January - February Test drive

[indigo_events]

➞ Post with a character you wish to test drive in this game's setting.
➞ Tag other people's starters and thread out shenanigans!
➞ Invite your friends! Try out new characters! Come play with us!
➞ Have fun!

NOT SURE WHERE TO BEGIN YOUR TEST-DRIVE JOURNEY?
CHECK OUT ALL THE LOCATIONS WE HAVE AVAILABLE IN:

JOHTO | KANTO | SEVII ISLANDS

Feel free to make various prompts in multiple locations!

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OTHER USEFUL LINKS:
NAVIGATION | RESERVES | APPLICATIONS

Comments

[crystalmaster]

"Yeah, that's where I came from," Radley said. "Some lady tried to pass herself off as my mom. Of course, I wasn't buying that, but there was no arguing with her. She really seemed to wanna kick me out anyway, which isn't much different from my actual mom, but ..." He shook his head. It wasn't like him to launch into telling personal things so soon.

"Wait, you say people do go back?! How often? Do there seem to be any particular circumstances leading up to it?"

[fayblood]

"Oh. I think she does that to everyone..."

Shrike doesn't like to think about that part though.

"I don't know. Just, sometimes people just disappear."

[crystalmaster]

Radley stared in disbelief. "She tries to pass herself off as everyone's mom?! That's sick! And people disappear?! That's no guarantee they're going home! How do we know where they go?!"

He drew a shaking breath and tried to calm down. He usually tried to keep himself from getting so emotional, but this was growing more frightening by the moment. What was he going to do?! How would he ever get home?!

"Eevee?" His Eevee looked up at him in concern.

He sighed and petted her. "We have to figure out something. This PokeGear thing ... could we arrange a meeting with everyone who's been sent here by using the Network? Maybe together, we could all figure out some way to get home...."

[fayblood]

He's still not touching the 'mom' issue, but this guy's clearly upset.

"Sometimes people leave and come back! That's what happened to Sandalphon. One day I got up and his Pokémon were still here but he was gone. Then later he came back again. When he was gone he was back where he came from."

Does that explain things better? Shrike sure hopes it does. He isn't very good at this.

[crystalmaster]

"He remembers going home? I'd like to talk to him," Radley said. "Hey, I'm sorry I lost it there. You must be worried too, if you're stuck here like me. Have you ever run into anybody who plays Duel Monsters? They might be from my world." Maybe, for all he knew, everyone he knew was already here. Maybe he just needed to find them.

[fayblood]

"I think so... He remembered being here when he came back."

Shrike never actually asked for details, but he feels pretty sure that if Sandalphon hadn't just gone home he would've said something. If only to complain about it.

"Uh, that's different from battling with Pokemon?"

Which would mean no, he hasn't heard of it.

[crystalmaster]

"Do you know where he is now?" Radley asked.

He chuckled. "Yeah, way different. It's just a card game; no animals are really getting hurt. See?" Eevee climbed to his shoulder and he took out his deck, one of the few things he still had from home. He shuffled to a card called Ruby Carbuncle. "I've seen Pokemon that look a lot like this one. Espeon, they're called. Apparently my girl can potentially become one."

"Vee," Eevee mused. She wasn't in a mood to evolve and wasn't sure she ever would be. She liked herself as she was.

[fayblood]

"Not right now. He went out somewhere but I don't know where. Maybe he's busy with something?"

Sandalphon's been, well, out and about lately. Which is good! Except he hasn't exactly been stopping to tell Shrike where he's going and when to expect him back.

Shrike does, however, take a good look at the cards shown them.

"Oh, that one does look like a Pokémon! What kind of game is it?"

He has very limited knowledge of games in general, let alone card games.

[crystalmaster]

"Well, maybe we can catch him later," Radley said.

"This is a battle card game. The animals fight and the strongest wins. But it's also strategic. You have to use magic and trap cards to make your attacks better and your defenses stronger." Radley showed some of his magic and trap cards. His focused a lot on destroying the opponents' cards.

[fayblood]

Shrike looks--well, he would look confused, if it were possible to see more of his face without the hood hanging over it.

"How do they fight if they're pictures on cards?"

He's never heard of anything like this before.

[crystalmaster]

"Um ..." Radley is amused but confused. But then he supposes it would sound strange in a world where monsters are real.

"People pretend they're fighting," he said at last. "These numbers on the cards tell which one is stronger. You can make that number bigger with certain magic and trap cards."

[fayblood]

It also sounds strange to a kid who has very little experience with any games that require more than one person to play. He does at least take a moment to think about that explanation, trying to make sense of things from the limited information he has.

"... So you want to have the one with a better set of numbers than someone else?"

That's basically how card games work, right? You try to get better cards than the other guy. Not that he knows what makes them better.

[crystalmaster]

"Yeah, that's a good way to put it," Radley said. "The game has pretty much taken over life in my world, like how Pokemon are the lifeblood of this one. People can play the game professionally and make a lot of money. I'm in the mining industry and I own a mine with a valuable mineral that's used to make a special kind of motorcycle some people play the game on." He shook his head. "Personally, I think it's crazy to play a game while riding a motorcycle. But it sells. At least the motorcycles are usually on Auto Pilot when they play.

"Say, do you know if people can buy motorcycles here? I have a Harley-Davidson back home. I miss it."

[fayblood]

"Um..."

Shrike mostly got what that first part was talking about, but he started losing track at 'motorcycle'. By the mention of 'auto pilot' however he's pretty lost, and it takes him a good moment to figure out what he's being asked.

"Those are the ones that look like really big bicycles, right?"

He only fairly recently learned what a bicycle is, but he's able to piece things together from the name.

"I don't know if you can buy them. Sandalphon found a store that sells bicycles in Goldenrod City, but I don't think most people have... vehicles."

Was that the right word? Is he remembering it right? Shrike's seen the big things with motors people ride in some of the cities on occasion, but he doesn't know a lot about them.

[crystalmaster]

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," Radley said.

He sighed. "I figured about as much. I'm not really a bicycle person, but I'm not thrilled at the thought of walking everywhere either. Maybe I'll have to try the bicycle idea if I'm here for a while."

[fayblood]

"Oh. Most places aren't very far to walk though."

Well, by his standards. Most people probably don't consider spending days walking between cities perfectly normal...

[crystalmaster]

"Yeah? Well, maybe I'll try it for a while. Maybe. I'm not used to sleeping out in the open either. Never was a fan of the idea of camping." Radley sighed, shaking his head. "Maybe I'll have to try the bike for a while, even though I think I'll look pretty silly riding one. It doesn't really fit my tough guy image, you know? How far is Goldenrod City?"

[fayblood]

"From Violet City it's... about a week, I guess?"

He made it in less time before, but he was definitely rushing.

"From here to Violet City, um..." A pause while he thinks about it. "Less than a day, probably."

Shrike's pretty sure he didn't travel that far down the route, but it's been known to happen. He's good at covering ground when he wants to be.

[crystalmaster]

Radley sighed. "A week.... Well, maybe I'll stick around Violet City a while, if it's got enough to suit me. How big is it?"