Welcome to Gaia! ::

Kage looked at Jake and smiled sleepily "Hey Jake, I'm just going to the ceremony. You coming?" He asked

"Yeah, of course." said Jake. "Hey, Al!" Jake said as he passed Al on their way to the ceremony.

As the trainers started to gather on deck, the crew of the S.S. Anne itself had filled up most of the passageways on starboard and port on all levels inside the ship. That is, the ones except those who were in the engine room and the control room, of course. People wearing white sailor outfits began to stand out in the crowd of trainers, all of them looking sturdy and tough. At once, as the sailors assembled, all of them began to cheer, with rough and tough manly roars.

"Hail S.S. Anne! Hail Vermilion!"

And from the electronic speakers installed in areas of the ship, coming from those, was none other than the captain's voice... and, some of the crew's voices as well as they were still in the middle of a conversation when the microphone was turned on.

"You should be down there, captain,"

"No, it would be fine for me here. The decks full of trainers, can you not see that?"

"Even so, the captain's presence is-"

"WELCOME AND THANK YOU FOR SAILING WITH US!" cracked a very loud Captain. Obviously, he was trying to end the argument with his co-captain in the cockpit. "TODAY, WE WILL BE SAILING THROUGH THE SOUTHERN KANTO SEAS! A splendid afternoon to you all!" he bid the trainers, a few of whom reacted in a funny way - the rest, giggled and thought that it was rather humorous.

The captain continued.

"First off, I'd like to inform everyone - rather, remind everyone that we will be making a one day stop at the Seafoam Islands to refuel. Not only that, but we also want to be able to join the Glacier Festival, and its opening tonight. For now, I will announce the start of the fourth annual S.S.Anne Magikarp Catching Contest!"

"Now, for those who are not familiar with the tradition of the ship, it is held only once a year on the day before the Seafoam Island's celebration of the Glacier Festival. It is also, to honor the souther Kanto sea, of course. The mechanics are simple. Catch the biggest Magikarp! You have until the point where we reach the Seafoam Islands! Once we dock, we will announce the winners of the contest and the top three will get a special prize!"

"Now, remember, it's not bait that's the key to winning, but, it's patience! Water Pokemon are common in these parts, so, as Captain and a fan of Water Pokemon myself, let us preserve their habitat. Strictly, NO LITTERING!"

"Also, if you happen to catch any other Pokemon than Magikarp, our sailors will help you return them to sea. That's right folks, we only allow catching of Magikarp, and not any other Pokemon, so if you happen to reel in a Lapras - BOY! Will you be ever so disappointed! Fwahahaha!"

"But regardless, we are all Pokemon lovers, and so, we shall not capture them if we only wish to win a prize! Folks, THIS ISN'T THE SAFARI ZONE!"

"One last reminder, though, you may only catch ONE Magikarp for the day! That's right! Once you hook one, you'll have to take care of it until the END of our voyage! In this way, the playing grounds are fair, and after saying so, it reminds me of some last few reminders that I have to mention, too!"

"STRICTLY NO CHEATING IS ALLOWED. You may not meddle with another trainer's fishing strategies, nor purposely tangle their wires, or order your own Pokemon to eat their bait. Cheaters will be gladly thrown overboard by our sailors. Also, do not try to pass off your Feebas for a Magikarp by painting it red. We have had several cases of this already. As I've said, we are all Pokemon lovers. Besides, Feebas would not like it if it is painted red. People who do not comply will be thrown directly overboard by our loyal sailors,"

"And now, the time has come! Trainers, ready your fishing rods! Bait is available on deck via a Bait Booth that we've now set up! We apologize for the trainers who have not brought their fishing rods with them, as well. We have no spare rods available - so better luck next time. AND!"

"Without further ado, the Magikarp Fishing Contest now begins! On your marks, get set... and - FISH!"

((So mechanics:
-Raskal and I will be the judges, on account of we are not joining this event.

- simply make ONLY ONE DETAILED post about how you manage to catch a Magikarp. THIS POST WILL BE YOUR ENTRY FOR THE MINIGAME. The more DETAILED it is, the more you make your RPC struggle to catch the fish, the longer, the more it makes sense as a STORY - THE BETTER.

- you may say that you've successfully reeled in a FINNEON, but you are not allowed to catch it. Instead, you will have to release it and try again, so to speak.

- you may use ANY MEANS to catch a Magikarp which involves a FISHING ROD. Just, don't whack the Magikarp silly with it, or, have your Electric Type Pokemon K.O. the poor thing for you. Remember, the 'captain' has already set some rules.

- DON'T GET YOURSELF THROWN OVERBOARD. That's right. Violation of the rules set by the 'CAPTAIN' in the above post, including the rules in this OOC post, gets your RPC thrown off. Remember this: one strike and you're practically swimming with the Magikarp.

I think about sums it up. Go fish for your life, and good luck! ONE POST WILL MAKE YOUR ENTRY. YOUR NEXT POST SHOULD BE YOUR ENTRY POST - THE POST AFTER THAT WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED AS YOUR ENTRY POST.

Winners, three of them, will be given the following:

1st - Happiny Egg + Water Stone
2nd - Smoochum Egg + Fire Stone
3rd - Magby Egg + Leaf Stone))

((Obviously, this post isn't about catching Magikarp so this isn't it. XD.))

(( Yeah, lolz. Lilly won't be in the competition. biggrin ))

TRying for at least 3rd place, Al grabbed his fishing rod and started to fish. Knowing that Magikarp are common, Al figured he had a good chance. Before Long, Alphonse felt a tug on the line, pulling him forward. "Whoa now! We got a fighter!" Pulling as hard as he could, Al and Pikachu finally got the fish out of the water, a struggling Magikarp flailing while holding the bait and line.

"I won't be participating but i'll watch you win the catching contest." Jake smiled.