MARCH UPDATE

5'3'' height

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

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part of

TAG WITH @cass

POSTED ON Jul 10, 2024 12:41:03 GMT

JON (trubbish) m | sticky hold | pain split, sludge bomb, belch, gunk shot, endure, amnesia

[attr="class","emapkmn"] MARTIN (comfey) m | triage | helping hand, trailblaze, solar beam, leech seed, aromatherapy, grassy terrain

[attr="class","emapkmn"] EFFIE (fletchinder) f | gale wings | quick attack, flame charge, tailwind, steel wing, roost, fly

[attr="class","emapkmn"] SAUDE (emolga) m | motor drive | charge, discharge, pursuit, quick attack, electroweb, acrobatics

[attr="class","emapkmn"] HANNA (sigilyph) f | magic guard | gust, confusion, hypnosis, gravity, reflect, light screen

[attr="class","emapkmn"] AZELF (azelf) u | levitate | mystical power, expanding force, ally switch, nasty plot, safeguard, rest

[attr="class","emapkmn"]

[newclass=".emapkmn"]height:40px;width:40px;background:#2b2b2b;border-radius:100%;margin:0 5px;[/newclass]

Chaos. Destruction.

Cass is forcing herself to move, because stillness would mean certain death. It's only heartbeats, she knows, after seeing the first fire being drawn. But to her, it might as well have been an eternity. Her mind is frozen with shock as she tries to push forward, tries to figure out a thought in this muddled mess. She cradles the Trubbish tightly in her arms, having recalled every other pokémon for now- knowing that Effie and Saude, and probably even Azelf would sense danger and come out if needed.

She can't stop moving, needs to get somewhere- Somewhere safe. Where's the others- her family, her siblings, her mom- They need to be safe, they have to be- What about Eris, too?

A silhouette in the distance. A comforting sight.

It should've been a comforting sight.

Instead of relief, Cass' steps are carried by dread. She feels nauseous, and every bit of fear from the kidnapping, the prison, the violence fades.

Her home's under attack.

And her mother's wearing the attacker's face.

Calpurnia Kubrick

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played by

Dyfalu

Kelpie

She/Her

June 18

Snowbelle City

Pansexual

Rocket Scientist

Grunt

35 height

This vessel is a lie, a shapeshifting beast, a lesson in fluidity

awards

391 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @calpurnia

POSTED ON Jul 16, 2024 0:10:45 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","calpurnia"]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

[attr="class","text"]

With the League putting up a stiff resistance there is no room for scientists to hunker behind machines. Every member is mobilized, including a certain scientist. Fortunately, she was able to get herself placed here. Just a few doors down from her own house. Which by some (carefully orchestrated) miracle is still untouched. [break][break]

But the Rockets are on the back foot. Most of them are reserve troops. They’re either snot-nosed kids or bookish scientists. Rips mar the woman’s suit. Which, ironically, isn’t SYGNA in nature. Though she helped develop them, she’d never settled on one.
[break][break]

Calpurnia’s violet eyes narrow as a ranger fires at them over a trashed car. Blood runs down one side of the pest’s face. A bullet rings off one side of her mask. She hisses as she ducks down. A hand gestures her Iron Leaf forward. “Cut him down!” With a whirl of gears, the grass-type bounds toward the car. Its Solar Blade slices it in half. Red mixes with opalescent oil. "Do I have to do everything?!"
[break][break]

Besides his trainer, Purrseus is on the defensive. He drops attacker after attacker with hypnotic waves of his tail. Above them, a Vivillon follows up with Rage The cat detects a familiar smell on the horizon—one tainted by the smell of sweet trash. “?” The cat turns to face Cass. His eyes widen for a moment. “!!” A paw reaches to grab his trainer’s hand.
[break][break]

“We got a bogey 12 o’clock!” Someone bellows beside her. The frightened gun lifts his gun toward Cass. In his panic, he doesn’t see a confused kid. All he comprehends is enemy. He presses the trigger. With an orchestrated shift, the cat knocks him a few steps back. The shot goes wide. It cracks a window a foot left of the girl’s head.
[break][break]

He drops to the ground in a hypnotic stupor.
[break][break]

Calpurnia turns her broken mask toward Calpurnia. There’s a sharp intake of breath as the revealed eye meets that of her daughter. In a panic, she turns to the motley crew behind her. What in Arceus’s name is she doing here?! There’s no doubt the gig is up. The reverberations of recognition are written all over her daughter’s face.
[break][break]

Now, she’s no longer a soldier. She’s a mom whose kid just found the sex toy collection.

[break][break]

“I’ve got it!” She snaps to the shaking kid next to her. She lifts her communicator to her face. “Mistletoe in pursuit.”

[attr="class","ooc"]

[break]

NOTES

✦ UH OH! Mommy's secret is out.

BY GUNSMILE

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[newclass=".calpurnia .ooc b"]font-size:12px;[/newclass]
[newclass=".calpurnia .pkmn img"]margin:-10px -7px 0px -7px;[/newclass]

close tab

played by

ema

cass, cassie

she/her

seventeen

november 7th

petalburg city, hoenn

grey-aroace

student (private school)

civilian

5'3'' height

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

awards

666 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @cass

POSTED ON Jul 16, 2024 9:05:51 GMT

[attr="class","emapkmn"] MARTIN (comfey) m | triage | helping hand, trailblaze, solar beam, leech seed, aromatherapy, grassy terrain

[attr="class","emapkmn"] EFFIE (fletchinder) f | gale wings | quick attack, flame charge, tailwind, steel wing, roost, fly

[attr="class","emapkmn"] SAUDE (emolga) m | motor drive | charge, discharge, pursuit, quick attack, electroweb, acrobatics

[attr="class","emapkmn"] HANNA (sigilyph) f | magic guard | gust, confusion, hypnosis, gravity, reflect, light screen

[attr="class","emapkmn"] AZELF (azelf) u | levitate | mystical power, expanding force, ally switch, nasty plot, safeguard, rest

[attr="class","emapkmn"]

[newclass=".emapkmn"]height:40px;width:40px;background:#2b2b2b;border-radius:100%;margin:0 5px;[/newclass]

If there had been any doubt in her mind that Cass could find solace in, it's quickly shattered as she sees the familiar figure of Purrseus. She stands there frozen, unable to speak nor move as the world keeps falling apart. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees a gun- Jon in her arms wiggles and struggles alarmed, urging Cass to do something but she can't. He tries a Sludge Bomb, but her grasp around him is too tight to move.

Everything collapses, literally and figuratively.

But behind her mother's figure, now approaching, is her house. Her house in a broken hometown.

A flying projectile, just next to her head. The sound of shattering glass behind her.

"Mom?!" she breaks out of her daze as Calpurnia is next to her, flailing and taking a few steps back to gain distance. She's frightened. She's been scared of her mom sometimes, sure, but never like this - never with the active thought that she should run. But it's her mom.

Family.

"What are you doing here?!" she asks, her voice shaking.

Calpurnia Kubrick

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played by

Dyfalu

Kelpie

She/Her

June 18

Snowbelle City

Pansexual

Rocket Scientist

Grunt

35 height

This vessel is a lie, a shapeshifting beast, a lesson in fluidity

awards

391 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @calpurnia

POSTED ON Aug 15, 2024 13:31:09 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","calpurnia"]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

[attr="class","text"]

Fortunately, Perseus’s quick thinking stops any harm from being done. The ball of sludge drops to the ground between the fat cat and the dozing grunt. Violet eyes narrow behind the woman’s mask. Why must men waste all this time shooting each other! Honestly!
[break][break]
Any thoughts of the conflict vanish at her daughter’s broken voice. For a moment, she’s tempted to lash out. To tell the girl to stop whining and to suck it up. To demand what fool had told her to come here. She has never been the emotional parent. An ironic fact considering how well she manipulated them.
[break][break]

Realizing her squad is still staring, Calpurnia throws a backward glare. “I believe you have something better to do.” Her icy voice sends a few packing.
[break][break]

She makes sure her daughter is not physically hurt. Thank Arceus.
[break][break]

With fewer observers, Calpurnia feels more at ease. The tough exterior melts somewhat. She knows there’s no point trying to lie. Just like the night her little girl found her assembling the Christmas gifts. It’s time to pull off the figurative Band-Aid and kill Santa all over again.
[break][break]

The scientist takes a deep breath. Perseus inserts himself beneath his mistress’s spread fingers. The woman lifts a hand up to slide her mask’s visor out of place. Her expression is conflicted. There's sadness and shame in those purple pools but also something akin to relief.
[break][break]

“I think we both know the answer to that, love.” Calpurnia moves forward, intending to gently grasp her daughter’s shoulder. My job. She sighs as she surveys the land around them. “I admit I am a little surprised.” Poor little Cass. Always so naive. “Your brother figured it out ages ago.” Her baby girl’s bleeding heart was likely hemorrhaging on the cracked ground beneath them.
[break][break]

Her daughter is likely already crawling on her high horse. No doubt she is ready to accuse her of some nonsense. As if her became any different after she switched sides. “But it doesn’t really change anything, does it?” This region was still in shambles. Cass’s room was still at the top of the stairs on the left. She still had that stupid plushie on her bookshelf with its torn out eyes and worn stitching.
[break][break]
Mom was still mom. But now she was more. "Especially right now." She gestures att he landscape around them. To survive this mess, Cass would need to trust her.

[attr="class","ooc"]

[break]

NOTES

✦ UH OH! Mommy's secret is out.

BY GUNSMILE

close tab

played by

ema

cass, cassie

she/her

seventeen

november 7th

petalburg city, hoenn

grey-aroace

student (private school)

civilian

5'3'' height

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

awards

666 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @cass

POSTED ON Aug 27, 2024 19:23:17 GMT

[attr="class","emapkmn"] MARTIN (comfey) m | triage | helping hand, trailblaze, solar beam, leech seed, aromatherapy, grassy terrain

[attr="class","emapkmn"] EFFIE (fletchinder) f | gale wings | quick attack, flame charge, tailwind, steel wing, roost, fly

[attr="class","emapkmn"] SAUDE (emolga) m | motor drive | charge, discharge, pursuit, quick attack, electroweb, acrobatics

[attr="class","emapkmn"] HANNA (sigilyph) f | magic guard | gust, confusion, hypnosis, gravity, reflect, light screen

[attr="class","emapkmn"] AZELF (azelf) u | levitate | mystical power, expanding force, ally switch, nasty plot, safeguard, rest

[attr="class","emapkmn"]

[newclass=".emapkmn"]height:40px;width:40px;background:#2b2b2b;border-radius:100%;margin:0 5px;[/newclass]

Any further word from her mother only brings home the reality, reality that has nested itself into the safe place of her home. Cass has has suspicions over the years with everything that happened - but now. Now. Seeing the cruelty not in the distant town of just her school, just her best friends' hometown, just that, but at home.

Her eyes search her mother's face frantically, burning into her memory the sight of shame and sadness. And relief.

A stake in her direction. Of course big bro figured it out while she might be the eldest daughter, but almost no better than Chrysanthe Kubrick trapped in the gentle softness of the world (and may she not have to leave so soon ... oh gods). She herself is living in a world of broken ideals that she desperately tries to keep upright while thinking does it even matter?

But this.

She jumps back as her mother approaches, calmly, softly, gently. "No, it- how could you be here, too? WHY ARE YOU DESTROYING OUR HOME?!" she yells. A blurring vision, but unmistakable purple in sight still. Or is it her own hair of similiar shade (a bit lighter these days), or the poison stains on her hands as she presses them against her eyes?

"How could you let this happen ..." A quieter voice now as she accuses while losing all footing in her mind.

Calpurnia Kubrick

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played by

Dyfalu

Kelpie

She/Her

June 18

Snowbelle City

Pansexual

Rocket Scientist

Grunt

35 height

This vessel is a lie, a shapeshifting beast, a lesson in fluidity

awards

391 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @calpurnia

POSTED ON Sept 2, 2024 3:08:31 GMT

Cassandra Kubrick likes this

[nospaces]

[attr="class","calpurnia"]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

[attr="class","text"]
Of course. The silly girl didn’t take it well. Her little kitten reacts like a scared feral cat—hackles up and backing away in an awkward, silly little crab walk. “Cassandra Kubrick.” The woman manages not to snap. But there’s a familiar severity to her tone. It’s the same voice used when her daughter’s decided to push boundaries. It’s obvious the silly thing isn’t actually listening to her. “This is not a place for tantrums.”
[break][break]

The manicured nails curl back into her palms. Some part of her wants to slap her daughter out of some cinematic impulse. And partially to stop her from stirring up a mess inside. “Destroying our—Cassandra.” Again, the use of a mother’s most powerful weapon: her full name. “Stop being melodramatic.”
[break][break]

Calpurnia did feel bad about what she’d done. Beneath this mask there was still a poor little girl with neglectful parents. But in the long-run knew it was worth it. With Rocket they could finally put humanity back in its true and proper place. They’d no longer have to cower from Steelix with toothaches and angry, mercurial gods.
[break][break]

They’d be the true masters of this planet.
[break][break]

She gestures a hand toward the silhouette of their very-much intact home. “Our home is fine.” The scientist can sense her daughter moving away from her. Not physically. But figuratively, emotionally. Her grip is being forcefully loosened.

[break][break]

The next question draws another sigh. It seems she has to tear down this castle of illusions, brick by brick. Even if it hurts her pride to spit it up. “Sweetheart, I’m not a God.” Her breath escapes in a burst of hot air. “I could not stop this anymore than I can stop the tides.”

[attr="class","ooc"]

[break]

NOTES

✦ UH OH! Mommy's secret is out.

BY GUNSMILE

close tab

played by

ema

cass, cassie

she/her

seventeen

november 7th

petalburg city, hoenn

grey-aroace

student (private school)

civilian

5'3'' height

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

awards

666 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @cass

POSTED ON Sept 3, 2024 17:46:03 GMT

[attr="class","emapkmn"] MARTIN (comfey) m | triage | helping hand, trailblaze, solar beam, leech seed, aromatherapy, grassy terrain

[attr="class","emapkmn"] EFFIE (fletchinder) f | gale wings | quick attack, flame charge, tailwind, steel wing, roost, fly

[attr="class","emapkmn"] SAUDE (emolga) m | motor drive | charge, discharge, pursuit, quick attack, electroweb, acrobatics

[attr="class","emapkmn"] HANNA (sigilyph) f | magic guard | gust, confusion, hypnosis, gravity, reflect, light screen

[attr="class","emapkmn"] AZELF (azelf) u | levitate | mystical power, expanding force, ally switch, nasty plot, safeguard, rest

[attr="class","emapkmn"]

[newclass=".emapkmn"]height:40px;width:40px;background:#2b2b2b;border-radius:100%;margin:0 5px;[/newclass]

"I'm not throwing a tantrum," defiance flares up despite everything pointing to the opposite. Despite Cass knowing that she is - that none of this is reasonable right now, that this is all wrong. Defiance might be the only thing left as her world's starting to crumble and fall apart.

Everything she so desperately wants to protect, reduced to ashes as pokémon and human alike battle for tooth and nail, leaving rubble and debris in their wake. Broken bones, bleeding insides. Scratched skin to expose the blood beneath as houses and roads bleed.

She shakes her head, not listening as Calpurnia fears - trying to fight for every step away, trying to retreat to somewhere. Delusions and illusions being ripped away from her, as she feels shame sink in deeper than anything.

What was I thinking?

Her sympathy for Rocket, the yearn for change - but like this?

How naive, like her mom always said ...

"Our house is fine!" she cries out, "It's not all there is!" Greed. Selfish greed that makes her want to have everything. But is that wrong, she wonders sometimes, as the betrayal sinks in further. Even if this is an executive decision her mother didn't have a word in, there's something ...

"Why didn't you tell me. You could've told me!"

Finding it out like this might be the biggest wound of all.

Calpurnia Kubrick

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played by

Dyfalu

Kelpie

She/Her

June 18

Snowbelle City

Pansexual

Rocket Scientist

Grunt

35 height

This vessel is a lie, a shapeshifting beast, a lesson in fluidity

awards

391 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @calpurnia

POSTED ON Sept 10, 2024 3:17:11 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","calpurnia"]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

[attr="class","text"]
Calpurnia’s eyes merely narrow. She knows her daughter—no matter how flighty she is—knows she’s not acting reasonably. But insisting on it won’t get the desired result. It’d just make the teenager dig in deeper. When it came to some things, children and men really weren’t too different. The best way to get them to do something was to convince them it was their idea.
[break][break]

With each step back, the scientist advances. In some ways, she’s chasing the past that hides them together. At some point, she shifts her revealed violet curls to hide the damning scarlet letter on her chest. It’s as if she hopes her daughter will forget, like a toddler playing peekaboo. But her daughter is far beyond fake airplanes. Now, she’s flailing at her for something to blame.
[break][break]

For someone to blame. So be it.
[break][break]

“Oh, of course not.” Calpurnia waves off the initial protests. Her violet eyes sweep up the shattered street. It’s almost as if she hadn’t noticed it before. The blood scattered intermittently like teardrop rubies. As if some veil had been pulled over her eyes as well as her daughter. “But it’s what should matter to you. It’s what I could save.”
[break][break]

Mother tries not to laugh. She really does try. In the end, however, she fails. It’s a short, incredulous noise. It bubbles out between perfectly made lips like a bark. Some part of her wants to apologize, but it’s too late. That particular cat is out of the bag. “Tell you?” Certainly, she could have. “We all know how you are with secrets dear. You are a terrible liar.”
[break][break]

The woman sighs. A hand slides up to her chest. “That’s why I didn’t tell you about your father.” Oops?

[attr="class","ooc"]

[break]

NOTES

✦ UH OH! Mommy's secret is out.

BY GUNSMILE

close tab

played by

ema

cass, cassie

she/her

seventeen

november 7th

petalburg city, hoenn

grey-aroace

student (private school)

civilian

5'3'' height

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

awards

666 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @cass

POSTED ON Sept 16, 2024 21:17:25 GMT

[attr="class","emapkmn"] MARTIN (comfey) m | triage | helping hand, trailblaze, solar beam, leech seed, aromatherapy, grassy terrain

[attr="class","emapkmn"] EFFIE (fletchinder) f | gale wings | quick attack, flame charge, tailwind, steel wing, roost, fly

[attr="class","emapkmn"] SAUDE (emolga) m | motor drive | charge, discharge, pursuit, quick attack, electroweb, acrobatics

[attr="class","emapkmn"] HANNA (sigilyph) f | magic guard | gust, confusion, hypnosis, gravity, reflect, light screen

[attr="class","emapkmn"] AZELF (azelf) u | levitate | mystical power, expanding force, ally switch, nasty plot, safeguard, rest

[attr="class","emapkmn"]

[newclass=".emapkmn"]height:40px;width:40px;background:#2b2b2b;border-radius:100%;margin:0 5px;[/newclass]

A rational part of Cass agrees with her mother, against every other thought and scream she just did. There's no going against Rocket, and it's almost a relief, isn't it? Her mother's not a bigshot, not the one who said "hey, let's attack Petalburg".

No.

A shiver runs down her spine at that thought, her spine that couldn't even hold anger at her mother for that long. Family that she still cherishes. It doesn't take many more words for it to flare up, however, as Calpurnia laughs and Cass retreats further, almost hitting a wall. She can't afford looking back and see what else there is - just needs to find a way elsewhere.

Before she could find words to retort, however, her blood freezes, and with it, her movement as she locks on her mother's face with terror creeping up. Is he just also a member of Rocket or-

"What's with dad," she hisses through gritted teeth - not even sure if it's a question she wants to have answered.

Calpurnia Kubrick

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played by

Dyfalu

Kelpie

She/Her

June 18

Snowbelle City

Pansexual

Rocket Scientist

Grunt

35 height

This vessel is a lie, a shapeshifting beast, a lesson in fluidity

awards

391 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @calpurnia

POSTED ON Sept 29, 2024 21:23:49 GMT

[nospaces]

[attr="class","calpurnia"]

[attr="class","pkmn"]

[attr="class","text"]
The woman can see the gears turning in her daughter’s eyes. Spot the change in demeanor as Cass almost leans into that innate, primal trust. But she is careful not to show any signs of celebration. It does not do to have people know they’re being manipulated. It makes things so much more messy when they figure it out. Almost as messy as this silly little war.
[break][break]

Ah, poor, sweet little Cassandra. She swallowed the bait, just like that. Violet eyes fill with crocodile tears. A manicured hand lifted to Calpurnia’s chest. Someone else might have felt guilty about pulling at their child’s heartstrings. But the scientist wouldn’t be burdened by that nonsense. Mothers existed to protect their daughters. Sometimes that meant lying to or deceiving them. Or, in this case, revealing things that might hurt them.
[break][break]

With a quiet mew, Purrseus moves to wrap around his trainer’s legs. He leans his head against shapely legs as big eyes fixate on the errant little Ducklett.
[break][break]

Calpurnia steps closer to her daughter. A bit of rubble shifts beneath her boots—ugly, nasty blocky things that look at home on Gothitelle. “Darling, who do you think chased him into Ultra Space?” The woman scoffs. “All those years we toiled for them, and they tossed us out like lab rats.”

[attr="class","ooc"]

[break]

NOTES

✦ Bingo: War, Change, Space, Protect

BY GUNSMILE

close tab

played by

ema

cass, cassie

she/her

seventeen

november 7th

petalburg city, hoenn

grey-aroace

student (private school)

civilian

5'3'' height

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

awards

666 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @cass