OCTOBER EVENT PT2

[teamboba]

(toplevel view)

OCTOBER EVENT PT2

premise ⬥ taken ⬥ faq ⬥ navigation

→ 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

investigation fail

[yokeye]

[Upon making it to the Pokemon Center, Toki races up the steps to bring Hana-chan inside. This time, he's finally crying because it's just so much stress. They take Hana-chan and assure him she'll be fine. His second task is looking around for Niko, but there's a lot of people and one small girl could get lost in here. He'll find the PA system later.

First, it's time to drag Fai to the front desk and demand to be connected with an expert in Pokemon screams. They get strange looks, and some of the NPCs are appalled at their request. Any trainer spoken to states they don't know any Pokemon screams and they've never heard that squiggly noise before either.]

"... that went well."

[partymagician]

[ Seems like asking around didn't help them out much here. Fai lets out a small sigh when they finally settle in a corner of the Pokemon Center. ]

Ah well... At least we can rule out that they don't know what Pokemon it's from? Maybe it's a rare one.

[yokeye]

Like one that doesn't usually live on this island?

[His eyes go wide, as another thought occurs to him.]

What if it's like some science experiment gone wrong and there's some horrible zombie thing made up of different Pokemon parts out there, releasing its anguished cries upon the humans who had dared to mess with the natural order of things!?

[partymagician]

[ He waves a hand in denial. ]

Ah, maybe not something quite like that. It may be something that only comes out every few years or more. But your idea might make a good novel.

[yokeye]

[He laughs a little nervously. His imagination runs away with him sometimes, but at least he's capable of recognizing that now.]

I see! A hibernating Pokemon.

[No.]

[partymagician]

[ He nods. ]

It's a possibility.

[ In all honesty, he isn't sure about that but... who knows at this point. ]

Regardless, we may have to look for other methods of finding out the source of those cries. I don't know what exactly we could do, though.

[yokeye]

[Toki sighs dramatically. This is too much thinking.]

I don't know either!

[While he tries to come up with anything at all, one of the Center staff walks over with Hana-chan. She's awake and eating a handful of berries. She runs over to Toki and clings.]

Hana-chan! You're okay! Oh!

[Toki looks over at Fai like he's had a brilliant idea, because he has.]

We can trap the screaming Pokemon with berries! Like a mouse trap!

[He's forgotten they want to help it, and not capture it.]

[partymagician]

You think so?

[ He's glad that Hana-chan is safe, but not so glad for Toki's idea. ]

I'm worried it might be out of our league, with all the chaos it's causing.

[yokeye]

[Toki seems to seriously consider that for a moment.]

We'd need really big berries.

[partymagician]

[ You know what, he wants to see where this will take them. ]

...Where would we get those? Grow them ourselves?

[yokeye]

A greenhouse!

[Surely, someone's growing genetically engineered giant berries.]

We can ask the front desk!

[partymagician]

This is a big city, so there must be one around here somewhere.

[ If it's not destroyed already. ]

Let's go ask!

[ Time to go back to the front desk...! ]

[yokeye]

[At the front desk, Toki explains in great rambling detail about his plot to use a giant berry to catch the screaming Pokemon. He gestures wildly and Hana-chan mimics him a little out of sync. The clerk stares at him for almost a full minute, before stating that there aren't any greenhouses in Mango City. Toki could go out to the woods and pick wild berries, though they're not giant.]

Hmm.

[Toki ponders for half a second before turning to Fai.]

We can gather a ton of little berries and glue them together into one giant berry and the screaming Pokemon won't know until he gets to close to them and he'll think it's a giant one and bam! We got him!

[partymagician]

[ Oh, Toki. ]

...Let's try to find Niko first. Maybe we can find out more about what's going on while we look for her.

[ Gluing berries together sounds like a waste of their time, so he hopes Toki forgets that idea while they look. ]

[yokeye]

Niko! I almost forgot!

[Oh my god. He's the worst boyfriend ever.]

Do you think she could have gone to the hospital?

[The berries are forgotten.]

[partymagician]

I think it's worth going to see if she's there. She might have needed some medical attention.

[ Since he still knows Niko as that very sickly girl. ]

[yokeye]

[Internally screaming.]

Her heart, she... she has a thing in it that regulates... she was already- when we got here, and I-

[He's a panicking a little, but trying not to freak out completely. Niko had been distressed back in the forest in Akamori right before they got here, and it hadn't stopped; not with all the Pokemon attacks and strange memories coming back.]

Okay. Yes. The hospital.

[partymagician]

Hey.

[ He puts a hand on Toki's shoulder. ]

Don't start panicking until we see there's something wrong. She could be completely fine.

[yokeye]

[He nods, but doesn't look convinced. Could be. Could be.]

I... which way is it, the hospital?

[He spent most of his previous time in Mango City there, but he's never been good with directions and it's all like a dream.]

[partymagician]

It's this way.

[ He points in the direction of it before he starts walking. ]

Let's go. [ He pauses. ] Be careful. There's still a lot going on outside.

[yokeye]

[Toki follows, holding Hana-chan close. He's not prepared for this much chaos. Mango City itself is huge compared to his tiny town in the forest, and he hasn't adjusted to being back here with so many things to be distracted by; let alone all the rampaging Pokemon and the louder static.]

I hope everyone's okay.

[Those on the fringes of his memory, people he had met here before.]

[partymagician]

So do I. I haven't even come across many from our group.

[ There's been too much chaos.

Thankfully the hospital isn't too far, and they can see it from where they are. ]

[yokeye]

Ah, there it is!

[Toki starts running ahead, without watching for any rogue Pokemon or other hazards.]

Thank you, Fai!

[partymagician]

Wait!

[ He doesn't react fast enough to grab Toki's wrist, and one of the Murkrow nearby decides to swoop in on Toki.

Fai moves to put up a barrier and hopefully keep Toki from getting hurt. ]

[yokeye]

[Toki shrieks and ducks, seeing the Murkrow at only the last minute after Fai shouts. He would have been pecked to death if not for the barrier.]

Oh my god! The keep coming after me!

[He's taking it as a personal affront, even though they're attacking everyone indiscriminately.]