PokeLure: What Have I Done?

Let's see how badly those Bellsprout can kick my ass if I have a powerful Fire-type Pokemon by my side! Also, a Fire-type should be fantastic for when I run back into that Silcoon and Cascoon, or if the Dalus or Minos gyms are Grass-type, Bug-type, Ice-type, or Steel-type gyms.  I should really get one eventually.  What's up for trade on the Global Trade Terminal...

Hmm...I'm not really familiar with any of these Pokemon, so I don't know what they're capable of or if they even evolve.  I mean, I could check the Pokedex, but I wouldn't know how to handle a Pokemon that belonged to somebody else first.  Maybe it's just a better idea if I got my own Fire-type.  I seem to recall the farmer's market selling Torchics, and they looked pretty adorable.  Too bad they're so expensive.  I wonder how I can make enough money to buy one--

Speaking of making money, I wonder how the Pawn-iard Shop is doing since my gym battle.

Let's see...ahh, here we are--

Oh, Jamarcus.  You...you haven't done much here, have you? I mean, besides write the name of your store on another shirt and hang it up with masking tape.

Jamarcus! Hey, how's business?

Well, that's good.  And I see you took my advice about making advertising shirts--

Oh...that's your store sign.  That's...that's great? I mean, at least you're getting your name out there in some way.  I mean, what if you just took the box-of-stuff, emptied the contents, spread out the merchandise, and used the cardboard to make a bigger sign that's actually a sign?

So, you don't have any table-room to spread out the merchandise? Because you only have the one table? Hey, I'm just trying to find a way to attract people to your shop and make you more money--

Attract...

Wait a minute.

Wait!

OH.  MY.  GOD.  That's it! I've got it!!!

Jamarcus! You're familiar with what the Poke-Mart sells, right? Think now...what don't they sell, but could? They've got Poke Balls, potions, vitamins, medicines, and repels.  Stuff like that.  They sell something that repels Pokemon from places...but they don't sell anything that attracts Pokemon to a place, right?! That technology doesn't exist on the market, but it exists! I took some Combee honey and spread it on a tree last night while training my Gligar and wild Pokemon seemed to love that stuff.  That, and when I was in the Combee hive, I noticed that whenever the Combees used the move Sweet Scent, our Pokemon were drawn to them and lulled into a false sense of security.  We could use that knowledge and create some kind of anti-repel spray...a lure! It can be called PokeLure, and up-and-coming trainers would buy it in droves in order to build up their teams, and since this town has the first gym in the Cythos gym challenge, this would be a perfect place to market this product! Jamarcus, would you be willing to offer the Pawn-iard Shop as the initial selling venue for a portion of the profits?

Of course you would.  You're not an idiot.  Come on, we need to talk to Tara.  If we can use her hive as the ingredient source, we could save a lot of money.  Let's go!

Where is she? I hope she isn't taking on challengers right now.  I wouldn't want to interrupt her--

There she is! She looks like she's taking a break.  Tara! I have a business proposal for you.  I've come up with an idea for a product to sell to Pokemon trainers, but it would require your assistance in obtaining the core ingredients--

Yeah, I can walk and talk.  I'll just follow you.  The concept is the anti-Repel.  Repels keep Pokemon away from you, but I have a recipe idea that would do the exact opposite of that! I would need some assistance coming up with the ingredients for the spray, but--

Yes, of course.  I'm more than willing to provide you with proof of concept, but like I said, I just need a little bit of help acquiring the needed materials.  I have an empty potion sprayer, so I can use that, but I'm going to need honey, water, and the pink powder that the Combee excrete when they use Sweet Scent.

By the way, where are we?

The Miltank house? Okay, so this is where you milk the Miltanks and do other stuff--

You like the idea?! That's great! And yes, I'm willing to get my hands dirty and work from nothing to build up this business, just like you did when you built this Miltank house.

Wow, you sure have a lot of Miltank out there in the field.  And you try to teach them all Rollout? That must take a lot of work.  Why do you do that, if you don't mind me asking?

Oh, the ones that learned the move are rolling out now? Where are they headed?

That's...that's a different-looking building.  Is...is that where you keep them when they aren't being milked or grazing?

For about a minute? I don't understand.  And what's that sound? It sounds like saws--

OH.

...

...

...

...

So...about my idea?

You'll have your apprentices gather the ingredients? Great!

Alrighty...let's see here:

Okay, this should be enough.  Let's take the powder and put that in the potion bottle first.  Then, I'll dissolve that in some water...just enough to dissolve it all.  Now, I'll add the honey.  It's smelling pretty good, but it's a little too thick.  I don't know if this will even evaporate quickly enough.  What evaporates really quickly? I can't use gasoline or kerosine or anything like that...rubbing alcohol, maybe--

Say...does anybody have some moonshine?

Of course the hicks have moonshine.  I wonder how strong this is--

KECH! OH SWEET JESUS! KECH! UGH! IT TASTES LIKE KNIVES MADE FROM FIRE AND ASSHOLES!

Maybe just like three or four drops per bottle...

Oh...I don't know if this is going to be good now.  I might have ruined it.  Only one way to find out...

Pidgey, go!

Pidgey, you perch over there on that fencepost.  I'm gonna stand all the way over here and spray this patch of grass and you tell me if you can smell it, and if you can, just let me know if it smells good.

Okay! I've sprayed.  Can you smell it?

Pidgey?

Oh god...what did I do?! Pidgey, are you okay?! You're making noises I've never heard you make before.  Uhh...return.

Huh...I guess I must have messed it up--

OWW! Jeez, what the hell was that?! What just slammed into my leg and tripped me?!

Hey, a Pokemon! The Pokedex says it's a Snubbull...and it seems to love that patch of grass I sprayed! Yeah, laugh at me all you want for that tumble, you guys, but this spray works! Somebody go get Tara--!

Hey, there's another one over there! A Patrat, huh? He must have smelled the scent as well--

Uh oh...I don't think other wild Pokemon like it when they have to share the nice-smelling grass--

AHH! OOH! NO! NO, STOP IT--!

Oh shit, now a Rattata?! I think I might have made this too potent--

YEP! DEFINITELY TOO POTENT! Slakoth, go!

Slakoth! Use Yawn! Try to put the all to sleep--!

Slakoth, no! Get back here! Don't waddle towards the fray of fighting Pokemon! Damn it! Return--!

AH! Tara! Uhh...now, I know what this looks like, but hey, you couldn't ask for a better proof of concept.  This was just five spritzes worth on that one patch of grass and these four Pokemon showed up here from out of nowhere!

Well, it's got honey, the powder from the Sweet Scent...a little bit of moonshine--

Hey! I mean, it worked, didn't it! The Pokemon came and they're all dopey and euphoric! This is exactly what we were aiming for here! I mean, sure, we can refine the formula later on, maybe with ethanol as opposed to moonshine to make it a bit more pure, but I don't know how responsive the Pokemon would be to ethanol, since I don't know how edible--

Yeah, we definitely need to stop this madness.  You start throwing Poke Balls and try to catch as many as you can.  Somebody get some buckets of water! Maybe if we muddy up the earth, the scent will dissipate!

Okay...I think that will work to kill the scent.  Now...where do we want to go from here?

You're right, we can't just use emptied potion bottles as our main source of container-supply.  We'd need to find someone who can hook us up with a manufacturer--

Say...does the Devon Corporation make potions? If so, I may have a connection who's making his way to Isis right now!

Alright, I'll head out to Isis and try to find him.  Tara, you stay here and work your magic.  Jamarcus...just...just don't do anything stupid.  We're all in this together, so we gotta be careful about this stuff.  I'll take the prototype and see if we can get a canister supplier in Devon.  We'll use your hives for the ingredients, Tara, and we'll sell it at the Pawn-iard Shop--

Do I know anybody who works for Poke-Mart?

No.  No, I do not.  We should go through Devon.  Let me have your Xtranceiver number, Tara, so I can call you with any updates.  I'll keep you both in the loop.

So, I gotta cross this thing to get to Isis. Fine, but Jesus, that city looks big.  Well, I better start searching...

ARTURO!!!!!