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Knights of Unova [PG-13]

~~~Knights of Unova~~~


RP - SU



Ernst

The sky was dark - a huge gap in the night betrayed the position of the new moon, which cast a long shadow across the earth. The darkness was lit only by a dull orange flame, which was contained within a brass lantern, which itself was seated on an oak table, situated in the center of a small clearing in the woods. Gathered round this table was a group of cloaked figures. The figures seemed to be arguing amongst themselves - one individual in particular seemed extremely aggravated. Unlike the others, his cloak was not dark in color - it was a brilliant white, pure like snow, and it seemed to radiate brightly even in the darkness.

The figure slammed his fist down on the table, causing the lantern to shudder and the others to jump in surprise or fear, possibly both. "I don't like this," the white-cloaked figure growled. It was a man's voice, a low baritone. "Not one bit."

One of the other figures hesitantly raised his voice. "But my lord, we have no choice. We simply must have the crops grown in the farmland of the Eastern Province. We are barely two months into this war, and already we run low on supplies and our troops grow hungry."

The white-cloaked man threw back his hood, revealing a pair of icy blue eyes that stared hard at the man who had spoken up. "Do you think me a fool?" he snarled.

The other man put his hands in the air defensively. "Of course not, Prince Ernst! Perish the thought! I was merely attempting to -"

"Silence," Ernst ordered, and the man shut up immediately. Ernst began to pace. The other figures - advisors, generals, wise men - glanced at each other worriedly. The prince only paced when he was angry, and when he was angry, things didn't usually go well for them.

"I am perfectly aware of our need for more supplies," Ernst said. "However, I am also aware that my brother, as much as I may hate to admit it, is not an idiot. He wouldn't just leave the farmland unprotected, he's too clever for that. No, he is plotting something." He ceased his pacing, and began to scratch his chin thoughtfully.

He pointed into the assemblage. "General Warumo!" he demanded. "You are present, I presume?"

In response, one of the figures, much larger than the others, pulled his hood back, revealing jovial features and a magnificent Walrein moustache. "My lord!" he said, bowing at the waist, as was the custom of his ancestors - men from the Far East, exotic peoples from the land of Kanto.

Ernst waved a hand impatiently, and Warumo ceased his bowing. "Tell me, General, what would you do?"

Warumo stroked his moustache, considering the question. "Well, milord, were it me, I would assemble a small force to visit some of the villages in the Eastern Province. Investigate the surrounding areas for ambush locations, listen for news of troop movements, et cetera. Also, it would be wise to scout out the locals to see what they think of the war - whether they are sympathetic to us, or towards your brother. " Warumo stroked his moustache again before nodding firmly. "Yes. That is what I would do."

Ernst smiled broadly. "I was thinking the same thing," he proclaimed. He thought about it a minute more, then clapped his hands. "Excellent," he said. "That's what we'll do then." He turned back to the General. "Warumo, tomorrow morning, before the Sun God's rays have yet touched the earth, I want you to assemble a team and send them out."

Warumo bowed again as Ernst waved a dismissal to all the others. The assembled advisors filed out of the clearing back towards the main encampment, talking softly to each other. Ernst maintained his large smile as everyone departed. Yes, the look said, things were on the up and up.

As soon as he was alone, however, the smile disappeared. Sighing, he leaned over the wooden table. He rapped his knuckles on it a few times as he lost himself in thought.

His reverie was interrupted, however, by a great rustling from the forest behind him. He didn't even turn around. "How'd I do?" he asked.

A snort - it conveyed amusement, but also irritation.

Ernst scoffed. "Easy for you to say. People don't work the same way you do. We can only take truth in bits and pieces, not all at once. It makes us..." He waved a hand vaguely. "Unpredictable. Uncertain."

A snort again, followed by a huffing sound, and then huge yet graceful footsteps walking away. Ernst turned just in time to see a great white flank, as bright as sunlight, disappearing into the forest.

He rapped his knuckles on the table again, and allowed himself to be consumed by his thoughts once more.

---

"Alright, soldiers!" General Warumo hollered out. "I need volunteers for a special mission! The prince himself is looking for brave Knights to scout out the forests and farmlands of the Eastern Province for enemy movements!" Warumo eyeballed the men and women who stood before him. Some were young and eager, some were aged and battle-scarred - all were completely loyal to the prince, and would do anything for him.

"If you are interested," he continued, "gather at the eastern fortifications before dawn!" He nodded. "I will be awaiting you there." With that, he dismissed the assembled soldiers, and made his departure.

---

And so it begins! If people would kindly wait for Ysavvryl to make her first story post as Aleksandr, we'll start! Those who are interested in aiding Warumo in his special mission should, of course, head to the eastern fortifications of the Ernstian camp! I hope everyone has fun!
 
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Ysavvryl

Pokedex Researcher
Aleksandr

It was very early in the morning; the light of the coming sun was just starting to appear in the eastern sky over the Harmonia Royal Castle of Unova. The large brown stones that made up the castle walls seemed dark and earthy in this light, but once the sun shone its light on them, they would glow a warm gold, a reassuring sentinel over the sprawling city surrounding it. In the slow breeze, the flags bearing the Harmonia family crest, representing the Great Beast that had helped them grow even more powerful, were filled out, slowly waving over the quiet structure. Strands of clouds streaked over the sky, remnants of a storm that had passed through last evening.

Far above the streets, King Aleksandr leaned on the edge of a private balcony and looked over the city. Here, the buildings and streets blended together into one whole, an organism that thrived when all of its parts worked in harmony. It looked content and sleepy at this time of day. But, it wasn't working as it should. Some problems were ones that had lain in hiding for a long time; others were new, brought about because of recent changes. He really wanted to work on the older problems, realities that didn't match up with expectations and moral right. Addressing those problems could take a long time, but doing so would go a long way towards making the empire fulfill its true potential.

But he couldn't do that yet. The newer problems were being far more disruptive, enough to burn down new solutions before they could take hold. Enough to possibly ruin the empire that his family had been building. Worst of all, the source of the disruptions was his own twin brother. Aleksandr sighed and put his forehead on his hands for a moment. “Why did you have to force things to go this far, Ernst?” he asked. He just wanted to make sure that things were right, but he wouldn't have a chance with things as unstable as they were. If it hadn't been for Ernst... Aleksandr's fist clenched.

He heard a croon behind him. This balcony was private, connected to the King's quarters. Very few people could come here uninvited. But the call wasn't worrying. It was Zekrom, he knew without turning. She liked being up here because it was large enough for her to sit and feel the breeze, or soak up the sun. And there was her hobby. Aleksandr turned around and walked over to her.

It wasn't long before the black dragon leaned over and nudged his head, humming in a reassuring way. Aleksandr hugged her in response. For one thing, no one was around to see it. For another, she had been his best supporter from the day they met, when he was dealing with the death of his father, the death of his loyal Escavalier Arthur, the abrupt and violent split from his brother, the weeks he spent trying to establish his authority here...he didn't entirely understand Zekrom yet, but she made it clear that she wouldn't take advantage of or betray his private sorrows (and weaknesses).

When she pulled him over to her work, Aleksandr looked over the garden that had been set up on the balcony. It was new, something he'd given Zekrom when the gardeners had complained about her bothering them. It wasn't like most of the gardens in the castle's ground level, full of flowers, fruit trees, and vegetables. No, it had a base of sand rather than dirt. There were clumps of feathery grasses in the corners, along with various colors, sizes, and textures of rocks arranged artistically. This morning, Zekrom had been drawing in the sand while Aleksandr had been unable to get back to sleep. She wanted him to study the drawing.

“What's today's lesson?” he asked, sitting on the edge of the brick retaining wall surrounding Zekrom's garden. She had come from the legendary Great Beast that his father had befriended, but even though she was only half, she was just as wise. However, she couldn't speak the words of humans, so these sand drawings were a common way they discussed things.

This morning, it had a progression of images illustrating wind, earth, and grass. There were some lines towards the grasses in the corners. In some parts, there was a simply drawn Lilligant.

“This is about Grass Pokemon,” Aleksandr said. When Zekrom made a mild disapproving noise, he said, “Grass in general? It lies close to the ground, depending on it but totally covering it. It will grow in any earth, but poor dirt will make it thin and tough. Rich dirt will make it prosper, even if the seeds come from the same source.” He put his hand on his chin, thinking. Things in these lessons were rarely simple, instead being wisdom on many layers. “That works with Pokemon too.... and humans. Actually, I remember... it would be about the time they'd come back for another try.”

Zekrom crooned happily, but that wouldn't be it. She reached down, having to lean over so that she could touch the blades of grass easily. After she batted it around, she let it go and touched his head as if to suggest watching that and considering it too. The grass waved a little in the breeze, but it wasn't anything to trouble it.

Aleksandr curled one of the blades in his hand, watching as it sprung right back into place. “It's pliable, bending to touch and wind. But it doesn't matter how hard the wind blows, as the grass will be back to standing when the wind has exhausted itself.” He touched the grass again. “Bend but not break. Huh. I have to be like that at times, listening to talkative or irate people, then try to appease them while I stick to my plan. Maybe adapt my plan, but not change its overall focus. Bend to the wind. And the earth is a powerful force of life, drawn up by the plants which then get eaten by the rest of us. Know the source of life and respect it. The plants are important and worth respect as well.”

From the way she sang for a bit, it seemed to be the right path. Aleksandr looked up at Zekrom, happy for the moment but she'd likely retain her usual quiet mood for much of the day. It was a bit of a pity, since her unusual dragon voice made for a beautiful song. Then he looked back at the sand drawings. Their topic yesterday morning had been about Ground Pokemon and ground as a whole, like this.

“These are all connected, aren't they?” he asked. “It's not enough to study a single idea. But while many ideas may seem different, they connect to each other. Hmm.” He got up, brushing a bit of errant sand off his bed clothes. “I feel like I should be recording these. I should something around for that.” He went back into his bedroom, looking for a sketchbook. He knew that he had been given one recently, so it was just a matter of finding it.

While he was copying Zekrom's sand drawing lesson into the sketchbook and discussing it a bit more, the butler who served him directly came out onto the balcony. The sun was starting to show itself, spreading its warm rays onto the castle. “Good morning Georges,” Aleksandr said.

“Good morning, sire,” the butler said, bowing. “Your breakfast should be up here in a few minutes. Shall we go over today's schedule.”

Aleksandr nodded, spending a bit of time to sketch the clusters of grass properly. “Yes, go ahead.”

“You have a meeting with the knights at their meeting hall once the sun comes up more; I have your notes for that ready to review. Did you decide if you were going to stay to practice for the rest of the morning?”

At that question, he paused. He would have liked a few extra hours to do some studying in the castle library, research for his future plans for the empire. But then Zekrom looked down at him with inquisitive and eager blue eyes. He nodded up to her. “It has been a while.” He didn't get as much time for practice lately, what with everything else he had going on. “Would you help me get my armor on for the morning? And then have an outfit prepared for the rest of the day.”

Georges nodded. “Certainly. You should be back half an hour to noon, then, as you have a meal with several merchants to discuss several issues. The afternoon is open to audiences, then over dinner you should prepare for meetings tomorrow. I suppose your evening will be taken by studies as usual?”

“Yes, thank you. Would you like the morning off?”

“It's not really necessary,” he said, but his tone said that he was thinking about it.

“You've been working hard lately,” he said. “And if I'm going to be elsewhere, you may as well have a few hours to do as you wish.”

Georges bowed. “Thank you, sire.”

The calm quiet of the dawn would soon be over. Aleksandr savored it for a moment before heading off to prepare for another busy day.


OoC: Any Knight in Castle City (even those allied with Ernst if they haven't openly switched sides yet) will know about this morning meeting with the King and it's open to all who aren't on guard duty elsewhere. That would be a good place to start off at if you're in the city.
 

SoulMuse

Shadow of nothing
Ian Blackwood

Ian sighed, sitting up and stretching. Sunlight had not quite begun to enter the room, yet already; the Acolytes of the Priesthood were out and about, performing any number of odd jobs for someone or another.

A low buzz filled the room, and Ian looked over at Abigale, taking a moment to marvel at the majestic moth, who was shaking off sleep herself. Ian shook his head, marveling at how he really didn’t deserve to be in the presence of such a holy creature, but he quickly shook such thoughts off. Now was not the time for weakness, especially not with the meeting with the King to take place soon.

“Lord Ian?” Ian turned to the door to his chambers, setting his face into its usual emotionless mask.

“Come in Brooke.” Ian spoke softly, but keeping the undercurrent of authority his unique position granted him. Brooke was just one bizarre offshoot of that authority, and political standing. One of the Priests, eager to gain Ian’s favor a few years back, had offered him the services of one of his “underlings” as a personal servant. Ian wasn’t fooled by what either term meant, but said nothing, filing the information for political use later on. Since then, Brooke had served him, mostly keeping up with his various appointments with the High Priest, other Priests, and such like, along with listening to his sometimes deluded ranting, and playing messenger.

“Lord Ian, the High Priest would like to speak to you.” She told me, stepping fully into the room. Ian groaned.

“Lovely.” Abigale buzzed, the exact pitch indicating her amusement. Ian glared at his partner. “Stuff it. We both know what you think of him.” He told his partner. The Volcarona stopped buzzing and glared as only a moth could.

“Also, there is a meeting of the Knights with the King.” Brooke added. Ian nodded, having known of the meeting for a while, and wasn’t looking forward to it.

“Go tell the High Priest I will meet with him in twenty minutes. If he has an issue, inform him that my day is filled, and he will have to wait until tomorrow.” Brooke nodded and scrambled off. Ian smiled slightly. Although he would never admit it to anyone, he was quite fond of Brooke, considering her one of his few friends.

With another, long sigh, Ian changed into his clothing, and armor, before belting on his sword. “Well Abigale, I suppose it is time to face the bloody music isn’t it?” He asked the fiery moth. She buzzed in agreement. “Ugh, you aren’t supposed to agree with me...” He mumbled, before heading out the door. Abigale buzzed in amusement.

--**--**--

The halls around the Tower of the Sun were bustling with people even at such an early hour. Some were there for prayer, while others were members of the Priesthood, and others still Ian didn’t know. However, all of them moved out of the way as he moved down the halls, staring in awe at Abigale as he passed them. The moth seemed to eat up the attention, and Ian sighed, knowing it would only fuel her ego. Still, it meant he reached the chambers where the High Priest held meeting in only twelve minutes, something that was nice. Outside the door, Brooke stood, looking nervous.

Ian groaned internally. Brooke had mastered the art of not showing emotions that could be constituted as weakness long ago, so to have her doing so was never good. As Ian approached, Brooke stepped in front of him.

“Lord Ian...I think you had best not bother the High Priest right now....” Ian arched an eyebrow, not really caring. He had told the man twenty minutes, and he should have known that Ian would be early.

“And why not?” Ian asked archly. There were very few times he could not get away with simply barging into the office of the High Priest, so he was curious why he couldn’t. Brooke just sighed.

“The High Priest is currently....indisposed.” Ian groaned. Meetings. What fun.

“I see. I suppose we are going to that meeting after all.” Ian sighed. “Blast”. Brooke giggled and Abigale buzzed in amusement.


OOC: I will edit this late,r I have to get off my computer right now.
 

killowatt

Truly Bewildering
Consanto Mill

The early morning had never been a pleasant time for Consanto. Around this time, he had always been on the road for hours, fleeing for dear life from a plethora of villagers who had recently discovered that the cure-all they had been hocked was little more than a perfume canister filled with vinegar and Grimer sludge. Exhausted and tense, doing it thousands of times couldn't alleviate the sheer terror he felt every time that phase of the scam was necessary. Even his memory wipe, once he had it, couldn't get rid of the niggling sense of fear and risk in the early mornings.

The same was true of today, as Consanto caught sight of the prelude to the sunrise through a tear in the side of his heavy canvas tent through groggy, wet morning eyes and panicked at the idea of today being the day that he would be tarred and feathered for his swindling and fork-tongued ways. He sprang from his cot in a frenzy of desperation. Perhaps the villagers hadn't woken yet! Perhaps they would accept a refund peacefully! Perhaps...

The judgmental eyes of his partner caught him mid-terror, brow furrowed, arms crossed and floating overhead, glowering down at the pathetic nonsense of the human in front of him. Trave had had to deal with this for quite some time now. His partner had certainly put him through some Boufalant excrement before, but this daily event was always the most excruciating. As one could probably gather, the two were no longer con-artist (not full time at least), but instead, loyal knights to the true king. Yet somehow, from years a a fear-filled fugitive in the mornings and an "oh-so debonair" salesperson by 6:30 PM, he still hadn't gotten accustomed to the idea of being able to sleep.

A sheepish half-smirk tentatively crossed Consanto's face. "We know how this goes" he said in his brisk accent "We don't talk about any of this." " After all..." He continued "I have a reputation to keep." The Beheeyem rolled his eyes and nodded.

It was at that moment that he recalled precisely WHY he had slept abnormally late in the first place: the inspection... err... review... err... whatever it was. They said they were shipping out to do some undercover work in the Eastern Province. Surely someone like him, a specialist in inconspicuous infiltration, delegation and eliminating evidence, could be vital to a mission of this variety. With that in mind, he dressed himself, opened the tent and left for the Eastern side of the encampment.
 
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iStorm

Well-Known Member
Darcy Sparrow

A young man in tattered clothes sat slouched over the chipped oak bar, his hand firmly gripping the half empty mug. He felt at home on the edges of Castle City in the taverns of the poor. It wasn’t the place one would expect to find a Knight of Unova. Yet there Darcy Sparrow sat on that half decent barstool. It was a place he could escape from his duties as a Knight. Though he had hoped to leave the streets all his life, he couldn’t but help to return every now and then. And compared to his former life, what some may consider to be slumming in this rat’s nest of a place was a luxury for Darcy had he still been living his former life.

“Move” a gruff voice said to Darcy’s right with a slight slur. Darcy didn’t even bother looking. He picked up his mug and brought it to his lips, taking his sweet time to finish off his drink.
“I said move” A silence took over the bar as Darcy could feel everyone’s eyes turn their attention to him. He finally decided to look at the person attempting to give him an order. It was a large man; Darcy couldn’t tell if it was muscle or fat that made the man so large, with a thick black mustache.
“And why should I do that?” Darcy replied in his usual tone devoid of emotion.
“That’s my spot”
“So?” Darcy said, thinking this man pathetic for acting so tough over a simple spot. A collective, almost silent gasp was echoed throughout the room.
“That is my spot” the man repeated, “My name is-”
“Now let me stop you right there” Darcy interrupted, “Frankly, I don’t care who you are. I was here first. I didn’t see no name on this spot when I sat down. When I sat down no one told me it was reserved or to move. So first come, first serve. Beat it”
The man looked stunned, it was one of those rare times in his life when something did not go his way.
“You will move from my spot now”
“Or what?” Darcy taunted, instantly regretting those words.
“Or this” the man said grabbing Darcy by the shoulder with one hand and bringing his other hand up in a fist.
“I wouldn’t do that” Darcy said, staring at the size of the fist. The man didn’t even reply, he swung the fist at Darcy’s face.
“I said I wouldn’t do that” Darcy repeated, this time his voice low and demonic. His eyes became burning hot stars, flames leaping up past his eyebrows. Darcy stood, disintegrating the precious barstool. His clothes melted away into the darkest shadows of the night. Where pale skin once was, it was now endless black.

“Do not mess with me” the demonic voice boomed through the tiny tavern. People cowered in fear.
The large man shrunk to the floor, whimpering in fear. Darcy had the whole tavern under his spell. All but one man that was. It always took one solitary person to ruin everything, just one.
“I ain’t fraid of you!” this brave and foolish man shouted from across the building. He tossed an empty bottle at Darcy’s head. Darcy barely had the time to register it, and it hit him in the side of the head. In that tiny fraction of an instance, Darcy lost hold on the illusion he was casting with the help of his partner Zoroark who he could just manage to glimpse out the nearby window. It was a usual routine the two did to intimidate their foes. But it only took that one instant for the people to realize it was an illusion. Darcy swore under his breath.

Though he was a Knight of Unova, even Darcy couldn’t handle a fight against too many people. The first several people that attacked him were easy game for him. But as the fight continued on, and he wasn’t exactly wearing his cloak, Darcy soon became overwhelmed. Besides, it was a bar fight, he had been in countless of those before. He didn’t overly care that much. By the end of the night, Darcy found himself tossed out onto the streets with yet another tavern he was unwelcome at. He picked himself up and dragged himself along the dirty streets to his own safe house.

Upon arrival at his house, with Zoroark, he unlocked the three locks and walked in. Then he locked each of the locks, unlocked them all and locked them again just for safe measure. Darcy lived in the poor district of Castle City. Being a Knight didn’t necessarily grant the wealth of the great heroes in the stories and legends. Darcy was still poor, but he had acquired several items of possession that he wished to keep safe in his house. He had learned the art, or rather was still learning, of the poisoner. Thus, instead of paying for most of the herbs, Darcy took it upon himself to grow the simpler ones in his house. The more complex ingredients and rare ones, Darcy still had to purchase on his own with what little money he had. In addition to that, Darcy owned a variety of weapons he wouldn’t want stolen. But most importantly was Darcy’s cloak. The deep red cloak with black tuft like appearances and a light blue trim hung on its hook above Darcy’s bed. It was his prized possession. An acknowledgement he was a Knight of Unova. A Knight that had duties, such as attend a, pointless in Darcy’s mind, meeting the next morning with King Aleksandr. He rolled his eyes at the thought of it.

The next morning, Darcy dragged himself out of bed. He quickly got dressed in his black leather armor and attached his cloak around his shoulders. His hood remained down this time.
“C’mon” he called to Zoroark as he armed himself with various knives and whatnots before unlocking the three locks, “Wouldn’t want to miss an important meeting with our beloved king would we?”
Zoroark shot Darcy a grumpy look as he got up and walked alongside Darcy.
“Yeah I know” Darcy grumbled, locking, unlocking and locking his door before heading towards the meeting hall, “Let’s just not be late this time”
 
D

Deleted member 300066

Guest
Tyrus Azion
Truth
Upper District, Castle City

Tyrus awoke in his bed, he rolled over to see Elise beside him, her back turned to him, he stroked her hair gently and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned to him slowly and smiled, her smile dropped as she remembered.
“It’s today, isn’t it?” She asked. In truth, she knew full-well that today was the day Tyrus and Vincent were to set off. Tyrus nodded silently.
“Emily will be devastated…” Elise continued solemnly.
“Yeah...” Tyrus sighed “At least we managed to spend time together yesterday” Tyrus was out of the bed at this point and was getting dressed.
“I don’t know when I’ll be able to come back” Tyrus said “I’ll come back when I can, but that might not be for a while.” He pulled his tunic over his head. Elise got out of the bed.
“You better go wake up Emily” She said. Tyrus nodded.

Tyrus silently crept into Emily’s room, careful not to wake her startlingly. He sat on the end of her bed.
“Emily, sweetie,” He said softly “Time to get up…” Her eyes batted open and she turned to Tyrus. She looked outside the window, it was still dark. She was young but she wasn’t stupid, she knew that she wouldn’t be woken up this early without reason. She remembered that today was the day her father would be leaving.
“Are you going today?” She asked as she sat up in the bed. Tyrus nodded.
“Yup” He said “Sorry sweetie, I’ll come back whenever I can.” Emily screwed up her face in frustration; she folded her arms and looked up at Tyrus.
“I’ll miss you, Daddy.” She said “Make sure you beat the bad people, okay?” She said. Tyrus laughed slightly.
“They’re not always bad, Em’” He replied.
“I know…” She replied, Tyrus could see that her eyes were beginning to well up slightly, but she was a tough girl, she held back the tears.
“Come back soon, okay.” She said, Tyrus laughed.
“I’ll try, Em’. I’ll try”

One hour later.

Tyrus stood outside the doorway to the shop below the Azion’s home. Inside the building were Elise and Emily, Vincent softly nuzzled against Emily, careful not to hurt her with his horns.
“I’ll miss you both,” Tyrus said, he kissed his wife in the lips, he then kneeled down to be at eye height with Emily.
“You be good to your mother, okay?” He said to Emily, she nodded. He kissed her on the forehead and stood up again. Vincent joined him outside the door, Emily was reluctant to let go, but did.
“I’m sorry I’ve got to go,” He said “But I’ve got to do this, I’m doing it for you two because I love you.” Vincent barked approvingly. Tyrus knew that siding with Ernst could put his family in danger, considering that they lived in the very same town as King Alexsander. Tyrus just hoped that Alexsander wasn’t so harsh that he could put his enemy’s families in danger just to contribute to his war effort.

Tyrus and Vincent departed and walked through the city. It was very early morning so there were few people awake. The few that were awake were setting up their stalls or shops. Tyrus was headed towards Ersnt's Army's primary camp. He was expected to be there soon, so he would have to be brisk on his journey.

EDIT: I was going to infiltrate Alexsander's meeting thing, but it doesn't look like there was really any valuable info. So I edited the post to change that.
 
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folksy

sophisticated
Lori Ann

The streets of Castle city were completely silent. Here in the busiest place in Unova, the people were still asleep, and the only movement could be found in the clouds, lazily rolling against an orange morning sky. In a few hours the cobblestone would be bustling with civilians- merchants going to peddle their wares, housewives ringing up dirty tunics on cramped clotheslines, the pitter-patter of children chasing each other on stubby, frantic legs. These were the normal folk. These were the people Lori had sworn to protect. And it was for this reason that she was awake and jogging down the boulevards at this early hour, working her body into a state of awareness. It was a ritual for her, as regular as the breakfast of raw eggs she ate before, and the freezing ice-bath she would descend into after.

She had grown up in this district, the Wharf District. It was here on these roads that she learned the meaning of a hot meal, of clean water, of having to defend yourself. The houses that surrounded her on both sides were like a distant family in a sense. Plain, wooden homes that creaked when you stepped on their porches. They had second floors that extended over their first, so much so that in some places they could almost make contact with the houses on the other side of them. It created long lines of black shadows that were perfect for running under in all types of weather, hot or cold. As Lori sprinted up these roads she never dwelled on these things, only focused on keeping her breathing in time with her feet as they met they rough stone.

1… 2… 1… 2… 1... 2…

All the way until she reached her home in Castle District.

Breathing heavily, with sweat rolling down her back, she entered into her tiny residence. A lone window on the side was casting a square of soft light into the darkened room. A brown, humanoid type pokemon lay there. It was covered in a thick white cotton that made up most of its volume, and gave it the appearance of a sheep. Lori reached down and lovingly scratched his forehead. This was the usual sleeping spot of her best-friend.

“Whimsi,” she whispered, “It’s time to get up now.”

The pokemon scrunched its eyes and rolled over. Lori frowned in response.

“C’mon, lazy.” She said, shaking her friend awake. “We’ve got things to do today. I want you in your best shape for the King’s meeting today.”

He let out a high-pitched yawn before stumbling up from his sleeping position.

“Now, I’m going to clean up, and I want you fully awake and ready for duty by the time I’m done.” She said with a stern voice. “Got it?”

Whimsi nodded sleepily in response.

Quickly, the young knight stripped off her clothes and prepared her bath. As she lowered herself into the water she let her mind drift briefly to the meeting ahead of her. What would the King announce? A mission? Would it just be a rally for the Knights? Would it finally mean she could take her sword to the traitors themselves? She quickly closed her eyes and let the thoughts escape her. The ice-water stinging her body would eventually numb it, and her mind would follow suit as well. It was sensory depravation in a way, but it cleansed her palette of all the meandering thoughts and anxieties that pounded at the back of her head. She preferred those musings to go un-answered and instead focused on her breathing as the water washed her skin clean.

1... 2… 1… 2… 1… 2…

------

Lori, now dressed in her full black armor, was advancing towards the meeting hall. Her steps pounded on the cobblestone with short, iron jangles, interrupting the civilian chatter of the city. Whimsi followed closely on his owner’s heels, trying his best to look as intimidating as he could. Lori carried the weight of her black-iron gracefully, and her white-cotton cape flowed behind her in the wind. A couple of small children trailed behind from a safe distance, fascinated by the Knight. For Lori, It was mostly a show. She knew she had to look as a powerful as she could to these people. It was a form of psychological intimidation. A way of saying that she could protect them from all harm as long as they followed her orders- and that she could cut them down if they refused.

As Lori approached the meeting hall she slid her helm off and cradled it at her side. She shook her head to get her hair out of her face and looked around, hoping to see some other Knight walking the same way.
 
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David Carpenter
Ernstian Camp


David kicked his feet up on the table and yawned. The General had woken him up just for an announcement? Come on, man. Not cool. As an Engineer, David never strayed too far from camp anyways, preferring instead to stick around and make sure all of the fortifications were intact, and aiding his fellow Engineers with expansions and other projects. Presently though, the only thing David wanted to get to work on was his sleep. He and the other Engineers had stayed up late last night, celebrating the completion of the southern fortifications. It had been a monumental task, and the prince himself had overseen much of the construction. So now the Engineers were all on break for the next few days while they came up with ideas for their next construction project.

Santiago wanted to start work on an enormous watchtower, but it would have required tearing down a lot of the surrounding forest, as well as sinking mineshafts to dig up the very distinctive black stone that ran beneath this area. David was opposed to the idea, if only because the flurry of lumbering and use of mining explosives stood a high risk of catching the attention of the Aleksandrian army, which was the last thing the Ernstians needed. Were their secret base's location to be revealed, disaster would follow.

David shook such thoughts out of his head. He looked up at Goliath, the mammoth Golurk that was his partner. He patted the creature's smooth, steel-blue hide. "Hey big guy, what are you thinking?"

Goliath remained silent, but his head angled downwards to look at David more directly. His eyes blinked rapidly - David had come to understand this as a form of communication, but was unable to decipher it. When it came to Goliath, there was a lot he didn't understand. He tried not to think too hard on it though - he'd figure it all out eventually.

David scratched his chin. "I guess." He shrugged. "Might as well. I'm already up, much as I hate to be. Let's go out and seize the day." He stood up, stretching and yawning. Goliath's eyes followed the Engineer as he flung open the tent flaps and walked outside into the weak morning sunlight. He followed his master, his deliberate footsteps surprisingly soft for something so huge.

Outside, David rubbed his eyes and looked around. Although it was still early, people were already starting to bustle about - Knights, Engineers, servants and maids, families who had moved to the camp with their military spouses/parents... This place was always full of activity. It was almost like a smaller version of Castle City, David mused. He looked around some more, wondering if anyone he knew was around.
 

Ysavvryl

Pokedex Researcher
Castle City, Knights Headquarters, training yard

“Don't be lagging yet,” Bernard Wake called, thumping his large metal club into the ground. A group of squires were being made to run in armor around the dusty training yard, early in the morning. Later, they would go off to train with their masters. For this morning, they were under Wake's watchful eye. “You'll get to like it if you let yourself! Now grab the training swords.”

The teens broke off to the rack in the middle of one wall to get the wooden swords. “Can't he give us a rest between exercises?” one boy grumbled.

“You don't get a break in a real battle,” another man said in a soft and serious voice near the weapon rack. He wore an entirely black cloak, which he was taking off to reveal... another black cloak. Only this one had shimmering blue rings below the waist. Accompanying him was a little black dragon that had similar rings around her tail. She was perched on his right shoulder.

“Wah, where'd you come from?” the boy asked, eyes wide.

“Oh, your majesty, ah,” another said, clearly not expecting the king to show up in the middle of practice.

“Aleksandr!” Bernard called cheerily, giving up his place to come over to him. “Sneaking up on people still, I see. Aren't you supposed to be in the meeting hall? I'll be herding this bunch over to the back once they do some sparring...”

“In a few minutes,” Aleksandr said as the squires took the hint and went to pair off elsewhere. “I need to speak with you first. I know you like being on the training side, but there's a few missions I need done that I trust you to handle best.”

“Sure thing.” He waved to his Conkledurr. “Crush, watch the kids and make sure none of them are slacking.”

Crush grunted in agreement, then walked over to bellow at the squires and their Pokemon to get their acts together while Aleksandr and Bernard discussed plans.

-+-

The meeting hall was not as full as it used to be; Aleksandr had been through many meetings such as this called by his father or one of his generals and there had not been room for everyone to sit down at some. By now, a great number of the knights had left to go support Prince Ernst instead. Aleksandr felt that any who would join his brother would be gone now, although there was still a chance that there was a double agent or ones who weren't fully decided. He had to be careful still. But he felt this was necessary, especially after seeing a few recent reports.

Aleksandr started off with a prayer to the guardian gods of Unova, even though two such Pokemon were currently in the room. Zekrom in her small form was watching over them all, and enjoying a bit of morning sun in one of the open windows higher in the room. Also, there was certain to be the Volcarona in the room, with the Sun priest attending as a knight. With the prayer completed, Aleksandr got into the meat of the meeting.

“I've brought you together to discuss the security review and a couple other issues,” Aleksandr said in his usual public voice, calm and clear. “We're currently unstable and I would like to get that lacking corrected as quickly as possible. Our city is large and we need to keep it secure. The review is mainly positive in regards to this, although we will be shuffling positions to address weaknesses and the change in staff. The port guards have requested extra assistance as a few groups are trying to take advantage of the situation to trouble ships. For the same reason, we need to keep a watchful eye on the coastal areas; we don't need another enemy to dig itself into our lands to further weaken us.

“We have had a few skirmishes and attacks from Ernst group throughout Unova. In response, an arrest warrant for Ernst Harmonia and his top supporters is being drafted that will soon be issued.” It was something Aleksandr didn't entirely like. He would rather this conflict not happen at all, but now that he had responsibility as king, he wasn't going to let Ernst get away with disturbing the empire's structure. Keeping himself calm and collected on the surface as usual, he went on. “It may expand to all of his supporters, but that is still under review.

“Next, I have to address an issue of discipline.” This was one of the main reasons that he wanted to run this meeting himself instead of leaving it to one of the generals. He thought the problem would sort itself out once he let his brother's supporters leave the city, but it persisted. “There have been a number of reports lately of our knights causing and engaging in fights with the citizens and conducting themselves in immoral ways. I say to you that I will NOT tolerate this!”

He let his voice sharpen and abruptly increase in volume starting with that last statement; this kind of change tended to catch people off-guard as he rarely spoke in this manner. “Our duty as Knights of Unova is to protect and serve the citizens of the empire, to lead by example. The people look up to knights, and so every single one of you should be fair in judgment, hard working, well-mannered, and honorable. No knight should harm a citizen or non-aggressive Pokemon living within Unova without just cause. We are not thugs or barbarians; we are knights and I expect all of you to act as such. I have already given word to increase strictness on disciplinary actions. This won't affect you if you already keep such honor; for those of you who have been trouble, you need to shape up.”

With that unpleasantness addressed, Aleksandr turned back to his normal manners. “Other particulars have been given to the captains and generals, so speak with your superior about your current assignments and goals. Due to the amount of changes in our ranks, there has been changes within the structure, but the last of it will be settled today. Now, I will open the floor to any particular concerns out there.”
 

Ysavvryl

Pokedex Researcher
Ernstian Camp

General Warumo continued moving around the camp, pulling aside people he thought would help and rousing a few others from sleeping too late. As the morning glow began to fill the sky before the sun, he had about a dozen gathered at a wall at the camp's eastern side. It was sturdy in construction, with many plants moved to disguise its presence among the trees.

“All right, listen up,” Warumo said. “Many of us will be staying here to finish up securing this location, but we need to get moving on gaining an advantage. And you all will be helping us do so. You'll be scouting out the Eastern provinces, gathering information. We need to know the lay of the land, signs of Aleksandr's forces gathering or what they may be doing, and anything that seems out of the ordinary. Most importantly, we need to speak with the villagers and farmers and figure out where their allegiances lay. If you can, try to convince them to our side, help them out so that they're in our favor. You need to head out quickly, before the day gets going and people notice a lot of movement here. Any questions?”

GM Notes: Short update to get you guys going; sloth should be back next week. You may do things around camp or interact with other characters, or start heading off to your mission. All Ernst-sided PCs will have this as their primary mission for the time being. Also, we'll have a specific location for the camp settled on shortly, but for now, assume it's in the central part of Unova.


Castle City, Knights Headquarters

As the ranks of the knights were shuffled around, Bernard ended up with a dozen knights for his mission squad. “Okay, folks, we're being sent on an away mission and I'm in charge of you lot. Some of us will be replacing the guards on the road crew that's expanding and fixing the roads in the Eastern provinces. The rest of us will be searching for the location of Prince Ernst and his supporters. But keep in mind the King's words; we're out to protect and help the peoples of the empire, so be willing to help out those in need.

“We'll be heading out around noon, so get what you need done and have lunch early.”

GM Notes: This is the primary mission for all Aleksandr-sided PCs for the time being. Which puts you all in the same general location as the Ernst PCs if you decide to participate. The meeting is still active, so feel free to have your characters bring up a subject or ask questions. Once the meeting seems done with, I will move Aleksandr to the training area if any character wishes a smaller conversation or quick spar with him. I don't mind writing somewhat out of order in concerns with time; as long as it stays the same day, it's okay to move on if you have an idea of what to do.
 

Flame Mistress

Well-Known Member
“Right, I think we’ll call it a day here,” Valentina said happily, grinning as she held up a lifeless Minccino by its tail, and chucked it over her shoulder. Around her, many more corpses of various species of Pokémon lay motionless, most of them a mangled mess. Aphrodi, who was standing next to Valentina, nodded in approval, sniffing the ground and prodding it with his scythes before recoiling from the bloody stench that had already started reeking from the bodies – it had been several hours since the first kill, after all.

“Yeah, they do stink a little bit, don’t they?” she added, giggling. “Ah well, the stinkier, the better. I can’t wait to see what the locals make of this… they still think it’s some feral wild Pokémon-monster-thing that’s doing all this, you know. What idiots.” Aphrodi nodded again, but this time, his eyes were downcast, and were quickly scanning the dead bodies, a tinge of guilt within them.

It was a rare sight for a Knight of Unova to be going around on massacres of Pokémon. It was even rarer for said Knight to be an 18-year-old young woman of noble origins, having been brought up within a wealthy and well-known family of previous Knights, and given a prestigious education not many other women, let alone men, could afford. And yet here she was, Valentina Kaminov, skinny, blonde pigtails, 160cm tall, flat as aboard, standing with her Garchomp, just outside the walls of Castle City, having made her 40th kill of the day just a minute ago – and it wasn’t even noon yet, though admittedly it had been several hours decently spent.

In her honest opinion, though, it seemed like the Pokémon were getting weaker and weaker every day, and the fun was running out. It was either that, or she was growing stronger at an insanely fast rate, which was certainly more preferable. She would have loved to spar with the Pokémon at Victory Road again instead, but alas, it was just too far away for her to be able to travel to and from in one day. Instead, when she wasn’t carrying out her Knight duties (which admittedly did not amount to much, due to her status as a fairly new Knight), she was forced to settle with murdering random wild Pokémon instead and leaving them around the path or hanging them up on trees for travellers to spot and scream at. The sight itself, which she witnessed by hiding high up in a tree, was quite satisfying, but not as much as sparring with a real, battle-worthy Pokémon. The Pokémon around here were just too weak.

“We’ve got plenty of time left before nightfall, Aphrodi,” Valentina said, brushing off her hands and blowing on them. “And there’s that meeting with His Royal High Magnificent Majesty King Aleksandr we need to go to as well. I think we’ll be able to make it there in fifteen minutes flat if we hurry and you fly at full-supersonic speed. You up for it, buddy?”

Aphrodi grunted in a grumpy tone, rolling his eyes, but he nevertheless sat down with his back facing Valentina. Valentina hopped on, and clutched his back firmly. “And… blast-off!” she squealed, as Aphrodi began sprinting, gathering up speed, and eventually lifted off the ground completely, spreading his majestic scythes-slash-wings and soaring into the skies, before slowly letting himself lose altitude, and they were settled at a low-level glide about ten metres above ground level, just high enough for them to be able to see the horizon of Castle City coming into view.

Castle City was Valentina’s hometown, where she’d lived all her life, and she had no plans of leaving anytime soon. The city well deserved its title as the capital of the nation; it was a sprawling metropolis, stretching miles beyond miles; and for her, every little nook and cranny was full of adventure, or more specifically, oblivious citizens to pull pranks on. There were other pleasures too, such as libraries with thousands of books to devour and harbours in which one could watch the incoming ships and the Basculin squabbling daily amongst each other, but the pulling pranks bit was definitely the highlight. She was constantly reminded by her old nurse and now maid-in-waiting that she ought to behave her age now, instead of still dressing up in immature girls’ dresses and playing with her Garchomp, but she always met those claims with an amused laugh and a careless wave of the hand. Who cared about being an adult? Being an adult was boring. And anyway, if being a Knight wasn’t a great accomplishment, then she didn’t know what was, apart from being an even better Knight, like her father had once been.

Exactly fifteen minutes later, she was standing in front of the meeting hall, a breathless and clearly annoyed Aphrodi by her side. “Right!” she exclaimed, pumping a fist in the air. “You think Aleksandr will notice me this time? He hasn’t even given me a single glance all my time as a Knight…”

Aphrodi shot Valentina a glare, sparks flying from his eyes, and growled in a way that made it seem as if he was scolding her. “Fine, fine!” Valentina sighed, holding up her hands in front of her. “But don’t you think he’s really awesome? You know, fighting against the bad guys like that? C’mon, admit it!”

Aphrodi gave another grunt, and this time, she turned beetroot head, and crushed his head between her fists. “You did not just say that!” she yelled as she continued to berate the dragon, who was now begging for mercy. She was about to smack him across the face when she noticed that other Knights had begun to stare at her, and quickly retreated, letting Aphrodi breathe a sigh of relief.

“Let’s… just go in now,” Valentina suggested, still blushing.

***

The speech wasn’t as exciting as she thought it would be – there was a prayer first of all, during which she spent her time letting her eyes dart about in search of interesting objects to stare at, of which there weren’t many at all. The meeting hall seemed rather half-full, though she suspected it was because so many people had decided to abandon Aleksandr the Rightful for that scoundrel, Ernst. The rest of the speech was slightly more eventful, with Aleksandr giving a security report and saying that they were going to be shuffling some positions (she wondered if this meant that she could potentially be getting a promotion soon).

He then talked about the discipline of the Knights, and how he wouldn’t tolerate any sort of fighting and skirmishes with citizens, something which had become a common occurrence as of late, apparently. His voice suddenly became louder and sharper as he said this, telling her that he was being serious. “Do you think Pokémon are included as well?” she whispered to Aphrodi, but a glare from an older Knight and a reprimanding “Shhh!” stopped him from answering.

Aleksandr concluded with an invitation for any concerns to be addressed. Valentina thought about asking him to spar with her, but quickly put the thought away – of course he wouldn’t; he had other more important matters to take care of, after all. “Hey, you know how we’re being reshuffled into different ranks?” Valentina said to Aphrodi as the hall began emptying. “It means meeting new people, and that means more prey for me!”

Aphrodi looked worried for a split second, but enthusiastically nodded anyway. Valentina grinned, and leaned in to speak into his ears in a low tone. “Heh. Maybe we can have an encore of that poor boy who was deceived into taking the wrong shortcut right into the path of a Hydreigon… deceived by who he thought was his best friend – or more specifically, the wonderful Valentina Kaminov! And then there was that other upper-class guy who showered me with presents and entrusted me with his biggest secret, but then of course, I lured him into getting into an argument with me, and gave myself a reason to spill that secret, and his reputation was ruined, just like that. It’s strange how someone can be so gullible. Though really, since these guys are all rooting for Aleksandr, I guess I’ll be able to spare them. But hey, what if I posed as a double agent to the Ernstian Knights? Then I’d be a DOUBLE-double agent, and it wouldn’t be bad at all to kill those guys, right? Right,” she concluded without waiting for an answer. “That being said, maybe I can make another useful friend here or two…”

(A/N: This is basically two posts crammed into one, since I didn't have time to finish my first post in time due to real life issues. Sorry for the longer-than-average length. Also, any chance that we're getting a discussion thread? Or do we have one already?)
 
D

Deleted member 300066

Guest
Tyrus Azione
Truth


(OOC: I mentioned in my previous post that I edited out infiltrating Alexsander’s meeting. As there wasn’t really anything worthwhile going there for. Also, I’m not really sure where Ersnt’s camp is or how far away it is, so I’m pretty ambiguous with time taken.)

After their travel north, Tyrus and Vincent soon arrived at Ersnt’s camp. It was beginning to lighten by now. The sun was low on the horizon, creating a blazing glow around the beige tents. The tents were decorated with Ersnt’s banner. Tyrus surveyed the surrounding area. It was certainly busy. He noted that some knights had even brought along their families. Tyrus had considered this, but decided it was best to just keep it unknown that his family is associated with him. Elise would have to sell her family’s store. It would be very difficult to return to normal life afterwards.
“Finally here,” Tyrus said to Vincent. Vincent nodded.

Looking over the camp Tyrus observed several knights and their partner pokemon. Some possessed quite common pokemon, such as watchogs and herdiers. However, Tyrus noted some pokemon that stood out greatly from the crowd. Outside a tent he saw a towering pokemon that appeared to be a suit of armor. It was a golurk if Tyrus’ memory served him well. He had only seen drawings and heard descriptions of them before. Next to the golurk was an engineer. He appeared familiar to Tyrus. Tyrus didn’t know him by name but he was sure he had seen him around.

Soon enough, the knights an their pokemon were rounded up for an announcement from General Warumo.
“All right, listen up.” Said the General “Many of us will be staying here to finish up securing the location, but we need to get moving to gain an advantage. And you all will be helping us do so. You’ll be scouting out the Eastern Provinces, gathering information” Excellent, Tyrus was particularly good at information gathering, stealth and whatnot. “We need to know the lay of the land, signs of Aleksandr's forces gathering or what they may be doing, and anything that seems out of the ordinary. Most importantly, we need to speak with the villagers and farmers and figure out where their allegiances lay. If you can, try to convince them to our side, help them out so that they're in our favor. You need to head out quickly, before the day gets going and people notice a lot of movement here. Any questions?” Tyrus had no questions. He departed the crowd in the direction of the supplies tent. He needed to stock up on arrows.
 

iStorm

Well-Known Member
Opening the doors into the meeting hall, Darcy and Zoroark walked in amongst the half full room right during prayer. Darcy swore to himself, he was late again. Oh well though, wasn’t like he was missing much anyway. As he took his seat opposite a Knight and her Garchomp, Darcy noticed only half the Knights were taking part in prayer. He himself wasn’t concerned with the gods or their supposed wrath or whatever it was they believed in. Darcy’s chair of course was that one creaky chair in the room, so as he sat back and slouched comfortable, the creaking of the chair echoed through the room. Several Knights shot him a glaring look to which Darcy gave the obligatory shrug.

Only paying half attention to the meeting, Darcy’s eyes drifted around the room at each of the Knights and their Pokémon. He was curious as to if he had encountered any of them before. When the topic of shuffling positions arose, Darcy turned his attention to the speaker. He hoped he wasn’t stationed on guard duty for the road expansions. Searching for supporters of the prince sounded much more eventful than standing on a road all day watching and ‘protecting’ people build. The topic of the meeting then went on to discuss the more frequent fighting between Knights and civilians of the city, which Darcy thought was directed mostly towards him than most of the Knights. It was true that getting into bar fights had been happening a little too often for Darcy. In the past several weeks, Darcy had already been thrown out of half a dozen bars. Citizens of the Wharf District must be rather familiar with Darcy’s typical illusion routine.

The rest of the meeting was a bore to Darcy, and he leaned back further into his creaky chair. When the meeting finally concluded with an open floor for questions, Darcy rolled his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. The meeting wasn’t too bad, it could have been worse. Darcy waited out in his chair as some Knights posed questions, most of them he thought were useless questions anyway. Once they were finally dismissed, Darcy was the first out of his chair. Followed by Zoroark, he walked briskly out of the hall. Looking up at the clock tower, he had until noon before the Knights headed out. That gave him some time to do whatever. He considered going to the training area to maybe spar with the king or watch some Knights spar with him. Nodding to himself, he decided that may be the best use of his time. Perhaps he could meet some fellow Knights and see why they followed the king. To be honest to himself, Darcy still wasn’t too sure if he made the right choice in following Aleksandr. He had to make a choice, so he went with his gut. Darcy didn’t really care who he fought for, but figured Aleksandr was the best option. Perhaps if he saw why others fought for him, he could finally put to ease the concern of choosing the right side.
 
Ernstian Army
Eastern Unova


After hours of walking, the volunteers eventually made it to the outskirts of a small farming village. General Warumo looked down upon the hamlet, his whiskers twitching as he chewed his lip in thought. He turned to the Knights. "Alright, men," he began. "We'll start here. Mingle with the natives, and learn what you can. Remember, you are simple travelers. Act as such." Warumo turned back to the town, and his keen eyes seemed to spot a tavern. He stroked his mustache. "I shall be investigating the local gathering house. If you find anything of interest, meet me there." Nodding to his loyal Knights, Warumo strolled off in the general direction of the tavern, whistling and waving merrily to nearby villagers.

--

(OOC: I've sent requests to the mods about getting a discussion thread. As soon as I get a confirmation, I'll post one.)
 

Corrosion

Hello Kitty =/= Cat
((OOC: So sorry for not posting yet; I’ve been slowly going crazy. This post is going to show shades of that.))

Andrea Blacker
Ernestian Camp


Andrea was not interested in the more mundane happenings around camp; the rather esoteric one of Oscura, her Cofagrigus, being as bizarre as usual was the one that occupied her attention at that moment. The Knight was standing behind her partner, who was, in turn, facing a tent. “Oscura, what on earth…?” she inquired of her Partner, who seemed to be engaging in the very mature activity of drawing crude depictions of “the naughty bits” on the side of someone else’s tent. Andrea had caught her in the midst of drawing the first one, and had been thinking that Oscura had been attempting to communicate with the Knight until the drawing began to be recognizable. ’Not again.’ This was not the first time that Oscura had done something like this, and it would probably not be the last. “Oscura,” Andrea said, completely serious, “stop.”

Oscura whirled around, flung the piece of charcoal that she had been drawing with clear over her back, and faced Andrea while putting the top two of her arms straight into the air. The other two arms were occupied in convoluting themselves into a very elaborate knot. She waggled the place where her eyebrows would be if she had eyebrows, fully admitting that, yes indeed, she was guilty of rudeness. The knot of her lower two arms was wound around Andrea, and more specifically her legs, as the Knight could not avoid her quickly enough.

“Oscura! Behave,” Andrea commanded, and raised her right leg out of the gray tangle of ectoplasm that was Oscura’s arms as if it were a pile of muck that she was removing herself from. Oscura reached for the leg with a hand that rose out of the pile and was promptly discouraged from doing so by a swift stomp to the hand. Andrea did not like hurting her Partner, but Oscura was as sturdy as a brick and constantly needed reprimanding. Normally, though, Oscura was not as demanding—she could handle herself fine…for a few minutes.

Andrea slowly walked away from Oscura, and the Cofagrigus determinedly hung onto her left leg. The Pokemon was far too heavy to be dragged easily and so had to let go, but hurried after the Knight after it became apparent that Andrea was making a point by leaving her there. Oscura click-clacked her coffin’s lid while untangling her lower arms and relaxing her upper arms. Andrea could understand Oscura’s particular way of talking as well as a novice speaker of Chinese could understand the Wade-Giles system of pinyin. As such, there were frequent misunderstandings.

Andrea was pointedly silent as Oscura accompanied her; she was thinking of things that had more importance than a drawing of certain things. ’If the General is calling us for a meeting, then is it required of me to attend? I am surely late.’ She cast a glance at the Cofagrigus, who, for once, was obediently following in the Knight’s wake. As she was walking, she carried herself confidently and each of her steps were sure—she was doing her best to radiate presence. It was in her interests to appear strong and untroubled, as Dark- and Ghost-type Pokemon, along with the enemy, would surely take advantage if she showed any weakness.

The other Knights who were around had paid no attention to Oscura’s antics, as they were attending to their own Pokemon. Many of the Knight’s Pokemon were common ones; as far as Andrea knew, she was the only one crazy enough to tolerate having a Cofragrigus as a partner. Another person with an unusual Partner was part of the morning-madness. Andrea did not recognize him, but she suspected that he was part of the Engineering as he was not occupied with attending the General’s meeting.

Andrea had her worries about the fortifications that concerned keeping enemy Ghost-type Pokemon out, as many of them had the ability to float through walls. The other Knight’s partner, a Golurk, was steadily standing behind him and the Knight himself was surveying the crowd for something. She approached him, ready to talk. “Hello,” she said, “are you a member of the Engineering Corps?”
 

RefreezePR

Just trying to help
Sandra Veruen
Ernst Camp


From near the top of a tree close the camp Sandra smiled as she stretched, she couldn't tell why but she felt better than she had in a long time, it was probably because the leaves in the treetops where softer here than most places in Unova but she couldn't really tell. Getting up she started slowly moving down the tree, having slept there after taking the first shift of the night to patrol the nearby grounds of the camp for anything out of place while her partner took the second shift, as she moved down the tree she took a second look around to confirm that she had chosen a good tree to sleep in. When traveling with a large group she often slept separate from them in case they were attacked, in such a case she would be able to flank the enemy and attack their leaders causing chaos within their ranks and giving her allies time to recuperate. On the lower branches she encountered her partner who was diligently watching for anyone who approached. She smiled at the Lampent and sensed its happiness as it looked back.

After gathering the few possessions that they had the two moved towards the camp stopping to pick any berries or edible plants they could eat as they walked. As they entered the camp Sandra tried to pocket any unguarded snacks she could find for her and her partner considering they had woken late and missed breakfast. She moved through the tents studying them noting where they were and how they were arranged before stumbling upon one that appeared as if its owner or some stranger had doodled immature depictions of a human's private parts on it with charcoal. Disgusting she thought to herself, These are professional soldiers and they're acting like children she made a mental note to tell the General about this if she found him. Which she had just noticed that he had apparently given a speech this morning that she missed out on based on the talks of random knights passing by. She looked around hoping to find someone's conversation she could join to find out what was going on. Sandra felt a tug at her arm and turned to her Lampent with a quizzical look in her eyes, "What is it Shadowfire?" The Lampent turned and pointed to what seemed to be a woman with a Cofagrigus and a man with a Golurk discussing something. She nodded to her Pokemon agreeing that it was a fresh sight for their eyes to see other Ghost Types and they should see if they knew anything about what the General had said to do.

She walked over making sure to take off her hood so she seemed more approachable, although she hadn't bathed in a few days and she often cut her hair short with her knife, and hoped she wouldn't have to initiate the conversation, a nightmare for an anti-socialite like her.

(OOC: Hope this is a good first post! :p)
 
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(OOC: Sorry for taking so long, meatspace has been kicking my butt.)

David Carpenter
Ernstian Camp



David continued to survey his surroundings, stretching as he did so. His back made a satisfying CRACK and he immediately felt his joints loosening. Breathing out happily, he turned to Goliath. "Gonna be a big day, huh big guy?"

Goliath did not respond. David assumed he was performing some sort of calculation to determine exactly what the probability of today being a "big day" were. David laughed at the thought. "Relax, buddy. It's just an expression."

"Hello," said a voice on the edge of David's perception. He looked towards it to see a rather serious-looking young woman with a Cofagrigus at her side, grinning nastily. "Are you a meber of the Engineering Corps?" She asked. While her expression was one of near-neutrality, her Cofagrigus was looking at Goliath with a sort of fiendish interest.

David grunted affirmatively. "Sure am." He looked her up and down. "You a Knight then? Missing out on the General's little excursion, aintcha?" At the same moment, he noticed another woman approaching, lowering a shadowy hood as a Lampent hovered alongside her. "All these Ghosts, we're a spooky bunch, ain't we?" he said not-quite under his breath.
 
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Corrosion

Hello Kitty =/= Cat
((OOC: Not trying to be a mini-mod here, but shouldn’t RP posts be longer than five lines?))

Andrea Blacker
Ernestian Camp


“Sure am,” the Engineer said. He had confirmed her guess by grunting before, but might have felt that it was best to follow up with a verbal accompaniment. “You a Knight then? Missing out on the General's little excursion, aintcha?” Andrea knew that that question would have been asked, but her duties lay elsewhere; however, she was a bit irked by his words—it seemed as if he was belittling her.

“Yes. I am Andrea Blacker, and Oscura,” Andrea gestured to the Cofagrigus, who seemed to be exhibiting the once-in-a-blue-moon behavior of restraint, “is my Partner.” She thought for a bit and added, “Beware, though, she likes to pull pranks on people.” Oscura looked at her incredulously and brought her arms up, bent at the places where elbows would have been—Andrea thought of that expression as a shrug.

“I am not attending the other Knights for I,” she paused there to think. Why hadn’t she joined the other Knights to patrol the surrounding areas? She found the answer and continued, “am rather conspicuous, or, rather, Oscura is. I am also concerned with the possibility of enemy Ghost-type Pokemon being able to bypass our security.” They had very little difficultly navigating in the dark and could possibly pass that ability along to their Knight, and walls were merely a small barrier to them.

Under his breath, the Engineer muttered, “All these Ghosts, we're a spooky bunch, ain't we?” Andrea agreed with him, but his immense Partner, a Golurk, seemed to be more of a “gentle giant” than a prankster. The other woman, who had obscured her face behind a dark hood, was being tailed by a Lampent.

’We are a collection of Ghosts, but intimidation is one of more useful tactics,’ Andrea thought. Oscura was certainly adept at terrifying her own teammates, but she had yet to have the opportunity reproduce that effect with the enemy. As she had been raised around Ghost- and Dark-types for her entire life, Andrea had very little unfounded fear of either; Oscura would be by her side in any case. “Perhaps, but is it not for the best? If we intimidate the enemy, it is possible that that will discourage them from attacking. Keeping the morale high is vital.”
 
(OOC: You're absolutely right, wayjun. I do apologize - I was tired and short on time, but that's no excuse for a bad post.)

David Carpenter
Ernstian Camp



David cocked an eyebrow. Well, she's a barrel of Pansear, isn't she? "Andrea and Oscura. Pleasure to meet ya both." He reached out and shook Andrea's hand, before glancing at Oscura. "I'd shake yours, but I'm afraid I might end up like one of them shriveled dead guys in the royal catacombs." Oscura grinned toothily in response.

He looked back at Andrea. "You don't have to worry about that defenses though. My buddies and I set 'em up ourselves - nothin' is getting past that wall if we don't want it to. 'Sides," he said, a light smile playing on the edge of his lips. "I know a guy with a Foresight monocle. He'll see any Ghosts before they cause any trouble."

At the word "trouble," Goliath immediately seemed to stand up taller. He stepped forward heavily, creating a loud WHUMP as his foot his the dirt, sending up a cloud of dust. The Golurk's head rotated a full 360 degrees, as if scanning the area. David could hear internal mechanisms whirring loudly within the automaton's ceramic body. "Goliath, להפסיק!" he shouted over the din.

At once, Goliath ceased all movement. He now loomed up over Andrea and Oscura now, and one huge clay hand was aimed directly at the other woman and her Lampent. The Golurk looked at David, who repeated the command. His internal machinery making a sound almost like that of a sigh, Goliath went back into his more dormant state - arms held loosely at his sides, eyes straight forward.

David grinned sheepishly at the others. "Sorry 'bout that. Goliath gets a little... Funny sometimes."
 
(OOC: For those of you who said you would be joining Warumo, here's a little incentive to get on with it.

--

General Warumo
Eastern Unova


Warumo leaned back on his barstool, a flask of fine eastern ale held firmly in his hand. His eyes scanned the tavern. He had yet to receive word from any of his Knights. It could just be that they were still hunting for information, Warumo thought. Or maybe something more sinister is afoot, a grim voice inside his head said. Warumo frowned. He'd wait a little longer. But he was starting to grow worried...

--

Ernst Harmonia
???


A large field, filled with wildflowers. The wildflowers are perfectly divided into two halves - white on one side, black on the other.
Ernst stands amidst the white flowers. They are tall, with beautiful, robust petals that unfold into glorious blooms with faint red veins.
At his side stands Reshiram, the White Dragon. She is like the flowers - graceful, larger than life, full of energy and beauty.
Across the field stands his brother.
Aleksandr.
He stands amidst the black flowers. To Ernst's eyes they are sickly and shriveled, and the mere sight of them fills him with rage.
At the enemy's side stands Zekrom, the Black Dragon. It is an ugly creature, twisted and malformed, with deadly talons and slathering fangs.
Ernst and Aleksandr lock eyes.
Swords suddenly appear in their hands, and they charge at each other.
As he runs to face his brother, Ernst sees the white flowers surrounding him begin to wither and die, and with each step towards Aleksandr they become more and more putrid.
The brothers meet in a clash of sparks and steel. They fight furiously, and the Dragons soar overhead like vultures, as if waiting to feast on the corpse of the loser.
Ernst thrusts forward, and his blade pierces Aleksandr's heart. The blade goes deeper, and deeper still, until Ernst has buried his sword hilt-deep into his brother's chest.
And only now does Ernst realize that his brother has done the same to him. He can feel the metal in body, penetrating through him and come out the other side.
The two gaze at each other for a long moment. Then they both slump to the ground.
The last thing either of them feels is cold, and grey, and empty.
 
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