>Intro

[battycaufield]

Overall, the experience had been better than anticipated.

The whole of the Verda bridge swept out ahead of him, a broad line that thinned in the distance, only to be all but swallowed by the horizon. Behind him, the beaches of Romulus aisle lay - as did the Solastella Pok?mon lab. The experience had been adequate, and provided him with the Pok?mon he desired. All that was left now was for him to actually begin capturing and training Pok?mon, assembling a task force and earning enough wealth and power to fund an expedition to find Sarah.

It was nice, S reflected, to occasionally have his work cut out for him.

First things came first, as always; S examined the pokeball at his belt, gently unclipping it and bringing it close to eye-level as he walked down the bridge. Meeting his new Pok?mon would be rather an inevitable experience: eventually, he would have to use what was inside to battle. It was best to get introductions done and out of the way with before a battle actually started, so that any conflicts may be sorted out.

S became suddenly aware of the fact that he may have made the wrong choice. What if all the Pok?mon were substandard, and it was a fool's game? What if Kon, the laboratory assistant behind the desk, had not bothered to so carefully think out the mental game of choosing a pokeball as he had? what if he had thought it out MORE?

S stopped in his tracks, audiably gulped and clicked the trigger on the pokeball, expecting the worst. There was a bright light, as if a powerful camera had let loose a flashbulb. S closed his eyes, reflexively; when the light faded, a vulpix appeared, facing away from.

S tensed his body into a defensive posture. Careful, he thought; any wild creature, when exposed to a drastically unfamiliar situation, may react with violence, aggression or hostility. Pok?mon are certainly not an exception to the rule. I'm going to have to treat the vulpix with caution, in case it -

- Abruptly the vulpix turned, swiveling around to fix him with a pointed, intense gaze. S immediately dropped eye contact and lowered his hands in a submissive gesture.

<Hi!>

S looked back up; the vulpix had Addressed him. It had it's eyes closed now, and it's face was plastered in what could only be described as a grin. S abruptly realized that it was probably important for him to respond to the Vulpix's query.

<Good afternoon, Vulpix. I am of this island group coming to train Pok?mon. You are new Pok?mon of me. Shall we be friends?>

The fox giggled, lightly; it was a pleasant sound, like wind chimes. <you're such a sweetheat! thank you! but~you can speak in your language if you want!> it (she?) said, lightly. abruptly, her voice changed to dull, meaty tones. "would you have like it if i talk human?"

S laughed. It was the first time in a while; his sharp, barking peals echoed off the water around them, carrying through the archipelago like a loud hailer through a gymnasium.

"So, uh...So speaking English wouldn't be a problem for you?"

<nope, silly!> the vulpix replied. I hope you're not the nuzzling type of trainer, though. That fang of yours looks kind of sharp!>

S's laughter redoubled. Not that he understood why; it wasn't a particularly funny or impressive statement. There was just something about it's unforcedness, though; it was a spontaneous line that FELT spontaneous, in a way that not many other people's lines did.

It reminded him of Sarah.

Sobering up significantly, S killed his laughter as quickly as was natural, letting only a bemused smile linger. "So i guess this is acceptance, huh?" he asked.

<you mean of the trainer and Pok?mon kind?>

"Yeah."

<I'm pretty sure! what else would it look like?> the fox chirped.

"Fair enough. I think I'm supposed to check your gender and give you a name?" S reached out to the vulpix, who winced a bit.

<H-hey! I'm pretty sure I'm female!>

"And your name...?"

<ah...we don't have them!> the vulpix said, untensing as S (now gently) rested one clawed hand on her back. <I think our trainers were supposed to give us one?>

"You don't have a name?"

<not so much, ehehehe.>

"...Do you want to name yourself?"

<nope! I'm sure that whatever name you come up with will be wonderful!>

"I'll...I'll have to think about that, i guess. names and whatnot. do you just want to walk, for now?>

<Okay!>

Together, the two of them began to make their way across the bridge.

[➤ GRAZ !]

A WILD POKÉMON APPEARED !

Something was hiding in the well-manicured vegetation that lined the path, covered by the ample green foliage. Overhead, a few cars roared past, rumbling as they did until they disappeared into the distance. Then all that remained was the silence of the empty ocean, punctuated only by the occasional breaking of a foamy wave on one of the strong pillars that supported the magnificent bridge.

A large eye looked through the leaves. There was a trainer here; a trainer and his Vulpix. The two of them seemed to be relative strangers. Unsure of what to do, he continued to watch them from afar, waiting for the right moment to jump into the conversation.

He waited while they continued their conversation, listening to them asking about naming the Vulpix. Was he a new trainer? He certainly seemed to be. He was going to float forward and say hello, but then the trainer and his Pok?mon started to walk along the bridge. It was a long bridge, to be sure, but it was nothing that couldn’t be crossed in a day if the trainer was resourceful.

Before the pair of them could slip away, he stumbled forward.

”H..Hello?”

[/color] he mumbled, his electronic voice barely more than a mechanical whirr. ”A..Are you guys okay?”[/color]

The shy Magnemite stopped for a second, waiting for a reply.

aabbaa

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[battycaufield]

S and the vulpix turned toward the electronic keytonesque voice of the magnemite. It was certainly not the first thing to expect, particularly this early into their travels.

Dimly, S was aware that the proper thing to do with a wild Pok?mon was, as his status as a trainer, to battle it. Then again, book learning had so far proven him wrong. His starter did not react with violence, the situation at hand did not seem particularly dangerous and communication seemed possible.

The magnemite itself was the trickiest part of the equation - it was impossible to read, as it possessed no physical tells. Audiably, it sounded shy - but that was easy to imitate with the proper keytones.

Still, it probably couldn't hurt to at least respond to the question.

"I...I think we're okay," S replied as he turned to the magnemite. He tried to screw up his face into a passable mask of concern - as passable as possible, given his fang. "Are you okay? is there something i can help you with?"

[➤ GRAZ !]

"Are you okay? is there something i can help you with?” he had said, which put the Magnemite at ease somewhat. At least the trainer and his Pok?mon were offering to help him rather than attack him as he’d expected. Nonetheless, he remained shy - something about the entire situation seemed foreign to the little Magnemite. For a second he stood there blankly, as though he hadn’t heard them speak; and then, barely making a noise, he whispered his response to the pair.

”I...I can’t remember w... w...why I’m here. I’m sure I was on the Remus Isle side of the bridge, but...”

[/color]

He shook his face bashfully, trembling a little as he did so. Tentatively, the little Magnemite inched closer to S, moving gently towards the new trainer, as though he was scanning him with that big round eye of his.

”S..sorry. Who are you? Do I know you?”[/color]

He continued to shake, as though he was increasingly desperate to find his way home...

aabbaa

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[battycaufield]

”I...I can’t remember w... w...why I’m here. I’m sure I was on the Remus Isle side of the bridge, but...”

S paused. The poor thing, getting lost; the bridge looked long, and if the islands were as full of Pok?mon as this (encountering one in under two minutes of travel), they would most certainly be eventful. S noted the way it wavered in the air (hesitatingly; expressing fear and apprehension, probably seeking help but uncertain of safety given contact with strangers), the way it's large eye stared at him (somewhat waveringly, expressing trepidation, but ultimately focused on him - clearly wanting something). S was somewhat relieved to see that the shy, keytonic speech of the magnemite synced with it's body language. If it was attempting to trick or fool him, it was a good enough trick worth playing along to; if the creature really did want help...he would have to do his best to help it.

Not that moral obligations were his thing, of course. but Interesting situations with moral obligations...they were worth playing along with.

”S..sorry. Who are you? Do I know you?”

S mentally berated himself. Where were his manners?

"I...don't think we have," he said as calmly and evenly as he could. "Sorry. I'm Eric Lance, but you should probably call me S, unless you want to call me Eric. Whatever way works is fine, really. This..."

He gestured towards the vulpix - his vulpix, he could remind himself now that it was actually his - and paused. How could he introduce a vulpix without a name? For her part, the fox looked eagerly up at him, as if desperately wanting to hear her name.

"...This is Dusk Spark. She's my first Pok?mon."

The vulpix's face fell from excitement into confusion and misunderstanding. <Dusk Spark?>

S turned to the vulpix. "It was all i could think of!"

<okay, but...what does it mean?>

"Can i explain it to you later?" Honestly, S thought, Already this fox is beginning to grow tiresome.

<okay...> The Vul - Dusk Spark said, still looking uncertain.

Turning back to the magnemite, he assumed a mein of sympathy and understanding. "I'm afraid you wound up on the Romulus Aisle side of the bridge. Did you get yourself lost? would you like a hand back?"

For a moment, S considered offering a hand to the magnemite, then thought better of it, unsure of how the Pok?mon would react.

[➤ GRAZ !]

”H..hello Eric.”

[/color] he said, gingerly - the first semblance of contentment sneaking into his robotic tone. He looked on in mild confusion as the trainer and his Pok?mon had an exchange regarding the name ‘Dusk Spark.’

And then the trainer offered him a hand to go back to Remus Isle from Romulus. For a second the Magnemite thought about his answer, and then all was lost.

”W..why would I need to go back? I...I’m where I belong, right?”[/color]

The Magnemite seemed distressed again. He backed away from S and Dusk Spark, trying to gain some semblance of his position. He looked around at the island they were closest to - but then again, it was impossible to know whether it was Romulus or Remus they were closest to. Both islands looked almost identical from a distance.

He span around, flustered, turning to face S...

”S..sorry. Who are you anyway? D-do I know you? Why are you talking to me?”[/color]

aabbaa

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[battycaufield]

”W..why would I need to go back? I...I’m where I belong, right?”

S paused. What had the magnemite just said? Had he not been paying attention at all?

"S-sorry. Who are you, anyway? D-do i know you? Why are you talking to me?

S froze. What in the name of-

and then he understood. Ridiculous as it was, the Magnemite had forgotten - already - the details of a conversation that had happened no less than two minutes ago. Either it was terminally oblivious, or highly amnesiac.

Either way, this magnemite needed help. S estimated that it probably wouldn't take too much longer for them to reach remus isle - the problem was trying to get this magnemite there. He looked the magnemite directly in it's eye as he addressed it, again:

"We had a conversation two minutes ago. My Name is S, and I'm going to help you. Are you okay? Do you remember talking with me?"

[➤ GRAZ !]

”N-no! O...of course I don’t remember talking to you! I’ve never met you before! What’s wrong with you!.”

[/color] The monotonous robotic tone of the Magnemite was starting to crack and turn from confusion to one of suspicion.

”Look. I-I don’t know who you are. Just stay away from me!”[/color]

His voice was filled with desperation, and he stumbled away from S, shaking his head from side to side in the negative. For a moment it looked confused again, and then blankness overtook it.

”Hello! It’s nice to meet you. Have we met before? Y-you look a little familiar.”[/color]

It looked at S, in what was supposed to be a friendly tone, though it seemed to have forgotten all that had gone before. It stepped closer, this time curious about S. There wasn’t even any semblance of the suspicion that had previously existed. And then it was back to square one...

aabbaa

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[battycaufield]

There is a wide range of responses that, at this point in the conversation, would have been acceptable. Anything on the annoyance spectrum, for starters, would have been more than understandable. Anger, from the briefest twinge of frustration to the most horrendous spout of rage, would also have worked. Boredom, confusion, disgust, pity, and even a vague sense of apathy all would have been understandable and more, given the context of this situation. S's response, however, was not.

He smiled. It wasn't the harried grimace of a man pushed beyond his limitations of patience, nor was it the sly smirk of a grifter out to set a mark. It was the small, self-satisfied smile of scientist examining an interesting and befuddling new problem for the first time.

At this point, there was only one logical conclusion that S could draw relation to the magnemite at hand: it was suffering from Anetograde amnesia, or an inability to form short-term memories. Admittedly, he had gotten knowledge of this particular disorder from a movie, and like so many other movies these days it involved far too much sex and gunplay.

The protagonist in that story had solved his problems with notes - not only jotted screeds, but tattoos and photographs, and any other trick he could use to preserve his memory fragments. Unfortunately for the magnemite, it had no tools to help it retain these thoughts. S patted himself down, looking for instruments that could possibly aid in the retention of memory.

The smartphone? possibly, if it had an apparatus that allowed for photography. S absentmindedly took out the phone and thumbed through it's menus for a few seconds, before realizing:

[/img] [/url]

Undeterred, S put the phone away and considered more options. he was out of pencil and paper, so handwritten notes would be out of the question. He met the magnemite before it had developed anetograde amnesia, so any other idea would have been flawed.

"Dusk Spark? I've got a question about your flames."

<yes?>

"Are they sticky? you know, like napalm?"

<i don't think so. sorry...>

"Shoot!" S muttered, under his breath. At this point, he was going to have to run back to town; he didn't have any memory-retaining materials on him at this point, but the magnemite needed help. He could only hope that the magnemite would be in the same spot when he got back.

"Dusk spark? we're going to need to head back to town for a bit"

****************

An indeterminate amount of time later, S walked back to a relatively nearby spot on the bridge. It had cost him a fair amount, picking up the charcoal rods, the sketchbook and the pencils, the 35mm camera with it's film. Fortunately, there were plenty of aspiring artists on this side of the world, and finding an art supply shack wasn't terribly difficult.

"...and then the look on her face, when the god-queen descended from the heavens to check up on her student - i can't describe how hilarious it was!" S babbled excited to a now-grinning dusk spark.

<ehehehehe! i suppose I'll have to see it, someday.>

"you will. i mean, i don't want to sound like some kind of fanboy, but if you like cartoons at all i think you're really going to like this. and you DO kind of remind me of the Dusk Spark in that show, too."

<uh, hold up. wasn't there supposed to be a magnemite somewhere around here?>

S froze. Oh, right. that WAS the whole reason for making this jaunt, he thought to himself.

where IS the little guy?

[➤ GRAZ !]

”Go away! I don’t want you to come any closer!”

[/color] The Magnemite suddenly called out, his frail robot voice practically muffled by the strong ocean winds. He suddenly zoomed towards S, rushing forward headlong towards the trainer - it was a Tackle attack.

”I know you’ve been following me for the last few months. Ive had it with you. This is ending once and for all!”[/color]

Though his words were aggressive, his tone seemed slightly more nuanced - mild shock, slight fear and desperate confusion. This magnemite was putting a brave face on his own insecurities.

”What are you going to do?”[/color]

His voice quivered slightly- he was obviously out of his depth. He span around, circling S and Dusk Spark, though his singular eye was locked on the trainer and his Pok?mon like a magnet facing its polar opposite. Something had to be done soon, the poor pokémon was clearly in no state to be left alone.

aabbaa

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