[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Dragonstrike]

Caught in the middle of snacking on Larry's surprise gift, Nathan's reminded that he wasn't the only one in the area. "Oh! Right, you were here too...yeah, sort of...this little guy here decided he wanted to have some fun." Nathan looks over at Staryu. "He looked a little lonely, so I decided to bring him along for the ride. Ralts is happy about it, but Swiftfire has...mixed opinions, shall we say." Nathan stares at Swiftfire with a look that practically says 'do NOT cause any trouble over this.' Swiftfire snuffs in between snacking.

"Anyways, Ralts pointed out a few patterns in the flowers' growths, as well as the staryu before it surfaced. Not sure how it's all related still, though...enough about that for now though. I see you found yourself a new friend too."

[Iron]

Led by Larry and Ventus, the party makes its way down Route 01. The number of eager trainers creates a palpable sense of tension in the air. Ralts in particular sometimes feels like he is physically slowed by their competitive gazes, as if they are a barrier of molasses.

So Nathan lags behind just a bit, and he is the first to hear it.

"BEEP. BEEEP."
"dungadungadungadungadungawhirrrrr"
"BEEEEP BEEP"
"Hey, watch it!"
"beep beep"
"MOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!"

What? What was that last bit, especially?

A humongous RV comes rattling down Route 01. The tread on those tires is so huge it doesn't mind the occasional pothole or muddy spot. Despite many wide windows, the drivers don't seem to see a few trainers or Pokemon who barely get out of the way. Clearly, its owner fancies himself a bit of an engineer, for there are add-ons and gadgets conglomerated onto the sides and roof and undercarriage. Not even Larry or Ventus know what they all might do. This thing is to self-contained vehicles what your tent is to a tarp and string.

But that's not even the strangest thing about it. There seems to be a COW on the ROOF - a Miltank, to be precise. It's standing happily on all fours, looking about in all directions, feeling the wind in her fur. Whenever the RV hits a pothole, Miltank jutters about and her bell rings wildly. But she never loses her footing or her confidence. "Mooooo!"

There is a crunch as the RV pitches headfirst into a trench (3' deep, 3' wide, 10' long) that wasn't there before. A Geodude climbs proudly out of the trench and assaults Vincent, stealing some more of his rock-hard hardtack. Then it follows the party at a respectful distance, chewing.

A big, happy face pops out of the RV window.
The man is wearing a straw hat and an Alolan shirt. He is very sunburnt and rather chubby.
The passenger side window opens too, admitting a beaming woman with copious amounts of hair. At the rear window, a clown's head appears behind the glass, pressing its big white palms on the window. It makes despondent faces at you, then laughs silently.
Ralts picks up a rolling wave of good cheer from the RV, its two human occupants, and the two Pokemon inside (or on top, in Miltank's case).

"The name's Tramp. This is my wife, Belle. Meet Miltank, up on the roof, and Barrinerd. Finally, this hunkajunk stuck in the muck is Trax. Little help, trainers?"

[Dragonstrike]

"What the..." Nathan's stunned yet again. This...contraption and its drivers are unlike anything he's ever seen. He's not quite sure what to say about it...

[Dies Irae]

Sieg, noticing the food, wings himself over to Nathan to land on the ground in front of him with his mouth open.

Vincent snorts as he walks over. "Old habits die hard."

"A better question is what was a single Staryu doing alone in a pool like this. This is sort of a touch too far to write off as a directionally-challenged starfish. Another abandoned critter like your Ralts?" He notes Nathan's comment and lets the line of inquiry drop.

Too pleasant a day to go dredge that up.

"Anyway. Whether you wanted to or not, you've now had the opportunity to meet Sieg. I suspect he's been following me since my battle with Survivalist Clancey yesterday* Finally joined the crew of his own accord. And... what the hell..."

"You know what... Okay. Fine. Be like that. TAKE IT!" He flings aside a chunk of hardtack away as a Geodude practically runs him over.

"For the love of Mike." He stares in disbelief at the destruction left behind.

"Alright... uhh... Folks..." He's still a bit shaken by the development as he asks the RV passengers. "Everyone intact in there? Sir, Ma'am... assorted hangers on... I'm going to see if I can coax that rascal responsible for this into helping to free you." 

He glances back at the Geodude. "Oh for freaks sake. " 

He turns to Nathan. "Nathan. You got a spare ball I can borrow? If it get's used, I'll pay you full market rate for it."


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META: Page 30. Yes. I've been thinking about this.

[Dragonstrike]

"Um..." Nathan's almost too stunned to answer. The situation is a comical mess. He snaps out of it when Vincent asks about the spare pokeball though. "Uh, yeah. Here, take the both of them. I don't really intend to use them right now, anyways..." Nathan gives Vincent his last two pokeballs. Guess it's a good thing he found 3 the previous day!

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

(...) He's not quite sure what to say about it...

Same goes for Shiva. She's staying relatively calm though, somehow. Farmers and travelers were a weird thing... Looks she just encountered another thing worth writing home about. That sign on the man's reminded her some something... Were they from Alola?

Guess there was a need for teamwork here... And strong Pokemon. She nudges Nathan on the shoulder. "Since you have the Ponyta back... I'm sorry, what did you nicknamed it again? ... You think it might do something to help out here?"

[Dies Irae]

Lets try this approach again. No sudden moves.

"Ok. So we already know you like hardtack. I've got four day's worth over here, rocky." He reaches into his jacket pocket and pulls out a half empty pack. The muscles in his legs tense as he prepares to dodge another lumbering attack.

"You don't get this in the wild do you?" He smiles, waving the biscuits and keeping the Geodude focused on them. "How about a trade? Favor for a favor?"

[Iron]

Geodude looks very leery of the Pokeballs, and digs itself a little fort to hide in. Like a kid in a snowstorm, it piles up some rocks and gets ready to throw.

[Dragonstrike]

(...) He's not quite sure what to say about it...

Same goes for Shiva. She's staying relatively calm though, somehow. Farmers and travelers were a weird thing... Looks she just encountered another thing worth writing home about. That sign on the man's reminded her some something... Were they from Alola?

Guess there was a need for teamwork here... And strong Pokemon. She nudges Nathan on the shoulder. "Since you have the Ponyta back... I'm sorry, what did you nicknamed it again? ... You think it might do something to help out here?"

Swiftfire snuffs at Shiva in response.  Her, pull that thing?  Nope, not gonna happen.  It definitely didn't look like any kind of fun at all.  And Nathan still hadn't found anything fun for her to do like he had promised.

"Swiftfire!  That's incredibly rude of you!"  Nathan essentially gives her a death stare while scolding her.  "Life isn't just about fun, you know.  Hard work is required too."  The horse backs down a bit under the fierce gaze.  Nathan the rancher has taken over.  

Nathan then addresses the question.  "Yes, she'll help if we need her.  I'll make sure of it.  Let's see what happens with that geodude first, though.  I don't think any of us are going to be happy if Swiftfire ends up being the only pokemon we have capable of helping us pull that thing out of that ditch."

[Dies Irae]

"You chuck that rock, Sir. This thing gets smashed to powder and I get my friend's Staryu to soak this pack down. Everyone loses. So what say you we try some negotiations."

Every muscle in his body is primed for movement now, his senses reaching out for the slightest bit of movement, but he keeps calm and talking.

"You already know from watching me handle the pidgey that I'm not a hoarder of food. You hear me out, we talk, everyone goes away happy. Well... in your case... roll away happy. How about that?"

The officer is pacing now. "CRISIS NEGOTIATIONS WITH A GEODUDE. THAT'S AN... INTERESTING... START TO THE MORNING."