Fandom Pokémon || Team Nova [OPEN]

[OverconfidentMagi]

Spoiler: Music

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TEAM NOVA



Press Start​

Hello. Welcome to the world of pokémon. I am ████████. People call me ███████████████████████████████████. This world is inhabited by creatures called pokémon. For some people, pokémon are pets. Others use them for fights. I wonder... what will they become to you?

 

[OverconfidentMagi]

​

The man shielded his eyes to look up. There was something dark falling from the sky, but the sun was too bright to tell what it was. It grew as it got closer, until he could almost make out its shape. Was that a- A blinding flash of toxic orange light filled the stadium.

Blue's heart was racing as his eyes flew open. It was the same dream, the same one from every night. He got out of bed and walked to the window for some fresh air. It was the middle of the night, so there weren't many lights on down below. The stars up in the sky were shining brightly. He shivered from the cool night air of the desert.

Is everything alright?

"It was just a dream. You should really get some sleep yourself."

I will remain awake.

He returned to the bed. "Suit yourself," he muttered into the dark room as he lay back down. If tonight was like the other nights, he doubted he'd get much sleep.

Episode 1 : An Unfair War​

3 Weeks Ago

"Sir, the target has just moved outside of the city. What are your orders?" The Nova soldier continued watching the target's movement away from the city as he waited for an update. The voice on the other end of the communicator was silent. It was hard to tell if he was even still there. But he did receive an answer eventually.

"Your men are not to engage the target themselves. An Admin will be dispatched to deal with this. You are to observe from a distance and surround the target once he's distracted. Should the Admin fail, have your men open fire on the target."

"Yes sir."


When he was far enough from the city that it was unlikely anyone would be watching him he let Rara out of her pokeball. He kept the Gardevoir out whenever he could. It was just good practice. If he was attacked she would sense it coming first and teleport him away. "Sorry for keeping you in your pokeball for so long Rara, I was stuck in that city longer than I'd hoped. Nova grunts everywhere. I must be something impressive to have not been spotted." He stopped when he realized Rara wasn't walking beside him. "Rara?" He turned to see her still standing exactly where she'd materialized out of her pokeball. But something was wrong. She was looking towards him with a pained look on her face but otherwise she was completely motionless.

"Ruby of the Pokemon League?"

The person who'd addressed him walked out from between the trees. So this was why Rara looked so scared. The person was wearing the telltale white Team Nova uniform, but it was the exploding star symbol on the jacket that really mattered. The detail and amount of points of the star indicated the wearer's rank. This one was a Team Nova Admin's jacket, making the one wearing it an Admin. Two others were with him. One was a Gardevoir, eyes glowing red as it kept Rara from moving. Disable? No, Imprison was the most likely bet. So long as that Gardevoir was around he wouldn't be able to make a clean escape. The other one was a person, a woman with bright pink hair. If that was who he thought it was, then he was definitely in trouble. This could be very bad.

"Hehe, Rayne ole buddy ole pal! I don't suppose you'll let me off with just a warning this time? What if I told you it was my birthday? Oh I know, I'll give you this great coupon I happened to get. It'll get you an insane 100% discount on a Miracle Cycle bicycle. Free! It's the truth I swear!"

Jay stared coldly at the person before him. "Send out the rest of your pokemon. Good battles are so hard to find nowadays. I don't want this opportunity to go to waste."


Present

Blue sat at his desk sipping his morning tea while reading over the latest wave of reports. He really wished he was drinking coffee, but according to some people around him he'd started to develop an addiction. Now that he'd forced himself to stop drinking coffee he had to agree with them. He really wanted that mug to magically fill with coffee between sips.

His communicator rang. Never a moment of rest. Wait, this was coming in on his personal communicator. Only a handful of people were able to contact him directly without being checked by the League's own communication monitoring, and the only one of those people that would do so without a good reason was Green. But the number displaying didn't belong to her. It was coming from house Berlitz. Platinum. He answered the call.

"What's the situation Plats?"

The voice on the other end did not belong to Platinum. Apologies Sir Oak, I am not Lady Platinum. I am merely her butler.

"Sebastian, right?"

Yes sir. I apologize for contacting you like this. The Lady had told me how to contact you directly should something ever happen to her.

Blue grew cold. "Sebastian. What. Happened. To Platinum." At some instant since he'd last blinked Mewtwo had teleported into the room, likely in response to Blue's sudden shift in mood.

Nothing yet I don't think, but I fear she's put herself in too much danger this time. Tell me truthfully, did you approve a mission for Lady Birch to infiltrate Goldenrod City?

Everything clicked together. "No. I did not." Sapphire had begged him to rescue Ruby, but he simply couldn't put that many people in danger for one person, even if it was a friend. He'd been forced to tell her to stand down. So she'd gone to Platinum. The two were good friends, it made sense. Platinum was strong, probably as strong as him or Green at least, but she was also reckless enough to risk everything to help a friend. Why hadn't he considered any of this before? Sapphire loved Ruby, of course she would do anything to get him back from Nova. Arceus, he'd been so stupid. "Sebastian, do you know where they are right now?"

The butler hesitated. Lady Platinum is in Olivine City at the moment.

Blue took a mental note that Platinum's butler had his own way of tracking her whereabouts. "Do you have any other information that could help me help them?"

Only that when they left there were two others with them. I didn't recognize either though and they never gave their names.

So it wasn't just Sapphire and Platinum then. Blue wasn't sure if he should be relieved that they weren't taking on Nova as just the two of them, or angry that they'd involved others in what was likely to be the same as handing themselves over to Nova. "Thank you for telling me about this, Sebastian. Platinum needs others to keep herself in check. You've done your part, now I'll do everything in my power to get her back to you in one piece. If you think of anything else, anything at all, don't hesitate to contact me."

The butler's voice sounded muffled, like the receiver was further from his mouth. Thank you. Thank you sir.

When the call ended the room suddenly felt much emptier than it had a minute ago. Never a moment of rest. He dialed Green's number.

Hey big boss, what's up? You finally man up enough to confess your undying love for me? I will warn you, I've had to shoot down three, no five, guys already today, so your odds aren't good. If I were you I'd consider waiting until I'm in a better mood.

"Green," he ignored all of her usual banter.

What is it? Green's voice had suddenly grown completely serious. She could tell from his tone that this wasn't the time for jokes.

"Sapphire and Plat are in Johto right now."

Why would Plat be in...

"They intend to start a fight with Nova to get Ruby back."

... Arceus, I told her to let me know before she did anything stupid.

"You knew this would happen?"

No shit Blue, what did you think would happen? You told Sapphire you couldn't help save him. Of course she was going to go behind your back and do whatever she could to get him back. We both know that Nova's using Ruby as bait, they do too, but if you seriously expected her to not try and save him despite that, then you're an idiot Blue Oak. He heard her take a breath and reset. Okay, so Sapphire and Platinum are storming Nova HQ. What do you want to do about that?

Blue wasted no time in responding. Green's words, as usual, had put the answer already in his mind. "I'm putting your current assignment on pause. Get to the Unova League and gather as many people as you can that are willing to fight. Make it clear that this mission is voluntary and highly dangerous. Bring all who are willing to go to the Mistralton Airstrip. I'll meet up with you there with a jet ready to take off. As for the attack itself I'll go over the details on the way. Our primary goal will be to locate and protect Platinum and Sapphire. If we are able, locating and recovering Ruby is also a secondary goal. I want to see him safe as much as anyone else, but I stand by that I won't throw away others to maybe save one person."

Green clicked her tongue. Now that's more like it. You should get bossy more often, it suits you. I'll be waiting on the runway before the hour's up. Do not make me wait, or I will leave without you whether I know how to fly the plane or not.

His next call was to Yellow. While he was gone someone needed to watch over the heart of the resistance. The tower was important sure, but it was the city built up by League supporters around it that really needed protecting. If it was left unprotected he had no doubt in his mind that Nova would not hesitate to wipe it all off the map. No survivors and no evidence, the way Nova liked dealing with its problems.

Blue would have liked to not put such a responsibility on Yellow's shoulders, but no one else capable was around right now. Besides, she was the only person that Mewtwo completely trusted aside from Red and himself. She could keep everyone safe even if Nova tried something.

I can do that, no problem-o. Yellow didn't hesitate to accept the duty he was placing on her. Would it be a good idea to have Zinnia keep watch as well?

Blue hadn't even realized Zinnia was back. He was receiving so much information every single day but the things he thought important to know he was neglecting. "Yes, have her watching for any movement from Nova. If they try anything let me know immediately, but if there isn't time I trust your judgement to keep everyone safe."

I won't let anything happen while you're gone, so you just worry about yourself and get him back.

The call ended. "I never said why I was leaving."

Blue spoke to the room, but of course it was Mewtwo who answered. She isn't someone who needs to be told something in order to know it.

"Sorry about not consulting you first, I assume leaving Yellow in charge is acceptable with you?"

I do not like you fighting Team Nova directly without me there, but I also agree that without my presence this location would be vulnerable to attack. The dragon and the blessed child would not be strong enough a defense if that monster used you attacking their base as an opening to strike our own. However, I have sworn to protect you. If you are in peril I will come to drag you away whether you like it or not, regardless of what happens to this place because I leave.

"You do what you need to." Blue finished the last of his tea in one gulp. "Unova, Mistralton." Mewtwo's eyes glowed for an instant and Blue disappeared from the room. Then it too disappeared, teleporting off to wherever Yellow was to be found. It wasn't often it got to spend an entire day with its favorite human.

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Kugasa Karasuna

Nameless cave, Orre​

Arms folded, Kugasa listened the report issued by the spherical drone hovering beside her without a word. Alan’s voice was monotone, almost bored, as he detailed the orders sent directly from Headquarters, though Kugasa detected the hint of worry mixed with excitement in the young man’s tone as well. An attack on Goldenrod? At the current time of day? Without much preparation? Kugasa couldn’t fathom what Blue was thinking. Was he even thinking at all? Ruby captured. Saphire and Platinum going after him. Blue and the resistance going after them. It all smelled like a trap to her. A bad trap, such that it set the kunoichi on edge. However, Kugasa wasn’t one to disobey orders either.

The risk of the leader of the resistance dying was too great given the current circumstances…and losing Saphire as well as Platinum would make things tricky as well.

“Are you going?” Janine’s voice asked behind her. The voluptuous woman also had her arms crossed over her chest.

Kugasa nodded, unfurling her arms as she checked her weapons. Her pokeballs as well. There wasn’t a need to bring all of them and she normally liked to plan which of her ninja team she brought with her depending on the requirements of the mission, but the current one didn’t seem to have very many details. At all. Kugasa made her choice quickly.

“Then I’m going too! It’ll be much safer if we go together.”

“It’s better that you didn’t,” Kugasa replied bluntly, glancing at the Edelweiss trio meditating with their pokemon in the cavern. Well, two anyway. One seemed to be sleeping.

Janine sighed loudly. “Fine. But at least let Venomoth take you there. It’ll be much faster that way…” The former Fuchsia city gym leader looked to the 1.5 meter moth pokemon that fluttered above her. “Mistralton Airport, right? Think you can handle that distance, Vennie?”

The poison bug let out a high pitched buzzing sound that Kuga assumed was an affirmative and she lifted her forearm so that the moth pokemon could land. As soon as it touched her, its large eyes glowed, causing both human and pokemon to vanish.

Mistralton Airport, Unova​

A blink later, the scenery changed and Kugasa found herself standing in the middle of what appeared to be a runway. She gave a quick, brief scan of her surroundings for any signs of danger before glancing down at the venomoth resting on her arm and speaking softly through the mask she wore. “Thank you,”

It teleported away, likely returning to Janine’s side.

Others arrived as well. Some by teleport. Some with Green. And some were already there. Regardless of how they arrived, Kugasa wordlessly observed them all. She didn’t make much conversation though. Kugasa spoke when she had to. Otherwise, she preferred not to. Her steps were silent, light as a feather, as she approached Blue. There was no need for a lengthy conversation between them. He knew why she was here. When she joined the resistance with Janine, she had implicitly given her loyalty to its leader. Therefore, whether it was a suicidal mission or not, regardless of the difficulty, Kugasa had no intention of backing down.

She simply waited silently, hand rested casually on hilt of her blade, and a comforting chill at her side. North of the runway should be the flying-type gym, ran by the Unova Gym Leader Skylar if she remembered correctly. She wondered if dropping by the Unova airport had any deeper meaning. A debrief before the attack, perhaps? Even if they couldn't teleport directly into Nova HQ, Goldenrod city shouldn't be all that difficult for Mewtwo.

 

[Pipsqueak]

Benji Sato
Location: Mistralton Airport
Interactions: None
​

Tired eyes slid over the pages of an old novel. Benji had been up all night, once again, re-reading the book his father had given him years ago about a dedicated trainer and his Pokemon. It was a touching story and although he wasn't typically much of a reader, this book always made him feel safe and strong, like he was back in control. It was certainly a feeling most people needed right now, what with Team Nova on the lose and taken over. Not much scared Benji, but the whole situation between the resistance and Nova definitely did. As a kid he had never wanted to go into the war when he was older. His father and grandfather had, and probably even his great grandfather too! But not him. He didn't see the need for war. Perhaps that was just his ignorance in politics, but either way him and his Slugma certainly weren't going to be the two to head into battle. Well... that was until Nova showed up.

"Slugma?" At the call of his Pokemon, Benji spun in his seat until he was facing him. Slugma had been sleeping at the foot of his unused bed all night, but it seemed it was probably almost morning now that he was up. The assumption was backed up when his cellphone lit up and began to relay a message seemingly from HQ itself. As he listened his eyes grew wide.

"Wh-what? Blue, man, what the hell are you thinkin'?" His whispered chastising only reached his and Slugma's ears unfortunately. Benji had always admired Blue for his cautiousness in situations with Nova. That's why most of them were still alive. It wasn't that he didn't want to save everyone, but the fact that this whole mission was being set up with hardly any plan seemed too dangerous. Would it even be worth going to try and talk him out of it?

"Alright Slugma let's head out to Mistralton Airport."

"Slug!" The fire Pokemon reached out to him to be picked up, to which he happily obliged. Reaching for his phone he sent a quick message to a member at HQ, asking hurriedly if they could get him to Mistralton airport.

Not only ten seconds later the two were suddenly on the airstrip at the airport with many other trainers. He had to block his eyes until they were adjusted, but looking around now it was clear he wouldn't find Blue easily in the crowd. Gritting his teeth, he pinched the bridge of his nose. Well there was no way he was going back home now, but he would have to try and speak to someone about what the hell was happening. Maybe, just maybe he could get Blue to think a little before heading straight in.

 

[explosiveKitten]

The buzz of the lab lights was starting to get to her.
The snoring of the Bayleef in the corner was starting to get kind of grating. And the squeaking and gnawing noises coming from the Espeon’s orange, bone-shaped chew toy was really about to set her off. Just the constant squeaksqueaksqueksqueaksqueak- AHHhhhHhH!

But even worse, was the frustration of sitting under the lights, staring into a microscope at a sliver of black crystal, trying desperately to identify what it was but having NO luck. It could be an onyx, or sliver of obsidian, but this crystal was translucent, not opaque. And she could see other colors swirling around in the crystal, depending on the angle of the light- sometimes it was was red, sometimes it was blue, sometimes it was purple- what the hell was this thing?! And she just KNEW, JUST KNEW, it was the last piece of this goddamn puzzle, but she can't figure it out, none of her geology books contain anything like it, and all she could was buzzing, and-

SQUEAK!
SQUESQUESQUESQUEEKSQUASQUEEk
SQUEESQUEESQUEESQUEEKEEKSQUEAK-
“OOHHHhhkay, I need to get out of here!” The young woman said, slamming her hands on the counter with a shout, startling the Espeon into dropping the chew toy off the edge of the table she was laid on.

“Cherry I’m going out, stay in the lab, don't cause any trouble.”
The Espeon heard this and immediately got a devilish look on her face.
“No! No, no! I am not fucking around Cherry! Do not cause trouble!”
The Espeon pouted.
The young woman sighed, rubbing her temples before walking over and idly running her fingers through the fine hair on the petite Pokémon’s head, which earned a purr.
“What the hell am I gonna do with you, huh? You get into trouble any time I leave but I can’t take you with me. You’re frustrating, ya know?”
Purrrr....
"Yeah yeah, you lil shit. Stay here."
The woman then walked over to the sleeping Grass-Type and smiled tenderly, gently holding up a hand and cradling the Bayleef's head.
"I'm heading out, sweetie. Don't wait up for me, kay?" She whispered, watching the sleepy Grass-type's eyes roll open and look at her. The sweet smile of her long-time friend and most trusted partner could have brought a tear to Laurel's eyes, if only it would stay for longer. Poor thing was so tired...

With that, the young woman turned and left the lab, making sure the door closed as she did. Some meandering and wandering and a cup of coffee later, the young woman passed the room where people were being teleported out of the the HQ, briefly stopping to watch as a couple people pop in and out with the help of various teleporting Pokemon. Just then a MASSIVE alert went out. Some idiots- oh boy, Sapphire and Platinum?- had decided to run headlong into Goldenrod to rescue Ruby. Oh, god, what? Why would they do something so stupid? That was a death sentence! That was Nova Headquarters, much to Laurel's chagrin. How dare they take over her home. How-
And an idea formed in her mind. Something that would at least help her mood.

______________________________________________________________________

She stood outside the Mistralton Gym, checking her guns for function. The pistol was fine, she didn't really care too much, but the tranq gun? That needed maintenance. It needed to be constantly cleaned so that there would be no trouble firing, because that could mean life or death when it came to a starbursted Pokemon killing her, or having to be killed. Which would be sad.

"Alright, got my darts, bullets... Camera. Flashdrive... lets get this shitshow on the road."

 

[OverconfidentMagi]

Mistralton Airport, Unova

Blue had already finished fueling and preparing the jet for takeoff and was waiting on the runway when Green finally showed up along with the handful of brave and stupid Resistance members that had volunteered to take on this suicide mission. Green was yelling for people to pile in and buckle up without Blue having to say anything. She knew they didn't have time to waste. Whatever plan Blue had thought up would have to be shared after they'd gotten into the air. That meant no one here would have a chance to change their mind, but they'd signed up for a suicide mission before there was a plan, so odds were they wouldn't try to jump ship from hearing there was one. And she trusted that Blue had come up with something in the short time since they'd spoken. He'd probably finished planning everything out before she'd even finished scolding him. Blue had been talking with someone on his pokegear but hung up as soon as his second-in-command made her way to his side.

"So what's the plan, big boss man?"

"Since we have no way of contacting Sapphire and Platinum to let them know we're coming or to change their plans, we're taking on the role of distraction to keep Nova's attention away from whatever their infiltration plan involves."

"Kinda a shit plan," Green crossed her arms behind her head. "I don't have a problem with putting my neck on the chopping block for a friend, but it's shitty to ask others to do the same."

"The Resistance can't afford to lose the support of the House Berlitz."

"Is what you'll say to justify sacrificing them to save our friend?" Green finished his sentence. She wasn't admonishing him by saying the silent part aloud. She just sounded tired. If she was in Blue's position, she would have disappeared the second she got the call and gone to storm Nova HQ alone to save her friends. And she knew she'd probably die trying without helping anyone. Blue valued his friends just as much as she did, but he had also chosen to carry the role as leader of the Resistance. Abandoning his role to run off and save a friend wasn't his style, but he would use everything his role afforded him to do what he could. "So what's the rest of the plan?"


Blue addressed the Resistance members aboard the jet as Green piloted it off the ground and pointed it towards the diseased heart of Johto. "First of all, I thank each of you for volunteering for this dangerous mission on such short notice." Blue's forest green eyes met each of theirs in turn. "I will now go over the goals and plan of attack for this mission. Two high-profile Resistance members are currently in Goldenrod City involved in a mission of vital importance. We will be instigating a fight with Team Nova on their own doorstep in order to keep their attention away from those other Resistance members and boost their mission's chance of success."

Blue wished he'd had Green say all this. She didn't have any trouble lying even to her own friends if it was for their sake. As the leader of the Resistance, sometimes he had to bend the truth to protect the Resistance. He'd been able to sneak a few spies inside Team Nova, so it was all but guaranteed that Nova had spies of their own, if they even needed to rely on people to gather information. The technology Team Nova wad at their disposal wasn't something he could afford to underestimate, even as he struggled to wrap his head around each new invention that spewed out of that accursed group's labs.

"We will land just outside the city and immediately push towards Nova HQ. Our target will be the front door of Nova HQ. If we can breach those, the other team can rush in and do what they need to. As tempting as taking over the place might sound, we can't afford to stick around long. While we've got the element of surprise and are inside the city, that Admin Celene won't be able to immediately deploy any of her high-power weaponry. The chance she finds a workaround or decides to attack anyway shoots up the longer we stick around, so we need to get in and get out before she makes that decision for us. So long as it doesn't come to that worst-case scenario, most of our fight will be against Team Nova's grunts. You should all be painfully aware of this already, but don't underestimate anyone once they're wearing that team's symbol and weapon." Blue couldn't entirely keep himself rom wincing thinking about what that orange light had already taken from him. "If you don't want to risk your pokemon in this attack, you are free to use the PC onboard to deposit them into the Resistance's Pokemon Storage System. What you're willing to risk in this fight is something you have to decide for yourself." Blue said this often. He wouldn't be the kind of leader that demanded sacrifices from others. He'd sacrifice everything he had before forcing anyone else into that position.

"I can also provide some basic weapons - batons, stun guns, smoke bombs... handguns - as well as body armor. Take what you think you'll need. The plan is to draw as many Nova ants from the anthill as possible and keep them busy dealing with us until the other mission is complete. Admin Celene joining the fighting is the worst-case scenario, but we should expect Admin Jay to make an appearance. When he does, try to avoid dealing with him directly and notify either myself or Green. I don't know if today is the day we'll finally knock that smirk off his face, but at the very least we can keep him occupied. Once the retreat order goes out, I want everyone to disengage from whatever fight they're in immediately and get to the location sent. This mission is dangerous enough that we can't afford to stick around. Get in, cause a disturbance, and get out before the situation gets really bad. Any questions?"

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Kugasa Karasuna

Inside Resistance Airplane​

Kugasa buckled her seat belt as she listened to the Resistance Leader, Blue of the Pokemon League, speak. In short, they were the decoys for a more important mission. That was fine. A ninja like her was better at stealth operations, but it wasn’t as if she couldn’t create chaos when she had to. Though “high-profile resistance members” was an amusing way of describing Sapphire and Platinum as they undertook the their “vital mission”, Kugasa didn’t question Blue’s choice of words. It wasn’t easy being a leader.

Glancing out the window of jet to the blue skies, Kugasa could make out tiny flying pokemon in the distance and watched them while she still could. Once they reached Johto’s airspace, she doubted she would find very many—ones that weren’t aggressive and under the influence of Starburst at least. It was a stark reminder as to why she still fought the war against Nova. So that future generations of pokemon and humans could still coexist in harmony. So that pokemon wouldn’t be driven from their homes by the threat that Team Nova and Starburst technology posed.

So that Master Koga could rest in peace.

Her eyes flickered back as Blue offered use of the Resistance’s pokemon storage system. It was an odd thing to ask. Her decision? Kugasa didn’t take along pokemon that weren’t willing to fight. She was going to war. She knew the risks of war as did all the pokemon that joined her. As a soldier and trainer who fought side by side with her pokemon, she would risk her life for her companions just as they would do the same for her. That was the bond they shared. To question it was to insult the pokemon that came with her. However, Kugasa didn’t voice any of that. She simply closed her eyes and spoke to the empty seat beside her. “It’ll be a dangerous mission this time. Do you want to back out, Gengar?”

“Geeengar, gar.” A sinister, shadowy pokemon phased through the seat and shook its head, its typical toothy grin still stretched across its face, before sinking back into the shadows.

When Kugasa opened her eyes, she was looking straight at Blue. She wasn't a normally talkative person, but when it came a mission silence and lack of communication could lead to a failure of the operation. At worst, death. “Do we have an escape plan? One a bit more detailed than retreat on signal, I mean. I doubt Team Nova would let us leave the city very easily after causing a ruckus at their headquarters. Goldenrod is their turf, after all, and I don’t doubt they’ve got the place rigged with bugs and traps against people like us. What’s the contingency plan if Nova Admin Celene does show? How long do you expect the second team will take before they can complete their mission?”

Whenever Kugasa made plans she liked to be thorough, consider all possibilities, and create backups. Assassin Crow and her team didn’t survive as long as they did by being careless. If Blue didn’t have any ideas, then she’d work out one on her own. She had had an entire plane ride to sit and think, after all. Her eyes flitted briefly to the other resistance members in the plane, mostly to gauge their reactions, before returning to Blue. “Finally, from a scale of 1 to 10, with 1 being the least and 10 being most, how important would you say the success of the second team’s mission is?”

 

[Pipsqueak]

Benji Sato
Location: Airplane
Mentions: QuirkyAngel OverconfidentMagi
​

It took Benji about ten more minutes to finally see Blue's head bobbing around in the crowd, but by then it was a tad too late. Everyone was called onto the airplane and he began to realize he didn't have a choice but to head on board as well. Sulking behind a few of the other resistance members he took a seat next to one of the windows, setting Slugma onto his lap. As Green and Blue exchanged a few hushed words, the red headed member glanced around to see who else had decided to join this fight. A few faces he recognized and wasn't particularly surprised to see here. One of them, the ninja girl who's name he couldn't quite place, sat just a few rows ahead on the opposite side. She was certainly a skilled fighter- her training and practical intelligence giving them just another small advantage albeit still not an overly safe one. How many of these people felt the same way he did anyways? Would he only be slowing them down with his concerns? It wasn't like he hadn't been helpful in battle before- He knew what he was doing. His time with the Magma Jrs. gave him the street smarts needed in dire situations, but it also gave him his anxiety about things like this too. Both Benji and Slugma had seen the worst things in people and what the human race was capable of. This fight didn't sound like one worth seeing all of that again.

Blue's voice rang out over the small chatter between others, snapping Benji from his thoughts. As he explained the plan, Benji tightened his grip on the armrest of his chair. He knew this plan had to have been made not that long ago, and although Blue knew how to twist his words to get everyone into the fighting spirit (Even he himself began feeling a bit fired up) it was clear that this plan could've- No, SHOULD have been thought out a bit more. This was Nova's headquarters they were talking about here, not just some everyday store robbery. He glanced down at his Pokemon, making sure this was something he was ready for. Slugma didn't look back at him, but Benji could tell he was in this. They had been partners for years, and neither of them went into a dangerous situation alone. After their leader's speech was finished, ninja girl was the first to break the ever growing tension. She had some really good points, and he began to realize maybe he wasn't the only one with similar concerns about leaping into this.

"I don't even think you could reach past three on your scale." Finally he spoke up. The time to talk to them was now or never.

"Not that I don't admire your leadership abilities Blue, but we all know this is a death trap. Your friends, I'm sure, are really cool and all, but as you can see most of the resistance is here for this fight. Are we really gonna go in head first and risk everyone and their Pokemon's life for three people? I mean we have a freakin' ninja with us, maybe she could use her ninja skills to get in and get out without risking all of this?" He knew this was a pathetic argument. It was clear most had already made up their minds, but it was still worth a shot. Benji was usually good at keeping his anxiety under wraps, but between his fight with sleep and the plan, he couldn't stop his hands from shaking. He was on edge and the fact that he couldn't hide that made him all the more irritable.

 

[OverconfidentMagi]

Approaching Johto Airspace

Blue's sharp eyes met the Resistance members' criticism without looking away. If no one had spoken up against such a high-risk and questionable plan, if it could even be considered solid enough to be a real plan, he'd have wondered what sort of everstones the Resistance recruiters were filling these peoples' heads with. His fingers brushed against a pokeball on his belt before he spoke. The ball was empty.

"If infiltrating Goldenrod and extracting what we need could be done covertly, we would do just that. Team Nova has eyes covering the entirety of the city and then some, and this may come as an uncomfortable truth to some of you, but if there's an area of tech that Nova's Admin Celene excels in more than weapons of mass death, it's surveillance. The second you step inside the city, they will know your face, name, and everything else about you if they care to." Blue avoided saying anything about the few successful infiltrations into Team Nova. Those plants were too valuable to risk exposing right now. One of them had been the only reason the Resistance knew that Ruby had been captured and where he was likely being kept inside the sprawling underground labyrinth that was Nova HQ. "I don't doubt that the Assassin Crow could get in and out of Goldenrod, but while carrying or dragging another person, likely being slowed down enough to give Nova a chance to respond with force, I have my doubts. Such a plan might reduce the risk for the Resistance as a whole, but if I do become the type of leader willing to place the entirety of a burden on one person's shoulders, they will be my own. Until such a time, I can only ask for all of your help in supporting my foolishness." Blue lowered his head to the brave and stupid Resistance members present.

"To properly answer your question," Blue raised his eyes to the ninja in question, "Three." He let the low number hang in the air. "As painful as it is to say, losing Ruby would not be a deathblow for the Resistance. But losing Lady Platinum would cripple us. On such a scale, eight. So we have no choice but to prioritize her mission, or at the very least ensure her successful extraction from the city should her mission fail." He didn't say anything about Sapphire because he knew she wouldn't stand for his heartless assignment of value to people's lives. She would most likely fight to the death against anyone that tried to stop her from rescuing Ruby, whether that be Nova or her allies in the Resistance. So he had no choice but to emphasize the recovery of Platinum as the priority. Because he might not be able to convince Sapphire to come back if it came down to a choice. Too much thinking about bad endings of this mission was giving rise to a headache.

"As for the rest, we don't know how long the second team will need, but we can't afford to spend more than twenty minutes inside the city. We will be retreating at that point no matter what, to avoid having to face Admin Celene if at all possible. If she does appear, we immediately abandon the mission and retreat, or as most of you should know by now: we switch to plan Cel. That being 'Admin Celene is here, get away by any means.' Any means is precisely why I can't tell you the extraction plans at this time. Just know there are multiple, and when the retreat order goes out it will include directions to which means of exit we've decided is most viable. This plane is merely one means of getting away should Team Nova try to trap us in the city by expanding the anti-teleport field, also why we cannot simply teleport to enter the city."

"If the worst case situation is upon us and all of the prepared escape plans are blocked, I will personally order the use of more extreme measures to get as many of you out as possible, but I hope it won't come to that. This is a foolish, dangerous mission I've asked of you all. All I can do is my part to support the Resistance so long as you all choose to support me."

"Hey Blue, sorry to interrupt you in the middle of your cringey morale speech, but we've entered Johto airspace," Green yelled from the cockpit instead of just using the intercom. "I'm gonna drop and stop this thing real fast, so unless you want to be sent flying up front to sit with me I suggest you sit down and fasten your seatbelt."

Blue knew from having been in other vehicles with Green that while she was a highly capable driver, on land or sea or in the sky, capable didn't always translate to safe. He took his seat immediately. "If I focus too much on Green's flying I'll lose my stomach, so feel free to keep me distracted with more questions and concerns as we descend." He tried to crack a joke to break up some of the tension in the air, but his stomach was saying the joke wasn't very funny, or much of a joke.

 

[saniachan]

Meanwhile, in an apartment near Goldenrod Department Store (room 347, to be exact), Hubert had just finished his breakfast when the first several beats of Megalovania rang out of the blue. Both of his Pokegears shared the same ringtone, yes, but this particular one came from his Porygon-themed one -- the one for contacting the Resistance. Seems like there was a message from the Resistance HQ itself about (at least) two of their people storming Team Nova HQ right here in Goldenrod. Hubert, in his light blue and black striped shirt and black capri pants, frowned upon hearing the news. Seriously? I mean, y'know the admins here gonna give y'all a bad time for that, right? he thought. He did remember texting Blake about it three weeks ago, but to think someone would just storm into the danger zone head-first...

Spoiler: Hubert's text back then

"Bad news: Nova got Ruby. I bet he'll be taken to the restricted area in the basement."

And then a Porygon-Z patted their trainer's shoulder, thus snapping him back to reality. "Oh, Gaster!" Hubert cooed. "Wanna come with me? Or no?" he asked only for the now-named Gaster to teleport into his Porygon Pokegear... followed by a message from "WDG". Really, that's how Gaster "talks" with their human all this time.

"I'm off to the net. Text me when you need me, okay?"

The young man then texted back with a light chuckle:

"Got it."

As last preparations, he wore his black bandanna like a mask as well as his Nova cloak from that hanger over there. He also took his Hydreigon bow and arrows with him. "Aight Mewt, let's get back to work." That said and done, Hubert/Mewt locked his apartment room and made his way to Goldenrod Radio Tower.

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Kugasa Karasuna + Alan Rickman

Inside Resistance Airplane, Approaching Johto Airspace. ​

Kuga’s eyes flickered over to the red-haired young man in fancy black clothing that spoke after her, noting the shaking hand even as the resistance member voiced his doubts. She could see signs of sleep deprivation as well. Was it his first mission? She’d put in points for bravery—both him and his slugma. Her eyes returned to Blue as he answered both their questions. His answers, at the very least, seemed honest. Not that Kuga would’ve said anything if he had lied. She would’ve simply noted it down an observation that he wasn’t someone that could be entirely trusted.

She’d heard that rumors that her master and the Pokemon Champion didn’t entirely get along, but that was to be expected given their allegiances.

Ninjas existed in the shadows and served a lord they deemed worthy. If Team Rocket hadn’t been taken down, Janine would have likely served Giovanni as well. That was how their world operated. Kuga decided to protect Janine. In truth, she would much rather be by her friend’s side, helping to run their new hidden gym, than taking on missions as Assassin Crow…but Janine was firmly on the side of the Resistance...and Kugasa couldn’t blame the younger girl.

Master Koga’s death was a bitter pill to swallow…but so was the destruction of their former school when pokemon went rampaging in Fuchsia City.

Nodding silently at Blue, Kugasa glanced over to the young man with the Slugma. “I appreciate your assessment of my skills. While I believe you are overestimating my capabilities, I will do what I can to ensure everyone here lives to see another day.”

Platnium of House Berlitz being her main objective…along with Blue Oak from Pallet Town and Laurel Douglas-Elm from Newbark. Money was important, but brilliant minds were also hard to come by…and their scientists were the key to unraveling the mystery of Starburst.

There was also a chanced that Ruby might’ve discovered something while acting as a spy so she wanted to confirm whether Blue thought that might’ve been the case. Infiltrating Goldenrod wouldn’t be easy, but it wasn’t impossible either. Technology was just technology in the end. Alan might not compare to Nova Admin Celene, but even he could disable a couple of cameras…and it wasn’t like they could work if the city’s lights went down. Both Admin Jay and Admin Celene were names she heard in passing, but neither have reached her hit list…yet. Kugasa figured it was only a matter of time. To defeat a great beast like Nova, one first had to remove its limbs—and no matter dangerous the limbs were, they were still human.

All humans could be killed.

Finger tapping the hilt of her katana, Kugasa frowned in her seat. The problem with Admin Celene being as good at surveillance as Blue claimed was that it made it all the more likely that they were already aware of Sapphire and Platinum’s presence in Goldenrod. Little wonder Blue was racing. Were they already too late? “It’d be easier if we had a map of Goldenrod…Are you listening to this, Alan?”

The spherical drone, which had slid itself into the pocket of her coat when Venomoth teleported her, came to life with Alan’s voice. “I see you’re as social as ever, Kuga.”

Kuga ignored the dry tone of her assigned partner who supported on many of her resistance-related assassinations. “I need you to pull up a map of Goldenrod City so I can plan the most efficient route to Nova Headquarters.”

“Sure.” The orb floated out of her pocket, its eyes glowing as a holographic image projected from it. “This is based on our current information about Goldenrod. Keep in mind, there’s a possibility that city’s layout has been changed somewhat since Nova’s takeover. It’s not like we have that many spies in the Goldenrod to give us completely detailed information…and the one of the ones we did have is currently enjoying prison life in Nova’s cells, I think.”

“Assuming he’s still alive,” Kuga replied bluntly. “I wouldn’t expect the ones involved in the annihilation of Kalos to have much in the sense of war ethics.”

From the way Blue described Celene, she wouldn’t hesitate to deploy her high-powered weaponry within the city, regardless of civilian casualties. Weaponry that had even given Mewtwo some trouble during the battle for Kalos. Pity she hadn't seen the battle herself, but she heard it was quite the spectacle - enough for the resistance to have an entire plan revolved around avoiding her on sight.

“Regardless of whether he’s still alive or not, this mission is still a good opportunity for us to get a sense of the current state of Goldenrod. If you could breech Nova Headquarters along with the girls to assist them in their mission that’s even better. Link this hacker drone directly into whatever system they have and I’ll take things from there. The more information we obtain about the enemy the better equipped we’d be to deal with them; Even an anti-teleportation field’s got to have an off switch.”

“Aren’t you jumping the gun a bit?” A privilege of the youth.

“Calculated risks are necessary to get the results we want. Even failure is a learning experience.”

“Or it could lead to death and your own data being compromised. Do you actually think you can hack into Nova’s security-tight servers?”

“I won’t know until I try…”

“No.”

“But what if I—"

“No. We follow the mission as designed by Blue, with the primary objective being to secure Lady Berlitz’s safety and minimizing our loses.” She knew of Alan’s desire to test his skills against Nova’s infamous tech expert, but there was a time and place for such things. “I’ll be counting on your support as always.”

Kugasa could hear Alan’s voice sigh from the orb and looked out the window towards Johto’s skies. As expected, she didn’t see any signs of flying pokemon. Or pokemon in general. For pokemon trainer like herself, it was a disorienting thing to see—a world without pokemon that is. She returned her gaze to the map and studied it. There were many routes Sapphire and Platinum could’ve taken to Nova Headquarters and it was impossible to tell which one they would’ve chosen. No guarantee they were together either. An attack from multiple angles made the most sense to her. Yet 20 minutes was the cutoff time.

Kugasa didn’t know how skilled the other two resistance members were, but she doubted 20 minutes would be enough time to free Ruby.

Unperturbed by Green’s flying skills, she looked to the red-haired young man that had spoken up before. “Yours as well, Slugma Trainer.” Caution was a good trait to have when it came to survival and despite the fact that he was very clearly on edge, he seemed to have a good head on his shoulders—enough to question questionable, arguably foolhardy, decisions made by figures in authority, at least. Then again, going against Team Nova was already arguably foolhardy. Yet here they all were. “It’s been a while since I last stepped foot in the Johto region.”

The last time she did, she’d been training at the Pokemon Jujitsu Academy taught by Mistress Aya. This time, she’d be coming in as a Resistance “terrorist”. Life was full of surprises.

Pipsqueak OverconfidentMagi
(mentioned: explosiveKitten )

 

[IDKnuggets]

Alexander clenched and unclenched his fists as they entered Johto airspace. This would be his first official mission since joining the Resistance, and his first time opposing Nova without his mentor by his side. His teacher and family friend Lucas had been opposed to Alex getting involved with the mission, having no way to reach Johto quickly enough to join him, but the younger man felt like he had to get out there and gain experience outside of Lucas' wing.

Now as they neared their drop zone he couldn’t help but second guess his decision, couldn’t help but wonder if he was really ready for something like this. He double checked the earpiece Lucas had given him, the only connection to he and Specs Alexander would have. Military grade and given a significant boost by the tweaks their tech guru Specs had made, the earpiece would work just about anywhere .

Alex made sure his seat belt was fastened tight, no telling how quickly they would be going in but Green's words suggested it would be rough. A deep breath in, a deep breath out, and his head was clear. They had a job to do and Alexander would be damned if he was going to screw this up. Lucas had spent so much time preparing him for this, had trusted him to have his back time and time again. If Lucas believed in Alex's skills, so would he.

---

Leaned against the wall outside the Goldenrod Radio Tower, Franklin Scaletta and Lieutenant Surge took a smoke break. “So,” Frankie asked the older man, “do you have a first name or is it just Lieutenant?”

“To you it's just Lieutenant,” the other man affirmed, “maybe just Surge if I’m feeling nice.” He punctuated with a long drag from his cigar and then crushed it under foot. “I'm going inside, we'll talk later Frankie,” he thought a moment, then added “maybe get some beers later tonight”

Franklin grunted in reply, taking a drag of his own cigar as Surge left him. The two were closer to each other than they were to most others, but still there was a clear wall they both put up. Not quite friends, but comrades. Brothers in arms, no matter what group it was they ended up fighting for. No matter who it was they were going to be killing.

The war, random trainers, and now this Resistance. Navy, Rocket, and Nova. It didn’t make any difference, Frankie and Surge were soldiers. Weapons to be pointed in a direction and set off. But some day, Franklin Scaletta would be somebody. Not just a weapon to be used and passed off, his name was going to mean something. It was only a matter of time.

 

[OverconfidentMagi]

North of Goldenrod City, Johto

Green set down the Resistance jet next to the closed Pokéathlon Dome just to the north of Goldenrod City. Blue could practically hear the machine complaining about Green's handling of its controls as it skidded to a stop. At least with flying there wasn't as many obstacles for Green to play chicken with at the risk of her and her passengers' safety. Blue was standing and had hit the door release before the seatbelt light had time to go off. He'd said the plan, made everyone aware of the tight schedule they had to stick to, so all he said now was, "Resistance, fight!" The people aboard the plane ran past him out of the doors.

Platinum emerged from the cockpit... Even knowing her trick, Blue still did a double take at how perfect Green's disguise was. She'd changed into clothes that Lady Platinum would often be seen wearing, but the trick was far more than the outfit. Her hair and face were that of Lady Platinum, a perfect recreation. "If it's good enough to trick you, it'll easily confuse a few Team Nova idiots," Green's voice came out of Lady Platinum's mouth. Green-Platinum gave Blue a wink and headache as she ran out the door. He doubted he'd see her again until the retreat signal was sent.

Blue clicked one of the pokeballs on his belt, releasing an odd-looking pink and blue pokemon. "Porygon2, watch the plane. Disable it if anyone tries tinkering with it." Porygon2 let out beeps that sounded like "O-K". He disembarked the plane and followed the rest of the Resistance members as they entered the most dangerous city in the world.


On the other end of the city, a yacht owned by the Berlitz family bobbed up and down at the dock. There was no one aboard the vessel.

 

[Pipsqueak]

Benji Sato
Location: Nova HQ
Mentions: QuirkyAngel
​

Benji was quickly shot down in his argument, which was expected. The redhead couldn't tell if he had been relieved or angry about it. On one hand he wasn't sure if he could say much more. His anxiousness was slowly settling in his chest, and talking was getting a bit difficult. However, on the other hand he hated that everything had been decided so quickly. There wasn't any word in the world that could change the direction of this plane, so shutting up seemed the best option for now anyways. Pursing his lips he gripped the armrests of his chair again as the plane descended quicker than normal for a jet this size.

'They're both insane. INSANE! Green's gonna kill us before we even reach HQ...' Blowing out a long breath, the resistance member's dark eyes snapped over to ninja girl at the mention of the "Slugma trainer". Have her back? Of course. He might be terrified now, but he wouldn't let that ultimately decide the fight. He nodded to her, his face pale from both fear and a feeling of sickness as the plane descended. It was a grueling three minutes until they had landed at their destination. Quickly going over his checklist, Benji counted:

-Lava capsules
-Two knives strapped on his person
-His trusty flamethrower, which he had laid by his feet

And of course, Slugma.

"Alright pal, listen up. You let me do most of the fighting, ok? Help when you think it's necessary, but you need to have a sharp lookout for any Starburst weapons. I'll be watching out for ya, but I'm gonna be a bit tied up myself at some points. Just be careful." Slugma had finally looked up at his trainer for the first time since they had boarded the plane.

"Slug!" A short but confident answer. Taking a shaky breath, Benji stood from his seat and dug his fingernails into his palm. It grounded him sometimes, especially before a fight. A little pain wasn't too bad of a price in exchange for being alert. Following his fellow resistance members outside, the trainer found himself right behind ninja girl. Biting his cheek, he leaned over next to her.

"It's Benji by the way. Benji Sato." He didn't know why it felt important for her to know, but now that it was out of the way he felt more energized than ever.

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Kugasa Karasuna + Alan Rickman

Goldenrod City, Johto. ​

“Resistance, fight!”

Having finalized her route and plans, Kugasa unbuckled her seat belt and broke into a ninja run alongside the other resistance members as they hurried off the aircraft. However, Kugasa didn’t fail to notice Green’s new look as she passed the two higher ranked resistance members either and nodded her head in approval. It was a very ninja-like thing to do – deceiving the enemy with disguises that is.

As soon as both feet touched Johto’s ground, Kugasa spoke to her shadow. “Locate Platinum and Sapphire within the city and let me know if you find them. Don’t get caught. You know the risk if you do.”

Kugasa’s shadow saluted, waved goodbye, then stilled, the dark silhouette returning to normal as Kugasa continued to move south towards the city. She could hear Benji’s introduction behind her, but merely nodded her head in acknowledgement, most of her mind focused on the task at hand. Therefore, it was the spherical drone floating beside her that spoke. “Hello, Benji. I’m Alan and the weebo ninja over there is Kugasa. How do you do?”

Ahead of them stood Goldenrod’s entrance, guarded by a couple of Nova officers, and the first barrier to their goal. Normally, she’d work out a much more thorough and clever way of slipping pass the city’s check point, but, alas, the current mission didn’t call much for discreetness. With the sheer number of people attempting to break through, there was little chance they wouldn’t be noticed either way. The only thing they had going for them was the element of surprise.

Back against a tree, Kugasa motioned for those with her to stop and reached into her coat. “Hold your breath and just run straight through.”

That was the only warning she gave her allies before throwing several smoke bombs at the feet of a group of Nova grunts patrolling the check point. Thick, black clouds erupted to disorient her enemy and provide cover for her allies in the event that Nova decided to open fire. More importantly, she’d added potent [Sleep Powder] produced by her Venusaur into the smog mixture as well. Coughs and exclamations of surprise could be heard from within the fumes before things quieted…somewhat.

The masked girl counted to ten before dashing in.

“Switching to thermal scanners. Seems like you’ve got most of them…ah wait, to your left!”

Catching the sluggish punch thrown at her, Kugasa used her opponent’s weight against them and flipped the Nova grunt over, sliding the Starburst gauntlet off his arm as she did so. Seemed like a rookie to use his fists when he had a gun. Then again, she doubted he would’ve seen her through the smoke if he hadn’t been close. Fighting in the dark wasn’t something many were trained in. On the other hand, it was something Kugasa excelled at.

“Nice! The one I’ve got is nearly running out of juice.”

“You’ll give away my position if you keep talking.” Kugasa pocketed the gauntlet. “Besides, have you even come close to figuring out how it works?”

“How it works? No. It’s clearly alien technology.”

Rolling her eyes, Kugasa exited the fumes and continued her way to Nova Headquarters, weaving from alley to alley, with the map she memorized in her head. Even if the goal was to get to enemy headquarters as soon as possible, Kugasa was still a ninja. The most efficient route for her wasn’t always the most straightforward one—especially with the number of civilians roaming the streets. For the most dangerous city in the Pokeworld at the moment, it was surprisingly normal looking…as normal looking as a city could be without very many sounds of city pokelife at least; Starbursted pokemon didn’t speak unless spoken to.

Very urban as well, with tall skyscrapers and whatnot.

“But I’ve measured the level of energy produced when the device is active and can tell you when Starburst is being utilized. That’s gotta count for something, right? I can even tell you the rough number of Nova toadies in the city based on the starburst weapon they carry. Want to se—?”

“Spinarak, string shot.”

A green spider pokemon popped its head out of the collar of Kugasa’s dark trenchcoat and shot a white sticky, yet durable, string to the roof of a nearby building. Kugasa hugged her youngest pokemon as it pulled her up to the top. Normal people didn’t tend to look up. More importantly, the height gave her a better view of her destination. While, spinarak buried its head back in Kugasa’s coat, she continued to run along the rooftops, the ends of her long coat fluttering behind her.

“Geez, not everyone’s a ninja you know. I don’t know how you expect anyone to keep up with you.”

“Our destination is the same.” She'd run into them eventually.

“Whatever happened to doing whatever you can to protect everyone?”

“I protect best from the shadows.”

“…”

“If you’re worried about Benji and the others you can check on them.”

“And leave you on your own?”

“I have my pokemon with me so I’m never alone.” Kugasa kept her eyes ahead. “Besides, you shouldn’t underestimate a student of Master Koga’s and Assistant Gym Leader of the former Fuchsia City Gym.”

Pipsqueak IDKnuggets OverconfidentMagi

 

[IDKnuggets]

At Blue's rallying cry, Alex charged off the plane and into Goldenrod. “Alright, boots on the ground" he muttered, half to himself and half to his people back home.

“Don’t worry kid, you got this” Lucas assured his protégé. Truth be told, Lucas was worried. Alex had the skills, he had some experience, but this would be the first time Lucas wouldn’t be able to watch his back.

“Don’t worry so much big guy,” Specs told Lucas with a slap on the back, “Alex is gonna be just fine out there"

“Hold your breath and just run straight through" came a voice from up ahead.

Alexander watched as a fellow Resistance member took down a group of Nova grunt's by the gate with some kind of gas. Following their cue, he dashed through the cloud of gas without taking a breath.

On the other side of the cloud, he just barely caught sight of them disappearing down an alleyway. Taking an alternate path, Alex creeped through the city at a steady pace.

---

At the end of an alley, two Nova Grunt's stood watch. “Hey Phil, do you ever dream about something more than just guarding the same alleys and streets day in and day out?”

The man named Phil raised a brow at his associate, hidden behind the tactical helmet he wore. “Like what, some desk job at HQ?”

“No man, something that really means something. Like those guys who developed this Starburst stuff, like the people at the top"

“Nah man, I like things just the way they are" Phil shook his head. “Walk around under the stars for a few hours, maybe grab a beer afterwards. This is the life fo-"

Phillip was cut short as a hole opened up in the back of his neck, the final words of his ramblings coming out as nothing more than a gurgle. The other grunt spun around, but didn’t even manage to draw his gun before he received a matching wound in the front of his throat.

Alex slid out from behind the nearby dumpster, stepping over the bodies of the two men and heading further into town.

 

[Pipsqueak]

Rikki Aoki
Location: Nova HQ
Mentions: N/A
​

"Royal flush bitches!" Rikki howled with laughter as she gathered the rest of the tokens from the other four grunt members at the table.

"Rikki... Tommy and Duke did better than you, and they were both losing. Do you even know what a royal flush is?" Alison downed her last bottle of root beer and gave the novice grunt a disapproving glare. Rikki shrugged before popping a piece of candy into her mouth and hopping down from her chair.

"Hey man, you know what they say- Don't hate the player, hate the game. You invited me, remember? I told you I didn't kn-" Her words were cut short by a chorus of screams and shouts from outside. There were a few crashes and rumbles that reverberated through the room, enough to shake the rather unsteady table they had been around. Each Nova member slowly picked up their respective weapons, Rikki switching on the electricity that powered her Starburst trident.

"The hell is that?" Duke's voice rose in an agitated whisper. As if answering his question the door suddenly burst open, the body of a Nova member flying through. She landed with a dull thud in front of them, her head covered with a fatal looking wound.

"We're under attack! Tommy, you're with me, up the hatch! Rikki and Duke can cover the front door!"

"Yea, right where someone just got beaten and thrown in. Perfect!" The shark girl huffed but didn't wait for a smart comeback from Alison. Heading straight for the exit, she was met with a a gruesome sight. Nova grunts and even some resistance members were scattered around the entrance, some already in a pool of their own blood. The shock only took a few seconds to wear off before the sound of running footsteps were heard just to the right of her. She turned sharply and dug her trident into the brave resistance member's stomach. The impact shoved her back, but the man's body went limp quickly.

So the resistance had the guts to try a rescue mission then? It wasn’t difficult to connect the dots. Their admins had said it would only be a matter of time, although honestly Rikki had been expecting it sooner. Oh well, at least the fun could start now...

 

[Karcen]

Nikita
Location: Island home

​

It had been days since the strangers had come to the island, though that estimate just meant days had passed could be weeks or even a month. Really Nikita had been taught such things by her parents but lots of things had been forgotten over the years. Really did it matter if it had been weeks, months, or years since something had happened when all days were more or less the same on the island? Nikita remembered words, lots of words, but not all the words her parents had taught her so she knew they looked from something her parents had hidden. It was called Mewtwo, though Nikita didn't understand what that was as it had looked like words on paper when she had seen it. Why anyone would want Mewtwo Nikita did not know and it wasn't like she could read what had been written, she used to read some things but that had been years ago. If these Nova people had wanted words they could write their own words Mewtwo was apparently filled with very bad words that her parents had to hide. The nova people had wanted Mewtwo badly and had looked all over but never found where it was hidden, they had also never found her. That had not stopped them from digger her parents up, though oddly they had turned to bone and where not at all like how she had remembered them or seen in the pictures in the house. She could not even look at those as the Nova had destroyed her house burning it with strange creatures that spat fire. Nikita had never seen anything like them on the island, then again there was nothing here but her and plants. The world beyond the water must be strange to want Mewtwo when they had such monsters they could use. The outsiders had left after after a few days of searching and never finding what they wanted and Nikita had shadowed them the whole time finding how they acted and how they dressed odd. Yes they had been odd from the start but none of them moved well in the dense trees and they wore so much they got really hot. Nikita had learned that she should dress with very little to not get hot and well she didn't have much cloth even what she wore now was very wore out and little more than patched up remnants of other clothes.

In the end Nikita was left alone once more as they left in their ships to the land of head quarters. That was at least what they had called where they were going and Nikita assumed that must be another land like the one her parents has come from. it had a name and Nikita had known it once but she had forgotten it as well, really she might not remember anything soon. Still she had a job to do her parents had told her to guard Mewtwo and she would guard it, but now she had no home to stay in. The first thing she had to do was make a new home, but well making the house as it had been was very much beyond her she had barely been able to keep it standing with how little she knew of it. No, she could not make what was gone it was lost forever she would just have to build something herself, there were plenty of things to make stuff with on the island. She had plenty of branches, sharp rocks and clay to build a house all by herself. She had of course built small day houses before just tied together sticks and a little bit on the insides with leaves over the, but she wanted a home not a room. Nikita had been in no hurry the Island without any outsiders was not very dangerous and berries were easy enough to find and dry for latter. that little trick she had found out by accident and with there being a small pond on the island there was clean water. Her little island was actually decent size, but still small it would not be able to support many people without feeling crowded. The island would also not support many people, though right now it just barely supported Nikita if she understood farming over just finding berries and fruits she would likely be far more well fed. Still all of this meant that there was little pressure in the need to construct a home aside from the desire to have one.

The first few days of house building was actually tool making, once you knew the stones you wanted like Nikita did they became easy to find and it was the grinding them till they were decently sharp that took the longest. Still you only really needed a blade big enough for your hand to slam into the base of rather slender trees and something to help cut slammer holes through them to get started. Though She did go a bit more and using the previous tools made a more conventional axe having to dig a hole in a branch then burn the insides before placing the larger sharpened rock in it. This allowed her to more easily cut down more thin trees and then place then into pre dug holes. Gathering vines and striping them of leaves she would ben the thing branches over and bind them together to make arches. This would produce a done of bent branches that was multiple spaces wide and easy enough to stand stopped in. With more thin branches gathered Nikita would use more vines to create multiple horizonal lines along the outside of the dome giving it more stability as even tied together the simple skeleton from before was easily shook. The next step was gathering long dry grass, or well mostly dry, and lots of it. It would take many trips and a few days to gather all that was needed to cover the hut. Nikita made the grass into small bundles then tied those to the horizontal branches to cover the small building. She then would trim up the grass by the hole that was the door so it looked a bit better and didn't hang over so much. Then as a finisher to the house to keep it in place more the heaviest lifting was done and a ring of serval layers or most flat rocks was built around the house.

Now a house was good and all but she did need a place to cook her rather limited meals of fruit, berries, and whatever the tide brought in which was mostly sea weed. Rather than a simple fire Nikita dug a shallow trench maybe as long as her torso and lined it with cay. Then using sticks covered in mud she created a line and built a tube up from the back half to the line. Then she built a fire in it to harden the clay and let it burn. This design allowed Nikita to either place this in and build a fire around and one them or place a lighter rock on top of the tube and feed the fire easily from below to heat it. She had made a clay stove. All of this in only around 15 days. That was not to bad of a speed in truth and on the finally night Nikita had her idea of a feast cooking and eating more than she normally would in 3 days or what most would eat in a day and half. Bedding was a simple later of bound sticks and then dried leaves just to keep her off the cold ground. This of course was in truth not fully permanent and Nikita was already thinking of making a bigger more grand house like her home had been. That however could wait as she had more things to do like maybe making traps for nova people should they come back to get mewtwo.

 

[RageFactorXIII]

Viktor "The Emperor"

Castelia City, Unova.​

"AAAAGH! PLEASE! PLEASE!" "I told you what would happen should you ever try to steal from my shipments. I hold monthly speeches with very... explicit slideshows to demonstrate what happens to thieves." A large, rough and scarred hand smeared with red set down the scalpel that was very recently repainted with the exact same color. The other hand gingerly picked up a separated digit that was still leaking red all over the now 'red' wood chair the once screaming man was bound to. The screaming victim had gone rather still and quiet after their final digit was removed, but that was to be expected. He had lost a great deal of blood and would more than likely bleed to death within the next minute. "We cannot have that." The bearded, older man said to himself as he picked up a superheated knife from a blowtorch he had set up earlier during his one on one time with this particular subordinate of his. Then, the bearded man set the superheated metal against the many open wounds on what was left of the thief's hands. The new stimulus woke the man up and encouraged him to continue his screaming as his wounds were cauterized. Once it was clear the thief would not be dying anytime soon, the bearded man, Viktor, left the small, mostly empty, dim lit room. I will send in some of the other guys to record what I have left in here. Then, we will give this thief the boot. I need him alive to serve as a more prominent reminder to the others to not muck up my business.

Viktor had made his sink and was mostly washed up before his Pokegear began to ring. This caused the older man's frown to deepen further in annoyance as he shook off most of the water droplets clinging to his now bloodless hands. "This better be important." Viktor said as he all but growled his annoyance into the Pokegear's transmitter. "I-it is sir! The Resistance Leader and some of his members took a jet from the Mistralton Airport." "A jet? Why would he...? Thank you for informing me. Keep me updated on any other changes." "Y-yes sir!" The other line went dead a moment later, leaving Victor alone with his thoughts, which drifted towards the odd movements of the Resistance's Leader. Why would Blue take a jet from Mistralton at this particular time? I had thought his presence would be required in the Resistance's Headquarters... Something is not right here. The bearded man checked the call history on his Pokegear and noticed that there were three missed calls during the period of time he had set it to Silent. Thankfully all three of the missed calls left voicemails, the first of which was an update on the specialized smoke canisters Viktor had requested earlier that week; apparently it was a success. The second voicemail detailed the growth rate of the Croagunk and the Eggs. Though, the last voicemail had Viktor rushing to his office to fetch his coat and then the warehouse to collect some much needed supplies.

"Emile! You are in charge until either Melany or myself return! Tomson! Call Mistralton Airport and tell them to prepare my private jet! Jacques! Keep an ear to the Resistance's activities! I want to know the second the 'Secret Mission' in Goldenrod City updates!" Viktor barked orders at his henchmen as he briskly walked his way out of his main office building in Castelia City. The older man bore a scowl upon his face as he hurried his way to his other warehouse to pick up a temporary Pokemon to transport him to Mistralton Airport. I cannot believe that the Resistance would choose now of all times to do something so foolish. It may be a good opportunity for me to finally get my hands on the power source for Nova's Starburst technology, but to allow the young lady from House Berlitz to head off on her own?! No, calm down. Perhaps this is simply another opportunity... Yes. If I am the one to save the young lady then perhaps... Viktor's scowl slowly changed into a light smirk as his mind began to whir, coming up with various different thoughts and schemes. "This may just be a blessing in disguise."

In The Skies Above Johto.​

A foul stench filled the jet and the sounds of liquid sloshing around within a container could be heard over the silence that reigned within the small, yet spacious compartment. The soft click of a pair of tongs reached pulled out a bullet from an unusually purple colored vial, which was then set onto a white towel, stained with various droplets of the same purple shade. "I do not mind how it is done my dear Melany," Viktor's voice spoke softly, yet firmly into his Pokegear's transmitter while his hand not holding onto the device gently dabbed the bullet into the towel to get off most of the purple substance. "Just shore up our Branch's defenses in Sinnoh as best you can. When you are done there, I need you to head over to Alola. I believe it is far past time to begin expanding our reach to those islands." The bearded man then maneuvered his Pokegear to be held in between his neck and his shoulder to free up his hand. Then, Viktor grabbed hold of his pistol's third spare clip before carefully lowering the last poison soaked bullet into place. "You may use whatever methods you deem necessary to establish a foothold for us, but do be careful to not spend anymore than one million poke. I do not wish to place us closer to the red than we need to be. I expect to hear from you in a week. Happy hunting." With his piece said, Viktor carefully set down the completed ammo clip and picked up the Pokegear again to end the call. Then, the bearded man put the third poisoned ammo clip in the small carrying case that was soon returned to its hiding place in his vest pocket.

Viktor poured a small amount of the vial into his Dagger's sheath and then he slide his Dagger inside shortly afterwards. I wonder how much trouble the Resistance has already stirred up in that Beedrill nest... I may need to make use of my Smoke immediately. Then, I will have to try to find one of the fallen Nova grunts or Resistance memebers if I want to know where the young lady Berlitz is. This outing was already beginning to feel as though it was more trouble than it was worth, but the chance to acquire a power source for Team Nova's Starburst Technology was simply something Viktor could not pass up. It was worth it, in spite of the headache the older man would without a doubt acquire once this outing was said and done. "Hopefully there is still some fun for me to be had once I touch ground." The bearded man began to impatiently tap the hilt of his Dagger as he waited for his jet to reach Goldenrod City.


Tags: AxElKiNgHeArT13

 

[AxElKiNgHeArT13]

Melany Rose


​

Snowpoint City
-------------------------


It’s official….. Snow is the worst. Why did she agree to this? Oh yeah.. she needs to get paid and of course she has to be in the snow but it does not mean she needs to like it. Melany was supposed to come to Snowpoint city and make and bolster it’s defenses against Nova. Oh yeah… she also is supposed to do this without being caught. She rolled her eyes at this. She just got a call to make sure the branch here in Sinnoh was going to be okay. Little did Viktor know she was already done when he called her and he almost got her caught. Okay maybe it was slightly her fault for not putting her gear on silent but that is besides the point. She was on her way to the jet Viktor had to take her away from this dreadful place. On the bright side she gets to go to the Alola region next… which she heard is very nice this time of year and there is no Nova over there. A smile came across her face as she made it the plane.

“Ahh… Miss Rose is everything in order and are we ready to go?” asked the Pilot. The pilot was kind but she did not trust him or anyone actually. Viktor was the only one she trusted and maybe Lune. The Pilot continued to stare at Melany. “Miss….” Before he continued Melany just nodded. Everything was in order. They were in the clear but something just did not sit right with her. Viktor sounded stressed over the call and if he is upset about something then it has got to be something big. She snapped out of her thoughts when the pilot spoke to her again. “Strap in Miss. We are taking off now. Next stop Alola Region.” Melany strapped in hoping this mission would not take long. She wanted to get back to Viktor to check up on him but since this is not the Unova region she wont be able to use her title there to get her way. She has to play it by the book and start a branch there. At least she will be able to work on her tan. She really did need a vacation. Melany closed her eyes and decided to rest hoping everything would be okay.


Airspace of Alola Region
-------------------------------------

“Miss….Miss. Oh damn it.” The pilot set the plane to auto- pilot and got up and walked to Melany and grabbed her shoulder gently. The moment she felt contact Melany reached for her knife and held it to the pilots throat and gave him the evilest look she could have given someone. There are two rules when it comes to Melany and that is Rule 1: Do Not insult her boss in front of her. Rule 2 : Do not disturb her sleep. “Miss we are here. We are going to have to land soon.” He then backed away slowly then went back to the cockpit. Melany just let out a giant huff, pissed that her sleep was disturbed. She got up stretched and went to the cockpit. “Miss. You cannot be in her please go sit down til we land.” Melany just shot another dirty look to the pilot. He quickly shut up.

Melany looked over the Island that they were approaching and pointed to the Island which she knew was called Melemele Island. “You sure?” Melany just nodded. In order to assist her she ordered some of her Boss’s men to help her establish a connection here. They were to buy a building to use as a base of operation there and get settled before she got there. If they could not handle this most simple task there would be punishment. The jet soon landed. Apparently this city was called Hau’oli City. As she stepped off the plane she felt the sun hit her and it felt great. At that moment her PokeGear started ringing and looked apparently there was a call from the people she sent here. She answered it “…….”

“Miss Rose we just saw your plane. I sent two people your way to pick you up.” The man on the other ended stated. For Arceus sake, why were they not here already. Slackers. Melany scoffed. Then hung up.

“Miss are alright. May I head back now.” The pilot asked. Melany just pinched her forehead. ‘So Incompetent’ She thought to herself. Melany turned to the pilot and nodded her head. “That’s good. Also here you might need this.” He threw her a bottle of sun lotion. Melany caught it with ease.

“Enjoy yourself, Miss Rose. Even though you are on business, do not be afraid to enjoy yourself. I wont tell the boss if you wont.” She continued to look at him with a confused look as the door closed.

‘Huh. Maybe he isn’t as bad I thought. Maybe I might convince Viktor to give him a raise. Then again he did disturb my sleep… so maybe not. I’ll think about it. Well time to get down to business. I also wonder how Lune is doing on her run.’ Melany thought this as she walked toward the area she was supposed to meet the boys. “Hope she has it easier than I do.” Melany whispered to herself.

 

[Pipsqueak]

Benji Sato
Location: Nova HQ
Mentions: QuirkyAngel
​

Benji almost missed Kugasa's slight acknowledgment to his introduction before she ran off into battle. The interaction left him confused for just a moment before another voice cut into his hazy thoughts.

"Huh?" The redhead glanced around to find a robotic machine (Apparently named Alan) seemingly gazing back at him.

"O-oh! Yea, I'm splendid, all things considering. It's nice to meet you... Alan." The resistance member shook his head. This was no time for a leisurely chat. Slugma was watching him expectantly, waiting for a command. Following in the ninja's footsteps the pair ran out from the plane into the open. The feeling of vulnerability was almost overwhelming. People were clashing, the sounds of screams and Starburst weapons charging up sending his sleep deprived brain whirling.

"Slugma, just stick by me for now. Let's map this situation out a bit more." The smoke that had spread from Kugasa's bombs made this plan a bit tricky, but not impossible. The two moved further to the sidelines, away from the spiked cloud. The gate at the entrance seemed to have already been broken into, the two guards laying dead just before it. Benji and Slugma bolted towards it. Any way to get closer to Nova headquarters was the best option at the moment. He made sure to keep an eye out for any struggling resistance members along the way, of course. Just before they passed through the gate however, something hard knocked into Benji, sending him sprawling on the ground. He instinctively reached for his flamethrower, cocking it towards the offender. A large Nova member towered above him, his teeth bared in anger and a hatred that was only ever present in someone who blindly followed an opposing force.

"You're dead, red."

"Haha, cute pal. No time for poetry though, yea? Keep your head in the game." Before Benji had time to pull his trigger, Slugma was on top of him. The heat from his body was intense, the steam rising and evaporating quickly. In seconds The Nova grunt lay dead, his head crudely melted until he was unrecognizable. Benji got to his feet, hardly fazed.

"Thanks buddy. Let's get going."

 

[QuirkyAngel]

Alan's Drone #1

Goldenrod- Near Nova Headquarters, Johto​

The battle at enemy headquarters had begun.

Floating past the bodies of a couple of Nova grunts with holes in their necks, a drone controlled by one Alan Rickman exited the alley as it continued to survey the battlefield. Finding the way to Nova Headquarters wasn’t very hard at all, considering the sleek building was the tallest and most contemporary-looking one in the city. Honestly, Alan rather admired the design. As someone who grew up in Pyrite Town and worked in the tech field, big, technologically advanced, cities like Goldenrod and Lumiose had always been the dream—until Kalo’s destruction and Johto’s takeover by an anti-pokemon organization, of course. Nowadays Luminose was a shell of its former self and Goldenrod had become home base to the instigators of the PWT massacre. Industrially, the city appeared to have grown in leaps and bounds due to Nova’s influence, yet life in the sprawling metropolis seemed duller in Alan’s eyes…granted, that might’ve been the effect of the civilians shutting their doors as soon as the first sounds of battle were heard.

It was likely normal for them by now—conflicts between Nova and the Pokemon League that is. Blue hadn’t mentioned anything about it, but it had always been an unspoken rule to limit civilian casualty where they could. Or, at least, it was for him and Kuga whenever they completed assassination missions. Compared to Nova, the resistance wasn’t nearly as organized.
Alan wasn’t paid anymore than the average tech job he already did for Realgem Tower either.

Settling on the branch of a nearby tree, the drone watched as a small pale-skinned girl in a blue dress and shark-designed overcoat ran out to guard the front door along with another grunt. At least they seemed to be doing a decent job of drawing the ants out of the anthill. Whether or not the second team could make use of the chaos to do what they need to do was up to their own abilities.

It set the timer for 20 minutes. Hopefully, not too many would die before then.


Sapphire Birch (Kugasa Karasuna)

Goldenrod - Department Store, Johto​

Exiting the fitting room of Goldenrod’s Department Store, Kugasa adjusted her new hat as she answered a phone call from Alan. It was common for ninjas to act as body doubles for the lord they wished to protect. Since Green was already decoying for Platinum, Kugasa figured she ought do the same for Sapphire. There was no real advantage to attacking Nova Headquarters as herself. However, doing so as Sapphire might draw more eyes. More importantly, if Nova thought she was Sapphire, they were unlikely to go looking for the real one.

“Where are you Kuga? Some of the resistance members are already at enemy headquarters!”

“On my way,” Kugasa paid the store clerk, who hadn’t a clue she’d been assisting a member of the resistance, and dashed out the door of the Department Store. Bought some herbs and super potions as well – just in case. “What’s the situation over there?”

“A cute girl with a trident guarding the front entrance,”

“That doesn’t sound too bad...”

“Successfully guarding the front entrance; She just stabbed someone that tried to enter. Based on the level of energy being produced, it’s a Starburst weapon.”

Kugasa nodded, making mental note to keep her pokemon away from the trident. Fortunately the target destination was only a couple of blocks away. Hard not to miss it what with how ostentatiously tall it looked. Should she just have Venusaur blast a solarbeam at it? No. Too big of an attack might draw out Admin Celene too soon. She was forced to stop and hide behind a building as beams of Starburst came her way. Aimed at the Spinarak on her arm? Possibly, though it was pretty common for Nova to shoot Starburst energy at pokemon trainers whether they had their pokemon on them or not. The orange light was capable of breaking through pokeballs after all…and Sapphire Birch was a fairly well known pokemon trainer.

A trick commonly used by Nova Admin Rayne then? Slipping the phone back into her pouch, Kugasa clicked on a pokeball and released the creature inside. A smug, lazy-looking bipedal lizard with a purple body and light-blue underbelly appeared in a flash of red. “Make some noise, Toxtricity – just like we practiced.”

As it clawed at the protrusions on its chest, a sound like a bass guitar could be heard, creating electromagnetic interference that impeded the function of electronic devices within hearing range of the sound. Lights from store signs flickered out. TVs fizzled. Even her phone stopped working. Kugasa moved as soon as the orange lights of Starburst stopped. If she were herself then she would’ve slashed them with a poisoned blade. Alas, for now, she was supposed to be Sapphire Birch.

What did Kuga know about Sapphire Birch? The girl was strong and had senses like a wild animal. While the grunt struggled to get his device working again, Kugasa threw the hardest punch she could muster at the Nova soldier’s face. He didn’t fly as far as Sapphire’s punch would’ve sent him, but Kuga thought she did a fairly good job all things considered.

Ducking a knife, she elbowed the next grunt in the gut, following up with a strong uppercut to the chin, while Spinarak held the last grunt still with [psychic]. Knocking the last grunt out as well with a quick chop to the back of the neck, Kugasa sighed. Being decoy was hard work. She much preferred stealth operations. “Wrap them up Spinark and let’s get going!”

Once the grunts were successfully bound and stuck on wall, Kugasa continued charging towards Headquarters accompanied by the loud, electrifying sound of bass guitar that disabled the electronic devices around her and a Spinarak on her arm. “Our goal is the radio tower! I’ll be counting on you to play at your best, Toxtricity! Let’s give the entire city of Goldenrod a show they won’t forget!”

Toxtricity, who ran alongside her while strumming a protrusions on its chest, let out a noise of approval.

Kugasa mentally counted her 20 minute timer.

 

[OverconfidentMagi]

Goldenrod City, Johto

Team Nova Admin Jay Rayne looked at his phone and sighed. The situation outside was quickly devolving into chaos, and the order for him to go out and entertain Nova's guests had finally come down. Another dull day of spreading death and destruction. "Sol, you ready to head out?"

The Gardevoir named Solitaire had been admiring the new cloak Jay had given her earlier today in the mirror, but she'd stopped to watch him as soon as she'd sensed his mood shift. The pokemon answered with a sound akin to chiming bells, which Jay interpreted as yes. She pulled the hood of her new cloak over her head before clicking the button on a small device she wore around her neck. In the next moment Jay found himself in the air above the city. His feet touched down on an invisible platform Solitaire had made for him to stand on. She could of course keep him aloft with just psychic power, but he'd told her before that it made him uncomfortable. Solitaire used Psychic Terrain once her trainer was situated to watch for incoming attacks.

Jay and his pokemon, the former wearing the unmistakable team jacket marking him as one of the Admins and the latter concealed by a white hood emblazoned with the same team symbol, simply appeared above the heads of the Resistance members and Team Nova grunts fighting below. A luxury ball fell from his open hand, bouncing on the invisible platform and releasing the pokemon inside. Luxuria, Jay's Vaporeon, shook its head at the noise as soon as it appeared. "Sorry about that, Lux." The water pokemon still shot him an annoyed glare despite the apology. "But we've got work to do."

"Ladies and gentlemen of the Resistance!" Jay's voice echoed loudly to be heard by those fighting below. "Please cease this senseless violence! We are not your enemies! We simply desire a world of peace and safety for our fellow man, where pokemon live in equal peace and safety where their immense power won't accidentally cause you or us further harm! Please don't spill the blood of your fellow man just so you can hold onto power that does not even belong to you! Do not covet the power of monsters!"

All while he spoke, attacks from pokemon and bullets - and even a rogue shot of StarBurst's orange light - flew up at the grandstanding Nova Admin, but Solitaire could easily block or deflect such attacks, especially while psychic terrain was letting her see each attack as it came. The Team Nova grunts, at least many of them, fully believed the admin's words, but to the Resistance members his hypocrisy was blatant. The other admins might actually get away with spouting such nonsense, but anyone with two working brain cells could tell that the person floating in the air with two pokemon beside him didn't really believe a word of what he'd just said. But that hypocrisy was just another level of his performance. As he spoke, Jay had been moving his body to emphasize his words, and the Vaporeon beside him had been copying its trainer's motions. When he was done lying and Jay stood up straight, Lux was glowing with Z-Power. "Take down anyone that doesn't seem like they're Nova. Cloudburst Concerto."

Vaporeon's body dissolved into a cloud of white mist that rapidly expanded to obscure its trainer and the surrounding area, pouring down into the street and continuing to spread with no signs of stopping. The thick mist quickly filled with flashes of light and color and cut-off screams as Resistance members - and the occasional Nova grunt - found themselves targeted by Hydro Pumps and Ice Beams coming from inside the mist.

This move was something that had resulted from Team Nova's extensive research into how pokemon actually worked. What was Z-Power? What were Z-Crystals? Why were some Z-Crystals able to be used by any pokemon while others required very specific pokemon and moves to activate? Such questions had been the fuel of yet another of Nova Admin Keith's pet projects. He'd proven that Z-Crystals could be easily mass-produced and customized, and had promptly gotten bored with them. His research had shifted to focus on Z-Power itself at that point, but Jay had made use of the Z-Crystal experiments to empower his own pokemon. After all, he was just one trainer expected to hold back what pretty much amounted to a disorganized army. Cloudburst Concerto combined Acid Armor and Mist with Vaporeon's ability to melt its body into water, transforming the pokemon into water vapor and hiding itself in a cloud of mist to dramatically raise the pokemon's evasion while also lowering its opponents' accuracy. Taking out entire groups of people and pokemon was a simple task once they couldn't see or land attacks.

Jay and Solitaire reappeared atop the building across the street, where he could oversee everything happening below. The flashing beams of light inside cloud filling the street made the massacre look like a rave gone wrong. Luxuria alone should be enough to hold the front door. He sent out Acedia and Superbia next, his Talonflame and Noivern. "Search out any priority targets!" The fiery bird and bat-dragon took off into the air to scan the city with sight and hearing respectively. Their superior senses proved almost unnecessary. One of those priority targets was going out of her way to call attention to herself. An obvious distraction, but wasn't this all?

"Sol, Teleport," he gave his command while pulling his gun from his side, an old-fashioned revolver type. She clicked the device around her neck. He clicked back the hammer. The Gardevoir wearing a white Team Nova hooded cloak appeared just in front of the wanted terrorist after Teleporting them to her location, but its trainer appeared somewhere else. Jay placed the end of his gun behind the head of one Sapphire Birch. "You don't need to be so loud, I'm right here."

QuirkyAngel



Waters West of Goldenrod City, Johto

A large shape approached the city beneath the waves, slowing as it neared the seawall foundations that made up the city's sunken coastline. The Wailord opened its mouth and its payload swam out: Sapphire Birch and Platinum Berlitz. The pair were both dressed in diving gear, actually entering the city to infiltrate Nova HQ never being part of their plan. Sapphire waved Lorry, her Wailord, off as it retreated further out into deeper waters. It was doubtful Team Nova would think too much about a Wailord being spotted in Johto waters, the giant pokemon were known to get lost and wander through unfamiliar waters on occasion, but it was also true that Team Nova was paranoid. The Resistance attack was meant to keep Nova from paying attention to smaller concerns like a lost Wailord.

Platinum touched a puck-shaped device to the wall and checked her pokegear, then moved the device elsewhere on the wall and checked again. She repeated this until she found a section of the wall that came back slightly less solid than the rest. "Here."

The murky water was lit by a momentary flash as Sapphire sent out her Relicanth. "We're breaking through. Relly, use Harden and Rock Polish and Rock Smash a hole through this wall. Seal up the hole as soon as we're through." The brown fish pokemon swam away to charge up before returning swimming at full speed head-first toward the solid concrete wall. Sapphire wasn't concerned about Relly hurting itself even if Plat had gotten the wrong spot on the wall to break through. Relly's Rock Head meant it wouldn't feel a thing if there was a layer of titanium right under the concrete. Thankfully that wasn't the case, and the wall practically exploded on contact when Relly crashed into it. Riding the rush of water, Sapphire and Platinum were flushed directly into Team Nova HQ. Relly used Rock Slide and Rock Tomb to fill the hole it had made and cut off the flood of water before swimming off to join Lorry waiting further out to sea.

Sapphire spit out her breathing device and pulled off her mask. She was on her feet and alert to anyone coming to attack them while Platinum was still sprawled on the floor. "Here Lady Platinum," a woman's voice spoke before Platinum found herself lifted to her feet. Platinum thanked the red-haired maid that had appeared in the hall next to the pair, looking entirely out of place, not only because she wore formal maid attire but because she appeared perfectly dry despite the hall having just been flooded by seawater. Platinum took a moment to refocus and shift into the role as the acting commander of this infiltration and rescue mission. "Sapphire you take one direction, we'll take the other. We have fifteen minutes to find Ruby if we plan on getting out with the others. If you find him don't worry about anything but taking him to safety."

"Yeah," Sapphire responded, but it was clear her mind was already running down the hall ahead of her body. She let Kirly, her Gallade, out of its pokeball, prompting Platinum to send out her Lopunny.

"I can't guarantee I'll be able to come, but if you yell Lopunny might be able to hear at least."

"Yeah."

Platinum gave her friend a concerned look, but it was too late to change the plan at this point. "Go!" Sapphire and Kirly shot off down the hall in one direction, Platinum, Lopunny, and the maid ran the opposite way.

 

[RageFactorXIII]

Viktor "The Emperor"

Goldenrod - The Backstreets, Johto​

The sounds of battle: gunshots; Pokemon Moves lighting up the area; Starburst technology sparking off at the random odd interval; all of it was coming from the city before Viktor. It seems they have been having a good time running wild here. I may not even need to dirty my own hands to acquire the items I seek. A rare smile made its way to the bearded man's face as he walked calmly towards the chaos emanating from Goldenrod City. His first order of business here was locating a communicator from either faction, which should not have been a difficult task to accomplish given all of the bodies littering the streets as Viktor made his way closer towards the fighting. It should not have been difficult, however, the communicators that Viktor was able to find were either broken or absent. It seems many of the Nova Grunts were taken by surprise or were simply thoughtless. I did not know that Nova allowed their members to be so undisciplined. If a situation similar to this occurred in Unova, my men would not be so incompetent. Viktor allowed himself to spend a few minutes to rummage through the corpses until he was able to finally locate a working communicator. The bearded man wiped the blood splattered across the communicator onto a body's shirt before he touched the dial to play around with the device's frequency. If only the owner of this device was forgetful enough to keep their frequencies written down. Viktor mentally grumbled to himself as he wasted even more time trying to get the device within his hands operational.

"We have another one over here!" A voice shouted from a short distance away before the sounds of gunfire filled Viktor's current area. The older man swore under his breath as he was forced to dart for one of the buildings' doorways in order to take cover. Once he was safe, Viktor's left hand reached downwards towards his holster to pull his Remington 1911 as he right hand continued to slowly work the dial on the communicator in the hopes that he would luck out and find an active frequency line. Shots pinged off of the building around Viktor as the man did his best to withdraw into the short indentation like a Shuckle withdraws into its shell. There is more than one. The bearded man thought to himself as he patiently waited for the brief pause in the shooting that signaled the enemy reloading their firearms. Thankfully, Viktor did not have to wait too long for his opportunity to retaliate as the sound of gunfire halted only a few seconds later. Acting quickly, the bearded man poked his head out from behind his cover and fired two hasty shots from his Pistol, then Viktor ducked immediately back into cover. "Wow! That guy is a terrible shot! My grandmother could shoot better than him, right guys? ....Guys?" Good, the poison is working. Viktor thought to himself before he pulled away from his cover again to see what had occurred in the street. Two fresh bodies littering the street and a very confused Nova grunt greeted Viktor's eyes. Another pull of the trigger corrected the mistake Viktor saw before his eyes, turning the two corpses to three in the blink of an eye. I should hurry. There's no telling how many more stragglers there are nearby. Viktor swiftly made his way over to the new bodies and picked up one of their communicators, tossing away the one he had been fiddling with before aside. "Lets see what I can find out from this one."

The new communicator that Viktor had picked up was mercifully already tuned to the proper frequency channel and it was broadcasting the chatter from the other Nova Grunts wonderfully. From this communicator, Viktor was able to learn that most of the fighting was spread around the Nova HQ building, which was to be expected from the Resistance. They did have to distract the Team and nothing caught one's attention better than a direct threat to their dwelling. "Disappointingly, there is nothing on the Young Lady Berlitz." The bearded man grumbled to himself, displeased with the lack of information towards his secondary target. He picked up two of the dead Nova Grunts Starburst Gauntlets and placed his hands into them while he continued to listen in on the chatter. If I had more of a warning, I would have brought a small group of my men with me to bring back more of Nova's tech. Unfortunately, these two gauntlets are all I will be able to bring back with me. A new voice rang out over the communicator, catching Viktor's attention and pulling him away from his thoughts. "...q! I repeat, Sapphire Birch is heading towards HQ! Be advised!" "Miss Birch, is it..." Viktor did not know all too much about the Resistance Members and their lives prior to this war, but if Team Nova were making a big deal of a single person, then they had to hold some significance. The bearded man pushed off of the wall he had leaned up against while listening to the communicator, then he attached the device to his belt. "I may as well see who this young lady is."

Goldenrod - Near Nova HQ, Johto​

Shots were fired in quick succession before the firearm made a loud audible click, signaling that it was now empty. Without pausing to reload, a scarred hand reached down to the sheath on his right side, pulling out the poisoned Dagger to throw at the final obstacle in Viktor's way. The satisfying sound of metal meeting flesh greeted the bearded man's ears as he pressed the button on his Remington to eject the spent clip from the Pistol. Measured steps made their way over to the four new Nova corpses while his calloused hands reached into his vest pocket to pull out the ammo case he had placed there. Viktor stopped just before the final grunt he had killed as he swapped out the spent clip for a fresh one from his ammo case. "I'm already on my last clip." His knees let out a soft pop as Viktor crouched downwards, which forced a groan from him. "And I may be getting too old for this." Viktor's right hand reached down and grasped the hilt of his Dagger before wrenching the blade from the chest of the fourth Grunt. He wiped the red staining his blade off on the clean section of the Grunt's pants before returning the Dagger back to it's sheath to coat it with a new layer of poison. Then again, I have not been on top of my usual workout regimen as of late with all of the new issues sprouting up at the office. The older man stood up and lightly stretched his back as he casted a cursory glance about his current surroundings. I should reevaluate my schedule when I return to Castelia. Viktor continued to travel further along his current street, allowing the Resistance Members he saw much more frequently now to take care of the Nova grunts. The bearded man only joined in on the fighting when Team Nova actively barred his path, except this time Viktor relied on his poisoned Dagger, his cloak and the new Starburst Gauntlets to gain the advantage over the poor fools.

There really was nothing of interest to note as Viktor fought his way down the street bringing him ever closer to what he assumed was Team Nova's Headquarters. Sure, there was quite a bit of fighting and death surrounding the bearded man, but there was no sight of this 'Sapphire Birch' he had heard over the communicator. Was it all just a trick by Nova? Did they simply claim to know the location of a high priority Resistance target to attempt to panic any Resistance Member who may have picked up one of Nova's communicators as Viktor had? No, Viktor thought firmly as he dodged a flying Resistance Member's body before darting into an alleyway to gather his thoughts. Nova would have dispatched an Admin if they truly felt threatened. There is no need to deceive an enemy you can easily crush with your own two hands. Wine red eyes roved about the battlefield they could see from within the secluded alleyway, spotting all sorts of chaos and battle, but no high profile targets with how the common rank and file fought. "I should cut my losses and make my way back to my jet before Nova blocks my exit." Viktor let out a sigh as he reached behind him and plucked the Premium Ball off of his belt. Then he pressed the button on the ball and tossed it, summoning the monster that was stored inside of it. "Cain, Iron Defense and Swords Dance. Clear me a path." The Bisharp hardened its metallic body, while performing some rather fancy footwork that somehow helped bolster its physical might, but before it could rush forth and begin cutting down the Nova Grunts as Viktor had commanded, water flooded the area.

Panic was the prevalent thought as Viktor rushed down the alleyway to avoid getting caught up in the raging rapids flooding the street he had just been peering down. "Cain, follow me!" The bearded man shouted over his shoulder as he ran towards the other end of the alleyway, which was mercifully connected to another street. Viktor could hear the roar of rushing water behind him as he dashed out from the alleyway he had been using as cover and was forced into the new, open street. The clinking sound of metal on metal told Viktor that Cain was still right behind him as he continued to put more distance between him and the rampant liquid. An action that proved entirely unnecessary, Viktor had discovered after a good minute of fleeing for his life. What in Arceus's name was that? Viktor leaned gingerly against a building to catch his breath while Cain looked past the bearded man and towards the area further ahead. Did Team Nova create a new TM? A new HM? Or is this an entirely new Doomsday Device? None of those options were appealing in the slightest, but given just how advanced the Team's technology was any one of those possibilities were likely. I need to leave, now. Goldenrod has officially become too troublesome for me. The bearded man straightened up and took a deep breath as he tried to figure out where in the city he currently was, though before he could do so, something metallic dug lightly into his side. Looking over to his right, Viktor glared down at his Pokemon. "What, Cain? What is it?" The man's irritated tone suggested that the Pokemon should have a good excuse for his rudeness. In response to Viktor's question, Cain merely raised one of its bladed arms and pointed it straight ahead. Following his Pokemon's arm and looking further up the road showed Viktor something rather interesting. The bearded man's glare softened considerably as he gently placed one of his large hands upon his Bisharp's left shoulder. "Good work Cain."

Viktor walked carefully towards the sight in front of him with his Remington 1911 drawn and his right hand resting upon one of the flashbangs hooked onto his belt. The bearded man removed his right hand from his belt long enough to give Cain silent orders to circle around and flank the target further up the street. It seems as though fate does not favor me today. It is not considered good fortune to come across him. Wine red eyes took great care to keep the blonde haired young man and his Gardevoir within their field of vision. Though, if he is here dealing with this girl, then that means... He allowed his eyes to fully take in the third individual and noted immediately that they were not of Team Nova if their lack of uniform was anything to go by. This most likely meant that the girl before him was Sapphire Birch, the young lady he had heard about over Team Nova's communicator. Perhaps my luck is not entirely terrible. Viktor's index finger squeezed the trigger three times, firing at the Team Nova Admin while his right hand busied itself with dexterously pulling the pin on the M84 Flashbang. The bearded man knew that his shots would not connect with Jay, not while his Gardevoir was present, but he didn't need them to. He just needed those shots to distract Jay's Pokemon while the flashbang Viktor threw blinded them. "This way girl! Head towards my voice!" Viktor shouted towards the girl as he covered his eyes with his right arm and holstered his Pistol. He was already planning on busying his Left Hand with working off the pin of one of his M18 Smoke Grenades to cover his escape while Cain got into position to take out the Gardevoir or, failing that, retrieve the girl.


Tags: QuirkyAngel OverconfidentMagi

 

[saniachan]

OverconfidentMagi

• Hubert/Mewt
• Gaster

• There was not that much that Mewt did as soon as he arrived at the HQ. Checking in for the day, saying hi to fellow Nova grunts, checking his assignment for the day (which so happened to be patrolling Goldenrod), borrowing a StarBursted Pokemon or two, that's it. He chose Corviknight and Reuniclus as his StarBurst mons of the day because he particularly wanted to patrol from the sky. That said, Mewt took off on his StarBursted Corviknight with the Reuniclus floating by their side. The patrol itself was rather uneventful... until another message from "WDG" popped up in Mewt's Porygon Pokegear.
• Meanwhile, Gaster randomly roamed around the net (well, more like making their way to that one social media they're fond of) until they felt funny for whatever reasons. There was a feeling of displacement, almost a floating sensation, as their innate glitch as a Porygon-Z somehow took them to the Resistance's jet cyberspace. The teleportation itself was still way beyond their control, as usual.
  
  What the...?
  
  Curiosity ensued, the Virtual Pokemon teleported out to the cockpit, then made their way outside where everyone had already set off for the reckless mission. One of these people was Platinum Berlitz (or, well, whoever disguising as Platinum Berlitz) who actually made Gaster do a double take. That said, they decided to text their human about it.

"Looks like Miss Berlitz is in for the assault. Dunno if it's really her or someone else disguising as her, though.

PS: IDK if I should thank or blame the glitch for this one."

Okay, this is awkward. Why would Lady Berlitz, of all people, tag along for this one tho? Mewt thought. Little did he know that Gaster had already seen what they said with their own eyes. But since Gaster did mention "the glitch", he suspected that it could be the cause of them knowing what they were saying. Regardless, the young man replied as Hubert right away:

"Thanks, mate. Careful out there, don't get SB'd yourself. Love you."

It was soon followed by another text message:

"BTW, you better tell me about that glitch when we get home. Be truthful or you'll stuck with it forever."

So Mewt went on with the patrol while Gaster helped Blue's Porygon-2 out to watch the plane. Again, the patrol was relatively uneventful until he saw what looked like Platinum Berlitz (?) on the road. Thanks to his bird's-eye view, Mewt could easily track Nova grunts' whereabouts (even though he's a Nova grunt himself). With that, he shot his arrows at Platinum (?) in hope to guide her away from the alleys with other Nova grunts and get her straight to the HQ. He purposefully missed the target with them unless she did anything stupid.

And then Nova Admin Jay (figuratively) stepped into the battlefield with his Gardevoir and Vaporeon. He did some speech that was, well, quite a BS in itself. Heck, even Mewt could see the hypocrisy in every words Jay had spouted. It was soon followed up by his Vaporeon's move of... what was it again? Cloudburst Concerto? Whatever it was, said move had formed some sort of white mist obscuring whatever's in its way and bombarded the unlucky ones with Hydro Pumps and Ice Beams. In response, Mewt immediately commanded his two StarBursted mons, "Reuniclus, Protect her! Corviknight, up!" The Corviknight flew upward to avoid the mist with Mewt in tow. And as for the Reuniclus, they went down to Platinum's (?) side and formed a turquoise energy shield around her, thus protecting them both from incoming attacks.