[Shalin Nariya]

Shalin had been holed up in an infirmary ward in Ash City for two weeks, and she was sick and tired of it. Her physician there had just released her yesterday, advising for her to take it easy. While not technically surgery, she did have some work done on her ears before the office let her go. At the very least, she could hear somewhat now, and she was expected to have her full hearing capacity by the end of the month. While not ideal, it would have to be good enough.

Returning to the Pokémon Center, she decided her first adventure after that horrible accident would have to be with the team she loved the most - her original six. After withdrawing her team, she stepped outside and released a thrilled-looking Caprice, the fire-type eager to nuzzle her. She hugged her Pokémon before mounting up, exiting Ash City and heading up the hills toward a smoldering mountain. While not in need of another fire-type, fire Pokémon were popular for races. Besides, it would probably be far warmer there than out in this cold.

The terrain was open and rough - a sharp contrast from west of the mountains. It would be far better traversing the area now than during a hot summer's day. She couldn't quite hear the pounding of Caprice's paws, but she could feel her powerful gallop as she sped up the shallow slope. "Now remember, I can't hear well," she reminded her partner, instinctively raising her own voice so she could hear herself speak. "You'll need to shout to get my attention." The Ninetales lowered her head a bit. "I know. It's not fun for either of us. But it's better than being holed up for another couple of weeks." The two pressed north, the mountain looming in the distant north seemingly growing taller with every passing moment.

Shalin's Party
//------------||------------||---||---||---\\
||NAME        ||SPECIES     ||LV ||HP ||EP ||
||Caprice     ||Ninetales   || 17|| 10||  5||
||Prance      ||Stantler    || 18|| 10||  5||
||Flit        ||Yanma       || 16|| 10||  5||
||Kiku        ||Stunky      || 17|| 10||  5||
||Serena      ||Meowth      || 15|| 10||  5||
||Levy        ||Milotic     || 17|| 10||  5||
\\------------||------------||---||---||---//

Shalin is hard of hearing in this thread.
{WC: 315}
{PC: 1}
{Shalin: 97/97}

[Jae]

A wild Kangaskhan has appeared!

What will you do?

	Kangaskhan Lv23
		5 Energy
	Small	Sassy
	Early Bird
MOVES
Stomp, Comet Punch, Bite, Double Hit
NOTES
N/A

[Shalin Nariya]

Fewer grasses populated the trail as Shalin rode further north, eventually the green yielding completely to barren ground. During her trip through Hoenn, she had traveled up Mount Chimney some, but never actually reached the summit. Mount Chimney was also an active volcano at the time. This one supposedly was not, and would be a lot less dangerous. It was hard to tell whether the heat around her was coming from Caprice or from the mountain itself, but it was welcome either way.

As she turned a corner, the girl sighted a Kangaskhan that was about her own stature, crossing her arms and staring up at her menacingly. Kangaskhan were rare in both Johto and Hoenn - she had never encountered one before. In Kanto, some trainers used them for deliveries after their young were old enough to survive on their own. Riding in a Kangaskhan's pouch would be something no other Pokémon could replicate. She released Kiku from his Poké Ball, which was enough of a sign for the wild to uncross her arms and start charging at the Stunky.

Kiku turned around, expelling a putrid, purple cloud from his rear toward the charging Normal-type. She let out a couple of loud coughs, drool running down her body and eventually to the ground. "Wait, what?" Shalin thought. Her pouch should have caught that. She looked toward the ground the wild stood on. This Kangaskhan had no pouch! There was no sign it had been torn, either. Perhaps this "she" was a "he"...somehow. To her knowledge, all Kangaskhan were female. Perhaps males were native to Arciel? Either way, this would be a big discovery to report when she returned to Johto.

By the time her eyes went back to the battle, Kiku was passed out on the ground next to the wild, with one huge bruise on his back and two more on his underside. He didn't stop, either, Caprice being forced to expel a burst of Embers just to avoid being run over. with there being not a cloud in the sky, the flames to the Kangaskhan's face bought her enough time to get Shalin out of immediate danger. While Caprice was agile, the Kangaskhan could probably outrun her on this trail. Effectively backed into a corner, she felt throwing a Great Ball was her best ticket out of danger. She tossed one toward the male's forehead, the Ninetales bracing herself for a counter-attack at any moment.

{WC: 409}
{PC: 2}
{Kiku: 0/253}
{Shalin: 97/97}

[Jae]

Go, PokeBall!

One... two... and...

IwsUCBGzp_


The Wild Pokemon was caught!
One Great ball has been removed from your inventory.

[Shalin Nariya]

Seeing a Kangaskhan without a pouch still baffled her. Perhaps she'd be able to get a breeder to produce a more traditional female for her in the future. This specimen, though, would need to be sent off to Professor Elm as soon as possible for research. She took out her Pokédex and sent her new catch off to storage, where she would be able to retrieve it and send it to the lab next time she was in town. Knowing her, though, that might not be for a while.

She recalled her injured Stunky. Unfortunately, there would be no opportunity for her to treat her Pokémon's wounds here, what with being on such an open and vulnerable spot on the trail. She kept her eyes open for a cave mouth or some other form of shelter where she would be able to hide from the elements and from wild Pokémon. Caprice, sensing Shalin's urgency, picked up the pace.

{WC: 161}
{PC: 3}

[whimsae]

Shalin Nariya
A wild Numel has appeared!

What will you do?

	Numel Lv15
		5 Energy
	Average	Hardy
	Oblivious
MOVES
Growl, Focus Energy, Magnitude, Ember
NOTES
N/A

[Shalin Nariya]

The range's main mountain was becoming less a silhouette and more a towering obstacle the closer Caprice and Shalin came - an obstacle she was eager to tackle. Whether she would scale the mountain from the outside or inside was to be determined, but either sounded great. A lot of the Pokémon that excited her were fire-types, and Mount Grumble would be full of them. Caprice had to ease her swift pace a bit as the trail became increasingly rocky. Shalin let out a joyous cry at a particularly sharp weave, one hand buried in golden fur and the other above her head.

Her cry disturbed a small wild Pokémon, lava dripping from the hole in the center of its hump. Shalin recognized it as a Numel - they were very common in this type of environment. It felt like she had to deal with one every few minutes during her trip up Mount Chimney years ago. The dripping quickly turned into a geyser as the wild shot her a menacing stare. "Guess I'm not getting out of this without a fight..." she thought. She reached for Serena's Poké Ball and gave it a good toss toward the fire-type. At her trainer's command, Caprice started backing away immediately.

Serena's claws glistened in the sunlight, beckoning the wild to charge at her. It wasn't a very fast charge, but the charge came, the Numel's mouth and hump foaming with embers. When it looked like their opening attacks would collide, the Meowth leaped to her foe's opposite side with great agility, slicing across its face and causing it to empty its mouth full of embers harmlessly beneath its body. With her foe reeling from the sudden strike, Serena showed no mercy, creating a miniature tic-tac-toe board with her repeated claw swipes and flipping the Numel over with one last barrage.

Its back against the wall, the fire-type built great magmatic pressure inside its hump, loosing a highly localized but intense 9.0 earthquake that flung Serena to the ground, her cream skin full of bruises from sharp, repeated impacts with the shaking ground. Magnitude was a highly unpredictable attack, this one's intensity dangerously high. Shalin even fell out of the saddle, Caprice struggling to keep her balance despite her distance from the battlefield.

Letting out a grunt as she regained her footing, Serena raised both of her claws and dug into the Numel's soft underside while it was still trying to right itself. Shalin wasn't sure if the wild was dead or simply passed out. She didn't care. Caprice was a bit shaken up but otherwise okay. Serena, not so much. Shalin walked toward Serena until she was in range to recall the Normal-type. She peered into the now-occupied Poké Ball - those wounds were pretty bad. Probably too bad to treat in the open like this. "You okay, girl?" she turned around to ask her Ninetales. Caprice smiled back. "That answers that question. Onward!" She hopped back on, burying her hands in golden fur and letting the wind blow her thin hair around once more.

{WC: 513}
{PC: 4}
{Serena's level is now 16!}
{Caprice: 232/285}
{Serena: 84/178}

[Jae]

A wild Vullaby has appeared!

What will you do?

	Vullaby Lv12
		5 Energy
	Large	Quiet
	Overcoat
MOVES
Pluck, Fury Attack, Leer, Gust
NOTES
N/A

[Shalin Nariya]

Shalin could feel Caprice breathing heavier as she rounded yet another switchback. This was one trail she was glad she didn't handle on foot - there were rough turns, it got steep in places, and there was little room to camp. "How you holding up, girl?" she asked, gently patting the Ninetales' head. She lifted her right front paw and shrugged. "Okay, but don't push yourself too hard. Remember, Prance can relieve you any time you need a break. I'm sure she wants to stretch." Climbing around one more sharp turn, the two found themselves on top of an arid mesa.

She felt her Pokémon inhale deeply, stopping to look around in front of her. The rider turned around to take in quite a view of Ash City and the surrounding wilds. She had greatly underestimated how much altitude the Route gained as it meandered north. "Wow," was all she could say. She couldn't help but snap a picture of the view and immediately send it back to both her parents and Professor Elm. Just after she stowed her phone, which barely had service all the way out here, Caprice turned toward a wild Pokémon wandering atop the open mesa, embers dripping from her mouth. "You really want to fight after all that running? If you say so..." Shalin sighed, dismounting. The Ninetales rushed the dark-feathered, freshly hatched bird Pokémon, her trainer's Pokédex identifying the wild as a Vullaby. Another Pokémon she had only vaguely heard of.

Embers continued to drip from the swift fire-type's mouth, her eyes glowing the same red. Caprice dashed toward the young avian, the tips of all nine of her tails igniting. Just before impact, she gracefully leaped the Vullaby, pointing her tails down and surrounding her quarry with a circle of dancing flames that immobilized it. With no way out, the Vullaby desperately and vigorously flapped its wings, trying to fan the flames away to no avail. The hunter didn't get away unscathed - although the fires failed to harm her, she wasn't immune to friction burns from gale-force winds. Caprice dropped to a sitting position.

"Dang, she's really out for blood," Shalin thought, watching the battle unfold. Caprice started to flex backward, ready to ram down her foe. "If that's how you roll, then have it your way." She cupped her hands outward around her mouth. "Caprice, try your new Heat Wave attack!" she shouted. All nine of Caprice tails completely ignited as the latent temperature around her skyrocketed. The very air around her was burning. The Vullaby let out an increasingly agonized screech before collapsing in a pile of roasted feathers. Whether it would survive or not, Caprice neither knew nor cared.

A wave of dizziness overcame Shalin as she observed the end of the battle, sweating all over like it was a hot day in the middle of summer. She quickly found herself on the ground in a heap. "I thought I was far enough away. My, that's hot!" she thought, the now-cooled Caprice slowly walking back to her Trainer to make sure she was okay.

{WC: 518}
{PC: 5}
{Caprice's level is now 18!}
{Caprice: 210/307}
{Shalin's level is now 10!}
{Shalin: 82/111}

[whimsae]

Shalin Nariya

A wild Rockruff has appeared!

What will you do?

	Rockruff Lv20
		5 Energy
	Average	Modest
	Own Tempo
MOVES
Odor Sleuth, Rock Throw, Howl, Bite
NOTES
N/A

[Shalin Nariya]

It took quite a while, but Shalin was able to catch her breath and cool off. The regional air temperature helped with that a lot, though she hoped her body was strong enough to avoid becoming sick from the rapid local temperature drop. Just to be safe, she waited until she could see her breath again before taking off again. "Alright, tag out, Caprice. You've done well. Prance, your turn!" She removed her riding gear from the Ninetales before recalling her, moving it to Prance. It was nice having two of her most dependable Pokémon be nearly the same size. Just had to adjust a couple of straps here and there, and her riding gear would fit both of her Pokémon.

Though it was faint, she could hear the clacking of her Stantler's hooves against the hard rock--something she could not hear just a couple of weeks ago. She would never take hearing for granted again. She was also running out of daylight. Thankfully the trail headed toward the north-northeast, so she would not need to worry about the mountain blocking the setting sun.

As Mount Grumble's cave network just barely came into sight, a howl pierced the air around the Stantler and Shalin. The Pokémon flinched but otherwise kept her composure. Turning toward the howl's source, the girl saw a small, doglike Pokémon, a variety of which she had never seen before. Her Pokédex identified it as Rockruff, a species native to Alola, with evolution that branched depending on the time of day the conditions were met. "A Rock-type," she thought, flipping to the entry for its evolution. "Too small for me, though. Hopefully it will--"

The wild stopped howling and turned around as soon as it heard Prance's clacking hooves. "Guess that answers that question..." It started snarling at Shalin, slowly picking up speed. She was trying to save Levy's strength for her trip on or inside the volcano, but she was running out of Pokémon, and it wouldn't do her much good if she couldn't find a place to rest her team first. With how fast the sun was going down, she might have to set up camp right at dusk or even after the sun was completely down. It was clear enough that she would at least get some moonlight to see by, but not much.

Reluctantly, she reached for Levy's Poké Ball and flung it forward into the wild's charge. The Milotic winced as he was immediately greeted by a Rockruff that threw its small frame into him, its sharp points piercing through his scales and into the soft skin below, all before his water veil activated. By the time it had finished surrounding him, the wild was readying another charge to Levy's other side. Not tolerating a second one, he timed a point-blank Water Pulse just before the impact point, cracking the Rock-type's skin in multiple placed. It let out a wail of agony as freezing water formed cracks all over its rocky body, the Rockruff limping away.

Shalin quickly recalled her slightly injured Milotic, Prance maneuvering around the puddles of soon-to-be-frozen water. "We need to go fast," she urged, pushing her Pokémon to higher than usual speeds toward the distant cave network.

{WC: 546}
{PC: 6}
{Levy's level is now 18!
{Levy: 315/409}
{Shalin: 82/111}

[Elayne]

A wild Larvesta has appeared!

What will you do?

	Larvesta Lv21
		5 Energy
	Average	Calm
	Flame Body
MOVES
Ember, String Shot, Absorb, Take Down
NOTES
N/A

[Shalin Nariya]

Mount Grumble's cave network was in sight, the impacts of Prance's hooves seemingly growing louder as the two rose higher up the mountain trail. The biting wind grew more intense, Shalin starting to shiver a little bit as the sun touched the horizon. There were few clouds in the sky - it was going to be a cold one tonight. Certainly not a night to risk Caprice in any more combat. She would need her to stay warm overnight. Prance would, too--she felt her mount shivering on occasion, as well.



In the light of dusk, the rider could barely make out a glowing, white-and-red Pokémon crawling on the rocky ground. She pointed her Pokédex at it, identifying it as a Larvesta. She flipped to the page depicting its evolved form, Volcarona. These bugs got really big and strong. Moreover, she'd never heard of anyone trying to fly on them before. She would be the first! Not wanting to expose any of her already injured team to more harm, she procured a Quick Ball from her sack. "Prance, charge at it!" Rearing excitedly, the Normal-type slammed her hooves down and sprinted toward the glowing bug Pokémon, the rider tossing her Quick Ball as soon as she was within arm's range.

{WC: 211}
{PC: 7}
{Shalin: 82/111}

[Jae]

Go, PokeBall!

One... two... and...

JNTNVXwGp_


The Wild Pokemon was caught!
One Quick ball has been removed from your inventory.

[Shalin Nariya]

This was one catch that wasn't getting away from her. Larvesta were difficult to raise, but the end payoff would be rewarding. She picked up her Quick Ball and smiled toward her new catch inside. "Sol, you'll get your chance next time. Once I come back from the mountain, I promise I'll travel with you." The red-and-white cocoon glowed in a soft light. "Glad to know you're looking forward to it. See you on the other side!" With that, she pointed her Pokédex at her new catch, sending him to storage.



Shalin pivoted in the saddle left, then right. The sun had completely set by now, moonlight the only illumination they were getting. Thankfully the moon was mostly full, and their destination wasn't too far away. If anything, they could move toward the giant, shadowy mountain peak and eventually find their destination. Once the two had finally arrived, Prance started shivering constantly and uncontrollably--Shalin's cue to recall her mount for a well-earned rest. She quickly set up her tent and sleeping bag and called forth Caprice from her Poké Ball, the two cuddling each other into the night. Mostly for the trainer's sake.

Mod note: Journey end
{WC: 194}
{PC: 8}
{Shalin: 82/111}

[whimsae]

Congratulations!

Your thread is complete and now locked.

Shalin Nariya

Your thread has been locked. Because it was 1 page, you receive you receieve 100 pen, 2 rare candy, and a Great Ball.