#poikkeus is finnish for exception

[wispisstillverybored67]

Poikkeus

Sphinx (also known as Team Sphinx)

A trio of rogue Pokémon Trainers under the name of Sphinx. They are extremely skilled battlers, and are ruthless to their enemies, and have no qualms for using their Pokémon to enact destruction. Having arose a couple of days after several hundred thousand dollars worth in technology from the Japanese government, they are under suspicion for that crime as well, but due to their efficiency, they leave no traces of themselves while carrying out their business. They consist of the intellectual yet psychopathic Sphinx #1, wearing a blue mask, the childishly sadistic Sphinx #2, wearing a yellow mask, and the hammy yet crass Sphinx #3, wearing a red mask. They all managed to acquire extremely rare Pokémon, such as Shiny, Mythical, and even Paradox Pokémon, but their methods are all unknown.

They speak of "pulling the trigger on this world", and their cries become more audible as the days go by. They all appear to be slightly young for their skills, judging from their voice, but nobody knows what secrets lie under the Sentai masks...

??? Ten

Sphinx #3

"The Ghastly Requiem"

The only girl in the Sphinx triad, red #3 likes to act all cheerful and condescending to her enemies, but she's actually nagging and cross. Remembers everything and forgives no one. Vocal about "pulling the last trigger". Only has a soft spot for her beloved Shiny Mimikyu, Lilian, and her boys.

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"The train's here. Let's go," I called out to them. We quickly headed inside with our stuff, and sat down in an isolated cart. Just the three of us moving to Sapporo, in search of more strength. Three kids moving to another home yet again would look slightly suspicious.

We adjusted ourselves, then Nine pulled out the book, containing information for what Pokémon can be found where, and extensive "tips" for catching and raising them. Squinting to read the words, the rest of us waited expectedly for him to say something.

"Can you read it? What does it say about Hokkaido?" I asked, half-aware of why this arrangement wouldn't work.

"Yeah, what's it? What's it?" Twelve impatiently wanted an answer.

"*sigh* I told you... You can just ask one of us to hold it up so you can see." Taking the book away from him, I stood up and held it far enough without gaining any attention so he could see. "We'll find you some glasses, soon." I assured him. To this, he blushed at the fact, that he's farsighted.

"So... What are we going to expect over in Hokkaido?" I asked, slowly. The train has been since moving along, so I was careful not to stumble. In this day and time, not a lot of people would be here... But we'll see.

"Ah, listen to this. There's a number of ones like the Roserade, Garchomp, Weavile, Yanmega, and Togekiss lines, and even things like the Ezo forms of Pokémon. Plus, there've been sightings of Mythical Pokémon, such as Manaphy, Darkrai, and even Zeraora," He recounted. How nice, I thought.

"Since it's mid-spring, the first and last two lines shown over here would be especially populous. Efficient for about half a day's worth of time spent catching, I reckon," I sat back down once the info was relayed between the three of us.

"Does it say anything about Goomies? I wanna make, like, the biggest stack of them!" Twelve jumped at the thought of having even one of the little guys.

"Those things usually come out in the fall and winter. While the place IS cool enough, it's also a wee too late for Goomy to pop up now, don't you think?" I told him. He slumped back into his seat, making a face: >:P.

"We'll get there soon enough, keep your heads down, boys," I reassured the two. Actually, it would be a few hours, more or less depending on how the conditions turn out, so we'll get there at the late evening.

Soon enough, the train became slightly packed, even at the far end we situated ourselves in. We did manage to keep them at bay and away from us through keeping up space on the seats with our luggage. Admittedly, it wasn't much, since we took only the essentials, but who's gonna be the judge of that?

From across, we felt the eyes of other passengers gazing at us, perplexed, maybe concerned, or piteous at us. But it's all a bunch of lies woven under a soft velvet of obligation and threads of apathy barely hidden together. People are full of lies. We can only rely on each other, it's better that way. We had nothing to do but ignore them. I was scrolling through news reports on a tablet I picked up a day ago. Nine quickly fell asleep from a combination of staying up until late to read, and the gentle rumbling of the train. Twelve was glued to the window, curious, and antsy to do something else, something fun, but we can't do anything that would draw attention. Though I suppose the book-reading also counted... Regardless, the goal is to get to Hokkaido quickly and quietly.

Of course, the surprise we got on the ride was something I can't forget. You'll find out why soon...

From the back of the seat, someone was kicking the seat in the back of me. An annoying, jangy sound, but then whoever was pulling this stunt off started poking my shoulder, or hitting my head with something, but it was light enough so it wouldn't be noticed. Or, rather, light enough so if you'd complain about it, you'd seem sensitive.

"Ten?" Twelve perked up about the scene, half confused, and half enjoying it.

I turned over to the other seat. A teenager and a child in her side, the kid was no older than 5. No sign of an adult, so that's good. "Cut it out," I quietly, but sharply implored him.

"Hey-" The teenager with him was going to say something, but I looked back before she could.

The train made a stop. More people file in. Still, it's not fully stuffed. More like, semi-quarter full.

"Excuse me," Another woman's voice went as we began to move again. Discreetly, I turned around to her direction, but made sure not to look at her in the eye.

"Hm?"

"My niece tells me that you've been bothering her, and her friend too. And that's my seat," No, it's not.

Reluctantly, I actually faced her. An Aroma Lady was the source of the voice. Her face was neutral, her stance protective, and her hand was on the younger child. It's become a habit of analyzing body language to detect any possibilities. Face, language, tone, stance. It was better than nothing. But this woman... A knot formed in my stomach. I had to confirm it later if things escalated.

"This is our seat," I said, flatly. "And that kid has been continuously hitting me with who-knows-what since 4 times the train has stopped." Her brow furrowed, then she looked at the lad, who, as I checked, was back at the other side, and just mouthed an "It wasn't that hard". Hmph.

"Well, that's one mystery solved. But yes, this is my seat. I couldn't sit next to my niece once I entered, so the ticket instead reads Line I-35, cart F-"

"Side C, section 9, either side. Ergo, what is on my ticket," I didn't even bother showing her the source, but she was stumped once she heard it, and when she stuck her hand out, I had no other choice.

"But that's preposterous. My ticket has the exact same settings!" *sigh* Just what I needed... An eventful day.

"Hey... where are your parents, anyways?" She instead pondered, pointing to us three in total. I know the answer to that one... bitch.

"Well, alright. How about this? You and me battle right now, one on one, and whichever girl wins gets the seat. We have enough space anyways, I think..." She held out a Nest Ball to her chest, then showed it to me. I grumbled a bit, then looked to the boys. Nine has woken up, judging from him rubbing his eyes. Ugh, I need to have him to sleep better tonight.

"What say you, then?"

"Alright then... But no more than this. And if I win, you will leave us alone," I held out my Repeat Ball. Lilian should suffice. She is my oldest friend.

"Sorry," I briefly apologized to the guys, then stood up to the car hall, where the other passengers have cleared the way so we can battle.

At my end of the hall, the woman was at hers.

"You can call me Bachiko. Bachiko Hanamura." !! Fuck! Why couldn't you have just left us alone?!

"Now, go! Lulu, it's go time!" Bachiko called out her chosen Pokémon. A Breloom. A sight I recognize.

"Come to me, Lilian." Then I called her out. "Call me... Rin," In this void of emotion, I only wanted to end this already. Consider me annoyed.

She seemed confused when she saw Lilian, so I provided a bit of expo.

"Mimikyu... Disguise Pokémon. A Ghost type. Found in vast quantities in Hawaii, but also in Tokyo, and the equatorial islands. Mimics Pikachu out of a want of friends," I sighed. The Fairy type theory isn't very widespread, so I kept quiet on that. "Lilies have a variety of meanings... based on color. The orange lily symbolizes both passion and hatred," I later remarked. She shuffled awkwardly in her position. So I made the first move.

"White lilies symbolize purity and innocence. Now, Shadow Sneak," I uttered. From beyond the shadow... *shwoosh* Quickly, now. I want to end this quickly now.

"Oh! Right... 'Kay, Lulu, use Poison Jab!" Nice try. The attack connected, but it just destroyed her front.

"Hey. What's up with Mimikyu?" She inquired.

"Ability... Disguise. Once a battle, the disguise she bears nullifies exactly one attack. This species is said to never forgive those who break its shroud," I remarked. She tensed up at this remark. Now, what shall I do with her...?

"Leech Life," Let me just take some health... Yoink. There we go.

"Ouch... Lulu, now use Seed Bomb!" She then fired at will. Nice try... Seeds crash, seeds that look more like pumpkins, but Lilian barely took a scratch. She was left duped. Absolutely duped.

"Bulk Up," Feel this last hit. I'll end this next.

"Poison Jab!" Don't waste your breath. Lilian even shrugged this hit off with only a bit of damage. Though the other's Breloom seemed to have caught on that something is a little off.

"Now, Lilian. Shadow Claw," She slipped back into the shadows, leaving the target stumped. From behind the bewildered foe... *sshwing* This battle is over. Bachiko is perplexed.

"Woah. You've got... strong stuff," Resigned, she walked back to me. "Ten, was it? Has anyone ever told you that you look like a 'Shinobu'? How come your parents called you a foreign number?" You misunderstood.

"You remind me so much of... someone I knew before. Little Ryūko from the past..." And you don't even remember. What do I expect?! "Well, you've got me good. I'll be on my way," Before she left, she handed me the prize money. 4,389p, huh? I'm not complaining, but this much? I would've expected, like, 900p or so. And just like that, she and her group left for another cart. The cart we're in seemed to have cleared up a bit, or at least everyone shuffled away from us. Somewhat satisfied, I sat back down to the boys. The two of them had a strange look on their face. One of concern.

"Ten? You OK?" Twelve asked, unable to mask his worry with his usual lightness.

"That look in your eyes as you battled her... You're never this angered, much less with a stranger," Nine knows, at least. He at least knew a bit more of that sight.

Looking around, I guessed that it didn't hurt to say it all. "That was my mother!" My tone was deafening, yet quiet. "My birth mother was Bachiko, and she's forgotten about her abandoning me!" The two boys were chilled, at the new information presented to them. From birth, to now, and to my death. I've always been able to remember all things clearly. I caught her name shortly before she handed me off to an orphanage in Yokohama. Now, she doesn't even remember me. Of course...

Twelve glanced back at the direction the woman went, not having got an image of her face. So he just pointed to her old direction out of mild disbelief. Nodding a 'yes', now they both had the look. I didn't even bother sending Lilian back into her Ball. Her presence helps calm me down, and I didn't notice the white knuckle I had my fists in until I went back to my seat.

I don't believe in honoring family. Much less, honoring that hag, when the nicest thing she ever did to me was dropping me off in the middle of Yokohama, where the Athena Project scooped me up, and leading me to meet Nine and Twelve, and Lilian too. If I had a "family" to consider, it would be us. But we're not family. Just a trio of children, and their Pokémon, trying to survive on their own, because we only have each other TO rely on. The little one nuzzled up against me, wanting snacks, I assume.

You should probably get some rest, too, I thought to myself. But I have to keep watch, and handle supplies and whatnot.

It was barely breaking evening now. We'll be there soon, but... Grumbling, I pulled the fuel bag closer to my side, and clung to myself. A whisper escaped my lips. I'm so tired.

"I want to be free from this world..."