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[Pokémon] A Smell of Petroleum Pervades Throughout

38
Posts
11
Years
Be careful, as that is either a (most likely) insane jasmine, or an incredby smart eldritch Ampharos. one that learned to talk apparently.
 
301
Posts
14
Years
  • Seen Feb 7, 2018
Don't go any closer like it said and talk to it ask who or what is is, and what happened to the town? Why is half preserved and the other dilapitated? Ask if it knows of those that dwell beneath the waves. Just be careful I don't want you to get crippled again or eletricuted by a highly intelligent Magnemite
 

destinedjagold

You can contact me in PC's discord server...
8,593
Posts
16
Years
  • Age 33
  • Seen Dec 23, 2023
Oh, someone or something is there with the ability to talk?
First make sure that it's not the MooMoo Milk that is giving your ears a hearing hallucination.

If it's not the work of the milk, then go into chat mode. :3
 
20
Posts
10
Years
  • Seen Sep 16, 2017
Stay at a distance and talk to it. Also make a mental note to go back to the farm and steal some more moo moo milk.
 

Barrels

The Fresh Prince of Kanto
82
Posts
12
Years
> Inform the Unknown Beastie that you are armed, so you are, with a Hideously Dangerous Stabby Thing and furthermore, you object to being ordered around like some sort of craven servant. One more arrogant demand and you'll wallop it with the two-hundred-kilo crab claw.
> Remember that you were physically incapable of even shifting said crab claw, let alone engaging in any walloping with it.
> Make a comical Oh Crap face and begin slowly backing away.

[off-topic: I love this idea, but I love the execution even more. Seriously. I just hoovered up all ten pages like a sentient vacuum cleaner and I'm still not sated. SO WRITE MORE PLEASE THANK YOU :D]
 

Cutlerine

Gone. May or may not return.
1,030
Posts
13
Years
> Be careful, as that is either a (most likely) insane jasmine, or an incredby smart eldritch Ampharos. one that learned to talk apparently.

You didn't really need to be told this. Amazingly enough, you were actually being careful when facing a potentially deadly and wholly unknown creature that lurks in darkness.

Your perspicacity never ceases to astound.

> Stay at a distance and talk to it. Also make a mental note to go back to the farm and steal some more moo moo milk.

You still have a couple of bottles of milk left – but there won't be any supplementing it now that the farm's burned down.

> Oh, someone or something is there with the ability to talk? First make sure that it's not the MooMoo Milk that is giving your ears a hearing hallucination.
If it's not the work of the milk, then go into chat mode. :3


You don't really have any means of testing whether or not you're hallucinating. To be honest, it probably doesn't matter if you are; most of the stuff that's happened over the last few days only really makes sense as a hallucination.

That said, CHAT MODE ENGAGED TARGET ACQUIRED

> Inform the Unknown Beastie that you are armed, so you are, with a Hideously Dangerous Stabby Thing and furthermore, you object to being ordered around like some sort of craven servant. One more arrogant demand and you'll wallop it with the two-hundred-kilo crab claw.
> Remember that you were physically incapable of even shifting said crab claw, let alone engaging in any walloping with it.
> Make a comical Oh Crap face and begin slowly backing away.


"I'm armed," you say. "I have a deadly poisonous needle. And a gigantic crab claw."

You sound pretty intimidating, if you do say so yourself – and that makes it all the more surprising when the unknown being laughs. It sounds like the Radio Tower collapsing.

"YOU'RE FUNNY," says the voice. "I LIKE THAT."

Well, that was unexpected.

> Don't go any closer like it said and talk to it ask who or what is is, and what happened to the town? Why is half preserved and the other dilapitated? Ask if it knows of those that dwell beneath the waves. Just be careful I don't want you to get crippled again or eletricuted by a highly intelligent Magnemite

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, that was totally meant to be a joke. Who are you?" you ask, swiftly changing the subject.

"NOBODY," replies the voice. A note of melancholy has crept into it, half-hidden amidst the clamour of rending steel. "I AM NOBODY."

You don't feel inclined to argue the point. Given that this creature is entirely unfazed by the idea of being stabbed with the Hideously Dangerous Stabby Thing, you're pretty sure that they and not you is in charge of the situation.

"I SENT THE LIFT DOWN," they say. "YOU NEEDED IT."

"How did you know I was in trouble?"

"I HEARD."

"You were six floors above me."

"I HAVE VERY GOOD HEARING." The thing in the shadows shifts again; something clinks on the floor. "WHO ARE YOU?"

You consider. There doesn't seem to be any harm in telling them your name.

"I'm Othodox," you reply. "I'm trying to save the world."

"HOW?"

That's not a question you're expecting, but it is, when you think about it, entirely justifiable. How are you going to save the world?

"I don't know," you admit, feeling that this conversation is rapidly getting out of hand. "That's why I came here. I was told you could help."

"I CAN'T HELP ANYONE." More shifting noises. You get the distinct impression that the unseen being is turning their back on you. "If YOU WANT HELP, GO AWAY."

For something with such an awe-inspiring voice, they seem rather petulant.

In the deepening silence, you cast around for something to say that won't offend them and come up with the question of the dock.

"Why is the dock so run-down?" you ask.

There's no reply.

"LEAVE ME ALONE," says the voice. "PLEASE. TELL WHOEVER SENT YOU NOT TO SEND ANYONE ELSE."

"They won't," you answer, suddenly feeling like punching some sense into this vexingly emo stranger. "There is no one else. I've seen a grand total of two other people recently, and one of them was dead."

"LEAVE ME ALONE," repeats the voice insistently. "I'M NOT IN ANYONE'S WAY. PLEASE, JUST LEAVE ME ALONE."

"What do you know about those monsters that live in the cities under the sea?" you ask savagely, deciding that the time for subtlety is past. No one ever broke through a wall of self-pity this thick without being rough.

There is a pause.

In the gloom, you see a dark shape that might be a head turning towards you.

"HOW DID YOU KNOW ABOUT – ABOUT THE DREAMS...?"

"Everyone gets them," you reply. "Or they did, before they all died." You take a step forwards. Something flinches away in the dark.

"DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!" the voice cries, flustered now. "I''M WARNING YOU!"

You stay where you are.

"Talk to me, then," you say. "Tell me what you know. Tell me why someone would send me to you to ask for help."

"I DON'T KNOW," replies the voice. "PLEASE. LEAVE ME ALONE!"

The last word is delivered with enough force to blast your hair back from your face and knock you back a step; it rides a shockwave of rust-scented breath.

Hm. This isn't going as well as you'd hoped.


[off-topic: I love this idea, but I love the execution even more. Seriously. I just hoovered up all ten pages like a sentient vacuum cleaner and I'm still not sated. SO WRITE MORE PLEASE THANK YOU :D]

I'm glad you like it. It's actually 75 pages long in terms of actual pieces of A4, so you can feel pleased about doing a serious chunk of reading. If you want more, you're in luck: this is updated pretty much every day, unless I'm too busy. And I have to be very, very busy to be too busy.

F.A.B.
 
301
Posts
14
Years
  • Seen Feb 7, 2018
Okay that last bit clentched it for me this is one of Jasmine's Magnes and I can only think of one thing to say to it, tell this poor creature "What happened is not your fault, and you can help, you've survived which means you can honor the memory of this town, of your trainer, Please tell me what you know so I can keep trying to set things right with the world" I know it's broad and doesn't make much sense but this thing obviously couldn't help when whatever happened to the town happened, it needs some comfort and to know it can still help fix the world.
 
77
Posts
12
Years
  • Seen May 12, 2021
When you came back up the lift it didnt appear that you had reclaimed Vesta. Seeing as she is both awesome and your sole companion, make sure she is with you. Secondly, placate the being speaking to you. Clearly, s/he has been through a lot and is feeling incredibly unstable.
(aside: "Knowledge is night." I didnt know you were a fan of Walter Moers!)
 
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Cutlerine

Gone. May or may not return.
1,030
Posts
13
Years
> When you came back up the lift it didnt appear that you had reclaimed Vesta. Seeing as she is both awesome and your sole companion, make sure she is with you. Secondly, placate the being speaking to you. Clearly, s/he has been through a lot and is feeling incredibly unstable.

Fear not. You have Vesta with you. The Narrator did not report it solely due to the need to regain narrative impetus after the lift scene. And not because he forgot or anything.

Definitely not that.

> Okay that last bit clentched it for me this is one of Jasmine's Magnes and I can only think of one thing to say to it, tell this poor creature "What happened is not your fault, and you can help, you've survived which means you can honor the memory of this town, of your trainer, Please tell me what you know so I can keep trying to set things right with the world" I know it's broad and doesn't make much sense but this thing obviously couldn't help when whatever happened to the town happened, it needs some comfort and to know it can still help fix the world.

"Whatever happened, it isn't your fault," you say tentatively. "And... well, you've survived, haven't you? You can make amends for whatever it was – can honour the memory of this town, of your Trainer—"

A strange noise interrupts you – halfway between a laugh and a sob, heavily seasoned with grating metal.

"MY TRAINER?" asks the stranger scathingly. "WHAT DO YOU THINK I AM? WHATOH GOD, IF THAT'S HOW I SEEM TO YOU..."

You hear metal screaming along metal, like the sound of ploughs being hauled across shields.

"OH GOD," they say. "OH GOD, OH GOD, OH GOD..."

The voice dissolves into fits of sobbing.

OK, so that didn't quite work out like you wanted it to. But at least there's no more Thu'um-esque screaming going on.

> Ask the Vexingly Emo Stranger what it wants. If that fails, try to find out why it's upset. Offer it hope (or cookies, or something).

"Hey," you say, putting the Hideously Dangerous Stabby Thing away and sitting down. You're not sure why; it just seems like you might appear less threatening that way. "Look, what's wrong? What do you want?"

"I WANT TO BE LEFT ALONE," answers the stranger, sniffing deeply. It sounds like a very small car backfiring.

"Why do you want to be left alone?" you ask. "Almost everyone's dead. I would've thought you were after company."

Something silvery extends out of the gloom towards you. It's a knife, you think with a muffled curse – then it moves, and you see that it isn't.

It's a necrotic human hand, perfectly cast in stainless steel.

You stare in horrified fascination. There are raw patches oozing slow drops of mercury where the skin has been burned away; little metallic maggots like animated bullets writhe in open wounds. In some places, the flesh has been rent right down to the crystalline bone.

You know, you're starting to think maybe the cookies won't quite cut it here.

"You see?" says the voice. The hand vanishes back into the shadows. "DO YOU SEE?"

Well, do you?
 
301
Posts
14
Years
  • Seen Feb 7, 2018
Wait a second is that Jasmine? Well that was honestly a suprise I was way off. Well against my better judgement, I say step forward so you can see her or whoever it is, but no one no circumstances do you scream or freak out no mater what she or they look like. Whoever they are ask how this happened to them.
 
2
Posts
14
Years
  • Seen Apr 11, 2013
If met with further emo resistance, then curl up in a ball and start crying. Whine about how since you woke up in your room in New Bark Town, everything has tried to kill you. Ramble about all you wanted is to you know interact socially with someone, and -is that to much to ask ?- make a friend. But now you realized you're all alone, no one cares, etc (don't say "etc"). You could try to reflect upon your current situation to get the sobbing going.

If Vesta tries to intervene, it would be a good opportunity to get her out of your bag. You should then hug her jar and rant about she's your only friend in the world. If the jar burns you, don't be a wimp and hold onto it. You might look probably more miserable if burned. Bonus points if you manage to pass Vesta's speech off as ventriloquism.

If your interlocutor pity you enough, capitalize on that.
If it miserably fails, it would be socially appropriate to feel embarrassed.
In any case, it should be worth it.
 
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38
Posts
11
Years
> after nogotiations, try and convince Jasmine(?) to joine the party a mechanized super-human is always useful to have around , after all.
 
20
Posts
10
Years
  • Seen Sep 16, 2017
Ask the voice why it thinks its appearance is your problem and what it has to do with you getting the information you want. Also promise to leave it alone if that is what it really wants when you have the information you came for. It might also help to point out that you are the player character and if you fail it will just be harassed by other incarnations of you (don't point out the fact that everyone else died before they made it to Olivine).
 
77
Posts
12
Years
  • Seen May 12, 2021
Seeing as the being you are dealing with is probably Jasmine, be gentle. Before the Dreaming, Jasmine was quiet, sweet, and kind. Remind her that appearance has nothing to do with that and she doesnt need to be afraid of how you perceive her. Also, it appears her metal flesh is rotting and she needs severe medical attention. Perhaps offer to help in this situation by asking if the Cianwood pharmacy is still open?
 

Cutlerine

Gone. May or may not return.
1,030
Posts
13
Years
> Wait a second is that Jasmine? Well that was honestly a suprise I was way off. Well against my better judgement, I say step forward so you can see her or whoever it is, but no one no circumstances do you scream or freak out no mater what she or they look like. Whoever they are ask how this happened to them.
> If met with further emo resistance, then curl up in a ball and start crying. Whine about how since you woke up in your room in New Bark Town, everything has tried to kill you. Ramble about all you wanted is to you know interact socially with someone, and -is that to much to ask ?- make a friend. But now you realized you're all alone, no one cares, etc (don't say "etc"). You could try to reflect upon your current situation to get the sobbing going.
If Vesta tries to intervene, it would be a good opportunity to get her out of your bag. You should then hug her jar and rant about she's your only friend in the world. If the jar burns you, don't be a wimp and hold onto it. You might look probably more miserable if burned. Bonus points if you manage to pass Vesta's speech off as ventriloquism.
If your interlocutor pity you enough, capitalize on that.
If it miserably fails, it would be socially appropriate to feel embarrassed.
In any case, it should be worth it.
> Ask the voice why it thinks its appearance is your problem and what it has to do with you getting the information you want. Also promise to leave it alone if that is what it really wants when you have the information you came for. It might also help to point out that you are the player character and if you fail it will just be harassed by other incarnations of you (don't point out the fact that everyone else died before they made it to Olivine).
> Seeing as the being you are dealing with is probably Jasmine, be gentle. Before the Dreaming, Jasmine was quiet, sweet, and kind. Remind her that appearance has nothing to do with that and she doesnt need to be afraid of how you perceive her. Also, it appears her metal flesh is rotting and she needs severe medical attention. Perhaps offer to help in this situation by asking if the Cianwood pharmacy is still open?


You scoot forwards a little, but the hand reappears, palm outwards. A maggot drops out of it onto the floor with a hard dink.

"STOP," says the stranger. "YOU SAW ENOUGH."

"OK," you reply, stopping. "How... how did that happen to you?"

The hand is withdrawn.

"I WAS EATEN," answers the voice, full of self-pity. "STEELIX. HE SWALLOWED ME WHOLEBUT THEY CAN'T DIGEST FLESH, ONLY ROCK. I SHOULD HAVE DIED."

There's a long pause – long enough for you to think that maybe you were meant to say something – but then they continue.

"WHEN HE... CHANGED, SOMETHING MUTATED IN HIS GUT. I WAS REMADE. SKIN AND FLESH BURNED AND SCARRED, AND..."

They trail off.

"Turned to metal," you finish softly.

"YEAH. STUCK. CAN'T ROT. CAN'T DIE. AND IT HURTS..."

More sobbing. A moment ago, you would have classed this as emo self-pity, but now it seems to you like it's actually justified. At least if you get horribly injured, you'll die. There's no release for this poor creature.

"I'm sorry," you say eventually. "I am."

"NO POINT," replies the stranger, sniffling. "I'M NOBODY TO FEEL SORRY FOR. I'M NOTHING. NOT ALIVE, NOT DEAD. NOTHING."

"I can leave you alone, if you really want that," you say softly. "And I will, once you tell me what I want to know, if you ask me to. But... otherwise, I'll stay a while. I don't care what you look like. I don't think you're nobody."

A harsh, tear-stained bark of a laugh.

"AND WHAT GIVES YOU THAT IDEA?"

"Let me tell you why I came here," you say. "I'm two and a half days old. I'm being hunted by a monster made of fire. I rode a dragon to get here. I travelled through a town where the sky is black and stares back when you stare at it, and a minor god told me that in Olivine was someone who could tell me about the monsters who live in the gigantic city at the bottom of the sea."

You look at where you think the stranger's eyes are.

"I'm the player character," you say. "I'm talking to you. That automatically makes you someone. But more than that, you're the only person in Johto who can tell me what I need to know. The fate of the world," you add for good measure, "rests in your hands."

If that doesn't engender a sense of self-worth, you have no idea what will.

There is silence for a while.

"DO YOU MEAN THAT?" asks the voice. It is cracked with hope.

"I do," you answer. "I really do."

"I... I'LL TELL YOU, THEN," they say, and you can hear tears in their voice again – tears of relief, relief that the long, silent wait of the last few years is finally over. "ILL TELL YOU... EVERYTHING."

Then they break down into tears, wracked by the violent sobs that come with the release of unbearable tension, and you have to sit and wait.

You don't mind. It sounds like they need it.

After a long time, they start to talk, unprompted.

"I TRAVELLED, ONCE," they say. "I TRAVELLED AROUND THE WORLDTO SINNOH, EVEN AS FAR AS AMERICA."

"America..." you breathe. It's a mythical land; they say it's a nation of gods, where even the children are Players. There are no Pokémon there – but such is the power that each man and woman wields in just their little fingers that there's no need for them, either.

"YES. AMERICA." The stranger sighs. "IT'S MUCH AS THEY SAY... BUT THAT'S NOT THE POINT. I CAME TO A CITY NAMED ARKHAM, AND WHEN EXPLORING THE AREA I CAME TO A TOWN NAMED INNSMOUTH."

Innsmouth. It sounds faintly familiar, you think, but why you can't for the life of you recall.

"INNSMOUTH IS... NOT A NICE PLACE," the voice tells you. "THE PEOPLE THERE ARE STRANGE. NOT FULLY HUMAN, IN MANY CASES. THEIR BLOOD IS MIXED WITH THAT OF THE DEEP ONES."

You know immediately who the Deep Ones are. They are the creatures that chant amid the buildings of the ancient city, the hideous amphibian monsters with the horrid gold ornaments and the bulging eyes. They are the nightmarish race that haunt your sea-drowned dreams, and their name sends a shiver down your spine.

"The Deep Ones? They're the ones in the dreams, aren't they?"

"YES." The stranger is silent for a moment. "THEY WORSHIP THREE GODS, THE DEEP ONES. DAGON. HYDRA. And CTHULHU."

Cthulhu fhtagn!

The words of the chant scream through your mind unbidden, and you start in shock, heart suddenly pounding with unknown fear.

"Cthulhu..."

"THEY CHANT HIS NAME IN THE DREAMS," says the stranger. "CTHULHU, GREAT HIGH PRIEST OF THE OLD ONES."

"Ph'nglui," you say, without quite realising it, "mglw'nafh—"

"—CTHULHU R'LYEH WGAHNAGL FHTAGN," finishes the stranger in their terrible voice. "YES. IT MEANS 'IN HIS HOUSE AT R'LYEH, DEAD CTHULHU LIES DREAMING'."

"And why is that so important?" you ask. "Cthulhu, the Deep Ones – why are they in our dreams? What do they have to do with what happened?"

"I DON'T KNOW THAT," answers the stranger. "I'M SORRY. I ONLY KNOW WHAT I FOUND OUT IN INNSMOUTH. AND ONE OTHER THING," they say suddenly, as if just remembering.

"Which is...?"

"CIANWOOD. THEY CALLED FOR HELP SOON AFTER ALL THE POKÉMON CHANGED. THINGS HAD CRAWLED ASHORE, OUT OF THE SEA. THINGS WITH BULGING EYES AND NEEDLE TEETH, THAT WORE PALE GOLD ON THEIR WRISTS AND ANKLES."

"The Deep Ones," you breathe. "They took Cianwood?"

A grinding noise and a shift in the shadows that you presume is a shrug.

"I GUESS SO." They pause. "THE RADIOS STAYED ON FOR A WHILE. I DIDN'T HEAR ANY MORE FROM CIANWOOD AFTER THAT."

Somehow, it no longer seems appropriate to ask if the Cianwood Pharmacy is still open.

> after nogotiations, try and convince Jasmine(?) to joine the party a mechanized super-human is always useful to have around , after all.

"I guess," you say, "that I'll be heading down to Cianwood, then."

The stranger is silent.

"It'll be hard," you persist.

Still no response.

"I could use a hand," you state outright. "And you..." You shake your head. "Wouldn't you rather be outside, doing something?"

"I CAN'T DO ANYTHING," they reply piteously. "IT HURTS. AND..." Two hands appear this time – the one you saw before, and another, this one mostly crystal bone with a few strands of steel tendon hanging from it. "LOOK AT ME. I CAN'T GO ANYWHERE."

"Pretty much everything out there is uglier than you," you tell them honestly. "And it's not like there are any people left anyway. I've met one other living person, and he was mad."

"I THINK I MIGHT BE TOO," admits the stranger fearfully. "I'M... I'M SCARED TO LEAVE. YYOU, YOU JUST... GO. I'LL WAIT HERE."

"How long have you been here?" you ask. "It's been years since it all happened, you know. Years and years, alone in the dark..."

"I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE. LOOK, I GAVE YOU YOUR INFORMATION, DIDN'T I? JUST LEAVE. I'M FINE HERE."

You get to your feet.

"All right," you say doubtfully. "If you're sure..."

You walk away, back towards the lift, and your hand is on the button when you hear a cry from behind you.

"Wait!"

You pause.

"Yeah?"

"YOU WILL COME BACK, WON'T YOU?" There's a note of panic in the voice now, and a surge of pity and affection for its poor, broken owner washes over you. "YOU WILL COME BACK, AFTER YOU'VE VISITED CIANWOOD?"

"Sure," you say. "I'll be back. I promise."

"ThANK YOU," says the voice, trembling a little. "PLEASE COME BACK SAFELY..."

"I will," you tell them. "On one condition."

"NAME IT."

"Tell me your name."

There is another silence. There have been an awful lot of silences recently, you note.

"WHEN YOU COME BACK," the stranger says eventually. "I'LL TELL YOU WHEN YOU COME BACK. THERE. NOW YOU HAVE TO RETURN."

You can't help but smile.

"All right," you say. "Stay here. I'll be back."




Sorry that was a bit late. It took forever to format the stranger's dialogue to make it look like small caps.
 

Barrels

The Fresh Prince of Kanto
82
Posts
12
Years
> Take a moment to reflect on everything you know about the Whirl Islands. (Hey, if his astonishing level of expertise on eels is anything to go by, Othodox has hidden depths.) Maybe the gigantic city at the bottom of the sea is linked to the whirlpools... and could Lugia be mixed up in all this?
> On second thoughts, coming face-to-face with a highly intelligent, telepathic Legendary beastie who could apparently tear down cliffs by fluttering its wings even before everything went Eldritch... well, that might not be the best idea.
> Maybe there's room in the Lighthouse for two terrified humans to co-exist apathetically?
 
301
Posts
14
Years
  • Seen Feb 7, 2018
Before you leave ask if she knows if any boats survived, if not we might have to take our chance and try and catch one of the Eldritch Krabbys and turn it into a personal ferry. Also if she'd be willing ask if she has a Pokegear, I mean I think we should give Falkner an update that 1. You've found information about the cause of all this and 2. THat you found another person who's sort of alive.
 
77
Posts
12
Years
  • Seen May 12, 2021
Ask about the state and/or existence of any boats in the harbor. Then, proceed out of the Lighthouse. Be careful though, there are Eldritch Krabby and Kingler out there, not to mention and Eldritch Cyndaquil/Quilava that's most likely actually an Eldritch Typhlolsion looking for you. Either way, you need a more effective way to either defend yourself or capture the Eldritch Pokemon. The Krabby may prove your only way to cross the ocean.
 

Knightfall

Unforeseen Consequences
31
Posts
10
Years
At the risk of garnering a bit of unwanted memories, ask this person --who I assume is Jasmine-- about her Ampharos. On a side note to the Narrator, I'd like to say that I am loving the story so far. I have never been one to enjoy these sorts of stories, but this one has captivated me in a way similar to how a Barnacle catches unwitting Combine soldiers from its perch on a ceiling.

Knightfall signing off...
 
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