[Deleted]

    The Black Market was not a nice place. Pretty much everyone knew that. It was called the Black Market, after all. Some people from a different place and time would probably refer to it as a “wretched hive of scum and villainy,” and you know what? They’d be right. It was the perfect place to go if you wanted to do something shady. Whether buying or selling, you could encounter some weird stuff. Illegal items, dangerous substances, ancient artifacts, or phony lookalikes of any of the above. Recently though, there had been reports of what seemed to be not-so-subtly-disguised Team Rocket grunts. Whether this was actually true or not was a tad ambiguous, but it was decided that an investigation was in order.


    That was why Landon, a Pokemon trainer and Life Sphere resident, was standing by the border in-between the Black Market and the rest of the Life Sphere. He decided that it was his responsibility to help, even if the supposed “Rocket Resurgence” turned out to just be a red herring. That was why he signed up before anyone else, in fact. He stood just outside the entrance to the Black Market, patiently waiting. There were supposed to be two other volunteers. He just had to wait for them.



MISSION START!

[Deleted]

"I can feel what you're thinking."

A curt, haughty tone calls behind Landon. The flowing, green vestments of that itinerant thaumaturge accent the eyes and gauntlet of this man, Isonus had arrived. He stands beside the trainer, staring out into the market. He'd been here a stark many times, knew these places somewhat well. At least, where to find the ingredients he needed to create bodies and rituals for his inevitable return to his fullest strength. It was time he needed, and time he was going to add to that hourglass by fighting these grunts.

"Don't let this place intimidate you, but don't let it fool you, either. This place may be crawling with strong foes, but..."

Isonus's closed gauntlet fist opens, black-and-purple sparks laced around the metal all the way up to his forearm surge for a moment, reeking with power. It was as though magic bent to his will, a show of strength and the means to use it. The half-elf sneers at the boy, gladly allowing him this nugget of knowledge. Something about this guy may feel worse than any of the teams that Landon might have known back in the world of Pokemon. A sense of deep-rooted sadism, and perhaps even evil. At least he worked on their side for now...

"I'll show you how fragile our foes really are."

---

ISONUS, THE GRANDMASTER
HP: 130/130
SHIELD: 45/45
STATUS: Cocky
COOLDOWNS: None

[Maverick Hunter Zero]

When it came to the point where the thaumaturge arriving, one would expect the third member of this ragtag group to arrive.

They didn't have long to wait as the Combat Android arrived by way of her futuristic motorcycle.

"Assessment of associates confirmed, beginning the mission." were the only words that were spoken, hinting at her tone in regards to the Black Market, since the last time she was here, the mission was a flop, and she didn't want it to happen again.

---

KOS-MOS
HP: 180/180
Shield: 65/65
Status: stoic
Cooldowns:
N/A

[Deleted]

    Landon couldn't help but feel conflicted about the haughty magic-user that first approached. The man seemed all too confident in his abilities and, to be fair, it seemed like he was able to back it up. However, there was obviously something sinister about him. Landon didn't know much about this guy, other than he was loyal to the Life Sphere, but he didn't really seem like the most kind-hearted fellow. Still, this mission wasn't necessarily about being nice, it was more about maintaining law and order fairly and effectively. If Isonus could comply with the mission parameters, there wouldn't be any problems.


    "Alright, then. Good to have you on board. Just don't do anything too drastic."


    Kos-Mos showing up was a surprise, though not exactly a bad one. It seemed as though she could actually out-do Landon when it come to stoicism, though that was probably due to her being an android. She was definitely interested in getting the mission done, so she was very much appreciated.

    "Good. That's all three of us. Hang on a second," Landon said, pulling out something from his coat's seemingly bottomless pockets. He unfolded it and showed it to the party. "This is a map of the Black Market. According to intel, all we have to do is walk in a little, and there'll be a set of alleyways that some of these grunts have been skulking around. If we can find one of them, we can probably get some information out of them. Don't be too aggressive, though, or they might run off and get backup." He explained. With that, Landon lead the group into the Black Market.


    The Black Market was rather quiet. It was night-time, so there wasn't much activity. There was hardly a soul in sight. The group moved forward for a while, before Landon motioned the group to stop in front of the entrance to an alleyway. Of course, going into a dark alley at night wasn't really safe, but in this case, if nothing had changed, there should've been one of the supposed "Neo-Rocket" Grunts nearby, trying to sell things to people passing by. "Alright, there should be one of them in here. Keep your eyes open," Landon cautioned before leading the group inside.

    This alleyway was in a simple T shape, with a right turn in the middle. Looking down the right turn, there was a shady figure at the other end. It was hard to make out any details of the figure, but they appeared to be wearing a hoodie, which many of the "Neo-Rocket" Grunts were said to wear. Whether it was actually one of the grunts or someone else entirely was still up in the air. Still, though, there was only one way to find out... 

[Deleted]

Isonus passes along wayward glances at KOS-MOS. He'd seen her before, didn't quite like her. Something about how she behaved rubbed him wrong, but that didn't matter. Isonus had a job, and he was going to see it through. For now, it was gathering intelligence. They needed to find a hideout, and there was one... Was it a grunt? Isonus had an ace in the hole, his Thaumaturgy, to help ease this burden.

"Hold a moment, allow me."

t2uNbOqMp_1d20+4
(Isonus rolls INT to help determine if the person is a grunt or not!)

He closes his eyes, and opens them again, a flash of bright blue accompanies his new gaze for a moment, and with it, he begins to try and sense out the others. Not anything concrete, but he was trying to sense out if this individual was evil or not. While Isonus didn't necessarily believe in good or evil, he hoped his godly sixth sense could help him discern the karma of this individual, seeing if they'd be sent to the Heavens or the Styx, if they'd existed in his world.

"...I'm trying to find out if this one's karma is deep enough to be a thief."

---

ISONUS, THE GRANDMASTER

HP: 130/130

SHIELD: 45/45

STATUS: Cocky

COOLDOWNS: None

POWER: 0

1d20+4

[Maverick Hunter Zero]

"I shall defer to the thaumaturge for this." KOS-MOS would say, she was willing to cooperate with Isonus on not getting in his way, though to be honest she didn't fully trust him because he reminded her of one of wilhelm's Testaments.

But for now the Combat Android would observe, readying her auxiliary power supply for when the battle actually began, believe it or not, because KOS-MOS was not willing to keep hogging the glory, though she would keep Isonus from being a killjoy with this, so she would merely watch him do his thing and assuming that person was a rocket grunt, it would be prudent to be ready to take him down first, her senses were aware of this.

---

KOS-MOS (KP-X 000000001)
HP: 180/180
Shield: 65/65
Status: at the ready
Cooldowns:
N/A

[Deleted]

Isonus's magical gaze was able to discern the individual's karma with little difficulty or resistance. Through his quite literally godly senses, Isonus was able to get a surprisingly objective view on the figure's karma balance, and saw that it was definitely in the negative. That is to say, his positive deeds seemed to be outweighed by his negative deeds. However, his karma wasn't as negative as one might expect from the average thief. It was in the negative, yes, but not to an absurd degree. Either the figure wasn't what the group were looking for, or they were, and just didn't really have much passion for what they did. 

Before the group had arrived, the figure didn't actually see them. They actually had their back turned on the party. This was a bit hard to tell at first due to the lighting, but when Isonus and then KOS-MOS spoke, the figure visibly turned to look at them. The figure then seemed to jump back a bit at the sight of the party, specifically the Combat Android, who looked ready to attack at any moment.

"Hey, what's the big idea?!" the figure exclaimed in a somewhat masculine voice.

Landon looked at KOS-MOS, then at the figure again. She certainly seemed like she was ready to pounce on them, metaphorically at least.

"Sorry, sir. She's just a bit cautious," Landon explained. The last thing he wanted was to scare them off.

At this explanation, the figure seemed to relax a bit, and took an inquisitive step forward. The figure was indeed a man, and seemed to have a rather dull attire. Black hoodie, gray jeans, and brown boots. Most of the supposed "Neo-Rocket grunts" seemed to have the same dress code, at least according to eyewitness accounts. They had a getup comparable to Landon's, actually, both having the same taste in color schemes as a moody teenager.

Back to the topic at hand, however, it looked like the man was open to speaking to them, if they didn't actively threaten him. Landon himself was about to say something, but the man beat him to it.

"Are you three here to make a purchase?"

"Depends on what you're selling, I suppose."

The man simply nodded his head and began reaching inside of his hoodie. At this point, a voice in Landon's head chimed in with their own input.

("This guy seems like bad news. Folk like these rarely turn in their library books on time.")

("X, now's not the time to be talking about this. It's not relevant.")

("Overdue library books are ALWAYS relevant.")

With that, the man retrieved something from inside his hoodie. It was a plastic baggie, containing what looked like dried meat.

"What is that?"

"Dehydrated Slowpoke Tail. Authentic. Just add water. It'll cost you about 700 coins." 

Bingo.

"Slowpoke Tail. Is that it?"

"Well, no, it's just my best-selling item. I mean, I've got other stuff I could sell ya."

Landon was a bit curious at this point. Slowpoke Tail was good evidence the "Rocket Grunts" theory was correct, but by no means was it conclusive.

"Like what?"

The man actually let out a short sigh at this question. "To be honest, nothing too crazy. I mean, I've got some Full Heals, they're 500 coins each."

("No way that they actually work. Those Full Heals are fakes for sure.")

("Probably, yeah.")

"I also have some 'Mystery Pokeballs.' You never know what's in them until you use them. 600 each."

("Probably just a bunch of Goldeens.")

Alright then, team. It looks like the group has found what they're looking for. A strange man selling Slowpoke Tail and other items from the Pokemon universe. Definitely suspicious, that's for sure. Your characters can go about interrogating him in a few different ways. You could ask where he gets the items he sells, or you could flat-out accuse him of being a Rocket Grunt, or something else entirely. Though I'd avoid actually threatening or attacking him just yet. You're looking for information, remember that.

[Deleted]

"Machine, follow my lead. Boy, the same for you." Isonus speaks low, keeping the distance for the time being until his time to shine is there. He'd need KOS-MOS to keep up his bluff as he made remarks, else this could go poorly.

TMW1tg78p_1d20+5
(Isonus is using his Wisdom to investigate the nature of the tail!)

"Slowpoke Tail. Fascinating." Isonus boldly approaches, leaning in to squint at the tail, he signals behind him carefully for KOS-MOS to approach. Isonus was looking the tail over for the quality of cut, the dehydration level, and so on. He was determining a time of death for this poor animal. Likely to follow his lead as he said before. He looks over the texture of the tail before grinning, oh he had a plan. "Pardon his sudden interest." A bold lie was coming, if that crud-eating, sneering smile said anything about his intent...

p_1d20-2
(Charisma Check for the lie!)

Could he deny a father like this the true nature of the creature before him? "My son, daughter and I only buy from reputable sources. Or those who have ties to... specific families. I'm sure you understand." He crosses those arms and looks down his nose at the man. "That Pokemon Butcher was locked away a while ago, you know. Kossie, Lan, they're terribly picky. You'd think building your second child from magic from another world would make her closer to your design, but she's like her mother." A bit of small talk to close out, chuckling to treat this meeting as though Isonus was just another buyer.

1d20+5·1d20-2

[Maverick Hunter Zero]

"Acknowledged." KOS-MOS would say to Isonus, though her tone was more gentle when she said it, having changed her personality circuit to match that gentle personality.

At the same time, the auxiliary power supply toned down, meaning that she was calm, though she would remain close to Landon.

And when Isonus told the guy that 'Kosie' took after her mother, she looked up to the sky, her thoughts seemingly locked onto Shion Uzuki. There was no way Isonus would know about her, right?

"Shion... Where are you?" KOS-MOS mused, looking back down to the items after she finished her thoughts.

[Deleted]

Well, first of all, let's address Isonus's Wisdom roll on the meat in the baggie. I'm assuming you were trying to get a better Charisma roll when you made it. I'll allow it, but I'm watching you...

Info from Isonus's roll:

Cut Quality: Okay. Not very professional, but okay.

Dehydration Level: High. Looks like it could stay fresh for months.

Time of Death:  (Probably somewhere between a few days and a month, but who knows?)

Other findings: May not actually be Slowpoke Tail. It's hard to tell, but it seems like it's a distinct possibility.

    The man put the baggie away, a bit suspicious of Isonus's inquisitive gaze. Was he hiding something? Maybe. In any case, the man hardly seemed to care once Isonus's lie was unveiled. It was...an interesting lie, to be sure, but would the man believe it?

p8XqgsHgp_1d20+2(Wisdom roll to see through the lie: Hah! Sorry, Isonus, but it looks like this random street thug has seen right through you.)

    "Aren't you the guy that founded the Arcaneum?"

    ("Well, we're boned.")

    Landon couldn't help but agree with X on this one. While Isonus's lie was certainly...unique, it was well delivered. But it seemed like it would take more than a creative lie to cover up the fact that Isonus was, in fact, a literal (former) elder god. Word of someone like that tends to travel around quite a bit.

    "Yeah, you are. That hair, those eyes, that scar. It is you. What's someone like you buying back-alley mystery meat?"

    Landon was becoming visibly uncomfortable at this point. The man was clearly having none of it. He even unintentionally implied that his "authentic goods" weren't really authentic at all in his haste to deconstruct Isonus's lie.

    "And what do you mean that these are your kids? I'm not an expert in genetics, but that guy looks nothing like you. Also, I'm pretty sure that girl is a robot, and I don't know many magical robots myself."

    Wow. This guy was observant. 

    "I see what's going on here. You three are just trying to get information out of me! We'll I'm having none of that! I'll make sure you three regret ever stepping foot in the Black Market!"

    With that, the man reached into his jackets again, retrieving two Pokeballs. This guy seemed more and more like a Rocket Grunt with every passing second.

    The man was about to throw out the Pokeballs, but hesitated for a moment upon looking at the group. His facial expression made it seem like he had just realized that he had made a huge mistake. Considering that he was staring down a veteran Pokemon Trainer, a Combat Android, and a god, he probably had made a mistake. The man even let out a very quiet "Aw, crap," before throwing the Pokeballs onto the ground in front of him. 

    "Neo-Rocket Grunt" ? Wants to battle!

    Rattata
    
    40/40

    Hit Threshold: 13

    Sandshrew
    
    50/50

    Hit Threshold: 12


    A Rattata and a Sandshrew. Not the strongest Pokemon, that was for sure. Team Rocket always had a bizarre tendency to give its grunts weak, or simply mediocre, Pokemon. Landon was lucky he was able to walk away from it with a half-decent team. It was an unimpressive duo, but that wouldn't stop them from trying their best to annihilate the party!  

Yup. It's fighting time.

First off, Isonus, the Rattata will be targeting you first. Roll a 12 or higher in DEX or receive 13% damage from a Bite.

Second, everyone will have to roll a 13 or higher, or receive 8% damage from Sandshrew's Scratches.

Landon is activating his shield

45-10-8=27%

Landon wasn't looking forward to this part, but knew it had to be done. He quickly threw out a Pokemon of his own, this one being Kabutops.

Go, Kabutops!

p_1d20+2(Slash @ Rattata: Miss)

p_1d20+1(Ice Beam @ Rattata: Hit for 20%)

p_1d100(Does not freeze)

---

Rattata 
20/40

Sandshrew
50/50

---

Landon
140/140
27/45 Shield

Kabutops
160/160
Cooldowns:
Ice Beam: 21d20+2·1d20+2·1d20+1·1d100

[Deleted]

"Bollocks. You little..."

Isonus flourishes, throwing his arm out in a static display. Godly power surges through his veins, and suddenly, he's ready. A clenched fist, staring down the two beasts summoned from their balls. This only nets a haughty, disgusted laugh. Immediately, he shields the biting maneuver, grinning maliciously as he lowers that barrier from view only after the first. With a grand swing of his arm out, Isonus prepares himself to strike. Only to see the second one coming.

(Isonus shields the blows! -13% +-8% to shield.)

"This could have been easy, you know! This could have been simple. Believed in my lie, and we would have let you simply walk away from this. Of course, you knew too much. I'm sorry. Not to you, though, these poor creatures you insist fight in your stead."

Isonus draws his stance broad, and raises his right hand, the metal gauntlet crackling with raw, unbridled power. He swings his hand out, snapping three different bolts out in rapid succession! They were quick as could be! Each aimed at the adorable little top percentage rat.

JQhW8cmqp_1d20+6p_1d20+6p_1d20+6
(Crackling Snap at the Ratata! Each hit deals 5% damage.)

He draws his hand back, throwing out an actual blast of eldritch-lightning! The black-coated energy quickly surges towards the poor Rattata as well, targeting the creature to be struck down, as it were.

p_1d20+5
(Unyielding Bolt! The attack deals 18% on it, targeting the Rattata again.)

Afterwards, Isonus turns to focus briefly on the Sandshrew, he draws his hand forward, and then back. A slight tremor follows the a stone hand surging back to grab the Sandshrew! If it snagged the Sandshrew, that would likely overwhelm the poor creature..!

p_1d20+5
(Know Your Place! This attack deals 25% damage, and if it hits - the Sandshrew loses 1 action for the next turn.)

After this display of brief, albeit sudden strength, Isonus draws his hands back behind him, fists pressed against one another. He was contemplating, thinking over his next moves to make. Perhaps tapping into that sixth sense?

"Once we're done with your little entourage of likely kidnapped animals, you'd best pick a god and pray." His sneer grows. "...and it best had not be me."

The Grandmaster, Isonus:
HP: 130/130
Shield: 19/40
Status: Fine
Power: 1 (possible for up to +5)
Cooldowns: Know Your Place (0/1)

1d20+6·1d20+6·1d20+6·1d20+5·1d20+5