3 vs. 3 triple
DQ: 7 days
Damage cap: 99%
Banned: Moves that aren't Metronome
Arena: Hearthome City
Hearthome City is the largest city in the faraway land of Sinnoh, with a population of errr... 91. It's home to a number of Contest-related facilities such as the Super Contest Hall and Poffin House, as well as Amity Square where one can walk around with only select cute Pokemon. Of course, there's a Pokemon Gym, with a Ghost type theme.
The battle will take place at night, in a location in Hearthome City of the ref's choosing. Numerous streetlights surround the battling area, and if they were all to go out the battlers would have a -1 to accuracy each. There is a fountain nearby for water-based attacks, and the ground is paved concrete sidewalks.
Other: Metronome only.
It isn’t a dark and stormy night in Hearthome, the night when disaster strikes. If it had been raining, another night would have been picked—though, due to the fickleness of the random number gods, entirely different events would have transpired.
No, the sky is beautiful and clear, and despite the light pollution from the various buildings, numerous stars shine in the sky. The air is pleasantly cool, helped along by the slight breeze drifting through the city, though it occasionally sends a shiver down a random person’s spine. The shadows occasionally flicker, and there’s the unexpected glint of light off an eye in the alleys, but Hearthome is a safe, peaceful city, where parents dream of raising their children. Despite the presence of a gym, Hearthome isn’t known for battles or even mild violence; the main draw to residents and visitors alike is the only Super Contest Hall in all of Sinnoh. Pokémon both aesthetically pleasing and capable of breathtaking performances, and the coordinators that make such things happen, are quite famous around here. There are the occasional ghosts, perhaps, but they are not truly feared, as the ghosts help watch over the people of Hearthome. Or so it is said.
Given a basic description of the location Windragon wants to battle in, the referee leads two trainers down the streets. The streetlights are perhaps closer than they would be in other cities, so as to make the road nonthreatening to children even at night, and indeed there are several people out on the road. The referee leads them past two fountains and up a street where two boys are battling, pitting a clefairy against a staravia. (“Metronome,” one of the boys orders. The trainers, quite impressively, manage not to draw attention to themselves with their laughter, and the clefairy only manages a double-slap, anyway.) Then the three make another turn, away from the gym, until they arrive near one of the fountains they’d seen before. There’s a waist-height white fence between the battlefield and the fountain, but the water is still accessible. A middle-aged man relaxes on one of the benches, completely unaware that this could be unsafe. A few potted bushes lined up with the walls of a few buildings, and another row runs parallel to the street.
The nearby poké mart isn’t closed – it never is – but it is nearly empty at this time of night, but for the underpaid cashiers dying of boredom. It’s the only public institution clearly visible from here, though the trainers are aware of the other public buildings, termed “targets”, nearby. Still, they remain fairly far from the gym, perhaps out of respect for the gym leader. Or maybe just because they want to get in some fun before the referee has to deal with her; Asber’s authority isn’t recognised this far out, after all.
Authorised or not, the referee still deigns to follow standard procedure, reading out a list of potential participants and dictating the flow of the battle.
Windragon, without any real options to speak of, just tosses three poké balls onto the road. Three flashes of white light congeal into three different forms. A togepi with a bell tied to one of her head-spikes takes a look around her, then perks up when she spots her teammates. A meditite materialises in a sitting position, eyes closed, but when the light fades, she opens her eyes to stare directly at the opposing trainer. Windragon’s third pokémon, a sableye with eerily shining eyes, just looks confused. She has never seen any of this before, and only saw her trainer once, when she was being purchased. Will she really receive no introductions before being thrown into battle? And—what’s this? None of her allies know draco meteor, she is certain, and she certainly doesn’t see a gym. Perhaps the gym is their enemy. She certainly never expected to become the pokémon of a heinous criminal.
Grass King releases his own triad. A geodude appears standing on his large hands, but after taking a look at his rather small opponents, lets his body drop heavily onto the concrete. He removes a precious egg from his mouth and cradles it with one hand, the other forming a fist. One ally, another togepi, materialises with a shiny bit of rock apparently glued to her head, looking not unlike yolk. Then, perhaps the oddest creature of all appears, one with the form of a kecleon but completely covered in what might be mercury or some other metallic liquid. She is the most easily visible, every part of her reflecting light, but the odd armour doesn’t seem to hinder her at all.
Then comes the most important part of any match: giving out orders. Grass King immediately shoots for the top, demanding power and blasphemy from the start. His declared intention to use the powers of the gods draws attention from some oblivious trainers—a woman who’s clearly in good shape and a man with fishing gear sticking out of his backpack—but another woman, pushing a stroller, gives him a frightened look and hurries away. The small audience gives Grass King’s pokémon an odd look, though, not understanding what he’s going on about. These aren’t god-beasts under his command. They’re normal pokémon, and not particularly high-levelled ones at that.
Windragon’s orders sound just as insane, though they’re much simpler. She intends for all of her pokémon to use draco meteor as much as they can, even if that would leave them exhausted and weak afterwards, though she’d be fine with borrowing the powers of the creator or the pokémonification of nightmares, too. Expy just gives her a look of confusion until Ashglade kindly informs her that they’re to use metronome for the whole match. Because, you know, that’s so much more
normal.
The other humans just seem to decide the battlers are drunk, and turn away to loiter as they were before.
Well. Their mistake.
Windragon [OOO]
[Ashglade] Togepi (F) Serene Grace @ Soothe Bell
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Metronome ~ Metronome ~ Metronome
Status: “A park! Let’s walk there, later.” Happy to be with friends.
[Nanasa] Meditite (F) Pure Power
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Metronome ~ Metronome ~ Metronome
Status: “It is often that you must choose between meteors and victory, trainer, but more often that you haven’t the choice at all.”
[Obvious Expy] Sableye (F) Keen Eye
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Metronome ~ Metronome ~ Metronome
Status: “I… what?” Utterly baffled. Everyone using metronome? What’s this all about?
Grass King [OOO]
[Igneous] Geodude (M) Rock Head @ Lucky Egg
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Metronome ~ Metronome ~ Metronome
Status: “This is going to be spectacular. Just watch me!”
[Aglaia] Togepi (F) Serene Grace @ Shiny Stone
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Metronome ~ Metronome ~ Metronome
Status: “There aren’t a lot of plants here to work with, but I’ll try my best!” Hoping for a repeat of her previous performance, but hopefully with more winning, this time.
[Espionage] Kecleon (F) Color Change @ Metal Coat
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Metronome ~ Metronome ~ Metronome
Status: “Hiiiiiiiiiiii!” Cheerful and excited.
Round One
Nanasa raises her hands in front of her and waggles her fingers from side to side, a movement that will become familiar to every participant by the end of this battle. Most, naturally won’t understand the true subtleties of this movement, how they warp the fabric of reality in tiny ways or how the rate of the movement determines the outcome, and, like the trainers present, only view it as a moment of suspense before Nanasa’s fingers start to glow. Water spills into Nanasa’s mouth, and she holds it there for a moment despite the steam billowing off of it. She turns her head and spews it all over Aglaia, who screeches. The water is so hot it feels like ice, and Aglaia can just tell she’s going to have blisters. Expy shakes her head and follow suit, spinning a piece of the universe around her claws until she feels energy spilling into them. For a second, as purple sparks crackle over her eyes, she realises that this feels familiar, and then purple electricity arcs into Espionage’s chest.
Espionage rubs at her chest, surprised. She didn’t feel anything at all, but the sound was unexpected, as is the fact that she was the target. Then a smile spreads across her face. Her turn to make the universe her plaything. Her metronome brings her attention to Ashglade, but try as she might, she can’t find what she’s searching for. There’s the distinct absence of something she needs from under Ashglade’s feet. She shakes her head. Well, that didn’t work, but that’s alright! She still has more chances.
As for Aglaia, Igneous, and Ashglade, they find themselves waving their paws and fingers at the same rate as each other, and their respective appendages all glow at the same time. Aglaia gathers all of her mental energy into herself, drawing them into the focal point on her chest (her gem, she thinks). Her chest glows a brilliant pink, and she turns to Expy. Dark/ghost pokémon are abominations against psychics like her, and she didn’t come to this planet so she could find herself surrounded by them. A massive sphere of energy blasts from her chest, narrowly missing Expy and Nanasa. It instead tears through the poké mart, incinerating the clerks in the briefest of split seconds, and keeps flying through empty air until it comes across the immovable walls of the Super Contest Hall, where it explodes. Chunks are torn out of the wall, some striking unfortunate victims. Though too far for the battlers to see, a purple-haired woman in an elegant gown rises to her feet, her shocked expression melting into anger.
“Dialga and Palkia, what the fuck happened?” a man demands. He leans over the fence and gapes at the participants. Igneous spits out a glob of… well, who knows, but it looks unpleasant… into his hand and hurls it at Ashglade, throwing her into a roll. It doesn’t quite manage to wipe the odd smile on her face, though.
“I’m calling the police,” a blond-haired woman says. Her face is pale. “Is… ah, is there any point even calling for an ambulance?”
Ashglade forces herself onto her feet and runs forward at Aglaia. Though Aglaia is busy gawping at the destruction she just caused, Ashglade will not be hindered. She bombards Aglaia with words of praise—awesome, so pretty, amazing, you’re so strong—and Aglaia jumps, startled. She stares at Ashglade, wide-eyed, but her fellow togepi – perhaps more of a friendly competitor rather than a rival as she’d thought – seems sincere. Even though they’re enemies. It’s true, she realises, she is that amazing, but she’s also so, so
tired after that, and it makes it hard to think. Why would Ashglade be praising her? They’re enemies, right?
“The police? Call
Fantina!”
Nanasa serenely follows up with her second metronome, apparently unperturbed by the attack that almost struck her. It was much closer to hitting Obvious Expy, but it was still close enough for her to feel the alien presence behind it. It doesn’t matter, though. Rationally, it was a one-time thing, just like what she’s about to do next. Her legs move on their own, pushing her into a running jump, and just as she realises this may not be a one-time thing after all, she shifts position in midair to bring her foot down on Espionage’s chest. She lands with a sickening
crack, throwing Espionage to the ground, and gracefully returns to her meditation position. It’s hard to tell under the paint, but Espionage, now groaning and trying to sit up, has changed colour to a dull orange.
Expy gives Aglaia a flat look and waggles her fingers again. She doesn’t get the point of this, really, but if it’s going to make her trainer happy… but if she’s supposed to get revenge, there are far more efficient ways to do it. Like not leaving it to chance. Despite the destruction the attack caused, though, she wasn’t really scared of it. It barely even registered as something she should take note of. But, as for now… she does feel something. A distant power, something beyond what humans can truly comprehend, the powers of the sun and moon, the distant planets, and even the comets swinging around in their strange orbits around the sun. Even at this distance, she can tap into that power and draw it into herself. The others can only see her sparkle silver for a second, but she doesn’t seem to do anything.
Espionage groans again, but using her own metronome doesn’t really jar her sore ribs, and whatever movements happen won’t be wholly under her control, so it won’t hinder her that much… she hopes. But when it summons an itching in her throat, she realises it can, in fact, make things worse; if she ends up having a coughing fit, she’ll probably end up in a lot of pain. Fortunately, “cough” is not actually a move metronome can summon, and her next action is a little more potentially productive. Her tongue snaps out, releasing several caltrops and scattering them all around Windragon’s half of the street. Every spike is coated in poison, and the liquid coat produces its own shine under the streetlights.
Aglaia groans to herself. She still doesn’t get what Ashglade was going on about! Why would her opponent do that? It
doesn’t make any sense! She violently turns to ask, but the movement sends her off balance, and she falls painfully on her back instead. Meanwhile, Ashglade and Igneous race to achieve the fruits of their metronomes.
Ashglade leaps at Aglaia and hugs her tightly. Aglaia groans. Okay, so maybe Ashglade really is kind-hearted enough to love everyone and everything, or something like that. That does make sense. But Ashglade’s paws are as small as Aglaia’s, and they come to a point, meaning that when Ashglade glomps her like this, it really does kind of hurt.
Igneous closes his eyes and clutches his lucky egg in both hands in front of his face. Desperation beyond anything he’s ever felt fills him, as he
knows there will be a punishment for Aglaia recklessly borrowing a power from a celestial being. And so he must beg of another to counteract the terrible fate that awaits Aglaia—not directly, because that can’t happen, but he can wish for his allies to be strengthened. After all, unlike Windragon, Grass King has many more metronomers on his team, and with their power, they might be able to win this match! For his team, he will definitely sacrifice everything!
With every bit of willpower he can muster, he sends his wishes to the sky. But the effort exhausts him, and with a slight sigh, he closes his eyes and goes limp. He disappears in a flash of red. There is a pause, and the location where he was pulses with gentle light, but then that, too, disappears.
The other five share a moment of solidarity as they try to figure out what’s going on (Aglaia having a bit more difficulty than the rest). Then it’s back to hoping a higher power will let them beat the shit out of each other.
When Nanasa’s waggling fingers glow next, the glow grows to cover her entire hands, and then the light forms into a ball in her hands. The light shrinks into several small objects, too small to see until she throws them onto the side of the road not already covered by caltrops. These, too, are coated in shining poison, threatening anyone who might step on them during the course of rushing toward opponents. Now things are in balance, as they should be.
Expy waggles her fingers with bated breath. Okay, so it’s possible to summon some great, destructive power with metronome, but then there are risks, too. It’s possible to… er… randomly faint with nothing to show for it, not even an explosion that might manage to harm all of your enemies. So it’s like gambling, perhaps. Humans do that, sometimes.
The light emanating from her fingers spreads to coat her entire body, and for a second, Expy wonders if she’s about to go out that way, too. Or if this is just a show of energy before something grander, like the explosions she was just thinking about, even if it doesn’t feel like energy’s building up inside her… but there’s something happening within. It’s an odd feeling she can’t quite explain, but she doesn’t feel quite like herself. She feels a lot more… mundane.
Espionage’s metronome gives her the opposite feeling. She’s massive, she’s beautiful, she’s every shining colour of the rainbow instead of predominantly one at a time. Her arms are wings, releasing heat with every flap, and so awe-inspiring that even a feather would be priceless. She gets to her feet, spreading her arms. Pain? She can heal pain, so it hardly matters. She’s not going to, though, because there are more important things at hand. She narrows her eyes at the togepi. Ashglade thinks to attach herself to Espionage’s ally? No, she won’t allow this. A sheet of fire envelops her, gifting her its revitalising warmth. She flaps her (wings) arms forward, and the huge curtain of fire envelops both egg pokémon.
Both togepi scream as the fire sears into them, barely managing to separate before they plunge into a world of nothing but pain. No part of their surfaces are left untouched, though the burns range from mere blistering in small patches to the skin being blackened in places. But for Ashglade, it’s even worse: the poisonous gunk Igneous managed to cover her in alights, setting her front and much of her head on fire. Her silver bell, a product offered by
one of the most important stores in Asber, naturally remains untouched, but as for the rest of her? If the burns get any worse, she’ll be nothing but ash and bones.
Fortunately for her, whatever poison managed to get on Aglaia’s back is burned off in the first second, but it still hurts. She whimpers. How could her own teammate do that to her, especially after they just witnessed their other ally faint? They’re already disadvantaged. M-maybe that was Espionage’s fault, too. After all, it’s in her name. And after the traumatic battle Aglaia just had, with her last memories of fire…. No, she can’t think like that. All Aglaia has to do now is waggle her paws a little, and it’ll be taken care of for her. Sniff.
And while she doesn’t suddenly feel stronger, she does now know what she must do… even if it involves moving. She winces, but points her head, shiny stone and all, at Nanasa. (Who knew she had muscles to burn there? Oh, Ho-oh,
ow…) The top of her head becomes encrusted with stone and she bounds forward as fast. Perhaps by chance, or simply because she can’t raise her feet high enough to pierce them on the spikes, she manages to avoid scratches to her feet—but perhaps they’d be preferable to the pain that shoots through her head when she smashes it against Nanasa’s chest. Nanasa lets out a rough breath upon impact, and both stumble back.
Ashglade, too, manages to leave it all up to the gods of chaos, and she finds herself glad she did. She sits down and closes her eyes, ignoring the flames still covering her and the burns all over her body. It might hurt, but the goop itself seems to insulate against the heat, and it’s not as hot as the fire that started it. She breathes in, ignoring the stinging of her throat and the horrible smell and taste, then exhales. Then she turns her mind inward: even if some of the burns reach her muscles, they are still functional, and she can move. She just has to focus on her muscles and have control. It’s all about control.
Unfortunately, some of the former audience aren’t so controlled. “You’re going to keep going?” One woman reaches for the poké balls at her belt. “Are you fucking insane?”
“Wait,” a fisherman says. “Leave it to Fantina. I’m sure she’s noticed by now.”
End of Round One
Windragon [OOO]
[Ashglade] Togepi (F) Serene Grace @ Soothe Bell
Health: 77%
Energy: 90%
Metronome: Flatter @Aglaia ~ Metronome: Wrap @Aglaia ~ Metronome: Meditate
Status: Horribly burned under the blazing gunk covering her body, but oddly calm. Throwing up a stink, and also on fire.
Attack +1
Burned (severe)
[Nanasa] Meditite (F) Pure Power
Health: 91%
Energy: 79%
Metronome: Scald @Aglaia ~ Metronome: Hi Jump Kick @Espionage ~ Metronome: Toxic Spikes
Status: Bruising over his ribs, but in good fighting shape.
[Obvious Expy] Sableye (F) Keen Eye
Health: 100%
Energy: 90%
Metronome: Night Shade @Espionage ~ Metronome: Cosmic Power ~ Metronome: Camouflage
Status: Totally comfortable ignoring and being ignored by everyone. Normal-type.
Defence +1, Special Defence +1
Grass King [XOO]
[Igneous] Geodude (M) Rock Head @ Lucky Egg
Health: 100%
Energy: 0%
Metronome: Gunk Shot @Ashglade ~ Metronome: Healing Wish
Status: Fainted.
[Aglaia] Togepi (F) Serene Grace @ Shiny Stone
Health: 71%
Energy: 74%
Metronome: Psycho Boost @Obvious Expy ~ confused ~ Metronome: Head Smash @Nanasa
Status: Suffering from burns, exhaustion, and a massive headache.
Burned (severe)
[Espionage] Kecleon (F) Color Change @ Metal Coat
Health: 69%
Energy: 83%
Metronome: Grass Knot @Ashglade ~ Metronome: Toxic Spikes ~ Metronome: Sacred Fire @Ashglade
Status: “One out of three ain’t bad.” Extremely sore ribs, but otherwise untouched. Fighting-type.
Battlefield:
- Toxic spikes are scattered all over the battlefield.
- The poké mart is demolished, and the wall of the Hearthome Contest Hall is broken.
Notes:
- Expy’s night shade had no effect on Espionage
- Espionage’s grass knot failed due to the lack of significant vegetation around the battlers’ feet
- First action legendary move, not bad at all! 10 points to Aglaia. Also, it missed.
- Igneous fainted on the second action.
- Aglaia was attacked herself due to confusion on the second action, but her confusion wore off on the third action.
- Expy’s camouflage turned her into a normal-type.
- Espionage’s sacred fire (see? She can do
something right) struck and burned both Ashglade and Aglaia.
- Ashglade released wrap early.
Next round:
- Windragon commands
- Grass King commands
