OCTOBER EVENT PT2

[teamboba]

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OCTOBER EVENT PT2

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→ THE BEGINNING

(click to expand - happy early Halloween)

It's on the evening of October 28th when everything quickly descends into madness.

It begins with faint static in the air, gradually becoming louder and louder until it's impossible to ignore, the pattern of cries that was once hidden now audible to everybody as it grows and grows until it culminates in an explosion. The walls of the local bookstore burst outwards, a rampaging Hydreigon within unleashing Hyper Beam after Hyper Beam without any rest in between. Its trainer, an old man, hobbles up to it in a panic in order to ask what's wrong, but the Pokemon knocks him to the ground, ignoring him and continuing to destroy everything in its path while its trainer lies motionless on the ground, blood pouring from his head.

Further down the street, another eruption shakes the city, a group of Galarian Rapidashes slamming themselves against walls and windows until they break through, careening and crashing through buildings with wild abandon. Occupants inside a cafe scream as they attempt to flee, crushed under rubble and trampled by merciless hooves. From the sky, Murkrows and Natus swoop down on residents on the streets, long talons outstretched to claw at any exposed skin and pluck out any staring eyes. All around the city, Pokeballs burst open on their own and the Pokemon rush madly at human and Pokemon alike, disregarding orders or pleads from their trainers and attacking anything within sight in a wild frenzy.

Fires blaze across the city as children wail and adults scream. All the while, the pattern of cries continues...

→ THE RAMPAGE

(click to expand - you're in for a bad time)

Throughout the night, dark, ghost, and psychic-type Pokemon rampage throughout Mango City. Wild Pokemon appear from the outskirts of town and attack anyone and anything on sight, while companion Pokemon force themselves out of their balls and turn upon their trainers. No other types seem to be affected, the other Pokemon just as confused and distraught as the humans as they're forced to run from, defend against, and fight the Pokemon they were once allied with.

While many of the mad Pokemon physically assault those around them, other use innate abilities to wreak havoc. Musharnas emit a dark mist that engulfs entire beings and brings their fears to reality, forcing all those within the fog to face the same delusions. At the same time, Shedinjas steal souls away in their shells and keep them captive in a shared endless nightmare of their worst experiences relived. Similarly, Beheeyems cause those nearby to reexperience their most feared and hated moments, erasing all memory after that moment in order to trap their victims in that vulnerable mindset of the past. Meanwhile, Zoroarks trap their targets within grand illusions that force them to undergo a series of deaths over and over again, causing them excruciating pain and suffering while their physical bodies continue to live. Haunters phase in and out of walls to surprise and lick their victims, sapping years off their life and causing a frigid shivering that won't stop until they wither away, and Gengars loom in the shadows, sapping heat away from its surroundings and causing the small and the weak to slowly freeze to death. Umbreons spray poisonous sweat all over the street, causing people to choke and convulse if they stay too long near the toxic areas, and Cofagriguses drag humans into their coffins and wrap them up as mummies, bound so tightly nobody can hear them scream. No amount of pleading nor bargaining will cause any of them to stop; the only option left is to defeat them in battle, either by killing them or knocking them out.

It'd be kinder to do the latter, but in the heat of the moment, it's difficult to hold back. It's desperate times, after all, as the city streets soon begin to fill with the cold and still bodies of both Pokemon and humans.

→ HELP...?

(click to expand - is anyone even sane enough left to help)

At the outskirts of town bordering the forest, herds of Stantler lead the unaffected and helpless deeper into the forest into an area where the trees are so densely packed that even the shine of the moon can't break through. The only source of light are the small Litwicks that scurry towards the humans, smiling and holding out their little hands. Follow them. They'll keep you safe(?).

Perhaps it's time to abandon the city, where the fires continue to grow and rage throughout the streets, threatening to engulf entire neighborhood blocks. The hospital and Pokemon Center get repurposed to disaster zones as the doctors and nurses struggle to treat their patients while fending off rampaging Pokemon at the same time. Mari's large Steelixes wrap themselves around the buildings to become iron walls keeping the wild Pokemon out, but even their great defense struggles against the never ending attacks.

In the midst of the ongoing disaster, the radio tower remains undamaged and completely abandoned, untouched by the rampaging Pokemon outside. The receptionist has fled long ago, leaving the front doors open but the door to the stairs and the elevator up remaining locked. The tower stands empty and silent, completely free of the static and pattern of cries playing outside, the one place of reprieve from the hell that has descended upon Mango City.

→ MOD NOTES

⬥ Welcome to the Halloween event! Due to the nature of the prompts, please properly warn for any potentially disturbing content in your threads/tags for all players.
⬥ This event is forward dated to the evening and night of the 28th and may last past the 28th if no proper IC measures are taken to stop the rampaging Pokemon. The OOC deadline to solve and fix the disaster will be October 29.
⬥ Please comment to the mod question & investigation thread to report any actions that characters may take to stop the events of the log.
⬥ Have fun! :)

Comments

[bythefurry]

[Joss wakes up to the smell of smoke, and to the shrill cries of his Honedge escaping its ball and trying to hack his head off.

He manages to dodge, the Pokémon cutting a deep gouge into his inn room's bed instead; later, when there is time to rest, he will thank the Fury that he's always been such a light sleeper. Now well and truly awake, he throws anything he can find at the creature, his mind racing with questions as he avoids yet another slash. Can this truly be his Honedge, the meek little Pokémon who always hides at the slightest hint of a fight, its steel body somehow shivering with fright? The one who shyly accepts berries from his hand, its big eye filled with gratitude? No, something is wrong here, and horribly so.

Then Joss hears a song and... the sword falls to the ground, fast asleep. He stares at the little Swablu beeping angrily from a bedpost, her feathers puffed up enough to make her look twice her size. He didn't know she could do that, but this gives him time to summon the rampaging Pokémon back into its ball - he circles it with a piece of string, as an extra safety measure - and put his armor on.

When he gets out, the sight immediately reminds him of Amaurot. It is on a smaller scale, objectively, but he can't bring himself to think of it that way when he sees the fires, the rubble, the streets strewn with bodies. He bends down in front of each and every one of them to check for a pulse, a breath, anything, but it's too late.

In the distance, he can hear a cry of distress. He rushes towards it, Swablu in tow.]


I. Kindred Sword (closed to Nanami)

[Unfortunately, the string snaps the moment Honedge awakes from its slumber.

When Swablu tries to put it to sleep again, all she earns for her trouble is a tackle to the face. As she falls to the ground, Joss only sees one solution: he grabs the sword by its handle, channeling all of his strength into keeping it as far as possible from Swablu and himself.

It's only when Honedge slides its sash along his arm that Joss realizes he's made a grave mistake. To his credit, he doesn't look like he's struggling too much as the sword drains his energy away... but there's no way he can last very long. Not when all his small, injured Swablu can do is send out weak cries of alarm, hoping someone, anyone will hear.]


II. Good Samaritan

[When he's recovered from that adventure somewhat, Joss once again sets out to help people get to safety. He remains wary of going into the woods, however, occasionally side-eyeing the Litwicks that come close enough for him to see and saying something about being led astray to anyone who notices and asks. He doesn't particularly trust them, not after they got him lost in the forest for a couple of days... but he realizes people don't have much of a choice, right now, and there is strength in numbers besides. A large group of people is sure to find its way back more easily than a single man, should it come to that.

Most of his efforts consist of getting people out of half-destroyed buildings; clearing away rubble when he can, making use of his powerful jumps to get people down from higher floors when he can't. If you're doing the same, or need non-supernatural assistance yourself, it's not very hard to find him.]


III. Of the Holy Body (//death, blood)

[He accidentally gazes into the abyss of a Shedinja's back, and the abyss gazes back.

One moment, he is running through the middle of a smoky street, the incessant static buzzing through every bone in his body and making his teeth ache; the next, his steps are the only thing echoing against the marble floors of his homeland's most hallowed halls, the reverberating sound only dying down when Joss comes to a halt.

The Vault. He takes a step back, only for his boot to make a squelching noise. There is suddenly blood at his feet, oozing from the broken and battered bodies of soldiers and clergymen that weren't there when he'd slowed his mad run. Coward, they almost seem to say with their cold, blue lips. Traitor. Heretic. He pays them no heed. The words they are echoing can no longer hurt him.

He banishes the thought with a shake of his head and starts moving forward, as if compelled by a higher power. Further in he finds the same scenes, again and again, of men and women he once put to the sword. Despite this, he keeps making his way through the building. He knows the path well; he has seen it in his nightmares for years now. Same with the whisper in his mind, incessant, ever growing louder: woe betide the man who stands against the Weapon of Light, for death is his reward. Woe betide the man who stands against the Weapon of Light, for death is his reward. Woe betide-

Woe betide the man who stands with the Weapon of Light, for death is his reward. Death for him and his kin and all he holds dear.

Too late. Always too late. He watches as the glowing spear shatters the stout Fortemps steel and pierces the chest of the most wonderful man he's ever met. Haurchefant's body slumps to the ground, and when Joss approaches and grabs his hand, he can see his own fingers sparkle with the same blue aether crackling around the gaping wound.

He doesn't confess. He never does. For once, he doesn't even smile, the usual motions replaced with a more bitter kind of feeling. Anger doesn't easily come to him, but he can feel its dark waves roil over him now. Reliving this in his nightmares is one thing, but this... this is designed to hurt him, and he refuses to give whatever is causing this the satisfaction of breaking him.

Joss may have an increasingly bad time as he goes through those scenes again and again, but the Shedinja is in for one hell of an indigestion.]


IV. Wildcard

[Anything goes! Feel free to hit me up if you have any other ideas.]

wildcard baybey!!!!!!

[weenwoon]

[Hythlo's Joltik is not having a good time at all.

She is terrified of being on the ground, under the feet of all the other big people and creatures, but she is even more terrified of her friends suddenly turning on her, of her trainer dying, of all this confusion and screaming that seem to make up the world now. If bugs could cry, she would be weeping.

But terrified as she is, she runs on, barely dodging the feet of stampeding people who just don't seem to notice her chirps to attract their attention, barely dodging the swipes of wild Natus. She runs on and on... until, finally, a familiar figure looms.

She doesn't know Joss all that well, but he's talked to her trainer! She's pretty sure they're friends! He's tall like Hythlo, and kind, and can save her from the ground too! His Swablu has tried to peck her a few times, but Pasithea is much too scared to be scared of that now.

So as Joss is making his way through the chaos of the city, a small yellow ball suddenly dashes out of an alley, rapidly climbs up his gaunt frame before he can even react properly, runs onto his arm and bites at the cloth, making desperate beeping noises before looking up at him - she seems to be trying to attract his attention, not do any damage. Please help her! Please help Hythlo!]

[bythefurry]

[Joss doesn't notice the little fuzzball clinging to him, at first, busy that he is scouring the streets for people to assist; she is very small, the cloth of his armor quite thick, and he only has one pair of eyes as Swablu is safely resting in her pokéball for the time being.

Eventually though, one louder beep gets him to stop running. He looks down. Oh.]

Hmm. Even the small ones rampage.

[But before he can slap the Joltik away, he stays his hand. No. No aggression. This one isn't trying to eat him. He delicately picks her up between two fingers, instead, dropping her into his other hand so that he can take a better look. Isn't this one of the creatures that were sitting on Hythlodaeus's head? Or one of the same kind, at least.]

Is aught amiss, little one?

[Even knowing how smart Pokémon can be, it still feels a little silly to be talking to a bug...]

[weenwoon]

[Pasithea almost goes mad with terror when Joss raises his hand as though to slap her away and cowers between the spikes... but when he just drops her on his hand she has an entire moment of relief before the task of somehow explaining what's going on falls on her.

She chitters as loudly as she possibly can, jumping up and down on Joss's hand, then scuttles across it, staring in the direction she vaguely remembers coming from. Looks at Joss, looks back again. Scuttles back to the center of his hand, looks at him, runs back, pointing in the same direction. Please, please get what she means!!!]

[bythefurry]

[Oh no! I can't believe little Timmy fell down the well again!

Thankfully, Joss at least understands the basic gist of what Pasithea wants. He thinks. Considering how frantic the Joltik looks, he can only assume her owner is in danger...]

That way?

[He starts running in the direction she indicated, trying to hold his hand steady so that she doesn't fall off.]

i - duct tape to the rescue

[joysticks]

[ Luckily for Ross, Nanami was just around the corner when she hears the SOS call of his Swablu. In her arms are two shaking and jittering sweater-covered jars. She can just barely manage to keep a grip on them so it's her Marshtomp who opens the door of the bedroom. Upon seeing the scene, the water-type Pokemon immediately uses a Mud Shot at Honedge's eye. Take that!!! >:V ]

the true mvp

[bythefurry]

[Honedge, being a low level baby with a type disadvantage, is propelled out of Joss's hands by the blow; his blade lodges itself into the wall with a loud thwap.]

H-Hold.

[Joss extends one arm as if trying to protect Honedge from further attacks. He's shaking a little, but you'd be hard-pressed to tell he was getting most of his energy sucked out a second before.

He bends down to pick up Swablu, then, glancing at the wall as he does so; Honedge slightly shudders, but seems otherwise unconscious. Maybe it's a good thing baby sword hates fighting and therefore has zero extra levels under his belt. Sash. Thing.]

Sorry. Thank you for the assistance.

[In his hand, Swablu chirps in agreement.]

[joysticks]

[ Upon seeing that the Honedge is knocked out, Nanami's Marshtomp refrains from any other attacks, though he still stays on guard. Who knows if a rampaging Pokemon will break through the ceiling and attack?! >:V!!!! ]

[ Nanami, still holding her violently shaking containers, nods in response to Joss' thanks. ]

Is your Swablu okay?

[bythefurry]

[Thank you Marshtomp, you are a very good boy.

Joss looks at Swablu. She ruffles her feathers a little, before chirping and flying off to sit on her favourite spot: Joss's messy bed hair.]

I believe so.

[As for Honedge... Joss recalls him into his ball, again, not really knowing what else he can do. Before he can think about it, however, a particularly violent shake from Nanami's jars catches his attention.]

Um... Is this normal?

[He hopes that wasn't a rude question to ask...]

well actually the term is wildmagnus

[scension]

[Another cloud of dark mist enveloping the street up ahead means, to Sagi, another obstacle in the way of vandalising the radio tower. It's frustrating. He can't keep meandering like this. He's already on a detour thanks to a particularly badly collapsed building not far from here. The longer it takes for someone to silence that noise, the more people die.

By this point he knows what that swirling mist means: nothing, no matter how real the hallucinations seem. Take out the bizarre, floating pow-like creatures by any means possible, take out the visions and the dizziness and the screams ringing through his skull right along with them. It just isn't that clean or easy in practice, and Sagi would rather get through here fast.

His bursts of flight are quick but methodical. First up to the head of this lamppost, the cold electric light making a mockery of the roaring flames less than a block away. Up again to the exposed third floor of a gouged-out office building, ambiguously stained documents carpeting it like snow. Glancing below - okay, that should be enough height to clear the mist and get going before a flock of those crazed birds can home in on him. Out the other side, and across -

He doesn't make it across. The moment he leaps, something else - large, silhouetted, slender, unidentifiable - flies right past his head. It comes just close enough; his resolve falters just long enough for his wings to give out.]

Gah!

[He drops like a stone into the fog.]

[bythefurry]

[Joss's jump leads him to a nearby rooftop, and he immediately turns around in one graceful motion as he lands.

Between the air disturbance and the cry, he's pretty sure he nearly hit something.

He squints at the street down below. He can see the mist move differently in one spot, tendrils swirling up and away as if disturbed by some large and heavy object. Pokémon? Human? He doesn't know, but his conscience refuses to let him leave without making sure. He believes, at least, that the mysterious figure must have been friendly, even if only because the fog would have likely spit out anything hellsbent on eating his face off already. He's been avoiding the fog so he doesn't know what it does exactly, but it seems like bad news.

He jumps on a few different nearby buildings, hoping to get a better look from a different angle. His plan fails. The mist looks just as impenetrable from every side, and neither the few pebbles he tosses at the disturbed spot nor Swablu's wing flaps are big enough to affect it in a meaningful way. It seems he has no choice.

Readying his makeshift weapon and taking a deep breath, Joss propels himself into the fog, Swablu swooping down in his wake.]

[scension]

[Joss sproings into the fog and finds his greatest fear, Tataru expecting him to say something at a social gathering.

No, what he finds when he lands is a Pokemon battle. By a kerbside, the husk of a Shedinja lies unmoving on its back in an acrid puddle, a pebble on the ground not far away - apparently it counted as Rock-type. That leaves a violently thrashing Umbreon standing near it, the angry little Snom clinging to the collar on its neck in a bid to prod it in the eyes, a Marshtomp blasting a succession of water jets at it from a distance, and a tense-looking Sagi standing watch.

Well, he was standing watch. The mist means these two can't possibly be the last of the Pokemon waiting to pounce on him down here. Then Joss drops from the sky out of absolutely nowhere, and he's too taken aback to keep his guard up. The who and when is immediately obvious even through this thick fog, but... what? How? Why?]

Look out! There's more of them somewhere!

[Maybe keeping his guard up would have been a better idea. High above Sagi's head, out of his sight if not necessarily Joss's, the offending Musharna looms under the top of a lamppost like the world's creepiest kitsch novelty light. And down below, at his feet, loose tendrils of the dark mist are beginning to coalesce.]

[bythefurry]

[Joss knows that voice. He takes heed of Sagi's warning, acknowledging it with a grunt and immediately scanning the fog for more rogue Pokémon as Swablu flies off to assist Snom in her eye-poking mission. It actually doesn't take him long to notice the Musharna; as an Ishgardian, he's used to threats coming from above, and so the sky is one of the first places he decides to survey.

Unfortunately, Joss having no idea what this type of Pokémon does means he's being a little cautious instead of immediately sproinging for it. Also unfortunately, his eyes being up there means he doesn't notice the darkness swirling around Sagi.]

Above you. Something.

Wildcard

[selfconcept]

[ Unfortunately for Joss as he's in the middle of landing from his leap, he'll have a 60kg Musharna coming at him at full force as if someone just launched it into the sky.

Hien is on the ground, looking up at the sky. He thinks that little figure might be one of the rogue pokemon when it's actually Joss. It's too far to tell. His Flareon sure had a fun time punting it to the sky though.

RIP Joss. ]

[bythefurry]

[Looks like Team Joss is blasting off agaaaaaaiiiinnnnnn!]

[Ok, so it's not quite that bad. Though he absolutely didn't expect the sudden flying swine (aren't these usually rather placid, as far as rampaging Pokémon go???) years and years of dragoon training have definitely prepared him for strange instances of aerial combat. He manages a last-second spin by taking advantage of the wind displacement, avoiding the worst of the blow; the Musharna only ends up grazing his arm, and considering the vicious spikes on his vambraces it probably end up worse off than Joss himself.

Well. That certainly happened.

Joss lands on a nearby roof with a roll, sending an impressive amount of broken tiles and other debris flying. He scrambles to his feet, then, a tall and ominous shadow amidst the smoke and dust; surely, no one could ever mistake him for a strange Pokémon again.]

[selfconcept]

[ Hien squints to the distance. Did that thing just deflect a heavy Musharna and land on that roof? ]

Looks like that one is smarter than the rest.

[ Hien's arm transforms into this shadowy thing, grabs a Beheeyem and throws it over to his Flareon, who punts it like a kickball over to Joss's direction again. ]

[bythefurry]

[Joss hears the whistling sound of the Beheeyem cutting through the air before he sees it. He jumps high into the sky out of reflex, and more tiles go flying as the Pokémon finishes destroying the roof he was standing on just a second before.

Once is a fluke. Twice, and with a different Pokémon? Someone, or something is attacking him.

When he lands again, this time on a lamppost, he surveys the rough direction the Beheeyem was coming from. It's not easy to pinpoint the exact spot, what with the fire and the occasional pockets of Musharna mist, but he thinks he has a rough idea of where to go.

He jumps... to the street down below, only leaping when his way is blocked by an obstacle and always remaining as low as possible. It doesn't take him long to clear most of the distance, eventually jumping to a gouged out house not too far from Hien and hiding behind a half destroyed wall; since he doesn't know what he's facing or where it is exactly, he'd rather not dive straight to the ground.]

IV Wildcard

[yokeye]

[One cry of distress is further away than it seems, because Toki is very loud. His screams pierce through the air, echoing above the sounds of crackling flames of a city in ruin. Following the shrieks of pure terror, Joss will eventually find a young man backed into an alley. He looks like he's had a battle of some sort; his hoodie is torn in places, and he's a missing a shoe. His pink sock is either splattered with blood droplets, or covered in red polka dots. It's hard to tell.

The dumpster nearby is aflame, and the entrance between the two tall buildings is blocked by a herd of Rattata; the little rats are climbing all over each other, like an undulating sea of bodies. Clinging to the fire escape above the flow of vermin is a Spinda in yellow overalls. The fur on her face is smeared with crumbs and creme. Down in the pile of Rattata are the remnants of some baked goods.]

[bythefurry]

[This is not the type of scene Joss expected to see when he first heard those heartrending cries of terror.

This is, also, not how long he expected to need in order to pinpoint the origin of said cries. How can a single pair of human lungs be so loud? Joss may never know, but what he knows is that he cant ignore someone who is so clearly in distress... even if the distress seems, uh, marginally different from his previous rescues that day.

He considers how to proceed as he drops down into the alleyway, between Toki and the Rattata. The Pokémon needs immediate help, of course, but what if he rescued it and the rats immediately turned on the screaming young man (again, considering the state of his clothing?) Best to extract both at the same time if possible.

He turns to Toki and crouches, legs ready to jump again at any time.]

Get on my back. Quick.

[yokeye]

[Toki screams again as Joss drops down into the alley, a giant elf man not immediately labelled a saviour; though he does cut off Toki from the Rattata. After the command, Toki scrambles to comply, clinging desperately to Joss's neck and wrapping his legs around the man. The spots on his sock are, fortunately, polka dots, and he is uninjured beyond tiny scratches.]

They came out of nowhere!

[Hana-chan makes distressed cries from the fire escape. One of the Rattata has made it up three rungs, ready to eat her if she has no more creme rolls to ply them with.]

[bythefurry]

[Joss is a little relieved to see that Toki doesn't seem to require immediate medical attention, especially considering how overworked Mango's medical personnel is at the moment. He acknowledges the comment with a grunt before leaping next to Hana-chan with two powerful kicks: one to clear the distance between him and the fire escape... and the second on top of the boldest Ratatta's head, sending it tumbling back down into the roiling sea of its brethren. No delicious creme Spinda for the vermin today, sorry.

... Honestly yeah, legitimately sorry. He feels a little bad for that rat. That must have hurt.

He extends a hand towards Hana-chan, doing his best to avoid Toki falling from his back has he does so. It's ok, he has a lot of neck to cling to.]

Let's get you out of here.

Wildcard

[authoriser]

[ After Sooyoung patched up Dokja and seems to be well off with Joonghyuk around somewhere, Sooyoung takes a look around. She's been in the forest to help treat Dokja, so it isn't too long until she sees... something... she'd normally smoke, but she's eating a small lemon popsicle instead and there's a crunch upon seeing Joss without his pants. ]

Couldn't your sex have waited until after this scenario ended? Damn.

[bythefurry]

[Joss dies on the spot and is never heard from again.

Joss is having a no good very bad day. After his disastrous encounter with Hien, he'd run all the way to the edge of the forest, hoping that the Ascian(?) wouldn't follow him this far and that he could take some time to recover before looking for backup. Unfortunately, once he got there he was so exhausted he tripped on a root... only for a gaggle of small children to come out from behind a tree, laugh at him as they rifled through his purse, before kicking him in the ribs when it turned out to be empty and proceeding to remove and steal his pants instead.

They were very skilled children. It all happened in the span of ten seconds or so.

Unfortunately, in the time it took for him to put his boots back on they'd somehow already vanished. Joss took off after them... but it's Sooyoung that he ends up finding, and her comment takes him completely aback.]

Um.

[He tries to move his armor's coat tails a little further front, hoping to at least hide his smallclothes if not his complete embarrassment.]

Did you see children run past.

[authoriser]

Look, if you're going to try to hide your junk, bring a towel or something next time if you do it.

[ Embarrassing. ]

Why would I see kids around here? They should be in the hospital and Center for all I know. That's a pretty bad excuse if I've heard one.

[bythefurry]

[Joss feels like he's getting scolded... He thinks he might have seen the woman before, too, but he has subpar facial recognition skills and he's too busy burning with shame to really think about it.]

... Stole my trousers.

[His voice is only slightly above a whisper.]