=== TURN XXII ===
= ONE LONG DAMN CORRIDOR =
(Reminder: >> are collateral, or "severity" LUC rolls, and => are salvage, or "save" skill/att rolls.)
> Jake:
> Alix:
> Derek:
> Zarkov:
> Jac:
The Seekers exchange glances. Their minds are occupied by different thoughts, but in one thing they seem to find agreement. As one, they nod and start walking after the Professor. The corridor they walk down is fairly long, and slightly turning. Before long it is apparent that the corridor is actually a spiral staircase, somehow constructed underground using nothing but smooth wooden boards. Some time passes in silence as they descend deeper.
"
Professor." Derek asks as he walks by Cloverfield's side, clutching his weapon firmer in his hands. "
What exactly is it that you're leading us to? What is down there?"
"
Yeah, Professor." Jake adds from behind. "
Is it related to that machine in the photograph?"
The Professor sighs heavily, the questions seeming to disturb an unpleasant memory. "
Yes," he finally says. "
You could say that that machine was the thing that started it all. It was the fruit of long and arduous research, six years of the best Pokemon researchers in the world working together to uncover some of the deepest mysteries of the Pokemon life.."
Professor Cloverfield falls silent for a short while, allowing Alix to add a question as well. "
Professor... what exactly were you studying? What are you a Professor of?" He raises his head to reply, but Jac suddenly butts in. "
Oh, oh, do you know how these Pokeballs work? I've been trying to figure it out all day, and.. and... What?" Jac looks up to see the whole team, including the professor, stopped, looking back at him - the team with various blank and annoyed stares; but the professor more surprised, and just slightly more tired than usual. Jac tries to smile, confused. "
Bad question? Wrong time?"
The professor sighs, and shakes his head. "
No, young man." he says, turning and starting to walk again. "
You may have asked the most relevant question of them all." He continues down, feeling the wooden wall with his hand, as the Seekers exchange glances again, shrug, and follow.
"
I might as well tell the story from its start," he begins. "
I have been an ardent researcher of Pokemon all my life, but I did not find anything new, or worthwhile... until about fifteen years ago. I worked with a young man then, a smart rich kid who seemed to use his family wealth to further humanity's knowledge of Pokemon. I had no complaints back then. His name was Alfred. Alfred Emeric. Together we studied everything, from history to theology, trying to find a glimpse of something, that special something that made Pokemon what they were. I'm sure you've noticed by now, that Pokemon don't readily fit in with human biology. Even more bizarrely, they don't fit in with human laws of nature, able to generate energy at will and gain superior sustenance from things that should be outright impossible. Add in their uncanny intellect, and it becomes apparent, even without research, that there is more to Pokemon than meets even the most studious eyes. For years there was no progress, but then suddenly we had had a breakthrough! Using a rare mineral imported at great expense from Hoehn, we had built a machine, a machine that could sense the "something". We had no name for it, and could come up with nothing better than just calling it the Pokemons' "Soul". But the machine could not only sense it, no. Theoretically, and with enough of the mineral, it could be possible to make it interact with it, interpret it, manipulate it! In some unprecedented artificial way, the machine was tapping into the same natural force that was being used by all Pokemon Trainers throughout the history of the world, and the same force that was only slightly nudged by the famous Pokemon Rangers. Tapping into it, and possibly shaping it to its operator's desire."
Professor Cloverfield sighs, stopping for a moment. "
I was blind then. Blinded by my own success and the generosity of the boy, I did not see what harm I was about to unleash on the world. Me and Alfred posed for that picture at the time that I thought was our greatest triumph."
Derek nods thoughtfully. "
I think I understand where this is going. Continue, Professor, please."
Cloverfield nods, and walks further down the corridor, the Seekers following. "
Yes, you probably understand. Alfred had anything but the good of humanity or the Pokemon as his goals. When it became apparent that my machine was unable to exert the kind of raw force he wanted it to, he copied my design and cast me out of the labs, cut my funding. I protested, I pleaded with him to rethink what he wanted to do, but he seemed to see nothing but the power that was opening before him. It then became clear to me that Alfred only cared about his own power. It was all I could do sabotage my own invention, removing the mineral at its heart and storing it away. I fled, fled to this remote part of the region, in hopes that he would never find me. But I don't think he cared. He had my design, and more than enough money to get more of the mineral. He must have started working on his own, more powerful version of the machine - the Soul Extractor, as we called it." He turns to look over his shoulder at the team and seems to smile sadly. "
Not the most harmless-sounding name, is it? Alfred's suggestion."
A different light begins to mix into the soft white of the regularly spaced clover-leaf ceiling lamps, a greenish glow seeping in from somewhere further down the corridor. The Professor leads the way as the corridor opens into an underground chamber, a large laboratory space. The wooden planks making up the corridor seem to twist out and thicken, seamlessly flowing into great roots that surround the chamber instead of ending abruptly. Cloverfield continues his story as he walks towards the center of the chamber, motioning the Seekers to take care not to touch anything.
"
I may not know for sure that what happened to the Pokemon outside was Alfred's doing. But it's been fifteen years. And I know of no other thing capable of affecting Pokemon in that way. That the act of capture disrupts the aggression spell is no coincidence, as the Pokeballs tap into the same energy, binding an imprint of the Pokemon's "soul" to themselves. Whatever this "soul" actually is, we never managed to understand, but it seems that it possesses an energy, and a mind of its own, especially if drawn from the aether. The shard of mineral I took from my first machine turned out to contain a sentient mind, the mind of a Pokemon that has never made itself known to humankind. Perhaps attracted by my desire to come into contact with it, it spoke to me from within that small stone. It took me some time to figure out what it wanted, but it directed me, and had me place the stone here, where it grew. The manor you see outside is merely a result of it wanting to provide me with a place to live, to protect me as I protected it. But now, after fifteen years, I think it is time. It has grown, not metaphorically but physically, shaping a body for itself just as it shaped a home for me."
As the professor speaks these words, the group finally approaches the center of the chamber, where a humongous column of roots connects the mossy floor to the ceiling. Near the ground, the roots part and thin, forming a cradle, within which lies suspended a creature. A Pokemon, emitting a faint blue aura. Derek and Alix instinctively take out their Pokedexes, but their attempts are futile. "
No such Pokemon in database." Reluctantly they put the datapads away and move closer to examine the suspended Pokemon.
The creature is a winged quadruped, resembling perhaps a deer, but clearly not actually an animal. A short green fuzz, like fine moss, covers most of the Pokemon's body, except the incredibly thin, silk-like strands of its tail, the soft crest on the back of its head and neck, and the insides of its wings, that seem to resemble narrow flower petals rather than feathers. The creature's narrow muzzle lacks features except its solid black eyes. The eyes lack eyelids, but for some reason still seem as if they're closed. And finally, set into the pokemon's forehead is a single round gem, glowing a soft cerulean blue, and spreading its light throughout the room.
The professor approaches the creature, and lays a hand on its forehead, touching the gem. "
Yes." he speaks, as if to himself. "
It is time."
He quickly moves towards one of the many machines set about in the lab, and deftly punches some commands into a terminal. The lights in the room dim, even as the light of the gem begins to intensify. The roots around the creature seem to start resonating, glowing a faint green, as if flowing energy into the pokemon's body, funneling it into the singe point. The Seekers instinctively step back, watching the process unfold.
After a while, the glow dims, and the artificial lighting comes back on. The roots around the pokemon seem to bend down and unweave the cradle, releasing the creature onto the ground. It stands up slowly, unsurely, its legs seeming to move for the first time in its life - which, the Seekers realize, is probably exactly what is happening. Finally it raises its head and looks around, its eyes still jet black, but now seeming to glow from within with a
warmth, an indescribable synesthesia of senses impossible to capture in any picture. It sees the professor and takes a step forward, but stops, surprised, upon noticing the Seekers. Suddenly, a voice manifests, not coming from anywhere in particular, sounding clearly in everyone's heads, but for some reason unquestionably coming from the creature, despite it lacking a mouth.
"
Professor... who are they?"
Non-narrative events summary: > Breaking the turn in half because coly hrap can't delay any longer.
> See next turn action instructions at end of post.
==========
=== STATUS =============
Locations:
> Tall Mountains ("up" the road)
>
Cloverfield Manor (current position)
>
Green Hill ("down" the road)
> Dense Forest (far "down" the road)
> Ruins (deep in the Dense Forest)
==========
Characters:
>
Jake Marshall (Heart of the Manor)
>
Derek Coonan (Heart of the Manor)
>
Alix Meier (Heart of the Manor)
>
Zarkov Dragonheart (Heart of the Manor)
>
Jac Loscure (Heart of the Manor)
==========
Vehicles:
> Frankencycle (at manor entrance): Cobbled from the remains of two smashed bicycles, this is a perfectly normal pedal-powered two-wheel transport for up to two people.
==========
Allies:
> Caty the Metapod (with Alix)
> Zak the Zangoose (with Zarkov)
==========
NPCs:
> Professor Cloverfield (Heart of the Manor)
> Unknown Pokemon (Heart of the Manor)
==========
Enemies:
> No enemies present.
==========
> SPECIAL ACTION FOR NEXT TURN Now that you're down here with the strange pokemon, think of how you introduce yourselves. What you do and how you act determines how this will progress.
==========
Comments in the
discussion thread, please.
Author
Topic: Multiworld Madness II. One Long Darn Corridor (Turn XXII) (game thread) (Read 56340 times)