Setting
A large city founded in the Collenham Mountains by Trainers who established that Pokemon do exist in small areas on Terra. The city now serves as a base for transportation between Ruula and Terra.
The city has mostly stone pathways and bridges, being situated around a giant lake, and the roads circle it entirely, providing several good views. Around the city, one can find a Public Market, several small business, and several manors and farms, all aimed at retaining the older feel.
There is no Pokemon Center however, and the traditional Poke Mart is also absent, however, both services that would be provided can be found at alternative places in the city. The Proving Hall provides the biggest tourist draws these days however.
The city has mostly stone pathways and bridges, being situated around a giant lake, and the roads circle it entirely, providing several good views. Around the city, one can find a Public Market, several small business, and several manors and farms, all aimed at retaining the older feel.
There is no Pokemon Center however, and the traditional Poke Mart is also absent, however, both services that would be provided can be found at alternative places in the city. The Proving Hall provides the biggest tourist draws these days however.
Ridgecrest City
A large city that has fallen into ruins with the shadow of Draco's Legion ruling the area with an iron fist. To prevent an invasion, the portal to Ruula has been destroyed...leaving the defenders with no escape.
Minimap
northwest |
north |
northeast |
west |
You are here. |
east |
southwest |
south |
southeast |
| "in" to Castelia City » | ||
Ridgecrest City is a part of 
Collenham Mountains.
6 Places in Ridgecrest City:
32 Characters Here
Bic(Charmeleon) [247]
Ozzy Hendrix [207] Bad Blood
Grace Williams [192]
Verse and the Sand Five [180] Sandslash Verse, and his four Sandshrew buddies.
Adam Delacroix [114] Edgy white middle class teenager with a gun
Cu Mara [110] Hound of the sea
Luna Whistle [73] A Lapras
Blake Darkner [64] Criminal Mastermind
Jennifer Harsdorff [60] A young woman who loves adventure, parties, and making friends. While she's no stranger to combat, she prefers to wage war through her trusted Pokemon partners.
Legion of Shadows [48] The Chosen of the Lord of Shadow. The unyielding edge of the darkness.
Start Character Here »
Valorie Ryder looked up to meet Jennier's gaze in a slightly meek manner. She actually seemed slightly scared of the other female at that moment... and yet Jennifer assured her she was not going to take her money, as if she wasn't already somewhat poor. That honestly hadn't been her main concern, though. She feared something more than being poor--She feared being mocked or insulted. This Jennifer managed to avoid, narrowly. She walked a narrow border between sympathy and stroking Valorie's ego, one countering the other's effect. It left Valorie feeling neutral about the whole thing, which was arguably good. Jennifer beckoned her to follow and Valorie did so, towards a pokemon center. This was ideal because she honestly hadn't had enough medicine on her for a complete defeat like that. She didn't carry that much anymore. As the two walked, Jennifer told her something. She told her to get her head together, told her to come see her at a specific building. Huh. "...Alright." Valorie said, thoughtfully. She was honestly wondering how she was supposed to find this building. More importantly, she didn't know hot to get her head together. That was a steep order, miss tomboy. She honestly didn't have faith in herself to complete it. Perhaps... she would try, though.
Valorie Ryder healed her pokemon at the pokemon center and moved on out, quickly distancing herself from the immediate area. She needed a bit of time to think, and so she wandered aimlessly. She had no home, so this would have to do.
Rithika Vonagre stood in the middle of one of the streets, speaking to a group of younger trainers. As the current Champion, they were naturally enthralled and full of questions.
Rithika seemed all too happy to answer them.
One of the younger boys asked another one.
Rithika smiled.
She seemed amiable and approachable right now, though the accent in her voice was easily noticed.
Rithika seemed all too happy to answer them.
Nein. Types don't quite work that way. If a Pokemon has two types, then those two types are both taken into account. For example, Bug beats Grass normally, ja? Adding Poison to the Grass makes the Bug that isn't good against it now only hit neutral, instead of effective. However, you won't see much of these multiple types until later in your journeys. A good question nonetheless.
One of the younger boys asked another one.
Um, how is Beedrill affected by Ground type moves if it flies? Why can't it learn Fly?
Rithika smiled.
That is one of the big mysteries of the Pokemon world. Perhaps that's something to seek the answer to during your journeys!
She seemed amiable and approachable right now, though the accent in her voice was easily noticed.
Valorie Ryder took casual notice of the champion whom had made a public appearance. A shudder wracked her body, old urges welling up inside her. Back in the day, back in..--Way back in the day, she would've challenged the champion without a second thought. She knew now that she would've been completely humiliated if any given champion had accepted her challenge. Training was a long hard road. She hadn't known that before. Bitterness welled up inside her as she silently reasoned that each time a new champion took the throne it meant someone else had beaten her to her dreams. If she was stronger than the previous champion, that just meant Valorie was one more step behind in her streak of laziness and relative inactivity. The sight instilled emotion in her, but not the good kind. Anger battled against apathy and the relentless tide of sadness that constantly consumed her these days, and for once it was... strong enough to not be immediately snuffed by the sea of the latter. That being said, it was heavily dulled none-the-less. Valorie made the choice to drop what she was doing and approach Rithika's group with a manner of mild entitlement. The pride she was demonstrating was jagged and unconvincing, like hanging a jagged piece of glass on the wall and calling it a window. Her body language was a mess of mixed messages between depression and a determination she didn't often manage to summon. The sad part, was that all this determination was being spent on merely approaching Rithika. She wasn't even /considering/ battle.
Valorie Ryder slid in with the group and looked up at Rithinka, feigning bravery by making direct eye contact. Valorie's eyes glowed ever so slightly, and her irises moved actively with the colors of the northern lights in them. They were easy eyes to pick out of a crowd, and offered a pleasant, calming feeling to any that looked into them despite Valorie's determined expression. In all honesty? She wanted to ask something, to demand something, and yet she didn't even know what she wanted to say. Thus she just sort of stood there as if expecting to be acknowledged, possibly coming off as entitled.
Rithika Vonagre looked to see if anyone else had questions, which is when Valorie caught her eye.
The other Trainers looked at Valorie, waiting to see what she'd ask.
You seem like you have a good question. I can tell. Go ahead, ask away!
The other Trainers looked at Valorie, waiting to see what she'd ask.
opened her mouth slightly as if to ask, but stopped herself. For the life of her, she didn't know what she wanted to say! In reality, she was subconsciously trying to deny her failures, to convince herself that something wasn't fair here. However, she was unable to think of a way to actually express that without sounding stupid. No... no she was kidding herself. It was all her fault, and she knew it. Just like that her passion died, not even lasting long enough to get her to have a conversation. Her gaze lowered and her expression changed to one of guilt. "...I--I don't know." she admitted in a slightly frustrated tone, perhaps drawing some attention from those around her to her ire.
Rithika Vonagre smiled.
One other girl asked a question.
Rithika grinned as she answered.
That is fine. We forget sometimes what we wish to ask. We'll remember it soon however. Anyone else with questions?
One other girl asked a question.
What about Garchomp? My dad always said that he dislikes Garchomps. I don't know what's so bad about them though.
Rithika grinned as she answered.
Oh, many people dislike Garchomp's impressive speed and power. Normally, Pokemon like that have something about them that makes them more comparable to others. A lot of people dislike Garchomp not for the Garchomp, but rather for having to face one. Of course, I feel that that shouldn't matter.
Everything can be done and is within grasp. A Garchomp is not any more insurmountable then a Zigzagoon. You just need to put your chin up, and bring your A-game.
Valorie Ryder stayed quiet for several moments as others asked questions. Nobody had questioned her eyes yet. They only glowed with inhuman qualities, is all. This didn't bother her though. She didn't enjoy explaining to people she didn't know anyway, and her attitude had a knack for repelling people anyway. After these moments passed however a question did come to mind, a rather simple one, but one with much depth to it's purpose. "...How'd you do it?--Become the champion?" Valorie asked, not truly understanding why she herself couldn't succeed.
Rithika Vonagre [color=black]turned to address this one. [quote]That is a very good question. To be fair, it wasn't easy. Jeanias was a prime competitor, much like an advanced chess player. She almost read me like a book. However, I refused to give in that easily. Safe to say I did challenge the League several times, I lost track of how many. With each defeat however, I looked back over what I did and what my opponent did. Eventually, I found the secret to their success, and devised a counter notion.
I had my Klinklang lead for a change, so I could scout Jeanias' first moves. Needless to say, I managed to bait her into a bad spot that gave me an opening to remove her biggest key player. WIthout that key player, her options were limited. It was still a close battle, I would've lost if my Klinklang didn't dodge the Overheat late in the battle. A real trooper it is. With avoiding her attack, she was down a notch in her output. My Klinklang was safely able to finish her off with a Volt Switch attack.
I'd say it wasn't any of my Pokemon that won the match. Nor my strategy. I'd say it was the fact that I took every loss as a personal teaching moment. What did I do wrong, what did I do right? What do I do differently next time? So I devised different tactics. Of course, having a good bond with your Pokemon always helps. They're always going to be there for you. Grueling practice sessions were hard on both me and my partners, but I feel it payed off, as they helped me find the inner determination I needed to keep on trying.
There is no "try once and accept the outcome". If you really want something, you'll keep trying until you obtain it. If you don't really truly want your goal, then why are you still going through the motions? You won't win that way. Most of you are still starting your journeys. You'll have good times and hard times. In any situation, you must never give up! Your partners are always there for you, and as a team, you can surmount any challenge, no matter how hard.[
I had my Klinklang lead for a change, so I could scout Jeanias' first moves. Needless to say, I managed to bait her into a bad spot that gave me an opening to remove her biggest key player. WIthout that key player, her options were limited. It was still a close battle, I would've lost if my Klinklang didn't dodge the Overheat late in the battle. A real trooper it is. With avoiding her attack, she was down a notch in her output. My Klinklang was safely able to finish her off with a Volt Switch attack.
I'd say it wasn't any of my Pokemon that won the match. Nor my strategy. I'd say it was the fact that I took every loss as a personal teaching moment. What did I do wrong, what did I do right? What do I do differently next time? So I devised different tactics. Of course, having a good bond with your Pokemon always helps. They're always going to be there for you. Grueling practice sessions were hard on both me and my partners, but I feel it payed off, as they helped me find the inner determination I needed to keep on trying.
There is no "try once and accept the outcome". If you really want something, you'll keep trying until you obtain it. If you don't really truly want your goal, then why are you still going through the motions? You won't win that way. Most of you are still starting your journeys. You'll have good times and hard times. In any situation, you must never give up! Your partners are always there for you, and as a team, you can surmount any challenge, no matter how hard.[
Rithika Vonagre finished.
, she excused herself on speaking so much.I hope that helps, it was quite long winded.
Valorie Ryder listened, but she did not understand. To her, it seemed like she'd done all this. How many years had it been again? She didn't even remember. Sometime after she'd stopped having birthdays age had lost meaning to her. To her she was the same as she had always been, only older. To be fair? That was half true. Physically speaking she hand't matured in the least. Her brain wasn't even fully developed if you wanted to get technical. She was stuck like that! However, that being said Valorie couldn't really grasp something like that on her own. She had to wonder. Had she been training as long as Rithika? Longer? Less? Valorie shook her head. She didn't believe it. "...I started my journey years ago..." she said, thoughtfully. Now, here was the thing. She still looked like a young teenager, and was /short/ at that. It was hard to look at her and imagine someone who had been training for half a dozen years or more. If she had been training for more than a couple of years, that would've meant she started very, very, very young. That being said--preschoolers had been known to occasionally wield pokemon. So... whatever.
Rithika Vonagre responded.
Would it be safe to say that I started my journey at age 10, and didn't actually become Champion until this past year. I'm 32 now. My first attempt at the League was done at age 16. I think it's safe to say that regardless of how long you train, it's always a possibility. Jeanias herself became Champion at 22, and she started her training at age 18. Length of journey is not important. Your outlook is.
Plenty of times I could've said "Alright, guess I'll never be the best...can't win on my first few attempts, so what good am I?". But that isn't the right way to look at things. That's betraying your hopes, dreams, your Pokemon partners, your friends and family you may have, and most of all, yourself. Nothing can be won easily. There's a challenge to everything, but what really separates Trainers from the others is that there is nothing out of reach for them if they choose to aim for it. They will obtain it, even if it takes their entire being and life to do so. They have close partners with them who will be there every step of the way.
Valorie Ryder just sort of fell silent. She met Rithika's gaze briefly, but otherwise kept her eyes averted. Betrayal? Betray her partners? Herself? Well that just made her fee guilty and weaker than ever. Rithinka could've never known that she spoke to someone physically and mentally trapped in puberty. That being said, Valorie was also not completely aware of the fact that she was effectively crippled for life in a semi-subtle way. That was, once again, part of the issue. She didn't get why trying as hard as she could wasn't yielding the results she wanted. Or rather, she was a mess of even deeper problems and hadn't actually made a single lick of progress since the start of her journey, even though her pokemon were much stronger. That... was a different story for another day however. For the moment, she didn't seem to have anything left to say though. She felt like Rithika was right. A champion certainly knew more than she did, right? But... it was hard for her to accept it. She silently worked on that.
Rithika Vonagre kept her smile.
I hope it helped. I get the feeling your journey has been arduous. I could probably expand more if you stopped by the League building and asked for me. Don't be shy.
Valorie Ryder nodded, respectfully acknowledging what the champion had said. She honestly found it a bit surprising that Rithika would do that for her, and god knew she didn't know what arduous meant, but it sounded negative anyway. She might've said more, but she was shy around crowds. She had little else to say for the moment being on her own.
Rithika Vonagre dispersed most of the crowd left.
I do have business I need to attend to though. Just keep in mind that many of us are open to be talked to. Ja?
Valorie Ryder looked up at Rithika. "Yes Ma'm." she said in an uncharacteristically humble manner. Her arrogance had kind of dissipated a lot since she'd gotten all washed up.
Rithika Vonagre nodded and smiled before she continued on her way. She had a very stern walk, almost military, but it also seemed stern and solid, representing someone who was firmly placed in her beliefs.
Valorie Ryder watched Rithika go for a moment, staring at her butt silently contemplating her next move. She was tempted to seek comfort from her pokemon. That or alcohol... This was not the time or place for either of those things though.
Legend the Torchic walked along the streets, looking around in a mildly paranoid manner. She appeared to have the slightest of limps in one of her legs, perhaps mostly healed. She sported emerald green eyes and a slightly raggedy red towel as a cape. How did a torchic even lift nevermind tie a cape? Go ask her yourself! She appeared to be lost by the way she stumbled about, in addition to all the above.
Sunny came charging down the road from the opposite direction with a cheery, "Pipipi!" as he ran, wings out to either side, eyes closed not looking where he's going on a crash course straight for Legend herself. Oddly, he had a pair of sunglasses balanced on his beak that were too large to rest on his head, leaving them dangling awkwardly. Judging by their pleased chirping it was likely they had taken the sunglasses from someone else.
Legend the Torchic just sort of stopped where she stood and turned to face the source of the noise, only to freeze up at the sight of a pokemon charging her at great speeds. Before Sunny knew what was going on she would likely hear the panicked noise of a torchic followed almost immediately by the feeling of one of her feet kicking something... followed almost immediately by full-body impact. THUD! Legend went down and over, toppling over and crashing against the ground head-first, likely with Sunny landing on top of her. Luckily for Sunny, she had gotten the much less painful side of this greeting. The torchic just sort of laid there, twitching and emitting something akin to a half-conscious groan.
Sunny collided with foot, but due to distracted momentum didn't stop, the two flying towards Legend and crashing into the floor, followed by Sunny bouncing off of her and landing on his rear, dazed for a moment. The sunglasses were sent tumbling away and when Sunny snapped to his first action was to hurry over to snatch them up and slip them onto his beak again. Only then he turned back around to look at Legend, trying to figure out what the heck just happened.