bopbay | 003 ⟡ MAY TEST DRIVE

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003 ⟡ MAY TEST DRIVE

⋆✩ test drive 03 ✩⋆

The day begins like any other.

Routines, eventful scenes, and boring errands — no matter what you were in the middle of, there's a moment where everything begins to feel wrong. A searing pain tears through your body, so intense that it feels like every nerve has been struck at once. Muscles spasm, joints scream in protest, and as you double over, you find yourself clawing or clinging at anything within your reach. As your attempts to maintain composure fail you, your bones begin to twist with an agonizing force, the pain rising in a crescendo until it becomes unbearable to even breathe. Then, as quickly as it began, everything stops.

For a single, terrifying moment, there's nothing. No sight, no sound, no touch, no taste, no smell — just the weight of nothingness swallowing you whole. The absence of sensation might even be worse than the pain, leaving you adrift in a void you can't escape. Hopelessness threatens every fiber of your existence, and try as you might to fight it, your darkest thoughts begin to surface, flooding your mind in an onslaught of suffocating feelings and ideas.

In the darkness, you hear a voice.

It's faint, a gentle flashing of something warm along the edges of your mind, like sunlight itself. It's a voice, but you can't identify who or what it comes from, how it sounds, or what it means — still, you know it's directed at you. Something tugs at your heart, a powerful ache that throbs once and ripples outwards. You can feel the aches again, like fresh sores throughout your body. You feel off, like something isn't quite right, like you're not where you should be, or who you should be. But the voice continues, whispered just beyond your understanding. The sound is warm like hope, and it wraps around you, distant yet intent, before you wake up.

i. arrivals

FROM TUNNELS DEEP

The scent of must meets your nostrils, perhaps more strongly than it normally would. To open your eyes is to meet the dark — though if you're fortunate it could be that something about this new body, or perhaps the body of another, leaves some faint illumination to see by. Either way it soon becomes clear that where you are is somewhere underground. They are deep and sprawling tunnels, with corners of some unknown civilization storied away in their many carvings and ruined pottery. Portions of the cavern walls even bear the appearance of old structures and dwellings, as if the earth itself swallowed a city whole.

Trickling through the tunnels in quiet streams are tendrils of fog. It's difficult to see, but not in the least hard to feel. The mist is damp and cloying, clinging to every inch it finds on you to the point that it seems to grasp at the very soul; and the longer one lets it have its way, the worst it feels. You begin to question your body. Your mind. Your very memories — are they really yours?

Staying underground may be unwise anyway. Diglett and Dugtrio soon make themselves known to the weary arrivals here, and unlike these newcomers they have had far too long to succumb to the mist. They will attack without hesitation, and the only options are to fight or flee above ground.

The forest above unfortunately is not much better. The fog here is thick, even if some light somehow makes its way through the canopy above. What could have once been helpful landmarks become sources of dizzying misunderstanding, and the gnarled trees seem to move when no one watches. Rescuers from the city will have their work cut out for them once it becomes clear how many could be stranded out there, and time will be of the essence. The sooner that these wanderers can be brought to the clinic to be treated, the better!

CAUGHT IN THE BRAIN FOG⟡ While the fog does not cause illness specifically, it is still incredibly dangerous to spend extended periods of time within it. Disorientation, hallucination, as well as mental and physical dysphoria are all symptoms noted from the fog and it is vital to remove oneself from its presence. Fortunately, the symptoms fade quickly once exposure ends.

⟡ The severity of the above varies; characters may feel that time is moving too quickly, or simply become incredibly aware of their inhuman limbs. Players may increase or decrease symptoms as they desire, at this time.

⟡ In addition to the above symptoms, memories become scattered across characters in the fog. The longer one remains within it, the more memory they lose to it — and the more foreign memories they gain. Players are encouraged to offer memories within their top-levels for others to use, but unlike other symptoms, characters need to come in contact with the memory's source to be free of them.

⟡ As many within Bottlecap Bay can guess, the location of all of this is the Southern Forest; which means all the dangers discovered in earlier quests apply. In addition to the disorienting fog, this particular branch of forest is rife with time and space distortions, making it difficult to navigate safely through.

ii. under the weather

RAIN RAIN, GO AWAY

The first thing anyone will notice as the month of May truly sets in, is the rain. Light or heavy, sunny or cloudy, a near constant rain pours down upon Bottlecap Bay and its surrounding areas. There's no escaping it; it pours, and it pours, and it pours ever long, until it becomes impossible to do even basic tasks outside one's dwelling without getting soaked to the bone.

While it's not unusual to receive rain at this time of the year, the amount of rain is unnatural according to the Guild Leaders. To ensure no one suffers any more than they already have, all three are quick to open their doors to these new Pokemon in their midst. Or at least, they're quick to offer other foreigner's doors. Pokemon who originated from other worlds soon find themselves with new bunkmates and housemates, and with the rain as bad as it is there’s no good way to refuse.

It's best to remain in similar company after all, and until there’s time to sort out who fits where, it’s all these newcomers have.

RAIN CHECK⟡ Though the epidemic from earlier in the year has now passed over, Dr. Denne does not let his guard down. New pokemon are herded to the clinic for mandatory check-ups, to be absolutely safe. The clinic will house pokemon exhibiting any sign of illness, but otherwise send them off to rest in their temporarily assigned housing.

⟡ Unfortunately, many of the offered Guild rooms belong to those recently admitted into the fold. At these lower tiers, rooms are often exposed to incoming water. Rain causes floods to rise up within Oran Guild, bringing at least an inch of rainwater along the shared ground. In the Cheri Guild, it pours between leaves and over walls during particularly stormy weather. The only guild with surefire methods to avoid the rain is Lum Guild; all of these buildings are fully enclosed.

⟡ Even if Pokemon are able to avoid getting wet while sleeping, this won’t spare them when they go outside; it is at minimum drizzling at all times for the rest of the month.

THE WATER CYCLE

While Pokemon begin to settle into their new lives at Bottlecap Bay, the rain continues to fall. On some days it’s harder — hard enough to bring sheets thick enough to blot vision, sharp enough to leave unprotected pelts stinging for minutes after retreating inside. Thunder booms, and lightning flashes, a clear message to all within the city when they see it. These storms are bad. Dangerous. And the danger is in more than just the weather itself.

At first the signs are subtle. Those same symptoms from the forest can be felt, lasting only as long as a Pokemon is damp from the downpour outside. Even the gentle drizzle causes absent thoughts, an empty mind staring into the distant grey skies as you forget.

Staring longer still, as you remember. But is what you're remembering actually yours? Something about the concentration of forest mist in the form of raindrops changes the effects as the days go by. The body and mind rebel against what it knows doesn't belong, and it finally comes bursting out with a shout! Those memories you've seen, they aren't yours! They're someone else's!

And the world needs to hear it!

STORMY MOODS⟡ After May 10th, the rain for the rest of the month is constant. Severity of the downpour is up to the player to decide, but it never stops drizzling at the least.

⟡ While symptoms from earlier prompts can still be in effect, additional consequences are caused by the rain. Light drizzle carries lighter memories; happier thoughts, caring moments. Pokemon capturing these from the rain are drawn to quietly whisper their opinions on such memories, and can pass them to the original owner in this way. Raging storms bring the opposite; Pokemon will inherit despairing, or wrathful memories from another in the rain, and feel compelled to instead shout their opinions to cast the memory aside.

⟡ Despite the above, Pokemon do not need to pass the memory to their original owner to get rid of them. NPCs can be used as well, and it can be assumed the memory eventually made its way home.

⟡ Side effects of the rain carry over into any puddles formed. Sleeping while soaked in water will cause effects to manifest as sleep-talk, and potentially affect their dreams.

iii. the archives

RECORDS KEEPING

The longer the rainfall persists, the more clear it is that staying outside is unwise. Not only is it dangerous to non-water type Pokemon's health for the most part, but the full scope of side effects only increase the risks. After one too many shouting matches caused by vitriolic memories, Polteageist offers a simple but beneficial solution. The doors of the archives are opened up, as senior members in the Lum Guild offer up their time as temporary librarians.

Polteageist's solution is as follows; instead of training their bodies out in the rain, everyone will be training their brains. There have been many questions raised over the last number of weeks, and now is the time for everyone to investigate the mysteries. Entering the Archives means entering a building of clear splendor, filled with couches and beanbags for sitting and beautiful flowers and plants to accentuate the green hues within the halls. The shelves are well stocked with records kept on stone tablets, and the additional guides within the guild are eager to help everyone find what they're looking for.

The illustrious leader of the Lum Berries is well aware however, that not everyone is willing to spend all their time reading. As it would be counterproductive to expect anyone to sit twiddling their thumbs (or tails, or ears) he has thus arranged for a few of the archive meeting rooms to host additional activities. They are simple things; there's classes on recording writings properly in clay before firing, minor history lessons where newly arrived Pokemon can share in what many others already know, and even community building exercises. They're nothing like the escape rooms organized during the last two months, but they're good for passing the time.

And eventually, the rain will hopefully calm down. A few skilled Psychic Pokemon are offering their services to keep others dry until then however, at least so that everyone can get home safely.

SHUSH!⟡ The Archives, while acting as the base of operations for the Lum Berries Guild, additionally acts as a library. Players are encouraged to come up with their own available texts within these halls, but should keep in mind that not all knowledge is publically available. If a player is unsure about whether or not something can be easily accessed, please comment about the topic under questions.

⟡ Examples of available topics include general folk tales and fairy tales (with examples given here), as well as non-fiction matters such as pokemon types, species, and moves. As a note, paradox pokemon and canonically synthetic pokemon such as Type: Null are not included.

⟡ The history of Bottlecap Bay is no different from what is noted within the game's premise; guild members teaching the history will explain that the settlement came about when a number of Pokemon escaped from human lands, seeking refuge where no humans could be found.

⟡ Players may be creative with team building exercises, provided they would not cause damage to their surroundings; examples include bonding activities such as 'two truths and a lie', '20 Questions', and even scavenger hunts within the public Archive limits. The focus is always upon getting to know one another.

✩ OOC NOTES.

⟡ TDM CWS: body horror, disorientation, hallucinations, dysphoria

⟡ TDMs are game canon and act as events for the month they are posted.

⟡ New characters can link to their top level beneath the NEWBIE DIRECTORY

⟡ All new arrivals are not assigned to any one guild. However, if they participate in the Archive's bonding activities, they may receive a unique reward.

⟡ Remember that at least one thread for your application must come from the TDM! There is no comment minimum, but we will be looking for engagement, as well as for players and characters who take the time to delve into things like character thoughts, emotions, morality, and other deep themes. Take this time to engage with the setting as you would in game!

⟡ As a reminder, reserves and applications are permanently opened. Please see their respective pages for details on processing time.

⟡ Have any questions related to the TDM? Ask here! If your question is more general for the game, please make sure to direct it to the FAQ page instead. Thank you, and happy threading!

FULL NAVIGATION

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Again, here she is struggling to understand, looking for anything and any way to understand what she does know thus far. Especially after having gone through so much toil over the passing days. Memories that were hers, and weren't, moments that were kind and then were anything but - ]

Remember? What are you remembering? [ Asked like an older woman being nosey and announcing herself into the conversation thusly. ]

[ ooc: Let me know if there are any subjects or spoilers you would like to avoid. ]

Edited (noo my ooc note) 2025-05-21 04:01 (UTC)

[His ear flicks slightly, a little surprised, but Ingo's not put off by the abruptness!]

Ah - well, I have suffered from memory loss for many years. But when I see new Pokemon, they often seem familiar to me! I must have encountered them before - I was evidently some sort of professional trainer back then, so I suppose I must have seen quite a number of them! Besides, I think travel between regions was easier then!

[Was? Will be? Whatever.]

In any case, I rather feel as if I have seen Druddigon before. It's rather striking!

[He'll lift the book to show a scarlet-and-blue spiky dragon. Definitely memorable!]

[ Rei accounts for how he talks, especially to her, as if she should understand everything said. By now, she at least gets what Pokémon are, knows that several of them are humans turned into Pokémon that are stuck here, and that there is a universe out there where Pokémon and humans live together. Outside of this, she knows very little else other than what kind of Pokémon she is and her apparent affinity to ice. ]

It looks so prickly, [ She cants her head to one side, her face visibly scrunched up as she is surprised at the idea that dragons are real! ] you have these things just roaming around your world? Isn't that quite dangerous, seeing what I can do... I can't imagine what it can do.

Oh, yes, it can be!

[Emmet might have a slightly different take. Ingo's gotten the impression that the future's a much more peaceful time.]

But Pokemon and people can come to understand one another! Alliance between us is certainly the best way to protect against danger in any case!

I see. [ Rei gives it some thought, thinking it would be very easy to find use for animals with quirks. Her mind thinks of keeping warm while holding them, or getting water when you are thirsty. Simple and easy things. ] That sounds like a fun place.

[ That said, the notion worries her. ]

Does that mean... We will have to worry about humans wanting to work with us? They won't take us, will they?

No! No, there aren't any humans here. There are some in the world, according to the locals, but not here - they came here to get away from them, for whatever reason.

[It's not clear on his face, but Ingo's still clearly troubled by this. How could it have come to such a state in the first place?]

[ It doesn't occur to her for this to be odd, but she's listening to him with interest. Questions arose, fueled by her inordinate desire to learn more about this world and her situation. ]

Get away from them... Do you know why?

Not specifically, no. I do not believe it was a single event, per se...or if there was, perhaps it was quite a long time ago. I think relations were simply poor, and humans were encroaching on their original territories.

[Which is rude! Quite frankly, Ingo considers those humans lucky that the Pokemon simply retreated - that is not how it would likely have gone in Hisui. Maybe something was different here?]

I see. That makes sense. [ As it would for anything, land becomes taken over, shifts and changes happen over land. It's been over 30 years since she has brushed up on history, but at least she remembers that things generally do go that way roughly. ] Am I bothering you with these questions?

I know very little, and my questions are likely very ignorant...

Not at all!

[Ingo sets the book down and turns to face her at that.]

You are much too hard on yourself! It is only natural that newcomers to this world should not know about it! I am only lucky in that my world has Pokemon as well.

[ Not hard enough, she thinks to herself and no one else outloud. ]

What would you suggest someone like me to learn or start to read? There is so much.... From stories, legends, types of Pokémon, and their own individual stories. Where they came from, what they do...

[Hm! Ingo's not unfamiliar with helping people who are starting out as trainers, but those people always have some existing knowledge of Pokemon.]

Perhaps you might begin simply by getting to know the other Pokemon living here in the village! That seems a more natural introduction - you will better be able to remember facts about Pokemon types and abilities if you can associate them to people you already know! You should not try to take in everything all at once! I certainly could not have done that, after I lost my memories.

[ By the mention of memories, Rei takes a moment to reflect on everything that happened in order to get here. Although he offers her kind words, and she can see how it could be helpful. Hearing that his memories were missing, made her wonder if this was something she should be ready for herself - ]

Memory loss... Is that also a normal occurence here? There were many times when I was lost in the tunnels and outside in the rain, when I almost forgot the most important things to me. Perhaps, I will try to.... [ Rei looks at her paws, they unfurl and then relax, each pad sitting comfortably together. Hanging over the edge of where she lay. ] Take notes down.

[ Well... She will try. ]

Ah - no, that is quite new. It is an effect of the fog...and, I suppose, somehow these recent rains. Everyone I know who was affected does seem to regain their memories after being away from those factors! No, what happened to me was years ago, long before all of this.

What...? [ Surprise, she pauses for a moment. Usually, she's partial to not butting into information, but she's a bit wound up from the lead into this moment, she finds herself having to ask. ] What happened?

Well....I do not actually know.

[Because of the amnesia and all.]

No one else knows, either. I was found lost and alone in the wilds. Having traveled backwards through time, evidently, though I did not know about that until very recently.

Time Travel..? [ This sounded so much like something she might hear on the television. ] I see... I guess that makes sense why the Guilds here exist..? They seem to be similar to how Hero Agencies work in my world... Except, Pokemon instead of Humans... They account for the disasters that would happen with Quirks, or things like what you said. Except, as far as I know, no one has the power of Time where I am from.

That would be rather scary if they did.

Does that mean you are not only out of place in the world but also not at the right time? That must be a lot to deal with. I'm sorry to have you talk about it.

Oh, not at all! Most of it has simply been a fact of my life, for as long as I have known! Though, I suppose I am still adjusting to the time travel part - I did not know where I came from at all, before arriving here. My brother was brought here as well, you see, which was....enlightening.

[And we're just not thinking too hard about all of the broader implications!]

[ Rei seemed really tense up until this point. ]

Oh good. [ A sigh of relief, the air leaving her lungs in great length. ] Everything you said just now is so much, I cannot imagine the grief you would deal with if you were alone in all of it. My own is a trouble to take on, but what you said is something so... Unimaginable. I am sorry your brother is here, but I'm sure in some ways he is glad to be here himself. I mean, I do hope that you can remember your past soon and if there is anything I can do, please let me know.

Ah! That is very kind of you! But truly, do not trouble yourself! I have always been like this, as far as I can remember - I'm used to it.

[It's still not good, of course. But it is what it is. You have to get used to things sometime!]

I've never had much luck in regaining memories, I'm afraid. I never truly have...just odd fragments, sometimes.

...

[ She is careful in how she considers her words, but she seems to want to reach out in a different way - relate to him. Let him know, he's not alone. ]

It is kind of like that for me, but no magic caused it, from what I understand from the doctors. Sometimes, under stress, your mind may forget things to keep things comfortable for yourself.

Not that... I want you to feel as if this is a bad thing; I just want you to know that sometimes my memories are fragmented, too. It was why I worried so much, when I was lost in the forest and tunnels, that I would forget the important ones I cherished the most.

It can be hard... [ Not wanting this to take away and bring only sadness, she adds. ] I used to get into journaling and lettering my daily events to my son. This helped a lot with day-to-day things and was fun.

Oh! Oh, I am - sorry to hear that.

[Though he's also quite surprised! Ingo has never really met someone who's dealt with the some sort of memory issues as himself.]

I - yes, I have kept journals as well! I have never lost memories since, at least not before all of this fog and rain, but...I have worried about it. I do not know what caused it, in truth. It may have been some sort of magic, or perhaps it really was a sort of trauma. All I know is that I did not have any head injuries when I was found, so it was not that.

I have been trying to stay out of the fog, myself. I had a rather unpleasant experience on my last venture to the forest.

[ Rei is quiet, and once she learns that he had an experience himself. She focuses on that, moving the conversation along naturally. ]

What happened in the forest?

I felt...drawn into the fog. It was as if I lost myself in wandering. Emmet was there, so he kept me from going, but...I'm not sure what might have happened if I had. I heard voices in there - Pokemon calling out for rescue - and I am not entirely sure now that those were illusions.

[Maybe he's wrong. Maybe the fog just still has some shred of hold over him even now. But those voices felt far clearer than anything else it showed him.]

... Is that... Normal? How unsettling... [ Her voice is gentle and caring, but careful and worried too. ] So sometimes... The fog makes Pokémon who aren't really there? Does it make them go crazy too...? There were these moles that didn't seem to talk or listen to reason when I first came here.

003 ⟡ MAY TEST DRIVE

iii. archives

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