It's all or nothing, and nothing's all I ever get.
Vital statistics
Full name: Kurt Hayden Nickname: Aulus Age: 27 Birthday: July 3rd Height: 6'0" Weight: 175lbs Build: Muscular Hair: Dark chestnut brown, short, straight Eyes: Dark red Skin: Olive, tanned Voice: Usually gruff and snappish. He has a British accent and sounds as though he comes from a fairly 'nice' area Distinguishing features: Right arm stops about half way from shoulder to elbow, the missing portion is replaced by a prosthetic with realistic contours - other than the joints - sprayed metallic black. A scar from a slash wound runs straight down across his right eye from mid forehead to just below the cheekbone; the eye is not visibly damaged. Another slash scar running from his left shoulder to the bottom of his rib cadge on his right side, and a one on his left thigh that runs from near the top of the thigh at the front to near the knee on the outside. Most of the skin on the back of his torso is taken up by a twisted and discoloured burn scar. A few smaller scars from cuts and burns are now scattered across his body too.
Detailed description: Aulus stands just about dead on six feet tall; he possesses a powerful build and a hard scarred face set with hard dark red eyes, along with disorderly short dark chestnut brown hair. This man has presence and it's not a nice presence; he tends to prowl around like a large feline, and if he isn't sneering disdainfully he's probably glowering dangerously. He used to limp enough for a careful observer to take note of it but these days he gait is smooth almost all the time, though extreme cold weather or exhaustion can still bring it back out.
It's impossible to miss the fact that he is also missing half a limb; his right arm stops about half way from his shoulder to his elbow and the missing portion is replaced by a prosthetic with realistic contours - other than the joints - sprayed metallic black. As he often wears sleeveless tops the whole thing tends to be visible, the join between his natural arm and the prosthetic looks quite smooth thanks to careful casing design.
History
- Comfortable middle class background. Father high up in an accounting firm, mother a housewife. Elder (charming, mildly dumb) identical twin brothers. Younger (very smart, slightly dangerous) sister. - Middle child syndrome, did not get on or fit in with the family. - Did get on with his maternal grandfather, and the two women who kept their Rapidash on the family's fields in exchange for houswork help. - It was from his grandfather that he acquired the name Aulus; it was the name he always had in their pretend adventure games when he was young. - For his seventh birthday Kurt received a pokemon egg, and the Ponyta that hatched (and was named Phaethon, at his grandfather's suggestion) became his very best friend. - Also aged seven Kurt started karate lessons and the sport became about half of his life, the other half being riding of course. - Average student at school; smart but in trouble a lot and didn't apply himself. Was damn good at sports though. - Loses his grandfather aged twelve to aggressive lung cancer. After this he becomes even more withdrawn, doesn't want to get attached. Not long after this the ladies with their Rapidash move away. - Kurt starts to get into more trouble at school for fights, gets suspended multiple times and nearly excluded. - Phaeth evolves to Rapdiash when Kurt is 14. - Leaves school after his A-Levels, no intention of going to university - Met Vivian aged eighteen, relationship lasted around six months, exploded in spectacular fashion when Aulus walked in on her and another man. Beat said other man to paste, shortly after said other man hunted him down, set his Scyther on him, and stole Phaethon. - Spent some time being very ill/depressed. Got back into karate, began to get fit again, but remained bitter, and showed no interest in university or a job. - Started at university (taking business studies) aged twenty one when he was told it was that or get a job. Lasted about six months before beating up a professor under unfortunate circumstances. Although due to said circumstances no charges were pressed against him, he chose to leave university. Argued with his parents over it (having refused to explain circumstances) and left for Kodo in a huff.
- Aulus (nee Kurt) meets 'Lucy' when he saves her pikachu from drowning in a chocolate fountain. Turns out her name is Claire and she's a Rocket, woops. She recruits him with promises of adventure and such. - Aulus spends the obligatory two months as a trainee and a few more as a grunt before becoming an Agent. - Aulus pursues a romantic interest in Claire. The pair end up dating but things move slowly. - He finds himself partnered with Agent Hayes, the two get on surprisingly well. Hayes promptly gets promoted to Elite. - Aulus, Hayes, and several other operatives are captured by Team Galactic while trying to secure the Sky Plate from a museum exhibit. They are held captive for a very un-fun month which has left scars both physical and mental, though the latter are more problematic. - Hayes is transferred to another base. - Aulus and Claire split up amicably, both being busy (especially as Claire has been promoted to Elite) and Aulus being rather messed up probably didn't help matters. Still, Aulus considers Claire one of his few close friends. - The base is blown up due to the league discovering its location. Aulus relocated with many other Rockets to Ambergris. - Aulus is assigned a Lugia to work with not long after arriving in Ambergris! - A brand new base opens under Elemi Lake! Aulus becomes partners with Agent Tamber; one of the rockets he spent a month in a cell with, and another of the few people Aulus considers a close friend. - Aulus and Tam take the field lead in a mission to Paladin Island; the objective is to capture a legendary the rangers have befriended. it turns out to be Keldeo and they succeed!... But not without major injury thanks to the Colt Pokemon and to Yveltal, the latter under the control of a mysterious pair of women who Claire believed were members of Galactic. - After recovering from Keldo and Yveltal related injuries Aulus forms part of a team dispatched to the crashed Galactic mothership in search of anything useful that might be left behind. He finds all of the rotting corpses forever, the room he and his friends were tortured in for a month, and loses a bit more than half of his right arm but the team does recover some Shaymin DNA. - A bit more than a year later Aulus finally receives a prosthetic right arm. It is titanium and comes with integrated 'dex features, a bone-crushing grip, and claws.
Likeness captured by Kaelyndra
Personality
Likes: Pokemon (especially rapidash), riding, exercise, dates (the fruit) Dislikes: The world, raindrops on roses, idiots, you. Five words: Spiky, cynical, tactless, isolated, loyal Detailed personality: Sharp, prickly, short-tempered and volatile; Aulus is not a man to trifle with. He is a malcontent, and a born cynic, and when social grace was being handed out he was definitely in another room; he is almost completely tactless, frequently scathing, and reacts far too strongly to being teased even in fun to ever make many friends. With pokemon, however, his spikes retract; he loves all kinds from the smallest to the largest, the most majestic to the weirdest. While he's perfectly willing to use pokemon for battling, or for other tasks, he untimely believes that they should be treated with respect. If he meets somebody who doesn't, he'll either try to deck them or (if he's in an uncharacteristically good mood) try to persuade them that well treated pokemon work better anyway.
Why should charm be everything, he would like to know? He’s an intelligent man (not brilliant but definitely bright, and possessed of a healthy dose of practicality too), and yet it hasn’t got him half as far in life as idiots who are good with people. Not only does he hate popular people for being successful, he also hates them for being popular in the first place. Deep under his spikes and acerbic temperament is a man who would love to have a large group of friends, but can’t seem to get them. Trust is the biggest barrier between him and forming relationships; he is convinced that if he ever opened up to anyone they would either laugh, or worse pretend to be sympathetic and then use him for a while before ditching him when he was no longer useful to them.
A long time ago, Aulus decided that if he couldn't be liked then he would be respected or, failing that, feared. To be respected or feared a man must be tougher than nails, and so that’s what he has made himself; his rough, tough, remorseless image is all important to him. Unfortunately, it is this determination to stick to his ‘next best thing to being liked’ that is actually part of the reason he struggles to make friends. Aulus has a temper. A real temper. Call him volatile, or call him unstable, and you’d be right; call him that to his face, and you’d certainly have a fight on your hands. So, he’s prone to fits of passionate, unreasoned violence... But he wants to be liked. He regrets his outbursts, but he can’t be liked, so he has to be tough, so he never shows his remorse, so people dislike him more, so he gets angrier, so he becomes more vicious, so he regrets that too, but he can’t apologize... It’s a real vicious circle, one that he might well never break free of.
When actually he likes somebody in particular, at first Aulus is all the more defensive around them lest they should find out and bust his ‘I’m so tough’ bubble. He may even try to convince himself that rather than liking them he despises them. He has now managed to get over himself and make a handful of friends but almost all of these were gained in exceptional circumstances, i.e. being kept in a cell and tortured together for a month. It's unlikely many more people will get past his spiky shell; his experiences over the last few years have made him if anything more spiky and paranoid than ever.
Perhaps surprisingly Aulus has the potential to be exceptionally, even fanatically loyal. Team Rocket has his loyalty, even though he hates a lot of what it does to pokemon, because it is his organization. He belongs to it, it belongs to him. The same can almost be said for people he gets really really close to; his closet friends are part of his identity, he would do absolutely anything for them, and spends a lot of time worrying about their well-being.
Psychological trauma aside however Team Rocket has been good for Aulus on the whole, at least he has friends now.
Skills
Martial arts: Karate, favoured weapon: bo staff. Aulus was always a sporty boy. Aulus' mother was always paranoid about some terrible criminal attacking one of her precious children. These two factors combined meant that Aulus started karate training aged seven; the nearest club did not accept anyone below this age, as younger children would not be mentally developed enough to focus for a whole session, or physically developed enough to have the balance and coordination required to execute precise moves. He practised religiously throughout his youth; time spent out on the patio away from family time was fine by him. Basic sword techniques were introduced to him at green belt level, and skill with the katana plus one other weapon was required to gain the black belt (Aulus chose bo staff: big pice of wood + big young man = yes.) After his leg injury aged eighteen he was forced to take some months away from the sport, but easing back into it helped him adapt to the weakened limb. From this point on he chose to focus mainky on empty-hand techniques, and his beloved bo staff. He earned his third dan shortly before he turned twenty two. Now aged 25 he has gained a great deal of experience in actually using his skills to beat the ever-loving crap out of people, and has also made the time to advance officially to fourth dan. Some of his free time is dedicated to practising in a dojo in Camphoreon City so that he can practice with non-criminal types and, of course, work on advancing through the dan ranks. While this serves no practical purpose of course he enjoys the challenge, and having a goal to work towards.
Training: Aulus has a close bond with his team and they train hard daily against one another and against other Rockets. Without a specialty in tech or the labs and so on training is his specialty along with hand to hand combat. He is working on building a powerful, diverse team that can answer any challenge put before them.
Riding: His sporty nature also led Aulus to riding at an early age; he for his seventh birthday he was gifted a ponyta egg. He and the young equine, named Phaethon, were educated alongside one another by very patient teachers. Even when he gained his trainer's license aged ten he preferred riding and playing with his friend to battling, and so he was fourteen before Phaethon evolved. Eventing and racing were things Aulus loved to watch, but didn't have much interest in competing in (which is fortunate given how tall and heavy he grew). Long rides out in the wilderness were his preference, and over years and years of hours and hours spent alone together, he and Phaethon developed a deep, irreplaceable bond.
Photography: If asked, Aulus will try to deny or downplay his enjoyment of photography; it isn't an especially manly pastime. He started taking pictures when he started riding out alone with Phaethon, and over the years he became quite good at landscapes and shots of wild pokemon. While he was with Vivian he began to explore taking human portraits too, although he never acquired professional lighting equipment. He has gone back to landscapes and pokemon now, and in fact the chance to photograph the scenery and wildlife was one of the major things that drew him to the Kodo region in the first place. That and, y'know, annoying/avoiding his family.
Flaws
Unpleasant: Yeeeeah. Aulus can be a really tough guy to like. He can be sharp, funny, witty, but often at your expense, even if you think you're his friend. Even if he thinks you're his friend actually. If he sees a nasty joke to make, he often can't resist no matter who it's about. This aside, it's hard to get on his good side to begin with; the smallest things can make him decide to hate somebody, and even if he just finds somebody annoying he'll go out of his way to be cruel. Over all, Aulus is probably never going to be a popular person.
Temper: Alongside his unpleasantness, Aulus has a heck of a temper. This leads him to say things he doesn't mean even to people he really cares about when in a bad mood, and to make rash decisions when really riled up. While he's usually a bright guy when he completely snaps his general solution is 'hit it until it stops twitching', which is not a very sophisticated approach to problem solving.
Weak leg: While the scar on his leg doesn't cause him to limp under normal circumstances anymore if he manages to twist it badly the limb more or less decides to stop working on him. While he can still fight better than most in this state, he can only do so on the spot; walking is hard, and running is out of the question. It usually takes some minutes before he can walk at any reasonable pace again, and a few hours before he can consider running.
Notable possessions
Bike: Aulus' bike has been turned over to the TR garage, he seldom has occasion to use it anymore. Stave: A metal bo staff that retracts down to about six inches long. It is slightly tapered, and can be electrified by controls on the rubber grip. Camera: A compact but rather swish camera. Signet ring: Aulus found this handsome gold signet ring lying in the mud on a riding trail when he was fifteen, and being a model citizen he decided to keep it. Even as a grown man it is a little large for him, so he wears it on his middle finger rather than his signet finger. The seal is a rayquaza. Aulus' pockets: Contain pokeballs, a box of status healing berries, a useful penknife, his wallet, and rocket dex. Aulus' room: Aulus is in the process of personalizing his new room. He already has a range of photographs he took himself covering the walls, and thanks to Hayes he has a large screen that displays an outdoor scene from a choice of live feed cameras. Set against another wall is a television, also thanks to Hayes, with a couple of large beanbags for anyone who doesn't want to watch from the bed. A series of wall mounted shelves hold books and nicknacks, various. He has invested in a comfortable double bed but stuck with the standard desk and chair that come in an Agent's room. All his furniture is set so that when he's using it he can face the door.
TawnyAngel
Predestined Inquisitor
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TawnyAngel
Predestined Inquisitor
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Posted: Sat Jan 29, 2011 3:07 pm
...all the morons, and all the stooges with their coins.
Abel - Pretty chill guy, we nearly got our pokemon stolen together. That was embarrassing. Acacia - Unmitigated idiot. Adam (Grunt) - This guy really needs to kick his butt into gear on the exercise front but he seems willing to do so and he was competent on the little mission we did together. Aija (Grunt) - Well she's certainly... enthusiastic but she seems to take the class seriously so she's okay in my book. Alex (Elite Agent) - Sweet Arceus he's a nerd. He also happens to be relaxed enough to put up with/diffuse me and fun to be around, best friend I've had in... well, a long time suffice to say. Alex is one of my best friends along with Tam. He's a busy guy though. Aila (Agent. Deceased) - An alright girl, first met her before I joined TR. She had some pretty nice pokemon. I adore her Spinarak. I'm sorry she'd dead. I didn't know her well, but she didn't deserve to die like that. Alba - Seemed a decent guy, kind of old to be a trainee? Most people seem to join TR young a stupid, like me. I wonder what his reasons were? A grunt now; he was on the doomed mission but escaped captivity. Unlike the other lucky bugger that got away, he came back to save us. Candice - Didn't form much of an opinion but I didn't quite humiliate myself in front of her, so good I guess? Claire (Elite Agent) - Oh s**t. I didn't ask for this. Best I can do is try to ignore it I guess, hope it goes away eventually.Well... actually this is going well. I hope to hell I don't mess it up. Well I didn't mess it up I don't think but it didn't work out, maybe I just wasn't in the right place to maintain a relationship like that, or she wasn't, or we weren't really right for each other or... I don't know. Anyway, I still consider her a close friend though, even if she is epicly busy these days and we don't see one another much. Deimos (Galactic) - What a little tit. A brilliant little tit, apparently, but still a little tit. b*****d. I hope he rots in our cells forever. Dima (Trainer) - Some huge guy with princess curls who was hassling me and Claire at a party. Ugh, I would have loved to deck him. Faleen (Agent) - A bright woman, has nice pokemon. Alex is crazy about her whether he'll admit it or not; she seems as oblivious as he pretends to be. ... b***h! You should not have messed with Alex. ... Uh, well there was a misunderstanding apparently. She's alright I suppose. I wish I knew what her real intentions with Alex are though. She made a new arm for me! No complaints here. Frost (Agent) - Weird a**l little b*****d I've had the misfortune to meet a few times in the garages. He's got eyes like a dead fish, and speaks to me as if I'm an imbecile. Given half a chance I'd love to take the spanner off him and shove it up his arse, but he'd probably have me written up for improper storage of TR's tools. Also he appears to have little to no consern for human life. Izumi - Eh, she seems to be a good engineer. Skittish little thing though, she'd probably drive me mad if I had to spend much time with her. Jerome (Agent) - One major badass, and somebody I feel connected to after all that happened. We've been skill swapping for, damn, I guess a couple of years now? Time flies. He's getting pretty good at karate, and I like to think I'm getting pretty good at parkour too! The two skills certainly go nicely together. Kailee - Wow, basic training really let this one slip through the net. Least she's willing to learn. ... She's improved somewhat and for the most part behaved herself on the mission; she was observant, but she did try to wander off herself right at the start just after being told not to. So. She seems to consider herself my friend. She's okay, she's been kind to me so far, but I can't say that I trust her. KO (Grunt) - Smirky fop. Kyle (Grunt) - Not a clever man. At all. Lore (Grunt) - He got on my nerves at times, but I know he was just trying to keep our spirits up. I blamed him at first but it wasn't his fault. Lex (Grunt) - I don't even know. He needs to work on handling his pokemon better.Well... yeah. He seems to be taking losing body parts better than I am. He could be worse. He's a pillock. A vain, attention seeking pillock. Lu (Grunt) - Seems like a bit of a wimp but he did his job, so. Lucas (Grunt) - Uncompromising psychopath. Doesn't seem so mad now, but I'm keeping my initial thoughts on record. As for now, he just disappoints me slightly more than the rest of humanity. Just apologising isn't enough; he's a damned hypocrite and just because she's willing to forgive and forget doesn't mean I am. Nakura (Grunt) - Sneaky little s**t, whose s**t eating grin I would love to wipe from his face with my fist. He seems able to behave himself for at most ten minutes at a stretch, whereupon his inner smarmy pillock just cannot be held back any longer. ... He's got it coming. Sooner or later, me or somebody else.... Borrowed time. He's an idiot, but I don't want to kill him anymore so that's a step up? Probably on my part more than his. Nyx (Elite Agent) - First met her in the mountains before I joined TR, she called herself Emma then. She'd weird (really weird) but good at what she does it seems. Orion (Deceased. Galactic) - Pervert. He's lucky I didn't break his fingers. Well that's one less problem to deal with I suppose. Riley (Grunt) - *Sigh* Rory (Agent) - Tam's boyfriend. I don't know him well but I'm sure he doesn't deserve her; his performance on the last mission we were on together was acceptable I suppose, but underwhelming. Maybe I just have very high standards in the people my friends date. I don't trust the man an inch, if he ever hurts her... well, it won't go well for him to say the least. Rosie - A girl I met out in the forest one evening. She was so... cheery. Sera - What can I say? It's nice to be understood. Also it's nice to have somebody to snark with about the stupidity of other people. Shadow (Grunt) - A lot of the stuff he went on about early on made me really uncomfortable... but he's a good kid. Star (Grunt) - A squarky crawling arrogant coward. How do all of those go together? Don't ask me. He's a former Galactic, b*****d, and worked quite happily under that b***h. Tama (Grunt) - An arrogant little p***k who can't take orders and seems to keep his brains in his arse. Tambrey (Agent) - She was alright I guess, seemed interested in karate at any rate. ... I'm training her now, and she's coming along well. ... Our time in that cell together has given us some kind of bond... least I think it has, not like I've talked about it with her or anything so I don't know how she feels. We're partners now anyway and I'm pretty sure she likes me.... Pretty sure. I like her anyway, I've got her back any time she needs me. A bright, funny, nerdy woman. I'm glad to call her my partner and my friend, one of my very best friends. Tethys (Galactic) - She seemed to worry Claire, I don't know why but I dislike her for that alone.Her. TRP (Elite Agent) - Didn't form much of a personal opinion of her. She's good at her job though, which is reassuring given her rank. Xander (Agent) - Well I don't know what he sees in that creepy mechanic but he's still part of... well, I don't know, whatever being imprisoned and tortured together for a month makes you. He kind of messed up on the last mission we were on together but... well we all make mistakes. I guess. Zacharie (Grunt) - Don't know the kid but he didn't mess up on the mission to Paladin so that's something.
Posted: Sat Jan 29, 2011 3:12 pm
It's a never-ending attack. Everything's a lie and that's a fact.
[C] It’s just so creepy here - Acacia. Ambergris Town. What a weird, stupid little girl. Can't pick her fights, changes her mood with a snap of her fingers, doesn't wear shoes. Skinny little wretch too; she could do with eating a pie or ten, she's got all the figure of a ten year old boy. [C] Of light and dark - Rosie 'Pink'. Cypress Forest. A sickeningly sweet girl, but with a really beautiful Vaporeon. I couldn't understand her mindset but she was nice to me, so I guess it could have been a lot worse. [C] Luncheon on the grass - Aila. The Calamus Plains. Somehow ended up having lunch with a girl and her pokemon. She was alright; we talked about eggs and things. [C] Chocolate cactus - Lucy (Claire). Camphoreon City, the mall. Crazy pikachu nearly drowned in chocolate. Was covered in chocolate saving it. Ran away from possible retribution with pikachu's trainer, damaged my leg, had new clothes bought for me. Kind of put a crimp in my day, but the pikachu was sweet so I suppose that made up for it. [C] A peek at the peaks - Emma (Nyx). Sky Peak Mountains. I was up in the mountains taking pictures, stayed too long and ended up stuck for the night. Thought it would be fun, then a random woman who thought I was an axe murderer turned up and I came to my senses. She did have some nice pokemon though I guess. [C] Picture perfect - Lucy (Claire). Camphoreon City, the park. Ran into Lucy again; she's got a new blue eevee (called Blue) who I took some pictures of. Showed off a bit with the staff; if she was planning anything against me it should have put her off. [D] A walk in the park - ???. Camphoreon City, the park. [C] ...Scar buddies? - ??? (Lucas). Ambergris Town. What is it with me an meeting weirdos in this town? This one was more psycho though, madly protective of 'Lucy', who is apparently called Claire really. Charming. [C] So we meet again!... Again - Claire. Calamus Plains. So Claire isn't her name either. Not much else important to say; she just recruited me to Team Rocket is all.
Trainee:[A] 0 - [C] 11 - [D] 2 - Total: 13
[C] BFFs for life! - Lucas & Claire. HQ, first floor/cafeteria. So apparently Lucas hit his head and forgot a good deal of things. Eventually he remembered who Claire was, though, and why he disliked me although that bit was kind of jumbled and nonsensical. Also, the food arrangements here seem pretty good. [C] Long days - Claire. HQ. Got shown around a bit by Claire, nothing much to report. [C] So glamerous! - Alba. HQ, cafeteria. Cleaning. Yippie. [C] A little Tea R&R - Tambrey. HQ, rec. rooms. Chatted to some grunt about this and that, mostly karate and what you have to be or do to get promoted to Agent. [C] A clean slate - Lucas. HQ, training arenas. Found out that Lucas is less of a psycho, but more of a git. Shouldn't be shocked really I suppose, real love of any kind is unlikely enough anywhere, let alone a place like this. [C] Monsters in the dark - Faleen. The desert (near HQ) - Bloody stupid Absol. Least she wasn't hurt though, and I met an interesting woman named Faleen so I suppose I got some profit out of the night. [C] Wash the spider out - Aila. HQ, the pool. Met that girl back by the pool, turns out little Aila is Agent Aila. She said she'd find me some more interesting work to do if she could, and I persuaded her to keep the sweetest Spinarak ever. Wish it had adored me and not her. [C] Happy to see you too - Claire. HQ, the pool. I went off for an early swim but distracted by Claire (and her bikini), so I didn't get any exercise in the end. [D] Always know who you’re talking to - [C] Late nights - Claire. HQ, the rec rooms. Fell downstairs today, decided I'd have a relaxing evening with Rambo. Ended up watching Cinderella, and having Claire fall asleep on me. It was kind of nice... Claire sleeping on me that is, not the movie. [C] Do you do this often? - Claire. HQ, rec rooms + Camphoreon City. So. Woke up next to Claire, did morning work, went for afternoon off in the city. Had a nice meal, Tortie stole two pokemon, went to take pictures. Went back to base, for some reason gave Claire one of the pokemon. For some reason she hugged me, and for some reason I'm still grinning an hour later. [D] Mischief managed - Ani. HQ, Trainee dorms. [C] What friends are for - Claire. HQ, the pool. Skies over HQ. I found Claire in the pool, miserable that Lucas has decided he now doesn't give a damn about her. Made her feel better by acting like a total prat, we then went off for dinner on Odette! I must get myself a Pidgeot.
Grunt:[A] 0 - [C] 4 - [D] 2 - Total: 6
[C] [RAID] What lies beneath. TRP, Nyx, Claire, Alia, Faleen & Galactic. Under the Sky Peak mountains. We were going to the city Outpost, but we got shot down by Galactic and stuck with them in a old mine. I don't like any of those three, especially the blue haired one; she was giving Claire creepy looks... Oh, yea, and that; made a total idiot of myself over Claire when the ceiling was falling on us. I guess I care about her more than I realized. Anyway, original mission was a wash out, our 'dexes got blown up, and we went back to HQ empty-handed. Oh, and 'Emma' was there; apparently she's an Agent and named Nyx. Go figure. [C] [ORP] What logic concludes - HQ, rec rooms. Got back to base, got patched up, got pizza and beer, gave Lucas a good bollocking, saw a guy with awesome tattoos. [C] Dinner is served - Claire. HQ, Claire's room. Oh s**t. This is all I need. [D/C] Dark pokemon 101 - ??? (Adra). Cypress Forest - Met a girl with a dark Cyndaquil. She didn't know anything about it, the daft bint. ((Complete but too short to count)) [D] [ORP] Bathroom tiem!- HQ, A male grunt bathroom - [C] Come fly with me - Claire. HQ, various - Got Claire to start teaching me to fly, and got her flowers for her birthday. She wasn't meant to work out they were from me, but I'm actually kind of glad she did.
Agent:[A] 5 - [C] 104 - [D] 5 - Total: 114
[A] 0 - [C] 10 - [D] 0 [C] Not Alone - Claire. HQ, Claire’s room - Went to brag to Claire about being promoted, totally forgot when I found her upset after a nightmare. We chatted a bit then watched a movie. She fell asleep on me. Damn, I've got it bad. [C] Bathroomies - Hayes. HQ, Hayes’ room - Met my 'bathroomie', the agent in the room across from me. He seems alright I suppose; nerdy, laid back. Suppose I'll be getting to know him fairly well. [C] Your face! (Is scary) - Izumi. Campheron, Izumi’s workshop - What a wimp. Oh well, I got my bike fixed once she was done stuttering. Cool arm. [C] [ORP] Something strange- Campheron - Rescued a Spinarak (hastily named Paul because when I suggested Gimpy it looked heartbroken) and got a date. She's a pretty girl but... well we'll just have to see how things work out. [C] [RAID] All your base- Galactic base/The Machine - Aila.... [C] [ORP] Those who remain- HQ, infirmary - .... [C] Reservations- Claire. HQ, infirmary & Aulus quarters - I asked Claire out on a date. She said yes. Trying very hard not to panic, also, borrowing Hayes' clothes which fit surprisingly well. [C] D-Day - Claire. Campheron City - That went... well. Shockingly well. Heeee. [C] Kiss and tell- Hayes. Hayes' quarters - He really is a pretty damn good friend. [C] Teach me- Tambery. HQ, exercise facilities - I've started on some karate lessons with Tam, seems good so far to me! [A] 0 - [C] 10 - [D] 0 [C] Speak no evil- Izaya. HQ, Exercise facilities - Hehe, idiot. Who goes running in dress shoes? Seriously! [C] Unwelcome Advances- Hayes. HQ, Aulus' quarters - =( [C] Picture Perfect- Claire. HQ, Claire's room - Hee! She liked her present and we watched a movie. A few awkward moments, but it was good on the whole. [C] Fireworks and Firelight- Claire. The beach outside Camapheron - New Year's Eve date with Claire. Went just about as perfectly as I could ask... I just wish I knew why she's so hesitant about everything. [C] [RAID] Out of the blue- Camphoreon Museum - ... [C] Belly of the beast- Raid Team. Galactic HQ - ... [C] Feeling Good- Tethys. Galactic HQ - ... [C/D] Aracnid of my eye- Pokemon centric, training facilities - ... ((Dead but meets length requirements)) [C] [RAID] Recovery Mission- Galactic base - ... [C] [ORP] Homecoming- Rocket HQ, infirmary - Made it home... it feels unreal.
[A] 0 - [C] 9 - [D] 1 [D] Belated- Claire HQ, infirmary - [C/D] Come around- Jerome. HQ, Infirmary - ((Dead but meets length requirements)) [C] Closed doors- Hayes. Hayes' quarters - Faleen did something to Alex. I don't know exactly what or why but if that b***h doesn't stop toying with him or whatever it is she's doing I will Make. Her. Suffer. [C] I heard what you did- Faleen. HQ - b***h! b***h, b***h, b***h! [C] Even better than a tardis- Hayes. HQ, Aulus' quarters - Heh. [D] [ORP] Paradiso- HQ, cafeteria - [C] Easing back into it- Tam. HQ, pool. - Not feeling quite normal isn't so bad when you're not alone. [C] Tea and cake and other things- Tam. HQ, cafeteria - Plans! Plans are good, especially plans with friends. [C] [ORP] Twilight in the park- Camphoreon Park - Well that was going fine until that Absol went on a rampage. Ugh. [C] Afterparty- Claire. HQ - *Gleeee*
[A] 0 - [C] 10 - [D] 0 [C] New Assignments- Claire. HQ, training facilities. - I really, really hate Dark Balls. [C] [RAID] Trixters in the dark- The lake -No! [C] Pranksters in the Light- HQ - Well I feel stupid. Oh well! Better than losing all my emotions. [C] Halloween!- Halloween Party - Well I got to be Han Solo, I'm happy. [C] Trip to the faire- Camphoreon - Ugh. [C] [ORP] Upgrades- HQ - Well that was ridiculous! [C] What was lost...- Claire. Camphoreon City. - I can't- I actually can't believe it. I got him back. I got him back! [C] [RAID ORP] Prepare for the Worst- Exploding base - Oh you have got to be sodding kidding me! [C] Picked the wrong fight - Kyle. Ambergris hideout. - What a pillock. [C] [ORP] Lets Get Down to Business- Ambergris hideout - Well most of them are hopeless but..... Yeah, most of them are hopeless. *Sigh*
[A] 0 - [C] 8 - [D] 2 [C] [ORP] Clean Slate- Elemi Lake Headquarters - So. Underground. Yaaaaaaaay. Tam caught the Joltik that was causing issues, a shiny and all. [C] Identical Arrangements; Important Changes- Tam. HQ - New partner! I'm glad it's her, she's.... Tam. I can talk to her, it's good. [C] OMG! Shopping spree!- Lex. Camphoreon City - I am really bad at smalltalk. [C] Fancy Facilities- Kailee. HQ training rooms - That girl has serious issues with her pokemon, but she seems willing to put in the effort to improve so the situation may just be salvageable. Shesh though, don't they teach them anything in basic anymore? [C] [RAID] A Legendary Heist- Paladin Island - ...Ugh. Success! [C] [ORP] Bloody but Victorious- HQ, infirmary - Alex is here, apparently! Yay!... Gods I'm high. [C] [ORP] Wheely Good Victory Party- HQ, Rec room - A well deserved party, but I still sodding hate being stuck in that chair. Ugh. [D] [ORP] Routine Maintenance- HQ, training rooms - [C] Time to talk!~- Izaya. HQ - I really, really hate that little s**t. [D] Cupboard Plants & Cranky Cacti- Hayes. HQ -
[A] 0 - [C] 9 - [D] 1 [C] Danger Room Dialogue- Tam. HQ, training rooms - I am really not looking forward to this but.... Yeah. Good to have friends. [C] Being Better- Kailee. HQ, training rooms - Well she's improved I guess. That Wigglytuff still needs work on its attitude though. [C] [RAID] Final Frontier- Crashed Galactic mothership - .... [C] Concerned Cookies- Kailee. HQ, infirmary - Why did she come see me anyway? What does she event want? Ugh. [C] Time Well Spent- Kailee. HQ, infirmary - .... [D] Through Thick and Thin- Hayes. HQ, infirmary - [C] Flesh Wound? Your Arm’s off!- Tam. HQ, infirmary - Tam's a mess... but she'll get better, and that's something. [C] [ORP] Discussing Discovery- HQ, meeting room - I don't know why they had to hold the meeting so damn soon, but hopefully something useful will come out of it. Good to know our opinions are valued anyway. [C] Don’t Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth- Kailee. HQ, training rooms - Well apparently I have a new private student.... She's okay I suppose. She's been very kind but... well, I still hardly know her. [C] Cookie Delivery!- Kailee. HQ, infirmary - We have... a deal? I guess. I... I don't know. What's wrong with me lately?
[A] 0 - [C] 10 - [D] 0 [C] Getting Out- Tam HQ, training rooms - Plans! Plans are good, and progress. We'll get there. [C] Fired Up!- Kailee. HQ, training rooms - That went okay, no awkward moments... well no very awkward moments anyway. She seems to be growing in confidence as a trainer too which is good. [C] Being Okay- Hayes. HQ, Hayes' quarters - We'll be okay, one day. Least we've got each other. [C] Sink or Swim...Or Swandive, that’s an option too.- Kailee HQ, pool training room - Trying to be a normal person is more difficult than it sounds. [C] Here’s looking at you, kid- Sera. Camphoreon, mall - Well it... it was nice to meet somebody who gets it. I hope I run into her again sometime. Hope she does okay too, probably shouldn't but oh well. [C] The doctor is in- Kailee . HQ, training rooms - Hum. This one could turn out to be tricky, a pokemon that won't fight... well it's not going to do well around here. [C] Down but not out- Lex. HQ, training rooms - Okay... not sure why I agreed to that but it's probably good, right? [C] [OPR] Mako Shore Festival- Mako shore - Well that sucked. I got a new student though so that's good at least. [C] Karate Chop, Hoo-Haa!- Aija. HQ, training rooms - Well she's an enthusiastic student... yeah, I think she'll do fine if she sticks at it. [C] Pubs are totally made for socialization- Lex. Sandalwood City - Why did I think that was a good idea? Just, why? Ugh, well I suppose it was normal at least, there's no denying that.
[A] 1 - [C] 8 - [D] 1 [C] Talking Time #2- Izaya. HQ, gym - Well.... Well I suppose that went better than last time. [C] A case of mistaken identity- Candice. HQ - Well I dodged that almost very embarrassing bullet. Not everyone with light blue hair is her... is Tehtys. I almost hope I meet her again actually, Tethys that is. We have unfinished business. [C] Bugging About- Tam. Cypress Forest - Okay. Well. Popsicle chicken. Ow. [C] Be Prepared- HQ. tam - Training more often with Tam will be fun, and useful for both of us. ******** knows I can't wait for some real missions again though. [A] Mission: Carnival Capture!- Adam. Camphoreon - [C] This isn't supposed to happen!- Abel. Camphoreon - ********, I've got to be more careful! Kind of pleased I met Abel though, he seems like a chilled sort of guy. [C] Three Cheers for Understanding- Sera. Camphoreon - Went out for drinks with Sera, had a fun time bitching about people and life in general. Will have to meet up with her more often. [D] Practice Makes Better- Aija. HQ, training rooms - [C] [ORP] Winter Diversions- Skypeak Ski Range - Well a day out is a day out I suppose. [C] Jump Scare- Tam HQ, Tam's quarters - Wooo! So, I get fighting type and Tam gets psychic; good combination!
[A] 0 - [C] 10 - [D] 0 [C] [ORP] De-Extinction- Mountains around Sagestone - Fossil hunt, nice! Got a Helix fossil and a Sail fossil out of it, good work team! [C] [ORP] Slaughterhouse- Kalos HQ - Well... yeah. That sucks. I'm glad Tam's okay but knowing somebody died... yeah, sucks. [C/D] Family Bonding- Ketia Rowan. HQ, training rooms - ((Dead but meets length requirements)) [C/D] We Have the Technology- Faleen. HQ, tech department - ((Dead but meets length requirements)) [C] Upgrade- Tam. HQ - Showed Tam my awesome new arm, and found out she has a Mega Stone for Ella so extra awesome! She seems... okay? I guess. I'm just going to try to keep her busy and or just be good company I guess. [C] Handsome Hands- Sera. Camphoreon - Heh, well Sera likes the arm too! I hope she gets herself a prosthetic, even if the surgery bit sucks. [C] Old, New, Past, Present; Forward!- Tam. Sagestone, fossil exhibit - Tam and I visited a fossil exhibit in Sagestone, it was pretty neat and I got myself a plastic Aerodactyl because why not? [C] Super Mega Awesome!- Tam. HQ, training rooms - Awwwwwwww. [C] Rocks on a Roll- Tam. HQ - Fossils! [C] On the Rocks- Lex. HQ - Well he was less of a tit than usual but clearly very, very high given it took him several minutes to notice I had two arms. Seems our fossils bonded though so I suppose I will see more of him in future.
[A] 2 - [C] 8 - [D] 0 [C] Back in Our Day... - Tam. Near Sagestone - Well, that was a thing. Voltorb, and Millicent wants to fight everything, and Ella has issues apparently.... We'll sort it, somehow. [C] Steely Exterior- Tam. HQ, training rooms - Seems like we could all do with a bit of a break. Movie night it is! [C] Bring it on- Lex. HQ, training rooms - Good training session with Lex. Being in a wheelchair makes him less obnoxious apparently? [C] Systems- Tam. HQ, Aulus' room - A successful evening! Made Tam feel better, and now have her porygon temporarily in my arm. [C] Sunshine, Sand, and Salty Water- Tam. Beach west of Ambergris - Okay... weird. Dead Sharpeado with no marks on it? I want answers here. [C] Knowing when to shut up- Clancy. HQ - What? Just... what? What a moron. Shesh. [C] Knifes and Kung Foos!- Clancy. HQ, training rooms - Well, point proved!... But now I have a Clancy in my classes. I wonder which terrible thing I did this is punishment for? [A] Prizes Galore- Nicolette. Camphoreon - [C] A Big Fishy- Tam. HQ, Aulus/Tam's quarters - Well there's certainly something fishy about the big dead fish. Hopefully we can get the to bottom of this, it's going to prey on my mind otherwise. Things don't just die for no reason. [A] Training Cats and Dogs- Luxury. HQ, training rooms -
[A] 0 - [C] 10 - [D] 0 [C] Hard to Fathom- Asgard. Beach west of Ambergris - <> [C] Very Fishy With a Side of Missiles- Tam. HQ - What the hell happened? Besides the obvious that is. Something is definitely going on out there. [C] Very Own Monster- Clancy. HQ, training rooms - Yeeeeah, this is going to be hard work. [C] Unpleasant Requirements- Sync. HQ, training rooms - Well, had to think about that one a bit! He really didn't know anything about pokemon beyond his own but he seems to learn well, I'd call that session a success. [C] Parks and Recreation- Hen. Camphoreon City, Park - Well that was... bizarre. [C] Do two Amauras make a herd?- Lex. Sandalwood forest - Seriously, who doesn't know about dark balls? Not a lot else to report. [C] Adapting to Change- Izaya. HQ, training rooms - Well that was... weird. I wonder how much of it was true? [C] Still Extremely Fishy- Tam, ghosts. Beach west of Ambergris - Well that solved exactly nothing. We need to make some plans and then return. [C] [ORP] Questions - HQ - Well... ********. Faleen, of all people? ********] Fishing for Answers- Tam. Beach west of Ambergris - Well that tells us... nothing? Something? Tells us to back off anyway.
[A] 2 - [C] 2 - [D] 0 [C] Zombies Afoot- Izaya. HQ, cafe - Okay, so, people are coming back from the dead - Aila is back from the dead - and Izaya thinks Faleen is possessed. s**t has got weird around here. [A] Bugged by Bugs- Tambery & Izaya. HQ, training rooms - [C] [ORP] Kiss Kiss Fall in Love- Camphoreon convention centre - Well that was weird. What the hell was with Izaya? [A] [ORP] The Truth is Out There
TawnyAngel
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TawnyAngel
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Posted: Sat Jan 29, 2011 3:19 pm
Every time I turn it on, I burn it up and burn it out.
Writing Totally professional beheviour- University, aged 21 - In which Aulus' finance professor is not inappropriate in the least. Wherever you go- University (leaving), aged 21 - In which Aulus buggers off to be a misfit in new and interesting locations. Making friends and influencing people- HQ, trainee dorms - In which Aulus moves into his Trainee dorm and gets on fabulously with his new roommates. Unwelcome Advances- HQ - In which Aulus is gloomy. Fight- Galactic base - In which Aulus fights a Machoke. Spoiler: it is not a resounding victory for him. The Cavalry- Justin and Marcus in Campheron - In which the cavalry arrives and displays typical mature efficiency. A heartfelt email- HQ, Hayes' inbox - In which Aulus has feelings. Beside visits- HQ, infirmary - In which Aulus visits Jerome. Oh- Ambergris outpost - In which the base blew up and Aulus is not impressed. It's salmon- Somewhere in Ambergris - In which it is not pink, it is salmon. Also it's a Lugia. Peace- The ocean - In which Aulus and his new Lugia companion go flying together. Together- The plains - In which while things will never be as they once were, at least they are together again. Box- HQ - In which Aulus tries to think outside the box. Bumpy start- HQ - In which there is a frog under Aulus' bed. Back on form- Ambergris - In which Aulus says; "Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" Prelude to a nightmare- HQ - In which Aulus gives his team a pep-talk and tries not to freak out about the upcoming mission. Headshot- HQ, firing range - In which Aulus is learning, reluctantly, to shoot. Intergration- HQ, Aulus' quarters - In which Aulus worries. The eyes have it- HQ, firing range - In which Aulus works out why he doesn't like Frost. Parted Partners- HQ - In which Aulus tries not to worry too much. Upgrades- HQ - In which Aulus has a shiny new arm and makes new plans for his classes. Titanium- HQ, firing range - In which Aulus gets in some practice with the new arm. Prepare for the Worst- HQ, firing range - In which Aulus practices with his shiny new guns, which is not entirely fond of but what can you do? Mega Score In which Aulus acquires Gengarite by not being a bull in a china shop.
Posted: Sun Jan 30, 2011 8:18 am
Tortoiseshell.
Vital statistics
Number: 359 Height: 4'1" Weight: 103lbs Description: Tall, long-limbed, and slender; she moves with grace. Pokedex entry: It has the ability to foretell natural disasters. Its life span is over a hundred years. Nature: Naughty (+attack -special defence) Ability: When this Pokémon is hit by a move, the opponent’s PP lowers by two rather than one. / Magic Bounce reflects the effect of all stat lowering status moves (excluding Memento), non-damaging status condition-inducing moves, entry hazard moves, moves like Taunt and Torment, and so on back to the user.
History
Aulus acquired Tortie as an egg from a breeder when he was twenty. He trained her from birth to be loyal to him, and hostile to anyone he shows hostility to (so pretty much everyone). When Aulus first started acquiring other pokemon and friends Tortie was deeply jealous and resentful, unused to sharing her trainer's affection and attention as she was. Over time however she has warmed up to most of the other pokemon, becoming particular friends with Killer.
Personality
Tortie is a b***h, and she loves every minute of it. She'll snark and talk down to other pokemon, and her contempt for humans is made clear in her body language. She loves and looks up to her trainer, but she does not follow orders mindlessly; if she thinks he's making a mistake, or has missed an important detail, she'll take matters into her own hands paws. She doesn't much like pokeballs and so spends as little time as possible in hers; if she's been shut away from a while she will be very restive when she gets out and need to burn off some energy before she can focus properly.
Though no longer as possessive of Aulus as she once was Tortie has very high standards in the people he associates with, she won't put up with him being mistreated in any way shape or form! The expansion of Aulus' social circle has also led to an expansion in her own, a fact that she enjoys even though she prefers not to admit it. She now spends a lot of time with Killer, helping the less experienced pokemon grow stronger and hunting out in the forest when they have some spare time.
Tortie considers herself the boss of Aulus' pokemon and is highly annoyed that Char calmly disagrees.
Tortie is fond of making up nicknames for people. They are seldom flattering even on the rare occasion that she likes the person she is naming, such as in the case of Killer and Red. Here are some examples:
Asgard = Fish-Bird Char = Jeeves Hayes = Specs / The Overnerd Tambery = Specs#2 / Dr Frank. Killer = Fluffbutt Phaethon = (my little) Pony Red = Featherbrain
African Wild Dog
Lycaon pictus is a large canid found only in Africa, especially in savannas and other lightly wooded areas. It is commonly called the African Hunting Dog, African Wild Dog, Painted Wolf, Cape Hunting Dog, Painted Dog, Painted Hunting Dog, Spotted Dog or Ornate Wolf.
Adults typically weigh 18–34 kilograms (40–75 lb). A tall, lean animal, it stands about 75 centimetres (30 in) at the shoulder, with a head and body length averaging about 100 centimetres (39 in) long with a tail of 30 to 45 centimetres (12 to 18 in). It has a a total of 42 teeth, and the premolars are relatively large compared with those of other canids, allowing it to consume a large quantity of bone, much like hyenas. A study established that the African Wild Dog had a Bite Force Quotient of 142, the highest of any living mammal of the order Carnivora. The BFQ is essentially the strength of bite as measured against the animal's mass.
In packs, there are separate male and female hierarchies that will split up if either of the alphas die. In the female group, the oldest will have alpha status over the others, so a mother will retain her alpha status over her daughters. For the males, in contrast the youngest male or the father of the other males will be dominant. When two such loner separate-gender groups meet, if unrelated they can form a pack together.
Nearly 80% of all wild dog hunts end in a kill; for comparison, the success rate of lions, often viewed as ultimate predators, is only 30%. Members of a pack vocalize to help coordinate their movements. Its voice is characterized by an unusual chirping or squeaking sound, similar to a bird. Wild dogs frequently kill larger prey via disemboweling, a technique that is rapid but has caused this species to have a negative, ferocious reputation. The African Wild Dog's main prey varies among populations but always centers around medium-to-large sized ungulates, such as the impala, Thomson's Gazelle, Springbok, kudu, reedbuck, and wildebeest calves. Some packs will also take on larger prey such as zebra or warthog. Hunting larger prey requires a closely coordinated attack, beginning with a rapid charge to stampede the herd. One pack member then grabs the victim's tail, while another attacks the upper lip or nose, and the remainder disembowel the animal while it is immobilised. Male wild dogs usually perform the task of grabbing warthogs by the nose.
Remarkably, this large-animal hunting tactic appears to be a learned behavior, passed on from generation to generation within specific hunting packs, rather than an instinctive behaviour found commonly within the species. Some studies have also shown that other information, such as the location of watering holes, may be passed on in a similar fashion.
TawnyAngel
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TawnyAngel
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Posted: Wed Mar 02, 2011 2:19 pm
Making friends and influencing people.
"...And finally, this will be your dorm. There's seven in there already, so you'll take the last bed. Any questions, Trainee?"
Aulus paused outside the door, turning to regard the Agent who'd brought him this far. "Nothing I can think of," he said after a moment in tones the most polite tones he could muster; the skinny blond had treated him alright, so the least he could do was avoid being disrespectful. "Thanks for your help," he added as an afterthought.
"No problem," the Agent said with a grin, "welcome to Team Rocket; make a good showing and you'll be out of this dorm before too long. Screw up, mind you, and you'll be in red forever, that or at the bottom of the sea!"
"Thanks," Aulus gave a snort of amusement, "I'll bear that in mind." Rough humour felt far more welcoming, more genuine than assurances that everything would be sunshine and happy jigglypuffs. This was Team Rocket; it was a tough organization and he was going to fit right in.
The Agent chuckled at his response but didn't speak again; instead he gave Aulus a nod and turned away down the corridor. Once he was out of sight, Aulus swiped the keycard he'd been given; the light beside the lock flashed green, and he pushed the door open. As soon as he stepped inside five pairs of eyes swivelled around to regard him; none of them looked friendly, but three of them looked taken aback by the sight of him which was a good start.
"You can call me Aulus," Aulus declared before any of them could speak, "and I'll be taking that top bunk in the far corner. Any problems?"
"I got a problem," growled one of the men, one of the ones who hadn't looked frightened, "that's my bunk. You've got a lot of nerve for a newbie."
"And you've got a lot of nerve for a little pansy girl," Aulus replied with rattlesnake speed and venom, setting his belongings down on a table and leaning his staff against the wall: too enclosed to use it here. This wasn't going like he'd hoped, but how had he hoped it would go? He had just wanted to exert a bit of dominance, he supposed he'd hoped that they'd all roll over and say 'yes sir' without question. Wishful thinking, but he had no problem dealing with their resistance now that it was there. None at all. "Take my advice," he growled to the man currently standing up to him, "don't mess with me; I'd rather not waste the energy on beating you to a pulp. That goes for all of you. Stay out of my way, and everything will be fine."
"Think you're a bigshot, hu?" sneered the man currently in the possession of the bunk Aulus had decided he wanted. "Come on then," he rose from the chair he'd been languishing in and flexed impressively powerful arms, "show me what you got, Scar."
So this was how it was going to be, was it? Fine. As the man approached him in an amateurish boxing stance making swipes at the air, Aulus gave a superior smirk. "If you insist." A punch came towards his face, which he blocked easily. The other man was a brute and a bruiser, he probably won fights against people who didn't know what they were doing with ease. Unfortunately for him, Aulus was nearly as big as he and did know what he was doing. A brief blur of motion later, the big man was flat on his back with Aulus' booted foot on his neck. "Now then," the red-eyed man said in worryingly reasonable tones, "I'll be taking that top bunk in the far corner. Any problems?"
The man under his foot managed to shake his head, and so Aulus released him with a grunt of satisfaction. He wasn't making things easy for himself here, and a part of him knew that very well. It would have been more sensible to take whichever bunk was free. It would have been smarter to try to make friends or something... But no; the man who he'd just beaten had obviously been the top dog, and would have tried to push him around if he hadn't given a show of force. He was the biggest b*****d in the room now, and the rest of them would do as he said... Well, he supposed the two residents of the dorm who weren't here might need a lesson too, but maybe not. It was best that he'd done it this way. They would respect him now, or fear him, or both; any combination suited him fine...
Shaking himself internally, Aulus pushed aside the last niggling worry that he'd gone about this all wrong and scooped up his clothes and assorted belongings; this was how things needed to be. Carrying the stuff over to his bunk thank you very much, he dumped everything on top for the time being before turning to face his dorm-mates. "I'm going to find something to eat now," he announced, "and when I come back, I expect all my stuff to be exactly as it is now. If one single thing is out of place, I'll choose somebody to take it out on at random. Understood?"
Five heads nodded in silence, and Aulus gave a grunt of satisfaction. "There's good boys," he sneered, "I'll be seeing you later." Nobody said anything as he crossed the room and stepped out into the corridor, he supposed there wasn't much to say really; he'd won after all... He had won. It had been for the best. Letting out a heavy sigh, Aulus set off in search of the cafeteria. This was a tough organization, and he was fitting right in. He'd done the right thing... Hadn't he?
Number: 006 Height: 6'3" to the shoulder. Weight: 200lbs Description: Tall and wiry; looks hardy. Has a collected, competent air about him. Pokedex entry: Without pity, its sharp claws destroy foes. If it encounters a strong enemy, it becomes agitated, and the flame on its tail flares with a bluish white color. Nature: Serious Ability: Fire-type moves have their power will increase by 1.5× if the user has less than or equal to ⅓ of its maximum HP remaining. / Drought summons harsh sunlight in battle as soon as a Pokémon with Drought enters the battle.
History
Char was stolen from a wealthy young trainer not by Aulus, but rather by Tortie who was trying to get his attention off Claire. He accepted his new master fairly swiftly once he was aware that he was far stronger than his previous one, and paid far more attention to him too. It's much easier to want to work for somebody who appreciates you.
Personality
Char is a model worker, pure and simple. He thrives on discipline, and on hard graft. From the most daring heist to the dullest drudgery, if he's given a firm order to get it done he will, and to the best of his ability every time. Fun, so far as he's concerned, is always being busy with something; if left to his own devices he will try to think of something useful to do and then get to it. Being idle drives him to distraction, but he is too well-behaved to break out of his pokeball save in extreme circumstances. Instead he will wiggle around politely a few times hoping to be released to set about dusting, or savaging an enemy, or fetching coffee and breakfast in bed for his master.
His actions towards others depend on where he sees himself relative to them in the chain of command. If he believes he is subservient to them he will follow their orders without question, and do his best to learn their routines and their favourite things so as to please them by pre-empting needs or instructions. If he thinks he's above somebody, however, he will see to it that they work just as hard as he does for the good of their betters. People who don't seem to be within his chain of command will be treated with calm respect, unless of course his master instructs otherwise. Those who he classifies as 'needs looking after' will be exposed to a gentle, rather paternal side of the Charizard's character.
At present Char considers himself more or less the boss of Aulus' other pokemon, though Tortie strongly disagrees with this.
Dragon lore
TawnyAngel
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TawnyAngel
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Posted: Thu Mar 24, 2011 12:36 pm
Red.
Vital statistics
Number: 18 Height: Weight: Description: A large pidgeot with a sleek, agile build. Pokedex entry: This Pokémon has gorgeous, glossy feathers. Many trainers are so captivated by the beautiful feathers on its head that they choose Pidgeot as their Pokémon. Nature: Hasty (+ Speed, - Defence) Ability: Prevents loss of accuracy.
History
Red lived a wild and free life from hatching, and spent many years evading trainers and battling pokemon to gain strength. An adventure to the desert however led to her capture by Aulus, as the heat and dehydration had worn her out too much to get away. Being provided with good food and cool water when next let out of her pokeball persuaded her to stay around at least for a while before trying to escape, and meeting the lovely Lady Odette not long after this sealed the deal. So long as Odette is around, so shall she be.
Personality
Fear not ladies, Red is here to save the day! This pidgeot fancies herself something of a knight in shining armor; chivalry (especially towards lovely feathered ladies) is of the utmost importance, and if you insult her honor prepare to be challenged! She is a genuinely good soul, always wishing to do what is right, but is quite easily deceived and so can easily be led. The enemies of Team Rocket do what to ladies? Of course those normal trainer wasn't worthy of owing that pokemon; they might not see it right now but they will surely be better off with Team Rocket!
Whilst she is genuinely good, Red is also extremely proud. Nobody is quite as noble and dashing as she, no male could possibly hope to be as good a knight as she! She is only subservient when it comes to beautiful ladies, because every good and noble knight should serve all the women of the world without question; obviously most are too crass or dimwitted to realize that, but she knows it very well! Any lady who catches her eye can expect to be treated like a queen; showered with gifts, protected from low class pokemon that might try to bother her, and entertained with fantastic aerobatics whenever she wishes. Red does not take well to competition for her ladies, and will do her best to chase off any other suitors. Friends, trainers and what have you are fine, but anyone else who might be looking to win the fair female's heart earns her instant contempt; how dare a little worm like that try to compete with her?
When it comes to her trainer, Red is fond of him, but his wishes come second to those of ladies. If she is fixated on a girl, the only way Aulus can get her to work is to convince her that doing whatever he is telling her to do will impress said girl. As for Aulus' other pokemon, well, she's not too fond of Tortie; she finds the Absol to be entirely too snappish and full of herself. She gets along with Char, viewing him with respect despite the fact that she is more powerful than he. As for Paul, well, she never really sees him; the moment she appears, the Spinarak makes himself scarce as soon as possible.
Harris Hawk
Parabuteo unicinctus; the Harris Hawk. Formerly known as the Bay-winged Hawk or Dusky Hawk, is a medium-large bird of prey which breeds from the southwestern United States south to Chile and central Argentina. Birds are sometimes reported at large in Western Europe, especially Britain, but it is a popular species in falconry and these records almost certainly all refer to escapes from captivity. Individuals range in length from 46 to 76 cm (18 to 30 in) and generally have a wingspan of 1.1 m (3.6 ft) They exhibit sexual dimorphism with the females being larger by about 40%.
They nest in small trees, shrubby growth, or cacti. The nests are often compact, made of sticks, plant roots, and stems, and are often lined with leaves, moss, bark and plant roots. They are built mainly by the female. There are usually two to four white to blueish white eggs sometimes with a speckling of pale brown or gray. The nestlings start out light buff, but in five to six days turn a rich brown.
Very often there will be three hawks attending one nest: two males and one female, but whether or not this is an example of polyandry is debated. The eggs hatch in 31 to 36 days, and the young begin to explore outside the nest at 38 days, and fledge, or start to fly, at 45 to 50 days. The female sometimes breeds two or three times in a year if sufficient food is available. Young may stay with their parents for up to three years, helping to raise later broods.
Since about 1980, Harris Hawks have been increasingly used in falconry and are now the most popular hawks in the West (outside of Asia) for that purpose, as they are the easiest to train and the most social. Indeed, while most raptors are solitary (only coming together for breeding and migration), Harris's Hawks will hunt in cooperative groups of two to six. In one hunting technique, a small group flies ahead and scouts, then another group member flies ahead and scouts, and this continues until prey is bagged and shared. In another, all the hawks spread around the prey and one individual flushes it. Due to this cooperative hunting as well as hunting small lizards and rodents, groups of Harris Hawks can take on prey as large as jackrabbits.
Posted: Sat Apr 02, 2011 2:39 pm
Paul.
Vital statistics
Number: 322 Height: 0'08" Weight: 8lbs Description: A truly tiny specimen lacking its left hind leg. Presumably its stunted growth is somehow related to the injury. The small pokemon approaches the world with a shy, hopeful smile. Pokedex entry: The web it spins can be considered its second nervous system. It is said that a Spinarak determines its prey by the tiny vibrations it feels through the web. Nature: Timid (+Speed, - Attack) Ability: Prevents sleep
History
Aulus rescued Paul from being trodden on at a Halloween party. Seeing how small, sad, scared, and give-legged he was rather than releasing him back into the wild Aulus took the purple bug home with him. He was originally going to name him Gimpy, but the poor Spinarak looked heartbroken so he swiftly amended to the first name that popped into his head, which happened to be Paul.
Personality
Paul just wants to be loved, and not chased by scary birds. He is friendly to one and all save for scary birds, but doesn't quite seem to get the message when people are scared of him. If people run away from him he assumes he did something to upset them, and is a very sad little spider indeed. He is very submissive, and would always prefer to defer to somebody else's judgement; all he wants is to be near them and tell them how amazing they are and have them like him.
As well as submissive he is loving and loyal; he never forgets a kindness and will do anything at all for people who are regularly kind to him.... Well he would like to anyway, the poor little spider just doesn't have the heart for moments of heroically charging into battle, or at least he doesn't yet. He will, however, stick by your side rather than fleeing and do his best to fend off enemies by leaving web traps and so on. Mostly though, Paul would just rather that fighting didn't happen at all; he is a peaceful soul and never seems to get bored just so long as there's somebody around for him to sit with.
Arachnophobia or arachnephobia (from the Greek: ἀράχνη, aráchnē, "spider" and φόβος, phóbos, "fear") is a specific phobia, the fear of spiders and other arachnids such as scorpions. It is a manifestation of zoophobia, among the most common of all phobias. The reactions of arachnophobics often seem irrational to others (and sometimes to the sufferers themselves). People with arachnophobia tend to feel uneasy in any area they believe could harbor spiders or that has visible signs of their presence, such as webs. If arachnophobics see a spider they may not enter the general vicinity until they have overcome the panic attack that is often associated with their phobia. In some extreme cases, even a picture or a realistic drawing of a spider can also trigger fear.
Let's face it, spiders are just scary, but Paul is very sorry for being scary and just wants you to love him.
TawnyAngel
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TawnyAngel
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Posted: Fri Apr 15, 2011 5:17 am
Totally professional beheviour.
It was nine in the morning. Aulus had not seen nine in the morning for months, well not unless he had never actually gone to bed anyway. He was not happy. There were many reasons for this, and the fact that it was nine in the morning and he was up and about was merely the first of them.
He hated his course. He hated his roommate. He had to do laundry later, and he hated doing laundry. He had a meeting with his stupid, egotistical, and yet also overly friendly finance professor. He knew what the meeting was going to entail, and he was not looking forward to it. Hello there Kurt! How’s the family Kurt? Not spoken to them? How said Kurt! I want to be good pals with you Kurt, but you’re failing my course Kurt. Would you like a biscuit? No he sodding well did not want a biscuit, and he didn’t want to be here either.
Why had he ever agreed to take business studies in the first place? The scarred young man glared at a girl with an armful of books until she flattened herself against the wall of the corridor out of his way. Really, what had possessed him? He should have just got a job, that had to be better than listening to men who thought too much of themselves rattle on about how to make a lot of money. He didn’t want to know how to make a lot of money in some job he hated. He had no interest in the corporate ladder save as a bludgeoning weapon for use on smarmy idiots in suits. He didn’t want to be here. On reaching the office door marked ‘Prof. Adam Calder’ Aulus came to a halt, knocked loudly, and entered without waiting for a response. Best just get it over with.
“Do come in Kurt!” called the familiar, disgustingly jovial voice. Calder was sitting behind his polished walnut desk on his huge swivelling leather chair. Aulus wanted to storm over to the pillock and spin him on his stupid over-priced seat until he was sick all over his exclusive monogrammed stationary. “Please, sit down,” the grey-haired man went on, gesturing to a comfortable chair before his desk. Aulus hated that chair just as much as he hated the leather chair; it was shorter than the average chair, which put the person sitting it on a level below Calder. Sly, self-important git; he’d love to brain the b*****d with his stupid art-nouveau silver paperweight.
“Think I’ll stand thanks,” Aulus responded nonchalantly, stretching his quads in the best display of casual irreverence he could muster on the spur of the moment. “Anyway,” he went on, still doing various stretches, “you wanted to see me. I think I might be able to hazard a guess as to why, but I won’t take the pleasure of telling me away from you. Bet you’ve been looking forward to this all week.” He hated Calder. Hated him. There was just something off about the man, something behind those honey-coloured eyes that made his skin crawl, and had done from day one. The man had a glowing record of corporate success, and still seemed able to make buckets of cash at the same time as lecturing in how he’d managed to be so amazing and successful. It wasn’t that he was jealous of that success, wasn’t even really that he hated how the man bragged about it. It was... it was... He didn’t know. He just didn’t like those eyes, no matter how attractive their hue.
“Well well, alright then,” Calder smiled and got to his feet, walking around his desk to stand before Aulus. “I like you Kurt,” he said, perching on the edge of his desk and offering a smile to the young man before him. “I like your sprit, your devil-may-care attitude, your cutting tongue, your unflinching honesty. You’ve got a lot of potential lad, a fairly sharp mind inside that skull of yours no matter how much you like to ignore it, and I want to see you make the most of that. I don’t want to fail you, Kurt, but at the moment it looks as though I might have to.”
“You going to tell me what I have to do to avoid being failed then?” Aulus asked in bored tones, taking a few paces away from Calder and flicking himself into an easy handstand. “Go ahead,” he said dryly from his inverted position, “I’m all ears.” He just wanted this to be over so that he could decide whether he could be bothered to do whatever it was the grey-haired man had in mind, or whether it would be easier just to drop out.
“Mmmh...” A smirk tugged at Calder’s lips, and his eyes narrowed very slightly. “You must work out a lot,” he said after a moment, “a very impressive physique you have lad.”
Suddenly aware that his shirt had slid up to expose his stomach - and feeling extremely uncomfortable about that fact - Aulus sprang back to his feet and treated his professor to a glare. “Yea,” he huffed, pulling his top back down, “and that would probably be why I’m failing your course, because I’m exercising not studying. Could you hurry up and get to the point so I can leave?” He really didn’t like the way Calder was looking at him... Was the skeezy b*****d eyeing him up? He’d better not be. He was sure he'd seen the man with a gorgeous young woman not long ago. Maybe he just wasn't especially fussy about where he stuck his 'Little Professor'. Gross.
“Ah, well if you insist; time is money after all!” Chuckling softly at his own words, Calder met Aulus’ dark glare unflinchingly. “You, young man, need to get some extra credit. A lot of extra credit actually, but luckily I can think of a nice little task that will be fun for both of us and should be enough to pull your grade for this semester up to say... a 2:1?”
“A fail to a 2:1?” Aulus narrowed his eyes and folded his arms across his chest. “And this ‘little task’ is going to be ‘fun’ for both of us. Just what the hell care you getting at here Calder?”
“Well it's quite a delicate matter... How about we discuss it later,” the grey-haired man’s smirk turned predatory, "over dinner."
That smirk made him tense, and the final sleezy suggestion made him knot his fists. No way. No way had Calder just said that. "Shove it up your arse Calder," Aulus snarled, only narrowly resisting the urge to knock the old man flat, "I wouldn't go to dinner with you for a million quid, let alone for a better grade." Had the old scumbag really thought he'd just agree? Surely he had to have more brain than that to have done so well in life.
"Kurt, you mistake me!" the grey-haired man grinned. "I wasn't going to raise your grade for coming to dinner with me, dinner is just for negotiations. Tonight, seven thirty at Opa Meze Bar; the stuffed vine leaves are truly exquisite. You won't regret it."
"Well you've got balls, I'll give you that," Aulus snapped in response, trying to stop himself from shaking with pent up fury. "Offering to take a student to dinner for 'delicate' negotiations about bringing their grade up? You... you... Argh!" Unable to express his rage verbally Aulus tore one of Calder's many framed acolades off the wall and hurled it across the room, where the glass shattered against a bookcase in a satisfying manner. "Like I said," the red-eyed man growled, turning back around, "you can shove it. Come to that, what's to stop me reporting you for this? I could probably get you fired for gross misconduct or whatever crap if I wanted."
"Oh Kurt," Calder chuckled, apparently rather amused by the younger man's display of temper, "do you really think anyone would take your word over mine? You've been nothing but trouble since you arrived here; spreading such nasty lies about such a respected professor would probably be the final straw. Do you want to be excluded?"
...The b*****d was probably right, nobody would listen to a word he said, and he probably would be punished somehow for being so disgustingly 'slanderous'. "Fine," Aulus hissed, "that may be true, but it doesn't force me to take up your little invitation. Maybe I don't care if I fail your Gods damned course, maybe I was planning on dropping out altogether anyway. You've got no hold over me." He was still angry but it didn't seem that throwing Calder's possessions around bothered the man so that was no longer satisfying, and hitting the man himself wasn't an option. He supposed he'd just have to stand and seethe.
"Don't I?" Calder frowned in a over the top display of deep cogitation. "I suppose I don't," he said after a moment, a grin spreading across his face, "I'll just have to create some then; I could say all sorts of things about you, Kurt, and I would be believed. Humm... You threatened me. You actually assaulted me, I could easily have my Machoke rough me up a bit and pin it on you. I could even say you threatened to blow up the university. I could be just about as extreme in my accusations as I wanted, and with a bit of fabricated evidence you'd probably be convicted."
"It'd never work," Aulus said quickly, perhaps a little too quickly to seem confident. He knew he had a reputation for being volatile. Maybe the wilder stuff wouldn't work, but Calder could almost certainly say he had assaulted him; his loathing of the professor was hardly a secret. What was the usual sentence for unprovoked assault?... He was well and truly buggered, and would be literally if Calder got his way. No. Not a chance. He was going to get out of this, and he was damn well going to use his head for a change. "Fine then," the scarred man hissed after a rather long pause, "seven thirty at Opa. We'll talk and... we'll see. Don't think you've got me cornered yet Calder."
"But of course," the grey-haired man grinned and patted Aulus on the shoulder before adding; "Check, but not yet mate, humm?"
"You're a sick f*****t Calder," Aulus snarled, jerking away from the older man's touch, "and you're not going to get what you want from me."
"Whatever you say Kurt," Calder grinned, moving back around his desk and ensconcing himself in his huge leather chair. "You can go now," he went on with a dismissive wave of his hand, "I'll see you at seven thirty... Oh, and Kurt?"
Half way to the door Aulus paused and turned around with a dark glare. "What?" he growled.
"Do smarten yourself up a bit," Calder wagged a finger at him, "it's a nice place, you know!"
Aulus' only response to that was a rude gesture, and a moment later he was out in the hall. Slamming the door shut behind him as hard as he could he stalked down the corridor, radiating fury like heat from a blazing forest fire. Get out of this situation, use his head, and make sure Calder really, really suffered. Nobody treated him like that and got away with it. Nobody.
Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2011 10:00 am
Wherever you go.
He ended up dropping out a couple of weeks later.
Calder had resigned thanks to him actually using his head for once and recording the first thirty minutes of the 'date'.
He supposed he could have actually done more than blackmail him but that would have involved admitting he'd got himself into the damn stupid situation in the first place.
He could have stayed on the course but he hadn't wanted to take it in the first place.
He left, shoved some stuff into his saddlebags and shipped some back to his parents. Let them figure it out.
With the money he had left he got himself a ferry ticket to some far off place, hoping... what? That something would change?
Things never changed, he took himself with him wherever he went.
At least he could be a grumpy b*****d in a new and interesting location for a while.
TawnyAngel
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TawnyAngel
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Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2011 10:15 am
Asgard.
Vital statistics
Number: 249 Height: 18'8" Weight: 476.2lbs Description: A large Lugia with a slightly slimmer than average build. Pokedex entry: It is said to be the guardian of the seas. It is rumored to have been seen on the night of a storm. Nature: Bold (+Defence, - Attack) Ability: Pressure increases the foe's PP usage by one for every successful hit.
History
After the destruction of Team Rocket's base Aulus was assigned a Lugia in recognition of past work, and possibly because the labs went up with everything else and thus all the secure storage for legendary pokemon was gone. Aulus suggested that the psychic type choose its own name and it settled on Asgard, simply because it liked the sound of it when Aulus had been explaining some Norse mythology.
Personality
Asgard is, in general, a patient long suffering sort who looks before he leaps. He takes great delight in teasing Aulus, battles of wits between the two and affectionate insults are commonplace. He is however a bit of a pessimist and prone to fits of brooding gloom, during which it takes a lot of effort to get him to do anything at all. He is fond of the company of pokemon and people alike and he has a wry, dry, sometimes dark kind of humor to him.
While aware that Team Rocket are 'bad' he doesn't really care all that much; life's not fair after all. If it life was fair all creatures would be created exactly equal and exactly the same, and wouldn't that be boring? He is an intelligent creature who enjoys discovery and adventure, but he does appreciate a nice comfortable roost (or pokeball) to come home to when the day is done.
Winged Dragon
Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2012 4:28 pm
Unwelcome Advances.
It was late by the time he stepped back into his quarters and pressed the bathroom door closed behind him. He didn't want this to be happening. All the reassurances in the world couldn't make him feel better.
Leaning back against the door Aulus closed his eyes and rubbed his face. It wasn't a big deal. It shouldn't worry him. Hayes had promised! Even if he hadn't, even if he'd stated outright that things would change he shouldn't be this worried, this upset. He shouldn't be so invested in somebody, he knew what happened when he got invested in people. By that standard he should just stop hanging out with Hayes, and he should stop seeing Claire too. He didn't want to. Between them - a best friend and an amazing girl - they made him the happiest he had been for.... Well, a long time to say the least.
Stepping away from the door Aulus clumped over to his bed and sat down on the edge, elbows on his knees and head pressed into his hands. He was way too tired, shouldn't have stayed up so late but he hadn't wanted to go because... because things would be changing. He liked having Hayes in the next room. He liked the amount of time they had to hang out and that would change. Hayes would be so much busier, the free time he did had would still have to be split kind of as it was now which meant less with him. He was selfish. He was pathetic. He loathed feeling this way.
Abruptly a cold wet nose whuffled at his elbow and Aulus sat up, swallowing hard. Tortie. He patted the bed beside him and she hopped up easily. As he flopped down on top of the covers she moved to lie beside him, whining softly. She didn't know what was wrong, and even when he told her he doubted she'd quite understand what the problem was. Why should he need anyone but her? Why indeed. As the Absol curled up Aulus rolled over onto his side and rested his brow against her back. There had been a time when she'd been his only friend and companion but that had changed... and he didn't want it to change back. Hayes would be moving out soon, out and up. He was being left behind....
He needed to catch up.
Sitting bolt upright Aulus jumped out of bed and clicked his tongue to Tortie before grabbing his other pokeballs and pulling on his boots. If he was going to catch up, he had some work to do and he couldn't start sooner than now.
TawnyAngel
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TawnyAngel
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Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 9:24 am
MLP Writing contest: Entering for Discord!
THE PROMPT: Show us how your character will obtain this pokemon (Discord or Nightmare Moon). How did they meet? What were their interactions like? Was it a happy meeting? Was it a disaster? Write the story of how this strange pokemon came into your character's possession. If your character is a Rocket, then you're welcome to tie Team Rocket into the story. Maybe it was a science experiment. Maybe it came from somewhere else entirely! Be creative and have fun.
He was pretty sure right now that he was going to be demoted.
He'd had a bad day; starting with stubbing his toe on the bathroom doorframe, moving through spilling coffee on himself at breakfast, ending up late for duty because he'd had to go and change, shutting his fingers in a door, and that was all before lunch. Things had not improved. So it was that when he had literally run into Executive Agent Nadja in the corridor he had been boiling mad, ready to explode at the smallest thing. She had given him a Look and that had been enough.
A rant had ensued.
It may have involved calling the Executive an unethical b***h with extensive detail about what a terrible person she was for carrying out cruel experiments on sentient beings.
It may also have involved calling the Executive an effing commie.
He had shoved past her and stormed off before he calmed down to realize just how stupid he'd been, but by the time he had reached his room it had thoroughly hit home. So much for catching up to Hayes in rank. For some time - he wasn't quite sure how long - he sat on the edge of his bed and stared at the wall, trying to work out how he could fix his mistake. Oddly enough he couldn't come up with anything that compensated for calling an Executive an effing communist.
After an agonizing eternity his 'dex beeped ominously. Heart sinking and stomach in knots Aulus read the message. 'Come to my office. Now. - Executive Nadja.' Well this was it then. Getting to his feet Aulus looked around his quarters, presuming that this was the last time he would ever see them as his own. Grunt room. Maybe trainee dorms. Moving like a man walking to his execution Aulus crossed the room and stepped out into the hallway. No escaping it. Best to get it over with. The dirty looks he got from the executives when he made it up to their floor would usually have made him angry but he was far too busy worrying to really take them in. Nadja's office. Here he went then. Just as he raised a fist to knock on the door a voice from within called 'Enter!', and left Aulus glancing around for overt security cameras. He didn't see any immediately and didn't have the time to hang around looking properly so he gave it up and stepped inside.
The slim red-haired woman sat behind her desk with her hands folded calmly and her face neutral... or... was that the ghost of a smile in her eyes? "Kurt Hayden," she said in liquid tones, "I assume you know why you're here?"
Aulus shifted awkwardly; though he was standing over her and should feel like he was in the more dominant position she left him in no doubt of who was in control here. Did Executives get training in looking at you like that? "Uh... Yes Executive. It's because I called you an unethical communist b***h, isn't it?" Wasn't like he could make it worse at this stage, but damnit why was she looking at him as if he was faintly amusing?
"That's correct," Nadja inclined her head very slightly, "And don't forget pushing me out of your way."
"Yes M'am. That too." Oh s**t. She was really going to enjoy this, wasn't she? "What're you going to do to me then?"
The corner's of Nadja's mouth turned up ever so slightly and she unfolded her hands, revealing a pokeball that had been cupped between them. Before Aulus had time to express confusion she rolled it across the table, forcing him to move quickly in order to prevent it from falling on the floor.
"I thought perhaps you might like to take care of one of the poor unfortunate experiments," the Executive said with that tiny hint of amusement entering her voice as well now.
"Uh.... Thank you?" This was confusing, very confusing indeed. What was inside the pokeball, and was she really not going to punish him? "Is... is there anything else you have to say to me Executive?"
"Just one thing," the Russian replied with a slight lift of her eyebrows. "For the next three months you will be spending an hour a day on cleaning the trainee toilets and showers... in your Agent uniform. After that you and I shall have another meeting and we'll see whether or not you're suitably repentant."
Cleaning the trainee bathrooms. Well, say one thing for her, the woman certainly knew how to hand out humiliation; was that an Executive skill too, or just the domain of anyone with two x-chromosomes? "...Yes M'am. Understood."
"Good," another slight nod, "You are dismissed then... and good luck with that pokemon."
"Uh... thank you." With that a thoroughly confused Aulus saluted vaguely and exited the office. He had been planning to wander back down to his quarters and count his blessings that he hadn't been demoted as well as try to work out why Nadja had given him a pokemon for calling her an effing communist. His plans were thrown off track, however, when the pokeball started to wriggle in his hand. Just as Aulus was opening is fist to inspect it, the occupant burst free with an unearthly cry. Aulus gawped at the creature now looming over him; a Serperior but what had been done to it? It had to be one of the weirdest things he'd ever seen and... and... was it smirking? This really was not the place to have more than ten foot of grass serpent though, heads were poking out of doors already and Aulus quickly raised the pokeball to return it. The Serperior however had other ideas and a quick slap of its tail sent the pokeball flying out of Aulus' hand, also causing him to cuss in pain.
For some moments man and monster locked gazes, weighed one another up. When the moment broke Aulus dived for the pokeball, and the Serperior shot off down the hallway like greased lighting. As it burst its way through one of the doors that had cracked open - extracting a cry of consternation from the person behind the door - Aulus became painfully aware that Executive Nadja was a lot more creative and vindictive in her punishments than he had realized. s**t. If he couldn't contain this thing he was in so much trouble.
"Get back here you long streak of piss!" Gripping the pokeball in his fist Aulus charged after his new acquisition into the office, knocking flat the Executive who had just been getting to her feet. The carnage within made him cringe; the outlandish looking snake had already managed to knock over the bookshelves, overturn table and chair, and drop all the pens, pencils, and a desk toy into the fish tank. "Get back here!" Aulus raised the pokeball and tried again to recall the chaotic grass type but it bent its body to the side, evading the beam of light, and then promptly steamrollered Aulus and the hapless Executive as it made its escape.
Jumping upright Aulus dived out into the corridor calling; "Sorry!" over his shoulder as he sprinted after the speeding snake. Lots of doors were opening now, although only briefly; as soon as the occupants clapped eyes on the weird looking menace the doors slammed shut again. Aulus raised the pokeball again, and once again he missed. The Serperior made a hissing sound that he could swear was a maniacal laugh. The next open door available to the living breathing source of all trouble ever was the dining hall. The Executive dining hall. The snake vanished inside. Aulus groaned, redoubled his pace, and entered the room just in time to be hit in the face with a container of coleslaw. With mayonnaise and assorted fine chopped vegetables dripping down his face he gave a roar of frustration and - common sense abandoning him for the second time that day - launched himself at the grass type. He caught hold of it with surprising ease, and then abruptly discovered that maybe this plan might not have been the best one in the world. The snake hiss-cackled again and started to zoom around the room, dragging Aulus with it.
Crash! - A pot of spicy sweet potato soup soared through the air and took out a stack of china teacups.
Clang! - The cutlery was swept up and hurled against the side of the salad bar.
Smash! - A table was crushed by a blow of the Serperior's tail, and Aulus narrowly resisted having his head bashed into the remains.
Squelch! - Aulus was dragged through the spilled soup, now mixed with mashed potato that had been tossed around at some point during proccedings.
Crunch! - The serpent threw him off, and he smashed into the dessert table.
Winded and dazed, for some moments all Aulus could do was lie there trying not to breathe tiramisu. Shouts of disgust and indignation filled his ears along with the custard and he really really wished he hadn't called Executive Agent Nadja an unethical communist b***h. Picking himself up unsteadily Aulus slipped slightly on a hapless cheesecake and wiped his face. The Serperior had its nose stuck in what looked like a large glass of chocolate milkshake, and seemed distracted for the time being. Looking as grim and serious as a man covered in coleslaw, soup, mashed potato, tiramisu, custard, cheesecake and Arceus knew what else possibly could, Aulus raised the pokeball one last time. This time the beam of red light struck the havoc wreaking grass type and sucked it back inside the capsule leaving behind a silence that was somewhat eerie in the wake of the cacophony that had filled the room a moment before. Panting heavily Aulus looked down at the red and white sphere, noticing for the first time that a word was embossed upon it. Presumably it was the pokemon's name.
Well, that was right enough.
Closing his fist around the pokeball Aulus looked up, and found himself being stared at by several rather shocked rather displeased Executives. He grinned weakly. "Ehehe. So.... I'll just start cleaning this up, shall I?" As he hastened off in search of cleaning equipment Aulus ran his thumb over the seven letters on the pokeball now thrust into his pocket, wondering just how much enjoyment Nadja would be getting out of this.
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