offtracks | for outbounds

for outbounds

[ In the end, Ingo's return to his home station doesn't come down to any action of his own at all.

Akari's the one who offers the trip. She doesn't make any promises, but after the work she has put in for the almighty Sinnoh, she insists that it owes her a favor. Ingo spends a few days contemplating it, sitting quietly in his favorite spots on the mountain. Can he really leave? Whatever else he may be missing, he has built a good life here in Hisui. He is happy, most of the time. He could stay, and know exactly what his future tracks look like, and there wouldn't be any problem with that.

But...even after all this time, he still can't quite ignore the gnawing ache in his chest. How much would he regret passing up this offer? Would it not just poison anything he might build here? He has to know. Maybe he'll regret leaving Hisui behind in the end, but at least he'll know.

So he spends some time making his goodbyes. He officially steps down as Warden, and accepts one of Lady Sneasler's elder kittens as a passenger. He bids farewell to the Clan. They let him keep his bracelet, and his tunic - keepsakes, for a one-way trip. The whole time, he cannot help but question himself - is this really right? He's abandoning people that he knows care for him, to return to a complete unknown. Is that selfish of him?

Maybe. Maybe it is. But he still cannot waste the chance. And, suppressing any lingering conflict in his heart, he does.

The flash of light separates him from Akari. He had expected that; though they've agreed to try and find one another again, they did not come from the same home station. Wherever he came from, it is dark and silent. Ingo recognizes the feeling of the cool air on his skin: he's underground. Some sort of tunnel? It's hard to say from here which way is out. So he just starts walking. He hadn't been dressed for travel back then, so how far away from civilization can he really be?

After a little while, something bright and roaring barrels through the tunnel. Ingo hears it coming; he backs away from the tracks and presses himself against the wall, watching the thing pass by with wide eyes. There are people inside. Some seem to be looking back at him.

He keeps closer to the shadows and moves more cautiously after that. Scary... ]

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[ Ah. He's resting - is he resting? Ingo pauses on the threshold of the room, wavers, and attempts to fade backwards down the hallway again. ]

[ Emmet doesn't notice right away, given that the giant weighted blanket known as Mercury is obstructing part of his vision— but some of the floor does creak slightly, and Emmet snaps to attention at the sound. ]

Oh— you are back already? [ shove, c'mon, Mercury, get off him already; ] Was everything okay? I do not think I threw away anything important.

Oh! Ah - I don't think so.

[ How would he know? Emmet could have done anything he wanted to the room, and Ingo wouldn't know the difference. Was he supposed to be looking through his things? Or...unpacking? He supposes he didn't really do that either. ]

Ought I to do something else...?

[ If he were marginally more upright he'd shrug. As it is, a slightly more insistent push gets Eelektross off of him and up into the air, at which point Emmet also sits up properly, tilting his head. ]

Not really. Don't think there is any supposed to be for this, so whatever you want to do is fine.

[ A pause, before he hesitantly pats the seat cushion next to him, smile mild? The intent is more 'you can sit down, if you want', but he doesn't want to have it accidently come off as 'get over here' or anything like that instead. ]

[ Is that meant as a real invitation...? Ingo is really having a difficult time reading Emmet at all. Granted, he has never been the best at that in general. In the Clan, an invitation to share space with a stranger would be more ritualistic...but then, why should any of that apply, in this circumstance?

After what is certainly too much hesitation, Ingo comes to take the seat indicated. Gliscor flops over him on the large seat - comfy! Ingo's also noticing the comfort of the furniture; he's just a little too uncomfortable in general to really relax into it yet. ]

[ He laughs a little to try to lighten the mood after Ingo sits down so stiffly, though maybe just a little bit nervously. ]

I am Emmet. I am not going to bite, or get mad, or anything like that.

[ How ... how do they do this. 'How much do you remember?' mmmmaybe shouldn't be the first thing he asks, like that's all he cares about. There's so many things he wanted to say to Ingo if when they saw each other again, but with the way things are, and how they've been... ]

This is ... probably a lot. I know. [ He is, generally, a lot. ] Probably skipped past a couple of stations on the way here. Ssssso. Yup. You can ask me whatever you want.

Edited 2025-10-07 04:37 (UTC)

[ What questions does he have? There's too much; Ingo finds that his mind is instantly blank, in spite of the many obvious questions. What can he ask that won't be upsetting? That isn't just his continued bafflement over all the strange machines here? ]

There's - more Pokemon?

[ He noticed signs of more than just Chandelure (and Haxorus? Is that one supposed to be on his team, too?) in that room. That's several, and large ones at that...he needs to start finding some form of employment as soon as he can. ]

[ '... not much, then,' the answer to the question he didn't ask. ]

Ah— yeah. I've been taking care of them.

[ They'd always split the care and handling of their Pokemon across the both of them anyway, regardless of whose name and ID it is any one of them was originally registered to, so.

(Chandelure hovers in a little closer.) ]

Did you want to see everyone?

[ Oh, no. He's done this to himself. This sounds incredibly overwhelming at the moment, but Ingo's not sure how to politely say that he doesn't want to reunite with the Pokemon he used to know and love right this second. There's probably no way. So. ]

Yes, very well!

'Very well'? [ That's a little... that sounds like Ingo's just ... going along with it? Has Emmet just been dragging Ingo along? ] You do not have to. You know. If it would be too much right now. We have a lot. But they will understand if I or Chandelure or Eelektross explain.

[ A break, hesitant. ]

That goes for the rest of this too?

I do not want to — make you think — you have to? [ A little haltingly, a little staccato with the effort to get the words out, but he continues anyway. ] Any of this? You can pull the brakes any time you like. If here is not ... if you want space I will give it to you.

Oh! [ HE MESSED UP ] Not at all! They have waited so long, it would be cruel to make them wait longer!

[ The same is true of Emmet. Ingo had, perhaps, anticipated a bit of a harder time in finding any people or Pokemon he'd known before. He sort of thought there'd be a period of getting accustomed to the new time and place, learning how to navigate and fend for himself there, before he had any personal success. Ah, but he should not measure a gift Piloswine's tusks! He puts on the nearest thing to a smile that he can manage. ]

[ ... insert the equivalent of the frysquint dot gif here. Ingo...

Emmet just surreptitiously glances (or at least tries to) at Chandelure and Eelektross about this; yes, no, ok, go? Hell, he even looks at Gliscor for cues. Giant vampire bat who is verrrry attached to Ingo, what is your wisdom. ]

... Okay. Fine. [ He is not entirely convinced Ingo has checked safety but he is? going to trust him to say to stop if needed? Or at least Gliscor to, considering the happenings back in the tunnel. ] Not-so-big ones first. Sorry, Garbodor, Conkeldurr, Haxorus, Crustle— please be patient! Axle and Spoke, Excadrill, Accelgor, your attentions please!

[ For now, it will be four Pokemon— though two of them appear to be the same species— that are joining the three already out. Everyone play nice and don't instantly bury Ingo maybe. ]

Edited 2025-10-08 05:18 (UTC)

[ Hey, Ingo's here now! Full steam ahead, right?

Gliscor seems somewhat more doubtful about this plan, but he ultimately doesn't do anything to stop Emmet. He can see what these newcomers do first, at least. Which is, mostly, to swarm Ingo. He oofs lightly as the little brown one (Ground, maybe Steel?) hits him in the middle, with the armored bug following closely behind. ]

Ah - hello, there!

[ Overwhelmed as he is, Ingo does love Pokemon. Some of the tension he's carried all day loosens somewhat as he pets the two. The two identical Pokemon (and isn't that interesting) hover nearby. It feels friendly, though. There's baggage with these four, yes, obviously plenty he's forgetting...but somehow, the fact that he doesn't remember them even a little makes it easier to just treat it like a new meeting. Those, he can handle. ]

[ Ingo can probably conclude that Excadrill is responsible for at least some of the signs he'd noted earlier, though it isn't so obvious with the bug or identical pair. The bug does chitter excitedly, and the floating steel types emit some sort of pleased sounding electrical hum.

Emmet for his part watches on with faintly narrowed eyes, fingers playing over the surfaces of some of the remaining Pokeballs at his belt as he also thinks about some of the ones who might be just a PC uplink away. So far okay, huh ... if not too much has changed he thinks— Ingo might be feeling a little better than he has been? If he can handle more, or if he insists he's ready ... Escavalier, Galvantula, Durant, and Archeops he might be able to bring out and introduce one at a time, they probably won't crowd Ingo too much ... Gigalith, not the best idea to bring out indoors for multiple reasons. Haxorus would already be pushing it.

But all that is hypothetical, anyway. For now— everyone is happy to see each other? Good. That's good! They just have to keep things good, and not overwhelm or rush too fast. ]

Excadrill, we found in the underground. [ he explains, gesturing at the ground type. ] Have raised since he was a little Drilbur. Accelgor— technically mine first, but we traded for them to evolve.

[ And they both are clearly very comfortable in their position wrapped around Ingo's middle whether or not he remembers when and how he them or not. The two Klinklang hum a little louder in turn as Emmet introduces them next. ]

Axle and Spoke we were gifted as eggs.

Edited 2025-10-12 00:47 (UTC)

[ Ingo's eyes tick dutifully from Pokemon to Pokemon as Emmet makes introductions. His memory for names is fair, but he's not used to meeting this many new people or Pokemon all in one day!

Personal names for the Steel-types, but not the other two? He's not sure what to make of that. Who gifted them the eggs? Is there some larger family he ought to -

- no, pull the brakes on that. ]

And what kind of Pokemon are they?

Klinklang. Everyone else has names too, [ Eelektross, as an example, waves a little from where he's still curled up in the air loosely near and around Emmet, ] but figured species would be better [ easier, a little less intimate, ] to start with.

[ Just, you know, addressing both Klinklang at the same time means using their individual names makes things easier! ]

Oh!

[ It's considered somewhat unusual to do that in Hisui. Ingo did anyway, of course, but most of how he interacts with Pokemon has always been unusual. ]

Yes, I do not...entirely recall any of their species. [ They seem sort of vaguely familiar? That happens with Pokemon, far more than anything else. If he spends more time with them, or sees them in battle, he'll probably figure it out. ]

[ Something briefly flashes in Emmet's eyes, there and gone again in a second, but he just smiles a bit more softly than usual. ]

I figured. Why I have not called the others out yet. Safety precautions. Do not want to go too fast and end up derailing.

[ Though, he tilts his head a little. ]

Will you not introduce yours to everyone? [ Well, everyone who's out, anyway. ] Or do they not like being indoors like this?

[ They'd seemed okay in the office earlier, but maybe that was just in comparison to the fact that everyone had been ready for a fight not moments prior? Gliscor seems a little wary still, so maybe they're just all more used to the open wilderness. ]

They are just not very used to it! Though, they are a bit large as well...?

[ That's part of why they're not used to it! People in Jubilife don't much like his entire team being loose in any of the buildings. Most have been in Akari's quarters or the dojo building before. In any case, it's really only polite to make sure it's really okay before just loosing a bunch of large Pokemon in someone else's home? ]

As long as they are not too heavy. Or tall enough that the ceiling would be uncomfortable for them. But you saw Haxorus earlier. She is pretty big and she still lives here too.

[ They've got decent clearance on their ceilings and all, but who knows, maybe Ingo picked up an Onix or something wherever he was.

The gaggle of assorted Pokemon who weren't present for the confrontation in the tunnel seem maybe mildly questioning in their own ways at the exchange, but aren't bothered enough to be budged from where they are. ]

Very well! Please clear the tracks!

[ Please let him up! He'll struggle free enough of the new Pokemon that he can reach his belt. He'll release the Pokemon one-by-one: ]

For those who have not met them already, this is Machamp and Alakazam! Then we have Tangrowth, Probopass, and Magnezone! Everyone, this is Emmet, my...brother. And this is Chandelure, and - oh, yes, those! I thought you might like those!

[ Magnezone has gone up to look at the Electric Lights! It missed you, human electrical grid! ]

[ A Magnezone? Probopass? Well, now he has to start trying to think of where all has the right kinds of special magnetic fields. Johto is marked off the list, he's pretty sure, the properties around Chargestone are pretty unique and not found in all that many other places ...

(Congrats, Magnezone! You have rediscovered not just the human electrical grid, but specifically Nimbasa's electrical grid! The city lit by the flash of lightning! This grid is extra juiced!)

(It's sure convenient that so many of these Pokemon float, huh?)

Emmet just smiles and waves at the crowd from his position on the couch, Eelektross looped loosely around his shoulders and then some. ]

Haha. Hello everyone! Or hello again, Machamp, Alakazam. I am Emmet. [ Those two in particular already know, considering, but they might as well do this properly. ] How was the coffee, by the way?

[ You receive the mental impression of something like a galaxy brain meme. Alakazam liked the coffee! ]

Is that what that was? It smelled very strong!

[ Now that he's standing amongst all of his own Pokemon, Ingo seems a bit more relaxed. The majority of his Pokemon don't seem terribly relaxed themselves, though. Only Magnezone is delighted by the lighting, and all of the rest are notably rather...large and slightly feral-looking? Well-kept, to be sure; Ingo knows how to care for his Pokemon! But you definitely get the sense that they're a bit closer to the wild. ]

[ Oh, that's— huh. That is new! ]

Really? It was not anything fancy ... just useful when you need to try to stay awake. Or not feel tired. Or if you just like the taste.

[ Really, it was bog standard break room coffee— he doesn't think it was that strong or anything?

Anyway, the state of Ingo's Pokemon definitely doesn't escape Emmet. Really definitely somewhere wild, but where...? ]

... Would they be more comfortable on the roof? There is a terrace there open to residents if they do not like being here. Do not have to relocate now but maybe later if they want?

[ Ingo perks up a little. ]

Perhaps so! I am sure they would enjoy it!

[ And him, he perhaps also might like to be outside and up high! ]

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