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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 0:05:02 GMT
"Spanning through the timestream. I'm here from... a long time in the future," Chrysanthemum Rainbow says, matter-of-factly. "I figure I'm probably supposed to meet you, given how I felt a pull. Which is... good, because I didn't have any idea where or when exactly to start looking."
"As for a gold egg? Nope. Never seen an egg myself," she shakes her head. "I don't venture out, and I'm not a hatcher. Couldn't tell you anything about them."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 0:13:36 GMT
"Well, a second mystery to go with my first." Bea blows a lock of blue hair out of her face. "I'll get my answers someday I guess. Anyway, it's good to meet you Chrysanthemum. I'll do my best to answer any questions you have about the here and now, if you'll humor mine the same. Unless time ascribes to the corrective theory wherein there are consequences in the current present to keep the future on course. That would be incredibly unfortunate. Also make time travel largely pointless beyond a tourism scope." Pausing to take a breath, she started to get to her feet.
"A big thing, I guess, is that Altered aren't really well received in parts of the region... if you don't have proper identification law officials will get pretty upset with you. I don't really get it myself." Tucking a lock of hair behind her ear, she cocked her head, now standing over the girl. "If you are from the future, why come back to the past?"
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 0:31:52 GMT
"Rainbow," the girl says. "Chrysanthemum is my given name, LaBrasta. Rainbow is the one that I chose when I came of age."
"How time works is indeed that you can make small scale changes. If someone sends my friend a letter, and I go back ten minutes and take it from the messenger, they won't get it. But if they tell me to go back ten years and tell them to not make a stupid mistake because they've regretted it ever since... well, I can stop them from doing it, but when I get back, it'll have been a different mistake they have that they regretted, and everything'll be the exact same." She gives a wry smile. "Believe me. We've tried to see if those types of things can be skewed, they can't. I felt like they couldn't, but... it was worth a shot. The big rule of time. That, and if a person or object is in close proximity to another temporal version of themselves, they'll begin to deteriorate. It hurts. You can stand it a little bit, but, believe me, you don't want to."
"But, why I came back is to try and find something to cleanse my time. It doesn't exist then... which means there should be no issue if I take it from now to bring it to then. I hope. I'm really the only one who can try these things out, so..." She shrugs. "It's also why you don't travel into the future. Because then you're stuck guaranteeing what happens." Rainbow cocks her head. "I must say, you're taking this awfully well for someone who doesn't seem to know that time travelling existed. People in my own time were much more skeptical about it, and we had legends."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Apr 10, 2024 12:51:43 GMT
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 0:44:13 GMT
"Oh... you got to pick your name? In this time period it's First Name followed by Surname. I don't have a chosen name, this is what my parents have been calling me since birth. It's actually considered very impersonal to refer to someone by their surname. That aside, I'm not really 'of age' yet, not for another couple of years anyway." This was absolutely fascinating, and she was a bit skeptical. All the same, she was her mother's daughter, and by extension her grandmother's. Things were taken as presented, to be gauged and tested to prove true or false, her grandfather's influence.
"Your theory is sound, provided the item you require isn't one of a kind, or of historical significance. Even if it were an endangered species of Pokemon, removing one from the pool might remain a large enough temporal flex... but if that subject advances to the future with you there is then no interaction that could stop that. It might cause some sort of negative reaction in the period between, if unable to correct it." She theorized. "Oh, well... that egg I mentioned gave me a precedent for things stepping into and out of logical space, so I'm being more flexible then normal about the concepts of temporal or dimensional displacement."
Taking her pack from her back, she pulled the flap back, whether the egg was present or not, she gestured to the contents of the pack. "Several days ago, I discovered an egg on a stump, just in view of the route leading from the primary lab in Hoenn. It made little sense, because many trainers had already been through the route that day, it wasn't particularly well hidden, and further there was no signs of any Pokemon passage or nesting in the area. When I have attempted to bring it to other's attentions, or individuals enter a room where I am observing it, it vanishes completely at faster than thought speeds. I've begun searching images of eggs, and testing warming it, but there's been no reaction or match as of yet."
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 1:37:52 GMT
"You only have two names?" Rainbow asks. "Huh. How do you keep track of people then. Seems like it'd be hard to tell who's who. And, ah, sorry. I thought that LaBrasta was your chosen name. What would you prefer then?"
"If it had historical significance, then I'd know what happened to it," she explains. "Time travel gets more and more restrictive the more knowledge you have. That's why I'm happy that the Dark Times are indeed dark. If we knew more about what happened then, it'd be harder to bring things forwards to fix. Because something would happen to prevent it. We'd probably have the wrong information now, and what we tried wouldn't actually work. Or something. The timestream is, well, really good at protecting itself."
Bea's pack, surprisingly, does contain the egg this time, which Rainbow peers at. "Ooooohhh, that's an egg? It's so shiny. I can see myself in it. Yeah, I can see how it'd be hard for people to miss it. Though, if they're training people, they might be more concentrated on that."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 1:49:05 GMT
"I always imagined that if I had friends, they'd call me Bee for short." Blushing with the admission, she rubbed the back of her neck with a gloved hand. "I really like Bug-Type Pokemon. Oh, it stayed for you, that's different too. I'll have to add that to my notes. Looking up at the canopy for a moment, she turned back towards the trail. "I mean, I am Beatrice of the Labrasta family, then there's Melanie LaBrasta and her husband, my Dad, Eddy LaBrasta, who took my Mom's surname which has been a tradition since my Grandparents. Millicent LaBrasta and Donovan LaBrasta. It seems simple enough to keep track of for us anyway."
Closing her pack back up, she slung it across her back. "Well, if you don't know exactly what you're looking for, I don't really either, but you're welcome to tag along with me as long as you'd like."
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 2:12:08 GMT
"Oh, uh, well, I can call you Bee if you want," Rainbow says. "I dunno if we're friends or anything, but... it's all weird."
"As for myself, I am Chrysanthemum Rainbow Theodore Rosepetal na Callista Mossdeep Celibi Swiftwing." She says it all breathlessly, as though it was one word. "Chrysanthemum for my given name from my parents, Rainbow as my chosen name, Theodore from my father's given - Theodore Sirocco Maximillian Emily Catelyn na Bethune Verdanturf Swellow Farsight - Rosepetal from my mother's given - Rosepetal Catelyn Orion Tigerlily Sirocco na Callista Mossdeep Xatu Lorekeeper - and if I had a life partner, their chosen would go here... then Callista for my family line, Mossdeep for my place of birth, Celibi for the soul that I have bonded with, and Swiftwing for my job as a messenger… though, that ended up falling to the wayside once we established I could go back further and further."
"It establishes everything you need to know about a person. Them, their parentage, who and where they have bonds to, their skills and their place in society. Quick and easy." She nods with some satisfaction. "And every person is unique."
"I'll stick around with you. Might as well be around someone who knows this time," she says,"Since I don't know exactly what I'm looking for. Something called the 'yellow star', I was told. But I've no idea what that is. Said to be able to cure any woe, though."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 2:28:52 GMT
"That's... an impressive taxonomic form of nomenclature... I guess by your standards that would make me... uh... Beatrice Bee Edward Melanie LaBrasta Fallarbor. I'm not bonded with a Pokemon, and I want to be a Pokemon Professor someday." Starting towards Rustboro again as they carried on conversation, she considered Rainbow's quest. "We're just outside of Rustboro, since you seem to be familiar with Hoenn. I've never heard of a Yellow Star before, at least not an earthly one... unless..."
A moment spent in silence, she mumbled softly to herself as they walked. "A few years ago, a series of meteor strikes hammered into the region, rendering Dewford and the area surrounding it uninhabitable. The Rangers keep these areas strictly off limits, I've heard they cause Pokemon to go berserk, but nothing about the radiation's effects on Altered or Humans. Meteors being called 'falling stars', maybe your answer is there?"
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 2:39:36 GMT
"Oh, nonononono, that can't be right. If they have an effect on Pokémon like that, they can't be the answer that I seek," Rainbow protests. "Because they are what we're trying to solve. Dark Aetherstone, we call it. It corrupts the land, the sea, the sky. It's why we must bond. Humans eventually die in the world corrupted. Pokémon become feral eventually after hatching. It's only together that either can live."
She becomes silent. "You don't think that... maybe, if you're right, the cure was here all along, and then I... and then I took it, causing all of the pain and suffering of the time past?" She pales. "No, no no no… that can't be it. How would there be a story about it if it were that..." She goes silent, thinking. "Maybe if there's more than one... maybe if they get used up. Then taking one... to cleanse it all..."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 2:51:08 GMT
"Discovering a cure for your affliction in the future in my present, only works if you carry that cure into the future. By your explanation, you cannot alter time enough to prevent the affliction from reaching critical mass in the first place, you can only heal the damage that has been caused in your present. The cure wasn't already found between now and then, or you would already have it." Smiling she shrugged softly.
"Unless of course your understanding of the laws of time travel is incomplete, but we can save that sort of discussion for another time, Rainbow. Don't fret about what ifs and could haves too much, we'll get it figured out."
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 3:02:14 GMT
"Yes, but what if the only reason the cure wasn't found was because I took it, and the reason that I took it was because the cure wasn't found..." she says, sounding worried. "I don't know exactly how the stuff works. I just have a gut feeling on most of it. Ugh, I wish there was someone who could teach me how this stuff works. Or a future me. But... it doesn't work like that, unfortunately."
"But... you're right. That's something to worry about for another time." She looks at Bea and smiles, before frowning again. "One thing that I do need to worry about though, is getting home. I was only able to span here because I got an energy boost from Aetherstone. But it sounds like you've only got Dark Aetherstone here. And that stuff's toxic to try and use. And if you're just guarding it, I doubt you've figured out a way to purify it..." Rainbow nervously chuckles. "Wouldn't that be something. If I found what I needed, but then didn't end up finding enough energy to jump all the way home..."
"So, uh, Bee," she asks, after a moment, "what is it that you actually do? Especially wandering out here all alone. Like... that's dangerous." Bea can tell the girl certainly thinks so, given how she flinches every time a bird chirps or a bush rustles.
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 3:16:00 GMT
"I understand your concerns, but following cyclical logic without enough data, into a point of anxiousness is a waste of time and mental energy. It is possible, if you had the knowledge, that we could purify enough of it in this time period. Or that not all the meteors that fell were this 'Dark Aetherstone' initially, but the Rangers guarded them all the same."
At the question she chuckles softly and holds up a Pokeball. "That corrupting influence from the meteors is very localized in this time period. Pokemon are friends and companions, the Pokemon League exists to teach new trainers about the world of Pokemon, to help them develop deeper bonds. Altered are uncommon, the process that creates them isn't known to the public, and they are sort of treated as second class citizens. I've always wanted to learn more about them, but never really had the opportunity. None of them are very public with it."
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 3:26:38 GMT
"Ah, I... see. That would breed a much different attitude towards interacting with them, I suppose," Rainbow admits, "if you weren't under constant risk of being attacked. It's definitely... something that I'll need to get used to. Everything around does help with that, admittedly. It all feels so... clean. Less tense."
"I don't understand why being able to do more would lead you to be treated worse..." she says. "I love being able to fly. Makes life so much better, and easier. ...though I do get hungry faster if I do that. Extra hands, or impenetrable skin, or glowing, or being able to breathe and see underwater... even less objectively useful benefits like having rainbow plumage, or scales, or a fluffy coat, or a tail, or stuff like that. Who wouldn't want that? Who doesn't want to be unique? Even two people with the same soul develop far differently."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 3:37:45 GMT
"Well... how does it work? What do they do, exactly? To make an Altered, you know? It's all hush-hush, and that leaves people making up wild theories, or getting nervous around individuals that have gone through it even though they're still sort of the same people? I'm sure there are a myriad of adaptive benefits, but certainly there must be costs, or some negative, or it would be advertised region wide as a fashion statement or some such ridiculousness. It's probably popular in contests, but I wouldn't know."
Taking in the surroundings, Beatrice considered. "If you would like, I can show you how to capture and care for Pokemon. I imagine it would be a bit strange for you, given you're bonded. I've nothing to compare that to though, even in my dreams."
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 3:50:51 GMT
"Uh, I'm not really an expert, and I don't remember mine, since it's when you're just born... but there's this machine. It makes Pokémon go all glow-y, and then it's channeled into a person. That's it, really. I couldn't tell you if there's anything bad about it, given that, well, anyone who I'd compare myself to would be dead." She gives a mirthless laugh. "Not really much of a choice even if bad things did happen, dont'cha think?"
"But, nah, I can't think of any drawback," Rainbow says, shrugging. "Unless, I guess, you were someone allergic to fur, or floral scents, or something, and you got something like that. But, I don't know anyone who has that. And since it has to match your own elemental essence, I doubt it'd end up conflicting. I ain't a scientist, though."
"And... uh, thanks for the offer, Bee," she ventures, "but, I think I'll pass. Because if I can't solve things, then I can't bring them back to my own time. They'll just go crazy. And that's not fair. Besides, uh, I don't think I could do it. I don't want to get closed to them. Feels like they'll claw my face off at any moment, or something."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 4:13:53 GMT
"Alright well, if you change your mind let me know. I promised Solenoid it could be out, so I am going to let it out for the rest of the walk to Rustoro. Likely another League challenge for me there, we can research the meteor impact locations on the internet in town, and maybe plan to look into one if you want. Not sure where you want to start your search."
There wasn't really much else to say. Initial curiosity sated, Beatrice slipped into casual smalltalk about home and family for the rest of the walk into town.
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 4:23:49 GMT
"Internet…?" She asks, absently. "Well, you said the closest strike was in Dewford, so there would probably be a good place to start."
Rainbow seems happy to listen intently to even Bea's most boring stories, just drinking in the words. She still seems rather uncomfortable around Solenoid, though, even if she's no longer screaming.
The forest is soon left behind, and Rustboro comes into view across the river. "Whoaaaaahhh…" Rainbow breathes. "It's... so big. And blocky. I've never seen anything like that. How many people live there that you need to build things so massive?" Indeed, the skyline in the distance is filled with skyscrapers and factories, towering into the sky. Off to the left, floating on the ocean, are visible many ships, docked at the ports and ready to bring goods to the rest of the world.
"You said there would be a 'League Challenge' there... what exactly does that entail. Are you, like, fighting to hold a position or something in personal combat?"
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 11:57:29 GMT
The future sounded awful, how could anyone survive without the internet? At the mention of Dewford being an objective the teenager went stiff. "The internet is uh... It's like a repository of information that we can access from anywhere, digital information at your fingertips. You can also shop there, or meet people and communicate, it is one of the greatest tools of our age." Breathe, just breathe.
"We can't go to Dewford, or at least I can't... Shouldn't might be a better word then can't. I could, but my Pokemon couldn't protect me there. I don't have anything to protect myself from the radiation, or the Pokemon. I'd have to become an altered, and that seems like a really huge decision to make o-over something like this. Can we put a pin in that idea for now? No one will want to take us, and I can't swim the whole way to Dewford."
Jittery over that bit of unpleasantness, Bee inhaled and fidgeted a little more before she seemed to settle. Anxiety was a common enough thing in her line of work. "Rustboro is home to hundreds if not thousands of people. Engineers, factory workers, shipwrights, and more. The League is a series of challenged to teach life lessons and test battling aptitude situated across the region. It used to be more prominent and celebrated then it is now, but most if not all teens eventually take a right of passage known as a Pokemon Journey, were they travel, challenge the region's elected gym officials, collect items called badged as proof of their success, and then either continue on to the strongest trainers in the region, go global, or retire to their adult lives."
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Post by DataNinja on Oct 7, 2019 18:17:01 GMT
"Oh, so it's kinda like a Control Center that you could access anywhere," Rainbow says, nodding. "With... people functions built in, too. I can see why it would be so great. Though," she chuckles, "it'd probably mean a lot of people out of messaging jobs. I couldn't stand that, I like being able to fly to and fro too much. Dunno if I could stand to learn to be a baker, or farmer, or mason or anything. Certainly not a fighter..."
"Uh, yeah. I forgot you can't fly, and I guess it's too far to swim," she says, nodding. "But... it's not quite that bad. It takes months for humans to weaken. At least weeks for 'mon to succumb, unless they get real close. So... at least going to the place itself, even if not right up to the rock itself, as you are now... it'd probably be fine." She shifts a little nervously. "But, if you're against it, I won't push it. I've... well, I've got time."
"I see, yeah, that... sounds like a lot of people. And that's... I like the sound of the League," she nods. "A sign of peace, that you can travel around with no worries, that everyone helps others get stronger in case something happens. It... does seem a little weird, though, that strength is the goal with nothing around to threaten you, though."
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I'm not going to say it was damage, but it was damage.
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Post by Robot on Oct 7, 2019 18:26:57 GMT
"If the dangerous period for exposure is that long, it might be alright, but I would still need passage to Dewford. I don't have a Pokemon large or strong enough to carry me, and I am not athletic enough to swim for hours. If you really want, we can look into finding another way to Dewford here in Rustboro, though it is likely to be illegal or dangerous."
At that a sly smile crept onto her face. "I would be lying if I said I weren't immensely curious about the whole thing. We'll figure something out, after I show you a league gym, we get some food in you, and rest for the afternoon. I could try contacting the lab back in Littleroot for a pass to check it out as well... Come on, let's go get a close up look at the city."
Her pace increasing, she considered Rainbow's statement about the league. "Maybe back in our history that strength was built up for a reason that's been forgotten."
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