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[The Grumpearl projects an image: a long-furred Yungoos seated primly on a wooden Canopy platform. Her grin is restrained, showing only a sliver of her sharp fangs, and her surroundings are awash with color: the greens of lush foliage and the vibrant blossoms of various flowers, both growing naturally in the trees and collected for display around the edges of the platform.]

Hello, everyone. I hope you are all faring well, in spite of the extraordinary circumstances. I am still familiarizing myself with this "Grumpearl" device, so I also hope you can forgive me for any technical difficulties that may arise.

[Observing her in this moment, it's hard to imagine that there even could be any such technical difficulties. She is perfectly framed and her thoughts are silent—almost eerily so. Try as she might to make it all seem effortless, it seems she is trying very hard, in fact, to keep them focused and to herself. Not a single stray thought allowed.]

My name is Lusamine Mendel, and I was very recently recruited into the Cheri Guild. Although I am still new to this world, I intend to do everything I can to be of assistance to you all. If there is ever anything I might be able to help you with, please do not hesitate to ask.

[The dark green gem fastened around her neck gleams as she tilts her head.]

Now, I have a simple question for recent arrivals and longtime residents of Bottlecap Bay alike, if you wouldn't mind indulging me. What is the last thing you recall happening before you were transported into this world?

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[Technus responds, far too close to the "camera", his mind a mess in contrast to Lusamine's focus.]

Oh, are we giving out full names now? I am Nicolai Technus!

[And then he thinks about all his titles again, which I won't force everyone to look at but he's definitely making everyone listen to.]

Ghost Master of Science and Electical Technology
Master of All Things Mechanical
Master of Technology
Destroyer of Worlds
Manipulator of Machines
Lord of All Gadgetry
Wizard of Integrated Circuitry
Master of All Things Electronic and Beeping
Duke of Devices
Architect of the Digital Realm
Genius of Gadgetry

The last thing I knew, I was planning vengeance on the ghost boy! He is lucky I have been brought to this other world, as my newest scheme would have allowed me to conquer the living realm for certain!

[Ah. What... loud thoughts this one has.]

My... You are truly passionate about machines and technology, aren't you? How apt it is, then, that you've taken the form of a Rotom.

[... Wait, what was that last part?]

"Conquer"...? Whatever for?

You made it! [ Of course Laios heard about her recruitment. He's been eager to run into her ever since, if the excitement in his voice doesn't make that obvious enough. ]

Are you settling in okay? I hope Ribombee was able to show you around a little bit... [ He trails off at the question, not having thought about it for a while. Huh. ] I think—I just ate breakfast before heading to a meeting. Heh. Not a very exciting answer.

Edited 2025-06-03 07:00 (UTC)

The last thing I recall... It was beautiful... But I wonder if you deserve to know... Why are you asking? What's in it for you?

[For whatever reason, A.B.A is being very guarded about this answer. Like it's somehow something that can be stolen.]

I was with my husband, I can tell you that much... He told me he wouldn't leave me, and yet here I am, without him... How cruel fate can be.

[Read 10:02 PM]

being exploded by holy light.

[ In contrast to most Grumpearl communication... this is a text message. Mental text.

...Followed by a short blip of memory, including intense searing pain followed by the sensation of evaporating into nothingness.

And then back to text! ]

waking up again, let alone in the ocean, was a surprise.

why?

It's been a long time... but I remember I was out hunting, except the mice kept hearing my belly growl and running away.

[Truly, the most cat answer possible. It comes along with a mental image of a field mouse, viewed from between the tall grass as it grooms its little face.]

I do miss mice... they're much easier to catch than Pichus or Rattatas.

[You're lucky you haven't had to deal with him in person, Lusamine, his voice is louder. With the positive tradeoff of there not being sparkles or lists or footnotes when he speaks out loud.]

This new form is truly apt, is it not? It is an electrical ghost, and I, Technus, was already an electrical ghost before this! I have heard of Psychic-types since I have arrived here- is your new form a Psychic-type? You seem especially apt at mental control!

And yes, conquer! Several years ago, the ghost boy saw me for the first time and stated that my powers would allow me to conquer the world! And so, I decided to attempt to do that very thing!

Ah, it is good to meet you! My name is Ingo! I was among the first group of us to arrive here. But what I was doing beforehand was not terribly interesting, I'm afraid...I was simply walking back to my camp after doing some berry-picking.

[There's a brief flash of a wilderness area, though notably there is also a Tangrowth there.]

Your memories are fresher. Ladies first, right?

What I do. What I say. Always the same.

[ The mental voice is crisply enunciated, even-keeled. ]

Follow the rules. Safe driving! Follow the schedules. Everyone smile! Check safety. Everything’s ready!

Aim for victory! All aboard!

[ In other words, he was doing his job as per usual. Schedules have to be followed and the trains have to keep running, and all. ]

[Wow, lucky her, having this rock solid control over her Grumpearl broadcast. Firoza still grapples with that when she's knocked into her emotions. Still, the female Nidoran seems pretty confident as she appears in her response, keeping the view of her on the left side of her face.

It's clear from the area behind her that she's in a different part of the Cheri Berry base, a nest with lots of bits and bobs of fluff and soft things amassed for relative comfort.]

I was looking over a map...and some friends had come by, to ask what my next plans were, for adventure. There were still some loose ends that needed to be wrapped up, but the bulk of issues seemed to be resolved. Though I'm sure I'll be surprised by something new once I return.

Why do you ask?

[There's a jump in the connection, and a garbled mess of images as someone scrambles to. Keep. Things from burning. Mostly food. And there's alot of swearing. ]

What sort of seas-damned timing I was just about to- OH HELLO MADAME!! [Such poise and grace! The pokemon in the snail feed could only be a beautiful lady, trapped in the fuzzy body of an animal like many of them here. She deserves his full attention and maybe a treat- oh shit, the bread-

KKKZZZT.

......he's not aware his tumultuous thoughts are all spilling over, but that dies down after a moment, and a very ruffled looking shiny Vulpix leans into the feed, muttering about how snails turned into pearls here or some such-] Apologies, I'm still not used to the tools here. [And the lack of hands....he smiles, and it's a bit fuzzy because he still doesn't have a great mental grasp of what he is right now. Still. ]

You are very kind, Mademoiselle Mendel! I am Sanji, I was a chef in my world. [Hence all the. Culinary projects in the background.] While I am also new, if you need anything in turn, please let me know! As for...memories...

[An island of the tallest trees imaginable, and bubbles floating carelessly about, all as his crew, his friends, disappear around him one by one. There's pain there, greater than even his broken leg. He can't bear to lose them, they made it so far, they- he can't- this can't be the end- all while a figure looms over him, a hand with bizarre paw pads coming toward him-

He shakes his head, and the image snaps back to the present. He's not realized that the memory slipped over.] It's not very pleasant. I won't trouble you with such things, Madame. Are there particular tales you're searching for?

[She chuckles.] That's very kind of you to say. My current form is a Normal-type, actually... I just happen to be practiced in the art of restraint, I suppose.

[Unlike him, it seems. She'll need to ask him about this ghost business, but first:]

Yes, I understood that part... My question was why conquer the world?

Why—Laios! Hello! It's so wonderful to see you again.

[She means it, a wave of warm affection blanketing him through their psychic connection.]

Oh, you sweet boy... It's been quite the whirlwind of activity since I returned, I admit, but I've settled in just fine now, thank you. There's so much beauty here... Like living in a garden.

[She could do with a more structurally sound dwelling... But she is trying to stay purely positive at the moment.

In any case, Laios' answer distracts her. Come to think of it, she never did learn what his profession was.]

Oh? What sort of meeting?

[What's in it for her, hm...?]

Well, that remains to be seen, I suppose. I was hoping that I might come to a better understanding of our current situation, were I able to identify a common thread between the circumstances of our arrivals... However, I admit that I am also simply curious. Hearing about all these other worlds... I can't help but find it utterly captivating.

[But little is captivating about A.B.A's evasive answer. It draws out the first flicker of emotion from Lusamine—a sharp flash of pain, then deep sadness, like she understands—before she is able to mask it again.]

... Forgive me. It wasn't my intention to upset you. Many of us are missing those we've left behind, aren't we...?

[But not her. Certainly not her.]

You did mention before that you're married. May I ask how you and your husband met?

Goodness! How frightful...

[She really could have done without seeing that! But it is eerily familiar, somehow.

Perhaps she should attempt to respond in text herself? She isn't entirely sure how to yet, and speaking comes easier...]

Oh. I ask in part just out of curiosity. However, I also wonder if the circumstances preceding our arrivals might share some commonality...

Your... memory, for example. What you thought of just now... I experienced that as well, just before I awoke here—or at least I experienced something very similar. That pain... and the sensation of being adrift, of dissolving into nothing...

[The light, too, is familiar. Her mind wanders for a dangerous moment, allowing a flash of memory to slip through from her side as well: blistering light surging toward her through darkness, ripping into her, cleaving her in two.]

Tell me, did you hear a voice calling to you as well?

[Catch, he says...]

Were you a Pokémon trainer, before?

It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Ingo.

[Not terribly interesting, he says, but the thread of memory—more specifically, the Tangrowth—earns a spark of surprise. She recognizes it.]

Your world... It is also populated by Pokémon?

Very well. The very last thing I recall is hearing a voice speaking to me. I was in great pain, and I couldn't quite make out what it was saying... But it was a kind voice. Calling to me.

[Nihilego's voice, she had thought, delirious with agony. Or was it Mohn's voice?]

Just before that, I was falling through an Ultra Wormhole.

I'm not quite sure I follow. Were you... on a train?

[Safe driving, schedules, all aboard...?]

[Hm...suspicious. For what reason does this woman have to feel pain and sadness over HER husband?

...The idea that Lusamine could possibly be married doesn't strike her once.]

I found him... Slumbering peacefully in the ruins... [She gives a rather frustrated growl.] ...Why are you asking? Meeting him was far from the last thing I was doing before arriving here. What are you plotting?

[She can't believe this, it can't be possible! Homewreckers, even in this new world?! Paracelsus isn't even HERE and she STILL has to worry about people stealing him?!]

I wish to know more about the forces that brought us into this world. To that end, it seems pertinent to compare the circumstances surrounding our arrivals and identify any similarities we might all share... However, to be perfectly honest with you, I am also just curious. Isn't it fascinating, being able to speak to people from so many different worlds?

Nevertheless... I'm sure this wasn't quite what you had in mind for your next adventure.

[She says it with a smile—lighthearted, but also sympathetic.]

Running it, yes. Same as I always do. No obstructions on the tracks, Pokémon or otherwise, no disruptions from any unruly passengers.

Nothing out of the ordinary, until nothing was ordinary. Pain, complete and consuming. And then emptiness, that wanted us to give up and fall into it. That voice I think we all heard, one way or another.

And then we all ended up in the ocean in the middle of a storm as Pokémon.

Oh. You only sounded so... wistful, speaking of him. I thought you might want to reminisce.

[...]

You needn't tell me—or answer my questions at all—if you would prefer not to. I am not plotting anything, I assure you.

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