001 / Video+Text

[whymustifeel]

[The feed starts out blurry, as whatever is holding the camera adjusts its grip. It eventually focuses on a blond teenager with a sunny smile and a bright orange ascot, who claps his hands together excitedly.]

Is it working?

[His voice may sound... vaguely familiar to some people, either by virtue of him being a cartoon icon for nearly 50 years or how eerily similar he sounds to a certain Ray Stantz. Regardless, the camera person[?] seems to nod, the camera jostling slightly and picking up the sound of rustling leaves.]

Great! Ok, so, my name's Fred Jones, and I woke up here about a week ago, and I've got a couple things I wanna say-

But gosh, first of all, can I just tell ya that this place is fantastic! I mean, it's a little weird that all these creatures are- y'know, real, or at least I haven't found any way to take off their masks if they are just guys in suits? But I guess they're just like Scooby or something. But they're even better- uh, don't tell Shaggy I said that- I mean, Scoob's great for helping make traps and all, just like all my friends, but dogs can't make vines grow and appear at will! ... Can dogs in this place do that?

[The Pokemon holding the camera shrugs.]

Anyway, I know I'm technically supposed to use those "Pokeballs" or whatever to catch new creatures, but that's no fun. So I've been perfecting trap designs with Audrey here [He gestures to the Pokemon holding the camera.] - she's a great listener, and learning fast! Can you believe she'd never made a pit trap before I got her? And now she's helped me make a ton, even with those leaves for hands!

Oh, uh, by the way, you might wanna be careful if you're going down Route 29 or 30. There's about... [He flips through a notebook, the tip of his tongue sticking out as he regards his scribbled notes.] Twenty-three traps in total- including some really nice modified Rube Goldberg-style setups using some scrap metal and a fallen tree I found. The rest aren't all that complex- I don't have enough materials yet, and this place doesn't have a TrapMart. Just some pretty standard snares and nets and pits. [Fred waves his hand dismissively.] Not my finest work, but it's good practice for my new friends!

... Right, and I was gonna ask- are there sharks in this place? I really want to get to making shark tank traps again, it's been forever since I had a shark to use and I don't wanna get rusty with setting them up. Thanks!

[With that, he signals for Audrey to shut the camera feed off. The Carnivine turns the camera to face her for a moment and waves her leaf-hand goodbye before following his instruction.

... Hopefully anyone who might actually be traveling down Route 29 or 30 soon will catch this video before they get caught in a trap.

But probably not. At least they're all easy enough to escape. And local wild Pokemon, clearly exasperated, are already undoing the damage done by filling in pits and disabling snares.

Later in the day, a text post appears on the network:]

I've been making a list of Pokemon moves and abilities I've read up on that I want to get my hands on! If anyone can point me towards Pokemon they know will have a lot of these, or can suggest one I missed, please let me know!!!

Already related to trapping enemies: Arena Trap, Shadow Tag, Magnet Pull, Block, Mean Look, Spider Web, Bind, Wrap, Clamp, Fire Spin, Whirlpool, Sand Tomb, Magma Storm, Infestation, Sticky Web, Spikes, Toxic Spikes, Stealth Rock

Can be used in a specific way to make traps: Constrict, Vine Whip, Sand Attack, Rock Tomb, Electroweb, Toxic Thread, String Shot, Leaf Tornado, Smokescreen, Mud-Slap

[... This kid might need new hobbies.]

Comments

[icecastlemadonna]

Well, if you say so. You certainly sound like you've got experience... [Still, Yuuko feels like she'll have to keep an eye on the feed just in case something happens out there.]

What do you plan to do with the Pokemon you catch? Most people here train them for battles or breed them.

[whymustifeel]

Oh, uh-

[...]

I don't know?

[He frowns, trying to think.]

I guess... I just want to catch them for the sake of catching them.

[He'll... eventually figure out the point of battling. Trapping monsters just happens to be the only familiar thing he has in this dimension. The fact that the monsters are real in this place just makes it more fun.]

[pkemeter]

[Egon nods.]

Understandable. I'd love to take notes on your building process, if possible.

[The best way to learn more is to learn from others! Others usually being the writers of textbooks, but, who cares. Putting it to practical use is also good.

...

Alright, the voice thing is nagging even more at him. He frowns lightly, scratching his chin.]

May I ask your name?

[icecastlemadonna]

I see... [Well, that's a response Yuuko hasn't heard from anyone here before.]

I think a lot of Pokemon won't be too happy to suddenly find themselves in a trap...they're pretty used to having to battle your Pokemon partner first before you catch them.

[whymustifeel]

Sounds good to me! The more people that know how to make a good trap, the better.

Oh- I'm Fred Jones.

[:DD]

[whymustifeel]

Gosh, people keep telling me that, too. I'm sure they can't all hate it, right? And- I can still have mine battle them after I catch them in a trap, if they really want to...

[He's willing to compromise! As long as he can still be stupid and set traps for wild Pokemon.]

[text]

[yousayyes]

[Winston missed out on seeing the video post, so he has. Basically no context for this list.]

[Judging from the first set of moves, he'd take a guess that "trapping" in this case is purely about keeping a trainer from switching out in a battle, or preventing wild Pokemon from fleeing. ...then he looks over some moves in the second set and starts to second-guess himself.]

Hi. I'd like to help, but I'm kind of confused over what criteria you're using to include moves in that second group. My team's been hit by its fair share of vine whips, and as far as I can tell it just does regular old damage and nothing else, unless there's something I'm missing here...

Do you mind elaborating a bit on /how/ you'd use those moves to set up a trap?

[sassymaru]

My sympathies. Finding oneself alone here can be difficult. Hopefully, you are the sort to make new friends quickly.

[Yeah, it's rough buddy. He knows.]

Mm, yes and no. Most are not. But there are those who are rather misunderstood, instead.

[whymustifeel]

Vine Whip summons vines, like the name suggests, meaning that any Pokemon with the move can potentially summon those vines outside of battle, which can work as rope in a pinch! Plenty of trap designs require rope by necessity, so having a Pokemon that can use Vine Whip or similar moves is vital.

[whymustifeel]

[He laughs- a little nervously- at that.]

Well, I dunno- I try.

[This kid's only friends include a talking dog. He may look like the classic popular prep/jock, but he's just as much of a high school outcast as Shaggy.

That said, this dimension already has way more people tolerating his obsessions with building traps than he's used to, so who knows.]

Gotcha. I guess I get that. Some of the people who disguise themselves as monsters in my world- they've got good reasons to try to scare people.

[yousayyes]

Alright. I understand now.



So when you're finished making a trap with that rope what exactly are you planning to DO with it.

[whymustifeel]

... Catch things with it? What do you THINK a trap is for?

[sassymaru]

Trying, so I hear, is often all one needs.

[There's a grin as he says it. A little flourish of his hand. Tone it down, Shadowmaru. Not everyone is used to your theatrics.]

Oh? How so?

[yousayyes]

I /know/ what a trap does- my question is, what Things are you trying to catch with it that can't be caught in a regular pokéball?

[whymustifeel]

Oh, I'll still be catching Pokemon with them!

Why, are there people around here that need to be caught in traps, too?

[One could also argue that the Ultra Beasts as a great excuse to know how to catch things without Pokeballs, but Fred doesn't even really know they exist.]

[yousayyes]

Maybe, but I bet they wouldn't be as easy to nab.

[He is a little relieved to know Fred wasn't already intent on catching people to begin with, though.]

...so if it really is just pokémon you're after, then why put in the extra work of going DIY over storebought? Is it all preference, or do you have a bigger philosophy behind it?

[icecastlemadonna]

I get the feeling a lot of them will be in the mood for a battle after you catch them. [Because they'd probably want to take their frustrations out on somebody...]

[whymustifeel]

It may be harder, but I'm more used to catching people in traps anyway!

Because I don't want to give up trap-making just because I'm in a new place?

[Why is this so hard for people to understand!]

[whymustifeel]

I dunno. There's a lot of people who disguise themselves as monsters to- protect their loved ones by scaring them away from something, or to steal money to save themselves from poverty... Stuff like that. It's not always wealthy real estate developers trying make even more money.

But it usually is.

[sassymaru]

Fascinating.

Normally, such things are always the fault of criminal sorts, you're correct. I've yet to meet one with ... noble intentions behind their monstrous pursuits.

[pkemeter]

Fred Jones.

[Egon racks his brain for any possible familiarity the name might strike him as, but nope--nothing. He shakes his head, dismissing the thought.]

My name is Dr. Egon Spengler. It's good to see children these days engaging in productive hobbies. If you need any information on supernatural activities or specifics regarding ghosts, feel free to ask me. My partners and I study and capture ghosts for a living.

[islandshore]

...People disguised as monsters.

[Riku stares, trying to process this.]

Is that normal there? I'd get it if it was for Halloween or something, but...

[Something tells him there's more to it. Why else would this guy wanna catch 'em?]

[yousayyes]

[Fred doesn't hear this part, of course, but I just want to let the record show that Winston took a sharp breath in and said, "Just gonna ignore that." out loud to himself after reading that first line.]

So it's not just something you're doing to get by in a place like this, it's like... a personal passion of yours. Guess we've all got our hobbies.

...or passed-down family crafts, whichever it is.

[whymustifeel]

[He tilts his head, frowning.]

Really? What kind of criminals do you deal with? 'Cause we meet a lot of people like that.

[whymustifeel]

You what?

[Oh boy.]

You have real, actual ghosts where you're from? Not just guys with hidden projectors and- harnesses to make them look like they're floating and costumes and chemicals that make them look like they're glowing?

Why did I get the boring dimension?