Pokémon Legends: Court of Kings

[Marsuru]

Zack snatched the flyer as it was passed to him and gave it a look over. It looked like a child had drawn it with crayons. And they'd spelled rave wrong. He looked over the top and realised that a Lucario was talking at him. What.

"Today's just ******** weird," he muttered to himself. First he gets rescued by a psycho who robs a pokémon nest and kills a Haxorus, now he's having paper planes thrown at him by an illiterate clown and a depressed freak of nature. His general dislike of Kalos had, at that very moment, magnified into a beam of pure abhorrence the likes of which he had never before encountered. And what the ******** did this jackass mean his clothes were eight years out of date?

"Hey, a*****e," he said to Jump, "Nobody's gonna go to your stupid rave if you keep handing out flyers that say 'Cav Rape'."  

[Jump Einatz]

"What?!" Jump leapt off the boulder and landed in front of Zack with a thud. Getting called an a*****e didn't even register to his huge ego as he snatched the flyer back from Zack and looked it over. His eyes grew wide. "Oh my god. Oh MY GOD Hexum, have we been handing these out all morning? You can't hand people this kind of s**t!"

He thrust the flyer back into Hexum's hands. "It's spelled C-A-Y-V, uh, H-E. I thought I taught you better than that. We're gonna have to make another hundred copies-"
[HUNDRED?!]
"-to hand out all over again. Retype them, capitalize and bold everything, and chase down everybody we handed the shitty ones to already. Oh, and nix the 'rape' thing too. Ugh, this is embarrassing."

Hexum looked down at the flyer and sighed. "Tell me about it," he muttered as he took out his notebook once more to jot down the notes Jump had deemed appropriate.

Jump turned back to Zack and ran a hand through his hair. "Whoo man, am I glad I ran into you. My secretary isn't fully literate yet, but he's working on it. Bless his heart."

Both of Jump's Pokémon exchanged glances after that statement, but opted to stay silent. Jump kept going anyway. "But you man, you caught a key typo. Thank you. Yanno, I was gonna charge an admission fee, but you can totally get in for free. I'm assuming you'll be changed out of, uh, this thing you're wearing by then. But if your good clothes are in the wash I totally understand. Sometimes, when I don't have an outfit to wear, I also try to bust out my high school style to see if I can get away with it. Never works though. At least you can wear that as pajamas if you want to. Errr, kind of."

He held out his hand, grin beaming with sincerity. "The name's Jump, Jump Einatz. What about you?"  

[Marsuru]

"Zack Redgrave," he said, looking at Jump's hand as if he were holding a bundle of used socks. "I'm a trainer. That's why I'm wearing these clothes; they're practical, alright?"

He glanced at Hexum, then at Kiedis. No. Really?

"And you're a trainer too," he said dully, pinching his brow, "Of course you are. Let me guess: you're here to challenge the league and become real famous. Then you'll finally fulfil your dream of having people come to your cave parties."  

[Jump Einatz]

"Become famous?" Jump brought his head back and laughed. "I am famous. I'm no Pokémon trainer, my dude. I am a coordinator."

He held up his wrist and tapped a sequence of buttons on his Holocaster. A blue tinged hologram recording sprouted up, silently showing footage of Jump in a stadium for Pokémon Contests.

"Battling is cool and all, but there's isn't enough oomph, yanno? It's all about explosions and punching and s**t like that. That's okay, but Pokémon Contests show off style," Jump explained as the hologram displayed an Ursaring walk into the center of the arena. On Jump's command, the mighty bear brought his arms together, then swiped them apart with a powerful flex. The arena underneath him splintered and shattered from the Earthquake, and earned him a round of applause from the audience. "You get judged on the beauty, toughness, coolness, and cuteness of what your Pokémon do."

The hologram skipped to Hexum, now in the center of the arena and sitting atop a floating disc of Aura in a lotus position. Two small Aura Spheres orbited around him, and he slowly added three more and flew them around his body in an intricate pattern. Again, this earned the audience's applause. "People like to see finesse, and I deliver. I won a few Coordination Invitationals back in the day in Hoenn. It's pretty fun, being a coordinator. You get to choose your own outfits, too. I had no idea trainers had to wear those uniforms." The coordinator gave Zack's outfit a quick glance and sighed apologetically. "I'm sorry dude. At least they're practice-acal." That's what he said, right? Yeah, that's what he said.

Jump shut the hologram off and proceeded to mime the following phone conversation. "A couple of months ago, I got a call from some guy who was like, 'Hey, I love your stuff, great style.' And I said thanks, and he was like 'Whatchu doin'? Cause we could use a guy to fix things up around here, and you're that guy.' And I said yeah, I'm that guy, and he was like 'Come work for us,' and I was like cool, it's a deal yo. So here I am. Because Kalos..."

He looked to his sides, making sure none of the locals were around, then looked back at Zack. "Is LAME. Lame lame lame. Like, what's going on here? People just drink coffee and look at art and wear shiny clothes, it's boring as hell. So I joined up with this, uh, agency. Company? Whatever, a term's a term, but the important thing is that I'm around to spread a lil' bit of what makes me cool to everybody else. And then you guys can all be cool like me! Err, I mean, not you. You're cool, I think."

Jump rose his eyebrows. "But yanno what would make you really cool, uh...what's your name again?"  

[Marsuru]

Zack sighed. He'd seen contest halls in his travels around Hoenn and Sinnoh, and they hadn't appealed to him to say the least. Pokémon were about battles, not prissy shows and dress up. He wasn't even sure why he was humouring Jump at this point. Maybe anything was better than being stuck with his own head for company.

"It's Zack."  

[Jump Einatz]

"Right! Zack! You know what would make you really cool? Coming to a Cave Rave. It'll be the first of many. Some crazy folks already said they're down...actually, they were kind of weird..." Jump paused, then rubbed his chin. "Mmm, that might be cause the flyers said Cav Rape...maybe we should get a bouncer. Kiedis, you're the bouncer."

The Teddiursa opened his mouth to protest, but stopped. After mulling it over, he shrugged. [I'm okay with that, actually.]

Hexum looked off to the south towards Ambrette Town. The four black Aura nodes on the back of his head rose up as his eyes glowed blue, indicating he was using his Aura. "The police are fighting Team Flare again. We need to clear out the entrance if we want to start setting things up this afternoon with time to redo the flyers."

Jump groaned and ran a hand through his hair, enjoying its silky smoothness. Only the best haircare products went on his scalp. "Can't these guys just bounce already? I'm not letting a bunch of dorks ruin a good time. Guess I have to go be the hero, talking some sense into these guys. Let's go back to town, reprint the flyers and T.C.O.B."

The coordinator turned to Zack. "That's 'Take Care Of Business', by the way. Anyway, duty calls. It's been good chattin' with you Zack. I'll see you tonight, right?"  

[Marsuru]

As much as he wanted to say no, if this cave rave was meant to be in the same cave that Team Flare had taken over, Zack had every chance of running into Jump again.

"Sounds like a sausage fest, but we'll see," he shrugged, aware that Jump probably wasn't listening. Strange guy. Seemed harmless enough, but Zack made the mental note to thoroughly, mercilessly destroy him if they ever had to battle. Oh yes, today had been a weird one, but it was prime time for meeting new targets. Between Alexander and Jump, Zack was building up quite the little list.  

[Jump Einatz]

"Nah, no sausage dude," Jump answered. "No food whatsoever. We put one hundred percent of the budget into the music, so eat dinner before you show. Hopefully you party hard enough to vomit or pass out or pass out in your own vomit." He clapped a hand onto Zack's shoulder. "The joys of a carefree youth, huh? Love it while it lasts."

Jump clicked his tongue and pointed to Zack. "I'll see you around, man. Kiedis, Hexum, let's get outta here."

The little bear stood up and rotated his arms to stretch out. [We're going to go hit things now, right? I'm in that mood.]
"You're always in that mood," Hexum commented absentmindedly as he reviewed his notes. Kiedis snorted, but didn't deny it, and the trio headed south towards Ambrette Town.  

[Jump Einatz]

Lumiose City – Vernal Avenue: Eight Years Ago

Vernal Avenue was home to a different boutique eight years ago. Sauvage was an up and coming new franchise in Kalos that boasted the trendiest indie clothing. Soon after they made news, rumor seeped around that the budding company was using Pokémon labor in conditions close to slavery. Despite the increasing evidence of the atrocity, Sauvage denied these claims, and shortly after that they put small security enforcements on their stores.

One of the three newly hired guards at the Sauvage in Lumiose City was stationed outside the glass sliding doors of the entrance, under an awning. By the time he finally heard the rattling of a spraypaint canister above him, he was too late to stop the first crime on his watch. Next to the store’s name and logo of a generic “cool guy” wearing the label’s latest ensemble was a freshly spraypainted, unsettling picture of a crying Leavanny whose limbs were unraveling into thread to form the very clothes the “cool guy” wore.

The perpetrator was still in sight: a girl with a black beanie over shoulder length wavy black hair, a grey hoodie and black sweatpants. A dark red bandanna was up against her face, blocking all facial features but her intense, amber colored eyes and tan skin. She looked like she was just a kid, and was accompanied by a nervous looking Riolu.

“I’ve got a tagger heading down the alley,” he radioed to his fellow guards as he ran after ten year old Salieri. “Cut her off at the service door. She has a Riolu. Careful, she’s just a kid, over.”
“Roger that, over and out.”

In the alley, Salieri was calling in her own teammate on her Pokégear. “Go! You have four minutes!”
“Good looks, sis. Rendezvous at Bleu behind the fourth fern row.”

Two guards popped out of the end of the alleyway, taking wide stands to block her escape as the first guard’s feet pounded into the pavement behind her. She snapped her Pokégear into her pocket and held out her hand to her Riolu.

The Riolu burst forward with a Quick Attack, pulling Sal along. She dropped down to a slide, held Riolu tight, and kept going right under one of the guard’s legs, breaking into a run down the next alley. Now all three guards were on her tail, and releasing a Spinarak, a Pidove, and a Bidoof. When she saw the Bidoof, she grinned, mentally confirming that her intel about them being bottom of the barrel guards was correct after all. No problem.

This time, Riolu held onto her as she made her move. She leapt up on a dumpster, used it for a higher wall jump and barely caught onto the raised fire escape ladder. She nimbly ascended it on the outside like a monkey, not climbing the stairs. The guard with the Bidoof happened to have a similar plumpness to his Pokémon, and couldn’t continue with this new development. "Go on....*wheeze*....without me....*wheeze*"

Pidove guard reached the ladder as well and went up the staircase. The Spinarak guard had his Pokémon cling onto his wrist, and used its String Shot to grapple the wall and follow up.

On the rooftops, Salieri headed west, jumping from building to building at full speed. Her path was straight, and she vaulted, flipped and rolled over obstacles to keep it that way. The guards were still keeping up, and Pidove was getting close.

Sal looked up at a rusty chimney to her left. “Snap the pipe!” she told Riolu. The Wave Guiding Pokémon ran up the chimney, one legs blazing with fire. Pidove rushed at Salieri with a Quick Attack. With a spinning Blaze Kick, Riolu knocked a small portion of the uppermost section off and onto Pidove. The little bird was KO’ed from the high speed collision, and the second guard stopped to help it while the Spinarak Guard kept running. Sal barely had time to revel in that tactic’s success before she and Riolu had to move on.

Her eyes darted everywhere, searching for the best way to get down to the streets. The Spinarak Guard wasn’t waiting for that, and zipped a String Shot at her back. Sal and Riolu ran off to the side to dodge the silk streamers, and slid down a pipe that extended below. From there, she dropped onto a parked car and rolled off onto the sidewalk.

Bleu Plaza wasn’t very busy, as most people were at work and this was a school day. Salieri had been hoping for a bigger crowd. That’s what I get for skipping fifth period, she thought to herself as she looked up. The Spinarak Guard had stopped at the edge of the roof, leaning over and blasting webs of String Shot down at the girl.

She zigged and zagged, barely ahead of their sniping as the webs splattered into the ground. Over her shoulder she checked on Riolu. The brief second of distraction was all it took for her to slip up a dodge, and one of the webs was bound to hit her now.

Riolu used Quick Attack and tackled her forward. She stumbled in her step and saw Riolu get caught by the web. Sal returned her Pokémon and kept moving. The rows of ferns were just ahead.

Her brother, twelve year old Moze, jumped out from behind the ferns with a peppy looking Ralts. Clad in identical clothing as his sister save for his blue bandanna, under one of his arms was a giant steel letter V. Even at a distance, Spinarak Guard recognized it as a part of the Sauvage sign over the store. The girl was just a distraction!

“Prou, back to the roof!” he commanded as Sal grabbed the Psychic’s hand. Ralts gathered them together, and in a blue flash of light, they were gone.

When the guards returned to their posts, they’d find that the steel letters spelling the word Sauvage were all gone, graffiti of the word “Ravage” had replaced it, and that all three of them had been fired.

~~~~

Lumiose City – North End Public School: Eight Years Ago

The public school on the North Boulevard had four floors that crammed many schoolchildren and faculty into its halls and rooms. Each student wore a white button shirt with a black blazer and tie. The boys wore black slacks, the girls wore black skirts. Despite budgetary restrictions, the teachers were driven and the education that was delivered was considered to be good quality for molding young minds.

The Soledad siblings and Prou warped onto the school’s rooftop, having discarded the stolen letters in a safe place. They took off their hoodies, sweatpants, beanies and bandanna to reveal their uniforms underneath. Salieri used a loophole to wear slacks instead of a skirt, refusing to be caught dead in one, much less alive.

“Can Banksy really melt them down?” Sal asked her brother as she bunched up her clothes. Moze did the same.
“Probably. I don’t know how long it’ll take,” he answered as he returned Prou. “But if she can fly, she can melt steel. It’s all about concentration.”

They ran over to the stairwell, stashing the bunched up clothes into bags they had left behind previously and rushing inside. “I think we’ll have enough steel to complete the first floor of the treehouse now,” he mused while sliding down a railing. Sal mimicked his action.
“I never stole corporate art before. It’s pretty fun.”
“I know, right?” The siblings got to the second floor and raced down the empty hallway. Class was already in session. “It’s so fulfilling. The little things, that’s what I live for.”

Moze halted to a stop at his locker. Salieri stopped a few lockers away. They threw their clothes inside and grabbed their backpacks. “See ya later.”
“Peace out.”

They high fived and split up.

~~~~

Old Mrs. Margurite’s classroom was dark. The only illuminating it came from the projector screen, where ten year old Mia had her computer hooked up. The screen slowly progressed through a slideshow of photos of Spindas.

“Here is a Spinda with a flowery looking pattern under its left eye. That’s the twelfth one so far,” Mia droned on in complete boredom. The rest of the class was just as bored as she was, even Mrs. Margurite. “Here is another Spina was a freckling pattern near its abdomen. Looks like those are pretty common.”

“I think that’s more than enough of your mother’s Spinda research for a 100%,” Miss Margurite interrupted. “You can disconnect your computer, Miriam.”

Mia’s ears perked up at the sound of her full name. “I already said that when I close this program without finishing, it reboots my computer, and if my computer reboots it’s programmed to release a virus. And I’m connected to the internet, so it’d crash banks internationally. I don’t want to start the next world war, Janice. There are only twenty more slides.”

The class collectively groaned. Suddenly, Salieri burst in through the door, out of breath. “Sorry…I’m late…”

Mrs. Margurite glared at her as she walked over to her desk. “Why so out of breath, Salieri? You certainly didn’t rush to make it on time.”
“I got chased by a Spinarak and a Pidove. They were huge.”
“Hmph.” Mrs. Margurite stood up and over Mia. “I think I’ll take my odds with the war.”

She closed Mia’s laptop, stopping the projection. Mia pouted as her bluff was called out. “Well, I think our banks should be fine. Take a seat, Miriam.”

Mia sighed and went back to her desk next to Salieri’s. They caught each other’s eyes. Mia swayed a thumb up and down. Sal responded with a thumbs up. She pointed at the projector, and Mia rolled her eyes.

“Alright, Salieri.” Miss Margurite paced at the front of the classroom. “Now that you’ve graced us with your presence, it’s your turn for your show and tell project.”

Before Sal could quip back to her teacher, the bell signaling the start of lunch period chimed. “I suppose it’ll have to wait until Monday,” her teacher sighed. “Have a nice weekend, class.”

All the children got up and stretched, looking forward to their forty five minutes of freedom until sixth period started. “How long did you filibuster for?” Sal asked Mia.

The curly haired girl groaned. “Too long. You owe me, so hard.” She slid her computer into her backpack and trekked out of the classroom alongside her friend. “You’re gonna have to do that project sooner or later.”

“It’s a bunch of bullshit.” Sal leaned against a random locker while Mia opened her own. “They want me to end my primary education with a ‘self reflection’ project? Shouldn’t they be teaching us how to beat gym leaders?”
“Probably. It’s a really easy project, though. It’d be so lame if you fail the class cause you don’t do it.”
Sal pouted. “Mia, I have the academic system wrapped around my little finger. I skipped just enough classes that I can still pass, my grades are awesome, and the administration barely remembers the last time I pranked the school. I’ll be fine.”

“SALIERI AND MOZART SOLEDAD TO THE PRINCIPAL’S OFFICE,” announced the weary secretary over the P.A. system’s speakers. “…AGAIN…”

Mia shut her locker closed. “Careful. The academic system is cutting off the circulation to your little finger.”

Salieri bumped her shoulder into the curly haired girl and flipped her off as she stomped down the hall towards the principal’s office. Mia flicked a stray strand of hair from in front of her eye and sighed.  

[Marsuru]

Route 8 - Muraille Coast

Jump was going in the same direction as Zack, so to avoid an uncomfortable walk to Ambrette Town, Zack worked his way down the rocks until he reached the beach. He kept his footing despite the slipperiness and spray, going slowly until he eventually leapt onto the bright yellow sand where the roar of ocean hitting the cliff was a gentle shush. In the distance, a stubby peninsula marked the end of the beach, which Zack decided was really more of a cove and an empty one at that. With no other trainers around, Zack decided to relax on his walk to Ambrette.  

[Marsuru]

Route 8 - Muraille Coast

The peninsula may have been stubby, but close up it was absolutely gigantic. Zack had two options at this point; either climb back up the rocks until he reached the pathway, or try to work his way around the outside of the peninsula. It was a huge jut of mainland that had veered into the water, with sheer walls that nobody could climb without proper gear. Zack considered the two routes that lay before him, then sighed.

"Screw it." Turning his back on land, he opted for the sea, took off his shoes and rolled up his pants to just above his knees. The trainer tied his shoes together by their laces and slung them over his neck then, gripping the peninsula wall for support, waded through the shallows.

For all his misgivings about the place, Zack had to admit that Kalos was incredibly beautiful. The water here was like glass, and as he stepped into its cold embrace he could clearly see his feet treading sand, only marred by light refracting on waves. He could keep to the light blue shallows, and easily avoid stepping on sharp rocks or accidentally winding up in the deeper ocean.

More than once, Zack felt something squirm and wriggle away as he put his foot down, but no pokémon attacked. His notebook was with Esme, but he remembered writing that pokémon were more likely to attack if you rode through with other pokémon. He wasn't sure if it was out of compassion or fear that they avoided humans, but he assumed it was more likely to be fear. It might be a good idea to come back later for training.

As Zack reached the end of the peninsula, he noticed more and more rocks that had crested the water's surface. He rounded the corner, clutching the slippery rocks as best he could, and came face to face with a big yellow eye. He'd seen this pokémon before, in Lumiose City, being wielded by gate guards like a handgun. A Clauncher. It pointed its oversized claw at him, and he swore he could hear a click.

"Kriii..." the pokémon growled lowly, bubbles foaming on the tip of its claw.
"So you're just a s**t Krabby, right?" Zack asked, grinning like an idiot.

He'd pissed off enough pokémon to know when to duck, and managed it in good time too, for the resulting jet of water blew apart one of the rocks poking out of the ocean. Zack only glanced over his shoulder for a second, but the Clauncher was already gone, diving into the water. It moved quickly in its home turf, slipping through the sea like a bullet, but the clear water played to Zack's advantage and he found it again in seconds.

"Serene, Hazard!" he called, holding out the pair's pokéballs; they materialised in a flash of light, Serene the Ralts perching atop a sea rock, and Hazard the Haunter flying through the air, keeping her target below and in sight.

"Loki Tactic," Zack commanded. Serene stared at the cold water and resigned herself. With a squeak, she teleported into the sea, reappeared in front of Clauncher and grabbed it. They wrestled for a few seconds, but Serene managed to keep her grip and teleport into the sky where Hazard was waiting.

The psychic type pushed away from Clauncher, and both fell towards the sea. Hazard swooped beneath the Clauncher and readied a Psywave, but just as she threw the multicoloured beam, Clauncher fired a Water Gun at Serene. Despite the distance, it hit her with pinpoint accuracy, and the force of the blast allowed Clauncher to redirect itself mid-air and shoot sideways, clear of Hazard's attack.

"Huh. That was pretty cool," Zack said just as Serene splashed down in the water nearby. She broke the surface, kicking and splashing, crying with a mixture of shock, panic and embarrassment until Zack recalled her and shook his head. "We really need to work on your landings."

Hazard continued lobbing Psywaves but Clauncher was surprisingly nimble. It seemed to be using its knowledge of the area to Water Gun its way through the air without pause, landing shots on rocks that Zack couldn't even see. Time to change tactics.

"Get close to the cliff," he said. Hazard kept throwing her Psywaves as she obeyed, flying up to the peninsula wall until she was backed against it. She even feigned surprise when she touched the wall to lure Clauncher into thinking she couldn't go any further. Little things like that made Zack tingle with pride every now and then. The bait worked! Clauncher pinged off a few more rocks, then shot itself towards Hazard, spinning in the air with a fierce froth of bubbles spilling from its claw. Looked like a Bubblebeam, so Zack retaliated with "Shadow Punch!"

Hazard's look of surprise shifted into a malevolent grin and Clauncher knew it had been duped. The ghost pokémon faded out of sight, using the shadow of the peninsula to her advantage, then reappeared behind Clauncher, grabbing the back of its head with her claw. She sped up, and drove the water type into the cliff before it could release its Bubblebeam, which shot uselessly into the sky. Hazard held her opponent in place as it tried worming free. Its blaster claw was slowly working its way around, angling towards Hazard's face. A point blank shot could be devastating, but the battle was already over.

Building up his best throw, Zack slung another pokéball to the side of the cliff, aimed directly at the battling pokémon. Right before it reached them, it broke open with a flash and suddenly a ton of Snorlax-type blubber was closing in fast. Clauncher's yellow eyes shot open with terror and it thrashed about, but couldn't move under Hazard's grip. The ghost type gave her foe a sportsmanlike smile just as Fatass the Snorlax collided with the cliff, crushing Clauncher into the rock with the sheer weight of his bulk.

Rock splintered and cracked, then Fatass peeled away, flopping into the sea with an enormous splash. Zack covered himself uselessly with his arms but was swamped by the wave and soaked to the bone. So much for staying dry. Hazard glided down from the impact zone, unharmed by the normal type's 'attack', laughing her gas off as Zack trudged through the shallows and Fatass snored peacefully, completely unaware of what had transpired. Clauncher was stuck in Fatass's belly, shocked and unconscious both. The trainer tapped a ball against the defeated pokémon and captured it almost immediately, adding it to his belt.  

[Jump Einatz]

Lumiose City – Autumnal Avenue: Eight Years Ago

As she walked from school, Salieri could feel her ears glow with bright red frustration. The principal had given her and Moze a long speech about the importance of honoring commitments such as school, and respecting the rules of an institution. Not much of the speech landed to Sal, and the only thing that really stuck out was the threat of expulsion if she was caught leaving school grounds unauthorized again. No matter how much she worked to make an adventure of her own, she was always drawn back to reality.

“What a hardass,” Moze sighed as he walked beside her. “I liked how he couldn’t kick me off the fencing team, though. That’s what happens when you carry the sport on your back.”
Mia rose an eyebrow from Sal’s other side. “Didn’t he say something about curbing your ‘massive ego’, too?”
Moze scoffed at the suggestion. “That’d be criminal. Ego drives people to reach the top of the ladder.”
“And then they fall. From great heights.”
“Maybe I’ll just sprout wings before that happens.”
“And maybe you’ll keep sounding like a fortune cookie.”
“Whatever. Salieri, please, stop talking so much. You’re taking over the conversation.”

Sal snapped out of her space-out and saw that Moze and Mia stopped walking. “Gotengo’s this way. Don’t you wanna see Banksy melt down that steel?” he asked.
She shook her head. “Nah, I’ll see you guys later. I’m gonna go to the library.”

Moze and Mia exchanged glances, then shrugged. “Your loss. Mia, do you have the videocamera?”
She took it out of her bag in response. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

They split off and Salieri kept heading down Autumnal Ave. She didn’t want to go home because she had a feeling Arnaud had gotten a call from the principal already. But she didn’t want to hang out with anybody either. It always bothered her how Moze could be perpetually ready for anything. The consequences of their actions never bothered him, even when he was at risk. He lived for the ability to challenge the world and its conventions. For the other kids of the street, his confidence was inspiring. Maybe it was because he believed in himself. Maybe it was the ego after all.

Salieri didn’t fight for the same reasons Moze did. She didn’t battle corrupt establishments because she thought it was right, or because she thought she could win. She just fought. And she didn’t really know why. She tried not to think about it, and it was easier to do that when she was fighting. The cycle remained unbroken.

Lumiose City – Moreau Library: Eight Years Ago

Her favorite spot to be alone in the everlasting boom that was Lumiose City was the Moreau Library, one of the last quiet spots available. Creaky and dusty didn’t scream fashionable to most of the appearance conscious citizens, but Salieri loved the endless style that could be found in its tomes.

She went to the Kalos history section and sat at a table for an hour that felt like minutes, pouring over the contents of a book detailing past champions of the Kalos League. They were filled with bios and marks about significant battles and rulings.

Even though she delved deeply into understanding the history, Salieri built no connection to champions of the past. Almost all of them were of noble birth, a class of people whose quality of living was something Salieri could only dream of. To have whatever you wanted whenever you wanted it was something she never was able to understand. Sometimes, she wished she was on one of these very pages.

A few of the champions made her uneasy. They didn’t fulfill the archetype of a trainer’s paragon. They looked hollow or sunken, not like proud warriors. Some of them looked like they enjoyed the battles too much, reveling in the defeats of their opponents rather than their own victories.

Kyren Balibar was a rare combination of both. A young man with slicked back hair and glasses that helped to hide his expressionless face. His main Pokémon was a Chandelure, something that Salieri didn’t approve of. Ghost type Pokémon were cheap. How can you fairly fight something you can’t hit?

The picture of the Chandelure seemed to stare right back at Sal. After keeping its gaze too long, Sal shut the book. It was time to go.

Lumiose City – Centrico Plaza: Eight Years Ago

“Check it out!” a teenage schoolgirl squealed on the sidewalk to her friends. For some reason, Sal slowed down to listen. Their uniforms indicated they went to a private school, so they were probably well off. The girl was showing off a brand new bracelet. “It’s limited edition.”
“That’s so charmant! How did you get it?”
“It was a birthday present. My parents are just the best!”
“It looks expensive.”
“IT WAS!”

Salieri looked at her wrists. They were bare. The girls stopped gawking over the fancy jewelry and focused on Sal as she passed by. Their eyes scanned over her clothes. After changing out of her own school uniform, Sal had gone back to her casual clothing. Her red t-shirt and black cargo pants were hand-me-downs from Moze, her boots were also secondhand, and her black beanie had a hole in its side. The girls winced at Sal and got quiet, then giggled when they thought Sal was out of earshot.

Sal grit her teeth, and her gaze wandered off to a nearby jewelry vendor stand. The owner was busy catering to an elderly lady, showing off a shiny necklace. Sal sauntered over to the stand, rubbing her chin as she looked closely at what it had to offer. Her hand shot out like a dart, grabbing a random bracelet from the stand and stuffing it into her pocket. A couple of seconds later, she began to walk away.

“Miss? Excuse me, miss?” the vendor called over to her. “You forgot to pay for that.”

She stopped and gulped. Instinct told her she was faster than him. There were plenty of shortcuts to freerun off of and get home within minutes. It didn’t look like there were any cops nearby either.

Sal spun and bumped into an imposingly large figure. A man in his mid fifties, with a hardened ruggedness that kept him looking handsome in a dark way. His greyed hair was long and tied back in a ponytail, unkempt in the front. He stroked his grey beard as he looked down at Sal and shifted the bag of groceries in his arm.

It was her father. “Merde.”

His eyes went from the vendor, to Salieri, to the rich teenage girls farther down the sidewalk, and back down to Sal. “She didn’t forget. She just wanted to know what I thought of it.” He smiled gently at his daughter. “It’s very pretty, Sal. I think you should buy it.”

A sweatdrop formed on Sal’s forehead, and she took a closer look at the trinket in her hand. It was pretty but flimsy, cheaply made. “I don’t know-“
“Of course you should. You’ve wanted it for so long. Come on, go pay him and then we’ll go make dinner.”

Arnaud put a hand on Sal’s shoulder and nudged her back towards the jewelry stand. With her cheeks rosy red, Salieri reached into her pocket and pulled out the appropriate amount of cash. It was almost all the money she had in her pocket. “Thank you, miss,” the vendor said with a nod.
“Don’t forget to give him a tip, Salieri,” Arnaud called over cheerfully.

Correction. Now it was all the money she had in her pocket. “Come again!” the vendor told them happily with a wave. Arnaud waved back while Sal fumed.

“So? Was it worth it?” Arnaud asked dryly, looking straight ahead.
“So embarrassing…”
“You think that’s embarrassing? Try getting a call from the principal about the misbehavior of your children. Plural.” He snarked, but it wasn’t in good humor. Arnaud was not the type to explode with anger, keeping it controlled instead.
“We’re going to have a long talk when we get home.”  

[Spinne Biss]

Helena had just gotten dressed when the rain started. The drops hit the top of her tent in small pitter patters and then they quickly grew until it was a rapid sound.

"Oh n-

And then her tent collapsed in a strong gust of wind.The cloth fell all around her as the sticks were pulled from the ground and the wind picked her up and carried her a few feet. She landed in the pile of it and struggled to get out.

When she finally did it was a cry - "Are you serious?!" - that was meant for the heavens, but she found herself face to face with a trainer that had a Makuhita.

It took her a second to recognize the trainer. One of the two kids she had dumped in the river.

"Yeah, I'm serious," he said with a tone that matched his claim.

Helena got out of the mess that had become her tent, kicking her leg free of the last bits as it caught between flap and stick.

"Whatever, you got revenge, go away," Helena snapped at him. Zack had told her not to get into any more fights and to just use Pokemon, but finding them in her fallen tent would not be easy.

"You dumped us in the river," the boy said.

"And you blew over my tent. What more do you want?"

"An apology."

"Sorry," Helena said, her tone insincere.

The boy stared at her a little longer before he nodded his head. "Okay, cool."

Then he recalled his Makuhita and was off. Helena watched him go for a minute, to make sure that he wasn't going to quickly change his mind, and then she was digging through her tent to get her things in order.  

[Zamaku]

((Lets get some character interaction goin'. Levi's feeling left out))
Camphrier Town

"That trainer was a joke, who would think using a Foongus in a battle would be a good idea..." Levi complained as he crossed under the simple arch way that separated Camphrier town from route 5. Arms folded behind his head as he sauntered towards the Pokemon center.

Zeke growled his annoyance as well, still feeling the slighter after effects of a week stun spore. [God I hate getting paralyzed.]

So far after leaving Lumiose, nothing worth while went down. Levi battled a few trainers along the way, attempting to start getting Thorn his new Bulbasaur used to actual combat, but only ended up with fainted 'mon and having to use a prlyz heal on Zeke.

The pre-teen got a text not long ago from his aunt, having not seen her again before leaving, which wasn't odd. She worked late and got up early. Her motto was that she could sleep when she was dead. Give her a solid 5 hours and she was golden.

The doors to the Pokemon center slid open to grant the youth access. After handing off Thorn's pokeball to the nurse and being told to kill 15 minutes, the hoodied sneak plopped down on one of the centers couches, once facing a television.

What was on was a news covering of the most recent extremist group, called team flare. As it would turn out, a group of them were hold up in glittering cave.

"Uhhg, what a bunch of whack jobs," Levi groaned as he let his head fall back against the back to the seat, so he was staring up at the plain white Pokemon center ceiling, as he waited for his name to be called to retrieve his fully healed Pokemon.  

[Marsuru]

((Get your a** to Glittering Cave, where s**t may or may not be going down ninja ))

Route 8 - Muraille Coast

As Zack waded through the shallows, he couldn't help but notice the crowd of people gathered on Ambrette's north beach. Groups had gathered in grave discussion, with kids as young as ten carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. The more sensible trainers were using the time to pick battles, so half the beach was filled with chatter and the rest was a warzone. Still soaked from Fatass' incidental splash attack while nearly fully clothed, he expected to draw more attention than he did. All he received were the conversations he eavesdropped on.

"This is such bullshit. Now what are we supposed to do?" a teenaged trainer muttered to his friends.
"They totally closed it off," said another with a calm shrug. Zack climbed a sand dune to get a better look and saw that people were still going in and out of the town, so it seemed Ambrette was accessible.
"Guys, it's just a cave." Ah. He should have expected it to be more molehill than mountain.

"You mean the cave where Team Flare are," Zack said, sitting casually on the sand dune and immediately regretting it. He wondered how long he'd go without drawing attention now that he had a layer of sand stuck to his a**.
"Uh, yeah," said the calm trainer, "Ever since the police showed up, the whole area's been off limits. You'd have to be crazy to try and get in there."

Ambrette Town - Pokémon Center

The Route 9 gatehouse was only just visible around the bend. It buzzed with activity as blue-clothed police moved in and out, mixing with the usual gatehouse staff, who warned away curious or ignorant trainers. In the sky, he saw cops on flying pokémon hovering over the Ambrette side of the route. No chance of getting through there without being caught. That said, getting onto Route 9 wasn't going to be the hard part.

It was lucky that the rain hadn't travelled this far west, Zack thought as he leant on the Center's second floor balcony rail. He wore the complementary white shirt and jogging pants that the Pokémon Center loaned trainers whose clothes were being cleaned. His shirt was a size too big, and his pants too small, riding up past his ankles, but anything was better than a slap of wet material clinging to his skin. At least this time the receptionist hadn't asked if he wanted his clothes destroyed.

With time to kill, Zack got out his Xtransceiver and dialled up his sister for a good morning, "Hey kid."