EXCHANGING MP

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MP EARNED: 225 MP from After end of First Wave
655 MP from Skirmish: Neon vs Elaine (Loss)[break]

EXCHANGING: NO MP[break]

CURRENT TOTAL MP: WHAT IS YOUR TOTAL MP NOW? 880 MP

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

She had caught it. Up until now, that man had been dominating the battlefield. With each move he and his Pokemon had taken, they had brought them closer and closer to a corner. Until now. The moment that Jeanne had taken the motive to dodge an attack and tackle the trainer was pivotal.

This was not a moment that would allow her to turn the tide and win the battle here. Someone stronger might have had that capability, but she knew far better than to fall for an illusion like that. She had to stifle her pride and the urge to go along with any fighter's instinct she dared to have at that point.

Jeanne knew better too. Rather than going in, she leapt back to meet Elaine. The blade glowed with brilliant, dark flames once again as it slashed across frozen fragments while a few of those shards met its tyrian armor.

"Thanks, Jeanne."

As she stood behind her Pokemon she let out another one from its ball right behind her. As she did, she picked out an item from within her jacket--a small notebook holding a pen with a spherical stone on top.

"Let's go, Sieg."

And as she spoke the Pokemon's name, the keystone began to glow, transforming it and allowing it to don a cape.

As she returned the keystone back to its pocket, she placed her hand on the Gallade's shoulder. With her other hand, she returned the Ceruledge to her Pokeball. 

Though it was a strange choice of move, Elaine knew better than to simply leave things in the hand of chance. The last time she had done this, she had gone through quite a bit of an ordeal. So, Gallade's Inner Focus was something she had very much hoped would stave off the odds this time. She was still rolling the dice, but at the very least she was better off. 

"Let's hope our paths don't cross anytime soon."

With her smug grin and a wave, the pair suddenly vanished. The only remnant evidence of their presence was the splotches of blood from her back and hand on the accumulating snow. 

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

• Ceruledge takes a defensive position blocks the Ice Shards partially and defends Elaine while still taking some hits
• Elaine releases Gallade and begins to Mega Evolve him before teleporting off with a taunt
• MP total=280MP (+150 MP (Negative Outcome)+150 MP (Faction-Based conflict)+25MP (Completion)+50 MP (Narrative back and forth)=655MP)

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

There were fewer moments more apt than this one where Elaine wished she had a few decoy SD cards like she did once before. Or at least something she could throw away much like a Salandit's tail.

"Didn't I tell you already?"

She had lost. She would not beat the man standing before her. But she could still live. There was no need for anything as simple as a counterattack.

"You won't have your way."

She had annoyed him just enough that he wanted to kill her. So, there was no way she would let him have that satisfaction. A childish sentiment, but one that drove her regardless. With a snap of her fingers, both she and Jeanne took to action.

Seeing the incoming attack, the spectral knight quickly vanished, as if she were a mere phantom.

In that next moment, Elaine took the opportunity to roll to the side, out of the way of all the feathers flying towards her. She felt something searing across her back, but she paied it no mind. As she gained just enough distance to be out of the way, the splotches of blood from where she rolled across made it clear just what had happened.

Nevertheless, she remained smiling and as she jumped back to her feet and the Ceruledge re-appeared, aiming to crash straight into the trainer who dared attack her own. With the next move, she kept her hand on a pair of Pokeballs.

This was the first move. The exit would be a bit of work, after all. Throwing off prey that had the scent of her blood would be far from easy.

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

• Ceruledge uses Phantom Force to escape the Glaceon and crash into Mint
• Elaine rolls out of the way of the incoming feathers but still gets cut across her back by one.
• MP total=270MP

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

The situation was growing more and more dire by the second. This was hardly like the time where she had fought Cillian Quinn and was ultimately overwhelmed in one moment. Whatever advantage she held before had steadily slipped away as nothing was left. The walls of flame that kept them from sight were wiped out in mere moments.

But there was more than just that.

The Ice Beam cut through aiming towards Jeanne but she responded in an instant, cutting through the chill with her revenent flames. But that didn't stop the two of them from having their position compromised.

And that showed immensely the moment their enemy had joined in with the attack and...

He split apart?!

She had little time to process this as either attempted to flank her. With her other blade, Jeanne attempted, in reflex, to slice through one of the incoming copies.

But that wasn't enough. She brought her hands to her chest to try and block the best she could, but she misjudged where she would be hit as the one closer to her ended up kicking her to the side, slamming her into a tree.

Falling to the ground, she quickly sat herself up, hearing the warning. But though she heard it, she would have no need to heed it. After all, it was hardly like she could pick up her brain and leave it there.

"Shame that's a tad impossible." Despite the disadvantage she was at, she coughed out those words while standing back up. She never once dropped her smug grin.

Attack had failed. She was not strong enough for this. She was weakest in the domain of close quarters. She could see where the chess pieces were beginning to fall. So, she had to focus. She was losing, so she had to make sure she retreated.

Her life was worth far more than any damn pride she had here.

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

• Ceruledge uses the prepped Bitter Blade to break the Ice Beam and attempts to attack one of the clones
• Elaine takes the hit and is knocked away
• Elaine mentally prepares her exit strategy
• MP total=210MP+50 MP(Reference past thread)=260MP

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

Were it not for the linear sear burning up the back of her hand, Elaine would not have noticed the knife flying up towards her. She withdrew her hand but she could see blood dripping from that thin line down her middle finger and onto the ground below. Perhaps, the large, obvious hand signals were not the best of ideas she had.

But that was the least of her worries in that moment. After all, that was something she had noticed only after she saw and felt what had happened to Tiamat. Multiple shards of ice collided with Tiamat and its body suddenly jerked down to the ground, throwing her in the air.

That wasn't good. The strange pull was one thing, but the ice attack had directly hit Flygon in the chest. Quickly, she returned the dragon back to its Pokeball to rest as she braced herself to land on the ground. If she were only a few feet higher, this would have been fatal. But thankfully, she was able to land in a roll behind a set of flames that had not gone out. Her head was rattled in the process and she was probably bruised on her back, but she was still alive and kicking.

As she stood back up, she picked up a Pokeball. She didn't make any grand motions or throws. Instead, while it remained in her hand, she gave it a flick, opening it and letting the ghostly knight within stand behind her.

"Get ready."

As she said that, Jeanne's blades glowed a deep purple and the two stood back to back, keeping their eyes peeled. The moment they saw movement, they would position themselves to attack. Elaine was being forced into close quarters. She was ultimately at a disadvantage, but that was fine.

She was not in checkmate just yet.

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

• Flygon faints and Elaine lands within the corner of a wall of flame that has yet to die out
• Elaine takes a cut from the flying knife. It leaves a laceration in the dorsum of her hand to her wrist, but doesn't disable it. However, she is actively bleeding.
• Elaine releases Ceruledge and stands back to back with it as it readies Bitter Blade
• MP total=100MP+50MP (Her Pokemon faints)+50 MP (Injury-Indirect)=200MP

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

At the very least the strategy seemed to work. The enemy recalled his own Pokemon as he and his Luxray tried to evade the brunt of their attack. In doing so, he, however, opted to change his strategy.

The cold wind whirled around, a cage to entrap the enemy's prey--his declaration made that as clear as the day had been only a few minutes prior.

"Fine then."

But who said anything about escape? She was making no move to run. She was on the attack here.

Though, I should at least make sure I have an exit strategy.

She wanted to win. She wanted to test her mettle. But a life sacrificed to such whims would be easily forgotten.

Elaine Highland worked best at a distance. But that distance was tending ever closer to zero.

"Time to carve out a little niche here." With the same hand she used before, she pointed to the ground they were floating over. Her fingers splayed once again, creating an even greater angle between them--a simple but effective signal.

The Flygon once again, as she flew just a few feet higher, wound back her head before breathing a great five-pointed 大 beneath her as that blast of fire slammed into and lit the grass on fire.

From here on, she was taking a massive risk--one she could not afford to fail, lest she burn by her Pokemon's own flames.

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

• Flygon uses Fire Blast upon the ground, lighting it ablaze and creating a large flame
• MP total=90MP

"Impessive is a very strange way to phrase that whole experience." Elaine crossed her arms for a minute and looked up to the ceiling. The whole incident wasn't a problem because she had gotten looped up with Rocket. "After all, I encountered an underboss and got my ass handed to me. Could've been worse, I guess. I did make it out alive and mostly intact."

It really wasn't anything to be proud of. In fact, if she had a superior officer she directly reported to, she would have been berated to hell and back about taking reckless actions.

But that didn't make that whole experience meaningless.

Perhaps, that was why she could still chuckle and speak of such a harrowing experience lightly. Even through defeat, she had taken something from it all.

"I've personally been more fond of Sourdough. Though I've had some good potato breads as well. You can't beat a good tater in the end." She then narrowed her eyes as she looked at Howard's. "What's so wrong with rye though? Those earthy tastes fit well in certain sandwiches."

---

Tag: howard slayte

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

Trainer and Pokemon had fallen into a strange rhythmic dance. As the dragon had thrust its weight upon the ground, shaking it, Elaine found herself landing gracefully upon its back. Truly, it would have been worthy of a ten out of ten from any competent judge.

But what mattered not was any display of elegance, but the chance for survival.

The one who had stumbled still spoke as if he were on the front foot. Which meant that either he was a fool or he was far more skilled than he had shown yet. On the other hand, his Pokemon had deftly avoided a critical blow and continued to come charging at Elaine and Tiamat.

So, she reached her hand into her Flygon's periphery. As soon as she knew the dragon would be able to see it, she splayed out her fingers, keeping her hand parallel to the ground. That was all she did.

"Such bluster. Feel free to not back it up. You won't ever lay a finger on me."

In that moment, the dragon's head craned back for a mere instant. In the next, it's head lurched forward, a booming cry burst from its mouth towards the enemies before them. To hell with stealth and escape. She was on the attack here.

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

• Flygon uses Boomburst
• MP total=30MP+50 MP (Antagonistic Dialogue)=80MP

• player/ooc name:Kohaku
• character tags:Elaine Highland
• dropped characters' tags (if applicable):None
• ic posts for characters:Post
• are characters in directories?: Y
• any notes/comments: Admittedly, I've slowed down quite a bit since my recent burst of activity. Having a bit of burnout between irl circumstances, work, and FFXIV nonsense. May be able to go back to peak frequencies soon, but I'm not making any promises. 

Though he would call them poverty dishes, there was something that could be said for the talent to take ingredients that some would consider scraps and turn them into good food--or at least food good enough to be judged well on a public competition floor. The man sold himself short and that was a sad thing to see.

"Any cool cases recently?"

Elaine crossed her arms, crossed her legs and peered off towards the ceiling.

Any cool cases? She hadn't had any major ones in a bit, all things considered. No giant murders, serial killings, or criminal rings. Well...at least most of them weren't.

"I guess there was that smuggling ring I was dealing with back then. Got ended up looped up in a fight with Rocket by accident because of that."

It wasn't the most pleasant of memories. But it was probably the most interesting of her recent encounters. And one that the man before her would probably be even less fond of.

---

Tag: howard slayte

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

"Yeah. You're right." You should have run, the man said. She knew from the very start what her role was here. She was supposed to gather intelligence and return with it. The role of a scout was far from that of a useless one.

But the time she had recently spent attempting the gym challenge had taught her a few things. She could not simply act for the sake of keeping in the safe zone. Strength didn't grow from that. She had to put herself forward, keeping herself perfectly cognizant of that razor edge betwen safety and danger.

Life wasn't so convenient that she and her Pokemon would be blessed with a Zenkai Boost every time they were defeated. But continuous battles and defeats still had their meaning. Elaine Highland was going to make sure of that.

"But I'm not that kind of person."

From her hand, as she saw the enemy making his move, she tossed up the Pokeball she had chosen. Opening in midair just a short distance above her, it revealed Tiamat, the ground dragon of her team.

In that same motion, she grabbed the Flygon's hand. As it pulled her up, she flipped into the air upside down. With a smile, she nodded at the dragon as it slammed down upon the ground, in an attempt to quake the very earth she once stood upon.

"But I don't think last words are necessary. After all, I'm not going to die here. Not to you."

There was neither malice nor worry in her voice. It was strange. She had no clue if she was fighting a losing battle. But her soul never felt more calm.

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

• Luxray uses Earthquake
• MP total=20MP

Neon vs Elaine

Skirmish

This really was a strange choice.

The detective had sighed and scratched the back of her head. She had been sent to the outskirts of Route 104 close to the Petalburg Woods in a mini-recon mission. With the recent takeover of Petalburg, she had been tasked with taking stock of enemy numbers in the area as well as the distribution of their forces.

War would not be re-starting soon...probably. However, it was not like they could let things be easy for Rocket. Supply lines. Distribution of their grunt forces. Any intel or rumors floating around the grapevine.

She had been told to gather as much of that as possible. And moreover, she had still had one more directive to establish here.

She had been stealthy enough that the average grunt wouldn't be able to take notice of her. But that was just it. She was only keeping her presence hidden from the small fry who could swarm around. So, she was acutely aware of just how loud her presence was to those who were stronger than that.

And just as she had hoped, someone had dared to clamp down on the juicy morsel that was waving itself in their face.

She didn't make any grand jumps. Instead, she got to the ground and rolled down to the side. The ground cracked. Small chunks of rock hit her face, but she was not made vulnerable just yet.

"Really? That's what you go with?" Standing back up, she shrugged and sighed. The strong one who had caught onto her had been a strange one too. It wasn't just his choice of mockery. There was just something unnatural about him. As if a piece of a mosaic had just been jammed in by the artist.

"I think I prefer to give up neither."

Reflexively she placed her hand on one of her Pokeballs. She could hope they could walk away right. But she knew far better than to expect that. So, she simply grinned, hiding away the bundle of nerves that was her beating heart.

---

Tags: mint frost
TL;DR:

Interrogation and Integration.

Solo_Actor's_Denouement.

The world had almost come to a standstill. The setting sun peeked out through remnant clouds as light finally shone upon both of them. The woman had taken the first bite of the bait. That was enough.

She had given herself this opportunity so she had to take it to its limit here.

The League was an organization run by people and within that it was frought with the petty and banal interactions of people that created discord both perceptible and imperceptible. It was by no means a perfect organization, but it was the better of the two rivaling factions.

But within that, there was so much being hidden. Between the people that she had met and the people she had yet to see, she could not see the big picture at all, especially in her current state.

Elaine was alone. She had worked under the guise of being independent, but she knew just how much of a folly such an action was. Things had to change.

If she could dig deeper, she could see what was truly going on around her. She needed to know what everyone was holding back. She was a detective to the core, after all. Exposing her heart to the fickle thing known as the truth was her true trade.

And so, she would exert her will.

She jumped off the rock she was sitting off and landed a few feet down, now staring eye level at Penelope Livy.

"Let me join the HBIC." She was weak, but she would wield a blade regardless. Among this world full of intersecting and repelling wills, this was the decision she had come to.

"That is the condition I have for giving you this. Until I peel back the surface, I won't be satisfied."

And so, she would face the truth of everything. No matter how much it made her despair, she would press on forward. Because this time, she made sure she would not be alone when she did so.

---

Tags: PENELOPE LIVY