Come alive come alive

[indigo_events]

Who: Everyone attending the Contest Spectacular! (For more information about this event, check out the info post here!)
Where: Celadon City
When: February 15th-17th
Log:



Valentine’s day may be just past and most cities are relaxing back to normal after all the romance. But in Celadon City, the holiday hype wound up as a lead-in to the month’s main event: the return of the Contest Spectacular!

After Olivine had the honor of hosting in the summer, Kanto’s rainbow city has been eager to draw the event back and truly establish the new tradition. Not that it took much convincing to get Hoenn’s Contest runners back on board—not to mention the Aether Foundation’s assistance as well. They’d heard the city had had an on-and-off issue with pollution, so of course they’re here to supervise and ensure Pokemon safety!

Lusamine having the opportunity to judge more beautiful Pokemon is simply a perk to coming, of course.

Anne and Liz have returned as well, wouldn’t miss it for the world. They’re growing very fond of hosting for this new and interesting region, not to mention getting to meet all the people from entirely different worlds! Whenever they can grab a moment of downtime, they can be spotted out and about with their Plusle and Minun, and are eager to chat people up and hear their otherworldly stories. Just no questions about results!

As for the city itself... Celadon is always flashy, but they really pulled out all the stops this time.

Pink, red, and white tents and booths fill the streets between the towering green-glassed buildings. The fashion center of Kanto apparently didn't get the memo that the fourteenth was over and instead decided on having more hearts, more Luvdisc-themed decorations, and MORE cherry lollipops.

The Aether tents blend right in with the other lovey-dovey colors-- this time they're there to pass out hand-warmers and sanitizer, pamphlets about PokeRus and how to best avoid passing around germs. They're friendly as always (although there seem to be even more of them this time than there were back in August), but Celadon City made sure that there's far more to see than some geeks in white. Now that the Contest Spectacular has two massive successes under its belt, more people than ever want to get in on it.

It seems that every bakery in town came together to outdo each other, and extravagant sweets and pastries are being sold and sampled out at every turn. The usual photobooths and costume-rental stands (that, cough, are definitely not advertising from local fashion companies that want you to stop in and BUY the outfits from their boutiques later...) are present as always-- and the mini-games from last summer are back too!

One booth is surrounded by a near-constant crowd-- manned by a shiny Decidueye and his nervous-looking Trainer-- the regal owl Pokemon is signing copies of his newly-published self-help book-slash-autobi"owl"graphy ("Owl I Want Is You: Memoirs of a Hopeless Romantic") with one of his own quills.
And of course there's the official Contest stalls bursting with merch from the previous contests-- including (but not limited to) colorful additions like:

a sparkling necklace whose beads form the shape of an Onix (EXPENSIVE... but so stylin'!)

a clunky (but very popular with the Youngsters) action figure that transforms into a lumpy Tyrantrum if you follow a bunch of complicated steps

a short newsstrip-style graphic novel about the action-packed adventures of a crime-fighting Wailmer

a VERY dapper line of Joltik-themed bowties and cuff-links

a dainty music box containing a tiny ballerina Eevee figurine that spins when opened

a set of "Ink Blasterz (tm)"-- Octillery-themed squirt guns that come with packets of (nontoxic) black dye so that you and your friends can ruin your neighbor's drying laundry even more once summer rolls back around

a set of gleaming opalescent d20's in a Sableye-shaped box, complete with two hollow holes on the lid where the eyes should be where you can stick two of them!

a floppy green Deino doll that, when switched on, tumbles chaotically around the floor and emits growling noises.

But for those worn out on capitalism the shameless merchandizing, this year the real centerpiece of the outdoor attractions is a temporary but still impressive greenhouse erected in the plaza outside of the main tent. Gym Leader Erika and her underlings have worked throughout the month to feature the fruits of their labor (no pun intended) in the Celadon Gym, and the Greenhouse is a great place for a relaxing respite from the cold, slushy February streets outside. Visitors can learn all about exotic flora and even purchase potted Berry trees, houseplants and bonsais raised by the Celadon gym trainers themselves!

~*~

[IMPORTANT: Please submit your contest entries here! For all other activities, feel free to make your own top-levels!]

Comments

[unabates]

Bazzrd!

[ crybaby excitedly rubs her cheek against köllikers, her tail swishing back and forth. jack is finished cleaning up his dogs, who look between him, kölliker, and egon, their tongues hanging out.

jack gets up, raising an eyebrow at the two of them. this also reminds him of fareeha and ana, and he folds his arms.

he knows better than to interrupt, after all. kölliker will just take it as reinforcement.

(but she can probably sense his amusement). ]

[pkemeter]

no!!!!

[Jack can probably sense a feeling of annoyance, confusion, and...Kölliker being genuinely upset? Egon seems to feel it, as well, and he sighs deeply, trying to think of what to do next.]

I am somewhat disappointed in you. You're a good unicellular creature, it is just not polite to say these things to other people. I do not want to have to discipline you, but you need to stop if you do not want these consequences.

[She burbles quietly, thinking about Egon's words and calming down a little. After a brief moment, she floats over to Jack and tries to bury herself in his arms.]

new dad.

[She says that with a tone of mischief. Egon rolls his eyes.]

[unabates]

[ jack can sense it, and - while he never had kids himself, he was exposed to fareeha and gabriel's kids enough to understand what is going on here. it's just a little different with pokemon.

kölliker doesn't want to get in trouble with egon, but neither does she want to stop being bad. unfortunately, neither of these things can happen.

.. her solution is definitely one he's seen before, with fareeha running into her father's arms to avoid her mother's punishment.

except jack is not playing this game, and he raises his arms so kölliker has no where to squirm. ]

No, not new dad -

[ but even as he's telling kölliker no, crybaby has turned around with a confused look. new dad? is this a trade? is jack trying to trade her again???

tears well up in her eyes and she opens her mouth to let out of a mournful wail that echoes in the greenhouse. ]

[pkemeter]

[oh god what have they done

Kölliker pauses for a moment, evaluating Crybaby's thought process. Then she decides to ignore it and continue to try and attach herself to Jack. Egon looks stunned and mildly terrified, glancing from the wailing Skitty to his awful, awful child--]

Uh--nice kitty, good kitty. Please stop crying. [There's a hint of desperation in his voice.] Please.

[He frantically digs through his bag and pulls out a PokéBall, clicking down on the button. The Solosis gets scooped up in a red beam of light and disappears from sight. Egon scrubs his face with his hand. This should be sufficient enough for her to reevaluate her actions.]

I'm very sorry about that, uh-- [He looks down at Crybaby.] Can't you--Can't you turn it off?

[unabates]

[ yeah that went about how he expected it to, all things considered.

jack puts a hand down and, very firmly, both mentally and verbally tells ko no. but it seems crybaby's wails unsettle egon enough to recall her.

jack, meanwhile, rolls his eyes. ]

Like turning off the sun.

[ but he reaches down and scoops crybaby up, dixie sniffing at her as well, and strokes his hand over her pollen covered head. ]

I've got you, okay? No trading away, I promise. I'm right here.

[ her wailing subsides to soft sniffles and rubbing her face against jacks chest.

dixie sneezes again, then walks over to egon to nose at his hand. you have an upset baby, sir? ]

[pkemeter]

[Well. All things considered, at least this guy seems to have things under control. Egon still looks rather uncomfortable for having been at least partially responsible for this.

He glances down at the Houndour, currently sniffing at his hand. Fascinating--she seems to resemble a hellhound, of some sort. He reaches down to scratch her head before pressing down on the PokéBall button again. Kölliker gets released next to Dixie, and she blinks, turning around to look at what havoc she hath wrought.]

no swear?

No swearing. [Egon kneels down, staring at Dixie.] Please, say something to her.

[He must be truly desperate if he's asking a dog for help....]

[unabates]

[ no no, egon, if a certain man didn't have a habit of provoking this kind of response from his skitty - see his contest entry - he probably could have nipped this in the bud a bit sooner. but he has not, and here we are.

dixie accepts the head scratches with a little tilt. when kölliker is released next to her, she gently gives her a lick to her 'cheek' membrane. when egon asks her say something? that has a look of surprise.

she's a dark type, so she can still hear kölliker but the psychic interference doesn't affect her. instead, she bumps her head against her, verbalizing a series of gentle growls and low barks.

the gist of what she says? that she gets swears are super fun, don't get her wrong. but for other people they're not fun. and she can see how upset she gets her trainer-dad and other pokemon when she does it.

if she listens to trainer-dad initially, she won't get in trouble. he's not mad at her until after she says no - and she can sense that egon is upset, but still cares about her, right?

she bumps her nose against kölliker's membrane again. plus, if she listens to him, then she'll have more leverage on when she can use swears later. ]

[pkemeter]

[Save them from these babies.

Kölliker burbles a little, but before she can go into her usual "I'm baby" blathering, Dixie starts barking. She blinks, tilting her whole body to the side in a quizzical manner. Hmmm...black dog fire skull cool makes good point. On the one hand, she likes having fun, but...she doesn't want to make glasses serious dad upset, because then he gets sad, and she doesn't like to see him when he's sad.

She nibbles on Dixie's nose before saying--]

ok! no swear.

[Egon rubs at his temples.]

Why are you more willing to listen to other Pokémon instead of me?

[He glances over towards Jack, who is still holding Crybaby.]

Is she calming down?

[unabates]

[ black dog fire skull cool does make a good point. there are other ways to have fun besides swearing! especially in this location.

dixie waits until kölliker releases her nose before she sneezes slightly, her mouth pulling back in a grin. good baby.

and, of course, at egon's despair, dixie trots over and gives his cheek a lick, too. there there, trainer, you'll get it one day.

jack, for his part, has a bunch of pollen on his chest, but crybaby seems to have calmed down. he nods. ]

Yeah, she's fine. How's yours?

[ she's not swearing, at least. crybaby makes another little skitty? noise, directed at kölliker. ]

[pkemeter]

[Egon grimaces slightly at the cheek lick. Just think about the fact that it's not that different from being in contact with ectoplasm, except it comes from a dog, and dog drool is not scientifically interesting to him.]

...Thank you. [Said while wiping off his cheek with his sleeve as he gets up on his feet. Kölliker hovers over towards Crybaby, bubbling softly and cheerfully. What's up, fellow baby? Doing better now? Wanna have some fun that may or may not involve swearing?]

Your...hellhound appears to have convinced her to stop. [He shakes his head, putting his hands in his pockets.] Whatever works, at this point. Where did you obtain a creature like that, anyways?

[unabates]

[ dixie seems to not care about the grimace, and trots back over to jack, checking on bandit and scout, who are currently biting each others ears, entirely unbothered by the drama that just occurred next to them.

crybaby reaches out for kölliker, giving a cheerful skit! sure, she's down for fun that may or may not involve swearing. (she'll just wait until jack is out of earshot to try it).

jack chuckles a little bit, setting crybaby down so she and kölliker can have their conversation. he reaches out and scratches behind dixie's ears. ]

I found her - well, really, Crybaby found her - outside Goldenrod. She's a Houndour - a dark and fire dog. [ he clears his throat. ]

She approached us on our way in when Crybaby was upset, and wouldn't leave us alone. I, uh, never actually caught her with a Pokeball.

[ dixie snorts. if jack would throw one at her, she'd get into it! ]

[pkemeter]

Hmm. So she simply decided to follow you on her own volition? Perhaps this is another example of Pokémon purposely seeking out trainers that can take care of them.

[...Man, this guy must really like dogs. Or dogs must like him, because who just brings three dogs into a greenhouse like this?]

...I apologize for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Dr. Egon Spengler. Again, I apologize for the...swearing.

[Kölliker sort of sends a mental image to Crybaby of the Sushi-go-round game she saw while floating past everything. Suggestion? Food? Eat? She'll be able to be in contact with her dad, so everything's gonna be safe.]

[unabates]

[ jack is definitely the type to just have way too many dogs and take them everywhere. that's what makes the skitty such an outlier, but she's sort of made it very clear that jack didn't pick her by choice.

still, when egon introduces himself, he has a moment of surprise, and then laughs. ]

My name's Jack - or Soldier: 76. I think we've spoken before, about people disappearing. And I've heard worse; I used to be in the military.

[ crybaby makes a delighted noise. oh, she's so down to do that. she turns and mewls at jack, who looks at the two of them. he seems to get that she's asking to go somewhere, so he waves a hand. ]

Go have fun, kitten.

[ crybaby turns back and bounces up and down, as high as she can. yes yes sushi game now. dixie immediately trots off after them as soon as they start moving, though. ]

[pkemeter]

Oh.

[Egon blinks, then rubs the back of his neck. Kölliker disappears with Crybaby. To do totally good things, now that Dixie is supervising them and looking over their metaphorical shoulders.]

Yes, that's right, isn't it? Interesting to meet you in person for the first time. [He crosses his arms.] I have to say, my last few incidents with the military--at least, in my world-- have been less than positive. Do you have a United States where you're from?

[Just going to lay all his cards out on the table right now. He's not one to hide his opinions about things.]

[unabates]

[ listen, if kölliker wants to do some swears, dixie is not going to stop her. she's the most adult, but swears are fun, and no one will get hurt if they do it quietly.

still, he can tell that 'less than positive' probably doesn't cover egon's feelings. he gives a small nod. ]

We do, and we have a United States military, which is where I originally joined up. But I spent the bulk of my service in Overwatch - a United Nations organization - out of jurisdiction of the US of A.

[ he shrugs. ]

I'm not one of those oo-rah types who think the force can't fuck up.

[pkemeter]

The United Nations is a barely-functioning institution that only serves to make the people feel as though any sort of meaningful politics are taking place.

[Well, he's just...comin' out swinging, I guess. Also just assuming that Jack is from the 20th century, as he's mentioned the United Nations.

It's fine.]

It sounds as though the United Nations in your universe seems to have somehow obtained some policy enforcement. Though there are always downfalls to having any sort of military power on hand without any way to regulate it.

[unabates]

[ the thing is he's not exactly wrong, even in the 21st century. part of jack's conviction on talon infiltrating overwatch has to do with them infiltrating the united nations as well.

it's not anything he's going to disclose to egon, unfortunately, but he partially agrees. ]

When you get an organization on a global scale, things tend to take more time.

And, anyway, Overwatch was initially formed in response to a global terroristic threat that threatened to destroy humanity. Once we'd handled that, we moved to peace-keeping and integration - since like any culture, that 'terroristic threat' had real people on the other side of it that weren't bad guys.

[pkemeter]

That is true. You'd think humankind would develop some sort of technology to increase the efficiency at which things are accomplished. Such as easily accessible telepathy.

[He...He doesn't seem to be joking. Hm. Either way, Egon seems to perk up at the sound of 'global terroristic threat'.]

Hm. It seems that themes of 'saving the world' seems to be a present constant in the dimensions where other people come from. I'd ask if the threat was supernatural in nature, but I have personally never encountered any sort of spirit or ghost that was not malign in some way.

[He crosses his arms. In the back of his mind, he hears a faint "FUCK!" coming from the direction of the games, and he frowns. Oh, dear.]

In the end, it's all just politics, anyways.

[unabates]

[ jack... can't say he'd be excited for telepathy for everyone, for various reasons. thoughts should stay in their own heads, please and thank you.

but he takes the other thread of conversation, regardless. ]

It wasn't supernatural. At it's core, it was manmade. A company made factories - Omniums - with self-evolving and learning AIs, then abandoned them. Most of those AIs decided we were a threat and created Omnics - robots, essentially - to attack us.

Some of these Omnium AIs weren't bad, and they wanted peace. They were key in helping us defeat the other programs - but of course, after that, most humans didn't want to trust Omnics. So that was part of Overwatch's job after the war - making sure that Omnics were protected, since some countries refused them rights.

[ he shrugs a little bit again. ]

Didn't envy the guys in charge of that.

[ ittotallywasnthim. believe him please. ]

[pkemeter]

Hmmm. Self-learning AIs? I'd be interested in learning how that came about and the technology behind it. Such advanced technology seems unfeasible in my dimension. Are you from a century further than the 20th, then?

[...Either he's ignoring the part where they, like, killed a bunch of people, or he just completely forgot the moment he heard about the robots. It's entirely possible that it's both. He just wants the cool science shit.]

At least some of the Omnics seem relatively benign--or, at least as benign as humans can be. Ghosts rarely offer us any respite, though most of their hostility is borne from the fact that their aggression stems from the properties of being ethereal. And the fact that most of them have abilities that make them think they can take over the world without consequences.

[He states this as if speaking a simple fact like the weather.]

[unabates]

21st century. I was born in the year 2000; the Omniums came into their own in the 2020s. It was the 2060's when I showed up here.

[ canon is never more specific than that so pretend there were hard dates. ]

As for the technology behind it - I'm a soldier, not a programmer or scientist. All I know is what happened and what I fought, and who was left after the dust settled.

[ he shrugs. ]

Most Omnics I met were like people - some nice, some assholes, but not homicidal maniacs. As for ghosts, I can't say I've run into them outside of those corn field ghosts and the hitchhiker I mentioned.

oh god jack is younger than i am. what the fuck

[pkemeter]

The twenty-first century? Fascinating. I thought that self-learning and humanoid-like AI would appear in the 23rd century, at best. This is truly a testament towards human innovation.

[He scratches his chin and opens his mouth to say something when Kölliker comes whizzing back, nearly colliding with Jack. For some reason, there's copious amounts of sushi suspended in her cytoplasm as she rolls around in the air. Egon blinks, looking towards the little blob.]

I'm assuming you had fun.

it's horrifying

[unabates]

You would have thought so. But we ended up with people creating programs and wanting to advance them towards AI -

[ he doesn't even get to smart phone assistants or internet inputted AI when kölliker comes flying back. he's a little confused as to why she has sushi in the rest of her, until dixie comes loping back in.

crybaby is on her back with the most impressive gut she's ever managed to have, and she looks almost comatose with joy. jack reaches down to scoop her up, getting a little noise for his effort. ]

What did you two get up to?

[ dixie sits at jack's feet. clearly these two ate their weight (and more) in sushi. ]

[pkemeter]

[Kölliker bubbles in a friendly manner, reaching out a mental hand towards Jack's brain. If he lets her in, he'll receive snippets of memory of what she was just doing--eating sushi, eating sushi, getting called out for cheating, eating even more sushi....you get the point.

Egon frowns, reaching out to poke his psychic baby. She giggles, then spins around and basically hocks out a piece of slimy sushi onto the ground. Egon pauses, then kneels down to inspect it. The sushi has been covered with a thin layer of green cytoplasm and looks...rather unappetizing.]

Fascinating. [He picks it up, then tosses it into a nearby trashcan.] Thank you, for...that, but you know I can't eat things that have landed on the ground.

[unabates]

[ jack definitely mentally twitches away, at first, but after a moment he accepts the mental hand. getting the flash of images clears some things up, and he smirks down at the two pokemon. ]

I see.

[ crybaby makes a dramatic moan. she's so full she'll never walk again. dixie snorts a little bit about hearing that. jack keeps her tucked into one arm for now, trying not to jostle her.

of course, when egon tells her he can't eat one on the ground, jack tilts his head. ]

So you'd eat it if she didn't toss it in the dirt?

[ he sounds.. genuinely curious. and maybe a little daring. ]