[Post 049] Video/Action for Fourth Wall

[francia]

[It is happening again. It is happening again.]

[Wrong canon. France has never seen The Giant, although he would probably confuse him with Goliath more than anything else. And, characteristically, that would make France return to his roots and completely freak out.]

[Still, it has some relevance here. The 'Gear seems to be picking up flashes of different cities and towns around Johto and Kanto, like someone is teleporting from one to the next without any real goal or direction.]

[After what amount to a few hours of this, the transmission seems to shutter, like the 'Gear has been fumbled, and panting becomes audible as the camera is turned to focus on a very wind-swept France whose expression is a strange combination of badly suppressed tension and far too much excitement.]

Has anyone ever noticed that all the towns around here look exactly the same? They have exactly the same shops and exactly the same standard layouts, just with some superficial topographical variations! I've noticed before, of course, but when you see them all together -

[He makes a wide, wild gesticulating motion with his free hand, unable to communicate how unsettling it is. Sure, France has planned cities, but nowhere is entirely planned like this.]

Also, what is with these crystals? They're all over the place!

Comments

[francia]

[France does a slight double-take before he remembers, his face pulling into a lopsided grin.]

Ah, I forgot! You left before Kanto was discovered. This is a whole other -

[He makes a disparaging tsking noise.]

Well, what passes as another country in this place. Everyone still inexplicably shows up in New Bark, though, so Goldenrod remains the hub point for those of us from other world. Quite a few people come out this way either to Celadon or Saffron Cities, though. They're all dreadfully boring places, sadly.

[He jabs a finger unnecessarily at the tower.]

These are new, though. They've started sprouting out of the ground in the weird, pointless, and vaguely disturbing way this place has about a week ago. No explanation as usual.

[dragonspeak]

[A memory tickles at him. No, something that Francis just said doesn't seem to add up.]

The train! [The word's blurted out as Merlin suddenly remembers.] We all bought tickets to visit the new city, and the Rockets attacked while we were on the way there. That was the new country, wasn't it?

[His words rush out in a flow, now that the pieces are falling into place.] But it sounds as if you've been exploring it for a while now. So I must've been gone for some time. Months, even.

[francia]

[France blinks, a flash of vague shock over his face.]

My God, it has been a while.

[He stares around for a bit, like he's trying to remember something and failing. When he returns his full attention to Merlin, he's got a strange expression on, a bit lopsided with amusement but strangely old.]

It's still strange for me to experience the passage of time like this. I think you've been gone for two years now. We've explored the majority of both Johto and Kanto, although occasionally this place has continued its love affair with spontaneous generation.

[Crystals everywhere included.]

[dragonspeak]

Two years?

[Merlin's voice emerges as a strangled squeak when he finally gets the words out.]

I've really been gone for that long?