Berry Hunt (MonkeySage)

Fall was approaching, and it was obvious near the Pecha forest. The tall oaks, elms, maples, and pecha trees were explosions of vibrant color. Orange, red, and yellow blotted out the sky save for the slivers of skyline that managed to peek through. It was very early in the morning, with the sun only starting to rise up and some of the stars just faintly visible through the thin wisps of clouds.

A morning chill common in Fall pervaded the air along with the moisture of morning dew.

Jeremy took in a chilly breathe before letting it out in a drawn out exhale as his amber eyes poured over the map he had in front of him. The Grass Snake Pokemon had a satchel pack slung over his shoulder and a black bow tie wrapped neatly around his slender neck.

After some time pouring over the contents of the map, the male snivy sighed as he carefully folded it back up before neatly organizing it into his back pack. Kuro and he currently stood near the edge of the large forest as it loomed ahead… Hiding who knows what within its depths.

"Okay," He began, "Our requested item is an oran berry. From what I have gathered, this forest is famous for its pecha berries, but there are other fruit trees further in. That will be the place to look. Good news is that oran berries are still in season, but with winter coming, everyone else is gonna want one before they get eaten up or rot away. We gotta be quick about this… And keep an eye out for any feral pokemon in the area. I mean, this place isn't particularly dangerous itself but who knows whats in there."

He turned to Kuro, reptilian eyes meeting her cat-like maroon ones. "You ready?"

Kuro nodded eagerly "Finally! Our first Mission... I'm ready" She nodded once again with a big grin and a excited gaze. She took her first step into the forest known for its heavy supply of Pecha Trees. She smiled greatly as she took in the view of the crisp orange leaves falling off of the trees and the quiet sound of the forest

"Woohoo!" And then she broke that silence with her own voice, a few bird pokemon fluttering away from the branches they had perched on.
She smirked and looked at a few of the trees "Oran? Nope... Is this an Oran tree? Don't think so" The Sneasel mumbled to herself as she looked at the lines of trees on either side of her

The male snivy gave an exasperated sigh as the duo made their first few steps inside. "Kuro…" Jeremy began as they left the comfort of sunlight into the claustrophobic surroundings of the forest itself. Dried leaves crunched under foot, and the snivy was worried with the racket they were causing they would attract attention… The wrong kind of attention.

"By further in, I meant deeper in, and by deeper in, I meant more than a few steps from the borders… I don't think our client would hire us unless he was REALLY lazy. We got some walking to do. So please, try to still your excitement. We can celebrate when we get the berry safely back."

There was a commanding tone to the weariness that Jeremy had… It may have been that the male snivy was worried that their first mission could go wrong… After all… His first little incident in Grassveil didn't go well either.

Still… Keeping spirits up was important. "How about a quick race? That way we can cover ground quicker before we have to conserve our strength. Just stay quiet." He offered his companion a light, smug grin. "Unless you think you will lose…"

Kuro smirked at the challenge "Oh poor Jeremy... I guess i'm gonna have to beat you huh?" She walked to a tree, digging her claws into it and climbing up to a low hanging branch "Ready, Set..." She steadied herself on the branch with a chuckle "Go!"

Kuro raced across the tree branches, jumping from each one to the next with a focused gaze, taking it both serious and not at the same time. She let out a small laugh as she looked down at the Snivy racing with her. The speed she was going at made the scenery go by at a blur

Jeremy smirked back as Kuro went about readying herself, using her long, curved claws to get a foothold in one of the nearby trees as she climbed onto a low hanging branch. The male snivy went about readying himself as well, getting into a low running stance, neck and head craned ahead as his tail slowly swished behind him.

At her excited exclamation, Jeremy shot forward not unlike a snake would. Lunging forward, his slender body almost slithered across the forest floor. From Kuro's point of view, it was almost like Jeremy had no legs at all, and was truer to the snake kin he was partially related to… Or his later evolution.

He was quick, but Kuro was slightly quicker, using her speed and acrobatics to swing, run, and leap from branch to branch. So Jeremy had to rely on his agility and the ability to make jarringly sudden turns look almost flawless. He did not so much run as swim across the landscape, using a mix of subtle alterations like the way he would turn his body and tail to avoid obstacles.

He had to admit, he enjoyed pitting his skills against Kuro's. She was faster than he anticipated, and the scenery made for a good race track. Cool, Autumn air invigorated him and flashes of color blurred past. Still… Jeremy made sure to keep an eye out for any trouble or ambushes… He hoped Kuro's birds eye view offered a good vantage point.

Eventually, Jeremy noticed that the forest was thicker and darker than it was before, and the Grass Snake Pokemon brought himself to a screeching halt, feet disturbing the fallen leaves and loose, loamy earth beneath them. Kuro landed beside him not a second later… Looks like this was a tie.

Jeremy offered her a smirk and a respectful nod before turning back at the thick trees. There was a sense of something old, primal, and untamed there… Vaguely, Jeremy could feel a tug at the back of his mind to days where Pokemon were not so civilized and lived as feral creatures… Those that followed the old ways and lived off the land, holding contempt for the city dwellers.

"Alright…" Jeremy whispered. "This is where the problems can come up if they do. The oran trees are going to be a little bit deeper in. As we walk,  keep an eye out for trouble. You should be able to hear and see better than I can in there. Get in, get out, and then we are done."

(I may start doing a roll for treasure item soon… Once we find the oran berry, we can do a roll for an encounter as well.)

Kuro let out a small laugh as she landed besides her teammate 'Teammate huh? That sounded nice' she thought to herself as she smiled at his nod. She enjoyed that a lot more than when she was jumping along the treetops on her own. The competition made it worth the physical activity, not that she didn't enjoy it anyway.

She nodded once again and looked at the Snivy "But even if we do find trouble we'll just kick their butts, believe it or not I have a few tricks up my sleeve... if I had sleeves...  okay I have a few tricks up my ribbon but you get what I mean" The sneasel talked in a slightly quieter voice "Sorry sorry, come on let's go" The Sharp Claw Pokemon began to walk ahead, keeping her eyes out for anything

Jeremy wasn't so sure of Kuro's certainty, but at least he had some reason to believe that she could handle herself. After all, according to her, she had traveled a great distance to just get to Grassveil. He simply raised a brow at her, the faintest hint of a smirk on his face as he turned around, face serious once again as they walked forward.

"Well… It may come up, so keep that in mind." Jeremy whispered.

The duo traveled on for a while, the forest getting less comfortable and more foreboding for the male snivy. His eyes were well adapted to dim light, but as it got darker, his sight was about the same as everyone else.

So that made the glint of something in the distance all the more noticeable in the low light. Jeremy paused from his light run next to Kuro, stopping as his head turned to survey the strange object. "Kuro…" Jeremy whispered. "Something is over there…" A pause. "Walk with me quietly… I'm gonna check it out."

Whatever it was happened to be in the brush, and after cautiously approaching it, Jeremy pried some of the leaves and bushes away to gasp at what he saw.

The metal glint he saw was a tarnished metal latch on a small lock box. It looked like it had been there a while… Was it abandoned? Left there? Jeremy wasn't sure. It was about a foot long all the way around and it seemed that the elements had been doing its work on the outside metal and wood covering.

Jeremy gently lifted the box which seemed half buried into the mud and earth, gently brushing the residue from its surface. "Its a lock box…" Jeremy began. It was then that when he swung it around to show Kuro, did he notice that a very faint rattle emanated from inside.

"And its got something inside…" Jeremy whispered in wonder. He seemed thoughtful for a moment before declaring. "No key present, but I have an idea. Kuro, you are a partial ice type aren't you? Think you can freeze the lock? A good solid hit after that should open it right up."

(OOC: And now for the Item roll…

This dice is not existing.

)

Kuro cracked her knuckles/claws and took the metal lockbox with a slight cyan tint from the Snake Pokemon's grasp and placed it on the floor "That's too calm of a thing to do, I mean cmon it just ain't my style" She stuck her tongue out briefly and closed her eyes. "You may wanna step back" She waited a few seconds for the Snivy to take a few steps back.

For once everything was calm. A breeze flowing across the forest created the slighted sensation across Kuro's fur. Her eyes opened "Kurrrooooo!" She exclaimed at the top of her voice, pulling her her fist which was glowing with pure energy "Punch!" The Sneasel hit exactly on the lock and for a second there was nothing. Complete silence.

Shatter  

The box shattered apart in an instant and then a shuddering noise followed it.

Kaboom!

A shockwave sent both Kuro and Jeremy backwards a few metres, Kuro luckily landed in a pile of amber crisp leaves. It may have softened the fall but didn't soften the shame she was sure to feel

What could it be? Jeremy wasn't sure, but for it to be in such a secure container must have spoken about its importance. To have it in their possession… Why such a treasure would fetch an outstanding price-

Wait what? Kuro was setting the box down… Seemingly preparing for something. "Wait… What are you talking about?" Jeremy began, amber eyes narrowing. "You couldn't seriously b-"

The male snivy gave a hiss of surprise when a triumphant Kuro rose her clawed fist to the sky. Her hand glowed with an intense light as power gathered to her, the air crackling with barely contained energy. As Jeremy's horrified realization kicked in, the Grass Snake Pokemon barely had enough time to leap out of the way.

The explosion and the following shock wave sent the male snivy rolling through the forest floor regardless. He settled on the ground, senseless for a split second before his eyes blinked and slowly adjusted to his surroundings once again. Vision slightly blurry, Jeremy slowly got to his feet, swaying slightly… Huh… There was an awful buzzing in his head now… Huh…

Jeremy slowly turned his head around to see Kuro on the ground, groaning from the shock. Jeremy calmly walked up to her, face composed as he the hearing on one side of his head slowly came back to him.

He stood in front of the sneasel, hands on his hips and expression strangely calm. "Did we learn and important lesson?" He began, face starting to slowly cloud over with anger… No… Not anger… Completely incensed RAGE.

"I sure hope so! Because that was the most IDIOTIC thing I have ever seen in my whole life! NEVER have I seen something so POINTLESS and IMPULSIVE! WHY?! WHY would you DO that!? Never mind the fact that whatever it was EXPLODED, but even then, it would have been destroyed ANYWAY!!!"

With his cool broken down, Jeremy made for a fearsome visage, sneer curling his lips back to reveal exposed fangs and a forking tongue. His eyes were narrowed, and the pupil was a thin sliver, flecks of ephemeral purple starting to pop up in his amber/red pools.

Not quite done with his rant yet, Jeremy paced back and forth, throwing his stubby arms up in the air as he continued. "One of the crudest, most THOUGHTLESS things I have ever seen! What did you hope to accomplish?!"

Kuro stayed silent at his rant and stood up with a grin, quite proud of herself and her power. She brushed the leaves off of her fur, a few flakes still stuck in yet that didn't matter to her. She waited for a chance to butt in, her smile still plastered onto her face "Ya done?" The sneasel asked in a plain tone, her paws behind her back as she kicked a small leaf that was besides her "I mean ya know, it did look pretty darn cool if you ask me. I proved my power to you, got to test Kuro Punch out. And you know... you can't stay mad at me, well you can but I know you wont." She looked at the Snivy with the best puppy eyes look she could pull.... which was not that good.

Jeremy almost SNARLED in response to her sheer audacity. "I'm sorry… I didn't KNOW this was funny to you! I MIGHT have been more impressed if you didn't just DESTROY whatever it was and put our very LIVES in jeopardy!" The male snivy was only an inch from Kuro's face, amber eyes blazing as they bore into her violet ones. "I didn't sign up for this…" He whispered. "Now every potential threat in this forest could have heard that explosion…"

He seemed to realize that… That and the yelling, and the Grass Snake Pokemon turned around, anger slowly simmering down to be replaced by worry. [color]"They would have heard us…"[/color] He whispered to himself, expression seemingly lost for a moment.

He turned to face Kuro, anger once again on his features. "Move" he breathed out in a hiss. "And don't make a sound."

But they only took a few steps before some rustling and then SEVERAL dark chuckles were heard… Jeremy gritted his teeth and then cursed under his breathe.

Feral pokemon or bandits… And now they were surrounded…

This dice is not existing.

This dice is not existing.

This dice is not existing.

Kuro readied her claws as the 3 pokemon appeared. A Butterfree first appeared from the brush, letting out a mean chuckle that really didn't phase Kuro much. It's wings fluttered slowly, possibly ready to spread any spores. That worried Kuro ever so slightly, she was never scared when she could fight something fair. Yet if she's paralyzed or put to sleep... no way.

Out after that came the two not so menacing Patrats. Taking on the role of the grunts of the group, seemingly weaker than Butterfree yet could pose a threat together. Kuro whispered to Jeremy "Um... I know Butterfree will kick your butt, so I'll take it and you take the Patrat"

"Tch!" Jeremy hissed, amber eyes never leaving the three new arrivals… He recognized them both. The two goons in the front, sneer on their faces and glowing, binocular eyes trained forward were none other than patrat. Their rodent-like appearance were well known to Jeremy, but these particular two seemed to have taken up banditry now. The Grass Snake Pokemon couldn't see any physical difference between the two… Like most patrat. Both were identical, and both reeked of scum.

The butterfree was another thing entirely… Known for being creatures of grace and beauty, this particular one was like a perversion… Scars peppered its body, leaving pinkish white gashes down its abdomen and face. There seemed to be a pattern to the scars as well… They followed a tri pattern, like claws or talons were once used and landed some serious looking hits… Maybe a pidgeot? But if that were true, then that was a life or death battle… And the butterfree walked away.

Jeremy glanced at Kuro before turning back to the small group of bandits. "Kuro, don't be ridiculous… We are outnumbered with no considerable advantages AND out of our league… That butterfree is another thing entirely and-"

"Your friend is right little sneasel…"

Jeremy actually shuddered at the voice… It was surprisingly masculine and deep, with the faintest bit of rasp to it. Each syllable was carried out with a calm venom to it and the overall tone was devoid of any noticeable emotion. The red compound eyes surveyed the duo, and Jeremy for the life of him could not get a reading on expression or anything else…

"Yeah!" Came a squeaky, harsh voice from one of the patrats, bloodthirsty grin on its face. "You goes around stompin' in on our turf, threatenin' us and making a ruckus?" He cracked his knuckles, and smiled, revealing some razor-sharp incisors. "All with some pretty valuables in that pack of yers I bet as well! How abouts you hand all that over, turn around, never come back, and we don't leave ya nappin' in the dirt!"

Jeremy backed up slowly, hand on Kuro's shoulder as he gulped nervously, doing his best to maintain his composure. "We don't want any trouble…" The snivy began.

"Too bad snakey," the other patrat began eagerly, "Looks like trouble has found you!"

A cold, smooth voice broke the conversation, and the two patrat silenced at once when it was uttered, standing at attention but still sneering at the exploration team. "Regardless, the fact that you just destroyed one of the treasures I was looking for does not speak well for your imminent futures… In exchange for trespassing on our lands, breaking my things, and disturbing my presence, I expect no less but every valuable you have on you thrown before me and my men… Otherwise you pay in blood… The choice is yours."

Jeremy didn't say anything, mind rapidly trying to come up with a plan. Every time they stepped back, the bandit trio simply moved forward with the patrats in the league and the butterfree hovering eerily close, wing beats silent as a ghost.

Kuro stepped back with Jeremy, a look of fear and anger on her face. She tried to think of any advantage she could have against them. There was no point in trying to attack from above since Patrat's were some of the best climbers and Butterfree would be able to outspeed her just by flying upwards, and then that would leave Kuro at a huge disadvantage. Her Ice Punch would be the best bet for her, since it was her strongest attack and it is super effective against the Butterfree.

She looked towards her partner with a resolute expression, despite the almost doomed situation they were in "Jeremy... what do we do...?" The Sneasel whispered to him in a slightly trembled voice, yet she tried to keep her composure.

Jeremy's amber eyes never left the trio of potential murderers. Body tense, the Grass Snake Pokemon tried to come up with a plan… Any plan. As it was though, there only seemed to be one solution. "Kuro…" Jeremy whispered back. "Drop your stuff. Slowly…" The male snivy was already making the moves to do so himself, taking his back pack off and feeling the dead weight slide off of him. In a seemingly desperate offer for peace, Jeremy laid in front of him and backed up.

The patrat pair sneered and chuckled as they approached to take the back pack, binocular eyes glinting with barely restrained glee. "Smart choice snakey… Smart choice indeed." Jeremy didn't say anything, expression strangely composed and focused, though he tried to quell any nervousness he had. He hoped… He prayed that Kuro would follow suit. These three bandits were perfectly willing to kill the both of them, and he knew she would DESPISE the idea of giving up their exploration goods and small sum of poke.

But he needed her to… And he glanced at her imploringly for a split second to try and communicate this fact.

Trust me Kuro… I know what I am doing...

The butterfree bandit leader continued to stare at them, silently fluttering in the air some ways away. "Take their goods… When that is done, make sure to k-"

But the patrat were right in front of Jeremy, right where he needed BOTH of them, and his gaze locked with their binocular one before the order of the execution could be carried out. The patrat, who were normally cocky and intimidating suddenly looked frozen in fear, eyes widening and chipmunk faces contorting in horror.

Jeremy's face on the other hand was a fearsome visage… Lip curled back to reveal row of fangs and serrated teeth, pupil a sliver of glowing crimson against a glowing, purple/black iris. A glare attack, and the snivy just caught both of them in it. The first patrat felt the full, unrestrained force of a back handed tail slap as Jeremy spun around, sending the still shaken patrat a couple meters to the right. Planting his foot firmly in the ground after he felt the impact, and using the momentum from before, Jeremy spun around to face the second thug, Careening into him with an improvised tackle attack. That patrat felt the jar of the blow, and stumbled back when his body would not listen to his command to dodge, yelping in pain and surprise.

"Kuro! Avert your gaze!" Jeremy commanded as he swung his head around. There was only one more individual to paralyze, and he didn't want to get her caught into it by accident. However, his eyes widened when the butterfree's wings suddenly flapped back, then collided forward to summon a wave of compressed air… You could even see it it was so powerful.

Cursing under his breathe at the fact that he had to break his gaze to avoid the attack, Jeremy grabbed Kuro by the arm and barely leapt free. A small thud sounded behind them, and as Jeremy swiftly got up to his feet with Kuro by his side, a compressed crater layered with deep gouges in the earth stood where they were a moment before.

"You were planning that…" The butterfree marveled with some cold bemusement.

Jeremy gritted his teeth in response, unnerved that the bandit leader quickly worked out his plan. "Yes… You laid the packs down to get over the encumbrance, and when my men trusted you to not fight back, you got close enough to use a glare attack on both of them. When they were compromised, you quickly attacked them and then planned on paralyzing me when I was surprised. From there, I would have assumed your partner would have finished me off with an ice type move when my wings betrayed me…"

Jeremy narrowed his eyes, trying to conserve his energy as he shut off his glare, feeling the ephemeral energy leaving his gaze. "You are perceptive…"

"I didn't live this long not being so." The butterfree replied. "I must say though… You are quite the tactician. Its a shame we couldn't have met under different circumstances… I assume you figured out what I was going to do to you two?"

Jeremy scoffed. "That you were going to kill us and leave us for dead here anyway? Yeah… I imagined you wanted our supplies out of the way so there wasn't a risk of damaging them. You have done this before, so you couldn't just let us go away. How many exploration teams have you killed?"

The butterfree gave a cold, sinister chuckle. "Unimportant little larvae… You will be joining them soon enough." The butterfree's red eyes started to glow as an aura of multi colored wave lengths suddenly surged forward… A psychic confusion attack, and it was heading right for Jeremy… There was no way he could block or dodge that. Feeling fear flood his heart, Jeremy closed his eyes, waiting for the end to come.