With drink in hand he listened keenly to the Gym Leader. Learning more about the man in front of him. "So you were like a prodigy," he complimented the man though with a teasing smile.

Zata raised a curious eyebrow when Josh mentioned that he was looking for something as well. "The most you can do is run my brother's name in the system. Raul Nefertum." If the Ranger did and the system database included data of Rangers from all over Hoenn, Josh might learn that Raul was a Ranger working in Fortree, taking care of and protecting the Pokemon Sanctuary.

As they were lost in their conversations, their meals arrived. The smell of spice and sauce captured the attention of Zata and his stomach. "Whoa this is huge," He said in shock and awe as he laid eyes on the burger. He'd be full until the next evening. Zara waited for his companion to dig in first, he never had a burger that big before and he had no idea on how to consume it.

Josh Devlin

☉

Zata watched how the lady treated her Absol, and how the Absol responded in return. He tried seeing himself in her place, he found picturing the scenario incredibly hard. He wondered if he would end up having to train his Pokemon to be obedient and loyal to him, as of then he did not have any plans to becoming a proper Pokemon trainer. He actually had no idea why he took the Pokemon from his brother's belongings in the first place.

He turned to where the lady pointed at, and without hesitation began moving towards it. Once he sat on a bench and the lady joined him, he would asked, "How long have you been a trainer?". She seemed good at it and knows what she was doing, he hadn't consciously thought of it but he was feeling like getting better at training his Pokemon.

Elise Calcifet

☉

With how fast the cheese curds were cleared, Zata could imagine the big orders of food for the Gym. "All that racing burns a lot of calories huh," He commented with a smirk before placing another dipped cheese curd into his mouth.

As far as he was concerned, his father, who Zata had never met, was a ranger too; And that his brother was inspired to become a ranger because of their father. Becoming a ranger would mean carrying on the torch the two of them burned during their lifetime. Other than that, Zata didn't have any reasons or motifs to become one. He was not even sure what Rangers do, protecting wildlife?

"You're a ranger as well?" He asked when Devlin mentioned his position. "If you've never heard of my brother, he was probably not stationed here during the war. Then at least it makes me unconcerned of what actually went down here," He took another sip, a habit he developed and learned from his mother. Alcohol was an effective escape, albeit poisoning him all the while.

Zata stared in silence as he pondered what the Gym Leader said, the only thing filling his silence was the clanking of ice cubes as he spun the glass and its contents around. "I'm... Not really sure what I want to do. Right now my only motivation is to find out what happened to my brother. Once I uncover the truth, I'm sure I'll figure out the path I'll take.".

Josh Devlin

☉

Zata travelled for days on his Mudsdale. He had never travelled that far, or that long before. But his destination was much further, his destination: Lilycove. The last place out of the three main warfronts of the war he had yet to investigate. He found very little information in the other two locations, Mauville City and Meteor Falls. He had very high hope on this one.

Before going to Lilycove however, he made a stop for Fortree City. He had never been there before and perhaps the Gym Leader knew about what happened in Lilycove, as the two cities were close to each other.

Right after arriving, Zata noticed just how different Fortree City was than the other cities around Hoenn. Instead of skyscrapers made of metal and concrete, branches and leaves of trees rise high up above, supporting what seemed to be houses and its citizens. Truly unique. But Zata didn't stop for sightseeing, he made his way straight to the Gym. 

When he reached the entrance, his Mudsdale stopped with a neigh. Zata mounted off it and gave it a few gentle pets, something he recently learned from trainers in Mauville City. "Thank you. You deserve a good rest." He returned the ground-type Pokemon into its Pokeball. The dark haired man turned, tired from his journey but a fiery drive gave him the energy to push through. He entered the Fortree Gym.

Alexei Ivanov

☉

PURCHASING/REDEEMING

welcome to the poké mart!

1X type 1 evolution (charcadet → ceruledge) (100 PD)
1X technical machine: phantom force (ceruledge forgets clear smog)(redeemed)
1X level tutor: bitter blade (ceruledge forgets flame charge) (40 PD)
1X level tutor: ally switch (ceruledge forgets lava plume) (40 PD)
1X technical machine: psychic (froslass forgets icy wind) (60 PD)
1X level tutor: magnet rise (steelix forgets bind) (40 PD)

TOTAL

do come again!

280 PD

He ruminated on what the lady said. He did not establish any means of communication with his Pokemon. He didn't even bother giving them names. Perhaps he should start with that, find a way to communicate with them and develop a form of respect towards each other. "Huh," was his only verbal response.

Zata watched, in fascination, at the race between the graceful Manectric and prideful Tauros. Their hooves and paws stepping and leaping, all the while their trainers mounted and guided them. Like they weren't two different entities but instead one, working in unison. This was cut short as his sensitivity to bright light returned. He shielded his eyes before turning to his company. "Is there anywhere I can wait until... They're exhausted?" He asked humbly.

Elise Calcifet

☉

He was a bit surprised when he successfully convinced the Gym Leader. He thought it would have taken more than that, partly due to his cynical nature. "My name's Zata; My brother's Raul, Raul Nefertum."

Given what he learnt in Mauville, a name wouldn't be enough for him to get the answers he wanted from a Gym Leader. "He was a Ranger." He briefly avoided eye contact as he looked at the earth below, "I have yet to know where he was stationed. But if he was stationed here, I'd like to know what he went through," He looked back up at the Gym Leader, re-establishing eye contact as he spoke the last line.

CIAN MAHER    

☉

Zata sat in silence, he did not say it but he was rather disappointed that Devlin wasn't present during the day of the war. Instead he reached out for another piece of the cheese, this time dipping it in the sauce Devlin so highly praised. "Wow, you weren't kidding," He commented as soon as he tasted the perfect combination of ingredients.

The Gym Leader second statement hurt more than the first, but Zata understood the man's position. He could not blame him for something out of his control. Before responding, the dark haired fellow brought his dearly beloved glass of whiskey to his lips, sipping on the poison to cleanse the aftertaste of the cheese. "These uhh, Rangers. How do I find them?" He asked genuinely. Zata knew his brother was a part of the Rangers, but outside of that he knew nothing about them. Perhaps they hold answers to his questions.

Josh Devlin

☉

Zata rubbed the back of his neck, again. "Uhh, yeah they have a lot of energy. But sometimes they won't listen to what I say. I think they could sense that I have no idea what I'm doing." He confessed.

The dark haired man moved to the entrance of the tracks and took a peak at it. The Froslass also followed suit, hovering over its trainer's head. Curiosity winning them over. It looked way bigger on the inside. "All this space just to train your Pokemon huh," he muttered to himself, but quite audibly so.

Elise Calcifet

☉

"Oh," He rubbed his neck when the woman in front of him mentioned her job in politics. Somehow Zata felt out of place, he was a nobody from a small town. Why was he standing in such a grandeur place and talking to someone such as her. He hoped his coat did not reek of alcohol. It seemed like Zata was the only person who viewed the situation that way as all his Pokemon seemed to enjoy themselves.

Soon, the Yamper and the Mantyke made their way to the tracks, "Hey wait!" Zata attempted to chase after them but he stopped after a couple steps knowing it was futile as they were much faster than him, especially given the state of him that day. He sighed a heavy sigh as he felt even more embarrassed in front of the pretty lady and her Mismagius, and the Froslass who he could hear giggling in her high pitch voice.

Elise Calcifet

☉

With a strong leap Zata was able to mount on the now calmed Mudsdale. He looked down at the older man, processing his thoughts as to think of what to say to him.

"Never have I been this emotional in front of a person before. Thank you, for listening. 'Till we meet again, Gunner."

He gently patted the Mudsdale's rear. It neighed and then began to run, leaving nothing but dust behind.

Gunner Graves

☉

What Zata took from Devlin's career path was that both of them started working at a young age. Although, the other already reached success as a Gym Leader while he was just getting started at training his Pokemon.

Zata looked over the menu, all the words and various options fogged his brain. Taking the easy route, he ordered what his company suggested. "I'll have a regular steakburger combo then." He closed the menu.

Turning his head towards the television, Zata answered, "Nah, watching sports isn't really my thing.". He raised his glass to take another sip, before placing it back on the counter. The cheese platter arrived, having emptied his stomach before he was feeling quite hungry. He helped himself and used the knife given to cut the cheese into smaller pieces for both of them to enjoy it easily. He plopped one into his mouth, savoring the sweet and sour taste.

As he snacked on the cheese, he found it appropriate to bring up the topic, "Hey, as Mauville's Gym Leader, can I ask you what happened during the War. If you know anything more than the news." He began.

Josh Devlin

☉

The young man had spent his night drinking, again. When the bar kicked him out for causing a ruckus, he wandered the streets with a bottle in hand. He had nowhere to go in the cold city. All his money went to his addiction. Such are the nights for Zata Nefertum. But particularly that night after he had learn key information about his dead brother.


With a hood over his head he walked in a drunk manner. Unable to stay on a straight path. But luckily for everyone else, it was still dark out and not a lot of pedestrians were around. Because if there were he might just stumble onto a passerby. 

mikael rosenberg

☉