delta-holonfoil

[delta-holonfoil]

The problem with answering this question is that there’s a lot of different but related information about the connection between humans and Pokémon. We’ve got ancient myths and historical accounts of questionable reliability given their age and lost context that consistently claim we’re one and the same. We’ve got genetic and biological research that has highlighted plenty of distinctions between Pokémon and humans, but also uncovered surprising similarities indicative of an evolutionary divergence in the past. There’s multiple phenomena where humans appear to exhibit Pokémon-like capabilities, and accounts of people literally becoming Pokémon in a variety of ways.

It’s hard to unpack and assess all of that, and researchers have been trying to do so from day one. The people researching this will probably never be able to put it to bed definitively, in part because it’s hard to define a Pokémon. What is the fundamental core of what a Pokémon is? What can we say with certainty is true of all Pokémon and only Pokémon?

Frankly, philosophy has clearer answers to these questions than science does, because the truth of the matter is that the natural world doesn’t deal in absolutes. There will always be caveats and qualifiers and exceptions and revisions. Personally, I like the school of thought that some humans are Pokémon, just not all of us. It proposes that this is just another multitude of human existence. That, at least from a philosophical standpoint, we cannot consider the categories “human” and “Pokémon” to be either separate or nested, because they’re unique qualities that occasionally intersect. Perhaps science will demonstrate this to be true, or perhaps a different conclusion will be drawn. For now, this will have to suffice.

Obviously, this isn’t my field of research, do not take my musings as fact, but I thought this was a discussion worth sharing.

Okay controversial question....................... Scientist believe that humans are Pokémon weren't (aren't) so different..............

So...

[delta-holonfoil]

She vanished quite some time ago now, and last I heard is presumed dead? But no body had been reported

I did meet her once, while I was still just a research assistant. We were both attending the same conference, and bumped into each other after a talk about Pokémon forms. We only chatted for ten, maybe fifteen minutes? Normal conference talk. Name, field of study, home region, that sort of thing. She was fairly nice, then. Even still, I could tell she was the focused sort. The kind who wouldn’t let go of something no matter the risk, if it caught her interest. She zeroed in on Holon when I mentioned it, and pursued the topic eagerly. Contrasted the conservation needs of Alola with Holon’s. Had remarkable insight for someone previously unaware of the region. But suddenly she didn’t care about any other topic. She was too eagerly playing with a shiny new thought in her head to leave room for others. I tried to prompt her to share more about her work, but she wasn’t having it anymore. The only reason I got out of giving her a full oral history of Holon is that my senior researcher expected to meet with me at another talk. That seemed to shake her out of her little spell.

I’ve no place to judge her, we barely knew each other, but I absolutely buy the rumors that she lost herself in a new obsession, and that it lead her to whatever fate she met. I’ve met some really enthusiastic scientists over the years, but none displayed a single-mindedness like her in that brief encounter.

Hey rotomblr, poll for ya!

Please if you’ve been to multiple universes specify if you’re talking about your original universe, the one you’re in now, etc. Just please be specific

For full transparency I’m fairly sure she’s dead where I am, I’m not going to get into it to specifically but it’s a bit complicated

[delta-holonfoil]

For clarity’s sake: I received Zed (my PoryPhone) as part of onboarding with the Holon Research Tower, already a Z for reasons unclear to everyone I’ve asked in the years since. Porygon care tips like this, and especially the resources from the Rehab Project, have been invaluable in keeping Zed happy and healthy!

Got any advice 4 takin care of a Porygon-Z ? Buddy’s been feelin sad lately.

Do not let them onto the Internet unsupervised. Do not let your other Pokemon chew on them.

Beyond this, no. A Porygon in its original state is far beyond my expertise, without even accounting for whatever garbage data was used to evolve it into Z.

[delta-holonfoil]

You know, one of my favorite discoveries here in Holon has to do with Fossil Pokémon. It had been long suspected that the standard revival technique was flawed, owing to the consistent reappearance of the Rock type in specimens when a healthy ecosystem has type diversity. Well, those same fossils, when revived in Holon, yield Delta Species! Holonnite Fossil Pokémon consistently revive with the Steel type, a common marker in Delta Species from the mainland, but also new secondary typings, which is less usual for Delta Species, and implies that the altered revival process might be bringing different genetic markers to the surface in our specimens. While pure conjecture (we don’t have a time machine to go back and check, after all!), it does suggest what their original types might have been.

Among the fossils found in Holon, we have:

Anorith and Armaldo, which revive as Steel/Rock-types

Lileep and Cradily, which revive as Steel/Dark-types

Kabuto and Kabutops, which revive as Steel/Electric-types

Omanyte and Omastar, which revive as Steel/Ghost-types

Aerodactyl, which revives as a Steel/Fire-type

By our own policy we don’t import foreign Pokémon, so we haven’t conducted research using any other fossils, though Fossil Pokémon aren’t really native to anywhere anymore, so I hope that some day we’ll allow samples to be brought in for testing!

[delta-holonfoil]

Greetings!

I’m Professor Blair S. Tenaza (she/her), and I’m now the head researcher at the Holon Research Tower, located in Holon City in, you guessed it, the Holon region! Our topics of interest at the HRT are as follows:

Find and study the mythical Pokémon Mew

Research the effects of electromagnetism both on the region and on its Pokémon, including and especially Delta Pokémon

Develop and refine artificial equivalents to existing Pokémon (this task primarily falls to our lead roboticist and his team)

Now, I’ll share a brief primer on Delta Species and Holon, as I know that is certainly the least known aspect of our research here. Originally, Holon was a region devoid of people. It wasn’t especially habitable for humans, and so Pokémon were its sole inhabitants. Then my predecessor came along and established Holon City and the HRT, specifically in pursuit of Mew. His machinery used in the search emitted electromagnetic waves on a scale previously unheard of, even beyond the special magnetic fields found in places like Mount Coronet and Chargestone Cave.

Prolonged exposure to these extreme waves altered the Holon ecosystem permanently, resulting in many Pokémon permanently obtaining different typings and mannerisms. Some of these Pokémon, remarkably, are recognizable as extant regional forms! For example, Kantonian, Alolan, and Galarian Meowth are all native to Holon now, where before only the Kantonian variety existed, and Cyndaquil evolved here become the once thought lost Hisuian form of Typhlosion. Many other Pokémon took on entirely new forms, such as the Gardevoir family becoming Psychic/Steel-types, and exposing a male Kirlia to a dawn stone produced an entirely new Psychic/Dark-type Pokémon known as Callord. For these altered Pokémon, the designations Delta Species (for all) and Holonnite (for the unique ones) were introduced.

These accidental changes to the environment were seen as both fascinating and concerning, and studies on their full impact were launched. It was quickly deduced that not only would removing the electromagnetic waves not revert these Pokémon to their previous forms, but that doing so would be detrimental to their health. Furthermore, it was discovered at this time that the islands off the coast of Holon’s mainland, distant from Holon City’s emissions, also held Delta Species. Prism Island was laden with crystals that seemed to be producing Delta Species, which briefly drew comparison to the Terastal phenomenon before further research confirmed no true link. Meanwhile, the further-out Scale Archipelago was found to be a nesting ground for Dragon-like Pokémon, and home to new forms that were determined to be natural Holonnite variations.

And that more or less covers the basics! I can get into Holonnite geography another day for those curious, but I think this post is plenty long already. Just know that those early days of research were nearly 20 years ago, now, and much of the staff here at the HRT has changed since then. We feel very strongly about not altering Holon’s ecosystem any further, and work hard to ensure the continued health of all people and Pokémon in Holon.

Finally, allow me to introduce the Pokémon I keep as research aides!

Claire the Castform. She helps me with studying the weather here in Holon, which has also been impacted.

Sprout the Holonnite Meganium (Grass/Ground). He’s great at judging the health of plant life, another important aspect of our impact.

Trace the Holonnite Smeargle (Normal/Ghost). He sketches anything I need documented, which is great because it can be hard to take pictures here in Holon. There’s solutions, but I just find him much more reliable.

Beacon the Artificial Starmie (Water/Steel). One of our robotics team’s creations. It’s extremely reliable for taking electromagnetic readings, and a trustworthy ride if I need to do work out on Holon Lake or along the coast, above water or below!

Shade the Alolan Persian. She’s my tracker. If I’m looking for a specific Pokémon, she’s almost always able to hunt it down. I chose her over the other Meowth variations present here because her Dark typing further helps in keeping a low profile to observe wildlife.

Magnus the Scorlev (Electric/Flying, evolution of Holonnite Gligar). He’s my aerial transport, and incredibly in-tune with Holon’s electromagnetic field. There’s quite a few options here for those needs, but what sets him apart is that Holonnite Gligar are a natural Delta Species from the Scale Archipelago!

Plus Zed, my PoryPhone. We use PoryPhones here in Holon because Porygon are already here and already proven unaffected by the extreme electromagnetism. We actually impose some fairly strict regulations here in order to protect visitors’ Pokémon, and that includes barring entry for many species which might be impacted by Holon’s unique conditions.

OOC

Oops! I made another one! This time it’s inspired by the Holon region, an official setting from the TCG in back 2005! With my own personal twists, of course. I made a big list of Pokémon known to officially be in Holon (regular or Delta), and then did some minor retcons if a Delta Species resembled an existing regional variant. For any missing evolutions (released in Gen 4 or later) I’ve invented entirely new evolutions to replace them, and for any existing Delta Species that didn’t match a regional variant, I’ve devised a new Holonnite variant matching the card game’s typing. Unlike in the TCG, it’s not just a glow of energy, but a whole new form

And yes, Blair is aware what else HRT stands for. It’s something of an internal joke at the Tower because a sizable portion of the team, herself included, is trans :)

My main blog is @tlblitz, and I also run @tlblitzle, @zenith-exploration-guild, and @squallsong-survival