Trey had only just made it to the outskirts of Rustboro when he stopped in his tracks, staring at the edge of the city with unblinking, and at a this point, unfazed, eyes. Seemed like another swarm was occurring, and wouldn't you believe it—one of the participating pokemon had an affinity with poison. He even spied a Toxic Chain or two. What a lovely day for a stroll.

"Look at me, Wisp; I've learned," he said, rummaging in his back for a medical mask. He immediately covered his mouth and nose with the black fabric, waggling his brows playfully at the Haunter. She rolled her eyes and sagged midair, clearly finding his good humor hilarious. However, now that he couldn't eat the butter cookie in his hand, she flicked her tongue out and lapped it up, chowing down as her trainer shuddered from the contact. He'd never get used to that.

"Anyway," he redirected, head tilting towards the buildings that were beginning to become infested with the bugs. "Might as well help with cleanup here, too. Start knocking 'em down with Shadow Balls."

Wisp was delighted to partake in a little action. The first orb of darkness she sent out collided with a sheet of Dustox, at least half a dozen floating down to the ground as they sprayed off the brick. Pollen rained down, and Trey was glad that he was operating on the outskirts, not within the city proper.

195SYYNJ

☉

Trey hadn't come to Ever Grande to tackle a vicious swarm of Arbok. Hell, he hadn't arrived at any of his destinations with the intent to play hero and save the day, but—

He grimaced as the scene before him played out, the pokeball in his hand slowly enlarging as his finger rest on the trigger.

When in Rome, right?

Devi was actually the one he sent out first, the little Mudkip alert with his head held high as they surveyed the area again. Almost everyone was tackling a problem pokemon on their own, people and creatures alike traveling up and down Arbok throats depending on the circumstances. A swathe of the cobras were slithering up from the cliffside, and it was there that Trey directed his attention, giving Devi a nod that signaled it was time for them to begin. The Mudkip seemed to know what he was thinking, resorting to a move that had an area of effect versus something that would target just one creature. From above fell a Rock Slide made by the small water type, several of the snakes writing about as they were crushed by the fall. Trey could see Toxic Chains disintegrate from at least one pokemon before it fainted—one even regurgitated a stray Emolga—but the rest seemed too hardy to fall victim to the attack.

As his vision strained, no doubt from prolonged exposure to these events, Trey couldn't help but chew on the makeup of the Toxic Chains themselves. Was Rocket orchestrating this? Not that Trey could tell based on appearances alone, but from the rumors that spread, Rockets were being affected just as much as the general population. Who was creating them, then? Another organization he didn't yet know about? Pokemon? Why? If someone wanted chaos alone, this was certainly a way to do it, but was this just a childish prank gone too far or more? He had no fucking idea, nor did he know who to ask to gather more information. He'd studied Arbok populations before back in Kanto. He didn't recall them being so hostile, nor this organized. He lifted a weak arm to instruct Devi to shoot a Hydro Pump at another one, this one nearly gorging itself on some poor kid who was probably developing a justified fear of snakes. Trey managed a weak, incredulous laugh. "Hoenn is kind of batshit, eh?"

-use a move that causes a target to flinch
-be swallowed or save someone who has been swallowed by the arbok
-if your character has participated in AT LEAST 3 POISON PATROLS, they may feel slightly unwell during this patrol; furthermore, your character may be able to discern that the TOXIC CHAINS do corrupt and imbue Pokemon with unique abilities

☉

Trey had been curious about the shipyard, so much so that he'd been harassing workers about what they were building and who it was for. Most of those he talked to told him to shove it and that it wasn't his business, which was kind of lame of them, to be honest. One man told him they were just ships for the League, and if that's all it was, fine. If it wasn't a big deal, why keep that information under wraps? Maybe they were wary of him being a Rocket and trying to suss out details in order to sabotage the project, which, granted, was a pretty good excuse, but he had a feeling they were just being stubborn because he was meddling where he didn't belong. Someone eventually told him that if he intended to run around the premises, he might as well put in a little work; make use of himself.

And so he did. Why not, right?

Besides, Remedy could use the exercise anyway. The Tinkaton giggled as she helped lift beams and transport sheet metal with her impressive strength, laughing when the man she passed her load to buckled under the weight. She even got to use her favorite item, a solid Gigaton Hammer or two more than enough to assist in the building of a ship.

☉

Mt. Chimney was sort of a tourist attraction for Trey. As a budding ecologist, he was interested in studying the local flora and fauna and how they interacted with each other, of course, but the giant volcano's fame and nearby town were equally as interesting on their own.

He wouldn't be able to act as a meager tourist today, however.

One giant Venusaur was one thing, but two? They might have been focused on each other, but the chaos that erupted between them was affecting the surrounding area just as much as if they were attacking it outright. He winced as he watched a cable car sway back and forth as Toxic Chains and vines shot out into the air, narrowly missing the occupants inside. There were people already gathering to help break the barriers; he might as well shoot his shot, too.

"Get as close as you can to the base of one and go for a Giga Impact," Trey instructed Riot, the Fraxure scratching his tusks on the side of a boulder before emitting an eager battle cry. His entire body seemed to glow before he propelled himself forward, head crashing into a barrier near a Venusaur leg. Just a little more...

Trey winced as his stomach flipped. The ongoing nausea and fatigue had been getting harder to combat; he'd been resting every other day and taking every over-the-counter medicine known to man, but it dulled the effects at best. He swayed in place, stumbling as he stepped into an impression in the ground the resembled a large pawprint. A Mightyena? He scrunched his nose. Nah. What, then? What else was at large here?

-assist by attacking/breaking the sixteen dynergy barrier segments (first 16 will receive 2 mochi instead of 1)
-encounter dog-like paw prints on the ground
-if your character has participated in AT LEAST 3 POISON PATROLS, they may feel slightly unwell during this patrol

☉

Feeling nauseated and dizzy didn't keep Trey away from Petalburg Woods. Perhaps it should have—especially considering yet another Toxic Chain outbreak was occurring—but he was too nosy to comply with logic. For now, he remained stealthy, he and his Mudkip stalking through to woods quietly as to not disturb any waiting Grafaiai, especially the one with the Tera Crystal atop his head. Other people could be the main character tonight. Besides, he didn't have the ability to Terastalize any of his pokemon yet anyway.

He didn't mind. There were other things to be done.

The ecologist steadied himself against an unpainted tree as he pointed out some graffiti to Devi. "Time to wash some of this gunk away, bud. Start the cleanup with a Hydro Pump," he whispered. The water pokemon chirped and bounced forward, a pressurized roar of water jetting from his open mouth at his target. A Sewaddle, Wurmple, and Caterpie managed to wiggle free of the gunk, scrunching their way deeper into the forest and hopefully to safety. Trey nodded in approval. "Not so hard, huh? Let's keep going."

-have a pokemon know & use the move, HYDRO PUMP
-if your character has participated in AT LEAST 3 POISON PATROLS, they may feel slightly unwell during this patrol

☉

Trey hadn't expected to be teamed up with someone so quickly, especially since he wasn't exactly affiliated with any certain path. He wouldn't be part of Rocket—he knew that much—but he hadn't put much stock in anything else.

His mouth drew into a thin line. That was partially a lie; he was definitely interested in the Ranger side of things. He just hadn't done anything about it yet.

Regardless, that wasn't exactly important now; he could mull it over later. Right now he was supposed to be tracking a Paradox Pokemon with a guy he didn't know from Adam while it was raining cats and dogs. Still, it could've been worse. At least they had a clear path to follow—

As soon as the other party halted, Trey bent over to peer at the tracks as well—tracks that were rapidly turning into indistinguishable mud. He huffed a laugh, whipping out his phone to take a quick pick of the remaining footprint for later before sighing.

"Well, I would say maybe we could rely on Indigo's sense of smell, but the rain is sort of making tracking that way impossible too," he supplied, looking at the Absol beside him. The pokemon stepped up to sniff the print, but upon looking deeper into the jungle, he gave a low, displeased noise. Trey patted his head. He'd still be a valuable asset in the journey ahead; an Absol's ability to sense danger could be a boon. Trey worried his lip, perplexed, until a large tree trunk marred with jagged scratches caught his attention. "Do we know much about its behavior yet? Other than it having a fondness for destroying camps, ha." He walked over to study the marks, tracing a finger across them. The wood pulp had yet to be washed away—it seemed to be fresh. "If this came from our pokemon, chances are it's headed in this direction."[b/]

fS|KjN8W

Audric Black

ROLL A NUMBER WITH A 3. - Encounter sword-like slashes on various rocks, trees, and more.
roll total: 88

☉

A Spidops swarm, then.

Good thing he wasn't afraid of spiders.

Trey spotted a few of the strange, basically-mustachioed pokemon, but his main task was simply cleaning up the webs and traps that'd been left out for unsuspecting persons. The average trainer would be able to fend back Spidops the traditional way, but he was more worried about small children and regular civilians who traversed the route without any pokemon; they would probably be who and what fell prey to most of the webs and tripwires. Indigo carved through a maze of webbing with Night Slash while Riot used Breaking Swipe on a branch that seemed to be tied to a more elaborate trap, a barrage of sticks falling from a sticky net that'd been holding them in a tree. A Tarountula rolled free from what'd fallen to the ground, dizzy and confused as it finally came to a halt on its back. Trey rolled it back over to its feet and found himself smirking. "Why is it kinda cute?" Unfortunately, he didn't think he could say the same about Spidops. They looked too much like a middle-aged janitor moonlighting as a ninja, and while that definitely held a certain... charm... Trey couldn't quite find the will to call one "cute".

ShrwmeCB

☉

Exploring for wild pokemon native to the area surrounding Mauville was, once again, not exactly going in Atreyu's favor. He was looking forward to a little field work alone with his pokemon, but that would've been too easy an afternoon, wouldn't it?

The ecologist stared at the scene with unblinking eyes, trying to wrap his head around the situation at hand. A swarm of Ariados; trapped pokemon and civilians; more of the Toxic Chains he was slowly learning more and more about. Was someone orchestrating this? Was something larger at play here and these were just diversions? Trey felt like that may be the case, but regardless, considering he was already here, he might as well try to do something about it.

Trey felt strange, though. He wasn't usually so... apathetic. Was stress starting to weigh him down?

Two flashes of red light revealed an Absol and Fraxure, Indigo walking up to Trey's side while Riot stomped up to one of the webs immediately. Good—that was the order of operations that he wanted. "Riot! Use Dragon Claw on the webs," Trey said, giving the Fraxure a salute sendoff. The dragon type growled and began hacking at a larger web with a bicycle stuck in it, the bike's frame wobbling and venturing closer to the ground with each swipe. For Indigo, however...

As Trey expected, an Ariados was drawn over by the vibration from the webs, hissing as it spotted Riot and attempted to jump him. Right as it launched, Trey interrupted with a "Now, Indigo: Night Slash," and the Absol obeyed, swinging its head in a sideways arc that sent a glowing purple scythe from its horn towards the Ariados, catching the bug mid-leap and knocking it away before it could sink its fangs into the Fraxure. The spider was thrown into another web, but it descended with ease, facing Indigo with a glint in its eye that meant more trouble.

"Try to aim for the Toxic Chain if you can," he suggested to Indigo, staring at the segmented purple lasso with both curiosity and ire. This all had to be part of a bigger picture—surely these events weren't entirely so isolated. If someone could just find the source...

As another Night Slash was sent hurling towards the Ariados, a cold sweat made the back of Atreyu's neck tacky, a faint haze starting to affect his vision. He glowered, tugging his shirt over the bridge of his nose to suddenly protect his face. Was this stuff going airborne too?

-have your pokemon use a SLICING MOVE
-attack/defend against the ARIADOS
-if your character has participated in AT LEAST 3 POISON PATROLS, they may feel slightly unwell during this patrol

☉

Exploring the Giant Chasm itself had been eye-opening, but the further Atreyu went, the more dazzled he became. He'd been in various caves to do studies before, sure, but this was something entirely different. The sheer size of Area Zero was dumbfounding. To think a place so massive and beautiful existed near Oldale Town this whole time... hm. He still didn't know the specifics of how this place came to be discovered, but did it really matter? It was a buried treasure now fully open to explore, and while he might not've been a Hoenn native, he was just as allowed to delve in as anyone else.

He'd been warned to be cautious, as the Paradox Pokemon (another new term he'd come to learn) were more likely to be hostile within Area Zero's depths. He wouldn't claim to be the best pokemon battler out there, but he was confident in the team he brought with him. As he scoped out the beginnings of the slope downward into the dark ravine, Trey dipped down to pick up a shard of blue crystal that'd fragmented off of a much larger one nearby. He twisted it around between his fingers, gaze narrowing as he studied it. So this was what was causing Terastallizing? Another thing he didn't know much about yet aside from studying some blogs and articles about it when he was still in school. Maybe he'd get to see it in person down here if he was observant enough.

Unbeknownst to him, a Dudunsparce wiggled up behind him, sniffing at the back of his boot.

wMHCbsGx

Eris Halla
ROLL A NUMBER WITH A 3. - Encounter sword-like slashes on various rocks, trees, and more.

☉