008 | Video, Route 5

[ghoststanning]

[It’s evening when the video opens, the video shows the sun is just about set in a field. It would be almost a calm scene if it wasn’t for Ray grinning like an idiot at the camera. He can barely contain his excitement but he gets himself to speak in a hushed voice.]

So you know those weird dimensional rifts we’ve been getting? The one that’s spewing out those interdimensional beings? Well guess who I found while I went out training today.

[He turns the camera around and OH GOD WHAT IS THAT?

The Stakataka isn’t looking at the camera right now, instead they’re just… gently crouching down and poking at a tiny Pokepuff that Ray presumably gave them.]


Yeah I ran into these guys today, and they’re surprisingly nice! I guess if you’re able to tell them that you don’t mean any harm they don’t want to attack you! Which, I guess that makes sense once you think about it. Sure we wake up in another dimension out of nowhere, but we have the convenience of having people easily explain to us what’s going on and that we’re not in any danger!

Which, I’m not exactly sure this guy over hears understands a word I say. I’ve been trying to communicate with this poor guy but they don’t even respond when I shout “Hey, you!” at them. [True to his word, the Stakataka doesn’t look up from their Pokepuff. Ray looks over fondly at the hulking beast as if it was a newly adopted pet] Still, I like to think I made great progress in a day!

I do miss fighting horrifying ghosts and monsters, don’t get me wrong. I would give anything to fight Cthulhu or the Boogieman again, but it’s nice being able to befriend these guys. It’s not every day you can say that you’re able to befriend a giant sentient rock structure from another dimension.

[The Stakataka suddenly looks up over at Ray, and stomps over to him. If Ray’s worried by him suddenly moving, he doesn’t show it as he just lightly looks over to them. They then lift a large leg aiming right at Ray’s head…

And they gently start patting his head, really delicately that you’d almost think that the Stakataka was terrified of crushing Ray if they put any amount of pressure on him. Ray laughs happily at this.]

See? Stuff like this never happened at home! These guys are really great!

[...Well that happened.]

Comments

text

[neverstudied]

why do i even bother being surprised by anything you do anymore

is this what youve been doing all day

werent you supposed to pick up those materials egon asked for instead of making friends with giant buildings

text

[ghoststanning]

[The real question is why you bother texting Ray anymore when you already know the result, Peter.]

Aww Petey! 🙁😭 Yeah I've spent all day with my friend but it was fun, really! 🥰❤🏦 They're a real sweatheart and I think you'd like them!!! 😒💕🏦

And I'm sure Spengs would understand! 😀👨🏻‍🔬🤗🏦 I'm sure he would love an opportunity like this himself!!! 👨🏻‍🔬💓🏦

[neverstudied]

[Laziness trumps his disdain for the emoji spam.]

its a building ray

i hope youre not planning to bring it home with you. that things not fitting in a hotel room. its its own hotel

you two can go be stupid and try to make nice with the aliens but winston and i dont have death wishes

[Smashcut to Winston playing nice with a UB]

video;

[breakyourlife]

[N O P E]

I don't want things like that to happen at home.

video;

[ghoststanning]

[:C C'mon this is a normal thing everyone would wanna experience!]

D'ya mean fighting Cthulhu or making friends with this guy here? Because they both sound like fun things to happen anywhere!

[... Including fighting Cthulhu.]

video;

[breakyourlife]

Making friends with that guy. What is a Ka-too-lu even?

[Yeah, he's butchering that pronunciation.]

[text]

[pkemeter]

Did you happen to take any readings on this particular specimen? I've been trying to get close to these inter-dimensional beasts, but every time I approach, they seem to run away.

[text]

[ghoststanning]

Oh no, not yet. 😥😔 I really wanted to, but I didn't bring any equipment with me. ❌📟

... I guess I could try to rig up a quick PKE Meter! 😃🔧🧰 It might explode💥 but I think it's worth it to study an interdimensional being like this!👨🏻‍🔬👾🏦

Wait, why are they running away from you? 🤔 You're not scaring them off are you? 😡😱🏃🏻‍♀️

[text]

[pkemeter]

Please do not get arrested. It would greatly inhibit your ability to take notes on these creatures.

[he's more worried about that than ray actually getting arrested....]

I don't believe I am. All I am doing is approaching them with my equipment and attempting to make contact through verbal communication. When that did not work, I have attempted to use various other forms of communication, such as telepathy, written words, sign language, body language, so on and so forth.

video

[plasticasshole]

[Oh, it's one of those things.]

Hank and I came across one of those outside Goldenrod, too. It ran away pretty fast when it saw my Silvally, though. I'm not sure why.

[Granted, the Silvally was being very hostile towards the Stakataka.]

video

[ghoststanning]

Aww, poor thing. this guy here seemed pretty nervous when they first arrived too. I'm guessing these guys are kind of scared by suddenly winding up in another dimension! The one I came across was luckier in that they wound up on a route instead of in the middle of the city so they don't have to worry about being surrounded by these strange creatures, or us, that they don't know the motives of!

... It's a shame we can't talk to them; I wanna explain to them all that we mean no harm!

whoops gmail didn't label this so i missed it completely

[plasticasshole]

It is a shame. It's also a shame we can't help them to go back where they came from. They may not mean to be here, but they're causing a lot of trouble.

[The Pokemon Centre was swamped the last time Connor worked there, and he's helping out again today.]

The Pokemon along the routes are getting injured in their panic to get away from them.

[video]

[yousayyes]

[Leaning his head into one hand, all of its fingers collectively working together to massage the center of his forehead in a desperate attempt to soothe the migraine he woke up with, Winston witnesses- in complete bemusement- this surreal scene playing before him.]

So. A massive rip in the fabric of reality opens up right in front of you, a huge hulking walking mass of bricks crawls out of it, and the first thing you think to do... is give it a little cake and hope it wants to be friends.

...and it works...?

[video]

[ghoststanning]

That's not exactly what happened; saw this guy wandering around while I was out today and they looked really confused and worried, so I thought they would want someone to help them out! Sure I was a little nervous at first after the Camp Alpha incident, but I wanted to give them a shot!

It took me most of the day to get where we are now but I like to think I made good progress!

[The Stakataka gently loafs behind Ray, looking curiously at the screen.]

[yousayyes]

[Winston's hand slips from his forehead to the side of his cheek, a fond look forming in his eyes hearing Ray talk about the meeting- with his enthusiasm practically radiating off the screen like this, it's hard to not feel the same energy for yourself.] It doesn't hurt that you're the kind of guy who can make friends with just about anyone and anything you set your mind to, Ray.

[His eyes lower a little.]

...not sure it's made much progress on that puff, though.

video

[starry_forehead]

Yeah, they don't all seem as aggressive as the ones that came out of the first two portals. I wonder what the difference is.

video

[ghoststanning]

Yeah it's kinda weird! Maybe we were just unlucky and the first ones that shown up had naturally aggressive personalities?

[A thoughtful pause as he looks back at the Stakataka, who is now staring at some Pokemon hiding in a tree.]

Or maybe there's something more to this whole situation that we're not realizing.

video

[starry_forehead]

It'd be a lot easier if we could communicate with them. ....or at least figure out what's causing the portals to open and from where.

But yeah, there's probably something more to this whole thing. If it's an invasion, it seems a bit leaderless though.

Video

[lifebloomsanew]

The poor things must be so confused - I'm sure they're as afraid of us as we are of them. It's so good of you give to give them a chance.

Video

[ghoststanning]

I'm pretty sure that's exactly what's going on with this poor guy. I'm pretty sure they're still a little afraid but now they're worried they're gonna hurt me somehow if they even look at me wrong!

[Ray is basically a fragile kitten to this hulking beast.]

Hey it's the least I could do! I'm all about giving second chances in instances like these anyway. After all, I met my best friend during my first bust and we had to capture him for disrupting a hotel!

[Ray please stop referring to Slimer as "your best friend".]

Video

[lifebloomsanew]

I can understand how they feel.... Everything must be so strange and frightening for them.

Did you?

[Video]

[agent3]

Whooooooa...y'made friends with one?

[It. Just looks like a bunch of cinder blocks? How can it eat?? Thida looks absolutely starstruck though, mouth agape and eyes wide.]

None're friendly by me! Jus' end up fightin'!

[Not that Thida minds? But it's kind of hard to deliver things from the Department Store while Nilhilego try to fly bodily into your person.

Yeah she doesn't like that.]

[Video]

[ghoststanning]

Huh that's weird! What was the interaction like, exactly Others have seen these guys flee from them but you're the first one who told me that these ones fight you.

[The Stakataka meanwhile, is taking a particular interest in Thida, staring intently at the screen. Hi extremely tiny squishy thing; they can barely see you!]

[video]

[in4apounding]

...Does it think it's the trainer and you're the Pokemon?

[Cause that's kind of what it seems like.]

[video]

[ghoststanning]

... Huh, I didn't think of it like that! Maybe it's not exactly like a Trainer/Pokemon relationship, but their interactions does seem to line up with how a human treats a small animal.

[As evidenced by how the Stakataka is now sitting down, still gently petting Ray's head.]