[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Shiva, you notice that the black and white Egg is moving around quite a bit! It will probably hatch today or tomorrow!

(*internally faints*)

[Iron]

You grump your way into Stair City. Route 04 splits into three civilian entrances:
1. A magnificent stone stairway, cut into the mountains, winding around a small peak of the Great Divide and descending down into the city. Like Route 04, this has market stalls and tourist attractions set into it in wide stone spots. Small waterfalls wend their way through it.

Machop and Machoke are busily maintaining it.

2. A broad moving escalator, which flows smoothly like a black river around corners and over obstacles. There are slowdown zones where you can hop sideways onto slightly slower tracks as you approach your destination. This also leads to other moving sidewalks, many of which appear to be flowing masonry! There are lots of signs branching out on metal poles, including directions to every destination in the city. Biggest among those are the Grand Pokemon Center.

3. A normal, sloping street. It's very wide, and full of carts, trainers, and Pokemon. Pedestrian only. This big, simple ramp is how most of the jaded citizens enter and exit the city.

There's also a system of train tracks, a monorail, AND a subway! All of which are free inside city limits.

Coming up the escalator or the end of Route 04 is a group of about 20 people. Most of them have Pokemon out. They are the source of the shouting - they perceived your combat with the Tangrowth and are on their way to help. You see an Officer Jenny on an Ariados, two grim League Shieldmaidens, a grinning man you'd call a League Bureaucrat, three ordinary cops, and a Pokemon Ranger with a Tangrowth of her own. (Ventus can easily slip away from these people). Also with them is a Nurse Joy, in official brickprint Stair City uniform, and a dozen normal trainer volunteers (many of these guys are not with the authorities). Three of the volunteers have Magnemite, and one has a Magneton. Nurse Joy tries to make a big fuss over anyone she can capture.


Stair City attractions
There are many, many, many sights to see in Stair City.

A. The Gym takes the form of a vast steel fortress, with train tracks running in and out of various apertures, including several that are 20m off the ground. Steam rises from a few smokestacks within it. It doesn't look like this fortress is manned for defense, though there is a really big spyglass up there. Also a Metagross pacing vertically up and down the walls.

B. The Grand Pokemon Center is a combination hospital and magnificent hotel. You can pay extra for resort lodgings. Those with a Trainer Card can get free rooms, but these are shared with one or more other persons (you can pick a person or get assigned one). There's also bunk style housing en masse. At the center of the GPC is an open courtyard the size of Ginger Town, where people and their Pokemon play. It has a pond, paths, a big jungle gym, and a running track. The four towers of the Grand Pokemon Center each have a big pool at the top. Two of these pools are connected by an aqueduct spanning the two towers. Big plexiglass curving walls keep these pool areas from being dangerous, but the ceilings are open to the air.

C. The Department Store is here in Stair City! It's wreathed in escalators swirling around a tower, diving in and out. Every 6th escalator panel is a vidscreen, showing ads for awesome products. There are floating screens too, which you can summon to assist you in finding things in the massive building.
They have some stuff you can't buy anywhere else. About half the square footage is devoted to entertainment, like big inflatable Pokemon or museum-like displays. Gotta draw those customers in.
The top floor is for bartering! Using money on this top, open air floor is discouraged, though people still use it to sweeten a deal.

D.  Telperion University, Stair City Extension.

A nod to the layout of Telperion University in Botanville, the entrance to the Extension is out in the open air. The underground portion is guarded by a gazebo on a hill. Stairs lead to two outdoor "rooms", which are just wide spots in the stairs.
The esteemed library is underground.

E. The Shelter for Disobedient Pokemon
This foreboding gray concrete building has Pokemon and Eggs for trainers to adopt. Everyone you see working here looks sad, and few trainers come out with a Pokemon. A green roof lessens the fearful demeanor of the building a bit.

F. The Fountain of Pokemon Brotherhood
A gorgeous masonry fountain, each stone polished and fitted. The fountain performs many tricks, such as sending a stream of water jumping from one port to another or trickling into a waterfall. Little boats float in it, some professional and anchored to the fountain, others mere cardboard creations that won't last long. Some areas are good for splashing about, and the center is full of coins!
A sign explains that the fountain's water is all generated by Water Pokemon. Once a little water is contributed from every water species in the world, all the coin-tossers' wishes will come true at once! (Other people disagree and say only worthy wishes will come true). There's a board showing all the contributing species since they started keeping records.

G. The Building Yard
This is a unique feature of Stair City, rife with innovation. It's just a big scrapyard, full of parts, broken down automobiles, and even shattered Healing Machines (a dozen of them!). There are cranes and scaffolds everywhere, and racks of tools you can borrow, and three trained Machoke you can rent ($400 an hour). Engineers post job notices here when they want workers.
Someone is cheating and building a sculpture from the scraps, while another is hard at work on a Team Rocket style Kangaskhan robot.

It's only 10' tall though.
A few paper-pushers are on hand to work out the patent rights.
Things you build can be purchased, traded, or simply experimented on and then scrapped again. If it doesn't leave the Yard, it's all free!

H. Tournament Plateau
They hold unusual games and tournaments here. The upcoming event is a Little Cup, where only first stage, non-fully-evolved Pokemon can participate!

I. Stairs leading who knows where?

Stairs are cut all throughout the Great Divide and Mt Sentry, which border Stair City. Stair City is essentially nestled and burrowed into these mountains. A path leads through semi-wild Mt. Sentry to the other capital city.

[Iron]

The mood here is a lot happier, if busier, than Corsage Port. The only damper is the sight of the vines, which you can see through any telescope. A lot of people choose not to worry about that, though, since weird things are always happening at the Skull Ruins.

Many of the vendors have already begin selling "Vine Tags," for $250, which ward off evil vine spirits and also ghosts. (Nathan has never heard of these).

[Spiritmon]

Spoiler

You grump your way into Stair City. Route 04 splits into three civilian entrances:
1. A magnificent stone stairway, cut into the mountains, winding around a small peak of the Great Divide and descending down into the city. Like Route 04, this has market stalls and tourist attractions set into it in wide stone spots. Small waterfalls wend their way through it.

Machop and Machoke are busily maintaining it.

2. A broad moving escalator, which flows smoothly like a black river around corners and over obstacles. There are slowdown zones where you can hop sideways onto slightly slower tracks as you approach your destination. This also leads to other moving sidewalks, many of which appear to be flowing masonry! There are lots of signs branching out on metal poles, including directions to every destination in the city. Biggest among those are the Grand Pokemon Center.

3. A normal, sloping street. It's very wide, and full of carts, trainers, and Pokemon. Pedestrian only. This big, simple ramp is how most of the jaded citizens enter and exit the city. 

There's also a system of train tracks, a monorail, AND a subway! All of which are free inside city limits.

Coming up the escalator or the end of Route 04 is a group of about 20 people. Most of them have Pokemon out. They are the source of the shouting - they perceived your combat with the Tangrowth and are on their way to help. You see an Officer Jenny on an Ariados, two grim League Shieldmaidens, a grinning man you'd call a League Bureaucrat, three ordinary cops, and a Pokemon Ranger with a Tangrowth of her own. (Ventus can easily slip away from these people). Also with them is a Nurse Joy, in official brickprint Stair City uniform, and a dozen normal trainer volunteers (many of these guys are not with the authorities). Three of the volunteers have Magnemite, and one has a Magneton. Nurse Joy tries to make a big fuss over anyone she can capture.


Stair City attractions
There are many, many, many sights to see in Stair City. 

A. The Gym takes the form of a vast steel fortress, with train tracks running in and out of various apertures, including several that are 20m off the ground. Steam rises from a few smokestacks within it. It doesn't look like this fortress is manned for defense, though there is a really big spyglass up there. Also a Metagross pacing vertically up and down the walls.

B. The Grand Pokemon Center is a combination hospital and magnificent hotel. You can pay extra for resort lodgings. Those with a Trainer Card can get free rooms, but these are shared with one or more other persons (you can pick a person or get assigned one). There's also bunk style housing en masse. At the center of the GPC is an open courtyard the size of Ginger Town, where people and their Pokemon play. It has a pond, paths, a big jungle gym, and a running track. The four towers of the Grand Pokemon Center each have a big pool at the top. Two of these pools are connected by an aqueduct spanning the two towers. Big plexiglass curving walls keep these pool areas from being dangerous, but the ceilings are open to the air.

C. The Department Store is here in Stair City! It's wreathed in escalators swirling around a tower, diving in and out. Every 6th escalator panel is a vidscreen, showing ads for awesome products. There are floating screens too, which you can summon to assist you in finding things in the massive building.
They have some stuff you can't buy anywhere else. About half the square footage is devoted to entertainment, like big inflatable Pokemon or museum-like displays. Gotta draw those customers in.
The top floor is for bartering! Using money on this top, open air floor is discouraged, though people still use it to sweeten a deal.

D.  Telperion University, Stair City Extension.

A nod to the layout of Telperion University in Botanville, the entrance to the Extension is out in the open air. The underground portion is guarded by a gazebo on a hill. Stairs lead to two outdoor "rooms", which are just wide spots in the stairs. 
The esteemed library is underground.

E. The Shelter for Disobedient Pokemon
This foreboding gray concrete building has Pokemon and Eggs for trainers to adopt. Everyone you see working here looks sad, and few trainers come out with a Pokemon. A green roof lessens the fearful demeanor of the building a bit.

F. The Fountain of Pokemon Brotherhood
A gorgeous masonry fountain, each stone polished and fitted. The fountain performs many tricks, such as sending a stream of water jumping from one port to another or trickling into a waterfall. Little boats float in it, some professional and anchored to the fountain, others mere cardboard creations that won't last long. Some areas are good for splashing about, and the center is full of coins! 
A sign explains that the fountain's water is all generated by Water Pokemon. Once a little water is contributed from every water species in the world, all the coin-tossers' wishes will come true at once! (Other people disagree and say only worthy wishes will come true). There's a board showing all the contributing species since they started keeping records.

G. The Building Yard
This is a unique feature of Stair City, rife with innovation. It's just a big scrapyard, full of parts, broken down automobiles, and even shattered Healing Machines (a dozen of them!). There are cranes and scaffolds everywhere, and racks of tools you can borrow, and three trained Machoke you can rent ($400 an hour). Engineers post job notices here when they want workers. 
Someone is cheating and building a sculpture from the scraps, while another is hard at work on a Team Rocket style Kangaskhan robot.

It's only 10' tall though.
A few paper-pushers are on hand to work out the patent rights. 
Things you build can be purchased, traded, or simply experimented on and then scrapped again. If it doesn't leave the Yard, it's all free!

H. Tournament Plateau
They hold unusual games and tournaments here. The upcoming event is a Little Cup, where only first stage, non-fully-evolved Pokemon can participate!

I. Stairs leading who knows where?

Stairs are cut all throughout the Great Divide and Mt Sentry, which border Stair City. Stair City is essentially nestled and burrowed into these mountains. A path leads through semi-wild Mt. Sentry to the other capital city.

"Wow! I think I die with that vine battle! Because I think I in the heavens! Ahahaha!" Heart was completely amazes about the beauty and incredible wonders in that city. "I heard Star City is a great city but never I think it would be THAT great!" Heart look a child. No matter how much he travel, he still amazed in all his journeys. "Well I think I should take a look  in the building Yard. It say they offering job. I will that opportunity to ask any information about it. Where you guys and girl will go?" Ask Heart to his companions.

[Iron]

There's a few good jobs in the Building Yard for someone of Heart's talents.

A. They're seeking a Climbing Pokemon and trainer for $500/day, to go up in the scaffold (both trainer and Pokemon!) and haul up deliveries and place items on a big drilling device they are constructing.

B. The Almanac Organization is offering $750/day for a well-trained Ghost Type to do a job for them. "Won't have to leave the Building Yard!" it says.

C. The Steelworker's Union is looking for some menial workers, $100/day per Pokemon capable of bending steel rods. Clauncher, Monferno, and Axew (if he obeys) are able to perform this task. This job also includes "benefits" in the form of one Potion OR one Pokeball per Pokemon.

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

(Yay, photos again! <3)


Shiva certainly has enough nature for now and desires nothing more than 1. get to Stair finally, and 2. not leaving Nathan wait ther for too long, so she decided to take on one of the escalators. If anyone of the party want to join her or follow their own path, she surely is fine with both.

Before that happened though, Heart decided to express his joy over the city, earning him a mischievous smile from Shiva. "It's amazing everytime, huh? Feel free to come to me if it gets overwhelming as I'm used to citylife." (Quick note for your understanding, Spirit: Shiva grew up and lived in Castelia City, the metropolis of the region.)

...What a coincidence that just then came a group of people and official up the escalator! Perfect timing, though all their shouting was a little intimidating. At least now Shiva knew the source of it... Considering for a little, she decided to approach that Ranger with the Tangrowth. Shiva was certainly looking worried and like she needed some help. "Uhm... *cough* Do excuse me, but I assume you saw our run in with these Tangrowth and a Claydol? Seeing that you own one of these yourselves... Listen, one of our group is still there at the battlefield, taking care that the remaining three Tangrowth - we captured one - are not going anywhere, and HE ASKED FOR AN AUTHORITY TO PLEASE COME and deal with the fainted Pokemon. Would you, ehm... be so kind?"

[Iron]

Ranger: "Oh, yes! We'll all go right away! Are you and the others OK? I'll call in a few more rangers with Capture Stylers. I'm afraid we have had all the Tangrowth we can stomach in the past 12 hours. The Shelter is nearly overloaded with them. We've found the most humane thing is to knock them out, catch them, and put them in the PC. Maybe over time we can convert enough of them to serve the city in some capacity. Anyway, we can assign anyone in our group to assist you if needed, and the rest will go on to the battlefield!"

Shieldmaiden: "A moment, if I may. You said you saw a Claydol? We weren't aware of any Claydol, just an assault of Tangrowth and vines. Of which there have been several lately, I might add. Normally Baltoy are found in the Barrow Downs and the old ruins below. They almost never come out. Please, tell me everything you can about this Claydol."

[Iron]

The Rangers and a Shieldmaiden arrive where Nathan guards the three Tangrowth. They kind of ignore Nathan, since he's just a kid and doesn't have some uber Pokemon out (Calam is actually now on the cliff above them, staring at the Ruins). They're all arguing and debating over resuscitating the Tangrowth and using Stylers to march them off to the city, which apparently has failed often in the past. Or they could just catch them like they've been doing, but they're tired of wasting their Pokeballs on this.
Another guy wants to recruit some surefooted mountain Pokemon as beasts of burden and simply haul the Tangrowth back.

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Whoahw, the threat of these Tangrowth was bigger than Shiva thought, if they are keeping the Rangers THAT busy. Surely appreciating the help though. "No, we all are allright and unharmed. Well, aside from an argument... He's just waiting for someone to come and deal with these Tangrowth we fainted. Knocking them out and capturing in the hope that they'll be useful sounds quite noble! Though I can't help to wonder where they came from so suddenly..."

Further in her pondering Shiva didn't come, as that Shieldmaiden - which are still rather awe-inspiring for a young gracile Trainer/Breeder like her - sucessfully stopped her. Should have known this ancient Pokemon means business right from the start...  "Oh, that one... It was actually horrible, as it aimed to hit the Skiddo I was relying on on the rough terrain with a wave of psychic energy, probably Confusion or Psybeam! I can consider myself lucky that I spotted it just in time to evade."

"There was something eerie about it though... As it was wearing a stony crown and seemed to command these vines and the Tangrowth. I don't know HOW, but I'm pretty sure it did. We battled it too and it was certainly interested in obtaining the pearl that powers up Psychic attacks from one of our Pokemon - which it failed -, and in the middle of it it teleported away before I could even attempt to capture it. It pretty much reminded me on that ancient King of this region, that one with the team of Legendaries... You think this could be connected in some way? Will you people try to trace it somehow? As I fear it will return at some point, and I'm certainly not done with it yet..."

[Spiritmon]

"I will remember that Shiva. I been traveling for a long time, but I always amazed by the constranct of each region. Its amazing. I think I get used to sleep in the forests and everything, hehe. I will never forget your Shivraly." Heart chuckles because of the pun. "Get it? Chivraly. Shivraly?"

Then he heard about the Rangers need some help to capture the remaining Tangrownt and Heart told to Shiva. "I think we done more than enough for now. For now we need to rest for the next day. And you must prepare for the next gym leader remember Shiva? And I going to get a job. I almost broken here, and need some supries. And I will take the opportunity to get some information. And..." I whisper to Shiva to Nathan and Ventus don't heard. "You the only person who can cheer up Ventus and Nathan. Like you say, I a complete stranger in this group and can't do anything. They are great friends, and I make me sad to feel such atmosphere." Then I say to her with a smile on my face. "But no pressure! I know you can do it! And if you need help, don't mind in ask my help! If you need something just ask!"