You had my curiosity with the premise, but now you have my interest. Giovanni is a real g and Pokémon's been one of my favorite games forever. Cyberpunk Team Rocket sounds fucking amazing. Two things I'm curious to see: are Jessie and James part of it? Does Silver exist?
If he does, i vote we be an excellent father, keep work life and family life separate. And if he wants to join the group, well he would be a nice person to join our Executives
With your trench coat over your fine suit and a fedora on your head, you find yourself on the corner of a street adjacent to television studio, the artificial lighting of Metapharm's moon bases piercing through the dark clouds above you as the wind lashes at you from the north, adding on to your already present annoyance. You just had finished an hour of being prodded at by a braindead show host, asking trivial questions that you answered with half-truths in front of an audience invisible to your eye, watching you from television screens. Internally, you grimaced. You had much more important things to attend to, long-term schemes were finally coming to fruition, plans were being enacted, and you dislike delegating your subordinates to handle them on your behalf. Alas, a good reputation is something that is delicate and must be nurtured, so an hour of your time was but a small sacrifice to make in the grand scheme of things. Now, most of Neo-Kanto knows who you are…or, at least the mask you wear in public.
Your discomfort soon ended as you spotted a slick, black car turning the corner and heading towards your direction, before stopping before you. You opened the door in front of you and entered the vehicle. Seating yourself on one of its leather seats, you turned towards the driver, a black suited man who peers at you through the rear view mirror. With a mere nod of your head does the man focus his attention back to the road and begins to accelerate the car once more, soon enough the studio is but a flicker in the distance before being engulfed fully by the sea of neon that surrounds it.
"Where would you like to go now, sir?" the chauffeur asks, "To your residence back in Viridian?"
You mulled over the question for a moment, "Hm, not yet, there's one other errand I must attend to before the night ends. Make a detour for…"
[] "...The Viridian Pokeball Manufacturing Plant" (VPMP becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: +10 in attempting to mass capture wild Pokemon)
[] "...The Viridian Pharmaceutical Laboratory" (VPL becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: Pokemon owned by either you or your hero units that are critically injured will now have a saving roll that could heal them up to half their health while on the field.)
[] "...The Central Kanto Agricultural Facility" (CKAF becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: +3 to starting income and +1 to yearly revenue)
"Understood sir."
The rest of the drive was uneventful, though you did pass by some fairly pleasant sights; spots of nature of all kinds that nestled within this concrete labyrinth. Even since the Pokemon outbreak and the 'Trainer Craze', Silph Co and individual entrepreneurs alike threw a massive amount of funding in creating preserves for wild Pokemon to inhabit and breed in, a cost that likely paid itself tenfold ever since they began to charge trainers a hefty fee to enter these 'Safari Zones' and get a chance to capture the Pokemon within.
"They are more than willing to exploit them for financial gain…" you thought "...Yet are too afraid to harness these creatures for their full potential…wasteful decisions made by shortsighted men."
You smirk, "Good, for it will only make my plans come to fruition sooner. Let them indulge themselves in their decadence and blind themselves with vanity, then they'll never see when Rocket goes in for the kill."
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A few hours later, you've settled your affairs and now reside in your personal residence. It was a fine place, a spacious penthouse apartment with everything one needed to live comfortably in one of the many towers in the center of the Viridian District. Before turning in for the night, you decided to check the PC in your personal study for any updates by your right hand. Sure enough, you received a personal email on Rocket Group's private channels, which read as the following:
Sir
I'm pleased to inform you that the construction of our new complex under the Game Corner in the Celadon District has been completed ahead of schedule. Not only will this be our center of operations within that area, I personally believe this could prove to be a new headquarters for Rocket as a whole if you so wish. Most importantly however is that we can now resume our research in its entirety as soon as we finish moving the necessary equipment out of our subsidiaries and into the hideout.
Furthermore, our efforts to infiltrate the current circuit of trainers have borne fruit. Not only have we seen an influx of experienced trainers joining our organization, we have actually managed to sway three of the seven overseers of Neo-Kanto's underground fighting rings to our cause as well, which brings me to my next subject.
With Rocket expanding in both numbers and resources, we'll require additional Administrators to ensure our operations remain at the smooth paste they are currently at. As such, what I highly recommend to you sir is to promote one of these three to the rank of Administrator. Each possesses their own field of expertise in both training and general management, but any three I believe will prove to be an invaluable asset for the Rocket cause.
I've centralized the information we have been able to gather on all three in an attachment to this message. Just send confirmation and I can arrange the necessary preparations to finalize the process.
Regards
Ariana
Administrator of Rocket.
As expected, your subordinate has surpassed expectations and produced excellent results, her hatred for Silph Co has proven to be quite an asset to motivate her on its own. She is correct however, on Rocket needing more administrative staff you are to ever achieve your goals, so you open the attachment and begin to read about Rocket's newest members, and to see which one of them will serve it the best, if granted the opportunity.
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[] Lieutenant Surge Ariana's Analysis: Also known as the 'Lightning Lieutenant' due to his roster of Pokemon, Lieutenant Surge (and yes, 'Surge' surprisingly is his official name) is the current overseer of the fighting ring in the Vermillion District. Supposedly, his rank isn't just for show and he was in fact a Lieutenant in the United States military before The Crash, something he is rather proud of it seems. After arriving to Princeps Dominare, Surge found himself without a cause to fight for, and the rise of the Megacorporations didn't change that, so instead he offered his skills as a lone mercenary for the next few years until he found himself trapped in Neo-Kanto during the Pokemon outbreak. According to his own claims, he was one of the first to realize the nature of these Pokemon and 'caught' his first before the development of the Pokeball, a claim supported by the fact he is one of the few that possesses a Pokemon on its third stage of evolution. Taking advantage of Silph Co advertising the 'Trainer lifestyle', Surge decided to permanently settle in Neo-Kanto's Vermillion District and open up his own fighting ring, which he operates to this day.
If promoted, I believe Surge's military experience could be used to better train and discipline our grunts, most of whom are little more than thugs and gangsters instead of a trained fighting force.
[] Koga Ariana's Analysis: Not much of Koga's past is known, but what we do know is that he was a medical professional that specialized in poisons back on Earth and at the earliest stages of The City. After his former employer was bought out by Metapharm, Koga looked for other opportunities for employment, which he found in ZEED Limited, particularly its Ninja Corps. Undergoing their rigorous training, he was admitted into the Corps and completed any mission provided for him, rising through the ranks until…he asked to leave the corps a few years later for reasons unknown. Even more surprising is that ZEED permitted it on the condition he never utilizes their secrets for his own personal use. He agreed, but since then has made his own version of ninja arts that utilizes poisons extensively. It's unknown when he arrived to Neo-Kanto, but in the present day he's now overseer of the fighting ring in the Fuchsia District and an expert in Poison-type Pokemon.
If promoted, the best use in Koga we could find would likely be in improving our network of spies and informants, which can still see improvement despite being the best in Neo-Kanto already.
[] Sabrina Ariana's Analysis: Perhaps the oddest of the candidates,Sabrina is a member of the first generation of those not born on Earth. When The Crash occurred, Sabrina's mother was already pregnant with her and conceived her on their colony ship, leaving her only at the age of three when The City began its construction. Sabrina's family settled in Neo-Kanto not long after it was established, leaving them to be some of its earliest settlers. What makes her an oddity however, is that she possesses powers only seen used by Psychic-type Pokemon, which I can personally confirm. She refuses to state how she obtained these powers, but did confess that they manifested during the initial Pokemon outbreak, leaving some of our scientists to theorize she may have been exposed to Mu personally, which caused an irregular reaction that granted her the attributes of a Psychic-type. These days, she is the overseer of the fighting ring in Saffron District and an expert in Psychic-type Pokemon. Unlike the other two, she actually sought us out instead of vice versa, and upon a few questions the reason for that is that she believes that Rocket Group could help her better understand and use her Psychic abilities.
While we can study her powers regardless, offering her the position of Administrator may entice her into being subject of actual experiments on her abilities, which would grant us greater insight into them, where they came from, and perhaps even open up the possibility of replicating Sabrina's case in other members of Rocket.
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And now the quest can actually begin! Huzzah!
Furthermore, the Hero Unit roster has been added as well as your organization's bonus and your personal liquid income, so feel free to check those out too. Feel free to begin voting now or to begin discussing the best course of action! Like last vote, voting will end in two days from now. Lastly, I hope you'll all have fun with this quest as I do writing it as we explore new territories together!
Well now, i have big ideas already, but first let us set up.
[X] "...The Viridian Pharmaceutical Laboratory" (VPL becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: Pokemon owned by either you or your hero units that are critically injured will now have a saving roll that could heal them up to half their health while on the field.)
Having a good doctor is paramount in organized Crime, and Pokemon are no exception.
[X] Lieutenant Surge
I was torn between all three, but Surge can make sure what forces we have are an actual force able to hold our territory, and plus he clearly is a excellent man for catching Pokemon. And as a side note, in a city as industrialized as the City of Light, electricity is very important, Surge can possibly be a very powerful weapon against our foes.
Ooooooooh, Gym Leaders working for us? How deliciously manga-esque!
[X] "...The Viridian Pokeball Manufacturing Plant" (VPMP becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: +10 in attempting to mass capture wild Pokemon)
I feel like this has potential outside of just the bonus; we'll be direct rivals to Silph this way, which will be an inevitability anyway, and we can hopefully develop a Master Ball first and try to go for Mu/Mu2.
[X] "...The Viridian Pharmaceutical Laboratory" (VPL becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: Pokemon owned by either you or your hero units that are critically injured will now have a saving roll that could heal them up to half their health while on the field.) [X] Lieutenant Surge
We need an army.
[X] "...The Viridian Pharmaceutical Laboratory" (VPL becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: Pokemon owned by either you or your hero units that are critically injured will now have a saving roll that could heal them up to half their health while on the field.)
Medicine is literally invaluable, while profits can be gained later on.
[X] Lieutenant Surge
Sabrina is tempting even if somewhat generic. But she's also incredibly hard to work with at best since she's basically minmaxed for psychic abilities to the detriment of her social abilities. Meanwhile Surge has a decent enough start in his own 3rd stage and the ability to make our punks into thugs. Besides, that he might have some nice strategy bonuses or wider connections from being military that the two recluses just wouldn't.
[X] "...The Viridian Pharmaceutical Laboratory" (VPL becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: Pokemon owned by either you or your hero units that are critically injured will now have a saving roll that could heal them up to half their health while on the field.)
[X] Lieutenant Surge
[X] "...The Viridian Pharmaceutical Laboratory" (VPL becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: Pokemon owned by either you or your hero units that are critically injured will now have a saving roll that could heal them up to half their health while on the field.)
[X] Lieutenant Surge
[X] "...The Viridian Pharmaceutical Laboratory" (VPL becomes Giovanni's above-board business. Gain organization bonus: Pokemon owned by either you or your hero units that are critically injured will now have a saving roll that could heal them up to half their health while on the field.)
[X] Lieutenant Surge
After reading the rocket group part of the doc given to us at the lore post, you'd most likely come to the same conclusion too if you remember what this pokemon is and why it's a legendary/mythical.
In the world of 8-bit Dystopia, Mu is the term used to refer the materialization of the genetic code founded by accident with Samuel Oak's Silph Scope. After researching it, Silph Co was able to reconstruct said code into a pink mutagenic ooze that proved to be a massive boon in their medical research.
However, Mu is also a notorious...I suppose 'invasive species' would be a fitting term in this case, one that can and likely will extensively change anything it comes into contact with and turn them into Pokemon. Have Mu touch a lizard, it'll become a Charmander, a mouse a Pikachu, and if you drop some of it into a puddle of chemical waste? Congradulations, you got a Grimer.
In otherwords, it's the origin of all Pokemon in this setting and the shared aspect in their DNA that allows all Pokemon to breed with each other and still produce viable offspring. The source of the Pokemon outbreak was from a sample of Mu being released in Neo-Kanto along with several escaped Pokemon trapped in Silph Co Labortories.
It is also the source of the properties of Pokemon and their types, which is why some Rocket scientists suggest Sabrina's case is related to contact with Mu.
Though, it's only a theory, there have been other examples of Mu coming into contact with live humans that had...very different results.
