Set in the original region of Arciel, Legends Rising is a route-inspired, but not strictly route-based, Pokemon roleplay. Pick a faction, pick a class, and strike out into the wild to take on the League, master Contest coordination, research the mysteries of Pokemon and Arciel, and much, much more. Will you be a classic trainer? A criminal? A farmer? Choose your destiny on Legends Rising.
After rolling around in Birch City for a little while, and making his way down Route 6 to the next town over, Jedah thought to try expanding his horizons to other areas. Although he didn't have that many pokemon - his preferences leaned mostly towards flying types, and so he thought it best to save his resources for anything with wings - he had full confidence in his pokemon's abilities, and Brutus' determination to prove himself. He knew that the bird wanted to get as strong as possible as quickly as possible and Jedah was more than willing to help him achieve that goal.
It was a little windier this time around, and so he'd decided to let Brutus and his newly acquired Fletchling, Blaze, out to ride the currents high overhead. There were spots where they had a bit of difficulty and would beat their wings against the gusts of wind threatening to bowl them over, but they would ultimately overcome it or ride the currents a little higher and continue along their merry way in lazy spirals above his head.
Jedah knew this path was fairly long, having checked it on the map before leaving, and he mentally prepared himself for the arduous walk ahead. At least he was getting his steps in, right?
Eventually, a series of squawking and the beat of rushing wings alerted Jedah to Brutus' landing, and he looked up just in time to see the bird divebomb something white and fluffy lingering around a bush, smashing his beak into the object with the force of a Peck attack. It knocked the pokemon back onto its back - which Jedah noted was actually a Wooloo, a species of pokemon that had actually been quite popular in Galar - and perched triumphantly in the dirt a few feet away as the Wooloo rolled back onto its feet. Jedah would have reprimanded the bird, but the Wooloo hesitated for only a second before charging into a Tackle attack, its eyes narrowed in anger. Brutus didn't realize how little of an effect he'd had on the sheep and was slammed into head on, sending the bird careening into the sky and narrowly missing Blaze as she swooped down to investigate.
Brutus caught himself midflight with a heavy flap of his wings and, when he noticed that Blaze was there to watch, gave a mighty humph and flew back to hover over the Wooloo's head, which was now rounding himself into a Defense Curl against any further attacks. Jedah hummed when he saw Brutus give Blaze another quick peek, almost like he were trying to make sure the bird was watching to see just how cool he was.
"Give it another Peck, Brutus," He commanded to try and help the little guy out. Brutus flapped his wings furiously once, twice, then dive-bombed into the mound of white wool and smashed his beak into whatever part he could reach. The Wooloo gave a defensive bleat that was a hidden Growl, and after repeated barrages of Pecks that sank into the Wooloo's puffy body it had gotten the sheep to relax enough out of a defensive curl. Already the Rookidee's body was glowing with a move Jedah had yet to command, but probably didn't have to since it was more or less their finisher. All the same --
"Finish it off with a Sky Attack," he commanded, and Brutus darted up into the sky. He collected enough momentum from a greater height, even with the gusts of wind offering resistance against his aerodynamic body - and with a great piercing squawk shot down, down towards the ground at great spead to slam into the Wooloo and send it rolling away down the hill. Brutus returned to Jedah, doing a few victory laps over his head before looping and settling on his shoulder casually to preen. Jedah reached up to rub the bird under his chin and was rewarded with a peck to his fingers, and then set off again.
Passing through a particularly rocky, rough area, Jedah struggled to keep his balance on the crumbling rocks underfoot but didn't trip or stumble excessively, which was a relief since he doubted Brutus and Blaze were strong enough to catch him should that happen. The bird remained perched on his shoulder the entire time, looking around the area with squinted, alert eyes as though remaining vigilant for any threat of attack. Blaze flapped about for a little while overhead before swooping down to land on Jedah's other shoulder (a move which Brutus regarded with even squintier eyes and a puff of his little body).
Eventually, however, Blaze perked up and immediately jumped up to fly ahead a bit with a series of tweets, having spotted something in the bushes and moving ahead to investigate. Brutus, alarmed, immediately took off after her, but it didn't take long before she was returning with a small green object clutched in her talons. Brutus flapped about overhead, huffing, and then re-landed on Jedah's shoulder as Blaze dropped the apricorn in his outstretched hand.
"Good find, love," He let her alight on his fingers and she spread her wings wide, hopping all around his palm and all over the apricorn in it. She jumped up and down on it a few times and chirped happily, then walked, not flew, all the way up his arm to sit on his shoulder like a bird sitting on a nest of eggs.
Brutus eyed her jealously from the other side, then went back to squinting around the area, ever vigilant.
Eventually the rocky path evened out, sprouting grass and soft dirty patches underfoot rather than the rough terrain from before. It was a brief respite, but one that Jedah welcome gratefully, especially since he still hadn't really sought to buy new shoes since arriving to Arciel. Call it force of habit, he liked the way he dressed - he wasn't really a jeans and t-shirt kind of guy - but if he was going to go travelling on foot it would probably be a good idea to invest in something better suited for long walks, if only to avoid messing up his good shoes.
He was abruptly pulled out of his thoughts by Brutus pecking at his cheek to get his attention and the flap of wings on either side as both he and Blaze soared ahead to investigate a group of passing balloons.
Not balloons, he realized when both birds made cries of alarm and warning, trying to get the creatures out of the path, but a passing horde of Drifloon lazing about on the breeze. While they didn't have wings, they were technically considered flying types, and he was impartial to them, so...
Jedah looked from each one in turn, comparing the five against his two. While he knew Brutus would want to dive right in he didn't want to have the bird tiring himself out too much, especially with how long they still had to go. Fortunately, it seemed like the horde really was just passing through, and two detached themselves from the group and continued on their merry way while three lingered behind - whether to fight or to not, he didn't know. One of them was a different color than the rest, though, and that one got his interest if only for the way it stood out in stark contrast against the others.
Jedah turned his attention to Blaze first. Having never really been in a battle aside from when they'd captured her, he was a little concerned... but she had moxy, at least, and he liked that. Whatever she couldn't clean up, Brutus would be sure to assist with, that much was certain. So it was with this thought in mind that he issued the first attack - a Quick Attack from her, and a Power Trip from him - and both his birds soared out to attack with a chirp and a squawk, respectively.
The Drifloons, for how big they were, were slow - much like real life balloons - and so the first set of attacks connected easily and with resounding slams as both birds threw their weight behind both attacks. The purple balloon-like pokemon bounced with strange, rubbery cries, and both flailed their little appendages around to create powerful gusts of wind that buffeted both bird pokemon. The golden one, the one that had initially caught Jedah's eye, began to float away gently on the breeze like it were trying to avoid battle altogether. He kept an eye on it as both Blaze and Brutus reared back and tried to hit again, and both attacks connected with strange rubbery, bouncy noises as the twin Drifloon took the brunt of the attacks well enough.
And then they switched it up a bit, and while one suddenly jerked forward, slapping its little arms against Brutus' approaching attack to Astonish it, the other continued to whip its arms into a whirlwind Gust to keep both birds at bay. Brutus flinched, losing a precious chance to attack the Drifloon which turned its attention to Blaze in an attempt to gang up on the smaller bird. She chirped in alarm until Jedah commanded her to Tackle the one she'd been focusing on, at which point the Fletchling darted overhead and then swooped down as the Drifloon mobilized to follow, slowly - and again, she slammed into its little rubbery body with a squeaking sound and a bounce as she made contact. When Brutus recovered enough Jedah urged him into another Power Trip, and with a huff and a triumphant squawk he slammed the attack into the Drifloon Blaze had previously tackled, and sent it reeling back into a bushes where its little appendage flopped out in exhaustion.
The remaining Drifloon looked from one to the other, and then to the golden one, which had begun to drift slowly away on the wind, and by the time it decided on what to do Brutus was already glowing and Blaze was whipping at it with her wings as she fired off Quick Attacks one after the other. As it turned Brutus was already launching himself into the air and he came down from the heavens with a caw that seemed to rend the air, slamming into him from above and sending him bouncing onto the ground so hard he also launched into the air and smacked into the tree with another rubbery bap.
Tired, but happy, Brutus flapped over to rest on Jedah's shoulder along with Blaze - who took up a perch beside the blue bird and nestled comfortably against him, making his eyes squint in response - as Jedah fished out a pokeball and tossed it at the shiny Drifloon.
Brutus, not Jedah, looked a little peeved when the pokeball popped open and the golden Drifloon floated slowly from side to side as though on a passing breeze. He looked from it to his master imperiously, lifting a wing and pointing as though asking if Jedah wanted him to take care of this. Jedah only hummed in amusement, fingering the second pokeball he had in his pocket and debating. Drifloon wasn't a traditional bird, but it was a flying type, a type he had a certain affinity for. That and it was an unusual color, and he was curious if there was anything else that was unusual about it, or if it was just something that was purely cosmetic? He'd never had a "shiny" before, much less encountered one, so his curiosity was piqued more than anything.
The Drifloon was starting to blow away in the direction the others had gone, and Jedah seemed to come to a decision. Before it had gotten too far away he tossed his second pokeball at it, the big, yellow body of the Drifloon an easy target to aim for.
Jedah grinned, triumphant, when the pokeball stilled for good this time and clicked as it locked the pokemon inside. Brutus flapped his wings and darted out, minimizing and then collecting the pokeball and bringing it back to his master to drop in his outstretched hand. After inspecting it carefully for a few moments, debating whether or not to let the Drifloon free to drift along behind them, he settles on letting it remain in the pokeball and tucking it away to be holstered with Blaze and Brutus' own.
The terrain a little further ahead looked like it smoothed out, and it's to there that he makes his way now, picking his way carefully over the few rocks in the path and looking off to where the other Drifloon had landed. They were slowly righting themselves with all the speed of an inflating balloon, and Brutus kept his eyes on them imperiously as they passed. Blaze chirped from where she'd alighted on Jedah's shoulder as though to say her goodbyes, and soon enough the trio passed by them without further incident.
This Sirfetch'd is a sneaky little one, liking to poke and prod at people and Pokemon to get a reaction out of them. It often causes problems, which only make it look all the more smug. Maybe he just likes picking fights...?
If one wishes to teach it not to be a smarmy little man, then a training thread of at least five posts is in order.
The path smoothed out into smooth grasslands still dotted here and there by the occasional boulder or rocky incline, and Jedah, again, thought about his misfortune in not buying shoes which were more appropriate for the sort of travelling he'd expect to do here. Hopefully soon he'd be able to get a pokemon that was large enough to ride or even have Brutus here fly him around places once he got big enough - hopefully. It would cut his travel time down a lot, that was for sure.
Speaking of Brutus - the bird was straightening on his shoulder and squawking, turning his head to peck at Jedah's cheek as a white figure crossed the path in front of them to block it. In one hand it helf a long, green sword - a leek? - and a shield in the other, and it peered commandingly at them with its little mouth turned up in a smug expression. He could feel Brutus puff up in intimidation and soar out as though to meet the creature head on, even though it dwarfed him a bit in size by at least a foot.
On Jedah's other shoulder, Blaze flapped her little wings and hopped from side to side, watching the interactiong between the Sirfetch'd and Brutus with curiosity. There was a series of squawks from Brutus as he landed in front of the Sirfetch'd, puffing himself up until his beak all but disappeared in his feathers.
The Sirfetch'd responded by bapping him with sword, and the fight began. Brutus immediatley squawked in anger and flapped himself high overhead to gain the high ground as the Sirfetch'd swiped at him with his sword/leek thing. The blunt object just barely grazed the bottom of Brutus' feet, and the tiny bird responded in kind by swooping down quick enough to smash his beak into Sirfetch'd's shield that was brought up at the last second to deflect the blow. They both moved quickly, trading blows back and forth, Brutus taking advantage of the power of flight to add power to the dives and ducks he attacked the Sirfetch'd with, who parried them as best he could whist attacking in turn.
It was when Brutus began to glow, hovering high overhead, that Jedah knew the bird was taking the fight more seriously than intended and quickly reached into his pack for any pokeballs he might have. He had three, one that could prove useful later on if he encountered any other of his preferred type, and one that had about the same capture rate as a pokeball but would be better in caves or underground, neither of which he was in right now. Not wanting to waste the ball that could come in useful later, and which he had only one of, he pulled out a Dusk Ball and lobbed it at the Sirfetch'd before Brutus could finish his final attack.
Having seen that his foe was sufficiently dispatched, even if it wasn't through his own means - though the way Brutus was glowering, he probably certainly hoped to have been the one to get rid of the uppity Sirfetch'd - the Rookidee obediently flapped out, the glow over his body fading in increments, and retrieved the ball like he'd done earlier for his master. Blaze greeted him with a congratulatory chirp or two when he returned, and Brutus alighted at the far end of Jedah's shoulder once he'd delivered the pokeball package, still retaining his poofiness and looking away with a noise that sounded like a "hmph".
Jedah ran his finger over the little Rookidee's body to smooth down his feathers and continued on down the path, grateful for the lessening areas of patchy, rough terrain and taking his time walking on the more grassy, cushioned area of the path. He'd probably have to come up with names for his new pokemon at some point, but for now he was more concerned with making it to the next city in one piece.
Jedah liked to think the town was a little closer by now, the previously far away buildings looking just a little bigger, just a little more distinct against the background. It was still windy, but not enough to disrupt either Brutus' or Blaze's flying, and they took to it after a few moments and returned to their lazy hovering in the sky overhead. Blaze swooped around Brutus, trying to get him to remove the glowering expression from his face - even though, really, that's just how he always looked and there was nothing changing that - and Brutus simply continued on by without a care in the world.
Jedah regarded them both with a small bit of satisfaction; he'd always been fond of birds, ever since he was smaller. He couldn't quite explain it, no matter how often he'd tried to. Maybe it was the concept of flying free, to be able to go wherever you wanted to go without any kind of trouble whatsoever. Yeah, maybe that was it.
He was so taken with his pokemon overhead that he didn't notice the Ultra ball underfoot until he'd kicked it, very nearly stepping on the capsule device before he looked down and saw it rolling a few feet away. There weren't any other people around this area, and after whistling his bird pokemon back to his shoulder he bent down and scooped it up, brushing the dirt and dust off of it with his fingers.
"You see anyone up there?" He asked to both Brutus and Blaze when they got within earshot. Both shook their head. "Well then... I suppose this is mine."
That decided, he tucked the ball away with the rest of his things and sent his pokemon flying again. They took to the skies gladly, enjoying the current and the breeze and the view from above, leading the way to their destination with alternating caws and chirps of happiness.
He was first alerted to something amiss when a shadow passed overhead, nearly blotting out the sun and causing Brutus to immediately look up with his eyes squinted in alarm. He'd landed a bit ago, tired of flying overhead, and hopped to the end of Jedah's shoulder before hopping back up to his neck and peering around the area suspiciously. The reason for his alarm was soon apparent when a Skarmory landed in front of them, its wings spread why as it made a metallic, screeching caw and thrust its head forward. Was it begging for food?
Brutus wouldn't have this and, like before, puffed himself up big and scary. But the Skarmory was far bigger and this wouldn't do, not even when Brutus flapped his wings and soared down to land on the ground before the giant metallic bird, hopping from side to side and flapping his wings to try and spook the other pokemon off. Did he not realize how small he was in comparison? Obviously not, and this behavior, while endearing, was something that could get the Rookidee hurt in the future. At least until he'd gotten a little bigger through evolving.
Fortunately for him, Jedah wouldn't have him fight the massive bird, his eyes already locked onto the pokemon in question and pulling out... an Ultra ball? Yeah, he's definitely going for it. While Skarmory was distracted by Brutus' swaggering bluffs, Jedah took aim and threw the pokeball at the broad surface of the bird's body, the device hitting the Skarmory with a loud ding before it sucked the pokemon inside.
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