Orre Exploration

[Yoshimitsu]

There was a time when Orre was not the perfect spot for a journey. Blistering deserts, very little water, not even wild pokemon to catch. However, thanks to Project Noah, that had changed. There were now wild pokemon in Orre.

However, that wasn't necessarily a good thing. In the top left hand corner or Orre, there was a mysterious building that was always kept locked. Many people believed it was an abandoned warehouse, or a forgotten building. Only the people inside knew its true identity.

"Move those pokemon over there into shipping." A deep voice ordered.
"Yes sir." Said a much meeker voice. A tall man, with dark brown, almost black hair that went to his shoulders, wearing a deep red sleeve-less hooded top and black jeans, who was clearly the leader, stood in front of a glass wall. Through the wall, there was a Gardevoir tied to a bed. Attached to the ceiling was a long, steel probe.
"Cancel the experiment." The leader said.
"But sir-!" Another figure said.
"No buts! The experiment is to be cancelled. Ship this pokemon to the lab. They need a strong psychic type to test a new form." The leader said firmly.
"A new form?" The figure said, evidently interested.
"That's classified information." The leader said, sounding slightly angry.
"Yes sir. I'll ship it right away." The figure said, sounding just as meek as the other person. He quickly walked into the room and withdrew the pokemon into a pokeball.

"A new form... Yes... But they also mentioned a drawback... I can only imagine what this drawback is." The leader said.



In the middle of the desert, there was a panel. It was hard to notice, hidden under a foot of dry, shifting sand. Only by accident did most discover it, and they thought it was a bit of scrap metal. Anyone who thought otherwise generally disappeared a few days afterwards. This panel lead to an underground laboratory.

It was not a pleasent place. Inside, if it were not for the sound-proof windows, the shrieks of pokemon would fill the air. Rooms almost identical to the room in the seemingly abandoned warehouse were dotted throughout this lab, some of them even filled with more than just a probe. This was clearly where those pokemon were being shipped to.

"Report." A cold sounding voice said.
"Kwai is sending over another shipment of pokemon. Also, he is sending over a Gardevoir." A man said, looking over some documents on a supercomputer.
"A Gardevoir? His Gardevoir? Yes... Perfect, even. His Gardevoir has all the power and strength of mind we need for an experiment of this scale." The first man said.
"Sir, are you sure that this is safe?" The second man said.

"Safe? Ha ha ha. Of course it's not safe. What's safe about it? We're messing with a psychic pokemon's inner power, inner darkness." The first man said, with a sadistic laugh. "All psychic pokemon have the power to tap into other creature's emotions. These emotions could be positive, which promotes strength and morality in the pokemon. However, a good amount of these emotions are negative. What happens to these emotions? The pokemon stores them inside, prefering to ignore them rather than use them to boost power."
"Sir, wont this kill the pokemon?" The second queried.
"There is that chance. However, it is only a fifty per cent chance. I'm willing to take those odds." The first man said with a cruel smile.




Leon stood, alone, at the Outskirt Stand. This was his first time in the Orre region. He had heard a lot of stories about the Orre region. For example, how the desert is uninhabitable. However, ever since Project Noah had taken place, there had been a good few species populating the region. Leon smiled as he saw the ground type pokemon run through the desert merrily. having never been so free in their lives. His gaze wandered over to the de-railed locomotive, and he saw a few grass and water types taking refuge out of the sun and under the stand.

"Heh." Leon said, smiling. "This place really is cool. Metaphorically speaking, of course."

OOC- Blah. Stupid C+Ping ¬_¬

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

He seemed uncomfortable when he stepped onto the platform. It wasn't often that he operated out in the open - he preferred his stealth.

He wasn't exactly noteworthy - a lot of strangely dressed people wandered through Orre.

The first thing one would notice about him, if anyone would have, was his eyes - a shade of bluish-grey, like mist upon a dark ocean. Eyes set within a soft-featured (and rather gender-ambiguous) face, hidden behind strands of long, unkempt pale blue hair - and a midnight blue scarf that covered the lower half of it, from the nose down, billowing gently in the desert wind.

The worn forest cloak he always wore was now set loosely on his shoulders (and not draped around him completely, hiding his tallish, lithe yet athletic form) - but still seemed to take the coloration of his surroundings as he walked. Under the cloak, he wore a complex-looking, sleeveless greyish-blue shirt and what looked like jeans in a darker tone.

His feet were encased in what bore a similarity to boots - but made of a soft material in a segmented manner. They were made of extremely complex fibers that made them as tough as combat boots while making his movements more silent than a cat's. You wouldn't have been able to hear his footsteps even if he passed right by you.

He seemed like if he wanted, he could disappear into thin air.

And yet, he walked onwards towards the Outskirt Stand, taking in the sights. His tracking missions never brought him so far away from his usual range of operations. But he's been informed in particular that this was one of the most critical ones.

The trainer looked around, surveying the scene with a light grin. He has done desert conditions before - and his cloak functioned perfectly.

But first he had to find out some things about the region - and possibly about his quarry. He turned to the first trainer he saw - A green-haired teenager that seemed to be rather impressed with the place., and walked silently towards him.

"Um, excuse me." he said softly - his voice was very soft, and had a feminine quality of sorts to it. "But I'm afraid that I've never really been to this area. Do you, by any chance know where can I find out more about it?"

 

[daxx0r]

Mike walked slowly towards the outskirt stand. It was still pretty far away; he could just make it out on the horizon. He stroked his hand through his hair, and wiped the sweat from his forehead onto his black half-fingered leather gloves. He liked those gloves. He had gotten them for his birthday last year... so much had happened since then. After extensive training, he had finished among the top four in the Indigo League. Despite the work he had put into it, he had never really felt motivated to become a truly great trainer before, but getting so close to the top was enough to give him the urge he needed to push for the top. This trip was part of that push. Orre wasn't very populated, and Mike hoped that his time there would teach him to be more self-reliant.

He took off his leather jacket and swung it over his shoulder, revealing a white t-shirt underneath. It was too hot to wear leather in these parts. His khaki pants however, were perfectly suited for the desert climate. They were airy and nice. Without his jacket, he quickly cooled off. He took his water bottle, which was hanging from a strap over his shoulder, and took a sip of water.

He gazed over to his old friend Charizard. Charizard was Mike's very first Pokémon. He remembered raising it, since it was little charmander. He always felt a deep connection with Charizard, even from the very moment they first met. Mike explained it by saying that they both had a fiery spirit burning inside them. They longed for action, and adventure. Mike offered the water bottle, but Charizard gently declined. Charizard loved the hot, dry air in the desert, and didn't feel warm, or thirsty at all.

Mike took another sip and then slowly closed the bottle. The water was warm and icky. Soon, Mike thought to himself, they'd be at the stand, and maybe he could get something cold in him.

 

[Linkachu]

"Another coke, please!" Maria waved her empty glass and called from her booth near the back of the Outskirt Stand. Usually she would've been less vocal and actually gotten off her butt to get the drink herself, but she was beat. A girl like her, raised in a perpetually snowy area, wasn't accustomed to the endless heat of the Orre desert. Winters and Orre were as opposite as two locations could get.

Yes, the teenaged girl was definitely far from home, and most certainly out of her natural element. Not that she'd never been away from home before, though. Maria had already journeyed through her home region of Eagleland and assembled a team of six Pokemon, not to mention made a few good human friends a long the way. Still, there'd only been one location in all of Eagleland that she'd downright loathed - Scaraba and the desert beyond - which Orre was very much reminding her of right about now.

Why had she come to Orre at all with this knowledge then? Good question. Even she wasn't 100% sure anymore. The allure of taking part in the various Orre Colosseum battles had just been too great to pass up. Her dad, one of the main coordinators back home at the Winters Pokemon Academy, had received an information package on the battles which sounded great to a poor bugger like her. Win new, often rare Pokemon, TMs, AND lots and lots of cash. What could be better than that?

A lot of things, actually, which Maria was starting to realize. But she was dealing. Mostly. When things got really tough she just called out her Vaporeon, Bellatrix, to hose her down. It was amazing how fast your clothes dried in the Orre sun even when soaked right through.

Either way, it was starting to become all too clear exactly why Orre had so many fast breaks. Who'd really want to live in a place like that?

"Your drink, miss," a waitress in a light top and short skirt said as she placed the glass of pop on the table. Maria would've smirked at the skimpy clothing if not for the understanding of how much cooler such clothing would be. Her own black cargo pants really soaked up the heat, and she couldn't wear her usual Winters Academy jacket at all. Instead, to keep her connection alive to the prestige school, she wore a grayish-blue t-shirt with the symbol of their local sea monster, Tessie, on the front and the academy logo below it. Even Maria's shoulder length, dark brown hair, which was generally always down, was currently tied back in a ponytail to keep it off her neck.

"Thanks a lot. You don't know how much I appreciate it," Maria replied as she paid the woman for the drink.

"Oh, I can guess," the waitress grinned before hurrying off to fill another order.

The girl downed the glass in a few minutes, finally pulling herself up from her seat and stretching out her arms and legs. "Guess it's about time I headed out again. Phenac City shouldn't be too far away now. I hope." she thought, grabbing for her over-stuffed, one-strap Trainers bag and slipping it on. If worst came to worst she had a thin sleeping bag handy to get her through the night.

Upon exiting the derailed locomotive, Maria couldn't help but double-take at two guys standing a short distance away. One was wearing a cloak and looked even more out of place in the desert than her. "He must be from out of town. Looks a bit lost, too," she grinned, figuring she had nothing to lose and heading towards them to say hi. Who knew? If they were friendly enough and going her way, maybe they could travel together.

"Hey!" She called to the two, waving in hopes that they heard her. She came to stop beside them - a bit intrusive, but chances were she'd never see them again anyways. "Sorry to interupt. Would either of you know how far it is to Phenac City from here? I was hoping to get there before nightfall."

 

[Yoshimitsu]

OOC- OMGZ UPDATEZ!

BIC-

"Can't say I know much about Orre, sorry," Leon said, rummaging through his pockets. He pulled out a crumpled up piece of paper, handed it to this stranger and said, "Here, I have a spare map. Hope it helps."

Leon was about to walk off when he was hit by another wave of conversation. He was popular today, wasn't he?
"Sorry to interupt. Would either of you know how far it is to Phenac City from here? I was hoping to get there before nightfall."
Leon turned to face this girl. She was a very pretty girl, with a definite fashion sense. He gawped for a moment, before realising how stupid he must both look and sound at the moment. After mentally slapping himself, he cleared his throat.
"Dunno how far, miss," he said in an oddly cool voice. "But I know which direction. I'm about to ride there, if you wanna come along."

Leon gestured over to a motorcycle. It was resting against one of the half-buried wheels dotted around. He walked over to it, swung his leg over, put on his helmet and gestured for Maria to follow.

OOC- Katie, you can auto them on t3h bike of d00mz.

 

[Sem]

OOC: I'ma try RPing here, since there's no activity at all on these RP forums. Well... There's Kimi's RP but I'm not so sure if I wanna barge in there just yet...

BIC:

"Blast this heat!" Shouted the 15 year old as he tramped through a worn path in the desert sand. Sweat poured from his forehead and his straight, black hair dangled out in front of his green eyes. He continued to mumble to himself as he walked through the merciless, Orre desert. Seph did not like the heat... at all. He was used to the area surrounding him being cold and brisk. Only rarely did he enjoy basking in sunlight, and this only happened when Seph became extremely cold, which happens less and less. Seph's body gets used to the cold more and more as he becomes older. "Tell me again why I'm here, Sableye." The purple gremlin, who sat on Seph's left shoulder, chuckled. "That's right, cuz one of my few relatives lives out here, in this god-forsaken region. And he happens to want to see me, for some special reason. That's why I'm out here, making my way to some outpost in the middle of nowhere." Seph heard a soft cackle come from his shoulder. He continued to look down as he trudged through the sand. "I hate sand, it gets everywhere." Seph mumbled. This continued on for a few more minutes. "At least my uncle has one of those fancy bathtubs." Seph thought out loud. "I'm going to go in there first thing, strip myself of everything, and lay there in the nice cool water forever and ever and ev-."

"Sable" said the purple creature on Seph's shoulder. Sableye point his arm forward, Seph looked up, and in the distance, he could see...something.

"That better be the outpost." Seph said as he lowered his head again and he continued to follow the path. He arrived there about fifteen minutes later. There were a couple of people outside by a motorcycle talking. Seph walked past them and made his way inside the outpost. He was met by a rush of cool air. Seph breathed it in deeply. Seph walked to the counter and ordered water... a nice tall glass of ice water. He went to the back and sat down at a table. He pulled off his backpack and laid it beside him. Sableye hopped off of Seph's shoulder and onto the table. He pulled out his cell phone from his pocket and checked the time. "He should be here soon." Seph thought as he pulled the cell phone away. A waitress soon came with his water. He thanked the woman and began chugging the glass. He grabbed a napkin and wiped his sweaty forehead. Seph heard a machine coming to a stop outside. Seph downed the rest of the water, grabbed his bag and made his way outside. Sableye followed close behind. Seph walked down the ramp and saw a shiny new hover car. Seph's relatives have always been rich; his uncle was no exception, that's why he owned one of the largest and nicest houses in Phenac City. His uncle climbed out of the car. His uncle was a tall and strong man. His shoulders were broad and his mustached face looked menacing. He had dirty blond hair flowing out behind him. His skin was tan and toned. Despite his dangerous look, he had a kind heart beating in the worked out body of his. Seph looked at his uncle. His uncle smiled as he spotted Seph.

"Seph! Long time no see." he said as he winced at Seph's appearance. Indeed it had been a long time. The last time Seph saw his uncle was when he was seven. "You've grown into a strong young man, Seph."

Seph smiled and greeted his uncle. "Good to see you too, Uncle Will." Seph said as he rounded the car and climbed into the passenger seat with Sableye. Seph noticed that the people he saw outside earlier were gone, as was the motorcycle. Will climbed back into the car and closed the door. He turned the car around and made his way towards Phenac. Seph immediately turned on the AC and continued to cool off. He ran his hand through his hair and brushed it away from in front of his eyes. "So why did you call me all the way out here?" Seph asked.

"Just for a visit," Will replied. "I haven't seen you in eight years and I wanted to see you and how you're doing." Seph simply nodded and put on some ear phones and relaxed in his seat for the rest of the trip. In a half hour's time they had made it to Phenac. Seph's uncle drove the car through the gate and the Phenac streets toward his house, which rested in the north part of the city. Seph looked at the house as they pulled up into the driveway. The house was indeed huge, just as he remembered it.

"I'm going to go wash up," Seph said as he grabbed his bag. Seph heard an "Ok" come from behind him as he made his way into the house. The floor all over the house was tiled with grey marble. Before Seph were two, curved staircases. The same marble was used on the stairs as well. Tall windows were on either side of Seph and lit up the room. A large chandelier hung from the ceiling. Seph ran up the stairs and took a right. He reached his room which was on the left and flung his bag inside. He then continued to run a few more doors down until he reached the guest bathroom. The guest bathroom was rather large. The tile in here was green marble and a pale green bathroom mat sat at the foot of the bathtub. A sink and mirror was on the right wall. A towel rack was on the left. A shower was in the upper left hand corner while the tub lay next to it. Seph turned on the water in the tub and set it to cold. Seph sighed happily and quickly undressed. He climbed into the tub slowly sat down. He waited for the water level to rise a bit and then he turned on the jets and the vibration. The jets massaged his upper and lower back while the vibrations ran up and down the rest of his body. Seph laid down in the water and relaxed. Sableye climbed on top of the top and poked around at the water while Seph cooled off. About fifteen minutes later, Seph dunked his head in the water and then climbed out. He opened up the drain as he grabbed a towel and dried himself. He put his black cargo shorts back on as well as his hooded t-shirt and grey shoes. "Finally," Seph thought as he walked down the stairs. He grabbed Sableye and lifted him onto his shoulder and walked back outside. Seph explored the city and decided to make his way towards the Phenac fountain. Seph observed and familiarized himself with the rest of the city. Seph spotted the fountain and walked down a set of steps. He walked over to it and sat down. Everything seemed normal to Seph, he thought that he'd be on his way again in a day or two; this just seemed like any other family visit. He had no idea he might be wrong.

OOC: K, that was rather long. I hope this RP gets more updates, the plot sounds interesting. There was a bit of autoing. If you don't like it, PM me or contact me somehow and I will change it.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

He thanked the teenager for the map, although he wasn't sure if the green-haired one even heard him before he turned to chat with a girl that has appeared out of the stand and asked him about the location of Phenac City. If there was a city nearby, it would have been an excellent place to ask a few questions, sort out his information. Gather some intelligence about his quarry. Maybe even set up a base camp.

He observed the map, looking for the city. Sure enough, it was the nearest town to his location, and appeared to be west of the outskirt stand, an oasis of green and blue in the wilderness. It also seemed pretty far. Too far to walk and reach in a short while. He has heard that most of Orre's citizens traveresed distances using vehicles. But he preferred dealing with the matter his own way...

He waved like yet another random tourist, and wandered off into the desert, vanishing from sight.

 

[Linkachu]

"Huh..." Maria murmured as she stared back at the green-haired stranger. She'd never ridden a motorcycle before - always thought them to be too risky for her liking - and ridding with someone she didn't know seemed kind of stupid. Now that she was back out in the Orre sun, though, her common sense was melting away. Risk her neck, or walk the entire distance in this smoldering heat?

It was an obvious decision.

"Wait for me!" the girl called as she hurried to join the stranger. He smiled and handed her a helmet, to which she strapped on securely before climbing on the bike behind him. It seemed odd wrapping her arms around a guy she'd barely met minutes before, but a girl had to do what a girl had to do. "You better not crash this thing, or I'll be returning to haunt you!"

***​

The engine of the motorcycle roared to a stop after little over a half hour at the gates of a large, beautiful city. Maria slipped off her helmet and whipped the pooled sweat from her brow, climbing down off the bike and pausing to take a good long look at Phenac.

It wasn't a metropolis, but it definitely had charm. The buildings were all a shimmering, ivory white, and various waterways of glistening blue ran through the streets. Pamtrees swayed calmly in the breeze, and the various people milling about, dressed in short-sleeved shirts and shorts, all appeared calm and laid back. Wasn't much of a surprise really. The entire place seemed like one big resort, topped off with a magnificent fountain sitting dead center of the town square.

"Water... Sweet, merciful heavens. Actual, clean-looking WATER!" Maria gaped at the fountain. She quickly turned and handed the green-haired boy his helmet. "Thank you thank you so much for the ride. Maybe I‘ll see you around and get the chance to return the favor? Either way, laterz!" With that the girl took off into the city straight for the fountain.

The crystal clear fountain had a fair sized pool at its base; too small for humans, but big enough for a Pokemon. It was surrounded by thick stone slaps, perfect for people to sit upon and take a rest. That was exactly what one teenaged boy and his Sableye appeared to be doing as Maria stepped up beside them and leaned in to the fountain, lettings the soft spray hit her face.

"Great place to relax, eh?" the girl murmured to the black haired boy. She eyed the ghost dual-type on his shoulder and added with a grin, "Nice looking Sableye you‘ve got there." With six years of studies under her belt, there wasn't really Pokemon known in this part of the world Maria couldn't recognize and rhyme off a blurb on. She certainly hadn‘t encountered all them in real life yet, though, Sableye being one of such. It was an interesting-looking creature to say the least.

Staring at the boy's Pokemon soon made the girl think of her own, and reaching down to pluck a PokeBall off her belt she tossed it into the fountain pool. In a bright flash her Vaporeon materialized with a happy cry, sinking down into the cool water to let it wash over her. While unintended, the swishing of Bellatrix's long, finned tail sent a few stray splashes at Maria and the boy. It didn't bother the girl one bit - on the contrary, it was quite refreshing - but she quickly apologized to the male.

Guess I'll have a short rest first, then take a look around town, Maria thought as she sat a short ways down from the boy. Phenac looks to have a few interesting places, not to mention the best of all… The Colosseum. Easy cash, here I come."

 

[Sem]

Seph had been relaxing at the fountain for some time now. Occasionally, water from the fountain sprayed Seph and Sableye. After about fifteen minutes of relaxing by the fountain, Seph heard some commotion down by the gate. He looked up from where he was sitting and looked towards the right. He saw the motorcycle from the outpost parked out by the gate. Two occupants were in it; Seph recognized them as people he had passed by on his way inside the outpost. The female sitting behind the male driver pulled off her helmet, revealing dark brown hair up in a pony tail. She wiped sweat off her face and thanked the green haired male. The young lady then stopped as she saw the fountain. She gaped at it and said something, and then rushed over, as if she had never seen water before. Seph could relate though, being used to a wet and cool climate himself. The girl rushed up beside Seph and let the water hit her face.

"Great place to relax, eh?" she said to Seph. Seph smiled and nodded. She turned her head and looked at Sableye. "Nice looking Sableye you've got there." She complimented.

"Thank you," Seph said politely. Seph turned his head to look at Sableye as well as he climbed down Seph's shoulder and began to walk the perimeter of the fountain. There was a sudden flash to Seph's right. He turned and saw a blue quadruped in the water. It had a long blue tail with a large fin on the end. A white, fin-like mane surrounded its neck and three yellow fins sat upon its forehead. It splashed some water on Seph and the girl. The girl apologized, but Seph shrugged and told her not to worry about it. "Nice looking Vaporeon you've got there." Seph said, mimicking the girl's last remark. Seph eyed the pool and remembered his own water type.

"Carvanha hasn't had any time in water in a good, long while. Carvanha isn't Miss-behaved, and shouldn't bother the Vaporeon. Seph thought as he pulled out one of his black poke'balls from his pocket. He enlarged the ball and released its contents into the water. The red and blue piranha came into view. He loved the sudden feel of cool water around him. "So what's your name?" Seph asked as he watched the Carvanha swim about, hoping to make a quick friend in this godforsaken region.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
OOC: K, I hope Yoshi posts soon. I'd like to see how this RP turns out. Anyway, I'm giving auto permissions for Seph, Sableye, and any other of Seph's pokemon. It'll probably be necessary later on, so I might as well do it now.

 

[daxx0r]

Mike and Charizard finally arrived at the stand. In the distance Mike saw a car and a motorcycle speed away. The dust they had ripped up from the road was just settling around the stand as he walked over to the girl at the cash register. She instinctively held up a bottle of water and said with a smile,
"Thirsty?" Mike nodded and returned the smile. He handed over some money and refilled his waterbottle with the new, colder water.

He took off his back-pack and skimmed through the contents. He was dangerously low on supplies. He had made a serious fault while planning for his journey. He thought travelling with a smaller, lighter load would speed him up, but it had instead become a hindrance. He only had about a day's food left. Keeping his current speed, it would be at least a week to Phenac city. He usually moved a lot faster, but the hot days, and freezing nights in the Orre desert were slowing him down tremendously. He looked at the girl. They probably had some food for sale here.
"Hey... er.. you wouldn't be carrying any travel supplies, you know, food, maybe some bread or canned something-or-other?" he asked, his voice slightly raspy, from the heat.
"Oh I'm sorry, we're fresh out. We usually stock up every week, but this week's delivery has been a bit late. It should be arriving in a few days. You're welcome to stick around for it."
"That's the problem. I don't have a few days. I barely have enough for tomorrow." Mike displayed the contents of his bag for the girl.
"Well I guess you'll have to go to Phenac city, then. It shouldn't take you more then a few hours..." said the girl.
"Huh? Oh..." replied Mike as he saw her looking over at Charizard. He hadn't even considered flying to Phenac. Part of the reason he was travelling in Orre was so that he could learn how to handle things without taking shortcuts. When he started out he had promised himself to make it through the Orre region on foot. Further more he was only going to use his Pokémon for battles, not as his aides. Now, however, as he looked into Charizard's eyes, he felt he had to fly, or he'd get into serious trouble. Mike grew very angry with himself. He was letting himself down, but there was nothing to do about it. He turned back to the girl.
"Er... well, thank you ...I guess. I'll see you around sometime." Mike turned to Charizard, who nodded at Mike. Mike climbed up on Charizards back, and they took off in a cloud of dust.

As Charizard sored through the air, Mike took out a pair of binoculars. He also reached into his left pocket and pulled out a small map. He had marked off several landmarks which could help him find his way through the desert with more ease. Mike was constantly at edge, switching between scanning the terrain (both for the landmarks, and for the city itself) and checking the map. Once in a while he slapped himself to keep from getting too relaxed. His Charizard was fast, very fast, and it's easy to navigate wrong when you're traveling at those speeds. It felt like days, but eventually, he spotted it. At first he though it was just a mirage, a snowy field in the desert. As they drew closer, Mike began to realize that the "snow" he saw was the white walls of Phenac's buildings. As they flew in over the city, he spotted little canals and and sidewalk cafés. He though the city resembled some odd mix of Altomare and Whitestone.

Charizard was getting tired and looked over it's shoulder to Mike, asking for relief. Charizard was usually fierce in battle, but it had a lot of respect for Mike and was always extremely gentle in it's ways when communicating with it's trainer. One reason for this was that Mike was a good listener. At least when it came to Pokémon- He noticed instantly what Charizard wanted, and decided to take a short break.
"All right buddy, We made it to the city, What do you say we find a nice place to cool down and take a break. Then we can head for the local supply store and maybe take a nice relaxing night at the Pokémon center, ok?" Mike looked down and spotted a large fountain. "That place looks nice, let's land at the fountain!"

Mike and Charizard set ground in front of a boy with a sableye and a girl with a vaporeon. They seemed friendly enough. He told Charizard to take a breather while he asked them for directions to the local supply store. Mike jogged over to the fountains edge to greet them. He raised his hand, and waved at them.
"Hi theeaaargh!" Mike took a wrong step and stumbled forward uncontrollably, untill he took a plunge head-first into the fountain. It wasn't the most charming way of introducing himself, but it was certainly original. All he could do was strap on a smile and say:
"Heh, that was refreshing!"

 

[Linkachu]

Maria was admiring the newly materialized Carvanha when its trainer asked her name, turning back to him and replying, "I'm Maria. Nice to meet-" She was interrupted by the abrupt appearence of yet another teenaged boy, who stumbled straight past her to fall head-first into the fountain. The girl choked to stifle a laugh, but she couldn't hide her facial expressions and tears. When Bellatrix swam up to stare at the boy, giving him a lopsided look as if to say, "That was kind of stupid", Maria couldn't stand it anymore and burst out laughing.

"I'm so sorry... it's just..." she managed to get out between laughs. It was a battle to get herself back under control. "Ahem. Sorry, but it caught me off guard. Heh." Holding out a helping hand to him, she grinned and added, "Since you caught us in the middle of introductions, I'm Maria. I figured that water was only fit for Pokemon but you proved me wrong."

 

[daxx0r]

Mike was drenched. The girl sitting at the fountain started choking on her own laughter, while attempting to hold it back. Swallowing the laughter however, only seemed to make it worse. Mike looked over to Charizard who just shook it's head. Mike brushed his wet hair back, only to see a Vaporeon looking at him as if he was some kind of moron. He also noticed a Carvanha slightly behind the vaporeon, with a similar expression on it's face. He did feel kind of like a moron.

Mike turned to the two teenagers and blushed. The boy was just staring at him with a slightly surprised expression and a raised eyebrow. The girl's laughter was finally dying down.
"I'm so sorry... it's just..." she said before bursting out into laughter again. Mike felt himself starting to laugh as well. He chuckled.
"Since you caught us in the middle of introductions, I'm Maria. I figured that water was only fit for Pokemon but you proved me wrong." the girl continued, finally in control of the laughter.
"I'm Mike. Nice to meet you." replied Mike, "At least I've cooled off a bit now. ha ha!" Maria smiled at him.
"You can say that again." she replied.

 

[Sem]

"I'm Maria. Nice to meet-" Maria was interrupted as a boy plunged head first into the water. His face hit the water and there was a nice splash. Maria began to laugh uncontrollably, she lifted a hand to her mouth to hide the laughter but it was no use. Seph raised an eyebrow at the soaked boy who failed at introducing himself properly. Sableye began to cackle at the boy as he put on his evil smile. The boy was up now, water dripping from his clothes, his face red with blush. Seph shook his head. "Since you caught us in the middle of introductions, I'm Maria. I figured that water was only fit for Pokemon but you proved me wrong." Maria said as her laughing died down.

"I'm Mike. Nice to meet you." replied Mike, "At least I've cooled off a bit now. ha ha!" Maria grinned at him, Seph nodded with both eyebrows raised.

"I'll say you have." Seph said as he turned his head to Sableye, who was continuing to walk the perimeter of the fountain, with a smile still on his face. Carvanha had returned to his swimming. "Well, now that leaves only for my name to be revealed, I'm Seph. Glad to meet both of you.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

He walked for a while, until he cleared out of the Outskirt Stand's view. He sought one thing in particular, and now that he has found it, he smiled to himself. He draped the cloak around himself, becoming just another mound of sand. Then, he produced a PokeBall from his belt.

"Ephemera, Arise." he uttered softly.

The PokeBall opened silently, releasing a dark, faded-blue ghostly presence. It looked a bit like the head of a woman, with a bit of neck and shoulders fading into nothing, with unusually large eyes, wild, floating tendrils of dusty-lavender-tipped hairlike wisps, and a string of golden orbs adorning its neck. It was a Misdreavus, a ghost unbound to the physical plane by an earthly element attached to it. Ephemera opened her eyes, red irises in golden whites orienting on her trainer.

A shadowy female voice echoed in his mind "You have summoned me."

"I have." the trainer sighed slightly - Eph always had a tendency for overdramatics. What could one do? "I require your aid. I need to capture one of the desert's mighty serpents."

The Misdreavus nodded silently, and within seconds, she melded into the sands. They seemed to ripple in a rythmic pattern - they were disturbing the serpent's territory. Soon enough, one will come.

Then, a flash of dark lightning from underneath the surface in the distance - Ephemera signalling that there was one coming their way. The trainer was not worried - The creature could not have spotted him, camoflaged in the sands like that.

Then, The Misdreavus finally released a final burst and launched herself from the sand.

A massive form burst from underneath the surface like a great fish bursting out of the surface of a placid lake, with a deep roar, akin to a mountain avalanche. The creature's body was long and segmented, segments covering one another just barely, a dull shade of dark grey rock - which is most probably what they were. The creature's head was serpentine with a long, sinister-looking backward-facing spike. rows of razor-sharp teeth lined the inner side of its jaws, just barely concealed by the segmented stone scales. The creature's nostrils opened, protective covering sliding off them. It breathed thunderously, narrowing its eyes and seeking out the source of the disturbance to its territory, lingering on the surface a bit longer.

The trainer jumped from within the sands and dashed up the serpent's tail towards its head. as the Misdreavus suddenly appeared in front of its face.

"Harness it!" the trainer exclaimed, and the Misdreavus plunged into the creature's armored side, through a gap in its armor, through its skin and flowed through its body. The serpent roared, feeling its body seemingly drained of energy, until finally all signs of light drained away from its mind. The creature's eyes glowed in a soft purple-gold, and from its sides, two strings of light emerged, each one adorned with golden orbs.

The trainer caught the strings of the harness and grinned. Might as well travel in style.

"Now, Mighty Onix of the desert, Carry me to Phenac City!"

~*~

The desert sands shifted as the large serpentine form cleaved through the sands like a shark through water. The Onix's head was constantly above ground, and leaning against its head spike, half-camoflaged, was the trainer. He occasionally jerked the harness left, or right, following the map. Soon enough, the land changed - he could spot water and the occasional tree in the desert. He could see Phenac close by - a marvellous looking city in white. This was the place to release the Onix.

He pulled on both reins quickly and decisively, and the serpent stopped, allowing him to slide off the creature's back and land softly upon the sand.

"You have my thanks, and my sincere apologies." the trainer uttered softly and nodded at the Onix's direction. "Ephemera, release him."

The reins pulled back into the serpent's sides and vanished, the shadows that covered the creature's eyes vanished and out of its forehead, the golden orbed Misdreavus emerged and turned to hover by the trainer's side. The Onix blinked for a few seconds, clearly disoriented, then plunged into the earth and vanished - headed back towards its territory.

"Well, we're here." the trainer smiled. "Might as well walk in."

~*~

A while later the trainer found himself witness to a strange scene.

Three trainers were standing by a fountain - One of them, a brown-haired female, he has seen before. The other two - two males, one black-haired with a Sableye on his shoulder and one brown-haired and soaked to the brim. He noticed a Charizard, and two Smaller PokeMon inside the fountain - a Carvanha and a Vaporeon. None fitting the description of who - what - he was looking for. None of them seemed native to the region, though, which meant that they probably had no information he could use. Yet maybe...

He nodded to Ephemera, and the Misdreavus nodded, slipping into complete invisibility and floating behind him silently. He passed by the fountain, pausing for a second and admiring it with a silent smile, and moved on, as if the trainers weren't even there.

OOC: Just gettin' this moving.

 

[Sem]

Seph was still at the fountain with Maria and the soaked Mike. Sableye had returned to Seph shoulder and was suddenly aware of a presense unseen. Another ghost type. Seph noticed Sableye's uneasyness and turned to where Sableye was looking. He saw a young man with a scarf and a cloak. The young man was admiring the fountain, but he then walked off, as if he was lookign for something, yet did not find it. Seph turned to Maria and Mike.

"I think I'm going to go, it was nice meeting both of you." Seph said as he returned Carvanha into his ball. Seph got up and waved at them. Seph then followed the young man, not knowing why.

 

[daxx0r]

As Seph walked away, Mike climbed out of the fountain and sat down where Seph had just been sitting. The stone edge of the fountain was warm from the sun's rays. The water was still dripping off Mike's clothes though, and cooled the stone down pretty quickly. Mike followed Seph with his eyes as he walked away. He wondered if he had chased Seph away. He then turned to look at Maria who was also looking at Seph walking away.

Mike suddenly remembered why he had gone over to them in the first place. Neither Maria nor Seph looked like they were locals, but they might know the layout of the city, and perhaps knew where he could get supplies.
"So, Maria..." said Mike. She turned back to face him and smiled.
"I hope I didn't bother you two by stumbling over..." said Mike "but anyways, I was wondering... Do you know where I could get supplies around here? Or perhaps some place to get some rest? We had a pretty tough time getting here!" said Mike and glanced over at Charizard, who was now slowly strolling around a few yards away.

 

[Linkachu]

"Sure," Maria replied, "just give me a sec to check my map." She turned her attention to blue PokeGear on her wrist and tapped a few buttons to select the "Map" function. Thankfully Orre was one of the many regions in the world connected to the PokeGear's electronic navigation system, taking only a few seconds to seek out and retrieve her current location.

Maria held her arm up as the digital display of Phenac City was created in the air as a hologram, allowing Mike to take a clear look too. With a compass and legend at the bottom left, the map seemed like any standard map but with several large colored dots in the place of notable locations. The Pokemon Center was displayed in red, while the local market was in green. As important as those locations were, though, it was the Phenac City specific facilities that caught her attention.
The city was layered in three sections, each with a large set of stairs leading up to the next. Both the market and Pokemon Center were located in the first area, not too far from where Maria and Mike sat now. Notable in the mid section were the Mayor's home and the Pre-Gym, which acted as the local Pokemon training facility of sorts. The man who ran it, Justy, was said to highly respected and a good source of information for happenings in the city and around Orre - definitely worth a visit. Then there was the third and highest section of the city, which contained Maria's reason for being in Phenac at all: the colosseum.

"So… Looks like both the Pokemon Center and market are nearby, a short ways west of here. Find one and the other shouldn't be too hard to spot. I‘ll probably be heading to both myself in a bit, but right now I have other plans…" At that she tapped the PokeGear's cancel button and the map disappeared with a "bleep!". They'd rested long enough. It was time to get down to business.

Pushing off to her feet, Maria raised Bellatrix's PokeBall and said, "Time to go, Bellatrix. But don't worry. You should get some serious action soon." A beam of energy shot out from the sphere to envelop the Pokemon, and like magic it vanished into the stream back inside the ball. Placing it back securely with the rest of her PokeBalls, Maria grinned at Mike and his Charizard. "I'm heading for the Phenac Colosseum. You should check it out for yourself while you're here. Probably easy money for a trainer with a Charizard like that. Anyways, nice meeting you, Mike. Take care!"

She turned and left the boy to his own business, pondering which Pokemon she'd use first to battle. All Orre battles were double battles, so which of her Pokemon would make the best pairs? "Heh. Guess I'll wing it, she thought with a chuckle.

OOC: LOL… I seriously should've played XD or Colosseum again before joining this topic. Now I remember exactly what Phenac looked like, not that RP cities need to look exactly like their game counterparts…

 

[daxx0r]

Mike had only been a trainer for one and a half years, and even though he had seen quite a bit during his travels he had a lot more to learn about. He had heard about Colosseums, but he had never actually seen one, nor did he know exactly how the Colosseum battles were fought. He felt the curiosity spark inside him. He needed to get those supplies and maybe take Charizard and his other pokémon to the pokémon center, but afterwards he felt he needed to check out that Colosseum and see what it was all about.

Mike got up and walked over to Charizard. He put his hand on the back of his loyal friend and said:
"I got a good idea, buddy. That girl I was just talking to back there," He pointed to the fountain where he and Maria had just been, "Her name is Maria, and she just told me there's a Colosseum in Phenac. She's heading there now. I think maybe we should check it out!" Charizard looked at Mike with an approving nod and let out a low growling snort.
"But first, let's get to the Pokémon center and get you fixed up. I'll get some supplies at the store while you're there."

~*~

The doors to the Pokémon center slid open with a woosh. The room that opened up before Mike and Charizard sparkled with cleanliness. There were a few plants scattered around the walls of the lobby as well as a few videophones. In the back of the room, right in front of Mike was a large desk with a familiar face behind it. The familiar face was of course that of nurse joy, who stared back at them with a warm inviting smile.
"Hi, Nurse Joy!" said Mike.
"Hello yourself. Can I help you?" she replied
"Yes, I'd like you to take a look at my Pokémon and make sure they're in tip top shape!" said Mike. He looked over at Charizard and gave it a wink.
"Of course. That's what we're here for!" Mike handed over his Pokéballs on a tray to Joy and beckoned to Charizard to go over to her as well.
"Ok, Charizard, you go with nurse Joy while I go and get some supplies. I'll be back by the time you're done." Charizard dissapeared behind a door with nurse Joy. Mike turned around and headed for the door. Just before he reached the door his eyes caught a poster hanging on a message board nearby. It was an advertisement for the Colosseum. Mike smiled with anticipation as he looked at it, before exiting onto the street.

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

"Random trainers, nothing more." came the reassuring voice at the back of his head when Ephemera floated back to his side from her vantage point at the fountain as the trainers left. "However, you're being followed by one of them. The black-haired one with the Sableye. Seph."
"I know." the trainer nodded. speaking silently "He hasn't made much of an effort to conceal himself. The Sableye must've detected you even when you were phased. Still, I don't think it matters too much. Silence Screen."

The Misdreavus' orbs glowed softly for a while, emanating a field of negative sound waves. To anyone outside the field, anything said within it would be completely inaudible. For anyone inside it, it was as clear as day. She encompassed the trainer and herself in the aura.

"I've gotten in touch with a few of my contacts - one of them's apparantly got access to the PokeMon Center records. We might need those. If the target passed here, he had to have healed his PokeMon. Every PokeMon Center healing machine's computer keeps computerized records of every PokeMon scanned and run through the cell-regeneration proram through it. It will give us some initial confirmation if the target passed through here, and possible data to cross-reference. We know what his team is like - it will take some work, but we can get through it."
"Who's the contact?" the Misdreavus asked.
"You're not going to believe me even if I tell you." the trainer grinned "Dissolve Silence Screen."

The Orbs ended their glow as the trainer made a quick 180 to face the trainer that has been following him, the Misdreavus floating ominously behind him.

"Well then, Seph." the trainer said with a slightly bemused grin "Now that I've finally decided to let you know that I am aware of you tailing me ever since I left the fountain, I'm curious if you have something to tell me that would warrant this attempt at tracking, or if you normally follow people and expect them not to notice."

 

[Sem]

Seph paused as the man turned and faced him. Sableye stood quietly on his shoulder, looking the the trainer and his pokemon with his unsettling smile. He really didn't try to hide his presense. Even so, the Misdreavus would probably sense him anyway. Seph, really unsure why he had followed the man, was actually speechless... Why did Seph follow him, probably because the man looked as if he was looking for something... also due to his sheer mysterious nature. "Seph you idiot, what will you do now." Seph decided that it'd just be better come out and say something confidently. Seph narrowed his eyes and began to speak.

"It could that I just randomly like stalking people... but it is mostly because you seem to be looking something or someone... Being all quiet-like... Really looks like you're up to no good. Now I could be on meddling with some member of a secret society or just a secretive person. Well I'm a curious person, so.... what are you doing here?"

 

[StellarWind Elsydeon]

"Charming." the trainer replied dryly, surveying his follower, less than impressed. "Where I'm from, there are a few good sayings about what curiosity does to otherwise sensible people."

The Misdreavus' eyes began to glow eeriely.

"You are right. I am searching for someone. Or something. But who it is, or what is is, is information on a strict need-to-know basis. And you, Seph, do not need to know. I'd advise you to leave well enough alone. Rest assured, though, that I mean no harm to you or any innocents. You may not trust me as things stand, but then again, I never trust anyone. It's what keeps me alive. Well, except for my PokeMon of course. Which, by the way, also don't like it when people try to meddle in affairs that do not concern them. Let it be a warning to you, Seph. Never try to follow me again."

A dark vortex of shadows swirled around the trainer, and within seconds, both the trainer and the Misdreavus were gone as if they have never existed.

 

[Sem]

The trainer had vanished. "Well then," Seph said to himself. "Why did I follow him?... I never follow random people... It just felt so odd...." "Bah, whatever... its not like I'll see him ever again anyway..." Seph turned and began walking. "What else is there to do in this city..." Seph thought to himself, bored. "What should we do now, Sableye?" Sableye looked at Seph and shrugged. "There's the Colosseum..." Seph said, not think about the prize money he could win, but something fun to do... "It'd be good practice for all of you... Yep, that's what we're going to do..." Seph said as he turned again and headed for the arena. He was currently on the second level of Phenac. He passed Phenac's Gym and kept going north until he reached a large flight of stairs. Seph casually walked up them and then into the arena before him. He found himself in a room. A desk was in front of him, Two waterfalls came down out of the wall behind the desk and emptied into a small pool of water. He made his way up to the girl at the desk.

"I'm here to enter a Colosseum battle," Seph said the shining young woman before him. Her blonde hair hanging down and her helpful blue eyes began to look at the computer screen in front of her.

"Ok," her light voice came, along with the sound of typing. "Name?"

"Seph."

"Number of pokemon?"

"Four." More typing followed and then stopped.

"Water pokemon?"

"One..."

"Ok then, I'll have to open up the pool on the battle field..." More typing followed and then stopped. "Ok, you're all set," she said with a smile. "Head into the door way to your left and continue into the next room, there you will wait for a challenger and then you can make your way into the Colosseum."

"Thank you came Seph reply." He walked left and entered the large entrance way. He walked down a short hallway that emptied into a waiting room of some type, the room was empty. He simply sat down and waited for a challenger...
----------------------------------------------------------------------
OOC: Pretty much means I'm ready for one of you people to battle me, Autoing of Seph is allowed.

 

[Yoshimitsu]

Leon pulled his motorbike up to a wall near the entrance and kicked out the support, propping it up securely. He pulled his leg over the bike and looked around, already searching for his first destination. Project Noah, he decided, was the thing he needed to know about. Where would he find information on that? The pokemon centre, of course. He grinned to himself, and walked over to the pokemon centre, laughing quietly as the doors opened for him.

"Excuse me," Leon said politely to Nurse Joy, who was looking slightly rushed. "I was wondering what you know about Project Noah?"
"Project Noah?" Nurse Joy asked, slightly stunned. "No one knows its original code name. Well, we have a few leaflets over there," she gestured to the side of the desk, "and I'm sure there'll be someone at the Pre Gym who can tell you more."
"Thanks," Leon said, smiling. He picked up a leaflet and glanced through it, looking for a pokemon listing. Quite a few pokemon had been released into Orre, it seemed. The most common pokemon were ground types, naturally, with Sandshrew and Trapinch being the most common pokemon in Orre.

"The Pre Gym..." Leon muttered as he walked out of the pokemon centre. It was only a short walk away, up some steps and then down some more. Leon took the steps two at a time, eager to learn more about the wild pokemon in the area. The doors opened automatically when he got close enough. Inside, the Pre Gym looked magnificent. The first thing you saw was the training arena, right in the middle of the room. The arena put most other gym arenas to shame - it was much larger, possibly in case people made mistakes in their training. The only light came from the spotlights in the ceiling, all of them aimed at the arena. Leon looked left, and saw what looked like a classroom. There were a few trainers sat, listening to the instructor. Leon walked over to the classroom, and sat down.

"Now, every region has its own rules on pokemon battles," the instructor said, handing out sheets to each table. "Orre, for example, has only Double Battles. In Kanto, Johto and Hoenn, it is mostly single battles. Hoenn is home to the Battle Frontier, a place where each building has different rules. However, you can only get to the Frontier by invite, and only the best are invited."
"Miss," a trainer three seats from Leon said. "What about the Elite Fours?"
"There are only two Elite Fours, as Johto and Kanto share their Elite Four," the instructor replied. "Hoenn's Elite Four are more skilled than Kanto's, but neither should be approached s casually. They are elite trainers, far stronger than any gym leader. Why, even Justy would fall to them."

"Excuse me, miss," Leon said, raising his hand. "What can you tell me about Project Noah?"

The instructor turned to look at Leon.
"What's your name?" She asked.
"Leon," Leon replied.
"Well, that's unusual. You're not from around here, I take it?"
"No, miss," Leon replied. He didn't see what was so strange about his question, but he suddenly noticed that everyone had gone oddly quiet.
"You're the first person that's asked about it and given the proper title. Project Noah was something started by Professor Elm. It was a very good idea. They asked for donations of pokemon, which could be bred to populate Orre. We do have wild pokemon, but you could only lure them out once. That said, there are still pokemon that can only be seen if you lure them out. Duking of Pyrite Town is the best to ask about that," the instructor explained. "There are many regions that now have many wild pokemon, but there are still places without."
"Thank you, miss," Leon said, smiling slightly. The instructor walked back up to the front and continued her lecture on the unique rules of Orre.

The doors slid open again, and a strange figure stepped in. He was quite tall, and rather slim. He had shoulder-length brown hair, tied back in a neat ponytail. He was wearing a white sleeveless top with a silver 'S' on the front, and black jeans that were amazingly clean. His boots emphasized his footsteps as he walked.
"Justy," he said, in a very loud, confident voice.
"Kwai," Justy said, standing up from his seat at the control panel. "What are you up to this time?"
"You wound me," Kwai said, smiling. "I'm here for a battle, unless you're afraid to face me?"
"Not this time, Kwai," Justy replied. "I'm teaching today. Come back tomorrow."
"Very well," Kwai said. He turned and walked out, moving very confidently.

"Who was he?" Leon asked the person sat next to him.
"He's called Kwai," she replied, her voice barely more than a whisper. "He's the suspect to a bunch of robberies and murders, but they've never been able to prove it was him. He's amazingly powerful, his pokemon are trained to a whole new extreme. Be careful if you ever have to battle him, it's better to run than battle him."
"Is he really that strong?" Leon asked.
"Justy is the best trainer here, he's higher than a Gym Leader," the girl whispered. "And hes never beaten him. Kwai wipes everyone out with minimal effort."

As soon as the lecture was over (with his head swimming with the different rules of Orre), Leon left the Pre Gym and headed for the colosseum. Who was this Kwai? Linked to robbery and murder... And an amazing trainer... There was something wrong. It didn't take a genius to figure that out. Why was he here? There was definitely more to it than just a battle. Leon could sense it.
"Best not dwell on it," Leon told himself as he walked into the colosseum. He walked up to the registration desk.

"I'd like to enter the next battle, please," he said.
"Alright," the woman said, running her fingers through her blonde hair. "What's your name?"
"Leon," Leon replied.
"Do you have four pokemon? We have a challenger waiting, but he only has four pokemon."
"Yeah, I have six."
"You can use four. Do you have a water pokemon?"
"Yeah, a Poliwag."
"Brilliant," the woman said, typing away. "Enter through the door to the right, and you'll be told what to do from there. I suggest you pick your four pokemon before you start battling."
"Alright, thanks," Leon said. He walked up to the gigantic doors, and the shuddered open for him. He stepped through, walked a short distance, and found himself in a waiting room.

"Well, this should be fun..."

OOC- Speech-heavy post! >XD

 

[Yoshimitsu]

OOC- Oh, did you want to battle katie? I can edit it out, if you want.

 

[Sem]

OOC: Alrighty, Yoshi. I'll battle thee. ^^ Link and I discussed some rules yesterday so I'll just lay them out right now... Obviously a double battle. Each pokemon is allowed two attacks per turn and two dodges overall. The winning trainer moves on to fight the other 3 trainers, though that can be "skipped" unless someone else from this RP comes along to battle.

BIC:
Seph looked up to see that there was a visitor in the room. Seph smiled and stood up. "I suppose I'm battling you." Seph said, Sableye smiled. "I wish the best of luck to you." Seph then turned to face the massive doors that led out into the Colosseum itself. The doors creaked and moaned as they opened, the light from the arena piercing the darker light of the waiting room. Seph walked out onto the field. He was met with the roar of a crowd. Seph looked and all around the arena were bystanders, cheering because a new battle was about to start. The large, stone arena itself was beautiful. Dozens of waterfalls came down all around the battle field, surrounding it with a pool of crystal clear water. The field had a pool as well, for the water types. Several large platforms floated on the water, they were actually pillars, coming up from the bottom of the pool to stand a foot or so above the water. The pool itself was very large and deep, it had to be to accommodate large water types such as, Gyarados, Milotic, and Wailord. Seph walk to the left side of the arena and stood in his trainer box. He pulled out a black poke'ball from his pocket. "You ready to go, Sableye?" Seph said as he threw the ball onto the field, leaving a Nuzleaf there on one of the platforms. Sableye smiled again, revealing his toothy grin. He leaped off of Seph's shoulder and landed on another pillar. Seph eyed his pokemon, "I'm ready..."

 

[Yoshimitsu]

"Heh, this is one of the more interesting arenas we've fought on, isn't it... Inferno!" Leon nearly shouted the last word as he threw a pokeball. It opened with a bright flash of light, releasing the fire type on to one of the pillars. Combusken stood, looking as confident as a karate-chicken could. He wore a bracelet on either wrist, a dark blue materia with a silver sun opposite the buckle. Around his neck, he wore a choker of the same material, but with a silver moon instead of a sun. Combusken let out a confident cry of "Busken!"

"Who would work best with Combusken... I think..."

"Let's go, Swirl!" Leon yelled, throwing another pokeball, catching the first in his left hand. This pokeball opened in a similar fashion, but the water pokemon inside was released directly into the water. He swam to the surface, the top of his head clearly visible. It was a Poliwag. While one couldn't see this, Poliwag had a gold ring at the base of his tail, with a sapphire embedded in it. Poliwag cried his name loudly, and jumped on to a pillar close to Poliwag.

"I do believe it's your turn," Leon shouted to Seph.

 

[Sem]

"Hrm..." Seph thought. That Combusken is a serious threat to Nuzleaf... "Sableye, use Confuse Ray on Combusken. Nuzleaf, use Bullet Seed on Poliwag!" Seph said. The crowd roared as the pokemon prepared to attack. Sableye harnessed an orange orb of energy in his hands. With his keen eye sight and perfect timing, Sableye launched the attack straight at Combusken with a smile on his face. Nuzleaf opened his mouth and from that came a barrage of yellow seeds. The yellow seeds made their way to the water type. "Those two could probably dodge both attacks... but lets see how this turns out... Seph said, his eyes watching and taking note of every detail on the battle field...

 

[Yoshimitsu]

"Inferno, stop those bullets from hitting Swirl! Jump in front and take it!" Leon yelled quickly. Combusken let out a quiet growl of 'Busken' and jumped from his position, to the next pillar in one step, and then in front of Poliwag with another. He threw his arms over his chest, defending against the attack. Over to his left, the Confuse Ray hit the water, causing it to splash everywhere. Leon shielded his face with his forearm. When the water had settled, Poliwag was nowhere to be seen - he had dived in.

Combusken had a look of deep concentration on his face. No more than a second after this look formed, three translucent swords appeared in the air around him, spinning around, faster and faster. Combusken glowed red for a moment, but the glow faded quickly. He then jumped from his position, running over the pillars and closing in on Nuzleaf. He lunged at the grass-type, and swiped at him with a Scratch attack.

Poliwag was swimming below the action overhead, preparing his own attack. He swam all the way around to the other side of the pool and jumped out from the water, landing on a pillar close to Seph. The water-type inhaled deeply, and blasted out a powerful jet of water at Sableye.

 

[Sem]

The Combusken had jumped in from of Poliwag to save it form the bullet seed. The Confuse Ray attacked had failed... The crowd cheered at Leon's quick thinking. Combusken was making over to Nuzleaf to attack with a Scratch attack. Seph quickly thought of a counter.

"Nuzleaf! Extrasensory!"

"Nuz," Nuzleaf replied. Nuzleaf's eyes began to glow blue as he concentrated on sending powerful and devastating, psychic thoughts into Combusken's mind. Seph took notice that Poliwag had disappeared... it was obviously going to attack Sableye. A small blue orb popped out of the water and landed on a pillar close to Seph. Poliwag used Water Gun and aimed it at Sableye.

"Sableye, use Detect!" Sableye turned to face the water type; a glint appeared in his eyes for a brief second. The water attack passed harmlessly through Sableye's ghostly body. Sableye grinned maliciously. "Follow up with Shadow Ball!" Sableye formed a ball of dark matter in between his hands. Purple, electric-like energy pulsed throughout the orb of shadow. Sableye released the ghost attack on Poliwag with a cackle.

 

[Linkachu]

OOC: I'm thinking that you two should make a separate topic for your battle. That way, if you can't finish the battle you can just sum it up and join back in with the plot.

BIC:

The outside of the Phenac Colosseum was domed shaped with water rushing down around it like a huge waterfall, split only for the entrance doorway. Maria had never seen anything quite like it before. She whistled gleefully to herself as she walked down the quiet stone path leading up to the registration desk and called out to the woman sitting beyond.

"I'm here for the knock-out challenge! Sign me up, miss!" Maria chimed happily.

The woman's bright blue eyes gazed at the trainer curiously. "You're the third new face I've seen in the last twenty minutes. Do you understand the Colosseum rules?"

"Lessee... All double battles. Gotta beat four trainers in a row. Fun rewards and lots o' prize money if you reign victorious. How am I doing?"

"Good enough to save me my breath," the woman chuckled, "but you'll have to wait until the winner of the next bout is decided. It should be starting just about now..."

Maria's face dropped. "Really? After walking all the way here in this sun, more waiting...?" she sighed. So much for her promises to Bellatrix. After going for so long in this heat she wasn't even sure if the wait was worth it.

The blonde haired woman wore an innocent smile as she stared back at the teenager. "I'm sorry, but there's not much else I can do right now..."

"Then allow me to help!" a masculine voice came from behind.

Maria whirled at the sound to find a young, adult male smiling back at her. He looked to be in his late twenties, with smooth, pinkish-red hair worn back in a stubby pony-tail. Two longer bangs fell down past his ears at either sides of his face, while shorter, spikier ones were spread across his forehead. For someone wearing a rather heavy-looking brown vest over a white t-shirt and grayish cargo pants, the heat didn‘t seem to be bothering him. Obviously not a tourist.

"I'm sorry. Was that rude? I just couldn't help but note your sorrow for being unable to battle. I can relate to the feeling," the man replied sheepishly, his voice calm and innocent. "Would I be able to interest you in a quick match?"

"I'm assuming you won't pay me when I win, eh?" Maria chuckled. "Just kidding. Yeah, I'll take you on. How many Pokemon each and where at?"

"Well, I only have two… but you can use as many as you like," he replied.

"Aren't we confident?" Maria smirked, though she stared hard at the man in attempt to figure him out. Was he just stupid, full of it, or truly that powerful? His bright, cyan colored eyes didn't show even a hint of lie or conceit.

"I'm confident in my Pokemon," he smiled warmly.

"Heh. We'll just see about that. Lead the way, stranger," Maria replied.

"The area just outside this Colosseum should do us fine. Prepare yourself," the man said calmly before turning and heading for the exit. Maria trailed slightly behind, wondering exactly what she was getting herself into.

OOC: I'll write the battle next post.

 

[daxx0r]

Charizard was already waiting in the lobby of the Pokémon Center when Mike returned, his bag now filled with supplies again. He went up to his old friend and petted him on the head. Charizard looked rested and fit for fight. It's eyes were shimmering with spirit and energy again, and it's tail was burning magnificently.
"Excuse me?" came the voice of nurse joy, "I have your other pokéballs here." She produced a small tray with five small balls in them. Mike walked over to the front desk and retrieved them. As he was putting them back to place around his belt, he looked up at nurse joy.
"I trust everything went well?" he asked, more of a formality then actually wondering. He had yet to visit a Pokémon center that couldn't heal his Pokémon.
"Yes, everything went fine. Their in tip-top shape." came the reply from nurse Joy.
"All right, then. Thank you for taking care of them, Nurse Joy." He turned to Charizard, "C'mon buddy. Time to head out! We gotta find that colosseum" Mike headed for the door with Charizard at his heels, and left the center as quickly as he had arrived.

~*~

Getting to the Colosseum had not been easy. Mike got lost several times along the way. He realized that the city was much harder to navigate than he had previously thought. Mike regretted not to have sketched down a rough copy of the map Maria had shown him when he had the chance. Eventually though, by having a somewhat of an idea where to go and asking people here and there he first made it to the second section, and then finally to the third. As he approached the huge dome that was the Colosseum, Mike turned and smiled at Charizard, who was slowly gliding through the air above him.
"Well buddy, we made it!" he exclaimed happily. Charizard nodded and gave him a thumbs up. Charizard began flying more freely in the air; looping and diving, now that they had arrived at their destination. Mike looked up at the theatrics.
"Don't wear yourself out!" he cried after the orange blur shooting across the sky.

As Mike got closer, he noticed two figures standing outside the Colosseum. One looked like it could have been Maria. After a few seconds he realized it was Maria. He didn't recognize the other one, but he was a bit older then Mike was. Probably in his mid-twenties. They seemed to be preparing for a battle. Mike waved and started jogging towards the two trainers.
"Hey! Maria! Is that you?" he shouted.