Viewing Single Post From: APRIL--or, How the Video Game World Fought Back

Viewing Single Post From: APRIL--or, How the Video Game World Fought Back
nya_chan	Jun 20 2007, 06:47 PM
TeH g00fy admin (I wonder why no one takes me seriously...) Posts: 749 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: December 14, 2006	Chapter 38 My first thought was that something was terribly amiss. My second thought, which followed right on the heels of the first one, was that this shouldn't be a surprise to me. Inside the Space Center on Mossdeep Island, Stephen was lurking and attempting to be protective of his island home. That was the first sign that something was wrong. To me, being helpful didn't appear to be high on Stephen's to-do list. However, there he was, standing next to a letter addressed to "Who it may concern". "Shouldn't it be 'whom'?" I asked Stephen. He rolled his eyes. "Read the stupid letter." I did. Inside the letter, even more stupidity abounded. Though it only ranked about a six on a scale of one to ten for Team Magma: "How are you? We are doing fine. We will soon visit you to take your rocket fuel. Please don't try to stop us. We will take the fuel no matter what. Let there be more land! --TEAM MAGMA" "And just who asked them how they were feeling?" I scoffed, mock upset. "You need to get your priorities in order. We--" "You're really different when you're not high. ...In fact, you almost remind me of me. That's kinda disturbing, really. And copyright infringement." "Shut up. As I was saying, we need to stop TEAM MAGMA before they steal the rocket fuel. ...Why ever they want it." "I seriously doubt that. I could do nothing for the next five years--though that sounds rather unappealing, come to think of it--and Team Magma would still do nothing. Besides. I've had it with them. I've dealt with them recently enough, thank you." It was true. As soon as I had set foot in Mossdeep, I had realized I'd forgotten to do something, due to the accidentally combined efforts of the old woman on Mt. Pyre, Maxie, and Flannery. Instead of a Gym Badge, my fourth shiny pin-like object had been a Magma Emblem. Therefore, Maxie couldn't accidentally leave it behind, and the old woman couldn't give it to me. I might have been slightly to blame somewhere along the line, but why dwell on my mistakes when I could point and laugh at other's? I flew back from Mossdeep to Jagged Pass, foregoing the rule that you can only fly to cities. Hopping onto my Acro Bike, I hopped the ledges down the hill. Already shaken from bouncing up and down for so long, I was doubly unhappy when the ground shook violently, revealing a cave in the rock face. "Fun," I muttered, pedaling into it. I moved through the cave, creaming any Grunt that dared turn around at the last possible second and looked at me. A few seemed to regret having joined. No dip. Maybe they realized the hopelessness of their cause. Revelations hurt, especially when you're doused in water from and angry Mudkip. Finally, I approached the end. A single Grunt was supposedly to keep all intruders from reaching Groudon. Of course, if anyone got this far, the poor guy didn't stand much of a chance. In all truth though, the guy didn't even know what he was guarding, or if it even had a tail. I beat the sorry excuse for a guard and continued down the path. One final person stood in my way. "Avast! No, that's not right.... Uh, halt! Thou shalt not moveth any further!" "Ya done yet?" "Almost. You shall not paaaasss!" "That's nice, Gandalf." "How dare you! I'm a girl and my name is TABITHA." "You look like a guy to me... Gandalf." "Suffer!" "it" yelled, sending out a Numel. "Oi," I muttered. "The repetition is killing me. Please tell me you have something a bit more interesting after that one?" "W-well," she said, dully watching Numel's final stand against Mudkip. The Fire/Ground-type didn't stand a chance. "I do have a--" "Please don't say Zubat. Besides, you won't have it for long." I'd already sent out Minun. "Indeed..." she murmured. Her Zubat swiftly bit the dust with its over-large teeth. "Is the next one Poocheyna? I might have to hurl if it is." She grinned maliciously. "No, it's not. It's worse." "Wurple?" "No!" she exclaimed. "MIGHTYENA!" "Ah.... That kind of worse." I polished my finger nails on the front of my shirt and looked at them. "Shouldn't be a problem." "Pff," Tabitha said simply. "It's nothing to scoff at. Thanks to the unoriginality of your boss, Mudkip just reached Level 42." "And?" "Hydro Pump," I spoke, and a torrent of water promptly drowned the Level 28 Mightyena. "Th-that's only slightly surreal..." Tabitha murmured faintly. "Like I said, blame your boss. Any other tricks up your non-existent sleeves?" She tossed her third and final Pokeball. "You gonna kill my CAMERUPT too?" "Naturally," I said. "Water Gun." "That's a bit lack-luster." "I prefer to save PP, thank you. If it's not too much of a problem, I'm going to be demolishing your boss." "By all means," she grumbled, sweeping her hand in the general direction of onward. I passed her, curtsying slightly, and proceeded past a large pool of lava containting a Groudon-shaped lump of stone. "Hey!" I called past it. "Yeah! You! With the face!" "Maxie has a name, you know," said the Magma boss, with clenched teeth. "He seems to realize that fact. Now, be a dear and ask him what the hell is his problem," I said sweetly. "Maxie is standing right here," he simmered. "And he doesn't have problems, just a history of bad English teachers." "Yeah, no kidding. But I was referring to his career goals." "Maxie wants to make the world a better place for land-dwelling Pokemon. By using Groudon's powers, he can make volcanoes erupt, thereby expanding the mainland." "Have you ever considered being maybe a geophyiscist or vulcanologist instead?" "That would involve college. Maxie doesn't like school. Anyways, as Maxie was saying, if the land was larger, there would be more room for land Pokemon. Destroy the ocean! Expand the land!" I sighed. "As I said before, you'll get viciously murdered by all the Water-types Team Aqua uses. Ever thought about that when you designed your criminal organization?" "Never! We're not criminals! We support the good of mankind!" "Humankind, Maxie. Be politically correct. And all living things need water to live." "Nonsense! Have you ever been thirsty once?" "Can't honestly say I have. However, as the heroine, it's my civic duty to stop your madness. Now give me the Blue Orb and let's end this once and for all." "N-no! It's Maxie's precious!" he cried, waving it frantically in the air. "It shall control his Groudon, and then he shall rule the world!" "You or Groudon? I sense pronoun issues." "Maxie, you fool--!" "I couldn't have said it better myself." "Why you--!" Just then, the Orb flashed brightly, illuminating the cave with a blue light. Groudon yawned sleepily, color returning to his body. Then, he lumbered off. "What the-- That was your fault!" "My fault? You're the idiot that was waving it in the air." "A-a technicallity! Besides why dwell on my mistakes when--" "Oh, don't even go there. That is so totally something I would say. Shut up and send out your... Zubat or whatever." It turns out, for some strange reason, his Zubat had liked him enough to turn into a Crobat. Not like it made much of a difference. It, Maxie's Mightyena, and his Camerupt all were unconscious in less than five minutes. "Maxie'll get you for that!" he cried. The screen blacked out. By means of an Escape Rope, I warped to the surface, then fkew back to Mossdeep. Which got me to where I am now. Lost in my memories, I nearly jumped about a foot in the air when Stephen addressed me again, "And what if you did just fight them recently? Evil must be stopped at all costs." "Evil needs a better spokesperson," I retorted. Stephen scowled. "If you really don't want to deal with them, fine. Wander around town for a bit. I'll hold down the fort here." "I'm sure it's going to blow away while I'm gone," I said, rolling my eyes. "Suit yourself." ...Which got me to the Gym. After a dizzying experience involving warp panels and rotating statues, I reached the not-so-dynamic duo of Liza and Tate. "Hola compadres!" I said brightly. "Uh, what--" began Liza. "--are you talking about?" finished Tate. "This is a Japanese game." "It's not like I've heard that line before," I said through clenched teeth. "Honestly, you guys don't get out much. Ever heard of 'culture'?" "Can't honestly say--" "--we have," concluded Liza, unless she was Tate. Then she wouldn't be Liza. She'd be the other one. "Ssssuure.... Before I get too confused, can we battle?" "Indeed," they chorused. In unison, they sent out two Pokemon, Claydol and Xatu. "That's a bit strange..." I said, sending out Absol and Linoone. Thanks to the lovely invention known as an HM, Linoone's Surf obliterated Claydol and heavily damaged Xatu. Absol's Crunch finished him off. Down half their team, Liza and Tate sent out Solrock and Lunatone. Surf destroyed them both before they or Absol had the chance to attack. One Mind Badge later, I exited the Gym via a warp panel I hadn't noticed eariler that lead directly to the entrance. The Space Center seemed the most obvious place to go. Maxie seemed to have the same idea. He and a few other Grunts were walking toward the entrance. I yelled at them to stop, but they kept moving, like the little ingrates they were. Huffing, I followed. Inside, a veritiable wellspring of Magma grunts were milling about, poking the scientists to see how annoyed they would get. Pretty, by the looks of things. Sissy fights broke out. Whistling, I walked on past the mayhem to the door leading upstairs. Another grunt was standing firm, not seeming to want to move. "Pardon moi," I said in cheesy Frenchy, (no pun intended). "Are you really sure you want to battle me?" he asked. "Yeeessss," I said slowly. "Or you could move. Or surrender." "Nooooo, I have my job. Don't let anyone upstairs." "Good luck with that, bub," "Oh, confident are we?" "Of course." I narrowed my eyes and grinned devilishly. "Let's git 'er done."


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