Group RP Pokemon: Evolution Quest (IC thread)

It didn't take long for the Sneasler to identify a weak point - one of the more weakly closed windows, the bolt and latch on it already a little... damaged. Naturally, Blacky was the first one sent scrambling in, being the closest one already. The coast seemed clear enough, so the next three members of the party were sent in.

The window led to what had to be one of the main corridors. There didn't seem to be anyone in sight - most of the students had to have evacuated, or... left with some more unfortunate fates. But now wasn't the time for leaving things to the imagination. Xuehua motioned for the other three to follow - the school wouldn't scout itself, after all.

 

@ChocoChicken

"Okay... We're in..." Atelier whispered, now that he found himself in the dark and dimly lit corridors of Shadowblight Academy. If he had more time, he would have started repairing his Clair de Lune tome over a cup of coffee. He had coffee beans in his satchel, after all. He had his sword in his other hand.

He briefly measured the space. The corridor was a long expanse with staircases left and right with bridges and balconies above his head. It was unsettlingly dark and was difficult to make out what really was in each room. How did students really get by around here? How was it possible to know which rooms were safe and which weren't? Even with a map, it would take time to figure out this place, let along finding where the Dragon King was. At some point, the army would have to seize control of the school, but it would take time.

The walls shuddered and the ceiling rang with loud noises from the bombing outside.

 

@WavePearl @ChocoChicken @122 Generation

Even with his kind's night vision, it was still pretty hard for Blacky to make out which stairs leading to where and which bridge connecting which rooms. He must've attributed it to this being his first time entering Shadowblight -- in the least proper way possible at that. Not far from the Umbreon was his Jolteon master who had to control the sparks coursing through his spiky fur. And the Sneasler bard guy? He swiftly peeked through the windows, room by room, in hopes to find a suitable room for their staging ground.

(For the record, by "the next three members of the party", I'm pretty sure it refers to Aine, Xuehua, and Atelier.)

 

The architecture left a lot to the imagination. Pillars decorated with freizes of some kind of... geometric serpent held up the various bridges and staircases to the upper levels. Those floors themselves were low enough that someone could realistically vault up there with the right training.

Despite how long the corridors were, there wasn't much to break them up. Statues of some Pokémon like Cofagrigus and Dragalge, and more commonly some of that same geometric serpent, coiled around itself.

Most of the doors appeared to be magically sealed when the Sneasler checked them. It seemed that the students' doors had been locked during the evacuation. Perhaps a room required a student inside to remain unlocked?

All of a sudden, a door a bit further down the corridor creaked open. A Drakloak could be spotted exiting it. Something looked... off about its eyes and the way they glowed bright red. Mind control? Whatever it was, it seemed to be patrolling now, heading right for the spot where Xuehua and Blacky were searching. They had only seconds to react before they would be found...

Xuehua herself quickly ducked behind one of the pillars. It wouldn't fully cover from every angle the way a statue would, but she could move around it, and hopefully avoid the scout by changing her position in response to its own blind spots.

@SAF

 

Oh, great. Someone's patrolling already. Blacky quickly retreated behind one of the pillars -- a different one from where Xuehua was hiding -- in hopes of avoiding the scout. He also gripped his bow close in case he would need to shoot at the drop of a hat.

 

Before Blacky could fire away, a certain Litwick ran after the Drakloak from the other direction. "Hey! Sir! Where did the other students go?" the Litwick asked, whose voice had a certain lightness and energy that seemed contrary to the environment around her. "You know, it's very annoying how this school is set up. You could easily get lost in a place like this."

Atelier raised his ears. Could this be a chance to make a surprise attack on the Drakloak and also possibly knock out the Litwick too? But at the same time, the way this Litwick talked gave off the air that she was anything but hostile. That wasn't fair to the Litwick, Atelier reckoned. Yet it was risky for the scout to remain here all the same. He tightened the grip on his sword.

It did not help that the Litwick was one-fifth the height of the Drakloak either. "Oi! I'm right here, buddy!" she shouted, jumping up and down to get its attention, but the Drakloak's eyes appeared to wander elsewhere.

 

As the Drakloak passed by the pillars, it circled both of them one by one. Xuehua was quick to note, and moved in the same direction - keeping herself exactly in the blind spot (10). Finding nothing, it quickly changed direction and approached Blacky's pillar - where the gleam of a weapon could be spotted?! (6)

It quickly fired a Hex at the strange spot, smashing the pillar to bits - just over Blacky's flattened ears behind it, very narrowly avoiding discovery. That was when the Litwick ran up, yelling something at it. The words didn't quite... reach, but the noise of her yelling meant Blacky's steps as he quickly backed away from the hiding spot were masked about enough.

Xuehua waved a hand at the Umbreon and the rest of her squad, pointing towards further down the corridor before quickly walking away, while the Litwick was busy trying to get the Drakloak's attention away from blasting the no-longer-hiding-an-Umbreon pillar.

 

"Oi! Over here! Have you lost it?! You know, it's no wonder no one likes this place," the Litwick said, frustrated as her complaints didn't appear to reach the Drakloak's ears. Then again, she was tiny relative to it. She looked with surprised eyes at the smashed pillar where Blacky had just been. "You're supposed to fighting outside the school not inside it! Sheesh. Now, where did everyone go?"

And so the Litwick ended up following the Drakloak around demanding answers, but her height meant that she was mostly ignored.

Atelier couldn't help smiling to himself. Were he in less stressful circumstances, he would have enjoyed watching the Litwick nag at the Drakloak for a bit longer. Anyway, that wasn't important now. The party needed to find a staging ground as soon as possible, and preferably a space large and close enough to treat the wounded.

 

Yeah, the Umbreon was pretty shaken big time. That was one hell of a close call, for Arceus's sake! Blacky should've learned to keep the bow in his cloak... wait, he did that already. Maybe it was his sheer luck?

Still mentally chuckling at that one random Litwick trying to get the Drakloak's attention, Blacky could feel his arm being tugged. The tug soon got harsher as he was being unceremoniously dragged to where Xuehua was. Looking up, Blacky could see a familiar figure with spiky fur and sheathed sword dragging him along.

 

"I dunno, maybe a student?" the Sneasler bard guy whispered back. "But what's the deal with that kid anyway?" he wondered with "that kid" referring to the Litwick.

 

Before either of them could ponder further, a few doors on the second floor opened up. A gang of Skrelp, eyes glowing similarly, descended from the third floor above, towards a larger opening lined with more pillars and large statues.

The others, lagging behind, were probably safe, given the direction they were heading in. But Aine and Atelier, ahead of the group, were directly in their path. The two had only seconds to find a way to avoid them...

@WavePearl @122 Generation

 

The Litwick’s attitude sure was amusing, Atelier had to admit. That girl’s demeanour felt like something that this entire school was missing.

However, there was no time to dwell on that as the sudden presence of Skrelp caused Atelier to stand on edge. With only seconds to make a decision, Atelier went to hide behind a pillar with only his back against it. He held his books close as he held his breath to avoid making noise.

Still, the Sneasler bard made a snap decision to quickly snatch Atelier and hide in the shadows instead.

 

@122 Generation
Aine's hiding spot proved effective - her coiling ribbons matched the coiling body of the serpentine statue perfectly. The glow of the Skrelps' eyes passed over her, peering through the nooks and cracks of the statue - and finding nothing (18). They turned to leave-

Movement. One by one, the swarm turned to see Atelier mid-grab, the Sneasler's line of pulling having yanked him directly into sight. (1) And the claws gave away the minstrel, too, who also found himself caught in their "searchlight". The scarlet glow of their eyes began to be overtaken by a sickly maroon - the swarm preparing a powerful Acid Spray, aimed right for the two intruders.

The rest of the party, a little too far behind, wouldn't be able to save either of them in time. But there was one hidden Sylveon who was close enough to see everything go down...

(Because of the 18, Aine gets priority and will attack first - before the Skrelp. If her attack lands, combat will not begin.)

@WavePearl

 

Lined up right through the statue's bonelike structures, the electrified arrow just managed to strike true (10). The swarm fell to the ground, shocked but still conscious, and their acid splattered to the floor uselessly besides them - singeing some of Atelier's robes or fur, but no real harm done.

All it would take at that point was another hit, which the Sneasler provided with a quick Metal Claw. The deed done quietly, he began shoving the unconscious pile of Pokémon behind Atelier's original hiding pillar - a bit sheepishly, and not without a quick apology to Atelier.

Now that the threat was neutralized, Xuehua gave Aine a quick thumbs-up, then quickly hurried up to the Eevee. "That was close. You good?"

(No roll for the Sneasler - Aine hit, so full combat was averted.)

 

@WavePearl @122 Generation @ChocoChicken

By the time Blacky and Josson caught up with the others in an attempt to protect them, the deed had already been done. Somehow the minstrels managed to neutralise the threat without even using their voices. Would've been concerning in any other circumstances, but hey, it worked.

Seeing that Atelier just had one hell of a close call -- even more so than what Blacky thought was a close call, the pair of warriors went to check on their tactician.

 

Atelier replied to Xuehua, “Yeah… for now.” He was almost breathless as he had avoided a near-disaster. Were it not for Aine’s quick thinking and fortunate hit, he might as well have packed up and gone home (to the foreign land he was from, for that matter). He added, “I’ll want these repaired later.”

Now that he caught his breath, he turned to Blacky and Josson. “We’ll definitely want a safe spot where we won’t be detected. If we get sighted, that’ll be it.” With the unceremonious shoving of a pile of Pokémon before him, Atelier stepped out of the way to make some space.