Torrent Beach - Storm Drain Marsh

[Flyg0n]

Just beyond the beach lies a secluded stretch of woods. The ground here is marshy and damp, and gnarled, curling trees wind through the brush. The air here is rather musty and its one of the few spots on the island most Pokémon (or people) wouldn't enjoy, save for the rare water or ground wild pokemon.

***

​

 

[Flyg0n]

The trail from the edge of the woods weaves through the brush and deeper into the woods. A few footprints can be seen, human ones. It appears someone was moving in a hurry... Away from the beach. They wind through the woods a short ways, the ground becoming drier as it gets further from the beach. Finally, just beyond a thick clump of brush, it ends. And there, sitting on a tree root, arms crossed and head down, is a young woman. It appears to be one of the other trainers from the banquet. Pale skin, dark hair and a rather displeased looking Roserade by her side.

She seems to be lost in thought and doesn't notice anyone approaching...

However, her Roserade does and quickly takes up a defensive stance, bristling.​

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

Aggron bursts through the underbrush with a roar. He's already spotted the Roserade by the time Steven enters the clearing behind him. There's no way it'll be able to do much before Aggron smashes it into the ground, if it comes to that.


Steven sees the trainer sitting on the stump and he scowls. "We followed your trail from the beach. Who are you and what were you doing there this morning?" he demands.

 

[Flyg0n]

Roserade made a guttural hissing-like noise but didn't move to attack - she must have realized how outmatched she was.

Irene looked up, eyes wide. Her expression quickly shifted, becoming cool and composed. She stood up, dusted herself off and stared evenly back at Steven.

"First off, jeez. Hello to you to. And good grief. What, a trainer can't even go for a walk without being harassed? Why are you following me? What do you want?" she demanded. She folded her arms and narrowed her eyes at him.

 

[Sinderella]

"̶W̶W̴W̸O̵O̸O̷O̵O̷W̶W̶W̵W̸W̴,̵ ̷N̵O̸B̸O̷D̶Y̵ ̵T̵O̴L̷D̵ ̴M̴E̵ ̵A̷B̵O̴U̸T̷ ̴T̵H̴I̵S̵ ̶P̷L̶A̸A̷A̷A̶C̵C̸C̴E̵E̶E̴.̶"̸

She landed on a gnarled tree branch, taking in the scenery. Gross trees and bushes, green dirt that looked like it would make a squishing noise if one were to push somebody down into it, and air that smelled like the inside of Hau's "gently used" water socks.

It was...it was...


"̷I̵t̶'̵s̴ ̴g̴r̴o̷s̴s̵.̵ ̷W̶h̵e̴r̸e̷'̴s̴ ̶t̸h̶e̷ ̸f̷i̷r̵e̵?̵ ̶W̸H̴E̶R̶E̸'̷S̷ ̴T̵H̵E̶ ̵D̷E̵A̸D̴ ̷B̷O̸D̴I̵E̶S̴?̷"̸

She pursed her lips upon hearing some voices nearby, and quickly took flight to follow them. It wasn't long before she happened upon her target--the fucking Aggron--his trainer, and...some lady and her Roserade?

Odile took it upon herself to perch herself on a nearby tree. However, that didn't seem welcoming enough. So, she flipped upside down. To watch this show unfold.

 

[Dragonfree]

May and Spirit followed Steven and a few others through the brush where Aggron had found a trail. Spirit frowned unhappily as her paws sank into the marshy ground, trying gingerly to step on drier spots.

Her heart pounded uncomfortably. Even if somebody had disappeared, it had nothing to do with her. Why should she even care?

The trainer they found sure was jumpy. Suspicious? Or just alarmed to suddenly have a bunch of people barging in on her?

[[Mind Reader @Flyg0n]]

 

[Flyg0n]

At the sight of all the freaky newcomers, Irene bristled. She dropped her hand casually to her side, where her other pokeball rested, but made no move for it. Despite her cool demeanor, her eyes sparked with frustration... and perhaps fear?

Putting on a disaffected gaze, she surveyed everyone. Great. Former champion Steven, some freaky thing that she could only guess was some kind of demented Swoobat variant, and another gym leader. And some girl and her 'special' Ninetales. (Seriously, who gave their pokemon jewelry like that in public...)

Her Roserade edged closer to stand between her and the mini crowd interrogating her.

She shifted backwards ever so slightly. "Listen you creeps, all I did was go for a walk. What the hell do you all want?"

[[Mind Reader @Flyg0n]]

Irene seems to be hiding something...

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

Irene looked up, eyes wide. Her expression quickly shifted, becoming cool and composed. She stood up, dusted herself off and stared evenly back at Steven.

"First off, jeez. Hello to you to. And good grief. What, a trainer can't even go for a walk without being harassed? Why are you following me? What do you want?" she demanded. She folded her arms and narrowed her eyes at him.

Steven was momentarily taken aback at the trainer's rebuttal. Sure he'd barged in and started asking questions, but Aggron had been sure of her scent being at the scene. Innocent walk or not, she had been there. Surely she must have seen something.


"Apologies for being so abrupt, but there was an... incident this morning." No need to be too forthright with his explanation. She certainly wasn't with hers.


"We found evidence that you were in the area where it occurred. That led us here. You'll have to forgive me for being so blunt, but what I want is to know your name, if you please, and what you saw and heard this morning during your... walk."

He still wasn't sure if he believed this trainer from her defensive attitude, but this was their best lead at the moment. Hers was the only scent Aggron had found...

Steven noticed that someone else had joined him in the clearing. A blue haired girl and her Ninetales. She remained quiet, but had a look of grim determination about her.


Aggron rumbled lowly to remind everyone he was here and none too pleased at the turn of events. He was watching the Roserade closely, but all of a sudden caught whiff of something else nearby. As inconspicuously as he could, he scanned the woods for the source of the mystery scent.

Trees, more trees, swampy bits, some kind of bat thing...

No obvious threats. He'd have to keep his guard up, though. It was all too tense for his liking.

She shifted backwards ever so slightly. "Listen you creeps, all I did was go for a walk. What the hell do you all want?"

That was until the trainer shifted ever so slightly. Moving her hand to her belt...


Aggron's rumble raised to a growl. He hoped Steven or someone present had seen the same thing. He didn't trust this girl or her pokemon one bit.

 

[Sinderella]

"Listen you creeps, all I did was go for a walk. What the hell do you all want?"

Yum. Defensive. On edge. Cornered. This one smelled a lot better than the marsh did as a whole. Like a little Febreeze air freshener in the middle of all of Guzma's dirty laundry.

Perhaps this one would be more fun to poke than the Aggron.

"̷W̵h̵o̶ ̸w̴a̴l̸k̵s̸ ̶i̵n̵ ̴a̶ ̶d̴i̷r̷t̸y̴ ̴p̷l̴a̸c̵e̵ ̷l̴i̷k̴e̴ ̷t̵h̴i̸s̴?̵" she called, fluttering her wings. ̵"Y̵o̸u̷ ̶m̶u̵u̵u̷u̷u̸u̴s̷t̵ ̷b̸e̶ ̸d̸u̷m̷p̸i̷n̵g̵ ̶a ̶b̷o̶d̵y̷ ̶o̵r̷ ̷s̵o̴m̷e̸t̶h̷i̴n̵g̶.̶ ̵T̶h̸i̷s̶ ̵i̴s̴ ̷p̴r̴i̷m̴e̸ ̵b̷o̵d̸y̸ ̴d̴u̶m̷p̴i̶n̵g̸ ̴r̶e̸a̶l̷ ̵e̵s̵t̸a̴t̶e̵.̸"̸

 

[IFBench]

Gen clutched tightly onto Wallace, and said, "P-please...we need t-to figure out what's going on. P-please just work with us."

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

"CREEPS?! I may be considered a fashion disaster by some people, but creep?!?! Says the shifty woman who thinks walking away from a crime scene isn't suspicious!!!"

Steven nearly jumped out of his skin at Wallace's outburst.

Wait, Wallace? When had he gotten here?


And did he really have to say the words "crime scene"? Inwardly, Steven frowned. He was hoping not to alarm the already nervous trainer.

W̵h̵o̶ ̸w̴a̴l̸k̵s̸ ̶i̵n̵ ̴a̶ ̶d̴i̷r̷t̸y̴ ̴p̷l̴a̸c̵e̵ ̷l̴i̷k̴e̴ ̷t̵h̴i̸s̴ ̷a̷f̸t̵e̶r̷ ̴s̷o̶m̶e̸b̸o̸d̵y̵ ̷g̵o̷e̸s̷ ̵m̷i̴s̸s̵i̴n̸g̶?̵" she called, fluttering her wings. ̵"Y̵o̸u̷ ̶m̶u̵u̵u̷u̷u̸u̴s̷t̵ ̷b̸e̶ ̸d̸u̷m̷p̸i̷n̵g̵ ̶a ̶b̷o̶d̵y̷ ̶o̵r̷ ̷s̵o̴m̷e̸t̶h̷i̴n̵g̶.̶ ̵T̶h̸i̷s̶ ̵i̴s̴ ̷p̴r̴i̷m̴e̸ ̵b̷o̵d̸y̸ ̴d̴u̶m̷p̴i̶n̵g̸ ̴r̶e̸a̶l̷ ̵e̵s̵t̸a̴t̶e̵.̸"̸

This time Steven did jump as the same hissing voice from the boat came from the treetops above his head.

His gaze darted around the clearing, but the shadow presence wasn't anywhere in sight. Just what he needed right now...

And also great, it was talking about dumping bodies. And now so was Wallace.

It took everything he had not to curse out loud.

 

[Sinderella]

Oh shit, a dead body? Wallace closed his eyes and held Gen tighter. Blood was terrifying, but a dead body?????? He wouldn't be able to handle that.

"Madame, have you ever killed a person?" Was he asking the demon or the woman? He couldn't decide.

Well that's not who she was anticipating to get riled up with her words. This latex dude was such a pussy, so she supposed it wasn't surprising. But she didn't want HIS reaction, she wanted--

His gaze darted around the clearing, but the shadow presence wasn't anywhere in sight. Just what he needed right now...

And also great, it was talking about dumping bodies. And now so was Wallace.

It took everything he had not to curse out loud.

Perfect. Not Roserade lady, but a damn good close second. Clovis 2.0 was now getting really mad. She hoped the dam would break and he would just let loose a string of violent curse words. She wished she'd stolen Odette's phone so she could possibly film it. But, there was no going back now, and things were already rolling.


So, she started singing.

"̶I̴i̸i̵i̸i̴f̸f̷f̴f̸f̸f̸f̷ ̷y̴o̷u̵'̵r̴e̸ ̵d̸u̷m̴p̸i̷n̴g̶ ̷a̵ ̶b̶o̷d̷y̴ ̴a̴n̶d̷ ̴k̶n̵o̵w̶ ̶i̸t̶,̷ ̸c̴l̸a̶p̵ ̵y̴o̸u̵r̸ ̶h̵a̶n̵d̶s̸!̴"̶ She clapped her wings together twice.

"̶I̴i̸i̵i̸i̴f̸f̷f̴f̸f̸f̸f̷ ̷y̴o̷u̵'̵r̴e̸ ̵d̸u̷m̴p̸i̷n̴g̶ ̷a̵ ̶b̶o̷d̷y̴ ̴a̴n̶d̷ ̴k̶n̵o̵w̶ ̶i̸t̶,̷ ̸c̴l̸a̶p̵ ̵y̴o̸u̵r̸ ̶h̵a̶n̵d̶s̸!̴"̶ Clap, clap.

"̴I̵f̸ ̴y̵o̵u̵'̴r̷e̸ ̶d̷u̴m̷p̴i̷n̶g̶ ̵a̷ ̴b̵o̷d̸y̵ ̸a̵n̵d̷ ̷k̶n̷o̶w̸ ̶i̶t̷ ̴a̸n̷d̷ ̷y̴o̸u̴ ̵r̷e̶a̸l̴l̸y̵ ̷w̷a̵n̶n̸a̶ ̷s̷h̵o̶w̴ ̷i̸t̵,̵ ̵i̸f̸ ̸y̶o̸u̶'̷r̸e̴ ̶d̶u̵m̷p̵i̶n̶g̵ ̵a̴ ̸b̷o̷d̸y̵ ̴a̸n̸d̸ ̴k̶n̷o̵w̴ ̸i̶t̵,̴ ̶c̶l̵a̶p̴ ̸y̶o̸u̶r̷ ̶h̶a̷n̷d̸s̸!̷"̴

 

[Dragonfree]

May felt increasingly nauseous standing there as the idiots around her went on about dumping bodies.

"Shut up," she said, fists clenched. Stepping forward toward the trainer with the Roserade, she said, "Look, we just need you to answer some questions. On this walk, did you see or hear anything?" Like a bloodcurdling scream. Spirit's eyes flicked between her and her Roserade, tense, ready to react swiftly to any sudden movement.

 

[Sinderella]

Well. It appears as if she had grated on the nerves of a child. That was low hanging fruit, though.

"̵I̶ ̴h̷a̴v̴e̶ ̴a̶ ̴b̶e̵t̸t̸e̶r̷ ̵o̶n̶e̷.̸ ̴Y̵o̴u̸ ̴e̶v̶e̷r̴ ̸h̸e̶a̶r̸d̷ ̸o̴f̸ ̶h̸e̶a̸v̸y̴ ̸m̶e̷t̸a̶l̶?̶ ̵T̴h̵i̸s̷ ̶o̸n̷e̴'̴s̵ ̷a̵ ̴c̴l̸a̸s̷s̴i̴c̶,̵"̵ she snickered, fluttering up to a higher branch. She then lowered her voice to a whisper.

"̷L̴e̷t̶ ̸t̴h̶e̸ ̵b̶o̵d̶i̴e̵s̸ ̶h̷i̵t̸ ̴t̶h̴e̴ ̶f̶l̸o̷o̶r̶,̵ ̵l̸e̵t̶ ̵t̶h̵e̴ ̷b̸o̵d̸i̵e̵s̶ ̵h̷i̷t̴ ̴t̸h̷e̸ ̵f̸l̶o̶o̴r̵,̶ ̶l̶e̴t̴ ̸t̵h̶e̴ ̴b̴o̴d̴i̶e̸s̸ ̸h̵i̸t̵ ̵t̸h̷e̵ ̵f̸l̵o̸o̸r̸,̶ ̸l̴e̶t̴ ̸t̷h̸e̸ ̶b̷o̵d̵i̷e̶s̷ ̴h̴i̴t̵ ̷t̷h̸e̵-̷-̴"̸

She sucked in a breath, as if she were about to let out a scream, but clapped her wings together once more, before leaping out of the tree to soar around the area, allowing her voice to carry.

"̷N̶E̵V̷E̴R̶ ̸G̵O̷N̷N̸A̵ ̶G̶I̶V̶E̷ ̷Y̷O̵U̷ ̴U̸P̸.̵ ̸N̴E̶V̴E̵R̵ ̶G̵O̵N̶N̵A̴ ̶L̴E̶T̶ ̷Y̷O̸U̸ ̴D̸O̵W̵N̷.̸ ̶N̶E̶V̷E̷R̵ ̴G̷O̶N̸N̷A̵ ̷R̶U̷N̶ ̵A̵R̵R̶O̷O̷O̸O̵U̴N̵N̵N̵D̷D̴ ̶A̶A̵A̶A̵A̸N̶D̸ ̷D̸E̴S̷E̸R̵R̶R̶T̸ ̴Y̵O̸O̶U̸U̸U̴U̸U̵!̷"̸

As she rounded off the last word, she landed closer to the root that Irene had been sitting on, but still made a conscious effort to try to keep herself mostly out of view.

"̴S̴e̵r̷i̵o̸u̸s̸l̴y̸ ̶t̶h̵o̴u̷g̴h̸,̸ ̶w̸h̷y̷ ̸t̷h̴e̶ ̴f̴u̷c̵k̶ ̷i̷s̶ ̷e̸v̶e̶r̸y̸o̷n̸e̶ ̴t̷a̸l̴k̴i̴n̶g̴ ̸s̴o̷ ̵m̵u̸c̸h̵ ̷a̵b̶o̷u̸t̷ ̵b̴o̴d̶i̸e̷s̶?̷ ̷W̶e̸ ̴n̸e̷e̶d̶ ̶t̴o̶ ̸a̷s̸k̵ ̵t̴h̶i̶s̵ ̵b̷i̶t̵c̸h̵ ̸w̵h̴a̵t̵ ̴s̸h̶e̴'̵s̷ ̷d̷o̵i̶n̴g̶ ̷o̵u̶t̷ ̴h̴e̶r̷e̵.̷"̷

 

[Dragonfree]

"̷L̴e̷t̶ ̸t̴h̶e̸ ̵b̶o̵d̶i̴e̵s̸ ̶h̷i̵t̸ ̴t̶h̴e̴ ̶f̶l̸o̷o̶r̶,̵ ̵l̸e̵t̶ ̵t̶h̵e̴ ̷b̸o̵d̸i̵e̵s̶ ̵h̷i̷t̴ ̴t̸h̷e̸ ̵f̸l̶o̶o̴r̵,̶ ̶l̶e̴t̴ ̸t̵h̶e̴ ̴b̴o̴d̴i̶e̸s̸ ̸h̵i̸t̵ ̵t̸h̷e̵ ̵f̸l̵o̸o̸r̸,̶ ̸l̴e̶t̴ ̸t̷h̸e̸ ̶b̷o̵d̵i̷e̶s̷ ̴h̴i̴t̵ ̷t̷h̸e̵-̷-̴"̸

Spirit growled up at the bizarre bat Pokémon, as if seriously considering whether to Curse it into oblivion, but May squeezed at her fur and she turned reluctantly back to watch the trainer and Roserade.

 

[Panoramic_Vacuum]

<incoherent delcatty screeching being passed off for singing>

"̴S̴e̵r̷i̵o̸u̸s̸l̴y̸ ̶t̶h̵o̴u̷g̴h̸,̸ ̶w̸h̷y̷ ̸t̷h̴e̶ ̴f̴u̷c̵k̶ ̷i̷s̶ ̷e̸v̶e̶r̸y̸o̷n̸e̶ ̴t̷a̸l̴k̴i̴n̶g̴ ̸s̴o̷ ̵m̵u̸c̸h̵ ̷a̵b̶o̷u̸t̷ ̵b̴o̴d̶i̸e̷s̶?̷ ̷W̶e̸ ̴n̸e̷e̶d̶ ̶t̴o̶ ̸a̷s̸k̵ ̵t̴h̶i̶s̵ ̵b̷i̶t̵c̸h̵ ̸w̵h̴a̵t̵ ̴s̸h̶e̴'̵s̷ ̷d̷o̵i̶n̴g̶ ̷o̵u̶t̷ ̴h̴e̶r̷e̵.̷"̷

Steven didn't know how to throttle a shadow doppelganger, but he sure as hell wanted to right about now. He didn't even see the damn creature here, so where was that voice coming from?


Aggron watched as the little bat thing flitted around the clearing and landed somewhere near the suspicious woman. He could have sworn he heard it making some kind of not-very-bat-like noises... What on earth was that thing anyway?

Luckily, Wallace was able to reign in his anger so he couldn't snap at the bat demon... now if only he could reign in his anxiety.

"Let's not use such crass language on this woman. For all we know, she's innocent." Wallace began to approach Irene, clutching Gen tightly to keep him safe. He picked up a stick for some form of protection. "Now, what's going on? Did you hear or see anything?"

Gods, what a relief that someone was being sensible. Steven could have hugged Wallace right then. He took a steadying breath and tried to keep his cool, hoping they hadn't totally botched any chance at getting useful information from this trainer.

 

[Sinderella]

Yes, yes. She could feel the wrath and aggravation wafting through the area. The swamp was practically full of it now. It was glorious. She stifled an airy giggle into her hand as her eyes darted back and forth between the humans.

She sincerely doubted Odette and Enora were having NEARLY as good of a time as she was right now.

 

[Sinderella]

"How about you... take a few deep breaths and count to ten???"

"̶H̸o̴w̵ ̷a̸b̴o̶u̶t̷ ̷y̸o̴u̴ ̷t̵a̷k̶e̶ ̶a̷ ̴f̵e̸w̵ ̷b̵r̵e̶a̵t̴h̵s̶ ̶a̸n̶d̶ ̶b̷u̸s̵t̵ ̶o̴u̶t̸ ̴o̵f̶ ̷t̸h̶a̸t̵ ̶s̸u̷i̵t̸?̵ ̴H̶o̸w̴ ̵a̵r̷e̷ ̴y̶o̶u̴ ̶f̶u̴c̶k̶i̶n̶g̵ ̴b̷r̴e̸a̸t̴h̴i̵n̷g̶ ̵i̵n̵ ̵t̷h̶a̵t̷?̴"̸

 

[Sinderella]

Wait you meant the collar, didn't you."

Odile blinked. Was this guy okay?

"̶I̶'̴m̴ ̷s̷o̷r̸r̶y̴,̷"̵ ̴she said stupidly. "̵I̴'̸m̴ ̴W̴r̷a̵t̵h̷,̸ ̸n̶o̴t̷ ̶L̴u̶s̷t̴.̴"̷

 

[Flyg0n]

Irene stared between the assembled trainers, hand now clenched around her second pokeball and her other fist squeezed into a fist. At first they'd started asking questions but now that freaky Swoobat and Walter or whatever the gym leaders name was seemed to be getting into it and Steven just seemed so done with it all, along with the girl and her accesorized Ninetales. And... well she had no idea how an Oshawott learned to speak human but whatever.

"By the legends, you're all nuts," she muttered, mostly to herself. "Like I said, I was just walking, okay? I heard a scream but I don't want to stick my nose into things, so I high-tailed it away." She folded her arms, her Roserade micmiking the movement. She glanced nervously behind her, as if anxious to leave. "That's it, okay. Just a scream. Can I go?"

Mind Reader is still active! Something is off! Irene appears to know more. But she seems like she doesn't want to talk... Can she be persuaded to open up? Tread carefully....