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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! :)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Oh god that's so bright. Efi shields her eyes with her arm for a second before gradually getting used to her surroundings. She lowers her arm and blinks several times. Okay, she's good now. ]

Um...

[ She'd usually say that everything big that happens is on the top floor, but for machines, it feels like it would make sense if the control portion was a big room? That's the extent of her thinking, so she suggests-- ]

Maybe we can find something that says what's on each floor.

[ Like a directory. Those things are usually stuck on walls in the elevator area. ]

It's worth a look. [He had been about to suggest going floor by floor, unequivocally proving that he has less common sense than a 1-year-old.] Maybe at the desk...

[The receptionist's desk doesn't have anything of the sort, and the light from Sagi's dagger goes out while he searches it, forcing him to dazzle both of them again when he lights it up a second time. Closer to the elevator, however, a certain plate on the wall sticks out.]

Hey, that's a directory, isn't it?

[He hurries over. The Snom on his head slips down his hair and has to cling to his hairclip to avoid falling off.]

Offices, offices... Can't they label the rooms we actually care about?

[Other than the one that says "Top Floor: Company President's Office", he doesn't know what half the titles and jargon terms in these room names even mean.]

[ It helps that her dad had a lot of common sense when traveling with her, but she's definitely seeing stars for a bit. Why can't that thing be dimmer...

Efi follows Sagi to the directory. Saying big words are hard, and reading big words are even harder. She gives up on trying to read them and tries to think instead, as much as a kid can. ]

Mister Sagi, how about we should go to an office that looks important and maybe we'll find something that'll help?

[ Since Sagi only mentioned offices, she assumes they're all offices... ]

An office that looks important...

[As far as Sagi can discern, they may as well all be offices. And why wouldn't a company bigshot have some equally bigshot emergency shutdown mechanism in their office?]

Maybe the company president? You know, everyone's boss. That's all the way up on the tenth floor.

[But when he steps over to the elevator doors themselves and tries the panel to open them, nothing obvious happens.]

...It won't open. I guess it would be too easy.

[ Good thing Sagi clarified what a president was, or Efi would have been confused and thought he meant to say "present". ]

I'm okay with walking up the stairs, Mister Sagi.

[ Yeah... Her Wailmer is probably the biggest pokemon she has, but she doesn't really want to destroy the building. Her swole Marshtomp could probably carry her, but that thing is even shorter than Efi. ]

Just "Sagi" is fine, Efi.

[The moment he says it, he kind of wonders why - he doesn't tend to nitpick what little kids call him. Seems like he's still in a weird mood.

He dismisses the thought and goes to try the door to the stairs.]

Locked again... [After sizing the door up for a moment, he throws his whole weight into a shoulder tackle.] Hah!

[Lacking the physical strength of a Pokemon, he doesn't get it to budge. Sure is a loud bang, though! And it feels like, just for a moment, something in there gave...

Screw it, he's setting at least one bad example for Efi tonight after all. He holds a Pokeball high, and out springs his Marshtomp, tired after the whole arduous trek out here but eager to help.]

Stand back, okay?

Okay, Sagi then.

[ Her most favorite person in the world is a conman, so Sagi's show of breaking and entering is pretty much the norm for Efi's life. No worries about setting a bad example. Efi nods to his order and stands back behind Sagi.

Also, poor Marshtomp. She'll give it a berry after it breaks the door. ]

Hit it, Blue!

[One Tackle rattles the door violently, the lock thunking like something broke inside it. The second Tackle makes it crash open. Here's hoping their respective swole Mudkip evos never turn on them too.

The stairwell, like the lobby, is dark and eerily silent. The stairs above seem to spiral endlessly up into a cavernous void.]

Well, here it is. Floor number 10, don't forget. If you get tired, we'll take a break on the way up.

[He's really out here making a small child climb ten storeys' worth of stairs in the middle of the night, isn't he... But she did volunteer.]

No problem!

[ This mission is important to help fix everybody, so she is more than determined enough to make the trek up ten floors. She even makes use of her counting ability to stop when she eventually reaches the tenth floor. Amazing.

As expected, she's tired when they arrive, but she did not take a break even once in between. She holds out a beef jerky to Sagi. Here's your energy boost--Efi immediately gobbles hers up as she tries opening the door. No good... ]

Do we break the door again...?

[Sagi paces himself, but ten storeys isn't a trivial climb when he's reluctant to use his wings to help and ditch Efi by herself. He needs a moment once they make it to the tenth floor, so Efi gets to check out the door first.]

Thanks. [While he really has no appetite right now, he appreciates the gesture, and also the jerky.] I think... wait. There's a keypad...

[Which implies that the lock here might be harder to brute-force. He approaches it with some caution. The layout looks strange to him, but yes, that's a keypad like they use back in the Empire.]

It looks like it needs a password. There's space for four characters.

[Experimentally, with the air of an explorer setting foot on an unknown island, he types in "1234". Beep. Wrong.]

...Hey, Efi, give me four letters or numbers?

[Might as well.]

[ Efi doesn't take too long to think of a set. ]

Ah, maybe four 0s! Or all 1s?

[ Never tell Efi to make a password. ]

[Never tell Sagi to, either. He obligingly types both guesses in, one after the other. Beep - nope. Beep - still nope. Hmm. In the same vein, "AAAA"...

The lock clicks open.]

Aww, nice! [He allows himself a tiny fistpump. It's good to know that no matter how humanity and its technology evolve, there are still going to be people like him who can't be bothered to set real passwords.] Let's look inside.

[He pushes the door the rest of the way. A large, modern-looking office greets them.]

Good job, Sagi!

[ Sagi is an ace hacker--Efi thinks that's so cool! She nods and then goes to look inside the office. ]

Uwah... it looks so pro.

[ Efi takes a further look inside, wandering around. Wow, that fern looks so dead on the desk when she gets close to it. ]

The plant doesn't look very green...

[ She looks over at Sagi. ]

Maybe it's thirsty! Does Blue wanna help again?

Oh, you're right. It looks dry.

[His attention wandered to the plant first, but he isn't going to admit that. On Efi's suggestion, he lets his Marshtomp out onto the office floor, having withdrawn him earlier for the long stair climb.]

Can you water it? Just a little.

[Marshtomp toddles over and waters the plant with a gentle stream from his fishy mouth. It's... gross, honestly, but it does the trick. Sagi pets him on the head before wandering over to the chairs lining the room, but turns back as soon as he notices... something... pop out of the flowerpot.]

A Pokemon?

[The Oddish looks at them, yawns, and settles back down. It doesn't seem to be hostile, and right now Sagi kind of appreciates that.]

Hope that feels better, little guy.

[Anyway, he's going to run his hand along all these chairs. It's very important. Probably.]

[ Efi stares at the little Oddish poke its head out with wonder. It's so cute and small! She pokes the leaf once, but. Right. Gotta help Sagi look for stuff. She peeks over the desk to see a lot of paper stacks and before Sagi can block her view of "scraps", Efi happily chirps: ]

Cra... It's the game Papa used to play!

[ She means craps. ]

[Sagi pauses with his hand halfway up the frame of the oil painting on the wall.]

Huh? Did you find something?

[He doesn't immediately understand what Efi is getting at, but when he looks at the labels... ah. He hurries to the desk, putting himself between Efi and the paper baskets. He didn't notice anything special about the chairs or decor, anyway. They're soft and springy to touch, they look well-kept overall, they probably cost a lot of money, and that's about it.]

...I'll look through these, actually. They might have written something about trying to fix the noise themselves. Can you help me check the rest of the desk?

[Basket labels aside, Efi probably can't help with skim-reading these, no matter how enthusiastic she is. He'll just thumb through them real quick, though he's conscientious enough to keep the sheets of paper in order.]

...Hmm.

[Not the most promising of hmms.]

Okay!

[ Efi goes to look around the desk to see if there's anything she should look at that Sagi isn't already. Well, the drawers are here. That should be something, right? She opens the top one and finds a bunch of colorful pens, sticky notes and staples. She takes a green pen, because finders keepers. Green is pretty. Then she opens the top left drawer, which has scissors, a stapler, tape and more. She takes a pair of scissors. She goes through the rest of the drawers, finding white paper and a pokeball. The last one is locked. ]

Sagi, Sagi! I found a ball! Why would the big boss man leave his friend here all alone?

[Sagi is looking entirely the wrong way to deter Efi from her stationery crimes, but he does leaf through all the papers in the time it takes her to commit them - they're not hard to skim-read once he notices that most of them seem to be the same kind of boring document. As ever, this does not stop him from compulsively narrating them.]

Bills... bad print-outs... more bills. Running a business this large sounds stressful. But there's nothing directly about the noise...

[After putting the papers back, a wadded-up sheet of similar paper catches his eye inside a nearby trash bin. He crouches down to try and fish it out, but all he gets for his efforts is a sticky blob of gum on the palm of his glove. He's hastily scraping it off on the side of the bin when Efi finds the Pokeball; her calling his name gets him to sit up with a start.]

Oh... that's a good question. If you really thought the tower was dangerous, leaving your friend here alone seems kind of cruel. Or if they just weren't here when it started, that means they ditched their Pokemon here overnight.

[Neither option reflects well on whoever this big boss person is, in Sagi's inexpert opinion. Still, there's no clear way it ties into their current radio antenna problem.]

Let's not bother the Pokemon for now. What else did you find?

Um... bunch of papers and tools! Nothing much...

[ She tries opening the last drawer, and finds out that it's locked. Huh. Maybe if she copies what her papa did, he'd praise her for it later when he comes back. She rummages the other drawer for paper clips and unlocks the last drawer. ]

There's a bunch of stuff in here though!

[Ah... she picked the lock, just like that. Efficiently, too. Before Sagi can say anything, the filing cabinet in the lower drawer slides open.]

Efi...

[He isn't sure how disappointed he should sound. They are under pressure to succeed here, and they've exhausted the obvious hiding places for clues that he could discern right off the bat. But breaking into a deliberately locked drawer just seems... invasive.

To distract himself from that, but inadvertently also from whatever further chaos Efi might be considering after picking the lock, he glances over the top of the desk. There's a small machine sitting there, strongly resembling the sleeker kind of machina display screens, that seems to be asking for yet another password. The paper baskets would have been a great place to hide something like that, he thinks. Disappointing.]

Hey, little guy. Do you know how to get into this machine?

[The Oddish squeaks at him and helpfully wiggles its fern-like leaves. He has to admit it's very cute.]

...Did you catch what that means?

[Efi is also small and cute. Perhaps they can find some kind of rapport.]

I think... it doesn't know how to use it!

[ That might have sounded obvious, but Efi thought it was a good answer. Sorry, Sagi. ]

Maybe the friend inside the pokeball knows? Is it important to use it though? The machine thingy.

Maybe, maybe not. I don't see anything else in here that could be hooked up to the machine upstairs.

[Thinking on it for a second, he didn't see anything else relevant to the antenna, period. They're almost certainly in the wrong place after all. May as well exhaust their options here just to say they tried. He shrugs, picks the Pokeball up from the drawer and presses the button.

An Exploud immediately materialises on the other side of the desk. Its mouth is very big. Its teeth are very large. It does not look nearly as friendly as the Oddish.

It takes Sagi a moment to find where its eyes even are. He tries his best to look like they have any business in this office whatsoever.] Uh. Hi there. We're sorry for barging in. The machine on the roof is going haywire, so we got worried...

[...Its mouth is very big. He can see all the way down into its throat. He would really prefer not to. He wanted to come up here to help, not to loot someone's desk and pick needless fights.]

Actually, we were just leaving. [He'll just step away from the desk now, tugging lightly on Efi's criminal hand.] Efi, come on. I've got a better idea.

[It is not a better idea. But they're on the top floor, and the roof is closer than jumping all the way back down.]

[ Rude, she's not a criminal!! But she is being led by Sagi and waves to Exploud. ]

Bye big mouth friend!

[ She has no idea what the name is, so that is its name for now. But she wonders where Sagi is leading her to. ]

Where are we going?

[Sagi opts to walk out of the office rather than run, though it's a... decidedly brisk walk. When he sees that his Pokemon and Efi have made it out of the office without getting chomped, he takes the trouble to close the door behind them. Whew.]

The roof. It's close. The door ought to be just up there.

[He points up the dark stairwell.]

We're taking the machine with us. As long as we stop the noise, we can puzzle out what its deal is later.

[He hesitates, but not for long. They've spent plenty of time climbing the stairs and loitering up here.]

...But if something fights us for it, I want you to go back outside and tell your dad, or someone else from those meetings we had on Toran. Understood?

[ Efi looks up at the dark stairwell when Sagi points to it. Efi wants to protest that she can help fight too, but it looks like Sagi is having absolutely none of that right now. Considering what he went through earlier today, Efi sorta gets it and nods. ]

... Okay. I'll tell the others if something happens. Can I at least have a friend to help you if someone fights though?

[ She doesn't mention her dad, because, well, she can't tell him. But Sagi doesn't need to feel bad any more than he has to. ]

premise ⬥ taken ⬥ faq ⬥ navigation

→ THE BEGINNING

→ THE RAMPAGE

→ HELP...?

→ MOD NOTES

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