Member
You should turn around. Give up now and I won't have to embarrass you in front of all these people.
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All the hard work you've put in will pay off.
NAME:
Zeke Webber
AGE:
26
GENDER:
Male
BIRTHPLACE:
Motostoke
GYM TYPE:
Fighting
APPEARANCE:
Standing at 5'11", Zeke has a relatively tall frame made up of lean muscle placing him at 175 lbs. His light skin is tan from frequent time outdoors. He has a tattoo of a dark blue octopus with yellow rings on his left side, with the head on his shoulder and the tentacles reaching out onto his chest. His brown hair matches his similar colored eyes. He keeps it short for practicality and styled into an undercut for show.
For public battles he'll typically wear his bright orange and black uniform shorts with no shirt, and wraps on his hands and feet.
In his personal time, he goes for comfort and wears athletic or leisure clothes in muted colors. Not much one for fashion, he is fond of jeans, t-shirts, henleys, sneakers and hoodies of various thickness and sleeve lengths.
PERSONALITY:
Cocky. Vain. Materialistic. A bully. A playboy.
Well, that's who he tries to be for the public. They eat that stuff up. It's a persona he made up for himself in his younger, shyer days to deal with nerves. He's since outgrown the need for it, but it's kinda fun.
Despite his larger-than-life battle persona, Zeke is a quiet thoughtful young man. As opposed to the fear that controlled much of his early life, any restraint he shows now is a result of discretion. He never speaks without thinking, and sometimes just doesn't speak at all. Far from coming off as cold, there is a warmth to his silence. He is contemplating, giving each thought and each person the attention he feels they deserve. That said, like most people, he comes alive with his friends or discussing topics of interest to him. Though certainly not the life of the party, Zeke is more open to jokes and watches his tongue a little less when around those who really know him. He's got a knack for bad jokes and playful jabs at his friends and himself.
Zeke is driven above all else to reach his full potential. There is no point in getting out of bed if he doesn't go to bed better than he woke. Despite any public show rivalries, Zeke's biggest opponent is always himself. Like many others, he dreams of being Champion, but in his mind the act of winning it is the important part. It's another rung on an ever higher ladder. Zeke feels most himself when he's in competition or training.
Despite his reserved and cautious nature, Zeke also has something of a rebellious, almost contrary, streak. He can't stand being told what he can or cannot do. Some of his most questionable decisions have been in reaction to criticism of the initial ideas. He extends this idea to others as well. In witnessing an overbearing authority talking down to someone, he'll actively encourage rebellion without thinking. It doesn't always end well.
BIOGRAPHY:
Motostoke is pretty unhealthy for kids with asthma. Unsupportive parents are even unhealthier. That's not to say Zeke's parents were bad parents. They just weren't very good either. Busy with the demands of the hospitality industry, they didn't really have time to entertain Zeke's early notions of being a trainer. Then after one too many asthma attacks, his mother decided it'd be best if he stayed inside. The air was cleaner, and the hotel guests' Pokemon were well behaved by necessity. Isolated, he developed into a pale weak child with very little self confidence. Though he had friends, their interactions were limited. He couldn't leave the hotel too often and his friends couldn't be around to disturb the guests. By the time Zeke's friends went off to take part in the Gym Challenge, he didn't even consider going himself. On their way out of town after the ceremony, one of his friends dropped by the hotel and left him a gift. A single Pokeball.
Everything changed on a holiday in Circhester a few months later. It wasn't so much a holiday as a business trip for his parents, but they managed to find some time to visit the baths as well as Circhester Bay. In a rare moment of bravery, Zeke ventured farther from the shore than he was allowed... only to begin drowning in the frigid water. A friendly Clobbopus rescued him. Upon reaching the shore, Zeke was immediately snatched up by his terrified parents and taken back to the hotel. They didn't leave the hotel for the rest of the trip.
The last evening before returning to Motostoke, Zeke snuck out of the hotel while his parents were in a meeting and made his way back to the bay. He wandered a while until he found a friendly Clobbopus wading in the shallow water. The markings seemed familiar so Zeke approached it. "I didn't get a chance to thank you." The Pokemon let out a cry of glee, followed up by an excited punch in the thigh. Zeke fell to the ground, stunned. The panicked Pokemon rushed to try help him to his feet. In that fall, Zeke had felt something. He was reminded of his younger days, running playfully with the other toddlers. Before he was locked away. Zeke sat on the sand looking down at his own hand. He slowly balled it into a fist... and socked the Clobbopus right back. Though there was very little force behind the punch, the Clobbopus comically toppled over, rolling right onto Zeke. And so a friendship was born.
Zeke found his parents apoplectic when he returned. He apologized, genuinely upset that he had caused them so much worry in such a short time. He waited until they were safely back in Motostoke to introduce them to his new friend and make his announcement.
The next ceremony found Zeke in the stadium with all the other excited young challengers. His parents had not been happy. But given time, they'd accepted his decision. It helped that his Pokemon seemed intelligent and reliable, if a little punchy. He could protect Zeke just fine. Still, Zeke was nervous. Terrified, in fact. His small world was about to open up into something immense. But, at least he wasn't alone. He had Clobbopus and all the other trainers going the same way as him.
In time, Zeke became a real Pokemon trainer. It was hard. He went from a sedentary experience to life on the move. The hiking and training with his Pokemon took a toll on him. But the fresh air and active lifestyle renewed him. The sad emptiness in his life was replaced with a burning drive to grow, to become the best trainer, the best person he could be. This drive drew him to others like him. Pokemon looked down on, or worse overlooked entirely. Together they formed a team.
Their drive was tested when Zeke failed in his attempts to earn his seventh gym victory. Try as he might, he had hit a roadblock. After a week of feeling sorry for himself back home, Zeke ventured into the wilds to train so he could try again in the next year. Again he failed to secure the necessary badges. Again he retreated to the wilds, braving all manner of harsh weather, dangerous encounters, training and learning with his Pokemon. The next year found him fall in the second round of the Champions Cup, and Zeke decided his training could use a change. The next few years found him traveling through other regions, occasionally coming back to try his hand at the Champions Cup again and finding varying degrees of success (or failure). After an extended training session on the Isle of Armor, he received a message from a retiring Gym Leader. Would he like to take over?
In the years since, Zeke has developed something of a reputation. His public face as a cocky ruthless gym leader serves as a psychological obstacle to challengers who enter his gym. Trainers who manage to battle him (and those old enough to remember his early years) eventually get to see what he's like off the pitch. Zeke keeps in touch with all those who get to challenge him, cheering on those who make it past him and encouraging those who don't to try again. After all, he knows what a difference having someone believe in you can make.
When not actively on gym duty, Zeke spends a lot of time training away from the city, in the wilderness and exploring dens. These used to be solitary trips, but he's recently begun to occasionally invite other Gym Leaders or challengers to go with him.
TEAM:
Mienfoo - The act is not an act for her. She thinks she's better than every competitor. Loves to win. The rest of the group thinks it's good for her to be humbled now and then. Prefers to stay at the gym when possible
Lucario - An older Pokemon. His aging owner couldn't travel and battle anymore so he traded him to Zeke. A little bit petty, enjoys the frustration in gym challengers when he neutralizes their type advantage.
Infernape - A born performer. He loves being the center of attention though his flames sometimes burn brighter when they should be burning hotter. Prefers to stay at the gym when possible
Hitmonlee -
Lucario - An older Pokemon. His aging owner couldn't travel and battle anymore so he traded him to Zeke. A little bit petty, enjoys the frustration in gym challengers when he neutralizes their type advantage.
Infernape - A born performer. He loves being the center of attention though his flames sometimes burn brighter when they should be burning hotter. Prefers to stay at the gym when possible
Hitmonlee -
Grapploct - A dear old friend
Poliwrath - A sickly Poliwag from a polluted pond that Zeke nursed back to health. Peppy and upbeat
Kommo-o - A small Jangmo-o bullied for her size. She's grown into her own through hard work but can still be insecure from time to time.
Breloom - A feisty Shroomish that kept pelting Zeke with seeds from within the trees. Something of a troublemaker
Gallade - Found taking shelter from a storm in the same cave as Zeke. A no non-sense Pokemon who puts his all into training. His serious face melts right off in the presence of sweets though.
Bewear
Poliwrath - A sickly Poliwag from a polluted pond that Zeke nursed back to health. Peppy and upbeat
Kommo-o - A small Jangmo-o bullied for her size. She's grown into her own through hard work but can still be insecure from time to time.
Breloom - A feisty Shroomish that kept pelting Zeke with seeds from within the trees. Something of a troublemaker
Gallade - Found taking shelter from a storm in the same cave as Zeke. A no non-sense Pokemon who puts his all into training. His serious face melts right off in the presence of sweets though.
Bewear
Most of these are more focused on their specific art than battling.
Sirfetch'd
Hitmontop
Medicham
Hawlucha
Sirfetch'd
Hitmontop
Medicham
Hawlucha
Loudred - Hype Man
RELATIONSHIPS:
Zeke has a healthy respect for most (all?) of the other gym leaders. Despite their differences, he appreciates that they understand the Pokemon lifestyle. He likes to trash talk in their public appearances but he rarely says anything too out of line without their permission, and usually apologizes afterwards to make sure he didn't cross any lines.
They are his rivals. Simultaneously partners and obstacles in his path forward. What more could he ask for?
Note: I write my CS with the assumption that I can take a later position in the Gym Challenge order