A Good Day for the Sea

As water rushed past her scales, Iji sighed contentedly. Land was great and all, it really was, but the warm ocean water stretched on and on, beyond even her water-type eyes' ability to see, and nothing compared to the sense of freedom that came from being able to go wherever she wanted.

She'd heard there were interesting things to be found among the maze that was the Coral Forest, and today felt like a good day for exploring. A flick of her tail sent her spinning off into the depths, her laughter leaving a stream of bubbles behind her.

It was good to be underwater again.

A continuous stream of bubbles jetted froth from Tom's nostrils as he splashed down into the shifting, whirling waves, his eyes rapidly opening as salt water rushed on the outside of the protective, clear eyelid that encompassed the sensitive surface of his corneas. The crocodile like Pokemon would, for a moment, allow the lingering inertia from his initial dive to carry him deeper and deeper into the swirling blue waters. His spine and body were stiff and pointed like a missile as he sliced through the water like a hot knife through butter. Eventually, however, he would begin to slow and allow his vertebrae to bend so that he might begin propulsion with his thick, webbed feet.

Tom would near Coral Forest and experience a sense of awe and wonder as the colorful wildlife and vegetation bloomed into life before him. Towering structure-like foliage provided shelter for aquatic Pokemon that slunk about through the sunny waters, and the general ambience was pleasant and chipper. His jaws would open as an awkward, friendly smile melted across his maw. A gush of bubbles erupted forth from his throat, and he shifted his mandible-focused skull about so that he might observe the wondrous sight. He quite liked it here.

As Iji careened through the water, a distant sparkle caught her eye. In turning to look at it, she flew off course, sending her hurtling out of control.

Frantically she flailed her limbs, trying to slow down; so panicked was she, in fact, that she completely failed to see the other Totodile, whom she slammed into heavily.

She spun to a stop in the sun-dappled water, stunned, and hoped dizzily that she wasn't going to have too bad a bruise in the morning.

With such a breathtaking view before Tom - what with the rainbow-like vibrancy that was budding into existence before him - it was naturally quite hard to pay attention to a singular object. His narrowed pupils danced about his orb-like eyes as he attempted to take it all in. Fish seemed to dance about the warmth, kelp that extended up to the ocean's surface swayed lazily in the current, and smaller marine life dashed about through the various shelters that coral and rocks provided: it would be easy to surmise that such beauty was something he did not always experience.

It was far too late for him to successfully maneuver out of the way of the wayward female as he was taking it all in, and thus, when she was thrust in his direction, their collision was inevitable. His eyes, wide with shock and surprise, mimicked the "O" shape that his mouth took on as the sound of their underwater crash ebbed into nothingness. He was bounced back a couple of feet due to the force, but swiftly recovered by kicking his feet back beneath him.

"Hey!" he would exclaim, his eyes now narrowing as he prepared for a confrontation, "What's the big idea?"

Iji gave her head a few shakes; it was a moment before she registered that the stranger was talking to her. "S-sorry," she slurred, rubbing at her temples. "Didn't see you there."

She glanced to either side, trying to relocate the sparkle, but it was gone. She turned back to the strange Totodile, and smiled sheepishly. "You've got some hard ribs," she said ruefully. "I didn't break any, did I?"

To Tom's amazement, it appeared that the culprit for running into him was none other than a fellow Totodile! Well, that now made Tom feel quite bad for snapping at another member of his species, and so he would lift his arms up and rotate his hands back and forth in an attempt to coax the other into a state of well-being. His lips, which had been parted in order to bare his teeth in a ferocious manner, now curled slightly at their corners in his best effort to seem friendly. All he needed was a teardrop located upon his temple, and he would have been all set for any anime worth its salt.

"Hey, hey!" he would once again say, this time allowing his tone to sound worried and sociable, "Not a problem! You just startled me is all. It isn't everyday that a friendly stranger rams into you."

She seemed to recover, which caused great relief to flood down Tom's vertebrae; however, she seemed to be preoccupied with something. Her skull was directing itself this way and that, and it was quite obvious that she was searching for something. The identity of said missing article remained a mystery for him. Her comment would, complemented with a shy smile, was enough to conjure forth a strong sense of esteem to be generated for her. He would maintain his friendly disposition, his voice and tone remaining upbeat and strong, "Nope! I'm as solid as a rock. You alright, as well?"

He didn't look mad, thank Arceus. In fact, he seemed downright amiable. "Yeah! Yeah, I'm fine." She emphasized her statement with a nod, and immediately regretted it. "Dialga's balls," she muttered with feeling under her breath, and then moved on quickly. "So, ah, pretty day out, huh? What're you doing out here? Exploring?"

Tom would give a nod in affirmation that he understood that this little accident could easily be swept under the rug and forgotten about. The uncanny part about it, however, was how he would nod at the same time as this other Totodile. Talk about the closeness in behavior that a species can exhibit! While the female would allow laughable profanities to roll forth under her breath, the male would allow a rather awkward, shocked roundness to shape his eyes and drop his jaw with sealed lips. This was quite peculiar.

At the mention of exploring, Tom simply could not help withhold such menial knowledge. Though sometimes friendly - with a pinch of distrust - towards freshly met strangers, things were just going along so nicely with this encounter that he felt certain he could digress from his usual safeguards. He would allow a fervent shaking of his head to ensue, the vigorous movement of his skull ceasing as soon as he spoke, "No. I work with an exploration team known as the Turquoise Trinity and today's simply a day in which I chose to kick around in a place I know used to have interesting goodies. I suppose I am exploring - just unofficially. You?"

Iji couldn't help but chuckle at the stranger's shocked expression before she answered his question. "Pretty much the same here. Except for the... Turquoise Trinity... thing, haven't heard of them before." She gave her tail a noncommittal flick. "Just cruising around to see what I can find, enjoying the day, y'know. All that good stuff."

"I'm Iji, by the way," she said, extending a paw. "You?"

"Haven't heard of us?" he exclaimed, his eyes once more taking on that round appearance in aghast astonishment, "Why, we're an exploration team!" Admittedly, it was quite clear as to why no one had heard of his rescue team. They had done little to no missions of great importance and splendor, and thus they had not been fully exposed to the greater community. Though it took a bit for him to reach this blazingly obvious conclusion, the interim was filled with introductions.

Tom would extend forth both of his clawed hands, allowing him to grip Iji's own hand quite firmly, "I'm Tom! What a pleasure to meet you!" A single, forceful shake was given to cement their meeting, and the deed was done; however, it was then that the aforementioned realization dawned on him, and he would refuse to let go. A proposition would come to mind, and he would allow one hand to release so that he might attempt to drag Iji along with him. His voice, chipper and light-hearted, would attempt to persuade the female on joining him and not fleeing at the first inclination that he wouldn't let go for a while, "It seems to me like this is a good time to introduce you to Turquoise Trinity! Let's go spelunking!"

It was then that something in the shadows caught his eye. Curiosity enslaved him, and he swam over. What was it?

ares carried out 1 launched of one Coral Forest :

Iji's eyes widened. "Wh-whoa-- I-- wait a--" she spluttered, and then decided to go along with it. She flicked her tail playfully, and did her best to keep pace with him.  "A-alright, I guess it's time for me to meet the Turquoise Trinity, then."

She watched the coral reefs go past, smiling at a school of tiny fish playing in the huge lump of coral Tom was guiding them towards. "Nice to meet you, Tom," she called over the sound of rushing water. "My name's Iji. So do you live around here, or are you just passing Seadra!"

The lump of coral unfolded explosively, sending the two Totodiles careening off course. Iji gasped for breath, wheezing and retching as she held her stomach where the Seadra had hit her. "Look out!" she croaked.

((Iji's energy=6))

It appeared that his forceful tugging had succeeded, for now Iji was being dragged alongside him. After a little while of passing the glorious reefs that sprawled out like the rolling plains on the bottom of the seafloor, they would be at the point of the prior in which Tom had spotted movement in the shadows. He had been greedy at the time, and thus he allowed it to cloud his intelligence and common sense. Where he had expected to find a shiny new item, a haggard Seadra appeared. Its eyes, usually dull and unreflective, focused directly on the two Totodiles with the intensity and power of one thousand stars. It's slender body, with spikes that lay locked into place on its spiny body, suddenly seemed to inflate as it destroyed its hiding spot with a ferocious, angry burst of bubbles.

"Holy sh-!" he exclaimed, cut off by a sudden impact of coral rubble.

He was flung back, his tail orienting itself towards the top of the water momentarily before he righted himself with a vigorous kick of his hind-legs. The Seadra's sides heaved as its fins and spines now remained erect, its blowhole sending bubbles swirling towards the surface with enraged ferocity. The time for a fight was now!

(Energy: 26 -> 16 -> 14)

Iji heaved for oxygen, fighting with her screaming muscles. Ho-oh, this thing packed a whallop!

The thing was gearing up, she realized, rearing back to charge at Tom. A stream of panicked expletives filled her head, and before she could think she was forcing aside the pain and rushing the Seadra, claws out.

She dealt it a Scratch across its back, punctuated by a flurry of claws without the power of a move behind them, sinking her teeth into one of its fins. With a bellow the creature shook her off, sending her spinning toward a bed of coral.

Although dizzy, she managed to catch herself and make a decent landing. Her satisfaction lasted for all of a split second before she heard a shriek, and turned to see the enraged Seadra bearing down on her.

Well, she thought weakly, as she scrabbled backward across the coral. At least I got its attention.

If there was one thing that Tom knew about Seadras, it was that they were generally tough cookies and easily angered. Their fins and various spines could be laced with deadly poison, but such a fact varied from specimen to specimen. It was fortunate enough that this seahorse lacked such venomous attributes, but quite unfortunate that it still maintained its toxic personality. They pumped themselves up by thinking malicious thoughts, and charged about like bulls attempting to gore a mischievous prankster. 

While Iji was managing to steal its attention, Tom would allow his own vehement thoughts about the Seadra to pump him up. At first, a stream of bubbles would be projected forth from his nose as he allowed an angry grunt to be released. After this, he would allow a muted roar to be produced as he dashed towards the seahorse and sunk his teeth into its body, performing a Rage attack. His claws desperately thrashed about as his teeth sunk in between the scales that coated the fish's body until they successfully got hold of something. He shook his head from side to side in a fashion akin to a dog playing tug-of-war with its owner, his teeth burrowing further and further into the beast's flesh.

With a mighty bellow and ferocious shake, Iji and Tom would be flung away from their target. Having been hit by an attack, the male Totodile immediately felt more cringeworthy rage bubble through him and cause him to feel his strength increase. Recovering swiftly, he would identify the Seadra charging his companion and would react accordingly. The crocodile would zip through the water towards the fish with another Rage attack and allow his teeth to sink into its long, hose-like muzzle, redirecting its charge away from Iji.

They were starting to build a rhythm. One would attack the Seadra and grab its attention, and then at the last moment the other would swoop in and divert it from its target. The beast was starting to slow down, but Iji did her best to stay alert; she'd already felt its power, and she wasn't eager to feel it again.

She just hoped she hadn't cracked any ribs.

The water clouded and muddied with their movements, and she squinted through the silt. Where was it, where was-- there!

She barely dodged an attack, feeling the displaced water tug at her limbs. Instead of fighting it, she followed the current, letting it slingshot her at the Seadra's head, get in a good clip, and soar out of range.

"Tom, I think it's working," she called, keeping an eye out for the next charge. "Keep it up!"