Private/Closed Pokémon: Bronze and Iron {A New Region Adventure}

[Inkage]

"Why would they be against you coming here? Is it because you forgot everyone?" Aceso said, half with sarcasm and half with genuine curiosity. She then noticed the guards and balked.

"They don't seem happy, Professor. Are you entirely sure it's safe to approach?" she asked. She also noticed that these people did not look like your typical digger. Why would they need guards unless they actually expected trouble?

Queen padded behind Aceso, and groomed herself when they stopped. All this sand irritated her.

And of course Earl wasn't far behind, having been healed by the Nurse in the Pokemon Center. Aceso liked having her Pokemon follow her, but Earl was lagging a bit, being not built for walking speed. So the Aloegar was draped over her shoulders. At least he wasn't heavy.

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Oh shoot, I forgot to heal my Pokémon!

“I’ll be right back!” Alexander yelled, sprinting hard to the Pokémon Center and getting Wigwarm healed. Once he got him healed quickly, he sprinted back.

“Alright.. I’m back,” Alexander got that done in near record time.

But he remained very distrusting of the guards, sharing Aceso’s concerns.

 

[Draco Nightshade]

"I hate to admit it, but I don't have a Rotom Phone." Wulf scratched the back of his head with mild embarrassment.

~Professor Gem's Lab~

Following the professor's lead, Diana also walked ten paces before spinning on her heel and letting Wulfleur back out. "Wulfleur, Growl!"

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Chaplet Town

"Me neither," Sky admitted. She turned to Wulf and grinned sheepishly. "Dad said I couldn't get one until I was out of High School."

Professor Troy snickered and shook his head a little. "And they say kids these days have too much technology. Never mind. Consider yourselves officially Pokémon Trainers of Mithos."

Octavia passed out the Pokédexes. They were bulkier than Sky expected, but pretty neat to look at.

"These Pokédexes come with a full Pokémon library, GPS, and news channel app."

"I added that last one myself," Octavia confessed. "Figured you kids should know what's going on in the world."

"There's a communication app on them too," Troy added. "But it will only work if you and another Pokédex holder exchange codes."

With this new information, Sky turned back to Wulf.

"I don't know what your plans are," Sky said, "but I'd like to stay in touch. If that is alright with you."

Coronet City

"Nice one!" Professor Gem exclaimed. "Using Status moves to set yourself up is a good strategy. Let's see how you handle this."

Professor Gem made a motion like he was squeezing his hands. Evidently, this was some sort of code. Dratini sprang into action, wrapping its body around Diana's Wulfleur. Wrap did not deal that much damage, but overtime, that squeezing could threaten Diana and Wulfleur's chances of winning.

"Your move."

Crest Island

Professor Rhoa was also starting to feel on edge.

"You kids stay here," she told Aceso and Alexander. "Let me talk to them first, try to figure out what is going on."

Professor Rhoa put one hand in her pocket. She had only one Pokémon. Hopefully, this situation wouldn't call for force. The kids were safely watching, she convinced herself. No need to let her over active imagination take over.

They weren't the only ones observing, however. Not too far from where Aceso and Alexander stood, a creature was half-concealed. It resembled a bronze shield with snakes engraved on the front. The shield, however, was only a mask for the rest of its body. A sword-like Pokémon with a leather "hilt" and a single red eye.

 

[Inkage]

Aceso turned toward the shield, attracted to a flash of bronze in the sunlight. her face becoming one of awe.

"I RECOGNIZE THAT ANYWHERE!" Aceso seemed generally pumped for once, pointing it out to Alexander. It was her personal dream Pokemon and easily, to her, the coolest anywhere. Seeing one was, to her, like seeing the legendary Pokemon. But cooler. "Oh my lord! It's Aegislash! Where is it's trainer!? Do you think I'd be able to get a picture?""

She clapped her hands like a child presented with candy, instantly forgetting any reservations about this trip she had before. All was worth it if she got to see the burnished bronze of that sheild!

 

[Draco Nightshade]

"Sure can." Wulf set up his Pokedex and found out how to exchange codes, enabling him to keep in contact with Sky before he continued. "And personally, I kinda want to start traveling as soon as possible. I'm not native to this region and I'm excited to get started."

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"Grr, Wulfleur Tackle Dratini into something hard! We don't need that Wrap to last!" Wulfleur gave an affirmative bark before running at a decent sized rock at full speed before turning at the last minute, slamming the Dratini into it.

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Alexander didn’t really pay attention to the Aegislash. He grinned at Aceso and allowed her to fangirl over the Pokémon, but he was concerned for the Professor. Sure, the Professor’s knowledge of Pokémon would help her with potentially getting through, but if there were a dozen of bad guys there, she might not stand a chance.

He seemed about ready to run over as fast as he could to assist the Professor.

 

[Inkage]

"Hehe...!" She said everything as loudly as possible, then leaned towards Alexander and whispered to him, saying, "No...Seriously. A Mithos Aegislash is not a Pokemon the average person can just tame. There is somebody really important here...Which means they probably found something important..."

Queen had been sent back to their Pokeball as a precaution, since Meowth couldn't resist gleaming objects. "Alexander, I don't get the feeling we're entirely safe here...There is a stifling quiet and it's unsettling."

Having said her view quietly, she continued to fawn over the Aegislash so as not to cause suspicion. "...And the sword! There's an old legend that tells of an Aegislash slaying several beast!"

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Chaplet Town

"Same here!" Sky cheered. "I mean I am native to this region, but I cannot wait to get started."

The gears in her head started turning.

"Actually, I know I great spot where we can catch some Pokémon. That is, assuming you want to come."

She felt a little embarrassed for saying "we" right off.

"But its a nice spot. You said you like Dark-types right? I know where you can some that might be on your Sizzly's level."

Coronet City

"Ouch."

Professor Gem winced. "That look like it hurt. You okay, 'Tini?"

The professor's Dratini flicked its tail as if to say, 'I'm fine.' Professor Gem twirled his finger in the air, signaling his Pokémon's next move. Dratini started spinning around and around winding up a Twister to attack the Wulfleur. This was going to be a close match. One more direct hit would knock Dratini out. On the other hand, if Diana used a Status move, they might stand a chance.

Crest Island

The Aegislash didn't move. Perhaps, it was stunned at being spotted or maybe it was Aceso's flattery. Either way, it decided to hold off on reporting the kids and their Pokémon Professor to his trainer.

Meanwhile, Professor Rhoa seemed to be having a heated argument with one of the guards.

"What do you mean: 'No visitors allowed'?"

"Raiders, Miss." The bearded man she was talking to straightened up. "We have orders to keep all unauthorized personnel off the premises. You understand? To protect the artifacts."

"I want to see your supervisor," the professor demanded. "Where is Reed Cypress?"

"Having trouble, Odie?"

One of the other guards, a woman, approached along with a Machoke. Professor Rhoa was losing her patience.

"I demand to see the archeologist in charge of this excavation," she repeated. "Reed Cypress. R-E-E-D C-Y-P-R-E-S-S."

"Nothing doing," the woman said. "See Mr. Cypress has himself a little accident."

"What?!"

"A sprained ankle," the male guard, presumably 'Odie', answered. The professor noticed he give the female guard a dirty look.

"It seemed he tripped on a rock while digging. We sent him to the hospital. He'll be back in a few weeks."

That didn't make sense. If Reed was injured, why hadn't he called?

"Thank you both for your time."

She gave the guards a curt nod before walking off.

"Let's go kids," she tried to hurry Alexander and Aceso along. She had no idea what was going on, but she knew one thing. These people were not archeologists."

 

[Inkage]

As they walked away, Aceso turned once more to the Aegislash. She used her Rotom Phone, seemingly to snap a photo of it...

While getting a wide angle of the entire scene. These guards and the woman...Pardon the language of her thoughts, but Aceso thought the entire story was a bunch of bull.

after they were out of earshot, Aceso said to the Professor, "So...Who want's to bet Mr. Crypress didn't sprain his ankle over a rock? Because none of that story made any sense to me. 'Oh, the leader is on leave, so lets do what all sane people do and bring in strangers even the Professor doesn't know.' Hah! I say we call the police to show these suspicious folks to be less stupid when they lie to people!"

 

[Draco Nightshade]

"Really? That sounds great!" Just as his excitement increased, Wulf remembered one little detail and snapped his fingers in frustration. "Crap, I need to get some more PokeBalls first. Can't exactly stuff multiple Pokemon in the same one."

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"Oh crap. Wulfleur dodge and Tackle Dratini one more time! We can still win this!" While Wulfleur did dodge, it wasn't a clean getaway as the Twister scraped it's back left leg. On the other hand, the Grass type was able to land another Tackle on the offending Dragon type.

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Crest Island

Professor Rhoa nodded and hummed as Aceso spoke. She too was trying to think of a plan.

"My thoughts exactly," she said. "However, there is something else bothering me. Those uniforms the guards wore. I think I've seen them somewhere before."

Meanwhile...

"You did WHAT?!"

Odie's ears rang terribly. He kept his head down, not out of shame, but to avoid his boss and her Pokémon's gazes.

"Don't blame me," he said. "It was Nike who tipped them off."

"Oh, real mature." To prove her point, the female guard stuck her tongue out him.

"Darn it! I thought you two were smarter than that."

Athena paced back and forth. Months of planning. Nay! Years. Were about to go up in smoke because these cretins couldn't keep their mouths shut.

"No matter," she said. "They won't find anything. By the time they send authorities up here, we'll be long gone."

"What do we do in the meantime?"

Odie knew he was pushing his luck, but he had to ask. They had taken the entire archeology team hostage. Even if Metis petrified the lot, the curse would wear off in just a few hours.

"YOU ensure that this cannot be traced to me," Athena stressed. "All anyone knows is that I funded this research project, and I intend to keep it that way."

The Boss Lady then turned to Nike. "As for YOU, I want no more screw ups. Gather what you can from the site. Dispose of anything useless."

She turned to leave, then paused.

"That includes the research team."

Coronet City

Dratini was hanging on by a thread. They needed one more good hit to win.

"Dratini! Thunderwave."

Professor Gem's verbal command had nothing to do with going easy on Diana and everything to do with running out of codes. Paralysis only had a 25% chance of working, but it reduced speed long enough to plan their next attack.

Chaplet Town

Sky flashed a mischeivous grin.

"In that case, you are in luck. Remember the Poké Mart I walked out of. As an employee, it happens that I get a 5% discount. Just show them my card."

She waved goodbye to the professor's and their son, who was playing with a green peacock chick. She started making her way to the Poké Mart.

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Alexander remained silent completely. He knew something was up from the start. He would have stepped in, and considered it heavily, but he didn’t have the Pokémon to battle. A only recently leveled up Wigwarm wouldn’t cut it.

I’ll make the strongest team ever. I’ll beat these stupid villains, no matter the cost!

“It’s time to start training, then.” Alexander said, in possibly the most serious tone he could say.

 

[Inkage]

"I...Agree. But...I doubt those people will stay around after the Professor grilled them like that. Lucky for us, I..." She looked around to make sure nothing followed them.
"I have evidence!" Her Rotom phone zoomed out of her pocket, displaying the picture in all it's glory;

Aegislash gave the camera a side glance in the front of the frame, but the most important part of the photo was the background; In it, the four adults arguing were clearly distinguished, except for the Professor, who had their back to the camera.
"I think I put up the fangirl front well...And also got a really cool Aegislash picture too. Two Pidove's, one stone, as they say!" She giggled.

"So I say it's wisest to take this to the authority and let them handle it."

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Professor Elani Rhoa examined the photo more closely. "Nice work, Aceso! I believe that this will come in handy."

She took out her own Rotom Phone from her coat pocket. She began to dial.

"I'm going to check with the hospital and see if Reed truly was admitted with a broken ankle. If he was, we can question him. If not, I think we have reasonable evidence to prove that those guards were lying."

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

“That’s obviously gotta be a lie. Those idiots made the worst possible one,” Alexander noted.

“Though, I wonder what happened to Mr. Reed.. Was he taken hostage… or something?” he wondered.

“And what about the other archaeologists..?”

 

[Draco Nightshade]

"Wait, you work there?" Wulf was mildly confused at first but he quickly snapped out of it. "Thanks for the offer, but I think I'll pay for myself. As the older one of us two, I should be able to do that much right?" Wulf half joked as he followed after Sky, having already said his goodbyes to the family before leaving. Deciding to change the topic, Wulf instead asked a different question. "So, what kind of Dark types are we talking about?"

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"Wulfleur! Roll to the side!" Still slightly hurt from being grazed by the earlier Twister, the canine wasn't quite fast enough to dodge the incoming Thunder Wave attack, resulting in paralysis. "Don't worry Wulfleur, you can do it! Try tackling Dratini one more time!" With its trainer's encouragement, the pup managed to spring forward, straight at the Dratini, the effect of paralysis kicking in midair as the two collided once more.

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Crest Island

Professor Rhoa started to wonder the same thing herself.

"It's best not to speculate," she said. "Besides---hello? Ah. Yes. Hold one."

She put her hand over her phone. "I just got through to the hospital. Hello? Yes. I'm calling about a patient. Reed Cypress."

There were several moments of silence.

"Yes. Yes, Reed Cypress. Really? Thank you."

She hung up.

"Just as we thought. They don't have a patient under that name. So unless Reed suddenly acquired amnesia, we need help stat."

Coronet City

Dratini's body straightened. Up. Up and...

Splat!

"Dratini is out! Great work you two."

Professor Gem recalled Dratini to his Poké Ball.

Chaplet Town

"Yeah, I work there," Sky assured Wulf. "Can't expect my folks to pay for my Pokémon training equipment."

When they switched topics to wild Pokémon, Sky pondered a bit before responding.

"Oh, there a few Dark-type Pokémon in the region. Poochyena and Nickit mostly. If we're lucky we might come across a Zorua or a Absol. The spot I'm taking us supposedly has a population of Slinkajou as well. I've only ever seen one myself. They look sort of like a lemur except they're dark brown and like sweet food. Supposedly, they can turn almost invisible, but I think they're just very sneaky."

 

[Draco Nightshade]

"Slinkajou." Wulf spoke the word to himself as he started thinking about how he might acquire one. "Hmm, I think I'm going to have to grab some berries along with the PokeBalls if I want to get their attention. We should also get our Pokemon checked out at the Pokemon Center before we leave for the wild."

~Professor Gem's Yard~

Diana ran over to her Wulfleur and picked it up in a hug. "You were great Wulfleur, good job. You deserve a good rest." Without another word, Diana returned her partner to the PokeBall before turning back to the professor and bowing like a martial artist would. "Thank you for the battle, Professor Gem. I may have won but it was close."

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Alexander seemed to wait with the Professor, waiting for a response, even though he felt like he 100% knew the answer. When the Professor confirmed that Reed injuring himself was false, he simply nodded.

“Expected. Hopefully, the police can come in very soon, since this needs to be resolved quickly,”

Alexander looked up at Aceso.

“I think it’s time to go ahead and send that picture,”

 

[Inkage]

"Of course. Let me just text...911 I guess? Never heard of someone doing this before," she said, entering the digits and shooting the photo over, with subtitle's explaining everything that happened.

"It's sent! Now the only thing we have to worry about is that Aegislash. I played up the fan-girl bit to make it seem like I was just taking a photo of it but I still wonder...Where is Mr. Cypress then?" Aceso's mind went to a few dark places. That Aegislash looked pretty sharp...And they were incredibly loyal...What if someone had asked it to-!

No. Aceso couldn't handle that thought. That seemed a bit far fetched, and yet...It stuck. Aceso seemed a bit worried and scared, but it didn't show in her face. It showed more in her twiddling thumbs and shifting position.

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Chaplet Town

"Good call," Sky agreed, both to the berries and to healing their Pokémon. She decided to swing by the Pokémon Center first. Given that this was her first Pokémon, Sky had never been in before. However, it was right next to the Poké Mart so it wasn't too hard to find.

"Do they charge to heal our Pokémon?" she asked Wulf. She felt foolish for asking the question, like this was something every trainer was supposed to know.

Coronet City

Professor Gem smiled and copied Diana's bow.

"My pleasure," he said. "I don't get enough sunlight anyway."

That last part was meant to be a joke, but thinking on it, Gem realized it was probably true.

"I'm curious, though, was there anything special you picked up on regarding my strategy?"

Crest Island

Professor Rhoa realized how nervous Aceso looked. Alexander didn't show it as much on the surface, but she suspected this situation was terrifying him to. After all, they were just children. Teenagers, perhaps, but children nonetheless.

"Why don't you two head off," she suggested. "I can wait for the police, and they have Aceso's picture so they'll have evidence to investigate. I can notify you both when I know more."

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

“Thanks, Professor. Hope everything gets cleared up eventually,” Alexander nodded to her.

Alexander was a little shaken up from this, but he did a good job of maintaining a serious yet calm figure.

“Hey, Aceso… do you want to travel together? I think we kind of need to, especially since it’s dangerous out there…” Alexander requested while looking at Aceso, noticing her twiddling thumbs.

 

[Inkage]

"Huh?" She was torn out of her stupor. "O-oh...Yeah...Hey, Alexander...Erm- What do you think happened to...? I mean..Aegislash is a sword...and he isn't...at the hospital...."
Aceso seemed truly fearful. Her composure was somewhat lost as she went down a dark, dark rabbit hole. "Y...Yes, maybe it would be wise to travel together...Alexander...."

Earl didn't look concerned at all, but he did notice Aceso's discomfort. Earl made some sort of noise- which might've been comforting to him- and rubbed themselves on her cheek.

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

“Aceso….” Alexander hated how much Aceso was trembling through her voice. He looked at her very much concerned.

“Listen, if you’re not comfortable going out, you don’t have to. I know this is a really tough situation, and if you need to sit it out, you should go ahead and do it,” Alexander looked into Aceso’s eyes, showing her that he didn’t want her to get hurt.

“And if the police don’t take them down, I’ll do it myself. You have my word. I’m not letting you get harmed, and I’ll make them pay for whatever they did… to him,”

Alexander notably paused a little, some very small cracks of fear showing.

What a way to start this journey.

 

[Draco Nightshade]

"Hmm, I'm not sure. Haven't had a reason to enter one til now." Wulf held his chin while he thought about it, his stride equal to Sky's as they walked. "It might be a good idea to have some money ready just in case."

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"Are you talking about your hand gestures by any chance?" Having practiced archery for who knows how many years, Diana learned from a young age that she could not only see great distances, but pick up on small details that most would miss at those distances. "I noticed that you didn't give any verbal commands to Dratini until you called out Thunder Wave."

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Chaplet Town

As it turns out, the Pokémon Center did not charge Wulf and Sky for their first healing. In fact, the nurse at the counter made a point of telling them that they never ever charge to ensure a Pokémon's well being.

"Well, that's good to know," Sky said, taking Puggle's Poké Ball back after he was healed. "Shall we head to the Mart now?"

Coronet City

Professor Gem gave Diana a thumbs up. "Exactly! By coming up with a code, you can give your team an edge over competitive opponents. It's kind of like calling plays in other sports. Giving your Pokémon's move a special signal or code name can be beneficial as you become better trained."

He grinned sheepishly. "I...did run out of hand motions when I got to Thunder Wave however."

 

[Inkage]

"Alexander...Of course I want to go out. I'm just...Scaring myself with immature thoughts," Aceso said, meeting his eye contact.

Then she realized that he had been getting her name right for a while, and that he was starting to care a bit, which sent her mood upwards a bit. At least someone her age interacted with her.

Aceso gave a shaky smile, and replied, "Of course I would like to travel with you. Perhaps I can shake a few of your memories loose while I'm at it." She drew herself up to her full height, and breathed deeply. Okay. No more thoughts of murder.

"And I will protect you as well. No harm will come to you when you've got me."

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Alexander nodded, noticing how Aceso seemed to recover herself a little, presumably leaving those “immature thoughts” away.

And Alexander intentionally said her name right recently because of how serious the situation was - he couldn’t go around and be making name jokes during such a serious situation. He wanted Aceso to feel better and not piss her off, either.

The scatterbrain persona was off. At least, for now. Despite him not being a scatterbrain at the moment, Alexander still didn’t seem to recover any memories.

“Glad to hear it,” Alexander smiled, “but again, if you ever feel like you’re uncomfortable, feel free to leave,”

“I’m going to head to the Poké Mart right now to get some Poke Balls, and after that we can start on heading out,” he added.

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Crest Island, the Docks

Meanwhile...

Athena's forces were preparing to move out. Her Aegislash alerted her of a police siren not too far off. They had to clear out before the police got here. A few of their members would be staying behind. Odie was still taking care of the hostages. The few that were useful would be taken along with them as they made their way to Erudite City. The rest would be petrified and buried inside of the labyrinth.

Odie and his Zoroark, Argos, finished their preparations. He thought it was crude, turning people into stone and them ceiling them inside of a tomb, but Athena must have a good reason. At least, that's what he told himself. Lately, they seemed to be taking more extreme measures to gather what they need and avoid getting caught. Odie wasn't sure he liked it.

"They'll forgive us," he told Argos, not that he expected the Dark-type trickster Pokémon to care.

The part of the labyrinth they hollowed out was quite spacious. Odie saw to this in the hope that their captives, once the Gorgeon's spell wore off, would be able to dig their way out. The police would come to the rescue, and by the time they took care of the archeologists, Team Gnosis's goal would be achieve. He desperately hoped this would be the outcome.

When the last of the stone faced archeologists stone-faced archeologists, Odie gave the signal.

A pulse of pitch black energy fired from the Zoroark's palms, causing the entrance to the Labyrinth to collapse. Odie sighed. The deed was done. He and Argos headed back to the boat.

 

[Draco Nightshade]

Receiving Sizzly's PokeBall after the checkup, Wulf was relieved to hear that the Pokemon Center didn't charge anything. In response to Sky's question, Wulf nodded. "Sounds like a plan." The duo then walked into the Poké Mart next door.

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"That's a good idea. In my case, I'd likely use whistles since hand gestures can be unreliable in the heat of battle." While the gears were indeed turning in Diana's head, she did have two more questions for the professor before she departed. "Actually, um, I'm not sure how to ask this without offending Dripurr, but if I were to look for one, where's the most likely place I can?"

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Alexander heard two sounds at once - loud police sirens and what seemed to be a loud crashing sound, presumably from the dig they just left.

“What in the—“

“Did the police get them? What’s going on?!” Alexander was completely shocked as he tried to get a view of the scene. He was considering running full force towards the dog, but he didn’t want Aceso to be left behind.

 

[Inkage]

Meanwhile Aceso had already bolted in the opposite direction of the dig. She sure as heck wasn't about to get involved in a police chase!

Earl barely was able to keep hold on her shoulders as Aceso left Alexander in the dust. Good thing she wore tennis shoes today, or else she wouldn't have been able to escape.

Aceso looked behind her at the slowly shrinking form of Alexander, her face saying 'what are you standing there for!? Follow!'

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Alexander actually considering joining the ‘chase’, and actually took a step forward, seeming prepared to go after the people who were fleeing.

However, he decided to follow Aceso after remembering the promise he made to her. He sprinted towards her, remembering that he had to protect her.

“Where… in… the… world are we going?” Alexander asked Aceso, panting as he reached her location.

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

Chaplet Town

Sky held the door open for Wulf as they entered the Poké Mart. Giving a quick wave to Guy, she started perusing the merchandise.

"Let's see," she hummed to herself. "I think 10 Poké Balls ought to do for a start. Of course, I get one Premier Ball on the house."

She counted her pocket change.

"I only have enough for one Potion though. I think I'll go with the regular. Status healing items are more important anyway."

She grabbed a basket and filled it with her desired items. 10 Poké Balls, a Potion, a Burn Heal, a Paralyze Heal, and an Awakening. She brought her purchase to the desk.

"Breaking the bank today, Sky?" Guy winked. Another one of his jokes.

"I just want to start off right," she told him. She handed Guy the money and her employee discount card to receive 5% off.

Coronet City

Professor Gem rubbed his chin. "That's a difficult question to answer," he told Diana. "Dripurr in the wild are quite rare. Your best chance will be areas near water and with plenty of big game. Crest Island comes to mind. Though, possibly Delphin Port might have a Dripurr population. I haven't been there in a long time."

Not since Elani and I teamed up to do a thesis on Delphin, he thought. That was quite a long time ago, or at least, it felt so.

"If you like cats, Cirkit and Jagwire are more common. They are also part Water-type. You'll find them in big forests or along coastlines."

Crest Island

Professor Rhoa was at the site when the police arrived. She noticed when the guards started dispersing and went to investigate. Unfortunately, all she had to show for her efforts was a scrapped knee.

"Tell me what happened," the police examiner said while shinning a flashlight in her eyes.

Professor Rhoa shove the torch out of her face. "I fell down," she stressed. "I didn't land on my face." With a sigh, she recounted the whole story for the officer.

"So you say you saw a man and a Zoroark leaving the site. When you followed, the Zoroark turned and charged at you. While you were running, you feel down and that is how you scrapped your knee."

Professor Rhoa nodded. "That's about the size of it. Yes."

"Why did you go down there at all?" The policeman asked. "You knew we were on the way. We instructed you to wait."

"I didn't want them to get away," Professor Rhoa answered. She immediately felt sheepish for saying so. "A friend of mine works at the dig site. I wanted to make sure he was okay."

"Hmm..." The policeman made a few notes in his sketch pad. "We're combing the area now. If anyone is there, we'll find them."

 

[Draco Nightshade]

Wulf looked through the merchandise, his unusual eyes giving the illusion of some predatory animal looking for prey. Just like Sky, Wulf looked through his own funds to see what he could afford before buying anything. "Hmm, I think I'll go with five PokeBalls, two potions, an antidote, awakening, burn heal, and paralyze heal." Collecting the items in a basket of his own, Wulf walked over to the desk to pay for them. "Excuse me, I'd like to buy these."

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"That's too bad." Diana sighed at the news before perking right back up. "However, Cirkit does sound like a good alternative. Are there any on this island?"

 

[Charlotte Pryce]

"Certainly!" Poké Mart Guy rang up Wulf's items.

"Best of luck to you!"

Guy bid both customers a smile and a wave.

"Nice selection," Sky told Wulf. "You ready to see that secret spot I told you about? Promise you won't tell anyone."

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"On Crest Island, you mean?" Professor Gem guessed. "Yes, I imagine so. You'll probably find Cirkit just outside of the city however, so I wouldn't go springing for a ticket unless you want to see other stuff at Crest Island."

 

[Draco Nightshade]

Wulf smiled. "You bet!" If he had a tail, it would be wagging like crazy right about now. As the two of walked to the spot decided to try asking Sky about her circumstances. "So, why weren't you able to become a trainer until now? If you don't mind my asking that is."

~Professor Gem's Yard~

"I actually meant around here." Diana spread out her arms as she spoke to add some emphasis. "While I do want to visit the other islands before reaching the mainland, I should probably start closer to home, right?"

 

[Inkage]

Aceso pants, collecting herself as Earl adjust their position on her neck.

"Well, I didn't want to get caught in a police questioning room, answering questions all night. Plus the police scare me a little bit-" Aceso replied.

"So if we are traveling together, I suppose we must start traveling then," Aceso declared. "I had planned to start today or tomorrow, so whatever works for you, Alexander."

"If we're going to start, we might as well challenge the gym, right? I assume that's how all people start here on Crest Island, yes?"

Earl cooed softly, looking Alexander in the eye.

 

[~Aura~Slashz~]

Alexander understood and nodded slightly. Yeah, police questioning wouldn’t be fun.

“That was my plan too! Yeah, let’s start heading to the gym… but not right now! I wanna catch some Pokémon!” Alexander exclaimed.

He had completely forgotten that he wanted to head to the Poke Mart earlier, but he seemed eager to get going, at least.

Alexander smiled at Earl cooing, before realizing something.

“Oh yeah, I should take my buddy out!”

Wigwarm was sent out, and as he was fully healed, his energy was normal.

“Wig! Warm!” it happily exclaimed.