Cytia Pokémon League IC

[SiegeTower]

Bob's hat is easily knocked off his head by Sayaka. The musician was much more used to it being slapped down by Tambourine's tail than smacked off in the opposite direction. A nice shiney coin falls out of the hat as it's hit away but Bob is incredibly quick to catch the currency.

"Ain't nothin' if the free flying bird wants to groove on the flat top. Just gotta make sure my scratch don't go flying away with it."

When Bob and the rest of the Pokedex crew arrive at Cherry Town, there wasn't much to look at. The sun was setting so it was best to call it a night. Bob used to crash wherever he could but one perk he had learned from gaining his percussionist was that there were free couches for him to snooze on at every Pokemon center now. A free roof over your head every night was a vagrant's dream. Bob was taking full advantage of that tonight.

[tonberryking]

Ryoko

Ryoko has a limit of how much silliness she can stand to point out before she just rolls with it, although for the remainder of the trip to Cherry Town she and Clubton exchange glances and wonder to each other when Zui is going to notice her new friend. She even handwave negates Clubton's silent offer to bop Zui's new headgear and by the time they reach the town she ponders her (and possibly the other girls') next move.

"So, uh," she looks down at Rui, trying to pretend she knows the younger girl's name, "While Pinky, Rockhead and the Miko are occupied, and because the damn pokemart only has poke-themed clothes instead of something normal... keep in mind she is still wearing a rather tattered (boy's) uniform from some unknown school, "You wanna get something to eat after we check your starly into the pokecenter? she heads towards the center anyway, possibly for similar reasons as Bob to check out the free sofas undoubtedly inside.

[Merilan]

Zuikaku

Zuikaku paused for a long moment... ... ...

"Huh...?" She looked up and -- well, discovered that it was kind of hard to stare at one's forehead. "Eh? Is there something there? Ehhhhhhhhh?!"

[Esprit15]

Nila
"Well... Nothing like a good deal on a TM. I'm sure I'll catch something that can make use of Thunder Wave, or get something for it," Nila says, paying for the TM 73 and returning to her group at the center.

"So! We sticking around here or are we braving the night and sleeping outside?" Nila asks, putting a little more emphasis on the latter.

[aturtledoesbite]

Everyone

As each of you enters the Pokémon Center, the Nurse Joy on duty will call out, "Welcome! How may I help you today?"

Those of you that have injured Pokémon go up to the counter, where she takes the Pokéball for a minute and places it in the recovery machine; it doesn't take long before she returns the Pokéballs.

When asking about a place to stay for the night, Nurse Joy says, "Of course. How many rooms will you all need?"

As you all sort out the details, a man with glasses, slightly-disheveled black hair, and a dusty overcoat walks in. "Excuse me, are there any Pokémon Trainers here? I need your assistance!"

[Esprit15]

Nila
"Some of us. Whatcha need?"

[Mura-neechan]

Reina would quietly head to the Pokemon Center first, to recover Kenshiki's stamina. Finding the little blob dragon back in good health, she sighed softly. Night would be coming in soon, which bred a whole slew of possibilities. Most pokemon would be hoveled up in their shelters, sleeping and dangerous through numbers. But Nocturnals and Dark types could easily be around... It could be useful to add such a Pokemon to her collection. They weren't what she was after, but it might not be a bad placeholder. Reina frowned a bit in thought, as she'd begin to leave, quietly quoting some of Taena's teachings to herself. "The Trainer never rests before their Pokemon, the Trainer never eats before their Pokemon. Form bonds and ambitions together through shared experience. Improves cohesion..." The girl would snap out of her daze, just before leaving as the old man cried out for help. Placing a hand on her hip, she'd look to the man from her side. "There's a small number of real Trainers here, and a few others of various capability. I can't gurantee helping you myself, but I'll at least listen."

[Esprit15]

Nila
"Real trainers? As opposed to what?" Nila asks, catching the implication.

[Nyna]

Rui Mitsuharu

Rui would nod in response to Ryoko's question. "Sounds like a plan to me. Let's go get Eggolas patched up." Rui would walk along with Ryoko as they approached the Pokecenter. She'd gladly check in Eggolas at the counter, as well as reserving a room for herself, and another for Ryoko while she was up there, before walking back over to the woman. "Got us each a room, and..." She'd look over towards the man with glasses. "Let's find out what he wants~" And she'd walk on over curiously.

"If it's something I can help with, I'll do it! What's the problem?"

[tonberryking]

Ryoko

Ryoko remembers to get another room for Yumeko and Zui (note: singular room) before following Rui. She shakes her head though and attempts to take control of the situation:

"Yeah. What's in it for us?"

[CateranEnforcer]

Justin Hawkins

Justin nods to B.T. "Yeah sounds good, Dusty could use a bit of a rest there." He looks around at the deepening night. "Hey, Pokedex do you know how far it is to the lake from Cherry Town?" he says aloud. Turning back to B.T. "Depending how far we have to go, it might be better to wait for morning. I'm fine with trying if it looks promising though." He heads to the pokemon center with the rest, even though all his Joltik really needs is a bit of rest.

Dusty, now fully charged, skitters around the pokemon center, going between feet, up walls, and across the ceiling. Justin lounges in a chair, fiddling with his pokedex when the man walks in asking for help. He stands straight up at the request for help, and asks,"What's the problem, sir?" He casts a sidelong glance at Reina as she makes her comment about real trainers, and his lips purse a bit but otherwise he says nothing. With a snap of his fingers, he calls Dusty to him to rest peacefully on his shoulder again.

[Aneurin]

B.T.

"He probably just wants a pokemon battle," B.T. comments, disinterestedly as she flips through one of the magazines in the waiting room. "So, anyway, I still want to get up to the lake for dawn," she goes on, clearly dismissing the stranger. "Or a bit before. I guess we could get up early, that'd be inconvenient... and we'd still need to buy rods tonight if we wanted to go fishing. Unless they do rentals up there..." she frowns for a moment. "Any idea if they do? You're from around here, right?"

[Charm25]

Marcus Osterbahn

"Geez, Reina, play nice!" Marcus chides the wannabe dragon master. Having seen and registered the gooey goomy in his dex, he's figured out it actually isn't a poison type, which changes his view of Reina significantly - not a frumpy "I don't want to make friends because I'm so bad" demeanor, so much as a "you people are beneath me" sort of mindset. The latter was, strangely enough, easier to work with. A few feats of strength should really help change her views of the boy.

Thankfully enough, someone needs help, and it might give him a chance to show what he can do. "Calm down man, we can help. Whatcha need?"

[SiegeTower]

Bob looked around as everyone talked about being "real" trainers or not. Bob was sure he fell in the latter category. He was just gonna go rest up for the night while these folks did their thing.

[aturtledoesbite]

Everyone

The man gives a sigh of relief when so many people offer their help "Well, you see, I'm a researcher of sorts. I was trying to decipher some ancient tablets I'd found in my travels when a group of armed men came and stole them from me. I'm not really much of a trainer, so I don't have any way to recover them myself. They split up after they took them, so I don't know which routes they went on or where they took the tablets, but as dark as it's getting, they can't have gotten far...please, can you all track them down and recover them for me?"

At Ryoko's question of the reward, the man scratches the back of his head. "Er, well...I don't really have much money, but...I can teach Pokémon a few moves; maybe I could teach yours something?"

[CateranEnforcer]

Justin Hawkins

Justin raises an eyebrow at B.T. "This might be a good chance to faint two Pidgeys with one Rock Throw. You think some ran to the lake?" He steps forward, "Not to worry, this is the kind of thing the Pokemon Rangers are for! I'll have a look around!"

Turning to B.T. "This should only take a minute, I hope if you want to pick up your rod!"

Spoiler

Show

Survival to track (4d6+2)[19]

[Aneurin]

B.T.

"So... you're offering to reward us for calling the police for you?" B.T. gives the stranger a funny look. "Because this sounds like a job for the police, what with the whole theft thing. And the fact that even if we did feel like a bit of vigilante justice, we'd have to be pretty daft to follow a complete stranger out into the dark and run off down some country roads on the strength of their say-so," she adds pointedly, as she folds up the magazine and places it back on the table beside her.

And then Justin cuts in and B.T. sighs.

"...Never mind,"

[Mura-neechan]

Reina casually waved off the concerns of others about her words, folding her arms at her belly and listening to the man's story. He mentioned teaching moves, which had promise, even if it was an unknown and limited promise. Sighing softly, Reina simply moved to approach the man, and stare at him for a moment, before releasing her arms and nodding, taking a hand to flip her long hair back and smile a bit.

"I'll see what I can do. It might take some time to recover these things, how can I get back in touch with you after I've acquired one of these tablets?"

[Esprit15]

Nila
"We," she says, correcting Reina's use of the singular, "would be more than happy to, by the sound of it. Could you just describe them for us? Should make it easier to identify them. Faces, clothes, what they were armed with." She looks over at her travel group. "Want to do a little more travel before calling it a night? Might even be able to catch them sleeping."

[ptdapen]

Samantha Clark

Sammy expressed great remorse to her Pokemon after they were healed by the Pokemon Center. Sayaka took her place on top of her owner's head as recompense and Hashirama held his head high. The blonde thanked her turtwig for his resilience and recalled him back to his Pokeball.

Her attention turned to the commotion going on with the stranger. Her first instinct was to volunteer to help but the last battle had admittedly left her spirits dampened. She was clearly not undefeatable and these dangerous men would likely not fight by League standards. But when others started to volunteer she gripped her fists tight and stepped forward. At that moment she could not believe that she even hesitated. "Yes, it seems that most of us are willing to help you," she told the man. "What's your name by the way? I'm Samantha." She smiled at him as a sign of reassurance.

"Don't mind Reina. It's in her nature to be... honest," Samantha commented with an amused expression. Other people had to experience the scathing remarks. Those comments stilled irked her but she was learning to tune them out. Her father had complained about her mother daily and usually immediately when he had gotten home from work.

Sammy wondered though if the girl was a loner by original choice or because she found it difficult to communicate with others without them getting offended. It would be untactful to ask so she resigned to learning more about her gradually if at all possible. The prospect felt doubtful to her though due to their conflicting nature.

With those thoughts dealt with, she returned to her musician companion. "I'm not sure how big on heroics you are but if not for him could you come with me?" she inquired with a low voice. "I could use your support. We could use your support. I saw Sayaka fighting stronger than she has in a long time due to your songs." She gave him a thumbs up but redacted it to a peace sign that he had favored before.

The socialite then went back to the rest of the group and assumed a commanding position. She was not sure if she was making the right decisions but she stood confident. "We will need to split up in order to catch each and every one of the ruffians. I think it'd be best if we agreed to all return here at a certain time so that if one of us gets lost or worst we can decide to support them."

[Lokyar]

Johnny Brockton

"Pepper, grab his scent."

The fluffy houndour runs up to the man and begins sniffing him studiously while Johnny approached the man. "I'll need to know where you were attacked and any place you came from or went to from that location, and if the tablets were taken in a personal item like a backpack. Pepper might be able to pick up the trail from there."

Turning back to the others Johnny pulled out his flashlight and held it up inquiringly. "Show of hands on how many people came prepared to travel at night?"

[Merilan]

Zuikaku

Zuikaku emerged into the Pokemon Centre at about this time, flailing and hurrying up to the Nurse Joy-- "Mom-- er-- I mean, Miss Joy--" Oh god that's awkward, when your mom looks like every other Nurse Joy out there, uuu homesick "--I've got a Pokemon on my head!! Help!"

So peaceful...

[Esprit15]

Nila
"I can. Just let me grab a flashlight," the girl says, looking through her bag. Could have sworn she bought one, but no worries.

[Aneurin]

B.T.

"...I suddenly understand all the frustration we must have caused mum and dad when we were growing up," B.T. mutters, massaging the bridge of her nose to ward of the incipient headache. "Why the hell am I the responsible one here?"

With a heartfelt groan, B.T. levers herself to her feet, climbs on a chair and waves to attract attention. When that doesn't work, she just starts shouting over the milling group.

"Oi! If you're honestly going to go running around a strange place in the dark following a vague story from a total stranger looking for criminals, then you're going to do it the smart way. Insofar as it's possible. First up, no-one's alone. Groups of three or more so if something goes wrong, you've got someone to help and someone to fetch more help. Second: you're all collecting my number and leaving your own with me. I'm staying here, and if anyone gets in trouble I'll round up help. Which brings us to three. Check in with me every twenty minutes with your GPS location. If you miss a check in I'll assume you're in trouble, get help, and come looking. So don't miss a check in - when I'm looking for your butt I'm not looking for anyone else's who might really be in trouble, right?"

It's not a perfect solution, but, hey, they're clearly not going to be deterred and with a bit of luck the worst that'll happen is that someone gets lost, has a bit of a scare or sprains an ankle. Of course, that's assuming no-one actually finds said criminals. And that this isn't some kind of trap.

[Elfbird]

Yumeko Shiroi

Yumeko grips her naginata a little bit tighter and looks for her companions in the crowd. Pyrrha sits primly on the corner of the counter to stay out from underfoot.

Ryocchan, Rui-chan, ...Zui-chan. We must help, of course. Pyrrha and Matches can light our way. If we race to the foot of the mountains, we might catch them in a... difficult position. She smirks slightly with that last part, imagining setting on the crooks with fire and spear from below while they try to climb a sheer face. As if Team Sugar Plum Fairies would be so fortunate.

While waiting for the others to get organized, Yumeko checks the laces on her sneakers, wraps up and ties her long sleeves, and re-secures her clothes so she can run without difficulty.

[aturtledoesbite]

Zuikaku

Nurse Joy stares at the pink Starly, in addition to the Moon Stone lodged in Zui's head. It seems peaceful enough. She reaches up toward the Starly, though, and it pecks her hand away. "Well...I suppose it must like the...Moon Stone." She seems to have mentally decided that the Moon Stone was a secondary concern at the moment. "Hold on one moment."

Nurse Joy reaches into a drawer on her side of the counter, pulling out a Pokéball. The top of it was blue instead of red, though, and had a crescent moon stenciled on it. She hands it to Zui. "Try using this."

---

Everyone

The man ends up stepping back a bit, likely unused to dealing with so many people all asking questions. "Uh, well, my name is Charles. Let's see...the men had black uniforms with...I guess they were sun symbols on the front? It looked like they all had daggers and Pokémon with them, too. It happened just outside, not too long ago. The tablets were each in their own back, to protect them from wear...oh, I hope they're undamaged..."

He pauses for a minute, clearly worrying over the state of the tablets, before continuing. "Oh, uh, I'll be staying here tonight, I guess; tomorrow I'll be heading toward Orange Town to study the Tower of Fire, and I should be there a while; you should be able to find me there."

[Merilan]

Zuikaku

"O-oh, thank you!" Zuikaku looked apologetic and grateful at the same time, before -- taking the moon-shaped Pokeball to kind of... ... ...dunk it onto her forehead. "There there, little Starlette... come in there? C'mon... it's comfy in there! There's-- snacks and comfortable pillows and television!"

[Mura-neechan]

Reina nodded as she was given the information, starting to head out herself, clearly ignoring Nila's concerns for safety, as she tossed a Pokeball, letting loose her charmander and moving to grab her own torch. "Alright, Joenki, let's get going. We'll head north, so it might be a little while before we can get your tablet back to you. If I recover it, I'll have it sent to the Orange Town Pokemon Center." Reina smiled, a bit kindly to the researcher, before she'd hurry off from the center, dashing out alongside her Charmander, to take the northern Route.

[CateranEnforcer]

Justin Hawkins

Spoiler

Show

B.T.

"...I suddenly understand all the frustration we must have caused mum and dad when we were growing up," B.T. mutters, massaging the bridge of her nose to ward of the incipient headache. "Why the hell am I the responsible one here?"

With a heartfelt groan, B.T. levers herself to her feet, climbs on a chair and waves to attract attention. When that doesn't work, she just starts shouting over the milling group.

"Oi! If you're honestly going to go running around a strange place in the dark following a vague story from a total stranger looking for criminals, then you're going to do it the smart way. Insofar as it's possible. First up, no-one's alone. Groups of three or more so if something goes wrong, you've got someone to help and someone to fetch more help. Second: you're all collecting my number and leaving your own with me. I'm staying here, and if anyone gets in trouble I'll round up help. Which brings us to three. Check in with me every twenty minutes with your GPS location. If you miss a check in I'll assume you're in trouble, get help, and come looking. So don't miss a check in - when I'm looking for your butt I'm not looking for anyone else's who might really be in trouble, right?"

It's not a perfect solution, but, hey, they're clearly not going to be deterred and with a bit of luck the worst that'll happen is that someone gets lost, has a bit of a scare or sprains an ankle. Of course, that's assuming no-one actually finds said criminals. And that this isn't some kind of trap.

Justin nods,"B.T. is right, these are dangerous criminals we might be dealing with, you shouldn't just run off on your own. If we're going to get anywhere, we should move carefully and in groups. I found three sets of tracks, one to the north, south, and east. They can't have gotten far, so we should return here when we are able, or at least report back." He's looks around at the group. "Few people are already trying to head north, what about the east and south routes? We can easily return to our other plans after this is dealt with."

Justin fears this is going to go just as well as his attempt to organize the group at Apple, but it can't hurt to try again.

[Lokyar]

Johnny Brockton

"I'm heading towards the Tower tomorrow too, wouldn't mind someone familiar with the area as a guide and I can keep this happening again on the way."

Johnny waves to the girl on the chair. "Sounds good. I'm in the dex under Johnny. Considering who we're going to be tracking down it'd probably be a good idea if each group had someone that can fight, too. So far I know that's me and Nila. I'm gonna have Pepper search the area and try to catch the trail, if you're playing operator I'll leave it to you to organize the groups."

Exiting the pokecenter Johnny followed Pepper around as he searched for the matching scent of the researcher and his attackers.

Pepper Perception(Tracker)
(2d6+1)[6]