Phongik

**Phongik** is the General of the Preservers and the second-in-command of the team. He is distinguished from the others by his military-style uniform, typically formal jargon, and his favorite color, pink. He is the weapons specialist of the Preservers, but also a very effective cleaner in Gray's Car Wash. His best military tactics involve him destroying build-ups of grime, wiping out colonies of bacteria, obliterating militias composed of dust, and winning wars against mold and mildew.

His relationship with Grayscale, the Commander of the Preservers, is shaky at best. While he is willing to obey her orders and is thankful for both training him to be an effective general and the time she rescued him from The Toxic Landfill, he finds her ethics questionable and is often talking bad about her behind her back.

Phongik is a portmanteau of phong shading, a type of 3D shader that can make an object look shiny, and the "-ik" suffix is derived from "pink"; the "n" is removed to make his name easier to pronounce.

## Background

Phongik was a Protector before Dark Light became one. However, he was loyal to Grayscale, thus he was exiled to the The Toxic Landfill after the trial that found Grayscale guilty of the charges. It is during the time in The Toxic Landfill that Phongik learned to distrust Grayscale, though he did not forgive Dark Light either for being the backstabber who sent him to the dreaded place to begin with. Crepuscular Beam stated that he "stunk like moldy cheese sandwich with the combination of a rotting rat corpse's farts." while Phongik himself bemoaned that it took much effort and a very long time to completely rid of the smell. To this day, it was the absolute worst experience Phongik had ever been in.

## History

Phongik first appears in post #7,214, cleaning up litter on the park and blaming the Protectors that it was in this state. Cerulambert then arrives in a pick-up truck, where Phongik hops onboard and he and the rest of the Preservers eventually regroup. On the way, Chroma Key (who was a Mario at the time) was close to capturing Crepuscular Beam but Phongik used a grappling hook on him to rescue him. Chroma Key gave chase and started shooting them, which prompted Phongik and the rest of the Preservers to fire back.

Eventually, the Preservers arrive at Grayscale's secret base in post #7,369 She was angry at the Preservers for not only having their cover blown, but the car damaged by the incident. Due to this, she sends them off to the Beanbean Kingdom and implanted a spell that allowed them to communicate with each other. However, due to a wire-tapping incident from George Younce, she bluffs the wire-tap and announces that she will send them to Sarasaland instead, causing the opposition to the Preservers to defend Sarsaland, though Grayscale still sends them off to the Beanbean Kingdom. Initially, Phongik was confused by the potential mistake and attempted to communicate with Grayscale; only later did Grayscale confirm that sending them to Sarasaland was a bluff. However, to keep up with the bluff, Grayscale had created projector images of the Preserves to give the illusion that they did indeed arrive in Sarasaland.

The Preservers were eventually given the green light to establish their base in Beanbean Kingdom, in the Chucklehuck Woods. However, their location gets compromised by their opposition almost immediately, where Crepuscular Beam got captured, thus forcing them to use the emergency hatch to escape. While in the hatch, Mr. Y attempted entry in the base, claiming he wanted to be their prisoner. Phongik denied entry, and blamed the Protectors for the increase in suspicious behavior. General, a Boo, eventually rescues them and teleports them back to Grayscale's secret base. They all eventually escape to the Moon. Phongik took a look at his surroundings and was intrigued that rabbits and frogs live on the moon, where he surmised there also must be plant life and water on it.

However, Ray Trace captured Phongik, tying him up, setting up Mario to possess Cerulambert and infiltrate the Preservers.

## General information

### Physical appearance

Phongik shares traits typical of diminutives such as the short height, beady black eyes, and large protruding nose. Key characteristics unique to him are his constantly narrowed eyebrows, similar to Ultra Violet, except they are drawn in a single line than separated, his sideburns having three spikes rather than one or two, and his long, tube-like nose. His uniform is derived from military generals, except it is a bright pink color and he is adorned with the typical Preserver cape, bracelets, and golden wings.

His voice has not been explored but it is said to be deep, and he speaks with an American accent.

### Personality

Phongik, when he is participating in his duties, speaks in a formal manner, similar to his rival second-in-command, Redshift, though he is more likely to use military terminology and employs several drill sergeant like techniques such as yelling at Preservers and forcing them to wake up in mornings by turning on the light and shouting at sleeping Preservers. However, deep inside, he is somewhat paranoid and has trust issues with others, such as blaming problems occurring in the cities to the Protectors and blaming all problems with the Preservers on Grayscale's leadership. Despite him requiring to talk to others in a charismatic way in the Preservers, he is still introverted and shy; in romantic affairs it is difficult for him to remain his composure and his confidence and his trust issues in general have him a difficult time communicating how he feels.

One of Phongik's most notable quirks is him being a neat-freak, and his first appearance coincides with him cleaning up the litter in Mushroom City. His room is neatly organized and he takes great effort and pride into how clean Gray's Car Wash is. He enjoys working at a car wash specifically because it employs a lot of specialized soaps used to clean cars, and he is fascinated at the soaps, sponges, and air fresheners used for that purpose. The cleaniness of Gray's Car Wash impresses even Grayscale, who typically does not have the time and energy to clean things up and would rather rely on magic to do the dirty deeds. The main reason The Toxic Landfill was the worst experience Phongik ever suffered through was because its messiness level is indescribable.

In his spare time, Phongik enjoys playing video games. Real-time strategy games are his favorite genre.

### Powers and abilities

While Phongik has yet to touch a power crystal and thus has an unknown powered up form, his specialty is weaponry. He knows how to operate all of the state of the art weapons, whether it is something as straight forward as shooting an M16 or complicated weaponry such as knowing how Chroma Key's blaster works. He was the one who was primarily responsible for the weapons system in Cerulambert's pick-up truck. While he cannot carry Grayscale's giant axe and has less knowledge on non-artillery-based weapons, he is helpful nonetheless on how to most effectively use his Preserver blades and how to handle fist-to-fist combat should he ever be engaged. Since he is the Lieutenant Commander of the Preservers, he can hold his weight in a fight and likely win, tying with Redshift in terms of power.

### Relationships with other characters

Phongik has mixed feelings towards Grayscale. While he respects her as a Commander and typically obeys her orders since he believes he still owes her for training him up and saving him from The Toxic Landfill, he finds her method of operating ethically questionable. He wanted the Preservers to be focused on environmental Preservation but has felt Grayscale abandoned that idea in favor of once again besting the Protectors and her rivals, an endeavor that Phongik has found quite tiring. Phongik is typically too afraid of telling his real thoughts especially if she is around, though he has given her the benefit of the doubt on multiple occasions, even stating "*I just think that...well...you know....her heart is in the right place you know....?*"

One of Phongik's common partners is Cerulambert, who serves as the muscle foil to Phongik. Phongik has much respect for his large companion who does not usually stroke too much heavy arguments, though Phongik does not appreciate Cerulambert's dry style of humor, where he'd often quip at the expense of Phongik. Phongik also views him a bit as a brute, though he appreciates that Cerulambert is not a typical dumb brute and is glad to have him as a partner.

On the other hand, Phongik does not like Scatter very much. Scatter is a lazy slob who does not like working in Gray's Car Wash, almost the complete opposite of Phongik, and almost every day, Phongik has to yell at him to either get up or to clean things around, something neither Scatter appreciates. Phongik also does not like Scatter's womanizer personality, where he thankfully has Cerulambert enforcing the punishment of unacceptable behavior towards the females of the group.

Phongik does not have strong opinion on Crepuscular Beam though he prefers that Crepuscular Beam to be less afraid of everything so he does not have to order him to return to his post. He does view him as expendable somewhat, but he also believes that with proper training, he could overcome his fears. However, if Grayscale cannot train him to be less frightened, Phongik believes that he does not have a shot at all.

Phongik has referred to Discharge as a creep, due to his refusal to speak much and the way he sends electrical shocks to anyone he gazes at. Phongik does not have good first impressions of Discharge, though he does respect his ability to create potent electronics, especially enhancing cleaning appliances around the base.

Phongik generally does not like the Protectors in their current incarnation, since Dark Light was responsible for the punishment inflicted onto him. However, he does appreciate Bluminescence for getting the rest of the Preservers back on their feet and still being extremely friendly despite tensions between the group.

Recently, Phongik has developed a small crush on Green Flash due to spending time with her in the car wash, generally chatting with her, and finding a companion that resonates with his tastes. He is too shy to admit it due to fear of rejection, breaking his heart, and he is well aware that Green Flash is far more interested in Chroma Key than she is in him, so it is very difficult for him to talk his feelings to her.