Into the Woods We Go! [Hills]

[Pixel]

Adrian told her about this institute of higher learning. A perfect place for her to do some scholarly research into myths and legends! But, she wasn't here for book learning. Yet. No, she was here for the dangerous wilderness outside of the institute! Look how cool and spooky it was! If she ended up at the Mizuma Institute eventually, that would be fine, but her focus wasn't on going back to school so soon. Not after she graduated less than two years ago!

Rather, she was intrigued by the supposed interplay of species here.

She wondered if anything rare or Other lurked in the shadows of the hills. Freya shivered and grinned at the thought. Oh wouldn't that be fun? Finding some kind of mythical pokemon out in the wilderness? Or maybe stumbling on some kind of ancient historical sight covered in tangles of weeds? 

All of that was why she journeyed still. There was so much yet to be discovered!

Thus, into the wooded hills she went, bold and unafraid.

—

Word Count; 000 | OOC:

Time to get the babies some training. Will swap around some when I eventually defeat Whitney.

[Caramell 🍬]

Interplay of species was an understatement for the wilderness around the hilly landscape. Something fluttered on black feathered wings, slashing through the air with sharp talons that lifted a small green spider up into the air with it. What was it? A small scream and quick swallow, and lunch was served in the lawless land of the wilds.

Something else stirred along the way, far off in the distance in the form of shaggy grey fur. Footsteps that rushed through the tangled overgrowth, chasing small furry rats through long emerald blades of grass that snaked their way through the heavy leaf litter. Long buck teeth snapped at the sharp claws of furry paws, that slapped them off into the distance. They would disappear just as quickly as they appeared, with the loud squeaks promising that most of the hounds won the fight.

One of the furry purple rodents veered off and lapped their way around a wide oak tree whose thick branches curled back and kissed the earthen ground. They were thick enough to sleep on and heavy enough to pin a grown man to the ground, with no way of escape. Luckily, locked on a stagnant tree that would never move on its own. It turned and hissed at Freya whilst slamming its tail against the ground. It would fight to stay alive!

“You’ll be my dinner instead, evil predators!” The wild rodent squeaked. Time to get the bite bite, evil woman. Rattata was definitely onto your games by now. It lived long enough along the hilly landscape, dodging snake and hound alike. Large scars riddled its massive frame, a clear sign of the trials and tribulations it faced in life. “Are you ready to become soup?! Put ‘em up, put ‘em up!” It squeaked menacingly.

A Wild Rattata has appeared!

Level 19. What will Freya do?

SPOILER: Click to show

Pokemon: 9E9YacV_p_1-42 (rare) p_1-10 (uncommon) p_1-3 (mon) p_1-2 (level) p_9-19

1-42·1-10·1-3·1-2·9-19

[Pixel]

Freya couldn't say she was expecting for her ankles to be menaced by a rat. But she couldn't say she was too surprised either. One moment she was walking around, minding her own business, and the next, a purple blur rushed into view and started charging at her boots. Those jaws were deceptively powerful and the last thing she wanted was for it to gnaw through her nice, designer shoes! Freya was mindful not to step on or kick the small rodent as she carefully hopped and skipped away, avoiding those teeth as he pivoted her feet to freedom.

"Wow, you look very strong!" she told the rat. "And I'm not here to eat you...or be made into soup. Where in the world did you even hear about soup" Freya laughed a bit. "Did some mean human come tromping through here and threaten to turn you into a rat stew~? Because I'm not the sort to do that. I am, however, the type to not take a challenge laying down, so watch out, friend!"

Understanding pokemon was sometimes quite amusing.

She threw a ball to reveal Marill. Poor thing needed much more training than she had been providing. Her quest through Ilex had been so focused on Teddi...Well. No more! Time for a proper bit of training. Just...she had to hope this rat wasn't too strong. Otherwise that'd be a little embarrassing. 

"Where did you get all those scars?" she asked, hoping to be a bit distracting. "Did you get them being big and tough and fighting off other rattatas to be the biggest one of all? Oh. or did you fight off some big, scary predator like a mightyena? I bet you did the second. You're really tough looking, after all. The toughest rat I've ever seen!"

Marill looked over her should, a wee bit dubious of her trainer's gushing at the rat. Well, whatever made her happy, she supposed...

"Marill here is pretty tough too, though clearly not as tough as you. Would you like to see what she can do?" Freya offered. "Oh. And if you're impressed enough, surely you'd come with us!" Freya knew marill wasn't tough. Until she evolved into azumarill she was positively squishy! "Okay, Marill, use waterfall. Show that rattata what you can do!"

Ah, there we go. A proper battle command. The marill squared off with the rat and then lunged, engulfed in water, aiming to hit the rat in the chest.

Freya waited, and assuming her poor marill wasn't instantly knocked out for her audaicty, she would throw a ball.

—

Word Count; 429n(+400) | OOC:

Of course it is max level.
Waterfall + pokeball (yolo)

[Caramell 🍬]

Who did this woman think she was? Hype man of the year or something? Rattata sat on its hindlegs and stared up at Freya in confusion. It licked its front paws and ran them through its fur nervously, trying to consider what her angle might have been. “Yeah, I gots’ scars, sweet toots.” Rattata puffed it chest up proudly, smacking some of the oldest ones on its body. “It’s from REAL livin’. None that pansy stuff ya’ll yokels think we Pokemon need.” It sneered.

When Marill appeared, Rattata thumped its tail against the ground and bum-rushed its opponent. Wham, bam, thank you ma’am! Rattata’s large incisors gnawed on one of Marill’s legs in an instance, though Marill responded quickly and blasted the little varmint off her body. “Oooh! This one’s got spunk. You’s aint’s seen nothin’ yet. Get ready to see just a hint of what my power was like in my prime!” Rattata hollered.

It then stopped and focused within itself, preparing for the next spot to strike. When Freya tossed the small red-and-white ball, the small rat easily darted out of the way with a scoff. “Ma’am, with all due respect. You’re talkin’ to THE HEAD Rat around here!” Quick glance around… Ok. No one else seemed to be eavesdropping. Good. “The one and only to face The Arceus and survive to tell the tale! I can’t be taken’ prisoner by just any no good, yellow-bellieed, lilly-livered trainer that comes waltzin’ by. You gots to see it from my periphery.” Rattata smirked, thinking it must sound so smart.

Wild Encounter

---

Weather: Clear

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

[attr="class","qkt-wild-pkmn"]
Rattata LV 19
HP 67% [31/46]

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

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

[attr="class","qkt-trainer-pkmn"]
Marill LV 12
HP 100% [35/42]

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

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

Wild Rattata: Normal
Marill [Huge Power]: Normal

SP38 Rattata used Bite!
SP18 Marill used Waterfall!

SP+ Freya used Poke Ball. Rattata avoided being captured!
SP38 Rattata used Laser Focus! Next move will be a crit!

Catch? (65%) qQAHY2I1p_1-100
\
Also -1 Poke Ball from inventory since it wasn't noted as self-deducted. 1-100

[Pixel]

"You saw Arceus and lived to tell the tale?" Freya said with over-emphasized admiration. She clapped a bit. Play the fool a little. This rattata was such a character! He just had to come home with her. He was the sort of pokemon that was all rough and tumble and grumpy until he became someone's favorite and then he was was all cuddles while pretending he hated it. Like a mafioso with his favorite moll. "Wow! You're so brave and strong~ I don't know how any of my pokemon could defeat you in battle! So I'm very sorry, Mister Rattata, but I'm going to have to try to convince you to tag along! How could I not?"

Even wild pokemon could have egos that wanted stroked and they'd show off or not attack if they could impress. Marill was doing her best but... well... she was clearly outmatched her by this grizzled rat. Another time, friend. Another time.

She pulled out a great ball, "The last ball was a pokeball. I didn't know you were so important. This here is a GREAT ball, meant for GREAT pokemon like yourself! Why don't you give it a looksie?"

Aaaaaaand throw.

—

Word Count; 198 | OOC:

Great Ball (if it misses and I'm not dead) + Pokeball

[Caramell 🍬]

Well, well, well! What did THE HEAD Rat run across today?! A certified rat-phia fan reincarnated into human flesh?! And she soaked up all of its stories with ease, bending over to praise Rattata profusely for the tales. Rattata brimmed, puffing up its chest with a raise of its tail and and nodded firmly. “I most certainly did! And with my two mighty paws!” It hopped onto its back paws for a second to pump its two front paws in the air, “I made sure Arceus knew just why you don’t go messin’ with THE HEAD Rat in charge!” It smirked.

Freya presented a strange looking ball painted with blues and reds. It sniffed and blinked, before sitting down on its rear end. With a tilt of its head, Rattata stared up at Freya as though it was trying to stare her in the eyes. “Do I look like a fool to you, miss?!” She would have to ensure that she was being honest with Rattata here, no fooling intended. “I wasn’t hatched yesterday, ya knows! Now…I am a GREAT Rat. The GREATEST in fact. So if I go’s believin’s ya words, miss, and finds’ ya lied. I’ll hafta carve a new bootiful look on that pretty lil face of yours, got it?”

Then it booped the button on the center of the ball and allowed itself to be captured. Well….ok? Clearly, it wanted The GREAT ball meant for GREAT Pokemon, though. Hmm…

---

Marill gained +3 levels to [Lv 15]!
Marill wants to learn Bounce. Forget a move?

Please fill out the form on your new Pokemon:

[img src="https://play.pokemonshowdown.com/sprites/bw/rattata.png"] [img src="https://johtophoto.com/sprites/items/greatball.png"]
[b]Rattata[/b]
Name: [choose]
Gender: [choose]
Level: 19
OT: Freya Baxton
Moves: Bite, Laser Focus, Take Down, Assurance
Ability: Run Away or Guts
Nature/Personality: [choose]

-1 Great Ball deducted from inventory. (3 > 2).
Also changing the image for her Ultra Balls to Ultra Balls, instead of Greats. xD

Catch? (87%) F|vwO2ETp_1-1001-100

[Pixel]

The great rat rambled a bit more and apparently decided the GREAT ball was what he needed to be satisfied. Freya let out a sigh of relief that her poor marill didn't get wiped out by the rat and then went over to pick up the ball. "That was a close one, eh? But you're looking stronger already! Another battle or two like that one and you'll be evolved in no time." She chuckled, motioning for her water-mouse to follow along. "This place is quite pretty. I wonder if there are any mystical shrines around here like in Ilex. It's so lush and wild...hardly touched by humans at all." She hummed a bit, smiling.

Into the woods she continued.

The darkness didn't frighten her, but rather spurred on her taste for adventure.

—

Word Count; 000 | OOC:

Replace bubble beam with bounce

I'll be harassing the hills for a while, so if there's any weird mini plots / estate quests you wanna throw my way, I'm game.

[Caramell 🍬]

Penumbra Hills held a strange air of mystery around its hillside. Long stairways carried their way up the steep side of a cliff, lending to passageways that locked Freya out of their depths. Strange calls wailed just beyond, hinting to creatures maybe the estate owners weren’t readily prepared for. Howls caterwauled through the canopies, chasing loud shrills and the soft rustle of wings. As she traversed through Penumbra, there could be no uncertainty to the depths of its ‘natural state’.

Felled trees remained in place, a testament to past storms where tornadoes tore through the terrain, leaving small sprouts to spring up and grow into mighty foliage where their grandsires most likely once stood. Some of the smaller bits, like loose bark broken away from their trunks and scattered limbs no longer glued to their base, rotted away in the grass. She’d come across three separate paths, each leading to a different trail – a natural occurrence when traveling through such a densely packed woodland, wasn’t it?

Still, something called down each of the paths. The first path was wind-torn and battered, with branches dangling overhead where they hadn’t quite broken away from their host plant. The second path remained so overgrown with weeds and prickly vines, there was no way to see clearly what might lurk within their depths. The third required a fair bit of climbing – utilizing thick vines to scale massive trees to some small den near the top of a steep cliff.

Take the Broken Branch path? (35% getting struck)

Take the Wild Grass path? (75% multi wilds opponents)

Take the Tree Climb path? (55% falling from climb)

Note! Rewards may be unique based on complexity and effort given (any rewards will come from Zaiden's collection / inventory).
You're free to quit the quest at any time, but only earn any planned rewards already noted "unlocked" (surprise or known).
Unique mini-quest may mean that any forgone paths in favor of other options may not be able to be revisited.

[Pixel]

Freya paused upon reaching the divide in paths. She knelt to examine the broken branches, curious if some storm (or pokemon) had ripped through here with a vengeance. She hummed softly, picking up a stick and turning it over, checking to see if the breaks were fresh and damp or long since weathered to a brittle dryness, just waiting to snap free of the host plant. After a little examination, she rose, turning to go look at the overgrown grasses that reminded her so much of the pastures of the Healing Hearts Ranch.

"There are probably tons of wild pokemon out in that," she said. "So much greenery just invites low-dwelling pokemon to make their nests and forage. Though I doubt stuff like mareep or oddish live in it. Probably full of ratatta and spiders."

Freya turned lastly to a tall tree. Hm. This was different. Perhaps even a little promising. "Been a while since I climbed a tree," she said to herself, a smile on her face. The daring young trainer wasn't afraid, however, as she had done a lot of crazier things than scale a perfectly climbable tree when on her Journey. Freya had hiked up mountains and scaled cliffs and crossed churning rivers. This would be a piece of cake.

She started by tightening her boots and then she quickly braided her hair so it wouldn't snag on any branches. After that, she let Marill and Orthworm out of their pokeballs, "Okay you two. I need you to help me. Marill, use bounce and get as high up as you can. Make sure the branches are safe and stable. Orthworm, you'll follow from below. I need you to catch us if one of us falls." The steel-worm was not especially large of strong, but their sheer weight and capacity to wrap around the trunk would be helpful for anchoring.

Plan set in motion, she scooped Marill and tossed the water type up into the air, watching the water-mouse bounce around from branch to branch, testing each with her weight. Freya then slowly followed, scaling the trunk warily until she could grab a hold of branches to pull herself up even higher. It would be slow going, but surely totally worth it! Getting to the top would mean having better sights of what laid ahead and maybe even give her a peek into what lurked deeper in the heart of the forest upon these dark hills.

—

Word Count; 408 (+400) | OOC:

HMMM tree climb path!

[Caramell 🍬]

Tree: 3Fa7M|Msp_1-100

Could one truly trust a small aquatic mouse to lead the way through a large tree? Their weights were massively different, given that Marill weighed less than a Yamper soaking wet – one of the more popular lap dogs that people loved to keep and carry around in their arms. Still, Marill would do her best, bouncing from branch to branch, leading the way through the massive Oak tree. The climb would start off fairly well. Most of the lower branches were enormous with the strength to hold up mighty Copperajah if they wanted.

The trouble would come when Freya reached for one of the branches closest to the end of the climb. Something peered from over the cliff’s edge where the tunnel side – a lone pair of eyes on a shaggy body that couldn’t be made out too easily. It shrieked, and though one would assume the sound was a cry in shock at Freya’s presence, it was instead a warning. Snnnaaap! The branch broke away just as she would start to pull herself up to support herself on it, sending Freya and even Marill falling back to the earthen ground below.

Something tumbled through the gigantic oak with them. It hissed, writhing about as it bounced on the ground nearby them. Orthworm was the perfect support, placed in the right spot so that she could catch her friends. However, what Orthworm probably wasn’t ready to catch was the enraged snake, whose tail-tip rattled angrily as it coiled up, ready and willing to strike at Freya for interrupting its nap.

Freya failed!

She must defeat a Level 16 Ekans before continuing her trek.

Shiny? p_1-42

SPOILER: Click to show

Tree? p_1-10
Pokemon: p_1-10 p_1-3 p_1-2 p_10-20

1-100·1-42·1-10·1-10·1-3·1-2·10-20

[Pixel]

Up and up they went. Higher and higher until...what was that? Eeek! Freya found her weight shifting and...what was that?! 

CRACK!

Oh sh—

"Aaaaaiyyyyeee!" Freya shrieked in alarm as the branch gave way and she started to fall, unable to regain her hold. She was so high up that impacting the ground could be catastrophic for her health, but fortunately, she had a back up. Orthworm! Thank goodness for Orthworm. The steel worm managed to stop Freya from falling just enough that she was able to flail her way onto a stronger branch. She threw herself at the trunk to support her weight, her whole body trembling violently from adrenaline. 

About that time, Marill fell into her lap. She caught the little mouse, the both of them trembling as if drenched in ice water. What scare! Of course, a second later, their heart racing fiasco continued as an ekans landed on top of them. EEEEEK! Freya dealt with these back home in Kitakami! They were no fun. 

"Off, off!" Freya shrieked, not quite calmed down. She managed to thrust the ekans off of her and onto a nearby branch, but it was still within striking range, and clearly angry. Uh oh. "H-hey there. Sorry about disturbing you. We didn't mean to upset you or anything..." Freya swallowing, her throat feeling swollen from screaming and fear. Just breathe. Sure, this snake could bite and leave them poisoned and helpless in the middle of nowhere, but that was nothing she hadn't been faced with before. 

She put Marill down and absently tugged a stick out of her hair, "We'll just leave you alone now...but if you want to fight...we won't let you hurt us, ekans... so go on, back up to your home." But Freya could see the angry in its eyes. It didn't look too reasonable right now. "If you persist, you'll regret it. Marill isn't a snack." Just to prove that point, the mouse beat her belly like a drum, ready to follow that rallying cry up with a powerful aqua jet if the ekans didn't high tail it back up the tree.

Freya hoped that it ran off. Her body ached all over and she was pretty sure she was bleeding somewhere and needed to clean out the scrapes before they continued on. C'mon ekans, just leave them alone. No need to fight. Just go away.

Bye bye snakey,

—

Word Count; 400 | OOC:

Belly Drum + Aqua Jet

[Caramell 🍬]

The serpentine reptile slipped into the nearby bush in a quick haste to find cover. It curled around the branches, eyes peering from between two thick and sturdy limbs full of lush greenery, and glared angrily at the small, aquatic mouse. Marill squeaked loudly, paralysis seeping in her musculature and causing her to twitch and convulse. It would appear as though she might have forgotten how to beat her rotund belly with her short, stubby arms. They struggled to move, etching warily towards Marill’s large stomach.

Freya’s words remained deaf and dumb to the nearly feral mindset of the wild snake. Ekans only wanted simple things. Safety – reclusive in nature to hide away in the towering limbs of a strong tree or the darkness of dug-out rodent tunnels in the ground. Security – the ability to know that the territory they maintained steered clear of competition and remained well stocked with food. And satiation – plentiful things that the wild snake could slither about and hunt.

While eggs remained its favored food, the wild blackbirds that stalked the surrounding terrain were too rare a delicacy, leaving only purple mice Ekans actively chased about. Marill remained no different to the wild serpent’s mind. It’s lips salivated and in an instance, it snapped, shooting out like a dart from the thick green bush with large fangs dangling in the low light that filtered through the canopy above. Marill managed through the pains of her paralysis and wasted no time blasting her opponent with a face full of water. It was enough. In haste, the serpent turned tail and slithered far off into the distance of the surrounding area.

Would Freya continue her trek deeper into the woods, perhaps?

---

Marill gained +3 levels to [Lv 18]!
Marill wants to evolve! Evolve into Azumarill?
➛

[Pixel]

"Are you okay?" Freya hurried forward and scooped up Marill when the battle was over. She was all twitchy and stiff, a clear indication of paralysis. "You did great. Really great. Super duper great." She gently tried to soothe any hurts with a small dab of potion and some berries. Soon enough her little mouse was right as a rain dance. "There you are." Pet pet.

She then looked around, "Well, I'm not sure if I'll be able to get back up that tree from here...maybe there's another way to get a better view of things. C'mon. Let's keep moving."

With the tall tree still looming in her vision, Freya started the trek forward, climbing over the underbrush and uneven terrain when needed. She was no longer on any defined path, but she wasn't deterred. She would be fine. 

They both would be.

—

Word Count; 000 | OOC:

Moving forward with just Marill. Not evo'ing yet.
Waiting on play rough at LV 21.