"Oh, very nice, an Absol. And yes, they can communicate, though most of the time they choose not to." However, I raised an eyebrow at the description of this particular Pokemon's unusual powers. "I thought Absol tried to -warn- people of disasters. Not actually -caused- them. At least that's what I know from my own Absol, Isaiah. He's not with me right now, but I might use him at some point in the Tournament."

Crouching slightly, I offered a hand to Shadow, producing a Pokeblock specially formulated for Dark-types from the stash I kept in my bag. "Nice to meet you, Shadow."

Cat held out a Pokeblock for Dark Pokemon and said how she thought Absols warn people about disasters.

"Well they do have that ability," I continued as Shadow scarfed down the Pokeblock. "But I guess if you get one angry enough, it causes one."

"I see... I wouldn't really know, Isaiah tends to be aloof, but I've had him since he was a kit, so I suppose he's more easygoing around humans."

I reached out and gently stroked the Absol's head as Hektor crouched to yip a polite hello to the other Pokemon, treating it the same way as he would any other new acquaintance.

Seth and his Absol, Shadow. They looked just as tough as Cat and Hektor. It made Spence more excited for this tournament. The Circuit... It was going to be interesting, that was for sure!

"Hey, Shadow," Seth went on, "Lucario can telepathically communicate with people. Can you do that thing, too?" Spence raised his eyebrow. What the heck did he mean by communicate? There was a silence before Seth when on. Spence leaned in curiously. Absol's mouth didn't move an inch, however, it did look at Seth like he was being a moron or something. "--- I'll take that as a yes! Why didn't you show me this before?!" Spence scratched his head, pretty dumbfounded. It was afterwards that he continued, seemingly talking to himself. Cat seemed to not be fazed at all and even contributed.

"What in the world...? Are you guys... having full conversations with your pokemon?" Spence crossed his arms as Jazz turned to look up at him. He seemed puzzled, and felt a little left out, "...I guess I can't hear any of them... Is that... normal?" Spence couldn't hear the telepathic thoughts of the pokemon. Even if they tried their hardest, nothing would get through. It was as if his heart was closed to them... "Well, if that's what's happening here, I envy you. I thought I spoke to a pokemon once... But... it was a long time ago."

As I talked to Shadow, I noticed Spence looking at me like I had three heads. "What in the world...? Are you guys... having full conversations with your pokemon?" he asked. Spence looked at his Whimsicott and tried to talk with it.

I chuckled. "It's a paranormal-type thing. Psychic-Type and some Ghost and Dark-Type Pokemon can use telepathy to talk to a certain or multiple people." I looked at Shadow. "Hey, say something to Spence, will ya'?"

Shadow looked at Spence. <Boo.>

Hektor nodded in response to Spence's question, and I chuckled. "Let me elaborate. Mature Psychic-types can use telepathy-- young Psy types like Abra or Ralts often have trouble, or newly-evolved Espeons for that matter. Alakazams and the Gardevoir line seem to do the best at it, probably because of tremendous intelligence and empathy with humans. Some Ghost types like Gengar and Dusknoir can do something similar, but not as easily as Psychics-- my Froslass can sort of communicate with images, and Rotoms generally prefer possessing a computer and typing out a precise message to you. As far as I know, only a few species of Dark type can speak mind-to-mind. For instance, Absol can, but I've never heard of a Sharpedo doing it, they're all instinct and bloodlust."

"As for Hektor here... Well, he's a Lucario, and I learned to at least see Aura when training him. I can't use it in a fight, but we can use it to communicate."

Eventually Shade led me towards three trainers.

<That's them.> said Shade.

"Lets go say hi."

As I walked up I heard two of the trainers explaining to the third how telepathy works for some Pokemon.

"That's all true but I've found that it's more common if you know the Pokemon well or vice-versa." I said as they finished. "I'm Silas Defena, I think you've met Shade and this is Fury." Nodding to each in turn and offering out my hand.

Shadow turned and looked to him as if "can you hear me"? Spence sighed, turning to Seth in a head shake.

Cat reminded him about how telepathy worked. But it didn't explain why he was immune to it. He couldn't imagine his Reuniclus speaking to him, nor his other pokemon. But the thoughts of Shade, Shadow and Hektor weren't getting through. It was as if they were blocked.

Silas, the Duskoir's trainer, had managed to find them and gave his two cents.

"Hey, the name's Spence..." he said, although saddened. He chuckled a little bit, throwing his arms behind his head with a look of no worries, "It doesn't matter. My pokemon and I don't need to communicate like that. We get by just fine, don't we Jazz?" His Whimsicott jumped up onto his arm, giving a cry and a smile. She hopped onto his shoulder.

Spence turned, "So, Silas, where do you come from? Have you come close to being Pokemon Champion in your region as well?"

((I just noticed all of you have character names starting with S @_@ way to confuse me. kidding.))

I turned at the sound of a new voice, and greeted the newcomer with a smile. "Ah, so you're Shade's trainer. Nice to meet you, Silas and Fury, I'm Cassandra Taylor, or Cat, and this is my Lucario, Hektor."

Turning to Spence, I smiled a little. "Hektor's one of my few Pokemon who can do that, he gave me quite a shock the first time he did. The rest of my team is either unable to or doesn't like doing it, and that's fine by me. So long as I can understand them and they me."

I shrugged. "Though I hear that some companies are close to inventing translation collars for Pokemon, which would make life pretty interesting..."

Spence nodded to Cat, giving a grin. He understood all of his pokemon very well. They had all been with him through bad times and good. They didn't need words, or telepathy. They were a team.

"You're right, Cat. But it is kinda strange. I wonder why I can't hear Shadow and everyone's telepathy when all of you can," he shrugged, smiling to himself, "But I guess it doesn't matter."

((Sorry its been a while guys. But you know with holidays and everything.))

"Hey Silas, nice to meet you. My name's Seth McGrath." he introduced himself when we were explaining Pokemon telekinesis to Spence. Then, I saw shade by his side. I looked at the Pokemon and said, "Good to see you again too, Shade." I laughed a little.

Spence asked about why he couldn't hear Shadow earlier. "Well," I said. "I guess your mind's just kind of closed off to the idea. I mean, your brain can be pretty powerful. When I met Cat at the entrance, I heard Hektor because I had my doubts that mental communcation existed. I guess doubts were enough."

((...Almost forgot. Happy holidays, everyone!))

((Merry Christmas! I'm just going to move the story on a bit so we can get to the more awesome parts. Also, just one thing I forgot to say, when it comes to the Colosseums, please please please follow me in challenging the same Colosseum. I really don't want to deal with five different Colosseums at once.))

I shrugged as the others debated telepathy, suddenly wishing Belle was here to give her thoughts on the matter. My Espeon was surprisingly chatty for a Psychic type, and often had some surprising or amusing thoughts to contribute. But it was nice to have other Trainers to talk to.

~~~~~~~~~~~ (Two days later)

"...the boat will be docking at Toropikuji Island shortly. Registration for the Circuit will be held in the town's center, there will be signs so you can't miss it. Good luck with the Tournament, and thank you for taking the SS Trident."

I slung my pack on and headed for the exit where they would be lowering the gangplank-- Hektor was in his Pokeball today, and in his place was my Rotom, Sparks. The Plasma Pokemon was floating beside me, buzzing and chirping curiously-- I had forbidden him (Rotoms were genderless but I usually referred to Sparks as male, and the little Pokemon seemed to like it that way) to possess anything other than my Pokedex (for purposes of communication only), so he was currently in his original lightning-bolt shaped form.

"We're here..."

Spence had finished packing, his pokemon all inside his pokeballs, and his sheath of a large sword equipped to his back. It was nice getting to know some of the trainers, but the boat was large indeed. There were still quite a few pokemon trainers he hadn't met, all strong and talented nevertheless. It made Spence feel excited. He walked from his hotel-looking suite and exited the door.

He ran down the hall to find the deck, watching a crowd walk down along the gangplank. Spence shrugged with a smile. He was too excited. He run up to the railing, swinging up from it and leaping onto the dock. It was quite a height, but nothing he couldn't handle. Nothing he hadn't experience before in training. He turned to watch Cat and the others walk down.

"Today's the day! Are you all excited?" he started stretching, leaning left and right, "Man it feels good to be off that boat! I worked on ships helping with cargo as a boy, but two days on a ship is enough for me! Even if it is luxurious, it's way too cramped for my liking!"

"Good morning, Spence." I smiled as I turned to the young man, Sparks chirping a friendly hello as he floated around the other trainer curiously. "I don't know if you met him, but this is Sparks, my Rotom. He wanted to be out of the Pokeball today."

The boat shuddered as it docked, Sparks buzzing and chirping happily as I steadied myself on a nearby wall and grinning as the gangplank slowly lowered. "This is going to be awesome, isn't it, little buddy?"

As we walked towards the entrance to the ship, it finally docked. Spence talked about how he was glad to be off the boat, even though it was luxurious.

"Yeah, right?" I said. "It's great for a few hours or a day, but with two, you start to get feel a little cramped."

Then Cat introduced us to Sparks, her Rotom. "Wow, that's really cool." I remarked. "I'm no expert on Sinnoh Pokemon, but I know enough to say that Rotom is a pretty rare find."

As the gangplank lowered, I walked off of it. As I stepped on the ground, I grabbed a Pokeball from my belt and threw it up in the air. "Go, Inferno!" I cried.

The Arcanine appeared a foot or two away from me. I walked up to her and patted her head. "Hey, girl." Inferno purred. "How ya' doin'? We just got here."

I turned my friends. "Guys, this is Inferno, my Arcanine." Inferno purred again and nuzzled my side. "She's really sweet, don't freak out just 'cause she's big."

"Ah, his parent, Plasma, was found by my brother in the Old Chateau in Sinnoh. Just wanted to play, and Jake kept him company for a few hours before he had to go. Plasma didn't want to be alone, so he left with Jake, and I got Sparks when he paired off with my friend's Gengar, Pollyanna."

As the huge hound materialized from her Pokeball, I couldn't help the little gasp of delight as Sparks chirped again, floating forward to examine the Arcanine. I had a huge soft spot for Fire-types, and yet another for cuddly Pokemon-- and Arcanines fit into both categories quite handily.

"Well hi there, puppy, you're gorgeous now aren't you? Aw, you're just a big softy..." I cooed, walking over and extending a hand to the big canine, offering her a cinnamon-flavored Pokeblock designed for Fire types. My Arcanine, Huan, would do just about anything for one of those treats. "I've got an Arcanine of my own, you might get to meet him later, I bet you'd like that, wouldn't you girl?"

An Arcanine and a Rotom... "Fires types are difficult to train. I have one of my own, but he's a little untamed to be kept out of his pokeball. It takes a tough trainer to raise such pokemon that you have. Each pokemon I've see of yours are extremely healthy and strong. You two really are skilled trainers, aren't you?" Spence addressed Cat and Seth.

"It's decided, then" Spence smirked, "If you don't mind, I'm coming along with you guys. I thought we'd end up battling some time or another while we're here on the island, but I want to see you battle even more now. I'll cheer you guys on, what do ya say?"

Spence turned, looking onward, "So, where are we off to first?"

"Here. You trainers are in a group, correct?" A promoter walked passed, giving handouts to the arriving trainers. She gave one to Cat.

"A brochure?" Spence questioned.

"Yes. You'll find a map inside," she smiled.

Spence chuckled sadly to himself, "Not bad. Saves us --- well, me from getting lost. So Cat, what are you thinking?"

((Just for reference, Sparks' noises in my head sound similar to those of R2-D2 (Star Wars).))

"Sure, you're welcome to join us. As for battling... perhaps later." I smiled as Sparks floated over to say hello to Spence too, the little Rotom letting out a series of chirps. "I wouldn't want to give the game completely away by revealing my main team before the Tournament."

I took the brochure, idly examining it as I continued. "Most Fire types aren't that hard to train, Dragons are the really stubborn ones and Psychics basically require you to always be three steps ahead of them if you don't train them from very young... I've always loved Fire types anyway, my starter was a Fire type." Opening the map, I scanned its square barcode into my PokeNav, then tapped the device to bring up a holographic overlay of the area, shrugging. "Then again, I grew up around Pokemon of every shape and type, so that might just be me."

Closing up the holographic display, I looked at the others. "We should head to the nearest Pokemon Center, get registered. C'mon, the map says it's this way."

Sparks floating beside me, I padded off into the streets.

After I packed up all of my stuff, I made sure I had everything and headed for the exit of the boat. I knew I was late getting off because I was the only one in the lobby except for a few employees. Once I was off the boat I let Jolt out of his Pokeball. As I exited the ship I saw Cat, Spence and Seth walking away.

Deciding to join them I yelled, "Hey guys! Wait up!" I walked faster and when I caught them I asked "Do you mind if I join you?"

((First important NPC joins the party. Be nice to Nick.))

"Of course not." I looked down at the Manectric and offered it a hand to sniff, palming a yellow Pokeblock into that hand and holding it out to the Pokemon. Experience had taught me that with most Pokemon, the quickest way to their hearts was through their stomach.

As we walked through the town, I spotted a few signs directing us to registration booths manned by a human and a Psychic type, dividing us up by last name. "I'll see you guys once we're done signing in."

Sparks and I headed over to the "S/T" booth, where a man sat with his Bronzong. Another young man with black hair and bright blue eyes was just stepping away from it, a hulking Garchomp at his side. I raised an eyebrow at the Dragon-type, but dismissed it as the man at the booth motioned me to come over. "Name and Pokedex, please."

I dug out my Hoenn-issue Dex and handed it to him to put into a scanner. "Cassandra Taylor."

The screen next to him beeped. "Age 20, hometown Lavaridge, defeated by Glacia in Hoenn and Lance in Johto." he read off the screen. "That right?"

"Yep." I stood still and let the Bronzong scan me with its red eyes, waiting for the Psychic type to confirm my identity.

"Well, you're all set then. You're one of the last lots of trainers to come in, there's an opening ceremony tonight at the Volcano Arena." He pointed to the large mountain rising from the center of the island. "You're allowed to have one of your Pokemon out of its Pokeball with you, within reason."

He reached into a box and pulled out a large brown envelope, tossing in a few items and handing it to me. "There, your identity pass-- which you'll need for getting food and the like-- and your hotel information."

"Thanks." Sparks chirped at the man as we turned away-- I opened the envelope to check where I would be staying, before I realized the black-haired boy had approached me with a smile.

"Hi, I'm Nick, and this is Chase. What's your name?"

"Cass Taylor, but you can just call me Cat. This is Sparks, it's nice to meet you." I raised an eyebrow at the big Garchomp, who had lowered his head to sniff at me, then let out a friendly-sounding rumbling growl. "You have your Garchomp really well-trained, to be so quiet."

He laughed, running a hand through his hair. "Ah, Chase is a big softy. He was my starter. Where are you staying?"

"That would certainly explain it." I smiled back, turning to see if the others were done yet. "I'm at this place called Gatewater..."

OC: Real sorry about not posting guys. I haven't had wifi recently, and still won't until Monday. I'll catch up then. Feel free to go on without me.

OOC: Hey guys, Happy New Year!! I'll make a post later today.

((Happy 2012 to all of you! Let's try and keep this going, shall we? Redt might be joining us too ))

Spence was handed back his Unova pokedex and a pass when he turned back to Cat. This new character, Nick, had a dragon pokemon. It made him think maybe he needed another team revision. He hadn't withdrawn a dragon pokemon yet... "Hey Nick, the name's Spence. Nice to meetcha." Suddenly, his phone went off. Spence jumped, reaching for it and answering, "Uh, hello?"

"WHY HAVEN"T YOU CALLED?!!" A lady's voice shouted from the other end.

"WHA?!" Spence jumped again, opening the Xtransceiver to see his girlfriend, Cindy. He rubbed the back of his head, bright red in the face, "...Sorry, Cindy. I just forgot, okay? There's just a bunch of stuff that's going on, and it's kinda overwhelming at the moment..."

"Liar!! You just don't want to talk to me, admit it!!"

"No, that's not it at all! Listen, I was just about to call! Honest! I just got on the island. I promised, didn't I?" he convinced her.

"Mmmm, yeah... Alright, sorry babe," Spence sighed in relief as he saw her smile, "So how was your trip? Making any friends?" With what you could see on the phone, she had long brown hair and gorgeous blue eyes. She was rather pretty. At home, she was more like a mother than a girlfriend, hense the questions. Spence didn't find it annoying though, in actuality, he was rather fond of it, and her.

Spence grinned back, taking Seth under his arm, "Yeah, a few! They're all really strong trainers, and I really look forward to battling them all! Haha," he laughed, letting Seth go.

Cindy sighed, "Sorry about my boyfriend... When it comes to battling he just can't help himself."

"I just got my identification pass then," he held it between his fingers, "Apparently there's an opening ceremony going on tonight. Sounds pretty lame, but hopefully the next day we can all battle then."

"Sounds good babe," Cindy smiled, "Well, I'm glad you made it there safely. Your grandparents ask about you everyday, as well as the Professor."

"The Professor, too? Really?" he asked curiously, somewhat surprised.

"Well yeah. Everyone thinks the world of you, Spence. We all want you to do a great job."

Spence smiled, giving a nod of certainty, "Well, I won't let you down."

"Good," she giggled, "And how's my darling Jazz doing?" The Whimsicott released herself from her pokeball and onto Spence's shoulder, she gave Cindy a big happy cry.

"Haha, she's doing great! Thanks for letting me borrow her," he said as he patted the grass pokemon playfully.

"No worries, and all your other pokemon are doing well at home, too."

"That's good."

"Well, I guess I'll let you go. I was just checking to see you all made it there safely. I hope you all have fun, and Spence..."

"Uh, yeah?"

Cindy looked concerned for a minute, finally putting it out of her mind, "...It's nothing. Just be careful, alright?"

"Huh? Well yeah, of course," he smiled with a nod, "Talk to you later, Cindy!"

"Bye babe!"

Spence closed the Xtransceiver, turning to Cat as his Whimsicott jumped to the ground to follow them, "We're staying at Gatewater, right? Hopefully there's something to do there to pass the time. We can't battle until tomorrow, huh?"

Holy hell I'm still alive!! Just figured I'd pop in for a good ol' story. By the way, Charizard for rule sake.

Name: Red Feor
Gender: Male
Age: 19
Appearance: Roughly 6 feet tall. Short, dark brown hair that spikes in the front. Medium build with a long scar on the left side of his chest. Lightly tanned skin with light brown eyes.

Home Region: Kanto
Region of Gym Completion (if not the same as home region): Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn (Elite Four not challenged in Hoenn)

Personality: Red is a laid-back guy and is difficult to anger. Once he becomes angry, however, he's a completely different person. Red likes to go with the flow of a situation and voices his opinion if needed. He's very observant and over-analyzes almost everything, allowing to strategize easily and effectively. He loves a good battle, but is disappointed when something is too easy. Red likes to make friends and socialize when the opportunity is there.
History (1-2 par. is fine): Red was raised in Celadon City and watched as trainers went through the city and battled Erika. He watched with int'ense desire as she defeated trainers with grace. Her pokemon was always in perfect sync with one another, and when double battles took place Red would jot down notes on the trainer's battle style. His father was an avid trainer and connected deeply with his Pokemon. His mother had a few Pokemon, but they were mainly helpers with her housework. Red developed a special form of direct combat style. His father mainly had Psychic type Pokemon so his practice was mainly against strong Special based moves.
When Red became a trainer, his father gave him the baby Ralts of his Gardevoir and Gallade. After training and bonding with it the Ralts evolved all the way to a Gallade. Red learned to pick up sword fighting from his Pokemon partner, which took an extremely long time and a lot of patience on Gallade's part. Eventually he was asked to join Erika in her gym and ref her matches. After watching her battle for a year, Red took off on his own to make a name for himself. He created a diverse team, using their differences to make a good strategy when they work together.

Pokemon on hand:
- Gallade (M)
- Vaporeon (F)
- Slowking (M)
- Togekiss (F)
- Sceptile (M)
- Haunter (M)

Pokemon accessible through the PC: Roselia, Piplup, Butterfree, Kakuna, Gloom, Vileplume, Grimer, Ponyta, Magmar, Magneton, Flaafy, Scyther.

Additional Notes: Red carries a katana hilted at his belt. Gallade and Slowking are always outside of their pokeballs. Slowking is telepathic and comunicates with humans and Pokemon.