victory_road | GET YOUR TOWELS READY, IT'S ABOUT TO GO DOWN

GET YOUR TOWELS READY, IT'S ABOUT TO GO DOWN

Wingulls wheel and dive in the salty springtime air of Olivine City's harbor, as white as the gleaming sides of the ship moored directly below. The S.S. Aqua isn't an infrequent visitor in the slightest, but this time it's for a very special occasion! Colorful banners stream from the sides, each one proudly declaring the word PROM in glittery font.

The boarding starts around noon on Friday, and the sight of the huge ship alone is enough to get many people and Pokemon swept up in the party atmosphere. The captain is even there when the ramp is rolled out, wanting to welcome each otherworlder onto the boat personally with a hearty handshake and (mentioning he's a renowned 'people reader'), a recommendation on what part of the cruise he thinks they'll like best based solely on a glance. Weirdly enough, guests might find that he's usually right!

Unsurprisingly, it takes a good long while for everyone to get on board and accounted for, which leaves each guest with plenty of time to find their rooms, dump their luggage, let their Pokemon out to stretch their legs a little, and finally head back to the deck to wave goodbye to the harbor as the SS Aqua heads out onto the open water.

IT'S FINALLY HERE, THE BEST TIME OF YEAR!

For the next three days until it makes its way back to shore on Monday, the lucky cruisegoers can live it up as much as they want. And, as the captain boasts over the announcement system once things are underway, the S.S. Aqua and its staff truly are the hosts with the most-- not even Gorgeous Resort has as much variety as this!

THE ATTRACTIONS

FIRST OF ALL, THE ROOMS!

Each room is fitted with either one or two king-sized beds, making them perfect to share with partners or friends, along with a wide-screen TV, dimmable lights, and fancy bathrooms. With little soaps that have "Please Steal Us!" printed into them.

Depending on whether they're exterior or interior rooms, they may or may not have porthole windows and balconies on the outside.

Check out the "Mood" channel on your TVs, you won't be disappointed.

GET YOUR SWIM ON @ THE WATER PARK

Possibly the first thing about the ship that most people notice (because it's noticeable from a mile away) are the set of pools and waterslides (proudly titled the Winged Mirage Pools) on the very top deck. It's about as wild as it gets while staying within the acceptable safety level for being pools on top of a huge boat. Each pool has its own set of waterslides that turn and twist to your heart’s content, so be mindful of your fellow guests rushing out to drop in on the fun!

Lifeguards are stationed and well-equipped to keep watch over patrons, and will do their best to keep the pools’ populations separated according to the ship’s rules. It would be unsafe, after all, for a small Pokemon to be bowled over by a group of rowdy folks playing water volleyball, or some similar incident.

The Articuno Pool is limited to human swimmers only! It has a small cold-water jaccuzi on the side, and the mosaic tile laid down looks quite similar to deep arctic ice. Pokemon are allowed in the vicinity of the pool but not within the pool itself.

The Zapdos Pool is special pool just for small to medium sized Pokemon to enjoy! It is staggered in two “tiers” and features greenery and water properly calibrated to suit even the pickiest sea Pokemon’s taste. Humans are allowed to supervise their Pokemon, but are asked to not interfere with the many Lifeguard Starmie on duty.

The Moltres Pool, flanked by two warm jacuzzis, is where people and small Pokemon are allowed to swim together! The water is calibrated carefully to be safe for all swimmers, and while it is expected for swimmers to get a little rowdy, Pokemon larger than their trainers are asked to refrain from cannon-balling, for the safety of everyone around them.

IT'S NOT PROM WITHOUT DANCING!

For the main dancing action, you’ll want to go to the Nido-King and Queen Ballroom. There, you can get down and funky with friends and your roster alike in your nicest prom duds to tunes spun out by a live DJ, who will happily and eagerly take your song requests. Don’t be shy, bust out those moves you’ve been holding onto all year!

For those of you who might prefer an all-night techno thump to your dancing, the Porygon2 Discotheque will keep you up and about long into the wee hours of the morning. Featuring actual Porygon2 assisting their DJ trainer, you’ll have their ill mixes and projected lights guiding you into perpetual party heaven.

AND IT'S NOT A PARTY WITHOUT FOOD AND DRINK!

Food is plentiful on board, nowhere more so than Wailord’s Bounty, a buffet operating round the clock to make sure all guests have the chance to fill their plates with delicious morsels whenever they want. While there’s plenty to go around for people and Pokemon, cruise staff do ask that Munchlax and Snorlax are not brought into the buffet. There have been... incidents.

For those looking for fine dining in the evening, look no further than The Mother-of-Clamperl. Slightly fancier than the other areas of the cruise, guests are expected to be dressed somewhat nicely. No showing up in flip-flops! Wear a dress shirt and have some champagne!

Somewhere in between on the fanciness spectrum, The Shiny Corsola may look like a gaudy bar, but lurking in that sparkly, shimmery haven is a smooth nightlife scene with all of the fancy liquor and exquisite jazz you could ever want. The jazz is live, by the way - the Jazzypuffs play an ever-rotating set for your listening pleasure, setting the mood for a sweet, sexy, relaxing night away from the hustle and bustle of cruise life.

AS FOR NON-AQUATIC RECREATION...

The Radical Croconaw Cove is the dope place to chill for preteen and teen promgoers, ya dig? Chock full of tubular snacks and stocked with retro video games that are the bomb-diggety, this is the off-the-hook zone to get your chill on! There’s also some board games too, for you tabletop nerds who want to squeeze a session in.

If you’re after live entertainment, Sudowoodo Centerstage has all your needs covered. Live comedy? Check. Sketches and skits performed by an ever-rotating cast of human and Pokemon actors fresh from Unova’s Pokemon Musical stage? Check! Opportunities for open mic performances by guests? Oh, honey, that box is done CHECKED! That’s right, guests of all species are encouraged to come on up and belt out that Lady Gardevoir cover that’s been stuck in their head, or perform in any other way! the only limitation is that guests are asked to keep Pokemon moves involved to non-destructive ones. After all, this is a cruise ship, not a Contest! And renovating a ship stage can be pricey.

While Goldenrod and Celadon have their Game Corners, the SS Aqua has the Mystery Egg Arcade, welcoming all ages to come and earn technicolor tickets via timing, chance, sharp eyes, and steady hands! Your first twenty tokens are complimentary, the rest shockingly reasonable in price (the equivalent of twenty-five cents per token), and the prizes you can glean are, while not the usual battle items or rare Pokemon, still very nice! Everything from well-made toys to good quality candies to the usual arcade bits and bobs like whoopie cushions and harmonicas, tiny parachute plastic figurines and paper finger traps...it’s all here, and it won’t cost you an arm and a leg in tickets to win it, either!

For those looking for more intellectually stimulating pursuits, the Mantine Maritime Library offers a decent selection of reading materials, all seafaring in nature. From glossy photo spreads of underwater expeditions to reproductions of nautical journals from early sailors in Johto and Kanto history, this place has...well, not everything, but enough to whet your academic appetite.

What cruise ship is complete without an awesome rock wall to climb? Shuckle’s Challenge is specifically for humans, and any Pokemon that can’t learn Rock Climb or similar moves. It’s a test of ability and will, and the top of the rock wall offers a grand prize - the most spectacular view of the open sea on the entire ship.

Colorful and cheerful, Phanpy’s Putting Green is exactly the kind of kid friendly minigolf experience you could come to expect from the Pokemon world. Springy green turf adorned with figurines and obstacles depicting various baby Pokemon in play, it’s a hit with little children as much as it’s amusing for all ages to play a round or two together.

No ship is complete without a place to get in some rigorous physical activity, and The Rink is the perfect place to do so! Fitted with colored spotlights, this arena is fitted with all sorts of sports stuff that shifts throughout the day. For a few hours, it’s a basketball court, then, poof! It shifts to tennis, or racketball, or even a roller skating rink! And in the evening, it is of course open to Pokemon battles! Feel like hosting an impromptu tourney in your friend group with your best partners? This is the place to do it!

...And oh, don’t worry. We didn’t forget the most essential cruise amenity of all. Shuffle board courts can be found where you least expect them, and are always maintained by at least one friendly-looking elderly staff member willing to show you or your Pokemon the ropes. It’d be criminal not to make sure everyone has access to this timeless and treasured activity!

AND ONCE YOU'RE DONE PARTYING HARD...

Rejuvination is the core to the SS Aqua’s Max Revive Spa Center. Equipped with saunas, mineral soaks, and fancy mud masks, you’ll feel like a new ‘Mon once you emerge from their pampering. There’s even a special Trainer and Pokemon massage package for those of you who would like to try and improve your bond with one of your partners. Does it work? Only one way to find out...

While they may not have a specific name, the outdoor deck lounges can be found most everywhere on the outer decks, offering peaceful views of the ocean and any land in the distance that the ship might pass. These decks are awesome places to work on your tan or read a book or chat with a friend without disturbing others or being disturbed, and hold wonderfully atmospheric aesthetics for anyone looking to spot breaching sea Pokemon or take pictures.

[Feel free to toplevel to your heart's content! For more information about the event, check the infopost over here!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[The boy]

[Despite his misgivings about prom, Armin is here. His talk with Cecil had given him a bit more perspective on prom (and mainly on the fact that it is not always a disaster) which had made him a little more confident about attending. And well, if it does go terribly, horribly wrong, they are going to need someone with some large water pokemon to get off this boat. And who better than the guy with a couple of Wailords? Honestly, Armin would never forgive himself if something were to go down and he wouldn’t be here! So suspicious or not, he is here.

Throughout the trip, Armin will be moving around, but there are a few places he returns to often. First on that list is the decks. It is in part to be on the look-out for signs of trouble, but it is also in part because Armin just loves the ocean. And staying up here, where he can feel the sea wind in his hair, watch the waves and watch the water pokemon play among them? After so much time away from the seas, he’s definitely drinking in the experience again. But also being ever vigilant. You just never know, okay!

Eventually, once he has calmed down a bit and has started to relax, Armin can also be found in the Mantine Maritime Library. It is a library, after all, and he is a boy who loves his books. Especially these books about nautical journeys. He should remain vigilant and make sure nothing terrible happens, but sometimes it is just hard to remember that when you are deeply engrossed in the journal of some ancient captain who was the first to discover the Sevii islands. So deeply engrossed he probably didn’t even hear you talking to him at first. And he has sure managed to wedge himself into a tight little ball in that comfy chair while he reads. It is almost impressive.

And perhaps to everybody’s surprise, Armin can also be found in the Mystery Egg Arcade. This sort of place doesn’t really look like Armin’s deal, and it really isn’t. To be honest, he had only ducked in here to make sure everything was fine here. And he hadn’t intended to stay very long, not with all the lights and noise and many games he just wouldn’t know what to do with. But then he had seen… It.

No, not the machine.

It’s what’s inside the machine that caught his eye.

It is beautiful and squishy and absolutely silly and meaningless and he must. have. it.

So, yes, you can also find Armin in front of this one claw machine, furrowing his brows as he feeds tokens into the slot (let him be, he just won the Elite Four, he can spend his money however he wants, dad) learning the ropes of how these machines work (it’s only the first time he’s ever played one) and trying to bring home the grand prize. Well, the grand prize in his eyes. There is probably bigger and more impressive plushies to win, but how could they ever measure up to the best legendary beast of them all?

Finally, Armin can also be found in the Nido-King and Queen Ball Room cutting a— well, no. Not cutting a rug. In fact, he isn’t really planning on doing any dancing. Instead, he’s stationed himself near a wall and for once it isn’t because he isn’t much of a social butterfly. Instead, he is standing watch. Certainly, nothing has happened on this cruise so far, and that had certainly helped Armin relax a bit more. But if the past two proms had taught him anything, it is that things always go wrong during the big finale. So here he is, all his pokemon in their balls (except Princess and Amber who are swimming on either side of the ship, ready to serve as giant rescue whales) and his wayward stowaway Arthur sitting on his shoulders. Armin doesn’t feel too good about that bit. He had never intended to bring the Sobble here, but now that he was here, Armin feels better with the little creature with him than he does leaving him in his room. If something does happen, he wants to be able to protect him, after all.

The people who attended prom last year may recognise his outfit or his bowtie. Because why buy something new when you have something perfectly serviceable hanging in your closet?]

[The Pokemon]

[With his mind set on making sure there won’t be any trouble at this year’s prom, Armin chose the pokemon on his team carefully.

First, are his two Wailords Amber and Princess, who can be spotted by all swimming alongside the boat. They are far too large to be on the boat, but should anything happen, they’ll make for an excellent emergency escape. Let’s just hope nothing of the sort will be needed. Amber, the largest of the two Wailords, sticks mostly to the left of the boat, friendly towards both pokemon and human alike, and more than happy to entertain people with the occasional spectacular breaching. Princess, the smaller of the two Wailords, sticks mostly to the right of the boat. Like her mother, she spends some of her time breaching from the water, though she does it with a lot more youthful and cheery abandon. She only recently evolved, so even to her, this is still exciting and new. When she isn’t breaching and making a spectacular show of herself, she can be found swimming closer to the boat, listening intently to the song of a cute little Skitty.

Athena the Golduck can mostly be found in Armin’s company. A new pokemon in his team, she still isn’t all to sure what to do with crowds of this size or this many pokemon gathered together. She seems most interested in the Mantine Maritime Library with Armin, and if she is not with her trainer, she can be found there, poking at the books in interest. She cannot read (yet!) but she certainly enjoys looking at the pictures. A water pokemon she might be, but she grew up on Victory Road, far away from oceans and seas. This is all new and intriguing to her.

Meanwhile, Armin’s new Vaporeon Julius and his Gorebyss Beau have discovered a mutual love for pampering and being beautiful and are hitting up the spas and massages together. Mud-baths, fin massages, bubble baths, scale scrubs — they are here for all of this and more!

Armin’s final pokemon, a rather fearsome looking Huntail named Belle, is hanging around the pools, especially the pools where many of the smaller, cuter pokemon have gathered. With her large jaws and fearsome fangs, one might suspect her of looking for a tasty little treat to gobble up, but nothing could be further from the truth! She is the sugar to her brother Beau’s spice, and nothing but nice from the tippy of her little fish shaded tail to the sharp end of her chompers. Too bad many pokemon and understandably frightened by her appearance, because all she wants is to make friends. So she lingers, mostly partially hidden under tables and deck chairs, watching the happy, playful ongoings, wanting to join but also not wanting to make anyone frightened.

Those are the six pokemon Armin knew he brought along. But it turns out… there is another.

Arthur the swobble, terrified of poke balls after everything that happened on that awful plane, has been sticking close to Armin ever since Armin rescued him on Victory Road. Armin had tried to leave the little sobble behind back home, reasoning that a big prom with every risk of things going horribly wrong is no place to bring one traumatised little pokemon. Arthur, however, had disagreed. Hiding in Armin’s bag, he had stowed away on board. However, being just a baby and never having been on a cruise, Arthur hadn’t realised just how big these cruises are! And how loud! And full of strange people and pokemon. He’s already gotten turned around so often, he’s completely lost the way back to Armin’s cabin, so instead, have one little stowaway, anxiously skittering around the boat, mostly invisible (hey, did that table cloth just move on its own?) sometimes curling up in a tight little ball in a little hidey-hole as he tries to gather up enough courage to A, not cry, and B, venture out and find his trainer.]

[ there's a curious little bark from above belle. she might hear a smaller pokemon moving around on the chairs above her, before they peek their head down.

it is a male brionne, and he blinks, then looks positively delighted to see belle.

what is she doing under the tables? wouldn't she feel more comfortable hanging out in the pool? ]

[Belle raises her head a bit when she hears another pokemon moving above her, but when the Brionne's head pops... up? Down? she rears back in a bit of surprise. She isn't really used to being approached by other pokemon!

At the question, she shakes her head. Oh no, she couldn't. She doesn't think anyone else would like that. But thank you for asking.]

[ bodhi clambers down in order to sit across from belle - not blocking her off but getting on her level, at least.

he raises a paw to scratch his muzzle. the other pokemon might not be used to her at first, but certainly they would get over it. he's more than happy to accompany her, so she won't go in alone! ]

[Honestly, she really doesn't mind! She is a bit shy, certainly, but it is not like she is easy to spook. In fact, she kind of appreciates him sitting down with her. At least this pokemon doesn't seem scared of her!

It just seems rather rude to interrupt their happy fun. Everybody came here to relax, after all.]

[ bodhi seems a bit sad that she doesn't want to scare the other pokemon. but instead, he comes up with a plan.

he's more than happy to sit here with her! when the others and their trainers go to lunch, they can swim in the pool - there will be less pokemon and surely some more space for her! ]

[Oh. That... that sounds like a very nice idea. She'd like that.

And could she ask him for his name, by any chance? Hers is Belle. She has a twin brother named Beau, but he seems to have gone off on his own right now.]

Armin Arlert + pokemon | ota

it's time for another romance

we are so full of romance

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Mystery Egg Arcade

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decks!

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decks

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