Deerington Application

[nihiletgo]

IN CHARACTER

Character Name: Guzma
Canon: Pokémon SPECIAL
Canon Point: Chapter 19, when he's abducted by Nihilego

In-Game Tattoo Placement: Upper Back, across his shoulders
Current Health/Status: Alive, could be healthier
Age: 22-25ish never stated in canon
Species: Human

Content Warnings: Violence, abuse, alcoholism, suicide ideation, self-harm, nihilism, possible drug use.

History:
Guzma's
Sun and Moon Manga's

Personality:

Lets start this simply: Guzma is a dark, chaotic, and destructive individual with a violent streak a mile wide. This seems a little darker than usual for a Pokémon character, and that's because it is. While not only a darker character than the usual type, this is the manga version of him, which has always embraced the edgier side of the Pokémon series, and Guzma is no exception.

Guzma is a troubled individual who is the leader of a gang named Team Skull. This group of delinquents have come to be known as a blight upon Alola--the region in which they live. From stealing Pokémon, to racketeering, to straight up assault, these menaces don't have respect for anyone, except their own. Guzma is much the same, but even his own suffer under his leadership, and whether or not he respects his underlings is questionable at best. Considering he injured one of his grunts so that he could take his place in a competition, just so he could teach Sun, the main protag, a lesson on live TV. A lesson that included breaking the 11 year old's arm...like I said, he's violent and doesn't care. Perhaps once upon a time he was more caring about his own, but as time has marched on, so has Guzma's nihilistic mindset and jaded perception of the world.

You see, Guzma was once a promising trainer, enraptured by the traditions of Alola. So much so, he wished to take a place as captain for the Island Trial, which is a ceremony young trainers partake to appease the Tapu. The Tapu being the island guardians and deital figures to the Alolan people. However, Guzma was denied such a role due to his lack of normalcy, and thus spurred his hatred for Alola. The love and passion he once held slowly slipped into anger and resentment.

That isn't to say Guzma didn't have anger before that, he certainly did! Coming from a broken home with an abusive father, Guzma's issues started early. While this aspect isn't explored in the manga, his game counterpart fills in the holes(and the manga is based off of the games). His childhood room is filled with trophies of various Pokémon battle competitions (none are 1st place), while his father speaks of having attempted to "set the boy straight" but ultimately failed in his harsh endeavor resulting in Guzma running away. Guzma is also known to take losses extremely poorly, to the point he self-harms by bashing his face into the ground, punches things, etc while screaming at himself in the third person. There's also a disturbing bag of broken golf clubs in the house near the father, which does not bode well for what kind of home Guzma grew up in, not to mention what expectations there might have been on him.

With that being said, this gives a pretty solid backing to why Guzma is the way he is: he's violent, competitive, self-hating, has an inferiority complex, and is absolutely obsessed with strength. He's constantly on the bend to prove how strong he is, what a threat he is, and so on. Between his troubling home life, training under the Kahuna Hala (who has been known to be very strict and intense), and the fact his abnormal personality sets him apart from the other Alolans, Guzma's been pretty much set up to fail.

Guzma's lashing out at Alola comes from many different places. Between being unfit to take part in being a captain, hell, even being treated differently because he cannot embrace the happy-go-lucky attitude of the general populace, and having no place else to go...he feels understandably trapped and reviled. Particularly when he's as native to Alola as the rest of them, but because he cannot abide by their carefree and happy expectation, he's treated like a stranger in his own home.

See, Guzma got a taste of freedom once, and he hasn't been the same since. Hala had taken him to another region for a training trip, and it was there that Guzma got a taste for a world outside of their island region, free of Alola's rules and expectations, of everything that holds him back, and excludes him. This fueled his resentment further, till he broke away completely and created Team Skull.

Through Team Skull Guzma unleashes his anger and vengeance upon Alola, wanting not only change, but revenge for how it's always seemed to beat him down. Ultimately, he's come to wanting to destroy it completely, and anyone or anything in his way. Driven by his need to be acknowledged and to be seen as strong, he does not tolerate weakness, not even from his grunts. Even though most of his grunts are those who are unwanted or not strong enough to compete the trials, Guzma doesn't go easy on them.

Guzma strives to seem uncontrollable, rebellious, and even kind of crazy. He's constantly smug and smiling, taking even the most serious of things as a joke--a great exhibit of his nihilism. Continuously he claims that no one on their planet can control him, that he answers to no one. Fronting is important to him, because if he can scare people or make them believe he's the threat that he is, he won't get hurt anymore. He won't be forgotten, and in a way he'll force a place in society for himself. Or so he believes.

He's also a huge liar, though, not just because of his fear of being hurt, but because he is indeed a subordinate to Lusamine and her plot with the Ultra Beasts. Since Lusamine recognized his power and ability, Guzma found himself drawn to her, and ultimately developing feelings for her. To an extent that he carried out her will by summoning the Ultra Beasts to combat the trial captains who came to confront him, and didn't seem to care that his own grunts were in the crossfire.

Even when his grunts begged for him to stop the Ultra Beasts, he shrugged it off claiming that they just do their thing, and that there's no stopping them. Guzma showed no remorse for this, only anger when the Ultra Beasts turned on him, something unexpected when he had been told he could control them by Lusamine. Despite this perceived betrayal, Guzma continued to show loyalty to her, even after an Ultra Beast stole him away to Ultra Space.

Having spent six months in Ultra Space, being drained of all desire and emotions, particularly negative emotions, Guzma still harbored feelings for Lusamine. Even as she left him for dead on the beach of Poni Island, helpless and incapable of moving his body, his primary concern was her. 

Guzma is loyal to his personal detriment to those who matter to him, but there's such strict outlines for those who fall under that category, that most don't. Even his team, people who banded together through strong bonds forged from mutual suffering and solidarity in their pariadom, didn't matter enough for him. Even Plumeria, his second in command, whom of which he's extremely close to, doesn't matter enough for him to heed her warning, nor shield her from the danger of his antics.

He's extremely selfish and self-centered, even his loyalty is based upon his need for acknowledgment and validation, regardless of who might suffer for his need. Guzma is jaded and honestly tired, he's self-destructive and hints at suicide ideation with how he talks about his lot in life, wanting nothing more than to destroy everything that's made him suffer, even if that includes himself.

Surprisingly, however, he does have another soft spot other than Lusamine, and that's Hala's grandson: Hau. While most others he'd spurn and let his grunts terrorize, he's actually saved Hau from them, even took him for some Tapu Cocoa afterwards. He relates to the pressure and expectation that's been placed on Hau, what with Hala being his grandfather, and because of this he sees himself in Hau. Sees the potential of what he could become under Hala's tutelage, and greatly doesn't want for the kid to turn out like him.

To this end, Hau and Guzma understand one another like no one else. We see Hau working as a bit of an interpreter for Hala when it came to remarks Guzma made once he was found nearly dead on the beach, and taken to a first-aid tent. Guzma flew into a rage seeing the guilty and pitious look Hala was giving him, yelling at him that he wasn't his failure. Hau explained that this meant that the state Guzma was in, and the choices he made, were his own doing. Not Hala's to guilt himself over.

Guzma is a sensitive man, though not a super sympathetic one. He's been driven down a path of ruin by his unfortunate circumstances, and by a society that had no place for someone damaged and abnormal like him. With no options, he's chosen to lash out at the society that's rejected him, terrorize them so they'll fear him, and has embraced destruction in every form. Even becoming an alcoholic (and who knows what else), as when we first see him, his throne is surrounded by empty liquor bottles (Shady House itself is littered with them as well).

All and all, Guzma's a man who has slipped into nihilism, and sees little point in life, but is a survivor despite this. He fights on to prove his strength, and to seek the recognition and acceptance he never got--except from Lusamine and Hau. He's a greatly twisted and unapologetic man, but has shown the ability to do better. At the end of the manga, it's shown that he is reforming (like his game counterpart), though we are not entirely privy of the circumstances around this beyond the fact he now works with Hau at a malasada and Tapu Cocoa shop. Which means he's not entirely hopeless, but he's been toeing the edge for a long, long time, and it'll likely be longer yet before he's healed from years of neglect and rejection.

Abilities/Powers/Weaknesses & Warping:
Guzma by all rights is an ordinary person, and while he's quite large and strong, it's all within the bounds of human limitation. He's got quick reflexes, and seems quite capable of throwing hands with people, but he's still only a normal dude.

However, he will be bringing with him Golisopod, which is a Pokémon that is decidedly not limited by human standards.

Golisopod's powers:

-Diamond-hard carapace that's practically impenetrable, even by energy-based attacks.

-Incredible strength, can easily break boulders and slice through most materials with its retractable claws.

-Emergency Exit is an ability it can use to escape back into its Poké ball should it feel like it's in too much danger/suffered too much damage. More or less, it forces itself back into the light energy that the Poké ball converts Pokémon into so that they can be stored into the ball.

-Moves:

First Impression (a sneak attack that's so fast it cannot be dodged nor seen)

Liquidation (can conjure a sword made of high pressured water that can slice just like a metal blade, has a chance to wear down an opponents defenses)

Pin Missile (Golisopod can shoot multiple explosive spikes from its back at enemies)

Throat Chop (an attack that aims for the throat, it utilizes dark energy from the Pokémon to silence the victim for a short period of time, making any sound-based abilities impossible)

Golisopod's Weaknesses/Move Warping:

-Despite having an impenetrable shell, Golisopod has a vulnerable belly that essentially has no protection.

-While large and strong, Golisopod isn't the most agile outside of using its attacks.

-First Impression can only be used at the start of combat engagement, which means it can't be used in rapid succession.

-Liquidation is a powerful move, but requires a lot of energy to use, and thus Golisopod can only use it so many times before he'll need to rest.

-Pin Missile, while shooting multiple spikes, only a few hit the target due to the poor accuracy of the move

-Throat Chop's silencing ability only works if it connects with the throat, otherwise it's merely a strong strike of Golisopod's claws.

Inventory:
-The clothes on his back (Skull hoodie, chain necklace, muscle shirt, sweat pants, velcro shoes, gold rolex, black and white bracelets, etc)
-Golisopod's Pokéball (with Golisopod inside!)

Writing Samples:

#1 TDM Thread
#2 TDM Thread
#3 TDM Thread

OUT OF CHARACTER

Player Name: Zorn
Player Age: 30
Player Contact: Zornsable

Other Characters In Game: N/A
In-Game Tag If Accepted: Guzma: Zorn
Permissions for Character: Here
Are you comfortable with prominent elements of fourth-walling?: Yep!
What themes of horror/psychological thrillers do you enjoy the most?: The survival aspect of it, emotional and mental impact of psychological horror. Honestly, I just really love a good psychological horror, and how the characters are forced to change and adapt through suffering and the growth or decline that comes from it. Seeing how different characters cope—or fail to, and what becomes of them through such terrorizing and traumatic events. Will they break? Will they preserve? Who knows!
Is there anything in particular you absolutely need specific content warnings for?: Nope!
Additional Information: N/A