A New Quest Calling

[latani]

Vs. Sage Neal



Daemon was suffering, and Neal knew it. He didn't have anything to cure his Pokémon, nor anything to heal it. If he failed now, then the Elder would chew him out for sure. Perhaps Daemon needed more training, or moves that could help it repulse any moronic trainers and their laughably weak Pokémon.

The sage gritted his teeth, trying to reign in his anger before he exploded like an active volcano over this rude, childish boy. He was only managing to succeed so far thanks to unprepared monks and sheer dumb luck.

He pointed at Rayna again, willing his Bellsprout to keep standing for just a little longer. "Vine Whip as hard as you can!" Neal barked, changing his tactic. Perhaps a type boosted move would work better.

Rayna bleated as she charged across the floor, her head tucked low against her chest to reduce recoil and let her hit the smaller Pokémon more easily.

Her target began to move, readying its counter-attack when Rayna struck. It went spinning across the room, gripping a hole in the floor with one of its vines. Daemon rose, slowly stalking towards the rather surprised looking Mareep when a strong electrical impulse made it trip and fall flat on its face.

Neal groaned, pressing his face into one of his hands. This just simply would not do.

Trainer Battle

---

Neal's Daemon: | Level 9 |
Health: 22%
Status: Faceplant, literally; Paralyzed
Daemon was paralyzed and unable to move!

Andrew's Rayna: | Level 8 |
Health: 72%
Status: Feelin' trippy?; Normal[/size]

[Andrew]

[[OOC: Towards the end, I sort of messed up again. :x I’m forcing myself to write at least four paragraphs with each post though and these are shorter so I did five.]]

---

Focusing solely on the battle had been rewarding. Rayna was coping brilliantly with Neal’s Bellsprout. One more Tackle would be sure to knock the annoying flower Pokémon out. She’d just have to work hard at directing her hit properly. With Bellsprout paralysed though, this really shouldn’t be a problem to her.

“Way to go, Rayna!” Andrew cheered. She had definitely exceeded his expectations so far. She was definitely one of the biggest assets to his team. “One more Tackle should hopefully be enough!” Andrew declared, feeling excited, but keeping his cool. He knew that a lot of trainers would mess up in situations like this due to carelessness. He refused to be one of these. Bellsprout could always have some other surprises.

Both Ruffle and Alena were silent now. Rayna had put up an impressive fight, especially for a Pokémon on such a low level. The Mareep was one step away from defeating Neal and his pesky Bellsprout. Then Andrew and the others could advance to the next floor and discover why Cyndaquil was so determined to reach it. The two knew it was a good sign when the sage groaned and pressed his hand against his face.

Rayna decided to take her time with this hopefully final move. Her foe would be held back by her static so she had a bit of time to plan this out. The sheep Pokémon focused on her enemy, taking every movement into account. After she felt confident with her analysis, the Mareep struck. Rayna hurried at her opponent and prepared to do maximum damage to ensure the grass-type would faint.

“Maa!” the Mareep tried as she paced forward. With every step, she picked up a bit more power. All eyes were fixed on the wool Pokémon as she made her way forward. From what Andrew could tell, Bellsprout seemed to pretty weak as it stood, so he was pretty sure he could win this battle this turn. Even if he didn’t, Rayna was sure to knock the grass-type out eventually.

[latani]

Vs. Sage Neal



He had done all he could to buy some time for his superior; now it was time to admit defeat. Neal simply stared out in stony silence as Rayna bleated and began her final charge. Daemon was less accepting of their fate and struggled to take a step forwards.

Rayna bleated again and lowered her head, headbutting the small, weak plant hard enough to send it crashing to the floor and sliding over to its trainer's feet, fainted.

The sage sighed and recalled his Bellsprout, glaring at Andrew with his lip curling in disgust when his gaze drifted to Cyndaquil. "You're making a big mistake helping this filthy beast. I hope you get yours, child," Neal said in a sneering tone, throwing a wad of money towards Andrew before leaving the room huffily.

"Quil!" the Cyndaquil cheered, bouncing around happily at Andrew's victory. Even Alena seemed happy, even if she hadn't been able to battle. Ruffle merely cheered with Cyndaquil, pressing her paws to her cheeks adorably.

Rayna was beyond pleased with herself. She bleated in joy, skipping merrily back to Andrew and thrusting her head into his hands, expecting plenty of praise to fall on her. Her little tail waggled in happiness. "Cyndaquil..." the Cyndaquil interrupted.

It had already hopped over to the stairs and was peering back at Andrew. Alena followed it without hesitation, while Ruffle darted forwards to pick up Andrew's reward money. She presented it to him while Cyndaquil and Alena climbed the last set of stairs to reach the Tower's pinnacle and discover what lay in wait for them.



Congratulations! You defeated Sage Neal!
You earned £336!




Rayna grew to Level 11! Rayna learned Thundershock!


The wild Cyndaquil would like to proceed! Will you follow it?

[Andrew]

“Sweet!” Andrew muttered as Rayna knocked out her foe. Now nothing stood in his way and he could successfully advance to the top floor. Andrew smirked as the sage stormed off. “Well done, Rayna!” he praised the sheep rubbing her warm fleece. Rayna was delighted that the battle had gone so well. She knew that she’d done enough to prove her ability to her trainer. Hopefully, she’d be getting a lot of battles in the future.

Andrew smiled at his Pichu as he collected the prize money from her. Alena hissed at the Pichu for being such a suck up. The Ekans knew that she was only after the next battle. There was no way Alena was going to allow this to happen though. That Pichu didn’t deserve two battles in this tower. The serpent grinned to herself as she thought of a plan. As everyone cheered, she rushed past them and began to climb to the final floor.

Quickly catching on, Ruffle’s cheerful expression changed into pure rage. The Pichu instantly knew what the purple snake was up to. She wasn’t going to let that Ekans outsmart her, no matter how much bigger she was. The Pichu dashed after her, ready to pummel her. Ruffle’s temper was pretty short-fused.
“Chuu!” she snarled as her sparks emitted from her cheeks. She rushed up the steps, taking two at a time.

Andrew decided that this was it. Although, he was curious to see what was waiting for him at the top, this wasn’t how he’d planned on reaching it.
“Hey, stop! Get back here!” Andrew roared at his Pokémon, forgetting there were people around him. He motioned to Cyndaquil to follow which was strange considering the fire-type had clearly expected the opposite to happen. Andrew sprinted up the wooden steps, closely followed by Rayna. The Mareep was the only thing preventing him from losing it right now. She was so much better behaved than the other two. She didn’t even realise how strong she was.

At the top of the stairs, Andrew found Ruffle choking Alena. The Pichu’s arms were grasped firmly around her neck. She meant war. Alena on the other hand was snapping as she turned her head. This was her chance for a decent meal. Nobody would miss that bratty Pichu anyway. Rayna noticed that her trainer’s face was going red. He wasn’t going to be able to take much more of this, no matter how entertaining they could be. She quickly directed a ThunderShock at the two Pokémon, breaking them apart. This new move she’d learned seemed to have worked.
“Thank you, Rayna.” Andrew sighed as his face began to cool down. He walked the final few steps and turned the corner to find a whole new scenario.

[latani]

The room Andrew stepped into was a comfortably lit, well decorated room adorned with statues and scrolls depicting Bellsprout. The walls were made of a dark ebony wood, though most of it was covered by beautiful red and gold colored scrolls. At the far end of the room, front and center, was an intricately carved, gold painted shrine.

Little statues and images of Bellsprout also abounded here, but the main focal was a gold painted Bellsprout focal. A red marking on its forehead told it apart from the other statues and objects dedicated to the plant.

The Cyndaquil ignored what Ruffle and Alena were doing to slink forwards, head turning every which way to find what it had come all this way for. A light swish of fabric, and the gentle rap of sandals on wood alerted it to the emerging figure of an old man from behind a pillar not far from the shrine. Instantly the little Fire type puffed up, staring intensely at the man.

He stared back silently, then cast his gaze to Andrew and his mismatched team. "You are the troublemaker defeating my sages?" he asked in a polite, neutral tone. A movement behind him distracted Alena from her anger, and the snake slithered forwards to rest beside the annoyed Cyndaquil. The gold Bellsprout statue was twitching, and as the Pokémon watched, it came to life and hopped down off the shrine to stand beside its master.

When the Bellsprout locked eyes with it, the Cyndaquil gritted its teeth and let the fire on its back come alive. "We've defeated you before, shrew. If you insist on trying again, then this boy will have to help you," the old man informed the irritated rodent.

The man looked at Andrew again. "I am Elder Li. I am who watches over this Tower, and my Bellsprout is what this Cyndaquil pursues. Battle at its side, for I will not fight it unfairly, no matter how I might feel towards it otherwise," Li told him. The Elder cast a Poké Ball into the air and from it erupted a round Hoothoot that fluttered down awkwardly to perch by the golden Bellsprout.




Elder Li would like to battle!


Elder Li sent out his Bellsprout (Level 12) and Hoothoot (Level 10)!

[Andrew]

The top floor was amazing compared to the rest of the building. There wasn’t a thing out of place and everything was surprising comfortable. Andrew gazed around in awe, still curious as to why the rodent had brought him here. “Whoa!” Andrew squealed, getting a fright as he noticed the Elder staring at him. He let out another quiet scream as the Bellsprout statue came to life. “Man, this is creepy!” he quivered.

As Li spoke, everything finally began to make sense. Cyndaquil just wanted to fight against its rival. It was probably used to being outnumbered and Andrew’s help had been just what it needed. Realising the Elder was a lot more approachable than the sages he’d thrashed, Andrew decided to treat the man, respectfully.
“My name’s Andrew, and sure, I’ll help Cyndaquil.” Andrew replied to the man. He began to smirk as saw the rodent’s look of determination. It really wanted to defeat that Bellsprout.

“We’ve come all this way. We might as well finish the job.” Andrew said, turning to the three Pokémon that stood behind him. “Rayna, you’re up.” Andrew smiled, gesturing for her to begin. Before Alena and Ruffle could object, Andrew put up his hand. “You two need to learn your lesson. Rayna’s getting this one.” he said, turning away. The two rejects decided it was best to bottle up their anger. If they continued to cause havoc, they probably wouldn’t get to battle for a really long time.

“Rayna, let’s get this battle kicked off. We’ll let Cyndaquil handle the Bellsprout for now. You just focus on Hoothoot. Let’s try a ThunderShock! This shouldn’t take too long.” Andrew commanded. He still felt confident after the continuous battles he’d just fought. Rayna had barely gotten a break but she still seemed to be in top shape. With an electric-type attack added to her moveset, Hoothoot wouldn’t be long in the game. Andrew guessed that the battle between Cyndaquil and Bellsprout would be similar. “Cyndaquil, work away as you normally would. We’re here for back-up if it comes down to it. I know you can win this.” Andrew encouraged the shrew.

[latani]

Vs. Elder Li



Li's face didn't change as Andrew agreed to fight alongside the pesky rodent. He merely raised a hand towards the other two Pokémon. "Bellsprout, please start off with Cut on Cyndaquil. Hoothoot, try and strike that Mareep with Hypnosis," he instructed his Pokémon calmly.

The Bellsprout hurried forwards on its spindly legs, one of its leaves glowing as it turned into a razor sharp edge, ready to slice. Cyndaquil didn't flinch as the plant slashed out at it, because it had a plan in mind.

Instead of attacking it as it retreated, the rodent turned to face the approaching Hoothoot and released a giant plume of smoke. It turned the room to a dim shroud, the blackish-gray cloud obscuring the Elder and his Pokémon from view. Rayna bleated, amber eyes squinting into the smoke to find her target.

Once spotted, the Mareep focused the electricity stored in her wool and let it fly, sending a wicked fast jolt towards the now less accurate Hoothoot.

The owl hooted in pain as the Electric attack sent it plummeting to the ground, close to fainting. It struggled to its feet and stared towards where it thought Rayna was, eyes glowing a bright red. The Mareep felt slightly dizzy, but the Hypnosis was unable to hit and left her quite awake.

Double Battle

---

Li's Bellsprout: | Level 12 |

Li's Hoothoot: | Level 10 |

Health: 100%

Health: 16%

Status: Never gonna cut you down; Normal

Status: Smoker's cough; Acc -1

Wild Cyndaquil: | Level 10 |

Andrew's Rayna: | Level 11 |

Health: 86%

Health: 100%

Status: Smoking is bad, mmkay; Normal

Status: Zap-happy; Normal

[/size]

[Andrew]

The first turn had gone pretty well. Hoothoot seemed to be in horrible shape and Andrew was confident that Bellsprout would go down just as easily. The type-advantages were really proving to be useful in this battle. It would be over in no time and he could finally get a good look around. Sprout Tower had been fun but Andrew wouldn’t be able to stomach the place for any longer. As he thought about Rayna, he figured she would probably be one of the main Pokémon on his team when battling Falkner. He’d been lucky to find such a trustworthy Pokémon. He could always count on her to come out on top.

Rayna was getting closer and closer to evolving all the time. Flaaffy was such a cool Pokémon, even if it was pink. Rayna would be unstoppable once she grew a few more levels. It was likely that she would be the first of Andrew’s Pokémon to evolve. Mareep evolved at a relatively early stage, unlike a lot of Andrew’s other Pokémon. Glint didn’t seem to be too keen on evolving which made the theory even more likely. One or two battles would probably do it. “Great shot, Rayna! Let him have another!” Andrew ordered.

The Mareep nodded and quickly obeyed. Electricity began to emit from her wool and she quickly became surrounded by a powerful Thundershock. Rayna aimed the electric-type move at the same foe once again, certain that she’d knock it out. She wasn’t going to get careless, even though she could probably afford to. She had been thought to stick to something until the very end and that celebrations come after. This was where she’d seen so many others fail.
“Perfect.” Andrew muttered as he watched her concentration. Hoothoot was going to be out in a flash.

The trainer turned his attention to the Cyndaquil. The rodent was handling this battle quite strategically. It was probably trying to go for a more tactical approach. It had failed this several times before. Andrew couldn’t help but admire the fire-mouse Pokémon. No matter how many times it was knocked back, it would continue to fight and even try harder. It was rare to see that in most Pokémon. They’d always lose their self-belief after one bad turn.

[latani]

Vs. Elder Li



Despite the gravity of the situation, Elder Li remained remarkably calm. It could be applauded, but on the inside, naturally, he was seething. Not many trainers came in with an Electric type on their side, given the surplus of Bellsprout that filled the Tower, as well as the multitude of monks using the glorious Grass type.

His hand went out, pointing towards Rayna. "Time to shear some wool, Bellsprout. Cut," Li ordered his prized golden Pokémon.

It nodded, and streaked across the field to begin its assault on Rayna. But Cyndaquil, furious the Bellsprout hadn't turned its attention to it again, exploded in a rage. It opened its mouth and immediately sprayed the air with a peppering of fire. The pellet-like flames scored massive damage as they struck the odd colored Bellsprout.

Li smiled when his plant refused to waver from its task, but the attack would come too late to save his Hoothoot. Rayna bleated out in determination as she fired off another powerful Thundershock, striking the waiting owl.

The round bird hooted once before toppling over, unable to survive two super-effective hits in a row. Enraged by the loss of its comrade, the Bellsprout lunged at Rayna. "Maa!" she yelped, trying to dance away. It was too quick, and seconds later, a large chunk of her wool went skittering across the floor to land by Andrew's shoes.

Despite her usual calmness, Rayna was beyond pissed that the weedy little creature had the nerve to cut her beautiful wool. She stepped forwards and winced, having forgotten the momentary pain of the actual wound over her fury at the cutting of her coat.

It stung like a *****.

Double Battle

---

Li's Bellsprout: | Level 12 |

Li's Hoothoot: | Level 10 |

Health: 45%

Health: 0%

Status: Slasher flick; Normal

Status: -- Fainted --

Wild Cyndaquil: | Level 10 |

Andrew's Rayna: | Level 11 |

Health: 86%

Health: 88%

Status: Future arsonist; Normal

Status: Sheer raeg!; Normal

[/size]

[Andrew]

Andrew beamed as the Hoothoot was knocked out. This battle was one of the least nerveracking he’d ever had to watch. Cyndaquil and Rayna made a brilliant team. Type-advantages were always helpful, especially when things began to drag on. Andrew noticed that Rayna seemed pretty irritated. He hadn’t seen this before. Bellsprout was almost out now so she wouldn’t be long returning to normal.

“Rayna, if it wants it, help Cyndaquil out with a Tackle!” Andrew commanded. He could see that the Elder didn’t look too confident despite the neutral appearance he was trying to keep. This was an exciting moment for everyone. Cyndaquil was finally going to get its chance to defeat its rival. If Alena hadn’t dragged him up here, the poor rodent would have probably been knocked out on the ground-floor.

“You can do this, guys. We’re almost there.” Andrew commented, hoping to encourage the two Pokémon. In a way, Cyndaquil almost felt like one of his own Pokémon. He didn’t want to leave the fire-mouse down. Right now, things were definitely looking up. Andrew wondered what would happen if he won. What would the Cyndaquil do next?

Alena and Ruffle were still silent. They’d been distracted by the battle. With Hoothoot out, the battle was surely going well. Now the main focus was on Bellsprout. Cyndaquil could probably knock it out with another Ember, but Rayna would back him up, just in case. This was the moment that they’d all been waiting for.

Rayna nodded to Andrew. She was definitely up for kicking around that stupid golden Bellsprout. It had completely ruined her woolly coat, or at least it seemed that way to her. With that annoying Hoothoot gone, she was free to attack. She’d wait to see if Cyndaquil could do it alone though. After all, it was his goal to defeat it all this time.

[latani]

Vs. Elder Li



Li's Bellsprout seemed to have no idea how much trouble it was in. The golden plant merely stared defiantly at its foes and prepared itself, leaves facing outwards as Rayna began her charge. To her great surprise, Cyndaquil followed.

It didn't feel like waiting behind to get in on the action. The shrew followed along behind her, allowing the peeved Mareep to get her revenge first.

"Bellsprout, use Vine Whip quickly!" Li barked out, panic coloring his voice. His bushy white brows were furrowed, obvious concern painted on his face. The Bellsprout was about to be double teamed into oblivion, and there wasn't much he could do about it.

He had every right to be panicked.

Rayna, fueled by her anger, lunged forwards with her head held low, tucked against her chest to protect against recoil. The snap and sting of the vine against her face went unnoticed as she hurled herself into the plant's tiny body, knocking it several feet back and onto the ground.

The Cyndaquil followed, jumping into the air to get better aim at its quarry. "Quilll!" it squealed, letting loose another withering storm of pellet-like flames. They struck and burned the already injured Bellsprout one last time, draining it of the last shreds of its health.

Li sighed in defeat, recalling his fainted Pokémon with an air of slight annoyance. After pocketing their Poké Balls, the Elder strode over to Andrew with a bit of green in his hand, and a silvery disc in the other. He pressed them into Andrew's hands and then gave the boy a genuinely warm smile. "I appreciate you helping this Cyndaquil achieve its goal. Not many seem to have enough guts to make it this far," the old man spoke kindly.

He gazed down at the curious looking Cyndaquil. "Use that TM wisely, lad. There is an Escape Rope by the window, should you wish to leave immediately, or you can simply use the stairs again," Elder Li said before departing, vanishing into the shadows of a pillar.

Rayna bleated happily and nuzzled Andrew's leg, glad to finally be done with this place. The Cyndaquil hobbled forwards and then turned to look up at Andrew, making a rush of noises. It seemed to be asking to join him!



Congratulations! You defeated Elder Li!
You earned £1000!
You also acquired TM70 Flash!




Rayna grew to Level 14! Rayna learned Thunder Wave!




The wild Cyndaquil would like to join your team!
If you accept it, please fill out the following form:

[img]http://serebii.net/heartgoldsoulsilver/pokemon/155-m.png[/img]
[b]Cyndaquil[/b]
Name: [choose]
Gender: [choose]
Level: 10
Moves: Tackle, Leer, Smokescreen, Ember
Ability: Blaze
Nature/Personality: [choose]

[Andrew]

Cyndaquil
Name: Evron
Gender: Male
Level: 10
Moves: Tackle, Leer, Smokescreen, Ember
Ability: Blaze
Nature/Personality: Evron has anger problem and lashes out on anyone who annoys him. He is quick to make enemies and enjoys doing so. He particularly hates large groups and having to be part of them. His hot-headed nature makes him difficult to cope with but it can also be put to good use. Evron doesn’t tire easily and actually adores pain and suffering. He isn’t afraid to approach something hands on without thinking it over.

---

Andrew bit his lip with excitement as he successfully won against the Elder. The old man had fallen fairly quickly though that was probably due to the massive type-advantage Andrew had over him. It was great to see how happy all of this had made Cyndaquil. “Well done to both of you!” Andrew cheered. Both Cyndaquil and Rayna were delighted with this victory.

Andrew looked over to Ruffle and Alena. The two also seemed pretty happy to see that Cyndaquil had completed its mission even if neither of them got to help in the final battle. Sprout Tower was getting unbearably hot so Andrew figured it was almost time to leave. There was still so much to do around the Violet City area.

Andrew was surprised to see the old man wasn’t shocked. He seemed to be prepared for Andrew’s arrival, if not the victory. “Wow, thanks. I really appreciate this.” was all Andrew could manage to say. He really wasn’t sure what to do besides accepting the prizes.

Andrew looked down at the Cyndaquil. The rodent seemed to be in a really great mood now that it had defeated its rival and that was understandable. The creature seemed to want to tag along with Andrew which of course, the trainer had no objections to. He’d be delighted to capture the fire-type.

“Alright guys, time to go!” Andrew declared. Grabbing four Poké Balls, he returned Ruffle, Alena, Rayna and his new Cyndaquil, Evron, to their respective Poké Balls. He then waved goodbye to the Elder and grabbed a hold of the Escape Rope. He was just grateful the way down was so much simpler.