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Thread: {RP} Ryme Chaos

  1. #1
    Ace Trainer Winter's Avatar
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    {RP} Ryme Chaos

    GM's Note: Welcome to Ryme Chaos, a Pokemon RP set in the same world as the Detective Pikachu movie! That being said, this RP is intended to be spoiler free, for those who haven't seen the movie, and should not require any knowledge of the movie or game to play.

    Plot
    Ryme City, it’s a modern marvel, a hub for technology and a paradise for Pokemon, as well as the humans who choose to live beside them. Here, people and Pokemon live in harmony, and if a Pokemon stays by a given human’s side, it’s because they want to, not because a Pokeball dictates it. Formal battles are prohibited by law, and trainers visiting the city from other regions are placed under heavy restrictions—first and foremost being that they are not allowed to carry empty Pokeballs into the city. Doing so is a crime punishable by heavy fines, but using those Pokeballs to catch Pokemon is even worse, punishable with jail time. Most residents of Ryme, both human and Pokemon, like it this way. Love their peace and harmony. There are so many other places in the world to go if you don’t like the lifestyle here, most will tell you if you bother asking, but there is only one Ryme City. At least, for now, as there have been multiple pushes to build more cities like Ryme in other regions, places for Pokemon who need help, or wish to have a safe place to live.

    Which is why almost every permanent resident in Rhyme City was baffled when there was a sudden push for reform...a push for Pokeballs and the capture of Pokemon to be allowed within the city. Originating from a research company relatively new to Ryme, most assumed that the administration of Megans Technologies would quickly come to understand the principles Ryme City was founded on, would see that their way of life was beneficial to Ryme’s people and Pokemon. This was not the case. In fact, they pushed even harder when residents didn’t seem interested.

    In fact, they dug deep into the city’s own history, did their homework, and struck again. There had been incidents in Ryme’s past, their administration argued, where having a majority of the city’s Pokemon population easily stored in Pokeballs would have been better for public safety. The most significant of those incidents had only happened seven years ago—many of the residents still remembered it. What would happen, they asked, if something similar were to happen again? What would happen if Pokemon began attacking buildings? People?

    And then, not long after that push, Pokeballs began appearing on the streets of Ryme City. Battles started to break out, and Pokemon began going on rampages. Both people and other Pokemon were quickly put in danger, and the RCPD scrambled to contain the incidents. The residents of the city, who had not been swayed before began to take sides—some, concerned for the safety of the public, began agreeing that it might be best to have most of the city’s Pokemon population easily containable while others argued that the events had likely been caused as a result of the Pokeballs that were now popping up on the streets. Of course, things only worsened when public officials began to take sides...and one of the largest supporters for keeping Ryme’s Pokemon free was attacked by rogue Machamp at a public rally, only to be saved by a few of the city’s new illegal trainers, who battled the Pokemon before one of the rescuers caught it.

    These illegal trainers were arrested for possession of Pokeballs with intent to capture, sparking outrage among the supporters of change—they had saved people, they had stopped the attack, why in the world were they being arrested when they should have been hailed as heroes? Chaos has descended upon the streets of Ryme since the attack and arrest, pitting trainers against partners in dangerous and illegal battles. The number of Pokeballs and reported Pokemon captures within city limits have skyrocketed, as well as the number of “rogue” Pokemon attacks. The RCPD is scrambling to do its best to protect all residents of Ryme, as well as uncover the origins of the Pokeballs cropping up on the streets. Given the number of battles and rogue attacks, they’ve already got their hands full, and are readily welcoming on as much good civilian help as they can get.

    So, welcome to Ryme City. Are you prepared to take a side, and fight for what you believe in?

    Extra Info
    • Ryme City welcomes visiting trainers with open arms, with a few restrictions
      • They must have a digital passport
      • All empty Pokeballs and “Battle Items” must be deposited elsewhere before entering the city. Trainers attempting to pass through Customs with any banned items will have said items confiscated, with no chance of return upon exiting the city.
      • They are allowed to carry a team of up to six Pokemon with them, however an updated registry of their team is required to be attached to their passport at all times.

    • PCs are available for visiting trainers to access all of their Pokemon, but are only available at small, pay to use facilities called “swap centers.” The most prominent swap center chain in the city is Swap n’ Go.
    • Though RCPD is accepting civilian volunteers, all volunteers must be able to pass a background check and undergo a quick educational course informing them of what situations they are allowed to handle, and how to handle them. Volunteers caught handling situations in an improper manner can and will have their volunteer privileges revoked, and may face fines or jail time.


    Rules
    • All standard PXR rules apply
    • Be kind to your fellow PXR members, and leave Detective Pikachu game and movie spoilers out of the RP and it's affiliated threads, this RP is intended to be spoiler-free
    • Obligatory no god modding or using other’s characters without permission
    • Be nice to each other
    • Please keep RP contents PG-13 and under on all fronts
    • Knowledge gained OOC stays OOC unless otherwise specified
    • Please be active, or give warning before going inactive if possible
    • Have fun~


    Accepted
    Saraibre Ryu with Shay Draklyn
    Neo Emolga with Nathan Cole
    Noblejanobii with Catalina "Cat" Ines
    Winter with Rain Caulder and Byron "Perry" Parisi
    Death's Spook with Sycorax Grimm

    Reserves

    The SU and discussion thread for this RP can be found here.

    My dA | My FF.Net Avvie and sig made by me!

  2. #2
    Ace Trainer Winter's Avatar
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    Rain Calder
    Ryme City Transit Station

    Arceus, she hated public transit, and traveling from one region to another was always a pain. She’d done it a few times before, but she usually traveled with her unit rather than alone--or, at least, without another human. She snapped her head towards her Gengar as he growled at yet another person that got too close, and did her best impression of a scowl. “Azriel, manners,” she ground out, “we are here as a gesture of goodwill from Sinnoh! Act like a good representative, not a rabid Luxray.” Next to her ear, there was a soft hiss--a sigh from her overprotective Gengar. It wasn’t an actual answer from him, but it was as good an answer as any, as she didn’t feel him bristle or hear him hiss at the poor souls stuck around them again.

    “Everything looks good, Ms. Calder, you can head just past me, through those doors to the left, down the hall through to the grand entryway and reach the rest of the city from there. Welcome to Ryme City, we hope you have a pleasant stay.” The agent who had been looking over her information seemed nice enough, but it appeared he’d failed to notice that she couldn’t see. Not that she minded--it wasn’t as though she was helpless. She let Azriel’s hand against her arm urge her forward, up to the table on which her suitcase and messenger bag rested, but it was one of her twin Gastly that nudged her hand up to find the handle of her suitcase, then the strap of her messenger bag, which she collected easily before allowing Azriel to guide her through the aforementioned doors, what sounded like a very large entrance hall, and finally out into the open air of Ryme City. Thankfully, even with as on edge as he was, Azriel remained on good behavior, and they reached the street without incident. She could feel the ever-shifting press of Nuala and Cerridwen close to her, and she was reminded again of how those who saw the pair wondered how she could breathe with the two of them and Azriel hovering so close to her.

    Finally out of the building, Rain paused to dig a bone conduction headset out of her bag, which she plugged into her personal cell phone. Before she could slip it into place, however, Azriel spoke up. “Catching a cab would be best,” his familiar rasping voice warned, but she shook her head in reply.

    “Catching a cab is easiest,” she corrected, slipping effortlessly into her first language, the one she and Azriel shared. “But walking will give you and the girls the opportunity to sightsee. New terrain means we need new intel.” The Gengar huffed yet again beside her—Az knew she was right, and he hated it. That didn’t mean he was done yet, though.

    “A compromise, then?” he proposed, and she tilted her head, eyebrows arching over the plastic frames of her oversized sunglasses.

    “What kind of compromise, Az?” Rain asked lifting the headset to put it on anyway, pressing the power button to turn it on.

    “We take a cab to the hotel, you check in, drop off your suitcase, and then we can walk to the police station.” He had a point with that one, at least--Rain didn’t care much for her appearance, but she knew others would, and dragging her suitcase around would likely attract more attention than she was interested in drawing to herself just yet. That, and she didn’t need Azriel and the Gastly ripping into any poor fool who thought it might be wise to attempt mugging her.

    “Fine, fine,” she conceded in English before adding in, “if you want us to catch a cab, you’re going to have to help me hail one.”

    Byron Parisi and Rain Calder
    Ryme City Police Department

    Though busy days at Ryme City’s Police Department were great for job security, Byron Parisi wouldn’t have minded a slow day or two. Or even a slow hour. As it was now, when he wasn’t greeting visitors (who were usually in to report yet another instance of illegal battling or rogue Pokemon, he was answering phone calls from citizens about...well, much the same thing. Rarely, there was a more average call--an old lady whose Eevee had gotten stuck in a tree, noisy neighbors, Aipom that wouldn’t stop rifling through trash cans, that kind of stuff, and Perry was thankful for the normalcy of those calls, though he knew they were low priority for the RCPD.

    Oddly, Perry didn't find himself inclined to worry about his safety. Though busy, the RCPD was doing a fantastic job...and he had faith that he could rely on his Pokemon partner in a pinch.

    Well, at least when the little fluffball was awake. A glance down at the backpack resting on the floor told him that Kiri the Espurr was still very much asleep at the moment, and he smiled down at the bag his partner used as his personal sleeping bag before the doors to the lobby from the outside opened. “Hello, welcome to the Ryme City Police Department, how...can we...assist you...today?” He started the greeting on instinct, but it slowly failed as he actually took in the woman who walked into the lobby.

    There wasn’t much impressive about her, exactly—she was short, maybe in her late teens at the most, with short, dark hair and most of her face obscured by large sunglasses. What drew more attention, though, was the Gengar beside her, its arm wrapped around the girl’s in an almost gentlemanly manner. A pair of vapor shimmers shifted around the odd pair, and once or twice, Perry would have sworn he saw a flash of eyes, or the haze take on an almost purple color—other ghosts? Gastly, maybe?

    The pair made their way across the lobby, and some of those waiting shifted away from the group, murmuring to each other. Perry thought he saw the corners of the girl’s mouth twitch up as she and her Gengar continued to move, until they reached the desk where he sat. Curiously, the woman’s head did not quite turn towards him in a way that would suggest she was looking at him, even when she spoke. “Hello, I’m Agent Rain Calder from Sinnoh’s FBI, and this is my partner, Azriel.” She made a vague gesture towards the Gengar, and Perry felt his eyes going wide as saucers. “I was told Chief Moretti is expecting us. We’d have had an appointment, but with the way travel has been lately, you can’t tell how quickly you’ll get through travel checkpoints here,” she sighed, and shook her head slightly from side to side.

    “Ah, Chief Moretti--just a moment, I think he’s in a meeting at this time, but let me check…” Looking into the scheduling system to figure out if the chief was already occupied took far longer than it normally would. FBI, this woman worked for the Sinnoh FBI--what was she doing here in Ryme? Sure, the situation was far from ideal, but was it really necessary for visitors from other regions to start coming in? The surprise from the information was making it hard to concentrate, and Perry found himself misclicking everything he tried to hit.

    “...And I thought the computer systems back home were convoluted,” the woman commented softly after a few minutes of awkward silence as Perry struggled to pull up the information he needed. In a moment, the young man found his cheeks burning in embarrassment.

    “No, no, it’s really not that bad, I’m--uh, I’m just new. I apologize for the inconvenience, Agent Calder,” he offered quickly, and the woman chuckled. A moment later, Chief Moretti’s schedule flashed across the screen, and Perry found himself breathing a sigh of relief before looking back up to the tiny FBI agent. “There it is! It looks like he’s in a meeting right now, but he should be done in the next twenty minutes, if you don’t mind waiting? I’ll send up a message to let him know you’re here as soon as possible, though.” This time, a smile did tug at the woman’s lips, and the Gengar at her side let out what sounded like a snicker.

    “We can wait.” she told him simply. “It’s not as though we have anywhere more pressing to be.”

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  3. #3
    Cheers and good times! Neo Emolga's Avatar
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    Nathan Cole (Resident)
    Hi-Hat Cafe


    As Nathan spent the afternoon searching on his laptop at the quiet Hi-Hat Cafe, the news he read had varying opinions on the whole recent developments regarding the induction of Pokéballs, battles, and what was to become of Ryme City's future. It begged the question whether the human and Pokémon tradition of living in harmony would have to change. He knew Megans Technologies was sweeping in, seeking to put the old ways down. There was likely to be a transition period. A time when it was both okay for people to have Pokémon out in the open as partners, and okay for people to own Pokémon in Pokéballs. But he had a feeling it wouldn't stop there. He had a feeling it would only be a precursor to what could come next: Pokéballs being mandated for security reasons. With the rogue attacks and the recent incident involving the Machamp attack on the public official, they had ammunition to justify it.

    He had been there hunched over a laptop computer for the last three hours with his pure black coffee finished long ago. All while thinking his next move and what the options were. There was varying opinions about the situation. Some felt there wasn't a problem and Pokéballs would be fine. Others believed this was the first step toward eventually forcing everyone to contain their Pokémon and the wild Pokémon of Ryme City being subject to capture. It got Nathan thinking how the line would be drawn and who would draw it.

    "But it works for many other cities and Pokémon trainers." It was often the response he heard to those questioning and undermining the principles that made Ryme City the way it was. And as Nathan thought about it, sure, it worked for them. Trainers were often going around with a whole team of Pokémon. In some cases, those Pokémon loved their trainers and it was fine. But in others, there was still subject to abuse. Members of gangs like Team Rocket and Cipher had a history of using abusive practices on their own Pokémon.

    But even in the defense of Pokémon trainers, there was a whole variety of reasons a person would have Pokémon as companions. In Nathan's eyes, there was nothing wrong with that. If he wanted to, he could have easily proposed to Kano, his Cinccino, if he wished to take part in some kind of activity or something like that. Despite it still being illegal in Ryme, some Pokémon liked a good battle, though collateral damage and possible participant and spectator injury were always a risk, even in regulation stadiums. Others wanted their Pokémon to perform in contests, musicals, or whatever competition their owner had in mind. And there were plenty of Pokémon that were clearly happy and enthusiastic to participate in such.

    It was primarily the use of Pokéballs that concerned him. He had seen plenty of citizens live peacefully with their Pokémon for decades without even touching a Pokéball. Having Pokémon out free on the streets wasn't a problem in the past. And the citizens were aware and accepting of the risks. And he understood that Ryme City wasn't for everyone. Not everyone would be cozy with having powerful creatures out in the streets among them. They could, after all, discharge fire and electricity, or cause devastating earthquakes and fissures. Some could debate how could Ryme City even still be standing while running those kinds of risks?

    Nathan felt the answer was simple. These Pokémon and the humans they lived with, if they lived with a human, all shared the same thing. Ryme City was home. A Pokémon wouldn't just devastate their own home and the homes of other Pokémon that lived here. Sure, it took a great amount of faith and trust in the system to make it work, but he knew responsibility and care was what made it happen for all those years. The system, while fragile, was incredible when it worked.

    Which was why the induction of Pokéballs was something that he felt was the problem. All the Pokémon in Ryme had never known about these strange and bizarre capture devices, and that there was a level of fear to them. What happens to the Pokémon inside? There were some that compared it to being in a coma, being blind and deaf, or other fearful states. But the thing that clued Nathan in on the problem was that almost always, Pokémon tried to avoid capture. To capture a Pokémon, a trainer had to weaken them to the point where they could no longer resist the restraining power of the Pokéball, and would eventually give in and submit to the trainer. To Nathan, it seemed harsh to subject a Pokémon to that abusive duress and put them into submission against their will. Why not try to just bond with the Pokémon instead? Why even resort to using a capture device in the first place? He felt a natural bond was the ideal way to befriend these creatures. If it was clear the Pokémon didn't want to bond and wanted to stay independent, that should be respected.

    "Weren't you around seven years ago?" when one of the university students was conducting a survey panel to all the cafe's patrons for a class assignment. "And if so, how did it make you feel?"

    Nathan looked at the young college girl's eyes after she had unintentionally broke his train of thought. Those brown eyes, long brown hair, comforting visage, they all spoke of a girl that was looking for the right answers just as much as he was. She had her own Pokémon, a very clingy and bubbly Floette, perched happily upon the girl's shoulder. That sign made it clear she was a regular Ryme City citizen just as much as he was.

    "I was here," Nathan replied to her. "Let's just say it came and went, but we all got back on our feet."

    "Was this Cinccino your partner at the time?" the girl asked, noticing the white and gray chinchilla Pokémon relaxing on the table besides him. "Were you among those that were affected?"

    It wasn't exactly the most ideal question to ask Nathan, but he figured there was probably a good reason why this girl was doing this survey. She seemed to take the assignment personally. As though there was something more she was hoping to accomplish with it and not just hoping for that A+ from her professor. Maybe take it to the next level. Maybe get the message out there far and wide that Ryme City needed to stay the way it was supposed to be. Maybe it was worth opening up this one time.

    "Right, Kano is and was my partner both now and at the time," he told her, recalling the events of seven years ago. "We were on Charti Street when it happened and the streets went up in panic because nobody knew what was really going on. I believe you probably already know what happened shortly after the incident started, so I'll spare you the details. Let's just say it made me see things in a different perspective during and after the crisis. But that whole incident stems from someone being irresponsible, not because we can't trust the Pokémon who live with us."

    "In the wake of what happened," she asked him, "do you feel anything should be changed about the way Pokémon and humans live in Ryme City?"

    "No, we've all moved on from it," he told her. "If it bothered me, we would have moved elsewhere by now. We're willing to accept the risks. It's why we continue to stay."

    "Thanks, your input has been really helpful," the girl told him with an appreciative smile. "I hope you have a good day."

    The point of it all was he felt you couldn't just give up on something you've believed in most of your life just because of some incident like that. To him, that was like giving up on a car just because of a flat tire, or giving up on a child's life just because they got a fever. Giving up on what made Ryme City the unique and special place it was for humans and Pokémon just because of a single incident was a terrible practice. He admitted it wasn't the perfect utopia, but no place in the world could attest to being that. And other crisis events occurred all around the world, so this wasn't just a Ryme City problem. He could easily bring up other international crisis incidents involving Team Rocket, wayward legendary Pokémon, and the like. But they were stopped and life went on. And in terms of the new incidents popping up, while Nathan didn't have the evidence yet, he had a hunch the stray, wild Pokémon living in the city were feeling pressure and stress from the new presence of Pokéballs, and that was why there were rogue attacks now. But it was only a hunch, and he knew he didn't have the veterinarian skills to confirm that. Of course, he knew Megans Technologies wouldn't stop their venture because of a theory. Not unless there was hard, confirmed evidence. Of course, how does one interview a Pokémon to get their side of the story?

    The incident seven years ago gave him a different kind of empathy for the creatures and what they might be feeling and thinking. His main argument against the new presence of Megans Technologies and their Pokéball manufacturing was on the basis of "if you were a Pokémon, do you think you'd want to live in a Pokéball, or out in the open?" And if the reply was in the later, then how could that same person justify using them? And he knew that some Pokémon just didn't mind being in a Pokéball. But what about preference? What if things were changed and the Pokémon had the choice instead of the human?

    For now, Nathan had his sights set on one core objective. He needed to figure out ways of keeping Megans Technologies at bay and stop the circulation of Pokéballs. For the time being, the Ryme City Police Department still considered wild Pokémon capturing to be illegal. He needed to make sure things stayed that way, but there was still plenty of work to be done beyond that.

    It was time to take that first, critical step. And he knew he wasn't alone.

  4. #4
    Anomalous Eldritch Cryptid Saraibre Ryu's Avatar
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    Shay Draklyn
    Ryme City Entrance


    Three hours.

    It had been three hours.

    Shay underestimated the amount of faith in the city's policies these people had. She knew she would need to be checked and have to explain her status and passport, but this was a bit extreme. Despite her disgruntled state, it was insight into the conflict she was here to try and help solve. Being a rather proficient in Pokemon Battles and a few regional League records that were very impressive was what was giving her a front row seat to Ryme City security. Every bit of background information, calling her parents at home of all things in Johto, and checking the only PokeBalls she had brought, which had her Pokemon in them; it was the works. Havoc's temperament wasn't helping, and it made Shay question why she brought the fightiest Haxorus she had with her to the most peaceful and harmonious place in the world. At least, so it was advertised. After being asked the same questions over and over, she was permitted entrance to the city. Havoc was allowed out of her ball and Choros was extended the same. The rest of her team would have joined them, but after all that hassle, they were too tired to leave.

    Shay took a look at the tall buildings and Pokemon filled skies. It still wasn't the same as Blackthorne, but it was certainly different. The towering black and red dragon behind her however, broke her moment of observation. She turned, seeing Havoc with her adopted Jangmo-o sister clambering on top of her head. Shay stared at the Haxorus until a small staring contest had begun with the Pokemon. Soon enough Choros joined in.

    "I know you want to size everyone up, but this is a no fight zone unless otherwise stated, got it?" Shay sternly stated in a quiet voice. "We're already gonna be on a watch list."

    "Haaaax."

    "Do you want to set a good example for Choros?"

    "...ax..."

    The trainer patted one of the sharp, axe-like tusks on Havoc's face. "That's what I thought. I doubt there are going to be any other Shiny variants around so you stick out. You and Asharas."

    Shay also was making her position as a tourist known by wearing all the Pokeballs on the strap of her messenger bag. It allowed her Pokemon easy access to their Pokeballs, and they could easily come in and out when they pleased. It might attract unwanted attention, but she was presenting herself as she was. If she was going to get comments on it, it would filter out who was worth having the engaging conversations with, and those who would be ignored if they were closed minded enough to start a fight. Also to ignore those people so that Havoc didn't start any arguments of her own. There were many more Pokemon than the two of them had seen in a populated space, so it would be a test for Choros and Havoc. The Jangmo-o hopped off of the Haxorus' head, and started hopping down the street. Havoc was quick to follow her to keep her from getting in trouble. Shay sighed, tapping the other four Pokeballs on her bag. Each one wiggled back with a quick blinking of a light.

    "Well if you're all ready to go, let's find that police station... if underground battles are a problem, we can get started with that."

    It was going to take them awhile, since the towering black Haxorus was bound to catch several people's attention, especially when it was chasing such a small dragon Pokemon. People might get the wrong impression. On second thought it might have been a better idea to explore and then ask for directions later.

    ASB Stats | VPP Stats

    Flute the Clefa
    Hatch: 2883
    Clefairy: 2988
    Clefable: 3108
    Level100: 3168


  5. #5
    The Queen of Shaymin
    Noblejanobii's Avatar
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    Cat Ines
    Ryme City Entrance
    Impacted RPers:
    @Saraibre Ryu

    Cat took a deep breath of the Ryme City air. She waited until CB was in position then counted down in her head. 3...2...1... action! Giving a big smile, Cat shouted, "What's up kitty cats, it's Cat Cast here in Ryyyme City! Today I'll be covering a scheduled protest in the center of the city! With the rising controversy around the use of pokeballs and free roaming partner pokemon, we've seen a lot of protests recently, and today I plan to interview some of the people at this protest to see exactly what their reasons behind their stance on the issue is. So if you're cool with that and want to see more content like this, don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe to be part of the kitty cat family!" Cat posed for a second before signaling cut. "Alright CB that's a wrap!"

    "Hop hoppip!" Cottonbloom cheered as she floated down to Cat. Passing the camera over to Cat, the two watched the footage.

    Cat nodded her head a little before saying, "You think we can do one more take from a different angle?" Cottonbloom quickly nodded and took the camera back from Cat. "That's my girl."

    Cottonbloom flew into a new position and waved her tail to signal she was ready. Cat took another breath and began to count down in her head. 3...2...1... action! ""What's up kitty cats, it's Cat Cast here in Ryyyme City! Today I'll be covering-"

    "HOPPIP!" Cottonbloom screamed, diving down and tackling Cat out of the way as a Jangmo-o hopped by followed by a large Haxorous. Cat fell onto her butt, her hat flying off and landing on the ground a little ways away. Cat took a moment to gather herself before checking to make sure her partner was okay.

    "You're not hurt are you, CB?" Cat held her partner over as she checked her over.

    "Pip pip..." Cottonbloom replied, shaking her head a little.

    Cat smiled and rubbed Cottonbloom's head. "Good, I'm glad. I'm fine too. And hey you even managed to hang onto the camera. Good job." Cat stood up and looked around. "Now where is my hat?"
    / / / / / / / /
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    Double Agents with Suicune's Fire

  6. #6
    Cheers and good times! Neo Emolga's Avatar
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    Nathan Cole (Resident)
    Charti Street


    On that day seven years ago...

    It had been a while since Nathan last came down this open, busy street, but every time he did, it took him back to that day when it all started. He had flashbacks of the panic, the hysteria, screams, and then it hit. When suddenly everything familiar had become foreign and for those few hours, him and everyone around never felt so lost before, wondering if what had transpired was permanent. Wondering if this was their life now.

    But that was all past tense. That was all seven years ago, but the effect still persisted today. When people started questioning Ryme City's values. It all pointed back to how the choices and actions of a few can ruin everything for everyone.

    It was something that Nathan felt was exclusive. He felt you would have had to be there to understand. In one way, the incident made the tradition and culture questionable. In other, it opened his eyes to something else.

    And at the same time, Kano the Cinccino looked around as well. He didn't entirely know why his human partner was here, but he had a feeling he knew why. Because it involved him just as much as it involved Nathan. Things were on the brink of changing, but here they were, back at the beginning. Back where it all started.

    As Nathan remembered, Pokéballs were contraband to a degree. Visitors could only carry them into the city provided they already contained Pokémon inside. Empty ones were confiscated as they implied they could be used for catching wild Pokémon in the city itself. That was not stopping the black market, however. And despite battles within the city being illegal, that wasn't stopping underground cage matches either. In recent days, the reported number of contraband Pokéballs and illegal battles was escalating.

    And Nathan suspected Megans Technologies had something to do with it. On the outside, it seemed to be a company pushing for reform by encouraging officials to do away with these laws and allow Pokéballs to be sold legally, stressing that these capture devices are better for public safety. Until those laws were lifted, however, Megans would be unable to sell them, which meant they had to rely on some other form of income to continue their operations, or they were disregarding the laws through illegal distribution. The problem was the RCPD already had its hands full trying to keep on top of all the recent incidents. Illegal and criminal activity on Megans part would be hard to track down and investigate due to the higher intake of pressing issues that needed immediate attention. The RCPD couldn't investigate possible leads if there was a rogue Pokémon attack downtown and civilians were in danger.

    But he had been here for 36 years, and he remembered what life was like 29 years ago before the incident. Rogue Pokémon attacks back then were very seldom and usually there were reasons for it. So why was there a sudden escalation? He knew they wouldn't attack without reason. They didn't do that in the past unless there was something triggering it.

    He truthfully didn't want to suspect Megans Technologies of being responsible, but triggering crisis incidents outside of public scrutiny could both be a business and political motivator for the new company that was competing with the international business giant, Silph Company. If they were triggering the incidents, Megans could also decrease their frequency if and when Pokéball ownership was legal, making it appear that their claim was right when really they were orchestrating it. Considering the nature of the industry they were in, they needed to build reputation to compete and what better way to do that than to look like they were proactively supporting public safety and interest?

    He figured there was more than one way to get to the bottom of it, but they involved their own difficult challenges. He could do his own investigation on Megans and whatever confidential resources they had in their network, but that would be a complex task and if there was anything nefarious going on in the company, it obviously wouldn't be out in the open for public scrutiny. Something dark like that, if it existed, would be buried in deep, and unless he knew what to look for, it was like trying to find a needle in a warehouse of haystacks. He needed keywords, projects, triggers to look for. Otherwise he was going in blind and the Megans Technologies network would be a labyrinth. In terms of hacking into their network, he knew he needed to be in and out quickly. Wandering around the network would only get him caught and in trouble. Most unethical hackers knew exactly what to do go for. Credit cards, social security numbers, trade secrets, and other confidential information. But in this case, he wouldn't even know what the finish line looked like. He knew he needed something more.

    The other alternative was just as, if not even more difficult than the first: Somehow communicate with a confirmed rogue Pokémon. He knew his partner, Kano the Cinccino, could potentially speak to them, but unless Kano was able to suddenly learn English or read and write, there was no way he could relay the information back to Nathan. And he had a feeling what could be triggering these rogue Pokémon attacks was complex and wasn't something very obvious. While most of the public saw these rogue Pokémon as the perpetrators, maybe the truth was they were actually the victims. The victims of something Megans could have been doing? There was no true way to tell at the moment, but there was that shred of plausibility and it merited investigation. But even if Megans wasn't responsible, knowing why these Pokémon were going rogue was very valuable information toward solving the crisis. The real problem was getting it. The rumors of Pokémon that could speak to humans were shaky at best, and even the number of Pokémon that could fully understand human speech were few and far between. Still, he needed this information and until he learned more, these rogue Pokémon were the only ones that had it. For 29 years, rogue Pokémon attacks were almost unheard of, so what happened between then and now? What really happened on that day seven years ago?

    It was why he found himself standing here again, wondering. Wondering if there was, perhaps, a way to leverage a solution out of a crisis. Could something that once incited fear and panic in these very Ryme City streets be used as a tool? He was there, seven years ago, suddenly lost and alarmed at the situation at what had become of him and those surrounding him. And he remembered the hysteria clearly. There were times in his dreams that he could still hear the disfigured screams. Today, he was here wondering if that same situation of pure chaos now actually held the one and only key toward getting the real answers.

    He knew some people might think of the whole idea as crazy. Even he questioned if it was really the right thing to seek out. But if it actually worked, it could be exactly what Ryme City needed to stay the way it was meant to be. And until he found a better solution, this was all he had to rely off of.

    He decided to do it. Mainly because he didn't have any other solution in mind in the haze of the situation, and time was running out. The rogue attack incidents were getting worse and Megans was pressing in closer and closer toward pulling apart the moral foundations that Ryme City was built upon. He didn't want to grow old in a changed and reformed Ryme City wondering if he actually had the solution and could have saved something important at a time when people and Pokémon needed it most, but didn't simply because of raw, naked fear. He had this one chance and he knew he could sooner forgive himself for at least trying and failing as opposed to never trying at all.

    Too many times, fear had stepped in the way of doing the right thing. And while fear might have gripped him seven years ago on this very street, today was something different.

    It was at that moment that he turned around and walked away from Charti Street. These first few steps weren't going to be easy and he could only guess where it was going to take him, but someone had to do it.

  7. #7
    Anomalous Eldritch Cryptid Saraibre Ryu's Avatar
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    Shay Draklyn
    Ryme City Entrance
    Affected RPers: @Noblejanobii


    Large crowds of people, Pokemon to try and chase... Choros was having the time of her life. Luckily most people were wary of HAvoc chasing her around as Shay took meandering steps around the city. It wasn't any Nimbasa or Goldenrod City, but it did have it's own unique flair. It reminded her a bit of her home stay: Draklyn Reserve and Sanctuary. A few kilometers of land in the Blackthorne Steppes dedicated to housing, rehabilitating and taking care of many of Blackthorne resident's and trainers Pokemon. They weren't the only ones however: Pokemon found in the wild who needed a second chance, poached Pokemon from various regions came to stay. Those recovering few were registered in Pokeballs under the Draklyn family name; mostly Shay since she was one of the only Trainers in the family. Some Pokemon even came to learn how to better defend themselves from other wild threats of their own volition. The one rule of the Draklyn R&S was simple: freedom to come and go as they pleased. Ryme City was certainly different, but whenever there was something new like this, someone else had the idea to bring it down.

    Speaking of bringing things down, the sounds of people gathering and the sight of large signs caught the trainer's attention. It was clear signs of a protest beginning to happen, and of course, that's where her two dragons were heading. If Choros liked anything, it was large groups of people, and Pokemon. Those immediately meant friends as far as the Jangmo-o was concerned. Shay picked up her pace until the pair of them managed to knock someone over, and keep running. It was a woman with a Hoppip, and one rogue hat sent flying. Well now it was time to reign those two in.

    "H and C!" Shay shouted as she got within a few feet of the stranger. She waved for the two of them to come back, once Havoc had swung her head back around, using the temporary distraction to pick up Choros in her arms. Shay turned to the woman. "Sorry, they get distracted in new places."

    They, finally having arrived with Choros squirming in Havoc's claws. Their trainer gave them a stern look, and they looked at the situation. Choros ceased her attempts at escape once they both realized their haste had bowled someone over. A simple head motion from Shay, towards the Hoppip and stranger indicated a need to apologize. "Well, go on you two, what do you say?"

    Havoc lowered her head a bit, looking off to the side. "...orus."

    If Choros hated one thing, it was being in trouble. Havoc put the Jangmo-o back onto the pavement, letting her scamper off to pick up the lost hat. The dragon returned with a warily slower pace, holding her head up as high as she could to offer the woman back her green hat. A muffled sound from her full maw came out, an attempt at a genuine, if not muffled apology. After a few seconds, Havoc picked her up ones again, getting the small dragon closer to eye level with the woman.

    "Your Hoppip okay?" Shay asked, offering a partially closed hand as a gesture of hello to the Hoppip.

    ASB Stats | VPP Stats

    Flute the Clefa
    Hatch: 2883
    Clefairy: 2988
    Clefable: 3108
    Level100: 3168


  8. #8
    The Queen of Shaymin
    Noblejanobii's Avatar
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    Cat Ines
    Ryme City Entrance
    Impacted RPers:
    @Saraibre Ryu

    Cat looked up as the partner to the dragons approached her. She quickly caught sight of the pokeballs on her chest, and mentally corrected herself. Trainer, not partner. Cat stood up and brushed herself off a little. She smiled and shook her head. "Nah it's fine, it happens." She looked down as the little Jangmo-o approached with her hat. Cat bent down and took it. "Thank you!" She pat Choros on the head before putting her hat back on.

    Cottonbloom hovered beside Cat as the interaction occurred, watching the two dragons in a mix of fear and awe. She had never seen a real Haxorous before, and was slightly intimidated by how big the dragon was. Still, when the trainer asked how she was feeling and extended her hand, Cottonbloom felt somewhat more at ease. She floated forward and bumped her head against Sabi's hand. "Hoppip! Hop!"

    Cat giggled and said, "Yeah, she's not hurt. Thanks for asking. Hoppip may look frail but CB's one of the hardiest Hoppip I've ever met. Ain't that right, CB?"

    "Hop pip!" Cottonbloom gave a confident nod in agreement.

    Cat took her camera back from Cottonbloom and looked at Shay. "So you're a trainer? Where are you from? And what brings you to Ryme City?"
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    Double Agents with Suicune's Fire

  9. #9
    Cheers and good times! Neo Emolga's Avatar
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    Nathan Cole (Resident)
    Nathan's Apartment, Hickory Street


    A cold air drifted through Nathan's dusty apartment as he worked tirelessly for hours doing his research. There was a lot left undone in his small but functional apartment. Unopened mail was scattered on the metallic center table, the dishwasher had finished the last load days ago but remained shut, a thin sprinkling of dust had covered most of the rarely-touched furniture, and Nathan couldn't remember the last time he actually made his bed before sleeping in it.

    He spent the last two hours in his dimly lit bedroom researching online while Kano the Cinccino enjoyed sleeping in what was Nathan's bed as opposed to the smaller pen that was supposed to be his. As to Nathan, what he researched might have been the most absurd thing to him at first, but he had already factored in all the alternatives and they didn't hold the same promise as his current pursuit.

    There was the option to find a Pokémon that could speak both to Pokémon and humans through English. And he would have to trust this Pokémon. The time needed to find such a Pokémon would be immense and there was no guarantee it would work. Not to mention trying to teach a Pokémon to speak, if it were even possible, could take years. Which was why he needed to try to perform this crucial interview himself to get the real answers. So in those last two hours, he tried diving for information on how exactly a human could become a Pokémon, for at least a temporary amount of time.

    To his surprise, where he thought most topics of discussion online would treat the whole prospect like a joke, the subject matter wasn't regarded as ridiculous as he anxiously expected to many online sites. Many sites had claimed it had happened before, though there was no real dependable and truly scientifically validated means to do it. Some claimed certain Pokémon were capable of doing such a thing, others claimed a mixture of regents and untested recipes could do it, and there was even a claim that one human had become a Pokémon and had visited an entire other world solely inhabited by the creatures and came back to tell the tale. However, as expected, almost everyone else doubted that claim as there was no evidence to support that.

    The labyrinth of possible means and answers seemed just as complex and winding as what he might have expected trying to hack into Megans Technologies networks. But at least here he wasn't doing anything illegal or would get him caught and have the authorities pounding at his door. But there was one lead that he found that might have validated answers. A Pokémon researcher in Goldenrod City, named Bill, reportedly had unintentionally turned himself into a Pokémon during his studies on teleportation. He was wondering if, in fact, this Bill had investigated it further as follow-up research. If anyone in the world had really found the means to accomplish such a thing, it would likely be him. A researcher of his experience would at least try to go for a verified means.

    It took a bit of courage to pick up the communicator and give the researcher a call, but he decided to try it anyway. He typed in Bill's number, watched the video display feed, and waited for a response. Shortly after, the video turned on to reveal Bill, wearing his usual grin accompanied with his wavy brown hairstyle.

    "Hey there, you've reached Bill the PokéManiac!" the friendly and welcoming voice of the researcher had spoke on the other line. "Who is this?"

    "Hi Bill, my name's Nathan Cole," he spoke to him in a direct tone. "This might seem like an unusual request, but I need your help with a few things. It's in direct response to the current Ryme City crisis."

    Nathan figured if he wanted to get Bill's help, he needed to be as open and as honest as possible, hiding nothing. In essence, there was no reason to bring Megans Technologies into this. While he had his suspicions about the encroaching company, those didn't need to be known to the researcher.

    "Ryme, huh?" Bill asked, sounding and looking fascinated. "Always wanted to visit there but never had the chance! I heard Ryme City was having some problems down there?"

    "That's right," Nathan replied with a nod, figuring it was likely some of the recent events had attracted media attention. "What we have on our hands are rogue Pokémon attacks. As a resident of Ryme for 29 years, this isn't usual and is fairly recent. But while the RCPD has their hands full trying to neutralize the attacks and do damage assessment, I want to investigate what might be the root cause of all this. I think the only way to accomplish this is to interview one of these rogue Pokémon."

    "Ohh, that sounds hard and a bit dangerous," Bill replied with a look of caution, knowing a provoked or angered Pokémon was hard to control and capable of seriously hurting someone. "Not a lot of Pokémon understand human speech, however. Certain commands and attack orders, sure, if the Pokémon trusts their trainer. Thing is that's usually a one-sided conversation, of course! You're not going to understand too much of what the Pokémon says back to you as you probably know."

    "That's exactly why I'm calling," Nathan confirmed. "I'm trying to do my own side investigation and this is where I've hit a roadblock that you might be able to help with. I need to know if you might have something that could change me into a Pokémon to perform the interview myself. I've considered all the other options and this was really the only one that would give me the full and unaltered information I need from one of these rogues. I feel we may not be able to get the answers otherwise and word has it you may have unintentionally discerned the means to do this."

    He could hear and see Bill sigh, looking like he was trying to gather his thoughts, but then he eventually responded.

    "Uhh, yeah, about that," Bill replied, sounding more bashful than doubtful. "I'll admit I've delved a bit into that in those rare occasions I have some downtime, although the first time was a total mishap! A few people have looked into this kind of thing, though let's just say a lack of study sponsors that think such a thing has any utility or market value are, well... they're just not out there. And neither are willing study participants, which of course have to be human for this to work! Unlike some medicines and new healing items that you can test on Pokémon, you can't exactly test something that changes the recipient into a Pokémon on someone that's a Pokémon already! I'll admit, it sure would be fun as a prank and I'm sure many teenagers would love it, but you're talking about an untested serum that would be expensive as the raw materials are tricky to find. No one would pay that much just to, well, you know, jump out from behind a bush as a Pikachu and scare their parents!"

    As Nathan knew, the approval process from regulatory branches of the government would be hell on these researchers to make such a thing available to the public. That and it being untested carried a presence of it becoming a liability. The only other choice was to thoroughly test it to verify its safety for public use, but that would only be considered if the return on investment was there. With all those factors considered, he had to decide if he would take the risk and subject himself to whatever consequences that would be involved because of it being relatively untested..

    But as he told Bill, his number of options was low and his time was short.

    "I think we can both gain something out of this," Nathan told Bill. "You said you needed willing human study participants and I may have found a justified use for this. If you send the serum, I'll take daily temperature readings, report any side effects, and will send you whatever information you need regarding any other in vivo study details you require."

    "Whew, you're pretty brave, I'll give you that," Bill replied, wondering if Nathan might just be one in a million. "I'm sure you're going to want to have the agent that should change you back, of course. I'll send that too, but if you could give me ten days of research data, you'd be doing me a big favor. And hey, you know, give me some insight as to how that interview goes. If that works too, you know, I might be able to get some sponsors for this kind of study if they see the ways it can be used!"

    While Nathan was hoping this wouldn't be a big mistake, there was only one way to find out. Still, he'd rather live with the regret that his attempt to find a solution failed rather than live with the regret that he stood by and did nothing while Ryme went to shambles around him.

    "Sounds like a deal," Nathan replied. "I'm transmitting my address to you now."

    "I just need one more thing," Bill requested. "What Pokémon would you want to try on for size?"

    Considering all that which happened, that wasn't too difficult of a question.

    "Cinccino," he told Bill. "Having raised one of my own, I have quite a bit of experience with the species."

    That and as Nathan recalled, that experience went a bit beyond even just owning one...

    "Not too bad, thankfully that's not too super-rare of a Pokémon," Bill replied. "I'm quite sure I have the DNA of that one on file. If something goes wrong, let me know right away. Hopefully I'll be able to talk you through it!"

    Ten days. It was going to be a bit tricky for Nathan to work around that for that kind of duration as a Cinccino, but he needed to uphold his end of the research deal to Bill. That and take very detailed notes regarding the performance of the serum.

    "Sounds good," Nathan confirmed. "I'll get started right away once I receive the package."

    "Well good luck!" Bill smiled. "Looking forward to working with you!"

    "Take care," Nathan replied.

    After the connection was ended, Nathan made a checklist of things he might need for this study. While the package shipping was in process, he needed to make sure he had enough food, supplies, and everything else both he and Kano needed. Human interactions and transactions needed to be completed now before the ten day trial had gone into full swing. It wasn't like he could head off to the local grocery store as a Cinccino and not cause commotion when he tried to pay with a credit card. Bills needed to be paid in advance, and he needed to inform anyone he had regular interactions with that he would be away for a short while. For the next ten days, he needed to make sure there was nothing on his calendar. At least nothing he needed to be present as a human for. In terms of Anotech, he was already on a work from home basis with them, but he needed play it as if his microphone and video feed were malfunctioning, but could still type while listening in on meetings.

    While it might be a challenge for the upcoming ten days, it would be worth if he was able to get a hold of information from one of the rogues. But until he got that information, all he would have at the end of the day were suspicions but no real leads to pursue.

    He wasn't about to wait until time ran out and he only found the truth when it was too late...

  10. #10
    Anomalous Eldritch Cryptid Saraibre Ryu's Avatar
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    Shay Draklyn
    Ryme City Entrance
    Affected RPers: @Noblejanobii


    Somehow, Shay managed to get herself locked into human conversation. One of her least favourite things to do but she couldn't just let someone get bowled over by a dragon. She expected at least a little hostility, something about trainers being in their city when it was a place of wild Pokemon freedom. So far this woman seemed decent enough. Choros gave her best equivalent of a Jangmo-o smile, and perked right up with the head pats. The Hoppip, Cottonbloom, seemed to warm up to her. There were plenty of them in Johto so she knew how to handle them. Taking a moment to look over the plucky pink Pokemon, Shay could tell they were pretty healthy. Leaves looked verdant and the little guy seemed to enjoy the... well Shay couldn't call them trainers or owners. Persons? No, the security had mentioned something about partners. That was likely the optimal word she would have to resort to.

    The bombardment of questions snapped Shay out of her examination of Cottonbloom. It took her a moment to replay the words in her head, just to appear to be paying more attention than she was. "Yeah, that's right. I'm from Johto but I travel around a lot, as Trainers do."

    Havoc had been staring at Cottonbloom the whole time, while Choros was happy to play plush Teddiursa for awhile until she saw Cottonbloom's face. Choros took notice of Cottonbloom's conflicted feelings, she wriggled out and climbed up Havoc's head, sitting on top of it to show she wasn't so scary. Shay looked between the two of them, knowing exactly what that look in her Haxorus' eye was for. She turned to the Hoppip. "Don't worry, Havoc won't start trouble, but she'll end it. If you aren't used to seeing one of them, congrats: that's the rarest kind of Haxorus you'll find."

    Right, the woman was still asking questions.

    "I'm here to see what all the fuss on the news has been about. It's off season for most of the Leagues and I hadn't been here before so... maybe help people out with the... difference of opinions." Shay carefully answered not wanting to offend this stranger.

    There were plenty of people around with listening potential. The last thing Shay wanted was to get ganged up on. Not for her sake, but for Havoc's protective nature. She was a stubborn ol' dragon, and one who did not need to start a Pokemon Battle in the middle of the street.

    ASB Stats | VPP Stats

    Flute the Clefa
    Hatch: 2883
    Clefairy: 2988
    Clefable: 3108
    Level100: 3168


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