(ACE) The SHIPWRECK Team

((ooc: Please skip me this round.))

Saferi took the lead as they swam, and he saw her open her jaws to scent the area as the got closer to the cave. She reported, "I don't taste any blood from ahead." Okay. That was good. That meant nothing had injured her, right? If she had gotten hurt, then Saferi would be able to smell the blood. He hoped.

He followed her lead inside, and his heart dropped. Bell was nowhere to be seen. Thorn called out, "Bell?" His heart hammered when there was no response. No happy greeting or incessant questions that he'd be okay with answering if she were here.

"If something had come in she could have easily gotten lost within the caverns trying to flee." Saferi helpfully added. Unfortunately, it ramped up the Gyarados' fear. As she went in further with a short comment, "How ominous," Thorn couldn't help but remember when he let Newton out of his sight in that cave. He never saw the Espeon alive after that. He couldn't let that happen to Bell. Not now.

He glanced at the walls of the cave to judge if he could follow, and finding it sufficient, he swam to catch up with her. He hoped they weren't going in completely blind, and he had to ask, "Ever been in here?"

Sanngetall followed along in silence. This was fucking stupid. There was no point in bringing the brat, there was no point keeping it, but if it kept them moving then fuck it. Anger burned brightly int he back of his mind, spurred on by his stinging wounds, but even his past time of gibes and groans didn't sound like it'd help. Gods.. Just the thought of the kids screaming was giving him a headache. Or maybe that was just the ice cuts. Whatever.

While he can imagine the horrible sound the group is not greeted by ear-shattering squeals or even sinister bone crunching. In fact, aside from the sounds of nature and their own swimming this place is disgustingly quiet. "She's not here." He grunts, vainly hoping they could just turn around and go back. Alas, those words hardly even leave his mouth before Saferi starts spinning ideas. "If something had come in she could have easily gotten lost within the caverns trying to flee." With an exaggerated groan Sannge threw a fin over his eyes. "Or maybe she left because her babysitters had forsaken her." Hah, that would just be priceless if it was true.

If Bell had gone after them or left at all she was as good as gone. There would truly be no point in searching the vast ocean for a creature that could also traverse land. But even though this possibility pleased him Saferi crushed it down by, sadly, ignoring him and going further into the bluish stone cavern. With another whining sigh he followed along and heard her mutter, "How ominous."

Kicking up his fins the Dragalge pushed forward. Resigning to not getting out of this he would have to make it end as fast as possible. "Yes yes, very spooky," he grumbles quickly, the exasperation clear in his voice as he swam past Saferi. "But we gotta ship to bomb so lets keep this shit moving." The light from above petered out the further in they went, but the sloshing water from the air above kept everything fresh.  Great, so when we get lost at least we wont asphyxiate. We can linger until our bodies give out. What a time to be alive.

The bastard passed her like this was some waltz in a stream. The guy had no morels, strength to back himself up, little fear, and a sick sense of thrill, but that was still a pretty stupid idea given the nature of the area. He continued onward into the next branch, which started only a few yards further, like he was the lead but was forced to stop as Saferi called out, "Well turn around moron, that ones a dead end."

Ignoring the idiot the Huntail moved forward slowly after continuously checking their position and tasting for anything new. She knew this tunnel would get dark soon before opening back into the light, but even with that prior knowledge it was still eerie. "Ever been in here?" Thorn asked, the question seeming odd to the eel. After all, she had brought them here the first time, and knew this entire bay like scars on her body.
However, she assumed the question was coming from a different perspective, and her response would not be well received. "At one point," she said roughly, not looking back at the Gyarados. "I had wanted to make this place my den, but these tunnels are expansive and have many dead ends. They aren't safe to travel blindly." Given the pretty stone walls, air for both sea and land creatures, and the dangerous nature of caverns it made for an attractive spelunking spot. "So idiots came to explore back when the bay was lively and would get lost. Which isn't funny when its in your house."

But that wasn't their problem right now. Those adventurous souls had long since vanished, and anything that came in here would either be predatory or a refugee. And Bell isn't bright enough to run from something that seemed even remotely friendly. The eel fell quite, her focus shifting completely to any noises or rumbles within the water. There was something, a faint vibration, or a bounding repeating sound that she couldn't quite place, before a heavy heavy rumble. There was no doubt in her mind that they were not alone, but the source eluded her. Poking her head above the water Saferi listened for anymore information on the disturbance, but near instantly after breaching the surface she knew what it was.
Without the water to halt the airs vibrations the screams, thuds, and whines where painfully clear. The water, it canceled the noise! Shit, shit--"Damn water," she curses while diving and lashing her tail to pick up speed. "She's down here--! With something."


A crazed Barboach had wandered in, and while Bell initially thought it was Saferi the thing made it clear it was not. It seemed hurt and kept muttering to itself while it approached her, but when she asked if he was okay the thing didn't seem to understand. Some of its scales were discolored, and a sickening wound  ran jagged across her body. Bell had asked what happened, but as soon as she came close the Barboach attacked with a painful burst of water.

While it hurt the shock instantly rattled the child. Why did it attack her! She continued to question it while backing away, but the muttering, creeping fish just kept coming closer and kept using attacks at random. Its aim was poor, as though distracted by its own attacks, but Bell did not want to feel another. Too afraid to swim past it to leave she hopped onto the jutting rocks and backpedaled deeper into the cave.
"P-Please leave me a-alone." She had asked, but it didn't answer. At some point she had left its field of vision and the fish trashed in the water, causing terrible turbulent and a horrid earthquake from its Magnitude. The ceiling crumbled and rocks fell, some of which clonked and scratched her on the head and spurred her even deeper into the cave.

It got dark and Bell sunk against the wall, hoping the thing could not see or here her. The water was still, giving her hope, but suddenly came to life as the Barboach peeked out of it and kicked a Mud Bomb at her. Thankfully, its poor aim landed its brunt on the wall above her and the Poliwag raced forward until the cavern lit up once more. How much further did it go, she wondered. Could she remember the way she came? With light filtering down she could see this portion of the cave had pretty purple stones in it and awe inspiring stalactites, but she could not enjoy the scenery as the Barboach kept approaching.

The stone pathway came to a sudden halt, and Bell was too afraid to get back in the water with the crazy fish. It could see her now, and with what she could only imagine was a battle cry raced toward her. It tried to launch another attack but crashed into the stone first, like its depth perception was failing. "Are you alright?" She asked, concern overriding her fear, but the Barboach quickly retaliated with more Magnitudes.
The entire cave shook, the stones from above coming down in big, worrying chunks. Bell was knocked over, the force too much to fight. "D-don't do that!" She warned him as a big chunk of a stalactite fell, but as though her voice annoyed it it rammed the stones again. "You're hurting yourself!" But it continued, and with each shake her head grew dizzy and body ached more. The ceiling shook and rocks splashed in to the water with dangerous force. Bell shot her Water Gun at it over and over, and while they hit they did little to nothing. "P-Please stop!" She begged, her stubby feet shaking as she pressed herself against the wall in preparation for another shake. "It's not safe..."

Aqua hung near the middle of the group as they made they way through the twisting caverns. If she had come in here on her own, she's sure she'd have already gotten lost. "Well turn around moron, that ones a dead end." Even as she has the thought Saferi scolds Sanngetall for starting down a dead end. Prompty, the sea weasel follows Saferi down the correct tunnel. Aqua's eyes scan the rocks under and above water, half expecting to see Bell hiding behind them each time she looks. Nothing. If only they had had a bigger group -- someone could have stayed behind with Bell! This was too much to ask of a kid...

Seemingly without cause, slight vibrations ripple through the water. At first, Aqua ignores them completely as she continues to look for the familiar poliwag. Perhaps a rock fell or one of her companions splashed the water. She twisted and halted her swim as a heavy rumble shock the walls around them. "Y'all felt that too right?" She asks, spying Saferi darting towards the surface without a word. Once her head clears the water, it's obvious something's wrong. The eel's demeanor changes and she's again picking up speed and taking off down the tunnel. "She's down here--! With something."

The floatzel's uneasy expression drops into a horrified grimace and her eyes bulge wide. Aqua kicks off the shallow floor and bursts past the surface to hear for herself. When she does, the screams are unmistakable. She takes a breath and dives back below, frantically propelling herself after the group to make up for time wasted breaching the surface. "I heard it too! It's definitely Ms. Bell -- and she's not alone. Something must have chased her deeper in!"

Their progress slowed as Saferi navigated the tunnels slowly. Her answer to Thorn admittedly inane question was spoken roughly, but it kept the quiet from being so unnerving and eased him a little from his anxious thoughts, "At one point. I had wanted to make this place my den, but these tunnels are expansive and have many dead ends. They aren't safe to travel blindly. So idiots came to explore back when the bay was lively and would get lost. Which isn't funny when its in your house."

Memories of his home and how many humans flocked to it when the Gyarados started to rage popped up unbidden. Sometimes he seriously wondered about the humans and if they actually had a survival instinct. "I swear they're attracted to danger," he muttered; the statement was accompanied with bitter sweet memories of a tiny human girl looking at him in awe instead of fear. Behind her stood a Feraligatr that towered over her, and she was completely unafraid of the situation.

There was a brief shift in the current that he almost shrugged off before Aqua asked, "Y'all felt that too right?" His brow scrunched as he contemplated the feeling. Vibrations? But what would be causing them?

Saferi shot to the surface and breached the safety of the water to listen, and she dove back down with haste while swearing, "Damn water. She's down here--! With something." Shit. SHIT. The vibrations were probably attacks. Maybe ground? It wasn't strong enough to be an Earthquake, but either way, that meant Bell was under attack.

No. No. NO! Not again. Not here. Not in the dark again. Fear was starting to edge into anger, and he had to shake his head to keep from seeing red right then. He couldn't afford to rage. Too many others would get hurt. He might frighten his new allies. Or they might decide he was lost to the infection and try to kill him. No. He had to stay calm.

In trying to contain himself, he missed Aqua's brief foray to the surface, but he heard her report as well, "I heard it too! It's definitely Ms. Bell -- and she's not alone. Something must have chased her deeper in!" DAMMIT. They shouldn't have left her. He didn't know how they could have done anything else, but they shouldn't have. He stayed right behind Saferi; magenta eyes trying to see anything in the darkness. He almost wanted to rear out of the water and dare whatever it was to come at them, but he didn't know what it could be. If it was undead, it was probably too focused on the food in front of it to listen to anything else. They had to get there in time. They HAD to.

The beast asked if Saferi had lived here before and Sannge couldn't stop himself from shooting daggers at the both of them. Damn son, way to be forward. As she explained herself the seahorse wondered why getting such a response was so hard for him. He practically had to work the girl and Thorn just got to ask? No fair. "So idiots came to explore back when the bay was lively and would get lost. Which isn't funny when its in your house." Any envy quickly fades as the dragon starts to chuckle softly. "I dunno sounds pretty funny to me. You could chase those bitches through a bunch of anastomoses and watch run themselves dry!"

While he knew he was working with a tough crowd Saferi didn't even give him a 'fuck off'. In fact, the eel didn't give any response and the entire group seemed to be in a trance. What gives? "Y'all felt that too right?" Felt? Backlash hung on his snout but the dragon held his tongue as he indeed felt the tail end of a rumble. "The fuck?" For a few moments a thought overcomes him. Had the tables been turned? Was this cave going to collapse as well, except now they were the pests being exterminated?

The thought popped like a bubble hitting the surface as Saferi roared. Someone had flipped a switch and the group was bolting, bounding with energy and panic. "I heard it too! It's definitely Ms. Bell -- and she's not alone. Something must have chased her deeper in!" The brat was alone with something? Well, she's dead. Was everyone else thinking that, or did they still hope there was time?
Saferi's pace was fast, the close quarters and turns meaning nothing as her dark scales blended into the darkest points in the cave. Every so many moments the walls would shake, and when the seahorse thought he could see the cavern opening up, he heard it. "P-Please stop!" Well shit, she was alive. The pace, the fearful voice, the rumbling, Sannge had to admit his own adrenaline was pumping. The moment he entered the larger area he shot out a Scald and awaited the agonizing scream.

The eel knew these caverns. She knew the area up ahead opened up and had thin light pouring through cracks in its stalactite covered ceiling. She knew whatever was causing those shakes posed a threat to more than just Bell. She knew they did not have time to spare. If it keeps shaking the whole place will come down. Normally speaking, combat in here wasn't a bad idea, but whatever was attacking seemed to be using their plan against them.. ...Is a Phione seeking revenge? Over her dead body.

Saferi didn't know if the others were able to follow her. Between the imitate threat of being crushed and Bell's demise she was not taking care to slow down or look bad. Bell's squeals were soft, as though she was only whimpering. Was she dying, had they not made it in time, or was she just being quiet as to hide? Godsdamn it I can't read children. The 'clearing' was just ahead, and without a giving a signal Scumtail dashed ahead of her with a blistering Scald. "You fool," she hisses through gritted teeth, but resists further scolding as her golden eyes search the dark water for their culprit.

When she lands on the pathetic Barboach, somewhat sickly looking and clearly infected, Saferi is both bewildered and furious. The ground type could easily kill them all in it's diseased stupor. Scummy's aim was off and the attack completely missed its mark, though the eel doubted he had even seen the target before striking. However, the hot blast did bring out something, a sharp, "Eeek!" of a child not expecting such heated water to whiz by. Saferi's eyes moved up and saw the huddled up Poliwag at the Barboach's mercy. She's alive. Then their was still time.

In a matter of seconds the Huntail charged and shot the purple beam of her Hidden Power. Her aim was true, but the infected fiend pulled away from the stones just fast enough to only get clipped. Cutting it off the eel moved forward and hissed loudly. "Leave the kid and you might escape with your life, shitbag." She threatened clearly as sharp ice coating her fangs. "S-S-Saferi!" Bell's shocked squeal suddenly perked up, energy and a fresh bout of tears filling her shaking voice. "And Ms Aqua and Mr. Thorn-n-n." Even Mr. Sanngetall was there. They had all made it through the thing and come to save her! "C-careful," she whimpered and scooted closer to the edge of her rocky ledge. "I-It's making the ceiling fall!"

Saferi threw her gaze up right as the Barboach leapt and hit the ground again. Everything shook, the water, the walls, and the jagged stones that rattled or trickled down into the pool. "Don't let it bring this place down!" She both instructed and warned the others. She wasn't about to go down to some sick irony.

In a blink of an eye they are all rushing down the path. Aqua does her best to stay close behind Saferi, but finds herself lagging. The eel's spotted black and blue skin meshes all too easily with the shadowy cavern. Honestly, it was more like she was following a blur through the twisting tunnels. At least her other comrades were much easier to track and the further they went she found herself more so following them. Before she even entered the cavern or saw the rampaging undead she felt a familiar jet of super-heated water burst forward.

This must be it--! "Eeek!" And Bell was alive! "Be careful! Ms. Bell is in there too!" She cries, pushing herself to the front to see with relief that Bell was unharmed, though cornered. "And Ms Aqua and Mr. Thorn-n-n." A barboach, obviously diseased separates them from her. In another lifetime, she would have been trying to catch it for lunch on the beach..."I-It's making the ceiling fall!"

"Don't worry! We're coming!" She calls out, lost for anything more comforting to say. There was still the real possibility of this becoming their grave. As if on cue, the fish leaps up and crashes down hard, shaking the cavern walls with vibrations strong enough to dislodge stalactites. "Don't let it bring this place down!" Saferi echoed. How could they stop it if everything started to go down? None of the moves she knew had anything to do with stone. But there was something she could do. Her fur shimmers with a faint light as Aqua charges forward. A burst of speed kicking in as the agility fades that propels her around sinking stones and in a tight curve aimed for Bell. "I'll grab Ms. Bell, distract that vermin. Doesn't matter if this place falls down if we can get back out of it faster than a Jolteon!"

Saferi's camouflage made it difficult to follow in the dark caverns, but Thorn felt the currents of her rapid movements. They reached an opening, and Sanngetall bolted into the fray with a hot Scald going. Saferi tried to admonish the sea dragon, "You fool," but whether he heard it or not was debatable.

Whatever Sanngetall was aiming for, Thorn wasn't sure if he hit it, but the attack elicited an unexpected response. Bell's high pitched voice echoed in surprised, "Eeek!" Thorn's relief at hearing her voice was nearly drowned out by anger as he saw the creature trying to attack her. It was a sickly looking Barboach, and given the erratic behaviour, it was probably sick with the virus. Was it still infectious?  

Aqua warned, "Be careful! Ms. Bell is in there too!"

He called out, "Bell!" He was unable to keep the worry from his voice, and he was grateful it didn't crack. It wouldn't do to make her scared.

Saferi released a beam of purple energy that the barboach mostly dodged. "Leave the kid and you might escape with your life, shitbag," Saferi tried to taunt the infected fish. Dammit, it was so small. Landing one of his bites on that thing seemed highly unlikely.

Bell called out to them, "S-S-Saferi! And Ms Aqua and Mr. Thorn-n-n." Thorn's chest nearly burst with protectiveness; the shaking voice clearly indicating her terror. She yelled out in warning, "C-careful. I-It's making the ceiling fall!"

Aqua tried to yell encouragement to her, "Don't worry! We're coming!" As if on cue, the goddamn fish jumped into the air and slammed itself down onto the ground. The vibrations did nothing to hurt the part flying type, but he had to duck back into the water to lessen the blows of the rocks falling from the ceiling.

Unfortunately, he didn't move quite fast enough, and one decently large, jagged stone managed to clock him squarely on the top of his head. The thick scales prevented a scratch, but the impact still made him swear loudly, "Damnit!"  

"Don't let it bring this place down!" Saferi yelled out. How were they supposed to do that? He lunged at it with icy fangs, but the slippery bastard dodged out of the way at the last moment. He had to pull out of the attack before nearly running into a sinking rock.

"I'll grab Ms. Bell, distract that vermin. Doesn't matter if this place falls down if we can get back out of it faster than a Jolteon!" Aqua had a good point there, and he could see her glowing faintly. The glow was making her go a lot faster than before, so he had to trust that she knew what she was doing.

"Gotcha!" he yelled out in affirmation. He didn't have any long range attacks that would catch the tiny fish. But. Maybe he could stop it from using whatever ground move it had. He observed the fish as it moved for a few seconds, and when it looked like it was leaping up to use the ground attack again, water rushed around the Gyarados as he lunged upwards and met the ground attack head on. The vibrations that went through Thorn did no damage to him, and he won the contest of strength and threw the fish upwards and away from the ground.

(I hope this made sense, he used Waterfall from underneath the Barboach so he could tank the Magnitude)

Oops, he missed, but the prideful creature didn't feel a lick of embarrassment even as the child screamed. After all, that's what he was looking for; a response. With a hard, tight arc he comes to a harsh halt and lets his eyes adjust to the lit room. The 'monster' they were feeling was just.. a puny little Barboach? Immediately Sanngetall's face falls flat with disappointment. That wasn't exciting, that wasn't something he could really get into with all this back up. "C-careful, I-It's making the ceiling fall!" The child wailed, but he didn't feel any more zealous over the situation. What an actual buzzkill.

"Don't let it bring this place down!" Saferi scolded before going at it and the Dragalge's frown deepened. As if they didn't already come to that conclusion. Aqua dashed, exclaiming, "I'll grab Ms. Bell, distract that vermin. Doesn't matter if this place falls down if we can get back out of it faster than a Jolteon!" Good plan, good plan, then he could have some fun. Throwing his fins back Sanngetall roused up a Sludge Bomb from deep within. On the next jump he would cloud this shitty thing in enough poison to-- "Gotcha!" Thorn raced forward as a stream of powerful water and intersected the Magnitude as some sort of shock absorber. Nearly gagging on his own attack the dragon threw his head up, and the mass of filth splashed further off in the darkened portion of the cavern. Well, it should have splashed. It sounded more like a splat.

Ignoring it, the loud sound of churning water from the flailing Barboach was much more noticeable. With its landing zone padded by a natural bulk beast it seemed to panic and threw Mud Bombs this way and that. Jutting forward the Dragalage made a b-line for the infected thing and swung his poison tail with more force than needed. If he sent the thing flying, oh boy, that'd be a hoot.

While her tears had finally stopped Bell's sobbing did not. The Barboach was struggling in the 4v1, but it was not backing down. It continued with its old tricks though each one was thwarted by one of her friends. "I'll grab Ms. Bell, distract that vermin. Doesn't matter if this place falls down if we can get back out of it faster than a Jolteon!" Aqua said, both exciting and reminding the Poliwag that she was still in a dangerous spot. Wiggling in a forward and back motion the child didn't know whether to stand near the water for easy grabbing or closer to the wall to offer Aqua space. Unable to decide Bell just shifted herself a little bit further into the cavern and offered Aqua as much room as she could if the weasel decided to come onto the ledge.

Saferi watched the ceiling warily. How many times had the Barboached struck? How many more can it take? Just the motion from everyone in the room was enough to churn the water and rattle the walls. For all they knew there was only one good strike left before the entire place collapsed.

After Sanngetall's first hit failed he went in for another and scored a clean strike across the whiskered fish. It was close to the waters surface, and skid across it with a near 'skipping' sensation as it was thrown further down. But where Saferi expected silence when it sunk back into the water, she heard turbulence. Thrashing white water too strong for one little fish, even with the reverb of the cave system. For a couple seconds she wondered if the attacked had mortally wounded it and those were its death throws, but when the sound got louder, and the shimmer of eyes could be seen in the shadows, she knew it was something much worse.

"Fuckin' shit... theres a bunch of them!" From the dark more sluggish Barboach and even a couple Whiscash charged forward. They were in varying states of disease, none looking pure any longer, and one Whiscash made an opening move. Angling itself vertically it spun in a tight circle. The water in the cavern responded, following its follow in a tight Whirlpool. "Mother fucker!" Saferi yelled, a quick launched Water Pulse fading away in the force of the Whirlpool.

Aqua braces herself as she sees the undead leap for another attack, but the resulting heavy shockwave never comes. When she looks closer she spots Thorn's signature scales flash nearby and it almost looks like the water beneath the infected fish is rising up to meet him. Whatever Thorn did to cause that seemed to be working! Another flash of movement as the Dragalge shot forward to bat the fish straight out of the water and skip it down another cavern. Problem solved, right?

Aqua continued her beeline for the ledge Bell was taking cover on, too distracted to notice the swarm. "Fuckin' shit... theres a bunch of them!" Oh no. She angles herself upward, propelling faster, desperate to leap clean onto the ledge, grab Bell and flee. There was no way the caves could survive the blows from a whole group of those fish! As she moves to breach the water it starts to churn violently. The harsh whirlpool spiraling against her and dragging the floatzel backwards towards the center once again.

With too much momentum to stop, Aqua is still launched from the water, but instead of a clear landing onto the slippery ledge, her upper-half smacks down hard on the rocks. Sharp claws dig desperately into what holdings they can get as her back legs are still being pulled into the whirlpool. "Ms Bell! Stay back!" She croaks, still recovering from the blow against the rocks. Painfully, Aqua drags herself forward against the tug of the water. "It's not safe in the water!"

Sanngetall sent the little fucker flying out of the water. When fell back in, the barboach started throwing mud around in a fit. One of the attacks landed right in Thorn's face, but beyond being an annoyance that he had to shake off, it didn't do any damage. It was days like today that he was grateful for the flying half of his typing. He tried to focus enough to form ice on his fangs to launch another attack.

Then Saferi yelled, "Fuckin' shit... theres a bunch of them!" It was as if the ice in his mouth instead went straight to his core. They could handle one little Barboach, but more was a problem. Shit, if they tried more ground attacks, the cave would collapse, no quesitons asked. A blue fish... Whishcash? was in the lead and it began to spin so quickly, the water in the cavern began to swirl around it in a whirlpool. "Mother fucker!" The obscenity was accompanied by a Water Pulse that soon disappeared into the rushing water.

Aqua fought the force of the current and managed to jump halfway out of the water. The pull, while strong, wasn't quite strong enough to pull the massive Gyarados into it from this far away. Unfortunately, it did block his vision of the opposing group. He briefly considered trying to Waterfall his way through, but if he got too much closer, then it might pull him in. And if it threw him against a wall... Nope. That would end poorly. The chill in his mouth reminded him that he still had an Ice Fang ready to go, but the problem was getting close enough to do anything with it.  Earthquake was out of the question. Crunch had the same issue as Ice Fang. A deep growl reverberated from his throat in frustration. He wasn't sure how much of their minds remained, but he had to do something. He yelled, "Face me, you fucking cowards!" He tried to swim around the vortex that threatened as he attempted to lunge towards any fish he could see.

It flew like a bat out of hell, a shooting star, a worthless undead. "Booyah!" He mocked, his snout crinkling with delight, but it was a very short lived high. The water kicked and splashed, the approached of more undead impossible to miss, espcially with Saferi's redundant exclamation of, "Fuckin' shit... theres a bunch of them!" Well... that explained the splat. Narrowing his maroon eyes Sanngetall could see the toxic burns scored along one of the Whiscash's. His Sludge Bomb had found a target after all.

With a grunt he charged up another Poison Tail and was ready to barrel his way through the horde of death, but before he could act the decaying fish spun, churning the water into a massive whirlpool. As the water started to tug him Sanngetall shot backward, breaching and throwing himself out of the spiral. His muscles burned, screaming at the exertion as he skirted the edge of the spiraling water. Saferi was not so luckly, yelling at the brutes as the pull took her in. Thorn was out of reach, and tried to bring the prey to him with a loud jibe, "Face me, you fucking cowards!" Some of the Barboach took notice, and swam around or on the edge of the spiral as it carried them around.

Forcing himself further away from its influence Sanngetall took in a deep breath and felt the water heat up inside him. At the undead came around he shot the Scald in their direction, and though it was taken by the Whirlpool it was not a total loss. The band of heat passed across them, making some scurry and fall prey to the swirling water. If they could catch them all in their, could they leave without a hitch?

With her belly low to the ground in a forward 'crouch' Bell nudged closer and closer to the edge as she watched the water spin in horror. Saferi's shadowy shape was pulled in and being spun about, and the others fought to more away from its tug. Her eyes peeked over the edge of her rocky surface, wondering if she could distract the one responsible and make him stop. Smack. The Poliwag turns quickly as Aqua made it to her destination- sorta. The Floatzel was struggling, and as Bell crept toward her she shouted, "Ms Bell! Stay back!" The warning was a little shocking, but also a realization of how close her feet were to the edge as she jumped back. "It's not safe in the water!"

"Bu-u-ut it got Saferi! She's in there!" She whimpered, brown eyes looking over at the churning water. Mr. Sanngetall's hot water made a stream of bubbles rise to the surface that were pulled along the twisting current. Bell's fear quickly turned to a sense of hopelessness. If their ranged attacks couldn't make it through, and they couldn't get close, what could they even do? "How are we gonna get out?!" She practically screamed at the Floatzel, the very real thought of dying in the cavern coming back.

Saferi's muscles burned. Her long, limbless body made for poor maneuverability against the current, and her ice-covered fangs kept grasping nothing but empty space as she spun by fish and foe. Barboach that had moved into the spiral couldn't do much themselves, but again and again they would throw themselves against her as they swirled. Goddammit. Trying to use her Ice Fang was bad enough, but forcing her jaw to stay open as she charged her Hidden Power was near impossible if she turned her head anyway beside with the flow of the Whirlpool. The sphere grew, and Saferi trashed as her only defense against the spinning Barboach.

With a savage roar, she released the purplish beam in a haphazard twist. Between the Whirlpool and her own trashing its trajectory was not controllable. It scoured whatever direction her head was thrown, hitting some unfortunate Barboach, but missing others. Twisting herself against the flow Saferi tried to hit the Whiscash in the center, but between the tight, strong spirals in the center and the dwindling strength of her attack, the hit she got on it was not great enough to stop it. "That's fucking balls."

Claws scrape against the wet stone as Aqua's arms begin to tire out against the pull of the whirlpool. "Ms. Bell, listen to me! You have to stay here--Saferi can handle herself!" Aqua calls out with desperation. "You getting sucked in as well won't help nothing!" Purple lights flash wildly just below the surface and though she can't hear what he is saying, Thorn's red form is obvious around the outskirt of the whirlpool. Finally, her feet are able to connect with rock as she kicks them as hard as she can against the current. The hold is only temporary, but while she has it the floatzel is able to pull herself free from the water.

Out of breath, Aqua lays at the edge of the water, breathing heavily. The flickering purple lights only increase. Their aim sporadic, though one nearly clips right through the center. She watches helplessly as the water don't even slow from the close attempt. "We're...we're going to get out by waiting for the whirlpool to end. The fish can't keep this up forever and when he stops, we're going to dive in and make a break for it. As fast as we can go, without looking back. The others are fast, they'll follow us out." Arceus she hopes her words are true. Slowly, she rises to her knees, watching at the edge for any change below the surface and praying.

Each Barboach or Whiscash he was able to grab, he threw into the Whirlpool. Most of them had chunks of ice attached to them, and he could only hope that impaired their ability to move later. However, they were still stuck with the giant whirlpool blocking the path. He felt heat pass by him in the current. Someone must have used Scald... Then there was a beam of purple that he had to duck under. What the hell was that? This whole fight was going crazy, and he still couldn't think of a way to help more. Today was one of those days he cursed his heavily physical moveset.

He pulled away from the whirlpool once more, and he had a thought. He might not be able to go through the current, but he might be able to jump over it. He stuck his head out of the water to get his bearings and to see where the others were. The ceiling was a lot lower than what he would have liked, but he had to do something.

((Sorry for the short post, I got really sick, and I'm hitting a wall. If you don't want him doing the stupid thing, feel free to have someone yell at him.))

The Draglage grunted and huffed, streaming bubbles out of his long snout. He could dive close to the spiral, knock an incoming Barboach toward it, and dive back out. While it was working, and the attacking fish were falling back from him exhaustion was a real threat that would have him end up like Saferi. Hah, bitch. The situation was serious, but between his breaths his managed a snicker. Of all the Pokemon to get caught it was the fearless eel? Irony.

The joke fizzled, Saferi's haphazard attack clipping his cheek with searing pain. "Bitch!" He seethes allowed, eyes shooting daggers at the serpents spirally form. Or, what he thought was it. After a second the dual type realized, Damn, there's a lot of Barboach in it. Would it clog, was that a thing with whirlpools? Man, what happened when Saferi or all them got to the center of it? Would the Whiscash be knocked out, or eat them? "Bite the shit when you get close!" He called out, not sure himself if he was directing it at the Whiscash or Huntail.
A gurgling growl slanted his eyes away from the spiral for a coming Barboach. With more flare than necessary the Dragalge twirled and drove his tail into the smaller fish. A nasty wound scored its side, but it was its body moving into the whirlpool and toward the surface that earned his smile. Annihilation.

"Haha ha ha!" He boasted, his aching muscles tantilizing instead of agonizing. "That all you guys got?" His eyes darted between the others. No one was having fun? He got hit by friendly-fire yet he was-- Wham! Something crashed into the seahorse, throwing him back until he crashed against the fall wall. The world spun, pain radiating from all parts of his battered body. Peering through narrowed eyes he could see the other Whishcash coming his way, its Take Down not enough punishment for his treatment of the brood. "Fuckin..." he groaned, still feeling too dizzy to do much of anything. His tail flickered purple, but the Poison Tail was not coming, and the fuming Dragalge called out to any one of his fleet. "Hit the shit!"

Bell's wide eyes watched in horror as her companions both assaulted and were assaulted by the Barboach. "Ms. Bell, listen to me! You have to stay here--Saferi can handle herself!" Aqua's voice was very quiet to her as she realized something even more frightening than the possibility of dying- she had caused this. This was all her fault, and she had dragged her friends into it. If anything happened to them it would be on her toes... The Poliwag's lip whimpered harder, the tears bulging further from her eyes. "Iwa.." She mumbled, whatever word she was trying to say turning into a jumble of sound.

I-I did this.. She went further into the cavern. She couldn't lose the Barboach. She couldn't defeat the single Barboach! W-what if they couldn't beat the swarm? What if.. what if- Bell's breath quickened to panicked hyperventilating. This was worse than being in the Pokemart, worse than being frozen in the ship, or alone in the world. This is this-- "We're...we're going to get out by waiting for the whirlpool to end." Aqua's voice broke through her thoughts, and the child managed to focus her gaze on the Floatzel. "The fish can't keep this up forever and when he stops, we're going to dive in and make a break for it. As fast as we can go, without looking back. The others are fast, they'll follow us out."

For a few seconds Bell just stared. Wait for it to end.. the others were fast.. "But-- but I'm not.." Was she strong enough to do this? Would she be fast enough to do it? Was she sneaky before.. but that was just one Barboach, and she didn't remember the way out. "How do we.. eh.." Her tiny feet shook hard, nearly sliding on the slippery stones. It wouldn't work. They weren't going to make it....


Saferi forced her body to coil into a ball. More and more Barboach were joining her sickening ride, and her rounded body made for a better cannon ball since she was struggling to dodge them anyway. "Bitch!" Sanngetall roared. Was he talking about her, about how she had gotten caught in the spiral while the others remained relatively safe out of its perimeter? Venomous words hung on her tongue, but remained unspoken as ice coated her fangs and she ripped a passing Barboach in half. It was nauseating, but so was the constant spinning and pulling. "Bite the shit when you get close!" His voice was even more grating than usual as her eardrums were pounded by water.

But, as annoying as it was, he had a point, albeit one she had already come to the conclusion of. Ice still coated her fangs in deadly points, and as Saferi titled and kicked in her coiled position she knocked herself deeper into the swirl. The Whiscash was still spinning, though it was hard to tell with everything else doing the same around her. Opening her jaws she could feel the rush of the water and the chill of her icy attack. She was sick of this, sick to her stomach and woozy in the head. It had to stop. Unfurling her body the eel thrust with as much recoil as she could manage. The water swept her along, moving her mark, but the occupied catfish could do nothing in its defense.

Sinking her fangs into the first portion of it she could reach Saferi's teeth met just above its mouth and eye. The water pulled at her body but she refused to let go as she rocked her frozen jaw back and forth. The Whiscash bucked, it's tail flailing back and forth until its vertical body was nearly horizontal once more. The Whirlpool followed, tilting and spirally into itself with great force. The water sloshed, turbulence throwing it this way and that. The catfish lost control, spinning wildly with Saferi in tow.

Biting harder the Deep Sea Pokemon felt the undead's skin pulling away and her grip on it fading as pieces came off.  Her heart was racing, waiting for the kill. She was ready, it was time, but as a soft lavender hue overcame its rotten purple-black skin she released, and let the flow of water pull her away as the Whiscash started to charge forward with its Zen Headbutt. The lose of her catch told her to attack, but the Huntail hung back as she was tossed to a spot where, finally, she was no longer spinning. With scrutinous gold eyes she watched as the Whiscash swam around in circles before driving its head into the ground. The cave rumbled, the cavern shaking though the force was not as strong as previous slams.
With the loss of the Whirlpool and the damage to what Saferi could only assume to be one of their leaders the rest of the Barboach scattered, darting this way and that in the churning water. Some crashed into one another, others back to the shadows they had emerged from, but it was the ones that seemed to getting ready to.. "Get out!" She commanded, nearly screaming as multiple slugs went to leap and flop against the floor. "They're bringing the place down!"

Aqua can see Bell beginning to break down. The child's eyes were locked on the deadly whirlpool as her legs begin to quake and tears build up higher and higher in her eyes. "Ms. Bell...Ms. Bell you have to trust me." The floatzel starts, getting into position at the edge of the rocks. They couldn't keep this up forever, could they? For all she knew, those damn fish could be taking turns down there. Or maybe they'd keep it going just long enough to pick them all off one-by-one? No! This was no time for doubts...She couldn't be weak in front of Bell, not now.

"No we can. I can carry you. Ms. Saferi showed us the way here, all I gotta down is follow that same path back." Oh Arceus, she had barely kept up with her getting to this cavern, how was she ever going to pick the right escape route without help? Without warning the tides begin to shift, the whirlpool tilting off course and out of control. Shadows dance wildly under the surface, but there was no way to tell which shadow was what as the current continues to Churn. One familiar face does become clear just outside the water though.

"Mr. Thorn!" Aqua calls as the gyrardos' head emerges from the water. "I have Ms. Bell! We have to leave now--I think Ms. Saferi was able to hit the undead causing the whirlpool!" She calls, doing her best to be heard over the roaring of the water. Agonizing seconds later, the pool begins to still like the calm before a storm. The sea weasel waits with baited breath as everything seems to stand still. There's no way this could be over...and she's right. Reality comes crashing back, literally, as slender fish after fish leap forth from the surface, gathering their forces for a combined attack. "Quickly! We have to go now!" She yells, holding out her arms to Bell.

Before he could initiate the plan he had come up with, the whirlpool suddenly wobbled. It stopped pointing upwards and suddenly went horizontal. He could feel the pull of the vortex even more, but it petered out before it could drag him in. Suddenly, he could hear Aqua yelling, "Mr. Thorn! I have Ms. Bell! We have to leave now--I think Ms. Saferi was able to hit the undead causing the whirlpool!" Okay, she had Bell, that was the important thing. A bunch of the damned fish started to scatter, as well. Maybe they realized this fight was pointless?

Any relief Thorn had was destroyed when he felt vibrations run through the cave. Saferi screamed, "Get out! They're bringing the place down!" They were going to keep using their ground moves to collapse the cave with them still in it.SHIT! Even if he was massive, that much rock collapsing would still kill him. Some of the idiot fish leapt out of the water, and he swung his tail up to swat them away, but he could only hit so many.

He cleared a path through the fish for Aqua, and he called out, "Come on! This way!" She could swim faster than he could, right? "Get out!" He sure as hell couldn't remember the way out; the paths had been hard to to keep up with. He was ready to lunge towards the exit as soon as the others left.

Well. He was fucked. Flailing his tail the Dragalge rotated himself to be upside-down and dropped downward. The motion was only slight, his body only moving down a handful of feet before the Whiscash crashed into him. Pain shoot through his tail just like the stone of the wall behind it. "FUCK." He bellows as the catfish rolled to the side, the impact clearly not harmless for it either. Its rotten face was marred with jagged pieces of stone and toxic burns. "Bitch," he seethed through a wrinkled snout, a short Scald blasting its hateful eye. The undead kicked its flat tail, pushing itself back and throwing the Dragalge harder into the wall. Gods, what a piece of shit.

Full expecting it to smash him again the seahorse was shocked to find the catfish drift away. Seriously? Guess undead don't understand insults anymore. In its own way that was an insult toward him, and the Dragalge started to burn up more than his aching tail. "Hey, don't you--" but the drifting fish is boring compared to the barrelling Huntail, and Sanngetall watched with interest as Saferi assaulted the twirling Whiscash. It stopped spinning and drove its head into the ground. For a few seconds he smirked, glad that the spinning water would finally end, but it faded as the rest of the school started to panic. The water churned in another way, this way and that as the Barboach darted all over, including out of the water. Target practice? Peeling himself away from the wall the dual type had to admit he wasn't up for that.

Shaking himself out Sannge can feel his body screaming, the days troubles starting to build up more than he'd like. At least the pack-- "Get out!" Oh, for the love of-- "They're bringing the place down!" "You have got to be kidding me." He groaned bitterly as the entire cavern started to rumble. The schooling Barboach churned the water like mad, and he drifted this way and that as he turned for the exit. Fuck this Im out. Hanging out with Saferi had been nice but godsdamn fuck this shit. "Come on! This way!" He could hear Thorn call to the others, but he was having no part in the assistance. Kicking his tail the seahorse hissed through a crinkled snout at the amount of pain in his tail. The Take Down had really done a number, but he refused to hold still as he started to make his way out of the cavern without another thought.

No, no no no.... Dread sank like a stone in the child's belly. "Ms. Bell...Ms. Bell you have to trust me." Aqua pleaded, but the sound was like a whisper and Bell's big brown eyes simply begged for things to be over. Why did they come for her? If they.. if they had just thought she swam away everyone else would be okay..! The ground shakes beneath her as a room rammed the wall. They wouldn't be hurting because of her. "We c-c-can't.." She whimpered trying to catch a glimpse of those caught in the water.

"No we can. I can carry you. Ms. Saferi showed us the way here, all I gotta down is follow that same path back." The Floatzel's words were reassuring but the youth struggled to accept anything good would come from this. They.. they had to at least try, right? "O-okay.." She snivels, yielding to the resistance, and inched her way closer to the orange figure. With each tiny step though Bell could see the water changing. The spiraling shape faded and for a few moments it was nice and still. What happened? Aqua called out to Thorn, Saferi had beaten the baddie? But the raging water came back in full force, sloshing this way and that in an angry, random manner. Spooked, any courage she had mustered faded away and the youth hopped back toward the wall, no longer wanting to go anywhere near the water.

The entire cavern started to shake, the angry, hissing fish hopping from the water and crashing down on the cave floor. The ceiling threw cascades of stones down, and specks of light glittered from above. It was going to fall, there was no doubt in her mind. "Come on! This way!" Thorn's voice was booming but Bell could only watch helplessly as chunks of stone continued to fall. "Quickly! We have to go now!" Aqua's voice snapped her eyes back toward the water, and her outstretched arms were the last straw. Squeezing her eyes shut the child leaped into what she hoped was safety and prayed that, if nothing else, the rest of them made it out safely.


Saferi's body burned and ached, the turbulent water throwing her this way and that. She was tired, having swam more than her fair share that day, but still she fought her way toward the exit. "Hurry!" She roared, realizing that no one, including herself, was in a position to just bolt on out. With a concentrated effort she forced her eyes to focus and body to move, and saw the others doing much of the same; Thorn and Aqua were maneuvering Bell out while Sanngetall was crawling his way forward.

Between Aqua and Thorn there was plenty of help for the kid, so the eel struggled her away over to the entrance. The seashore had barely made it past that, his motions so weak the water did more moving than him as he drifted into the narrowed passageway. "Keep going," She growled, shoving him while snapping her teeth. Even in that brief bit of contact his rough, toxic skin irritated her scales and Saferi pulled away and took the lead. Angling her head back she could see the others and hoped they could keep up as she rapidly increased her speed. The water was still rough, and the entire cavern continued to rumble no matter how far they went. "Hurry!" She hissed, occasionally breaching to make sure they could see her even in the darkest areas, and avoid powerful back flows.

Far behind them Saferi could hear the cavern groaning, and horrible deep splashes echoed through the air. The place was collapsing. With each splash of stone more integrity was lost, and even where they swam shook with uncertainty. Turbulence and surges of water came at them from behind in large, black waves, and the eel was tossed around as she tried to escape. "The shits falling apart," she hollered before making a hard veer to a different passageway. Was this right? It was a miracle she had lead them inward properly, but going out she had even less time to take in their location.
With each small change in their direction she could taste the fresher, open water of the ocean. The roaring cavern continued, small stones falling even where they were as the collapsing stone made its way outward. The bright light of day became clear at the end of the stretch, and without any victory cries Saferi burst into the open water along with a rush of water from deep inside the cave.

Aqua's heart is racing. The fear and uncertainty is plain as day on Bell's face. Then, just when she thinks the child is going to come to her she back-pedals away. A part of her mind screamed at her to grab her and swim, but she waits for the child to come to her on their own terms. Finally, Arceus answers one of her prayers and Bell runs into her out-stretched arms. The floatzel can't conceal all her tears as a rush of relief overwhelms her momentarily. She wraps her arms tightly around the small figure like a tight hug. "We can do this.." she whispers both to Bell and herself before launching off from the rocks and into the dark waves.


Despite the whirlpool being over, the water churns and shoves against her as every undead in the school squirms and leaps to the surface. Unprepared for the backlash, Aqua initially is thrown sideways with the changing current though she somehow manages to avoid the disfigured bodies of the struggling fish. Suddenly, a large swatch of red cuts through her vision. Something cuts through a huge portion of undead, batting them to the side. "Come on! This way!" Thorn! Her mind screams as she puts two and two together. Her orange fur glows faintly as she activates another agility.

Her body flows with renewed, though temporary, energy and she shoots off towards the red beacon of Thorn's scales with Bell held tight. As she gets closer she hears him call out again."Get out!" He calls, staying guard over their small path to the exit. With no time to say anything she darts past him, thanking him mentally and making a note to do so later in person when they, hopefully, survive this. Not far off she also sees the bodies of Saferi and Sannge moving through the tunnel.

Their movements seem pained, but there's nothing she can do. The floatzel adjusts her course to swim as close behind Saferi as possible. Blindly trusting the eel to navigate through the tunnels as her own judgment is no better for escaping this maze. Even here the caverns shake and stones collide with the water. She's able to avoid a lot of them, but several still pelt her back as she swims.