Jory

Jory nodded to Adam. "He's right, Carissa. You need to stay back for this one. Don't worry. We'll be back in a little bit, alright?" he said to Carissa. He then looked to Vis and Nemir. "Come up once you're done here," he said quickly. He turned and followed Adam and Drake up the stairwell to the rooftop.

Jory looked back toward Carissa after the Conclave Mother left the room, left speechless by the fact that the girl was even upstairs. "Drake, I'll be a minute. You can go up if you want or wait here with me." The young veteran approached Carissa and put a hand on her shoulder to steady her. "Carissa, are you okay?" he asked concernedly. "You shouldn't be up here. You don't look well at all," he said softly. "Is everything alright?"

Jory followed Drake closely, ready for a battle. His heart was beating quickly as they neared the top of the steps. This woman is going to be a challenge, but it's one we can't back away from. All we can do is go in and do what we do best. Fight. He looked to Drake as they passed through the door. Nodding to him. Whatever differences we have must be put aside for this. For Carissa and for all the people of Snowpoint.

Roland shook his head, still in disbelief over the sudden loss of Iain. "No. But this is a sad day. We lost a great leader today. That man had the bearing of a proper king," the archer lamented. "But that is a worry for times of peace." He thought for a moment, weighing their options. "I am of this land. Perhaps there are still members of my House alive in the capital. I know they would lend whatever men they had to our cause," he mused. He then turned to Richter. "What about you?"

Sonny grinned as the first blows were exchanged. He quickly leapt into the air and landed in front of Kyle, cutting off the Team Shadow member's escape. Sonny pushed off the ice, his legs shattering the frozen water as he sped toward his opponent. He swung hard Thunderpunch at the man, hoping he'd go down quickly.

Jory nodded to Drake, a bit peeved at the man's brashness. "You know, that's not the best way to go about giving orders. Luckily I don't have any objection to what you said," he grumbled, getting up and taking the card key from Carissa. He stroked her hair one more time and began walking toward the entrance to the next floor. Once he arrived he swiped the card, waiting for the door to open.

I'm okay with you continuing. We're not really "battling," just scurrying to retreat lol

"Heave!" came the shout from the rugged old seaman. The last several crates of dry ice fell from the rails, disappearing into the mist and offering a feeble splash to remind the sailors what still lurked beneath the churning waves. Stig looked behind him at Roland and pointed to Richter, who was now stationed near the false boats. "Go, archer!" he yelled. "Help yer mate with that trick boat. I'll not be far behind!" The pirate began screaming at the other men aboard, directing the sails and the men up in the rigging while other pirates rushed to help the two adventurers with the false boats. Roland moved across the ship toward the starboard rail, bending to begin lifting the false longboat with Richter. "We must make haste!" he said quickly. "The Leviathan will be upon us soon if we do not!" He began to heave, trusting Richter to begin moving the longboat with him as other men aboard the ship began to do the same with the other boats.

Roland felt nothing but fear and pity for those on board Iain's ship. Just as vicious as ever, you foul beast, he thought to himself as he watched the gargantuan sea monster rise from the deep and begin its assault on the small fleet. Such is the fate of those who challenge the Leviathan, he thought bitterly. Then, Asgall began giving orders. The archer jumped at the opportunity to aid those now in the water, adroitly running along the ship despite the churning waves. Perhaps there is hope for them yet, he held out as he moved toward the crates holding the dry ice. Asgall had shown them how dangerous the dry ice could be. It was so cold that to touch it with one's bare hands, or even inadequate gloves, meant burning one's skin. He saw Stig struggling with a crate, unable to lift it above the ship's rail. "Aye, lad, come help me with this one!" the grizzled old seafarer shouted. Roland made his way to the man and got on the other side of the crate, wedging his fingers underneath the bottom. "On three, lad!" Roland nodded. "One..." the sailor shouted. "Two..." came the next cry as the Leviathan's head came into view shortly, then dipped back into the water. "Three!" On three both men heaved to, sending the dry ice down into the water, a dense mist beginning to rise. "Good job, lad! Now onto the next one!" Stig yelled over the whipping winds and crashing waves, leading Roland to the next crate of dry ice.

Here, interested, and ready for some serious exposition on Lux's family. PM me about it and we'll figure what chapter it'll be happening in.

{Phoebe's Waiting Room, Ymora Academy} Jacob nodded to Kristen, chuckling lightly at how deeply she'd been blushing. "Of course I have strategies for them. Claude's team is going to be very difficult to deal with, though. He has that Cottonee. That thing's going to be a huge pain in the butt unless I can take it out early. Then again, I'm not sure how worried I should be about him. Obviously his strategies and tactics are quite good, but brute force may end up being my best friend in that bout. Kage has an interesting team for sure, but again I have a pretty good grasp of what they're capable of. I'm just going to have to wait and see what the results of the first few rounds are. After all, I still have Nadia to deal with in this block and then most likely Slade in the next."

Jory nodded to Drake, although he was slightly irked by the man's arrogant tone of voice. It's not as though anyone else has stepped up, he thought rather peevishly at the older man. "Once that Mienshao goes down, Shredder and I should be able to take on her team. Just because we happen to have a type weakness to her ace doesn't mean you'll fare any better against whatever surprises she has in store for us. All five of them," he added icily. "We need to work as a team, like I said before when you all decided to stand outside with your thumbs up your asses while Carissa and I did the brunt of the work. So don't complain about a little light babysitting," he said sternly. "Now that that's dealt with, I totally agree with what you all have said about the potential for a rooftop fight. It would certainly make our chances better, so expect the Mother to try her best not to go up there. How do you suggest we might go about it?" "

Jacob laughed and nodded. "Evan shouldn't be so much of a problem. I have a strategy in mind for him. And by the way, I'll be sure to remember to take off the Eviolite. Thanks for the heads up, Kristen," he said quickly. He leaned over and pecked her on the cheek. "And thanks for being so supportive. I really appreciate it."

{Phoebe's Waiting Room, Ymora Academy} Jacob chuckled a bit, having been watching Paul's match on the monitor. "I don't know about that. He caught Paul really off guard by taking advantage of his offensive strategy and turning it around on him. I think I'll be able to handle him, especially given the advantage Chalchi and Arete have over a lot of the unevolved Pokemon our classmates use." He then thought to himself for a moment. "I haven't picked my third Pokemon yet, though. I'm tempted, and I mean really tempted to bring Spits out, but Arete may end up being the better pick thanks to her Eviolite." He paused again. "And I wouldn't worry too much about the Ice Field. I'm using it to take care of the opponents who I know I can beat with it so that I don't have to reveal one of my newer strategies just yet. Mareek still has to take me down to win, and that battle certainly won't be an easy victory for either side."

All of the people in Asgall's group are already on the boat. Should be pretty easy to find them.

Jory nodded at Surge's command and looked behind him. "The rest of you, fall in. Let's move it out," he said sternly, following his CO and Sid. Oliver strode proudly beside him, ready to engage any foes they might face. And THIS time, he wasn't paralyzed, so he could actually help.

{Accumula Town, Unova Region} Jacob's family cheered loudly as Bert returned his Poliwhirl to its ball. All of them were quite excited at Jacob's decisive victory, especially his uncle George. "That boy is an exceptional battler. I hope you're planning to keep him at the Academy, because I haven't seen anyone battle quite like that in a long time." He looked at the screen, pondering something. "Is there some reason he hasn't picked which of his new Pokemon to use yet? I counted two more Balls on his belt, but he stayed with the old recipe that he sent us a video of the first day." He looked to be deep in thought again. "Maybe he's making sure his new strategies aren't revealed too early. After seeing that display I wouldn't be surprised to see him let those two do the legwork until the final round." Jacob's parents smiled and looked at each other. His father chuckled. "Well, I suppose we'll have to wait to find out. I hope he wins the whole thing. Everybody would be talking about it at the water cooler." ======================================================== {Stadium, Ymora Academy} Jacob had a huge grin on his face as he exited the tunnel back into the waiting room. He went up to Kristen and wrapped her in a tight hug, happy to see her after his first Winter Cup battle. "So, what'd you think?" he asked quickly. "Did I do alright?"

{Accumula Town, Unova Region} The Robertson family was gathered around the TV set as Jacob's match was about to begin. They all leaned forward in their seats, anxious to see how their favorite young battler would do in the tournament. Helen, his mother, turned to her brother George and smiled broadly. "Would you look at that? Our son's gone and gotten himself a Lapras! Although I'm not sure why he picked Teo and that Lapras to go against this other boy. He has a serious type disadvantage!" she said disapprovingly, crossing her arms. Her Palpitoad croaked a response, looking directly at the screen. George just laughed and put his hand on Helen's shoulder. "If there's one thing I know about your son, it's that he's as quick as a whip. There's no way he'd send out those two without putting thought into it. After all, he still has to make it through the rest of the tournament after this. It wouldn't be very smart of him to pick a Pokemon that'll only be useful in this battle." He then put his hand on his chin. He'd always been the better battler of the two siblings. His Accelgor was watching the bout intently, hoping Jacob would put on a good show. "Plus, Teo looks much stronger than he was when the two of them left home. He also has the ability Hyper Cutter, which will keep that Hitmontop's Intimidate from working on him. I think Jacob will surprise you." Richard, Jacob's father, turned to participate in the speculation. "Teo and Jacob are really close. You can't underestimate that, Helen, and you know that Jacob's always had a knack for Pokemon battling. I wouldn't be surprised if he's already mapped out a way to beat this Bert kid," he said quickly before turning back to the television. His Unfezant was perched on the arm of the couch, her eyes intent on watching Jacob battle rather than listening to idle conjecture. ============================================================================================================== {Battlefield, Ymora Academy} Jacob nodded to Bert. "I'll let you make the first move, Bert. Go for it." The other student snorted, his cocky demeanor annoying Jacob slightly. He and Jacob had never gotten along particularly well, but neither was there any existing animosity between the two. However, Bert had come out to the battlefield with something to prove today and he wasn't going to lose to some arrogant Unovan. He felt his Mahogany Town pride swelling in his chest as he ordered the first attack. "Archie, use Water Pulse on that Trapinch! Dre, use Triple Kick on Lapras!" The Poliwhirl charged up a blue sphere and launched it toward Teo as the Hitmontop began spinning rapidly toward Chalchi. Jacob smiled, adrenaline rushing as the opening blows began. "Teo, dodge that Water Pulse and get underground! Chalchi, give that Hitmontop a Water Pulse burst!" Teo quickly dug his way underground, avoiding the Water Pulse with ease. The aquatic sphere burst apart on the ground, sprinkling Jacob's side of the field with water. Chalchi then fired three smaller Water Pulses at the Hitmontop. However, its feet carried a lot of momentum and were able to cause the first two to burst, while the last one carried enough force to make the Hitmontop spin in place and stop the attack. Bert laughed and shook his head. "You think you can win just by dodging my attacks? We're gonna break right through your crummy little defense. Dre, Triple Kick again! Archie, wait for Teo to pop up, then hit him with a Body Slam!" The Hitmontop began spinning once more, moving quickly toward Chalchi as the Poliwhirl took a defensive stance and waited for Teo to break from cover. "Now Chalchi, spring the trap! Teo, Momentum Shift!" Jacob shouted. A pale mist surrounded Chalchi and spread around the battlefield. Almost three quarters of it began to freeze over and Bert looked on in shock. "Surprised?" Jacob asked. "Your Hitmontop's Triple Kick acted like a sprinkler for Chalchi's water! Now it's all over the place, and you know what happens when water freezes. It expands and becomes quite slippery." As the field froze around the Hitmontop it began to spin out of control, moving from side to side and wobbling as though it were about to topple over. Just as Dre began to lose control, Teo sprang out of the ground. Archie went to hit him with a Body Slam, but was shocked to find Teo's jaws radiating darkness and waiting. Teo latched onto the Poliwhirl's arm and flipped it through the air, causing it to land hard on the ground. However, the Poliwhirl was quick to stand back up, not ready to be defeated yet. Bert grumbled in frustration and looked back at the field, not sure what to do about Dre's situation. With the field this slick he can't move around! he thought to himself, beginning to panic. "Dre, stay put for now! Use Protect to block anything they throw at you!" The Hitmontop nodded and threw his hands up, forming a protective green dome around himself He then looked to his Poliwhirl. "Archie, use Water Pulse on that Trapinch again!" The Poliwhirl charged another Water Pulse and fired it quickly at the Trapinch. However, to Teo this was exactly like the training he'd spent months doing with Chalchi. He nimbly moved to the side and then dug back underground without even being instructed. "Good job, Teo! Now let's hedge our odds while that Hitmontop is locked in! Chalchi, Freeze Dry that Poliwhirl!" The mist once again rose from Chalchi's body, sending chills down Bert's spine. It moved with frightening speed across the field, creeping around the Protect and stopped at the Poliwhirl, which began to wince in pain. Additionally the close-range Water Pulse he'd fired at Teo began to backfire as ice formed around his feet, locking him in place. By this point, the Poliwhirl was panting audibly. It wouldn't be long until he fainted, and the desperate expression on Bert's face showed that he knew it too. "Big finish, Teo! Use Dig attack!" The Trapinch shot out of the ground roughly five feet in front of the Poliwhirl at high velocity, slamming into the Poliwhirl so hard that the ice around his ankles shattered and the Water-type was thrown backward. Soon enough his eyes resembled the spiral pattern on his abdomen. "Archie, no!" Bert shouted. He then sighed. "Return. You did okay." A red beam of light emanated from the Ball, bringing the Poliwhirl back to its owner. Bert's expression then became one of fierce determination. "We're not going down without a fight! Dre, hit Lapras with a Low Kick!" The Hitmontop began to spin quickly and made it about halfway to Chalchi before he once again veered off course, falling on his back and sliding to a halt about ten feet from his target. "Chalchi, Water Pulse! Teo, Super Dig!" The Lapras fired a powerful Water Pulse that hit the prone Hitmontop head on, causing the tough Pokemon to wince but not causing any visible damage. Teo burrowed underground and arrived at the Hitmontop, breaking through the ice under it and swinging his glowing jaw like a sledgehammer at the Fighting-type. The blow sent the Hitmontop reeling back to the other side of the field. It got up slowly, trying to shake off the big hit from the little Pokemon. Finally, Bert waved his hand. "Enough. I know when I've lost," he said curtly. He returned the Hitmontop to his Poke Ball and gave Jacob a grave look. "You'd better not lose this tournament, Robertson. I won't stand to be creamed by anyone other than the class's top battler, you understand?" Jacob nodded, flashing the other battler a smile. "You know that's my goal, Bert. Good battle." He then called his Pokemon back and looked up to the crowd, smiling broadly but unsure of what to do next.

I'll be able to post later tonight and later Monday night, but don't expect any quick back-and-forth I'm going down to Virginia to get court things settled.

Jacob took a deep breath as he stood at the end of the tunnel. This is it. My big debut. He began to count to ten in his head, each number coming with a flash of the huge audience he was going to be fighting in front of. We've got this. We're the favorites for a reason, he told himself as he began to place one foot in front of the other. His thoughts were racing as he moved down the long corridor to the field, but he wasn't nervous. He was thinking of ways to win against his opponent, Bert. I remember he's got a Hitmontop. He'll definitely use that, so I'm going to need to come prepared for a Fighting-type. Or... he trailed off, a grin appearing on his face. I can make a show of it. Intimidate my opponent for the next round. He fingered the Poke Balls on his belt as he exited the tunnel. The crowd roared at his appearance like the Romans for bloodsport. He paid them no mind as he walked to his side of the field and took his position opposite Bert. "So, you're going to start with those two? Well it wouldn't be very sporting of me to take a type advantage, now would it?" With that he took two Balls off his belt, the Capsules shining in the daylight as the Poke Balls enlarged in his hand. "Let's start with some old favorites of mine! I'm sure you know them from class, Bert. Teotlatl, Chalchi, you're up! Show'em what you've got!" He tossed the two Poke Balls in the air and they came apart. Teo was released in a flash of yellow light and a swirl of sand reminiscent of his desert origins, while Chalchi's ball erupted into a flurry of snowflakes and dark clouds. The Lapras hit the ground with a thud, while Teo raised a column of sand to bring him gently to the earth. Jacob looked up at the crowd, a smile coming over his face. So this is what they mean by "living the dream", he thought to himself as he looked up at the big screen to see his own face. Now let's give them a show they're not likely to forget anytime soon.

Jory nodded to Michael, glad to hear the good news. "Then we only have one thing left to do. Although I doubt the two of us will be able to take on the Conclave Mother alone. It'll take everything Shredder has just to get through that Mienshao of hers, that's for certain." The Zangoose nodded in agreement, his pride slightly injured. "We're going to have to wait for the rest of the team to finish up at the Gym before we can do this if either of us wants to survive." The veteran sighed and looked backward at the doorway to the next floor, wanting nothing more than to charge through it and take down the woman who orchestrated the vicious defense they'd encountered. She's mine.... he thought to himself. I'll be the one to strike the first blow and the last. But I can't be dumb about it. I need backup.

Jacob grinned lightly and looked at Kristen. He took her hand and squeezed it lightly. "We'll talk more later today, okay? I need to get back to the waiting room." With that said, Jacob walked off back to the waiting room. Upon arriving he took a seat and began mentally preparing himself for the pressure of the Winter Cup.

jellu is a poopy nerd #swagon500000000000

Yeah if the people outside the Conclave don't come in then I don't see Jory surviving this mess...

Jacob nodded, listening to Ryan before he approached Kristen and wrapped her in a gentle hug. "You just let me know if you need anything, okay?" he asked softly. "And I'd really love it if you stayed to watch my battle. Not like I have any family here to support me," he said somewhat bitterly.