Pioneers

When all of the training was said and done, there wasn't much time until Golden Island was upon them. Alice was more alive at night, particularly after napping at several points and eating well during the day. She returned her Pokemon for now, disembarking onto the beach alongside Laura. The only landmarks immediately visible were watchtowers that were erected on the outer rings, and a stadium directly on the other side, although probably not on the opposite beach.

“Okay, the Meowth Statue is somewhere in the middle,” Alice said. Thank god for more comfortable clothes to make this mission more bearable, she just had to hope now that she did not catch on fire, “So let's head that way, unless you have more to go on or we get any clues. You ready?” She asked of her friend, blue eyes filled with both nervousness and determination behind the lenses of their glasses.

Laura had since moved to the lounge, opting to snooze on one of the several sofas, before rummaging through her luggage when the boat was about to dock. She'd asked Alice if she'd seen her headphones anywhere, but soon chose to forget that detail. Getting off the floating vehicle, the darkness was rather oppressing. Black waves lashed the far side of the side of the island, rumbling and splashing sounds audible from the distance. The sea was an empty, black expanse, appearing to all as devoid of life. How deceiving an appearance.

Once more the crew had disappeared to check for the mysterious, weighty cargo, which turned out to be quite elusive. The only source of light was the ship, decked with lanterns, so that it appeared to glow slightly. Odd, even the cargo hold was glowing...light filtering out from the windows, submerged beneath the water level. Movement was visible, flashes of white and silver - the sailors, perhaps? Either way, as it stood, the two girls best make their way to the Pokemon Centre. The local wildlife was asleep, but it still wasn't the safest place to roam in the darkness.

((LOL, the island doesn't have a Pokemon Centre. Also, the whole point of this is arriving/something happening at night? And you basically ignored the whole speech part... .-.))

Alice was not happy to be doing this in the pitch black, but it was the only thing for it. For all they knew, the incident may happen another night, with them forced to wait. She decided to release Sakina in the end, her yellow eyes used to the darkness, her typing even aligned for it. "Okay, girl. If you can smell or sense anything funny, lead the way. I think we're heading for a big golden statue, but something to do with fire is important, too." She explained, "Just take a deep breath, and try not to jump too much." She switched on the light of her Pokegear screen for a pathetic aid of light, and then began to follow her Stunky.

(Derp, I didn't know that xD And I didn't ignore it, I just didn't respond to it :3 ...Which is essentially ignoring... *shot*)

"...Aaliiicee~~" It was unsure whether Laura was doing it on purpose or not, to spook Alice out, but she inched closer as she walked, pulling on her - any loose joint of fabric would worked to be tugged, and she spoke in a low, somewhat nasal voice. It gave off a fairly ominous feeling, but Laura herself was looking about. "...I don't think it's this night, but..." She frowned into the darkness, "Something feels wrong." The trees were beginning to bend towards each other, branches twining to form one continuous canopy, signifying they were getting deeper in the forested area. "...And, I don't think it had anything to do with the statue. I mean," She hastily amended, "I didn't see any statue in my vision. Just a flash of light fur...like, a cream shade..." She frowned again, and exhaled somewhat loudly. The foliage rustled in the breeze.

Alice's cropped top exposed a bit of her bra for a moment: bright blue, laced lingerie, to match the top she wore. She glanced back at Laura as she walked, coming to a stop with Sakina when Laura explained herself. "Cream fur could easily be a Meowth or Persian. But if it's to do with fire, it could easily be something else..." The face of a Chimchar, maybe? A Ninetales or Ponyta? "Do you have anything else to go on, or should we just go back to the beach or find some kind of shelter?" Her Pokemon didn't know secret power, which on an island like this, was a shame.

A cold night dew was beginning to form, creating a heavy, dank mist around and on the island, prompting Laura to suggest turning back for the night. She didn't have any particular opinion regarding the possible pokemon, sinking back into thought. Her visions were simply too vague, and it was driving her crazy. There was the question of why they were so vague - were there simply too many details to be fit in one flash? Her eyes would remain riveted on the sandy ground as she blindly followed Alice, taking guidance from the woman's footsteps. So persistent, a temporary mark on the sand...

Alice had no problem strolling back, seeing as they apparently had no rush. Sakina seemed quite happy as well, and they frolicked on their way back to the sand. She decided to stroll along until they found a good spot for her to lay down a few of the blankets she had bought at the market to sleep on, and then sat down to pet and groom the poison type in her lap. "I guess, should we just rest here? I'm kind of awake now, so I'm sort of tempted to play in the water for a bit." She explained, "I wonder if the sailors found all of that extra cargo, though? I almost thought a Snorlax had snuck on, except they eat eight hundred pounds a day anyway, so maybe two Snorlaxes and a baby Munchlax?" She'd totally catch one of those given the option.

"...Here? On the beach?" Laura seemed surprised; evidently, she'd never camped out, and the idea, to her, was unimaginable. Not to mention it wasn't the best location to camp. "Shouldn't we find civilization? I'm sure they'll have an inn somewhere," She offered, awkwardly sitting beside Alice, and looking out to sea. The moon was gradually rising higher, and the crimson-haired woman's Gear informed her that they were just shy of midnight. They'd spent the entire latter part of day traveling - the Archipelago was a huge place!

"A Snorlax?" She got to considering, her mood lighter as time passed. She didn't release any of her pokemon, seeing that the sea could be quite treacherous at night, but the sight of the lit ship was pretty, a glowing candle resting on the harbour. "Well, they said they had an extra 300 pounds. I do believe a Snorlax to weigh a lot more than that," She took out a few papers from her bag, and began consulting them.

Alice laughed, "I'm actually really spoiled, so I've never camped out either, but it seemed like a nice night and you did say you wanted to return to the beach! We could look for people, though. Someone should be at one of those watchtowers, so we could have a look." She doubted there was an inn, but probably some kind of hut or makeshift houses that were free for travelers, or tents. Even the Colosseum would do, so long as they weren't squashed by an Onix or Nidoking. "What kind of Pokemon weighs three hundred pounds? A steel type?"

Laura twisted to glimpse said towers; "I wonder what they are erected for...?" She spoke out loud, conveying her thoughts and doubts to Alice, who seemed to know more than her in the topic. She went back to consulting her sheaves. "It actually depends on the size of the pokemon. Most Steel types have a high density, so they tend to weigh more, in proportion to their body size. The thing that I saw wasn't too large..." She offered, looking momentarily, shutting her eyes - was she referring to memory? Having rested said eyes for a moment, she returned to looking down, squinting through the darkness, straining to see the papers.

"Come on, we need to go where you can actually see before you end up blinding yourself through strain." Alice ushered Laura. She waited for her companion to get her things together and pack them again, "They have the watch towers up to help guard the island, but it's mostly to look out for Meowths. They worship them and think they're really lucky." Alice explained, waving off the towels before putting them back and slipping her sandals back on. Once again, Sakina took the lead, more than happy to be out of her ball and feeling relied upon. She was a baby, after all, but her trainer seemed to depend on her and trust in her, and she thought that was wonderful. It helped her confidence in leaps and bounds. "I don't really know much more about Golden Island, though. I don't even know if there are any Meowths here, or what wild Pokemon there are, or anything."

The woman allowed herself to be persuaded away from her not-so-comfortable perch, to a hopefully better-lit area. "So...they have this Meowth festival all year round?" She asked curiously, tucking away her papers and smiling at the happy Stunky. "It's still night, and only nocturnal pokemon will be around- oh!" Laura stumbled backwards, tripped over her loose sandals and fell with a soft sound onto the sand. The interloper, a Noctowl, stopped momentarily to whirl about, perhaps out of curiosity to what it nearly ran into, hooted once - an apology? - and flew off. "Uhm, like that one," Laura offered lamely, managing a watery smile, getting to her feet and dusting herself off. She followed the flight of the predatory bird for as long as she could. "A nightly hunt...?"

"A Noctowl!" Alice beamed. She was surprised that it had been so friendly. It seemed that many of the Archipelago Pokemon were relaxed around people, despite the fact that the human population wasn't that high on most islands. "Bye, Noctowl!" She waved happily after it, like an overexcited child. "But yeah, sort of! Some of the people even cosplay like Meowths."

The avian was, of course, gone by the time Alice was waving at it, paying no attention if it even heard, but that, regardless, did not dampen Alice's spirits. "Cosplay like Meowths?" Laura grinned. Curling her fingers to make her hand look like a paw, she waved it, winking. "Meow," She joked, giggling. Someone watched too much anime. Wait, did anime even exist in this world? She turned to Alice, smile settling. "Hey, Alice?" She tilted her head, displaying curiosity, "Since you came from this...other world, you fit in quite well in here. Almost as though you have a role here. Did you find battling easy, at first? Interesting?" She seemed curious; after all, the world where Alice spent close to 10 years of her life had none of all this. There they played tame battles on systems, whereas here it was a heart-pounding rush of attacks; spend too long contemplating your next move, and the battle'd be over. It was a rush of adrenaline, a blur of movement, action, and instinct. Some despised it, some reveled in it, but face it, the world wouldn't be the same without it.

Alice giggled in return. She, too, had watched too much anime, at least in her teenage years. All that really appealed now were idol titles and Pokemon, with the occasional other series here and there. She preferred dramas these days, but they could be equally comical. "Yeah?" She back channeled to show that she was listening. They were closing in on a watch tower by this point. "Mm... It was pretty scary. I know Gael enjoys them, and he's really amazing at them, too. But it made me scared when I saw Farren getting beat on." She explained, "I guess I found the strategies easy. But it's different to button mashing without consequence against a computer, but in that way, it's also easy to think outside the box, because it's all real! I think maybe I'd enjoy contests more than battling, but I've always loved the Orange Islands. I want to beat the league here if I have the chance to. That way I'd be stronger as a person because I'd need to put in effort, too. And then, if we're still here, we'd be ready for anywhere else! They do say these islands make Kanto's League look tame, after all."

"The League?" Laura seemed surprised. "Quite a high goal, isn't it? I mean, right off the bat..." She trailed off, "Any particular reason? A goal to fulfill, or something?" The woman lifted her head, to squint up at the watchtower, to see if she could sight the person standing guard. So far, in their walk, they hadn't seen a Meowth or anything, and she wondered how long they'd wait up there. Glancing around, she rubbed her bare arms, the mist really seeping in. "The gyms around here are quite high level, you know," She pointed out, trying not to let her teeth chatter.

"Well, two of the four gyms don''t even require battling. But Gael and I would have to wait and practice high speed surfing together if we wanted to get anywhere." Alice admitted. Right now, her Shellos was too small, but as he grew or if he evolved, he would be capable of ferrying her. She just wasn't sure how easily he would outdo a Blastoise... "And I need to get fit again if I want to scale Navel Island's mountain. I was thinking of challenging there first, too. Then by the time we go to Trovita or Mikan, everyone should be ready. This egg might have even hatched."

"High speed surfing?" Laura paused to look at her pokeballs. "Sounds like fun," She grinned; of course, having primarily water types would mean that she spent a lot of time in and around water. All too convenient. Suspicious, isn't it?
Regardless, as it stood, the egg was blending in very well in the darkness, giving the illusion of an empty incubator. Would be bothersome if someone actually stole the egg, as the crime wouldn't be discovered till morning...

(The plot thickens :>)

Alice grinned. Her Goldeen would probably be a good candidate for such a race. "There's a water gun competition against the leader's Seadra, too! You'd definitely be great at that gym if you entered!" She encouraged her friend. "And possibly Navel, too, if you can hike, although they might struggle with the geysers and toboggan crafting at the summit because of how they're more suited to water..." She added. Nobody seemed to be at this watchtower, so Alice started to wander towards the next one.

Laura's eyes lit up as Alice continued speaking. "Wow! Really? That sounds really cool!" She clapped enthusiastically, following the blonde as she turned to check another tower. This was odd; were they not meant to be on guard perpetually? She touched the sphere at her waist. "I have more than a few likely candidates up for the challenge. And the leader has a Seadra?" Was it just a hunch, or was she going to add a 'too' at the end of her question?

"Yep, a Seadra and a Blastoise at the very least! I don't know what else she has." Alice said. "We could maybe train together when the time comes. Gael and I would need it and appreciate the pointers, too. Naturally, he's not super fast, so it's something we'll need to work on, and I kinda need to wait for him to grow or evolve anyway..." She wasn't even five feet tall, but Shellos were tiny at his age. The girl frowned, noticing what Laura had, "Don't you think this is weird...? Where are all of the people? Sakina, do you see or smell anything of note...?"

The Stunky would be disappointed, as her nose would pick up little to nothing unfamiliar. However, that wasn't the young Pokemon's fault. If one were to look up, they could see a thin trail of smoke dispersing into the air, gradually beginning to thicken. The cloud was gradually growing denser, but began to pick up pace even as the three would watch. Distant voices could be heard from afar, in the general direction of the happening. After all, where there was smoke...

(Based off the thing 'Where there's smoke, there's fire')

((That really didn't need explaining. xP))

Alice saw the smoke before she smelled it, a thick grey plume that contrasted against the indigo sky and the silver light of the moon. Her stomach immediately sunk. "Fire..." She noted, looking to Sakina and Laura, "I think it's go time. At the very least, if nothing's wrong, we'll find people." She said, gesturing for her newest friend to lead the way. Sakina could navigate the forest more easily than them in the dark. She could only hope that the mission they sought wasn't too treacherous.

(No? :P Well, no matter~)

Despite being young, the Stunky's night vision far exceeded the humans', allowing her to safely guide the female trio to the correct venue. However, as the scent of smoke and burning mediums grew thicker, Sakina would eventually refuse to travel forwards - after all, it was nature to run away from fire, not towards it. It was quite understandable, and one might wonder if there was more than curiosity driving the girls towards the happening. By now, the smoke had thickened to voluminous plumes, at least as wide as a large skyscraper, and the heat had gradually intensified, in stark contrast to the cool night air, which now failed to provide respite. Whatever was burning definitely covered a large area.

(They're now quite close to the fire, so you might wanna withdraw Sakina and douse yourself in water for safety's sake~ :3)

It did not surprise Alice that Sakina refused to continue. Even she felt afraid by now, and the air was thick and the stench of burning strong against her nose. "It's okay, Sakina, this is all we needed. Thank you very much." She reached down to pet the frightened, jumpy thing before putting her away, deciding to replace her with a sparkling Shellos. Evidently, he was concerned, too.

"I think this is the fire that Laura saw," Alice said, regretting her choice of outfit. Too late now. "Help us by using mud sport and water pulse to douse the flames, okay? But stay close." Alice glanced to Laura before they moved on, "You should at least release Shellder, too. Gael can't do this all on his own."