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Grass Continent ~ Treasure Town Beach

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Namohysip

Dragon Enthusiast
Staff
Partners
  1. flygon
  2. charizard
  3. milotic
  4. zoroark-soda
  5. sceptile
  6. marowak
  7. jirachi
"Sure. Now you can watch and see how Brisa moves," Owen confirmed, and then took a few steps back to give Brisa and himself some starting distance. "I'll be going to Fire again so the matchup is fair," he added to Brisa, and at the same time hardened his feathers until they were back to orange scales. His flower withered and blossomed into a flame.

"But I think I'll counter with some moves of my own," he added with a playful smile, holding a hand sideward. A small pinprick of orange light formed at his palm and bubbled outward, becoming the beginnings of a Flame Burst for him to lob at any moment.
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
Brisa flexed her claws and grinned as she charged up her body with crackling energy. She'd use Charge to begin with, protecting her from ranged fire from Owen. Time to have some fun.

"I'm more'n ready for this, ya lil' devil," she cried. "Let's go at it!"

She tensed up, ready to attempt a reasonable leap to the side before she retaliated with a Thunder Shock.
 

Namohysip

Dragon Enthusiast
Staff
Partners
  1. flygon
  2. charizard
  3. milotic
  4. zoroark-soda
  5. sceptile
  6. marowak
  7. jirachi
Owen kept it simple for now and took the crackling snaps of electricity, but then returned fire with his orb. It ruptured near Brisa, not a direct hit, but Owen could only hope that it would be enough to blast her sideward and gain him some extra time to form another. He was keeping his battle style simple here so Brisa could move slower. This was, in essence, something for Icetales to follow along with, so fighting at full speed and complexity might be overwhelming.

Owen had an idea, but he waited for Brisa's response to the blast first. Brisa's statement about controlling the field... Perhaps he could give an example of that. He formed another Burst in his palm.
 

Cresselia92

Gym Leader
Pronouns
She/Her/Hers
Partners
  1. ho-oh
  2. sneasel-nyula
  3. rayquaza-cress
  4. celebi-shiny
Having taken a certain distance to avoid getting struck by a runaway attack (or worse: getting sand into his pelt!), Icetales was holding a few sheets under his forepaws and scribbling with his leftmost tail.

He observed in diligent silence, taking notes of every single movement, reaction and expression of the two sparring comrades.

Such energy! Such skills! Such fierceness!

Golly… I wonder if I’ll ever be able to reach such mastery with mine own techniques…

He sighed as he kept studying, in part regretful for not working on his own abilities in his own world. He barely knew how to fight as a Vulpix, let alone how to fight—

Then, he got an idea, but he had to wait for the right time to work on such thought. For the time being, observing he must!
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
Oh, what fun. What joy! She could go harder, and so could he, but there was a kind of deep satisfaction in playing everything out in relative slowness. She could focus on technique, on perfect stance, even on flair.

Time to demonstrate battlefield control, then. Owen looked like he had something planned. Brisa decided to let him try out whatever he had in mind, then return fire with a Thunder Wave if possible.

Or... did she dare use Radiant Arrest?

Maybe. They were holding back so much. It would be fine, probably. Maybe.
 

Namohysip

Dragon Enthusiast
Staff
Partners
  1. flygon
  2. charizard
  3. milotic
  4. zoroark-soda
  5. sceptile
  6. marowak
  7. jirachi
Oh? She was letting him?

Well, if she wished.

Owen grinned mischievously and shifted his stance to run left; he made absolutely sure that would be the last image Brisa would see of him, aiming to trick her mind into assuming which direction he would go. A second after feinting left, Owen lobbed his second Flame Burst toward Brisa, but he aimed near her feet, where the flames sank into the ground and exploded. A plume of smoke and sand obscured the area between Brisa and Owen, and then Owen kicked off the sand and headed right. If his feint went perfectly, he'd have a clear opening to strike Brisa from behind.
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
Ah, Owen was trying to juke her with an improvised smokescreen! Alright.

Brisa closed her eyes and listened hard for the fftt fftt fftt of claws hitting sand. Wherever the next attack was coming from, that's where she'd manifest her Radiance.
 

Namohysip

Dragon Enthusiast
Staff
Partners
  1. flygon
  2. charizard
  3. milotic
  4. zoroark-soda
  5. sceptile
  6. marowak
  7. jirachi
"Ghk--!"

He wasn't expecting a Radiant retaliation so suddenly. golden bars blocked his path and surrounded him on all sides. Wave upon wave of gentle but debilitating electricity ran through his system, and his legs locked. His arms refused to move properly. So not only did Brisa predict his movements, but she also countered with a solid disruption. He should have known better than to go slow.

Still standing, Owen seemed open for an attack.
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
Yes! A connect! Now to put a wound on him.

So far Owen had been performing well at range. Maybe it was time to close the distance.

Brisa flexed her jaw with a sizzling crack of energy, and ran forward to deliver a crushing Thunder Fang.
 

Namohysip

Dragon Enthusiast
Staff
Partners
  1. flygon
  2. charizard
  3. milotic
  4. zoroark-soda
  5. sceptile
  6. marowak
  7. jirachi
Owen took it. The electricity ran through his system and her bite pierced his relatively soft scales. He crossed his left arm in an attempt to conjure a Protect, but he seemed to have done it too slowly. But that was what he wanted to do; once Brisa had come close enough to him, Owen smiled slightly and said.

"Icetales..." He could barely move, but everything he needed was already in place. Win or lose, he was satisfied that he could at least get Brisa trapped for one of his crafty tricks. "This is what it means to control the arena."

The Protect barrier formed around Owen... but thanks to Brisa's proximity and similarly small size, she, too, was within the barrier. A golden sphere.

And Owen had a Flame Burst in his right hand.

The Charmander smiled sweetly... and ruptured its core, forming a concentrated explosion within the barrier.
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
"Icetales..."

Something was wrong. Her brain sprinted through her options and slammed the instinct to use Charge, now.

Her fur sparked as she drew energy from her core while Owen spoke, to further protect herself from magical attacks. Then, if she could tough out whatever Owen had planned, she could deliver such a blow in retaliation-

Owen ruptured the Flame Burst, forming a concentrated explosion within the barrier.
 

Cresselia92

Gym Leader
Pronouns
She/Her/Hers
Partners
  1. ho-oh
  2. sneasel-nyula
  3. rayquaza-cress
  4. celebi-shiny
Flash! The radiant light inside the barrier was like a sun on earth, illuminating the surrounding area with a glorious glow.

“Heavens!”

Icetales stumbled backwards, startled by the sudden light, and shot his tails in front of his face to shield himself from the beams.

Ah! A classic: lure thy enemy in a trap and smite them… that lad is far more cunning that he looks. I’m… impressed.

He unraveled some of his tails when he noticed that the light had dimmed, his eyes blinking constantly as he checked the aftermath of that assault. That Shinx couldn’t have survived that close-ranged blast… or could she?

He couldn’t really tell, those two were still way above his league. Who knows what they were truly capable of, if they were at full power?
 

Namohysip

Dragon Enthusiast
Staff
Partners
  1. flygon
  2. charizard
  3. milotic
  4. zoroark-soda
  5. sceptile
  6. marowak
  7. jirachi
Owen released the Protect, which in turn made a plume of delayed smoke and heat rise into the sky. Owen had several scrapes and wounds on him, most of them from Brisa's attack or stray strands of electricity, and he knew that his offensive power, while flashy, was not like some of the others on the team. Between the Charge and the close quarters, though, Owen wasn't sure if it was enough or not... But he was satisfied regardless.

He coughed a bit of smoke and grinned down at Brisa. "I'm out of tricks," he finally said, which was, one way or another, admitting defeat if Brisa hadn't been downed.
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
Brisa coughed and shook herself free of smoke with a crackle of spare electricity. What a burn! Exceptional. She tapped Owen's clavicle with a single claw—her way of indicating a victory through concession.

"Good trick though, partner!" she said, with a grin. She offered a paw for shaking, before turning back to Icetales.

"Misdirection. If it's somethin' you have a talent for, consider developin' that skill as well. It can come in handy."
 

Namohysip

Dragon Enthusiast
Staff
Partners
  1. flygon
  2. charizard
  3. milotic
  4. zoroark-soda
  5. sceptile
  6. marowak
  7. jirachi
Owen nodded, though at this point he plopped onto his rump and took a breather. Little trails of smoke still drifted off of his body. "Yeah," he said. "There are a lot of ways to battle, even against extremely powerful opponents... Sometimes, smarts and teamwork and misdirection is how you beat people that are so much stronger than you. Just like who we've been fighting all this time..." He stood up, sighing.

"I'm... going to get some food," he said. "Want to come with, talk about more training exercises for later?"
 

Cresselia92

Gym Leader
Pronouns
She/Her/Hers
Partners
  1. ho-oh
  2. sneasel-nyula
  3. rayquaza-cress
  4. celebi-shiny
"Misdirection. If it's somethin' you have a talent for, consider developin' that skill as well. It can come in handy."

…Misdirection. Well, yes, that was a skill he knew how to use plenty… when trying to outsmart someone during a poker game, that’s it. One of the perks of a flexible vulpine mind, he learned.

Though, using misdirection for battles… huh. Never considered that before.

He knew that Keo’Keo III was pretty good at distracting opponents with her dazzling fairy techniques, so perhaps he should have tried to imitate her beautiful performances? Or perhaps try out some of the ice tricks used by Keo’Keo VI? The ghoulish powers of Keo’Keo VII? Mixed with a bit of prediction skills from Keo’Keo I?

He blinked. Hm. Could he become stronger and better thanks to those observations?

Pah. At least I might gain something beneficial out of those mementos…

Anyway, he pushed those thoughts aside for the time being and stamped his forepaws on the sand, emulating a clap. “Bravo! Bravo! What most engaging and intense duel! The energy! The swiftness! The raw power! Ah, yes! Such remarkable performance, good comrades!”

He wagged his tails and tap danced on the spot, grinning and scattering snowflakes around from his tails. “Yessir! I very much desire to learn! I desire to become a stronger and reliable duelist! Is it too much to ask for some extra training?”

He narrowed his eyes. “I have plenty to catch up. Oh! And I would not mind sipping some mint tea before starting training. This heat… somewhat dehydrated my persona…”
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
Brisa acknowledged the praise from Icetales with a slight nod and a slighter smile.

"I'm... going to get some food. Want to come with, talk about more training exercises for later?"
“Yessir! I very much desire to learn! [...] Is it too much to ask for some extra training? I have plenty to catch up. Oh! And I would not mind sipping some mint tea before starting training.”

"Food and combat chatter sound good to me! I'll accompany ya, Owen."

Brisa stretched her sore limbs and allowed herself a moment of peace. A sparring match with no mishaps. Lunch with friends. A glorious sunny sky overhead.

Everything was going to be okay.

<><><><><><><>​
 
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R5 – How To Traumatise Your Daughter

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
The battle at Shaymin Village could have gone better. But they'd made it through.

The staff at the Treasure Town Guild infirmary had taken Astrid and Starr into their care, to be transferred and discharged at the medical centre in Destiny Village. Soon, Brisa and Curio would follow to their new home there. But not yet.

"Do you want to talk about this somewhere else? I feel like there's a lot I'm missin' and, well, obviously, we both have baggage to unload."
"Oh gods. Yes. Okay. Just, uh... Please help me check on Astrid and Starr first. Then we can go wherever you want, Curio."
They'd settled on the Beach. It wasn't a bad place for a conversation, and almost everyone else was busy with the move to Destiny Village. The two pokémon walked down there together, making light conversation about how their friends would pull through in no time, or the impressive feats of combat that their allies had performed in the recent fight.

It was harder to talk about what Brisa had done. She'd... she'd used her paralysing light on Curio again. Deliberately, this time. And then...

Well.

She'd mauled her.

But Curio wasn't asking about that. In fact, her wounds were even healing already from a quick oran berry snack, and the red stains on her fur weren't so bad in the light of day. No, Curio wanted to talk about Jesse Stranger.

Jesse Stranger, the human-turned-delphox who had saved Brisa's world, only to disappear into the aether years later.

Jesse Stranger, who had read her mind a thousand times and concluded that she was a violent animal he might have to put down.

Jesse Stranger, her father.

What could she possibly say that would make enough sense? That would explain...? She didn't know. The waves beat against the shoreline, and she sat to listen to them with her friend, who seemed to know she was composing a thought. Probably because she'd been tracing mnemonics in the sand with her tail for a good minute.

"I've never talked about this," Brisa said, at last. "I've never told anyone what... what he thought of me. It was... painful to think about. So bad, I haven't recalled it clearly ever since. And who would even believe me if I told 'em? Everyone back home knows Jesse Stranger was a hero. So I stayed quiet for six years, pushin' the memory down the whole time."

{If I catch you like that again, I won’t hesitate to put you down like the violent animal you are.}

Brisa shuddered.

"He didn't say it out loud. He thought it, and I heard him inside my head. That's... how I know he weren't kiddin'."
 

NebulaDreams

Ace Trainer
Partners
  1. luxray
  2. hypno
"I've never talked about this," Brisa said, at last. "I've never told anyone what... what he thought of me. It was... painful to think about. So bad, I haven't recalled it clearly ever since. And who would even believe me if I told 'em? Everyone back home knows Jesse Stranger was a hero. So I stayed quiet for six years, pushin' the memory down the whole time."

"Well, gee, I know what that's like, bottling shit up." She tugged at her aura sensors. "Some hero, right?"

"He didn't say it out loud. He thought it, and I heard him inside my head. That's... how I know he weren't kiddin'."

Curio took a deep breath. "You know that's a lie, right? He doesn't know shit about what it's like to be a Pokemon. This urge to fight -- it's not like I can help it either. Deep down, I know that's what I want too. I kept thinkin' about this as well, and Starr said as much that I was still a person and that humans had all sorts of urges themselves."
 

unrepentantAuthor

A cat that writes stories.
Location
UK
Pronouns
they/she
Partners
  1. purrloin-salem
  2. sneasel-dusk
  3. luz-companion
  4. brisa-companion
  5. meowth-laura
  6. delphox-jesse
  7. mewtwo
  8. zeraora
Brisa nodded dumbly. More mnemonics. A soft sigh.

"Sometimes I can believe that, Curio. But not always."

It was happening again.

I don’t like fighting all the time
How come you're always fighting, aren't you interested in anything else? Of course she had other interests. But fighting was fun! It was what pokémon did. What was so bad about that? Couldn't she study and fight? This, comin' from someone with as many scars as you.

What if you ended up killing me
You could've killed someone, swinging your power around like that! She'd be more careful. She promised. She didn't realise how strong she was, but she knew better now. She really did. I'd never kill a thinkin' person, Jesse, don't you know that?

you couldn’t control yourself.
You need to learn some responsibility, before you lose control. She tried. She really tried. She trained and focused and held back. Wasn't it enough? What would be enough? To make myself smaller, to never bare my teeth in anger, to not remind you what I really am?

I’m not sure I’m ready to go back to the way things were
We can't just go back to the way things used to be. And they never did. And they never would. Why couldn't you just stay with me?

It was happening again.

Everything Brisa could think of to say terrified her. What if it wasn't okay to say? What if it hurt Curio? Or drove her away? She couldn't think it all through. She couldn't anticipate every possible reaction.

She decided to be honest.

"I 'ppreciate that you're tryin' to reassure me. I know pokémon are natural fighters, it's what I'm always tellin' folks. But Curio... back in the café, you said a few things that sounded an awful lot like Jesse. 'I can't control myself, I coulda killed you, things're gonna be different now.' And you weren't wrong."
 
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