Wolfsong

Before story notes: Sorry if its rushed and/or bleh. I’ve just felt bleh for a while and then I had a case of writer’s block. Also I traded Ayla with Hannah (*Murkrow) to get Ebony back. I had a little trouble with the description for imprison’. Supposedly the banette had a high speed stat and knew agility (though it didn’t get a chance to use its agility). Anyways this is part of the story that i worked with gabi on.


I sighed. Here it was, the one day of the year that I couldn’t stand anymore. It was Valentines Day. It was a reminder to me of the ones that I had loved and lost. I had found happiness with someone and then lost them not once, but twice. The first, Lucky, was given away by her trainer and the second, Midnight, disappeared along with her trainer and the rest of her team. Chances were that I probably wouldn’t find anyone else. Besides, who would want someone with a scar down the side of their face? I was ready to go, probably more to get my mind off of things. However, we had been given twelve hours to prepare and that was what Amy and the others were doing.


I smiled. Caledor had liked the Detect TM that I had gotten him, and he had even gotten me a present. I blushes slightly when he kissed me, but I returned it with a nuzzle. I couldn’t help but be happy.


Tiny and Colby’s surprised shouts caused me to look over at them. They were just as energetic now as they were before they had evolved. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Sinopa running over to Blazer and Yana. It was relatively easy to figure out what had happened. They had probably stayed far too long in her personal space and she had panicked running for safety. I glanced over at Dad and it was obvious that he wanted to be alone. I couldn’t blame him. This time of year bothered him more than any other. Even Dodger was tense. He didn’t think that he would be much help going with us, so he decided to stay behind. In addition to all of this going on Hannah stopped by. It seems that Ebony was regretting her decision of wanting a new trainer and she wanted to come back. To everyone’s surprise Ayla volunteered to give up her spot and go with Hannah so that Ebony could come back.

My mind snapped back to the present when I sensed someone approaching. Sure enough, a few seconds later, Darin approached and he looked nervous. “You okay?” I asked him. “I… I was wondering if you could help me with my iron tail attack? I just can’t seem to get it to work like it is supposed to.” I smiled. “I’d be happy to help.” Darin smiled Sheepishly. “Thanks.” I worked with Darin until it was time for us to go. He had made a surprising amount of progress, but he still hadn’t perfected the attack. However, I was sure that if he continued practicing like he had, it wouldn’t be long before he had mastered the attack.


When it came time for us to go, I helped Amy round of my teammates that were coming. I don’t know why, but Dodger and Talut had decided to stay behind. It didn’t take long to help Amy round up the team. As soon as I had finished, I looked around for Caledor.

I quickly spotted him talking with another espeon. I quickly walked over and joined them. I didn’t recognize the espeon that Caledor was talking to, so as soon as there was a lull in the conversation I asked him. “Caledor, can you please tell me who you are talking too?” I asked. “Ah, he’s Glyph. He works with Golden Growlithe of the Dragon’s Guild. We met at the Blizzard Room before the Unicorn Games.” Caledor explained, before he introduced us. “Glyph, this is Kiara. She’s… she’s great.” I blushed at that, but luckily it wasn’t very noticeable with the color of my fur. Glyph mentioned that he was pleased to meet me before he was distracted by something. I wasn’t sure by what though and it wasn’t until he spoke again that I got the faint idea of what it might have been. “Oh, we have to go now. Stand still for a moment, we’re taking you there.” No sooner had he spoken than we were there.

As soon as we had arrived, Colby talked Tiny into chasing Sugar and her tail. I sighed and tried to stop them. They just ignored me and by that time they were making so much noise that Amy had to scold all three of them. “But…” Sugar started to protest, but then stopped. She was staring at Colby who was sticking his tongue out at her. I quick attacked over o him and as soon as he realized that I was there, he gulped. “Go over and apologize to Sugar for sticking your tongue out at her.” “But…” “You heard me. No excuses.” Colby bowed his head in acceptance. A quick search revealed that Tiny was exploring the room that we were in. I glanced over at Sugar and Colby. She nodded her head, and then Colby hurried off to join Tiny. Sugar saw me looking in her direction and she mouthed the word “Thanks.”

By that time, I realized that Amy had been talking with Gabi and the others. I quickly hurried over to where Caledor was sitting. By the time I had arrived, I realized that I had missed most of what had been said. “Shall we go together?” Caledor asked, looking at me. “Sure,” I replied, smiling as I nodded my head.

“So let me get this straight, any direction we pick will be the same?” Gabi asked Ventura. “AS for as I can tell, yes.” She confirmed. At which point Hero suggested going forward and took off without us. He didn’t even look back. “I guess we follow right?” Amy asked Gabi. “I guess so.” was her reply. I stopped listening at that point, and was looking around to see if the others were ready to go when we were. I saw everyone but Tiny. When I saw Colby looking at me, I mouthed ‘Where is Tiny?” Colby just grinned pulling Tiny by the tail out of a narrow passageway. It wasn’t a moment too soon as our teams started moving forward. We kept going straight until we reached a corridor that had doors along both sides. “Now what?” I asked. However, my answer was drowned out by Amy’s question. “Any idea where he went?” “I have no clue.” I admitted. Ventura on the other hand, had the answer. “That’s easy. Into the first open door.” Which is exactly what we ended up doing as well.

The room was being trashed by a seviper, hitmonlee, banette, and an ampharos. My eyes widened as a piece of equipment came hurtling my way. I quickly ducked and it sailed harmlessly over my head. That was close, I thought. Then I heard Gabi and Caledor trying to talk Hero out of going off by himself, but he didn’t listen. Caledor tried to follow after him. Unfortunately, no sooner than he had taken a step forwards than the banette attacked him with a faint attack and then he had the audacity to laugh about it. I didn’t even think about what I was doing, I just reacted.

Kiara L.42 F Flareon Vs. L.45 M Banette

I used my agility to reach the Banette before he could even react and I bit him as hard as I could on his left arm. He quickly reacted by slamming his right arm into the side of my head as hard as he could. It sent my earring flying off my ear and I could hear the clink of metal hitting the floor. His attack had the added effect of causing me to release my hold on his arm. I quickly jumped backwards to avoid getting hit by a glob of toxic goop. I took a deep breath before retaliating with a toxic of my own. The banette smirked, and glowed silver as the toxic hit him before sliding harmlessly to the floor. I glared at the smirking banette. He was up to something, I just didn’t know what. Suddenly, I felt a tickling sensation in my mind. I shook my head and just as suddenly as it had appeared, the feeling was gone. I decided to try and improve my odds for the battle. However, I got quite a shock when I tried to use double team. It was as if I didn’t know how to use the attack. My heart began racing as the banette smirked. “Having troubles? You’re no match for me and I’m not even using my speed.” That was when I realized that he must have caused the tickling sensation in my head and had done something to me. I forced myself to calm down as I inhaled deeply before exhaling a small tornado of flames that surrounded the banette. The Banette’s eyes narrowed as an orb of ethereal energy began forming in the air in front of him outside of the fire spin. I watched the Banette’s moves very carefully, not even attempting to dodge the shadow ball. I winced as it hit, but immediately began concentrating on repeating the exact maneuvers that the banette had performed mere minutes ago. I smiled as the mimicked shadow ball hit catching the banette by surprise. Unfortunately for him, he couldn’t have hoped to dodge it since he was trapped in the fire spin. The banette had a look of pure fury on his face as he began crackling with electricity. I concentrated on using another shadow ball while I had the opportunity given that the banette was trapped in the fire spin which was fading fast. A split second later I was hit by the thunderbolt and I did my best not to cry out. Luckily, I wasn’t paralyzed, but the attack royally messed up my fur. It wasn’t just my mane either, it was all of it and it was sticking out in every possible direction that it could go. I shook my head trying to get my bearing and by the time I looked up again, there were three banettes and he had been released from the fire spin. My eyes narrowed as I took a deep breath before exhaling a large amount of poisonous smog. As the cloud touched the clones they disappeared and the remaining traces of the smog hit the banette. I was hit by another bolt of electricity and this time I had to bite my lip to keep from crying out. I could tell that the banette was weak and that one more attack ought to do it. The first one that sprang to mind was the flame wheel TM that Caledor had given me. I spat out two tiny fireballs that began circling me faster and faster until it appeared to be a wheel of fire. The wheel then rolled towards the banette and as soon as the flame wheel connected, the banette sank into the realm of unconsciousness. I sighed, glad that it was over.

I won.
I grew to L.44!

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The_Missing_Link

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AntiAsh Superstar

Becca: Sure thing. Tarin will be battling a Numel. *takes the 7 stamps*

*was about to say 'Amy I'll rate your battle soon but realises IT'S THE ONLY BATTLE HE'S STILL GOT TO ADD TO THE ARCHIVES so rates it as he finishes his main project for the night* Amy, have eight stamps for your battle. I liked your description of Imprison actually. My only minor critique would be that of the layout of your battle segment, having it all in a big block like that does make it look kinda messy but hey, that's just a minor niggle coz the substance of your story was definitely up to standard.

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Cheesey

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Wolfsong

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TheBlueAvenger

Okay, here is my RBG for Lady Bow and Cambiamente. I combined the two into one, I hope that's okay. Anyway, a few notes: I apologize to Ade for any butchering I have done of his character, and I also thank him for allowing the use of said character. The battle scene will seem really weird unless you've played Mario & Luigi and/or Paper Mario 2. The weird talking in the battle (you'll understand when you get there) could be interpreted as the Pokemon saying things in different tones of voice.

Also, this was a really fun one to write because of the battle scene.

Anyway, without further ado, I give you The Obligatory Video Game Parody.

***

Jeff pulled a laptop from his backpack and set it up on top of one of his boxes of unpacked things. Maza sat down beside him. “Where’d you get the computer?” he asked.

“I just bought it yesterday,” Jeff replied. “Hopefully, it’ll help me with locating files faster than having to go ask Ade or Gabi or someone when I need access to something.”

The computer beeped quietly.

“Now that’s a classy start-up noise!” Jeff smiled. Maza sighed and went to take a nap on the barrack bed.

“Jeff, I am heading out for the afternoon,” Lady Bow said as she floated from another section of the barracks.

“Mmhmm…” Jeff mumbled while staring at the computer screen. “Have a good time. Try to be back for dinner. I’m going to go get some food from the Guild’s kitchen.”

Lady Bow smiled slightly and phased through the barracks’ wall. Outside, it was a beautiful day: birds were chirping in the trees, it was a pleasant temperature, and there were only a few small clouds in the sky. She floated over to a particularly large tree and floated under it.

She did not have to wait for very long. Another Gastly, Ade’s Gastly Bolovayr, floated up to her. “Good afternoon,” greeted Lady Bow.

Bolovayr tried to do the best of a bow as he could. “It is always a pleasure to see you, Lady Bow.”

“So what shall we be doing with our afternoon?” Lady Bow asked, floating over to Bolovayr.

“Ah, well, I know this really good theater down in Caledor that’s showing a series of classic horror films. Y’know, some of the older ones, like Frankenstein.”

“That sounds lovely.” Lady Bow smiled, and Bolovayr grinned back. “Shall we go then?” she asked.

“Sure!” Bolovayr replied. They both set off, floating towards the city.

***

Jeff stared intently at the computer screen. He grabbed a notebook and hastily scribbled a few things down in it. “That’s 479… Sedna… Road.” He tore the paper from the book. “Hey, 99, Maza, I need you guys!” The two Pokemon appeared posthaste. “We’re going downtown. There’s a place I need to check out.” The two nodded and, together with Jeff, they left the barracks and headed for the downtown part of Caledor.

***

“So this is the place?” Lady Bow asked. They were floating in a dark alleyway, with only some flies and a couple of trash cans to keep them company. A small grimy door stood at the end of the alley.

“In a manner of speaking,” Bolovayr replied. “This is the back entrance. Since this theater won’t let Pokemon in unless they’re with trainers – I know, I’ve been here with Ade before – we need to sneak in.”

“Couldn’t we just go through the walls?” Lady Bow asked. “Why do we have to enter from the alley?”

“If we entered from anywhere else, we’d still have to get past that guy who checks for tickets. This way, we can go directly into the theater,” Bolovayr finished. “Trust me, it’ll work out. We just have to sit near a trainer in case an usher tries to kick us out.” Lady Bow thought for a second, then nodded.

“Okay. It sounds good to me.” Bolovayr grinned and phased through the wall, Lady Bow following close behind.

***

“Okay, I think this is it,” Jeff said. “479 Sedna Road.” He looked up at the large building sitting in front of him. A garish sign protruded from the wall, proclaiming what this building was for all to know. “…The Theater Delle Lamierine? Why would the Blades have a base in a theater?” Maza shrugged. “Oh well. In we go.” Jeff opened the door and went in after Maza and 99.

***

“Look, there are some seats up there that are empty,” Bolovayr whispered. He floated over to one and set himself in it. Lady Bow sat in the seat next to him. On her other side, a small boy was eagerly sipping on a soda. A Ditto was in his lap.

The Ditto turned toward Bolovayr and whispered, “Look, the movie’s already started. Try to keep it down, okay?” Bolovayr muttered a hasty apology before the Ditto turned back toward the ghosts. “…Lady Bow, is that you?”

Lady Bow turned toward the Ditto. “Yes. Why do you… oh… Cambiamente? What are you doing here?”

“I come here all the time. This kid almost always is here, so I just stick with him. But man, I can’t believe you showed up here! Though, I’d recognize you anywhere. White Gastlies stick out like you wouldn’t believe.”

Lady Bow turned to Bolovayr. “I don’t know if you have met him, but this is Cambiamente, a teammate of mine.” Just as Bolovayr was about to speak, however, a loud rip resonated through the theater. The movie screen went blank as the canvas tore in two. Behind the canvas, there was a stage – like you might see at a theater that showed plays. Lady Bow guessed that this theater must have special presentations once in a while. From behind the torn canvas, a two black shapes leaped out. Spotlights shone on them, revealing them to be a Houndour and a Sableye.

The Sableye pointed toward Lady Bow. “You! Ghost! You will battle us! And your little friend the Ditto too!”

“And what if I choose to decline?” asked Lady Bow.

“Then a big laugh will be had by us as we go into the audience and attack people one by one!”

Bolovayr jumped in front of Lady Bow. “No! I’ll battle you instead!”

The Sableye chuckled. “Nope! She and that Ditto are the interest we have!”

Lady Bow gently pushed Bolovayr aside. “It is fine… I accept.” She and Ditto jumped onto the stage.

Battle time! Lady Bow and Cambiamente versus Houndour (level 7) and Sableye (level 6)!

Lady Bow – “This shall determine that.”
Cambiamente – “Pokemon… change!”
~
Houndour – “Fink rats!”
Sableye – “Have you readiness for this?!”

The Houndour and the Sableye stared across the stage at Lady Bow and Cam, their eyes unwavering. Lady Bow and Cam glared back with a similar degree of ocular immobility. This staring contest continued on for several moments, much to the dismay of the audience, until the Houndour broke the tension.

“Fink rats!” he cried, and then he reared his head back and gathered a fiery red orb of energy at his mouth. He launched the blaze, sliding back a little, and the fire flew across the stage, directly toward Lady Bow. She hovered to the side, but the Ember clipped her and she spun around a few times, moaning quietly.

Meanwhile, Cam began to focus very intently on the Sableye. Sableye, eh? he thought. That’s a type of Dark and Ghost, with the ability of Keen Eye. With that combination of types, he poses the biggest threat to both Lady Bow and myself… let’s even the odds a bit. Cam grinned and suddenly veiled himself in a cloud of smoke. His silhouette began to change shape – his gelatinous form began to lengthen and resolve itself into four limbs, a torso, and a head. When the smoke cleared, there stood a carbon copy of the Sableye. Now let’s see what this sucker knows… Cam thought to himself for a moment before grinning slyly. He pulled back his arms as they began to be enveloped by a dark energy. Before either of the foes could react, Cam shot forth the ghostly energy. It smacked the Sableye in the chest, and it fell back.

Bolovayr floated onto the stage beside Lady Bow. “Hey, Lady Bow…” he began, dodging a poorly aimed Shadow Ball attack, “want some help to defeat these thugs?” Lady Bow didn’t say anything; instead, she only nodded as another Ember attack shot past her. Bolovayr grinned and faded from view. He reappeared at the other side of the stage, behind the Houndour.

“When the stuff this nut says is red…” Bolovayr reappeared at Lady Bow’s side again, “…he’s attacking you, Lady!”

The Houndour took an obvious dislike to this and hissed. “Gah… such mumbling… stop it…” He stepped back and spoke again. “Fink rats!” Houndour launched a massive gout of fire across the stage, directly at Lady Bow, just as Bolovayr had said. She floated above the flames and smiled to Bolovayr.

Bolovayr smiled back and hovered over to Cambiamente. “The same goes for you!” He disappeared and reappeared behind the Sableye. “When this guy starts talking green…” He reappeared beside Cam. “He’s going for you!”

“No… stop talking!” the Sableye growled. “Have you readiness for THIS?!” A series of green orbs appeared around his hands and he grabbed as many of them as he could hold. Sableye began to lob them at Cambiamente. Cam, in turn, used the borrowed powers of the ghost and sunk into the shadows. The Hidden Power attack completely missed and Cam reappeared.

Bolovayr grinned. “Everyone has a hint in his or her attacks,” he said, “even if it isn’t always this obvious! Good luck, milady, I’ll be rooting for you!” He floated off of the stage and into an unoccupied seat in the audience. Lady Bow watched him float into a seat, then returned her attention to the battle at hand. Something was odd. The Houndour was missing…

“Now is when I ram you!” Lady Bow turned around to find Houndour in the act of leaping out of the shadows. He swiped at her with his paw awash in dark energy, and Lady Bow reeled. She fell back for a moment, and then launched a massive orb of purple ooze at Houndour. It landed square in his face, and he stumbled backwards, pawing wildly at his eyes.

Suddenly, the audience erupted into applause. Lady Bow turned to look, and noticed that the theater had filled up considerably since the battle started. The new audience members seemed to enjoy watching the battle, and were expressing it by cheering. Lady Bow let the applause and cheers wash over her; as she did so, she began to feel recharged. Glancing over the audience, she caught Bolovayr’s eye and smiled.

Cam ignored the audience and veiled himself in a cloud of smoke again. The form of the Sableye disappeared, replaced again by the blobby form of a Ditto. Almost as fast as that transformation, Cam’s silhouette lengthened into that of a canine. When the smoke cleared, Cam stood there as a Houndour. Excellent… Houndour, he thought. Dark and Fire… Flash Fire… I can use this to my advantage.

Houndour jumped forward, scraping the last of the sludge from its eyes. He growled at Lady Bow, and she instinctively floated a few feet back. Houndour smirked. “Your life that I spit on now is but a caricature of a cartoon drawn by a kid who is STUPID!” He opened his mouth and let loose a massive stream of fire. Lady Bow shut her eyes as the flames moved too quickly toward her to dodge…

When she failed to be incinerated in a raging inferno, Lady Bow opened her eyes. Cambiamente was standing in front of her, taking the brunt of the Flamethrower. She gasped, but was quickly reassured when she noticed that Cambiamente did not seem to be taking any damage from the attack. Instead, he was glowing a bright orange. He turned to her.

“Lady Bow, this guy’s almost gone… I’m sure you can finish him. I have someone else to attend to…” Cambiamente dashed across the stage towards the Sableye, who had been cowering behind the stage curtain. Lady Bow returned her attention to Houndour, who was panting slightly after the last big attack. He lifted his head and noticed the glare Lady Bow was giving him, and he stepped back a few feet, panic beginning to swell in his eyes. Lady Bow only grinned a bit wider and spat up another glob of poison. It smacked Houndour right over the eyes, and it was too much for him to take.

“Nn – gack!” he grunted before toppling over, unconscious. Lady Bow turned toward Cambiamente, who was just finishing up his match as well. He jumped over the Sableye and sunk his fangs into the Sableye’s neck; Sableye decided to just play it safe and go unconscious right then. He fell over, and Cam released his hold on him. He walked over to Lady Bow and Transformed back into a Ditto. They moved toward the front of the stage as the curtain fell behind them. The audience cheered and applauded wildly.

Battle Over! Lady Bow and Cambiamente both grow one level! Lady Bow is now level 7! Cambiamente is now level 8!

Bolovayr hovered onto the stage and grinned. “That was excellent, Lady Bow!” Lady Bow smiled back and moved closer to him.

“Uh, hate to break this up,” said Cambiamente, “but do you hear something from behind the curtains?” Lady Bow and Bolovayr looked at each other and phased through the curtains. Cam shrugged (or as much as a Ditto can shrug), Transformed into a Gastly, and phased through the curtains as well.

What greeted them was shocking, to say the least. The two Pokemon they had knocked out were still lying on the ground, but there was a haze covering them. Cam reverted back to a Ditto and began mumbling to himself. “Let’s see… haze… what counters what you can’t see?…” His eyes brightened and he Transformed into the Sableye. His eyes glowed, and a beam of red light shot from them. The beam penetrated the mist, which started to rapidly contract and form one body. Cam did the same for the other haze. The clouds contracted into two round orbs, and within moments, where the mist previously was floated two Gastlies. One of them cackled.

“Mwee hee hee!” it laughed in a very high-pitched tone. “So you managed to beat us… nobody’s ever beaten our possession strategy before. It was perfect… possess an innocent, then fight someone… when they’re tired out, leave the host and finish them off… But I can gauge your strength. You’re barely even tired. It would be foolish to challenge you again… so, come, Marilyn!”

The second Gastly didn’t say anything, but instead just grunted. “Guh-huh!” The two Gastlies sunk into the floor.

Immediately after, the curtains swept aside, revealing a very out-of-breath Jeff. Maza and 99 (now a sleek, shiny Porygon2) stood on either side of him. He panted for a few moments, and then turned toward Lady Bow and Bolovayr. “Hi guys… long time, no see, Bolovayr. Look, I have reason to believe that the Blades have set up a base under this theater. I came here to check on that, and I see you and Cam battling on stage. What’s that all about?”

Lady Bow opened her mouth, but Bolovayr beat her to it. “A couple of possessed Pokemon attacked her. Cam jumped into the battle as well, and they defended themselves admirably.”

Jeff frowned. “Possessed Pokemon? Didn’t know that could happen.”

“It’s something most ghosts can do, provided they are gaseous in form,” replied Cambiamente after transforming back into a Ditto. Everyone turned to look at him. “What? If I’m going to Transform into different Pokemon, I need to know what they can do…”

Jeff frowned even more. “If these Pokemon were possessed…” He knelt down beside them. He put his hand around the Houndour’s neck and grabbed something shiny that had been hanging on a chain. “Dog tags. Obvious pun aside, these say that these Pokemon came from the mercenary trainer’s facility…”

“Mercenary trainer’s facility?” Lady Bow asked.

“Yeah. It’s a place where you can go and, for a price, battle and level up. I’d been looking for it for a while, but Ventura – you know Ventura, Gabi’s Venomoth – showed me the way. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind showing you at some point if I can’t,” Jeff replied. A look of indecision crossed his face. “I hate to leave any Pokemon hurt like this… but I want to check this place out, too…” He paced for a few moments. “Okay,” he said, “Here’s how I think it can work. I’ll take these guys back to the trainer’s facility. Lady Bow, Cam, you guys see if you can find a way into this base. I’ll catch back up.” Jeff picked up the Sableye, while 99 and Maza propped up the Houndour. As they left, Jeff said, “Nice seeing you again, Bolovayr.”

Lady Bow hovered closer to Bolovayr. “I am sorry. I did enjoy this afternoon, and I do hope that we can have another date again soon. But I need to leave.”

“What are you talking about?” asked Bolovayr. A look of confusion crept across Lady Bow’s face. “I’m coming with you.”

“You are certain?” Lady Bow asked.

“Quite so,” replied Bolovayr.

“Excuse me,” interrupted Cambiamente. “But maybe we ought to get going soon?” Lady Bow and Bolovayr nodded and sank through the floor. Cam Transformed back into a Gastly and phased through the floor as well.

They ended up coming through the ceiling of what looked like your average office building. A long hallway stretched past their range of vision, and several doors led away from the hall. A water cooler sat near them, quietly bubbling.

“Well,” said Cam, “It looks like we have our work cut out for us, right?”

“Which door d’you think we should try first?” asked Bolovayr.

“I’m at a loss for ideas. I guess we should just try each one of them,” Lady Bow replied. She floated over to the door next to her, and phased through it. A moment later, she phased back. “Nobody is in this one,” she reported.

“Wait, hold on a second,” Cam said. He squinted off into the distance. “If this is where they’re holding Merc, it makes sense that he’d be towards the lower levels, right?”

“Yeah,” said Bolovayr. “Maybe we ought to try searching this place from the bottom up.”

“Well, there’s the stairway over there,” Cam said, gesturing down the hallway. They floated toward it, but stopped when they heard a strange noise.

W-PSSSH!

Lady Bow paled (which was difficult, considering that she was already white to begin with). “That is the sound of a whip cracking!” she gasped. “I do not know who is being whipped, but we need to help them!” She flew down the stairs as fast as she could.

“Lady Bow, wait…” called Bolovayr. It was too late – she was already too far down the stairs to hear him. “I can just see this happening in a horror flick. She goes ahead, she’s gonna be the first one gone.” He sighed. “I’m coming, Lady!” With that, he hurried down the stairwell too.

Cambiamente blinked. He wasn’t entirely certain what had just happened, but he followed the ghosts nonetheless and charged down the well. He shifted into a Ninjask as fast as he could, and before long, he had caught up to Lady Bow and Bolovayr. Cam changed forms again back into a Gastly. The whipping noises were getting progressively louder – they were loudest when the ghosts had reached, as Cam predicted, the lowest level. They phased through the door at the bottom of the steps and were greeted by a long corridor that branched out left and right. The noises, though, sounded as if they were coming from straight ahead.

“Okay, here’s the way I see it,” Bolovayr began. “Cam stands the best chance of defending himself because of the way he can throw the opponent off guard, so he’ll be going to the left. Lady Bow, you and I should head to the right. Whichever one of us finds the source of the noise first will come and find the others. Sound good?” Lady Bow and Cam both nodded. They set off in their respective directions.

Cam hovered past several offices while thinking to himself. What did Bolovayr mean when he said all that stuff about horror movies? Surely he doesn’t connect them to real life? I mean, what’s next, I’m suddenly going to hear a blood-curdling scream echoing down the corridor?

A blood-curdling scream echoed down the corridor.

Okay, God, you’ve made your point, thought Cam as he furiously rushed toward the source of the scream. He ended up in front of a set of closed double doors. Bolovayr and Lady Bow met him from the other direction.

“Looks like this hallway makes a loop,” Bolovayr muttered. “I guess we didn’t really need all that ‘splitting into teams’ business…”

“Do not worry about it,” Lady Bow replied. The three of them phased through the door. The interior of the next room was more than a little surprising – it was decorated as if it were a medieval-style torture chamber. They looked around and saw a very large man dressed in red with his back to them standing over a rack.

“No way…” murmured Cam. “Look… on that rack…” They silently moved a little closer. Resting atop the rack was a huddled white-and-red mass… a Mr. Mime!

“Hey! You!” Cambiamente shouted before anyone could stop him. The man turned to face them, and they all recoiled. He did not look like he had put on the red clothes so much as had been stuffed into them – it was almost as if the sole purpose of the clothes was to accentuate how mind-numbingly large this man was. His collar came up to his nose, and his eyes were entirely white, with no pupils. A lamp overhead reflected off of his bald head. In short, he was big and he was nasty. The man picked up his whip, and in doing so flexed his arms in a way that made the muscles look vaguely reminiscent of two Volkswagens maneuvering around each other.

“Aw, look at that, a pathetic attempt at a rescue party!” the man growled.

“C’mon, let Mercandos go!” Cambiamente growled back.

“This little runt refuses to cough up what she knows!” the man replied. “Until she does, no dice!”

…she? Cam thought. “Oh, whatever!” He yelled. “Just let him leave!”

“Oh?” the man snickered. “What are you going to do about it?”

Cam said nothing. Instead, he reverted back to a Ditto. Immediately, he started changing forms again. He grew about 5 feet taller, and six limbs extended from his body. When he was done, he was the spitting image of a Machamp.

“Oh! I get it! You want to fight!” The man laughed. He set down his whip and walked over to Cam. They both struck fighting poses and charged at each other.

Battle time! Cambiamente versus… a really big man (level ???)?
Cambiamente – “Pokemon… change!”
~
Really Big Man – “GrAaah!”

They collided with each other, and Cambiamente grabbed his fists. He pulled him up into the air and started spinning the man like a baker would spin pizza dough. Unfortunately, the man decided that he had had enough of that and grabbed Cam’s arms. He jumped back down to the ground, flipping Cam onto the ground. The man then proceeded to stand Cam back up and ram him into a wall. He flopped down, dazed – Cam never stood a chance.

Battle Over! The really big man wins! The really big man gains a level and is now level ???

The man stepped away from Cam and glared at Lady Bow and Bolovayr. “Do either of you want to try?”

Bolovayr and Lady Bow floated about a foot forward. Lady Bow said weakly, “I will defeat you. I will do what needs to be done.”

“Oh? You and what army?” the man taunted.

If I know my movies, Bolovayr thought, there should be a heroic rescue in three… two… one…

The doors burst open, revealing a very angry Jeff. “This army,” he hissed.

Bingo.

The man doubled over, laughing. “This just gets better and better! First the blob of jelly, then the two wimp ghosts, and now glasses-boy!”

“I wouldn’t underestimate me if I were you,” Jeff said grimly.

“What are you gonna do? Bleed on me?” The man continued laughing. Jeff pulled off his trainer’s belt, dropping twelve Pokeballs to the ground. The room exploded in a burst of light. When it cleared, eleven very angry Pokemon stood out with Jeff. Groviglio, Kurtzwick, Kiva, Anzu, Maza, 99, Groove Guy, Raini, Previsiona, Mona, and Trezzatura.

“Hah! What are they gonna do to me? I could squash them all without blinking!” A green hand tapped the man on the shoulder.

“You forgot me,” said Bobbery. He pulled back his fist and punched the man squarely in the face. The man dropped like a particularly heavy ton of bricks. Jeff ran over to the table and picked up Mercandos. He was unconscious, and he had scars running up and down his back.

Jeff pulled a walkie-talkie out of his pocket and spoke into it. “I’ve found him. Requesting immediate transport.”

Almost immediately, an Alakazam appeared in the room. Cambiamente recognized it as the one who had teleported him to the Lab not too long ago. The Alakazam waved everyone closer and then lit up the room with a brilliant green glow.

The Crimson Blade who entered the room a few moments later regarded the 17 wisps of smoke and the big unconscious man with interest.

***A few hours later***

“I… I want to thank you for… for everything, Bolovayr…” Lady Bow stammered. “I don’t just mean the date… without you, it would have been really hard defeating those possessed Pokemon… and finding Mercandos.”

Bolovayr blushed. “It was nothing, Lady Bow. I wouldn’t hesitate to help you.”

Lady Bow leaned closer to him and gave a small smile. “Maybe we can get together again soon, yes?” Without waiting for a response, she kissed him quickly on the cheek and faded away.

__________________

The avatar was made by Orion.

The Born Legacy - On hiatus due to writer's block/school

Plushies: Butterfree, Golduck, Ditto, Armaldo, Fearow, Ludicolo, Hypno, Aggron, Pinsir, Sneasel, Vileplume, Houndour, Feraligatr, Ariados, Arcanine

My Adopted and Captured Pokemon/RP Stories

Tsuyoi's Lair... Join or your soul will forever be lost to the merciless ravages of time and space...

AC/CC items for sale/trade: Endeavor TM

AntiAsh Superstar

Jeff, will rate your battle properly when I've more time but just like to say that I've given it a quick skim and you've got Bolovayr pretty much spot on as far as I can tell.

Anyways... Rhi part 3. The one about bloodthirsty Charizards, runaway Rapidash and really, really creepy Eevees.
--
"AIEEE!!!! Pervert!!!" The day hadn't exactly got off to the greatest of starts for Colt, all things considered. He had woken up a lot earlier than any of the others and had promptly taken the opportunity to go for a little walk in order to prepare himself for the trials ahead. Briefly thoughts of escape had crossed his mind, of course, but he knew enough to realise that if he did so either Rhiannon or Enigma would probably hunt him down within minutes anyway. So he had just wandered. And wandered. And wandered.

And tripped over Enigma.

So busy had Colt been with his thoughts that he hadn't even noticed the red-ruffed Eevee. The two collided hard and Enigma was sent sprawling backwards, belly exposed to the world. All of a sudden Colt's attention was returned very swiftly to reality. And to the Eevee sprawled backwards in front of him. For the entire picture wasn't exactly how he had been expecting it.
"You... you're a girl?" the Charmeleon asked incredulously after a moment staring slack-jawed.
"Is it really that hard to tell? And will you quit staring? Geez!" The Eevee quickly uprighted herself and sighed. "You boys are all the same. But I guess it is pretty hard to tell sometimes. I guess I don't exactly act very feminine, do I?"
"It's not just that..." Colt shook his head. "It's..."
"...my scent, right?" Enigma grinned sheepishly. "Yeah. That's been quite annoying, actually. I guess I didn't mention I was raised in a lab and was a subject for experiments into Hidden Power, did I? What happened, you see, was that they discovered a way to stick multiple Hidden Powers in me, so they kept doing it and doing it. Which is great and all, I can now fly AND conjure lightning at the same time, but by about the sixth round of doing it my body stopped working as well as it might. Basically my scent glands don't work. Which you don't normally notice, but I guess it does make it a bitch to tell what sex I am, doesn't it? Unless I tell you."
"You don't tell anybody anything," Colt noted.
"True enough. So I guess the only way to know would be to look, and... uh, that wasn't an invitation, you know. Eye contact, Colt, is very important in a conversation, you know." The Eevee suddenly smiled broadly. "However, I can't say I blame you for wanting to sneak a look. I am irresistable, aren't I?"
"So much so that I thought you were a guy until you fell on your back," Colt snorted, watching as Enigma's smile faded with no small satisfaction. The Eevee irked him. He had always been straightforward in his nature. He had no time for her riddles and mind games. So to finally get her to show the briefest flicker of real emotion for once was no small victory in the eyes of the Charmeleon. "What's wrong, Enigma?" Colt sneered. "Maybe..."
"Colt, that's quite enough." Somehow or other Rhiannon had managed to sneak up on the two pokémon without either noticing. "You're already treading very dangerous waters as it is. And as for you..." Here the Jolteon eyed Enigma. "We've been thinking about you a lot, and some things make more sense than we'd like them to. That's a very interesting story you tell, Enigma. Although having scent glands that don't work can come in very handy in some cases. For a start, it would make you almost impossible to track if you were careful enough. Maybe they were deliberately removed as part of these experiments you say you were the subject of? In fact, we'd go further than that. Maybe these experiments weren't experiments at all but a deliberate enhancement programme?"
"Maybe." For a moment Enigma looked serious, then all of a sudden she broke into a broad smile. "Or maybe not. I can't tell you anything like that now, can I?"
"Why you obnoxious little..." Colt looked about ready to spring for the Eevee.
"Oh?" Engima smirked. "Fancy our chances do we?"
"Bring it on!"
"You two! Stop this right now!" Rhiannon snapped angrily. "This ridiculous bickering is getting us nowhere!" Neither pokémon seemed to be listening. Enigma seemed to actually enjoying winding Colt up, and the Charmeleon by now was looking about as friendly as his father in a particularly bad mood. "Listen to us this instant!"
"Guys!" Suddenly the situation was stopped from becoming any more tense by Saul, the Poochyena sat watching the arguing pokémon with tears in his eyes. "Stop fighting! Please! We're supposed to be friends, aren't we? Why can't we just get along and be nice to each other? Please? I hate all this shouting." By now he looked about ready to cry, leaving the others feeling decidedly shamefaced. Well, Rhiannon and Colt, at any rate. Enigma simply shrugged and pretended she was too absorbed in watching the early morning Butterfrees. "Please?" Saul repeated sorrowfully.
"Saul, I'm sorry!" After a visible twitch Rhiannon suddenly ran to her friend's side and nuzzled him reassuringly. "You're right. We shouldn't be fighting. We're friends, and friends don't fight. Do they?" Here the Jolteon glared over at her companions.
"You're dad's friend, not mine," Colt snorted.
"I'm just the guide," Enigma commented. "Er.. I mean, no, friends don't fight. I'm sorry," the Eevee added quickly as the angry glare turned very quickly into a look something akin to the last thing Tsuyoi's enemies saw just before he turned them into statues.
"Better." Rhiannon nodded curtly. "Come on, Saul, cheer up. Even the best of friends disagree sometimes, it's nothing to get upset about."
"I.. I guess," the Poochyena whimpered in a tone that made Rhiannon just want to hug the little creature. For some reason she found herself thinking of Pearl back home, and how before the Crimson Blades had attacked she had often thought the Ninetales ridiculously protective of her daughter, Celeste. But times had changed. Rhiannon had forced herself to grow up quickly. And all of a sudden she thought that she understood how Pearl must feel.
"Come on. We'll be fine." Rhiannon grinned warmly. "How about we all have a game of tag before we set off again? Just to show we all get along really. What do you say, guys?"
"I'm in!" Enigma giggled. "Just to see how I fare against you, you understand, Rhiannon." This was probably the most blatant untruth the Eevee had told to date. It was obvious that she was feeling guilty for upsetting Saul.
"Huh, you think I'm playing some stupid game of..." Colt was suddenly made acutely aware of several large and not at all friendly vines snaking up from behind him. He swallowed hard. "I mean, yeah, tag sounds good!"
"That's the spirit!" Rhiannon giggled. Some days the burden of her heritage didn't seem quite so bad after all.

The remainder of the day passed largely without incident. Colt, it had to be said, was a remarkably good tracker and managed to avoid most of the potential troubles a medium-sized group of pokémon such as Rhiannon's party could expect to encounter. And before the sun set he had managed to lead them to a large, cave-like opening set into the side of a hill. Only it was clear that this was no mere cave. The crumbling pillars to either side of the opening, the small, rocky remnants of what might have been a stone pathway making the going underfoot treacherous. This was anything but a natural formation, basically.
"So this is it, huh?" For the first time since she had shown her face, Enigma seemed to genuinely be surprised, the Eevee looking about the entrance to this area with a great deal of curiosity.
"No doubt about it," Rhiannon commented. "We can sense a great amount of magical energy coming from this place. And only a small amount of that is familiar to us. Thank you for your help, Colt. We can take it from here."
"Are you crazy?" the Charmeleon huffed. "I've come all this way, I might as well stick around and say hi to dad whilst I'm here!"
"As you wish. What of you, Saul?"
"Er... well..." the Poochyena swallowed hard. "I really want to go and help you, Rhiannon, really I do, but... this place scares me a little..."
"Relax. I'll wait here with Saul." Enigma shrugged. "You go in there and do whatever it is you need to do."
"You sure?" Colt goaded. "After all that talk about there ruins and all, you don't mind missing your chance?"
"Oh no, not at all!" the Eevee grinned. "After all, I know where this place is now so I can always come back later and explore at my leisure without this little quest getting in the way!"
"Fine." Rhiannon closed her eyes for a moment and allowed the emerald set into her forehead to open up. A small glowing sphere of light seemed to float out and upwards from the gem's centre, coming to a rest a fraction above Rhiannon's head. The Jolteon opened her eyes and grinned at her companions. "We'll see you in a while. Look after Saul, Enigma."
"I swear upon the things I'm not allowed to mention but actually hold quite dear. He will be perfectly safe with me."
"Fair enough. Okay then, Colt. Let's go."

The innards of the ruined temple – for that was what this place had turned out to be – were a truly impressive sight to behold. Huge, cavernous rooms that had no doubt once been home to fancy tapestries and remarkable wealth, but now only housed dust and rubble. Strange statues of long-forgotten gods lined the rooms, their impassive faces gazing down on all who walked the dirty marble floors. Rhiannon had seen this sort of thing before, of course, a once splendid place left to ruin. The central temple of Templa Taure had been in a similar condition when she had walked its corridors. Although that had been forced into ruin, ravaged by forces that rather disturbingly had yet to be truly dealt with. These ruins, at least, were clearly the work of the passing centuries rather than a deliberate desire to ruin their beauty.
"Hey. Rhiannon." Rhiannon and Colt had been walking a fair way into the temple when the Charmeleon suddenly decided to strike up a conversation. "Mind if I ask you something?"
"Go right ahead," the Jolteon replied.
"Uhh... you seem to know an awful lot about magic. Do my dad's powers work in the same way as yours?"
"No." Rhiannon shook her head. "Actually, that's something of a lie. They're based around the same principle. The stones set into our heads provide the focal point for his powers as they do ours. The similarity ends there, however. Each of us specialises in very different things. Your father, for example, on those rare occasions when he does resort to magic, has a rare gift for illusions. He can even use his skills to hide things completely. We, however, have never been very good at invisibility and the like, but instead can manipulate time and space to a degree. We can hop between realities and positions as we like, although sadly the secrets to moving through time is beyond even our skills. Then there's Alto, a Scizor... he made conjuration his domain. The fool normally wasted it on trivialities such as summoning flasks of mead at mealtimes, of course, but that isn't to say he couldn't create something truly spectacular if he was required."
"And what of Reaper?" Colt asked. "Dad talks of her a lot. I can never quite tell if he's angry with her or a little scared, to be honest."
"We suspect it might be a little bit of both. Reaper... she is the most skilled of all of us, but her real specialty lies in magic that can manipulate the mind. Fortunately she hasn't really had much of a chance to use that yet. And hopefully she won't get that chance, either, if your father is willing to help us to defeat her."
"Shouldn't be a hard task to talk him into that one," Colt sighed. "One thing I gotta say, he's pretty fixated on doing that anyway, with or without your asking."
"All the easier for us, then." Finally the two emerged in a huge hallway, the walls covered in bizarre runes and the floor covered in a particularly pretty tiled pattern that would have been white and purple at one point but now was just grey and black with the dirt that had amassed over the years. "Well now. We do hate to agree with Bolovayr's philosophy on life and all but this does seem the place where a major altercation should take place, don't you think?"
"Agreed. Although... who's Bolovayr? Wait, I'm guessing one of your crackpot friends. I think I'm best off not knowing the full details, come to think of it." The two pokémon wandered cautiously into the darkened room, illuminated only by the soft glow of Colt's tail fire and the more powerful radiance of Rhiannon's light spell. They managed to get just about half way when Colt suddenly stopped.
"What is it, Colt?" Rhiannon asked.
"Look at that," the Charmeleon responded, pointing at what was probably the only untainted statue in the entire place. It depicted a tall, thin figure dressed in chain mail armour, his hair long and flowing from underneath a tall, pointed helmet. He was sat atop the most curious mount either pokémon had ever seen, a creature neither normal animal nor pokémon. A creature that seemed to be a bizarre hybrid between eagle and lion, its beak open in a ferocious roar and its lithe body poised in a battle stance. The entire thing was carved flawlessly in marble and must have been worth quite a lot. "Impressive or what?"
"Indeed," Rhiannon nodded, although her eyes were darting about the room quickly. "We're worried, however. This place must have been looted so many times over the centuries. Why hasn't anybody thought to take or destroy this?"
"Maybe they just missed it."
"Highly unlikely. Look all around you. This is clearly a place or great importance. There must have been all manner of riches in this hallway at one point. But do you see any now? No. We think there is something about this statue... some kind of protection..." A wicked smile crossed the face of the Jolteon. "Colt. Do us a favour and go over and touch that statue, would you?"
"Me?" Colt swallowed hard. "Why me?"
"Mainly because we really don't want to get too close to it. If there is a magical seal upon it then bringing our own magical aura too close could cause a most unpleasant reaction. Besides which, you still owe us for instigating the trouble we had in that ruined village." Here the Jolteon sighed deeply. "And to be honest Abbadon is far more likely to come running if his own flesh and blood is in danger."
"At least you're honest about wanting to use me as bait!" Colt scowled before walking cautiously over to the golden plinth that the statue rested upon. If nothing else Rhiannon made a good point about him owing her for the previous trouble he had caused! When she had encountered a victim of her darker days all he had done was make a troublesome situation worse. So he did owe her at least one moment of recklessness. Swallowing hard her placed a paw against the plinth, feeling its cold, hard surface. And...

Nothing happened.

"Eh?" Colt had screwed his eyes up tightly but very quickly opened them again when he realised that none of the evil traps he had been expecting had actually been triggered. "Hey, Rhiannon nothing..." The instant he turned to talk to the Jolteon, however, he realised very quickly that a trap had been sprung. A very cruel trap, in fact. For Rhiannon was staring in dumb shock at a strange, glowing creature. A creature whose general appearance suggested it was a Castform, but whose translucent body gave the game away.
"So. We see why this statue remains untouched. It possesses its very own guardian spirit." Rhiannon stared at the Cast form for a very long time. "Colt. Get out of here, now. This could get very messy."
"R... right!" The Charmeleon didn't need telling twice! Quickly he darted out of the room. And ran. And ran. He didn't know where he was headed. He just knew that if Rhiannon was telling him to get the hell out he should probably follow her advice.

Back in the hallway Rhiannon and her adversary were busy circling each other.
"Leave this place at once, devil. This is no place for the likes of you," the Castform intoned in a monotonous voice.
"We would leave your sanctuary alone if we could help it," Rhiannon snarled. "But far more terrible than us have made their home here. We don't see you moving to stop them from tainting your precious hallways."
"The hallways are none of my concern. I exist to guard the statue and the statue only. I will take necessary measures when this more terrible threat endangers it. In the meantime I have little choice but to deal with you." The Castform struck as good a fighting pose as it could.
"You really don't know what you're getting yourself into, do you?" Rhiannon sighed. "We don't care what your purpose is or how many milennia old you may be. If you insist in becoming an obstacle to our mission then you will have to be dealt with." The Jolteon braced herself for battle. If this spirit wanted a piece of her then it was going to get a lot more than it bargained for!

FIGHT!!! L12 Jolteon v L12 Castform!

Rhiannon looked all around. She could have ended this easily, of course. She could have torn this creature apart without so much as raising a sweat. But that was not how she liked to do things these days. She was trying hard to leave her past behind. And that included not relying upon her magic in battle. So she did the only thing she could think of. She built up her natural electric charge and fired a mighty Thunderbolt in the direction of her opponent. Only it didn't seem to go as planned. The Castform simply smirked and faded from sight just before the attack struck home.
"You can Teleport?" Rhiannon gasped.
"Of course I can. I am a spirit, after all, no matter what my physical form may take." Even Rhiannon's remarkable reactions weren't nearly enough to avoid the incoming attack from behind. A large, painful Ember that struck her directly in the rear, almost sending the Jolteon toppling over. Almost. For her instinct were better than to allow herself to do that. Instead she whirled around and instantaneously let out another Thunderbolt in the direction of her opponent. This one the Cast form simply wasn't expecting, as was struck with full force, being thrown backwards with a shriek of pain. Rhiannon knew better than to let up. Quickly she skidded after the pokémon, kicking up the dust on the floor as she went so that it flew into her opponent's eyes. However, instead of irritating the pokémon as she expected, this tactic only caused it to stop and laugh.
"What's so funny?" Rhiannon asked, clearly irked.
"You! You think THAT'S going to help you?" her opponent chuckled. "Here. Let me show you how useless that was." The Castform's eyes began to glow, and all of a sudden the entire room dropped in temperature, the moisture in the air helping to give everywhere a coating of frost that was so cold it hurt to step upon. Before Rhiannon's eyes her opponent changed form, shirting to an altogether more icy version of its base state. Not that it was easy to pay full attention to these things where your paws were already almost numb from cold. Even Rhiannon had her limits! "Now die!" The Castform fired a large bolt of ice towards Rhiannon, coating her in the same coldness that was proving to be such a distraction underfoot. It was all that she could do to stop herself from screaming. The sensation was really that awful. But she had to keep fighting. She just had to. Or all of Ulthuan – no, the enitre world – would be doomed.

By now Colt was seriously beginning to worry he was lost. He had just been blindly charging, having not really paid that much attention to the route he had been taking with Rhiannon. Now he was seriously beginning to regret having been so stupid. He was supposed to be the master tracker in the group! But with Rhiannon around... well, it was the same when he was with his father, really. He just accepted that they had skills he could never hope to gain. And faced with the superior talent he simply went along with what they wanted. No question, no hassle, nothing. In the face of a stronger pokémon he just became a meek follower. And he hated himself for that. Why could he not be him for once? Why did he have to be a bully to the weak and a sheep-like follower of the strong? Why could he not...
"Oomph!" The Charmeleon was so busy mentally beating himself up that he had forgotten to pay attention to his surroundings, so when he collided with something large and scaly he wasn't the least bit surprised. The best he could do was to leap back to his feet and cry out "Hey! Watch where you're going you stupid... oh." Finally his eyes settled upon the creature he had bumped into. An especially large Charizard with eyes that usually held a detached malice but at the minute looked as friendly as a pair of eyes possibly could. It was stooped forward, offering a hand to help Colt back up.
"You ought to be more careful blindly rushing around this place," the Charizard commented. "Who knows what manner of devils you might run into?"
"Dad!" Colt cried out happily, running into the Charizard and being caught in a giant hug. "I missed you."
"I'm sorry, Colt. You know how we have to work these things. I can't look after you or Kassandra. So you have to cope in the environment I judged best for you at the time." The Charizard smiled warmly. "So. Shall we head back and catch up along the way?"
"Head back?" Colt seemed dumbstruck. "You knew?"
"Of course I knew, and to be honest I always thought it just a matter of time. We of the Inner Circle... we were balanced at a time, when we had a common cause. But without the driving force it was only going to be a matter of time before we chose our sides against each other. So far... let me guess... so far it is probably Rhiannon against Reaper, with Alto having been suckered into being a pawn of one side or the other. Correct?"
"I wouldn't know, dad. You'd have to talk to Rhiannon."
"Oh, I will, Colt. I will."

"Dammit!" Once again, Rhiannon found herself in an all too familiar situation. Stuck between the knowledge that she could finish this unnecessarily long battle in a heartbeat, and the knowledge that doing so would surely secure her damnation. In this case the choice seemed particularly hard, for her opponent was skilled and she was unsure that the powers given to her as a result of her species would be enough.
"Having trouble, devil?" Rhiannon's Castform opponent sneered as it fired yet another blast of iciness that the slippery conditions of the floor stopped Rhiannon from dodging properly. "Shall I end it now?"
"No chance!" Suddenly an idea formed in Rhiannon's head. She quickly tapped into her Hidden Power, the one she shared with her brother. All of a sudden vines burst through the icy walls, criss-crossing in a solid barrier between her and her opponent. At least that would buy her a few vital seconds!
"Ha You think this will stop me?" Rhiannon could already tell the Castform was trying to burn through the vines with its Ember. Well, that was good! It gave her a chance.
"No. It will, however, hurt like hell." Suddenly Rhiannon used her command over the vines she had summoned to send the all bursting forward, breaking from their wall-like formation to shoot forward like whips. The Castform had no chance whatsoever. It was struck with at least three of the vines as they broke formation. And once the wall had cleared Rhiannon saw her opponent, gasping for breath and clearly the worse for wear. "You take on more than you understand. Even a creature sealed in by the Old Ones has its limits."
"What do you know of that?" the Castform yelled, angrily trying to fire another Ember that Rhiannon easily dodged.
"Enough to know you are their save," Rhiannon commented. "Now goodbye." Once again Rhiannon used her tremendous electrical energy to send a Thunderbolt in the direction of her opponent. As tired and as weary as it was the Castform didn't even have a chance to teleport away. The attack struck home easily, sending the little pokémon flying backwards, unconscious. Into the waiting claws of an overly large Charizard who had just decided to show up, son by his side.
"Nice to see you again, Lady Rhiannon," Abbadon sneered.

Rhiannon wins!
Rhiannon grew to L13!

"So then. I suppose you want to talk, don't you?" Abbadon smirked after he had spent what seemed an eternity locking eyes with Rhiannon. "And I know it must be pretty important. I know your feelings toward me aren't exactly favourable."
"We keep telling ourselves that the Abbadon who is in the grip of his thirst isn't the same one we used to consider a good friend," Rhiannon commented icily. "But that is something that's easier said than done. But you are right. The situation is out of hand. We need your help."
"Well, we'll deal with that in a second," Abbadon commented. "First, want me to show you a little trick I learned whilst I was studying down here in this temple? It's called infusing Dragon Claw with magic. It's really quite potent. I mean, watch this." The Charizard tightened his grip on the unconscious Castform that had just seconds ago flown into his grasp. A deep blue smoke began to wisp from the tips of his claws as they punctured the creature's skin. "I mean, look at this. This creature is a spirit. But if I try hard enough, why look, I can cause it as much damage as I could if it were alive. Such a pity. Even the undead are no longer safe from my thirst." Very soon Abbadon's grip tightened even further, and the head of the Castform seemed to explode in his grip. "Well. You were thinking of doing similar, Rhiannon. So spare me your lectures."
"No lectures here," Rhiannon smiled grimly. "That being was expendable and we have no attachment to it of any kind. However, this is merely a sidetracking, Abbadon. You know why we are here, surely."
"Indeed." The Charizard nodded, licking the blood from his claws. "I was getting rather bored waiting for an invitation, to be honest. Although it's rather fortunate you left it for so long."
"Why?"
"Because in my boredom I started deciphering the runes of this temple. And I've learned a great deal of the ancient magics. As well as the methods for countering them."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning I now know where out weak spot lies, Rhiannon. Meaning I know where to strike. Meaning I'm finally equipped to take my vengeance for a year of suffering under that heartless Salamence. As I said to Colt, Rhiannon, we no longer have a common goal and finally our personalities are siding the way they should. Reaper has aligned herself with chaos, for that is what her heart truly desires. You side yourself with good, for although you are heartless in your methods you have never done anything that you didn't think would benefit those you hold closest. Alto... he lacks purpose. He will follow the first creature with an ideal who will show him a good time. And as for myself... well, I pride in walking the line between good and evil, for there is nothing truer in this world than the neutrality of being. Good, evil, they are nothing, mere concepts imposed over the passing centuries that we now assume are the given standards for being socially acceptable. I do as I please without remorse, and I accept what I am without regret. Which is probably why you would rather not talk to me, I suppose. I flatly refuse to wallow in grief for Amon as you do. He was a fine colleague, certainly, but what is done is done and he knew the risks associated with accompanying me."
"This is why we would rather not deal with you, Abbadon." Rhiannon growled. "You know nothing of love. You walled your heart up long ago. And we will say this now. Continue talking in this manner and we may well start to forget about the fate of the world. You were the one who killed the one we loved above all, and if this conversation continues we may well start thinking personal satisfaction would be better than the common good."
"You're threatening me, Rhiannon?"
"We're guessing you still have enough guilt about Amon's death to give us an opening if we requested it, yes." Rhiannon glared at the Charizard. "Were you not the one who offered us your head not so long ago?"
"I suppose." Abbadon sighed. "And I suppose this isn't the time to settle that score. I'll be more than happy to help seal Reaper's fate, Rhiannon. Just tell me what you want of me."

Later the small group finally reassembled at the entrance of the underground temple. Saul seemed petrified of Abbadon, obviously. And almost as predictably, Enigma seemed totally oblivious to the fact that she was stood alongside one of the pokémon world's most notorious murderers.
"So then. I presume it's back to Sector Alpha, is it?" Enigma asked innocently.
"Not quite," Abbadon smirked. "There is a storm brewing. I'd rather like to take care of it before the Reaper situation grows out of hand."
"What do you mean?" Rhiannon asked.
"I mean I can sense the opportunity for a warm up battle before I take on the main event," the Charizard grinned evilly. "There is something strong coming this way, Rhiannon. Don't tell me you can't feel it."
"I... " Rhiannon hesitated. To be honest she COULD feel it. She also knew what it was. It had been her magical presence that had awakened the creature in the first place. "Well, what do you suggest we do?"
"You all head back," Abbadon replied calmly. "You go to where you are needed. I'll deal with this, then I'll be right after you. I know it might be a struggle. In fact I welcome it. A closely fought battle will slake my thirst far more than a massacre would. So just go. All of you. I will be the one to end this. And then I shall follow you, and I will help end something that should have ended a long time ago."
"Abbadon, what are you saying?" Rhiannon asked
"That I will take care of the incoming threat. Really, Rhiannon. Do you not trust me?"
"That's a stupid question. Of course I don't. But do as you must. Just be ready to deal with Reaper when the time comes." Rhiannon gestured to her companions with her head. "Come on. Our work here's done. Time to go home."
"I'd kinda like to stay," Colt commented. "That alright, dad?"
"Sadly not." Abbadon shook his head. "You know how I get in battle. I'd be a lot happier if I knew you weren't around for me to accidentally hurt. Besides, I might actually have to try for this one. It's not safe. Tell you what, though, I'll bring you the head of whatever it is I'm about to tear apart. Deal?"
"You got it!" Colt beamed happily as if he had just been promised something wonderful.
"Aww, isn't it sweet?" Enigma beamed. "You know, you really don't make such a bad parent considering pretty much every province is under instructions to kill you upon sight."
"Have we met before?" Abbadon seemed puzzled.
"Indirectly, maybe," the Eevee winked. "But I can't say why. It's..."
"...a secret." Everybody else finished Enigma's sentence for her.
"Seriously, if I hear that just one more time I'll..." Colt growled.
"You are quite the magnet for the misfit, aren't you, Rhiannon?" Abbadon chuckled, then stopped suddenly. His eyes snapped sharply to the north, his every muscle tensed. "Go. All of you. I can smell it. I can almost taste its blood on my tongue. It's no longer safe for you here. But don't worry. I promise to save some of my thirst for Reaper. Now leave!" By now the Charizard was starting to breathe heavily, his expression growing steadily more intense. "I won't have another Amon on my conscience!"
"I think that's our cue to leave, don't you?" Enigma grinned. "Allow me." The Eevee's eyes flashed a pale grey. And all of a sudden the air beneath the feet of the group seemed to solidify and push them upwards, so that it seemed as if they were stood upon the very breeze itself.
"What's this???" Saul managed to yelp, being as he was the only member of the group unfamiliar with such oddities.
"Hidden Power Flying. Oh so handy for many things, not least of all getting from A to B." Enigma grinned brightly. "Now let's move it. It's a long way back home, no?"

Abbadon watched grimly as the little group became nothing more than a cluster of specks on the horizon. So they were out of the way. Good. The urges were back in force. The urges to sink his claws deep into their flesh, to rip and tear until he could feel their lifeblood ebbing away. There was nothing that could truly slake his thirst, after all. And no matter how hard he tried he still couldn't stop himself. He had to kill. It was as simple as that. All he could do was to try and make sure his murderous instincts were directed at those who deserved it.
"Come on, you fool..." Already he could see the fires spreading towards him. Already he was starting to feel the tingle of a truly phenomenal psychic aura. And aura that he was pretty certain would bowl him over completely once it hit at full force. Unless he was prepared, of course. "COME ON!!!" With a roar the Charizard allowed his demonic mark to be exposed to the world, allowed his full strength to be unleashed. His forehead opened up. And a small almost circular sapphire peered through the opening his his skin, glowing with a soft luminescence. Snarling angrily he launched himself in the direction of his prey. As he thought, the going became progressively harder as he drew near. But that didn't bother him. If anything it just made him all the more excited. So when he finally reached the epicentre of this astounding force he was cutting a swathe through the supernatural energy with ease. "There you are! Die!!!!" The Charizard caught the briefest of glances at his foe. A stampeding Rapidash that glowed with a faint yellow light. But species really didn't matter to Abbadon. It was moving and he needed to destroy something. That was all that mattered to him. His claws extended. And...

WHAM!!!!

It was if he had collided with a brick wall. All of a sudden the strange aura surrounding the Rapidash tripled in intensity, becoming strong enough to even knock a creature such as Abbadon flying. It didn't take the Charizard long to recover, of course. He hadn't even touched the ground before he had righted himself and was rushing forward for another attempt. This time, however, he was prepared. So when the battle aura strengthened again he fought it. Fought it with every ounce of power he had, his gemstone glowing brightly as it lent him all the power it possessed. And this time somehow he broke through, passing the strange pokémon and swiping hard as it drew within range. The Rapidash stopped. And turned. And whinnied angrily as Abbadon drew to a halt. Blood a shade too light to be natural dripped from a large wound in its side.
"Ah..." Scarcely paying attention to the fact that his prey was still upright – and more to the point, extremely angry – Abbadon paused to lick the blood from his claws. A broad smile passed over his face. "So sweet. You have a great deal of life energy, whatever you are. It's going to make tearing you apart all the more satisfying." The Charizard eyed the trail the Rapidash had left. This strange aura it possessed... it had torn up the surrounding lands. Blown down trees. Shattered stone walls. Even left a large groove in the ground itself. If Abbadon was in full possession of his senses he would have probably been mildly impressed. But to see all the damage in the grip of his bloodlust... all it did was make him want to prove how easily this Rapidash could be destroyed. "Now. If you don't mind. Let's take this up a notch!" Wish an almost bestial yell the Charizard returned to combat, to slake his thirst once again.

Elsewhere in the world, far away from where Abbadon was unwittingly trying to avert yet another potential threat to the realm, a small and tired group of pokémon were finally coming to rest in a small orchard at the foot of one of Caledor's many mountains.
"Well, this is it," Enigma commented. "Sector Alpha's just fifteen minutes east of here. I'm guessing you could manage it in about three if you ran flat out, Rhiannon."
"Is this as far as you're taking us?" Rhiannon asked the mysterious Eevee.
"Yeah! No fair!" Saul complained. "I was enjoying that ride! It was fun to fly!" Again, the Poochyena had missed the point. But that wasn't his fault. He was too young to understand what Rhiannon was implying.
"Sorry, guys. This is as far as I go. Got places to be and things to do and all that."
"Top secret things and places, no doubt," Colt grumbled.
"How did you guess?" the Eevee beamed, trotting over to Colt and planting a peck on his cheek. The Charmeleon snorted in apparent displeasure although it was rather obvious he had turned redder than normal. "I'm guessing you're off back home, all of you?"
"Yeah," Saul sighed. "Don't really want to. But I guess my family will be worried about me." He turned to Rhiannon with tears in his big, red eyes. "I don't really wanna go! Do you think I can come with you, Rhiannon? Pretty please? I'll miss you!"
"I'm gonna miss you too," the Jolteon smiled, blinking away a tear of her own. "But if you have family waiting for you then you ought not to worry them any more than they probably already are."
"I know..." Saul sobbed, nuzzling Rhiannon with great affection. "I'm worried about you, Rhiannon. I've seen so much and I can tell you're mixed up in something really big. I'm worried that I'm never going to see you again, that you'll ... you'll..." Here he burst into a fresh bout of tears.
"Ssh... don't cry, Saul. When this is all over I'll come back and visit you. I promise." Still sniffling the Poochyena took a step backwards.
"Okay. I'll... I'll wait for you... okay? Then you can come back and we can play tag together and go on some more adventures. All of you. Right? Do you think you'll all visit, maybe?"
"I have to admit I'm normally stupidly busy," Enigma sighed, but then perked up again almost immediately. "But never say never, that's my motto!"
"I thought it was 'it's a secret'" Colt commented.
"Well yeah, that too. So what of you, Colt?"
"Eh... I'll hang around here for a while I guess," the Charmeleon shrugged. "Guess I ought to go pay Kassandra a visit now I'm so close." This he said with a shudder. "Not that I'm looking forward to that. Guys, don't ever have little sisters. They're annoying."
"Tell me about it!" Saul smiled sadly. "I've got three."
"Ouch! Well, count yourself lucky none of them are Kass." Colt chuckled. "Anyways, I'll just hang around here and wait for dad to show up."
"Ah. Well then." Rhiannon looked about her new friends. "Guess this is goodbye."
"For now," Enigma added.
"Look after yourselves." Colt gave the group a thumbs up before scampering off to investigate the apple trees.
"Yeah. You'd all better come visit!" Saul added before leaving himself, every now and then throwing a sorrowful glance over his shoulder.
"And now...?" Enigma asked.
"Now..." Rhiannon paused. "Now we have to return to our trainer. And brace ourselves for war. Take care, Enigma. It was... amusing working alongside you. Although why do we have this feeling that won't always be the case?"
"It doesn't do any good to worry about such things, Rhiannon," the Eevee commented. "Where would be the fun in seeing eye-to-eye all the time, anyway?"
"We suppose. Anyway, take care." Rhiannon nodded before taking off at full pelt towards Sector Alpha, the scenery whizzing by her as she used every last bit of speed she possessed. It was always hard to say goodbye. But at least she knew that this, at least, wasn't forever.

Enigma watched the Jolteon go with no degree of curiosity. She knew everything already. In fact the entire thing had played out with almost boring predictability. She had expected so much! But no. The key players were all far too easy to second guess. Except Colt. He had been rather fun! Silently the Eevee hoped that she might run into him again. She would, as much as she hated to admit it, miss having someone around to goad.
"How did it go?" A voice from behind her interrupted her thoughts.
"All to plan. The fourth target will be on his way shortly. Then you can have them all in one place, just as you wanted. Then we can put an end to this."
"You're a good girl, Enigma. I knew I could trust you."
"Hey, when have I ever failed you before?" The Eevee whirled around to view the speaker. A tall, almost white-skinned man dressed entirely in black with silver trimming, his face covered by jet-black hair with white streaks and a large pair of sunglasses. Almost nonchalantly the man pulled off a thick leather gauntlet to reveal a hand more scarred and weather-beaten than his rather youthful face would suggest, and tussled Enigma's fur with it. "It's good to be back, Lord Absol."

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AntiAsh Superstar

Sorry for the double post, but didn't want this rating to get missed. Jeff, take fourteen stamps for your double battle, and remember that it's perfectly acceptable to ask for a double RBG next time you fancy doing a two-on-two. I get the feeling I would have appreciated the battle sequence more if I were more familiar with Paper Mario - as it was it was kinda confusing in a funny, madcap way - but hey. The story was purty good and it''s nice to see Mercandos is safe again. Tho hopefully next time Bolovayr and Lady Bow go out they might actually get a bit of peace. The poor things didn't even get to see their film, did they?

btw, may I request an RBG for Beckham from the Antarctic Survivor Agency plz? *pays 7 stamps*

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Lady Vulpix

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Knight of the I.N.D.E.E.D. after waiting for about 3 years to get a reply.
And how did this forum get into my sig?

TheBlueAvenger

Hey hey! I'd like a Double RBG for Maza and Trezzatura, please. Trezza needs to test out his new Collar. *Hands over 14 stamps, leaving me with none. :O*

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The avatar was made by Orion.

The Born Legacy - On hiatus due to writer's block/school

Plushies: Butterfree, Golduck, Ditto, Armaldo, Fearow, Ludicolo, Hypno, Aggron, Pinsir, Sneasel, Vileplume, Houndour, Feraligatr, Ariados, Arcanine

My Adopted and Captured Pokemon/RP Stories

Tsuyoi's Lair... Join or your soul will forever be lost to the merciless ravages of time and space...

AC/CC items for sale/trade: Endeavor TM

AntiAsh Superstar

Sure you can have it, Jeff, tho you might like to pick which category your opponents fall into first. :p

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TheBlueAvenger

Oh wow, can't believe I forgot that. >_< I'd like the battle to be from the Free Range Corral, please.

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The avatar was made by Orion.

The Born Legacy - On hiatus due to writer's block/school

Plushies: Butterfree, Golduck, Ditto, Armaldo, Fearow, Ludicolo, Hypno, Aggron, Pinsir, Sneasel, Vileplume, Houndour, Feraligatr, Ariados, Arcanine

My Adopted and Captured Pokemon/RP Stories

Tsuyoi's Lair... Join or your soul will forever be lost to the merciless ravages of time and space...

AC/CC items for sale/trade: Endeavor TM

Wolfsong

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AntiAsh Superstar

Sure thing. They'll be battling... a Houndour and a Geodude. Good luck!

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