OCTOBER EVENT PT2

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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

[selfconcept]

[ Hien starts to rush, because the less they stay in here, the better. Also, the faster they get away from that scene, it would probably be better for Hythlo too.

In his hurry, he forgets to look more carefully after peeking out and then when he quietly runs out, he barely manages to avoid a bone club to the face. Jesus christ. His heart rate sure spiked with that. Bless past Hien for investing in evasion with power nerfs. ]

Thunder Wave won't work--

[ So don't send out your Joltik. It deserves better. Hien doesn't know what Alolan Marowaks are, if this one even is one. He's assuming it's some combination of ground and ghost types.

They'll probably have to use one of the pokedolls here. ]

[weenwoon]

[Hythlo is not nearly as quick as Hien, and so the second thrown bone gets him on the chin, throwing his head back and almost knocking him over. He can taste blood in his mouth, but with the pain of the impact itself it's impossible to tell whether that's a bitten cheek or tongue, a lost tooth or simply the skin of his lips broken. At least his jaw is intact, or else between this and the earlier Cofagrigus strangling he would have thought the world never wants him to speak again. Rude.

He grunts in pain and staggers upright, fingers reaching for his Pokeball when Hien's warning filters into his mind. Luckily, it seems like the path to the next set of stairs is fairly clear... so if they manage to distract the Pokemon, they can make a break for it.

Unluckily, the Marowak raises its bone club again (how did it get it back? a mystery) and lets out a low, furious cry. Death to intruders!

Its call is answered by higher-pitched, but no less angry voices, as the other rampaging Pokemon from this floor start gathering around. Well, now they've got an audience.

Instead of the Pokeball, Hythlo closes his fingers on the Rowlett doll he'd made, praying furiously that a) Hien was right; b) Hythlo managed to recreate it properly. He whips it out in a quick motion, then tosses it away from the path to the stairs, among the gathering Pokemon crowd. If the distraction works, he's just going to grab Hien's hand and make a break for the next floor.]

[selfconcept]

[ The distraction is successful and as Hythlo takes Hien's hand to rush up to the next floor, they can hear the pokemon tear apart the doll rather viciously. Hien didn't think they'd do that, but he's just glad that they managed to get away. In hindsight, he probably should have expected a Marowak in this sort of place.

They quickly treat whatever wounds they suffered from that floor and keep moving. They can't afford to waste time on a single floor too much. More pokedolls are used to avoid the more dastardly ghost pokemon along with other types. A Kadabra probably had a great time flinging them around until Hien decided it was a very good time for his Flareon and Eevee to kick sand into its face long enough for them to get away. The floors are brutal, but they eventually make it to the top and Hien is honestly surprised that he's still standing without having any of his powers that help his endurance. Just running up all those floors would have been a test of true stamina, let alone fighting all those on the way here. Hatenna's healing skills would be useful here, but she's still affected by whatever is going on. Hien had a first aid kit so he was using it very liberally whenever they suffered injuries. He still bled a lot, but it's whatever. There's been worse.

But now they're finally at the top floor. Hien eyes the wall that he had a suspicious eye on last time he was here. ]

It's... beyond that wall. Whatever it's supposed to be.

[ He sounds terribly out of breath--he used up a lot of supplies to get here, including potions, antidotes, bandages... you name it. ]

[weenwoon]

[Hythlo has been faring worse than Hien, but he holds on out of sheer determination and the desire not to let his friend down. He's already aware how much less use he is here than Hien; dragging him down is not part of the plan. His height continues to be the one advantage, though, and it's been more than once that he had to grab Hien and lift him out of the way of things, or help him climb up somewhere. They had to cheat one floor like that, using a gap in the ceiling to climb up a floor without getting noticed by the rampaging ghosts.

The main thing keeping him going has been the ever-growing list of snacks they agreed on inbetween floors, by way of emotional relief: it was better than dwelling on the hardships of the ascent or the previous horrors of the day.

When they reach the top floor, Hythlo just leans against the first available wall, closing his eyes for a few moments, then holds up a finger.]

Mochi ice cream.

[He still doesn't know what it is, and he'll be damned if he dies before finding out. He takes a few deep breaths to regain his balance, both physically and mentally, and looks at Hien.]

You sound very certain. Have you been here before? The top floor.

[selfconcept]

Dibs on honeydew.

[ Hien replies to the mochi ice cream remark right away. If he's getting through this, he would like a reward of this at the very least. It's also the one he sounds the most eager for with how fast that reply comes. But anyway, he looks at the floor before them. It's so cold and quiet, which makes it pretty unnerving. Hien would rather the floor be full of chaos, because at least he'd know what to expect. But this makes sense with his previous investigation, since whatever was behind that wall was something his Litwick had very much avoided to go to, much less even look in its direction. ]

Yeah, there was something going on with the ghost pokemon to the point they were really scared of it. I came here with someone, and we couldn't find any hidden passages or a switch.

[ He drops several pokeballs, releasing Flareon, Spheal, and Eevee. ]

So now we're going to break down that wall. Take care not to disturb the surrounding graves.

[ The three small pokemon nod and prance over to where the wall is and attempt to break it down, or at least blow a hole into it as carefully as possible. ]

[weenwoon]

[Hythlo looks at the wall. His vision is pretty blurry from the exhaustion, but he takes a deep breath and tries to focus...]

Indeed. There truly is... something there. Some manner of a creature. I cannot tell what kind.

[Aware that that's about the extent of what he can do, Hythlo stands back, taking this opportunity to catch his breath and rest for the short while it will take Hien and his Pokemon to break down the wall.

Nevertheless, despite his knowledge that something is on the other side of the wall, he suddenly feels cold when there is a yelp and a scrabbling noise from it. Perhaps it's because he was expecting something that even the ghosts are afraid of to be... more threatening. Instead, it sounds more like a frightened creature...

He lays a hand on Hien's shoulder.]

Did you hear that?

[selfconcept]

Hear what?

[ Hien's senses would be usually more keen, but he's exhausted without powers. He hasn't felt this exhausted in so long... He calls off the pokemon, telling them to remain standby as he looks into the hole himself. It's dark... but he gets a feeling something or someone is on the other side and watching him.

He turns to Hythlo. ]

There's something in there. I'm gonna go take a look.

[ Before Hythlo can protest or reply, gear turning noises occur, and Hien shrinks to the size of a five year old. His clothes are fine. No Furuba nonsense. ]

[weenwoon]

[Before Hythlo can answer, Hien decides that he is baby and wants power. Hythlo just stares, mouth agape.]

...By the heavens. I had no idea.

[He slowly lowers himself to one knee next to Hien, and still ends up being taller than him.]

Will you be alright? In this form, I mean to say...

[Listen he can't let a baby get eaten by some random wall horror.]

[selfconcept]

[ Hien squints at him, though the mask doesn't really show that very well. He really does look like a miniature version of himself with the mask on... not that it's wrong anyway. ]

... I'll be fine. I'm still me, after all.

[ Therefore, not a baby. His voice hasn't changed, but it's the default one with distortion and static. Imagine a child with an adult-sounding voice. He's here for dissonance.

Anyway, he goes into the hole and turns on a lighter effortlessly to light the way, though the area is very small. ]

[weenwoon]

[Hien certainly gets the dissonance in the form of confusion that writes itself all over Hythlo's features. This is somehow very unsettling.

Despite Hien's reassurances, Hythlo can't help but draw closer to the hole as well, poking his head inside. That's about as far as he can go, though, because his stupid wide shoulders won't fit. He scans the area immediately around them, but it doesn't seem like there are any vengeful ghosts here ready to rip their heads off.]

I heard something cry out and run away, I think. I know not what we should expect...

[selfconcept]

[ Hien is definitely underestimating whatever is in here, moreso after hearing that from Hythlo. ]

If it's like that, it should be easy to handle. Leave it to me.

[ Hien goes further inside and... sees a four-year old child who promptly smacks the lighter out of Hien's hand, yelling at him why is he carrying something so dangerous. He has a mask over his face, so the child can't see (also because it's dark), but his eyes are so dead right now. If it's so dangerous, why did you smack it away like that?? You stupid baby. Hien has his hand wander on the floor in an attempt to find the lighter. ]

It's a kid, Hythlodaeus.

[weenwoon]

[Hythlodaeus breaks out into cold sweat. A child? He quickly scans the rest of the wall, hoping to see some point of entry... but there is none. He gets a horrible feeling about this. He wants to draw back, but it means leaving Hien alone in the wall, so he moves to poke his head in instead.]

W-What do you mean, a child? How?

[selfconcept]

It's a child.

[ Hien repeats in case Hythlo didn't get it. He doesn't explain, because he doesn't know why either. After picking up the lighter, he lights it again, in which... the kid smacks it out of his hand again. This brat. ]

What are you doing here? Let's get you out of this place.

[ The kid protests while Hien tries to look for his lighter a second time. The kid says that he won't leave the tower until all the ghost pokemon are gone and asks if they're the ones who need help escaping. ]

Listen, kid... this is a graveyard. There are always gonna be ghost pokemon here. If you're scared of ghosts, we can accompany you.