A beautiful, lush forest that connects Nix City to Applegate City. A serene, quiet place, the forest is home to many different kinds of Pokémon such as bug and grass types that love the large trees and tall grass. There are also smaller trees blocking the way here and there, making it impossible to proceed further into the forest without something to cut them down.
[To play the game, simply generate a number from one to ten when posting. Whatever item matches the number you roll, you find. You can roll once a day in each section of the forest to find items. Anyone caught cheating will be severely punished, so don't do that. Happy Hunting!]
1-2 = Tiny Mushroom x5, Pep-Up Plant x2, Mental Herb x1, Red Apricorn x2 3-4 = Tiny Mushroom x2, Medicinal Leek x3, Sweet Apple x1, Blue Apricorn x2 5-6 = Big Mushroom x1, Silver Powder, White Apricorn x2, Green Apricorn x2 7-8 = Big Mushroom x2, Candy Truffle x2, Grass Gem x2, Yellow Apricorn x2 9-10 = Energy Root x2, White Herb x1, Black Apricorn x1,Tart Apple x1
[Black colored Pokémon can be caught with a Poké Ball, Blue colored Pokémon need to be caught with a Great Ball, and Red colored Pokémon need to be caught with an Ultra Ball.]
Laram Knight generated a random number between
1 and 5 ...
1!
Laram placed his head against the nearest tree and listened. He wasn't trying to hear sound, but what kind of forest he was in. Most people didn't know how to listen, but Laram grew up among such trees. It wasn't good. The trees were angry. It surprised him, he had never felt anger from plants before. He was beginning to fear the worst for the little girl."Something is wrong with this forest. Can you feel it?""You feel it too? Everyone calls me crazy. They're just trees they say."Trish looked surprised at Laram's remark. But she quickly accepted it. The pair worked their way farther into the forest, Trish calling out for the little girl. Laram kept his voice silent. It was as if the trees were glaring at him. He shuddered and tried to ignore the feeling that he was trespassing.
Zeus appeared and landed on Laram's shoulder. His talons gripped the trainer's shoulder a bit too tight, and he cried out."Ouch! What's gotten in to you?"The Rufflet was obviously shaken by something."What's wrong? What did you see?"The eaglet shook his head and buried it against the trainer's hair. That was a first. Laram had never seen Zeus act that way. One thing was for sure, whatever was happening in the forest, they were in danger. But still, Laram knew they had to press on. A little girl's life was in danger. He sincerely hoped that she was not in the forest."Alright, I'm calling it. I can't risk your lives. You aren't a ranger. We'll come back in the morning and look again.""No. We're okay. If it's this dangerous for us, imagine how much more so it is for that little girl. We'll keep looking."The ranger smiled and retrieved a capsule from her belt."You may just have what it takes to be a ranger. Come on Pikachu. Light the way for us."A small, yellow mouse appeared in a flash of light, and Laram grabbed his Pokedex and scanned it. A gentle light began to glow from the Pokemon and the group walked deeper into the forest. As they were walking, they were stopped by a series of small trees that made it impossible to get through."Crud. I was in such a hurry, I forgot to bring my Pokemon that knows cut."That was when Laram remembered something. Shadow knew the move."Shadow, use your dagger to cut through these trees. You can do it."The Froakie nodded and formed his blade of light in his hand. Using it as a flashlight as well as a machete, the Froakie hacked their way through the brush. This way, they traveled deeper into the trees.
It was getting difficult for Laram and his team to see as they tried to make their way back out of the forest. It made their trek slow, which worried the trainer. After their encounter with the Trevenant, Laram wanted to retreat back to the city as soon as possible. These trees were vengeful. Laram could see that the moon was shining, but the canopy above their heads was so thick, that it just looked like a white dot in the trees. It gave no light to guide their path. Laram had already stumbled into low hanging tree branches three times, and it didn't seem like that was all the punishment he was going to receive. It was almost as if the trees were doing it on purpose. Just as Laram wondered if they were going to have to try to hunker down for the night, a light began to glow behind him. Dim at first, but in a few seconds it was bright enough to fully illuminate the area ten to twelve feet in front of him. He stopped and looked over his shoulder for the source. Behind him, his new Pansage was holding his tail, and the tip was glowing very brightly. So luminous in fact, that Laram couldn't look directly at it. He shielded his eyes as he spoke.
"Wow that's bright. That's really impressive..." It struck the trainer that the Pansage didn't have a name. This bothered him. Everyone needed a name. Laram thought it over as he surveyed his surroundings. He had named Zeus, Shadow, and Jack with a gut feeling. He wanted to do the same thing with his new partner. He mulled it over and finally came up with something."Thorn. Thorn, that's a good name I think. Do you like it?"The small, green monkey nodded; which Laram could only see because of how bright his tail shined."Good. Why don't you take point Thorn? We'll be able to get out of here quick with you lighting the way."He nodded and took his place in front of his new trainer. With Thorn in front, they were able to see their path, and they followed it. It wasn't long before they approached the area that Shadow had to cut through earlier that night. Laram was shocked. It was almost completely overgrown again. There was barely a path small enough for Laram to prone crawl through. It wasn't that bad for the trainer's team, but Laram gritted his teeth. It was going to be a hard way back. The trainer motioned for his Pokemon to go ahead of him and he dropped to his stomach and began his grueling ordeal. By the time they all reached the other side of the patch, Laram's entire body ached. It had been a while since he had done anything that strenuous. But they weren't out of the woods yet. He picked himself up and dusted himself off, and the group exited the woods after another tense hour.
"Phew! that was a scary time. Let's get back to the rangers and see if Trish got out okay."Speaking of which, Laram heard footsteps approaching from the direction of town. The person was obviously running. With the dense trees behind him, Thorn's flash illuminated a much larger area, and Laram could make out Trish's form jogging up to them."Laram! You made it out!"Laram wanted to shush the woman, the dark was not a good place to yell. But he chocked the behavior up to nerves. He waited until the ranger met up with his party to respond however."Yeah, we're all okay. A few cuts and scrapes, but no one is hurt.""Oh thank goodness! I'm sooo sorry about leaving you all behind. But the little girl..."The woman was obviously winded, but Laram was impressed that she didn't show it in her voice. As she started talking, he began walking back towards the direction she came from."No. You did the right thing. Getting her home safe was the entire reason we came out here in the first place. If our situations were reversed, I would have done the same."The pair continued to talk as the group approached the Ranger's shack on the outside of town. Once the building came in to view, Thorn's tail dimmed and Laram let out a sigh of relief. Slumping on the front steps, the trainer finally allowed himself to relax."You all handled yourselves well tonight. As the leader of the Pokemon Rangers in Nix City, I would like to extend an invitation to you all to join our little family. We can offer you a crappy cot, and some terrible jobs that don't pay very well, and some brothers and sisters that will always watch your back. What do you say?"The woman extended her hand and smiled. Laram smiled in return and grabbed her forearm in agreement."You had me at 'crappy cot'."
According to the map in Laram's head, he and his team were a bit southeast from their initial search point. The trainer spied numerous different species of Pokemon scurrying about in the trees; but none of them seemed too hostile. He was glad. That meant that they didn't have to hack and slash their way to their destination. There was plenty of plant life too. The Rowling Forest was very much alive in every corner of every shadow of every tree. The sights and sounds of the forest were almost too much. But Laram was born in a forest. To him, it felt like home."Ooh look. A balm mushroom. These are pretty rare and valuable back home. I wonder if they're worth anything here." Laram bent down and picked the mushroom, careful of the new infant in his arms. The balm mushroom was a prized item by some people's standards, and were worth a lot to the right people. Just as the trainer was musing over his prize, he was sprayed with some sort of stringy substance from above. It got everywhere, including on Firnen, and Laram heard a screeching, buzzing sound overhead. He pulled his knife and began to cut the stringy substance off of him while he retreated behind his team.
"Watch out guys. What the heck is it?"Laram craned his neck towards the direction of his attacker to see a grey, worm-like creature hissing at him from a nearby branch. It was about a foot long, and it was obviously aggravated. Laram looked around for any reasonable cause for the outburst, but came up short. It must have just simply not liked him. But it hadn't stopped trying to spray him and his team, so they couldn't just leave."Shadow, get up there and use cut. Jack, use bounce on it."His two Pokemon nodded and followed out their trainer's commands. The froakie leapt to the tree and climbed it swiftly, while the bunnelby crouched and hopped high into the foliage above them. As Shadow closed in on his opponent, Jack slammed down on it from above, and hopped back to the ground. Before the Pokemon could collect itself, Shadow formed a knife of white light in his palm and cut through his opponent. Like in an old movie, the froakie paused just beyond his opponent, and the bug fell from the tree branch, knocked out."Well that was easy. It was probably a bit of overkill, but you guys did great."Laram motioned for everyone to follow, and he and his team reached their destination in the woods just as he finished cleaning the gunk off of himself and Firnen."Alright, let's start looking for that injured pikachu."
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Pickup Ability Counter: 9/10
Pokémon
Name: Zeus Species: Rufflet Gender: Male Nature: Brave Egg Move: None TM Moves: HM Moves: Rock Smash
As Laram and his team searched the forest for their target; Jack, Laram's Bunnelby approached him with a berry. Laram accepted the gift, knowing that his friend always seemed to find random things everywhere they went. It was a kebia berry. The trainer didn't have any more room in his pack for it, so he fed it to the little, yellow lizard in his arms. The Charmander munched on it greedily, and Laram had to pull his fingers back at the last second. Which made him chuckle."You're cute, I'll give you that. But it looks like I'll have to teach you manners. I know, I know. You're a baby. But you gotta learn some time."Laram spoke softly to the newly hatched infant in his arms. Firnen was literally only a couple of hours old, but he already showed signs of intelligence and health. According to the nurses, he was large for a newborn Charmander. Laram didn't mind though, it just meant that he was strong. But the trainer couldn't spend too much time catering to the infant. There was an injured Pikachu that he needed to find.
Laram scanned the forest again, looking for any sign of their target. "Okay guys, fan out. Look for any clues that might lead us to that Pikachu."Laram and his team spread their party out to cover more ground, and continued their search. Two hours went by like this, with no sign of anything. But as luck would have it, his Rufflet spied something from the sky. He screeched at his trainer, getting his attention and landed in a tree just above him. The trainer nodded and called the rest of his team back to him. As they approached, the Rufflet took off again, this time staying just above the tree line so that they all could follow him. After a ten minute jog, Laram and his team approached a clearing in the trees where the trainer found who they were supposed to help. The Pokemon was in bad shape. It was bruised all over with cuts down the entire length of its' body. It desperately needed medical attention."Hey there. It's okay, we're here to help."Laram called out to the Pokemon as he entered the clearing. He didn't want to sneak up on the creature and possibly scare it into attacking him. But his ploy didn't work, because the Pikachu attacked anyway. Electricity arced towards the trainer and his group, and he barely jumped out of the way in time. As much as the trainer didn't want to hurt the creature, it needed medical attention as quickly as possible.
"Jack, mud shot. Thorn, seed bomb. Shadow, cut it after the other attacks hit."The Bunnelby formed a ball of mud between his ears. At the same time, the Pansage formed a ball of energy in his hand; and both Pokemon hurled their projectiles at the opponent simultaneously. Being injured, the electric mouse couldn't dodge, and was struck full on by both attacks. After they landed, Laram's Froakie dashed forward and sliced at the Pikachu, knocking it backward, unconscious. It wasn't the nicest way to handle things, but the Pikachu was hostile, and it needed emergency care. Laram placed his Charmander on his head and picked up the unconscious Pikachu."Hang on up there Firnen. We're going to run."It was about a two hour hike back to the guild, and the forest became dangerous at night. So the trainer and his team, quickly made their way back to the ranger's guild just as the sun set behind the trees. Trish was waiting on the front steps and stood up as they approached."How did it go?" Laram sighed."It attacked us as soon as it saw us. But I tried to minimize the damage. Here you go."Laram handed over the mouse, and grabbed his Charmander again. He was sad at what had happened, but at least now the Pikachu could get the attention it needed."That's good work. Here's your pay for the job. Why don't you go get some rec?"Laram nodded his agreement and entered the house. He found his cot and flopped onto it, quickly falling asleep.
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*Exit* Pickup Ability Counter: 10/10
Pokémon
Name: Zeus Species: Rufflet Gender: Male Nature: Brave Egg Move: None TM Moves: HM Moves: Rock Smash
Laram eyed the edge of the forest, scanning for any movement. He was all too familiar with the dangers hidden in those trees. His time in Nix City had brought the trainer and his team face to face with numerous dangerous situations, simply by entering the forest. He couldn't shake the feeling, like the last time he was there, he was older. But Rowling Forest had that effect on people. His Pokemon were tired from their gym battle earlier, but a ranger's work was never finished, it seemed. Laram shifted the baby Kangaskhan into a more comfortable position in his arms. The infant was heavy, but not unbearably so. Reassuring the little creature, Laram rubbed its' head gently as he finished scouting the area. Nothing seemed to be lurking on the edge, so that was a relief. Laram looked at the Pokemon around him. There was Firnen, his Charmander. Thor, who was his Elekid; and Shadow, his Froakie. All of them knew the forest well, and he trusted them with his life. . "Okay guys, here's the mission. We have to find this little guy's family. The sooner the better. Now, I have no idea what a Kangaskhan looks like...Oh wait."
Laram retrieved his Pokedex from his pack and scanned the infant. As soon as he did, an image appeared on the device. It verified the little guy's heritage. He was the one in the pouch of the creature. However, it did not escape Laram, the size of the adult version.We have to find one of those? This really is a dangerous mission.Laram had personally experienced the dangers of a parent Pokemon that felt like it had to defend its' young. But it needed done, so Laram resigned himself. But one thing was for sure, he needed Baldur's help. The trainer tentatively retrieved the jackrabbit's capsule from his pack and threw it to the ground. In a flash of red light, the Diggersby stood to his full height and stared at his trainer."Are we good Baldur? You feeling okay?"The rabbit nodded and gave a thumbs up with one of his massive ears. Which allowed the trainer to breathe a sigh of relief. He was worried that the Diggersby would remain as aggressive as he had been when he evolved, but that fear seemed to be unfounded."Good. Let's go guys."With his team assembled, Laram entered the forest. Not even two steps in, Baldur handed him a large mushroom. The trainer chuckled. At least that hadn't changed.
*Exit*
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Pickup Ability Counter: 7/10
Pokémon
Name: Zeus Species: Rufflet Gender: Male Nature: Brave Egg Move: None TM Moves: HM Moves: Rock Smash
Laram put his hands on his knees, heaving deeply, trying to catch his breath. It had been a while since he had sprinted for that distance. They had been chased out of the forest by all the nocturnal Pokemon. Laram didn't take it personally. A lot of the creatures in the forest ran in packs, which meant a lot of pack mentality. They weren't necessarily aggressive, just territorial or hungry. It was base instinct, and not malicious. Laram had encountered too many trainers civilians that perceived the forest as evil because of such instinctual motivations. Even still, just because their actions weren't malicious, they were dangerous for anyone caught unawares. Laram and his team had barely escaped. The trainer struggled to catch his breath, and as he did, Baldur placed a small mushroom in his pack. Laram nodded to him, not wanting to admonish him for his action. It wasn't harmful, so Laram was okay with his adventurous nature. Standing to his full height, Laram adjusted his pack on his shoulders."Well guys, it wasn't without its' hiccups. But I'd say that was a successful mission. Let's get back to the guild and get some rest."
Laram and his team walked off in the direction of ranger's guild in Nix City. It had been a very eventful day for him and his Pokemon. A gym badge and saving an infant Kangaskhan; that was quite the accomplishment. According to Bobbie and Trish, not too many people received gym badges. So that already put the trainer ahead of a lot of others. But he didn't want to get an ego about it. In his mind, he was still just a ranger. At his pace, it took Laram and his team an hour to get back to the guild. It was well into the night, and the trainer simply found his bed and immediately fell asleep. He felt as if they had earned their rest.
*Exit*
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Pickup Ability Counter: 1/10
Pokémon
Name: Zeus Species: Rufflet Gender: Male Nature: Brave Egg Move: None TM Moves: HM Moves: Rock Smash
Regal had surprised himself with how quickly he had managed to pick up basic cooking. It wasn't gourmet by any means, but the newbie trainer had yet to produce a bad meal so far during his journey. All of his Pokémon seemed to genuinely enjoy the meals he made for them. But while his cooking skills had proven to be acceptable, the one thing that the youth just couldn't seem to get right was making a proper cup of coffee.
At first he tried to justify the sludge-like creations by telling himself that he had grown up with top class coffee beans at home. It was only natural that instant coffee wouldn't be the same. But even the difference in quality couldn't justify the muddy, odious taste lingering in his mouth after this latest failure. His coffee sucked. Period.
Thoroughly disappointed, Regal finished packing away the leftover dishes from the teams lunch and got back to navigating the forest. Sylvain was out of his ball again and entertaining himself by climbing and jumping through the large trees looming overhead, though the Treecko was careful not to leave its trainers sight. They were making good progress through the forest, and Regal was grateful for the peaceful afternoon after the close call that had happened earlier when Sylvain had startled a wild Shroomish and gotten several of the team covered in dangerous spores as the mushroom Pokémon made a break for it.
A chance for redemption eventually showed itself as the duo encountered a wild Nuzleaf up in the trees, playing away on a leaf flute. Eyeing up the trainers Treecko, the fellow grass type gestured to the gecko for a friendly race through the trees. Amused, Regal nodded his permission to Sylvain and started running after the two as they began leaping through the forest with neither grass type giving an inch. Even though he was in pretty fit shape, it was an uphill challenge to keep the two of them in sight. It didn't help that he was also toting around a heavy backpack filled with travel gear. By the time the race was over, the young man was sweating profusely and struggling to get his breath back.
Sylvain and his new friend appeared to have reach their goal at the same time, making the race a draw. But while the young Treecko was worn out from the effort, his fellow grass type seemed to have energy left to spare. So much so that it turned its gaze to Regal, who recognized the gesture as a challenge to battle. He had been waiting for an excuse to use Icarus in a match now that he had evolved into a Pidgeotto, so the trainer wasted no time releasing the bird Pokémon out to fight.
The two decided to kick things off with a Quick Attack, only to be halted by its opponent's Fake Out attack. Having knocked its target off balance, the Nuzleaf followed up with Air Cutter and sent a volley of razor like wind blasts to shred Icarus. Not to be outdone, Regal commanded the Pidgeotto to counter with Mirror Move to reflect the attack back where it came from, and perked up considerably as their opponent was pushed back by the super effective hit. The two charged forward for another engagement and found themselves in a stalemate as they clashed against one another with Leaf Blade and Wing Attack. An unexpected Sucker Punch nearly finished Icarus off, only for the flying type to return the favor with a powerful Air Slash attack. Overwhelmed by the super effective attack, the Nuzleaf finally dropped, after which Regal sealed it in a Great Ball to add to his team.
"That was a close one." The trainer acknowledged as he returned his Pokémon to its ball. "You did great, though. Go ahead and take a breather."
Another powerful Pokémon, and yet another page added to his Pokédex. Slowly but surely, Regal was getting accustomed to his new profession. There was another gym leader waiting for him on the other side of the forest, and he knew that there was still plenty of training to be done if he wanted to win his second badge. But for now he allowed himself to simply enjoy the victory as he resumed his journey, a gentle smile slowly forming across his face.
It was over. Finally. The last Pokémon on his capture list, a Foongus, had been quickly subdued by Sylvain, and the last of the barriers and signs for the bug catching contest were placed as well. Every task for the day was finally completed. Regal couldn't remember the last time he had felt so exhausted. He wasn't even sure if he had EVER felt so exhausted.
"Eleven captures. Six of which were for catch requests." Yamamoto grunted as the two reviewed the trainer's progress for the day. The preparations for both the bug catching contest and the upcoming festival had been taken care of as well, which the older man was pleased with. They'd managed to take quite a load off the Ranger Guild's shoulders. As a reward for his hard work, (and because it was also getting late), the Move Tutor taught Jarvis how to use the move Teleport so that the Porygon could transport them all back to the Pokémon Center back in Applegate City. Regal could have kissed him.
"Make sure to take a long soak at the bathhouse to ease your muscles." He instructed while handing the trainer some writing supplies. "This will be your homework for the evening. I want you to practice drawing circles with one hand while drawing triangles at the same time with your other hand. An hour or so before bed will suffice."
The thought of yet more exercises after the day he'd already had made Regal want to scream, but the trainer kept his face straight as he thanked Yamamoto for all of his instruction today. With that done, the two men allowed Jarvis to use his newfound ability to Teleport them back to the city so they could enjoy their respective evenings. At least, Regal hoped he would get to enjoy his...
[Exit] [Honey Gather Count: 4/5] [Item Finder Post Count: 5/10]
Regal was starting to run out of Sport Balls, which meant that his time in the bug catching contest was almost done. Having now caught a Caterpie and Metapod to add to his hoard of bug types, the trainer now marched further into the forest to see what else he could find to help rack up his score. Another patrol of the area added a Pineco and a Kricketot to the pile, but once again Regal was left searching for something more impressive to improve his odds of winning.
His chance finally came in the form of a hungry Ariados, which had managed to snag a wild Cutiefly in one of its webs. As it slowly descended towards its prey, Magnolia start shaking furiously inside her ball. She clearly wanted to help her fellow Cutiefly from becoming the wild Pokémon's lunch, and Regal was more than happy to help her. Releasing her into battle, the trainer was delighted to see the familiar light of evolution radiate from the little fairy as she evolved into a Ribombee and started hurling Pollen Puffs at the startled Ariados. As the wild Cutiefly escaped the webs and flew away, Magnolia finished off her opponent with a powerful Fairy Wind as she sent the unfortunate bug type careening into a tree.
"Amazing work!" Regal told her as tossed a Sport Ball at the Ariados. "You saved that Cutiefly, evolved and managed to improve our score in one fell swoop."
Buzzing happily at the praise, Magnolia returned to her ball for some R&R while her trainer assessed his current position in the contest. He'd already used fifteen out of the twenty Sport Balls given to him by the judges, and had managed to catch a Heracross, a Beedrill and now an Ariados in addition to the other dozen bug types they'd caught along the way. It seemed like a solid showing, but the trainer suspected that Master Yamamoto would have words for him if he returned without having used all twenty balls. There was still another section of the forest to check out anyway, so he was sure it would all work out in the end. There was no way he was going to lose this contest!
[Exit] [Honey Gather Count: 1/5] [Item Finder Post Count: 9/10]
