Misty

Misty Kasumi
IC Information
Full Name:	Misty Kasumi
Gender:	Female (she/her)
Age (Birthdate):	18
Hometown:	Cerulean City
Hair Color:	Orange
Eye Color:	Blue
Class:	Water Gym Leader
Role:	Drifter
Bounty:	0 Gella
OOC Information
Theme:	Feature Character
Major Group:	None
Minor Groups:	None
Player:	Talnora

"What's your policy on Pokemon? What's your approach? My policy for battle is... an all-out offensive with Water-type Pokemon!"

An avid swimmer harboring a deep love of the sea, Misty Kasumi has made a reputation for herself as the current Cerulean Gym Leader, specializing in the training of Water-type pokemon. She's worked very hard to bolster the Gym's influence: To the children visiting her Gym's aquarium to learn about Water-type pokemon and ocean ecology, she is a kind and friendly teacher. To those challenging her for a Cascade Badge, she is a fierce \(but no less instructive\) opponent. And to those who would harm a Water-type pokemon or Nede's precious waters... she is their worst nightmare. But the opening of Energy Nede to the outside world means there are bigger problems she should be turning her attention towards... and if she's being honest, she's getting a little restless staying in one place, too. Either way, it's time to hit the road again.

Background

Standing Out

Born the youngest of four siblings, Misty was the latest in a line of beautiful, elegant, and graceful sisters... and she hated it. All while growing up she was constantly compared to her older siblings, and even to her mother; while her older siblings seemed okay with being of a similar kind of mold, Misty wanted to break free from that mold and to do her own thing. Not to the point where she gave up on Water-type pokemon, of course, but she wanted to find a way to make her own mark.

While her sisters pursued water ballet and synchronized swimming, Misty pursued competetive swimming and scuba diving, finding a finding a fondness for the freedoms of the wide open oceans off the coast of Vermillion City and the Seafoam Islands. When her sisters started to concern themselves more with their looks, Misty concerned herself with learning more about the ocean and its importance to Energy Nede. And when her sisters, naturally, followed in their parents' footsteps to take on the responsibilityes of a Gym Leader... Misty set her eyes on a different goal.

To become Champion, and to do it with a team of Water-type pokemon.

She wasn't content to simply inherit the role or title of Gym Leader, she wanted to prove she had what it took to earn that title outright, to know that it truly belonged to her. And besides, she was restless: she'd always wanted to travel, to see more of the world than just her hometown.

Journeying

Misty's Journey was very impactful for her. She got to develop her bonds with her pokemon, and to develop her skills as a Pokemon trainer, and to see more of Energy Nede and all its varieties and natural beauties. She became even more certain that what she wanted to do was to help protect it. Eventually, Misty collected all 8 badges, and then turned her sights to the Elite Four.

... Which is where her Journey ultimately ended&emdash;at least her League challenge. As talented as she had become, she could not overcome Lorelei of the Elite Four. Despite Misty having some familiarity with some Ice types (owing to the fact that many Ice types are also Water types), Loreli's superior mastery aof Ice-type Pokemon proved a wall that Misty simply could not overcome. She tried several times, growing more and more frustrated with each attempt until finally recognized that no amount of training was going to help her clear this hurdle.

Still, despite her initial frustration, she developed a great admiration for Lorelei's skill and talent. Misty still harbors a hope of completing her Challenge someday, but... she came to realize it was time to turn her attention elsewhere. There were other goals she could set her mind to, more attainable ones, that were no less important to her.

Misty wasn't ready to stop traveling though, so she used her studies as an excuse to continue her Journey. Now she was traveling Nede in order to visit the various habitats and ecosystems she was studying. This helped deepened her bonds with her pokemon in a different way, as well as her appreciation of Nede's ecosystems and the importance of preserving it.

Still, enlightening as it was, eventually it had to come to an end. Misty's sisters wanted to move on from leading the Cerulean Gym, and this meant it was Misty's turn to finally step up and take the reins. But Misty was happy to do it; she had proven herself as one of the best Water-type trainers in Energy Nede, on her own terms, and felt there could be no doubt that she was worthy of it beyond inheriting it from her family.

Leading the Way

Misty threw herself into Gym leadership, determined to use her Gym to help advance the causes she cared deeply about. She used the Gym's aquarium to help teach about different types of Water-type pokemon and the various habitats they lived in, for example. She found a great deal of satisfaction in teaching and demonstrating the traits of Water-type pokemon for visiting classes.

Being on the receiving end of Gym Challenges was an interesting experience for her, as well. Having gone through her own Journey, she could imagine clearly what the trainers her must be feeling. She remembered how her Gym challenges had slowly built up her skills and confidence, and combined with her newfound love of teaching, resolved to impart the same experience to those challenging her. She's quick to offer advice and encouragement to those that can't quite meet her challenge, out of a genuine desire to see them come back and challenge her again.

Of course, even as gratifying as it is to teach, both through conventional means and through battles, she still feels a desire to exercise the talents she's spent so many years developing. To that end, she's eagerly accepted requests from L'Aqua for assistance, when they turn to her for her mastery of Water-type pokemon. Battling the occasional criminal scum or assisting with boarding a boat helps keep her skills sharp, and in practice, and it still benefits society as a whole.

In time she found she rather enjoyed the position she had made for herself as a Gym Leader, and had things stayed peaceful, she might have quieted that wanderlust for good.

A New Journey

Things did not stay peaceful.

The return of the Ten Wise Men, and the opening of the Rifts provided newer, bigger problems to worry about, as did Solaris' appropriation of their technology. Not to mention all of the wild pokemon--WAter-types included--that made off for Filgaia and Energy Nede. Things she could help with, but that would take her away from her Gym.

Misty had grown into the role of Gym Leader finally, and with that had developed a certain sense of responsibility for Energy Nede at large. She was already using her position to teach, through the Gym's acquarium, but what use would that be if Energy Nede was destroyed or ruined? Who would come to challenge her at the Gym if that happened? Whwat use was her skills to L'Aqua if she let the rest of the world go to waste?

And besides... there were new worlds to explore. How could she pass that up?

It took her quite some time to deliberate within herself, and to make arrangements. But once she'd made up her mind there was no changing it, and Misty is now hitting the road again to lend her talents to preserving Energy Nede's peace, to assisting any pokemon that find themselves in unfamiliar environments, and to scratching her itch to travel and explore new places.

Powers and Abilities

Misty is the current Gym Leader of the Cerulean Gym, which is dedicated to training Water-Type pokemon. Naturally, this means that Misty is also one of the foremost trainers of Water-type pokemon in Energy Nede. Growing up around water-type pokemon, Misty naturally developed an affinity for training with and caring for them.

As the Cerulean Gym is located in, well, Cerulean, Misty is also friends with a number of L'Aqua's officers. Her expertise as a Water-type trainer is routinely called upon for consulting work on cases or matters involving Water-type pokemon, and her strong battling ability means that she is called in to assist in dangerous operations that have an aquatic component.

But she has also grown to have a deep love of the sea and Nede's waters, understanding very well that Nede's ecosystem is precious and must be preserved for the good of everyone, people and pokemon alike. Cerulean Gym has an aquarium, and she uses her influence as a Gym Leader to try and share this appreciation with the visitors who come to see it. After her League attempt, the ocean's ecosystems were a major focus of her school studies, and she has a Pokedex to help her collect data about Nede's oceans (and the rest of its environment) to help further research efforts.

Naturally, Misty is also an avid and dedicated swimmer, to the point where she's earned the nickname The Tomboyish Mermaid. She's also done plenty of diving too, both to explore the oceans she appreciates and to help gather better data on the ecosystem.

Misty is not trained in combat Symbology, but she does have a collection of spells that are useful when dealing with the water, such as water breathing, swimming or diving enhancement, or light spells to illuminate the depths.

And if course, she is trained as a Lifeguard, including first aid. Her Gym does have a giant pool in it, after all.

Logs and Cutscenes

Chapter 3, Act 1

• 2024-06-27: Aquarium Day (Log)