armalite | ☄ ► I ( video;; action for new bark )

[The video feed sparks with a lick of static that is sure to catch the eye of anyone perusing at the time. A one-two tapping at the screen follows as though the person handling it is merely trying to see how well the bit of hardware holds up against a spot of roughness. The finger moves away and the face of a young man appears while trying to steady the device. Something in the way his lips twitch and his eyes sort of drift this way and that signals that he is a little bit frazzled beneath an otherwise steady smile.

In the background, one can hear a muffled snuffling...]

Oh, uhm... Hey there. [Clearly it has to work like any other transmitter he has messed with, right? At least he seems to know his way around it. His jaw shifts and he tilts his chin up a touch to take on a more "professional" look.]

This is Lockon Stratos requesting a... [A beat. He is rolling the words around inside of his mouth as if something doesn't sound particularly right. He's in a place, somewhere, not on a ship or a military outpost. Still...] ... Status report in regards to the location of New Bark Town.

[His shoulders drop a bit along with one side of his lips. His voice drops to shake away the stilted austere from before. It is more tender this time and has an inflection of genuine curiosity.] Or anything, really. It looks like I'm new here, and it certainly isn't anywhere close to where I was the last time I remembered much of anything. [The corners of his lips twitch upward into a smile this time around--] I'd really appreciate it!

[A cream-colored nose bumps its way into his shoulder and he hops up to turn the device about, revealing an elegant-looking Ponyta with its ears up and dark eyes round and curious.]

ALSO... I found somebody's horse. I can't say I know what to do with it, but here it is!

Thanks again!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

['Paused'? Well okay....... A quizzical wrinkling of his nose rises up-- but it flees quickly.]

So I'm supposed to capture animals and make them fight each other. That sounds humane. [He clears his throat of any flatness.] This is quite a change of scenery from what I'm used to. Sorry for being a bit spotty on all the information. It's a little... Much.

Edited 2015-09-21 02:26 (UTC)

It's actually fine. Most of them don't seem to mind, really. And it's understandable. Everyone seems somewhat blindsided by the whole thing.

[Alice, his Gardevoir, waves from behind him. He turns and smiles slightly, tilting the camera so she can see Lockon as well. She looks at Naoya, and he nods.]

It's really okay. This is how it's been for a long time, or so I'm told. Humans and Pokemon work together, and it helps all of us. Of course, there are some Pokemon who don't want to be caught at all, and many of those will make it obvious when they feel that way.

Some people breed Pokemon and raise them from eggs, rather than just catch them in the wild. Generally they have better movesets, and you don't have to fight against feral instincts.

Ah...

[Now, Naoya's creature over there doesn't look much like an animal at all. His eyes tic from the Pokemon back to the fellow on the screen. All the while, his Ponyta steps up and sets her nose upon her Master's shoulder with a might SNORT that fogs up his receiver.] Hey-- Cut it out...! [The horse huffs indignantly again. She only wanted to see another Pokemon. Gosh golly.]

I'm not sure how I feel about having them fight each other, but... I'll see what I can do. She seems to know what she's doing. [He pokes the horse's nose.]

I was told that there is another town close to here. Are there more people I can or should get in touch with?

She should be able to keep you safe as you get to Cherrygrove City. You won't find a lot of useful things until you get there, so hopefully you know how to take care of yourself in the woods. Once you get there, you'll be able to find more supplies. Once you get there, there will be more route options available to you. Goldenrod City is where I am now, and it's the biggest city in the region.

In terms of locals... not many are helpful in terms of information. You'll probably find more from the collective wisdom of those that have been dragged here. Personally, I've only been here a year, but someone else from my world was here for four years.

I'm more interested in getting to the next city and collecting information than I am in crossing the whole map, at least. I haven't seen animals in the wild in an embarrassingly long time... I kind of want to take a look at them too. Just for fun.

I fancy myself a quick learner.

Oh-- I didn't catch your name.

Understandable. I've lived in Tokyo for a long time myself, so wildlife isn't exactly abundant there, either.

[Though there's stranger things around now... but that's not really relevant right now.]

And good. This place is strange at first, but it's not so bad once you catch on a bit. And my name is Naoya. I assume Lockon Stratos is some sort of code name?

[Given how he was speaking... but there's people with weird names here anyway.]

It's my call sign. I don't really need to use it here but it's always kind of stuck. I prefer it. [Soldiers are weird ok]

Thanks for the help, Naoya. I'll have to keep in touch with you.

.... This is going to sound kind of cheap, but are there any "Pokemon" I should keep an eye out for as far as them being useful? [Make no mistake, Miss Ponyta is huffing indignantly in the background hOW DARE HE SUGGEST THAT OTHER POKEMON WOULD BE MORE USEFUL???]

That's fine, I was just wondering.

Hmm... well, if you're going for the badges, the first gym is a flying type gym. So you'll want an electric Pokemon to take them down. In terms of general strategy, since Ponyta is a fire type, it's weak against water, rock, and ground types. I believe there are Hoppip on Route 29 that are grass type, which should take care of those other than Rock.

Most Breeders seem willing to give new Trainers a price break on eggs - and all Pokemon come from eggs, as strange as it sounds. Keeping a diverse team is good for traveling, even if you plan to specialize in a few types of Pokemon. I find having at least one psychic type on hand is useful if only to translate for other Pokemon.

Right...

[He's trying to commit that weird name to memory. Hoppip. C u t e. Also they all come from eggs. Even the horse ones. Which makes no sense, but what does anymore...]

You said that some people are willing to discount eggs, yeah? Is there anyone I could talk to? [He is trying to get his ducks in a row and he seems to be doing a good job of it.] I like to think ahead.

Well, I'm one. Though I'm afraid I can't help you on the grass-type front - I don't get along overly well with that type. But I've been training up my team so they can pass along better moves, so I'll be working on another batch in the future. Chihiro Fujisaki tends to do a lot Pokemon breeding and has been here for a lot longer than I have. Neku Sakuraba also does a lot of breeding, I've noticed. Most people here tend to be fairly pleasant, so just keeping an eye on the network for people announcing that they have eggs for sale works just fine.

Let me know when you get that next batch together, yeah? I don't have a lot of money but I might have some for you by then. [Chihiro and Neku are the next things he needs to remember. It would be easier if he had paper in front of him but his memory retention is impeccable regardless of the fact.]

I'll keep an ear out otherwise. You've been a great help.

I will. Most places have odd jobs available for trainers anyway. And a few people have set up actual businesses here. I work in a bakery, for example. It's definitely a change from programming, but it's not a bad one. It's not hard to find a way to earn a somewhat steady income.

Heh. I've been here for a while, so it's only natural to pass along information. I've never much liked the idea that beneficial information should be so restricted, anyway.

If you don't hand out beneficial information where it's due, it doesn't help too many people. Including yourself. There's a lot of room for growth.

I'm going to get on the road now. Hopefully I can meet with you in person someday. We'll keep in touch.

Agreed.

Take care then, Lockon. If you end up in Goldenrod, let me know. I could show you around.

☄ ► I ( video;; action for new bark )

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]

[Video]