“How thoughtful,” at least his is (kind of) a gentlemen, “But I don’t think that will be a problem this time,” she grins as Smoke finishes his puzzle rushes to the box to retrieve his Megastone.

The Gengar transforms in a flash of light. A dark trial of wispy ectoplasm follows as he rushes forward towards the finish line. A humming array of brilliantly colored lights disperse from his palms, a CONFUSE RAY hoping to throw the trailing pokemon off the correct path.

KING WAYLAND
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“My, my, aren’t you ambitious,” a couple nights? Could he last that long?

Barraskewda scoops up the last piece and make a beeline for the surface. It seems he is coming out ahead of the octopus. Lex sees him coming and looks at King with a smile, “So far it doesn’t seem like you can keep up,” she tease while releasing the Gengar from its pokeball.

With a violent abdominal contraction, 6 puzzle pieces spill onto the platform along with a few nasty pieces of his last meal. Disgusting, “Go on, Smoke,” she waves a hand towards the pile.

The Gengar doesn’t seem too happy about it either. With a calculating glare, the ghost gets to work putting the pieces together.

KING WAYLAND
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The bridge is not as rewards and he’s expecting. One piece shines near the wheel which he promptly swallows with the others. There has to be one more here somewhere. He pauses for a moment, spinning around in the water column before focusing his sights on the safe that lies behind the captain’s chair. A powerful AQUA JET tears through the saltwater worn metal.

“I do tend to get distracted easily,” especially after a few drinks. Or did she do the distracting?

KING WAYLAND
Puzzle Pieces: 5/6
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The Gliscor’s SAND VEIL masks it’s approach. The Happiny squeaks in surprise when it bursts forth form the Sandstorm at them with a SKY UPPERCUT. Menhit tilts, protect the small pokemon with her own body. The Sky Uppercut hits her instead. The duo is sent back by the powerful blow, and thankfully away from the sharp stones that aim to strike her chest. The Aerodactyl shudders beneath the Happiny, but a strange glow absorbs some of the energy of the powerful attack. Baby is used to riding Lex’s larger pokemon. Keeping ahold of the spines keeps her from falling off.

Wide wings slow their push back. Menhit glares at Gliscor with the intent of harsh retaliation. The Happiny coos happily, summoning an ICY WIND to be combined with the Aerodactyl’s ANCIENT POWER. The icy gale blows first, cutting through the thin layer of Sandstorm this high up. The ANCIENT POWER follows quickly, both aimed towards the Gliscor.

CIAN MAHER
Menhit is hit with SKY UPPERCUT, they dodge STONE EDGE
Baby’s FRIEND GUARD activates!
Baby uses ICY WIND on Gliscor
Menhit uses ANCIENT POWER on Gliscor

“We’re making a list now?” her tone is playful with a touch of curious. It’s ambitious for him to think he’ll see her again after that drink. Maybe, depends on how interesting he is or what he can offer her. She leans, peering into the water with no success in seeing how things are going. The ship itself is visible but now obscured in the octopus pokemon’s black ink.

The door caves and Barraskewda enters. It was worth the effort. Two shards of the puzzle are hidden in the back of the room. T more left to go. He spins around, shooting back up the stairs and through the cloud of black ink. An AQUA JET aims to push him through the deck. Wood splinters and explodes as he emerges. He turns his sights towards the bridge and enters to search for the last two pieces.

KING WAYLAND
Puzzle Pieces: 4/6
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Dark ink shoots through the water, obscuring his view of the wreck around him. It doesn’t matter, he only DIVES deeper, his agile form able to cut quickly around corners and down stairwells where the ink would be slow to follow. Another shining piece of a puzzle flashes. His slender snout scoops it up into his mouth again.

A door impedes his progress. A series of FURY ATTACK cracks the foundation and he slips into one of the rooms to search for more pieces.

Lex casts King a curious glance but laughs. She was picking up what he was putting down, “I wouldn’t say no to destroying a trainyard,” but that would be where it ended.

KING WAYLAND
Puzzle Pieces: 2/6
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The water is cool, clear and the torpedo pokemon is at home. He races towards the small shipwreck with determination. The water vibrates with movement of the opponent behind him. Still, he doesn’t glance back to see who, or what, it even is. The task at hand supersedes his curiosity.

His jaws snap threateningly as a small school of Goldeen scurry away from the entrance. Barraskewda shoots through the porthole, immediately finding a puzzle piece. It gets scooped up and . . . swallowed? He’ll regurgitate it later, no big deal.

He DIVES deeper, searching for more.

KING WAYLAND
Puzzle Pieces: 1/6
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The grin spreads wider when the target shatters on her side just before his. Fira is the winner, “I like whiskey,” she clarifies winking towards King.

The shattered target triggers the gate to open. An anxious Barraskewda shoots out of his confinement with AQUA JET. His tail spins furiously like a rudder, driving him forward like a torpedo towards the first puzzle pieces he’ll need to find.

KING WAYLAND
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Lex pauses to consider. A kiss on the cheek? She laughs, it sounds so . . . innocent. It’s not something she’s expecting from the man. Still, it’s something Killian probably wouldn’t approve of. Luckily, he isn’t the jealous type, “Fine, a kiss on the cheek for . . .” her eyes flash towards the pokemon one more time, “A drink,” Boring, but there’s not much else she wanted from the man. Whiskey would do just fine. An excellent prize.

KING WAYLAND

It’s close, he knows it too. He intrigues her with the offer of a bet. Her brow rises, a slow smirk pulling across red lips. He’s teasing her competitive side, “What do you have in mind?”

Like predicted, Salazzle falls behind on the monkey bars. She hisses loudly as the Blaziken hops off the obstacle just ahead of her. Thankfully, he’s not too far ahead thanks to her pulling ahead on the last few obstacles.

Regardless, she strives to catch up. Strong legs drive her forward with persistence towards the last obstacle that will be her responsibility. I an attempt to boost her speed, her scales shimmer in preparation as the target comes into view.

A SCALE SHOT bursts from her early, firing their way through the air towards the target. They just had to hit it right? Didn’t have to be with their hand? A scale is technically a body part.

KING WAYLAND
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The slender log and the Salazzle’s slender body works in sync to let her pull further ahead of the Blaziken. Lex smiles from across the course, casting a glance towards King. It’s still close, and there’s still a lot of course to cover. The small high was satisfying though for now.

Salazzle jumps forward off the log. Long legs carry her quickly over the remaining length of the field to the monkey bars. This will likely be the most difficult obstacle for her. The Blaziken is much better equipped to quicky swing through this. Regardless, Fira doesn’t stall. Her arms reach and she unnaturally swings through the monkey bars, looking to get this over with as soon as possible.

KING WAYLAND
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Salazzle climbs up and over the obstacle as Blaziken is forced to Fire Punch its way to the top. The agile lizard easily finds its footing again on the ground on the other side. Fira wastes no time finding her grip and lunging forward towards the rolling log.

Now it is time to play dirty. Having the lead, Fira take a moment to pause. He abdomen convulses and a thick, purple venom projectiles from her open maw. It splatter against the log meant for the Blaziken, coating it in a VENOM DRENCH. Fira crawls onto her own log, scurrying across it like a little squirrel.

KING WAYLAND
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The Screech is cringe-worthy, making not only Lex, but the Aerodactyl and Happiny tense, rattling their nerves and composure. Lex doesn’t let it show, simply narrows her gaze and peer sup towards the dup making their way out of the Sandstorm. A well placed AGILITY boosts them forward, increasing the Aerodactyl’s speed. Baby support them with a SAFEGUARD, another shimmering light that coats them protectively.

Menhit peers down towards the obscured battlefield as she floats son wide wings. A low growl rumbles through her throat when she spots the faint shadow of the Gliscor moving hidden among the sand.

CIAN MAHER