[h3][color=#BB582B]Essie Hietz[/color][/h3][hr][sup][i]Brittanium City || Day 1: Morning[/i][/sup][indent] [/indent] Arriving at the park, Essie was pleased to find that many trainers had the same idea as her. Trainers engaged in battle speckled the sprawling park, and Essie didn’t make it five steps in before someone approached her and her Pokemon. “Human trainer, I challenge you!” a boy in a green dinosaur outfit said, raising his gloved arms up and baring the costume’s dull claws dramatically. [color=#BB582B]“Accepted! And sweet costume! But, um, what are you supposed to be, exactly?”[/color] Essie asked. The costume reminded her of a Larvitar, but the outfit was too green and didn’t have any of the telltale red and black. “I am [i]insulted[/i] by your disrespectfulness! I am [i]obviously[/i] a Larvitar!” the boy said, huffing. “Prepare to suffer the consequences of your actions! You face [i]Larvitar Frank![/i]” Essie laughed and, realizing that she’d just angered the boy more, cleared her throat, backing up. [color=#BB582B]“Right, um, the battle. Here is fine, right?”[/color] [hider=Pokemaniac Frank] [url=https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen8anythinggoes-1044384274][color=white] “Tremble before Thundurus!” the boy yelled, throwing a Pokeball, and for one, heart-stopping second, Essie was genuinely scared. Thundurus? The legendary Pokemon? How was she supposed to face that? What coalesced in the red light, though, was a small, yellow Pokemon that was easily identifiable as [i]not[/i] Thundurus, and Essie let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. Thundurus, she couldn’t handle. Pikachu? She probably could. [color=#BB582B]“Right, Todd, you’re on,”[/color] she said. Todd plodded forwards, smoke puffing out of his shell as Frank loudly faked a laugh in the background. “How low, dishonoring a Pokemon with a human name!” he shouted. [color=#BB582B]“Well you’re one to talk. Your poor Pikachu is named ‘Thundurus,’”[/color] Essie muttered as Todd huffed smoke. “What?” [color=#BB582B]“Nothing! Todd, Yawn!”[/color] “Thundurus, Thunderbolt!” The moves called, the Pokemon rolled into action, Thundurus—[i]Pikachu[/i]—bristling with faint flickers of electricity as Todd opened his mouth to yawn, pink bubbles drifting out onto the battlefield. From the Pikachu shot an arc of electricity, striking Todd so brightly Essie had to avert her eyes for a second. When she looked back, Todd looked faintly singed, though less so than the grass around him, which had been reduced to a blackened patch around the Torkoal. [color=#BB582B]“Nice, Todd! Now Lava Plume!”[/color] Essie yelled. On the other side of the battlefield, the boy was vainly trying to get his Pikachu to avoid the pink bubbles Todd had produced, but dodging one led to backing into another, and the boy quickly gave up on that. “Nevermind that, Thundurus, we’ll just take the poorly-named creature out first! Thunderbolt again!” he yelled. Once again, the Thunderbolt hit first, further singing Todd, but the Torkoal was not as shaken as before. The Lava Plume he’d been prepping spewed out of his mouth towards the Pikachu, which had been too caught up in executing its Thunderbolt to dodge. The lava hit squarely, engulfing the electric-type and fainting it pretty much instantly. Luckily, Frank had the brains to recall his Pokemon before the lava hardened, which was something Essie had learned through first-hand experience. [color=#BB582B]“Woah, good shot, Todd!”[/color] Essie shouted with a grin. The Yawn hadn’t even been necessary. “Lucky shot!” Frank retorted from across the field, waving his gloved arms again. “Next time you won’t be so lucky, human!” he shouted, promptly taking off. [color=#BB582B]“Um, yeah, good fight!”[/color] Essie called at the retreating costumed figure as she jogged over to Todd. Mica fluttered down from her shoulder as she bent, looking over the Torkoal. The grass looked worse off, but that didn’t mean Todd looked good. Copious amounts of ash swabbed off with her finger, and Todd looked a bit worn out despite his effort to appear otherwise. [color=#BB582B]“Alright, to the Center we go, and no you’re not walking,”[/color] she said, pulling Todd’s Pokeball from her belt, much to his silent yet watchful protest. [color=#BB582B]“You can walk [i]from[/i] the Center, not to, and that’s final.”[/color] [/color][/url][/hider] The trip to the Pokemon Center was a short one, which Essie figured was about right given that they were smack-dab in the middle of town. Why build the Pokemon Center any further from where all the trainers were sure to gather? So, as soon as she got Todd healed and out of his ball, she was back at the park, this time with the mind to avoid anyone who looked like they had an over-the-top get-up. While she didn’t mind Frank’s enthusiasm, his whole schtick got kinda old towards the end, and Essie still wasn’t sure if his comments had been purely part of his act. If they were, he was a pretty amazing actor, the odds of which didn’t make Essie feel any better. [color=#BB582B]“Hey, you looking for a battle?”[/color] Essie asked a girl who was standing around talking to her Aipom. She looked up, glancing at the Pokemon at Essie’s side, and smiled. “Sure! Kylie, pleased to meet’cha,” she said, holding out a hand. [color=#BB582B]“Essie,”[/color] Essie said, grinning as she shook Kylie’s hand. Finally, a normal— “Prepare to lose,” Kylie said, grabbing onto Essie’s hand as she tried to withdraw it. Her smile widened, and Essie recoiled, tugging on her hand desperately until she managed to snap out of Kylie’s grip. [color=#BB582B]“W-wha—”[/color] “Good luck!” Kylie said, giggling as she skipped a short distance away. Essie stared at her until her Aipom hopped onto the field, the movement shaking her out of her stupor. [color=#BB582B]“Yeah, um, Mica? You ready?”[/color] she asked, looking to her Wingull. Mica squawked happily, taking off with a strong beat of her wings. [hider=Student Kylie] [url=https://replay.pokemonshowdown.com/gen7anythinggoes-1044399739][color=white] “Aw, cute Wingull! Cha-cha, Fury Swipes!” Kylie shouted. Her Aipom jumped into action, and Essie was left scrambling for a response. [color=#BB582B]“Um, Mica, Water Gun!”[/color] she said, shouting the first thing that came to mind. Water Gun was her go-to move with Mica, as well as a move Essie was extremely familiar with. Besides not being able to count the number of Water Guns she’d coaxed out of baby Pokemon, Water Gun was also the first move Mica had picked up. Essie remembered her Wingull’s first Water Gun fondly, but that one was nowhere near as strong as Mica’s current ones. With age and size came power, and Mica was still growing. Cha-cha ran at Mica, but the Wingull easily flew out of range, instead landing a torrent of water from squarely above. Though the water hit directly on the Aipom’s head, Cha-cha quickly shook off the water, looking more annoyed than hurt. “Flying out of reach? That’s cheating! Cha-cha, slap that bird out of the air!” Kylie shouted. [color=#BB582B]“Dodge it, Mica!”[/color] Essie called. However, Mica’s attempt to gain altitude was cut short as Cha-cha leapt into the air, hand raised. Grabbing onto Mica with its tail, the Aipom used its paws to land one Fury Swipes after another as Mica tried to angle her body so that she could land a Water Gun. Cha-cha proved too strong, though; by the third hit, Mica was out cold, dropping from the air, and Essie quickly returned her before she hit the ground. [color=#BB582B]“You were great, Mica,”[/color] she said, the Pokeball still in her hand for a moment before she clasped it back onto her belt. “Well, I hope your Torkoal proves to be more of a challenge,” Kylie said, flipping her hair over a shoulder. Essie ground her teeth. [color=#BB582B]“Todd, show ‘em what we got,”[/color] she said, crossing her arms. Mica was a bit weak, yes, but she was a [i]baby[/i]. The only sparring partner she’d ever had was Todd, who regularly took it easy on the Wingull despite her type advantage already doing plenty for her. So what if Mica was a bit weaker than the norm? Essie wasn’t about to let any insult about her Pokemon slide, even if it were true. [color=#BB582B]“Lava Plume, Todd!”[/color] she shouted. “Cha-cha, Fury Swipes!” The Aipom ran at Todd, leaping and landing on the Torkoal to deliver several ferocious-looking scratches onto the Torkoal’s shell. Unfortunately, this also put it in prime blast radius, which it quickly realized, jumping back when lava spewed out of the top of Todd’s shell. Though it leaped away quickly, it didn’t leave unscathed, and it was left shaking molten liquid off its hands a short distance away. “Tsk, again, Cha-Cha! And this time, aim for the head!” Kylie called. [color=#BB582B]“Lava Plume again, Todd!”[/color] Essie shouted, grinning. The same move again, and aiming for the head? That wasn’t a good strategy, especially not against Todd. As soon as the Aipom leaped for Todd’s head, Todd ducked back into his shell, which glowed in preparation of another spew of lava. Cha-cha was left scrabbling against the front of the Torkoal’s shell as a fresh wave of lava flowed out of the Torkoal, this time proving sufficient to knock out the Aipom. “Hmph, fine,” Kylie said, reaching for her other Pokeball. She paused, looking up at Todd, then released her other Pokemon. “Rose, show that fire-type that not all plants burn!” Essie had to wince at the Ferroseed that came out. A double weakness, against Todd? Ferroseed were hardy and didn’t burn as much, but metals had a tendency to soften around Todd. “Flash Cannon, Rose!” [color=#BB582B]“Lava Plume!”[/color] Essie called, watching as Todd shot a jet of lava at the Ferroseed, which instantly collapsed under the heat. When another second passed without the steel-type stirring, Kylie returned it, sighing. “Alright, you beat me,” she said, walking around the hardening lava to stretch her hand out to Essie again. “Congratulations. You’re stronger than you look.” [color=#BB582B]“Thanks, but, um, I’ll pass on the handshake,”[/color] Essie said, offering Kylie an awkward, apologetic smile. [color=#BB582B]“Good battle, though!”[/color] she said, giving Kylie a thumbs up as she rapidly retreated, Todd at her side. No way was she getting involved with miss hot-and-cold-and-slightly-psycho, nuh-uh. [/color][/url][/hider] [color=#BB582B]“Are there no normal people around here?”[/color] she asked Todd when they were out of earshot. Todd gave a sympathetic ‘Tor,’ and she sighed. [color=#BB582B]“Well, I hope there are more normal trainers on the road. Maybe it’s just the city—it attracts crazy.”[/color] [hr][sup][i]Brittanium City || Day 1: Late Morning[/i][/sup][indent] [/indent] A Pokemon Center trip later, Mica was again squawking happily on her shoulder, and Todd spruced up at her side. Essie, however, was focused on the map on her Pokedex, a frown on her face. [color=#BB582B]“Huh, Arsenic Island is the first gym, right? But it looks closer to Brass Town than to Brittanium City. Why not just head to Brass Town first, then?”[/color] She looked between her Pokemon, both whom were in no position to give her a response. Mica, though, gave her a happy squawk anyway, prompting a laugh from her. [color=#BB582B]“Thanks, Mica. Alright, it’s settled then. To Route 2 we go!”[/color] she said, pointing to the way out of town. [color=#BB582B]“Let’s see if what kinds of cool wilds are around this place. Hopefully we see some rare Pokemon we don’t see back home!”[/color] she said, grinning. [color=#BB582B]“Maybe we’ll even find someone to join the team! What do you think about a new teammate, Todd, Mica?”[/color] Todd gave a slow ‘Tor,’ which wasn’t exactly a no, while Mica gave her usual happy squawk. [color=#BB582B]“I hear you, Todd, but I’m just saying, what if we find [i]the one[/i]? Or maybe, if we’re lucky, [i]the two[/i]?”[/color] Essie asked, at her Torkoal. Todd puffed some smoke, repeating his answer, and Essie sighed. [color=#BB582B]“Yeah, you’re right Todd. But, I mean, still, what if?”[/color] As Essie continued her discussion with Todd, Mica squawked happily on her shoulder, settling into a pitchy song that was more improvisation that what was necessarily needed. Thankfully, the city’s outer edges had fewer people, but Essie still had to ask her to tone it down a few times. As soon as they were out of the town boundaries, though, Essie ended her discussion with Todd in favor of joining Mica in her song. It was nonsensical, but it was fun, and Todd dealt with it by walking to what was probably the beat, much to both Essie and Mica’s delight [center] [/center][hr][hider=Actions][u][b][color=#BB582B] Actions: [/color][/b][/u] Two battles down, and now it’s onto Route 2 to look for/battle some wilds. [/hider] [hider=Pokemon][u][b][color=#BB582B] Pokemon Party: [/color][/b][/u] [indent][table][row][/row][row][cell][hider=Todd — Torkoal][h3][color=#BB582B][sup]Todd[hr][/sup][/color][/h3][img]https://www.smogon.com/dex/media/sprites/xy/torkoal.gif[/img][hr][sup][sup]Torkoal [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] BE: 6 [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] ♂ [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] Shell Armor [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] 100%[/sup][/sup] [indent][sup][color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Ancient Power [color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Smog [color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Lava Plume [color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Yawn[/sup][/indent][h3] [/h3][/hider] [/cell][cell][/cell][cell][hider=Mica — Wingull][h3][color=#BB582B][sup]Mica[hr][/sup][/color][/h3][img]https://www.smogon.com/dex/media/sprites/xy/wingull.gif[/img][hr][sup][sup]Wingull [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] BE: 2 [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] ♀ [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] Keen Eye [color=#BB582B]◼[/color] 100%[/sup][/sup] [indent][sup][color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Wing Attack [color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Water Gun [color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Soak [color=#BB582B]≻[/color] Supersonic[/sup][/indent] [h3] [/h3][/hider] [/cell][cell][/cell][cell] [/cell][/row][/table][hr][/indent][indent] [/indent][/hider] [hider=Inventory][u][b][color=#BB582B] Inventory: [/color][/b][/u] [list][*]Potions — 5 [*]Pokeballs — 5 [*]Revives — 1 [/list][h3] [/h3][/hider]