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

[Third time's the charm, huh. Looks like "it just happens" is the best answer he's getting.]

Well, there seems to be no other option...and no shortage of more easily managed things to worry about.

[Like me, Olivia seems to say as she nips cutely at the long ends of Ondorus' hair.]

[...oh, the natu line... they're pretty fun, yeah]

Unfortunately, no. The only currently known way to return to your home world is if you're randomly sent back. Until then... well, this world has its fair share of annoyances to keep you occupied.

[are you afraid of headvoices]

Annoyances?

[they're... a little difficult to deal with when you're feverish, let's just say that...]

Even if you were human to begin with, you're denied any abilities you'd have beyond that of the average human. This, combined with the fact that you're expected to hike for several days between towns, is mildly irritating.

[understatement]

[...i see

also wait what how else would you get from town to town]

I've never done much traveling, myself, so it does seem a little out of the way. If life were convenient, the village we're dropped in would be one better equipped to accommodate so many visitors...

[well

...most people don't even get Pokemon they can ride...]

By all accounts this has been going on for about two years, so I'm not quite sure why that town hasn't adjusted to it yet.

The inhabitants seem a little odd.

[...Maybe it's a strange curse. He did read something once about a giant monster that lived underneath a town and enchanted it to lure in people it could devour...]

Two full years, though?...actually, that's not as long as I assumed...

A lot of the natives are like that, really. I can never tell if they're essentially constructs or if they have some degree of free will.

That's what people have been saying, yes. I have no idea if it's completely accurate, but it's the best I have.

Construct...

[s-sounds like sci-fi (for a given value of sci)]

Do you have experience with such things?

Edited 2012-08-29 23:18 (UTC)

Yes, I do. They're usually more sophisticated than that, at least, but I suppose they're similar enough for discussion's sake.

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.

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enjoymyatelier - 2012-09-04 04:25 (UTC) - Expand

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