The skies flickered and pulsed and reflected those seven sacred colors. Hues of gold turned red danced in his vision and his heart swelled; he knew he had seen the phoenix.

"Marus! What are you doing!?" The young man turned to the scolding voice, seeing the same sharp featured woman, her nose small and slightly pointed, always accompanied by her light inverted brows and her same scowl.

"Well, wouldn't you like to know?" She glared at that and turned away from him, her golden hair swishing behind her in stark contrast. Marus realized then he was grinning and fought to stifle a laugh. He had known that she had disliked it, but he somehow always found a reason for smiling around her.

"I wish you'd take this situation more seriously." Marus sat down, his hands comforting his head.

"I wouldn't worry about it."

"You're going to be knighted as a Defender." Marus raised a brow nonchalantly. He was then on his feet and inches from her, his hand gently running along her cheek. He could tell she was fighting back her worry.

"You worry too much. I don't think you need to worry about it Mira. Trust me." He gave her one of his grins, this time deliberately. There was a slight giggle from her then and she laughed.

"Are you sure? The last I heard, people in the village called you 'Mismatched Marus'." He visibly cringed at the remark. He turned away as his face reddened.

"That…was a fluke." Mira giggled again.

"I don't think saving Bitey was a fluke."

"I have a weak spot for Rattata. Big deal." It went quite for a bit and Marus sighed. "Mira," he said turning back to her. "I didn't mean to be so frustrated. It's just… everyone expects me to get a powerful Pokemon. I would much rather fight based on skill and not power alone."

"Stupid." The word caught his attention.

"What?" Her dark brown eyes stared into his. Her frustrated look was gone and she, for once, looked genuine.

"Now isn't the time to be worrying about which Pokemon you have. If you're going to be a Defender, then any Pokemon is fine." He looked down in shame but found her hand outstretched to him. He looked back up; she was smiling. His mouth twitched at his grin, but he fought it down. He placed his hand in hers.

It was all so long ago and now his world was falling down around him. They were everywhere and now it was only him. Marus took in the scene around him. Everyone and everything was gone. His village gone, razed to the ground. He went to pick himself up and his body gave a sharp protest and he dropped. His vision blurred but he went to stand again. His body creaked as he stood and he took a second glance over the scene. He limped through the wreckage, through what he once knew.

"How… how could this happen? How…?" Marus had been a Defender, had fought off wild Pokemon and people that wanted to conquer his people. Despite his "fluke", he and Bitey had risen through the ranks. Marus felt a surge of panic shoot through him. Marus pushed himself as far as he was able to go. Bitey had been with him three years back, back when he was barely a man, when he was a fool. He sifted through the debris of fallen houses and bodies of others.

Most of them were Defenders, other were nothing at all. Marus, at his wits end, stood tall and called after his lost Pokemon. There was no response. Marus's pace quickened, and went through more of the remains before something in the corner of his eye caught his attention. Two bodies, one human and another small and gray, were lying not too far from him.

"No…" He stepped closer, every step a jab. He felt as though he were breaking apart. He was there before them both. She had been grasping onto Bitey as if to protect him. She had always been like that, always pushing for him to accept Rattata. It had been her that had convinced him all those years back. He fell to his knees, his hands clutching dirt. He stared at the rodent's ruffled gray fur. He had never evolved like some of the other Defender's Pokemon had, but he always made up for it with his speed. It was almost strange how he was so still.

It sank in. Bitey was dead, clutched in her arms. They were both gone from him and out of his reach. Marus fought back the burning sensation in his eyes. He was a Defender and fighter. If he let his emotion cloud his duty they would…

They had prevented him from saving them.

The sight had brought him back. They had been everywhere, knocking down the Defenders and their Pokémon like flies. The Pokemon had been the ultimate hunter, and unstoppable. The Genesect had swarmed through, killing anything and everything that moved. He had been among the last standing, Bitey striking through them engulfed in flames and gnawing through them with a single chomp of his teeth.

Then he had seen her in trouble. Mira had been cornered, unable to get away. So he sent Bitey to save her. Another defender had lent him a Growlithe. The Defender's had fought down to the last man. His borrowed Growlithe had fallen and Marus had drawn his sword. He had held his ground, all while they had encircled him, their claw jabbing inward toward him. He fought like one possessed until he had heard Mira cry out.

His mind winced at the memory. The image dissipated, the rest becoming a fog.

"Damn it Marus, remember!" The images were slipping away. "Bitey…Mira…" He felt the memory at his mind's edge. He felt his strain swell and the images surged back to him in flashes, gradually settling. He remembered Mira's cry. He had seen himself turn to see Bitey run through; the memory vanished in an instant.

A sharp pain in his hand brought him back. He had been clutching the earth in his palms and it had broken his skin. The earth had become dust in his hands. He looked to Bitey and Mira, her golden hair was matted together in clumps, infinitely tangled. For a moment he only stared before taking them both into his arms, first Bitey. He could felt the mouse's blood still wet between his fingers. Marus gave him a pet behind his ears, something he would have liked in life before setting him down.

He turned to her, taking her into his arms next. Her hair was strewn about her face. He went to brush it from her face but paused. He looked to his own hands to find they were shaking uncontrollably. He was still unprepared for what could possibly lie beyond her hair. But he brushed it aside nonetheless.

His heart sank. He stared down at her; their eyes locked but the color in her eyes were gone. Her deep brown was empty and gone. Her eyes however, were wide with shock. She had died in her favorite huntress equipment. He felt a bittersweet chuckle escape him, but his voice was weak.

"Why did you two have to do it…? Why did you two try to help?" He gave a light tap to her nose before his hand found hers; it was cold to the touch. He brought it to his lips, giving a slight fluttery kiss. He let her hand drop as he placed her next to Bitey. "You had meant the world to me… You two were the reason I fought…" Marus continued there in silence but was interrupted by a glint in the distance. It was growing brighter by the moment. It was moving closer.

Color had started to spill into the light and the pallid skies became illuminated. From the light spread rays the hues of green flames and gold. The colors grew luminous, splitting further into yellows and scarlet red. Marus saw the feathers tipped with green as the light flew over him, saw the golden mane and divine its divine eyes. Marus's legs grew weak and he slumped to the ground. He looked back to Bitey and Mira before looking toward the light, which was off receding into the distance. He had seen the Phoenix, like he had three years back.

Vehemence settled in. He had seen the ancient phoenix, whose power was rumored to grant eternal joy to all who saw it but yet his village had been razed, his partner slain and his closest friend lost. He had seen the Phoenix but had suffered the worst of fates. His anger built upon itself, growing until he could no longer hold it. All at once, his curses to the Phoenix had gone skyward.

A presence asserted itself almost immediately afterwards and Marus felt himself freeze against his will. He was suddenly lifted from the earth and pulled forth and was left dangling. He regained control of himself and looked forward directly into the sharpened eyes of the Phoenix.

"You dare to incur my wrath?" Marus felt the familiar panic grab at him but he pushed it aside. There was nothing to lose. Marus fought to get loose, but the grip tightened around him. He felt the Phoenix's gaze focus on him. "Answer."

"Make me!" The bird's eyes narrowed at that.

"You'd be a fool to challenge me." Its eyes dilated then, and the grip wrapped around Marus even tighter. He fought to get his words out.

"W-why?"

"Why?"

"You have…the power to give… anyone happiness… from them simply laying eyes on you… So why did all this happen?" The Phoenix gave no response, instead staring aloof at him. "Tell me!"

"You humans feel so entitled to everything."

"What-"

"Yes, I have power far beyond your feeble imagination, however…"

"What? What are you-"

"I am not obligated to grant you anything simply because you say so." It had felt just as bad as a blow from a sword. This legendary bird of fire who was worshipped for as long as he could remember refused to explain himself.

"You mean…"

"I grant nothing to those who I do not deem worthy." The pressure around Marus softened and he dropped, first onto his feet but stumbled onto the ground. His legs were weak and shaky. He didn't understand. He had fought nearly to his end against the ultimate hunter Genesect without a second thought but before this bird, he was imprisoned by his own fear.

"He does nothing but shift colors! Why am I so afraid of him!?"

"Is that what you believe?" The response caught Marus off guard. It had seemed for a moment that the Phoenix had read his mind. He had read his mind. "You accentuate my reasoning. You humans understand nothing." The words hanged in Marus's mind for only a short time before he dismissed it.

"I could care less!" He went to for his short sword at his waist and fought down his surprise when he found to still be there. "If you'll only grant your power to those you deem worthy," Marus drew his blade pointing it directly toward the Phoenix. "Then I'll show you otherwise."

So I cracked under the pressure of whether to write one or not. I figured that maybe it'll help my characterization skills more. So, that being said, OC form below.

Trainer

Name:

Hometown:

Age:

Occupation (Coordinator, Trainer, etc.):

Position (Companion, rival, antagonist):

Physical Appearance:

Height:

Weight:

Personality:

Clothing:

Talents: (Be reasonable)

Flaws:

Achievements:

Pokemon History:

Pokemon (Please include how the Pokemon was obtained):

Moveset:

History:

Example:

Name: Virgil Mathison

Hometown: Cherrygrove City, Johto

Age:19

Occupation: Trainer

Physical Feats: Eyes are each a dominant grey-blue mix, with bits of hazel in the inner ring of color. Eyebrows are a tad bit thin. His hair color is a deep chestnut brown and is messy and disheveled despite his grooming of it. Long Legs and arms. He is lean, but has only slight definition. Despite this, he is still strong. He has a rather average nose, as well as a lightly small mouth.

Height: 5'11

Weight: 167 lbs.

Clothing: Virgil cares little for actual fashion, often prompting to take the first thing that will match up. He does however have the ability to coordinate his clothing thoughtfully for a special occasion. He normally likes to where his usual: A green undershirt with a grey sleeveless vest and jeans. He also has a pair of fingerless gloves that he wears as well. In colder whether, he'll do the same and adorn the first thing that he finds warm, often an undershirt, a sweatshirt over it, and normally a jacket over that.

Personality: Virgil is what most people would consider a vagabond and is scrappy by nature. He does what he wants, when he wants. He often comes across as a snide, if not downright disrespectful young man. He also has a mischievous side, but he often strays from it. He is foolishly bold in almost the absolute worst of times, which will usually get him into some form of trouble. He does have a soft side though and although its rare, he cares deeply for those to stick by him.

Talents:

Pokemon Battles

Reading people

Flaws:

Foolishly Bold

Scrappy

Comes off as disrespectful

Simple minded most of the time (This often prevents him from actually being able to read people's motives and what not)

Achievements: None

Pokemon: Dewott Male

Discipline Pokemon

Moveset:

Razor Shell: Obtained through training as a Dewott.

Aqua Jet: Obtained through training as a Dewott

Copycat: Obtained through breeding/ Egg move

Aerial Ace: Obtained through TM

History: Virgil had ran into Dewott as an Oshawott, and even then it was entirely by chance. Virgil had been inadvertently dragged along by his mother to a social event four years back that took place in the Unova region's Nuvema town. In the traditional coming-of-age ceremony commenced for new Pokemon trainers, Oshawott was originally chosen by a Nuvema Town resident, but due to their inexperience, Oshawott managed to get loose and began causing trouble. While running through the town, Oshawott had bumped into Virgil and had attempted to scare him. Instead, Virgil only yawned in boredom. Oshawott tried again, only to fail. In a indignant rage, Oshawott bit Virgil, who retaliated and flung the Pokemon away. Virgil went in to punt the Pokemon, but was stopped by Professor Juniper and his mother. Oshawott, intrigued by Virgil's fiery and informal tone, followed Virgil all the way back to the Johto region. Virgil had originally attempted to get rid of him, but Oshawott refused to take no for an answer, eventually wearing down Virgil, who accepted him out of annoyance. At some point after Virgil began his journey, Oshawott evolved into Dewott.

Personality: As an Oshawott, Dewott was originally much like Virgil and was a wild troublemaker. However, upon evolution, his attitude has mellowed out and he has become severely disciplined. He does however, still hold a bit of his hardy nature. Dewott strongly believes in hard work and discipline. However, he follows this ideology to a fault. Because he is so focused on the mastery of fighting and the discipline that follows it, he can be closed-minded to those he sees as slackers. He will even clash with Virgil because of this, who prefers to take an easier paced "one step at a time".

Lucario Male

Aura Pokemon

Moveset:

Force Palm: Obtained through training as a Riolu

Aura Sphere: Learned through training as a Lucario

Heal Pulse: Learned through training as a Lucario

Ice Punch: Learned through tutoring

History: Lucario was the second Pokemon Virgil caught. Virgil had stumbled upon a weakened Riolu. Virgil scoffed at the Pokemon and refused to help it. Sure enough, a Pokemon trainer had came along to claim it. The trainer had, to Virgil's dismay, assumed that he was the reason why Riolu was so battered. Virgil lased out at the trainer, which only cemented the trainer's belief. The trainer challenged Virgil to a match, but was soundly defeated. Virgil, acting out of spite, took the Riolu and made the Pokemon his own.

Personality: Lucario is extraordinarily modest. He often keeps from praising himself and others as a means to stay focused though he will succumb to bouts of pride. He is also the most observant and thoughtful of all of Virgil's Pokemon and even more so than Virgil himself. This combined together with his aura-sensing abilities, makes Lucario's overzealous in his generosity and is unable to put himself before others at times. Lucario also has a scrappy side as well and is extremely fond of fighting. It is this side of him that often brings out his pride and this leads to his defeats more times than not.

Ampharos Male

Light Pokemon

Moveset:

Thunder Punch: Obtained through training as an Ampharos

Electro Ball: Obtained training

Confuse Ray: Obtained through training

Wild Charge: Learned through Technical Machine

History: Ampharos met Virgil as a Mareep. Initially curious by nature, Mareep had decided to challenged Virgil to battle. Virgil snickered at that, sending Oshawott to face Mareep. Mareep lost the bout and Virgil took his leave. About a week later, Virgil runs into the same Mareep, who challeneged him to another battle. Again, Mareep was brutally beaten, but the Pokemon never gave up and instead, chose to follow Virgil. However, in an incident with Team Rocket operatives, Oshawott was wounded and stolen from Virgil. Virgil followed the operatives to their hideout. Virgil, without any Pokemon, was mercilessly attacked by the operative's Pokemon. One of them went to deal the finishing blow, but Mareep intervenes and proceeds to defeat the operatives, sending them scurrying in defeat. A few days later, Mareep challenged Virgil yet again. This time, Mareep defeated Oshawott and fought Riolu to a draw. Impressed, Virgil relented and allowed Mareep to travel with him.

Personality: Ampharos is a cool-minded and is often neutral about most dilemmas. Because of this, he a voice of reason. He and Lucario share the similarity of being observant. Ampharos, however, is more liable to act upon it. Because he suffered multiple defeats before becoming Virgil's Pokemon, he is by far the hardest working Pokemon in Virgil's coterie. Despite being the most level-headed member of the team, he still retains his curiosity. It is often Ampharos who will discover new things, whether it's good or bad. His curiosity can be so strong at times that one is often able to manipulate him through it. Ampharos is often shown to be quite the stubborn and brutal battler. Being one of Virgil's top Pokemon, he often fights to win. Because of Ampharos's fierce competitiveness, he often takes things, especially battling, a little too far.

Galvantula Female

EleSpider Pokemon

Moveset:

Electro Web: Obtained through extensive training as a Joltik.

Electro Ball: Learned through Training as a Galvantula.

Double Team: Learned through TM.

Agility: Learned via training as a Galvantula

History: Galvantula was a Pokemon formally belonging to a bug maniac. The Pokemon was separated from its trainer in the wake of the Johto bug competition. In future contests the bug was sought after by many trainers, but she defeated every trainer that came in her way, including Virgil. When the contest ended, Virgil refused to leave the grounds, fighting his way personally back into the park. Upon meeting the Pokemon, he attempted to capture it, but failed and was given a jolt instead. Virgil and Galvantula would meet again as another trainer had caught her. Virgil, having recognized the Pokemon, attempted to steal the Pokemon, but was given another jolt. The trainer refused to give up the Pokemon, choosing to fight instead. This time around, Virgil defeated the Galvantula, but lost the bout with the trainer. However, when Galvantula expressed a desire to go with Virgil, the trainer released her.

Personality: Galvantula is extremely shy, often preferring to stay out of the limelight of things. She is much more comfortable being the quiet one, so she is often forgotten about. She holds a sense of belonging with Virgil and is fiercely loyal to him and any of his friends. Her shy nature however, affects her battling more times than not and in stark contrast to Ampharos, she'll often pull her punches in fear that she'll greatly harm her opponents.

Azumarill Female

AquaRabbit Pokemon

Moveset:

Double-Edge: Learned through training as an Azumarill

Aqua Tail: Learned through training as an Azumarill

Charm: Technique learned as an Azurill

Light Screen: Learned through TM

History: Near the beginning of Virgil's journey, Virgil had decided to start an intense training regiment. Going into Mt. Mortar, Virgil defeated the wild Pokemon one after another. A swarm of Marill however, had taken refuge in the cave for the time being. Irate, they swarmed after Virgil, who obliged to their challenge. Virgil continued to defeat the continuous stream of Marill. The sheer number of them overpowered Virgil and his Pokemon, and the trainer left in a huff. An Azurill had followed after him, claiming to challenge him. Virgil, after finally becoming aware of the Azurill, mocked the Pokemon, claiming it as not being a challenge. He overlooked it in hopes of finding another Pokemon to add to him his team. But everywhere he would search, Azurill would be there. Over time, Azurill's desire to battle him had waned and the Pokemon wanted to come along with Virgil instead. Virgil refused. However, much like the incident with his Ampharos, Virgil lost his patience and crumbled, catching the Pokemon.

Personality: From being the baby of the group as an Azurill, Azumarill has picked up traits from all of Virgil's other Pokemon. She has picked up Lucario's generosity and Ampharos's fighting spirit as well as little bit of Dewott's drive. She displays levels of great confidence and is a hard worker. But she is vain and she clashes with Lucario over this, who says she should focus more on modesty rather than showboating. She has a tendency to act a bit snobby and prideful, often playing on her cuteness as an Azurill and believes that she is one of the most beautiful Pokemon around.

A/N: If you want your character's Pokemon to evolve, simply put them in base form with a note that you want them to evolve, and the provide the new moveset if it changes.