The Creative Sketchy

It was the beginning of Summer, and some people at the port city of Ethovalon are either enjoying the heat, or go inside to cool off. Either way, it has been a year since the champion of Ashborough, Lydia the Charizard, has been subdued by many Bounty Hunter teams, after a strange incident that caused her to be controlled by a bizarre alien entity known as "the Parasite" and caused havoc while still having a Mega Stone. After said incident, some people are still wondering about her recovery, until now...

Aquila went to the job board to see what is going on around the other islands and what problems have appeared. The reason why she went alone was because her team, Judicial Instincts, is busy cleaning their whole base for the Summer season and she was tasked to check if there are new jobs around the board. As she was checking the board, she noticed something familiar... it was a post from an Audino talking about the champion of Ashborough! The Audino wrote that Lydia was still ill after the strange incident and they still couldn't recover her. They added that someone told them that there are some trailing plants with magenta flowers at the Sunny Slope that have helpful properties and wondered if someone else could assist them with searching them.

The Rufflet was glad that the Charizard was still alive, but worried that she was still not feeling well. Aquila wanted to tell the team about it, but she wasn't sure if her team was still busy. As she was an emergency for her, due to the whole "Parasite" thing being a job for the Bounty Hunters, she needs to find someone who is free and available for the job. She went at the beach, hoping to find a person to help her, until she saw someone that catches her eye, a Marill girl. That person seems like a perfect match for her to go on an adventure with her to collect the magenta flowers, because it's unknown if there will be any threats at such a peaceful looking dungeon with the name of "Sunny Slope".

Near a little hut at the edge of the beach, this little Marill is doing the thing she loves most.

"Hai!! Yah!!"

Martial arts! Her hakama flows as she swings her left leg straight up, arms spread. Swinging it down, she twirls into a sideways crane stance. She holds her balance, giggling a bit, then flows into smooth kicks and palms. Her movements are like water, her spirit the sea under the sun. A playful dance.

This is Alida, a Wayfayer with a child-like warrior's heart. Though she may look a little too jolly, her style makes her a pretty tough fighter for her age. She loves doing it too. The mouse girl plays like a kid in a island Kung Fu flick, without a care. Even now, her imagination's guiding her; she visualizing beating up a bunch of bad guys with those same moves.

"Sei!!" Landing from a flying kick, Alida snaps into a wide stance, palms open. Finally, she stands straight and relaxes, bubbly and giggling.

...Then her ears twitch. Her body gets tense. The moment she looks to her right and notices the Rufflet lady watching her, she panics!

"EEP!!"

Alida vanishes in a blue blur, hiding behind a boulder. A stranger saw her! They saw everything! She's trembling like crazy!

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to scare you!" Aquila flew slowly towards her, but not very close. "You seem very lively and ready for every adventure, right?". She then stopped flapping her wings, landing on sand, waiting for the Marill to get out from the boulder. "By the way, my name is Aquila, member of the Judicial Instincts! And I'm looking for someone who can accompany me for a job."

Desperately, Alida tries to calm herself. She slowly pokes her head out to meet the stranger's gaze. She seems nice but the Marill can't help but see any non-feral stranger as a threat. It didn't help that she was caught off guard, her soul on display. Still...she doesn't want to be afraid of people forever.

"A j-j-job?" she stutters. Alida stands up, nice and easy. She looks down, shyly. "Y-you mean a GCSF job? Y-you want...me?"

The Rufflet nodded her head. "You're right! A GCSF job! And by your training, it looks like you're ready for any challenges, right?". Aquila hands the job board paper, showing her about what job she was going for and explained the whole context of it.

"Judging from your young appearance, you seem very new here, right? Well, let me explain what's going on about this request. There was this Charizard lady named Lydia, who was known as the champion of Ashborough. However, a year ago, she started to act strange... destroying things and hurting people... and she also looked very strange... with pure white eyes and a paler color... During said incident, she also held a Mega Stone! Our job, as Bounty Hunters, was to subdue her, which was succesful... however, we didn't know what caused her strange behavior until we have learned that there was a strange alien entity known as "the Parasite", who controls people. Many strange things happen lately, because all of those aliens were looking after two visitors from the a different world than us, Orion and Cassiopeia, but not for a good thing... They want to harm them, that's why we want to protect them. Anyways, it has been a year since we didn't hear any news about Lydia until now, which an Audino was looking for someone to bring some trailing plants with magenta flowers that were located at Sunny Slope because the champion was still ill. These flowers might be the cure for her illness!"

Realizing that she has talked to much, the Rufflet began to clarify a bit. "I'm sorry to bring this whole thing, but, since you were new, I felt like I wanted to tell you what happened before you joined the GCSF, so, you can understand why Lydia was feeling ill and the whole subduing thing."

Her eyes and ears work as one, listening and reading the job posting. The Marill's expression shift a tad bit out of concern. She had no idea such a dangerous thing happened. Alida's new, yes, but she was also so roped up on her own explorations. She coexists with the guild's needs just enough to do her part. The girl's practically a hermit.

"No, it's okay..." Alida gently hands the paper back, still looking away. "...So the Audino wants us to look for medicine plants? I think I can help..."

Her nerves betray her for she's more capable then she's letting on. Alida's done retrival jobs like this before; she helped find a Ponyta's Fire Stone and a Klefki's lost keys. She's just acting reserved, protecting herself.

Aquila smiled, being happy that she found someone to aid her in her quest. "I'm so glad that you want to join! Also, don't worry, I don't want to cause any harm, even though I'm a Bounty Hunter, I am happy to have allies! And even if I look like a simple sophisticated lady from the outside, on the inside I'm actually pretty good at fighting! I know this is our first meeting, but I hope you'll get used to your GCSF teammates! Afterall, teamwork makes the dream work!"

Her ears twitch.

"Huh?" All of a sudden, those shiny turquoise eyes are looking right at Aquila. 'Good at fighting' seems to be the magic words here. Her heart's screaming 'no' but impulse takes over and she asks, "You...know martial arts too?"

"Unfortunately, I don't know martial arts... but I can still handle myself in certain situations!" responded the Rufflet.

"Oh... Okay."

Though she tries to hide it, she's disappointed. Of course a bounty hunter would have their own way of defending themselves. She got overexcited.

Alida turns around and walks towards her hut. "Just let me get my bag and sandals."

"Okay, and then, we'll head to the Sunny Slope!" said Aquila. "Maybe after this adventure, will you teach me some martial arts basics?"

Those ears twitch once more and Alida stops in her tracks. For a moment, she felt like she misheard. Alas, a small blush rests on her face as she turns back around.

"Um...I-I could try!" Alida answers, this time with a bashful smile.

Her energy picks up and she jogs over to gear up. Just like that, she's a little more motivated.

Aquila continued to smile, while also curious how good she will be while learning the martial art basics from Alida after the job. "Alright, let's go to Sunny Slope!" she said confidently. "But first we have to use the ship, because, according to the map, it is located in Sanlow, which is part of the Ash Islands. Come with me!"

As they both, got into the ship, they finally arrived to Sanlow, and deep there, there is an entrance to the dungeon. "Okay, get ready, because it's a very important job to do!". As they enter the dungeon, they turned into their feral forms. The Rufflet is checking her wings, making sure that they have entered the dungeon. "Okay, we're at the Sunny Slope! Now, we have to look for some trailing plants with magenta flowers..."

The dungeon looked very peaceful. It was always sunny, with many flowers, but sometimes there's some wind blowing around. Many Pokémon are seen hopping around, minding their own business. "I knew that Sunny Slope looked peaceful. I don't see any threats around!" said Aquila while looking around.

Alida's used to the feel of her feral form by now. She normally just swims to these islands, even as an Azurill. The full-blown Marill already feels more relaxed like this. Mystery Dungeons always felt like a break from the outside world, no people around to judge her. These places are like playgrounds to explore, thus Alida feels more at home, especially in such a bright and flowery place.

...Well, almost. This is the first time she's gone exploring with someone from the outside. She can't help but feel like she's being evaluated. At least, it brings more attention to the mission.

"Um... Do you know what they might smell like?" Alida took noticed of the wind. If it carries the scent of their flowers, they'll know where to look.

"Well, considering that this place has a lot of flowers, some smells might blend into eachother due to the winds, so, it might be difficult which ones are the magenta flowers..." responded Aquila. "Let's try to follow various smells and see which they bring us to!"

The Rufflet spread her wings and began to fly, following the scent from where the wind went. Although, from where she goes, she always finds different colored flowers. "This is more difficult than I imagined!". For Aquila, her statement was true, as she was raised in a snowy place, where flowers were nowehere to be seen, so, she made a good choice to bring someone with her on this job.

Alida is playing detective and looking for clues. Any sign of the wanted purple flowers. While she doesn't feel her partner's eyes on her though, her heart coaxes a smile. The mission is the catalyst but there's always one thing the mouse looks forward to in Mystery Dungeons.

Then, her ears twitch. Above her, a Razor Leaf flurry is flying straight at Aquila! Looks like not all the Pokemon are minding their business!

"Watch out!" Not on her watch! Her cheeks puff and she spits out a Bubble Beam! They slam into the leaves from the bottom and parry them away!

The Rufflet got startled by the Razor Leaf coming towards her, but thanks to Alida protecting her, she only did deep breaths of ease. "Oh my breeze! That caught me off-guard!" exclaimed the eagle Pokemon. She then turned at the blue mouse Pokemon. "Alida, thank you." She wanted to say more, but can't because the girls are in the middle of a battle with the one who tried to attack her.

Aquila then turned at the target. "Okay... So, you want to fight, huh? Well, you chose the wrong people! But first... what do you want?!?".

A wild Sunflora stands before them, smiling ferociously at the girls. It's looking vindictive as all hell. There's no reasoning with it. It just wants to fight! You'd think this would make a reclusive Marill nervous.

On the contrary, she's excited! No matter the mission, Alida loves battling wild Pokemon in dungeons! For the first time, Aquilla gets to see her looking fierce and eager.

"Hmph!! That wasn't nice, you big bully!" she growls eagerly. Without hesitation, the little warrior flips, rolls airborne, lands in a cute back stance. Left side forward, her weight on her back foot, leading palm up while the other is at her side. She already looks like she should be a Fighting-type! "Kiii-yah!!"

"Wow... I didn't expect her to be that energetic!" thought Aquila. She then began to cheer on. "You can do it Alida!".

However, little did she know that there is an another wild Pokemon that fights along with the sunflower Pokemon, because a Bayleef arrived into the scene and tackled the eagle Pokemon. Aquila got up, focusing on the leafy reptilian Pokemon. "Oh, so, you also want to fight, huh? Well... TAKE THIS!". The feathered Pokemon began to peck on the Bayleef, which was being very painful to the latter because of its weakness to Flying-type moves.

Meanwhile, after a fiery standoff, Alida and Sunflora are having what's akin to a Kung Fu showdown!

Alida runs through the next Razor Leaf without fear; hopping, slidding, and even bowling past the leaves with Rollout. Sunflora puts its arms up to guard, barely tanking a spherical ram.

"Ki-yah!!" Alida bounces off and uncurls with a spinning tail strike.

Sunflora gets smacked in the face! While it's staggering, Alida flows with her spin and plunges a side kick into its torso, pushing her foe back. Sunflora growls and Tackles the Marill, coaxing her to cartwheel out of the way. Sunflora then swings Pound attacks with its glowing arms. Alida ducks one, parries another upwards while spins under Sunflora's arm. Another cute shout and Alida chops Sunflora's back, twirls the other way and backfists its side, kicks the back of its leg, then flips up high. Before Sunflora knows it, Alida grabs its head and the momentum fuels a big Slam attack! She throws Sunflora into a tree!

Alida's mixing raw martial arts skill with her moves to create combos that are akin to a dance. Her strikes mesh seamlessly like water, pummeling her foe senseless.

As she was pecking the Bayleef, Aquila got amazed by Alida's skills. For a newbie, the eagle Pokemon wasn't expecting her to defeat that Sunflora that quick with that style of fighting. Meanwhile, the leafy reptilian Pokemon started to protect itself by creating a shield around them, blocking the feathered Pokemon's pecking attacks, and then performing some Razor Leaf on her. Aquila dodged the leaves by flying up high, and then returned with a powerful hit. Surprisingly, the Bayleef is still standing, preparing for its next attack. It then began to perform Seed Bomb by spitting lots of seeds at Aquila, but she caught some of the seeds and threw them at her opponent, with the seeds exploding at the enemy. The eagle Pokemon then began to leer at the reptillian Pokemon, dropping its guard, and then began to peck it again. If she had learned a fourth move, the fight wouldn't have taken that long.

Alida finished up quicker than she'd like, actually. Her spirit is still craving that rush. Amped and with some free time, she was able to witness Aquila's battle. Her eyes locked on how she moves, the few attacks she has... The Seed Bomb counter definitely gets her attention. Gears are turning within her.

Then, she jogs up to her. "Are you okay?"

"I-I'm trying to defeat that Bayleef!" responded the eagle Pokemon while still pecking said foe. The leafy reptillian Pokemon attempted to perform Mud-Slap to blind her, but the attack was unsuccesful because it missed. "You tried to blind me by attacking me with mud? You forgot I'm a Flying-type, right?" said the feathered Pokemon to the Bayleef.

The Bayleef attempted to throw Seed Bombs again, but Aquila flew up high whole catching the two seeds with her talons. She then charges at the reptillian Pokemon, while throwing the bombs, while the seeds explode, it was the perfect moment for her, dealing a much stronger strike than before due to catching the foe off-guard. The Bayleef fell to the ground, fainted.

"And... done!" said the eagle Pokemon, while proud of herself. "So, should we continue our magenta flower hunt?"

Alida couldn't help but giggle. Though, she looks past the Rufflet, noticing something in the aftermath.

"Oh?" Running past, she looks down at Bayleef. "...Speaking of flowers, look!"

There are magenta flowers on the back of the Bayleef's leaf collar. After that beating, they were fairly loose, one even falling off. Alida picks it up and gives it a good sniff.

"Hmm... It smells like lavender."

She paces away, holding the flower like a magnifying glass. Her nose twitches. Her steps cutely plop past the defeated Sunflora...and she picks up the scent again. Straight north, her body sharply turns. Southbound winds brush against her face...and her eyes light up.

"Ah! I can smell more of it this way!" the mousey detective chimes. "These Pokemon came from this direction, right? Maybe there's more flowers that way. And with it..."

"...We will get closer to the goal!" added Aquila. "It seems that most of these Pokemon also want those magenta flowers, so, we need to hurry before it's too late!"

The eagle Pokemon began to follow the blue mouse Pokemon, hoping that they will arrive at the destination before it gets too late.

Thus, with this new lead, Alida keeps the flower as 'evidence' and takes point. She leads her new friend down a narrow path lined with bushes a few more trees. There's more confidence in her step.

Compared to their first meeting, it's a bit strange. Alida was cautious and nervous before but after getting to let her warrior side loose, she's more relaxed. Less insecure. For that brief moment, the Marill was in her comfort zone, getting a chance to fight like she always loved. That smile on her face lingers, for she's still daydreaming. Daydreaming about extensions to that battle with Sunflora, how it could've looked if they were out of their feral forms. The extra kicks and flips she could've tried.

The Marill's tail wags with glee.

"I like how you started to get more lively! Looks like you really love fighting" said Aquila while smiling. "Now, tell me, how you managed to do those really cool moves? Those are impressive!"

While they're going after the magenta flowers, she wouldn't mind if she wants to have a conversation with Alida. Afterall, she was totally impressed by how she has defeated that Sunflora with that powerful blow.

"And with those martial arts! You are a QUEEN at this! Please, tell me some basics!" continued the eagle Pokemon. She may have some moves, but she's very curious on how she can improve them.

Alida's daydream pops and she's left bashfully blushing... Though, she could've gotten worse feedback.

"You...really liked that?" she sheepishly asks. That alone makes her feel a bit better. She pauses, takes a deep breath... "Well... It's called Flow. It's all about getting so in the moment, fighting feels like a fun, effortless dance. I'm not just fighting. I'm painting with my spirit. Hehe!"

She pauses, already catching her passionate tone leaking. Instinctive response. She remembers she's not in danger and mellows out again, looking right at her partner.

"You can do it too! It can help you battle in a fun way, even when you don't have many moves to use!"

The eagle Pokemon stopped and laid down, sitting on the grass."So, what are you going to say is that I have to feel the rhythm in order to fight?" wondered Aquila. She then began to move her feathers in a slowly fighting manner, from side-to-side. "Like this?"

From the moment, she slowly started to feel the flow of her moves, even though she's still learning. "Wow... I feel... more at ease! Now I understand how it feels!".

Alida stops, giggling at what she saw. "Well, that's one way to do it."

At that moment, her ears twitch and she looks away. Their path seems to be near the opening of another clearing. She can't see much from here...but something's giving her an off feeling of danger. That serious gaze doesn't last long for now she smirks a bit. Jogging back to Aquila, she gently grabs her wings to coax her up.

"Actually, why don't I show you a kata or two, right now?"

The eagle Pokemon's eyes widened in curiosity. "Ooh! Show me!". It was finally her time to learn from the blue mouse Pokemon, excited of what she will teach her. Although, unlike Alida, she didn't notice the path's clearing, focusing more on her moves.

As Alida moves to stand beside her partner, she stops to take a deep breath. She always has fun with martial arts but this is the first time actually teaching someone. Letting someone in her world like this. Nerves won't help her though... She lets herself relax, her arms lowered in front.

"Flow is also about self-expression. You paint with ever fight. We take what we learn and find our own Flow," she says, smiling at her. "I saw you fight. I wanna show you movements I thought of from watching you. Maybe it'll give you a good base to work from!"

With that, Alida breaths...then lets herself daydream. What she knows of Aquila... How she thinks of Rufflet... It makes her think of something graceful. Something high up, one with the wind, yet with surprising bursts of storm. Her imagination creates a mental image she wishes she could share: a vast cliff over the clouds, tree canopy poking out then and there. Heck, she imagines herself as a Rufflet herself. With that canvas, she paints for her friend.

"Follow my lead."

The Marill moves her arms like wings, raising them. She lifts her left foot, smiling through the best crane stance her round body can perform. Alida steps forward with that foot, her arms swinging like a downdraft. Weight on her back foot, her palms remain forward.

"Ha! Windy Eagle style," she giggles, looking to see if Aquila could follow.

As the eagle Pokemon was watching the blue mouse, she followed her lead. Raising her wings while lifting her left foot, performing a crane stance. She then stepped forward with her left foot, swinging her arms. "Am I doing it correctly?" she asked, while finishing the stance by putting weight on her back foot.

Soon, she started to get the point. She began to jump, twirling majectically, spead her wings, and dashes through the air. She then ends her performance with a kick to the tree, and then landing gracefully. She then realized that what she performed wasn't part of the lesson and apologized bashfully. "I... just wanted to improvise. I hope you were okay with that! Hehe...".

Oh contrare! Alida's eyes gleam, already imaging such a beautiful kick smashing through a cloud. ...Or someone's face. She applauds with a huge smile!

"No, no!! That was great!! That's part of what creating your own Flow is about!" She cheers, then jogs up to her again. "Let's play with that and try a few more. This time, let's try a kata that puts several strikes together. If you have a follow-up like before, I wanna see it!"

Standing beside her friend, she snaps back into their shared stance again, 'wings' forward!

"Ready?" Alida asks with a firm, peppy tone.

The eagle Pokemon blushed a bit. "Oh, that means I understood. Thank you!". She was really proud that she has learned that fast, feeling the flow and taking freedom with her moves.

Now, she has to do the challenge, although, she was too eager to follow Alida's tutorial and began to freestyle instead. She moves her wings down slowly, standing on one foot, she then jumps while twirling, hitting a tree with her talons while spinning, she then wall jumped to another tree, dealing a strike, and then jumped again while spinning vertically, striking the ground. She then got up, with some dirt dust surrounding her. "Now, cough, what do you think?"

Alida's is caught off guard this time. She's developing her Flow faster than expected! Though as she shifts out of her stance, she can't help but watch on. She pays close attention to how Aquila moves in her hype. Lots of aerial spins and kicks. Though this isn't quite what she had in mind, this gives her a fun idea!

As soon as Aquilla lands, Alida hops past her. "Great! My turn now!"

Alida plays along with her student's Flow now, picking up where the Rufflet left off! Visualization: they switched out, Alida is the Rufflet in Aquila's steed, and the next foe is coming. Alida flips to a crouch, 'wings' spread.

"The opponent attacks... Deflect, deflect!"

She demonstrates a follow-up combo! Alida swings a horizontal right palm across then a downwards left-hand chop. Strikes that double as parries, smacking away imaginary attacks. The chop guides her to wide stance and she flashes a fierce stare.

"Leer!" she narrates. A visual reference, showing how Aquila can mix in actual Moves. "Aaand...Peck!"

Alida doesn't have a beak...so she just lunges forward, headfirst. She keeps the flow going, spinning airborne with two rising chops.

"Pinwheel chop, and kick! Hi-yah!!" she playfully kiais and ends her spin with an aerial front kick. Then, she gracefully lands.

Aquila was left amazed. All the basic Pokemon moves mixed with martial attacks made her speechless, especially how it's continued as a form of teamwork. The eagle Pokemon clapped with her wings in awe. "I love your performance! Using my moves as a visual representation really helped me learn!"

However, she just realized something. Weren't they on a job before? They still have to collect those magenta flowers for the ill Charizard and wondered if they're almost there. "Hey, uhh... I think our break time is over... We have something important to do, and that is to find those plants!". She began to fly, waiting for Alida to respond. "So, what are you waiting for? Let's complete our job before those magenta flowers are no more!"

Alida blushes. "Oh, right!"

She got so into their training, she almost forgot about the mission. However, now she remembers why they had that lesson in the first place. Alida steps in front of Aquila.

"Speaking of which," Staring ahead, the Marill's eyes narrow. "I think both of us will get a chance to practice."

She leads ahead, very carefully...

"You're right!" said Aquila. "In fact, I think the ones who want to attack us will make a perfect moment for us to practice our moves, but also gives us a challenge since it's the real deal. Does that sound fair?"

The eagle Pokemon slowly follows her, hoping that there is no trap nearby.

Alida doesn't answer. She just has that peppy smirk on her face as they finally enter the next room. Another patch of sunny grass with a more trees around than normal. The wind pushes past them for a moment, it's direction pointing to a tree in front of them.

"...Oh! Look!"

Load and behold, that tree has way more magenta flowers around it, bound by vines. The plants there were looking for! ...Yet, Alida only takes a few calculated steps before stopping. She spreads her arms, gesture Aquila to stay back. Her ears twitch. Her eyes scan the room.

The odd, tense feeling in the air. Bigger than normal space. The fact there's quite a few berries and Poke laid about. Their objective literally right in front of them.

Alida's stance shifts. "...We're not alone."

The eagle Pokemon stayed still, while still looking at the big space with the flowers, berries and Poke. However, she was a little bit confused at what the blue mouse Pokemon has said. "We're not alone? What do you mean? It looks like a peaceful place that nobody has ever touched!"

However, she realized that the place looks way too peaceful to have Pokemon wandering around... It could be a trap...

Right after she said that... WHOOSH!! A whole army of Pokemon jump out of the bushes and trees! They're surrounded!

IT'S A MONSTER HOUSE!!

More Sunflora, Fletchling, Skiddo, Whimsicott! They've walled their objective AND any means of escape! Strangely enough, Alida doesn't panic. In fact...

"Haha, I knew it!" she's stoked as hell! Her fists clench excitedly, body just screaming to jump in. Alida glances over at her partner. "There's only one way we're walking out with those plants. The real test starts now! Ready, friend?"

Aquila was surprised seeing such an ambush, as she has never exprienced fighting a Monster House before. Although, that doesn't stop her, as she was ready to take down everyone! With a determined expression, she looked at the blue mouse Pokemon. "Ready as ever, dear friend!"

"Remember... Don't think."

Alida gives in to the urge and rushes in.

"Just flow!"

With a quick hop, Alida tucks into a Rollout against a Skiddo's Take Down. The clash makes sparks fly! Though, she then lets herself roll on top of Skiddo, uncurling, and grabbing its horns into a Slam attack! The goat bangs off the ground, airborne for Alida to spin two kicks into its belly! It goes flying!

Not missing a beat, her tail smacks a Fletchling's Peck away. She rushes in with a pair of jabs and kicks up its chin. Another Sunflora Pounds at her but she dodges, grabs its arm, and backflips into a big dropkick to its head! As the Sunflora soars, Alida washes it down with a Bubblebeam, pelting it against a tree trunk!

A Whimsicott's Gust blows her back, making her tumble. Though, she lets it inspire her, pushing up and bouncing into handsprings. The moment her feet land for the second time, Aqua Jet takes off. Her arms even push off an incoming Energy Ball, deflecting herself away from it, flying in an arc, and slamming Whimsicott's back with a watery side kick!

"Ai-YAH!!"

BAM!! Whimsicott crash lands! Even if not perfect, Alida's Flow makes fighting her share of the enemies insanely fun. She's laughing and letting out kiais without a care!

"My turn now!" yelled Aquila as she flew from the blue mouse Pokemon's behind. As more Pokemon are heading towards the girls, the Eagle Pokemon targeted at the Fletchling, clashing into eachother multiple times. As they are fighting, an another Skiddo breaks the party while tackling at Aquila, however, she dodged, hitting the Fletchling instead. The red bird Pokemon got really mad that it begins to fire the move Ember at the Eagle Pokemon. The latter dodged many times, but also chose smartly, because some of the spots the Fletchling fires are the wild Pokemon themselves, especially the Skiddo, with them getting hurt, while some even got inflicted by burn. The Skiddo, while on fire, ran away, giving up on the fight.

The Fletchling surrounds itself on fire, performing itself a Flame Charge. Aquila flies around, making the red bird Pokemon follow up. They flew a lot and a lot until they're both heading towards a tree. As Aquila got close to the tree, she flew up quickly, tricking the Fletchling to crash into the tree, making it faint.

The eagle Pokemon saw a Sunflora and a Whimsicott, with the latter giving a Helping Hand to the former, making it stronger. With the boost, it performs Petal Dance, with a lot of petals surrounding it and charge towards the target. Aquila attempted to dodge every attack, flew high and then giving a Leer to the two foes, dropping their guard. Then, she dashed towards the Whimsicott to peck it. The Sunflora's Petal Dance charged again at the eagle Pokemon, but she dodged, which made the petals attack the Whimsicott instead, throwing it away.

The sunflower Pokemon performed the last Petal Dance, leading to it becoming confused. As the petals are charging towards the eagle Pokemon, she kicked some of them to redirect to the foe instead, hitting it. She then flew high, focusing on the target, and then charged at it, giving the final blow. The Sunflora was seen flying by the powerful hit, it then landed on the ground and fainted.

Aquila slowly lands to the ground, taking small breaths. "Are we done? Or there are more?"

Before she can even finish that sentence, Alida is blown back by a Razor Leaf! "Ahh!!"

A dangerous hit, the Marill rumbles into some bushes with scratches on her body. A Sunflora sadistically stomps forward with a big smirk. Green vines leave its body like lasers, aiming a Mega Drain to zap her. Alida pushes herself up. Even in the face of another big attack, she fearlessly grins.

"I'm not done yet!! HYAH!!"

With an Aqua Jet, she blasts forward and right past the Mega Drain before it can connect. She slides into the ground, scooping the Sunflora into a comedic air roll. Using Slam, she backflips her glowing tail into her foe, hard. With one prolonged kiai, she twirls into a flying side kick, her foot plunging into the gut! Massive payback!

Sunflora crashes into a trunk so hard, it's wedged there with swirly eyes. A Skiddo tries to Tackle her, but she twirls along its body for a punch and elbow to its side. A Fletchling's Flame Charge gets deflected with a rising tail strike, flowing into a double spin kick to launch it. When multiple Whimsicott try to Energy Ball her, Alida jumps over them as high as she can. Then she has another idea.

"Hehe!! Iiiiiit's...BATHTIIIIME!!" She spins upside-down, aiming Bubblebeam into the ground!

Bubbles spread all over the place, swamping all over the Whimsicotts' feet. They try to float away but they all slip and their cotton manes get soaked with suds, all slowed down! Still in the sky, Alida combines Rollout and Aqua Jet together, swamping herself in a water spin ball that soon rockets down in a blur! It hits the ground and slides across the bubbles, slamming into her Whimsicott foes like a frantic pinball! It's so wild, a few more Sunflora, eyes widened, slowly back away and leave.

As cotton Pokemon go flying, Alida slams one more into a tree. She bounces off and time seems to go slow-mo as she uncurls and spins into one last Slam with her tail. "Aiiiii-YAH!!"

SMASH!! It plunges into the Whimsicott's cheek, sending it spinning into a bubbly mess. Just like that, the Whimsicott are wiped out and Alida lands into a tough Kung Fu pose! She LOVED that!

"We did a great job!" cheered Aquila, as she saw Alida taking down all of the foes. "So, that means the place is cleared now?"

Yet, the eagle Pokemon was wrong again, as suddenly, some Fairy Wind blew on her by surprise, but she was still controlling her flight. "Why does everytime I ask that it's over only to be interrupted by an another fight?!?" she cried. The Monster House fight wasn't over, as a Cherrim entered the fight along with a Skiploom and a Jumpluff. The cherry blossom Pokemon started to create a harsh sunlight, which helps itself to bloom, and then it creates a Flower Shield to protect its allies. The Skiploom and the Jumpluff fire Bullet Seeds at the girls while the Cherrim makes a Petal Blizzard to throw them away. Aquila is struggling to dodge all of the attacks, she also parried some of the seeds with her talons, but because of the Flower Shield, the parried seeds didn't deal much damage to the foes.

As she was still dodging and parying attacks, Aquila got an idea. "Alida! We should combine our moves. I will perform my Fly move, mixed a bit with my Peck move, while you do your Aqua Jet, launching me like a rocket! With that, we will create a powerful blow! Will that work?"

The Marill makes a big leap into a backwards handspring to evade the Petal Blizzard. For a playful touch, she maneuvers into a Rollout, the seeds hitting the ground in her wake before she bowls over the cotton Pokemon to disorient them. She uncurls right behind Aquila.

She cheerfully nods, "Okay! Let's do it!"

With that, the Marill jogs over and grips the Rufflet's back. She couldn't help but notice how soft her feathers are.

With that, Aquila flew up high, with no hazards targeting both girls. She then began to leer at the three wild Pokemon, making them drop their guard. After that, she charges towards the group, preparing her beak to give a big powerful peck. She then looked at the blue mouse Pokemon. "Okay, Alida, now use your Aqua Jet!"

Water gushes, swamps, and erupts around the both of them. Alida her hands hold onto the bird like she's part of a watery Sky Attack! An aquatic beach bomb that they're going to drop on all of these Grass-types!

"Here we go!!" With a big push, Alida sends both of them flying in a blue streak! "CANONBAALLL!!"

As so, a huge explosion of water has burst through the whole surface, clearing the whole area from that Monster House. The Grass-Type group, along with the remaining fainted bodies of the other Pokemon are pushed upwards by the water, leaving nothing but the flowers and other things such as Poke and berries.

"WOHOHOAH! Did you see that?! We made a huge explosion of water!" said Aquila while ecstatic. She then flew around while cheering due to how wild their fighting was.

A geyser-esque explosion worthy of a beach-loving warrior like herself! Alida is jumping up and down like a kid in an ice-cream store!

"I know! I know!! That was so much fun!!" With all of that, the Marill almost forgot about their objective. Almost. She jogs over to the northmost tree, "and look! Plants and vines marked by magenta flowers! Just like we were looking for!"

"That's great! Let's gather some of those flowers, so we can save Lydia!" said Aquila as she attempts to get some by using her talons. "Looks like our job is finally done, isn't it?"

For the eagle Pokemon, she lived a great adventure. All those battles and all the lessons she has learned from Alida just for some flowers were sure worth it.

Alida snags the flowers Aquilla points to, carefully picking some and stashing it in her bag. Though, as she does, her mind can't help but wander on this whole mission.

Here she is, a lone warrior who closed their heart out of fear. Now, she's gone on a whole adventure with someone who never know about martial arts beforehand. Despite that, she was kind and even took the time to learn her way of fighting. They didn't just train together, they fought together like sisters. Aquila treated Alida like her style, her very life is actually worth something. Her gaze gets warm...

Suddenly, she snags the bird in a big hug, giving in to the urge to nuzzle her feathers. "You're so nice... Thank you."

The eagle Pokemon got surprised by the hug. "Oh! You're welcome!". She then hugged her back, knowing how thankful the blue mouse Pokemon is feeling right now. "And you gave me great lessons! Maybe one day you will get your own recruit so you can teach them the art of Flow!". The then let the hug go to continue flying to the exit. "Trust me, you will be a great leader!"

Teaching... Leading... As they both left, enjoying the view on Aquila's back, that tidbit gave the little warrior something to think about. She's a one-'mon team now...but maybe, just maybe...

She's opened up to let that change.

And so, the quest for gathering magenta flowers has come to an end! With Audino receiving the flowers, they hope these will make Lydia feel better, as long as more news will come... for the better!

POV: You are admiring the good boy! 💖

The Pokémon fanchise became 30 years old today, and on today's Presents stream, the tenth generation has been finally revealed, along with the new starters! So, I decided to draw the new fire starter, Pombon, because it's so fluffy! 💖

Besides this, it is also the first dog starter Pokémon, being a pomeranian! (Even though Fennekin is the first canine starter Pokémon, it is a fox and not a dog, so...)

Also, this is my first time trying to draw something from a different angle, in that case, from the top angle shot. It doesn't look bad from the first attempt, is it?