Cortoza - The Volcanic Island

[MarbleZone]

Cortoza
The Volcanic Island

Floating serenely in the middle of the ocean, Cortoza is a secluded land mass which was once a beautiful and highly populated tropical island. Two hundred years ago a powerful oceanic earthquake resulted in a chain reaction of death and destruction as Cortoza's active volcanic mountains erupted in a series of cataclysmic explosions that churned out a spectacular display of ash, rock, and molten lava, and finally ending with Mt Fumi's stupendous paroxysmal eruption. All of Cortoza's vegetation was destroyed, while humans and Pokémon not fast enough to flee perished in the resulting destruction as the western end of the island collapsed beneath the sea, generating a series of devastating pyroclastic flows and immense tsunamis that ravaged adjacent coastlines. The events of that day marked the last 24 hours on earth for over 50,000 people and 300,000 Pokémon, as the wave of destruction flowed across hundreds of coastal villages and towns. For the next hundred years nobody dared approach the island due to the constant seismic activity and mini eruptions, but for the past several decades all has been quiet. Pokémon have returned, and with very few people drawn to the volcanic island, wildlife has been given the chance to thrive. Although wary, people are also beginning to venture to Cortoza again, some of the more opportunistic seeing this land as their chance to strike it rich due to its fast-booming tourism industry. Most are curious though, as the island has shown amazing regenerative qualities, and many are eager to explore and to witness the miraculous regrowth for themselves. The tropical jungle is flourishing once more, Pokémon have returned, and as far as everyone is aware most of Cortoza's volcanoes have been laying dormant for almost one hundred years.

Mt. Infernus

The second largest of Cortoza's mountains, Mt. Infernus is now extinct. Many Pokémon have made their homes within the vast network of tunnels and caverns deep within the mountain, and aren't all that accustomed to seeing people. It's become the primary breeding ground for many of the rarer Pokémon who tend to shy away from humans, and due to the protective nature of the parent Pokémon, quite a hazardous area to traverse.

Areas:
Mountain Peak: A sanctuary for wild Pokémon who live amidst the lush trees found upon the mountaintop. Very few trainers have the stamina to make it all the way up here, so the Pokémon who dwell in the area have thrived in this environment. Many freshwater pools dot the landscape, but beware of the fast flowing river that leads to the edge of the waterfall cascading into the river below as no safety rails have been built to keep curious trainers and Pokémon away from the long drop over the mountainside.

Man, I am so freaking good.

After hours of climbing up the steep, so awfully steep final part of the Scenic Walk - who was the sadistic bastard that named it that, anyway? - the pleasant part of the road long behind them, and after a brief stop to rest at the friendly Totem Village, he had made it all the way to the peak of Mt. Infernus. Yes, it was second tallest mountain in Cortoza, and yes, his Gible had taunted him for not attempting to climb the very highest one, but after Levin explained how Infernus was the only volcano that was assuredly not going to explode on them, Gaius piped down.

- Min, Minccino-Min!!

Oh, and he'd climbed the whole thing with a Minccino on his shoulder. How awesome was he?!
The sassy chinchilla had complained about Levin's choice of travel destination the whole way. She'd much have preferred to visit the Resort on the Island, but that completely defeated his point for coming to Cortoza - getting tougher. Having had enough of the her attitude, Levin held Min up in the air and unceremoniously dropped her. She could take it.

- Listen here, Min. This is a big accomplishment for me. It's all the same to you since you were carried here, but I actually worked to get to this peak! And now you... oh no you don't!

The Minccino wasn't very good at taking sermons. Completely uninterested in his rambling, Min turned his back to him and started Singing casually, pretending not to listen.

- Okay, that's it, I've had enough of this. - grabbing hold of her tail, Levin made her spin back around to face him, and threw Minccino the angriest stare that he could muster, which seemed to do the trick - We are going to have to work on your attitude. Either you stop behaving like a spoiled brat, or I am leaving you here alone forever. And I'm dead serious. I have Crix, Gaius, Zion and Opal who like me and heed my instructions; even Hebi and Magnus listen to me on their best days. But you have turned into an ungrateful little princess and I'd be surprised if you even lasted two minutes in a battle nowadays!

That clearly struck a nerve. Puffing her chest, Min leaped on Levin's back, unzipped his backpack and retrieved his White Flute with lightning-fast movements. Then, leaping back to the floor in front of her Trainer, she threw him an equally-angry stare as he had earlier, before taking the Flute to her mouth.

- Min, wait! You have no idea what kind of Pokemon live in a place untouched by humans! Don't you dare bl...

She dared. Blowing into the White Flute with all she had, a long, melodic note echoed through the forest that comprised the Mountain Peak.

- Oh damn...

[Takeo]

Mt.Infernus
Waterfall
Takeo

You grips on tight to your Frillish Narcissa, which is kinda hard actually because she is very slippery and silmy. But, as a trainer of a Frillish, you seem to know exactly where to brag to hang on tight. Narcissa jumps into the water, and the previous weight of your body is lifted up from on her. Water truly is a place where gravity's effects are much less. You open your eyes and are greeted by an underwater wonderland. You are greeted by luscious blue waters, and a wide variety of wildlife. You see two Basuclin swim by, each one of them with a red stripe, neither of them watching you as you descend into the lake. You look to the right, and see a sight that only few have seen. A Gyarados is locked into furious battle with a Milotic, the tho evolutionary cousing locking it out in battle, one wrapping around the other, blasting Hyper beams into the lake. One Hyper Beam comes dangerously close to hitting both you and Narcissa, but she is able to swiftly dodge the attack. To your left is a couple of Luvdisc swimming happily together, contrasting the previous scenes of fighting and warfare with love and tolerance. Looking ahead and down from you, something is seen nestled in the rocks. It looks like some sort of opening the rock, and obviously must be what the sign was pointing to. You point towards it, showing Narcissa the way to go. She floats down the water, and moves into the opening in the rock. It is indeed a opening, actually, a tunnel. The rock lining on the sides of the tunnel was laid in bricks. The bricks looked to be still sound, but were covered in algae, and in some places, outcroppings of coral. The tunnel was wide enough for you and Narcissa to travel through easily. You see a light at the end of the tunnel, and you both surface, you just being nearly out of breath. You find yourself in a fountain, somewhere underground. You look up and see a stone maiden in the water, scantily clothed, with water coming out of an outstretched hand. Another look at the fountain shows a Cloyster with water coming out of its two main spikes. Whoever had built this entire place must have taken much care. The rest of the room was carved in stone as well, but it was more like a hallway than a grand room. There were stone statues lining the hallway, and two doors at the end. You get up out of the pool, and walk down the hallway, towards the two doors.

You see two shields blocking each door, which is odd enough, but more odd by the fact that you can see that the shields have legs as well! The shield on the left has red legs, and the shield on the right has blue legs. you walk closer to them, your Frillish floating behind you, and all of a sudden, when you get close to one of the doors, a head pops out! It is an odd shaped head, but I guess the word "goblin" suits better than anything else. Another head pops out from underneath, and the heads begin to laugh together. "Well, kid, sure have come a long way haven't you." The top head says. "Yeah, haven't you?" the bottom one says immediately after you. "You've chosen a dangerous path, And there is not going back." "Yep, no going back. Not at all." Says the blue heads. You wonder why when you look back, and that the hallway had turned into a dead end, that a wall had magically appeared there. "Well, kid, there is only one way to go. And that is through one of these doors." "Only one of these doors contains what you are looking for in the heart of the ruins, while the other leads to..." "BUMPBUMPBUMPBUMP!" "...CERTAIN DEATH!" All the heads begin to laugh now, as you begin to get worried. "Only one of us knows which doors goes where, but, you can't ask us." Says one of the botton heads. "Yeah, you can't ask us, we don't know! However, THEY might know which one it is." As the other bottom head looks up and the tops heads nod back. "You can only ask one of us though. Only one." "Well, alrighty then, kid, ask your question!"

What will you do?

Hallow gripped on tight to Narcissa, which was kinda hard, she being a jellyfish and all. But, as a trainer of a Frillish, he seemed to know exactly where to brag to hang on tight. Narcissa jumped into the water, Hallow braced himself and grabbed as much air before the *splash*,
underwater, his weight was lifted up from on her, water truly was a place where gravity's effects are much less, and held on tight for the ride,
He's eyes finally opened and were greeted by an underwater wonderland,
Light could be seen from the surface were humans roamed making the Luscious blue waters quite inviting, there also seemed to be a wide variety of wildlife,
"It's like we're flying through the sky..." he said in amazement,
A pair Basuclin with red stripes swam by, neither of them watching the new arrivals as they descended deeper into the lake.

To the right, a sight that only few have seen.
A Gyarados was locked into battle with a Milotic, the Gyarados had wrapped it's body around Milotic, and was blasting it with a Hyper beam.
Another Hyper Beam was shot and came dangerously close to hitting Hallow and Narcissa, but his Frillish quickly dodged the attack.
"fuuu, that was close,"
To the left were a couple of Luvdisc swimming happily together, contrasting the previous scenes of fighting and warfare with love and tolerance.
"The Water sure is Beautiful," Hallow said, "Boy is this exciting!! we're having a big adventure under the water,"
Looking ahead and down from him, something caught his eye,
nestled in between some rocks..,
Could that be what the sign was pointing towards?,
Hallow pointed, showing Narcissa the way to go.

She floated down the water, and moved into the opening in the rock, in closer expectation was in-fact a tunnel.
The rock linings on the sides of the tunnel were laid in bricks.
The bricks looked to be still sound, but were covered in algae, and in some places, outcroppings of coral.
Was this man-made?, he thought,
The tunnel was wide enough for both Hallow and Narcissa to travel through easily enough and at the end of the tunnel was a white light,
"Onward!," he yelled,
they both surfaced, and Hallow just being nearly out of breath gasped for air,
"Ahhh!,"
He found himself in a fountain, somewhere underground. He looked up and saw a stone of a maiden in the water, scantily clothed, with water coming out of an outstretched hand.
Another look at the fountain showed a Cloyster with water coming out of its two main spikes.
"Beautiful...,"
The rest of the room was carved in stone as well, but it was more like a hallway than a grand room.
There were stone statues lining the hallway, and two doors at the end.
Hallow got up out of the water, and walked down the hallway, towards the two doors trying to take it all in,

Hallow stopped when he noticed there were two shields blocking each door,
"Odd...," he said,
but more odd was the fact that the shields have legs,
The shield on the left had red legs, and the shield on the right had blue legs.
Hallow walked closer to them, his Frillish floating behind him,
Hallow started to walk towards one of the doors when all of a sudden, a head popped out behind a sheild!
"Woah!," he said surprised,
The head was oddly shaped, like a "goblin".
Another head popped out from underneath, and the heads begin to laugh together.
"Well, kid, sure have come a long way haven't you." The top head said, "Yeah, haven't you?" the bottom one said immediately after him.
"You've chosen a dangerous path, And there is not going back."
"Yep, no going back. Not at all." Said the blue heads.
Hallow wondered why but when he looked back, a wall had magically appeared there and the hallway they had just came from had turned into a dead end.
"Well, kid, there is only one way to go. And that is through one of these doors."
Hallow returned his attention back to the goblins,
"Only one of these doors contains what you are looking for in the heart of the ruins, while the other leads to..."
"BUMPBUMPBUMPBUMP!"
"...CERTAIN DEATH!"
All the heads began to laugh now, as Hallow began to get worried,
"Only one of us knows which doors goes where, but, you can't ask us." Said one of the bottom heads. "Yeah, you can't ask us, we don't know! However, THEY might know which one it is."
As the other bottom head looked up and the tops heads nodded back. "You can only ask one of us though. Only one."

"And I should warn you that one of us always tells truth and the other one always lies," the blue one said,
"I do not," the red ones said, "I tell the truth!,"
"What a lie!," the red one replied,
Hallow couldn't help but laugh at this exchange,
"Well, alrighty then, kid, ask your question!"

Hallow thought,
Its like a riddle, 'Two guards are standing in front of two doors, identical except one door has #1 on it, the other #2. One leads to Heaven and the other to Hell, the guards know which is which, but you don't. One guard always lies, and the other always tells the truth, but you don't know which does what. You can only ask one of them one question in order to find out which door leads to Heaven - and the guards have no knowledge of the world around them, except which door leads to heaven and which leads to hell, and whether the other guard lies or tells the truth.

Hallow pondered a moment,
So the guards can't answer any questions like 'How many heads do you have?' or anything like it, although, in this scenario, those questions would be useless anyway because you don't know which door the liar and truth-teller is guarding. So what question can I ask?

I could always go the simpler root and ask: 'Whats 2 + 2?,'; but if that were to back fire I'd be out of a question and risk 'Certain Death,'

I got it!, the answer is: 'If I were to ask the other one what door he is guarding, what would he say?';
and whatever answer that person gives is the door they are guarding, but it only works if I assume...

That would result in one guard answering 'Hell', and the other 'Heaven'; the liar standing in front of the door to Hell would lie and say "the other guard would say he is guarding the door to Hell', while the truthful guard in front of the door to Heaven, knowing the other would lie, would tell the truth and say "the other guard would say he is guarding the door to Heaven". You would then logically assume that the guard who said "The other guard would say "Heaven" was standing in front of the door to Heaven, and the one who said "The other guard would say "Hell" is actually guarding Hell.

But I suppose that is speculating that the liar is guarding the door to Hell, and the truth-teller guards the door to Heaven.
Hallow was in deep thought, while Narcissa simply watched his mind at work,
There's only one way to find out,

"Fine, you, the one behind the red shield, 'If I were to ask the other one what door he is guarding, what would he say?',"


[Stats.]

OoC: I apologize for the minor self update but I probably won't have time to reply later and I couldn't wait for you to simply add a line of text.

[Thrain]

If there any mistakes, please feel free to let me know. If you guys respond quickly enough, I'll try to post another update before the end of October. Otherwise, monthly to bi-monthly updates from now on.

Lake Tyr

.:poketim2:. - {Repost of your last update}

Signaling to the woman your need for air, you swim up and grab a quick breath before diving back down just as fast. The woman still remains in her previous spot, hovering over the Poké Ball. Her hair fans out around her face in the water, and you can’t help but think how beautiful this woman is. She points yet again at the Ball, but seems to be increasing in impatience with each second. You comply with her silent command and pull against the object stuck in the mud, bracing yourself against the edge of the trench for more support. Jitterz begins to float away as you concentrate on this task, but he quickly recovers himself by grabbing onto your shirt. Bubbles start to escape from your mouth as you heave against the Ball with all your might… Pop!

Suddenly the Poké Ball pops out of its resting place. Up close, you can see that chips and dents race all around the ball. Just what could have happened to it? Another question races through your mind, followed by another. How long has it been down here? Better yet, is there a Pokémon inside? Curiosity arisen, you gesture toward the surface, and begin to swim upwards. Being only about eight feet under, you and Jitterz breathe a sigh of relief a few seconds later as oxygen races into your lungs. The woman surfaces with you, beginning to swim towards the shore. Questions continue to arise within, but you can’t seem to get a clear grip on your thoughts. The entire situation’s just too confusing and strange.

The woman rises out of the water, climbing the embankment that leads onto land. Turning, she notices your look of confusion, pausing to look at the Poké Ball you still clutch in your hand. “Thank you, thank you so much.” She hesitates, then resumes speaking. “You see, I lost the item that you hold now long ago. I have so dearly missed the Pokémon that resides within it… Thank you for helping me, but now I must go…” Her voice trails off into nothingness, but curiosity still plagues you. The woman turns, beginning to walk away. You call out to her, but a wave of weariness suddenly engulfs your body. Your limbs feel sluggish and soft, your eyes slowly begin to close. The last thing you see is the retreating form of the woman, right before she vanishes into thin air! Your drowsy limbs refuse to obey your commands any longer; you collapse to the ground into a deep sleep.

---

“Hey, are you all right?”

Suddenly your eyes snap open to see a young boy looking down over you. Memories begin to swim to the surface of your mind: the lake, the Poké Ball, the woman. You sit up slowly, looking around for any signs her, but to no avail. Looking around, you see the old Poké Ball lying a few feet away. The boy offers you a hand, helping you stand up. You question the boy whether he saw any signs of the mysterious girl, but he shakes his head in denial. As he shakes his head, however, his eyes begin to grow wide.

“The woman… The woman of legend! You saw the ghost!” the boy shouts excitedly. “Tell me, what was she like?”

How will you respond?

Open Plain

.:Charminions:.

As the round draws to a close, multiple strategies race through your mind as you contemplate the next move. Both combatants are giving it their all, and soon only one will emerge victorious. Deciding to capitalize on the Sword Dance attack boost, you call out your orders to Apollo, who caws his agreement. He, too, is ready to defeat this Donphan! Zaire shouts orders from the other side of the plain; the sun overhead begins its descent towards the horizon as the final stages of the battle begin.

Apollo rushes in close to the Donphan’s side, jumps up, and Crushes his Claws into the elephant’s tough, slightly burnt hide. A bellow escapes through the mouth of the Donphan, who retaliates with a Counter. Charging into the Combusken’s side, the elephant doubles the attack damage sustained with the fire type’s previous attack, sending him sprawling. You shout words of encouragement from afar as the Donphan follows it up with another vicious Slam, knocking Apollo back a few more yards. Regaining his feet before the elephant can make its next move, Apollo calls forth his fire energy and bathes his arms in flames. Rushing forward, he swipes his cloaked arms in a Crossfire over the Donphan’s midsection. Trainers on both sides of the battlefield clap and shout in excitement as they watch this move succeed, putting a smile on your face. Suddenly, though, the ground begins to shake violently. The cheering stops, replaced by fear as the ground splits and shockwaves of energy are released into the middle of the battlefield. Peering closer, it looks like the Donphan is using Bulldoze! Apollo staggers, loses footing on the unsteady ground, and falls heavily. Energy from the attack inflicts more damage as he is sprawled onto the ground. As the rumbling stops, you can hear Zaire’s cheering from the other side of the battlefield. Grimacing, you watch in nervous anticipation as Apollo regains his feet slowly. Looking over, the Donphan appears to be shaking slightly from all of the damage received. The battle is not over yet, but the climax is nearly upon you!

What’s your next move?

Cinder Village

.:Myrrh:.

The Spearow’s quick, sharp peck sends a wave of pain zinging through your arm, causing you to drop the map into the dirt. Seconds later, the quick bird dips down and snags the parchment in its claws, flying higher with its prize. Angling north of the village, the Pokémon begins to float in the direction marked on the map. Below, the girl with the shock of red hair struggles to keep up, shouting encouragements to what must be her own Pokémon. A surge of anger snaps you into focus. Bringing out a Poké Ball, you call out your Houndour, Scout, for assistance. The little fire dog seems eager to play, but you quickly explain the situation to her. “Come on, Scout, we need to go after them. Hurry!”

The chase was on. Turning, the red-headed girl quickly notices your pursuit and begins to run faster. Questions form in your mind regarding this peculiar situation. Wasn’t this village supposed to be deserted? Who the heck was this small girl who thought she could get away with petty theft? As the girl’s legs pump faster, you only encourage Scout to run harder too. Before long, you close in the gap between you and the petite girl, which only causes you to run faster. The red-head notices this as well, beginning to yelp with fright as you close the distance to just a few feet. Suddenly, she stumbles into the dirt, and you trip over her as well, not having enough time to dodge. Dust is thrown into the air, but as it clears, the girl’s face comes into focus. She looks to be in her mid-teens, with dark blue eyes and a slanting visage. Regaining your feet, you stride over to the fallen girl and offer her your hand, suddenly feeling a little sorry for the little lady in spite of the situation at hand. “Who are you, and why did you steal my map?” you ask, injecting a little venom into the question. Smiling in understanding, the girl accepts your assistance and begins to explain herself.

“My name’s Celeste, and, well, I stole the map because I had to. You see, the two people that you just met are my grandparents. I’ve lived with them ever since I was tiny, when Cinder Village was a thriving place. But now…” She pauses to gesture at the dilapidated surroundings. “Now everything’s been ruined. I know you have already heard the story about the mysterious disappearance of the hot spring—I eavesdropped on your conversation—and I know it’s somehow tied to the noises that are heard at night. My grandparents are very overprotective and never let me investigate, even though I wanted to so badly. Whenever you arrived, I jumped at the chance of setting off to find out what’s going on once and for all. You see, the cave’s location is a secret even to me, so I needed the map to find it. My grandparents would never let me see it, so I figured now was the perfect chance to get my hands on it. I couldn’t risk you not helping me, so I did what I thought I had to do: steal it,” finishes the girl in a breathless tone. Not waiting for a response, Celeste quickly whistles; a few seconds later, the Spearow that had stolen the map drops back down from the sky with the piece of parchment clutched in its claws. “I didn’t think I could trust you at first, but for some reason, I feel like you could be a valuable ally in helping with this cave mystery. Plus, I know the lay of the land. I could help you. So what do you say? Would you allow me to accompany you to search for the truth,” she asks, extending the map for you to take.

How will you respond?

Caliente Trail

.:Missingo. Master:.

A ray of white light erupts into the air, replaced a second later by Myrtle, your sarcastic Shuppet who always has a bone to pick with someone. Upon seeing the man who accused you of letting the Houndour get away, she defends your position and even claims it’s his fault, right before she returns to her Poké Ball. Surprise is clearly written across your face as you turn to face the boy. He, too, looks quite shocked at the Shuppet’s outburst, and for once, he’s speechless. Turning towards Peeves, you converse over the possibility of the Houndour actually being a thief. In the end, there’s only one way to find out. “Peeves, use your Foresight,” you instruct. “Scan this mountain for any sign of that Houndour.” Peeves voices his doubts over using such a move to search for a Pokémon, but he tries nevertheless. As he focuses his energy into searching for the fire dog, your eyes drift over to the boy’s. His Mothim floats behind him, waiting for his next instructions. However, the look on the boy’s face is vacant, as if he is thinking deeply about something. A few seconds pass, and then he looks up at you.

He fumbles for words before finally reaching out his hand for you to shake. “Yeah, she was right,” he says, almost reluctantly. “I shouldn’t have responded the way I did, and I’m really sorry. I was just very frustrated, and I hope that you can forgive me. Let’s start over, shall we? My name’s Clyde, and this here is Serena,” he says, gesturing toward his Mothim. Stepping forward, you grip the boy’s hand in a firm handshake and formally introduce yourself and Peeves. Once all of the formalities are settled, you turn towards your Ghost type. He floats in the air with eyes closed, bobbing up and down slightly as he concentrates on his task of finding the Houndour. Minutes pass… Suddenly, he opens his eyes and exclaims, “Follow me! I think I found it!” A look of hope eases itself onto Clyde’s face as you race behind Peeves up the mountain’s steep trail. After five minutes of running, Peeves stops at a crevice in the mountain wall. “It look like Houndour went in here,” he says to you, peering into the dark depths of the mountain.

“Of course,” Clyde says suddenly. “This is Granite Tunnel, a labyrinthine series of passageways that carve through the mountain. There are various entrances dotted around Caliente Trail, so I bet that’s how the Houndour could travel to so many different locations.” You nod in agreement, although you still have your doubts about the fire dog being a thief. Darkness throngs the passageway, but Clyde has Serena use Flash so that you may all see clearly. After about five minutes of walking through the passageway, you come to a split in the tunnel: one passage curving off to the left, one curving off to the right. Turning, you see to your horror that claw marks line the walls of the tunnel on the left. “Hey, those are my berries that I lost,” Clyde suddenly exclaims, pointing to two Pecha Berries that lie in front of the right tunnel’s entrance. “I bet the Houndour went down the right tunnel then.”

“I lost trail here,” Peeves tells you. “We’ll have to choose.”

How will your proceed?

Pele's Cavern

.:gmoyes:.

Listening intently to your orders, Echo gazes toward the pacing Arcanine, searching for a weak spot. The prowling dog appears quite regal with its lustrous fur and coat, which again causes you to question how a Pokémon could survive in this thousand year old chamber. As the Arcanine lets loose another low growl, Echo makes its move by sending a Ray of Confusion towards the fire type. It seems to be expecting this, for the Arcanine jumps high into the air once again and dodges the attack all together. Looks as if a move like this would have to be used at a closer range to work properly!

Landing lightly on its feet, the Arcanine utilizes its Extremespeed to dash in close before Echo can follow through with its next move, and proceeds with a swift Double Kick that deals a moderate amount of damage. Echo makes use of the fire dog’s close proximity afterwards and summons forth Ancient Power in the form of three orbs of rock energy, which are launched toward the Arcanine. The spheres of power slam into the fire type’s side, eliciting a yelp from the Pokémon. As the attack succeeds, Echo feels a strange power coursing through his innards; it seems like all of his stats were boosted with the effectiveness of the attack! Gaining confidence from the Arcanine’s roar of pain, Echo focuses its energy into a Shadow Ball. The regal fire dog jumps back a few yards, opening its maw wide to unleash a Fire Blast that encircles the Shadow Ball and negates it completely. The massive wall of fire slams into Echo’s exterior, pushing it back toward the entrance of the cavern. Heatproof activates yet again, although the attack was still quite strong without it.

A cry escapes your lips as you watch your precious Pokémon get hit with such a strong fire type move. Echo’s health is now below the halfway point, although his energy levels are just a bit higher. Arcanine used a lot of energy this round, even though his health is still around the sixty percent mark.

How will you respond?

Ignatius River

.:Megh:. - Link to your last update

[gmoyes]

Pele's Cavern

.:gmoyes:.

Listening intently to your orders, Echo gazes toward the pacing Arcanine, searching for a weak spot. The prowling dog appears quite regal with its lustrous fur and coat, which again causes you to question how a Pokémon could survive in this thousand year old chamber. As the Arcanine lets loose another low growl, Echo makes its move by sending a [b]Ray of Confusion towards the fire type. It seems to be expecting this, for the Arcanine jumps high into the air once again and dodges the attack all together. Looks as if a move like this would have to be used at a closer range to work properly!

Landing lightly on its feet, the Arcanine utilizes its Extremespeed to dash in close before Echo can follow through with its next move, and proceeds with a swift Double Kick that deals a moderate amount of damage. Echo makes use of the fire dog’s close proximity afterwards and summons forth Ancient Power in the form of three orbs of rock energy, which are launched toward the Arcanine. The spheres of power slam into the fire type’s side, eliciting a yelp from the Pokémon. As the attack succeeds, Echo feels a strange power coursing through his innards; it seems like all of his stats were boosted with the effectiveness of the attack! Gaining confidence from the Arcanine’s roar of pain, Echo focuses its energy into a Shadow Ball. The regal fire dog jumps back a few yards, opening its maw wide to unleash a Fire Blast that encircles the Shadow Ball and negates it completely. The massive wall of fire slams into Echo’s exterior, pushing it back toward the entrance of the cavern. Heatproof activates yet again, although the attack was still quite strong without it.

A cry escapes your lips as you watch your precious Pokémon get hit with such a strong fire type move. Echo’s health is now below the halfway point, although his energy levels are just a bit higher. Arcanine used a lot of energy this round, even though his health is still around the sixty percent mark.

How will you respond?

Alex grimaced as the Confuse Ray missed. The Arcanine was too fast. Normally Theta could paralyze it but its powers we unable to work. He was glad that Echo's type and ability combination gave it no resistances, though that didn't mean that they weren't still strong attacks. He was glad that the Ancient Power connected this time and by the look at the boost in energy Echo displayed it received the boost associated with it. It took that boost and used it to produce a Shadow Ball. Unfortunately, the attack was overwhelmed by a Fire Blast and the attack also dealt major damage to his steel type. They seemed a little outmatched, but that boost will change the outcome.

"Come on Echo! We can do this. See if it can dodge a Faint Attack, then while your close, flash it a Confuse Ray. If it works, let it mess around. Finish with Extrasensory either way." The Bronzor bobbed a nod and focused on the fire type. If they lost, they would lose time getting Echo out of there and then Theta would have to go on alone. Phi wouldn't be able to handle the heat. They had to win to continue on.

[Charminions]

Open Plain

.:Charminions:.

As the round draws to a close, multiple strategies race through your mind as you contemplate the next move. Both combatants are giving it their all, and soon only one will emerge victorious. Deciding to capitalize on the Sword Dance attack boost, you call out your orders to Apollo, who caws his agreement. He, too, is ready to defeat this Donphan! Zaire shouts orders from the other side of the plain; the sun overhead begins its descent towards the horizon as the final stages of the battle begin.

Apollo rushes in close to the Donphan’s side, jumps up, and Crushes his Claws into the elephant’s tough, slightly burnt hide. A bellow escapes through the mouth of the Donphan, who retaliates with a Counter. Charging into the Combusken’s side, the elephant doubles the attack damage sustained with the fire type’s previous attack, sending him sprawling. You shout words of encouragement from afar as the Donphan follows it up with another vicious Slam, knocking Apollo back a few more yards. Regaining his feet before the elephant can make its next move, Apollo calls forth his fire energy and bathes his arms in flames. Rushing forward, he swipes his cloaked arms in a Crossfire over the Donphan’s midsection. Trainers on both sides of the battlefield clap and shout in excitement as they watch this move succeed, putting a smile on your face. Suddenly, though, the ground begins to shake violently. The cheering stops, replaced by fear as the ground splits and shockwaves of energy are released into the middle of the battlefield. Peering closer, it looks like the Donphan is using Bulldoze! Apollo staggers, loses footing on the unsteady ground, and falls heavily. Energy from the attack inflicts more damage as he is sprawled onto the ground. As the rumbling stops, you can hear Zaire’s cheering from the other side of the battlefield. Grimacing, you watch in nervous anticipation as Apollo regains his feet slowly. Looking over, the Donphan appears to be shaking slightly from all of the damage received. The battle is not over yet, but the climax is nearly upon you!

What’s your next move?

The action of the battle continues, as Apollo jumps back into the fray and crushes his claw into the Donphan. Donphan yelps in pain but counters right back, dealing twice the amount of damage Apollo just did. The Young Fowl tumbles back from the blow, but stands once again. "Ouch. Hang in there, buddy," Charm tries to encourage, but Donphan continues his onslaught, charging in and slamming into Apollo once again, knocking him back several feet. Standing once more, Apollo's eyes give a dark stare, as his arms ignite in flames, before crossing his arms in a Cross Fire. "Nice one!" Charm says, seeing the blazing attack hit its mark. But Donphan isn't going to have any of it, he shakes the ground violently, causing Apollo to trip as a Bulldoze attack rattles him for some damage. "Aw crap," Charm notes, an attack like that is super-effective on a Fire-type like Apollo. The Combusken relunctantly gets back up as Zaire cheers on his Pokemon from the other side.

"We're still in this, Apollo. Let's Mirror Donphan's last Move to trip him up with a Bulldoze. That will give him a taste of his own medicine. Then use this chance to hurt him with another Hidden Power (Grass). Finally, we'll show him the flames of hell. Engulf him in your mightiest Flamethrower till he's roasted," Charm orders, a smirk of confidence reaching his mouth.

[LucarioArtcunoSuicunLover]

The Island
Ignatius River
LASL

Sparow was ready and willing to take orders, and waited for the Scyther to come out again. At first, you could hear nothing, nothing at all. No movement, no background noise, nothing. The forest has become silent with the toils of battle. Sparow waits in angst, and finally, the Scyther comes roaring out ofthe bushes, yelling, "SCCCYYYYYYYTHER!" at the top of its lungs. He rams his body into Sparow, who tried to get out of the way but was unable to, since the Scyther's attacks were quick and powerful. The Scyther hit the ground, and jumped fowards again, rushing into the bushes. Sparow has caught on to his plan, however, and begins to LEER at him, leering in the bottom direction, hopwfully in order to gain some advantage over the Scyther. However, with the Scyther camoflauged so well into the bushes, you are completely unsure whether is had any effect or not. You knew from his attack pattern that he had to come from the South, but, if this was another psyche out waiting game, you were more than ready to play it. But, truthfully, the Scyther was not to the South. It was to the North. It bursts out of the bushes covered in a dark energy that could only be described as malicious, and the dark energy guides him to Sparow, who tries to dodge the attack. However, Scyther is again to quick, and nails him in his PURSUIT. It seems that the pattern has changed for the Scyther, as he bounds off to the bushes behind you. Sparow gets back up and looks around, now back on Square One, where no one had any idea where he was. The Scyther watches the two of you in your confusion and smiles, knowing it had two easy targets. Suddenly, again, the Scyther comes out of the bushes, but, this time, from the East, and smashes into Sparow again with a powerful QUICK ATTACK, before jumping off into the bushes to the West. He has a new pattern yet, but, the one who reads closely enough should be able to see it. Maybe even a diagram will work. If you want to save the Ralts and his mother, you are going to have to think one step ahead of this crafty Scyther!

The Ralts on the treetop looks at you, and enters your mind rather easily now, with no real mental interference of resistance. "I would love to help you, but, I have no idea where he is now. His attack pattern has changed, but it seems so erratic. I am counting on you, El, to defeat the Scyther and take care of my mom!" Turt placed his full trust in you. Are you going to let him down?

What will you do

"North East West, North East West," El was running through what she'd seen of the new pattern in her head. Three shots, that wasn't much to base any assumptions on. Was it a triangle skipping south? Or maybe it was NEWS? Ugh, the last thing she wanted right now was to wind up on tha-- focus! Since when were pokemon battles actually spatial reasoning puzzles, anyway? Sparow seemed somewhat restless, rather annoyed about her apparant failure and subsequent beating. Dodging clearly wasn't going to work. North East West, North East West...

Oh deities this was taking too long, every second wasted was another one where the oversized insect might attack again. Time to take a chance on this. Skipping south outright, something about that seemed too obvious, although she obviously could be wrong. It wasn't worth dilly-dallying over, she had lives to save! "Sparow, I want you to use Steel Wing towards the south, got it? Even if it isn't there keep trying to get rid of any possible hiding spots there you can. Follow up with a Fury Attack to the north, then a Peck to the east. If you find it, try to aim for it's knees. Let's see if we can't slow it down a little"

El was desperately hoping that she didn't just tell her friend to attack random bushes. She took a quick look up at Turt, giving him a weary smile. Even if she loses, she wasn't going to let this end without a fight. Hopefully mum would understand, always said she was too nice.

Whelp, time to see what fate has in store.

[Son_of_Shadows]

The Island
Garland Basin
Son_of_Shadows

The leader looks at you with a feeling of shock on his face. Whatever you had said to him had obviously surprised him. "Well, outsider, we never knew that you wished to understand our culture! While our Sky God is a God of fear and punishment, he is also a God of love and understanding. An outsider has never decided to join our culture before. This is...unheard of. Men! We shall unchain him from this stack, and remove the firewood from his feet. Also, we shall uncage his Pokemon companion, as the Sky God loves all creatures, including the Pokemon of the Earth! Let us all take this glorious day into account, when, a man was faced with certain death. He repented his sins in front of the Sky God as best as he could, and now, he shall be welcomed as one of our bretheren!" You sigh in complete relief, as this means that you are not going to die today! Was this day ordained for you? Who knows? More importantely, who cares? You are alive! The chains are released from your hands, and feeling gradually returns to them; you had not even realized that you had lost feeling in your hands. You feet are unbound too, and your Munna is released from its cage. It coos as it slpeeily floats over to you, still under the effects of the drug that kept you in that stupor too. Your Munna expresses a feeling of gratitude and safety the best it can, and you give him a big giant hug. An experience like that was scary, and you sure did not want to go through that again. The priest turns towards you, and gives you two kisses on each of the cheeks, a sign of welcoming. "Welcome. We shall name you, Sky Eagle. Or, Sky Aquila. For now, we need someone to teach you the ways of our people. Who shall it be?" He looked to the crowd, but no one seemed to be offering. Maybe they were concerned about your recent status as an outsider, and maybe it is because, well, they think you have some sort of voodoo around you. Suddenly, a voice comes up from over the crowd, "I will train him." The crowd parts way to reveal the red-headed girl who you had seen earlier. Now that you were not scared for your life, she seemed even more beautiful than before. She walks up to you, and grabs your hand. You blush wildly. "Well, well. The Moon Eagle has decided to become one with the tribe again. This is good for you Moon Eagle. You shall teach Sky Eagle the way of our tribe and culture." "Yes, elder."

She pulls you away from the crowd, and takes you inside one of the straw huts that made up the village. She sits you down while she goes to the stone counter, and begins to rummage through a hole in the side of the counter, and took out a bag of chips. She throws it over to you, saying, "This is the last bag. I was hoping to eat it when I got out of this place. But, I think this might be a more appropiate time." She looks at you as you open up the bag, and begin to eat chips. She gives a small smile, before sitting in front of you, criss-cross. Her clothes were even worse than rags, and you can see one of her breasts. You blush like crazy while she tries to move the shirt, and, at least, it is not nearly as visible as it used to be. "Oh my gosh sorry about that. I can never seem to get my mom to get me clothes. She has washed this one shirt for the past year. She has become so wrapped in this ******** that she has nearly forgotten about me. I want to get out of here." She begins to cry, and not just cry, but sob. "This whole thing is just stupid. I can't leave here. They went and took my little Horus away from me. I haven't seem him in forever. I feel so sad without Horus." She keeps on sobbing, and you can't help but feel sorry for her. "I want to find my little Horus so bad. He makes me feel safe. Even when my mom cannnot..."

What will you do?

He didn't know how, but his desperate stalling tactic appeared to have worked even better than he'd hoped. No longer would he be sacrificed, now he was free, and Steven was too! He considered going all "Suckers! Steven, Psybeam errybody, yoyoyo!" but that would just be silly. Besides, he still wasn't sure where he was, and he needed to get the rest of his Pokéballs back... Oh, and his clothes. He was still in nothing but a pair of bathing shorts. As sexy as that was, he'd catch a chill eventually. Then again, he was on a volcanic island... Anyway, he was overjoyed to be free, and cuddled the psychic tapir who floated over to him. Still drugged unfortunately.

The chief, or high priest or whoever he was took Joshua's face now, and kissed him twice. ... Did I get teleported to France?, he wondered.

"Welcome. We shall name you, Sky Eagle. Or, Sky Aquila. For now, we need someone to teach you the ways of our people. Who shall it be?" Sky Aquila, eh? Not bad. Maybe he could get used to this place... He scanned the crowd, looking for his new guide - and found that it was to be the redhead from before. The one who had seemed sympathetic. She took his hand, and he felt himself go as red as her hair. Joshua had a thing about redheads. "Well, well. The Moon Eagle has decided to become one with the tribe again. This is good for you Moon Eagle. You shall teach Sky Eagle the way of our tribe and culture." Moon Eagle, eh? Well, if he could seduce her, he could always use her to help him escape. Seemed like a nasty move, but... No, the end doesn't justify the means. If she would help him, it would be because she wanted to, not because of any cruel manipulation.

She brought him back to a small hut, presumably hers, and got him a small bag of chips to replenish his strength. Not much, but certainly better than nothing. He tucked in, letting Steven take a couple too. It seemed Moon Eagle had her own plans for escaping the village too by her comment. Excellent, he'd found a definite ally. "Thanks 'Moon Eagle'. Hopefully we can help each other get out of this pla-" He stopped, noticing, ahem, something that her top couldn't cover properly. Damn you libido! Don't stare!

"Oh my gosh sorry about that. I can never seem to get my mom to get me clothes. She has washed this one shirt for the past year."

"At least you have a shirt, right?" he joked, pointing at his own naked torso, hoping to put her at ease. It didn't work. She started to cry. This was very quickly turning into Joshua's last first date.

Moon Eagle continued: "She has become so wrapped in this ******** that she has nearly forgotten about me. I want to get out of here. This whole thing is just stupid. I can't leave here. They went and took my little Horus away from me. I haven't seem him in forever. I feel so sad without Horus. I want to find my little Horus so bad. He makes me feel safe. Even when my mom cannot..." Who was Horus? A Pokémon probably, but what kind? Only one he could think of was a Natu or Xatu. Probably the former. He looked at Steven, and felt how sad he would be if he was kidnapped. And of course, he still had his other Pokémon to worry about too... How could he deny a crying lady? Especially since he'd just seen- No, better not to continue that train of thought. All Men Are Perverts indeed.

He really needed to get off TVTropes.

More than that though, he needed to help it. He took Moon Eagle's hand again, in an attempt to calm her down. Steven cooed, and floated closer to her, trying to do likewise. "Listen to me, Moon Eagle. I'm going to help you, ok? We'll rescue Horus, and get you out of here safely. If we can do the same for your mother too, then we will. All I ask in return is that you help me get my other Pokémon and my bag back. I think they were kidnapped along with me when I took a bath in a hot spring. Tell, me what does Horus look like? Oh, and one more thing - as cool as it sounds, don't call me Sky Eagle, it sounds pretentious. My name is Joshua."

[Treepandaone]

Cortoza
The Volcanic Island

Floating serenely in the middle of the ocean, Cortoza is a secluded land mass which was once a beautiful and highly populated tropical island. Two hundred years ago a powerful oceanic earthquake resulted in a chain reaction of death and destruction as Cortoza's active volcanic mountains erupted in a series of cataclysmic explosions that churned out a spectacular display of ash, rock, and molten lava, and finally ending with Mt Fumi's stupendous paroxysmal eruption. All of Cortoza's vegetation was destroyed, while humans and Pokémon not fast enough to flee perished in the resulting destruction as the western end of the island collapsed beneath the sea, generating a series of devastating pyroclastic flows and immense tsunamis that ravaged adjacent coastlines. The events of that day marked the last 24 hours on earth for over 50,000 people and 300,000 Pokémon, as the wave of destruction flowed across hundreds of coastal villages and towns. For the next hundred years nobody dared approach the island due to the constant seismic activity and mini eruptions, but for the past several decades all has been quiet. Pokémon have returned, and with very few people drawn to the volcanic island, wildlife has been given the chance to thrive. Although wary, people are also beginning to venture to Cortoza again, some of the more opportunistic seeing this land as their chance to strike it rich due to its fast-booming tourism industry. Most are curious though, as the island has shown amazing regenerative qualities, and many are eager to explore and to witness the miraculous regrowth for themselves. The tropical jungle is flourishing once more, Pokémon have returned, and as far as everyone is aware most of Cortoza's volcanoes have been laying dormant for almost one hundred years.

Mt. Infernus

The second largest of Cortoza's mountains, Mt. Infernus is now extinct. Many Pokémon have made their homes within the vast network of tunnels and caverns deep within the mountain, and aren't all that accustomed to seeing people. It's become the primary breeding ground for many of the rarer Pokémon who tend to shy away from humans, and due to the protective nature of the parent Pokémon, quite a hazardous area to traverse.

Areas:
The Rock Pool: Deep, deep, deep, within the bowels of Mt. Infernus there is rumoured to be a secluded water-filled chamber where extremely rare and ancient Pokémon dwell. Some even say that Pokémon have mutated over the centuries to create new breeds, never before seen in the land of Fizzy Bubbles. This has never been confirmed or denied, as those who have stumbled across this chamber have never been able to defeat the Pokémon they've encountered, let alone capture them. When told to bring proof of their existence, those who have tried to return to the chamber have never been able to find it again. Who knows? If you're lucky, you may just stumble across it...

Hopefully your offer of taking me still stands. I was previously the updater of the Volcanic Mountain (which is now merged with Cortoza) so I know how hard it is to update here. Hopefully we can have a great adventure together though ^^

Wrooom. Zzzzaaaap. A small purple ball of energy whizzed around until finally crashing into the floor, exploding with a ball of purple light, revealing a young man crouched over as he kneed on the floor, one hand flat on the ground while another balled up fist supported his weight. Sparks flew as the scene settled down, leading the trainer to raise his head and scan his surroundings.

Matthew Brown, a Pokémon trainer from Viridian, stayed still for a moment, wary of danger looked around for enemies, confused as to how he got to his current position. Looking around he found himself in a clearing, but he had no idea where he was. He racked his brain to remember the last thing he was doing, coming to the conclusion he had just finished feeding his Pokémon at his secret base, a large treetop in a secluded part of the Glacier Island, a far different climate to the one he was currently in.

Convincing himself there was no danger, Matthew stood up, fixing his jacket collar as the wind blew a blast of warm air his way, leaving him to revel in the warm climate he had missed so much after getting used to The Glacier Island. He swept his hand through his hair before reaching deep into his inside pocket, pulling out a golden Pokédex, his signature style, before consulting its information section.

“Cortoza: The Volcanic Islands. Two hundred years ago Cortoza's active volcano errupted, causing massive devastation. Mt. Infernus is now extinct, causing Pokémon to move into the chambers.” the mechanic voice beeped as Matthew nodded, know knowing where he was.

Thinking about it for a few seconds, Matthew realised that he had indeed heard of Cortoza. His mind scrambled as it tried to remember where he had heard such a familiar name, the after-effects of the memory loss he suffered still plaguing him. Scratching his head, Matthew found himself reliving a flashback of Cortoza, having finally recollected his memory; he had visited Cortoza some time before he lost his memory.

A Pokémon cry in the distance caused Matthew to jolt upright and look around, the strong smell of salt-water filling his nostrils as he attempted to find out if there was any danger in the area, but he found none. Looking around for the cause of his sudden apparition Matthew looked at the objects in his vicinity, but found no evidence of foul play. Looking down at his Pokébelt, however, yeilded different results.

The Legendary Pokémon Mew stirred in its Pokéball, the shiny silver coating reflecting sunlight as Matthew too reflected on the situation. Emulating from his lack of memory, Matthew remembered not where he received the Mew from, only knowing that he 'woke up' in a different time to what he remembered, the Mew being in his possession. He had been far too scared to use the Pokémon before and kept it in his secret base under heavy guard, he was only moving it to another spot in his base when he suddenly found himself in the volcanic zone.

“D-did you do this?” He asked, staring down at the pink bipedal creature, his finger stroking the plastic capsule the legend was housed in. “D-do you want me to do something here?”

Much to his annoyance, Matthew Brown received no answer, hoping that the psychic bond between the two would allow them to communicate much like other trainers he had seen. Silence filled the air as Matthew wondered what to do.

“Did Mew teleport me here? What does it want?” he asked himself, his fingers still running up and down the capsule as the psychic-Pokemon reacted to it, spinning as it followed the trainer's subconscious movements.

Matthew looked down to see Mew playing, following him. He stopped, causing the Pokémon to stop too, and a confused look came across his face. He breathed out heavily, frustrated at the lack of progress as to why he was here. Deciding to let the Pokémon out, Matthew pressed the middle button of the Pokéball, but found no light appeared from the end. He expected Mew to burst out of its Pokéball like the rest of his team but as he looked down, Mew was still there, sitting happily in its Pokéball, unwanted to come out.

“You don't … I don't?” he stammered, talking aloud as he gave up with another sigh, clipping the cat-like Pokémon back onto his belt.

Matthew looked around, not knowing the purpose of his visit nor the implications of being here. He had previously wanted to visit all of the areas he had been before his memory loss to attempt to spark his brain into remembering, but the way in which he got to Cortoza frightened Matthew, the show of power by Mew, or indeed whoever brought him here, was scary. Running his fingers back along his belt Matthew reached for another Pokéball, holding it up to his face as he peered inside, cocking his head slightly as he did.

Clicking the middle button Matthew found himself in the company of Pontos, the Anorith coming out from his Pokéball when the Mew didn't. He smiled, it was the first time he and the bug-type had adventured together and he was looking forward to seeing how it fared. It lay on the ground belly-first, using its wings to move itself around the floor, seemingly interested in all of the greenery available in the volcanic zone.

Opening up his Pokédex, Matthew studied the area, scrolling down with his thumb before stopping on a single sentence. The rumour of a secret chamber filled with ancient Pokémon excited him, being the trainer of fossil Pokémon and all. While he had some concern over the ferocity and savagery of the Pokémon in the area, he knew that an angry Rhyperior was always at hand to protect him should the need arise.

Picking up his Pokémon's shell with both hands, Matthew elevated Anorith to his midsection, hugging the rock-type's shell to his body as he set off to find The Rock Pool, knowing that he'd travel much faster going at his pace than Anoriths....

[Dark Searchman]

Alright, just so you know, I really don't have a problem having more people. I have tons of ideas floating in my noggin ATM, so, if you want an adventure, don't worry. And candies.

Also, I do make Pokemon talk, but really only for plot development in some cases where there is no people.

Mt. Infernus
Scenic Walkway
Dark Searchman

The Larvesta looks at you again, and finally feels like it is safe around you and your friends. It gives a little snuggle next to you, showing a side you didn't see in it before, a deep caring side. You grimace as its hot mane burns your foot a little bit. It looks at you again, and takes a deep breath, and begins to speak. "Hello, brave Trainer. My name is Solaris. I am one of the few Larvesta that live in the area. I am on the search for a strong trainer that we be able to help my cause." He looks at you again, and at Amethyst and Sarkahn, and makes something of a smile. "You are the only one who has been able to defeat me. I must assume that you are a strong trainer. You need to help me, and the other inhabitants of this island." He turns around and looks at something on the cliff. you turn around, and wonder how you missed this before. The rock was in the figure of a skull, and it looked like it was decaying. It was an odd experience. "That is what has been happening lately. Vandals have been desecrating the landscape around us. This one here keeps making a skull and using dark energy to kill all the life inside. Another makes snakes and melts the stones. The next makes a squid-like being, and washes the rocks away. The final one makes a dragon and weathers the rocks with vicious winds and draconic flames. These vandals are destroying the mountains, and making it their own personal playground. We can't drive them off either. We need someone who is going to help us. Otherwise, the entire mountain will be just a piece of vandalism, a mockery of what a fine landscape it once was." Larvesta looks down for a moment before looking back up. "We don't hate artists. We do allow some to work on the mountain, but, they also help out the ecosystem, making caves for us Pokemon to live in or diverting rivers so that water can bring life to places where it was never before. These ones just want to 'make art' at the expense of everyone."

You think about what to do for a moment. Helping them out would be the right thing to do, but you are unsure what exactly you could do. Especially if they wanted to fight back. Before you time to answer, you feel a rumbling under your feet. The Larvesta nods and closes his eyes. You wonder about what he is doing, until you feel the rumbling again. Solaris nods again and looks at you. "This is the one who carves the skulls. He is close by, just around the mountain if I am right. If we hurry, we can catch him!"

What will you do?

Seems like Hyrem's soft talking worked since the Larvesta now felt safe around him and his Pokemon and started nuzzling his leg. "Sss, ow!" he winced as one of the bug's hot horns touched his bare leg, and he jumped back in pain. Sarkhan and Amethyst both tense up as a result, but Hyrem quickly puts his hand up and says, "I'm all right... I'm all right... I just got too close, that's all." The reptiles relax but still keep an eye on Larvesta.

Then Larvesta turns to Hyrem and starts speaking: "Hello, brave Trainer. My name is Solaris. I am one of the few Larvesta that live in the area. I am on the search for a strong trainer that we be able to help my cause."

Hyrem was dumbfounded; apparently, this bug had more special qualities beside its rarity! "You... you can talk!?"

The Larvesta, named Solaris, simply smiled at him and at Sarkhan and Amethyst. "You are the only one who has been able to defeat me. I must assume that you are a strong trainer. You need to help me, and the other inhabitants of this island," he says before turning towards the cliff.

"With what?" Hyrem asked before looking in the same direction as Solaris. Whoa, there was a huge skull-shaped rock there, and it looked like it was... decaying. It seemed so glaringly obvious now that they saw it, how could they have missed it? My guess... reptile nearsi- Oh, hi guys! I was totally not talking about you or anything! Hahahahahaha... Whew, anyway...

"That is what has been happening lately," Solaris continues. "Vandals have been desecrating the landscape around us. This one here keeps making a skull and using dark energy to kill all the life inside. Another makes snakes and melts the stones. The next makes a squid-like being, and washes the rocks away. The final one makes a dragon and weathers the rocks with vicious winds and draconic flames. These vandals are destroying the mountains, and making it their own personal playground. We can't drive them off either. We need someone who is going to help us. Otherwise, the entire mountain will be just a piece of vandalism, a mockery of what a fine landscape it once was." He looks down wistfully before looking back up. "We don't hate artists. We do allow some to work on the mountain, but, they also help out the ecosystem, making caves for us Pokemon to live in or diverting rivers so that water can bring life to places where it was never before. These ones just want to 'make art' at the expense of everyone."

Great, these guys sounded like they'd be tough customers! But they were desecrating Mount Infernus... if it was active, it would likely erupt in a fiery wrath! No, they couldn't be let free to wreak destruction on this amazing mountain! But what if their Pokemon were totally powerful? ...Sarkhan and Amethyst would probably relish the opportunity... Hyrem had to make a soft chuckle at that thought. Then the earth rumbled under his feet, and he could see Solaris nod at it and close his eyes. Okay, what's he doing? Well, Hyrem couldn't figure it out, and- There it was again! The Larvesta nods once again before turning back to the trainer. "This is the one who carves the skulls. He is close by, just around the mountain if I am right. If we hurry, we can catch him!"

Well, no time for thinking now, they just had to go with it and see if they could fight off the vandals. "We'll do it, Solaris! If defending your home from these jerks is what it takes for you to join me, then I'm all for it! Sarkhan, Amethyst, ready to kick some vandal butt?"

"Drudd!" Sarkhan grunted his approval of this plan, pounding his fists together in excitement.

"Seeeee..." Amethyst hissed in glee, her grin widening at the idea of more combat.

Hyrem then turns to the Larvesta. "Okay, show me the way, Solaris!" he says to his prospective friend. If this first vandal was making skulls all over the place by dissolving the rock, there were two to three possible kinds of Pokemon he figured he would be facing, one registered in his Pokedex, and the other few not. Whatever the opponent, Hyrem had faith in his two powerful reptiles to handle things, and he kept this in mind as he, Sarkhan, and Amethyst raced to try to catch this first miscreant.

[King Ghidorah]

Mt. Pele
Pele's Temple
King Ghidorah

The man looks at you, but it is more a look of scorn than happiness. "My safety matters not. You must go after those thieves. If they capture the Guardian of the Temple, they could use its powers to destroy everything itself!" This gives you all the motivation you need. You orders your Pokemon to go after their respective pursuers, and they both go into action. You run towards the large door with your Kingler, and Throw goes towards the....smaller door. Throw looks at you, and you can see that it does not fit inside of the door! It is way to big to fit in a place like that! You wave Throw back over to you, nd you run after the large pursuers, hoping that you can catch up with them. You run through wallways fully of elaborate pictures and statues...but the bad guys seem to be very clumsy, allowing you to easily follow their trail. You look and see them, finally, at a dead end. They are clothed in black, and kinda remind you of the defunct Team Rocket. Upon closer inspection, however, you see that they have black masks on in the shape of a lion, and that the fronts of their outfits have various crests and symbols that you have never seen before. They look at you, and laugh to themselves. "This kid really thinks he is going to stop us! Fat chance!" The Houndoom howls into the room, the echo making it seem more terrifying and scaring the beejeezers out of Kingler and Throw. Even big Pokemon like them don't want to hear a howl like that. But, the real battle has yet to begin!

One of the men in black takes a Pokeball out of his pocket, and releases it out into the room, it being a powerful Kingdra, ready for some rustling and tussling action. You realize that these Pokemon were being used to capture Victini, as they are both very solid choics for the job. Your Kingler stands at attention as it begins to create a large wave of water from underneath itself. Is he hanging ten? Who knows, but he sure is riding that Surf, as the large wave crashes into everyone in the room, leaving everyone pretty disoriented. Houndoom looks a little worse for wear and Throh does not look all to pleased, but Kingdra looks none worse, in fact, I think the water helped to invigorate it! Houndoom begins to think of some truly NASTY thoughts to himself that I shoulld really not put on paper, or any sort of electronically made media. The thoughts gives his brain a little bit of a stimulation, making it work harder. Kingdra forms a ball of green energy inside of its mouth, before releasing it at Throh, who takes the hit hard, flying back a couple of feet before getting back up, ready to continue rumbling. Kingler agains go on the offensive, this time, however, with an attack that won't hit his teammate. He opens up his claw to release a powerful stream of bubbles. They may seem harmless, but, judging from the screeches of Houndoom, they really are not very pleasent. Throh charges at Houndoom, and manages to grab him, flinging him over and around him in a powerful Storm Throw, holding him on the ground. Houndoom is able to turn his head though, and breathes out a powerful Flamethrower, it singing the Throh's face. He does not seem burned though. Kingdra fires off another Dragon Pulse at Throw, as it seems they want to take it out of the equation. Wonder why? Throh is looking to be pretty worn out right now, taking quite a bit of damage, but not nearly as much as Houndoom, who looks really beaten.. Kingler is fine, and so is Kingdra, as they both look healthy and chipper.

What will you do?

[/size][/color]

The beautiful marble structure had gone from work of art to battlefield in a matter of seconds. His original plan not working, Hugo had to improvise. And now there was a new opponent.

Kingdra.

Kingdra would be a challenge. Hugo knew that. A few swift moves and Houndoom could be gravy. Kingler and Throh both had type advantages over it. But Kingdra…that was completely different. They were going after Throh with their strategy, and aside from the type advantage he held, there had to be another reason.

And it didn’t seem like Throh could take a whole lot more. Hugo knew he had to do something to retain Throh’s power without overexerting himself. He need to…

And the light bulb went off. Time to play defensive, buy a little time. In the back of his mind, he felt that Pele lit the spark to give him inspiration. Could it be true? At this point, anything was possible.

“Throh,” Hugo shouted. “Take a breather. Get behind Kingler and Kingler use Protect! And Throh, while you’re back there….use BIDE!” His voice echoed through the temple, ringing loudly and eerily back at him.


It was starting to come together. But even on defense, he knew he couldn’t just allow Houndoom and Kingdra to wear themselves out. That would take too long. By that point, Victini could be Houndour chow.

Hugo looked at Houndoom. He had to be pretty beaten up by this point after taking some strong hits. Could he be taken out now? If it was going to happen, Hugo knew just how to go about doing that.

“BRINE, KINGLER! USE BRINE ON HOUNDOOM!”

[Plight of Leon]

Just so people realize it, I want to get as many updates as possible with the short amount of time I have. Treep, King Ghidora, and Dark Searchman will come later, since it is liek 40 minutes to 7 and member posts getting eaten and bossy mothers etc...

If you were not updated now, you will. Don't worry. ^.^;

Updates for 10/30 - 10/31

Just so you guys know, since Halloween is coming around, this updates hopefully will be extra creepy.

Mt. Infernus
Mountain Peak
MarbleZone

A beautiful melody begins to ring out over the mountain peak as your little princess feels that she can be in a battle with the best of them. I am not sure about that, but oh well, you can only get the best of the best in a place like this right? Min keeps playing the flute while you look around anxiously, as the Pokemon who could come out of here are probably rare and extremely powerful. Min stops playing....and the forest oddly enough is quiet. Nothing moves. Not the trees, not the bushes, not the grass. The earth is still, and the wind silent. You are still cautious about what might be around here, but, as time goes by, nothing seems out of the ordinary. Does this flute even work? It must, or maybe the man who sold it to you was a fraud and that you just got scammed. You rip the flute out of Min's hands, and give her a look that would kill....not that it would have done much anways, as she just sticks her tongue out at you in stark defiance. She has been a bit of a pain lately, hasn't she. Maybe it was all the candies that you fed her that made her like this. Who knows? But one thing was for sure. It was getting late, the sun was beginning to set on the mountain, and the hike left you exhausted and tired. You start to pull out all the things you would need to make a camp from your backpack, and look back at Min, who is busy playing around and fulfilling her species OCD about dirt to really care about anything else. You lay out your sleeping bag, when you hear something from inside the bushes. You turn around only to find that it was just a Pidgey, a Pokemon that you really had no reason to be afraid. Min laughs at you for your sudden reaction, and this prompts another death stare from you. You lay out Min's sleeping bag, and start a fire. The fire burns quite easily, and as the sun finally sets, you begin to lay down on the sleeping bag, away from the fire. You find yourself falling asleep quite easily, but at the last moment before you finally go under, you see three pairs of eyes looking at you, though, it that was just a dream or not you are unsure.

Waking the next moment, you find that the campsite is still neat and proper. Nothing is damaged or is moved around. I guess that flute really does not work well at all huh? It does not even seem that Min decided in the middle of the night to start wrecking things on you. You breath out a sigh of relief. Even though Min is not there, you are not really concerned. She is probably off somewhere to make you worry. You get up, and bring a pot over to the fire, which you just started up again, hoping the smell of breakfast would lure her, when you see something on her sleeping bag. It is a bone. You start to panic, your heart beating fast, but, you manage to control yourself as you look again. It was a bone alright, and a somewhat good sized one at that, like some sort of leg bone. The though goes through your head about it being a Mincinno's leg bone, and again you begin to panic, but this time, you are unable to keep it under control. "Min! Min!" you yell out into the forest, not caring about what could actually come out now, all you really care about is your Min. "MIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNN!" you call out one last time, but, to no avail. You plop down on the ground, unsure of where to go. Min could be anywhere in the vast forest, and with no clue and no wherabouts of where she is, finding her would be a nightmare.

What will you do?

Mt. Infernus
Waterfall
Takeo

The thing behind the red shield looks at you for a moment, before hiding behind his shield and taking to his other head. you wait for a little while as they murmur and talk to each other, before the upper head pops out and says, "Well, I would thin, myself and I, that if you were to ask the blue door what he would be hiding to what you are looking for. Well, that is just me myself. I don't know truthfully myself though." The other thing looks at the red shield and yells out, "You dirty liar! I would never say such a thing!" "Oh really now. I'M the liar here. Well, what if YOU ARE THE LIAR here." "I am shocked you would ever suggest such a thing. I though we were friends." "Heh. A lie right there i tell ya. I lie right there." "Yeah, yeah, listen to your second head. You know all the good that has done ya, haven't you." "Oh, yeah, my head is so so bad. And what about yours!? Your second head is the one who landed us this job anywho!" "Yeah, but it was only at your head's convincing!" "Your brought it up first!" "It did not!" "Did too!"

Well, its does not seem like the two of them are ever going to stop arguing. What is more imporatant however is that you figure out which one of them is lying or not. Or, is that really nessecary? It might not be young man! Narcissa looks at you as she tries to figure out the answer, but she just has this blank look on her face, apparently, this is too difficult for her to figure out. Which door is which!? Will you go to certain death!? Will you find what you are looking for!? Or, is there another fate that awaits you!? Come and see next time on Total Drama Ruins!

What will you do?

The Island
Ignatius River
LASL

You were not sure why this Scyther was sticking to such a weird attack pattern, or why is was sticking to such an attack pattern at all. It was truly confusing. Truthfully annoying. These spatial reasoning puzzles. >.< But, this time, you were going to try and attack outright, instead of waiting for the Scyther to even come back out again. Sparow flutters over to the south, and its wings becomed encased in steel as it prepares for a powerful STEEL WING attack. Sparow dissapears into a bush, and only a few seconds later do you hear a screech from the bushes. The Scyther hops out of the south bush, and looks at you with digust in its eyes. It seems that there is a small crack in the Scyther's exoskeleton, the Steel Wing was successful! Sparow flips out of the bushes, happy that it was finally able to get a good hit on the Scyther. But the battle is not over yet. The Scyther tries to get the jump on Sparow by using its insane speed for another QUICK ATTACK, but, when it lands on its legs, you see that it grimaces in pain. It obviously cannot walk on that leg anymore. Instead, it decides that little bit of special attacking is in order, and charges up another sphere of fighting energy between its scythes, the sphere glowing a bright blue color and making a vaccuum like "PHUWP!" as it grows. The sphere flies towards Sparow, who cannot get out of the way in time and takes a lot of damage. Sparow then charges at it again, and begins a furious assualt. It begins pecking at the Scyther like mad, its FURY ATTACK showing the full extent of its anger. Scyther tries to bat away Sparow, and succeeds, Sparow only able to get a couple of hits in before the borad end of a scyther comes in and smacks it broadside. Sparow cries out as it falls to the ground, and the Scyther is finally beginning to show sigs of wear. it is growing weaker and weaker, and a few more good placed blows should finish it off. Sparow comes in again and PECKs Scyther in the knee, causing it to scream out in pain and fall over, getting back up. Suddenly, something happens to the Scyther. It gets a furious look in its eyes, and its scyther becomes covered in a nightly energy. It slash Sparow with a powerful NIGHT SLASH, causing Sparow to cry out in pain. She fluts back, and looks at the Scyther again.

Meanwhile, the Gardevoir again enters your mind. "You are doing well trainer. Keep up the pressure, and soon, the Scyther will buckle under the weight!"

What will you do?

The Island
Garland Basin
Son_of_Shadows

The young girl, Moon Eagle, looked at you. Her hand slowly moved away from your own, but the look on her face was not one of fear, but of appreciation. "Oh, thank you Joshua!" she says before giving you a big hug. You offering to find her Horus was probably the best thing ever for her, and you can see tears in her eyes as she grips you with arms of iron, showing considerable strength despite having such thin arms. She then backs away from you, and says, "Well, my name...my name is...my name is Kristen. It has been so long since I used that name I almost forgot it. Kristen. Kristen." She began to cry again, but, this time, did not gave way to sobs. She took a deep breath in, and sighed it back out, and was able to keep control of herself. "Horus would not want to see my crying like that. He would want me to be strong." She looked at you, and blushed a little, turning away. "Thanks again. I don't know how much longer I would have lasted in this damned place." She gets up and takes a notebook from under her bed. "This notebook is very special for me. I keep track of everything around here, from when the guard schedules are to when the 'lures' are placed for tourists are trapped like yourself. No one really knows about that, but truthfully, it scares me. Anyways, this notebook may be of some help to you. We just can't walk out of the village whenever we please. And...I have a feeling of where they took him..." She trails off here, obviously it being something very scarring for her. You grab the notebook from her, and flip through it, seeing that the notebook did not just chronicle her life in the village, but also her life before it. Nothing much is very interesting. You see a drawing in the notebook of a Dunsparce, with the name 'Horus' next to it. It was probably a Dunsparce, but you were more concerned about anything you might find that would help you.

You flip to another page with a drawing of the village, and it shows the guard schedule for the village. You notice a distinct gap for about five minutes between two of the hits ahead of this one. It was not a big gap, but in the dead of night, it might be possible to sneak out of the village and find her Horus. If, of course, she knew where he was. You could be looking all over the place for this Pokemon, but, not be able to find it. But, you already made a promise. Taking a pen out of your pocket, you circle around where you see the gap, and give it to Kristen. "Oh my God. That might just work. If we leave at just the right time, we can sneak past the guards and go find my Horus! You are so great Joshua! I didn't think I would ever see a sane person ever again!" she yelled as she jumped up, and then got down real low and began to giggle. "I just hope nobody heard that. Let me get a couple of things together, and then we can go off."

What will you do? Will you follow Kristen to go find her Dunsparce, or, will you do something else? Remember, there is no such thing as a bad choice.

[myahoo]

The Island
Shale Beach
myahoo

Cid looks at you and sees that you are curious about each of them, and thinks to himself for a moment on what he is going to say. He takes so long, you nearly ask him the question again, but his reply cuts you short before you can finish the first word. "Well, kid, comparing the staffs is probably the easiest and quickest one, as we only have to go to the musuem to do that. If this staff is identical to the one at the musuem, we may learn more about their culture. The dig is more exciting, but, however, it also takes longer, and will take a couple of days to go towards beginning. There will be a lot of digging through obsidian son, because of the natural rocks around here. It is going to be tough, back breaking work. You may not be up to that kid." The man wavers off again as he thinks of waht to say. He does seem a little ponderous, doesn't he? "Plus, we have other problems of our own. There is another group that has been trying to get artifacts from the Lufenians, but, they have a different purpose in mind that we do. We want to educate people about their culture, and help people to learn. They want to reproduce the Lufenian technology and sell it to the highest bidder. Everytime we have a dig, we have to be careful that a spy is not infiltrating our midst. I can only grimace at what an organization like that would do with the technolgy of the Lufenians. It would be horrendous!" Cid stomps on the ground, furious with anger. He obviously has had some previous run ins with the organization, and it seems to have colored a bit of a shade of red. He never did tell you the name of the organization, did he?

"Sorry about that, but they irk me ever so. Ever since...never mind, no point in getting you involved in personal vendettas and stuff like that. The organization is no good, all things considered. If they get their hands on the technology, it would be disastrous." Suddenly, a man walked up to Cid, dressed in similar uniform, and spoke something in his ear. He nodded, and frowned, obviously something was wrong with the dig. He whispered something back to the man, something that he did not want you to hear about. The man gives a determined look and runs off, and he talks to some other people, which causes a group of people to go into a stir. "Well, that other group we have been talking about is here too. It seems we have another spy in our mists. They could harass us like they always do. They don't ever get violent, but, they have already started the dig. I hope they havent't found anything." He looks worriedly around. You better make this desicion quick, otherwise, it could slip through your fingers!

What will you do?

Melissa waited patiently as Cid appeared to gather his thoughts, Wildfire turning to keep Imp occupied as they waited. The silence stretched on and she wondered whether Cid would ever answer her. She was poised to ask again, just to make sure Cid was actually going to answer when he spoke.

"Well, kid, comparing the staffs is probably the easiest and quickest one, as we only have to go to the musuem to do that. If this staff is identical to the one at the musuem, we may learn more about their culture. The dig is more exciting, but, however, it also takes longer, and will take a couple of days to go towards beginning. There will be a lot of digging through obsidian son, because of the natural rocks around here. It is going to be tough, back breaking work. You may not be up to that kid."

That...wasn't anything that she hadn't already been thinking about, to be honest; she had been hoping to get some more details when she'd asked for him to elaborate, but she might as well take what she could get. She turned her attention back to Cid when he continued speaking.

"Plus, we have other problems of our own. There is another group that has been trying to get artifacts from the Lufenians, but, they have a different purpose in mind that we do. We want to educate people about their culture, and help people to learn. They want to reproduce the Lufenian technology and sell it to the highest bidder. Everytime we have a dig, we have to be careful that a spy is not infiltrating our midst. I can only grimace at what an organization like that would do with the technolgy of the Lufenians. It would be horrendous!"

Melissa watched as he stomped furiously at the mention of the other organization, making her think he'd personally encountered the group before. She wasn't particularly surprised that there were people who wanted to sell the Lufenian technology to whoever they could. Just based off what Cid could tell her, the Lufenian's were pretty advanced and, if their secrets could be unlocked, she could see people attempting to integrate it into what they already had. However, knowing that Cid's group had a bit of a...bad relation with another group that seemed to have a tendency for underhanded tactics made her a little hesitant to join the dig; she didn't really want to accidentally get caught between them. Yet, at the same time, she was still curious to see what an archaeological dig was like.

"Sorry about that, but they irk me ever so. Ever since...never mind, no point in getting you involved in personal vendettas and stuff like that. The organization is no good, all things considered. If they get their hands on the technology, it would be disastrous," Cid continued, calming down a little.

Melissa nodded with a slight smile, "Completely understandable." She was about to continue and tell Cid that she'd made her decision when another man walked up. He was wearing something similar to Cid and told her conversational partner something that caused him to nod and frown. He whispered something back and the man ran off, leaving Melissa wondering what that was all about. Had the other organization already made their move?

"Well, that other group we have been talking about is here too. It seems we have another spy in our mists. They could harass us like they always do. They don't ever get violent, but, they have already started the dig. I hope they havent't found anything." Cid looks more than a little worried at the thought.

The teen took a moment to glance at her two Pokemon currently talking about something or other and run her hand over the other four occupied spheres at her waist, before shrugging. Wildfire hadn't seemed to mind either way and Imp was certainly looking forward to having fun with the people at the dig, so she figured why not?

She turned back to Cid, saying, "I guess I'm gonna help with both of them, if you don't mind. It'd be pretty cool to find something else of the Lufenians and it sounds like you need a little help against the other organization."

Imp looked up when Melissa announced her decision and let out a happy squeal as she excitedly flew in circles. "Finally! Can we go now? Huh? Huh? I wanna get started now!"

Wildfire sighed at his teammate's hyperactivity, but Melissa could tell that her starter was also looking forward to whatever they were going to do first, now that the conversation was done. She smiled at the circling Misdreavus, before looking expectantly at Cid. "Yeah. Once Cid tells us what to do, we can go."

"Yaaaaaay!" She hovered behind Melissa's right shoulder and stared innocently at Cid. "What're we supposed to do now, Mr. Cid?"

[Son_of_Shadows]

The Island
Garland Basin
Son_of_Shadows

The young girl, Moon Eagle, looked at you. Her hand slowly moved away from your own, but the look on her face was not one of fear, but of appreciation. "Oh, thank you Joshua!" she says before giving you a big hug. You offering to find her Horus was probably the best thing ever for her, and you can see tears in her eyes as she grips you with arms of iron, showing considerable strength despite having such thin arms. She then backs away from you, and says, "Well, my name...my name is...my name is Kristen. It has been so long since I used that name I almost forgot it. Kristen. Kristen." She began to cry again, but, this time, did not gave way to sobs. She took a deep breath in, and sighed it back out, and was able to keep control of herself. "Horus would not want to see my crying like that. He would want me to be strong." She looked at you, and blushed a little, turning away. "Thanks again. I don't know how much longer I would have lasted in this damned place." She gets up and takes a notebook from under her bed. "This notebook is very special for me. I keep track of everything around here, from when the guard schedules are to when the 'lures' are placed for tourists are trapped like yourself. No one really knows about that, but truthfully, it scares me. Anyways, this notebook may be of some help to you. We just can't walk out of the village whenever we please. And...I have a feeling of where they took him..." She trails off here, obviously it being something very scarring for her. You grab the notebook from her, and flip through it, seeing that the notebook did not just chronicle her life in the village, but also her life before it. Nothing much is very interesting. You see a drawing in the notebook of a Dunsparce, with the name 'Horus' next to it. It was probably a Dunsparce, but you were more concerned about anything you might find that would help you.

You flip to another page with a drawing of the village, and it shows the guard schedule for the village. You notice a distinct gap for about five minutes between two of the hits ahead of this one. It was not a big gap, but in the dead of night, it might be possible to sneak out of the village and find her Horus. If, of course, she knew where he was. You could be looking all over the place for this Pokemon, but, not be able to find it. But, you already made a promise. Taking a pen out of your pocket, you circle around where you see the gap, and give it to Kristen. "Oh my God. That might just work. If we leave at just the right time, we can sneak past the guards and go find my Horus! You are so great Joshua! I didn't think I would ever see a sane person ever again!" she yelled as she jumped up, and then got down real low and began to giggle. "I just hope nobody heard that. Let me get a couple of things together, and then we can go off."

What will you do? Will you follow Kristen to go find her Dunsparce, or, will you do something else? Remember, there is no such thing as a bad choice.

Well, he was obviously doing the right thing here, judging by how happy he'd made her. Definitely no turning back now - what kind of monster would he have to be to build her up and then say "Nah, I'm out." That would just be awful. She was surprisingly strong for such a thin, underfed girl. Maybe it was adrenaline. Evidently his resolve to help her was giving her emotional strength too, as she was trying much harder not to cry, and introduced herself for real as Kristen. She then took out a small notebook from under her bed. Briefly he questioned where she'd got it, but it was hardly the top priority right now.

"This notebook is very special for me. I keep track of everything around here, from when the guard schedules are to when the 'lures' are placed for tourists are trapped like yourself. No one really knows about that, but truthfully, it scares me." So the hot spring and the old man were a trap to lure him into this village? Wow, he was going to snap that old man like a twig. Shouldn't be too hard. Maybe there was a way he could put a stop to these kidnappings, since that's essentially what they were. How despicable. There was spreading your religion, and then there was this. "Anyways, this notebook may be of some help to you. We just can't walk out of the village whenever we please. And...I have a feeling of where they took him..." He took the notebook, which seemed to be Kristen's diary, telling him everything about her life in the village, and before it. Nothing overly relevant to their current situation, apart from a small doodle of a Dunsparce, who was obviously Horus. Alright, now he knew what he was looking for.

He looked over to Steven. Was he still groggy, under the influence of the drug? Because rushing out there without him capable of fighting would probably be a very bad idea. Not that this really stopped Kristen once Joshua opened the page which showed a guard schedule. They had an opening in a few minutes to get out of the village and search for Horus. She was already getting herself together. Joshua couldn't help but wonder if maybe it would be better to wait til nightfall to try...

"Kristen, hold on a second. You know where Horus could be, right? Do you think we could find it in the dark? If so, maybe we should wait until tonight, so we can make sure we won't be seen. Honestly... We're both unarmed, and I'm not sure if Steven here is ready to fight yet. If we ran into trouble, we could very easily end up dead. What do you think?"

[Thrain]

If you see a mistake in any of these, please be sure to let me know!

Lake Tyr

.:poketim2:. - Link to your last update

Open Plain

.:Charminions:.

More trainers begin to gather around the Combusken and Donphan as the battle continues to wear on. Both opponents look ready to collapse at any second, quivering slightly from each individual injury. You watch the crowd grow steadily and realize how embarrassing it would be to lose here in front of everyone. Shaking your head to clear such thoughts, you shout forth what you hope to be the final commands to finish off this battle, lacing your words with confidence in order to encourage Apollo. The Combusken turns his head and nods in acknowledgement, a glint of light sparkling in his eye. Your eyes shift to the Donphan as the elephant listens to his trainer’s commands; over the dull roar of the crowd, you aren’t able to hear Zaire’s voice. Crossing your fingers, you watch as the next round commences.

Sending a bellowing roar into the air, the Donphan rushes forward in a reckless, life-risking Double-Edge, but his move is interrupted a few yards away from Apollo. The fire-type Mirrors the elephant’s last Move, channeling his energy into the earth which results in another ground-shaking Bulldoze. The Donphan trips over himself and topples forward as he’s not able to stop his momentum in time. Apollo jumps backwards quickly, but he is nicked in the side from the unsteady behemoth. Meanwhile, the rumbling in the ground fades altogether. Taking advantage of the close quarters, Apollo utilizes more of his Hidden Power in the form of grass-green orbs of energy that spiral towards the downed elephant. The spheres of power collide into his side, but the Donphan does his best to regain his feet following the barrage. Rushing forward as fast as his body will allow, the elephant Pokémon unleashes his pent-up Frustration and smashes into the Combusken as the fire-type uses a Flamethrower at close range. Smoke fills the air and clouds the two Pokémon, causing you to cough as you strain to watch what happens next. As the clouds clear away, you gaze on in amazement as both Apollo and Donphan stand a few feet apart in a deadlock, each of them trying their hardest not to lose consciousness. 1 second ticks by, 2 seconds tick by, 3 seconds tick by… and then the elephant crashes to the ground from a combination of pain and energy loss. Level Up for Apollo!

Cheering loudly, you rush forward to congratulate Apollo on a job well done as shouts and claps ring through the mountain air. The Combusken staggers forward as you come near, dropping down onto one knee. Zaire runs over as well to return his downed Donphan to a Poké Ball. “Nice battle,” he says, extending his hand for you to shake. “I’ll definitely be challenging you to a rematch sometime soon. Your Combusken is really awe—”. Zaire’s compliment fades away as a low rumbling sound fills the air. Rocks that are scattered about begin to bounce this way and that as the earth starts to shake yet again! Your eyes look around for any possible cause of the earthquake, but no other Pokémon battles are occurring, and Donphan had returned to his Poké Ball.

A shout fills the air. “The volcano’s erupting!” Wheeling in shock, you peer up at the towering Mt. Fumi. Through the wisps of clouds that surround the volcano’s peak, you can just make out a glint of fiery lava leaking over the edge. Fear rattles through you at this sight, leaving you speechless. The Open Plain is situated on a plateau that extends outward from the volcano's side; caverns dot the side of the mountain, the only sign of refuge on the wide-open stretch of land. Apollo caws slightly to you and tries his best to stand, staggering forward into your arms as the rumbling continues. The lava begins to trickle down the side of the mountain, continuing to gush out from the crater. Rocks large and small lose grip on the side of the volcano, rattling towards the ground below! Trainers shout in fear and begin to run toward the shelter of the caves; some sprint down the winding trail angling away from the mountain.

What will you do?

Cinder Village

.:Myrrh:. - {Repost of your last update.}

The Spearow’s quick, sharp peck sends a wave of pain zinging through your arm, causing you to drop the map into the dirt. Seconds later, the quick bird dips down and snags the parchment in its claws, flying higher with its prize. Angling north of the village, the Pokémon begins to float in the direction marked on the map. Below, the girl with the shock of red hair struggles to keep up, shouting encouragements to what must be her own Pokémon. A surge of anger snaps you into focus. Bringing out a Poké Ball, you call out your Houndour, Scout, for assistance. The little fire dog seems eager to play, but you quickly explain the situation to her. “Come on, Scout, we need to go after them. Hurry!”

The chase was on. Turning, the red-headed girl quickly notices your pursuit and begins to run faster. Questions form in your mind regarding this peculiar situation. Wasn’t this village supposed to be deserted? Who the heck was this small girl who thought she could get away with petty theft? As the girl’s legs pump faster, you only encourage Scout to run harder too. Before long, you close in the gap between you and the petite girl, which only causes you to run faster. The red-head notices this as well, beginning to yelp with fright as you close the distance to just a few feet. Suddenly, she stumbles into the dirt, and you trip over her as well, not having enough time to dodge. Dust is thrown into the air, but as it clears, the girl’s face comes into focus. She looks to be in her mid-teens, with dark blue eyes and a slanting visage. Regaining your feet, you stride over to the fallen girl and offer her your hand, suddenly feeling a little sorry for the little lady in spite of the situation at hand. “Who are you, and why did you steal my map?” you ask, injecting a little venom into the question. Smiling in understanding, the girl accepts your assistance and begins to explain herself.

“My name’s Celeste, and, well, I stole the map because I had to. You see, the two people that you just met are my grandparents. I’ve lived with them ever since I was tiny, when Cinder Village was a thriving place. But now…” She pauses to gesture at the dilapidated surroundings. “Now everything’s been ruined. I know you have already heard the story about the mysterious disappearance of the hot spring—I eavesdropped on your conversation—and I know it’s somehow tied to the noises that are heard at night. My grandparents are very overprotective and never let me investigate, even though I wanted to so badly. Whenever you arrived, I jumped at the chance of setting off to find out what’s going on once and for all. You see, the cave’s location is a secret even to me, so I needed the map to find it. My grandparents would never let me see it, so I figured now was the perfect chance to get my hands on it. I couldn’t risk you not helping me, so I did what I thought I had to do: steal it,” finishes the girl in a breathless tone. Not waiting for a response, Celeste quickly whistles; a few seconds later, the Spearow that had stolen the map drops back down from the sky with the piece of parchment clutched in its claws. “I didn’t think I could trust you at first, but for some reason, I feel like you could be a valuable ally in helping with this cave mystery. Plus, I know the lay of the land. I could help you. So what do you say? Would you allow me to accompany you to search for the truth,” she asks, extending the map for you to take.

How will you respond?

Caliente Trail

.:Missingo. Master:. - {Repost of your last update.}

A ray of white light erupts into the air, replaced a second later by Myrtle, your sarcastic Shuppet who always has a bone to pick with someone. Upon seeing the man who accused you of letting the Houndour get away, she defends your position and even claims it’s his fault, right before she returns to her Poké Ball. Surprise is clearly written across your face as you turn to face the boy. He, too, looks quite shocked at the Shuppet’s outburst, and for once, he’s speechless. Turning towards Peeves, you converse over the possibility of the Houndour actually being a thief. In the end, there’s only one way to find out. “Peeves, use your Foresight,” you instruct. “Scan this mountain for any sign of that Houndour.” Peeves voices his doubts over using such a move to search for a Pokémon, but he tries nevertheless. As he focuses his energy into searching for the fire dog, your eyes drift over to the boy’s. His Mothim floats behind him, waiting for his next instructions. However, the look on the boy’s face is vacant, as if he is thinking deeply about something. A few seconds pass, and then he looks up at you.

He fumbles for words before finally reaching out his hand for you to shake. “Yeah, she was right,” he says, almost reluctantly. “I shouldn’t have responded the way I did, and I’m really sorry. I was just very frustrated, and I hope that you can forgive me. Let’s start over, shall we? My name’s Clyde, and this here is Serena,” he says, gesturing toward his Mothim. Stepping forward, you grip the boy’s hand in a firm handshake and formally introduce yourself and Peeves. Once all of the formalities are settled, you turn towards your Ghost type. He floats in the air with eyes closed, bobbing up and down slightly as he concentrates on his task of finding the Houndour. Minutes pass… Suddenly, he opens his eyes and exclaims, “Follow me! I think I found it!” A look of hope eases itself onto Clyde’s face as you race behind Peeves up the mountain’s steep trail. After five minutes of running, Peeves stops at a crevice in the mountain wall. “It look like Houndour went in here,” he says to you, peering into the dark depths of the mountain.

“Of course,” Clyde says suddenly. “This is Granite Tunnel, a labyrinthine series of passageways that carve through the mountain. There are various entrances dotted around Caliente Trail, so I bet that’s how the Houndour could travel to so many different locations.” You nod in agreement, although you still have your doubts about the fire dog being a thief. Darkness throngs the passageway, but Clyde has Serena use Flash so that you may all see clearly. After about five minutes of walking through the passageway, you come to a split in the tunnel: one passage curving off to the left, one curving off to the right. Turning, you see to your horror that claw marks line the walls of the tunnel on the left. “Hey, those are my berries that I lost,” Clyde suddenly exclaims, pointing to two Pecha Berries that lie in front of the right tunnel’s entrance. “I bet the Houndour went down the right tunnel then.”

“I lost trail here,” Peeves tells you. “We’ll have to choose.”

How will your proceed?

Pele's Cavern

.:gmoyes:.

Despite Echo’s steel-hardened body, the effects of the battle are starting to take their toll on the tough little Psychic type. The Arcanine seems to be panting heavily as well, yet it still continues its frantic pace across the room, looking for any sort of opening to attack. Echo listens to your instructions once again through the Pokédex Theta carries on the sideline, using his boosted speed stat to surreptitiously weave through the air with a Faint Attack. Echo’s move succeeds, causing the fire dog to jump backwards in pain and surprise. It hadn’t been expecting that! Growling menacingly, the Arcanine spreads a close range Heat Wave around Echo, inflicting further damage that ends up reduced by the steel type’s Heatproof ability. Through the blazing fire that now surrounds it, Echo seizes its chance and summons a Confuse Ray that zooms through the air and strikes the Arcanine clear in the face. You cheer through the speaker as the move succeeds, causing the Bronzor to smile slightly with relief.

Suddenly, however, a searing pain causes Echo to cry out in shock. It looks like the Bronzor sustained a burn from the Heat Wave! As the fire clears away, both opponents now appear to afflicted with status conditions. On the other side of the arena, the Arcanine jumps and twists this way and that, stopping every once in awhile to Crunch at his tail and paws. Meanwhile, a blazing sensation stabs at Echo’s innards, lowering his health slightly. As you gaze at what seems to be a deadlock, a cry escapes your lips as you see the Arcanine start to run towards Theta—and the Pokédex—in its confusion. A wave of fire escapes the fire type’s maw as it shoots a Flamethrower at the Magnemite. The Pokédex slips sideways and crashes to the ground as the attack hits, the live feed flickering and crackling. You can only see a limited view of the cavern now since the Pokédex is on the floor. As the smoke clears from the fire type attack, though, you can see enough of the situation to realize that Echo had sacrificed itself to save Theta from the Flamethrower! The steel/psychic type floats in the air for a few seconds, but then crashes to the ground from its combined injuries. Magnemite retreats backwards as the Arcanine advances toward it…

What’s your next move?

Ignatius River

.:Megh:. - Link to your last update

[Missingno. Master]

Caliente Trail

.:Missingo. Master:. - {Repost of your last update.}

A ray of white light erupts into the air, replaced a second later by Myrtle, your sarcastic Shuppet who always has a bone to pick with someone. Upon seeing the man who accused you of letting the Houndour get away, she defends your position and even claims it’s his fault, right before she returns to her Poké Ball. Surprise is clearly written across your face as you turn to face the boy. He, too, looks quite shocked at the Shuppet’s outburst, and for once, he’s speechless. Turning towards Peeves, you converse over the possibility of the Houndour actually being a thief. In the end, there’s only one way to find out. “Peeves, use your Foresight,” you instruct. “Scan this mountain for any sign of that Houndour.” Peeves voices his doubts over using such a move to search for a Pokémon, but he tries nevertheless. As he focuses his energy into searching for the fire dog, your eyes drift over to the boy’s. His Mothim floats behind him, waiting for his next instructions. However, the look on the boy’s face is vacant, as if he is thinking deeply about something. A few seconds pass, and then he looks up at you.

He fumbles for words before finally reaching out his hand for you to shake. “Yeah, she was right,” he says, almost reluctantly. “I shouldn’t have responded the way I did, and I’m really sorry. I was just very frustrated, and I hope that you can forgive me. Let’s start over, shall we? My name’s Clyde, and this here is Serena,” he says, gesturing toward his Mothim. Stepping forward, you grip the boy’s hand in a firm handshake and formally introduce yourself and Peeves. Once all of the formalities are settled, you turn towards your Ghost type. He floats in the air with eyes closed, bobbing up and down slightly as he concentrates on his task of finding the Houndour. Minutes pass… Suddenly, he opens his eyes and exclaims, “Follow me! I think I found it!” A look of hope eases itself onto Clyde’s face as you race behind Peeves up the mountain’s steep trail. After five minutes of running, Peeves stops at a crevice in the mountain wall. “It look like Houndour went in here,” he says to you, peering into the dark depths of the mountain.

“Of course,” Clyde says suddenly. “This is Granite Tunnel, a labyrinthine series of passageways that carve through the mountain. There are various entrances dotted around Caliente Trail, so I bet that’s how the Houndour could travel to so many different locations.” You nod in agreement, although you still have your doubts about the fire dog being a thief. Darkness throngs the passageway, but Clyde has Serena use Flash so that you may all see clearly. After about five minutes of walking through the passageway, you come to a split in the tunnel: one passage curving off to the left, one curving off to the right. Turning, you see to your horror that claw marks line the walls of the tunnel on the left. “Hey, those are my berries that I lost,” Clyde suddenly exclaims, pointing to two Pecha Berries that lie in front of the right tunnel’s entrance. “I bet the Houndour went down the right tunnel then.”

“I lost trail here,” Peeves tells you. “We’ll have to choose.”

How will your proceed?

As Peeves proceeded to scan the mountain for the Houndour, the boy offered Keith an apology after a few minutes of thought, and introduced himself as Clyde, and his Mothim as Serena. Keith smiled as he shook Clyde's hand. "Forgiven, forgotten," he said. "Nice to meet you, Clyde. I'm Keith, and this is Peeves." Not long after that, Peeves exclaimed loudly, apparently having found the Houndour. On his urgent urging, Keith and Clyde followed him into a crevice in the mountain's wall. Clyde identified this as Granite Tunnel, a mazelike set of passageways throughout the mountain, and stated that its multiple entrances all over Caliente Trail would explain the Houndour's ability to travel all over the place. Keith nodded in agreement as Clyde had Serena use Flash to illuminate the dark tunnel. They walked for about five minutes before coming to a split in the tunnel, with one way leading left, the other leading right. A chill went down Keith's spine as he noticed the claw marks all over the left tunnel's walls. Clyde, however, took note of the Pecha Berries right in front of the right tunnel, and seemed to believe due to that that the Houndour must've gone down the right tunnel. Keith turned hopefully to Peeves, but the Duskull informed him that this is where he lost the trail.

"Hmm," Keith said as he glanced between the tunnels. "You got a good point about the right tunnel, but those claw marks in the left tunnel got me wondering. Something could've taken the Houndour, and those claw marks could have been from its attempt to get free. It could easily have dropped the berries in the struggle... I don't know," he sighed.

"Yes, there no easy way to choose here," Peeves agreed, glancing down both gently curving tunnels. "Wait minute," he added. "I think you newest Pokemon able to help."

"What- Hermione?" Keith asked. Peeves nodded.

"Yes! One, she can mark path we take with String Shot, so if we get lost, we follow string back to beginning," Peeves replied. "Also, you tell me youself that Weedle have really good sense of smell."

"They do," Keith nodded. "It's how they distinguish different kinds of leaves. That big red nose isn't just for show, you know."

"Then maybe she can sniff out Houndour location," Peeves suggested. "What you think?"

"I think it's worth a shot," Keith agreed as he took out a Poke Ball. "OK, Hermione, come on out!" he added. In a flash of light, the ball opened up, and the small Weedle known as Hermione materialized on Keith's shoulder. She seemed to be fascinated with the cave they found themselves in, but as she caught sight of the look on Keith's face, she seemed to realize that this wasn't the time for research.

"Weeeedle?" she asked inquisitively.

"Hermione, sniff the entrances to both of these tunnels," Keith said, "We're looking for a Houndour, and it went down one of these tunnels, you think you can find out which one?"

Hermione turned to Peeves and said something, and Peeves translated this response for Keith. "She say she not sure, but she very eager to find out."

"I had a feeling," Keith grinned. "Oh, and Hermione, once we start down a tunnel, I want you to mark the trail with String Shot so we can follow it back if we get lost, OK?"

Hermione nodded, then crawled onto the ground and proceeded to sniff at the tunnel entrances.

"If she no can find which way Houndour go," Peeves asked quietly, "what we do?"

"We'll take the left tunnel if that's the case," Keith replied. "I know the Pecha Berries were in front of the right tunnel, but those claw marks look like they're worth investigation."

"I see what you mean," Peeves nodded.

"Oh, and just in case," Keith added as he took out a Poke Ball. "Peeves, I think you better get back in your Poke Ball for now... Just in case things get ugly, you know? I'd have to keep an eye on you and Hermione, and I don't feel like taking the chance at the moment."

"Is no problem," Peeves said dismissively. "Understood." Keith nodded as he returned the Duskull to his Poke Ball.

[LucarioArtcunoSuicunLover]

The Island
Ignatius River
LASL

You were not sure why this Scyther was sticking to such a weird attack pattern, or why is was sticking to such an attack pattern at all. It was truly confusing. Truthfully annoying. These spatial reasoning puzzles. >.< But, this time, you were going to try and attack outright, instead of waiting for the Scyther to even come back out again. Sparow flutters over to the south, and its wings becomed encased in steel as it prepares for a powerful STEEL WING attack. Sparow dissapears into a bush, and only a few seconds later do you hear a screech from the bushes. The Scyther hops out of the south bush, and looks at you with digust in its eyes. It seems that there is a small crack in the Scyther's exoskeleton, the Steel Wing was successful! Sparow flips out of the bushes, happy that it was finally able to get a good hit on the Scyther. But the battle is not over yet. The Scyther tries to get the jump on Sparow by using its insane speed for another QUICK ATTACK, but, when it lands on its legs, you see that it grimaces in pain. It obviously cannot walk on that leg anymore. Instead, it decides that little bit of special attacking is in order, and charges up another sphere of fighting energy between its scythes, the sphere glowing a bright blue color and making a vaccuum like "PHUWP!" as it grows. The sphere flies towards Sparow, who cannot get out of the way in time and takes a lot of damage. Sparow then charges at it again, and begins a furious assualt. It begins pecking at the Scyther like mad, its FURY ATTACK showing the full extent of its anger. Scyther tries to bat away Sparow, and succeeds, Sparow only able to get a couple of hits in before the borad end of a scyther comes in and smacks it broadside. Sparow cries out as it falls to the ground, and the Scyther is finally beginning to show sigs of wear. it is growing weaker and weaker, and a few more good placed blows should finish it off. Sparow comes in again and PECKs Scyther in the knee, causing it to scream out in pain and fall over, getting back up. Suddenly, something happens to the Scyther. It gets a furious look in its eyes, and its scyther becomes covered in a nightly energy. It slash Sparow with a powerful NIGHT SLASH, causing Sparow to cry out in pain. She fluts back, and looks at the Scyther again.

Meanwhile, the Gardevoir again enters your mind. "You are doing well trainer. Keep up the pressure, and soon, the Scyther will buckle under the weight!"

What will you do?

El couldn't believe it, finally things were starting to go her way! It was miraculous, really, she could just about stop there and then and laugh for ever. Or until, you know, the angry scyther lopped her head off. Whichever came first. However, celebrations could wait until this ordeal was over and done with. What to do now? Sparow had disabled one of it's legs, but it's blades were still quite dangerous. Surely there had do be a way for Sparow to attack from afar. Think, El, think! There had to--

Oh, of course! That thing with the thing that taught the thing! Oh dear did Guadevoir or Turt hear that? What a marvelous sentence she constructed there. She couldn't help but smile at least, here she was in her first major battle and she was winning and oh there was going to be a finale. Oh, would there be a finale. This scyther, on this fateful day, would see the best damn bird-assisted light show ever. Even if that was a rather narrow range, it would be the best! And oh man the adrenaline was coming again she could feel it. She was gonna be a giggling mess after all was said and done.

"Hey, Sparow!" she cried. "We're going to make this happen! All your moves so far have been up close, so shock him with a Tri Attack! Yeah! And then, um, counteract the light with Pursuit! We can't have that thing thinking it can get away from us, can we? And then, um, um, you know what? Show off with a shiny Steel Wing to finish! We can't show him your heart of steel, you need that to live, but we can give him the next best thing! KIIAAAAAH! FOR TURT AND GUARDEVOIR!"

Oh dear, it was certainly a good thing Sparow was used to her trainer's tendancy for adrenaline highs. Really, she seemed like the kind of person who would enjoy skydiving and roller costers. On the other hand, she was definitely going to regret that last bit later. Who seriously screams like a character from a shounen anime when their pokemon battle gets intense? Not to mention the possibility that it survives, that would be awfully embarrasing. But neither Sparow nor El were in the mind to contemplate these possibilities, one because the was full of hormones and the other was a bird.

Something else entirely came to mind. She could feel a small collection of pokeballs weighing down her pockets. Perhaps...?

[Myrrh]

If you see a mistake in any of these, please be sure to let me know!

Cinder Village

.:Myrrh:. - {Repost of your last update.}

The Spearow’s quick, sharp peck sends a wave of pain zinging through your arm, causing you to drop the map into the dirt. Seconds later, the quick bird dips down and snags the parchment in its claws, flying higher with its prize. Angling north of the village, the Pokémon begins to float in the direction marked on the map. Below, the girl with the shock of red hair struggles to keep up, shouting encouragements to what must be her own Pokémon. A surge of anger snaps you into focus. Bringing out a Poké Ball, you call out your Houndour, Scout, for assistance. The little fire dog seems eager to play, but you quickly explain the situation to her. “Come on, Scout, we need to go after them. Hurry!”

The chase was on. Turning, the red-headed girl quickly notices your pursuit and begins to run faster. Questions form in your mind regarding this peculiar situation. Wasn’t this village supposed to be deserted? Who the heck was this small girl who thought she could get away with petty theft? As the girl’s legs pump faster, you only encourage Scout to run harder too. Before long, you close in the gap between you and the petite girl, which only causes you to run faster. The red-head notices this as well, beginning to yelp with fright as you close the distance to just a few feet. Suddenly, she stumbles into the dirt, and you trip over her as well, not having enough time to dodge. Dust is thrown into the air, but as it clears, the girl’s face comes into focus. She looks to be in her mid-teens, with dark blue eyes and a slanting visage. Regaining your feet, you stride over to the fallen girl and offer her your hand, suddenly feeling a little sorry for the little lady in spite of the situation at hand. “Who are you, and why did you steal my map?” you ask, injecting a little venom into the question. Smiling in understanding, the girl accepts your assistance and begins to explain herself.

“My name’s Celeste, and, well, I stole the map because I had to. You see, the two people that you just met are my grandparents. I’ve lived with them ever since I was tiny, when Cinder Village was a thriving place. But now…” She pauses to gesture at the dilapidated surroundings. “Now everything’s been ruined. I know you have already heard the story about the mysterious disappearance of the hot spring—I eavesdropped on your conversation—and I know it’s somehow tied to the noises that are heard at night. My grandparents are very overprotective and never let me investigate, even though I wanted to so badly. Whenever you arrived, I jumped at the chance of setting off to find out what’s going on once and for all. You see, the cave’s location is a secret even to me, so I needed the map to find it. My grandparents would never let me see it, so I figured now was the perfect chance to get my hands on it. I couldn’t risk you not helping me, so I did what I thought I had to do: steal it,” finishes the girl in a breathless tone. Not waiting for a response, Celeste quickly whistles; a few seconds later, the Spearow that had stolen the map drops back down from the sky with the piece of parchment clutched in its claws. “I didn’t think I could trust you at first, but for some reason, I feel like you could be a valuable ally in helping with this cave mystery. Plus, I know the lay of the land. I could help you. So what do you say? Would you allow me to accompany you to search for the truth,” she asks, extending the map for you to take.

How will you respond?

With a bit of luck, Myrrh managed to catch the red-headed girl after tripping over her. She didn't try to take off again, so Myrrh offered his hand to her and asked her to explain herself. Her name was Celeste, she claimed to be the granddaughter of the two elders from before and tried to steal the map because they never let her check out the cave for herself, she also didn't know how to get there by herself. At first, Myrrh doubted her claim about being the elders' granddaughter, but then he quickly remembered that he never actually saw their granddaughter back at their home. She also seemed to be 16, the age they said their granddaughter was. In the end her story was believable to Myrrh.

Scout was quietly picking at things nearby, but glanced at the two people every now and then. Myrrh was conflicted for a bit. He felt bad when he heard that Celeste's grandparents didn't allow her to investigate things on her own, she might have been able to fix everything. But he also knows where they come from, she is all they have left, and if they were to lose her while investigating....

"What if I said no? If I asked you to return to your home and let me handle this? This isn't really important though, cause I'm letting you come with me. We kinda ran a bit, we can either stay here a little longer or start making out way to the cave. Either way we should go over some things. Oh, and I'm Myrrh. I don't remember if I mentioned that back at your house. That over there is Scout, I didn't really have to need her help after all, but she doesn't seem to mind....." he trailed off to let Celeste respond

Out of character: Oh, I didn't realize some updates were posted earlier, sorry >.>

[Takeo]

Just so you guys know, since Halloween is coming around, this updates hopefully will be extra creepy.

Mt. Infernus
Waterfall
Takeo

The thing behind the red shield looks at you for a moment, before hiding behind his shield and taking to his other head. you wait for a little while as they murmur and talk to each other, before the upper head pops out and says, "Well, I would thin, myself and I, that if you were to ask the blue door what he would be hiding to what you are looking for. Well, that is just me myself. I don't know truthfully myself though." The other thing looks at the red shield and yells out, "You dirty liar! I would never say such a thing!" "Oh really now. I'M the liar here. Well, what if YOU ARE THE LIAR here." "I am shocked you would ever suggest such a thing. I though we were friends." "Heh. A lie right there i tell ya. I lie right there." "Yeah, yeah, listen to your second head. You know all the good that has done ya, haven't you." "Oh, yeah, my head is so so bad. And what about yours!? Your second head is the one who landed us this job anywho!" "Yeah, but it was only at your head's convincing!" "Your brought it up first!" "It did not!" "Did too!"

Well, its does not seem like the two of them are ever going to stop arguing. What is more imporatant however is that you figure out which one of them is lying or not. Or, is that really nessecary? It might not be young man! Narcissa looks at you as she tries to figure out the answer, but she just has this blank look on her face, apparently, this is too difficult for her to figure out. Which door is which!? Will you go to certain death!? Will you find what you are looking for!? Or, is there another fate that awaits you!? Come and see next time on Total Drama Ruins!

What will you do?

The Goblin behind the red shield looked at Hallow for a moment, before hiding behind his shield and talking to his other head.
Hallow waited for a while as they murmured and talked to each other, before the upper head popped out again and saying,
"Well, I would think, myself and I, that if you were to ask the blue door what he would be hiding to what you are looking for. Well, that is just me myself. I don't know truthfully myself though."
Hallow nodded at his answer,
The other Goblin looked at the red shield and yelled out,
"You dirty liar! I would never say such a thing!"

"Hey now," Hallow interjected,

"Oh really now. I'M the liar here. Well, what if YOU ARE THE LIAR here."
"I am shocked you would ever suggest such a thing. I thought we were friends."
"Heh. A lie right there i tell ya. I lie right there."

With the banter that was taking place Hallow started to laugh, "Hahaha,"

"Yeah, yeah, listen to your second head. You know all the good that has done ya, haven't you."
"Oh, yeah, my head is so so bad. And what about yours!? Your second head is the one who landed us this job anywho!"
"Yeah, but it was only at your head's convincing!"
"Your brought it up first!"
"It did not!"
"Did too!"

"Ha ha haaaaaa, ahhhh,"
With a sigh of relief Hallow began to think,
I'm never going to get anywhere with these two,

Narcissa looked perplexed at him as she too tried to figure out the answer, but she just had this blank expression on her face, and couldn't seem to grasp the logic behind the question,

Hallow took out her Poke Ball from his belt,
"Thank you for all you have done so far, I'll take the lead form here," he said as a red light emits her back inside the sphere, returnings it back to his belt,

The two still wouldn't stop arguing, finally Hallow said "Enough!,"
"I know what door will lead me to where I need to go," he said pushing the blue shielded guard out of the way blocking the way,
"I think you two need a vacation sometime,"
As he approached the door to turn the nob he left them saying,
"You two have a pleasant day now,"


[Stats.]

[gmoyes]

Pele's Cavern

.:gmoyes:.

Despite Echo’s steel-hardened body, the effects of the battle are starting to take their toll on the tough little Psychic type. The Arcanine seems to be panting heavily as well, yet it still continues its frantic pace across the room, looking for any sort of opening to attack. Echo listens to your instructions once again through the Pokédex Theta carries on the sideline, using his boosted speed stat to surreptitiously weave through the air with a Faint Attack. Echo’s move succeeds, causing the fire dog to jump backwards in pain and surprise. It hadn’t been expecting that! Growling menacingly, the Arcanine spreads a close range Heat Wave around Echo, inflicting further damage that ends up reduced by the steel type’s Heatproof ability. Through the blazing fire that now surrounds it, Echo seizes its chance and summons a Confuse Ray that zooms through the air and strikes the Arcanine clear in the face. You cheer through the speaker as the move succeeds, causing the Bronzor to smile slightly with relief.

Suddenly, however, a searing pain causes Echo to cry out in shock. It looks like the Bronzor sustained a burn from the Heat Wave! As the fire clears away, both opponents now appear to afflicted with status conditions. On the other side of the arena, the Arcanine jumps and twists this way and that, stopping every once in awhile to Crunch at his tail and paws. Meanwhile, a blazing sensation stabs at Echo’s innards, lowering his health slightly. As you gaze at what seems to be a deadlock, a cry escapes your lips as you see the Arcanine start to run towards Theta—and the Pokédex—in its confusion. A wave of fire escapes the fire type’s maw as it shoots a Flamethrower at the Magnemite. The Pokédex slips sideways and crashes to the ground as the attack hits, the live feed flickering and crackling. You can only see a limited view of the cavern now since the Pokédex is on the floor. As the smoke clears from the fire type attack, though, you can see enough of the situation to realize that Echo had sacrificed itself to save Theta from the Flamethrower! The steel/psychic type floats in the air for a few seconds, but then crashes to the ground from its combined injuries. Magnemite retreats backwards as the Arcanine advances toward it…

What’s your next move?

Alex grinned as the faint attack struck, though it faded once the fire type struck back with a wave of fire. Amidst the inferno, Echo managed to send out of ray of light that struck the Arcanine dead on. As the flames settled, Alex could see the dog-like pokemon trying to bite its own tail. But when he looked over at his Bronzor, he saw a large scorch mark on its body. The steel typed had been burned from the repeated fire attacks. Fortunately, they now had a chance to catch their breath before heading back into the fray. "Ok Echo, now's your ch-"

Just then, the wild fire type somehow bounded towards the camera with flames gathered in its mouth. "Theta! Get out of there!" While nowhere close to the attack, Alex instinctively shielded his face from the flames. When he looked back at the screen, all he could see was the ceiling of the cavern. "Theta! Echo! What happened!?" Just then he made out the steel and psychic type in the corner of the screen. "Echo?"

Then the Bronzor wobbled in mid air and fell to the ground. "Echo!"

Theta then showed back up on the screen and looked from its fallen partner to the camera. The electric type didn't have a mark on it. Alex just looked at the screen stunned. Did Echo sacrifice itself for Theta? That- that was- woah. He got the feeling he was vastly underestimating the emotions of his pokemon. But now Echo was down for the count and Theta was on its own. Now, they finished this. "Theta, let's do this! Just because your electricity keeps being drawn to the walls doesn't mean you can't fight. Ram into it with a Spark, follow with Swift and Psybeam. Echo has worn it down for you, it's up to you to finish it."

The Magnemite bobbed a nod towards the camera and looked towards where the Arcanine must have been. With that sorted out, now was time to deal with Echo. He pulled a pokeball out of his pocket and sent out the small Abra that was contained in it. "Hey Phi, we need you."

...what...

The young psychic type was still developing his telepathy. He could only so a single word at a time. "Echo fainted in the cave here and I need you to Teleport in there and Teleport back out here with Echo so I can take care of it. Can you get a lock on their location?"

...yes...

"Great. You go and do that." Alex shrugged his backpack and rooted around for a minute. "I hope I have something for it in here... bingo!" He pulled an Oran Berry out of his bag. While he was unsure how exactly Echo would eat it, it would certainly help.

[Coolz8]

(Attention all updators! There are a few quidelines I would like to put up:

Grammar: Make sure that your posts are all grammtically correct and spelled correcty. I am not a Grammar Nazi, but if you are a blantant offender, I will try to notify you and may drop you. Don't worry, you guys are good.

Replies: Try to make your posts somewhat large. The more you reply, the more I have to work with. This is mostly to coolz8 at the moment, you need to try harder. I don't mind if you reiterate what I post(infact, I encourage it), but no two or three line replies. Or else, you might get minimal updates from me. Or get dropped. :/

Self-Updating: A little bit of creative license is encouraged, feel free to slightly tweak dialogue, or to add your own thoughts on events while they are happening. If, however, I feel that you have changed something so that it is not the original meaning, you will be notified. This is a definite way to get dropped.

Reply Time: I update often, so, it should be a signal to reply often. However, if you are not replying, it is a strain on me to have to try and remember my plans for you. If you don't reply for over a month without notifiying me, you will get dropped. If you are leaving or have something that is keeping you from replying, PLEASE TELL ME!!!

And the most important guideline of all, HAVE FUN! )

Also, with Food Guy, I have seven updatees/


Mt. Senica
Cinder Village
Coolz8

(Hey, you can't just find a Pokemon and capture it, you gotta work for your Pokemon! :P)

You and your Pokemon Trick go and start to clean the bathroom, which you find is actually a lot harder than it originally seemed. The floor was covered in soap scum and whatever else scum had come in here, and it never seemed to go away, it seemed to be permanently stuck onto the floor. The sinks were covered in scum as well, but they came clean a little bit easier than on the floor. The worst part about the cleaning, however, was the toilets. They stunk to high heavens, hell, above high heavens, and were covered in crap. It seems that people didn't like to flush here, or they got a bad case of Moctezuma's revenge. You and Trick get bust working, and afer what seems like hours go by, you finally get the bathroom cleaned up. You can see the original color in the tiles, which is a baby bird blue, instead of the white you had seen earlier. The sinks sparkled and gleamed like chrome, and even the toilets were a pearly white. You and Trick looked on your work, and were proud, even though this was a nuisance to do this, at least you had gotten it done quickly, and good to.

The man came in right after you finished, probably to see if you were slacking off or what not. His Golurk stayed outside, it was too tall to fit inside the bathroom. He looked around the bathroom, inside the stalls, under the sinks, in the toilets, and looked at you. He gave you a smile, and said, "Well, you look like a good kid after all. Or, someone who has been cleaning bathrooms all their lives." He laughs at this, and you cannot help but give a giggle too. "It seems I took you wrong. Hell, it happens. I guess that you guys are free to go. Wow, this is probably the cleanest I have ever seen the bathroom. She is good enough to get a date now." Again he laughed, and saw that you were walking out the door. He remembered that you said you were looking for Pokemon, and remembered something he had seen. "Hey, wait a minute kid. What is your name?" You tell him that your name is Frinth. "Frinth, what the hell kind of name is that? Oh well, my name is August. August Brown. I am what you would call the local law enforcement here at Cinder Village. I try to keep hoodlums and no-gooders out of here. People come here because they want to relax...and occasionaly want to find Pokemon too. Nobody gets by me and Cassius here, you bet it." He takes a deep breath in, and looks out window. "Trust me kid, there is no Pokemon in that spring you were looking at. It was man-made for people. But, I can tell you a place where you can find special Pokemon that like the hot water. If, of course, you are interested..."

What will you do?

Frinth was in a somehow slighted fatigue, and he went out to lean on one of the benches he could find. As he searched, he took off his suit and that of Trick's, carefully removing each appendage to avoid injuring him through a rushed manner. He halted when they finished." Trick, let me give you something I've finished. It's a translator, so we could converse more effectively. I hope you'd like this. I'm sure you understand me vaguely, but I also placed in an audio translator just in time for our new mission. But I was able to finish this early enough to be able to test this... But I'd like this to start operating as soon as possible as I see a future need for this. And a grave need at that."

He Bestowed a single device which seemed to have been made out of light, and Trick tried mouthing something inaudible, but he was able to emit something different, A nice tone which would actually sound human, save for a slight robotic vibration and Trick's natural Pokemon voice.

" Does this work?" was what came out.

"Yes, indeed." Frinth Smiled.

"So, August, Might I ask for you guys to show me around? I'd like to get a bit more familiar and survey the area for documentation and probably meet a few trainers along the way if I'm lucky enough."