WANTED: Cheryl the Marowak
After her child was kidnapped and probably killed, she went berserk! We all feel bad for her, but the destruction has to stop!
Last Seen: Bedraggled Bonelands
Suki & Kai
The two teammates eyed each other uncomfortably. They didn't like each other one bit after Kai's little incident in the battle against the Moon Guild. Suki felt ashamed to be partnered up with such a dishonored Pokemon, and Kai resented her because of it. But neither was willing to let a mission like this pass them by. "...Let's do it." The Misdreavus muttered in irritation. "Fine." The Mudkip snapped in reply. "Doesn't mean that I have to like you any." "You can say that again, idiot."
AT BONELANDS' EDGE
Kaiyou looked out across the Bonelands with wary eyes. The land was dry and dead. No water was within his sight, and it made him beyond nervous. It was so unlike the swamps he'd grown up in. Even Suki, who'd been glad to avoid the swamplands this time around, wasn't overly at ease with the place. "It's so... dead." Was all she said. Kai muttered something in agreement, although it was clear that he didn't like to agree with the Ghost-type. The land wasn't exactly open. It was so full of little cliffs and crags. The rock crumbled. It was so dry that the wind was slowly weakening it and breaking it into sand. They would have to be careful. Without glancing at him, Suki led the way down and out onto the Bonelands. Kai followed, annoyed by the female's superior attitude. Stupid Misdreavus.
FLOOR 1
Suki led the way across the dry, rocky landscape. She floated easily ahead, not bothering to slow for her teammate. The annoying little Mudkip could either keep up or die. His choice. She didn't care. She kept a wary eye on the area around her. It was so still. So quiet. It was both relaxing and unnerving at the same time. The heat was intense here. She was glad that she didn't have fur like Zori did. She'd boil out of her own skin! Figuratively speaking, of course. Ketsueki continued along, relatively relaxed. She could just float on, above any dangers that might come her way. It was just that pain of a Mudkip that had to struggle. She felt a glimmer of satisfaction. A quiet cry alerted her attention behind her. The Mudkip had slipped. She ignored him, turning back around to keep on moving forward. "You're not even going to help me?!" The Water-type cried in outrage. She could see the fury in his eyes. "If you can get in, you can get out." The Misdreavus replied icily. Both Pokemon glared daggers at eachother. Neither one would've come together if they'd had a better option. But Zori had only just gotten out of hospital. Both Pokemon agreed that it would be foolish to risk injury to the soft-hearted Eevee so soon into her recovery period. The Mudkip squirmed, trying to get loose from the crack between the boulders that Suki had floated over so smoothly. The Misdreavus floated overhead, amused by her teammate's struggles. The Mudkip glared up at her. "Why do you hate me so much?" He snapped, finally wriggling free of the rubble. Suki turned away, and silently moved on. She didn't have to answer his stupid questions.
FLOOR 2
Kaiyou stayed silent. He could feel the discomfort radiating off his teammate in waves. This wasn't a great place to be starting fights with teammates, so he figured that it would be best to stay silent and prevent aggrivating the Misdreavus. She claimed to be more emotionally calm than Zori, but she still had a temper to rival a Gyarados. Kai clambered over yet another bunch of rocks. The area was flat and dry from here on out; the ground was so parched that it was cracked. He wondered if it ever rained here. The ground began to shake and crack. He dug his stubby feet into the hard soil, gritted his teeth. A pair of angry Dugtrio popped out of the ground. He growled, shooting at them both with a powerful Hydro Pump. The first one was weaker; it fainted instantly from the direct hit. The second simply burrowing underground again, dodging with a Dig attack. Wait; DIG? He felt something hard ram into his gut, sending him flying. He rolled off his back and onto his feet. He charged at it with a Tackle, but the Dugtrio was underground again with another pop. PROTECT. He felt the sheild tighten around him, protecting him from attacks. He felt it ram into his gut again, and he groaned. The Dugtrio had dug in underneath his sheild! He gasped for breath, leaping sideways as the Dugtrio continued it's onslaught of attacks. He just had to keep moving... He realized that Suki had simply left him there, and he felt his fury grow. She was such a spoiled brat! She wouldn't even stick around to help him when he needed her help! He was sent flying off his feet by a Magnitude attack. He hit the ground hard, and groaned, getting back onto his feet. He gritted his teeth, thinking fast. The Dugtrio avoided attacked by burrowing. But as Dugtrio never fully surface, their passages are always fully connected. He blinked. Of course! He dodged the Dugtrio's attack by sidestepping, and blasted a Hydro Pump straight into the back of it's strange, round body. It ducked underground to avoid the attack. But Kaiyou was prepared. He angled the spray down the tunnel. Water burst through the passages, breaking through holes in the dry, cracked ground like sprinklers. The Dugtrio surfaced through one, and passed out cold. Kai passed it by, watching it with wary eyes. Now he had to find his traitor of a partner. You could never count on her for back-up. Spiteful jerk.
FLOOR 3
Ketsueki floated along through the Bonelands. The dry, cracked earth was a few feet beneath her. She could feel the heat of the Sun on her back. It had been nice at first; soothing almost. But her feelings about it had changed. Drastically. The heat was becoming unbearable. She wanted to feel the cool of lying under a shady tree. To dunk herself in a pool of water, or hide under the proective roof of a building. The horizon ahead was blurred by heatwaves. She paused, closing her eyes wearily. She half-wished that she'd kept that annoying purple Mudkip with her; the Water-type could've helped her beat the heat a little easier. Spray her with water to cool her down or something. That was what Water-types did, wasn't it? At least she knew that she'd made the right decision in not taking Zori with her. Zori wouldn't have been very fond of the heat in this place. Under that thick charcoal fur... She would've been dragging her paws by now. Suki shook her head; now was not the time to feel self-pity. Now was the time to complete the mission. And do it on her own. She didn't want help from some messed in the head Mudkip and his lack of a brain. She wanted to get the job done on her own; she would be the one to bring a little honor back to the team. And herself. She felt her spirits lighten at the thought. For a fleeting moment, she couldn't help but wonder if Cadarl would be impressed. The Shuppet didn't like his teammate that much either. Maybe he'd be proud of her for leaving the Mudkip behind and completing it on her own... She snapped out of her thoughts, looking around her. The Misdreavus paled. She couldn't see any sort of landmark. Anywhere. Looking at the ground beneath her, she couldn't help but notice that everything looked the same. She groaned. This wasn't the way to go about completing a mission. She looked ahead in the direction she'd been headed, and decided that she would just have to continue on that course, and try to stay moving in as straight a line as possible. She nodded to herself for good luck, and took off at a slightly quicker speed, hoping that she'd been headed the right way.
FLOOR 4
Kaiyou sighed. Tracking the Misdreavus was difficult. She floated, and so had no footprints to speak of. And being a Mudkip, his sense of smell wasn't exactly stellar. He focused, closing his eyes. The ultra-sensitive fin on his head could sense movement in air and water currents. He could feel movement ahead, but it was moving to quickly to really tell exactly what it was from, or whether it was Suki. He opened his eyes again, and continued onward, running to catch up with the swift-moving Pokemon ahead. He couldn't see it on the horizon, but he figured that he had to run into it at some point, right? As he ran, he closed his eyes to protect them from the sand and dirt he was kicking up. His head fin was more useful than his eyes, anyway. A crack in the ground there. He leaped over it, landing neatly on the other side, and continuing to run. He'd had a lot of practice in the swamps; particularly in the water-logged areas, where he'd had to swim. He'd needed his hearing and the fin on his head, not his eyes of nose to get around. He felt vibrations in the air above his head. Wingbeats. He leaped sideways, dodging a strike from a hostile Murkrow. He shot at it with a Water Gun, continuing to run on his chosen path of travel. The Murkrow dodged, diving sideways and using Pursuit to come after Kai and attack Kai felt the Murkrow attack his tail fin, and he rolled strategically, shooting off a Hydro Pump at the bird Pokemon. The Murkrow screeched, clearly not pleased with the turn of events, and was hit full on in the head with Kai's attack. Kaiyou turned tail and fled, sprinting off to continue tracking his Misdreavus companion. Closing his eyes again, he could sense that the Pokemon ahead was closer to him, although something was clearly slowing it down. The slowed movement allowed him to finally identify the exact shape and form of the Pokemon ahead. It was Suki. He'd been right. He sped up, kicking into a full sprint.
FLOOR 5
Suki hissed threateningly, her Confuse Ray echoing around the barren landscape. The Sandshrew shook it's head vigorously, attacking the empty space next to it. She waved it away with Ominous Wind, sending it flying across the hard, cracked ground. It squealed like an injured child. She didn't have time to react before something struck her in the back. She yelped in pain. Her eyes widened in shock as sand wrapped around her body. She quickly realized that it was a combination of Rollout and Sand Tomb. She couldn't let the sand close in completely, or she'd be crushed. She used Psybeam, breaking through the sand with ease. She darted out, turning and shooting back a Shadow Ball. The Sandslash dodged sideways. It struck the ground with it's clawed hand, and sand whipped around with intense force. She winced, feeling the grains of sand batter against her body. It was a Sandstorm attack. And she hadn't been prepared for it. The Sandslash continued to attack, using the thickness and intensitity of the storm it had created as cover. It blended into the sand with ease. She lashed out with a Confuse Ray, but her attack missed. Where was it? The sand got into her eyes, and she hurriedly tried to clear her vision. A Gyro Ball struck her in the back of the head, and she dropped like a stone, fainting and hitting the ground beneath her. The Sandstorm died away.
When Kai arrive on the scene, he didn't wait for expanations or introductions. He shot out a Hydro Pump, blasting the Sandslash in the stomach as it turned to face him. It dropped to it's knees, and Kai hit in square in the face with a powerful Tackle. The fainted Pokemon faceplanted into the cracked, water-deprived ground. It's Sandshrew offspring had recovered from it's shock, and burrowed down into the ground for cover. Kai left it be. It was retreating. No sense in wasting energy. He hurried over to Suki's side. He heard the Sandslash escaping into the ground as well, but ignored it. He used Protect over himself and the Misdreavus, to prevent any passersby from harming them while he tended to his teammate. He sprayed water over Suki's face with a Water Gun. The Ghost-type stirred, licking her lips. The Misdreavus' eyes opened up, staring at him through crimson pupils. The Mudkip stared back. "Are you going to run away and get yourself hurt again, or are we going to do this the way it should be done; as a team?" He asked her quietly, his voice rough and displeased. The Misdreavus shook her head silently, floating up off the ground, and brushing the dust off of her ghostly body. She gave him the strangest of looks, but nodded sharply to him. The look on her face; was it approval? At the very least, it was acceptance. "Just don't screw up again." She replied. So much for forgiveness.
FLOOR 6
Suki followed Kaiyou. She didn't particularly like letting him lead, but she was tired, and the Mudkip was a skilled navigator. He was leading them on-course, and doing it swiftly and efficiently. She didn't want to admit it, but she was impressed. He walked with a sense of pride, now, instead of the slouched, angry and embarrassed posture that he'd had before. He walked with his head held high, and his shoulders straight and his feet lifting up properly to avoid dragging the dirt around. She was grateful to him. She'd left him alone in the Bonelands, thinking that he wasn't worthy of being her teammate. She'd wanted to do it all on her own. But he'd followed her. He'd put in the effort to track her down, and had cared enough to save her when she'd been unable to defend herself. That was worth something in his favor, she had to admit. But not out loud. Or to him. She'd still tease him. After all, what was the fun in having teammates if she couldn't annoy them? Now that they were together again, the going was easier. Pokemon avoided them, instead of challenging them, and they were able to take frequent breaks, during which the Mudkip would douse Suki with a little bit of cold water to keep her from overheating in the hot sunlight and arid climate. Neither one of them talked much, but after a while, Suki began to feel a little uncomfortable with the silence. "Kai?" She asked quietly. The Mudkip didn't slow his pace, or turn his head. He grunted in reply. Ketsueki took a breath. "Why did you help me?" Kai didn't reply. Suki stared at the ground. She guessed that the Mudkip didn't really feel like talking about it. It was understandable. After all, she wasn't exactly nice to him. "I had to." Suki glanced up, feeling both hurt and furious at the same time. "You're my teammate, whether you like me or not, and that means that we have to work as a team. That bond that we have as a team is something I'm not used to. I'm not used to thinking of other Pokemon as friends. But that doesn't make me stupid. Or disloyal. Or dishonorable in any way." Suki's anger faded to guilt. He wasn't just talking about today. "What it means, is that you have to help me, and I have to help you. That's the way teams work. And that's the way that friendships work." He met her gaze with dark, serious eyes. "So I want to ask you again; will you work with me, as a friend, and help me as I help you?" Suki let out a shaky breath. The Mudkip had a complex thought process. It was obvious as to why he'd been able to fight his way through this place alone. She felt even worse now, for thinking him stupid because of the slip-up at the battle. He was still not used to differentiating between friend and foe, as before he'd had to assume that everyone was the latter. She nodded. "We're a team." She agreed, floating down to almost ground level to walk with the Water-type.
FLOOR 7
Kai and Suki moved quickly. The Sun was still high in the sky, but the temperature had leveled off a little bit, and they were taking advantage of the slight decrease in temperature to made as much headway as they could. Kai was sprinting, and beside him, Ketsueki was floating along, matching his speed. She could go faster, but she'd decided that it was important to stick together. And Kaiyou had agreed. "Direction of travel?" Suki asked smoothly, glancing over at the Mudkip. He had his eyes closed again. She wondered how he could see without using his eyes. She hadn't realized how sensitive the fin on his head was to air and water movement. The Mudkip, apparently, could sense a fly landing on a rock over thirty yards away. She was surprised about how little she knew when it came to his species. "Due West. Strong pace. Target destination is approximately a three hour journey by foot at walking speed." "At running speed?" There was a pause as the Mudkip recalculated his estimates for the change in speed. "Two hours. We'll require several breaks to regain energy, not factoring in possible battles we may run into." Suki nodded sharply. "Then we'd best get our butts in gear." She set the pace a notch higher. She could hear the steady thrum of Kai's feet on the heat-baked earth beneath her. His breath was swift and deep; he was clearly in good shape. She and Kai made good progress for almost an hour, before the Mudkip opened his eyes, and slowed their party of two to a halt. She glanced at him. "Sensed something?" The Mudkip nodded in response, his violet body dry a little bit pinker than normal from exposure to the Sun for such an extended period of time without hydration. She followed him as he scanned the ground with his eyes, searching for whatever he had sensed. The pair walked side by side, strategically scanning the ground for whatever it was that the Mudkip had sensed. Kai found it first. "Ketsueki; come look at this." The Mudkip growled softly, his voice low and calm. She made her way over to him, examining the ground in front of his where he stood. A deep striking mark in the dirt was visible. It was relatively fresh, and the distinct texture of bone was imprinted into the dirt. A bone of some kind had struck the ground here. Looking around, they found several more, along with the footprints of Marowak and Cubone. They spent several minutes examining the depth, direction, and pattern of the the footprints. "It looks like the Marowak was the aggressor. You want to bet that it's the one we're after?" "That's a bet I'd side with." Kai replied quietly, peering down at the soil. "There's dragging marks, too. I'd bet that the Marowak took down the Cubone and dragged it off somewhere." Suki paused before replying, staring at their mission assignment sheet. A detailed sketch and description of the Marowak were at the top. "I think we should track those footprints. There's a high probability of it being this Cheryl character, judging from the similarities in size and behavior. And even if we're incorrect, we can't just stand by and let this Cubone come to harm." Kai nodded, and tapped his foot against the drag marks on the ground, before gesutring in the new direction of travel. Suki nodded back, and the pair set off in a single file form, heading across the Bonelands after a trail of tracks in the dust.
FLOOR 8
Kai had his eyes open now, scanning the ground and horizon as frequenty as possible for any sign of the Marowak and it's captive. Suki followed him, moving just behind him in their single file line. Their bodies stuck out like sore thumbs against the dry, barren landscape. White and blood red. Violet and orange. Against sun-bleached browns and tans? ...Yeah, they needed to find a way of disguising themselves if they were going to get anywhere near their target Pokemon. Marowak had sharp eyes. Their keen eyesight would spot them before they spotted it. Unless they were disguised. And so, as the tracks became increasingly fresher, Kai called for a break. Suki paused, turning toward him. "What is it, Kai?" She asked him quietly. The Mudkip replied immediately. "Spin around in a circle." "What-" "Just do it." She did as she was told, and spun in a slow circle. Kai shot her with a Water Gun, coating her body in water. She squealed at the cold liquid spraying over her body. "Roll in the sand; it'll disguise you so that we can get in close to the Marowak when we find it." She nodded, and began to rub sand in all over her body. Kai squirted water up into mid air, and rolled around, before he and Suki began to cover up any bits that the other had missed. In a few minutes, they were both thoroughly covered in sand. Then, they both set out, sprinting as stealthily as they could across the desert to find the Marowak and Cubone is question.
FLOOR 9
Suki was the first to spot the Marowak. She was also the one to lead the pair into combat. Suki shot a Confuse Ray at the Marowak's head, but it deflected it with a powerful Bone Club, striking Ketsueki in the forehead. She collapsed on the ground, and the Marowak raised her club to strike again when Kai hit her with a Hydro Pump. The Marowak wasn't very fond of that. As Suki lay stunned on the ground, Kaiyou attacked the powerful, aggressive Pokemon with a Tackle. He dodged two bones that the Marowak sent flying, recognizing the attack as Bonemerang. But the Hyper Beam that the Pokemon let loose afterward was unavoidable. He went flying, crashing hard into the dirt. Suki slammed the Ground-type with Ominous Wind and a Shadow Ball, taking advantage of the pause it used to recover from the Hyper Beam. Suki then used Confuse Ray once more as the Pokemon lowered it's head and used Skull Bash. The Pokemon teetered unsteadily, but hit it's target... Sort of. The Normal-type physical move went straight through Suki's ghostly body. It had forgotten that Normal-type moves don't affect Ghost-types. Kai reared up and shot a final Hydro Pump into the Marowak's face, and it collapsed over sideways, fainting. It lay there on the ground, stunned, and Kai jumped on it's back, pinning it securely so that it could not move. Suki looked from the paper to the Marowak several times, examining any similarities between the description and the Marowak itself. "It's her, Kaiyou. We found her." She announced smoothly. The Mudkip nodded, but gestured toward a strange-coloured lump in the dust. The Cubone. Suki floated over, and tapped the Cubone's skull helmet. It's eyes opened. One was dark, emotional, and intelligent. The other was pale. Clouded. Blind. That would explain the loss that the Cubone had taken. It sat up slowly, extending a gentle hand toward Suki, and holding it's head dizzily with the other. "Thank you..." The Cubone murmured softly, it's voice weak and shaky. Suki felt her heart melt a little bit. Poor thing. "We're here to help. I'm Ketsueki. This is my teammate, Kaiyou." She replied smoothly, her voice calm and soothing. Kai nodded. "You'll be safe, now. We're taking Cheryl away so that she can't harm anyone. Our Guild will deal with her accordingly." Kai's voice was less soothing. It was rougher, and his words were precise and methodical. But the Cubone didn't seem to mind. "I'm... glad. She cannot stay here... she's caused too much pain." The Cubone shot them a grateful look, and they nodded in farewell as Suki held up her badge, transporting herself, Kaiyou, and Cheryl the Marowak back to the Guild of the Sun. Suki couldn't help but hope that she'd see the sweet-tempered little Cubone again.
Chaos Divide
Officer Magnezone was waiting for the duo once they arrived, he quickly moved in to take the wild Marowak off their hands.
"BBBZZZT, GOOD JOB! HERE, TAKE THIS AS OUR THANK YOU FOR APPREHENDING THIS CRIMINAL! BZZZT!"
A smaller Magnemite floated up and dropped a bag on the floor in front of Suki.
Inside they would find 3000PD, a Bone Club TM, a Fossil Bone item and a ...sombrero.
Sometimes it's best not to ask.
"Wa-wait for me!" Before Suki or Kai could leave the area, a small, familiar Cubone came running up.
"Let me join your team please!"
Suki & Kai
Suki let the Magnezone take care of Cheryl, and took their reward gratefully. She giggled at the Sombrero, and placed it on Kai's head. "You'll be needing that. At least until your sunburn goes away." She noted, glancing at his now reddish-toned violet skin. The Mudkip arched an eyebrow, but nodded. The voice behind them made them both smile. "Of course you can join! We were going to ask you, silly!" Suki was delighted, taking the hands of the Cubone in her ghostly tendrils. "Which means yes, in her language." Kai added dryly. Suki yanked his sombrero down over his face in response.
