stonebones | no. 001 [video from new bark town.]

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no. 001 [video from new bark town.]

[A Sableye isn't exactly the first thing most people want to see when they check the network, with its gleaming eyes and wide, sharp smile. This one doesn't seem intent on being creepy or mischievous today, though. Even for those that don't speak pokémon, the raspy growls have the characteristic lilt of a genuine question.]

Hey! How do I get my trainer to trust me? I'm trying to show him around, but...

[He moves the video over to a young boy who's frowning and feeling his way along the outer wall of Mom's house. He's got what appears to be a makeshift blindfold on, if the frayed edges are any indication, and quite the unusual ensemble...

As the video bounces closer in, Emil's frown deepens and he waves as if to shoo the creature off.]

He keeps doing that!

[At least Emil seems satisfied with the distance the Sableye had retreated to again, exhaling out a sigh and going back to his slow mapping out of the area.]

I hope I find the others soon... Where is this, anyway?

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[He gives a small noise of affirmation. He keeps wanting to nod, but then he remembers they both switched back to Audio.]

Even though I've been here a while, it still feels like I'm learning somethig new about this place every day. I mean...reading helps, but it still doesn't give you everything.

Are there a lot of helpful books?

[Most of the ones back home were like legends, talking about a place so alien it seemed hard to believe it existed -- provided anyone could actually read them. And then there were the ones in his library that were obviously meant for people more educated than him.]

I mean... I like talking to people, but if I have to, I could do research, too. I'm used to it.

[Even though it feels like he just got away from doing that.]

There are a lot of books about Pokemon, from what I've been able to find. Those are always helpful...then there are a few that give more information about the regions here, Johto and Kanto.

[Kanto has been a favorite of his lately, since he doesn't think he'll actually be able to travel that way any time soon.]

There is a bookstore in Goldenrod City that I work at that has a lot of different books to choose from.

I'll be sure to get some, then!

[And when he goes to do that, he'll finally realize what it's like to have no money. It wasn't something he thought about a lot, since he never left his mansion and Nier always bought everything needed.]

Goldenrod City... Is that the place I'm headed to, too?

It's on the way, in the direction you'll be headed. It might take a while to get there, though, since there are a few towns between New Bark and Goldenrod. If you keep heading through the towns and straight on the routes, you'll get there eventually.

[...It took three days to get to the nearest town and there were multiple towns on the way?]

How... How big is this place?

It's pretty big. There are two regions that we can get to currently: Johto, the one you're in now, and Kanto. People have told me there is another region called Kalos, but I don't think there is a way to travel there on your own yet.

[It shouldn't sound so strange to him. He'd been from somewhere far away, hadn't he? Before everything. Somewhere so far he'd had to learn a different language.]

Oh... Wow...

["His" world had become so small. Adventuring with the others had made it seem like that space was impossibly big. But this...]

No wonder people talk with these things instead of sending letters to get in touch.

[Tokyo is pretty big in its own right, but Kaneki's always finding himself surprised by just how vast this world can be, and he's only traveled through a small part of it.]

People talk to each other through the Gears most of the time. It's not too often you can even meet in person unless you're traveling, or happen to be in the same town.

That'll take some getting used to. [Even hidden away in his mansion, he'd always had Sebastian.] ...Oh, but! It does mean you can talk to anyone at anytime. That's a good thing! I guess I'll get to see if I prefer it like this. Um...

Kaneki-san, can... Can I call -- [...yes, that was the word for it, wasn't it? Huh.] -- you again, after today? I don't want to be a bother, but...

It's really useful, because of that.

I don't mind at all, Emil-san. If you have any questions, I can try to answer them for you. ...and if you would just like to talk, then...that's fine, too.

[It feels like during his time here, he's had a lot more opportunity to talk with people...but it's been a good thing. It makes it a lot easier to offer to do things like that, even with someone he doesn't know very well yet.]

[It may just be audio, but you can hear the smile in his voice.]

Thank you! You've already been so helpful. I'm sure I'll have a lot of questions later, and that's kind of scary, but knowing I have someone to ask makes me feel a lot better already.

I'm glad to hear that.

Be safe when you travel, okay? Keep your Pokemon close until you reach Cherrygrove.

[R...IGHT... THAT THING...]

Oh... Y-yeah, I will! And I'll be fine. I'm used to camping, now!

Good. You might even find more Pokemon that you can catch and add to your team on the routes. They show up in towns, too.

[He starts to say something and is cut off by the Sableye eagerly offering to help him find more teammates if that's what he wants. Not that they can understand that.]

And other ones -- you called this a Sableye, right? ...Are the rest of them like Shades, too?

[He hadn't seen it yet. He'd been tempted to remove the blindfold, but without knowing if anyone else was around and where... Either way, he didn't need to. It moved like a Shade and gave him a similar creepy vibe.]

There are similar types of Pokemon, but they're not all like that. There are...a lot of different kinds of Pokemon out there, of all different types and species. Um...

[He pauses a minute, trying to think of an example he can give Emil.]

If you know what a mongoose is, the Pokemon that showed up when I arrived is...vaguely similar to one. There are a lot of differences, but that's the closest animal I can think of. I have a few Pokemon that are bugs, and one of them is a bird.

[There were other types of shades, but as far as he knew nothing like Kaneki was describing... He isn't sure whether to be assured that there were other options in the wild or to be unnerved by the fact that he'd been stuck with a Shade in the first place.]

They're mostly like regular animals, then? So are there any like real pets?

There are a lot of them that are. Like cats and dogs and some birds. A lot of trainers that don't battle keep their Pokemon as pets anyway.

Is there a certain kind you think you might want, Emil-san?

Oh! N-no, not really, I was just curious. You said some were in towns, so... Some people in Nier's village had dogs, I think.

[It seemed silly now, but the animal he was most used to was the boars the old man would steer around the plains.]

Maybe...a cat? I might've had one, once. I don't really remember.

There are a lot of Pokemon that are similar to dogs and cats that I think you might like. You'll probably run into one or the other soon.

[He knows for a fact that Goldenrod has Houndour and Meowth...he just hopes Emil has better luck with Murkrow than he did.]

Mmn! Yeah. As many places as there are, that wouldn't surprise me.

[The Sableye piping up again makes Emil pause.]

You said pokemon battle? Does that mean the Shade won't get along with the others?

[More noise from the creature because NO TRAINER, I'LL BE GOOD, REALLY, I PROMISE I'M NICE.]

Oh- no, that isn't it. You see...trainers, as the name implies, are supposed to train their Pokemon by having them fight with wild Pokemon or Pokemon owned by other trainers. It might sound a little strange, but it's actually really common around here.

Pokemon have various elemental attacks that they can use. I guess the best way I can describe it is that they have some sort of, ah...almost magical quality to them.

What are we...training for? Is there a big fight somewhere or some monster around...?

[Since Shades are the pets here, apparently.]

I guessed they might. It's...more unusual back home, but I think that's where it came from. Other worlds, I mean. Maybe it was from here to begin with...

Most people train to challenge the eight gym leaders throughout the region. If you defeat them in battle, you win a badge. Badges have certain uses other than just being a status symbol, such as allowing certain moves to be used outside of battle.

So...a lot of it is for prestige, but Pokemon seem to enjoy battling so much that it's done for recreational purposes, too.

no. 001 [video from new bark town.]

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