[ti]story[/ti] SIDE QUEST: Steel Yourselves

Generally speaking, Muin is of the mentality of only catching Pokémon he likes and that fit well with his carefully planned themes. Out of the six currently in his box, two sadly don't quite meet these criteria of his. So... It's up to him himself to find them good homes, no? He hasn't been all that lucky with doing so for the WishiWashi he had received as reward during the Valentine's Hookup event, but the Duraludon he had caught recently is a different matter entirely.

The answer had been given to him the moment he caught the Pokémon, by the same person who had helped him bring it down. Apparently, this is some sort of side quest or something? From what Muin has gathered, it will probably be connected to Asper's larger storyline, and that part sounds interesting.

What is the professor researching?

Why does she need Steel types?

Such are the questions he's here to ask. Truth be told, he had forgotten all about the Byte reward.

"Good morning, professor." Despite his ever so stoic appearance and emotionless tone, Muin never fails to be polite. He looks at Ash when entering the tent, making sure not to intrude. "I hope I'm not interrupting your work. I have a Duraludon for you."

Ever one for efficiency, Muin doesn't waste any time in producing the Pokéball. Granted, it also helps that despite his interest in Ash's work, he'd still rather keep interactions as short as possible (nothing against the professor, he's like that with most people). Still, he can't help but ask the question, a glimmer of curiosity shinning in those cold amethyst eyes of his:

"May I ask what you're working on?"

Muin GIVES THE PROFESSOR A DURALUDON

100 BYTES PROCESSED

"Just a moment," Ash tries to say, swiveling in her chair, but Kazuki is already dropping his haul all over her desk. It was a pity Pokeballs had to be spherical— there was always the chance of some rare Pokemon simply rolling away like a stray tennis ball when she wasn't looking.

Kazuki is less hostile than the last time they interacted, but his change in demeanor brings with it new questions. "How do you—" Ash starts, then sighs, seeming to catch herself. She smooths a lock of silver hair back over one ear. "There are no gundams here, Kazuki."

She listens to Kazuki's story, brows raising here and there. "Long armor," she repeats dubiously. "The 'bird'— are you referring to Zapdos?"

With her current information, it's impossible for Ash to make sense of your story, but she does her best. "...As a matter of fact, I did see what happened. I was studying the Giant Shrine before it was taken— there had been some unusual changes in its magnetic field before it disappeared."

Ash taps her chin with her pen. "Perhaps 'disappeared' is the wrong word. I have a reading on the Giant Shrine now— it's mobile, somewhere in the lower stratosphere. Not that this information is helpful to anyone, but technically it may still be possible to recover it."

She sorts the steel-type Pokemon into their compartments while she thinks, considering the other information Kazuki has brought her. "You had direct contact with a Legendary Pokemon," she says slowly, but before she can question the man further Verai enters the tent, offering additional information.

His story is far more lucid, and Ash listens intently, taking notes on her small pad. When the story is done she takes a moment to put together the pieces in a way that makes sense. "So you crafted this 'Prince' long armor. And then he approached the Giant Shrine, which caused a magnetic disturbance." She nods, casting a quick glance over to some charts on her wall. "That explains the readings I picked up." One question answered, but many more raised.

"And you're saying that this Prince transformed into Zapdos?" It was unprecedented, but in science that really just means 'unobserved previously'. "There are factual accounts of Pokemon masquerading as humans in the past. Most predominantly Zorua, Ditto, and powerful psychic types. I've never heard of an electric type doing such a thing." She taps her pen on her page of notes.

"You said that Zapdos spoke to you in a human form. What else did he say?"

250 BYTES for Kazuki PROCESSED

50 BYTES for Verai PROCESSED

As Tuesday enters the lab she is backed by a gust of stormy wind. It's crisp and wet, a remnant of the rain elsewhere on the Steppes. "Hello, Tuesday," Ash says as the catgirl enters. She's deep in her research and seems a bit absentminded as she turns towards you. How long has it been? With all the excitement at the Giant Shrine, it's hard to remember. "Your Eevee... yes, I recall offering some questions to help you ascertain the most suitable name. I hope it proved useful." Ash was no expert on naming conventions— her own Pokemon were unnamed— so she had defaulted to her usual method of determining an outcome: personality quiz.

Professor Ash does not appear to show any interest in discussing the Precipice Shrine.

But when you bring up the Giant Shrine, she has plenty to discuss with you. "I wouldn't say missing, Tuesday. I'm not in the habit of losing any samples, let along a piece of metal the size of a skyscraper." Ash's eyes slide over to a growing pile of paperclipped memos on her desk in a tray labelled 'GIANT SHRINE', "In fact I am well aware of its current location." Her eyes slide back to you. Slate gray and full of excitement.

She brings up her holographic map. The blue sphere blooms from her desk like a neon lotus, filling the workspace with tinted light. With a single finger she spins the globe and zooms in on a familiar section of Asper: the Surge Steppes. As the sectioned map grows larger, the topography comes into focus. Large patches of open plain studded with frantic collections of rings to indicate the spikes in altitude. There are blinking dots, custom markers, on the map too. They track vaguely East to West, and are timestamped from today. "This shows the movements of the shrine in the last twenty-four hours. All readings show it to be between 4,300 and 4,900 meters above the Steppes."

Ash taps another section of the map, the view of the steppes is overlaid with meteorological readings. A cloud of black and red smothers the blinking dots, moving East to West in perfect synchronicity with the location of the high-altitude shrine. Ash lets the cycle repeat a few times. "Keep an eye out for any unexpected weather patterns, and let me know if you see any unusual thunderstorms."

200 BYTES PROCESSED

The Duraludon from Muin is gratefully received. Professor Ash is currently running a program on her computer in the background. It stays frozen on an error: unsafe levels of Corruption. simulation terminated message on the screen behind her as she finishes sorting out Muin's BYTE reward.

At his question Ash sighs, sitting back in her chair. She seems exhausted. "Too many things," she says. "I've been monitoring the Corruption levels in Mistra to see if it would abate over time, opening up room for potential human habitation. But the levels are still too high— any fluctuation seems mostly circumstantial at this stage."

Sensing a fellow academic, Ash fills in some backstory. "When we first came to UNOVR, I'd hoped forward progress would be as simple as it was after Beta Island. You weren't with us at the time, Muin, but it seemed fairly straightforward. Once both shrines on Beta Island activated, the combination triggered a surge of power that drove back the Corruption over Asper. I believed it was that simple."

She closes out of the frozen simulation, shaking her head."My readings show that all three Asper shrines are now fully active. I can only assume some final step is needed— but with the Giant Shrine missing, how are we to find out what? It's frustrating, to say the least. And unprecedented."

Research only worked as long as someone else had similar experience. In this, Ash— and all of UNOVR— are alone.

100 BYTES PROCESSED

"Prof, have you ever had donuts?" This is, in fact, exactly how Domino greets Professor Ash when entering her tent in the Surging Steppes, box of the aforementioned donuts in hand.

"I was planning on coming to the Steppes anyway, so I figured I'd bring you some." She explains with a smirk, setting the box down on a table that doesn't look too full of... research. Oh, Ash, always hard at work! So inspirational! Speaking of...

"Oh, and also this!" From a pocket in her jacket, she produces a Pokéball. "Magnemite. Still need those, right? How's the project going?"

And so, she sits, fully intending to eat a funfetti down while chatting with the professor.

Domino gives the professor a Magnemite

50 bytes processed

“Good afternoon, Professor.” It had been quite some time indeed since Taylor had seen Ash - hell, not since she’d first launched the game and received her starter a few weeks back! Now, thanks to some stubbornly optimistic exploration of the Steppes and conveniently timed help from a friendly stranger, she had a pair of Klink to offer the NPC.

“I heard you were looking for certain steel types,” she ventured, gently smoothing her hand over Mumble’s head as the Piplup leaned into her leg. “Are you still in need of more? I have a couple of Klink here, if so.” Her voice was hopeful - she sincerely hoped she hadn’t run out of time to get involved in this side quest! As she spoke, Mumble lifted a flipper to wave happily and cluelessly to the professor.

Taylor offers Professor Ash two Klinks

They must have first met at some point long ago; when Yuze first received his starter Pokémon. It's what she assumes, at least, but she has no way to know for sure — the account had come to her possession long after all that had taken place

So, in a way, this is Yuze's first time meeting Professor Ash, and when he steps into the tent that is her field laboratory, his first impression of the researcher is that she definitely seems much more put together than Bunya (even if Yuze does dig Bunya's vibe).

"Professor." He simply says, his gaze wandering over the equipment around them when placing the Duraludon's Pokéball on a table. Then, he looks at her. "If you don't mind, I wanted to ask you something. Corruption... What do you think it is, exactly? Surely if we understand its origin, it might be easier to find a way to counter it, no?"

Or perhaps a way to use it as an advantage.

Yuze gives the professor a DURALUDON

Domino

"Donuts. Yes," says Ash slowly, "I believe I have."

A strange expression crosses her face for a moment as the Professor searches her memories for the experience. Context tells her it's a common food, so the likelihood is high she would have tried it. No one has ever specifically brought her donuts to go with her coffee before, but she knows they go well together.

It's a little like asking Ash if she's ever worn a dress— she remembers she has, but that memory itself is nowhere to be found.

"I'll put on a pot of coffee," she decides, shaking off her momentary pensiveness and accepting the Magnemite. "Much appreciated. Thank you, Domino."

50 BYTES PROCESSED ON 5/7

Kazuki

Ash patiently takes notes about the pieces you remember, though you see her pen stop for a moment at the word 'lingerie' before she wearily writes it down. "I can't say whether Zapdos is still carrying the shrine or if there's some other explanation for why it's still floating— before the event you witnessed, there were some strange anomalies all across the Steppes regarding the local spires. Perhaps a similar phenomenon has affected the Giant Shrine."

Something bumps against her ankle and she stoops down to retrieve it. "Ah, excellent! Another Duraludon. Well done, Kazuki." She doles out another portion of her research grant and forwards it to your account.

100 BYTES PROCESSED

Taylor

"Certainly!" Ash seizes on your offer immediately, swiveling in her chair. "Klink are particularly valuable due to their ability to "link" together. I'm not the engineer, but System Admin:Cygnus swears by their properties of interconnectivity."

While she's forwarding the BYTES to your account, Ash stops to observe the waving Mumble. "Your Piplup seems in good health, I see," she says, amused. "You've trained it well."

100 BYTES PROCESSED

Verai

Ash looks up when Verai enters, eyes flicking to the Litten beside him. She does not comment on the illegal Pokemon— she's the one who gave it to Verai in the first place, after all— but she discreetly closes the tent flap behind the white-haired man in case of watchful eyes. The townsfolk would not respond well to hearing their regional Professor was occupied in black market trade.

"I am," she says, confirming what Kazuki had told Verai. "You worked together to take it down? Good idea. They can be quite dangerous." Though having a fire-type starter must have helped.

Ash collects the steel-type with a small smile, giving Verai his BYTE reward. "I reviewed my notes, and I had one more question about what you and Kazuki told me the other day," she says evenly. "How did you know the name of the armor you created? Did Zapdos tell you?" She does not question how it was possible to forge a suit of armor— she assumes all trainers are highly trained and capable— but she seems to hone in on this detail.

100 BYTES PROCESSED

Yuze

"Hello, Yuze," Ash says when the man steps into her tent. She does not appear to notice any difference in his demeanor, though his new, sudden interest in the topic of Corruption makes her frown.

Over the past year in Asper, many trainers have asked her a similar question, and her original theories and speculation have been largely simplified by this point. "I believe Corruption is a supernatural phenomenon similar to a curse, though some of my colleagues would liken it more closely to a disease. It is extremely dangerous," she says sharply, perhaps suspecting you might be considering a trip across the border into Mistra. "There is a chemical combination proven to work effectively in combatting its effects— Germanium, Americium, and Yttrium, I believe. You may wish to speak to the Mythstar guild leader, System Admin:Cygnus, for his thoughts on the topic, as he spent some time exploring the Corruption Zone. Though..." Ash hesitates. "Well. If you meet him, I suppose you'll see."

100 BYTES PROCESSED

Tuesday

"While I wouldn't say the Steppes need the shrine, it's certainly convenient for all of us humans." Her lips quirk slightly. "This goes without mentioning the problem in Mistra. I believe all three shrines need to be active and present to clear the Corruption. Expansion of our regional survey depends on it."

Ash does not say 'Bingo' at Tuesday's suggestion, but she gives you a direct nod that indicates you're right on the mark. "Remarkably astute, Tuesday," she says with a small smile. "That's precisely what I've been working on— at least as of late. My original plans for the magnetic rail were for practical reasons, but I'm hoping to reshape them precisely for this purpose."

She stands up, stretching, massaging her tired wrists. "With all the Duraludon, Magnemite, and Klink we've gathered, I believe we should be able to power an electromagnetic device— no, a structure— with the size, intensity, and stability required to bring the Giant Shrine back to the Steppes."

Of course, she imagined Zapdos would not be happy.

Making an enemy of a Legendary Pokemon is perhaps not how Professor Ash wanted the survey team's time in Asper to end, but one way or another, the end is on its way.

300 BYTES PROCESSED