- Personality Traits: Nostalgic, dedicated, introverted, loyal, depressed
I remember earlier times, better times, before the apocalypse started, before she…No, it’s too early to mention that. Excuse me, it’s been years, but that doesn’t always ease the pain. At least I can think of it without bursting into tears.
I suppose you wonder who I am, where I’m from. I can give you a straight answer for the second, but for the first, that’s a bit more difficult. You see, who I am now is not who I was, and who I was was never constant. I’ve never been the same from day to day. Oh, I must apologize again, I’m going off on a tangent. My name is Lawrence, I’m a Pokemon researcher and trainer, and I used to do a little exploring on the side.
Where I’m from, now that’s easier. I was born in Fuchsia, but we weren’t there long before my family upped and moved to Pallet. There was a famous scientist there…I think his name was Pine or something…who needed my parents help. Their entire lives revolved around…Oak! That’s the man’s name!...studying pokemon. He said he was researching a new type of pokemon, and my parents were enlisted into his service.
Now, in a town like Pallet, you would think I would be a popular kid. Son of two scientists, working with Professor Oak…real cool right? You’d be wrong. And by wrong, I mean go cry in a corner, you just said 1+1 is 5…in fifth grade. That’s how wrong you would be. I had maybe one or two friends, but you would call them more of fair weather friends. Sure, they’d play with me if we weren’t around others, but as soon as we were with a group…they’d vanish like a shy haunter.
There we go again…ranting on irrelevant details of my past. All you need to know from that was that I was lonely, so when I wasn’t home I hung out at the lab with my parents and Oak. That’s probably why I ended up in my current position. It seems I was destined to follow my parents shoes in the science world. If I wasn’t in the lab, I was swimming in the ocean with our family pet Lapras, Mirage. She was much smaller then, I’ll grant you that, but still large enough to bear me on her back across the waves.
I was around thirteen when I caught my first wild pokemon, a young eevee. It was on one of those rare moments when I was playing with my…well…my friends, I guess. We were in the fields outside of Pallet, just goofing around, searching for the usual pidgey or rattata. I heard a quiet, pitiful, whimpering from behind a bush, and when I went to explore, I discovered it was an eevee! Imagine my surprise. Being the nerd I was, I of course realized how rare this was.
It was in such poor shape. Its fur was torn, and it was missing part of an ear. It looked at me with such sad eyes, that I decided to capture it and find help for the little eevee. Now, as you can see, that little eevee is fully recovered, and one of my most trusted friends. In fact, Ember and Mirage have been my two closest companions, even before she came…and they still are, after all the hard times.
It wasn’t long after that that the Cinnabar Research and Science Center (commonly called Cerces. See, the acronym is CRSC, which if you…I think you understand) contacted me. They had heard about my research with the Professor, and felt that I could provide valuable assistance in whatever project it was they needed me for, I can’t honestly remember, there were so many.
I had one great outcome of my time with Cerces, and one terrible. I’ll start with the terrible. I was part of the team researching ancient pokemon when the famous explosion occurred. Many were killed that day. I lost a great deal of friends, but, thankfully, not the one person who mattered. That is the good thing. I met her.
Her? Who is she? Her name is Beth. She was the love of my life. In fact, she was my wife. We shared many great years together. Instead of engagement rings, we did a pokemon trade, her Persian for my eevee. It was the hardest thing I ever did, but in the end, we were all happy. We chose together to turn our unnamed eevee into a flareon. Ember still seemed to orbit around me often, but we were all very happy.
I’d…I’d say more…but I’m still dealing with the loss…she was killed by ferals after we came to Karud. It...it all happened too fast. Beth…why did you go…
Why am I here? Easy enough. Research. Some men in lab coats found me not too long after the explosion, said they had discovered a new species of pokemon, couldn't identify it. They had heard about my work with Cerces, decided to locate me with a job offer. Paid for the trip down for both of us. They said they had a lab out in Faire, near the Gorge where they discovered the remains. We were still too young to retire, the two of us...not enough money to fund years of no work, so we accepted it. That was about five, six years ago? Don't know, days tend to blur together. I could swear it was just yesterday we were swimming off the shore...just yesterday...Sorry, got distracted. With the apocalypse and the destruction of Faire, I fled the ruins. Nothing I could do there. Grabbed my work and high tailed it.
I’ve been holding out in Haven with all the other poor souls who managed to escape the ferals. Been doing my best at helping the local military keep the ferals at bay. Joined up under this man named Tobias. He seemed to know how to get things done. I’m part of the Forefront now. The five of us, my pokemon and I, we’re helping to bring the world back to what it was. It was what she would have wanted…I’m sure…
Ember (WP: 3)
As I'm sure I told you, I caught Ember as a little eevee, my first pokemon. He's been with me for the best parts of my life, and the worst. I trust him to defend my life, both in battle and out. In battle, he's not the smartest, but he is fierce and relentless. He can follow orders, but complex planning is not his strong suit. I blame the years with my wife for that. In battle, he has a vast array of fire spells which he uses to secure his advantage. He seems to have a deep connection with Jasmine, probably due to the marriage exchange.
He's my best friend. If there is one good...*sigh*...this is going to come out wrong I know it...if there is one good thing about my wife's death...it's that now Ember and I share that bond we once had, but that is a faint shimmer in the sea of misery that I feel thinking that thought. Ember fills a hole I had before, but there are so many now that I just...Sorry, we are talking about Ember, not me. I raised him from that dirty, tired, injured eevee into a champion flareon, but I couldn't have done it without his complete faith in me. He never questions my orders. He'll dive into a lake to save me, even though he hates water. No challenger is too strong for him if I am there. And he is always ready to play, and you'd be surprised how much I need that now.
Ember, my companion...I know he will never leave me...even without a pokeball. That's why he's never in one unless he's knocked out.
Mirage (WP: 2)
I suppose you could say that Mirage was my first pokemon, not Ember. It doesn't matter. Mirage has been around longer, but she wasn't my pokemon until my parents retired from Oak's lab and I joined Cerces. She's not the best fighter, but she can provide fast transport across the sea. If my team has a captain, it would be Mirage. My family raised her from birth, and over the years she learned how to speak.
She's the mother of the team as well. Some could say she's a little nosy, but we all know better. She wants the best for us, and makes sure we are all okay. If any of the pokemon have a problem, they will most likely go to her because they know she can fix it. If she can't, then it's up to me, but sometimes even I go to her for help.
She was my true childhood friend before Ember came along. Ever since Beth died, she's been the one to care for me and worry about me the most. Without her support, I don't think I'd still be around anymore. She brought me back from the brink of suicide. It's because of her counsel that I can finally hear the name Beth and not...not...I don't know what I would do if she was killed. I don't know what I would do if any of them were killed, even Skywings. Well...maybe Skywings.
Skywings (WP: 3)
Skywings...he's the newest member of this team. He was one of Beth's pokemon, and he always seemed to silently resent me for expecting time from my wife. If I were to be honest, he's the last pokemon I wanted on my team. He always goes against my wishes if he thinks he knows better. Sometimes he does, but a lot of the time he doesn't. In battle, he is a master of quick strikes from the air, but if something manages to get him to the ground, he can't last long. He is a free spirit, but he gets the job done...usually.
He's become a lot less arrogant ever since Beth died. I think he blames himself for not being able to protect her from the ferals. He spends most of his time training now, and seems to admire Ember a lot. After all, Ember didn't fly out of the way and...no, I can't blame him. It would be easy, but it's not his fault. He didn't intend for it to happen the way it happened. He still resents me of course, but what can I do but treat him with respect. At least I know he will never turn on me. He's arrogant, but he's not a backstabber. We'll see how his training pays off. Maybe he'll finally accept my authority in the wild.
Jasmine (WP: 1)
Jasmine is not a battle pokemon. She was never meant to be. She was my wife's favorite, and her promise to remain with me forever. Ever since my wife's death, Jasmine and I have become much closer. She has also turned to Ember for comfort, but gets along well with all but Skywings. I find it funny. She doesn't fight, but her instincts take over and every now and then she pounces on him. Serves the arrogant bird right. I love this cat.
My wife raised Jasmine her entire life, from Meowth kitten to Persian cat. She seems to have picked up a lot of my wife's characteristics, including her playfulness. I remember the first night after the trade, Jasmine was miserable. She missed the bond she had with Beth, and I can't honestly blame her. Ember was not much better. That night, I received more scratches than I had ever had in my life. I was almost skinned. The next night though, she slept right by my legs, calm as day. Ever since then we've had no problems between us.
- Total Willpower Consumption: 9
Dusk: I like the way you told the story, but there are a few issues I need resolved. First and foremost, you talk about your research a lot and how you lived in Kanto, but then mystically for your current situation you appear in Karud. That needs to be explained. I don't mind the mysticism behind the circumstances of your wife's death, but you really need to cover how and why you're in Karud of all places.
Another concern. You mention an "Asp" in Mirage's story, yet there isn't an Asp anywhere else in your character or his Pokemon. Perhaps a remnant from the original Lawrence for the other RP?
Good enough for me. Approved. Consider a possible amendment later on to add a few more character traits, both good and bad. Right now it doesn't say a lot, but it's good enough for approval.