(ACE) The ILEX Team

The Haunter didn't give a reply, instead pouting at Wes' logic. The gesture only made Wes snort with suppressed laughter, Whiskey only eyeing the ghost a moment before moving with Wes. The nomad began to make his way to Jaz as a high, shrill voice pierced the air. ”Ok, the fire’s out… The fucking undead is gone… and I’m rather confused. What the actual FUCK is going on?” Wes blinked in confusion as he watched the feathered Eevee-thing come nearer, bristling with annoyance. "And seriously? CAT? I am an Aiveon, thank you very much! I mean, that’s like calling you an ape!" Wes and Whiskey exchanged an identical glance of confusion, disbelief and wariness. This one was going to be interesting.

She took a look around, apparently surveying the damage as the others mulled about. Wes brushed himself off again, even though he knew it was next to useless-- no matter how much he preened, he'd be getting sand out of his clothes and hair for a week. At least he was used to it. "Feh… One hell of a way to spend the afternoon. Are you guys all ok? Anyone injured?”

"Bold of you to just stroll up to a bunch of strangers and ask," Wes replied calmly, a small smirk on his face as he looked down to the odd pokemon. Whiskey kept silently beside him, judging the newcomer. "But yeah. We're all right. I'd say the Haunter over there might be coughing up a lung, but, you know, ghost." He shrugged. "Don't know if he has lungs," he added in a whisper, leaning in a little to emphasize his point. He leaned back with a chuckle.

"You planning on staying? I'm Wes, this is Whiskey," he motioned down to the Espeon with his gun, who still continued to stare wordlessly at the strange feathered creature. "The lady yelling at everyone is Jasmine, the ghost is, uh, Xander, I think and.... there's one more around here somewhere..." Wes looked about himself a bit, then shrugged it off. "Eh. We'll find her. So you are?"

Adam shakes off his sand-covered fur as the sandstorm finally dies down, blinking rapidly. It looks like the undead is gone, off to torment some other poor fuckers instead of them. Good. He has no desire to be around cowards. As the woman's Water-type douses the fire, Adam begins to glance once more around the trees...the ones that weren't burnt, anyways. With this entire fiasco over, it was time for him to take his long-overdue leave, especially with another newcomer arriving onto the scene. Another Eeveelution, no less. Were his kind supposed to be so damn common? ”Ok, the fire’s out… The fucking undead is gone… and I’m rather confused. What the actual FUCK is going on?” Oh, this one was going to be a charmer for sure. If Adam were capable of flicking his ears in irritation, he would have done so then. As is, he settles for throwing one last annoyed look at the feathered feline. "And seriously? CAT? I am an Aiveon, thank you very much! I mean, that’s like calling you an ape!" Goddamn, shut up. The "cat" speaks more, and the human after him, but Adam doesn't bother listening to the rest of the conversation. None of it matters to him now, after all; it's not as if he's sticking around. The rest of the forest's expanse was surely dangerous, yes, but better that than staying here. If he dies, he dies, that was that..something prickles at the back of his mind, urging him quicker to the cover of the trees. Go. Just go. Adam slinks off away from the group and into the darkness of the rest of the forest, vanishing without a single glance back to the humans and Pokemon behind him. Darting around fallen leaves and small branches alike, the Radeon barely makes a sound as he runs away. He doesn't know where he's going now, but then, he never did have a destination in the first place. Adam only knows that here in this forest is not a place he wants to be.
It doesn't matter how long it takes him to get out, as long as he was alone.

[I'm really sorry for the quality and length, but...leaving post.]

"Bold of you to just stroll up to a bunch of strangers and ask, but yeah.” Pixy sighed in a bit of relief. In a forest that absolutely REEKS of bad news, there was finally some good news. Pixy shudders as she realized the weight of what just happened- rather, the possibilities. Thank Arceus that the undead was dumb enough to lead with a wing attack. Perhaps it didn’t know what an Aiveon is, but still- all that remained was a dull sting from the impact. ”We're all right. I'd say the Haunter over there might be coughing up a lung, but, you know, ghost." Pixy snickers- she hadn’t met someone who knew how to make a joke in a good while. This fellow seemed pretty lighthearted overall, which was pleasant- though she was fully aware that they had only been acquainted for all of a few minutes. "Don't know if he has lungs,"

”Snrk… hehehehe~!” The human actually managed to get Pixy to laugh! Not that it was a hard task, but all things considered, what had happened over the past ten minutes or so- the Eeveelution wasn’t expecting to find herself giggling like a young girl!

"You planning on staying? I'm Wes, this is Whiskey, the lady yelling at everyone is Jasmine, the ghost is, uh, Xander, I think and.... there's one more around here somewhere..." He looks around, presumably for this one more, before shrugging to himself. "Eh. We'll find her. So you are?"

Pixy dips her head in a kind of respectful bow to each of them, and then to Jasmine, coming back up with a grin. ”Name’s Pixy.  Nice to meet all of you. And I’m glad to hear that you’re all ok after that. Any clue what provoked that thing? Aside from, you know, being a rotter?” She shook herself off a bit, taking a look at her ash-covered paw. Stings, but it doesn’t look like there will be any lasting burns, which is a relief. ”Ah, and is there anything I can assist with? If it’s alright with you, I’d much rather travel with you guys, Wes, Whiskey. I had my share of alone time in this forest, and I can only describe it as... beyond unsettling.”

The small iron Pokemon had been separated from his older brother for quite some time now, having gotten out of the cold ice caverns and into the twilight forest. Barely seeing in the dark, let alone over the taller vegetation, was really hard for the small aron to figure out what way he was going. Really only working with what he could remember, the Larvitar tells himself to stay low and not draw attention to himself by screaming and shouting. That was hard for the overly bouncy steel type: to stay quiet, and more so while being alone with avoiding undead.

His face plate lights up from the sudden bellowing flames shooting into the sky, brilliant reds and oranges. "Woah, pretty."  His blue eyes reflected some of the light as his heavy body picked up speed on the short stubs of legs, "May be Gaby," he told himself. A large Pokemon flew over in the sky and he waited for it to fly away.  Jeriah started again, legs scampering, propelling him forward, sliding to a stop as the fire was put out by water which erupted into a high smoke pillar. "Other Pokemon," he gasped as he tried to comfort himself with talking, "Maybe good Pokemon, or those mean ones fighting," With the realization of possible enemies, he went forward just a little more careful, instead of simply rushing ahead blindly.

Something purple runs by him too fast to really see what it was,  Jeriah blinking his beady eyes as he, thankfully, wasn't detected. Jeriah let out the breath he had held, moving forward again toward the sound of voices, making sure he was still under foliage to stay hidden. "The lady yelling at everyone is Jasmine, the ghost is, uh, Xander, I think and.... there's one more around here somewhere..." a male voice said ahead of him as the Aron poked his steel-plated head out, looking up at the back of the human male that was talking.

Jeriah looked forward between the stranger's legs at the rest of the Pokemon in the group. "Humans!" he cried cheerfully, wandering out of his hiding spot and  bumping into Wes's foot before moving around the man's boots into the rest of the party at hand. Immediately, he first saw the familiar shape of an Espeon. "Pretty," he marveled as his eyes gleamed with a child's curious nature. Seeing the other vulpine like Pokemon scattered around, he spotted many other shapes and colors he didn't know and the ghost mentioned.

He leaned to the side slightly before waving his stubby leg at them, almost tipping over in the process. "Hello," he greeted, eyes reflecting his own playful smile, "I'm Jeriah." Looking around, he could see Jasmine was angry about something so he headed her direction. "Don't be mad," he offered, tilting his head to the side. He then turned back to the other Pokemon and placed himself into the center of their small group. "What happened with all that fire?" he asked kindly, looking to each in turn.”Ah, and is there anything I can assist with? If it’s alright with you, I’d much rather travel with you guys, Wes, Whiskey. I had my share of alone time in this forest, and I can only describe it as... beyond unsettling.” the white and purple one said "Can I help to?" He quickly turned back to Wes and saw his gun, immediately charging forward toward it. "Ohhh food!"

(Thanks Lugia for Proof Read)

"Bold of you to just stroll up to a bunch of strangers and ask, but yeah.” Wes was taking up the duty of being social, something Jasmine had no ssue with. Turning away from the group, and in turn the conversation, she was grateful for the threat to be over. Despite the firm grip on her gun, the trainer was dying to release her Togekiss, the fairy capable of calming her nerves just by being out. Good news, even though the sun was falling, there seemed to be no danger and the steel type specialist turned back to Wes and the feathered cat.

"Eh. We'll find her. So you are?" Jasmine's eyes darted to Wes and away. "Find who?" she questioned bluntly.

The Aiveon proved not so bad, though, giving a nod to the trainer before introducing herself, ”Name’s Pixy.  Nice to meet all of you. And I’m glad to hear that you’re all ok after that. Any clue what provoked that thing? Aside from, you know, being a rotter?”
Jasmine's tan eyes drew over the flying type, noting that it had no injuries and seemed mentally stable enough despite the situation. Not many who were untrained were able to keep such clear head. "It wanted a Charizard-- something no one here is or has. Thing seemed to of burned itself out once realising how stupid it was, but we have enough eyes and ears here to know if it decides to come back."

"Hello."Without warning, an Aron? The trainer turned to eye the small thing, her expression unchanged. "I'm Jeriah." Why did it decide to-? Oh whatever. "Jasmine." I am just running a pet shelter at this point.
For some reason it looked straight at her before chirping, "Don't be mad," and turning it's attention elsewhere immediately. The trainer narrowed her eyes, unsure of if it was just dense or if steel types still naturally were drawn to her. A sigh escaped her. This was going to be a long night.

”Ah, and is there anything I can assist with? If it’s alright with you, I’d much rather travel with you guys, Wes, Whiskey. I had my share of alone time in this forest, and I can only describe it as... beyond unsettling.” Pixy had at least proved useful and intelligent. "There will be work to be done, that I am sure. You're welcome to pull your own weight and take shelter in the group."
"Can I help to?" the Aron asked happily, causing the trainer to cringe, before it seemingly charged Wes, crying out, "Ohhh food!"
What the hell? "Don't eat him, please," she said, voice as deadpan as her eyes.

Pouting even harder at Wes because of his snorting, clearly not amused by the idea of someone making fun of him. The newcomer Eeveelution asked if any of them were hurt un the firght. While Xander lifted his thumbs to signify he was okay, he lifted himself into the airs and dusted himself from any dirt and ash that would had been stuck in or on him. He then joined the group, floating back in just in time to take another jab in his pride, courtesy of Wes once again: "But yeah. We're all right. I'd say the Haunter over there might be coughing up a lung, but, you know, ghost." Yet again, the Ghost Pokémon wasn't too pleased with Wes' kind words: "HA. HA. HA. I'm dying from laughting too much!" The sarcastic tone of his voice couldn't not be deciphered. He rolled his eyes, still floating in the middle of them. "Oh, and by the way, to answer your question, you ordered a Sandstorm attack. I don't know if you're aware of that fact, but Sandstorm implies "storm", and that implies strong winds I can barely fight against. Figure out the rest, Mr. Funny-Guy."

The Eeveelution (her name was Pixy) then asked them what could had possibly thicked off the damn Charizard. The Haunter looked at the other, maybe for a clue. Jasmine said that it wanted another Charizard, Pokémon that apparently wasn't here, excepting the infected itself. Xander then shrugged, the sommary explanation satisfying him. At that moment, out of nowhere, a little Aron chirped with a cute,tiny voice and bumped into Wes' boot. The Ghost couldn't help but smile at the little fella, letting out a snort and waving back at him when he greeted them.
Pixy then asked if she could join them, which was absolutely okay with Xander's mind, and apparently in Jasmine's one too. Even Jeriah wanted a bit of action! That little guy was something for sure. Xander laughted a little, answering the question: "Sure thing! We need all the help we can get!" The little Aron's chirpy attitude was contageous to the Haunter. When Jasmine told the newcomer to not eat Wes, Xander looked at the human with a spark of anger and let out a chuckle: "If I were you I'd listen to that advice. Not even sure if that's edible, and we're not even sure where it's been before. It could be filled with all sorts of disgusting things!" As to enphasize his saying, the Ghost made a face of disgust, but quickly get his composture back when he remembered something: "Someone said shelter, right? It would be a great idea to move there while we are still not being embushed by infecteds, don't y'all think?" The Haunter then just started floating toward the ruined building, wondering how Duma was coping not being with him.

Huddled under the stairs, Duma's blue eyes are shut tight against the sand that continued to hit her face. The feline sat there humming songs to herself. Despite being a weirdo, that Xander guy is really nice. She thought, cracking open one bright blue eye. Once she was sure that she wasn't about to get attacked by sand again, the Persian stood up - and promptly hit her head on one of the stairs. "Ow! Son of a bitch!" She hissed sharply, ducking away from the offending stair.

Slinking underneath the stairs, Duma sighed deeply, thankful that there was no sand to send her into a coughing fit this time. She sat down on one of the stairs, humming a quiet tune to herself. By the time she got to the chorus of the song, the Persian gave up humming and began to softly sing the lyrics. "Jealousy," She began, her voice quiet, in case someone was listening. The feline's voice was surprisingly soft when she sang, however she rarely ever did so if anyone was around. "Turning saints into the sea." Taking a breath, the Persian began to sing a little louder, her voice carrying a little further.

"Swimming through sick lullabies, choking on your alibis." The feline closed her eyes, swaying her head from side to side to the tune in her head. "But it's just the price I pay. Destiny is calling me, open up my eager eyes." She opened her eyes once more, her ears perking up. "'Cause I'm Mr. Brightside." She finished off, stopping the song as she made her way to the door. It seemed like the fight was done, so with a quick look at the window, Duma backed up a bit before charging at the the window and clearing it in one fluid leap. Shaking out her fur, Duma sent a few quick licks over her fur to try and smooth the slotted fur down, before immediately recoiling as she got sand all over her tongue.

With a grimace, Duma abandoned the task of fixing her fur, and instead she sat at the entrance to the building - the smell of the Onix's corpse was getting to her anyway. Finding a fading patch of sunlight, Duma lay down in it, her blue eyes on the road as she lay there trying to groom the sand out of her fur. I am going to claw whoever thought this was a good idea. She thought irritably, her tail thumping on the ground. Heaving a sigh, the Persian kept one eye on the road and she resumed her task.

((OOC: Sorry it's a bit shitty, I didn't have much to work on))

It seemed though Miss Pixy found Wes' sly commentary funny enough, some weren't so enthusiastic. "HA. HA. HA. I'm dying from laughting too much!" Wes could have choked on the amount of sarcasm pouring out of the Haunter, but the soldier couldn't help but quirk a brow and chuckle in reply. It was just too funny to see him so salty. "Oh, and by the way, to answer your question, you ordered a Sandstorm attack. I don't know if you're aware of that fact, but Sandstorm implies "storm", and that implies strong winds I can barely fight against. Figure out the rest, Mr. Funny-Guy." Wes held up a finger and clicked his tongue in mock admonishment. "Now, now. I didn't order it, per se. It just sort of... happens... when Vodka comes out. It's her ability, silly. Besides, I'd rather some strong winds than some dickhead bastard Charizard."

”Name’s Pixy.  Nice to meet all of you. And I’m glad to hear that you’re all ok after that. Any clue what provoked that thing? Aside from, you know, being a rotter?” Wes gave the strange Eeveelution a friendly nod at her introduction, but shrugged at her question. From what he could tell, it was doing what they all did-- be fucking crazy. But Jasmine strode forward, apparently eager to answer the question. "It wanted a Charizard-- something no one here is or has. Thing seemed to of burned itself out once realizing how stupid it was, but we have enough eyes and ears here to know if it decides to come back."

"Hello." At the tiny voice, Wes nearly jumped, clearly not expecting another newcomer. But his reflexes soon calmed a bit; it was only a tiny Aron. Whiskey wasn't amused, as usual, since he was always a killjoy. "I'm Jeriah." Wes gave a short wave, keeping both hands firmly on his gun. You know. Just in case. How the hell had it snuck up on them like that?

"Jasmine," stated flatly, which was wholly unsurprising. Girl had about as much personality as a fridge. Steely and ice cold. But Jaz's natural charisma didn't seem to deter the small creature, as it whirled on her and stated almost just as flatly as she, "Don't be mad." With that, whatever spell that drew it to her was broken and he turned his attention elsewhere. Well that was... weird.

”Ah, and is there anything I can assist with? If it’s alright with you, I’d much rather travel with you guys, Wes, Whiskey. I had my share of alone time in this forest, and I can only describe it as... beyond unsettling.” Relieved to have the conversation segway into something more progressive than some cryptic child speak, Wes turned to the feathered Eevee. Jaz looked like she was already willing to take the newcomers on, which was... miraculous in its own right. "There will be work to be done, that I am sure. You're welcome to pull your own weight and take shelter in the group."

"Can I help too?" the tiny Aron chirped. In reply and much to Wes' dismay, Xander declared, "Sure thing! We need all the help we can get!" But the small Aron's eyes rested on him a moment, and then something happened. Something happened too quick for Wes to realize, but--

"Ohhh food!"

In an instant, he knew. "Oh no you do NOT!" As the Aron charged him, he lifted his gun high away from the little thing, which then knocked itself into his foot. Thank God his shoes were steel-toed, or he'd have a very broken foot with a lot of crushed toes. Grunting despite the protection against the impact, Wes danced away from the Aron, quickly getting his very valuable firearm away from the metal-eating pest.

"Don't eat him, please," Jaz called from her spot, which made Wes roll his eyes. "He wants my GUN, not me. Or my shoes. Either way, these were everywhere in Pyrite the few years before the Epidemic. Kept eating my walls-- you don't get my gun, dude. I need it."

"If I were you I'd listen to that advice. Not even sure if that's edible, and we're not even sure where it's been before. It could be filled with all sorts of disgusting things!" Wes frowned, then replied, "Wait, are you talking about the gun or me? My feelings."

But Xander didn't seem to notice. "Someone said shelter, right? It would be a great idea to move there while we are still not being embushed by infecteds, don't y'all think?"

"Didn't that Persian run off to shelter?" Wes supplied while keeping an eye on the Aron. Whiskey stood between them, not finding the child's antics amusing. "We should check on her, yeah? Maybe wherever she's bunkered down, we could use in the meanti-- Duma! That was her name!" he recalled with a snap of his fingers, triumphant. "Yeah, let's go find her."

"Don't eat him, please" the women behind him said then. The heavy voice had the authority for every other pokemon there almost motherly if the aron wasn't already set on what he wanted. He wanted that shiny metal.

"Sure thing! We need all the help we can get!" said another behind him he stop and looked back a bright smile on his eyes that would have been a smile. Jeriah was too transfixed on Wes's gun to forget about it to long, turning back to Wes once more. Jeriah suddenly felt so hungry that it was irresistible to not try for it. How long has it been since a good meal with his brother, the metallic taste as his mouth waters more.

The Human male was dancing over and around him as the steel type hounds the human wanting but a small nibble, surely there was something to spare. "He wants my GUN, not me. Or my shoes. Either way, these were everywhere in Pyrite the few years before the Epidemic. Kept eating my walls-- you don't get my gun, dude. I need it." Wes getting to the other side of him again as he turns on his stubs nearly falling over from the change of direction.  Jeriah came to a sudden stop as the espeon stepped in front of him blocking his way to the human. His sea foam blue eyes bead up a little with un-shed tears. Jeriah stopped bothering Wes for now getting the hint from the psychic type.

"Someone said shelter, right? It would be a great idea to move there while we are still not being ambushed by infected, don't y'all think?" Jeriah turns to Xander now rubbing at the bottom of the steel face plate. He nods his heavy head agreeing with the idea, scanning the ghost type very curious about the floating pokemon. Jeriah chirps happily that would have been a heart laugh, waving his stub at the ghost type before stopping listening to the rest of the group.

"Didn't that Persian run off to shelter?" Wes started as Jeriah looked at the group not seeing the one called Duma if they were asking about her. "Yeah, let's go find her." Jeriah turns to Wes again having to look up the boys body to his face.

"Hmm? Nothing but trees and ash" pacing back and forth a little.Thinking to himself about the forest as some of the markings he might have seen. The stress of trying to remember was clearly seen in partly squinted eyes. Turning to Jasmine and the rest of them, " I can help, please I want to help find shelter. Maybe we can find a cave or something?" trying to be helpful though it was big brother that had more of the idea's then him. He moves closer to Jasmine then, but keeping his distance from the human.

"All I remember is a big hole in the forest, like some giant foot stopped down all the trees. Not as many of the ugliest around that area. My guess is they don't like the clearing-" kicking up a twig. "With the fire, least I don't have to worry about getting tangled up again" seeing a brighter side again having bounced back quickly to his natural nature. Jeriah glanced around the trees nothing but long shadows towering over his height.

" Did see some sort of tiny house too In ughmm that direction-" pointing the stub in one direction to the northeast "- no that doesn't look right, maybe that direction then" pointing the other way. " Please I want to stay and help, got to find brother as well, Gabby is his name" he would have bounced in place if he could.

Wes simply shrugged in reply to the question. The other human, the one that Pixy had initially landed beside, stepped forward, seemingly to offer her own reply. "It wanted a Charizard-- something no one here is or has. Thing seemed to of burned itself out once realizing how stupid it was, but we have enough eyes and ears here to know if it decides to come back." Well, it had some sort motivation, which means that it’s less likely to stick around to toy with this group… she hopes so, at least. The Haunter replied to Wes with plenty of sarcasm, which made Pixy snicker a bit further.

"Hello." Pixy both jumped, and thanks to her wings, partially whirled around towards the sudden introduction. Her stance was wary, but not necessarily aggressive. Glad she did so, too- the little thing, not looking infected, seemed to be a young Aron. I’m Jeriah.

"There will be work to be done, that I am sure. You're welcome to pull your own weight and take shelter in the group." That would be fairly easy, Pixy thought. Physical labor was no issue, she had plenty of cunning- well, for a soldier, she was considered rather intelligent, at least. Not afraid to go against orders back in the day… Pixy’s look darkens and sullens as she shakes a bit, her breathing quickly becoming irregular. She’s remembering him- Alzan. The war. What she’s done… good Arceus, what has she done?! She hardly notices the Aron dashing towards Wes, and by relation, her general direction until it’s already close. She stared in some disbelief as the little silver thing approaching her just seemed... familiar.

"S-Stay back…! I’m sorry, please, s-stay…! Pixy’s eyes were wide as she took a step back, the little Aron being an Eevee in her eyes, but for only a moment. Her voice was hoarse, but desperate. Her entire body is shaking as rapid flashes come across her eyes, in an awkward overlap of the real world she was already seeing. As soon as it began, she realizes what’s happening before things can get out of hand. Her breathing is still stuttered, and she’s shakey, but in control. Hopefully she kept it low enough to not make them wary or uneasy about her… as the young one speaks about some sort of house, Pixy takes some time to gather herself, steady her breathing… Damn… so soon, after meeting a group, she was showing a little weakness… Damnit…

[ skip for now; i'm going out for a few hours for a family thing and might not make deadline. i'll edit a post in tonight ]

Xander was floating about, hoping that Duma stayed inside their shelter when he heard the little Aron talking about a big hole in the forest in the shelter. That simple idea stopped him and made him turn to the steel-type Pokémon, a panicked expression on his face: " I know it might sounds like a good idea, and I'm sure it would be under other circumstances, but I have to say that's it's a really bad idea. Like, REALLY BAD. " To add to his plea, he pointed a clawed finger to the sky: " The sun is almost set, and I can safely say that, of all the places you might find yourself into at night, you don't want to be in that forest. Especially when you can't even see a damn thing in there. " The Haunter's face lighten up to that, like he just remembered something, before that expression was replaced by another one, more sinister: " Speaking of which.... " He floated inside the forest for a brief moment, the sound of ground rattling being the only indication of where he vanished to. Suddenly a loud snapping sound was heard, soon followed by more rattling and another, sickening snaps. The Ghost Pokémon finally emerged from behind the trees, holding two impressive metal traps, the kind that make you shrivers down your spine just by looking at them. He then threw them on the road. " The whole road had been trapped like that. It's by sheer luck that any of us didn't stepped into one yet. We had difficulties to see them in daylight, so I guess it's impossible to see them at night. The layer of ashes and dead branches won't help either. " He quickly glanced at the traps before shrugging: " I know however that the building we hid into was somewhat safer than that, even if we don't know how long it will still stand. But it's our best bet. Follow me. "


After a quick dash down the road, Xander could finally see the building. While it could had been decent-looking in the daylight, it was now looking more and more seedy with the declining Sun. He waited a bit for the others to catch up, especially the little Aron. If it was somewhat difficult to run after something with no physical contact to the groud to slow him down, it would be particulary hard for the Steel-type to follow them. He then loose no time and peeked through the door: "Duma? Are you.... " Oh Arceus, the stench! That foul smell was still there, as well as the rotting corpse of the Onix. It forced Xander to stop mid-sentence just to get some composure back. He shook his head and finished his sentence: " ...are you still there? " To his relief, she was there, quietly waiting for him to return with the others. He jerked back, telling the others that the door wasn't locked, but that they should take a deep breath before entering... " Or else you might puke your lungs out. Litterally. " A quick glare at Wes was given, then he phased through the door, reuniting with Duma.

The Persian muttered in annoyance under her breath as she spat out another mouthful of sand. "How the hell did they even get the sand to make a bloody sandstorm?" She hissed to herself, standing up and shaking out her fur. Already light grains of sand dusted the ground around the feline, and she swept those outside by blowing on them until the grains had successfully left the building. With a sigh, the spotted cat walked back inside, sticking her tongue out in disgust out at the Onix's corpse. They would need to get rid of that eventually.

Her ear twitched and the feline turned her head around, craning her neck so that she could see over the window. "Duma? Are you...." Duma watched as Xander had to compose himself with the stench. She narrowed her eyes slightly. You should put yourself in my paws. My poor nose went numb. She thought, huffing loudly. "...Are you still there?" Poking her head out of the window, Duma narrowed her eyes slightly. "Y-yeah, I'm still h-here." She said, sneezing as some sand went up her nose.

She heard Xander warning the others of the stench, and she rolled her eyes. "Y-you weren't s-so courteous to warn me a-about the stench." She muttered, ducking away from the window to paw at the door, before rearing up to bite the handle tightly and twist her head to the side, opening it by leaning against the door. "Or else you might puke your lungs out. Literally." Releasing the handle, Duma fell back to her paws, sitting down outside the door.

She then looked over at the humans and tilted her head slightly. "Who w-was the one who caused the s-sandstorm?" She asked, standing up and shaking out her fur again. "Bec-cause now I-I have itchy sand all through my f-fur. So, um... Thanks f-for that. N-not." She said dryly, inwardly cursing her stutter around others. Maybe one day she'd be able to get out a proper sentence, but today just was not that day.

"Hmm? Nothing but trees and ash." Wes blinked at the odd response to his question, the little Aron's reply not really what he was expecting. " I can help; please, I want to help find shelter. Maybe we can find a cave or something?" He moved a little closer to Jaz, but was obviously wary of the Steel trainer. Well, Wes didn't really blame him there. Strangely enough, the little guy continued. "All I remember is a big hole in the forest, like some giant foot stopped down all the trees. Not as many of the ugliest around that area. My guess is they don't like the clearing-" He kicked a little twig. "With the fire, least I don't have to worry about getting tangled up again," he noted with a sort of cheery tone. Yeah, there was that, at least?

"Did see some sort of tiny house too In ughmm that direction-" He pointed a little stub. "-no that doesn't look right, maybe that direction then," he corrected himself, pointing the other way. " Please I want to stay and help, got to find brother as well, Gabby is his name."

Wes held out a gloved hand. "Just slow down there, all right, Kid?" he chuckled, keeping his tone light. "That's a lot of information."

"I know it might sound like a good idea, and I'm sure it would be under other circumstances, but I have to say that's it's a really bad idea. Like, REALLY BAD." Wes turned to the Haunter, who pointed a clawed, disembodied hand skyward. "The sun is almost set, and I can safely say that, of all the places you might find yourself into at night, you don't want to be in that forest. Especially when you can't even see a damn thing in there." Wes blinked. Did... he mean the forest they were in right then? The Orre native glanced down to Whiskey, who met his gaze and gave a light shrug. Maybe going deeper into the forest was a bad idea. "Speaking of which...."

Xander disappeared back into the treeline and for a moment, there was little but uncomfortable silence. Until, of course, that silence was broken by sickening snaps. The ghost soon reemerged, twin steel traps in hand before he threw them haphazardly onto the road in front of them. "The whole road had been trapped like that. It's by sheer luck that any of us didn't stepped into one yet. We had difficulties to see them in daylight, so I guess it's impossible to see them at night. The layer of ashes and dead branches won't help either." Wes couldn't help but shift his weight to be further from the traps; he liked his feet attached to his legs, thanks. "I know however that the building we hid into was somewhat safer than that, even if we don't know how long it will still stand. But it's our best bet. Follow me."

And off the ghost dashed. Well. "Dashed" was a bit of a misnomer, since the guy didn't have any legs, but whatever. Wes heaved a heavy sigh as the ghost was soon out of sight before grudgingly jogging after him. Wes alone was carting around 45 lbs of equipment; how fast did that ghost think they could follow? Whiskey jogged beside him, keeping a sharp eye out for more traps as they made their way along the road to the shelter. He heard the ghost say something from up ahead, but Wes didn't pay much attention to it, as he was far more focused on spying any bear traps before they gobbled up his legs. Of course, once he drew closer, he immediately wished he had. The stench of rotting death hit him like a truck, causing him to wheel backward with a hand to his face as he coughed and retched. "...Or else you might puke your lungs out. Literally."

"Thanks for the warning," Wes managed between gasps for air, Whiskey at his side looking uncomfortable. It took a small moment, but Wes soon recovered. Thank God he had a relatively unresponsive gag reflex. Coughing a little more to get his throat back in order, Duma emerged from the dark to greet them. "Who w-was the one who caused the s-sandstorm?" she stuttered, shaking herself and producing a small dust cloud from the sand she dislodged. "Bec-cause now I-I have itchy sand all through my f-fur. So, um... Thanks f-for that. N-not."

Don't mention it," Wes supplied as he drew closer, holding up a hand to accept blame. "My Tyranitar just sort of does that on her own. Got rid of the fire and smoke, at least."

(OOC: Skip, Pixy is simply listening and regaining her composure.)

"S-Stay back…! I’m sorry, please, s-stay…! the steel type would tilt his head to the side from the winged creatures out cry. Had he hurt her? she didn't look hurt. Jeriah moved a step back from Pixy confused, maybe even a little saddened. "Just slow down there, all right, Kid?" the man said from before turning his attention back to Wes "That's a lot of information." Jeriah nature bounced back " Sorry just wanted to help " he chirps.

" I know it might sound like a good idea, and I'm sure it would be under other circumstances, but I have to say that's it's a really bad idea. Like, REALLY BAD. He turns back to the floating face and a pair of hands, why was it a bad idea? he asked himself. " The sun is almost set, and I can safely say that, of all the places you might find yourself into at night, you don't want to be in that forest. Especially when you can't even see a damn thing in there. " Xander had a point as it was getting harder and harder to see for the small Pokemon. Jeriah would nod his head then. " Speaking of which.... " then the ghost was gone, making an awful noise out of sight. The steel type was curious looking between the other Pokemon in turn as they waited for Xander's return.

" The whole road had been trapped like that. It's by sheer luck that any of us didn't stepped into one yet. We had difficulties to see them in daylight, so I guess it's impossible to see them at night. The layer of ashes and dead branches won't help either. " pulling some sort of metal jaws out with him, Jeriah instantly wondered if they were edible. " I know however that the building we hid into was somewhat safer than that, even if we don't know how long it will still stand. But it's our best bet. Follow me. "

Jeriah having to really get his legs moving to keep up with the party. Heavy weight and small legs, not to mention all the sand and dust getting caught up on the face plates holes. Sneezes soon followed as each sneeze blew out a mixed particle cloud. "... Or else you might puke your lungs out. Literally." catching up missing half the conversation, the scent making him gag " Ewwie" commenting rubbing at his face not seeing the source of the stink.

"Thanks for the warning," Jeriah sneezed again clearing up more of the ash and sand smelling the clearer air a little more. "Who w-was the one who caused the s-sandstorm?" a strange cat like Pokemon came out of the house like building Jeriah blinked taking in the spotted creature. It looked very soft and warm. "Bec-cause now I-I have itchy sand all through my f-fur. So, um... Thanks f-for that. N-not."

Jeriah stepping out between the Pokemon not too close to anyone in particular " Hi ya" saying happily waving his stub at Duma. Before following Wes a little to the side. "My Tyranitar just sort of doing that on her own. Got rid of the fire and smoke, at least." nodding his head, following along a little more staying weary of the Espeon. His eyes travel back to Xander then, " Think I can have one of those?" asking curiously arching his head back to see the floating Pokemon a little better. " can I help find more in the morning?" maybe something he could help with and feel at least a little useful.

Xander tried to keep a straight face in reaction to Wes' gagging and admirably fought back the the immense smile it would had drawn on his face. It was a real pleasure for him. The little Aron asked the ghost if he could help fetching some more traps in the morning tommorow, question to which Xander gave an unsure look, slowly noodind to it. After everyone went inside the building, he closed the door and wedged a piece of a broken table against it. Hopefully this will last the whole night. He then turned around and faced the others: " I'm guessing you're wondering now how I know about everything in here right? To tell you the truth.... I've been here, before. Sit down, it's gonna be a long story." Xander then proceeded to explain everything that happened in the Ilex forest before, from the moment he met Plague to the Umbreon's outburst, causing the gas pipes to explode and transforming Azalea town into ruins.

" ... and that bring us to the little fellow back there " the ghost pokémon said, pointing at the Rock type's rotting head, still in plain sight. "A long time ago, I've stood there, with Eleroo and Seek in my hands. Then.... IT happened. I don't know what, I don't know how, but I wasn't there anymore. The Eevees weren't with me either. To this day, I still don't know what happened. Since that day, I've been floating about, and I finally found myself here again by sheer luck. It's like an omnious being was doing everything in their power to drag me back to this damned place. The rest is know to all of you." The Haunter finally went silent, looking through the window facing Azalea Town's remains, gazing into the distance as the colors of the sky fades away slowly but surely. " It's gonna get dark soon " he said absent-mindly." We better start barricading those windows, or maybe move to the second floor and watch the stairs? I don't know."

(OoC: Sorry for the poor quality, this week has been crazy.)