[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Dragonstrike]

Ven is not too confused by the double Kirlias, since he automatically assume the one that is acting strange is Ditto being impersonating them for some odd reason or another, and regardless doesn't really pay it that much mind at all. In Antheneum, anything was possible, so two psychic dancers twirling around the place was not beyond his expectations....

To his credit, the researcher was one of the first ones to head Nathan's summons, still reserved but much less aloof after the near Scimitar raid upon the library, as he actually quietly/subduedly SPOKE to them instead of merely being silent. "Tell us quickly then, Nathan. If it a vital as you feel it to be, then its imperative we deal the matter promptly."

Except Transform users also copy the personality of what they Transform into, unlike Illusion users.  'Kirlia' isn't really acting much like Kirlia...

"...you know what it's about, Ventus.  It's not something we can deal with right this moment, but we'll have to deal with it at some point, I imagine..."

Nathan first opens his journal.

"It's a well known fact that Sarimanok used to Dive in Bromeliad Bay.  We never knew exactly why he did so, though..."

He puts the book Gene Manipulation in the Time of Sarimanok (Arbor Truman, 1979) on the table.

Gene Manipulation in the Time of Sarimanok

"...the scientific prowess of Sarimanok having reached its peak, the King essayed to create a legendary Pokemon through genetic manipulation. His adapted Healing Machine technology, not discovered by him but perfected by him, would play a vital role in the revivification of the necessary Pokemon Fossil. Before revivification could take place, (a technology lost in modern times), all relevant gene manipulation had to be performed. Only in petrified genetic-material form could these subtle manipulations succeed - before the Pokemon's ancient cells were duplicated, before the legendary power awoke, before the permissive concreteness of the crystallized stone was lost."

"...the Great King searched all over Creshire and indeed with all his trading partners elsewhere in the world. Eventually, he learned he would need the Hidden Machine Dive, and turned his search that way...."

"...turns out he was Diving for a reason.  He was looking for the fossils that would eventually become his Genesect army."

Nathan then puts Conkeldurr's Conspiracies (Black Belt Conk, 2009) on the table.

Conspiracy Theories Book

"As a type, Bug Pokemon and their ancestors have always been the most adaptable. Each limb appears throughout evolutionary history as an astonishing array of functional variations: the claw, the suction cup, the spinneret, the wing, the drill, the fist, the raft, the lance, digging tools, chelicera. Even antennae and exoskeleton morph shape to form horns, sensory organs, or the source of powerful attacks. Bug Pokemon may be found in every environment, even outer space...though the League doesn't want you to know about those! Just like they don't want you to know about their experiments in Bromeliad Bay, a joint effort with multiple foreign nationals! Your tax dollars fund experiments even an Absol wouldn't dream of them!"

"...the Heliopeople at the highest levels of governance acquire their steel from little green Pokemon in steel contrivances, landing in deserts all over the Southern Hemisphere - just like the Egyptians gained the rebar for their pyramids from the same source..."

"...and though there's a lot of salt to be taken while reading this stuff, these crazy theories had to have come from somewhere.  Somebody seems to have been looking for Genesect fossils in Bromeliad Bay as recently as 2009.  Maybe they still are, though I kinda doubt it's the League like Conk thinks.  I'm not sure much else from this excerpt of the book is worth much in terms of valuable information."

And finally, he puts Diving Without Pokemon: My Journey (Jacq Zangoosetaau, 1949) on the table.  (and for added comical effect, Zangoose Ditto is present too while Nathan's reading this.  And Kirlia is also hanging out with 'Kirlia' in the background, the two of them discussing/planning something.  Is Ventus confused now?  )

Diving Without Pokemon

"...without access to Dive, without Pokemon of ancient strength, humankind has turned increasingly to science. It was my faith in science which led to my successful test of the first SCUBA off the western coast of Kalos..."

"...my adventures became more popular, I began taking greater and greater risks. I followed in the footsteps of a great daredevil adventurer, a noble apparently held in high regard by Creshireans, and took deeper and deeper dives into Bromeliad Bay."

"...all unfortunately quite shattered upon removal. This led to many problems in getting my paleontology recognized. Having rejected my discoveries as mere entertainment, the scientific community never published or disseminated the Fossil research..."

"...a system of connected underwater caves..."

"...including hitherto unknown rock formations and Paleozoic-era Pokemon fossilized within the coral..."

"...appeared to be a swimmer of great speed, capable of rearranging itself into a speedy, disclike form much like an early submersible, possibly inspired by the same..."

"...adaptable, powerful, Bug-type Pokemon, one of only three Bug fossils known to science (although, as previously discussed, this one was not truly recognized by science)..."

"I left one last deposit, a large and magnificent specimen, three hundred and eleven meters in depth, 11 clicks southeast of the northern horn of the Camas Desert. Follow me if you dare, adventurers! Journey on my trail if you can..."

"Jacq here did a little Diving with Scuba gear back when it was first invented.  What started as a hobby eventually made him famous as an underwater adventurer.  And one of the Dives at the peak of his career involved following in Sarimanok's footsteps and looking for fossils in Bromeliad Bay.  What he didn't expect was to be met with as much success as he did...he found more Genesect Fossils.  Seems Genesect used to be an aquatic bug, much like Anorith and Armaldo.  Unfortunately for him, his rediscovery of the species wasn't nearly as successful.  He broke every single fossil he tried to pry from the rocks and coral, thus making them far less valuable.  Paleontologists around the world refused to take his accomplishment seriously."

"...but he didn't break all of the Genesect Fossils.  In this book, he says that he left one intact.  And he also said where and left a challenge to his readers to follow in his footsteps.  He didn't find it in Bromeliad Bay, though.  He found it nearby, in a little inlet at the northern end of the desert.  Close to Bromeliad Bay, but not in it.  If nobody's thought to look there, the fossil is likely still there."

"...meaning we should probably get to it first.  There's...one problem, though.  We don't exactly have a lot of Dive users...and this Genesect fossil is deep, deep underwater.  As in, 311 meters (almost 1000 feet).  If we wanted to even attempt to get to it, we'd probably need the actual Dive HM...and that's gonna be like looking for a needle in a whole barn full of haystacks with no clues about which haystack to start looking in..."

Nathan looks at Heart...

"...oh...right, you...don't know what a Genesect is, do you?  It's...well, a very, very powerful bug type pokemon.  As in, it's a Legendary.  It's never been revived in its original form, though.  Those who revive it have always...altered it in some way.  Giving it extra arms, making it more muscular, attaching a cannon to its back, giving it weapons and armor of varying kinds...it's most often a Bug/Steel type since it's so easily and heavily modified by those that revive it.  And...the Scimitars are looking to make one of their own.  I don't think it's out of the goodness of their hearts, either...they already have blueprints, they just need the materials and maybe an intact fossil..."

Nathan frowns.

"...'course, we probably can't do much without a proper Dive HM...someone somewhere has to have some kind of clue as to where it might be..."

*Cue Heart chiming in about learning where Dive is, please!*