KnownParadox
Not a sphere
- Location
- Canada
[X] Celadon City
Money.
[X] Nidoking Coat
Bitchin' coat.
Money.
[X] Nidoking Coat
Bitchin' coat.
To Be the Very Best: Rocket Quest - An 8-BD CK2 Quest
- Thread starter Brightflame
- Start date
- Crossover Sci-Fi
[X] Vermillion City
[X] Nidoking Coat
[X] Nidoking Coat
Brightflame
Lord of the Dance
- Location
- Inkopolis
Calling vote
Looks like the winners are the Nidoking Coat and the Vermillion City secret base. the proper sheets have been updated.
and if you were curious on how Giovanni looks now, imagine something like this.
Looks like the winners are the Nidoking Coat and the Vermillion City secret base. the proper sheets have been updated.
and if you were curious on how Giovanni looks now, imagine something like this.
Interlude: Terminal Error
Brightflame
Lord of the Dance
- Location
- Inkopolis
Rocket Hideout, Celadon Game Corner
You sat in silence in your office, reading over the reports of your latest setback, suppressing the growing rage you feel simmering within you the more you learn just how incompetent many of your underlings truly are.
Then…the whole complex shook. Which was soon followed by the intercoms blaring a singular message:
"There's been a breach in third floor laboratories. Repeat, there's been a breach-"
You pinch the bridge of your nose. You were a very, very unhappy man today.
Perhaps that is the reason why you decide to humor an idea that was irrational as it was reckless, or perhaps you simply lost faith in your subordinates in handling such vital matters and emergencies. Either or, you reach underneath your desk and flick a switch. Soon after, the intercoms fall silent across the complex, before coming to life again with a new voice; your own.
"Everyone, return to your regular duties immediately. I'll handle this myself."
======
Moments later, you were taking the elevator to your location, descending downwards as the noises of what you can only guess could be a rampaging Pokemon grew ever louder. After the doors opened, the hallway before you was completely empty. It was only when you went past did you see a glimpse of the mess this rampage has wrought on your property and grunts alike; smashed equipment, dents in the walls, and barely conscious Rocket employees slumped and clutching their wounds. You head deeper in, closer to the source of this annoyance, and once you arrive and see the culprit you're…rather perplexed.
What before you is, without a doubt, a Pokemon, but the exact kind you could not say. Its form is unlike any one cataloged by Rocket so far; encased within a shell of stone save for its limbs and face, both of which reminded you of a regular tortoise. Despite the damage done it was a short creature with stout legs and arms, the latter of which ended with three claw-like appendages that were currently being used to mutilate a server rack as the pokemon persists in its frenzied state.
You feel your anger parting way for a new emotion, a growing curiosity on what the creature before you is, but you put that feeling aside as you take out one of your Pokeballs. Fascination can be saved for later, right now this Pokemon is making a mess of your operations and you cannot, nor will not tolerate that, new Pokemon or not. With an underhand throw, you toss the Pokeball in your hand onto the ground. Soon after, the ball opened and, with a flash of light, the familiar form of your Persian materialized.
This had gotten the frenzied Pokemon's notice, who had turned away from the pile of twisted electronics they had made to face the newcomer in their vicinity, its red eyes soon falling on you and your Pokemon. Not long after, with a screech it charged at you…
…Only for it to be taken off its feet and sent spiraling into the eastern wall. It was then you noticed the arrows that were now plastered on several areas of the floor, the spot that the unknown Pokemon was just on had one of those arrows, pointing towards the east.
Hm…so these were one of the 'unorthodox' security measures the Lieutenant warned you about? Well then, that explains how this rampaging Pokemon hasn't attempted to breach into the other floors so far, it's been rendered dazed and unconcentrated due to pads. Odd as they may be, they are showing a surprising amount of effectiveness already. Despite his recent incapacitation, the Lieutenant is already shaping up to be a worthwhile investment. Still, this creature has already injured several of your personnel, so unless your subordinates were truly incompetent beyond saving, this creature shouldn't be underestimated despite its handicaps.
"Persian, punish this intruder with a barrage of Fury Swipes, now." With that simple order and a snap of your fingers, your obedient Persian lunged towards their foe ferociously, claws bared as they lash out against the hardened body of the unknown Pokemon. Their attacks strike true, and the unknown recoils backwards in obvious pain, but the visible damage is also noticeably light, all but confirming your theory on this one's type, or at least one of them.
Hm…a Rock-type against a Normal-type, typically such scenarios are not ideal for the latter. The hard, stone-like skin rendering most Normal attacks ineffective for the Rock-type and 9 times out of ten the Rock-type can win by simply outlasting their foe in a battle of attrition.
Unfortunately for this one, your Persian isn't average, nor did you deploy them without taking type-advantage into consideration.
Yet, the battle was not over, for the unknown withdrew to its shell began to spin at a even rapid rate, and in a blink of an eye charged at Persian once, only this time that speed was not in your Pokemon's favor. Persian was struck, and with a sharp cry were they sent skidding back to you. Snarling at the unknown, Persian still stood in defiance, but you can tell how devastating that attack was to them, they were within an inch of their life and another attack of that nature would cause them to collapse fully.
You must admit, you're surprised at this sudden turn. A single attack has nearly brought down your Persian despite its strength, but how?
Hm…that attack, it couldn't have been a Rock-type attack, not one you are aware of, likewise you believe you can write off most other Types for similar reasons. Now that you think about it, that move reminded you of one committed by your mentor's Hitmonchan during a brief Pokemon battle with them after one of your training sessions, the one your mentor referred to as 'Submission'.
Hm…so it's a Fighting-type move.
You can't help but grin at this revelation, this battle was yours.
"Persian, use Mimic and end this intruder with their own attack!" you ordered. Despite their pain, your Persian obeyed to the best of their abilities. That was the beauty of a move such as Mimic, even if the user couldn't replicate the attack perfectly due to differences in biology, the resulting attack would just be as devastating as the original, even if it was performed differently to adjust with its user.
Persian charged at their foe in a tackle, this time speed was their ally once more, and once they landed their strike the battle was over.
For a brief moment, you hear the sound of stone shattering, followed by a cry of pain as the unknown is thrown back to the northern wall, eyes closed as they fall unconscious. Where its shell was once solid now laid a large crack from the impact of Persian's attack. The battle has ended with no resounding bang, merely with a whimper of the defeated.
"That's enough, now return." Raising the empty Pokeball towards your Persian, they disappear in a flash of red light. Taking out a second Pokeball, you throw it at the fallen creature's head, the impact with it causing the ball to open and engulf it in bright, white light. Soon after, the creature is gone, leaving only the Pokeball that had begun to shake.
Shake
Shake
Shake
Click
With that satisfying click, the ball stopped shaking, confirming your has been captured. Smirking, you walk forward and pick up the ball from the ground. A never before seen Pokemon was now at your disposal, a valuable asset indeed.
Yet the greatest question is still left unanswered…where did it come from?
"B-Boss!?" you hear someone call out behind you, along with several pairs of feet moving towards your position. Removing the smirk on your face, you turn around to see one of your scientists along with several grunts, all of whom seem injured to some degree, uniforms torn in several areas and clutching parts of their bodies. That didn't matter to you however, not right now.
"I will give you all one opportunity to explain this, why was there a Pokemon causing havoc on Rocket property and why were you all too incompetent to resolve it before I needed to step in? Choose your next words carefully, researcher, and you may leave this area with your head intact" You state coldly. The expression on the scientist's face turned to dread as soon as the words left your mouth, he began to shake and stutter his excuses until another voice made itself known.
"The fault for what happened lies on me, sir."
You look away from the scientist and towards the familiar voice to see…
"Administrator Ariana."
She walked forward, a limp in her step. Appearance-wise she was little better than the rest of the occupants on this floor; her clothes torn revealing several shallow cuts and bruises on her limbs and torso, her face had a small cut on her cheek while her hair was tangled with small fragments of stone, but her eyes were as focused as ever.
Giving the shaking scientist a brief glance, you focus your attention on your figurative right hand. "Is that so…then kindly explain to me how something of this magnitude occurred under your supervision." you demand in a somewhat softer, but still authoritative tone.
She nods weakly, "In truth sir, it would be easier if you saw this for yourself. Could you please follow me?"
"...Hmph, very well."
You noticed a faint smile on her face as she turned away from you and began to walk away, naturally you followed her deeper into the facility.
=====
"So the intruder materialized from this PC?"
You stroke your chin in thought. A few moments ago, Ariana led you into a singular, heavily damaged lab, one that possessed one thing: A similarly damaged PC, one that looked identical to all others.
Ariana nodded, "Yes, though this isn't quite a PC, rather it's a Terminal."
You raise an eyebrow, "The difference being?"
"That would be its purpose." Ariana began to explain, "While PCs are utilized to act as storage devices that convert the physical forms of Pokemon into ones of pure energy that can be stored in a digital space, the intended purpose for Terminals goes further than that. Instead of storing the energy, Terminals will change it further into the form of a wireless signal, one that can be sent to another Terminal that would then convert the signal back into energy and then convert the energy back into the Pokemon's physical form."
"In other words, they're devices that can send Pokemon to locations miles away in a matter of seconds." You observed. Now this is rather intriguing, already you can imagine countless of ways this technology could be used for the benefit of Rocket, perhaps Ariana noticed your fascination, and that was why she said something that would dash away many of your ideas with what she says next.
"Correct sir, however in its current form, the system has severe limitations, namely that Terminals can only send or receive a single Pokemon at a time, making them unfeasible for mass transport of Pokemon. This technology was developed by Rocket while it was still a part of Silph Co and even then we couldn't resolve this issue, so instead it was initially going to be advertised as a 'trading system' for Trainers who wanted to get rid of less desirable Pokemon and receive a more desirable one in exchange."
You frown, "Hm…I see, disappointing." You approached the Terminal and began to examine it. It was…for lack of a better word, destroyed, several claw marks tear open its side, spilling out its inner electronics. "You said Silph Co had plans for this system, yet this is the first time I am hearing of such devices. Kindly explain why that is, Administrator."
"...It's because of Cinnabar Island, sir." While your back is turned away from her now, you can hear the sheer distaste in Ariana's voice, "After the Incident, the project that developed Terminals became one of many that was scrapped as those scu-...the Silph Co Board of Directors desperately attempted to recoup from the loss before purging Rocket Division from the company entirely."
Of course that's the case, another foolish action made by your foes, one that you'll exploit for your own benefit. Still, one question remains.
"While this is all fascinating, Administrator, I fail to see how this explains the rampaging Pokemon you all failed to contain."
"We're…still trying to confirm it ourselves sir, but our leading theory is that Terminals may affect the Evolution process of Pokemon."
You turn back to her, "Elaborate."
She nods, grinning as she explains the chain of events that led to now.
"To start from the very beginning, I had Terminals installed in several of our hideouts across the Zone inorder to test the system as a whole, as a way to enable Rocket to transport our assets between bases. Until now, we've been mainly testing it by transferring more common Pokemon through it, namely Rattatas. But then we get a message from the officer incharge of our Viridian branch, notifying us that they had caught an abnormally powerful Graveler around Route 23, one that required a whole team of grunts to defeat and capture. Naturally, our Ground and Rock-type specialists here in the Labs were fascinated at such a specimen and requested for it to be transferred here, and I myself saw an opportunity to see if the Terminal system had any limitations beyond what is already known, so I told the officer to send the specimen through the Terminal. When the specimen materialized here however, instead of a Graveler we got…" she gestures to the Pokeball in your hands "...What you just fought."
That Pokemon was a Graveler? You could see the similarities you suppose, but you know your Ground-types enough to confirm that a mere Graveler couldn't have been such a nuisance, even an abnormally strong one. But then that can only mean…
"...The conversion process caused it to evolve." you realized, "and yet, the Graveler is supposedly the last of its evolution line."
Ariana's grin becomes almost predatory, "Until now." She says "Of course, further testing is needed to verify this just wasn't a fluke or a chance occurrence, but if we are correct the conversion process changed the genetic code of the Pokemon and is a direct cause for its evolution, and it may not be the only one. If our theory is right, we may have accidentally discovered an entire new chain of undiscovered Pokemon!"
…
Heh, just like that it's as if your previous anger at Rocket's shortcomings fades away with this revelation.
"Is that so…" You look down at the Pokeball in your hands, grinning at the potential a new line could benefit you, one undiscovered by your foes due to their own foolishness. "...In that case, the damages done can be excused for this breakthrough, but this pet project of yours? I'll be elevating it to be one of Rocket's greater priorities and ensuring it gets the attention and funding it deserves. Any objections to this, Administrator?"
"No sir!" she responds with a salute, "We'll make sure your faith in us is not in vain!"
"Good…good." You say, "In that case I will take my leave for now and attend to the other matters regarding Rocket, I expect to hear results in the near future, Administrator. Don't disappoint me." You begin to walk out.
"Understood…but, sir?" you stop, "What should we do with the specimen?"
You think for a moment, you could give it to your specialists for the sake of research into its abnormality, but doing so would be risking another breakout, especially now…it's a strong Pokemon, one that requires a strong trainer.
"...Locate another Graveler and put it through the same process once you're all better prepared." You respond as you raise the Pokeball into the air for them to see. "This one? I will be keeping an eye on it personally."
=====
By complete accident, Rocket Group becomes the first to learn of Trade Evolutions!
Rocket Group obtains: Terminals! Anytime a base is raided, Rocket will have a chance to preserve some of their Pokemon-based assets by transporting them to the Celadon Hideout via Terminal.
Giovanni has obtained a Golem!
Additional Actions Unlocked
You sat in silence in your office, reading over the reports of your latest setback, suppressing the growing rage you feel simmering within you the more you learn just how incompetent many of your underlings truly are.
Then…the whole complex shook. Which was soon followed by the intercoms blaring a singular message:
"There's been a breach in third floor laboratories. Repeat, there's been a breach-"
You pinch the bridge of your nose. You were a very, very unhappy man today.
Perhaps that is the reason why you decide to humor an idea that was irrational as it was reckless, or perhaps you simply lost faith in your subordinates in handling such vital matters and emergencies. Either or, you reach underneath your desk and flick a switch. Soon after, the intercoms fall silent across the complex, before coming to life again with a new voice; your own.
"Everyone, return to your regular duties immediately. I'll handle this myself."
======
Moments later, you were taking the elevator to your location, descending downwards as the noises of what you can only guess could be a rampaging Pokemon grew ever louder. After the doors opened, the hallway before you was completely empty. It was only when you went past did you see a glimpse of the mess this rampage has wrought on your property and grunts alike; smashed equipment, dents in the walls, and barely conscious Rocket employees slumped and clutching their wounds. You head deeper in, closer to the source of this annoyance, and once you arrive and see the culprit you're…rather perplexed.
What before you is, without a doubt, a Pokemon, but the exact kind you could not say. Its form is unlike any one cataloged by Rocket so far; encased within a shell of stone save for its limbs and face, both of which reminded you of a regular tortoise. Despite the damage done it was a short creature with stout legs and arms, the latter of which ended with three claw-like appendages that were currently being used to mutilate a server rack as the pokemon persists in its frenzied state.
You feel your anger parting way for a new emotion, a growing curiosity on what the creature before you is, but you put that feeling aside as you take out one of your Pokeballs. Fascination can be saved for later, right now this Pokemon is making a mess of your operations and you cannot, nor will not tolerate that, new Pokemon or not. With an underhand throw, you toss the Pokeball in your hand onto the ground. Soon after, the ball opened and, with a flash of light, the familiar form of your Persian materialized.
This had gotten the frenzied Pokemon's notice, who had turned away from the pile of twisted electronics they had made to face the newcomer in their vicinity, its red eyes soon falling on you and your Pokemon. Not long after, with a screech it charged at you…
…Only for it to be taken off its feet and sent spiraling into the eastern wall. It was then you noticed the arrows that were now plastered on several areas of the floor, the spot that the unknown Pokemon was just on had one of those arrows, pointing towards the east.
Hm…so these were one of the 'unorthodox' security measures the Lieutenant warned you about? Well then, that explains how this rampaging Pokemon hasn't attempted to breach into the other floors so far, it's been rendered dazed and unconcentrated due to pads. Odd as they may be, they are showing a surprising amount of effectiveness already. Despite his recent incapacitation, the Lieutenant is already shaping up to be a worthwhile investment. Still, this creature has already injured several of your personnel, so unless your subordinates were truly incompetent beyond saving, this creature shouldn't be underestimated despite its handicaps.
"Persian, punish this intruder with a barrage of Fury Swipes, now." With that simple order and a snap of your fingers, your obedient Persian lunged towards their foe ferociously, claws bared as they lash out against the hardened body of the unknown Pokemon. Their attacks strike true, and the unknown recoils backwards in obvious pain, but the visible damage is also noticeably light, all but confirming your theory on this one's type, or at least one of them.
Hm…a Rock-type against a Normal-type, typically such scenarios are not ideal for the latter. The hard, stone-like skin rendering most Normal attacks ineffective for the Rock-type and 9 times out of ten the Rock-type can win by simply outlasting their foe in a battle of attrition.
Unfortunately for this one, your Persian isn't average, nor did you deploy them without taking type-advantage into consideration.
Yet, the battle was not over, for the unknown withdrew to its shell began to spin at a even rapid rate, and in a blink of an eye charged at Persian once, only this time that speed was not in your Pokemon's favor. Persian was struck, and with a sharp cry were they sent skidding back to you. Snarling at the unknown, Persian still stood in defiance, but you can tell how devastating that attack was to them, they were within an inch of their life and another attack of that nature would cause them to collapse fully.
You must admit, you're surprised at this sudden turn. A single attack has nearly brought down your Persian despite its strength, but how?
Hm…that attack, it couldn't have been a Rock-type attack, not one you are aware of, likewise you believe you can write off most other Types for similar reasons. Now that you think about it, that move reminded you of one committed by your mentor's Hitmonchan during a brief Pokemon battle with them after one of your training sessions, the one your mentor referred to as 'Submission'.
Hm…so it's a Fighting-type move.
You can't help but grin at this revelation, this battle was yours.
"Persian, use Mimic and end this intruder with their own attack!" you ordered. Despite their pain, your Persian obeyed to the best of their abilities. That was the beauty of a move such as Mimic, even if the user couldn't replicate the attack perfectly due to differences in biology, the resulting attack would just be as devastating as the original, even if it was performed differently to adjust with its user.
Persian charged at their foe in a tackle, this time speed was their ally once more, and once they landed their strike the battle was over.
For a brief moment, you hear the sound of stone shattering, followed by a cry of pain as the unknown is thrown back to the northern wall, eyes closed as they fall unconscious. Where its shell was once solid now laid a large crack from the impact of Persian's attack. The battle has ended with no resounding bang, merely with a whimper of the defeated.
"That's enough, now return." Raising the empty Pokeball towards your Persian, they disappear in a flash of red light. Taking out a second Pokeball, you throw it at the fallen creature's head, the impact with it causing the ball to open and engulf it in bright, white light. Soon after, the creature is gone, leaving only the Pokeball that had begun to shake.
Shake
Shake
Shake
Click
With that satisfying click, the ball stopped shaking, confirming your has been captured. Smirking, you walk forward and pick up the ball from the ground. A never before seen Pokemon was now at your disposal, a valuable asset indeed.
Yet the greatest question is still left unanswered…where did it come from?
"B-Boss!?" you hear someone call out behind you, along with several pairs of feet moving towards your position. Removing the smirk on your face, you turn around to see one of your scientists along with several grunts, all of whom seem injured to some degree, uniforms torn in several areas and clutching parts of their bodies. That didn't matter to you however, not right now.
"I will give you all one opportunity to explain this, why was there a Pokemon causing havoc on Rocket property and why were you all too incompetent to resolve it before I needed to step in? Choose your next words carefully, researcher, and you may leave this area with your head intact" You state coldly. The expression on the scientist's face turned to dread as soon as the words left your mouth, he began to shake and stutter his excuses until another voice made itself known.
"The fault for what happened lies on me, sir."
You look away from the scientist and towards the familiar voice to see…
"Administrator Ariana."
She walked forward, a limp in her step. Appearance-wise she was little better than the rest of the occupants on this floor; her clothes torn revealing several shallow cuts and bruises on her limbs and torso, her face had a small cut on her cheek while her hair was tangled with small fragments of stone, but her eyes were as focused as ever.
Giving the shaking scientist a brief glance, you focus your attention on your figurative right hand. "Is that so…then kindly explain to me how something of this magnitude occurred under your supervision." you demand in a somewhat softer, but still authoritative tone.
She nods weakly, "In truth sir, it would be easier if you saw this for yourself. Could you please follow me?"
"...Hmph, very well."
You noticed a faint smile on her face as she turned away from you and began to walk away, naturally you followed her deeper into the facility.
=====
"So the intruder materialized from this PC?"
You stroke your chin in thought. A few moments ago, Ariana led you into a singular, heavily damaged lab, one that possessed one thing: A similarly damaged PC, one that looked identical to all others.
Ariana nodded, "Yes, though this isn't quite a PC, rather it's a Terminal."
You raise an eyebrow, "The difference being?"
"That would be its purpose." Ariana began to explain, "While PCs are utilized to act as storage devices that convert the physical forms of Pokemon into ones of pure energy that can be stored in a digital space, the intended purpose for Terminals goes further than that. Instead of storing the energy, Terminals will change it further into the form of a wireless signal, one that can be sent to another Terminal that would then convert the signal back into energy and then convert the energy back into the Pokemon's physical form."
"In other words, they're devices that can send Pokemon to locations miles away in a matter of seconds." You observed. Now this is rather intriguing, already you can imagine countless of ways this technology could be used for the benefit of Rocket, perhaps Ariana noticed your fascination, and that was why she said something that would dash away many of your ideas with what she says next.
"Correct sir, however in its current form, the system has severe limitations, namely that Terminals can only send or receive a single Pokemon at a time, making them unfeasible for mass transport of Pokemon. This technology was developed by Rocket while it was still a part of Silph Co and even then we couldn't resolve this issue, so instead it was initially going to be advertised as a 'trading system' for Trainers who wanted to get rid of less desirable Pokemon and receive a more desirable one in exchange."
You frown, "Hm…I see, disappointing." You approached the Terminal and began to examine it. It was…for lack of a better word, destroyed, several claw marks tear open its side, spilling out its inner electronics. "You said Silph Co had plans for this system, yet this is the first time I am hearing of such devices. Kindly explain why that is, Administrator."
"...It's because of Cinnabar Island, sir." While your back is turned away from her now, you can hear the sheer distaste in Ariana's voice, "After the Incident, the project that developed Terminals became one of many that was scrapped as those scu-...the Silph Co Board of Directors desperately attempted to recoup from the loss before purging Rocket Division from the company entirely."
Of course that's the case, another foolish action made by your foes, one that you'll exploit for your own benefit. Still, one question remains.
"While this is all fascinating, Administrator, I fail to see how this explains the rampaging Pokemon you all failed to contain."
"We're…still trying to confirm it ourselves sir, but our leading theory is that Terminals may affect the Evolution process of Pokemon."
You turn back to her, "Elaborate."
She nods, grinning as she explains the chain of events that led to now.
"To start from the very beginning, I had Terminals installed in several of our hideouts across the Zone inorder to test the system as a whole, as a way to enable Rocket to transport our assets between bases. Until now, we've been mainly testing it by transferring more common Pokemon through it, namely Rattatas. But then we get a message from the officer incharge of our Viridian branch, notifying us that they had caught an abnormally powerful Graveler around Route 23, one that required a whole team of grunts to defeat and capture. Naturally, our Ground and Rock-type specialists here in the Labs were fascinated at such a specimen and requested for it to be transferred here, and I myself saw an opportunity to see if the Terminal system had any limitations beyond what is already known, so I told the officer to send the specimen through the Terminal. When the specimen materialized here however, instead of a Graveler we got…" she gestures to the Pokeball in your hands "...What you just fought."
That Pokemon was a Graveler? You could see the similarities you suppose, but you know your Ground-types enough to confirm that a mere Graveler couldn't have been such a nuisance, even an abnormally strong one. But then that can only mean…
"...The conversion process caused it to evolve." you realized, "and yet, the Graveler is supposedly the last of its evolution line."
Ariana's grin becomes almost predatory, "Until now." She says "Of course, further testing is needed to verify this just wasn't a fluke or a chance occurrence, but if we are correct the conversion process changed the genetic code of the Pokemon and is a direct cause for its evolution, and it may not be the only one. If our theory is right, we may have accidentally discovered an entire new chain of undiscovered Pokemon!"
…
Heh, just like that it's as if your previous anger at Rocket's shortcomings fades away with this revelation.
"Is that so…" You look down at the Pokeball in your hands, grinning at the potential a new line could benefit you, one undiscovered by your foes due to their own foolishness. "...In that case, the damages done can be excused for this breakthrough, but this pet project of yours? I'll be elevating it to be one of Rocket's greater priorities and ensuring it gets the attention and funding it deserves. Any objections to this, Administrator?"
"No sir!" she responds with a salute, "We'll make sure your faith in us is not in vain!"
"Good…good." You say, "In that case I will take my leave for now and attend to the other matters regarding Rocket, I expect to hear results in the near future, Administrator. Don't disappoint me." You begin to walk out.
"Understood…but, sir?" you stop, "What should we do with the specimen?"
You think for a moment, you could give it to your specialists for the sake of research into its abnormality, but doing so would be risking another breakout, especially now…it's a strong Pokemon, one that requires a strong trainer.
"...Locate another Graveler and put it through the same process once you're all better prepared." You respond as you raise the Pokeball into the air for them to see. "This one? I will be keeping an eye on it personally."
=====
By complete accident, Rocket Group becomes the first to learn of Trade Evolutions!
Rocket Group obtains: Terminals! Anytime a base is raided, Rocket will have a chance to preserve some of their Pokemon-based assets by transporting them to the Celadon Hideout via Terminal.
Giovanni has obtained a Golem!
Additional Actions Unlocked
Last edited:
- Location
- Canada
Ah the sweet sound of victory and yes that Golem is an absolutely nice addition to Giovanni's team, we just got ourselves an excellent boon in matters pertaining to Pokemon.
I love it here.
Very nice, Golem is of course one of Giovanni's mainstays and Trade Evos are a massive boon. It's funny to think that we're at such an early stage of Pokémon knowledge history that something like that is a game changer. It means we ought to lean into that advantage and seek out the other possible advances too—stock up on Haunters, Gravelers, and Machokes and evo them, and also seek out stuff like Evolution Stones and Fossils (if they exist here, which given the very different origin story they might not).
- Location
- Philippines
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Don't forget Kadabras
Might be possible by having Mu make contact with them.
weredrago2
"Cowabunga, Shadow the Hedgehog..."
- Location
- Florida
Fossils provide an interesting parodox to explore. All Pokemon are "new" to this world, so where would the fossils come from?
Happerry
Bat out of Hell
- Location
- Kanto
Speaking of this, any chance we could get individual's current pokemon teams added to their character sheets, at least for heroes? I'm not hoping for, like, specific IV and move breakdowns, but just a basic list so we can keep track of who has what pocket monster if that's possible?
- Location
- Canada
Normal Fossils one would assume, does make me wonder if that's how Ghost Pokemon came to be using Mu on dead things, probably a similar process for Fossils, only they don't end up Ghost type because science is never simple or consistent with stuff like this.
Brightflame
Lord of the Dance
- Location
- Inkopolis
They will be added at the start of Turn 2
Lifeandlice
Practitioning side-character
- Location
- Usa
Hey hey! That's really handy! That opens up two pokemon on Giovanni's team for future evolution! Onix needs a hefty amount of metal beforehand and Rhyhorn needs to evolve into Rhydon and get a nice Protector to hold onto but still! Potential!
Very nice! While avoiding raids would be ideal making sure we can preserve or deny some assets is amazing.
Nice! Very well suited for Giovanni's team, preferences, and serves as both a strong wall and his first 3rd stage I believe?
More options to experiment if I had a guess, perhaps some to set up more terminals or try to finally break the bottleneck it's under.
weredrago2
"Cowabunga, Shadow the Hedgehog..."
- Location
- Florida
I'm glad Rocket Group has a "trade secret" they can leverage for later. We can bribe trainers of interest with powerful pokemon.
Oh, I have a question: what are Rocket Group's main physical presences? Outside of our base in Neo Vermilion do we have many other meeting houses, warehouses, Game Corners, and stuff?
Lifeandlice
Practitioning side-character
- Location
- Usa
Oh hey, just realized this opens the doors to bolstering Surge with an Electivire. And as Weredrago2 noted, bribes. I bet the fighting dojo master might enjoy the step up in power that a Machamp might bring him.
KnownParadox
Not a sphere
- Location
- Canada
While it's not the absolute game changer and dynamic shifting event discovering Porygon and the digital world would be, trade evolution is such a leg up on the competition it's not even funny. We have Exclusive pokemon! Silph dumped this tech and nobody else is researching this! Team Rocket has firepower no one else has, and serves as an excellent bribe to any trainers to join or support us, once we identify which pokemon can evolve from trade. It'd be great if we can identify evolution stones as well but I'll take this.
Brightflame
Lord of the Dance
- Location
- Inkopolis
Offically, no, but de-facto yes. As Rocket is condemned by Silph Co, it instead controls their assets through a network of various front businesses owned by secret members of Rocket. These businesses are various interms of focus and atleast one under the Rocket umbrella does control one or more of those mentioned assets to some degree. The largest of these would, of course, be the official Celadon Game Corner, but also consists of other institutions such as the Pokemon Fanclub in Vermillion, which is owned by Giovanni directly but the day-to-day tasks of it are managed by one of the elder Rocket members and serves as a way to poach aspiring trainers and induct them into Rocket Group.
To give a somewhat non-answer, Rocket has assets in each District of Neo-Kanto, both legal and illegal ones, they are typically small, especially compared to Silph's presence at this stage, but are suitable enough to act as discrete outposts, gathering places, and storage facilities when required, alongside providing Rocket with additional funding for their operations.
As Rocket grows in power, opportunities will enable it to strengthen their fronts and accumilate more by...'persuading' the competition to fall inline, and eventually dethrone Silph as the true master of certain districts if you wish to play the long game.
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weredrago2
"Cowabunga, Shadow the Hedgehog..."
- Location
- Florida
I imagine the map of Neo Kanto is a close equivalent to the ones in the games, though much bigger and denser. Heavily urbanized, with nature acting as the exception rather than the rule.
I might actually take a pass at a map later.
I might actually take a pass at a map later.
Lord M
Apostle of the DICE Gods.
- Location
- Brazil
For convenience sake for people both planning for future turns and omakes I shall try to keep this update with general knowledge/lore that Brightflame posts around outside of threadmarks as this quest goes on.
TMs at this stage are still rather expiermental, as in this setting they are a part of Pokemon DNA turned into digital code that can be then be ingrained into another Pokemon's genetic code by inserting the TM into the PC where the Pokemon in question is stored. I would allow it, but I would also ask for you to select a move-type you would like to focus on developing TMs for, inwhich case you can persue it if you have 10 Pokemon of that desired type in storage, as you would essentially be harvesting DNA samples from them inorder to recreate their moves in a digital format. Developments for vary and depends on the degree of success, ranging from what moves are successfully copied to perhaps even improving on TMs themselves for the future.
As for the Snag Machine...I would consider that more to be bunched into developing new Pokeballs, as the Snag Machine converts Pokeballs into Snag balls, which would allow one to steal catch Pokemon already registered to a Trainer's ID and Pokeball. That being said, it would be easier to make the Master Ball from scratch than it is to make the Snag Machine at this current point, take that as how you will.
And for Ariana's traits and how they related to that action, 'A Woman Scorned' would activate, since you would be cutting into one of Silph's prime industries, but 'Pokemon Researcher' wouldn't, namely due the profession being more on the biological side while creating Pokeballs are more technical and more fit for some like...say Bill for example.
[/QUOTE]
As for the Snag Machine...I would consider that more to be bunched into developing new Pokeballs, as the Snag Machine converts Pokeballs into Snag balls, which would allow one to steal catch Pokemon already registered to a Trainer's ID and Pokeball. That being said, it would be easier to make the Master Ball from scratch than it is to make the Snag Machine at this current point, take that as how you will.
And for Ariana's traits and how they related to that action, 'A Woman Scorned' would activate, since you would be cutting into one of Silph's prime industries, but 'Pokemon Researcher' wouldn't, namely due the profession being more on the biological side while creating Pokeballs are more technical and more fit for some like...say Bill for example.
[/QUOTE]
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Interlude: Blasting Off Again...
Brightflame
Lord of the Dance
- Location
- Inkopolis
"How much farther is this place? We've been walking through this shithole for hours and it's already nighttime!"
The grousing Rocket grunt stumbled on a jagged stone on the unkempt road leading away from Pewter City. A forgotten branch-off from Route 2, the ground was littered with uneven terrain and debris from abandoned construction projects left to rot.
"Oh, shut it, Ronnie. We left the base at sunset."
The group's captain, Kaede, felt a shiver go down her spine. It was the wind chill, or so she told herself, and not the reputation this place had developed. She used to live in Pewter before moving to Celadon as a kid, and was all too familiar with the story of wild ground pokemon turning what was meant to be a new high-speed subway tunnel into a mass grave.
Maybe someone made the whole thing up, and Digglet's Cave is just a normal tunnel project that went bust when it ran out of money. It didn't matter, and it didn't affect her in the slightest.
"I don't have the right boots for hiking," another grunt complained.
Kaede swifty turned towards her group of greenhorns.
"We're under orders to do this quickly and not whine like a bunch of schoolchildren," she snapped. "So zip. It."
There was some residual grumbling, but the chatty ones fell silent. Kaede all but let out a sigh. Couldn't she at least have gotten grunts that knew the meaning of discretion?
They continued in blessed silence until they reached the gaping mouth of the tunnel, which would have been wide enough to fit a train through if there were tracks. Kaede threw that thought away so she could focus on the mission. It was simple, but critical to Rocket's expansion beyond Neo Kanto.
Secure the tunnel. Clear out any vagrants or wild pokemon. Hold it until Rocket's own pokemon can drill a hole into the Pipeworks and use it as a secret pipeline to the outside.
Pewter City had all of the time in the world to fill this hole and be done with it. Their negligence will be to Rocket's benefit. The task was a simple enough one for a freshly-promoted captain and her squad of grunts.
Surrounding the mouth of the cave were scant, dilapidated huts of corrugated iron that were long-since ransacked for resellable copper and power tools. Scarcely any grass grew around the area, around which seemed to be barren of even pokemon. Satisfied that they were alone out here, Kaede turned back to her squad of grunts.
"You know the drill. Scout out and secure the perimeter. I don't want anyone out here who isn't us, got it? Anyone who screws this up gets to explain to the Executive what went wrong after I deliver her your head on a silver plate."
With significantly less gripes than before, the squad split up and performed their duties while Kaede stood watch. The chances of anyone wandering in off the beaten path from Route 2 at this point were low, but never zero. She wasn't expecting any resistance. Anyone who tried to test Rocket's might would wind up on the business end of a stun spore.
Kaede let out a strong sneeze.. She was one of a handful of unfortunate people whose allergies reacted especially poorly to Mu-affected pollen. Being on the outskirts of Viridian Forest was enough to provoke an extreme reaction. In spite of this, she'd rather carry around a MetPharm autoinjector than give up on her loyal pokemon.
"We've been out here for half an hour and there's no one else around," a Rocket Grunt named Keith reported to her. "I'd call it a ghost town, but with what they say about Lavender Town I don't wanna jinx it."
Kaede gave Keith a glare for his dumb comment, causing him to stop slouching and stand upright. She waited a few seconds to see if anyone else had anything foolish to say before giving out the next order.
"Everyone, we're entering the mine. Once that's clear, we can contact HQ and call the mission a success. The sooner we're out of clear sight, the better."
The last thing they needed at this phase was to be spotted by the cops.
=====
"Rainbow to Ranger Command. Lost visual of the Rockets. They've entered an abandoned tunnel off Route 2. Over."
The woman stood behind the old shack, maintaining her composure as she spied on the group and relayed their movements on her new radio watch to Silph Co's Ranger base in Fuschia City. Her new uniform was red and black, with a yellow sigil on the hat that marked her as an enforcer of the new anti-poaching laws. They were put in place to prevent over-eager trainers from further destabilizing the already unstable pokemon ecosystem. Rocket Group stood in public approval of these laws, and yet, it wasn't hard to find their hands hovering awfully close to the cookie jar. Never close enough to be charged with anything. They were smarter than that. The paperwork and alibis always held up.
Until now, perhaps. The ranger waited patiently for her superior to respond. Eventually, likely after checking if they had jurisdiction over some forgotten cave, they did.
"Ranger Command to Rainbow. Diglett's Cave is not open to visitors. You know what to do. Over."
"Understood. Over and out."
The ranger terminated the call. She'd followed these Rocket stooges all the way from Celadon. As a reward for her patience, she was now able to do something about them.
=====
"..Man, I'm glad I didn't become a miner like my old man. I think I'd go mad if I was at a place like this for hours a day."
The Rocket squad descended deeper into the cave, navigating a wide tunnel that carved deep into the earth. Years of neglect have led to a thick accumulation of dust to cling to the stale air. Kaede had to put on a mask to avoid a coughing fit and looking weak in front of her subordinates. The electric lamps that once illuminated the tunnel had long since died out, forcing Kaede's hand.
She tossed out a pokeball, and out of it came a stubby, blue pokemon with simple hands and feet, like a doll. Atop its head was a large, odious flower. A thick stream of sap dribbled out of the pokemon's mouth like a drool. The noxious smell emitted by the flower and the drool made Kaede's eyes water, though not nearly as much as they used to. She'd developed a resistance to Gloom when it was just standing there and doing nothing.
"Gloom, use Flash!"
The big flower of Kaede's Gloom emitted an intense light, making the tunnel easier to navigate. They could now see the floors, walls, and ceiling were peppered in large, infrequent holes. According to what Rocket knew about them, the local pokemon should be warded off by the bright light, discouraging them from bothering the squad while they were in their territory.
"How is Pewter's big thing mining, anyway?" Ronnie asked. "Thought the M.U.L.E.s cleaned this planet out years ago."
"Planets are big and M.U.L.E.s are expensive," one of the grunts local to Pewter said bluntly.
After fifteen minutes or so of walking, they reached a large hole that had to be bored through by a full-grown Dugtrio. It was wide enough for a human to crawl through, and one of the grunts stuck their head in with a flashlight to get a better look. On the other side, he could faintly make out fluorescent, colorful pipes. It was a mesmerizing peek into another world, until he got a whiff of the raw sewage and had to whip his head out.
"Is the tunnel secure?" asked Kaede.
"It's secure," the queasy grunt said. "Can the Exec send for some other bastards to deal with this literal tunnel of shit before I lose my lunch?"
Kaede sighed. "Come on. Let's head back up to the surface and--"
She was interrupted by a loud bang from behind the squad. That bang was followed by an intense, overwhelming aroma that nearly caused the Rocket captain to faint outright. Her eyes flew to her Gloom as the possible perpetrator, but it looked back at her in wide-eyed shock. While her Gloom was still providing light with Flash, it couldn't use Sweet Scent.
Sweet Scent was disarming to pokemon who couldn't resist the smell, right before they were attacked when their guards were down.
"Quick!" Kaede shouted to her grunts. "We're under--!!"
Her warning was cut short by a sneezing fit. Kaede's Gloom hopped to her defense, standing between her and the indistinct figures that she couldn't see clearly through her watering eyes.
Shit! Of all the times for my allergies to act up, why now?!
Kaede's grunts were slower on the uptake than her. Before any of them had the thought to reach for their own pokeballs, an array of blue tendrils lurched out of the tunnel and dragged them all to the ground. In a matter of seconds, their hands and legs were bound. Her vision was slightly blurry, but she could make out the figure of a Pokemon Ranger and the walking bundle of vines that was a Tangela.
The ranger's flashlight turned to the Dugtrio hole.
"So this is what you were looking for down here," the ranger said, eying the breach. "Are you aware that trespassing and sabotage of zone infrastructure are serious crimes?"
This ranger was a petite young woman, with a face that would have been a more common sight at a social event than a dark and dingy cave. She was confronting a team of hardened criminals by herself, yet stood firm with confidence of an officer twice her size. The Tangela had to be well-trained to be able to hold a few people down without going overboard and breaking any bones.
Kaede grit her teeth. Her Gloom let out a confused warble. Taking a quick head count, Kaede couldn't see where Ronnie was. Had he gotten away?
Predicting what she was thinking, the ranger answered her question.
"I'll catch up to your friend shortly. If you make any sudden movements or order your Gloom to perform an attack, my Tangela will react accordingly. So please cooperate with law enforcement and answer the questions asked by the police when they arrive."
That was when Kaede realized they were caught before Tangela got them by surprise. Before they even got into the tunnel. This ranger was on them the whole time.
"I'm not cooperating with shit!" one of the grunts spat at her.
"Is that the same case for the rest of you?"
"Same goes for the rest of us," Kaede answered calmly. "Gloom, stand by."
Not wanting to cooperate didn't mean Kaede was in a rush to get a face full of Stun Spore. She wasn't going to have her only contribution to the Rocket Group's success story be as a martyr. The ranger began talking to them in a more gentle tone, trying to put the criminals at ease before one of them tried something desperate to escape.
"I don't think I'm being unreasonable. You've been caught red-handed attempting a very serious crime with a scarlet 'R' on your uniforms. Your best option now is to turn over what you know to Silph Co and they'll grant a more lenient sentence."
"Take your offer and shove it," Kaede answered immediately, before one of her grunts could get in another insult of their own. Or worse, actually consider it. "We don't bend, we don't break, and we don't cooperate with Silph Co scum."
The idea that they would cooperate with the people who had a vice around Neo Kanto, kept it in a stranglehold and prevented it from becoming what their boss wanted it to become, appalled her. More than she wanted the ranger to know when all of that slipped out at once.
The Pokemon Ranger stared at her. No ugly sneers, or words of mockery like a Meowth playing with its kill like she was expected. Just silence and a stare.
"Kaede?" the ranger said softly.
The name, as soon as it left the ranger mouth, struck her like a hammer. She only now recognized the woman as the girl she knew all of those years ago. Before Rocket. The shy rich girl in the kimono who was too shy to talk to anyone but her at school.
"E… Erika?" Kaede asked in shock. "What the fuck are you doing here?"
Erika sighed, making a noise that was too morose to be a laugh.
"I could ask you the same thing, you know? It's… almost funny. I was going to call you this weekend and ask if you wanted to catch up on old times, but this isn't what I imagined our reunion would be like."
"Yeah."
Silence reigned for what felt like hours. The grunts were too out of the loop to feel the gulf that lingered between the two old friends.
"Do you still stand by what you said?" Erika reluctantly asked.
Kaede closed her eyes, turning away from the ranger.
"Yes. We don't answer to Silph Co. Or their employees."
The ranger raised one arm, typing information into a watch computer mounted to her wrist.
"…Very well, then. The officers from the Pewter station should be here shortly."
The ranger was about to say something else when a familiar, grating voice called out.
"Koffing, use Smokescreen!"
A roiling wave of black smoke poured into the cave, blinding Kaede and snuffing out Gloom's Flash. There was shouting, but she was having trouble telling who was saying what.
"What the hell?"
"Did they send reinforcements?"
"Dammit, I can't see anything!"
Kaede felt Tangela's vines suddenly stiffen, then slacken, as the creature made an agitated rumble amidst the panic. She broke free of the blue vines, which receded into the smoke.
"Now, use Explosion!"
A sudden boom accompanied a bright flash that pierced through the smoke, the force nearly knocking Kaede back to the ground. Someone grabbed her arm, and she nearly lashed out before realizing the limb was too thick to belong to Erika and way too small to be a Machoke.
"Ronnie?" Kaede said when she was able to rub the dust out of her eyes. He had a pokeball extended to retrieve his fainted Koffing through the smog. She did the same to prevent her Gloom from being left behind. With all of the grunts accounted for, they ran, trying to get as far as they could from the ranger and the collapsing tunnel.
"Thank me later!" he shouted over the rumbling of the walls. "This place is falling apart!"
"Keep running!" she shouted to the grunts.
A chunk of the tunnel ceiling came loose and landed right beside them. A dark, tube-shaped pokemon popped out of the chunk in the wall and stared at them with its beady, black eyes.
"Ahh!"
"Shit!"
The Rocket grunts kept running until saw the light of day on the Saffron side of the tunnel and jumped, barely missing the exit and being stuck with the Digglets.
"That was a close one," Keith said with a sigh of relief.
Kaede looked back towards the collapsed tunnel, trembling slightly. Ronnie put a hand on his captain's shoulder.
"Hey, uh. You okay? I heard you were talking to that ranger about something, and…"
Kaede detached Ronnie's hand from her shoulder.
"I'm fine," she said coldly. "We need to report this."
=====
The following days were… infuriating to say the least.
The cave-in at Digglet's Cave was a PR coup for Silph Co's nascent Ranger program and an embarrassing scandal for the Rocket Group. There was a ranger on-site who testified to Rocket agents being in the area at the time of the cave-in. Your lawyers found enough holes in their rather vague testimony as to what happened that their accusations remain firmly in the territory of 'alleged' activities. If any of your operatives had been captured and interrogated, it would have been a rather different story.
All in what was meant to be a simple mission!
"Our chance at expanding beyond Neo-Kanto, stolen! Our name is being further disgraced!" you shout, pacing your office as Ariana watches in silence. "This failure, this is unacceptable!"
You stopped, pinching the bridge of your nose. You took a deep breath in an attempt to recompose yourself. Afterwards, you turned towards Ariana.
"Have you found any alternative leads on ways to bypass Silph Co's restrictions like I asked?"
Ariana nodded.
"Yes sir, but the validity of these leads are… questionable, at best. I request additional time for Rocket to scout out and confirm them before we plan another action of this nature."
"Take as much time as you need. I don't want another repeat of this travesty."
You turn away from her, considering other avenues by which you might be able to circumnavigate the blockades that Silph Co continually builds in your path. You could construct a private trade system and transmit the pokemon outside of Neo Kanto that way, should it come to it, but the costs would be substantial. Is that the only means by which you can keep Silph Co none the wiser to your greater vision?
"Sir?" Ariana says, concerned.
"Recall all of our field agents. With this failure, we'll need to reduce our visibility. I want Rocket Group out of the news for a few weeks. And see to it that the captain responsible for this blunder knows she is on thin ice. No more mistakes will be tolerated from them. Is that understood?"
"Understood sir, shall I take my leave?"
You nod. With a professional bow, Ariana exits your office, leaving you alone.
You close your eyes, and your anger gradually recedes like water going down a mountain river. Rocket will recover, and the lessons this provided will be put to use to ensure these slip-ups never happen again.
Rocket will struggle, and it will fight against the odds, but it will never fall.
=====
Your attempt to control Neo Kanto's smuggling underworld has resulted in an exit outside of the zone being sealed off instead.
While the ranger on site was unable to identify a suspect, the event and Rocket's name being attached to it have shown a more negative light on your other operations. The Rocket Group's public perception has decreased slightly. This penalty will be short-term, and dissipate once the event becomes "old news".
The grousing Rocket grunt stumbled on a jagged stone on the unkempt road leading away from Pewter City. A forgotten branch-off from Route 2, the ground was littered with uneven terrain and debris from abandoned construction projects left to rot.
"Oh, shut it, Ronnie. We left the base at sunset."
The group's captain, Kaede, felt a shiver go down her spine. It was the wind chill, or so she told herself, and not the reputation this place had developed. She used to live in Pewter before moving to Celadon as a kid, and was all too familiar with the story of wild ground pokemon turning what was meant to be a new high-speed subway tunnel into a mass grave.
Maybe someone made the whole thing up, and Digglet's Cave is just a normal tunnel project that went bust when it ran out of money. It didn't matter, and it didn't affect her in the slightest.
"I don't have the right boots for hiking," another grunt complained.
Kaede swifty turned towards her group of greenhorns.
"We're under orders to do this quickly and not whine like a bunch of schoolchildren," she snapped. "So zip. It."
There was some residual grumbling, but the chatty ones fell silent. Kaede all but let out a sigh. Couldn't she at least have gotten grunts that knew the meaning of discretion?
They continued in blessed silence until they reached the gaping mouth of the tunnel, which would have been wide enough to fit a train through if there were tracks. Kaede threw that thought away so she could focus on the mission. It was simple, but critical to Rocket's expansion beyond Neo Kanto.
Secure the tunnel. Clear out any vagrants or wild pokemon. Hold it until Rocket's own pokemon can drill a hole into the Pipeworks and use it as a secret pipeline to the outside.
Pewter City had all of the time in the world to fill this hole and be done with it. Their negligence will be to Rocket's benefit. The task was a simple enough one for a freshly-promoted captain and her squad of grunts.
Surrounding the mouth of the cave were scant, dilapidated huts of corrugated iron that were long-since ransacked for resellable copper and power tools. Scarcely any grass grew around the area, around which seemed to be barren of even pokemon. Satisfied that they were alone out here, Kaede turned back to her squad of grunts.
"You know the drill. Scout out and secure the perimeter. I don't want anyone out here who isn't us, got it? Anyone who screws this up gets to explain to the Executive what went wrong after I deliver her your head on a silver plate."
With significantly less gripes than before, the squad split up and performed their duties while Kaede stood watch. The chances of anyone wandering in off the beaten path from Route 2 at this point were low, but never zero. She wasn't expecting any resistance. Anyone who tried to test Rocket's might would wind up on the business end of a stun spore.
Kaede let out a strong sneeze.. She was one of a handful of unfortunate people whose allergies reacted especially poorly to Mu-affected pollen. Being on the outskirts of Viridian Forest was enough to provoke an extreme reaction. In spite of this, she'd rather carry around a MetPharm autoinjector than give up on her loyal pokemon.
"We've been out here for half an hour and there's no one else around," a Rocket Grunt named Keith reported to her. "I'd call it a ghost town, but with what they say about Lavender Town I don't wanna jinx it."
Kaede gave Keith a glare for his dumb comment, causing him to stop slouching and stand upright. She waited a few seconds to see if anyone else had anything foolish to say before giving out the next order.
"Everyone, we're entering the mine. Once that's clear, we can contact HQ and call the mission a success. The sooner we're out of clear sight, the better."
The last thing they needed at this phase was to be spotted by the cops.
=====
"Rainbow to Ranger Command. Lost visual of the Rockets. They've entered an abandoned tunnel off Route 2. Over."
The woman stood behind the old shack, maintaining her composure as she spied on the group and relayed their movements on her new radio watch to Silph Co's Ranger base in Fuschia City. Her new uniform was red and black, with a yellow sigil on the hat that marked her as an enforcer of the new anti-poaching laws. They were put in place to prevent over-eager trainers from further destabilizing the already unstable pokemon ecosystem. Rocket Group stood in public approval of these laws, and yet, it wasn't hard to find their hands hovering awfully close to the cookie jar. Never close enough to be charged with anything. They were smarter than that. The paperwork and alibis always held up.
Until now, perhaps. The ranger waited patiently for her superior to respond. Eventually, likely after checking if they had jurisdiction over some forgotten cave, they did.
"Ranger Command to Rainbow. Diglett's Cave is not open to visitors. You know what to do. Over."
"Understood. Over and out."
The ranger terminated the call. She'd followed these Rocket stooges all the way from Celadon. As a reward for her patience, she was now able to do something about them.
=====
"..Man, I'm glad I didn't become a miner like my old man. I think I'd go mad if I was at a place like this for hours a day."
The Rocket squad descended deeper into the cave, navigating a wide tunnel that carved deep into the earth. Years of neglect have led to a thick accumulation of dust to cling to the stale air. Kaede had to put on a mask to avoid a coughing fit and looking weak in front of her subordinates. The electric lamps that once illuminated the tunnel had long since died out, forcing Kaede's hand.
She tossed out a pokeball, and out of it came a stubby, blue pokemon with simple hands and feet, like a doll. Atop its head was a large, odious flower. A thick stream of sap dribbled out of the pokemon's mouth like a drool. The noxious smell emitted by the flower and the drool made Kaede's eyes water, though not nearly as much as they used to. She'd developed a resistance to Gloom when it was just standing there and doing nothing.
"Gloom, use Flash!"
The big flower of Kaede's Gloom emitted an intense light, making the tunnel easier to navigate. They could now see the floors, walls, and ceiling were peppered in large, infrequent holes. According to what Rocket knew about them, the local pokemon should be warded off by the bright light, discouraging them from bothering the squad while they were in their territory.
"How is Pewter's big thing mining, anyway?" Ronnie asked. "Thought the M.U.L.E.s cleaned this planet out years ago."
"Planets are big and M.U.L.E.s are expensive," one of the grunts local to Pewter said bluntly.
After fifteen minutes or so of walking, they reached a large hole that had to be bored through by a full-grown Dugtrio. It was wide enough for a human to crawl through, and one of the grunts stuck their head in with a flashlight to get a better look. On the other side, he could faintly make out fluorescent, colorful pipes. It was a mesmerizing peek into another world, until he got a whiff of the raw sewage and had to whip his head out.
"Is the tunnel secure?" asked Kaede.
"It's secure," the queasy grunt said. "Can the Exec send for some other bastards to deal with this literal tunnel of shit before I lose my lunch?"
Kaede sighed. "Come on. Let's head back up to the surface and--"
She was interrupted by a loud bang from behind the squad. That bang was followed by an intense, overwhelming aroma that nearly caused the Rocket captain to faint outright. Her eyes flew to her Gloom as the possible perpetrator, but it looked back at her in wide-eyed shock. While her Gloom was still providing light with Flash, it couldn't use Sweet Scent.
Sweet Scent was disarming to pokemon who couldn't resist the smell, right before they were attacked when their guards were down.
"Quick!" Kaede shouted to her grunts. "We're under--!!"
Her warning was cut short by a sneezing fit. Kaede's Gloom hopped to her defense, standing between her and the indistinct figures that she couldn't see clearly through her watering eyes.
Shit! Of all the times for my allergies to act up, why now?!
Kaede's grunts were slower on the uptake than her. Before any of them had the thought to reach for their own pokeballs, an array of blue tendrils lurched out of the tunnel and dragged them all to the ground. In a matter of seconds, their hands and legs were bound. Her vision was slightly blurry, but she could make out the figure of a Pokemon Ranger and the walking bundle of vines that was a Tangela.
The ranger's flashlight turned to the Dugtrio hole.
"So this is what you were looking for down here," the ranger said, eying the breach. "Are you aware that trespassing and sabotage of zone infrastructure are serious crimes?"
This ranger was a petite young woman, with a face that would have been a more common sight at a social event than a dark and dingy cave. She was confronting a team of hardened criminals by herself, yet stood firm with confidence of an officer twice her size. The Tangela had to be well-trained to be able to hold a few people down without going overboard and breaking any bones.
Kaede grit her teeth. Her Gloom let out a confused warble. Taking a quick head count, Kaede couldn't see where Ronnie was. Had he gotten away?
Predicting what she was thinking, the ranger answered her question.
"I'll catch up to your friend shortly. If you make any sudden movements or order your Gloom to perform an attack, my Tangela will react accordingly. So please cooperate with law enforcement and answer the questions asked by the police when they arrive."
That was when Kaede realized they were caught before Tangela got them by surprise. Before they even got into the tunnel. This ranger was on them the whole time.
"I'm not cooperating with shit!" one of the grunts spat at her.
"Is that the same case for the rest of you?"
"Same goes for the rest of us," Kaede answered calmly. "Gloom, stand by."
Not wanting to cooperate didn't mean Kaede was in a rush to get a face full of Stun Spore. She wasn't going to have her only contribution to the Rocket Group's success story be as a martyr. The ranger began talking to them in a more gentle tone, trying to put the criminals at ease before one of them tried something desperate to escape.
"I don't think I'm being unreasonable. You've been caught red-handed attempting a very serious crime with a scarlet 'R' on your uniforms. Your best option now is to turn over what you know to Silph Co and they'll grant a more lenient sentence."
"Take your offer and shove it," Kaede answered immediately, before one of her grunts could get in another insult of their own. Or worse, actually consider it. "We don't bend, we don't break, and we don't cooperate with Silph Co scum."
The idea that they would cooperate with the people who had a vice around Neo Kanto, kept it in a stranglehold and prevented it from becoming what their boss wanted it to become, appalled her. More than she wanted the ranger to know when all of that slipped out at once.
The Pokemon Ranger stared at her. No ugly sneers, or words of mockery like a Meowth playing with its kill like she was expected. Just silence and a stare.
"Kaede?" the ranger said softly.
The name, as soon as it left the ranger mouth, struck her like a hammer. She only now recognized the woman as the girl she knew all of those years ago. Before Rocket. The shy rich girl in the kimono who was too shy to talk to anyone but her at school.
"E… Erika?" Kaede asked in shock. "What the fuck are you doing here?"
Erika sighed, making a noise that was too morose to be a laugh.
"I could ask you the same thing, you know? It's… almost funny. I was going to call you this weekend and ask if you wanted to catch up on old times, but this isn't what I imagined our reunion would be like."
"Yeah."
Silence reigned for what felt like hours. The grunts were too out of the loop to feel the gulf that lingered between the two old friends.
"Do you still stand by what you said?" Erika reluctantly asked.
Kaede closed her eyes, turning away from the ranger.
"Yes. We don't answer to Silph Co. Or their employees."
The ranger raised one arm, typing information into a watch computer mounted to her wrist.
"…Very well, then. The officers from the Pewter station should be here shortly."
The ranger was about to say something else when a familiar, grating voice called out.
"Koffing, use Smokescreen!"
A roiling wave of black smoke poured into the cave, blinding Kaede and snuffing out Gloom's Flash. There was shouting, but she was having trouble telling who was saying what.
"What the hell?"
"Did they send reinforcements?"
"Dammit, I can't see anything!"
Kaede felt Tangela's vines suddenly stiffen, then slacken, as the creature made an agitated rumble amidst the panic. She broke free of the blue vines, which receded into the smoke.
"Now, use Explosion!"
A sudden boom accompanied a bright flash that pierced through the smoke, the force nearly knocking Kaede back to the ground. Someone grabbed her arm, and she nearly lashed out before realizing the limb was too thick to belong to Erika and way too small to be a Machoke.
"Ronnie?" Kaede said when she was able to rub the dust out of her eyes. He had a pokeball extended to retrieve his fainted Koffing through the smog. She did the same to prevent her Gloom from being left behind. With all of the grunts accounted for, they ran, trying to get as far as they could from the ranger and the collapsing tunnel.
"Thank me later!" he shouted over the rumbling of the walls. "This place is falling apart!"
"Keep running!" she shouted to the grunts.
A chunk of the tunnel ceiling came loose and landed right beside them. A dark, tube-shaped pokemon popped out of the chunk in the wall and stared at them with its beady, black eyes.
"Ahh!"
"Shit!"
The Rocket grunts kept running until saw the light of day on the Saffron side of the tunnel and jumped, barely missing the exit and being stuck with the Digglets.
"That was a close one," Keith said with a sigh of relief.
Kaede looked back towards the collapsed tunnel, trembling slightly. Ronnie put a hand on his captain's shoulder.
"Hey, uh. You okay? I heard you were talking to that ranger about something, and…"
Kaede detached Ronnie's hand from her shoulder.
"I'm fine," she said coldly. "We need to report this."
=====
The following days were… infuriating to say the least.
The cave-in at Digglet's Cave was a PR coup for Silph Co's nascent Ranger program and an embarrassing scandal for the Rocket Group. There was a ranger on-site who testified to Rocket agents being in the area at the time of the cave-in. Your lawyers found enough holes in their rather vague testimony as to what happened that their accusations remain firmly in the territory of 'alleged' activities. If any of your operatives had been captured and interrogated, it would have been a rather different story.
All in what was meant to be a simple mission!
"Our chance at expanding beyond Neo-Kanto, stolen! Our name is being further disgraced!" you shout, pacing your office as Ariana watches in silence. "This failure, this is unacceptable!"
You stopped, pinching the bridge of your nose. You took a deep breath in an attempt to recompose yourself. Afterwards, you turned towards Ariana.
"Have you found any alternative leads on ways to bypass Silph Co's restrictions like I asked?"
Ariana nodded.
"Yes sir, but the validity of these leads are… questionable, at best. I request additional time for Rocket to scout out and confirm them before we plan another action of this nature."
"Take as much time as you need. I don't want another repeat of this travesty."
You turn away from her, considering other avenues by which you might be able to circumnavigate the blockades that Silph Co continually builds in your path. You could construct a private trade system and transmit the pokemon outside of Neo Kanto that way, should it come to it, but the costs would be substantial. Is that the only means by which you can keep Silph Co none the wiser to your greater vision?
"Sir?" Ariana says, concerned.
"Recall all of our field agents. With this failure, we'll need to reduce our visibility. I want Rocket Group out of the news for a few weeks. And see to it that the captain responsible for this blunder knows she is on thin ice. No more mistakes will be tolerated from them. Is that understood?"
"Understood sir, shall I take my leave?"
You nod. With a professional bow, Ariana exits your office, leaving you alone.
You close your eyes, and your anger gradually recedes like water going down a mountain river. Rocket will recover, and the lessons this provided will be put to use to ensure these slip-ups never happen again.
Rocket will struggle, and it will fight against the odds, but it will never fall.
=====
Your attempt to control Neo Kanto's smuggling underworld has resulted in an exit outside of the zone being sealed off instead.
While the ranger on site was unable to identify a suspect, the event and Rocket's name being attached to it have shown a more negative light on your other operations. The Rocket Group's public perception has decreased slightly. This penalty will be short-term, and dissipate once the event becomes "old news".
Right...first of all I want to apologize for how long this took. IRL complications and simply not being satisfied with my previous drafts led to this taking far longer to make than intended. I hope this update is worth the wait.
Second, a shout out to @weredrago2 for their assitance in helping me make this piece presentable and getting me over my perfectionist mindset, without their help this piece have taken quite a bit longer to get out.
Second, a shout out to @weredrago2 for their assitance in helping me make this piece presentable and getting me over my perfectionist mindset, without their help this piece have taken quite a bit longer to get out.
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- Location
- Canada
Annoying...but something that can be lived with as we find other options. Does give us an idea what SilphCo is up to, making the Pokemon Rangers...might be good to think on ways to subvert them or to make some moves of our own.
Great writing as always
Great writing as always
- Pronouns
- He/Him
That was a great update!!! Sucks what happened here. Yeah, we gonna have to spend several actions raising our Public Opinion then. No two ways about it.
Also Ronnie... is the an expy from the Rocket Edition game? When I saw the name that was literally the first thing that came to mind, thought he was gonna be the reason the operation failed, but color me surprised! He actually did pretty well!
This is obviously a set back, but one we can overcome. and we will do it.
Also Ronnie... is the an expy from the Rocket Edition game? When I saw the name that was literally the first thing that came to mind, thought he was gonna be the reason the operation failed, but color me surprised! He actually did pretty well!
This is obviously a set back, but one we can overcome. and we will do it.
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Lifeandlice
Practitioning side-character
- Location
- Usa
A notable and annoying set back. Definitely didn't help our PR. Might wanna see about working on our PR through kitchens or something.
weredrago2
"Cowabunga, Shadow the Hedgehog..."
- Location
- Florida
First-round bad luck is a thing that happens. QMs are encouraged to be lenient about punishing the players right out the gate, since you can't really say it was the player's fault and beat them on the head for it.
Hell, in FFQ they spent the first round being hit by a tsunami!