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Post by Van Akiyama on Jun 12, 2011 4:01:20 GMT -5
Prologue - Disturbed Dreams A splash of cold water soaked a young boy of five years old, bringing him back to his senses. Looking down, Emilio could see a Horsea beaming up at him happily. The water Pokemon sprayed him with another Water gun before diving back under the water and swimming away. Glancing around after wiping the water from his face, he could see dozens of people lining the small shore next to the water. Many of them were laughing and playing in the shallows with their friends and family. Not far from him, he could see his mother, father and younger sister building a large sand castle. Behind him stood the large white and red building known as the Sootopolis Pokemon Center.
"Emilio!" a young voice called, causing the young boy's head to snap back towards his family. His younger sister was beckoning towards him with a look of glee on her face. The water in her red hair was glinting in the sunlight and her blue eyes were fixed on him. His parents were also looking towards him with broad smiles on their faces. "Come over here! We made room for you to fit inside!"
Emilio felt a small smile cross his face as he rose to his feet excitedly and jogged over to his family. He only had a few second to look into the opening his sister had mentioned before he felt himself getting shoved inside. He could hear his sister laughing as he pulled his face free of the warm sand and peered around. The abnormally large sand castle was large enough to stand in and rather comfortable. There was even a small throne made of sand directly in the center of the castle, just big enough for him to sit in.
"This is awesome!" Emilio called to his family as he sat down in the throne. He felt himself sink into the still moist sand as he sat back and enjoyed the view. He could see out into the crystal clear water from where he was. A school of Horsea swam swiftly into his field of vision and, as he followed them as they looped in the water, he could have sworn one of them winked at him. The Horsea played around a bit more until a sudden 'BOOM' was heard throughout the city, causing the school to scatter and flee.
"What was that? There wasn't supposed to be rain today..." Emilio's father said. However, Emilio had hardly heard his father. The young boy was too focused on something he had seen in the water, gliding silently near the bottom of the giant body of salt water. The mysterious figure was massive and blue with red outlines covering its massive outstretched fins. As it glided through the water below, Emilio saw its fin hit one of the cliff's sides that surrounded Sootopolis and another 'BOOM' resounded through the area.
"It was tha--" Emilio had begun to say as he pointed at the large aquatic being. However, he was cut off by a sudden massive roar again. The water in front of him began to recede and, despite the swiftly gathering clouds above the city, a sudden intense heat had fallen on the area. Emilio felt himself beginning to sweat in a matter of seconds as his father raced up behind him and followed his finger.
"We have to go, now..." his father said. Emilio's family began gathering what little possessions they had as quickly as possible. However, the young boy had found himself rather curious of the massive Pokemon below. Another roar came and, without any warning, a massive crack in the earth formed behind him on the beach. Emilio was thrown forward and into the water, which had turned warm on the surface from the sudden heat. The Pokemon in the water below him didn't seem to notice the sudden intruder in the water. It had risen close to the surface, its eyes fixed on the torn earth before it.
After resurfacing from his sudden dive, Emilio could see a massive Pokemon rising from the crack that had just formed. It was massive and plated with what appeared to be red armor. Massive claws formed at the ends of its limbs and razor sharp teeth could be seen just below its hostile and bloodthirsty eyes. Another cry in the area as the aquatic Pokemon reached the surface, though it sounded much different than before. It began to rain and the waters around Emilio had suddenly become rather turbulent.
As young as he was, Emilio had trouble staying above the massive waves that were beginning to form. He could faintly hear the desparate cries cries of his family from the far shore, though he could not seen them above the walls of water that were crashing into him. After a few minutes of struggling, the sounds of a massive battle began erupted behind him. He could catch glimpses of the two massive Pokemon fighting fiercely against each other before he was drawn back underneath the waves.
Then, much to his horror, a familiar roaring sound reached his ears. He could even hearing underwater and it was not the cry of a Pokemon. Looking up, Emilio could see a massive wall of water stretching to the sky above in front of him. Slowly, the water had begun to swallow the city. Struck with absolute horror, Emilio watched as his own family tried futilely to flee to higher ground, only to be swallowed by the massive wall of water later. He was only able to register their fate as the tidal wave reached him and a massive force of water forced him back under the water. This time, however, he force did not stop as Emilio felt himself sinking deeper and deeper into the sea.
Soon, everything was dark around him and he couldn't see a thing. He tried to swim back up, but could not make much progress against the force of the tidal wave. He could feel salt water running down his throat as his lungs and muscles reached their limit. He eventually went limp in the water, floating helplessly far beneath the surface. He could faintly hear the sounds of swimming around him as his senses dulled and consciousness faded from his body.
Yet, just as he had given up all hope, a faint glimmer of light in the distance caught his eye. He could vaguely feel himself being pushed back up to the surface by something beneath him. Soon, a blast of chilled air hit his face and the sounds of birds above reached his ears. A bright periwinkle sky and the bright sun was shining above him. The roar he had heard back in Sootopolis echoed around him, though he could not turn around to see what had made it.
Instead, as he slowly lost consciousness, he could see something massive and green circling above him. The massive beast let out a loud roar as it slowly descended toward him. However, as hard as he fought to stay awake, darkness soon covered his vision and all but one of his senses left him; a strange, sharp pain in his stomach.
Emilio let out a loud gasp as he shot up into a sitting position, clenching his stomach. He was breathing quickly and he could feel his heart racing in his chest. He could feel sweat running down his brow and neck and he could heard the loud hum of a truck's motor behind him. Wiping his brow and neck with one hand, he rubbed his sore stomach with his other. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness of his environment, Emilio could make out a large box now laying in his lap. The box had fallen on him when the truck had stopped.
"That damned dream again..." Emilio muttered to himself as he threw the box off of himself and rose to his feet. The box landed with a dull thud against a smaller stack of boxes as Emilio looked around. It took him a moment to realize that he was still in the back of the moving truck. "Must have dozed off..." He could hear doors opening and slamming shut and the familiar pop of opening Pokeballs. A few moments later, he could hear a voice that had become quite familiar over the past several years from outside of the truck.
"We've arrived in Littleroot Town, Emilio!" called his adoptive mother from outside of the truck.
Nuzlocke Challenge - Emerald Version
So here I go, starting my third Nuzlocke challenge. I didn't post the first one (Emerald) up at all, the second (Crystal) was deleted with an old site I was on and the third (Emerald again) will be written as I progress, as usual. Here are the rules that I'll be following for this run.
[/li][li] When a Pokemon is K.O.ed in battle, it is dead. It must be released immediately and no revival items may bring it back to life. [/li][li] Only the first Pokemon in any given area may be caught, whether that area be a route, forest, or cave. If the Pokemon is K.O.ed or capture is not possible, then tough luck. Pokemon encountered by NPC characters (i.e. Wally and the Ralts) do not count against this. [/li][li] All captured Pokemon will be given nicknames to show connection. [/li][li] SET battle style must be used for battle settings. [/li][li] Healing items may not be used inside of battle. No healing items may be bought at shops. [/li][li] Pokeballs are scarce and only 5 may be bought from any given shop. Whether it be ultra balls, great balls, or normal Pokeballs, only five are allowed per shop. [/li][li] Pokemon may not hold items. If a Pokemon is obtained holding an item, the item must be taken from it immediately. [/li][li] Only a single TM may be bought from any given shop that happens to sell them. [/li][li] Only a single master ball, the one given to you via story line purposes, may be used. That ball must be used on a legendary. [/li][li] The only Legendary you may capture is the game's cover mascot, such as Suicune, Rayquaza, Giratina, ect. If you're playing Red, Blue or Yellow version, the only legendary you may capture is one of the three legendary birds. Only one. [/li][li] If all Pokemon in my party are K.O.ed, it's a game over. I must start over from the beginning of the game.[/blockquote] [/size][/blockquote] |
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Post by Van Akiyama on Jun 26, 2011 0:20:54 GMT -5
Chapter 1 - Meeting the Neighbors Notes: This chapter is just a bunch of exposition and story, which made it a lot longer than my chapters normally are. The only battle is the one where I choose my starter, so it's best if you only read if you're interested in the characters and story...
Emilio let out a small sigh as his adoptive mother called out to him, though he did not move or answer her. His mind was still lingering on the nightmare he had just suffered through. The memories of the day he lost his family seven years ago still haunted him and he was still occasionally forced to relive the day when he went to bed some nights. It had become more infrequent in past few years, but it still wasn't any easier when it happened. As he stood in the dark interior of the moving truck, Emilio tried, as he always did after awaking from such nightmares, to force his memories onto what had happened after the disaster. Once again, his efforts proved fruitless. He could no better remember what had happened afterward than what his adoptive parents had tried to feed him on his first night in their household.
The sound of footsteps snapped Emilio out of his trance-like thoughts and the young man turned his head to the back of the truck. A loud metal clang echoed through the truck as the back doors opened widely. The bright late morning light flooded into the stuffy truck, causing Emilio to squint his eyes as they adjusted to the sudden brightness. The light was followed by a cool, refreshing and very welcome breeze. Finally, a pair of Vigoroth leapt into the truck and began to haul boxes and baggage out of the truck. After watching the two Pokemon leap out of the truck and into the house, Emilio walked to the edge of the truck where his mother was waiting for him.
"Are you alright, Emilio? You look pale." his adoptive mother asked. She had a worried look on her face as Leon hopped lightly out of the truck and walked to his mother's side. Leon resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he was addressed by his full name. He hated the name and many of the other children at the Petalburg gym often made fun of it, so he had opted to adopt the nickname Leon instead. Of course, his parents still called him by his full name and his friends still teased him about it.
"Yeah... I'm fine. It was just the long ride..." Leon responded as he stretched. Once he was nice and comfortable again, Leon began to gaze around the small town they were going to be living in. The houses were somewhat scattered and far apart and the Lab could be seen just down a hill to the south. His own new home was a two floor building, painted a pale blue with a few windows scattered about. The closest building to theirs was a similarly built house, though it was painted pink instead of blue and it had a small Treecko painted on the door.
"Alright..." his mother said, though she did not look convinced. Although they were only his adoptive parents, his mother and father treated him like Leon was their own blood child. It was comforting to know that they cared for him and had often been able to take his mind off of his late family, "Well, this is Littleroot Town, our new home! How do you like it? It seems a bit quaint, but it sees like a good place to live, don't you think? And guess what? You get your own room, Emilio! Let's go inside!"
Leon felt a small smile creep onto his lips as he followed his mother into his new home. Back at the gym, he had shared a room with his father due to the lack of space. As they entered the house, Leon could see the two Vigoroth and their trainer were still hard at work. They were busy putting dishes, china and utensils into the cabinets and drawers of the kitchen, which was located behind a large marble top counter on the far corner of the room.
The living room stood between them and the main bathroom was to his left. A couch and Leon's favorite comfy armchair stood opposite of the large television. A small table stood between the chairs and the TV, holding several magazines and the TV remote. The television was on and tuned to the local news channel that was broadcast out of Rustboro City. Leon and his mother stepped out of the way as the Vigoroth and their trainer swept past them to get more boxes from the truck.
"Isn't it nice and cozy in here? The movers and their Pokemon do all the work of moving us in and cleaning up after. It's so convenient! You're room is upstairs, so why don't you go check it out? Don't forget to set the new clock your father bought you!" his mother said. She nudged him to his room before she walked to the kitchen and began exploring it. After letting the Vigoroth sweep past him again, Leon made his way across the spacious living room and quickly made his way up the stairs. The second floor seemed to be mostly a hallway. Several doors could be seen dotting the long hallway, though only three were open. After glancing around to find the bathroom, Leon noticed one of the doors had his name on it and quickly made his way to the room.
Leon felt the weak smile from before broaden a bit as his eyes explored his new room. All of his things were neatly put away and organized, his bed was made and his television already had the title screen of Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask on it. His Sumo Gigantor beanbag chair was settled a few feet from his television with his Gamecube controller resting on it. His computer was tucked away in one of the corners, already on and alerting him to a new email message. Nearly everything was colored either dark green or navy blue.
After making sure everything was where it was supposed to be, Leon sat at his computer quickly read through the email. It was from his father, who asked if he liked his new home and that he had sent a present to him. As he read the email, a small device next to his computer began to hum loudly. As he watched, a small purple bottle materialized inside of the glass container. Once the machine stopped humming, Leon opened the glass door and retrieved the potion from within. He wasn't sure why his father sent him such an item, seeing as he did not have any Pokemon. His father however, merely said that he might need it soon.
Confused but unwilling to question his father, Leon sent his reply and approached the clock his father had bought him. It needed to be set before it could be activated. Taking it from its place on the wall, Leon spun two small knobs on the back until both hands were at the appropriate time. Once his clock was correct, he pushed a small button on the back of the device and watched as the seconds hand began to rotate in a circle. With his everything set, Leon placed the clock back on the wall as his mother appeared in his doorway.
"Emilio, how do you like your new room? Everything put away neatly? Good! They've just finished moving everything in downstairs, too. Come down for some lunch!" she told him. Leon watched as his mother disappeared through the door again before turning his TV off and following her. Downstairs looked much less spacious then before now that everything was moved in, though there was still plenty of space left unoccupied. Shelves lined the walls with many rows of books in them and the furniture had been moved in and placed. The dining room had been set up as well, where the large round table and four chairs stood beneath a small chandelier. His mother, however, was in front of the television with an excited look on her face.
"Oh, Emilio! Come quickly! It's the Petalburg Gym! Maybe your father will be on!" she called. Leon quickly made his way over to the television, but the news report was already closing when his eyes fell upon the screen. He could see Petalburg Gym behind the female reporter before the scene changed to the usual news room, where they began to talk about upcoming weather. Leon let out a small sigh as he sat down at the table and picked up one of the sandwiches his mother had set out. His mother joined him as she listened to the weather report.
"Oh, yes! One of Dad's friends lives in town. Professor Birch was his name! He lives right next door, so why don't you go and introduce yourself. I'll head over there after I finished tidying up." Leon's mother told him as they finished eating five minutes later. Leon agreed and rushed back up to his room. It would be a good idea to get to know the neighbors and explore the small town a bit before nightfall. After grabbing his rather empty and light pack from his bedside and throwing it over his shoulders, Leon left the house and ventures out into town.
Leon's first stop was his neighbor's house, which he had seen earlier that day. The mailbox near the road had the name Birch etched into it and the door to the box was broken and hanging open, though everything else was in pristine condition. Walking up to the door, Leon could now see that the Treecko's large tail acted as a knocker for the door. Glancing around uncomfortably, the young man grabbed the tail and rapped on the door three times. He could hear footsteps for only a moment before the door opened. A woman was at the door now, watching him with a friendly face.
"Oh, hello. And you are?" she asked. Leon quickly explained that he was the new neighbor who had just moved in earlier that day. The woman smiled and nodded, "Oh, so you're Emilio! I've heard a lot about you from your father. We have a daughter about the same age as you. She was excited about making a new friend. She's upstairs, I think. Why don't you go introduce yourself?"
Leon smiled nervously as the woman gestured him towards the stairs at the other end of the room. Not wanting to be rude, Leon thanked Mrs. Birch and made his way across the room and up the stairs. Following the directions she had given him, Leon soon found himself in a room that looked much like his, though no one was present. The biggest difference was that everything was colored pink and white, as opposed to dark green and navy blue. Leon entered the room and looked around awkwardly, unsure of what to do until the one he was supposed to be meeting came back. As he walked around the room, he felt something bump against his foot. Lowering his gaze to the floor, Leon could see a pokeball resting on the floor next to him. However, before he could kneel down to pick it up, he heard the door open behind him.
"Huh? Who... Who are you!?" said the girl who had suddenly appeared in the room.
"Leon. I'm the neighbor who moved in next door earlier this morning." Leon explained. The girl's expression of nervousness suddenly turned friendly and happy at this news. She entered the room full and walked up to Leon, taking his hand in a force hand shake. Leon made no motions to stop her, but felt the levels of awkwardness rising.
"Oh, so you're Emilio... So your move was today. You scared me, I thought you were a thief or something. Anyways.... I'm May. Glad to meet you!" she said happily. Before Leon could say anything, however, May continued to speak, "I... I have this dream of becoming friends with Pokemon all over the world. I heard about you from my dad... I was hoping that we could be friends, Leon. Oh, this is silly, isn't it? I... I've just met you, Emilio. Eheheh... Oh, no! I forgot! I was supposed to help Dad catch some wild Pokemon today! Leon, I'll catch you later!"
Without giving Leon any time to speak anything of himself or ask any questions, May had scooped up the pokeball by his foot and left the room. For a moment, Leon looked after her as if he expected her to come back and say she was only joking. However, after heading back downstairs and looking around, he realized that May had already left. Saying his goodbye to Mrs. Birch, Leon left the house and began to explore the town. He met a few people as he explored, all of whom explained how it was usually quiet here and that professor Birch often left the lab for field work. However, only thirty or so minutes into his walk, a young girl ran up to him. She looked rather desperate.
"Mister, you have to help! I heard screaming from the route, but I don't have any Pokemon!" she pleaded.
"Show me where." Leon answered. No sooner had he agreed to help, the little girl beckoned him to follow and ran off to the north. Leon followed her until they were at a well traveled road that lead to Route 101. "Wait here." Leon told the girl. Although he had no Pokemon of his own to battle wild Pokemon, he jogged forward carefully onto the route. He had only gone past the first group of trees when he saw a well built man cornered by a lone Zigzagoon. The normal type Pokemon looked rather hostile.
"H-Help me! Hello! You over there! Please, help! In my bag, there are some Pokeballs!" the man called out to Leon as he came into view. Quickly glancing around, Leon spotted the bag the man was talking about, laying next to a patch of tall grass. Without hesitation, Leon dashed towards the bag and opened it. Inside, atop a stack of papers and notebooks, rested three pokeballs. Knowing that he did not have much time to think, Leon grabbed one of the pokeballs at random, enlarged the sphere and tossed it. A Mudkip was released from within.
"A Mudkip, huh? Mudkip, use Tackle on that Zigzagoon!" Leon ordered. The Mudkip, despite not knowing who he was, obeyed the order when it saw the other man cornered by the Zigzagoon. The Mudkip launched itself in a full body tackle at the other Pokemon, knocking it away and beginning the battle. Soon, the Zigzagoon had limped away into the tall grass and out of sight, defeated. After making sure the coast was clear, the man in the white coat, who Leon now recognized as Professor Birch, approached Leon.
"Whew, that was close... You saved me. Thanks a lot!" he said. He had an impressed and relieved look on his face as he extended his hand to Leon. As they shook hands, a glint of recognition shot through the professor's eyes. "...Oh, aren't you Emilio? This isn't really a good place to chat, so come by my lab later, okay?"
"Alright." Leon answered as Birch hurriedly picked up his bag and headed back into town. It was only when a small cry caught his attention that he realized that the professor had left the Mudkip in his possession. He looked up, intending to call the professor back, but he was already out of sight. Letting out a small sigh, Leon thanked the Mudkip for a job well done and recalled it to its ball. Unwilling to make the professor wait, he quickly made his way back to Littleroot and its Pokemon Lab.
As he entered, Leon could see the place was a big mess. Unorganized paperwork and books laid everywhere and the lab assistants seemed too busy to bother to clean it up. On the other side of the building, Leon could see Professor Birch working on some paperwork behind a desk. As he approached, the professor looked up and gave a broad and friendly smile.
"So glad you could make it, Emilio. I've heard so much about you from your father. I've also heard that you don't have your own Pokemon yet and that you're still a rookie trainer. But the way you battled earlier was magnificent! You must really be your father's son! Anyways... As thanks for rescuing me, I'd like you to have the Pokemon you battled with earlier. Think of it as an early birthday present!" he said as he rose from his desk. It took a moment for Leon to realize what the professor had just said.
"Th-thanks." Leon said. He shifted his gaze to the pokeball he had pulled out of his pocket a few seconds ago. He had been planning to give the Pokemon back, but now the professor had given it to him as a gift. For a moment, Leon stared at the sphere in his hands silently before deciding to name the Pokemon. Both of his fathers always told him that naming a Pokemon helped forge a stronger bond.
But another thought penetrated his mind. He was now a Pokemon trainer. He held the life of the Mudkip in his hands and one wrong move in battle would cause the death of the young Pokemon. It was a bitter truth of the world he lived in, set up by the current champions of each region to ensure that their position would never be taken from them. After all, how many trainer were able to survive five consecutive battles against the region's most powerful trainers?
That was what he had learned from his father, who had often spoken of being able to change the system for the better. He didn't believe that battles to the death were necessary, but as a gym leader, he was forced to uphold the rules or be imprisoned. It was a precaution made by the champion, who made the laws of the league, to make sure no one powerful could stand up and oppose him. After a few minutes, which seemed like hours to him, of thought, Leon decided to accept the Mudkip and name it.
 Belias the Mudkip - Level 5 - Tackle, Growl, ------, ------
"A good and unique name, I'd say! You may be a rookie trainer, but with some practice and polish, I believe you'll make an extremely good trainer. My kid, May, is also studying Pokemon while helping me with my research. She'll be helping me tomorrow as well, so why don't you go meet her then?" suggested the professor. Leon thought about it for a moment before nodding. Back in Petalburg, he had spent most of his free time looking after the gym's Pokemon when they weren't in use. He wasn't eager to just sit around and do nothing all day and it would be good to be out and about while helping the Birch family with their research. He doubted that Birch would have taken no for an answer anyways.
"Alright, that sounds like a good idea." Leon answered. He saw Birch's smile broaden even more, if that was possible. After Birch told him the time and place May would be searching for Pokemon, Leon departed the lab. The sun was beginning to set now, dying the skies above in pink, orange and purple hues as night fell over the town. The trainer quickly made his way home, where he found his mother watching television.
"Welcome home. How was meeting the professor?" she asked as he took his shoes off. Leon lowered himself in his favorite armchair and began to explain the day's events. His mother had a small smile by the time he was finished with his story and released Belias for his mother to see.
"Oh! What an adorable Pokemon! You're your father's child alright. You look good together with Pokemon! To think you have your own Pokemon now... Your father will be overjoyed..."
Recognizing the beginning of one of his mother's trademark stories (which usually lasts a few hours), Leon excused himself and wandered up to his room with Belias. With his thoughts running rampant in his mind, Leon let himself fall onto his bed and stared up at the ceiling. He was a Pokemon trainer now, which meant he was allowed to travel the world, catch and train Pokemon. But would he want to? It was a dangerous path to take, especially when most people followed the league's 'fight to death' rule in battles.
Many doubts ran through his head as he waited for sleep to take him. What if he made a mistake and Belias died? What if he couldn't bring himself to order the final blow and Belias died? What if he died? He knew that there were often trainer casualties, young or old, in the field of Pokemon training these days. He himself had witnessed a young trainer take the killing blow for his Pokemon before. It was a certainly gruesome thing to witness and something Leon wasn't keen on seeing again.
Doubts continued to edge away at his mind as he slowly fell asleep. He was only slightly aware of Belias laying quietly on his Sumo titan bean bag chair as darkness finally took him, lulling him into sleep for the next day.
The team
Belias the Mudkip
Level 5
Tackle, Growl, ------, ------
The Inventory
Potion - 1
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