Saturday, January 25, 2014

Tygem: January 25

Hello~

Here is another little update about my Go~


I've been pretty hooked on Tygem - my game quality may have suffered as a result. But no excuses! So here is the report.

I easily got to 7d, with my last 12 games at 6d being a string of 10 straight wins, followed by a loss and then a win to get me the rank up.

Since reachng 7d, it's been much harder. I seem to be an average 7d at the moment; While my first 8 games as 7d resulted in a decent record of 5-3, the reciprocal of that was added on unfortunately and I am now 8-8 at 7d (But still with an all-time win record of around 67-70%, which I hope to maintain...

Unfortunately, winning half your games is not enough to keep your rating on Tygem. This is a good chance for me now to lay off the Tygem for a bit, focus on school (which I really, really need to focus on, particularly at this crucial time), and then when I have time, review all my 7d games and do some Go problems. If I increase the speed and coherence of my reading and improve my overall sharpness a bit, I should be able to start winning more than half. I suppose the current big goal is to consistently win enough to keep myself at 7d, progressing toward 8d powaaa!!


Lately it seems like I have at least one Go student at all times, so that's good. The extra pocket change is pretty useful to me, to be honest. I enjoy teaching a lot. I hope I also get more English tutoring gigs.





Bye for now~


~Yukigami


P. S. New banner!! Thanks Johnny~!

Thursday, January 23, 2014

My Go: Jan.23 2014

Hey~
Yukigami here~


I would just like to hereby report some of my progress. I've been playing a little more online, now, after having not played much at all in some time. But online at least, it would seem that I am in top shape. I don't know if that will translate to real life too well or not, but here are some screen caps revealing the current state of my online Go playing.

KGS is nothing special. The only somewhat new thing is that, unlike in the past, having '5d' rank is not really anything to mention. Whereas before I was a strong 4d, but sometimes a weak 5d, now I am generally 5d and only occasionally 4d, and unlike before it seems I can win against other 5d close to half the time. Getting back to 5d whenever I've fallen has proven easy lately. Before, whenever I'd attained a rank of 5d, I would get cautious and tend to play 4d more a lot more than 5d, but it's not like that now.

Furthermore, while some aspects of Go may have deteriorated a little over the last 2-3 years, my reading, fighting, and overall board vision has improved drstically - and it seems like it's taken another step up. That said though, it still doesn't seem like my level is another drastically different now. But we'll see! I'm certainly on a roll!

Here you go!



In case the Tygem screen cap is hard to see and you just don't feel like clicking on it to enlarge,
there are 10 straight wins on the end,
29 total wins and 8 total losses,
13 wins and 2 losses as 6d so far,
+2 games to get 7d, -13 to drop a rank. 





 KGS stats for 'gilgil':



Wednesday, January 22, 2014

俺のブログはこんなに可愛いわけがない: I-Its not like I wanted to show you this because I...

To add to my last two posts containing very old story writing attempts of mine, I present to you, the reader, something recently posted by my friend at WakeGaNai that was a past attempt of his at writing a Naruto-verse fanfic short story.

Here you go~






俺のブログはこんなに可愛いわけがない: I-Its not like I wanted to show you this because I...: Irrelevant-Kirino or Always-Totally-Relevant-Kirino? と、とにかくちゃんと読みなさいよ。バカ兄貴! Way back when, I was enamored with the idea of forum-based...

My blogs and stuff

Yukigami here~



This one more post I just wanted to make this morning is just to make a follow up about the other blogs I posted about before.


In the past, I've had several blogs, and a livejournal. Plus, I have an older tumblr in addition to a new one. Newer Tumblr here.

I will be adding all the links and information to a page linked by a tab below my banner. It will be under the 'Yukigami on the web' tab, though that tab might have its name changed for some reason or another, for example 'Yukigami Online" instead.

Furthermore, although it will take a long time, I'm considering taking all the posts from all my old blogs and things and integrating them into this blog in a kind of "ancient posts" archive or something.
And believe me, there are A LOT!! my livejournal alone has A LOT of Go posts.
I can't believe some of them, too - SO NOSTALGIC!!

That's all for now~ Please expect this blog to get better and better and various ways, and probably above all else, FILLED with content!
And of course, although I keep saying this, Love Lilyove chapter 1 is coming right up...just as soon as I get everything all good and fine with all my courses.



Ja na~






~Yukigami

Another old writing attempt!

The first big, big, convoluted story I ever planned out, which I came up with about a decade ago (wow! time flies!!), I currently refer to as "CURSE1000".
Below is a short bit, taken from my old livejournal, which I believe was going to be a nightmare sequence.

Anyway, here it is! This was part of a first attempt at writing a chapter of a story (I did write a whole chapter or more), which ended with me thinking very poorly of it and not writing again for quite a while (basically until now), but rather, just accumulated ideas endlessly instead - something that really does come easily to me. (Which is why it's time to learn to write very, very well!! Practice practice!)

Here~



He turned the bronze doorknob and stumbled awkwardly out his bedroom door, awoken by uncommon noise from downstairs. Awareness stung him alert as the sounds continued louder, coarse screeches and chaotic volume was all he could make out. He scurried down the spiral of steps leading to the living room. Halfway down, the air became thicker, it seemed to saturate with chaos and despair as he heard the screams of his mother and father. He began to sweat profusely as he hurried down the remaining steps and turned the corner. It quieted down, but he could still hear a certain gargly, torn voice emitted from another room. The lights were off, making the living room dark and shadowy. With difficulty finding his way in the darkness, he crept into the room cautiously, eyeing the yellow light emanating from a room he couldn’t yet see. He suppressed his voice with his left hand over his mouth after tripping. His heart seemed to skip a beat as he glanced down to find his father, motionless and blood ridden on the floor before him. Flustered with confusion and dread, he stormed through the room to the kitchen and saw his mother on the kitchen floor. “Kai! Run away!” His mother yelled, holding herself up from the floor with her right palm. Kai entered the room dumbstruck. A large, cat-like beast shrouded in flame stepped powerfully toward him from the right. It stood on its hind legs, taking on a human-like form covered in fur. Its torso was covered in slashes and stained with blood, and the claws of its paws were huge and dark and glistened like steel. The beast roared ferociously with its head facing up and its breath engulfed the ceiling with unnatural looking flames. Kai noticed his own sword on his back, sheathed and strapped around his torso. It seemed to appear out of nowhere, but disregarding this, Kai took a brave step forward and reached for the sword handle. Although the blade is large and wide, Kai can wield it adeptly, but now Kai found it difficult to pull out. Not only his blade, but his breath and his body also felt unexpectedly heavy, so he hesitated before reaching for the handle once more. Suddenly the beast crouched slightly and launched its titanic, flaming body onto Kai, crushing him into the floor and sending the sword flying into the living room and sliding in circles on the floor. The beast dug into both sides of Kai’s chest with its claws. Kai screamed in pain as the demonic beast continued to tear flesh with the claws on its legs. Kai’s was overpowered by the sheer weight of the beast as well as the spiritual pressure enveloping the room. Kai’s mother could only scream his name in tears tirelessly as she watched desperately. Spread across the wooden floor, Kai’s long, carmine hair was slightly scorched as the demonic feline gave out another intense roar. Kai’s eyes turned and widened as the beast lunged at Kai with its fangs.

Pokemon: Crimson Destiny

Hey guys!!


I was just looking at one of my old blogs, "Drifting Sand, Hidden Water"
(I've also had an other past blogs, particularly my even older blog, "Dreams of a Go Player"!)

That second blog looks pretty horrible and destroyed. I will fix it up later, for the sake of looking through it at a whim, and for sharing with everyone my old, old posts - mostly Go posts.

Woah, I have yet another old blog!! That's right! And this one came after "Dreams of a Go Player". This one was called "Duelist Domain"! It's a livejournal account.


I've gone through SO many aliases and blogs... but don't worry! THIS one is for KEEPS~



Anyway, look what I digged up from Drifting Sand??
It was my first ever attempt at a Pokemon fanfic!! It's probably terrible, but I will post it!

Here we go!!!




Pokemon:  Crimson Destiny

By Ben Mantle

Chapter I, Part I

He opened his eyes, glistening with sun-lit determination.  He knew in his heart of hearts that this fateful day would eventually come.  That day was today; the day he would receive his Pokemon partner and begin his long-awaited journey.  But he knew, he knew that it would be no ordinary Pokemon journey.  His grandpa told him so.  The birth of dawn was all he needed; he couldn't wait another second.

Eyes ablaze, Crimz scuttled out of bed, slipping into his black shirt and buckling up his jeans.  As soon as he finished getting his jacket on and the rest of his things together, he made his way downstairs to the living room.  He knew it was really early, his mother was definitely still asleep.  Still, he had to go, he couldn't wait any longer.  He wasn't even hungry, so he skipped breakfast and grabbed his backpack, which he had packed all up the night before.  In fact, he was so anxious that the very thought of eating nearly made him sick.  As soon as he was all set, he wrote his mother a note and left in haste.

Mom, I left already to see grandpa.  I'm sorry, but I couldn't wait.  You must have seen this coming though, am I right?

-Crimz

The sun was growing brightly on the horizon, and the sky was mostly clear; blue and boundless, but still a dull colour. Crimz and his mother lived in a rural area on the outskirts of Azurus.  He ran most of the way there, hoping to avoid wild Pokemon along the way. Although he spotted several observant-looking Rattata and Sentret along the way, none of them seemed hostile enough to jump out at him.  He was about half way there and stormed right through a small group of Pidgey as though they didn't even exist.  Luckily for him, they didn't throw a fit over it; they were too preoccupied with some berries that had strayed onto the path from surrounding trees.

He could already see Azurus ahead; that is, the large waterfall that hid that place from the world. Up ahead, a small dark lump stuck out of the ground, right in the middle of the trail.  As he continued running as to skip right over it, he was suddenly bashed onto the ground by an oblivious Geodude, levitating out from the earth.  He grumbled in pain as he lifted himself up onto his dirty forearms, and the Geodude, unperturbed, hovered away without so much as a hint of curiousity.  Crimz got up and dusted himself off.  He decided to walk the rest of the way; the falls already lay before him.

The vast, curdling falls washed over the steep cliff of a massive piece of land.  It was like a whole different continent, but the two were connected deep under the river.  He'd been here many a time and knew there was nothing special about thispart of the waterfall.  Like always, he would have to take the natural trail, which was nearly impossible to find without prior knowledge, down to the base of the river.  He stood at the top of a narrow cliff, and from there, he stepped over to the thicket on the right.  Kneeling down, he separated the bush with his hands and crawled through a tunnel space over which the thicket arched.  Once through, he took a small wooden ladder down which, too, was enveloped by the long, thick bush. He stepped down onto a small mossy boulder, and from it, hopped down onto the dirt path.  The dirt trail ramped down in a short spiral along the cliff, leading down to the river.

The river was calm, but some strong Pokemon such as Gyarados and Ursaring lived there, so it was best that it stayed that way.  Crimz approached the side of the river, then stopped and took a few steps back.  He scurried forward, hopping onto and off of a stone protrusion in the river and landing on a platform right next to, and leading behind, the waterfall.  The enormous waves plummeting down thundered in his ears, frothing up the river. The local area was nearly hidden in the cool mist of the falls.  Refreshed and ready, Crimz stepped into the underground city of Azurus!
                                                                                                                          

                                                                                                   

Pokemon:  Crimson Destiny

Chapter I, Part II

Crimz stepped into the village, immediately greeted by a robed, middle-aged man with short brown hair, a tanned face and mangy-looking stubble.  Beside him, a pale, cheery-faced young lady wearing the same kind of robe, with long dark hair mostly hidden in her hood.

"Yo~  Long time no--" the man turned around abruptly.  A thunder of explosions suddenly rumbled through the village!

"What in the world's going on!?" shouted the robed man.

Before the man could turn around, Crimz was already far ahead, racing straight ahead toward the source.

"Wait!  Crimz!" He yelled.  "... ...Hah?"

The robed lady tailed Crimz toward the large dome at the far end of the village.  The commotion was coming from the temple!

"Good grief,"  muttered the robed man as he jogged slowly toward the scene.

Along the way, many people had stepped out of their marble-white houses.  The underground village of Azurus was mostly blue and white, coloured by the luminous white buildings and pools of water located throughout, like a miniature Sootopolis City.  A narrow path of stone on the dirt defined the main walkways.  The village of Azurus was a sacred place, home to many water and dragon type Pokemon.

"There!" shouted the robed young lady, having caught up with Crimz, and now unhooded.

"You're...!" Crimz whispered as he turned to the lady running alongside him.

"Look," she said.  A huge serpentine beast of crimson stood before them, facing the temple and roaring atrociously.  A red Gyarados, and standing behind it...

A caped man, with hair to match his Gyarados, stood valiantly in the midst of battle.  Lance, the dragon master, was battling!  Facing the Gyarados, a Cacturne and Nidoking stood proudly, rearing to go.  Behind the Pokemon, two figures in black. Behind the Cacturne on the right, a young lady wearing a tight black shirt, grey gloves, black skirt, long black boots and a matching hat stood in defiance.  Her long, blond bangs hung out of her hat along the sides of her face, and at her waist, a metallic silver belt held her pokeballs and little else.  On the left, a young man wearing nearly the same getup stood behind his Nidoking with a confident smirk.  He wore no hat over his wild, violet hair, however.  Both of their shirts bore a large, red 'R' that could not be mistaken.

"It's Team Rocket!" shouted the robed lady as she arrived with Crimz at the scene of the ongoing battle.

"Gyarados, use Aqua Tail!" commanded Lance the dragon master.

Gyarados focused its power into a wide, swinging lash of its long, white-finned tail, but Nidoking jumped into the air, successfully avoiding the attack.  The windy aftershock of the forceful swing breezed the surrounding people with a sandy wind, from which they shielded their eyes in dismay.

"Nidoking, use Giga Impact!" said the Team Rocket man.

"Gyarados, you too!" Lance commanded.

Nidoking's purple, armoured body was enveloped by an intense, fire-like aura, preparing for an enblazened charge. Gyarados quickly matched face, nearly camouflaging its scaly red body in its own raging envelopment.  The two Pokemon adversaries raged forward, deafened by their own roars.

"Cacturne, it's time to go!  Use Needle Arm, now!" Ordered the Team Rocket girl.

Cacturne launched its prickly green body forward, building up momentum into one of its spiky arms through constant swinging.  While Gyarados and Nidoking were still locked together in a heated power struggle, Cacturne lurched forward, heaving its jagged arm into Gyarados.  Gyarados writhed and roared in pain as it began to give way to Nidoking.

Crimz hustled over to the temple and snuck in behind the Rockets.

"Grand--"

"Stop." demanded a robed old man, mostly bald with a short, scraggly white beard.  "Oh, Crimz, it's you!  You're here to see Elder Carnellius?"

"I'm in a hurry, can't you see what's happening out there?"  said Crimz as he anxiously held up his clenched, determined fists.

"Okay, okay, go ahead.  Hurry!"  the old man replied.

Crimz jogged deep into the temple, careful not to slip on the wet, stone floor.  The hall was made completely out of stone, with large pools of water occupying the sides.   Various aquatic tunnels led out from the bottoms of the pools, allowing Pokemon to go in and out freely.  There were various dragon-head statues and enscriptions carved and etched into the high, allabaster walls, and a small lamp hanging from the central point of the cieling illuminated every corner of the room.  Thin but heavy, stone doors located directly ahead of the temple's entrance led to the sacred room of the elder.

Grandpa would be there.

Crimz pushed his way through the stone doors and hastily proceeded into the room.

"Grand--"

"Crimz..." his Grandfather interrupted, as if having anticipated his arrival.  "It's good to see you again."

A red robe, looser and longer, spread along the floor around the sitting elder.

"Grandpa, right now--" Crimz beckoned, interrupted once again.

"You've seen all the ruckus going on outside?  Those fools in black who steal and mistreat Pokemon will never understand true power.  Don't ever be a fool, Crimz."  said Carnellius.

Crimz waited calmly for whatever would come next, but began sweating impatiently, anxiously.

"Today was the day you would receive your first companion.  Yes..." noted the elder, Carnellius.  "And that you shall."

Crimz lit up with uncharacteristic excitement.  How he had waited for this.

"Knowing you, young one, I trust you've already made your decision.  Here they are, go ahead."

Presented with a golden-framed box with a luxuriously designed gold and navy covering, Crimz lifted the top open.
There they were, six Pokeballs nested neatly in the soft velvet inner lining.  Crimz grabbed a Pokeball and bolted out of the temple without a second thought, nearly slipping on his way back through the hall toward the exit.

Outside, Lance's Gyarados was struggling in its two-on-one battle with Nidoking and Cacturne.  Lance reached for another Pokeball from his waist.

"Go--"  Lance's voice fizzled away in surprise.  In came running a boy from out of nowhere!

"GO, POKEMON!"






Pokemon:  Crimson Destiny

Chapter II, Legends and Rivals  Part I

"Pokemon, go!" shouted Crimz as he tossed his Pokeball into the fray.

With small, stout legs and short arms reaching out into the sky, each with three tiny fingers, the Pokemon sprung joyously forth from its Pokeball.  The large, brown shell on its back distinguished its body and round head from the backdrop of the clear, blue sky.  The Pokemon landed artfully with its curled blue tail wagging out on one side.

"Squirtle, go!" Crimz commanded, and Squirtle trotted quickly toward the big, green, crooked-faced Cacturne.

Aware, Cacturne turned its attention away from Lance's Pokemon and charge boastingly toward Squirtle.  The red Gyarados was still hanging in there.

"Squirtle, slow it down first with Bubble!"  ordered Crimz.

Cacturne's arm was swinging again, preparing for another thrust of its needly arm, but from Squirtle's mouth a huge flurry of bubbles swarmed and enveloped the Cacturne's body.  It's sinister face flushed with panic, lifting away all traces of earlier moxie.

"Now blast it with your Water Gun!"  Crimz commanded.

A stream of water bursted forth from Squirtle's mouth, knocking the incopacitated Cacturne onto the hard, stone-paved ground.

"Hey hey, kid, don't get too confident now.  That little squirt can't possibly take down my Cacturne!" said the Rocket girl.  "Cacturne, get up and prepare yourself, now!"

"Alright squirtle, let's do Bubble again--"

"Sucker Punch!" the girl hastily commanded.

Cacturne suddenly sped up and pounded Squirtle before it could prepare its attack.  The hit was hard, the damage high; Squirtled crashed down hard into the ground, bouncing once on its shell before landing on his stomache.  It couldn't get back up.

"No, Squirtle..." muttered Crimz, disappointed.

"Hahaha, there's no way that little Squirtle of yours could get up after a hit like that from my high-level Cacturne.  You've lost!"  concurred the Rocket girl.

"Ruby, just finish them off for good!" yelled the Rocket man.

"No need, no need.  Haven't I done that already?  Let's just let him cry."

"Do you..." Crimz mumbled quietly.

"Huh?" Ruby turned and looked in his direction again.

"Do you really think...that I could be beaten...SO EASILY!?" Crimz yelled in anger.  "Squirtle!"

...

Squirtled remained flat on the ground, still as stone.  Suddenly, a blue aura began to luminate about its body as it lifted itself up from the ground with its small arms.  A new look of determined adamance posessed the glowing Squirtle, as though its personality had been wiped away.

"I'll teach you not to under estimate me, FOR GOOD!" shouted Crimz.

The bewildered Ruby glanced over at her colleague.  "Toxin...  What's up with that--"

"Torrent." said Toxin, the Rocket man.

"Squirtle, first use Bubble!" Crimz commanded, brimming with confidence.

Again, Squirtle blasted out a barrage of bubbles, but this time the attack was a lot bigger and stronger!

"Cacturne, break out of it!  Right now!" Demanded Ruby, but Cacturne was almost completely immobilized.

"Let's finish this!  Water gun, go!" Crimz commanded.

Squirtle let loose a huge blast of concentrated water that completely overpowered Cacturne, sending it slamming into the temple wall.

"Cheh...  Cacturne, return..." said Ruby as she beamed the Pokemon back into its ball.  "Beginner's luck!"

"Gyarados, return." ordered Lance as he beamed back the exhauted red dragon.

I wouldn't have thought that an unevolved water type like Squirtle could have taken down that grass type Cacturne, but I proved that wrong.  This Squirtle should be pretty low level though, can I even take out that guy's Nidoking?  Squirtle may have the type advantage, but what does that matter against a fully evolved, high-level Pokemon?

...

But I have to try!

"Squirtle, go!" ordered Crimz.

"Hey you, little punk." said Toxin.

"Huh?" said Crimz in surprise, and Squirtle also stopped to listen.

"You think you're real tough now that now that you've beaten that pathetic Ruby and her pathetic Pokemon, am I right?" asked Toxin.

"What!?" shrieked Ruby vehemently.

"I think you're weak too, filthy Rocket." said Crimz with bravado.

"What moxie, condescending little punk.  Well, you are correct that most Rocket grunts are weak, all with nothing but hollow confidence.  Weak in numbers, defenseless on their own - That they are.  Compared to me, that is."  said Toxin. "Ruby is soft.   Little punk, I'll show you how weak you and your Pokemon really are."

"Bring it!  Squirtle, Water Gun!" Crimz shouted.

"You can't!  ...  Go Dra--!"

"Wait."  said Lance as he blocked the robed girl with his right arm, eyes still focused on the battle.

Squirtle ran over toward the towering Nidoking and blasted out another power-pumped Water Gun attack, a perfect hit.  However, Crimz and Squirtle were surprised to see that Nidoking barely cringed from the attack and easily stood its ground.

"Surprised?  Little kid, I can see into your heart.  Right now you're thinking, '~I don't stand a chance, I was wrong.  I shouldn't have gotten myself involved...~'  Am I right?"  said Toxin mockingly.

...

"Now you're thinking, '~It's alright, Lance the dragon master is here.  He can't possibly lose, he was once the champion of the Elite Four.  He would never lose to the likes of Team Rocket!~'  Am I right?  Of course I am...  Nidoking, Thunderbolt."
Before Crimz could even give out a command, Squirtle was completely encased in a shroud of electrifying yellow!
Super-effective damage from a strong Pokemon's Thunderbolt left Squirtle unconscious and completely unable to battle anymore.  Defeated.

...

Crimz was stunned; speechless and completely disillusioned.

"Hey, little punk.  What's with that shocked face?  Your Pokemon is the shell-shocked one, hahaha!  I can tell you what your Squirtle is thinking, kid.  It's thinking, 'Why was I cursed with such a pathetic little punk for a trainer?'"  Toxin laughed darkly.  "Oh, and that Cacturne from earlier?  It had already taken heavy damage from that Gyarados before you came!  Hahahahaha!"

"S-Squirtle...  Return..."  said Crimz in a fragile voice.

"That's about enough of that."  said Lance.  "Go...  My friend."

Out from the ball came a huge Pokemon.  Its body towered over Nidoking, strong and dignified.  It's enormous tail was like a second half of its body, casting off a mild wind whenever it swayed.  With arms and large legs each tipped with three jagged claws, tiny bat-like wings and a white serpentine underside extending from its neck to the tip of its tail, the Pokemon's skin shone a bright orange under the beaming morning sun.







Dragonite.





                                                                                                         

                                                                   

Pokemon:  Crimson Destin-

Chapter II, Legends and Rivals  Part II


"Nidoking, Giga Impact!"  Commanded Toxin.

"Dragonite, Hyper Beam!" shouted Lance.

Once again, Nidoking became engulfed in its own aura, then charged briskly toward the valiant dragon standing before it.  Dragonite's head reared back, gathering speckles of energy into a ball.  As soon as Nidoking had closed in, Dragonite fired the powerful Hyper Beam.  Nidoking's Giga Impact attack was easily overpowered by the immense force of Dragonite - Lance the dragon master's strongest known Pokemon!

"Nidoking, return."  Said Toxin as his Pokemon was transported back into its Pokeball.  "Heh, i would expect nothing less of the former Pokemon League Champion.  No, in fact, I actually expected more.  You disappoint me, 'dragon master'.

-[Kssssshhhhht - Toxin, we failed.  Some young punk messed things up on our end.  We're movin' out! - Kssssshhhhht]-  Toxin grabbed the Walkie Talkie from the belt at his waist.  -Kssssshhhhht "Fine, we're moving out as well.  Notify headquarters."

"Not so fast!" said the robed girl as she pulled out a Pokeball, but Toxin and Ruby excaped with a ball of smoke.

...

The Rockets were gone, the temple safe, but Crimz was still on his kness, shocked and depressed.

...

"YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!  WAY TO GOOOOOOO!!"  The people around were clapping and cheering.  But why were they so happy?

Lance and the robed girl stepped over to Crimz, giving him a hand getting up.

"They've seen your bravery, kid.  This is the village's way of thanking you."  said Lance.

Crimz stood up and looked out in the crowd of people, wiping away a tear from his eye.  He smiled proudly for a moment, but cringed in frustration immediately after.  He wanted revenge.

"Was that your first battle?  That was some decent battling.  I saw you storm into the temple earlier, did elder Carnellius give you a Pokemon?"  said the robed girl as the crowd began to dissipate.

"You're--"  Crimz mumbled, interupted.

"Oh, that's right!  I haven't introduced myself, I always forget!  My name's Roary!  Roary the--"

"Dragon trainer."  Crimz interrupted.  "Having lived on the plains just an hour from here, I've heard all about the famous dragon trainers.  Lance, the dragon master and former Champion of Johto's Elite Four, and  Roary, a child prodigy who became the rival of Blackthorn city's Claire, but lost to her many years ago, along with the right to become the Blackthorn gym leader."

"Humph!  I've gotten a lot stronger since then!" claimed Roary, irritated.

"Then there's Claire, the female dragon master and Blackthorn gym leader, currently on the rise again as a new Elite Four candidate."  Crimz added.

"Hey hey, you're pretty knowledgeable." said Lance.

"Grrrr I'll defeat her!  Come on, bring her here, that Claire wouldn't stand a chance now!" Roary exasperated.

"Well, it's about time for me to leave..."  said Lance.

"Where are you going?"  asked Crimz.

"He's going on a new journey!"  said Roary excitedly.

"A new journey..."  said Crimz.

"Yeah, it's been a long time since I've journeyed around like the old days.  I'm off to rediscover myself...  ...
...And the world of Pokemon..."  Lance replied.  "Crimz, this is only the beginning for you.  Your very first journey.  Have fun with it, and take care!"  said Lance, the dragon master.

...  "Crimz."  said Lance as he turned around, facing the road.

"Become strong."  said Lance as he walked off, heading back toward the Waterfall entrance.

...  Cool

"Keep this a secret, but truth is, Lance has been in a slump.  Ever since he was defeated in the Pokemon League, he hasn't been able to battle with his former power.  That's why he's going on a journey!  I'm on a journey too, Crimz!  And it's just about time for me to leave!  Who knows, maybe we'll meet up somewhere.  I don't know about the dragon master, but I'll give you a battle once you've gotten good and strong!  Bye!"  Shouted Roary as she jogged away.  

It couldn't be seen clearly from so far away, but she eventually summoned a Pokemon from a ball and disappeared into the sky.  On what, Crimz did not know.

"Crimz!"  yelled a voice right behind him, startling him badly.

"WHAT!"  Crimz turned around and yelled back.  ...  "Uh, sorry, you startled me...  Wanna' try not yelling in my ear next time?"

It was the robed man from earlier that was guarding the village entrance with Roary.

"Hahaha."  laughed the man, patting his back amiably with brutish force.  "Come on."

"Hey, um..."  Crimz muttered.

...

"Who are you?"  asked Crimz.

"EEEEEHHHHH!?"  the man yelled with a comical face.  "Ugh...  My name's Jagg!  Got it?  Jagg!"

"Ooh...  You're..."  Crimz paused.

...

"Nope, don't remember anyone named Jagg..."

"Ghaaa!"  sighed Jagg.  "At any rate, let's go into the temple, your grandfather, I mean, Elder Carnellius has asked for you to come in, now that all the commotion's over with!"

...

"You, over there!  You too..."  said Jagg.

Standing several meters away, leaning against the temple stood a tall young man, not much older than Crimz.  Black pants, a silver belt, and a blue jean-jacket over a buttoned white dress shirt unbuttoned around the collar, with short, dark, parted hair and cold, dark, confident eyes.

"That was a pathetic battle you made me watch."  he said.

"What...  Well why don't you--"  Crimz caught his tongue, and the young man turned away and stepped slowly toward the temple doors.

I can't ask him for a battle, I don't have any useable Pokemon right now...  That jerk, thinks he's so cool...  I'd like to seehim battle a Cacturne and a Nidoking...

Crimz followed him to the Elder's room, while Jagg waited at the entrance.

"Welcome back."  said Elder Carnellius.  "First, give me your Pokeball."

"Uh, okay Grandpa.  Here."  said Crimz as he handed it over.

A robed, hooded lady who had been standing in the other far corner of the room, completely unnoticed, stepped over and received the Pokeball from Carnellius, then bowed and left.

"She'll take care of your tired Pokemon for you.  Your Squirtle will returned to you in good health very soon."

"So that was your very first Pokemon.  No wonder you were weak."  said the young man.  "You picked a water type, so...  Elder Carnellius, please give me a Charmander."


The elder passed one of the encased Pokeballs over to Rane.  "Here you go."

"Although it would seem the two of you have met, let me introduce the both of you."  Said Carnellius.  This is Crimz, my grandson.  And Crimz, this is..."

Rane.