Pokemon in Space [IC Chapter #03]

[Yours Truly]

Radovan gave Zeta a quick thumbs up using his right hand before he slowly start to point at the odd tag hanging from her left hand. "You look like you were meant for this job to be honest, also you should probably remove that tag".

Radovan would wave at Mason before saying "You've got it boss" and climbing in the back seat to claim the spot closest to the roadside window for himself. He would then wave at Zeta again before he tried to get her to sit close to him by making a series of movements with his hands that absolutely no one would recognize. It took a while before he gave up and simply said "Would you like to sit next to me Zeta?".

[Bfroger6]

Zeta smiled at Kalva, holding her hands together joyfully. She even blushed slightly. "T-thank you! It's a uniform? I-I was wondering about that small white screen you all carry!" She pointed at his A-Comm. "I'll be getting that too! I can't wait!"

 

She turned to Radovan with a slight confusion in her look. "Tag? It's my pouch. I carry Star Pieces in it." She tells it matter-of-factly before sitting next to the boy. "I would love to! Hehe, it's so fun driving around!" The doors of the vehicle close after you enter and Mason starts the car without a word.

 

Music: Fading to White

 

As much as Rob had been talkative, Mason is comparable to a brick wall how little he spoke-which was nothing. The whole journey went without a word and before you knew it, you were ascending the elevator in the HQ, arriving at one of the highers floors where you were welcomed by none other than Betani and her Steenee, as well as a man familiar to Emm and Kalva.

 

Music: Miss B. Pretty

 

"Gosh you're so damn slow. Hurry up already, I wanna get to the bottom of this nonsense." The girl exclaims the moment she sees you. As she does so, she also pushes the larger man away in annoyance, not wasting any time before rushing down the hall and towards the flight deck.

 

Mason nods to the other and leaves without a word. Terrence only sighs and smiles meekly. "She doesn't like me, but I'm still coming with ya'll. My name's Terrence and my Clefairy and I are here to make sure you stay safe. We should get moving to the Drill soon too. I bet ya'll have already heard what the mission is about. We're to find and entrance to the tunnels beneath #08's surface. You guys have already been there and young missy here apparently grew up there. I bet we'll find something."

 

[Betani and Terrence have joined the party as support NPCs]

 

Terrence escorts you to the Nexus Drill, where Betani is already busy buckling herself up. She'd apparently called Nee back to her Aether Ball, because the Steenee is nowhere to be seen. The girl looks at you in frustration. "What are you waiting for. Move over here and get ready to fly."

[DemICE]

Cathode was still adjusting to the sudden changes that had taken place in what felt like a much shorter time than she was prepared for.  One moment they were having breakfast with visitors and the next she was running to recall Suzie, get in a car, get shouted at by unexpectedly frustrated people, and getting herself once again ushered into another vehicle.

 

"I-I understand that there was a discovery, but so much haste and upsetting is a b-bit...."

 

She also couldn't help being scared of the unknown machoke-like man  even tho he seemed quite laid back.  Also.. him? With a clefairy? The idea was comical.

 

 

[Bfroger6]

You board the Nexus Drill and it flies you to #08 without much issue. You step out and realize you've landed near where Zeta's house was, except now, Space Aether Employees walk in and out of it, carrying samples of the soil and crystals and water.

 

Music: Suspended Flow

Zeta smiles.

"Don't worry, miss Lady Haether asked me for permission before doing this~!" The girl hops around and stands in front of you. Terry and Betani wave to the other Employees before addressing you.

 

"Yes we're being hasty but that's only because this Nexus might pose a big problem to Space Aether if left unckecked, Miss...Granazia." Betani had to check in her A-Comm for the girl's name. Terry sighed at this but only crossed his arms without saying anything. "We need to locate its core and neutralize it, and that's what we need Zeta and you for. This'll be a routine mission-all you need to do is find the entrance to the underground. After that, the actual professionals will take it from there." Betani waltzes off towards the way downhill. Terry looks at you.

 

"I'm sorry for her behaviour. I've personally taken my time to read all your files and learn all your names by heart." The man says. "We should, however, follow along. Miss Zeta, would you lead the way? Tell us anything you know?"

 

"Sure! Let's see...Father told me of the underground mines. Apparently they're all made of Star Pieces! But the way down......the crystals are too hard to dig through...and uhm...do you guys have any idea?" The girl turns to you instead, looking for answers.

 

#08 - Floor Zero/The Crystal Forest

Red dot - party's position

 

Gold dot - Zeta's house

Brown dot - Patrat lair

Blue dot - Wishing Well

 

Green Interest Points - can be interacted with

 

[DUNGEON TRAVERSAL - choose an Interest Point to travel to]

! - fights

!! - difficult fights

? - ???

X - quests

Edited September 20, 2017 by Bfroger6

[InnocentSerenity]

“Ah, it still looks as beautiful as it did yesterday!” Kai jumped off the ship’s ramp, her head bobbing to the sides as she looked over at the beautiful trees. Perhaps before they head back home, she could find some saplings she could bring back. Maybe Zeta had some back home that she could bring over.

 

“Anything else we should do before heading out?” She approached Betani, keeping her distance from Terry. She recognized the man from some letters to her mother, and for whatever reason Blake had told her to keep away from him. It's a shame, since he seemed quite intrigued by the Mechamon she made.

 

Travel to Quest Point

[Bfroger6]

KAI (QUEST - ???)

As Kai waltzes around, she takes notice of the Exeggutor next to the house. There's a Space Aether Employee standing under it, looking up at its form. Kai would also notice it's swaying slightly. Betani, prompted by Kai's question, joins the scene as well.

"We have done all the preparations. Besides, what're you doing, I won't stand for you taking your time doing whatever you want when we're on an important mission." The girl notices the Exeggutor as well. "And what's this all supposed to mean!?"

 

"U-uhm. It looks sad." The Employee joins the conversation. "It started swaying yesterday and hasn't stopped since. It's groaning from now and then too. I wonder what happened..."

 

"Oh, uhm, Kai?" Zeta approaches Kai from behind and tugs at her uniform. "I think it lost something precious to it." She chimes in.

 

[QUEST DETAILS SECRET - Explorer Lv 1 required]

Edited September 20, 2017 by Bfroger6

[IntSys]

"The crystals are too hard to dig through, but I know a place where we can dig through - the forest! The ground was soft and swampy there, and there was even a little spring at the clearing. We can dig down from there!" Emmanuel pointed south. He lead the way enthusiastically, wasting no time.

[Yours Truly]

Radovan yelled out "Wait! Don't go out aloonneeee" before chased after Emmanuel with his Larvitar's Aetherball in hand and ready to release its dangerous contents at a moment's notice. When they eventually arrived at the spot that Emmanuel was babbling about he would immediately release his Larvitar before performing the well known and respected family tradition of making somebody else do the hard work for you by ordering it to dig down into the ground.

[Daniel Blackworth]

"This place simply looks marvelous." Frederick muttered as he observed the unique environment of Nexus #08. The crystal forest in the Nexus was already a place he regarded as interesting when he first visited the Nexus after joining the Rescue Party, but observing the trees more closely in this second visit made him respect the forest more. This Nexus was definitely a place he was willing to explore.

Frederick followed Kai as she approached the Space Aether Employees. "Is there a task I can be of help with?" He asked as he noticed that there seemed to be a problem with an Exeggutor.

Travel to Quest Point

[Bfroger6]

FREDERICK, KAI (QUEST - Downhill Omelette)

 

Frederick would join Kai, and the group already there would inform him of the worrying problematics with the Exeggutor. Frederick would be able to see small, clearly Pokemon tracks, alongside a fair amount of tracks that looked like something was rolled on the ground. An untrained eye would hardly notice these as out of the norm, but Frederick would be able to conclude that they're not supposed to be there. The tracks lead east towards the path ravaged by Meggie the last time the group had been there.

 

"So there are Pokemon tracks? Which way do they lead?"

"This is a waste of time."

"U-uhm...I'll just be here..."

 

[The Quest has begun. The Map has been updated.]

 

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

EMM, RADOVAN (MISSION)

 

Emm and Radovan and whoever else wishes to join them move towards the woodland. However, what they didn't expect or predict was the rate by which the trees have been sprouting and growing while they were gone.

 

"Hmmm..." Terry sighs, knocking his knuckles against the trees. The echo resounds ominously, sounding more like rock than bark. And indeed they were now closer to stone than anything else. These trees completely obstruct your way forward, intertwining their strong, now almost rock-hard barks with the crystal trees to the side of the road, making an impenetrable wall. Their treetops have started going translucent and emanate a slight glow, akin to the crystalline trees, whilst their leaves began falling out, gathering in rotten piles underneath them. "Maybe we should've asked the guys here first...Your idea was sound, Emmanuel, but the influence of the Nexus seems to have bent the smaller Nexuses that merged with it. I doubt we'll be able to traverse further this road, and the soil beneath us is still rocky. There's also no guarantee the mud had held up, judging by how these trees look."

 

[MISSION DETAILS - requires Explorer Lv1]

Edited September 21, 2017 by Bfroger6

[DemICE]

Cathode spent a long time simply marveling on the almost magical vibe the new environment was giving.  The prospect of a cave full of star pieces further enhanced that vibe.

 

She was pretty concerned on the exeggutor's state, and hoped they would find what that precious item to it was, or at least a hint about it. 

If the task involved digging, at least she had just the right partner for that. After the special precision exercises she would also be causing much less damage to the environment around the digging place.

It seemed though that this aforementioned digging place didn't want to be found, and now a fence of petrified trees (seriously?) was standing firm in their way. 

 

"T-his is so confusing, even if the trees was petrified... how did you guys traverse this forest last time? There should be an opening. Or d-don't you tell me you just squeezed yourselves among the previously-more-elastic leaves and branches?"

Last case was bad because it meant finding another way would be problematic.

 

"In any case..." she started as she pressed the luxury ball's release machanism, "I need a high ground Suzie please?"

The rock snake could sense the tension in the atmosphere, and lowered her head for Cathode to climb on without much delay. The girl would explain later anyway.

As more of the segmented rocky form was uncurling to create more artificial height, she figured others might also be able to notice something from up there that her eyes would miss.

 

She turmed to Betani Kai and Frederick "If anyone else want to come up to get a look too, Suzie can lift you up here with her tail. S-sorry for not thinking about it earlier!"  

By now she had reached over the treetops, so she raised her glance back up to see the view that would unfold before her.

 

 

Edited September 22, 2017 by DemICE

[Daniel Blackworth]

 

"Something feels amiss here." Frederick mutters as he observes the tracks apparently left by some Pokemon on the ground nearby where he was standing. "Mhm... It appears to lead us to the east." He continues as he glances at the general direction of the east. This direction would probably lead them to a point of interest.

Frederick heard Cathode's voice as she told the group that she was ready to assist anyone desiring to get a ride from her Pokemon, Suzie. "I would prefer not to look at the view from above as it takes a partial amount of the surprise, but what is it that you observe from above?" He asked the younger girl calmly.

Travel to Point of Interest (First)

[IntSys]

"Wait... Where did the Kakuna go? They were here when we were here last time, and the corruption couldn't have possibly influenced living beings. Poochy here's enough of a living proof for that," Emmanuel pondered, observing his surroundings, "there must still be areas left for them to migrate."

 

He looked up, watching as Cathode climbed up her Onix. "Cathode, do you see a second path leading to the clearing past the trees? And, do you see any bit of green up there?"

[LucidRain]

Kalva waved hello to Terry as he caught up with Emm and Radovan. Though he had wanted to stay for the exeggutor that looked like something was wrong, he saw that Fredrick had already been in the process; he trusted Fredrick to take care of the exeggutor's predicament. Quina, released as soon as Kalva reached an area where he could use Aether Balls, sat in Kalva's hoodie.

He looked upon the trees in amazement, but not without a dash of worrying curiosity. These trees were beautiful, and they had already seen the effects of what these crystals were capable of. But did the crystallising hurt the trees? Was this alien metamorphosis simply an adaptation to the new nexus, or was it some vile parasite that fed upon life and stood in its place, masquerading as what used to be? He hoped that it would not be the latter, though they wouldn't know for sure until they reached the core.  

 

As Terry looked upon the path ahead with worry, Kalva looked up at the trees, looking for the best way forward. He probably could make a little ways through, but going directly through the crystallising trees would both be difficult and dangerous. Climbing the trees was also an option, but Kalva doubted someone of Terry's stature, could be held by the branches. In fact, Kalva wasn't sure the branches could even support himself. Normal trees, he trusted to hold him up when he climbed. But these new crystal trees, he didn't know for sure. As far as he saw, he couldn't see a clear cut trail that signed a Pokemon's tracks. He needed to see what was up there, then. Above the canopy. He needed height.

 

He got his answer in the form of Suzie towering above them, Cathode riding up on her head. He waved to Suzie and Cathode, hoping for a ride up.

Wow! Suzie sure is tall...it must have been really good, getting to have great views up there.

 

[Yours Truly]

Radovan did not leap at the chance to literally look down on almo-basically everyone as that would probably hurt a whole damn lot on this hard soil. But he did wave excitedly at Cathode before yelling out "Hey! May I ask you to ask your Onyx to lift me up there as well? Because that seems really cool".

[InnocentSerenity]

 

“Zeta, go follow the main group.” Kai walked to the girl before pointing towards Emmanuel and Radovan. “They probably need you with them to find the caves.” She left the girl on her own, trusting the others to take care of her well enough.

 

"There were some simple pathways in the woods, probably made by Pokémon." Kai spoke to the small girl as Cathode climbed onto the giant rock snake. “Plus a Gabite apparently tore through the woods and left us with that pathway right there.” Kai pointed over to the clearing Frederick was making his way to.

 

“I’m with Frederick, though.” Kai jumped towards the boy, wanting to follow close behind him as backup. “The surprise is the most fun part of the journey.” Without a care for whatever danger she’d put herself in with that decision, she gave a twirl as she followed behind Frederick. Before getting to far, she looked back over her shoulder at Cathode. “Keep an eye on us, though. If something happens, that big Onix can probably do great against some scary Pokémon.”

 

Follow Frederick to the closest Point of Interest

[DemICE]

"You heard the boys Suzie, if you would be so kind..."

Suzie simply brought her tail near them so that they can use the last segment as a lift while holding on to the next one.

[DragonRage]

Taylor decides to ask around among the Aether employees.  He wants to know what kinds of Pokemon have been seen in each of the directions groups seem to be heading in.  He'll gladly help one of them as best he can, but he's looking to expand his team and wants to know what his options are.

[Bfroger6]

[The Party has split up; the upper red dot is Group 1; the lower red dot is Group 2]

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

GROUP 1 (KAI, FREDERICK)

*NPCs at the scene: Betani, Employee*

"Sure, Kai! I'll go help the others while you help Exeggutor!" Zeta's voice is full of vigor as she waves to Kai and Betani, running off towards the Wishing Well and Emmanuel's group.

 

[Zeta has left Group 1 and joined Group 2]

 

"Where are you rushing off to!?" Betani screams after Frederick and Kai, but follows them anyways, giving no attention to Zeta splitting up from the group except from a disgruntled frown she sends in the young girl's direction. The Employee follows as well, throtting behind with his A-Comm in hand.

What the group finds at the end of the tracks is a set of six eggs. The Space Aether Employee raises his A-Comm and yelps. "I-it's an Exeggcute!" He places his hand over his mouth while Betani sighs annoyedly. "You idiot, it's unconcious. What're you even worried about?"

And truth be told, the Exeggcute was knocked out, its eggs all rolled to the side, eyes closed. "God, you non-Cadet personnel are useless. You don't know a damn about Pokemon. I haven't got a clue why you're even sticking with us while we're going about the place. But wait...if they're knocked out...then...ggggh, everyone, watch out!"

 

Roll: 4

YOU'VE BEEN AMBUSHED! INITIATING WILD BATTLE!

[Betani and Nee are supporting you!]

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The two Crabrawler jump out of the trees at you, swinging their crabby fists in your direction. Immediately reacting to them, you call upon your partners and Betani does too. Your Pokemon block the attacks, but not without suffering some damage from the unexpected assault.

 

Action: ambush on Nee, Theodore and Anté (100 Power/halved 50)

 

Nee suffered 30 dmg

Theodore suffered 20 dmg

Anté suffered 40 dmg

...

 

The two Crabrawler land in between the unconcious Exeggcute and you, staring you down with fearsome glimmer in their eyes. They're not gonna let you take their prey. Although, you can see a hint of hesitation in them. This environment is new to them, and they're probably not yet acclimated to the fact they don't need to eat anything here. This confusion shows on them as they do not yet realize what's going on.

 

Betani wastes no time as she commands Nee to rush forwards against the two Pokemon, jumping between them and spinning, releasing translucent leaves from underneath her fruity body at the one to the left, enveloping it in a flurry it couldn't escape.

 

"I'm not wasting my time with you!"

 

Nee Action: Magical Leaf on Crabrawler 1 (102 Power)

Spoiler

 

Crabrawler 1 hit roll: /

 

Crabrawler 1 crit roll: 2.5/100 CRIT!!!

 

 

Crabrawler  was completely overwhelmed and falls on the back of its shell. The other Crabrawler starts panicking as it looks at Kai's Shinx and Betani's Steenee, while Nee jumps back down to her team's side.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

...

Nee (♀), Lv: 15

HP (81/111): ####################

Atk: 46

Def: 50

SpA: 50

SpD: 55

Spe: 71

Nature: Mild (+SpA/-Def)

Ability: Sweet Veil

EP: /

Moves: Stomp (85 Power), Magical Leaf (110 Power), Play Nice, Synthesis

 

------------------------------------------------------------

 

Turn Order (AMBUSH!): Crabrawler 1 -> Crabrawler 2 -> Betani (Nee) -> Frederick (Theodore) -> Kai (Anté)

 

Music: En Route

Crabrawler 1 (♀), Lv: 10

HP (0/98): ####################

ATK: 90

DEF: 62

SP.ATK: 46

SP.DEF: 46

SPE: 69

Nature: /

Ability: Anger Point

Moves: ---

 

Crabrawler 2 (♂), Lv: 10

HP (98/98): ####################

ATK: 90

DEF: 62

SP.ATK: 46

SP.DEF: 46

SPE: 69

Nature: /

Ability: Iron Fist

Moves: Rock Smash (100 Power)

 

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

GROUP 2 (EMM, RADOVAN, KALVA, CATHODE)

*NPCs at the scene: Terry, Zeta*

"You're right. If we find the Pokemon, we'll find the right way." Terry nods to Emmanuel, just as Cathode, Kalva and Zeta arrive, along with Suzie.

 

From high up, Cathode sees the clearing. It's located not to far away, a haven of greenery in an endless sea of unnatural glow of the crystalline trees. She has trouble seeing any paths at all leading there except what appears to be a giant rock to the side of the location. What she also found out was that the location they were headed to hasn't yet been affected by the Nexus, so they were good on that side. Kalva, on the other hand, notices something out of the ordinary. In the corner of his eye, deep among the glow of the trees to the side, he notices a different kind of glow. It's fairly unnoticable, what with everything else glowing as well, but it's very clearly there, and it's alive, unlike everything else of this world. And merely looking at it is enough to make Kalva slightly drowsy, as would any other being glancing at them feel.

 

A colony of glowing mushrooms adorn the crystalline trees to the side, masking themselves in their light as they feed upon the life energy surging through their cores. Their roots have made the crystals frail as they fed on their energy, easily crushing them. The trees to the side seem easily breakable, and surely Suzie would be able to clear a path. These mushrooms, though, are Pokemon...and crushing Pokemon was out of question. So...the group had to figure out a way to get them to move? They appeared content sucking on the trees' energy...

 

[How will Group 2 proceed?]

Edited September 22, 2017 by Bfroger6

[Bfroger6]

TAYLOR

 

Taylor asks around and one of the Aether Employees leads him inside to where they've pretty much cleared out all the furniture and moved it god knows where, leaving only the walls, and replaced it with various apparatures that looked like machines used for testing stuff and whatnot. On one wall, a map of the Nexus dungeon was projected.

 

"The variety of Pokemon found in the Nexus has drastically increased when it merged with the Micro Grid. As such there's no certain way to tell what Pokemon are where, but generally speaking the area around us has been merged specifically with a tropical Micro Nexus, so you could expect water type Pokemon that don't require bodies of water around them at all times like Wingull and Crabrawler around here. And the way the rest of your friends went, there was a woodland Nexus that merged, so Bug and Grass types are prevalent in that direction, like Weedles and Oddishes."

[DragonRage]

Taylor heads off after group 2, soon reaching the place where they stare stumped at the mushroom Pokemon-infested area.  After a few moments of contemplation, Taylor marches up to the mushrooms, careful to stay out of what he's pretty sure is maximum spore-throwing range, and calls out to them.  "Hello there!  I am Taylor.  It is a pleasure to meet you.  I wonder if you might be persuaded to relocate?  You seem to have sapped much of the available sustenance from this area, and we would be happy to help relocate you to a place with more abundant food."

[Daniel Blackworth]

Crabrawler, the Boxing Pokemon - While guarding its weak points with its pincers, it looks for an opening and unleashes punches. When it loses, it foams at the mouth and faints. Frederick thought as he remembered what he learned from his time in the Aether Space Academy. This Pokemon was obviously a Fighting type, similar to his Theodore, and from what he saw, it looked eager to attack them after they appeared to have interfered with its plans for dinner. He noticed a glint of reluctance in their eyes momentarily, but he took no heed of it as it disappeared almost instantateously.

"I choose you, Theodore." Frederick announced as he released the Aether Ball containing his dear Stufful. Stufful looked at Frederick with eager eyes after resurfacing in the ground of Nexus #08. He appeared to understand what he was supposed to do, what with the seemingly aggressive Crabrawler staring down at the party. "I shall not let you continue with what you are doing. Theodore, use Tackle on the Crabrawler." Frederick told his Stufful. Theodore immediately launched himself from the ground, and charged the Crabrawler. He assaulted the Crabrawler with a Full Body Attack, one with intense passion and determination.

Theodore Action: Tackle on Crabrawler [72 Power]

[InnocentSerenity]

 

Kai let out a silent gasp as the Crabrawlers came towards them. Without leaving a moment, she swung her arm to take the Aether Ball from her belt. “Anté, give it your best!” She threw the Ball some distance between her and the Crabrawler coming in her direction, spinning on its axis before releasing the blue feline. As the creature took a hit, he was pushed backwards closer to Kai.

 

“Sorry fella, no time to relax.” Kai looked over to her side to find the first Crabrawler swiftly fainted by Betani’s Steenee. Kai would’ve given her a cheer if they hadn’t been ambushed. Something for her to do later. “Alright, let’s go.”

 

“Tackle and finish it off!” Kai pointed towards the last crab creature, having already positioned himself near the Exeguttor. Anté quickly following that direction with as much speed as his legs could give him. Before making contact, the creature jumped into the air as he braced himself for the collision with the sturdy creature.

 

Anté Action: Tackle on Crabrawler 2 (67 Power)

[LeonVermillion]

ugggh I really need to start paying attention to this mission... as he sighed after being very quite in group 2 no one probably realize he's there

 

Sena observe that the other is already on top of the new girl's Onix, trying to find their way on their surrounding, "Hey! you guys up there! What are you guys seeing up there? Should I ask Verna to fly around the place?" he shouted to them.

[DemICE]

Cathode, seeing as Taylor had already taken action in dealing (albeit with a pretty unexpected way) with the mushroom 'mons  that she remembered from the depths of her knowledge being called  Morelull,  brought her attention back to that notable rock. 

 

On hearing Sena asking them what they see (how could she not notice him till now?) she tried to describe:

"There is an important-looking rock in the distance, around which the forest seems to resist the crystallization process"

Then, referring to everyone, she added:

"M-maybe we should break through the trees to go to that stone there? I think we might find a clue of how this situation can be reversed..."

 

Seeing as the cute 'lulls were in the way if anyone tried to go straight ahead,  she felt happy Suzie was a sizable ground type.

 

"I think it's time to get down guys..."  On cue, their rocky platform started lowering till it touched the ground,  so that they could easily jump down.

 

"After we get down, please start digging a hole starting from there-" she pointed a spot a little more ahead, yet still pretty far from the shrooms "-and emerge at an about same distance behind from the pokemon in front of us. Can you do that Suz?"

Her partner acknowledged the request and patiently waited till everyone got off her so she can get to work.  The tunnel dug from an onix should be big enough for them to enter and bypass the living obstacle without needing to harm the little fairies,  in case Taylor's negotiations failed.

 

 

 

Edited September 23, 2017 by DemICE