Witness (Dig In!)

[Avalon]

Fresh off of his escort mission with Mr. Gertsen, Shiro had wandered back into the grounds of Cherrygrove City. The flowers were blooming and the Pokemon were out and about, enjoying their lives. Cherrygrove was a bit too industrialized for Shiro's tastes, personally; he could see the trash that made its way into the water and the attempts to breach the natural barriers around the town. Still, the fact that they were doing what they could to protect the local Quagsire population showed that they were making some kind of progress.

For now, Shiro sat at one of the local eateries in Cherrygrove, resting his feet. The sun was beginning to set, and it would be an unwise decision to let himself be caught on the roads at night unprepared. Besides, his little excursion with Mr. Gertsen had taken up the majority of the day and he needed a moment to rest and collect his thoughts. He had ended up catching and collecting more Pokemon than he had initially thought he would. He had stumbled upon someone trying to sell their unwanted Pokemon the other day, as if they were just running some pet store. Shiro had only had the funds to buy one of their Pokemon, but he would have to keep out an eye for any other such opportunities in the future. It was reprehensible, seeing people try to offload their supposed friends and companions for a quick buck. If you weren't gonna train them, why not just release them into the wild where they belonged?

"I suppose I could try to explore the city, see if there's anything going on in the city streets. I did promise to help that kid with his Scatterbug problem, after all," Shiro muttered to himself, rocking back and forth in the patio chair that he was sitting in. The remains of a sandwich wrapped and an empty cup sat on the table beside him, the remains of his brief dinner break spent at the Torchic-fil-a establishment that had opened in Cherrygrove. "Or I could go call it an early night at the Pokemon Center, I guess. Maybe see about getting to know some of these new Pokemon I got with me."

He did away with his trash, taking a stroll down the city streets that would take him in the direction of the residential area of Cherrygrove as well as the Pokemon Center where he would be staying. The sun was setting, a blanket of darkness coming over the city of Cherrygrove. It would be a prime opportunity for less scrupulous individuals to begin scheming and planning things in the dark. If Shiro were to stumble upon something like that, he would have no choice but to get himself involved in some way or another.

WC: 464 words

[Pixel]

Cherrygrove was peaceful enough. There was an underlying crime problem as of late, but the typical resident didn't like talking about that sort of thing. They preferred to admire the flowers and remark about the nearby training academy for officers and extoll the virtues of having such an active force for good and safety close by. However, those in the know were aware of the shady figures that sometimes ducked into alleyways or made pokemon vanish at night. People were starting to lock their doors when in the past they never had to bother.

It was a gradual, quiet change. Almost deafening in the silence people faced it with, resigned and a little helpless to stop it beyond their haphazard efforts. They couldn't protect themselves but they could make their home less of a target.

Perhaps that was what lead to Shiro spying what he did on his walk.

He would glance over and spot a figure in black squeezing through a window.

He could get involved, he a hero, or he could seek out help from an officer in the area. Or he could walk away. It wasn't technically his problem unless he made it that way.

---

What will Shiro do?

[Avalon]

Shiro was a bit caught off guard by what he was seeing. Someone so brazenly trying to push their way through a window and into a seemingly vacant house, without a care in the world or any care for subtlety. How far had Johto fallen where this was just happening, so out in the open? There wasn't really anyone else around to interfere or intervene, at least not from his cursory glance at his surroundings. Either he would have to step in, or let it go and hope someone else came along to deal with it. It wasn't his problem, right? There were plenty of innocuous explanations for some black-clad weirdo creeping through an open window, right? He had promised not to get involved in any trouble, just to spend this year in Johto finding himself and seeing the world.

Before he knew it, Shiro's legs were moving entirely on their own. If no one was around to meddle, then he would do it himself. What if the person was a thief or killer? He wouldn't be able to live with the guilt if he found out something terrible happened from letting this guy break in and do whatever he wanted, promises be damned. Shiro found the window still open and decided to take a page out of the intruder's book, climbing into it somewhat easily. He had been a fairly active person even before and after his time with Plasma came to an end, so the act required little effort.

Upon landing on the other side, Shiro found a house empty but in the midst of being ransacked. Things torn asunder and tossed aside, the clear sign of someone looking for something. His eyes scanned through the dark of the house, looking for the humanoid shape that he had seen climbing in just moments prior. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he instinctively reached down to his Poke Balls in preparation for what was going to come next. "For your sake, I hope you just forgot your house keys or something, because this looks pretty bad for you, intruder."

351 words
(Shiro enters the house himself.)

[Caramell 🍬]

Ransacked was an understatement. Rocket Grunt Kyle worked quickly throughout the house, tossing things to the side, or slinging them off nearby shelves in his haste. He had to find the elusive Technical Machine before some do-gooder, or the police showed up to try and thwart his plans. Something roamed underfoot, causing the ground to rumble even as Shiro managed to climb in after Kyle. A wily cat jumped from one high shelf to the next, crawling behind picture frames and potted plants, easily pushing them off with ease.

Possibly the worst of it was all the wasted things that could no longer be repaired. Drenched books spilled inside puddles of various liquids, with gigantic holes torn in the wooden floorboards, along with broken picture frames and tattered pages from unknown scriptures. Even the furniture wasn’t safe, as evidenced by several thrown chairs with broken backs and splintered legs. Every single box and crate had been overturned; their contents scattered on top of the continually building pile of debris. It felt like he was only straying further from his goal with each unsuccessful attempt.

When Shiro spoke up, Kyle growled low, barely above a whisper. There was that stupid do-gooder! “Yeah, you can say I forgot my key.” He scoffed with a shake of his head, hands tugging at the edges of his sleek black uniform with a large red ‘R’ emblem stitched in the center. “And I’m trying to find something I really need for this…important event, if you will. Care to help me?” Kyle snapped his fingers with a loud whistle, causing the sleek looking feline to pop up by his side in the blink of an eye. “I warn you pal. Best not to stand in my way. In fact…if you help me, I’ll even put in a good word with my boss…if you need a new line of work.” Kyle promised with a wide grin.

Team Rocket Grunt Kyle gives you two choices!
🤝 👊
Either help him or face his Level 9 "Kitten" the Meowth in battle. What will Shiro do?

[Avalon]

Shiro was wholly unimpressed by this whole set-up. A house so destroyed that calling it ransacked seemed to be an understatement, with an obvious culprit standing in the middle of it. It was the most obvious robbery he had ever seen, even ignoring the conspicuous black outfit the guy was wearing. Seriously, it was like something out of one of dad's crappy movies. Shiro's eyes drifted through the relatively dark house, seeing the feline Pokemon skulking in the shadows. If this guy's taste in Pokemon was just an excuse to make a cat burglar pun, Shiro thought he might just end up hurting the man himself before this was done.

"Can't say I feel too inclined to help you. I'd offer to help show you the door and forget this happened, but I don't think you're the type to go for something like that," Shiro sighed. He wasn't sure what was going on here; he had heard some rumors of criminal and gang activity here in Johto and Kanto, but the details had always been pretty scarce about their activities. They were called the Space Gang or the PokeMafia or something silly like that, he thought. Ghetsis and Rood had used them as an example of the evils of Pokemon training once or twice, and now Shiro wished he had remembered more of those speeches.

"Yeah, I did the whole working as a mindless thug for a shady boss thing once before, not looking to go back to that anytime soon," Shiro admitted pretty freely. How disappointing was it that the most human contact he had thus far today was with some two-bit punk? Still, he could at least be a little more open without fear of judgment, considering this guy was probably no better than he ever was. Still, he made it pretty clear that either they were going to be co-conspirators or enemies in this. Shiro made his choice pretty clear, snatching a ball off of his waist and releasing the monster within.

"Kurogane, prepare yourself!" he called out, releasing the pig-monkey from its home. A recent addition, sold off by its former Trainer. He detested such Pokemon breeding rackets and hated the idea of buying one like some kind of unwanted pet, but the creature had looked rather pitiful and angry. He had hoped that he might be able to soothe its soul, even if only a little bit. But as Kurogane emerged, the Mankey scanned the room before launching itself forward at the cat, jabbing out at it with a series of kicks. The Mankey had already decided it was here to fight and nothing more, even if Shiro had been hoping to use the Mankey as more of a deterrent than anything.

OOC: 457 words
Sending out Kurogane the Mankey, he uses Low Kick x2 thanks to Running Shoes.

[Pixel]

"Tch. You had your chance to make this easy, punk!" Kyle snapped, his demeanor shifting as his poor attempt at negotiating himself out a battle didn't work. Still standing in the middle of the chaos he caused, the Rocket tossed a pokeball between them. "Aight, Kitten will show ya why you shouldn't mess with us." A sleek feline emerged, landing between them on all four paws, whiskers twitching, eyes narrow and alert, its tail flicking now and then. Their foe sent out a mankey and the Rocket laughed, "Show'em why type advantage aint everythin', Kitten! Your right hook will put'em in their place." And maybe give him a chance to duck out of here.

He looked for a good way to escape this nuisance's notice.

Kitten mrowed cutely before lunging forward and clapping her paws on either side of the mankey's head, swiftly flinching the monkey. As the mankey reeled in surprise, she bared her claws and brought both sets down across his face with a growl. However, doing this left her so close to the mankey that he had the perfect opening to kick her in the ribs and send her sprawling. Ouch!


Rocket Battle

---

Weather: Clear

[attr="class","qkt-bkgd"]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-pkmn"]
Meowth  LV 9
HP 50% [14/28]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-pkmn"]
Mankey  LV 10
HP 35% [11/31]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

Kitten [Technician]: Status
Kurogane [Vital Spirit]: Status

SP23+ Meowth used fake out!
SP22 Mankey flinched
SP23 Meowth used scratch
SP22 Mankey used low kick

[Avalon]

"Never was much a fan of the easy way out, I guess," Shiro shrugged. There was little chance of this guy being up to anything on the level, and something about his overall demeanor just rubbed Shiro the wrong way. He didn't know much about Team Rocket or their dealings other than what little passed through word of mouth across the world, but it reminded him too much of Team Plasma for comfort. Still, he had been hoping that the type advantage would have been enough to scare the man off. If the man had opted to drop what he was doing and bail, Shiro might've been tempted to let it slide. After all, this could have just been one honest mistake from an otherwise decent guy.

But that was not the case. Shiro could only shake his head and sigh at this, his gaze returning down to Kurogane. The Mankey had taken more of a beating than he had intended, but he wasn't about to turn tail now. He doubted he would be able to, now that he had gone and put his nose into someone else's business. If this Rocket ended up being stronger than he gave him credit for, then he would simply have to hope he could stall for time until the police arrived.

"Kurogane, can you still fight?" he asked, the pig-monkey squealing in rage as it flexed its slightly scrawny arms. The message was clear, even if he couldn't speak Pokemon like King N had been able to. Kurogane was not going to back down, and was likely to take it as some kind of an insult if Shiro forced the return now. "Alright, hit him with another of your kicks, then." The Mankey shot forward, aiming for another Low Kick to knock the cat's legs out from under it in one fluid motion.

310 words
((Kurogane uses Low Kick again.))

[Tarlar]

The grunt had made a mistake, or several actually, neither of them were honest though. His biggest was that he had been discovered under his search. The second was that he had used his normal typed cat against a fighting type. While her fake out was effective and could really take her opponents by surprise, it was limited what she could do against this opponent after that.
He bit his lip thoughtful and studied Shiro, the longer this took the bigger risk this was going to end badly for him, or worse, he wouldn't get the TM with him!

"You think you are so great, huh? Do you really think you're going to win and its going to be this easy?" The grunt said and smirked, he wasn't going to just sit around and be easy picking for some stupid goody-twoshoes who thought they were going to save the day.
"I bet you think you're going to be the hero and save the day, huh? I'm not going to be that easy to get rid off," he warned while his cat struggled to get back up, that kick had really hurt! It disappeared in a flash of red and the release of another pokemon was followed by the crunch of wooden planks which got crunched and ripped apart.
A diglett was now sticking its head out of the floor, as it began to move it ruined the floor completely. Kurogane crashed into it and it was dragged through several floorboards with the mankey's foot placed in its face. It dug under-floor to get free.
"Digger! Make sure it isn't going anywhere, you can do this! And do it fast!" The grunt called and the diglett ripped apart the floor as it dug around Kurogane and practically trapped him in the middle.
"What'd ya do now?" The Grunt asked Shiro with a smug grin, "I got ya right where I want!"
It was strange how the grunt changed back and forth with his speaking habits.



Rocket Battle

---

Weather: Clear

[attr="class","qkt-bkgd"]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-pkmn"]
Digger LV 12
HP 68% [19/28]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-pkmn"]
Kurogane LV 10
HP 35% [11/31]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

Digger [Arena Trap]: Status
Kurogane [Vital Spirit]: Status

SP++ Digger switched in!
SP22 Kurogane used Low Kick!


Kitty the meowth has [14/28] HP left

[Avalon]

Shiro watched as the grunt went on with his rambling and big-talk, going about his strategy. Truthfully, the man's voice was more annoying than anything at this rate. Shiro checked his watch, wondering just how long it would take for authorities to hear all of this racket and come to bother them. "Nah, I don't do the hero thing. I leave that for better people than me, I'm just here to mop up a bit of trash."

"I don't think I'm that much better than you, I'm just saying that I've been where you are now," he explained, trying another attempt at empathy. Odds were good that this Grunt was just another poor fool, hypnotized by the words of some criminal mastermind. But then the guy went right back to trying to talk trash and act bigger than he was, switching out his Meowth for a Diglett that tore up the terrain. "Alright, so talking doesn't work. Kurogane, you're stuck in there now, hit 'em again."

Concerns about the damages done to the house aside, there was now nothing that he could do but to continue on with the fight. Kurogane the Mankey launched himself forward, going in for a sweeping low kick aimed at the hidden lower body of the mole Pokemon.

213 words
Kurogane uses Low Kick

[Caramell 🍬]

Shiro thought that he understood what this grunt was going through? Kyle scoffed, picking up a few tattered books that had been scattered on the ground and childishly flipping through their pages. They were self-help books meant to help the reader build a better and brighter life. “You sound like one of these passages. ‘If you want to build wealth, you have to work hard’ blah, blah, blah!” Kyle snapped angrily, tossing the book in Shiro’s direction angrily. “They ain’t know what I been through, and neither do you! Goody two-shoes!”

Digger bounced and bobbed out of the torn-up floorboard where he’d managed to make a hole. When Rocket grunt turned to him with a firm nod and a snap, “Use Dig!” The mole went to work fastidiously. It was quick and nimble, kicking bits of plywood and broken nails out of the dug-out tunnel with quick work. Kurogane rushed across the floorboard that rocked and creaked around him, before managing to just barely tap one of Digger’s feet as it popped up, then disappeared, deeper inside of the tunnel.

Try as he might, Kurogane would find that his opponent ran shrieking into his long and dark tunnel, safely out of reach. Kyle scoffed, waving his arms wildly around them. “That worked real well for you, didn’t it?! Didn’t even get a chance to take my buddy out. Now, what do you plan to do? Hmm?” Kyle smirked, his eyes darting around the room wildly. He only needed to sneak away with his prize in time, and the reward would be all his. Once he managed to get Shiro out of the picture entirely…


Rocket Battle

---

Weather: Clear

[attr="class","qkt-bkgd"]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-pkmn"]
Digger LV 12
HP 64% [18/28]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-pkmn"]
Kurogane LV 10
HP 35% [11/31]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

Digger [Arena Trap]: Healthy
Kurogane [Vital Spirit]: Healthy

SP31 Digger used Dig! Digger went underground!
SP22 Kurogane used Low Kick! Only managed to nick Digger before he disappeared! (-1 HP awarded* for technical miss)


Kitty the meowth has [14/28] HP left.
Mod Notes: Well aware that technically moves don't hit while underground. ICly, Mankey just barely managed a tiny nick since Diglett is fastest and is a mod discretional feature, not a bug.

[Avalon]

This was the worst part about dealing with people like this Rocket guy. They got so wrapped up in whatever diatribe their leaders were spitting out to excuse things that they actually started to believe it on some level. Shiro had been through this whole song and dance before, and didn't care to sit back and listen to it. All this guy's complaints about the unfairness of life fell on deaf ears as Shiro opted to simply tune it all out, treating the man's whiny voice as being white noise.

"Diglett will have to come up sooner or later, we'll just strike when he does," Shiro explained. He actually had his doubts about whether or not Kurogane would be strong enough to take another direct blow, but escape was not an option. He didn't like the idea of seeing one of his partners get injured too needlessly, but he would have to hope for the best and try to hold out for another attack.

"Kurogane, wait for the moment it comes out from underground and hit it with Low Kick again," he ordered. The monkey was furious, body shaking with rage at the mole-like creature barely escaping his wrath. The pig-monkey Pokemon charged closer to the tunnel created by the Diglett, laying in wait as he shifted his weight all into his backfoot. Kurogane decided he would strike right away, aiming a kick right at that mole's big stupid red nose.

241 words
(Kurogane uses Low Kick)

[Pixel]

"We'll just stwike when he does," the Rocket mocked. "Your mankey is too slow! Just admit you don't have a real plan. Just because you nicked them once, doesn't mean you'll get the jump on us again!" The ground began to rumble and the little diglett burst from the ground, right under the mankey's feet, slamming into the ape's belly before he could react. The mankey was thrown to Shiro's feel, knocked completely out cold. The Rocket laughed. "That the best you can do, oh goody-two shoes hero? See, this is what the REAL world is like. It kicks the Shintoic out of you and then stomps on your dreams for good measure."

His eyes focused on a window. There. An escape once he dealt with this nuisance.

He tensed, clearly ready to move the moment the battle was over and he saw a real opening to bolt.

Rocket Battle

---

Weather: Clear

[attr="class","qkt-bkgd"]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-pkmn"]
Digger LV 12
HP 64% [18/28]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-pkmn"]
Kurogane LV 10
HP 0% [0/31]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

Digger [Arena Trap]: Healthy
Kurogane [Vital Spirit]: Healthy

SP31 Digger used Dig! 
SP22 Kurogane fainted.
Please choose your next pokemon.


Kitty the meowth has [14/28] HP left.

[Avalon]

"So you're just completely in love with the sound of your own voice, is that it?" Shiro sighed, ignoring the man's words and taunts. Kurogane was proving too slow and ineffective at fighting the underground combatant, that much was clear. The little monkey was eager, but lacked the proper amount of finesse. Unfortunate, but Shiro himself was not a particularly gifted battler himself just yet. He had only gotten this far through luck and relying on his Pokemon's abnormalities, truth be told. He had rushed into this without much of a plan.

"Iori, mop this up," he said simply, releasing the ball containing his strange little Rattata. The rat's weirdly loud screeching and wailing had gotten them this far, and that was without factoring in the creature's ungodly speed. Maybe this would be enough to get around this burrowing mole and his half-wit Trainer. "Quick Attack, show them real speed." Iori shook herself awake before darting forward, cutting through the wind as she moved with her maximum speed at the red-nosed mole.

As she did so, Shiro looked at the Poke Ball now containing the unconscious Kurogane. He had tried to keep the little creature happy by allowing him to fight, but this had been a pretty pitiful showing for the Fighting-type. How would this effect the creature's ego or confidence moving forward? Once they healed up and got a chance to rest, he would have to keep an eye on the fight happy simian. It was unusual finding a Pokemon who was so willing and eager to fight and do battle like that, conflicting with much of what he had thought to be true during his days as a member of Team Plasma.

284 words
Sending out Iori, who uses Quick Attack

[Caramell 🍬]

Kyle raised an incredulous eye. Shiro deflected the moment with more taunts, making Kyle’s ego inflate. They managed to thwart one of their opponent’s Pokemon. How hard would it be to take them all out – especially with Digger so easily and readily tunneling underneath the earth whenever he told him. “Now, hold up just a minute!” The Rocket Grunt snapped in a gruff voice. “I know all about them mice. Few of my best buds got some. Digger, it’s best if your Mud-Slap to try and fool ‘em while you can.”

As the two raced in a headlong war to see who would hit who first, Kyle focused on Shiro’s earlier comments with a laugh. “In love with my voice, you say?” There were so many ways that the Rocket member could respond. He thought about shoving it in Shiro’s face how he had the boy cornered but decided to take the high road instead. Defeat was inevitable, anyways. It would be more fun to rub Shiro’s nose in it after he defeated him, perhaps. “I guess it’s only natural to love a genius like myself. Heh. Maybe one day, you’ll wise up and join the right side.” Kyle smirked.

Digger inhaled all of the dust and debris on the ground, pulling in bits of trash as he did so. Old candy wrappers along like some torn up bits of paper was spun inside of the saliva in his mouth. While he worked on building enough mud to spit at his opponent, Iori raced across the ground, dodging her way around discarded books and broken glass. She slammed against Digger hard, causing the Pokemon to nearly choke on its own spit. In haste, Digger spat the mud directly in Iori’s face, managing to coat her eyes decently with the muck he collected. “Now, try and see us!” Kyle mocked.

Rocket Battle

---

Weather: Clear

[attr="class","qkt-bkgd"]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-pkmn"]
Digger LV 12
HP 11% [3/28]

[attr="class","qkt-wild-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-pkmn"]
Iori LV 13
HP 88% [30/34]

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-imgbox"]

[attr="class","qkt-pkmn-img"]

Digger [Arena Trap]: Healthy
Iori [Guts]: Healthy [-1 ACC]

SP27+ Iori used Quick Attack!
SP31 Digger used Mud-Slap! Iori's accuracy fell!


Kitty the Meowth has [14/28] HP left. | Kurogane Fainted