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

[scension]

[Sagi has fears, as that wavering Musharna well knows, but trees are not among them. Nor are men coming after him with swords. If anything, he looks frustrated.]

Oh, come on! Snap out of it!

[In hindsight he should have predicted this too. Regardless, it's bad. Despite all previous efforts, Sagi has no frame of reference for what Joss is capable of when not deep in some malicious hallucination and out for blood. He could escape to a roof or the top of one of those tall archways, but apparently Joss can just... sproing. For that matter, are those stone buildings even solid enough to jump on? Some of them are beginning to look hazy, though again the snow makes it hard to tell.

He shivers. The cold is convincingly numbing. Rather than charge into a fight he may be unprepared for, he'd better end this fast. Acting on pure impulse, he scoops up his Snom from her perch atop Marshtomp's head and hurls her at the Musharna like a stone. Sparkle of Life! Despite the howling wintry wind, she even makes it to their mark, grabbing onto the creature's snout with an angry squeak.]

Both of you, hit it! Finish it off!

[He'll apologise to her when things calm down. For now, he opens his wings and dashes for cover. The half-destroyed stone statue over there should do.]

[bythefurry]

[Joss doesn't run, or even jump over to Sagi's spot. He slowly walks, every step echoing on the cobblestones in an even rhythm akin to a clock ticking.

... Then Snom pokes the Musharna in the eye, and the statue Sagi was hiding behind wavers and disappears, as well as the illusion covering him.

Joss's ominous walk slows to a halt. Though he momentarily looks taken aback, it's quickly replaced by a guarded expression, and he raises his sword high between Sagi and himself as if he's used to his enemies taking on familiar faces.

(Is it even a sword? If you squint, it kind of looks like a reinforcing bar now...)]

I know your tricks, Ascian.

[To the side, Musharna screeches as Sagi's Pokémon continue their assault, its illusions becoming less solid by the minute. Another good hit or two should do it.]

[scension]

Well, I don't!

[There goes that tactic. Evasive manoeuvres were never Sagi's strong point anyway. Between the flurries of snow now passing straight through him like a particularly fragmented ghost, the curling remnants of the mist and the blurred outlines of the street trying to reimpose itself on reality, he can't see anyplace else to run now. The images are fading, the culprit weakening. He only needs to hold out a little longer... and, preferably, to not take a steel bar to the head...

He returns his dagger to its magnus and gestures widely, standing his ground.]

It's fake! [He should know!] Just look around you!

[Behind Joss, there's a metallic thud as Sagi's Marshtomp Tackles the Musharna into one of the remaining fluttering banners - no, a street sign papered in tattered flyers. The Musharna wheezes. Its feet scrape the base of the sign, barely afloat. Then, slowly, it sinks to the concrete.]

[bythefurry]

[Joss blinks as if waking up from a dream as the mist clouding his mind finally dissipates entirely.

This isn't an Ascian. He didn't actually go home only to find his stay in this strange world had triggered the destruction of all he holds dear. This is the actual Sagi standing before him, and he'd nearly... Fury take him.]

I'm a fool.

[He turns his gaze to the unconscious Musharna. Wretched creature.]

Master Sagi. Sorry.

[scension]

[Well, it got a little delayed, but now Sagi can look around to check if any other rogue Pokemon sprung out of the woodwork. It doesn't look like it. They've earned a moment's reprieve from the fighting, if not the blaring static.

He relaxes, finally.]

No, it's OK. I... saw some of what it showed you.

[More than enough to get the picture, but it's an apology of sorts, too. Between Hythlo and these Psychic-types, he'd like to encounter some new form of magic that isn't horribly intrusive.]

[bythefurry]

My home.

[This is all he really feels the need to say. Though he does feel like this was a horribly intrusive event, if this creature brings fears to life he's sure he wouldn't have been the first person to see his loved ones dead.

Speaking of...]

I... saw the monster as well. Monsters.

[scension]

[...He supposes it's only fair.]

Yeah. Those it got out of me.

[Which is obvious, yes, but easier than explaining.]

Are you going to be okay?

[bythefurry]

[He nods. It brought to mind that anything could be happening at home while he's stuck here, but it's not like Sagi can do anything about that. Imagine, like, talking about your fears instead of bottling them up until a ghost dude comes out of you to fuck shit up.]

You?

[scension]

[Imagine processing anything before a ghost inside you starts fucking shit up.]

I'm fine. It wasn't real.

[...Come to think, he's still not sure what prompted Joss to sproing down into the fog in the first place. He is never sure what prompts Joss to be in any of the places he keeps turning up in, but that doesn't stop him wondering. Things happened a little too fast for him to have drawn the connection between that and whatever he nearly crashed into up above.]

What were you doing out here alone, anyway? [With a Pokemon and a steel bar, but he knows what he means.] If you don't mind me asking.

[bythefurry]

[Joss is... also not really making the connection. At this point he thinks what he nearly hit was probably some kind of bird.]

Something fell into the fog.

[As usual with Joss, it's true but explains roughly nothing.]

[scension]

Oh, hmm. Did you find it?

[This may be but one of the mysteries they will never have the brain cells to solve. If only Sagi had one.]

[bythefurry]

[He shakes his head. Whatever that was, he hopes it's ok and that it won't go on to father an evil albino child.]

[scension]

I know there was some kind of Pokemon flying overhead before I fell into the fog. It could have dropped it.

[Like, some small object it looted or was trying to protect. Maybe both. Oh well.]

No point looking until we stop the noise. Will you two be OK from here?

[Joss and the... wait, hold on. Hmm. He can't help but notice that there is a distinct lack of self-important squawking in the vicinity right now.]

...Actually, where is your bird?

[bythefurry]

[Joss's thought that he didn't see any flying Pokémon is quickly interrupted by Sagi's remark.]

Huh.

[He looks around. It is eerily squawking-free around here.]

Heard her while looking for the pink monster. Can't be far.

[scension]

I can help look. [He doesn't think twice before suggesting it. It's almost a reflex.] I don't think that bar is going to help as much.

[Of course, he's under pressure to hurry onward and steal a radio antenna, but the option of leaving Joss alone and relatively defenseless doesn't even enter his mind for dismissal. That would be wrong.]

[bythefurry]

[He nods. Sagi is a nice young man. He hopes he didn't kill any of his heretic friends, if that's what he is.]

Thank you. Shouldn't be far.

[Honestly they're probably just going to find her ripping the stuffing out of some destroyed couch or something.]