Welcome to Gaia! ::

Wren has been spending some time exploring Paldea while the rest of Snagem has been attending classes. One of the things he had learned was that the school, strangely enough, used the library on the first floor as the public library for the entirety of Mesagoza. Which he had been taking advantage of quite a bit over the last few days. Before he knew it, he had learned the names of some of the more notable locales around the region but more specifically, he had identified two towns he had taken a deep interest in for different reasons.

As it turned out, one of Paldea’s towns, Cortazon, was well known for the incredibly fertile soil that made it an ideal farming hamlet that was famous across the region for producing the freshest produce. Especially the olives, from what he had been able to discover thus far. That little Pokemon Cera had hatched back in Porto Marinada was, apparently, another such Pokemon famous for living in that area. Smoliv, they were called. The other location currently intrigued him more. It was called Artazon and, despite the other town having the premier farmland, it housed this region’s Grass-type gym leader: a man named Brassius. After a lot of questions directed toward locals and reading every book he could find on the area, he had learned only two things: Artazon had been a mining town on the edge of the badlands a long time ago and that it had only been brought back to a lush, green landscape over the last century or so. According to the school’s history professor, the Gym Leader was a descendant of some Channeler whose name was lost to most of the region and they had been partly responsible for the all but miraculous transformation.

“Hmm… It sounds like I’m not going to get any more information on this topic from here…” The middle-aged trainer grumbled as he put away the last of the stack of books he’d just finished going through. “The Gym Leader may not be able to tell me much, either but it can’t hurt to go talk to him. If he has a knack for channeling as well, I might be able to learn some things from him. If nothing else, maybe I could learn about local Grass-types?” He voiced aloud, tucking another book back onto its shelf and lining it up with the shelf neatly. “Why am I even trying to justify this to myself? It’s not like the others are going to stop me. Anyone that matters is busy with classes right now.” Walking a few paces down the shelf, he tucked the last book back into its place and lined it up so it sat where it belonged, then went to the front desk.

“Do you happen to have a map of the region available?” He asked, offering a curious look as he did.

“Why, certainly. Is there anywhere in particular you’d like information on?” The receptionist asked, opening a new window on their computer screen displaying a map of the region.

“Yes, actually. I’m wondering where Artazon is in relation to this city?” Wren replied, watching as the receptionist focused in on a southern region of the map and expanded it a bit to show the area in question before turning the computer’s screen to face him.

“Alright, Artazon is here, in the far East of South Province Three almost directly to the East of Mesagoza. If you take the Eastern gate out of the city and follow the marked road through the canyon, you’ll find yourself in Artazon in just a few hours at most. It’s a relatively short distance, really but the path is a bit winding and it’s easy to get lost in the canyons if you wander off the marked road so do be mindful if you’re heading that way.” The receptionist explained, pointing to the areas as they named them so that Wren could follow along.

“I see. I could do some research on the soil quality in the canyon along the way and see if I can figure out how the area was revitalized before I try speaking with Brassius… “ Wren muttered, considering the best way to do that.

“Oh, do be careful doing that. Some of the local Pokemon aren’t what could be called ‘welcoming’ to humans. You could take a flying taxi if you prefer and ensure your safety.” The receptionist countered.

“I’ll be fine. I’ve been doing field research for years and I have a team of Pokemon that are perfectly capable of fending off most threats I might come across.” Wren responded, waving of the warning dismissively.

“Well, if you’re sure. Be safe outside the city, then, friend and good luck finding whatever answers you’re going out there looking for.”

“Thank you for the assistance and the well-wishes but I assure you I’ll be perfectly fine.” Wren replied, giving a confident smile and a thumbs up before turning away from the desk and beginning to walk out of the school.

“Is he… not wearing any shoes?”

Wren walked outside the school’s front door and paused, feeling the cool cobblestones beneath his bare feet and thinking for a moment. “If I’m going through the badlands, I’m guessing I’ll run into Rock, Ground and Steel-Types… Maybe some Poison-types… I’ll bring those three, Hemlock and Aconite are a given and I’ll round the group out with Nutmeg, I think.” He decided, using the more recent updates to the SNAG network to swap out the Pokemon he needed to before he started on his way. He thought back to the days before he had officially joined the team, when he’d happened upon a somewhat ancient model of hoverboard and first learned to ride one as he pulled the odd little device from his bag and hit the switch that would expand it to full size, tossing it out in front of himself as it began to take the familiar snowboard-like shape and bobbed lazily in the air about a foot off the ground.

“I’m still not the most comfortable on this thing… “ He muttered to himself as he took a moment to get himself in position on it, wobbling dangerously for a moment and thrashing his arms about as he fought to find his balance. After a moment or two, he managed to find the “sweet spot” where he was able to balance properly and then pushed the board to begin the journey as he’d been taught so long ago.

As soon as the board began to move, the channeler nearly fell off again but caught himself just as quickly, slowly picking up speed until he had the board moving at full tilt through the town. He had learned since refusing to attend the school as a student that many people in this region owned a Pokemon called “Cyclizar” and it was so common for people to ride them around like living vehicles that the city’s paths were more akin to roads with marked lanes than the smaller towns of the more rural regions. Thankfully for him, he was Unova born and raised and as such had spent enough time in an urban region that it was second nature for him to slip into the flow of traffic on his hoverboard and follow the roadsigns that led him to the East Gate. It took a moment to get approval to leave through it, however. Something about locals needing to prove they had been authorized to travel with a trainer ID or other form of travel permit to go out on foot.

“I don’t have a local ID… I’m not a native Paldean.” He’d explained to the guard. “A tourist from Unova. Technically a businessman. I’m doing some market research before deciding if I should try expanding my business into Paldea.”

“Dios mio… Businessmen. You’re always trying to expand somewhere, aren’t you?” The 20-something guard had bemoaned, a hand on his forehead. “Do you have your Unovan ID, at least?”

“Not exactly. I prefer to perfect a product before it hits the market and I only expand into places where I’m certain my product fills an empty niche. That’s what the research is for.” Wren countered, pulling his old XTranceiver out of his bag and pulling up his digital Trainer ID on it. “And I always have my ID.” After showing the guard his ID and trainer license, he was allowed to pass through with a warning to be mindful of Pokemon activity, apparently having seen an uptick in aggression from the local population after some students from the school had gotten into a scuffle with an oversized local species known as “Klawf” since the Snagems had begun attending classes. “I feel like I may have made a mistake deciding not to stay and attend these lessons…” He muttered to himself as he left the city behind, slowly gliding along the road on his hoverboard, casting his eyes to the various sights around the area.

“I can’t deny the local environment seems to be far more hospitable to a wider variety of life than most other regions have been in the past. Pokemon in this region seem to live in far more diverse areas that I’m used to seeing.” He noted, seeing some Pokemon he’d spotted in entirely unrelated locations while crossing the region via those taxis to reach Mesagoza in the first place. At the same time, however, there were definitely some Pokemon he was seeing for the first time here in these canyons. The best example were the crustaceans he spotted scuttling about here and there. “That must be one of those ‘Klawf’ the guard mentioned. They definitely don’t seem to be the friendliest critters, do they?” He asked himself as he passed a few of them, picking up speed when one reached out and tried to snip at him with its rather large claws.

Speeding along the road, Wren found a spot where he could tuck himself away safely, out of sight of most living things, and pulled a small kit from his bag, grabbing a handful of dirt from the canyon floor and quickly put his kit together so that he could take an analysis of the soil quality. It took a few minutes to get the dust not only collected but actually properly deposited into an assortment of vials partially filled with assorted liquids. “Hm… Strange. The soil seems to have a high amount of nutrients, yet very little grows here… Probably a result of the harsher weather conditions here. Not much I can do to counter that, directly.” He noted to himself, writing his findings in the notebook he usually kept with this kit. “What’s this?” He asked, picking up the only vial he hadn’t looked at yet. “This might explain it as well… The nutrients in the soil are more than adequate but it’s highly alkaline. That combined with the weather here would definitely cause issues with keeping a lot of plants alive. Most that would thrive in the temperatures here prefer more acidity and the things that like this alkaline soil aren’t likely to survive the weather, making this a very specialized environment for the plants that do grow.” He wrote some more in his notebook before taking the various vials and pouring their contents in separate puddles rather far from one another, tucking the kit back into his bag and pulling out a bottle of water he took one large drink from before proceeding to dilute the puddles he’d poured out with the remainder. “I’m not going to cause undue harm to these plants if I can help it.” He announced to himself, knowing that the chemicals he used wouldn’t hurt most plants but not wanting to take the risk he might be wrong about that with these ones.

Throwing his bag back on and getting back on the road on his hoverboard, the dreadlocked channeler made his way across the badlands toward the East with very little trouble aside from a singular Klawf that seemed to be stalking him until he released Hemlock and the Cacturne made a showing of his Needle Arm’s strength on a rock that had fallen into the path. A convenient excuse to show their stalker not to mess with them without having to directly attack, Wren had decided. Calling Hemlock back after the scarecrow Pokemon’s attack had demolished the large rock and beginning to move again, he noted Klawf was slowly scuttling back into the canyon and appeared momentarily horrified.

It didn’t take long after that to reach Artazon, whereupon Wren stopped and looked back toward Mesagoza. “I guess it would take a lot longer if I’d been walking… He admitted to himself. “I supposed it’s fair the guard assumed I wouldn’t be able to keep up with those lizards. It’s not like our hoverboards are exactly commonplace. Speaking of…” Stepping down from it and hitting the button that would shrink the board to it’s smallest size, he stowed the device in his back and made his way into the town. Feeling the cool, damp grass of the town’s carefully curated lawns beneath his feet, he felt a sort of tingle run through his body. This town was practically glowing from the Grass energy in the air and the earth beneath his feet. “I see why people might think the gym leader here could have been related to a channeler. The energy here feels like it’s being maintained by an active channeler but I imagine the average person can’t feel it.” Looking for the local Pokemon center, Wren was once more surprised to be reminded that Paldea didn’t have one in every single town, rather, it had them spread out across the region in “convenient” locations ala service stations. “Oi… Cultural differences aside, that’s more annoying than I’d like it to be.” He muttered, deciding to find a local who had a map that could point him to the closest Pokemon Center.

Once he did, he groaned and shook his head. “That’s way too far out of the way… I’ll just have to be careful not to get into any unnecessary battles…” Looking around for a moment after that, he found himself standing near a large battlefield in the center of town. “This must be where the gym battles take place. Where’s the gym, though?”

Wren jumped slightly when someone answered his absentminded question, not having considered that someone might have actually been listening to him mindlessly speaking to himself as he thought aloud. After a moment or two, what the man had said sunk in fully and he blinked away the stupor that kept him from responding right away ."Oddly enough, I'm actually not planning to challenge him. I heard a rumor in Mesagoza that piqued my curiosity and I'm wondering if he might indulge me with some information." He explained. "Thank you for the assistance, stranger!" He laughed inwardly at the man's Jumpluff and its antics before looking around for the building he'd been directed toward. Once he spotted it, he offered a wave of thanks and headed toward it. "Thanks for the help!"

As he approached, the channeler couldn't help but notice how clean and "modern" the building looked. "Where's the personality? This guy's gym is nothing like Burgh's." He shook his head in mild disappointment, having been expecting something a bit more outlandish up close. Maybe the artsy personality was all on the inside? He reached for the door, figuring he would find out once he went in.

Wren paused for a moment as he entered the building, taking in the plain, white walls and the smattering of very dull posters on them before the receptionist got his attention. "Uh... No, not exactly. I'm actually looking to get some information from Brassius if he's got the time to talk?" He explained, walking over as a single drop of sweat ran down his forehead. This building was making him feel nervous for some reason. Maybe it was the sterile look? He was used to gyms showing the personality of their leaders and having people milling about as they learned the trade of training Pokemon but there was no one here for some reason.

"Um... before that, though... What's with the lazy design? Gyms are supposed to show challengers what to expect from the gym leader, aren't they? I saw the art installations around the town but that can't be it, can it?" He asked, worried what kind of person the gym leader might be if that was his idea of expression.

Wren listened to the receptionist's explanation, taking a moment to consider what she was saying before nodding calmly. "That makes sense. And yes, I'm from Unova, actually. I'm used to the flashy gyms our leaders maintain." He admitted with a small shrug. "I'm in no serious hurry but I haven't taken the time to explore the town yet. I can take a look around for him while I'm out looking around. I assume the Sunflora statues are part of the art exhibits I saw scattered around?" He asked, holding a thumb to the underside of his chin as he thought about the many statues and figures he had seen all over town on his way in.

Wren nodded as the receptionist passed him the pamphlet with the map of town within, absorbing her explanation of its use in his new quest. "He must be quite proud of his work. I know Burgh has his moments so it seems all artists have that much in common." He admitted with a small laugh, turning to step back outside with a wave to the receptionist. As he exited the building, he opened the pamphlet and looked it over, finding that the closest of the statues he was looking for was actually located just outside the gym building.

"Surrendering Sunflora, huh?" He vocalized, approaching the statue and looking it over. "It's subtle...but I can kind of see what he was going for, I think. He's definitely not here, though. So where is the next?" Looking back at the map, he'd identify where the next closest to him was and head that direction.

Wren took in the sight of the statues, beginning to see by the third that Brassius clearly had a thing for Sunflora. Perhaps he saw them, specifically, as his "muse"? Burgh had a thing for bugs so it made sense to him. Artists could have some strange obsessions. He wasn't the most discerning person as far as having an eye for art but he was a Grass-type specialist and these were certainly lifelike statues, very detailed and the emotions they were apparently meant to portray read through clearly for him.

After checking out the next several without finding Brassius, he found himself approaching one that seemed almost new by the town's battlefield. Had he missed that one when he first came into town? More importantly, he found himself approaching a green-haired man who appeared to be around his own age touching up the almost-new paint on the statue. "Brassius?" He asked as he approached. "You've got a talent for showing emotion in Grass-types I don't think I've ever seen before." He praised the man before even being certain it was truly him. Though to be fair, he reasoned, who else but the man behind the art would be allowed to touch it if he were still alive?

Wren waited patiently, watching as Brassius continued touching up the pain on this statue in amused silence for however long it took him to finish up. he'd seen how Burg could get engrossed in his passion projects in the past, not to mention Lenora when she was on a dig site or the Striaton triplets when they were dreaming up new recipes. Any gym leader with even an inkling of artistic expression was like that, it seemed. When the man was done and turned to convserse with him properly, he offered a polite bow in proper greeting. "My name is Wren. Wren Briony of Lentimas Town, Unova." He introduced himself. And your receptionist was kind enough to explain the art exhibits in more detail when I inquired about speaking with you." He explained, laughing a bit as he waved the pamphlet in the air for a moment. "Your work is lovely."

Stuffing the pamphlet into his pocket after that, his laugh calmed and his expression turned a bit more serious. "I'm actually not looking to challenge you. Not today, at least. I was hoping you might be able to answer some questions I have about Artazon and it's founding. I've read some interesting stories and they seem to all mention relatives of yours." He explained himself, crossing his arms and leaning against a post behind him(after checking it was neither part of one of Brassius' works or wet from fresh paint first). "Any chance you have a bit of time to chat? I don't want to hold you up if you're too busy."

Wren nodded in agreement with Brassius' sentiment. "I understand, completely. I've been trying to bring greenery to Lentimas for years and so far all I've managed is a municipal vegetable garden my parents help to maintain these days. It's a wonderful feeling when someone sees the hard work that goes into creating something beautiful and lasting." He voiced before continuing.

"Thank you! I've read tales that say the town was once useed for mining and that once the mines dried up, that your family, among many others, moved into the area and began restoring it to a verdant hillside. The claim is that there were Grass Channelers among those who came to aid in the restoration and that had a great deal to do with the success." he explained. "No one seems to know for sure as far as the books I've read can confirm so I wanted to come directly to the source for confirmation." His tone expressed curiosity more than anything else. "Naturally, as a Grass Channeler, myself, I wanted to find out and look into the methods used if the tales are true."