The mega Charizard was unfortunately ready to rumble a lot quicker than anticipated. No matter, it would not get past regice. The golem had not responded to Oscar's previous communication, so he decided to just wing it.

"Regice, blast that thing out of the sky! Before it hits the drill!" Oscar's command was confident, he assumed that it would just follow his orders. Yet the golem did not move, instead letting out a series of beeps Oscar could not understand.

⠥⠝⠁⠥⠞⠓⠕⠗⠊⠵⠑⠙ ⠥⠎⠑⠗

Oscar stood there for moment before trying again. "Um, ice beam...blizzard... anything! Now please!" The regice responded with the same unknown message.

⠥⠝⠁⠥⠞⠓⠕⠗⠊⠵⠑⠙ ⠥⠎⠑⠗

Oscar began to panic, turning toward Prime as the Charizard drew closer. "Techno Blast, now!" Prime aimed its cannon toward the incoming drake, but when it attempted to charge energy the barrel would only spark uselessly.

Oscar's face somehow turned paler. "HOWARD!" It was too late, the Charizard crashed into the drill and pulverized it. Oscar flinched as debris went everywhere. He broke from his daze and stumbled forward, looking for any sign that Howard was okay.

He lucked out, Howard turned up unscathed. Oscar was about to approach when a horrific scream echoed through the air. Oscar whirled around, unable to find its source. Regardless, this mission was cooked. Oscar overheard Howard radio Walsh, which meant an airstrike would arrive shortly.

Oscar was furious, everything was going so well! It went tits up so quickly, and now Oscar looked bad because Regice decided to--ignore him? The golem had remained still, and Oscar would bitterly withdraw it into its ball. Prime was withdrawn next, and Oscar would trot off after Howard as the sound of approaching Genesect roared across the sky.

7B8HelVW

howard slayte Roy Aker ollie morales

"Boss huh?" Oscar rubbed his chin, digging through his brain for any information that might help. Luckily his time researching Interdream Mist with Lulu Flint was about to payoff. "These 'paradox' pokemon are usually created using Interdream Mist, which can commonly be produced by restless Musharna. Keep your eyes out for one of those, it might be what's causing this mess."

At least they had a goal now, look for whatever is producing the mist that was summoning these warriors. Oscar cracked his knuckles and pulled a pure red pokeball from off of his belt. He opened it toward some open space beside him, summoning a Genesect with black armor (complete with flame decals). The Genesect looked to its master for instruction.

"Prime, let's get down there. After that, rip and tear until the fighting stops." Prime performed a slow nod. It had been a while since it was given permission to engage in all-out combat. This shall be a refreshing change, a chance to unleash its restrained aggression. The Genesect turned, allowing Oscar to climb onto its back. Oscar turned his head toward Sydney. "Try to stay close. If we get separated, it will make it easier for them to overwhelm us. Good luck."

Oscar tapped Prime's head, and the cyborg would leap off of the platform. It landed with one claw striking the ground, creating a loud scraping that attracted the attention of some robotic Iron Thorns nearby. As the mechanical horrors gingerly approached, Oscar would hop off of Prime's back. "Like I said, rip and tear." Genesect lowered its head, charging its cannon with an incredible amount of energy. Before the Iron Thorns could get too close, Prime would unleash its stored power as a dazzling silver beam (Techno Blast--Steel). The Iron Thorns were ripped apart by the attack, creating an opening to delve further into the fray.

TIwk3cPX

@sidney

As if to highlight Lulu's words, the bizarre cry rang out again. It was even further this time, whatever this thing was had unnatural speed. Oscar suddenly had an uneasy feeling in his gut now, like when his brother told one too many scary stories around a campfire when he was a kid. It was a pointed paranoia, primal yet completely his own fault.

Oscar's mouth tilted into a thoughtful frown, "Suddenly I don't feel so well equipped for exploration." They had just gotten here, but already Oscar felt as though they had bitten off more than they could chew. "Maybe we should go get some extra supplies and come back another time. I don't want to get lost in here with whatever--that is."

Oscar gestured toward where the mysterious cry was coming from. He wanted nothing more than to encounter a new, powerful pokemon--but not if he was unprepared to face it. Area Zero was amazing, but the last thing he wanted was to die here because of some unknown predator. Oscar folded his arms and gazed at Lulu. "Unless--you think we can handle it? I trust your judgement."

RFCtDkf6

Lulu Flint

Oscar nodded along, his face expressionless as he took in Violet's explanation. She really knew herself, something told Oscar that this training was more of a formality than anything else. As he concluded her hypothetical scheme, Oscar chuckled lightly.

"You sound like you have a lot of experience already. Good, we need quality spies within our network." It did make Oscar just a tad uneasy. He was never really trustful of Rocket's spies, anyone who made it their business to deceive others for their own gain were likely not reliable as confidants. He much preferred being upfront with others, which is why if someone was his enemy he would just take their shit instead of luring them into a false sense of security first. Eh, different strokes different folks.

Regardless, Violet was ready to be tested--and with complete creative freedom Oscar had set up the perfect exam. "What I'm curious about though, is how well you perform without time for setup." Oscar leaned forward, placing his hands against the table as he shot Violet a wily grin. "So your examination is as follows--You have two hours to break into the office of fern delaney and steal this." He reached into his pocket and brought out a picture of what appeared to be a glass psyduck statuette. He held the photo aloft so that Violet could get a good view.

Oscar had approached Fern before the training to see if he could use his office for this very exam. Fern generously agreed, after taking all of his most sensitive files elsewhere of course. Violet, of course, did not need to know this detail.

"You may use any of the tools I've provided to accomplish this. No pokemon will be permitted, and to make sure you don't cheat..." Oscar put down the photo and pulled out a pure red pokeball. Released from it was a black Genesect with flame decals, the very first of its kind: Genesect Prime. "Prime here will be following you. It won't do anything but observe your actions." Prime gave Violet a wave of its claw, only semi-aware of what was currently happening based on what it had just heard.

Oscar pulled out his phone to check the time and whistled. "Fuck, listen to me blab. Fern will be back on the sub in one hour and fifty six minutes, better get going."

Violet Fairbanks

PRISMATIC PENITENTIARY[break]SIGN-UPS

LOCK IN

CHARACTER: oscar clayton [break]
WHICH WARD?: Uggo[break]
PREFERRED CELLMATE(S): Navy[break]
PKMN TEAM (6 MAX): Look below.[break]
WHY WAS YOUR CHARACTER SORTED INTO THEIR WARD? (OPTIONAL): I mean...look at him.

Oscar tapped his chin, trying his best to think deeply while navigating the uneven terrain of the cave. "Galar again." He said out loud, nearly to no one. By this point Oscar had heard a great deal about what had happened with Galar, yet he still understood none of it. The puzzle pieces fit together, but the image it made looked wrong. As if it was blended up in a paint mix or something.

"It would make sense that the Galarian variant would appear in Galar I guess." Oscar mused while carefully moving up a frozen slope. "I don't really understand what had happened though. Every time it's explained to me it makes less sense. I wish I could have been there."

Oscar briefly paused as he recalled some of the more traumatic stories he had heard. Sure the best way to get what happened would be to experience what happened, but perhaps it was best that he did not. "Maybe I don't though."

Oscar pressed forward, trying to keep up with his companion. "I guess what I'm thinking is, it probably wouldn't bother being somewhere this cold if it weren't an ice type. Maybe it would be drawn somewhere with psychic power, like--fffFuck!" Oscar had lost his footing and slipped backwards, landing on his behind with a loud thump. There were worse places he could have fallen, but that didn't heal his pride or his ass.

"Fuuuck that hurt."

mint frost

Oscar gave Lulu a puzzled look. "A what and what?" The pokemon Lulu had described were foreign to Oscar, this was the first time he had heard of either. Oscar's face suddenly lightened up, this uncertainty provided an uncommon opportunity. "Oh fuck yes, one second!" Oscar pulled out his phone and began frantically tapping through his apps. When he came upon what he desired, he would let out a giggle fueled by childlike anticipation.

After a few seconds, Oscar would tilt his head. "Oh! See that explains it, this guy's from Paldea. I haven't kept up with those guys--which is why I downloaded this!" Oscar turned his screen toward Lulu, revealing the interface for a phone-based pokedex. Oscar had never owned a pokedex before, but he decided to pick up this app just in case he heard about one of those elusive Paldea pokemon. The opened entry depicted a rendering Cyclizar, as well as various stats that had been gathered over the past year.

"Oh shit check this out." Oscar pressed a button on the interface, prompting a robotic voice to start reading Cyclizar's pokedex entry.

Cyclizar: The Mount Pokemon

Cyclizar has a top speed of 70 mph. It has been used as a mode of transportation since ancient times.

Oscar giggled as he pulled back his phone. "It's just like the old models made in Kanto! Fuckin' wild right? Ugh, I've always wanted a real one." Oscar performed some more tapping, and after a few seconds of staring at his screen he would sigh and put the phone away. "No info on that--what did you call it? Mo-rai-don? Is it another form for Cyclizar?"

Suddenly the same cry they had been hunting sounded off once again, only this time it seemed very far off. Oscar eyes widened as he slowly realized the implications of this. "Holy shit! Whatever it is, it must be fast as hell. It almost sounds miles away now."

vYaWZD2W

Lulu Flint

Oscar whistled as he took in the ruined cityscape, glass cracking under his boots as he leisurely moved forward. "I can see why the Megalopolans left now, this place is fucked." The futuristic wasteland was as beautiful as it was disturbing; it just goes to show that it does not matter how advanced a civilization is, doom can befall them all the same. It was a miracle that Hoenn has lasted as long as it had.

As every one of his steps was announced by cracking glass, Oscar would grow curious and look downward. "Oh shit." He would say with mild amusement. He was not stepping on glass after all, but rather an endless sea of dully colored crystals stuck within the pavement. He bent down to have a closer look, and upon realizing that they were seemingly dead Z-crystals Oscar would let out a harsh chuckle. "Alright this place is beyond fucked. This is some post-Post-apocalypse shit. Really pretty though."

Oscar stood up and dusted his hands off, reluctant to move forward without some input from his companion. He has only worked with fern delaney once long ago, way before his promotion to admin. When the opportunity to work with Mister Delaney reappeared, Oscar was more than a little excited--even if he probably was not the first choice. He knew Fern was looking for something, but he still was not sure what.

"So what's our next step? Do you have a first destination in mind or are we wandering blindly? I'm down for either."

Prompts
04 discover permanently defunct and dull Z-CRYSTALS scattered about the city.

These days it was common for Oscar to forget that he was once one of the Beasts of Rocket. It may be hard to believe, but there was a time when Oscar was the name called upon when violence needed to be dealt out in Rocket's name. He had always enjoyed that role, even if it had stood in the way of what really ignited his interest. Sometimes he would even miss those days, when everything seemed so simple.

So when it came down from higher up that Rockets were needed to clear out some rowdy Paradox pokemon in Area Zero, Oscar was happy to volunteer. There was nothing like going back to basics every now and then, just some good old fashioned annihilation to lighten the spirit. He would be accompanied by @sidney, a complete unknown to him but the battlefield was the best place to make new friends.

When they got to the site though, Oscar was a little put off. The came out on an elevated platform that overlooked a chamber made entirely out of Tera Crystal. It was beautiful to behold, no wonder Rocket wanted the room cleared out. Unfortunately, the chamber's tenants were more than just 'Rowdy'. Paradox pokemon of every variety in nearly innumerable numbers were viciously fighting what seemed to be a war of dominance. The Tera Crystal walls were drenched in blood, providing a disturbing red glow to the brutal combat below. The battle was strikingly vast in scope, with Paradox pokemon appearing seemingly out of thin air to instantaneously replace the fallen. It gave Oscar a headache.

"Um--okay." Oscar noted to Sidney as he scratched the back of his head. "This is a little--bigger than I was expecting."

dnJ9hrO0

The second appearance of the roar shocked Oscar, not expecting to hear it so soon. The possibility of discovering a new pokemon ignited his adventurer's spirit, and he was determined more than ever to forge forward. "What are we waiting for then?" Oscar pulled a pure red pokeball off of his belt and opened it to let out Prime the Genesect. The blackened cyborg took a brief inventory of its surroundings as Oscar tried to figure out the cleanest route of descent. It paused to take note of its fellow Genesect, it was tempted to try and communicate with it as it had with Tempest Quinn 's Genesect--but perhaps now was not a good time.

Oscar pointed diagonally toward the bottom-left side of the chamber. "I think I see tracks over there. Let's head down and take a look." Prime hopped into the air to transform into its hoverboard form (Magnet Rise), floating close enough to Oscar to allow him to hop on. Oscar would wait for Lulu to be ready before flying toward the supposed tracks.

As they neared the floor, what Oscar thought to be tracks would get clearer. They were lucky that the floor was not too far down, Oscar imagined floating into a deeper abyss with nothing to be found but darkness and gnarled teeth. Would he even bother exploring the chamber's floor if he could not already see it? Useless what ifs, Oscar purged his mind of gratuitous thought as they reached their destination.

"Hmmm, this can't be right." Oscar hopped off of Prime and bent down to examine the tracks. They appeared to be--swerving lines? Like the wheels of a bike had come by. Oscar sighed, "It looks like someone beat us here. Don't know why they'd bring a fuckin' bike in here though."

w4dugEni

Lulu Flint

The second ranger was saved from Prime's net by his dragonite ally. It was a setback, but Prime felt indifferent. Battles were built on maneuvers and counter maneuvers, all that mattered was it being the one left standing when the dust settled. As the second ranger mega-evolved his charizard, Prime predicted that the false-dragon would attempt to clash once more. However, a curve ball was thrown instead. The charizard went after sigilyph, which would provide Prime with precious seconds to plan its next move.

Prime's head turned toward its first target, and to its surprise the trapped ranger had brought out a tyrantrum. This was an undesirable development. Prime was sure that it would be forced to fight three on one, and began Downloading the data it had observed so far to adjust its combat capabilities.

Maybe it would have been able to take the trio head-on, but we shall not know. The tyrantrum opened with a shattering Earthquake, and there was no way to avoid it. The Genesect tried only once to defy gravity with Magnet Rise, and when it failed to transform it would simply accept the attack. The Earthquake blew Prime back, sending it up the cliff side and then back down again. By the time it fell back into a static position, Prime was not in great shape. Its armor was dented and worn, but it probably would have been smashed apart completely if not for its earlier Download. Prime shakily pushed itself up onto its claws and knees before mysteriously dissolving into the shadows of the cliff.

Oscar watched carefully from afar. The Earthquake was not ideal, but at least the tyrantrum's allies would feel the pain too thanks to Gravity. From his left side, Oscar's shadow would suddenly flare. The silhouette bulged and warped as Prime clawed its way out of the darkness, rising on shaky legs to stand alongside its master (Shadow Sneak). Oscar kept his eyes on the rangers. "Good attempt Prime, but sometimes shit just doesn't work out." Oscar raised the frosted pokeball, sighing heavily as he came to terms with what he must do.

The pokeball opened, unleashing a gust of chilled wind across the area. Regice would emerge, no doubt confused by why Howard was not the one holding its pokeball. Oscar addressed the golem, "Hey, I don't know if you can even understand me but Howard's busy and we need your help. See those goons over there?" Oscar pointed toward the rangers. "We need them to piss off. Or die. Or--whatever gets them not to be here anymore. Shouldn't be hard if we work together, what do you say?"

yWW1_TLk

tl;dr
--Genesect Downloads what it has observed from its opponents so far to heighten its durability.
--Said durability allows Genesect to survive a direct hit from Tyrantrum's Earthquake.
--Genesect used Shadow Sneak to get away from the rangers and appear next to Oscar.
--Oscar let out Regice to hopefully keep the rangers at bay.
howard slayte, ollie morales, Roy Aker

As Aurelie came into view, Oscar felt a brief relief from his back pain. "I--don't think so." He said before trying to sit up. His muscles clenched, sending waves of agony across his backside. Oscar heaved and fell back into a laying position. "Alright so my back is fucked. I think I threw it out."

The bizarre jigglypuff slowly approached as its prey recuperated. It probably would have gotten the drop on them, if Vlad had not come up from behind to grab the ugly creature by its tail and fling it as far as he could. The puffball flinging into the sky and falling an innumerable distance would be an amusing sight to anyone that noticed.

Oscar would not, as his back pain would keep his eyes staring into the false sky of the Giant Chasm. So much for an adventure, he went and ruined his chances of exploring! He stared woefully into the sky, hardly reacting as Vlad forced his mug into Oscar's view. Oscar sighed hoarsely, "Aurelie, I can't go on. I have to go back and get my back un-fucked. Vlad, get me on your back."

Vlad turned away from Oscar, carefully sliding his tail underneath his master. Oscar moaned as the tail prickled his spine, and would outright scream when Vlad flung him onto his leathery back. It hurt like hell, but he was too tired to do more than groan. Oscar carefully turned his head as he adjusted his arms over Vlad's shoulders.

"Thanks for coming out here with me. It was going to go great. If you choose to keep exploring I'll understand, but you look like you're in not-so great shape. Do you want to head out together?"

hWGGbIuI

Aurelie Lefevre

Oscar watched every act perform their closing routines, and gradually became increasingly nervous as their turn drew near. With so many highly talented performers, would they be able to shine through? A low growl would catch Oscar's attention. Robbie had been watching his master, and he would not let Oscar fall into an anxiety spiral. Oscar had given him the confidence to continue forward, and while he could not exactly do the same, Robbie was keen to return the favor.

All Oscar did was look to his determined partner, and his worries melted away. Win or lose, they were ready to give it their all. He nodded with thanks, "You're right Robbie, we got this shit on lock. Buuuut just in case let's go over the routine one last time."

The duo was unlikely to win at this point, but the least they could do was leave with a good impression. A white screen was put out onto the stage, causing anything behind it to appear as a silhouette. After a few moments of silence, electricity would burst from back stage and take out the theater's lighting (Thunderbolt). Everything went dark--that is, except for the two spotlights that allowed the white screen to project its silhouettes.

The intimidating shadow of Robbie burst into view, its alien cackle echoing across the darkened theater. He would not have time to menace the audience though, as a human sized warrior in samurai garb would quickly join him. Robbie's silhouette turned to face the strange warrior, who raised his sword to challenge the demonic drake. The ultra beast obliged, raising its stinger to use as a blade of his own.

The two fighters dramatically clashed, dueling for the souls of the audience. Robbie had positioned himself in such a way as to make his projected silhouette appear much larger than his actual size, making the battle appear to be between a brave human and a hulking monstrosity. The battle lasted only a minute before the hero would 'strike' Robbie down. The dragon would wail, overacting as he fell to the ground.

With the fight over, the lights would return to the theater and the screen would be removed. Robbie would rise and float next to the warrior, who removed his helmet to reveal the face of Oscar. The two took a bow, ending their run in the contest.

EYFStufM