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Post by DataNinja on Jan 25, 2021 22:09:54 GMT
Oops seems to not enjoy being underwater much, since it's a floating that's not the same as his normal floating. It's very hard to control, even held. Also, there's a lot more reverberations, which are annoying when you're hollow. There are a lot of pretty colours, with small darting fish to look at. These ones look less like Pokémon, though.
"Makes sense. Old traditions can be hard to knock right away. They mostly slowly erode away."
"And... living through someone else is actually often quite frustrating, to be honest," she says, laughing. "I wouldn't trade it for the world, but it can be suuuuuper annoying to see someone I want to look at and not be able to because it's not my vision. Especially if it's important and I'm trying to call it out. It's over there! No, the other there! Not to mention there's no way to actually stop someone from doing something stupid."
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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 Jan 25, 2021 22:47:26 GMT
"There are small fish in the water here, which seems to be nontoxic despite how bright it is.". He releases the Phlask and let's it bob to the surface and float free. "I know you didn't like it, but you got to swim in colors with me, which is pretty great."
Turning, he started back towards shore. "Well, as much as I want to go further tonight, I'll respect your wishes. It was nice talking to you. I think Glow tomorrow. There are probably Pokemon that use color signaling to communicate here. What causes this anyway? Or are you not allowed to say?"
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 25, 2021 23:03:56 GMT
"Well... I'm always here to talk to, at least if I'm not talking to someone else. Job's mostly just watching screens and whatnot otherwise," Rebecca says, "so it's... a lot of nothing, to be honest. Except when I actually need to do something."
"Causes what? The glowing water? No idea, sorry. I assume it's not deadly, given it's where they sent you... but I wouldn't make a habit of drinking weird water everywhere," she laughs. "I know our systems are pretty good, but, uh, not perfect."
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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 Jan 25, 2021 23:29:49 GMT
"I want to find out why, before I leave. It is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. I bet your monitor doesn't do it justice.". He considered the water for several long moments, tapping a foot in the sand as he considered what it could be.
(17 Occult and Pokedu)
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 25, 2021 23:45:59 GMT
As he taps the sand with his foot, it keeps lighting up in response to the pressure. The glow's in both the sand and the water, so it's probably something that's neither that does both. And it's glowing more in response to him... so it reasonably feels like it could be something living that's causing that. Rocks and dirt and stuff don't tend to change colours from vibrations or anything.
But if it is something living, it's so very tiny and impossible to really pick out. Especially against the glow itself.
"It is very pretty, even from here," she says, "but, yes, you're probably right. I miss the field days, sometimes. Though, I imagine you'll probably find new prettiest things you've ever seen in a short enough time in the field." She laughs. "That's always how it goes. You find some new place that takes your breath away."
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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 Jan 25, 2021 23:56:42 GMT
"I should have brought something for samples, but I guess this trip isn't for that. At least I learned some things tonight. Guess I will do some foraging and turn in early. Gills don't grow themselves. Have a goodnight Rebecca, don't work too hard okay?". Parish will see if he can't find some edibles among the local flora, and settle into a shady spot to rest for the night. (8 Survival)
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 26, 2021 0:31:44 GMT
"Given that this realm has been deemed safe, I don't think you need to worry about samples," Rebecca reassures him. "I have no doubt that they know and have looked into it. I just can't pull anything up, because this is meant to simulate you off on your own. So not knowing anything. So I can't tell you anything I don't know. And, 'work hard'," she snickers. "Yep. sounds like my job most of the time. Absolutely. Goodnight, though, Parish. Sleep soundly."
He finds a couple of small blue berries within a bush, and takes those. A good supplement to rations, hopefully. And always good to try and find food.
And so, beneath a clear unfamiliar starry sky, he drifts off to rest, Oops nestled against his side despite a lack of needing to sleep.
And wakes up to a new day, the sky blue and the sun a decent way past risen. He looks to be all alone on the island, the places where the other Trainees were are empty. It seems they left without even waking him. Rude.
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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 Jan 26, 2021 0:49:20 GMT
It was a little disheartening, but he had gone off on his own adventure without them the night before. His gills were developed and free of sand, thankfully as there were few things worse that he could think of. After his preliminaries the night before, he had decided that simply enduring the heat would be safer for whatever made the lights at night.
His skin shone in patches and lines, dramatic swirls and spots in a blue green. Bright enough to illuminate any deeper waters he might encounter. "Alright Oops, today is in the water. I know you don't like your ball, but you probably prefer it to swimming."
Pokemon tucked away, he slid his glasses and earpiece back on and made for the ocean. "Good morning Operator. Parish Labrasta heading to field."
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 26, 2021 1:15:40 GMT
"You don't need to be so formal, Parish," Rebecca laughs. "Hope you had a restful sleep. That's the one thing I could really never get used to. Sleeping on the ground in a sleeping bad or anything. I need a mattress too much." She laughs. "Or at least a couch. Always had the worst sleeping habits. I don't sleep anymore so much as... well, catnap."
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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 Jan 26, 2021 1:24:26 GMT
"I didn't know if it would be the same operator or not! Did you even sleep?!". He covered his face and laughed as color bloomed in his pale cheeks. "Can't believe I overslept on the first day. I take it the others fanned out into the water?"
The air was blessedly humid, and he flexed his gill flaps experimentally. Repurposing the lungs to process seawater was all well and fine, but the changed always really drained off your get up and go. (Glow and Gilled bound for 4 AP Drain)
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 26, 2021 2:00:19 GMT
"I slept!" she protests. "Technically. I sleep enough! And it doesn't mean you overslept. The others just... woke up early. Headed off together. So, I guess you're stuck with just me."
The water looks clear, and once again no longer glowing. It's all tranquil.
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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 Jan 26, 2021 2:10:24 GMT
"Well, I won't be vocalizing very well with a mouthful of water, but my ears are open.". And with that, he disappeared into the clear water and headed for the bottom. It wasn't very deep, as Faith had said. The taste of the salt across his tongue and the feel of the water blowing across his neck and down his back still felt strange.
The shelf floor interested him greatly. There had been no Pokemon to speak of on the island, nor had he seen any during the glow the night before. Maybe the season was all wrong and this was like the dry season in the desert when everything napped except the desert was underwater.
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 26, 2021 2:41:14 GMT
The sandy floor definitely really only seems filled with a handful of bright plants, and not a whole lot of life, though there are some shiftings, it turns out, that reveal some bright blue clams, that occasionally open to reveal a pink pearl. But even 'mon like those are few and far between.
He gets much more of an answer after rounding the next island, and seeing the ocean deepen. His desert analogy seems to have been more apt than he realized. What the shallows between islands seemed to be missing was the winding ocean current, bringing more temperate, fresher waters. Constantly flowing, cycling, it feels like a figurative breath of fresh air. The sands before seem almost stifling.
The ocean floor below is awash in vibrant plants, and Pokémon of all shapes and sizes. There are some that seem to blend in with kelp-like plants, fish with butterfly tails, little serpents with purple backs, and blue turtles, all swimming through the sea. And that's just right here.
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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 Jan 26, 2021 4:27:08 GMT
Parish makes it a point to not get too close, or otherwise interact with the Pokemon clearly trying to just blend in. If he was trying to hide in an alley, and a Wailmer came up to him, he'd be really stressed out. And confused. It was enough to notice that it was present and vibing without actually disturbing it. The slugs with horns he circled lazily, admiring the colors from several different sides. Watched them eat, or settle on things. The fish were a bit more skittish. The turtles were different then the ones he'd seen back home. These had broad, flat flippers and swam surprisingly fast. The plantlife was oddly spongy, as though saturated with water, and the surface had an almost greasy slickness to it. It was a long time before nightfall, but he much considered taking his time down here. The lights playing over the plantlife, and how the Pokemon reacted to it was something that greatly interested him.
Parish moved along the descent, through the odd plantlife, admiring the shifts in water temperature, and the behavior of the wildlife around him.
(4 Perception)
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 26, 2021 4:48:22 GMT
The fact that he's bigger than anything else in the water seems to spook them. As he's just drifting through, everything's fine, but the instant he goes over them and blocks the sun, they scatter or attempt to freeze stock still (depending on how much cover they have). He's an unfamiliar presence.
It is interesting that while the sand and the water glowed, the Pokémon themselves don't seem to. Perhaps to better hide, in case of predators? He hasn't seen any yet, though - everything appears to be content just drifting along and grazing on the plant life.
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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 Jan 26, 2021 4:57:24 GMT
You would think if they ate the glowing... whatever was in the water, that they would also pickup some of that glow. Then again, the water and sand only lit up in absence of the sun. Who was to say they didn't do the same? Rolling over in the water, he descended awkwardly, down, down, down.
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 26, 2021 5:03:32 GMT
Past the shelf, he begins to descend, the glow finally coming in useful, as it allows him to see. The plants become sparcer and sparser, and more and more pale, until they at last cease appearing altogether. There are some various glowing 'mon in the shallow dark - jellyfish, and more jellyfish, and lanternfish... but those lights seem to vanish as he dips further down.
During a pause in the awkward descent, he sees a serpentine shape cutting through the shadows down below. In a much more aggressive manner than anything else.
"Parish?" Rebecca's voice comes, nervously, "I know you can't really respond, but, uh, did you see that movement? If not, well, uh, look closely."
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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 Jan 26, 2021 5:29:54 GMT
Parish nodded so that the glasses bobbed with the movement of his head and slowed his descent. This was something new and different. The kind of prickling fear that came with stories of the old world were told around the campfire, when every Pokemon was consumed by madness. It was large, perhaps as large as he was. The lighting made it difficult to tell, as did the way it skirted about the edge of his field of vision. The Glowfish he had expected were interesting, some with whale-like bodies and two lights, others with strange plus shaped eyes. They and the jellyfish were both sedentary. This was not.
Parish reached out to it as it again passes into his field of view and exerts... well. He never really was sure how it worked. It was sort of a twinge just behind his ears, and it made his nose itch. Then things just sort of flooded in behind it. (Channel Successful, activating Shared Senses as a Swift)
"I want to see you, I want to know you, but I am scared." There was no deception. He listened, focused on its senses, saw himself through its eyes, could smell but not smell things on the water.
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Post by DataNinja on Jan 26, 2021 5:36:08 GMT
There's some wariness on the behalf of the creature, but also hunger, and the desire to hunt. A desire that actually seems to intensify as Parish clarifies his intentions.
He feels the water smoothly glide past his serpentine form, circling, circling. The darkness is dispelled in his eyes, his own body lit up like the sun. He gets the feeling that this Pokémon isn't going to be reasoned with, it just wants a meal. ...and he's beginning to realize why the rest of the Pokémon around here seem to have electrical tingles around 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 Jan 26, 2021 12:01:05 GMT
Parish reflects on the last hour of the creature's memories as he treads water. If he flees, it will strike him from behind and below. Not out of malice, but the base nature of it. The old world stories told of Pokemon pushing beyond their physical limits just to do violence to humans, and this was very much not that. "I could help you hunt." He offers. "My food is in the light, or I would share."
(17 Intuition to improve disposition via Mystic Senses).
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