014. [Anonymous Text/Video/Action for Goldenrod City] - ROCKET PLOT

[explosivecombat]

[ANONYMOUS TEXT]

[Unlike the other anonymous messages that this particular 'Gear tends to send out, there are no images attached to this one. Nor are there any particularly threatening messages - in fact, the message attached isn't threatening at all! Really, unless you're keeping very close track of who's sending what, you wouldn't think it was coming from the same source.]

i understand that there are a lot of you who were disappointed last week - something about how there were no fireworks on the fourth??? and there was something else called tanabata that not everyone may have heard of. i'm glad that people are spreading the word about things like that - celebrating culture is important!

and because it's important, a few of my friends and i have arranged a surprise for you! most people seem to be in goldenrod city, so we'll do it there - meet us in the square in front of the department store at sundown tonight. we want to make johto a special place for you, and to make you feel welcome here - i hope the later date isn't too disappointing!

if you can't be there, don't worry! i'll broadcast the fun for you over the network; it'll be great!

[Well. Uh. While it's completely anonymous and therefore less embarrassing than it could have been...Kimblee is typing like a hyperactive teenager. This can't possibly bode well. At all.]


[ACTION/VIDEO - GOLDENROD DEPT. STORE, SUNDOWN]

[And just as promised, after the sun goes down and there are a fair few people in the square - some NPCs, some not - there will be fireworks.

They aren't exactly high-grade, so the display isn't too impressive at first - a few pretty colors, maybe, but nothing terribly elaborate. Clearly whatever hyperactive teenager sent the message to the network will get a YOU TRIED........ Award, but it's nothing to write home about.

...and then other displays begin enhancing the explosions.

It's a bit difficult to pinpoint exactly where they're coming from, as there seems to be at least three Pokémon contributing to them - and the bolts of electricity must be coming from a Pokémon, they're unmistakably attacks like Spark - but the electricity seems timed to enhance the blasts put out by the fireworks, causing far larger explosions, shocks of electrical energy dancing between the trails of embers raining down from the sky.

Rather pretty, all things considered - it's gone from the work of an amateur into something far more advanced. Probably someone who knows what they're doing.

And while everyone's attention is trained skyward, that's when things start to go wrong.

It's a very planned-out sort of wrong; a calculated sort of wrong. A "something is firing Zap Cannon directly into the crowd" sort of wrong.

Whatever it is, it doesn't seem to be aimed properly; Lock-On is clearly not being used. However, it's difficult to say what on earth is being aimed at in the first place; those who are quick enough to not get fried (easier than it sounds, given the lack of aim here) and analytical enough to notice patterns will realize shortly that there is none, though the attacks do seem to be coming from one particular direction - the assailant is situated on the rooftop of the Goldenrod Department Store. Certainly, making your way up there will ensure that you find one of your attackers.

However, there are secondary attacks that seem to be following the Zap Cannons - smaller attacks, Spark and occasionally Thunderbolt, though that latter one seems to be a bit more infrequent - and those seem far more directly-aimed, trying to take out individual targets rather than shooting into the crowd at random. These are coming from another rooftop a short distance away - one of the nondescript, privately-run shops that aren't directly affiliated with the Department Store itself. Entering that shop will find the shopkeepers knocked out, so it's clearly neither of them doing anything - so who else is up there?

Should you be in Goldenrod City and wanting to investigate the electrically-based mayhem, pick your path - either the Department Store, where you'll find the individual with the ridiculously powerful attacks and no sense of aim, or the nondescript shop, with the weaker attacks but some sort of strategy.

And for those not in Goldenrod City? The fireworks were definitely filmed for you. And after a sudden burst of jittercam veering off into the crowd? So was the attack on the civilians, until the feed suddenly snaps off mid-attack. Should you try to respond to this particular signal, responses will come a couple of hours later.

Enjoy.]


[OOC]

[HELLO, ROUTE. Kimblee is one of the Rockets that submitted himself as a human guinea pig for the sake of gaining stupid amounts of elemental powers! Of course, there's no way he's doing this entirely on his own - he has some...help, shall we say - but even so, he's having himself a pretty good time tonight.

Should you choose [action], regardless of which path is taken - the larger threat overall or the one that's actually strategizing - I'll be engaging you; feel free to mingle among yourselves as well, if you see fit to do so!]

Comments

[Video]

[king_of_flames]

DAMMIT! Whoever the hell is broadcasting this, show yourself! NOW!

[Anonymous Text]

[explosivecombat]

[Have a reply, though the timing is delayed.]

If I ceded to every demand that I show my face, I would have been caught many times over by now.

Surely you didn't believe that would actually work.

ACTION

[papshooshing]

[ at first he's just kind of shaken. mostly because he's at the Center and welp. W E L P.

it sure gets him outside and towards the Department Store. just... kind of staring.

like this. ]

ACTION THREE WAY YEAHH

[shadowdive]

[Following Karkat out and staring at all the destruction, Vanitas snaps out of his staring quickly. Snapping his fingers in front of his friends face a few times, he drags him off to the side so they aren't just standing in the street like sitting ducks.]

[ACTION]

[determinator]

[Archer and Kimblee haven't been in contact for hours. To be honest, he wasn't particularly worried despite the fact that Kimblee was tested on as well. Perhaps he should have been more cautious - but that's neither here nor there. Archer's powers manifested a few hours after the initial testing with limited side effects. He has occasional headaches, but with the power he's developed, that's a small price to pay. He's not sure what power Kimblee has received and not sure just what to expect from him. But of course he'll show up, he always does.]

[...Needless to say, the fireworks draw Archer's attention immediately. Goldenrod City is full of all sorts of different people, it's entirely possible that someone else is behind them. It's the Zap Cannon attack fired into the crowd that answers his question. It has to be Kimblee. Archer hasn't seen anyone else use that move in battle.]

[The first order of business is to scope out the area. Archer's new Psychic powers make that far easier than it would have been otherwise, but he still has Alekhine with him to help. He doesn't recognize anyone at first, but Alekhine seems to. They communicate silently and it doesn't take long for Archer to realize that Kimblee's Pokémon are indeed firing off attacks into the crowd; they're on the roof of the department store. That's great, but Kimblee's not up there. Archer's limited powers don't allow him to search any further than that, but Alekhine pinpoints Kimblee's location easily enough. The Pokémon moves to teleport them, but Archer stalls him with a hand. No, he's going to try this thing.]

[...Hey, Kimblee, you might want to watch out. Archer manages the teleport perfectly fine, but he ends up a bit too far up. Alekhine grabs his trainer and teleports them both to safety before they can land on Kimblee, but it's a very close call.]

Kimblee! What the hell are you doing?

[Apparently Archer isn't fazed by nearly falling several feet onto you.]

[ACTION]

[explosivecombat]

[...Archer, he could ask you the exact same question, were he at all mentally coherent right now.

He isn't alone on that rooftop; while he tenses sharply at the feeling of someone else suddenly appearing (multiple times, what on earth) on that roof with him, the fact that Archer-of-the-Gardevoir-variety isn't seeming too fazed serves well to keep him calm.

Not that he was calm to begin with. At the very least it keeps him from turning around and offering Archer a face full of electricity.

He's shaking quite a bit, however, his body tense, hands twitching sharply at his sides while he surveys what's going on below; he's wearing dark clothing, a full mask over his face - not the sort issued by Team Rocket, but pure black, ensuring that he can't be recognized. He pauses for a moment before shoving the fabric up, turning to face Archer as he does so.

That smile is not a sane one; he can't seem to stop trembling.]

Can't you hear it? The screams of fear and pain...the energy in the air, the explosions...

It's...such a beautiful sound, Archer...

[...he's seeming a bit less coherent than he usually is for things like this. Good...lord, um.]

[action]

[enjoymyatelier]

[REALLY?

REALLY?

HE JUST ARRIVES IN GOLDENROD TO SEE IF THERE'S ANYTHING RESEMBLING SCIENTIFIC EQUIPMENT AT THE DEPARTMENT STORE AND THIS HAPPENS?

he has never had such bad luck until he came here, this place is awful, and he is cheesed enough to go show whose responsible this what for.

Without much fanfare he sends out his Quagsire in an attempt to completely block attacks and/or prevent explosions and heads straight for the Department Store.

...this is going to go incredibly well]

[action]

[explosivecombat]

[Well, well. It seems the Lord of the House of Repression actually has a useful creature.

...of course, Kimblee has never seen one before, as he was up in Mahogany Town before the new arrivals, so to speak, in the wild showed up. Of course, just looking at it - water-type maybe?

Let's find out.

Good evening, Kayneth, you're likely going to be grateful for that stupid thing's presence in a moment, given that that is a Thunderbolt aimed right at you guys.

Are you going to make him lineface? He gets the feeling he's going to be linefacing in a moment.]

[action]

[impulsives]

...Tch...!

[The hell's going on here!? Much as he'd like to rush in to save pretty much everyone he can, he's going to wait a little while longer, getting civilians out of the way, as well as sending out his Pikachu to investigate the electric currents of the area. His Pidgeot, while high-leveled, wouldn't be much use in this situation.]

Luna! Get a trace on these attacks, now!

[action]

[explosivecombat]

[There are several attacks to be traced here; the ones aimed into the air are harmless, an obvious distraction - the fireworks are still going full-force, but it's hard to tell why at this point, given that they're hardly providing a distraction anymore. They're really just providing a lot of...well, godawful amounts of noise.

Zap Cannon is definitely coming from the top of the Goldenrod Department Store. A high-leveled Pokémon, to be sure, but absolutely no sense of pattern or aim. Not that it cares, it's just kind of winging electricity everywhere like it ain't even a thing, though there are distinct pauses between blasts. Rather long idle periods, where there are secondary pulses being shot into the crowd.

Those secondary pulses are far less powerful, but decidedly more well-aimed. Spark seems to be what's being slung around most often, but every now and then Thunderbolt happens. After that latter attack, that's when Zap Cannon starts happening again with gusto. There is a pattern to it, if you watch; however with all the noise and energy all over, it's a bit hard to follow. The lesser attacks are originating from...elsewhere. One of the shops, maybe?

However, Kimblee is paying attention; his thoughts are admittedly everywhere, a massive scrambled mess of HELL YEAH, but he doesn't particularly need to think, he needs to act. It's been too long since he was on the battlefield, and he's absolutely living it up.

Don't stay in one place too long, Shinn, he'll start targeting in a second.]

[video/private]

[ortion]

[... Well.

Dist watches the event very intently. Considering what's been going on in the Rocket labs as of late, he's pretty sure this isn't just some freak Pokemon attack. He doesn't know who this is, but since he helped administer the power-inducing radiation, he knows only a select few Rockets were given the power of electricity.

And wow, they sure didn't waste time either. But he can't say he's not impressed, because he is. The ability for humans to manipulate elements was common in his world, but definitely not here. Seeing the higher-up's project actually work is impressive. He'll definitely be jotting this development down.

That said, a slow clap for you, mystery person.]

You certainly took the suggestion to go out and play to heart.

[Anonymous Text/private]

[explosivecombat]

[You'll be receiving a text, Dist, once a good while has passed; has to get his sanity back on track and all, to say nothing of get to a point where he won't just...short out the 'Gear or something.

He doesn't know Dist, personally, but he finds the man a bit hard to miss; scientist, aren't you? All the strangely-dressed ones with the...odd headgear are, it seems.]

If people give me opportunities, I'm more than willing to take them - and this was quite an opportunity.

I suppose I should thank you for it.

1/2

[snapandscoot]

[[Emmy only has one more badge to get and the incomplete collection in her case is starting to bug her, so she's currently prepping for the trip out to Blackthorn City. Having gone through her supplies, she finds she's missing a few vital things - strong potions and the like, now that her team is at full power - so she gathers up her Pokemon and trots off to the Department Store. Maybe there'll be a sale on.

It's as she walks towards the doors that she senses something coming at her, a bright sort of light. When she looks up-]]

...ah!

[[-it's too late to avoid the glittering ball of energy heading right for her, and she braces herself for the impact-]]

2/2

[snapandscoot]

[[-only to find herself a good ten feet away from her original position, Abbie the Alakazam clutching her tightly around her waist as she stares up at the rooftop, snarling.]]

Woah, I say...that was a well-timed Teleport, Abbie!

[[Especially since the place she was just standing is now a blackened mess, the paving torn to shreds. It makes her shudder; if it hadn't been for Abbie, she could be....oh, it doesn't bear thinking about!]]

What sort of fool is firing attacks from the roof?

[TEXT - PRIVATE]

[enchantingly]

Goodness, you certainly are eager to test your skills aren't you~?

[Sorry about your eyes, Kimblee. Abalon has decided to use the most ridiculous bright green font in the world.]

You should learn to control your power instead of blasting everyone to smithereens. As amusing as it is to watch, I'd rather see you use your powers for Team Rocket's benefit.

[ANONYMOUS TEXT - PRIVATE]

[explosivecombat]

[...ABALON...

Either way, after a hell of a delay, you will be getting a reply - once he's calmed down, and decidedly more sane, and not going to fry his 'Gear.]

And who's to say that I'm not?

Video

[nasa_dreams]

What the heck?! Dude! Stop it! [He turns his attention to the crowd, hoping to be heard here.]

EVERYONE GET OUT OF THERE FAST!

[Anonymous Text]

[explosivecombat]

[Unfortunately, the feed will cut before it can do any good.

However, you'll get a reply. Eventually. Anonymously.]

A valiant attempt, really. Shame it didn't seem to accomplish much.

[VIDEO]

[howamanlives]

HOLY-!

...! WHOEVER THE HELL'S RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS, YOU'RE GOING DOWN! YOU HEAR ME?!

[Anonymous Text]

[explosivecombat]

[Well, it may take a while, but he isn't ignoring you. It's just a matter of calming himself down. Controlling himself. But you'll get a reply.

Eventually.]

Don't worry, I heard you. And all of the others who have said the exact same thing in the past.

[Action]

[hintcoinplz]

[Luke was checking out the furniture section of the department store when he finds himself diving behind whatever he can find to escape the blast, ducking down and covering his ears.

What the heck is going on?!]

[Action]

[explosivecombat]

[Blatant destruction, my boy. That's what's going on.

Don't worry, he'll let you go for the time being - unless, of course, you're going to insist on getting all Big Damn Heroes on him. Or Tiny Damn Heroes, whichever.]

[Text]

[soggypastry]

[If there's one thing that Lightning knows for sure, it's that anonymous texts always lead to trouble. This is no different, and watching that with no way to stop it makes her stomach flip. Her only measure of comfort is that all her friends are far from Goldenrod. ...or so she thinks, anyway.]

What's your reason for doing this? What do you want?

[Anonymous Text]

[explosivecombat]

I have to wonder what you think the answer to that question is yourself.

action; the larger threat of whatever

[conduit]

[ Rangiku evades the first shot masterfully. A hundred and fifty plus years of being a soldier does that you. Immediately, she pushes herself into a decision - to save the day, or, at least, put a fight against the assailant. She tosses up two pokeballs as she grabs her Vulpix into her hand. A Yanmega and a Tauros appear and Rangiku wraps her pink sash around the back of her neck. She means business.

ooc: Please hit me up on aim if/when you get this Dal! Or, send me a private plurk if I'm away (although, strikingthorn is always connected to my phone if you choose to contact me through there). I do have plans for Rangiku to fall (unless you wish for him to lose and have no plans for that to happen, but, even then, I'd prefer the first since it'd allow everyone else to get (nearly?) electrocuted), but, I'd much rather plot this out on a more detailed scale so she her losing move isn't anything but her Togekiss being paralyzed mid-flight!! |D ]

[video]

[used_fireblast]

HELL'S BELLS-

[That has to be some kind of accident, right? Some over-enthusiastic Pokemon getting out of control.]

[Right, and Harry's got a lovely bridge to sell you, barely used. Comes with complimentary toll-troll.]

...What the actual hell?!

[Being stuck all the way back at Union Cave is not conducive to being useful here.]

[Anonymous Text]

[explosivecombat]

[Well.

In a couple of hours, Harry, you'll have your concerns confirmed for you, via an anonymous text in clear response to your video there.]

"Hell's bells." That's a bit of a new one for me, I must admit.

While I don't believe in hell, I believe I've been somewhere close. This was nowhere near, don't worry.

[Action.]

[shakespearealien]

[The message drew Gorthan out. To the square.

Gorthan was drawn to the square and he keeps wondering how he could be so naive and careless when he knew that this sort of thing was going to happen systematically. Hell, he was ordered to test his powers, too. Though he's... definitely going to be less destructive about it than this person is being.

As for who this person is, he has his suspicions, of course, but he also doesn't really care to find out. For a moment, he decides to investigate, and he enters the smaller shop. But finding the unconscious shopkeepers, he stops there, kneeling over them and wondering if his new Psychic-type powers can do anything for them. Probably not. The closest thing he's managed is a Light Screen, and the deed's already done.

Even if he turns the light on - ever since the mutation, he's been unable to sleep in the dark -, he already knows that his conscience won't let him sleep tonight.]

[Action.]

[explosivecombat]

[Well, you have fun in there, Gorthan; Kimblee is on the roof above you. His Gardevoir is a bit aware that there's a bit of a...disturbance down there, and wordlessly informs Kimblee of that much; Kimblee isn't too concerned for the time being, however.

There's a set of stairs, if you follow the doorway out the back, that will lead you up. Kimblee himself has taken precautions so that nothing about him will be recognized; just a figure dressed all in black, gloved, a hood and mask over his face and covering his hair. You're more than welcome to come after him, should you so desire.

Otherwise, you're more than welcome to tend to those individuals in the shop. Your choice, really.]

[video]

[darkenedgales]

[In the history of horror Crow has witnessed (and there's some of it), this might as well be one of the worst, most inhuman act he's seen. Because it's not just an attack on defenseless civilians; they have been quite literally invited to this under the cover of harmless fun.]

... What the hell do you think you're doing?!

[Anonymous Text]

[explosivecombat]

[It will be rather delayed, Crow, but you'll get a response eventually. Of course, it's not video (surely you didn't think it would be?) and it's completely anonymous (surely you didn't think it wouldn't be?), but it's a response nonetheless.]

I would think that much would be obvious.