"I've heard legends of murdered humans being changed into spiteful, vengeance-seeking Ghost Pokemon. That might be the case here." I shrugged, and gave the kid a quick smile. "Lead the way. I'll follow. Best if I'm not seen though, play our cards close to our chest."

((Insofar as the bounty on the Pokemon, why not go for it? We kinda need a sidequest anyway.))

I saw the bounty poster and frowned as Leo read it out to us. That can't be right. Why would the Pokemon bother harming humans, especially around here, where Elemental is so low-key? I shrugged. It could just be Elemental controlling the farmers through more subtle means. My own paranoia was startling, but then again, I wouldn't have put it past Elemental to do such a thing.

Leo handed me the Silph Scope, saying that he wanted me to hold onto it because he didn't think he'd need it anymore. "Leo... I know we've had our issues, but since we'll all be traveling together, I think you'll need it just as much as us." I grinned. "If you and Cassie go after the Pokemon on that poster, that's all right. The rest of us can go ahead and set up the safehouse, or you guys can come with us and help out, then go monster-hunting." I brought the Silph Scope to my eyes and looked at everyone, playing with the features.

Each person in our group's hearts were outlined. All of them had a slight glow to them, a goldish tinge. But they all also had a tinge of shadow around the edges, or the inside, or both. It occurred to me that somehow, this device had allowed us to view a sort of visual representation of each person's inner state of mind. Disturbing was the first word that came to mind; intimate was the second.

In the corner, there was a compass. The heading above it read, "Pokemon finder." The arrow pointed off to the north... nearer to the house. It was interesting; maybe we'd find a nest of Rattatta or something nearby. But then I had a better idea.

I handed it back to Leo. "Here, tell you what. Let's all go to the safehouse and get settled in; tomorrow, you guys can use that Pokemon finder dealie to find the thing that's been burning the crops. Sound cool?" I wasn't sure how Leo would respond, or Cassie for that matter. Either might prefer to leave immediately...

((whichever works, lol.))

I looked over at Axel and nodded, cracking a slight smile. "It sounds good to me, I'm honestly not picky. It's up to Leo. I'm just kinda tagging along out of curiosity."

((For this sidequest, we've worked and combined our ideas together, and I've PM'd LM what I've came up with and asked her to PM you my uneditted result. Whether you use that Pokemon finder to meet up with us in the last second is your choice. Or you can lead the others directly to the safehouse and use the Scope to meet your new guardians you've picked up while LM and I finish up.))

Nervous when he looked through the Scope and toward Leo, he sighed a breath of relief. Was the pokemon inside him undetectable past his own aura? Who knew. Leo was handed the Silph Scope back. He looked upon it sadly, looking up as Axel. He didn't understand Leo, did he? He had to make sure.

"...Axel," Leo put the Scope back into his hands, "I'm letting you hold on to it because I know that I can trust you now. Cassie and I won't be long, I promise we'll come back and meet you at the safehouse in one peace."

Leo looked out toward the road, "Cherrygrove is directly West from here past these fields. Since we're splitting up, I'd be a lot safer for the three of you to travel directly to Cherrygrove, and from there, track up the roads North. You should find the safehouse easily in that area using your PokeMorphs."

Axel... if Leo had a bigger brother, he'd want him to be just like Axel. Leo smiled smugly to him before turning to head off back to New Bark.

"We'll see you later."

---

After watching Leo and Cassie leave the group, the phone in Axel's pocket began to ring. He answered it.

"Hey, it's me. Holding up okay? Just making things easier so you know where the safehouse is. It's North of Cherrygrove. The safehouse is secluded enough, don't worry. It's surrounded by a hill all sides, along with a forest. You could make all the noise you want and none would be the wiser. It's a nice little place with a small river running through it, too. I'm sure you kids will like it. But anyway, be careful, alright? New Bark and Cherrygrove are more or less rural since Elemental, but I hear the Governor there's a pretty nasty character. She's famous around the region. Her name's Catherine. I haven't been formally introduced, but I've been told she's a formidable pokemon trainer as well. Once you're ready, be sure to take caution when you enter Violet City. I'm not sure if she's been told of Farquahar's death or not. But I'm positive she's searching for you, too. I've got no leads on the whereabouts of the two namesakes Sarah or Elizabeth... Well, good luck. I'll call you again when I can."

Chrono put his feet up onto his office desk, hanging up the phone. He sighed. These times were hard since Katya's death... His wife was in complete agony, and all he was given to do since he got back was paperwork. Piles of it towered in front of his desk. Along with his career, the mourning, and working for the rebels... He doubted his life could return to normal. Chrono looked over to a photograph frame of his wife, himself, and his daughter. He smiled. He doubted his marriage could last much longer... Chrono could feel his wife consider it, probably right after the funeral. But if helping protect those kids made Katya happy, he would have done everything in his power to make that possible. He could already imagine what those kids had gone through before all this.

I nodded at the rest, then headed off, falling into step with Leo. "So, what do you think the rogue Pokemon is?"

"Well, it's a fire type. That much we can be sure of..." Leo walked alongside Cassie, wondering himself what the pokemon was like, and what they were getting themselves into, "Fire types themselves are rare, especially in this region. Whatever the case, we can't rule out that Elemental is behind this, but what would be the prepose of terrorising farms and burning crops? I'd say it's a wild pokemon... but wild pokemon don't do those sorts of things for good reason... I don't know."

Leo sighed, trying to find the words to talk to her. The questions he wanted to ask... it was his only chance. He had to take a shot. "Cassie... You know I lot about pokemon through actual experience... That's why you cope so well with your dragon morphs, because you know better than anyone else their pure instincts... I guess what I wanted to ask is... What are the signs of a dragon pokemon going into an Ourtrage? If this pokemon's instincts are of revenge... and it's as dark as anything you could imagine... how can you possibly stop something like that? If you can't, how can you at least hold it back?"

Leo gazed down, still worried of the darkness of the pokemon inside. He felt like he was a ticking timebomb. If this pokemon wanted, it could completely take over. Leo wasn't strong enough to hold it back, at least not yet. He was happy he had the power to stop Elemental. But what was power if he couldn't control it? What if this pokemon hurt his friends? He wondered if her dragon pokemon could sense the presence of another dragon pokemon inside Leo...

After entering New Bark, they came to a house belonging to the farmer Joel. Leo looked over the poster again, putting it away into his back pocket. "Okay, this is the place." He looked around if the coast clear, morphing into Sparky before jumping onto Cassie's shoulder. <Trust me. This will work. Your name is Elizabeth and you're a famous pokemon trainer. You're working for Elemental and you came to ask about the pokemon. You remind me of her and you're almost the same age as her, anyway. He should be completely fooled.> he chattered. He wondered if she worked out the Elizabeth Chrono mentioned was actually his sister Sarah...

I shrugged in response to his question. "Physical signs are easy, you watch the dragon's eyes and body language, things like lashing tail, clawing the ground or air, snapping irritably... sometimes flames, if it's capable of that. As for instincts, I was lucky with this Garchomp. Her aggression mainly comes from protective instincts, of herself, those she considers allies, or "hatchlings", as she puts it. She doesn't know Outrage, though if she did I might have ended up using it when Katya went down. She and the Charizard were screaming for blood, and I don't think I would have restrained them then."

I sidestepped a puddle of water and went on. "I don't know if there's a specific way to stop it. I assert my will as strongly as I can, and usually it works, the calm Swampert helps a lot now. If I can't stop it, I'd at least warn you all to get out of the way and point myself towards the enemy before it breaks loose."

When Leo in Pikachu form jumped onto my shoulder, I started a bit, surprised, but scratched the small mouse behind the ears gently. "Elizabeth, huh? Shouldn't be too hard to remember." I had my suspicions, but I kept them to myself for now...

Walking up to the farmhouse's door, I knocked boldly, hoping my face hadn't spread to Johto. "Hello? I've come about the rogue Pokemon."

((I told LM that I agree with the sidequest details. I think the rest of us will use the Pokemon finder to catch up with you guys. If you could track the Pokemon back to a clearing in the forest near our safehouse, that would work out best.))

I nodded at Leo, watching as he walked off. I was glad that he trusted me. He was a good kid... In some ways, he was the glue holding the group together. The little brother that everyone looked out for and really cared for. I was definitely glad that Bill had made us take him with us. Leo was definitely someone I was glad to have on the team.

Because that's what we were, right? A team to fight the Team. I liked the ring of it; if we could band together, and add to our ranks, we would be unstoppable. I grinned as Cassie and Leo walked over the horizon. I knew they would be okay now.

I turned to Seth, Jeremy, Steel, and Vincent. "Alright guys, we need to get to this safehouse." Just then, Chronos' phone rang. I was unsure whether or not to answer at first, then flipped it open.

"Hey, it's me. Holding up okay? Just making things easier so you know where the safehouse is. It's North of Cherrygrove. The safehouse is secluded enough, don't worry. It's surrounded by a hill all sides, along with a forest. You could make all the noise you want and none would be the wiser. It's a nice little place with a small river running through it, too. I'm sure you kids will like it. But anyway, be careful, alright? New Bark and Cherrygrove are more or less rural since Elemental, but I hear the Governor there's a pretty nasty character. She's famous around the region. Her name's Catherine. I haven't been formally introduced, but I've been told she's a formidable pokemon trainer as well. Once you're ready, be sure to take caution when you enter Violet City. I'm not sure if she's been told of Farquahar's death or not. But I'm positive she's searching for you, too. I've got no leads on the whereabouts of the two namesakes Sarah or Elizabeth... Well, good luck. I'll call you again when I can."

I nodded. "We'll be careful. And Catherine... well, hopefully we avoid detection for just a little bit more. Thanks again! Axel out." I hung up, then sighed. Irregardless of the fact that I had essentially gained family, I was reminded that others had already lost it. Chronos... someday, I would go back to Kanto and make up for Katya's death. It was my honor-bound duty.

We ambled slowly along the path, enjoying the temporary peace fostered by the open country and forest. It was nice not to have bad guys chasing you constantly.



Joseph washed ashore New Bark town in a really small dinghy. He had spent a week in that goddamn forest trying to set his shoulder; it'd started to heal, but he'd had to hold a doctor's kid hostage to get a proper setting for it. At least the doc had been too scared to rat him out...

Elemental had instantly turned on Joseph. On what evidence, there was only the fact that he'd left, and hadn't gotten the kids. That was enough for them to turn on him. He'd heard a couple years ago about some guy named Vincent who'd gotten kicked out of Elemental... That guy had just as big of a warrant as Joseph did, now.

Joseph walked up the path to the town. He snickered at the farmers. What simpletons. As soon as he got those kids and his rank as an Elitist, he would do away with small towns like this. With a gun in his pocket and vengeance in his heart, he went to go find clues of the brats.

((okey dokey, so me, Pory, and tt are all gonna check out the safehouse. Crunchy and LM have a sidequest, although I guess Pory or tt could say, "wait 4 me plez" and catch up... But we'll get our morphs anyway :p ))

((When everyone's settled at the safehouse after our little side venture, since rex has told me he wants to focus on character building and training, I wouldn't mind if everyone gathers and openingly have a full on discussion about each one of their pasts around a campfire or something. I really, really don't want poly or tt feeling left out, and I really want to encourage them to add more to the story, so I've taken into account these posts as well:



Reading Seth's history, I'm not sure his character would remember them at all that much since both his parents died at the age of 9, thereafter living on the streets. Unless he still went to school. Or perhaps, since those were precious memories he clung onto, he could easily remember them from back 6 years ago. His old friends may not remember well, but I'm sure Seth will. I'm not sure about Stewart since Steel hasn't been posting, but I reckon Jack, Micheal and Peter could easily be hetchmen for Elemental for your choosing, poly.

As for tt and his character Jeremiah...



Almost the same thing for you possibly... your friends you made in the boarding school, if Jeremy made any friends at all after he was taken away from his family, could be working in a specific Elemental lab that we could find later on. Your parents could actually be very much alive as well, and that's actually pretty important and unique in the group (nobody elses relatives were pokemon researchers (although LM's Cassie's were pokemon breeders, that's not exactly the same thing), plus most of the characters' parents are dead). They could be in the same situation as your friends, or they could possibly escape, find our team, and work for the rebels as pokemon researches, keeping a distance with another phone device as Officer Chrono has been.))

((Okay, a few other things that I should remember...

Consequences with PokeMorphs.

LM brought to my attention that we are acquiring morphs too fast, I replied that maybe later on after the the Johto region that we could lose some of morphs from our own choosing. I was thinking that possibly the Orb gets shattered and then repaired or something... But since we might not want to lose some of our morphs, that might be a bad idea. And other thing, Leo told everyone that there was a danger to connecting to the guardian pokemon (reliving their deaths and feeling their emotions, before obtaining that pokemon's form) with use of the Silph Scope. None of us has lost control once. Some of us have had instinct issues and those of us have had those instincts rubbed off onto our own human selfs, others holding back instincts while remaining human themselves. But I feel these consequences for morphing isn't quite good enough.

So, if rex would like to implement it. Once we acquire our FOURTH morph, until a certain major event where we learn to control the morphs entirely, no matter how hard the pokemorphers try, they will morph into one of their obtained pokemon at RANDOM. For an example; Leo faces off with a Golem. In the currect story, he's acquired four pokemon he can morph into. He knows his best bet is to morph into Bulbasaur for a type advantage. However, when he tried to, he instead morphs into Pikachu. From there, because he has no time to change back into a human and try again, he'd have to use the environment and other tricks and maneuvers to win. Overall, I think this could greatly make the roleplay more unpredictable and exciting. Of course, you can always write that you were lucky this one time and got the morph you wanted. I'm thinking more along the lines of desperate situations where the mind is reacting way more hastily under stress.

Another thing I would like to elaborate on... In certain events, after just acquiring a strong new morph, or emotions of the human (anger, sadness, or happiness --- all extreme proportionsof one emotion) or the instincts of the pokemon become too great for the pokemorpher to handle, they should enter a berserk mode. The consciousness of the current pokemon morph taking over the human mind. Think of mode as an extreme and improved version of both Trash and Outrage. Random attacks, attacking friend and foe, including confusion and hurting themselves. This "berserk mode" can only be broken once the pokemon is defeated. Meaning, the only possible way to calming and stopping the berserked pokemon is to wait until the morph is defeated and fainted, the other roleplayers having to turn on you and cast their attacks on you to stop you from causing havoc and destuction. For example; Leo's morph Dragonite takes over his actions. I write that the pokemorph's lost it's mind and turned into a rage, blasting everything, friend and foe. You realise this, and direct your attacks on Leo until the Dragonite faints. Leo reverts after his morph is defeated and recovers.

Anyway, these are all ideas. What are your thoughts? These aren't in stone, well, until we all reach a decision and rex agrees with me. Would love your each of your inputs, though I'll get to writing and continuing the story very shortly, so stay tuned!))

Added after reading LM's comment below:

((...Those are extremely good points haha. I guess I didn't think very much about it before I posted lol. Anyways, again, these are simply ideas, whether one of some of you decide to go with them is up to the individual roleplayer. But yeah, I agree that random morphs for everyone may not be the best of ideas since you put it that way. Also, I did imply a lot that if it did happen it would apply every single battle. So, I guess I should've used random a little more lightly. Just sometimes at random, like you're idea of "mind control problems" and "aiming for one form and having another form with more powerful instincts butt in and override". I like those ideas much better.

You weren't sounding harsh at all. I fully argee with everything you said and liked your constructive criticism The last bit about someone sneezing reminds me of that young lady (who was in love with Tien I think) in the earlier Dragon Ball Z episodes haha. When she had blue hair she was sweet and innocent, but when she sneezed and became blonde, she was violent and bratty and pointing her gun everywhere. That WAS retarded.

I guess what I'm getting at is, since everyone is soon on their way to obtaining more powerful morphs and getting a lot more pokemon type coverage, there should be some kinds of weaknesses and disadvantages from usage of the Orb and these pokemorphs, and not just the point that one particular pokemorph may not be strong against one type or species of pokemon, when they can simply morph into another when they have the chance. Again, thinking of consequences. I wouldn't mind if everyone had their own personal weakness, up to the point of gaining a full six morphs. It shows character to have weaknesses. That's what I'd like to see in the future anyway I know all of my ideas (which I basically had planned in the beginning anyway) are going to eventually get thrown at Leo because obviously he's the youngest and emotional haha.))

((NO RANDOM MORPHS. Absolutely NOT. I don't mind control problems, which is what will probably happen with Cat as her dragons adjust to the new morphs, but I refuse to RP randomly turning into something for every single battle up to a unknown plot point. I don't like it, and I'm not going to do it. We could be aiming for one form and have another form with more powerful instincts butt in and override, but I am not going to write it as random.

Secondly, your idea of strong emotions is a good one, although I argue that it needs to be very carefully handled in order to prevent melodrama and to keep the RP flowing properly. Those of us who play older characters with strong personalities should not have as much trouble with this, due to willpower and personal maturity. Leo on the other hand would probably have the most trouble controlling his morphs in this respect.

Sorry if I sound harsh. I really don't like the idea of randomly morphing, it reminds me of a story where someone was forced to change shape everytime they sneezed, and it produced some really retarded situations. I'm not going to do it, period.))

((Didn't want to double post again so I added the reply I gave to you in the same post, LM.))

"Hello? I've come about the rogue Pokemon." Cassie knocked.

The Pikachu chuckled lightly to himself. This was going to be a cakewalk. <Now remember, say exactly what and how I tell you, Cass.>

After a couple of seconds, a man in a blue but stylish overalls answered the door. He quickly caught the sight of the pokemon on her shoulder, "What does a pokemon trainer have to want with me? You want me to call Elemental to sort you out?" he threatened borely.

<Tell him; I AM Elemental! I'm Elizabeth, Elemental's prized Pokemon Master! Stand aside and let me in! Be furious!> he told Cassie. Not exactly how Elizabeth would act, but giving them a threat annoyed him enough to make Cassie respond like that.

"Uh, uh! THE Elizabeth?!! Sure, sure! Come in! Come in! Please, make yourself at home! The rogue pokemon you asked?" he opened the door to her and they walked inside.

<Cass, you're doing great. Don't be nervous. Be yourself now! Okay, tell him this; Yes. I'm here in the Johto region investigating the recent pokemon sightings in this area. I've come here to enquire and gather information to do with these affairs.>

"Recent? Uh, the pokemon sightings... Right... Well, they're not recent. They've been going on for years now and you guys have done nothing about it. My father, bliss his soul, had to fend multiple pokemon off before he gave the farm to me... A lot of other people have had property and land destroyed as well..."

<So they've been going on for awhile... And there's more than one pokemon, too... Interesting... Tell me, more about this rogue pokemon. Your description on the bounty poster was very vague. Why do you want these pokemon dealt with anyway?>

"I, uh, I apologise, Miss! To be honest, I've never seen the pokemon close up! All I know is that it's definitely a strong fire type pokemon! It has destroyed many of my crops and has taken my livestock on many occasions! All of know of it is that it just enjoys or finds some sort of pleasure in making our lives more difficult than they already are! Along with those other pokemon! We townsfolk shouldn't have to put up with these beasts any longer. It just makes me so mad..." he seemed annoyed. I guess you would be after years of putting up with it. It was sad he hated pokemon so much. Was the whole town like this? It seemed more or less this man had tried to confront these pokemon before.

<Have you tried to track down the pokemon before?>

"Yes, multiple times," he sighed, "Ever since I was little boy. However, I couldn't follow the trail any further, not even my father, bliss his soul. It's too difficult to traverse on foot alone. They disappeared up the mountains of Route 46. It could be possible they follow right to Route 45... Who knows?"

<Right. Well, with my abilities, I'm sure I'll be able to deal with those pokemon for you and the town. I am the greatest pokemon trainer of all time.> Errr, perhaps that's not exactly what Elizabeth would say, Leo.

"Oh, really?! Thank you so much!" he kneeled down and bowed to her feet.

<Of course! And, about those missing people... Do you think they're connected to these pokemon sightings?>

The man got up, a sadness in his eyes, "...Yes. It could be possible. A lot of younger lads have disappeared hiking, again and again... It started almost the same time the pokemon started appearing... I'm probably one of the lucky ones... Listen, when you go up there, be careful, okay? They say the mountains are haunted. Whether or not the pokemon and the missing people are connected, you'll have to find that out yourself. None of us are going near the area again."

<Sounds like you were right, Cassie... Let's get going. --- Thanks for the help. I'm on it.>

"Be careful now!" he called to her.

<Oh yeah!!> the Pikachu tagged at Cassie to turn around, <Since I'm the person I say I am, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to be paid the bounty in advance. You understand.>

The farmer Joel ran tears down his face as he handed her the money, "...Here you go..." he cried.

---

As the two left New Bark, Leo chuckled victorously as he waved the cash around in his hand like a fan, "Haha, what did I tell ya?! It worked! I haven't ever had this much money before!"

Leo soon went back to his gloomy self. He pondered on Cassie's words from eariler. As long as he could warn the others before he morphed into something he couldn't control first... then maybe he could avoid hurting them completely. Now, he was set on telling the others about the dragon pokemon. However, they had a side venture to complete first.

Leo morphed into his Pikachu form, Sparky, jumping onto Cassie's back again. Because the routes were impossible to traverse normally, pokemorphs were the way to go, <Cassie, lead the way!>

((Off to Dark Cave in Route 45 we go ))

---

Meanwhile, in the skies above both the regions Kanto and Johto...

A helicopter zoomed and hovered above, entering the Johto region. Sarah... or rather, Elizabeth stood overlooking the country as they flew past. The passager door was slid open as she gazed out, the winds blowing her shiny dark red hair back and forth. She wasn't phased at all by the heights and the speed the helicopter took. Elizabeth was quite couragous. She was ordered to travel via helicopter as her main transportation. Because pokemon trainers were almost non existence, if she was spotted piloting a flying pokemon, Elemental could mistake her for an enemy. She had to take it in her stride. She'd rather be free to fly and experience being a trainer to the fulliest... but this was her life now. She couldn't complain.

When the helicopter reached her destination, Violet City, the helicopter slowed its momentum, descending steadily toward the landing pad. Violet City was now home to Catherine Dalliance the Third. She stayed inside a huge and glorious mansion, surrounded by a huge green courtyard with surrounding fences, gates, and typical surveillance via sercurity camera and Elemental cronies acting as guardsmen. The landing pad was in front of the mansion in the courtyard. Elizabeth glanced around, simply disgusted. She jumped off as the helicopter's motor propeller was spinning to a stop.

Elemental goons lined up on each side of the path to the front door. They all gave a salute as Elizabeth walked up the path, somewhat pacing without giving any notice to them. They treated her like royality.

They large mansion doors were opened to her by servants as she walked inside. Continuing to the dining hall.

Again, a well placed servant formally opened the door for her as she entered to see a older lady possibly in her 30's. She was sitting at the very end of the table. The long dining table could've possibly held thirty people all sitting at once, the china and utensils shined and polished an orderly fashion for just such an occasion. By her lonesome, she sat enjoying her sparkling wine as she daydreamed. Before Elizabeth could interupt her, she gazed up from a smile after pondering... "Ah, Elizabeth. Welcome to my mansion. How do you do? Care for a glass?" Catherine greeted and asked politely, yet still holding her sinister looking smile. She was probably thinking of something cruel and manipulative, as per usual... Catherine had blonde fair hair, and had a tall, regal build. Physically, she was very beautiful. Even on par with Elizabeth. However, the cruel look in her eyes showed her own inner evil. Even to someone like Elizabeth, her eyes remained the same.

Elizabeth glared, "No thanks. I'm here on a mission." To think she had to work with someone like her if she was ordered, especially after everything she had done to her home region. It made with sick to her stomach. "I'd like to get this over with... So I suppose I'll start from the beginning."

OC: These are all some very good ideas. I'm sorry that I haven't had much time to post lately, since I've been preoccupied with my first month of high school (that's where I'm posting from now ). I've been tending to write just sort if "go-alongs" with what you guys have been writing. I really would like to add to the plot, and I have a few ideas of my own.


I had already talked with rex about a mission to break out my two friends from the academy somewhere much later on in the story, and was really hoping for something along those lines. Maybe we could attempt to break them out of the academy, but fail, and after Elemental moves them to a lab, we break them out of there and find my parents during the process.



I like these ideas. If the Cube broke, this would give us a chance to acquire one or two different morphs in exchange for others. As for losing control, the Pokemon I was thinking of acquiring for my character next was Breloom, and since it's part fighting type, maybe I could have my character attack you guys?



Yeah, I don't think this would work. Sorry, but good idea nonetheless.



I like this idea too. This could work, but mainly for the dragon-types or other really big aggressive Pokemon. If we were to lose some forms, I might acquire a dragon though. Maybe Hydreigon...

So anyway, I'll try to post more regularly from now on and contribute more to the plot. This is my first RP, and truthfully, I'm having a lot of fun with it!

OOC: I completely agree with LM that we're acquiring morphs too fast. I haven't really controlled it, though... I guess this one is on me. I intended originally for us to acquire morphs really slowly, mastering each one before moving on to the next. That isn't what's happened. It seems like our characters get a basic grasp of the capabilities, then move on to the next new thing. So I will be slowing it down a bit after this.

As far as randomly morphing, there's no true way to make it random. For instance, I could be facing a Psychic type, and say that I'm going to morph into Pidgeot. But I "randomly" morph into Mightyena instead, thereby giving me an advantage. So, since there's no true randomness to it (and I'm not saying everybody would abuse it, but still) I'm going to have to say no.

But insofar as we need more challenges with morphing, I totally agree. The "berserker mode" thing you mentioned sounds interesting. I think someone needs to snap in the story, to teach us that there truly are wild creatures living within us. The only problem is that it can't go until you faint; if you faint, you're unconscious, soyou can't morph back, meaning you can't heal, possibly causing issues. But there do need to be challenges. I'll elaborate on this in a minute, but I want to address something else first.

Okay, so a lot of us have missing or kidnapped family or friends. Axel's mother, Bill, Seth's friends, etc. There IS a plot point involving ALL of them. I won't reveal it here, but it'll be after Johto. Don't plan anything without telling me about it first when it comes to these kinds of characters; suffice it to say that Elemental has them.

Breaking the Cube: it would indeed have to be repaired, as you said. In fact, Axel's character is such that he actually would've destroyed it first thing in real life. But we actually kinda need it in case we need to let more people into the RP (dunno when this point would be, but as an eventuality, it has to stay in one piece). Repairing it is fine, though. I'll see if I can break it during the next battle we have.

Berserker Mode: I agree wholeheartedly. The only problem I see, though, is that say, a Phanpy won't have a mean disposition or even enough power to cause this kind of thing. So, how about we have a point where you start to hear the voices of your morphs inside your head? Cassie can already feel the dragons influencing her decisions, baying for blood at times. Why not take it a step further?

Like Crunchy, I would indeed like criticism or comments on my ideas. Most of it is just rehashing of what Crunchy said. To be honest, though, I'm just surprised it's taken this long for us to work this out. Taking care of this stuff now is best, so I encourage discussion :p

EDIT: Just don't forget to actually RP. Someone needs to start a conversation with me :O

We came to the entrance of a small forest. This must be what Chrono was talking about... We entered, not with trepidation, as in other cases, but with a sense of excitement. This was a new experience, and we'd finally be able to train and actually relax a little. As Seth, Jeremy, Steel, and Vincent entered ahead of me, I looked back over my shoulder. There was no one on the path behind us... It had to be safe. I followed the others.

Inside, there was a small path. Off to our right, there was a little river. I could see through the water... It was really clear, and it looked like there were small Barboach swimming in it. The path curved around gradually, leading eventually to a small house. I could see from the shape that there were at least two bedrooms and probably a small living room-kitchen combo. I made a mental note to give Cassie one of the rooms to herself, since she was the only girl. The rest of us could space out between the living room and the other bedroom.

To the left of the house there was a small clearing. Small tracks of Pokemon criss-crossed it, and flowers and small bushes ringed the clearing. It seemed like it would be ideal for us to train in. Maybe we'd be able to construct a small obstacle-course or something to challenge ourselves further, in time. But for now, it would do well.

I gestured to the others. "So, who's ready to see our home for the next few weeks or months..?" I sounded unexcited or even sarcastic outwardly, but inside, I was relieved that it didn't look like a trap.

I saw a large tree off to the right of the house, and promised myself that I would carve a memorial to Katya and Bill there, a small memorial to their sacrifice for us.

I stayed in character until we were out of sight of the farmer, before reaching down to scratch behind Leo's ears as we walked through the gatehouse that would lead us to Route 45. "Strong Fire type Pokemon, huh... Wonder what it could be. Hope it's not a Camerupt, those things know Ground type moves and in a cave that would be very, very bad."

I turned to look at the Pikachu riding on my shoulder. "When we get inside the cave, I hope you don't mind if I switch to Swampert form. You can still ride on my back if you want to..."

OOC: Yep, they're well remembered memories from grade school. And I'll try to start posting more, just been a little hassled with school. I'll definitely make a full-length post when I'm back from school.

And about berserker mode, I have an idea: Maybe it can be introduced when one of Cat's dragons sees my Aggron morph and just kind of goes crazy?

Route 46... Like the farmer Joel's description, the route's terrain was close to impossible to climb unless you were a pokemon. The rocky terrain lead up into a mountain, Route 45... And the famous Dark Cave... As they entered the area, they could already feel the presence of eyes watching them.

Leo jumped from Cassie's shoulder. "You should switch into something mean right about now..." he looked behind his tail, "...Something's giving me the creeps. ...I don't know. I just have a bad feeling."

"If I can ride on one of your morphes to Dark Cave, that would be helpful," Leo nodded, "...As long as your pokemorphs don't eat me, that is."

((Ok, let's catch up.))

Cat and Leo went on their Pokemon hunt, and Axel, Jeremey, Vincent, Steel, and myself set out to the safehouse. After a little while of walking, we saw an entrance of a small forest. We all entered, and came upon a clearing. There was a path leading up to a river. I walked up to it. "Wow... It's so clear and pure. And there are Pokemon living in it!" I said with amazement and happiness. We continued to follow the path and found our destination. From the angle I was walking toward it from, I saw a kitchen. Wow... A kitchen? Thank you, Chrono... I thought.

"So, who's ready to see our home for the next few weeks or months..?" Axel said, and gestured in. I stepped in first. There was a living room-kitchen type room, and what looked like 2 or 3 bedrooms. One's probably a bathroom. I thought. "This is... Really nice." I said, walking in to the house farther. "Looks like we're gonna have to share bedrooms," I paused, remembering Cat, "Cat should get her own, though." I sat down on a chair in the living room and really relaxed for the first time in almost a day. I felt comfortable and at home. I smiled. I hadn't felt this way in 7 years. "Come on guys, relax!" I said.

((Sorry if you didn't want me to describe the house, Rex. I can edit it out if you want.))

((I don't have time to write a full post right now, but just remember that it's only two bedrooms; it's more like a small apartment in the middle of nowhere than an actual house. Oh, but you should probably add in the bathroom; I forgot that >_>))

(("And about berserker mode, I have an idea: Maybe it can be introduced when one of Cat's dragons sees my Aggron morph and just kind of goes crazy?" -- it's a good idea but I don't see why the dragons would go nuts at the sign of an Aggron. It's not a threat to a manueverable Charizard, and the Garchomp doesn't inhabit the same areas as Aggron, so they wouldn't come into contact.))



"Something mean, huh?" I chuckled as I stretched my arms, tilting my head to one side to make it pop. "I can manage that. And don't worry. I've got enough restraint to warn you if one of the dragons is about to break loose, and you'll be able to get clear in time."

I concentrated, reaching for the morph, embracing the now-familiar changes as I slid into Garchomp form. The Ground-Dragon could handle Rock types with ease, and was vicious enough that it would deter most smaller Pokemon from attacking us. Finishing the shift, I crouched down and turned my head to look at Leo, indicating my back.

<Climb on. Sit above where my dorsal fin joins my back, then you can hold on to my shoulders when I'm upright.>

OOC: Had the bathroom in there, but I just fixed the bedroom thing. Also, are we just gonna assume that Cat and Leo are going to know their way to the safehouse, or are we going to send someone looking for them or something?

((Oops, I forgot to use "<>" again indicating I was still a pokemon. Silly me. In other news, I'm glad I've got the ball rolling for some ideas flowing around you guys. I suggest we include the breaking of the orb in some major event where Axel has no choice. Would we still be able to morph without it, would it cause problems with us morphing if it was ruptured in some way? Anyway, with the consequences of pokemorphping as a whole, as long as there's some clear barrier we have to climb in order to master them, possibly resulting from gaining four pokemorphs, since most of us have shown little difficulty using them, I'll be happy with that. As for Leo and Cassie finding the safehouse, don't worry, they're capable of finding and/or running into it.))

Leo nodded, still in his Pikachu form, <Okay!> he morphed back into his human self, climbing onto the Garchomp. He was uneasy about this. At least if he was a Pikachu, if he fell off he'd just bounce back. There was an advantage to being a yellow ball of fluff. But his Pikachu wouldn't be able to hold on, especially at her speed. However, as a human, he'd have to worry about actually dying... This wasn't going to be a comfortable ride. Nothing like flying with Axel in his Pidgeot form. Anyway, Leo trusted Cassie. More or less than he did Axel.

Leo grabbed hold of her shoulders as strongly as he could, giving a nod. "Alright, let's get moving." He said as couragous as he could in this situation. A tiny bit terrified, however. Leo remembered the time he chased Cassie through the forest and lost her, mind you with the helpful boost of Agility. He was barely able to match up with her speed. Hopefully, Cassie wasn't going to move THAT fast this time. He thought he should remind her this wasn't a race... "...SLOWLY. Okay??"

((Well, we can communicate by telepathy, so all we have to do is finish our errand, get within range of Cherrygrove, then morph and ask... or track you by scent... Also, re cube breakage, I don't think it'd pose a problem to us shifting, and it certainly doesn't affect acquiring new morphs.))

I huffed softly in dragon amusement as I started moving, brushing through the long grass with the Pikachu perched on my dorsal fin, keeping to a fast but smooth walk to avoid jarring the little mouse. <I'll go slowly, promise.>

((breaking the cube wouldn't, as LM said, affect our own powers of morphing. But let's make it so that the Cube is what makes it possible for us to communicate telepathically; i'll find an ideal situation where this will be a challenge for us, or something. Berserker mode... hrm. What if emotions from the morphs build up over time within you; every once in a while, you have to let them go somewhere, and BAM. You go into an induced rage where both you and the morph's emotions (probably mostly negative, since that would be make more sense) suddenly take control. So, decide on a point, or date, where you'll go berserk, and in the posts before that, build up the emotion in your posts. Then, wherever we happen to be on that date, you HAVE to go berserk. What do you guys think?))

I nodded to Leo. "I agree. Cassie definitely gets her own room. The rest of us can just deal with sharing, I guess." I went to the bedroom on the left side of the living room, and opened the door.

Inside were two beds and a series of closets. Upon opening said closets, I found bags of supplies: backpacks, food, water, flashlights, batteries, Potions, Pokeballs, Repel, and Escape Ropes. I nodded approvingly. Anything else we needed we could go into town and buy in a non-suspicious manner.

Another closet had a dial on it. Attached via a sticky note was a combination. I slowly turned the knob, then opened the safe. Inside were rows of guns; there was ammunition, both lethal and non-lethal. Bullets sat next to paintballs and tranquilizer darts. I shook my head; we wouldn't need any of this, and it was just something that would get in our way or cause us trouble. Chrono meant well, but he hadn't thought this specific aspect out. I made it a point to quickly change the combo, intending to get rid of them later with Steel or Cassie's help.

I returned to the living room, then sat down on one of the dining chairs. I leaned back and closed my eyes. This was home; it sure felt like it already. With my eyes still closed, I fingered the miniaturized Cube around my neck. This thing had changed my life in so many ways....

I got up and started a fire in the small hearth in the center of the living room, then went back outside, carrying a pocketknife. I went over to the tree and started carving.

((later, us three will probably go outside and start sparring or something; then LM and Crunchy can do their thing and track it back this way, if they want. Also, I'm gonna go through and see how many morphs everyone's got... I've only got the two, but I just realized that I don't have a solid idea, so make sure your morphs are updated.))

((Emotional buildup makes no sense. We're all mature people, we don't just store EVERYTHING up inside for god knows how long in-universe. People don't do that. We can deal with our own emotions, and though I can't speak for the others, Cat has been handling the dragons' aggression by letting it out in controlled amounts, so it wouldn't be an issue for her. The only reason berserker mode would trigger in her is external factors, like a child being killed or something.))