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Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 10:29 am
Jean has recently been accepted to Team Snagem, the problem is he has to get to the team first, that is their headquarters in Mt. Silver of the Johto region. It will be a long trip for him but fortunately the team provided him some supplies and a handy multi-purpose device, the SNAG, to guide him on his trip. This was the beginning of a whole new chapter in the life of the young man, what adventures await him?
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Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 12:03 pm
Jean looked at the device in his hand, then out at the water from the dock he stood on. Step one, get a boat to Johto. It was gonna be a long trip for sure and he has no clue where exactly he was going. The device acted as a gpd, leading the way. Still, being in an entirely new place didn't bode well for someone with his condition. But... it was a leap he ahd to make. He was going to help change this world for the better. Didn't matter if he remembered doing it, he was going to.
Ancil, however, was specially trianed to key into Jeans emotions. Sensing the fear the young man had about this new venture, the absol nosed at his trainer's leg to get his attention off of his own spinning thoughts. It caused Jean to realize he was spiralling and start to do his breathing exercises while petting his service pokemen.
"You are right, Ancil, like always. I chose this path. If I can't even make the journey there, what good am I, yes?"
The absol nodded and nudged Jean's hand as he got pet. His trainer needed somewhere to go with people who would be willing to work with him. This was a good step in that direction. A place to belong and a goal to follow.
Staring back out to the ocean once more, the trainer sat on the dock to wait for the boat to arrive.
"Well friend, we have a long journey ahead and an even longer one after that. You're ready I hope, because I will need you."
Ancil lay next to him and placed his head on the young man's leg. There the two sat and waiting for the first step to a new beginning.
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Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 12:34 pm
HauntMyCroissant Ancil lay next to him and placed his head on the young man's leg. There the two sat and waiting for the first step to a new beginning. In time a mid-size white ship would pull up to the dock, the ship's design not too dissimilar from the S.S. Aqua of Kanto-Johto, if Jean was familiar with that one. A crew member would tie the high-speed vessel to the dock while another lowered a ramp to allow passengers to board the ocean going vessel, and if Jean looked around he would find others standing around, confirming that he would not be the only one riding this boat to Johto. Another member of the crew, a woman, would walk down the ramp and call out in his thickest Johto countryside accent. "All aboard that's coming aboard!" Her voice echoed out, several others on the dock perking up and beginning to make their way for the ship. From the appearances of the passengers and the ship itself this wasn't exactly a super fancy cruise, but not exactly a run down old fishing boat. No this was a middle class kind of mode of travel from region to region, for those that valued practicality and speed over comfort and other luxuries, and the crew showed it. The boat would wait for all passengers on their list to board, including Jean, and once everyone was accounted for they would immediately make preparations to leave. No further waiting, no sudden arrivals, just those that made arrangements in advanced and off they would be.
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Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 12:47 pm
Jean took a sharp intake of breath as he looked up at the ship. It wasn't fansy, but he wasn't expecting it to be. He as just pretty sure he ahd never seen a boat before. Or, if he had, it was after the accident. For sure he had never been on one. This would be a long trip, a week at least, probably closer to two or three. Kanto was a long ways away from Kalos after all. He had called the boat ahead of time to ensure special accomodations, namely a staff member to call in the morning and simply tell him to read his journals. Ancil normally was good for waking him up and bringing his most recent one to read, but he knew sometimes it was difficult for the pokemon to calm him down enough to actually get him to read them. So... he figured giving the staff a fair warning of his situation was probably better than him having a panic attack on a boat in the middle of the ocean or no one knowing why or how to handle it. After checking in with the woman and checking to ensure his accomodations were made, he made his way to the room he was asigned and set up his things for the long boat ride he had ahead. With a deep breath, he sat on the bed and fell back onto it, staring at the cieling. "I suppose I am really doing this, then." Ancil hopped up as well and decided this time, instead of being gentle, he was going to climb right ontop of his trainer and plop down on his stomach. "Oof! Alright, alright! Stop moping! I get it! You're heavy damn it, get off!" He complained, though with a chuckle as he shoved the service pokemon off and sat up to pet his head. "This is a good thing. I know it is. Soon, we will be.... home? Is it a home? I guess we will find out."
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Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 3:27 pm
The crew mate confirmed with Jean his accommodations and reassured him they would do their due diligence to make sure he read his journal first thing in the morning. With that done Jean was free to head off to his cabin where he would find a neatly made bed with fresh clean sheets waiting for him. He wouldn't have time to fall asleep before he could hear, and eventually feel, the boat leaving port. As promised the ship was running on a tight schedule with no delays allowed. They would be in Johto right on time come hell or high water. Jean would fall asleep no problem, perhaps it was the surprisingly comfy bed or maybe the sway of the ship on the water, whatever it was he would sleep like a Smoochum in a freezer. Would he dream? Or would it be one of those sleeps where you just blackout and wake up without even knowing you fell asleep? Either way the trainer would be awoken nine hours later, by a knocking on his door. It was the crew mate from yesterday he had spoke to no doubt, ready to do as instructed. They wouldn't let themselves in an instead waited for the door to open. There was another knock shortly after the first, this one harder and faster. Then another, even more frantic. Was something wrong?
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Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 4:27 pm
Jean was sure to write everything down in his journal as soon as the ship set sail. He placed it on the night stand and lay on the bed with his absol. It felt like a dizzy spell was kicking in again... or maybe he just wasn't good on the water... Either way, he fell asleep rather quickly. A ten-year-old boy ran through the forest at top speed. In the distance the roar of an angry beartic could be heard. He turned to face it, but behind it saw something even fiercer. Piles of snow came down. It was cold and dark. Than... Suddenly...Knock knock knockJean sat up straight and looked around. Where.... Where was he. What was going on. The last thing he remembered he was under piles of snow and then... He started patting himself down. He wasn't injured but had he... grown? It felt like he was moving. Was he on a boat? Was he kid napped!? What- And absol suddenly jumped up on him and dropped a book in his lap. It pushed against his face, sitting on him firmly and whining. "Calm... calm down? You wanted me to calm down!? Where am I!? And what was he supposed to do with the-" BANG BANG BANGBANG BANG BANGThe absol jumped from his lap and ran for the door. "Wait! Don't! They could be dangerous!" Coming back over, it chuffed at him defiantly and shoved the book back onto his lap from where it had been pushed aside nefore running to the door again. Jean stared dumbfounded and confused for a moment, then looked back to the book. Was this... a journal? It had his name on it. And a year with a dash as though it wasn;t complete yet. But... that couldn't be right, It was seven... years... wait... He had done this before. He had written in journals before. The dream with the beartic... that.... happened. It was real. And... he needed to write in journals to remember things. Had it really been seven years? As he began reading the absol hopped up and got the door open while he was distracted. Something was wrong. The absol could feel it. There was something horribly wrong.
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Posted: Tue Apr 11, 2023 8:31 am
As the door opened the crew mate Jean spoke to yesterday, provided he remembered her yet, was standing on the other side, looking frantic. Something was indeed wrong. "Hey, I know I'm suppose to tell you to read your journal, and you probably should as quick as possible, but I'm also letting you know we have a problem. We're just off the coast of Olivine City and have run afoul of a pod of Tentacool. We had slowed down as we approached the city and the jellyfish decided they do not want us here and began climbing onto the ship. Now we got about twenty of these things causing havoc for the crew and passengers and almost none of us are trainers! Those with Pokemon are doing their best but we're seriously outnumbered. If you and your Absol can help us out that would be great, otherwise we have to wait for backup from Olivine." The woman explained the situation. There was a scream shortly after the explanation ended, the crew mate looking over her shoulder for a moment before she looked back at Jean. "Get your memories back and please help us!" She pleaded with the trainer before turning around and running away, leaving his cabin room door open. This was it, Jean's first big moment, to show the world he was a Snagem. If Jean left his cabin and made it to the upper deck he would see the crew mate wasn't lying, there were Tentacool crawling all over the ship. There was only about three other Pokemon on the ship in fighting shape, now battling with the jellyfish Pokemon. A Croconaw owned by a crew mate was doing its best fending off three Tentacool, probably the strongest Pokemon on board but even it couldn't handle all this. A Bellsprout was doing its best, owned by a young woman but it was clear it was not trained for battle, likely more as a pet. Then there was a Machop owned by a young male trainer, clearly fresh in his journey and panicking as his Machop was struggling to resist the pull of a Tentacool on the side of the ship, the jellyfish threatening to drag the Fighting type into the ocean. There was a few Tentacool that were already knocked out, about five of them unconscious on the ship, despite this their brethren still fought. It would be very difficult to knock the rest out but maybe they could scare them away, as it stood this was the only choice besides keeping them at bay until backup arrived. However, Jean was a Snagem and a Snagem doesn't need back up, they get the job done.
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Posted: Wed Apr 12, 2023 12:36 pm
Jean began to panic as he frantically tried to read his journal and take in what was being said to him at the same time. Luckily, that was exactly what Ancil was there for. The service Pokemon leaped onto Jean's lap and putting his full wait on the young man to act as a grounding mechanism and keep him focused and tuned in to the present. The woman ran off just as quickly as she entered, leaving Jean to finish getting himself pulled together. Reading the journals, as usual, didn't exactly give him his memories back. Some memories were engrained as long term things from reading them over and over in the journals. However, that was more the memory of reading them in the journal than the memory of the thing itself. Still, it was the best he could get. After skimming through all the entries in the most recent journal being used and looking over the most recent sketches of the boat and a few Pokemon and people he had seen along the way, Jean was mostly back to where he was the day before. Now, he just needed to act. "Ancil, the woman said there were attacking tentacool, yes?" The absol nodded. "Then.. we should help? That is what Snagmen would do, correct?" It nodded again. "Then... Um..." He took one last deep, slow breath to calm his ever present nerves. "Then let us get to help!" With that, he hopped from the bed and ran to the top deck, not bothering to change from his pajama pants. Ancil was right on his heels and the two got to the deck. As they did, Jean didn't even have to give orders for Ancil to jump into action. The two shared a bond that went beyond what many trainers and Pokemon would have. Ancil, as a service Pokemon, was specifically traoned to tune into Jean and have a deep understanding of him. The trainer didn't need words for the absol to know what was being asked of him. The first target was the one about to pull a Machop over board. Ancil speedily tackled the tentacool off of it back towards the ocean, and spat a shadowball at it to ensure it fell all the way down to the water. He then started working hos way to each of the other tentacool, following the gaze of his trainer to know which one to target. They started with the ones targeting other Pokemon before moving to the ones that weren't an immediate threat.
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Posted: Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:24 pm
The Machop was rescued by Jean and Ancil's quick actions, the Tentacool sent tumbling into the ocean where it would bother no one else. Next was assisting the Bellsprout as it faced another Tentacool, the two had become locked in a Wrap struggle as they attempted to out squeeze the other and the Flower Pokemon was losing. Maybe if Jean and Ancil got a good hit in on the Tentacool, without hurting the Bellsprout, the Flower Pokemon can free itself, and would free itself once Jean acted. Once it was free the Bellsprout would finish off that Tentacool with Ancil's help. "Thank you so much!" The lady trainer would thank Jean profusely once they helped them. After they finished helping the Bellsprout next would be the Croconaw and the three Tentacool. By the time they arrived on the scene the Croconaw had just put down one of the three for good but alas it left it wide open for another one of them to sneak in and catch the Croconaw in its own Wrap attack. Now ensnared by one Tentacool the other was free to attack Croconaw as it began to unleash a spray of Poison Sting against the helpless Big Jaw Pokemon, the first unafraid of accidentally hitting its fellow Poison type. The Croconaw would let out a cry of pain as it was squeezed and made into a pin cushion, trying its best to struggle free but it was already tired from all the fighting it had done up until this point. "Hey, kid, help us out!" The crew mate who was trainer to the Croconaw called out to Jean, not that the Snagem needed to be told, that's what he was here for and had every intention of doing after all. "Croconaw can't take much more." The man went on.
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Posted: Thu Apr 13, 2023 12:39 pm
Jean turned to face the trainer who called to him and like clockwork Ancil jumped into action. The absol bit the tentacool that was holding the croconaw, forcing it to let go, then shoved the crewmate's pokemon out of the way before releasing a dark pulse to hit all three tentacool at once, knocking them back and away from each other to make it easier to deal with them one at a time. Once separated, the service pokemon went to the one that seemed the easiest to take down and worked his way up. Watching Jean, one would almost think he wasn't actually doing anything at all. He only had to give a nod yes or a shake no every time his helper looked his way. It was as though they shared one mind. Much like Ancil had been trained to understand Jean, Jean had been trained to rely on Ancil. He trusted his pokemon more than he trusted himself most of the time. They were in perfect sync as the water types got taken down one by one.
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Posted: Fri Apr 14, 2023 7:56 am
With Jean and Ancil's help the other three trainers were capable of fending off the rest of the Tentacool, the last of the jellyfish dispatched by the Absol personally. With the ship free of these aquatic invaders the trainers would gather around Jean and thank him for all his, and his Pokemon's, help. "You two were amazing out there! What's your secret?" The young male trainer asked, his Machop seemingly eager to learn as well as both looked up at Jean with wide eyes. "Think you could teach us a thing or two? I'm not much of a battler but seeing you and your Absol was inspiring!" The woman with the Bellsprout said, holding her Flower Pokemon in her arms, the Grass type letting out a happy cry as it wiggled its leaves. "We owe you a lot, lad! I've seen a lot of trainers and Pokemon in my time traveling but I've never seen two so beautiful in-sync! It was as if you were two bodies utilizing the same mind!" The crew mate with the Croconaw said, astounded over the bond Jean and Ancil had. After they were all done praising Jean and Ancil and things settled down the boat would finally make its way to the shores of Olivine City, docking and lowering its ramp to allow the passengers to disembark. Jean would get a few more praises and comments as the passengers walked by him as they left but besides that he was free to walk off the boat himself and officially set foot in the Johto region. It was late morning when they arrived and the weather in Olivine City was bright and sunny with clear skies and a nice cool spring temperature. The port city wasn't too busy this morning but it would certainly pick up in activity shortly as the citizens went about their work. From here the trainer would have to travel east, trekking across almost the entirety of Johto to arrive at his destination in the legendary locality of Mount Silver, where Team Snagem had made their base. It wouldn't be an easy journey, and maybe he could find some shortcuts along the way, but it will certainly be one to remember.
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Posted: Fri Apr 14, 2023 8:53 am
Jean quickly got overwhelmed as the other trainers surrounded him and Ancil. He stammered a stuttered trying to a word out until the final question was asked about how they were so in sync. "Um... Truly I do nothing." He noted. "It was all Ancil, really. He was trained to be my service Pokemon. He tuned into me very well. It is as though he knows what I need or want before even I do and just... Does his best to do it." The Kalosian boy spoke softly, blushing with embarrassment as he bent down and gave his Pokemon a tight hug and good pet behind the ear, earning a cheerful bark. "Truly, I would be nothing and nowhere without him." Once the crowd finally started clearing onto the shore, Jean would be the last one off the boat. Looking around, he took another big breath in and slow breath out before looking down at the Snagem device to see which way he needed to go.
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Posted: Fri Apr 14, 2023 3:30 pm
"You sure got a lot of praise." A digital voice spoke to Jean a soon as he took the SNAG out. It may startle him but should he focus he'd realize the voice was coming from the smartphone-like device in his hands. "You're right though, you did nothing, your Pokemon did all the work. Humans are always giving each other credit for the hard work the Pokemon do." The voice went on, its tone snarky. "Sorry, where are my manners? We haven't been introduced, even though I know all about you, Jean. I'm GRAY, a Guidance Resource and Assistance Yielder, an artificial intelligence in the employee of Team Snagem. I am responsible for maintaining the SNAG network and to assist all members of Team Snagem however I can. And trust me, a lot of them need a lot of help." The AI explained. Something told Jean this GRAY was a colorful character. "So, I see you were pulling up the map to see where to go. Here you go." With that the map with its directions appeared on the device's screen for Jean. "You'll want to exit the city due north and continue a ways until you hit Moomoo Farm, can't miss the place. From there go east and you'll hit Ecruteak City in no time. This will be the east part of your journey to HQ, once you get to Ecruteak it will only get harder so best use this time to mentally prepare yourself. Or don't, not that I care." GRAY warned, then threw in that last little remark.
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Posted: Fri Apr 14, 2023 4:51 pm
Jean nearly dropped the device in suprise when it began to speak, but then listened intently to it and nodded along to the explanation and instructions. He was still in a bit of shock when the thing was done and seemed a little lost. Luckily, Ancil just started walking. Jean wasn't great with directions at all. What he said on the boat was no exageration, at least in Jean's eyes. He was entirely dependant on his service pokemon. Without him, he would be the equivalent of a lost, ten-year-old child who repeatedly lost his memories every night. As they walked, every so often, Jean would stop to rest, write what had happened so far in his journal, or sketch a location or pokemon he found interesting or important enough to take not of. He had sketched the Olivine City docks before leaving, and also sketched one or two pokemon he stumbled upon that he had never seen before in Kalos. Eventually, he found his way to Moomoo farms. Just in time too, as the sun was starting to set and he was feeling a dizzy spell coming on. Maybe they would know a place he could spend the night. GRAY seemed to think he would make it all the way to Ecruteak before sun down, but Jean was very slow to get places since he felt the need to doctument everything. Hopefully, that wouldn't be too much of a problem or maybe even something Team Snagem could help him overcome. Only time would tell. For now, he needed to find somewhere to stay before the dizzy spell took hold. Ancil, already taking not of the change in it's trainer's heart rate and slowing of his walking speed even more than usual, was already leading the way to the door of the farm and scratching at the door. However, he quickly got called back to Jean's side who knocked on the door instead. No need to scouff up people's doors. "Excuse me? Anyone there? I'm a...." He had to stop and think for a moment before continuing. "A traveling trainer... I guess..." He noted almost to himself as a question, as though it had only just dawned on him that that was, in fact, what he would be considered now. "Um... I was hoping to find a place to stay the night. If someone could point me in the right direction for that I'll be on my way."
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Posted: Sat Apr 15, 2023 5:20 pm
The door would open soon enough, a woman in her late twenties opening the door and first greeting Jean with a confused look before it turned pleasant, the young lady smiling as she opened the door the rest of the way. "Well howdy! Ya say yer a trainer huh? On a badge run I suppose?" She asked, stepping forward and leaning against the doorway. It was a safe assumption to make, no doubt they had their fair share of traveling trainers collecting badges come through this way. "Yer in luck, we keep a spare room just for guests like you. Come on inside." She motioned for Jean as she stepped back into the house and out of the way. "Just take yer shoes off." Once they were inside the lady would shut the door behind them and finally take notice of Ancil, giving the Pokemon are puzzled stare. "What kinda Pokemon ya get there?" She asked, pointing at Ancil. It would be no surprise she was unfamiliar with the Absol species, not only were they relatively rare in the wild but they are a species not found in Johto. Like most farmers this young woman likely doesn't travel much, if at all. Once she got her answer she would insist Jean had dinner with her the family, however he would need to wash up first. The bathroom would be pointed out by a young boy, her son, the child fascinated by the Absol but would not be allowed to gush too much over the creature as he too was given a chore to do before dinner. Once Jean was all washed up dinner, and the woman and boy from earlier, the husband/father would be waiting for him in the dining room.
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