Dreamland Express [Black]

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

Anville Town. Sunset. The flute-playing regular wraps up her song to rest for the day, and in her stead were the somber tones of Ulysses's violin. His music hovers over the small gathering of trainers on the bridge overlooking the turntable. TM's and occasional sleep-inducing Pokemon changed hands, for the residents of this small town were experiencing fitful nights for a week now, and they wanted any kind of reprieve they could get. Compared to the goods being traded, music was priceless, and the trainers who weren't trading were basking in the sound of strings. Some of them even managed to sleep, but upon waking, they knew they wouldn't be able to rest once they got home. The trainers from elsewhere, fortunately, haven't been as unfortunate. They knew what was in demand. Some trainers, the ones who've been plagued, grew weary in more ways than one.

No one suspected Ulysses. Like the others, he too had "trouble sleeping". He looked like any other trainer. He wasn't donned in his scientific garb to suggest that he's been researching, even if he's been doing just that. For now though, he was playing the violin. Doing so cleared his mind, which he so needed while devising his next scheme.

((OOC: Sorry it took a while to set up! ; BLACK ))

[BLACK]

Black leaned against a railing on the bridge and rolled Musha's Pokéball around in his hand. The last of the hexagons were fading from his vision as the music of the flute died and the violin took over. Earlier in the night, he'd blanked his mind, then went from house to house and offered to help people sleep. If they accepted, Black gave them his number and left. So now he waited and worried that he'd forget when the dreams came again. He could already feel them. They were different from before, though. Now, he dreamed of being the hero and stopping the Knights. They even pushed out the dreams of being a Pokémon master. Times were serious if that was happening. He breathed heavily through his nose and looked at the violin player.

A man with long brown hair and glasses stood playing the violin. Black studied the man. He looked like a regular trainer. Black had no reason to be suspicious, but he couldn't shake a feeling about the violinist. It wasn't like it mattered. He'd forget about the feeling soon enough. The dreams were still creeping into his mind. The trainer took out a piece of scrap paper, wrote down a reminder for himself that people might call about help with sleeping, and tucked it into his pocket.

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

Ulysses had to admit that his stay in Unova has been inspirational. Sure there were trains in Kalos, but they didn't have anything like the Battle Subway. There had to be something that could be done with the train cars, he thought to himself as he played. But something caught his eye... Or someone. Ulysses felt himself being studied. He looked up to meet Black's gaze. Of all the people listening and watching him play, why did this trainer prickle his skin? There was something about him. Something... Interesting.

Black's phone would ring. Should he answer the call, on the other end would be a distressed father of a family asking for his assistance in dealing with a room occupied by two restless Chandelures. He'd go on.

[MAN]: "They just came out of nowhere after you left! They're Ghost Types, so maybe they're why we haven't been sleeping!"

[BLACK]

Black flinched slightly when Ulysses looked at him. He had one of those gazes. Cold, calculating, and a sort of malicious glee that a madman only had. He didn't like it. The man made him feel uncomfortable and on edge. Black held Musha's ball tighter and stopped rolling it around in his hand. His thumb rested over the release switch. Black didn't move for a few moments and held Ulysses's stare. He fought back the instinct to release Musha and make a preemptive strike against the man. It was almost a miracle that his X-Transceiver buzzed on his wrist. He looked down and saw a man he saw not more than ten minutes ago begging for him to come back and deal with some Chandelures. 

"On my way," Black said with a nod. He ended the call and pushed himself off of the railing. He put Musha's ball away and withdrew Costa's. His mind was still relatively clear and he knew he'd have to draw the Chandelures out of the house so he wouldn't destroy it completely. As he walked away, though, Black could still feel the violinists eyes boring into the back of his head. He hoped the man wouldn't follow him. It might get ugly.

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

Ulysses kept staring, and staring, and staring as Black sized him up. This wasn't the look of a casual audience member. This was a look of intent, and he could feel it in his bones that Black somehow, someway, sensed what Ulysses hid beneath his outward appearance as a humble performer. Perhaps through experience? Or an innate sense of perception? Who was this person? Whatever the case, Ulysses was being challenged, informing them both that they weren't as they appeared. He let slip a small smile as a corner of his mouth turned upward, when suddenly, Black checked the device on his wrist, and was off. His grin was gone, and his eyes narrowed, unsure what was going on to make the... Interesting trainer suddenly leave. Though Ulysses didn't follow, much to Black's relief, his eyes indeed did. He kept playing his violin, not missing a beat. Surely Black wasn't investigating the insomnia in this town... Was he?

At the man's home, the aforementioned caller and his family were outside.

[MAN]: "Thank you so much! They were just--Hovering everywhere in the room you were in--!"

"Were" being an operative word, as the front door got busted down by one of the Chandelures's Shadow Ball, as the other floated ahead of it. The one that threw the Shadow Ball floats behind the one in front, eyeing Black... The two hover closer and closer...

[BLACK]

Black looked back over his shoulder at Ulysses. He'd not left his spot and the trainer breathed a sigh of relief. Good, he wouldn't have to deal with whatever that man brought with him. Black pressed the release switch on Costa's Pokéball and the Carracosta appeared in a flash of white. The Pokémon shook it's head and looked at Black.

"We've got a few Fire-types to deal with, Costa," the trainer explained. He pointed towards the house they were headed to.

"Carra," Costa said with a nod. The two continued their brisk walk until they reached the house. Black listened to what the man had to say and cocked his head slightly in confusion. They were hanging around in the room he'd been in? Just that room? That didn't sit well with the trainer and he looked at Costa.

"Be ready. This doesn't seem right," Black said before a loud crash drew his attention. He looked back and there were the two Chandelures floating out of the house and towards them. The trainer and his Pokémon glared at the two Ghosts. 

"Costa, use Hydro Pump!" Black commanded. Costa obeyed and shot a powerful stream of water from his mouth. It hit the Chandelure in front dead on and knocked it back and onto the ground. Without missing a beat, Black face another command to the Carracosta, "Brine!"

A large spout of salt water shot out of the ground, it's damaged amplified by their foe's weakened state. Black grinned confidently, "Good job, Costa! Good start!"

Black still felt unsure about the Ghosts they were fighting. They were hovering around the room he had been in and as soon as he arrived, they came outside. Pokémon don't just do that, not unless there under the command of a trainer. Black's grin turned into a scowl now that he was wary of a possible enemy controlling the Chandelures.

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

The Hydro Pump and Brine pierced the Substitute, and the Chandelure behind it balked. More out of fear of the Water Type than aggression, the fiery ghost emitted a wave of psychic energy in attempt to put Black's Carracosta to sleep: Hypnosis.

Suddenly, coming out of the woodwork were a couple more Pokemon. A Bronzong let out a hum as it hovered into the clearing from behind the trees. A Noctowl's shadow passed overhead before the Pokemon landed on the house. Soon, the Chandelure wasn't the only one attacking Black and his Pokemon.

The Noctowl glared at Black, emitting a Hypnosis of its own. Unlike the Chandelure, this Pokemon's move wasn't out of fear. It had every intent to put the trainer to sleep, as if instructed to rely on this tactic whenever an occasion like this occurred.

The Bronzong, however, exhibited the least amount of restraint compared to the others. Whether or not any of the Hypnosis attempts were successful, the Steel-type wanted to feast on Black's energy with Dream Eater. Compared to the other Pokemon who've been feasting for a week on dreams, the slower-moving Bronzong has been getting the tail-end of a town being bled dry... And from its perspective, Black was a walking banquet.

[BLACK]

Black's eyes opened in shock as the Substitute disappeared. He watched helplessly as the Chandelure put Costa to sleep. The Carracosta stood shakily for a moment as he fought to stay awake before toppling to the ground with a crash. Black went to his knees and shook his Pokémon.

"Wake up! Costa, I need you to wake up!" Black begged to no avail. The Carracosta stayed asleep. The trainer saw the shadow pass over him and Costa, fear creeping into him as he realized his feeling of dread was rightfully so. He looked up and saw a Bronzong and a Noctowl. He stood and pulled out two more Pokéballs, Bo and Tula's, and brought them out onto the battlefield. The Emboar and Galvantula stood, ready to attack, but before Black could say anything. He suddenly felt very sleepy. He looked up at the Noctowl, which had such a look of concentration that he knew it was using Hypnosis. He weakly pointed at the Pokémon.

"Tula, use... Electro Ball on...," Black yawned. Sleep was beginning to take over and he fought to stay standing. He managed to finally speak again, "On Noctowl!"

The command took a lot out of Black and he sank to his knees. His eyes fought to stay open and they settled on the Bronzong. Black began to get a familiar feeling. The Bronzong was eating his dreams. He needed to act quickly before he became a zombie because of it, "Bo, use Flamethrower on Bronzong!"

Black fell forward using his hands to keep himself off of the ground. He could hear Tula and Bo using their attacks, but he didn't know if they had hit anything. The trainer's arms shook a little before giving out to fatigue. Black hit the ground, still vainly struggling to stay awake. His eyes finally closed and he was sucked into the only blackness of sleep. 

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

Though the man had utmost faith in Black's ability as a trainer, he still ran for the bridge with his family while he was battling. Ulysses stopped playing as soon as they arrived, and asked what happened.

[MAN]: "Chandelures were in my house, and I called for Black to help! He's battling them right now, thank goodness!"

Not for the reasons the trainers would be expecting, Ulysses was the first to react, and with anxiousness.

"I'll go back him up, in case things go south. Everyone, stay here."

And off he went, letting out his Noctowl along the way to fly ahead.

"Fée Dragée. Knock out the trainer causing us trouble. Rapidement."

The rest was history as Black struggled to stay awake. By the time Ulysses arrived, his Noctowl was fried, and his Bronzong was toasted. The Chandelure was torn between relieved and distressed, as the Water Type was asleep and Ulysses was here, but its partners were fainted around her, with a giant spider and a flaming boar ready for action. This wasn't the work of an average trainer. And where was he... Ah, there he is. Asleep. But why were his Chandelure and Bronzong out in the open to begin with? They knew better than to show themselves... Regardless, he had his Pokemon to worry about. Ulysses called out to the Emboar and Galvantula.

"May you two return? I'll take things from here."

As a show of good faith, he let out his Malamar and Musharna. No orders. Just to show that he was going to deal with the Chandelure (and seemed willing to use excessive force), and that Black was in good hands. He just hoped his coaxing worked, seeing as Black's Pokemon were demonstrably strong and experienced.

[BLACK]

Bo and Tula stared at Ulysses, distrust in their eyes. A few tense moments passed until they moved over to their sleeping master and partner.  Bo picked up Costa's Pokéball and took it over to Ulysses. He handed it to the man and pointed at the sleeping Pokémon, hoping he would understand the message. Tula was wrapping up his and Bo's Pokéballs in some webs and stuck them to Black's backpack. Bo stood waiting near Ulysses for him to return Costa, using every moment to menacingly stare at him. Tula managed to get Black up and onto his back and tie him down with some webs.

Black was barely aware of what was happening. He didn't feel the sensation of being blanked anymore, so what was left of his dreams were buzzing around in his mind. He could see himself. He watched as he set Arceus free and the headquarters of the Knights shattered as the Alpah Pokémon burst from his prison. A small smile played across his lips as the dream progressed with him and the other Dex holders being praised as heroes, with him in the front of the group. It was a nice dream, unlikely, but a nice one all the same. A small, nagging voice made it's presence known in his head.

Black, you need to wake up! Something is not right! the voice said.

Shut up. Sleep is nice... Black replied.

Wake up! 

No.

The argument went back and forth until Black shut the voice out entirely and returned to his dreams. He did not know what was happening right outside of his mind.

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

Ulysses stifled an annoyed sigh as Black's Pokemon, rightfully, distrusted him. He was being courteous, though judging by the Emboar and Galvantula's reactions, he might as well have said "shoo" to them. The Emboar had other plans: Return the Carracosta, while the Pokemon retreated with Black. The Knight held the Pokeball, and went over his options, with Bo looming beside him. And while doing so, noticed something especially peculiar... All of his Pokemon, from the Malamar, Musharna, and especially the Chandelure, were eyeing Black on Tula's back. Why? They all looked... Hungry... How curious... Was Black the reason why Margot and Lutèce revealed themselves? What irresistible quality were they all drawn to?

Of course.

This merited further study.

He suppressed a smile as he returned Costa to his Pokeball, and gingerly handed it over to the Emboar. Ulysses knew better than to pull anything funny with a Fire-type in such close proximity. And these Pokemon demonstrated that they were as loyal and devoted as they were strong and experienced.

"He has trained you well."

Now all of Team Ulysses's eyes were on Black. Watching him sleep.

[BLACK]

Bo watched the man as Costa was returned. He carefully took the Pokéball and held it so as to avoid crushing it. Tula watched the other Pokémon, hissing occasionally to warn them to stay back. The Emboar continued to look at Ulysses before raising his other hand and pointing at the Chandelure. His message was clear.

Deal with her.

Bo issued it as a challenge. A trust test. He snorted, a puff of smoke coming from his nostrils, to emphasize his point. One way or another, that Chandelure was going down. The Emboar turned away from the man and returned to his trainer's side. Bo shook Black a little more in an attempt to stir him from his slumber. Black stayed asleep and pushed Bo's hand away. The Pokémon sighed and let it go. He turned around to watch Ulysses knock out the Chandelure. His glare warned the man to do it or else.

Back in Black's Dreamland, his dreams had wandered to the other Dex holders. He imagined talking to them after saving the world and how they all praised him. He felt happy, but the tiny voice came back and disrupted him and White talking. In the dream, Black scowled as White changed into another him. This one was more faded out, though. The colors of his clothes were duller and he looked more serious. Black #2 stamped his foot.

Listen to me! You need to wake up! he said.

Black waved his hand dismissively I can sleep for a little bit. Bo and Tula are still awake and it's only the Chandelure left.

Black #2 looked ready to punch the original in the face Can't you feel Bo shaking you? He's trying to wake you up! There must be something urgent going on!

Fine, say there is. How do you suppose if wake myself? Black responded.

It's your lucid dream, Black. Figure it out. Black #2 said as he faded away into darkness. Black stood in silence. How would he wake himself up?

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

...Too well, Ulysses was finding. Bo had the most control over this situation, and Ulysses was the only conscious trainer here. Funny how the world works. As the Emboar tended to Black, he scanned the playing field. Two of his Pokemon were fainted, one of them was being threatened, and two of them were awaiting orders and practicing self-restraint. All things considered, there was hope for him yet. The Malamar hissed back at Tula.

"Now now, Laurent. Please behave yourself."

He raised a finger and pointed at the Chandelure.

"Hypnosis."

Both the Malamar and the Chandelure gladly aimed their Hypnosis at Black's Pokemon.

It was three against two, and the Musharna was on standby, itching to hopefully be the first to chow on Black's dreams. Ulysses only hoped that his Pokemon were quick enough on the draw. He had a prize to win.

[BLACK]

Bo watched as two of Ulysses Pokémon turned on them and roared in anger at the man, tossing Costa's Pokéball behind him. It landed with a small thud in a patch of grass. Bo had expected a trick from Ulysses and avoided the Hypnosis. Tula also managed to scuttle out of the way, even while heaving Black around. The two Pokémon followed up by launching their own attacks. The Emboar, somehow, managed to jump rather high into the air and sailed toward the Chandelure, aiming a Smack Down right at his enemy. The Galvantula stared daggers at the Malamar and shot a Signal Beam at the Pokémon. This man was threatening their trainer and would be dealt with accordingly. 

In his dream, Black stumbled a bit. Every bit of real world motion was applying to him and he realized how much danger they really were in. His thoughts began to race as he tried to think of how to wake up . The trainer slapped himself, bit his hand, pinched his arm, anything to cause pain. Yet he stayed asleep. He wondered if it was because his sleep was Pokémon induced. The only way to wake that up was either a Pokéflute or an Awakening. 

Wait. I'm in a lucid dream. I can make anything I want! Black exclaimed excitedly. So he thought. He drove out all other thoughts, an amazing feat for him, and only imagined holding an Awakening. He concentrated until sweat appeared on his brow and suddenly he felt a weight in his hand. Black looked down and saw the familiar blue bottle. He grinned. Alright! Time to wake up!

Black lifted the bottle to his face and turned it around. Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he squeezed the nozzle and a fine mist covered his face. The trainer spat a bit. It tasted something akin to the smell of old, salty Magikarps. Yuck. But he could feel it working. His vision was fading (could you fall asleep when you were already asleep?) and Black toppled to the ground. 

The trainer woke with a gasp. He found himself lying on Tula's back as he blasted a Malamar with Signal Beam. Black broke the webs and stood up. 

"What is going on here?" he exclaimed until he spotted the violinist from the bridge. His eyes narrowed in a glare, "You! What are you doing here?"

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

Margot panicked and tried to bob away from from Bo, only to be smacked down by the much larger Pokemon. With a cry, her Flame Body ignited upon contact, but had no effect on the opposing Fire Type. Tula blasted Laurent before it could even try to shoot its Toxic attack. As a whole, Ulysses's Pokemon never stood a chance. He made a mental note to figure out a way to make his Pokemon faster, if his primary strategy was to put everyone to sleep. The answer may lie in his Malamar...

It must've been quite a sight Black woke up to, Ulysses holding his chin in thought as his Pokemon were scattered everywhere, with maybe his Musharna anxiously pressing up again him being an exception.

Ulysses blinked and looked up at Black. There was no point in lying now. It'd be his word against Black's Pokemon, not to mention the carnage.

"Retrieving my Pokemon."

He returned all of his fainted Pokemon to their Pokeballs. He grinned.

"Did you sleep well?"

Finding comfort in Ulysses's comment, Chantecler let out a Yawn.

[BLACK]

Bo rolled off of the Chandelure. He glared at Ulysses as he stood by the fallen Pokémon. Black shared his Emboar's glare at Ulysses. The trainer patted Tula on the head, "Good job, buddy. You too, Bo."

Black walked closer to the man as Ulysses returned his fainted Pokémon, "Now, explain to me why you attacked me and why you're Chandelure was in that house. And no lies. I don't think you'd want to meet a certain friend of mine."

As he spoke, Black pulled out Reshiram's Pokéball. He wasn't afraid to use the Legendary Dragon and it was a very effective bargaining tool. The trainer noticed he was missing three Pokéballs from his belt. He felt two wrapped in webs on his backpack. Black looked around and noticed Costa was missing. He looked at Bo, "Where's Costa?"

The Emboar pointed at the grass where the Pokéball lay. Black nodded and, not turning away from Ulysses, picked up his friend and attached him to his belt. When Ulysses asked his question, the trainer tilted his head in confusion, "Fine, I guess. I'm a remarkable dreamer so my sleep is rarely boring. Why do you care?"

Black's mind was being addled by more dreams pushing their way in and, while he still knew Ulysses wasn't good, he didn't know the man's intentions. He had no idea that his dreaming was something Ulysses would want when he found out. Black then found himself yawning, as did Bo and Tula. He watched as the Musharna behind Ulysses finished yawning and a terrible realization came over him. Black would be falling asleep again and he was pretty sure the Awakening trick wouldn't work twice. 

"You piece of crap. You'll regret that!" Black shouted. The drowsiness was setting in. "Tula, hit the Musharna with Signal Beam!"

Tula scuttled quickly to the side to get a better angle on the Musharna before launching Signal Beam again. 

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

He squinted at Black's Pokeball. All of his Pokemon were perfectly capable of dispatching his team, so why should Ulysses feel threatened about the consequences of lying? He didn't have an answer for why Chandelure was in the house. He generally allowed his Pokemon to roam as they pleased while he worked. When Black offhandedly mentioned being a remarkable dreamer though, his eyes lit up from the confirmation of his earlier assumption. He must have had tantalizing, tasty dreams. Oh, if only the researcher could eat dreams like his Pokemon could.

"A Pokemon has to eat."

...He replied ambiguously, watching his targets get drowsy. If his Pokemon couldn't move faster, he could at least find some solace in knowing that his tricks weren't completely futile. Though what were tricks to a perceptive individual like Black? He eventually caught on to the Yawn, and ordered his pesky, speedy bug to unleash another Signal Beam. Ulysses had to jump away, leaving the Musharna to frantically let out a big and desperate puff of smoke. Too bad Signal Beam pierced the veil and knocked Chantecler out the other end.

"Rest now, dear Chantecler."

The Musharna was returned, and Ulysses was finally unarmed as far as the eye could see. But she did what she was supposed to, and it was only a matter of time until Black returned to dreamland, along with his more troublesome friends. Ulysses dusted himself off. He had to give a droll remark.

"I apologize if I'm not giving you the answers you want, but you needn't be rude. Your name is Black, right?"

[BLACK]

Black bared his teeth and glared at Ulysses in anger. He felt wobbly as sleep began setting in. Tula's legs had already given out and he was fighting to stay awake. Bo had sunk to his knees as he struggled to stay awake. The only thing left to do was to return his Pokémon. Black pulled the web-covered Pokéballs off of his backpack and returned his two friends. He put all of them, Reshiram included, back onto his belt as his legs gave out once more. He continued to glare until Ulysses sentence made him freeze. Black looked at him with wide eyes.

"Who are you and why do you want my dreams?" he asked. Black realized his mistake of just throwing out how much he dreamed. Stupid. The fight almost left Black, save his will to stay awake. He'd let himself fall into a trap and now he'd pay for it. He sighed in frustration. 

"Whatever," Black said. "Before I go to sleep, answer a few questions for me at least. First, how do you know my name? Second, who do you work for? I might be falling asleep, but I still have the advantage. I suggest you'd answer me."

[ULYSSES IEGRIYEGA]

"Indeed you do."

It's hard to determine how genuine this statement was. Five of Ulysses's were fainted to the three sleeping in Black's possession. To tell the truth, he was reveling in Black's desperation for answers. Funny how the tables have turned. He was getting more answers than the one interrogating him, though this was particularly due to him limiting his words, doing what he could to not talk too much. Proud as he was, Ulysses didn't want to fall into the trap of monologuing. But... Maybe just this once, he could let a bit slip to this new, interesting specimen.

"Very well then. Ulysses Iegriyega. At your service. Kind regards from the Knights of Arceus's Research & Development Department. My research is largely independent though. I wasn't sent here. My specialty lies in dreams... And, as you're experiencing first-hand, hypnosis."

He took in a deep breath of the evening air.

"I just have a habit of... Letting my Pokemon roam free while I work. Conducting experiments, researching, acquiring... Inspiration. As for how I know your name..."

The trainers from the bridge have been wondering about both Black and Ulysses taking a while dealing with a "pair" of Chandelure. A Hypno appeared at Ulysses's side to tug on his sleeve and let him know of their arrival.

"Speak of the devil. Your friend told me you were battling my Pokemon. I'm afraid I can't tell you much else. Though, you might've slept through the details anyhow. Adieu, Black. I hope we meet again, under different circumstances."

In fact, he looked forward to it. Ulysses placed a hand on his Hypno's shoulder, and the two Teleported away by the time the trainers and other townsfolk arrived.

[BLACK]

Black listened as attentively as possible. His eyelids were drooping, but he fought to stay awake and get all the information he could. When Ulysses said he was part of the Knights, rage kicked into Black's chest. A small burst of energy allowed Black to stand up, but he didn't get any farther than that. The trainer fell and landed on his butt. A broad yawn escaped his mouth and a sleepy look crossed Black's face.

"You're a Knight with a thing for dreams, huh?" Black mused sleepily, his speech slightly garbled. "Well, I've got news for you. I've fought a medieval themed organization. Just 'cause you're Knights doesn't mean you're fighting a holy war. Kidnapping... *yawn*... Arceus is something you'll regret doing."

Black fell back into his elbows. The ground felt decidedly comfortable right now. He wanted to curl up and sleep on it, but he needed to stay awake. Black slapped himself and looked at Ulysses. But his eyes just gave up. The closed and Black slipped back into Dreamland.