Into the Dance (Cryst-)Hall

Riegfried and Soy have come in clutch, and - albeit belatedly - Kanto and Johto once more have a Prom open to all otherworlder guests!

Invitations have been sent out over the month of July, calling one and all to meet up in... Mt. Moon? Really? Riegfried and Soy may have strange and eccentric tastes, but how could a cave possibly be an appropriate place for a prom celebration? Still, the invitation is quite elaborate, and the two of them have proven their event-organizing credentials so far... so perhaps your dubious initial impression will be overruled. Or perhaps you're just coming out of curiousity. Or maybe you don't actually see anything wrong with this!

Whatever the case, trainers who do show up to Prom will find that they are indeed in for a treat! Riegfried and Soy have obtained permission to outfit one of the restricted but less delicate caverns out for a party, and added their own spin to it - the chamber is tall, filled with beautiful crystalline formations of rock, and covered in a carefully built temporary floor, complete with multiple levels so that people can watch the dance floor from above. Clefairy and Carbink wander around the venue - and once the music really kicks in, the Carbink join with low-intensity beams, providing the flashing lighting!

Of course, one wall is lined with tables of food. While choices range from upscale version of "normal" food to themed appetizers like sugar crystals, it's all free for the taking.

The opposite side of the cavern is fenced, cutting off the end of the cavern. Why is that? It's where both the ceiling and floor drop away, revealing a hole to the surface that's providing sun- and eventually moon-lit lighting, but also dropping off into the depths of Mt. Moon. But the fence is here to keep you safe, and curious trainers can even peer over the edge to observe wild Pokemon far below.

It's time to party!

Meteoric Moments

As the summer sun sets and the sky transitions to full darkness, Riegfried and Soy reveal a final treat: the next few days have an especially active meteor shower predicted! And, of course, the opening in the roof of this cave (the one on that fenced off side) is the perfect frame for viewing it. As the dancing has slowed down, Riegfried and Soy's staff have set up a number of small tables along that fence, capping each with a dimly lit candle; in addition, the buffet tables have had their contents swapped out for light snacks, desserts, and refreshing drinks for danced-out trainers. The brighter lights illuminating the venue are shut off, leaving moon and candle-light alone to illuminate the glimmering crystals.

It's not long before the first meteor is spotted, with several trainers - and even staff - calling out an exclamation and shouting. Everyone is in for quite a show!

All The Mogwai Down

While the first hour of the meteor shower is calm, and the party progressively winds down - to the point that some trainers may have started making their goodbyes and heading home - a fully peaceful Prom is not to be. The most observant trainers will be the first to hear rumblings from the depths of Mt. Moon below them, something like the scrabble of little clawed feet... and from there it's not long before a swarm erupts over the side and into the Prom venue.

It's Sableye! Quite a lot of Sableye! Something about the meteor shower seems to have set them off, and they're here to wreak absolute havoc: pulling tablecloths off tables, running off with trays of food (why? they don't even eat that!), chasing after Carbink to nibble on, and - of course - starting battles. A Sableye with a tufted forehead leaps upon the tallest surface and screeches loudly, directing the chaos, then hops back down as soon as trainers direct attacks toward him; another Sableye chews the legs of your chair.

There's simply no choice but to drive them off with your own Pokemon!

...but it's not over even once you do, as the swarm of Sableye spills out the exit rather than back into the depths of Mt. Moon! The next few days are going to be filled with Sableye popping up in the worst places, raiding jewelry stores, stealing anything covered in sequins from boutiques, and even breaking into your home. Or maybe it's other Pokemon breaking into your home to hide from them. Still, at least you had the chance for a nice Prom first...?

A Volt From The Blue

The perfect storm, in all senses of the phrase, starts slowly. Though thunder begins to roll on Saturday evening, and the sky is already dripping with rain, the weather isn't anything unusually bad at first. There are distant flashes in the clouds, but no dramatic lightning strikes reaching toward the ground, and the rain is still light enough that holding your bag or jacket over your head will do in a pinch. Duckletts splash in puddles, people pull out umbrellas, and everyone gets on with their day.

This all changes overnight. The storm intensifies, until the air is practically buzzing with static, and... as everyone begins waking up on Sunday morning, they'll find that there's a preponderance of Electric Pokemon in the streets and the wilds, apparently drawn out by the storm. It dwarfs even the swarms of Electric Pokemon that appeared earlier in the month, and the variety is (pardon the pun) truly shocking - Mareep, Electrike, and Blitzle race through the streets, Tynamo and Stunfisk splash across flooded Routes, Voltorbs spin madly down roads, and the ever-popular Pikachus peek out of every other bush. They're all very trigger-happy, too, quick to start battles or even outright attack passerby if sufficiently startled!

The worst is yet to come, though...

The Walking Diode

It starts happening partway through Sunday, though it may take a bit longer for people to catch on. A Trainer ends up in a Pokemon Center after they and their Prinplup get well and properly zapped by an Electivire. After everyone is looked over, they clap the attending Nurse Joy on the shoulder in thanks over the counter, zapping her with residual static, and then wander out the door. All the while, they act oddly insistent about meeting everyone with a proper handshake and exuberant greeting.

Nurse Joy, back behind the counter, is... well, every Nurse Joy always finds Pokemon health important! That's the reason they've all become nurses! But as the day goes on, she grows more and more intense about questioning trainers about how they're feeding and training their Pokemon, and whether they're carrying enough Antidotes on them for every eventuality, and whether they're pushing their Pokemon too hard if they had to come in for healing. If someone doesn't answer her, her smile begins to twitch. And meanwhile, though her hands are as gentle with Pokemon as always, she can't seem to stop shocking them with static the first time she touches one.

Similar scenes play out all over Johto and Kanto. Bug Catchers chase other Trainers down, exclaiming facts about Bug Pokemon and practically throwing their Weedles at people. Cyclists and Roller Skaters pedal and skate furiously, uncaring of nearly mowing people down. Bodybuilders and Dojo Students passionately challenge people they think are out of shape. Ruin and Hex Maniacs... well, okay, they've always been kind of intense.

The weirdest thing is this: if you mention out loud that you've miraculously avoided being cornered by an Electric Pokemon during this mass outbreak, a number of people nearby will instantly turn their heads toward you, their eyes slightly glazed...

Current Trends

The storm continues. But toward the end of the week, the problem is clearly widespread enough and serious enough that the Elite Four are forced to intervene. They - and various Elite Four staff and Gym Leaders - appear in towns over Kanto and Johto, bringing with them crack teams of Ground Pokemon! (Aurora League members: your mailboxes and Gears may be receiving requests to also assist!)

The work is made chaotic and strenuous by members of the task force also getting struck by lightning and starting to act strange - though, sometimes, their odd behavior is actually helpful when it makes them take their job even more seriously and with greater energy. Regardless, after a big push on Saturday, nearly all the Electric Pokemon are driven back out to the wilds and away from public Routes. A week after the affliction began, people affected drift back to their senses, shaking off their strange compulsions and left very confused by how they were acting.

(Okay, except those Hex and Ruin Maniacs.)

Though the rain continues, the beginning of the following week is calm. In the last days of March, Lance makes a brief appearance on the news, announcing very "regretfully" that he and the rest of the Elite Four were planning to organize this year's Prom again... but now they're going to be too busy cleaning up after this mess and making sure all the Electric Pokemon have returned to their appropriate habitats. Riegfried and Soy have kindly offered to take the event off his hands, and so Prom will still be taking place - but it's going to be delayed. They need time to prepare a proper shindig, after all! Keep an eye out for it sometime in summer instead.

OOC NOTES

• Any Electric Pokemon available in Victory Road normally are swarming, and can show up whether or not you're in their usual availability location.
• Trainers who are zapped - either by an Electric attack, a static shock by someone else affected, or even an outright lightning strike - will start feeling compelled to focus on one specific thought that's important to them, and act accordingly to enforce or exemplify it. The longer they're affected, the worse this compulsion gets!
• This focus can be very broad or very narrow! For example, "Honesty is important," "Trainers should treat their Pokemon well," and "I hate it when people chew with their mouths open." are all possible focuses. A character who is focused on honesty may feel compelled to only tell the truth during this event... and also, to grow hostile if they believe they're encountering dishonesty!
• In addition, characters who are affected will feel compelled to share their affliction with others somehow - whether zapping them with a static shock or leading them into a situation where they'll otherwise be hit with lightning.
• Characters who follow their compulsions will feel energized (and thus more able to continue)! Character who resist will find themselves becoming listless and exhausted.
• Pokemon can also be affected.
• Everyone affected will find themselves recovering as the storm begins to die down on the following weekend, though the rain will continue for several more days.
• Please consider the most recent CR MEME if you’d like to make more specific plans!