#Zipper the Blitzle

[dbcoatl-art]

Quick refs of some of Jin's friends for my PMD fic Hunters of Ruination (aka the Junior Hunters Club). George, Polly and Zipper have made cameo appearances in Episode 1, but all four will be properly introduced in Episode 2.

Zipper is the club president, with Oona as his vice president and George as the club treasurer. Polly's responsibility is gathering snacks and drinks for the members, thanks to her family working at a seafood stall.

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Please do NOT repost nor remove the caption! Do NOT tag as 'me' or 'kin' nor as your character(s)! Do NOT use or redistribute anywhere without my written permission!

[tlblitzle]

Hiya! My name’s Storm (she/he), and I’m a professional trainer specializing in electric types. Their needs are often super unique, and it’s been fun learning how to accommodate them :)

I live in Nimbasa City in Unova (No, I’m not pro-Plasma. Even their own former members number among their victims), though I do a fair bit of travel around the region to keep my babies happy. Currently I’m in the middle of a league challenge, in hopes of building a nice resume with which I can apply for a position at Blueberry Academy!

I’ve currently got six Pokémon in my care:

Ozone, my Zebstrika. He’s been with me ever since I was little, and I love his grumpy ass dearly. He’s getting on in years, but he’s still gotta get his daily run in. He got his name for his smell lmao (I’ve since learned that it’s fairly common for Blitzle and Zebstrika!). He’s actually a bit large for his species, which is great because that means he’s perfect for me to ride!

Nimbus, my Luxray. She was a rescue, and the one who got me passionate about electric types! I found her out on the streets of Nimbasa with a chunk outta her ear, back when she was just a little (very fluffy) Shinx. Since then she’s gotten very friendly and cuddly. She can startle pretty easily, but she’s a big softie at heart. Nimbus is really sensitive to others’ feelings, and great at soothing them. She actually has a slightly unusual pigmentation, because her yellows are actually pinks

Lux, my Kilowattrel. Wattrel aren’t found around here, but I got a line on a breeder who was happy to hook me up with him. He’s still pretty young, but really eager to learn. He’s got the makings of a star teammate, for sure! His favorite thing is when he gets to soar out above the docks whenever we’re in Driftveil or Castelia

Beanie, my Galvantula. She kinda fell into my lap by accident, and now she’s part of the family! Caught her as a Joltik feeding on one of my electrical sockets when I came home from training one day, and she captured my heart. She really enjoyed sitting on heads as a Joltik, and she’s convinced she’s still lap-sized. This causes many problems

Dymie, my Magneton. Short for Neodymium. It’s a mischievous lil guy. Tries to use its magnets to unzip my zippers, and seems to reflexively generate interference whenever a Rotom’s camera is pointed at it. It doesn’t care about my XTransceiver though? Caught it out in the Virbank Complex as preparation for my fight with Roxie!

Pal, my Wash Rotom! This little shit used to be my phone before it broke out. It struggles to see when its pranks have gone too far. Dymie used to bully it as a phone, but has decided to take mercy. Presumably because it doesn’t have a camera anymore?

-BZZT- That seems a bit HARSH, STORM. And you skipped that I can TALK? LAME! -BZZT-

(Selfies and more under the cut!)

OOC

Here’s some more accurate pics of Storm! Artists/picrew links in the alt text

Storm is in his mid-to-late 20s, and stands at 6’3” without the big tall boots he enjoys. She’s bit of a flirt, but she’ll respect it if you shut her down. I might add other random little tidbits here as they come to mind

Mun is an adult, uses he/she, and goes by Kate/Blitz/Nim

[dbcoatl-art]

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Hunters of Ruination

Episode 1: Human or Pokémon

Chapter 1: A Beast in the Valley [7 Pages]

A seemingly boring day in Trueno Village turns into a not-so-boring day when a young Shinx named Jin learns that one of his friends has been kidnapped by a terrifying beast that roams about in his beloved Thunderclap Valley.

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~Thunderclap Valley~

“Now, now, dearie. Try not to wander too far away. I don’t want you getting trapped inside a Mystery Dungeon.”

“Of course, Mama! I understand!”

Pacha sighed and shook her head as the little Phanpy named George scampered this way and that, all while maintaining a smile on her face. It had been a long day, yet her son still had plenty of energy. She figured that spending an entire day playing with his friends would put a light in his mood.

He was especially close with the young Shinx who lived on the outskirts of Trueno Village – the one who lived with his aunt and uncle. Since she’d known the Luxray named Volt from her own childhood, she had a feeling that some of their friendship would rub off on their kids…even if Jin wasn’t actually Volt’s biological son.

Pacha stretched her trunk as she let loose a great yawn, then looked up. The full moon was out tonight, with not a single cloud in the sky. Perfect weather for a nightly walk. Yet, she could feel her bones begin to ache, a signal that her body was soon to crash. She began taking a few steps forward…

…and then jumped as a scream resounded throughout the night air.

“George?!” She looked around in a panic, swinging her head to and fro. Where had George gone? She swore she just saw him not too long ago.

“Mama, help!”

“George!”

Her motherly instincts kicking in, the Donphan curled up in a ball and began rolling her way towards the sound of her child’s voice. Gods forbid she forgive herself if something terrible happened to him…

She felt the earth rumble underneath her as she rolled, nearly knocking her out of her trajectory. But she remained resilient as she sped towards her destination, only stopping at a wall of short shrubs. She shoved the leaves and branches aside with her trunk, heedless of any nicks or cuts that appeared on it.

Unfortunately, she was seconds too late. By the time she got a clear view, all the Donphan could find were George’s footprints, scattered hither-tither like he was running away from something. An indentation on the ground, like some kind of snake had gotten to him. A massive hole that led underground. And – worst of all – George’s scarf, almost shredded beyond recognition.

Pacha could only stare at the scarf in horror, even as she approached it. She casually reached out with her trunk to scoop it up before holding it before her.

“George…” she whimpered, tears falling on the ground. She then raised her trunk in the air and let loose a loud bellow, one filled with the grief and sorrow of a mother.

“GEORGE!!!”

* * *

~Trueno Village~

Dawn arose upon Trueno Village, the quiet little community located within the heart of Thunderclap Valley. From within the marketplace, Pokémon were beginning to set up shop and open their wares to get ready for the day, while early-bird townsfolk paced around the plaza, waiting for the opportunity to get first pick.

“Arrrgh, this is taking bloody forever,” a Jolteon hissed, her bright yellow fur crackling with electricity with every bristle. “I know the day just started, but would it kill the shopkeepers to hurry it up a bit?”

“Not if it means tripping over themselves, scattering any produce they might have and ruining it with the rotting stench of Berries and whatnot,” a Tinkatuff pointed out, the pole of her massive hammer resting atop her shoulders. “Besides, they work hard to provide the goods for us, so you oughta be grateful for it.”

The Jolteon opened her mouth in protest, only to sigh, knowing that the Tinkatuff was right. Instead, she opted to turn towards a Poliwrath hauling a crate of seaweed to his stall, assisted by two Poliwag, a Poliwhirl, and a Politoed. Although the valley was rife with Electric-type Pokémon and not a place where Water-types could go about freely, she did admire the family for being able to adapt well to such harsh conditions.

She and her neighbour weren’t the only ones coming to the marketplace. Not too far away, a large cart came rolling down the path, pulled by a brown-and-white goat Pokémon who bore several white daisies on her leafy green mane and back and especially on her right ear. Riding the cart was a lion Pokémon with blue-and-black fur who bore two scars on his muzzle, one of which extended to just underneath his left eye. And next to him was a young lion cub with the same fur colours who wore the most bored expression on his face.

Jin was an adventurer who desired adventure. An explorer who desired exploring. A hero who desired a quest. He could be all those things and so much more – but instead, he was riding the cart with his aunt Leif and uncle Volt to the Trueno Village marketplace to shop for the week’s supplies. It was boring, and he hated it, but he knew that it would only be a matter of time before the world became his Cloyster.

“And here we are,” the Gogoat named Leif announced as she pulled up to the nearby supermarket.

The Luxray named Volt turned to Jin. “Alright, Jin, Aunt Leif and I are going to get a few supplies and things for this week. You can do what you like, but please stay within the boundaries of the village.”

Jin let out a sigh as he stretched his body. “Yes, Uncle Volt,” he replied. Oh, how he wished something exciting would happen right about now. The boredom was killing him, but if anything, they at least gave him a chance to find his friends.

Volt’s eyes narrowed. “I mean it,” he said a bit more sternly as he worked to remove the harness on Leif. “And while you’re at it, mind watching over the Egg? I don’t want anything happening to it while we’re away.” He pointed to a large egg tucked away in a corner of the wagon, contained in a special pouch to keep it away.

“Why?” Jin asked. “Everyone knows who the Egg belongs to. And it’s summer – it’s not like some Sneasel is going to swoop in and steal it.”

“No, but someone could mistake our wagon for someone else’s and snatch it away. Remember what happened last year?”

Jin opened his mouth to protest, but immediately clamped it shut as his uncle’s glare intensified. Instead, he sighed as he approached the Egg while Volt followed Leif into the supermarket. He attached the harness to himself, and nearly toppled over from its weight.

Can’t wait for this thing to hatch, he thought as he staggered forward to maintain a balance in weight.

“Geez, Jin,” a brash-sounding female voice sounded from the front of the wagon. “Your aunt and uncle set you up for Egg-sitting duty again?”

Jin sighed. He knew the sound of that voice. He turned his head to find two Pokémon standing before the wagon. One of them was a blue pollywog with a spiral pattern on her belly. She sported an orange ribbon on the back of her head…and a smirk on her face. The other was a black zebra with white stripes and a matching zigzag mane. Around his neck was a pair of blue goggles, while his expression was much friendlier.

“Hey, Polly. Hey, Zipper,” Jin said, waving to the two. “And yeah.”

Polly let out a snort as Zipper climbed onto the wagon. “Man, and I thought I was the only one who got grounded for my tiny incident last night,” she said. “What did you do this time that really ticked off the old cat?”

“Well, in my defense, I didn’t realize I’d left the lights on last night,” Jin said defensively, pausing to shoot a grateful glance at Zipper. The Blitzle nodded in reply as he removed the harness off Jin’s back and slipped it onto himself. “So, what if the Nymble infestation was my fault? Everything else I did was an accident.”

In a sense, Jin was correct. The Spelon Berries he’d dunked in the soup was supposed to even out the sourness, and he didn’t mean to ruin Aunt Leif’s favourite romance novel trying to shoo a stray Capsakid away. The lights were on him, though – and even then, he couldn’t really consider it entirely his fault.

“Anyway, it’s just…it’s just so boring around here,” the Shinx went on as he and Zipper hopped off the wagon. “All I ever get to do is go to the marketplace to pick up weekly supplies, hang out with you guys – no offense – and help out with chores.” His star-tipped tail lashed back and forth in annoyance. “I want adventure! I want exploring! I want to see what the rest of the archipelago is like, and the rest of the world as well!”

“And you think sneaking around on your own and causing havoc around the village is going to change any of that?” Polly sassed.

“I…” Jin began, only to stop when he noticed something off. “Wait, where’s George? He’s usually here by now.”

A loud crash from a few ways off answered his question. “That looks like it came from the edge of the square,” Zipper announced.

A woman’s voice, filled with despair and panic, soon followed. “Someone, please help!”

“And that sounds like Mrs. Pacha!” Polly gasped.

“Then we’d better go see what she’s hollering about,” Jin said. “Come on!”

Together, the three kids came barreling down the path all the way to the village square. A large crowd of Pokémon was already gathered there, their gazes fixed on the green plaid shawl-wearing Donphan. Her eyes appeared to be bloodshot, and tear tracks ran down her face from the amount of crying she had been doing. Her dark grey armor appeared to bear many nicks and bruises, like she had gotten into a scrape, while a tattered green scarf sat upon one of her tusks.

“There’s Mrs. Pacha,” Jin said. He grimaced when he noticed the injuries. “Ouch, she doesn’t look very good.”

“No kidding,” Polly agreed, her eyes wide with disbelief.

An orange rodent Pokémon walked up to her. He had on a blue waistcoat adorned with a lightning bolt pattern and a gold badge on its lapel, along with a white cravat around his neck to indicate his professionalism as mayor of the village. His black whip-like tail darted this way and that as the antenna-like whiskers on his yellow electric sacs twitched.

“Pacha, you look much worse for wear than usual,” the Dedenne spoke in a voice that was much deeper than his tiny stature suggested otherwise. “What seems to be the problem that you’d come barging in here?”

“It’s awful, Mayor Sparky,” the Donphan exclaimed. “My son George was captured by a horrifying beast!”

Jin’s eyes went wide upon hearing the news. His big ears twitched as shocked murmurs rippled through the crowd.

“A beast? In Thunderclap Valley?”

“Ridiculous! Everyone knows the ferals only reside in the Mystery Dungeons.”

“Has the Mysteriosity started reaching this village, too?”

“I sure hope not.”

Mayor Sparky cleared his throat and let out a bullet of electricity from his tail to the sky. “Everyone, please simmer down,” he shouted. “Let the poor woman finish!”

The crowd fell silent as Mayor Sparky turned back to Pacha. “Keep going,” he said. “Tell everyone here what this ‘beast’ looked like.”

Pacha shot the Dedenne a grateful glance before proceeding to pick up a stick. Using the stick, she began tracing a picture in the dirt. “Well, the beast had unblinking, blue eyes,” she explained. “And sharp fangs. And I think it was capable of creating holes? Not to mention that horrifying hissing sound.” She shuddered at the mention of that last part. “That’s all I know. I’m sorry.”

Mayor Sparky put a paw to his chin as he went deep in thought. “Hmmm…it seems like your boy was kidnapped by a feral Pokémon,” he concluded. “Which is odd in and of itself, since they don’t usually step outside the boundaries of a Mystery Dungeon. Nevertheless…” he snapped his fingers in the air. “As mayor of Trueno Village, it is my responsibility to make sure each and every one of my citizens is safe and sound, especially curious young children. We will capture that beast without fail, and rescue little George!”

The citizens cheered and clapped in response, relieved that their tiny mayor was able to step up to any challenge thrown his way. The sooner that beast was taken care of and George was rescued, the sooner they could go about their normal lives once again.

An idea crossed Jin’s mind, and a wide grin snuck its way onto his face. “Guys, I just had the most brilliant idea,” he said. “We are going to capture that beast and rescue George!”

“Sorry, ‘we’?” Polly questioned.

“Yeah, ‘we’!”

“But didn’t your Uncle Volt tell you to stay put and watch over Aunt Leif’s Egg?” Zipper pointed out. “How will he react if he finds out that you threw away your responsibilities again?”

“He won’t!” Jin scoffed, amidst beads of sweat rolling down his face. “It’ll just be a quick, in-and-out rescue mission. I doubt he’ll notice before he returns.”

“No thanks,” Polly declined. “Someone needs to make sure the wagon doesn’t get stolen like last time.”

“And someone needs to make sure the Egg doesn’t end up cracked,” Zipper added.

Jin opened his mouth in protest, only to clamp it shut. “Fine,” he said. “I guess I’ll go and do it myself. Just…make sure no one tries to take you on, okay?” He then turned around and headed in the direction Pacha had come out of, barely hearing Polly’s faint call of “Don’t die” before vanishing into the overgrowth bordering the village.

* * *

~Thunderclap Valley~

Jin knew Thunderclap Valley like the back of his paw. He knew what Mystery Dungeons were nearby, which ferals came out during specific points of the day, where the best foraging places were, and so on. He knew the best hiding places, which paths to take to avoid stumbling upon a Mystery Dungeon…but most of all, he knew that if he was ever in trouble, he could just set off an electric charge to the sky to alert the local Titan Pokémon. So, it didn’t take him long to find that something was off.

In a well-shaded area beneath a canopy of trees, the young Shinx noticed a clearing where the yellow grass was at its shortest. Two sets of tracks intersected with each other, and Jin easily recognized one of the sets belonging to the massive, three-toed indents from Pacha. The other set, however, was a very unfamiliar set of tiny pawprints that looked like they could have belonged to some other mammalian Pokémon.

Jin crept along the new tracks, keeping his nose low to the ground as he tried to get some kind of information. He noticed that the scent wafting from these tracks was very sweet, almost like a mix of morning dew and mint leaves. It almost would have been enough to put him in a trance had he not noticed a plump, yellow Berry nearby.

“How curious,” he muttered to himself. “What would a Sitrus Berry be doing in a place like this?”

As if on cue, his stomach let out a low grumble, reminding him that breakfast was a long time ago, and lunch wouldn’t be for a little while longer. Licking his lips, he reached over and snatched up the Sitrus Berry in his paw. He took a bite out of it and waited…and waited…

Nothing happened.

Weird, he thought to himself. I was expecting something to happen. He shrugged. Oh well, I guess this means the beast wasn’t anywhere near here.

At the same time, however, he couldn’t help but feel that something still wasn’t adding up. If this supposed “beast” wasn’t nearby, then what was up with those weird pawprints?

Finishing the rest of the Sitrus Berry, Jin resumed his investigation of the pawprints, trying to make sense of who they belonged to. As he made his way down the trail, he noticed that the prints seemed to circle about a few times before heading further up.

Now, who would do something like that, and why, he thought. He took a few steps forward, only to be overwhelmed by the same morning dew on mint leaf scent. Hissing, he shook his head to clear it of the strong scent…

…and felt something give way underneath his paw. He looked down, realizing too late that he’d stepped on a pitfall trap. He let out a yowl as the ground collapsed underneath him, causing him to fall into the pit.

“Owww,” he groaned, rubbing his head. “That really hurt.”

After checking to make sure he wasn’t injured, Jin took a moment to observe the trap. Thankfully, the pit wasn’t too deep, and the soil was still firm enough that he could get a good grip on it if he used his claws.

But just before he contemplated on climbing, he heard the rustling of a bush, followed by a series of footsteps from above – in fact, these weren’t light footsteps, but heavy thuds laced with exhaustion. Ragged breathing that sounded as if someone had run a marathon disturbed the air. And then, he heard a girl’s voice, full of frustration.

“How many times…do I have to tell you…I don’t know what you’re going on about!!”

That was definitely not Polly’s voice, Jin knew. Polly’s voice had a slightly squeaky tone that made it higher pitched than it should have been. This new voice was much huskier in comparison.

The footsteps came closer before they stopped at the edge of the pit. Jin crouched down, his body crackling with electricity as he instinctively revved up his Charge. Whoever trapped him in here was going to have to answer, and they would have to answer fast if they didn’t want a Thunder Shock to the face.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, a small green feline peered over the edge of the pit. Two dark green triangular ears twitched in annoyance while a mane of leafy green fur swayed in the breeze above. A dark green mask pattern stretched over its face, scrunched up in a scowl.

It’s…a Sprigatito, Jin thought to himself. He thought about calling for help, only to stop as he noticed something else about this Sprigatito.

Instead of the usual pink eyes he was used to, a pair of crystal-blue eyes stared back at him.

Blue eyes…like those of the beast that kidnapped George!