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Pokebook VII



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Sun Jun 03, 2018 7:50 pm
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Lumi says...



Welcome to the world of Pokemon! My name is Professor Kukui, and it's totally rad to see new faces in Alola! You've come here to take on the Island Challenge and make the most of your vacations to paradise! Or rather, some of you. My notes say that some of you are natives that just came of Pokeventuring age! Tell me some things about yourself!

Code: Select all
[b]Are you a boy or a girl?[/b]

[b]What is your name?[/b]

[b]Which region are you from?[/b]

[b]Please provide your passport photo![/b]

[b]What pokemon partners are yours?[/b]

[i]Name / Species / Type[/i]
- Move 1
- Move 2-so on

[i]Name / Species / Type[/i]
- Move 1
- Move 2-so on


(This storybook will launch June 15th.)
I am a forest fire and an ocean, and I will burn you just as much
as I will drown everything you have inside.
-Shinji Moon


I am the property of Rydia, please return me to her ship.





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Thu Jun 21, 2018 3:04 pm
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Caesar says...



Image

"Alola! This is your captain speaking. We are now docked at Hau'oli port. Please form an orderly line when you exit the ship. Thank you for choosing Johto Cruiselines, and enjoy your stay!" The captain's voice blared throughout the ship.

"Come on Jenna, it's time to go," said Astrea.

She poked her head into their room. Her friend was curled up in a ball on her bed, head buried beneath the pillows. The window blinds were firmly drawn, every light in the room was switched on. Kuro, Jenna's Umbreon, was laying quietly on the bed at her side.

"Is it finally over?" she mumbled.

Astrea rolled her eyes. She walked towards Jenna's bed, scratched Kuro's belly -- the Umbreon purred with approval -- and began pulling Jenna out of her pillowy fortress. The girl was reluctantly manhandled up and out of her bed.

"Your stuff's not even all packed yet," said Astrea. "Hurry up. I'll be waiting for you outside."

She slung her big backpack on and walked out. Jenna scrambled to grab her things tossed haphazardly around the room and started shoving them in her backpack, muttering something about Astrea being mean. Astrea headed to the stairs.

***

The Hau'oli Marina was indeed as beautiful as the pictures portrayed it. As she stepped down the ship's stairs, Astrea marvelled at how big the Alolan sky was. Johto's skylines were mostly towers and buildings, but here, she could see the jagged mountains of Route 3, black and stark against the orange sky, and even flickers of light from Ikki Town far to the east.

Her eyes followed a cloud down to the busy rooftops of the shopping district. She could see the shapes of people on them, enjoying the atmosphere or peering into telescopes. The streets around the giant mall were lively as well. The whole city seemed like one giant party from a distance.

Immediately below her, the ship's passengers were swarming around the docks, phones out and selifes flying. Astrea's lips arched into a sneer, but she caught herself just in time. Most people, she told herself, actually want to be here. She'd probably be with those tourists herself if other things weren't occupying her mind.

One large group of tourists was clustered by the side of the dock, next to the ship's entrance. They had formed a circle around a young man with impressively bushy eyebrows, standing next to an Alolan Raichu. He was smiling widely and taking pictures or signing things. The man met Astrea's gaze and visibly brightened. He waved at the two girls and motioned for them to come down.

"Jenna! Astrea! Hiii~" the man yelled over the mass of tourists. "Or should I say, Alola!"

Then it dawned on her. Kahuna Hau. He was supposed to meet them here. He looked even sillier than his wiki page made him out to be, with that floral yellow robe that looked three sizes too large for him. He was beaming as the girls emerged from the ship. Beaming. Who beams that energetically?

"Hey, is that Lance's daughter?" Astrea heard a voice say.

"I heard she'd be on this cruise!" another voice said.

"I was on the cruise with her, but I only managed to get a glimpse of her at breakfast. She's so reserved!"

"Hey! Lance's daughter! Can I get a picture? My kids are fans!"

Astrea frowned and shouldered her way past, dodging a selfie stick here, an outstretched hand there, until she broke through to Hau. Jenna was in tow, using the taller girl's body like an Aegislash.

"Looks like I'm not the only one with fans," Hau said, with a rueful smile. He artfully dodged a heart-eyed woman who was trying to get too close.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person, Hau," Astrea replied, her smile not reaching her eyes.

Jenna smiled and opened her mouth to say something. A green tinge galloped across her complexion, and she shut her mouth. Then she bent over the side of the pier and began retching loudly.

Hau winced. Astrea sighed.

"Pictures, come get your pictures!" she said loudly. "Pictures with the Kahuna and Lance's daughter. Come on everyone, follow me. Move along. Light's better over there"

***

Tendrils of azure were creeping across the sky, but it was yet early. Captain Ilima's garden thrummed with a quiet energy. Wind rustled through the trees. The broad-leaved gardenias bobbed. Pikipeks chirped in the distance. Astrea cut through the pool at its center with broad, powerful strokes. At her side, Dratini and Magikarp followed, racing each other. Astrea was keenly aware that their careless movements made water slosh onto the grass around the pool's borders.

Last evening, after taking some pictures, she and the Kahuna had decided that it was best to keep sightseeing at a minimum for now. Hau had explained that Ilima, the local Captain, whom he was in contact with, was happy to host them until they embarked on their Island Challenge. Jenna complained a bit, but eventually agreed on account of still being too green to ride a Tauros.

So they took a bus from the port, and forty minutes later reached Captain Ilima's mansion, separated from the rest of the city by nature. Jenna had said hi and then collapsed in bed. Astrea, Hau and Ilima stayed up a bit longer making small talk. Well, Hau had done most of the talking. Jenna was still asleep. She had never seen her up at an appropriate time.

Astrea finished her last lap of the pool and allowed herself to relax. Floating on the water, she stared up into the sky, lost in thought. Not only was the Alolan sky bigger, the air was also cleaner. She inhaled deeply. Breathing in Johto definitely wasn't this refreshing. But then, the air back home always tasted slightly of volcano, so it probably didn't take much.

Out of the corner of her eye, Astrea saw Ilima come out from the house's columned porch. He seemed to be carrying a foldable desk. His Smeargle was in tow, with a bunch of art supplies. He took position in a corner and unfolded the desk, then began drawing. Neither of them said anything for a while. The garden rustled. Then, Ilima turned to glance at her.

"You're up early," he said.

Ilima could be described in one word as neat. His clothes were fitted perfectly. His hair was cut cleanly. Even now, as he painted, he was making sure to not get the garden dirty. For a fleeting instant, Astrea was aware of the fact that her hair was not neat. She pushed the thought to the back of her mind.

"Yeah," she replied, curtly.

She got out of the pool and wrapped herself in a towel. "Gotta keep these in perfect battling conidition." She motioned to her Pokemon. "There were a few pools on the cruise, so we've been doing that."

"Your dedication is admirable," Ilima said.

"Yeah."

Astrea sent her Pokemon back to their Pokeballs. "How about you? You're up early as well."

Ilima smiled. "I have to get these posters ready for a festival in town. I'm sure you and other trainers will appreciate my efforts soon."

Astrea decided not to question him. "I'm going to take a shower. See you at breakfast."

Ilima had made a large breakfast, and even brewed coffee. The main dish was malasadas, which he said would help Jenna recover from her seasickness. They ate in the kitchen. One of its walls was glass, which let lots of light through, and gave a stunning view of the Melemele coastline. They had already reached the fruit when Jenna stumbled into the kitchen, bleary-eyed.

"Good morning, Princess," said Astrea. "We've saved you breakfast."

Jenna rolled her eyes, popped a small skull-shaped candy in her mouth. "Don't talk to me like that. I'll have you know I slept terribly."

"My," Ilima said, "that may be the very first uneasy night's rest this household has ever heard of! Mother will not be pleased..."

Jenna groaned under her breath as she approached the sink where Astrea could only imagine as to what she would do; but after splashing water on her face and tying her hair with Ilima's pink rubber bands (for food preservation), she turned around and smiled at the two with things people called 'grace' and 'charm'.

how about ilima explains the team skull/bryne thing here, then astrea and jenna look at each other for a moment, and then jenna delivers the below line? yee do it

"Well, have some malasada, Jenna," said Ilima. "I'm sure it will help you feel better."

Jenna attacked her food with two things people called 'grace' and 'charm'. Somewhere in the world. Probably. Ilima, at the very least, seemed pleased his cooking was appreciated, although Astrea saw him grimace once or twice, ever so fleetingly. Once Jenna's plates were empty, he cleared his throat and coughed.

"So, ladies," as he sipped his coffee, "though it was Ka-Hau-na's idea for you to stay with my family while in town, I'm afraid I'll be a bit busy. And absent." He flourished his words with a wave of his hand. "Just think of me all day, roaming around this enormous city with all its shops and all its bistros...just to rout out Team Skull ruffians!"

"You're totally dropping all these negative vibes, but all I can think of are more Malasadas and new kicks."

"No, Jenna, I'm afraid there's much more to it than treats and shopping. First, we'd have to find the thugs and bring them," sip, "to justice." Another sip. "Then there's the issue of Bryne..."

"Bryne?"

"Indeed, Bryne."

"You say that like a doctor pronounces someone clinically dead," said Astrea.

"Well, you see," Ilima continued, adopting a mysterious tone, "Bryne is a long-time friend from the Kalos region. Just a few days ago he came to Alola to start his Island Challenge, much like you two. And so I brought up Team Skull to him, as well, but he seems to have taken the situation a bit... too much to heart, how do I put this?"

"Can't understand Alolan dialect yet, Mr Ilima," said Jenna, staring up to the ceiling.

"Er... well... he," sip, cough. Throat clear. "He seems to have spent the past few days running around Hau'oli city yelling 'where are you, dastardly Skull ruffians? Come battle me like honorable bandits!' It's quite... vexing, for me, as a Captain. And you two seem to have your wits about you, so if you could give him a hand, well, I'd greatly appreciate that."

"Dear oh dear, Captain Ilima," said Astrea, poorly concealing her grin. "Your Captain duties must be so vexing."

"Maan, rough beats, rough beats indeed," said Jenna, leaning into Ilima slightly. "Since you're going to be ohhhhhhhhh so busy preparing our--" snicker--"trial, we'll go slap some skulls together."

"Now say, Princess Wits-About-You," said Astrea, "where do you think such a hero might presently be looking for these nefarious ruffians?"

Jenna yanked her pokeballs from her belt, and by some trickery produced Astrea's as well. "Drop all your plans for the day, friends, because we're going! to! the mall!"

Ilima's facd looked like he was being pursued by a gang of relentless Ghastlys. "I take back what I said about having your wits about you. You two are demons."

The girls made a "heee~" sound, already running for the door.

"Catch you later, Mr Captain Sir!" Jenna yelled.

"I'm usually at the Trainers School all day, in case you find something!" Ilima yelled back after them, as they were half-outside.

***
The Hau'oli Shopping District was a massive complex. They had seen parts of it the previous evening on the bus to Ilima's house, but now, walking through the streets, Astrea truly appreciated how small she was by comparison. The buildings weren't necessarily tall. They had tall buildings in Johto, buildings so tall you couldn't see above you in some parts. The tallest building here was the principal mall, four stories high. But the buildings were nonetheless huge, occupying as much space as they could. Maybe the fact that she could still see the bright blue sky above her, stretching infinitely, also made the city bigger.

Jenna strode confidently, as if she knew where she was going. Which she clearly didn't, but at least she had completely recovered from her seasickness. The principal mall was built at the edge of the city. Behind it there was a huge parking lot, and after that, untamed nature. It had several sets of glass doors, which seemed to never close. People streamed in and out like a school Wishiwashis. As they crossed into the mall, Astrea was in awe.

It was built around a massive central plaza. At its center towered a construction made of three enormous fountains and equally gigantic ferns. There were shops at every corner, each looking like it had its own theme and even its own music. People and even their Pokemon were in front, behind and above her. The malls back home were certainly not this lively. Jenna was wide-eyed. She tugged at Astrea's sleeve, who was still slightly dumbfounded. And so their adventure through the mall began.

There really was an endless number of shops. The girls (mostly Jenna) sampled local foods; watched part of a Pokemon cabaret in an amphitheater-style area, because why wouldn't the place have something like that; spent some time in a floral tea shop, although they left quickly once they noticed the price tags; they (mostly Jenna) even tried the silly massage chairs. And of course, clothes. Jenna was able to find the place that sold the darkest, most ridiculously chain-covered, ripped or studded, most skull-covered clothes. And the bags she was toting increased by the hour.

Astrea made sure to ask about a certain person looking for Team Skull at each shop. A spiky-haired young man who possibly fit that description had been spotted running up and down the escalators yelling that he'd 'seen something'. A similarly disheveled young man had crashed into the cabaret from above, frantically apologizing. He'd caused a whirlwind in a luxury clothes store, creating untold amount of damage. He'd almost turned over the ice cream cart the two girls stopped to get ice cream some time mid-afternoon.

They found him in the parking lot. The spiky-haired young man was squaring off against three individuals dressed very similarly to Jenna, all wearing a gold chain around their neck, even so managing to be more understated than what her friend was wearing. They appeared to be in the middle of a heated argument.

"Aha! Team Skull! I've finally found you ruffians! Prepare to face justice!"

"Aw man, is this guy for real? You totally killed the vibe of the day, you know."

"Yeah, we're not even on duty today, we just wanted to go to the mall."

"Then we heard that some dude was causing a massive fuss about Team Skull, and our mojo was ruined, yeah."

"Whatever dastardly schemes you villains were planning," the spiky haired young
man continued, not having changed tone, "they come to an end now! I, Bryne, will
stop you!"

"Yo, is this guy even listening?"

"With all the riot you started it would have been impossible for us not to find you!"

"Fine, if a battle's what you want, we'll show you not to mess with Team Skull, yo! If only so you shut up!"

"Oh!" said Astrea, face making an 'O' shape.

"Hm?" asked Jenna, bemused.

"Maybe this guy is secretly a genius."

"With that face? Impossible. What do you want to do about this?"

"Well." Jenna motioned to a nearby bench. "Why don't we sit down? He seems to be having fun."

So the two girls sat down and continued eating their ice-cream. Jenna insisted on having a bite of Astrea's, and Astrea regretted asking for a bite of Jenna's in return. There was more coffee than ice cream in the thing she was eating.

The young man, Bryne, had a Luxio as energetic as he was. The two made quick work of the first grunt. The second Skull grunt had an aggressive Yungoos which hit hard. For a moment, it looked like Luxio was going to be in serious trouble, but they managed to defeat the second grunt by the skin of their teeth. The third grunt confidently sent out a Drowzee, betting on Luxio being tired. Its Hypnosis succeeded, and Luxio was taken out. Bryne then sent out a Fennekin. After a rousing speech to his Pokemon, which made Jenna want to throw her ice cream cup at him, Bryne and Fennekin took down the Drowzee, fire and flames flying.

"You're mad strong, yo!" exclaimed the grunt.

"Strong and annoying! What a pain!" said another.

"We were just trying to enjoy our day off, yo!"

The three grunts ran right past the two girls, who paid them no heed. They instead stood and approached Bryne.

"Are you their boss?" he asked, staring at Jenna. "Fennekin and I can go all day! Come on!"

Astrea hurled her ice cream cup into the trash, which was unfortunately not so close to Bryne that she could miss.

"Despite my friend's outrageous appearance," she said, "we're actually Ilima's acquaintances. He asked us to look for you."

"Team Skull Jenna has a nice ring to it though," Jenna mumbled, chewing on her spoon. "They looked super cool, too."

Astrea sighed. "Ilima's at the Trainer's School, so we're going to see him now that you've sobravely cleared out the area of those nefarious criminals."

"Hell yeah!" Bryne exclaimed. "All in a day's work! People like that shouldn't be able to roam the streets freely. Imagine those defenseless mall-goers."

"Look, just try not to get into trouble on the way, yeah? It's mostly a straight line from here, so that shouldn't be that hard, even for you."
vulgus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur







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Tue Jul 10, 2018 9:29 pm
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Lumi says...



Chapter 1.2: Fairrier

"I never thought shopping could get any better than hot fashion and ice cream, but maaaan was I wrong!"

Astrea looked her way, spooning the last of her lemon ice cream onto her tongue. "What do you mean? Justice boy here and the skulls hardly fought--"

"AND JUSTICE WAS SERVED!"

"If you say justice was served," said Jenna, "then I'll humor you."

Bryne rolled his eyes to her. "You're gonna tell me a joke?"

"This is the quality content we're signing up for, Astrea."

"I don't think we can cancel our sub now," she said.

"That's right!" announced Bryne, "in Alola, there's no taking back what you do or say! The past is behind you and the future is ahead, but all that matters is the slimy bubblebeam of the present!"

Jenna kicked a small piece of balled-up paper with her pump and watched as it fluttered away on the breeze. "So Team Skull...what do you know about them, Bryne? What made you so crazy to go after harmless rap artists?"

"I'm searching for someone," he said. "Years ago, their boss, Guzma, disbanded the gang, and while his right-hand girl Plumeria kept them up for a while, she eventually went off to college in Unova...so naturally there's a vacuum of power, right? Or so one would think!" He puffed out his chest.

"If there's an opening as the boss of those thugs, I could probably do a class-act job of running the show." Jenna bit a skull-shaped cookie she'd bought at the mall. "Maybe I'll look into it."

Astrea stopped them both as a young man approached, wearing saggy pants, a gold chain around his neck, and coifed hair that could only mean one thing: "Oh dear god you're a new trainer, aren't you?"

"Chill, mami--you don't look so rough under the collar, either."

Jenna licked her fingers of the Skull Cookie Icing and stepped forward. "I want to do this, Rey. May I?"

"Hmph. Less dirt on my boots. Sure."

"I don't care who I battle against! I just want some sweet battle experience so I can take on Kahuna Hau!"

Jenna grabbed a black-and-blue pokeball from her belt and lowered her head. "Trainer, you've challenged the wrong girl today! My pokemon and I are gonna rock and roll these sick beats down on you! Get ready!"

She tossed the ball into the air, where a gorgeous burst of light let out a floating cerulean flower, held by a blue-eyed Flabebe.

"This'll be awesome! Come on out, Snobby!" His pokeball burst and released a Snivy into the streets. It raised its head and looked very, well, snobby.

Jenna grinned and began to...almost...play the air guitar? Was there music? No! She was playing the air guitar, and she called out: "Flabebe, let's make a slow jam outta him! Stun spore!" The floating fairy began spinning its flower above its head, making a twister of pollen that she shot in a column attack at Snobby, who tossed himself into the air with vines to dodge the spores. All-in-all, it just left a yellow pollen stain on the asphalt.

And, for the young trainer, who'd gotten his gold chain stuck on one of his black gloves and then had jumped out of the way of the twister, a leg that had fallen asleep. He cursed at his leg, but quickly remembered he was in a battle. "Use Vine Whip!" the trainer said.

Jenna pointed to Treble and glared. "Block it! Just block it with a Fairrier!"

Astrea, Bryne, and the new trainer's eyes went wide. "Fairrier?!" they called out. Treble held its flower out front and cast a blue bubble around itself, which the Snivy began wailing on. "Now use that energy! Fairy Wind!" The bubble busted as Treble flew through the shimmering blue ceiling, and from up high began to spin her flower like a wand. A sudden, gorgeous, sparkling wind swept through the streets, blowing trash, hats, and ice cream away onto the beach.

"Oh, come on!" the trainer shouted, his hair flying around in the wind and becoming decidedly less coiffed. He caught Snobby when the Pokemon flew over his head and threw it back. "Tackle!"

Snivy extended its vines high into the air and caught Flabebe, then launched himself into the air while bringing her down to his level, headbutting her halfway, but still midstream of the fairy wind. The two fell to the ground, and without orders, Snivy readied his whips for another assault--but didn't account for where he landed, which was the puddle of stun spore dust, and froze mid-attack.

"Oh ho!" shouted Jenna. "Treble, let's go with another fairy wind to finish him off!"

Flabebe floated into Snivy's general direction and held her flower out, lightly dusting him with enough wind to knock him over and

Pulling his asleep leg along, the trainer snatched up Snivy and held it in his arms. "Ugh," he said, looking at the others. "You guys are good, I guess. Snobby sucks at noticing things. Man, it's going to take me forever to take on the kahuna at this rate."

Jenna laughed--a lot. "Oh, kid, I'm sure Kahuna Hau will take it muuuuuuch easier on you than I did."

"Or not," added Astrea.

"But maybe!" shouted Bryne.

The kid sighed. "Can I ask something? What is your Flabebe's combat level?"

"By which region's standards?" she asked. Astrea and Bryne sighed in response. "OH! Alola! Let me see..." She checked her Pokedex and nodded. "Seventeen. Snivy?"

"Sixteen."

"Something good will happen if you keep training," said Astrea. "Just keep going, don't give up, and get that sorry look off your sorry face."

"What she said," said Jenna with a wink. "Now if you'll excuse us, we gotta get to the Trainer's School!"

"You're...practically there. It's behind this fence." The boy pointed behind him. "What kind of adventurers don't know where they're going?" Walking off, he continued grumbling.
I am a forest fire and an ocean, and I will burn you just as much
as I will drown everything you have inside.
-Shinji Moon


I am the property of Rydia, please return me to her ship.








This looks like a really bad episode of Green Acres.
— David Letterman