Falling from the Skies

Pterra cursed, flying awkwardly through the air away from the scene of his beating. He couldn't believe that stupid Lucario had beat him so badly!!! He winced as several of his bruises stung with the air going by them. He was quickly getting tired, but he wanted to get away from the crazy fighting type pokemon. She might follow him and he wanted to get as far away from her as possible.

He didn't even know where he was at this point; he was just flying away! He sighed deeply, feeling exhaustion creep over him. He eventually noticed a small cave near the bottom of one of the many mountains surrounding him and he turned his wings in to land in the cave, wanting to take a rest.

He landed on the cave floor and immediately collapsed in exhaustion. He hoped that the cave was enough out of the way that he was safe from any traveling Explorers or feral pokemon. His eyes slipped close as he breathed in and out, and soon enough he was fast asleep on the cave floor, his body awkwardly spread out across the cave, the long scar stretching across his back clearly visible to any pokemon wandering in.

Varda still hadn't given up on finding his home, even though it sometimes felt like he was making no progress. No area he had gone to had even remotely reminded him of where he used to live with his family and the rest of the flock. He had no clues and he had stayed in the Guild for such a long time already. It did often feel hopeless, but... The bird always pushed such thoughts away, knowing that every failure would only bring him closer to finding his home. He knew that his home existed, so he would have to get there eventually as long as he just kept searching!

While the Swablu had been to the strange black mountains in the past and decided that there was no way his home was there, he had been on a mission last time with plenty of distractions. It was true that he didn't remember the tall piercing spires of dark stone, but he did know that the area around his home wasn't exactly flat. He remembered the cliffs, the little holes with nests... And while Varda's knowledge of geography wasn't all that great, he did figure that maybe the ground near mountains might be elevated and rocky. Besides, he could easily see things from high up, so he had been quite hopeful when he left in the morning.

It took him a while to fly to the mountain range and exploring the surrounding areas took a while with no sign of actually finishing the task, but the bird Pokémon had enjoyed himself. No longer as weak as he had been, he wasn't feeling tired at all! Eventually his curiosity got the best of him and he wandered inside a cave, waddling through the twisting tunnels that were slowly getting smaller and smaller – but as the Swablu was a small Pokémon himself, he didn't really notice and it wasn't much of an issue.

Eventually, Varda saw some light from up ahead, the end of the tiny tunnel he was waddling through. Immediately optimistic, he imagined that the sight waiting him would be amazing or beautiful – or both! He sped up, running to the exit... But as he approached the edge, the rocks under him crumbled and caused him to fall! The little bird let out a high-pitched chirp as he slid down the cave wall, relieved that the drop wasn't very high. It seemed like the little tunnel connected to a larger cave... But that wasn't all.

In the middle of the cave, there was a large Pokémon. He had seen one of these Pokémon once before... And that one had been quite aggressive and probably had wanted to eat him. The little bird sat there on the ground with wide eyes as it stared at the much larger Pokémon.


Current Energy: 16 (34 -18 from entering)

Pterra snorted, startling himself awake. One of his large, reptilian eyes winked open, then the other. He raised his head, wincing from his wounds twinging, to find a little pokemon watching him with wide eyes. He blinked in surprise. He wasn't afraid of the tiny pokemon at all, but he wondered what kind of nerve the pokemon had, staring down at a sleeping Aerodactyl. Hadn't its mother warned it of the viciousness of his species?

He rose to his feet, spreading his wings wide, spreading shadows across the cave. He yawned pointedly, showing his mouthful of sharp teeth to the pokemon, figuring that it would intimidate the smaller pokemon. Then he approached the smaller pokemon, winding his way around the pokemon, examining it with his large, emerald-green eyes. The pokemon was kind of shaped like a berry, its body being a sky blue, and it had two fluffy wings that looked like clouds.

"A swablu..." He muttered out loud, his voice deep and gravelly. He glared down at the much smaller pokemon. "What reason would have you dare to stare at me in my sleep? Hasn't your mother warned you of the fierceness of the Aerodactyl, or are you simply foolish?" he demanded of the smaller pokemon.

Varda didn't move, though he did feel his feathers stand up a bit as he noticed the large Pokémon stirring and raising its head. Their eyes met, and the little bird didn't know what to do. He had no idea what this other Pokémon wanted to do, he didn't even know if it was feral or not! For a moment, he just sat there and watched, not even blinking. Perhaps he hoped that the Aerodactyl wouldn't notice him... But that was kind of a silly wish, seeing that he was out in the open and the Pokémon had already looked at him for a good while.

As the other Pokémon rose to its feet, the Swablu did the same – perhaps he didn't want to be caught off-guard any more than he already had, wanting to have the chance of an escape if he was going to have to take it. He had never been able to take such a good look at an Aerodactyl... But it certainly was a big Pokémon with large, sharp teeth. The little bird Pokémon continued to look up with unblinking, not making a move.

But the moment the Aerodactyl spoke... It looked like Varda was relieved, his eyes growing brighter as a small smile appeared on his face. This couldn't be a completely feral Pokémon if he could speak, right? Right away, he felt so much safer!
"Oh, well, she didn't. We really didn't have your kind living close to us," the Swablu answered the other Pokémon's question about his mother's possible lack of a warning quite straight, seemingly missing the entire point,
"I fell from there!" He quite happily explained as he stretched a wing upwards into one of the tiny holes in the cave wall.

The bird did realize something as he returned his gaze to the Aerodactyl. At first, perhaps he thought that the Pokémon was tired – which he probably still was – but... It seemed like there was more. Was he sick, he wondered.
"Are you alright, mister?" Varda cooed, tilting his head to the side.

Pterra stared down at the little bird in confusion. Was the pokemon dumb or just lacking in common sense? As the pokemon looked up at him, a concerned look growing on the smaller pokemon's face, and the pokemon asked if he was alright, Pterra decided that the pokemon had something mentally wrong with it. He wanted to snap the pokemon up in one large gulp for its sheer audacity of staring at him in his sleep, but the very thought made his wounds burn.

He grunted and partially collapsed again, his wounds aching, showing the smaller pokemon the collection of mottled bruises and cuts on his body again. He snarled in frustration. "Get goin', vermin, 'fore my wounds get better and I decide that you'd be a b'ter snack in my belly than a conversational companion," he slurred.

Varda just looked at the bigger Pokémon, his eyes full of worry for this stranger's health rather than fear. Indeed, the Aerodactyl's words seemed to fail to cause their intended effect, only strengthening the nurturing need of the little bird – especially as the other Pokémon didn't seem like he could even keep himself upright! It was quite clear now, the poor thing wasn't just tired... Clearly, he was hurt, his skin covered in bruises and cuts. He didn't even have the strength to stay up!

The Swablu looked at the Aerodactyl, his little eyes showing all the concern he had. Pretty much ignoring the other Pokémon's warning, he started to slowly waddle closer. Surely he was only agitated because he was in pain... And seeing that he had threatened to eat the bird, perhaps he was hungry as well?
"Are you hungry?" Varda asked in his usual innocent fashion, tilting his head and causing his head feathers to flop over. He carefully reached into his bag and pulled out a Sitrus berry to carry to the Aerodactyl.

Pterra blinked in shock as the bird pokemon offered him a sitrus berry, asking him if he was hungry. There was definitely something seriously wrong with the pokemon. But who was he to turn down a free sitrus berry? If the pokemon wanted to help him out, Pterra would just use him to his own advantage before turning on the bird and mugging him when he lost his use.

"Fine," he grumbled, taking the sitrus berry and chomping it up, enjoying the sweetness of the fruit. He could feel the healing juices of the fruit begin to speed his healing, and he laid back down. "I'm going to sleep again. If you really want to make yourself useful, find something to bind my wounds," he rumbled before closing his eyes to sleep again.

Varda looked so happy as the other Pokémon finally agreed to take the berry after a moment of silence, his little beady eyes positively sparkling as they looked at the much larger creature. He just watched in silence as the Aerodactyl munched on the berry, ecstatic like it was some kind of amazing sight to see. It looked like hunger was the problem after all, the Pokémon looked so much calmer after he ate!

"Oh, um, um... Alright!" The little bird chirped as he was ordered to look for something to bind the wounds. For a moment, he went nowhere, just pondering about it in silence – and he really concentrated hard! He hadn't brought anything like that with him, unfortunately. Would a ribbon or something work? Maybe, but they didn't just grow on the ground, did they? Plants would, but did any even grow here...?

Varda opened his eyes, looking quite determined as he started to hop closer to the entrance to the cave, peeking outside to see if he could see something useful...

Bird carried out 2 launched of one Black Spear Mountain :

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One of Pterra's eyes opened with a 'snick' as a roar sounded from outside of the cave. He sighed internally.

"I don't have time for this," he growled angrily. "I'm exhausted and no uppity dragon-type is going to ruin my recovery time. I need to get fixed so that I can wreak my revenge on that thrice-damned Lucario!" he shouted as he exploded from the cave.

He noted the Druddigon bearing down on the small Swablu and let out a roar of his own.

"Hey Blockhead!" He called derisively. "The little birdy may be an idiot, but for now, he's my idiot, so I'm afraid you'll have to find dinner somewhere else!"

The Druddigon looked up at him, then down at the tiny bird and snorted. Then it rose into the air, growling at Pterra, apparently deciding that he was the better prey. As if it could catch the Aerial Outlaw!

He wheeled away from the dragon type until he had a clear height advantage. Then he dove for the beast, maw agape as purple flames began spewing from his mouth and onto the dragon type, causing the Druddigon to wail in pain and steer away from the flames as the dragon type move did its damage.

Pterra flew after the dragon, determined not to let the beast escape with superficial wounds after waking him up like that. He landed on the beast's back, his fangs crackling with electricity as he bit down, pumping thousands of volts of electricity into the beast.

Varda's eyes grew wider as he spotted something shining outside when the light from the sun hit it just right. While something shiny didn't sound like a thing that would help the Aerodactyl's wounds... Shiny things were always good, right? The little bird hopped closer to what he had saw, noticing a shiny, round orb on the ground. He had no idea what it would do... But it would be good, very good! He picked it up and stuffed it in his bag, not even noticing the shadow that was peering at him from above.

A deafening roar caused the bird Pokémon to wobble, almost as if the ground itself was shaking from the sound. It took a moment for him to be able to turn around, meeting face to face with a strange dragon-like creature with a spiky exterior and sharp teeth. The Swablu took a few steps back as the feral Pokémon landed above him, its face a bit too close for comfort. Varda could even feel the warmth of its breath...

Another roar made both of the Pokémon outside turn their eyes in the direction of the sound. How glad the little bird was to see the Aerodactyl bursting out, angry. Then again, the other Pokémon was injured and probably shouldn't be moving, but... He was quite glad to see him!
"Hello sir!" The Swablu called out, giving the Aerodactyl a wave with his wing, looking quite cheerful considering the situation.

The dragon did leave the bird alone, chasing after the other Pokémon. The air currents caused by the flaps of mighty wings almost pushed the tiny Pokémon off the cliff, but he managed to fight it and dig his small claws into the dirt. Turning his gaze up into the air, Varda witnessed an aerial battle the kind he had never seen before, confused as to whether he should feel horrified or be in awe. The Aerodactyl seemed to be winning, its attacks stronger... And he didn't let the feral Pokémon get away when it looked like it was about to leave!

"Um, um, sir!" The Swablu chirped from below as loudly as he could, jumping up and down as he tried to get the Aerodactyl's attention,
"I don't think you should be doing that, sir! I think it's enough!


Current Energy: 10 (16 -1 from the item, -5 from the enemy. Got House Orb)

Pterra snorted at the words cried from the swablu below and allowed the druddigon to escape with its life. The dragon type wailed and flew off in a random direction, while Pterra flew back to his cave, landing clumsily from his older injuries.

He groaned as he laid there for a moment. "Ugh, these wounds are getting really old, really fast," he growled to himself, momentarily forgetting the small bird pokemon outside the cave.

Varda sighed in relief as the Aerodactyl let go of the dragon, allowing it to leave – alive. Clearly the Pokémon was hurt as expected from its cries and its flight pattern was quite erratic, perhaps trying to get away as fast as it could even though its body was in such a pain that flying was almost impossible. Even though the feral one was probably going to eat the little bird Pokémon, he didn't ask for its life instead and he even felt bad for it when it was being hurt by the Aerodactyl. The Swablu stared off into the distance, following the dragon Pokémon's path through the sky...

Then he remembered! The Aerodactyl, he was still hurt! Varda quickly waddled over to the cave where the other Pokémon had flown into and eventually landed, his breath becoming audible as he started to grow winded.
"Oh, sir, are you alright?" He gasped before stopping, trying to catch his breath,
"I couldn't find anything for your wounds..."

Energy: 25 - 18 = 7

Pterra sighed as the swablu entered the cave once more and asked after his wounds. "I'll be fine. After some sleep, I should regain some energy. An oran berry would do nice to help heal, but I have gone without before, and I will now." he said, closing his eyes.

Silver carried out 5 launched of one Black Spear Mountain :

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"Oran Berry," Varda repeated after the Aerodactyl, thinking. He had offered the other Pokémon a Sitrus berry before and it was eaten quite fast. But maybe this Pokémon really liked Oran berries? Maybe his mother used to give him Oran berries when he was sick as a little hatchling! He knew what he had to do!

The Swablu once again waddled outside with springy steps, peeking outside from the cavern as he did remember what had happened last time he wandered outside. He didn't want to repeat the same mistake – and he was quite lucky he didn't! In the distance, walking closer to where he was... Were two bipedal Pokémon with giant maws. Varda retreated.
"Um, there's two Pokémon coming down this way... They look a bit scary."

Bird carried out 2 launched of one Black Spear Mountain :

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Energy: 7 - 7(roll) + 15 (Hehe forgot about that sitrus berry) = 15

Pterra sighed as he heard the swablu let out a concerned cry; something about two large pokemon with giant jaws. "ugh... will fate not give me a rest this day?" he grumbled before getting up again and flying over to the entrance to the cave. There was indeed two -no, three! Tyrunt heading towards the cave. Pterra wasn't afraid of any pokemon, but even he knew when he was outnumbered.

"I can't take on three Tyrunt by myself, especially not wounded, and something tells me you won't be much help in fighting these guys," he grumbled to the swablu. "Come on, let's go further into the cave. Maybe we'll get lucky and they'll just pass us by."

((Up to you if you want to let them pass us or fight. If we fight though, the scrafty could either be a leader of the gang or maybe save the two from them? That would be interesting... anyway, up to you!))