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DECEMBER LOG PT1

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→ OH THANK GOD

(click to expand - the boba shop survived!!)

Sandstorms quietly continue to blow across Melona's desert, tinged black with ash carried over from the west where the volcano still intermittently sputters and spits, its hiccups and coughs darkening the sky to the west. Occasionally, a clap of thunder can be heard even as far as Melona's dome, and a shadow can be seen within the ash clouds looming above the mountains. Whispered rumors travel throughout the region, carrying warnings that "The storm is alive," remembering the destruction wrought upon Toran and the volcanic eruption two months ago that had devastated Hami, the town to the northwest. For two months, the heat and the ash had choked the skies over the mountains of Hami, but eventually, the lava stops flowing. Eventually, the skies begin to clear. Eventually, the people of Melona become curious enough— concerned enough— aware enough that their life inside their bubble that blinded them to the plights of the world at large— to start sending small groups out to Hami to see what aid, if any, they might require. The gym leader himself wanted to head the expedition, worried about his friend and fellow gym leader in the neighboring town, but he got yelled at enough for leaving his post during the last month that he reluctantly agrees to remain at the gym. Because, apparently, challenging gyms is very very important to some people, never mind the world being in a crisis and the safety of both people and Pokemon being at stake.

Instead, the desert guides are the ones who lead the way to Hami, knowing the desert and the mountains and are able to carve the most direct path towards the town. Self-sufficient as the townspeople of Melona tend to be, they do not ask for volunteers to join them, but they do not turn down help either, whether from bleeding hearts who want to do everything they can to assist people in need, or those who just want to get to the next town for their badges and ribbons. Like the trek from Mango to Melona, travel to Hami also takes several days of camping, of riding upon Numel through the sand, of climbing mountains and scaling unstable cliffs because there is no well-worn path from the ground to the peak. And nestled in the middle of the mountains, where Hami is supposed to be...

Ash and cinders. A field of rubble. Skeletons of buildings jutting up out of the ground where they are half collapsed and half buried in the ground, flames licking what little wood and scraps of cloth remain and hungering to devoid the new souls that have stepped within their domain. Aside from the rescue team from Melona, there is not another soul in sight, no sound of everyday chatter in the distance nor husks of bodies left charred on the ground. In this town laid to ruin, a single building has been left relatively untouched by the flow of lava that had run through its streets and washed away all its people. The sign hanging above the front door, blackened at the edges, reads: "Hami Boba." Inside, a single worker in uniform can be seen slumped over the counter, who is startled so badly when the door opens that she falls off her stool and blanches as if she'd seen a ghost— which is exactly what she thought, because who else would be here in Hami after everything that had happened? The volcano had erupted two months ago, she explains, all of the sudden without warning and most of the townspeople were forced to leave. Others stayed behind, those with rock and ground Pokemon who weren't bothered by the heat, or those with water and ice Pokemon who were willing to tough it out to battle the lava and the flames in an effort to save their town. This war against nature lasted over a month, and nobody ever came to their aid... But eventually, it became clear that their greatest threat came from the sky, from the ash that fell upon the land like a woolen blanket and smothered all the air, driving the last of the resistance fighters out.

In the end, the only person left in the entire town was her. The boba shop was constructed with the nearby volcano in mind, and there is no lack of things to eat inside the shop when there was only herself to ration for, but the funny thing is... even though she was stuck indoors and was horrifyingly lonely, she could feel a cool breeze pass through the shop every once in a while, and the air remained fresh. It felt as if there were something watching over her, she explains shyly, and there must have been, because she held onto that hope all this time and her patience finally paid off. Her first customers in two months!! Would they like some boba? The store's specialty is Shuckle berry juice boba! The stamps are a little dried out, but you get a cute red Slugma stamp for visiting this shop.

→ WELCOME TO THE NEW HAMA

(click to expand - it's free to live out here)

So, there's that. There is no town, not really. No gym, no contest hall. But the Melona guides aren't satisfied with leaving it at that, so they stock up on all the Shuckle berry juice boba they can carry and continue their search for the town's residents. They offer up Abras to teleport anybody who doesn't want to continue back to Melona, and then split into small groups to spread out across the mountainside, winding around smoldering lava lakes and trudging through paths knee high in ash. Here and there, all across the mountain range, small campsites can be seen. Up on a ledge on the cliffside, a group of people can be seen foraging berries alongside some wild Mankey. Out in the open in a valley, another group of people are seen roasting meat and nuts over several wild Torkoals' backs. At the base of one of the mountains, another group of people and Machop are hard at work breaking large boulders into smaller pieces to build shelter. Rather than having relocated to a single area, the people of Hami seem to have scattered to live in the mountains, welcome enough to the Melona guides and those who accompany them but denying that they need any help or expressing any real desire to reform a central town. There is no need, after all. Everything they need to live on is provided by the land and the wild Pokemon who share not only their habitat, but where to find food and water, and keep them warm and safe through the night. The volcano still grumbles from time to time, the seas around them continue to churn with relentless whirlpools, and sandstorms rage in the east towards Melona. But right now, they're just trying to live day by day.

While there is no main town any longer, the people do come together from time to time in the valley to share resources and spread news, and once a week, they sit together under the stars and hold Pokemon Contests on a stage that is nothing more than a large, wide slab of rock. The gym leader, Tsubomi, specializes in both fire and fighting type Pokemon and honors battles wherever she is challenged. Because of the lack of a gym building, she might need to be tracked down, though she is easier to find than Konoha, often making set rounds from group to group, checking up on the townspeople spread across the mountains. Central to all the campsites are natural hot springs, and both people and wild Pokemon come here to submerge themselves in the steaming waters and rejuvenate after a long, hard day. When the first of the rescue team arrives at the hot springs, two familiar faces are seen: a girl with pink hair and a boy with blue hair. Nanami opens her eyes blearily and pats Minato on the face. He looks up at the group and goes, "Hey. What's up?"

→ AW NUTS...

(click to expand - you really should have done something about that volcano)

A couple nights into the month, a shooting star is spotted streaming across the sky and disappearing into the waters to the southwest.

The ground shakes.

In the dead of night, the sky is lit up with a spew of fire that bursts out of the volcano hundreds of meters in the air, black smoke billowing up into the air in thick clouds, the mountains hacking up ash and molten rock. Screams can be heard throughout the mountain range as lava rushes down the slopes, people trying to grab what little they have left for a second time— though many already have nothing left but their lives. Wild Pokemon flee from the mountains in herds, heading for the desert to face the sandstorms rather than being consumed by flame.

The ground shakes. It cracks.

Desert becomes beach as the sand spills into the water, the cusp between mountain and desert becoming a chasm driven deep into the water as the Hami mountains break away and start sinking into the sea.

→ MOD NOTES

⬥ For the sake of timelines, the Melona guides first head for Hami on December 3, the volcano erupts on December 5, and Hami subsequently becomes its own island on December 6. Destruction and evacuation can be played out however you want, but the boba shop remains standing in the end. The building is in impeccable condition. Not even the ash sticks to it.
⬥ Please make note of the new investigation form in the toplevel below, involving investigation style.
⬥ The second event log will go up on December 15.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Hiding in the far off corner won't save Hien. There's the sound of someone wading through the water, and only a little time before they sit down next to him... and then plop a hand on his head.]

Hien! Enjoying the hot springs?

[~~Depending on mod response he may or may not be naked~~]

[ Hien is already without clothes, since this is the men's only section apart from... a mixed bath where you have to have something on, like where Nanami and Minato were. But when he feels a hand on his head, he looks up. ]

Mm... it's comfortable.

[ Mimi is too. ]

[Hythlo stretches with an appreciative hum, sliding down into the water some more.]

It really is. Ah, how I missed this...

Good timing, Daeus. I might fall asleep...

[ Good thing everything except his head is submerged in water and there's steam to obscure whatever is in the water. ]

[Hythlo seems to have no shame about it, though, and just puts an arm around Hien's shoulders. Two bros, chilling in the hot springs, on each other's shoulder...]

Worry not, Hien, I won't let you drown accidentally! At least, as long as I remain awake as well. After that, our fate is out of our hands.

Maybe Mimi can save us.

[ He looks at Mimi, who is still enjoying the springs with a towel on his head with a =v= face. ]

... Never mind, I feel bad if I interrupt his session. Guess it's out of our hands after all.

[ And he likes how it obscures the view because he doesn't want people to gawk at his scars and stuff. He doesn't have regeneration, so these kinds of things stay on his body. He still has the towel over his face like a Jiangshi tag, but he doesn't seem to mind. ]

He does look adorable, doesn't he?

[Hythlo chuckles. He'd reach over to pet Mimi, but he looks so blissed out... Little creature.]

Are you certain you won't get overheated, though? How long have you been here already?

I can handle it.

[ That will always and forever be his answer to anything that questions his limits. ]

This isn't an entirely new experience for me, so I'll be okay. I hope you don't stay here too long either...

[ He reaches over the edge of the springs and gets two bottles of Soda Pop, handing one over to Hythlo after opening it. ]

Cheers.

[He takes the bottle with a grin.]

How thoughtful! Did you have these prepared in advance, Hien? Ah, a truly magnanimous heart you have.

[He sips the beverage blissfully. All of this is nice.]

...Do you not find it strange that the requirement for purchasing alcohol here is badges or ribbons?

[ He shakes his head no. ]

I don't like using Potions. These drinks heal Pokemon more for cheaper price. The only annoying thing is that I can't seem to buy them in bulk.

[ Hythlo had probably seen Hien stand in front of vending machines all day at some point. ]

... But no, not really. Cultural differences and all. We don't exactly have a way to prove our age either.

[Hythlo makes an "ohhh" sound.]

So that is why... I wondered if you were simply in some manner of meditative state.

[He takes another draught.]

I suppose you are correct, however. It just strikes me as odd that little children can buy it as well.

Maybe that's what sets them apart from children from other places: they can set off on an adventure early on their own, and maybe their bodies can handle alcohol due to a physiological difference.

[ TLDR children in Cassava can be frightening. Hien hasn't forgotten the kid from the cemetery tower. Hope he's living a good life somewhere. Though if he sees Duri and his new twin brother drink alcohol? Hien will swipe that right out of their hands. ]

[Hythlo makes a "huh" noise.]

Mayhaps... Of course, 'tis hard for me to judge. We develop at a different speed, after all... and alcohol is not such a snare in my world.

[He sighs. Substance abuse seems small compared to things like murder, but it still bothers him.]

You don't really see a bunch of kids with alcohol running around, so I think it's safe to say that while they can buy them, they're not interested.

[ Yeah, no worries. Hien chugs his own Fresh Water. Feels nice. ]

All for the best, aye.

[Hythlo directs him a mischievous look.]

But what of yourself, Hien? We never did manage to figure out who's the lightweight out of us all.

Like Fai, I have a passive that prevents me from getting drunk, but now that I don't have that... I think I can still get by decently.

[ He looks down at the bottle, pensive. ]

You want a drinking game?

That would be fun, wouldn't it?

[Although Hythlo isn't quite so stupid as to think that the onsen would be a good place for it, as such. But he doesn't articulate it yet.]

Would it...

[ Hien ponders. Having a drinking game in the springs sounds like a disaster, so he won't bring it up. ]

But from how we started from a town, to a city, to another town, to basically nothing... I want to move to the next town as soon as possible after I'm done here.

[Hythlo tilts his head, clearly confused.]

What do you mean? To escape the destruction?

There's nothing here...

[ Hien does not want to stay in this place for a month. He'd rather go back to Melona. ]

There's also barely any privacy here.

[Hythlo looks up at the sky thoughtfully.]

That there is. Though I must needs admit, I've felt like that ever since I arrived here.

[Suddenly, he feels extremely homesick. Not in the usual way that makes him break down thinking about his world's fate, but simply... missing the comfort of familiar things and the sense of security in one's life.

He heaves a sigh, sinking down in the water some more.]

...I want to go home so much. I've never felt so tired in my life.

It's hard, isn't it?

[ Being homesick. He leans against the wall of the spring and tilts his head up. It's not like he can see the sky from how smoky it is and the towel in the way, but he just wants to relax like this. ]

[He hums in response.]

Mm. Makes me wish I could lie down and fall asleep, and then I would wake up home. And everything will have been a strange dream. And I won't have to be so tired anymore.

A strange dream, huh...

[ Hien is quieter than usual as he closes his eyes. If something isn't bound to be real, of course it's easier to discard. ]

... whatever makes you happy, Daeus.

[Hythlodaeus looks worried, suddenly realizing that it might have sounded less than tactful. He looks away, feeling anxious.]

...I would miss you, though. If it turned out to be a dream. You, and Fai, and the others... My Pokemon, too. I just... I just wish our meeting could have been under other circumstances. If... whatever it is that brought us here had picked a different point in time for me.

[He stares at the bottle in his hand disconsolately. A drink sounds good suddenly.]

premise ⬥ taken ⬥ faq ⬥ navigation

→ OH THANK GOD

→ WELCOME TO THE NEW HAMA

→ AW NUTS...

→ MOD NOTES

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