FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park

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played by

Ven

Alex / Lexy
he / him / his
thirty
december 22
Mistralton, Unova
homosexual demiromantic
sanctuary owner
civilian
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Alexei Ivanov
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 14, 2022 9:34:44 GMT
Alexei Ivanov Avatar


The crackling was still in his ears, he could hear bits and pieces of—was it Ethan, or Claire who was at the command post right now, he wasn’t sure—the interference caused by the weather was really doing a number on the ear piece he was wearing.

At least they could pick up the audio coming from his end loud and clear, that much was certain.

He looked behind for a few moments—and had Fenrir not screamed at him to catch his attention, he’d have been swept away by one of the last ‘rams’ that comprised this section of the aerial course!

“Shit, thank—thanks,” he hissed, feeling a tremble course through his body. Holy crap, this weather really threw a gigantic monkey wrench in everything—

“Hey, Josh, if you can hear me, I’m here.”

He banked the Noivern so that he was waiting at the starting point of the fourth and final obstacle—oh boy.

It was the aerial rope crawl.

Allowing the other a few minutes to recover, he then pointed ahead, where the crackling flash of lightning illuminated the fourth and final aerial obstacle—a literal net of zig-zagging ropes of various thickness, cut and make.

The wind howling through the entire place made this all the more risky, too.

“Get through there ahead of me, and meet me on the other side.”

Another flash of lightning, and the Noivern raced on ahead, Alexei bracing himself against the slipstream that resulted from the half-draconid’s sudden burst of speed.

This was going to be tough, considering that the ropes were infinitely more tricky to traverse when wet.

Yfi4rdby
Pt 4: aerial net crawl; roll in between the range of Alex’s rolls to make it through the first half of the course!

Should you miss either number…good luck and djinni guide you.



·
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played by

raikourider

Master of Faster
He/Him
25
December 12
Goldenrod, Johto
Straight
Mauville Gym Leader
Champion
Single; Not Looking
6'1" height
6'1" height
"With great speed comes great responsibility."
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Josh Devlin
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 15, 2022 3:07:24 GMT
Josh Devlin Avatar
As Josh and Bladestorm passed the last ram, he heard what sounded like Alex on his earpiece, though it was mostly static. "You're breaking up real bad," Josh replied, the voice incomprehensible. "He should have called this challenge off the moment the thunderstorm started," the Pokémon racer mumbled as he saw Alex and Fenrir waiting for him at the course's final checkpoint. The home stretch was before him, though it was difficult to see what was ahead due to the intense rainfall.

Another flash of lightning revealed the next obstacle: it appeared to be a maze of nets. Finally, something a Skarmory could excel at! While the fierce winds blew the dense maze of ropes around, he had one distinct advantage with his choice of mount. Bladestorm was his Skarmory's name for a reason: the steel-type's wings doubled as sharp blades. In ancient times, swords were crafted Skarmory feathers. He could take full advantage of that. "Alright, Bladestorm: keep your STEEL WING ready, so we don't get snared by those ropes. After him!" With a battle screech, the Skarmory took off after his trainer had a chance to catch his breath.

Josh at least tried to keep to the spirit of the challenge, weaving through the rope made as best as he could and only instructing the Metal Menace to cut them down if there was not a better option.


Ge78WnhS



NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Bladestorm    Skarmory       Good

{WC: 231}
{PC: 8}·
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played by

Ven

Alex / Lexy
he / him / his
thirty
december 22
Mistralton, Unova
homosexual demiromantic
sanctuary owner
civilian
дождь крови
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5,130 posts
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Alexei Ivanov
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 15, 2022 7:16:24 GMT
Alexei Ivanov Avatar


It was at this point he belatedly realized—

That the other was flying on a Skarmory, and that the potential for snapping the rope apart was highly likely, given the circumstances of the entire thing.

“One more thing!” he added over the communication line, “Don’t snap the ropes!”

With that, he flattened himself on his Noivern’s back as they began to bend and weave through the final obstacle. Considering how this part was most likely set up by Claire herself, it came as no surprise that the ropes were threaded together in such a way it was like a Purrloin’s cradle—only cranked up to eleven.

Adding to the difficulty was the weather—this was literally a doozy. He was well-aware of the crackling burst coming in and out of the private line he had with the command center—he was sure this time it was Ethan shouting at him over the line—but then…

A powerful burst of wind threatened to knock not just him, but the little Josh off-course and get them snared and tangled even more in the final obstacle!

Another rumble, before a flash of lightning shook the immediate vicinity.

“Shit, shit, der’mo,” he hissed, unable to resist hissing in his mother language as the ropes snagged against Fenrir’s wings and he had to come to a stop to untangle them so that the Noivern could continue flying through.

He wondered how the other was doing—

Over at the other way, the ropes looked like they were constricting—but it was only because of the tension being distributed across the obstacle.

If the little Josh didn’t duck, the possibility of getting strangled or held back by a surprise flash of rope was rather high.

AmsBgaFm
Pt 4: aerial net crawl; roll in between the range of Alex’s rolls to make it through the final half of the course!

Should you miss either number…good luck and djinni guide you.



·
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played by

raikourider

Master of Faster
He/Him
25
December 12
Goldenrod, Johto
Straight
Mauville Gym Leader
Champion
Single; Not Looking
6'1" height
6'1" height
"With great speed comes great responsibility."
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Josh Devlin
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 15, 2022 7:34:22 GMT
Josh Devlin Avatar
That last line from Alex came in loud and clear. "Stop your attack, Bladestorm!" the racer cried, the Skarmory spreading his wings to disperse the air pressure building among them. The Leader had clearly saved the most difficult obstacle for last; though the near constant lightning flashes provided ample lighting to see the rope maze with, the wind was blowing it about so unpredictably that there was no way he could react in time, let alone the delay from his mount having to react to his commands. He hooked the avian's reins to the end of the saddle, where they normally rest when no one was atop him. "Buddy, it's all you." He grabbed the end of the saddle with both hands, leaving the Skarmory in total control.

Then, they hit the mess of ropes, Bladestorm trying to level her flight path so the ropes she inevitably hit would bounce off the leading edge of her front wings - the single edge that wasn't sharp as a sword. The sudden and sharp bank angles to dodge the mess of ropes would have been vomit inducing to novice riders, and it was even starting to get to him. A stomach-turning counterclockwise barrel roll made him question which way was up in the dark conditions. With no reprieve whatsoever, a particularly dense section of the obstacle was fast approaching. He leaned as low as he could on the Skarmory's back and prepared for another barrel roll, this one in the opposite direction. He was starting to lose feeling in his limbs...

G9d_5bBQ



{WC: 258}
{PC: 9}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Bladestorm    Skarmory       Good
·
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played by

Ven

Alex / Lexy
he / him / his
thirty
december 22
Mistralton, Unova
homosexual demiromantic
sanctuary owner
civilian
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Alexei Ivanov
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 15, 2022 8:07:59 GMT
Alexei Ivanov Avatar




It was also a mess up where Alex is, however fact of the matter revealed that when he looked over his shoulder and saw that the other was clearly struggling against the obstacle—

The next flash of lightning revealed the dire straits the other was in.

Even as someone who was very experienced with flying through weather most fowl foul, he could tell the other was green behind the ears when it came to navigating through the air. The man looked ready to collapse at any moment!

“Ethan, I don’t know if you can hear me, but get hot drinks and blankets ready! he shouted over the static that was plaguing the ear piece he had on, before quickly altering his course and weaving through the rest of the tight and slack ropes that made up this obstacle before fishing out a pocket knife he had in one of his jacket pocket and hacking his way through the particularly taut section of the obstacle.

“Ethan, like, now!” he screeched over the static, swinging the knife blade as fast as he could to relieve the tension in the entire set up. As the lightning crackled and flashed overhead, he continued to hack and slash his way through the ropes, touching his Noivern’s back exactly once—and this time, just this once—

An Air Slash came screaming from the Noivern’s wings, cutting a swathe through the entire obstacle to clear the path so he could quickly fly up alongside the other.

“Shit, this weather disturbance really threw a spanner into everything!” he exclaimed as he kept the pocket knife and reached for a battered, dark-blue bird whistle and blowing exactly one note on it.

In a matter of seconds two shadows converged on their location—a blue-plumed Braviary and a Salamence, before he quickly did an aerial transfer from Fenrir, going aboard Kyouya.

“Gabe, take him down!” he said as he reached for the other rider and quickly hoisted the dark-haired young man on the draconid’s back.

“You, go down with us!” he gasped in the Skarmory’s direction, before the Braviary took the reins and the aerial convoy went toward the ground, coming in for a muddy landing near where the Noivern had perched atop one of the sheds where a frantic-looking Ethan was waiting, also soaked to the bone with the requested blankets and drinks.

He’d heard Alex’s shouting over the connection after all.

“What happened?!”

“The weather—it was a mess—I wasn’t expecting the skies to just dump a fucking storm on us! Help me out here,” he gasped as he slid off the Braviary’s back and grabbed the Salamence’s passenger.

The two worked quickly, getting the blankets over the little Josh while Ethan poured a cup of hot chocolate with shaking hands.

“Hey, hey, Josh—little one,” he hissed, waiting for the other to regain his bearings with his own cup of hot chocolate ready.


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played by

raikourider

Master of Faster
He/Him
25
December 12
Goldenrod, Johto
Straight
Mauville Gym Leader
Champion
Single; Not Looking
6'1" height
6'1" height
"With great speed comes great responsibility."
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Josh Devlin
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 15, 2022 8:29:58 GMT
Josh Devlin Avatar
No sooner than when the Leader performed Josh's transfer to Gabe, the Pokémon racer's body fell limp. The constant and intense turbulence had pushed himself beyond his physical limits, depriving him of useful consciousness. The transfer had been performed just in time, too: a blinding flash almost immediately followed by an explosion of sound indistinguishable from the cry of the electric Beast drowned out what other senses Josh had left in him. The screech of a Skarmory was the last thing he heard before he could no longer keep his eyes open. "Blade...storm..." he croaked before his eyelids became too heavy to keep open.

Josh did not reply to Alex's calling of his name. Not the second time. Nor the third, fourth, or fifth. It took physical intervention from the Gym's staff for him to arouse to the smell of hot chocolate, said aroma trapped underneath a blanket. "Where...am...I?" Josh groaned, trying to sit up but ultimately crashing back to the ground. He was too groggy to realize that Bladestorm had been struck by lightning and could be in serious danger.

He attempted to take a sip of the hot chocolate, having to tilt his head sideways and lower his lips to the mug rather than lift the mug to his mouth like a normal person. Every single muscle in his body felt stiff. "Alex...where...am I?" the bewildered challenger repeated, his consciousness on the borderline of usefulness again.



{WC: 244}
{PC: 10}

NAME          SPECIES        STATUS
Bladestorm    Skarmory       KO
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played by

Ven

Alex / Lexy
he / him / his
thirty
december 22
Mistralton, Unova
homosexual demiromantic
sanctuary owner
civilian
дождь крови
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Alexei Ivanov
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 15, 2022 8:50:22 GMT
Alexei Ivanov Avatar




They’d flown back down to the ground so quickly they didn’t realize the next flash of lightning had literally struck the Skarmory mid-air, and only when he looked up did he see another one of the staffers, this time it was Jack—very much drenched all the way while holding up a Skarmory via his Pangoro.

“I found ‘im down somewhere, thank fuck I was out here to see what happened!”

“Thanks, and I do really mean that because did you see what happened, Alex?!”

“No, what happened, Eth?”

“Skarmory got toasted by a lightning bolt. Literally a lightning rod, but I think he’s going to be fine. I mean, Valk got struck so many times by lightning too and she’s still standing, right?”

“Yeah, but only because she’s Sturdy!”

“Jack, go get his Skarmory to the clinic, stat.”

“On it, bossman.”

As the Pangoro lumbered away carrying the Skarmory, Alexei took a drink from the other mug of hot chocolate that Ethan had poured for him.

“You—you didn’t tell me you weren’t used to turbulence in mid-air!” he exclaimed at first.

“You’re a stubborn one, you know that?!” he added a few moments later, gesturing for another blanket which was quickly piled on the little Josh.

“I thought the weather was going to calm down but it didn’t, and then I noticed you were already—djinni, you’re a reckless one,” he continued, taking another sip.

“What amazes me though, is that—despite flying with disadvantage, you still went through with the entire thing.”

The storm continued to whip up gale-force winds outside, buckets of rain coming down.

“And that’s one thing we really can’t control out in the wild. The weather. You’re stubborn, I’ll give you that, but at the same time you were absolutely determined to see this through. Although I couldn’t hear the entire commentary because my ear piece shorted out—”

“Is that why you weren’t answering when I was telling you that he was having some trouble on the third obstacle?” Ethan interjected, taking a sip from his own mug.

“I could only hear static from your end, but you could hear me?”

“Yeah.”

Shaking his head slightly, his free hand rummaged around in the other jacket pocket before pulling out something small, and cold.

“Give me your hand.”

Once the other had extended said hand, he palmed something small and cold in it—


The Skyrider Badge.


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played by

raikourider

Master of Faster
He/Him
25
December 12
Goldenrod, Johto
Straight
Mauville Gym Leader
Champion
Single; Not Looking
6'1" height
6'1" height
"With great speed comes great responsibility."
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7,246 posts
Josh Devlin DOLLARS
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Josh Devlin
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 15, 2022 9:35:26 GMT
Josh Devlin Avatar
By the time Josh had gained useful consciousness and was able to hold his mug of hot chocolate, the first thing he heard was of Alex's admiration for his determination to finish the course, and how stubborn he was. "It runs in my family," Josh panted, finally feeling well enough to stand up. At least he could speak normally now. "As much as I miss my family, I do not miss that aspect of my dad. That old man is hardheaded beyond reason. Worse than me."

Josh did as asked, opening his hand. When the Leader dropped the small, metallic object into his hand, he reached toward him and attempted to embrace him. "...Thank you so much!" He started sobbing, overwhelmed that the heroic effort that could have easily killed him paid off. "After how much we were flailing around at the start of the race, I thought I was going to walk away from your Sanctuary empty-handed. I had to be your worst performer ever. This means a lot. It means as much to me as...my dream."

He recounted the vivid dream he had before joining the Rangers. It was a day that changed his life forever. "Alex, coming from Johto, I've always admired the region's myths. The gorgeous Tin Tower, the tragedy of the Brass Tower, and the three Pokémon that were born from the tragedy. Suicune, Entei...and Raikou...but especially Raikou. Since I've been a child, I've studied the myths of Raikou from various regions."

His eyes started to water, the young challenger emotionally charged. "It speaks of a legendary hero seven centuries ago. A legendary hero that rode on Raikou's back. Faster than your birds can fly, too. I don't know what it is, but shortly after I became a Pokémon trainer, I've felt that deep down, I have a connection to Raikou. A long, lost connection waiting for the right circumstances to erupt like a thunderstorm. There's no way to know if that connection is real, of course, but deep down, I just feel it has to be there."

His sobbing became progressively more intense as his story continued, pulling out his phone and minimizing all applications on it so the wallpaper depicting his dream was clearly visible if Alex was to take a peek. "I want to...I want to meet Raikou and ride him myself."

Josh was starting to become hard to understand between his sniffling and tears he was doing his best to hold back. "Even if it's only once. And not for myself. This is going to sound weird, but I have witnessed Hoenn's future. A future of a bare-earth Hoenn featuring nothing but mass death. A future where my Pokémon all died trying to protect him. It used to be because I wanted to race Raikou. But no longer. The reason I want to seek out Raikou...is to CHANGE THE FUTURE THAT REFUSES TO BE CHANGED!" By now, he was in full-on cry-me-a-river mode, hyperventilating in the process.

The JUDGMENT Josh showed in his Gym Challenge today would serve him well: no matter his desperation, he needed to respect his own limits. JUDGMENT that would serve him well in his noble chase for the sacred partner he had sought for years. "I guess this means I didn't set a new course record after all, huh?"



{WC: 604}
{PC: 11}
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played by

Ven

Alex / Lexy
he / him / his
thirty
december 22
Mistralton, Unova
homosexual demiromantic
sanctuary owner
civilian
дождь крови
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5,130 posts
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Alexei Ivanov
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 21, 2022 2:02:08 GMT
Alexei Ivanov Avatar




“Shit happened. Well, that and the weather decided to taunt us, too… it’s like the djinni know I’m up to something.”

Jack and the Pangoro had long departed, and Ethan had also taken his leave; having left the thermos of hot chocolate behind for them to finish at their leisure.

The wind, rain, and lightning outside were still going at it—there were no reports from the Weather Institute for any freak disturbances this day; so the weather just going apeshit was something that was out of their control.

The moment the little Josh started going into lore from another region, he had to do a double-take while sipping from his mug of hot chocolate as his fingers curled around the ceramic, keeping them warm as the storm raged behind them.

“I—I am going to have to ask you for… another meeting, you know,” he replied quietly once the other was done explaining himself.

“If I hadn’t taken the path of being a Gym Leader, I’d have been a lorekeeper instead. hilariously, though, all the stories of legendary Pokémon I’m aware of is from Unova, because I’m from there. And then some bits and pieces from Kalos and here, but that’s about it. To hear a Johtonian tale… I’d want to sit down and pick your head further.”

Thunder rumbled in the skies outside.

“…definitely not now, though, we have to get warmed up first. And see to your Skarmory at the medical bay.”

The part about little Josh seeing the future made him equally as curious, too—it was like there was something about it that he couldn’t stop dwelling on, but for the moment he brushed the thought away.

For now.

They had to check on little Josh’s Skarmory, after all.


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SHIV

GONGAGER
he/him
25
October 13
GONGAGA
gongaga-romantic
gongager
gongago
me?
gongaga
808 height
808 height
WHERE ARE UNOVA REMAKES
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shiv
FORTREE CITY | Aero Knot [Gym]
POSTED ON Sept 22, 2022 1:41:21 GMT
shiv Avatar
[nospaces]
[attr="class","TRAINER"]
[attr="class","omaccepted"]
[attr="class","omacceptedtop"]GYM BATTLE COMPLETE!

[attr="class","omacceptedmid"]

YOU RECEIVE THE REWARDS BELOW:[break]


[attr="class","omacceptedlinks"]
[attr="class","omacceptedlinks1"]TAGS:
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The Shula Region
Hogwarts AU
RPG Unlimited
MR
The Enroi Region
N:FB
Vyrehaven
Celestial Guardians, AU Sailor Moon RP
EO GENESIS
Code and Crown: An advanced literate warriors cats RP, set in medieval times
Swords Clashing