(ACE) The MAUVILLE Team

Sirius might've known that the peace wouldn't last.

One minute he'd been having quite a nice chat with the first group of survivors he had met in ... well, quite a long time, planning to head into the nearby Poke Mart for some supplies, and the next they were fighting for their lives as yet another horde of those mindless, drooling idiots swarmed in and ruined everything. If there was a way to be able to do anything without the risk of having your throat ripped out at any moment, Sirius wanted to know how to do it.

At first, they'd been quite successful; most of the undead were moderately leveled at best; the scariest one had to be a rather disgusting Linoone that had flown at him and nearly managed to bite him. The bastard had the nerve to actually pin Sirius to the floor; the Delphox using his staff to hold back the snarling creature before knocking it away and toasting it to a crisp with a quick Mystical Fire. Honestly, not much of a challenge; even the fairly mediocre-looking crew he'd picked up weren't doing too bad.

But then the Garchomp had arrived.

It had just ... appeared out of nowhere. Before any of them could do a thing, that Purrloin - whatever her name was - had been snatched up in the jaws of the massive, rotting dragon, screeching out a gurgling scream as she was chewed to a pulp. Sirius had been livid - how dare it come along and do that! He'd fired a Shadow Ball straight into the creature's chest ... and it did next to nothing. The Garchomp had barely looked at him at it finished its snack. He'd tried again - nothing. Not even Dazzling Gleam had left anything more than a bruise on the dragon's hide.

Shit, Sirius had thought.

What came next was utter chaos; everyone had worked hard to bring down the beast only to get themselves killed. Next was the Frogadier, decapitated by one swing of the Garchomp's claw. Then came that Umbreon guy, screaming in agony as he was gutted alive.

Shit, Sirius had thought. Shit, shit, SHIT!

They were not going to win this. Sirius managed to yell loud enough over the Umbreon's shrieking to get everyone's attention. "We got no chance against this one! Follow me!" He dashed out of the square and into the building, holding up his flaming staff for some light. Dark red eyes lurked in the blackness, their owners snarling and cackling at the sight of fresh meat. He swung the flame at the horde, repelling them long enough to spot a stairway at the end of the corridor.

"The stairs!" he called over his shoulder to the group, deploying a Psychic on a Manectric that had lunged at him. He threw the thrashing monster aside before following the others, extinguishing his flame so that they were covered by the darkness. "Straight ahead! Hurry!"

It had been as normal as it had ever been since their pokeballs last opened and let the pair loose to experience the end of the world. Living pokemon. Real ones, not the soulless husks they normally encountered had assembled. A whole group had managed to find one another as they attempted to find supplies in the heart of the city. Even Eris managed to relax... the helioptile recalls. Sort of anyway. She stated her name and spent the rest of their small chat time torn between eying up each of the group members and scouting the area. Yes, a natural social butterfly as always which left the electric-type to most of the speaking for the both of them. They were barely able to get past the initial formalities and introductions before it began again...

It started with Eris shouting something, garbled and distant as she was tackled by one of them further from the rest of the group. It wasn't long before others followed suit...pouring from the previously vacant looking corners and shadows of the fallen city. The dinner bell had been rung and answered. With several powerful clamps of her claws, the steel-type was able to dismantle the decaying corpse of a bellsprout that had lunged at her. Within moments following she was standing over her companion, joining the rest of the group in fighting for their lives.

As far as battles went, they were actually managing to hold them off. Winning maybe? Gramps never dared to get so cocky or confident in these situations to speak in such a way. He was no fighter, nor was he in his prime or of any physical might above any other pokemon. He did his best to support his companion as she clawed and cut through any undead within range of her pincers. Tripping with grass knot, thunderwave, volt switch for the especially close calls. They had done this dance before, though not with quite so many. The scizor did her best to stand consistently between Gramps and the horde and gaining dents, scratches and the like as they continued to come.

Nothing in the world could have prepared them for the garchomp though. No foe, undead or otherwise could come close to comparing. Nothing damaged nor slowed it down...it only furthered its rage. The first casualty was the purrloin...such a shame, she had been so young, so brave--and the monster chomped her to near mush as blood garbled her final scream. Then the Frogadier and umbreon--each one felled by the ungodly beast's terrible scythe arms. It was like the reaper reborn as a dragon.

"You ugly bastard! Eris screams as she throws another, manageable undead that tried to bite at her heels towards the monstrosity. If I could just get in some good moves--"Eris! This is no use!" "Why. won't. you. die!" Her screams increase with each unsuccessful move against the harbinger. Nothing works. Nothing. "We got no chance against this one! Follow me!" the call to retreat rang out above the chaos and death. Eris grit her jaws tightly together. She was no coward but this...

"Eris! Now! With one final glare into the mosnter's eyes she flees after the rest of the group. Her steel toes pushing off firmly from the overgrown grass, dirt, and debris underfoot. Without slowing, she scoops up her aging friend with one arm and sprints inside Mauville. A single large flame from the delpfox--Sirius was it? The light acted as a beacon to follow, a signal for undead and their sole source of light in the dark corridors. The only thing louder than the sound of their heart beats pounding in their ears was the howls of hunger from the lurking infected. "The stairs!"

Without question, Eris headed there, setting Gramps down several stairs up from the bottom. "GO! I'll be right behind you!" The helioptile didn't wait to climb the stairs as the scizor soon had her claws full with a Galvantula that had dropped down from the ceiling above them. Disgusting jaws snapping open and closed, trying with all its strength to clamps it's bloodied jaws into the scizor's own maw. Her claws clamped tighter and tighter and she used all her strength to hold it away from her and smash it head first into the wall. One, two, three, four times. Maybe five, she didn't bother to count nor breath until it's jaws no longer could move. Then several joltiks fell from the same spot above the other had come--they were easier to squash. By then a meowth had managed to pull himself to the bottom of the stairs after them...

"Straight ahead! Hurry!" The call to retreat comes again. There were just too many. Undead after undead. Abandoning the lost cause, Eris slashes at one final one before charging up the stairs after the others to escape. Once again she scoops up Gramps to the relative safety of her left arm. "There...there is just too..many of them!" He says, his panic growing and breathlessness apparent from running up the stairs.

Oh man. Oh maaaan. Madison had no idea where in the world he was going, but it seemed to be in the opposite direction of that... Thing, and the Lopunny was more than willing to settle for that much. He glanced over his shoulder once, just long enough to watch the Umbreon- or at least what was left of the unfortunate Dark type- let out one final screech of agony before abruptly trailing off in a bloody death gurgle. That's... Attractive. He shook his head quickly in an attempt to clear it of that lovely mental image, instead focusing his attention on the Delphox. At least someone seemed to have some vague idea of where they were headed, which the Normal type was more than willing to settle for over trying his chances with the monster that had finished off the Umbreon. He hadn't tried to attack it personally, having witnessed the complete and utter lack of effect the other Pokemon's moves had on it; Madison knew a futile effort when he saw one. Besides, there was still a horde of small fries lingering around, and the Normal type preferred wasting his energy on something that he could actually kill.

Speaking of which...

His clenched fist ignited in a ball of flames, and the Lopunny turned to ram it through the skull of an infected- what? Zigzagoon? Poochyena? It was too mutilated to tell, and the fact that it was now lacking the majority of it's head didn't do much to help matters. Suppressing a shiver, Madison willed the flames to burn hotter, dissolving the gore clinging to his hand, yet leaving the Normal type himself completely unscathed. Fire Punch was a neat move, he had long since decided, and definitely one of his favorites. Though the distinct smell of burning flesh and the feeling of hitting through a decaying body had admittedly taken some getting used to. Oh well; it was something he couldn't afford to trouble himself with now. The important thing was clearing a path to the damn stairs- or at least pushing someone to the undead and making a break for it.

"Outta the way!" One, two, three more of the monsters fell to his fists, the Normal type ducking and weaving with speed and grace that came natural to his species- something that he was extraordinarily grateful for now that he needed it. Where had the huge thing gone? Madison hadn't the slightest idea, but so long as it wasn't trying to take a healthy chunk out of him next, he couldn't care less. They had plenty of living to spare; the chances of it going after the Lopunny personally were slim, something he was grateful for. Remind me to buddy up with groups like this more often. I could definitely appreciate a good meatshield.

The stairs drew closer and closer and once he reached them, he took them two at a time, not caring who he knocked out of the way regardless of whether they were living or not. Sorry, but there's no way in hell I'm gonna let myself die today, suckers!

Quietly perched above the chaos, Orion stared down at the floor in mild anxiety. He could hear something carving a very bloody path through the lower floors, judging by the screaming, but he made no move to help or otherwise. While he wasn't a fan of wanton murder and slaughter, he valued his own life far above any already half-dead stranger below crying out for help. His fluffed ear flicked as one particularly sharp cry sliced through the air, punching through even the floors. He shifted slightly on the chair in the abandoned apartment- the only furniture still with four legs- eyes still locked on the floor. From the way those screams were sounding, they were right beneath him. It was a chilling thought-- one that kept him right where he was.

Gently laying his head down on the arm, Orion curled into a tighter ball, hoping the screams would stop soon, one way or another. He was too hungry and too tired to be scared or even to think about leaving his only safe haven. Hopefully, whatever was down there would just... stay down there.

Mamba had reached the group earlier on, before a lot of the others, like the Scizor and Heliptile. The Mightyena already found himself liking the reptile. He reminded the canine of Muzzle Scar, and how he missed the kind, elderly leader of his home. But then, without warning, chaos. "Grace! GET OUT OF THERE!" Mamba screamed, watching the Purrloin, Mamba was helpless to do anything but watch as she was slain without any warning. His legs went numb, dragging him down. She had only been a kit... he had reassured her and helped her speak through a stutter to the rest of the group. She had reminded him of the kids back home. "You ugly bastard! The Scizor have a loud screech, throwing herself into battle, but Mamba was backing away. Soon the Umbreon and Frogadier fell, too. Sloan and Ashley, he thought, numb, only able to give them the acknowledgment of their names as he listened to their death screams. "We got no chance against this one! Follow me!" The Delphox, Sirius. He's still alive. But he was trying to save the remaining, as a Garchomp proved itself a much higher tier above the other undead, Mamba had no shame as he turned tail and pelted towards the Delphox.

Still, the remaining were smaller, but only a fraction had been lost. The Mightyena glanced back, only to see the Tailow hit by falling debris, smashed to nothing but a blood stain on the ground. Georgie. Sirius was yelling direction still, through the chaos. "The stairs!" Mamba pulled his gaze away from the scene behind them, forcing himself to not think of the ones already lost, but those who were surviving. "GO! I'll be right behind you!" The yelling was piling on top of each other by the time he reached the stairs himself. "Outta the way!" His front paws hit the base of the stairs only for him to be kicked back. Recoiling, feeling blood well in his nose from the impact, he only saw the Lopunny from before bouncing up. He was still alive, at least. "Straight ahead! Hurry!" The Mightyena gave an uncharacteristic growl, pulling himself up the stairs behind the others. "There...there is just too..many of them!" He could no longer tell voices apart in his head by names, the screaming of the undead below were too much. "Where are we heading, Sirius?!" he yelled, only able to blindly follow the others.

Garchomp was happy; she had not encountered a group of living even half this size for a long time. The dragon's belly had been growling at her, longing for blood and living flesh. She had grown frustrated and temperamental, making sure to destroy a good portion of the environment on her way into the city. She had caught the scent of her inferior brethren; their shrieks and snarls told her that they were hunting.  

"No...mine." She had torn through the horde, snapping them up out of her path and crushing their spines with one snap of her powerful jaws. By now, they had found their prey and were doing a pathetic job of taking care of them, based purely on the fact that not one of them were dead yet. Garchomp had snorted at their efforts, charged in and shown them how a true predator hunted.

Every pair of eyes that saw her widened in terror. The dragon's dark purple scales hung from her muscles like candle wax, the flesh on her belly ripped and torn away by harsh battles, exposing some of her ribs and rotting internal organs. Her eyes blazed crimson like the fires of hell itself. The fins on her arms and back had rotted away to nothingness, removing the one indication of her gender. Filthy, bloodstained teeth were revealed as Garchomp snarled at the group, and then charged.

Within a minute, three of them were dead. The young Purrloin had been first, crunched into a bloodied pulp as the others could only watch in terror. The Frogadier decided to fight back, screaming out in a rage as he flew at her, only for his head to go bouncing across the floor. The Umbreon was next, stabbed in the gut with one massive claw and his insides torn to shreds as he shrieked in agony.

By this point, the rest of the group were beginning to scatter, the tall, orange fox leading the way. Garchomp finished gutting the Eeveelution and contently feasted for a brief moment. She was satisfied with her kills so far, her violence and mere presence even forcing her brethren to retreat into the shadows. Chewing on the Umbreon's liver, she watched the group disappear into the right side of the building. But the dragon did not move, for she knew that she had them right where she wanted them: confined, trapped and all together. Tonight, she would feast.

Garchomp abandoned what was left of the Umbreon's corpse as she lumbered inside after them, making a left turn and catching sight of the Delphox's flame, dancing around madly as he ran. He soon extinguished it, leaving the corridor in almost complete darkness. Garchomp had seen the set of stairs that they were headed towards and reckoned that they...might need some light. She let out a great bellow, inhaled and blasted a massive Flamethrower down the corridor towards them.

(I come...for contract...Nightfall called for chaos...and chaos you shall have.)

Shit, Sirius thought. As if being chased by a horde of undead in almost complete darkness wasn't bad enough, that Garchomp hadn't given up yet either. A glance behind his shoulder told him that the rotting dragon was following them, the bloodied remains of his dead companions still dangling from its jaw. "Might want to speed it up, guys!" he yelled at the others ahead of him, hoping that the dragon wasn't quite smart enough to climb stairs. Hey, no harm in hoping.

As the others reached the stairs and began to climb them, the Mightyena - Mambo was it? Mamba? One of those - caught up, running alongside him. "Where are we heading, Sirius?!" he yelled over the mayhem going on behind them. The undead horde were going nuts over the Garchomp's presence, either cowering in the shadows or shrieking their heads of at it. Sirius wasn't starting to think it was a little more than just a walking corpse.

"Hell if I know!" he shouted in reply, finally reaching the stairs and beginning to climb them just as the others reached the top. "Just away from Godzilla over there!" He squinted in the darkness and spotted a second set of stairs to the left. "That's a left turn there, guys -- OH SHIT, MOVE!"

The Garchomp had unleashed a massive Flamethrower; bright orange flames erupted down the corridor towards them. "RUN!" They managed to avoid the attack at the top of the stairs, but Sirius, being the last in line, hissed in pain as the flames singed the tip of his tail. "Left, go!" he yelled, making his way forward past everyone and up the stairs to the second floor, now in the lead. Hopefully it wasn't too dark for them to follow.

"Eris--that thing--are we losing it? Oh Arceus, we're not losing it are we..??" The electric-type sputters out, his breathing increasing dramatically as panic sets in. His companion grits her teeth, tightening her arm's grip on Gramps as she continues. The scizor's pointed, metal feet pounding heavily against the staircase as their diminished group climbs higher and higher. "That's a left turn there, guys -- OH SHIT, MOVE!"

Eris growls, sparing a glance over her shoulder at their quickly appointed leader's words. What did he think they were doing--only running half speed?? No, she was busting her abdomen off here. Suddenly, a bright flash illuminates the bottom of the staircase. It took the metal bug several seconds to figure out just what had happened. That thing was close and it was planning a barbeque. Snapping back to face forward, the scizor does so so sharply she has to side-step to compensate and regain her balance.

Reaching the top of the stairs, she steps hard with one claw foot and pushes off going left. It's not long before a flash of red and yellow passes by the rest of the group, making for the front of the line. "RUN!" "What do you think we're doing??"

For a moment, Gramps swears the smell of smoke had followed them up the stairs. The elderly pokemon's face scrunches at the scent. Singed fur. However, as the delphox passes by them, the smell disappears. "M-maybe if there was something we could do to slow them down. Um, oh, block the staircase or--" "There's no time!" Eris replies, pushing herself harder to stay near the front half of the group.

Aw crap, did I kick a goodie? It was difficult to tell in the dark, what with everyone rushing around in a complete and utter panic. Hopefully Madison would be easily forgiven if he had, because he really didn't intend to harm someone living and- more importantly- he loathed the idea of listening to someone whine at him about screwing up their precious face or whatever. They were surrounded by bloodthirsty, flesh-eating monsters; if they were really so broken up about a little love tap, then they would need to get over it. Of course, that was completely ignoring the fact that the Lopunny was liable to pitch a fit if something similar ever happened to him, but he had never claimed not to be a gigantic hypocrite. Yet, anyways. Lies were a healthy part of life.

He could hear the screams of the living being torn apart, barely audible above their frantic footsteps and the snarling of the undead, and something deep within his chest ached in response. The Normal type quickly tried to ignore it, however, giving his head a sharp shake. There was nothing that could be done for them. The important part was that he survived above all others; there was no use in feeling sorry for anyone when he was dead, after all.

A new noise, heard above even all of the chaos, caught the Lopunny's attention and he glanced over his shoulder. Is that big thing still following us? Give it a rest, already, haven't you killed enough? Apparently not. He just managed to catch a glimpse of flames dancing around it's mouth, before turning around and letting out a shout. "It's trying to frickin' cook us!" Rabbit legs, anyone? Yeah right, over his dead body- literally, in fact, if he managed to get caught up in that Flamethrower. Just then the Delphox's shout managed to catch his attention, and Madison dived around the corner just in time. He swore the heat was enough to singe his fur, though he didn't have enough time to check the damage- there were more stairs to climb! Oh boy, the Lopunny could almost feel himself gaining a murderous loathing for the things.

"Hey, this is fun and all, but what are we going to do about scaly?" He shouted, to no one in particular. "If we end up leading it upstairs along with us, we're just gonna be trapped with one angry dragon." Could it even climb up stairs? Madison didn't have the slightest idea, and frankly, he was too shaken to look behind him and check if they were being followed or not. The last thing he wanted to see was that monster's gaping maw, open and ready to tear his head off.

[[skip]]

[ooc: for some reason i thought i was 6th in the cycle, not 4th. @_@ Skip, Mamba's just following the group.]

Garchomp squinted through the light of the raging flames to see whether her attack had struck any of them; the end of the Delphox's tail appeared a little singed but other than that they had appeared to evade it. The rotting dragon hunched over, leaning her weight on her claws as she watched them turn and disappear up the stairwell. A chase...she hadn't had one of those in a while. Her old legs still worked when they wanted to, enough to let her keep up with a group of clueless survivors bumbling about in the dark. Her eyes still as sharp as they ever were, staring through the blackness like it wasn't there, Garchomp straightened up and began her pursuit...until something caught her attention.

Standing at the far end of the corridor was...a human. "Hu...man..." she gargled, inclining her head as she inspected the creature and the Absol beside him. Something...flickered at the back of her mind; a forbidden memory from her past; from the time when she was mortal...she hated these things. She did not remember why but it was good enough for her. Almost instantly she forgot about the group blundering around on the upper floors; the idea of tasting human blood on her tongue was...almost nostalgic.

"Humaaaaaan," she croaked, louder this time as she lumbered towards him. Drool dangled from her jaw, her exposed muscles twitching in anticipation. "You..." As she got closer to him and as his form became clearer, something in Garchomp's head snapped and she threw back her head and screeched. "HUMAAAAAAAAAAN!"

Both claws raised, she charged with a shriek of fury.

"What do you think we're doing??" the Scizor - Eris, was it? - snapped as he reached the front of the group.
"I couldn't find the guts to look behind me - I didn't know how far that thing was from us!" Finally at the top of the stairwell, Sirius raised his staff once more and ignited the flame. They were in a small hallway with a broken glass wall in front of them. Lying nearby was the rotting corpse of a human man.

"Ick..." Sirius pulled a face at the decayed body as he approached the hole in the glass. He held his torch at arm's length and squinted down the corridor; doors lined the walls on either side of them right to the very end. Bodies of human and Pokemon alike were scattered across the floor. The smell was revolting, but it was common enough these days for Sirius not to want to puke.

"Hey, this is fun and all, but what are we going to do about scaly?" the Lopunny asked as Sirius poked his head through the hole, looking left and right for any signs of movement. "If we end up leading it upstairs along with us, we're just gonna be trapped with one angry dragon."

A mighty roar echoed up to them from downstairs, followed by a lot of yelling and crashing. "Sounds like Godzilla found a new toy - let's keep going while it's distracted!" Carefully, he stepped through the hole, being sure to avoid the glass shards on the floor. "Has ... has anybody actually been here before? 'Cause I sure haven't." They had two options - go straight ahead into the corridor with the doors and dead bodies, or go left with ... more doors and dead bodies. "Wow, this place really really went to hell," he mused casually. "But what I mean is, does anybody know the way out? Could do with figuring that out before Godzilla down there realises we're gone."

"I couldn't find the guts to look behind me - I didn't know how far that thing was from us!" Eris barely listened to the fox's excuse as they halted at the top of the second staircase. At first, they were once again enclosed in darkness until their impromptu leader ignited his staff. Seeing the hallway was hardly anymore pleasant than not. It was coated in glass and blood. Bodies littered the corridor, one corpse in particular rather close to the hole within the glass wall blocking their path.

The smell alone made the helioptile in Eris' arms cover his nostrils to try and block out the stench. It was overpowering and nauseating...Gramps thought he'd never get used to it. More slowly, but without a word, his companion begins to walk through the maze of broken glass. Unlike the others, she pays little attention to where her metal toes fall. Her feet weren't actually soft enough for the stuff to stab through. "Sounds like Godzilla found a new toy - let's keep going while it's distracted!" It was unclear whether Eris heard or purposefully didn't respond to anyones' comments as they continued through the glass. The pincher pokemon's eyes remained locked on the scenery around them and the path ahead.

"Has ... has anybody actually been here before? 'Cause I sure haven't." With his hands still covering his nose and muffling his words slightly, the aging electric-type croaks out a reply "Y-yes, but not long enough to really learn the layout--and everything looks so different now." The elder's eyes linger to the floor and immediately the action is regretted and he returns them upwards to watch their companions. "But what I mean is, does anybody know the way out? Could do with figuring that out before Godzilla down there realises we're gone."

"There should be an open roof if I remember correctly, though none of us can fly...downstairs has too many of them...some of these rooms might be open--though humans had a way of locking a number of them with the contraption next to the doors--" The lizard muses half to himself and half to the group. "What he's trying to say is that this place is a maze and we're fucked." Eris interjects, her eyes still straight ahead as she speaks. The helioptile's wrinkled brow scrunches at his companion's callous response. "Now I never quite said that.."

We’re stopping. We’re stopping. Why are we stopping? Didn’t we learn from last time what happened whenever we just decide to stand around chatting? The distant roaring only caused the Lopunny to wince, and he dared to take an uncertain glance over his shoulder, not really sure to be happy that the thing wasn't right behind them or unnerved that something was ticking it off. Even more than it already was, anyways. Well, hey. At least I'm not the guy stuck gettin' it's attention, yeesh. Turning his attention away from the dragon out for their blood, the Normal type wrinkled his sensitive nose in response to the scent of blood and decay. Ugh. He didn't care how many corpses he happened to come across, the damn things stank.

Stepping gingerly through the hole, the Lopunny ran his fingers through the long, soft fur on his ears, trying his best to untangle any knots he happened to come across. Places such as the one they were wandering through at the moment were vaguely familiar to him, as he had been "owned" by more trainers than he could possibly count during the course of his comparatively young life. Of course, the ones he had lived in usually weren't sprinkled with blood, broken glass and dead things as far as the eye could see. "There should be an open roof if I remember correctly, though none of us can fly...downstairs has too many of them...some of these rooms might be open--though humans had a way of locking a number of them with the contraption next to the doors--" "What he's trying to say is that this place is a maze and we're fucked." Madison listened briefly to the words of his companions, scoffing quietly under his breath before prodding the nearest door experimentally with one paw. "We could always try to bust our way in." He frowned then, allowing the tips of his fingers to slide down the obstruction's surface, before crossing both arms tightly. "I can't really guarantee what that'll accomplish." The last thing Madison wanted was to be packed into a tiny room with a bunch of other Pokemon when their pursuer finished tearing apart whatever had managed to catch it's eye.

He let out a quiet string of curses then, reaching down to pluck out a tiny shard of glass that had decided to embed itself in the bottom of his foot while he was distracted. "I mean, we could split up. One to each room- we'd know if it found us that way." And while that dragon was busy eating someone, Madison could probably take advantage of the opportunity to run away... Somewhere. He hadn't really worked out that part of the plan yet.

With a shrug, he tossed the piece of glass over one shoulder. "The deeper we go into this place, the more lost we get."

[[skip a final time; Orion's just waiting and watching]]

They had been traveling for many days by that point. The boy was dragging his feet, his mouth hanging open as he panted from the exertion. Calem had not been able to find a clean souse of water in days-- it was taking it's toll. His faithful Absol. Abrielle, had now allowed him from her sight. "Lean against me, boss," she told him gently, managing to get the boy into what they had both assumed would be shelter. The city of Mauville had changed drastically since the pair were children. The youth had one arm draped over Abby's back, his eyes unfocused. Honestly he cared little for how Hoenn had changed since he had lived there, it was not like he could do anything about it. Calem's deep grey gaze refused to listen to him, his vision swimming round and round through his foggy mind.

"Hold on, boss." The Absol's words were the only thing to get through his haze, and the trainer valued it greatly. As he realised, though, McGonagall would make for easier travel. The fox his size, and much easier to lean on. "...McGonagal," he croaked, opening a Pokeball to allow his starter out. The Delphox bowed his head before reaching forward with gentle black hands. Murmuring softly to Calem, McGonagal got the youth's arm around his shoulders before nodding to the Absol to lead the way forward.

They all heard the chaos.

"What the...?!" Abrielle froze, her horn reacting. Oh this is not good. In only seconds, the Absol collapsed, her body hitting the ground as she violently convulsed. The Delphox barked her name, watching as her scythe whipped from side to side. "We need to get him out of here!" She hissed. Only through pure force of will, the feline shoved her legs beneath her, forcing her body upright. Beads of sweat accumulated on her unfurred face as the dark type shot forward. "This way!" The Delphox did not hesitate, dragging their human in his arms towards a flight of stairs. The sounds seemed to be coming from nearby, roars and screams, but they had not seen anything yet. They--

"Hu...man..." A chill ran through all three of them, even Calem managing to lift his head enough to see what had spoken. "Humaaaaaan." The monster was what had once been a massive clawed beast-- Garchomp maybe?-- but there was no way to tell. As it seemed to slowly register them, Calem silently returned McGonagall to his ball. Abrielle backed up slowly, the two pairs of eyes watching as the monster moved in their direction. "You..." Abrielle turned her head, hissing, "Grab my neck." He hesitated, the boy's grey eyes flickering in terror up at the beast. He flinched as it roared, bellowing to the roof. "CALEM!"

He bounded forward, wrapping his arms around his partner's neck as it screamed, "HUMAAAAAAAAAAN!" The Absol whipped back the way they had come, her nimble feet effortlessly carrying her trainer as they were airborne with each mighty leap. Their only hope was that she could outrun the thing as they shot around the corner and out of sight.

He would not get away. He shouldn't, he mustn't! Garchomp screamed out her fury as she charged after the human and his Pokemon, staining the ground as she went with puddles of saliva. She would drink his blood, chew his flesh, crush his bones...Her old targets were barely a memory now as she sped after the boy, sliding around corners, slamming into walls, knocking a bicycle flying.

His Absol was faster than she had expected, and her old legs weren't what they used to be. Garchomp snarled as her rage began to boil her putrid, congealed blood, her crimson eyes narrowing at the pair as they got further and further away from them. "NO!" Shrieking at the ceiling, Garchomp raised her foot. "MINE!" She sent it slamming down onto the floor.

The entire building shuddered and groaned under the force of the Earthquake attack. Glass shattered, raining into the corridor from the shop windows, and particles of dust and stone fell from the ceiling. From where Garchomp's foot had landed grew a massive crack in the ground, splitting the earth as it zigzagged its way towards the boy and his Absol.

"There should be an open roof if I remember correctly, though none of us can fly...downstairs has too many of them...some of these rooms might be open--though humans had a way of locking a number of them with the contraption next to the doors--" the Helioptile rambled from behind him. Sirius wiped his damp brow as he held his torch up high, peering down the dark corridor.
"What he's trying to say is that this place is a maze and we're fucked."
"Now I never quite said that.."

"Yeah yeah, that's very helpful," Sirius gulped, eyes darting from side to side at the dead bodies at his feet; for all he knew one of them would jump up and savage his face off.

The roof was a terrible idea; if the undead made it up to the second floor, they were trapped up there. The Delphox gritted his teeth, his heart starting to hammer. You ... may have fucked up here. He kept his gaze focused on the darkness ahead, hoping that none of the others would detect his anxiety.

"We could always try to bust our way in," said the Lopunny, poking one of the door with a paw. "I can't really guarantee what that'll accomplish."
"Neither do I," said Sirius, clutching his staff so tightly it hurt. Oh Arceus, what was he going to do?! At least the Garchomp still seemed distracted by something; more yells and crashes echoed their way up from downstairs.
"I mean, we could split up. One to each room- we'd know if it found us that way."
Sirius shook his head. "I don't think splitting up is a good idea. If either of us encounter a horde larger in numbers than us, then we could be in trouble." He sighed, flicking a few embers from his fingers onto his torch, brightening it. "Maybe ... we should just--"

The entire building suddenly lurched violently, nearly knocking Sirius off his feet. Dust showered down from the ceiling onto them. An almighty rumble shuddered through the walls. Sirius regained his balance, coughing as he inhaled a lungful of dust. "What the hell was that?!" he gasped, feeling the floor shiver under his feet. Whatever that Garchomp was doing downstairs it wasn't good. "That felt like an Earthquake attack..." Earthquake? In a building? Oh shit. "We need to get outside!" he coughed, dashing to the door that the Lopunny had been messing with.

He remembered looking up at the various balconies surrounding them when they had met in the square; if one of these apartments had one, they could use it to get back down there. Yes, they'd be heading straight back into undead territory, but between that and getting crushed to death under a collapsing ceiling, Sirius picked the former. At least the undead could be held back, unlike hundreds of tons of concrete. All they had to do was avoid the Garchomp. Easy peasy, right?

"I'm gonna bust it down, ready?" He stood back, extinguishing his staff and tucking it up his sleeve. He charged headlong into the door, bracing himself for an impact. But upon crashing into it, it swung open, and Sirius found himself sprawled out on the damp-smelling carpet of the apartment. He let his head flop down.

"It was open..."

The pair watched as the others stepped over the scattered glass, eyes roaming through their current surroundings. "We could always try to bust our way in." The lopunny states, crossing their arms as they frown and consider the door before them. "I can't really guarantee what that'll accomplish." The helioptile and scizor glance at one another, but their de facto leader answers first. "Neither do I," Eris' eyes linger to her feet. The noises below them were getting louder. Whatever that beast was after now, wasn't likely to live much longer.

Gramps' eyes follow his companion's gaze, but upon hearing the roars and crashes he looks back towards their current task. Attempting to shake off a queasy feeling in his stomach, the electric-type clears his throat. "I agree--" Barely two words into his sentence, a violent shudder rocks the very building. Dust began to fall from the ceiling as another shattering roar ricocheted through the walls and floor to match the earthquake.

Instinctively the pincher pokemon wraps her form around the older pokemon in her arms. Her head whipping this way and that, looking for an immediate threat. Just as the helioptile wiggles his head up, free her from hold to speak, the scizor dodges to the side to avoid a falling ceiling tile. The tile crashes to the floor, crumbling and intermingling with the glass already there. "That felt like an Earthquake attack..." Gramps felt the hold on him loosen as the trembling underfoot calmed and subsided. He pokes his head out again in time to see the Sirius preparing to ram a door. "I'm gonna bust it down, ready?"

"Son! Don't you think that's a little rash--" Gramps starts, but his words fall on deaf ears as the fox charges. Upon slamming the door, it falters easy, whipping open to allow passage, but with all of the built up momentum, the vulpine crashes to the floors. Eris' shakes her head, moving to step around the downed fox. Gramps looks on with a sympathetic expression to the fire-type's dilemna, but Sirius' face is firmly flopped down into the carpet. "And what are we suppose to find in here?"

He could hear something distantly, sensitive ears picking up the sound of more chaos. Madison couldn't really find it in himself to care at the moment, however; so long as the thing downstairs was distracted, he had no problem listening to the sounds of something... Or someone below getting torn to shreds. If anything, he would have preferred it if they made even more noise; perhaps it would allow them a few extra seconds while the dragon was distracted. Damn. That's actually kind of horrible to think about. I've become pretty terrible, haven't I? His thoughts were more of an idle observation than something met with genuine concern; he had always been somewhat selfish, unafraid to bite, claw and scratch if it ensured his survival. It was just the fact that surviving had become increasingly difficult lately that had caused the Lopunny to turn that much more callous.

"So, we're pretty much dead, right?" Madison muttered under his breath, more so directed at himself than any of the surrounding Pokemon. "That... That's just perf-" He didn't get to finish, letting out a startled cry instead as the world around him seemed to lurch and tremble beneath his feet. His first instinct was to cover his head and face, though that didn't do much to stop the pebbles from the ceiling that pelted his back. It didn't really hurt that much, though it made the Normal type uncomfortably aware of the enclosed space they were currently standing in. I'm not letting this place become my tomb. I can't die here, I can't die here, I can't... By the time Madison had managed to swallow his claustrophobia- for the moment, anyways- the Delphox was already by his side, apparently planning on busting the door down. Shakily, the Lopunny removed his paws and took a step to the side, not wanting to get caught in the way.

And then proceeded to let out a cackle when the fox ended up falling on his face.

Quickly, he covered his mouth and gingerly stepped into the apartment, shoulders trembling slightly with barely-restrained laughter. Well, that was certainly one way to get him to forget about the fact that they could get crushed underneath the building at any moment. "It doesn't look like anyone has been in here for a while." He observed, glancing around at his surroundings like he was wandering about a museum rather than someone's home. "Or at least the original owners of this place? Bah, I can't tell. If we weren't on the verge of... Y'know, being eaten, I'd almost say there might be something around here we could use. This building is huge; it can't be completely picked clean."

He had waited too long.

The battle that raged beneath him was enough to keep him still in the chair he'd claimed, but now there were other sounds. Other voices, coming closer. Orion had never called himself a brave pokemon, so tucking tail and running wasn't out of his list of very limited options. But where would he run? As the voices drew closer and more desperate, he knew they would try to seek shelter has he had-- in one of the apartments. And him, the fool, hadn't yet gotten to barricading the door.

But there was no time to lament or even attempt to fix his mistake; a voice sounded from just beyond his door: "I'm gonna bust it down, ready?"

"Son! Don't you think that's a little rash--"
In a flash, he was a blur of blue, tearing out of the chair and into a nearby doorway that led to the bedroom. He didn't even have time to shut it before the intruders spilled through the door, the leader gracefully flying through and landing on his face.
"It was open..." the leader, a delphox like himself, whimpered pathetically. Orion's eyes narrowed for a moment; that voice sounded familiar. But the others soon came in afterward, alerting him once more to their presence.

A scizor with a small, yellow lizard accompanying her was the most intimidating, her striking red armor flaring Orion's panic. "And what are we suppose to find in here?" she snarled, giving him some hope that they were merely looters and would move on. However, he knew that wasn't ever his luck.

"It doesn't look like anyone has been in here for a while." the other, a lopunny, observed causally, giving Orion a fraction more hope. If his humble den wasn't to their liking, they would move on and he would be rid of them. "Or at least the original owners of this place? Bah, I can't tell. If we weren't on the verge of... Y'know, being eaten, I'd almost say there might be something around here we could use. This building is huge; it can't be completely picked clean."

Orion's brow furrowed. No, no... he whimpered in his mind, eyes dilating with fear. There's nothing here so leave. His eye frantically went from each intruder to something that now caused his heart to seize. His stick, the stick he'd had since his first evolution was leaned against the recliner he'd abandoned not five minutes prior. His eyes went to the other Delphox. He would know what it was. They'd look for him and find him. Shit, shit, shit, shit, SHIT...

Calem tightened his grip around the Absol's neck, Abrielle's movements were strong and precise and he could feel the powerful muscles moving from beneath his arms. "Hold on tight--!" she grunted to him in warning a heart beat before putting all she could into her hind legs. Bouncing up into the air like a rabbit, the boy held on, sparing a glance behind him as the Absol pressed forward. Abrielle hit one of the walls easily, her forepaws taking the impact before immediately pushing herself off again, only to repeat the movement on the other wall. Zig zagging further away from the Garchomp, Calem's skin scrawled when it screamed, "NO!" Jostled through the air with the effort his partner took in fleeing, he was able to watch as the giant dragon smashed one massive foot into the ground.

"MINE!" Calem watched as the incredible Earthquake attack shot straight for them. "Abby!" he cried, the feline already making evasive maneuvering. "Why won't it give up?!" Abrielle snarled to herself, running up the side of a building before jumping off the top as it crumbled beneath the giant tremor. "Do we fight?" the trainer asked, his voice high with fear. "Do you think fighting that thing is a good idea?" The Absol snapped back.

For once, Calem's eyes hardened. His body shook, pressed against the dark type as she ran, but he was able to hit the fifth ball at his side. "Smaug! An Altaria appeared in the air, the avian rapidly taking in their surroundings before darting up into the air to avoid an attack from the undead. "Boss--" Abrielle tried to warn her trainer off, but he ignored her. "Moon blast it! Don't get too close!" Smaug's eyes narrowed and he nodded, flying rapidly through the air as a pearl colored sphere of light formed before him from where he circled beneath the roof. As the earthquake slowly faded, Abrielle took advantage to run straight on the floor, putting more distance between them and the Garchomp. They both looked over their shoulders to watch as the Altaria blasted the attack at the dragon. Calem opened his mouth to call a retreat command, but Smaug was already on it, the Altaria darting nimbly to the side and diving back towards his trainer.

The entire building groaned and creaked as the Earthquake attack finished its course, leaving a deep, zigzagged trench along the corridor. Shards of glasses crunched into her feet as Garchomp stomped forward, infuriated that the human and his Pokemon had managed to outrun the attack. The massive dragon snarled, tossing her head in frustration. She would taste human blood on her tongue once more, even if she had to bring the whole ceiling down on them.

But the human had released another Pokemon; a fellow Dragon-type, judging by its scent. It surged towards her, an ethereal pink light glowing next to him. The Moonblast hit Garchomp straight in the chest. She knew that at one point her kind feared this power, but even she barely felt more than a bee sting, its force was still enough to stagger her. Garchomp regained her balance, raised her head and roared her fury, the very volume of it sending ripples of vibrations through the floor and walls. The building shuddered again, particles of dust covering her rotting head and back.

She sprinted after her prey, skidding round the corner and opening her maw, blasting a Flamethrower straight towards their retreating forms.