002 - Plot & Setting

[☬Teikoku]

TO BEGIN: A CRUMBLING WORLD

PART I. THE SLOW DESCENT

Long ago, the world was full of continents and sea. This world had a large number of differences. Generally, the world held home to creatures named 'Pokemon' animal like beings with mystical powers. These powers were coveted and wished by the people. That is when they would being to capture these 'Pokemon' and train them to fight. Of course, some did not treat these Pokemons as weapons, but as friends and companions, sometimes even their own children. In either case, time developed different kinds of capture, and nearly everyone had a few Pokemon, if not more. It was a common thing to have, much like clothes or being able to read. Having a pokemon was a status in life, it meant you were part of the norm.

Of course, each region had it's own local Pokemon, and some had some generally shared Pokemon. However, going into such details would take years, if not ages. What is important, is that the first signs of 'The Exodus' was found in the region of Orre. This region slowly became barren of Pokemon, and eventually, the only Pokemons that existed were those of trainers. As the Pokemon left, the land became difficult to live on, and eventually, it was overtaken by far too many disasters to be saved. The people left that region, considering it dead. But this was far from the last time that such a process would happen. Another region, Ransei, fell.

And then more regions, more continents began to fall. Unova, Kalos, Hoenn, Almia. Eventually, all regions had begun to fail, and the world realized that they had a crisis. Along with the failing lands, people were dying, plagues were sweeping through everyone, and most of all, all of the Pokemons were vanishing. People began to feel panic, and anarchy creeped upon the world. Soon, there was only one region left where people and pokemon existed. Many of the other regions held no more pokemon, and was on it's last legs for the civilization of humans. This final region, was the continent of Johto and Kanto.

PART II. NEAR EXTINCTION

Johto and Kanto, as the only regions having wild Pokemon, were frantic. They began calling all remaining trainers from the various countries, looking for all of the Pokemon species. During this time, a company began to rise above all of the others. Sanctuary. This company had begun learning how to construct an environment, and thus they set to work, making a man-made island that they code named 'The Ark'. Of course, as trainers began to flutter in with every type of Pokemon imaginable, a great many were directed to the island. There, they were sent to the remote facility, where a team of scientists took a few samples from each Pokemon. Each trainer made a bit of money on that, and were sent back to Johto and Kanto.

Of course, they couldn't know what the true purpose of The Ark was. In so far as the world knew, The Ark was meant to understand and find a way to preserve Pokemon. Those that lived on the island never showed their faces again, but supplies were sent over there still. That's when the problems that had effected the rest of the world began to touch the two regions. Slowly, wild Pokemon vanished. Breeding Pokemon was not longer a thing, as most of them were infertile. Pokemon began dying, or passing on as age caught up to them. And then it began to ravage humanity. People lacked food, became sick and died. Anarchy took over and people were afraid of dying, afraid of no longer being alive. Society began to collapse, and the world had become a post apocalyptic world.

And that was the world that the hermits on The Ark had found themselves returning to, thinking themselves far too late.

PART III. THE LAST HOPE

Those on The Ark had come back to the world, to share their findings, but only to be faced with the collapse. This pressure, augmented from the one they had before, was suffocating. Many of the staff simply resigned, and went to join their families, convinced of the end of days. The project, secret still then, was becoming abandoned, and with no personnel to run it. However, a small team stayed. Many of these scientists were still trying to find something, anything, that may help their slowly dying world. Pokemon were now gone, and all they had left were the meager strands and information they had managed to save keep.

Why had the world crumbled when the Pokemon disappeared? Even the legendaries, the Pokemons of great power, seemed to have vanished. The team was at a loss, as they could figure out that the nature of Pokemon sustained their world. But something had attacked all of the Pokemon and then left them with this crumbling world. Whatever had attacked the Pokemon was now attacking humans themselves. It was frustrating, it was saddening, and most of all, it was despairing. The already small team became even smaller at that time. Time was up, and they couldn't find anything. Slowly, and surely, there wasn't even a team, only a singular individual. Their name is lost to time, but it is said that person stubbornly held on, still trying to find an answer to everything.

And finally, in desperation, noticing that the only Pokemon sample was missing was that of Arceus, the individual set out on a journey. Going to the last place that it was said that Arceus had been seen, in the now forsaken land of Sinnoh, this individual found themselves in a different world. Desolation, isolation and then the sense of nothing was powerful. If that person had given up, the world would have recovered on it's own. But perhaps, that's not what was meant to be, as they stumbled across one lush place. But the lushness was slowly fading, as the individual dared to enter.

And Arceus was waiting.

TO CONTINUE: A NEW WORLD

PART IV. ARCEUS' LAST GIFT

No one really knows what happened, but from word of mouth after the event, it is said that Arceus spoke with the individual at length. Eventually, we know Arceus gave the last information the individual needed. And with the last of it's strength, brought them back to The Ark. After that, it passed. It's grave stone still stands today, a monument that was at first a simple marker. However, it is said that this was the last bit of the puzzle that the individual needed. Putting together the information, they began to research heavily, calling back the members of the team, to see if they could work together again. The call was only mildly successful, simply because the world had begun to truly collapse by then.

Some of them were dead, some of them were simply unable to be found, and some that had managed to remain didn't want to engage in a fool's endeavor. Eventually however, people began to drift towards The Ark. Some volunteered to be experimented on, some volunteered to learn and aid. Whatever it was, in the end, perhaps it was the best of things. As people began to gather, a solution was forming itself. However, the individual did not get to see it's completion. Rather, it took them years and years, something around a hundred at least. The declining of the world was much slower then with the other regions, considering Johto and Kanto's double regions and wide expanse of nature and the sheer number of wild Pokemons that had been there.

That was their saving grace, as one day, a solution had finally been perfected.

PART V. THE FIRST SERUM

The First Serum, know in that time as 'Arceus' Grace' was developed. The first subjects showed that they could indeed take on human and Pokemon characteristics. As the Pokemon no longer could exist in this world, The Ark had decided to fuse the two. And it seemed to have worked, as a more general version was available to the public. This version gave a very minor touch of the serum, only giving certain characteristics to those that took it. The full fusion of the human and Pokemon genome was still difficult and after quite a few deaths, they had found a trend. A trend that still exists today, as only those between the ages of 11 and 19 could take the serum and fully develop properly. So for the rest, the general serum, taken much like a vaccination, was the best choice.

Of course, the Serum came not without strange quirks or draw backs. Those that did manage to fuse completely had acquired a strange pattern. They had acquired something akin to a true name, allowing them to seek out soul mates or partners in which they could amplify their powers with. Some were born without one, and once a name had been carved, they could pair efficiently. This was a strange fascination, as people began to wonder just how this happened. Not only that, but there were other things that happened with the serum that most of the scientists had not expected, as it cropped up in the mass production aspect.

Namely, the fact that all virgins acquired cat ears and a cat tail. Initially, these could not be hidden or removed, as it was a part of the person completely. Removing it caused it to regrow over night. Of course, what was even more interesting, was that the fully morphed people often had other appendages, to represent their Pokemon. And some didn't, other then have some similar traits. But of course, learning how these pair worked, and how their powers did, began fights to test them. And with fights came those that wanted to control them, and then slowly, as each region began to breathe life into it once more, combat and control became a large problem. Armies were mass produced.

And then it begun.

PART VI. THE FIRST NAME WAR

It began within Orre once more. Over night, the tentative settlement was overrun. A new organization, named 'Team Chaos took it over. Their aim? To take the world with their army. Of course, this meant that the entire world began to mobilize and thus began the First Name War. Of course, the war itself was senseless, as it had been begun by a boy searching for his supposedly dead brother, and being joined by a companion. They had begun to fight Team Chaos, but they took over the settlement in Orre before the two could stop them. And without warning, that begun the war as other Team Chaos factions rose and tried to take control of the different regions. It was nearly hopeless, as the segregation between the fully morphed and the general populace had left the general populace without power.

But there was hope, as the two volunteered to an experiment, all in the hopes of stopping Team Chaos. They had their natural mismatching names wiped, and became the first Zeroes. Others joined them, and they became a team that could fight with any other of their name. The war became bloody then, as it made a blow to society that had just begun to recover. Of course, The Ark watched this war with horror. If that is how the first Serum had inflicted itself on the world, how would it continue? If they didn't do something it would begin to rot their world completely. Desperately, they started looking for an answer. And this answer was producing Legendary pairings out of the serum. Of course, that both did and didn't work. The Legendary pairs finished both sides of the war, before their power consumed them and destroyed them. The serum was also halted from distribution.

By the time the dust of the First Name War had settled, society was collapsing again, as their solution to prevent the decay was no longer there. Of course, the research piled into this was too precious to throw away. So they made a quick decision, and that shaped the world of today.

TO END: OUR WORLD

PART VII. THE SECOND SERUM

The Second Serum was created then. It had two parts. The first part was a general all version, given to every human being the moment they were born. The second part, holding the pokemon potential was withheld. In fact, The Ark demanded funding, and began to build on their island. They build a giant city, and only there would the second part of the Serum be administered and only to approved citizens. Of course, this strict regulation made it so that no Team Chaos could rise again and throw their world into turmoil. This caution was extreme, and regions felt a bit put out, but it was something they had to agree to. And that was the founding of Sanctuary, a city named after an organization that had built the island a long time ago.

Of course, once the city was built, people came in droves. Families, newlyweds, old people, anybody and everybody that wanted to live in the Paradise seeming town came. And with the sudden burst, it expanded even more. The man-made island was expanded, and still gets expanded to accommodate the people that are coming in. After all, this was the only place in the world where the second part of the serum was given. And many sought it because of it's perks. Longer lives, controlled aging, some control over the tails and ears and other such things. It was meant to be a paradise and since that time, despite the small age gap to be administered the serum, many have taken the second part, and finding themselves moving forward, doing good for the most part.

Sanctuary's Era had descended.

PART VIII. WHERE WE ARE NOW

Of course, these events were relatively long ago, something like two hundred to three hundred years.. Peace had been brought to the regions, and still Sanctuary recieved immigrants. It's people were happy and life was hunky dory. There was good and bad like there always was in life.

However, there may be some dark clouds on the horizon.

MADE BY ★MEULK OF GS