013. [Text/Action for Olivine City, also one other thing]

[explosivecombat]

[ACTION]

[It's incredibly rare to see Kimblee out of that fancy white suit; it's rarer still to see him not wearing it for any reason other than "If I wear it now, I'll get it filthy", "I'm in prison", or "I'm in a hospital and on life support."

While he's not on life support, however, he certainly is in a hospital of some sort - and not as a patient for once, either! Those who enter the Pokémon Center in Olivine City will be treated to Kimblee wearing general hospital scrubs, his hair pulled back in the stupidest french-braid ever to be stupidly french-braided. He isn't terribly interested in trying to mess with the human patients - in fact, he seems rather eager to stay out of the way of those who actually know what they're doing in that regard, as he hasn't been seen back there at all; given that he's filed just about everything he can get his hands on, he's working in the front today, assisting those who bring in Pokémon injured in battle.

And by "working" I mean "today has been ridiculously slow, so he's currently leaning idly over the desk, playing the hell out of the Tetris app on the 'Gear."

At least he's making no secret of his answer to the question of "working hard, or hardly working?"]


[TEXT]

[However, there are some sorts of boredom that even copious amounts of Tetris can't alleviate; at some point today - most likely after Kimblee has realized that he's going to be shifting around falling blocks in his goddamn sleep and he's going to be humming "Korobeiniki" for the next week - there's a text thrown out to the network at large.]

In my experience, there are those who exist to create, and those who exist to destroy. Neither are inherently good, nor are they inherently bad - there are those who create weapons and those who destroy barriers, after all. It's all a matter of how one utilizes their talents.

For the sake of idle curiosity, I have to wonder how many of us that were brought to Johto find themselves drawn to creation, destruction, or something else entirely.


[PRIVATE TEXT TO COBRA COMMANDER]

Position secured. Clearance and access to relevant materials likewise secured. Window of opportunity opens tonight during shift change.

Permission to proceed?

Comments

[doitrockapella]

[She shifts a little against the counter, settling in.]

Personal discomfort and concern for another's well-being aren't mutually exclusive; sometimes one is indicative of the other. And there's more to it than simply the trainer's comfort in the matter; there's also the trainer's obligation to her team. Taking an animal into your care comes with a certain duty to care for it, even against its own inclinations. I'm a firm believer in personal autonomy, but there are limits, and while it may not be abuse to let them have free and destructive rein, it may be neglect not to intervene.

[explosivecombat]

So tell me, then - how far removed do you consider these creatures from the wild? Because I agree with your point, if we're talking about something assumed to be on the same level as...I don't know, a dog, perhaps, or some other domesticated creature. As it stands, however, these are animals that were captured directly from their natural environments, and can be released directly back into said environment with what's assumed to be no diminished capacity for survival.

To clarify a bit, there would be different expectations placed on a person adopting a dog, and a person looking to adopt a tiger - the latter is generally expected to respect the natural instincts of the tiger and not encroach too far on its own inclinations, while the former is expected to discipline the dog. To do otherwise in both cases would be considered abusive by most, after all.

[doitrockapella]

I'm not sure if either one is a good fit of analogy, given the way their nature seems to shift from wild to domesticated by virtue of nothing other than being caught. I've seen the occasional exception, creatures that don't take well to being under the control of a trainer and so they rebel as a result of it, but for the most part they seem to make the transition from wild to tamed in a surprisingly short amount of time, and with very little resistance to the idea of being controlled once they're caught.

That said, once they're in a trainer's care, they do seem to become domesticated — regardless of how that domestication sets in. And given that this is a world apparently designed to encourage people to catch and train these creatures to respond to human command, the dog analogy seems more apt than the alternative.

[explosivecombat]

Mm, no, I agree with you there.

And do you have no qualms with ensuring their domestication in such a way?

[doitrockapella]

I've had my qualms since my first day here. Mostly because there doesn't seem to be any real point to it, outside of being told that this is the way the world works and there's nothing to do but conform to it.

[explosivecombat]

[...well, that's one way to look at it, he supposes.]

And yet you've conformed anyway?

[doitrockapella]

Is there an alternative, when you're handed a starter from the minute you wake up here?

A purist could certainly renounce quite a bit of the system if she wanted — release her starter and refuse to catch or buy any others. She'd also have a three-day trip on foot before she'd reach the nearest city where she could feasibly support herself, traveling alone through wilderness that puts her at risk of being attacked by one of the wild Pokemon along the path. To say nothing of the fact that once she did, she'd almost certainly be received as a pariah for abandoning her starter rather than a hero for freeing it, simply because of the overwhelming emphasis this world places on being a trainer and involving Pokemon in so many varied aspects of daily life.

I may not like the system, but complete abstinence from it isn't necessarily a solution, either. Again, it seems to come down to a question of degree.

[explosivecombat]

[................]

Rather fond of referring to yourself in the third-person, aren't you?

[IT'S OFF-TOPIC, YES, BUT IT WAS DRIVING HIM MILDLY CRAZY NOT COMMENTING, OKAY

and now that that's out of his system

he can move on with his life]

But that's neither here nor there, really - the problem is that again, you're presenting a false dichotomy. Even in worlds such as this one, there's always a third option.

[doitrockapella]

I'm fond of not defaulting to masculine pronouns as the generic for setting up my hypothetical situations.

[HE BETTER GET USED TO IT because that is a pretty canon tendency, baby.]

And I said we're told there's nothing to do but conform, not that I'd accepted it.

[explosivecombat]

[Masculine...pro...nouns WHAT IS THIS LOGIC]

Singular "they" exists for a reason, you know.

[Apologies for the derail, madam, but I am pedantic and what is this]

[doitrockapella]

Are we going to debate grammar now, instead of ethics?

[This derail amuses her immensely in its absurdity.]

[explosivecombat]

[...this happens once in a while with Kimblee, honestly - he has a tendency to get stuck on one point and just not. let. it. die.

just wait until he gets started on Equivalent Exchange one day...]

I must admit that I find the ethics far more interesting; that doesn't change the fact that my point still stands. But if you insist.

[doitrockapella]

My use also wasn't grammatically incorrect. Consider it a third option.

[But Carmen doesn't know anything about his concept of Equivalent Exchange. That makes it a learning opportunity.]

It's been a while since I've had the opportunity for such an engaging debate. Are you a philosopher by profession or by hobby?

[explosivecombat]

[Oh, if he ever gets started he will ensure you learn, simply because he never shuts up.]

Believe me, were I a philosopher by profession, I wouldn't be working in a Pokémon Center.

[doitrockapella]

[And she would enjoy every minute of it.]

I'm surprised there aren't more of them around, frankly, in a world that seems to boast such a high number of young kings and budding heroes.

[explosivecombat]

This world seems incredibly action-oriented; from what I've seen, it seems to favor those who will cause chaos, and those that will restore order.

Philosophers don't seem to appear here unless they're already inclined toward one or the other, which sort of defies the point of impartial study.

[doitrockapella]

Which begs the question of which one you're inclined towards — assuming being a philosopher by hobby is still enough of one to not render the point moot.

[explosivecombat]

That would depend on whose side you're on, I think. I've always been partial to the concept of disturbing the comfortable and comforting the disturbed, as it were.