[attr="class","charicon"]

maki knows every other grunt currently in this area. none of them should be here, or else they'd be abandoning their post. that makes it an easy decision on what to do next once she's caught a glimpse of a figure that doesn't belong. her own approach is silent, her steps avoiding shrubbery on the ground that would alert her quarry to her position. and once she's close enough...[break][break]

there's a flash of light in front of biscotti, and a massive, hulking figure materializes. the ursaluna stares down at him, unblinking, snarl on its lips. this is when maki chooses to step into the open, gas mask obscuring the lower half of her face. "...you don't belong here," she states calmly. "i'm giving you one minute to choose a pokemon and fight. if not... i suppose my ursaluna will have to carry you out in her teeth." it's not exactly a lie. someone who refuses to fight isn't a threat, so she doesn't really have any reason to harm him. but she certainly could try to put the fear of rocket into him by scruffing him like a newborn kitten and removing him from the premises.[break][break]

she leans back against a tree trunk with her arms crossed, wondering what his decision will be.

[attr="class","bottom"]once again, i have a foolish nightmare.[break]
[break]Biscotti Kingsley
[break] [ outfit ref ]
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[attr="class","credit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cloud-moon"]

[attr="class","blbqimg"]

[attr="class","bisc"]A very manly scream withers in Biscotti’s throat. Instead, he staggers back with a strangled yelp. As the baker falls backward, his hoodie loses its battle against his nest of hair. Suddenly, the surly grunt looks like he’s host to a clutch of Doduo eggs. “!?” A scarred hand fishes for some kind of defense. But he left his giant damn bear spray in his other terrorist disguise.


When Maki speaks, wide eyes snap to her. For a second, he’s confused by the mask. Is there poisonous gas around? Did someone pump this place full of poison when he’d been—uh—skulking? Her threats make him shiver. Those honey eyes shoot up to the bear. “Her teeth?” Sure, it wouldn’t hurt him, but that didn’t sound like somewhere he wanted to be. It also didn’t sound any better than fighting. “You know—I’m pretty sure that’s not—” Who would choose to get eaten?


A hand rose for pause as the kid pushed himself to his feet. “Excuse me, ma’am, I’m not—yanno—here to—” Suddenly, his body turned rigid as his dual-colored eyes flushed violet. A strange shadowy substance coated his limbs for a moment, dripping out of his mouth like anomalous ichor. “Uh, excuse me. Just a sec.”

‘Scotti, dearest, you don’t trust a terrorist. They’re like trapped animals.’
‘Yeah, Bubbe. But she’s not shooting us.’
‘Until you turn your back dear. What’s scampering off going to do for poor Nilla?’
‘I still don’t think—’
‘I really must do everything, huh?’

The kid staggers back as a Runerigus separates from him. Her purple eyes are filled with indignation and rage. Scotti raised an arm to try and protest. But the hot-headed, undead grandma just waved a rock in his face. It’d been ages since she’d gotten to have fun. She could certainly show up this woman and her Pooh Bear.

“It—um—sorry.” He swallowed. “I think we’re doing this! Gotta respect your elders!” With a clack of its stones, the ghost type splits into its parts, tendrils of shadows trailing between the painted stones like ink. It then brought them together on the bear in a Body Press.

50 MP showcase a meaningful moment between your character and their Pokemon.
50 MP showcase your own character's weakness(es) meaningfully.

MAKI YUKIMURA

☉

[attr="class","charicon"]

uh... what the hell is happening...?[break][break]

it's not often maki is baffled to the point of inaction, but it's happening now, as she blinks her eyes and freezes. there's no rubric in her head for this moment, no guide to explain how she's supposed to react to this. it fully has her stumped, mental actions grinding to a halt as she tries to comprehend. the moment's over, but by then the runerigus has shown itself, rushing onto the field and crushing maki's ursaluna underneath its weight. something clicks into place in maki's head, and like a wind-up doll she jerks forward. her ursaluna collapses, and she calls it back into its ball. she calculates which of her other pokemon would be best to deal with this problem, and makes a decision almost instantly.[break][break]

she tosses the ball underhand, letting it fly up in a high curve before it opens, spewing white light. the ball itself then falls back down, slowly, landing in her outstretched hand. the pokemon in front of her is a malamar, regarding biscotti and his... grandma...? with its half-lidded eyes. "night slash!" its tentacles stretch out, whipping around to strike at the ghost type in front of it. maki now knows she has to be careful with this one, and she's taken up a battle stance, hopefully ready for any more unexpected and strange occurrences.

[attr="class","bottom"]once again, i have a foolish nightmare.[break]
[break]Biscotti Kingsley
[break] 50mp pokemon faints, 50mp describe pokeball throwing style, 50mp showcase character's weakness
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[attr="class","credit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cloud-moon"]

[attr="class","blbqimg"]

[attr="class","bisc"]He wasn’t good at reading people. His foot spent almost all of its time in his mouth at this point. But he’d have to be illiterate not to see Maki’s confusion. Some part of him wants to apologize. But it’s kind of hard to form words when a ghost’s hijacking your brain.And, by the time Bubbe emerged, there were all the chills and stuff to fight with.

The savagery with which the Runerigus attacks startles Biscotti. His eyes widen to the size of dinner plates. “Whoa!” A noise of surprise bursts out his lips. His hands rose in a sign for peace. “I—uh—I’ve never seen her go that hard before. I’m—” Before that apology emerges, a cold chunk of stone presses itself against his lips. The central rock turns, the scraping sounds the ghost’s attempt at a shushing.

Biscotti flushes with indignation. But his stammering withers in his throat. A happy little titter emerges from the ghoul. Then, the Malamar appears. The upside down squid sets off alarm bells. One of his brothers had one of these things. “Be careful, Bubbe. That thing’s a—” He’s again silenced by a wave of a rocky tendril. The ghost’s eyes glitter with something malicious as the Malamar strikes. Biscotti’s eyes screw tightly shut as shadows meet rock.

He didn’t think Bubbe was prepared for a fight like this. She was a nurse. Sure, she was a little weird, but he’d never seen her throw down before.

The tentacles send the stones crunching together. Long arms slide backward as the Runerigus hisses in pain. But then it laughs. A shiver runs down the baker’s spine as the ghost type’s body flashes a wicked green. A strange, distorted shadow stretches toward the Malamar.

Cracks spread across its surface as it lays a Curse on the squid in front of it. Hell hath no fury like a…undead grandma?...scorned?

25 MP for knocking out another Pokemon in your skirmish thread.
50 MP have your character self-doubt or cast doubt on another's confidence/allegiances/beliefs, etc.

MAKI YUKIMURA

☉

[attr="class","charicon"]

context clues are everything in this fight, maki is finding out. her opponent has yet to realize the gravity of the situation, she thinks, but more importantly... is that runerigus his grandmother? just judging from the way he's been talking, it seems likely. maki doesn't know whether she's disturbed or impressed by the spirit's fervor, even as the ghost type lays a curse on her malamar that should cut down her own health by half as well.[break][break]

her malamar shivers, taking the hit, and maki knows it won't last much longer. there's no point in drawing this out-- better to hit fast and hard. she almost feels apologetic, though, when she calls out "psychic!" to her wayward squid. its eyes glow, and then the runerigus is surrounded by that same glow, as the squid attempts to throw it hard into the ground, wanting to shave off its-- her-- remaining life force. after that, maki will have to decide how to deal with the curse.[break][break]

she looks at biscotti. "why are you here?" she asks him. she shouldn't be curious, but she is.

[attr="class","bottom"]once again, i have a foolish nightmare.[break]
[break]Biscotti Kingsley
[break] 50mp character learns something from other character, 50mp regrettable decision (potentially KOing this guys poor grandma)
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[attr="class","credit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cloud-moon"]

[attr="class","blbqimg"]

[attr="class","bisc"]If she’d asked, Scotit would have been happy to explain Bubbe. The fact that he’d gotten abducted by her when he was four and wandering outside. Maybe explained how she helped him feel pain to keep him safe. Probably even whispered that he thought she was some mobster in a past life. Heck, he’d tell her his most embarrassing memories if it meant not having to fight a pretty lady. But, instead, the baker’s just given a ringside seat to a battle he has zero control over.
[break][break]
“Psychic!?” Biscotti’s next words are a panicked croak. Sure, the weird type triangles always confused him, but he knew this one was bad news. “Bubbe—!” The ghost turns to her charge with a dark little chuckle. The old ghost makes no move to defend herself. She glows a sickening violet as she tosses one type of vengeance for another. With a clatter, the stones fall limp to the ground.
[break][break]


But they’d sought to bind the accursed calamari to them as they fell—a Destiny Bond.
[break][break]


“Yikes—she’s kind of—” Scotti returns her with a fumble. He almost drops the Pokeball as he does so. “Sorry.” This girl scared him.
[break][break]


Her question makes him blink. His hands slide over to another Pokeball. Biscotti swallows. “I’m—uh—my sister’s in here. There.” He points to the recently acquired Petalburg.

MAKI YUKIMURA

☉

[attr="class","charicon"]

the runerigus leaves maki with one last gift. her malamar goes down, cursed to the end, unable to remain upright. maki returns it to its ball. she needs to make up for lost time here, so she calls upon her aegislash. it levitates in front of her, in shield form, waiting for an order. maki, too, is waiting to see what biscotti does next. "...swords dance." the ghost obliges, twirling and wielding itself, though its stance doesn't change-- yet.[break][break]

maki frowns at biscotti. "your sister? why is she in petalburg?" she asks, suspicious. she's not one to eschew the importance of family, but it's a different question if his sister is an enemy soldier. if that's the case, then no matter the cost... she has to fight. for the sake of her own family's honor, she will not hesitate to tear down another. even someone as clueless as the boy in front of her could potentially be a threat, especially if he has more surprises in store for her.

[attr="class","bottom"]once again, i have a foolish nightmare.[break]
[break]Biscotti Kingsley
[break] 50mp character reflects on why they're fighting
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[attr="class","credit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cloud-moon"]

[attr="class","charicon"]

well, there goes her previous hypothesis. she was only thirteen...? that's not much younger than her own younger sister, hitomi yukimura . maki would never even think to allow hitomi onto an active battlefield on purpose, and thankfully she doesn't think hitomi would ever want to be in such a place. if the younger girl were more headstrong... it'd only add to maki's list of things she needs to worry about, so as much as she hates to say it, she can sympathize with her opponent in this regard.[break][break]

right now, she has to break through his defenses. there's nothing she can do but waste a move to force his hawlucha to use its prepared detect. "shadow sneak." her aegislash melts away into the shadows, and then strikes at the hawlucha; it is, of course, warded off, but maki's not done yet. shadow sneak has increased priority, and the hawlucha across from her can't use detect again so soon, so... "and again!" she calls out. with its stance changed, and its attack power increased, her aegislash once more disappears and then reappears, slashing with its body to try and deal a whopping amount of damage.[break][break]

maki stares at biscotti. "...there will likely be reinforcements coming soon," she tells him. "as for your sister... if i am the one to discover her, i will... try and ensure her safe return. we have no need for child prisoners, after all." that's her excuse, anyway. the irony completely escapes her; she sees no need for child soldiers, either, yet that's exactly what she was born to be.

[attr="class","bottom"]once again, i have a foolish nightmare.[break]
[break]Biscotti Kingsley
[break] 50mp mention other character
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[attr="class","credit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cloud-moon"]

[attr="class","blbqimg"]

[attr="class","bisc"]The Hawlucha effortlessly avoids the initial Shadow Sneak. He barely seems to move as the sword slices through the empty air where he once stood. But the flying type’s burst of confidence is short-lived. His eyes widened as the order’s repeated. The air in front of him rippled as the Aegislash attacked again. The bird squawks as he’s knocked off his feet. The darkness-wreathed blade leaves its mark. As the bird pushes itself up, pink already stains his breast feathers.

Kapow shakes off the pain as he staggers forward. White claws flex as his muscles tighten like whipcords. But he hesitates. It’s kind of dangerous to punch a sword. Then, its ghoulish characteristics pose another issue. Hoping his speed takes it by surprise, the Hawlucha goes for an Aerial Ace. His sharp front claws aim to scratch the only fleshy part: its eye. This movement is desperate. That Shadow Sneak had left a mark.

The Pokemon battle is a sharp contrast to the human interaction. Biscotti seems more relaxed. Just like he saw in Galar, Rockets weren’t all heartless. And this fight was way messier and complicated then the papers made it out to be. “Yeah?” He goes so far as to offer up a cheeky grin. “I guess that means we should skedaddle.” His labrador eyes scan the landscape in front of them. All he sees is rubble cast across a No Man’s Land. Unless his sister is hiding in the sewer, he doubts she’s out there.

“Hey, uhM...miss.” A hand listed to his chest. “Thank you.” He feels like that’s not enough.

This kind of thing was a big risk fr a Rocket. He’s heard the stories of defectors. Digging into his pocket, he pulls out a sweaty little business card. On the front is a coupon for a free doughnut. “Uh, here. I’d pay you but—” His cheeks turn red. “This is all I have.” Maybe he could throw them at another Rocket if he got in trouble. As he makes the exchange, there’s a nearby shout. It seems the scuffle has been discovered.

He grapples for his beleaguered bird's Pokeball. He winces as he looks at the blood dripping down his front.

“Come on, Kapow!” The Hawlucha vanishes in a burst of red light as Biscotti takes off toward the shadows of Petalburg Woods.


50 MP showcase a meaningful moment between your character and their Pokemon.
50 MP showcase your own character's weakness(es) meaningfully.
50 MP showcase a meaningful moment between your character and their Pokemon.
50 MP showcase your own character's weakness(es) meaningfully.
25 MP for knocking out another Pokemon in your skirmish thread.
50 MP have your character learn to respect another character in some way.
50 MP have your character reflect on why they're fighting/reflect on their loyalties.
50 MP have your character recall a past thread or event that they have participated in or not (link the thread).
50 MP include a motif or recurring symbol of some kind in your thread.
25 MP for completing your Skirmish thread.
150 MP for faction conflict
100 MP for "tying" or having a "neutral" outcome for your character and their Skirmish thread.

TOTAL: 700

MAKI YUKIMURA

☉

[attr="class","charicon"]

time is up. as biscotti makes his hasty getaway, maki finds herself staring at the card. it's exactly the sort of thing she'd expect to receive from her odd opponent, but it's not the card itself that's making her hesitate. her ties to rocket are not in jeopardy the way a normal grunt's might be; that doesn't mean she didn't just stick her neck out for a stranger, though.[break][break]

despite this... she doesn't feel she made the wrong choice. as a yukimura, she's expected to uphold certain values, and "family" is at the very top of that list. if biscotti and his sister were dangerous, the story might be different. as it is, though, she sees no reason to go out of her way to torment them. furthermore, removing a child from the battlefield would mean removing an obstacle in rocket's way. yes... that has to be the reason behind her decision.[break][break]

someone asks if she's alright. maki blinks, and looks up, remembering where she is. she shoves the business card in a pocket. "yes," she says shortly. "i'm fine."

[attr="class","bottom"]once again, i have a foolish nightmare.[break]
[break]Biscotti Kingsley
[break] 50mp earn respect
[break]60mp for posts, 25 for completion, 100mp for "neutral" outcome, 150 mp for rocket v league, 400 mp for prompts = 725 total
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[attr="class","credit"] [attr="class","fas fa-cloud-moon"]