Ask to Join Journey Into Kanto

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

Zayne approached, yawning dramatically with his Sandshrew gnawing at the end of his sleeve, hanging off. He approached from the inside of the pokemon center where he had been resting at overnight. When he finished yawning and stretching, he looked over and noticed the girl he... "made friends with" yesterday. Yes, made friends with. While the idea of her and Zayne talking seemed alienated to her, atleast from first glance at first conversation yesterday, Zayne enjoyed her company and was hoping she was going to want to adventure out like he decided to do.

A long call last night led to him informing Professor Oak that he wasn't going to be coming back around until the end of his adventure. While he didn't plan on taking the gym challenge, he wanted to be the moral support for the nice girls who wanted to travel along at his side. Maybe he could be the assistance that someone needed to conquer the next gym and so on.

"Hey, Hayley~" Zayne said with a smile and a wave of his free hand while Sandshrew continued chewing away at his shirt, eager to wear his teeth down on something. "And Hugh."

 

[Blxckwolf]

Chelsey joined the two a little later, a bit of a hop in her step. She was up early, took a shower, had a nice breakfast. Her morning was great, just like her day was about to be if everything went according to plan. "Hi you guys!" She excitedly says. She glanced around to see if everyone was there, which wasn't the case. "Where's Isabelle? We said noon, right?" Chelsey frowned. She looked around the town to see if she could spot her, but there was no Isabelle to be seen. "Ah well." She shrugged, not letting anything get in the way of her good mood.

When she saw the other Pokémon roaming freely she took out her Pokéball and let Charmander out, who yawned before joining Hugh the Mankey. She saw the Sandshrew nibbling on Zayne's sleeve, which brought a smile to her face. She wasn't used to small Pokémon, the only Pokémon she ever really befriended being the 300lbs Abomasnow her father had, which she ironically gave the nickname Snowflake. He would eat my entire sweater, Chelsey thought to herself.

While they waited for the fourth member of their little squad to arrive and finally commence their journey, Chelsey recalled what her aunt had told her the day before. The first gym uses Rock-type Pokémon, which resist Fire and Normal-type attacks. Be careful with Charmander. She'd told her. "Which routes do we go through in order to reach Pewter City?" Chelsey asked curiously, wondering if one of those routes could provide her with a new Pokémon to give her an edge on the first gym leader.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

Zayne looked around the pokemon center towards the exit of Veridian City towards Pewter City and let out a low whistle. "We got a pretty big forest to go through. I hope you aren't afraid of bug type pokemon because it's crawling with Caterpie and Weedle. Although, recent reports have spotted more than just those pokemon! Bulbasaur, Scatterbug, and even Starly can be found in the forest! It's pretty cool~" Zayne said as he grabbed his Sandshrew and pulled him away from his now saliva drenched sleeve and hoisted him up onto his shoulder. "I had a long night of thinking about things and I really feel like this will be a great journey."

Sandshrew thrusted a hang upwards in energetic agreement as Zayne chuckled and reached one of his hands up to pet the pokemon he originally caught on the route just past Pewter City.

 

[Yifun618]

(OOC sorry for being so late! I’ve been SUPER busy the last few days and will be through the weekend, so feel free to continue forward without me if I don’t respond for too long)

Isabelle casually strolled down, noticeably late. Spuds, her Bulbasaur, was beside her and she had very dark, noticeable bags under her eyes. Isabelle wore just a plain black t-shirt and jean-shorts. Her hair was unkempt, and she was wearing a navy blue hat to hold it semi neat, with a ponytail through the back of the hat. Isabelle apologized in a low voice. Another night had passed where she didn’t get much sleep from stress. Spuds, however, was up and full of energy. He immediately ran over to the other Pokemon and started investigating.

“Sorry for being so late...” Isabelle grumbled. She suddenly realized that she was in front of people, and that made her turn her energy level up a bit. “I’m ready to enter the forest whenever you guys are. I stocked up on gear last night.”

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

Zayne turned around and noticed how bland she looked. He wasn't sure what was wrong but judging by her bags she didn't get much sleep at all. The poor girl looked exhausted like she had very little energy.

"Are you sure you want to do that? You look like you could drop at any second... no offense." Zayne mumbled as Sandshrew danced around the Bulbasaur in a happy dance, happy to be making friends and to be adventuring out with those friends. He didn't seem to pay much mind to the struggling looking woman near him at all.

"I'm ready to go, though, if everyone is ready...!"

 

[sgiovannii]

(Sorry for the delay, ya'll! Spent all day driving to visit family, phew, but here's Felix!)

"Don't you dare-!"

A low, frantic voice could be heard in a failed whisper, brought up the road to the entrance of the Pokemon Center by yet another strong gust of wind. A small, gray-ish, stubby-legged armored Pokemon could have been spotted bounding up the center's steps and trotting straight for the group of young trainers, a pleased expression on its features. Following close behind was an embarrassed-looking sixteen year old boy, donned in a simple black t-shirt and shorts combo and a blue jacket to combat the morning chill, who was clearly on the verge of breaking out of his speed walk to sprint after what was apparently his little Pokemon to retrieve it before it reached the strangers.

Failure was imminent. The Aron cheerfully bounded up to the Sandshrew, Mankey, and Charmander with a happy cry, while his distressed trainer approached the group sheepishly. "Uh, hey, all... good morning. Sorry about my Aron..." he began, voice quiet and almost shy as he ran a hand through his dark brown locks, a tinge of pink adorning the cheeks beneath his sea-green eyes. "He's not usually like this, he just- stop," he implored the little Rock/Steel-type, who had just been curiously sniffing the Charmander's tail. "We overheard one of you talking about heading up to Pewter, where we're headed, so he just..." he sighed. "Atlas needs to learn more about boundaries. Again, really sorry to bother you."

 

[Blxckwolf]

Chelsey was startled by the Aron joining their Pokémon, noticing it sniffing her Charmander's tail. Charmander didn't seem to mind, so why should Chelsey. It was only when the Pokémon's trainer arrived, she was completely at ease. It was funny to see how embarrassed he was about his Pokémon's behavior. "Elia doesn't mind." Chelsey said, reassuring the boy's Pokémon wasn't at fault. She pointed down at Charmander wagging its tail, its flame obviously entertaining enough for the Aron.

"My name is Chelsey, and Atlas is more than welcome to join us on our journey to Pewter City." She smiled, talking for the group. "Ofcourse, you are too." She added, not wanting to exclude the boy from the group. She looked around the group to see the expressions on their faces, hoping they'd agree to yet another trainer joining their squad on the quest to their first gym badge.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"Sounds good to me. I'm Zayne, by the way." Zayne said with a wave of his right hand. "This is my best friend, Sandshrew. We'll be happy to have a little extra company for the road~"

Zayne felt good now. If it was just himself it would be rather lonely and there were more people now. If things went right, Brock would have a lot of competition to go up against in the next couple of days. Viridian Forest was the next step and he looked forward to seeing how he would get through it with all of his friends.

 

[Vaporeonn]

Hayley looked at the ever growing group, suddenly feeling enthusiastic. Hugh was getting along very well with every Pokemon, even the newly added grey one Hayley hadn't heard of. The boy who just joined them seemed to be about her age, too, so that calmed her down a bit. "Alright guys," Hayley said. "I'm not sure if anyone is familiar with Viridian Forest very well, but it shouldn't be a very dangerous walk."

"However," she continued, "it is going to be quite lengthy, so I hope you're all prepared and well rested-" Hayley stopped, embarrassed of saying that when obviously Isabelle hadn't slept well. Hayley felt like she should be more careful of what she says, not to end up being insensitive. "So, yeah! Pewter City, here we come!"

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"You make a good point, Hayley." Zayne said with a smile. "Viridian Forest is home to a lot of pokemon so I hope you're all ready to catch some pokemon as well!"

Sandshrew jumped up in excitement as he and Zayne took lead of the group, the ground type rodent jumping up onto his back and clinging tightly, just as excited as anyone to get the adventure started. Briefly, Zayne mentally checked himself to see if he had his five pokeballs and five potions stored nicely in his bag. Incase something happened, He would like to assist anyone who needed his knowledge and pokemon assistance skills.

 

[sgiovannii]

Felix blinked in surprise, as if the very notion of other kids inviting him to join them was something that had never happened before. Atlas, meanwhile, was happily checking out the other Pokemon, butting them with his head as a sign of friendship as the group began heading off down the main road towards the forest. The young man figured he might as well be a little more social, too.

"Uh, okay... thanks, all. Thanks very much. I'm Felix, Felix Delgado, and this nosy butt here is Atlas. Pleasure to meet you all," he gave them each a little smile and wave, narrowly avoiding tripping over a small divot in the path. The wind's presence was still making itself known, rustling the leaves of the tall trees above, whistling between the buildings, tugging at their clothes. "So, like... I'm assuming most of ya'll are taking the league challenge? Who's going to challenge Brock, first?"

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

Zayne waved his hands dismissively. "I don't plan on taking on any gym leader. The island challenges back at home were more my flow. I'll give you guys some advice - Brock is a Rock Type Gym Leader with a Geodude and an Onix. I hope you came prepared!"

 

[Yifun618]

“I’m just using the gyms as a way of strengthening myself. And don’t worry about me, I should wake up more pretty soon.” Isabelle said, as she trudged along. The thick cover of the trees very quickly blocked out any sunlight, with only thin beams breaking the thick canopy. She was happy that Spuds was at least excited and making new friends. As Isabelle took in their surroundings more, she noticed the thick bushes surrounding them and that there were multiple paths branching in multiple directions. Suddenly, Isabelle was very happy to have a guide with her.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"As long as you're okay~" Zayne says with a cheerful smile. Looking around him, he notices Caterpie and Scatterbug as well as Starly and Pidgey roaming around the area. The environment was darker but for some reason much more cheerful. Grass ruffled with the breeze and chirps and murmurs were heard from branches and bushes where Caterpie and other Pokèmon scattered like normal.

Sandshrew hopped down and walked at his trainers side, cheerful as ever to be roaming around at his trainers side.

"This forest has plenty of turns and surprises, I heard we can find Bulbasaur sometimes here!"

 

[sgiovannii]

"Those are... pretty cool reasons," he said truthfully. Not that there was anything wrong with the classic 'Challenge the gyms to eventually become the Champion' thing, but their motivations were far more in line with his own than he had thought. It was, as he said, pretty cool.

"Myself, I think I might do the same, but I'm mostly, like... just here for the sights, I guess. Though I honestly haven't seen anything too exciting since Atlas and I took a boat to Pallet Town from Fuchsia City. A Bulbasaur would be an awesome change, though."

He rubbed at his arm, gazing around at the shifting shadows in the trees as the group traversed through down the dirt path, flanked on either side by occasionally rustling bushes. Atlas looked longingly towards the bushes, wanting nothing more than to find what they were hiding, but with a small sigh he scampered onwards.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

Deep into the forests, our heroes find themselves hearing a voice.

The voice belonged to a girl, a young girl who was pleading out loud, her voice begging deeply at someone who wasn't audible. It was revealed to be a man.

The man stood to about six foot and had black hair and a black scarf which covered diagonally half of his face, only revealing his right eye and part of his left. The scarf was tied tightly to his neck and his clothes were pure black. His jacket was black with the buttons similar to a button down trench coat but waving in the breeze. The pants were a little baggy as well, similar to dress pants.

"This Pokèmon doesn't belong to you. It belongs to us, Team Sin."

Team Sin, the new rising power in the Kanto region. After the fall of Giovanni years ago, scarce members of Rocket split off and recruited new members and changed their names. A new leader emerged with ambitions to control the world using the most powerful pokemon to prove how strong he is.

Meanwhile, Zayne ran out and casted his bomber jacket away and threw it to the side of him.

"Hey! That pokemon isn't yours at all! Give that girl back her Marill!" Zayne protested with a yell with his friends approaching as well.

 

[Vaporeonn]

The Viridian forest was the same as always. Bug-type Pokemon were roaming around, mostly Caterpies, Weedles, and other unevolved forms, but the group saw the occasional Cocoon Pokemon. Although the forest wasn't scary because of the creatures in it, the lack of light because of the trees would make it look sinister to people new to it.

The cries of a girl took Hayley by surprise. When the group got to the source, she was met with a man seemingly stealing the young girl's Pokemon. That wasn't right, she thought. Hayley noticed Zayne taking initiative, and felt embarrassed that she, as the oldest one, didn't do the same. So she approached Zayne in the same manner, hoping that it'd help out.

"What do you think you're doing?" Hayley asked the man, more quetly than Zayne, but the anger in her voice was still audible. He was dressed funny, not at all like Team Rocket. This guy must've been something else. Hugh was right beside Hayley, also trying to intimidate the man. He had no plan to stay beside during injustice.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

The man gave back the pokemon to the girl and turned back to the kids who approached from behind him. His face was obviously displeased as he sent a shooting glare at each of them.

"What do you little kids want? You should be in bed... Or in school! Not roaming Viridian Forest. Get lost."

Zayne bit down; not liking the way the man was talking to him and his friends. It was confrontation time. "I don't think you understand how wrong it is to take people's pokemon!"

"Then we can take yours to show that we understand so nicely. Go, Zubat!"

In a bright flash of light, A poisonous bat pokemon flew into the air and hovered above the grunt just wishing someone would make a move. Zayne stood on edge with his Sandshrew at his side.

 

[Vaporeonn]

Little kids? Hayley was no little kid. Oh, she was going to show him... "Prick. Don't attack young children and act all high and mighty. Pick someone your own size!" Hayley shouted, then, after a scoff, she added, "Or, is that why you chose a young girl to battle?"

After she found out the man had a Zubat, he didn't seem as intimidating as before. Hugh surprisingly, looked eager to take on this opponent, and Hayley was happy he wasn't backing down. She just wasn't sure if Zayne was hoping to have this battle? Hayley hoped not, because she was never as ready as now. "Zayne, I'll take this," she said, stepping up front.

"Alright, Hugh, you ready?" Hayley asked her Mankey, who eagerly took a stance. "Good. Jump high and scratch that Zubat!"

 

[Blxckwolf]

Chelsey stood rooted to the ground, the entire ordeal reminding her of Team Galactic in the Sinnoh region. They were just as despicable as this man seemed to be. "Get him Hayley!" She shouted, enouraging her new role model. She was older than Chelsey, and seemed like an amazing trainer, just like her brother was. If only HE were here. He'd show him something., Chelsey thought to herself.

When Team Galactic attacked the Acuity Lake, Elias was one of the first trainers to rush over there and fight Jupiter and Team Galactic grunts. Her Skuntank was no match for Elias' Empoleon, his starter Pokémon. The battle Hayley was having seemed a bit less intense, but the stakes were just as high, with the young girl's Pokémon almost stolen by the mysterious man.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"You got it..." Zayne mumbled, stepping back and grabbing his jacket. Clearly he wanted to protect his friends but they seemed to have themselves under control while Zayne was mainly just curious as to where and why this man was here taking pokemon from innocent people.

"You think your Mankey is going to do anything? You have a big disadvantage here, lady." The grunt mumbled. "I'll let you make your move here."

 

[sgiovannii]

Team... Sin? Who the hell was Team Sin? Felix had never heard of them before in his life, which was a little strange; these criminal organizations usually recieved widespread international news coverage for their actions, even ones as far as Alola. This was a new group. "You'd think these people would get tired of trying this, get a hobby or something," he mumbled to his group members in disgust, watching on as Hayley stepped forward to put the man in his place. Her Mankey certainly looked more than up for the task.

Atlas had snuck through the bushes around the two battling individuals, stepping out in front of the terrified girl. He cried at her and her Marill, nodding towards Felix and everyone else - wanting them to follow. Safety in numbers and all.

 

[Vaporeonn]

Disadvantage? Hugh wouldn't be cut out to beat a lowsy Zubat? That worried Hayley, but she was sure that the grunt was only saying so to discourage her. Hugh was powerful enough to take and give a hit. That Zubat was going to be down any minute, Hayley was sure of that. She even had her friends rooting for her!

Hugh jumped high enough to level Zubat, jumping being something Hugh was always great at. He managed to scratch it, landing on his feet afterwards. Although Hayley was about to order an attack again, she stopped herself before doing something she knew was illegal by League rules – she had to wait for the opponent to hit. And yes, the grunt was anything but legal, but if she were to take on the League, she must learn to play by the rules. So she waited for the man to order his Zubat.

So, this is our first battle, Hayley thought. Fighting crime. Not bad.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

The Zubat recoiled. Obviously, a normal type move would do better than a fighting move given the 4x resistance against said type. Still, the scratch made contact and threw off the Zubat but quickly recovered.

"You'll pay for that, you brat! Use Leach Life!" The grunt yelled, casting his hand out in the direction of the Mankey, watching the Zubat drop elevation and approach to attempt to sink it's teeth into Mankey, it would depend on how fast he was.

 

[Vaporeonn]

Hayley didn't expect the Zubat to be moving so quickly. Seemingly at the speed of light, it plummeted down at Hugh. Thankfully, due to Hugh's quick reflex, he managed to shake off the Zubat just as it sunk it's teeth into him a bit. "I should be more careful," Hayley thought.

This was the toughest battle Hugh faced yet, since he was only used to battling wild Pokemon, like Rattatas and Pidgeys. This Pokemon and it's trainer were, at least, as experienced as Hayley and Hugh. Still, the Mankey was about to do it's best, and it wasn't planning on losing.

"Alright, Hugh," Hayley said. "Scratch it again! And try to evade Zubat's attacks like before!" Now that they knew what to expect, she felt like they were on even ground again.

 

[Blxckwolf]

Chelsey looked on from a safe distance, her Charmander almost joining in on the fight. "Let them battle Elia, Hayley can fend for herself." She reassured her Pokémon, picking it up from the ground and holding it tightly to her chest. She saw the back and forth action of the two Pokémon, both their attacks landing on one another. It seemed Hugh the Mankey had the upper hand in the fight, even though its type disadvantage.

When she saw the Aron sneak towards the young girl, she caught her attention by subtly waving at her and motioning for her to join the group so she was safe as well. "Come here." She mouthed to the young girl.

 

[sgiovannii]

"Good job, buddy," Felix said to Atlas, the little Pokemon looking proud with the girl and her Marrill in tow, now safely away from the side of the Team Sin stranger. She seemed okay enough, a bit shaken at most, and like the rest of them seemed to be mainly focused on the battle.

Hugh seemed proving to be more than a match for the Zubat, his agility playing a huge factor thus far. The Fighting-Type was jumping over the bat as it swooped down to attack, flipping and sliding around the forest floor with practiced ease. It was awesome to watch, especially once Felix noticed the Zubat beginning to slow down ever so slightly - as if it were fatigued. It must be taking its little wings a lot of effort to keep up with the Mankey's speed and constant dodging, and all that flapping around was taking a cost.

"Uh, Hayley! I think you're tiring them out! You got this!"

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

The Zubat took the scratch attack, exhausted slightly from the flying around and collapsed backwards into the Team Sin grunt who looked shocked.

"You lost before I could call out a flying type move! Agh!" The grunt exclaimed before shaking his head furiously. "You lucky kids! This won't be the last you see of us!"

With that, the man turned tail and bolted away into the forest, where he disappeared around a tree trunk and was out of sight. The battle was over; and Mankey was victorious.

"I knew you could do it, Hayley! Great job!" Zayne congratulated his new friend. "You're so brave~" It was a really good sign that his companions were just as brave as he was - it meant that they could overcome anything that would come at them with ease. Even while it was just one grunt, The forest had shut up until the grunt left. Then, life seemed to resume it's normal commute.

 

[sgiovannii]

"Thank goodness... you were awesome, Hayley," Felix said with a relieved grin, and waved to her tired, but prideful looking Mankey. "And so were you!"

He glanced after the crop of bushes and trees the man had disappeared into, his existence totally erased in the thick foliage. All around them resumed the soft buzzing of Bug Pokemon, and he couldn't make out any other people aside from the group of now six. "Guess he was alone, but we should get going anyway to be sure, right? Or in case he comes back with friends," he suggested, Atlas coming to stand at his side, alert and serious for once.

Felix nodded towards the girl and her Marrill. "You okay, by the way? Did he hurt either of you?"

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"N-No... He didn't hurt me... he just scared me really badly..." The little complained, her grip around her Marill tightened now but not too harmful against the water pokemon. She sniffled and hid her face from everyone for a few seconds before gaining composure again and turning back. "Thank you. so much... You saved my Marill...!"

Zayne stood beside Hayley and covered his mouth with a chuckle. "Actually, kiddo, this here girl and her Mankey saved your Marill. Wasn't she great?" Zayne said before patting the girl on the head. "Be careful who you run into in the forests. Sound good?"

"Thank you, mister...!"

 

[Vaporeonn]

Hayley couldn't believe it. Well, she could because Hugh is awesome, but the fact that it happened filled her with excitement she couldn't fully comprehend. "Yes!" Hayley shouted out as the grunt ran away. She started doing a victory dance, but stopped herself before she embarrassed herself. Hayley ran towards Hugh, lifting him up high. "You did great, buddy." Her companions congratulated her, and she never felt more fired up. She could take on the Pewter Gym. Definitely. Hayley was also happy that the young girl didn't have her Marill taken from her. She managed to help someone.

"Alright guys, let's continue going through the forest," Hayley said. Then she remembered how the grunt said her Mankey had a disadvantage against his Zubat, and she wasn't sure if he was lying or not. She decided to ask about the type match ups, at least for the first gym.

"Hey, before we continue. Will Hugh do well against the Pewter Gym?"

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"Pewter City is run by the rock-type gym leader, Brock. Since fighting moves often have an advantage against rock type pokemon, I would say that Hugh will do wonderfully...! Especially after that battle just now." Zayne said, unaware of how flirtatious he was sounding until he already spoke. Once he finished his sentence, he nervously itched the back of his neck. What is it about this girl? It almost makes me want to do my best at everything...?

Pulling him out of his deep thoughts, he spotted more wild pokemon. A Caterpie.

"Aw! Hey, guys! A Caterpie!"

 

[Yifun618]

Isabelle pulled a notebook out of her bag as soon as the fight started, and opened a new section. She labeled the top “Battles” and took notes on everything that happened in the battle. She noticed the turn based format used and how there were more commands than just an attack, such as giving special dodging instructions and the like. Then, Isabelle opened to a different section, titled it Pokemon, and made quick sketches of the two Pokemon she saw battling. She wrote down what moves she saw them use as well, and noted Zubat’s speed and other things. Isabelle heard Zayne stumble over his words again, and chuckled without looking up from her notes. She could tell this kid got nervous around new people, particularly girls, and she found it rather funny.

She suddenly looked up when she heard Zayne mention a Caterpie. She had only seen a few Pokemon before this journey, and both Caterpie and Zubat were ones she had never seen. Isabelle started exploring the forest, battling each Pokemon she met. They matched up with the four species that Zayne said could appear here, with each one now having a small section in her notebook. Isabelle began strategizing for this rock type gym leader. Her Bulbasaur would have would was called a type advantage (she had copied a type chart from a sign in the Pokemon Center), but it looked like all the Pokemon here had a type disadvantage. She decided that catching a Caterpie would benefit her the most, due to their strong shot being able to slow down Brock’s Pokemon and give her easier shots on his Pokemon. Isabelle started to search through the under brush for another Caterpie, and it didn’t take long for her to find one.

 

[Vaporeonn]

Hayley lightly laughed when she saw how nervous Zayne gets around her, and every other new person. She wanted to tell him not to worry, but he quickly added something else, something about a Caterpie? Hayley was used to Caterpies and wasn't too keen on catching one, but maybe she should add onto the team? Not with a Caterpie, though. She'd wait and see what else she could run into. This place was full of Caterpies, if she wanted one, she'd catch which ever.

She saw Isabelle sketch in her notebook, and thought it would be smart to take noted herself. But, she had no where to write it down. Besides, she could remember it all anyway, right?

Hayley continued into the forest, but made sure not to go too far. That's when she saw the coolest looking bug-type ever. A Pinsir. "I want that," Hayley told Hugh. The Mankey understood her, and jumped right in front of the Pinsir. Unfortunately, the Pinsir spotted them and went to run, but Hugh caught up to it. Hayley ran right behind them, "Scratch it, Hugh!"

The Pinsir wasn't having it, and Hayley watched as it shrugged Hugh off like he was nothing but a bug-type (ironically). Pinsir continued walking away, Hugh not following it this time, because he knew this was a battle he couldn't win right now. Not after he battled a Zubat before and was exhausted. Hayley should've had that in consideration, and she knew it. She let the Pinsir run away, and got to Hugh.

"Hey, bud, sorry if I pushed you too far. I should have a Potion on me," Hayley said, taking one out of her backpack. She gave it to Hugh, who seemed to spring back into energy, but Hayley told him to calm down. "You're still tired." She took him into her arms and let him relax in her backpack. It was quite heavy, but Hayley was used to it, so it was as if she didn't feel a thing.

Hayley suddenly felt very selfish. She shouldn't only think about herself, but her Pokemon too. What was wrong with her? Hugh could've gotten very hurt if she angered the Pinsir enough. Hugh was smart and stopped, but what if he hadn't? Hayley sighed and walked back to where the group was, when she noticed a Metapod on the ground.

"Weird. Aren't they usually on trees?" She asked herself, looking up. Then it hit her – she probably knocked it off when she was chasing that Pinsir. "You poor thing. I'm sorry," Hayley said, picking it up. It was heavy. She had no idea.

It looked hurt, and Hayley felt even worse. She had no more Potions, but she couldn't just leave it there... Hayley sighed again, knowing her only option. "Hugh, hand me a PokeBall," she said, the Mankey obediently giving her the PokeBall. "Alright. I'll catch it, and heal it at a PokeCenter when we get to Pewter. Seems like an alright plan. What do you think, Hugh?" She asked her Mankey.

Hugh let her know that he was on board with the plan, so Hayley did so. "Welcome to the team, I guess."

 

[sgiovannii]

As if to take their minds off of the scary event that just happened and to put themselves more at ease, the group took a quick break to look around and explore a bit, though still kept within eysight of one another. Felix, strangely enough, didn't really have a desire to do much walking around; honestly, he was still a bit unnerved by the Team Sin member, and spent time perched on a fallen, partially moss covered log with his long legs stretched out before him, looking up this new crime syndicate on his mobile device while Atlas happily began munching on a nearby patch of dirt.

The little he was able to read in that time from various news online articles spoke volumes. "So they're basically Team Rocket 2.0... but maybe worse, since they're still so secret..." he was mumbling to himself more than anything, only getting up to join the others as they all finished up their own activities. Good thing, too, as the sun had risen higher in the sky and was giving more warmth to the forest, making Felix take off his jacket and stuff it in his black backpack. Atlas had finished his little snack and was practicing some attacks on the fallen log until he joined his trainer.

"I hope they have good food in Pewter City. So hungry right now I could eat a Snorlax. We should get going, if everyone's good? By the way, did ya'll catch anything cool?"

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

Zayne watched the ordeal with Isabelle. He thought it was pretty nifty that someone would take notes on the spot instead of simply check it out and walk away. It was the smartest way to do things. However, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his pokedex at the Caterpie before anyone caught it, just so he could have the information.

"Caterpie, the worm pokemon. Caterpie spends most of its first stage eating leaves off of trees but won't hesitate to spray a horrid stench from its antennae if frightened. When Caterpie becomes less active, It's a sign that it will soon evolve."

Wow. The pokedex sure was cool. Thankfully, he had already entered Bulbasaur, Sandshrew, Mankey, and Charmander into his pokedex so he didn't need to go around harassing his friends for information.

Next, he paid attention to the emotional situation with Hayley. His mood altered from nervous to worried as he saw how she failed the capture of Pinsir and how it made her feel. While, she did push Mankey far and accidently injure a Metapod, it was simply because she felt a bond with her pokemon and herself. A bond that he understand to himself.

"Hayley-- Uh, don't beat yourself up over it...! You didn't do anything wrong. It was an accident." Zayne tried to cheer her up. He refrained from touching her as he was already awkward enough. "We should definitely get to a pokemon center, though. Let's get going, people!"

 

[Vaporeonn]

"Thanks, Zayne," Hayley said, ruffling his hair. "I know that it only happened because I was careless. But it's all part of the experience." Hayley tried comforting herself with this talk. It was part of the experience, wasn't it? "Besides, how will I learn if I don't make mistakes? It's better for it to happen now, than in some important battle," she added. Yeah, mistakes were inevitable. It's not like Hayley knew much about being a trainer, anyway, and learning with practice seemed like an exciting experience.

She decided to take Hugh out of her backpack. He was starting to get heavy. "Alright," she grabbed Hugh under the arms and put him on the ground. "I can't keep carying you. If you're still tired, you can get back into your PokeBall," Hayley said. Hugh immediately refused, preferring to be outside than in a PokeBall. As Hayley guessed. "But if I see you getting tired, you're getting back in here, mister." She laughed at Hugh's reaction. That Mankey really hated PokeBalls.

Zayne told the group to keep moving, and Hayley thought that was a smart idea. She should heal the Metapod. And try training it, if she was to put it on her team. But, how does one train an immobile cocoon? She should ask later. Hayley made her way towards he front of the group, not wanting them to lose their way. "We take a left here, and the path is pretty much obvious. There's a beaten path that isn't hard to find, so we just follow it." She made sure everyone heard her. "And if you get lost, look for this path. We don't want to run into any Team Sin grunts alone," she said the last part more quetly, more to herself than anyone else. Those guys spelled trouble.

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"Hey--Hayley!" Zayne flustered at the sudden fiddling with his hair as his face turned red. Instead of keeping up with her, He lagged behind her a few steps out of awkwardness and shyness alone. Sandshrew found it amusing while Zayne didn't. Or did he? He didn't even know.

Meanwhile, The forest was acting as usual. There wasn't any harm coming for a long time. At least, that's what they felt. It was a true feeling - Team Sin was a shady group from the looks of it, but they didn't seem to be anywhere near the Viridian Forest as of now. They would need to be cautious, though.

 

[sgiovannii]

The rest of the little trip through the woods was certainly scenic, but relatively uneventful. Felix was surprised at the sheer amount of Bug Pokemon swarming about - no pun intended. There was also the occasional Rattata scampering across the path, or Pidgey flying overhead, all adding to the tranquil sun-dappled forest scene. He should have brought a camera.

He was almost disappointed when the trees on either side of the dirt path began to clear, giving way to tall, flowering green grass: they'd reached the end of the forest, the relatively small but impressive looking Pewter City laid out before them, surrounded in the distance by an intimidating, rugged mountain range, all beneath a clear blue sky. He wished for his camera again. "A quiet city nestled between rugged mountains and rocks," Felix read from his mobile device, looking up with a little gasp as he spotted a familiar red-roofed building near the city's heart. "There's the Pokemon Center, guys, let's go get your Pokemon healed up. Then we can find food, walk around, and figure out this gym business yeah?"

 

[PKMN Trainer Sedna]

"Sounds good to me...!" Zayne exclaimed as he bolted off, wanting to be the first to get to the pokemon center. Even though he didn't battle at all and simply watched, he still felt obligated to be there. Although, He was hungry and thirsty so maybe the cafe would make a good place to eat. "I think I'll actually split to the cafe down the street. I'll be around~" Zayne said, casting a peace sign with his index and middle finger before grabbing his Sandshrew and venturing away from the party. In the cafe, he ordered himself a soda pop and some rice-balls. Sandshrew sat opposite of him at a two person table and they shared their food.

The city did look nice in the afternoon sunlight and out of the window he could see Pidgey's fly around looking for food. It was such a positive place to be at. Not only so, but he would get to witness his friends go through their first gym challenge.