maskormenace | 001

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001 - VIDEO

[There's the sound of some fumbling with the communicator as someone struggles to get the thing oriented and recording. For a moment, there's a flash of one giant, emerald green eye close up to the lens as the owner inspects the device.]

Is this...is this thing on? Is it recording...? Gods dammit...how the hell...

[More fumbling. Then another voice offscreen can be heard: 'Hey boss, you want me to show you how to--']

No. Look, I got this. Go over there and finish checking the inventory and let me--

[Finally, he manages to get the comm aligned and recording. The blue haired newcomer looks absolutely exasperated.]

Okay, I think I've got it. Anyway, I'm not sure who all can see this? But I'm having some issues here. Now, I, for one, am glad that I was provided employment upon working here. I kinda wish it was more in my field, but hey, beggars can't be choosers, am I right? I've run a shop before. I know business. I know how to sell. I can sell a full set of plate mail to an eighty year old wind mage. My point? I can do this job. Here's the problem:

[Darin tilts his comm to show his store, namely the Thot Topic in Nonah that he has been given management of. The store is in great shape and people are shopping and being helped by the staff. But over by the entrance there stands three seemingly disaffected teens. Two girls and a guy, and they are all taptaptapping away at their phones.]

Can someone explain to me what the hell is happening here? They've been here for hours. They're here every other day, it seems. They don't talk. The best part? Hang on.

[Okay, looks like we're moving now. Darin walks over to the group and not-so-discreetly circles them while holding his comm aloft. Maybe some eagle-eyed viewers might catch one of them texting 'omg, the old blue haired guy is back guys lmao' before Darin walks back to his original position towards the back of the store.]

Did you catch that? Did you? They're sending those messages to each other. They're talking to each other! Through their little devices! Instead of using words! Culture shock my ass, is there a priest or something out there? Because I think these kids are possessed and I do not deal with ghosts. Seriously, if anyone can offer me any insight into what the hell is wrong here, I will give you ten percent off of whatever the hell you want from my store. Hell, make it twenty percent.

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[Who cares if its fruity, Darin only cares about if its strong. And from the smell, it is. So he gladly accept it.]

Train 'em? Not really. I've fought one before, though. Turns out they don't like their eggs being disturbed, no matter how delicious they're supposed to be.

Man, that's kinda.... messed up? [Blue laughs, awkwardly. He'd probably actually be more offended at the thought if he was sober, but then again, he's no Poké-vegan like Red either, so.]

[Shrug!] You fought one, huh? [Blue looks him up and down judgmentally, same as Eevee did.] Well, 'least you got em in your world.... With what, you train anythin' else?

Um...dogs?

Horses?

[Darin does not know what to make of this line of questioning. Is he asking if anyone trains monsters? Because that's insane. They're monsters. So he's going to give Blue a thousand yard stare while I takes a loooooong swig of his fancy drink.]

Oh, so just normal "animals", huh... Hah, good luck taking down a Dragon with those!

[Because that's obviously what he's still implying?? They're both talking in circles here. Blue gestures at the drink he handed Darin- a variation on the Tequila Sunrise, but with a Pokéberry twist Super sour, super loaded, with a hint of sweet.] How you like that Alolan Sunrise?

I...you know what? Sure. Let's just say that's what happened.

[Darin looks at his drink when Blue gestures at it.]

It's damn tasty. Never had something like this back home. Usually just had straight ale or whiskey if I felt in the mood for it. I could get used to drinks like this though.

[If Blue's power was the physical manifestation of his idiocy, there would be question marks floating over his head right now. Luckily, it's not.]

Yeah, that's cuz it's made using berries I have from back home! [Blue reaches into his backpack, pulling out a weird looking fruit- basically a weird pineapple.] It's called a Pinap berry. They got more kick than a normal pineapple... Tough Pokémon love 'em! Heh heh, I brought that drink recipe from my world, now the drink's really popular here! I'm kind of a genius.

Oh, you're one of those Pokemon trainers...like my pal Archie. No wonder half of what you said made no frikkin' sense.

[Darin takes another nice long drink.]

Still, I gotta say, this is a damn good drink recipe. But don't keep patting your own ass, wouldn't want you to get sore or sprain your wrist.

Hah!? Sheesh, figures. Your pal, huh. [Blue gives an incredulous look, and gives Darin another up and down.] That Aqua loser really stumbles into everyone, somehow! No wonder you got a bad impression of our world. You ever wanna see what a real Pokémon trainer looks like, you let me know.

[The insult only gets him a dumb, unbothered laugh as Blue sips at his drink again.] Impossible, I'm real flexible!

Yeah. My pal.

[Darin doesn't get riled enough to stand, but he is going to emphatically put his drink down.]

I don't know what you mean by 'Aqua loser' but I've seen the way his Crobat acts around him. The way I see it, you love someone or something that much, you're already leaps and bounds better than anyone else.

[Darin might not know anything about Pokemon, but he knows mutual love and respect when he sees it.]

[Blue gives him a weird look- it's hard to tell if the narrow-eyed look above that frown is skepticism, or judging, or something else entirely, but whatever it is behind the haze of alcohol in his eyes is something a lot more genuine than whatever bullshit he's been spouting all night.]

[Too bad it's gone just as fast, the cocky grin replacing it as he gives a loud, obnoxious snort.] Um, duh, Crobat evolves from friendship. Obviously.

[He takes another swig and that's all he really has to say about that.] You invited yourself over here and got a free drink, pal, chill out!

Edited 2018-04-15 22:57 (UTC)

[Darin picks his drink back up and takes another swig.]

Yeah, I did. And I appreciate the drink. But just because I get something for free means it compromises who I am. Archie's my friend. Probably my first friend. [Ever. But he'll leave that word out.]

There's nothing about him that makes him a loser. He might not be here to defend himself, but I gladly will.

[His tone isn't nearly as harsh as his words. If anything, it's stated very matter-of-fact like. He even leans back in his seat a bit.]

What did you mean by 'Aqua loser?' I don't understand that part.

[Blue and Eevee simultaneously side-eye each other.]

Sheesh. [Yeah, he knows about the mostly-friendless loser club, Darin, don't worry. Blue knocks back his drink and slides the empty glass onto the table.]

[He really needs another.....]

He's a super loser, but whatever. He used to be the boss of a buncha thugs called Team Aqua, back in our world. He kinda almost flooded the world with an ancient, legendary ocean Pokémon. [He's gonna find out eventually. Blue shrugs.] Ummm, but he's like, reformed now. Mostly.

A bunch of...what...?

[Okay, so maybe Darin's not so nonchalantly leaning back anymore. Maybe he's kind of leaning forward, towards Blue, looking a little incredulous.]

...Wait. You're screwing with me? Archie? The same guy who looks more like his arms were made more for hugging over fighting? I know his type. Hell, I was adopted by his type. One second he's yelling at you for screwing up, the second he's bringing you hot cocoa because he feels bad that you feel bad. That same Archie?

There's no way he'd try to flood the world. I don't even know how you can do something like that. Was he going to turn on everyone's bathtubs and then plug their drains?

[This is literally textbook denial. He's gonna make a game of it though.]

...Yeah, you got his type kinda down. [Blue admits, leaning his chin in his hand while he waits for the tender to bring him another round of shots.] That's basically Archie.

[Blue's not bothered if the guy's in denial, honestly; he felt everyone around here liked to turn a blind eye when it came to him. He'd mostly gotten over it, by now, past his own problems and how it got him hung up on how people reacted to Archie. But the blatant denials still got to him, sometimes. Made him want to be just that bit more petty about it.]

[He grabs a glass as the round is set down beside him, and chucks it back again without even looking this time. Eevee makes a low sound beside him, like the whine of a concerned dog. (He knew how he got, like this...)] There's a super-powerful prehistoric whale Pokémon called Kyogre. It's an ocean and rain god of the Hoenn region. The dumb pirate decided that more oceans would be better for nature, or some crap like that? I don't get it, some crazy nonsense. Then again, even he says he doesn't get what Magical Leaf he was on, anymore.

Well anyway, he tried to revive that ancient Pokémon that had been sealed away millennia ago, and it didn't go too well. I was a kid when all this happened, and I'm from another region, so I don't really know the details. I was kinda busy anyway? [He does know the details, now; but he's not gonna give them.]

[As Darin listens, the almost mocking grin he was wearing fades. It continues to fade until he's left looking down into his glass, swirling the remnants of the drink around the bottom. Despite how distracted he may look, he's hanging onto Blue's every word. The drink might have been strong, but with his heightened metabolism, he processed the alcohol at lightning speeds. Still, he knew how to pretend; how to look intoxicated enough that the somberness in his tone could be mistaken for mild inebriation.]

Huh. Ancient evil whale thing. Got it. Makes more sense anyway.

[Something about Blue's tone...Darin wasn't so sure he was just screwing with him now. He didn't gain anything from it anyway. Which meant that Archie...]

In my experience, gods make people do some stupid things. Pokémon or otherwise. You said he was mostly reformed though. That why people give him a free pass around here? You'd think the people who ported us in would be more wary about things like that.

[Darin finishes off his drink.]

Edited 2018-04-16 00:33 (UTC)

[Blue stares at the guy and his fallen expression out of the corner of his eye. Eevee gets up from his spot and hops onto Blue's shoulder, curling his tail around with a quiet coo towards his trainer, although Blue's expression never changes from hardened apathy.]

[He looks away, snorts, grabs another glass and sips.] ...Sure. "Make".

[Blue reaches up to scritch Eevee's ruff, but the Pokémon seems no more calmed by it.] Um, I think I heard they don't control who gets brought here anyway, so it probably doesn't matter? But I guess people give him a free pass cuz... they just see the guy he is now.

I mean. I didn't know him back when he was crazy. Doesn't matter much to me either way. [He shrugs] Although, I guess I wouldn't be here if he'd succeeded, huh?

[He dooooesn't quite manage to rid the bad mood from his voice, that time, and Eevee's ears pin back at his harshness.]

[Darin tenses up at that 'make' comment. Visibly. The muscles in his neck rise against his skin like thick, taut cords. But he bites back whatever anger might be welling up and continues the discussion with at least a modicum of civility.]

Yeah. I said 'make.' But I don't mean by physically controlling their actions and thoughts.

[Darin tips his empty glass with a finger and keeps it balances on the table.]

People do stupid things for a lot of reasons. Devotion to a person, to a cause, to a god, those are just a few very stupid reasons. Sometimes they get lost...they lose sight of why they're doing it in the first place. I've seen it.

On my world...there's an end of days prophecy. People are all rising up now, throwing their belief behind their faith, and the church is gaining power rapidly. A lot of people think it's good. That in blindly giving up their faith, they're doing what's best for the world.

[Darin lets the glass drop to the table with a clunk.]

I guess, in the end, what I'm trying to say...? Archie probably screwed up. Maybe his very existence put your world, and maybe even this one at stake. Maybe he's dangerous and shouldn't be around.

But that doesn't change the fact that I'm happy I met him. That he's my friend. The world could tell me he's bad but I'll just say that the world is bad for not giving him a chance to make things right with his own hands.

[The same chance Darin has always wanted for himself. A chance he hopes to earn here.]

[Civility around Blue is difficult for the best of folks. Not that he doesn't know that. Not that he doesn't especially design the way he talks that way (sometimes; there's plenty of willful obtuseness, and just as much obliviousness).]

[For example, for all of Darin's heartfelt explanation, Blue just stares into his glass, his own jaw setting increasingly as it becomes apparent that he's not really listening. He tilts the glass back, slowly drains it, and sets it down, then raises the hand up to Eevee's back, a signal.]

Yeah, 'kay. [He scoots back slowly in his chair, a long creak as he stretches his arms over his head, then lurches forward to stand, not entirely steady.] Glad you don't give a Golduck about my entire planet going underwater cuz you have a friend, or whatever.

You can pay me back some other time for the drink. I gotta go home and peel your friend off his couch before he fuses with it.

[Darin was about to protest the comment. That is, until Blue said what he was about to do. Darin's eyes widen a bit, but then his gaze softens and he smiles to himself as the other walks by.]

Hey, at least your planet will still be there. Sounds like you people just need to evolve to stay on it. But I'll save that debate for the next time.

...Darin, by the way. Darin Altway. I appreciate the talk. Feel free to drop me a line anytime.

...Oak nuggins?

Until some other nutcase tries to control a legendary for like, the 8th time this decade. [Blue mutters after a beat, giving Darin a weird look at the smile. Caught off-guard by the change in demeanor, apparently. He shrugs and swings his backpack over the shoulder Eevee isn't draped over.]

...Blue Oak. [He replies after a minute, giving Darin another long stare at 'oak nuggins' (he's too drunk to remember, ok), and stumbles towards the door.] Yeah, I'll keep you on a special line in case I need someone that doesn't know how to text.

Smell ya later, geezer-loser!

[Darin literally has no idea what he's talking about, but the heartfelt smile shifts into a cocky grin.]

You know where t'find me, Blue Balls!

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