[Mari]

((Hi! Welcome to Dragon Ascent. The main danger in this mission will be trying to climb this mountain in the first place. Keep an eye on the statistics and thresholds at the bottom of each post in parenthesis, as you'll frequently be asked to deal with a problem during each post, even if that problem is quite mundane.))

Iris laid curled up against the body of Dragonite, who appeared to sleep at her back. The trainer and her pokemon were helping to keep each other warm with their body heat, which was especially helpful for Iris' cold-blooded companion. The young girl was wearing... a dress. Now, normally one would be foolish to assume that a dress was anything but warm. However, Iris' dress had a... very, very large seam going up the middle and exposing her thighs to the cold air. One had to question whether this was simply the warmest thing she owned. If so, was she actually poor? The dress looked very nice by any standard, but it definitely wasn't appropriate for the deathly cold of the mountain ahead. It certainly raised questions. Regardless, Iris seemed to be handling herself fine so far. She only looked a little chilly as she hugged her knees to her chest. "I hope people come to help soon. All that snow up there is going to hide that little dragon's scent. We won't be able to find it on our own." Iris mused aloud. Dragonite's head shifted, indicating that he was, in fact, awake and just had his eyes closed. "Then again, we never let the odds stop us before. Let's wait a bit longer, though. I want this to be a success so I can catch it." Iris would go on, smiling brightly at the idea. A dragon she'd never seen before? Clearly she needed to add it to the pokedex she didn't have.

((Temperature: 1F or -17C))
((Wind Speed: 2 mph or 3.2 km/h))

[Deleted]

Paula started her trudge up to Icicle Peak, but only at the part's where It's less dangerous and where she can locate Iris and her Dragonite so they can begin the mission to find the purple dragon Iris said she saw, purple dragon...Paula swore she heard something about a purple dragon before, but right now she should focus on finding Iris and her pocket monster, as Paula was walking she was wearing a cream coat and a red skirt with one black socks and her regular shoes on her leg and knees, as she kept walking Paula looked around.

Until she saw someone In the distance, well two figures, she quickly floated towards them and found out It was Iris and her pocket monster. "Are you Iris?" Paula said to the girl, who was curious at why she was wearing a dress In one of the coldest places In LI and wanted to ask as she floated onto the ground. "Uhh...Sorry to question you but should you wear something other then a dress when going up a cold mountain...It will be dangerous." Paula said as she quickly looked around...Cynder and Shaymin were also going to join Paula, Iris and Dragonite In the mission to find the purple dragon as she looked back at Iris and the Pocket Monster.

"Anyway, I'm Paula Polestar...It's nice to meet you Iris...Do you know where the dragon Is?"

[Coolshaymin]

Shaymin crawled through the freezing cold air of Icicle Peak once again. She questioned why she would come back to this absolutely freezing environment. Her body could not stand the cold and Sky was even worst than she was at it. Sky could get so cold he would be forced to revert back into Land...

Though, honestly, though the place was still way too cold for a grass type such as herself... She honestly did not really feel as bad as she would normally feel in frigid environments. The Frostvine shimmered on her back in a sparkly way as the crystal flower seemed to absorb the cold for Shaymin. She kept the flowers nested in her grassy back along with the Gracidea Flower so she did not lose them... And the cold felt oddly empowering to the Gratitude Pokemon for some reason as if the Frostvine was having an odd effect on her. She only felt this last time when she was heading back after Paula and Cynder helped her retrieve it... Perhaps there was some kind of power these flowers had similar to a Gracidea Flower that Shaymin did not realize. The cold still felt terrible, but it was a lot more bearable than normal. It did help that the winds were not too bad.

Shaymin looked to the familiar sights of Iris and Paula as she approached... And Iris looked abnormal for how Shaymin expected humans to dress in the cold. Sure, Shaymin's only protection was the Frostvine but Shaymin also was a Wild Pokemon. Wearing clothes was not exactly a thing she would feel that comfortable with and the thought did not cross her mind. "Hi, Iris, Paula.... This seems a really bad environment for a dragon... A bad environment for anything not an ice type really... We better find it quick," Shaymin greeted as they shivered a bit. The Frostvine was absorbing most of the cold for Shaymin as it sparkled as feeling Shaymin would show she was not that cold but her grass type nature tended to have it's reactions to cold environment.

[Cielmira]

The entirety of her travel to the familiar icy wastes spiraling into the clouds was burdened with all manner of thought. One would think the prospect of an unknown purple dragon lost and alone somewhere in the behemoth's grasp would have driven Cynder into an adrenaline filled haste. While her thoughts did drive her into a surprisingly tireless trek her steps were uncertain and hesitant. This wasn't the first time she had chased after such tales, though this one was fairly promising in comparison, and so far every time it had been disappointing. A part of her wondered if the last time she would ever see her beloved was that time in Ganon's tower: the mannequin imbued with Spyro's memories and habits. It wasn't the real thing of course, and she knew that... now. But at the time it had been so real and now even that imitation was gone.

Cynder's eyes dropped to the snowy layer riddled with fresh prints that were not her own. Her chin tapped lightly against the necklace the King of Evil had given her as she reminisced on the only glimmer of happiness Li had provided her with in all her time here so far. It was hard not to sink into darker thoughts as she shivered in the cold of the mountain. Eventually, though, her mind managed to trail into her last visit to this place. To Paula and Shaymin. They were going to be here too, and while they weren't quite the remedy she was looking for the idea of their presence was enough to break from her lonely reflection.

Her whole body shivered causing a stutter in her movements. She exhaled as if that single breath drained all of these worries and distractions from her being. Focus was turned onto where she was going instead of stepping along on auto pilot. Soon enough voices reached her ears carried by the slight breeze wafting down the mountainside. Familiar and friendly speech. This was it.

Careful chilled steps turned into light bounds churning up bundles of the white flakes as Cynder made her way toward the gathering group. It appeared she was the last one to arrive.
"I hope I didn't keep you waiting long," were the first of her words to address the group. "Shaymin, Paula," she nodded in turn to her allies, "and you must be Iris." The dark dragon then introduced herself in return before moving onto the business that brought them all together in this frigid place.

"Do we have an idea of where this purple dragon is?" An evident pang of hope clung to her question, though she tried to present it as it was: an obvious question to get them started. Little did she know she wasn't the first to ask.

[Mari]

Dragonite opened his eyes as the others approached, watching Paula and Shaymin carefully. He did not, however, get up to greet them. He seemed a little lethargic, or perhaps he was simply enjoying the warmth too much to get up over two tiny girls arriving. "That's me! The amazing tough Unova Champion~" Iris acknowledged upon Paula's arrival, only to hesitate for a moment. "...What's wrong with my dress?" she wound up asking ever so innocently. Iris looked down at herself for a moment, apparently oblivious to whatever it was Paula had noticed. Suddenly, however, it occurred to her. Oh yeah! Her bare legs were exposed on the inside. "Oooh... I don't have any other clothes. Drayden used to buy me mine." Iris admitted rather lamely. She almost seemed to pout for a moment, but the moment quickly passed. "That's okay though because that's where I'm going to put Dragonite!" Iris went on to reassure Paula. Dragonite's antennae fidgetted a bit as he heard his name, but he declined to comment.

And then Cynder arrived. Iris' eyes widened and she hopped to her feet. "Y-Yes..." she replied as Cynder asked of her identity, though it was already clear that she could not control the outburst on the tip of her tongue. "And you must be the cutest thing I've seen since Cynthia's garchomp!" Iris blurted out, bouncing on her feet a little in excitement. She was positively glowing with joy ...and desire. Although she didn't say anything, she was already contemplating the idea of adding Cynder to her team. ...Maybe later, though. She knew Cynder was probably here for her own purposes.

Iris sheepishly cleared her throat. "Well-umm...I don't know how far he could've gone since I last saw him, but I know where he was." Iris replied, gesturing high up into the mountains. They had a very long way to go, it seemed. The weather was also overcast, hinting at the possibility of rain--or more accurately snow. "If it's trying to stay warm, it's probably not in the air. Which means we have a shot at catching up to him." Iris mused aloud.

((Altitude: 0%))
((Weather: Overcast))
((Temperature: 1F or -17C))
((Wind Speed: 2 mph or 3.2 km/h))

[Deleted]

Paula looked at the lazy Dragonite who lied on the snow as Paula looked back at Iris as she wondered If anything was wrong with her dress. "Well...Yes, It's just that...you could get very cold fast wearing that dress and It could reduce your speed when trudging up on these mountains." Paula said as Iris said that she didn't have much clothes...Which got Paula interested. "Oh, I can help with that, there's a store at the corner of my apartment In Brightwing that sell's very good clothes, It's called Jelonzo and Annie's clothe's pad If your interested In finding new clothe's, It's where I found most of the stuff I'm wearing now." Paula said as she looked at the arrival of Shaymin and Cynder.


"Hey you two, ready to find this Dragon?" Paula said as she turned toward's Iris who said she knew where the dragon previously was and started to head toward's the location. "Hopefully he could be around there." She said as she started to follow Iris and her Pocket Monster toward's the Purple Dragon's previous location, while walking she looked back at her partner's and wondered what there doing before this mission. "How are you guys?" She said to the Pocket Monster and Dragoness as Paula looked at Cynder the longest before thinking about something.

"Ironic we have a dragon on a mission to find another dragon...I wonder If Cynder know's this dragon or she just want's to help find someone of the same species..."

She looked back at Cynder.

"So...Just curious Cynder, but do you know this Dragon were looking for?"

[Coolshaymin]

Shaymin looked at the large Dragonite as Iris said she was using him in place of warm clothes. She kind of felt bad for the dragon type being reduced to cold protection. "Hi Cynd-" Shaymin started to greet the dragoness as she came until Iris started flipping out. Oh right, she was a gigantic dragon fanatic. She almost forgot about that somehow.

Shaymin looked to Iris as she seemed way too happy to see Cynder... She knew the look in her eyes way too well considering she was a rare but still Wild Pokemon. Iris was contemplating on the idea of catching Cynder but luckily she seemed to deny the urge. The Gratitude Pokemon was not even sure if Iris had a chance of succeeding at doing so. Pokeballs were not capable of catching humans to her knowledge... But did that rule apply to animals from other worlds? Shaymin was by no means an expert on human tools. She just knew she threw one at a human once and it did nothing... Not sure what she would of done if it actually worked...

Shaymin decided to ignore it for now. Iris seemed to be holding it off for now anyway. She will bother with the issue only if it becomes that. The Floral Hedgehog moved to follow the others while looking at Cynder for a moment. She could feel some bit of hope in Cynder though it was faint because Shaymin's senses were more built for Gratitude. Still, Shaymin felt like Cynder has more reason than her for being here.

"I am doing fine, right now... My problem has not acted up yet... Hopefully this trip is pain free..." Shaymin answered Paula. She knew there would undoubtedly be some kind of trial climbing this mountain. The pain she was concerned with was more her condition.

[Cielmira]

Cynder stared back at Iris in utter shock, with a ting of worry. The word, cute, repeated in her mind as if she didn't understand. Never, NEVER, had anyone ever described her as such. That was something said of soft little cheetah cubs, not warped dragons adorned with spikes and blades. Without a doubt there was something wrong with this woman; adding in taking account her attire for their chilly venture uphill. Not to mention that odd glint in her eyes. A desire of some sort being pondered that made Cynder rather uncomfortable. As the girl proceeded to answer the question Cynder made a slight shake of her head to clear her thoughts and get back on track, pushing aside that little outburst.
"Good." She kept her reply short and sweet, turning away from the excitable lady to look at the other two. It seemed everyone was as ready as they could be so the group could set off to begin this search and rescue. The dragoness made sure to keep Paula at least partially in between herself and Iris as they walked along.

"About as good as one can be on Li," was her response to the psychic's attempt to start small talk. Her wings were drawn in tightly to her body, tail curled around her but not so close as to have the naked metal composing the tip touching her body. Shaymin's words brought a small curl of a smile to her scaly face, but that was wiped clean when Paula posed her next question, considering whether her friend was prodding for something or if the question was the result of assuming all dragons would know each other. Her hesitation to relay her story wasn't out of the desire for secrecy but more for not wanting to get her hopes up. But there was no reason to be coy about the truth when directly asked; they were all friends here.

"I know a purple dragon, but I can't say whether the one we'll find up there is him. In my world purple dragons are extremely rare, but that's not true for all the worlds that got thrown together on Li," Cynder began with heavy words. "If it is him... Well we'll find out if he answers to the name Spyro." Her tone brightened at the end as she tried to make light the possibility this was not the dragon she had dedicated all her free time to search for. The others knowing his name would be good anyway.

[Mari]

ZKjZNDh8p_1d20+1 (Iris' Critical Perception)

Iris just sort of watched Cynder ever so deliberately back away from her and put some distance between the two of them. She could feel her heart rend asunder as she was snubbed by a dragon the likes of which she'd never seen before. Cue face-fault and a groan of despair. Dragonite seemed to take notice of this, shifting to get up. He yawned loudly and stretched his arms, shaking the sleepiness from his vision before moving to pick Iris up. ("Well I've never seen that happen before.") he remarked, apparently mildly amused by Iris' broken heart. For once, the dragon master and her pokemon seemed a bit distant in their feelings on the matter. Dragonite turned his attention upon Shaymin and Paula. ("This cold makes me tired, but I believe I alone of my trainer's pokemon am strong enough to handle it. Welcome to the journey, little one and ... hu-man?") Dragonite replied, giving Paula a funny look. It was odd for her to ask him a question as if she expected an answer. Did she understand him somehow? He'd have to wait and see.

Meanwhile, Iris just sort of nursed her wounded pride and heart with a nice bout of sulking quietly to herself.

The group would begin proceeding up the mountain. So far everything was very mild, with little to no serious inconveniences. However, the group might notice the wind beginning to pick up suddenly. If one were wise, they would likely take this as an omen of what was to come.

((You experience only light resistance and make decent progress. Yet, it will still take quite some time to reach the top at your current pace.))

((Altitude: 5%))
((Weather: Overcast))
((Temperature: 1F or -17C))
((Wind Speed: 15 mph or 24 km/h))

1d20+1

[Deleted]

Paula said nothing when Cynder was freaked out with Iris's comment and stood between her and the Pocket Monster trainer as the group continued to walk up the peak.

Paula quickly looked back at the group when Cynder replied, It was obvious she was In no mood to ask anymore questions, It seem's she was focused on finding this Spyro dragon...A rare purple dragon that Cynder has a connection with, he must mean a lot to her so Paula shouldn't ask her anymore questions, she will give her hope. "Well...Hopefully It might be Spyro, so you can at least find someone you know and a friend." Paula said as she thought about something. "It's nice to see friends and loved ones reuniting...I wonder when I'll be reunited with the one's I love?" Paula thought as Dragonite was surprised that Paula could understand him.

"Oh? I can read your mind, I'm a psychic, and also I can talk to animal's like you Iris's Pocket Monster, no matter If you say your name numerous time's." Paula said cheerfully in Draogonite's mind as the group kept walking up the mountain, with Paula not showing to be sick or tired yet, she looked at least happy In the situation they were In and hoped that this dragon knew Cynder so she can be happy to reunite with someone.

"This mountain has a great view."

[Coolshaymin]

Shaymin looked up at Iris as she seemed really distraught by Cynder's worry towards her. It was fortunate that Cynder was aware and cautious of Iris's dragon type obsession. It made it very unlikely that Iris would catch her by surprise... Quite literally... Still, Iris seemed to have taken it very hard and Shaymin could not help but feel bad for her... Even if the reason was wanting to catch a dragon...

Shaymin listened to Cynder as she spoke about Spyro. She did seem a little grateful towards her words for some reason before Paula brought it up. Was she looking forward to a pain free trip in the perspective of Spyro? Or was it because Shaymin was doing okay. This purple dragon must be really important to her for reason. The Gratitude Pokemon would be really happy if they were reunited... But why was she getting this really bad feeling? What could be worst than it not being the one she is looking for... Maybe she was just naturally trying to purify Starvia again. She really needed to find a way to stop that instinct.

"You are definitely very strong. Your large size is not for show, I know that from experience. I am sure you can protect your owner from the cold," Shaymin said. Being a wild Pokemon, she was not entirely sure how offensive it would be calling a trained Pokemon's trainer their owner. Shaymin kind of said it naturally though as she followed them. She could feel the wind moving the wind and two flowers on her back. She gave a small shiver rather instinctually at the cold. Sky was telling her the wind was definitely picking up. As mobile as Sky was, she knew that not only was it too cold out here, the winds were too strong. They agreed to only tag out if Land was in peril and needed Sky's assistance.

[Cielmira]

The wind was a greatly unappreciated addition to the icy peak the group was hiking across. Paula's cheery words echoed in her mind along with the faint howling of the gusts whipping by them all. Cynder head her head down, chin tucked in, trying to limit the sting of loose flakes of snow floating in the breeze. This was just the start, likely not even going to be the worst of it. Her last visit to this mountain wasn't exactly the most pleasant and at this moment she felt she may prefer the dark cavern versus the bare elements. It was certain that flying wasn't going to be an option on this trip.

Cynder listened to the grunts and calls of the large orange dragon carrying the trainer, not able to catch a single thing as any words. No one in particular seemed bothered by this, nor confused, so she remained quiet on Paula's other side. Then Shaymin piped up with something she could understand. She had forgotten. Not all pokémon were able to speak the common tongue. It was hard to remember such a thing when it seemed all the ones she encountered possessed such a skill; or telepathy. From the sounds of it though the dark dragon wasn't missing out on anything too interesting conversation wise.

[Mari]

Iris continued to sulk as the others talked around her before managing to slip off into a cat nap. Apparently being upset was exhausting, or something? Either way, she laid curled up in Dragonite's arms as they walked. Dragonite found himself lolling his head at Paula. ("I have heard of telepathy, and yet this is still new to me.") Dragonite remarked in a rather fascinated tone as he listened to Paula's projected thoughts. He didn't appear to grasp the concept of not needing to speak aloud. Shaymin, in particular, might find this assertion odd, knowing what she did about his ability to communicate with Iris' via ESP. ("Usually I have to let my actions speak for me.") Dragonite would continue, a tad unsure of how to speak given the opportunity.

His attention turned to Shaymin. ("I appreciate your flattery, but I will be relying on her for warmth as much as she I for ours is a kinship--not an ownership.") Dragonite explained in slightly uncertain tones. ("You must've noticed this, back at the house of falsehoods?") the dragon would go on to question, uncertain himself as to whether Shaymin grasped the nature of his and his trainer's relationship.

The winds continued to pick up, growing into a strong breeze that threatened to bleed the party's strength away if they weren't prepared for it. Dragonite stopped in his tracks and shielded Iris, his wings withering in response to the cruel breeze. He turned his head to the sky and squinted for a moment. ("I sense a storm.") the mighty dragon would state in a matter-o-fact tone. The way the weather was behaving. He could tell something was coming, and any weather on this mountain was bound to be ugly.

4j36ineBp_1d20+6 (Dragonite's Windchill Resistance)

((The wind is threatening to bleed your strength away! Make a constitution roll to resist it's effects. The threshold for success is a mere 8, for now. The price of failure is 2% damage))

((Altitude: 10%))
((Weather: Overcast))
((Temperature: 1F or -17C))
((Wind Speed: 25 mph or 38 km/h))

1d20+6

[Deleted]

Paula nodded at Dragonite when he expressed difficulty and said he was getting used to talking this way. "Dont worry, you'll get use to It eventually." She said to the Dragon...Nite, as she noticed Iris sulking at Cynder has turned into...A catnap. "D-did she just fall asleep?" Paula said surprised as Dragonite quickly warned the group of an incoming storm, Paula saw the storm, her eye's widening In surprise as she spoke again. "Uh oh..." Paula said as she braced for the incoming storm, trying to resist It's chilly effects from It.


NgbX3CgWp_1d20-1(I guessed Paula automatically failed.)

"Brrgh." Paula said as she was hit by the storm, she covered her arms as she kept walking toward's there destination, despite getting a minor injury, she's not down just yet, this mission had just started after all, she quickly looked toward's Cynder and Shaymin to check on them, since the Dragonite and Iris managed to resist the storm's effects.

"How are you two doing?"

Damage: 2%1d20-1

[Coolshaymin]

5pcuGoabp_1d20+1

Shaymin alongside the others, and did not slow down even as the winds were getting bad. Which was impressive for a grass type her size. She did silently agree with Sky though that keeping her out was a good choice. There was no way he would be this resilient. Still, there was that small sense of empowerment she was feeling from the cold. That Frostvine she got from her must be helping in some form.

"I'm doing okay..." Shaymin stated. Shaymin did not really respond to Dragonite. She did not really see his position as he stated it to be. His freedom was about as restricted as far as that ball went. The Gratitude Pokemon may just not be into the whole being captured thing honestly. As a Wild Pokemon, she did not fully understand the bonds between humans and Pokemon all that well... Still, they definitely had some strong connection... "I guess I see what you mean."
1d20+1