RPG Pokemon: Serpentizor Reborn [PG-VLS]

[Solo Tremaine]

Reports were everywhere. Humans sat glued to their television screens, hungry for more information over the sinister events unfolding at Navel Island. The rash of disappearances clawed at their minds, and the images on the screens clawed at their eyes. This was the realisation of an ancient revenge. The fear had always been there- people glossed over it with superficial victories and advances in technology. But now, everything was due to change...

* * *

[COLOR=#503F86]Rukario bounded across the tree branches with all the energy he could muster; he'd been travelling all night to try and reach the Guardian's Council Room after the massive psychic signal yesterday evening. It was so huge, so urgent... something must be deadly wrong. Even the stories he'd heard of other ancient beings been released somewhere on the planet, none of them sounded like they required this severe a calling.

He leapt past a nest of Scythers and dropped to the forest floor; the forested mountain peak between Lavaridge and Verdanturf harboured the Guardians' meeting place where all emergency councils met. He could see the shallow cave opening up ahead.

Suddenly, six muscular Sandslashes erupted form the ground ahead of him; he skidded to a halt inches from the nose of the leader, who gave him an irate stare.

"Who goes there?" it barked.

"Rukario, Guardian Hoenn Scout. I heard the call yesterday," he spluttered, trying to regain enough breath and composure to sound authoritative.

"Fine," the Sandslash growled. "Get in there quick."

The six sand-digging creatures leapt back into the ground and covered their tracks with perfect skill; it was as if the ground hadn't even been broken. Taking deep breaths, Rukario hauled himself up the mountainside and jumped into the cave.[/COLOR]

[Kei]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Artemis sat going over last minute preparations for her mission to the Orange Islands. Going over a checklist aloud, she thought about the events that occured not a half-hour ago.

[center]***[/center]

Standing in Giovanni's office always made Artemis slightly uneasy. With the Venician blinds always drawn letting in slivers of light in the predominantly dark room, it always gave off the feel of the place only the most crooked of crooks would want to stick around. Although most that knew what Giovanni was really about may have considered him just that, the people that knew him as nothing more than a suave businessman couldn't imagine such a thing.

Rigid in the middle of the room with his dark brown eyes locked on her, it took all her willpower not to jump when his beloved Persian began sniffing around her and nuzzling her leg, eventually making its way back to its master to sit lazily beside him. They both seemed to be smiling as he began.

"You have no idea why I've called you here, do you?"

"No, sir."

"I've heard a lot about you, Artemis."

"I see, sir."

"Are you wondering if they're good or bad? Be honest."

"...Yes, sir."

Giovanni's smile widened as he folded his hand in front of him and leaned back in his chair.

"You shouldn't. I've heard almost nothing but good things about you. One of our best agents, I hear from some."

Inwardly, Artemis' heart leapt at the compliment. Outwardly, however, she only allowed herself a short nod of appreciation.

"That's why I called you; I need someone good for this mission."

"Mission, sir?"

"Yes. I'm sure you're aware of the state of the world at the moment."

"Yes, sir."

"One of our research teams in the Orange Islands, the only one that we haven't lost contact with in the region, has reported that they might have found something important regarding the case. You are to go there, find out what it is, and act accordingly after reporting back."

"Of course, sir."

"Another thing. You'll be working with another agent."

Artemis cursed herself silently after she let herself twitch visibly.

"Don't work well with others?"

"It's not that, sir. I just...prefer to work alone."

"Hn. I see. Well, you don't really have a choice this time, as this is something that can't be screwed up. Better to have two people going at it in case one can't go on."

"Of course, sir. I understand."

"Good. You and your partner's transportation will be leaving in an hour. Go prepare."

"Yes, sir."

With a short salute, Artemis left the office, many a thought running through her mind. Why on Earth send her? She wasn't a bad agent, but she wasn't the best, either. Something of this calibur seemed like it should go to a more advanced agent, but she wasn't one to disagree with the boss. She liked living.

But more importantly, what exactly was it that was going on? Reports were coming in about Pokémon disappearing from various locations worldwide and for once, the Rockets weren't responsible.

"What's going on and why...That's what needs to be found out," Artemis said to herself as she turned into her quarters. "Hopefully, the research team can give us some idea..."

[center]***[/center]

Artemis attached both her PokéBalls to her belt and slung a small backpack over her right shoulder, completely prepared to go. As she left, she began to wonder who it was that she'd be partnered with and silently hoped they wouldn't make things any more difficult than they had to be.[/color][/size]

[Sakura]

[color=Navy]Lugia was deep beneath the oceans around the Orange Islands, she was curled up, her head tucked toward her belly. Then it hit her, it was an extremely strong psychic signal, and it was urgent. Her eyes sprung open and she lifted her head, spreading her wings as she stretched out of the curled position. Lugia pushed hard with her wings and propelled herself out of the water, calling loudly as she broke the surface.

Lugia's eyes glowed as she replied to the signal, alerting them that she was on her way there. With a few powerful beats of her wings she took off, streaking over the oceans and islands that she watched over. Her role as Guardian of the Seas would have to wait a while, because her role as a [i]Guardian [/i]was more important.

The winds that blew across the oceans helped her because she didn't have to use as much energy, surfing the currents, only flapping once in a while to keep herself aloft.

It didn't take her long before she reached the forest surrounded mountain. As the forest gave way for the mountain, Lugia swooped down close to the ground, slowing down. She stopped and hovered as six Sandslash guards burst from the ground.

[b]"Who goes there?" [/b]the leader demanded.

[b]"Lugia, Guardian of the Seas." [/b]she replied calmly. [b]"I recieved a psychic call earlier this evening."[/b]

[b]"Enter." [/b]he nodded, they all returned to the ground, awaiting anyone else that would be coming.

Lugia flew close to the ground slowly as she entered the cave entrance that led up to the Council Room. She entered and took her place, she greeted whoever else was there, especially the Alakazam who led the Council. Lugia waited patiently for the rest of the Council to arrive so they could start the discussion and find out exactly what was wrong and why the strong signal was sent out.
[/color]

[KKC]

[size=1][color=orange]Jolteon stood in the grand counsil hall of the gardians, he had come yesterday to recieve his assignment sense he was the newest gardian, but when he arrived he had been told that something terrible had happened and an emergency meeting was being held, his assignment would be given to him after the meeting. Jolteon's ears twitched back and forth, pricking up by the slightest sound in the large chamber where the meeting was to be held. Many gardians had arrived and were whispering to on another about what had happened to cause an emergency meeting.

Jolteon turned when he heard foot steps coming from the cave entrance, it was Rukario, the Gardian Hoenn Scout. Rukario was one of the few gardians Jolteon knew well and befriended him before his exam test to be accepted as a gardian. He ran over to where Jolteon stood after seeing him and started to catch his breath, he had probably been running to get here ever sense the call has been sent out.

"Hey, do you have any idea what's going on?" Jolteon asked. He had asked the eldest gardians before the call was sent out, but they told him it would be addressed when everyone arrived.

Rukario shook his head and panted, "Not. Sure. It must be something very bad though." He explained glancing at all the gardians who were crowded into the chamber. Jolteon nodded in a agreement. He hadn't been a gardian very long, but even he knew that a meeting of all the gardians was rare.[/size][/color]

[Raze_3103]

Issac stepped off the boat and looked around. He took a deep breath and slowly let it out. He grabbed his pokeball and tossed it in front of him. In a blast of light, his ninetails jumped out and let out a call of its own.

"Sorry about having to keep you in there. The ferry captian would not let you roam around the ship." He patted the ninetails on the head as they began their trip around Orange Islands.

"Hey, you want to take a little practice battle?" A young girl was holding a pokeball, ready to battle.

"WEll, I guess so. A two on two sound good? I need a little warming up before I go around the island.

"Two on two sounds good. Go pikachu!" She threw her pokeball, as a small yellow pikachu jumped out and yelled out its warcry.

"Ok, lets give her a little show ninetails." Issac said as ninetails jumped forward.

"Ninetails, give it a little flamethrower!" Issac yelled as the pokemo did what he said, almost hitting the small pokemon.

"Good dodge chuey. Thunderbolt!" The girl yelled, as the small rodent pokemon hit ninetails.

"Its ok, give it a big fireblast." The ninetails sent a giant balst of flame, hitting the pikachu, knocking it out.

"Ok, lets see your next pokemon." Issac smiled as the girl called her pikachu back.

[JJ]

[Color=DarkBlue]Van stood in the middle of his room. He had just gotten back from talking with the Boss, Giovanni. His words were still fresh on his mind, but now, he had a bigger problem. He had lost his camera. His room, which was neat, had now become a war zone of clothing, books, and CDs. Banette floated through the piles, but she found nothing.

?Oh man, how could I have lost it?? Van asked aloud.

?Very easily.? Van muttered to himself.

Van continued rummaging through a drawer, and finally gave a yelp, shocking Banette. He pulled out the slim camera, and smiled. ?I knew it?d end up in one of my pant?s pocket.?

Banette seemed to shake her head, and Van called her back into her ball. It was time for him to get going, but he played through his conversation with Giovanni one last time as he cleaned everything up.

[I]?So, Van, it?s that time again.? Giovanni said, bringing his body into the light. ?You?re going a mission to the Orange Islands. You know what?s been going on down there, I assume..?

?Yes sir.? Van said, keeping his posture straight.

?Good, our last research team down there said that they found something interesting. I?m sending you and another out to investigate.? Giovanni said, sitting back.

?Sir, I don?t need a partner, a simple investigation?? Van started, but he was quickly cut off.

?You may be one of the best, but I want this to go smoothly, very smoothly.? Giovanni said.

?Sir, are you trying to imply something?? Van asked.

?Yes, I don?t want anyone screwing this up. You included Mr. de Brough.? Giovanni replied. ?Your transport leaves in two hours. Go get ready. Your partner will meet you in the hangar.?

?Yes sir.? Van said, turning around and walking out the door.[/I]

Van nodded at the neatness, and picked up his last item, a black bandana He tied it onto his head and it pulled his hair out of his face. ?Time to go.?

Van walked out of the apartment and sighed. His partner wasn?t anyone he knew, so he wasn?t sure what to expect. He walked through the hall, and stopped at the elevator. ?Why walk when I can be lazy??

He was surprised at how fast the elevator came, and he got in. Riding it up a couple of floors, he got off, and was immediately blasted by the sound of a plane taking off.

He scanned the hangar, and spotted a female standing around, looking annoyed. ?That must be her.?

Van walked over, and tried to start a conversation. ?So, you off to the Orange Islands? I?m not sure we could get there in a plane if you?re the one I?m looking for.?

Van hoped silently for a response of the non sarcastic kind.[/color]

[GuyYouMetOnline]

Katrina stepped off the ship and on to the island. She'd forgotten the name of the island, but it was the closet one to Navel Island. Because of recent events, as well as the current conditions around the island, not many ships were currently stopping at Navel, so she hadn't been able to get there by boat. She'd need another way. Fortunatly, she had one.

Katrina'd often been called obsessive. It wasn't true, but she understood how it could seem that way. The best trainers had to spend a lot of time and energy on it. And she was among the best. She'd won the Pokemon Leauge Championship tournament three years ago, and again last year. She was currently training for this year's tournament. That was one reason she was in the Orange Islands. She was there to train. As an area she was unfammiliar with, she wouldn't know what to expect, which was good.

The other reason for Katrina's presence in the Orange Islands was the recent dissapearances on Navel Island. She was curious about what was going on. And since nobody seemed to know, the only way she'd know was to go see for herself. Was there danger? Yes. It wouldn't be risk free, but Katrina was willing to take some risks. Besides, it's not like she hadn't taken risks before. Anyone who'd been a trainer for any length of time had been in some danger.

Katrina eeded to get to navel island, but her chances of finding a ship that would stop there were slim. Fortunatly, she had other options. She was close enough to Navel that getting there wouldn't be a problem. Her Charizard could fly her there easily. She grabbed one of her poeballs and released Charizard. She climbed on, and Charizard took off., heading for navel Island.

-------------------------------------

OOC: Weak post, I know, but I didn't exactly have much to work with.

[Kei]

[color=darkblue][size=1]Arriving at the hangar a half-hour before the scheduled departure time, Artemis began scanning the small map of the immediate region they would be landing on. A very small island not far from Sunburst would be the intended landing area.

"Sunburst..."

Small memories of times when she was little flashed through Artemis' mind. Getting her first glass Pokémon figure from one the the many shops there stuck out the most. She couldn't even remember which one it was, as she'd forgotten a long time ago. She only remembered the happiness she felt because she was with her father and they were together...

Her memories were interrupted by the voice of another. Getting a quick glance at her watch, she was surprised to find that the half-hour was already gone.

"So, you off to the Orange Islands? I?m not sure we could get there in a plane if you?re the one I?m looking for."

Turning her head slowly to see the orange-haired man whom she guessed to be her teammate, she gazed at him without the slightest hint of emotion.

"There isn't any other way. There is no way of knowing whether or not a Rocket transport Pokémon would disappear in transit, so it wouldn't be the most logical course of action. And a Rocket waterjet ship wouldn't get us there fast enough. At least not for the Boss' liking."

The man's eyes seemed to relax a little, as if he were expecting a different response. Allowing himself a slight smirk, he began walking toward the boarding stairway.

"Hn. I suppose. Name's Van, by the way."

Narrowing her eyes slightly, Artemis followed after, trying to place where she had heard the name before.

"Artemis," she said as she climbed the short flight, taking off her small backpack and placing it in one of the seats she planned on sitting next to.

Taking a seat on the opposite side of the isle, Van sat and immediately turned his head toward the window, obviously not wanting to talk more than he had to.

[i]"That suits me just fine,"[/i] Artemis though with a smile as the plane lurched forward, preparing to take off.[/color][/size]

[Ezekiel]

[SIZE=1][B]OOC-Honestly, I have absolutely no idea what I'm supposed to post. So...yeah, sorry. >>[/B]

Gardevoir was alerted, rather shockingly, of a disturbance early in the morning as he drifted through the settling mist of dawn. His eyes grew wide as the psychic message, obviously being channelled through any Pokemon in the area, swept through his brain.

It was alarming, to say the least, that he had just been informed of horrific events at Navel Island.

The elegant Pokemon lifted one hand to his face and sighed, rubbing the side of his head. It was obvious he?d be needed, a Pokemon with psychic powers as strong as his always would be in these kinds of situations, even if it were only to act as a translator. Best to stay on the fence in these matters, he decided. That way you made sure you didn't wind up dead.

He continued to drift gradually out of his clearing and into the denser part of the forest. He knew the guardians must be gathering now, and for a short moment considered sending something onto them. But there was no need for that. He was neither good nor evil in the Pokemon world, and wanted it to stay that way.

With this in mind he floated our to the edge of the forest, intent on staying hidden for as long as possible until he could make his way to Navel Island, or find a guardian along the way. Once he was out of his forest, people considered him to be a wild Pokemon. When left by himself, he was a target, and getting caught wasn't in his best interest.[/SIZE]

[Raze_3103]

The girl Issac had been battleing tried to decide on which one to use. Finally, she threw her pokeball and yelled the pokemon's name, "Lets win one for the team, go Blastoise!" In a flash of light, a blue blastoise stood in front of Issac.

"So, a water pokemon, and it looks just like it evolved recently." He smiled as the girl had a confused look on her face. "The shell, its still shiny. IT is not as hard as it should be. The shell is still soft." He grabbed another pokeball and looked down at it.

"So, do you plan on useing your ninetails for this fight?" She asked, a little smugly.

"No, come here ninetails." He said it softly as the fox creature walked back to him. He threw the pokeball in his hand and smiled.

"Meet me strongest pokemon after ninetails here, LAtios, come here boy." Issac smiled as the red and white dragon pokemon flew intot he air.

"This blastoise is new, try not to hurt him ok?" Issac asked Latios as it let out a call.

"Don't say things you cannot back up!" The girl yelled as the blastoise sent a couple waterguns at Latios, who dodged them with ease.

"Now, Latios, end it quick, psychic." The dragon pokemon suddenly went still as a blast went at the turtle pokemon, then it froze.

"Now, hyper beam!" Issac yelled as Latios hit it with a giant blast of yellow energy, knocking it out.

"Wow, your a little too strong for me. Try going to Navel island and helping the researchers." The girl called back her pokemon then ran off to the pokemon center.

"Great job you guys. LEts try to get to the island ok?" He looked up into the air and saw anoteher dragon pokemon, this one a Charizard flying off in a direction.

"Ninetails. comeback, Latios, fallow that Charizard." Issac said as he got onto the dragon pokemon and took off after the Charizard.

[Kitty]

[COLOR=#006aaf][SIZE=1]It was a quiet morning. Umbreon rested between the roots of a large tree, underneath a leaf collecting the morning's dew. As the leaf dampened, it was weighed down, and a few drops began to slide off the edge and onto her nose. She twitched as the drops fell on her, before opening her eyes slowly.

She yawned loudly, stretching herself out as she always did. She winced as a sharp pain shot through her back leg. The previous day, she had been attacked by an angry Nuzleaf, and though she could walk fine, her leg still bothered her. She curled up and licked at the wound for a few minutes before suddenly, a powerful psychic signal shot through her mind.

Umbreon let out a yelp, startled by the message's attack on her mind. And then, she realized what it was about. It was undecipherable for her, and that meant only one thing. It was a Guardian's message, which meant her brother would have recieved it.

Leaping up, she began sprinting towards the lights of the town up ahead. She wasn't exactly sure where she was, but she knew she was somewhere above Slateport. The message had come from the north, so she headed in the direction of Mauville.

After ten minutes of sprinting, Umbreon came to a stop to catch her breath just outside of Mauville.

"Hey look'it that!" came a shrill voice.

"You don't see one of them around here that often," a deeper voice replied. Suddenly, she realized the voices were talking about her. She began to back up, still panting hard.

"Quick, weaken it so it doesn't get away!" the deep voice continued, coming closer. Within seconds, she could see the sources of the two voices coming towards her. One was a large, tall man, and the other was a short young girl. "I know, I know!" the young girl shouted angrily. She grabbed a ball of her belt and was about to throw it when Umbreon panicked.

Leaping up from her crouched position, she knocked the girl down and landed on her before bounding off again, wanting to get away from the loud noises still coming from the big man and small girl. Umbreon leapt through the town, jumping between random people walking through the streets to crawling under fences to get out of the town.

She stopped just on the east side of Mauville to take another breather. The loud shouts and cries from the people in town were still reaching her sensitive ears, and she wondered if she would ever get away from the noise. And then, a Gardevoir glided past. She was going to stay out of the way when she spotted an unusual mark.

"Um.. Excuse me!" Umbreon called out. The elegant pokemon turned towards her, giving an odd look. "You wouldn't happen to be a Guardian.. would you?" She didn't know whether the Gardevoir would even bother acknowledging her, but she figured it was better to try than just let another lead slip away in the search for her brother.

--
OOC: Sorry for taking so long to post. Been busy with a lot of stuff, and have a lot to catch up on. ~.~;[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[GuyYouMetOnline]

OOC: You sure you're allowed to have Latios? People usually aren't allowed to have legendaries in these RPGs. Well, not my decision, I guess.

--------------------------------------------

Katrina didn't really have anything to do while Charizard flew to the island, so she just relaxed. She took a look around, seeing how much of the Orange islands she could see. There were a couple islands she could clearly make out, and a couple more off in the distance, but Katrina couldn't identify them. She was, after all, new to the area.

While looking around, Katrina noticed something behind her and Charizard. It appeared to be following them. Looking carefully, Katrina was able to get a general idea of just what Pokemon it was. She couldn't be certain at this distance, but it looked like either Latias or Latios. Katrina didn't think that was too likely, but then, she knew about a lot of 'unlikely' things, including most of what happened to her brother, Rorohiko. So she wasn't going to rule out the possibility that there was a legendary Pokemon behind her.

Katrina didn't know this Pokemon's intentions, and she wasn't going to make assumptions. She wouldn't initiate any action, but she'd respond to any action taken against her. For the time being, she'd simply work to prevent a psychic Pokemon from accessing her mind. Well, she couldn't really do that. What she could do was prevent it from getting anything useful from her mind.

Many people didn't take psychic powers seriously. Most trainers understood the combat abilities of psychic Pokemon, but even some of them didn't fully grasp the reality of psychic powers. Katrina was not one of them. She'd grown up aroundnot psychic Pokemon, but humans with psychic abilities. She didn't have any herself, nor did her brother or their parents. But her father's sister, Hope, did, as well as Hope's husband Shinobi and their two children. So Katrina was fully aware of the reality of psychic powers, and she knew how to defend against telepathy.

As Katrina had no psychic powers of her own, she could not block other people from her mind, but she could influence what they found. She used a sort of mental smokescreen that was simple in concept, hard to learn, and very effective. What she did was cover her thoughts with a smokescreen of sorts, thoughts that were nothing more than random junk. Repeating a mantra worked very well. Anyone reading her mind would get the smokescreen, but not the thoughts it concealed. It wasn't perfect, but when done correctly, it could be very effective. And Katrina knew how to do it correctly. She began using the technique, just in case her unknown follower tried to enter her mind.

Katrina told Charizard to stay on course for Navel Island,and to fly as fast as he could. In the event that the follower was hostile and attacked, Katrina wanted to be on solid ground. It would be safer for her, and it would allow her flying Pokemon to fight without having to worry about accidentally shakeing her off. And if it was a Latias or Latios that was following her, and if it did attack, she couldn't afford to have any of her Pokemon worrrying about anything other than battle.

[Solo Tremaine]

[COLOR=#503F86]The gathering Pokemon inside the Guardians' Council Room were all talking hushedly amongst themselves; more members were climbing in every second, and all shared grave expressions of worry and confusion. In the centre of the guilded amphitheatre stood the high members of the Council headed by Alakazam, one of the oldest Pokemon in the world.

The elderly creature turned a weary head to the Council members surrounding him.

"This situation is very grave," his voice flowed telepathically to those around him, so as not to disturb the main bulk of the Guardian Agents. "A young Abra sent me word of an ancient artifact being activated in the Orange Islands. It has created widespread panic amongst the humans. All communications have been lost with Navel Island and the sea, air and land around that area have all been deeply disturbed."

"What kind of artifact was it?" a gruff-looking Arcanine shook his head in irritation as he spoke.

"I don't know. I have been talking to the Artifact Keepers around the world, and they believe that the Legion may have tried to unseal his body. We don't know if they have been successful or not."

"Then..." Lugia grimaced. "What should we do?"

"We are going to send out a small party to investigate the island and uncover the events that have taken place. We will then follow with an offensive force if necessary."

The Council members nodded in unison.

Alakazam cleared his throat. "Lugia, I will leave you in charge of bringing together and leading the initial group. I trust your judgement, and your strength will be needed if any of you are to survive long enough to send us a message. Choose carefully; once I have finished telling them of the problem, I will let you make your decision, and then you must leave immediately."

* * *[/COLOR]

Slowly, the black clouds around Navel Island began to dissipate. the seas grew calm and the falling rocks were reduced to trails of dust and sand trickling down the rocky mountain slopes. From afar, the humans watched in fear. The videophones were back online, but no-one was answering...

* * *

[i]"This hasn't worked. Are we still lacking the sacrifices needed to fulfil His blood requirement?"[/i]

"He has been drained for several thousand years. It is possible that he may not-"

[i]"I WILL NOT ACCEPT YOUR PITIFUL EXCUSES!" You are supposed to know everything about these artifacts- why won't it open?[/i]

"Perhaps... the key is not in the blood itself, but in one bearing the blood."

[i]"I don't care for your musings! Do something or become a sacrifice yourself. If you fail, I will make sure you will be alive to see your own dismemberment."[/i]

"I understand."

[GuyYouMetOnline]

Katrina was not afraid as Charizard approached Navel Island. Dark clouds didn't scare her, rough seas were irrelevant when approaching by air, Charizard could handle fierce winds, and she didn't plan to be anywhere near the central mountain and its rockslides. No, the conditions on and around the island wouldn't be any problem. There would be danger, of course, but not from those things.

As if to reinforce this, conditions around Navel Island returned to normal as Charizard approached. And they normalized very rapidly, too rapidly to be natural. Whatever had been creating those conditions seemed to have stopped. But that didn't mean the mystery was gone. There was still the question of what the hell had happened. Besides, someone had to be the first to land on Navel and reestablish contact with the people on the island. Katrina, who'd been heading for Navel anyways, figured that she might as well be that person. But first, there was the matter of her unknown pursuer to take care of.

Charizard reached the shores of Navel and landed. Katrina jumped to the ground and returned Charizard to his pokeball. Taking another look at the pursuer, she confirmed that, yes, it was probably either Latias or Latios. So she released Tyranitar. Tyranitar's Dark type would protect it from any psychic abilities and attacks, and if he went down, there was always Absol to finish the pursuer off. But Katrina didn't want a battle. She was hoping that the pursuer would be friendly or at least neutral, but she would be ready just in case.

[i]All right,[/i] she thought behind the safety of her mental smokescreen, [i]I'm ready for you. Whatever you want, I'm ready for you. Whatever you want with me, come and get it. Hopefully your intentions are peaceful, but if they're not, I'm ready to kick your ass from here to Hoenn. So come on, let's get this over with.[/i]

--------------------------------------------

OOC: Raze_3103, I'd just like to make sure you know that Katrina's not assuming either friendly or hostile intentions on your character's part. She'll fight only if your character attacks first. Oh, and please don't have her misinterpret peaceful intentions as hostile. She's smarter than that.

[Raze_3103]

OCC: No prob, I understand whatcha mean.

IC:

Issac got Latios to circle the charizard as the trainer brought it back into its pokeball. "Alright, now set it down gently, we do not need to get anyone angry right now." He patted the pokemon on its neck as it landed nect to the trainer and her Tyranitar.

"Good job, and thanks for flying me here." Issac said as he got off the pokemon then brought it back into its pokeball. He then slowly turned to the female trainer.

"Uhh, hello there. Its getting pretty strange out here isn't it? I am sorry if I startled you in any way, I just wanted to see if you knew the way to Navel Island, and by the looks of it, you do. Just my luck." He let out a warm smile and laugh as he watched her ease up a little.

"So, you do not wish to fight right? I was hoping you didn't." She let out a sigh of feleif and walked out in front of her pokemon. "My name Katrina, and whats your name?"

He looked arund then back to her, "It's Issac. I am a breeder from a little town. Just came over here because I heard rumors about pokemon going wild, or something like that. What about you? Why are you here?" He pulled out another pokeball and let his ninetails out, then walked over to Tyranitar and patted him on the side, just looking at the condition of it.

[GuyYouMetOnline]

OOC: Okay, I confess to having no clue about the layout or names of the Orange Islands (aside from Shamouti, which lise in the center of the Orange Islands and near the islands of Fire, Ice, and Lightning). So I'm going to try and get by without using names. If someone could at least give me a basic idea of the names and positions of islands near Navel, I'd appreciate it.

----------------------------------------------

"Well," Katrina said, "I'm in the Orange Islands to train for this year's Pokemon Leauge Championships. As to why I'm on Navel Island specifically, well, I want to know just what the hell is going on. And since all contact had been lost with Navel, the only way to find out was to come here."

"Well, we may be too late," Issac remarked. "Whatever it was seems to have stopped."

"Conditions have indeed returned to normal," Katrina agreed. "However, that doesn't necessarily mean that whatever caused it is over. And even if it is, tere's still the mystery of what it was. Plus, it's likely that Navel will still be unable to contact the rest of the world. I'm betting that communications were not blocked, but removed. I'll be very surprised if there's a properly functioning phone left on this island. So somebody has to find the people on Navel. Since the two of us are already here, we might as well do it. Besides, one of them might know what happened."

"Makes sense to me," Issac said. "Where should we start?"

"Pokemon Centers and Gyms are common gathering points during deadly or potentailly deadly events," Katrina replied. "We should check those first. I don't suppose you know where to find them on this island? Because I have no idea."

"Neither do I," Issac told her. "Let's just check the first one we come across."

"Good enough for me." Katrina returned Tyranitar and released Charizard. She climbed onto Charizard's back as Issac got on Latios's back. The two Pokemon took off and flew across the island, looking for a Gym or Pokemon Center. Though Katrina believed that Issac was telling the truth, she still kept her mental smokescreen up. After all, one could never be sure. Besides, there was no telling what they'd find. There may very well have been psychics involved in whatever it was that had happened, and Katrina didn't want to risk allowing unfriendly humans or Pokemon to read her mind.

It wasn't long before Katrina and Issac found the Navel Island Gym. After flying around it and seeing that there was nobody outside the Gym, Charizard and Latios landed. Katrina and Issac jumped to the ground and returned their Pokemon. Katrina released Tyranitar just in case there were any nasty surprises, then entered the Gym behind her Pokemon. Issac followed her in.

The first oddity was immediatly noticable. "There's nobody here," Issac observed.

"Nobody in the main part of the Gym," Katrina agreed. "There may be someone in the back. You go take a look. I'll check out the status of communications." She indicated a pair of videophones she'd just spotted. Issac nodded his agreement and headed to the rear area of the Gym. Katrina walked over to the phones.

The first phone was completly inoperable. The second one, however, was in perfect condition, and 'incoming call' was flashing on the screed. Katrina pushed the 'answer' button, and the face of a man she did not recognise appeared on the screen.

"Someone is alive!" the man exclaimed. "We were beginning to wonder. What happened over there?"

"I wish I knew," Katrina replied. "I just got here. I don't know any more than you. I came to the gym in the hope that someone here would know. After all, gyms are common gathering points during dangerous or potentially dangerous events. But so far there's been no sign of anyone. The whole place is deserted. No signs of life anywhere."

The man drew the wrong conclusion. "They're all dead?!"

"No, not dead. At least, there are no bodies. But there's nobody here. Issac, a breeder who followed me to Navel, is checking the back rooms, but I doubt he'll find anyone."

"Any damage to the building?" the man asked.

"No, no damage to the building. No signs of a struggle, either. It's as though everyone just vanished."

"Do you know anything about the status of the rest of the island?"

"No," Katrina told the man. "Issac and I came straight here after arriving on Navel. We don't now anything about the rest of the island."

At that moment, Issac came walking into the main room. "Found someone!" And he had. He was half-carrying a man who looked, well, not exactly in peak condition. Katrina waved Issac over, and he brought the man to the phone.

"I found him in the back," Issac said. "I don't think he needs immediate medical attention, but he's definitely injured. He doesn't have mental clarity, either. He was babbling when I found him, though he's quieted down now."

"Did you try a psychic scan?" Katrina asked.

Issac nodded. "Yeah. My Pokemon," he said, meaning Latios, though the man on the other end of the phone connection didn't know that, "scanned this guy's mind and couldn't make out anything coherent. He's definitely still alive, though. And he's the only person I found. No other survivors, and no bodies. No signs of a struggle, either."

"Then what hapened?" the man wondered. "Well, bring the survivor here and we'll see if we can do anything for him."

"Where are you?" Katrina asked. "And don't name the island, please. That wouldn't tell me anything. I'm new to the area. Show me on a map, please."

It took a minute for the man to find a map. When he did, Katrina compared the island he indicated with her own map, and realized that it was the one she'd taken the ship to. "Okay, I've got the island," she said. "Where on it are you?"

"At the Pokemon Center," the man replied.

"Got it." Katrina pushed the 'end call' button, then turned to Issac, who was still holding the survivor. "Do you think you can get him back on your own? I'd like to take a look around the rest of the island."

Issac nodded. "Sure." He stepped outside and released Latios. Katrina helped him get the survivor on Latios's back. Iissac then climbed on himself, and Latios took off, heading for the island from which they'd come.

Katrina watched them go, then returned Tyranitar and released Charizard. She climbed on Charizard's back. "Let's take a look around the rest of the island," she said. "Take off and fly over it. We'll land if there's anthng worth checking out." Charizard nodded and took off.

-----------------------------------------

OOC: Hope I did that right, Solo. PM me if you need me to make any changes.

[JJ]

[Color=DarkSlateGrey]?Great, at least she has some sense of humor.? Van thought as the plane thrust him into the back of his seat.

Van hadn?t really thought about the mission too much, but a sense of worry began to creep over him. If there was something that important in the clouded over area of the Orange Island that the boss needed to send two people, then he had a good reason to worry.

Of course, he figured that Artemis was one of the best, so he didn?t think there was a problem there, but what could be so important? An artifact really wasn?t enough to go, but Van figured there was something stuck back there that the Boss wasn?t telling him.

As Van turned away from the window, he noticed Artemis stretching out to sleep. He wanted to try to talk to her, but he didn?t want to force anything. ?Now?s as good as any time, I suppose.?

Van unbuckled himself and scooted over a seat. He cleared his throat and said, ?So what do you think we?re going after??

?I have no idea. The Boss told me that it was some kind of artifact, and nothing more.? Artemis said, coyly looking at Van.

?Same here, it?s got to be something interesting, but at the same time, I think we?re walking into something dangerous.? Van said, smiling.

?Get off on danger I suppose.? Artemis said.

?Hey, if you can?t get off of the work, might as well reap the benefits.? Van said.

?Yeah, look, do you have any plan as to what exactly we?re going to do?? Artemis asked.

?Get off the plane, find the lab, find the artifact, grab it, and leave.? Van said dryly.

[I]?If looks could kill, the one she?s giving me would be the perfect weapon for Team Rocket.? Van thought.[/I]

?I meant do you have any backup plans and the like.? Artemis said.

?Nope, I was hoping you would.? Van said, relaxing in his chair.

Artemis sighed.

[I]?This should be interesting.? Van thought, smiling.[/I][/color]

[Kei]

[color=darkblue][size=1][i]"Hn. Obviously not a thinker,"[/i] Artemis thought to herself as she shot her partner a sideways glance. Beginning to rub her temples lightly, she started fingering the PokeBalls at her belt, debating whether to bring out Houndoom to formulate a plan to immediately "become seperated" from Van upon arrival. Thinking about what Giovanni would do if such a thing were to happen, she immediately disregarded any previous thoughts she had.

Sighing audibly, Artemis looked up to make sure it was safe to get up from her seat. Seeing that the belt light was off, she rose and began pacing the aisles, one of her few tell-tale signs of slight worry and deep thought. Unfortunately, it didn't go unnoticed by Van.

"What're you pacing for?"

"I'm thinking."

"Coming up with a plan?"

"Of course. Since it doesn't seem lke you will."

"What's the matter? Not confident in your abilities?" A coy smile played across Van's face. Artemis stopped dead, shooting an icy glare over her shoulder.

"I like to cover all my bases. It would behoove you to do the same, since I won't be saving you if you manage to get yourself into something you can't handle."

"Hey, we're a team, you know."

"Teamwork is for the weak."

"So you're supposed to be strong? Then why'd the Boss team you up with me, eh?"

Narrowing her eyes slightly, Artemis had no way to counter his words. Though she had only said what she did to make Van let her be, she now couldn't help but wonder what the real reason was behind Giovanni sending the both of them out. If an artifact was the only thing that they needed to find, one of the more elite members would have sufficed. Although, wit all the recent happenings, it's not doubt that some of them were out taking advantage of the mass panic worldwide for Team Rocket's gain. Still, one had to wonder...

"Well?" Van said, turned around his seat to face the steely-eyed woman.

"...Hn." Artemis continued on her way down the aisle, finally turning into the restroom, the one place she knew she could get some privacy. She heard some mumbling after she had shut the door, but didn't bother to make something of it, as the last thing they needed at the moment was a Pokemon battle 10,000 feet in the air that resulted in them being 10,000 feet below sea level.

"This is going to be a long mission..."[/size][/color]

[GuyYouMetOnline]

As Charizard flew over Navel Island, Katrina kept her eyes open. After all, she was in a potentially dangerous area, and she didn't want to be taken by surprise. So she remained on alert as Charizard flew.

It wasn't long before Katrina spotted what looked like a lab of some kind. "Let's take a look at at that lab," she said to Charizard.

Charizard landed, and Katrina jumped to the ground. She returned Charizard and released Tyranitar again, just in case. She followed Tyranitar into the lab. What she saw was a bit startling, despite the fact that she'd kind of expected it. Just like the gym, the lab was completely empty.

Katrina conducted a thurough search of the lab, but didn't find anyone. Just like at the gym, there were no people or Pokemon, alive or dead, and there were no signs of a struggle. Katrina just couldn't figure out what was going on. So far, the only person she'd found on the island had been that man in the gym. Aside from him, the island seemed completely deserted.

Katrina returned to the entrance of the lab and noticed that one of the phones had an incomming call. Katrina pushed the 'answer' button, and a man's face appeared on the screen. Katrina recognised him as the same man she'd spoken to in the gym. "Hello," she said.

The man was a bit startled. "You again? I thought you were bringing thay guy from the gym here."

"Issac's on his way with the survivor," Katrina told the man. "I decided to stay and take a look around the rest of the island."

"Have you found anything?" the man asked.

"No," Katrina replied. "This lab is just like the gym, only without the survivor. There's nobody here, and no bodies, and no signs of a struggle. Everyone's just gone."

"And there's no clue as to what happened?"

"Not that I've found," Katrina said. "I think my next move'll be to examine the lab's computers and records and see if there's anything there that might point to an answer. I'll call you back when I'm done. Pokemon Center, right?"

The man nodded. "Correct. I may not be the one to answer, though. Just ask for Sako; that's my name."

"All right. I'm Katrina, by the way."

"Katrina. Got it. Good luck over there."

"Thanks," Katrina replied. "I'll call when I'm done with my search." Katrina pushed the 'end call' button.

Katrina walked into what seemed to be one of the main rooms of the lab and took a seat at a computer. With Tyranitar standing guard, Katrina began to search through the electronic records and computer database of the lab, looking for any clues about whatever had hapened on Navel Island.

-------------------------------------------------------------------

OOC: Lady Katana and ^.^, you can have your characters encounter Katrina if you want to. In fact, I'd like an encounter. A battle would liven this RPG up a bit. Oh, and don't be afraid to have your characters double-team her. She'll just use two Pokemon while your characters use one each. Just be sure to remember how good a trainer she is (she's been Pokemon Leauge Champion twice, remember).