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CAST OFF

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[attr="class","freiwanttmid"]CHARACTER FACTION league

[attr="class","freiwanttmid"]CHARACTER RANK cadet

[attr="class","freiwanttmid"]FACE CLAIM geo stelar from Mega Man Star Force

[attr="class","freiwantttop"]ABOUT THE CHARACTER

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The Mad Hound of Metal. In Orre, and to Ranger Dayze Stratos in particular, that name struck a certain disgust. Months of hunting, months of following razored paths, and months of documenting every broken family in her wake. He never caught her though, not on the battlefield. Ranger units tried and failed until the end of the conflict, which left him and all his evidence to organize. His superiors tried to bury it, tried not to ignite any internal strife in either Unova or Galar beyond the anti-war sentiments already being thoroughly expressed. They did, or they thought so anyway. Mysteriously, footage scrubbed of much of its metadata started to leak piecemeal onto the ‘Net and its guerilla style left very little to the imagination. The rictus snarl of a Steelix, face lit by Dragon Breath, with a blonde haired trainer standing under its chin.[break][break]

The other images of carnage passed around forums like plague, soon the tech-savvy put name to face, story to name, and then the crowds started. Petitions, calls to action, news talk shows debated on the intricacies of mass Pokemon conflict. It gripped Unova for a while. Galar already washed their hands of the ex-citizen. Dayze sat back from the hard drives lying on the ground, sufficiently waterlogged and turned to powder by his Blastoise. His grandson rode atop the massive Pokemon’s shell, looking at the carnage of his old broken toys Dayze hid his drives inside. The young boy pumped his fists in the air, having successfully given his first battle order and even been obeyed. A happy time for Ray Stratos.[break][break]

Dayze participated in executing the arrest warrant for Ceres only a few weeks later. His body turned up two days after. Widely believed by other Rangers and the public at large was the theory of collaborators, ultra-nationalists who wouldn’t dare see such a strong symbol of the Unovian involvement in the conflict disrespected. Ray, however, convinced himself that Ceres did something to Grandpa. Even as young as he was, he shed no tears at the funeral. He occupied his time gripping his parent’s hands in quiet fury. She saw no additional time for his murder, and no evidence pointed towards a decisive culprit.[break][break]

That didn’t suffice, not by a long shot.[break][break]

Elementary, middle school, and high school saw this determined, pipsqueak kid who spent more time in the woods jumping around like an Aipom than excelling in class. ‘Instinct training’ he called it; running through unfamiliar territory on full tilt, trying to dodge whatever came up, grabbing the best handhold on split second observation, and picking the best path by following that itch in his core. Needless to say that the first time he tried this, he broke his fibula clean in half. On the seventh attempt, he dislocated his shoulder catching himself from a free fall. Attempt #28 caused a concussion. #76, a broken nose. The major accidents became more and more spaced out, eventually disappearing by the sixth straight year of doing it every day possible. By no means did Ray possess the knack for learning that his grandfather had, but the fire in him didn’t let him stop till he got something (given he thought he could use it). When he graduated Ranger Academy...when he met that woman face to face, he wanted to know as soon as they met. There would be no evidence beyond the mud that had been laid across the incident already. No more testimony. No more pretense. He would know. He honed that instinct to the bleeding edge of reptilian. His training brought him into close contact with Pokemon, and observing them certainly helped his ability to be more in tune with silent emotions, communication without words. He learned to read the thoughts that always came to talk through the body.[break][break]

Bug pokemon were the most interesting, though. Unlike a lot of mammalian Pokemon, who’s body language and even vocalizations read quite easily, Bug-types’ distinct clicks and foreign construction fascinated him. They lived on instinct, just like him. They were great help in training through observation, and he would use them near exclusively in battle exams. Ceres escaped soon after graduation. It took him weeks to get the transfer clearance, then he and his Durant Agito made sail. The Bug-types native to Hoenn though made it impossible to go with just Agito, though. A Heracross and a Pinser, Kabuto and Gatack respectively. The strength of their shells and the edge of their instinct will withstand all hardship and cut to the heart of justice![break]