These buggers were carfty, he could see it now. With how many times he'd felt like he'd step on a trap only to delay himself from walking into another, Laurence would have thought that maybe he'd simply repeat what he did with the Ariados string, and have his companion Crobat tear at it all, however, everything around him seemed to be snug enough and constrictive that none of his flying Pokémon would have made it far before getting stuck in what he could only define as a real-life cat's cradle game. 

"They always give these jobs to the grunts...Sigh, C'mon, lets see if maybe one of you can do something..."

The doctor fished in his coat for a Pokeball, releasing the Toxicroak that made quick work of the situation. It wouldn't take but a minute or two for them to be able to have enough room to at least venture towards their destination, Laurence carefully bobbing and weaving his way through the layered traps till a safe zone could be found. 

"Well, hopefully, whoever goes through this has an easy time...I don't get paid enough to go and clean up Pokemon messes..."

He'd say as he'd make his way back to the office. 

---

Ga6e0oSy

If there was something he hated, it was rumors. Whispers and gossip tended to muddy any clarity, any origin of what the start of the problem was, and when it came to Rocket, not only did it sweep over them like the plague, but it stayed, rotting the thoughts of any good workers...doctors mainly.

It started with a family of four...The father had been assaulted by one of the Ariados who happened to be nesting nearby, catching him surprised whenever one of its strong stinger-like legs got him from behind. That is natural, Pokémon naturally attacked, they were Pokémon. What else could they do? Laurence was quick to dismiss stories like this, they'd been overhyped and fantasized over the most natural of things...But what had kept him listening was the effects after being diagnosed as entirely fine. Supposedly, he'd gone entirely ghost-faced, his features had slowly lost their touch, and his eyes had gone a startling purple, his hair turning a stark white. Now that was odd. And to make the story much more elusive, he'd changed in terms of personality, once a supposed calm fisherman turned violent, uncontrollable, and all under the span of mere days...Doctors had coined it as trauma, but civilians had dubbed it much darker. Yet, there was no definitive answer for it.

At least, that was where Laurence had been in terms of his thoughts on it.

So, then why exactly had he gone to the scene himself? Laurence overlooked the road, its various white hollow cocoons standing half as tall as he tried to find what could have been at least something that could have helped in giving him a sort of proof of this whole thing. But, no matter how many times he’d have his Crobat carefully aim an Air Slash at one of the cocoons that littered the roads, he’d find that there was no one occupied it unless it was the unlucky newborn Spinarak that would see its first and last light of day, no others who happened to have suffered a similar fate to the man from the rumor.

“Nothing can be too easy I guess…”


He’d remind himself if it were then he’d easily have a lead on things, and that would have meant that this could have been entirely solved, but clearly, Rocket had little intel on it…And so in a way, it’d fall to him to go and find a way to get into the research of it all, even if he had little hope he’d get too far into it.

"C'mon Toxicroak, keep it up..."

Amid the gust that blew past him and the dust that had finally settled after the ground rumbled underneath, he could see the figure of his Toxicroak stand tall...It had been a rough fight, this whole "capture and subdue" mission that the higher-ups had sent him on, but he was sure that Toxicroak would be enough to take down one of the many Pheromosa that littered Petalburg City. However, currently, it doesn't seem like the case at the moment, with how savagely the ultra beast fought...For such a delicate look, it had packed a dangerous punch and a force that at times had made even the strongest grunts' knees buckle under them. And now Laurence found himself locked in battle with one. Both he and one of his few Pokémon he felt best for the job. The amphibian raised its large hands up, the point on each ready to go for a devastating jab before a flash came before it.

CRACK. BOOM!

Laurence didn't know what had happened, or what could have caused the noise, but as he registered it, he found that his Pokémon had no longer been standing before him, but rather the Pheromosa that cleared the distance, its spindly thin leg slowly putting itself back to the ground. Out of reflex, the doctor tried to jump back, wanting to put as much space as he could before he heard the ear-piercing cry the regal Pokémon let out. Shit, one kick and he'd likely die--

Pheromosa rose its leg once more, quick in its attempt to put both the doctor and his partner in endless rest as a lob of thick purple flew towards it, forcing it to bounce back. The lob caught on the ground, its stench of thick acidic contents enough to burn through the intoxicating scent of Pecha Berries, before Toxicroak leaped back in front, its body shielding Laurence once more as it let out a threatening croak, its own way to goad the Pokemon in a manner of 'Bring it.'

---

He had always raised a brow whenever Howard had gotten into that spiel about Rocket and his distancing about it, that same way Laurence did however, with how his current "employee" was, there was little to prove it. If he hated it, and yet he went and dragged someone else into it...How much could he have hated it? That was the doctor's thinking anyway...But Howard surely would have known that was the thought process behind it. He was a perceptive man as always. But, for fear he'd have to sit through such a thing, Laurence rose a hand, waving both the smoke and the speech away. 

"Right...Right...Well, you getting an Iron Moth for me up close and personal would be great, it'd make this damn thing a lot easier too, much easier than having to try to guess and wait for the remains of whatever victim it gets. I just need a bit of venom it produces fresh to get an anti-venom ready. But me working faster would simply depend on whether you can get one fast."

Laurence could almost see the notes he had been working on, each one documenting what little he could find from the prey of the paradox Pokémon, he'd been working but with such few opportunities to actually observe or take venom directly from it, it simply made the work a lot harder than need be. 

"So, think you can do that, Boss Man?" 

howard slayte
fB_wHH_j

So, he'd been researching something that even the man before him didn't know...That made his throat itch, a sense of discomfort at the idea of Hoenn harboring such unknown things. Had he just been ignorant of it all? Letting him and his child stay in a place that had been a den of mysteries all along? He kept his concern to himself, finding it easier to nurse the shortening bud he smoked.

"So you're just sitting ducklets here too then with these anomalies...typical. You really have no idea how hard it is to not be able to get close to one of those things and still expect much of an antivenom…The least Rocket could have done was give me something to work with.”


In a breath of exasperation, Laurence scratched his head with his free hand, trying to think what more he could have extracted from just observation on camera. The things had floated with nothing to propel them, and when they weren’t trying to simply roam around, in some strange manner he’d seen even the largest of Kangaskhan be taken down with but a few strange cuts of its sharp wings. There wasn’t much he could do unless they would bring one of the things up close and ensure that he’d live to observe it.

“And don’t get too comfortable saying I like working with Rocket…You may be up there, but my opinion stays the same. The benefits are nice, and Sophia seems to be doin’ great even with the change…But you’re still a bunch of doomed criminals.”


You’re. He wouldn’t go and bring himself to call himself one. He healed and protected, he had a difference to this. However, even the thought of it seemed to make his muscles twitch in defiance. He could sense his body had known he had been now a part of this.

howard slayte
9OLP6tJp

“They’re resting on the desk for a moment…fifteen minutes to myself hopefully won’t have the work I did disappear…”


He replied, his apathy palpable as he exhaled, the smoke coming from him like the remnants of ash from a torkoal. He knew he was doing work, if he weren’t he’d have shown such a lack of care when the bastard had stumbled into his hospital long ago…And from when he left, that morning, he had already been a few pages deep.

His eyes glossed over the landscape a bit more as Howard got ready to go about his managerial rant of work and the need to do it, taking a moment to notice the small things that he hadn’t given much thought the first time as he prepared to have his words blend into the noise of the cavern. Blend into the crunching rocks of dwebble who had littered the ground, the occasional brute bonnet who stomped about, and above the cries of swellow who circled the skies, However, luckily he was spared from it, a rare start from the admin.

“Yeah, maybe I’ll offer it if you give me a bit more time to breathe…”


Laurence gave a dry laugh as he fished in his pockets for his light, tossing it towards the Admin as he took another drag of his vice.

“So, what exactly are these Pokemon…I mean, I see they are based on Volcarona…But why do they look like that? From the typing of it, to its look, nothing should have it so distorted…And just how many of those things are out here?"

howard slayte
pSgXvvjL

PURCHASING/REDEEMING

welcome to the poké mart!

1X Safari Pass (50 PD)

TOTAL

do come again!

50 PD

He knew it wasn't much, and he could damn sure tell in Grigori's tone that he knew it either, but that wasn't something to complain about right now when neither of them had a flashlight, nor were bioluminescent. But, with the Shinx he'd unleashed for the moment, they were at least given some sort of grace to move and have a faint clue of where they could have been headed. While the ample light had done its job, Laurence finally got a better look at the place, how his Shinx's light made beautiful refractions from the crystal, highlighting where the group had been, and when he looked up, he could see better the shadows that floated above him, their ignorance of the group's position a blessing. 

"You're telling me...'Go find a decent cure', is just as helpful as telling me you have an injury..."

He quietly cursed howard slayte under his breath as they kept moving, making their way toward the large maw of a cave. The shinx paused for a moment, waiting for its trainer and colleague to decide to pull back or push forward, but when Laurence continued, his steps slowed as the cyan hued pokémon tentatively moved forward.

"Yeah, you're right...Guess we gotta take the risk here too then. I would suggest you keep that big lug ready for whatever comes soon 'nuff then, sure my shinx is strong, but I'm sure the big guy is stronger."

He hated the idea of it, but he couldn't poke a hole in such a deduction. Staying on the same path that many others surely have taken would have yielded nothing...Unfortunately, just like people, Pokémon had their sense of intelligence, and surely, they'd get used to such a thing and avoid it. And delaying such a catch would only make it a lot harder for them to return.

It wouldn't have been long before the Shinx's ear would catch a note of the beating of a heartbeat, its tail flickering a moment in the apprehension of what could have been ahead, signaling to Laurence to slow down. Shit, so they would encounter something down here...That was just his luck.

"Stay slow and steady, I'm sure you've done it plenty of times here, but I don't plan on being lunch for any beast down here...Shinx, move in front and continue to light the path. The moment you see something that isn't us, don't be afraid to go and fry the thing." 

The doctor's words were final, with the Ursaluna in the back, and the only light source in the front, he took no chances. 

---

Grigori Sokolov

A Medical Patch

character's curry entry

[break]

thread summary: As Laurence gets ready to clock out, he is met with an injured Howard who needs medical assistance. It is through this meeting that the two break down both the intricacies and the feelings of both the former Sootopolis resident, and the Admin, revealing both Laurence's wanting to keep both him and his child safe, but also Howard's determination to provide force for Rocket's plans. [break]

why is it important?: Although the thread may not be extremely long, it was made to first, give a sort of theme to Laurence. As someone who comes from a more "action" themed forum and even other servers, I wanted to branch myself out from it and create a character that had both nuances but also would be refreshing. Secondly, I love the trope of a "caring figure", someone who clearly is more so about the care of someone else than themselves, and it shows as I wrote out Laurence. From the way he speaks about Rocket's deeds, to how he has to consistently deal with troubles he finds that Rocket has put him and now his daughter in, all of it leads to his decision. He isn't exactly someone who reads as a tragic figure. Still, he is to read as a more hierophantic person, someone who enjoys routine, he enjoys knowing his decision, and as a figure who while not explicitly a king, takes command in the face of issues that affect others.

The sounds of the inhabitants in the Chasm had done great to keep his attention from the growing headache that began to make its presence known. Hell, it'd begun since he'd been here, the slight nagging at his nerves as he picked up his coffee and scanned over the recent reports left on his desk, his supposed "babysitter" nowhere in sight. Just a nonstop day of reading and writing...However, that was better than what the other grunts had been whispering about before their departure, them being the unlucky frontlines to going into the unknown den. He was one of the lucky ones, he'd been glad for that.



The doctor brought his cigarette to his lips, the lighter giving a faint spark before he took his first inhale...It'd settle the nerves down, for the moment at least…Till Howard would come back, pestering him with repetitive questions, “What has your face so damn damper? Is there anything new to report? You realize you’ll overdose on coffee if you don't stop drinking it.” All of them fended off with him ignoring them, or his eyes glancing off the paper with a look of mild chagrin. While he had this downtime, the doctor's eyes roamed over the landscape he'd occupied for the past week or so.



Laurence hadn’t had much time to soak in the fact that he’d been in the chasm for so long, the sight of walls surrounding him as high as the walls could see settling in him in a wave of childish claustrophobia. When he’d been invited to the expedition, under the guise of researching the few anomalies of the Pokemon here, he’d taken it reluctantly but with hope that hed at least be able to have some sort of enjoyment with it, testing out anti-venoms, working with research, the things that would keep any sort of quiet and morbid doctor, well, alive. But this was much more of a drag…Laurence took a hit again from his cigarette. Yeah, a drag.

howard slayte 
AWVsH|hR

EXCURSION SIGN-UP

ADVENTURE IS OUT THERE!

WHICH EXCURSION?: 'GC EXCURSION B'
PARTICIPATING CHARACTERS: howard slayte Laurence Whateley