Set in the original region of Arciel, Legends Rising is a route-inspired, but not strictly route-based, Pokemon roleplay. Pick a faction, pick a class, and strike out into the wild to take on the League, master Contest coordination, research the mysteries of Pokemon and Arciel, and much, much more. Will you be a classic trainer? A criminal? A farmer? Choose your destiny on Legends Rising.
Three optional icebreaker questions are offered: 1. If you had one extra hour of free time a day, how would you use it? 2. Besides war and diplomacy, what would be the best way for countries to settle disputes? 3. What is one article of clothing that someone could wear that would make you walk out on a date with them?
Feel free to discuss any of these or use your own icebreaker!
Juni sighed as she sat down at another table. She felt so old here now! Old! Her! At the tender age of twenty-eight! But still, she had had no way of knowing this thing was supposedly for the youngin’s… or the older as she registered a few people as they passed. Well, oh well. Wasn’t the worst way she’d ever spent a day.
As movement at the seat across from her caught her eyes, Juni glanced up and found herself staring at her new date. She… he? They?? Looked pretty young too. Juni bit the inside of her mouth again. “Ah, uh, hi….” she gave a small wave and adjusted her glasses right after. “Juni Savage….”
As Wren looked about for their table, they took a moment to observe both their surroundings and the other people in the vicinity. Hmm, oh look, there was their name. It looked like they were with Juni, hmm. Oh thank Arceus, no handshake. Wren's hand was still hurting from the vice grip Derby had given them earlier. Giving a small nod, they smiled and sat down. "Wrenova Raven~," they replied easily enough, "Though Wren is fine."
Sitting down, Wren took a moment to read the icebreakers. Oh, these were actually pretty interesting now, weren't they~. Hmm, well it didn't hurt to ask at any rate. "Would you like to start with the icebreakers? Or did you have something else in mind~?" As long as there wasn't anymore tedious small talk, Wren was sure they'd be just fine.
Juni gave a small nod to Wren as they introduced themselves. She adjusted herself in her chair a couple of times as she too looked over the ice breakers. “Ah… well….” she adjusted her glasses as she read over them. What would she spend one hour of free time doing? Sleeping. That wasn’t very interesting or engaging. What article of clothing would make her walk out on a date with someone? Can’t think of one… That left the second one. “Ah uhm…. Besides war and diplomacy, what would be the best way for countries to settle disputes?” she read verbatim off the card.
Red eyes flicked back to purple ones, and Juni waited for Wren to answer first. Sure she had picked the question, but Wren had kind of left it open or so it felt like anyways. It was only after the fact that she would consider that this was actually a lot more personal a question than she herself was ready to answer. Oh well.
Hmm, it seemed icebreakers were the way to go. Juni was so much quieter than Derby was. It was nice, really, though perhaps a bit awkward for Wren at that point. Wonder what she'll choose~. As it turned out, Juni would pick arguably the most difficult ice breaker out of the three. "Mmmm... that's a tough one~," Wren mused, putting a hand on their chin as they tried to think of what else could be used, "Well, I suppose it doesn't count as diplomacy but you could just, cut off things they need. I find people tend to back down pretty quickly when you have something they want. Otherwise, marriage seems to be a popular, if cliché arrangement," they continued, shrugging a little.
Blackmail always did have a good, quick way of getting things done. Otherwise, it would just take too long to see immediate results. "What about you? What other method could be used to settle disputes?" That question could very well give them a good idea about what kind of person Juni was. Though perhaps they had revealed a little bit too much about themselves.... and so early on too. Mmm, oh well, there wasn't really a way around it this time.
Juni’s features became subtly thoughtful as Wren spoke. Resource cut off was always an option when the opposing region had some interest in your own, but it was almost always non-mutual and led to… the questionable recourse of war. Or at least Juni thought so, anyways. The marriage comment right after earned a sharp almost bitter laugh. “Yeah I guess,” she answered. “As archaic as it is.”
As the question was returned to her, though, Juni half smiled. “I think each nation’s populace should be subjected to an intelligence test, and whichever one’s populace has higher scores gets to make all the decisions,” she answered before chuckling much softer. She’d wait for a moment before going on. “That was… a joke though considering each has it’s own definition of intelligence.”
Wren was glad that their attempt at a joke about marriage. Really, they didn't see the appeal of such a thing but so many people seemed to aspire to marriage as the normal thing to do. Juni was right, it was archaic and Wren was actually impressed that they found someone that seemed to think of it in the same way. "Archaic indeed~," Wren mused, smiling a bit more genuinely as they relaxed back in their chair.
Hearing Juni's answer though had Wren leaning in a little closer. Oh? Wasn't that interesting~. Quite the solution, even if it was passed off as a joke in the end. "How interesting~. I wouldn't have thought of that before. Perhaps if both countries agreed on the test? It'd give them something else to discuss besides the disagreement ironically," Wren mused, laughing a little bit, "Perhaps they would even get so involved in the discussion that they would forget what the disagreement was about in the first place. Wouldn't that be something~."
A humorless smile pulled across Juni’s features as Wren went so far as to justify her response. Even if it was a logical one, it was hardly feasible. It could potentially open the door for conversations, or slam it shut from infighting. “I mean…. It seems like the route of a lot of problems is just miscommunications and unshared values anyways,” she went on deciding to keep on that tangent now. “You understand a person— and a society for that matter— by what they place as most important and valuable.”
An awkward pause. Juni realized she’d opened herself up to a question and decided to answer it before Wren had the chance to ask. “…For instance, I’m a scientist. What’s most important to me is the pursuit of knowledge…” Another pause, significantly more awkward than the last. “What about you?”
As Juni explained how such an interesting idea of testing for intelligence wouldn't be feasible, Wren sighed and rested their chin in their hand. That's too bad, it would certainly give a good reason to actually rid the world of stupidity. It's a wonder that nobody had figured out a way to screen for stupid, it would save potential employers quite a bit of grief. "Such a shame~, imagine what the world would be like if we could actually eliminate stupidity~," Wren mused, "You do have a point however. Societies have different values so it's not as simple as creating a test."
Though that brought about a good segue of what Juni valued the most, especially given that it had been Juni's idea to create some sort of test to keep two countries from fighting. Hearing about the pursuit of knowledge elicited a bright grin from Wren. Is that so? They were starting to like Juni more and more as the conversation continued. As the question was turned around on them however, Wren sat back and put a hand on their chin in thought. "Hmm, well I definitely agree with you. The pursuit of knowledge is something worth striving for. Information can often open more doors than Pen alone possibly could~," Wren explained, smiling a bit more at that, "In this society, it's often the people you know and the knowledge that you obtain that hold more power than any form of currency. After all, the pen is mightier than the sword, is it not?"
The bright grin that flashed across Wren’s features as she spoke had Juni smiling a bit more in turn. The response was a bit barebones and lacked the interest in science for its own sake that Juni adored, but if nothing else, they were on the same page. A small laugh escaped from Juni, though, at the phrasing that came after the sentiment. Pen here in Arciel where the currency was definitively pen, was probably worth more than a sword. “Agreed.”
A soft breath drew in and out of Juni. “I research thermodynamics in the Arciellian landscape, specifically around the Grumble Volcano,” she explained. “I… mostly end up working a lot which leaves…” She shrugged and made a small gesture to the fact they were both at a speed dating event hosted by a hotel. A pause. “You look a little young to be a professor, though… are you in undergraduate studies?” Or perhaps doing something similar?
Wren hummed in response when Juni agreed with them. It was nice meeting someone of like mind and certainly refreshing after the last so called date. Sure, Derby had been nice enough and Wren would have to keep her in mind if they needed to have any metal working done. At the same time, the information about what Juni did was just as intriguing. Thermodynamics and volcanoes? That was something else entirely. Though leaves? Hmm, they wondered what that would entail.
"Leaves~?" Wren mused, not quite sure they'd heard correctly, "What does that entail?" they continued before hearing the question asked of them. A soft chuckle escaped Wren as they tried to think what life might be like if they were still in school. True, they would be able to obtain more knowledge and be able to use it to their advantage. Still, anymore schooling would be something they would have to pay for and pander to professors on top of that. That wasn't something that Wren wanted to do, or at least not anytime soon.
"No, actually~. I'm eighteen and recently moved to Arciel. I had a side job as a consultant back in Kalos, so I'm trying to set up something similar here~," Wren explained briefly, "Though it has been a little difficult to obtain the connections I need." People could be so difficult sometimes. But they were working on building their network, it was just taking longer than Wren would have liked.
Juni’s lips pressed together, and a small shake of head was given. “Leaves a lot to be desired in terms of a social life,” she clarified. No, nothing about tree leaves or anything of that nature, heh.
‘I’m eighteen’. Ah. Juni’s lips immediately pressed together. Entirely too young- for her or otherwise. Sigh, were there no latter-twenties early thirty-somethings here? I suppose I can just make friends…. Right, well then. “A consultant?” Juni ask-stated back. “Do you…” She couldn’t actually imagine what a teenager would consult for, actually. “What do you consult for?” she asked a little more specifically. There was no way someone so young could be a legal consultant.... maybe economic? Didn't that require more schooling, though? Maybe something to do with Pokemon? Did people have Pokemon consultants? Was that a thing?
Oh, that was what Juni meant. A small, sheepish smile came and went from Wren's features before they shrugged a little, they knew little about what a lack of social life did and in a society where stupidity reined supreme, was that really so bad? And then Juni had to go and ask them what they consulted for. They couldn't very well tell her the truth but well, this would have to do. If nothing else, MJ could transform into something instead and possibly distract Juni from the answer entirely.
"Mmm, well~, I consult for a company that provides protective services for sensitive data they clients don't wish to be publicized or fall into the wrong hands~. It's actually quite droll since I mostly deal with numbers and security but you know~, it's a job~," Wren mused, drawing the card with the questions towards them. That had hit a little too close to home... perhaps one of these would prove to be a better conversation topic instead.
Mmm, they didn't have much experience with dates aside from this one so that left... "If you had one extra hour of free time a day, how would you use it?"
Juni blinked. How was… Wren using the word consult here? Her brows furrowed some. Don’t consultants provide expert knowledge or something like that? Or was she just thinking in academic terms and missing the layman’s words. Yeah that has to be it… Maybe Wren meant they were like…. a sales associate or something or a broker? I’ve just been living under a rock for too long… Juni decided. She nodded her head along with Wren’s words in this case.
As the question was prompted, though, she blinked back into reality. “Ah… probably catch up on my sleep, heh…” she admitted. “What about you—“ Oh that was the chime for he date transition. Were they already done? Huh. “Well, it was nice meeting you?” she ask-stated. Maybe not in romantic terms but Wren was interesting enough.
When Juni seemed to accept Wren's words, there was a measure of relief they felt. Good. So if that little lie was believable, then that was what they would stick to if asked again. Moving off of that topic however, the next ice breaker seemed amusing enough in and of itself. Juni's reply did earn a brief laugh before a nod would be given. They were just about to reply in turn before the chime signified the end of the date. Hmmm, too bad. Juni was quite refreshing to talk to.
"Yes, it was nice meeting you. If you'd like, we could exchange numbers and talk again sometime," Wren suggested, already pulling out their phone to do just that. Either way, they were feeling hopeful that perhaps this speed dating wasn't a complete waste of time.
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