy, and I need you to play along with what's about to happen next.~

"A little assistance would be nice, my young amigos!" Yelled Night Mankey out loud.

"You rely on gadgets right?" Arachna-Guy responded. Before his new rival-cum-ally could say anything, he nodded his head and turned away from the rampaging supervillain's left hand.

"Oh, I am way ahead of you, hombre." Night Mankey responded. "Watch as I do a pro gamer move."

The newcomer tried to establish eye contact as best as he can to the person behind the villainous façade.

~You know who I am. You helped save me from this thing. Wait— wait— did you let that thing latch onto you on purpose? Yikes. Where's a therapist when you need 'em. Anyway, whatever bullshit Pavo is promising and whatever it is that other freaky entity is telling you—Oh, Arceus, your mind's kind of freaky to look into. Way to set off my ADHD. That's several years of interventions down the drain. Boy if I was saying this out loud, I'd be out of breath. Anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. I'll tell you what a new friend told me a few months ago... it isn't worth it being somebody else's stooge or yes-man. Leave these kids alone and don't be Pavo's errand girl, mmmkay?~

"Dude, you alright?" Night Mankey interjected. "You were zoning out."

"Yeah, I... I just needed to figure out what to do next."

"Already took care of that."

Meanwhile the Night Mankey's pokémon have made their move. The Palafin casts a mist around the heroes, and then proceeded to attack with an aqua tail. Likewise, the Rillaboom charged forward with a wood hammer. The Annihilape, Grudgefyst, however, was nowhere to be seen. And funnily enough, so was Aranos. Arachna-Guy sensed that they had taken the liberty of directing a few attacks together to ward off the construct bird, keeping it from aiding its master.

One thing Arachna-Guy and the others would notice, though, was that the duo were all attacking from the right. Night Mankey donned an appropriately cocky pose while doing a counting gesture with his fingers.

"You'll have your opening in 5... 4... 3… 2..."

Suddenly, a charge exploded beneath Midknight's left foot, covering the villain (and, one would hope, her villainous cohort) in a sticky, gooey, coagulating mass. Everyone around would immediately recognize the smell of the sticky substance as low-quality expired pancake batter. Certainly, this wasn't enough to hinder the villain for long, but it'll certainly be a sticky, icky time before then. Moreover, the hand with the feather was open for attack for anyone else who wanted to dislodge it.

Arachna-Guy seized his chance and fired a polymer thread at the feather.

Edited by MasterJayAM on Mar 18th 2024 at 5:25:31 PM

Outskirts of Medali

-Sombra grabs onto Mithos hand, grinning excitedly at the prospect of going into Area Zero-

Sombra: “Alrighty then! Let’s go!”

Trill: "Yeah. All three of the others should be west of here so we can take care of them whenever works."

East Province Area Three, past

Iridium: -Nods- Okay.

Textspace

Paldea, Montenevera

-Hiro tilts his head, focusing on Moss as Moss focuses beyond him-

-Moss hauls—who knows what he's bracing on; it might well be life itself-

-is the near side bulging closer? through the shine, a ripple seems to warp the sun's surface-

Litwick: -matter-of-factly- Litwick.

-he might squint—that sun doesn't reduce to a sliver-

-it grows more distinct-

Litwick: …wick?

-it might occur to him then that the afterlife's(?) usual distortion isn't there-

-the wind kicks up, spark-laden-

-a burning net, strands wide as oaks and utterly fathomless, might cleave through him, harming…nothing-

Litwick: ?!

Litwick: What are you—?

-and on the seal's other side, what Moss won't admit to himself might press in and sear—

Home, Then

-this isn't what usually happens-

-Moss is looking down at the man he just met—just a boy, without a cape padding out his silhouette-

Him?: Don't go.

-Moss's head turns—purple sparks flash through the periphery, cutting closer-

Him?: Hiro, don't go.

-he feels his arm stretch protectively outward-

Moss?: I'm the Hero, right? I'll save—

   -more intention-   

-Moss swallows, and forces a smile-

Moss?: I'll save you, I swear.

-the Prince of Truth must shine like an earthbound sun-

   (-and for the Record: he wasn't lying-)   

(Him:    He was just wrong.   )

(-...-)

(Him: Witnessed.)

Paldea, Montenevera

-in the waking world, Hiro continues watching with quiet expectation-

Hiro: See, there's more force behind it than that hedge Medium in Alfornada.

Cubone: <Is that bad?>

Hiro: Can't tell, by itself.

Edited by Asterisk395 on Mar 15th 2024 at 12:28:05 PM

West Province Area One

Poppy had sent Donut out of his Pokeball, which he assumed was so he could get here to Levincia quickly. Which is why he was shocked to discover that while still asleep, she had instead called a Flying Taxi for West Province Area One.

Donut: Why are we here?

Poppy: Listen up, Donut, I've heard reports of a very large Bombirdier roaming around here. If my theory is true, that's our next Titan Pokemon- our next Herba Mystica.

Donut: I see.

Poppy: This is what a Bombirdier looks like. We're looking for an enormous version of this Pokemon.

She pulled up the Rotom Dex photo of a Bombirdier.

Donut: So, it flies around. We'll need a flying Pokemon to get close to it.

Poppy: I'm thinking we use Stormwind to find and battle it.

Donut: Oh no, not him. He's too big for his boots!

Poppy sent Stormwind out.

Poppy: Listen up, Stormwind. Around here is our next Titan Pokemon - it's a Bombirdier. We need you to find it so we can battle it.

Stormwind: Bombirdier... where have I heard that name before... oh yeah! That bird Pokemon who - wait, it flies! That's right!

Donut: Don't get too excited, bird.

Stormwind: A battle against an enormous flying Pokemon? My destiny has arrived! Don't worry, Poppy! I'll find that Bombirdier in two shakes of a Lanturn's tail!

And Stormwind bolted off to go find it - and battle it himself.

Poppy: Stormwind, wait up! You can't beat it alone!

Donut: Sooner or later he'll get himself killed.

Meanwhile, Stormwind was literally bolting all over the place, trying to find the Titan Pokemon.

Stormwind: Yoohoo! Titan Bombirdier, your worst nightmare is here!

He couldn't seem to find it anywhere. The only place he hadn't checked was the mountain.

Stormwind: Hey, don't leave me like that! You're the one who-

And Stormwind then found himself trapped in the beak of Titan Bombirdier.

Stormwind: Ah, there you are! And now we get to battle!

His wings crackled with electricity inside Bombirdier's beak.

Stormwind: I've been waiting months for this. Ready for our rematch, big guy?