A Brave New World

[bravenewmods]

We found the source! There's some weird... machines in here! They're making a terrible noise that're making the Pokémon more aggressive!

[...]

My Pokémon're saying the noise's still here - so I think there's more of these machines! So everyone try to find the rest and stop them o --

Grrrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaargh!

[Up and down the streets of Union, the message was passed on in hushed whispers and cries of disbelief. What could it mean? Machines? Man-made machines? It was impossible! For half a millennium, the only people outside of Union they had ever known were the occasional Shifters who wandered in from the wilderness. Who had made these? And why? ...To destroy Union? Did they finally have evidence of outside civilization, only to find that they intended to declare war?

As the groups began to trickle back into Union from the mountains, rumors ran rampant...

And in the present, the people of Union wait with bated breath for the next quake to come... 12 hours passed. A day. ...Two days. ......And still, nothing.

On the morning of the third day, the Warp Bands and emergency systems flicker to life once again without fanfare.]

This is the Union emergency broadcast system with an ongoing assessment of the situation.

......At this time, I am pleased to announce that no quakes have occurred for 72 hours, and no further unusual seismic activity can be detected.

[She pauses, as if to wait for cheering.]

The Council would like to express its immense gratitude and recognize all the citizens of Union who so selflessly gave of themselves throughout this crisis - in defending and restoring the city, in preventing the invasion from below, and in traveling into the depths of the unknown to prevent a calamity. For bravery in the face of immense danger, we have prepared a reward for all who lent their help and support in any way.

Though there is much in Union that remains to be done, the danger has passed for now.

[There comes another pause, a longer one. ...And when she speaks again, her tone is grave.]

The Council will also confirm at this time the reports that the earthquakes were partially caused by man. In response, the Elders have prepared the following statement:

[There is a soft clearing of the throat before she continues on. Her brisk, efficient voice seems to become tight with emotion.]

"Citizens of Union,

Since the time of the Savior, we, the Council, have sought one goal above all others: the survival and propagation of the human race, that we might once more live in harmony and unity in the land the gods have given to us, ever mindful that we share this land with those whom we are proud to call our equals and friends. For over 500 years, we have striven to guard the future of humanity, to ensure that we might never tread so foolish a path as we once did so many years ago. Long have we believed that we were the sole remnants of mankind - that any future, if we sought it, would lie solely within the works of our own hands.

Thanks to the efforts of our courageous citizens... we now know that this is not the case.

Union is not alone.

Rumors and whispers have already begun to spread, and we fear we cannot verify or deny their validity. We fear that such is impossible for anyone. We, too, are human. When we first heard this news, we were not your Council. We were nothing more than a group of frightened old men and women, afraid and uncertain of what it meant, fearful, for the first time, of what the future might hold.

But let us not live in fear.

Let us hold our heads high and let us be proud - be proud of our ancestors and be proud of Union, of all that we are and all that we shall be. We are the people chosen by the gods, the children of the Savior, and in honor of Her goals and Her vows, we chose our name long ago: Union. So let us unite! Let us unite in hope and in faith, and if we are truly not alone in this world, then let us meet our fellows with the same unity of heart! And if they so desire, they may freely join in the unity we offer...

The future lies ahead of us, boundless and infinite. Let us venture forth together... into this Brave New World!"

[The final words ring with conviction before the communication ends.]

((This post may be used as a mingle thread to discuss the news mentioned within. Much of Union remains in need of help, but thanks to the quick work of the characters in completing their mission, no towers collapsed entirely.))

Comments

[heartstorage]

[Sora hadn't really been thinking when he made that announcement during the mission. Moonbay had told him to report, and he had done just that. The idea of possible consequences like this hadn't crossed his mind until the days after, when he began to hear fretful whispers among the people, and rumors circulating. The announcement from the Council only confirmed the worries that were knotting up in his stomach]

[He had made a terrible mistake.]

[Not since his first months in Union, did he feel so uneasy about interacting with people, about coming off as strange or suspicious. As if the gossipers in the street would be able to just tell there was something wrong with him. In fact, he seems to be so distracted by these groups he may accidentally walk into your character or an object next to them around town - falling back or forward with pinwheeling arms]

Whoa! S-Sorry!

[sturzflug]

[ After the craziness in the mines, Jean was glad to have things back in control. Can't really say 'back to normal' after that announcement, but... Well, Jean's kind of a gossip, even if he might whine about it. So he's outside with the people celebrating and chatting (and making sure his parents are okay and whatever,) so he bumps into Sora-- ]

Hey, watch where you're goin', huh?

[ Well, he's Jean. Still a sourpuss. But he recognizes Sora pretty quickly, having seen him around the shop. ]

Oh, it's you.

[heartstorage]

[He starts falling back but manages to catch his balance with his pinwheeling. He's got big awkward feet, maybe he's used to tripping around]

- Jean!

[So not a person he wants to see!]

Haha- hi! Sorry about that...

[sturzflug]

[ Yeah, you're not suspicious at all, Sora. No, really, you're not. Jean just assumes he's a klutz. ]

Just look out next time, will ya? Everythin' alright? How're things at the shop? Mom won't shut up about how much help you've been so... I been meanin' to thank you.

[a_gentle_boy]

[Sora is so distracted that he'll bump into what seems to be a large pile of rocks remaining from the earthquake.

...Except it has teeth. And eyes. Whoa.

Beside the humongous thing is Lucas, glancing up with some worry in his eyes.]

Oh! Sora -- Sorry. Are we in the way?

[heartstorage]

[He pinwheels and catches himself]

Lucas! Oh no- ha, I wasn't paying attention to-

[Da fuq- jumping back]

That rock has teeth!

[a_gentle_boy]

Mm...

[Lucas gives a small, hesitant nod as he pats one of the Steelix's... rocks.]

It was hurt and injured in the Iron Mines on our way back... I tried to heal it, and sending it back to Union to recover seemed like the right thing to do.

...But I'm not sure if I'm strong enough to train it.

[Steelix rumbles lowly for a moment in some sort of response.]

Ah - is something wrong, though? You were looking a little... distracted.

[for_realsies]

*Imogen watched from sitting on a security wall, kicking her feet and chatting with a few local Wingulls. She was catching up on the idle gossip that you miss while you're out of town for extended periods.*

That's the third time you've done that. Are you alright?

*Imogen whispered a few ideas to her flying friends and they flew off to other parts of the city and Imogen dropped down to the ground, dusting her rather eccentric skirts when she landed. Smiling just a bit too kindly for a normal citizen of Union.

Need someone to talk to?

[heartstorage]

[Sora is kinda wondering at this point how the heck these streets got so crowded! Did he not notice before? But he'll notice someone addressing him, turning his head over to look. At least she...looks friendly. He scratches his head]

Uh- sorry. I'm okay. I guess I'm just kinda distracted.

[for_realsies]

I get kind of distracted sometimes, I usually only accidentally run into one person.

*You're a bit beyond there, you've got something weighing on you. Imogen skips over like she isn't talking to a complete stranger.*

Imogen Moreno, at your service. *Twirl, lavish curtsy, polite smile. Her usual fanfare.*

[moonbay]

[Speaking of Moonbay-!! Sora can feel a tug on the back of his jacket as he's pulled back to give them both some room. She lightly scowls down at him with a raised brow.]

What's wrong with you?

[heartstorage]

[And he is tugged! He stumbles slightly but catches himself before looking up at her. Oh, uh, hi Moonbay.]

Moonbay!

[he rubs at the back of his head]

Huh? Nothing's wrong...!

[moonbay]

Don't lie, you're horrible at it. Plus, you're acting weirder than usual, and that's saying something.

[She idly stretches, a perfect indication that she's not really in any hurry to be anywhere. Sucks to be Sora.]

[reborn_love]

[Elly has been worried ever since the announcement. The idea that they're not alone was a comfort until they realized those machines were possibly offensive -- designed to attack them. An effort to start a war, which feels all sorts of wrong. It feels wrong in a way that resonates with Elly deeply enough to be bothersome. She, in turn, isn't paying attention to where she is going.]

[Thus, fate occurs. She walks straight into Sora, too. She bounces backward with a yelp, then looks at him.]

Oh--oh, Sora! I'm sorry! I should have paid attention to where I was going...

[heartstorage]

[Direct hit! he goes bouncing back, but recovers quick when he sees who it is]

Elhaym!

[Hopping up, he'll offer a hand]

It's fine! Are you okay?

[reborn_love]

[Elly blinks a couple of times, then she smiles. She nods at Sora, arms crossing behind her back.]

Oh, I'm fine. Lost in thought, that's all. I hope I didn't jostle you too bad.

[tinytactician]

[No, Sora, why, why are you tripping over the...little woollen eggs that Armin has clustered around his feet? Oh, wait, no, those are regular Pokemon-y eggs, they just have little knitted tea cozies wrapped around them, presumably to keep them warm.

Armin lets out a yelp, diving for the eggs and quite possibly knocking Sora over in the process.]

[heartstorage]

[Because he is a loser that's why Armin. A LOSER. But yep he tripped on that, and just as he was trying to regain his balance- MINI HE-MAN COMES OUT OF NOWHERE and dives into him- knocking him flat onto the ground]

Uwah!

[tinytactician]

[They say that opposites attract, but clearly Sora and Armin disprove this statement. Nerd calls out to nerd, more likely. Armin lets out a stifled "oof!" when they land on the ground -- but hey, the eggs are safe at least, right?]

...s-sorry about that.

[somnambulatory]

[Jinxie can be found happily playing with the Tyrantrum she bonded in Old City in one of the public parks when the announcement goes out. Smiling brightly and swelling with a sense of accomplishment and pride, she reaches up to meet its head as it bows down to get patted.]

We did it!

[tagteams]

[Man, it has been a busy week for Quinn. The earthquakes are over and she has an old friend back at her side. However, when the council expresses concern about humans outside of Union, that worried her. Valor is living proof that others are out there, even those with cruel intentions. Edan is at his usual spot on her shoulder, watching the people chatter and pass by.

There is a new bird Pokémon sitting in her lap, chatting with the local Wingulls while Quinn is just relaxing on some bench with her two birds around the city. It's noticeable that the Rufflet's right wing is heavily bandaged, but overall, he certainly looks better thanks to someone giving him food and rest.

If you want some rumors confirmed, a bird would like a word with you.]

[wolvenmemory]

[You know what would have been a nice reward? Money. It's something that isn't going to hold you hostage for two weeks—cash actually gets you somewhere and you can put money to work for you. A Pokémon Egg? Not so much. Not when it's useless and effectively keeps him tied to the city for another couple weeks until it hatches. Then he's going to be stuck with a kid Pokémon that will probably effectively need watching until its brain develops, or however the hell that sort of process works. He doesn't hang around newly hatched Pokémon in his spare time.

Quite frankly, Irvine's not sure what to do with it, now that he's got it. So at the moment, not long after receiving his so-called "reward," Irvine can be found sitting in a chair outside a café—one thankfully not structurally affected by the earthquake—sipping a cup of coffee he soon sets down on the table alongside a sandwich it's clear he hasn't touched. The pink Pokémon egg in question can be spotted on the opposite chair, like it's some kind of useless imaginary friend that just might grow legs and leave on its own accord if Irvine glares at it long enough.]

[moonbay]

[And just as if the Pokemon Gods are smiling down on Irvine today, a familiar person is across the street, peering at stuff as she window shops. She says something to the Venipede she's carrying before chuckling to herself. He hasn't been spotted yet. Maybe if he's very quiet, he'll escape unnoticed.]

[wolvenmemory]

[...Depends on your definition of smiling.

Considering she's window shopping, they just might be hoping to make his next six hours of life miserable. Being quiet and trying to escape notice, in fact, sounds like a very, very good idea. So he'll just... drink the rest of his coffee. After that, grab the plate with his sandwich on, grab the egg, and try to clandestinely head inside and hopefully escape notice.

Except that's really not going to work. Because after a few more seconds, there's going to be some very excited, muffled barking coming from up the street as a Houndour runs along the sidewalk towards the café.

You remember that one Houndour he had to turn down? Well...]

[choseneutrality]

[Flynn leaned against a wall as he listened to the report end. It was great that the crisis was over for now. The news that there were other humans other than the ones in Union had been cause for surprise but he found himself more amazed and curious than anything else. Fran and Mandrake were with him and Oberon today, Mandrake finally recovered enough that he wouldn't veer off into a solid object whenever he caught a wind current.

Looks like things would be getting even more busy from here on out.]