It caught Tristen a bit off guard how Laverne came to him, with kisses in tow. One wouldn't be able to tell it, but he was kind of blushing underneath the blue fur on his face, but it still got a grin out of him nonetheless. It had been a while since that he has seen Laverne; not since Kalos at any rate. And he was in fact still an Electrike hybrid trying to do good in Pokemon training.
Reunions would be generally cut short when Sub started to address the team as to what was going on. With how it was described, Tristen remembered stories told to him about how Orre was with Shadow Pokemon a time ago. The parallels were starting to look pretty uncanny. To this day, he still can't understand how anyone would want a Shadow Pokemon so willingly like that. And souring his mood even further would be the fact that the team has spent several years trying to quell the whole entire threat, one year of which took place right here in Hoenn.
Tristen would start to take a look at the map of Mauville on his SNAG, trying to think as to where a bunch of wanna-be thugs would want to hang out at. Considering how battles were frequent and in well view of the public, part of him thought chances are they might be in droves in the east side. Perhaps to show alleged superiority in their Pokemon as opposed to those taken into the Move Studio or Battle Institute. Food Court would also harbor a bunch of people too, incidentally enough.
Tristen just about talked himself into it. With Snag Machine in he head off to the east side of the court and just simply...try to blend in...at least as much as a hybrid could, at any rate. He start from the south east and move north east, moving about the crowds and such just as if he was another patron in the city.
Posted: Sat May 14, 2022 4:28 pm
SubonicXP
The west side of Mauville City has such places as, listed from south to north:
Crooner's Cafe, coffee and live music. Mauville Game Corner, a casino open to all. Narcissus Mirror Shop, stop staring. Ritzy Ribbon Retail, everyone gets one these days. Pokemilage Center, cause cash isn't enough. Pokemon Reflexology Center, even Pokemon need tension relief (not that kind). Mauville Gym, for aspiring Pokemon Masters and battery lickers.
Following their fearless leader's speech, Darts emerges out into the sunshine filtering through the windows of the massive structure around him. Mauville had gone through quite a few changes in even his lifetime, and the place had expanded into the massive multiplex building that now surrounded all of them. The hybrid had a couple of concerns, the main one being that Shadow Pokemon were back in the area. The second was, to be frank, he was a little rusty at this whole team exercise sort of thing. He'd been out on expedition with the Dragon Clan for so long he didn't really know how to work as part of a cohesive unit any more.
Bah. He had always done plenty of good work on his own, and now wasn't the time to start doubting himself. He had to remember what the Laoweng had taught him. Deep breath in, deep breath out. Use the Calm Mind to keep the demons at bay. While focusing on his breathing, his feet had carried him unconsciously to the old Mauville Game Corner. The place was dark, and, putting his glowing red eyes to the window, looked like it had been closed for some time. Machines inside the place were all powered down, white sheets thrown over the tops of some of them as they got ready to go to new homes in other bars and arcades.
It was a pity, Darts thought, stepping back from the window, his gilt hand coming to rest at his side. Old casino haunts like these had been his bread and butter before becoming a hybrid, but they were a dying breed. Why leave your house to gamble when one credit card number later you could be losing all your money from the comfort of your couch? E-poker and the like was far too impersonal for the Giratina hybrid. There was no buzz in the air, a hum from the patrons when someone was on a winning streak at the roulette table. If you were going to gamble away your kid's future, at least do it in public like a respectable adult instead of in your boxers with a bag of cheetos like a degenerate.
Still, it didn't matter much what he thought of the whole matter. Times were changing and dens of iniquity and sin like these were going out of business more and more. He was about to turn and walk away, sadly, when something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. It looked like, far off over one of the rows of machines in the back of the place, there were some flashing and undulating lights not unlike the ones projected by the other old slot machines crowded around. Intrigued and feeling anachronistic, Darts puts one hand on the sliding door and to his amazement it slides outwards, parting to allow him access to the casino.
It wasn't champagne service and high roller suites, but he figured it'd have to do for now. Slowly, carefully, the hybrid makes his way into the Game Corner. Could just be a bank of machines left on by accident, but the little trembly feeling in his gut made him not so sure. Calm Mind, Calm Mind....
"Oh, dear," William sighed. Deciding to follow Crystal, he made a note to borrow some Pokeballs from the Hoenn office's stash before heading out, only to be interrupted by Claydol with a new Gardevoir friend. The Gardevoir in question, whose colors weren't exactly the same as a normal Gardevoir's, handed William a Snag Machine equipped with an Immunizer and eight Vivid Scents. The Gardevoir used her powerful and experience telepathy to implore the young Dragonthorn that he was BORROWING the Snag Machine, as well as any Vivid Scents he didn't use by the time this was over, and that she would come back to collect once the mission was over. Then she and Claydol disappeared. Though confused. William sighed, and with a confidence boost, headed out to follow Crystal.
Explanation
Meanwhile, in HQ, Keiko and I were quarantined in our room and working out the logistics of our wedding. While we were normally all about working for the team, the WCC had set the wedding back too far. Sure, it was only a month or so tops that I was away, but it felt like more than a year.
Of course, we both saw the message from Sub regarding the details of the mission, but though I was determined to stay behind and make sure the wedding happened, I wasn't beyond helping out in smaller ways. After doing a quick serch through the Snag Network's GPA system, I took note of who left for Hoenn, and found someone I thought could be trusted. I then sent Rala off with my Snag Machine and all the Vivid Scents I'd saved up over the years. She'd never been to Hoenn before, however, so she had to get in contact with Claydol. She was lucky to not have to deal with GRAY as he couldn't recieve telepathic communication due to his nature as basically a machine, and I doubted he could understand Pokespeak at any rate. Though now that I thought of it, that might not be a bad idea for a new feature for him in situations like this. I'd have to remember to pitch the idea to Sub after the honeymoon.
Posted: Sat May 14, 2022 5:46 pm
Before Brian could say anything else, he heard Sub addressing the group, and he turned his attention to the leader to hear what the man had to say. The thought of Shadow Pokemon being here in Hoenn made his blood run cold. That was the last thing anyone needed to deal with. He could feel his irritation rising at the idea that some underground gang was messing with something they clearly didn't understand the danger of, and he resolved to help bring them down any way he could.
"Could they be using some kind of Pokemon to mask their presence?" he asked, when Sub said the police had few leads on how the group was evading detection. That was the only other idea he could think of as to how they were able to avoid capture for so long. Hearing Sub telling everyone split up into two groups, he decided to head to the east side of the city, since there were areas where there was public battling, and it was the most likely place to run into a Shadow Pokemon; at least, Brian figured it was the best place to run into one. The only way to find out was to go there and see what he could find out.
"I'm headed east," he said. "Maybe the Food Court might be a good place to search." Not to mention he was hungry, so he could kill two birds with one stone, so to speak.
Mauville City was disorienting for Monique. Jubilife was laid out in a way that made sense, and she hadn't had to do much in the city.
Mauville, on the other hand, was as far a cry from New Po Town as she had seen yet. New Po Town mostly laid along one street. Mauville had more roads than Marowak could shake her flame at. It was impressive at the same time it was bewildering.
GRAY turned out to be an incredibly helpful map, however, and the sheriff found her way north to TV Mauville, the single largest link in Hoenn local television. Several large wall postings of some cutesy mascot and other faces, presumably recognizable around the city, adorned the outside walls near the entrance. Two large televisions displayed the live output, and a ticker of news headlines served as the mantelpiece over the door.
Monique walked in and took in the scenery. There were more televisions, a mini gift shop with more of those mascots for sale, some chairs, and a receptionist. A large old television camera with big "TVM" lettering—perhaps as removed from this era as she was from her own—was a centerpiece in part of the lobby. Hallways led behind the lobby to offices and, presumably, studios. One of the walls had a large framed promo for "TVM News" with the faces of what had to be their local news team. Wow, this has to involve a lot of people and resources—
"Hi! Welcome to TV Mauville." The receptionist piping up to her visitor pulled Monique out of her reverie. "What brings you here today?"
"Hi there! I'm with Team Snagem," she started explaining. "I wanted to see if you've received any news reports of unusual Pokémon behavior in the Mauville City area?" As she waited for a reply, she noticed the receptionist staring at her Marowak like it was an alien object.
Posted: Sat May 14, 2022 7:54 pm
Deo, who was astonished by the looks of the city, decided to check the most electrical of the places, the city gym. He started that way, seeing the sights was a normal thing, but for him, he kept lookout for anything odd and out of the normal for him. Seeing some kids spray painting the walls near a place almost made him go into a Police Officer mode in an instant, if it was not for the thought that passed through his head. 'Remember, shadow pokemon are the target, not young punks' his size though as the kids saw him approaching made them run in fear.
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Posted: Sat May 14, 2022 8:54 pm
Crystal was pretty calm and didn’t really have an issue with what Sub was saying, at least until he mentioned that she’d be leading one of the two groups. Her ears flicked a couple of times as she blinked rapidly, not comprehending initially. “Ah… Wait, huh? Uh…” As she was trying to figure out how to say what she would say, Sub had finished the debriefing and walked out. “Right. We’ll let the one who flew solo for ages be in charge of a group and keep track of them, much less keep track of them psychically when she’s purposefully put up barriers to keep others out and avoid even passing thoughts,” she muttered, quietly shaking her head. “Then again, no one’s asked us really what I did in Ultra Space… Eh.” She pinched the bridge of her nose gently, letting out a large, annoyed sigh. “Still suddenly hate everything about this. Light burn it all…” Finally moving, she went to hunt down a new Snag Machine, one that would fit her hand this time. After fitting the Immunizer that she couldn’t completely remember getting onto the glove, she adjusted her awkwardly fitting belt and made her way out and over to the east side of the city. “Prior planning, lady, prior planning,” she muttered, shaking her head. Her eyes narrowed into two light blue lines, focusing on identifying the members of the team she’d have to keep tabs on. Once that was done, she was about to look and maybe see about a clothier when she noticed William following.
“Uh, hey. You don’t need to follow me directly, I won’t be able to give the best of directions. Too much stuff in this head to dig a certain old memory out on the draw. Just got back, too, so memories of this reality are on the bottom, with some smaller holes still in them, too. If you want, though, I can look up some areas for you to look at….” Dragging out her SNAG, she pulled up a map of the city, trying to figure out places of note. “More obvious areas might be… The Battle Institute, um… Interesting, the Food Court also is a battling place, and then if you want to go for a trippy battling place, there’s the Inverse Battle Shop. I could potentially see Rydel’s Cycles or the Song and Sword Move Academy also. If you bring up your SNAG, you could probably find some other potential places of notes. I’ll do my best to keep track of everyone.” As uncomfortable as it might make me, she added mentally to herself. “Besides, you might be able to skulk around better not hanging around a giant hybrid with a built in golden crown,” she chuckled, giving a small shrug. “There’s my two cents, though.”
Posted: Sat May 14, 2022 9:20 pm
SubonicXP
"Well, you heard him, have fun storming the city," Sol remarked. "Someone needs to help keep an eye on the day-to-day around here, and not all merc work's the 'glamorous' fighty sort. Now if you'll excuse me, hasta lu- er. I'll see all of you in HQ again soon. My SNAG's always on if things get too dicey."
A small nod followed, and back to work he went.
Cera needed an extra second to fully get back her composure. "I know he told me he frequented the Mauville office after the war, but I never thought to pry about it... he isn't completely wrong about having jobs that didn't involve a target, though," she said, almost clarifying for herself more than the others. "Anyways, if we don't have a choice but to snag here, I'm gonna need a moment. I can't use the Snag Machine like this."
Finding a restroom to hide in wasn't much of an issue, remembering just enough about the office to remember where the public ones were. It'd give her enough time to make use of the reappropriated Pokeball she had on her, opening it to let out a Snag Machine, her SNAG, and a set of clothes all on the floor of the stall she sneaked off into.
A light sigh escaped her as she looked at it all. "Sol's right, it has been too long since I've done this. I really should be practicing this more. Still weird looking the part..." To her credit, it didn't take long to focus and get her transformation going, opting for a hybrid appearance for the first time in what felt like years. Definitely pinker with just being a Mew now, and mostly looking like enough of a human with a face, feet, ears and tail staying closer to her normal self. Size-wise, she looked closer to a teenager, someone that could feasibly be on the gym challenge and otherwise traveling around the city much like any other trainer might be.
Her tail flicked a little when she was done, hastily grabbing the clothes first and getting those on alongside her scarf. Then she'd fit the Snag Machine onto her right hand, finally grabbing her SNAG and tucking it into a pocket of her skirt- thankful she'd somehow managed to get one that had pockets in the first place. "Guess I'll just hide this for now..." She remarked to herself, practicing her voice a bit before putting the Z-Ring and crystal into the ball, clipping it and the other Pokeballs on her onto a belt before finally coming back out and leaving the office.
Thinking that one of the less likely places might have a better yield of information, she'd take for the west side of the city and to Crooner's Café. She'd immediately be greeted with slightly dim lighting, smooth music trying to keep a relaxing atmosphere, and the scent of coffee ever present. Any other time, it might've been nice to lounge around and just take in everything for a bit.
Being on business, though, some of that lounging would have to be an act. She'd find a seat and ask for a cup, if only to make things look good while she quietly scouted the café.
Lykas would come strolling out of the Pokemon Center after the other Snagems had departed from the office, having requested an update from GRAY once he was able to join in on the mission in progress only to find out everyone had already split up. He had three Pokemon him that would be both useful and could benefit from the experience he expected to find here but he also had one that didn't get enough screentime. "Delmare, are you ready to go find these hooligans?" He asked the Keldeo, glad to see the Colt Pokemon feeling more energetic and up to moving around ever since that first jaunt out into Galar.
Delmare neighed and nodded, walking beside the hybrid as the pair began to look around, eventually spotting Sub as he arrived in the square. "Hey! If you've come to look around here, I'll head up to the park on the top floor and see what I can find." he offered as he approached, Delmare in tow.
SubonicXP
Posted: Sat May 14, 2022 11:29 pm
Kazu was startled by Brian's sudden interest in him. "U-Uh yeah...Ulla brought me here. My name is Kazu. Nice to meet you." Kazu said as Sub started speaking about their current mission. Shadow Pokemon? Kazu slightly remembers that was one thing Ulla talked about. And also hated the most. She always hesitated when it came to Shadow Pokemon, because she always wanted to save them. Which made it even more painful in the long run for her. "Our psychics?" Kazu said not understanding what Sub was talking about when he said if they can keep tabs on their teams.
Everyone started splitting off to start investigating the city. He wasn't really close to anyone to ask who he could take along with, except maybe the guy he just introduced himself to. "Hey, I'll come with you!" He said to Brian catching up to him.
"Well, it's not like I've been to this town before, but... ehh... I'm sure I'll be fine," William offered, not wanting to be a burden to Crystal. With Hydrangea in tow, William then started walking off in basically a random direction and after some walking, found himself approaching Song and Sword Move Academy.
Posted: Sun May 15, 2022 1:05 pm
Reno would barely lift a finger as he watched the Snagems begin to self sort the majority of themselves into each of the assigned areas. For at least one or two, it was easy enough to figure out where they would end up and who would technically be in charge of them, although in charge was generous when it involved the team's Giratina hybrid. Operating alongside and needing to keep tabs on might be more accurate, but he saw no need to be that much of a worrywart about Darts. Cera sat in similar company, having been around the team long enough that all Reno really needed was a vague approximation of where she'd be to keep that on track.
Either way, seemed like the north end of town would be well covered with two heavy hitters. So he started vaguely going southernly as he picked up on Deo having wandered in somewhat the same direction. Getting alongside the hybrid as he saw him eyeing towards a few local delinquents, Reno would give him a little nudge. "I get it. Illegal shiz on the happenings. Just don't start trying to perform any citizen's arrests. As much as I'm sure we have some leeway for that, I'd rather not test how far afield from Shadow Pokemon issues we can get before they start questioning it." Reno joked, hoping the attempt to break the ice would aid with getting Deo to relax a little.
Setting off and giving a wave to the hybrid as he went, Reno would quickly find himself perusing the stocks of the Ritzy Ribbon Retail store. Sure, it seemed a little off brand for him but so did.....almost everything he owned or had owned. He did not exactly have a brand beyond vague cyberpunk and major limb loss at this point. Perhaps one of these ribbons might speak to him and help him find something new? And if said something new was a Shadow Pokemon ring in Mauville, well who was he to question it?
Brian smiled when he heard Kazu's voice, pausing long enough for the boy to catch up to him. "I'm Brian, by the way," he said, since he hadn't introduced himself earlier. "How good are ye at battling?" Since they were headed to the Food Court, it would be a good idea to know whether Kazu was up to battling, especially since they very well might have to do so anyway.
When he heard Crystal's voice behind him, he paused again, turning to look at the Solgaleo hybrid. "If ye'd like, I can give ye directions, since I'm from Hoenn," he offered. He wasn't sure where she was planning to go, but if they were going the same direction, perhaps he might be of some assistance to her.
Posted: Sun May 15, 2022 2:41 pm
”Blizzard120”
”DragonFang099”
”Cecile Silverstone”
Three Snagems would find their way to the Food Court, Tristen be the loner of the three, unaware that others had journeyed here as well.
The place was exactly how one might imagine it, a big open room littered with tables and chairs with built-in booths lining the walls for the various restaurants to serve their customers out of. The only thing that made it different from any other food court was that the floor had several battlefield markings tiled into the floor, trainers would simply push the tables and chairs aside and have at it right here in the middle of the Food Court. In fact, there were two battles going on right now, for all three Snagems to be in view of.
One battle was between a ‘Parasol Lady’ and a ‘Hex Maniac’’, the two women duking it out with their Castform and Banette respectively, a light rain covering just the area where they were battling, thankfully there were drains in the floor otherwise this place would be flood quick, though drain or not the Castform’s trainer certainly got some dirty looks from the other patrons just trying to eat. Besides that at least Tristen would definitely pick up on something here, a foul malevolent force, though it could have just been from the Banette, which isn’t unusual for the grudge filled dolls, but it would certainly make him glance around twice.
The second battle was perhaps slightly more noteworthy, a ‘Collector’ battling against a ‘Bug Maniac’, the former bragging about his Seviper on the field and how if he can’t beat it he’ll never get to see his ‘prized Pokemon that will single handedly take him to the Elite Four’. The Bug Maniac, while watching his Masquerain take a beating, would question why the Collector didn’t just use his ‘prized Pokemon’ from the beginning, the Collector responding that it wasn’t something he could ‘just flaunt out in the open’, the Collector grinning. Again, Tristen would sense that same malevolent presence, now unsure exactly where it was coming from. Was it the Seviper as well? They weren’t too laid back either. Something was telling the canine part ofh is brain to be on alert but unfortunately he didn’t have the precise senses that could point him in the right direction to look.
“Hey! He’s a cheat!” An Ace Trainer shouted from behind Brian and Kazu, pointing over them at the Collector currently in a battle. “Don’t let him hustle you too!” The trainer said as he pushed through Brian and Kazu, stomping up to the battle going on between the Collector and the Bug Maniac, the latter looking confused as he just stepped to the side. “You lost that battle fair and square!” The Collector replied, next thing anyone knew there was a lot of shoving between the two trainers and a certain Seviper looked like it was getting ready to strike at the Ace Trainer after its own trainer was pushed to the ground, the Collector grinning as he noticed his Pokemon ready to strike. Might be the time to jump in.
As Darts entered the Game Corner and approached the blinking lights the sounds of slot machines and smell of cigars would assault his senses, hoping that he could enjoy a good ole time like people used to in these places. His hope was gradually diminished and then completely gone by the time he arrived at the source of the blinking, a Starmie, lazily spinning on one appendage as it balanced on top of a slot machine, its gemstone blinking with rhythm. What was it doing here? The blinking of its gemstone was almost hypnotic, Dartshopefully realizing he wasn’t just daydreaming his way here as strange radio waves assaulted his brain as the blinking gem pulled him in, the Starmie subtly utilizing Confuse Ray on him, the starfish for whatever reason attempting to enthrall him. Wouldn’t it be so much fun to try your luck at the slots?
”Darksol88”
Cera would make it to Crooner’s Cafe, receiving only a few glances and looks as she entered the pungent building, she was going to smell like coffee for days just by being in here. Walking around Cera would be thankful that she did transform into her ‘hybrid form’, not getting anywhere near as many looks as she would as a Mew, the people of Hoenn fairly relaxed on hybrids so she didn’t stand out too much nor did people think much of her, other than trying to figure out what kind of hybrid she was.
Now seated and an order placed Cera would have a few minutes to just relax, the Mew likely getting lost in the relaxing atmosphere, she could certainly see why this was a popular place. Her peace was broken when a waiter came up to deliver her cup of coffee, sliding up to her, the milky foam designed to look like a Meowth. Maybe they thought she was a Meowth hybrid? The shiny ones were somewhat pink, oh well.
“Can I get you anything else?” The waiter asked, flinching as the sound of what Cera thought was a slot machine rang out from behind the wall she was sitting against. “My apologies. Sometimes people go into the old Game Corner next door and mess around with the rundown slot machines. Kids probably, been doing it a lot lately. Wish that place would stay locked but someone keeps unlocking it.” He chuckled.
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