Dual Pokemon Quest

[Blacksheep]

Jaden thanked the sableye that offered the amethys profusely offering two berries in exchange. The sableye was clearly thrilled with the reaction to its offer and showed them off to the other sableyes before scurrying back a distance to enjoy the reward.

Then they were setting up for a battle, with Oliver cheerfully stepping forward first. "Headbutt Oliver!" Jaden called. Oliver braced himself and charged forward-only to go right through the sableye. The watching sableyes all laughed at the sight as the one battling Oliver grinned and swiped at Oliver. Oliver twisted around to face the sableye again. Jaden frowned. "Scratch!" Oliver good naturedly reared up to strike at his opponent, but still the strikes wouldn't connect. The sableye was laughing and toying with Oliver as it struck him, forcing him into a retreat. He looked at Jaden for help. Wait, sableyes were part ghost type, weren't they? No wonder Oliver couldn't hit it! Jaden felt a flush of shame run through him. He'd set his pokemon up to lose!

"Alright, time out! You win. Come back Oliver." The sableye didn't like that, chasing after Oliver as the zigzagoon retreated. There was a sadistic hunger there to keep striking at the vulnerable pokemon. Sam quickly stepped in spitting flames at the sableye to let Oliver retreat. The sableyes chittered cheerfully as the battling one fell back, accepting the end this time.

Another sableye stepped forward, and Jaden felt Sam's hunger for a good fight. Oliver was more than happy to curl up with Uri and watch. Now it was the two of them, moving in sync. Physical attacks wouldn't work, but Sam's flames would surely burn through and bring them the win. The sableye that came forward was almost a black purple, with gems decorating its body. It gave a ghastly grin as the battle was declared to start. "Dragon breath," Jaden breathed. Sam breathed out an arc of colored flames across the ground drawing a line for the sableye to pass. It cackled as it lunged forward.

This wasn't a simple battle. The sableye had no problems with temporarily sinking into the ground to pop up elsewhere and assault Sam from behind. Jaden's warnings were barely enough to keep Sam dancing out of reach. Scratches coated the charmander leaving his scales loose and in some places bloody where the sableye had managed to get through. Sam wasn't going down easy though. They used smokescreen to hide where Sam was to make it harder for the sableye to just pounce him, and breathed flames everywhere to make crossing deadly. When the sableye popped up Sam was quick to use his tail or breath on Jaden's direction. Still it pushed him.

The sableye finally cried enough, backing up. Gems were chipped and the sableye was smoking slightly from the several fire strikes that had hit it. Sam was panting hard, but he had pulled through to a win. He grinned triumphantly and lifted himself up. Exhausted he yet let out a roar of challenge, calling for any to test him. The sableyes went wild cheering at the display. Some clearly wanted to take him up on it, but others stopped them. They remembered the deal. It had been a good solid fight, and a great performance. They were very pleased by Jaden's offering.

Sam tiredly came back to Jaden glowing flush with triumph. Jaden cheered as he scooped his starter up. They had won! They had done it! And what an adventure it had been!

[ ]Go back to rest in town for the night and celebrate the win
[ ]Head for the shrine
[ ]Check out the graveyard
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

Lee was quick to ask Crunchbite to keep throwing sand up to make following their path more difficult for the grunts following them. Kate released her spinnerak Sunshine, and Etan followed. The spinnerak rapidly began to create sticky spots of webbing behind them, and the vulpix burned creating minor illusions that helped to hide the tripwire. Jasper's victreebell let out a great cloud of stun spore to make it even easier for them to run. They dove further and further into the desert. Jasper called Etan forward and had her make them hazy like a mirage. Finally they collapsed. The grunts were still searching, spreading out, but they had lost the trail for now.

"Now what?" Jasper panted. "We gotta get outta here."

[ ]Focus on sneaking back out of the desert entirely
[ ]Hide in the Mirage Ruins
[ ]Write-in

 

[Tascion]

[X]Go back to rest in town for the night and celebrate the win
-[X]Praise Oliver as much as Sam, because fighting when you can't win is really brave. Praise them both lots.
-[X]Reenact the battle with Uri for Oliver and Sam, so they can see how brave they were in battle.
-[X]See about making a necklace with a jewel, so as to look like a sableye. Or maybe an eyepatch.
-[X]Try scrying for stuff with the jewel as a reflective surface!

 

[Space Jawa]

Lee breathed a small sigh of relief as the Team Magma thugs fell out of sight.

Unfortunately, it was only a temporarily relief.

"We need to sneak over to the Mirage Ruins." Lee said. "Whatever's going on over there, whatever they want them for, we need to get to it first."

[X] Hide in the Mirage Ruins
-[X] Be careful to hide your movements so you don't accidentally lead Team Magma there

 

[Blacksheep]

Jaden was in a triumphant mood as he made his way back down to the town with his pokemon. He bought a big feast for them all to enjoy and just dug in. They had all done so good! Sam was absolutely incredible with how he fought using his flames against the sableye, and feeling in sync with him as they battled was absolutely amazing. That wasn't to underplay Oliver's own achievements. How many zigzagoons out there would be willing to try and fight against an opponent they couldn't touch? Oliver had been so awesome!

After they finished eating Jaden coaxed Uri into helping him reenact the battles. They were too awesome to just let go, they had to be done again! Uri's own actions were pretty fuzzy. The abra was exhausted from trying to make sense of seeing with his eyes and straining against not being abel to sense normally. He was very curious about what he plucked from Jaden's mind about how the battle went. He was definitely up for trying to reenact what happened.

Oliver and Sam were deeply amused by the reenactment, the zigzagoon letting out a chittering laugh and Sam letting out coughing rumbles of amusement. At one point he actually snorted flames from laughing as hard as he was. He stood up to really show off how his dragon breath had gone, reveling in the celebration of their battles. They had won! They had done incredible!

Jaden spent the morning the next day asking around the craft shops about getting the amethyst he had polished and getting it set on a sinew necklace to wear. He found a quiet place and sat down to peer into it. Jewels could be used for scrying. It wasn't what he was good at, but just because he wasn't good at it didn't mean he couldn't do it. And Uri was more than happy to give him a boost to help him as he stretched out his mind. Peering into the jewel he caught a glimpse of laughing haunting spirits, and a hunger that gnawed deep in his belly for something he had never had.

Pokemon Actions
[ ]Train your pokemon in battle
-[ ]Write-in specific training (speed, offense, dodging, train a move)
--[ ]Train pokemon team
--[ ]Train Oliver
--[ ]Train Sam
-[ ]Train Uri
[ ]Play with your pokemon
-[ ]With all
-[ ]With Oliver
-[ ]With Sam
-[ ]With Uri
[ ]Write-in

[ ]Visit the shrine
[ ]Visit the graveyard
[ ]Catch a boat back up towards Route 121
[ ]Catch a boat towards Route 123 and Mauville
[ ]Practice psychic abilities
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

"No," Jasper said firmly. "No, no way. I'm a good fighter, but that's a large group. I'm not risking Kate."

"But we have to," Kate argued. "It could get worse if we don't! And it would be safer to stay in a place they can't find, right?" She smiled as charmingly as she could.

Jasper fought against it before groaning. "You're gonna kill me one of these days. Fine! Fine, we'll seek it out."

"Yay!"

Jasper grumbled as Kate pulled him into a kiss. "Alright, let's try and play this smart."

They traveled slow. Kate's vulpix stayed out to be ready to help confuse their location if they were spotted, and Jasper kept his houndoom tight to his side. Traveling back to where the Mirage Tower was wasn't easy. It took a full day for them to make it back. Luckily the little vulpix kept their presence from making an impression. They waited until the sun started to set and the tower revealed itself. They didn't wait before hurrying inside to start exploring.

[ ]Explore up
[ ]Explore down
[ ]Write-in

 

[Space Jawa]

Looking around at the entrance to the Mirage Ruins that they had finally entered, Lee felt mixed emotions. Excitement, relief, a sense of being overwhelmed. Away from the immediate heat, he finally released Archer again, suspecting the grass owl would appreciate getting to participate in the experience of the exploring the Mirage Ruins.

But where did they start? What possible dangers lurked within?

Could he perhaps save them all time and trouble by potentially 'scouting ahead'?

"I want to try something." Lee said. He sat in a proper position for tapping into the local current. Aside from possibly helping everyone out by getting an idea of just what they were exploring, having a couple other people present gave him a bit more confidence that he had something resembling a 'safety net' on standby.

"I have this...ability." He said, not sure how much Jasper and Kate might know about Aura and how deep to get into it.

A lot of words passed through his mind, thoughts about how he didn't actually know how to use it very well, how much of the training he had received had created mixed results and possibly set him back in his use of the skill, how he really could stand to train further, either by himself or under the instruction of someone who actually knew what he was doing;

but he held those thoughts back out of realization the more he said about the full and honest situation surrounding his Aura the worst it made him sound. Better to keep it simple.

"I want to see if I can use it to get some idea of the layout of this place." Lee said. "Help us navigate, see what we should be looking for, maybe locate any dangers waiting for us to find them."

[X] Tap into the current of the Mirage Ruins

 

[Tascion]

Don't cut up the jewel at all. Leave it exactly how it is, and get a strap to wear it the way some sableye have their own on them.

If Uri is okay with a plan, then practice fighting against Sam and Oliver, as guided psychically and verbally by Jaden. Keep it low intensity, primary focused on communication.

As there are hungry ghost Pokemon in our future, swing by the store and pick up sandwiches and other picnic stuff before going to the graveyard.

(On my phone, can't write well.)

 

[Blacksheep]

"Sounds like a great idea," Kate said cheerfully. Jasper even looked interested about this potential ability. They settled nearby to watch and see what Lee's ability would be like.

The current here was different from the desert. It was different from the mountains, or any place that Lee had truly touched before. Describing how it was different was tricky. The current almost felt detached, cut off, not a part of the rest of the world. Which was impossible, as that was what the current did, connect everything. It felt like it should be wrong, and at the same time there was absolutely no doubt that this was how it was meant to be. The alien feeling was difficult to grasp and hold onto.

Under that, the current had a sense of timelessness and patience. There was life here, small flickers of it in the vulpix family that lived inside, but it was small compared to the tower. Yet there was still beings here, ones that worked with a patience and acceptance of life simply going on, and being ready for whatever came. There was a sense that the beings here were as detached from life as the Mirage Tower was from the current in the desert. Higher in the tower, small specks of once life rested. Deep below, there was something very powerful sealed away and sleeping, waiting for when it would be called on.

[ ]Go deeper into the current
[ ]Investigate upstairs towards the small specks of once life
[ ]Investigate downstairs to what is waiting
[ ]Look for the wild vulpix
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

There were hungry ghosts ahead, and Jaden would be prepared. He set time aside to train with his pokemon and practice battling. Sam had grown since he'd gotten him. He was a better fighter, sharper, and happy to show off at every chance he got. Oliver had his own rough and tumble manner of battling, more of a playful wrestling and scratching than the aggression that Sam bled off. Uri was a different style again. The abra preferred to keep as far back as possible, using his abilities to confuse, put to sleep, and throw things at his opponents. He was honestly a bit wobbly with his battling, but he was getting better as he leaned into connecting with Jaden and trusting his trainer to help him. It gave Uri a confidence that had him slowly straightening up and getting faster in practice.

Then he was ready to go and investigate the graveyard with his team. Jaden loaded up on a ton of sandwiches for the hungry ghosts, and headed in. Inside it was surprisingly quiet. There were some people there, visiting graves and talking quietly. Priestesses drifted through offering comfort and performing rites at various graves. He could see that some of them had offerings or talismans placed on them.

[ ]Investigate the offerings
[ ]Investigate the talismans
[ ]Talk to a priestess about what the rites are
[ ]Look for secrets
[ ]Write-in

 

[Space Jawa]

In the moment, Lee Hinsu's objective was to scout, to try to get a lay of the area. He wasn't seeking to find anything specific or connect with anything. Had it just been him, perhaps he could have tested such an approach, but he was scouting for the benefit of Jasper and Kate as much as himself. Give all of them an idea of what was to be found in the tower and where to find it. It wouldn't do for Lee to just explore the whole place on his own while his traveling companions just sat around.

Based on his recollection of the last time he'd tapped into the current, he might be able to manage the kind of overview he was seeking if he tried delving deeper again.

[X] Go deeper into the current

 

[Tascion]

[X]Look for secrets
-[X] Listen for quiet places, where nobody goes. Peele move around, and they move consistently. Look for a door or a path that people's eyes just glance past because it's become part of the landscape. A connection to a place perhaps not entirely forgotten, but long since past consideration of relevance by most people.

 

[Blacksheep]

Jaden wandered through the graveyard, keeping his eyes peeled for the spots that were overlooked. There would be secrets here, he knew it. At first his eyes slipped past some of the spots he passed. They didn't seem to quite exist. But Oliver and Sam caught him doing that, and pointed out the hidden paths that wove through the graveyard. Jaden grinned and eagerly started heading down one.

"Stop." A priestess caught Jaden by the arm. She had a sharp frown on her lips. "You can't go there."

"Why not?"

"It's dangerous, and it's sacred. Only priestesses are allowed down there."

[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

Lee leaned deeper into the current, searching for the details. It wrapped around him welcomingly. More details poured in: the goletts that toiled through the Mirage Tower maintaining it. They kept the tower clean, the stone from wearing away, and kept it repaired so it was safe to wander. Golurks acted as guards in the lower basement. There was no expectation of danger, just that same timeless patience that filled the entire tower. They could go forever without combat, or kill in an instant.

The vulpix family was curled up and taking care of each other, looking over a pair of eggs that would hatch in another month. They were worried about how many humans were wandering in the desert and stirring things up. All the desert pokemon were reacting to the humans moving through it, and they worried about the difficulties it might bring. The safety of the tower was a treasure for what it gifted them.

And higher up, fossils slept, with an echo of what once had been within them. They had been alive once, and the stone wrapped around the remains still dreamed of the echoes of what had once been. It was the faintest flickers, just enough to whisper into the current. One of the goletts up there felt Lee brush against it and reached back, curious and welcoming the touch against it. Who had come into the tower? What did he look for?

Despite the deeper dive, the door that kept the being asleep remained sealed, refusing to allow Lee to penetrate further unless he proved worthy and opened it properly.

[ ]Reach back to the golett
[ ]Plan to open the door
[ ]Get a fossil
[ ]Write-in

 

[Space Jawa]

Lee hesitated a brief bit as he considered how to proceed. How long did he want to keep Jasper and Kate waiting? How much could he arbitrarily do on the groups behalf without consulting the others?

Given that they were, in a sense, guests of a tower that was very much occupied and clearly held some special purpose, Lee elected to try making a friendly impression on the inhabitants, hoping that it might ensure a smoother time actually exploring the place.

Plus, it might provide a good training opportunity.

[X] Reach back to the golett
-[X] Try to communicate that they mean no harm, that they came to explore, but are currently also taking refuge from bad people that do mean harm if they find this place.

 

[Tascion]

[X]How difficult is it to become a priestess? I've got some time, and sandwiches I can trade. If I give you a sandwich and you give me enough of your notes from studying to become a priestess that I can pass the exam, I bet I can too. I'm a quick study. I'm not too sure about the sacred part, but I can promise I've never gotten in trouble with a museum for touching stuff. Also, what makes it dangerous? I'm a professional, and I can handle a lot of danger. I've bartered with fairy pokemon, battled sableyes, and done just fine. I also met a huge Xatu.
-[X]If no progress is made, then examine the talismans and offerings, but keep an eye out for an opportunity to 'get lost' into the secret areas.

 

[Blacksheep]

Jaden stared at the priestess completely unafraid. "How difficult is it to become a priestess? I've got some time, and sandwiches I can trade. If I give you a sandwich and you give me enough of your notes from studying to become a priestess that I can pass the exam, I bet I can too. I'm a quick study. I'm not too sure about the sacred part, but I can promise I've never gotten in trouble with a museum for touching stuff. Also, what makes it dangerous? I'm a professional, and I can handle a lot of danger. I've bartered with fairy pokemon, battled sableyes, and done just fine. I also met a huge Xatu."

The priestess listened to this outpouring of accomplishments with an amused smile. Her sternness softens somewhat as Jaden speaks, but it doesn't fade entirely. "Becoming a priestess isn't passing an exam, or anything that is quick. It takes years of dedication to harmonize yourself with the needs of the world so you can serve it. And I don't believe you want to spend years doing so, do you?" Jaden frowned. No, he did not. He had a lot to do. "When I say dangerous, I mean people die when they go down there. Not the risk of death, this isn't like going off a route. A certainty. And I have no interest in adding you and your team to the graves."

That was disappointing. "Alright." Jaden pulled back reluctantly and began to examine the talismans that were set up on some of the graves instead. A lot of them seemed like wishes, for good dreams and rest. Not what he would expect to see in a grave. One of the graves contained promises of justice. Another had toys set up around it, just waiting to be played with.

[ ]Play with the toys
[ ]Keep looking for a chance to "get lost"
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

Lee meant to communicate. It should be possible to do so with aura, he knew that.

But that was not what he did.

The golett welcomed Lee in, and the man found himself washed down under an ocean of memories. Being created and a council of golurks welcoming it to reality. Being taught the importance of the Tower, and how it was meant to care for it. Spending its days with its friends all like it. The first time it discovered a life that had wandered in from outside, watching the cacnea flourish to a cacturne before disappearing to never return. Other lives passing through as brief flickers. Old stories of purpose being told, ones that hummed through its body and guided its steps as it renewed the stone and carvings.

The golett was happy to welcome Lee within it, digging back into the human. So much of what Lee carried inside him didn't make sense to the golett. It discarded what didn't make sense, leaving behind just the team that Lee was beginning to build and a faint echo of the stories that Lee had grown up on. This the golett could connect to and understand. It saw the others that were with Lee, and began to head down to meet them.

[ ]Stay, it is comfortable with the golett
[ ]Go deeper, there is more understanding to gain
[ ]Surface

 

[Tascion]

[X]Play with the toys
-[X] Death is pretty serious business. Perhaps trying to butt into things without any understanding isn't the best idea. Also, a grave with toys seems really sad. Maybe learning a bit more about things would be a good idea. Toys are meant to be played with, but graves aren't. Watch for a while, and see what other people do. Maybe try and see what's going on in the reflection in the jewel of the sableye.

 

[Space Jawa]

More than anything, Lee was terrified.

This...full mutual dive of memories, it wasn't anything like what Lee had tried to do, Lee hadn't even known it was possible.

What was worse was that he felt trapped with no way to wake up.

In the moment, he still wasn't sure what was happening, and it scared him. It scared him more than...

...it revived memories of his youth. Feelings. Of when he'd been lost in the mountains, before Zangoose had found him.

What he felt now, it scared him more than anything he'd experienced since that fateful time that had changed his life.

It took near everything he had to merely freeze up and avoid making anything worse rather than break out into a full blown panic.

[X] ... (Lee Hinsu is terrified and has no idea what to do)

 

[Blacksheep]

Jaden settled by the toys and gently looked through them. Maybe that priestess was right. Death was pretty serious. Seeing the toys here left alone felt pretty sad, in fact. Oliver sniffed at them curiously before taking one in his mouth to steal away. Sam was interested in seeing what Jaden could do, the charmander leaning in and almost demanding that Jaden tell him about the toys. Jaden was more than happy to come up with short little ideas of what happened with each one to tell to Sam.

Something cool brushed along Jaden. Uri reached out urgently, informing Jaden that a dead space similar to what had been around the sableyes had popped up around the toys. A moment later a little shuppet peered out from among the toys up at Jaden. It didn't quite come out, just watching the boy and his pokemon who had chosen to play with the ghosts' toys.

[ ]Say hi to the shuppet
[ ]Pretend you don't notice it and put on a show with the toys
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

The fear washed through the connection. It stymied the golett. It was not used to fear. Its life was safe and stable. The connections that it had were not equipped for dealing with the fear either. This wasn't a maintenance problem, or an intrusion. This was someone it had connected with being afraid, and not knowing what to do. The poor golett itself was left swimming in fear and uncertainty.

In the room that Lee sat in a warm hand reached out and guided his hand to a chest. He could feel the steady breathing from them, and a faint call that was almost from underwater.

[ ]Try to follow the call up
[ ]Focus on the breathing
[ ]Fight to escape the golett
[ ]Write-in

 

[Tascion]

[X]Pretend you don't notice it and put on a show with the toys
-[X]Discreetly stop Oliver from stealing the toys
-[X]Act out the EPIC story of Jaden, Sam, and Oliver exploring the cave of the faerie pokemon
-[X]Pose the toys in STIMULATING demonstration of learning from the giant Xatu (as acted out by Uri floating majestically).
-[X]Reenact the bravery of Oliver in fighting a Sableye, and Sam backing up his teammate

 

[Space Jawa]

A call...

It was Kate and Jasper. It had to be. What else could it be?

The safety net he'd been counting on, it was coming through, and he tried to follow it back to safety.

[X] Try to follow the call up

 

[Blacksheep]

Jaden immediately set up to start telling of their adventures using the toys. Oliver was all set to go for this. He was sad that he wasn't being allowed to play with the toys so much anymore, but was more than happy to plop himself almost on top of Jaden to act as audience for the epic show being played out. He loved watching Jaden act out their adventures.

Uri was amused to play the part of a great xatu bestowing wisdom. He did his best to radiate off wisdom and power while waving his arms and floating majestically above the other toys. Sam complained away as the fight with the sableyes was displayed. In his opinion it didn't do a good enough job of showing just how incredible his defeat of his opponent had been. He was a dragon! He should be the grandest part of the tale!

Through it all the little shuppet drifted closer and closer until it was almost right beside Oliver watching the show. It didn't quite join in yet, still gathering its courage. Oliver was more than happy to enjoy the cool feel of the ghost pokemon beside him.

[ ]Keep performing
[ ]Ask if anyone wants to help act out the next part
[ ]Write-in