This world is inhabited by creatures that we call pokemon. People and pokemon live together by supporting each other, but now the scourge threatens the safety of the entire region. Kohaku has become a dangerous place, where children stay at home and only brave souls go adventuring.
Welcome to KOHAKU. Come for the nightmares. Stay for the tea and crumpets.
The season is SUMMER. It is easy for survivors to forage for food from the land, as there are entire abandoned farms ready for harvest. On the downside, you can smell the corpses.
swarms
GRAND OPENING !
Welcome to KOHAKU REGION's grand opening! If you're interested in joining, come check out our grand opening giveaway!
she still needs to go see neo. she needs to go see neo and apologize for that night in di manes. that's what karimi should be doing. instead, she's taking part of the bacchus liberation effort in a more cowardly form of atonement.
her mind comforts herself with the fact that it's probably what neo would have preferred to platitudes that she didn't need. there's another part of karimi that does not want to be comforted.
- the scourge mamoswine picks at the bones of the dead. physis picks at the souls of the living. that's how it's always been. that is how things will be.
together, they will pick the world clean.
her light footsteps and the mamoswine's heavy thuds echo in one of the gym's corridors. in many ways, physis misses that about fantine still.
(i'm assuming this event is legal in the way that cam/delilah/neo/arden event was legal)
He's never liked bacchus. Not back then - forced to battle for strength, no other purpose to this place, otherwise - and not now, when he returns for a different kinds of reasons for the same end result. The reminder of times long past still lingers in his mind, makes his stomach churn as his mind flashes to flames and creatures that split the earth, and he hopes that this time is different.
The steady rumble of the ground tells him that there's other life, they could be miles apart or separated by inches, he doesn't particularly care. Xatu leans down and parts its beak like its about to say something, but he shuts off his mind - like he always has - and keeps walking, not looking anywhere but forward. He's never particularly liked this new power, discovered in an accident after gaining possession to a certain badge in a certain town. It forms attachments, strengthens the weak, paper-thin bonds that hold him to his pokemon and he can't have that, won't let that happen no matter what.
Jayden frowns to himself and keeps walking forward. He doesn't notice the blue-haired girl he walks towards - not yet, at least.
There's no reason for him to hate this place. It does nothing wrong, says nothing, only exists, but something about it hits so close to home that it makes his stomach twist into knots, over and over and over again.
He has to see, he tells himself. Has to see what other scourge-infested areas look like. He wishes he hadn't decided to see, but it's too late now.
Azazel is silent, for once, but the wind around its body picks up and cloaks it, like an invisible tornado. The dual type hovers by his side and looks forward, leaves him to his own thoughts for once and he's grateful for that, he supposes.
she's not very good at apologies. however, what she is good at is scouting out the scourge threat before anyone else does. sometimes it was thanks to the tracking skills of her arcanine. other times, it's by sheer luck.
other times, it's the fact that the loud thumping of a mamoswine simply cannot be ignored. the sound is getting closer and closer until -
a scourge mamoswine and a spiritomb come into view. that's all the incentive that karimi needs to toss out a couple of pokeballs. she takes note of the appearance of two hades agents who seem to have arrived independently.
she's met so many different agents with different mannerisms and beliefs. how is it that they can fight for the same cause with such solidarity?
(why can't she fight with solidarity?)
karimi takes mamoswine's dex entry
arcanine used sunny day arcanine used fusion flare + acc at mamoswine
eelectross used coil electross used fusion bolt + acc on spiritomb.
gardevoir used dark void BPnOu5XV <80 sleep gardevoir used moonblast + acc on spiritomb
- the sophia of last year wouldn't have been here. the sophia of last year would have known better than to dwell around his place for so long, restless. she would have been afraid, naively believing that there is a place for her in this world where demons do not gorge at her chest cavity. she would have believed that the place would not be bacchus.
physis knows better. physis knows that bacchus is everywhere, and the world is drunk on its own madness. there is no safe haven anywhere, not if she is strong enough to exist outside of the land of dreaming.
she does not take refuge. she fights.
mamoswine is hit by fusion flare mamoswine dodges dark void mamoswine uses mist mamoswine uses stealth rock mamoswine uses icy wind on gardevoir and eelectross
physis draws fire sign - will o wisp on eelectross <85 burn physis draws regice sign - ice beam on eelectross <10 freeze
He sees her attacks before he can see them, but in the next second they're there, foreign and familiar at the same time, and it makes his blood freeze, something in his stomach curling. Xatu spreads its wings and gazes at him for orders while he releases more pokemon, for that was something even the him back then had the sense to do. This time, he glances at the pokemon already on the field, then flickers to the other eos member's face, only to have something to go off of if they part ways abruptly afterwards, doesn't speak(because he doesn't need to, not now).
He knows absolutely nothing about them, he realizes. All he has to rely on are the words of other eos and what little information the wind picks up - useless, insignificant trinkets that are as weak as the hatch-lings in his PC, often of no help at all.
The 'agents', as he now knows them, look normal. Without the scourge by their side, he thinks he might've mistaken them for another ally, and that, perhaps, is the most unsettling fact of all.
xatu enters battle! focus badge mimics x speed uses tailwind uses reflect uses ominous wind on mamoswine uses psychic on mamoswine(bouquet badge) CRjpNhX4 < 10 all stats +1
gallade was sent out! + damage from stealth rocks focus badge mimics x spatk uses leaf blade on mamoswine uses safeguard uses double team (bouquet badge) uses night slash on spiritomb
zoroark was sent out! + damage from stealth rocks focus badge mimics x atk uses night slash on mamoswine uses night daze on mamoswine uses hone claws
Something dark claws at his chest and overcomes him, because only the humans of this disgusting world can be to blame for what they have brought upon themselves. It's this sort of behavior that the scourge seek to eliminate, and in their path, they take down innocents who have done no more than exist, the pure that lie buried beneath layers and layers of filth.
He doesn't like to think about Decima Town - not now, not ever -, but there is something about this place that makes him feel like he's back home again, struggling to belong and survive in a place where he's unwanted, except he's alone, this time.
The Spiritomb is not a living, breathing creature that he can sympathize with. It attacks without his consent and he acts separately, like a pair of disjointed beings that fight for a common cause(and isn't that what they are?).
Ethan tilts his head at the new presence, one that he feels before seeing. Lifts up a hand and waves, regardless of whether she sees or not. He doesn't smile.
spiritomb hit by fusion bolt + dark void spiritomb dodges night slash spiritomb fell asleep! < 50 wake up spiritomb used sleep talk - ominous wind on gardevoir spiritomb used sleep talk - dark pulse on arcanine spiritomb used sleep talk - rest, but it fails! < 50 wake up
ethan draws electric sign - flash at gallade ethan learns regice sign
the tailwind's gust is the first thing that alerts karimi to the presence of another. she glances backwards, her face full of surprise at the boy with the vaccinated xatu before giving him a smile. "thanks!" she doesn't know if the tailwind was meant to help her or not, but it's helping. that's all that really matters.
"hey, is this your first rodeo?" the researcher part of karimi feels obliged to know so that she may better plan their strategy. the big-sister part of her is more concerned about his nerves.
karimi takes spiritomb's entry
eelectross uses hp boost eelectross dodges will o wisp
eelectross uses flash cannon + acc buff on mamoswine eelectross uses fusion bolt on spiritomb
arcanine dodges dark pulse arcanine uses heat wave on both enemies arcanine uses fusion flare on mamoswine
gardevoir is hit by omnious wind (no ghost weakness) gardevoir dodges icy wind gardevoir uses moonblast on spiritomb gardevoir uses psychic on mamoswine - physis pays about as much attention to the other agent as she did for yves at pax lake. which is to say, not very much at all aside from a curt nod. it wasn't anything personal. rarey anything was with this particular agent.
she breathes in the dusty air of bacchus and tries to remember how difficult it is to be alive. difficult only meant doable. not impossible.
mamoswine takes a total of 560 base damage of accuracy-boosted attacks from overleveled pokemon before being hit by everything else dear god. that wasn't even accounting for sunny day and stab damage. maybe karimi should have brought out some underleveled pokemon. fuck i should have thought of this sooner.
mamoswine goes into bloodrage mamoswine uses icy wind at xatu and gallade mamoswine uses ice fang at xatu mamoswine uses ancientpower on xatu mamoswine uses scary face on gardevoir
physis draws poison sign - toxic on arcanine physis draws cobalion sign - metal burst on eelectross
citrus (sorry i deleted and reposted bc i thought i did something wrong)
She smiles, and he lifts up a corner of his lip in a weak attempt to reciprocate. That type of emotion doesn't have a place in this situation. It's what he wants to point out, but her strength is the real, and he's long since learned that evidence of it is all that really matters. "It's helpful to have around." Is what he settles for in the end, nodding his head once.
"Second. First time against them, though." He inclines his head towards the - what were they called again? - agents and doesn't bother repeating the question back to her. It'll only serve to make him look stupid.
The exchange does absolutely nothing for his tension, which only heightens as the battle goes on.
xatu uses hp boost uses protect uses ominous wind on spiritomb uses psychic on spiritomb AfYw1NUm < 10 all stats +1
gallade evades icy wind(double team boost) dodges flash uses psycho cut on spiritomb uses night slash on spiritomb
zoroark uses night slash on spiritomb (acc boosted) uses night daze on spiritomb uses taunt on spiritomb
The flat line of his mouth splits into a grin. Not at the other agent's gesture, nothing like that - he smiles because what spiritomb is experiencing is all that it deserves and more, which in itself is a rare event.
The last wave of attacks is absolutely devestating - Azazel gives a loud shriek before retreating back into its base. As it falls to the ground, Ethan catches it, the beginnings of a pout starting to form on his face. That wasn't too much fun. He doesn't feel too bad for Azazel, though. The pokemon will be awake and fine in a couple of minutes, perhaps less, if they're lucky.
Nevertheless, retreat lurks around the corner, and he sees no need for it to take him by surprise. Ethan grabs his styler and draws the psychic sign that carries them both away with not a trace of their existence left behind.
spiritomb is hit by everything spiritomb faints!
ethan draws psychic sign - teleport
toska do we both get a random sign at the end of this thread?
?
"into the darkness they go, the wise and the lovely."
eelectross couldn't dodge the metal burst and faints. goddamn that's like... over a thousand points of base damage. fuck, he's going to need some serious care.
karimi watches the two agents draw the teleport sign and escape from bacchus gym. she grits her teeth, knowing that she can do nothing. well. bacchus gym stands for another day. that's certainly something.
the damage wasn't pretty. she walks over to recover her poor eelectross into his pokeball. "how unlucky!" she moans to no one in particular. at least she knows that her starter pokemon will probably forget her for her poor planning. then again, it was hard to predict that the agent would have such a trick up their sleeve. "ehehe, i'm sorry that you had to see that!" camus had been even squishier than usual after the last hit. "are you alright? are your pokemon alright?"
They both disappear as quickly as they come, lingering cold air and the damage from their attacks as the only sign of their existence in the first place. Xatu raises its wings and tries to pinpoint, but he knows about teleport, should know more than enough from personal experience, tapping on a feather and jerking his head negative. Gallade and Zoroark stare at him, and he recalls them back into their pokeballs, one by one.
He walks over to the other girl, drawn by the one other thing that the woman managed to leave behind. "I've seen worse." He shrugs his shoulders and ignores the distinct flip that his stomach makes in response to the one, brief look he managed to salvage before the pokemon is recalled. "They're fine." Xatu spreads its wings to affirm, nodding at Karimi briefly. "Shouldn't you be more worried about your own?"
'We appreciate the assistance.' Jayden gives the avian a curious look, and Xatu's only response is to fold its wings and stare back, steadily.
"nope! camus is my starter." she glances at the eelectross before recalling him back into his pokeball. "i'd know exactly what he can and can't handle - we've been together for so long! he'll be fine after a trip to the center!" that, and she's a researcher. all her work was funneled into understanding what pokemon were and weren't capable of. the gardevoir and arcanine don't look too perturbed either.
heal pulse didn't work on unconscious pokemon, but it would definately work on xatu's ancientpower wounds. mary gathers her focus and knits the wounds together like a sewing machine.
"hey, you're welcome! tailwind helped us out tons too!" she chirps at the xatu. citrus
Her cheer in a situation like this should be disturbing, but it's not. Jayden nods and doesn't opt to comment further - it's her pokemon, after all, and her starter, at that. She knows her pokemon best, not him, a complete stranger. He'd like to think that he knows his own starter just as well, but does he really? Has he learned as much as he wants to learn in order to understand the avian that stands next to him?
"Thanks." Xatu inclines its head and echoes him, the words ringing in both his and the other girl's head. "Do they need it, too?" He stuffs his hands in his pockets and resurfaces with gallade's pokeball, grasping the sphere loosely in his open palm.
cheer was about as natural on karimi as grace was to a queen. she drapes it over herself like a cloak, and it hides her deadly claws and fangs, renders her approachable. safe. and she is - just not to the scourge.
"maybe! stealth rock isn't so rough on fighting type pokemon, actually. it's pretty lucky that your xatu was already out!" she inclines her head a bit. "not something that i'd usually recommend - it seems that the scourge aren't usually inclined to attck unless they sense non-hadean pokemon. that's why there's so many trainers walking around nowadays without their pokemon out. i'm a researcher by the way!" citrus
the scourge mamoswine picks at the bones of the dead. physis picks at the souls of the living. that's how it's always been. that is how things will be. 
