She wished she hadn’t looked up the moment the ground started rumbling.

Wait, wait, hold up.

Wasn’t it like, daytime? Why was… why was the moon suddenly visible in the sky above them?!

“Alright, I wasn’t expecting that,” she hummed quietly as she chalked up the weird experience to their immediate surroundings. She then sent her Braviary off to check what was around them, however…

Fact of the matter was that.

They were in the middle of a large field that had impossibly-large Pokémon growing out of the dirt! Normally this wouldn’t even normally be possible (as the largest Pokémon she knew was Wailord, but guess what? Celesteela beat them all to the ground!) but here they were.

And just in time, too…

For one of the strange silver Pokémon… were they even Pokémon… launched themselves and looked like they were headed towards the moon that was hanging low in the sky!

“Wha—where’s it going?!” she exclaimed, shielding her eyes as she tried to trace the flight pattern of the Celesteela that had just departed.

+ Eris Halla
+ completed 28: discover a vast field filled with impossibly large celesteela that dwarf you inside. periodically, some will launch.

Taking the treat that he’d oh so graciously bought for them all, she screwed her face up in concentration.

“Hm, indeed,” she mused, nibbling a little bit of the popcorn she was holding.

“So I was thinking, since we practically live here and all, why don’t we go on all the water rides first, and then dry off by going on the other rides afterward? Just my suggestion, though. dunno if the kids feel the same way,” she cackled once she was done with her mouthful of salty popped kernels.

+ Josh Dragomir
+ prompt: eat a carnival treat

It was go time, she guessed—thankfully, this time, she could easily have her Metagross, Zan, take her threw Pokémon down while she followed on the back of her Braviary.

The traverse was slower than last time, because while the Metagross could easily take them down to the bottom of where they were headed, she knew wiser than to ask her companion to get on her Braviary’s back… wait.

Wait a minute.

“What’s up?” she asked quietly, looking over at her companion with a curious look. “Meowth got your tongue or something?” she blinked a few moments while the Bravairy kept an eye on the Luxray while they completed the descent.

Thankfully, they would arrive at their destination, and once the Metagross landed with a quiet tremble; she stayed on her Braviary’s back as all five items were brought together—

And then, a rumbling shook their general vicinity.

“Wha—” she trailed off as she looked around and saw—

Several large… things sticking up from where they’d ended up in.

Oh, hell, what fresh terror did they find themselves in right now?!

+ Eris Halla
+ completed 18: bring a pokemon or object that can fit the criteria of being a stone bowl, a jeweled branch, a robe of fire rats, a dragon's jewel, and a seaborne shell to one or some of the craters; upon doing so, a large moon will begin to rise or becoming more prominent in the sky as well as getting a head start on 28: discover a vast field filled with impossibly large celesteela that dwarf you inside. periodically, some will launch.

“Hmm…” she looked over at the Clamperl and nodded quietly at the context clue.

“Clamperl definitely fit the ‘seaborne shell’ item,” she approved. “Now what qualifies as a stone bowl, and a dragon’s jewel?”

Going off by context clues, of course, they were missing two more Pokémon… wait a second…

“Jewel, jewel… I think I have one more Pokémon for the equation.”

Rummaging around in her pocket, she then pulled out a Safari Ball, which popped out a Dratini.

“Just a thought, however doesn’t the Dratini line have those… ‘neck jewel’ things when they evolve into Dragonair?” she mused as she continued pacing.

Now what would fit for the ‘stone bowl’ part of this whole equation…

+ Eris Halla
+ getting a head start on 18: bring a pokemon or object that can fit the criteria of being a stone bowl, a jeweled branch, a robe of fire rats, a dragon's jewel, and a seaborne shell to one or some of the craters; upon doing so, a large moon will begin to rise or becoming more prominent in the sky.

So here they were, again.

The same buzzing ringing in her ears—and she already had her Typhlosion out and ready.

Surprisingly, she also had her Braixen out. If going by context clues, they should at least have two of the five… things… covered.

So far she had ‘a robe of fire rats’ and ‘a jeweled branch’… or at least her best guess as to what a jeweled branch was like, since the Delphox line had a ‘wand’ so maybe that would work?

“I don’t know about you, but that’s as a best guess I can imagine for those. What about you, do you have any ideas for the other three things?” she continued quietly, turning to face her companion.

Hopefully they would be able to scrape something together, and figure out the secrets of this place!

+ Eris Halla
+ getting a head start on 18: bring a pokemon or object that can fit the criteria of being a stone bowl, a jeweled branch, a robe of fire rats, a dragon's jewel, and a seaborne shell to one or some of the craters; upon doing so, a large moon will begin to rise or becoming more prominent in the sky.

They were now officially on the run. Having recalled the Swampert once they’d put considerable distance between the incendiary gas, who knew that they were going to run into a—

“Are you kidding me?!” she screeched as vines suddenly came whipping out of the foliage—this time it was her Braviary who came screaming down from the sky, flapping his wings as the big-ass Carnivine came dropping down from out of nowhere and threatened to eat her whole and spitting out Leech Seeds along the way.

“Gross!” she followed up a few moments later while the angry, angry Braviary rammed into the vines and the attack expelled from the gigantic Grass-type with Aerial Ace; all the while the Metagross was attempting to shove the Carnivine away from her as well using his latent psychic power.

Why did things never go their way when they were in a hurry?!



+ Eris Halla
+ doing 07: suffer the effects of "leech seed" from a hostile plant or pokemon.

They were some part of the way towards the previous crater she’d visited when the smell of—something incendiary caught her nostrils.

Her Metagross barely had time to scrape out a warning as she was suddenly bucked off his back, the inherent Psychic power from the dual-type stemming around them and suddenly bending the thick bamboo stalks around them in a defensive ‘barrier’ as the flames scorched…

“Are you kidding me?!” she exclaimed; her Braviary came screaming down and attempted to fan the flames away from their present location.

“This wasn’t here the last time!”

Quickly pulling out another Pokéball from her pocket, her Swampert makes an appearance, before the look of alarm on his face told him exactly everything he needed to know about the situation.

The Swampert then got to work, blasting out Hydro Pump after Hydro Pump in an attempt to douse the incendiary flames.

+ Eris Halla
+ doing 21 & 23: involve deadly, incendiary gas from celesteela that can suffocate or burn down stretches of land/flora/you and your pokemon & involve the classic trope of running/fleeing through a bamboo forest/fields

“Right behind you!”

With a little pat on the Metagross’s leg, the blue beast followed her companion as they made tracks out of the—

“You know, you can hitch a ride with me on here next time,” she called out as the Metagross hovered behind the other, just to make sure that she didn’t fall down or do anything too stupid like miss a handhold.

Which reminded her…

“I have an idea. You want to check out the previous crater I visited? The one with the ‘seaborne shell’ inscription?” she offered.

She had a feeling they were either going to run into disaster somewhere along the way or afterward—but then again they were already here so it was time to make tracks.

Plus there was no way she wanted to get stuck here before nightfall, so yeah…

+ Eris Halla
+ setting up 23: involve the classic trope of running/fleeing through a bamboo forest/fields.

She then remembered the last crater she’d been to had mentions of a ‘seaborne shell’, so there was that. Bless her (limited) previous experience here suddenly coming in spades then!

“The previous crater I saw, which is in that distance over there,” she pointed some ways behind them, “…was looking for a seaborne shell. Whether it meant an actual Pokémon or some item, I’m not sure, but we tried to puzzle out what it meant.”

Either it meant actual Pokémon or unobtainable, impossible items—it was either one or the other.

“You’ll see when we get there,” and here she swapped her Braviary for her Metagross, which she then clambered upon Zan’s back and followed the young lady who began the treacherous hike down the path she’d chosen to traverse.

In no time flat they’re at their next destination, however this time instead of a ‘seaborne shell’, this crater was asking for ‘a robe of fire rats’.

What the hell was that?

“Going by context clues… what Pokémon looks like it’s wearing a robe of fire?”

She… already had a possible idea; as she was holding her Typhlosion’s Pokéball in hand.

+ Eris Halla
+ doing 11: discover at least one special crater out of five. each crater has an inscribed message written in bamboo stalks, asking for a separate gift to be brought at a later date: a stone bowl, a jeweled branch, a robe of fire rats, a dragon's jewel, and a seaborne shell.

Accompanied by one of the strangest Pokémon that she’d ever seen (it looked disturbingly human, for one thing, despite looking to be made out of metal) she watched the little scene unfold with benign amusement on her features.

“Do you want something spiked, then?” she offered. It was easy enough to make a delicious spiked milkshake or two then, considering the weather around here. (Although, of course, one had to be over the legal drinking limit to even know the existence of such menu items.)

“Shouldn’t be too much trouble, I can recommend either the chocolate or the vanilla milkshake. And then it depends on what kind of kick you want, I can—” she was about to go off discussing what alcoholic spike of choice was available when she heard her name.

“Yes, that… that would be me,” she clarified. What was going on?

“What. What did you mean by that? What you last said?”

+ Ozni Adebayo
+ dun dun DA

The last time she’d been here, she was with three other people.

So imagine her surprise on her return—this time, she was with a…

Surely she can’t be older than the twins, right? she thought to herself, brow furrowed in concentration. While her Braviary was up in the skies above, she was accompanied by her Gardevoir on the ground.

More eyes to be on the lookout for more insanity, as they said.

“Once, before. Saw a crater not too far from where I came the last time… although I have the feeling there’s more than just one crater here…” she hummed quietly, lost in thought.

If she remembered right from the last trip out here, there were five significant ones, and she’d already seen one of them.

“Are you looking for one of the five craters, too?”

Best not to ask why there was a kid here; that L… the companion Pokémon looked menacing!

(Look, she has astraphobia so anything Electric-type she’s terrified of.)

+ Eris Halla
+ setting up for 11: discover at least one special crater out of five. each crater has an inscribed message written in bamboo stalks, asking for a separate gift to be brought at a later date: a stone bowl, a jeweled branch, a robe of fire rats, a dragon's jewel, and a seaborne shell.

How hilarious would it be, then, that he would find the person who was the object of his visit to Lavaridge today—to be the one serving him today?

(She was just the local Ranger captain around these parts, to be fair. Honestly it was supposed to be her husband Josh Dragomir who would take the mantle, but then the ‘rite of succession’ within Raicorp happened which left him unavailable—and therefore meant that she would be the one taking his place in the meantime.)

The good thing about Lavaridge was, it was as quiet as anyone would come. The hot springs were busy, the elderly people who frequently hung out near the hot springs area chatting (more like rambling) anyone’s ears off to those who would listen—

“What’d you want to order today?”

It was a slow day at ‘work’, after all. When her services as Ranger captain weren’t needed, she would be helping out at the family café when things were slow.

+ Ozni Adebayo
+ OHOHOHOHO

What was taking them so long…?

She was hoping that nothing bad had befallen their male companions, and while she was loathe to leave calla roth behind, normally checking out something shouldn’t take this long, right…?

“What’s keeping them? You think they got ambushed or something?” she called out to her companion, hoping that nothing too disastrous had attacked the other two.

Hopefully, they didn’t have to wait until late…

Because she did not want to find out what happened out here in the evenings.

Her Braviary continued to circle above them, keeping a sharp eye out for any possible intruders—or at the very least—returning companions!



+ Kieran Roth, calla roth, URIAH BLACK
+ time to roll and CRY