The RAGE Team

Slurpslurpslurp!
Locke had never been so thirsty in all his life. He sat there with his head half submerged in the lake and took huge gulps in between anxious breaths. The water was cold and it soothed his burning throat. The fires in the area were still burning, and the sky was raining ash. The smoke was what made Locke flee his makeshift sleeping hole; it was just too damn thick.
With a satisfied gasp, the Gibles’ head popped up out of water, showing his sharp array of teeth. He licked his lips to get the remaining delicious drops as he shuffled his way out of the shallow mud and back onto shore.
The small Gible looked up into the night sky- not far from there, the sky was glowing orange…
So pretty…
He hadn’t seen a dead one in a long time- maybe this place was still ok?...

Letting his curiosity get the better of him, he decided to head towards it.

**relocated**


Jackie was in the water of the lake to escape the heat and smoke of the surrounding area. She didn't mind water but hated smoke and ash because they made it very difficult to breath. The water was icy-cold and the Purrloin enjoyed not being burning hot, and she had not seen one of "them" in quite a while. Maybe this lake was free of those creatures? Was that even possible?

Jackie returned to the shoreline, licking her fur to drink the drops of water still on her fur. That water was so cold and delicious, perhaps the best water source around. Jackie was grateful, and gathered her belongings, which was only a red scarf and an old, worn pipe. She wrapped the scarf around her neck and picked up the pipe with her teeth, keeping it in her mouth like she always did.

Jackie decided to go forage for some berries. She was not starving to death, but Jackie was still very hungry and needed the energy for the coming times. Now was not the best time to be weakened from hunger.

**relocated**


Shuffling along the shore, Locke was humming to himself. He hadn’t felt this good ever since…well, before the attacks. Everything up to this point had been nothing but screams, blood and running away. The optimistic little Gible was hopeful that he had found a place that wasn’t touched by anything…dead.
As he made his way through the short grass, he saw a flash of purple from the corner of his eye.
Locke blinked and stopped. He looked again at where he saw the blur and scanned the field.
I know I saw something…
He was puzzled and nervous. Everything has been so quiet here; no birds or anything could be heard…
There!
Near the edge of the woods was a purple thing with large ears. It was headed away from Locke, not towards him.
This settled one thing in Lockes’ mind: this purple thing wasn’t a dead one!
Dead ones always run towards you, and they walk funny too- this one wasn’t walking funny.
Maybe the purple thing will want to be friends!
Locke thought with a toothy grin as he waddled his way across the field and towards the slender feline.

**relocated**


Jackie was still walking when she heard something, but the Purrloin didn't know what. She turned around to see nothing other than a Gible waddling towards her, but Jackie noticed that it didn't walk weird, wasn't all greasy and its eyes weren't blacked out or bloodshot. Was this Gible one of the few normal Pokemon? It sure seemed like it, and maybe they could be friends without the Gible noticing Jackie stealing whatever it had.....or maybe not. She didn't know this Gible, maybe it was aggressive to thieves like her. Jackie cautiously moved toward the Gible even though it was already coming to her.

**relocated**


As the Dratini made his way through the menacing forest he could not help but talk to himself. "I am really lost. This place is a lot different than my pond and I haven't met anybody. This world seems just as empty as the last...well...at least there are no giant monsters or hooks." He heard something that sounded like a snap behind him. He quickly turned around. He couldn't help but gasp at the sight: One of his siblings was right in front of him! His sibling did not respond but neither did the albino. "You're alive!" the albino shouted in happiness but the other still said nothing. The albino's smile quickly changed when he saw that his sibling was not the same. His sense of danger was sparked by the sight of his mangled and bleeding brother. The flesh of his brother was torn in all places with the injuries holding the shape of talon scratches. The albino could not believe what he was seeing. His only impulse was to flee in the other direction as fast as he could.

The albino's only thoughts were to get away as fast and as far as he could. It wasn't long until he heard a loud shriek behind him. His bleeding brother was in pursuit, but the albino was much faster greatly due to his intact muscles. The albino ran through the leaves of a bush and into a tree. oooh...that hurt. His brother's loud cry could not be heard anymore. I--I must have lost him. The albino continued panting as he stared in the direction the shriek came from. His brother threw himself out of the bush, but the albino was quick enough to dodge his brother's body. The diseased Dratini ran into the tree behind the albino so hard that its body fell apart on impact. The albino could do nothing but stare at the beaten body of his brother in sadness but moved farther away from the body to assure his safety. As soon as he was about to run to a safer area he felt a sharp sting in the back of his head. The small albino screamed in pain and fell to the ground. "We've caught one Devon" a man said as he emerged from the brush. "Yes, a live one too" said Devon. One of the men threw a pokeball at the Dratini and declared "Okay that is enough today. We should return to the laboratory to give these pokemon to the professor." Devon thought for a moment and quickly said "I have never seen such a Dratini before--maybe we should keep it." Devon's partner shot a glare at Devon and said angrily "Absolutely not. These are for research. We cannot spoil the bosses plans understood?" "Yes sir" replied Devon sadly. His partner whispered "We should hurry. We don't want to become food for the good professor's experiments now do we?" The two quickly made their way through the forest.

**relocated**


The sky was dark. Thick, putrid thunderclouds rippled across portions of what should have been the night sky, raining ash where water should have been. Below the fetid clouds, a lone Weavile crept through the forest (or what was left of it). He used his claw to press the Amulet Coin around his neck close to his chest, to keep it from making any sound.

Silver leaped nimbly over a fallen tree, which was already pale and flaking ash. He quietly made his way to the edge of the forest, and using claw and swiftness, he climbed one of the trees there. He parted the dying leaves with his claws and peered tentatively through the opening created; the Lake of Rage looked like a safe haven, and his heart swelled with both relief and pain. It was here, not too long ago, that his beloved Trainer had captured the Red Gyarados...

Suddenly, movement caught his eye: a Gible was drinking from the waters of the Lake. Curious but wary, Silver leaned closer to inspect its movements; its skin looked clean, and when it lifted its head, its bright, alert eyes told Silver that it was uninfected. What a break! The first uninfected Pokémon for miles! But he recoiled all the same; could it be a trick? A ruse? Gible were known for their appetites...and Dragons were always cunning despite their IQ. Putting trust in other Pokémon could be bad in these tough times. Silver debated with himself: go down, or not to go down? He eyed the Gible again, and noticed that it was trotting towards the far side of the lake, where another shape was standing. The two seemed ready to meet each other, and Silver couldn't hide the feeling of hope that blossomed in his heart, much against his instinct to run, to remain alone. These were the first uninfected creatures he had encountered since he abandoned his home to his ravenous Trainer...

Pushing the thought from his mind, the determined Weavile decided, against his gut instinct, to go and meet these uninfected. After all, a group was always stronger than a loner. He slid down the trunk and dropped onto all fours to make himself less intimidating (and more nimble, in case of an attack). After putting his treasured Amulet Coin into his mouth to keep it still and safe, he leaped sprightly over the grass towards the other Pokémon.

**relocated**

The Gible waved his stubby arm around emphatically as the purple thing tentatively walked towards him. Ash rose up in clouds as he waddled as fast as he could through the gray grass…tripping twice before getting there.
She looked like she was about to run away, but then thought twice of it. Her green, large, devious eyes analyzed the young pokemon critically.
He was covered in gray from the ash that he had disturbed and looked more like a dustball than a Gible.
Of course, Locke didn’t notice- he just knew he found a friend.
Without any reserve or wariness, he walked right up to the Purrloin and started to jump for joy.

“Hai! Oh wow, I can’t believe it! You’re not a dead one!” He shouted.
Being relatively young, he didn’t know much about manners or personal space- he assaulted her with questions.
“What are you? What’s your name? Why are your ears so big? Have you seen the dead ones? What’s that thing in your mouth?”
He bounced excitedly around, making his soothe bell jingle softly around his left wrist.

(OoC-you did just fine. The two teams don't have any correlation to each other, so you don't have to wait on them)

**relocated**


Jackie was surprised when the Gible, who was covered in ash, started to bomboard her with multiple, different questions. She decided to answer the ones that didn't involve her ears or the "dead ones."
"My name is Jackie. I'm a Purrloin." she told the Gible, answering the questions in the shortest way possible. "And this is an old pipe I got from my Trainer." Jackie noticed the soothe bell on the Gible's left wrist and was thinking of plans to steal it without attracting a battle.

"Now that I've told you my name, why don't you tell me yours?" Jackie asked the Gible, interested in meeting a normal Pokemon. She also wondered why this Gible was so excited and loud, just because he had met Jackie. It reminded Jackie of a certain Cinccino she had once known, who was just as loud and cheerful. The Purrloin expected the surviving Pokemon to be hostile.

**relocated**



"We are almost there" whispered Devon's partner. "It shouldn't be long until we get to the laboratory. Just a few more miles." Things haven't gone wrong yet and we have not aroused any infected. I just hope it stays that way Devon thought to himself. The two henchmen were nearly three quarters of a mile away from the laboratory when they heard loud buzzing. Frightened by the noise, Devon asked shakily "What was that? Is that-". Bzzzzzzzzz. The sounds were getting closer. "Run!" his partner shouted. They both immediately started sprinting to the laboratory door which was now in sight. Devon looked back and saw four Beedrills about a quarter of a mile off from their position and gaining fast. "Faster!" Devon shouted at his partner who was in front of him. Suddenly, Devon's partner fell heavily to the ground with his foot stuck in a tree root. Devon, however, was able to jump over his partner and make it to the laboratory door. He could only look back for a second before the Beedrills stuck their stingers out at Devon. Devon quickly opened the door and shut it behind him. "AAAAAAH!" Devon screamed as a Beedrill's stinger stabbed through the door and nearly penetrated his face. He threw himself back onto a table that was placed a couple of feet from the door.

"Jumpy, jumpy," the professor laughed as he emerged from the adjacent room. "Heh, easy for you to say sitting in this safe laboratory all day while you send us to get your test subjects." "And whose fault is that may I ask?" asked the professor indifferently. "This is your fault as much as it is mine! You are the one who started all of these little experiments." spat Devon. "Oh, is it now. Well if that is how you see it I won't try to change your mind. After all, you ignorant Team Rocket grunts only do what your masters tell you. Am I right?" the professor remarked. The professor looked away from the grunt and glimpsed outside the bullet-proof window. "Hm, it seems I won't have to deal with your friend anymore by the looks of it," the professor said with a smirk. Devon couldn't help but clench his fist and cringe at the professor's comment. Devon felt like caving the professor's face in at that moment but composed himself and grinned. "I guess he didn't go through more than your precious pokemon did. Right Professor Crazy or should I say…Oak?" Devon giggled as he spoke. Oak sneered at these words and through his hands around the grunt's neck. "That was you and your superiors you grunt-dog! That was not me. What happened in my lab that day was used against me and that is how I ended up here!" Oak shouted with rage. The grunt was completely helpless but continued to grin even as he was choking and managed to say a few words in his shortness of breath "Remember--remember why you need me." Oak's eyes grew wider and his grip tighter but he knew that what the grunt said was true. He did need someone to capture live pokemon so he could stop this madness. Oak threw the grunt from the table and onto the floor. As the grunt lifted himself to his feet, Oak asked angrily "Speaking of pokemon do you have any or was your friend carrying them?" Devon took a deep breath and coughed as he spoke "Yes but I only have one." “Hmmm, good enough I guess,” Oak said as he snatched the pokeball from the grunt’s belt. “You may leave now Mr. Devon. I won’t be needing you for the rest of the day.”

Oak couldn’t remember feeling so bad in his life. He let a few tears fall now and again about what had happened that day but he never recollected the memory as strongly as he did when the grunt had brought it up. He could still see the faces of all of his pokemon—the same pokemon he trained from their birth and throughout their lives. No…no I am NOT going to go through this again Oak quickly removed the thoughts from his mind. “I have to concentrate on the cure not the past.” Oak lifted the pokeball and pushed the white button in the middle. As the ray from the pokeball began to materialize the pokemon contained within, he could not believe his eyes! A pure white Dratini! The pokemon was unconscious from the dart that was shot into the back of its neck. Oak deduced from the black substance on the pokemon’s back that it was involved in some kind of oil spill. He did remember one of the grunts mentioning the oil spill from the refinery some miles off. “My, my. What a rare find this one is.” Being an avid collector of pokemon, Oak had to fight the urge to hide and keep this rare find; however, he knew that all pokemon subjects were to be used to test his vaccines or to catch other infected for his research. As Oak weighed the odds of the pokemon's survival in both scenarios, he decided to use the Dratini for capturing the infected. Oak walked toward a desk that contained soothe bells which were used to both calm the prey and lure the predator. He opened a drawer containing the soothe bells and picked one out. He returned to the operating table where the Dratini lay and clasped the bell around its neck tightly. “I’m sorry little one, but if I don’t use you for this then I will have to turn you into one of them myself.”

**relocated**


"Hello!" Silver's gruff call rang across the lake. Inside, he cringed, knowing that the infected would be on his tail in a heartbeat if there were any around to hear his cry. He followed a few paces behind the Gible, so as not to alarm the pair, but agilely avoided the Dragon's muddy footprints.

He stopped a few feet away from them, not wanting to come any closer for fear of attack. He remained on all fours to be less frightening to the unevolved two, and did his best to shelter his Amulet Coin from sight -- he knew Purrloin had the tendency to steal...

"Are you saying," he began, reaching up to rub a bit of mud off of his cheek with the back of a claw, "that you aren't infected? That you've seen them, and made it away without being infected?" His sharp magenta eyes took in the pair and found them an odd match, snickering inside but remaining hopeful to join their ungainly band.

*relocated**


"Now that I've told you my name, why don't you tell me yours?"The Purrloin asked, her eyes on the bell on his wrist.

Lockes' grin grew larger.
"WOW! A 'trainer' pokemon! I was told by my elders about you guys! Said you were all very strong!"
The Gibles' eyes hazed over, as he felt a great hurt in his chest, remembering what had happened to his elders and his clan.
"They're gone now. The dead ones took them away."
With a shake of his giant head, Locke pushed his sad memories away.
"I'm Locke. I'm a Gible. I come from-"

"Hello!"
Locke was interrupted by a raspy and deep sounding voice from behind them.
He hopped around quickly, to meet the gaze of another purple pokemon, but this one was much bigger, and had large razor claws and a big red fan on his head.
Oh man! He's scary looking!...but he's talking, so he's not a dead one.
Locke blinked and stepped back a few steps as the newcomer stalked up and eyed the two of them.
"Are you saying "that you aren't infected? That you've seen them, and made it away without being infected?"
His face was fierce, weathered by many years and many terrors.
Locke looked back at Jackie, then at the new one.
"Hi, new purple thing!" waving his claw nervously. "I've met them-the dead ones I mean. They took over our caves, and killed our elders."
The young Gible started to tremble, unable to forget how the dying sounded as they were eaten alive.
"We had to leave...but they followed us...I've been running ever since."
Locke swallowed hard, a pained expression on his face.
"H-Have you met them? Who are you?"
He shuddered and his hands went to his giant mouth.
"You haven't seen any, have you?- around here?"

**relocated**


Jackie gazed at the Weavile, wondering if it had any items she could steal, but how could that Weavile not notice they weren't infected? It was a pretty obvious thing to tell, seeing as they didn't have greasy fur..or skin, in Locke's case, and they weren't trying to eat the Weavile. Plus, they were talking.
"Well, I don't know if there are any near the lake, but there's sure to be more around the surrounding areas." Jackie told Locke, hoping it wasn't going to freak him out anymore. Then again, he had already encountered them before, so how could it?

Now I can't steal from this Gible. He's been through too much. Jackie thought, but if that Weavil had something, she was going to try and get it. But for now, the Purrloin had more things to focus on, such as the Weavile itself and the food supply around the lake. It surely was not going to last forever, and Jackie needed to know where to g after it was gone.

**relocated**



"Oooh" the Dratini moaned as it rose from the operating table. He looked around the room and thought Whoa, what is this place? "H--How did I get here!?" the Dratini said shakily. I don't remember anything since... The Dratini remembered his dead brother and the experience he had. But how did I get here? All I remember was feeling a sting in the back of my head. The Dratini lifted his tail toward the back of his head and touched his neck. Well, there is nothing there. Hmmmm. The Dratini hopped off of the table and onto the floor. Thump, thump, thump, thump. The small albino quickly turned his head toward the sound of the steps. Oh gosh! I have to get somewhere fast! He hid under a nearby desk and watched the strange being come into the room. Wow his feet are huge! The Dratini thought as he watched the being walk from the doorway to the operating table.

"Hmm. Now where is that pokemon?" Oak said out loud as he looked around the room. "He couldn't have left the room. I had the door closed," Oak said as he rubbed his chin. "Now come out I know you are around here somewhere." He stood near the operating table waiting for the Dratini to come out. He began to take a step away from the table to look for the Dratini when he stopped himself and thought If I move I may step on it. After a couple of minutes Oak sighed then said kindly "Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you." Oak put his hand on the operating table and sighed in frustration. He heard a bell ringing and suddenly gapsed. He turned his head toward the laboratory door. He left it open!

The small albino jumped towards the open door and slithered into the hallway. He was trying to get away as fast as he could. Yeah right he wasn't going to hurt me. Everything that I have run into these past few days have tried to eat me or kill me. The Dratini suddenly heard footsteps close behind him. They were getting faster and faster. Darn this thing around my neck! If it wasn't for this he wouldn't have noticed that I left the room. The Dratini was desperately searching for a place to hide. He was able to find one behind a small bucket that was placed in the corner. The strange being darted into the middle of the room. It searched under all of the tables and behind all of the crates. It started moving towards the pale that hid the Dratini. The small Dratini closed his eyes and hoped the strange thing would not find him. As the pail began to lift off the ground, the small albino heard another voice but did not understand what was said. Suddenly, the pail was dropped back onto the floor and the strange being ran out of the room.

The albino slowly emerged from his hiding place. That was close. I wonder what scared them off. He saw three doors, but he did not know which one led to the exit. Hmmm. I don't want to go back, and I don't want to meet up with that giant again. I guess I will take the middle one.The Dratini quickly slithered through the doorway and into a smaller room which had a rectangular table, some windows, and a door with a hole through it. The door was left ajar with enough space to allow the Dratini to squeeze through. After exiting the room, he noticed he was outside again. The Dratini began to move forward when he heard a loud buzzing to his right. A large Beedrill charged at him with his stingers pointed towards the small Dratini. "Whoa!" The Dratini quickly jumped away from the Beedrill's path, but it quickly turned around. This thing is fast! I can't get away. Maybe if I can get back inside I'll be safe. He struggled to squeeze himself through the doorway. The Beedrill was flying so fast that it hit the door and fell to the ground but lifted itself back up with its thin legs. The small Dratini continued to push itself through the doorway. As the Beedrill lunged its pointy hands toward the helpless albino, the Dratini threw himself inside. He could not catch his breath and so began to pant heavily. He lifted his head and looked at the Beedrill that was crazily trying to push itself through the door. Heh...I--I made it! He was exhausted and he felt sharp pains all over his body. The Dratini knew that he could not stay where he was, but he felt so tired that he could not move another inch. The Dratini slowly closed his eyes and fell asleep.

"What did you do! I told you nobody was to enter that room!" Oak scolded Devon as they ran through the laboratory. Time was running out, and Oak had to stop the pokemon from leaving the building or all of his research and hard work to stop the virus would be for nothing. "You idiot! Now everything may be lost because you did not listen to me!" Professor Oak and Devon entered the containment room. They saw most of the pokemon in their cages but two of them were open. "We are lucky that the two pokemon that escaped were small; otherwise, we would be dead right now," Oak declared as he searched for the two missing pokemon. "The two that are missing are the Ralts and Zigzagoon," Devon said. "Why did you open the cages for those two?" Oak asked. "They didn't look infected anymore so I thought that I would take them out and examine them for myself," Devon replied. "Wait. You said they looked normal again?" Oak asked as he raised his brow in surprise. "Yeah," Devon answered. "They didn't act like the brainless infected and they didn't look like them either. The only reason they got away was because I forgot to close the cage doors again when I left the room to get you." "Interesting" Oak said with a gleam in his eye. "This may be the cure we have been looking for. I just have to see my notes." Oak made his way to a file cabinet and opened a folder that contained the formulas for the antidotes he was using. "This was the one I used on the Zigzagoon and Ralts," Oak pointed to a jumbled group of words and numbers. Devon looked over Oak's shoulder and asked "Well why don't we try it again with one of these pokemon?" Devon pointed to the remaining infected. "I don't think we should," Oak replied. "We need to test the antidote on a fresh infected so I could be certain that the formula does not mix with any other formulas that I previously tested on these pokemon." "What about the Dratini that I caught you?" Devon said. "Good idea. If this is correct," Oak pointed at the paper again "that Dratini may be the last pokemon that we have to turn but there is a problem." "What is that?" Devon inquired. "I can't find it. The thing ran out of my office," Oak answered angrily. "I'll find it," Devon said. "If I can track live pokemon in the forest, I can certainly find a pokemon in this building, but what do you want me to do about the other two?" "Never mind them. I just need a fresh infected," Oak said.

Devon looked behind and under everything but could not find the missing pokemon. He thought to himself I looked everywhere. Where could that thing be? Devon decided to go back to Oak and tell him that he may catch another one later until something occurred to him. Wait. Maybe--No, it couldn't be there. Hmmm. I'll look anyway. After all, it is the only place I haven't looked. The grunt set out for the entrance of the laboratory. When he arrived at the doorway to the entrance room he heard a faint scraping sound that sounded much like a nail against a chalkboard. Devon had heard that noise before, but it wasn't a noise that was made by a normal pokemon. The Dratini! The grunt stood with his back against the wall and slowly moved his head towards the open doorway. His eye was able to catch the Dratini slowly slithering under the table. The grunt could only see the black tail. Devon was able to see a small scratch on the back of the pokemon's tail. He quickly moved his head back behind the wall. Yup. That Dratini is not a pokemon anymore. An infected must have got to it. Devon took a pokeball from his belt. I've only got one shot at this. Dratini can jump as fast and as far as Ekans can. I cannot fail. Alright. One...Two...Three! Devon threw the ball at the Dratini but did not stay in the doorway because he feared he may have missed. Devon closed his eyes and listened for the Dratini. He heard nothing. Devon slowly moved his head away from the wall and looked into the room. He did not see anything under the table except for a pokeball.

"Professor! Professor!" Devon shouted as he ran toward the containment room. "I have it! I caught it!" "Don't get yourself worked up over catching a simple Dratini," Oak said as he grinned. Oak took the ball from Devon and put his finger over the white button. "Hold it!" The grunt exclaimed "I wouldn't do that if I were you. It's infected already. One of the diseased pokemon must have gotten to it." "Oh" Oak said surprised "Well we better put it in a cage." Oak walked towards one of the vacant cages and placed the pokeball in the corner of it so the button could be pushed easier. Oak took a ruler from the top of the filing cabinet and poked it through the cage. He pushed the button with the end of the ruler and a white ray came out of the pokeball. The Dratini threw itself at the side of the cage with such a great leap from the pokeball that the cage almost fell over. The Dratini’s loud screeching sound was higher than when the grunt had heard it at the entrance. Oak could not take the noise. He immediately covered one of his ears with one of his hands and used the other to reach for the syringe that he put the antidote in. The professor swiped it from the table and took aim of the screaming Dratini. The albino was throwing itself from one end of the cage to the next in an attempt to escape. Oak stabbed at the cage with the needle, but he could not manage to penetrate the pokemon’s skin. “I can’t get him!” Oak yelled in frustration as he continuously stabbed at the cage. “It’s too small.” After a few more shots at the Dratini, he finally was able to stab the needle into its stomach. As Oak pushed the end of the needle to inject the antidote, the Dratini writhed in pain and anger. Oak struggled to keep the Dratini in one spot as he tried to take the needle out so he would not injure the Dratini further. After the professor removed the syringe and his hand from the cage, the Dratini began to thrash all around the cage still screeching. “That will do for today Devon,” Oak said exhausted. “We should get some rest and see the results tomorrow.” Devon nodded and looked at the furious Dratini. “I hope that antidote of yours works,” Devon said as he proceeded toward the door. “I hope so too,” Oak said as he watched the grunt leave the room. Oak looked back at the Dratini “My, how furious these pokemon are when they have just become infected,” Oak said as he gazed at the pokemon in the cage. I hope that antidote works for his sake as well as for the sake of the pokemon world Oak thought. Oak spent a few more minutes looking at the Dratini and analyzing the effects of the infection. “I’d better get some sleep. I’ll have a big day tomorrow if it works.” Oak looked over his shoulder at the Dratini as he walked towards the door. Oak reached for the light switch and turned the light off as he exited the room.

**relocated**


Silver gave the Gible a once-over as he listened to his brief story; he blinked once, very quickly, as he noted the expression of grief and loss on the stubby dragon's face. "H-Have you met them? Who are you?" The Weavile held in a pained half-laugh as the Gible brought his small hands to his ungainly large mouth. What an awkward-looking creature.

"Yes, I've met them. Very personally." he said plainly in response. Nostalgia flitted through his gaze as he briefly thought back to the day he escaped his Trainer's bloodstained clutches, hastening off into the woods as the sounds of moaning and smacking lips and tearing flesh faded away behind him. "I haven't seen any around this lake, no. I came in from the south, from New Bark town. And I'm called Silver. What's your name?" He added the last question as an afterthought, as curiosity got the better of him.

He shot a glance over at the Purrloin, who was giving him a rather odd look. He reached up slowly and clutched his Amulet Coin close to his chest, a wary and protective look entering his sharp magenta eyes; he hoped she got the message that stealing would be met with harsh punishment.

Relieved to hear that neither had seen any of the undead nearby, he returned to his normal self.
Maybe this place is okay afterall! He thought, oblivious to the silent conflict occurring between the other two.
"Hi Silver, I'm Locke!" He said, extending his stubby claw in friendship.
"I'm glad to meet you! I-"
Locke paused mid-sentence, interrupted by a quiet growling sound.
His stomach was really complaining. He had only had a few scraps over the past few days, and with an appetite like a Gibles', that was not nearly enough.
Embarrassed, he blushed and covered his small belly with his arms.
"Heh, sorry. I'm really hungry," He said with a grin.
Licking his lips, he remembered where he was headed to before he saw Jackie; the orange in the sky connected with the ground not far from here.
"Humans were burning the dead ones back in the town near my home...maybe that's where the fire is coming from."
Plague thought aloud as his gaze wandered to the glow in the sky.
"Maybe the humans are getting rid of the monsters! And where there's humans, there's food!"
The Gibles' eyes brightened as he thought of all the delicious food that humans throw away.

The smell of the living was in the water. Something was drinking from his lake.
Gyarados convulsed in his underground cave as the rage started to awaken the most primal parts of his rotting brain.
They must die! They must die! His brain screamed as his dagger-like teeth drove themselves into his own side.
He tasted nothing but old blood.
He could feel their little bodies giving off vibrations on the surface above; he could hear a beating pulse. This is what he needed to stop.
Kill the intruders!
His jaws opened and shut as he sluggishly swam to the surface on shredded fins and broken spine to devour whatever was in his path.

As the infected Gyarados exploded out of the water, he released a mighty roar.
Water sprayed in every direction as his serpentine body snaked onto the shore of the lake.
Gagging and hissing with rage, the infected caught sight of the intruders.
Two of them ran into the trees, but one stood too scared to move as it stared at the looming creature.
He froze as his dying vision trapped the terrified Purrloin in its’ gaze.
It must die! It must die!
The Gyarados roared once more as it shoved itself towards the pokemon, reared up and flew with jaws wide towards the young cat.
“Jackie!!”
“NOOOOO!” the little blue one could not be heard over the dragons’ weight colliding into the ground.
The Gyarados could feel tender flesh between his teeth.
With a sickening crunch, he began to feed on his captured prey.

(OoC-Well that was interesting)


The Dratini slowly awoke from his slumber. The small albino opened his eyes and noticed that his sight was not the same. The edges of his sight were filled with a somewhat clear smoke that looked like rippling water. Although he could still see normally, the foggy eyesight was a nuisance. He noticed that the room was very dark and that the moon's light which came from the high windows to the right of him was the only thing that allowed him to see the whole room except for a small area in the corner that was covered in darkness. He didn't remember this room. All he could remember was trying to escape, but the rest was blank. He looked toward the open door on the far side of the room. If I can somehow get out of this cage, I might be able to get out of here. The Dratini looked to the right and saw what appeared to be the door of the cage. He slithered toward it and pushed on it, but it did not open. I've got to get out of here this time. There is no way I'm staying here for another second! He returned to the end of the cage opposite of the door. The Dratini lowered its head and prepared himself for his leap at the door. He then threw himself at the door thereby causing the cage to fall to the ground; however, the cage door still did not open.

When he picked himself up from the floor of the cage, he heard a voice. "Is he one of them?" the voice whispered. "It doesn't look like one. We should open the cage for him." "No!" another voice whispered loudly "We don't even know anything about it." "Hello?" the Dratini asked "Who is there?" He saw a small green ball emerge from the shadows of the corner of the room. As the creature totally emerged from the shadows, he was able to see the entire shape of the thing. From what he saw, it had white arms and legs with a big green head that had red spikes poking out of it. The big-headed green creature said "I am Toyi," it pointed towards the shadows "this is Roann." Another figure emerged from the shadows. This next one walked on four legs and had brown fur all over its body. Its eyes were beady and black, and its tail was bushy. This new creature said "Who are you? Since we are asking questions, why don't you tell us your name?" The brown thing said as it looked at the Dratini with a sneer. "I--I don't have one," the albino said surprised. He had not seen anything that had not tried to eat him yet. Maybe I could trust these two. Whatever they are I am going to need their help to get out of here anyway "Could you let me out? I can't get out of this thing." "You see! He is trying to trick us so we could let him out! Then--then he will come out and eat us both!" the frightened brown thing said. The big-headed green thing lifted its hand toward the brown creature and walked toward the cage. "Calm yourself. Your nerves have jeopardized our lives more than once today. Besides, the evil ones do not talk, and this one does not seem to be full of rage or...sharp teeth; so, I think we could trust him." The green-headed thing put its hand on the door of the cage and turned the latch which opened the door.

The albino slowly exited the cage while keeping his sight on the two strange creatures he just met. The brown thing seemed to be more cautious than the green thing because the brown creature was stepping back as the Dratini came out of its prison. The green thing put its hand under its head as if to hold it up. "No name huh? Well we are going to have to think of one for you." The green thing walked back and forth in the corner of the room. "It's hard because we didn't have to think of names. The professor gave them to us." "Professor?" the confused Dratini said. "Oh--so...you can't understand what they say?" the Ralts said. "Well don't worry this one can't either," the green thing said as it pointed at the brown creature. "You may have seen the professor. He has a rather small head and a white coat." "Yeah, I think I know what you are talking about. The fur on his head looks the same color as that brown creature over there." The Dratini said as it turned its head to look at the brown creature. "Yes that is the one!" The green thing said as it jumped up and down in excitement. "I've been trying to describe this thing to Roann here, but he has never seen it before," the green thing paused for a breath and continued. "By the way. I overheard the professor call Roann and me different names. I heard mine clearly when he was writing something down on a paper. He said 'Ralts' and he also said another name after it. It was Zigza--zigza... I don't know but it sounded something like that. Unfortunately, I haven't heard any name for you yet. Well...it makes sense since you just got here." Wow this thing talks a lot! The Dratini thought as it continued to listen to the green thing. "For some reason these things can't understand us when we talk. Don't ask me why." I don't think I would ask anyway. I'm waiting to say something, but there is no break in this conversation to say anything. If you can call it a conversation at all. Some time after more useless information was spilled out of the green thing, the Dratini finally broke into the green thing's talk and said "I think I know a way out of here." The Ralts stopped in surprise "You do?! Well we should hurry because dawn is coming. The two always come in at dawn." "Okay green thing and brown thing let’s get out of here," the Dratini said as it was about to lead the two out. "Our names are Roann and Toyi," Roann said to the Dratini. "Oh-sorry--I'll remember that." The Dratini said as he proceeded toward the doorway.

The explosion from the water sent the well-trained Weavile into battle mode, but as he looked upon the enemy, writhing and twisting what seemed like miles above him, Silver's heart quailed; he thought back to the Red Gyarados he had spent his Sneasel days with, and recalled seeing him rip apart his old Trainer's home...

Thinking quickly and weakly fighting off his fear, the Dual-type dropped onto all fours and dashed across the grass as fast as a sprinting Rapidash, heading for the shelter of the trees as the Gyarados flung itself out of the water and landed with a mighty thump on the shore. Too scared to look back, Silver dug his claws into the nearest tree and climbed into the leaves, which were trembling from the Gyarados' thrashing weight. His Amulet Coin bounced on its thin string as he climbed, catching the dim light from the orange-tinted clouds.

Though he knew the Gyarados could easily reach him in the tree, Silver doubted the creature could make it far from the shore. There was no doubt it was infected; its scales were flaking off and large pustules grew up from the skin beneath. Its eyes were clouded with cataracts, and its body was torn open, its slimy entrails on the ground before it. Silver traced the edges of the wounds with his sharp gaze, and reeled at what the inspection produced: the wounds were self-inflicted. This Gyarados was eating itself.

Concerned for his new friends, he looked around the vicinity of the infected Gyarados, moving as little as possible so as not to attract the brute's attention. When he saw nothing, he was at first relieved, then more concerned -- if they got away, where were they? As he scanned the area, a flash of purple fur between the Gyarados' teeth caught the Weavile's attention, and his heart sank: that must be the Purrloin. Though he was incapable of helping her, he dared to crawl around the back of the tree's trunk and scan the nearby trees and bushes for the Gible, Locke. At least he could protect his new, living friend.

Cairo had watched the lake for quite sometime. He had traveled from his old den in the Tin Tower to this lake to try and salvage some sort of existence. The lake looked calm and inviting, but... some sort of feeling of impending doom had kept him from going near.

The pokemon congregating at the lake's edge had piqued his interest. They didn't smell or sound or look like any of the dead things he had come across. As he was about to make his tentative approach, (the weavile scared him a little) a decaying leviathan erupted out of the tranquil waters, roaring and thrashing about. In its fury, it snatched the purple fuzz from the lake, the small form instantly crushed in its jaws.

Cairo's attention immediately went to the little grey and the black things running away. He knew sound would attract another attack, so he went for the little grey thing screaming. Opening his wings, he dove for it and grasped it in his claws, bringing him further away from the lake.

Once in the tree, somewhat safe, he clasped the little dragon's mouth closed. "If you scream, you'll bring more dead things than just that one. Please be quiet...!" he pleaded in a panicked whisper.

The young Gible screamed in horror as the giant Gyarados started to feast on his newly-found friend.
"JACKIIIIEEE!" The terror overwhelmed him, and he dashed away from the bloody sight. He ran screaming, tears blinding him.
"Nooo!Noooo!"
Locke had lost all sense of reason; his mind seemed erased. All he saw was her delicate little body being crushed between those massive jaws...the blood dripping everywhere...Locke tripped over and over from the ground shaking underneath his claws. The monsters' thrashing felt like it was creating earthquakes.
Locke scrambled to his feet and chose any direction that aimed away from the rotting dead one.

He suddenly felt his heart in his throat as he was lifted up into the sky.
"AAAH! No! No! Let me goo!"
He struggled to look at his captor- the claws that held him weren't anything close to that giant blue monster...
He screamed weakly as he saw the ground far below him, with the Gyarados and that horrible place disappearing from his sight.
"Jackie..." he whimpered weakly to himself.

Locke was plopped on a branch in a tree not far from the lake. His whimpering was silenced quickly by the Flygons' slender but strong claws, holding his mouth shut.
"If you scream, you'll bring more dead things than just that one. Please be quiet...!"
The thing was there to help, and that was good enough for Locke.
Swallowing hard and holding back the tears, he shivered and clung to the the haunch of the large dragon for both balance and comfort.
Trees were something that the little dragon did not like. He was a ground pokemon, he belonged in the earth, not the sky.
"W-wwe have to go back; we have to go back fo-for S-Silver. He-he's my friend! The monster will get him! We can't let the m-monster get him!"
The Gible pleaded, whispering to the large dragon, staring up at him with large watery eyes and quivering jaws.
The soot was thickly layered on him, but tears revealed his blue scales underneath in a jagged stream down his face.

"Alright, here it is," the Dratini said as it pointed at the door with its nose. Toyi and Roann looked at the glimmering moonlight that came into the room from the doorway’s small opening. "Freedom," Toyi said with happiness. "I didn't think it possible until now. Even after being in this place for weeks, I feel sad that I am leaving it for some reason." "Of all the time you choose to think about this, you think about it now! We have to get out of here," Roann said angrily. "I'm getting out. I have to find my mother. I just can't think of the place where I saw her last. All I remember is being chased by some rabid birds." "How do you think I feel?! I don't remember ever being here. The last place I remember was a city and a hedge near a pokemon center." Toyi seemed frustrated. "I have to find my sister. She was right behind me until I blacked out." "How about we all leave now and help each other. I know I'm going to need help because I was attacked the first day I came out of my pond," the Dratini said. All of the pokemon abruptly stopped their conversation when they heard a loud creak. The Dratini looked at the doorway across the hallway that led to the containment room. “We have to hurry. I think we woke one of them. Both of you get outside. I’ll be behind you,” the Dratini said in a quiet whisper. The opening was not wide enough for Toyi or Roann to go through so Toyi slowly pushed the door open as he closed his eyes. I hope the door doesn’t creak. The albino thought as he watched Toyi open the door. The Dratini quickly turned his head toward the sound of the approaching footsteps. “Hurry! We don’t have much time. He is getting closer!” the Dratini whispered. Toyi and Roann dashed out of the building. The albino was about to escape as well until he heard someone behind him. “No! Not another one!” the voice behind him shouted.

The Dratini did not have to look back to see who it was. He already knew it was the professor from the sound of the voice. He leaped through the open doorway but did not make it all the way through. The Dratini’s tail was caught by the professor. As the albino was carried back into the laboratory, he could see Toyi and Roann dashing down the path and out of sight. No was all the Dratini could think. A hand immediately was clasped around the Dratini’s neck as if to choke it. The soothe bell around his neck was ringing loudly as the albino was thrown into another cage. “How did you get out of that,” the professor said as he turned his head to see the cage on the floor. The professor looked back at the Dratini. The Dratini was frightened by the gaze of the large monster that stood in front of him. “Hmm. You are not thrashing around anymore,” the professor said as he rubbed his chin. “I know what to do.” The professor walked out of the room and returned after a few seconds with a piece of raw meat and a bag of blood sealed tightly. The professor put the bag of blood under his arm and poked the piece of meat between the bars of the cage. The confused Dratini looked at the piece of meat. What does he want me to do, and what is that? “OK, well that tells me that you no longer crave flesh,” the professor said as he took the piece of meat away. “Now let us see how you are with blood.” The professor grabbed both sides of the top of the bag and pulled. The Dratini could smell the blood as the professor approached the cage. Blood! Kill him! Kill it! The small albino began to froth at the mouth as it stared at the bag of blood coming closer. He threw himself in the direction of Professor Oak almost knocking the cage off of the table. The Dratini let out a shrill cry as it tried to break through the cage. The albino continued its fit of anger and madness until Oak took the bag out of the room.

This doesn’t make any sense! It still craves blood but not meat. The pokemon does not go insane unless it comes in contact with blood. Its reaction to the blood is interesting. The gem on its head turned red when I opened the bag. Oak threw the bag of blood in the trash bin next to him and returned to the containment room. The Dratini looked as if it never had a reaction to the blood. It cowered in the corner of the cage as it saw Oak enter the room. “Hmm. I will have to show this to—No, I am not going to take this formula to Giovanni. I can’t trust him.” Oak thought for a second and decided to take the Dratini and his formula to his colleagues in Jhoto. “They will be able to distribute the formula there. We may even be able to perfect it. I just need to buy me some time to escape from Kanto and that awful grunt.” Oak took the cage from the floor and stood against the wall next to the doorway. “Devon,” Oak yelled. Oak could hear Devon’s footsteps approaching. He lifted the cage high in the air as Devon was just outside the room. Devon took a step into the room and was knocked unconscious by Professor Oak’s blow with the cage. Oak dropped the cage next to Devon and ran toward the Dratini’s cage. He snatched the cage from the table and held it under his arm. He then dashed toward a filing cabinet and grabbed his notes. Oak darted out of the containment room and made his way to the laboratory garage. He threw the pokemon and his notes inside the small jeep that the grunt brought in case of emergencies. Oak took the keys that were hanging on the wall beside the doorway and inserted them into the car’s ignition. He opened the large garage door and backed the car out. Oak sped away from the laboratory and out of the Safari Zone.

Just as Silver's keen eyes located the sooty gray speck that was Locke, a large dragonlike thing swooped out of the sky and nabbed him. Instantly, the Weavile recognized this as a Flygon, a large and intimidating dragon with razor-sharp claws and the ability to whip up massive sandstorms with one wing-beat. He set his jaw with anger and apprehension as he watched the larger dragon carry Locke to a nearby treetop, where the pair settled and the Flygon clamped the Gible's mouth shut. From his distant visual, Locke looked frightened.

Fear for his new acquaintance overwhelmed him and Silver quickly darted to the edge of a branch and leaped out into space, catching the topmost branch of a new tree closer to the dragons. He slid rapidly down the trunk and thudded through the bushes on all fours, navigating the dense underbrush with little trouble. After locating the tree hosting the pair, he scaled its trunk with ease, his razor-like claws digging into the bark without mercy.

A closer sniff of the Flygon's spicy scent revealed it was uninfected; the fear in Silver's heart momentarily abated. So it wasn't infected...but it still might be hungry. As he climbed the tree, he heard the pair speak, and it became obvious that the new dragon was neither hungry nor infected. "...The monster will get him! We can't let the m-monster get him!" Locke's shaking voice came from the top of the tree, and for a moment, Silver smiled; he'd forgotten what it was like to have friends...

He grabbed for the closest branch to the top and swung up into the canopy of leaves, supporting his weight with his tough arms. His ornate head popped out from the leaves beside Locke. "Please don't freak out." he said quickly, knowing his swift appearance must have startled the dragons. "I'm okay. Thanks for the concern, though." he said gruffly to the smaller dragon. Taking note of the blue creature's sooty scales, Silver chuckled haltingly. "Guess there won't be any bathing here."

"Don't freak out," Cairo heard behind him, which of course, called him to yelp and flail a little, keeping the little dragon Locke away from the new threat. When he realized who -or rather what it was- he relaxed only a hair. The weavile turned to the little Locke and said his thanks for the concern, then added, "Guess there won't be any bathing here."

Cairo's antennae drooped a little with exhaustion as his tail wrapped around the tree for support. "Never liked it all that much, anyway..." he said with a small smile. "My name is Cairo. And though it'd be nice to get the introductions, we need to move away from the shore. The big gross dead thing might have stirred up the other ones near here..." His antennae pricked and twitched to "listen" out for other dead.

"If we make it quick, I could fly us over to a small outpost near here. The black birds shouldn't be out for another while..." he suggested, spreading his wings a little. He hated being in the open and much preferred a solid structure to defend rather than a tree.

((OOC: He's talking about the building guarding the bottom of the route, a little a ways North from Mahogany where the Rocket guys took a toll))

It was strangely silent, Seven noted as he walked past a half-rotten tree. Normally, he would add a mark to it, but he didn't have the will to and besides, they might be able to see it and follow him. So he walked on, probably getting lost in the process and not really caring right now. The Scyther didn't mind getting lost, as it meant a few more of the infected could be destroyed.

While he walked, his eyes scanned the area for one of the infected. He had an urge to fight one of the creatures that had killed Zed and Alex in cold blood. It didn't have to be a part of the ones that had attacked them. Any would do. As long as the thing was dead but moving, he would get it gone like that.

A sound distracted him from his thoughts of killing. From here, it sounded like someone was shouting, but he couldn't make out the words. "Perfect..." He hissed with a smile while crouching low. Shouting meant a survivor. Survivors, especially when shouting, meant there was probably an infected nearby. Infected meant fighting. With a small bounce, he raced towards the sound. It was almost time to hunt, and he couldn't wait.

“Please don’t freak out.”
Locke let out a small squeak as the dragon holding Locke whisked him into the air, dangling him away from the voice that materialized out of nowhere. If he were standing on the branch himself, he would have probably been scared clean off. He blinked a few times at the unscathed Weavile in front of him.
"Guess there won't be any bathing here,” the big purple pokemon chuckled, as he eyed the little dragons’ filthy scales.
A toothy grin grew on Locke’s face as he realized that his new friend was unharmed.

Cairo brought the little dragon back over the branches and closer in to the two pokemon.
For once, the little Gible remained quiet and listened carefully, as he tried unsuccessfully to wipe the ash off his scales.
"If we make it quick, I could fly us over to a small outpost near here. The black birds shouldn't be out for another while..." the green dragon said, while stretching his long wings out.
Locke piped in-“Is that where the fires are? We were gonna be going there for food,” as he looked first at Silver, then at Cairo with large black eyes.
“The humans like to throw stuff away that is good for eating.” He added with a nod, when they didn’t respond.
Lockes’ stomach was hurting more than ever from all the events that had happened over such a small period of time. He felt bad for thinking about food when they needed to escape, but he couldn’t help it; it was in the young Gibles’ nature to eat almost constantly.