victory_road | Video One - An Introduction

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Video One - An Introduction

[The screen turns on to reveal a new face - a teenage girl with unnaturally red hair, unusually green eyes and a huge smattering of freckles. She's got the device set up so she doesn't need to hold it letting her sit on the ground and fiddle with a pokeball looking like she's trying to open it. After all there's a seam so it should be able to open, right?]

You know, I realized I was going to get kidnapped by fairies at some point. I mean, it just seems to be a thing that happens in my family. I was just hopping it'd be kinda cooler. Like my mum and aunts got turned into swans by this fairy lord from Rus when I was little and told they couldn't be returned permanently into human shape until they married his sons. And before I was born my eldest cousin got kidnapped by a fairy who fell in love with him.

[She speaks with a very Irish accent - straight from County Cork for those who knows those sort of things.]

This is just kinda... weird. I mean the music is... different. Never heard of something like that happening in fairy before. Or really anywhere else real. I mean it happens in video games and movies all the time but not real life.

If anyone could point me in the direction of the nearest portal or gateway back to the mortal ... [Getting the ball finally open she cuts off as a murkrow appears and then she gets completely distracted by this.]

OH! Hello! Who are you?

[Pause as she listens to the bird croak something.]

You don't have a name? Well...hmm... how about... Princess She Who Devours the Darkness in People's Souls? I kinda like that one. And I can call you Pickles for short!

[This clearly makes sense to her and the newly dubbed Princess She Who Devours the Darkness in People's Souls or Pickles agrees with her.]

It's very nice to meet you. I think I saw a bandanna in this bag I was given, I could probably make you a bow tie out of it. It's rather silly, I mean I can't seem to find a knife anywhere and I can't find that house either. How am I supposed to survive in the woods without weapons?

I suppose I could make a spear from some branches. There are plenty of rocks around.

[... Yeah, she's completely forgotten that she was talking to the great unknown out there...]

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I'm afraid no one's yet found any reliable way to return to their own worlds. But on the other hand, evidence indicates that the passage of time here has no impact on that of other worlds.

*he may as well get straight to the main point(s), right?*

[Her attention swings back to the screen and for the briefest of moments her eyes narrow in distaste before she takes in the entire person. Gold eyes, not silver. The tense hunching of her shoulders relaxes and she focused more.]

How do you know that?

[It's a curious question because time in Fairy is weird.]

*Sion notes that reaction, but doesn't comment on it*

There have been cases of people who've been here, returned home, and then found themselves here once more. Additionally, people from different points of time from the same world have found themselves here, and those from later times indicate that there was never any absence of those from earlier times.

[It's a very brief reaction more of almost recognition. Nothing that really needs to be commented on.]

Really! Well, that makes sense I suppose; it's well documented that time acts oddly in fairy. This is the first I've heard of leaving and coming right back without having any time past though. Did they age?

*not at all, though still something to note and file away, just in case if the unlikely event that the reason for it should ever turn up*

Well, people age in their own worlds, of course, and seem to here, as well, but as far as I can tell, anything that happens here has no bearing on one's status back home.

*or to put it another way, he was about 20 when he first arrived, is closer to 21 as of his more recent memories of his own world.... but has been here 5+ years and is certainly starting to look it*

Huh.

[A thoughtful look as she's trying to parse this and figure out how to make it work in what she knew about how the world work.]

That's different.

[She held up the pokeball.]

So, what's the point of this?

That's one way of putting it, I suppose.

*different, weird, downright bizarre...*

Those are used to catch wild pokemon.

[Understatement for fun and profit!]

Okay... but why would I want to do that? I mean, I'm all for making animal friends. Gods, my poor family when I was little, the critters I brought home. But the woman who gave me all this stuff seemed to indicate that this was a ... thing people do?

And why do you need to use a ball? There are ways to gain an animal's trust without trapping them.

How do the balls work? Some sort of inter-dimensional space?

*ah, where to start with explaining this one....*

Well, you'll find that pokemon are in some ways rather unlike the animals of most worlds, though there's certainly similarities. And while it's certainly possible to befriend wild pokemon, they'll still remain wild if not caught. It's not unheard of for wild pokemon who are sufficiently impressed with a person they meet to intentionally let themselves be caught to remain with that person, or even those caught by accident to refuse to leave if offered the chance to be released.

In fact, I've heard it speculated that part of the reason for wild pokemon wanting to battle traveling trainers is that it's a way for them to test and judge the trainer's strength--someone who can successfully catch the pokemon in question is probably strong enough to be a good partner, someone the pokemon can learn from and grow with.

As for how they work exactly, that's something quite a few people would like to know, but there's remarkably little information on it. It apparently isn't unpleasant, and some shy pokemon sometimes prefer to be in their balls.

[She waved her hand in annoyance though the whole wanting to be captured thing is a bit odd.]

Yeah sure. But from the book here and everything, it seems to be an entire ... thing for people to go around and capture them.

Is everyone here like those crazy cat ladies?

*raises an eyebrow*

'Crazy cat ladies'...?

*he thinks he has a rough idea what she means, but*

Though it is indeed considered normal for people to catch and train pokemon here, yes. Perhaps more emphasis on the training part than the catching, though; people of this world seem to put quite a bit of emphasis on human partnerships with pokemon.

Yeah. They're old ladies that have lots and lots and lots and lots of cats. My Uncle Finn once rescued a HUNDRED cats from some old lady who'd DIIEEEEEED.

[She waved her arms out very dramatically as she talked and looked like she might topple over as she said the word "DIIEEEEED".]

Fortunately they didn't start eating her body when he found them.

[That last bit is said in a rather perky, chirrupy tone. There's some thinking as she tries to process this in a way that's familiar to her.]

So, they're like familiars?

Ah, I see.

*somehow, he manages to sound as if he's responding to just someone delivering a report on the weather, despite the theatrics and the specific details*

I suppose you could think of them like that, from what I understand. They're certainly seem more as partners than pets by most people, at least.

Princess Sticky Bubblegum and I are partners. She's my familiar.

[She continues on as if she didn't say anything weird. Because she totally didn't say anything weird. Turning to Princess She Who Devours the Darkness in People's Souls when she croaks something out she adds.]

She's not here. You'd know it if she was.

[Back to Sion]

So... what am I supposed to do? I'm out in the middle of no where. I don't have any food here, really. What's good for hunting?

For some time, I'm guessing?

*he recognizes that sort of expression; being separated from a dear friend or companion is never pleasant. but as for her question...*

You should have some snacks in the bag you were given when you arrived, and there's shops in the tons where you can buy food. While you're between towns, you may be able to find berries and such, though avoid the ones the pokemon eat. The wildlife in this world seems to be limited to the pokemon themselves, however, so hunting isn't really an option.

Since I was five. She's an owl that got turned pink by a magical accident when she was a baby.

[Celiidh is a late teenager. The owl, since it's still alive, is definitely an ancient owl.]

Berries. Uggh... I hate having to do that. It gives me the runs.

Well, I'm sure you'll be reunited whenever it is you do end up leaving this place.

*since sooner or later that happens for everyone... even if he's one of the ones who can count his stay in years*

How far have you gone from New Bark Town so far?

Edited 2017-11-18 05:07 (UTC)

Where's New Bark Town?

Why do you think I left from New Bark Town if that's where I did come from?

It's in the southeastern part of the Johto region, about three day's journey east of Cherrygrove City.

And you seemed concerned about supplies, as well as saying you're in the middle of nowhere. New Bark may be small, but if you're still there, you should be able to be some supplies to see you through to Cherrygrove.

Edited 2017-11-18 06:22 (UTC)

But how do you know that's where I am? Do these devices have some sort of GPS on them that you can check? Or a tracker?

[The video is turned around including a brief view of the ground as she looks it over.]

Who wouldn't be worried about supplies? Only a crow bitten idiot goes out adventuring without supplies even if that's what happens in stories all the time.

What's in Cherrygrove?

Nothing like that. Simply the fact that everyone who arrives here finds themselves in New Bark Town, and if you had gotten all the way to the next city by now, you probably would have spoken rather differently about your surroundings.

*pretty straightforward, really, he's used to having to figure out more from less*

And if you have already left town without picking up more supplies first...

*he raises an eyebrow; he won't say it, but she's the one talking about being in the "middle of nowhere" without supplies*

More houses, more stores, and perhaps most notably, a pokemon center.

Do they really?

That's ... odd.

[She scratched her nose absently, thinking that one over, trying to make it make sense. ... Well, there were stories about magical places that took you to the same place even if you entered it from different locations. Inns were popular places. Uncle Rory claimed to have gone to one of those.]

[Sniffing a little, she wrinkled her nose and promptly ignored the jab.]

What's a pokemnon center?

Yes. In the past, the timing's been quite predictable, too, though it's harder to be sure of that lately as there's been fewer new arrivals.

*he's been here for a while, he's noticed*

It's a place where your pokemon can rest and be healed at no charge, amongst other things.

Edited 2017-11-19 06:20 (UTC)

[Ford decides about halfway through the post that he likes this girl. She's weird, and she appreciates the value of always being armed. Both good qualities.]

You may not want to make such sweeping generalizations about fairies, or at least you many not to want to rely on them to inform your understanding of this world. Not that you're wrong about the fae as you know them, but there are Pokémon classified as fairies as well and while they can often bear striking resemblance to Earth fae -- I assume you are from an Earth -- the similarities do stop markedly after a point.

Which is all to say the chances of you getting kidnapped by the fair folk is astronomically high because that is what they tend to do, but I can say with almost complete certainty that isn't what's happened this time.

Oh, I know all sorts of different types of fairies! We've got all sorts of books on different kinds of fae. From willow o'wisps and redcaps to the high fae who are usually the ones that do the kidnapping.

What are Pokémon? [Pickles croaks something at her and she gives a slight 'huh' before turning back to Ford.] What classifies them as fairies?

[She needs a nail, now that she thinks about it. Her iron unicorn was missing.]

I'm from Earth! Eire. [If the accent didn't prove it.] Are there people here not from there?

Then what kidnapped me? Aliens!?

That. That is a Pokémon. [He gestures at Pickles.] And so is this. [Phoebe the Clefairy shoves her face into frame.]

They are a race of beings that are deeply in-tune with elemental energy. Those classified as Fairies, like Phoebe here, can wield certain power that others cannot-- often ones that draw from the moon or the power of nature, or have to do with healing or protection. As I said they are less Earth fae and more another world's answer to them, built from a different mold but with certain similarities. I have my own theories about this -- about cross-universal similarities and what it might mean for multiversal theory as a whole -- but I won't go into that here.

[He could, but it would be a tangent lasting an hour or so and he's self-aware enough to realize nobody wants to sit through that except for him and maybe Armin.]

But it does relate to my other point, which is I believe it's much more likely you simply stumbled through a doorway between worlds. Traveling across the boundaries between universes is far easier than most people assume. I myself arrived here after I sailed into the Bermuda Triangle, which in hindsight I ought to have been expecting.

What makes them different than animals? Is it another world for animal?

[Because there's a great deal of difference between the murkrow and the Clefairy. Though she does like the way the Clefairy looks. It's the pink.]

I know a bit about multiversal theory. My friend Adrian is really big on that sort of thing and if you get him drunk properly he'll go rambling about it before trying to summon beer. He's not allowed to do that any more after he summoned a brownie accidentally and they turned our milk sour for a month!

There's a doorway to fairy in the woods near my home. My family watches over it to make sure that nothing bad comes through in either direction. But... there are doorways that do open up randomly for whatever reason. My cousin Trever triggered one once because he was at the right spot at the right time.

[Then to Phoebe, she asks:]

Hello! What's your name? I'm Ceilidh.

Clef, clefaaairy!

[She seems friendly enough, if a little haughty. That tracks for a fairy.]

Her name is Phoebe. I call her a Pokémon because that is the native word for what she is. I suppose you could make an argument that Pokémon are this universe's animals, considering the animals you and I might be familiar with don't exist here. Ask any native about, say, a squirrel. They won't know what you mean.

It's a lot to take in all at once, I'm sure, but the trick to it is remembering that this universe operates on a fundamentally different set of rules than yours. I'm assuming the Earth you're from doesn't have ambient background music, either.

[Unless it does, in which case, that's radical.]

It's very nice to meet you. You're very pretty.

[She tilts her head a little bit, thoughtfully scratching her nose.]

Well, my Uncle Rory visited a cave in Greece where music constantly played. It belonged to Apollo, though, so I don't think that counts.

Yes, I think interference from a deity is a special case.

[He doesn't seem the least bit surprised that she's from a world where gods are real to at least some extent. Why would that be surprising? Infinite universes means infinite possibilities. One can never truly discount anything from being possible.]

[No one has told her that there are people from worlds without magic yet. Her powers are currently working as it's being able to talk to and understand animals which is happening with the Pokemon...]

Gods are always think they're special cases but they can still be punched in the face like everyone else when they're acting like dicks.

[That gets him to laugh. Yeah, he likes this kid.]

Well-said! Though I wouldn't classify ambient music as, ah. 'Dickish'.

[That's the word, right? He's pretty sure he's overheard Wendy use it at least once.]

In the grand scheme of things a god -- or something calling itself a god -- can do a lot more to deserve being punched in whatever might pass as their face.

It depends on what sort of ambient music it is, I think. Uncle Grady said that he wanted to throw out my Princess Ponies DVDS when I was little because hearing them singing in the background all the time drove him crazy. I really liked Princess Ponies.

[She still does. Shhh...]

My Auntie Grace once punched Thor so hard he was knocked out because he hit on her! It nearly started a war with Eire and now my family isn't allowed in any of the Aseir controlled lands except with express permission from Odin.

[This is said very cheerfully like it's the best thing in the world.]

[Sweet Moses, she's like a redhead Mabel. It's kind of amazing to realize there's a whole subset of people who are just like this all the time. How do they find the energy? It's astounding.]

So your world supports multiple pantheons. Interesting.

[Yeah, that's the most important part of all that.]

I personally haven't interacted with any of the gods of my world, but the various pantheons were never my area of study. God-like beings, certainly. [A demon, once, but we don't talk about that.] I'd be very interested in interviewing you sometime, if you'd be amenable. Perhaps not now considering you've just arrived and need to get your feet under you.

[Her entire family is like this, actually. She has twelve aunts and uncles plus some cousins and grandparents and a brother. This all her mother's side. She knows nothing about her father's side of the family. It might as well not exist for all she cares.]

... Well... yes...? I mean... what else would there be...? You've got the Asier, the Olympians, the Tuatha Dan and... I forget what the ones up and around Rus are called mostly in Europe. There's a bunch of other ones elsewhere but, I've not really paid attention to them. Though there's the remains of the Punt pantheon living in England.

I don't like them very much, they tried to destroy the world a few years back.

[She wrinkles her nose and then grins.]

Sure! I'd be happy to tell you stories!

I'm the many, many, many, many, times great grand daughter of the Morrigan! I know lots of stories about her and the Tuatha; like she and Brigid got into a sniping fight at my Uncle Calvin's twenty fifth coronation anniversary three months ago. It's also her fault that my cousin is named after a cabbage.

[She beams.]

_{[Okay, the Pokemon's name definitely got a chuckle out of her.]}

Yo, just a head's up, from one person who hates being without weapons to another-- this place really doesn't look fondly on carrying weapons around.

I mean, don't let it stop you if you can find a pocket knife or something, better safe than sorry, but don't like, wave it around, y'know? And fortunately, you don't really NEED to.

Your Pokemon looks small and cute now but she can actually do a much better job protecting you from anything that might jump out atcha here than a spear will.

[It's a perfectly good name.]

Maybe. But even so, knives are almost necessary to survive properly in the woods. Lots of things need to be cut. Knives, flint and steel, rope...

Oh, I know animals can be dangerous! That's why they have sharp and pointy bits. I used kittens as weapons when I was little and there's a whole murder of crows and ravens at the Hall at home and they're dangerous when they're pissed. I once saw one claw someone's eyes out. And another broke someone's neck.

[There's a bit of a blank look and then a shrug.]

Maybe. But I'd rather have something to hold onto just in case Pickles is incapacitated. It never hurts to have backup.

_{[She lifts her hands.]}

Hey, no arguments here.

Just wanted to make sure you knew to be careful-- I've had, like, so much stuff confiscated by annoyed cops in this place.

_{[Though by the gal's description, it sounds kind of like she was the R-rated version of an animal-whispering Disney princess back home or something, so you know what, she's probably gonna do just fine in this place.]}

[She quite definitely would be an R rated Disney Princess. As a child her favorite doll was a princess doll named "Princess Stabbity" that was covered in fake blood. She still has the doll in her room.]

[Tapping her chin thoughtfully, she nodded.]

I can do that.

Good, then you're well on your way to fitting in.

Next piece of advice: don't eat the big colorful berries.

Other than that? Just learn as you go.

[Fitting in? Ceilidh? She is too bright to fit in. Bright as in a flame as opposed to intelligent.]

Are they poisonous?

You could say that, yeah.

_{[Heather can proudly say that she read the guidebook right off the bat and stayed the fuck away from them... but can also say that she heard veritable horror stories from the people who didn't.]}

At the very least, not something you ever wanna subject yourself to when you're on the road, in the middle of nowhere, and don't have any toilet paper.

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Video One - An Introduction

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