Group RP Pokemon: Evolution Quest (IC thread)

@122 Generation @ChocoChicken @WavePearl

Now that Blacky managed to trip the Weavile and kick them away with his master readying a Blazing Edge on said Weavile afterwards, he redirected his aim at the Decidueye. Their shadow-oriented Spirit Shackle reminded him of the version he'd just learned on his own back in Ludester, so Blacky decided to shoot his own luna-oriented Spirit Shackle on the glowing feathers alongside Aine's divine flaming arrow and Celine's Fire Spin.

Also, Elio's sacrilegious commentary didn't end there. "The Golden Eye, huh? Are you sure she can predict everything?" he rolled his eyes at the mention of "the Golden Eye". Like, say, who gets the last kill or something? the Braixen mentally added.

Turn 2 actions

In no particular order:

• Elio: Cure on Aine
• Aine: arrow shot (fire) on Decidueye
• Josson: Blazing Edge (fire) on Weavile
• Blacky: Spirit Shackle (luna) on Decidueye
• Celine: Fire Spin on Decidueye
• Atelier: ...
• Xuehua: ...

 

"Crap. Why is it attacking just us?" Atelier muttered, seeing that the Decidueye had not only targeted him again but also Xuehua too. Did it have something personal against Xuehua? Or was it because it was irritated by his remark? Or was it the Gravelerock? Having narrowly dodged the arrow as it flew by his head, he wondered if he was lucky this time. Aine was already taking hits Either way, he needed to move to safety and make a counterattack. Those glowing green feathers looked intimidating. What could it possibly do?

Plus, the Deciduye clearly looked like it wasn't to be trifled with. It was clearly informed that other Dragon Kings were being felled because of Aine and co.'s efforts. Where did these 'direct orders' come from? What was this 'Golden Eye'? Was this 'Golden Eye' really an old hag? Did Xuehua really just guess it was an 'old hag'? That seemed very presumptuous. No wonder the Decidueye was taking aim at him and Xuehua... Wait, it really looked like it was out for his and Xuehua's blood, given how Xuehua had enraged it.

"Watch out, Xuehua!" Atelier warned, as he attempted to pull Xuehua out of harm's way, while also flipping to the first spell he could use in the Clair de Lune tome, which happened to be Dazzling Gleam.

Balance: 20,900C
Inventory: ?x Books and Novels, 1x Journal, 1x Strategy Book, 1x Middle Rune of the Moon, 1x Watera Tome (SotS), 1x Firaga Tome, 1x Ethereal Grimoire, 1x Brynhildr, 10x Geo Pebbles, 9x Gravelerocks, 1x Thundara Gauntlets, 1x Potion of Fire, 2x Aloe Vera, 1x Kettle and Cup Set, 5x High quality coffee beans
Equipped: Steel Short Sword, Lunar Tome (CdL), Eevee Scarf

 

It looked as if Atelier's foresight pulled through for his team once again. He grabbed Xuehua out the way just as the Decidueye flew through the barrier with Razor Leaf on its wings, missing both of them (6,4). Now that his opponent was close, Atelier's Dazzling Gleam hit his assailant at full blast, sending the owl crashing into a wall and sputtering form the blinding light (17). The Weavile, on the other hand, found Josson's Blazing Edge swinging upon it (13), sending it flying away and into a burst of smoke.

In the meantime, probably moving a bit too quickly for Elio's Cure to take effect (6), Aine and Blacky fired a pair of arrows, both hitting the Decidueye's wings as it brought them up to shield itself (10, 11 respectively). With a hoot of disdain, it knocked both projectiles aside, and then sped away on silent wings in the same direction the Weavile had been thrown.

There was a moment of quiet - at least, quiet compared to the fight behind them. Both opponents seemed to have fled, but most of them kept their guards up. Was it over?

The resident healer, Elio, turned to Aine. He brought his wand up to try Curing again-

A Shadow Claw dropped from the air, smashing into the healer and knocking him aside (16). The Decidueye landed behind him, its talons and eyes radiating the same dark, enraged aura. From its back, the Weavile dropped down, dodging a few blows before kicking into Atelier with a Beat Up (10), each hit only slightly blocked by the tome the poor Eevee shielded himself with. The tides of battle had turned, this time against them, it seemed...

"How- how DARE- YOU BARBARIANS!"

The Decidueye hardly noticed the faint red glow at its feet. Not before it erupted into a whirling spiral of flame, scorching it thoroughly from underneath. Celine's shriek of vengeance pierced the air, the glow of fury in her vermilion eyes similarly bright as the inferno she had whipped up. (17)

As the spell came to an end, the Decidueye stumbled back out the formation, coughing out smoke. It looked weakened enough that a single attack could probably take it down. The defiant glint in its eye and arrow it was already reaching for guaranteed that it wouldn't go down with at least one final shot, however.

Xuehua noted the success of her fellow mage, and she drew her regular staff, aiming for the Weavile with a burst of Icy Wind. Unlike Celine's attack, this one wasn't meant to damage, just to get it away from the rest of the party. Also unlike Celine's attack, it was barely effective (6), the Weavile easily digging its claws into the ground. Barely minding the last of the embers from Celine's Will-O-Wisp, it began slowly approaching her, at that...

 

@WavePearl @122 Generation @ChocoChicken
(Current situation in a nutshell)

With her previous rage-induced Fire Spin coming to an end, Celine rushed to her hurting brother. Man, dude looked pretty bad, so much that he had to cast a White Flame on himself. As the healing took effect, Celine also readied her wand for her own White Flame, though she ended up saving it for whoever had the worst wounds. And Blacky? He actually disobeyed his liege and shoot a Gilded Arrow at the Weavile instead.

Master Josson, meanwhile, shifted his attention on the Decidueye. He tried to sneak behind the Arrow Quill Pokémon, this time shifting to Hoarfrost Blade for (hopefully) the final blow...

Turn 3 actions

In no particular order:

• Celine: White Flame (basically Cura but fire) on anyone with "least HP"
• Elio: White Flame on himself
• Blacky: Gilded Arrow (luna unless someone enchants his arrow) on Weavile
• Josson: Hoarfrost Blade (ice) on Decidueye
• Aine: ...
• Atelier: ...
• Xuehua: ...

 

While thankful that he was able to pull Xuehua to safety, Atelier was not expecting a surprise attack from a Weavile from above. Not only that, but he had taken a heavy beating bad enough to have been knocked to the ground. Worse still was that his Clair de Lune was also badly beaten, despite knowing that he had used it as a shield, so that it wasn't actually useable in its current state.

It really was bent on crushing Xuehua, wasn't it? As the Weaville was getting closer, he quickly pulled out another Gravelerock to fling it while also taking a defensive stance with his sword. Never mind the Icy Wind that was blowing at the moment. What mattered was protecting the lives of his allies.

Balance: 20,900C
Inventory: ?x Books and Novels, 1x Journal, 1x Strategy Book, 1x Middle Rune of the Moon, 1x Watera Tome (SotS), 1x Lunar Tome (CdL) [damaged], 1x Firaga Tome, 1x Ethereal Grimoire, 1x Brynhildr, 10x Geo Pebbles, 9x Gravelerocks, 1x Thundara Gauntlets, 1x Potion of Fire, 2x Aloe Vera, 1x Kettle and Cup Set, 5x High quality coffee beans
Equipped: Steel Short Sword, Eevee Scarf

 

On its last leg, the Decidueye took aim and fired a desperate last Spirit Shackle, which shattered against Elio's Light Screen (4). The Weavile's attack failed similarly, its Metal Claw digging into the ground as Xuehua deflected it with her staff (6). Leaping off her parry, however, gave it the momentum to knock Elio's wand from his hands, stopping his White Flame from materializing entirely and kicking the weapon away (1 on Elio's heal).

Thankfully, Atelier was there again, smashing a Gravelerock into the Weavile and sending it stumbling back out the formation, barely able to see straight (19). A final Gilded Arrow from Blacky took that assailant down (14). On the other side, Josson's Hoarfrost Blade met the Decidueye's back, sending it flying a few blocks away, feathers frozen and more importantly, stilled (17).

Now the fight was over. Xuehua gave the Weavile's unconscious body an unceremonious poke with her staff. "It's not moving. Good. Let's go."

As she finished her sentence, a Sneasel was thrown out of the chaos behind her, crashing next to its defeated leader. Several others followed, until finally, the dust settled, revealing the army they'd brought standing victoriously. They seemed generally all right, if a little banged up and with a few members down - but a small price to pay for moving forwards.

(Fight ended early - all later actions are negated. All heals were likely successful (Celine's healed Elio, and Aine's healed herself), and Atelier's just slightly bruised, really.)

 

@WavePearl @ChocoChicken @122 Generation

Imagine Elio's surprise when the Weavile knocked his wand away. He was about to retaliate with his rapier only for Atelier's Gravelerock and Blacky's Gilded Arrow to beat him to it. That, and Celine managed to pick up the wand on her way to him while she's at it.

Now that the fight was over, it seemed like Xuehua and Josson had the same idea. The latter used his sword to unceremoniously poke the unconscious Decidueye (with a chance of extra scratches on said Decidueye's body) to make sure they're no longer a threat. And once it was done, he silently assessed the situation once again.

"We're good here~" Celine waved her wand at Aine as soon as she was done healing. "Yeah, don't worry about us," Elio nodded in agreement as he sheathed his rapier. The Braixen then turned to Xuehua with a rather questioning look. "Xuehua, right?" he briefly paused, recalling how the Glaceon mage led the group with seemingly no problem. "Are you, by chance, a Spikeford escapee?" Elio asked in a way that would imply that the idea of "Spikeford escapee" was no stranger to him.

Blacky, meanwhile, was helping Atelier to get back on his feet. "Master and I are okay, milady," the former glanced at his liege as he said that, then went back to steadying his Eevee friend, "But Atelier..."

 

@SAF
"Me? A Spikeford escapee?" Xuehua's eyes flared at Elio's sudden comment. Her voice steeled over. "No. Not at all. I'm from a foreign land."

She stopped when Blacky spoke up. "He can probably be healed quickly. We're working against the clock - we really should get going. Atelier, you'll survive, right?"

@WavePearl (But this bit is open for anyone to interject, really - it doesn't have to be Aine who answers.)

In the front, a Cramorant mage spat out a final assailant onto the cobblestone roads, before giving Aine an unfortunate thumbs-down. Wing-down. Whatever it was. "Most of us are fine, or will be, at least. Sadly, some of our forces are out for the count, or can't risk fighting any further. They need to get somewhere safe."

"We could either get the downed back to the safehouse, but that would require a party to get back, meaning we lose attacking forces - plus there's the risk of being discovered on the way. Or we could bring them towards Shadowblight, which saves the trip and brings all our working troops, which... well, it's bringing downed people to Shadowblight." She addressed Aine with a quick salute. "I'll leave it to your orders, ma'am, just before we move out."

 

Atelier could feel the strain on his arms and legs as Blacky helped him to his feet. Looking at Xuehua, he said, “I should survive for now. But what about you? Are you okay? You seem on edge.” Whatever Elio said had only consolidated Atelier’s suspicions about Xuehua. He would have to ask her personally about them.

Unfortunately the arrival of bad news that the party was losing reinforcements had caused Atelier to reel. Either way, it was risky. In his opinion, it made more tactical sense to bring the downed forces with them to Shadowblight. “I would recommend bringing them with us. If we split up, we’ll not only be short on manpower, but the wounded will be vulnerable with the entire town against us. Plus, there’s the risk of exposing the safehouse as well.”

 

@ChocoChicken @122 Generation @WavePearl

Yep, Xuehua's sudden (yet explosive) response caught Elio off guard. Double the shock when Blacky held his arm and shook his head as a nonverbal "Bro, stop it," and make it triple when Josson's death stare consolidated it. The Braixen mage then sighed following Celine's whisper, "I know you know a Spikeford escapee when you see one, but please. She could've been a past visitor or something for what it's worth." Reluctantly letting the topic go, Elio raised his wand with the hand Blacky wasn't holding to heal Atelier. A quick one should do, hopefully.

 

“Thanks,” Atelier said to Elio. Now he wondered if he had waded into a sensitive topic about Xuehua’s past. There could be more to know about her.

 

@WavePearl @122 Generation @ChocoChicken

By then the rest of the Expedition Society caught up with the main squad with everyone else in the army catching up to them. "I take it we're moving forward?" Chief Ampharos asked which was immediately answered by both Josson's affirmative nod and Blacky's verbal confirmation ("Yes, sir. We're taking everyone along while at it."). But where in Shadowblight would the army keep their downed people? That's a problem for when they would enter the school itself.

"Then what are we waiting for?" the Weavile Sneasler bard from before inquired. He'd already been waiting for everyone to come along.

 

With the ambushers out the way, it was safe to say everyone was much more alert moving forwards. But thankfully, it seemed that no other assassins wanted to get in their way - at least for the time being.

Eventually, they drew close to Shadowblight - an almost fortress-like structure, built of stone and mortar and towering over all of Spikeford. Students were pouring out the front doors as the team stood off to the sides, hidden behind alleys and houses and whatnot.

Xuehua paused. "I saw some of the maps - there should be an opening near the back. Maybe we can get in through a window, one by one."

...Did they really have maps of Shadowblight that detailed?

 

Atelier looked upwards to measure the size of the school. It was about as big as he expected it to be after hours of preparation and research. Even then, he had no intelligence on the interior of the school or its layout.

How were they going to sneak in with this many people? It definitely wasn’t a good idea to sneak in together, yet it was just as bad to stay in one spot, especially if they were to be spotted.

On the plus side, the constant bombardment from the Radiant Sky Sect meant that the school was preoccupied with aerial defences. That meant the ground team could sneak in with relatively less difficulty.

“Okay! Let’s keep the chatter low,” Atelier instructed. “We go inside through the window as Xuehua suggested. Then we must find someplace big and quiet to establish a staging ground without raising the alarm. If you see a teacher or student, do not engage. If you get spotted… that’s another story.”

Soon enough, the whole army went to the back of the school, which still looked like the back of a fortress. “As for the wounded and the reinforcements, they’ll have to hide outside for a bit until a staging ground is established.”

(Basically will be a stealth mission until they get to Mochi’s room)

 

@ChocoChicken @WavePearl @122 Generation

Following the plan to enter Shadowblight via windows, the resistance's field leader had Elio stay with the wounded. Celine also stayed with him per the Kickenham people's pair-up strategy. This means the siblings wouldn't be able to join the "staging ground set-up" part of the general plans.

Blacky (now with Moonlight Bow switched out for Archangels' Bow) and Josson, meanwhile, could be seen accompanying the Sneasler bard guy on his attempt to find an ideal "entrance" for the army.