victory_road | It's time for the solstice!

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It's time for the solstice!

Who: Everyone attending the Azalea festival!

Where: Azalea town and surrounding woods

When: June 21st

Summary: Celebi's come out, so it's time to throw a party in its honor!

Log:

It's Midsummer! Traditional festivities in Azalea are all in full swing, and this year even bigger and better than ever, thanks to the influx of curious tourists and Legendary Seekers drawn by the rumors in hopes of catching a glimpse of the elusive Celebi. Everyone in Azalea is putting out their finest, and the whole town is decked out with flowers in vases and pots, colorful streamers, and bright awnings under which vendors hawk their wares.

The fun doesn't stop there, however. Those time disturbances that have been popping up all over the place? They've become at once more localized and more benign. Flowers open quickly and stay in bloom without fading, a blissful moment seems to stretch into eternity, somehow you've managed to sample the food of a dozen different booths and it still is barely mid-morning. It's like a perfect moment somehow drawn out, suspended in time to savor as long as possible. Those who have a particularly fun few minutes may even find them repeated a few times!

Which perhaps should be no surprise, given that Celebi itself has come out to play! If you're lucky and paying close attention, you might even catch a glimpse of it flitting about from one place to another throughout the town and the nearby forest. It certainly isn't shy, though it is moving quite quickly and doing anything but staying in one place. Anybody who might attempt to catch or challenge it to a battle isn’t going to get anywhere at all—and stubborn trainers might find themselves stuck in a time loop for a few hours. There's simply so much to see and do, after all! Strangely enough, if any of the Legend Seekers are around, Celebi never seems to be anywhere to be found.

Eventually, though, the long day will come to an end, and the festivities with it. By morning, all the hubbub will be gone, and Celebi with it. But not quite without a trace: anyone who came to Azalea Town to participate in the festival will find in their belongings a single fossil as a parting gift from the Time Travel Pokémon.

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Because it's weird!

Flood giggles again and zips off, weaving about the trees around the shrine as she goes to find something else to do. For now.

"Most of them seem to be overly optimistic idiots that don't understand how the real world works," Vanitas mused, watching Flood go before his attention returns fully to Jack. "If they want to get involved in what I'm doing, they're welcome to. It just won't end well for them."

Scrapper let out a growl in agreement, seeming to relax some now that Vanitas is being more casual.

"The plight of every world. People hear some stupid story and suddenly it's absolute truth. It makes me wonder how anyone survives."

"Yeah, I bet you could show them. Kid, I'm pretty sure I could take you out in like...two minutes. What even are you doing? Not that I care, you just have this 'I'm so edgy and badass' thing going on that I assume you've got a scheme going. Which is fine, scheme away ya crazy diamond, just don't be stupid about it."

Cause the more he talks, the more Jack thinks he's like this kid's boss, or something. He doesn't hang around HQ much, but he keeps an eye out for new members. And boy does this kid sound like that guy bitching about having to train Pokemon a bit ago.

"Again, humanity. People want answers so they latch onto'em."

And that has Vanitas's expression changing, his grin getting sharper as his eyes narrow.

"You sure about that, old man?" Please, Jack. Try him. Seriously. Take a swing. He's been itching for a good fight since he got to this overly wholesome place. Boredom and Vanitas have become good friends as of late and it's starting to take it's toll.

Training his group of Pokemon crazies has been pretty entertaining, though, and some of them remind him of the Unversed from home which helps quite a bit.

"Which is why it's so easy for entire worlds to collapse in on themselves," Vanitas replied, head tilting. "This world's no different than any of the other ones I've been too."

"I'm not that old. And I'd challenge ya, but we're not exactly supposed to be fighting among ourselves. I gotta set an example. But again, be smart about shit. You haven't been here that long. The longer someone's here, the more powerful Pokemon they've got, the more pimped out those Pokemon are, the more familiar they are with the terrain, and the more they know how to use the local environment to their advantage...." Jack ticks things off on his fingers.

"It's not all about gumption and a nasty right hook." Geeze, he's trying to give advice here! He's being a nice guy!

"Well duh. People are people, it doesn't matter what planet ya plop'em onto."

"Been there, done that. Already had to deal with someone at headquarters sending their Pokemon after me and I'm still standing," he said with a wave of a hand, Vanitas starting to walk around the shrine now. "But that's why I've been training Scrapper and the others. People don't seem to want to get their hands dirty so I guess I have to follow suit."

He gets it, Jack. He does. He just doesn't care all that much in the long run and will happily hurt Pokemon just as much as he'll hurt people. It's all the same to him.

"At least there's no 'princesses of heart' in this place," Vanitas practically spat out. "That would be too much positivity in one place."

"Yeah, there's a reason I don't hang around HQ much. Besides the fact that I'm your superior." He doesn't have to hang around, and he can't stand the majority of the organization.

"Eh, why would people get their hands dirty if they don't have to? Shit, I got a Pokemon that can take down trained soldiers and I'm pretty sure eats small children for fun. One of those dudes, actually, a Houndoom. Why am I gonna get my hands dirty when I've got a weapon like that at my disposal? That's being smart." There's...potential in this kid. Maybe. He's full of himself and he's definitely got that teenage punk front going, but...there might be something there.

"I don't even know what that is, I don't wanna know. But who the hell jerked off in your pokepops this morning? There's nothing wrong with being positive. That's good morale, shit."

See how much that comment about being his superior effects him? No? That's probably because he doesn't care much about authority.

"Because it's fun and gives you a thrill to cause someone pain with your own hands," Vanitas replied without missing a beat. Sure watching his Houndoom tear apart other Pokemon was fun but it was more fun to do it himself.

Pausing next to the shrine and glancing it over, Vanitas snorts softly, side-eyeing Jack.

"I said that would be too much positivity, not that being positive was bad. People just tend to be overly positive instead of facing the truth of a situation. Instead of being realistic. That's when I can't stand it."

"But it's pretty pointless here, where you can't even cause serious, lasting damage. Plus the option pool's limited and it gets boring going after the same people all the time. Plus the police, and it's no good drawing attention like that. Ya find other outlets, kiddo. Me? I got an underground fighting ring and a boyfriend who's into violent shit. You find what works."

Look at all this sage advice Jack is so selflessly dispensing!

"See, when the odds are against ya, that's when ya gotta turn it on ten times harder. It's like saying 'screw you, world, I do what I want! You're not the boss of me!'. And sometimes that's just what ya need."

"Why can't you cause lasting damage?" It's an honest question because as far as Vanitas knows he should still be able to cause someone significant pain here. Unless there's something he missed. The boyfriend comment almost makes him roll his eyes but he refrains, playing the role that Jack apparently seems to think he fills.

The edgy kid.

"Fighting ring, huh? Sounds like fun," he mused with a smirk, leaning against the shrine. He's about to say something else when suddenly his Phantump zips back onto the scene, giggling like mad and once Vanitas realizes why he can't help but snort in amusement.

Flood apparently went in search of a leaf big enough to cover her face and tore holes for her eyes and mouth before attaching it to her face.

See! She's got one of her own!

"Cause once you do enough, they just end up in the Pokemon Center, fixed up. What's the point? I strangle somebody, I wanna see the light going of their terrified eyes as I'm doing it. Don't get that here, it sucks." Holy shit, it's been over a year since he killed anybody. Like even a little. Even an indirect, ordered death.

Ugh.

But he's distracted by the Phantump. Is that...yes. Yes it is. Aw, that's kinda cute. Stupid, but cute.

"Not exactly an imitation of the original there, pumpkin." He's actually addressing Flood. "Back home, they sell replicas. Big item, make tons off of'em."

Maybe he wasn't much here (yet), but that doesn't change what he was back home. A god damned king.

Well that sucks. A lot.

"So I don't even have that to look forward to. Fantastic." Which meant he had to really throw his all into training his monsters if he wanted a chance to really cause other people harm.

Looks like life was going to get harder for his crew.

His Phantump seemed delighted that the strange man was talking to her directly now, bobbing about in the air with her little arms waving about.

Hey this was better than nothing!

"Don't encourage her or she'll never take it off," Vanitas mused, making his way back around the shrine to where Scrapper was still sitting and watching Jack. "It'll be even harder to take her seriously."

He knew better, of course. Because she had more than proved herself.

"Nope. Like I said, you find other outlets. You want in on the little fight club I got going, that's fine." He doubts the kid'll take him up on it, but it'd kinda fun to see him get the shit kicked out of him. Or kick the shit out of somebody.

"So what? She's got good taste. But it's not quite right, we can do better." Since...it's just a leaf. And damn it, Jack misses when people went around so in awe of him they wanted to wear his face.

"Gee, don't sound so interested in my fighting ability," Vanitas drawled mockingly though, if anything, he just looked even more amused. It was going to be fun to get involved in this. "I want in."

Flood twilled at Vanitas after Jack spoke as if to say 'See?' before she zipped around Jack then back over to her trainer.

"You're going to try and get my Pokemon a prosthetic face now?" He glanced at Flood as she giggled merrily, now perched on his shoulder. "You're way too amused by the idea of that."

"What? I extended an invitation, didn't I?" Jack scoffed. "I'll get you the details. Obviously it's all pretty hush hush." He's gotta be careful. Rocket's getting active, he's gotta be careful as hell with his public persona. Nothing that's gonna draw unwanted attention.

"On anybody else, it's a mask. I can't blame'er, I gotta great face. They don't call me Handsome Jack for nothing!" No, they called him that because he named himself that and severely punished anyone who didn't use it. "I was like the top pick for a Bloody Harvest costume three years in a row."

"That doesn't mean anything about what you think about me," the young man responded but he really wasn't all that upset about anything. It'd be fun to show off and make a point. "Let me guess, mom and dad don't know what you're up to?"

Which is what makes it all more intriguing, if he's going to be honest.

"...So you get a kick out of people wearing your face." It was stated in a way that made it clear Vanitas was just making sure he was following this line of conversation right. What a strange guy. "Everyone has their thing, I guess."

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It's time for the solstice!

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