[Game] Lord Windos' PokeRole Adventure: Celadon City Vandel

[Dragonstrike]

Spoiler

After a long, grueling battle, with many upsets and plenty of drama on and off the battlefield, the winner of The Guantlet was.......

Arial and Durendal!!!

Despite the odds, the madman has done it people! He's proven himself that he's truly as competent as his status of being Reiner's bodyguard implies! This will be a battle that not only he'll remember for a long time to come, but will certainly leave a strong impression with his boss!

Arial and all his Pokémon  that fought in the Gauntlet (Including Durendal) gain 20 XP. He also gains a Will Point, for the defiant spirit that has been kindled throughout the match! Reiner and his Pokemon sent out into the battle gain 10 XP + 2, since they lost and they weren't giving their all as per their master's orders; this was supposed to be test, no an all out battle from their side, after all. Still, they displayed enough cunning within those limitation and suffered enough bad luck to earn a smigen more XP!

The question now was this: How would each side react to the outcome of this climatic end to The Gauntlet?

(question: do the Supports gain that exp too, Windos?)

"...well, that's a surprise Trump Card and an anticlimactic ending if I ever saw one.  Don't think Kingdra is going to be happy about losing to that move after whiffing her own attack..."

He sighs, and a little bit of the weight and tension that he was feeling from having Kingdra out on the battlefield is lifted.

'...at least she didn't go out of control again...that was far too close...she could have started an Outrage at any moment...'

Reiner looks at Durendal.

"...well, congratulations.  Technically speaking, you didn't beat me at my best, but you did still win despite the odds."

Reiner pulls up a chair and sits, recalling Kingdra in the process.  He looks incredibly tired and sad.  He doesn't even have to look at Poe to know he's been scared out of his wits by Kingdra and the subsequent EXPLOSIONS due to the three Draco Meteors.  I do wonder if Ridia's reaction to Kingdra has changed at all after those DMs went off?

"...apologies for that, Poe.  Sometimes I forget how intimidating my closest friend is when she gets into the swing of a battle.  She wasn't always like that..."

Another sigh.

"...Mr. Mime, if you could get everyone who participated in that battle who needs it immediate medical treatment and some towels for everyone still present, please, that'd be much appreciated.  The Rain should be over by the time you return."

Waits for Mr. Mime to leave.

Stares at Arial.  "...now then...you did well to keep me on my toes, but there were several critical errors you made during the course of that battle.  One: You weren't always keeping yourself optimally buffed for the assaults you were trying to mount.  For example, if I remember correctly, Melchior has Iron Defense, which would have made it near impossible for Felicia to break through him without a Nasty Plot, and likely given my other pokemon severe trouble as well.  Make sure to consider everything you can do before fully committing to a chain of Actions.  Two: Also carefully consider what your opponent can do.  If you can correctly account for that, you'll be able to outplay them more easily and nab an advantage.  I wasn't trying particularly hard to do that this time, just so you know.  Three: you made several comments that made me and my pokemon angry.  If I hadn't been purposely holding myself back*, that would have been a grave mistake to make.  If you had done the same to Clair earlier, you likely wouldn't be standing here right now.  Be very mindful of what you say, lest it cost you more than you expected it to.  In order for a battle to not devolve into something far deadlier, both sides have to keep cool heads.  I admit, I could have handled that better myself, but it's a two way street, and I'm not letting you off the hook just because I also screwed up.  I'm certainly impressed that you managed to make even Yang angry, to be honest.  And that's not a good thing.  And if Kingdra had been out when you made one of those very, very specific comments, there is a very, very good chance that this battle would have ended prematurely.  Four: You stretched yourself very thin with your attacks at times.  While it paid off this time, the risk isn't always worth the reward.  Five: If you lose hope partway through the battle, you've already lost, and your pokemon won't wish to continue to give their best for your sake.  I believe you have some apologizing to Sekmet to do later.  Giving up is a last resort option, if it's even an option at all.  Often times, you'll lose more than you gain if you flee."

There's a slightly more notable...edge as Reiner says that part concerning risk versus Reward.

*[OOC comment: ...with a little help/nudging...]

Reiner sighs again.  "...it's safe to say you passed my test admirably, regardless of the outcome of those final few blows and the...mistakes I made myself that I shouldn't have in this environment.  Now then...that brings us to tomorrow's plans.  We have a Nuclear Research Facility to investigate and shut down, as you're probably well aware.  I've made some preparations and called in some favors, and have gotten us legitimate access to it as well as what's hopefully enough supplies to last us during the visit.  Myself, two other individuals, and all of the pokemon between the three are allowed to enter the location unmolested.  If there are any complaints from the guards, all I should have to do is show them a certain 'badge of permission' from someone with enough authority to back that claim up, shall we say.  Steel, Ground, Rock, Nuclear, Bug, Dragon, and Ghost.  Bring those types if you can, and avoid Fairy, Poison, Dark, Fighting, and Normal unless they have one of the more beneficial secondary types or some sort of trait, ability, or item that makes them able to better withstand the accumulation of radiation.  We'll be departing for the NRF following tomorrow afternoon, as I still have one or two preparations I need to make."

He goes silent for a moment...

"...you're dismissed whenever you feel ready to get some rest.  We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow..."

More silence...doesn't look like Reiner plans to leave the room yet, but he's not looking for responses from Arial either. [i.e., I'm not ready to move on to the next day quite yet.  Still have some...other stuff to wrap up.  Arial is free to respond and ask questions if he wishes, but keep in mind that there are topics that Reiner does not want to talk about with Arial]  He's just...sitting there, rubbing his temples.  Maybe ruffling Poe's fur if the little guy is able to forgive Reiner for what happened and wants to try and comfort him.  [Weavile probably isn't going to do much until Arial and Mr. Mime are both out of the room, right?]