ITT: We Have All Become Pokémon

Glastone, Grigori's Group

The plan is to find any leads within the Harbor. If we haven't found anything, we'll just double back and reach the other houses if possible. If we do, we'll investigate further to see if we get anything else.

(I'm not entirely sure if that Wurmple is entirely trustworthy, but at this point, we'll have to take what we can get. Better than just wandering around and hoping for a lead to come to us.)

"I treasure every day with you, darling." "No need to be so sappy, love." "You know that's how she is, Nia." - AU!Pyra, Nia, Mythra

[Glastone (Grigori's Group)]

"Sounds like a plan to me," Royal said in regards to Grigori's explanation. "Hopefully they're much less crabby than the last couple of peeps we tried to ask questions."

Glastone, Grigs Group

Well, we bettah figure dis thing out, then, othawise we're gonna be in a world 'a trouble. Tell you fellas what, though,

Marsha idly adjusts her flower as she walks in step with the rest of the group,

if we end up in anothah Hoard situation, or Whisperin' Pines, we gonna be ready ta just get outta heres? Our Vector is one thing, keepin' ourselves safe is a whole otha thing. So much about dis just seems so familiar somehow.

Yet so different.

Edited by Team42Larson on Jan 9th 2022 at 6:59:23 AM

Tell....everyone....

Glsatone (Marlon's group)

Yeah, it makes a huge mess. Just ask me. (Ed says.)

---

Glastone (Grigori's group)

(Delilah doesn't seem to like the idea of just leaving everyone at the mercy of a VA vector if things end up going wrong.)

Marsha, even if we can't prevent the situation here from becoming another Hoard, we can't just leave without trying to help anyone escape if it has to come down to that. (Delilah says.) Just because Mila warned us about getting in over our heads again doesn't mean we can't just stop trying to help ANYBODY anymore.

(What sounds to Delilah like Marsha implying that they should have left Whispering Pines seems to have struck a nerve with Delilah as well, as her tone gets more irritated-sounding when she continues:) Besides, if we had just left Whispering Pines the moment things went wrong, we would have lost Goobert and both the town and Danjor Island would have been leveled on top of that. Are you saying that we should have just left Goobert and everyone on both of those islands to die?

"Okay, yeah, I guess Ollie fits the goofy sidekick role, but being a princess doesn't mean I spontaneously sing about everything, 'kay?"

[Glastone (Grigori's Group)]

"I get the concern, I really do, but I don't think it'd sit well with me knowing I just ran away as soon as things got ugly," said Royal. "I'm probably not the best judge since I'm new to this world and this squad, but I don't think they have a good handle on things as is in this place. That also means they probably won't be able to keep things in control when things go south, then it'd probably have to fall to us, assuming we didn't hightail out of here."

The Raboot put his paws behind his head.

"Besides, it'd become our problem again eventually once this place crumbles and whatever made it fall starts expanding out or something."

Glastone (Grigs Group)

Marsha has to take a moment to stop and realize that she definitely crossed a bit of a line by suggesting what she did. Leave Goobert and all of those other mons to die though? It was never going to happen. Regardless, the Swampert sighs and relents.

Awright, yeahs, you fellas are right. We're 'bout as good as it gets for somethin' like dis. Del, It's just that I've been thinkin' 'bout an' have been as worried about Marly an' his leg as I know you have been about Goobert. I just don't wanna see him get anymore hurt. Not only dat, if we let Danjor Island be lost I dunno WHAT I woulda done with myself.

Even so, Marsha knows that not everyone can be saved; the idea of fleeing if things get bad is obviously stupid now, always has, but if it ever has to….

Edited by Team42Larson on Jan 13th 2022 at 12:51:52 PM

Tell....everyone....

Glastone

Y-Yeah, I understand... (Delilah says, knowing Marsha cares about Marlon very much, just as she does Goobert, even if...)

(Her expression visibly falls and she gets quiet again.)

"Okay, yeah, I guess Ollie fits the goofy sidekick role, but being a princess doesn't mean I spontaneously sing about everything, 'kay?"

Glastone (Marlon Group)

You did live through Hoard, so I can understand how you'd say that. Did you happen to see our group at any point while you were trying to escape Hoard?

I ask as I continue to try and find any turn off to get us to the Berry fields.

Glastone (Grigs Group)

(I really gotta figure out WHAT is happenin' with Del taday. Now or never Marsha!)

Del…ya know, ya have been actin' off taday. Is somethin' wrong?

Edited by Team42Larson on Jan 15th 2022 at 12:04:10 PM

Tell....everyone....

Marlon's group

If I may ask, what happened in hoard, as you all seem to be worried about it, and since you're worried, I have a feeling knowing would be a good idea for me, and Dikir.

The jolteon asks curiously, not knowing what happened in hoard, as she stretches, still a bit shaken by before, but is at the very least not panicking at the moment.

[Everything, is going, to be, ok. What happened in hoard? Everything, is going, to be, ok. It seems like it was bad, but surely it couldn't have been that bad, right? Everything, is going, to be, ok.]

Glastone (Marlon's group)

Barely! I saw a couple of you guys around the Chairgon, but at that point I was mostly focused on trying to get outta there and couldn't exactly stop to say anything. And then I just didn't see you guys again when it was all over. (Ed says.)

(Ed sighs and tells the story of Hoard to the new folks.) So uh, Hoard had to deal with two Surge vectors at once. One was its old Chairgon...he was sorta like the mayor of the town, and the other this freaky Ribombee who I think was just looking to cause trouble somewhere. They both started fighting right in the middle of town and everything just became a huge mess. (Ed explains.) The town never really recovered from the aftermath of that. Nobody can even live in the cave it was in anymore. The whole place has been abandoned since it caved in.

---

Glastone (Grigori's group)

(Delilah swallows nervously. She knows she's among people who will probably understand what she's struggling with right now, but it still doesn't make what she wants to say easier to spit out.)

It's...It's about Goobert. (She finally says, hanging her head.) It's not about something he's done, it's more about me. Something...something's been weighing on my mind for years at this point and I tried to ignore it, but...

"Okay, yeah, I guess Ollie fits the goofy sidekick role, but being a princess doesn't mean I spontaneously sing about everything, 'kay?"

Glastone (Marlon Group)

Cause trouble somewhere? Yeah, she was trying to cause trouble with us and then the entire city of Hoard itself. I remember meeting her for the very first time. Blue ribbon on her head, seeming so innocent...but she had our friend PJ wrapped around her finger. She infected him with Viral Aggression, turned the poor kid against us, his own friends, and nearly got away with bringing us down with the place. During the tournament, she wiped the floor with this poor Gible kid. I took such a hardline stance against stopping her after that. Once we forced her hand, she didn't survive the fight.

I sigh and stop for a second, clanking my walking stick against the ground before continuing.

I regret how I handled myself during all of that. Ever since assuming this new life in this world, I've always had problems with taking charge of too many situations. That was one that I could have totally done differently. Bella might have been a witch of a woman, but she could have lived. She should have lived. The Chairgon, on the other hand, was already losing it from what I could tell.

Cindra is fiddling with the flowers in her "hair" once again as she listens to the story of Hoard. She only had base-level awareness of the events of Hoard (and everything else we'd been through) until now. She puts a hand to her hip and tries to offer her own opinion.

I...man. I can understand having to use that kind of force when things turn that dire, but did all of those Vectors have to meet that kind of end?

Glastone (Grigs Group)

(Aw, crap....what do I say???)

Del....what's really goin' on with you and Da Big Guy? Yas know how ya can tell me anythin'. If it makes ya feel any better, there's been somethin' I've been meaning to tell ya too.

Edited by Team42Larson on Jan 18th 2022 at 10:02:41 AM

Tell....everyone....

Glastone

Marlon's Group -> To the Fields

Marlon, Cindra, Goobert, Ed, Dikir, and Becquerel move out from Old Rodney's mansion towards the other side of town. Wrapping around the chaos in the town square, still ongoing as some guards and strikers are contained, you follow the perimeter road down into downtown.

There's a creeping decline in the terrain as you make your way downtown, it's almost cloyingly literal the way the rest of the town with its walls and relative splendor loom over the sparser, homelier downtown. There are two addresses that sit west of your position that you can head back to, but you move east towards one of the giant posts holding up the web over town.

A few guards with polemaces sit there. A Parasect clutching a polemace in its claws looks over at the lot of you and starts counting heads before lifting up a low-lying portion of web and letting you through. "We were notified of your presence and your assistance by a fellow guard," it says with a high-pitched, nearly robotic tone; likely Mbali's doing. "We...thank you for assisting us in this predicament. Your reputation precedes you."

From the guard post, you can already see the enormity of the fields, and it might strike you how barren everything is. The yearly harvest has very to be planted, and for several acres, all you see down the hill is dirt. A few houses and other buildings lay along the edge of the fields, and if you check the map, you can easily see the address you need to get to with the building closest to the road coming into town.

Grigori's Group -> To the Harbor

Grigori, Marsha, Delilah, and Royal all move out from Old Rodney's mansion towards the gate letting you out of town. You split off from the others as you head back through the marketplace, a lot emptier and quieter than yesterday with many of the stands unoccupied.

As you make your way up to the gate, a few of the guards look at each other as you approach. One of them some of you might recognize from the day before, a Golisopod. "What are you all up to," she asks. "Headin' out for the harbor? Normally we'd escort ya, but you all got clearance to go on the roads by one of the Elders."

She signals to open the gates, which creak and shudder as the massive doors slowly slide apart. "Now don't head outta town, though, is the thing. We gotta keep everything contained here, and there might be a chance it could've gotten on yas and could start spreading out from there. Slim chance, but might be a chance still."

The gates open enough to where you can see down the hill towards the harbor. It's maybe a ten-minute walk, and it looks like a modern beauty. Large wooden houses and buildings, stone docks that stretch out into the water, a handful of ships moored at the docks...

Glastone (Marlon's Group)

Gosh, uh, sure isn't a whole lot growing right now. (Feels a little surprising how little is growing here.)

It's a far cry from my cousins' farm, that's for sure. (Ed says. He looks over at the map.) Hey, we aren't far at all!

---

Glastone (Grigori's Group)

(Marsha and Delilah's conversation is interrupted as they get to the gate leading to the harbor.)

Oh, this area is nicer than I remember it being. (Delilah says, taking in the sight for a moment.) ...So we know we can't go too far, but hopefully we should still be able to get somewhere just sticking around here.

(She frowns, knowing she still has to answer Marsha. She swallows nervously.)

Marsha, you know I like Goobert and I still like Goobert, too, but I don't think I actually love him. (Delilah says. She begins tapping her foot again like she always does.) And I think it's because...I'm pretty sure I'm...I'm actually gay.

(Delilah relaxes so much she looks like she might just collapse onto the floor. She seems as though she had been holding that in for a while.)

"Okay, yeah, I guess Ollie fits the goofy sidekick role, but being a princess doesn't mean I spontaneously sing about everything, 'kay?"

[Glastone (Grigori's Group)]

"Check this place out," Royal commented, hands not leaving his pockets. "Sucks we have limit to how far out we can go, I like running all the way down piers and back. Mmmmmaybe taking a quick dive off the end and swimming back to shore for fun sometimes."

The Raboot's ears perked a bit at Delilah's revelation.

"Oh, nice, now I can finally let you in on our agenda," he joked, smiling before his expression depressed. "Oh wait, that joke uh, probably doesn't land the same here. Whoops. P-point is, you're cool."

Glastone Harbor, Grigori's Group

(I don't plan on getting the hell out of here when the Vector rears their ugly head, but if it spirals out of control, we might not have a choice. Things are bad enough already but running away would only mean that all this would move to somewhere else, eventually hitting a major city. If that happens... it's just going to send this island to hell.)

(And just like that, we're here. Place is a bit more advanced than I thought, but that shouldn't hinder our search. Our reach is bit more stifled than I would have liked, but it's probably for the better. Before I could start laying out the plan, the rest of the group turned to the Dragonite.)

(I'll admit, I've been listening to the conversation out of curiosity, but I decided not to interfere. Didn't want to make it awkward. And then she said her piece. Given her reaction afterwards, she must have had that weighing her down for quite some time. Not wanting to come off as ignoring her, I spoke to her.) Hey, we don't think of you less for it.

"I treasure every day with you, darling." "No need to be so sappy, love." "You know that's how she is, Nia." - AU!Pyra, Nia, Mythra

Marlon Group, Fields

Our reputation precedes us, nothing new. And even though this is basically springtime, they have yet to start planting berries. Cindra half-sarcastically points out why this seems somewhat weird.

You're telling me. Look at me, I'm basically a plant, I'd like to think that maybe I could learn how to do this.

Ed points out where that next address is on the map, and after observing this same thing I simply nod.

Let's get down to that address and find out what they might know. You lead the way, Ed.

Grigs Group, Harbor

(Oh Jeepers, whatsa girl ta say heres? I almost wanted ta think she really did love him. Uh, okay, still gotta know what we're doin' heres first.)

Awlright, where in dis place are we goin'?

And Marsha quickly turns to face Delilah once more.

When didja realize dis, Del? How're ya gonna tell Goobert?

Tell....everyone....

Glastone (Marlon's Group)

Hey, maybe when this is all over I could introduce you to my cousins! (Ed tells Cindra.) Last I heard they had both just evolved into a Tsareena and a Steenee, and they single-handedly grow Berry trees all the time, so they could probably teach ya a lot.

Anyway, yeah, follow me, guys! (Ed says, going up to the address marked on the map and knocking on the front door.)

---

Glastone (Grigori's Group)

I didn't think any of you would have a problem with it, but thank you, anyway. (Delilah says.)

But...yes, I had been wondering about myself ever since I was about 19 and had actually started thinking about finding a partner. Every time I tried to go out with a guy, it just extremely awkward, but at the same time there were plenty of girls I considered asking out but didn't because I refused to believe I was gay at the time. Heck, I even came within a hair's length of asking YOU out, Marsha. There, I said it. I might not have shown it that much, but that was how much I admired you for how good a lifeguard you were. Plus, those hips do NOT lie. (Delilah admits.) But anyway, eventually I just gave up on asking anybody out at all because I felt out of place on my dates with guys and I was too embarrassed to ask a girl out. I didn't think about it very much until Goobert came along and ended up interested in me. Since I liked him too, I decided to try one last time to date a man, but...I absolutely still like Goobert, but all attempting to be in a romantic relationship with him did was confirm what I already suspected about myself: I was gay.

(She sighs.) I'm still trying to figure out how to break it to him. I'm scared to death that he'll end up hating me for not telling him sooner.

"Okay, yeah, I guess Ollie fits the goofy sidekick role, but being a princess doesn't mean I spontaneously sing about everything, 'kay?"

Marlon Group, Berry Fields

As Ed goes to knock the door, I take to one side of him while Cindra goes to the other.

I guess I'll keep that mind but how are your cousins a Tsareena and a Stenee anyway?

If the folks who live here can't give us anything useful, what then?

Grigs Group, nearing Harbor

Marsha is genuinely flattered—on multiple levels—by Delilah's insinuation that she would have asked Marsha out. This obviously happened before the girls met Goobert and Marlon, but to be told of this now...it reminds her of her own romantic past before she met Marlon.

Heck, Del, if ya really wanted ta ask me out, I wouldn't have turned ya down. I could almost say da same about yas, I did always think you were pretty hot...

But she sighs and shakes her head, getting back to the reality of the situation.

But...yeahs, Marly...he's da first guy I've felt somethin' serious with. An' even if things failed between us, I still absolutely would be friends with him. Goobert...poor guy has just been through so much since he an' all of da otha fellas came heres. If ya want my opinion on what ta do? Yer gonna hafta let him down easy, and make sure he knows da two of yas are still gonna be friends goin' forward.

Edited by Team42Larson on Feb 6th 2022 at 4:21:27 AM

Tell....everyone....

Glastone (Marlon's group)

Oh, we get asked that all the time. My mom's brother is a Meganuim and he married a Tsareena who had two kids already, Steena and Betty. (Ed explains to Cindra.)

Then...uh...I guess we go to the place? (I shrug.) I wonder if the others have gotten anywhere yet.

---

Glastone (Grigori's group)

(Delilah is a little shocked to hear that Marsha probably would have said yes back then.) O-Oh, well, thank you, Marsha.

(She sighs.) I guess I can figure out how to word all this to Goobert in a way that he won't end up hating me forever along the way. At this point we're wasting time. Do either of you know where we're supposed to go here? (She motions to their map.)

Edited by kablammin45 on Feb 6th 2022 at 8:33:06 AM

"Okay, yeah, I guess Ollie fits the goofy sidekick role, but being a princess doesn't mean I spontaneously sing about everything, 'kay?"

(With Marsha giving her advice I stepped in.) He didn't strike me as the intolerant type before. If he really is your friend, he would understand.

(With all that settled, I took a look at the dock ahead. I started to think out loud to the group.) The ships most likely haven't left the docks ever since the lockdown. Going door-to-door and asking people questions would burn up time. My best bet would be to look for any buildings or points of interest and ask around there. Going any further might be asking for trouble, but if there's hints out there, it might be worth checking out.

"I treasure every day with you, darling." "No need to be so sappy, love." "You know that's how she is, Nia." - AU!Pyra, Nia, Mythra

[Glastone (Grigori's Group)]

Royal couldn't help but smile to himself. He was reminded of a nice boy he once knew that was so insistent on being straight but he was reconsidering after meeting him. Wondering how he's doing now, the bunny thought to himself.

"What Grigs said, I know I've barely known y'all for a day or so, but Goobert doesn't strike me as someone that'll react badly. Well, not too badly, at least? At the very least I think he'd want you to be happy more than anything."

"Now, I guess for our mission, maybe just pure instincting it might be our best bet," Royal huffed. "I mean more like the 'listen to random whims instinct,' not the 'run forward all feral and the like' instinct. Or maybe that one could work."

Glastone, Marlon Group

Oh, ok. Just another one of these things that I haven't actually come to understand about this world yet. Almost like how I'm supposed to pass for being somebody's sister.

She glances over in my direction, with a look in her eyes that would almost look like one a sibling would give to another

I mean, you're doing good with it so far, nobody is really batting an eye at us. But surely, everyone else has to have made to where they have to go.

Glastone, Grigs Group

(Now dat just leaves me wonderin' how I'll tell Marly 'bout my thing. Do I even hafta tell him? Eh, even if it is all in da past, I still should tell him. Anyway..)

Well, what's da first place of importance on our maps, then? This bein' a Harbor an' all I'd think they got someone managin' the boats comin' in an' out. Pretty sure dat's what Benji was doin' back home.

Edited by Team42Larson on Feb 14th 2022 at 1:53:23 PM

Tell....everyone....

Glastone

Marlon's Group: The Berry Fields

There's no answer—dead silence from the other side—but as Ed knocks on the door, he can hear the distinct sound of a crossbar rattling on the other side with a decent amount of give. He might even see it peeking through the space between the door and the threshold.

If one were to peer into the building through the windows, slightly tinted red, they would also see no one inside. This doesn't appear to be an entirely residential address from the looks of it, what with the large desk facing whoever would arrive through the door, a large set of windows towards the back overlooking the fields, and a slate board filled with all sorts of numbers and figures.

Grigori's Group: The Harbor

Out on the horizon brews a storm, though it doesn't seem to be coming for the coast. The group might almost be able to make out a rainbow in the wall of mist surrounding it.

From the outset, the harbor district is almost entirely barren, much less so than the precariously bustling streets of Glastone proper. The only people you can spot from the outset are a couple of hooded figures, both wearing oval masks with soft smiling faces painted on them, keeping vigil by the front door to a small earthwork home, one of the few in the area and nowhere near the center of town. It's almost like someone completely new colonized the place for access to the coastline, with the way the shore has been encircled by the new wooden neighborhood.

Another hooded figure rushes up to the other two, a Cinderace judging by the tall thin silhouette, long feet and longer stride. They pass a small package along to the hood-lums standing vigil then flick a Poke coin to the one on the left, a rare sight in Glastone outside the hands of a merchant.

Looking at the map, Delilah would see the Dock Authority building is most prominently featured—having the largest lettering and all—but another building further down the coast is just labeled "The Storehouse", tucked into a nest of houses.

Edited by BlackMageAnolis on Feb 14th 2022 at 4:34:13 AM

Glastone, Marlon Group

I take to a window to try and look inside.

Red tinted light.. Is the owner of this house Seymour Parish or is there something else going on here? Because a red-tinted light almost always indicates someone is trying to develop pictures. At least that was what it meant back home, anyway.

Cindra takes a look through the same window I had just peered through and she too makes note of something inside.

I see..uh..is that a blackboard? Haven't seen one in so long.. But why would it be here? Is the owner of this residence an academic type? A teacher or professor?

Glastone, Grigs Group

Marsha says nothing for now, looking to Delilah who has the map in her possession. As she does, she casts her glance back and forth about the Harbor town, noticing the peculiarity of how dead this place seems, while also noticing the figures standing guard at one such location amidst the wider area.

Tell....everyone....

[Glastone (Grigori's Group)]

"Those masks and cloaks look fancy," Royal commented. "And ahhh, I think I spot one of my people there, hehehe."

The Raboot gently tugged on one of his own ears.

"Does the map show us any points of interest, I guess?"