The skies above Tao village flashed as streaks of lightning wreaked their havoc across the night's black heavens. There was no moon, and not a star to been seen on a night as savage as this. The sky looked down on him, a black and empty void resounding with the vicious rumbles of thunder. The pelting rain was just as merciless. Aided by the wind, it poured with a vengeance; turning the humble town of Tao Village into a swamp. Around him, dirt paths turned to mud as the soil drowned under the torrent of heavy rain.
Mycaelis the Charmeleon stood with his arms hugged around his soaked body, trembling in the cold and relentless rain. The lightning, and thunder, he could stand; but a soaked body, and dim tail-flame, was making it difficult to wait.
It had been many months now, almost a year. A long time since they helped save Tao Village from the threat of stolen fireworks, and even longer since they rescued the Sapling Villagers from Merlot's tyranny. Now, Mycaelis and his brother, Vagus the Totodile, had finally returned to the town they had once called home.
Mycaelis flinched as a series of violent shudders took hold of him. "And this! Is the welcome back we get!"
Many a thing had changed since their last visit. The team was now required to re-submit their application directly to a Ninetales by the name of Callahan. Mycaelis despised paperwork and despised it even more when he saw it as unnecessary.
With a pair of squinted eyes, Mycaelis could make out a figure running towards him. The sheer quantity of rain lashed at his eyes and obscured most of his vision. Was it him? Mycaelis' relief soon turned to anger. Yes
it indeed was. A rugged looking Totodile, its scales torn and scratched from his hardships, quickly closed the distance. Its maimed right eye was hidden by a black eye patch.
"Dammit, Vagus!" screamed Mycaelis, above the roar of the falling rain. "What-" He let a sneeze escape him"-what the hell kept you?"
"I'm sorry, Michael!" apologised the Totodile, running up to Mycaelis and producing a sealed envelope. "That bloody post office! I had to convince them it was ours!"
The two team members flinched as the heavens again shook the muddy ground with another roar of thunder. "Good!" affirmed Mycaelis, snatching the envelope from Vagus' hand. "Let's just get the hell inside!"
Together, they sledged forward through the mud, towards the cosy looking building before them. "Lovely weather isn't it?" exclaimed Vagus, sensing Mycaelis' displeasure, and teasing him.
"Shut up, ya gronk!" snapped Mycaelis, his clawed hand clipping the back of the Totodile's skull.
The two arrived outside the door. To Vagus' surprise, instead of knocking, Mycaelis chose to bash his head against the door before him. "Open up, dammit!" It didn't take long for a silver coated Ninetales to answer his cries and open the door.
"Come in, come in!" welcomed Callahan. "My goodness, come in! I can't believe you've been waiting outside in the rain all this time! You could have knocked earlier, you know!"
A pair of ink tipped tails came forward and ushered the storm beaten pair inside the warm dwelling. Vagus' head flopped back on its shoulders as laughter escaped him, realising Mycaelis' stupidity.
"Bullshit!" crowed the large Charmeleon, ignoring his brother's reaction. Invigorated by anger he furiously shook the water from his body. "This place has bloody windows! I was out there for half an hour and not once did you invite me in!"
"Hey. Take an easy," reassured Vagus, putting a hand on Mycaelis' shoulder. "We're inside now! What difference does it make?" His words appeared to put Mycaelis at ease. He exhaled through his nostrils, the last traces of his agitation leaving him.
The Ninetales seemed to regard them with a vacant expression, as though he didn't care in the slightest about Mycaelis' outburst. "My name is Callahan, or Calla, for short. I'm the guild registrar, you know. I'm quite good at it!"
While Mycaelis remained silent, and still trembling from the cold, Vagus spoke up. "My name is-"
"Oh, please allow me to take your belongings, they're all wet!" Callahan was quick to cut Vagus off. "I'll just hang them in front of the fireplace to dry as we go over the formalities."
Driven by a sense of panic, Vagus recoiled at Callahan's sudden words and stepped back quickly. A hand covered his eye-patch. "Unless you want a Hydro Pump to the face, you better piss off."
"Fireplace!" exclaimed Mycaelis, the mention of warmth sending him into a frenzy of excitement.
Pushing his way past Callahan, he swept into the office beyond the threshold of the doorway. Throwing his satchel aside, Mycaelis slumped onto the floor, and lay before the open fire. Letting out a long sigh, he allowed himself to fall into its warm embrace. From behind him, he could hear the door close with a slam followed by hurried footsteps against the floor boards while Vagus and Callahan paced their way into the office.
Mycaelis could not help but notice Callahan being rather rushed with the proceedings. It felt discomforting; all he wanted to do now was bask in the warmth of the fire and drift off into a world of dreams. Just for a moment.
"And the paperwork, of course! There will be a lot of that, don't you worry one bit!"
Mycaelis let out a long groan as he heard Vagus do likewise.
"Hang on! What the heck you smiling about?" Vagus asked, after a moment's silence. He received no response from Callahan as the Ninetales paced over to his side of the desk. The orange glow of the fire gleamed upon the streaks of silver in his grey fur; he truly was a creature to be marvelled at.
For a place in which scribing took place on a daily basis, the office was dimly lit. The fireplace, mounted into the wall on the right-hand-side of the room, provided the office with its only source of light. Light that came in the form a warm and orange glow. The only furniture in sight was a large desk and several overburden bookshelves that stood against the wall, their shelves stuffed with tattered books and crumpled papers. A closed door led to the rest of the dwelling.
The desk before Vagus was a mess of empty ink pots and piled up papers. They were terribly un-kept, some had begun to yellow with age, and the ink on them had begun to fade. So much paper near such an inviting fireplace; it was something that would send alarm bells ringing in anyone with a brain in their head. But not Callahan.
"You do have the forms that we've mailed you filled out, yes?" Callahan proceeded to organise his papers with his paws. That does always make things go much quicker here."
"Sure we do," replied Vagus. "I had a super fun time finishing them, too."
Ensuring that his sarcasm had struck home with Callahan, he turned to Mycaelis. "Hey, Michael. C'mon, get up!"
Mycaelis inhaled sharply at the call of his name. "Alright, alright. Just
five more minutes."
"Now, damn you! Get your arse over here and give Calla that bloody envelope!"
There was no response.
"Michael! Don't make me put that fire out, and drag you over here!"
"Alright!"
Mycaelis hauled himself to his feet. With the envelope in his hand, he staggered over to Vagus' side. "Here ya go," he murmured, his eyes heavy. Mycaelis opened the envelope as he removed, and unfolded, its contents. He threw the damp sheets of paper on the desk before Callahan's inquisitive eyes.
Callahan scrutinized the damp papers with a disconcerting look. "What is this? These forms are soaking wet... and the ink has run! Goodness, we're in for a lot more paperwork than I could have hoped to dream of!"
"Shit!" cursed Vagus with a snap, his voice stabbing at Callahan's ears.
Mycaelis brow furrowed. "But they were drying in front of the fire with me!" he protested. "They can't be that wet, let me see."
Mycaelis hand couldn't even get anywhere near the papers. Callahan quickly took hold of them with his teeth and tossed them, with surprising force, into the fireplace. His startling speed astonished Mycaelis, and prompted him to stare back at Vagus with a puzzled look. Vagus simply shrugged his shoulders.
"No matter, I have spare forms, and all the time in the world! I trust you have no pressing appointments yet, so I'll write down your information now."
"Oh, don't you worry," assured Mycaelis through gritted teeth and held back anger. "Our only pressing appointments involve kicking arses. You've just filled the next one, mate!"
Before he could vault over the desk and start laying into the sly Ninetales, Vagus had his arms around him. "After! After!" he hissed, pulling him back. "Let's sort this stuff out first!"
Callahan, in the meantime, had made himself oblivious to the growing tension mounting against him. Ignoring Mycaelis and Vagus' quarrel, he shuffled about his papers; preparing new forms for the team. From behind him, sprang forth his tails, their tips soaked in ink as they were brought over the paper. To Mycaelis' surprise the ink did not drool over the new forms.
"I'll need your help, of course."
Mycaelis, giving up the urge to pummel Callahan to a pulp, turned to Vagus with a pair of drained eyes. "I hate forms."
"Pull it together, Michael!" snapped Vagus shaking him. "We can handle this. Now stop complaining and let's get this crap done."
For a moment Mycaelis simply stared at him. "Aye," he eventually sighed, looking into his brother's only remaining eye.
He turned back to face Callahan. "Alright, then. Count us in, mate."
"Good. Let's get right down to it, shall we? My fastest time for entering a team in the official guild registrar is a touch under a few hours; let's see if we can break the record!"
"What do you want to know?" asked Mycaelis as he and Vagus approached the desk with crossed arms. Chairs, or any form of lounging furniture, were absent in the office; leaving the two teammates standing.
"Your names, please?"
"My name is Mycaelis." A disgruntled huff then escaped him. "But since most folks now days are stupid, most of them just call me Michael. My common name."
Vagus chuckled and hid a smile from his brother's eyes. "And I am Vagus"
"Ahh... what a
commo- er, good name you have! How do both you spell your names?"
"Common!" spat Vagus. "My name is derived from Latin tongue! You have no bloody right to call it common!"
"Yea! How you like it, mate," chuckled Mycaelis, enjoying
"Shut up! People even get you confused with the Guildmaster! Ha!"
Mycaelis growled in annoyance. "It's not my fault you stupid cunts can't be arsed to say my birth name." It was a problem to often lead to confusion between him and Mike Charmander. Something which left both Chars feeling frustrated and angry. "It's M-Y-C-A-E-L-I-S and pronounced; Me-Kay-Less. Like anybody gives a shit. They never bloody say it."
"V-A-G-U-S." Vagus spelt out the words of his name. "It's pronounced: Va-Guss. Simple!"
Mycaelis watched as one of Callahan's tails set to work scrawling the name on the form. He then looked up at Vagus. His crimson eyes fixed on him with an unbroken stair.
"Interesting spelling! Are you foreign? French, perhaps?"
"French!" exclaimed both siblings.
"Are you freaking serious?" snorted Vagus. "That's the exact opposite of being Spar--"
"Ah, no, forget it, France is just made up here, you know. Often used as comic relief. Er, just forget that."
"It darn well better be," murmured Vagus, the anger from outrage simmering.
"Moving on! What alias do you wish to give your lot of fellows? I hope it's something good! I've been so bored by Pokémon insisting to use a name like "Team Awesome" or anything of the sort. More like "Team Mediocrity," I like to think! I'm sure you have a much more original name."
"Spartan!" they both replied. "Team Spartan.
Mycaelis spoke up. "We chose it because of the way we were--"
"I knew you wouldn't let me down! Is that the normal spelling, or do you insist on losing letters, or replacing them altogether entirely?"
"Hmm
well now that you mention it, there is the traditional spelling of calling it Laco-"
"Enough, Vagus!" snapped Mycaelis. "The spelling if fine, Calla."
The two watched as Callahan's tails set to work scribbling the information in a surprisingly neat fashion.
"And
done. All right! Next topic!"
He paced his eyes over the two for a few moments. Mycaelis and Vagus continued to stare at him unnerved. His gaze finally came to rest on Mycaelis.</b>
"You there, lad! You seem to be the leader of the team, here. Why don't you tell me about yourself? Please make it interesting! I'm not filing a police report, you know. I don't get paid for this, either. I do it for the stories people tell! Everyone has a story! (Some are better than others, though. That's for sure
) However, I do hope yours isn't filled to the brim with angst and darkness, you know. We have enough of that as it is with the recent crises we've been going through!"
For possibly the first time on this miserable and rainy night, Mycaelis smiled. Vagus gave him a supporting look, his emerald green eye glimmering with anticipation. Story telling was a pastime they both enjoyed.
"We'll, there aren't really that much to tell you, good sir," began Mycaelis, the tension of the day visibly leaving his body and changing his tone. "My story is also Vagus' story, we've known each other since the day we bloody hatched."
"C'mon," moaned Vagus. "Just tell him about us, already!"
Mycaelis grunted and let out a sigh. "Well, as you may have noticed, I'm not very in control of myself at times, Vagus is the reasonable one; he always keeps me on a leash. I tend to lose my temper when we come across someone who causes trouble for us. Sorry, mate." Mycaelis noticed a thin smile of satisfaction had worked its way across Callahan's snout, giving him a sly, and smug, appearance. Mycaelis knew that his apology had just been accepted.
"Obviously, you can see I am a Charmeleon," Mycaelis extended his arms outward to show his entire form. "But I'm not just your average Charmeleon, neither is Vagus, here, your average Totodile. I'm sure you've noticed that we appear stronger, and taller, than most Charmeleons or Totodiles that you may have seen."
His eyes fell to the floor for a moment, wandering if the Ninetales would even believe what he would say next. "Our father was a powerful Feraligatr by the name of Garrius. Vagus and I come from the deepest parts of Primastic Jungle. Our father was a fanatic when it came to the arts of combat and pushing one's body to its limits. He was driven, motivated, and so were we. He made us who we are now. He taught us how to survive" His eyes then shot up from the floor to meet Callahan's gaze. A tint of sorrow welled deep within them.
"But our father was an envied man, envied for his skill and devotion to his passion
to our passion. One day, many years ago from now, his enemies became too many, and his life was taken from us. We weren't with him that day and could do nothing to protect him. It is a shame that we still bare to this day. I guess it was hard on the both of us for a time. Together, we thought that we should honour him by doing good in the world. If we could not protect our father from his fate, then we will protect others from theirs." Mycaelis turned to Vagus, and noticed that his head was tilted towards the floor. It has been many years, and still the anguish of their failure tore at his inner being. Mycaelis could still feel it tearing at his.
Mycaelis' voice turned vicious. "We don't know for sure why our father was killed, but Vagus and I know it was the Rogues, Mr. Callahan, sir. They killed both dad and mum
they wanted dad to come work for them. They were scared of him, scared that somebody so powerful wasn't theirs to control. They couldn't have him
so they took him from us."
"The two of us left the jungle the following year. Together, we've trained hard and travelled this world far and wide. Long, we've searched for a way him proud, a place outside the jungle and its murderous ways. It was on a night, similar to this, that we first arrived here at Tao Village. We've come to Tao to change, Mr. Callahan. Not for revenge. We made our home in an underground cavern near Tao Lake, and began to work hard for the Rescuers Guild. Training under dad has taught us rock-solid discipline. We follow our orders to the letter, and without question. We have nothing but the highest respect for our leaders. We also work well with other teams."
"Bah!" scoffed Vagus, butting in. "Cut the crap, Michael. You're always giving them a hard time."
Mycaelis ignored him. "However, on our last mission, Vagus and I we're badly injured, and we were forced to take leave from our duties. Vagus lost an eye while we were battling Merlot, and my right arm was crippled beyond repair. However, I was eventually able to evolve into a Charmeleon and regained use of it in my new form. Vagus, unfortunately, hasn't yet reached his evolution stage. Why? Nobody knows. After a while of thinking about it, Vagus convinced me that his eye wouldn't stop him. So here we are. We have returned to face our destiny, and make our mum and dad proud."
He turned to face Vagus, and almost recoiled at the wide smile that he bore. "Why can't you talk like that all the time?" he chuckled, marvelling at the change in Mycaelis' normally crude tone. "You sound so much more
approachable."
"What an enchanting tale! I can see why you'd probably like to re-join the Rescue Guild"
"Yup!" they both replied.
"Very well, then! It seems I have all I need in order to register you here in our peaceful Tao Village! Just to make sure all the facts are correct, please look over them and sign your initials at the bottom! Don't forget to sign off on your belongings! You wouldn't believe how many people forget their accessories, only to leave them here with me! Please don't do that, I have so many things cluttering up my attic in dusty old boxes..."
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Team Name: Team Spartan
Rank: Chatot
Member 1: Mycaelis "Michael" Charmeleon
(Male)
Member 2: Vagus Totodile
(Male) >MISSING IN ACTION<
Member 3: Kareena Absol
(Female)
Member 4: -------
Member 1 Trait & Personality: Quirky/Likes To fight
Member 2 Trait & Personality: Brave/Strong Willed
Member 3 Trait & Personality: Docile/Alert To Sounds
Member 4 Trait & Personality: ------
Member 1 moves:
Flamethrower: A sustained stream of fire is released upon the foe. Mycaelis can also manage to release a short blast to hit targets at a further distance.
Dragon Claw: Mycaelis uses the claws on his hands and feet to gash gaping wounds in the foe.
Dragon Rush: Mycaelis' body glows silver as he rushes forward with a sustained burst of speed. The foe rammed with incredible force capable of shattering bones.
Overheat: A huge wave of heat engulfs everything within its range. Being only a Charmeleon, this attack severally weakens Mycaelis and will have deadly consequences for him if it is used when injured. There is also the side effect of collateral damage.
Member 2 moves:
Ice Beam: A sustained stream of ice is released upon the foe. Vagus can also manage to release short blast to hit targets at a further distance.
Crunch: Vagus digs his massive and powerful jaws into the foe, severing tendons, muscles and nerves as though they we're paper.
Water Pulse This move can only be used when Vagus is submerged underwater. A pulse of energy is shot through the water. It hits targets with enough power to stun them completely. He is very proficient in using it and often uses to stun prey while hunting.
Hydro Pump: A powerful and sustainable blast of water is released upon the foe. Vagus, due to his unevolved form, can only sustain the move for so long. It sometimes leaves him drained and in need of an Elixir.
Member 3 moves:
Night Slash: Kareena slashes at her foes with her head-spike.
Quick Attack: Utilizing her astonishing speed, Kareena becomes a blur of motion as she attacks her foes.
Razor Wind: A crescent blade of energy flys from Kareena's head-spike.
Shadow Ball: A powerful ball or blast of dark energy is launched from Kareena's mouth
Member 4 moves: ------
Member 1 accessories:
-Red Armband embroided with yellow lambda emblem. (Worn around the upper left arm)
-Golden Chain Necklace.
Member 2 accessories:
-Red Armband embroided with yellow lambda emblem. (Worn around the upper left arm)
-Eye patch. (Worn over right eye)
Member 3 accessories:
-Red Armband embroided with yellow lambda emblem. (Worn around the upper part of the left foreleg)
Member 4 accessories: ------
Desired Guild affiliation: Rescue Guild
By signing here, you agree that the above information is correct and true to the best of your knowledge.
Signature 1: "Mycaelis 'Michael' Charmeleon"
Date: 30th of June 2011
Signature 2: "Vagus Totodile"
Date: 30th of June 2011
Signature 3: "Kareena Absol"
Date: 30th of July 2012
Signature 4: ------
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Mycaelis looked up at Callahan who was studying the forms with a pair of inquisitive eyes. "Don't worry about those extra places, Calla. I guess it's just us, for now."
"What's that, you say? There are only two of you? Of course I know that! I do have eyes, you know! What if, during your travels, you decide to recruit, or add on an extra member to your team? Would you really want them to fill out all this paperwork from scratch? There's no problem with me for that, I assure you! This is just a convenient foresight! There is only room enough for four signatures on here, though, so please, no more members than that!"
"Cheers for the advice, Calla. We'll just come back and fill that info in sometime."
"Well, now! I don't think I'll keep you here any longer, I have everything I need from you! I haven't broken any records for time tonight, though. Your story took up quite a bit of it! Thankfully, it didn't put me to sleep
it's happened before. Oh well! Time to conclude our business here!"
"Finally!" snapped Mycaelis rising to his full height. "Well, mate. Thanks for--"
Before anything else could be said, Callahan, faster than the lighting that lit the skies outside, paced around to them and began to shove them onwards, his ink tipped tails ushering them out of the office and towards the front door.
"Hey, what gives? Take it easy!" protested, Vagus knocking one back and receiving a swipe across the back for his trouble.
The two soon arrived that the door and were shoved aside by Callahan as he yanked open the door with one of his paws. The roar of the rain burst through and assailed Mycaelis' ears. He felt his heart sink within him as he stared blankly into the maelstrom. He could already feel the rain's icy chill against his hot flesh. He didn't want to leave. "Dammit, can't we just stay until--"
A crash of thunder brutally cut him off as Callahan used his powerful tails to bring them before the door. With a powerful push from them, both Mycaelis and Vagus we're shoved outside into the vengeful rain. Mycaelis gasped as it fell upon him once more and chilled him to his core. He wanted to run back inside and throw Callahan out in this, leaving Vagus and himself to enjoy the comforts of his fireplace. Alone, just the two of them.
Over the ghostly shrill of the wind, he made out the sound of a thud as the door closed tight behind him. "Bastard!" shouted Vagus, turning to face the closed door. "C'mon, Michael. That Charmander you almost share your name with will probably want a talk with us."
"Aye," he agreed solemnly, as his body began to shiver with cold. Together, they both began to wonder off into the rainy night; leaving the warmth of Calhan's dwelling behind. "Shit!" exclaimed Mycaelis, his head sweeping back to it.
"What is it?" cocked Vagus
"He's got my freaking satchel!" snapped Mycaelis, running back up the house. "Calla! Calla, I forgot my-"
Within an instant of his cries, the door to the dwelling swung open as Mycaelis' satchel was launched out from somewhere within in depths. With astonishing force, the small bag collided with Mycaelis' face; knocking him onto his back. As suddenly as it opened, the door slammed closed.
Vagus burst into laughter at the sight, his laugh rivalling the roar of the storm. He ran to Mycaelis' side and knelt before him. "Are you alright?"
Mycaelis simply lay motionless in the mud; his eyes wide open as he stared blankly into the storm ravaged sky of the night. The rain continued to plummet down upon him, its savagery showing no remorse for the downed Charmeleon.
"Michael?" cocked Vagus, becoming concerned.
There was no response. For what felt like a minute he continued to stare. Then, to Vagus surprise, a wet smile crept across his saturated face. "Hey, Vagus."
"Yea, mate?" he asked. For reasons he could not fathom, a smile had also found a way across his snout. Maybe he was just glad to see that Mycaelis was uninjured. Or maybe it was because he was thinking the same thing he was.
"It's good to be home, you know that? Yea
it is good to be home."
***************************
1 day after Mission 6--
"Michael! Michael!" Vagus cries filled the air. "Mate, I swear if you crack that egg, I'll crack your bloody skull!"
"Bah!" scoffed back the hulking Charmeleon. "Best of luck with that, mate."
"You know what?" snarled Vagus. "I don't think there's enough luck in the world to help me crack open your thick skull!"
"Ha! Well you're gonna--" Too busy to take notice of the ground before him, Mycaelis foot caught on a measuring rope. With Tao Village now a construction site there were many obstacles that demanded the execution of caution. In a display of stupidity, Mycaelis stumbled forward, the egg balancing precariously in his hands. With some quick footwork, he managed to regain his balance, and keep himself and the egg from falling.
Vagus gasped and felt his heart almost explode from his chest. "You idiot! You nearly dropped her!"
A roar of laughter burst from Mycaelis. "Mate, you worry too much." He turned towards a familiar tarp covered dwelling that was Callahan's office. "C'mon, let's go. " Vagus followed, soon arriving at the door with Mycaelis by his side.
Nodding his head, Mycaelis silently ordered Vagus to knock on the door. His hands were preoccupied holding their precious gift.
Vagus raised his hand to knock upon the door, but stoped in mid-action. He turned to Mycaelis, his green eye glimmering in the sunset. "You do realise we can't go back on this. Once she's registered
she's ours to take care off."
Mycaelis nodded. "Do it," he croaked, holding the egg tighter. Within in moments of his knuckles tapping against the door, it was answered by Callahan.
Soon they stood before his desk once more. The fireplace in the small room burning as warmly has it ever did. Mycaelis watched as Callahan cast his ruby eyes over him and the egg that he cradled so tenderly in his battle hardened claws.
"Well now!" Callahans eye flicked up to meet Mycaelis gaze. "I've heard of robbing the cradle, but I never thought I'd live to see the day the phrase has turned literal!
"Your funny
" growled Mycaelis, not one bit amused. Callahan's insensitivity made Mycaelis' bloody boil. Two Absols, both brothers, had lost their lives defending this egg. The infant Absol within the egg would now be raised as an orphan, with little knowledge of the family she once came from.
"Oh no, don't worry, I understand perfectly! What better way to instil your sense of morals and ideals onto someone than to project them onto someone while they're a completely blank canvas? Splendid idea! I'm sure you'll raise a fine member of society! I'll mark the egg down on your paper for now. Have them come see me when they hatch, and I'll run them through the battery of paperwork!
Mycaelis remained silent until Callahan finished speaking. He watched as the Ninetales scrawl the information onto their team application. Only months had passed an already it had joined the legion of other yellowed and aged team applications that littered the office.
"Would that be all?" asked Vagus.
Callahan responded with a silent nod, and indicated for them to leave by pointing a tail in the direction of the door.
Without any more words being exchanged, Mycaelis turned his back to the Ninetales. Followed by Vagus, he proceeded out the door.
****************************************
Karenna joins 1 week Prior to Mission 7
Mycaelis clawed hand quickly beat a rhythm against the familiar door of Callahan's office.
"Michael! Michael where is Vagus this morning?" Kareena was growing fast. In the short 4 months after her hatching, Mycaelis was gripped by a mixture of pride an astonishment as the young Absol advanced through the fundamentals of her training with startling speed.
Mycaelis shrugged his shoulders, and looked down at the Absol that plodded along beside him. "Dunno, Kareena." He replied truthfully.
"He's with Leon again, isn't he? What are they doing?"
The words made Mycaelis' claw clench with frustration. The girl was curious and instinctive; traits which he too proudly possessed when he was her age. "I'm gonna find out sooner or later, Kareena," he growled. "He's got no business hangin' 'round with bloody rogues." Suddenly, and without the slightest premonition, the door of Callahan's office opened before them.
Ahh, yes! The fabled new member of the team that stood out in the rain for hours before finally knocking! I remember them! Come in! It's nice to see that you knocked immediately. Shows initiative!
"Kareena. Do you see this Ninetailes, here?" asked Mycaelis looking down at her.
"Y-yes, Michael? What about him?"
Mycaelis wanted to tell Kareena that 'mons like Callahan needed a good thrashing now and then. But something held his words back. It was to his astonishment that new ones took their place. "H-he is the sort of somebody that might get on your nerves from time to time. But you must never lose control of yourself. Anger and hate are tools we use against our foes, not pricks like this."
Mycaelis turned to face Callahan and noticed that his face had turned somewhat fierce. Mycaelis sighed and chuckled nervously, he could tell that the exotic Ninetails was far from pleased at being made the subject of an ethics lesson. "I just wanna get Kareena here signed up and ready to go." He slapped a firm pat in the Absol's back. "I think she's ready to serve the guild."
Callahan huffed as he overcame his agitation. "I'll see about that." His ruby red eyes descended onto Kareena."Most of your information has already filled out during your last visit, but please, for posterity, tell me about yourself. How did you come to meet that raggedy bunch of Pokemon and become so interested in them that you decided to join? Do tell."
"Well
erm
" She looked up at Mycaelis for support.
Mycaelis smiled assumingly and looked at her warmly. "It's okay. Just like we practiced this morning. Go on."
With an affirm nod she turned to face Callahan, she seemed to grow fierce for a moment. Mycaelis maintained his smile, he could tell that she was trying to be brave for him, to please him, and to make him proud. It had been 4 months since her hatching, and already the young Absol had made him one of the proudest Charmeleon's in Tao.
"My name is Kareena , Sir. My family and I are Absols native to Creeping Forest
well
that was at least until Sorbet showed up. Before I hatch, my family lost their lives trying to escape the forest during his rampage. In the days that followed I was left in the care of my two brothers, we were the only survivors. But then, Team Spartan came to our rescue. Since the day I hatched, Michael has raised me and trained me to be strong like him and Vagus. I-I want to become the best I can be, so that I can help others and--" She fell short and became hesitant for a moment "
and punish those that have caused them harm."
"Hesitance, my dear girl!" remarked Callahan, seeing her unwillingness to comply with Mycaelis' views. "I saw every sign of it in those last words!" He chuckled and cast his eyes over Mycaelis. "Forcing her to become something she is not, hm? Perhaps the slate is not as clear as I thought it might be."
"If you know what's good for ya, you'll shut that darn mouth of yours, Calla." Mycaelis' eyes turned fierce as his clawed hands clenched into fists. "Maybe I should knock a few teeth out of it."
"Michael, please." Kareena stepped forward in front of him, and stood between him and Callahan. "Do I have to tell Vagus about this?"
Mycaelis remained mute as he continued to stare down the Ninetales with a pair of fierce eyes. As Kareena's words sunk in, he let his fists relax. He wanted to leave this place. "Callah. Are we done here?" His words were cold and writhe with a vengeful tone.
"Indeed we are! This seems to be everything I need!" Callahan's ever present tails came forth and began to scrawl Kareena's details onto their team application. "Go out now, and get some rest! I doubt you'll live to regret your decisions!"
"Rest?" A laugh escaped Mycaelis. "No time for rest. Rest comes with death." Quickly and without any further words, Mycaelis turned his back on the Ninetales. "Let's go Kareena. Your future awaits."