(no subject)

[aerial_ace]

Who: Robin, Cordelia, Ami, Rei, Kuzuryuu and Souda
When: Week of 1/26
What: After reports of strange happenings in the mountains, the Rangers have assembled a small group of members and volunteers to investigate what might be causing the disturbances.
Warnings: Stuff like this.


The team had assembled, and a time was set for their departure. It would take a few days to reach the mountains and, depending upon the conditions, at least a day more to get to the higher elevations, even with the aid of Pokémon; likely a few, if visibility really was as bad as reports made them believe. Cordelia made sure to more than outfit and prepare herself, as well as the rest of the party--it was hard to say how experienced the volunteers were, as she did not have the luxury to handpick them herself.

The first few days would be an easy go, the route specifically avoiding the general vicinity of the forest shrine and any other possibly affected areas. Those with mounts were advised to use them, and those without were expected to ride with those with.

They reached the mountains by the fourth day, taking a slightly more leisurely pace than the Ranger would have liked--again, a precaution for those inexperienced with expedient travel. The mountain would prove to be a challenge by that point, with little visibility even in the foothills. Lava drifts cut through the rock like a trail of fiery tears, and mounds of needle-like ice flows shambled across the surface, threatening them at every pass. It would be a slow go, if they could even get up the mountain at all at this point; camping would be difficult, nigh impossible.

Comments

Trek toward the mountains

[aerial_ace]

[master_tactician]

With the conditions on the mountain, Robin thought it prudent to bring some Pokemon that could manage it. And thus, at his side were Bolganone and Fimbulvetr, his Flareon and Glaceon. They both walked at his side, alert and more than a little on edge. Something in this area definitely had them spooked.

[aerial_ace]

Cordelia knew that state, she had seen it--felt it--before. Robin's troops were a bit shaken. It surprised her a bit, considering how well the tactician trained them, but was not entirely unexpected. The air in this area felt different, and wasn't something she could recall experiencing on any of their previous missions.

"The weather is getting worse." Not much for reassuring words, was she?

Rapidash trotted beside the two eeveelutions, letting out a low, hesitant nicker. She was right there with you.

[aerial_ace]

Rapidash acting as pack horse (it was best not to ask how she didn't burn the supplies), Cordelia held the pokemon's reigns held tightly in her hand. While the Fire-type wasn't easy to spook, it was obvious from her movements and the subtle flicking of her ears that something had her on edge.

"We should set up camp for the night," She said finally, bringing Rapidash to a stop and putting a reassuring hand on the horse's neck. "This seems as good a spot as any."

[allergictoloveletters]

"If I might recommend, a scouting of the area before we camp?" Ami offered to Cordelia. The girl genius was not opposed to the idea of camping, but as with all things, she wanted to be thorough. She looked up towards Minerva, her Noctowl and Aurora, her Luxray.

"I have two pokemon with incredibly keen sight who could scout the area to ensure safety." There were several things to consider, of course, any nearby wild pokemon, the ability to make a fire without causing any ice breakage, ice breakage in general, falling rocks, lava, and a slew of other things.

"But it would be wise to not set up camp just yet."

I think my inbox ate this, sorry

[aerial_ace]

"Not a bad idea," Cordelia agreed with a nod. "Please, go ahead."

[biteoutofcrime]

Fuyuhiko may have been a usually city-bound volunteer--his business didn't leave him a lot of time for exploring--but he was a tenacious one, determined not to slow the team down or complain. He spent most of his time in his Mightyena form, padding alongside the group with his nose to the ground while his Pangoro, Banchou, lumbered after, listening for threats. The big lug, who ordinarily acted almost exaggeratedly relaxed, seemed warier than usual these days. Perhaps he was even just a little bit fretful.

"Oi," Fuyuhiko muttered, defaulting to human speech even as a Mightyena without really thinking about it. He fell back into step with his Pokemon and nudged his leg with his shoulder. "It'll be fine. Don't worry about it, we left it in good hands."

[creamsouda]

"The egg, huh?" Kazuichi asked, plodding along in mawile form alongside them. Much more gracefully, a somewhat-recently evolved Belaire finds her way over to Banchou to rub her head against his paw.

"I guess it's safer back there," he mentioned, somewhat grateful it was a little more difficult to see how much he was fretting as a mawile than as a human. "I-I mean, anything's gotta be safer than this...."

[biteoutofcrime]

Fuyuhiko snickered, though the vaguely oppressive atmosphere didn't let it sound either as amused or as taunting as his laugh usually would. It was more an attempt to sound normal than anything else.

"Come on. Scared, Kazuichi? We got real Rangers on the team and all that shit, you know." He bumped his friend with his shoulder as well. "You saying you don't trust 'em?"

Ignoring Fuyuhiko, Banchou looked down at Belaire, offered her a smile that wasn't even trying to be that cool and aloof, and rubbed between her horns.

[creamsouda]

"I-I-I didn't say that much!" Cried Kazuichi defensively, stiffening at the suggestion. Of course he trusted them! They were Rangers!

...Didn't he?

He pouted, crossing his little arms. "I'm just sayin'. It's crap out here, man."

Moving her head up against the pangoro's touch, Belaire appreciated the headscratch-- and hoped the solidarity would ease his nerves a bit.

[biteoutofcrime]

Well, it must have been doing something, since Banchou rolled his shoulders back again, fingered his sprig of bamboo idly, and assumed a look of such obnoxious paternal warmth towards everyone in the vicinity it was a wonder he didn't spontaneously sprout a tie.

Kuzuryuu blatantly ignored him. "Heh." It was pretty crap, but it was nice to have so much fur as insulation. "Why do you think I don't leave the city much? It ain't just business sense."

[faithfulflame]

Well, of their particular group, there were really only two logical choices to go into the mountains. Rei and Ami. So, they'd headed out together, Rei riding atop Casius, and with Olympus Mons flying well overhead. It made sense for them to at least have one flyer each airborne, anyway.

As they headed up, though, she wonders if she really is prepared for this. It isn't exactly doubt...but anxiety. Does she have the right Pokemon with her? Is she really, really ready for whatever this is? Is this what her dreams have been leading up to? She's silent as they move, a pensive expression on her face.

[allergictoloveletters]

Ami had a book and map ready at hand while Aurora walked beside her and Minerva flew overhead. She had a whole pack of potions, books and a few other supplies that might be necessary as they headed further up the mountain. Over her eyes were a pair of goggles and she lifted them up when she gazed up at Rei as she rode Casius.

The girl genius had made sure to research as much as possible, bringing the pokemon who could best handle any sudden strange situation and the environment. She ensured a balanced team was on this expedition. She watched Minerva flying beside Olympus and keeping her gaze on everything around them to act as an early warning system. As Ami kept alert for any changes, and movement, any signal from Minerva or the environment and allotted enough of her attention towards that while moving the rest of her attention towards Rei.

"What's wrong, Rei-chan?" she asked as Aurora walked ahead of them and some of the others, using her keen eyesight to ensure nothing attacked without warning.

[faithfulflame]

Rei, for her part, had heavily favored Pokemon that she knew where capable of resisting heat and cold as well as for power and balance. Phobos had been unhappy to stay home, as had Ravi, but flying types in the winter mountains seemed a poor choice. And changing them out was not going to happen, not with time being so pressing.

"I don't like this," Rei answered distractedly. "This...something about this feels like we're getting in way over our heads. And it's not just my psychic senses either. This is something major. I just...I know it somehow. And I don't like it."

[allergictoloveletters]

Ami had Aurora as a mount but was giving her a break for the moment since the path was still rather easy and didn't require much energy. She wanted Aurora to conserve as much as she could for the much rougher path likely to come. Where Ami could walk, she did. The enlightened pulled out her canister and handed it to Rei.

"Drink," she ordered before she would address Rei's comment. Ami still wasn't quite sure if Rei's enlightened abilities made her more susceptible to dehydration and whether or not she was using up more water in her system than an average person might.

"And I'm not surprised you don't like it. There's not much to like, I'm afraid. We're dealing with a literal unnatural phenomena and it could be any number of things. But, getting in over our heads is a matter of preparedness."

[biteoutofcrime]

After a short scent trail off to the side had turned up precisely nothing, the Mightyena dropped back into the group, small beside Rei's Arcanine. Whether he'd caught it from the group or the Shifter was just as sensitive to the environmental changes as a real Pokemon, Fuyuhiko felt uneasy, and, as such, wasn't saying much.

"Hey," he finally offered, lifting his head to look up at Rei. "The Shrine gonna be okay without you there?"

[faithfulflame]

Rei looked down, her hands holding the long, red oak bow tightly as she did. Not out of nervousness, but it was the first time she'd really felt right carrying her family's heirloom weapon out into the wilderness and she didn't want to lose it.

"It'll be fine. Grandpapa can manage it just fine. He's...just too old to go out like us."

She's not worried about her grandfather, not one bit. The old geezer was pretty spry, and his psychic abilities weren't to be sneezed at either.

"How about your family?"

[biteoutofcrime]

"Tch. Yeah, they don't really need me in the city right now. If the old man or my mom runs into anything they can't take care of on their own, they've always got my sister." Canines didn't really shrug, but he did tilt his head to the side for a moment as if to express the depths of his indifference. "She's better at that shit, anyway."

She'd do way better as head of the clan and everyone knew it. Everyone but their parents, it seemed. Fuyuhiko let his head drop a bit, then shook himself.

"Well, they won't even miss me. Not like I've spent the night at home since..." He trailed off for a moment, then sounded actually surprised. "Damn, it's been months."

[creamsouda]

See, Kazuichi was visibly timid. Anyone who knew him, however, would know that wasn't an indicator of anything. With his only pokémon, the houndoom Belaire, beside him, he seemed even smaller.

This had been a bad idea. Why had he left the city? This was such a bad idea.

He wasn't even sure what he could do to help, but it was too late for that; he was there, and he'd agreed to this and he was just going to do his best not to drag his feet behind Kuzuyruu's pangoro.

Reaching the mountains

[aerial_ace]

Nightmare, locked to Cordelia

[master_tactician]

While not necessarily enormously proper, it was immensely economical for Robin and Cordelia to just share a tent. He'd already purchased a larger one, having already been making plans to go on any number of adventures once they were properly wed and it'd be a shame to waste it. And so it was that Cordelia got to for the first time witness her husband to be jump into a sitting position with a start, breathing heavily with wide eyes. While they were currently sleeping apart, it was sudden enough to wake even a heavy sleeper.

Nightmare, locked to Cordelia

[aerial_ace]

She was a light sleeper, always had been; it came with the work she kept. Hearing something, Cordelia began to rouse, wrapping herself deeper into her blankets. It was cold, and the slight whimpering sounded distant enough to not worry her. Managing to fall back to sleep, she felt something. Trembling?

Opening her eyes, she caught him as he shot up, nearly jumping up herself. "Robin?" She kept her voice soft, but it was obviously full of concern.

Pre-marital status and night clothes be damned, she knew a night terror when she saw one. Rising from her blankets, although still keeping one somewhat wrapped around her, she put a hand on his shoulder.

[master_tactician]

"Wah!"

Robin jumps at the touch, clearly still a bit disoriented.

[aerial_ace]

Cordelia pulled away quickly, startled by his reaction. It took her a few seconds before she finally took him into a gentle embrace, keeping her voice down once again. "It's all right," She said, trying to sound as soothing as possible. "It was a dream. You were having a bad dream."

[master_tactician]

[It takes Robin a bit to calm down, but he eventually manages. Leaning into Cordelia, he sighs quietly]