grapecape | 001; video

-it's on? Thank you...

[The screen is at first obscured by something that moves away with a raspy chirp, leaving a bespectacled man to glance away from the screen for a moment before turning his attention to it. He seems worried but composed, letting his hand fall from where he'd been rubbing a knuckle absently against his forehead.]

Good...afternoon. [pause, then a sigh.] And a strange one. I don't know who is or how many are listening, but I hope my situation isn't common among you.

[More of that chirping, and Ondorus looks to his side as a green blob of feathers flutters its way up to his shoulder and shuffles around there for a moment, cooing. He smiles wordlessly for a moment and then looks back at the Pokégear.]

She offers her greetings, too. Anyhow - is there anyone listening to whom Sol Terrano means anything? Or, at least, Norad? Or...[His smile falls a little, and he breathes in as he thinks how to word this]...any for whom being a human comes as a bit of a shock?

-or knows of the Forest of Beginnings. [It comes out more rushed than the rest of what he's said, as though the thought came to him suddenly. The Natu on Ondorus' shoulder taps her foot firmly against him, and he nods a little.] Nobody here seemed to respond to any inquiry.

[He glances down (fiddles with something-) and back up.] I hope I'm using this correctly. [A tired smile.] Apparently there's a town of some size that I should get started on reaching. Thank you for your time - and I hope to make acquaintances with some of you.

[Ondorus bows his head politely, then the Pokegear tilts back so that it is receiving a shot of the sky. Offscreen, his voice can be heard - how do I shut this off, now? - along with some chirping from the Natu, and after a few seconds the entry ends.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Can I trouble you for an account of the experience? All I've heard of constructed beings is secondhand and very vague.

[he's not actually making this face but it is the face of his true heart]

The ones in my world are known as Homunculi. I don't know if they're something that would exist in your world at all, much less under the same name. Basically, they're artificial humans created outside of any sort of womb that retain the same physical characteristics for their entire lives.

[whoa]

I doubt they are present in my world, but it's fascinating to hear nonetheless. I imagined something more like a golem.

It's... not quite like that. They have much more personal autonomy than a golem would, even if they do tend to be created for specific purposes.

The golems I know of have quite a lot of autonomy...

...hm. It's difficult to discuss a topic when terms can't easily be agreed upon, isn't it.

Well, I'm talking about a certain degree of free will more than anything else. Granted, it doesn't really help that these things tend to have different rules across different worlds, either.

Indeed. Seems there's little that can be taken for granted about the reality of life, or even nature.

[there's no rune here...]

At least this world has its own rules, which seem to be somewhat consistent even if they're not always satisfactorily explained.

[A little "mm" as he nods, though that can't be seen]

I'd like to determine what those rules are, if there isn't someone who already has. At very least, I want to know why it is that humans can use no magic when monsters still easily can.

There are quite a few people looking into it, including myself. There hasn't been an attempt to formally organize until I suggested it recently, though.

[it was a great idea

all his ideas are great]

Anyway, weapons are illegal here as well, so I assume it's some sort of attempt to force us to use these Pokemon for whatever reason.

Mm? [That is a very interested-sounding mm, incidentally.]

-illegal, really?

[A POTENTIAL RECRUIT...? well, he'll address this question first-]

Yes, really. It seems a bit pointless given how dangerous Pokemon have the potential to be. They are not inclined to attack humans when trained normally, but there seem to be people who use more... immoral training methods.

...That seems awfully...I don't want to say unnatural, but I don't know what else to think of it. Weapons, or things that could be used as such, are common to all civilized species. For a ban to be imposed in the first place, and then to remain...

[It suggests some things about human-Pokemon relations and the nature of Pokemon training that Ondorus doesn't know if he should be comfortable with.]

From what I've seen, wooden practice swords seem to be acceptable, but nothing else. Which, I would argue, is even more arbitrary, but I suppose there isn't much that can be done about it.

There shouldn't be any need for them, if the powers of Pokemon are so varied and so available to trainers; that much is easy to accept.

[....]

Hmm. I'll be thinking about this as long as I'm here, I fear.

I will admit, I never had any use for them beforehand given that I relied entirely on my own skill as a mage, so I'm not entirely out of my element.

Nevertheless, as I've said, there's much about this place that doesn't make sense. I would presume, then, that you may be interested in joining my endeavor?

Of course. I don't yet know what research I'm capable of, here, without my usual resources, but I can certainly lend my observations to whatever theories you produce.

A limitation we all face, I'm afraid. Regardless, I'll thank you in advance for your cooperation.

[hell yes. science.]

And thank you for granting the opportunity. My name is Ondorus.

You're quite welcome, Ondorus. I am Lord Kayneth Archibald El-Melloi.

[wow] That's quite the name. Is there a particular way you prefer to be addressed?

Just Lord El-Melloi should suffice.

Then it's a pleasure to have met you, Lord El-Melloi. I'll contact you if I discover anything striking.

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