PMDU: Team Taproot [Written App: Researcher]

RESEARCHERS GUILD: Taproot
Date Joined: July 31st, 2014
Current Funds: 0 St

Merits: 0
Strikes: 0

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Veri
Species: Simisage
Nature: Jolly
-Characteristic: Good Endurance
Gender: Male                 Age: 34 years
Ability:  Gluttony  [Eats any held berries before he really needs to.]

Strength: 3                  Agility: 2
Intelligence: 4              Charisma: 3 [1 + 2 bonus points]

Total Points Left: 0/10
Type Bonus: Grass -> Charisma

Move 1:  Leech Seed [Veri plucks a sticky seed from inside his hair and tosses it at the target.  The seed saps health from the target and delivers it to Veri.]
Move 2:  Fling [Pretty self-explanatory, Veri tosses whatever he's holding at the target.]
Move 3:  Torment [Veri screeches loudly and does a lewd dance to enrage his target, causing them to lose their train of thought.]
Move 4:  Rock Smash [Using his fists, Veri lands a rock-shattering punch.  This is his favorite move in fights.]

Inventory:

-Researcher's Template Voucher (<- replace this text with the item name)
----Description: A little hand-written slip that would entitle Veri to a dress hat, bow, coat, or even a pair of armbands.  He hasn't used it just yet.

-nothing
----Description:

-nothing
----Description:



========== WRITTEN TEST ==========


It's midday in the Dreamer's Eye, and your team has just gotten themselves registered at the Researchers Guild! Having some free time, your teammates decide to explore the open halls, but when they round the corner to move to the next, they encounter a group of Pokémon blocking the way. Many of them are chatting amicably, but a few in the back can be heard grumbling and snapping irritably, and the cause is revealed to be a somewhat tall Flygon attempting to shove her way through (and by the sound of it, accidentally hitting several Pokémon with her wings and tail as she goes).

Veri spots the commotion immediately and shuffles off to the side of the hallway where a patch of shadows help him blend with the wall so he can observe the group for a moment.  He sees the tall form move into the crowd and rolls his eyes when the Flygon gets jostled around.  "Rude..." he mumbles under his breath.

"Ohhh... Excuse me, pardon me, Leader's Assistant comin' through... C'mon guys, can't you have your little meeting thing somewhere that isn't blocking a hallway? 'scuse me, sorry, jeez..."

Finally irritated beyond hope, Veri unglues himself from the wall and strides confidently into the group, using his arms to shove the pokemon aside and tossing a few crass words at those who refuse to move.  Luckily, the group is mostly youngsters waiting to have their guild applications looked at so he has little trouble muscling into the crowd.  He gestures over his shoulder at the Flygon and she follows him as he strolls almost leisurely down the hall, the group parting to let the Simisage through.  "Got yourself in a big of a mucky situation, hm?" he asks without looking at the dragon.  She simply nods rapidly and follows him, eager to get out of the hall.  

When she finally makes it out, you see that her arms are laden with a surprisingly large pile of thick paper scrolls. A large blueprints tube can be seen on her back, the strap crossing her chest diagonally and connecting with a metal clasp, while her wrists bear one gleaming armband each; silver worn on the right, and black worn on the left.

Veri tilts his head curiously at the sight, quirking a brow at the tube on the Flygon's back.  She seems to be extremely busy and if what she said is true, she's also extremely important.

Your team has only a couple seconds to take this in, however, as an unfortunate misstep results in paper flying everywhere and the Flygon falling flat on her face. There are a few derisive chuckles from the group, but as none of them move forward to help the hapless earth dragon, your team steps up instead.

Shooting a quick glare at the crowd, Veri stoops down to lift the Flygon to her feet.  "Are you alright, ma'am?" he asks.  "I'll be fine.  This happens more than I'd like to admit," she replies as she dusts herself off and flutters her wings to correct a few wrinkles in the membrane.

"Oooof, so many papers... There we go," the Flygon mutters, balancing everything back into a manageable pile before straightening and breaking out into a cheery smile. "Thanks so much for helping me pick all these up. I swear, that's like the fifth time I've tripped today; I'm such a klutz..." She blinks. "Heeeey, wait a minute. You don't look familiar. Are you visiting the Guild?"

Standing up straight with one arm full of scrolls and the other held out to give the Flygon a jovial handshake, he smiles back just as warmly.    "No, ma'am.  I'm actually a fresh recruit.  Just got back from registration, in fact.  The main office sent me down here for some sort of interview."  The Flygon nods as Veri talks and fidgets with the frayed edge of an old and yellowed scroll.

Upon hearing that the team has just gotten done registering, she breaks out in a warm smile.

Veri carefully hands the pile of papers back to the Flygon then rests one hand on his fuzzy green hip.

"Well no wonder I don't remember you, you're new!" She inclines her long neck in the best bow she can manage without dropping everything all over again. "Welcome to the Researchers Guild! I'm Kali, I'm one of the Guild Leaders' assistants here. Pleased to meet you! And you are...?"

He makes a dramatic bow back, quickly righting himself and chuckling under his breath.  "The name's Veri.  Please to meet you!" he exclaims happily, replacing the hand on his hip.

She smiles again. "Nice name! You don't hear many like that around here, but then again Andalusst is kind of a mish-mash of a whole bunch of different kinds of names. It's always nice to hear 'em since Pokémon do tend to come in from all over the place, after all. And speaking of which, did you guys get here from the fog or something?"

Veri scratches the spiky fur on the back of his head with his free hand, screwing his mouth up into a crooked angle as he takes a moment to think.  "Nope, no fog, ma'am.  I came from a little village just an hour's walk from the city.  I lived in a cabin with my folks until they both decided it was high time to retire from painting and go on a trip around the world.  The safe parts, at least," he says, looking off at a nearby wall while he speaks.

Would you look at that. Whether you like it or not, it seems you're stuck with Kali for the time being, as she seems to be quite curious about your team.

In all honesty, this fact is not lost on the Simisage.  He can see the twinkle in the Flygon's eyes, even under the red lenses.  It's been a long while since he's talked to anyone about himself so the attention has him feeling a bit proud.  "Yeah, with them gone, I couldn't afford the cabin anymore.  I used to collect berries and sell them to folks but for some reason, there isn't much demand for them now.  So, I thought it was a good time for me to move to Andalusst and join up with a guild."

"Really? Hmm, yeah, that's how it is for a few people around here. I'm not an Andalusst native myself, but I figured I'd stick around. Anyway, now that you're here and you've been registered as a team, what name did you pick?"

Veri smiles again and crosses his arms loosely.  "Oh that was an easy choice.  See, the most important part of a plant is its roots and the most important root is the taproot.  So, I named my team after that little bit of knowledge.  I'm the only member of Team Taproot," he replies with a cheerful tone.

She waits for the response with an expectant look, and laughs lightly when it's given.

Veri quirks a brow and looks slightly irked by the laugh, thinking that the Flygon thought his team name was somehow funny.

"Hah, that's so much better than the name I used when I signed up, wow. I was kind of, uh, young and silly back then, I guess you could say, so the name I used was... yeeeeaaaaah, pretty bad."

Veri's expression turns happy again as his suspicions are calmed.  "I'm sure it wasn't too bad.  You seem pretty bright.  I'll bet you were just as smart as a young thing."

You notice she doesn't say the name she used, but before you can ask about it, the green Dragon-type tosses out another question with a curious tilt of her head.

"So what's your reason for joining the Guild, anyway? There are three guilds here in Andalusst, and even if I like it here with the Researchers, I know it's not the best fit for everyone since we're kinda knowledge-oriented; you could've just as easily registered with the Hunters, or the Explorers. So why here?"

Veri looks away at some spot on the opposite wall again, chewing his lip for a second.  "Well, the Explorers are nice but they're a little too goal-driven for me.  I'm already thirty-four.  I don't have time to hunt for treasure or rescue damsels.  Now, the Hunters," he pauses for a second "They approached me and asked me to join.  I guess a mon with hands is appealing to them.  I just didn't like the attitude their representative put off.  He was a furret and I've dealt with their kind before but he wasn't nearly as kind or honest as the others in his species normally are."  The Simisage lets his eyes wander down the hall as the group from before starts clearing out  "I guess you could say the Researchers are perfect for me."

Kali listens quite intently as your team tells its story, her earlier cheerful expression changing to one of thoughtful consideration. She waits patiently for the response to wrap up, before speaking again. "Wow, that's quite a tale! Not many Pokémon come through here with a story like that. Seems like everyone in the Guilds has a driving force behind what they do, and some reasons are... well, better than others."

Veri slowly nods as the Flygon speaks.  He may not have any set goals right now but with time, he might find something worth his while.

She pauses, before her voice regains its chipper tone. "So that's the "why" and the "how"; what about the "what"? What do you think made the Guild decide to accept you into the ranks?" She says this with honest curiosity, not a trace of taunt or teasing in her tone, and listens as your team lists off their skills.

"Well, having hands seems to be a big plus around here.  Guess this guild has a shortage of folks with fingers," he says with the corner of his mouth turned up in a smile.  "Other than that, I personally can't think of much I do all that well.  Oh, um, I am a bit of an expert when it comes to berries.  I can identify any berry by just a few drops of juice or a scrap of peel."

"Oh wow, that's pretty cool! You guys are lucky. Y'know sometimes I wish I had a better skill like that; then maybe I'd be more help to the Guild. Pretty much the only things I do around here are draw and deliver papers everywhere and, well, get stuck helping Archie."

Veri nods as the Flygon rambles a little, perking up as she mentions drawing.  He was raised by a pair of professional artists so he's suddenly more intrigued by the Flygon.

She says the last part with sudden venom, and your team gets the feeling that she's not entirely fond of the Pokémon in question.

The Simisage tilts his head slightly and places both hands on his hips now.  "You don't sound too excited about this Archie fellow," he says.

"I mean yeah sure he's one of the Guild Leaders, but he's just so... so... annoying, always bossing people around and taking credit for everything and acting like he's so much smarter than everyone else. And I'm always the one having to put up with him since someone has to help him but everyone else always runs off before they get stuck with him instead!"

"That sounds pretty rough.  I'd be happy to lend you a hand now and then, if you'd like," Veri says then gives the Flygon a subdued smile.

Kali lets out a great huff of frustration, glancing away for a moment before remembering she has an audience. Giving an embarrassed chuckle as her face slowly reddens, she says, "And oh gosh, there I go running my mouth, ahaha! Sorry, I'm not talking too much or anything, am I? I kind of have a tendency to ramble on sometimes... And I probably really shouldn't be bad-mouthing Archimedes..."

Veri gave a little chuckle then said, "Yeah, I'm not too sure it's a good idea to talk about your boss in front of other people.  Words fly faster than Taillows, new friend."

With a sudden, panicked expression abruptly crossing her face as she remembers the mass of paper in her arms, she blurts, "And OH MY GOSH I still need to take care of these!"

Veri blinks, looking down at the papers.  "Don't let me keep you any longer," he says with a shrug.

She starts running down the hall, then abruptly pulls an about-face - accidentally whacking a passerby with her tail while doing so - to stammer, "Uh, it was nice meeting you! I'll, er, see you later, I hope?" She attempts to raise an arm to wave back, but stops when the paper pile in her arms wobbles precariously, and instead flashes a quick grin before stomping briskly away.

Watching the Flygon go, Veri wonders what insanity he's gotten into by joining this guild.  Surely, not everyone is as scatter-brained as the dragon he'd just met.  Maybe someone could at least do him a favor and tell him where that interview was supposed to happen.