(ELITE) The DRAGONSPIRAL Team

At Grandpa's praise Iris's slight blush quickly covered her whole face, the young woman turning her head in embarrassment. Gau eyeballed Drayden for a second, sensing his trainer's discomfort, but as he stared something in the shadow caught his attention. Sending out a few squeaks he listened carefully before letting out a warning sound to Iris, who slipped out of Drake's grip and quickly made her way to Drayden's side. "Grandpa," she whispered in warning, laying her hand on the older man's arm to still him. "Gau said there is something right behind you..."

There was silence once more as the echos of their voices scattered in the ruin around them. Looming, oppressive silence that felt like a weight on Drayden's shoulders. The Dragon Master shifted his coat to seek some sort of comfort in the dangerous place they'd put themselves in, but found little in the familiar gesture. All that was left was to go forward. But as he continued to lead them on to try and find the stairs in the murky abyss, Iris' voice cut clear into the quiet. "Grandpa," she began in a whisper, but due to the overwhelming silence, still managed to sound like a shout. "Gau said there is something right behind you..."

Drayden whirled around, holding the torch out to better see when his light settled on something in the distance. Drayden's eyes widened as it was soon revealed that they didn't need much of the light as parts of the thing glowed a sickly neon purple-- Golurk. Infected Golurk.

Immediately, Drayden's hand went to his side, seeking out his Sceptile. "Javelin!" he called in a harsh whisper, the lights growing nearer. "Leaf Storm!" But as the Sceptile materialized and was about to attack, more purple lights flickered to life and Drayden's stomach dropped to his feet. He normally hated cursing, but... "...Shit."

Drake listened to Iris with a smile on his face, patting the girl's shoulder amicably. He found it amazing how someone so young had rose to such an honour as Championship. He'd considered more than once battling for the position himself, but as he got older he had realised that he did not care for the power the position held. Besides, he hadn't had much hope of surpassing most of the Champions he had served; they'd been the reason he'd started to believe that their Elite Four was easily one of the best in the world, an opinion he held to this day.

Even in his nostalgic musings, he felt Iris tense underneath his hand before darting out of his grip towards Drayden. The air suddenly felt thicker, charged with danger. Drake's hand immediately rested on the handle of his sword.

"Grandpa," Iris urgently whispered, "Gau said there is something right behind you..."

Drake quickly turned as well, steel screeching as he drew his scimitar. Ominous purple lights glared out of the darkness at them, silhouetted by the huge shadow of what could only be Golurk. Despite knowing that his weapon would be unless on the body of a ghost, Drake's lips tugged into a cocky grin. If these big, dumb, wannabe knights thought they were getting in their way for a moment, they had another thing coming.

"...Shit," Drayden hissed as Javelin, his Sceptile, appeared. Drake's smirk only grew wider as more lights shone out at them.

"C'mon, Dray," he laughed as he tossed the Poke Ball containing his Flygon. "You're afraid of these lumps of stupid? Gimme a break! We can take them. They'll be a pile of rubble when we're done with 'em, ain't that right Flygon?" His Pokemon cried out in agreement, twisting and spiraling in the air and clearly just as eager to battle as his master was.

"You wanna go first or shall I?" he asked, looking at Drayden and Iris in turn. "Don't mind letting the ladies go before me, but Flygon and I aren't gonna wait forever!"

The warning was nearly too late as Grandpa turned and, as if awakened by the light of his torch, several swirling lights began to glow brightly and break apart the shadows. A group of Golurk became clearly visible as their sickly purple light pulsed and Iris felt herself grow sick with dread. After her suggested rule of no large Pokemon that left her with only two small enough to not attract more attention, and they were both far too under-leveled and inexperienced to face Golurk. What was she going to do?

Gau screeched angrily at the guardian spirits even as Drayden summoned his Sceptile, quickly on the offensive with a grass move. Even Drake was itching for a fight as he turned to the pair with a smile. "You wanna go first or shall I?" he asked, causing Iris's dread to deepen. "Don't mind letting the ladies go before me, but Flygon and I aren't gonna wait forever!" Clasping her hands together before her chest the ex-Champion took a moment to assess their situation, knowing she had to do something or else they were all screwed. The main problem was that she couldn't risk bringing out anything big enough to interfere with the other two or that would cause structural damage to the already fragile tower, so her little Noibat was her best option. Yet thankfully he did have one move that would prove highly effective against the guardians.

"Gau," she said sharply, the Noibat ceasing his alarm and coming to attention, hovering just before the Iris's face. "I need to you to lend all of your support to Grandpa and Uncle Drake. Anything their pokemon can't take out in one hit you finish with a Dark Pulse, understand?" The dragon bat chirped his agreement with resound confidence and immediately flew to Drayden's Sceptile, staying just behind the larger creature while his body began to glow with a purple hue. He may be a minimum ten levels lower than everything else in the room but his training with Iris had given his special moves a sharper edge, so regardless of the level damage was going to be dealt to these monstrosities.

Sitting on one of the wrought iron arms of her Chandelure, Shauntal hummed happily as her pen danced across the pages of her notebook. "Shauntal, it probably isn't safe to write while we are travelling." Chandelure said quietly, her quite hissing voice concerned as Shauntal stopped her writing, tapping the pen on her chin as she adjusted her glasses. "You might be right, Chan'. Perhaps I should put my book away for now. It's not as though I have anything to add to the plot, it's currently only just filling the time." She replied, putting the book  and pen away into her bag. Lounging on the ghost and fire type's arm, Shauntal observed the ground below her.

"Shauntal, I hear noises up ahead." Looking up, the Ghost trainer's purple eyes widened as she saw a large Golurk through the break in the trees. "Oh. Oh my. Chan', lets go! There might be some survivors over there!" She said in a hurried whisper, jumping off Chandelure's arm and running on foot towards the area, her faithful companion right beside her. As she drew closer, Shauntal could make out voices, but couldn't make out the words. Whatever it was, there was something going on, and if the Ghost Master had to guess, there was more than one undead attacking. Gritting her teeth, Shauntal grabbed one of Chandelure's iron arms, swinging up onto it in one move. "Up, up, up!" She said hurriedly, and Chandelure flew up and over one of the Golurk, landing just behind the group of humans that the ghosts had surrounded.

"I hope you don't mind me dropping in! It looked like you could use some help." She said cheerfully, before pointing to one of the Golurk with a grin. "Chandelure, be a dear and use Energy Ball on this one please." She said, fishing out another Pokeball and releasing Froslass. "Froslass, use Ice Shard on the one over here." She said, pointing to a Golurk to her right. She then stepped back to face the other group, and grinned widely. "Iris! I am so glad to see you safe, and you too, Drayden! It certainly takes a load off my mind to see you two safe~" She said, wiggling her fingers at them with a grin. "Shall we kick some infected ass, then?"

Though Javelin and Drayden shared the same anxiety toward the situation at hand, Drake could always be counted upon to lighten the mood. "C'mon, Dray," the Elite Four laughed as he released his flygon into the fray. Drayden turned at the nickname, sighing slightly at Drake's jovial expression. The man was probably drunk. "You're afraid of these lumps of stupid? Gimme a break! We can take them. They'll be a pile of rubble when we're done with 'em, ain't that right Flygon?" Said Flygon eagerly agreed, twirling in the air with anticipation. Drayden glanced to his own Sceptile, who seemed to share the Flygon's enthusiasm.

"You wanna go first or shall I?" Drake asked, clearly not bothered by the hulking horde that was slowly making their way to the group. "Don't mind letting the ladies go before me, but Flygon and I aren't gonna wait forever!"

"Gau," Iris barked after a moment of quiet contemplation, her demeanor not at all catching the infectious zealotry that was taking hold of the others. "I need to you to lend all of your support to Grandpa and Uncle Drake. Anything their pokemon can't take out in one hit you finish with a Dark Pulse, understand?" The Noibat chirped his obedience before a blur of color and light traveled through the door and above them before landing at the rear of the group, revealing a young woman riding a Chandelure.

"I hope you don't mind me dropping in! It looked like you could use some help." Drayden balked at the sight-- Shauntal? One of his own Elite Four was suddenly there without explanation or reason, but he was certainly glad to see a Ghost Master help with a fight against dozens of Golurk. "Chandelure, be a dear and use Energy Ball on this one please." she asked cooly before releasing a Froslass as well. "Froslass, use Ice Shard on the one over here." Taking no time, she approached Iris cheerfully, completely not bothering to worry about the horde. "Iris! I am so glad to see you safe, and you too, Drayden! It certainly takes a load off my mind to see you two safe~" He waved awkwardly, unsure of what to do with the cheery woman. "Shall we kick some infected ass, then?"

Drayden looked to Javelin and nodded, ordering, "Giga Drain! Don't use Leaf Storm unless you're surrounded!" He turned back to Shauntal and nodded. "We can have the pleasantries later, Miss-- we should take care of these first!" His gaze stole to his old friend, however, and he couldn't help but feel a grin creep across his face. "Seems now we have a decent party going, huh, old man?" he taunted as Javelin took out a couple more ghosts with her attacks. "That Flygon just for looks?"

But as things looked on the up and up, a bright flash sparked above them and two shapes dropped down to the floor with a sickening thud, missing Drayden by mere inches. It wasn't hard to tell that it was a person, clad in heavy winter wear on top of what looked like an Infected Kadabra with a now very smashed skull. The person groaned and shifted, their voice indicating female. Drayden bent down to her, rolling her over and dragging her away from the Kadabra a little to make sure she was all right. Blood was across her thick coat, but that was expected, what with the Psychic's busted head. None of the blood looked to be hers, though.

"Miss, miss!" he called, gently shaking her shoulder and patting her face. She had ice on her-- where had she come from that was so cold? "Are you all right? Can you tell me your name?" She groaned more -maybe a concussion?- but did little else.

[[Dooms, remember that we're already inside the tower~]]

Well, everything seemed to be under control. They'd make dust out of these morons, no problem. Three Dragon-type masters against a few bad-tempered chucks of rock? There was no competition.

"All right, Flygon, you know what to do! Let these bastards in on your Crunch attack, come on!" As his Pokemon sped through the air towards his closest target, Drake flinched back, startled, as as Chandelure suddenly floated into view, and a young woman hopped off one of its arms and landed in front of them.

"I hope you don't mind me dropping in! It looked like you could use some help." Who the hell was this?! Drake gawked at her as she ordered her Pokemon to join in on the attack. He scowled at the sight of the Froslass throwing ice all over the place, and turned to the woman.

"You be careful with that Ice-type," he growled, watching cautiously as his Flygon flipped and spiraled in the air, conducting his own attacks in startling close range to the Ice Shards. If he was confident enough that he could avoid them, fine, but he was saying it anyway. "If my Flygon gets hit you'll have a lot to answer for."

Wait. Did she know Drayden and Iris? It certainly looked like it, by the way she was greeting them. Drayden was busy with something on the floor nearby, but his Sceptile seemed to be doing well at holding his own. "Just keep moving, Flygon! Don't let 'em hit you! Use Crunch one more time, thataboy!" He turned back to the young Ghost Trainer, irritation visible in his brow. Who the hell did Drayden know that he didn't? "And who the blazes are you? Can't you see we had this under control already?"

Iris took her cue from her companions and readied herself for a painfully long battle, offering all of her faith and prayers to Gau that the little Noibat would be okay. She would loved to have Vashoth or Syltha out and not risk the young bat but any moves those two had that would be effective against these angry spirits would also bring the whole tower down on top of them. So that wasn't an option at the moment. So instead she would have to keep a sharp eye out and trust that her Pokemon wouldn't do anything reckless. She saw Drayden about to move with his Sceptile so she prepared to guide Gau behind him but suddenly both men stopped and turned as a new voice echoed through the large room. "I hope you don't mind me dropping in! It looked like you could use some help."

Iris turned and followed the gaze of the two older men to spot a strangely dressed woman dropping off of a Chandelure and sending the ghost to attack on of the Golurk before calling out a Froslass to do the same. The young ex-Champion was dumbfounded at the aloofness of the new individual until she came up to the trio with a grin and made a beeline right for her. "Iris! I am so glad to see you safe, and you too, Drayden! It certainly takes a load off my mind to see you two safe~" The shock written on Iris's face wrote volumes. "Shau....Shauntal?!" The young woman couldn't believe her own eyes, even as Uncle Drake made a rather sassy remark about Shauntal's ice spirit, but the Elite simply replied by wiggling her fingers. This- what was even happening right now? "Why and how are you-" but Shauntal seemed a bit giddily pre-occupied with the coming fight to let the girl finish. "Shall we kick some infected ass, then?"

"We can have the pleasantries later, Miss-- we should take care of these first!" As grim as their situation looked Iris felt a surge of confidence as the two more experienced men in her company quickly set to work, both of their Pokemon moving with precision. Gau easily followed Javeline's Giga Drains and had moved to back up Drake's Flygon when suddenly the ceiling gave way and the bat had to scramble to avoid the falling debris. Drayden rushed to a figure that had fallen through with the flooring and Iris couldn't help but go to his side. She found him cradling a woman in his arms, wrapped tight with warm winter clothing, and covered in blood. Spotting the rather crushed Kadabra Iris noted that it was likely the creature's blood covering the outside of the woman's clothing.

"Are you all right? Can you tell me your name?" A groan was his only response. Gently tapping his shoulder Iris knelt down beside Daryden and scanned her gaze over the injured woman, pity dancing in her gaze. How long had she been up there, fighting this thing on her own? "Grandpa, help Uncle Drake and Shauntal," she offered. "I can't do much right now without my dragons causing serious damage to the tower so I can watch her. Gau and I will keep her safe until the Golurk are dealt with. Okay?" She knew that if it were any other location she wouldn't hesitate to use her full team but the risk was too great with this many Golurk, the tower too important. They had to fight smart, not hard. "We'll be okay, I promise."

Shauntal wasn't sure who was more surprised - Iris or Drayden. Covering her mouth with a gloved hand, she waved at them, wiggling her fingers in a teasing manner. "Shau....Shauntal?!" Iris was the first to address her, and the Ghost Master smiled wider - if that were even possible. "Giga Drain! Don't use Leaf Storm unless you're surrounded!" Watching as Drayden's Sceptile attacked the Golurk with practiced accuracy, Shauntal watched the grass type with admiration. They may not be her type of choice, but she wasn't going to leave the Sceptile unobserved. Every pokemon had its own story, and Shauntal loved to try and guess them as she watched one fight.

"You be careful with that Ice-type,"
"Hmm?"

Shauntal turned to face the taller male, quirking a brow as she stred cooly up at them with her purple eyes, hands balled into fists as she placed them on her hips and lent to the side slightly. "If my Flygon gets hit you'll have a lot to answer for." Her left eyebrow rose higher, in a questioning manner. "Good sir are you implying that my Froslass is unfit to fight around a dragon? I know well the type disadvantage, and so does she. 'Lass won't harm your pretty Flygon unless they hit her first." Shauntal then turned to face the Golurk again, Shauntal motioned to another Golurk and placed a hand on Chandelure's iron arms. "Aim for the chest on that one Chan', Your Energy Ball should be able to crack that seal and weaken it." She said, before beckoning to her Froslass, who stopped their barrage of ice against a Golurk that had fallen to its knees.

"Froslass, don't use Blizzard, you'll bring the place down around us. Keep your Ice Shard's centered, aim for this part -" Shauntal pointed to the crack on the Golurk's chest, and then pointed at its eyes. "- If you could blind them, that would be a big help, and do be careful of the dragons, I think the big guy with the blue jacket is getting jumpy at the proximity of your attacks." Shauntal said, and Froslass rolled her eyes, shooting a few more Ice Shards at the kneeling Golurk, putting it down for good with a shard that punctured its neck and shot out the other side.  "If they want to be twitchy, fine. But I won't hit their Flygon." The ghost replied cooly, before resuming their attack.

"Why and how are you-" Looking back, Shauntal shrugged. "I was looking for the others - all the other Elite Four left, or fled. I'm also worried about Grimsley. I found his Drapion dead at the League." She said, looking back up at the fight. The Golurk had taken a purple glow thanks to Chandelure's flames, which lit up their already neon purple cores to make them a sickly violet. "We can have the pleasantries later, Miss-- we should take care of these first!" With a nod, Shauntal watched with a careful eye as her two Pokemon attacked the infected with the deadly accuracy she knew and loved them for. "Just keep moving, Flygon! Don't let 'em hit you! Use Crunch one more time, thataboy!" Watching as the ground dragon danced around the blue Ice Shards from Froslass, Shauntal dug through her bag and grabbed her pen and notebook, writing down a brief summary of the Flygon's movements in shorthand before putting the book and pen back.

"Miss, miss!" Spinning around, Shauntal hurried over to where Drayden was hunched over a figure. From her viewpoint, Shauntal could see blood, and she hurried over, spotting the Kadabra underneath them. Scanning over the figure, Shauntal deduced that the blood was most likely the undead's, but it never hurt to make sure. "Are you all right? Can you tell me your name?" Shauntal's eyes were drawn to ice that covered their body, and she narrowed her eyes. Had the Kadabra teleported them from somewhere cold? "Grandpa, help Uncle Drake and Shauntal," Looking to her side, Shauntal was almost surprised to see Iris. Wait - Drake. Putting two and two together, Shauntal confirmed that the one with the blue jacket was Drake.

"I can't do much right now without my dragons causing serious damage to the tower so I can watch her. Gau and I will keep her safe until the Golurk are dealt with. Okay?" Shauntal nodded, turning back to the fight. "Chandelure, get back!" Shauntal said, and the blue flamed ghost dropped back to make way for Shauntal's Gengar, who took the fire ghost's place as it dodged an attack. Recalling Chandelure, Shauntal's smile dropped and her eyes hardened. "Gengar, don't get hit, and prepare a Dark Pulse. Focus your fire of the three to your right, hit them if they get too close. Froslass, use Ice Shard to keep the ones on the left at bay. Don't let them get close!" She called, and her two Pokemon took a defensive stance in front of Shauntal, focusing their attacks as a way to ward off the Golurk.

"And who the blazes are you? Can't you see we had this under control already?" Turning to face 'Drake', Shauntal rolled her eyes, but her kind smile returned. "Who am I? Shauntal Shikimi, Ghost Type Master of the Unovian Elite Four and a friend of Iris and Drayden. As for the under control part -" She motioned to the female who was currently under Iris's protection, and then to the Golurk. "- Perhaps it's a good idea to have a ghost master - who, by the way, has trained and raised a Golett and Golurk - to help you out. I have no doubt that you had it under control, but now you have some back up." She said, her voice cheeful, despite the circumstances.

Drayden's worry increased as the woman remained somewhat unresponsive. He began to unwrap her from her bloodstained coat. As he touched it, however, his hand drew back in surprise; it was freezing cold. In the dim light, it'd been difficult to see, but with the scattered light from Chandelure, the Golurk horde and the attacks, he was finally able to spot it. Frost clung to her coat. Where did you come from...? A light touch on his shoulder caused him to flinch and whirl, nearly clocking Iris in the face with his elbow. He quickly lowered it, of course, watching her as she spoke. "Grandpa, help Uncle Drake and Shauntal," she offered. "I can't do much right now without my dragons causing serious damage to the tower so I can watch her. Gau and I will keep her safe until the Golurk are dealt with. Okay?" Drayden nodded, understanding her point. "We'll be okay, I promise."

"I trust you," Drayden reassured, quickly standing from his crouch. Well, not "quickly", but as fast as his body would allow. Damn knees. "Make sure she's not wounded." With that, he left his former pupil with the strange mysterious woman and went to Drake, who was somehow already arguing with Shauntal as their pokemon danced about, shooting off attacks.

"And who the blazes are you? Can't you see we had this under control already?" he heard his old friend roar, but Shauntal's voice was much quieter. "Who am I? Shauntal Shikimi, Ghost Type Master of the Unovian Elite Four and a friend of Iris and Drayden. As for the under control part: perhaps it's a good idea to have a ghost master - who, by the way, has trained and raised a Golett and Golurk - to help you out. I have no doubt that you had it under control, but now you have some back up."

"Stop that, both of you!" Drayden snapped, panting slightly from all the adrenaline in his body. "We can discuss things later, but right now, let's just work together to get these ghosts clear, please. Don't be angry," he said, directing his gaze to Drake, "--and don't be snide," he finished, looking back to Shauntal. "Just stop talking and battle!"

---

For a moment, maybe a lot of moments, everything was distorted and... wrong. The air on her tongue was no longer crisp, but... stale? There were too many sounds in her cavern, too... too much darkness. Why was it so dark? It was late afternoon, why... Lorelei's eyes snapped open as they tried focusing on her surroundings, which was almost impossible. So dark-- a moment of panic worried her that she'd been blinded by that stupid prick of a Kadabra, but no. Soon a flying ball of... fire? soared over her, leaving her more clueless than moments prior. Who the hell was flinging fire? But soon, her eyes found two eyes staring down at her, causing her own to widen in alarm.

Was that a PERSON?

"AAH!" she yelped, somehow managing to nearly toss herself away from the dark-skinned girl, her frame finally coming to focus. Lorelei blinked rapidly, eyes darting to the very new, very wrong surroundings. Old brick, Infected ghosts, dragons and fire-- where in holy hell WAS SHE? She immediately found herself on her feet somehow, back against a wall as a hand went for a pokeball. "Who are you!? What's happening?!"

"Who am I? Shauntal Shikimi, Ghost Type Master of the Unovian Elite Four and a friend of Iris and Drayden."

Well ... now he felt a little stupid. Of course they'd run into another one of Unova's top Trainers; just add that onto the list of uncanny coincidences of today. What was next, Alder bursting through the wall on the back of his Boufalant?

"Stop that, both of you!" Drayden snapped, staggering back over to them. Drake looked at him nonchalantly, raising an eyebrow. "We can discuss things later, but right now, let's just work together to get these ghosts clear, please. Don't be angry, and don't be snide. Just stop talking and battle!"

"Tch." Drake folded his arms and scoffed. "Keep your beard on, Dray. We've got this." Turning to Shauntal, he slammed his hand into hers, shook it once and turned back to the battle at hand. "'Scuse my rudeness there, miss," he said over his shoulder. "I hadn't a clue who you were."

Flygon was doing well, but looked as though he was beginning to tire; his movements were slowing down and he was having more near-misses than he was before. He narrowly dodged the massive hand of one of the Golurk as Drake pulled out his Poke Ball and recalled him. He couldn't blame him; some of his Pokemon were nearly as old as he was.

Instead, he released his Garchomp. The Mach Pokemon bellowed, snapping his jaws, before sprinting headlong into battle. "Give 'em a Dragon Rush!" Drake called, bursting with triumphant laughter as one of the Golurk was reduced to a pile of rubble from the force of the attack. "HA! Thataboy, that's how we do it! Now give that next one an Iron Head!"

His Pokemon having the situation under control for now, Drake turned to the woman that Drayden had found, now being tended to by Iris. She'd regained consciousness, and was scrambling backwards into the wall clutching a Poke Ball. Drake tilted his head and narrowed his eyes, trying to get a better look at her face. Who was she...?

"I trust you,"

Those words made Iris's heart race as a rush of pride swelled in her chest. Grandpa had always been a hard task-master but he always had such faith in Iris's abilities as a trainer, yet he often forgot that she herself was growing up. Before the Epidemic she was beginning to feel as though he would always treat her like the child she used to be and not the adult she was becoming, but now... Now maybe he was finally starting to see the new her. "Make sure she's not wounded." Iris nodded slowly, a sympathetic smile on her face as she watched Drayden rise. "I will Grandpa. Be safe." He didn't respond as he had to go tend to an arguing Shauntal and Drake, but she knew he trusted her.

Iris knelt on the ground with her legs tucked under, cradling her new charge as she lowered the unconscious female to the ground and resting the red headed woman's head on her lap. Gau used his higher, ultrasonic frequencies to check for any internal bleeding and was pleased to report there was none much to Iris's relief. She began to work at the buttons on the mystery woman's jacket to check for any external injuries when she began to feel the woman stir. As she got more and more restless the ex-champion leaned back to see if she had opened her eyes and was greeted by two sea green orbs blown wide in startled confusion. "Are yo-"

"AAH!"

"AHH!" Iris couldn't help but match the fear response as the woman shouted in her face, sending Iris backwards in reflex to land with thud on her back as she scrambled away. Iris rolled on to her side and propped herself up with one arm as Gau began chittering angrily above the mystery woman's head about her abusive treatment of his trainer. "Who are you!? What's happening?!" The dragon trainer could see the panic threatening to bubble over and sat up quickly, raising both of her hands in a non-threatening gesture. "Calm down!" she insisted, trying to keep her voice low enough that the Golurk wouldn't notice them while trying not to scold the poor woman. "You're okay. We're going to be okay. I promise."

She looked over to where Grandpa and Uncle Drake had finally stopped bickering with Shauntal and started to actively fight off the ghosts, looking back to the frightened woman before her she offered a kind smile and scooted a little closer to not have to shout. "I'm Iris. I wish I could help more but we just found you a few moments ago unconscious with a dead Alakazam. We don't know how you got here but you are in the Dragonspiral Tower. Do you know of it?"

Shauntal stared at Drake, her eyes not harsh, but not soft either as the dragon trainer stared at her. "Stop that, both of you!" Looking over at Drayden, Shauntal hid a smile behind her hand. It's just like the fights Grimsley and I used to have. She thought, amused by Drake's antics. "We can discuss things later, but right now, let's just work together to get these ghosts clear, please. Don't be angry," Shauntal shrugged lightly, watching as Gengar threw his Dark Pulse at the attacking Golurk, before charging up another one just as fast and preparing to throw that one. "--and don't be snide," Shauntal did not miss Drayden's stare at Drake. A re-occurring problem? "Just stop talking and battle!"

With a grin, Shauntal gave Drayden a mock salute. "Aye, aye, Drayden~" She teased, spinning on her heel and keeping her eyes on the fight. "Tch." Drake's scoff earned a quirked brow from Shauntal, who looked back at the dragon user with a small smirk. "Keep your beard on, Dray. We've got this." When Drake turned back to her, the unexpected handshake caught her off-guard and she yelped, making both Frosslass and Gengar turn in alarm. Waving her free hand at them, the Ghost Master assured the two that she was fine. Man, this guy had once fearsome handshake. "'Scuse my rudeness there, miss," Shauntal laughed lightly, waving Drake's comment off with a grin. "I hadn't a clue who you were."

"Don't worry about it. I have changed my attire somewhat since I left the League, so it's no surprise, honestly." She said, watching in interest as Drake recalled his Flygon, sending out a powerful looking Garchomp. Humming, Shauntal turned back to her own pokemon and surveyed the upcoming ghosts. Her gaze narrowing, Shauntal stared at the battle with a critical eye. "Froslass, Gengar, I want you to take care of these two here," she pointed with her fingers at the two Golurk, "and the two on the other si-"

"AAH!"
"AHH!"

Cutting herself off, Shauntal turned suddenly, stopping to stare the woman who had just woken up. "Tch, 'Gar, 'Lass, I need you to get those two I pointed out and the two on the left. Ice Shard and Dark Pulse, thank you!" She said, turning to assess what was going on, though it seemed the woman was about as informed as Shauntal was. "Who are you!? What's happening?!" Panicked, disorientated, it was to be expected. "Calm down!" Shauntal stared behind her shoulder at the Golurk, but they seemed too preoccupied with the humans in font of them. "You're okay. We're going to be okay. I promise." Deciding that Iris had it under control, Shauntal turned back to the fight to oversee her pokemon - who were doing just fine, she noted - as Froslass threw another cluster of Ice Shards at another Golurk, impaling it in multiple places, before being finished off with Gengar's Dark Pulse. At this rate, they should clear out the undead quickly, she hoped.

"Calm down!" a young girl's voice cried. Lorelei's eyes darted to the figure approaching her and realized that it must have been hers. She was dark-skinned with large hair and some weird pink clothes -wow it was hot suddenly- but a quick glance told Lorelei she wasn't armed. Not really. "You're okay. We're going to be okay. I promise."

There were more voices, though, louder, male voices that carried and echoed. In the dim light, Lorelei could certainly see something, as well as multitude of pokemon battling... she couldn't tell what it was. Too dark and her eyes hadn't adjusted from her very bright home. She flinched away when she soon discovered the girl had scootched closer, but found that there was really no where else to go, what, with her back against the wall and everything. "I'm Iris. I wish I could help more but we just found you a few moments ago unconscious with a dead Alakazam. We don't know how you got here but you are in the Dragonspiral Tower. Do you know of it?"

Lorelei blinked, her eyes wide from the girl's words. Alakazam...? Oh, she must have meant the Kadabra. Right. That disgusting rotting shitbag that infiltrated her home and had grabbed her-- Her mind clicked as it realized the girl had said more. "Wait... You said... Dragonspiral?" What, was that... It couldn't be... Lorelei's mind reeled, panic and an overwhelming rage consuming her in mere moments. The name finally registered in her mind as she got to her feet and nearly bellowed at the poor girl, "You're telling me I'M IN UNOVA?!"

Finally, it seemed they'd destroyed the horde. Drayden looked around himself, placing a hand on Javelin when the scream cut through the room. The Sceptile flinched a the noise, looking to his trainer for direction and maybe an explanation if she was lucky. But Drayden strode forward over the discarded iron bands that now littered the floor -one from each of the destroyed ghosts- and offered a hand to the upset woman. "It's all right miss, we're not here to harm you." She looked up, her expression seething, but Drayden pushed away his discomfort to try and soothe her. "I'm Dray--"

"YOU ROTTEN FUCKING COCK-FACED SON OF A BITCH!" she roared, pushing Drayden and Iris out of the way to get to the downed, very dead Kadabra. She punted it, the body jumping a few inches from the force of her foot. Kicking it again and again, Drayden was frozen in stunned silence. He could only watch her furious tirade with wide, alarmed eyes. The woman ripped off her parka, exposing her arms to the stale tower air. Screaming her frustrations, she took no time in jumping, aiming her elbow for the thing's head and dropping her entire body to the floor. The joint and the force of her fall smashed the delicate Psychic's skull but it didn't seem to be enough for her, since she just started punching the corpse, over and over again. "YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT! YOU," Punch. "SHIT-EATING," Punch. "BASTARD! Punch. She snatched the fox's shoulders, its head a sorry mess drooping to the side, but she didn't seem to mind. "HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU FUCK EVERYTHING UP! UNDEAD TRASH CAN, I'LL SHOVE MY BOOT SO FAR UP YOUR ROTTING ASS, YOUR GHOST WILL HAVE CONSTIPATION!"

The sudden silence as the last of the Golurk fell was only disturbed by Drake's triumphant roar of laughter. "Ha-HA! Good boy, Gar! We showed those assholes what for!" His Garchomp caught his breathe and swelled proudly at his Trainer's praise.

Everyone turned their attentions to the new woman, who seemed rather distressed. Drake called Garchomp to his side and wandered over to investigate just as she went absolutely apeshit, kicking the hell out of the very dead Kadabra that had apparently teleported her here.

Drake puffed out an amused chuckle as he stopped next to Iris just as the woman finished her rampage. "I like this one," he said, mischievously nudging the girl's arm. "Can we keep her?"

"In all seriousness though, miss," he then said, folding his arms as Garchomp growled from behind him, clearly unnerved by her outburst, "you'd better calm down. Getting all worked up won't do any of us any favours. Just relax, and tell us what happened. None of us are here to hurt you."

"Wait... You said... Dragonspiral?" Iris smiled and nodded politely, opening her mouth to try and offer any kind of support when suddenly the woman before her let out a shriek. "You're telling me I'M IN UNOVA?!" Iris flinched and Gau began squawking angrily over the panicked woman's head, leaving Iris to grab at him to try and get him to stop. "Gau leave her alone! She's just upset!" Little did she realize just how upset the mystery woman was.

When the last of the Golurk fell Grandpa rejoined the pair of females and tried to introduce himself, but she completely lost it. Launching away from the group, shoving Iris and Drayden aside, she began assaulting the corpse of the psychic type that had brought her here. Iris looked up from her new position on the floor to see the female livid to the point of tears as she began beating all of her frustrations into the rotting body beneath her. And at some point she had even lost her coat, which gave Iris an idea. Waving Gau over she whispered carefully to him and pointed at the discarded jacket, the little bat giving a rapid nod and fluttering over to the heavy overcoat and gripping it in his claws.

It took a couple of tries but finally he was able to lift the jacket off of the floor and began fluttering over to the raging female, hovering over her and waiting for her to stop in just the right spot. Without warning he dropped the coat and watched it fall over the strange woman's head, giving a celebratory mid-air loop as he chirped his success. Maybe now she would settle down long enough for her to hear one of them. "In all seriousness though, miss, you'd better calm down. Getting all worked up won't do any of us any favours. Just relax, and tell us what happened. None of us are here to hurt you." Uncle Drake was the first to respond, Iris taking the time to stand back up and dust herself off. "If you talk to us, maybe we could all find a way to help you get back home. You seemed really surprised to be in Unova...if we knew where you were from we could try to help."

Shauntal sighed, watching as Drake cheered his pokemon on with a small smile."Ha-HA! Good boy, Gar! We showed those assholes what for!" As the last Golurk fell, Shauntal relaxed, recalling Froslass and Gengar with a thank you. placing the pokeballs back into her bag, Shauntal adjusted her coat and tugged a little on her gloves as they fit snugly over her hands.

"Wait... You said... Dragonspiral?" Jumping at the voice, Shauntal let out a quiet sound of protest at the woman's voice, her eyes growing wide behind her glasses. "You're telling me I'M IN UNOVA?!" Oh. Oh dear. Backing away from the conflict, Shauntal found a hiding place behind Drake. "It's all right miss, we're not here to harm you." Drayden - bless him - tried to act peacemaker as he approached the woman, beginning to offer his name. "I'm Dray--"

"YOU ROTTEN FUCKING COCK-FACED SON OF A BITCH!" The woman burst from the ground, pushing Drayden and Iris out of the way as she attacked the corpse of the Kadabra with almost feral actions. "YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT! YOU," Shauntal winced as the woman's fist came down on the corpse, blood dribbling down the cadaver's many wounds and openings from the sudden abuse. "SHIT-EATING," Another punch came down, as Shauntal winced once more. "BASTARD! Something needed to be done. And fast. Shauntal wasn't sure how much more of this she could watch. It may have been and undead, but the dead should be left at peace, especially after they've died twice, not abused postmortem.

"HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU FUCK EVERYTHING UP! UNDEAD TRASH CAN, I'LL SHOVE MY BOOT SO FAR UP YOUR ROTTING ASS, YOUR GHOST WILL HAVE CONSTIPATION!" Shauntal's brow furrowed. "Poor ghost..." She muttered, glancing down at her bag that housed her own ghost companions. That was just uncalled for.

"I like this one," Glaring at Drake, Shauntal rolled her eyes. "Can we keep her?" Sure, so long as she doesn't touch my ghosts Her answer was not spoken, for fear of drawing the woman's ager to her. It was then that Shauntal realised that she had lost her Drake-shield, and she blinked in an almost comical surprise before she shuffled over to stand beside Iris, who had gotten to their feet. "In all seriousness though, miss," Drake's joking tone left, making the Ghost Master start suddenly. Oh, so he could be serious then! A small smile spread over the Ghost Master's face as she glanced sidelong at Drake, watching him talk to the woman.

"You'd better calm down. Getting all worked up won't do any of us any favours. Just relax, and tell us what happened. None of us are here to hurt you." Well, he was right there. The last thing they need is for more undead to find them. "If you talk to us, maybe we could all find a way to help you get back home. You seemed really surprised to be in Unova...if we knew where you were from we could try to help." Shauntal nodded. It was a sensible question. She was rather confused to be here, and her winter coat showed that it might have been cold wherever she once was. Speaking of that coat, Shauntal was amused to see that Iris's Noibat had dropped the heavy coat over to woman to calm her down. It wasn't the best of ways, but hey, it worked, right?

"I like this one," Drake's easy voice caused the two women who currently weren't smiting an already very dead Kadabra and Drayden to nearly groan in pain. "Can we keep her?"

"I'm not sure she'd enjoy the joke," Drayden murmured to his friend, unsure whether or not the woman was stark raving mad. More than a few people had become unhinged in the time the Epidemic claimed the lands; it wouldn't be completely unheard of if they happened across one of those kinds of people. He worried for the safety of Iris and Shauntal and his hands itched to hold the sword on his hip just in case it was needed, but refrained. There wasn't any need to risk infuriating her anymore than she'd already managed on her own.

"In all seriousness though, miss," Drake continued, dropping the jest in his tone, "you'd better calm down. Getting all worked up won't do any of us any favors. Just relax, and tell us what happened. None of us are here to hurt you." Drayden gave his lifelong friend a glance of approval; though many never believed him, the former had always known Drake was actually capable of being serious when the situation called for it. "If you talk to us, maybe we could all find a way to help you get back home. You seemed really surprised to be in Unova...if we knew where you were from we could try to help."

It seemed her fit was done as she sat up straight, panting from her outstanding efforts in liquefying the corpse beneath her. Plus, it was probably starting to get fairly hot underneath all those layers. "Miss?" Drayden asked carefully, taking a tentative step toward her with an outstretched hand to help her back to her feet. She looked at the offered limb but silently denied it, getting to her feet on her own.

"...The Sevii Islands," she finally answered, stripping off another layer to reveal a semi-formal blouse. "Kanto. That's where that decaying pile of trash snatched me." She picked up her discarded coat and clothes, looking over the others with a critical eye. "So unless you have another pokemon that can teleport across regions, no, you can't help me." She began to stomp toward the stairs when Drayden trotted to catch her. Her expression soured more once she was stopped by him, uttering little more than a growl, "Move."

"Miss, please," he pleaded, blocking her route to the stairs with his large, bulky form. "We haven't cleared this tower. You saw the Golurk attack-- there's much more lurking in the higher floors. You can't just go off on your own--"

"Oh, I can't, can't I?" she snapped back, her small frame poised like a tiger about to pounce. "Back home, I ran my own island. Cleared it of the plague-ridden garbage that tried to take it from me all by my lonesome. Your tower is a lot smaller than that island, I assure you. Move." She tried going around him, but Drayden was obstinate.

"It's a frail and dilapidated tower-- it could collapse if there's too much weight strained on it. You can't--"

"Tell me what I can and cannot do ONE more time, Gym Leader," Lorelei snapped back through gritted teeth. At his surprised and blank expression she drew closer, daring him to make a move against her. Now that her vision wasn't blurred and filled with Undead blood, she recognized these people. "I know who you are. Drayden of Opelucid, correct?" She turned and pointed at the others as she rattled off their names. "Drake, Elite Four of Hoenn. Shauntal, Elite Four of Unova. Iris, Unova Champion." She whirled back to Drayden, eyes still alight with fury. "I am Lorelei. Former Elite Four of Kanto, and I am telling you for the last time to get out of my way."

Drake casually leaned against a pillar, listening as the others attempted to coax some information out of the troubled woman. Garchomp lurked over him, and the Dragon Master patted his head affectionately as the woman finally managed to answer them.

"...The Sevii Islands." Drake raised his eyebrows and nodded slowly to himself. He'd gone sailing around that area several times in his life. Quiet, but a nice place with friendly locals. "Kanto. That's where that decaying pile of trash snatched me. So unless you have another pokemon that can teleport across regions, no, you can't help me."

And at that she just marched off towards the stairs. Drayden followed and blocked her path. Drake snorted; no way she was getting past that behemoth of a man.

"Move."
"Miss, please. "We haven't cleared this tower. You saw the Golurk attack-- there's much more lurking in the higher floors. You can't just go off on your own--"

Drake stood up straight as she viciously argued with him, Garchomp growling deeply above him. "Steady, boy," he muttered, making his way over to the bickering pair. She couldn't talk to Drayden like that.

"Tell me what I can and cannot do ONE more time, Gym Leader." Drake blinked; she knew who he was? She whirled round and pointed to each of them in turn. "Drake, Elite Four of Hoenn. Shauntal, Elite Four of Unova. Iris, Unova Champion.  "I am Lorelei. Former Elite Four of Kanto, and I am telling you for the last time to get out of my way."

Lorelei! So she wasn't just some randomer after all. With all of today's coincidences, Drake wondered to himself what would happen next; Arceus himself could stroll in and he wouldn't be surprised. But Lorelei ... a Trainer of exceptional skill and one of Lance's allies. Drake hadn't gotten on too well with the Kanto Champion in his short time at HQ, and it didn't look as though Lorelei was much different.

He stood loyally next to Drayden, a little taller than his friend but not quite as bulky. The two men still towered over her though, and he looked at Lorelei sternly from beneath his cap. "You shouldn't speak to Drayden like that. If you want to go skipping off by yourself then go ahead; no skin off my nose and a little less shrill noise. Or, on the other hand, you can stick with us and have a much better chance, not to mention show even a shred of respect for the people who are trying to help you."

"Besides," he added with a smirk, "if you're looking to escape, you're going the wrong way. Door's over there."

"...The Sevii Islands."

Iris's eyes went soft at the distant landmark's name, pitying the woman for being dragged so far away from home where she didn't know anyone. "Kanto. That's where that decaying pile of trash snatched me. So unless you have another pokemon that can teleport across regions, no, you can't help me." No, she didn't have a teleporter, but she did have a Salamence who was an expert flyer. Maybe she would be willing to carry the woman home? "Move." The aggressive tone took Iris by surprise and she brought her focus back in time to see Grandpa blocking the woman's way. What was going on? Was she trying to climb the tower alone?

"Miss, please. We haven't cleared this tower. You saw the Golurk attack-- there's much more lurking in the higher floors. You can't just go off on your own--" Grandpa tried reasoning with her but even Iris wasn't sure how much of the Golurk attack she actually saw. For most of the fight she was out cold and then woke up to see Iris hovering over her. There wasn't much fight for her to see. "Oh, I can't, can't I?" Oh dear.... "Back home, I ran my own island. Cleared it of the plague-ridden garbage that tried to take it from me all by my lonesome. Your tower is a lot smaller than that island, I assure you. Move."

"It's a frail and dilapidated tower-- it could collapse if there's too much weight strained on it. You can't--"

"Tell me what I can and cannot do ONE more time, Gym Leader," Iris's stood up in shock, frightening Gau and making him flutter away angrily chirping. All of this tension was making the bat very upset and he was not going to keep quiet about it. "I know who you are. Drayden of Opelucid, correct?" She turned and pointed at the others as she rattled off their names. "Drake, Elite Four of Hoenn. Shauntal, Elite Four of Unova. Iris, Unova Champion." She knew all of their names? As free as communication was between regions most people didn't know every leading figure of another nation unless..."I am Lorelei. Former Elite Four of Kanto, and I am telling you for the last time to get out of my way." So that was it.

"You shouldn't speak to Drayden like that. If you want to go skipping off by yourself then go ahead; no skin off my nose and a little less shrill noise. Or, on the other hand, you can stick with us and have a much better chance, not to mention show even a shred of respect for the people who are trying to help you. Besides, if you're looking to escape, you're going the wrong way. Door's over there." Iris scowled at Uncle Drake. "That was rude!" she scolded, surprising even herself at the outburst. But her focus was not just on the old sailor, but Drayden as well. "Miss Lorelei is just trying to figure out how to get home and you are mocking her? She fell from up there! Maybe something is still up there she needs. Like her pokemon! Do you see any on her or with her? I bet if you lost something important to you, you would march up those stairs regardless of what anyone else said. Just like Miss Lorelei." She huffed angrily and crossed her arms, cheeks beginning to burn red both from frustration and embarrassment at the display she just made. But she stood by every word.

Shauntal let out a breath a relief when the woman finally calmed down,  responding to Iris's question. "...The Sevii Islands," Shauntal blinked. But that was so far away... The Ghost trainer frowned. That was a long way to teleport from. "Kanto. That's where that decaying pile of trash snatched me." No wonder why she was so pissed at the Kadabra. Shauntal felt a pang in her heart at the woman's loss. "So unless you have another pokemon that can teleport across regions, no, you can't help me." Well... Shauntal's thoughts drifted to Drifblim, and they untimely fate the balloon ghost had suffered. She used to, but not anymore.

"Move." Shauntal looked up to where the woman was trying to get past Drayden, towards the higher levels of the tower. "Miss, please," Drayden began, still standing in the woman's way, preventing her from continuing. "We haven't cleared this tower. You saw the Golurk attack-- there's much more lurking in the higher floors. You can't just go off on your own--" Shauntal was inclined to agree with Drayden, but the woman had other ideas, it seemed."Oh, I can't, can't I?"

With a quiet sigh, Shauntal found a flat-ish rock and sat down, waiting until they stories were over. As much as she loved story time, there was a time and place for such things. The middle of a frail tower is not one of those places. "Back home, I ran my own island. Cleared it of the plague-ridden garbage that tried to take it from me all by my lonesome. Your tower is a lot smaller than that island, I assure you. Move." Lifting a hand, Shauntal sighed loudly, pinching the bridge of her nose, above her glasses. Why are they picking now of all times to get into an argument? "It's a frail and dilapidated tower-- it could collapse if there's too much weight strained on it. You can't--" And once more, Drayden was cut off. Man, they really weren't good at first impressions.

"Tell me what I can and cannot do ONE more time, Gym Leader," Reaching a hand into her bag, Shauntal gripped Chandelure's pokeball, the familiar feeling calming her down as she stared at the woman as she stared hostilly at Drayden. "I know who you are. Drayden of Opelucid, correct?" Blinking, Shauntal frowned, watching as the woman pointed to each of them and rattled off their names. "Drake, Elite Four of Hoenn. Shauntal, Elite Four of Unova. Iris, Unova Champion." If she knew who they were, then this person must have been someone of high standing... "I am Lorelei. Former Elite Four of Kanto, and I am telling you for the last time to get out of my way." Bingo. Another Elite Four. Releasing Chandeulre's pokeball, the Ghost Trainer stood up and brushed off her jeans.

"You shouldn't speak to Drayden like that. If you want to go skipping off by yourself then go ahead; no skin off my nose and a little less shrill noise. Or, on the other hand, you can stick with us and have a much better chance, not to mention show even a shred of respect for the people who are trying to help you." Glaring over at Drake, Shauntal pursed her lips and placed her hands on her hips. Just because she was a little agitated as no excuse to be rude. "Besides," Shauntal did not miss Drake's smirk as he continued, motioning to the exit where Shauntal had flown in only moments before and continuing his sentence, "if you're looking to escape, you're going the wrong way. Door's over there."

Shauntal's jaw dropped and she covered it with one hand before closing it and glaring at Drake. "That was rude!" Iris was in her same mindset as she called out Drake, which Shauntal was inclined to agree with. Just because they got off on the wrong foot was no reason to be that rude!

"Miss Lorelei is just trying to figure out how to get home and you are mocking her? She fell from up there! Maybe something is still up there she needs. Like her pokemon! Do you see any on her or with her? I bet if you lost something important to you, you would march up those stairs regardless of what anyone else said. Just like Miss Lorelei." Looking over the woman's frame, Shauntal had to agree. She saw no pokeballs on their person, nor any place for them on her outfit.

"Iris is right here. We all got off on a really bad foot. Lorelei was it? Look, I am truly sorry that you had such misfortune happen to you, but getting cranky at us isn't going to help. You may have cleared your island of undead - I am not doubting you of that - but Drayden is right. Was your island in danger of collapsing on itself with any wrong step? I understand you want to get back, but charging forward recklessly is not the way to do it." She said calmly, trying to explain to Lorelei in a way so that the Ex-Elite Four didn't snap at her.

Lorelei's eyes narrowed as Drake went to Drayden's side, though the latter looked grateful for the support. Her fists clenched in frustration; she'd climb over these assholes if she had to. "You shouldn't speak to Drayden like that. If you want to go skipping off by yourself then go ahead; no skin off my nose and a little less shrill noise. Or, on the other hand, you can stick with us and have a much better chance, not to mention show even a shred of respect for the people who are trying to help you." Though the words were crass, Lorelei stood her ground, her gaze just as furious as it had been before the other intervened. Just keep talking, Asshole. Give me one reason to punch that smirk off your damn face. "Besides," the playful change in tone caused her eyes to narrow, "if you're looking to escape, you're going the wrong way. Door's over there."

The Ice Master didn't flinch at the casual dismissal, her eyes staying on the older man as Iris erupted behind her. "That was rude!" she exclaimed. Drayden swallowed, unsure of how to temper the tension that was very quickly rising in the room. Oh dear... "Miss Lorelei is just trying to figure out how to get home and you are mocking her? She fell from up there! Maybe something is still up there she needs. Like her pokemon! Do you see any on her or with her? I bet if you lost something important to you, you would march up those stairs regardless of what anyone else said. Just like Miss Lorelei."

"Iris is right here." Shauntal agreed, but Lorelei kept her intense glare on Drake. "We all got off on a really bad foot. Lorelei, was it? Look, I am truly sorry that you had such misfortune happen to you, but getting cranky at us isn't going to help. You may have cleared your island of undead - I am not doubting you of that - but Drayden is right. Was your island in danger of collapsing on itself with any wrong step? I understand you want to get back, but charging forward recklessly is not the way to do it."

"Keep your apologies," she growled, icy glare still on Drake and Drayden. Her voice was little more than a murmur, but the anger and viciousness behind them was deafening. "What's done is done. But you two need to move. I'm not going up there to start a rave. I cleared out my island through stealth and strategy. And Pokémon. Which are likely up there with everything else I own. So. For one last godforsaken time, MOVE."

Drayden looked to be at a lost, his thick brows turned upward in uncertainty. "I... A-All right, but we go together, ok?" Man, that woman could glare. If looks could kill... "Let's stop the fighting now and just move quietly. We'll find your things, Miss."

Apparently these guys weren't in the right mood for jokes.

"That was rude!" Iris scolded, earning a pair of raised eyebrows from the Dragon Master. "Miss Lorelei is just trying to figure out how to get home and you are mocking her? She fell from up there! Maybe something is still up there she needs. Like her pokemon! Do you see any on her or with her? I bet if you lost something important to you, you would march up those stairs regardless of what anyone else said. Just like Miss Lorelei."

"Iris is right here," Shauntal chimed in before Drake even had chance to reply. Couldn't they see that his last comment was merely a jest to try and lighten up the situation? Either he'd chosen the wrong joke at the wrong time or these people had no sense of humour.

Lorelei clearly didn't. "Keep your apologies. What's done is done. But you two need to move. I'm not going up there to start a rave. I cleared out my island through stealth and strategy. And Pokémon. Which are likely up there with everything else I own. So. For one last godforsaken time, MOVE."

Drake huffed. The only way she was getting past him and Drayden without them moving was if she'd packed a damn bulldozer; it'd be like trying to walk through a brick wall.

"I... A-All right, but we go together, ok?" Drayden said, clearly defeated. Drake held up his hands with a shake of his head and walked away. Clearly he had little say in this. "Let's stop the fighting now and just move quietly. We'll find your things, Miss."

"So let's get a damn move on," Drake grumbled, his mood instantly soured. He recalled Garchomp to his Poke Ball and leaned against one of the pillars while he waited. "If we're gonna get to the top of this place, I'd rather get there in less than a week."

Iris frowned as Shauntal agreed with her but then completely missed the point of Iris's argument. She was trying to say Lorelei had every right to be angry at the two older men in their company, because they were trying to stop her from saving her Pokemon. Iris agreed with Lorelei, but her argument seemed to have fallen on deaf ears as everyone carried on without her. The former Champion's expression saddened as she was once again reminded of her status within the group. Always the child, never the equal. The flicker of hope she had allowed to be kindled when Grandpa had entrusted her to take care of Miss Lorelei when she was unconscious extinguished quickly at the realized truth.

"Keep your apologies. What's done is done. But you two need to move. I'm not going up there to start a rave. I cleared out my island through stealth and strategy. And Pokémon. Which are likely up there with everything else I own. So. For one last godforsaken time, MOVE." Lorelei was like an angry feline ready to pounce, and it seemed Grandpa finally got the hint. "I... A-All right, but we go together, ok? Let's stop the fighting now and just move quietly. We'll find your things, Miss." Uncle Drake scoffed and held his hands up in mock surrender, seemingly annoyed with the entire event. "So let's get a damn move on," He grunted out angrily, waiting for the pair blocking the stairway to move out of the way. "If we're gonna get to the top of this place, I'd rather get there in less than a week."

Iris's heart fell even deeper and Gau, noticing his trainer's distress, did his best to try and cheer her up. He landed on her shoulder and cuddled into her cheek, chirping quietly his reassurances as he attempted to pull a smile from her. But none came. She gave the little Noibat an affectionate scratch on the head but remained otherwise motionless until Grandpa started to move. She chased him all the way out here to prove herself, but it seemed as though that would take quite a bit longer than she had realized.

"Keep your apologies,"

Shauntal sighed and rubbed her brow. This was painstaking. "What's done is done. But you two need to move. I'm not going up there to start a rave. I cleared out my island through stealth and strategy. And Pokémon. Which are likely up there with everything else I own. So. For one last godforsaken time, MOVE." The Ghost Trainer was about ready to release Cofagrius and shift Drayden herself if it would stop this conflict. Looking over at Drayden, Shauntal did not miss the lost look on his face.

"I... A-All right, but we go together, ok?" Finally. Digging into her bag, Shauntal grabbed one of the books that held the manuscript for her novel. Flipping idly through the pages, Shauntal read quietly as she listened in to Drayden's voice. "Let's stop the fighting now and just move quietly. We'll find your things, Miss." Glancing up from her book, Shauntal looked around the room. She hoped they had a source of light on the way up there. Chandelure might not fit though some of the paths. Sighing lightly, the Ghost Master looked back at her book, pulling her pen from her bag and making a few corrections here and there.

"So let's get a damn move on," heaving another, more aggravated sigh, Shauntal finished the sentence she was reading and snapped the book shut, placing it back into her bag. "If we're gonna get to the top of this place, I'd rather get there in less than a week." He did have a point there. The longer they spent here, the more risk there was of another undead attack like the Golurk. Smiling to herself, Shauntal adjusted her glasses on her nose and looked at their small group. Imagine the chances of finding not one, but two other Elite Four from different regions, Drayden and Iris in the same place. If anyone had a chance at clearing this tower, it would be them.