A trail of Breadcrumbs!? Find the Crusaders?!

[Sephalesh]

Asaru, the tiny abra had followed Rhyme far across more land than he had ever traveled before, but it was not enough. Asaru had to stop to sleep and had lost an entire day, 20 hours sleeping. The strange evolution of a vulpix was nowhere to be found, but Asaru felt that he was close.

He had passed through a valley following the rumors and now he was on a shallow stream, teleporting from rock to rock, always sitting, always on an upward slope. For all the rumors the Crusaders kept their hiding place a closed secret. Maybe it is impossible to find. Maybe I should turn back? A frightened part of Asaru thought. the abra continued on, though, he wasn't going to give up so easily.

[Ninetails93]

James too turned up soon after the abra. He panted for running so hard and far, trying to find Rhyme too. He then found Asaru, teleporting from rock to rock. "I...wish...I could...do that..."he said out of breath.

[Sephalesh]

Asaru saw the out of breath Vulpix. In a flash the little abra was sitting in the stream next to him. "You can do anything, if you try hard enough." Asaru said, calmly, trying to not be knocked over by the stream, which was really powerful for the weak little abra. Asaru didn't know what james was talking about really, but he knew that old saying by heart.



(Tell me if your not a vulpix. I have been wrong three times!)

[Ninetails93]

[no...im a vulpix...for now...lol]

"Yeah...but I can't perform Psychic type moves like you...so I cant teleport...however I can run fast!" he exclaimed as he ran in a circle. "I want to become a Ninetails so I can be both beautiful and powerful...like my mom and dad...although they are dead..." he said with a little saddness in his voice.

[Sephalesh]

Asaru nodded. "i remember you, the vulpix who was with rhyme. I thought you ran right after her. Are you looking for a fire stone?" Asaru asked calm as ever. The little abra's head was barely above the water level here.

[Ninetails93]

"Yeah...ever since a group of Dragonite's took out my family I've been wanting to evolve and get back at them...a Fire Stone is my only ticket to getting my dreams..." James replied as he sat down.

[Sephalesh]

Asaru nodded again. He looked up at the sky. "If you want to find any elemental stones, the caves around here are rumored to be filled with them, but I don't think you would find one right out of the blue." Asaru said. He never thought that the Crusaders might have been in the caves, but now it was just beginning to dawn on him. "That must be where they are." Asaru said mostly to himself.

[Ninetails93]

"What are you talking about?" James asked. He was referring mostly to the elemental stones but was also intrested in what else she was talking about.

[Sephalesh]

The abra continued his thought. "The Crusaders must be in the caves. Where else could something that big, still be a secret. Did you know that the caves in these mountains run through miles and miles of catacombs?" Asaru didn't know, exactly, but then he had heard somebody boasting about how big they were. It might have been exaggeration, or it could have been an understatement. Asaru didn't know. "it would be genius to hide in these caves. Nobody would be able to find you, unless you wanted to be found" the abra said all of this calmly. Inside he was bursting with exitement. He never let it show.

[Ninetails93]

"Oh...this is my first time hearing about these Crusaders...maybe one day I could join!!!" james exclaimed with happyness. He could probably do it if he was a Ninetails.

[Sephalesh]

Asaru blinked. Maybe one day? "You can join anytime you want, if you can find them. I have been searching for them ever since I lost track of that Muravix." ASaru told the vulpix. He hadn't had much luck searching, though. Not many pokemon respected the how much ground a single abra could cover in a few hours.

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

A purple and brown half-Pidgey half-Pidgeotto burst out of a tree, panting as she splattered aganst the ground. Shaken, but not harmed, she perked up, and called back into the trees, "They're this way!" By the time she had finished her sentence, she had fully evolved. "Oh! Oh! Don't run!" she told James and Asaru, She's coming!" Soon Rhyme had appeared from the trees, trotting after Lavender. "Lav! You gotta stop flying off like that!" she scolded. "Sorry, Captain..." Lavender replied. "Well, I've heard you two have decided to join us?"

[Ninetails93]

"Really...but I'm afraid that I am much too weak now...but soon I will be more powerful!" The excited vulpix exclaimed. "I want to be as powerful and beautiful as a Ninetails..."

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

"We're here to-" Lavender began before receiving a look from Rhyme, "Sorry, Captain." she repeated as Rhyme looked back to James. "Even if you can use just a Fire Stone, you need more training before you are to evolve." The Muravix said, with the Pidgeotto circling above to watch for the Horde or anyone approaching, "Luckily for the two of you, our attack is planned for..." her voice became hushed, "... the new moon, but we still have plenty of time before then. I will have no time to send word to our Commander of the beginning of your training unless I send Lavender immediately." At the mention of her name, Lavender soared closer before landing behind Rhyme, in full attention to her Captain, "So what do you say?"

[Sephalesh]

The abra blinked again. Join the Crusaders? He had never even thought of that. Did he want to join the Crusaders. Asaru looked up at the Muravix. "Good day, Rhyme." The abra said absently. "your friend looks exited about it." He glanced at the newly evolved pidgeotto. "I know you mean good, but any attack on the fortress is suicide, and even if your lucky, it will only work once." The abra said. Any large force aproaching the horde's lands would be detected immedietly, and even if you infiltrated the stronghold itself, the newly released prisoners would be in no condition to fight, and still more, the prisoner release would bring every horde Pokemon all around ruining any safe escape plan. Even if one managed to do all that, the Horde would be running flat on their heels to recapture their prisoners, ruining any atempt at hiding. The abra thought quickly. He did not want to be a part of that, certain doom.

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

"We know that, but any break in the Horde is a bigger freedom for the rest of Erymire!" Laveder chirped, watching for Rhyme's signal for her to stop, but it never came. "Captain? Captain Rhyme?" she asked, trying to gain the attention of her spaced-out higher up. "Let him think of it as he wishes." The Muravix sighed, still somewhat occupied with other thoughts, "But I didn't plan to stay here long. As a captain... I should not stay long....

[Ninetails93]

James was confused beyond confusion. "Ummm...I've never heard of this Horde group...so I might have to rethink this plan through some more..." James said now sort of scared.

[Sephalesh]

Asaru blinked again making his total blink count three times. He wasn't usually surprised this often. "You have never heard of the horde?" Abra asked. He was dumbfounded. How could anybody not have heard of the pokemon snatching horde. He knew because he could remember anything said around him. Photographic memory.

That set his other train of thought into high gear. "Rhyme? Your a captain? Then you must know how dangerous your plan is. Without some kind of huge diversion that makes the horde focus most of it's attention far away from the fortress, a smaller force could never make it in and out uncaptured." the abra said. He was now thinking of all the things they must have thought about in making their plan, at least what he thought they had thought about. His eyes unfocused and Asura fell asleep right there on the spot, intently thinking.

[Ninetails93]

"Well...what if they got a really big distraction!!!" James exclaimed. "What if they got like thousands of pokemon to make one huge diversion...you guys get a crack team of highly skilled operatives to dig their way in, while your army attacks the other side of the fortress...that way all there attention will be on the army and by the time the army takes out half the hordes army and you set off an alarm then there isn't as many pokemon after you..." James said breathless. He had never actually thought of a REAL plan...just a hypethetic plan.

[Sephalesh]

Asaru looked doubtful. "The hordes have thousands of pokemon, not the crusaders. That's the problem right there. They don't have enough pokemon to directly attack the Fortress. Almost all of them would have to go on the rescue mission. The fortress is surrounded by rock too. It's really hard to dig through rock if you think about it, only a Steelix could do something like that easily." Asaru said quickly. His mind was working at a hundred miles an hour at the moment. He was smart being an Abra, and smart for an Abra. "But. . ." Asaru said just figuring out a way around all of that. "If you could find a steelix, a tunnel would be possible. Nobody would ever see that coming. You don't really need a thousand pokemon either, just have to make it look like a thousand. If the pokemon were far enough away and used techniques like double team and substitute, a hundred pokemon could become an army of thousands, at least in appearence." Asaru finished. It seemed like a good plan to him.

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

"Go now." Rhyme said to Lavender as Asaru and James talked. The Pidgeotto nodded and flew away. "You have no say in our plan, only we captains have any say, but only our Commander has the final say. If you don't join me now for training, you may never find us again..."

[Ninetails93]

"I agree...we could also use Guerrilla warfare too...take some of there men out with some Spinarak and Ariadoes and spin them up in a web...that could take out maybe the main guards and then the rest would be like cake!" James said also thinking in overdrive.

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

Rhyme sighed as James kept talking. She was thinking of things more important than listening to James, especially their attack and the Mura pack's Moon Festival. She had yet to find any from her pack, so that was a slight afterthought to the Crusade.

[Ninetails93]

James then stopped talking. He could almost sense that something was on Rhyme's mind. He looked at her and cocked his head to one side and asked:" Whats up???"

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

"Nothing." Rhyme replied to James coolly, her mind sub-conciously stuck on the topic of the moon festival. "Really, are you two to join us? I assume the General expects me back soon..."

[Ninetails93]

James sat down and scratched his ear. "I really don't know to tell you the truth..." He was confused. He couldn't deside whether he wanted to join the group or not. 'I can become a hero and fight for good...or become a coward and not do anything...' he thought to himself

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

"Well... I could always bring you along for the training up to our rally before the attack. Even then you would not be required to fight, but could carry out yet still vital missions, such as berry collection for the battle and the like." Rhyme said, standing and stretching, "But be quick in your decision, even I must sharpen my skills before we move."

[Ninetails93]

"Ummm...I don't know...how do I get in contact with you when I deside?" James said in a hurry. He hated being under pressure.

[o~|*( |*/\/\*|~o]

Rhyme slightly laughed, "We are the Crusade! As far as most of Erymire knows... we are non-existant. You may never see us again, but if you decide... keep your eyes to the sky- you may never know when Lavender may be running missions, so watch for her." she watched the heavens for a moment, scanning for her assistant, "I may appear to you... but who knows?"

[Ninetails93]

"Oh...well I hope I do see you again..."James said with a smile.