Pokemon: Aschen Adventures (IC)

[Ajadea]

Adela shrugs. No promises on the exact species now. If I don't show up at the end of the contest, just assume I've been eaten by the giant evil local wildlife," she says with a laugh. He would probably even be right. The thought wasn't nearly as worrying as it should have been. "See you around, and remember, you owe me a Pokeball."

She wanders around for a bit, postponing a return to the overcrowded center until night had at least begun to fall. And then she takes a nice shower, with actual hot water. If she had to be on camera, she might as well try to put SOME effort into her appearance. In the mirror, she pulls at a hank of hair. Dirty blond roots were beginning to show through the dye here and there. Nothing to be done about that. She wrings out her hair into the sink and heads back into the rooms, trying to find somewhere to sleep that wouldn't end up with her face getting stepped on.

[Gorgondantess]

Nathan:
Heading to the Ranger's station, you find it almost as hectic as the pokemon center was the night before; there's a line going out the door. As soon as you get to the counter, you pay your fee, and the woman there hands you a form to fill out- basic stuff, name, trainer number, what pokemon you'll be bringing with you, etc. There's also a few disclaimers to fill out- first, a non-liability waiver, and the second detailing the magnemite-cam that'll be following you. Your time in the competition will be stored online, and potentially on TV, and if the magnemite-cam is destroyed you will immediately be forced to forfeit- to prevent cheating, of course. It should be durable, and it knows to stay out of the way, but it's something to consider. Tampering with the cam is also a disqualifying offense.
Finally, the day of the competition you choose to enter- Tuesday or Thursday. The first day is on Tuesday, and then the next day the Rangers go in and try to fix things up, bring it back to a natural state, then on Thursday the next batch goes in. Do note that if there is an imbalance, you may be rolled into a different day.
Finally, once you turn in the form, you're given a premier ball with Moira- CLVII engraved on it.

Spoiler

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I'm gonna assume you take the Tuesday competition. Subtract 5,000 poke from your total either way.

As discussed over chat: you head to a decent looking inn. It's a middle of the line chain- pool, fluffy white beds, spacious, clean room with fluffy white sheets on a queen sized bed. It's pretty crowded, and there are plenty of people running around and partying in the halls, but the walls are thick enough that it's just a soft, muffled din, and you manage to get to sleep well enough.

Spoiler

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Subtract 1500 poke, and your stats return to max.

The next morning, you wake up bright and early to find the lobby sparsely populated; a few trainers seem to be loudly comparing the merits of their pokemon (a Lairon, Charizard and Rotom) for the upcoming competition, a girl (who looks strangely familiar) at a table with tired eyes sits chugging large amounts of coffee, and a gentleman couched in the corner has a newspaper not-so-surreptitiously concealing his face. They all nod at you as you pass, understanding you're likely a fellow competitor. Except the guy with the newspaper (though you can't exactly be sure, not seeing his face.)
You sit down for some breakfast...

Adela:
You come to the pokemon center rather late to find all the beds quite taken. Of course, being Adela, you don't let that stop you and storm down to the front desk to acquire some other sort of accommodations; the rather flustered nurse manages to get you a cot and some blankets and sets you up in an otherwise empty room. Looks like the fullness is working for your favor.

Spoiler

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Subtract 1200 poke, and 5,000 for the competition if you haven't already.

You wake up bright and early the morning of the competition. Anything you want to get done before you head out?

TJ:
Not sure what you want to do right now, but if you just want to go ahead to day 2, that'll be 1,200 poke.

[Bad Situation]

Nodding in return, Nathan casually strides into the lobby and finds a seat across from the girl plugging away at her coffee. She looked vaguely familiar but for the life of him Nathan could not seem to remember where and when they had met. A former schoolmate of his perhaps? Shrugging slightly at the mystery he begins to look around the room and finds the coffee machine. Quietly, he pours himself a cup, occasionally stealing glances at the girl as he does so. Finally, the curiosity gets the better of him and he asks, trying his best not to sound like a total skeeze, "Excuse me, do I know you from somewhere?"

[Ajadea]

Finally, something that worked out in her favor. Adela sends out her Pokemon, one by one. "Screech, do not eat ANY of the Pokemon out there. I need to catch those. Vichi, a lot of these things have Psychic or Flying attacks, so be careful, alright? And Bane...." She glances at the massive fish, dripping on to the Center's floor. "...Let's hope I don't actually have to use you." Hopefully it couldn't understand that. She feels a little better for talking to them, even if the chances that she was understood were minimal at best. With a sigh, she recalls them again and flops back down onto the bed. She's asleep before she knows it.

In the morning, Adela grabs some food for herself and her Pokemon, then takes them outside and feeds them on a bench. She tosses a single-serve plastic bowl of multicolored cereal bits at Vichi, who pops it open and seems to like the sugary flavor well enough. "Here you go, some actually decent food for once. Meat for you, Screech." It doesn't look appetizing to her, but the Pidgeotto nearly takes off her hand again while trying to get at it, so apparently whatever the mystery meat was, Pidgeottos liked it. "And ...whatever the hell this is for Toothy over there. And my fingers are NOT part of the meal you stupid fish," she adds, maneuvering her pinkie out of the way as she popped chunks of fish food into the largely immobile Magikarp's mouth. It snapped at it without moving the rest of its body, doing its best to draw blood with the fangs it shouldn't have. "Lazy bastard. I know you can move just fine when it suits you." And yet she was becoming attached to it. She wolfs her own dry bagel spread with tasteless cream cheese down in a few bites.

Once everything is eaten, which seems to take a matter of moments, she withdraws the Pokemon and does a few light stretches before jogging down to where the competitors are all supposed to meet.

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:
It's a bit early to be getting to the competition itself, but you head to the area anyways- might be able to get a quick in, at least.
You soon enough find yourself at the primary building leading to the cordoned off zone that is the bug catching competition proper- a semi-artificial biome with a barrier around it that's a combination of fencing, psychic barriers, and repel, the inside half again the size of Moira itself. A stage and podium is erected before the building, but it's currently unoccupied. There's a good hundred people waiting about around it, though it looks like only about a third of them are actual participants- the others are likely friends, family, and spectators.
Soon enough, though, the crowd goes quiet- the gym leader of Moira, Jack Bauer, is standing at the podium.
He really doesn't look that impressive- rather plain, really, even disheveled, but he's apparently been doing something right. He clears his throat and speaks.
"Well, it's..."
He takes a step back from the podium, coughing. He doesn't seem to comfortable with this- not shy by any stretch of the imagination, but certainly not enjoying it. Forced, even.
"It is very good to see so many bright young trainers. For the competition. Um, yeah, anyways, since we're dealing with so many people we've got some logistical crap to deal with, so if you all could get in a line, uh, by the door, what we're gonna do is truck you to different areas around the border of the Cordon so you're not all trampling over the same area. And good luck."
He claps his hands and makes an abrupt exit, leaving the crowd to amble about aimlessly for a few moments before some order arises from the chaos. Eventually the thirty-odd contestants are all lined up, and slowly trudging forward into the building. You end up near the end of the line, and set yourself down for a wait. Boredom wasn't exactly the challenge you were expecting to face this morning, but here it is.
You notice the guy next to you staring. He looks a few years older than you, with a shock of red hair, and some tacky sunglasses and green motorcycle jacket. He takes off his glasses to show quizzically narrowed eyes.
"Hey... you're that kid from Heartshome, aren't you?"
Oh yeah, it's that one guy with the Magmar... Erm, what is his name again?

Nathan:
The girl sighs, shrugging resignedly. "Do you know of me? Maybe. But that doesn't matter. What matters is, I don't know you."
Realizing the tone of her words, she shakes her head and quickly changes the subject.
"So, what are you packing?... For the competition, I mean. You're not actually getting up at this ungodly hour for anything else, are you?"
She grimaces, then slams her whole mug of steaming, scalding coffee in a few gulps. You can practically hear it sizzle as it goes down her throat.

[Bad Situation]

Her reaction and tone were off-putting but it was the sort of attitude typical of ambitious trainers so it didn't particularly phase him. If she was famous or looking to be famous there were certainly more severe attitudes she could adopt. Or maybe she was just in a bad mood, he tended to forget that normal people didn't wake up this early on a regular basis. Thankfully, he was already used to being up at strange hours for his schooling.

He raised an eyebrow at her choice of words. She was definitely irritable this morning. "Packing? If you are asking me about my Pokemon, I have a Magnemite and a Drilbur."

And in response to her other question he added, "And yes, I am entering the contest today"

[Ajadea]

"Yep. Small world, isn't it?" Adela says, racking her brain for Magmar-guy's name. She soon gives up. "I'm beginning to see what you mean about training Magikarps. Lazy bastard refuses to evolve and keeps trying to eat my fingers." She holds her hand up, showing the bruises and small scratches where Bane had attempted to remove a few digits. Only rarely had he even managed to break skin.

[Gorgondantess]

Nathan:
The girl quirks an eyebrow.
"...You're not an everstone user, are you?"
She shakes her head, then gestures towards the three trainers comparing their pokemon.
"See those guys over there? Each one of them has a reasonably strong, evolved pokemon. Among others, I'm assuming. I wouldn't be surprised if all of their pokemon were killed."
She clucks her tongue, then takes another gulp of her coffee, speaking in a matter-of-fact (if slightly disapproving) tone.
"Sure, with a Magnemite you've got a serious advantage. Lots of flying, poison, grass types. But what happens when you run into a Volcarona? A swarm of Beedrill? A swarm of Scizor? You might be able to survive one encounter like that, but it's not like the forest is going to let up just because your pokemon fainted. Unless you have someone who's gonna baby you through this, I advise you try to get a refund- if not for your pokemon's sake, then your own."

Adela:
The Guy shakes his head. "Heh. Sounds like a pain in the ass. Me, I managed to grab myself an Empoleon, so I'm good on water types- but with an Electric, Fire and Steel, Sandberg isn't such a safe bet, so I figured I'd catch me something to deal with ground types- and if I could get a shot at a bit of exposure in the meantime, why not?"
He smirks, then lets the subject return to your own pokemon.
"So, I guess you managed to evolve that Riolu of yours, then?"

[Ajadea]

"No. He's close though. Didn't have time to train him up more before the contest. I do have a Pidgeotto. Pretrained, even. Someone released her back to the wild." Adela shrugs. "Don't see why. Perfectly good Pokemon." Vichi was close to evolving, wasn't he? Steel would have been useful. Ah well. The poison-types would be safe enough for him to go up against, even if he'd be relying on Quick Attack.

[Bad Situation]

"Then that one encounter will just have to be worth it," he says challengingly. He wasn't sure who this girl thought she was but he wasn't just going to lie down and take it. "I'm not going to back down just because you don't think I can take care of myself. I can take of my Pokemon and they can take care of me."

He would be the first to admit that he wasn't as prepared for the competition as the other contestants but this was his first opportunity to get himself in the limelight, and a chance to catch a wild Pokemon if the fates smiled his way.

"I think you know the importance of making a splash in the training scene."

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:
"...Ah," The Guy says, clearly not exactly blown over by the information.
As you talk, a group is pulled into the building; judging by the amount of people heading in, it'll be another three or four groups before it gets to you. The Guy notices this and lights himself a cigarette, offering you one.
"So... I don't mean to offend, but how do you plan on getting through all this with only one effective pokemon? Other than that you have a Magikarp, which... well, it's a Magikarp, and a Fighting type, which is one of the worst types you can bring to this game. What exactly do you have up your sleeves?"

Nathan:
She scoffs, a look of pity on her face. "What, and you expect to shout out 'I've caught my Beedrill, mean old bugs, please don't attack me anymore', and just waltz right out? One encounter might be enough for you, but after that you're going to get caught with your pants down. This is as much a test of endurance as it is of prowess."
She groans. "A splash in the training scene? Sure, that could be useful, but only if you have the skills and experience to back it up. You might have skills, kid, but you sure as hell don't have experience."
And this coming from someone who is (ostensibly at least) no older than you are.

Neimi:
While you were initially planning on heading to Axelo to take some wildlife photos in the nearby mountains, you decided to make a pit stop along the way to see if the Bug Catching Competition would yield some good snapshots, and while you weren't allowed on the actual premises of the competition, it'd be easy enough to find something in all the commotion outside.
And here you have it: a young boy is sitting on a park bench in repose, staring off into the distance. His face encapsulates what it means to be a trainer in Aschen today: struggle, pain, loss and strife... and at the same time, passion. Yes, this is truly what it means to be a trainer: hope and faith to reach it to the top against all odds, combined with an implacable thirst to become the very best, to make one's mark upon the world.
Of course, he sees you aiming the camera at him, and looks at you right as you're snapping the photo. The shot is ruined.

TJ:
Getting up early enough that the Bug Catching competition hasn't started yet (so you can't follow Adela online), you decide to take a brief walk.
You end up in a nice looking park, and decide to enjoy the brisk summer's morning for a while there, resting on a bench and spacing out for a while.
...Does that cloud look like a Bulbasaur? You squint a bit, only to see out of the corner of your eye some lady pointing a camera at you. You turn your head to look at it as it flashes directly in your eye, blinding you momentarily.

[Ajadea]

Adela refuses the cigarette with a shake of her head. "Vichi's fast, and bugs aren't known for their power anyways. So long as I keep him away from the flying-types, I don't see the problem." And if all else failed, punching the offending bug in the face should work.

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:
"Yeah, but... I mean, I'm sure your Riolu is tough and all... but you're looking at a serious type disadvantage, combined with a very immature pokemon."
He shakes his head.
"Well, whatever. But I'm gonna be pissed if it turns out to be a bunch of Caterpies, as you're suggesting. I was told they had Scizor."

[Ajadea]

Scizor? Well, that might be nice. Vichi could actually hit Steel-types. A Scizor might even be easier to deal with than a Scyther. And those were wicked strong, some of the strongest bug-types, in fact. "Well, there better be at least one Caterpie. I promised I'd get a friend one," she says with a small laugh. It's not very funny.

Spoiler

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Ready to begin!

[OrchestraHc]

TJ:
Getting up early enough that the Bug Catching competition hasn't started yet (so you can't follow Adela online), you decide to take a brief walk.
You end up in a nice looking park, and decide to enjoy the brisk summer's morning for a while there, resting on a bench and spacing out for a while.
...Does that cloud look like a Bulbasaur? You squint a bit, only to see out of the corner of your eye some lady pointing a camera at you. You turn your head to look at it as it flashes directly in your eye, blinding you momentarily.

"Oww..." T.J. quietly whines as he rubs his eyes. "Umm... C-Can I help you?"

[Nyna]

Neimi would purse her lips for a moment before lowering her camera, smiling slightly. "Ahaha... sorry about that. From that angle, you just looked so majestic and noble that I had to snap a shot. I didn't think you'd look right at the camera though, it's not gonna come out well now." She shrugged slightly, walking over as she let go of her camera, the large device dangling from around her neck on a thin white strap. "I'm Neimi, amateur photographer. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

[OrchestraHc]

"N-n-noble? M-majestic? M-me?" Those are honestly two words he never really expected to be called. It's flattering even though he's probably going to ruin the opinion really soon. "I-I'm sorry I ruined your shot. I'm Timothy, b-but I prefer T.J. I'm-m a pokemon trainer."

[Bad Situation]

Nathan scoffs at the girl's casual dismissal and crosses his arms. "And you have the experience I so sorely lack? This is an opportunity to expand my team and get some training in. I know I'm taking a risk walking into the competition like this, but if you're as knowledgeable as you say you are then you should know how important it is for people like us to take risks." Every day for a trainer was one risk after the next, this was just a...bigger risk than most. Nathan stares at her intently, trying to match a name to her face, "Who are you anyway? If you're going to tell me you're some kind of hotshot I'd like a name to go with your boasts."

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:
It's not very funny; the guy doesn't laugh, only grimacing and shaking his head.
It was quite a wait, though eventually you get to the front of the line. You, The Guy and a couple other trainers are all ushered into a small, cramped, rugged looking vehicle, along with one of the rangers.
The ranger speaks to all of you as you drive.
"Check your pokedexes- you should have a map uploaded to each of them."
You open yours, and indeed you do. You find a glowing dot at P12.
"That dot is your location. Now, these are mainly just so you don't get lost- other than that, it's what you make of it. You've got a bit of topography, and the X's mark points of interest... though do note some of them may well have moved. For the most part, it's so you don't get lost... and if you get hurt and need to make an escape, for god's sake, avoid the X's. We'll have cars like these patrolling the perimeter, so if you need to get out just make it to the fence and you'll be picked up within the hour."
The drive continues for another 15 minutes or so before making it to the dropoff point. The ranger turns to you again.
"You should all have plenty of time to get in, catch some pokemon, and get out, but I'm obligated to tell you this anyways: Any pokemon caught after midnight tonight are invalid for the purposes of the competition. If you are still within the cordon Thursday morning, you are disqualified. My personal advice? Get out by this evening. This place is already dangerous enough without adding darkness to the mix."
He gets out of the jeep and opens a crate, handing you each a pokeball.
"These each contain your Magnemite-cam. Once you're in, release it, and say "Action". It'll take care of the rest. You have already been briefed on this, but let me reiterate: you are responsible for the Magnemite-cam. If it goes down, doesn't shoot whatever you do, it doesn't count. Also: you break it, you buy it. So don't break it."
He nods.
"Alright, that should do it. You'll each be heading in in 5 minute intervals. And good luck."
You all pile out of the jeep, waiting outside of the fence. There's a small gate there, and everyone just stares into the forest, shuffling their feet, tension thick. Beyond the gate it's in a permanent twilight, all darkness and dusk. You can hardly see past 50 feet.
Finally, The Guy strides forwards and into the forest. Noone to be outdone, after 5 minutes Adela rushes in after.
Entering the forest, it's an entirely different world. The air is thick, choking... claustrophobia instantly overwhelms you in the thick trees. There's no landmarks, no motion, just darkness and sounds enveloping you: chirping and clacking and skittering, all off in the distance, echoing towards you.
It's easy to see how one might get lost in here. Without your pokedex map, you could go in circles for hours to no avail. Speaking of which... where to?

Nathan:
"Lana. Lana Raelli."
Immediately, images flash to your mind- cracking open a Metagross with her bare hands, throwing a Tyranitar to the ground like a ragdoll, shrugging off the claws of a Scizor without a flinch. Rachel Raelli, third of Aschen's elite four, widely considered the best martial artist in the world, as well as one of the best trainers. Her schtick? Any battles with her allowed full trainer participation, no holds barred. Naturally, she played to her strengths.
The girl before you now was her daughter.
Of course, the descendants of great trainers rarely became great themselves (though there were exceptions of course), and you were pretty sure she didn't have any gym badges at this point... but you know she probably was tutored by her mother, and some of the other greatest trainers of the region. Beyond that, she'd only been publicly training for several months now. She was a bit of a wild card- could be great, could be average. No way of telling at the moment.

[Ajadea]

Adela takes a look at the map and heads for the two X's to the north. Interesting was good, and there were a few choices there, it looked like. Her other choice was crossing a river - not her preferred choice. She sends Vichi out, then the Magnemite. "Action! C'mon, we've got some bugs to find." She and Vichi run off without looking back, trusting the camera to keep up.

Spoiler

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Heading to P10/11, not starting with Screech because she's a bit harder to keep track of and control.

Wisdom - (1d20+2)[13] Keeping an eye out for bugs.

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:

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I am so sorry- I forgot to mention that that coordinate I gave you was halfway through the ride. You're actually starting at Q5. Also, all of the dark green is within the cordon- the pale green is the cleared out zone, where the rangers will be driving.

[Nyna]

"T.J. it is, then." Neimi would smile. "Mind if I take a seat?" Neimi would sit down (assuming a positive response), looking over at the boy. "And yes, you looked very much like a seasoned trainer when I saw you. Give yourself some credit; you looked pretty cool." She grinned. "So, what brings you to these parts, T.J.? Were you planning on participating in the Bug Catching Competition? I think it's starting soon, if it hasn't already."

[OrchestraHc]

T.J. scoots over on the bench, but even if he did have a problem, he wouldn't have had the nerve to do any thing. "I'm n-not experienced, I only started this m-month, but thank you?" he smiled and blushed. "And I d-did plan on being in the c-contest, b-but plans change sometimes. I'm waiting for an acquaintance who is in the c-contest. W-Were you going to take pictures of the contest?"

[Nyna]

Neimi nodded. "Yeah, I was hoping to get in so I could get some good shots of the contest itself, but apparently that's not allowed." She shrugged. "I only have one pokemon, so I'm not really up for joining the competition myself, so I have to make do taking pictures from outside." And a half-smile. "I'm just getting started myself, so I'm not really too surprised. Once I'm more well-known, I'm sure they'll be willing to bend a bit to let me cover their contest. Free publicity is always a good thing, after all."

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:
You trudge through the forest towards your tentative destination. On the way there, the noises continue, and only increase in intensity, though you can't find much in the way of bugs- just a few Caterpie and Metapods.

Spoiler

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If you'd like to catch one of these for TJ, just write a pokeball off your list and it's yours.

Soon enough, though you don't reach your destination, you do find something interesting. You pass by what you initially think are strands of thick webbing, but soon enough you realize it's silk. You follow the strings to a large tree, which is absolutely covered in the white, dusky gunk- and Kakuna in all stages of metamorphosis. The larger ones writhe and undulate at your approach, obviously agitated... and ready to hatch. At the base of the tree are the husks of various bug pokemon, as well as one still-living, large, bloated Ariados. It looks over at you with glazed over eyes, and from a distance it looks like it's... squirming. As you approach, though, you realize to your horror the source of the squirming.
The thing is infested with Weedle. Some poke out of its abdomen, only to dive back in, while others just writhe around inside of it, slowly eating it alive from within. It's obviously resigned to its fate, waiting for a death that simply will not come.

[Ajadea]

Adela barely glances at the Caterpie, simply catching one of the bigger ones with a plain Pokeball before moving on. The Ariados gives her pause for a moment. She reaches for a Great Ball, but freezes and makes a horrified face when she realizes what's wrong with it. "Ugh. C'mon Vichi. None of these are useful." A weak Bug-type and a nearly dead one - neither seemed like much of a useful addition to her team.

Spoiler

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Moving on. Deducted one Pokeball for a Caterpie.

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:
You trudge through the forest to your destination, and are blinded as you come to a clearing.
The sun is shining brightly in the sky: even when your eyes adjust, you're squinting, and see your shadow cast starkly against the ground in the desolation around you.
The ground is all grey and black and charcoal, a level wasteland of burnt trees and shrubs like after a forest fire. In the distance you can see bits of flora, though not quite as dense as the rest of the forest.
Walking out into the bleak, crunching with every step, your foot lands on something soft which lets out a shrill cry. Looking down, you notice several things at once.
First, you just smooshed on a Larvesta.
Second, it's goop is all over your shoe.
And third, that goop is on fire.
You beat out the flames on your foot, rubbing it against the ground, and manage to put it out without too much of a burn. You look around to see more Larvesta on the ground, all very young, all writhing. The one you smooshed is still letting out a shrill scream... and off in the distance, in the still green area, towards the location of the X, you hear a long, low, mournful sound that echoes through the waste.

[Ajadea]

Today was not her day. Adela grits her teeth, does her best to block out the Larvesta's screeching, and keeps going. Her progress is slower now, largely because she doesn't feel like stepping in any more flaming bug. The ones at the edge were okay, but there had to be some stronger ones in this burnt up crappy excuse for a forest.

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Wisdom - (1d20+2)[21] Is there anything here that looks like a non-infant Larvesta?

[Gorgondantess]

Adela:
All the Larvesta look very infantile. Actually, most of them are wriggling into the ground- soon enough there are none in view.
A hot, arid breeze blows towards you, and you do see something that doesn't look like an infant Larvesta. At first you thought it was a trick of the blinding sun, but it seems that there is a large, shimmering entity floating around the X, the source of the sound. It seems to be coming towards you.

[Ajadea]

That thing was big. Actually, it was really big. Adela doesn't run away immediately, but she does open up her Pokedex and start heading towards the river. Just in case, and all. Her eyes keep darting towards the screen, waiting for a readout so she could figure out what the hell that giant firey thing there was.