[PW!] Mining for Magmas

[Guest]

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Mining for Magmas

Fallarbor Town, a fairly humid corner of real estate in the northern regions
of Hoenn. Unbeknownst to its citizens, a Team Magma base resided within its
confines, its purposes unclear. Unbeknownst to Team Magma, however, a small
band of adventurers was quite aware of the base's existence.

Unfortunately for the adventurers, they didn't know where it was.

"This...is...annoying," Keaton noted gruffly.

"Not to mention irritating," Aerie chipped in.

"Plus inconvenient," Keaton added.

The remaining three members of the party sat nearby, pouring over possible
strategies in the event of a brawl with Team Magma. The only member of the
party with red hair, Cassandra Gale, leaned over and said, "I agree with you
guys, but I don't think complaining is going to get us anywhere."

"Makes me feel better," Keaton grumbled.

The minoTauros's sister, a young woman with flowing white hair, shook her
head. "Not much else we can do at this point, Cass. I mean, we don't have many
clues to the base's location."

"And it's not like a Magma agent's going to come walking past us at any
moment," the last of their party, Derek Fisher, suggested. He cautiously looked
about after his suggestion, gaining the attention of his companion, Chan the
Medicham. "Didn't hurt to try it."

"Well, maybe we'll find something if we look around town," Cass suggested.
"Any other ideas?"

TBC?

[NS: Honestly, I have no idea how to get them to the base. Adrian, Tech, any
ideas?
William Rendfeld
Creator of Echowarrior and Alex Masters
178,000 Excellent Author Points
1 'I knew odd pokefacts that confused a bread crumb' point.
20 Y2Tech Points

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

William Rendfeld wrote:
> "And it's not like a Magma agent's going to come walking past us at any
> moment," the last of their party, Derek Fisher, suggested. He cautiously looked
> about after his suggestion, gaining the attention of his companion, Chan the
> Medicham. "Didn't hurt to try it."
>
> "Well, maybe we'll find something if we look around town," Cass suggested.
> "Any other ideas?"

Which is when a hoverbike, still sporting a Team Magma paintjob, roared
by, causing Derek to smile. "Just needed some time."

Aerie literally flew after it, but fortunately only had to chase it a
block before it settled into a parking spot. "Hey! Hey, you!"

The hoverbike's rider looked back at her with some disdain. "You."

"Yeah, me. Where'd you get that?"

He smirked. "Where do you think?"

"We've been looking for 'em. Tell us where they are and we'll make them
too busy to chase you."

"No thanks. I can take care of myself."

"Please?" She smacked fist into open palm. "I reeeally want to mess
'em up again."

That elicited a chuckle. "Alright, fine." He pointed to the nearby
volcano. "You see that dark rock, just above the treeline? That's one
of their doors."

Aerie smiled brightly, leaping up and hugging the man. "Thank you!"
She let go and ran back to her companions, while he carefully brushed
himself off where she had touched him, more out of symbolic concern than
actual worries about germs or other contaminants.

Cass's jaw was open when Aerie returned. "You know who that is."

Aerie nodded. "I know. You just have to know how to talk to him.
Anyway, he gave me their location. It could be a trap, but I don't
think he's got any reason to trick us this time. So let's go!"

TBC?

[NS: Cass might want to deal with Jason first, but I'm not sure how to
write that right now...]

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

William Rendfeld wrote:
> As Cass rejoined the group and they began walking towards the volcano, Aerie
> murmured to herself, "I've got to try being one of those."

The group was, of course, observed on their trek up the mountain. Team
Magma knew rumors of their base might leak out, and they were on special
lookout for the party that had wrecked their bases in spectacular
fashion of late. Not to mention the techies' cameras that had wistfully
been tracking their stolen merchandise.

A massive ambush would have been too obvious - and, some feared, just
give them reason to blow the entire top of the volcano away, without a
care for the nearby cities. Fortunately, cooler heads quashed the more
paniced rumors, although one of the more imaginative rumor spreaders had
his commanding office wondering just how one could consume internal
organs in the proposed sequence, especially if the victim was supposed
to still be alive to feel pain afterwards. Said commanding officer was
also aware of the invaders' true objective, so when they reached the
base, they met Smasher.

His picture - hastily cropped from Silver Conference footage - on a
button on the guards' black armbands, anyway.

Most of the group stopped short of the entrance, seeking to approach in
stealth, but once she saw the buttons, Aerie just marched right up to
the guards. "Alright, where is he?"

One guard readied his pokeballs, but the other raised a hand to stop
him. "Who?"

Aerie pointed to the pictures. "Him. Smasher."

The guard with a ready pokeball blinked. "Is that his name? He looks
familiar, but I-"

"Didn't know him too well," the other guard continued. "He had a touch
of amnesia after his fall. We took him in, let him recover a bit. He
did us some favors to repay our hospitality. Poor guy never saw it
coming."

Aerie folded her arms and tapped her foot.

"Team Aqua took exception to his assistance and captured him. Last we
saw, they were wrapping him in irons and feeding him to Registeel.
They're trying to lower his defenses so they can capture him. Way I
reckon, he'll be alive in there - if you can call it that - for about a
week, then Registeel'll get indigestion. We'd go rescue him ourselves,
but we don't have the resources - a couple of our bases got destroyed,
and we're still recovering. We've got our own wounded to tend to
first."

"Mm-hmm," Aerie growled. "And I suppose you want me to buy that and go
chasing after this Registeel?"

"Hey, if I didn't have other duties, I would." The guard shrugged,
pulling out a piece of paper. "I even drew a map when it looked like we
might go rescue him. It's useless to me now, but here, take it."

Aerie did as instructed. "This doesn't mean I believe you."

"Suit yourself. I ain't the one who tried to off 'im."

The others were glad they were in hiding at that moment. It made it
easier to avert their eyes from the painfully bright angry glow, and the
pyrotechnics that followed.

TBC?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

>Most of the group stopped short of the entrance, seeking to approach in
>stealth, but once she saw the buttons, Aerie just marched right up to
>the guards. "Alright, where is he?"
>
>One guard readied his pokeballs, but the other raised a hand to stop
>him. "Who?"
>
>Aerie pointed to the pictures. "Him. Smasher."
>
>The guard with a ready pokeball blinked. "Is that his name? He looks
>familiar, but I-"
>
>"Didn't know him too well," the other guard continued. "He had a touch
>of amnesia after his fall. We took him in, let him recover a bit. He
>did us some favors to repay our hospitality. Poor guy never saw it
>coming."
>
>Aerie folded her arms and tapped her foot.
>
>"Team Aqua took exception to his assistance and captured him. Last we
>saw, they were wrapping him in irons and feeding him to Registeel.
>They're trying to lower his defenses so they can capture him. Way I
>reckon, he'll be alive in there - if you can call it that - for about a
>week, then Registeel'll get indigestion. We'd go rescue him ourselves,
>but we don't have the resources - a couple of our bases got destroyed,
>and we're still recovering. We've got our own wounded to tend to
>first."
>
>"Mm-hmm," Aerie growled. "And I suppose you want me to buy that and go
>chasing after this Registeel?"
>
>"Hey, if I didn't have other duties, I would." The guard shrugged,
>pulling out a piece of paper. "I even drew a map when it looked like we
>might go rescue him. It's useless to me now, but here, take it."
>
>Aerie did as instructed. "This doesn't mean I believe you."
>
>"Suit yourself. I ain't the one who tried to off 'im."
>
>The others were glad they were in hiding at that moment. It made it
>easier to avert their eyes from the painfully bright angry glow, and the
>pyrotechnics that followed.
>


Once the pyrotechnics subsided and the two Magma guards were tossed aside by
Aerie, she called, "Okay, I don't know about you guys, but I think they were
lying."

"Agreed," Cass noted, hoping that she never did anything to get on Aerie,
Doppler, or Mimic's bad sides. "But that might have been a half-truth. For all
we know, Magma did find Smasher."

"But what are we supposed to do about that?" Keaton asked, looking to Cass
with a critical eye. "It's not like we can just walk in there and ask someone."

"Who said anything about walking in and asking someone?" Cass asked with a
sly grin.

Kitsu looked at Cass's grin, then grew one to match. "Cass, are you thinking
what I think you're thinking?"

"I do believe we are thinking the same thoughts, Kitsu," Cass replied.

Aerie immediately began to catch on and broke in, "Then if what I'm thinking
is what the two of you are thinking, we need to stop thinking and start
acting."

The three males in the party just seemed to stare blankly. "Care explaining
your thoughts to us?" Keaton asked, visibly annoyed.

"Oh, you'll love this," Cass promised. "We bust in there, tear the base up
real nice until we find the computer rooms, look into the database for any info
regarding Smasher or John, then bust our way out of the place."

The plan already coursing around in his head, Keaton shared their grin. "I
like what you're thinking."

As the four looked to the last of the party, Derek and Chan looked to one
another and shrugged. "Let's do it," Derek affirmed.

"Great," Aerie declared. "Stand back, everyone!"

As the others moved out of harm's way, Aerie began charging up a Hyper Beam,
shortly opening fire upon the door and tearing it down, alarm klaxons already
blaring within the Magma base.

TBC?

[Y'know, I'm finally getting the hang of the whole chaos thing. Tech, I think
you'd better handle just how much info the group finds out concerning Smasher.
I'll keep what they find out about John to a minimum.]


William Rendfeld
Creator of Echowarrior and Alex Masters
178,000 Excellent Author Points
1 'I knew odd pokefacts that confused a bread crumb' point.
20 Y2Tech Points

 

[clayton]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

> "But what are we supposed to do about that?" Keaton asked, looking to Cass
> with a critical eye. "It's not like we can just walk in there and ask
> someone."
>
> "Who said anything about walking in and asking someone?" Cass asked with a
> sly grin.
>
> Kitsu looked at Cass's grin, then grew one to match. "Cass, are you
> thinking what I think you're thinking?"
>
> "I do believe we are thinking the same thoughts, Kitsu," Cass replied.
>
> Aerie immediately began to catch on and broke in, "Then if what I'm
> thinking is what the two of you are thinking, we need to stop thinking and
> start acting."
>
> The three males in the party just seemed to stare blankly. "Care explaining
> your thoughts to us?" Keaton asked, visibly annoyed.
>
> "Oh, you'll love this," Cass promised. "We bust in there, tear the base up
> real nice until we find the computer rooms, look into the database for any
> info regarding Smasher or John, then bust our way out of the place."
>
> The plan already coursing around in his head, Keaton shared their grin. "I
> like what you're thinking."
>
> As the four looked to the last of the party, Derek and Chan looked to one
> another and shrugged. "Let's do it," Derek affirmed.
>
> "Great," Aerie declared. "Stand back, everyone!"
>
> As the others moved out of harm's way, Aerie began charging up a Hyper
> Beam, shortly opening fire upon the door and tearing it down, alarm klaxons
> already blaring within the Magma base.

Derek hung back for a few seconds. "I think I'll hang back, in case
stupid people come out. If they look important, we'll bag 'em since
they can't retreat to the base in the woods. Here's hoping an Admin
comes."

Chan gave the look like his trainer was crazy. Well he was, but that
was a moot point. Giving a nod, Chan decided himself that he had
better stay lest his trainer get lost in the ash.

"That might be a good idea," Cass admitted, after being reminded that
the other end of the monorail was probably out of service.

But before anyone could try to either stop him from staying or stay
with him, Derek waved them off.

"Go, have fun, blow something up for me. If anyone shows up, I'm just
a wandering martial artist enjoying the peace and quiet."

There was a group sweatdrop, since in a few minutes it would be FAR
from peaceful or quiet.

-------
Clayton

Random Tagline:
NARF!

[NS: Of course, that doesn't mean that there's ANOTHER monorail or
escape route, as demonstrated earlier by Jason.]

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

>"Go, have fun, blow something up for me. If anyone shows up, I'm just
>a wandering martial artist enjoying the peace and quiet."
>
>There was a group sweatdrop, since in a few minutes it would be FAR
>from peaceful or quiet.


"Right," Cass declared. "Let's get going." As the group quickly filed into the
base, Cass called back to Derek and Chan, "Wish us luck!"

-

"Where are they?" the loud, booming voice of Magma Admin Lars asked his
subordinates.

"The man with the Medicham is remaining behind," one of the grunts replied.
"The three girls and the larger man are charging into the complex."

A deafening *boom* gained the Magmas' attention.

"Where are they headed?" Lars finally asked.

"They aren't heading anywhere yet, sir," another Magma grunt replied, "but
if this is the group that it's supposed to be..."

Lars growled under his breath. "Double the guard around the computer rooms.
Find these intruders and capture them. Maximum force."

-

"Tric!"

ZAP!

A Mightyena was knocked unconscious as Cass and her group continued down the
hallway, Jolt the Manectric covering the rear.

"Just to make sure, we're looking for the computer rooms, and no blasts
going down," Cass reminded the others. "This is a volcano, after all."

"Check," Aerie replied. "Blasts to the sides or up. We don't want another
lava bath."

TBC?

[NS: Ladies and gentlemen, meet Lars Gandrie, the Magma yang to Leif's yin.
Tech, Adrian, I suggest one of you handle it from here.]


William Rendfeld
Creator of Echowarrior and Alex Masters
178,000 Excellent Author Points
1 'I knew odd pokefacts that confused a bread crumb' point.
20 Y2Tech Points

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

William Rendfeld wrote:
> "Just to make sure, we're looking for the computer rooms, and no blasts
> going down," Cass reminded the others. "This is a volcano, after all."
>
> "Check," Aerie replied. "Blasts to the sides or up. We don't want another
> lava bath."

A short while later...

"What kind of maniacs build a base with lava OVER THEIR HEADS?!?!?"
Keaton wondered as the group ran away from an oncoming molten red
tsunami.

"Team Magma," Aerie answered, blasting holes in the floor from her perch
over Kitsu's shoulder, where Kitsu was carrying her away so she could
concentrate on blasting holes in the floor.

Rounding a corner, the group found themselves at the bottom of a long,
wide shaft. It did not take long for Cass to spy a control panel and
start pecking away.

"Whatever you're doing, hurry up," Keaton called over his shoulder as
he closed the door. "I'm surprised power's still up."

Kitsu tapped a map on the wall, tracing their route. "We missed the
generators, but we went right over the computer room." She smirked.
"And I thought computers melting down was just a joke."

"Speaking of up..." Cass poked a final button. The floor rumbled, then
slowly ascended. "Next stop, top of the volcano. Panoramic views, open
skies, and all magma below us. Lucky we found their helipad. Now if
only we had a helicopter."

"Gimme...a...second..." Aerie panted, holding on to Kitsu even when the
latter made motions to set the girl down.

Cass blinked, wondering if Aerie was serious, then shook her head.
"Don't worry about it. Hot Shot can get us out of here."

Meanwhile, in the computer room, Lars eyed one of his subordinates. "I
understand I have you to thank for the loss of some service hallways."

Mace shrugged. "A squad of grunts and fire pokemon should have
everything cleared up within 24 hours. We didn't lose anything
important."

Lars frowned. "I'll judge what's important or not." He tried peering
into Mace's eyes, but lost the staring contest in only fourteen seconds.
"But you're right, thanks to the reinforcement plating you placed under
their route. It looks like they think our base is almost totally
destroyed. How did you know what they were going to do? Do you know
them?"

"I was there when they attacked our last base," Mace reminded him.
"Given the threat they pose to our organization, I did some research on
them. For some reason, I didn't have security clearance to view their
activities prior to arrival in Hoenn, but what I did see was enough to
give me a good guess. And my next guess is they'll rendesvous with
their friend outside then try again, unless they believe there's nothing
here. I reccomend flooding most of the entrances - any of the ones
they're likely to find - with lava and playing possum until they go
away."

"Yes, SIR!" The maintenance squad that had implemented Mace's earlier
suggestion turned to carry out his next one.

"Belay that!" Lars barked. "I'M the Admin. I give the orders." He
counted to ten, trying to calm himself down. "Do it."

"Yes, sir," the squad replied, dragging their feet.

Lars rolled his eyes. "Once that's done and the Magma Destroyers have
left our inner perimeter, since we'll be holed up in here anyway, you
can throw a small party for your new hero while we wait for them to go
fully away."

"Yes, SIR!" The squad saluted then ran off.

Had Lars not been shaking his head just then, he would have seen Mace
doing the same.

TBC?

> [NS: Ladies and gentlemen, meet Lars Gandrie, the Magma yang to Leif's yin.
> Tech, Adrian, I suggest one of you handle it from here.]

[NS: Sorry for the delay. Juuust when I thought I'd scheduled things to
give me time to post, things got busy... >_<]

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

>Kitsu tapped a map on the wall, tracing their route. "We missed the
>generators, but we went right over the computer room." She smirked.
>"And I thought computers melting down was just a joke."
>
>"Speaking of up..." Cass poked a final button. The floor rumbled, then
>slowly ascended. "Next stop, top of the volcano. Panoramic views, open
>skies, and all magma below us. Lucky we found their helipad. Now if
>only we had a helicopter."
>
>"Gimme...a...second..." Aerie panted, holding on to Kitsu even when the
>latter made motions to set the girl down.
>
>Cass blinked, wondering if Aerie was serious, then shook her head.
>"Don't worry about it. Hot Shot can get us out of here."

The helicopter pad quickly ascended to its highest level, and Cass soon
recalled Jolt and released Hot Shot from his Poké Ball. The large Dragonite
quickly knelt down to allow his passengers to board.

"Well, this was a waste of time," Keaton noted, taking a place behind Cass
as she climbed onto her draconic steed.

"Not necessarily," Kitsu said in response, climbing on as Aerie shifted into
the form of a Dragonite. "We haven't confirmed one way or another whether Magma
has a connection to Smasher or not. All we know is, we probably won't find any
answers here."

"About Smasher or John," Cass mournfully noted. "That was my fault. I
shouldn't have advised shooting anything, let alone the ceiling."

"You didn't know," Kitsu comforted the older girl. "Right now, let's just
make our exit before anyone shows up."

"Right," Cass replied as Hot Shot spread his wings and began running off the
helipad before leaping into the air and taking flight.

The large Dragonite, hampered slightly by his four passengers, soared down
towards the entrance the group had found earlier, Derek and Chan still waiting
for them. The human casually leaned against a rock, while the Medicham was
silently meditating a few inches in the air above said rock.

"I was worried for a second," Derek noted. "An emergency hatch went into
place shortly after you guys went in. Almost didn't think you'd get out." As
the quartet disembarked from their ride, he asked, "Find anything?"

"We inadvertently ended up bathing their computer rooms in molten lava,"
Cass reported. "No dice with the search, either for Smasher or John."

"So we're back to Square One," Derek surmised. "What now?"

"I guess we head back to Mauville and meet up with everyone else," Cass
suggested. "Maybe once we pool our resources we can come up with something more
substantial. I just hope we don't end up with any more problems."

"Eh, if worse comes to worse, you've got that Wailord," Keaton noted.

"Yeah," Cass noted, a bit dejected. Hot Shot cocked his head in curiosity,
leaving Cass to explain, "I have a bad feeling that sending out Triton like
that's just caused more problems. Call it a premonition, instinct, whatever, I
just feel like I've had a foot in the grave since then."

"Cass," Kitsu said bluntly, "you're being paranoid."

"Yeah, it's not like a pair of Pokémon are going to show up and..." Derek
began before Hot Shot placed a claw over his mouth. "Right, don't want to jinx
it."

TBC?

[NS: I think Fate's ears just twitched...]

William Rendfeld
Creator of Echowarrior and Alex Masters
178,000 Excellent Author Points
1 'I knew odd pokefacts that confused a bread crumb' point.
20 Y2Tech Points

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

William Rendfeld wrote:
> "Yeah," Cass noted, a bit dejected. Hot Shot cocked his head in curiosity,
> leaving Cass to explain, "I have a bad feeling that sending out Triton like
> that's just caused more problems. Call it a premonition, instinct, whatever, I
> just feel like I've had a foot in the grave since then."
>
> "Cass," Kitsu said bluntly, "you're being paranoid."
>
> "Yeah, it's not like a pair of Pokémon are going to show up and..." Derek
> began before Hot Shot placed a claw over his mouth. "Right, don't want to jinx
> it."

"Anyway," Cass repeated, "back to Mauville. Aerie, I don't think Hot
Shot can take all of us, so could you...Aerie?"

Said girl was slowly doubling over, grimacing.

Keaton examined her from a distance. "What's wrong? I didn't see you
take any hits."

Aerie spasmed, barely staying on her feet.

Kitsu knelt next to her, applying a hand to her forehead. "Running a
bit of a fever? Once we get back to town, you can-"

The girl's lips burned through, allowing a jet of flame to engulf
Kitsu's head.

"SH-" Derek leapt forwards to help, only to be restrained by Keaton.
He barely had time to struggle before the flames subsided, revealing an
undamaged Kitsu.

Kitsu slowly nudged Aerie's face to point away from everyone. "I don't
think she's going to be flying any time soON!" A sudden temperature
shift warned her to leap away just in time as Aerie vomited up an
aurora beam, big enough that it would have hit Kitsu's hand.

"Does she need a pokemon center or a hospital?" Derek wondered.

"Both. And she's going to get them," Cass declared. "Hot Shot! Take
her and Kitsu-"

"There's no need for that," said an old man, dressed somewhat like a
cowboy, walking out of the forest as a bolt of thunder crashed down onto
Aerie. "You've got all you need to cure her, for now, right here."

"Stay out of this," Keaton ordered. "You don't know what's going on."

"Oh, don't I?" The man chuckled. "Looks to me like she's some kind of
pokemon hybrid. Quite rare, I know, but how else do you explain those
attacks? Tell me, young lady, how do you feel?"

"SiCk." Aerie quivered as the leftover glow from the lightning
intensified, shooting from her entire body back up into the air as a
solar beam.

"Feel like your insides are moving around against your will?"

Aerie weakly nodded.

Kitsu blinked. "You're an expert? Please, you have to help her!" She
grabbed the front of his jacket.

"Calm down, lady." The man brushed off her grab. "As a matter of fact,
YOU have to help her." He whispered into her ear.

Kitsu's jaw dropped. "You want me to WHAT?!?!?" Her brows knitted.
"My friend needs help, not to be used for-"

"THINK about it," he interrupted, wagging a finger. "If she is, then
wouldn't that...? Unless you and she, ahem, in which case any of the
others would do."

Kitsu frowned a bit more, then sighed, picked up Aerie, and kissed her
on the lips.

Aerie froze on the spot, then her pained posture slowly melted into
limpness.

"Cham?" Chan succinctly noted.

The man smiled, parting some foliage behind him at the same time. "When
they're done, the Lavaridge Hot Springs are a short hike this way.
Soaking in them can ease many pains. I'd suggest keeping her out of
fights, at least until she's had a chance to reflect on what's happening
to her."

"Care to tell the rest of us what's up?" Keaton requested.

"Pokemon evolve. And even when they don't, humans grow up." The man
waved to Aerie as he seemed to melt into the bush. "In her case, her
body reacts one way when it's time to do the other, and it would seem
the interaction is not pleasant."

Derek blinked. "So what does kissing have to do with it?"

"Can you think of a better way to shock her?" And then the man was
gone.

At about that time, Kitsu released Aerie. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah." Aerie tried to stand up, then stumbled into Kitsu's arms.
Smiling a bit, she added, "Carry me?"

"Oh, alright. This time." Kitsu hefted the girl and set off towards
the hot springs.

Derek, Chan, Keaton, and Cass trudged behind them, Cass recalling Hot
Shot first and shaking her head once on the path.

"What's up? Do you know who that was?" Derek inquired.

"I've got a pretty good idea," Cass opined, chuckling. "And he had
MewTwo worried about him..."

---

Scarlette was halfway done pawing through some reports when Dee
teleported in. "All done?"

Dee assumed her shape. "Sorry about that. Personal emergency."

"No problem, so long as it can be put on hold when we're doing something
important."

The faux mightyena smiled. "I don't think I'll have to worry about that
one again for a while. Now, where were we?"

The real mightyena smiled back. "You were telling me about your
daughter."

"Oh, yes..."

TBC?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

Adrian Tymes wrote:

>
> "Care to tell the rest of us what's up?" Keaton requested.
>
> "Pokemon evolve. And even when they don't, humans grow up." The man
> waved to Aerie as he seemed to melt into the bush. "In her case, her
> body reacts one way when it's time to do the other, and it would seem
> the interaction is not pleasant."
>
> Derek blinked. "So what does kissing have to do with it?"
>
> "Can you think of a better way to shock her?" And then the man was
> gone.
>
> At about that time, Kitsu released Aerie. "Feeling better?"
>
> "Yeah." Aerie tried to stand up, then stumbled into Kitsu's arms.
> Smiling a bit, she added, "Carry me?"
>
> "Oh, alright. This time." Kitsu hefted the girl and set off towards
> the hot springs.
>
> Derek, Chan, Keaton, and Cass trudged behind them, Cass recalling Hot
> Shot first and shaking her head once on the path.
>
> "What's up? Do you know who that was?" Derek inquired.
>
> "I've got a pretty good idea," Cass opined, chuckling. "And he had
> MewTwo worried about him..."
>
> ---
>
> Scarlette was halfway done pawing through some reports when Dee
> teleported in. "All done?"
>
> Dee assumed her shape. "Sorry about that. Personal emergency."
>
> "No problem, so long as it can be put on hold when we're doing something
> important."
>
> The faux mightyena smiled. "I don't think I'll have to worry about that
> one again for a while. Now, where were we?"
>
> The real mightyena smiled back. "You were telling me about your
> daughter."
>
> "Oh, yes..."
>
Meanwhile, on a mountain not so far away, a couple Pokemon glittered in
the sunlight. A yellow-eyed Claydol surveyed the surrounding area while
a dark green Machamp lay sunning himself against a rock while holding a
reflective sheet beneath his neckline.

#He is moving away from the group now,# the Claydol telepathically
reported. #Foolish Doppler. Becoming a Dark-type may prevent me from
reading your mind, but the Eyes of Claydol the All-Seeing are
everywhere. They are even in the ladies room, even though I possess no
gender and therefore have no interest in a female's bodily functions.#

"<Yah-huh,>" the Machamp, aka Adonis the All-Powerful, acknowledged
absently.

#I see the internet geeks posting on their message boards,# Claydol
continued. #Even you. Yes, you, the one reading this story. I know
you are behind the fourth wall, but I'm referring to you anyway. That's
because I am Claydol the All-Seeing. I have so much power, your
pathetic concepts of bad writing do not apply to me.#

"<Yah-huh,>" Adonis repeated.

#And I see Xavier,# Claydol droned on. #I see Chloe, and Donna, and
Roger, and Ling-mei. I see Gunther, and Mercedes, and Jimmy. Yes, even
you, Jimmy.#

"<Claydol...>" Adonis started.

#I know what you do at night, Jimmy,# Claydol said, adding in a hushed
tone, #And it sickens me.#

"<Claydol,>" Adonis repeated more forcefully.

#I see Paris, and I see France,# Claydol continued. #I see Flannery's
under...#

"<Claydol!>" Adonis barked. He sat up, setting aside his tanning sheet.
"Macha, <you may be the All-Seeing, but you are not being the
All-Hearing!>"

#Adonis, is there something you wish to say that cannot wait until my
monologue has reached its completion?# Claydol inquired.

"<Claydol, vhat is it dat ve are doing out here?>" Adonis asked.
"<Besides vorking on our killah tans, dat is.>"

#Your power is matched only by your forgetfullness,# Claydol replied.
#Unless you recall that Deoxys himself personally assigned us to capture
Princess Kitsu and Prince Keaton of Nidon for reasons that are of no
concern to us.#

"<Yah, yah,>" Adonis confirmed. "<But are ve to be carrying out zees
task ourselves? Are menial tasks such as these not beneath us, herr
Claydol?>"

#That they are not,# Claydol answered. #And by that I mean that they
are. I am clearly being sarcastic and I am not trying to correct
myself, such as it may appear. Kidnapping royalty ourselves is indeed
beneath us, which is why we will be personally overseeing their capture
instead of actually doing the capturing.#

"<And who is it to be doing the capturing?>" Adonis inquired. "<Perhaps
those two henchmen lurking in the shadows behind you?>"

#Indeed,# Claydol confirmed. Three eyes shone from the shadows. #And
they're just *dieing* to meet some old friends.#

#That was a pun, you know,# Claydol added. #It's supposed to suggest
that these are supposed to be dead, rather than just eager to meet Kitsu
and Keaton again.#

"..." the other three replied.

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

"Hey," Derek said as his half of the Search Party for Smasher continued
their trek to the hot springs of Lavaridge. "Did that guy say that
Aerie was..."

"Becoming a woman?" Kitsu finished for him. "I suppose he did. She
seems awful young for it, though."

"I guess Dittos mature quickly," Keaton theorized.

"If you don't mind me asking, what is it like for Aenarians?" Cass asked.

"We don't go suddenly firing off attacks, if that's what you mean,"
Keaton replied.

"Biologics aside," Kitsu started. "I suppose it's different depending
on whether or not you evolve. Someone who doesn't normally evolve,
half-Tauroses like Keaton for example, experience the same awkward
growth spurts I assume you humans go through. However, if you were,
say, born half-Vulpix like I was, then the growth is accompanied by a
gradual transition from one species into another."

"The third form is a different matter, though," Keaton added. "Unlike
the second form, the third one requires training rather than just aging
for some. Others have to rely on items that induce evolution. In both
cases, the transformation happens rapidly, completing in seconds.
Although, I've heard of some whose transformations were painfully
prolonged for up to a month."

"I'm glad I'm not one of them," Kitsu said. "Of course, the shift in
tail size was hard to get used to."

"I bet you were cute as a Vulpix," Aerie giggled from her perch on
Kitu's back.

"As a button," Kitsu smiled back.

To be continued...?

--

Chet "Tech" Weaver

AIM: PanGatomon
MSN: Nichirasu@hotmail.com
eMail: zeroohki at netscape dot net
Yahoo! Messenger: tech_weaver
ICQ: 122744531
Webcomic: http://desperadocoyote.keenspace.com

My Adventure Quest character:
http://www.battleon.com/aq-chardetail.asp?temp=131213
You can play Adventure Quest at http://www.battleon.com

Sometimes, I notice someone has posted a reply to one of my messages and
I think, "Oh, great, what did I say this time?"

 

[clayton]

Archived from groups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon (More info?)

> #Your power is matched only by your forgetfullness,# Claydol replied.
> #Unless you recall that Deoxys himself personally assigned us to capture
> Princess Kitsu and Prince Keaton of Nidon for reasons that are of no
> concern to us.#
>
> "<Yah, yah,>" Adonis confirmed. "<But are ve to be carrying out zees
> task ourselves? Are menial tasks such as these not beneath us, herr
> Claydol?>"
>
> #That they are not,# Claydol answered. #And by that I mean that they
> are. I am clearly being sarcastic and I am not trying to correct
> myself, such as it may appear. Kidnapping royalty ourselves is indeed
> beneath us, which is why we will be personally overseeing their capture
> instead of actually doing the capturing.#
>
> "<And who is it to be doing the capturing?>" Adonis inquired. "<Perhaps
> those two henchmen lurking in the shadows behind you?>"
>
> #Indeed,# Claydol confirmed. Three eyes shone from the shadows. #And
> they're just *dieing* to meet some old friends.#
>
> #That was a pun, you know,# Claydol added. #It's supposed to suggest
> that these are supposed to be dead, rather than just eager to meet Kitsu
> and Keaton again.#
>
> "..." the other three replied.
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> "Hey," Derek said as his half of the Search Party for Smasher continued
> their trek to the hot springs of Lavaridge. "Did that guy say that
> Aerie was..."
>
> "Becoming a woman?" Kitsu finished for him. "I suppose he did. She
> seems awful young for it, though."
>
> "I guess Dittos mature quickly," Keaton theorized.
>
> "If you don't mind me asking, what is it like for Aenarians?" Cass asked.
>
> "We don't go suddenly firing off attacks, if that's what you mean,"
> Keaton replied.
>
> "Biologics aside," Kitsu started. "I suppose it's different depending
> on whether or not you evolve. Someone who doesn't normally evolve,
> half-Tauroses like Keaton for example, experience the same awkward
> growth spurts I assume you humans go through. However, if you were,
> say, born half-Vulpix like I was, then the growth is accompanied by a
> gradual transition from one species into another."
>
> "The third form is a different matter, though," Keaton added. "Unlike
> the second form, the third one requires training rather than just aging
> for some. Others have to rely on items that induce evolution. In both
> cases, the transformation happens rapidly, completing in seconds.
> Although, I've heard of some whose transformations were painfully
> prolonged for up to a month."
>
> "I'm glad I'm not one of them," Kitsu said. "Of course, the shift in
> tail size was hard to get used to."
>
> "I bet you were cute as a Vulpix," Aerie giggled from her perch on
> Kitu's back.
>
> "As a button," Kitsu smiled back.

As the gang walked away, the mini-drama over for the time being, Derek
couldn't help but cast a glance back in the general direction of the Magma
Base. Shaking his head, he looked back only to realize that the rest
were already a few paces ahead of him.

"Something wrong?" "Cham medi?" The pair of voices asked, one a human
female the other a male pokemon.

This time, Derek stayed in step with the rest of the pack. "I don't think so.
It just seems like something's off. Not wrong ... just ... off," He replied,
casting another gaze at the supposedly ruined Magma Base.

"What do you mean?" A different voice asked, suddenly interested in the
conversation.

"While you guys were in there, I heard next to nothing. Maybe I got lost in
my practicing, but I should have felt or heard something between your
random destruction ..."

"HEY! It wasn't Random!" Aerie cried out indignantly

" ... and the Magmas running like scardy Delcattys, but I felt nothing." Derek
finished, still walking forward. "Maybe I'm losing it"

"Got that right," Keaton snorted, hiding a smile

Derek's only response was only a glare that was colder than Chan's Ice Punch.

TBC

-------
Clayton

Random Tagline:
I sense a disturbance in the Force ...

[NS: Must resist picturing a chibi-Kitsu as a were-vulpix ... must resist!]