Common Curiosity (The Interior Warehouse)

[Kataya]

Sandy blinked, staring up at the large warehouse in front of her. It looked kind of…creepy, compared to where she normally spent her time… Berry tilted her head as she examined the old worn down place in front of them. Dark, eerie, not an idea of what was to be found inside, just the place Sandy would be foolish enough to enter alright!

Sandy gave the ground behind her another glance, as if she were contemplating turning back. Though, something about this Warehouse was interesting, and she wanted to know what there was to see in there.

“I wonder who would hang out in a place like this…” Sandy said to Berry. Berry shrugged and tapped her trainer’s cheek with one paw.

“Squirtle Squirt!” I don’t know, but how about we don’t find out! She squeaked. Sandy seemed to be ignoring her though, because the girl did the complete opposite of whatever the turtle said and pushed her way through the door. Berry groaned as they got inside. It was about as creepy as she’d imagined it, and she just couldn’t convince the girl to leave.

“Anyone here?” The girl, against her better instincts called out into the empty space.

[The REAL Joey]

Sandy's call to anyone that might be listening was met with a muted response aside from the lingering echo of her own voice repeating her words of whether or not anyone was there. On the day that she was visiting the abandoned warehouse was staying ultimately true to its namesake. The usual Tweedledee and Tweedledum guards in the form of Rocko and Dusty were nowhere to be seen likely due to the fact they had been so shamefully overcome in the last few encounters they had with previous intruders. Even the Pokemon that had staked the shadowed corners of the warehouse of their own were nowhere to be seen. Or heard. The very atmosphere was utterly foreboding and creepily eerie. It was if the warehouse was completely frozen in time.

With Sandy and her Pokemon companion now inside the dark confines of the main interior floor of the warehouse, nothing seemed to change. It was still unnaturally dark and there was no interesting sounds worth noting. It was completely dead. A few moments passed with nothing else happening. There was now the odd drip of water that could be heard splashing into a puddle but that was to be expected. Until then... It happened. A fairly quick succession of pitter patters could be heard off into the distance. Despite the darkness not being as impenetrable as it once was thanks to the intruders eyes now adjusting it was still almost impossible to make out what was the cause of the noise. There was definitely a sound of footsteps around the set of girders supporting the roof of the dilapidated warehouse. Suddenly, a head popped around from the side of the girder. At least... It appeared to be head. Only a faint outline of one could be seen. A small cry akin to that of a young child was heard that seemed to be coming directly from the shadowed figure.

[Kataya]

Sandy had only been in the creepy place for a short amount of time when Sandy heard a cry. It was like the ones of a small child, and it sent a chill up her spine. Surely someone had not left their child here, had they? Sandy took a look around, trying to determine where the cry had come from. She just couldn’t see, no matter which direction she tried to look.

“Where could that have come from…?” The girl mumbled, straining her eyes to try and see something, anything. Berry sat up tall on her shoulder, also searching for tail or hand…or anything that was making the sound. She suddenly saw something. It was a figure, standing off in the shadows. She couldn’t tell the size of it, but there was definitely something there. Quickly the turtle jumped from Sandy’s shoulder, launching a water gun in the shadow’s direction.

“Wait, Berry!” Sandy hollered at the turtle. Though she had already shot the water gun, Berry ceased to do so quickly, instead still glaring off into the shadows. Sandy knelt next to her, patting her shell.

“Don’t attack until you know what it is… it could be something totally defenseless.” Berry scoffed.

“Squirtle Squirtle…” Or something that could kill us both Sandy.

“Who’s there?” Sandy asked, gazing in the direction Berry had been aiming in.

[The REAL Joey]

Sandy's intrepid venturing deeper into the warehouse had the shadowed figure at a loss for words. It was hoping that by poking its head around the corner of this girder would have sent enough shivers down her spine to evacuate the building at mach speed. With her now getting closer and the addition of her Pokemon inquisitively roaming about and firing off spouts of water, it knew that its cover was completely blown and it had the chance to either confront her and hopefully act as a deterrence to making her leave or run away as fast as its legs could carry it. The latter choice had its own fair share of troubles however. Having your back to a potential threat is NEVER a bright idea plus it would allow the person to go for a walk about where ever they wanted.

It inhaled deeply while closing its eyes, hidden behind the girder. It'd confront the trespasser. The Pokemon she had out seemed to know a fairly strong attack which didn't help matters. The thought of a soaking didn't sit too well with it. The mystery figure patted its head encouragingly before taking a sidestep from out of the girder and standing directly ahead of Sandy and Berry. Before them was a wild Machop! The distinctly humanoid figure of the Pokemon made it seem as if it was a small child. Machop let out a stern shout and braced itself into a fighting position. It appeared to be standing its ground, ready for a wild battle. On an unrelated note the cry of the small child heard earlier was nowhere near anything like the sound of the Machop. For now that infantile noise was unexplainable. Considering there was a Pokemon in front of her, it wouldn't have been very prudent to give much thought to it either.

Wild Battle Encounter

---

A wild Machop (Lv.20) has appeared!
Select one Pokemon for battle!

[Kataya]

Sandy frowned as she saw what the true form of whatever she saw was. A Machop, was it? Well, at least no one had left a child behind or something like that, because that would have pissed the normally cheery girl right off. She gave an audible sigh, as it seemed the Machop wanted to fight. Berry didn’t seem to want too. The opponent was too Bulky for her. Sandy had to suppose it was time to send out a Pokemon she hadn’t used Very often.

She plucked a Pokeball from her belt and gave it a toss, releasing her young Mole, Hiroki. The Diglett twirled around in his place, kneading the ground that surrounded his small thimble like body. Sandy smiled at his enthusiasm before turning to look at the Blue creature in front of her.

“Alright Hiro, why don’t we give Earthquake a Try?” She lifted Berry off the ground, and made sure the turtle was safely in her arms. Once that was done, Hiroki began to twirl in the ground really fast, preparing to release the giant shockwave that would knock just about anything off its feet, including Sandy, though she kept her feet firmly against the ground.

[The REAL Joey]

Caught off guard by the fact that her already released Pokemon was refusing to be the opponent, the Machop eyed curiously as to what it would be truly be facing. As the dazzle died down from the Pokeball, it looked around and could not see any head nor tail of its foe. Eventually it dawned upon it that the Pokemon may not be that entirely tall. It looked down upon the floor and jumped back from surprise. Before it was a tiny little head poking out of the ground. This Pokemon was minuscule! It almost seemed unfair for the Machop to face it. Firmly putting its foot forward, it reverted back to its combat stance.

The words that came out of Sandy's mouth almost had Machop at a loss. Earthquake? The very name sounded destructive and was not something it immediately associated with such a small sized Pokemon. With Sandy bracing herself for the inevitable shockwave, Machop looked around confusedly. It sounded like this could hurt. The Diglett named Hiro began to twirl in the ground really fast not before totally moving its way underground. The Machop felt it almost necessary to peer in the hole it left behind but was interrupted by a huge shockwave that lifted the ground in the nearby vicinity up in the air slightly. It may not have been an Earthquake rivalling that of an Aggron or Rhyperior but it still packed a mighty wallop. With more shockwaves incoming and the very ground around him shaking furiously, the Machop launched itself to the girder supports that were supporting up the warehouse's very roof. Although they too were shaking like crazy, they were dug firmly enough to absorb most of the attack.

As the earthquake died down and the warehouse groaning from being shaken so vigorously, the diminutive Diglett had popped its head back out of the ground to assess the state of affairs. As it looked around the Machop was nowhere in sight. It was at that point, the Machop saw it's opportunity. Wringing itself from the top of the girder, it came hurtling down from above with its hand held out straight. The Pokemon was using its Karate Chop move to hit Diglett as if it were a game of Whack-a-Mole! As it landed, there was a mighty smack that could be heard bursting throughout the warehouse. Machop had struck brutally hard on the Diglett and left it in a particularly disadvantageous state.

Things were heating up pretty fast!


Wild Battle

---

Wild Machop | Level 20 |
Health : 61%
Status : Normal
Shaken, not stirred

Hiro | Level 18 |
Health : 11%
Status : Normal
Whacked back into its hole

---

[Kataya]

Sandy frowned, to be honest, she hadn’t taken Hirioki’s type disadvantage into consideration, and the move had weakened the young Pokémon considerably. She sighed as she tried to figure out what to do. Hiroki would not hold out another round. Sighing, she recalled him and pulled another Pokeball from her pocket, quickly throwing it an releasing her next choice.

“Mya!” Scatter exclaimed, staring down his new foe. He hadn’t really been much of a better choice, thinking logically, because he had the same type disadvantage as Hiroki. But this didn’t appear to phase the feline as he flicked his tail patiently. It seemed to be more tempting to him.

“Alright Scatter, move quick and we can be done fast, use Ice beam! And Be cautious, this Machop is tougher than it looks!” She warned. Scatter let his hackles raise as an Ice Beam formed on his tongue.

[The REAL Joey]

The Machop was feeling good about itself. It now carried a distinct over confidence about it from the very way it carried itself. The fighting Pokemon athletically hopped on the spot and shadow boxed the air while it carefully awaited Sandy's orders. With the quick retreat of her Diglett, the Machop clenched its fist and narrowed its eyes. Obviously the trainer had a considerable number of Pokemon on her and the possibility it was going to beat them all was no slimmer than ever. Despite such grim prospects, this Machop was not going to back down. It had to ensure its integrity! With the new Pokemon in the fray, the Machop eyed an easy prey. The tough hard hitting strikes against a soft and cute Normal type were surely not going to end very nicely for it. It stiffened its muscular arm into a straight line and with a quick dash towards it let out a swift strike to the cat Pokemon.

As the Machop flipped back to its position, it looked on in surprise as the feline had taken the smack rather well. It was hoping to have crippled it like that previous opponent but no such luck; Scatter had more than a bit of bulk on it. With the round now to an end, both sides had an uncertain chance for victory over the other. All it would come down to is speed. Unfortunately for the Machop it was never all that bothered with being fast, it only cared about its strength. Naturally, the Delcatty was the faster of the two, regardless, as it boasted the lithe agility only a cat possessed. With its trainer's command, the Pokemon readied its attack and laid waste to Machop. The unforgiving chill shot from the beam coursed through the air, freezing against Machop as it mustered every bit of defence it could. Machop's arms guarded its face in a cross formation; the deathly cold beam was tempting him to succumb to defeat. The move was incredibly powerful and it didn't think it could take much more of it. As it was about to give in, the attack stopped, leaving the Machop disorientated and not to mention a little bit chilly.

Although almost completely phased by the powerful attacked it had just withstood, the Machop raised its arm and slowly staggered forward enough to deliver another striking blow against its foe. The cat Pokemon coiled back in pain but was able to partially take advantage of how weakened a state the Machop was in meaning that the blow was no where near as savage as its earlier successes. The problem now however, was that both Pokemon were on their last legs and a small nudge would be more than enough to vanquish the other. The battle would surely be decided in the next round. Thankfully for Scatter, it had superior speeds and would most certainly get the first hit and be enough to finish what little stamina the Machop had left. Unless of course Sandy decided it was worthy of a capture. The battle crawled to a halt, it all weighed heavily on Sandy's next choice.



Wild Battle

---

Wild Machop | Level 20 |
Health : 9%
Status : Normal
Frostbitten

Scatter | Level 22 |
Health : 4%
Status : Normal
Doubly chopped!

---

[Kataya]

Sandy watched the Machop closely. She wasn’t really fond of this blue Pokemon…but it was wild…and she was a Pokemon Trainer. Scatter panted, letting her know that he didn’t want to take too much more of this. Even if he was to strike faster, he would still question his ability to make his move. Sandy pulled out her last greatball, carefully made a note to buy more supplies, and chucked it at the Machop.

Scatter watched it soar over his head. Sandy was getting better at this, since he hadn’t even been asked to move this time. He sat down and began to groom his face with one cream colored paw. Hopefully this thing wouldn’t struggle with them, because he’d hate to have to fight more.

[The REAL Joey]

Upon seeing the Great Ball, Machop knew what was coming. Other intrepid explorers into this place had also come across rare and unusual Pokemon and decided to capture them to aid in their journeys. With its heart beating out of its chest and shivering frenetically from the previous turn after being ice beamed, the tenacious little fighter began to wonder if it would be so bad to be captured. The confines of a Pokeball would surely be a lot warmer than what it was feeling now. It had also heard stories that inside the Pokeball was an environment they would love and while Machop had been born and raised inside this warehouse it was far from five star luxury quality. As Sandy prepared the ball, Machop closed its eyes and seemingly accepted the fate it was resigned to.

With Sandy's lob of the Great Ball, it went soaring through the air and from the Machop's perception, the world around it seemed to slow down to a halt. All of the memories the Machop had up until this point seemed to flash before its eyes. By allowing itself to be captured, it would herald an entirely new chapter in the Pokemon's life. The ball landed on the Machop, and enveloped it in a light red glow. The Fighting type was then absorbed into the Great Ball and it landed on the floor with a metallic thud. It was then, the capturing process took its most nerve racking process.

---

*CLICK*



Congratulations! The Wild Machop was captured!

Please fill out the following information about your new Pokémon:

Machop
Name: [choose]
Gender: [choose]
Level: 20
Moves: Karate Chop, Focus Energy, Low Sweep, Leer
Ability: [choose] - [ Guts | No Guard | Steadfast ]
Nature/Personality: [choose]

[img]http://pldh.net/media/pokemon/gen5/blackwhite/066.png[/img]
[b]Machop[/b]
Name: [choose]
Gender: [choose]
Level: 20
Moves: Karate Chop, Focus Energy, Low Sweep, Leer
Ability: [choose] - [ Guts | No Guard | Steadfast ]
Nature/Personality: [choose]

---

Victory!

---

Your Delcatty fought courageously and has levelled up!
It went up by 2 levels and is now Level 24!

Your Diglett fought courageously and has levelled up!
It went up by 1 level and is now Level 19!

---

Sandy's adventure in the warehouse was far from over however. With the inside of the interior warehouse now seemingly dead and no one else to prevent her advance. She had a choice of a door on the far end of the warehouse or a flight of stairs that led downwards into what appeared to be the warehouse's basement. There was also the option to retreat from the confines of the warehouse for now but the fact nobody seemed about to slow her progress was too good to pass up. The choice was hers.

OOC: Sorry about the Pokeball animated. There are hardly any Great Ball animations and even then, the Pokeball variant doesn't have much.

[Kataya]

Machop
Name: Kempi
Gender: Male
Level: 20
Moves: Karate Chop, Focus Energy, Low Sweep, Leer
Ability: No Guard
Nature/Personality: Kempi is a tough pokemon with an even tougher attitude to deal with. He often annoys his trainer with how defiant he can be, and can be quite the pain in the neck. Though he tries to be compliant in battle, since he doesn’t like to lose.

Sandy sighed in relief as the Greatball’s rocking stopped, and the ball clicked to signal capture. The girl strolled over to the sphere and picked it up, admiring it before letting it send to her PC. Berry looked over Scatter’s poor condition and snickered, but the cat only flicked his tail and bowled the turtle onto her back.

“Squirt!”

“Mya~” Sandy rolled her eyes and gave Scatter’s back a pat and smiled.

“Good Job boy, but you need a rest.” She recalled him to his Pokeball before standing up and dusting off her pants. She let Berry, still disgruntled over what Scatter had done earlier, climb onto her shoulder for a better look. There seemed to be two ways around the place, and she glanced at Berry, who seemed to want to take the doorway. Though, she was curious about what lurked in the basement, despite the shivers it sent down her spine.

“C-Come on Berry, let’s go…” She mumbled, taking a step to the stairs. The turtle mentally cursed herself and her trainer, but didn’t express her displeasure about being dragged along as Sandy made her way down the steps.

[The REAL Joey]

Upon descending the fairly lengthy flight of stairs that lead ever downwards, it seemed to get darker and darker with every passing step. The interior warehouse was fairly dark but it at least head beams of sunlight piercing through cracks and holes in the dilapidated structure of the building. Despite the absolute darkness, there were definite noises that could be heard faintly from the depths of the impenetrable darkness. They were too far away to be deciphered properly but they were there nonetheless. It appeared that Sandy and Berry were not all by themselves as it had first seemed. With Sandy nearing the end of the stairs, there was a sudden burst of swirling light that came from the ceiling and focused in on one eccentrically fabulous looking individual. Upon further inspection, it seemed a man dressed up in the attire of a magician was half heartedly juggling what appeared to be Pokemon.

~~

"Allez vous! Allez vous!" The juggling magician seemed intent on creating a progressively fast pace. The problem was it was too fast and he kept dropping his juggling balls. "Alas, alas, woe is me~ Woe is MEEEE~" He lifted the back of his hand and gently wilted it against his forehead. "I simply cannot exceed at this drudgery little circus trick. It is perhaps destiny laughing upon me by inflicting such a cruel twist of irony but I cannot do it." He sat down on the side of one of the beds and rested his head solemnly into the palms of his hands. "I! Merton the Mystical Magician cannot juggle!" He seemed to sob dramatically upon his realisation. "...Or at least I could until Eightball's stupid Magmar torched my hand. Now I am le crippled. LE CRIPPPPPLED! Oh boohoohooohooo...!" His exaggerative tone seemed to ring out in the underground basement as did his pitiful sobs.

The juggling balls that had fallen to the floor turned out to be actual living Pokemon and were in reality two Voltorb. They rolled over to where their trainer was and sat beside either side of him and nudged affectionately closer to him. "Oh my babies...! I will always have you...! Oh *sob *sob* I won't let him harm you, so don't even think about dirtying yourselves in callous revenge... The show must go on~" He lifted his head up to the side theatrically and sniffled. "Oh what to do..." As he opened his eyes he noticed a female trainer standing by the stairs. He eyed her curiously. That wasn't Harley... He stood up, clasping his cape around his body in a bid to appear mysterious. "WHO GOES THERE? Pray tell, are you a friend of Joey's? He told me he was expecting a friend of the female persuasion!" He tip toed pronouncedly towards her and bowed in an over the top manner. "Why, you must be quite the trainer if you made it through that dreary warehouse... So many spiders and wild little beasties..." He looked to her Squirtle and tapped it on the nose. "Delightful, simply delightful you are~" He span around on the spot and eventually came to a halt and cried out in agony.

"Ahhh! My hand! MY HAND~!" You'll have to excuse me my dear... I received a particularly NASTY burn from SOMEONE." He seemed to shout these words up the staircase and clutched onto his hand tearfully. "Would you not agree there are far too many brutish people in this world? Simply ogre-like!" While getting carried away with his petty feud he soon realised he could turn this into an advantage by acquiring the girl's help. "Ah, young Miss." He moved in a bit closer to her and within earshot whispered. "I say... Would you mind helping a tragically besieged poor man such as I? You see... Up those stairs behind a door is a man that constantly tinkers with bikes... He's bit of an ogre but I suspect you'll be ok..." He stepped back and flowed his cape behind him. "I require you to challenge him to a match and DOUSE his dastardly Magmar with water! Douse him until he extinguishes...!" In almost pantomime fashion, he moved away from her and whispered to himself. "...That'll teach Eightball!" He coughed and returned to her. "It's not much but I could help you gain access to other parts of the warehouse? What say you?"

[Kataya]

Sandy, upon coming down the steps, had been greeted by the sight of a man who seemed to have been practicing a juggling act. She watched as he juggled the Voltorb, which looked like they belonged to him. She tensed when he called out to her, but soon relaxed as she realized he was friendly. She grabbed Berry from her shoulder and held her in her arms, pressing her close against her. This place made her fearful, but this man was sort of amusing.

“My name is Sandy sir and I uh-“ She watched as he tapped Berry’s nose, to which the turtle responded with a low growl. Sandy squeezed the Squirtle a little, forcing her to stop. She then heard the man talk about Joey. Joey was a name she had remembered from Azalea Town. He was a good man, as far as she knew, but why would anyone in a place like this know him? She sighed, deciding not to dwell on it now. He spoke of an ogre-like man and his Magmar next, and Sandy looked down. Were they ready to deal with something big like that?

“Squirtle!” Berry encouraged, and Sandy glanced down at her, sighing.

“Yes, we’ll take care of it. Or at least try. But First, give me your hand will you?” She brought a bandage and some spray from her bag.

“This’ll sting a bit.” She warned, before spraying some of the liquid that would sooth the burn onto the magician’s hand. She then wove the bandage around the wound and stood up.

“That should do it, but I wouldn’t try juggling for another hour, that stuff won’t work if you don’t let it sit.” She directed, before glancing at the staircase. She then ascended it, looking back at the magician once more.

“I’ll come back if I beat this guy, okay?” She didn’t say another word, but instead disappeared onto the upper level. She kept searching for someone until she swore she heard a wrench going.

“Hello?” She questioned softly. She didn’t want to have someone who was twice her size mad at her, since she wouldn’t have a chance if they tried to harm her.

[The REAL Joey]

~~

Touched by the young girl's treatment of his hand, the magician bowed reverently at her kindness. "Ah merci, merci! I shall definitely refrain from any sort of magical trick." He looked to his hand and smiled. As she walked back up the steps and called out to him about defeating Eightball, his entire demeanour changed. He curled his legs up to his chest and began snickering to himself rather evily. "Eheheheheheh, how do you like them apples eh Eightball?! I know Joey and Looker forbid in-gang fighting but there wasn't anything about third party intervention!" He giggled to himself like a little schoolgirl before prancing up and swanning around on the spot; his Voltorb spinning around as well with their trainer. "Tell you what my babies, how about we get a little view in on the exquisite performance?! Come along now, come along!" He ushered them up the stairs and sneakily tip toed after Sandy's trail.

Busily working away in his workshop was Eightball. He had a protective mask over his face and was smacking away at a dismebodied engine on his work table with a blowtorch in the other. It seemed today was not going the way he wanted and slammed the wrench down while blasting off a few expletives. He lifted up his blowtorch mask and placed the tool on the side. What he needed was a break he decided. His lovely specially imported sofa over there on the side seemed to be calling out to him for a nice quick power nap. "Heh, heh, heh. I'm comin' don't you..." He abruptly stopped as the door to his storehouse was slided open. "Merton, if you've come here again to get your hands where they're not wanted..." He wearily wiped the sweat off his forehead, obscuring his vision, meaning that whoever had just entered was not apparently obvious. His arm fell and gave way to the sight of a girl with blonde hair. Eightball reared back slightly and sighed. "This is becomin' a bloody theme park around here lately." He reached for his Pokeball and growled. "Did'ja not see the DO NOT DISTURB sign?!"

He tossed the Pokeball that was in his hand up and down, catching it with every fall. "I don't even KNOW you which makes this all the more worse. I got orders from the top to force out anyone who makes it in the warehouse..." He trailed off before returning to his final point with vivacity. "...And ESPECIALLY my storehouse." He threw his Pokeball forward and sent forth the Pokemon Merton had alluded to. Before Eightball stood a menacing looking body of flame. It was none other than the Magmar who had burnt Merton's hand! Eightball chuckled deeply and pointed to the assortment of machine parts and bikes at the other end behind him. "I'm warning ya, touch any of these parts and you'll have ME to contend with." His vicious grin was offsetting but the blowing flames from the Magmar soon became the more apparent threat.

Biker Eightball wants to fight!
You have disturbed his peace!


His Magmar (Level 20) is ready to fight!

[Kataya]

Sandy watched as the man in front of her seemed sure of himself. He seemed to feel like he was going to win, and drive her out no matter what. She was intimidated by him, but she had made a promise and was going to keep it.

“I’m sorry, but you aren’t getting me to leave by just sending out that Magmar. Berry, are you ready? “ She asked the turtle. Berry gave her a nod and jumped from her spot on the girl’s shoulder, to the floor in front of Magmar.

Sandy was sure they could win if they tried, and she looked over at Berry. “Are you ready girl?” She called. Berry gave her an okay sign and Sandy smiled before announcing their next move.

“Come on Berry, work them up with a Water Gun and show them you’re as good as any Wartortle!” Berry sucked in a breath, and after exhaling she let a stream of water fly loose towards Magmar.