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Vladimir's Empire
Vladimir
"Ever since my dear trainer was killed, my sinister ways became as much a part of me as the leaves on my tail. It is something that not even I can change. And that much, I almost loathe..."
An irritable Serperior monarch with an "empire" located in the deepest reaches of Sinnoh's Mt. Coronet. He winds up dragged into the story when his knack for pharmaceutical science leads him to create a batch of pills, one of which he successfully tests on his childhood friend and unwilling lab rat, Bella.
- Accidental Murder: During one scene on board a ship, Flash tumbles over the railing of the deck and into the sea, where she starts to drown. Vladimir tries to get Shiver on rescue duty by tossing him in after her, but to the express horror of everyone else on the deck, the unlucky Dewott gets caught up in the ship's propellers and is puréed before their eyes.
- Cynicism Catalyst: The death of Chrissie, his and Bella's human partner, at Team Plasma's hands is what turned Vlad into such a sour creature for so long.
- Defrosting Ice King: He does grow to be a little nicer to his companions as time goes on. Though of course, he still acts grouchy to save face.
- Embarrassing Nickname: Bella still calls him "Leafy" out of habit. He is not exactly keen on it, but allows it when coming from her.
- Evil Brit: Described as having a British edge to his voice in a few Meta discussions.
- Heel–Face Turn: He starts out as one of the story's main antagonists, but slowly turns over a new leafnote after becoming Fire-Forged Friends with a few of the heroes.
- Morality Pet: For him, Bella. She's the ultimate reason he even gets swept up into the other Mons' adventure in the first place, and seems to be the only person who's able to bring out his soft side for some time before he opens up a bit more to the rest of the crew. Mizu also becomes one to him, if his borderline fatherly interactions with the Vaporeon are anything to go by.
- Not Me This Time: Gamil-Sin wages war on Vladimir after accusing him of being the one who invaded and destroyed his home village in the past. And while Vlad has been known to terrorize areas around his kingdom (with one his opening scenes even being an attack on Floaroma Town with his minions), he insists that he had done no such thing. It later turns out that he really was telling the truth; the actual perpetrator in Gamil-Sin's background was another Serperior posing as Vladimir, and he had unknowingly been framed the entire time. Once Gamil-Sin realizes this, he and Vlad become allies instead.
- The Smart Guy: He is shown to be rather intelligent from the get-go, with his personal quarters in Mt. Coronet being more closely akin to a lab or a study hall. Though his dabbling in science is never elaborated on or explored further.
- Tragic Keepsake: He is revealed to (discreetly) keep his deceased trainer's locket on his person.
- Younger Than They Look: Despite his high status, he is stated to be 21 during the events of the story. Somewhat justified, since he came into power as a ruler at a relatively young age.
Rikki
"He's... He's right. Some day, things will okay. I shouldn't dwell on the past so much."
(In progress.)- Mook Lieutenant: She and Shiver are stated to have been tasked with supervising and training new army recruits back in Mt. Coronet. Rikki herself more or less becomes the unofficial second-in-command whenever Vladimir is either not around, or simply not in the mood to give orders. This even extends to her tending to order the Pokemon outside of Vlad's organization around during the Time Flute quest.
- Punch-Clock Villain: Rikki is much more outwardly standoffish and feisty than her comrade Shiver. But like him, she is far from a bad Pokemon when she's "off the clock", where she's a borderline Nice Girl towards those she knows well.
- Unresolved Sexual Tension: With her crush Gallade, to whom she never gets a chance to confess her feelings. Whenever she tries to make a move, she either loses her nerve, or is interrupted by something or other.
Shiver
- Family-Unfriendly Death: Poor, gentle Shiver ends up meeting a very gory end. He gets tossed overboard while the group is hitching a ride on a ship, but isn't a strong enough swimmer to escape from the propellers below... Not long after, the party on the deck is treated to a nice streak of red water and some disembodied parts floating up to the surface near the spot where he vanished.
- Killed Off for Real: Unlike his buddy Crystallite, he doesn't come back after the Turbine Blender incident above.
- Like Brother and Sister: Certainly implied to be the case between him and Rikki, who is shown in flashbacks to have known Shiver since they were both young children. Making it all the more understandable that she privately takes his death very hard.
- Only Sane Man: Among Vladimir's mooks he tends to share this role with Rikki, though Shiver is arguably the more level-headed of the two by a small margin.
- Punch-Clock Villain: As seen when he's strung along for the Time Flute journey, Shiver is a peaceful creature outside of his obligation to follow Vlad's orders. The moments where he's away from his boss reveal him to be a downright Nice Guy, with a shining example in his interactions with Princess Xylacia on New Moon Island.
