Alone in the Dark

[Energy: 19 - 10 (Entrance Cost) = 9]
[Held Item: Lucky Ribbon (Reduces cost of every item rolled by 1)]

Ashen slowly padded her way through the dim, depressing forest known as Shadowhue. Normally, she stayed away from the area, but if she couldn't conquer her fear of the dark, how would she ever become an explorer? I need to be brave, like my mother, The young Houndour thought to herself, but despite her efforts to calm down, she remained very nervous. Her head was constantly swiveling from side to side, scanning the area for any potential ambushers (not that she'd be able to see them). After all, who knew what was hiding beyond her range of sight? In all likelihood, there was at least one Pokemon watching her... The eerie thought made her skin crawl.

Still, Ashen forced herself to press on, as much as she wanted to turn around and go home. She felt a strong sense of urgency, as if her future with the Grassveil Guild was riding on this trip through Shadowhue Forest...

The hound Pokemon stopped in her tracks, sensing that something was off. She sniffed the air, noticing a powerful, rancid musk. Smelling it made her nose scrunch up, and she recoiled in disgust. Eww, what is THAT? She thought to herself, looking around. The scent reminded her of rotten eggs... Could it be possible that a Pokemon produced such an odor?

Kaori was just laying down in the thick bushes of the dark forest all alone, mostly relaxed due to the fact that there was nothing else to do around the area. Her Stench was often more than good enough to keep any of the local Pokemon away from her which made often her days in the forest rather slow and uneventful, she just looked up to the leaves of the trees from the bushes she was laying on."Ah, this is such a boring day..." She said to herself as she yawned. This peace and quiet wasn't unusual on these parts of the forest, since it was rather dark it was often avoided.

She kept on just laying in the bush until she heard some creature's steps, since they weren't coming from very close of her, she decided to wait up. "Oh...i hear footsteps...i wonder who is coming around...i hope is somebody that isnt used to this forest...heh...this will be hilarious" she said to herself while thinking of what horrible pranks she could pull off on whoever was the poor fellow that was passing by as she got up and slowly moved a little deeper in the bush and decided to wait, she was thinking on pranking the Pokemon that was near, yet she also hoped to get a first glance of said Pokemon before actually attempt anything.

[Energy left= 9] [-10(Entrance Cost)]

Energy: 25 - 10 (entrance fee) = 15

Raze absolutely hated Shadowhue at this point. First a Houndour that he had gotten into a bit of a fix with, then a terrifying Jolteon who had every right and reason to kill him? It was strange why he continued to visit the dark and depressing area. Damn conscience... Why do I torture myself like this?! he cursed himself with a sigh. Besides, with the new Joy Ribbon the Minun had obtained, it would be tempting to only explore places like these with a friend or if he really needed something. Even if he ended up joining the guild, what are the odds that he would pick a mission in this forest anyways? Oh well, I'm here anyways. Too late to turn back right now, might as well just keep-

The mouse was cut off by a dull thunk as he landed on his rear on the floor. "H-Hey, watch where you're-" he began to shout, only to realize he had run into a tree whilst he was busy questioning his methods. "...Hmph." Raze huffed, getting back up and putting his bag back on. Just a few seconds after, a peculiar smell radiated around the area. Oh Arceus, that's bad... the Cheering Pokémon cringed, covering his nose with the Joy Ribbon. What in the world is that? He lit his hand with a few sparks to increase his range of vision, but he couldn't really focus with the pestering smell lingering.

Ashen sniffed the air cautiously. By now, her curiosity peaked. What could possibly be producing that awful odor? The hound Pokemon used her highly-developed nose to figure out what direction the stench was coming from, and made her way into the brush. I think it's coming from... Over here, She thought to herself, finally pin-pointing the origin of the disgusting smell. It was just a random bush... The wind must have thrown me off or something, Ashen told herself, completely unaware of the fact that there was something hiding inside of it. Just as she turned around to leave, she felt a warm liquid spray all over her back.

"Eh!? W-what just happened..?!" She questioned as the already strong odor became even more overpowering. The Houndour swung around, only to find that there had been a skunk-like Pokemon concealed within the shrub! Ack, this stinks! Literally! She thought to herself, more upset than angry.

She remained still and very quiet as the footsteps get closer, she slowly peaked out looking at the houndour as the dog Pokemon walked closer to the bush where she was hiding, she swiftly hid inside of the bush just waiting for the perfect. "Heh...she is SO unaware of what will happen!" the stunky thought to herself as she swiftly aimed when the houndour was close to the bush.

"Well here it goes" She giggled and sprayed her incredibly foul and overpowering stench right at the poor dog Pokemon and watched her first wonder what was happening only to be struck down seconds later and catch up to just what she did. She now couldn't help herself but to walk out laughing out loud, clearly thinking her reaction was beyond hilarious.

"Hahahahaha! Oh Arceus that was priceless!" she Said, it was more than clear than she did it on purpose just for her own amusement. "Have you figured out what happened yet or do you need help figuring it out!" She taunted as she continues to laugh as the stench grew even worse from what just happened.

Energy: 15

The farther he walked, the worse the stench became almost to the point of making him think about turning around. However, at the same time, he was curious as to what was causing the odor to spread about the area. Maybe it's Grimy Food... Or a Muk... Oh, maybe something stupid like a trap! Who cares, I just want to find out what this is! Raze thought. The Minun could hear some voices, but couldn't identify them as coming from anyone he knew or has met before. Then again, his past encounters here weren't too cheery and caused him to be more cautious with his words at first. Rather, he would loosen up if the Pokémon was less headstrong and stubborn.

As he approached, he was absorbed in thought once more. Though it seemed scary at first glance, the forest had a peaceful setting when he stopped radiating light. Unfortunately, the same thing as before happened when he tripped over a tree root. "Grr, I hate this place! Freaking..." he trailed off grumbling and struggling to stand again. He had shouted at a decent pitch, so he wouldn't be surprised if he alerted the Pokémon just a small distance away. Raze stayed as quiet as a mouse, respectively, as he hid behind a tree. What if they were like Erebus? The Cheering Pokémon shuddered, revisiting the terrifying experience. If I'm not traumatized by coming here every time, I wish I was. Worst. Exploration. Record. Ever. His breathing steadied to a silent and stealthy pace as the mouse listened in to what had heard him.

She continued to laugh for a while but then noticed that the houndour was actually crying because of that, she stops laughing and she began lowering her ears a little. Seems the houndour's way of acting was making her feel very guilty of doing that.

"I-i ummm...i-it was just a prank...I am so sorry!" She said in response not knowing what to do to calm her down. It was very unlike her to apologize, yet she did felt extremely guilty for what she did. After all she had a soft spot when seeing other Pokemon crying, she moved closer to the dog Pokemon and used her paws to get the dirt off her face. "C-come on...d-don't cry...i can try to help you get it off if you want" She said to her hoping that would get her to calm down a little. Due the fact that she was trying to cheer Ashen up, she did not noticed the hostile Pokemon drawing near.

Energy: 15

As far as he could hear, there were two Pokémon just ahead. They don't sound like ferals... Guess I was a little too suspicious. I wonder if- Hey, did it just get drafty in here...? Raze thought, turning around and coming face-to-face with a giant Pinsir. Its breath was heavy and had the feeling of violent intentions. "Heh heh... Hey, you! N-Nice to see you again, hehe..." the Electric type stammered, backing up against the tree. The Pinsir gave an unamused glare and walked slowly towards him. Seeing as there was no where else to go, the Minun thought about retaliation but knew it as futile. I am so dead.

As soon as the bug took another step forward, the mouse ran around the tree and towards the voices. If anything, they would at least be willing to aid him for the sake of avoiding the wrath of the feral. Behind him, he heard a roar and loud rustling as the beat pursued him. Sprinting through another dense part, he arrived at a secluded area, which revealed the two mystery Pokémon as a Houndour and a Stunky. "T-There's a bug, a big one!" Raze hurriedly said, ignoring the fact that he sounded like a babbling child. He stopped into a skidding halt, swiveling around to face the Pinsir with Joy Ribbon in hand, bag open and ready.

Ashen looked up at the Stunky, still sniffling. "R-really..?" She squeaked in her raspy voice, calming down a bit. The mischievous Pokemon looked oddly concerned about her, which gave her the sense that she wasn't a bad Pokemon at all. In fact, the Houndour had already forgiven her for what she had done. Ashen's altruistic nature always let her see the good side of a Pokemon, whether for the good or for the bad. Some might call her a fool for thinking this way, but she saw it as treating others how she would want to be treated.

Suddenly, a Minun emerged from the brush, shouting something about a huge bug. Ashen tilted her head in confusion. What is he talking about? A bug-type Pokemon? Everything made sense when a second much larger Pokemon came into view. It was a giant stag with large, spiky pincers. Without a doubt, it was the most intimidating Pokemon that Ashen had ever seen. While one might think that this would scare her, it actually intrigued her more than anything. Was the Pinsir truly as powerful as it looked? Ashen got in a combat-ready position, her face still wet with tears.

She looks up at the houndour, she seems to be glad that the dog Pokemon has settled down a little and answered "Yes, really" Smiling at her a little trying to cheer her up, She felt more than glad to know that the Pokemon wasn't crying nearly as much anymore.

She Finlay realized that there was some noise nearby and just as she looks to the direction the houndour looked she saw a minun running from the pinsir. "O-oh arceus, not one of those things!" She backed out a little afraid of picking a fight with the bug, yet she looked over at the houndour noticing that she was actually going to fight it. "H-hey careful! those things are not a joke" The skunk Pokemon said looking awfully worried for the hound, seems she was growing on her already. by her tone it was easy to tell she was also scared of the Pinsir.

{OOC: Whoever wants it, here you go. :D}

Energy: 15

Considering how many old enemies he'd met before, he wouldn't be too surprised if this was the same Pinsir that he had battled with Erebus. "Something tells me it's not messing around..." he said quietly, sending a glare towards the snarling beast. The Stunky seemed hesitant to defend against the Bug type, but the Houndour was ready to fight (in a way, he wasn't quite sure why both of them seemed so scared). Almost by instinct, a Helping Hand generated onto his right hand. The Minun placed it on his ally's back, transferring the energy to them and increasing their strength. The Pinsir growled and began to charge at the group.

"Long time no see, eh? Sorry about kicking your butt last time, Pinsir." he taunted with a smile whilst moving out of the way. Despite the chances he was wrong, it wasn't like it could respond and say that it had never seen him before, right? "This time, you're the one who's gonna need some help, bug!" At that, Raze allowed a large array of sparks to reveal as he slammed shoulder first into the Pinsir. It roared in annoyance and struck him, attempting to shoo him away. The attempt worked to some extent as he backed up, ready for its next move.

MCLikeANinja carried out 10 launched of one Shadowhue Forest :

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"I-I think I can handle it," Ashen told the skunk Pokemon, placing some confidence in her fighting skills. The young fire Pokemon also had a type advantage, which would certainly help. If I can't do this, then I'll never be able to get into the guild! She told herself, trying to get motivated. Her train of thought was suddenly interrupted when she felt something touch her back. "...Eh!? What're you doing..?" She rasped, not used to physical contact with others. Then, she felt something odd, some kind of transfer of energy... Oh, that must be Helping Hand... She realized, quite embarrassed that she had responded so negatively.

Ashen watched as the Minun charged at the Pinsir and got the first hit, utilizing a Spark technique to shock it. When he was swatted away by the angered Pokemon, she saw this as her opportunity to help out. She strided towards the enemy and opened her maw, releasing a stream of red-hot embers. It cried out in protest, and charged at her head-first, likely attempting to grab her in its spiky pincers. Thinking fast, Ashen sidestepped and Sucker Punched it, knocking the bug Pokemon down on the ground, leaving it vulnerable to a follow-up attack...

She looks at the houndour as she began fighting the pinsir, she calms down seeing that the houndour had the advantage, she decided to make herself useful, as a way to thank her, as she actually took the opening the sucker punch gave to rush at the pokemon and using scratch.

Even when she disliked the idea of fighting, she could at least do it if she felt she had some sort of advantage, and the houndour and the minun were giving her that feeling right at this moment, so she looked slightly more confident of herself. "Alright! this is what you get for being so hostile" She said to the pinsir as she jumped back near the hound pokemon.

Energy: 15 - 25 (roll's results) = 0

The Pinsir had gone on the defensive, giving the group an opportunity to attack it. "Nice one, he's down!" he cheered, jumping up in the air. After a small moment of excitement, Raze ran in for another Spark attack... only to wince back in pain as a sharp, piercing sensation grazed across his face. The feral had lured him in for a Feint Attack! The behemoth stood once more and let out a roar as the Minun stumbled backwards, holding the area where its claws had scratched him. After wincing while removing his hand, he could feel a small warm feeling on his palm. Upon closer inspection, a barely noticeable red speck remained on his hand. Bad idea, this thing almost got me good too... the Cheering Pokémon noted, making sure to keep his distance.

He then took up another stance and began to build up for a Discharge. "Get behind something, I can't control this one!" Raze shouted to his allies. It was almost a habit now; whenever he needed to use his signature attack, he would warn people. Of course, they sometimes didn't listen, but at least he could say that he did give a heads up. As soon as the warning goes out, anyone caught in the crossfire has the fault on them, no matter how bad the Minun would feel. Having waited for the message to get across, he finally allowed the electricity to flare up and burst.