⇨ ALOLA

[ringleaders]

Who: EVERYONE.
When: Day 73 - Day 87
Where: The islands of Alola.
What: The Carnival arrives at its next touring location, a series of tropical islands inhabited by a species of animal called Pokemon and their trainers!
Warnings: Pokemon is pretty PG-rated.

IT'S A POKEMON WORLD↴ Alola is broken up into four different islands, with a number of unique points of interest. Boats can easily be rented in order to get between the islands, or you can just pay for the fair of a scheduled trip. If you can prove you have the skills for it, you can also call on a "Ride Pokemon" - that is, either a Charizard or a Lapras that will fly or swim you between locations. ► POPULATION: Though the islands appear very small as an abstraction in the actual games, that doesn't hold over into the actual reality of it. When interacting with the different locations, imagine that they are about as big and spread out as they would be in real life. It's about on the same scale as Hawaii is on earth. Ignore any wikis that say the population of each island is like 200 people, because that's just adding up all the scripted NPCs, and there are realistically more than six houses per town. ► AMENITIES: Even if they aren't overtly listed on island maps, it can be assumed that all towns and cities will have basic amenities - that is, places to eat, place to go to the washroom, places to buy souvenirs, and the other things one would expect in a tourist heavy area. You can also buy malasadas pretty much anywhere. ► POKECENTERS: You'll be able to find a Pokecenter in pretty much every town - a Pokecenter is a public building in which Pokemon Trainers can rest and get their Pokemon healed. Think of it like free international Pokemon healthcare. You can also buy Pokeballs here, as well as potions and other healing items for later use. ► AETHER FOUNDATION: A peace keeping organization that shelters Pokemon from harm and abuse. If you kill/maim any Pokemon or otherwise act violently in public, they will come to try to take you down with their Pokemon. They also are the main force working against Team Skull. MELEMELE ISLAND↴ [MELEMELE DETAIL MAP] [GUARDIAN DEITY TAPU KOKO] [WIKI LINK] ► TRAINER SCHOOL: A full fledged for young, aspiring Pokemon Trainers! Students go here to learn about Pokemon care and battling before setting out on their own journeys. It would be sort of weird for an adult to show up here, like it would for an adult to try to attend an elementary school, but you can probably learn some of the basics just from touring the facility. ► HAU'OLI SHOPPING DISTRICT: The biggest shopping district on Melemele, you can do a lot here, from eating out to getting your hair dyed. A lot of shops are, unsurprisingly, completely Pokemon focused - but there are some that aren't, too. There are also some very nice beach fronts nearby. ► BERRY FIELDS: Berries come in a lot of different types and have different effects when used. Mostly, Pokemon love to eat them, regardless of what type they are. This is a big field of them, most of which are free to take if you catch them when ripe. ► TEN CARAT HILL: The secluded interior of a small mountain, filled with some rare types of rock Pokemon. You have to be able to bypass the left overs of some recent rockslides to get in. ► TRIAL SITE: There is only one trial on this islands, which is the Normal type trial. All you have to do is fight a bunch of Pokemon ferrets, and then fight an even bigger Pokemon ferret that thirsts for your blood. It's not so bad. AKALA ISLAND↴ [AKALA DETAIL MAP] [GUARDIAN DEITY TAPU LELE] [WIKI LINK] ► TIDE SONG HOTEL: A big ass hotel near the port - if you want to stay on Alola overnight, this is a pretty good place to go. It isn't too expensive, and is also rather nice. ► DIMENSIONAL RESEARCH LAB: Alola, on occasion, has been the site of various dimensional breaks (haha) in which extraplanar creatures called Ultra Beasts have crossed over. There isn't much information about these beasts, but they are something that are being actively studied. Characters who are nerds might find some of this information interesting. ► HANO GRAND RESORT: The inevitably big, fancy resort that tends to take route in touristy places like this. If you actually pay to spend some time there, you can enjoy all the things you'd expect to find in a fancy resort, except with way more Pokemon. There is also a fancy, secluded beach for resort goers only. ► BATTLE ROYALE DOME: A battle area in which 4 trainers fight each other all at once, with teams of there Pokemon. The trainers here are mostly quite expert, and you need a team of three Pokemon to play, so player characters probably won't be able to participate. However, you can still come to watch, if you like seeing a bunch of colourful monsters slapping each other around. ► PANIOLA RANCH: A large ranch that keeps a lot of Pokemon that resemble earth farm animals. You can leave Pokemon here to stay for a while if you need a break from the strains of trainer life. Quite often, however, your Pokemon will end up getting knocked up and leave you with another egg to care for. ► TRIAL SITES: Brooklet Hill is a lake filled area that contains the Water Trial. You have to fight a bunch of schooling Wishiwashi, and then an even bigger schooling Wishiwashi to win. Wela Volcano Park contains the Fire Trial, where you must climb to the top of the dormant volcano, and spot the difference between a series of ceremonial island dances. Then you gotta fight a team of Marrowaks and a giant Salazzle. The Lush Jungle contains the Grass challenge, in which you have to find a series of rare organic ingredients in order to brew something that will lure out a giant Lurantis. ULA'ULA ISLAND↴ [ULA'ULA DETAIL MAP] [GUARDIAN DEITY TAPU BULU] [WIKI LINK] ► MALIE GARDEN: A nice big garden to hang out in and chill. Also, there are Pokemon there... and also, Pokemon battles? There's really no end to it. ► MOUNT HOKULANI OBSERVATORY: Up at the top of the local mountain, you can go see a space observatory. Like most things in Alola, it's like a regular observatory, except with more Pokemon, since some Pokemon just straight up come from space. You can take a bus up here, but you can also hike if you want. ► HAINA DESERT: A shitty desert in the middle of the island. Mostly only good for if you want the kinds of Pokemon that live in shitty deserts. ► ABANDONED THRIFTY MEGAMART: A Megamart, but haunted. Extremely haunted, filled with the kind of ghost Pokemon that would actually kill you. You have to take a bunch of pictures of ghosts on your way through here if you want to beat the Ghost Trial. ► PO TOWN: The ramshackle remains of the town that Team Skull have taken over. It's completely walled off from the rest of the world, and is pretty terrible. No point in going in there unless you're fighting crime, in which case you can expect to get challenged to Pokemon battles by a lot of Team Skull knuckleheads. ► LAKE OF THE MOON: A huge, round temple thing in the middle of nowhere. It's used to praise a legendary Pokemon that existed years ago, but there presently doesn't seem to be anything around except cool architecture. ► TRIAL SITES: The Observatory contains the Electric Challenge, during which you have to fend off various kinds of electric grubs, before eventually taking on a giant Vikavolt. The Abandoned Megamart must first be cleared before challenging the Ghost Trial officially, at which point you will have to defeat a powerful Mimikyu. PONI ISLAND↴ [PONI DETAIL MAP] [GUARDIAN DEITY TAPU FINI] [WIKI LINK] ► SEAFOLK VILLAGE: A village made of nothing but houseboats and other water fairing homes. It's the only major town on Poni Island. ► ANCIENT RUINS: Most of Poni Island has been reduced to ruins, over time. Not many people live here, relative to the other islands, but there are a lot of abandoned buildings from when they apparently used to. ► VAST PONI CANYONS: Most of the island is comprised of canyons, caves, and valleys filled with particularly strong Pokemon, and also a lot of fight-hungry Pokemon trainers. Most of them will want to fight you as soon as they see you, since they are there mostly to train, but they will back down if you tell them you're not a trainer. Though, at that point they will strongly urge you to go home, because it's too danger for anything other than the strongest trainers. ► ALTAR OF THE SUN: A matching altar to the one found on Ula'ula, except this time dedicated to a legendary Pokemon of the sun. If you play some magic flutes here at the right time then apparently a giant lion might show up, but there's no way to be sure. ► TRIAL SITES: The only Trial here is the Grand Trial, which is a fight against the leader's ground type Pokemon. You may also get lucky and have the Fairy Trial's kahuna deign to fight you, with her fairy types, if she randomly wanders into your path. Both of them are very strong, and are not advised to challenge for new trainers.

Comments

renzo shima, ota

[perverses]

BUG TROUBLE IN LITTLE ALOLA

[ Previously on Pokemon Shima’s terrible, horrible, awful life, he was trying to warn the carnival about bugs, big bugs, giant bugs, bugs with superpowers. Naturally, no one took heed his warnings. That probably had a lot to do with no one else having a bloodcurdling fear of insects, so—

This is where he finds himself now, lost on his way back to one of the villages after scouting around a little more. He’s since broken off from the other workers or, more specifically, the other nightrunners, but that’s typical enough for him. Scouting means covering a lot of ground at once, not a little ground in a group! Buuuut all it takes is, like, nine steps through the tall grass before it appears. Buggy eyes, buggy legs, buggy everything, and that leaves Shima announcing exactly where is with a harrowing shriek from somewhere out there, among the grass and trees. ]

AAAAAGH, NO, COME ON! NOT AGAIN! HOW MANY OF THESE THINGS ARE THERE OUT HERE?!

[ He may have split off from the rest before, but it’s only a matter of time until he comes screaming and crashing right back out through the wilderness and directly into, well, whoever is unlucky enough to find themselves in his path. ]

SALANDIT? MORE LIKE SALANDON'T...

[ Team Skull was an inevitability, especially for a scout. Enough Team Skull run-ins and it eventually occurred to Shima to actually pick up a Pokemon of his own. The easiest way to do that? Take one of the pokeballs off of a goon's belt in exchange for letting them go without another thrashing (because he was legitimately beating them up the old-fashioned way). Good deal, right? Right? Well, you would think so, only— ]

It's just a lizard. [ Shima's camped out at a little outdoor cafe table back in Hau'oli, a Salandit sprawled out flat on the table, squinting right back at him with those shifty narrow eyes it has. ] Better than a bug, I guess. A little small for a salamander, though, so...

[ He inches a hand forward, going in to poke it on the snout with a finger. Baaad idea. Real bad. ]

Not too impressiv— OW! Hey! [ He jerks his hand back. ] Don't bite!

TEAM SKULL VS. THE CARNIVAL [ DAY 82 - DAY 84 ]

Wuh— uh oh.

[ Yeah, and that whole thing where Shima spent his off-week harassing Team Skull for shits and giggles when he wasn't a) running from horrible bugs or b) lazing around on a beach somewhere? What he failed to realize is they count as Pokemon Trainers, which means they're right here, in the carnival, and Shima without a glamour looks pretty much like Shima with one, save for the added extra eye in his forehead.

Don't mind him, ducking around into whatever booth, game, table, tent, or even the kitchen at the cookhouse that you're busy working at and the reason is immediately obvious when a whole pack of Team Skull goons come loudly grouching and beatboxing the same way he'd come from. ]

Yo, yo, where did that pink-haired bozo go?! You ain't getting away with Team Skull's Pokemon!

[ Oh boy. Shima, doing his best to hide right now, waves his hands frantically and whispers a little too loudly for comfort, ]

Ignore me! They'll leave soon, promise! They're really dumb, y'know?

TEAM SKULL VS... TEAM SKELETON??

[spaghettimonster]

[Papyrus heard plenty of rumors about this Team Skull group, and more than a couple of trainers have gasped at the sight of him. But somehow he's avoided encountering any yet, and their beatbox movement style really draws the eye. Even if you don't have eyes.

So when Shima runs from them and behind the large trash container Papyrus is pulling around, it's obvious who he must mean.]

How can they be dumb... if they love skeletons so much??

[Yeah, don't mind the janitor skeleton just hanging out watching you guys, Team Skull grunts.]

[perverses]

[ That... okay, that earns Papyrus a long, blank stare. ]

If they like skeletons? [ Team Skull, skeletons, Papyrus has a bare skull for a head. Right, right, Shima gets it. Still, he's going to hiss out — still trying to be quiet — a very adamant, ] How does that matter at all? People can like things and still be dumb! Just don't say anything, okay?

[ Which may be easier asked than actually accomplished, because guess who those bad dudes are rolling on up to? Yeah, one of them stops and gives Papyrus a startled look, then draws the rest of the gang's attention to him by pointing. ]

Hey! What's up with this guy? He's all bones and more bones! Dude, is that a costume?!

[ Because of course, they would want to check out a literal skeleton person... ]

[spaghettimonster]

[Alas, Papyrus is practically immune to long, blank stares, and doesn't get the hint.]

Liking skeletons is itself a not-dumb thing! [He protests, not very convinced. But the gang's talking, and he doesn't actually want to give Shima's hiding place away.]

No, this is no costume! I am naturally this handsome. Nyeh heh heh heh heh!

[Besides, it's a better use of everyone's time for the gang to pay attention to him, instead. Papyrus steps forward a couple steps, making himself more accessible for these skull fans to admire... where they won't need to go far enough that they'd see Shima.]

[perverses]

[ And it works! For now. They don't come any closer when Papyrus steps forward instead, their interest focused on the skeleton over continuing their search for Shima. ]

No way, man, no way, you can't REALLY be a skeleton! That would be too crazy, too crazy for anyone! [ One says with way more gesturing around and waving his arms than is actually needed for any form of communication ever. ] You're just a super skinny dude in a costume, it's gotta be!

[spaghettimonster]

[This is the first time anyone's questioned whether he's a skeleton, and it's... kind of discomfiting? Partly because he's wearing one of his short shirts, so there's a spot where it's just spine and view of the world behind him. Partly, mostly, because... being a skeleton is just what he is. It's fun to go to other worlds and play dress-up, but the idea that anyone could see his face and not see him...

He rallies, anyway, and does some exaggerated gesturing himself, including a 'muscular' pose.]

Do you want to feel my biceps? I promise you, I'm all bone! And magic.

BUGS EVERYWHERE

[whattaprick]

[ It had been funny enough to simply ignore Shima screaming over the radio about the bugs, but eventually Lambert decides it's probably best to investigate where he's gotten off to and make sure he hasn't hyperventilated his way into an early grave. Still, bees. It's more or less at random that he's wandering, riding on Pig (he still has to bend nearly in half just to stay on top of it, but he'll deal) to cover ground faster, but the piercing scream that suddenly rends the air is more effective than trying to determine if the tracks he's following actually belong to a person or a more person-shaped Pokemon.

He guides Pig forward with his knees -- at least it's learned to listen to that much -- while he tries to pinpoint the sound of Shima's voice in the undergrowth ... the shrieking and crashing seems to be coming from all around, certainly disturbing the other Pokemon in the forest.

Naturally, that's the point Shima bolts out of the grass and nearly slams into both donkey and man. ]

[perverses]

[ Any other time, Shima would have absolutely stopped to point and laugh at Lambert crouched and riding around on something a little as a mudbray, however, he has bigger issues on his mind right now. Bugs, it's mainly bugs, and he doesn't just nearly slam into the donkey and the man, he does.

Of course, Pig's a sturdy little Pokemon, so it's also Shima and not the other two (or at least not the mudbray) that gets bounced back and straight to the dirt with a thud. ]

AAAahh— [ Panicked as he is, his first guess is he's run into another giant and horrible bug, so he's on the ground with his arms up, but he's pretty quick to realize that's not the case. The screaming trails off after, like, a second. ] ...hhh... o-oh. It's you.

[ Wait, wait, does that mean he came to save him?! Shima pushes himself back up to sit. ]

We've gotta go! Right now! They're right behind me!

[whattaprick]

[ Even with the impact, Lambert keeps his seat, though it is pretty impressive. He just sort of peers over the edge of his seat until Shima catches on to what's happening, and then he snorts under his breath, shaking his head. ]

What, more bugs? [ Lambert asks. Only one thing has provoked that kind of reaction out of Shima all this time, so it's a reasonable guess. ] Let me guess, the bees again?

[ Because that will honestly never stop being funny to him. Not that bees aren't a pain in the ass, he's been stung himself, but it's never been anything a quick burst of Igni couldn't fix. ]

[perverses]

Bees? No! No, it's not the bees! It's—

[ But, naturally, before he can even begin to describe what's after him, it arrives and boy oh boy does it do so violently. With a metallic shing sound, like a sword being drawn, the underbrush, bushes, and even trees that Shima had come stumbling out of basically explode into shredded bits of pieces.

Shima, terrified, throws himself back up onto his feet and scrambles to try and climb over Lambert and Mudbray both, hoping to put them between him and the nearly five feet of mean, green, slicing machine that's been buzzing along after him! ]

Oh, crap! Crap! Here, it's here! Get out of the way!

[ Yyyeah, that thing is still flying straight for all three of them even after decimating the plant life over there, a scythe-like arm raised up high. ]

[whattaprick]

[ Yeah, Lambert knows what a weapon drawn sounds like, so he's immediately slipping off Mudbray's back and getting ready for a fight. Which means he's standing in front of Shima and Pig when the Scyther bursts through, and he remembers... he doesn't have any weapons, just a handful of those weird little balls and not a lot else.

It looks pissed off. Really pissed off. Quen goes up on instinct, the blade making an impact hard enough to dissipate it completely and force it to bounce off for a moment, stunned. But not down for the count, which means-- ]

Dammit!

[ Lambert's going to turn and dash in the same direction as Shima, cursing. He can't cast another spell so quickly, so they're going to have to distract it. ]

Pig, distract it! [ The Mudbray, in contrast to the humans, doesn't seem as fazed by the Scyther at all. On Lambert's order, however, it turns and kicks mud up at the flying bug ... which just dodges right out of the way, chittering angrily. Someone didn't learn about Pokemon types in trainer school, unfortunately. ]

salandon't

[puddingemote]

[Tamaki's heading past when he hears the guy shout. He looks over curiously, Riori the Oricorio peeking over his head from his other shoulder to see, too.

He can't help but laugh. What did this guy think was going to happen if he got too close to its mouth?

He comes to the edge of the fence around the cafe tables, speaking up.]

I don't think it trusts you yet...

[perverses]

[ Is that... a cheerleader bird? Thing? Shima focuses on Riori first, idly shaking his hand as if that might somehow lessen the sting of getting his finger chomped. ]

Yeah, yeah, I kind of figured that out just a second ago. [ Feeling he's stared adequately at the Oricorio now, he shifts his attention to Tamaki — all three eyes of it. ] I thought they were supposed to listen to whoever has the ball they stay in, but I guess that isn't how it actually works, huh?

[puddingemote]

[She is indeed a cheerleader bird; she shakes her pom-pom wings idly as Tamaki talks.]

The stronger ones need to respect you. That's what I heard. Just because you caught it, that's not enough.

[perverses]

Well, I didn't actually... catch it, I guess?

[ Because if that's the requirement, hoo boy, he's never getting listened to. ]

[puddingemote]

Eh? Someone gave it to you?

[That's the only possible explanation... right?]

bugging out

[fourthscribe]

[The panicked shout is startling enough on it's own, causing Tanyuu to look around in alarm, but when Shima runs out of the foliage and slams right into her--well, the results are probably predictable.]

Oof!!

[She falls to the ground with a hard thump, dazed slightly from the impact and shaking her head before starting to push herself up.]

Goodness...what's going on?

[perverses]

[ Tanyuu falls down, Shima falls down, everyone falls down. Good times. Shima's only winded from it for a second or two, however, then he's right back to his feet. ]

It's... they're...! Look, just trust me, we gotta run! [ Or, uh, slither, in some cases. Whatever, whatever, he's going to make for one of her arms, to grab it and try to drag her along when he starts moving again! ] Right now! They're going to catch up!

[ Sure is a whole lot of ominous buzzing growing louder and louder from somewhere off in the direction he came dashing out from. ]

[fourthscribe]

[Well, this sure is happening. It's hard to drag several hundred pounds of snake, but thankfully she's up and moving quickly enough.]

What is going to catch up? Did you disturb a nest back there? [It certainly is a LOT of buzzing...which means either a lot of somethings, or one very big one.]

[perverses]

[ He can try, he can try, but her moving does help a whole lot. ]

Bees! Bee things! A million little bee things!

[fourthscribe]

A million--?

[Tanyuu casts another glance behind, antennae twitching to try and catch the scent of them. The sound is getting closer...]

Surely it can't be that many!

TEAM SKULL late tag-in time whoops

[pullingamiko]

[Honestly, Miko isn't going to complain; any interruption from booth cleaning hell is very welcome. And this in particular is way more interesting.

She leans over, trying to see the goons without letting them see her, and whispers back.]

--Dude, what did you even do?

[perverses]

Uhhh. I may have taken something from them.

[ May meaning definitely, he definitely did. They're still making their way down the row of booths, checking in each one even if it means shoving past people playing at them or pestering the shadow people running them in lieu of actual people.

It's only a few more between the Skull goons and the booth Miko is cleaning up. ]

[pullingamiko]

May have, huh.

[Yeah she can guess what THAT means. But shit okay those guys are getting closer, and honestly? Whatever happened, she'd rather these losers not try to beat up one of her coworkers. She looks around, thinking it over. The booth she was cleaning is one of those squirt-gun games, and there's some space under the counter... but they'll definitely actually try to look inside. And she kind of doubts getting into a fight with customers, even shitty ones, would go over great, so...

She drops her cleaning rag and grabs Shima by the shoulders, shoving him under the counter.] Okay, stay down there and hang tight!

[When the goons get closer, she plants her hands on the counter, leaning forward to push them back a little.] Why, hello there! You look like you could use some entertainment, and I've got just the thing here! It's just two tickets to play; you interested?

[She has no idea how many tickets it is. But maybe they don't either, and if they do she can... make up an excuse. Yeah!]

[perverses]

Wait, h—!

[ He protests at first, being shoved out of sight like that, but slaps a hand over his mouth and shuts up immediately when he hears the Skull goons roll up. It's pretty hard to miss, with how much beatboxing they do as they walk. ]

Yo, what? We ain't here to play a game, girly, we're looking for a thief! [ Said... the... other thief? Yeah, pretty much that. The other Team Skull people with him agree. They're totally busy, totally looking for a thief! ] Why should we stop and play this stupid thing, huh?