USPE 30: Parting ways.
16 Dec 2017 19:48![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xaq_the_aereonI won't go into much detail on Route 11 since I've already cleared it. I will point out that Stoutland found a few pieces of Stardust in the various bits of tall grass, though, so using it to sniff out items is definitely worth it.
Also, a random encounter with an Ariados boosted Serana up to Lv 40. It gives her the chance to learn Whirlwind, which sounds awesome but is functionally the same as Roar: it boots the current opposing Pokemon out of the battle. Pass. With all that out of the way, the Trial Guide opens the path beyond Route 11, and onward to the Ghost Trial. Spooooooookyyyyyyyyyyyyyy but not really. Onward to Route 12!
Aaand right away we hit an impasse of rugged rocks that I'd probably break my ankle trying to walk over. Stoutland and Tauros aren't sure-footed enough for it either. Gee, if only a convenient NPC encounter would give us a means to hello there Hapu and Mudsdale! What an unforeseen coincidence! She hands me the Mudsdale Page Rider in thanks for helping her out back in Akala.
"I was remiss not to register this to you back in Malie. I was jsut so taken aback by Lillie and how lovely she was that it escaped me." And thus another log is added to the "Pokemon Ultra Su/Mo Fetish Fuel" fire.
Afterwards, she asks me if I know about the Ultra Recon Squad. Huh, wonder how she knows Dulse and Zossie?Maybe she's caught up in Zossie's cuteness as well? Anyway, I could just say I keep running into them, but she DID just give me a horse, so cards on the table: I'm kinda helping them out. Thankfully this answer doesn't bite me in the ass; it seems helping people with their troubles is tradition for people and Pokemon in Alola. Yay, I'm fitting in! Anyway, past Route 12 is Tapu Vi--
Oh dear. Tapu Village already...well, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, time to saddle up, hombre! HI-YO MUDSDALE, AWAAAAY!!! *CLIPPITY-CLOP, CLIPPITY-CLOP*
Along the way I espy 2 Punks itching for battle, so for the moment I veer south to explore more...runing right into Rising Star Leilani, who preaches about how Pokemon should be both strong AND cute.
I find zero flaws in this philosophy, but I put it to the test regardless.
[ROUND 1: vs Tirtouga]
...I'm sorry, this isn't my idea of "cute." [ONE VOLT SWITCH LATER] Or strong. I still find your philosophy to be sound, though...it is one of the fundamentals behind Team KAISER, after all, who I talk about an awful lot considering their lack of being in this playthrough. O_o; Anyway, turns out she was blocking an Elixir. Yay?
Up ahead I come across a Graveler. Would rather evolve a Geodude, but adding to the Poke Pelago collection is good enough right now. It survives a one-shot Flash Cannon due to sturdy, whiffs with Electric Punch, calls for help to no avail, and gets caught in a Dusk Ball moments later, bringing Erinys up to Lv 40 in the process. With that, the whole team is now out of the 30's. Nice.
Still think the Alolan Geodude line looks stupid, though. :/
A little farther south and I find this whole back-alley thing was a bypass for the main route. Nope, no skipping stuff here. Back we go!
Oh, a Torkoal. Nice, THAT one I'd like for the collection for sure. ...Oops, never mind. Thumb slipped and I hit Volt Switch instead of Thunder Wave. Sorry, Torkoal. Think I'll switch things up a bit and put Spectra in charge. Now then, what was I forgetting back here? Oh, right, Punk Pair Yoko and Lane. You guys wanna get rowdy? Okay.
[ROUND 1: vs Pancham & Krokorok]
...Why do I keep saying "Round 1" when dealing with trainers who only have 1 Pokemon? Anyway...
Spectra puts the Pancham to sleep, then Serana lets loose an Air Cutter that almost KO's it, while the Krokorok goes to about 1/2 HP before missing a Crunch on Spectra completely. WHEW!! Next turn, Spectra finishes the Pancham with Dream Eater, boosting Obsidian to 41, while Serana Steel Wings the Krok for...nearly nothing. It fires back with a Crunch that puts her at half health. Owie!
Shadow Ball wraps things up nicely.
Heading south puts us at the crossroads with Rising Star Matthew, who claims I'm bashing his way of life...i.e. Pokemon Battles. No, kid, the only thing I'm gonna be bashing is your team. Let's go.
[VS Cranidos]
Yeah, that looks MUCH nicer. Hypnosis has it nod off, then Dream Eater brings this battle to a screeching halt and Langstrom to 41. Wow, suddenly Serenity's not in a massive Lv lead anymore.
And that brings us back to where the side road rejoined the path, as well as into direct contact with Scientist Press-X-to-JAYSON!!!
[ROUND 1: vs Porygon]
...Yes, I switched back. He has 2 Pokemon. :p
Jayson kicks things off with an X-Defense, and I kick things off by completely forgetting that Porygon is Normal-type by trying to Shadow Ball it. *facepalm* Payback does minimal damage, while Agility raises the Porygon's speed. Okay, time to put someone else up here or we'll be here until next August. Erinys, you're up!
Aaaand more Agility. Sheesh. Signal Beam hits next and does a devastating four damage before the holographic Pokemon somehow gets Toxic'd. Whatever, just makes for a nice one-two knockout with Venoshock next turn after another 4-damage Signal Beam.
[ROUND 2: vs Magneton]
Not interested in dealing with this. Inferno Overdrive FTW. While that goes off, a dumb joke for ya:
Q: "How does Ryu greet his blonde-haired, red-wearing sparring buddy?"
A: "HOWDOYADOKEN?"
Done groaning? Okay, let's continoh my goodness I just ran into a Houndoom. If I didn't have Erinys on the team, this would easily be in her place. Against my better judgment, I tag in Langstrom, who promptly gets Odor Sleuthed...and again while Thunder Waving the thing. Now, with its Fire-type status I think it should survive a Flash Cannon...and I'm right. It doesn't even drop to yellow. One more? Big bucks, no crits...STOP!
Whew! It's at about 5% HP and paralyzed. Should work for a Dusk Ball... ... ...YES! Welcome to Poke Pelago, Dante! To the west of where we caught him is a Collector making the "beat everyone else first" challenge and offering the TM for Dragon Tail in return. Challenge accepted. Next to him is Surfer Robert, who is a good ways from the beach at the moment. Still, with Serana switched to the front, surf's up I guess!
[ROUND 1: vs Remoraid]
Air Cutter leads to a quick wipeout.
[ROUND 2: vs Sandygast]
This is kind of a goofy one...a Ghost/Ground-type that's an animated sand castle. It dodges Air Cutter and uses Iron Defense, which basically makes turn 1 a wash. The 2nd Air Cutter crits and almost one-shots it, while Serana dodges a Mega Drain before finishing things up with Psychic. Gnarly.
Heading past him puts us on the path to...Blush Mountain? Not familiar with this place. Better save in case I accidentally wandered into a high-Lv spot and am about to walk up to a Welcome Bear when talking to Office Worker Shane.
[ROUND 1: vs Electrike]
So much for that worry, my team's 8-9 levels past him. Psychic and Thunder Fang trade fairly solid blows, while Leech Life finishes him off and recovers some of Serana's HP and brings her up to 41.
[ROUND 2: vs Electabuzz]
I swap Erinys in for this one; she's the only one still at 40 and has less than 800 Exp to go. Toxic starts things off sickiningly well, while her Poison-typing renders its Low Kick rather useless. Its Quick Attack deals a bit more damage, then Venoshock gives the usual 1-2 knockout and brings Erinys up to 41. For a brief moment the whole team is at the same level. Huzzah!
And then Serenity hits 42 off of the Exp Share. XD
Anyway, it seems we've detoured over to the Geothermal Power Plant. Nifty. Apparently this place attracts all manner of Electric-types...explains why Shane was using them. First one I see is a Togedemaru, which I just Quick Ball to get my Poke Pelago count up to 60. BRB, gonna go do some upgrades, such as boosting Isle Aphun up to Level 3, which unlocks the Rare Treasure route. Great for finding sellables, which should make affording to clear out any future TM Shops a snap. :D
That takes care of that. Time to check out the Power Plant.
"Welcome to the Geothermal Power Plant! Come learn all about our plant...it's electrifying!"
I beleive this is the proper response, Celine? Yes, me griping about a bad pun. Watt a shocker, I know. For me, the complaints with jokes usually aren't in the low quality of the pun, but in the delivery. If there's too much emphasis on the punchline it just feels...forced.
Anyway, looking around further we find a scientist who wants us to come back tomorrow to get something from him and dammit Oak whaddya want now? ...Oh. He wants to give me a Lure Ball. What's that? ...And he disapears without telling me. Of course. Ah, it works on Pokemon caught with the Fishing Rod. Okay.
There's also a Magnemite here who looks sad. Aww, what can I do to cheer you up, little guy? :[ ...No clue. Making a note of this. With that the side-trip is done. Back to Route 12.
I head south to where a Mantine Surfing Area is located. Sweet, time to hit DAMMIT OAK, WHADDYA WANT NOW!?!? Oh, he just wants to talk about Matine Surfing and then remind me that, if I need him, he'll be on Heahea Beach...and, y'know, every other square foot of the Alola Region. Anyway, on to Ula'ula Beach! MILTANKABUNGA, DUDES!
A sweep of the beach reveals another bottled letter, this one fairly new. The writer wants me to deliver the letter to Nainoa, a trainer at Malie City Cape, who they want me to challenge. I know the one they're talking about; the Rising Star who blew me off.
*cracks knuckles* Y'know what? Surfing can wait for a few minutes. Time to ride the airwaves for a bit. [ONE TRIP LATER] And sure enough, that Rising Star's the one I needed to talk to. Seems the author of the letter is some guy named "Arabella," whom a bit of research reveals is one of the Ace Trainers from the Viridan City Gym. Cool! Nainoa gets rather pumped at the idea of the challenge and pleads for me to take him on. Gladly!
[ROUND 1: vs Delibird]
Oh crap, he's leading with an Ice-type and I still have Serana, a Flying/Dragon type (aka QUAD DAMAGE) in the lead. Right then. Erinys, why don't you give it ago? She gets bonked with a Present upon entering, which sadly isn't one that restores HP. Flame Burst doesn't exactly restore its HP either...quite the opposite, really.
[ROUND 2: vs Mudbray]
Y'know what? A Ground-type seems like a good one to try out Serenity's new Primarina-exclusive Z-Move on.
Which basically goes like this: a resonating G to conjure a giant sphere of water, and then a B to shatter it and drown the opposition. Bravo, my little siren! Bravo! :D
Ah, it seems Nainoa's from Kanto as well. Nice. He gives me a Pearl String for helping him reconnect with an old friend. Glad I could help, buddy. Good luck on your upcoming Island Challenge! Right then, back to the beach. Near where the bottle was is a Berry Tree. Crabrawler?
Crabrawler. Air Cutter. No more Crabrawler. 6 Leppa Berries as a result...as if I needed more after my recent Isle Aplenny harvest put me at about 350. XP Anyway, if you'll excuse me for a bit...
[A GOOD WHILE OF MANTINE SURFING LATER]
The top spot for the Melemele-Akala Surfing Route is MINE! WOOOO!! Clearing this hurdle nets me the Lanturn 360 trick, which I pull off about 14 times on the way back to Ula'ula beach, netting a finals core of 46,691...which I believe utterly demolishes the previous top score. It nets me 10 more BP and the Primarina Twist move, which scores big on small waves.
A check of the leader board confirms my theory: the previous top score was only 43,200.
With that load of awesomeness done for now, I get back on track and run into Swimmer Sara, who I believe is the last trainer on Route 12. Let's wrap things up with her and get to that Dragon Tail Collector, eh?
[VS Starmie]
Rapid Spin and Psychic both plink of to little effect. The Starmie does some good damage with Swift while Steel Wing, again, does diddly...okay, Serana, time to tag out and end this. Langstrom, go for it. The next Rapid Spin hits dead air, and then Gigavolt Havoc zilches it out. ZONK! Sorry, was in a bit of a hurry.
Time to take on Collector Andrew, the self-proclaimed Kahuna of Route 12!
[ROUND 1: vs Larvesta]
Okay, this was unintended, but I just swapped to Obsidian beforehand, and this thing's Bug/Fire...meaning quad damage from Rock-type moves. [ROCK SLIDE'd!] Sorry. Thanks for bringing Obsidian up to 42, though!
[ROUND 2: vs Pinsir]
Another bug, another Rock Slide. Suddenly not sorry. Partially because it survived. Right then, Mr. Route-12-Kahuna, you wanted Z-Power involved? Ask and ye shall reZve! ...Okay, that pun fell about as flat as Pinsir after a Continental Crush. At least Langstrom hit 42 after it. Alright, Mr. Kahuna, pony up the Dragon Tail TM.
You can keep the title of Route 12 Kahuna. I don't need that. But good on you for expanding your goals past this stretch of turf!
Of course, silly me forgot that Dragon Tail is just another boot-'em-out move, this one being Dragon-type. *sigh* Oh well. On to whatever's past Route 12. Surprise surprise, it's...ROUTE 13! Wonder what we'll see on this rouoh hi Hau! :D Congrats on clearing the Electric Trial! ...Oh, hi Gladion. Congrats on still being emo. :|
He says Team Skull's looking for a Pokemon called Cosmog...shit, that's Nebby. Better not tell him about Lillie remind to train you in the art of maintaining a poker face, Hau. If he's looking to beat info on Nebby out of us, he'll...oh. He...wants us to protect Cosmog?
You got it, dork. ...Strange, this whole encounter seems to have really pumped Hau up. Maybe he's got a thing for Lilliejust like everyone else in this Arceus-forsaken region?
At the center is a lovely little oasis. Wow. To the north is a desert that has a Captain's Barricade in front of it. Guess we'll have to clear the Ghost Trial first? And old guy next to a Gastropod tells us that the key to getting through the desert is to follow the stones throughout it. "2-1-4-3 is the key" he says.
Noted.
I grab my 50th Totem Sticker here, and Oak calls. Ugh. Fine, on my way back since this is the one instance where you don't just poof in out of nowhere...if nothing else I can rub my high score AND THE FACT THAT I KNOCKED YOUR ASS OFF THE LEADER BOARD ENTIRELY in your face. HA! Thanks for the Totem Lurantis.
...Crap, I can't fly back to route 13. *sighs* Back to Ula'ula Beach it is, then ah crap why didn't I Mantine Surf over?
Okay, seriously wishing there was a Pokemon Center out here, team's looking a bit beat. Maybe I can take a break at the motel? ...Or I can have my heart break at the site of an abandoned Stufful. ;_;
Whoever's abandoning all these Pokemon around here, I am giving them such an ass-kicking. Maybe they're in one of these trailers.
The first one has a guy trying to talk tough at me. "Trying" being the key word, like he's using the Taunt move or someth--oh. He HAS the TM for Taunt. Yay! The 2nd one has a Team Skull Grunt standing...er, Slav-squatting guard outside. I may have to kick a few asses in here regardless. A Grunt inside tells me how Team Skull was formed; apparently an old Kahuna formed the group to fight the Tapu...and lost. Badly. Other than that there's just a sweet old lady in there.
Huh, guess there's no ass-kickings to be had here. Oh well. In that case, on past Route 13 to a nearby Pokemon Center...at Tapu Village, or rather, what's left of it.
...*sigh* This part's weighing heavier on me than I thought it would, to be honest, but...I may as well get over it and get it over with. You see, this is the area where I can catch the Pokemon that's going to be my Ula'ula Island Representaoh, hi Hau! :D OW! Sorry, bit of mood whiplash there. X_x;
Seems he wants to talk about the Alolan Pokemon League, wondering who could form its Elite Four. The Kahunas certainly come to mind...oh hey! It's Dulse and Zossie! Yay! Seems they're investigating this site for evidence of Necrozma's battle against the Tapu Pokemon. They pose an interesting theory on Z-Moves: the power that drives them comes from an Ultra Wormhole's resonant energies that Necrozma lost in battle against humanity and its greed for its power. *sighs* Too solid a theory....wait, you guys have Necrozma locked up? Well that's a relief...the fact that its cage is weakening isn't, though. I take it that's why you guys are studying Alola, to find a way to defeat it?
Best of luck, you two. Anyway, on into the Pokemon Center, which apparently is called the Aether House? ...Oh, but first Veteran Angus wants me to flatten him. Okay.
[ROUND 1: vs Shelgon]
Steel-type, right? let's see how Fire Fang works, Obsidian. ...Okay, NOT Fire-type, since that was ineffective. Brick Break certainly was, though, so time to tag out for Serenity. She tanks its 2nd Brick Break, then hits it hard with Sparkling Aria...which also isn't very effective? Its next attack misses so badly I don't even see what it's called, then Aria finishes it off. Next up is...
[ROUND 2: vs Sliggoo]
Let's keep at it, Serenity. I think this is Dragon-type, making Icy Wind and Disarming Voice perfect....except that it has stupidly high Special Defense. Its Thunderbolt hurts pretty bad, so time for another tag-out to Spectra. She eats a Dragon Pulse and almost goes down, but Hypnosis puts it to sleep and Dream Eater lets her heal up nicely over a few turns. Then it wakes up and Dragon Pulses her down to 1 HP. Too bad for it that she got it low enough for Shadow Ball to wrap it up, and good job on Serana reaching 42, but good lord YES I am tagging out!
[ROUND 3: vs Gabite]
Ground/Dragon = quad damage from Ice. Serenity, you're up again. I know you're a little beat from the first few rounds. Rotom, HP Restore, GO! Gabite follows up with an Earthquake that would have finished her off. Whew! Next round it uses another one that puts her at 7 HP, then takes Icy Wind to the face for a one-shot KO. MASSIVE Whew!!
With that, Serenity hits 43 and Angus gives me the Choice Specs. These limit a Pokemon to using the first move it picks in battle, but in exchange boosts their Special Attack by 50%. Yowza. Anyway, ON INSIDE THE POKEMON CENTER! ...Which is a perfectly normal Pokemon Center. Maybe "Aether House" is another building?
Party healed up, I get back to the task at hand. As I mentioned prior to Hau's interruption, this is where I can first find my choice for the Ula'ula Island Representative on my team...which means this will be where Spectra and I part ways.
And my very first encounter in the grass to the west is exactly what I was looking for. I decide not to delay the inevitable with and snare with a Quick Ball. Thank heavens that part is over with, I don't think I could have handled a long, drawn-out battle, especially when Spectra is my ace for catching new 'mons and this would mean having her catch her own replacement. That's not an act I'd have been comfortable with at all.
With that, I head back to the Pokemon Center and fire up the PC and, in pulling out her replacement, transfer Spectra to the box dedicated to my former teammates and favorite non-teammates, reuniting her with Bella. Thank you so much for all your help thus far, Spectra.
It's a sad parting, but one I resigned myself to; I decided long ago that I wanted this particular one on my final team. This is also the reason I was so adamant about getting Isle Aphun up to Level 2: It was the quickest way to secure a Dawn Stone.
You see, the Pokemon I Quick Ball'd earlier was a Snorunt...a female one, specifically. I've swapped Spectra's Ghost-type out for the Ghost/Ice-type of a Froslass.
Welcome to the team, Rimefrost. ^_^
This was the point I wanted to reach before signing off tonight, to be honest. Until next time, I'll be doing some serious power-leveling to catch her up with everyone else, but for now...good night.
Also, a random encounter with an Ariados boosted Serana up to Lv 40. It gives her the chance to learn Whirlwind, which sounds awesome but is functionally the same as Roar: it boots the current opposing Pokemon out of the battle. Pass. With all that out of the way, the Trial Guide opens the path beyond Route 11, and onward to the Ghost Trial. Spooooooookyyyyyyyyyyyyyy but not really. Onward to Route 12!
Aaand right away we hit an impasse of rugged rocks that I'd probably break my ankle trying to walk over. Stoutland and Tauros aren't sure-footed enough for it either. Gee, if only a convenient NPC encounter would give us a means to hello there Hapu and Mudsdale! What an unforeseen coincidence! She hands me the Mudsdale Page Rider in thanks for helping her out back in Akala.
"I was remiss not to register this to you back in Malie. I was jsut so taken aback by Lillie and how lovely she was that it escaped me." And thus another log is added to the "Pokemon Ultra Su/Mo Fetish Fuel" fire.
Afterwards, she asks me if I know about the Ultra Recon Squad. Huh, wonder how she knows Dulse and Zossie?
Oh dear. Tapu Village already...well, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, time to saddle up, hombre! HI-YO MUDSDALE, AWAAAAY!!! *CLIPPITY-CLOP, CLIPPITY-CLOP*
Along the way I espy 2 Punks itching for battle, so for the moment I veer south to explore more...runing right into Rising Star Leilani, who preaches about how Pokemon should be both strong AND cute.
I find zero flaws in this philosophy, but I put it to the test regardless.
[ROUND 1: vs Tirtouga]
...I'm sorry, this isn't my idea of "cute." [ONE VOLT SWITCH LATER] Or strong. I still find your philosophy to be sound, though...it is one of the fundamentals behind Team KAISER, after all, who I talk about an awful lot considering their lack of being in this playthrough. O_o; Anyway, turns out she was blocking an Elixir. Yay?
Up ahead I come across a Graveler. Would rather evolve a Geodude, but adding to the Poke Pelago collection is good enough right now. It survives a one-shot Flash Cannon due to sturdy, whiffs with Electric Punch, calls for help to no avail, and gets caught in a Dusk Ball moments later, bringing Erinys up to Lv 40 in the process. With that, the whole team is now out of the 30's. Nice.
Still think the Alolan Geodude line looks stupid, though. :/
A little farther south and I find this whole back-alley thing was a bypass for the main route. Nope, no skipping stuff here. Back we go!
Oh, a Torkoal. Nice, THAT one I'd like for the collection for sure. ...Oops, never mind. Thumb slipped and I hit Volt Switch instead of Thunder Wave. Sorry, Torkoal. Think I'll switch things up a bit and put Spectra in charge. Now then, what was I forgetting back here? Oh, right, Punk Pair Yoko and Lane. You guys wanna get rowdy? Okay.
[ROUND 1: vs Pancham & Krokorok]
...Why do I keep saying "Round 1" when dealing with trainers who only have 1 Pokemon? Anyway...
Spectra puts the Pancham to sleep, then Serana lets loose an Air Cutter that almost KO's it, while the Krokorok goes to about 1/2 HP before missing a Crunch on Spectra completely. WHEW!! Next turn, Spectra finishes the Pancham with Dream Eater, boosting Obsidian to 41, while Serana Steel Wings the Krok for...nearly nothing. It fires back with a Crunch that puts her at half health. Owie!
Shadow Ball wraps things up nicely.
Heading south puts us at the crossroads with Rising Star Matthew, who claims I'm bashing his way of life...i.e. Pokemon Battles. No, kid, the only thing I'm gonna be bashing is your team. Let's go.
[VS Cranidos]
Yeah, that looks MUCH nicer. Hypnosis has it nod off, then Dream Eater brings this battle to a screeching halt and Langstrom to 41. Wow, suddenly Serenity's not in a massive Lv lead anymore.
And that brings us back to where the side road rejoined the path, as well as into direct contact with Scientist Press-X-to-JAYSON!!!
[ROUND 1: vs Porygon]
...Yes, I switched back. He has 2 Pokemon. :p
Jayson kicks things off with an X-Defense, and I kick things off by completely forgetting that Porygon is Normal-type by trying to Shadow Ball it. *facepalm* Payback does minimal damage, while Agility raises the Porygon's speed. Okay, time to put someone else up here or we'll be here until next August. Erinys, you're up!
Aaaand more Agility. Sheesh. Signal Beam hits next and does a devastating four damage before the holographic Pokemon somehow gets Toxic'd. Whatever, just makes for a nice one-two knockout with Venoshock next turn after another 4-damage Signal Beam.
[ROUND 2: vs Magneton]
Not interested in dealing with this. Inferno Overdrive FTW. While that goes off, a dumb joke for ya:
Q: "How does Ryu greet his blonde-haired, red-wearing sparring buddy?"
A: "HOWDOYADOKEN?"
Done groaning? Okay, let's continoh my goodness I just ran into a Houndoom. If I didn't have Erinys on the team, this would easily be in her place. Against my better judgment, I tag in Langstrom, who promptly gets Odor Sleuthed...and again while Thunder Waving the thing. Now, with its Fire-type status I think it should survive a Flash Cannon...and I'm right. It doesn't even drop to yellow. One more? Big bucks, no crits...STOP!
Whew! It's at about 5% HP and paralyzed. Should work for a Dusk Ball... ... ...YES! Welcome to Poke Pelago, Dante! To the west of where we caught him is a Collector making the "beat everyone else first" challenge and offering the TM for Dragon Tail in return. Challenge accepted. Next to him is Surfer Robert, who is a good ways from the beach at the moment. Still, with Serana switched to the front, surf's up I guess!
[ROUND 1: vs Remoraid]
Air Cutter leads to a quick wipeout.
[ROUND 2: vs Sandygast]
This is kind of a goofy one...a Ghost/Ground-type that's an animated sand castle. It dodges Air Cutter and uses Iron Defense, which basically makes turn 1 a wash. The 2nd Air Cutter crits and almost one-shots it, while Serana dodges a Mega Drain before finishing things up with Psychic. Gnarly.
Heading past him puts us on the path to...Blush Mountain? Not familiar with this place. Better save in case I accidentally wandered into a high-Lv spot and am about to walk up to a Welcome Bear when talking to Office Worker Shane.
[ROUND 1: vs Electrike]
So much for that worry, my team's 8-9 levels past him. Psychic and Thunder Fang trade fairly solid blows, while Leech Life finishes him off and recovers some of Serana's HP and brings her up to 41.
[ROUND 2: vs Electabuzz]
I swap Erinys in for this one; she's the only one still at 40 and has less than 800 Exp to go. Toxic starts things off sickiningly well, while her Poison-typing renders its Low Kick rather useless. Its Quick Attack deals a bit more damage, then Venoshock gives the usual 1-2 knockout and brings Erinys up to 41. For a brief moment the whole team is at the same level. Huzzah!
And then Serenity hits 42 off of the Exp Share. XD
Anyway, it seems we've detoured over to the Geothermal Power Plant. Nifty. Apparently this place attracts all manner of Electric-types...explains why Shane was using them. First one I see is a Togedemaru, which I just Quick Ball to get my Poke Pelago count up to 60. BRB, gonna go do some upgrades, such as boosting Isle Aphun up to Level 3, which unlocks the Rare Treasure route. Great for finding sellables, which should make affording to clear out any future TM Shops a snap. :D
That takes care of that. Time to check out the Power Plant.
"Welcome to the Geothermal Power Plant! Come learn all about our plant...it's electrifying!"
I beleive this is the proper response, Celine? Yes, me griping about a bad pun. Watt a shocker, I know. For me, the complaints with jokes usually aren't in the low quality of the pun, but in the delivery. If there's too much emphasis on the punchline it just feels...forced.
Anyway, looking around further we find a scientist who wants us to come back tomorrow to get something from him and dammit Oak whaddya want now? ...Oh. He wants to give me a Lure Ball. What's that? ...And he disapears without telling me. Of course. Ah, it works on Pokemon caught with the Fishing Rod. Okay.
There's also a Magnemite here who looks sad. Aww, what can I do to cheer you up, little guy? :[ ...No clue. Making a note of this. With that the side-trip is done. Back to Route 12.
I head south to where a Mantine Surfing Area is located. Sweet, time to hit DAMMIT OAK, WHADDYA WANT NOW!?!? Oh, he just wants to talk about Matine Surfing and then remind me that, if I need him, he'll be on Heahea Beach...and, y'know, every other square foot of the Alola Region. Anyway, on to Ula'ula Beach! MILTANKABUNGA, DUDES!
A sweep of the beach reveals another bottled letter, this one fairly new. The writer wants me to deliver the letter to Nainoa, a trainer at Malie City Cape, who they want me to challenge. I know the one they're talking about; the Rising Star who blew me off.
*cracks knuckles* Y'know what? Surfing can wait for a few minutes. Time to ride the airwaves for a bit. [ONE TRIP LATER] And sure enough, that Rising Star's the one I needed to talk to. Seems the author of the letter is some guy named "Arabella," whom a bit of research reveals is one of the Ace Trainers from the Viridan City Gym. Cool! Nainoa gets rather pumped at the idea of the challenge and pleads for me to take him on. Gladly!
[ROUND 1: vs Delibird]
Oh crap, he's leading with an Ice-type and I still have Serana, a Flying/Dragon type (aka QUAD DAMAGE) in the lead. Right then. Erinys, why don't you give it ago? She gets bonked with a Present upon entering, which sadly isn't one that restores HP. Flame Burst doesn't exactly restore its HP either...quite the opposite, really.
[ROUND 2: vs Mudbray]
Y'know what? A Ground-type seems like a good one to try out Serenity's new Primarina-exclusive Z-Move on.
OCEANIC OPERETTA!
Which basically goes like this: a resonating G to conjure a giant sphere of water, and then a B to shatter it and drown the opposition. Bravo, my little siren! Bravo! :D
Ah, it seems Nainoa's from Kanto as well. Nice. He gives me a Pearl String for helping him reconnect with an old friend. Glad I could help, buddy. Good luck on your upcoming Island Challenge! Right then, back to the beach. Near where the bottle was is a Berry Tree. Crabrawler?
Crabrawler. Air Cutter. No more Crabrawler. 6 Leppa Berries as a result...as if I needed more after my recent Isle Aplenny harvest put me at about 350. XP Anyway, if you'll excuse me for a bit...
[A GOOD WHILE OF MANTINE SURFING LATER]
The top spot for the Melemele-Akala Surfing Route is MINE! WOOOO!! Clearing this hurdle nets me the Lanturn 360 trick, which I pull off about 14 times on the way back to Ula'ula beach, netting a finals core of 46,691...which I believe utterly demolishes the previous top score. It nets me 10 more BP and the Primarina Twist move, which scores big on small waves.
A check of the leader board confirms my theory: the previous top score was only 43,200.
With that load of awesomeness done for now, I get back on track and run into Swimmer Sara, who I believe is the last trainer on Route 12. Let's wrap things up with her and get to that Dragon Tail Collector, eh?
[VS Starmie]
Rapid Spin and Psychic both plink of to little effect. The Starmie does some good damage with Swift while Steel Wing, again, does diddly...okay, Serana, time to tag out and end this. Langstrom, go for it. The next Rapid Spin hits dead air, and then Gigavolt Havoc zilches it out. ZONK! Sorry, was in a bit of a hurry.
Time to take on Collector Andrew, the self-proclaimed Kahuna of Route 12!
[ROUND 1: vs Larvesta]
Okay, this was unintended, but I just swapped to Obsidian beforehand, and this thing's Bug/Fire...meaning quad damage from Rock-type moves. [ROCK SLIDE'd!] Sorry. Thanks for bringing Obsidian up to 42, though!
[ROUND 2: vs Pinsir]
Another bug, another Rock Slide. Suddenly not sorry. Partially because it survived. Right then, Mr. Route-12-Kahuna, you wanted Z-Power involved? Ask and ye shall reZve! ...Okay, that pun fell about as flat as Pinsir after a Continental Crush. At least Langstrom hit 42 after it. Alright, Mr. Kahuna, pony up the Dragon Tail TM.
You can keep the title of Route 12 Kahuna. I don't need that. But good on you for expanding your goals past this stretch of turf!
Of course, silly me forgot that Dragon Tail is just another boot-'em-out move, this one being Dragon-type. *sigh* Oh well. On to whatever's past Route 12. Surprise surprise, it's...ROUTE 13! Wonder what we'll see on this rouoh hi Hau! :D Congrats on clearing the Electric Trial! ...Oh, hi Gladion. Congrats on still being emo. :|
He says Team Skull's looking for a Pokemon called Cosmog...shit, that's Nebby. Better not tell him about Lillie remind to train you in the art of maintaining a poker face, Hau. If he's looking to beat info on Nebby out of us, he'll...oh. He...wants us to protect Cosmog?
You got it, dork. ...Strange, this whole encounter seems to have really pumped Hau up. Maybe he's got a thing for Lillie
At the center is a lovely little oasis. Wow. To the north is a desert that has a Captain's Barricade in front of it. Guess we'll have to clear the Ghost Trial first? And old guy next to a Gastropod tells us that the key to getting through the desert is to follow the stones throughout it. "2-1-4-3 is the key" he says.
Noted.
I grab my 50th Totem Sticker here, and Oak calls. Ugh. Fine, on my way back since this is the one instance where you don't just poof in out of nowhere...if nothing else I can rub my high score AND THE FACT THAT I KNOCKED YOUR ASS OFF THE LEADER BOARD ENTIRELY in your face. HA! Thanks for the Totem Lurantis.
...Crap, I can't fly back to route 13. *sighs* Back to Ula'ula Beach it is, then ah crap why didn't I Mantine Surf over?
Okay, seriously wishing there was a Pokemon Center out here, team's looking a bit beat. Maybe I can take a break at the motel? ...Or I can have my heart break at the site of an abandoned Stufful. ;_;
Whoever's abandoning all these Pokemon around here, I am giving them such an ass-kicking. Maybe they're in one of these trailers.
The first one has a guy trying to talk tough at me. "Trying" being the key word, like he's using the Taunt move or someth--oh. He HAS the TM for Taunt. Yay! The 2nd one has a Team Skull Grunt standing...er, Slav-squatting guard outside. I may have to kick a few asses in here regardless. A Grunt inside tells me how Team Skull was formed; apparently an old Kahuna formed the group to fight the Tapu...and lost. Badly. Other than that there's just a sweet old lady in there.
Huh, guess there's no ass-kickings to be had here. Oh well. In that case, on past Route 13 to a nearby Pokemon Center...at Tapu Village, or rather, what's left of it.
...*sigh* This part's weighing heavier on me than I thought it would, to be honest, but...I may as well get over it and get it over with. You see, this is the area where I can catch the Pokemon that's going to be my Ula'ula Island Representaoh, hi Hau! :D OW! Sorry, bit of mood whiplash there. X_x;
Seems he wants to talk about the Alolan Pokemon League, wondering who could form its Elite Four. The Kahunas certainly come to mind...oh hey! It's Dulse and Zossie! Yay! Seems they're investigating this site for evidence of Necrozma's battle against the Tapu Pokemon. They pose an interesting theory on Z-Moves: the power that drives them comes from an Ultra Wormhole's resonant energies that Necrozma lost in battle against humanity and its greed for its power. *sighs* Too solid a theory....wait, you guys have Necrozma locked up? Well that's a relief...the fact that its cage is weakening isn't, though. I take it that's why you guys are studying Alola, to find a way to defeat it?
Best of luck, you two. Anyway, on into the Pokemon Center, which apparently is called the Aether House? ...Oh, but first Veteran Angus wants me to flatten him. Okay.
[ROUND 1: vs Shelgon]
Steel-type, right? let's see how Fire Fang works, Obsidian. ...Okay, NOT Fire-type, since that was ineffective. Brick Break certainly was, though, so time to tag out for Serenity. She tanks its 2nd Brick Break, then hits it hard with Sparkling Aria...which also isn't very effective? Its next attack misses so badly I don't even see what it's called, then Aria finishes it off. Next up is...
[ROUND 2: vs Sliggoo]
Let's keep at it, Serenity. I think this is Dragon-type, making Icy Wind and Disarming Voice perfect....except that it has stupidly high Special Defense. Its Thunderbolt hurts pretty bad, so time for another tag-out to Spectra. She eats a Dragon Pulse and almost goes down, but Hypnosis puts it to sleep and Dream Eater lets her heal up nicely over a few turns. Then it wakes up and Dragon Pulses her down to 1 HP. Too bad for it that she got it low enough for Shadow Ball to wrap it up, and good job on Serana reaching 42, but good lord YES I am tagging out!
[ROUND 3: vs Gabite]
Ground/Dragon = quad damage from Ice. Serenity, you're up again. I know you're a little beat from the first few rounds. Rotom, HP Restore, GO! Gabite follows up with an Earthquake that would have finished her off. Whew! Next round it uses another one that puts her at 7 HP, then takes Icy Wind to the face for a one-shot KO. MASSIVE Whew!!
With that, Serenity hits 43 and Angus gives me the Choice Specs. These limit a Pokemon to using the first move it picks in battle, but in exchange boosts their Special Attack by 50%. Yowza. Anyway, ON INSIDE THE POKEMON CENTER! ...Which is a perfectly normal Pokemon Center. Maybe "Aether House" is another building?
Party healed up, I get back to the task at hand. As I mentioned prior to Hau's interruption, this is where I can first find my choice for the Ula'ula Island Representative on my team...which means this will be where Spectra and I part ways.
And my very first encounter in the grass to the west is exactly what I was looking for. I decide not to delay the inevitable with and snare with a Quick Ball. Thank heavens that part is over with, I don't think I could have handled a long, drawn-out battle, especially when Spectra is my ace for catching new 'mons and this would mean having her catch her own replacement. That's not an act I'd have been comfortable with at all.
With that, I head back to the Pokemon Center and fire up the PC and, in pulling out her replacement, transfer Spectra to the box dedicated to my former teammates and favorite non-teammates, reuniting her with Bella. Thank you so much for all your help thus far, Spectra.
It's a sad parting, but one I resigned myself to; I decided long ago that I wanted this particular one on my final team. This is also the reason I was so adamant about getting Isle Aphun up to Level 2: It was the quickest way to secure a Dawn Stone.
You see, the Pokemon I Quick Ball'd earlier was a Snorunt...a female one, specifically. I've swapped Spectra's Ghost-type out for the Ghost/Ice-type of a Froslass.
Welcome to the team, Rimefrost. ^_^
This was the point I wanted to reach before signing off tonight, to be honest. Until next time, I'll be doing some serious power-leveling to catch her up with everyone else, but for now...good night.