[Game thread] Skull Ruins Pokerole

[Lord Windos]

Between Shiva's slight reticense for meeting with Keni ASAP and Oscar urging her/the group to take his offer while its hot, Terra was left feeling strangely tense and apprehensive, like a spring press to tight and ready to burst loose. Normally he'd have no problem with continuing straight to the objective and bypassing most any diversion, given his fairly focused and seriously diligent nature, but....well, its not everyday you get the chance to meet with THE Keni Morgusi. Forgoing the perhaps once in a lifetime opportunity to meet such a august artist was tantamount to foolishness in the monk's eyes, but if the group insisted on departing poste haste....

Thankfully, both the Fairy and Clever Trainers aquisited to the old gentleman's offer, causing him to let out a small *sigh* of relief. 'Can get chance to meet Keni Morgusi after all......very good. Would be disappointed if I couldn't take it, and so would Lovely. Would NEVER  let me.....live it down, if he did not get opportunity to meet with the great artist....'

For now, that's all Terra input for this Scene, until its time to meet/not meet with the neighbors!

[Iron]

"Great!" Oscar seems pleased to have the chance to do something cool for his nephew.

He rings the door of the gothic house and vanishes inside. A bit later, he leans out the door and waves you on over. You follow him through the dark interior of the house. Most of it is poorly lit. The decor is quite strange, in the shadows: the owner has commissioned or purchased a lot of wooden sculptures or ceramic figurines or simple paintings, all of Pokemon or landscapes featuring Pokemon. But apparently, the artist was unsatisfied with the renditions, and has made crude attempts at "fixing" some problem that none of you can see. Not even Shiva can identify any errors in the Houndoom on the umbrella stand, the (unlit) Carbink chandelier, the Poliwrath at the banister's end. Yet the Houndoom's legs have been erased, Carbink's face has been painted blank, and the wooden Poliwrath have both been chipped away until only their swirls are recognizable.
Occasionally, new plaster or paint has made a vain attempt to improve the models, but never successfully.

There is also a lot of damage to the house, damage of every element from burns to waterlogging.


You follow Oscar up the stairs. He stays fairly cheerful despite the dim house. But when you reach the top of the stairs and pass through the attic door, Oscar's smile grows.

The attic is very well lit, with practical electric lighting with a hint of blue to it, and of course whatever light comes through the windows. A workbench runs around the whole room, and there are lots of simple chairs, each matched with a window. On the workbench are painting tools and small easels, sized for a card. There's also a big roll of paper, the loose portion being covered in sketches. Many of these sketches are only a few lines, simple stick figures, but you can instantly tell what Pokemon they belong to. They almost feel animated.

An old, old, old man sits at the window overlooking the street. He already has a sketch of Cottonee in front of him, in a notebook. The Cottonee is in the act of burrowing into a girl's hair. You notice the girl has few features, while the Cottonee is actually recognizable as Shiva's even in sketch form.

The old man is hunched and his face is lined, but he has a tiny smile as he works, and his hand never trembles. There's a pencil stuck in his long gray hair, which is up in a twisted bun. His chair has a jar attached, also full of pencils and such. His clothes are of an older style, but they're newly tailored. Already, his cuffs are shiny from being rubbed on the workbench.

Mr. Morgusi turns slightly toward you, but doesn't quite make eye contact, in the way of the extremely nearsighted. He looks at your knees, still with that calm smile. "Please, take chairs! You may look at any art but please do not touch for I have not yet applied my coating of protective substance and the art may be vulnerable to the oils within human fingers!"

"Mr. Morgusi, this is Shiva, Terra, Heart, and my nephew, Nathan! Terra has a Milotic he'd like to show you - perhaps he can summon it down in the street? And Nathan and Shiva are both fans of your work. I gave that Skarmory to Nathan for his fifteenth birthday, just a few days ago."

"You bring me rare Pokemon, do you? Good, good. Tell me about yourselves! Nathan...hm...the Skarmory in your mind was like none I have seen in many a decade with its mighty wings of steel that slice the air itself and transport it instantly across the sky at legendary speed..."

[Dragonstrike]

"Nathan...hm...the Skarmory in your mind was like none I have seen in many a decade with its mighty wings of steel that slice the air itself and transport it instantly across the sky at legendary speed..."

The wording of that statement strikes Nathan as...odd.  Enough that he doesn't introduce himself right away.  "Wait...excuse me for asking, but...were you listening to that whole conversation?"

He's not really offended, though. Just curious for the most part.

[Lord Windos]

Spoiler

"Great!" Oscar seems pleased to have the chance to do something cool for his nephew.

He rings the door of the gothic house and vanishes inside. A bit later, he leans out the door and waves you on over. You follow him through the dark interior of the house. Most of it is poorly lit. The decor is quite strange, in the shadows: the owner has commissioned or purchased a lot of wooden sculptures or ceramic figurines or simple paintings, all of Pokemon or landscapes featuring Pokemon. But apparently, the artist was unsatisfied with the renditions, and has made crude attempts at "fixing" some problem that none of you can see. Not even Shiva can identify any errors in the Houndoom on the umbrella stand, the (unlit) Carbink chandelier, the Poliwrath at the banister's end. Yet the Houndoom's legs have been erased, Carbink's face has been painted blank, and the wooden Poliwrath have both been chipped away until only their swirls are recognizable.
Occasionally, new plaster or paint has made a vain attempt to improve the models, but never successfully.

There is also a lot of damage to the house, damage of every element from burns to waterlogging.


You follow Oscar up the stairs. He stays fairly cheerful despite the dim house. But when you reach the top of the stairs and pass through the attic door, Oscar's smile grows.

The attic is very well lit, with practical electric lighting with a hint of blue to it, and of course whatever light comes through the windows. A workbench runs around the whole room, and there are lots of simple chairs, each matched with a window. On the workbench are painting tools and small easels, sized for a card. There's also a big roll of paper, the loose portion being covered in sketches. Many of these sketches are only a few lines, simple stick figures, but you can instantly tell what Pokemon they belong to. They almost feel animated.

An old, old, old man sits at the window overlooking the street. He already has a sketch of Cottonee in front of him, in a notebook. The Cottonee is in the act of burrowing into a girl's hair. You notice the girl has few features, while the Cottonee is actually recognizable as Shiva's even in sketch form.

The old man is hunched and his face is lined, but he has a tiny smile as he works, and his hand never trembles. There's a pencil stuck in his long gray hair, which is up in a twisted bun. His chair has a jar attached, also full of pencils and such. His clothes are of an older style, but they're newly tailored. Already, his cuffs are shiny from being rubbed on the workbench.

Mr. Morgusi turns slightly toward you, but doesn't quite make eye contact, in the way of the extremely nearsighted. He looks at your knees, still with that calm smile. "Please, take chairs! You may look at any art but please do not touch for I have not yet applied my coating of protective substance and the art may be vulnerable to the oils within human fingers!"

"Mr. Morgusi, this is Shiva, Terra, Heart, and my nephew, Nathan! Terra has a Milotic he'd like to show you - perhaps he can summon it down in the street? And Nathan and Shiva are both fans of your work. I gave that Skarmory to Nathan for his fifteenth birthday, just a few days ago."

"You bring me rare Pokemon, do you? Good, good. Tell me about yourselves! Nathan...hm...the Skarmory in your mind was like none I have seen in many a decade with its mighty wings of steel that slice the air itself and transport it instantly across the sky at legendary speed..."

First impression of the esteemed artist and his abode were.....not great for the mountain of the man. The dark, almost bleak lighting, coupled with the desecrated works of art and the pervasive and varied amount of damage on the household, reminded him heavily of Chuckle's Gym Manor, which was not in the least bit endearing to him. Seeing the once beautiful depication of Pokémon so ruined alone caused him to grimace uncomfortably, and the overall atmosphere of the place left him tense and guarded, as if some Ghost or monster were going to pop out and do unpleasant things to him and the others. 


Overall, any optimistc or wonderous feelings that Terra had of meeting with the august artist had vanished, and were now replaced with a sense of apprehension and dread.

'.....I am starting to regret wanting to meet with Mr. Morsugi. *Mentally shakes head* …Too late to go back now, though. Would be rude not to meet with him, after he agreed to meet with me and everyone else....'

To his none to moderate relief, Keni's art studio attic turned out to be a much more welcoming and homely affair, the brightly lite space and the numerous styles of art pieces depicting Pokémon in stunning, almost lifelike detail shocking him out of his previous gloom leaving him almost gapping. The august artist himself, simply put, had an the unmistakable and venerable air of great wisdom and something else to him that dispelled the last trace of negativity and leaving only a sense of light reverence and a great deal of respect.

'Hm.....he is a great and Wise Man, like Mama and Papa said he was. Has Skill and talent in art like no one else has, and been part of many great things. He is......a very special person. Just Nathan, Shiva, Heart, Ven, and many others I meet here in Cheshire. How many such people are here, in this region? Hm.....'

Their warning not to touch his artwork and Oscar's suggestion dragged him out of his thoughts, causing him to blink a couple of times before he caught on and bowed towards the old master.

"I do. Will go outside to show them off to you now, with your permission Mr. Morsugi."

Presumably he gets it, and so the simple monk promptly makes his way outside and to the spot indicated by Nathan's Uncle, and summons the aquatic serpentine fish right were the artist can see the most of their splendor. Terra also informs them (Lapis) of the occasion they were called out for, and quietly them some suggestions too.

"My friend, I summoned you now so that Mr. Keni Morsugi - Yes, its really him *He says this after they express surprise about such a plain declaration* - can see your beauty himself. Maybe he will draw you, if he is inspired enough. We both want that to happen, so let us.....demonstrate how wonderfully unique you are to him. Like how we used to Preform in Contest back home. *Describes planed performance to them* ...Can you do that, Lovely?"

Order: Go outside to show off Lapis Lazuli to Mr. Morsugi , both in appearance and a mini Contest Performance! My idea for it is that Lapis Coils up regally so that his sublime form and power is most concentration, before using his Hidden Power once (With two hits) straight up into the air to send a cascade of gemstones raining down on him, using Twister to send the stones swirling around him twinkling and mesmerizingly, and finishing off with using his Disarming Voice to dazzle and amaze! Is that all possible to do, Iron? 'Cuz I want to make the most of Lovely's screen time, and REALLY impress the great Keni!

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

(Haha, Keni is pretty much like I'd have imagined him to be. :> )

The waiting time until Oscar came back from inside the precious mansion to wave them all felt way longer than it actually was for Shiva's taste, probably due to the eager excitement and boiling nervousness of both getting to view the inside of that curious gothic house and meeting the artist of artists, known all across the regions... (Or is he only famous here in Chreshire?) She spends the time frame to both run her hands through her hair in a desperate attempt to bruce herself up and to let her gaze wander over the garden of the house. Vaporeon lets out a cry of protest upon being recalled, but Shiva can guess that she as a Water Type would be troublesome to fresh paintings and drawings. Raphael and Cottonee remain out though to meet Keni as well, the former closely by her and the latter safely in her arms.

Due to closely watching all the artworks and scultures and whatelse in the hall with an simultaneously confused and amused look, Shiva did almost fall back behind the others, Raphael had to gently push her forward to make sure she doesn't end up being left behind, but she could sense that he too found these 'attempts of fixing the works' rather enjoyable. Both Shiva and Cottonee found themselves almost LIKING these reworkings of the owner, for a reason she couldn't really understand. It surely had to do with their playful and mischievous nature though - as if to confirm that, Kyuu's Ball in Shiva's pocket shakes a little but the Meowstic stays in.

Anticipitation grows as they climb the stars, Shiva could feel her knee becoming weaker and weaker. Eeeeekkkkk! ><; Though that was probably nothing when her gaze eventually wandered from Mr. Morgusi himself over all the drawings to what he was sketching there at the moment.

That was the moment she became as red as a Tamato Berry and seeimgly froze solid in a gentle and polite gesture, if she wouldn't have picked up a bit of the iron grip on her emotions from her boyfriend she'd definitely faint now both in flustered embarrasment and sweet suprise, Cottonee must have noticed what's going on as well and, contrary to her Master, was incredibly open in her joy as she let out a very happy chirp and demonstratively placed herself on her Master's head to burry herself there.

She barely even noticed how Mr. Morgusi himself offers them to take chairs or take a look at the paintings, his voice came from far, faaar away and reached her with some delay. Only when her name fell as Oscar introduced them all, Shiva perked up as a subconscious sign that she's back at the current place and time, she needed a moment to gather her thoughts and progress everything before she gave a very low bow to Mr. Morgusi, Cottonee made sure to stay on her head by keeping firm hold of a few strands of hair with her leaves. When she rose again, her massive blush was still there, it's a wonder how she deals with all the heat.

Finally though, she managed to find her voice back - how she did, she didn't know, the words just came. "H....... Y-Yes, h-hello Mr. .....eh... Morgusi. M-my plea....pleasure..... My origin's... From Unova, I mean - Ah, no, my name's Shiva, from distant.... Castelia City in U-Unova. Hehe..... Ehm.... You..... Youmostlygetyourinspirationforartworksfromobservingthingsfromthiswindow,doyou?" The nervousness shows in her body language.

[Iron]

"Nathan...hm...the Skarmory in your mind was like none I have seen in many a decade with its mighty wings of steel that slice the air itself and transport it instantly across the sky at legendary speed..."

The wording of that statement strikes Nathan as...odd.  Enough that he doesn't introduce himself right away.  "Wait...excuse me for asking, but...were you listening to that whole conversation?"

He's not really offended, though.  Just curious for the most part.

"What conversation, young man? I'm talking about when Oscar described the Skarmory that eventually became the print on your birthday card. I asked him for some inspiration, he described his brother's Skarmory, and asked me if he could have a print when it was done. I dragged the whole story out of him, of course - you can't paint without the WHOLE story."

Shiva gets an immediate shiver whenever Morgusi talks this way. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a sense of lots of power. More than you'd expect in this thin frame. 

Nathan, of course, can tell that he was right about the odd wording - there's definitely more to Morgusi than you might think. He seems to consider the Skarmory to be almost plucked from reality, along with all the metaphysical connections it's wrapped up in. The feeling is very odd.



"Terra...Terra...what is your surname, young man? Do I know you? You look both familiar and unfamiliar... maybe you just remind me of someone."

Flashforward:
He gives permission for Terra to go outside and summon Lapis. Let's do this Kimono Girl style, shall we? How many dice would you like to set aside for Perform?

[Iron]

Morgusi is only famous in Creshire, but he's known in other regions as well to people who are interested in that sort of thing. Very little information about him reaches those distant places, though. And his true cards never ever make it that far.

Mr. Morgusi is also interested in Raphael. Cottonee doesn't really get a second glance, having already been affixed to paper by Morgusi's gaze and practiced hand. He doesn't say anything about Togekiss, but you keep catching him watching the fae bird.

"Dear girl, all inspiration must come from observation. But remember, there are many kinds of observation! Yes indeed! There's listening to stories, of course. There's people on the street, who mimic Pokemon in everything they do. There's the nameless sense of Earthpower. There's the ripples of what beautiful or powerful Pokemon do faraway, which the keen observer might pick up as slight changes in everyday life. Oh, the deeper you look, the more you can represent reality! Sadly, these ninety-five-year-old hands have only mastered the ability to represent reality through one medium: paint, maybe pen. If I could live another dozen lifetimes I should like to master sculpture, theater, oration, woodcarving...to find the Pokemon within everything."

Like Nathan, Shiva might find a lot of Morgusi's wording odd. He seems very confident of what he means, though.

[Dragonstrike]

Spoiler

"What conversation, young man? I'm talking about when Oscar described the Skarmory that eventually became the print on your birthday card. I asked him for some inspiration, he described his brother's Skarmory, and asked me if he could have a print when it was done. I dragged the whole story out of him, of course - you can't paint without the WHOLE story."

Shiva gets an immediate shiver whenever Morgusi talks this way. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a sense of lots of power. More than you'd expect in this thin frame. 

Nathan, of course, can tell that he was right about the odd wording - there's definitely more to Morgusi than you might think. He seems to consider the Skarmory to be almost plucked from reality, along with all the metaphysical connections it's wrapped up in. The feeling is very odd.

"...nevermind about the conversation thing, I guess...so, if I'm understanding you correctly...what you're saying is that the Skarmory you drew IS my dad's Skarmory in picture form?"

Nathan might be looking for confirmation from the man himself, but he's probably 99.9% sure that Morgusi will answer that positively.


Everything Morgusi is saying is obviously very deliberate and exact.  He even just namedropped Earthpower without batting an eye.  And particularly after what happened with the Cress City trading card, Nathan can definitely believe that there's more to these cards and Morgusi than meets the eye...

[Iron]

Spoiler

"What conversation, young man? I'm talking about when Oscar described the Skarmory that eventually became the print on your birthday card. I asked him for some inspiration, he described his brother's Skarmory, and asked me if he could have a print when it was done. I dragged the whole story out of him, of course - you can't paint without the WHOLE story."

Shiva gets an immediate shiver whenever Morgusi talks this way. Not necessarily a bad thing, just a sense of lots of power. More than you'd expect in this thin frame. 

Nathan, of course, can tell that he was right about the odd wording - there's definitely more to Morgusi than you might think. He seems to consider the Skarmory to be almost plucked from reality, along with all the metaphysical connections it's wrapped up in. The feeling is very odd.

"...nevermind about the conversation thing, I guess...so, if I'm understanding you correctly...what you're saying is that the Skarmory you drew IS my dad's Skarmory in picture form?"

Nathan might be looking for confirmation from the man himself, but he's probably 99.9% sure that Morgusi will answer that positively.


Everything Morgusi is saying is obviously very deliberate and exact.  He even just namedropped Earthpower without batting an eye.  And particularly after what happened with the Cress City trading card, Nathan can definitely believe that there's more to these cards and Morgusi than meets the eye...

"Yes, Nathan. You could say that. A good painting is little more than directions to a real entity. Turn left on Cress Street, take Water Street north, behave in such a way, tilt your head just so, perform such and such an animation, and there you have it! You're a Skarmory!!"

[PhantomUnderYourDesk]

Morgusi is only famous in Creshire, but he's known in other regions as well to people who are interested in that sort of thing. Very little information about him reaches those distant places, though. And his true cards never ever make it that far.

(Ah, then I'll go by Shiva never having heard of him before coming to Creshire as she got into into the TCG here.)




Nope, Morgusi answering her question doesn't do a thing to distract Shiva from her obvious nervousness, she's even having a very hard time to really look at him when he speaks. Her picking up that he's watching Raphael hovering beside her does a fine job to increase it even more! She seems to subliminally tremble of excitement and delight however with a slight smile developing in her vivid blush after that weird shiver caused by the.... the unmistakable sense of power within his words has passed. Somehow she feels sure that this man here was....how to describe it at best...? Special? No, that feels like an understatement... Extraordinary? Maybe. More than human??! What a curious thought.

Raphael himself probably notices being watches as well, he seems to like the attention though. He ruffles his feathercoat a little  and tries to give himself as graceful as possible. Aww!

His wording ives her indeed a rather odd feeling, but she also quite enjoys what he has to share about observation, especially the part about the slight changes in everyday's life due to what Pokemon far away do. She was about to ask (if she'd dare) how he is able to gain the inspiration and source from Pokemon that have barely to no chances to show up here in Cress City, even if brought by a Trainer. It almost gives her headaches to think about why he speaks that way, though at the same tome she can't help the dreamy sparkle in her eyes and to eagerly nod. "Y.....Yes, I see! H-how you...are inspired for the....act of painting by-by observing things. Ah...... B-but... I-if I may ask, w-what would be an e-example for these slight changes in life due...due to the antics of faraway P...pokemon? I-I... would be happy to...keep an eye on these as well... Sounds so...beautiful. I....it's saddening that one day none w-will....create such precious..... artworks for cards an-anymore."

Speaking about keeping an eye, are there any hints to own Pokemon here in the room or around? Any pet Pokemon or so? That's something that quite interests Shiva as well, such a huge house for oneself..!

It takes Shiva all the willpower and strength she can scratch up to ask the following also at some point later, probably around the time they're preparing to leave again. In fact, with a visibly shivering hand she offers a card depicting an Oddish to Morgusi. "Would you.... I-I mean, would it be okay for you to.... to sign this card for me? It's my...very first one... I won't tell or show a-a....anybody and keep it o-only for myself."