yuck [o]

[king]

luke had heard of this place. a place where the water was so clear you could see straight down into the bottom. people had spread news of the water's healing properties, but it wasn't exactly what he expected anymore.

the ground was tainted red with blood, the smell of dead and decay was still strong in the air. he wrinkled his nose, holding ryn closer to his chest and covering her nose with his coat.

there were sparse skeletons located here and there, but the biggest concern was the amberwell. he looked in and saw it frozen over and mildly foggy. "this is the place, right?" ryn nodded. "it... doesn't look very magical."

kneeling down by the small pond, he broke off a chunk of ice and tasted it. there was a bitter taste, and he immediately recoiled. "doesn't taste like it either."

[vertigo]

"it's not supposed to be the pond of magicks anymore."

it wasn't a far-fetched theory to make, considering the state of the forest. droplets of blood and goo hung from the grass like dewdrops would, and the red bark trees were scratched and cut up, as if by creatures in haste to escape. a good number had fallen at - or into - the amberwell, and it was all plain as day to his eyes.

it didn't take a researcher to come up with such a theory. (some may have said it was because he was intelligent, but anyone who could see could come up with a story to match his.)

pokédex in hand, the researcher cocked his head and watched the young man and his ralts.

king

[king]

luke looked up, surprised to see someone else. ryn reached for a patch of his shirt to hold on closer to. "i thought the amberwell was filled with some sort of magical water? that's what i heard in proserpina anyway..." he frowned, looking back down at the little bit of water left. "did something happen here? everything's pretty gory."

vertigo

[vertigo]

"filled with some sort of magical water," the researcher repeated after the other person, "i hope not. it's frozen over." he picked up a pebble by his feet and tossed it at the pond.

the pebble hit the surface of the pond and bounced off it with remarkable force. "not only is it frozen over, it has also rejected all forms of contact," he said. it wasn't much to note. scientists would probably work on restoring the amberwell, at any rate. and that would not be one of his concerns at all.

"-- to answer your question, though: i'm not sure what happened here. sorry."

king

[king]

this guy wasn't particularly helpful. but for luke, he just plowed on. "i see." he adjusted his grip on ryn, tucking her closer into the coat against his chest. she had been shivering a slight bit earlier, but it ceased quickly. "my name is lucas. but call me luke. who are you?"

ryn wasn't too preoccupied with who the person was, moreso just curling up into her trainer's coat.

vertigo

[vertigo]

"grimm," said the researcher, mostly out of habit. "ignatius grimm. i'm a researcher." he extended a hand to lucas.

"it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

in the middle of gooey ceres, no less.

king

[king]

"i'm a new trainer. the pleasure is mine."

"what brings you out here?"

vertigo

[vertigo]

"the weather," said ignatius, and it was half the truth. "it's changed around ceres. as a researcher and aspiring scientist, i am duty-bound to investigate the area to the best of my ability."

that part was a lie. he had no interest in anything other than the pond, which no longer was its former self. what a pity -- and a shame.

his gaze settled on the trainer.

"would you mind if i scanned your pokémon for entries? every little bit of information would help in my pursuit of knowledge."

king

[king]

huh. why didn't that previous researcher talk to him about this? he didn't even ask to scan his pokemon. maybe ignatius was just... better? or maybe raph was new too.

"um. sure."

:sralts:

vertigo

[vertigo]

ignatius scanned the ralts. the device beeped, indicating the various colorations of the species when it came to different emotions. it seemed that the more data obtained, the more information he could chart about the species in general.

king

[king]

luke pulled out another pokeball.
:sbraviary:
"should i expect this whenever i run into a researcher?"

vertigo

[vertigo]

"not all the time," said ignatius as he scanned the braviary. "certain researchers already have more than enough data, and some new ones just don't ask unless offered the opportunity to."

king

[king]

"i see."
:sbarboach:

vertigo

[vertigo]

ignatius scanned the barboach. it looked slightly tasty in the cold winter air.

king

[king]

phillip saw the look and flailed his way back behind luke, mildly terrified. welp.
:sjolteon:
vertigo