HokumPocus

The Five Senses

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Octavio took off towards the tower in a wild sprint, feeling as if his heart would burst at any moment. He came to a near crashing halt at the mass of people blocking the way, while Lynx trailed along as stealthily as he could. It would be hard for the familiar to scout ahead to any extent that would benefit them with so many gawking faces surrounding them, so he settled for weaving between people’s legs for the time being.

Chres planned on sending Ferris to meet with Karina. It should have by all means filled him with relief and happiness to hear those words come out of his mouth, to know that the hastily put together strategy of using his teammates as meat shields that he put together upon first meeting them was being formed right before his eyes. But... this was a team effort. All of their lives were at stake right now. He didn't have time for the foolish ideas he once mistook for tactics. It seemed that despite their initial disgust at the idea of cooperation, both of them had come to rely on and even enjoy the presence of others to an extent. Even the selfish little Lynx had stayed put, awaiting instructions.

"We'll assist if needed," said Octavio, gazing across the perimeter of the clocktower. "My hold over illusions grows fainter the more distance there is between us, but I suppose I could use some as surveillance."

Their main use was as distractions, but something about Ferris made him feel he wasn't the sort of rogue who needed that. He seemed more professional and mysterious than Octavio, and probably had a less bizarre method of getting what he wanted. Octavio was almost jealous.

Lynx craned his neck through the sea of human torsos obstructing his vision. "I can go up easily. Down has its difficulties."

And before you ask, he told Octavio, I can’t see anything that fairy didn’t.

#StillNotBitten [Invite Only]

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_{Location: Rushford, Ohio -- O'Neal Family Tavern}

Date: May 15th, 2019

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With a pep to his step and a whistled tune on his lips, Damien plopped omelette after omelette onto a giant plate he found lying around. The presentation of their meal certainly left a lot to be desired, but it was food that they'd only have one shot to eat, so he didn't hold back at all when it came to quantity.

He scraped the last omelette into the pile and looked at his creations with pride. "I still got it," he said, though the expression on his face showed a hint of dubiousness. Gathering a messy assortment of napkins and silverware, he presented the rest of the room with the food by shoving it to the side. Now the only thing left to do before heading out was to eat.

Damien ate an omelette with his bare hands, holding it like a taco. He was glad Jennifer was propping herself up as the leader of their little group, since it meant he wouldn't have to be in charge of anything. His plan so far was just to run for it, and that probably wouldn't work out with a bunch of adults with joint pain travelling along with him. Even with this in mind, he still had some doubts.

"So..." he said, in between messy bites, "Do we risk it or take our time?" They were yet to reach a conclusion, and he was not so secretly getting impatient. The dumb teenage part of him wanted to barrel straight into danger to get it over with, but the other part of him, the part that had come to grips with his own mortality, knew it was suicide.

Dark new world (a post-apocalyptic Pokémon story)

Maya's eyebrows widened at the mention of a deceased steelix. So even the pokemon not composed of flesh had a hard time surviving. She felt pressured to say something sympathetic towards Sabrina, but luckily Aro beat her to the punch. She'd just end up blurting out something weird.

"I'm fine with the idea, but we're gonna get his attention by playing right into his plan. It'll be pretty risky if it ends up being too much to handle."

She took a good look at all the pokemon present. It was a diverse range of types with a nice and even split of abilities between them. "I still think we should get in touch with some fossil hunters in case we need backup or something."

Maya listened wordlessly as Aro explained his motivations towards attempting to stop Cooper. She didn't agree with his passion one hundred percent, but she'd be lying if she said she couldn't see where he was coming from. She had a deep interest in pokemon and the jaw-dropping feats they were capable of, and the idea of a world where their way of life was presumably rendered extinct filled her with a deep sadness she didn't have the words to describe.

"I don't think a single one of us could make it out here on our own with the way things have been lately."

Pariah Online III

_{:: the streets of thorinn // thorinn ::}

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The sudden question coming from the warrior sent a shockwave through Alex's body. Looking for people to band together with had been his number one priority up to this point, so he should have by all means felt relieved at having taken care of his most important dilemma. Instead, he only felt even more restless. Was this what his brother felt throughout his years of live action roleplaying and tabletop sessions? His breaths felt sharper and his mind felt clearer, like he was getting ready to take on something big. The road ahead would be dangerous and possibly fatal, but something about being surrounded by others who would lend him a helping hand made the idea seem a lot more doable.

He'd just have to keep those dark thoughts at bay and let his more impulsive side out. It's what got him this far, at least.

"Sure dude!"

Wait, would a guy like him take roleplaying seriously? He was talking pretty normally to his friends, so he was probably cool with it.

"I mean man. Sir?"

Alex's unleashed his signature idiotic grin, and then aimed it at Eaudenil. "You're gonna join too, right?" Despite only having met her for a brief moment, there was something about Eaudenil's hope and dedication towards embodying her character that he liked. It reminded him of his brother, in a way.

Dark new world (a post-apocalyptic Pokémon story)

Maya's food-filled mouth opened for a fraction of a second as the thought of Zombie now being officially hers formed in her mind. She clamped her mouth shut in disgust at herself for having considered saying such a thing and continued to eat in silence. The way things were now, it was impossible not to feel affected. Maya found it hard to care for others and had devoted her emotions exclusively towards herself and pokemon, and by looking at Sabrina's facial expressions she could tell she was struggling just as much as the rest of them to get by. Still, she'd have to make an effort to have some common sense when speaking out loud. Things were getting serious.

"Boycott the fossil hunters?" she asked. "So in other words, we could go to them for help. Doubt they'll trust us so easily though." If they were powerful and growing then Maya would have to prove herself to them, and that meant she'd absolutely have to stay in a team. Together the four of them could stand a greater chance of growing stronger. As she thought this, she listlessly threw bits of rations for Zombie to snack on, sneaking a glance at their newest member when she could.

"Dhelmise, was it? How do you end up with a pokemon like that?"

Dark new world (a post-apocalyptic Pokémon story)

"Greaaat, even more difficulty," muttered Maya. If pokemon had different typings, then her life just got a whole lot harder. A part of her was dying to see the scientific data being collected over that, but she wasn't holding her breath over it being published any time soon. Ah, to be some underling slaving away for a laboratory once more. At least fate had paired her up with an archen that could fight well enough for the both of them.

She moved closer to Aro and continued to scan their surroundings with a pair of deceptively uninterested eyes. A part of her held on to the hope that something she could catch would surface, as the environment seemed perfect for it. At last, a flash of movement caught her eye and her hand rested on a spare pokeball. If the radio transmissions carried any truth to them, then this was finally her shot at expanding her party. The sight of the pokemon made her freeze, however.

"Another artificial looking pokemon," she stated.

It made sense something whose body composition wasn't flesh would have an easier time surviving as she had already discussed. The way it floated towards them reminded Maya of Aro's pokemon, and a sigh of disappointment escaped her lips as she knew it had to be belonging to someone. Sure enough, its owner could be seen in the distance, a pale girl who had probably seen better days. Maya figured it'd be easier for the trainer to explain herself instead of jumping to conclusions. The last thing she wanted was another surprise conflict way above her skill level.

Dark new world (a post-apocalyptic Pokémon story)

"Huh?" The comment caught her off guard. Realizing it was a joke and not a serious dig at her, she relaxed. "Nah, if I'm gonna be stuck with Zombie, then I'm gonna need a second pokemon. They can socialize and train against one another." Of course, it'd be possible to do all that in a party, but there was no guarantee whether any of the three would keep their little alliance formed. Keeping your distance with the rest of the world was the unspoken topic that was on everyone's mind.

And as for Zombie, she hadn't planned on keeping him for long. Ms. Amy didn't seem like the type who'd go after her for prolonging his stay, but knowing that she was technically still doing business with her filled her with unease. "Maybe I could even find a third one if I play my cards right..." she mumbled, mostly to herself. If she had a third pokemon, then Zombie wouldn't be necessary anymore.

Her hopes had been answered when something approached them. An odd looking pokemon, the kind that didn't look quite from this wrecked world and could thrive in it with minimal effort. She glared at it before realizing it had been Aro's honedge. What other explanation was there for it appearing before them so calmly?

"Is that thing trained to lead us to him? Interesting." She'd have to take note of this later in her training journal.

Eɴᴛᴇʀ — Into an Isekai World

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Unknown Forest

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Kaito's worries gradually melted away with the heat as the faint sight of a village came into view. He let out a small sigh of relief, the kind that usually punctuated beating a puzzle or game. Assuming that a shrine would entail civilization had been the correct, rational move to play. As he trudged through the unknown forest the familiar satisfaction of approaching a solution sparked within him. Something was off, however. Another feeling was growing, one he couldn't quite pin down. It was as if his heart knew something that he didn't.

A shrill cry tore through his thoughts.

"Uegh?!" He responded. It was a cross between a shriek and gasp, suppressed before it could reach its full volume. He didn't want to be even more distrusted by his little group. Kaito gathered his scattered thoughts and stored them away as if they were the notes in his arms, and responded to the woman with the voice of a professional. "Yes?! Do you need any help?!"

His eyes darted around for signs of the source of noise. Seeing that the others had already taken off, he joined them. Had another person been caught up in this inexplicable mess? Just how much more confusing will this get for me? he whined to himself. This was definitely something above his level of expertise.

Dark new world (a post-apocalyptic Pokémon story)

Maya walked after Aro along with Khelfin, irritated at how volatile everyone around her seemed. She was all too aware of being quite the stubborn hothead when she wanted to, but being around people like Ms. Amy had resulted in a newfound appreciation for herself.

"I guess we don't have any other choice than to go after the guy. Plus, rounding out my team seems like the best thing to do right now. Training a pokemon without socializing it is, as my uncle would say, really stupid."

The landscape around them was devoid of life, save for brief streaks of hardy flora that could withstand the danger of the new world. The occasional set of ruins could be seen in the distance, though it could have just as easily been a home for someone. People weren't picky here.

"Huh?" she said. Another radio transmission. The more... cryptic species of pokemon had been sighted. She wasn't surprised by most of the names that were mentioned, as they had been rumored to have been ready to deal with such a scenario. Plenty of conspiracy theorists liked to prattle on about how it was possible these pokemon had actually originated from other doomed worlds. It was a morbid thought.

She looked around their surroundings, spotting what appeared to be an abandoned campsite far into the distance. She stopped in her tracks to think. "He's not an idiot, so I don't think he'd pass up the chance to rest in a place like that." Her hand wandered over to a pair of minimized pokeballs clasped to her belt. "And if he did go farther ahead, then we should stop anyways. Any pokemon worth catching's probably hiding around in there. Those mysterious types aren't the kind to walk around in broad daylight, after all."

Dark new world (a post-apocalyptic Pokémon story)

Maya clicked her tongue in annoyance. She didn't like the idea of having to put some trust into any of these people if they were this caught up in their personal schemes, but she knew moping around and complaining any further would be useless. "Guess not," she told Khelfin, looking at Amy and Cooper. Sensing that the atmosphere had calmed down, Zombie emerged from between her calves and began to inspect the honedge with caution.

"I wonder if you could use that thing as an actual weapon," she remarked, chuckling. Although she didn't know that much about the more exotic types of pokemon, she figured it'd be okay with it. One of the few things she had remembered from her studies was that object-based pokemon tended to find comfort in assuming the roles of what they represented.

Aro was having none of it, and scolded both Amy and Cooper for their immaturity. Maya smiled at first, but it vanished once she realized he was being dead serious. As he began walking away, she shouted. "Where are you going?!" Didn't he want to at least get his cut of the profits first?