#a silver gift as a thank you for 3000 followers <3< /div> Explore tagged Tumblr posts

[aamuusva]

Telperinquar

[rainofaugustsith]

Rain Plays SWTOR: SOLO gearing 6.0

In my opinion the SWTOR devs have given solo players a hearty "fuck you" with 6.0, between an insufferably long gearing system, nerfed companions, much higher conquest targets (with solo-friendly activities like galactic rampage now removed) and overtuned content. It's why I'm not paying for a subscription anymore. Damn it, though, I like the game, I like hanging out with Viri and I still have characters who have not finished all the content. Even though I am not subscribed now, I invested in Artifact Authorization for my account so my characters can wear the good stuff.

Despite the fact that the devs seem to be heavily pushing people to group, I decided that my own "fuck you" to them would be getting Viri to 306 without grouping even once. And I did.

Almost. Her gear rating is 304, but hell, she's close, and she already has several 306 pieces. These aren’t the final stats I want for her (as she changes to moddable 306 pieces I’ll be adding back her augments and changing those relics) but she’s a beast again. 

The important takeaway from this post:

You do not need to group to get good gear, even at level 75. You do not need to do veteran flashpoints to get good gear. Good gear drops in the solo flashpoints too!

Do you "need" it?

I hate it when other players tell me I "don't need" certain gear, so I won't do that to you. It's a personal choice. The higher levels of gear do seem to compensate for at least some of the currently overtuned parts of the game. In other words even if you are not interested at all in the endgame you may wish to pursue the higher-end gear simply to do the other content more easily.

If you are not playing Onslaught (or not playing it yet) there have been numerous reports of other missions/areas being overtuned, including the Star Fortresses, Bowdaar's recruitment mission, walker combat in KOTET and Iokath, the H4s and some H2s, and better gear could help there.

Onslaught is supposed to be designed so that you gear up as you level up, ending the expansion with a full set of 268 gear and a tactical item. In my own experience going through Onslaught, some of my classes did okay with this system but others did not. All had similar gear ratings (242-252), at least some augments, and at least one or two level 50 influence companions (usually Lana, but also included Vette, Mako or Akaavi for some characters). My Sith Warrior and Jedi Knight were fine. My Smuggler died if an NPC looked at her the wrong way and really struggled to get through. My Bounty Hunter and Lightning Sorcerer had a few hiccups but managed.

My own preference will be to get my characters leveled to 75 and geared before hitting KOTET now. I don't think they all need to be 306. My test subject, canon Viri (who has not done Onslaught) was blazing through content by the time she was a 286. I will likely aim for at least that rating on all characters.

So you want the gear. Now what?

Okay. It's a long, mind-numbingly boring experience to gear up but if you hang onto enough stuff, you might be able to avoid going through this nightmare on more than one character. How can you get gear without grouping?

1. The easiest and most effective way is to run a lot of solo flashpoints. Over and over again (the same way the folks who group are doing with Hammer Station).

The shortest and simplest flashpoint (at least for me) is Korriban Incursion, followed by Depths of Manaan. By the time you hit a gear rating of 286ish, you can chew through either of these alone in less than 20 minutes. Black Talon is next, but one of the bosses only seems to drop crafting material (including those coveted isotopes) and the bonus boss now has a lot of very uncomfortable flashing lights.

I went through several of the longer flashpoints like Copero, False Emperor, Rakata Prime and Boarding Party, too. On Copero I had four gear drops instead of three thanks to the bonus boss, and some random green gear dropped from NPCs, but otherwise the longer flashpoints don't seem to offer any real advantage over the shorter ones. Thus, unless there's something else you want from the flashpoint (like decos or achievements), it seems most prudent to run the ones that will cause you the least trouble. You might get random pieces (usually green 270s) from enemies but overall, usually only three bosses will give you proper drops. There will be a sack of Grade 11 crafting materials, probably a mod or two, and at least one piece of gear. This is RNG. Sometimes you will luck out and get two pieces of gear you can use. Sometimes you will get nothing and will end up deconstructing it all. Viri has received tank gear, things she clearly can't use like blaster barrels, and 274 pieces when she's a 294. As far as I know it happens in the veteran group flashpoints too. Just deconstruct it, or set it aside for another character if you think they will want it.

Once you get past 300, I have noticed you will start getting a lot more mods, enhancements and armor/hilts/barrels. This is a good thing. These are the pieces you can set aside for alts.

2. Conquest.

It's harder to meet this goal now but it may be doable for you on one or two toons. During this exercise Viri reached her conquest goal of 50,000 points just by doing flashpoints and a couple of easy heroics on Tatooine and Korriban. The Conquest gear crates are in my experience good, and I've pulled numerous gold set pieces, so it's worth it to try to aim for the goal, and it can be done solo.

3. Chapters.

I was very surprised to get a gear crate when I finished Shroud of Memory. A character who was just finishing up KOTET received crates for her last two chapters, too. I think this replaces the gear that used to be given for KOTFE/KOTET chapters. It's in line with the other weekly/daily crates.

4. Onderon weekly/daily crates.

If you have a character who has gone through Onslaught, do ten missions for the weekly and six for the daily. There are some simple quests that can be done quickly. In my experience these crates provide little more than deconstruction fodder most of the time. However it's worth it, if only for the tech fragments. Aside from gear, there are some nice decos available at the reputation vendor so raising your Onderon rep isn't pointless.

5. Mek-Sha heroics.

Again, if you have a character who has done Onslaught. Not the best option for the planet - see #11 for an easier one. Both of the Mek-Sha heroics give gear crates and in my limited experience they have been good. However, the heroics are tuned very, very high. Viri's clone (Sith Warrior; Vengeance Juggernaut) with a gear rating of 300 had trouble. The final boss in the Matter of Respect heroic has more HP than many flashpoint bosses, and he's with two silvers. Dying in these heroics is expensive, too: the tune of 20,000 credits per repair bill. I don't think this really is a good option for most solo players, even if you want to run them once for the experience/achievements.

This is the final boss in the second Mek-Sha heroic. No, you’re not reading that  HP number wrong. 

6. Renown crates.

Instead of Command Levels, there are now Renown levels. It's the same overall concept: gain a level, gain a crate with a piece of gear (the fun stuff like pets and companion gifts are gone). The difference: you're not going to gear up via Renown. For all intents and purposes it's probably best to pretend Renown doesn't exist. It's not like Galactic Command where doing the weekly in Section X or Ziost will at least earn you a crate or two.

You need 1,600,000 points to get one Renown crate. Considering that the weekly areas now award between 7000-28,000 points and a flashpoint awards 2000-3000 (and that is WITH the full 25% boost), it's going to be a while before you earn even one crate. When you do, I might suggest hanging on to them until your rating is high to try to get better gear. In my limited experience (I think my characters combined have earned about ten Renown crates!) I don't think I've ever pulled any sort of useful upgrade out of these crates. Take the item and deconstruct it for tech fragments, don't disintegrate it. Consider anything useful to be a pleasant surprise.

7. Treasure Hunting missions

Level 10 lockbox missions return with gear. It's not highly rated, though. Deconstruct it for the tech fragments. 

8. Crafting

From what I have heard this is such a clusterfuck that it's not even worth attempting, with many mats required even for low-level gear. Skip this, I think.

9. LS/DS vendors

Apparently if you are willing to fork over all 100 of your LS or DS coins to the vendor you can get an equipment box. I wouldn't do this because it's now very hard to get LS/DS coins (see Renown). Once you blow them all you're not likely to get so many back. 10. Random drops

NPCs in heroics, flashpoints and open world may occasionally drop random pieces of gear, usually green 270ish stuff that may or may not be for your discipline. It's good to deconstruct.

11. Mek-Sha Tradehouse missions In your faction’s starting point on Mek-Sha, you will find a datapad. Click this to get a short mission to speak to a Nautolan NPC in Huttbreaker’s Compound. The NPC will tell you that you can do short “adventures” around the galaxy to help out Huttbreaker’s auction house.  Now check out the small clickable terminal to the left of the NPC. You will get a Weekly - Tradehouse Acquisitions - and a daily mission that will take you to either Rishi, Tatooine, Onderon, Nar Shaddaa or Dantooine. These missions are very simple - usually just gathering some clickable items or scanning several targets with provided macrobinoculars.  To complete the Weekly, you need to complete three Tradehouse Missions. You can only do one per day. It will award you a gold gear box, so it’s worth it. 

When you get gear:

Use a character that you can devote solely to gearing for a little while. Canon Viri has not done Onslaught, but she's my strongest character and my main, and she has nothing else to do right now. I decided to gear with her.

If a piece of gear is an upgrade, equip it immediately. The higher your overall gear rating, the more likely you are to get upgrades. This will screw with your stats for a while, but you can sort it out when you get to the 300s. If it's not an upgrade deconstruct it for tech fragments - the currency you will use to purchase gear later.

Once you get to the high 290s or 300s you may wish to start setting aside gear pieces for your alts instead of deconstructing them. ETA Gear is now legacy bound, so you can pass it from one character to the next (except for weapons, I found). If you are moving up to a 306 piece, for example, save that 304 for the next toon who might need it, and pass around the gear to everyone’s advantage. 

Mods: Viri kept her augmented mainhand and offhand weapons (lightsaber and focus). I ripped out mods/hilts as needed to upgrade those weapons. However, ripping mods is very expensive so you don't want to be doing this for all your right side pieces. Don't worry about mods until you get to the 300s. Just keep using the non-moddable gear as you progress. This includes mods that don't seem to suit your character. If a Barrage or Studious enhancement would take Viri from one gear level to another I used it.   Use Takanna: Takanna is the vendor who sells "unidentified" pieces for around 350 tech fragments each. The pieces are supposed to be at least your item rating or higher, and with the exception of left side and mods, are supposed to be for your discipline. 

 I used Takanna to get over the plateaus that Viri would hit sometimes, when she would reach a certain item rating and would not get anything higher from the flashpoint drops. Buying a higher rated set of boots or bracers (for instance) would sometimes be enough to get her to a higher overall gear rating and break the stalemate.   Once you reach your quitting point: You don't want to go all the way to 306? You're fine at 290 or 286 or 300? That's cool. This is where you either decide that you're going to augment the non-moddable gear you have or start playing with mods and those gold set pieces. It is VERY expensive to move around mods and augments, especially after you reach 300 (we're talking 450K to rip three mods, I'm not exaggerating), so I advise that you put them where you want them to stay.

Set bonuses: The old set bonus you had from your GEMINI or Ossus gear vanished when you hit level 75. I don't think the new ones are as good, but in some cases all you need are two pieces to get the bonus. Ostensibly you could therefore have three different set bonuses (2, 2, 2) operating at once.

Tacticals: Viri received two as random drops once she was in the 280s. You also receive one good all-around tactical at the end of Onslaught. I wouldn't be fussed about getting these. If you get one, great. If you have credits to burn check out the vendor on the fleet who sells them. Otherwise wait until you finish Onslaught.   Amplifiers: I DGAF about these. Re-rolling the amplifiers is a large credit sink for (IMHO) small boosts. I personally am not bothering with re-rolling anything. Viri has what she has on her gear and I'm not worried about changing what is there.However, re-rolling an amplifier will now give you Conquest points, so you may decide to re-roll one just for that boost.    Augments: Viri has kept her 236 and 240 mods. They have been nerfed a little but the Grade 11 augments and kits are really expensive, and IMHO her old augments do fine for her.

Gearing alts: Send your highest-iRated toon shopping for the others. Vendors like Takanna will give you gear that corresponds to your toon’s level. So send your 306 rated character shopping, grab that high-level gear, and leave it in your Legacy hold for your alts.  I'm gearing my weakest alts, and those that have a lot of content left to do, first. "Weakest" might mean many things to many people. For me, it's the alt that has the most trouble getting through content and/or the class that I'm the least skilled at playing. I've also geared one of Viri's clones who did do Onslaught so she could do the Mek-Sha and Onderon tasks.  Overall, this gear system is no fun. I don’t think it would be quite as bad if there weren’t so many levels, but when you’re going through 19 - 284, 286, 288 and on and on and on - it feels like you’re slowly pulling teeth for every gain.  Still, the point was to show that it could be done without the grouping that the devs seem to be trying to force on us. Et voila.

[rambeautan]

Miss You Like Crazy

Something I wrote in 2016, and resurrected today for my readers at FF net and A03. A fellow follower pmed me asking if I'm still alive as there's no updates on any of my fanfictions. Well that's because I haven't time to write for weeks/months now. Since I went back to Uni I'm always on breaks from writing. Hope this will suffice moir readers until January 2018 at least.

Summary: SasfemNar. Sasuke's furthering his studies at University, leaving his bestie back in his hometown. Itachi questions his brother's relationship with his best friend and whether they were really, just best friends.

Sasuke folded his handkerchiefs and tucked them into the small spaces between his shirts and pants inside his luggage. He made a mental note to swipe another pair of Itachi's unused leather gloves, patting himself for saving another 3000 yen. He had so far swiped 3 shirts and 2 shorts from his brother, all unworn. His brother model and entrepreneur receives a lot of sponsorship clothings which Sasuke always took advantage of.

Initially he planned to swipe one of Itachi's unused designer jeans, however the fact that his brother was so much taller than him at 180 cm feet compared to his 172 cm deterred him from doing so. He didn't want to alter them himself. Plus his brother's jeans were mostly blue or some other colour variant compared to Sasuke's choice, that would always be and forever be, black jeans.

Over the summer Sasuke had grown about seven centimetres, and since he started following the older Uchiha to the gymnasium his body was more toned and he felt fitter. It was important for him to start a healthy lifestyle before he entered the life of a university student. Sasuke snickered when he realized that his best friend Naruto had only hit puberty a little later than him. He only realized it upon their reunion at New Year's eve. It was the first time he saw his bethorst friend after the summer break. It did not matter to him that they were essentially different physically anyway.

Sasuke spent enough years around Naruto to realize that the dobe's father, Mayor Namikaze Minato and Mrs Konoha 2012, Kushina Uzumaki made a very handsome couple. They were both tall and lanky. Still, Naruto at seventeen had not caught up to either of her parent's height. Naruto was only 168 cm, four cms shorter than him. She was disappointed that she was shortest amongst her peers.

Her peers. Naruto had always thought of herself as one of the boys. She was often teased by their classmate, Sai for that. The insensitive prick also teased her for looking as flat as a plane and was so often unjustly compared with Sakura, who was quite chesty and and Hinata who is, well endowed. Sasuke never needed any of Sai's teasing of his best friend, often dismissing Sai when Sai was being over the top. But Naruto, she sometimes ended trying to flatten the socially inept Sai's nosy nose. In fact any comment from Sai never failed to make the blonde's blood boil.

Naruto who was once an annoyance, but now his best friend forever. Sasuke smiled at how Naruto had wiggled into his life and cemented herself there as his ultimate shadow, silly and crazy Naruto. He glanced at a framed picture of him and Naruto at a school party. He checked out his height contrast as he stood beside the 6 cms shorter tomboy. He chuckled at the thought of him winning over a non existent height competition, between him and Naruto.

"I should give this to you before I forgot… again," Mikoto's voice interjected his son's thoughts. She peered into his room, only half her body showing behind a laundry basket she's holding.

Sasuke got up from the floor where he was packing his things and approached his mother. In the basket on top folded of clothes in the laundry basket were two gray rectangular boxes.

"One is for you and another is for Naruto. Keep it close ok as they've got your names engraved. There's plenty of refillable ink in there until you come home again," he took both boxes and kissed his mom on her temple. Mikoto smiled and then disappeared to her room.

Sasuke glanced at Itachi's room just opposite his room and saw that the door was still closed. He knew his brother had worked the late shift yesterday following his company's fourth outlet midnight sale so he realised that his brother would only be awake sometime around noon.

Sasuke sat back on the floor and opened the box and took out a black stylish pen adorned with silver accents. It had the name Sasuke Uchiha engraved on the body. Sasuke thought he would get his mother something too before he flew out for university tomorrow night. He peered at the other box which held an orange pen adorned with golden accents with his best friend's name engraved on it.

The Uchiha was a close-knit family, but not the kind to say thank you all the time or apologize to each other. They conveyed their thank yous by actions and gestures, and words were only used in very delicate situations. In the rare times that Sasuke used the words, Thank You and Sorry with his family, he freely used those words with Naruto. He did not know why he was more open with Naruto, but it was easier being expressive with his bestie than his family. Maybe because Naruto wore her heart on her sleeve which made things easier for Sasuke. She was the most honest and loyal friend he ever had, though she also had her annoying tendencies.

The house was quiet with Itachi still asleep, and his mom in her room. The Uchiha patriarch had gone to a golf tournament since early morning. Sasuke finding the quietness overwhelming especially with his anticipated travel, took his earphones and tuned to his favourite tunes. Music blasted into his ears as he sorted his remaining clothes to be brought to uni.

_____________________________________

Sasuke finally finished packing, so he zipped up his trolley bag and parked it next to his bed. Next to it was a stack of boxes. Each box labelled: for donation, the address to his campus and also to Naruto. He and Itachi had compiled their old but good clothes to give to Naruto to sell at the Flea market. Naruto liked opening up stalls for extra money, which she spent mostly on ramen and Sasuke.

Sasuke's was about to press skip for the next song in his music playing app when a call came in. He saw the ID and immediately answered.

"Teme," the husky voice blared from his earphones. Sasuke had accepted the call, even before the ring tone had begun. He smirked when he realized how Naruto's voice made his heart all tingly.

"Dobe." Sasuke smiled at his teasing nickname which belonged to their early friendship days.

"You free this evening? Dad wants to give you a studying gift and he wants to meet before you depart…"

"...Ok. What time? I have something for you too, from Mom."

"Be here after lunch."

"Ok."

Sasuke plucked his earphones out and stuffed it into his backpack. He grabbed his towel and headed to the shower as he got a meeting to go to.

After showering at the shared bathroom at the end of the hall, he peered into his brother's opened room door. The elder guy's bed was unmade but his brother was nowhere, so he headed back to his room. He entered and saw that Itachi was picking his face using Sasuke's full length mirror. His brother had always been a bit vain, a kind hearted but certainly vain man.

"How's the preparation going? Do you need to run to the mall for anything, or has raiding my room solved your packing pribles.?" Itachi asked knowingly.

"85 percent solved but I need jeans. Black ones."

Itachi glanced at Sasuke's reflection as the younger sibling started dressing up for lunch. Sasuke wore an indigo shirt paired with dark jeans.

Itachi already knew who his brother was meeting, but he still asked. "Meeting Naruto?"

Sasuke nodded while picking socks from his drawer to match his white sneakers.

"Minato wants to meet me before I depart."

"How's the bestie reacting to you moving away?" Itachi asked as he sat on his brother's bed. Itachi had always known that the two best friends would be separated. He was just curious about how Sasuke was handling it.

Sasuke side eyed his brother. It's a regular question which he cared to answer though it was something Itachi should've known about. "We'll keep in touch. There's a tonne of apps for that."

"What would happen if you found a girlfriend at campus?"

Sasuke paused in his movements, he was raking his hair on the back of his head trying to enhance the spiky locks making it look more gravity challenged. He had his hand hovering in his hair. Noticing that he was almost done with his hair grooming and that he needed to respond to Itachi he dropped his hand for awhile before decided to just ignore the unspoken question in Itachi's words. Not that he needed to confirm with his brother about us love life.

"That's not my main focus being in university," Sasuke answered as he continued to rake his hair upward after the awkward pause. He hated when Itachi was being in a happy relationship, because Itachi was suddenly all sage like in the matters of love. Sasuke could understand the unspoken question about his and Naruto's status as best friends, their close friends wanted them to be more than best friends Sasuke suspected. The problem was that there was no way that the dobe would feel for something like that for him. Naruto was never inclined to like him romantically, Sasuke thought.

"I've got to go. Bring me to the mall tomorrow so I can max out your credit card on things I need." He said as he picked on his white sneakers and exited his room, while also changing the subject.

Itachi laughed and laid back on his brother's bed. He rummaged for his brother's diary which was placed under the mattress and began reading on the boy's daily rants about life, aspirations and anecdotes. Sasuke knew about his brother's intrusive habit, but he didn't care. Itachi wasn't one too share his daily ramblings about how raising his brother's wardrobe was better than shopping on his own anyday.

Sasuke smirked as he saw from the corner of his eye, that Itachi did not bother to leave his room even without him being there. He had ranted enough in the diary about his brother to rile his brother a bit, and also an appreciation note for his only sibling. It was his way of making his brother know about his unspoken feelings.

As he swiped his mom's car keys and wallet. He thought about his unspoken feelings for his best friend. Words that he was not brave enough to confess, and not even write about. He may have written about hints of his fondness towards Naruto for Itachi to read, which eased his thoughts a bit. Something which sat uncomfortably in the pit of his stomach, which made his heart bloom but his mind in turmoil. His mixed feelings about what he wanted from Naruto, maybe not now, but maybe in the future.

[jelanisaeed]

Round 5: VS Turtwig- Legends Part 5

Hello everyone! Sooo, I had a whole plan for Jasper's chapters and then I scraped them lol Cause I'm chaotic like that lol. So, I made some edits to the ending of Chapter 4 which changed how this chapter begins. Basically, I removed the argument and ended it with a more diplomatic ending. The reason is that in light of everything going on in the world, I didn't want to have my male leads experiencing conflict with male leads right off the bat when I know my female lead won't experience the same. So, I decided to make all three have unique experiences core to their development and character.

There's a lot of pain in the world so I want to alleviate that. However, I feel it necessary to make this known moving forward. This author is a black queer man who supports Black Lives Matter. So a lot of my stories will have emotions and plot-lines geared towards the black experience (modified of course since this doesn't take place in our world). I feel like it's necessary to make that clear moving forward.

And before we move onto lighter things, I also wanna say Rest in Power Chadwick Boseman. You were loved and still are for your amazing contributions to the lives of black peoples and for being an icon that young black actors can strive for.

Nowww, on a lighter note. The song of choice for this chapter was all over the place lol. But I eventually settled on My Sanity by Thrii. They're amazing and that song is so beautiful.

Without further ado, I hope you enjoy the story!

…

Pokémon Adventures: Turquoise, Jasper, & Ammolite

Round 5: VS Turtwig – Legends Part 5

Location: Veilstone City Date: August 4th , 3000 Time: 3:00pm

"Ight," Jasper finally said with a smooth grin. "I'll take your word for it."

Today hadn't gone as Jasper expected. Not surprised there. His days never followed a set plan. Something always came up and disrupted the course. Rocking the boat until he tumbled into the waters and swam for safety. Other times, however, he was surprised with a gift.

Much like today, he chuckled.

Jasper accepted the package from the cute guy. Had to be from Oreburgh with his purple miner hat over his short coils. Dressed the part, though the orange belt was a nice touch. Way better those gaudy belts the miners wore around Veilstone.

The package matched Jasper's aesthetic. Star-themed with his name written almost like constellations. Whoever this was from had great taste. Maybe Jasper could borrow some stationary from them? Regardless, he tore open the package and found three gifts—a timer ball, a letter, and some gadget.

"A pokémon?" Jasper snatched the ball and examined the transparent top. A turtle of some kind slept inside.

Mommy nudged him and flashed another encouraging smile. "Go on," she urged with cacturne mimicking her every move. "Let's see 'em?"

Everyone watched him, awaiting his next move. Even Kito stopped eating for this! Though the little looked fed up with all the waiting. Tapping his feet with arms folded across his tiny chest. Jasper chuckled. If Kito was ready for it then there was no reason why he shouldn't be.

"Ight—c'mon out, buddy!"

In a burst of light and smoke, the pokémon appeared. Much greener than he thought with a twig on its head. Still cute though. Even though it yawned nice and wide without care.

"A turtwig?" Mommy frowned.

Turtwig? Now that was name Jasper remembered. He learned about them in history class. Super rare pokémon that Pokémon Professors researched in Sinnoh. One of the Pokédex Holders had them too if he remembered right. Diamond, was it? Yeah, Diamond of that comedy duo.

But why me? Something soft nudged against his legs. Jasper looked down and smiled. Looks like Turtwig finally noticed him. Little guy smiled at him with those droopy yellow eyes of his.

"Professor Kapok gave you a turtwig, huh?" Baryte mused with furrowed brows. "Weird. What else is in there."

Guess this Professor Kapok didn't give out pokémon often. Much less to strangers. Jasper didn't have any teachers who matched the name. Although, there was this cool guest speaker who always asked him questions. Said something about having the eyes of a pyroar—whatever that meant. Jasper never paid it much mind.

"He gave me this weird-looking gadget," a handheld painted light yellow with purple stars, "and this letter."

A letter addressed to him in perfect script. Jasper snorted. Academics sure loved their cursive writing. Nonetheless, he opened the envelope and took the letter inside. Written in cursive as well, but on more star-themed stationary.

"Greetings, Jasper." Arceus, even the writing sounded intellectual. "I hope you remember me. Spoke at your school while you were just a litleo. Yet your eyes burned with the passion of pyroar. Such ferocity in your moments—I knew you'd be a force in the future."

So, it was them. Jasper assumed they were just another scientist. One of Daddy's colleagues perhaps? He met some of them in the past. Whenever he brought Daddy dinner during overtime hours. His coworkers always gushed about Jasper. Even teased Daddy about having the coolest son ever.

Their words…well, maybe he paraphrased a bit.

But this Professor Kapok came to his school. Taught the best lecture on dark type pokémon he ever sat through. Left without a trace, only to give him a gift years later. Jasper didn't believe much in faith, but this lined up too well not to be!

The letter soaked Jasper's mind with flowery metaphors. A few questionable ones, sure—The hell does "a blazing star in the void" mean? But he pushed through. Poetry was never his strong suit. Though Baryte took to it with ease and explained that stuff for him.

Smart guy, Jasper decided. Though, no surprise there. Baryte gave off the vibes.

He finished the letter shortly after. Only noticed then his trembling hands. The teardrops pelting the paper. And the soft arms hugging him from behind. The sensations struck at once. His heart led the sensation, pounding in beat to his sobs.

Little turtwig even hopped into his arms. Little turtwig—a pokémon he just met—came to comfort him with soft nuzzles to his chest. Jasper accepted each brush and hugged the little guy closer to his chest.

Professor Kapok gave him a gift to treasure. Not just in this new pokémon. But the opportunity of the lifetime inscribed in his words.

"I never enjoyed seeing the lights of stars dimming away," the letter had said. "So, for you, I'll send a private nurse for your mother. So, you may take your journey uninhibited and breathe life into the star burning within you."

…

Jasper emerged from the bathroom refreshed. A grin slapped across his face as he hung a dry towel around his neck. Perfect for catching the water dripping from his shrunken afro. Had to love washdays. Never failed to leave him as stress-free as the towel slung around his waist. Almost made the cold shower worth it.

Almost. Jasper stilled loathed them with a burning passion.

I guess they good for something, Jasper shrugged and walked back to his room. They eased away the sores from his morning workouts. Plus, he felt less tension in his soul.

Still hate 'em though. The disdain, however, didn't last long. Once he slipped into his room, he found the cutest surprise. His new turtwig stood at the door with a fish-eating grin.

Now this made the shower worth it. "You waited for me, Kobe?" The little guy nodded. Even licked his wet legs. Jasper laughed. Such a sweet little guy—unlike Kito who lazed around on his bed.

I gotta thank Professor Kapok when I see him. Maybe buy them a gift. Though, Jasper didn't know where to start! Science wasn't his forte; maybe Baryte had some suggestions? He seemed the type.

Regardless, Jasper had more important business to attend to. Like getting dressed. And he wasted no time throwing on his clothes. Truth be told, he had this outfit picked out for years! Well, sort of —a few changes as his style evolved.

Ge unzipped his stunky track top, showing off his favorite starry night tank top. Paired well with his royal blue track shorts and silver compression tights. Finished off by slipping into a pair of purple and black sneakers.

"How do I look?" Jasper struck a pose. If he had the mass, he would look like all those famous bodybuilders! Especially the ones down in Orre. Now they were massive!

Kito only nodded, bored with it all. Figures—never gave Jasper any credit! So what if he saw it a million times? Kito needed to learn from Kobe. Now he had the perfect amount of enthusiasm as he jumped around and cheered. Jasper grinned. Finally, someone appreciated his swag.

Half of being a trainer was looking the part, right? The half came from being prepared. Jasper already packed up his murkrow travel duffle with the necessities. Now, where did he put his belt?

Ah ha! There it was, hanging off his desk. He strapped it on and clipped his dusk balls in place. Now, he was ready for anything Sinnoh threw at him!

"Jasper?" Mommy stood in the doorframe with cacturne beside her. Her eyes glossy as tears streaked down her face. "You look so handsome."

Jasper blushed and rubbed the back of his head. Maybe it was too early for handsome. He still had to pick out his hair. Couldn't go out with a shrunken 'fro! Especially if Mommy wanted pictures like always. No way he'd embarrass himself again!

"I want you to know this before you leave," Mommy started. "Something I'm sure you know, but reassurance never hurt."

Mommy walked to him. Slowly as if every step burned away at her energy. In some ways, it did. Jasper knew it did. Not just from the illness, but her pride. Back in her day, Mommy rose to the ranks of the Elite Four and mastered Dark-type pokémon. Even conducted extensive research on them. It was, honestly, how she met Daddy. And the two fell in love instantly. Or so they say. Grownups loved telling love stories.

She reached him drenched in sweat. Her breathing labored as cacturne scolded her. Thank Arceus for that guy. Mommy's partner and caretaker. He knew her better than most and never took his eyes off her. It set his heart at ease to know she had him while Jasper left.

"Your father and I are proud of you. Regardless of what path you take. And we'll support and cheer you on through hardships. So, please, don't forget to call home."

Smirking, Jasper hugged her tight. "You don't hafta worry, Mommy." After all these years, his dreams felt closer than ever. "I'll call home and I'll come back. Just you wait."

Time to follow the stars like Professor Kapok said…or whatever that letter meant.

…

"So, you're ready now?" Baryte asked with a smirk.

Jasper rolled his eyes. Wasn't his fought! Mommy refused to stop taking photos. Only Arceus knew what she planned to do with them. Especially the ones with his shrunken afro! She loved showing those off to company. Parents loved embarrassing their kids, Jasper figured. Must be some form of payback from their parents or whatever. Not that he cared.

Okay, maybe he did. If only to stop her from showing those photos to his coach again.

Mommy played a cruel game, but Jasper rose above it. Besides, he had bigger issues to solve. "Yeah, just gotta swing by Lake Valor." He stated, slinging his duffle over his shoulder. "I left Kula there in the morning."

Baryte accepted that and followed him there.

Truth be told, Kula enjoyed Lake Valor more than his room. Not that he blamed her. Jasper always got up early to relax by the lake. Sometimes he spent the morning bathing in the solar rays as his pokémon played. It was easy for him. Under the soft embrace of the lake, he felt at ease. Energized with peaceful energy as the tension eased from every fiber of his being.

On the way there, Jasper boasted about the lake. Encouraged Baryte to take a swim there sometimes but backed off when the miner admitted he couldn't swim. Fit his aesthetic— swimming rock-lover? Jasper laughed.

They arrived at the lakefront easily enough. Jasper knew the route well and took all the best shortcuts. Encountered a few pokémon along the way, of course. And a few trainers who loved losing to him. What could he say? When it came to battling, Jasper held his own.

And so did Baryte. His cranidos rammed through the competition with an impish grin. Had to love it.

When they arrived, however, Jasper felt a shift in the atmosphere. Spirited pokémon lived in Lake Valor and infected the air with bursts of energy. On a good day, he heard the roars of a gyarados breaching free of the crystal blue water and blew a powerful spray to rain over the land. Much like this morning.

Yet the lake was silent. And icky energy crawled through the air and stung at his bare skin.

"This is Lake Valor?" Baryte frowned beside him with a strange look behind those glasses. "It's…somber—not like you described."

Somber…an aura that didn't blame in this lake. Over the years, Jasper only experiences roaring energy blazing through the souls of pokémon and trainers alike. Not this cold hand that strangled his inner flame.

"This is wrong." Jasper walked inside and scowled. That icky energy bit at him, whispering strange warnings in his ears. Warnings that didn't match the usual voices he heard. "Something happened here?"

A thin fog fluttered around them. Chilling as the voices grew louder and that hand tightened its grip. Beside him, Baryte shivered. Couldn't blame the guy. The lake shouldn't feel like this. Unless someone trespassed and disrupted the natural habitat. Jasper frowned. Anyone who disturbed the lake had to deal with him as a Child—

"Gah!" Baryte stumbled into him and pointed a shaky finger and at a downed body up ahead. A dark, bird-shaped…wait a minute!

"Kula!" Jasper scrambled to his murkrow and scooped her into his arms. Something attacked her! An electric-type no doubt; she had electricity dancing through her feathers.

"Jasper?" Baryte whispered, tense and with a hand at his belt. "Look ahead."

Deep in the fog, a ball of light floated. Dancing almost like a bizarre apparition as it came closer. The air thickened and Jasper swore he smelled ozone. Regardless, that icky energy gnawed at him the closer the light came. The voices now a chorus of screaming children submerged underwater. That light had a strange aura to it…much like the lake.

"The trespasser…" Eyes wide, Jasper screamed for Baryte to move. The two went separate ways as a lance of golden electricity shot through the fog and struck down a towering tree! Their attacker emerged from the fog with a ditzy look to it. But the aura it radiated sent the voices in a frenzy, Finally, Jasper understood why.

"A Shadow Pokémon."

For the first time in years, shadow pokémon returned to the lake.

…

Anddd that's the Chapter! Jasper is really fun to play with. Especially cause he has an endless pit of energy that really just writes itself. I adore him lol And Baryte kind of acts like a good balance for him. But that'll come up more later. They're good for each other. In a friendship way lol I haven't given thought to who Jasper is paired with now, but we'll see! Who knows, Jasper and Baryte might be the end result lol.

But anyways, feel free to review or pm with what you think of the chapter!