Pokémon: Amber [IC]

[Lord of The Rings]

Lara Amery
Festaía City

---

Upon reaching her favourite spot at the slopes of Mount Doçe, Lara sat herself down while Num-Num and Rockruff played around. Lara was lucky today as the weather was clear and so the sea could be seen in the far distance. It was a breath taking sight as always and it made Lara feel like there were no worries in the world.
After half an hour of enjoying the view Num-Num had fallen asleep like he always did when he played around for a while. Rockruff was still awake though and laid himself down on Lara's lap.

While petting him Lara realized she had not given Rockruff a name yet though she felt like he deserved one, "Rock?" she asked, looking if Rockruff would respond. "Ro Rock!" Rockruff responded, wiggling it tail again, "Rock it is then, your new name" Lara told with a smile as she petted him some more.

As time passed on Lara almost fell asleep herself, but it was the loud horn of a ship that woke her up right before her eyes started to close. She looked at her watch, only to realize that she would miss the ferry if she didn't left now. Quickly she returned Num-Num and Rock into their Balls and ran downhill towards the Harbour.
Upon arrival the ferry had already docked and was already taking in passengers, "Right on time" Lara muttered to herself, feeling lucky she didn't miss the ferry.

[WhatsamattaU]

Jude MacBeth. Fantano Town Herb Shop.

Wow, Thought Jude, looking at the chalkboard of items for sale in the shop, The herbs here are really inexpensive... NOT!

Heal Powder - 400
Energy Powder - 500
Energy Root - 800
Soothing Leaf - 500
Revival Herb - 2500

The Soothing Leaf sounded familiar.... Oh, yeah, other than being in a swamp, it was probably the thing that Fantano Town was semi-famous for.

Still, Jude didn't has much money.

The woman behind the counter looked familiar, but... oh, this woman had given Jude the dusk ball that Lady stayed in, when she wasn't in it. Jude wondered if she would recognize him. He smiled.

[Cruxa]

Mikey Queen
Altorre City

---

"Okay, Mr. Ferris Gym Leader! I'm ready to fight!" Mikey shouted, and Meteor jumped off his shoulder to demonstrate with a little ball of intense flame flying out of his mouth. The Pokémon was ready to fight, and so was his Trainer. Mikey cracked his knuckles, and prepared for the Gym Leader to send out his first Pokémon to match his magnificent Cyndaquil.

Meanwhile, in her Poké Ball Sewaddle was resting. And as she did, she thought. She thought about how she'd lost to Elika's powerful Scyther, and how it had hurt her. She would be strong for this battle. She had to.

[Finsternia]

Halden Certamen
Altorre City

The split second transformation made Halden jumped in surprise. "Woah. I've never seen a Zorua line deploy illusions that fast! And looks legit too!" The young boy said as he inspected the telltale signs of a Zorua, such as the ears and the tail, but there was none. "It even is flawless!" He said giggling.

Phobos mewed his surprise and delight. It seems that Duncan's illusory transformation made the small Pokemon happy. Like a little child watching a magician perform his tricks. His trainer, meanwhile, thought of what they should do. "You know, I do have a question for you, Duncan. Do you plan being a trainer? I mean, being another Pokemon you can be a very good trainer. Communication, trust, and friendship is key!"

"And um..." Halden murmured as he looked towards the colossal skyscrapers of the city. The disaster in the city square is still there as policemen are going through the streets. "How about we challege the Altorre City Gym together?"

"Well... I never really thought about me being a trainer. Somehow that doesn't seem quite right, me telling other pokemon what to do like that... it would be cool to challenge the gym though, in my regular form."

Suddenly he remembered something, and slipped on some sunglasses from his backpack.

"Maybe you didn't notice, but my red eyes and my fangs stay when I transform like this. It's safer for me to hide them. So, should we get going?'

Halden Certamen

Halden placed a hand under his chin. "Hmm. That does sound like an ethical dilemma. But it doesn't mean that you're just gonna command your friends around. Being a trainer is also like being a big brother or family for your Pokemon! Right Phobos?"

"Aurooo!" The small Pokemon barked, waving his paws in the air. Halden raised an eyebrow at Duncan as he wore some sunglasses. Are those blackglasses? Duncan explained that his eyes and fangs still remain after transformation. "Atleast that's subtle. Red eyes seemed to become a common trait these days, albeit an unnerving one, so don't worry too much!"

The black haired boy nodded and jogged beside Duncan as they went to the city's gym. He can still clearly remember the face of the Gym Leader who saved him awhile ago from getting punched in the face. Thankfully the Gym isn't quite far away from the Professor's lab and when they arrived, someone was challeging the Gym Leader. "Oh? This looks like a nice scene."

[Kita-Hinode]

"Eheh..." Lucas laughed to himself after seeing the rather angry Gym leader lead them on the way back to the gym. "M-my bad... K-Kind of just reacted there and then! Hey, you're listening?" Marie followed him close, careful about the Gym leader like she always tends to be, while the Buizel kept his distance, but still followed the group.

[Mundeo]

Selverde Rainforest

Liana seemed a lot calmer now that the danger had passed. She said to Jonny, "We're not too far from the city, but if a bus is here, we should take it. It'll be a lot quicker"

The gym leader took a deep breath of the now peaceful air and gaze a great sigh. Her cheerful smile had returned. "As long as you are all safe. Lead the way"

[Lord of The Rings]

Lara Amery
Velponte City

---

After a lovely but rather short trip on the ferry Lara arrived at Velponte City. During her time on the ferry she had thought about what to do, but if anything came to mind, she had to train with her Pokémon. Her first thought went out to other trainers, but so far she hadn't spotted anyone who she would want to battle, and so she had decided to resort to her second option, wild Pokémon.

Lara released Num-Num and Rock from their Balls, "Are you ready for some training?" she asked politely.
"Munchlax! Ro, Rock!" the two responded jumping up and down, ready to get to work. The three walked over to the beach and there Lara threw out her fishing rod and waited...
Half an hour later there was still no bite from a single Pokémon and Lara started to question herself. Num-Num had already fallen asleep and it wasn't going to take long before Rock would fall asleep as well.
Just then something grabbed the bait. "Get ready Rock, use Bite as soon as the Pokémon emerges" Lara told as she started to pull on the rod.

A Finneon flew out of the water and with no second thought Rock jumped up and attacked with Bite. It was a direct hit and the Finneon fell back into the water. It wasn't over though as it soon showed itself again as it fired a Water Gun towards Rock.
"Rock, watch out!" Lara shouted. It was too little too late and Rock had to take the full force of the attack. Still he stood up again, not allowing himself to be defeated by this fish. "Alright, lets use Bite again!"
Lara knew she and Rock were at a great disadvantage, but it was all she could do at this moment. Rock made a run towards the water and jumped to the Finneon for the Bite, but missed and splashed into the water.

This was going to be bad and Lara turned to Num-Num, "Wake up Num-Num! We need your help!" she said, worrying about Rock, who was trying to reach the shore. At first Num-Num didn't respond, but suddenly he started to waggle his fingers, "Metronome" Lara said as she took a few steps back. It was by far the most surprising move Lara knew about as it randomly selected one attack. Now she only hoped that it would be enough. Within seconds Num-Num's fingers stopped waggling and an echoing voice was heard. This was without a doubt an Echoed Voice attack and might be exactly what Lara needed. The voice got directed at the Finneon who could not stand the voice and fled away from the battle.

Lara quickly went over to Rock and took him out of the water, "You did amazing Rock!" she told the little Rockruff before heading over to Num-Num, "And you too big boy" she continued as she gave him a hug, somewhat wondering if he was really asleep or just playing around.

After the small encounter Lara, Num-Num and Rock took some rest, ate some food and enjoyed the sunny day. But all was just for a few hours though as Lara knew that the two needed more training if they wanted to become strong. This time however they weren't going to fish on the beach. Lara had been given some advice by the locals, who told her that there were more Pokémon at the rocky parts of the shore, and so that was where she would be fishing next.

Only a few minutes had passed before something pulled down her rod, "Are you two ready?" Lara asked as she started to pull. Both Num-Num and Rock nodded, but as the Pokémon started to reach the very edge of the water it broke lose and escaped back into the depths. All Lara knew was that the Pokémon had an orange like look, most likely a Magikarp. Still she wasn't going to give up though and threw the line back out, this time a bit closer to the rocks.

[SquareDisc City]

Jonny stopped for a moment. "Yeah...ummm...I think there were free seats on the way out. Hope so, anyway."

He looked back towards the clearing where the Tropius had been not long before. "Dang it. Where's the path gone."

Walking over, Jonny peered into the undergrowth. Where was that path, he thought to himself. It would be pretty embarrassing if he couldn't find it. Oh, hang on...

"Over here!" he called out to the others. "Can you see the stones?" he said, gesturing down to where a small patch of stonework, barely larger than a magazine, was visible surrounded by earth. "That's the way through to the other main road. It was a bit tricky when I came out but if we're careful it should be alright."

Ducking under an overhanging branch, Jonny headed back through the jungle, the others following close behind. The plants again seemed to close around the group. They couldn't have been more than a hundred yards from the roads, but it felt like it might as well be miles. As Jonny thought they were probably about halfway, there was a crashing noise in a bush a few feet ahead.

"Oh!" Jonny exclaimed, as a small Pokemon jumped out in front of him. "Emzee!" he called out, spinning the Pokeball as before.

[Mundeo]

Selverde Rainforest

"Oh no..." Liana moaned. Another pokémon? Did these young trainers have to be out in any more danger? Fortunately for her, though, she did not have to worry about the small pokémon that emerged from the canopy.

In front of the trainers was a Pansage, looking up at them with great interest. The gym leader sighed in relief. "It's a Pansage! They're not much trouble. Actually, they're very friendly!"

The grass-type pokémon approached Emzee, tilting its head. It leaned forward and reached out to touch the electric pokémon.

[SquareDisc City]

Zap!

As the two Pokemon touched, a jolt of electricity from Emzee jumped into the Pansage, knocking it onto is back. Jonny was almost as startled as the Pansage, his mouth agape for a moment. "Emzee..." Jonny said slowly, "I didn't say attack..."

The Pansage, however, stood up, and was that a giggle? It sounded like it, from the little Pokemon. "Panpan. Paaaaan...sage. Pansage."

"Trannnnnnnnz." Emzee replied. How that electric type felt, even Jonny had a hard time judging sometimes. Was it...sorry?

"Emzee, be more careful with your power next time." Jonny said, before bending down to look more closely at the Pansage. "Hey, are you OK? Sorry about my Pokemon here."

The Pansage jumped to its feet. "Panpanpan! Pan!" it said, before jumping in the air over Emzee.

Jonny turned to Liana. "Umm...I think those two are getting along?"

"Electricity is not very effective against grass types." Liana said. "It probably just felt like a tickle to that Pansage. You might be able to catch it."

"Ummm...with what?" Jonny said.

Liana sighed again, as the Transhertz and Pansage carried on playing. Pansage had picked a berry from somewhere, and was feeding it to Emzee. "You came out here without Pokeballs?" Liana asked.

"Ummm...yeah...I wasn't expecting to see any Pokemon..." Jonny said. "Sorry!".

"OK, borrow this then." Liana said, handing Jonny a ball. There was a spitting sound, and Jonny turned round to see a half-eaten berry on the ground, Emzee bent over as though in disgust, and the Pansage again giggling.

"You did that on purpose!" Jonny exclaimed, trying and failing to stop chuckling himself. Emzee jumped up onto Jonny's shoulder, nearly throwing the young trainer off his balance. Jonny held out the Pokeball towards the Pansage, who looked curiously at it.

"Paaaaaan? Pansage!"

The Pansage touched the ball, and there was a blur of light. Jonny caught Pansage! Or had Pansage caught Jonny?

...

The group came out onto the open road again, the bus that Jonny had come out on still parked up not too far away. Liana went over to sort things out with the bus driver, they knew each other fairly well, leaving the young trainers to wait. Jonny checked his watch.

"We've got a bit of time. Not too much though. Maybe have the Pokemon out?" Jonny said. He opened both of his Pokeballs, sending Emzee and Pansage out, before sitting down on the side of the gravel road. As the Pokemon played, Pansage was being quite animated.

"Panpansage sage pan pansageage pan sage pansagepan sagesage pan pan pan sage."

"Parklife!"

Jonny felt embarrassed even as he said it. Why oh why had he made that old joke here, now? The Pansage abruptly turned, catching Jonny's eye.

"Oh dear Arceus," Jonny said, "Don't say I've just gone and nicknamed him Parklife."

The Pansage ran over towards Jonny.

"I have, haven't I." Jonny said, sighing. "OK then!", his tone brightening, "Parklife you are. Parklife, Emzee. Emzee, Parklife."

[WhatsamattaU]

Jude MacBeth. Fantano Town.

It seemed to Jude that perhaps the shopkeeper lady probably didn't recognize him. Well, it had been four years.

"Hello, Ma'am,. "You probably don't remember me, but you did me and a Gastly a favor about four years ago." Jude said and then produced the Duskball that she had given him on the day he met Lady.
Some recognition shone in her eyes and it seemed that her memory was fully restored as Jude called Lady from the ball. Lady looked at the shopkeeper and the Gastly's eye and expressive eyes and mouth seemed happy and pleased.

"Oh, I remember you now" The woman said with a cheerful, nostalgic smile. "I gave you that Dusk Ball three years ago while you were on a field trip. I am so glad that someone has came back to this poor town. Now, what can I get for you, dear?

"Well, ma'am," replied Jude. "I could definitely use some of your fine supplies, but I'm a bit short of cash. I have a couple of berries I could trade, but maybe there's a couple of chores I could do for you and earn some money to buy some supplies?"

Lady floated next to him and nodded in agreement.

"Well, young man," the shopkeeper replied, "if I had some chores that I needed help with, you could have helped. You seem like a nice young man. Tell you what, I can see that you've been taking good care of that ghastly, so I'm going to reward you with a 500p worth of Soothing Leaves. Oh, and I have a berry bag, so you can stow any berries that you find in your travels."

Jude accepted the gifts with gratitude and said, "Thank you, Ma'am"

Just as he was leaving, the woman called out, "You might be helpful filling and lighting the streetlamps. He might appreciate the help."

"Thanks again!" said Jude as he exited.

[Kita-Hinode]

"Parklife." Lucas chuckled, passing by the young trainer. "You Anglians are all like that, ain't it?" Lucas scratched his head. "Uh... You're from Anglia, right? Name's Lucas Monteiro. I'm from Festaía." He offered his hand for a shake.

[SquareDisc City]

"I'm Jonny. Bell." Jonny replied, hesitantly shaking hands with Lucas. "And yeah, from Anglion. I just got here yesterday, staying at the ... oh, what was it called ... I forgot. One of the hotels. A three-star one. I'm pretty sure I can find it.

"Your Pokemon was the Aipom wasn't it? I've seen them before, they're pretty cool."

[Lord of The Rings]

Lara Amery
Velponte City

---

It only took a couple of minutes before Lara's fishing rod got pulled down again. "Alright, lets see what we got" Lara said as she started to pull in the fishing line.
Out of the sudden the resistance stopped and a Mantyke jumped out of the water. Lara was somewhat surprised by the catch and only realized she had to tell Num-Num and Rock to attack when the Mantyke disappeared in the water again. Luckily the line was still attached to it and so Lara continued to pull it in.

Shortly after it jumped up into the sky once again, and this time Lara was ready for it. "Rock, use Bite!"
Rock took a small run till the end of the rocks from where he jumped into the air and bit the Mantyke, throwing it towards the rocks to avoid it escaping through the sea. "Num-Num, use Lick!"
Num-Num quickly headed over to the Mantyke and gave it a good Lick.
Mantyke wasn't going to give in without a fight though and quickly counter attacked with Bubble. "Watch out Num-Num! And Rock, use Tackle!"

Num-Num barely escaped the Bubble attack and in the meanwhile Rock speeded towards the Mantyke and charged in with a Tackle, pushing the Pokémon further onto the land. The Mantyke shoved itself into the direction of Rock and tried to launch a Bubble Beam, though it failed thanks to the paralyzing effect of Num-Num's Lick.
Lara smiled, this battle was going to be a good one for sure, "Alright Rock, use Sand Attack and then another Bite"
Rock nodded and shoved the loose sand at the Mantyke, lowering its accuracy, which was perfect for Rock since he had to avoid the water attacks at all costs. Rock then jumped up towards the Mantyke and bit it once more.

For a short moment it looked like the battle was as good as over, but right before Lara wanted to walk up to the Mantyke it somehow flew up and used Headbutt against Rock. This was quite unexpected but if anything, it only made the battle more interesting. "Alright Rock, lets do this. Use Howl and then Tackle!"
Rock nodded once more and howled loudly into the air before launching another Tackle at the Mantyke. Mantyke managed to avoid the Tackle by pushing itself into the air with a Bubble attack, one that directly hit Rock. Before Lara or Rock could do anything the Mantyke had moved itself back into the water and disappeared.

"Well done Rock, and you too Num-Num" Lara said smiling as she walked over to the two. While the Mantyke had escaped, she still counted it like a victory just like she had done with the battle against the Finneon earlier that day.
The training for Rock was over today as he had grown tired of the battles. Lara returned him into his Poké Ball and turned to Num-Num, "Now its your turn Num-Num, are you ready for some training?"
Num-Num jumped up and down with a big smile, "Mun Mun!"

Once more Lara sat down at the edge of the water and threw her line out, waiting for a new catch.

[Kita-Hinode]

"I'm Jonny. Bell." Jonny replied, hesitantly shaking hands with Lucas. "And yeah, from Anglion. I just got here yesterday, staying at the ... oh, what was it called ... I forgot. One of the hotels. A three-star one. I'm pretty sure I can find it.

"Your Pokemon was the Aipom wasn't it? I've seen them before, they're pretty cool."

"Nah, Johnny Cage, that's the other, silent guy over there's Pokémon." He pointed to Andy. "Might be me, but I'm starting to wonder if the whole Tropius situation made him mute, just sayin'." Lucas chuckled a bit, before sending out his Vulpix. "See, this is my Pokémon. Marie. See, I got her from this girl that would show up in my training back when I played soccer. She was always there, as there was this scout guy from Albion, looked a bit like you so I took a shot." The Vulpix quickly curdled, as if she was going to sleep, expecting Lucas to keep talking. "As for the hotel, I... uh... might've passed there. Walked over this entire place, really could use a bath."

Lucas looked at the Vulpix, calling her back to her Pokéball. "Say, Jonathan Toews, would you mind if I tagged along? Got almost no clue over this whole Pokémon League shebangs and you seem like you're a bit more into this than moi, but keep it between us, I've heard you gotta put some massive show on those gym battle thingamajigs and my brother ain't letting me return home if I don't win eight of those."

[WhatsamattaU]

Jude MacBeth. Fantano Town.

Jude imagined that he ought to stay in Fantano Town for one more night. The town didn’t have a Pokémon Center, so tired pokémon had to rest up naturally. Yes, a person could use potions, powders, herbs and roots from the Herb Shop, but you kinda had to be swimming in money, and Jude was not.

Lady was floating nearby as Jude walked down the town’s “main street”. Really, he’d only met two people in his entire time here, which made him wonder if the place could really be called a “town”.

There was still, at least three hours of daylight left. The old man would likely start lighting the streetlamps in a couple of hours. Jude reckoned he would see if the guy needed any help in about an hour and a half. So, for the next hour and a half, Jude decided he’d go back to the Bruxia’s Gym and look about it, maybe make it a bit more “livable”.

In the gym, he found cans of lamp oil, filled and lit lamps. There were actually a good number of lamps inside the gym. It had been dark last night and he had made due with only one. Now, nearly every room had a lit lamp giving off soft light, which cast the shadows of Jude and the inanimate objects.

Lady was still recovering from the battle with his new pokemon, the croagunk that he had named, "Krokus", and what Jude was doing wasn't that interesting, so she went back into her duskball.

Dusting off the shelves and sweeping the floors, Jude found himself thinking of the future, imagining if things didn’t go well out in the world and he managed to avoid prison, Jude thought that maybe Fantano Town might offer him some peace. If he could get the funds, he could make repairs to the Gym and maybe run it. It had been a ghost-type gym, but he thought maybe it could be a swamp-type gym. Sure, there weren’t any official types of pokémon that were “swamp-type”, but that gave him a much bigger variety of pokémon to choose from, if he seriously considered being a Gym Leader….

What was he thinking?!?!? Him, a Gym Leader?!?!? Well, if he were one, he would NEVER be a Gym Leader like Cyan.

He found some sheets, a blanket and a pillow that he’d missed finding last night and took them to the Gym Leader’s Quarters. After making the bed, he was certain that it was going to be much more comfortable tonight than last night.

Jude checked the time and figured if he was going to try and help the old man, then he’d best get back out onto the street and look for him.

There was a home next to the Herb Shop. It looked like the shopkeeper was still open for business, so maybe the old guy lived here. Jude knocked on the door….

[Mundeo]

"I'm Jonny. Bell." Jonny replied, hesitantly shaking hands with Lucas. "And yeah, from Anglion. I just got here yesterday, staying at the ... oh, what was it called ... I forgot. One of the hotels. A three-star one. I'm pretty sure I can find it.

"Your Pokemon was the Aipom wasn't it? I've seen them before, they're pretty cool."

"Nah, Johnny Cage, that's the other, silent guy over there's Pokémon." He pointed to Andy. "Might be me, but I'm starting to wonder if the whole Tropius situation made him mute, just sayin'." Lucas chuckled a bit, before sending out his Vulpix. "See, this is my Pokémon. Marie. See, I got her from this girl that would show up in my training back when I played soccer. She was always there, as there was this scout guy from Albion, looked a bit like you so I took a shot." The Vulpix quickly curdled, as if she was going to sleep, expecting Lucas to keep talking. "As for the hotel, I... uh... might've passed there. Walked over this entire place, really could use a bath."

Lucas looked at the Vulpix, calling her back to her Pokéball. "Say, Jonathan Toews, would you mind if I tagged along? Got almost no clue over this whole Pokémon League shebangs and you seem like you're a bit more into this than moi, but keep it between us, I've heard you gotta put some massive show on those gym battle thingamajigs and my brother ain't letting me return home if I don't win eight of those."

Selverde City

"Well, it doesn't have to be a show" Liana said to Lucas. "You just have to be prepared. I think you'll do just against me with that Vulpix of yours, but you might want to train a little bit first" The group then came across the bus, sitting patiently where it had always been before. The gym leader then turned to the three young trainers.

"Maybe you three should battle against each other at the gym before you challenge me. Now, let's get going"

As Liana turned around to enter the bus, Andy felt something crawling up his back. Looking to his right, he would see that it was the Nincada from earlier! It must have taken a liking to him, as it chirped cheerfully.

[Kita-Hinode]

Lucas shrugged, accompanied by that Buizel that had followed them to the Tropius. "Look, I'm just saying what the girl that gave me Marie said. Then again, not exactly sure if I should've asked her about it while she was studying for college finals." He thought about it, following her. "Then again, you could say that I didn't have any other opportunity to discuss this whole thing. But a'ight, I gotcha." He smirked towards Jonny, laughing a bit. "You heard the lady, though, didn't ya, Johnny Bravo?" Lucas showed his Pokéball with a flame sticker, still smirking. "You'll be the first step of my journey for all those badges, wait and see!"

[Amistrinal]

Andy Klipsen
Selverde Rainforest

---

Andy remained silent at Lucas's comment, but replied a few moments later. "Just, uh, just thinking..."
He was. That was pretty dangerous, and Aipom could have gotten really badly hurt... He wasn't going to quit though. So the only option would be to train, but how...

It was around then that he felt, heard, and saw the Nincada on his back. "Oh! uh... hi. So, I guess you... do want to come with me?" He reached around in his pocket and held out the pokeball he had offered earlier.

[SquareDisc City]

Urgh, Jonny thought. Lucas was being stupid. Well the best thing was usually to ignore it. The jokes would get old soon enough. Just as long as nobody was reading his thoughts right now. Anyway, it was by the by. He got aboard the bus, and briefly wondered about letting Emzee out, but it would be too crowded really.

"The League's not really my thing." Jonny said to Lucas. "Liana said it: being flashy earns you no points. Anyway not like I'll be here long enough. But if Emzee's up for it then sure. Sounds like you know your stuff. Just don't fall back down the stairs halfway!"

Jonny noticed Marie's Pokeball. "Hey!" he said, "Is that a seal? Arceus it's been ages since I saw one of those. I thought the craze had stopped, and it never should have. Where did you get it?"

[Kita-Hinode]

"Well, y'know. She wasn't originally mine, but I think I recall it pretty tight." Lucas said, remembering of his old friend. "See, her old trainer caught her at... I dunno, about your age, I think? She was pretty young, she thought it'd look rad." He laughed a little bit. "She was dead set at becoming a champion... Said something about a champion marrying a champion in the future or something. The sticker was for her to remember her inner fire after she caught her first Pokémon. That being her little Vulpix, Marie."

He sighed. "It's a shame we get old, y'know. Things change. We get new goals. It's a good thing I'm giving Marie the chance of exercising." He looked at the young boy. "I understand you're not into the league and whatnot, but you can't just not battle. Not only do your Pokémon need it to improve, but you yourself might want to change your goals at some point. Life is fluid." He looks at him rather seriously, before cracking up. "And I know nothing, dude! Swear!"

[Mundeo]

Andy Klipsen
Selverde Rainforest

---

Andy remained silent at Lucas's comment, but replied a few moments later. "Just, uh, just thinking..."
He was. That was pretty dangerous, and Aipom could have gotten really badly hurt... He wasn't going to quit though. So the only option would be to train, but how...

It was around then that he felt, heard, and saw the Nincada on his back. "Oh! uh... hi. So, I guess you... do want to come with me?" He reached around in his pocket and held out the pokeball he had offered earlier.

Selverde Rainforest

With another chirp, the Nincada tapped its head on the ball, and let istelf be sucked into it. The ball vibrated in Andy's hand for a moment, followed by that signature ding sound.

"It looks like you've made a new friend" Liana remarked. "Like I said, they come to you. Now, let's get going"

Selverde City Gym

The four then rode the bus back into the city, and soon enough, they were dropped back off at the gym where Liana and Andy had started, their party now doubled.

"Well, here we are! So, would any of you like to try out the arena upstairs before taking on the actual challenge?"

[Arctica-Aleutia]

"Well... I never really thought about me being a trainer. Somehow that doesn't seem quite right, me telling other pokemon what to do like that... it would be cool to challenge the gym though, in my regular form."

Suddenly he remembered something, and slipped on some sunglasses from his backpack.

"Maybe you didn't notice, but my red eyes and my fangs stay when I transform like this. It's safer for me to hide them. So, should we get going?'

Halden Certamen

Halden placed a hand under his chin. "Hmm. That does sound like an ethical dilemma. But it doesn't mean that you're just gonna command your friends around. Being a trainer is also like being a big brother or family for your Pokemon! Right Phobos?"

"Aurooo!" The small Pokemon barked, waving his paws in the air. Halden raised an eyebrow at Duncan as he wore some sunglasses. Are those blackglasses? Duncan explained that his eyes and fangs still remain after transformation. "Atleast that's subtle. Red eyes seemed to become a common trait these days, albeit an unnerving one, so don't worry too much!"

The black haired boy nodded and jogged beside Duncan as they went to the city's gym. He can still clearly remember the face of the Gym Leader who saved him awhile ago from getting punched in the face. Thankfully the Gym isn't quite far away from the Professor's lab and when they arrived, someone was challeging the Gym Leader. "Oh? This looks like a nice scene."

"Well, when the gym leader's ready, I guess I'll be ready to fight..."

When nobody was looking, he ducked into a closet and changed back into his normal form.

"I'll let you call the shots. I don't need everybody here knowing I can talk just yet."

[WhatsamattaU]

Jude MacBeth. Fantano Town

A man that Jude hadn’t met before opened the door. He looked a bit confused, as if we wasn't precisely sure of what he was supposed to do when someone knocked on the door.

"Good evening" The man said.

Well, thought Jude, at least this town has more than two residents.

"Oh, uh, hi!" said Jude. "The shopkeeper lady said the guy that lights the street lamps might have some chores that I could help with or maybe like some help with the lamps. Is he here?"

"You're at the wrong house" The man said bluntly. His voice was flat and melancholy. "Mr. Miro lives over there" He then lifted his arm and point to a house on the opposite side of the road. If the man hadn't clearly indicated it, Jude could have easily mistaken it for any other building here. Luckily, he didn't have to knock on every door anymore.

"Dad? Who's at the door?" Jude heard another voice behind the man, one much more light-hearted, but still had that dreary undertone that the rest of the townsfolk had. A girl then appeared at the man's side. She looked about the same age as Jude, and appeared to be somewhat interested in him the moment she saw him.

"A visitor? We don't get many of those around here... or any" The girl had a curious look in her eyes at the strange visitor. "What's he here for, dad?"

"He's looking for Mr. Miro's house" The man said to who was most likely his daughter.

"Oh, well he lives over there" The girl then pointed to the same building her father did just a moment before.

Jude couldn't help but stare at the girl, at least for a couple of seconds. Her hair and skin were as black and as pale as his own. While her face was pretty and youthful, there was a feeling that something intangible weighed heavily upon her soul.

Jude managed to regain his composure and thanked the pair for the directions to the lamp lighter's home. Before turning away, he surprised himself by saying, "I'm staying at the old Gym, tonight. I'm looking to earn some money for my travels, so if you have any odd jobs that I can do for you, let me know."

The pair looked a little confused, as if Jude had said something like a foreign concept or a complete non-sequitur, but nodded and closed the door.

This town was a little crazy. But it was peaceful.

Jude walked over to Mr. Miro's home and knocked on the door....

[Kita-Hinode]

Andy Klipsen
Selverde Rainforest

---

Andy remained silent at Lucas's comment, but replied a few moments later. "Just, uh, just thinking..."
He was. That was pretty dangerous, and Aipom could have gotten really badly hurt... He wasn't going to quit though. So the only option would be to train, but how...

It was around then that he felt, heard, and saw the Nincada on his back. "Oh! uh... hi. So, I guess you... do want to come with me?" He reached around in his pocket and held out the pokeball he had offered earlier.

Selverde Rainforest

With another chirp, the Nincada tapped its head on the ball, and let istelf be sucked into it. The ball vibrated in Andy's hand for a moment, followed by that signature ding sound.

"It looks like you've made a new friend" Liana remarked. "Like I said, they come to you. Now, let's get going"

Selverde City Gym

The four then rode the bus back into the city, and soon enough, they were dropped back off at the gym where Liana and Andy had started, their party now doubled.

"Well, here we are! So, would any of you like to try out the arena upstairs before taking on the actual challenge?"

"I believe it'd be best if I tried the arena first." Lucas said, eased. "Marie needs some proper training, after all." He sent out Marie, who looked around for a couple of seconds before looking up to her new trainer. She seemed happy until she saw Liana, quickly putting herself at an offensive stance. "Now now, Marie, you're facing Pokémon, not the good miss there. Let's go." Lucas walked forward, followed by the Vulpix and the wild Buizel that had still stuck with him for whatever reason.