Battlegrounds : A Pokémon Role-Play { Closed } - Day Two: On the Road to Jade Forest

[Mr. Omega]

Russel shrugged when Kayla mentioned the little challenge to the trainers. "Huh... a ground gym. That could be trouble. Might stop by the lake first..." He said before he started heading down the route. He noticed a bunch of the pokemon flying by, and a couple scurrying through the grass. None of them really interested him. However, one did managed to catch his attention: a Taillow swooped down and tried to peck Munchie a couple times. Russel tried to smack it away, but that just made it start trying to peck him.

"Oh, so that's how it's going to be?" he muttered, grabbing Munchie and placing him on his shoulder. "Munchie. Smog." Munchie opened his mouth wide, and coughed out a cloud of purple smoke right at the Taillow. It coughed and sputtered, its flapping becoming eratic before it finally managed to get out of the cloud, flying away. Munchie prepared a second Smog, but Russel held up his hand. "Give it a minute..." The Taillow was almost completely out of sight, but it was going slower and slower, until finally, it stopped, plummeting to the ground. "Never fails..." He smirked. He then noticed a trio of Zigzagoon gnawing at his feet, a couple trying to jump up to his backpack. "You know what to do, Munchie. Time for some pest control..."

Munchie looked down and sent out a large cloud towards Russel's feet. Most of the gas would dissipate after a couple feet, so nobody around him would be at risk of inhaling the smog. He held still as two of the Zigzagoon fainted. The third managed to get away. "Meh. Can't get'm all..."

Russel wasn't expecting any of the other trainers to talk now that they had left the lab, but he took a look back to see who else was still nearby while Munchie started looking at a pair of Starly circling above them. "In hindsight, carrying a pouch filled with berries might not have been my brightest idea..."

 

[SkyeNeko]

Eurydice had a big grin on her face. This Pokedex showed a lot of information. 66 pounds? You've put on some weight. She aimed the camera at Yani next, seeing as it flew near her and Heidi. The page for Yanma came up. I wonder if we could just get a pre-loaded Pokedex. It doesn't make sense to give everyone empty ones when we can go to the library and pull out entire books on a species? She wondered what would happen if they found a completely new species.

Finally, they got to the tall grass. Eurydice was rearing to get into it, and her Ponyta, picking up on her excitement, immediately sped into the nearest patch. A Pidgey flew up out of the leaves, angry at being disturbed. Her Ponyta slid Eurydice off before charging at the bird, trying to slam into it. Eurydice cheered her on, clapping and jumping up and down in excitement. It wasn't a pokemon she wanted, even though she made the mental note to look out for a flying type pokemon for the ground gym. Even if she was able to train Ponyta, the type advantage would be murder.

 

[Pm0n3y]

Morgan couldn't help but watch as the younger Willow departed, the mighty wings of her Pigeot picked up many a gust, blowing back his hair and clothes. Soon she was gone, and the group of trainers began dispersing into the woods, all eager to find new friends. Morgan was hesitant however, as it seemed he had encountered a problem.

"So, how will I do this? Can't really go looking for pokémon when the one I have doesn't want to listen to me." He thought. He sat along the tar road, opting to not step foot into the tall grass, not until he could think of something. Maybe he could tag along with one of the trainers he met? Maybe ride on their coat tails, picking up what they didn't...

Behind him, the sound of rustling grass was heard. For an instant, Morgan gave a thought that it might've been one of the trainers. That idea was scrapped. He expected some sort of greeting or reply, and didn't receive either. A hand began to edge towards his belt, ever so hestitantly. If Chase tried to run away out here, there'd be a chance he wouldn't find him this time. The rustling neared, and Morgan braced for an attack. He turned, caught a glimpse of the creature. It was a small, four-legged thing, a majority of its body covered in gray fur, while its face and snout was adorned with darker colors. It sniffed the air before looking towards Morgan, the sailor assuming it must've gotten a trace of his scent.

"Fuck, it's a Poochyena." He thought flatly. He's had one too many an experience with these types back in Hoenn, and last he checked, they usually weren't all that friendly. He unclipped Chase from his belt, and slowly raised it, a sign of battle. The Poochyena showed a look of curiosity rather than agitation, and continued edging towards Morgan. It wasn't growling, nor baring its fangs (other than the ones that protrude from its bottom jaw). Maybe it wasn't here to protect its territory or anything. Morgan lowered his pokéball, and held his hand out towards the pokémon, equally as curious as it. The poochyena sniffed at his fingers before stepping closer into Morgan's space. The sailor sighed in some relief.

"Hm, the Poochyena here must be calmer than the ones in Hoenn." He muttered. The pokémon looked up toward him quizzically as it heard its name.

 

[elementsoul]

Luckily for Erika, Kayla Willow appeared before that trainer and his Elekid got too close to her. Erika let out a silent sigh of relief and followed the woman elder to herself at a distance away from the electric type Pokémon and its trainer. After the brief introduction, Erika accepted her Pokédex and gift of six Pokéballs from the Pokémon Professor.

When prompted to leave, Erika followed Kayla Willow out to the first route. She didn?t have any questions that hadn?t already been answered or were just being asked by the other trainers, so she just listened to Kayla and started to play around with her Pokédex.

In a short time Kayla stopped them and issued the challenge. A small smile crossed Erika?s face. ?I gladly accept your challenge,? Erika thought as she scanned the Pidgeot before it went out of range. After a bit of scrolling, Erika confirmed that it evolved from a Pidgey via evolution as a Pidgeotto. Pidgey was promptly added to her mental ?want to catch list.?

Not wanting to wait another second Erika dashed alone into the tall grass that group was in the middle of. Her bullheaded charge once again turned up a problem as she ran into an Electrike a fair distance away from the rest of the group. Erika came to a dead halt from mid run; she slowly tried to back away from the Pokémon she just ran into out of instinct. Erika was almost out of sight when a though hit her, ?wait I?m a trainer now. I shouldn?t back away from a Pokémon out of fear.? A bunch of sparks became visible on the Electrike?s fear and the dull pain returned to her lightning flower. Maybe I?m over estimating myself and should let Burtha out while keeping my distance.

Erika detached the sole Poké Ball on her belt buckle and pressed the center button, releasing her Swinub. Erika was about to command her to attack the Electrike before realizing that she never scanned her Swinub. ?Hold still for a moment.? Erika commanded as she pulled out her Pokédex and scanned her Swinub.






Name: Swinub [color=FF00AA]♀[/color]


Species: Pig Pokémon


Height: 1'04" / 0.4 m


Weight: 14.3 lbs / 6.5 kg

Ability: Thick Fat - Ups resistance to Fire- and Ice-type moves.


Description: It has a very sensitive nose. It can locate mushrooms, berries, and even hot springs buried under ice.


Moves: Tackle: Normal, Physical.
................Odor Sleuth: Normal, Status.
................Mud Sport: Ground, Status.


Item: N/A


OT: Erika Park // 27718



With her Pokémon scanned Erika now knew its most basic information for certain. ?Burtha use Tackle,? Erika commanded and pointed towards the Electrike; the Pig Pokémon charged at the Lightning Pokémon. Erika quickly scanned the Electrike before Burtha made contact.

The Swinub caught the Electrike off guard, and sent the Pokémon sliding sideways through the grass after it made contact. The Electrike growled as a wave of electricity was sent towards the Swinub. The sight of the electric attack made Erika shake a little in fear. She squealed when it made contact with Burtha, before she remembered that electric attacks didn?t affect her ground type Pokémon.

?Keep it up! Use Tackle till you win!? Erika shouted at her Swinub as it charged again. The Electrike was ready and dodged this time, once again sending out a wave of electricity towards the Swinub only for it to once again have no effect. The Swinub turned and used Tackle again, this time making contact and sending the Electrike sliding back once more. The Lightning Pokémon wimped a bit in pain before letting out a loud bark. Both Pokémon charged for the other, and met head on with their Tackle attacks. After they made contact both Pokémon rebounded backwards. A few seconds later the Electrike collapsed on the ground and Burtha returned to Erika?s feet.

Erika knelt down to pet Burtha without taking a worried eye off of the Electrike. She reached into her bag and pulled out a Poké Ball. As she raised her arm to throw it she froze as the pain in her neck and shoulder worsened. No. Not now. It?s too soon. I know I shouldn?t run away since I?m trying to be a trainer, but maybe battling them at a distance is best. Maybe I?ll catch one eventually, but I don?t think I could properly handle it right now. Erika was awash with fear and self-hate as she returned the ball to her bag.

 

[CounterAttack]

After rustling around in the grass for a minute or so, Alix could hear a familiar low growling coming from somewhere nearby. There were some Poochyena about. Alix remembered the little Dark-types being ferocious, when they wanted to be. Still, they were cute, in a sense. And easy to raise, according to some of her friends back home. She kind of wanted one, partially to see if her friends were right, and partially because, well, she liked them.

She pushed aside a thicker tuft of grass, and found one of the grey Pokémon chewing on what looked like a berry. Upon seeing the strange human nearby, the Poochyena jumped to its feet, its moment of docility vanishing. Its eyes narrowed and it started a somewhat loud growling. Alix set Matti down in front of her feet. "Come on, Matti... let's see how you do in a battle, eh?" she suggested, careful to keep one eye on the Poochyena in case it attacked.

"Togeh?" Matti asked, sounding concerned. He was smaller than the doglike Pokémon, and lighter in weight to boot. Alix was aware of this... just as she was aware that Extrasensory, a Psychic-type move, was entirely ineffective against her chosen opponent. She would have to rely on the random nature of Metronome.

"You can do it, Matti. Show him a Metronome," she told the young Togepi. Matti wasn't so sure about it, but he raised his arms and waggled them back and forth... then the movements got into a rhythm, and his eyes widened, presumably in shock. Then out of nowhere, Matti ran over to a tall leaf of grass and yanked it out of the ground. The grass straightened up, forming what looked like a long sword. Alix wondered how Matti found the strength to carry it.

Matti promptly ran up to the Poochyena and smacked it with the blade of grass. The Poochyena yelped and sprang back, baring its fangs. Matti dropped the grass and tried to run at the sight of the canine's canines, but the quadrupedal Pokémon was faster and caught up to him, smacking him with a short Tackle. Matti squeaked and tripped over, rolling inside his shell and coming to a halt at Alix's feet.

Seeing easy prey, the Poochyena pursued Matti... but stopped short at the sight of Alix, who was standing him back up and brushing dirt off of his shell. "You okay to get back in there, little man?" she asked him. Matti turned to face the Poochyena and raised his hands again. "Give him another Metronome, Matti," Alix commanded. Matti began moving his arms back and forth. The rhythmic motions started up again, and this time Matti's eyes narrowed. He charged the Poochyena, crashing straight into it and delivering a Headbutt to its flank. Stunned, the Dark-type whimpered and dropped to lie down on the ground. Either it didn't want to continue the fight or Matti had hurt it too much. Matti ran back to Alix, unsure of what would happen now.

Now was the perfect time for Alix to take a hand in the battle. She reached into the satchel at her hip, pulled out a Poké Ball and did her best to aim at the Poochyena before carefully throwing it. The small device bounced off the ground once before it hit the Poochyena and opened. A ray of red light shot out of the device and surrounded the Pokémon, drawing it into the Ball before it fell to the ground.

The Ball began to noticeably twitch. Once, twice, three times... Alix had her eyes locked onto the Ball as it wobbled back and forth. Then an audible click was heard. The Poochyena had been caught. And on her first try; Alix was a bit amazed that it had worked the first time. She picked up the Ball, looking at it with a little awe. Out came her Pokédex, which she opened and experimentally pointed at the Ball.

[table border=2]
[tr]
[td rowspan=7]

[/td]
[td]#261: Poochyena &#9792[/td]
[td]Bite Pokémon[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]

[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Height: 1'08" / 0.5 m.[/td]
[td]Weight: 30.0 lbs. / 13.6 kg.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Ability: Quick Feet[/td]
[td](If suffering from a status condition, this Pokémon becomes faster in battle.)[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Moves: Tackle, Howl[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2].[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]A Pokémon with a persistent nature, it chases its chosen prey until the prey becomes exhausted.[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

So apparently Pokédexes worked on Pokémon still in their Balls... that was new. Still, it was an easy way to scan a new addition to the team. Proud of herself now, Alix put her Pokédex away and picked up Matti again, holding onto her newly-filled Poké Ball with one hand. She made her way out of the grass and back to the path: just the one catch would be enough, she reasoned.

 

[NeoAC]

For someone who had spent most of their life in a city surrounded by a desert with a perpetual sandstorm and a forest shrouded in darkness, the feeling of being out on a wide open country road was a nice change for Robyn. There was nothing overhead but a blue sky and the occasional Flying type gliding on the breeze.

There seem to be a lot of those Flying types around here anyway. Robyn was actively scouting the local flora and fauna for Pokemon. She wanted to get off to a fast start and start assembling some partners for Nina, who could help take down the seemingly endless supply of Pokemon with the upper hand type wise. Plus, everyone was officially challenged by the tight-lipped younger Willow.

She ducked off the dirt road and went right into the grass, as quickly as she could. She wanted to get the drop on any Pokemon that might be sneaking around. Nina followed after, ready to battle, but there was no need. This particular patch was empty.

"Hmmmmm, gotta be some Pokemon around here somewhere, Nina," Robyn said scanning the area.

Nina stood up on a nearby rock, intent on looking with her trainer. When she glanced towards the trees however, she found that the watcher, was also the watched. A little brown Pokemon was standing up on it's tail, it's arm raised up similar to Robyn's. It was looking right at Nina. "Lil! Petilil!" she cried to her trainer.

Robyn looked over and saw the uninvited spectator, and smiled. "Looks like we have our first recruit. Let's go Nina!"

As the two gave chase, the young Sentret realized that it had been spotted and took off into the the trees, giving a cry as it ran. The bumpy terrain was hell on Robyn's knee. She had to be very careful when placing her leg down, which forfeited any advantage she had in speed on the Normal-type. Nina was doing her best to keep up, but her stubs were not built for fast movement.

The Sentret was not the best with orienteering however, and quickly found itself trapped in front of a very large tree. When it tired to go around, large roots blocked it's path, and that gave Robyn enough time to catch up and corner it.

Sentret turned, realizing that Robyn had halted it's escape. "Tret? Sentretsentret!" it issued as a warning.

Robyn was having none of that though, and now Nina had caught up to the party. "All right Nina, let's get ready to battle!"

Sentret saw it had no choice and immediately propped itself back up on it's tail, in an effort to make itself look bigger. "Sennnntret!"

"We can do that too. Nina! Growth!"

Nina stepped forward and focused on itself, growing slightly. She approached her opponent, in an effort to try and intimidate it. All that earned her was an attack, as Sentret leaned down and Scratched her atop her bulb.

"Don't take that Nina! Use Absorb!"

Nina started glowing and from the two leaves on the side of it's head, a red beam emerged and struck the unsuspecting Sentret. A lot of fight left with those beams. It couldn't even support itself on it's tail any more, falling back against the tree.

"Awesome!" Nina reached into her sweatshirt pocket and produced one of the gift Pokeballs from Willow. "You're mine now!" She tossed the Pokeball at the fallen Normal type and it disappeared into the ball, the energy matching the Absorb attack it had just been struck with. A couple of shakes followed, but the attack had done it's damage. The ball clicked shut at sat on the ground.

"Yeah! We did it Nina!" Robyn was ecstatic to get her first capture so quickly, and Nina shared her enthusiasm. "Lillil! Petilil!"

Robyn sat down at the base of the tree, to get her wind back after chasing her first capture through the wood. She looked down at the Pokeball now in her hand and back at Nina. One more Pokemon probably won't be enough if we're going to start taking on Gyms. Burgh had a lot of Bug Pokemon to use and they had ways of dealing with their weaknesses. So this Ground guy Kayla mentioned probably has a way to deal with Nina as well. As she thought about what else she could use to beat a Ground type, she looked up in the sky, and realized the solution was above her this whole time. Or at least it could be.

"Here Sentret, come on out."

Robyn released the button on the ball and Sentret reappeared on the forest floor. It was a little dazed from it's experience with the ball, but it recognized the person who had cornered before. "Tret! Sentretsentret!"

"Sentret, I know we just met, but can you do something for me?" Robyn pointed up into the branches. "Can you go up into this tree and see if you can't scare up a Flying Pokemon? You know what I'm talking about, right?" Sentret nodded. "I want to try and catch one of them, but I can't send Nina up there for it. Could you go up there?"

Sentret was still looking a bit miffed over the way it had been lost so quickly to this girl, but it gave another grudging nod.

"Thank you," Robyn smiled as she lifted the Sentret up into one of the branches above. "Do your best!"

Sentret ran up into the canopy as Robyn watched it disappear amidst the leaves. She was unsure if newest member of her team would be able to get the job done, but she didn't really have any other options. Her leg wouldn't allow for climbing like that and Nina certainly didn't have the limbs for it.

It wasn't long before there was a rustling sound heard above in the branches. It didn't last long before a cry was heard, and louder rustling. Something was falling.

"Tretttttttt!" Sentret cried in a high pitched voice as it fell. Robyn tried to move into position to catch her falling Pokemon, and she got lucky. As Sentret broke out of the canopy, Robyn was in position to catch the light Pokemon in her arms.

"Sentret, are you OK?"

Sentret sported a fresh mark on it's stomach, but looked up at Robyn. Any feelings of animosity were waning now that the girl had saved it from a long fall. "Sentret! Sentret! It buried it's face into Robyn's chest, thankful for the cushion she provided.

"OK, OK, that's enough. I'm glad you're all right." She held Sentret out in front of her. "You find a Flyer up there?" Sentret nodded. "Shoot, I wish I could get up there and get it."

"Tret! Sentret!" Sentret looked determined now, much different from the first time it went up.

"You want to give it another try, Sentret?" This question was met with another nod. "OK! I'm sure you can get it this time!" Robyn lifted Sentret back into the tree, and it dashed up for another attempt.

Robyn was a little more worried this time. For me just catching it a few minutes ago, Sentret really seems to be trying its hardest. I wonder if the bonds these Pokeballs create really is that strong...

The thought process was broken by more sounds of action in the leaves, lasting a little longer than the first clash, but again, there was a cry and the growing sound of branches breaking.

"Oh shoot..." Robyn cursed as she tried to get herself in position to catch Sentret again, but this time her hearing wasn't as pinpoint, and she her a thud on the floor behind her. Oh no. Oh no, damn it, please be OK Sentret. I'm sorry I put you up there again. I'm sorry.

Nina went up to the Pokemon now on the grass behind her. The fall did some damage to it and it was barely moving. "Lil?" She poked at it. "Lillil! Petilil!"

Robyn put her hands up to her face, not wanting to see what had happened to the first Pokemon she caught. Damn it, I knew it. Sentret got hurt bad, and it's all because I had to have a flyer. How could I have been so stupid? It's probably more messed up than I was.

"Tret? Sentret?"

Robyn looked up. Sentret was standing on the branch above her, looking down. "Sentret."

"Oh Sentret come here!" Sentret jumped off the branch into Robyn's arms. "I was worried about you! But then...what fell?"

Robyn turned around. Nina was poking what looked like a bird surrounded by cotton balls. One would think having such a cushion on it's body would prevent it from taking a fall like that, but the Scratch marks on it's face showed that it didn't have much of a say in the matter.

[sub]"Bluuuuu...,"[/sub] it eked out.

"Oh wow, that is...pretty hurt. We better get it some help." Robyn pulled out another Pokeball, and tossed it gently as the fallen Pokemon. It didn't put up a fight as it was absorbed into the ball, and clicked shut.

"Shoot, OK good work guys," Robyn complimented Nina and Sentret, "but I'm going to return you now. We need to get that Pokemon to a Center after a fall like that." Both Pokemon returned to their balls as Robyn looked back towards where she thought she had come into the forest. "Now let's see if I can make it back to the road without wrenching my knee up."

 

[Lambi]

Heidi mentally accepted the challenge issued by the Willow daughter and started to look around the grass for Pokémon to capture. Yani flew close by, ready to fight when her trainer would give her a command. They searched for a while, finding a fair number of Pokémon for Yani to fight, but none that looked particularly interesting to Heidi for capture. Sure, she saw some double types, like Pidgeys and Spearows, and even some Budews, all of which she scanned with her Pokédex, but none which particularly interested her.

That is to say, until she noticed one that she'd seen many times back in Sinnoh. A Starly who was chasing after some Wurmples. While not a Pokémon she liked in particular, it was something she was familiar with. "It's supposedly a good one to catch if you're new in Sinnoh, so why not here?" she thought out loud to herself. The Starly stopped the chase and looked towards Heidi and Yani, tilting his head a little while he looked at them with a quizzical look. "You'll be mine! Yani, use Tackle!" Yani nodded. "Yan, yan!" She was ready to fight, and tackled the Starly who was, quite honestly, shocked by this ferocity towards him, but he wasn't going to go down without a fight.

The Starly got back on his feet after having been thrown down so surprisingly by Yani. "Star! Starly!" He answered with a Quick Attack, quickly flying towards Yani to attack her. The attack hit, and Yani buzzed upon the impact, then answered with a Steel Wing of her own. Heidi hadn't told her to use it, but Yani thought it wouldn't hurt to use one. The Starly was surprised by the attack, and fell towards the ground. Yani flew over towards him, and looked over him, seeing if he was alright. Which seemed to be the case because she got a tackle from the Starly followed by a growl. Yani buzzed away, flying towards Heidi.

"You did well." Heidi told her. The Starly was still up and about, flying towards them, but Heidi was quick to grab one of the empty Pokéballs and threw it at the Starly. It came as a surprise to the Starly, but he couldn't evade it, getting sucked into it via a red beam that came out upon contact with the button on it. The ball landed on the ground, shaking. Heidi waited in anticipation to hear the click, but it didn't come as the Starly broke out of it. "Dammit! Maybe I should have weakened him further..."

Thinking over her options, she sent Yani again. "Yani, use another Tackle!" Yani nodded and tackled the Starly again. "Now, follow it with another Steel Wing!" Yani did as her trainer wanted her to, and soon enough, the Starly was on the ground. Heidi threw another Pokéball at him, which again he got sucked into in a red beam, but this time with less struggle. The Pokéball shook a few times before a click was heard. "Yes!" she called and picked up the Pokéball. She let him out of it and wrapped her arms around him in a hug. "I think I'll name you George. Seems like a good name." She giggled as the exhausted Starly just let this girl hold him in her arms.

"Oh! I'm almost forgetting." Heidi picked up her Pokédex from one of her pockets and scanned George with it.

[table border=2]
[tr]
[td rowspan=7]

[/td]
[td]#396: Starly ♂[/td]
[td]Starling Pokémon[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]

[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Height: 1' 00" / 0.3 m.[/td]
[td]Weight: 4.4lbs. / 2.0kg.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Ability: Keen Eye[/td]
[td]Prevents the Pokémon from losing accuracy[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Moves: Tackle. Growl. Quick Attack.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2].[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]They flock around mountains and fields, chasing after bug Pokémon. Their singing is noisy and annoying. [/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

"What? No. That's not correct. It's not noisy and annoying. Hmpf. Some info you are. Although the former info there would explain why you were chasing after those Wurmples." George only sighed and couldn't bother to do much other than be held. "You'll make a good addition to the team." Heidi said to him, which got a bit of a smile from him.

 

[Fragrance of Mtn Dew]

Alan quietly followed Alix and the others to the lab where plenty of other Trainers seemed to have gathered. He wouldn't have minded chatting with some of the others there, but Clay occupied his attention for most of the time because the Tyrogue's bad mood seemed to have worsened considerably. Clay trudged slowly behind Alan with a scowl on his face the whole way to Professor Willow's lab and all the way to Route 1 as well. It wasn't hard for Alan to figure out why either. He had promised to a race to the lab and had decided against it in favor of traveling with fellow newcomers to the region after all. Even Alan might be a little upset if it had happened to him.

Thankfully, Kayla had offered him the perfect opportunity to turn things around. He wasn't one to pass up a challenge, and her challenge to them to capture a Pokemon here in the tall grass would be no exception. A good battle would probably be enough to cheer Clay up and since Kayla had mentioned the Gym Leader Barret used Ground types, it would be good to pick up a Flying Pokemon and have Clay practice against a type he wasn't very good against.

"Alright Clay, listen up" Alan finally said, looking down at Clay. Clay looked back up at his Trainer, still scowling a little but obviously willing to listen. "Sorry about not having that race earlier like I promised. But now I have an even better way for you to train. Think you can handle it?"

Clay growled fiercely in response but Alan could see that he wasn't going to back down either. "Good. Now, we know that our next opponent uses Ground Types. That's not really a good or bad match up for you so we're gonna improve our odds by catching a Flying Pokemon. The odds are against you here so you're gonna have to push yourself to the limit. Are you ready?"

Alan could see the determination in Clay's eyes as they lit up and the Tyrogue began nodding vigorously, excited at the idea of such a fight. "Good, good. You have the right attitude when it comes to training at least... Now then, just gotta find a good bird." Alan said with a grin, turning his gaze up to the sky. After a bit, he spotted a tough looking little bird that seemed promising. He pulled the Pokedex out of his pocket along with a Pokeball and scanned the Pokemon.

[table border=2]
[tr]
[td rowspan=7]

[/td]
[td]#276: Taillow[/td]
[td]Tiny Swallow Pokemon[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]

[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Height: 1'00" / 0.3m[/td]
[td]Weight: 5.3lbs / 2.3kg[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Ability: Scrappy[/td]
[td]Enables moves to hit Ghost-type Pokémon. [/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Moves: Peck. Growl. Focus Energy[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2].[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2] It has a gutsy spirit that makes it bravely take on tough foes. It flies in search of warm climates. [/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

"Well, reminds of a certain other tough little guy I know. Think he'll be a good opponent?" Alan asked after reading the Taillow's information out loud to Clay. "We just have to wait for him to land now...." Alan continued, watching the bird closely until it descended into the nearby tall grass. That made Alan a bit nervous since the last time he'd set foot in tall grass, he'd been mauled by a Miltank. But he would just have to get over that if he wanted to get anywhere on this journey.

"Alright, get the drop on him. Go in and tackle him!" Alan commanded and Clay darted into the grass towards his unsuspecting foe. Alan heard the Taillow cry out in surprise as Clay crashed into him and threw him roughly to the ground. The tiny bird recovered quickly though and scrambled back to it's feet, letting out a fierce growl that sounded out of place coming from such a small bird.

The growl seemed to have caught Clay off guard too as he hesitated to deliver any follow up blows. The Taillow seized the moment and closed the gap between the two, pecking fiercely at Clay. The sight of Clay getting beat on by a bird that was half his size was somewhat amusing to Alan, but he knew that if Clay actually lost this fight it wouldn't be good for his morale. So tough for such a little guy... He'll definitely be a good asset for the team. And learning to fight against him will be a good lesson for Clay.

"Remember what I taught you Clay! You can't just use brute force to get you through every fight. That bird is quick so you have to be quick too! Use your Foresight to read it's movements and land a decisive blow!" Alan called out to the weary confused and tormented Clay. Hearing that, Clay began to focus on watching the Taillow. The next time he went in for a peck Clay managed to sidestep, throwing the Taillow off balance and leaving it wide open. "Alright, you know what to do!" Alan shouted, and Clay immediately followed up with another Tackle.

The Taillow hit the ground hard once again, but did not rise as quickly this time. Alan took advantage of this and tossed the Pokeball he was holding at it. A red light shot out as the ball opened, sucking the Taillow inside before falling to the ground and shaking for a bit. A few moments later there was a click which seemed to indicate that the capture was successful. "Alright, he was a tough one but you got him Clay! You did good, but I hope that this shows you still have a long way to go." Alan said, giving Clay a friendly pat on the head as he walked over to pick up the ball.

"Now then, we have a new buddy and sparring partner for you. Let's think up a good strong sounding name for him eh? I like.... Samson. Yeah, Samson sounds like a good name." Clay nodded eagerly at this. Alan figured that this would be good for him. He could plan out a training routine for Clay but he couldn't exactly spar with a Pokemon even if his arm were still in good shape.

Since it seemed like a good time to take a quick break, Alan made his way over to a tree by the road and sat down against it. Even something as simple as that was awkward though with the cast keeping his left arm locked in a bent position. "Man, I can't wait for this arm to get healed. It's so stiff...." He muttered to himself as he reached into his bag and pulled out two protein bars for himself and Clay, handing one to the Tyrogue as he sat down next to his trainer. "Here ya go. A little snack to celebrate a job well done."

"We'll rest up here for another minute or two and then move on. Gotta meet up with Kayla and show her that we did her little challenge."

 

[Lambi]

Excited over getting a new Pokémon, Heidi started by putting George into his ball again. He'd fought well against Yani, and deserved a rest. Yani was as excited as her trainer, and looked around for more Pokémon to fight. Heidi and Yani took some time to fight a few Pokémon, a few Rattatas, Lillipups, Sentrets and Pidgeys were Yani's main pray.

They both sat down after a while and rested against one of the trees, Heidi a bit exhausted while Yani seemed to need the rest more. She sat on Heidi's head and enjoyed the mix of sunlight and shadow from the tree they were under. Heidi patted Yani's head who buzzed in delight. "You're doing well, Yani. And one day, you'll be a big Yanmega and will be able to carry me around instead of the opposite." She giggled at it and Yani buzz-laughed.

Heidi stood up and Yani flew back into the air as they both looked around for more Pokémon. As it so happened, they'd been sitting under a tree that seemed to be filled with Pokémon. Not just any Pokémon either. It was filled with Combees. Sparks practically formed in Heidi's eyes at the thought of having more Bug Pokémon on her team. "Sweet! Now if we could just find a female amongst them, that would be even better. Yani, fly around and see if you can't find a female Combee."

Yani buzzed as she flew up into the tree, looking around. Heidi picked up George's Pokéball as well, and let him out. She grabbed a Potion from her backpack and sprayed it on George, making him perk and liven up. Heidi smiled at that. "George, I'd like you to help Yani to look for a female Combee." she said as she pointed towards all the Combees up in the tree. George looked up, then nodded and started flying around as well. "Remember, a female Combee has a red triangle on the middle face's forehead!" she called to Yani and George.

The two Pokémon flew around, searching for a female Combee. All over they looked, but saw nothing but male ones. Until Yani spotted a female one and buzzed at George. "Yan yan!" Over here! George quickly flew over to her and saw the female Combee. They nodded to each other, than tackled her both at the same time. The Combee was startled, and fell towards the ground with Yani and George on top of her. The other Combees apparently didn't take well to them attacking their future queen and all went to rescue her. However, Heidi and her two Pokémon would have none of that. While Heidi ran towards them and grabbed the female Combee, Yani and George fought off the male Combees that attacked. Not that Yani was doing much good since their Gust attacks were taking their toll on her.

Once Heidi was far enough, she picked up an empty Pokéball and poked the female Combee with it. The two tackles from Yani and George seemed to have been enough to weaken it, along with the fall it had suffered. In her hand, the Pokéball shook and after a little bit, a click was heard. "Sweet!" She looked back towards Yani and George, and figured she'd help them now that she'd caught the Combee. She picked up Yani's Safari Ball and George's Pokéball and called them back with the red beams that came out of the two balls, then hid behind a tree. The male Combees were confused as to where they had gone, and upon not finding them, they gave up and went back to their tree, sad to have lost their future queen.

Meanwhile, Heidi returned to the path forward, happy to now have three Pokémon. All dual types, two of them Bug types and all three Flying types. That Ground gym was as good as won now. She reached into her pocket and picked up her Pokédex, then scanned the Combee's ball.

[table border=2]
[tr]
[td rowspan=7]

[/td]
[td]#415: Combee ♀[/td]
[td]Tiny Bee Pokémon[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]

[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Height: 1' 00" / 0.3 m.[/td]
[td]Weight: 12.1lbs. / 5.5kg.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Ability: Hustle[/td]
[td]The Pokémon trades accuracy for power[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Moves: Sweet Scent. Gust.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2].[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]The trio is together from birth. It constantly gathers honey from flowers to please Vespiquen.[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

"Not anymore, you will. I think I'll name you Eve. Seems like a nice name." Heidi mused to herself as she placed the Pokédex back into her pocket.

 

[Mr. Omega]

Russel and Munchie had spent quite a bit of time just poisoning any Pokemon that tried to go after them. Munchie seemed to be getting into the swing of knocking out the pokemon. It was clear he was getting stronger. Several Rattata, Zigzagoon and Patrats were going at his legs, trying to get to his backpack, smelling food. "Ok. First thing when we get to the next town... getting repels." he said.

After dealing with a Sentret, Munchie's stomach growled. "Oi. I imagine using all that gas must be taking a bit out of you. Maybe we oughta take a quick rest..." He noticed one of the trainers heading for a tree. "Well, that seems nice. A shady tree, and likely some berries up there. Whadaya think, Munchie?" he said, moving his shoulder to nudge Munchie. Gulp! Munchie seemed happy at the mention of a break.

He walked over to the tree, noticing the Tyrogue and his trainer. Russel went over to the opposite side of the tree so he wouldn't disturb them "Pardon me..." Once he was on the other side, he looked up at the tree, examining whatever was growing there. "Hm. Oran Berries. A nice find. Common in this kind of location." He set down his backpack, opening it. "Ok... there seem to be about 25 or so berries... but only ten of them seem ripe enough to pick..." He poked Munchie. "Ok, you can drop down nine, and have the tenth for yourself." He said, and Munchie nodded in agreement. Russel put Munchie in his hand, extending it as his up as he could, climbing a little so Munchie could jump to one of the branches. Once Munchie was off, he slumped back to the ground, opening up his backpack. Munchie went to the first berry, picked it, and threw it into the open bag. He then turned to the next branch, mustered up what energy he could and jumped to it.

As Munchie worked on harvesting, Russel, put his hands behind his head and leaned back against the tree, laying down. "Ok... so, you've gotten a bit tougher dealing with all these Pokemon. But the first gym leader is still going to have a type advantage, and probably be at a high level." He said, half to Munchie and half to himself. Munchie nodded, throwing down the fourth berry. "We can't just go forward and try to make him pass out with smog. And pound isn't going to get us much further, either. We can't win this in a straightforward fight. We'll have to outsmart them."

Gulpinpin? Munchie said, hopping to the next branch. "Well, I could get another pokemon... but I think we can do better at the lake. That's why we're going there first. Maybe we can find another strong Pokemon. And if not, we can get some last minute training." With one last *plop*, the ninth berry fell into his backpack. Munchie grabbed the last one, opening his mouth wide open and swallowing it whole, sighing happily once he finished it.

"Ok... come on back down." After a couple seconds, Munchie jumped down from the tree into the backpack. Russel went to look over, seeing Munchie try and pick up a second berry. "Munchie!" he said sternly. Munchie gave him a sad look, holding up the oran berry. "Look, if you asked, I would have said yes." Munchie's face lit up, once again eating the whole thing in one bite before Russel picked him up out of the bag. "But in exchange, we're going right back to training once I rest up. We'll go after some bigger targets. You aren't going to get any stronger just using Rattata as targets."

 

[Pm0n3y]

Over the progression of time, Morgan seemed to find himself becoming increasingly friendly towards the young Poochyena, and it with him. And good thing too, seeing as he really couldn't traverse the thick proceedings of Route 1 without a compliant pokémon. He brought his attention back to the budding dark-type, who looked up to the sailor-turned-trainer with wagging tail.

"Wanna help me through this forest bud?" He asked opportunely. The Poochyena replied with a happy bark, seemingly excited to be a part of Morgan's plans. Satisfied with the Bite Pokémon's decisions, Morgan began to rise to feet, only to stop midway. He had almost forgot something. He reached in his bag, brandishing a pokéball and his pokédex. The capture device enlarged while in Morgan's grasp, feigning a strain of curiosity from the Poochyena. It began to sniff at the ball, its nose brushing against the white button of the device. Due to this, the Poochyena dissolved into red light, now finding it's new place in the pokéball.

Morgan watched as the device rattled in his hand, the button's red light growing and fading with each shake. The light faded one last time, the act accompanied with a clicking sound. Suddenly, his pokédex beeped with a confirmation of new information. As Morgan anticipated, it was the stats and info pertaining to the newly caught Poochyena. Morgan nodded and rose to his feet before letting the Poochyena back out.

"C'mon...Spike, let's go find me another 'mon. Yeah...Spike works. Has a nice ring to it. Don't you think so?" He asked the newly named Poochyena. He yapped in agreement before leading the way, with Morgan not too far behind. It seemed Spike knew a thing or two about the surroundings. Morgan saw this as a good thing, thinking that his new friend could show him something out of the ordinary. Watching the Poochyena trot playfully ahead, the sailor sprung another thought, this one being towards the group of trainers that also wandered through the forest. He wondered if he'd run into one at a unwanted time, like in the middle of a battle or during some similar situation of sorts. He wondered if he and Spike would be able to lend a proper hand and paw, if their assistance would even be wanted.

 

[SkyeNeko]

Eurydice had a big grin on her face. Ponyta was a natural at this. The horse pokemon had plowed through several Ratata, Zigzagoon, and Patrat. She didn't need to tell her what to do outside of a few whistles and clicks. The pokemon she hadn't seen before were nice to look at, but she didn't really want any of them. She glanced over a few bird pokemon, but hand't found "the one" yet. Instead, she followed Ponyta, sketching the random pokemon they found. Maybe one of the other trainers knew what they were.

A small cry got her attention. "Dew! Budew! Bu-dew!" Her Ponyta was butting a small green ball around, apparently having fun playing with it rather than attacking it. The Budew looked quite angry at not being taken serious, but it was too tiny to do anything. "Fweeeet!" The Ponyta nudged the Budew one more time before running back over to Eurydice. She walked slowly up to the small pokemon. "Dew!" It jumped at her, clearly upset. Eurydice jumped back in surprise, snapping and pointing back to the small pokemon. Ponyta, glad to oblige, ran up and started to play with it again, tossing it up and smacking it around. "Dew! Budew! Budew!" It ran behind Eurydice, trying to hide. "Dew!" Eurydice held the excited Ponyta back with a hand, content that it was weakened enough, Eurydice dug a pokeball out of her pocket and tapped it to the small thing. It disappeared in a red flash, and after a few, the ball clicked closed.

Yeees! She excitedly took out her Pokedex and scanned the ball.

[table border=2]
[tr]
[td rowspan=7]

[/td]
[td]#406: Budew ♀[/td]
[td]Bud Pokémon[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]

[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Height: 0' 08" / 0.2 m.[/td]
[td]Weight: 2.6lbs. / 1.2kg.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Ability: Poison Point[/td]
[td]Contact with the Pokémon may poison the attacker.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Moves: Absorb. Growth.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2].[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Sensitive to changing temperature, the bud is said to bloom when it feels the sun's warm touch.[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

Wait... Poison Point!? She turned in time to see her Ponyta wobbling around, sick. Ponyta! She helped the pokemon to kneel down, digging in her bag for her berries. She only had a few Lum berries, but she didn't want to use them all up at once. Remember to buy Antidotes and Paralyze heals at the next town... She ran up to the nearest trainer, quickly scrawling Trade a Potion -> Pecha Berry She had seen him collecting Oran Berries, and hoped he had some of the Pecha berries.

 

[Mr. Omega]

Russel was leaning back, relaxing in the shade with his eyes closed and Munchie right next to him. He was interrupted, however, when Munchie started jabbing his leg. "Muh...?" he said, sitting up, noticing the girl in front of him. He noticed the board, and read it, but was still confused. "Is something up?" He then re-read the contents, and remembered she was the girl with the Ponyta. He sat up a little more, looking over to see the fiery horse looking sick. "OOOH... right, I'll get right on that." He started rummaging through his bag, looking for the right berry.

"So I take it you don't talk that much." he said, reaching towards the bottom of the bag. "Not sure what the deal is, but I ain't gonna question it." he finally pulled out a Pecha Berry, throwing it to the girl. "Oi, what's your name, anyway? Actually, it can wait. Your buddy needs you. Don't worry about the potion, this one's on the house." he said, shooing the girl away.

 

[SkyeNeko]

She smiled widely, catching the Pecha berry. It was pretty soft, and smelled nice, but she had to run over and give it to Ponyta. The Ponyta ate the berry in one gulp, making Eurydice wonder how "sick" she was. The Ponyta stood up, shaking her mane out. Eurydice clapped her hands, hugging the Ponyta.

She ran back over to Russel, putting her hands together and bowing quickly in gratitude. Remembering his questions, she pulled out her trusty sketchpad, having to go back a few pages to show him her name and its pronunciation. She knelt down to look at the Gulpin, remembering her Ponyta had been bothering it before. She smiled and offered her hand to it to shake.

The Ponyta, meanwhile, wan enjoying the berry. It taste good.

 

[elementsoul]

After a few moments Burtha started to nudge against Erika. It took a moment before Erika looked down at her Swinub. ?[color=00BBDD]Swi. Nub.[/color]? The Pig Pokémon was urging her to move on somewhere else. A slightly quizzical look passed Erika?s face before she got up to move; instantly Burtha took off running.

?Not again,? thought Erika as she took off after Burtha. A path of flattened grass was left by Burtha that Erika followed to a small opening in the grass that had a small berry in the middle. The Swinub had stopped outside of the clearing and was sniffing the air. Suddenly a Pidgey flew down from a nearby tree and started to peck at the berry. Erika recognized the Pokémon and quickly pulled out her Pokédex and scanned the Tiny Bird Pokémon.






Name: Pidgey [color=FF00AA]♀[/color]


Species: Tiny Bird Pokémon


Height: 1'00" / 0.3 m


Weight: 4.0 lbs. / 1.8 kg

Ability: Big Pecks - Protects the Pokémon from Defense-lowering attacks.


Description: It is docile and prefers to avoid conflict. If disturbed, however, it can ferociously strike back.


Moves: Tackle: Normal, Physical.
................Gust: Flying, Special.
................Razor Wind: Normal, Special.


Item: N/A



Interesting, Pidgeys in Johto don?t naturally know Razor Wind. I should probably focus if I want to catch this one and knock it off my list. A small grin appeared on Erika?s face as she looked down at Burtha. ?Burtha, it seems that it you want that berry you?ll need to battle that Pidgey for it.? ?[color=00BBDD]Swi. Swi.[/color]? Burtha replied before Erika told it to use Tackle on the Pidgey.

With the scent of the berry still on her nose, Burtha ran at the Pidgey, knocking it backwards across the ground. Burtha thinking that she had won the berry, darted over to it in order to start eating it. ?Burtha pay attention! You haven?t won yet! Pay attention and use Tackle again!? Erika yelled at her Swinub as it proceeded to take a bite out of the berry.

To Burtha?s surprise a strong gust of wind sent it rolling end over with the partially eaten berry as angry Pidgey took to the sky. The Pig Pokémon took to charging again as the Tiny Bird Pokémon; Erika instantly knew that there was no way for Burtha to hit the Pidgey while it was in the air. ?Burtha you can only Tackle it when it?s close to the ground. You have to get it to fly down somehow,? Erika told Burtha not knowing what to do.

The Pidgey started to rapidly flap its wings and a whirlwind formed around. Erika looked at the forming whirlwind and had no idea what to tell her Swinub to do. ?Burtha watch out! I?m not sure what to do, but do something to avoid being hit!? Erika yelled to her Pokémon. ?[color=00BBDD]Swi. Nub.[/color]? The Pig Pokémon started to roll forward and mud started to kick up into the air.

After a few seconds, the whirlwind was full of dirt and mud. The Pidgey inside was unable to see its target, and began to send the Razor Wind slashes everywhere. Blades of sharp wind flew past Erika and after a few moments they stopped. The whirlwind slowly disappeared in front of her, and the Pidgey slowly lowered itself to the ground. The Swinub it was battling wasn?t visible, so the Pidgey landed on the ground and started to look for the berry from earlier.

Suddenly from within a puddle of mud, Burtha burst forward at the Pidgey using a Tackle attack. The attack connected and the Pidgey flew backwards, shocked from the attack. Quickly Erika took out a Poké Ball and threw it at the Pidgey. It hit and the Pidgey dematerialized into the ball. A violent shake followed, and then another, and then another. Finally after what seemed like an eternity to Erika, a clicking sound was made and the light on the button of the Poké Ball turned from red to white.

Yes I caught my first Pokémon since Burtha! I?m finally becoming an actual trainer! A prideful smile become of Erika?s mouth as she did a little victory walk over to the Poké Ball that contained her newest team member. Meanwhile Burtha was busy sniffing the air, sudden it caught the scent of the berry beneath the mud. It took a second for the Pokémon to uncover the berry, and less time than that to consume the rest of it. Erika watched and laughed at her Pokémon. ?I didn?t know you were that hungry.?

An unanticipated bite was felt at the bottom of her right calf. A quiet yelp escaped Erika?s lips before she looked down at her leg. A grey furred Pokémon with black furred paws and a black furred face was clasped to her leg. A cross look over took Erika?s face as she looked down at the Bite Pokémon. When it appeared the Pokémon wasn?t going to let go Erika shook her leg and it finally let go of her leg. There was no visible blood, but Erika wasn?t about to let the Pokémon she didn?t recognize go; she was going to catch it and teach it some manners.

Erika looked back to her Swinub and yelled, ?Burtha! I need you to help me teach this Pokémon some manners!? The Pig Pokémon took off for her master and Erika turned around. The Poochyena turned around and started to sprint away from Erika. ?No you don?t!? Erika yelled after it, before taking off running behind it. Erika looked behind her and saw that her Swinub was lagging behind, a bit tired from the two battles that he just happened. Erika removed its Poké Ball from her belt buckle and returned it.

Erika placed the Poké Ball on her buckle and looked down at the one containing her recently caught Pidgey. She took out that Poké ball and expanded it before releasing the Tiny Bird Pokémon to be rematerialized. ?[color=661100]Pidge! Pidgey![/color]? Pidgey chirped loudly as it took flight beside Erika. ?I get it. You?re probably mad that I captured you or that you lost to Burtha?s cheap trick. However I need you to get over that. This Grey fur ball bit me and I don?t intend to it go. Think you could hit it with a Gust or something??

The Tiny Bird Pokémon tried to fly forward to head off the Poochyena but it wasn?t faster than it. ?Not possible huh? Alright I think I can stop it for a few seconds.? Erika reached into a pouch on the side of her bag and pulled out an empty Poké Ball. She made a brief stop to steady her aim and threw the Pokéball at the Poochyena. It made contact and the Bite Pokémon was pulled into the ball for a second before the ball broke and it was released.

The normal attempted capture confused the Pokémon for a second as it got out. ?Pidgey quick hit it with a Tackle, and then keep using Gust from a distant height!? Erika commanded. Erika?s Pidgey swiftly swooped down and hit the Poochyena before taking height before the Poochyena could retaliate. As Erika was watching the battle, she pulled out her Pokédex and recorded the Bite Pokémon?s information.






Name: Poochyena [color=FF00AA]♀[/color]


Species: Bite Pokémon


Height: 1'08" / 0.5 m


Weight: 30.0 lbs. / 13.6 kg

Ability: Rattled - Some move types scare it and boost its Speed.


Description: A Pokémon with a persistent nature, it chases its chosen prey until the prey becomes exhausted.


Moves: Tackle: Normal, Physical.
................Howl: Normal, Status.


Item: N/A



Good I thought it might not be able to attack at a distance and I was right. The Poochyena was now looking at the Pidgey fly around in the air and started to howl at it. It was clearly agitated as the Pidgey would use its Gust attack to blow it back from whatever direction it was trying escape into. Erika waited till it failed another attempt to escape and threw a new Poké Ball at the Poochyena.

The grey and black fur turned into red light as the Pokémon was absorbed into the ball. Once again the ball shook violently before coming to a stop with a click. Erika walked over to retrieve the Poké Ball, this time keeping a better eye out for other wild Pokémon in the area. Once she had it in her hand she looked up at the Pidgey, back down at the ball, and then back up at the Pidgey again. ?I guess I?ll need to name you girls,? Erika said.

This is going to be hard. I didn?t even come up with Burtha?s name; that was Jason?s doing. ?I?m not very good with names. How about Selma?? There was an annoyed look from the Pidgey. ?Okay not Selma. How about Aerial, since you?re an aerial bird?? There was a breath pause while the Pidgey thought it over. After it figured that there wasn?t a good chance of a better name coming it up, it gave an agreeable chirp.

Erika looked down at the Poké Ball still in her hand. She released the Poochyena onto the ground in front of her. ?No biting this time,? Erika quickly said to the Pokémon as it took in what happened. ?Now behave while I think of a name for you. Maybe something from a book I read or something. Give me a second?oh I know how about Breña?? The Poochyena sighed, and then said, ?[color=FF0000]Chy.[/color]? Wow I guess I suck at this.

The Bite Pokémon turned around and started to play with the broken Poké Ball before Erika walked over and picked it up. ?I know you might want to play with this, but it?s not a good idea, and I probably shouldn?t leave trash like this lying around.? Erika said before her Poochyena started to whine. ?I?ll see if I can find you a rubber ball or something to play with later already.? A timid whine followed that before Breña submitted. I should probably head back to the route now.

Erika turned around and started to follow her path back to the route?s path. As more Pokémon appeared Erika released Burtha and introduced her to her new teammates before they took turns battling their opponents. A fair few Rattata, Wurmple, Sentret, and Budew were left in their wake, along with an occasional or rare other type of Pokémon.

Finally Erika made her way back to the path to see a few of the others had returned. The Caucasian woman with light brown hair, and the brown woman with black hair in a ponytail that were in the group that came to the research center, had both made their way back before her. I never did get to introduce myself to them before Kayla called us all in.

?I didn?t get a chance to introduce myself earlier before Kayla called us into meet Professor Willow. I?m Erika from Johto. What are your names and where are you from?? Erika asked to both of the woman in the area with a wave.

 

[Tortilla the Hun]

Looking around, Caleb felt a little flustered by the challenge the Willow daughter had issued them and was one of the last to actually move on into the tall grass. This an exciting, frightening experience for him as he'd never actually went into the wilderness to seek out Pokémon, let alone have his own battle another. He knew he had to start sooner or later, and there definitely was no time like the present. Reaching back, the trainer lifted Spike off of his resting place, wincing a bit at the strong static electricity that discharged into his hands. Caleb set the Elekid on the ground, then knelt before him and looked into his eyes as he gave him a pep talk. "Alright, Spike. Now's your time to show these Gensia Pokémon your stuff. I know you've got what it takes to help me nab another Pokémon, but you've gotta believe that you can in order to succeed. Well, do ya?"

The Elekid nodded and grinned broadly, obviously beaming with confidence. Caleb returned the smile and stood, looking around for a Pokémon. "Fantastic. Now let's go make us a new friend."

The pair trekked through the grass, the Elekid bounding through the long stalks while Caleb strided over them. As they moved along, rustling could be heard in the grass around them, like Pokémon darting away at the sound of an approaching person. They were coming towards some trees when they heard some rustling in the leaves. As they drew nearer, the sounds of a Pokémon became more audible. "Mank. Mank. Mankey."

Caleb could make out patches of white fur through the leaves, but not much else. He looked down at Spike and pointed up at the Pokémon in the tree. The Elekid nodded knowingly and, slowly but surely, made his way up the trunk. Suddenly, there was a big commotion in the branches, and suddenly a white and yellow blur shot from the branches and onto the ground below. The Elekid and primate Pokémon had engaged in battle and were locked together until they impacted the dirt. The Mankey stood, a little woozy as it had been beneath Spike at the moment of impact, while Spike had rolled away and stood as well, shaking his head to clear it of leaves then locking eyes with his opponent. Once the Mankey had regained composure, it charged at the Elekid at full-run. "Alright, Spike. You can do this! Hit him with a Dizzy Punch!"

By then, the Mankey had leapt at Spike who already had an arm drawn back, ready to strike at any moment. When the moment was just right, the Elekid threw a powerful punch that landed right on the Mankey's nose. The Mankey was shocked by the blow and stepped back to regroup. However, it proved unsuccessful as the primate's eyes rolled back and it collapsed onto the ground.

"Yes!!" Caleb shouted, throwing his hands so high in the air, the weight of his pack almost caused him to topple backwards. He quickly realized what he needed to do and fumbled with his pack for a Poké Ball. Soon, he had one in his had that expanded shortly before he pressed it against the unconscious primate Pokémon. The Mankey disappeared into the ball in a red flash of energy. Spike looked at the Ball, then turned to Caleb and smiled at him. The trainer nodded at the Elekid in approval. "Ya did it, Spike. I'm proud of ya. Now, time to see who our new friend is."

[table border=2]
[tr]
[td rowspan=7]

[/td]
[td]No. 56: Mankey♂[/td]
[td]Pig Monkey Pokémon[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]

[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Height: 1'08" / 0.5 m.[/td]
[td]Weight: 61.7lbs. / 28.0kg.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Ability: Anger Point[/td]
[td]Maximizes the Pokémon's power when hit with an exceptionally strong attack.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Moves: Scratch, Low Kick, Leer, Focus Energy[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2].[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Mankey are very aggressive and short-tempered. Anyone that gets on its bad side (which is easily done), will receive a severe thrashing.[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

The Mankey's data was quickly displayed on the Pokédex's screen once Caleb scanned the Poké Ball. "Well, Spike, it's a good thing you caught this guy off guard. I don't think he would've given you a warm welcome."

"Kid. Elekid," Spike remarked defensively.

"Oh, I'm sure you would've put up quite the fight," Caleb agreed. "I'm just glad you didn't get hurt. Now, let's meet our new team member on more, um...favorable terms."

Caleb released the Mankey who still looked a little shaken from the battle. He gave his captor a stern look before turning his back to him and sitting down with his arms folded, visibly angry at his unexpected defeat.

"Aww, c'mon, don't be a poor sport," said Caleb.

"Mank," the primate Pokémon grumbled.

"You'll warm up soon enough, I think. Now, what to name you..." Caleb pondered. "How about Porkchop? Y'know, 'cause the nose and..."

The Mankey gave Caleb a very cross look about the idea, practically fuming at the thought.

"You're absolutely right, terrible name," Caleb admitted, nodding in agreement. "Well...how about Maxwell?"

The Mankey's expression softened noticeably, but quickly hid his interest in a facade of frustration.

"Yeah, I think Maxwell suits you," Caleb said, smiling at the newest member of the team. "I have a feeling you're already warming up to it."

The newly named Maxwell only turned his back to Caleb once more, knowing the trainer was right and sulking in yet another defeat. "Mank..."

 

[PrinceOfShapeir]

As Sam followed the others into the grass, he cracked open Willow's ball and let her out, the little Pidove flying up onto his shoulder. "Alright, here we go, Willow. I'm sure in a second something out here is going to jump us. You feel up to giving it what for?"

Willow chirped. Sam wasn't sure if it was eager or just resigned. He nodded, only to flinch back as a stream of fluid flew past his ear, smearing onto Willow's wing. "Oh, what the hell!" A spectacularly ugly insect Pokemon was on the side of a nearby tree, having just shot a wad of some kind of goo out of spines on its tail. Sam quickly grabbed the wad of gunk and pulled it off Willow, now having it smeared all over his hands. "Get in the air, Willow, dodge the shots!" Oh, god, this stuff stinks.

Sam raised his Pokedex, aiming it at the Bug type. What the hell is this thing...

[table border=2]
[tr]
[td rowspan=7]

[/td]
[td]#265: Wurmple ♀[/td]
[td]Worm Pokémon[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]

[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Height: 1'00" / 0.3 m.[/td]
[td]Weight: 7.9lbs. / 3.6kg.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td]Ability: Shield Dust[/td]
[td]Blocks the added effects of attacks taken. [/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Moves: Tackle. String Shot. Poison Sting. Bug Bite.[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2].[/td]
[/tr]
[tr]
[td colspan=2]Often targeted by bird Pokémon, it desperately resists by releasing poison from its tail spikes.[/td]
[/tr]
[/table]

Sam racked his brain, trying to figure out how to deal with this thing. Willow wasn't exactly a skilled fighter, but then again these things were supposed to be target practice for bird-types like Willow. Although even with him scraping off the majority of it, Willow was noticeably more sluggish than usual. Although this thing seemed to have no sense of accuracy and Willow was still fast enough to get out of the way of the poorly aimed shots.

It can't keep that up forever.

"Willow, just keep dodging those shots. Don't try to attack it." Willow chirped something back that seemed a lot like a sarcastic rebuke.

"Yeah, yeah..." The Wurmple fired again, only for the shot to be a thin spray that mostly just dribbled out of the spines. It was out of juice. "Attack, now! Knock it off the tree with your wings!"

Willow chirped again, this time more of an affirmative, and moved in close, quickly passing the tree and buffeting the bug-type with the wind off her wings. The first pass the bug-type swayed but stayed on. As Willow came around for a second pass, Sam pulled a ball out of his bag and readied it. As she passed the second time, the bug fell off, falling to the ground where it lay for a few seconds, stunned.

More than enough time for Sam to make his throw, the bug-type disappearing into the ball as he nailed it dead center. He pumped his fist, a broad grin crossing his face. That had been exhilarating.

What the -hell- had he been doing picking pockets?

Willow flew back over to him as he moved to collect the ball, chirping in triumph. "Yeah, we did it, Willow. Our first victory. You kicked his ass." He opened the ball, letting the Wurmple out. Sam glanced back at his Pokedex as he got a look at the creature's underbelly as it rolled around. "...excuse me, her ass."

The Wurmple made a rather disconcerting and hostile chittering sound. "Yeah, can it. You're lucky it was me and not a wild Pidgey that found you with that kind of accuracy. I think I'm going to name you Deadeye.""

The Wurmple chittered again, this time sounding more irritable but resigned. "I think we'll get along fine. Willow, stop staring at him like you're going to eat him." Willow looked away for a moment, then continued to stare at the Wurmple. "...need to get you some kind of toy. Or maybe just more food." He put the Wurmple back in the ball, attaching it to his belt, then started looking around for the others of the group.

 

[NeoAC]

The hike back was a little rougher than Robyn remembered from her brief sprint into the thick of the woods. There were a few odd sticking roots that she had to jump to avoid, and there was a shot of pain every time. Still, the events in the woods kept her going through. Two new Pokemon, although that other one is still in a bad way. Might have to use one of those Potions on it. I don't have that many though.

When she emerged from the woods, she looked around to see if any other members of the group were there, so she could possibly get a free Potion off of someone more well off, but the only one she spotted right away was Alix. Well, at least she looks like she has some money. She could probably spare a Potion for...Shit, no names yet either. But before she could say a word, someone else who she hadn't noticed decided to step up and talk.

"I didn't get a chance to introduce myself earlier before Kayla called us into meet Professor Willow. I'm Erika from Johto. What are your names and where are you from?"

Robyn turned and found the Asian girl from Willow's Lab standing there. "Oh, well, I'm Robyn. I'm from Unova. This is Alix, she's from...I don't know. Anyway, can either of you help me out? I knocked this little flyer out cold in the forest and I was hoping I could find a Potion for it until we get to the next town." She brought out the Pokeball and released the Pokemon Sentret had knocked down for her. It emerged as a fluffy lump on the dirt road, still not moving and softly breathing. "I just want to make sure that she's stable until we get her to a center."

 

[Mr. Omega]

"Eurydice, eh? Odd name. Then again, a lot about you seems odd..." he said, getting up to his feet. "No offense. Odd ain't a bad thing." He said, groaning as he stretched. Munchie shook Eurydice's hand, appreciating the friendly gesture. "So, you with any of these other trainers?" He started walking away from the tree, heading back towards the road, still looking around for some pokemon to fight. "Come on... need something a little more challenging..." he muttered, ony paying half of his attention to Eurydice now. Munchie was deep in the tall grass, managing to stay at the same speed as Russel, which wasn't that fast. "I wonder how much longer this route is, anyway..."

 

[RBMidknight]

"Ziiig. Zag."

The first Pokemon Elias encounted wasn't very hostile and in fact seemed to be happy to walk along the road. Curious about the Pokemon's ability Elias scanned the creature as it passed. He scrolled through the resulting data. "Zigzagoon...walks in zigzag fashion. Well I figured that out. It is good at finding items in the grass and even in the ground. Cool."

"Rattata"

"Huh?" A muted Pokemon cry drew Elias further away from the road and towards grass that grew steadily higher until it almost reached his knees. "Rattata" The cry was closer this time. 'Aha!' A Pokemon was shuffling through the grass. All Elias could see was a tail as it darted towards a patch of plants Elias didn't recognize. Once it stopped to eat Elias could see the Pokemon more clearly. Smaller than the first this Pokemon had large round ears and purple fur. And really big teeth. Elias lifted his Pokedex to get the new data.

Rattata

the device stated. The beep of the Pokedex startled the Rattata. It froze and hissed a warning.

"Rattata! The tiny creature had its not-so-tiny teeth lined up with Elias' foot.

"Dune are you up for a battle?" He asked. The Rattata wasn't very big. It could be a good warm up battle.

"Dile." Dune answered lazily.

"Okay. Now use...your bite attack."

"Sandile!" Dune's attitude of laziness vanished as he moved towards Rattata, opening his jaw to snap.

"Rrrrat!" The small Pokemon stirred up loose grass from the ground as it tried to flee but it wasn't fast enough to avoid Sandile's jaw which closed on half of its body. Squeaking in anger the Rattata began hitting Sandile with its tail. One of the flailing hits must have irritated Dune because the Sandile's gripped loosened. "Keep going, use your rage." Elias suggested. He was still standing a short distance away but slowly circled the combatants. He slipped his sunglasses on to counter the sun's glare.

A muffled cry of agreement answered the trainer. Dirt and grass stirred as the translucent attack impacted Rattata. "Rat!" complained the Pokemon as it tumbled through the grass. "Okay now I'm supposed to use one of these." Taking out a new Poké Ball Elias threw it underhanded to where Rattata lay motionless. The device flashed, swallowing Rattata's form in a beam of light. "Steady. Steady." Elias crossed his fingers out of habit. The Poké Ball rolled twice and then stilled.

"It worked! Awesome." Elias enthused. He ran to pick up the Poké Ball, holding it high in triumph. "Victory." To his surprise, holding the evidence of his success, it felt like he'd reached the top of a new mountain. 'I can do this.'

"Let's see what else we can find." He suggested to Dune.

Sandile tilted his head to the side, a gesture of nonchalance. "Sandile." He would be happy to just lay in the sun. Though Elias noticed that Dune seemed a bit more energized after the battle.

The next rustle of grass Elias spotted was only a few yards away. This time a four legged green Pokemon appeared. It looked a little like a picture he'd seen once at the art gallery back home. Only, that Pokemon had been a lot bigger. And more yellow.

This one was all green with only a few strips of yellow. "Hey there little guy..." Stepping closer Elias offered his hand. It looked friendly. Maybe if he could just...

Sparks flew from the Pokemon. "Ow!" Some of the sparks caught Elias' hand, sending a weird tingling sensation through it. He shook the injured limb and scowled down at the Pokemon. "That hurt."

The Pokemon yipped before ducking its head close to the ground. It moved slightly from side to side. "You want to play?" Now that Elias looked closer he saw more sparks whenever the Pokemon's feet touched ground. He scanned the Pokemon while it decided to circle him and sniff in his general direction. "Electrike. Using electricity stored in its fur, it - Yow!" This time his leg was shocked and momentarily numb. "Stop that!" Elias complained.

"Dune, can you battle Sparky here?"

As his trainer hopped on one foot the Sandile shuffled closer. "Diiiile." he replied. Electrike stopped jumping around Elias to face Dune. Instead of continuing to be being playful it growled.

"Okay guys I want a good clean fight. Dune try starting with bite again."

"San!"

Dune launched himself foward, sharp teeth snapping and aimed at the other Pokemon's head. Electrike froze for a brief second and then its fur stood on end to accompany the wave of electricity that radiated from its body. Sandile latched on to one of Electrike's forelegs and shook his head.

"Dune? Hey, are you okay?" Elias asked.

"Sandile..." the Pokemon answered but Elias wasn't sure what the answer meant.

"Okay...well use Rage." Electrike gave a pained cry as the requested attack hit. Another wave of sparks washed over Sandile. "Dune?" Elias didn't like the looks of those attacks. "Dune!" Especially when his Pokemon stopped talking! Electrike blurred into motion, charging straight towards the unmoving Dune. "Hey!" Elias protested. Both Pokemon disappeared into the taller grass. "Guys?" Elias called as he walked closer. "Dune?"

"Di." Sandile had the Electrike's foot caught in its mouth and was refusing to budge though sparks radiated off of the Pokemon's whole body.

"Good job." Elias laughed and pulled out a new Poké Ball. He opted for one of his two Great Balls this time. "Let go when I say, okay?...now!" Elias tossed the device and Sandile released his prey at the same time.

The Poké Ball bounced off of Electrike's head prompting an irritated whine. The sound disappeared as the Pokemon was transported into the device. The Poké Ball rocked back and forth again, with more force than it had with Rattata. Elias counted each shake until the Poké Ball stilled.

"All right!" He was two for two so far. "We did it." Retrieving his Pokedex Elias checked the Pokemon's now completed data.



Thunder Wave


Name: Electrike ♀


Type: Lightning Pokémon


Height: 2'00" / 0.6 m


Weight: 33.5 lbs / 15.2 kg

Ability: Static - Contact with the Pokémon may cause paralysis.

Description: Using electricity stored in its fur, it stimulates its muscles to heighten its reaction speed.


Item: N/A


OT: Elias Lanford // 53504



"Oh. See now I know more about you...girl. Sorry about that." Elias apologized to the absent Pokemon.

"Diille." complained Dune.

"Huh?" Elias looked over to see sparks still crossing the Pokemon's body. Dune wasn't moving and he was upside down. "What happened to you?" he asked. Dune gave an agitated cry. "You're not moving? Why are you not moving? You're not moving because...oh, you're paralyzed!" Shoving his new capture into his pocket Elias dug out a bottle labeled

Paralyze Heal

from his pack. "I think this is supposed to help." Elias tilted the open bottle over top of Dune. After a few seconds Dune's tail began to move again, then his feet, and finally Dune flipped himself right-side up. "Sandile!" "Ha. Okay. We're good." Dropping the half-empty bottle back into his pack Elias returned Dune to his Poké Ball to rest. "Now where to next."