victory_road | 1st Recipe [New Bark Town, Video/Action]

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1st Recipe [New Bark Town, Video/Action]

[Video]

[There are a lot of things you don't expect when you're Jane Crocker. You don't expect the entire world to shift scenes in the blink of an eye, floating in the ruins of a golden moon one second and waking up in what looks to be a normal, sunny bedroom the next. You don't expect some woman whom you've never seen before in your entire life to come in, claim to be your mother, shove a backpack into your arms and kick you out of the house with vague directions to a - a laboratory? And you certainly don't expect to be given what you're darn tootin' sure is a Pokeball once you get there, and as soon as you go, are again booted out towards the only dirt road outta town: Route 29.

So forgive her if she spent the last night in town, pounding on the door of her "mother"'s house and demanding to be let back in and given an explanation. When her video comes on this morning, it shows a very tired, bespectacled teenage girl with prominent buck teeth looking about 110% done with everything around her.]

...Okay, it's on. I think. [She squints, as if looking for something on the Pokegear to in fact indicate it is on, before continuing.] Um...hello? I'm basically going on a hunch that this...weird thing can be used as a communicator of sorts. Almost like FaceTime on a smartphone, right? I-I really hope so, or else I'm making calls into the goshdarned aether. [She sighs, shaking her head.] Anyway. If someone out there knows exactly how someone can wake up in what should very well be a video game that isn't supposed to suck you into a virtual reality, and if there's a way for me to leave, I'd greatly appreciate it. I...was sort of in the middle of something. [A look of hesitance crosses her face, as if...she may be asking to go back, but she sure as fuck doesn't want to at the moment.] I'll be in this...New Bark Town place for a little longer, if you need to know where I am.

- Oh, and, one more thing? [The video blurs as it shifts to a very pink creature that's quietly munching on some trail mix by Jane's side.] Not that she isn't cute, but, um...is this really a Pokemon?

[Action]

[True to her word, Jane lingers in town for the day. The pink Pokemon - Audino, her Pokedex has explained - seems happy to sit nearby and play with the hood on her unusual attire. This seems to be proving endearing enough to get Jane to smile despite herself, but given how warily she looks at the natives, it seems she'd do well with some sort of human conversation that doesn't tend to repeat itself.]

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You haven't met them before?

[ Oh no. He doesn't look it but he feels like his insides just sank into a pit. He goes still and blank. They're not on the same time. Okay. That's... he hasn't been on the same time as anyone since he got here. He wasn't expecting her to be synchronized with him. Not really. He doesn't know why this feels like such a shock. Maybe he got too hopeful?

He should really leave the hope stuff to Jake. ]

Edited 2016-07-23 23:25 (UTC)

No, not at all. We'd just gone God Tier, and then I blink, and suddenly I'm here.

[Jane notices the stillness, but...isn't sure what to make of it. Obviously we should just plow on through our conversation.]

You know, John...oh gosh, it's weird to just call him by his first name, but! John did mention something about timeline shenanigans when I spoke to him. It doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, I mean...none of us were Time players, so...why would that even be a thing?

[ Dirk simply nods once at the answer. Her not knowing she was brainwashed is good. For now. It might come up eventually because he has no control over what the rest of the group says to her. There's nothing he can do about it now. ]

Dave's a time player. And John had been able to do something. I'm not sure. The intricacies of time-related shenanigans elude me. Pokemon could care less about logic, in any case. You can't even teach a bird "fly" without beating a Gym.

[Dirk, it's your lucky day, because Jane's attention has been diverted. By what, you may ask?]

A...bird can't learn to fly? But, don't they already...fly around, and...you know, use their wings and move to different places? If they have wings that work, birds aren't exactly known for their great running speeds.

[ His Pokemon wasn't distracted. She went from humming to petting the side of his head and then tugging on a cheek like she could force him to smile. There, there. Dirk swats at her. ] Stop it. [ She drops her hands. ]

They fly still but they don't know fly. Like I said, logic isn't Pokemon's forte. The thing with literal swords for hands can't cut a bush in half the same way.

[Aw, Anne, you did your best. Jane chuckles and gives the little pink mime a wink. ~~Jane don't encourage her.~~]

That...really doesn't make any sense. Is, um, is that thing with ledges still a thing? Like, you can jump down from them, but God help you if you try climbing up one?

[ Anne smiles... then mimics her and winks back. She looks at Dirk and winks at him. One wink for Audino. Anne learned wink! Dirk is pretending he doesn't notice. ~~Jane, why?~~]

That never stopped being a thing. I could run up the wall and do an acrobatic fucking double pike on to the ledge only to smack against the surface of an invisible forcefield that refuses admission to anyone trying to go up.

[Jane has to stifle a chuckle at that. The Audino, meanwhile, presses both her little hands to her mouth and laughs, and winks back. WINKING IS SO COOL]

Jiminey crickets...that's just poor logic, though, isn't it?

[ The second Dirk turns his head to look at Anne she's mimicking him instead and going stone-faced. The winking and giggling resume when his attention is back on Jane. The thin Mime arms waving at Audino in hopes she saw how funny that was. Sooo cooool. They're the best winkers. ]

It's asinine. But not as bad as trying to step around a small bush. That one makes us all look incompetent.

[They are the true queens of winking and not getting caught doing it, it's them. Jane manages to catch the thumbs up the Audino gives to Anne out of the corner of her eye, but...eh, let 'em talk in their own way, it's fine. Not like the poor dear has any other Pokemon she can talk to at the moment.]

Uuugh...and I'm guessing the moment you climb up on a large swimming Pokemon that shouldn't have any trouble swimming at all, it starts sinking and throws you off.

[ He's pretty sure he's the butt of some kind of joke but what else is new? Those Pokemon are too damn cute to make them stop doing whatever it is they're doing. Pokemon friendships. God damn. ]

Yeah. That one pisses me off. I've tried it with my giant fucking starfish. You can use them as a general floatation device as long as you don't try actually going anywhere.

[It's a complex winking joke. It's got layers.]

...So you can basically hang on while the tide drags you in and out. Dirk, that's stupid.

I guess beating the gyms to teach our new friends helpful things they should already innately know is definitely a thing I could do.

[ He can appreciate some Ironic Winking ]

Most things here are stupid. The entire economy is dependent on cockfighting.

That was my plan. I think I've got everyone on a reasonable enough level to ensure victory on the easier ones. I wonder if we can double-team gyms.

Well, yes, that's something I do remember being a talking point on the news when the games came out.

[You know, underneath the whole POKEMON ARE THE SPAWN OF SATAN controversy. Her Dad never lingered much on that kind of news when she was around, though.]

You know, I don't have the slightest idea if we can - and even so, I'm definitely going to have to get a lot stronger before I think of challenging any of them, with a teammate or not.

The media's campaign against video games seemed like a fascinating one.

[ No one ever seemed to blame Mario for anything and he's the one eating strange mushrooms ]

You can turn those Pokemon into killing machines in no time with the right training.

To be fair, I don't agree with four year old children playing Grand Theft Auto, but that doesn't mean it's going to make them go out and steal cars, run over people, and kill working girls for their money.

[At least not right away. And hopefully not when they get older.]

Really now? Would you be willing to help me get into this training, Dirk? I don't want to be totally helpless while I'm here, after all.

I'd imagine if it did make them, your child was an idiot and you've failed as a parent.

[ A nod. ]

Of course. No friend of mind is going in blind.

Also, how would they even reach the car pedals and see through the front window? Gosh, that's a recipe for disaster.

[A smile in return.] Thank goodness for that! Don't think I won't repay you for it, though.

You'd need at least three of them to properly operate the vehicle. You have one kid on the steed turning the wheel and honking the horn, one on the floor pushing the pedals and another in the passenger seat with an AK-47 whistling at the working girl on the corner.

I'm sure you will even if I tell you not to.

[She just shakes her head. Good heavens, let that never happen.]

You know me so very well.

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