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withcourageSPOILER WARNING! Don't read the app if you plan to play Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World, because major spoilers are within.
PLAYER INFO
Name: Farina. You may call me Far for short, though! (Some may also refer to me as Kaze from my old alias)
Contact Information: Shoot a message to this journal (withcourage ) or poke me on AIM or Skype. AIM is kazearashikokoro and Skype is fonistfarina. (Might have to message me about getting me to add you to my Contact List first. I don't remember my settings for it)
Time Zone: CST
Characters Played: N/A
CHARACTER INFO
Character Name: Aster Laker
Character Canon: Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World
Important Note!: Much of the information used in this application is taken from the Richter side manga and some is taken from the Successors of Hope novel,the story of both written by Takumi Miyajima. Given her involvement with the story of the game (writer of the first game who also did some writing work for DotNW), I take the manga and novel as canon material. The manga information is based on the first three chapters, of which I have read a translated version of.
History:
Not much is known about Aster's early history other than he was a child prodigy, genius, and he entered the Imperial Research Academy at the age of nine. It was there he met Richter Abend, a half-elf who conducted research there. On a fateful day, Aster stumbled upon Richter being bullied by some of the human researchers and stepped in to take a punch from one of them. This eventually led to the two conversing and becoming good friends.
It is assumed that the two worked together with research, and after the world regeneration, the two began to study the spirit of the World Tree and mana. This was in order to (hopefully) solve the mystery of the world's weather crises. This pushed the two to seek out Ratatosk, the spirit of the old world tree, because they felt that he would be able to balance the flow of the world's mana.
Richter and Aster set out to the various summon spirit seals to try to find Ratatosk, but cannot get into the former Wind Seal. In what once was the Water Seal, the two find and save the Centurion of water, Aqua. Aqua decides to help the two meet Ratatosk.
The trio end up at the Ginnungagap, which is where Ratatosk now resides. Aqua asks for her lord to hear the human and half-elf out in their request. It seemed that the Summon Spirit was going to help out by ordering his Centurions to balance the flow of mana. However, he also ordered them to eradicate all humans and half-elves due to his anger and hatred at those who had betrayed him in the past and caused his tree to wither and die.
Aster protested, urging the spirit to reconsider. However, this angered Ratatosk, and the lord of monsters unleashed a powerful attack. Aster took the full brunt of the attack and was killed. Richter's reaction led to events that start the plot of Dawn of the New World.
AU History:
Aster Laker was born sixteen years ago to an Enlightened father and human mother. His father was a pokemon researcher and his mother was a ranger, though both were trainers. Unfortunately, he does not have many memories of his father--this is because when Aster was five, his father disappeared in the wilderness. He was very close with his mother, however. It is she who taught him the infamous quote "Courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality," after all! She always encouraged him and gave him help when she could. She was his idol.
As soon as he could, Aster entered school. However, he quit at the age of ten. This happened due to the emergence of his electric-type Enlightened powers. One day at school, he witnessed a boy bullying another student. Aster, being the sort of person who does not take kindly to this behavior, stepped in. However, the blonde was angry enough about it that his powers revealed themselves and shocked the boy. This disturbed Aster, as he had had no idea that he was one of the Enlightened. He worried about these new-found powers and thought that if he was not careful, he could hurt someone else. And so, he withdrew from school. This incident earned him a friend out of the kid who was bullied and an enemy out of the boy who was a bully.
His mother was not pleased at his decision to drop out of school, but she accepted it and over time gathered books for him to learn from. She also, in her spare time, taught him what little she knew about the Enlightened and their powers—which was not much, admittedly, but Aster still appreciated her help. As he continued to learn either by himself or with his mother, his mother gifted him a simple necklace. On the back was inscribed “To my dear son,” and the saying that she had taught him when he was young. It has since become a cherished object.
As he began his individual study, Aster discovered a passion for researching and studying pokemon, just like his father. Often, he would find himself sitting outside with a pad of paper and pen, watching pokemon roam around the city. He would study their day-to-day habits and make notes about their behaviors. He decided that along with being a trainer, he wanted to continue studying pokemon. This was both out of his own curiosity as well as his desire to help people learn more about these creatures living alongside them in the world.
Age eleven, on the other hand, became a troubled time for the young Aster. For his birthday, his mother introduced him to a young Eevee that had taken an interest in her. Aster hit it off with the Eevee, and the two got along well. However, a couple weeks later, his mother left on a patrol and never returned. This hit the boy hard, and for a while, he was unmotivated to do much of anything. His Eevee companion, Tonitrus, helped him through this time, but it was when he began to run out of food that he really snapped out of his depression. Since he could understand what pokemon said, he set out to assist pokemon research in Union as a means to support himself.
However, in the years to come, there was more pressure to study other pokemon than the ones found within the city limits. Aster resisted venturing outside the walls for quite a time since both his parents had vanished out in the wilderness, but a few weeks before he turned sixteen, he finally agreed to go out. On his third outing into the Verdant Forest, something happened. Neither he nor Tonitrus remember the incident, but both were gravely injured. It is only due to a Ranger's patrol that he was found and taken back to the Medical Center in Union. The only hint of what happened is that ever since that event, he has felt nervous around some dark-type attacks and dark-type pokemon.
By the time he was released from medical care, Aster had turned sixteen. He was apprehensive about returning to the wilderness since almost every experience with it in his life has ended poorly, but he found the courage and started to leave the city once more. His first excursion to the Old City ended in him bonding with a Purrloin, and a couple weeks have passed since then. Now, Aster has prepared himself to leave the city boundaries once more Fortunately, he has had no more incidents, but who knows how that luck would hold in the future?
Canon Personality:
Aster is a very bright individual—both intelligent and cheerful. He is optimistic and an idealist who does not see why people discriminate against each other when they can resolve their differences by talking with one another and learning about each other. He is also very enthusiastic about and unafraid to do things that worry him or are dangerous. After all, his infamous saying is “Courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality.” For example, before he and Richter meet Ratatosk, Richter notices that Aster is nervous. The blonde agrees that he is, but he masks this with excitement at meeting a Summon Spirit. When exploring ruins, he is also unafraid to go exploring a dark area in which neither of the two can see anything or know what to expect. Another thing Aster is unafraid to do is stick up for what he believes and speak out when he feels it necessary.
Another major aspect of Aster's personality is his kindness and gentleness. Primarily, this can be seen by the fact that even as a kid, he rushes in to take a punch meant for Richter when the half-elf is being bullied by other human researchers. He did not know Richter, but he still took the blow. Another similar example is from the Successors of Hope novel. He hears another human mutter the words “stupid half-elf” and reacts. He confronts the person and grabs them by the collar. When done saying what he had to say, he pushes them away, but he does not otherwise touch them. Another example of his kindness is during the expedition of the Water Seal. He sees an injured monster and rushes forward to hold it and try to help it despite the fact that monsters were usually dangerous. Aster also does not appear to fight. In the Richter side manga, Aster carried a stungun to defend himself from monsters. While he outright admits that he can't use other weapons, one could also interpret that he would rather stun someone or something rather than hurt or kill. This kindness could also be seen as a flaw, which will be expanded upon further down.
A third part of his character is his sense of humor. Aster loves to get under Richter's skin and teases him mercilessly. In the manga, there are multiple occasions when he will respond to something Richter says or does by teasing or mocking him in a way that leaves the half-elf flustered, annoyed, or both. Needless to say, Aster is not often serious except for when the situation calls for it.
However, like everyone (save Mary Sues, but we don't talk about them), Aster has some major and, in some cases, fatal flaws. One is the aforementioned kindness. If he rushes to someone or something's aid, and said person or thing is unfriendly toward him, he could get hurt. Along with this is his tendency to forget about himself and his own needs in order to help others. Successors of Hope shows this when he is reading a book in order to try to crack the mystery of the weather crises afflicting their world. He wants to do what he can so that others who are suffering from these crises may see a return to better lives. He nearly faints during his studies due to the intense heat around Sybak because he was not paying attention to himself. It is mentioned that Rilena, one of his and Richter's colleagues and likely a friend, has been worrying about Aster, probably due to this tendency.
The fatal flaw for this character is naivety. While Aster acknowledges some of the harsher facts of life, he seems to not recognize that he gives people too much credit. He seems to think that simply talking differences over will solve racism, and he does not seem to consider the possibility of failure in seeking Ratatosk's aid. In fact, this ends up being what gets him killed. While Aster would trade his life for the chance of saving the world, he does not display any signs of fear and does not seem to consider that he or Richter might die. Right before he, Richter, and Aqua meet with Ratatosk, Aster tells the monsters under Aqua's control to “wait for us […] we'll be right back!”
He doesn't come back.
AU Deviation:
Obviously, a major change is the fact that in Brave New World, Aster will be an Enlightened. In canon, he does not have any special abilities to note of. However, there are also some personality differences as well. Namely, being an Enlightened has made him feel distanced from his "fellow" humans. Thus, as he studied them, pokemon became his friends and his family rather than other people. This is not helped by the fact that in BNW-verse, he does not interact with people nearly as much as he would have in gameverse since his job does not require him to do so like it would in gameverse. With fewer friends or acquaintances and spending far much more of his time by himself, this makes him more serious than his canon appearance.
Another change of note is his increased caution. Due to the disappearance of his parents in the wilderness and the incident in the Verdant Forest that he cannot remember, he has been made a far more cautious person when dealing with the unknown. Unfortunately, coupling this with a increased sense of curiosity since so much of the world of BNW is unknown leads to moments of indecision. Many times, he probably would not even leave Union if it was not for his Eevee pushing him about it.
Another notable deviation is that in BNW, the object of his research was chosen more from personal desire than his desire to help people. He does not have much of an opinion on people as a whole, either, since he has not interacted with them much since leaving school. However, despite these differences, his overall purpose remains the same: to help people--whether this means pokemon, Enlightened, or humans.
Canon Abilities:
Nothing really known. In one instance in the manga, it is shown that Aster may be able to use a minor healing magic, but this goes against how the world works, so I disregard it. My headcanon is that he has nice handwriting and is a good cook, though.
Enlightened Abilities: Electric/Dark; Kindred Soul
He doesn't know about the latter right away. Aster is an energetic, peppy individual, so electric fits him. Dark is for a stroke of irony, as canonically, he is killed by someone of the dark element. This person later takes on his appearance, too. It also makes some sense due to the slightly mischievous nature of some dark pokemon and that Aster himself quite enjoys teasing his friends and giving them a hard time.
Aster's Enlightened abilities mainly revolve around manipulating electricity. As he grows more experienced, his Speed will also increase, much like the stereotypical Electric type. Right off the bat, he can unleash jolts of electricity that can hurt another, but he's learned to tone these down so that they will usually only stun someone rather that damage them. (Thundershock or Thunder Wave) As far as Dark powers go, they would be limited at this time to small dark-type blasts that don't really do much.
First evolution: The electricity will become stronger, and Aster would have to re-attune himself to how powerful of an attack he uses. (Shock Wave, Charge Beam, Volt Switch) He will also become a little faster and could manage more powerful dark-type attacks. (Snarl-level damage) Another new ability will be to store electricity in a conductive material that would shock the next person to touch it. This could also be used to charge a battery if batteries exist.
Second evolution: This is the point where Aster's dark-type abilities really increase in power. His dark-type blasts pack a much greater punch now (Dark Pulse-level power), and he can shroud a small area in darkness for a short time. His electric-type attacks also get another boost in power to Thunder and Thunderbolt-level power. His agility is not affected at all, but he may absorb weaker electrical attacks from other sources to restore energy.
By this point, electricity may randomly discharge from his body, though it would vary in voltage based upon his emotional state.
Starter Pokémon: Level 8 Male Eevee named Tonitrus + level 5 Female Purrloin named Braea
Notes/Special Considerations: Umm, I guess if ever the Aster-being-attacked-when-15 idea wants to be used for something, it can. It's purposefully vague so something can be done with it if wanted or otherwise it doesn't have to be.
SAMPLES
First-Person:
What area do you seek to explore? The peaceful forest, in search of new, previously overlooked discoveries; the uncharted caves, in search of the unknown; or the wildest of mountain terrain, in search of danger, adventure, and thrills?
[Aster's eyes light up.]
The uncharted caves sound exciting! I'd love to go where no one else has gone before—just imagine the possibilities! Anything could be found there. It could be something mundane, or it could be something exciting and new, but either way, it would be fantastic to explore! If I ever got the chance, I would definitely go to such a place!
[He pauses to catch his breath.]
Tonitrus would be with me, I'm sure, so if anything bad happened, the two of us could figure something out.
What do you look for in the Pokémon with whom you bond?
[The blonde grasps his chin as he considers the question.]
There isn't any one defining feature of note that I can think of. If I find a pokemon who needs a friend or needs help, I would definitely try to bond with it. If there was one who seemed like would be a good friend and companion, I would also do so.
[He nods to himself. However, a few moments later, he gasps.]
Actually, I take back what I said! I mean, a little of what I said. Kindess. The pokemon would haveto have some kindness, even if others couldn't see it. I don't think there's any way that I could bond to a pokemon that was mean, anyway.
A human has attacked a wild Pokémon who retaliates in defense. How do you respond and whom do you defend?
What?!
[Aster frowns, clearly not too happy about the idea.]
Why would someone just attack a wild pokemon? It's one thing if the pokemon is threatening the human, but if it's just minding its own business, why bother it? If I saw this happen, I'd try to help the pokemon, of course! I would rather not come to blows, though. If I had to, I would run in the middle to keep either side from attacking the other. Maybe I could even help resolve the conflict by acting as a translator if necessary. Surely it could be resolved with just some words!
What do you think your Pokémon respect most about you?
I actually asked Tonitrus why he decided to bond with me. He instantly replied:
[Aster mimics the voice of his Eevee.]
“because you're an idiot.”
[He laughs.]
I was confused at first, but then he told me the real reason. He told me it was because I had always treated him well and been a good friend to him. After my mother disappeared, I'd sometimes ask him for advice, and Tonitrus told me that he appreciated how I didn't treat him like just some animal—that I treated him like an equal. I really do think that's what he thinks about me.
Third-Person:
Tonitrus was bored. Aster understood that the first time the Eevee had mentioned it, but the pokemon seemed intent on repeating those words every five minutes. The Enlightened was half-tempted to challenge the normal-type to entertain himself, but who knew what madness that would lead to. Personally, the blonde was keen on making this trip to the Old City as painless as possible. Sure, he enjoyed a good adventure, but traveling outside the city always made him apprehensive. Not that the Old City was outside of Union, but it might as well be as far as Aster was concerned. It was far more dangerous than normal city areas, anyway. Still, he had work to do, and he wasn't quite ready to travel back to the Verdant Forest after what happened last time.
Tonitrus insisted it would be fine, of course. Tonitrus also did not have a lick of sense when danger was involved. Once, the Eevee had even suggested they try heading to the mountains of all places! While the Enlightened was sure that it would be a fun excursion, going somewhere so dangerous while his pokemon was not very experienced did not sound smart. The Eevee was years old, but it wasn't like they had really done any training. “Just let me know if you see anything,” Aster told his friend, pulling a fresh notebook and pencil out of the bag at his side. He opened to the first page and began setting up a table of contents. He then skipped a couple pages, placed his pencil inside the notebook, and closed it.
“Looks like a Magnemite over there.” The Eevee reported a few moments later. Aster followed the pokemon's gaze to see the steel-electric type hovering in the air, holding very still. He reopened the journal and began to make a sketch of the creature. With a preliminary drawing made, he began writing short notes—not that he could really make many since the pokemon was not doing anything at the moment.
That was when his pencil mysteriously vanished from his hand. “Huh? Where'd...”
“Boss, behind you!” Aster shut his notebook and turned around to see a Purrloin innocently sitting a distance behind him. Its eyes glittered cutely.
“That wasn't very nice.” Aster informed it as he deposited the journal into his bag. He knew that Purrloin were known for acting cute to get away with things. That was a fact that the researchers figured out pretty quickly.
The Purrloin wrinkled its nose. “I don't know what you're talking about!”
“Yeah,” The blonde sighed. “Sure you don't.” He double-checked the area to make sure that he did not drop anything else and began walking away. He had not thought to pack additional writing supplies today. He had not thought that this sort of thing could have happened, but he did not want to fight to get it back. It was only a pencil, anyway.
Tonitrus glanced back a few times as he walked beside the Enlightened. “Hey, that Purrloin is following us.”
Aster stole a look behind him to confirm the Eevee's words. Indeed, the dark-type was following him. A small, involuntary shiver passed through him. That's right; Purrloin was a dark-type pokemon, wasn't it? He stopped moving. “Yes? Is there something you need, Purrloin?”
It froze. “You understood me! What are you, magic?” It sounded rather surprised, but its words were completely serious.
Letting out a chuckle, the trainer shook his head. “I wouldn't say that! It's just something I've always been able to do. Is there something you need help with?”
The pokemon's ears twitched. “Well, not really... I just wanted to know.”
He gave it a smile, turned, and continued on his way. He would definitely have to return later with multiple pencils to continue his research. Aster continued on to the Residential District, unaware that the Purrloin continued to trail him in the shadows.
PLAYER INFO
Name: Farina. You may call me Far for short, though! (Some may also refer to me as Kaze from my old alias)
Contact Information: Shoot a message to this journal (
withcourage ) or poke me on AIM or Skype. AIM is kazearashikokoro and Skype is fonistfarina. (Might have to message me about getting me to add you to my Contact List first. I don't remember my settings for it)Time Zone: CST
Characters Played: N/A
CHARACTER INFO
Character Name: Aster Laker
Character Canon: Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World
Important Note!: Much of the information used in this application is taken from the Richter side manga and some is taken from the Successors of Hope novel,the story of both written by Takumi Miyajima. Given her involvement with the story of the game (writer of the first game who also did some writing work for DotNW), I take the manga and novel as canon material. The manga information is based on the first three chapters, of which I have read a translated version of.
History:
Not much is known about Aster's early history other than he was a child prodigy, genius, and he entered the Imperial Research Academy at the age of nine. It was there he met Richter Abend, a half-elf who conducted research there. On a fateful day, Aster stumbled upon Richter being bullied by some of the human researchers and stepped in to take a punch from one of them. This eventually led to the two conversing and becoming good friends.
It is assumed that the two worked together with research, and after the world regeneration, the two began to study the spirit of the World Tree and mana. This was in order to (hopefully) solve the mystery of the world's weather crises. This pushed the two to seek out Ratatosk, the spirit of the old world tree, because they felt that he would be able to balance the flow of the world's mana.
Richter and Aster set out to the various summon spirit seals to try to find Ratatosk, but cannot get into the former Wind Seal. In what once was the Water Seal, the two find and save the Centurion of water, Aqua. Aqua decides to help the two meet Ratatosk.
The trio end up at the Ginnungagap, which is where Ratatosk now resides. Aqua asks for her lord to hear the human and half-elf out in their request. It seemed that the Summon Spirit was going to help out by ordering his Centurions to balance the flow of mana. However, he also ordered them to eradicate all humans and half-elves due to his anger and hatred at those who had betrayed him in the past and caused his tree to wither and die.
Aster protested, urging the spirit to reconsider. However, this angered Ratatosk, and the lord of monsters unleashed a powerful attack. Aster took the full brunt of the attack and was killed. Richter's reaction led to events that start the plot of Dawn of the New World.
AU History:
Aster Laker was born sixteen years ago to an Enlightened father and human mother. His father was a pokemon researcher and his mother was a ranger, though both were trainers. Unfortunately, he does not have many memories of his father--this is because when Aster was five, his father disappeared in the wilderness. He was very close with his mother, however. It is she who taught him the infamous quote "Courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality," after all! She always encouraged him and gave him help when she could. She was his idol.
As soon as he could, Aster entered school. However, he quit at the age of ten. This happened due to the emergence of his electric-type Enlightened powers. One day at school, he witnessed a boy bullying another student. Aster, being the sort of person who does not take kindly to this behavior, stepped in. However, the blonde was angry enough about it that his powers revealed themselves and shocked the boy. This disturbed Aster, as he had had no idea that he was one of the Enlightened. He worried about these new-found powers and thought that if he was not careful, he could hurt someone else. And so, he withdrew from school. This incident earned him a friend out of the kid who was bullied and an enemy out of the boy who was a bully.
His mother was not pleased at his decision to drop out of school, but she accepted it and over time gathered books for him to learn from. She also, in her spare time, taught him what little she knew about the Enlightened and their powers—which was not much, admittedly, but Aster still appreciated her help. As he continued to learn either by himself or with his mother, his mother gifted him a simple necklace. On the back was inscribed “To my dear son,” and the saying that she had taught him when he was young. It has since become a cherished object.
As he began his individual study, Aster discovered a passion for researching and studying pokemon, just like his father. Often, he would find himself sitting outside with a pad of paper and pen, watching pokemon roam around the city. He would study their day-to-day habits and make notes about their behaviors. He decided that along with being a trainer, he wanted to continue studying pokemon. This was both out of his own curiosity as well as his desire to help people learn more about these creatures living alongside them in the world.
Age eleven, on the other hand, became a troubled time for the young Aster. For his birthday, his mother introduced him to a young Eevee that had taken an interest in her. Aster hit it off with the Eevee, and the two got along well. However, a couple weeks later, his mother left on a patrol and never returned. This hit the boy hard, and for a while, he was unmotivated to do much of anything. His Eevee companion, Tonitrus, helped him through this time, but it was when he began to run out of food that he really snapped out of his depression. Since he could understand what pokemon said, he set out to assist pokemon research in Union as a means to support himself.
However, in the years to come, there was more pressure to study other pokemon than the ones found within the city limits. Aster resisted venturing outside the walls for quite a time since both his parents had vanished out in the wilderness, but a few weeks before he turned sixteen, he finally agreed to go out. On his third outing into the Verdant Forest, something happened. Neither he nor Tonitrus remember the incident, but both were gravely injured. It is only due to a Ranger's patrol that he was found and taken back to the Medical Center in Union. The only hint of what happened is that ever since that event, he has felt nervous around some dark-type attacks and dark-type pokemon.
By the time he was released from medical care, Aster had turned sixteen. He was apprehensive about returning to the wilderness since almost every experience with it in his life has ended poorly, but he found the courage and started to leave the city once more. His first excursion to the Old City ended in him bonding with a Purrloin, and a couple weeks have passed since then. Now, Aster has prepared himself to leave the city boundaries once more Fortunately, he has had no more incidents, but who knows how that luck would hold in the future?
Canon Personality:
Aster is a very bright individual—both intelligent and cheerful. He is optimistic and an idealist who does not see why people discriminate against each other when they can resolve their differences by talking with one another and learning about each other. He is also very enthusiastic about and unafraid to do things that worry him or are dangerous. After all, his infamous saying is “Courage is the magic that turns dreams into reality.” For example, before he and Richter meet Ratatosk, Richter notices that Aster is nervous. The blonde agrees that he is, but he masks this with excitement at meeting a Summon Spirit. When exploring ruins, he is also unafraid to go exploring a dark area in which neither of the two can see anything or know what to expect. Another thing Aster is unafraid to do is stick up for what he believes and speak out when he feels it necessary.
Another major aspect of Aster's personality is his kindness and gentleness. Primarily, this can be seen by the fact that even as a kid, he rushes in to take a punch meant for Richter when the half-elf is being bullied by other human researchers. He did not know Richter, but he still took the blow. Another similar example is from the Successors of Hope novel. He hears another human mutter the words “stupid half-elf” and reacts. He confronts the person and grabs them by the collar. When done saying what he had to say, he pushes them away, but he does not otherwise touch them. Another example of his kindness is during the expedition of the Water Seal. He sees an injured monster and rushes forward to hold it and try to help it despite the fact that monsters were usually dangerous. Aster also does not appear to fight. In the Richter side manga, Aster carried a stungun to defend himself from monsters. While he outright admits that he can't use other weapons, one could also interpret that he would rather stun someone or something rather than hurt or kill. This kindness could also be seen as a flaw, which will be expanded upon further down.
A third part of his character is his sense of humor. Aster loves to get under Richter's skin and teases him mercilessly. In the manga, there are multiple occasions when he will respond to something Richter says or does by teasing or mocking him in a way that leaves the half-elf flustered, annoyed, or both. Needless to say, Aster is not often serious except for when the situation calls for it.
However, like everyone (save Mary Sues, but we don't talk about them), Aster has some major and, in some cases, fatal flaws. One is the aforementioned kindness. If he rushes to someone or something's aid, and said person or thing is unfriendly toward him, he could get hurt. Along with this is his tendency to forget about himself and his own needs in order to help others. Successors of Hope shows this when he is reading a book in order to try to crack the mystery of the weather crises afflicting their world. He wants to do what he can so that others who are suffering from these crises may see a return to better lives. He nearly faints during his studies due to the intense heat around Sybak because he was not paying attention to himself. It is mentioned that Rilena, one of his and Richter's colleagues and likely a friend, has been worrying about Aster, probably due to this tendency.
The fatal flaw for this character is naivety. While Aster acknowledges some of the harsher facts of life, he seems to not recognize that he gives people too much credit. He seems to think that simply talking differences over will solve racism, and he does not seem to consider the possibility of failure in seeking Ratatosk's aid. In fact, this ends up being what gets him killed. While Aster would trade his life for the chance of saving the world, he does not display any signs of fear and does not seem to consider that he or Richter might die. Right before he, Richter, and Aqua meet with Ratatosk, Aster tells the monsters under Aqua's control to “wait for us […] we'll be right back!”
He doesn't come back.
AU Deviation:
Obviously, a major change is the fact that in Brave New World, Aster will be an Enlightened. In canon, he does not have any special abilities to note of. However, there are also some personality differences as well. Namely, being an Enlightened has made him feel distanced from his "fellow" humans. Thus, as he studied them, pokemon became his friends and his family rather than other people. This is not helped by the fact that in BNW-verse, he does not interact with people nearly as much as he would have in gameverse since his job does not require him to do so like it would in gameverse. With fewer friends or acquaintances and spending far much more of his time by himself, this makes him more serious than his canon appearance.
Another change of note is his increased caution. Due to the disappearance of his parents in the wilderness and the incident in the Verdant Forest that he cannot remember, he has been made a far more cautious person when dealing with the unknown. Unfortunately, coupling this with a increased sense of curiosity since so much of the world of BNW is unknown leads to moments of indecision. Many times, he probably would not even leave Union if it was not for his Eevee pushing him about it.
Another notable deviation is that in BNW, the object of his research was chosen more from personal desire than his desire to help people. He does not have much of an opinion on people as a whole, either, since he has not interacted with them much since leaving school. However, despite these differences, his overall purpose remains the same: to help people--whether this means pokemon, Enlightened, or humans.
Canon Abilities:
Nothing really known. In one instance in the manga, it is shown that Aster may be able to use a minor healing magic, but this goes against how the world works, so I disregard it. My headcanon is that he has nice handwriting and is a good cook, though.
Enlightened Abilities: Electric/Dark; Kindred Soul
He doesn't know about the latter right away. Aster is an energetic, peppy individual, so electric fits him. Dark is for a stroke of irony, as canonically, he is killed by someone of the dark element. This person later takes on his appearance, too. It also makes some sense due to the slightly mischievous nature of some dark pokemon and that Aster himself quite enjoys teasing his friends and giving them a hard time.
Aster's Enlightened abilities mainly revolve around manipulating electricity. As he grows more experienced, his Speed will also increase, much like the stereotypical Electric type. Right off the bat, he can unleash jolts of electricity that can hurt another, but he's learned to tone these down so that they will usually only stun someone rather that damage them. (Thundershock or Thunder Wave) As far as Dark powers go, they would be limited at this time to small dark-type blasts that don't really do much.
First evolution: The electricity will become stronger, and Aster would have to re-attune himself to how powerful of an attack he uses. (Shock Wave, Charge Beam, Volt Switch) He will also become a little faster and could manage more powerful dark-type attacks. (Snarl-level damage) Another new ability will be to store electricity in a conductive material that would shock the next person to touch it. This could also be used to charge a battery if batteries exist.
Second evolution: This is the point where Aster's dark-type abilities really increase in power. His dark-type blasts pack a much greater punch now (Dark Pulse-level power), and he can shroud a small area in darkness for a short time. His electric-type attacks also get another boost in power to Thunder and Thunderbolt-level power. His agility is not affected at all, but he may absorb weaker electrical attacks from other sources to restore energy.
By this point, electricity may randomly discharge from his body, though it would vary in voltage based upon his emotional state.
Starter Pokémon: Level 8 Male Eevee named Tonitrus + level 5 Female Purrloin named Braea
Notes/Special Considerations: Umm, I guess if ever the Aster-being-attacked-when-15 idea wants to be used for something, it can. It's purposefully vague so something can be done with it if wanted or otherwise it doesn't have to be.
SAMPLES
First-Person:
What area do you seek to explore? The peaceful forest, in search of new, previously overlooked discoveries; the uncharted caves, in search of the unknown; or the wildest of mountain terrain, in search of danger, adventure, and thrills?
[Aster's eyes light up.]
The uncharted caves sound exciting! I'd love to go where no one else has gone before—just imagine the possibilities! Anything could be found there. It could be something mundane, or it could be something exciting and new, but either way, it would be fantastic to explore! If I ever got the chance, I would definitely go to such a place!
[He pauses to catch his breath.]
Tonitrus would be with me, I'm sure, so if anything bad happened, the two of us could figure something out.
What do you look for in the Pokémon with whom you bond?
[The blonde grasps his chin as he considers the question.]
There isn't any one defining feature of note that I can think of. If I find a pokemon who needs a friend or needs help, I would definitely try to bond with it. If there was one who seemed like would be a good friend and companion, I would also do so.
[He nods to himself. However, a few moments later, he gasps.]
Actually, I take back what I said! I mean, a little of what I said. Kindess. The pokemon would haveto have some kindness, even if others couldn't see it. I don't think there's any way that I could bond to a pokemon that was mean, anyway.
A human has attacked a wild Pokémon who retaliates in defense. How do you respond and whom do you defend?
What?!
[Aster frowns, clearly not too happy about the idea.]
Why would someone just attack a wild pokemon? It's one thing if the pokemon is threatening the human, but if it's just minding its own business, why bother it? If I saw this happen, I'd try to help the pokemon, of course! I would rather not come to blows, though. If I had to, I would run in the middle to keep either side from attacking the other. Maybe I could even help resolve the conflict by acting as a translator if necessary. Surely it could be resolved with just some words!
What do you think your Pokémon respect most about you?
I actually asked Tonitrus why he decided to bond with me. He instantly replied:
[Aster mimics the voice of his Eevee.]
“because you're an idiot.”
[He laughs.]
I was confused at first, but then he told me the real reason. He told me it was because I had always treated him well and been a good friend to him. After my mother disappeared, I'd sometimes ask him for advice, and Tonitrus told me that he appreciated how I didn't treat him like just some animal—that I treated him like an equal. I really do think that's what he thinks about me.
Third-Person:
Tonitrus was bored. Aster understood that the first time the Eevee had mentioned it, but the pokemon seemed intent on repeating those words every five minutes. The Enlightened was half-tempted to challenge the normal-type to entertain himself, but who knew what madness that would lead to. Personally, the blonde was keen on making this trip to the Old City as painless as possible. Sure, he enjoyed a good adventure, but traveling outside the city always made him apprehensive. Not that the Old City was outside of Union, but it might as well be as far as Aster was concerned. It was far more dangerous than normal city areas, anyway. Still, he had work to do, and he wasn't quite ready to travel back to the Verdant Forest after what happened last time.
Tonitrus insisted it would be fine, of course. Tonitrus also did not have a lick of sense when danger was involved. Once, the Eevee had even suggested they try heading to the mountains of all places! While the Enlightened was sure that it would be a fun excursion, going somewhere so dangerous while his pokemon was not very experienced did not sound smart. The Eevee was years old, but it wasn't like they had really done any training. “Just let me know if you see anything,” Aster told his friend, pulling a fresh notebook and pencil out of the bag at his side. He opened to the first page and began setting up a table of contents. He then skipped a couple pages, placed his pencil inside the notebook, and closed it.
“Looks like a Magnemite over there.” The Eevee reported a few moments later. Aster followed the pokemon's gaze to see the steel-electric type hovering in the air, holding very still. He reopened the journal and began to make a sketch of the creature. With a preliminary drawing made, he began writing short notes—not that he could really make many since the pokemon was not doing anything at the moment.
That was when his pencil mysteriously vanished from his hand. “Huh? Where'd...”
“Boss, behind you!” Aster shut his notebook and turned around to see a Purrloin innocently sitting a distance behind him. Its eyes glittered cutely.
“That wasn't very nice.” Aster informed it as he deposited the journal into his bag. He knew that Purrloin were known for acting cute to get away with things. That was a fact that the researchers figured out pretty quickly.
The Purrloin wrinkled its nose. “I don't know what you're talking about!”
“Yeah,” The blonde sighed. “Sure you don't.” He double-checked the area to make sure that he did not drop anything else and began walking away. He had not thought to pack additional writing supplies today. He had not thought that this sort of thing could have happened, but he did not want to fight to get it back. It was only a pencil, anyway.
Tonitrus glanced back a few times as he walked beside the Enlightened. “Hey, that Purrloin is following us.”
Aster stole a look behind him to confirm the Eevee's words. Indeed, the dark-type was following him. A small, involuntary shiver passed through him. That's right; Purrloin was a dark-type pokemon, wasn't it? He stopped moving. “Yes? Is there something you need, Purrloin?”
It froze. “You understood me! What are you, magic?” It sounded rather surprised, but its words were completely serious.
Letting out a chuckle, the trainer shook his head. “I wouldn't say that! It's just something I've always been able to do. Is there something you need help with?”
The pokemon's ears twitched. “Well, not really... I just wanted to know.”
He gave it a smile, turned, and continued on his way. He would definitely have to return later with multiple pencils to continue his research. Aster continued on to the Residential District, unaware that the Purrloin continued to trail him in the shadows.
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