Sayonara Crawl

Posts : 1696 Location : England

Alice nodded, glad for the freedom. She opted to get help instead of having ivy so that the professor could get some privacy. She returned her Pokemon to their balls, aside from Slowpoke, whose confusion helped keep the young woman a bit steadier, even if it felt bizarre. Taking a cold shower, she adored the feeling of it, cooling her down and waking Alice up after so long in sleep mode.

When she emerged, her hair was damp and wavy, but the rest of her was ready for any show. Make-up helped to conceal how bad she was, pale figure wearing only a white and candy striped dress with flat sandals and a few accessories. One of the staff then helped her to the hall, carrying the tray of food that the petite blonde had chosen. It was a pasta fearuring mixed vegetables as the highlight, especially ones she liked, such as spinach.

It did indeed help strengthen Alice up, although it was hardly going to work a miracle. It looked like she was stuck resting for a bit, not that the rookie could complain too much. She was a lazy lady, after all.

Posts : 782 Location : Water's Edge

After the meal, Alice was escorted to the center of all the action. She was given a fold out comfort chair, so she didn't have to stand. However, the Professor and assistants figured she wouldn't want to miss too much more. "We've collected a lot of data!" One of the assistants exclaimed excitingly, handing Alice some charts and graphs she could flip through. It wasn't like she would understand them, just a bunch of numbers and lines with no plain-English text to follow.

"Here, Alice. You might find these more up your alley," Ivy said, handing the girl a different folder. Inside were various pictures taken of the native fauna, along with their own spreadsheet for each. It seemed all sorts of different researchers were on this trip.

"H-hey! Alice's bag!" One of the assistants called out, pointing wide-eyed to the girls pack by her side. It was shaking violently, glowing a bright light. Ivy gently picked it up, handing it to Alice to handle whatever was going on inside. The girl was prompted to open it, where she would find the egg from before, glowing brightly and making tons of noise...it was hatching!

Ivy allowed her to take the egg out, placing the bag back on the ground for the girl. The shell seemed to melt away, like it became part of the newborn Pokémon. Everyone stared in awe as a blue theropod was now sitting on Alice's lap. It looked around mildly confused as it tried to gain its bearings. It clicked its jaw, growling cutely up at Alice.

"T-Tyrunt? But...they're extinct!" One of the assistants chimed, stuttering as he went.

"Not quite," Ivy said, looking over to the man. "Plenty of scientific advances have allowed us to bring back Pokémon, resurrected from well kept fossils! This could very well be the result of such a Pokémon mating. Still, it's color is quite peculiar..." Ivy trailed off, taking notes already.

Posts : 1696 Location : England

It was true that Alice didn't understand too much of it, particularly where complex maths was concerned. Still, she loved science even if it wasn't her strongest suit, flicking through everything as she listened and eventually swapped folders with Professor Ivy. That one was a lot more up her alley in terms of comprehension and interest, "Yeah, I can see! It sucks. So many people probably wanted to come, and I've missed the majority of the fun anyway!" She laughed, shaking her head. Though, of course, if she hadn't been there the poachers probably would've escaped with all of the Pokemon, so it worked out in the end.

Sipping her drink, she took some of the food on offer. Barbecue was a common food event, along with sandwiches, rice and pasta. She liked pasta a lot, eating it with an egg and some cheese that was slowly melting into it with butter. It was fairly plain, but still nice, and she finished it with some meat. "I was wondering, actually, Professor Ivy. When we get back to Valencia, can I maybe have a pokedex?" She asked, "Even a pink one, if there is one! I know you work with Professor Oak, so I thought maybe if I'm worthy of owning one, I--"

A light burst forth from her bag, and the trainer jumped in surprise. Was the ornament she had picked up really, truly an egg? The scientist produced it for her, and she watched as it hatched into a rather large baby, its blue scales shimmering even in the shade. "Oh, wow! Cool! A Tyrunt! And they're from Kalos!" Alice exclaimed with amazement. She knew all that Ivy had told her, nodding along and opening her arms, "He must be shiny! Wow, hey, dude! Welcome to the world!"

Posts : 782 Location : Water's Edge

Ivy nodded at Alice's comment, though looked up only momentarily before jotting down some more notes. "Professor Elm over in Johto would have had a hay day if he had been around to witness that!" She laughed lightly. "He was the first to suggest that Pokémon reproduced vie eggs, after all. But yes, I do believe this particular specimen is a shiny Pokémon," she confirmed, finally putting down her notepad.

She knelt down beside him, smiling at the thing. "Hey there little guy~" Ivy cooed, trying to let it warm up to her. Instead, Tyrunt clicked his jaws nervously, before making a chomping sound angrily toward the Professor. She fell back, a bit surprised at the sudden aggression. Even more surprising was that he turned back to Alice, rubbing his large head against her lovingly as he cooed.

"Hmm, he must think you're his mother," Ivy suggested, standing up and brushing some of the dirt from her outfit. "Would you mind if we got some pictures for documentation? They're no-flash cameras, the same kind we use on the wildlife to prevent disturbing the Pokémon."

Posts : 1696 Location : England

Alice was surprised at the Pokemon's response to Professor Ivy, and she blinked, fawning down at the dual-type. "Aww, don't be mean. They just think you're lovely, too." She reached down, petting the Tyrunt, fingers smoothing over his unusual scales. He was almost a sapphire colour, paired with bronze. Those were his rare armours. "I don't mind you all taking pictures, go ahead." The trainer said, adding to Tyrunt, "Are you hungry? There's milk and juice and fresh water. Whatever it is you want."

Posts : 782 Location : Water's Edge

Tyrunt roared happily, and some assistants brought over food for the baby Pokémon as others prepared the cameras. The took a few shots of Alice holding him, then had her put him on the ground and lured him to a more natural looking spot with some food. They snapped as many pictures as they could, but Tyrunt quickly ran back to Alice once he finished the snack.

They spent a couple more days on Pinkan, though Alice was mostly on bed rest the entire time. Still, by the last day she was back on her feet and more or less recovered. The assistants were packing up the equipment, but it would still be several hours before the blimp would arrive to get packed up and take them back.

Ivy approached the girl, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Feeling better?" She asked, smiling at the young woman lightly. "You certainly look better. But we'll be leaving Pinkan today, so if there's anything else you wanted to do here, I suggest you do that now." The woman winked, before walking off to direct the assistants with her expensive equipment.

Posts : 1696 Location : England

While on bed rest, it was quite frustrating. She'd had the opportunity to come to this glorious island and it was wasted away in a cot. She took the opportunity to catch up on her sleep, but also to call Danny everyday, hearing stories of his gym experiences, his life on Navel and everything else. What made it awkward was being questioned about her own past. She decided to maintain her own story, that Pokemon weren't frequent where she was from, almost mythological in fact. Alice had dreamed of her own journey, yadda yadda... The rest was irrelevant to life now. Or so she said.

She played with Tyrunt, too, of course. The baby wasn't really that fond of anyone else at the moment, and he was a bit nervously careful. After all, he was a heavy lump, and standing in the wrong places hurt his Mama human, which upset the Pokemon in turn. Still, besides that, she treat him like her new teddy while they listened to various radio stations. Slowpoke wasn't too happy about being replaced, of course, but it wasn't as if she was neglecting the rest of her team as a result.

Her feet hurt, which made walking difficult, but Alice was glad at the idea that she could finally set out and do some exploring. "Having a look around might be nice." Alice teased. With that, and Slowpoke by her side to take care of her, she promised Ivy that she would be careful and made her way back into the lush forest. She'd already collected a bunch of Pinkan berries, so maybe she could find more on her way, and Pokemon to admire. Maybe some of the wild ones she'd saved would say thank you!

Posts : 782 Location : Water's Edge

As Alice made her way through the forest, it seemed oddly still. The branches rustled suddenly with a Pidgeotto taking flight, likely to startle the girl after being so quiet. Otherwise the Pokémon seemed to have made themselves scarce. Probably still rather frightened after the ordeal earlier that week. It was better that way, with the Pokémon being wary of humans.

Alice arrived at a lovely place to stop for a rest. An old tree had fallen here long ago, the remaining log had more or less fossilized with vines and moss growing over its surface. Light trickled in through the canopy, dancing over the foliage covering the ground. The sound of a branch snapping could be heard, a footstep.

From behind a tree, a man swiftly stepped, wrapping one hand over Alice's mouth, the other around her arms. "Now little Slowpoke, don't do anything or I might just flinch and break her pretty little neck," though Alice couldn't see the man, the voice was unmistakable. The ring leader from the raid at Navel Island!

"You know, you're starting to become a real pain in the ass, Miss Alice Hope," he whispered roughly in her ear, his breath hot on her neck. "First the little incident at the catwalk, and now you've wrecked two of our finest mechas, and gotten four of our members arrested. What are we going to do with you?" He asked, clicking disappointedly in her ear.

In the distance, his Alakazam stayed hidden, ready to respond to any violence taken against its master. "But don't worry. I'm not going to kill you today. The boss seems to have taken a fancy to you and your little ability. Don't think we didn't notice," he chuckled lowly, grasping Alice by the cheeks between his thumb and fingers. He turned her face to where she could see him from the corner of her eyes.

His bichromial eyes glinted down at her deviously as he leaned in with a menacing grin. "Don't think you can run," he said, awfully close to Alice's lips before he pushed her away from him. She was sent tumbling to the ground as he snapped his fingers. Alakazam appeared, grabbing hold of the Rocket Executive before teleporting away.

Posts : 1696 Location : England

Alice sat down, feeling relieved for a moment as she reached for her cold canteen of water. "Slowpoke!" The Pokemon tried, but not in time, as a hand slipped around his trainer's mouth. She attempted to scream, not managing, but failing all the same as she heard the voice. The Rocket executive! So, the poachers were from the organisation, too? It seemed like they had returned in the darkness, in full force behind the backs of everyone.

Her eyes widened at his revelation, spotting those odd eyes and his face for a moment before he threw her forward. Alakazam had zipped him away before she could demand his name, or anything else important. Now she was of the interest of his boss?! "Slow, slowpoke...!" The dual-type teetered over with concern.

"My ability? What does he--?" Alice cut herself off. Of course, that weird glow. It had happened twice now, but she still didn't know why. It had to be connected to her Pokemon, or maybe even just Zubat. It had first happened when tutoring her, but when she had fainted on the beach, it hadn't appeared again. "I'm fine, Slowpoke, it's okay..." She assured, although her body hurt a lot from the push, "But it sounds like we're in deep trouble..."

They had their eyes on her, and it sounded like that agent in particular wanted her dead.

Posts : 782 Location : Water's Edge

Alice trudged her way back to camp, having been frightened by the experience. It was better to stay with other people for now, there was no telling when or where he could show up next! Still, she was sore and sluggish, making the walk back taxing to say the least. As she broke the tree line, coming into the camp clearing she could see them loading the last of camp onto the balloon.

"Oh, Alice! Just in time!" Ivy called out, waving and walking toward the girl. She stopped when she was close enough to see the condition of the girl. "You're all dirty, what happened?" A whistle blew, distracting Ivy as she turned back to the transport. "Ah that can wait, come on time to go!"

Alice was escorted back onto the blimp, and they took off back to Valencia. There were still so many unanswered questions. Who was the mysterious Executive? Why had they taken such an interest in Alice, and why did he let her go there in the woods? Before she knew it, they had arrived back at Valencia Island.

"Come with me, Alice," Ivy said, beckoning the girl back into her office. They sat down, Ivy offering he girl a cup of tea as they sat and talked about the research. Well, Ivy talked about it, again giving little room for Alice to speak. "But that's not why I asked you back here," she started, setting down her own cup on its plate.

"You see, that letter came with a package. My colleague sent me a peculiar specimen, but it's apparently rather aggressive. I'm a bit reluctant to release it into my reserve to be perfectly honest, but after what you did out there on Pinkan- I can tell you're a capable trainer..."

The purple haired woman opened her desk drawer, retrieving the package. She opened the small box, a pokéball inside. Within the translucent shell a black and green dragon could be seen slumbering- a Deino! "So what do you say, would you take this Pokémon for me?"

Posts : 1696 Location : England

Alice wanted to say what had happened, but didn't really get a chance. Awkwardly, she joined the Professor on the blimp, her attention caught between the scientists and their discussions, and the overseas view. She felt forlorn that, after spending so long on Pinkan Island, she barely got to see it. Perhaps after saving it, Officer Jenny would allow her an escorted clearance before leaving the Archipelago. Alice had a league to compete first, and a life to figure out, but the petite woman wanted a proper look before the world spat her back out to a more boring reality.

She rejected the tea in favour of Moo Moo Milk seeing that she wasn't fond of hot drinks, listening to the talk before glimpsing at the Poke Ball. Within the transparent red shell, she could see a black and sickly green dinosaur, her eyes concealed by overgrown smoky fur. "I'd love a Deino!" Even an aggressive one. Wasn't that in the nature of the Unova species? "What happened out there was kinda a mess, if you hadn't noticed, but I'd really love to take him! Actually," She paused, frowning, and glanced at a certain Heal Ball that was on the table, "I was thinking... Since it's important to all of the research you want to do, how about you look after Tyrunt for me, in exchange? It might make him less clingy to spend proper time with other Pokemon and people."

That, and with Team Rocket on her tail, keeping a shiny, ancient Pokemon with her was a risky thing. She was worried about what that executive would do to him, and he could be concealed and protected here, "He'll get in trouble out in public, too. He's a lovely thing, but Deino'll do for a dragon, and besides, if he is that aggressive, I'm gonna have my hands full."

Posts : 782 Location : Water's Edge

"Oh- really?" Ivy asked, blinking in surprise. She was a bit shocked that Alice would give up her newborn like that, but with all that transpired she could understand why. "Yeah, I'll take him. Though since most of the Pokémon in my reserve are full grown, I may have to send him to Professor Elm for the time being..."

She handed over Deino's pokéball, retrieving Tyrunt's heal ball and looking at it. "You're sure about this? I can't promise that you'll get him back. If he becomes attached to someone else..." She trailed off. "Anyway, Professor Elm has dealt with more hatchlings than I have, I'm sure he'll take the best care of Tyrunt." Ivy nodded, standing to take care of the heal ball. She would transfer it later if Alice hadn't changed her mind yet.

Posts : 1696 Location : England

"Really? But I heard that Professor Elm's a totally awkward turtle." Alice laughed. She did feel a bit hesitant, unsure if she wanted to lose her newborn for good. However, it could be for the best. Alice didn't even know if she'd have forever in this place. She was scared of just disappearing, leaving her Pokemon all alone. Pachirisu couldn't go through that again, and what about Clefairy? Zubat and Slowpoke had both joined her of their own accord... In fact, she hadn't really caught anything properly yet. Wow.

"Yeah, I'm sure. As long as he helps you all out, and he's happy, that's the main thing. Also, d'you think you could swap Deino into this before we leave?" The trainer added, setting an empty Heal Ball down on the counter. "It's an aesthetics thing, not gonna lie. I love pink, and anyway..." She finished off her milk, then helped herself to the final bit of the glass bottle, "Something else happened at Pinkan before we left."

Alice recounted to Ivy about the Team Rocket executive, how he had revealed about the poachers and seemingly hunted her out. She described his appearance best she could, how he still opted for a suit so she couldn't decipher exactly what ranking the man was, and how his name was still a mystery. Not leaving out any details, the young woman fidgeted, "It makes me really scared, that the boss of a massive gang is watching me like this. Which is why it might be best if Tyrunt really does go far away. And I-- I know some people in the world do have powers, like aura or psychic powers, or talking to Pokemon, or whatever... But I don't know what this is. It's never happened before recently, and now they're stalking me for it."

Posts : 782 Location : Water's Edge

Ivy nodded, smiling at Alice's request. "Not a problem, as long as you don't mind losing one of your heal balls for it-" she retrieved the ball, placing them on a strange linking device. The circular seals touched, and in a flash of light Deino was transferred over. "Here you are!" She handed the ball back to Alice.

Ivy listened solemnly as Alice recounted her experiences. She looked extremely distraught and quite worried as she went on. "Hmm..." She expressed, rubbing her temples. "This doesn't sound good at all. You should really be careful, Alice," ivy said, standing as she paced, making her way to the window in the room. She placed a finger against the shades, pulling them down a bit to peak through the blinds.

"I'm going to have to get ahold of the local police department, and let them know about this...I suggest not telling too many people about this ability of yours, though. More than just Team Rocket would covet such an ability."

Posts : 1696 Location : England

Alice frowned. She didn't want to get involved anymore with the police than she already had. "I don't even know what my ability does! What're they gonna do? Use me as a substitute for Pokemon with flash, give me to a child as a nightlight?" Her British sarcasm shone through, Alice snorting, but she understood Ivy's point, "I know what you mean, though. I'll keep my mouth shut."

She ate some lunch at the lab, enjoying some refreshing wraps and a dessert of ice cream and fruit, all with lemonade before it was time to say goodbye to Tyrunt. It might not have been goodbye for good, of course, but there was always the chance. Her baby seemed upset, like he didn't quite understand, but she hugged him close and assured the shiny it was all for the best before taking leave with Deino onto the next ship out. It was to Kumquat Island, the gym home to the double battle challenge. Alice had plenty of experience with those and confidence in her team. Using her ferry pass, Alice waved goodbye to those that had served her well, advancing onwards in her league journey.

» Sayōnara,さようなら,despedida