victory_road | Open log!

Entry tags:

Open log!

Who: Sion/Shrike/Geddoe and YOU
Where: Hisui!
When: Throughout the event
Summary: Catch-all for assorted event threads
Rating: PG (probably)
Log:
Sion
I. New Arrivals

To say that Sion in any way expected to find himself somehow transported to the past (of another region, to boot!) would be a lie. However, he's been in Johto long enough now that very little succeeds in surprising him, and he'd always been fairly adaptable to begin with.

Which is why in short order he's already acquired a new outfit and is approaching anyone who looks a little lost... Or a little upset.

"Is anything the matter?"

II. Around Camp

Are you sitting around camp with nothing to do and looking bored? Are you staring at the quest board wondering what you should do next? Fear not! Sion will gladly step in to help you out.

"If you're looking for something to do, I'd recommend..." Well, whatever seems most prudent or in need of doing at the moment, really. ~~Something something you can take the gym leader out of his gym...~~

III. Gathering Missions/Exploring

Of course, Sion's not spending all his time hanging around the base camp. There's those supplies to be gathered, after all, and who wouldn't want to go out exploring a bit? So, you may happen to run into him and his Hisuian Sneasel either setting out from camp, or out and about beyond it. If so, he'll certainly stop to chat and trade information as to what he's found so far.

Or, perhaps, suggest teaming up, if it looks like there's particularly high-level wild Pokémon in the area.

Shrike
I. Not the hood!

Broadly speaking, Shrike isn't very particular about his clothes. He'll just take what he can get without complaint. On the other hand, he still treasures being able to have nice clothes (or, what he considers nice)... and more importantly, still steadfastly refuses to go out in public without a hood that obscures much of his face.

Which might explain why he's currently clutching a very definitely worse for the wear hooded cloak around his head while looking at the outfits offer by the Ginkgo Guild.

"Isn't there something with a hood...?"

He frankly sounds more concerned or upset about that than anything else at the moment, really.

II. Hanging Around

For better or worse, Shrike is still very shy around people, and being thrust into yet another strange land isn't helping matters. So, while he's definitely doing what he can to pitch in and help, he's also... Well, keeping to himself as much as possible.

Except when someone approaches him (or he runs into them) anyway, in which case there's an awkward "um, hi?"

Geddoe

I. New Friends

While not, perhaps, as deeply attached to his Pokémon partners as many, Geddoe still found it more than a little annoying to suddenly be without them in a place that still required them. All that time and effort, only to be handed the ball of some brand new, unfamiliar 'mon. Not that he had any intention of turning the offer down, of course, he's still pragmatic about these things, and once he's stepped aside to let everyone else in need of a new partner have some room, he promptly checks to see what he's got to work with.

Cue a tiny bundle of yellow and black, crackling with barely-contained electricity, appearing with an inquisitive pichu? on the grass before him.

"..."

Geddoe has no words for this, but the look on his face pretty clearly and eloquently says you have GOT to be kidding me...

II. Out and About

Regardless of what Geddoe may think about this world's apparent sense of humor when it relates to him, he is perfectly willing to help out. In fact, being a mercenary, picking up tasks for a payout is exactly up his alley, so you can regularly find him checking out the board for any new and interesting (or lucrative) postings.

That said, he's not big on the socializing thing, either, so you're just as likely to spot him off away from camp, taking advantage of missions that require him to go further afield if he can. His new partner, probably to te surprise of no one who's come to know him in Johto, can often be spotted riding on his shoulder, or sometimes even his head, a fact which Geddoe seems to just stoically endure.

Care to approach the grouchy old man?

III. Matters of Importance

Still, there's one thing the camp is lacking, as far as Geddoe's aware. And given that the locals apparently don't want the newcomers traipsing about the nearby village, that severely limits one's options.

So, he'll just have to ask around, instead, meaning early on you might find yourself approached by the stoic mercenary (with an electric mouse on his shoulder) and asked a simple question:

"Know anywhere to get a drink around here?"

OOC note: This is a catch-all for all three of mine! I may add prompts or top levels as needed as the event progresses. Feel free to tag using an existing prompt (make sure to specify which character you're tagging!) or wildcard me. I can also be reached for plotting via PM or Discord (AC#7235).

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Oh, I meant... back to, like, normal. Y'know, how it was before?" More advanced, she means. All this is a bit strange to deal with.

"But, yeah, I guess I should find my way back to camp." She's been out for a while now. While she doesn't have much to show for her excursion, well- Look. She's still getting used to everything.

"Ah, well, from what I understand, there's little enough we can do beyond finding the components necessary to repair that machine..."

Sion, for his part, is a little more concerned with making sure that everyone gets back in one piece.

"Were you hoping to explore or train more?"

Right. The machine that brought them here, huh? It's been a bit... vexing, admittedly, to know that they could fling us back in time but not back to their worlds. She supposes space and time are different things. The people here believe so, at least.

"Explore, honestly. That's always been much more interesting to me."

"I suppose there is a lot to see here that differs from where we usually find ourselves..."

He's certainly done his fair share of exploring, for that matter.

"But that said, given the presence of strong wild Pokémon--not just those particularly aggressive ones--and the lack of easy access to potions and Pokémon Centers, I'd recommend exploring with either a team of a few Pokémon who can help defend you if needed, or doing so with others."

Or both. Both isn't a bad plan at all.

"I'll do my best, but... Haven't seen a lot of friendly faces yet, I admit. Been kind of a bummer, actually." She knows they're here - they have to be - but it's just been a matter of finding them.

"Also still figuring out how Pokemon here kind of tick, y'know? Back home, I didn't like to battle and didn't really have to in order to catch any of mine. Here, though..." Some of them are fiesty as she's learned.

"On the one hand, everyone is generally in one place... But on the other, that does make things rather crowded, yes."

Sion's been making an effort to specifically seek people out when he can, but there's not much even he can do if he happens to miss someone.

"If you're concerned about the Pokémon themselves, many of them do genuinely enjoy battling. Though I'm not sure if it can be entirely avoided here, for better or worse."

Crowded, huh? It's nothing like a big city, that's for sure, but Rose can understand the sentiment. When you have a whole world to explore then are suddenly confined to a single town and a handful of camping sites... Yeah.

"No, I know- I have a Ditto that can speak to them for me so, like, that's not the issue? I'm just a pacifist so it kind of goes against my nature but I'm. I'm working on it."

That and the fact that packing some dozens of people into a campsite with shared facilities is going to feel crowded no matter what one does. Though at least the Ginkgo Guild had been amenable to Sion's suggestion for heated showers.

"Does it help to think of it more like sparring? There are certainly sports that emulate fighting, but in which no actual harm to one's opponents is intended."

In other words, 'battling' can be a misleading term.

"Yeah, a little bit. But even if no harm is intended it doesn't mean it's completely unavoidable?" A pause. She knows it seems a bit extreme but, well, she has her reasons. "Anyway, it's fine- If I can't avoid it here, I won't, but I'll try to do my best not to rile up too many native Pokemon."

"Well, accidents are always a risk. But if everyone involved is aware and still wishes to participate..."

He shrugs. He's known a person or two like that before, so that kind of attitude certainly isn't limited to Pokemon.

"If any of yours are willing to battle--or even wish to--and you allow it, however, then I'd recommend making sure you have a firm grasp on the matter, yourself. Pokemon are quite strong, and many can be clever, especially given training and experience, but they still often lack the insight and planning a trainer can provide. A careless or unengaged trainer runs far greater risk of their Pokemon becoming injured than one who's actively and appropriately participating."

In other words, if she's going to have her team battle at all, it's better to go all in than be wishy-washy about it.

"I did with my other Pokemon... I think I'm still getting used to Slinky, actually, and that might kind of be my issue. We haven't bonded enough yet, y'know? And I don't have my Ditto here to translate for me and reassure that things are alright." Still, it does just sound like she's making excuses.

Doesn't it? Hm. Anyway, she doesn't want to be, like, a downer.

"I'll work on it, maybe. Ain't got nothing but time now, right?"

"And I imagine being stranded here with no easy way to be sure what moves your partner knows, or how strong the wild Pokémon are, makes it rather more difficult."

It does sound like excuses, but to be fair, things have been pretty rough on everyone lately. What's more important is whether she learns and moves on, anyway.

"Have you considered training with someone else? I'm sure there's others who are in a somewhat similar situation, and there's much less risk if you're practicing against another trainer."

"Ah, I just... Everyone's got their own stuff to deal with here, y'know?" Her worries aren't anything out of the ordinary. She's not, like, having a harder time than others. Honestly, all things considered- Her troubles are pretty tame.

"I'll figure it out." I always do.

"Of course they do." Sion's tone is calm, almost soothing. "And I imagine some of them include finding reliable ways to train with and get to know their own partners."

A pause.

"In which case, wouldn't you be doing them a favor by offering to team up for practice?"

He has a point. She knows that he does. Still, knowing and actually acting on that knowledge... It was always a bit difficult, in some ways, to find the ocnnection.

"I mean, maybe? I don't want to, like, bother anyone though and everyone's got their own teams already and all that so. You know."

Sion raises an eyebrow at that.

"Do they?" he asks. "I don't know about you, but one of the more noteworthy things I noticed about winding up here is that I didn't have my team. And there's only so much one can do in as little time as we've had..."

He trails off with a slight shrug.

"From what I've seen, I'd guess that most people are still getting the feel of things here."

"Oh, I mean, like- Teams of people. Groups, and all that." Since she hadn't come across too many familiar faces, it did seem that she was just kind of... here.

By herself.

And while that was usually fine, it'd been difficult here especially. "But, yeah, you're right. Most people are probably still working everything out, too. And I guess if I need help still..." Then maybe others do, too.

"I've mostly seen just individuals, or teams who happen to be interested in the same task at once, myself... But I suppose there may be some who ran into each other early on and simply went from there."

Obviously he's doing some exploring on his own, himself. Granted, he could always team up with Ryner any time he wants, but neither of them sees any reason to constantly stick together if they can cover more ground otherwise.

"You shouldn't be so hard on yourself, in any case. You've been in this world a fair time now, correct? I imagine you'd have plenty to potentially offer some of the newcomers in advice and experience, and in turn that could give you someone to train with."

"Okay, well- Fair enough. I'm not a newcomer anymore, that's for sure. Here, maybe, but... I like to think I'm pretty adaptable."

A sigh. When did she get so self-deprecating, honestly? This place hasn't been the kindest to her, sure, but this doesn't feel like her. At least, not so openly.

"Alright, well- Thanks for the advice, dude."

"You're quite welcome."

He's sure that she probably has a bit more to work on before acting much on the advice, but it's definitely a start, at least.

"In any case, did you say you were planning to head back to camp? If so, would you prefer company along the way?"

He's not going to insult her pride by directly asking if she's worried about more wild Pokémon; simply preferring someone to talk to on the way back is a perfectly valid excuse.

"Oh, yeah-" She glances up to her Wurmple now resting upon her shoulder as Little Guy often used to do.

"Totally, dude. Slinky here isn't much of a talker, unfortunately, so I'd be down for some company."

"Is that so?" Sion chuckles, glancing at the Wurmple. "I never would have guessed!"

Even as he speaks though he's taking a moment to reorient himself, before turning to set off back to camp at an easy pace.

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