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PLAYER
NAME: Usagi
CONTACT: PM,![[plurk.com profile]](https://plurk.com/favicon.ico)
usagisquared, discord @ usagisquared
OVER 18? Yep, 32
CURRENT CHARACTERS: None
CHARACTER
NAME: Emporio Alniño
CANON: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean
CANON POINT: During the final world's 'reset'; he would be pulled right when everything is already 'fading to black', in other words.
BACKGROUND: Here; as CWs are not included on the wiki, please be advised of the following being referred to at least in passing on this page: American Prison Systems, Death, Decay, Children in Distress, Self-Harm/Attempted Suicide, Body Horror, Vehicular Accidents (Helicopters, Cars), Apocalyptic Imagery (Time Manipulation), Identity Replacement, Suffocation/Poisoning
SUITABILITY: Emporio as a character is someone from a notably graphic series, and as such is one I find easier to write in settings that aren't necessarily dark, but rather have their fair share of more mature or complex themes- Bottlecap Bay serves an ideal ground for this, not only for potential themes of morality and survival, but most vitally the idea of team work and connection. He is a character who in such a setting could take any number of paths depending on his guild and personal bonds- as noted in below sections- but primarily I wish to develop a path focused on finding a place within the world, encouraged by a canon point that implies to him a lack of a home or family to return to.
As a naturally curious, and astoundingly intelligent boy- he's capable of piloting and driving a helicopter and car respectively, on his first attempt, with only book experience and intuition to go on- he's someone who is also passionate given the chance. Once fear and despair are forgotten, even momentarily, come the display of a hungry mind at work, reciting learned knowledge and theory both. It will be truly fun to see him learn in Bottlecap Bay, and I can easily see him coming into his own as anything from a strategist, to perhaps even a skilled combatant in his own right; much of Emporio's strength in series has come from his ability to recover from fear to adapt rapidly mid-fight, either passing vital information to comrades so they can land a necessary blow, or even to acquire the means of making that blow himself. It is no exaggeration to say that in a canon cast formed of a range from 19 to 40 year old people, it is Emporio who was their most organized and most strategic- he will need coaxing from a traumatized shell (as can be seen in the tdm), but once connections can be made, even to the town, he'll do quite a lot to support them.
QUESTIONNAIRE:
Due to Emporio's nature and skill, it's quite likely that this injured pokemon is found while he's scounting ahead; Emporio even as a pokemon will be small, and his habits as a human would contribute to a very strong amount of skill in stealth and recon; he had to avoid detection in one of the series most heavily guarded and monitored adult prisons in the USA for potentially 8 out of 12 years. As such, he'd be able to at least give this news in a slightly controlled environment a number of paces away.
(It's never stated when precisely Emporio was left entirely alone as a child, and feasibly he would have required help for the earliest portions of this, but the series all but states that most of his stealth was through his own merit and ability.)
The answer to this question changes a lot if he isn't scouting ahead, but for now this is the assumption. With the news dropped, Emporio would likely take the backseat while others plan. He's more inclined to let those in the lead choose, than he is to take the lead himself. However, that goes out the window if he thinks they're about to make an incredibly bad call- which in this case hinges on the team's skill level as a whole. Emporio himself wouldn't be confident in his ability to physically calm things down. He would suggest taking note, and getting more help while they focus on their mission, if the team as a whole is weak and clearly not going to succeed. If the team does seem capable, and the one in charge thinks it's a good idea? He's following along, albeit more at the rear. He's not used to fighting at the front lines- which is a shame for a cubone- so that's something he needs to train up to.
Now- what happens if this happens suddenly, in front of the entire group? Calm words, first of all, and a lot of distance. Emporio does his best to assess the situation at hand, and make suggestions to his team however he can judge. Whatever happens, if his team goes for it- either against advice or for- he will go with, but if it comes to it he'll run. For help, that is. He'll run to find somewhere safe enough to call for help from, he's not the type to abandon people, he just also knows that multiple dead people do not help anyone. Having been sent off a few times in this way while others handled battles, it's fortunately an easy choice to make.
CW: Children in Distress, Attempted Murder of a Child, Reference to Other Character's Deaths
With the background in mind, here is a quick recap; Emporio's worst enemy is Enrico Pucci. This man killed Emporio's mother for unknown and likely casual or impersonal reasons, unintentionally forcing the boy to hide in a prison for multiple years out of fear of ever being found by the man- a man who, at this time, did not even know the boy existed. The first time Pucci sees Emporio is in the lead up to the final fight, and he identifies the boy entirely by the memory of his mother. On top of this, Pucci brutally kills the boy's father figure in a fight, and then slaughters the rest of the cast in front of him before goading the boy to 'die a martyr'. The man then dangles false versions of some of those slaughtered people in front of his face before pursuing a fleeing Emporio at walking pace with intent to murder, as in Pucci's words, if he leaves Emporio alive, Emporio will grow up and return to kill HIM.
Emporio ultimately killed Pucci in a last ditch act of self-defense/vengeance, so needless to say Pucci appearing in front of Emporio is Very Bad.
HOWEVER. I will say before going further, I have played Emporio in this exact situation! Rather, the situation of simply being in the same general air-space as the other. And each time, in plotting carefully with the player, we have made it work very well. Generally speaking this involves a lot of making sure Emporio never outright named Pucci to start, or that if he did, it was to people who won't just start a fight on sight with the guy. Mediation is key, and that doesn't change here- while the appearance of an Enrico Pucci is unlikely, I will still act as if the chance yet exists to be safe.
If Pucci approached Emporio with this deal, Emporio would be incredibly suspicious. He certainly doesn't think that Pucci would sabotage the quest exactly, but he would happily point out that no matter how many times Pucci says 'what's done is done, I can no longer attain my goal', that doesn't remove the risk to his own person. Who's to say Pucci won't kill him? How can he trust him, even slightly, after everything he did? Emporio would ultimately demand a third party mediator. Someone they can both trust to keep the other alive, because ultimately Emporio would have had to face this issue the day Pucci showed up at the guild in the first place. He would have seen them walk in, heard the name, and then very quickly make it clear that they may well not have a home to go back to, but at the very least, he can survive the idea of not just putting the priest in a hole. Stay away from him, and he'd do the same.
Which, really makes this entire quest set up suck even more, but that's what a mediator is for. To make sure someone doesn't come out of it and tell the guild leader there was an 'accident'.
Emporio's answer here is interesting; it has roughly the same outcome for fairly unique reasons depending on what guild he's actually in. He's a very canny child- had to be to survive unnoticed in Green Dolphin prison for so long, with guards as notoriously prone to violence- and it wouldn't take long in either situation to get a general idea of what both Mightyena and Polteageist are like. He might not necessarily be right in how he thinks they operate, but the point is, he would have assumptions.
As it stands, his moral code is tied more firmly to the loyalties he has to those around him, and provided no innocents are at risk (rather, no one who hasn't already done them harm), he's liable to go along with quite a lot provided it has a purpose. Which is to say that in both cases, he'll ultimately do it.
With that in mind, while he'd be suspicious of Mightyena, it would be the kind of suspicion associated with an incoming surprise, or the knowledge that one won't like what's coming, but entirely for personal reasons. He wouldn't think this guild leader likely to deliberately sabotage others (or at least not by refusing to tell him what he's doing until he agrees to do it), but he would point out that not telling him makes it...well. Suspicious. And unpleasant sounding. If it were to come about that the task required of him seems impossible, he'd protest that as well, but ultimately still try; Mightyena comes across as very similar to the women he came to know in Green Dolphin, so he'd feel more inclined to do right by her, and trust her.
That said, he would likely refine any plans surrounding the task to make sure things run smoothly. Just to be safe.
Polteageist meanwhile is a bit different. Admittedly they would benefit from Emporio's fairly low standards- until half a year ago, his constant company was a misanthrope arrested for violent murder, and a complete amnesiac with little concept of personal space...who himself was arrested for attempted murder. The bar is in the sand. That said, between this and likely picking up on how Polteageist treats the Lum Guild, Emporio would feel a little irritated with the presentation of this offer- not enough to really show it visibly, but enough that he doesn't exactly jump to say 'yes'.
He would suspect, you see, that Polteageist simply doesn't see a point in telling Emporio the task. And naturally he bets that if he points that out, Polteageist would doubledown until the offer is accepted. While the boy knows Lum Guild wouldn't be harmed, nor the city- they live there, it'd be counter productive- he also knows that isn't necessarily the case for the other two guilds, and Polteageist probably doesn't mind that!
But he also knows that Polteageist being who they are, Emporio would've been picked for a reason; he's someone you grab because you need someone intelligent and adaptable, someone capable of adjusting course in the face of the inexplicable. ...Or, of course, because you need someone who won't get caught. So ultimately, he'll agree and do his best to comply. In this case however, any changes to the plan he's been presented would only happen if there was a risk to harm any innocent parties- he'd aim to complete the goal, but with a few extra steps to be safe, in other words.
Well this is quite the pickle, putting it gently. The thing about who Emporio is, is that if the choice at hand is falling on Emporio, then things have gotten extremely bad. No wonder it's down to the medical staff- they probably have every able-bodied pokemon out looking for food, otherwise.
But the key word for his choice here is extra team. There are already pokemon out looking for food, which means that while it might not be as much food, it'll be some. Which would cause Emporio to lean on keeping Medical where they are.
For two reasons, actually, which he would firmly put down even as starving pokemon are likely trying to shake him down over this- first off, while they could get more food if they sent out a bonus team, that 'could' is feeble enough that he doesn't want to concretely doom the patients in medical over it. It's the possibility of some dying against some absolutely dying, and he's going to lean the chance of everyone surviving over the absolute of some not, any day. At this point in time, they don't necessarily know when teams sent out will return, but sending more won't likely make them come back faster, so it's better they ration out what comes in for now.
But the second reason is a little more notable; If they send all their able bodied medics for food, then what happens if anyone coming back with food needs a medic? What happens if anyone currently demanding he send another team needs a medic? What then?
So, they trust that what the current teams find out afield will be enough to get them through the next few hurdles, and hope for the patients in medical to recover. A rough choice, certainly, but he's well aware of the slippery slope that comes with choosing to let someone die, and having seen that enough in both life and books, he's not having any of it.
POKEMON: Cubone - Cubone and Emporio are very similar 'lore-wise', both being considered orphans (though later game pokedexes don't really focus on that much), and specifically mourning their mothers. Both are considered incredibly lonely, even weepy, and most notably- in the case of early pokedexes anyway- both carry the bones of their mother with them. Canonically, Emporio has his mom's entire skeleton in his 'Ghost Room', and carries the sacrum specifically as a security blanket. Naturally, he no longer has this with him for the game.
Aside from the above, the progression from the lingering grief and clinging to the old with Ground Cubone- Ground additionally reflecting Emporio's ability to be grounded in a crisis, often exhibiting quick and strategic thinking in any fights he's part of (albeit after a second or two to scream)- flowing into the Ghost-Fire Alolan-Marowak, who mourns but with strength, dancing and protecting with the spirits of former family at their support, will be an incredibly strong storyline for Emporio I feel.
Emporio will also have the move 'Secret Power' within his potential move-pool; this not only hails back to his 'Stand' in canon (which could, in certain locations, find hidden areas within which to find safety), but also his end-series moments. Secret Power as a move is somewhat unpredictable, acting according to the environment- in canon, Emporio himself was driven to the ultimate limit and forced to rely on a similarly unpredictable power, to his own detriment in fact.
(As a note, a 'Stand' is effectively a super-power within the series of JJBA)
GUILD OPT-OUT: Cheri Berries; While both the Lum and Oran Guilds would benefit Emporio in their own way (and vice versa, Emporio could benefit greatly from either of them), the Cheri Berries would ultimately give him too strong a sense of the operations at Green Dolphin Prison. As it would be counterproductive to work with a guild leader that could potentially remind him of the primary source of his past trauma, it's better to simply avoid the risk altogether.
SAMPLES:
Emporio's TDM Top Level + Threads
TDM Thread with A.B.A
PLAYER
NAME: Usagi
CONTACT: PM,
OVER 18? Yep, 32
CURRENT CHARACTERS: None
CHARACTER
NAME: Emporio Alniño
CANON: JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Stone Ocean
CANON POINT: During the final world's 'reset'; he would be pulled right when everything is already 'fading to black', in other words.
BACKGROUND: Here; as CWs are not included on the wiki, please be advised of the following being referred to at least in passing on this page: American Prison Systems, Death, Decay, Children in Distress, Self-Harm/Attempted Suicide, Body Horror, Vehicular Accidents (Helicopters, Cars), Apocalyptic Imagery (Time Manipulation), Identity Replacement, Suffocation/Poisoning
SUITABILITY: Emporio as a character is someone from a notably graphic series, and as such is one I find easier to write in settings that aren't necessarily dark, but rather have their fair share of more mature or complex themes- Bottlecap Bay serves an ideal ground for this, not only for potential themes of morality and survival, but most vitally the idea of team work and connection. He is a character who in such a setting could take any number of paths depending on his guild and personal bonds- as noted in below sections- but primarily I wish to develop a path focused on finding a place within the world, encouraged by a canon point that implies to him a lack of a home or family to return to.
As a naturally curious, and astoundingly intelligent boy- he's capable of piloting and driving a helicopter and car respectively, on his first attempt, with only book experience and intuition to go on- he's someone who is also passionate given the chance. Once fear and despair are forgotten, even momentarily, come the display of a hungry mind at work, reciting learned knowledge and theory both. It will be truly fun to see him learn in Bottlecap Bay, and I can easily see him coming into his own as anything from a strategist, to perhaps even a skilled combatant in his own right; much of Emporio's strength in series has come from his ability to recover from fear to adapt rapidly mid-fight, either passing vital information to comrades so they can land a necessary blow, or even to acquire the means of making that blow himself. It is no exaggeration to say that in a canon cast formed of a range from 19 to 40 year old people, it is Emporio who was their most organized and most strategic- he will need coaxing from a traumatized shell (as can be seen in the tdm), but once connections can be made, even to the town, he'll do quite a lot to support them.
QUESTIONNAIRE:
⟡ Your character is on an exploration quest when they find an injured Pokemon in need of help. This Pokemon appears to be in distress and is quite dangerous, posing a risk to your character even if they mean well, and putting your quest mission at risk. What do they do? What are some possibilities of how they work with teammates to address this, or do they go at it alone?
(It's never stated when precisely Emporio was left entirely alone as a child, and feasibly he would have required help for the earliest portions of this, but the series all but states that most of his stealth was through his own merit and ability.)
The answer to this question changes a lot if he isn't scouting ahead, but for now this is the assumption. With the news dropped, Emporio would likely take the backseat while others plan. He's more inclined to let those in the lead choose, than he is to take the lead himself. However, that goes out the window if he thinks they're about to make an incredibly bad call- which in this case hinges on the team's skill level as a whole. Emporio himself wouldn't be confident in his ability to physically calm things down. He would suggest taking note, and getting more help while they focus on their mission, if the team as a whole is weak and clearly not going to succeed. If the team does seem capable, and the one in charge thinks it's a good idea? He's following along, albeit more at the rear. He's not used to fighting at the front lines- which is a shame for a cubone- so that's something he needs to train up to.
Now- what happens if this happens suddenly, in front of the entire group? Calm words, first of all, and a lot of distance. Emporio does his best to assess the situation at hand, and make suggestions to his team however he can judge. Whatever happens, if his team goes for it- either against advice or for- he will go with, but if it comes to it he'll run. For help, that is. He'll run to find somewhere safe enough to call for help from, he's not the type to abandon people, he just also knows that multiple dead people do not help anyone. Having been sent off a few times in this way while others handled battles, it's fortunately an easy choice to make.
⟡ Your character's worst enemy has recently appeared in game, and has joined the guild your character is part of. They both want to tackle the same quest, and your character's enemy suggests that they work together as a team to accomplish this goal. How does your character respond to this?
With the background in mind, here is a quick recap; Emporio's worst enemy is Enrico Pucci. This man killed Emporio's mother for unknown and likely casual or impersonal reasons, unintentionally forcing the boy to hide in a prison for multiple years out of fear of ever being found by the man- a man who, at this time, did not even know the boy existed. The first time Pucci sees Emporio is in the lead up to the final fight, and he identifies the boy entirely by the memory of his mother. On top of this, Pucci brutally kills the boy's father figure in a fight, and then slaughters the rest of the cast in front of him before goading the boy to 'die a martyr'. The man then dangles false versions of some of those slaughtered people in front of his face before pursuing a fleeing Emporio at walking pace with intent to murder, as in Pucci's words, if he leaves Emporio alive, Emporio will grow up and return to kill HIM.
Emporio ultimately killed Pucci in a last ditch act of self-defense/vengeance, so needless to say Pucci appearing in front of Emporio is Very Bad.
HOWEVER. I will say before going further, I have played Emporio in this exact situation! Rather, the situation of simply being in the same general air-space as the other. And each time, in plotting carefully with the player, we have made it work very well. Generally speaking this involves a lot of making sure Emporio never outright named Pucci to start, or that if he did, it was to people who won't just start a fight on sight with the guy. Mediation is key, and that doesn't change here- while the appearance of an Enrico Pucci is unlikely, I will still act as if the chance yet exists to be safe.
If Pucci approached Emporio with this deal, Emporio would be incredibly suspicious. He certainly doesn't think that Pucci would sabotage the quest exactly, but he would happily point out that no matter how many times Pucci says 'what's done is done, I can no longer attain my goal', that doesn't remove the risk to his own person. Who's to say Pucci won't kill him? How can he trust him, even slightly, after everything he did? Emporio would ultimately demand a third party mediator. Someone they can both trust to keep the other alive, because ultimately Emporio would have had to face this issue the day Pucci showed up at the guild in the first place. He would have seen them walk in, heard the name, and then very quickly make it clear that they may well not have a home to go back to, but at the very least, he can survive the idea of not just putting the priest in a hole. Stay away from him, and he'd do the same.
Which, really makes this entire quest set up suck even more, but that's what a mediator is for. To make sure someone doesn't come out of it and tell the guild leader there was an 'accident'.
⟡ The leader of your character's guild has just approached your character with an offer: they will provide your character with extra supplies, reputation points, and help them with any of their current struggles. In exchange, they ask for your character to do a favor for them that may harm the other guilds, and will not specify what the favor is in advance. It sounds shady, but it's the deal of a lifetime in your character's path to get back home, and refusing it may cause strife for your character within their current guild. What do they think of this offer? What do they ultimately decide to do?
As it stands, his moral code is tied more firmly to the loyalties he has to those around him, and provided no innocents are at risk (rather, no one who hasn't already done them harm), he's liable to go along with quite a lot provided it has a purpose. Which is to say that in both cases, he'll ultimately do it.
With that in mind, while he'd be suspicious of Mightyena, it would be the kind of suspicion associated with an incoming surprise, or the knowledge that one won't like what's coming, but entirely for personal reasons. He wouldn't think this guild leader likely to deliberately sabotage others (or at least not by refusing to tell him what he's doing until he agrees to do it), but he would point out that not telling him makes it...well. Suspicious. And unpleasant sounding. If it were to come about that the task required of him seems impossible, he'd protest that as well, but ultimately still try; Mightyena comes across as very similar to the women he came to know in Green Dolphin, so he'd feel more inclined to do right by her, and trust her.
That said, he would likely refine any plans surrounding the task to make sure things run smoothly. Just to be safe.
Polteageist meanwhile is a bit different. Admittedly they would benefit from Emporio's fairly low standards- until half a year ago, his constant company was a misanthrope arrested for violent murder, and a complete amnesiac with little concept of personal space...who himself was arrested for attempted murder. The bar is in the sand. That said, between this and likely picking up on how Polteageist treats the Lum Guild, Emporio would feel a little irritated with the presentation of this offer- not enough to really show it visibly, but enough that he doesn't exactly jump to say 'yes'.
He would suspect, you see, that Polteageist simply doesn't see a point in telling Emporio the task. And naturally he bets that if he points that out, Polteageist would doubledown until the offer is accepted. While the boy knows Lum Guild wouldn't be harmed, nor the city- they live there, it'd be counter productive- he also knows that isn't necessarily the case for the other two guilds, and Polteageist probably doesn't mind that!
But he also knows that Polteageist being who they are, Emporio would've been picked for a reason; he's someone you grab because you need someone intelligent and adaptable, someone capable of adjusting course in the face of the inexplicable. ...Or, of course, because you need someone who won't get caught. So ultimately, he'll agree and do his best to comply. In this case however, any changes to the plan he's been presented would only happen if there was a risk to harm any innocent parties- he'd aim to complete the goal, but with a few extra steps to be safe, in other words.
⟡ Due to shortages on supplies, the city is facing issues deciding where to cut corners during this rough time. Somehow, the responsibility has fallen on your character's shoulders, and they have to make a decision. If they send out an extra team of Pokemon, they will be able to gather more food, and through that, save the lives of dozens of starving Pokemon that were in dire need of nutrition. However, the only Pokemon available to scout for food are those working at the pokeclinic, and sending them out would mean certain death for at least two ill patients. What does your character decide to do? How do they feel about this choice, and how would they deal with the pushback that comes from either side?
But the key word for his choice here is extra team. There are already pokemon out looking for food, which means that while it might not be as much food, it'll be some. Which would cause Emporio to lean on keeping Medical where they are.
For two reasons, actually, which he would firmly put down even as starving pokemon are likely trying to shake him down over this- first off, while they could get more food if they sent out a bonus team, that 'could' is feeble enough that he doesn't want to concretely doom the patients in medical over it. It's the possibility of some dying against some absolutely dying, and he's going to lean the chance of everyone surviving over the absolute of some not, any day. At this point in time, they don't necessarily know when teams sent out will return, but sending more won't likely make them come back faster, so it's better they ration out what comes in for now.
But the second reason is a little more notable; If they send all their able bodied medics for food, then what happens if anyone coming back with food needs a medic? What happens if anyone currently demanding he send another team needs a medic? What then?
So, they trust that what the current teams find out afield will be enough to get them through the next few hurdles, and hope for the patients in medical to recover. A rough choice, certainly, but he's well aware of the slippery slope that comes with choosing to let someone die, and having seen that enough in both life and books, he's not having any of it.
POKEMON: Cubone - Cubone and Emporio are very similar 'lore-wise', both being considered orphans (though later game pokedexes don't really focus on that much), and specifically mourning their mothers. Both are considered incredibly lonely, even weepy, and most notably- in the case of early pokedexes anyway- both carry the bones of their mother with them. Canonically, Emporio has his mom's entire skeleton in his 'Ghost Room', and carries the sacrum specifically as a security blanket. Naturally, he no longer has this with him for the game.
Aside from the above, the progression from the lingering grief and clinging to the old with Ground Cubone- Ground additionally reflecting Emporio's ability to be grounded in a crisis, often exhibiting quick and strategic thinking in any fights he's part of (albeit after a second or two to scream)- flowing into the Ghost-Fire Alolan-Marowak, who mourns but with strength, dancing and protecting with the spirits of former family at their support, will be an incredibly strong storyline for Emporio I feel.
Emporio will also have the move 'Secret Power' within his potential move-pool; this not only hails back to his 'Stand' in canon (which could, in certain locations, find hidden areas within which to find safety), but also his end-series moments. Secret Power as a move is somewhat unpredictable, acting according to the environment- in canon, Emporio himself was driven to the ultimate limit and forced to rely on a similarly unpredictable power, to his own detriment in fact.
(As a note, a 'Stand' is effectively a super-power within the series of JJBA)
GUILD OPT-OUT: Cheri Berries; While both the Lum and Oran Guilds would benefit Emporio in their own way (and vice versa, Emporio could benefit greatly from either of them), the Cheri Berries would ultimately give him too strong a sense of the operations at Green Dolphin Prison. As it would be counterproductive to work with a guild leader that could potentially remind him of the primary source of his past trauma, it's better to simply avoid the risk altogether.
SAMPLES:
Emporio's TDM Top Level + Threads
TDM Thread with A.B.A
