Re: ¤Game¤ Dragon Tamers Battle Range v.24
That's a BAD VB! Not posting my post!
Here's part 1 of Book 2
Today
The emergence of the sun over the horizon was never a sight to be missed by the habitual photosynthesizer. With a fragrant aroma wafting from its cup, and its body squarely planted against a wall facing the outside world; Mossy seemed to be at peace with the world. The suns' rays peeled across the horizon, causing the ocean to glisten. The sounds of early morning feeders were overhead, their cries animating the mornings' silent arrival. The swiveling dais of light swept across the ocean, possibly on one of its last revolutions. Fish swam in a scattered school as Wingulls dove from above to scoop up a meal. Hissing in the distance, Mossy watched as a slithering creature shot across the rocky coast, possibly woken up from the tide's chilling touch. He leaned over a bit, to get a better look at the ground below, to spy that helpful fellow Jake leaving the lighthouse, and heading toward the open sea.
The morning was invigorating to his body, as he stretched out during his walk. Wiggling his fingers as he kept his hands above his head, Jake quietly scaled a few of the rocky outcrops proliferating the coast of the lighthouse. Once he found a perch he was content with, he sat there, one knee pulled up to his chest so his chin could rest upon it. His thoughts were not as quiet, as he began to review everything that happened in the last week. It all started when those Pokemon came to the door of the lighthouse. In no time at all, he remembered finding that boy, having him brought into the lighthouse and putting him in a bed to rest.
Then that little lizard, she found a pie. Of all things, this started because he wanted to know where a pie came from! He audibly laughed about that fact, before staring out at the sea blankly. His thoughts scattered though the fragments of memory he still held onto about the hours that followed. The exploration and utter decimation of his body by the powers of a beast he had never laid eyes on before. The Pokemon that came from somewhere across the sea; they tried their best, and were almost overwhelmed until they started acting like a team. Then bearing witness to that secret passageway, it opened up into a massive catacomb with a relic inside that was claimed by a sea creature of sorts! It was just too surreal!
He rotated his shoulder, still feeling how sore it was after those hits he received. Relaxing again, the man lazily looked around, feeling that his presence was not the sole one around. His instincts were right, as footsteps came up behind him. He didn't recognize them, and that left him with one answer.
"Back from training with the lady, are ya?" he coyly stated, as the birchwood vested fellow slowly climbed up on an adjacent rock. Perching at the precipice of the stone, Rapp stared out over the water, visibly exhausted.
"Yes. That was good though. I'm glad to have taken the time to finally sit with them and actually help in their fighting abilities. With me down and incapacitated, they should not be so limited. Its more so my fault, we've been running through the world so fast, and they're still so young..."
"I told you before, earlier today. You could not have known, so stop beating yourself over it. Your group is glad you are back. Heck, they're more excited to be around you than I've seen anyone about anything in a long time. You been gone with each one for a whole day-sans the grass one who doesn't seem to have much to say."
Rapp lowered his gaze at the mention of Mossy. Things were moving at such an uneven pace that he never really had the chance to talk with Mossy since he woke up 5 days ago...
5 Days ago.
Breathing was a pained labor, and at times, Rapp wanted to quit. He continually rubbed his chest as he lied in the bed, quietly drinking water that was hand fed to him by Mary. Resting his body on the bed, he shook his head in disbelief.
"As I stated before. I woke up here in this strange bed, and aside from yesterday, I do not recall much of what occurred the days before. I--I honestly do no have any recollection of any dais. I've never seen one. Nor do I know any other languages. Unless you call the accent of some of the elders in my village another language, it sure sounds like it." Rapp stopped his speech, and continued to stare up at the ceiling, Johnson looking down at him.
"Well. Your vitals are fine. You don't seem to be hyperaware, I'd say the Awakening is over."
"What "Awakening?"" Rapp inquired, leaning his body up against the back of the bed in order to position himself better. Mary looked to the elder as well, while the Pokemon edged closer, eager to learn more about what the old man was saying.
"Well, when I was but a boy-I was fortunate enough to read much literature on the theories of Ulthuan's existence, about the magic inherent in this land and how it affects the world. It fueled me to learn the health sciences-so I could find a way to meld those realms together. I read of the races that live or lived here on Ulthuan, from dwarves to man. Of course, there was many a section on elven culture, but I bypassed it because-well, how many of you have seen an elf?"
Everyone shook their head in answer in the inquiry.
"They were all wiped out, right?" Mary asked, as Jake now peered into the room from the doorway.
"That is how the story goes. But that would not explain why there is still magic in this world. And if magic does exist in this land, than we must also accept that there are elves. I'm not saying that the cause of the elves is magic, but the two are symbiotic, for with one will appear the other." As he took a break from his own speech, Rapp quickly spoke.
"I don't know about any of this. I think that-before I go any farther, that some education into the past of Ulthuan is necessary." Rapp nodded, while crossing his arms, pleased with his choice of action. "I don't know what I am supposed to be doing anymore. I was first looking for my mom, and now I'm here ready to learn about elves! All In know is that I don't feel like I've been making the smartest choices when it comes to this journey. Maybe-in order to find the answers I seek, taking a detour is necessary."
"Well, I'd like it if someone else was here for a while." Mary chimed. Everyone turned to her, confused as to her intentions. "I realize he needs to recuperate, and these 4 are more than helpful when it comes down to it. Maybe we can help them as much as they could help us. I for one, am curious as to what happened to Mossy that led him to that passageway."
All eyes shifted to the plant, whom was preoccupied; stuffing one of his vines into a small space. Unnoticed, the stares faded into their own paths, and Rapp sighed. "We'll figure that out soon enough. I don't think I'm up for moving much."
"I wouldn't recommend it." At the sound of Jake's voice, the humans in the room turned their heads to the door frame where he stood. Hands were still wrapped around his sides, as he spoke softly.
"Look. We all took a beating down there. The truth of the matter is that something is STILL down there. We knocked it out, and took out the water, but what's stopping it from sliding its way up here and causing damage? I shut the door, but that thing could blast through it if it wanted. We got lucky with numbers, but that may not happen again."
"We can also ask that thing why its there and why did it attack us?"
Mary looked up, as the others scanned the room for the location of the voice.
"Nope, she's not in here everyone. Sue-that's a great idea, but what makes you think it would talk to us?"
There was silence in the air, and everyone pondered the possibility. If it didn't cooperate, they could escape, but sealing it away could only work for so long. Not to mention how long it must have lived down there.
"Not to mention the "woman" that you saw, Jake. This might be a whole different cat in the box."
"Well, the whole thing stinks to high heaven, if you ask me." Jake stated, before storming out. As he stomped down the stairs, the rest could hear him muttering about bad luck and omens of the sea.
"I'm sorry you had to endure that, Rapp. He's usually not like that. It's just been a long few days for us." Rapp shook his head, and looked to Mossy as he spoke. "It's not your fault. For as long as Mossy and I have started this journey, we never tried to take anyone's help for granted, or put anyone in a precarious situation. This goes for you three as well. I tried my best to shield you all from the pressures and dangers of the world-and now I see that's not right. We're going to stay here, as I said. We're going to learn from our mistakes, and we're going to leave a better group than before...that is of course... if you'll have us."
Mary and Johnson nodded, as Rapp slid back down to rest. He kept his eyes closed, a signal for Johnson to start shuffling people out of the room. As the door closed, and the light turned off, Rapp rolled over to his left side, back to the bedroom door. He bit his lower lip and clenched the covers tight, feeling the emotion start to overwhelm him. He buried his head in the pillow, and he stifled the sobs that began to echo from his heart. In one day, he felt his world go from supremely small and manageable, to supremely large and overwhelming-and he did not know how to react to it. His body began to shake, and his sobs grew in volume.
"Grandma, why did you send me on this journey? I didn't want to leave. I didn't want to learn any of this. I'm not an elf, so why does this matter? What does this all mean? I'm scared...and I'm lost and I'm confused and..." The questions stopped, replaced only by deep sounds too hard to distinguish from yells or cries.
Outside the bedroom near to the staircase, Mossy stood silently. He had stepped aside when ushered out and was passed by everyone except Johnson. The others made their way downstairs, obviously tired from their escape. Mossy and Johnson stared at each other, then to the shut door down the hall from them.
"Don't worry about him too much, Mossy." Johnson said, as he knelt down. "This is going to be a trying time for you and him. Give him time, and he will serve you better, as you have come to serve him." The planimal stared at him, unsure whether to run past and push the door open and snuggle with Rapp, or to stay his ground and let his friend deal with these demons alone. In the end, Mossy turned and headed down the stairs. Hearing Rapp's cries made it too hard for even him to be around. Johnson kept a solemn face as he closed the hallway door, sealing Rapp from the world just for a little while longer.
"I'll be heading to the Tower of Hoeth tomorrow. It will be a work's week before I return. If you and your party are here by the time I return, I shall have knowledge about Ulthuan that I'm sure you will find interesting and useful." Mossy nodded, keeping his pace as he made his way down the stairs. He had to meet with the others to make the best use of their time. Something Rapp had said made sense...and he had an idea on how to help.
3 days ago
Blurred vision was the start to his mornings. A silent yawn came out of his mouth, as his blearyness tried to fade away. Slow motions were always key to him not bumping his round nose into anything painful or cold. Mary made him a bed on the lower level, and he was plenty thankful for receiving his own small slice of comfort. However, this morning, there was nothing but a strange haze of bluish green in front of him. Not to mention a strange rubbing along his backside. He turned, to spy more bluish green haze around him, and he lashed out his tail, curious to see if this was his mind, or if it was real.
The counter strike to his face was real enough, and Wyrm hissed in retaliation. His vision began to sharpen, and the colors melded to that of a greenish hue, the blurs tightening into vines. He leaned back to get a better look at Mossy, whom was sitting no more than 4 inches from his own face.
"Mornin'. Why the vested interest in me?" the serpent noted, slithering backwards so as to reclaim some personal space.
"Because...we have training to accomplish."
Wyrm whipped his head around, to spy Sue floating overhead. She descended to the floor and knelt to be on more of an even keel with the shorter Pokemon. "Mossy and Rapp share a link that is stronger than most bonds between a standard Trainer and Pokemon. They both seem to share the same goals and pursuits. Right now, Rapp wants to train you all so you all will be better equipped for the world, should something befall him and you all are left to your own devices. But, in his own weakened state, he is not ready to do so. So Mossjito has decided to lead the charge, going out with everyone for a set of training exercises."
"He said all that?" Wyrm asked, looking at the plant.
"Haha, no. His expression was all I needed to see in order to make that out."
Wyrm stared at Sue, and then to Mossy again, perplexed. "What kind of expression gave you all of that information?"
"It's not so much the face, as the intensity and emotion that I can sense, being attuned to energy realms within the mind."
Wyrm gave up on understanding Sue, and turned toward Mossy. "So, am I the first?" he asked, curious as to if he was an afterthought or a frontrunner. Mossy nodded, and pointed with one appendage to the door that led outside the lighthouse. Wyrm nodded back, and headed for it. Upon reaching the entrance way, Wyrm coiled up and waited patiently as Mossy and Sue headed to May's sanctuary.
The pair covered the distance to the living area readily, making a beeline for a small set of pillows underneath the windows on the northwest side of the room. There, draped in a baby blue comforter was the female diva, snoring soundly. Mossy relentlessly whipped at her face, startling her out of sleep and forcing her to groggily push her self out of bed. Her face beamed with sleep deprivation, muscles apparently not willing to give a smile. Sue looked to Mossy, but he shook his head. She had to wake up now.
May yawned, and dragged her feet over to where Wyrm was coiled up. She leaned against him and stretched again, Wyrm having to brace his muscles to deal with the added weight. "Well, you aren't a morning person."
May gave him no response. It was possible she had not even heard him, as she teetered and tottered back and forth. Wyrm huffed and looked as Sue floated toward them, reaching the door handle.
"I believe Mossy will meet us there with Zent, since she will be a handful." May groggily followed as Sue opened the door-immediately straightening up as the cool air of the sea slapped her in the face. She stomped her foot and grumbled some incoherent words, before marching into the world. Wyrm followed, shivering a tad as the chill ran through his spine. It was nothing extreme, and within moments he was feeling pretty good about being up right now.
The trio began their march, heading over to a rocky outcropping where Sue pointed toward as they started their trip. It was in full view of the lighthouse, so anyone at the top of the lighthouse could watch their backs if something or someone was to sneak up from the higher caves that existed in the area. May scanned the skyline, spying nothing suspicious. She lolled her head back down and kept marching, still refusing to believe that plant woke her up this early. And for what? The more she thought about it, the more infuriated she got. There was no explanation, and again, he was not around to explain himself. As if he would explain himself, he couldn't even talk!
"UUGH! NO! I'm going back to sleep! There's no reason to--" May's sentence was cut off by a sharp pain to her backside. She fell flat on her face, tongue sprawled out in front of her.
Coughing, she pushed herself up and wiped the sand out of her eyes and mouth. As she turned, Wyrm made sure to get out of the way so she could see the true culprit for that hit.
Mossy stood there, vines spinning. Behind him was the smallest member of their troupe, idly eating sand clumps. Seeing that he had her full attention, Mossy once again swung his whiplike vines, knocking May flat on her back. May rocked back up, and stared at Mossy.
"Why are you hitting me!" she yelled, stamping her foot a third time. Sue backed away and elevated herself onto a rock to watch, as Mossy responded with a third Vine whip that left the girl spinning on her feet. She barely steadied herself, and Wyrm spoke up for her.
"Mossy, what are you getting at? We're here because of you, no need to take out your temperament on her." Mossy looked over to Wyrm, and lightly tapped Zent with his back foot. Zent looked up from her eating, and looked back at Mossy. He nodded, and pointed to Wyrm. All at once, Zent's focus turned from gleeful to adamant, and she roared. Wyrm slithered back a bit, unsure what the heck was going on.
With Wyrm preoccupied, Mossy charged May. Unsure what to think, May raised both hands up and pleaded.
"Mossy! Stop hitting me and te--" Her words were lost in a sea of powder as Mossy propelled a plume of poisonous spores onto her. May coughed and fell to her knees, feeling her muscles tighten up. Instinctively, May curled up and defended herself from the next set of vines that lashed against her back. Mossy felt the musculature change and hid a smirk, she was finally getting serious. He learned how serious, when one of his vines was grabbed by that fabulous tongue. She yanked it back, Mossy hard pressed to wrap another vine around it. She pulled with all her might, but Mossy's strength over the past few weeks had grown to a level she did not take into account. Their tug of war was brief as her body weight did nothing to alleviate the pull that Mossy achieved. She found herself flying toward Mossy, and the plant jumped up as she flew at him. May stared blankly as Mossy slammed down on her chest, standing atop her as if she was one of these rocks on the beach. Coughing, May struggled to get her bearings. This rush of activity had warmed her up, and she was no longer taking this silent approach. If he wanted a fight, he'd get it. She felt a bit under the weather, but that was probably the cold. Her tongue doubled back over Mossy, catching the plant off guard. She made sure to slap him in the face with it as she licked him off. Moss rolled back, and felt his body shiver. Impressed with that move, he made his next move. May rolled over and decided to meet Mossy head on. The two Pokemon met-a collision of energies crackling in the morning air. Sand flew up from their collision, and Mossy landed on his feet, vines raised to his sides. May lied on the ground, patting her head as she forced her self to get up.
"Geez, how strong ARE you?" May asked, as she stood up, flexing again. Mossy knew that her flexing was causing her to deal with the damage he was dealing, but that only allowed him to work harder with her. Finished with her for the moment, he turned to Wyrm, whom was in his own dilemma. As he marched over to Wyrm, May charged at him.
"Oh this is not over between us! Get back here and finish this fight!" She whipped her hand back and slapped him across the top, actually causing him to trip over his feet. As Mossy regained his footing, Wyrm zipped around him and shot himself at Zent. The little girl clapped and stepped sideways a few times, doing that strange dance that seemed to help her movements. But he landed that blow, knocking Zent back. The little girl got back up though, not phased as much as Wyrm would have liked. He growled, unsure why she was not taking as much as she should. That would change, as he watched her dance around again.
"I don't know why you and Mossy are double teaming May and I, but I really have no reason to NOT fight you. You are quite annoying, and you both can't speak." Zent hissed at that remark, standing her ground.
"Pwant beat May! I beat YOU! BEAT BEAT BEAT STINKY SNAKE!"
He cared not for her tantrum, and fired off a thin pulse of electricity. Zent grinned and idly opened her mouth, actually EATING the bolt as it reached her. It worked though her body, seemingly having its effect like it always did, as she stayed still and looked at her body. Wyrm smirked, and slithered closer.
"Can't eat everything Zent. Specially not something that paralyzes you."
Wyrm suddenly found himself in her grasp, and her canines protruded from her mouth in a maniacal manner. She bit down on his side, and did not let go. The pain shot through his body and he squirmed for dear life as she pulled and shook her head. He freaked and cried out, before he was thrown to the side by the little monster. He slithered back from her and looked at his side, now imbued with the indentations of her complete jawline!
"What in the world, why didn't that hur--." His mind swiftly put together exactly what this whole charade was, and he sucked up the pain.
"I get it now. May he--" Before the realization made it to May, the Dratini found himself bound and gagged in vines. Mossy held him up and began to spin in place, dragging Wyrm with him. May was still hot on his heels, but did not see the plan Mossy had in mind until it was too late and there was a blue battering ram in her face. Letting Wyrm go at the right moment made for a collision of pink and blue and sand. The pair stayed down-and Mossy looked to Sue, vines whipping left and right. The Psychic merely pointed behind him and he nodded. Vines slammed into the sand and Mossy floated upward, but felt that he could not get as high as he needed. It worked for now, as Wyrm shot right under him, upset that his speed tackle missed. May however, threw her tongue at the plant in the sky. The pink mass fell short as a pain shot through her back. She winced and saw that Zent had jumped in, biting her tail fervently. Energies turned to the little one, and she swung her fist over her head. Zent looked up, and barely had enough time to back away as the fist pounded hard into the sand-creating a deep indentation of her fingers. May growled, knowing that thing could hurt a lot more if she wasn't ready for external attacks of that sort.
Zent snarled, and lunged again, but May was ready this time. As Zent tried to bite her midsection, her arms rose up and came down atop Zent in a double fisted strike. The sound of fist hitting rock was unmistakeable, but her positioning helped to enhance the power. Zent's face went straight into sand, her body inverted from the norm. With the little girl incapacitated, May turned to her first focus. She coughed again, and pushed away the feelings of sickness.
As she watched, Mossy was making a fool of Wyrm. The snake was fast, as he zipped left and right, but Mossy seemed to know where the snake was going to strike from all the time. It didn't help that Wyrm used the same atta--
"Wyrm, change it up!" She shouted as she ran for Mossy's backside. Wyrm skidded to a stop; breathing hard. He HAD been zipping around way too much, and his foe for the moment wasn't even winded. Why hadn't he thought of that? He turned and instead of using that speed he was known for, he switched gears. Mossy turned and backed up a step so he could see both May and Wyrm at the edges of his vision. May came in first, and he used one vine to wrap around her as she charged in. Her fist slammed into the ground, and tossed up a bevy of sand in front of Mossy. He let her go, making sure to leave a small present on the tip of her tail, as he staggered backward, partially blinded from that hammering miss.
The next hit did not miss. As he was distracted, Wyrm quit playing nice. He opened his mouth and flung out a bevy of flames that scoured the sand it flew across and alighted the viney leader. Mossy jumped up in pain and dashed for the ocean. May and Wyrm gave chase, knowing this was possibly their best chance to take him down. Mossy wasn't faster than Wyrm, and he was counting on it. The Dratini zipped across the sands, eager to put the Tangela down.
May however, slowed up, realizing she would not catch them.
“Even Mossy is faster than me. But I don't know anything that can hit from from way back here.” She realized then her need for something long range, everything she knew was up close. But she also knew Mossy's knack for having tricks up his sleeve. As she watched, the plant stopped and whirled around, as Wyrm slithered past him, aiming to strike from an angle that Mossy could not compensate for.
The ocean put that plan on hold. Wyrm shot out a swift set of flames, only to have them and Mossy be doused by the waves. Wyrm shook off the water, seeing Mossy standing there, grinning? Wyrm didn't understand, as he readied himself to fire off a new set of fire-when suddenly Mossy began to glisten. As May slowly caught up to them, she also witnessed Mossy's near instantaneous healing. She also began to feel light headed, this sickness ripping her energy out of her.\
"What? You can HEAL TOO? How is that fair? How are we supposed to beat something like that?" Wyrm said, before flinging fire at Mossy. This time, Mossy dove and rolled out of the way, before firing off a set of electricity that honed in on May. May saw the incoming blast, and tried to dive out of the way, but the electricity bent and slammed into her midsection. She fell down and wheezed for air, but there was so little left in her.
"No...that's what you did. You poisoned me. You poisoned ME!" She got back up, and heaved, throwing her tongue as far as she could. It flew out to almost three times her body length, barely missing the plant. As she stood there, feeling so slow and bulky from all those strong arm attacks, the pins and needles in her tail came back. She whirled around, to see that Zent was back to biting. She raised her hand again, and then paused. Something else was the culprit, because Zent's bites actually hurt. This was a different feeling, like a..suction! She managed to shake Zent off with a foot instead-and stood on her back to keep her pinned for a moment. May examined her tail again, now noticing something wriggling on it. Sure enough, there was a small vine wrapped on her tail, with a tiny seed on it. She leered at it, before pulling it off and crushing it. The decimation of the link between his seed caused Mossy to pause for a split second. He smirked again, as Wyrm missed a rattail slap with his tail.
"You know far too many moves-I understand the need for this...but I can't say I feel this is anywhere near fair." Wyrm bobbed his head left and right, as Mossy whipped at the snake in retaliation, not giving any quarter. After a minutes of colliding whips and tails, both Pokemon stopped, breathing faster than usual. Just then, May came flying in, pinning Mossy under her weight.
"Now you are going to stay RIGHT UNDER ME until you explain why you are fighting us!" Mossy, caught off guard, fell flat on his face. He used his vines to swipe some sand away so he could see and breathe. Wyrm was moving closer to him, and his mouth was full of fire-nasty, hot, unrelenting, forestkilling fire.
One last gambit. As May lied on him, he watched, and true to his instincts, Zent came roaring up. The little girl managed to spy Wyrm about to set Mossy on fire, and she made a beeline for the snake.
"NO FIRE ON MOTHY!"
"Oh don't worry Zent, this won't hurt you a bit. Can't say the same for Ol' Grassy here!" Wyrm stated, as he raised his head back--and felt a rocky hand shove his head upward and to the left.
The shove caused the Flamethrower to fly wide, Sue watching it shoot off target. Zent grabbed Wyrm's midsection, and laid in for a bite again, but Wyrm wriggled free and Slammed her backwards before slithering behind May.
"She's faster! Is it that weird dance she does?"
"I think so! I never thought about it before, but every time she does it, she can keep up." May replied, as she squirmed to keep Mossy under. With Wyrm preoccupied for the moment, Mossy decided to test out his new move. He kept calm and took the time to remember what the folks in that room told him. To calm down and think of the element, and then let it grow in your body, and the move would come naturally.
Wyrm turned back to Mossy, seeing the plant not struggling anymore. May was visibly sweating, her arms buckling. "Hurry Wyrm! Burn him so we can figure out what is going on!" Obviously, as Wyrm readied a Flamethrower-May did not get what was going on.
"Hrm. Beauty before brains...proven again."
"What? What did you say?" May shouted, loosening her grip on Mossy-exactly what he needed. He shoved himself up, tossing May on her back and swung around to face Wyrm. The Dratini smirked, and just opened his mouth, letting loose a slew of flames. His flamethrower reached Mossy, but the plant began to steam instead of alight! All of a sudden, everything around Wyrm faded to white, and he felt his body freeze over so fast that it felt like it was burned! The cold was excruciating and the Dratini immediately shriveled up into a tight set of coils, to try and endure the strike.
May winced as she barely sat up, spying Mossy's use of his prize for making it to second place in the Tournament. She had heard earlier that he knew a new Ice Move, but she had never saw it. She DID know it tired Mossy out, and true to her knowledge, the plant did seem to breathe heavier from using it. But she also saw that he backed away from Wyrm, telling her that despite his efforts, he wasn't trying to overpower them all.
"You're holding back....this isn't real?! THIS IS YOUR IDEA OF A JOKE?" May was furious. "This your way of showing off? How dare you!" But before she could yell anymore, a final surge of energy left her body, and she fell over, barely able to stand. Zent ran over, eager to sink her teeth into May one last time. However, she received a severe whip to the back from Mossy, and that left her pretty stunted. Wyrm barely raised his head as Mossy kept one vine up, and looked to Sue.
"So. You are the strongest of them-and they managed this long without the little one's Sandstorm-creation. I see." Sue slowly lowered off of the rock and floated over to Wyrm, resting her hands on him. Using her uncanny powers, she was able to restore Wyrm a good size portion of health. The Dratini unfurled, still shivering.
"I--Im--Impressive." was all he managed, before recoiling around himself. Mossy's eyes diverted to May and Zent, as Sue slowly went over and healed each of them of their ills. May stayed lying down for a moment, as Zent hopped up and walked slowly to Mossy. She didn't know what to think for the moment, he hit her once and it hurt...alot.
"Zent do bad? Why Mothy hit her?"
Mossy looked to Sue, and Sue nodded, taking over. "No Zent. You did very well, as far as I can tell. Mossy held back, but I believe that was the point he was trying to make. You three are just as important to Rapp as he is, and he wants any one of you three to be able to take him on. Wyrm and May, I observed this battle to see how well you two could work together, and for the most part, I believe you both saw your shortcomings."
Wyrm nodded, as May still had a look of confusion on her face. "So...this was training? But when are we ever going to have to fight some super strong creatu--oh. Yeah. The thing under the lighthouse. But Mossy we--oh. You were gone. OHHH! To help us!"
Wyrm shook his head, amazed at how long it took her to put that together. "Caught up Blondie? Good."
His face received a comet speed slap, and he went rolling aways down the beach. "Knock it off, Icicle-tini!" she shouted, hand still raised across her chest. "I was asleep! No one has to fight when they're asleep unless they---OH! Oh god Mossy, why couldn't you just say all this. Its too EARLY to train for the unexpected."
Zent looked to May, perplexed. May's lack of finishing sentences left the girl confused as to what she was realizing. Not only that, but no one was fighting anymore. She looked to Sue and Mossy one more time, before turning away and stumbling down the beach toward where Wyrm laid. The glistening rocks-wet from the ocean waves seemed to be her target, unless an unsuspecting mollusk poked its shell out of the sand. It turned to be a seafood smorgasbord for the little lizard.
Wyrm recovered, and slithered past Zent to get back within earshot of the others. Mossy welcomed his return, stepping aside so Wyrm could fit right back into the makeshift circle. Attention turned to Sue, who took a moment to look back at the lighthouse. "We should get back. But I wanted to tell you all that for the moment, your survival is dependant on Mossy more often than not. I can tell he hates having that pressure on him as well. As we learned last night, we need more than to rely on your strongest member."
"No. Not true. We have had our own battles as well. We don't rely on Mossy for everything! We just knew he could help a lot last night."
"Not what she means; May."
May sucked her teeth, and looked to Wyrm. "Alright. What does he mean, since he can't even talk to explain himself."
"I understand what Mossy wants from us. He wants us to be able to expect the unexpected. I think that's why he doesn't talk. He watches. He studies. He investigates before making a move. And he never lets anyone know how well he can battle. Mossy knows more than I thought Tangelas could know. While we can do well with evasive maneuvers, fighting Mossy today showed just how bad we can't defend ourselves against even him! That monster prolly knew alot more moves, and we have to go back down there again! We don't know what to expect! All he wants is for us is not necessarily to be as strong as him, but to know what we each can do so we can work together better."
May retracted her tongue, realizing she had spoken too soon. What the Dratini said made perfect sense, and it did help to know what each other could do. She turned to the plant and raised her hand again. Mossy watched her arm as it tensed up, aiming to backhand him. He kept his eyes on her hand, until it lowered.
"Don't ever attack me in the morning again. I'm going back inside to take my beauty rest." She marched past them all, and headed toward the lighthouse, yawning and holding her tail. "Oh and Zent! You bite too hard!"
Zent roared in reply, as she crunched on a shell. Watching her munch away carefree, Sue and Wyrm both felt hunger pains onset. "Well shall we? I'm now hungry after that workout. I think this afternoon, I'll take you on, one on one Mossy?" Wyrm asked. Mossy nodded, and then crossed a pair of vines in front of him as they headed back.
"X? "X" to what?" Wyrm inquired. Mossy wriggled one of his head curls, showing it was crumpled and black. Wyrm smirked. "Sure. No fire. But no Ice from you then!" Mossy nodded, and turned back to see if Zent was following. Sure enough, she was, but she stopped to pick up a shell and toss it in her mouth.
"She eats them like they're potato chips." Sue stared, as Mossy shrugged. Wyrm chuckled, amused at how fast this morning moved compared to the last few weeks. "Come on Zent, let's go."
She replied with a muffled roar, spewing bits of shell and shards of rock and began plodding back, catching up after a few moments of shellchip harvesting. Once she reached the group, the four of them headed back into the lighthouse, eager to get the rest of the day started.
As they vanished out of view into the lighthouse, a pair of tired wayward eyes leaned back into seclusion. His room was now fully lit with the sun bearing into his room. A good thing, as he was able to watch it all from his bedroom. A smile was on his face as he slowly sat on the bed, fingers resting on his knees.
"They're starting to work as a team, for me. I can't sit here and let them go at it alone. I have to get better at this Pokemon business. But...I don't even know half of their attacks, let alone what Zent is! Maybe Jake and Mary can help..."
Rapp pondered his next course of action as he lumbered toward the small door to the west of the bed, where a small bathroom was.
"Yeah, I need to learn more about myself and about them, before we move on together."
***
As Mossy and Sue went inside to refuel, Wyrm thought it better to gear himself for the upcoming match he had just asked for. The plant may have had a plethora of moves to utilize, but he was faster, and he knew that could work in his favor. That-and he did not have to worry about the ice move that nearly wiped him off the map not a half hour before. Knowing Mossy had a move of that magnitude gave Wyrm a true reason to excel himself now. He turned around and slithered inside, knowing he needed to eat.
As the trio ate, May stayed asleep, determined to reclaim the missing beauty she lost. As she wrapped up under the covers, the trio made sure to quietly gather some food and head back outside. When everything silenced, May huffed and rolled over, only to hear a new set of footsteps shuffling into the main living area. She turned over and popped her head out of the covers, determined to tongue lash whomever was making noise. That elastic like muscle flew out, but was paused in mid flight by her once she focused on the individual leaning against the counter.
Rapp had managed to make it downstairs, but his head was still throbbing. Rubbing his forehead where a gauze bandage was wrapped, he winced. The cut was still pretty pained there, and there was going to be a pretty nice scar there for a little bit. He turned and noticed May and her tongue, prompting a laugh.
"What, you never seen me groggy before?"
May gleefully rolled out of the makeshift bed and ran over, hugging his leg. Rapp knelt down and reciprocated the hug, before looking down at her. "Hey there beautiful."
"Hey there yourself!" came another voice from behind Rapp. Both May and Rapp swiveled to see Mary standing by the base of the stairs, a fresh gauze on her left arm, ready to be wrapped. "You almost gave me a heart attack. Come sit down here so I can redress that nasty harpoon hit."
Rapp nodded and held May's hand as he sat down in a chair. Mary grabbed a bowl and went over to the sink to fill it with some fresh water. Putting everything on the table next to the chair, she slowly cut off the old gauze, making sure to pick it up just in case Zent was around. While she took care in doing this, May spoke-infinitely glad that Sue was able to translate the speech patterns so they all could communicate-even when she was not in the immediate vicinity.
"How do you feel? Better yet? I hope so. I need you to yell at Wyrm, he's so snippish..."
"No. Not better. In fact, as I said, we'll have to stay for a while. We have to go back downstairs at some point, and that won't be safe until I know that you all can handle yourselves. But that also goes for me. I can't just have you do what you think its right, I have to be better at knowing what you all are capable of. That's where you come in, Mary,"
"Me?" Mary asked, as she rinsed her hands. She grabbed a sponge and tilted Rapp's head back, to get a better idea of how to wipe the caked up blood off of his forehead. "Why me? Jake's much better at battling-if that's what you mean."
"Not necessarily. I was wondering if there was some way for me to learn more about them. I've merely been letting them do their own thing, and recalling what I've seen them do. But I also know they have moves I never seen before-because they never attempted them."
Mary nodded and looked outside the window. From her position, she could not see where the others were, and she turned back to May. "Ok May. I need you to go to the bookcase in the small bedroom. Jake might still be asleep. I don't know. But in there, there will be a book labeled Pokemon arrivals-432 AD. It'll have a list of all the Pokemon documented in Ulthuan so far. We have a resource like that here because of all the ones that come on ships and then hang around the lighthouse. Its not complete, its just a list of the ones most common around this area of Eataine."
Rapp quietly waited as he felt the new gauze wrapped around his head. It was pulled taut, and then her hands left his scalp. Feeling his head, the gauze didn't shift annoyingly, nor hung over his vision. Perfect.
"Thank you Mary, for both taking care of this wound and for this literature. This will help alot." Mary nodded and grabbed all the soiled materials. "I'll go throw this out, and then find Jake. Maybe he'll know of a better source of information."
As she left the room, Rapp's eyes lingered on her. He had no way to thank these people-and that was unacceptable in his mind. Attention was broken by May's tug on his leg. Looking down, she held up the book for Rapp to take.
"Huh? Oh you found it. Ok." He grabbed it and kept it low so May could peruse it as well. The book itself was thin and pointed out attacks for a large group of water based Pokemon. As they perused it, Rapp shook his head. "This doesn’t help. This area would need to know the types of water dwellers, but I need information on you all. Maybe we should find Jake."
Rapp got up and slowly headed toward the door. He barely opened the door before it flew open. Instinct kicked in, and Rapp knelt down to block May as well as look for the fastest route to dodge whatever might be outside. He peeked outside, to see Sue standing there, with a look of shock on her face. Mossy was yards away, running up to the lighthouse. Rapp unfurled over May and went to take a step. His foot tapped something below him, and he looked down. To his surprise, Wyrm lied there, twitching. The Dratini was obviously beaten, and Rapp picked him up, petting his back.
"Egad, what happened?"
"Perhaps I should explain. Mossy and Wyrm were training. But the disparity between Mossy and Wyrm was far too much for the little one to take, and he found himself flying toward the door at a speed he did not anticipate for." Rapp looked over to Sue, who placed her gaze on the little grasser as he stopped in front of Rapp.
"You've been training, and I am happy that you've taken the initiative." Rapp said calmly, as Mossy raised his vines in happiness to see Rapp on his feet. Rapp looked to Wyrm, and noted that the poor guy was knocked out cold. "But, you willingly went all out on him? That's irresponsible, Mossy! We need to train to deal with attacks, not just take whatever comes at us!" Slightly disappointed with his friends' judgment, Rapp sauntered back inside, carrying Wyrm. May and Mossy looked to each other, before they looked back in the lighthouse, watching Rapp lie Wyrm on the table.
"Is...he mad at you?" May asked, looking back at Mossy. Mossy shrugged, unsure what that outburst was about. He didn't seem to let it bother him, as Sue floated in the house. What the rest of the Pokemon could not tell was what Sue was now intrigued about.
"You worry you are not going to be able to train with them, that they'll get hurt as bad as you?"
"Stop reading my mind please."
"I did not. Your emotions told me."
Rapp turned to look at her, as Wyrm 's breathing was labored. He took a moment to think and then looked at the door, where May and Mossy stood just out of earshot. "You might be right. I would never forgive myself. But to see this occur just now, I don't even know what they're truly capable of."
"This is why Mossy started today. He knew this, and he wanted them to know what they could do together. There is nothing to be mad about. In fact, I believe that I can help you in your current dilemma."
"Oh?" Rapp asked, curious as to what she was referring to.
"I am a Psychic Pokemon, a Gardevoir. I can tell you their species, as well as the attacks that they are utilizing-including new ones they learn. I know that the little rock one knows at least one attack that she has not done because she has not tried."
Rapp turned and looked around. In the midst of the morning hecticness, he had not heard Zent at all. The others realized she was not somewhere snacking and immediately looked to the hallway. The door fortunately was still shut, heavy metal plates that were replacements for the sides of the light fixture upstairs now piled atop it. May calmly walked over to where she remembered Zent was sleeping the night before and peered under the staircase.
"Yeap. She's asleep." May affirmed, relieving Rapp for the time being. Rapp looked over the table to where May stood and nodded, remembering that location.
"Fine. I'll work with her later today. You two, I want to get rest. Sue, would you help me with them all?"
Sue nodded and then vanished, apparently called to a different part of the lighthouse. Mossy meanwhile, plodded toward the stairs. With Rapp up and acting funny, he had a feeling that he was acting out of some place that was never apparent before. Before he could get far, Rapp called for him.
"Hey Moss. Let me get those two TM's we were gonna give May and Zent. Or, better yet. I'll take the one for Zent. You bestow the one on May when you feel she can use it. I know Zent could use hers almost immediately..." Moss nodded and fished out the two boxes, flicking them over to Rapp. He caught both of them in turn and stuffed the thin boxes into his inside pocket.
"May, when she wakes up, tell me? I'm going...to go for a walk."
May nodded and went back to her own bed to lay down. Wyrm lied still on the table, still sleeping shallowly. Mary and Sue were entering the lighthouse from a side door, and immediately Mary sauntered over to Rapp, resting a hand on his shoulder before he left. "Hey you. Go easy on your buddy up there. He's just as worried as you."
"Its not him I'm worried about." Rapp stated, as he turned to face the red haired, freckle faced green eyed mistress of the tower. "It's myself."
Rapp left her with those words and headed out to take in the day on the sands.
The rest of the day passed without incident. Wyrm woke up after a few hours, fully energized. May noted Zent's awakening and gave a raspberry that alerted Rapp. Rapp quickly went back in the house and was greeted by an overeager lizard. Smirking at her exuberance, he then told her his plan, and she idly went along, glad to play with Rapp for a little. Sue followed, leaving the others to wonder just what this one on one would yield.
Sue, Zent and Rapp headed east, away from the water. The little dinosaur began to skip-or at least a version of it, and a song came out of her jaws. As she sang, Rapp and Sue began to chat, Rapp learning that her species was only the base for a much more powerful species. Sadly, Sue told Rapp that not many Larvitars make it to the final stage, and their Trainers leave them to stay in their vulnerable second stage.
"While just as varied in attack prowess as their larva stage, Pupitars-as they are called-lack the ability to move readily. This make them very hard to train. You have to make sure you can move her when she reaches that point. Its also why she's eating so much, she'll one day gestate and transform into her pupa stage."
"Wow. I never would have guessed." Rapp stated, looking down as Zent continued to sing. Sue smiled at her innocence, and stopped after a moment. "Well, I believe this is far enough. I can Teleport us back to the lighthouse when you are done."
"Alright. Sue, whatever happens now, do not interfere until I say we're done."
Sue obliged, backing away, as Zent smelt the mood change in the air. She turned to look at Rapp, unsure what was happening.
"Ok Zent. Here's the game. You have to hit me. Once. Using any move you can-except the sandy one. If you don't hit me in a few minutes, I'm going to hit you." Zent looked at him oddly, and then to Sue. Knowing she was helping him understand her, she spoke slowly.
"Why...hit..Zent? Zent do bad?"
"You aren't being disciplined, no. I'm training you. I want you to hit me, so we can make you stronger, like Mossy, May and Wyrm."
"ZENT STWONGA THAN STINKYSNAKE!" She emphasized, and ran at Rapp. Rapp quickly backpedaled, leaving Zent to stop and rethink her charge. The boy was not running until she got close. She sneered and roared, causing her body to release a deluge of sands. Rapp crossed his arms over his face and knelt down as the Sandstorm engulfed him.
"Good! Good Zent! Now try to hit me!" Rapp yelled through the storm. He knew this move at least, and it was the best move she had at her disposal for helping her lack of motion. The lack of motion that was notably lessened as Zent ran in from the left. Rapp cartwheeled away from her small grasp, and watched barely as Zent disappeared into the sands again.
Rapp listened through the winds, and was able to pick out a different set of sounds, which he assumed to be her moving around. Her feet were pounding the ground, leading him to believe that she was dancing. "Sue-what is it that makes her faster after she dances?"
"It's called a Dragon Dance. It allows the user to move quicker and attack stronger."
"Really?" Rapp replied, jumping over her as she dashed in again, trying to bite him. He heard her fall on her face and grunt.
"Come on, I know you can do it. You already made it hard for me to see you!" He switched back to talking to Sue as he backpedaled to avoid her incoming footsteps. "So she gets faster each time she dances. That's why she does it twice. It puts her on an even playing field."
"Zent, where are you? Can't always bite your opponent, we're gonna get you something new soon, I promise." he called out as he began to walk around a small area again. Zent didn't answer, but instead leered onto the position of where his voice came from. She knew he was faster than her still, much like that worm, and dancing all the time would just make her tired after a while. But with his location guessed, maybe she could do that other thing. After that fight with the slimewhipper, she felt a strange surge of energy come up from her belleh. It ruptured from her before, and knocked it back into the sea. Since then, she had been thinking about how to do it, and right now, she nodded to herself, coaxing herself to do it.
She stayed put and opened her mouth. Instead of a roar, her mouth began to gather sand. The sand then began to swirl on its own, and then blast away as a new form of energy appeared. Zent clenched her fists and closed her eyes, focusing only the bevy of energy in her body.
Rapp stopped moving, noting that his ears did not pick up Zent. Rather, he felt a deep pit of earthern energy coming from the east. He couldn't see Sue, and as such, was unsure of its source. As he walked closer, something clicked in his head and and he instinctively ducked. As he crouched, he noted the winds began to die down. Still bleary eyed from all the sands, he dared not try to see what was creating this feeling in his stomach. That all changed when his body was blasted with a massive ball of energy that threw him across the area. He crashed on the ground and rolled a few times before his body gained lift once more. He landed on his feet and coughed, shocked from the power of that energy!
"Sue, what was that? And where's Zent?" he shouted, as the sands finally fell. Sue waited until Rapp stopped wheezing for air, before pointing over to the east where the energy source originated. To his surprise, the energy signature that he felt came from the little beast! He stared in amazement, and realized that was the power Sue had mentioned earlier. He nodded and stayed kneeling, laughing. "Alright. You got me. You win."
The Larvitar grunted, rearing her head back once more. Rapp noted her demeanor and raised one hand. "No Zent. Don't fire it. Save that energy. You've just learned this attack, don't go wasting it--" But it was too late. The opening up of this type of power had a drawback-her young body was not used to it and as such, she did not know how to shut if off. A second blast ripped out of her, and Rapp heaved himself to the east to avoid it. Zent waved her arms around rapidly, trying to cover her own mouth. As she did so, she inadvertently fired another blast to the sky. She looked down at her feet, and released another blast, throwing her skyward. Rapp and Sue both watched that occur, and Rapp dashed to catch her. But that was a bad idea. As she rotated in the air, Rapp dashed right under her. He jumped up to intercept her flight, but wound up right in the crosshairs of a lizard with another blast ready to fire. He barely crossed his arms before the blast slammed into his forearms and knocked him to the ground. Sue stepped in, using her powers to slow Zent's landing. As Zent fell to the ground, she buried her head into the harder ground and forced herself to bite down. She crunched through a few rocks, and then looked back up.
No blast! She clapped and then made her way back over to Rapp. The boy was on his back, staring at the sky. As she walked into his vision, Rapp looked over to her, and weakly raised a hand to pet her. "You--you did good. We're good for right now. Sue...what was that?"
"That is a Earthern Power. I think the name speaks for itself." she replied, floating over to see if he needed assistance. Rapp nodded and closed his eyes, one hand lightly resting on his now bleeding scar. "Mary's gonna be mad, hehehe." Zent giggled and patted Rapp on the head twice, causing the boy to wince in pain. Sue smirked, shocked that he would even attempt such a endeavor as taking an Earth Power head on.
As Rapp lied there, Sue was quick to notice that the blast left not a mark on his body. She quickly scanned him, and -aside from knocking the wind out of him from its force-and agitating his already open wound, there were no other lacerations from any of it. She pondered the explanation of that, as Rapp finally sat up. Zent had found interest in some dirt and began to eat it, as Rapp staggered to his feet."
"K...Sue...we're done. Need to get back...feel light headed." Sue nodded and floated over to Zent. The little girl noted her arrival, and looked back to Rapp. Seeing his wobbling stance made the little girl worry for his safety and she ran right over obediently. Holding onto his leg, Rapp weakly smiled and peered down as Sue wrapped them in a warm light. In a moment's passing they all stood in the upstairs bedroom-where Mary was busy fixing up the bed.
"Oh! You are back! That wa--what did you do!?!?"
"Oh uhh..Zent used Sandstorm! It was super effective.." he joked as he pointed to the gauze, now a nice brownish red color. Mary didn't find it funny at all, as she shoved Rapp onto the bed and attacked his gauze, tearing it off. The scar was heavily slashed by the sand grains, and needed immediate attention.
"You can't go infecting yourself or it'll never heal!" she stated, as she ran to fetch gauze from the small bathroom. "Sue, Zent, can you excuse me?" Mary asked as she pulled out scissors and alcohol and all sorts of ointments that Rapp was altogether leery about once he saw their quantities. Sue nodded and began to walk out, calling to Zent's overeating nature. "How about some late lunch, hrm?"
"Sure! Wait! What Wapp give Zent?" she cried out before leaving.
"Once I come back down, I'll give you a new move! It'll help you against Wyrm." Rapp replied, before Mary clasped her hand over his mouth. In her free hand was a bottle of alcohol, the lid conveniently removed. "Hold still. This will be Super Effective as well!" Rapp 's eyes opened wide, and he tried vehemently to sit up. His tired state and Mary's purposeful sitting on his stomach made for a very pinned situation. As Zent closed the door, the screams that came from closed doors sounded unnatural. Though muffled, Sue could hear them arguing over the validity of her nurse methods-and then more screaming from Rapp.
"Wapp ok?" Zent asked, as Sue mentally lifted Zent and herself, floating down to the lower level of the lighthouse in seconds. Sue nodded, reassuring her. "They're fine, they have their own issues to sort out. Now, about that lunch..."
2 days ago
Waking up early was easy for Wyrm. He found that the morning was the best time to accomplish a few introspective things about himself. For one-he could slither around and find his way into a box of food, eat his fill and leave before anyone noticed. The planimal was always up earlier than him, and that was fine, there was really no clashing of ideals between them. Today was different.
Wyrm yawned, unfurling a little in order to look around. He was still in the lighthouse, comfortable under those covers. But, instead of the possible sound of steam from that teapot, or the scent of some sort of exotic tea-there was only the sharp breeze of the ocean. He shivered and turned toward the front door. It was wide open, blowing in the wake of the sea's gusts. Slithering to the opening, he looked outside, and witnessed a strange sight.
The ocean was vast and with its vastness came many a mysterious event. Today was one of those days. Sometime during the night, a boat had docked on the rocks near the lighthouse, obviously seeking shelter. It was a sailboat, but the sails were down. Wyrm slithered over to the boat's hull, and poked it with his tail. Nothing. He slithered up the side and peered in the boat. All he could see was a box. Feeling a bad sensation about the box, Wyrm backed out of the boat, and slithered to a rock, just in case something was watching. Turning to look at the lighthouse, he spied Rapp looking over the edge of the balcony. The boy had not spied the boat, as he was looking the wrong way. Wyrm groaned and hung his head, amazed at how oblivious to the world he could be. Instead of simply shouting his name, he did the theoretical smart thing, and raised up as high as he could. Pointing his mouth straight up, he released a small but powerful set of flames.
The scent of the fire turned Rapp's gaze and he immediately focused on the firestream. Knowing that Wyrm didn't use attacks arbitrarily, he noted it as something wrong. The boat caught his attention next, and that was enough for Rapp to take action. He ran out the room holding his head as he still felt woosy. He took the steps two at a time, and reached the bottom of the stairs. He looked in the living area, and saw May still snoozing under her blanket. Turning around, he saw the green shading of Zent in her hidey hole. Jake's door was slightly ajar, so he still did not return from wherever it was he disappeared to. Running back to the stairwell, he looked up to the swiveling light. He couldn't tell if Mary and Sue were up there-and he had not seen Mossy around either. Unsure where they were, Rapp dashed outside, and waved his hand. Wyrm ceased fire, and slithered to meet him halfway. Rapp knelt down, rubbing his arms to warm up. "When did that ship get here?"
"Don't know. I just got up. I figured you or Mossy would know."
"Don't know. Haven't seen Mossy since yesterday." Rapp replied, looking around the area. Something about the ship bothered him, since it was docked perfectly, and no one was in it waiting for assistance.
"Yeah. The lighthouse door was open." Wyrm pointed out, pointing to the lighthouse. Rapp turned back to look at the Dratini, whom shook his head-anticipating the next question before it was even asked. Rapp stood up, and looked to the lighthouse, and around it. Something near the lighthouse caught his eye, and he began to trot over. "Come on Wyrm. I think we have a problem."
The pair dashed over to a spot a ways west from the lighthouse entrance. On the spot lied a cloth strip, pinned down by a stone. Rapp and Wyrm curiously spied the spot and then each other. It was evident someone had been digging there, and Wyrm now turned to look at the ship.
"There was a box in the boat..." Wyrm murmured. Rapp caught his train of thought, and looked around. "..but where is the owner of the ship?"
"Right here, matey!" a voice called out. Rapp and Wyrm turned around to see a lone figure standing next to the lighthouse. He leaned on it ever so casually-as the wind blew his long tattered locks in the breeze. The white tunic hung loosely on his arms as he half walked-half sauntered over, boots kicking sand in Wyrm's face as he reached them. His breath smelt of rum and sour fruit, and his mouth gleaned of gold and silver caps where teeth should have gone.
"Are you the proprietors of said beacon of hope and perpetual sailing under safe conditions?" he asked, looking up at the lighthouse.
"Wha-um no. Who are you?" Rapp asked, confused. The man turned around, and looked Rapp up and down, before looking at the big nosed Dratini. Wyrm moved a little closer to the man, and the man backed up a step. Wyrm wriggled a little closer still, and the man backed up with two prancing steps
"Err, what is that, bloody worm of worms?"
"He's a Dratini." Rapp stated, puzzled at the man's demeanor. He seemed calm, aloof even, but for what reason? And why was he snooping around the lighthouse? The man walked past the pair of them, and pointed to the caves aways down the coast. "Boy-have you seen anyone come out of those caves?"
"No. Who are you and why are you here?"
"That doesn't matter yet. I only need to know what I now know and so now you know that you don't need to know what I know, savvy?"
Rapp barely followed the man's speech and gesticulations, as he fixed his awkwardly three pointed hat and made his way back to the boat. Rapp and Wyrm followed briskly after, overtaking him in a few strides.
"Whoa wait. Why are you here, and what did you dig up?"
"Dig? I did nothing of the sort. Jack Jack did."
"Who's Jack Jack?" Rapp asked, looking around. Wyrm sniffed the air, but picked up no scent. The man stared at Rapp, and pointed at him, his ringed finger swirling -as if it had difficulty pointing at him.
"Boy, Jack Jack is the most unscrupulous, erratically annoying Mankey you have ever met."
"Mankey? Rapp asked. His answer would be confirmed as Wyrm suddenly went whipping past them, evidently thrown. Rapp looked down, and was welcomed with angry red eyes-deepset in a roundish body. Long appendages and tail-all tan complected-completed the ensemble of this figure, and it stomped around Rapp, before jumping in place.
"That...is Jack Jack I presume?"
"The one and only. Well then, I think he wants to stay, so I will bequeath possession of him to you." the fellow stated, and made off toward the boat.
"Oh hey no WAIT!" Rapp countered, and gave chase. As the two figures chased each other down the beach, Wyrm recovered from his sneak attack. He turned to see the two humans running, and following them was a strange shape Pokemon. Wyrm's eyes slitted, and he blazed after, determined to beat the snot of something this morning. No one sneak attacks him and escapes!
[Wyrm Lv 10 vs Mankey Lv 10]
"You do not have a reason to engage me in this chase sir!" cried the wily fellow as he ran left and right. Rapp skidded around a rock and sped up; cutting the fellow off before he got any closer to the boat.
"Look. I don't know why you are here, but you being here means you needed something. Why are you here?" Rapp asked.
Before the man could speak, Jack Jack landed on his back next to them. Both men looked down and then to Wyrm, who was glaring daggers at the Mankey. Jack Jack sprung up,and immediately began throwing a tantrum-the flamboyant fellow backing up a step or two.
"Oh. your Worm has done it now. Now Jack's going to be aggravated. Terrible sight, seen him beat a one armed man with his own arm."
"So he just hits hard?" Rapp asked
"No. The fellow has no arms now." the man replied, before turning to see Jack Jack approach Wyrm. "Beat 'im up so I can set sail, JackJack!"
"Hey Hey whoa! Wyrm, Thunder Wave it! No need to take anymore hits!"
Wyrm nodded in response to the tip and watched as the apeish Pokemon ran at him; ready to lay hands on him again. The worm quickly shivered, releasing a thin wave of energy across his body to the immediate area. Jack Jack ran in, and punched Wyrm a few times, making the Dratini kink up in response. Backing away, Jack Jack felt his body itch all over, and he seemed ticked off about it. Rapp spied the onset of the paralysis and issued new orders.
"Oh, do that speed tackle thing twice--hey get BACK here!" He called out as he turned to see the fellow stepping into the boat. Upon being spotted, the man quickly pulled the rope that anchored the boat to the mainland up, causing the rope to conduct a ripple. Somehow, Rapp noted the rope wrapped around his left ankle, and that caused him to trip and fall on his back. As he rolled over, the man called out. "Jack Jack. Low Kick it again! We're done here-no elf evidence here."
Rapp rolled over, confused. Did he say "elf"? As he kipped up, Wyrm shot across the sands, ramming his body into Jack. Jack raised his hands and held his ground, but it was evident the pigmonkey was hurting. Wyrm however, did not have a chance to unfurl from his ball like state before he felt his form kicked HARD. He went rolling backwards and slammed into a rock. Unfurling from the impact, Wyrm groaned and watched as Jack Jack twitched and ticked in anguish. That was why Rapp said to do it twice-to amount for the possible onset of paralysis. This time, Wyrm knocked Jack Jack right to the head of the ship. Rapp meanwhile, had managed to hold onto the ship, stopping the man from sailing away.
"What do you know about elves!" Rapp asked, breathing heavily. The man seemingly didn't hear him, and went back to searching for something in his boat. Rapp stepped in the boat and asked again, as Jack Jack pushed off the hull. "What...do you know...about elves?"
The man turned around, noting Rapp's voice had attained a gutteral component. Swiftly, the man reached for his belt, picking up a small box. Opening the box revealed to Rapp a compass. Looking at it, Rapp noted the arrow turning toward his general direction. The man seemed surprised at that heading and looked to Rapp. He shook the compass and looked at it again.
"Excuse me. Could you stand over there? I want to make sure you aren't some sort of elf."
Rapp stepped to the right as instructed-though he did not know why, shouting blindly. "Wyrm. Wrap it! I know you can do that. Then set it on fire!" The man looked back to the battle, surprised about hearing fire.
"JackJack, if you get set on fire, don't come near my ship!"
Wyrm nodded, and swiftly slithered around the Mankey. The apemon had a nasty temper and showed it with a set of scratches to Wyrm's body as he wrapped around his midsection tighter. The ape pushed on Wyrm, trying to get him off, but it seemed to be of no use.
Wyrm smirked,and opened his mouth, ready to scorch the ape into the next century. But Jack Jack was just as odd as its master. In one motion, both Wyrm and ape were tossed into the brink. The flames were washed out with the salt water, and Wyrm uncoiled. The seawater got down his throat and he surfaced, coughing heavily.
"Hey! I thought you didn't LIKE water!" the man shouted at Jack. A angry screech was his reply, and the fellow looked to Rapp. "Damn cretin. Drives me mad. Are you sure you don't want 'im. He's a lively party guest, or an even better hat!"
A second glance at the compass, and the arrow pointed to Rapp. Looking at Rapp again, the man asked a single question.
"Boy, you sure you not an elf?"
"I'm not. Why do you ask?"
"Because. You have pointy ears. See my ears?" He lifted up his braids, revealing an ear. "Its small, miniature even, compared to yours. Yours even move. I can barely move mine." He tried to wiggle his ear, but only managed to smile really hard before his ear even minorly shifted. Rapp shook his head, confused. "Wait, you're saying that because I have pointy ears, I'm an elf?"
"No, I'm saying that because of your pointy ears, you're an elf. Anyone can have pointy ears. I knew a gal with large ears. Lovely lady. May have to pay her a visit..." The man trailed off and went back to rummaging in the boat, looking back at the water. "Are you done yet?"
Rapp turned back to the battle, to see Wyrm reattached to Jack Jack, and Jack Jack scratching and dunking himself underwater so Wyrm was unable to use his flamethrower. It didn't help that paralysis didn't seem to help too much, other than piss it off. Rapp quickly looked around, and decided it was better to end this.
"Wyrm, you can swim. Do a swimming speed tackle and get him in this boat!" Wyrm nodded and unfurled from the Mankey. The animal bobbed back up, seeing the worm swim underwater. Thinking it was fleeing, the Mankey slapped the water and seemingly cheered its victory. It celebrated too soon as the blue bullet shot up at a incredible speed, and slammed the ape hard. Both went skyward,and the Dratini whipped Jack Jack again as they sailed, knocking the beast with speed into the boat. That impact disloged the boat and the man turned to see that he was slowly drifting in the water. Rapp quickly hopped out the boat, and kicked off the top to make sure the boat began sailing away.
"Thank ya mate...and thank ya for knocking him out!" he yelled, waving his hat in appreciation. "Kind elves such as you are a blessing. Be seeing you again!"
[Wyrm wins. Wyrm reaches lvl 11]
"I'M NOT AN ELF!" Rapp yelled back as Wyrm slithered to the beach, tired from that surprise battle. Rapp kneeled to check Wyrm. The Dratini gave him a half smirk, glad that was over. It was pretty sunny now-they had managed to waste the early morning. As the fellow sailed away over the horizon, Rapp pondered the man's statements. Could he really be an elf? That would not make sense. No one told him. Why would no one tell him this? And if there were no more elves left, then how could he be one? It was evident that man knew more than he let on.
"I have a feeling we're going to meet that odd sailor again...but I don't even know his name!"
Wyrm spat out salt water as a reply, disgusted with its taste. "This...has to be the strangest morning." Wyrm replied, breathing at a slower rate due to his lungs not being filled with the rancid seawater anymore. Rapp looked down, nodding.
"Let's get cleaned up and then start your real stuff today. Unlike the others, I know most of your attacks. Its just fine tuning them that I need to work on with you."
Wyrm nodded and slowly slithered toward the lighthouse. Rapp followed suit, but stopped at the lighthouse door. He looked over to that cloth with a rock on it-where something was dug up. But he remembered the man was standing by the lighthouse, and the area where they were standing was in the vicinity of that door. Knowing that was going to take investigating, Rapp headed inside-and to the kitchen area to get some food. He had to hurry and learn all he could, before that fellow came back and wanted more than to know if he was an elf.
The rest of the day went as Rapp planned, with Wyrm's skills being honed to a degree, and his knowledge of Dratini as a species expanded upon by Sue. As the day wound down to mere slivers of light across an ever expansive sea and sky, the weary battlers made their way home. Mary had cooked up a elaborate dinner of seafood and rice-and Jake had finally returned sometime throughout the day. After ensuring Zent had a plentiful amount of food scraps and seashells after her main meal, Rapp quickly joined the others in eating.
As the table discussion revolved around Jake and Sue, Rapp was intent on learning where Jake went, as well as what happened to Johnson. But the answers never came. As he listened, he found it became increasingly hard for him to focus on their voices. The room was slowly becoming more and more muffled, and he could not understand why. He turned from the table for a moment-and allowed his ears to pick up the sounds that he could hear. It first sounded like water splashing-but it was very far away.
Turning back to the table, Rapp politely excused himself-making up some excuse about early training session tomorrow. He quickly walked toward the stairwell, but his ears continued to shut everyone's voice out aside from the sounds of water splashing nearby. It wasn't the ocean, this sounded like as if May found a puddle and was stamping all around it. "Maybe there is water still in my ear?" he told himself, but he knew that could not be the case, because he barely heard himself.
"Its gotta be exhaustion." he convincingly stated, and began to march up the stairs. "I better get rest, I need to learn with May tomorrow, and she's not an early riser." He quickly dashed up the remaining stairs and flung himself in the spare bedroom, going to sleep almost immediately after hitting the sheets.
TBC
Reply With Quote
Re: ¤Game¤ Dragon Tamers Battle Range v.24
Originally Posted by DarkestLight
