[Game Thread] Pokerole: Mount Coronet Mystery

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Fufu, hot cocoa awakes EVEN MORE happy childhood memories within the colorful musician, increasing the feeling of this being heaven on earth. This one this old...man? makes is good, very good - He even abstains from pouring a shot of rum into it like he'd usually do when making some for himself to sip while doing stuff in front of the computer screen late at night - but none could ever surpass the one his grandma does, may Arceus bless her soul and heart and keep her healthy for many more years. 

At first, when Randolph eventually arrived, Kee already got ready to thow a sneaky comment at him about how the plan of those he called 'fool' and whatelse he's better off to not know, has indeed worked, but he abstains from it because 1. this is by far not the time to start a fight and possibly create a nasty scene because neither he nor Ran would likely yield voluntarily, and 2. Octavia's purring and the smol Vulpix in his lap feel just too nice and neat to get in a foul mood.

Kee's mostly just observing that old man there in his seat, having very mixed feelings about him: Fascination, waryness, comfort, massive confusion, a surreal feeling of this being a delirium caused by him dying in the Temple and now being in literal heaven, and so on and on. Yurei however appears all calm and familiar and appears to enjoy the presence of this person and isn't scared at all given how close she's coming to him, she even dares to ask for strokes once or twice which she NEVER does. Usually, that is. Homey memories must be strong within her as well.

Eventually, he clears his throat. "Uh.... Well, ah, thank you for your... hospitaity, I guess, Mr... Whatcha called if I may ask, or how shall we adress you?" He pauses here to give him tim to reply. "You said that you've been expecting us, it appears to me that you've know that we're there from the moment Karen and me stepped outta the door of the Temple. ...How so?"

[Mikaruge108]

Now that Karen looks around and smells the food, though...some of it seems familiar. As in, it's the same style of food and decor found in Johto.  But it's not entirely the same, and Karen can't quite put her finger on why...

"Something about this feels like Johto..."
--
After that comment, Karen heartily enjoys the food and drink, almost losing track of what is going on in the nostalgia. (Basically, she's too busy enjoying the food and drink to pay any attention to any comments, unless they are directed at her)

[Dragonstrike]

The elderly man definitely strokes Yurei's feathers, calmly sipping his hot chocolate while the group fires questions at him.  Once he gets a chance to answer them, he sets his cup down and looks directly at the party.  His eyes are a startlingly bright shade of blue, now that everyone has a good chance to look at them.

"Well, aren't you an interesting bunch of travelers.  Quite the motley crew, I must say.  Ohhohoho.  The questions you have are fair, though, and I shall endeavor to answer them."

"Who am I indeed?  That's a complex question, I am afraid.  For now, let's simply say I'm this place's guardian, its caretaker.  You may call me Gene, if you so desire.  And what names do you all choose to go by?"

"As for how l knew you were coming...well, my braille speaking friends told me.  Ohhohoho."  He leaves it to the party to figure out what he means by that.

"I'm afraid I don't know much about why you're here or how to fix the temple, though.  That depends on why you came here in the first place, and I'm just as lost as you are concerning what's happening.  I merely take care of the grounds here, ensure that the place doesn't go completely to ruin.  It's been a long, long time since this place has had visitors."

Gene sips on his hot chocolate again, awaiting further questions, as well as answers to the one he posed.

[Lord Windos]

Spoiler

The elderly man definitely strokes Yurei's feathers, calmly sipping his hot chocolate while the group fires questions at him.  Once he gets a chance to answer them, he sets his cup down and looks directly at the party.  His eyes are a startlingly bright shade of blue, now that everyone has a good chance to look at them.

"Well, aren't you an interesting bunch of travelers.  Quite the motley crew, I must say.  Ohhohoho.  The questions you have are fair, though, and I shall endeavor to answer them."

"Who am I indeed?  That's a complex question, I am afraid.  For now, let's simply say I'm this place's guardian, its caretaker.  You may call me Gene, if you so desire.  And what names do you all choose to go by?"

"As for how l knew you were coming...well, my braille speaking friends told me.  Ohhohoho."  He leaves it to the party to figure out what he means by that.

"I'm afraid I don't know much about why you're here or how to fix the temple, though.  That depends on why you came here in the first place, and I'm just as lost as you are concerning what's happening.  I merely take care of the grounds here, ensure that the place doesn't go completely to ruin.  It's been a long, long time since this place has had visitors."

Gene sips on his hot chocolate again, awaiting further questions, as well as answers to the one he posed.

Their first comment earns them an eye roll from Ran, along with a grumbling response of "Too interesting, if ya ask me," but when the give a name to call them and describe themselves earns them a raised eyebrow and some pursed lips.

"So you're the enigmatic sort I first pegged ya as, huh? *Scoffs* Bah. Fine. Keep ya secrets. Your history or details ain't no concern of mine, unless you or something else makes it. And what do you mean when ya refer yourself as a 'guardian?' Are ya an old defender of this place, an overseer, or do ya serve a more.....esoteric function here? As for what to call me, the name's Randolph Schmidt. Fine with being referred by either my first or last name basis, don't matter to me which."

Gene being deliberately obtuse about how he became aware of the group irked Ran greatly, but he held his tongue and just *Tsked* at their answer. He knew from experience (from both life and literature) that prying any info out of men like them that they didn't want you to know (or clearly know, in most cases) was about easy as separating a Dragon from its gold. Not worth his time or effort trying to learn something that didn't matter too much, anyway.

It was there last response that earned the bulk of the midget man's scrutiny, as it took him a minute and half to mull over the details before he could decide on what exactly to inquire further about.

"....That so? Well, what can ya tell us clearly, then? I came to Snowpoint Temple to investigate and see if freaky or bizaare shenanigans where happening there like they where in Mt. Coronet - and on that note, I can now say with utmost certainty that there is (He says this part in an impressively deadpan tone) - so any info I can get about what in the freezing fuck is going on would be lovely, if you pardon me saying so. Moreover.....is there anything we can do here that could restore Snowpoint Temple to its regular in-hospital self or give us a lead on solving or fixing what is causing these supernatural oddities here, there, and seemingly every-damn-where? Or preferably both, if that ain't a total pipe dream of a request."

It should be noted that Brigid is still out with Ran, sitting by his feet while he's sitting/eating/questioning Gene. He returned Catherine earlier, so as for he not to suffer the discomfort of the very warm cabin air or crowd it too much.

[Mikaruge108]

(...) And what names do you all choose to go by?(...)

In between bites of food, Karen clears her mouth, "Karen," then goes back to eating. Well, at least she has the manners to not talk with her mouth full.

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

The elderly man definitely strokes Yurei's feathers, calmly sipping his hot chocolate while the group fires questions at him.

That's adorable, very adorable to watch, and brings Kee dangerously close to the verge of becoming a sentimental mess drenched in bittersweet feelings on top of those happy and jolly ones surrunding home in Konikoni. Good times these were, and being reminded on them so directly and vividly is hard for him to handle, Octavia chirps at him in growing worry and gently wraps a ribbon around his arm; 'It's okay', she seems to tell him, and he begins to pet her behind the blue ears.

'Motley crew' pretty much nails it, he can't help but to laugh about that in a melodic manner. "Right you are. I guess. Eh, names.... Ah... Kee. Like the Berries. Or the other way 'round, depends how ya see it. Please don't ask why." That part is said like he almost begs for Gene not ask in that direction, which is quite the contrary of his usual 'I dare you to ask stupid questions or make dumb comments'. Huh. Blame it to the scenario.

So HE's responsible for that messages in braille! Hah. That's all he's able to figure out though so far. "Oh, Gene, ya said you're.... the caretaker of this place. This likely includes...all the Pokemon that live there, right? How do they take these strange happenings actually? Been told they...avoid the lower floors, but that's it." He hesitates a bit before continuing. "...Do these Snover we encounter'd b'fore stepping through that door belong to you? They indeed do, right? Why were they so...large and loud? Did you make them to be like....'this'? Why??"

"Y'also said 'how to fix the Temple'. That....indicates knowing how it was before, and what's wrong with it. You know, people in Snowpoint, the local Gym leader appearantly in particular, eh.... People, what was her name again? Oh yes, Candice, thanks. Well, they are concerned and worried about things going on down here, about an icy wind that blows in the lower floors especially. But..." He scratches the back of head as he's looking for proper words. "Is that wind you're doing or are you just as lost what's causing it like we are?"

[Dragonstrike]

"Kogeki," is all the ninja says when asked about his name.

--------------------------------------------

Gene coughs and proceeds to clear things up a little as best as he can after the next set of questions.

"As I said, Randolph Schmidt, I am little more than someone who watches this place and ensures it stays in a visitable condition.  I believe I made that quite clear."

"Hmmmm, I believe there's been a slight misunderstanding, though.  The only grounds that I keep are those of this location, the Sinjoh Ruins.  While I am aware of the Snowpoint Temple, I have never actually visited it, and I was merely echoing part of the question that was asked concerning it.  We're a long, long ways away from where it is, after all.  I'm afraid that with regards to the Snowpoint Temple, I am unable to answer your questions beyond what little I know of what it's supposed to be like.  I do not know how you managed to find your way here from there, nor how to fix whatever problems are causing such occurrences."

"That being said, however, I am familiar with the grounds here, as well as those who call them home, and those are what I can give you definite facts and information about.  Those Snover you met do not belong to me, no, and I had no direct hand in increasing their size.  And the wind is most certainly not my doing.  Those Snover are a part of a small tribe of their species lead by two Abomasnow able to create the strongest and loudest blizzards you've ever seen and heard.  Were it not for the tribe all being Soundproof through sheer volume or other means, they would have all gone deaf long ago."

"...lately however, the Abomasnow have been...different.  As you can clearly see, a snowstorm rages outside, seemingly without end.  That is due to the two Abomasnow working in tandem to cause it to persist near indefinitely.  I do not know why they suddenly decided to do so, but some of the Snover seem concerned about it, while others are completely indifferent, and I suspect foul play."

Gene loudly taps the ground with his cane, angrily spouting his continued explanation.

"...and it also does not help that this accursed blizzard is preventing me from reaching the Sinjoh Ruins proper.  I can access the passages that lead to and from this location just fine, but the storm gets fiercer the closer I get to the Mystri Stage.  The Abomasnow are clearly nearby, and purposely preventing me from doing my job for Arceus knows what reason, as well as driving away the wild pokemon that aren't used to living in constant, deafening snowstorms."

He picks his hot chocolate back up and sips on it again, thinking about everything that's been said so far.

[Lord Windos]

Spoiler

"Kogeki," is all the ninja says when asked about his name.

--------------------------------------------

Gene coughs and proceeds to clear things up a little as best as he can after the next set of questions.

"As I said, Randolph Schmidt, I am little more than someone who watches this place and ensures it stays in a visitable condition.  I believe I made that quite clear."

"Hmmmm, I believe there's been a slight misunderstanding, though.  The only grounds that I keep are those of this location, the Sinjoh Ruins.  While I am aware of the Snowpoint Temple, I have never actually visited it, and I was merely echoing part of the question that was asked concerning it.  We're a long, long ways away from where it is, after all.  I'm afraid that with regards to the Snowpoint Temple, I am unable to answer your questions beyond what little I know of what it's supposed to be like.  I do not know how you managed to find your way here from there, nor how to fix whatever problems are causing such occurrences."

"That being said, however, I am familiar with the grounds here, as well as those who call them home, and those are what I can give you definite facts and information about.  Those Snover you met do not belong to me, no, and I had no direct hand in increasing their size.  And the wind is most certainly not my doing.  Those Snover are a part of a small tribe of their species lead by two Abomasnow able to create the strongest and loudest blizzards you've ever seen and heard.  Were it not for the tribe all being Soundproof through sheer volume or other means, they would have all gone deaf long ago."

"...lately however, the Abomasnow have been...different.  As you can clearly see, a snowstorm rages outside, seemingly without end.  That is due to the two Abomasnow working in tandem to cause it to persist near indefinitely.  I do not know why they suddenly decided to do so, but some of the Snover seem concerned about it, while others are completely indifferent, and I suspect foul play."

Gene loudly taps the ground with his cane, angrily spouting his continued explanation.

"...and it also does not help that this accursed blizzard is preventing me from reaching the Sinjoh Ruins proper.  I can access the passages that lead to and from this location just fine, but the storm gets fiercer the closer I get to the Mystri Stage.  The Abomasnow are clearly nearby, and purposely preventing me from doing my job for Arceus knows what reason, as well as driving away the wild pokemon that aren't used to living in constant, deafening snowstorms."

He picks his hot chocolate back up and sips on it again, thinking about everything that's been said so far.

"*Tsk* Blast it all to smithereens. Thought you might have some answers to the mad malarky happening everywhere, but no, it would never be so bloody simple, easy, or obvious. Now we're all lost way out here and still without a good clue as to what's going on. Wunderbar, einfach und unspektakulär WUNDERBAR!"
Translation: Wonderful, just plain and unspectacularly WONDERFUL!
That's what Randolph had to say about the metaphorical dead end his questioning had unearthed, uncrossing his arms to both pinch his nose and reach for the rest of his cocoa to sooth his nerves. Why must things be so obtuse and difficult for him and the investigation? Oh yeah, because its a supernatural mystery he and his partners are looking into, and they'd about as impenatrable as a Mega Aggron's hide. Rrrrr.....

Despite his frustration, though, he still listened to the rest if Gene had to say, and it managed to turn his lips even further downwards as he chewed over what they said and didn't.

".....Sounds like you're suffering from the same sort of trouble we are back at Sinnoh in those Abomasnows and their goons, or at least something awfully similar to it. Bah, will this damn inscrutable mystery snow no end to the spanners it jams into works the world over...?"

He grumbles about that for a couple a seconds, before loosing another heavy *Sigh.....* and looking back to the old caretaker, this time less seriously.

"Welp, if I ain't making much progress with me own fine kettle of Finneon, I might as take a crack at clearing away that unruly lot of yours so ya can get back to doing your job, sir. Least I can do for the hospitality ya provided, and maybe solving your problem might end up helping my investigations if what those evergreen goons are involved in it somehow. Worst comes to worst, and I can at least trying catching them when all's said and done."

Ran inclines his head to them respectfully.

"That is, if ya want the help, sir. If ya don't, that's that, I suppose."


Truth be told, the bristly blacksmith didn't really want to get himself involved in the affairs of Gene, least of all because it just wasn't his damn business and they didn't offer it up to him/his partners in the first place in exchange for some proper compensation, and most of all because he/the others had enough on their plate to deal with. However, grumpy old bastard as he was, Randolph couldn't refuse to help the old man in their time of need, even if he didn't really stand to gain from it. Besides, it's as he said: if he can't make headway into his own problems, might as well be productive by helping someone else out with there's.

[Dragonstrike]

Gene has his eyes closed in thought as he responds to Randolph.

"If you could help, that would be wonderful.  I've tried several times to get close enough to the Mystri Stage to get to the bottom of this, but to no avail so far.  And thinking about it...you said there was something happening at Mt. Coronet, yes?  You may find something of use in the Sinjoh Ruins proper, be it information or otherwise, assuming you can get past the Abomasnow.  The Sinjoh Ruins were constructed by ancient people as a shrine to honor Arceus, after all, and those ancient people had also previously constructed the Ruins of Alph and Spear Pillar.  There may be a connection here after all..."

He opens his eyes and looks at the group again.

"...and whenever you finish here, whether you help or not, Abra over there can take you straight back to where you came from...when he wakes up, that is.  Honestly, I have yet to meet a lazier pokemon than that Abra.  I swear he could outsleep a Snorlax or even a Komala.  Of course, it may be a byproduct of his incredible control over Teleportation demanding immeasurable amounts of Earthpower...bah, but I can ponder that another time.  The important thing is that he'll be able to Teleport you directly back to Snowpoint City later."

The elderly caretaker then turns and points to a rather new(er) looking PC terminal (it looks a little out of place among all the other decor), ignoring the fact that what he was just babbling about was probably lost on his audience.

"If you have any preparations to make before making an attempt to reach the Sinjoh Ruins, some archaeologists and researchers left that PC here.  I have no need of such a thing myself, but the rare traveler sometimes finds it useful.  Unfortunately, the snowstorm has knocked out any form of communicating with the rest of the world beyond merely depositing and withdrawing pokemon, so I'm afraid we're rather isolated for the time being."

"Oh, and make sure you try the stew as well.  It's quite revitalizing, and you all look like you've had it rough.  I have enough leftover in the kitchen to feed 4 pokemon as well."  The stew recovers the consumer's HP and resets their Potion effectiveness for the day.  Gene will insist that the 4 trainers all eat their share, but the other 4 portions can be used on any 4 pokemon of the group's choosing.

As Gene finishes his explanations, a loud sound echoes throughout the room!

*CRACK!*

Everyone (except Gene) starts at how sudden and loud it is, and turns to look where it came from...

...and finds that the egg that's currently sitting in Kee's lap is shaking, and cracks have started to appear in the shell!  The Vulpix egg is hatching!

The cracks widen...

...increase in number...

...widen again...

...the egg continues to shake...

...then it begins to glow...

...and then it bursts open, and a blinding glow similar to that of a pokemon evolving fills the room!

The next thing everyone sees is a baby, one tailed Vulpix sitting in Kee's lap.  It nuzzles the blanket that still smells like a Ninetales.

Congratulations! The Vulpix Egg has hatched!

Abilities: Flash Fire, Drought (you get to choose which one it has today)
Moves: Heat Wave, Secret Power, Disable, Spite, Ember
Gender: Your pick
Boosted SA: Your pick
H/L/D: 1/2/0
Will: 3
Note: Before Vulpix can evolve, it needs to have at least 6 tails, indicating it's old enough to become a Ninetales with a Fire Stone. If a Vulpix is old enough for its tails to split into 9, then it may also evolve without the help of a Fire Stone (the evolutionary stone just significantly speeds up the process)

Warning: Large Image

Here's the source.  

I like that one^ so much better than the one depicted in the manga (though the manga one is accurate in its own way as well, reading through the pokedex entries carefully):

[Mikaruge108]

"Sinjoh Ruins?" Karen finally speaks up again, "Ruins of Alph? Wait, that'd mean we're somewhere near Johto." she plays with her bangs for the umpteenth time; "Well, wherever we are, you can count me in on clearing out those Abomasnow." Karen then proceeds to get her stuff together and gets ready for fighting some Abomasnow!