The Umibozu's Story

While Molk and Tholk started cleaning up the tavern, Zach worked with Genevieve to move the table to the door, inhaling deeply as he ran scents through draconian nostrils. Something seemed off, yet with Jegun around, the man was content to play defensively.

Jegun himself strode through a gap in the wall, ducking slightly. Holding his Soulbringer at the ready, the Judicar scanned the area, his gaze sweeping high as well as low. A rough place at any normal time, given the sudden violence unleashed, he noted the telltale signs of paranoia and suspicion in closed doors, bolted windows. The streets were empty of the usual bustle. And still his hackles rose.

Something's wrong.
"I know. Someone doesn't belong here."
Too many strangers here recently.

His mouth tightening its scowl at Kyriel's confirmation at his suspicions, he let Randin take the lead, his free hand loosening a blade in its sheath. Chill temperatures roiled around him, his influence of cold agitated.

The assassin's personal defense system cloak was neigh flawless. The killer stalked the prey and waited for the opportune moment to strike. Surprisingly the assassin would have had no guns and no visible weaponry in hand or stowed on body even if not under the cloak. The hunter waited, knowing that Aeka's guard was too much to contend with at this time. Patience would be needed. The opportunity would present itself eventually.

Genevieve helped move the table as best she could, as such an item was an awkward one to move. As she helped Zach steady the table, she peered down at Aeka. The poor girl's face was pale and still, stirring Genevieve to mentally say a small prayer for the girl. She called over her shoulder, "Which way are we headed? I mean, not to take the lead, but if we're going to avoid as much trouble as possible, shouldn't we take a less direct route out of the city?"

She shifted uncomfortably. The idea of Mark the Wise discovering and attacking the group plagued her mind. She hoped the girl could be taken care of before they ran into the likes of that maniac.

Randin nodded at Genevieve. "I'll stand with you then, sai. Come hell or high water, we face it together."

Taking point, Randin looked over his shoulder to ensure that the rest of the detail was prepped, and that Aeka was properly secured. "We make straight for the surface towards the transport. Once Aeka's loaded in, we'll head for Motoko's safehouse." He looked back at Lobos. "And on my father's face, I swear, you'll never see me again in this bar."

His hand trailed down to the magnum holstered in his side, his eyes flashing out into the deep dark beyond. The fighting had scattered much of the traffic in the Undermarket, leaving many of the crooked pathways and smoggy streets eerily silent. Though the Umibozu were gone, Randin couldn't shake the chill in his gut that told him something was wrong. He only hoped that whatever danger still hunted them could be stopped - and that no more blood would be shed in doing so.

He straightened his belt and lifted his feet.

"Alright then. Let's go."

Into the Undermarket they went.

Yuki made a face as she turned to the newcomer, the face turning into a smile as she pulled the hood away from her head so that the group could get a better look at her.

"Kitsune twins.. yeah I've heard of you two... you're big back in the Empire among kids, my little sister's a fan." Yukiko explained, nodding.

"You'd be putting your careers at risk if you helped me.. I... I can't really explain this here... but there's people on Niihama that want me dead, and they'll kill or ruin anyone who stands in their way." Yukiko said, making a face.

"I appreciate the help, but it's too dangerous.. if someone saw me... I just..." Her expression darkened as she lowered her head, her eyes going to the window before she went back to those seated with her.

Little did Yukiko know, however, that there was a small red dot bobbing slightly on the back of her head, a single Umibozu sniper perched on an adjacent rooftop was watching her through the bar window, armed with a high-powered Seburo SS4-4000 Anti-materiel rifle, which fired a 20x102mm High Velocity Armor Piercing Fin Stabilized Depleted Uranium Discard Sabot Rocket Assisted bullet, which traveled at roughly 8200 feet per second to deliver a blow that would eviscerate a human sized target.

The Princess however, was completely oblivious.

Deep within the old growth and mystery of the Eterna Forest, an anomaly made itself present, a singular fleeting distortion that appeared to be a brief bend in the air around it, there was a flash, a bolt of light and then nothing but the rustling of leaves.

An all black Sudden Transport raked through just above the canopy of the forest, the six-man Umibozu team was given clear directives, from the highest source within the Taiyou Government. They were ordered to facilitate a regime change by any means necessary, and gather as much intelligence about this strange world as they could.

The Commander of this mystery team of masked men leaned over the shoulder of the sudden transport's pilot, as the treetops passed under them with a blur.

"There..." He said, pointing to a small clearing, gesturing for the pilot to guide the cloaked Sudden Transport towards the clearing.

It touched down with the slightest rock, and thump, thermoptical camouflage concealing the ship from any prying eyes as the team began to check their gear.

"No contact with the locals, stay completely undetected." The Commander said, adjusting his mask. "We're in and out, spirits in the night, we're the Umibozu." He said, while one of the men unlatched the drop down door.

"Fan out, check in at the rendezvous point in twenty four hours... move out." He said, while the men quickly, but quietly moved from the Sudden transport, fading like spirits into the darkness.

As the Taiyou black ops made their way through the forest, the first thing they saw was a pair of locals to the north. One of them seemed to be looking right through them, as if some ESP was alerting them to their presence. For someone trying to be nonexistent, this was most likely intolerable. The other had to go, too...no witnesses, either. "Yoriko-san? W-what is it? You look like you've seen a ghost...which given this place, is entirely possible," the male mentioned to the female. "Ghosts, yes. But they are not from around here, Akifumi-kun."

The troubles were only beginning, however. Their camouflage may protect them from thermal imaging as well as visible-spectrum sight, but it soon became readily apparent that their appearance had disturbed the wildlife as well. A single worm-like specimen with a large poison stinger on its head had seemed to notice some dead leaves one of them had stepped on and decided to look up at the offender, as if expecting more food. Another few pinecone-like entities started descending from the trees on extruded silk to get a better view of the situation, and over to the east where a massive mountain could be seen looming over all of Sinnoh, a flock of birds could be heard taking off noisily, calling "aho, aho!" as they went about their business. Hey, that's what you get for landing in a forest, even with the teleportation-like powers of their FTL drive.

As the Taiyou black ops made their way through the forest, the first thing they saw was a pair of locals to the north. One of them seemed to be looking right through them, as if some ESP was alerting them to their presence. For someone trying to be nonexistent, this was most likely intolerable. The other had to go, too...no witnesses, either. "Yoriko-san? W-what is it? You look like you've seen a ghost...which given this place, is entirely possible," the male mentioned to the female. "Ghosts, yes. But they are not from around here, Akifumi-kun."

The troubles were only beginning, however. Their camouflage may protect them from thermal imaging as well as visible-spectrum sight, but it soon became readily apparent that their appearance had disturbed the wildlife as well. A single worm-like specimen with a large poison stinger on its head had seemed to notice some dead leaves one of them had stepped on and decided to look up at the offender, as if expecting more food. Another few pinecone-like entities started descending from the trees on extruded silk to get a better view of the situation, and over to the east where a massive mountain could be seen looming over all of Sinnoh, a flock of birds could be heard taking off noisily, calling "aho, aho!" as they went about their business. Hey, that's what you get for landing in a forest, even with the teleportation-like powers of their FTL drive.

They moved with purpose, but slowly through the forest until they happened on two individuals, one of them appeared to be staring right at one of the Umibozu.

The thermoptical camouflage prevented the trainer from getting a really clear view of the man, shimmers of light, a faint sillhouette, two round eyes and a round mouth, the faint outline emotionless, like an emotionless ghost.

It seemed to capture their attention, while two of his comrades flanked wide to the left, moving up behind both of them and attempting to wrap their muscular arms around their necks, putting them in a headlock and a vascular restraint, if this move was successful, unconsciousness would come swiftly, but they were otherwise left alone.

The umibozu would be gone by the time they woke up.

It was the creatures that struck the Umibozu as odd, they showed a keen interest in them, despite their being difficult to percieve, they had to move swiftly, and neither provoke, or interact with the strange creatures.

The Psychics had a precious few seconds to act when the first Umibozu agent revealed himself as a distraction. They did the first thing that comes to Trainers when someone establishes eye contact: Initiate a battle.

With practiced motions, both of them went for their waists, tossing out small fist-sized spheres that were half red and half white. From them emerged a pair of small, yellow and brown colored beings with cat-like closed eyes and large ears...but before they could give them a command, they started gargling and collapsing from the sleeper hold of the other two.

Sensing the danger, the Abra disappeared in a flash of light, taking the humans with them, presumably to a place of safety outside the forest.

Thanks to their camouflage, they had managed to get the jump on these two, but what might happen if their power packs failed and they had to drop the field? And that one dopey little bug was STILL munching on the trampled leaves their boots were leaving!

It didn't take long for the Umibozu to regroup once the two trainers were dispatched, the lead silently walked through some underbrush, paying little attention to the creature that kept feasting upon the crushed leaves they were leaving.

One of the Umibozu dropped his therm-optical camo, flickering into view, crouching behind a small thicket of bushes.

"Kuribayashi, why did you drop your camouflage?" The Team leader, a Lieutenant Yuji inquired from another nearby thicket.

"Somethings messing with the power converters... give me a moment to lock it down."

Growling, Yuji moved swiftly to the other Umibozu operator. "Let's go, we need to get out of here. Aerial Recon has an exit path through the foliage to the north, there we can reach a settlement and secure transit to one of the other continents." Yuji said, while Kuribayashi managed to reactivate her camouflage.

Once the Umibozu operator flickered out of sight once more, the team moved due northwest, towards the Chateau, and the path out of the forest.

The pattern continued...the humans didn't seem to take much note of the intruders, but as they passed by the Old Chateau the electrical interference and the wildlife reaction got stronger. A thicket of pricker bushes blocked the entrance...it would take some time to hack their way through to find the source of the disturbance, but the mansion itself might serve as good cover if they needed to hide the old-fashioned way.

A few rabbit-like beings scampered away as they made their approach to the exit. Curiously, one of their ears seemed curled up at all times, yet it didn't seem to mess with their hearing. Outside the forest, high-rise condominiums could just be made out...a city! Surely a treasure trove of intelligence to be had here if they chose to risk it, and the sun was starting to set.

The cover of darkness was going to prove to be a boon to the team that was operating in the forest, once they figured out how to wade their way through the thicket of pricker bushes.

"Azuma, cut through these bushes so we can proceed." Yuji ordered, before he moved quickly to crouch into some tall grass, the other Umibozu operator producing a short tanto like blade, which shimmered with a white hot glow, as his thermoptic camo disengaged, but the clothing shifted to a woodland pattern, to make it difficult to detect.

The team spread out and took positions near the blocked path, while Azuma moved quickly to cut through the thicket, the blade slicing through the thick plants like a hot knife through butter, small slivers of smoke wafting up from where he was cutting.

"Be careful, we don't know if there's thermals." Kuribayashi hissed from her position.

So they were hiding out in the Old Chateau. Neat. But as they entered the old house, the strangeness only got more and more intense. Azuma's camo briefly changed to look more like that of a circus clown once they were out of sight of the rest of the forest...and there were a few more figures coming in from the direction of the city they had glimpsed earlier. Two of them were immediately recognizable...they were the two Trainers that they had subdued earlier. They must have somehow gotten to safety and there were others investigating the incident, including a woman with short red hair and a bare midriff that seemed to be directing the others, though she was clearly reluctant to investigate the Chateau.

Whoever or whatever was here, it was clearly messing with their stuff. Perhaps the abandoned nature of the house should have been their first clue that hiding out here was a bad idea...but things were about to get more complicated. A man dressed in the finest livery carrying a sterling silver covered dish in one white-gloved hand came down the stairs behind them. "Ah, Master wasn't expecting guests at this time. Please, come in, make yourselves comfortable."

While Azuma was trying to gain entrance into the Chateau through the thicket of bushes, the interference seemed to become stronger.

They convened via Cybercomm for a few moments, and Leading Private Tozu signalled the arrival of company.

All eyes affixed to the two trainers, and a short-haired woman coming down the path from the city.

Azuma and Leading Private Furuta managed to enter the house, opting to disengage their active camouflage altogether, just as a strange man was coming down the stairs.

Both Azuma and Furuta snapped to attention, pointing their rifles at the man, and disengaging the safeties, their weapons clicked and the two men moved quickly back towards the door.

"Compromised." Azuma hissed, even though it seemed the butler was an apparition of some kind.

"Shit, Shit, shit!" Furuta hissed, tapping Azuma on the shoulder and moving swiftly for the door.

Growling as the two men moved swiftly out of the Chateau, Yuji had to think fast, with a series of hand gestures, the Umibozu team moved in formation around the pathway, using the foliage for concealment, they too had disengaged the electronic camouflage, and the dull black, and olive tone of their uniforms were all that concealed them in the darkness of the forest.

"I have a clean line on three bogeys!" Kuribayashi cybercommed from her position along the route.

"Dossier says that's Gym Leader Gardenia, if we take her out it will raise suspicion." Lieutenant Yuji said quietly to his second in command, Sergeant Kuwahara.

"They haven't spotted us, keep to the foliage, we'll move when they clear our position, if you're compromised, neutralize them." Yuji Cybercommed to his team, and with well-honed precision, the men went prone in the tall grass, switched the safeties of their weapons off, and kept a keen eye on the approaching group.

While the specter acknowledged the intruders, everyone outside the Chateau did not. In fact, the leader even seemed scared to go into the yard.

Their activities were mainly pedestrian, consisting of following the psychics that had been assaulted earlier to the spot and asking a few questions for an investigation.

To their credit, the Umibozu wouldn't have been sent here if they weren't good at their job of not being seen. And so far, the way the local authorities were acting, they hadn't been. All that was left were a few boot prints on the trail, and they exited the forest like nothing had happened.

That didn't mean the wildlife knew better than to mess with them, though. A rabbit-like one with one ear curled up started munching on the tall grasses near Kuwahara's position.

Once clear of sight, Lieutenant Yuji surveyed the immediate area; there was a settlement up ahead, and they knew that if they went in with full gear, they would be busted then and there. He decided he would make a call, and as the skyline of Eterna city came up in the horizon, he checked, and found a perfect ditch to lose their gear for the time being.

The masks were the first to go, ten males and two females revealed themselves to the world, ages ranging from early twenties, to late thirties, and all of them seasoned combat veterans.

Yuji tossed his mask, and helmet into the ditch first, before taking off his combat vest, and flak jacket, while keeping a lightweight windbreaker to conceal his pistol. The rest followed suit, taking weapons that could be concealed.

The combat gear was carefully hidden under brush, leaves, and dirt, concealing it from passerbys, while the team made it towards the city itself, on the path and in full view. To the onlooker, they looked like just another group of trainers.

The redhead and her posse were the next to exit the forest, the apparent leader still complaining of the Old Chateau giving her the creeps and saying something about getting back to the Gym and taking challengers again. But halfway along the route, one of the other women acted on a hunch and released her Roselia, calling it "women's intuition." Immediately she started sniffing the ground, looking for a scent trail for the perpetrators.

After a few minutes of searching by the side of the road, one of the masks was uncovered from a pile of leaves. Leave it to a Grass-type to be undeterred by natural foliage as cover.

"Wait...that mask matches the description they gave us. But if they ditched their gear...then where are they now...?"

"Should we call Shirona?"

"Not yet. This is still a localized problem," the redhead spoke up. "The League didn't entrust me, Gardenia, with the management and the defense of Eterna City for nothing. I'd like to uphold that trust and deal with this while it's still in my power to do so. Our eyes might not be able to see them, but our Pokémon can apparently still sniff them out. Lead the way, Yukino. If that trail leads us to the city, they've probably tried to go undercover, but a positive ID on the scent means it's time for me to start asking a few questions."

The team moved with a rather languid pace, six took point, with Lt. Itami at the head, his second in command, and several other members of the team moved along the path, and by the time Gardenia had reached their equipment, they were little more than a quarter mile ahead.

A small proximity warning flashed in Itami's jacket, he mentally cursed himself for not better concealing the gear The objective would likely fail before it even begun, and they needed the heavy weapons and communications equipment they had brought to call for extraction and take out Iris.

"Lieutenant..." Kuribayashi hissed, subtly tugging on his back. "They've found our stuff!"

Itami grit his teeth, if they found their gear there was no telling how it would compromise their mission, he had to make a tough choice, detonate the remote explosives strapped to their carriers, or split up, and attempt to go in and recover the equipment.

"We should try and draw them away, maybe into an ambush." Sergeant Tomita suggested, while Itami subtly directed Sergeant Higashi to take five others and double back. The young Lieutenant turned and moved slowly into the tree-line. He offered up a nod, and withdrew his pistol, attaching a suppressor to the weapon.

The team split, and moved behind the trees once more.

Itami made the call shortly after.

"Go loud.."

Kuribayashi smiled, while yanking the pin from a fragmentation grenade, then she tossed it with all her might, the grenade sailing high into the air, and landing several dozen meters away.

As Gardenia and her group surveyed the equipment, an explosion sounded not too far away, with a plume of dust rising up over the tree line.

The trap was set, and Itami quietly waited for them to come running.

"What the...What was that?!" The entire team started.

"Yukino. It's probably just a wild Pokémon causing trouble. I'm more worried about the city after what happened in other regions. Stay on the scent trail, we'll follow your lead. Take the other Trainers with you. As Leader, I need to make sure nobody gets hurt if this escalates."

At this, Gardenia summoned a massive tortoise-like being, with a whole freaking tree growing on it as well as small rock formations growing out of its grass-green shell. "Torterra, I know grass-types aren't known for being strong defensively, but you're the best I have. If anything comes for the city, I need you to handle it before people get hurt." The gentle giant nodded in understanding and allowed the woman to climb onto its back before lumbering to take up a stance at the city outskirts.

Back at the site of the camouflage, the three women were nervously following the Roselia's lead. "Shit...there was a lot of stuff there. Who knows what else they had stashed...and they're probably going to come back for it at some point. Pretty sure I saw some guns too."

"It's just your imagination, Yukino. It's not like we're dealing with a bunch of Rocket hit men or anything, they're just a shadow of their former selves now."

"It doesn't have to be the Rockets, you know."

The Trainers were ready to run at the first sign of trouble, but they took up a position at the tree line anyway. "Eh. Probably one of the ghosts of the Chateau making that bang sound. Let's go back."

"But Roselia says the scent is this way..."

"All right...but the forest is dangerous at night. We should at least put out a travel advisory."

"Good idea. Roselia...let's keep going..." A nervous gulp could be heard as the three women went slowly back into the forest after shooting out a text to Gardenia. You didn't have to outrun your prey when they left behind a scent trail, after all...you just had to outlast them.