The Festival of Masks

[canisaries]

Kohath, of course, stood out due to his stature. Fezandipiti pointed a wing at him. You there! You look as though you know a thing or two about fighting. Won't you join me in confronting the ogre?

Kohath raised a brow. Well, now he'd directly been asked. And the bird had clearly alluded to his physique, not any beasts he might have had with him in some of those strange spherical containers. He wanted him to fight with his fists.

That was clearly foolish, but he did want to know what this fearsome ogre was like in person. He decided to agree partway.

"I will accompany you to the ogre," he said, loud enough to be heard well, "but I do not know if I can be of any help. The ogre seems all too strong for a human to take on." Even a Helixian. "If the opportunity comes, however, I will assist you."

He did not expect to actually assist the bird. If the ogre proved as powerful as he understood it to be, he would stay out of the fray and retreat if necessary. Hopefully the ogre would not pursue him.

 

[FauxFox]

Perhaps we try to scare them off? I imagine you must be able to conjure some truly monstrous sights with your illusions.

"Alright, I'll give it a shot." Theo said. "This guy won't know what hit him."

Theo carefully climbed out of the crevice and over the boulders at its exit, beginning to shift his form into that of a Trevenant as he attempted to sneak up behind the remaining actor. He was pretty sure they were native here, so Theo just had to hope that the people here had similar myths surrounding it.

And if that didn't there was always the option of shifting forms in front of him to make him think he was losing it, but that was more of a worst case scenario, and Theo doubted it would come to that.

"You who dares disturb the creatures of this mountain, leave with haste." Theo said in a low, almost scratchy voice as he finished taking his form, which to any spectator would have seemed like a Trevenant appeared out of from behind the actor. "Speak your name and depart with haste, else you shalt suffer the curse of this mountain."

 

[Negrek]

@canisaries

I will accompany you to the ogre," he said, loud enough to be heard well, "but I do not know if I can be of any help. The ogre seems all too strong for a human to take on." Even a Helixian. "If the opportunity comes, however, I will assist you."

Ah, excellent, excellent, Fezandipiti said, bowing his head to Kohath. Your help is much appreciated. Addressing the crowd again, he said, Now, are there any others with the same noble spirit as this fine fellow? You alone can defend your village from the return of the ogre's wrath!

He got a few more volunteers out of this effort; all in all around fifteen people agreed to accompany him up the mountain. Most of them didn't look like very powerful trainers, and a couple were definitely just coming along in hopes of seeing something interesting, but Fezandipiti seemed to sense that this was the best he was going to get.

Very well, then. Warriors! Let us proceed!

No sooner did Fezandipiti spread his wings than the talonflame that had been lurking near his feet took to the air, shooting away to leave a blazing trail of embers burning out behind her. Fezandipiti watched her go, expressionless. I fear the ogre may be warned of our coming, he muttered, but he took to the air all the same. Follow me! Do not lag too far behind. I will challenge the ogre--attack it while it is distracted!

Not far from the stage was the path leading up the mountain. One of the perfomers was standing guard over it, shortly joined by the one who'd come running to Fezandipiti. "Good luck!" they said, waving everyone through. Perhaps they were glad they weren't being called on to head up themselves.

The path wound up towards the mountain's peak, and it was not empty. A ways up ahead there was a small knot of people walking up the path. The talonflame glowed above them like a fallen star. A few of the people recruited by Fezandipiti whispered amongst themselves. Was the ogre supposed to be among that group?

@FauxFox

"You who dares disturb the creatures of this mountain, leave with haste." Theo said in a low, almost scratchy voice as he finished taking his form, which to any spectator would have seemed like a Trevenant appeared out of from behind the actor. "Speak your name and depart with haste, else you shalt suffer the curse of this mountain."

The performer turned when Theo raced out of his hiding place, but lost interest again a second later. Just a wild pokémon--certainly too small to be the ogre. Theo had no trouble maneuvering behind them, and the performer initially didn't notice the trevenant rising up out of the grass. They spun around at the sound of the voice, of course, and promptly screamed.

"M-my name?" they stammered. "Ahaha. Sorry, I've heard t-too many ghost stories to fall for that! Sinistcha!"

They had a partner with them, one who'd been scouting ahead up the path and come arrowing back at the sound of the scream. Stay away! they clattered in the language of pokémon, already charging a shadow ball.

Ogerpon watched these proceedings from the mouth of the small crevice, obviously tense. She made no attempt to either run or join in the fight, at least for now.

@Sinderella

A trevenant appeared suddenly up ahead, rising out of the grass behind the performer as though it had been lying in wait. They screamed, and their sinistcha prepared for battle.

It looked like the group of people Vienna had seen near the edge of the pavilion had made it past the guards and were on their way up the path behind her.

@Dragonfree @Flyg0n @Seren

Kieran nodded at Jean, though he he shot Marcel a nervous look as well. And he started when, abruptly, yet another person ran up to their group, this time making straight for Kieran.

"G-grandpa sent you?" he asked Kari, wide-eyed. "I..." he trailed off, looking back towards the festival.

"Okay, listen, this is starting to get a little ridiculous," the performer guarding the path, now drastically outnumbered, said. Their ekans was hiding behind their feet. "Fezandipiti might be coming this way soon anyhow. You really ought to wait until he sees what's going on. If the ogre is--Kieran!"

The boy shoved his way past the performer, ignoring the ekans' startled hiss. "I d-don't need anybody to watch out for me!" he declared. "I-I'm strong enough. I can find the ogre by myself!" He hesitated a moment, then said, "Come on!" to Jean and started running up the path at top speed.

"Oh, shi--fine, go on, then, go on!" the performer said, ushering everyone else past.

The road rose steeply through wild mountain terrain, unlit save for the moon overhead and the festival lights behind. There were surely wild pokémon about; they could be heard rustling through the grass, and the dim light gleamed back from eyes to either side of the path. It was unlikely that anything would attack such a large group of people, especially with Kari's chimeco plainly visible, but no doubt the local pokémon were curious why so many travelers were taking the mountain road tonight.

Up ahead there were two figures standing in the middle of the path. One of them appeared strangely proportioned--perhaps it was a trainer and their pokémon? With the darkness and the distance, it was hard to make out more than that.

The group hadn't been climbing for long before a bright light appeared in the sky behind them. It approached rapidly, far too fast for any of them to hope to outrun it, and swooped down on Marcel with a screech and a scattering of embers. Scorch the talonflame flapped around Marcel's head in agitated, shrieking circles. Her meaning wasn't difficult to figure out: *Fezandipiti is coming!*

And no sooner had people started to recover from the surprise of the talonflame's sudden appearance than a scream sounded from farther up the mountain. It sounded like a human scream, although some pokémon could imitate them, and fairly far away.

 

[FauxFox]

"M-my name?" they stammered. "Ahaha. Sorry, I've heard t-too many ghost stories to fall for that! Sinistcha!"

They had a partner with them, one who'd been scouting ahead up the path and come arrowing back at the sound of the scream. Stay away! they clattered in the language of pokémon, already charging a shadow ball.

Theo took a deep breath, then pretended like he was rummaging through the the leaves of his trevenant form, pulling out his own mask.

"This is what was left of the last children to cross me. Are you sure you wish to join them?" He asked, unfazed by the Sinistcha charging up a shadow ball.

Ogerpon watched these proceedings from the mouth of the small crevice, obviously tense. She made no attempt to either run or join in the fight, at least for now.

"If I were you," Theo tossed the mask towards the performer, but away from the crevice in which Ogerpon was hiding, "I would start running away from here." Theo said, his glance flicking towards the rocks in front of the crevice, then back to the performer, who he hoped was distractred by the mask.

Theo began to use his illusions to try and make himself look larger and more menacing, while he prepared to use knock off in case this became a battle. "Depart now, if you wish to do so alive."

In hindsight, Theo thought, We probably should have planned this out a little more first, come up with a signal word for Ogerpon to run, or a backup plan. Too late now, I've just got to keep this up until something works or goes terribly wrong.

 

[Flyg0n]

Marcel rushed after the kid. Great. He followed, determined to at least try and keep an eye on him. Immediately he shifted to high alert once Scorch arrived. He murmured a quick thanks but there was no time to decide how to prepare however, before a scream came from up ahead.

That was bad. There was no time to waste. "Fezandipiti is coming, and he'll probably be heading straight up there," he said quickly, glancing around the group and studying them. Which of them could be trusted? It seemed like all of them were against the Three. He certainly hoped so. "I don't believe him about Ogrepon at all, and I'm not going to let an innocent pokemon get attacked. I can't stop anyone here from trying anything, but try to keep a smart head about it, and stay out of danger." He really hoped they listened. The last thing he needed was to worry about trying to save on these kids or other trainers and try to save Ogrepon.

With that, Marcel released Loaf and hurried in the direction of the scream, the Dachsbun hot on his heels.

 

[Negrek]

@IFBench @ShiniGojira @System Error

Unsurprisingly, Okidogi did at first lock on to the slumbering bronzong, gathering darkness around his claws and no doubt preparing to lay into the slumbering pokémon while it was defenseless. When Evie made herself flagrantly vulnerable, though, the legend couldn't help but turn his attention to her. Oh? You think I've forgotten about you? he growled, nostrils flaring. Try this on for size, if you fancy yourself so clever!

He bore down on Evie in a fury, apparently intent on simply running her over. His every footfall shook the earth, the Stomping Tantrum all the more powerful for Okidogi's frustration at having his Sludge Bomb blocked. The upwelling water from Evie's next attack ultimately drove him back and left him soaked, but after a vigorous shake he was back to full malevolent form, albeit perhaps beginning to tire. He paused for a moment, gathering himself, then raced towards Evie again. This time his claws dripped poison as he slashed at her, perhaps hoping to this time land a blow that would sap Evie's strength over time.

Carmine's mightyena yelped when Evie's Thunderbolt struck home, fur frizzing out in all directions. She didn't move from per place in front of Carmine, but she did bark out a sharp Snarl, a brief, stinging burst of Dark-type energy that could only have one interpretation: Don't try something like that again!

> Okidogi's aura begins to flicker...

 

[Seren]

The boy shoved his way past the performer, ignoring the ekans' startled hiss. "I d-don't need anybody to watch out for me!" he declared. "I-I'm strong enough. I can find the ogre by myself!" He hesitated a moment, then said, "Come on!" to Jean and started running up the path at top speed.

He ran. She told him about his grandfather, and he ran.

...What??

"S-sorry!" Kari blurted out to the group, not to anyone in particular. "I... that was not the reaction I was expecting..."

Well, at least it had gotten them through the guard. Kari followed the others in chasing down the boy who was all but confirmed to be who she had been looking for. They hadn't made it very far before the giant bird she'd seen earlier arrived, followed by a scream from ahead of them.

I'm not going to let an innocent pokemon get attacked.

The boy's grandfather believed Ogrepon was innocent... and so too, apparently, did the boy himself. The man here with the fire bird said Fezandipiti was coming... were they about to try to fight it? He'd released some sort of... adorable puppy! Kari almost stopped and asked for a picture right then and there... but it hardly seemed the time.

Half her team was weak to flying-types... where was Ana?? She'd know what to do...

Well, Kari did tell the grandfather that she'd protect Kieran, and letting Symphony fight right now wouldn't help her nerves... so she held out a great ball in front of her, hitting the button and releasing her togetic. Then, bracing for the worst, she followed the man and his fiery bird towards the screams.

 

[Dragonfree]

The boy shoved his way past the performer, ignoring the ekans' startled hiss. "I d-don't need anybody to watch out for me!" he declared. "I-I'm strong enough. I can find the ogre by myself!" He hesitated a moment, then said, "Come on!" to Jean and started running up the path at top speed.

Jean ran after him, startled, a little anxious as she followed him up the path. Was he really strong enough, when they were up against the Loyal Three? You couldn't just go rushing in against someone much more powerful than you...

There were figures up ahead. Ogerpon...? But before she could get a better look, there was a scream further up the mountain, and she froze, staring into the darkness, a sinking pit in her stomach. "Kieran?" she said unsurely, glancing at the crystal in her hand; was it still directing her further up the mountain?

 

[Negrek]

@FauxFox

Theo's words didn't deter the sinistcha's attack, but perhaps they unnerved it enough that its shadow ball went wide. Whatever the reason, the attack did miss Theo, and his illusion remained intact. The sinistcha rattled with irritation, perhaps mingled with fear, and began charging another attack, only for a dark swipe from Theo's claws to knock it backwards, spraying matcha-like ectoplasm every which way.

The sinistcha righted itself, literally steaming mad, but while it looked ready to retaliate, its trainer had perhaps taken Theo's words more to heart. "Ah, Sinistcha! W-wait. Maybe we should..." They glanced around as if considering paths of escape, but what caught their eyes was instead the arge group of people running up the mountain path, pokémon mingled among them. The performer waved an arm frantically. "H-hey! Help? Could I get a little help over here?"

Ogerpon had continued to watch as the battle began in earnest, perhaps reluctant to leave Theo to face the performer by himself. As the group of people dashed up to join the fray, she apparently decided that it was too dangerous to stick around and silently bounded farther up the mountain path while the performer and his sinistcha were occupied. It looked as though no one noticed her departure besides Theo.

@Flyg0n @Seren @Dragonfree @Sinderella

It took Kieran a second to notice that Jean had stopped, but he turned and came racing back before getting too far ahead. "W-what's wrong?" he stammered. "D-don't worry. I know the mountain really well! I've come up here a lot... Looking for the ogre..." He reached for his pokéballs again and this time actually released all of his team: the sentret Jean knew from before, a yanma, and a poliwag. "If you have pokémon, too, y-you can let them out. Otherwise, mine can protect you, too!"

The poliwag drew himself up as tall as he could and chirped fiercely. He was good at protecting people!

The crystal in Jean's hand continued to tug insistently upwards. If anything the pull was stronger than before.

As the group continued up the mountain they'd first come across a woman and her gardevoir--Marcel would recognize Vienna.

Past those two was one of the Loyal Three performers, almost impossible to see in their dark robes, their Okidogi mask almost seeming to hover above the ground of its own accord. There was a sinistcha floating near the performer, and then, menacing the two of them, a towering trevenant. It was definitely bigger than the typical specimen, and dark, strange energies swirled around its gnarled and thorny limbs. Oddly enough, the trevenant seemed to be speaking. "Depart now, if you wish to do so alive," it said.

Rather than departing, the performer waved to the group. "H-hey! Help? Could I get a little help over here?"

"What's a trevenant doing here?" Kieran muttered. "I've never seen them come this far from the forest. Maybe it has a trainer?" But there didn't seem to be anyone around besides the performer, Vienna, and the group that had just come up from the festival.

Kieran glanced around at the people who'd somehow joined he and Jean on their mountain excursion, then shook his head. He moved to stand close to her, and whispered softly, "Do, do you want to go up by ourselves? I think these people should be able to deal with the trevenant, but we don't have time to fight! Ogerpon's home isn't far from here..."

Although Kieran had done his best to be discreet, pokémon or people paying particular attention to him might be able to catch the gist of what he'd said.

 

[System Error]

Satomi shrugs as Gen continues to do nothing and turns back to Unami as the ground begins to shake; the bell floats right over it. Again, they seem to get ready to do something in their sleep. But again, nothing seems to happen. She turns, scratches her head, and smiles. Nothing has happened yet, but her faithful partner's eyes being closed no doubt obfuscated it.

"Seems to be they're no threat," she advises Evie, gesturing in Carmine's direction. "Keep an eye on them for funny business of course, but no need to target them."

A few moments, a few mumbles later, and Unami's body begins to move in their sleeping state. A spin then a tilt backwards heralds launching a fast moving ball of darkness straight for Okidoki. The bell Pokemon simply continues floating idly after. And yet they still seem to be alert in some sense...

Spoiler: OoC Note

I swear I did not make this one up: Future Sight, Shadow Ball, and Protect. Proper timing can't happen on the latter of course, but hey, probably will block part of something if Okidoki goes for them.

 

[FauxFox]

It looked as though no one noticed her departure besides Theo.

Theo smiled a little when he noticed Ogerpon escape, before turning his attention back to the performer, and the group that had just made their way up the mountain.

They glanced around as if considering paths of escape, but what caught their eyes was instead the arge group of people running up the mountain path, pokémon mingled among them. The performer waved an arm frantically. "H-hey! Help? Could I get a little help over here?"

Crud, if they join in the fight I don't stand a ghost of a chance... Theo thought to himself, looking at the crowd. Too many to fight, and I doubt I could scare them off... But if I stop now they might catch up to Ogerpon...
He did his best to keep his composure, his illusion wavering slightly, though me managed to keep it together.

"-to go up-?-deal with the trevenant, but - time-! Ogerpon's home isn't far from here..."

From his time as an explorer Theo had become better at hearing quiet noises than he was, able to pick up on bits and pieces of the whispers. Hearing the mention of Ogerpon, however, caused Theo a little more panic. He knew he couldn't beat this group alone, but he couldn't let these people from the festival pass, assuming they were sent by the Loyal Three to find Ogerpon.
Taking a deep breath, Theo tried to continue his act.
"You who seek to bring harm to Ogerp- I mean, the Ogre, shall turn back now. Go back to this mountain's base, and do not return to this place."
The large illusion combined with Theo's waning confidence caused his tail to reveal itself, unbeknownst to Theo.

 

[Flyg0n]

So much happening at once, not enough time to evaluate. Prioritize and focus. Ogrepon didn't seem to be around, but maybe it was hiding nearby? And by the sound of the boys whispers he seemed to be planning something of his own. Fezandipiti would be coming, but their path was blocked by this Trevenant. So Trevenant first then. Before he could think further, it spoke, warning them off. Marcel frowned. That didn't sound at all like a warning from someone who wanted to hurt Ogrepon...

His gaze shifted when he picked up a telltale flicker and spotted the briefest bit of grey. Zorua tail! So it's an illusion... A wild Zorua, or perhaps one with a trainer? Either way by the sound of it, perhaps it wasn't a threat to Ogrepon.

Marcel turned on the performer who'd been confronting the Trevenant. He stepped up next to him as if he intended to battle, and Loaf moved with him, growling threateningly. "Get out of here, we'll handle things! Go back down the mountain and help make a perimeter so nothing escapes." This time he spoke authoritatively and forcefully.

Then he tapped his leg, making eye contact with Loaf and nodded at the Trevenant meaningfully. If at all possible he hoped to avoid a fight.

Loaf barked sharply, almost like a warning or a call to battle, but to a pokemon the message was different 'We're here to help!' directed at the Zorua-Trevenant.

 

[ShiniGojira]

Fighting Legendaries were fun. Evie grinned, ducking under a blow and weaving in between Okidogi's arms, her mane whipping in the wind as she planted her hind legs on his chest, kicking him away and avoiding yet another blow. She lived in the rush, relishing in the adrenaline flowing through her body.

Okidogi was strong, period. But if there was one thing her adventures through the cosmos had taught her, was that powers didn't solve everything. She slowed, waiting for the enraged Legendary to strike before dodging at the last moment, she did this a couple times, the ever-stretching grin tilting into an arrogant facade.

 "Too slow~" She chuckled, her words enhanced by a dark aura. "Don't tell me this is all you got. I–"

Her ears twitched, sensing the Snarl coming at her. Fuck. With her current position, there was no way she could dodge both Okidogi and the Snarl.

She made a compromise. The Snarl landed true, her body shivering at the attack but she pushed through, narrowly avoiding Okidogi's enraged blow with just a mere scratch. Immediately, she felt the debilitating effects of Okidogi's poisoned claws and the Snarl further weakening her.

Evie leapt back, firing a Mud Bomb to cover her escape and taking a breather to absorb the sunlight. "Woah, almost got me there. Maybe you should've laid down on the berries and started working on your speed. Probably could've gotten me there if you were a little faster~" She finished the Taunt with a strained grin, chowing down on the pecha berry given to her.

 

[Dragonfree]

It took Kieran a second to notice that Jean had stopped, but he turned and came racing back before getting too far ahead. "W-what's wrong?" he stammered. "D-don't worry. I know the mountain really well! I've come up here a lot... Looking for the ogre..." He reached for his pokéballs again and this time actually released all of his team: the sentret Jean knew from before, a yanma, and a poliwag. "If you have pokémon, too, y-you can let them out. Otherwise, mine can protect you, too!"

The poliwag drew himself up as tall as he could and chirped fiercely. He was good at protecting people!

The crystal in Jean's hand continued to tug insistently upwards. If anything the pull was stronger than before.

Jean hesitated, but... But the crystal said to keep going. Probably it'd be okay? She waved unsurely at the Poliwag.

"What's a trevenant doing here?" Kieran muttered. "I've never seen them come this far from the forest. Maybe it has a trainer?" But there didn't seem to be anyone around besides the performer, Vienna, and the group that had just come up from the festival.

Kieran glanced around at the people who'd somehow joined he and Jean on their mountain excursion, then shook his head. He moved to stand close to her, and whispered softly, "Do, do you want to go up by ourselves? I think these people should be able to deal with the trevenant, but we don't have time to fight! Ogerpon's home isn't far from here..."

"O-okay," she whispered back. She did feel better if they'd go around. Maybe they could just be really careful and sneaky. Maybe...

She had to be brave. She couldn't leave him to go ahead alone, either. She followed close by his side and tried not to make a sound.

 

[Negrek]

@ShiniGojira @System Error

Okidogi was obviously frustrated when Evie kept evading his blows, striking out with growled curses, his attacks growing ever more sloppy and unfocused. But while Evie was dodging, she wasn't attacking, and in time Okidogi seemed to take some momentum from this. You can't dodge forever! he puffed, eyes agleam. Who do you really think will tire first, you--or me? He grunted when the Mud Bomb struck, stumbling back for a moment. But he'd shaken the attack off a second later and drew his arm back to make another strike.

He paused again when Unami's Shadow Ball impacted his side, and turned slowly, yellow eyes narrowing as they fell on the bronzong. For a second he hesitated, perhaps weighing the value of dealing with the steel-type while it remained asleep. Another Taunt from Evie tore his attention away again, though, and he scowled. Still so confident, are you? he grunted. Very well. Let's see how long you can keep away from this! He stormed forward with another Stomping Tantrum, shaking the earth and carving even deeper craters in earth already stomped flat by the battle.

For the moment it seemed he'd forgotten Unami existed.

> Okidogi's aura is flickering...

@FauxFox @Flyg0n @Sinderella

The performer fell back upon Marcel's shout, and sinistcha let out a nervous clatter, momentarily ducking back into its teacup. "Err, yes," the performer said. "I suppose you can... take it from here."

When they turned to head back down the mountain, they found themselves faced with a quite sizeable group of people running in their direction, and what was unquestionably Fezandipiti flying overhead. Somehow they didn't seem too eager to meet up with that group--and perhaps to explain to Fezandipiti how they'd ended up on the mountain in the first place. "Well, I, ah..." they began, shrinking back to the side of the path, "I think I'll just..." Kind of sidle off into the tall grass and hope no one noticed their departure, apparently. Their ghost floated along after, keeping a wary eye out for further threats.

From overheaed there came a loud, whistling cry. Fezandipiti would be there any second.

@Dragonfree

Kieran nodded and motioned for Jean to follow him as he slipped around the back of the group and beside a large rock fallen by the side of the path. The pokémon scampered along after him, although Poliwag hung back a bit, sticking closer to Jean. He swaggered along and occasionally looked up to chirp at her, as though inviting her to notice what a good job he was doing. Clearly he was very proud of his position as a bodyguard.

Off the main path the grass grew dense, and more than once Kieran's pokémon went charging off, chasing away some wild pokémon. It wasn't long before they came to a wooden bridge across a stream, and beyond that a cavernous space overhung with broad ledges of rock. "It's just up here," Kieran whispered, though now there was't anyone around to hear him besides Jean and his pokémon.

He never made it where he was going, though; there was a figure up ahead, one that had apparently heard them coming. They wore a poncho, and a blue-white mask over their face that almost glowed in the pale moonlight filtering in from above. It was too dark to say much else. Who are you? they demanded in an alien voice. What are you doing here?

 

[Dragonfree]

Jean smiled at Poliwag, giving him a little pat as they walked along. The grass thickened quickly, becoming harder to walk in, and she fought to keep up. It was exciting, though. They didn't go out of the city all that much; some of the others' parents had invited her along on trips a few times, but whenever she'd tried to convince her dad she wanted to go camping (preferably in the woods, or near a cool waterfall!) there were apparently a million reasons why they definitely couldn't do that, and when she had convinced him to try registering her for a summer camp they wouldn't let her go because they were afraid she'd be a fire hazard and even her dad couldn't change their minds. But here she was, out exploring this mysterious mountain with no one but Kieran, and there was even a wooden bridge and waterfalls and everything!

She stopped when a figure appeared on the road, shrouded in darkness, a glittering mask over their face. A small figure. Maybe a kid?

"Hello?" she said, giving a hesitant wave, keeping a tight grip on the crystal. "I'm Jean. Are you lost?"

 

[FauxFox]

The performer fell back upon Marcel's shout, and sinistcha let out a nervous clatter, momentarily ducking back into its teacup. "Err, yes," the performer said. "I suppose you can... take it from here."

Then he tapped his leg, making eye contact with Loaf and nodded at the Trevenant meaningfully. If at all possible he hoped to avoid a fight.

Loaf barked sharply, almost like a warning or a call to battle, but to a pokemon the message was different 'We're here to help!' directed at the Zorua-Trevenant.

As the performer left, Theo finally let his illusion drop, returning to his Zorua form.
"Thank you for that, I've been trying to get him to scram for who knows how long. I'm glad that didn't come to a battle, otherwise things wouldn't have gone well. Well, they wouldn't have gone well for me, that is." Theo stopped, a realization popping into his mind. "Now that I think about it, you all probably aren't used to having pokemon talk to you, are you? Other than those Loyal three, I guess."
Theo used his illusion to return to his human disguise as he picked up his Vulpix mask he had tossed towards the performer earlier and put it back on, then he straightened his scarf.
"This should be a little more reasonable I'd assume. I'm Theo, by the way. I feel like there were more of you before, weren't there? Weren't there some kids in that group you were in?"

From overheaed there came a loud, whistling cry. Fezandipiti would be there any second.

"Seems like we don't have too much time to dwell on that, Fezandipiti is coming. You might have figured this out already, but the Loyal Three are a trio of lying thieves." Theo paused. " I'll bet that we won't be able to turn Fezanditpiti away, and I doubt the two of us could fight him either. Our best bet is probably to find Ogerpon, who ran further up the mountain. I used the Trevenant disguise to distract the performer while she escaped. We need to reach her before Fezandipiti does."

 

[Negrek]

Jean smiled at Poliwag, giving him a little pat as they walked along. The grass thickened quickly, becoming harder to walk in, and she fought to keep up. It was exciting, though. They didn't go out of the city all that much; some of the others' parents had invited her along on trips a few times, but whenever she'd tried to convince her dad she wanted to go camping (preferably in the woods, or near a cool waterfall!) there were apparently a million reasons why they definitely couldn't do that, and when she had convinced him to try registering her for a summer camp they wouldn't let her go because they were afraid she'd be a fire hazard and even her dad couldn't change their minds. But here she was, out exploring this mysterious mountain with no one but Kieran, and there was even a wooden bridge and waterfalls and everything!

She stopped when a figure appeared on the road, shrouded in darkness, a glittering mask over their face. A small figure. Maybe a kid?

"Hello?" she said, giving a hesitant wave, keeping a tight grip on the crystal. "I'm Jean. Are you lost?"

I am not lost, the figure said in its strange, almost distant voice. Are you? It's dangerous to be out on the mountain at night.

"A-are you the ogre?" Kieran piped up from beside Jean. It was hard to see him in the dark, but he seemed to be shaking with something, whether fear or excitement or some combination of both.

I came from the festival, the same as you, the person replied. Their focus seemed fixed on Jean, though--or the crystal in her hand. Where did you find that? they asked.

 

[System Error]

A Protect would uselessly materialize and dissipate without getting hit. Then, out of nowhere, a strange and disorienting ray of light would launch forth from their body, aimed right for Okidogi. A Confuse Ray attack! And it's at that moment that Unami wakes, refreshed and ready for more concise commands.

"Fufufufufu..." Satomi laughs deviously. "Good nap? Then let's end this. Full power!"

With a nod of their steely frame, Unami proceeds to put their arms together and overcharge their Psychic attack. A massive blast in three waves that distorts the air around it would be launched in Okidogi's direction. It was enough to actually send the bell back a meter from the sheer unrelenting force of the attack. This is quickly followed by the Future Sight used while they were asleep triggering!

Satomi extends her arms readying herself for the aftermath in case this and whatever Evie has in store finishes it, and Unami gets ready in case it doesn't.

 

[ShiniGojira]

Hah! Finally!  She had his full attention. She needn't worry about the threat of him bearing down on the sleeping bell any longer. Now she could really cut loose–

The ground shook as the full brunt of the Stomping Tantrum knocked her off balance. She winced and struggled for a moment before getting back on wobbly legs.

Alright, playtime was over. She had her fun. She bared her fangs, snarling as she took a moment to gather the energy inside her. Evie leapt forward in a burst of Extreme Speed, a white streak trailing behind her as she circled Okidogi, channeling Thunder and combining it with a Hydro Pump before finishing her combo with a volley of Swift stars.