[RAID] Stag Party

[Suudonym]

((This RP is only for Rocket characters who signed up to participate beforehand. It will be in a setup period until 4:30pm EST on June 12th. Until then, participation is recommended but not required. If you have a character on standby, you're welcome to play them in the setup period even if you're not sure you want to or will be able to play them in the raid proper.))

The small Rocket jet glided smoothly through the air on its course towards the Kalos region. Due to its compact size, the interior was a bit cramped for the Rockets coming along for the mission, but the aircraft's diminutive measurements would serve them well when it came to discreetly landing and storing it. Elite Agent Claire sat near the front of the passenger seating, and Elite Agent Rook took up a post in the cockpit area, a pair of headphones over her ears as she studied a section of the plane's dashboard. The Rockets had already been briefed before leaving the base: They were heading to Kalos in response to a claim by the Rockets stationed there that they had found Xerneas. Because the Kalos branch wasn't equipped to handle the job of capturing a legendary pokemon, they instead reached out to the Kodo headquarters, asking that the main branch organize a mission to the area.

As it stood, the elites expected that they would end up battling the fairy-type legendary. In hopes of preventing the confrontation, each member of the mission team had been given a Quick Ball to throw at the time of the encounter. A quick capture would prevent all kinds of injury if they could pull it off. For now, however, all they could do was mentally prepare and wait to arrive at their destination.  

[TawnyAngel]

KO was not a fan of flying, to say the least. Getting into a plane of a helicopter was hardly cause for panic but it put him on edge, and no knowing it was much safer than travelling in a car didn't make him feel even a little bit better.

"So did anyone see the semi-final of Kodo's got Talent last night?" he asked, seeking a distraction - any distraction - from thinking about how far above the ground they were.

He also wanted a distraction from thinking about the fact that they were going after a legendary pokemon. He didn't want to be here he really didn't, but he really didn't want to spend the rest of his life as a grunt even more. If you wanted to become an Agent you volunteered for missions, that was that and so here he was. So long as he was sensible and followed orders.... Well that didn't always help did it? He'd seen the immediate aftermath of the last mission, treated the unfortunate wounded as they bled in the snow. They hadn't been stupid - well most of them hadn't - but they'd still nearly been killed and several had been horribly maimed. There was never any guarantee you'd come out okay no matter how careful you were.  

[Gwennythe]

Clancy was... in an interesting mood.
He didn't truly understand exactly the thing they were going off to get... This Scornatus, or whatever the fancy, floofy, fairy deer was called, was a Legendary, just like Growlydance, but the representations of it were just so... fancy. He didn't particularly like that big red dinosaur bugger, but at least he could see the power in it. This thing looked like some little girl's toy or something. And it was a /fairy/ type...
Perhaps he should have learned from experience, after all, he used to think Icecreamcono was a whimp, but those birds certainly weren't... He just couldn't shake the 'fancy' and 'delicate' idea out of his head though. It looked, to him, like it was made of glass.

Still, he was off on a mission, as part of a team! That had to count towards promotion! He'd chosen to sit near KO out of familiarity (and because he remembered KO had a shark, and that was bloody cool).

He frowned and shook his head when the other redhead asked about 'Kodo's Got Talent' though.
"Y' watch that bloody rubbish? I ain't never seen the appeal. 'S a bunch a kids wailin' 'bout stuff and butcherin' songs..."  

[TawnyAngel]

"Exactly." KO grinned and made an airy gesture with one hand. "It's terrible and in the early rounds the judges are so wonderfully cruel to the people who're convinced they're going to be the next big thing on the contest scene when all they have is a Spoink that can more or less hop to a rhythm. It's nearly as good as The Apprentice, now that's entertainment. So much back-biting! Egos shattered! Beautiful."  

[Suudonym]

As they made their way towards their destination, the sound of Rook's voice would come from the cockpit, though her exact words, spoken into the radio, were drowned out by the engine noise. Those who looked to the small elite would find a frown on her face as she corresponded with whomever was on the radio's other end. Ultimately, she removed her headphones and approached the passenger area to wave Claire over. The two spoke in private for a short time, intentionally keeping their voices below a level that would be audible to others, and then visibly came to some sort of decision. Having settled whatever matter they were discussing, the smaller of the two elites turned to address the cabin's occupants.

"Change of plans," Rook announced. "We were just contacted by the Kalos team that's been tracking Xerneas. The situation has changed. Everyone listen up; turns out we've got a much different sort of mission on our hands than what we were expecting.

"So, the Kalos team decided they would head to the Reflection Cave to try to corral Xerneas inside and reduce its escape options. However, on their way there, they were spotted, and the region's League Champion, Diantha, has been tailing them ever since. According to intel, she's recently called for backup from the League and is planning to rendezvous with them just outside of the Geosenge-side entrance to the cave. We should assume that the League is sending people to the Shalour-side entrance as well to keep them from escaping.

"Here's what we're going to do: We're changing course for Route 10. Going off of what information we have from the Kalos team, at our current pace, we should be able to get there before the League's people pass through. Once we get there, we'll ambush the League party, steal their uniforms, and pose as them to rendezvous with Diantha. If we pretend to work together with her, it will allow us to avoid getting into a fight with the Champion and give us an easy excuse to get close to Xerneas.

"Our first priority now should be to get through our mission without blowing our cover. I don't know how many of you remember the battle against Lance years ago, but 'Champion' isn't just a shiny title; it's a mantle worn only by the strongest trainers in the world. It's extremely likely that some of us would end up badly hurt - or worse, arrested.

"So," the elite turned to a shoulder bag placed just inside the passenger area and produced a tablet, pulling up a map of Kalos Route 10 with a few swipes of her finger and holding it for the Rockets to gather around and refer to, "we've got an ambush to plan and only a couple of hours to do it. Keep in mind: We need these uniforms. If the ambush fails, that means we'll have to take them by force, and arriving at the rendezvous point covered in bumps and bruises isn't going to do much for our credibility."

She passed her tablet over to Claire and took a step towards the cockpit. "I need to keep an ear on the situation in case anything else comes up, so coming up with a plan, assigning positions, et cetera - that's up to you all. Remember: You don't have the luxury of pondering on this indefinitely until you come up with the perfect strategy. Once we arrive, it's action time, whether you're ready to go or not. Direct your questions to Claire if you have them, and get your thinking hats on."

With that, Rook returned to the cockpit and placed the headphones over her ears once more. Claire returned to her seat and set the tablet down in it, then clapped her hands to garner the attention of the assembled Rockets. "All right, you heard her - we've got a lot to plan and not much time to do it, so let's get right to it. I want to hear any suggestions you all might have for how to take out the League team as quickly and quietly as possible. If you have any pokemon that can easily incapacitate people, include those in your suggestions as well. If seeing a map of the area would help," the elite paused to pick up the tablet again and held it up for them to see, "then simply ask and you shall receive. All right -- suggestions. Who's first?" The elite's expectant gaze swept across the mission team, patiently awaiting responses.

((Map, for reference! Note that the surrounding area is more heavily forested than it appears on the in-game map.))  

[TawnyAngel]

"Sleep conditions seem like the most obvious solution," Frost began, frowning a little as he tried to get his mind around the extremely abrupt change in plans. He didn't like change. "I have a Spiritomb which can provide Hypnosis. It also knows Confuse Ray, which could be of use. Can we perhaps lure them into a trap? An enclosed area where we can hit them with a barrage of attacks which cause sleep. The trees will give us adequate cover, and one assumes that they will be moving down the path at speed without too much attention on their surroundings.... We will want to be sure that they do not contact anyone - especially the Champion - should we not immediately incapacitate them. Can we jam their communications?" It wasn't much of a plan but he hadn't exactly been given time to prepare, such was the nature of fieldwork however and there was no help for it.  

[Shawn Darrow]

Shadow yawned as he was woken by the announcement of Elite Agent Rook. As a grunt used to hallway patrol at night, sleep was normally what he devoted his time to during these hours of light. Sitting up, he listened as best he could while rubbing his eyes. His Jolteon, Lindsay, hopped up onto his lap and pressed her head against his chest until he pet her.

By the time Agent Frost spoke up, the teen was mostly alert and trying to consider options of his own to contribute. He certainly preferred simply putting the League members to sleep if possible, but he knew that could be chancy if Hypnosis didn't work. The pokemon had to make sure they had good eye-contact and that the target didn't get distracted during the process.

"Yeah, my ghosts know Hypnosis too. Lindsay can probably also paralyze people with her electric attacks and so can Haunter with Lick. Agent Frost's idea is good because if we miss anyone with Hypnosis initially, we can keep them from running off and getting help or alerting someone else. Maybe we can all hide in or behind the trees and choose targets ahead of time so we don't miss any one person?" He glanced to the others. "Electricity could probably jam their communications, too, if anyone has any other electric-types. Or even a Rotom."  

[Gwennythe]

"Well when you put it like that, the bloody thing almost sounds worth watchin'!" Clancy replied to KO, though he suspected he wouldn't even make an attempt. He just didn't see himself sitting through a 'singing' show. "Ooh! Th'Apprentice! That one's a'right! I kinda like that boss guy, y'know? Lord 'Oney or whatever 'is name is. Y' ever watched Dragonite's Den? I 'ad a few good ideas f'r inventions to sell to go on that show, y'know." Expansions on Clancy's ideas were, perhaps mercifully, cut off though.

He listened, and quickly gave up trying to remember any names he was given. Some lass was gonna cause trouble, so they 'ad to buddy up to 'er using some trounced up League uniform disguises they were gonna pilfer... That was what he understood.
That, and that they needed to figure out a way to incapacitate people to steal clothes.
"Wot if we can't get the uniforms to fit?" He worried out loud for a moment, and then decided it wasn't actually his problem to worry about that, maybe. People were talking about strategy and pokémon...
"I got a yella rat, but I don't think 'e knows any o' that bloody sleepy-stoppy voodoo..."

>---------------<

Tambrey was content to pay only minimal attention to the small talk, but looked up at the sound of Elite Rook's voice.
After being on several missions before, she'd come to appreciate just how important it was to listen to the people in charge, and how, even moreso, it was important to get as much information about a situation as possible prior to going in.
This short-notice change was a little troubling but she decided that, despite the risk from Diantha, it still sounded like a very doable mission compared to some previous missions (some of which they'd rather succeeded with anyway, if at cost).

"Oh, um, I would like a map please!" She piped up, raising her left hand slightly, when Claire told them to ask if they wanted one.
The scientist then took a few seconds to look at it when it arrived on her 'dex, while she listened to the others mention the pokémon they had, and give suggestions.
As Shadow mentioned Rotom, she winced a little bit, and muttered a quiet 'oops'.
"I, uh, left Gauntlet at base. He didn't seem like the most useful choice given the initial mission..." Tambrey mentioned apologetically; well, maybe someone else had brought one anyway. "I do have a Crobat with Confuse Ray and," She hesitated for a second before deciding that yes, Neph could probably behave for the situation "my Ariados has Spider Web... I don't think any of my others would be too useful against people though. I suppose Sand Attack might provide some aid, but I don't have anyone with me who can perform a Sleep-inducing attack... Sorry. Do we have any idea on numbers we can expect to face? Um, I mean, how big this League team might be?"  

[BlackFireKitsune]

"While I agree sleep-inducing moves are a good idea, the accuracy of Hypnosis leaves a lot to be desired," Claire said, a small, thoughtful frown on her face, "and it really can only affect a single target at a time. While Hypnosis will be useful to pick off individuals left standing, we probably don't want to rely on it too heavily as a first strike. And no," she said with a shake of her head to Frost, "we were prepared for a legendary acquisition mission, not a mission to infiltrate the League, so we didn't bring anything with which to shut down their communication. The Kalos base might have the ability to do that, but it's on the other side of the region and wouldn't be able to get here in time for it to be useful."

Tambrey's request for a map was met with a nod and a few taps of Claire's fingers across the tablet to remotely send a copy to the agent's rocketdex, though her question caused another frown to form on the elite's face. "As yet we're unaware of the exact number of people, unfortunately."  

[Shaddaling]

"That it does... Grimlock's luck with Hypnosis has been amazingly shitty." Lex replied as he joined the group, fingers tapping and looked at Tambrey. "My crobat know Confuse ray to. Did anyone else bring aerial pokemon? Because maybe we can do a coordinated aerial attack? Pick off trainers one by one? Depending if they split up. Confuse who we can and attempt to Hypnosis those that are still on their feet?"

"Actually, Can I see one of the maps? Perhaps there is something we can use to hide behind." He hummed slightly. "Grimlock also knows Psybeam but that moves chance of confusing a target is minimal."  

[Blood_Goddess]

One Grunt sitting among his team mates in the aircraft, while never really having the appearance of someone who was particularly pleased, looked a great deal less pleased the more he learned about the change of the mission.
Kyle leaned his head back, the cool leather of his head rest seeping through his hair, though doing little to distract him from his growing unease.

Great, first they were going up against the counter part to Yveltal, and while the Deer of life was known to be considerably more gentile then the death bird, that didn't mean it was any less powerful... especially when used. He knew that first hand.
And now, The Champion of his home down was onto their team, along with other League officials.
If something could go wrong, then you would bet that it will go wrong.

Absently listening to the ideas that the other Rockets were tossing around, Some of the Rockets he recognized, though in passing. Grunt KO, a man he felt no real animosity toward, they seemed to have made a good impression on one another, A few Agents, namely the chubby one that had pissed Kyle off once. And a gathering of grunts that Kyle suspected he would have little faith in until they proved they weren't just a bunch of slack jawed idiots.

"Does anyone else have any Zoroark?" He asked, lifting his head off of the head rest and glancing around the room. "Considering we don't know how many of the League we're going up against, I don't know how much of an aria Slender can illusion at once. But maybe we can at least get them into a position that would work more in our favor."  

[Blood_Goddess]

Strategy wasn't exactly Jerome's forte, At least not one that didn't involve just jumping out and swinging fists. The dark skinned man dressed in a white Agent uniform, decorated eccentrically with even darker tattoos sat leaned forward, with his elbows pressed on his spread knees, gloves fingers linked in front of him, listened with a calm air and long silence as the others spoke up with their own ideas.

He felt an extra chill in the room, letting him know of the presence hunkered down in his shadow, but couldn't think of a way to use said presence without and outright messy brawl, That's what Jerome was good at.
"Ain't no way a'findin' out how many we got goin' up against?" He asked to the Elites. "we ain't got no pokemon who can pop over faster er somethin'? S"that one bird. Th'big one, anyone got one a them? Or somethin' faster?"  

[TawnyAngel]

"Perhaps a fly over could work?" KO said, continuing from Lex's suggestion. "Hypnosis might have poor aim but a combination of confusion, paralysis, and something like smokescreen could stop them in their tracks for long enough for us go in and hit them over the heads with something heavy... or something with more finesse, perhaps. The help of a Zoroark would be ideal - so much as I understand how they work - does anyone other than Kyle have one?" The querying tone indicated well enough that he did not. "If we're going with an attack from the air I have a Golbat I can throw in, and a Raichu that can paralyse." Perhaps a little more versatility in his team's moves was called for? A bit late to realise that now but to be fair to himself - and he always was - this wasn't quite the mission they had expected anymore.  

[Shawn Darrow]

"Yellow rat?" Shadow repeated, raising a brow at a man he wasn't very familiar with. "Like a Pikachu...? If it's an Electric-type, it could probably be of some use."

As he was a grunt, and a young one at that, the tan-skinned teen knew better than to run his mouth trying to speak over his elders and superiors. He smiled at Tambrey when she mentioned her own Rotom and waved a casual hand at her statement. "Don't worry about it; I'm sure whatever pokemon you have to work with are fine since you're so resourceful. It was just a suggestion, anyway."

"Elite Agent Claire," he eventually said when the other began mentioning ambushing from the air, "I don't know much about incapacitating the League people - sounds like the others have better ideas for that - but what if those of us with Electric-type pokemon first focused on taking out their communication?" He looked over at the grunt who'd mentioned Zoroark. "If we can use Zoroark's illusion abilities to cloak those of us with Electric-types, we can make quick work of those radios and fry them before they know what hit them. Then they can't call for back-up or alert anyone else once we close in on them."

"We can use the trees to our advantage if the forest is thick enough and use it as cover to keep things quiet and hidden if we need to battle things out. Depending on how far apart they are and how spaced out, maybe we can pick them off one by one or herd them all together where we can put to sleep, paralyze, and knock out whoever else is left standing."  

[Gwennythe]

"Aye! That's the blighter! Pocketchoose!" Clancy nodded confirmation, pointing at Shadow when he mentioned the electric type. "He don't do any o' that fancy stuff, but yeah, I reckon 'e could give summat a bloody nasty shock if we're goin' f'r that! I do like the idea o' frying their comm's! Ain't go none of 'em Zorbyarts or any fast birdies, meself, but the yella rat could be useful for that..." He continued, frowning a little as he thought over his rather small team; he knew Clerval and Mircalla weren't the species they were talking about, and Ditty had never performed an 'illusion', as far as he knew, and she certainly wasn't a bird...
"'Ere! Hasn't she," Clancy had forgetting Elite Rook's name and resorted to pointing where she was "got some kinda fancy spyin' type Roffletron?"

~~~---~~~

Tambrey smiled her appreciation at Shadow, before studying the map once more while she listened. Her legs were crossed at the ankles, and her left foot tapped the toe of her boot against the floor in thought.
"I believe Pidgeot is known for speed... I have one, however I don't think she'd be capable of a scouting mission on her own, and trying to ride her from here is just not a good idea. We'd have to open the plane to let her out in the first place..." The scientist resisted the urge to kick her feet, given the cramped space of the aircraft, and settled her need for nervous habit by pushing her glasses up on her face; a pair of sports goggles would replace them when there was real action, tucked into a small bag over a shoulder, but for the journey, she found her glasses more comfortable.
"Without knowing the number we're facing, it's impossible to have a flawless plan... Hum. I do like some of the suggestions so far, though I hope your electric types, um, have good aim. Our radios tend to be in our dex... dexes... Pft. Plurals. Uh, anyway, what if they use a similar set up and it turns out there's a lot of them? Also, related, but on a different note, do we, as a team, um, this small team, I mean, have anyway to listen in to their radio chatter?" She suspected not- communications, and 'hacking' or 'cracking' or whatever it was called wasn't her kind of science- but she didn't feel like it was too stupid a question and suspected being able to listen in to whatever they could might be helpful.