xaq_the_aereon: I caught it...now what? (Default)
[personal profile] xaq_the_aereon
With the Problem Solvers at long last fully assembled, I continue on into Vast Poni Canyon. This place is a Victory Road-level trudge, truth be told. After a bit of a climb we run into the Ace Trainer Duo of Kent and Aimee, who want to test whether we have what it takes to make it.

We already know the answer to that question, don't we?

[VS Sandslash & Ninetales]
Kent is kinda screwed; he sent an Alolan Sandslash, an Ice/Steel type, out against Erinys. Flamethrower annihilates it. The Ninetales hits her with Ice Beam in futile retaliation before eating a Flash Cannon and dropping like nobody's business. Serana reaches 57 out of the whole ordeal, and my team isn't even remotely affected by the hailstorm that started the match off. Looks like we Aced their test.

Serenity hits 57 on the way out due to these Dugtrios not leaving me alone. :/ I swap Langstrom for Obsidian to deal with them more efficiently. The first outer path has nothing significant other than a breathtaking view. Back in the caverns, I have an option: take a Mudsdale ride or chance a clear tunnel. I take the tunnel; Hiker Zachary says hi. Whoops.

[ROUND 1: vs Kabutops]
Ah, an evolved Fossil Pokemon. Meaning it's part Rock. Meaning Obsidian's Brick Break should do the trick. ...Yup. Rimefrost hits 57 out of it.
[ROUND 2: vs Tyrantrum]
Hoo boy, now he's bringing out the BIG guns. As it's part-Dragon I'll let Serenity handle this with a Moonblast. Aaaaand she does. Bye Zachary.

Back outside I have two options: a bridge, and a path to the right. Going right brings me to a crawlspace back inside...curious. Let's check it out. There's another Mudsdale path to the south and a clear path to the east. I'll go ahead and face another Trainer...but first a Boldore says hi. I go for a Quick Ball, and hear that lovely whistle of a Critical Catch! Yay! Obsidian reaches Lv 57 for just standing there for a moment. 2 steps later I run into Veteran Lynn, who's itching for a battle.

Let's scratch that itch.

[ROUND 1: vs Xatu]
Since it's part Flying-type (I think?) Rock-type should work well on it...sure enough, Stone Edge ends it.
[ROUND 2: vs Dewgong]
As much as I want to tag in Erinys to help her gain Exp, this thing's a Water-type. No thanks. Langstrom, go for it. Thunder hits home and rings Dewgong's closing bell, bringing Langstrom to 58. And Erinys hits 57 anyway. XD
[ROUND 3: vs KangasKHAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!]
Normal-type means Rimefrost should be a good match. She fakes out the Fake Out and delivers a Wake-Up Slap...for less than half? Okay then, let's try your new moves. Hail fires up first, after which she thankfully dodges a Crunch I wasn't expecting. The hailstorm does a smidge of damage, but more importantly it boosts Blizzard's accuracy, allowing for a frosty finish. After that...oh, seems the Mudsdale path was the way to go after all. Let's see where it--oh. Hi, Ace Trainer Junko.

[ROUND 1: vs Mawile]
I can see why this little cutie was so popular in Gen 6. Iron Head deals a fair chunk, while her Stockpile bolsters her Defense and Special Defense...not nearly enough, though. The 2nd Iron Head wraps that round up.
[ROUND 2: vs Weavile]
Dark/Ice if memory serves. Should be easy pickings for Erinys, whom I still need to test the Poisonium-Z out with. Toxic does its thing, and then Night Slash does a lot more than I expected. Next turn the Weavile uses Snatch, waiting for me to move...said move being Acid Downpour, drowning it in an ocean of purple. Glug.

Just past her is another crawlspace, leading to a small outdoor area with the TM for Dazzling Gleam. WOO! It's not quite as powerful as Moonblast, but it makes up for that by being an area attack. Given how I haven't used Encore in a while...eh, maybe later. Actually, for now I'll give her Double Team instead.

Back inside I run into a Golbat. ... [SPLINTERED STORMSHARDS] Fuck you, Golbat. Now, back to that bridge.

Right as I get to it, Lillie pops up. Guess she's not big on mountain climbing...not that I blame her, this is getting a bit tiresome even for me. Seeing the bridge brings reminiscence of the first time we met back at the Melemele ruins, where Tapu Koko rescued Nebby and me from the collapsing bridge. Lillie remembers how powerles she was back then, unable to get past a couple of Spearows...right then a trio of Murkrow descend on her. Without missing a beat she clears past them and makes it to the other side!

[TRIAL COMPLETE]
Well said!

The next cavern looks to be a Machamp Shove puzzle. A cursory glance makes the solution obvious, and on I go up a long freakin' ladder. At the top I run into Scientists Ikaika (I swear I just about typed Pikapika there), an idolizer of Professor Birch. Not a bad choice.

[VS Magnezone]
Neither is that. Brick Break almost KOs it, but its Discharge does a lot of damage to Obsidian and paralyzes her. She powers through it for the finishing Brick Break, though, and hits 58 out of it alongside Serenity. That's my girls. :D After that, we're back outside again. Another bridge to cross, this one blocked by Punk Girl Anna.

[VS Scrafty]
...Oh crap, those are part Fighting-type, aren't they? Obsidian, tag out. Let Rimefrost handle this one. She tags in and lets Scrafty sail right on through her with a High Jump Kick that splats him on the cliff face for half his HP. Oopsiedoodle! :D Shadow Ball does surprisingly little, Scary Face does its thing, and then a Wake Up Slap finishes the job and boosts Rimefrost and Serana to 58. We move on past the bridge...and right into the sights of Punk Guy Adam. Dangit.

[ROUND 1: vs Pangoro]
Another Fighting-type matchup? D: Rimefrost had her fun, so let's let Serana deal with it. The Pangoro uses Entertainer, which...swaps her Infiltrator ability for Iron Fist? o_O?? Uhh, okay...anyway, it dodges Air Slash and does a little damage with Crunch. Psychic doesn't affect it, which tells me it's Fight/Dark. Another Crunch puts her in the yellow. Fine, time to try out her Grassinium-Z's power with Bloom Doom.

...That worked way better than I expected for something that makes a field of flowers. O_o;

[ROUND 2: vs Crawdaunt]
Sounds like a Water-type. Langstrom, if you please? It dodges Thunder and deals scratch damage with good grief Adam does anyone on your team know a move OTHER than Crunch!? Since Thunder doesn't want to hit, let's give Discharge a go...oh fishsticks, he's done. Some Sitrus Berries to heal up, and then another bridge with...tree roots growing by it? Guess we're taking a natural bridge next. North should lead to the altar, so let's see what's south.

Oh. Black Belt Curtis is south. "I'll win! That's all you need to know." Buddy. That's my line.

[VS Poliwrath]
Just for stealing my line a minute ago, see how you like Splintered Stormshards. 75% damage despite being ineffective is none too shabby. I didn't see the name of the move it used, but it missed anyway so who cares? I risk infringing on Punk Guy Adam's intellectual property rights by finishing things up with Crunch, bringing Erinys up to 58. I swap her to the front to give Obsidian a break.

We go back north and mercy of mercies it goes back downhill! Even better, the south path leads to a cave with a Strength Boulder in it...that was right by Veteran Harry back at the start!? Well, at least if I have to come back this way now I won't have to take the scenic route! Back outside I inadvertently spot a crawlspace on the left. There's a Skull Grunt waiting in there, looking like he wants a fight...guess he didn't get the memo from Plumeria?

Oh. He's looking for Buginium-Z and wants me to hand mine over, even if I don't have any. *facepalm* Plumeria's right, you guys are dummies. A training dummy in your case.

[VS Pawniard]
...Once again, a bit of serendipity due to having Erinys in the lead. No Inferno Overdrive for you, but have a Flamethrower. ...Well, you're just as toast anyway. Past him is a tunnel with a rock-laden lake. Sharpedo Jet time! Partway in I cross the path of Black Belt Terry. If he doesn't bring out a Lycanroc named Buster Wolf I'm gonna be--

[VS Crabominable]
--DISAPPOINTED!!!
Flamethrower ends it in one go. DOUBLY DISAPPOINTED!!!! Langstrom reaches 59 and passes on learning Gyro Ball, though...not disappointed. Past him I spy a TM! Unfortunately, Surfer Joshah spies me first.

[VS Golduck]
Take a break, Erinys. This thing's Water-type. Langstrom, why don't you let me have a thumb slip and accidentally send out Serenity instead? It uses...something that misses, so never mind. Moonblast nails it pretty hard, Hydro Pump hits empty air, and another Moonblast wraps this distraction up. With that, I get the TM for Flamethrower. ... ...Yay? I kinda already have that move...well, I guess that just means I can try other stuff with Erinys for now.

Back on track, there's an Ace Trainer and 2 Veterans waiting to try and stop me. Try being the active phrase. First up, Ace Trainer Hiroshi.

[ROUND 1: vs Graveler]
I tag in Serenity just in time to avoid its Secret Rock trap. Its Sturdy ability prevents Sparkling Aria from being a 1-shot, then it deals a little damage with Rock Blast, scoring 3 hits.
[ROUND 1.5: vs Lapras]
He tags his Graveler out just in time to prevent Moonblast from KOing it. Lapras loses half his HP as a consequence, though, making the following Moonblast a KO.
[BARELY COUNTS AS ROUND 2: vs Graveler again]
Just for laughs I tag in Serana, at which point I'm reminded of the Secret Stones. She takes a little damage before doing 1 damage with Draco Meteor for the win. Obsidian hits 59 out of it.

Hiroshi's out of the way, next is Veteran Heather.
[ROUND 1: vs Talonflame]
Oooo, nice choice. Aerial Ace hurts a bit, Toxic does its thing, Aerial Ace hurts a bit more, and then Venoshock scores the KO.
[ROUND 2: vs the world's tiniest Wailord]
...Umm, Langstrom? Think you can handle that?
[ONE DISCHARGE LATER]
I guess so! Serenity hits 59 out of it.
[ROUND 3: vs Glaceon]
I know you're kinda hurting, Erinys, but you can handle this one. Flamethrower takes of 2/3 of its HP, and while it scores a crit with Frost Breath, it only gets her to 15 HP, where a final Flamethrower scores her a victory and Lv 59. Serana hits 59 as well. I give Erinys some well-deserved Sitrus Berries and move on to the final challenger, Veteran Eric.

[ROUND 1: vs Noctowl]
Kick things off with Toxic as usual, and watch it speed up via Tailwind. It uses that speed to hit with an Air Slash. I deal with the speed, and some of its Attack/Special Attack with Venom Drench. It uses Magic Coat to try and bounce a second Venom Drench back, leaving it to fizzle. Okay, enough fun. Venoschock weakens it enough to where, even with a Reflect up, it drops from Toxic's poisoning.
[ROUND 2: vs Flygon]
I'm not sure what to do here...it's part-Flying, I think? So I'll let Rimefrost have a little fun. Once it actually comes out it uses Dragon Rush but gets dodged, leaving me to think it's part-Dragon as well. Excellent, I was already setting up the Hail/Blizzard combo. Its second Dragon Rush connects, but Blizzard KOs it in one go, bringing her up to 59.
[ROUND 3: vs Gengar]
Keep at it, Rimefrost. It tries to Shadow Ball her. She dodges and Shadow Balls it right back. Goodbye!
[ROUND 4: vs Slowking]
Slowking's part Psychic, right? Ghost is good against that, right? Not effective enough, it only dropped to half. Its Psychic almost KOs her before Hail does a bit more damage. In light of the situation I forego more damage for a Max Potion, after which she takes a crit from another Psychic and is back about where she was. The hailstorm dies out immediately afterward...screw it, she has the Ghostinium-Z anyway. Time to subject this guy to a Never-Ending Nightmare. And down goes the king.

A few Sitrus and Leppa Berries later, my team's back at full health. Time to head into the altar grounds...and Lillie catches up again. If she's about to heal my team I'm gonna be annoyed.

I'm annoyed. X_x At least she's full of pep.

Anyway, into the altar grounds we go...and we run right into an ancient placard indicating we're about to go into a Trial area.

[TRIAL START]
It seems almost too straightforward. The Z-Crystal is directly ahead down a long, straight corridor.

...Given this area's propensity for Rock-types I put Serenity in the lead. Walking forward with no music is creepy, especially when I can feel something staring at me. To the right I see a small cave with a TM in it. Heading towards it I pause, look up, and get jumped by...

[VS Jangmo-o]
An adorable little Dragon! ...Wait, Dragon? Okay, I wasn't expecting Serenity's Fairy-typing to be the useful bit here, but Moonblast it is, then! See ya!

Side note: I knew Jangmo-o were in this part of the Island, though. They were one of the other contenders for my Poni Island Rep before I settled on Magnezone; the Fighting-type would have been nice, but I no longer need it, plus there'd be a Dragon-type overlap with Serana.

The TM contains Dragon Claw. Only Erinys and Serana can learn it, Attack is their weaker stat, and it's loads weaker than Draco Meteor anyway...given the presence of Dragon-types here, maybe this'll be the Dragonium-Z? Anyway, I move on and have a stronger sense of being watched. Sure enough, I get jumped by...

[VS Hakamo-o]
Jangmo-o's evolved form. Another Dragon, another Moonblast OTK. Guess that's all for n
You feel the fiercest pair of eyes imaginable drilling into you relentlessly!
Oh, right. The Totem Pokemon, and Jangmo-o has a 3rd evolved form, right?

[YEP]
[VS Toten Kommo-o]
Its Aura fires up, boosting all of its stats. Let's see how well it boosted your Special Defen WHY DO YOU HAVE POISON JAB? ...And a Klero-whatever Berry, the one that reduces damage from super-effective Fairy-type moves?

After that it calls for help and gets a Scizor. ...Serenity, I don't know if you're gonna be able to pull this off, but let's go for another Moonor the fucker could Poison Jab you again for a knockout.

I'm sorry baby, I don't think I can spend any time reviving you this fight, or else someone else'll get KO'd in the process. Rimefrost, see if you can hit the bastards with a Blizzard.

Bullet Punch and Dragon Claw almost KO her, while Blizzard hits home and frezes the Totem Kommo-o solid. Nice! It doesn't do much to the Scizor, however, and it scores a KO with another Bullet Punch...or would have if Rimefrost hadn't toughed it out! She retaliates with a Wake-Up Slap that, sadly, doesn't score a KO.

Enough. I tag in Serana. If Ice and Fairy cannot deal with the dragon, then let a Dragon deal with it. Serana shrugs off a Bullet Punch after tagging in. A second Bullet Punch does little, and the Totem Kommo-o shatteres under the ferocity of Draco Meteor. Langstrom reaches 60 in the aftermath...now to deal with the bug. It's Bug/Steel type, which makes only one type worthwhile against it.

Erinys takes a Bullet Punch after tagging in that does nearly nothing. I go for a Max Revive on Serenity in that case...and my finger slips and hits the wrong target, wasting a turn to a Pursuit. Another Pursuit puts Erinys in the yellow next turn, but Serenity's back on her feet.

Enough games, my girl. ROAST THE BASTARD.

Flamethrower ends the Dragon Trial at long last. With that, the Dragonium-Z is mine, swapped for the Grassinium-Z in Serana's care.

[TRIAL COMPLETE]
Okay, I don't care if Lillie's right outside. I'm burning through some Sitrus Berries and, more importantly, SAVING. Onward to the Altar of the Sunne! Lillie catches up a moment later, with Kahuna Hapu right behind her. She congratulates me on clearing what was apparently the first of the Alolan Trials ever created. Lillie, of course, once again makes my Berry usage a waste, but I wasn't taking any chances.

With that, we climb the 8,000 Steps up to the top of the Altar of the Sunne, me with the Sun Flute, Lillie with the Moon Flute. ...I certainly hope Hapu brought sheet music. Up at the top, Lillie says she feels the strong power of the sun in this place...despite it being a bit past midnight.

Maybe she just drank some Sunny D on the way up? Anyway, she apologizes to Nebby on how she has to find her mom and let her know how she feels about what's going on before returning the little fluff back to its original form. I hope the little one understands. ;_;

We take our places on either side of the altar. We wait for the sunrise...and play something right out of Mothra, causing the altar to open up and shine a beam right down onto the center area...and then Lillie's bag flies off into it!?!
...Wait...don't tell me...Nebby!?

Yep. Nebby is no longer a Cosmog. No longer a Cosmoen. The little one has evolved to its true form:

SOLGALEO.



This is excellent! We saved Nebby AND we've got our ride to the other world all in one go!

...Why did Guzma and Lusamine just fall out of the skOH GOD WHAT IS THAT THING!?!?!?

That must be Necrozma. Fine. You wanna go, pal? Seems Nebby's ready and raring to take you on too!

The two bounce around the sky a while, and when they hit the ground...Nekrozma has Solgaleo pinned!? Oh no...and then... it...

...

It tried to take Solgaleo's light, but it looks like it merged instead, becoming the form on the cover. It tears open a shitload of Ultra Wormholes, and suddenly the islands are getting bombarded by Ultra Beast invasions.

I'd label this as "less than good." Time to see what I can do about you, Necrozma. ...Damn, capturing you's not an option it seems. Fine then. Serana, time to test out your new power.

DEVASTATING DRAKE!!



...That barely did anything, and it healed every last bit of that damage with Morning Sun. Well shit.

Time for a change of plans...I tag out for Erinys to exploit Solgaleo's Fire weakness, but it Psychic Claws her down in one hit. Psychic, huh? Let's try a Ghost-type move, then. Rimefrost? Shadow Ball, please.

It's super effective, but does less damage than the Devastating Drake did. She avoids its Sunsteel Strike, which is thankful since she's part Ice. Another Shadow Ball weakens it to the red, but Sunsteel Stirke connects and takes her out, leaving me with nothing super-effective on it.

...Except Dark. Obsidian, it is literally Crunch time.

AND SHE SCORES THE KNOCKOUT!!! She hits 60 for it, a well-deserved prize for saving our asses. Serana hits 60 as well.

Afterwards, Necrozma retreats through an Ultra Wormhole... and the skies go dark.

I... I don't believe it. We...we...

...



We failed.





Dulse and Zossie arrive a moment too late to tell us what I've already realized: Necrozma has stolen the light from Alola.

Lillie seemed to notice something, though. Necrozma looked like it was in pain, like it was hurting without a light of its own. Lusamine's right, kiddo...you are way too kind. But that kindness may just be what we need.

Lusamine asks Dulse and Zossie to help us get back to their world to stop Necrozma. Dulse understandably get snippy with her, but Zossie has a good point: we've got slightly more important things to deal with ATM. Dulse mentions how Necrozma seemed to be distracted by my Z-Ring, leaving Guzma to wonder if maybe it wants Z-Crystals.

Perhaps it wants the light of our Z-Auras instead.

In any case, the Ultra Recon Squad offers us a lift back to their world on the wings of Lunala, Solgaleo's Ultra Moon counterpart...the "Ultra Warp Ride," Zossie calls it. Cool!

Lillie heals up my party, and I'm ready to head through the white Ultra Wormhole to get to the world Necrozma's gone to...

...Which makes this an agonizingly good spot for a cliffhanger. See you guys next time.

April 2025

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