ITT: We Have All Become Pokémon

Introduced myself, conversed with them, I even thought I was a friend. Not even noticed.

Huh...that's weird... (Marsha says.) I'm sure at least Finley, Mila, or Goobert woulda noticed ya. Maybe I should ask one of them about their side of the story later...not that I don't trust ya or anythin', I just want to hear from them about your first meetin' with them. You fine with that, Buggy?

(Sheena wanders by herself through the bazaar. She briefly passes by a male Goodra in spectacles that she finds cute, but she sighs when she sees that he is closely walking next to a female Garchomp. She sighs and continues on her walk.)

(She finds herself walking up to a peculiar looking stand run by two Clamperls. Their stand is covered in all sorts of random junk. In front is a basket of coral blocks covered in jewels, labeled "Pretty Coral Paperweights! Only 3000 Poké.)

Cool lookin', huh? (One of the two Clamperls says.) They were made from...um...dried coral in a cave at the bottom of the sea!

Oh yeah? (Sheena remarks.) Uh...they look pretty nice.

Well, while you're looking, why don't you buy yourself a souvenir? (The other one asks.) All of our stuff here is nice, but cheap.

(Sheena finds the set-up fishy, but still looks over the stand's wares. She finds herself drawn to a somewhat large silver charm shaped like the mischievously-grinning face of an Incineroar.)

Oh that's a nice one. Can't even remember where that one came from. (Clamperl One says.) You put a string through that hole at the top and it would make a good necklace or bracelet, I bet. That'll be 4500 Poké if you buy it.

(Remembering that she has a string with the cheap necklace she got for her birthday last year, Sheena decides that there isn't any harm in upgrading to a nicer charm for it (much nicer than the rather ugly looking Froakie charm it has now) and puts down 4500 Poké for it.)

Thank you for your business, ma'am! (The Clamperl says.)

Um...you're welcome. (Sheena says as she walks off.)

(Once Sheena is out of earshot, the Clamperls turn to each other.) We're makin' a lot of dough today! (One of them says.) Phoebe and Gomer will be so proud of us...!

edited 2nd Sep '17 1:58:45 PM by kablammin45

Hey, feel free to ask them. But, enough about my shit. You're not my therapist. What ails you? Feel free to vent all you want.

Hops over.

"What are we starting with?"

Well, anythin' I have to vent about is probably nothin' compared to your problems. Feelin' overshadowed by Del, gettin' pranked by my brother, the prices of my favorite sandwiches getting jacked up at the deli...at the end of the day, none of those problems I have are really a big deal. (Marsha says.)

*the Emolga looks to the Voltorb, trying to gauge his skill level...basing solely on age, she'd expect him to know quite a bit...but she doesn't recall him ever so much as producing a spark* Well, show me what you can do so far. You do know how to make a basic charge, don'tcha? Keeping too much pent up energy is a disaster waiting to happen when it comes to your kind.

"Well I can try that I guess."

He squeezes his eyes shut and concentrates hard.

"Hrrrrrrrrnn..."

*the Emolga watches intently, not sure what to make of it at this time*

Just like last time he begins to shake and glow red.

>Voltorb is about to use Self-Destruct

*the Emolga sighs, and puts up a Protect, realizing she has no way to stop this* I see we have quite a bit of work ahead of us...this is why I insisted we be away from the rest of 'em...

Philly glows brighter and bright and then slowly begins to dull.

With a look of disappointment he rolls onto his side.

"That's all I can do, sorry..."

*as the Protect barrier fades, the Emolga gives a stern* Hmmph. *before adding* At least you have that amount of control. If you don't mind me asking, were you raised by Lycanrocs as a child? Most Voltorbs your age know how to discharge, and many in the more advanced cities can subconsciously send small, steady streams to their grids — controls static buildup and avoids incidents like yesterday.

"Yeah I...um, just became aware of the fact that I was a Voltorb yesterday." ^_^;

(Rich suddenly pulls Marty to the side.)

Quiet down, Marty!

W-What's going on, Rich?

(Rich swigs his beer.)

Can't you (Belch) see, Marty? They're LARP'ers!

What's that supposed to mean, Rich?

Can't you (Belch) see, Marty? They're Live Action Role players! They act in fantasies that take them away from their drab civilian lives!

(On the road itself three Magneton are acting out a scene that makes no sense to either Rich and Marty. Rich reaches for his glove, and starts sifting through his bag, which contains the four test orbs.)

Follow my lead, (Belch), Marty!

Aww man..

(Rich and Marty prepare to confront the LARP'ers.)

(I'm idly looking around the Bazaar.)

edited 2nd Sep '17 3:19:49 PM by Team42Larson

*the Emolga raises an eyebrow, clearly not believing Philly's story* Well, wherever you came from, let's try something here... *without warning, the Emolga clasps a nearby pitcher of water and douses Phil with it* This could very well kill two Fletchlings with one stone. The dampness should prevent any explosions for the time being, and water is a good conductor of...ah, one moment. *the Emolga then grabs a tiny amount of salt in its stubby little hands, and sprinkles Phil* Common misconception — saltwater is the far greater conductor.

*the Emolga motions her tail toward a training dummy* Now, you can't explode, but you have pent up energy. Focus it on the dummy.

Philly eyes the dummy.

"Hmm....ok."

He shoots daggers at the dummy, trying to release the energy he has pent up inside towards. He felt different from the last time when he exploded. Rather than bringing all that energy out at once, he tried to focus it in a single point.

"C'mon, c'mon..."

With much effort he releases a little spark.

"Ugh..."

He rocks back onto his side.

"This is hard work."

*the Emolga sighs audibly, then relents* Suppose you need to walk before you can run...or roll before you can bounce...ahem. Give me a moment... *the Emolga floats to a back room, and before long, comes out with an iron bar affixed to a wooden base. She's not even carrying it — it's floating on its own, with no visible signs* Electromagnetic levitation — something I teach in my advanced classes. But for now, this here rebar is what I use to teach young children — you may find that your pent up energy is drawn to it.

*seemingly on its own, the bar is set on the ground not far from Phil* Give it another go!

edited 2nd Sep '17 4:20:09 PM by sarysa

(Sheena re-enters the inn with the Incineroar charm and goes to where the rest of her family is in the small training center this particular inn has. They are still there, but her mother has fallen asleep reading a book and Pops seems to be trying to teach a reluctant Arnold a new move.)

Figures... (Sheena sighs sadly. She goes to the room she and her family is staying in. Sitting on her bed, she wishes that Pops would take time to train her to battle instead of insisting that she had no potential and ignoring her in favor of her brother.)

(Delilah and I continue wandering seemingly aimlessly around the bazaar, so far having not seen anything interesting or bumping into anyone we know.)

edited 2nd Sep '17 4:19:20 PM by kablammin45

"Hey, I'm sorry, I'm just... stressed about this, I guess. After seeing what happened to PJ, I don't want that to happen to anyone else. I'll leave you to discuss this with Yalta, though."

Mila seems slightly despondent at how Eliot took the conversation, but she doesn't want to keep on it and instead quickly finishes her food and looks over to Finley.

"Hey, are you ready to go? I was thinking, and I might have another idea for us."

edited 2nd Sep '17 4:27:01 PM by Cabe_Bedlam

(Rich and Marty set to opposite sides of the LARP'ers. Rich has chosen the Transfer orb to test its abilities. Marty approaches the LARP'ers.)

Uh, hi, are you guys-

(Rich chucks the Orb at the middle of the three Magnetons. The magnetic Pokémon suddenly flashes and becomes Ground-based, and tall. He has become a Milotic.)

What's your deal, dude? We were having fun and you suddenly decide to turn me into a snake? I'm gonna tell my mom!

Yeah (Belch), whatever you magnetic dipshit.

(Marty storms up to Rich as the LARP'ers quickly scram away.)

Rich, the hell were you thinking?

What? I wanted to see if it worked, which it did! We're gonna make this family rich!

Whatever, Rich. Count yourself lucky that I'm your Grandson, or else I wouldn't have done this.

You're a good kid, Marty!

(Belch.)

(The duo continue on to Hoard.)

(I recognize Goobert and Delilah walking about.)

Hey, guys!

Oh, hey Marlon! (I say, running up to him.) What are you up to? Delilah and I were just wandering around the bazaar until the next matches at the arena start.

(I show Goobert my hand with the glove.)

I learned Fire Punch! A Medicham at the Dojo helped me learn it. This glove allows me to protect my hand while I use the move.

That's great, Marlon! (I say.) Not much has happened with us since we left the dojo...except that Andy apparently is still hitting on Marsha and actually has taken her somewhere to talk...he just doesn't know when to quit...

Ah man, you're right on that. He seems to just never quit.

(I say.)

edited 2nd Sep '17 4:59:00 PM by Team42Larson

Yeah...I hope he isn't annoying Marsha too much. (I say.) So...anything you want to look for around here, Marlon?

(Sheena looks at the Incineroar charm in her hand. Taking the cheap necklace from her suitcase, she removes the cheap Froakie charm and sticks the Incineroar charm on the string instead. Heading into the bathroom, she stands in front of the mirror to see how the new charm looks on her. Working the necklace around her antennae, she puts it on and looks at herself.)

Wow...it actually looks pretty nice... (Sheena decides after looking for a moment.)

(Then she notices a curious fact; the eyes on the charm are starting to glow. The glow is starting to grow bigger as well. Confused, Sheena begins to try to take the necklace off, but's too late. The glow engulfs her, and Sheena suddenly feels an odd tingling sensation all over her body, which feels as though her body is melting into a completely different one..)

AAAHHH!! (Sheena shrieks.) HELP ME!

(Finally, the glow goes away. Sheena looks up at the mirror.)

AAAAHHHH!!! (Sheena screams in a deep masculine voice that is definitely not her own. She is no longer a Goodra, but an Incineroar. A male Incineroar! What just happened? Was it the charm? She feels her now furry face with her enormous paws in shocked horror before stepping back to look at her new body in full. Admittedly, her new form looks...pretty good, but she knows that this is not something she wants. She quickly pulls the necklace off, and she near instantaneously morphs back into her normal self.)

(She simply stands there looking back at herself and the necklace in shock for several moments before, out of curiosity, putting the necklace back on. Once again, the charm glows and she turns into the same Incineroar again. She takes it off and looks at it again.)

What is this? (Sheena wonders.) And why was it in a random stand out there being sold for a lousy 4500 Poké...?

(Sheena decides to get rid of the charm and never speak of this again. She leaves the room and starts heading out of the inn to return the charm to those two Clamperls. As she does, she walks by the room where Pops continues to train Arnold. Sheena pauses to look and sighs again, once again reminded of the fact that Pops seriously training her like this is only a pipe dream.)

(Suddenly, a thought enters her mind. She looks down at the necklace and charm. What if...what if she used this charm that turns her into an Incineroar to disguise herself and fight in tournaments? It's obvious that she isn't going to get anywhere with Pops constantly breathing down her neck, making sure she stayed out of the tournaments...so...what if it wasn't Sheena going out there to train and fight, but instead it was an Incineroar that Pops wouldn't care less about?)

(It sounds like an idea crazy enough to work! Of course, she'll have to learn to fight like an Incineroar instead of a Goodra, but at least it's something. Sheena leaves the inn, but instead of going straight to the Clamperl's stand, she ducks out of everyone's sight and puts on the necklace, transforming into the Incineroar once more.)

Well...here goes... (Sheena says, adjusting the necklace and walking out into the bazaar toward somewhere she can train in this body.)