<span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 24pt;">Welcome to Black Paradise</span><br/><br/><em>"If you know you have the ability to do something, and you know that there is a need, then assume that nobody else will do it. Be the one to act." ~ Micah "Norman" Oak</em><br/><br/>RP Main Theme: "We Don't Need Another Hero" ~ Northern Kings (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKwQKqQ8MMY#ws)<br/><br/>Greetings, and welcome to a voyage that's sure to be a defining moment in your life. If you're not ready to embrace what the world has for you...if you don't have what it takes...then now is the time for you to retreat before the darkness claims you as its own.<br/><br/>This journey of souls will take you on paths you never knew existed, and your paths will cross with those of other people who are on the same journey as you: life. What affect you have on them, and what affect you have on the world is entirely up to you.<br/><br/>Make your place in a slowly descending world full of people who all want to make a place--and a name--for themselves.<br/><br/><br/><em><strong>Black Paradise Ascension Is...</strong></em><br/><br/>Everything that you make of it. This is your RP, and your character's story. While there is a backbone structure to the plot that holds it in place and keeps it moving in one general direction, the number of sub plots and the paths that your characters take personally is ENTIRELY up to you.<br/><br/>BPA is a unique blend of Adventure RP and Fan Fiction, computer program and creativity, crossover and single universe. It is, for all intents and purposes, a pokemon RP. However, it derives its story from multiple games. From Dragon Warrior to Dragon Quest Monsters to Rune Factory, plots and tales have been combined and fit into the pokemon world to create one single and very grand pokemon universe. You'll learn much more about the history and past of this universe as you play with us. For now, just take your character and dive in, feet first.<br/><br/><em><strong>Before You Post...</strong></em><br/><br/>Please remember to make sure that you address all of the following:<br/><br/>1. Be sure that you read and fully understand the Pokemon: Black Paradise Ascension RP Rules. (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119741.0)<br/><br/>2. Create your character for approval in the Black Paradise Ascension Recruitment Thread. (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.0)<br/><br/>3. Review the Basics of Training if you plan on wielding pokemon in battle and be sure to download the Pokemon Online Battle Client (http://pokemon-online.eu/) if you haven't already. Build your team accordingly.<br/><br/>4. Read this introductory post in its entirety.<br/><br/>5. Make your entry into BPA an interesting one. Remember, this is a story. Let's all try to contribute only our very best. Anything less could easily take away from the experience for everyone.<br/><br/>6. Ask questions if you need to. The OOC/FAQ thread (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119745.0) is always open. Whether about the story, the characters, the rules, or anything related, you can pm me or post your OOC comments/concerns anytime. I always welcome questions, ideas, and suggestions, and will also try to keep the FAQ maintained and updated. If I am not on to answer you immediately, I will do so as soon as I get the chance.<br/><br/>7. Most importantly, just HAVE FUN!!! Be your character and indulge yourself in this fantasy world. There's no shame in playing a good game. And if you don't think you can have fun, well... Let's just say you're in the wrong place XD.<br/><br/>---<br/><br/><strong>Prologue</strong><br/><br/>For so many, monsters form the focal point of their lives. It's been this way for centuries. Few even know of a time when monsters and humans did not work side by side, mutually benefiting one another. Raising and training monsters for protection is a viable profession. Researching them is a respected form of public service, and very few people have not owned a monster at least once in their lives. Pokemon live among us all. They are our friends and our family, and they bond to us on an individual basis. Nearly everyone believes in living peacefully with them and expanding society with their aid.<br/><br/>In some cases, humans and monsters even engage in acts of profane intimacy. And while that is not the socially accepted norm, it is becoming more and more common.<br/><br/>These are the ties that bind.<br/><br/>But it wasn't always this way.<br/><br/>Some thousands upon thousands of years ago, this planet was pure, free of humans and monsters as well. It wasn't until the end of the old world that everything changed. Before then, in that brilliant land of Terca Lumereis-- the "World of Light"-- humans lived and advanced with great technological leaps and bounds. It was a time of magic, of swordplay, and of harnessing massive amounts of power for the benefit of human kind. One such power delivered the promise of eternal prosperity. The balance of the light and dark, good and evil, yin and yang in the world itself was discovered and captured for human empowerment. They called it Aer, and learned to amplify and control it with mysterious and beautiful structures known as Blastia.<br/><br/>The cores that formed the Blastia were harvested from mighty beings known as Entelexia--godlike creatures with the power to balance life itself. The more cores were harvested, the fewer Entelexia there were to balance the forces of good and evil and lessen the impact of concentrated Aer springs that began arising across the globe. The rampant Aer gained a consciousness...a power of its own. And it became the Adephagos.<br/><br/>A formless demon of tremendous power, drifting across the sky and clouding it with its darkness, it corrupted the animals of the world and turned them into monsters. War was waged, and though a good few humans tries to reverse the damage already done, only so much could be accomplished. They staved off the power of the Adephagos temporarily, but with the Entelexia gone and nothing but their spirits remaining, there was nothing to prevent the Adephagos from rising again. When that happened, the demon gave itself many bodies by imparting itself into more animals and creating more monsters. The world was overrun, and as the numbers swelled, the Adephagos gained enough power to consume the remaining spirits of the Entelexia.<br/><br/>Only one was saved, secured in a precious spirit egg to convey her transfer to the new world with the last surviving humans. The spirit of the Entelexia Phaeroh, Efreet, sacrificed himself to ensure that she made it safely. He was consumed by the Adephagos...and his soul bound to the monsters that the demon power controlled. The old world died, swallowed by the monsters and their terrible leader. All of its beauty was lost, and it became Alefgard, "The Dark World." The Forest of Beginnings.<br/><br/>The humans, meanwhile, made it to the new land--the world we now know as our own. The dimensional gate was closed behind them, and they presumed themselves safe. But as they advanced in their society and the world moved on from the tragic past, monsters again emerged...And no one knew from where. Armies commanded by the Lizard Mage Baramos assaulted human settlements, and war was declared, beginning another long-standing fight against monsters and the darkness they carried within.<br/><br/>The battle crossed over generations, and heroes emerged for every age to defend their lands--each one of them given a chance to forever destroy the slowly growing demon that had entered into their world. Each one of them had a weakness. Because of their weaknesses, the heroes all defeated the demon as he manifested himself to them, but they could never bring them to destroy his connection to their world, lest they dispose of a family heirloom and symbol of a kingdom's prosperity, or murder a friend, or cause the death of a family member. Their inability to finish what they began saved their lands temporarily, but always left the demon lurking formlessly among them intact.<br/><br/>And it grew every time they failed.<br/><br/>Then it was discovered that monsters could be tamed. The demon, in his dark and cruel wisdom, realized a valuable opportunity to get closer to the human population, and he allowed his puppets to lose some of their animosity for humans that they may become part of society. It was not well met by most people at fist, but over time more people discovered the benefits and found that it was easier to tame a monster and use it to defend you than to go to battle yourself. Before long, it was the rule rather than the exception to share your town with the beasts. And the demon grew stronger, forgotten in the shadows now that he no longer had reason to wage war. The monsters were precious trojan horses. They would buy him time to settle deeply into the very fabric of the world, the way he had done in Terca Lumereis. And then, when he was rooted so deeply in every living thing, he would simply overtake them all, and they would not have a chance to run this time.<br/><br/>It was a perfect plan. And it could have worked too, if not for one minor complication.<br/><br/>One creature--the once great spirit of Phaeroh--opposed the demon vehemently. So amused was the demon by the pathetic endeavors of a creature that he already controlled, that the evil entity allowed the creature to formulate his own plans against the darkness in hopes of saving the human world, only to use the humans against him every time, dash his hopes, and slay his body. But the demon would always give new life to this poor being, if only to watch him struggle and suffer again and again. This creature had many names, but eventually became known as the incarnus.<br/><br/>The incarnus was the one who chose the heroes, guarded their bloodline, and was the most disappointed when they never could accomplish his ends. With the demon growing ever stronger and the requirements to end his reign ever more steep, the incarnus abandoned the heroic bloodline and decided to seek a human not native to this world and entirely untouched by demonic spirits. But these efforts would prove just as difficult, and as he searched, time passed.<br/><br/>Today, the demon lord is not even a thought in the back of people's minds. Everyone has explanations for everything, and life is good. But under the surface, the planet festers and breathes with its own putrid life. The very rocks underfoot bear the pulse of darkness. Yet this knowledge is almost completely lost to all.<br/><br/>However....<br/><br/>That is about to change.<br/><br/><br/>---<br/><br/><span class="bbc_u"><strong>Approved Characters/Applicants</strong></span><br/>Ace -- Played by SammyGirl<br/>Alphonse Logare (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5232444#msg5232444) -- Played by TheHangedMan<br/>Blane (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5446404#msg5446404) -- Played by pendarious<br/>Charity Oak -- Played by SammyGirl<br/>Gary Oak  (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5385425#msg5385425) -- Played by Savant of the Wastes<br/>"GeeEm" (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5448965#msg5448965) -- Played by SammyGirl<br/>Mewtwo (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5234682#msg5234682) -- Played by Angzyne<br/>Renna (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5243590#msg5243590) -- Played by pendarious<br/>Samuel Oak -- Played by SammyGirl<br/>Sarianna (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5234331#msg5234331) -- Played by Karasu<br/>Zeema (http://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=119561.msg5243944#msg5243944) -- Played by Karasu<br/><br/>---<br/><strong>NPCs</strong><br/>If you need another character, but don't want to go through the trouble of registering a new main character for yourself, you're invited to make or use an NPC. These characters may be under any person's control. Unnamed NPCs are most common, and will serve as all the background people, average citizens, etc. Occasionally, you may use an NPC more than once or give them a slightly more active role in the story. If this happens, and the NPC is given a name, it will be listed below along with their personality. If you wish to play an NPC character that someone else has developed, please stay true to their personalities and do not take them on if you don't think that you are a good fit. More than one person may play any of these NPCs, as long as they do not conflict in the story.<br/><br/><br/><em><span class="bbc_u">Jonathan Boyer</span>:</em>Jonathan is a scientist, and even more so a technician. He is fascinated by machinery and the inner workings of computers, and he knows how to build marvelous devices. He is a very close friend of Oak and her family, and although once considered both geeky AND nerdy for his intellect and obsessive interests in science, machines, and books, he is now very well respected by scientists and trainers the world over. He is happy-go-lucky, sometimes shy, and very sheepish. He has bright red curly hair, glasses, and he almost always wears his white lab coat, even to dinner.<br/><br/><em><span class="bbc_u">Micah "Norman" Oak:</span></em>Gym leader of Petalburg City, Micah prefers his middle name, Norman, be used by everyone else but his close family. A married man with a young daughter only just old enough for her own pokemon journey, Micah is very dedicated to family and his work. A twin by birth, he is very protective of his sister, Crystal. He has very dark brown, almost black hair, and deep hazel eyes. He's thoughtful and level-headed, and although he is very slow to lose his temper, he absolutely won't take disrespect. His favored pokemon are Slaking, Slakoth, Vigoroth, Spinda, and Absol. He has many others, however, and has had Legendaries in his possession at many times throughout his life, including Rayquaza. He is resolute, strong, and a determined fighter, stalwart in the face of danger, and always unflinching. He adores his young daughter, Ruby, but he doesn't spoil her, instead trying to teach her how to be strong as well.