After some thought; you had decided to check out that hole to the south. You'd released Hoppip and Porygon, the digital pokemon immediately scanning the area and adding it to your map with a soft ding. Hoppip let out a little chirp, looking up at you expectantly.
"Okay girl, what I need you to do is squeeze through that hole right there, and set off Sunny Day to see how big it is on the other side. Then you can come right back and I'll start opening up the wall.
Hoppip gives a nod of her entire body, rocking back and forth before she moved to the hole and began to squeeze herself through. As she does, you ponder something. Naming pokemon is something that some trainers do, feeling that it increases their bond with their teams by making them feel unique and special. Should you do the same?
[ ][Hoppip Nickname]She doesn't need a name.
[ ][Hoppip Nickname]Write-in
[ ][Porygon Nickname]They don't need a name
[ ][Porygon Nickname]Write-in
Eventually you're knocked out of your musings by the shine of light through the hole. You'd been pretty surprised to learn that Hoppip had been "born" knowing Sunny Day. While the Hoppip line could learn it, normally it required a TM rather than being naturally learned by the species. Furthermore it wasn't a move that could be inherited from parents, a so-called "Egg Move".
Porygon on the other hand, hadn't had anything in particular that stood out about them in terms of moves. You had pondered the logistics of acquiring an Up-Grade to allow them to evolve. But they were expensive and Silph guarded their supply rather jealously. You'd heard about them being offered as prizes at some of the Colosseum bouts, or as prizes that you could receive by redeeming tickets from facing the Gauntlet; the hundred-trainer battle gauntlet that was the core draw of the Colosseum. And the core of their power in the region, having a hundred constantly progressing trainers made for one hell of a deterrent against attack by most bandit gangs.
As Hoppip squeezed back through the hole and shook off a bit of rock dust, she jumped up and down excitedly. You smiled, picking her up and allowing her to nestle in the crook of your neck as you unlimbered your pick. Balling her would probably have been safer, but she enjoyed watching new things. Porygon held back, observing the opening as you worked on it, beeping occasionally. Eventually you got a face full of sunlight as the fading Sunny Day orbs became visible. With a few more choice hits with your pick and smashing some of the outcroppings to pieces with your hammer, you had a serviceable, if rough, passage headed South. Hoppip chirped; while Porygon gave a short burst of interested beeps.
You have opened a passage to the South.
You'd decided that you were going to focus on trying to find signs of living pokemon down here, the small number of pokeballs in a satchel at your waist in easy access. It didn't matter if it was just a single Magikarp in a small cave pond, it would have still made it worthwhile. Unfortunately as you follow the tunnel, all you find are a few small caves that make a decent place to eat something to keep up your strength and take some gulps of precious water.
Eventually though as you're passing through your last tunnel set before you're going to be forced back due to not having any equipment for sleeping underground (at the very least a sleeping bag because even with the surface being a desert it was cold sleeping on bare stone!). You had enough food and water to make it back without worry so long as nothing bad happened.
Sighing, you sat down on a rise in the stone, playing your flashlight over the walls. While having Hoppip able to use Sunny Day was great, using a directed beam of light could help find hints of things...like that metallic sparkle in the wall. Getting up and moving closer, you had Hoppip use Sunny Day once again. Another reason not to constantly use it was because it could cause Move Fatigue from using a move too much over the course of an extended period of time.
Under the light of the false sun, you smiled as you made out the buttery yellow flecks in the stone. Taking out your pick, you began to carefully begin digging around the area, your smile getting wider and wider as you encountered more of that wonderful color. After almost an hour, you're able to pull out the plug of metal with stone clinging to the extremities. Going off the weight and the mass, this was a Big Nugget! A massive find in terms of finances, even if it wasn't something that you could exactly bring back to the Dean as incentive to fund a real expedition. But thanks to Prof. Saguaro's contacts, you were certain that you'd be able to find a buyer for the maximum market price.
You found a Big Nugget. Added $30,000 to finances.
You'd continued casting along the wall trying to find more pockets of gold, but all that turned up was some worthless pyrite. Eventually you had returned to the surface; finding that the Professor had spent his time cleaning up the place, while Titan, his Aggron, snoozed outside; enjoying the scouring sand like most pokemon would a gentle breeze. The wind had kicked up and a real haboob was in the offing. Thankfully the seals on the windows and doors were still good, and no dust or sand got in. Titan would also be a good deterrent to anyone that may come investigating the sudden reactivation of the generator.
As you settled down at the old kitchen table, reflexively taking "your" seat, the Professor smiled as he dished up a bowl of chili. "Find anything good?" He doles out a serving for himself while you prepare some pokechow for Hoppip. While technically Porygon didn't need to eat; they were apparently able to "consume" food by running an electrical current through it, absorbing the calories and granting the return flow of electricity "flavor" for their enjoyment.
So you put a couple of dried Oran berries in a stone bowl, and set them down in front of the mon to "eat". Thankfully the process didn't create any kind of acrid burning smell, but afterwards all that was left was a fine white ash; even the seeds reduced to powder.
Turning your attention back to the Professor, you rummage in your pack before setting the hefty chunk of ore down on the table. "Well, I did a field test with Poison Powder, no discoloration on the metal after application. So, I'd say that I've got a pretty solid find here." You sigh a little then. "But no signs of living mon down there. Or even some fossils."
Saguaro nods, spooning up his chili and smacking his lips at the taste. "We still have a week, Nick; plenty of time when you're more actively looking for them than for new finds in the tunnel walls. As it stands this find of yours means that we can offset some of the budget for the Dean in order to make her more likely to find the expedition. Or supplement the budget if we're able to get it."
[ ][Nugget]Use the Nugget to subsidize part of the budget for an expansion. (More likely for the Dean to release funds even if you come up with minimal results)
[ ][Nugget]Use the Nugget to supplement the expedition. (Adds the Big Nugget's worth to the expedition funds before they set out to buy more things)
After coming to a decision, you idly take a bite of the chili... and immediately begin scrabbling for the shelf-stable milk you'd brought with you. You'd forgotten how much the Professor liked spice!!! The man himself was laughing loudly as you chugged the milk to quench the fire in your throat. "Hahahaha! Just like my little brother! He always had more of a sweet tooth. Not a lot of tolerance for heat."
You gasp as you come up for air. "Tolerance for heat?! I'm pretty sure that even an Emboar would have had trouble with that level of spice!" That just got more laughter, as you went and found that the Prof. had doctored both his and your bowls with some Tomato Spice Hot Sauce. The rest of the chili was actually edible, especially after adding some shredded cheese to further smooth out the bite. You went to sleep that night cursing the Professor's enjoyment of spice and pranks.
The next morning you're feeling decidedly less hostile. Sleeping in your old room had been a combination of bitter and sweet as childhood memories clashed with the reality of Grandpa and Grandma both being gone. But with the new day came new opportunities as your Grandpa used to say.
You have 5 AP. You can attempt to either Explore an excavated tunnel, looking for a specific type of treasure, (Here it'll be whatever you decide to focus on, later you can make choices on what to spend each AP on looking for); attempting to find new passages, or attempting to open up collapsed passages. Some passages will not be able to be cleared without improved equipment.
AN: You get one extra AP because I kind of hosed you on the AP costs last turn. Picking a direction to go does not and will not cost an AP going forward.
Your available actions are:
[ ]Follow an open shaft to the (North, South, East)
Pick a cardinal direction. When you get deeper you will also need to choose if you are going up or down. Currently North, South and East are available. The passage West has collapsed. Picking a direction does not cost AP.
[ ]Check a wall for buried treasures.
[ ]Try to track down a trace of living pokemon.
[ ]Lay out bait and try to bring in pokemon to you
You will need to use berries or other specialized baits. Currently not available.
[ ]Try to clear collapsed passage to the West. Will take multiple AP. Add "x1" etc for how many AP are being applied. With better gear you'll be able to assess how much AP a blockage will take to remove.
Please vote by plan for spending your AP. Everything else is freeform votes. There will be a one-hour moratorium.
AN: Yeah, unfortunately bad rolls are bad. But at the least you got a fairly significant chunk of change to bolster the main expedition? Also, I've updated the character page with the team, including the moves your mon know and their current levels.