azume | Welcome.

Welcome.

AWAKENING.

You're asleep, and the first thing you're aware of is the pulse.

It comes quickly, flooding through your system and jolting you awake; the room you're in is dimly-lit but the bed you're in is soft, and while all of this is jarring you'll soon become rather aware that you aren't going through this alone. The room you're in is lined with beds not unlike the one you're in; you'll be able to hear other people stirring, coming awake as they respond to the pulse too, and...

...And it will soon become evident that whatever just happened, something is wrong.

Whatever your response may be to waking up in a low-lit room full of people is going to be highly amplified, the emotion rubbing your nerves raw in a way that makes you feel like you're experiencing it for the first time, and whenever you manage to sit up, you'll feel something...strange on your head, tickling the sides of your face, and as you turn your head a little you'll catch a glimpse of an odd, synthetic-looking green.

A wig...?

Your clothes, too, are different from whatever you remember last (because whatever you remember last, it wasn't this room, it wasn't this place - ); they feel warm, designed to withstand cold weather, and if you throw the blankets off at any point (or even just pause to look beneath them) you'll be greeted with an outfit made of thick material that's alternating parts black and white and glossy silver, with an emblem inscribed on the chest - a G inscribed in gold and black.

Whatever's happening here, you aren't given much time to dwell on it; everyone here seems about as confused as you are. There are twenty-four of you in the room altogether, and you're all going through the same thing; whatever you're experiencing, the door is closed, so at least you're experiencing it in relative privacy.

For now.

It isn't long before a voice can be heard, soft but agitated-sounding, as though trying very hard to not awaken everyone in the building; it sounds like a man, and you can hear his footfalls pause just outside your door as he speaks to someone else, voice soft and androgynous.

"And you're sure they're gone?"
"Yes, Commander."
"And don't you think something should be done about that...?"
"Right away, sir."

With that, the man and whomever he was speaking to can be heard parting ways, one moving rapidly down a corridor and the other pausing, shifting a bit before eventually moving on himself.

You have several options.

I. You can sit here for a while and get to know each other, seeing as none of you know what happened. That might be a good idea, all things considered, and as long as the door remains closed there's no rush. It's the middle of the night, after all, and it isn't as though anyone is going to come looking - despite the urgent conversation outside, there isn't any alarm going off, nor is there any reason for most of the building to be on high alert.

II. You can explore the building. Should you do that, you'll find several winding corridors leading to what look like dorms, with several rooms containing sleeping people and areas such as formal break rooms; exploring a little further will let you find conference rooms and other large, empty spaces that don't seem to have much of a purpose. There are signs and notices in several places referring to "Team Galactic" and its protocol, all adorned with the same emblem that's on your clothes. Some of these corridors also lead to doors that are, unfortunately, locked and staying that way; some of them lead to people dressed exactly like you, bizarre wig and all. They seem to be a little strange, however; they'll greet you, and they'll speak to you if spoken to, but they look odd and dead behind the eyes and there's not much to their answers, and asking them about preferences or any personal information will just net you a blank stare. It's going to be a long strange journey through the building, but at least you're traveling light; you don't seem to have any belongings with you - save for the outfit you woke up in and the red and white capsule attached to your belt...

III. You can also pause to try to figure out what's going on with those capsules. They each contain something very important to you, after all - a creature that seems to have been assigned to you specifically. They don't seem to have anything on them indicating a name or another person that owns them, at any rate, so it's probably safe to assume it's yours. That said, something seems decidedly wrong with it - it seems alarmingly apathetic, the look in its eyes dull and resigned as opposed to alert and emotive, and while it's willing to follow you (it's almost a bit too willing to follow you, it will stay close by your side in the manner of a dog trained to heel if you try to walk away from it) it doesn't seem to be due to any sort of genuine affection. It's all very...sterile, for lack of a better term.

Welcome to Sinnoh. Glory to Team Galactic.

[OOC: Welcome to Azume! Feel free to use this log to get to know one another iCly; you can use the prompts given or come up with your own, though for now you're confined to the building. The Commanders are currently not present in the building (anywhere that you can find them, anyway). For now, have fun getting your bearings.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Eustace is here to interrupt!! He wasn't around for most of Yuri's conversation with "Roc", but he happened to hear barking and peered around the corner to check it out.

...oh...]

Your device contained a dog?

[The question comes out of nowhere, but Eustace has at least made himself more visible, coming up the hall a few steps with his Mimikyu shuffling along behind him.

Introductions? No, let's talk about the dog.]

Yep. She's pretty cute, isn't she?

[He'll glance up after a moment, holding up a hand in greeting.]

Is that what was in yours?

[He's not sure what to make of the Mimikyu. It uh. Looks sort of like a monster...? It's definitely the strangest monster he's seen.]

Mm.

[She'd be cuter if she didn't look so listless, but Eustace doesn't go into detail out loud.

The most Yuri will get in return in terms of greeting is a nod from Eustace, before he glances down at Mimikyu.]

Yeah. Not sure what to make of it. Monsters don't act like this.

[They seem to be on the same page in regard to monsters at least.]

That's what I've been thinking. The monsters I'm familiar with are usually pretty aggressive, they'll follow you if you run and they'll attack if you're nearby. I've never seen a monster that looks like that, though.

My experience with them is the same.

[He's not even entirely convinced that this thing isn't going to suddenly go aggro on him. But without a proper weapon, it's difficult to prepare for an attack...

As for Mimikyu...]

It is unnatural. Its face does not move at all.

[While the creature idly bobs from side to side, nothing in that face moves. It doesn't even blink.]

[...Huh.]

Mind if I touch him? Or her. I can't really tell.

No.

[That's presumably a "no" as in he doesn't mind. If Yuri wants to potentially get into a dangerous altercation with a monster, that's his prerogative.

...He'll watch carefully as Yuri approaches, though.]

[Yuri crouches down in front of the Mimikyu, reaching out a hand cautiously as if he expects to be attacked. Assuming the Pokémon will let him, he'll rest a hand on Mimikyu's "head".]

[Mimikyu doesn't make much of an attempt to resist, so Yuri is successful! He'll notice when he feels Mimikyu's head that there doesn't seem to be any actual movement in the head itself. He won't feel it tense up or anything, and that face remains motionless.

What he will feel though, is that the head seems light compared to the rest of its body. Just by putting weight on it with his hand, the head droops ever so slightly to the side. Any actual shifting movements not caused by Yuri come from down below in the body.

There's also the sensation that it definitely isn't fur he's feeling. It's almost got a fabric-like texture to it. That's probably noteworthy.]

...Huh.

[Pat, pat.]

I don't think this is its head, actually...

[He'll just try to push down on it to see if there's any resistance.]

Hm?

[At this point, Eustace crouches down with Yuri to watch his little experiment.

The pressure causes the head to sag further while the body stays in place down blow. But after enough pressure the body squeaks and shuffles away from Yuri's grasp. The head sways back and forth before stabilizing.

Wait, the body squeaked? Eustace's eyes widen slightly.]

...It's wearing something.

[That sure explains a lot. Like those holes in the middle of the body...]

[. . .]

I think those are its eyes.

[He's pointing at the two holes in the middle of the body, but he's absolutely not moving to touch it. That seems like a bad idea?? You don't poke a monster's eyes, even if the monster willingly lets you mess with its strange little costume.]

Well, I've gotta admit, this is definitely new.

Must be.

[Eustace beckons for Mimikyu to come over, which it does without resistance. He gingerly places a hand against the body to feel the actual creature underneath. There's some resistance at first, but Eustace doesn't move to do anything with the costume so all is well for now.]

Monsters wearing costumes...yeah, that's pretty rare. Don't see it too often.

[Not unheard of, but...most monsters don't have that sort of intelligence.]

I can't think of any monster I've seen wearing a costume. I guess it's not impossible, but it's definitely strange.

It must not want to be seen. [For whatever reason...] Wonder what it's trying to be.

[It's definitely nothing he recognizes, as they've both gone over.]

I have no idea. Maybe this [he reaches out to pat the "head" again] is supposed to be another one of these creatures or something? Make itself look like it's something else, so it can surprise the enemy.

[Mimikyu allows the touch, but seems a little more apprehensive than before. Please don't push on the costume again...]

A decoy, huh. Not a bad idea. [...] Guess we're not its enemy, for now.

[Pat, pat.]

Don't worry, buddy. I'm not going to mess with you again.

[...Anyway.]

It seems like everyone here was given a partner, so I'm guessing this one is yours. I have no idea why we were given partners, but they seem to at least recognize that we aren't going to hurt them.

[Mimikyu doesn't reply, but it seems to have at least heard Yuri.]

A partner...?

[He can't say he ever expected to have a pet of any kind, let alone a monster companion.]

Guess we'll have to try to figure that out along with everything else. They don't want to leave, so we're stuck with them until we do.

Yeah. It'll probably work out okay, these guys seem a little weird, but at least they don't want to attack us.

Right.

[He's still going to keep an eye on Mimikyu's behavior, but he isn't as tense about letting a monster follow him around as he was before.

...]

I didn't catch your name.

[It would probably be good to have, he inwardly guesses.]

Oh, yeah, guess I didn't introduce myself. I'm Yuri. And you are...?

[He nods as a sign that he's got Yuri's name down before giving his own.]

Eustace.

[...

Okay, one awkward pause later...]

We should all meet up later. Discuss what we've found.

Sounds good to me. I'll see you around, Eustace.

[With a last nod,]

Yeah. See you.

[He also glances at Roc when he says that. He'd like to see more of the cute dog again too. #priorities]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Welcome.

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