(ACE) The LOSTLORN Team

((Please skip, just say Cloud is hiding out in the thicket while everyone else fights.))

The little bat was the first to appear, and Hannibal was pleasantly surprised to see everyone else eventually emerge to join the fight – all but the shy, little bird. The houndoom had guessed that Cloud was the more cowardly type, but then again, he’d probably live a hell of a lot longer due to it. After roughly head butting one of the felines away from him, Hannibal was pleased with a chance to catch his breath. The original five liepard had quickly expanded into a whole pride, but as he looked across the surroundings, he noticed that the flow had finally stopped. The bulk of the infected were closer to the thicket, currently giving Cassius and Sil a hard time – how unfortunate. He smirked slightly as he surveyed the scene. He could see about a dozen of the cats still standing but the body count was growing; he’d witnessed Etai’s spectacular, merciless attack at one feline and chuckled darkly, impressed with both her strength and ferocity. Wesley of course, had the advantage of flight and was holding up surprisingly well – Hannibal had underestimated her. Then that left the deer and zebra fighting back to back. How sweet. As if teamwork could possibly save them.

As he began to stroll towards the thick of the fight, a purrloin he hadn’t spotted previously lunged towards his head. His reactions weren’t quick enough and the cat’s claws buried deep into the side of his face. He growled in pain, unleashing a short range flamethrower to scare the creature off. As he did so however, the undeniable clink of metal came to his attention. Time suddenly slowed as he violently tossed the cat away from him, his eyes wide with delight at that single clinking of metal. The infected crashed into a nearby tree, leaving Hannibal alone with his racing thoughts. One of the prongs from the muzzle had been pushed out of place. He felt the contraption loosen a fraction as he strained to examine the buckle. One of the three buckle holes was now vacant.
“Yes...” Hannibal purred, eyes alight with a newfound determination. Through one chance attack from an infected, Hannibal had been brought a huge step closer to removing the damn thing and claiming what was rightfully his, freedom. Growling deeply, impatient, the houndoom began to violently shake his head. The blood oozing from his multiple wounds fell like rain. The canine’s frenzied attempt to knock the final prong out of place was a sight more akin to a horror movie. He looked possessed. Dragged from hell itself, Hannibal slipped into the embodiment of the species’ nickname, hellhound.

“C’mon you fucking bastard!” He snarled savagely to himself, panting lightly from the strenuous movements. He blocked out the growing pain in his neck, too intent on removing his tormentor now that some progress had been made. “Fucking... Shit...” It was incredibly rare for Hannibal’s raw emotion to surface, and the intensity of his rage was startling to anyone who may be unfortunate to witness it. Hannibal ignored them. As far as he was concerned, the muzzle’s removal was currently his only interest.

Sil was slightly taken off guard when a giant flaming ball of SOMETHING came toward her, burning and crushing all in its path. She screamed a little, not sure of what she could do against such a thing. She skittered out of the way, knocking over a dead purrlion in the process. She began to ready a Double Kick at the thing when Cash emerged from the flames, electricity cracking as he reared. "I got your back, Doll!" he called from behind her.

She had no witty remark for him, only stunned silence as she realized what had just happened. He'd saved her, and she really didn't understand why... There was a moment of reprise when she could try to catch her breath as the other Dead were busy fighting someone else. She looked down to her hooves when the answer hit her like a rock. Of course that's why he was saving her... Because she was the only thing with hooves and a pulse...

Anger made her ear twitch as she continued to pant when her frustrated gaze landed on Hannibal, furiously shaking his head. She paused and studied him, realizing that the muzzle was slacked; Hannibal's movements made it flap and jostle, whereas it used to be securely sound against the hound's face. "Uh... Cass?" She looked back when the Dead were sparse. "That's bad, over there," she said, slightly frightened from the idea of Hannibal loose.

Cassius was completely oblivious to the momentary look of anger that flashed across Sil's face behind him. He was a little busy electrifying ugly undead cats to a crisp. Oh, how he HATED Purloin! The evil little bastards. Greedy little things too, always trying to steal his food back home. He only paused when he heard Sil talking behind him.

"Uh... Cass?" His eye twitched. "Cash, doll, CASH," he muttered under his breath, Cass made him sound like a chick. But all that was forgotten at her next statement. "That's bad, over there," He looked over to where she nodded and saw Hannibal's muzzle loose. Oh shit...And the damn mutt was trying to get the cats to tear it the rest of the way off! Oh hell no! "Bad is an understatement girlie!" he called out, ready to charge towards the demented hound. "Let's go!"

Panting, Etai turned after killing the disgusting creature and that's when she saw him. Hannibal was writhing about like a crazed demon trying to get off his muzzle that was already part way off. Narrowing her eyes, she crouched down and pounced into the air, her body soaring towards Hannibal and landing in front of him, a snarl on her face. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." She growled to him, contemplating what attack would be best if she needed to use one. Before anything else could happen though, another Purrloin strode into view and Etai wasted no time in shooting it with her Shadow Ball.

Hannibal was oblivious to his surroundings, his entire focus rested on the muzzle. Any clinks of metal, any loosening around the back of his head – his senses couldn’t be any more acute. That is, acute to his own situation. What the rest of the group were doing was another matter. He was only enlightened when two brown paws came into his line of vision. He was staring at the ground, breathing heavily as he took a moment to simply stare at the canine’s feet. With a deep inhale, his crimson eyes flicked up to glare at the leafeon stood before him. Looking from under his heavily bloodied brow, all traces of the houndoom’s previous fury faded as calm reigned over his being once more.
“Yes, Etai?” Hannibal’s voice was deep, smooth on the ear with only the faint hint of his previous physical outburst. A smile crawled across his lips, meeting the canine’s harsh glare with his own challenging spark.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

He chuckled darkly at Etai’s threat. She’d certainly have to be knocked down a peg or two. She’d landed one attack on him – which he’d intentionally accepted, and now she thought she had authority over him. How mistaken she was. Her attention faltered at the appearance of another infected in the vicinity. Her head suddenly snapped round to aim a shadow ball, and Hannibal struggled against the urge to attack. Flames licked around the bars of his muzzle, a flamethrower building up in the back of his throat. She’d go up in flames – her pretty little face nothing but an unstoppable inferno. Perhaps her eyes might melt too. He fought against the image. Hannibal wasn’t ready to kill them just yet and quickly directed his attack over her shoulder, hitting one of the monstrous felines who’d been approaching Etai. He flashed a smile at the leafeon, as if to say he’d done her a favor, he was on the same team.

His act of kindness was short-lived as he suddenly witnessed a great, black and white bulk directly in front of him. Hannibal’s body didn’t react fast enough as Cash’s form collided directly with his own. The zebra’s charge sent his slim body flying backwards from the force, his mind in turmoil as he attempted to rationalize what had happened. The damn creature had caught him unaware. He hadn’t wanted this. But before he could do anything about it, his body was abruptly halted by a nearby tree. His head smacking hard against the trunk as his fragile form slumped down at the base. His eyes were blurring, he saw the three figures standing a distance away before darkness overwhelmed him.

(( Sorry, I didn’t realize Winter was away! D: Also, Hannibal’s unconscious for now :B ))

Sil couldn't hope to keep up with Cass as he zoomed toward Hannibal, his charge as fast as it was powerful. It looked like he had been talking to Etai, who was preoccupied with a liepard, but before Hannibal could do anything else, Cass rammed into him and sent the creepy hound flying into a tree, knocking him out.

Sil caught up with Cass only to trot carefully to the downed dog. She didn't dare go completely near him, but she looked to Cass with a quirked brow. "...You certainly took care of him..." she muttered as she looked around the clearing. It was bloody, but it looks like all the nearby undead had been slain. There was no sign of the woobat, nor of the rufflet. She sighed sadly before looking back to Hannibal.

"...Honestly, I'd rather not be here when he wakes up. Maybe we should... I dunno... get the muzzle tighter or tie him up somewhere and go? Or maybe just finish him off while he's laying there?" She didn't want to have to kill a fellow living, but... she also didn't want to be his meal. She felt he needed to be treated like all the other pokemon that wanted to kill her-- like an enemy. "But... should we take him with us, instead?" She looked to the others for guidance. She was even open to Cass' opinion.

"...You certainly took care of him..." Cassius smiled broadly at the Deerling. It was the closest thing to a compliment she had given him since they met, and he would take what he could get. She questioned what they should do with the mutt now that the immediate crisis was taking care of, and he honestly wasn't sure what to do. Normally a take charge kind of guy, he would say just leave the flee ridden mongrel and scram, but somehow he wasn't sure that would go over well.

"Well, we can't just tie him up. I may not like the guy but basically we'd be calling him bait while we high tail it outta here. But...I don't really want him coming with us either." He looked at Sil and shrugged. That was all the opinion he could give on the matter.

Cash looked around and noticed that the flyers were missing. Hopefully Cloud held back like he said, but he wasn't sure where the little Woobat went off to. He looked to the Leafeon and hoped she would have a better answer for Sil while he himself turned back to the thicket. "I left one of the kids inside, I'm gonna go check to see if he's still there and if he's okay." With that, he forced his way back inside those wretched thorns to check on Cloud.

Etai was lost in thought. She had no clue at all what to do with Hannibal. Her trust for him wasn't there but, like Cass, she didn't want to just live him there either and then a thought struck her. "What if we just tighten the muzzle on him like you were thinking Sil? Atleast if we did that we would still have somewhat of a chance and we could keep an eye on him." Etai wasn't exactly sure what to do but that seemed the best idea to her so far.

(OOC: I hope it's okay that I went ahead and posted)

Cloud lay hidden in the thicket as he listened to the battle raging on outside. His wings covering his head and his eyes shut tight, waiting for it to be over. Brave, he wasn't brave, he would never be brave, brave was for the bravery. But his kind was always known for standing up to those that where even bigger then themselves, oh, he must have been a real disappointment. "I'm sorry..." He said as tears began to once again well in his eyes, but they shot open when he heard a hissing sound coming from the entrance. He feared to look, but he slowly turned his head to see an undead Purrlion, with half its face missing walk into the thicket.

The little Rufflet was shaking vigorously now that the branch he was hiding on began to rustle, thus alerting the infected of where he was. It let out a hiss as it leapt at him, he let out a scream as he took flight and the purrlion landed where he had been just a few moments ago. "Help!" He shouted as he bursted out of the thicket and into the fray, the purrlion still right behind him. Fear was on Clouds face as he saw the hunger in its eyes as it gave chase. It was impossible, everything that was happening was impossible. "You better be good or the dead will come and eat you." He said to himself as he flew. It was something his mom told him and his sister when they had been bad and snuck out at night to explore.

Cloud knew it was just a thing she told them to behave, he never thought it would really happen, but here he was, in a world filled with the dead. He had to do something, so without thinking he went higher into the air and then fell before he disappeared. The purrlion looked puzzled for a moment before letting out a growl as it got nailed it the chest by Clouds beak. He had used his Ariel Ace, a move he had picked up awhile back. The Purrlion literally fell apart on impact, covering Cloud in its blood. He flew back up to the tallest point in the tree before looking at himself. He couldn't believe what he had just done, he had just killed. It may have been an infected, but he had still killed. He began to tear up again and wrapped his wings around his body as he began to shiver her fear. He didn't ever want to do that again.

A faint, continuous humming was beginning to echo in Hannibal’s head, voices only determined by the slight changes of pitch. He couldn’t register anything, just that he wasn’t alone. The aching from the original impact was surfacing once more – a gradual throb in the back of his head and chest, as he unconsciously emitted a weak groan. He felt the warmth of day returning to his face, and his fore paws twitched slightly. His senses were returning, albeit slowly, as Hannibal returned back to reality.

His eyelids tentatively opened to reveal crimson orbs, but the usual glint of trickery was absent, replaced with a confused fatigue. He was surprised to see Sil and Etai stood before him, catching glimpse of the zebra returning into the deer’s thicket in the distance. He stared for a moment, his vision still slightly hazy as his mind slowly registered what had happened. He’d been knocked out. The last thing he could remember was a heavy, black and white mass – he had no doubt his attacker had been Cassius despite the speed of events. Stretching out his legs weakly, the houndoom pushed himself into a more protective lying position. Whilst he was in no fit state to battle or even get up too quickly, he felt too exposed to lay limply, vulnerable on his side. Instead, he rest on his stomach, heavy head leaning gently against the tree trunk behind him.

“You’re still here?” Hannibal’s voice was weak, only just audible beneath the muzzle, but his confusion remained disguised. With a deep exhale, he shifted his leaning position slightly, eyes closing for a moment in a vain attempt to block out the growing pain. “And... I’m still alive?” He chuckled darkly but softly, weakly. “You’re not as barbaric as I first thought.”

Sil frowned as she listened to the others' feedback... which all sounded like what she had said earlier, leading back to the same dilemma. What the hell to do with Hannibal. She was about to lean over to try and tighten the strap when his forepaw twitched and a soft groan emmitted from the dog, making her retreat quickly. His eyes opened, revealing a weary, fatigued soul. Not what she was used to.

"You're still here? And... I’m still alive?” He chuckled darkly but softly, weakly, as he rolled from his side onto his stomach. “You’re not as barbaric as I first thought."

Sil's frown deepened as she stomped the ground slightly in annoyance. "Pot. But... now that you're up... I guess we should get moving." Her ears flicked back to where Cass had gone, and after making sure Hannibal wasn't going to surprise her, she looked bacl for the zebra. "You're the map, Cass. Anywhere but a city or the ranch."

Cassius burst into the thicket in time to see Could leaving, in a hurry. He ripped through the brambles after he saw the stupid dead cat on the Rufflet's tail feathers. "Hold on kid! I'm coming!" he cried out, hoping Cloud could hear him in the panic. Using all his speed he tore after them, dodging trees to keep an eye on the little bird, but they stayed a few paces ahead of him because of those stupid thorns.

By the time he caught up, he saw Cloud blast apart the wretched Purrloin and retreat to a high branch in the tree. The poor thing...he looked so upset..."Hey," Cash called out to him. "Shh. It's okay kiddo, come on down here. You're safe now. It's all over. Just come rest on my back, I won't let anything get you, I promise." He really wanted Cloud to feel better and hoped the bird trusted him enough to come down. Cash might not be able to give the little guy a hug, but he could still give him a comforting nuzzle.[You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

"You're the map, Cass. Anywhere but a city or the ranch." Sil yelled at him from back over by Hannibal.

'Bad timing, doll.' Cash thought to himself, wincing a little bit at the name 'Cass'. She just insisted on giving him a girly nickname, didn't she? "Gimme a minute!" he hollered back, turning back to the Rufflet. "Don't worry kiddo, everything is going to be alright." His heart was breaking for the kid, it really was. Sil could just hold her horses because right now, there were more important things to worry about. Cloud's innocence being one of them.

"Hey, Shh. It's okay kiddo, come on down here. You're safe now. It's all over. Just come rest on my back, I won't let anything get you, I promise." Cloud looked down, eyes wide with fear and tearing up as he looked at the Zebstrika. The little Rufflet was shivering with fright, his wings still wrapped around his body. "Don't worry kiddo, everything is going to be alright." Was it really? Nothing seemed to be all right, but he didn't want to be left alone right now. He opened up his wings and slowly fluttered down and landed on the zebra pokemons back before wrapping himself once again in wings, still shivering.

Most of Clouds feathers where covered in the Purrlions blood, and he wanted to get it off before it stained them for good, but there was no place he could. Nothing but trees for miles. There was a river, but that was way back in the other direction, and he didn't want to say anything. He didn't even understand what came over him when he hit that infected, it was like a different side of him came to his rescue, then left. He didn't like it, he didn't like it at all. Closing his eyes he tried to picture a happy place, but all that came to mind was his family and there being dead. He didn't even try to stop the tears that streamed down his face, he just needed to let it out.

"Pot. But... now that you're up... I guess we should get moving."

The houndoom had been pleasantly surprised at Sil’s reply to him – although the tone of irritation was still present, it seemed she’d accepted the fact he wasn’t going anywhere. Not yet, at least. He offered a twisted grin, hidden beneath his slackened muzzle, as he slowly struggled to his feet. There was a continuous aching in his head, and once atop slender legs, he felt particularly dizzy, stumbling slightly as he regained his balance. Sil had called out to Cassius, the zebra replying from somewhere unseen in a rather exasperated tone, with intentions to get moving again. But it was the mentioning of a ranch that piqued Hannibal’s curiosity. The deer had mentioned a disliking for ranches earlier, and he was growing increasingly determined to find out the root of the hatred, or was it fear? He eyed Sil suspiciously, eyes momentarily flicking to Etai, trying to judge the probability of being pummelled by the pair if the wrong words emerged. It was worth the risk.

“A ranch?” Hannibal asked, crimson eyes locked onto the deer, as he attempted to fake the innocence of the question. “On the contrary, I believe a ranch would be an ideal place to investigate...” He studied Sil’s reaction hard, searching for any twitches, any tiny giveaways of her secret. He glanced down, grinning at his own feet, before finally looking to the deer beneath his brow. “What is it, Sil? What happened at your ranch? He had intended to control his sick curiosity, but with those final questions, he’d spectacularly failed in his subtlety. He wasn’t expecting any rational answer; in fact, he was carefully bracing himself for any physical violence that might follow. Lifting his head, demonstrating his full height, Hannibal looked down at both Etai and Sil, a smug grin hidden beneath his muzzle.
“Cassisus, where to, exactly?” Hannibal called out, his attention slipping away from his tormenting of the deer. He wanted to get moving too. He never liked being in one place for too long, especially when the vicinity was littered with bloody, rotting corpses – it reminded him of the battle ring.

The sunlight flickered through the leafy canopy, giving the forest a pleasent glow to contrast with the horrors it held. It would be a refreshing sight for most. All Lightning could see, however, was that she was getting nowhere. She had been walking through this place for days, yet still she saw no sign of an exit. How would she find Serah if she didn't even know where she was? With a defeated sigh she stopped and surveyed her surroundings.

This was a completely foreign place to the Manectric. She had never left her home forest before, and it made her very uncomfortable. She wasn't use to being at a disadvantage. She didn't know what lurked in this forest, or where she could find suitable food. If she had to flee from danger, there was nowhere safe for her to run to.

Finally, she spotted an oran berry bush. After a quick glance behind her she settled down to eat. Though she preferred meat, Lightning had to admit that these berries tasted good. Going without food for several days would make almost anything taste good.

Her meal was short lived. Not too far ahead footsteps sounded in the thicket. Lightning acted quickly, ducking into the nearby thornbush. The thorns cut her, but it was better to sacrifice comfort for protection than to be killed while comfy.
Peering through the thorns and leaves, she could see a group of pokemon in the distance. Bodies were lying all around them. That worried her, since only the undead killed so recklessly, unless...The Manecrric examined them further. Two canines and a deer, all of which appeared alive(though a bit beat up.)

Still, an encounter may be risky. It would be best to just play it safe and refrain from approaching them. Hopefully, they wouldn't decide to approach her.

Sil frowned just a little as Cass called back that he would be there in a minute. She just wanted to get moving so her anxiety could be put to use, but... Cass was probably talking to the little bird that had disappeared. At least he was all right...

"A ranch?" she heard Hannibal purr as they waited for Cass. "On the contrary, I believe a ranch would be an ideal place to investigate." Sil glared hard at him, all positive emotions out the window. He was obviously prying, and that demonic crimson glare tried its damnedest to pry into her as well, reaching for her secrets. "What is it, Sil? What happened at your ranch?"

She took a few steps from him, her glare still firm. There was pain behind the anger, but not enough to overwhelm her expression. "...None of your damn business, Hannibal. If you want to go look, then be my guest. Stay there and die with the rest of them while you're at it," she snapped under her breath, loud enough for only him to hear. She flicked her ears back to the thicket, praying Cass would get his fat ass moving so the subject could change.

"Cassius," Hannibal began casually, "where to, exactly?" While Sil had no warm feelings for the dog, she was all too inclined to agree.

"Yes, please, let's get out of here before more of these bastards show up..." she muttered as she moved away, more to pace than anything else. She spotted an odd color, however, hidden in the brush. She frowned and cocked her head, trying to decide what the hell it was. "...Hello?"

Cash offered a warm smile to the Rufflet as he landed on the zebra's back, reaching his neck around to nuzzle the kid gently. It was the only support he could really offer at the moment. They needed to get away from this place and away from the memory of Cloud's ordeal. He wanted to see the shy little Rufflet smile at least once.

“Cassisus, where to, exactly?”

Damn it, it was awake again. Just great. Cassius sighed and started making his way out of the thicket back to Sil when he almost tripped over something bright blue and yellow. What the...? "Uh, sorry?" he offered the strange canine. "Pardon me...Hi there." he coughed a little. It wasn't his smoothest introduction. Man Sil must have really thrown off his game. Everything that had gone wrong recently, other than the zombie apocalypse that allowed his escape to freedom, could be traced back to the doe. What was it about her?

Offering a hoof for the lady to go first out of the brush he looked back to Cloud on his back to make sure the kid wasn't jostled when he stopped. He needed to get them all somewhere safe, and earlier they all decided forest was the best route. Waiting for the Manectric to go first he called out to Sil from the thicket. "We can either go south and cross a long ass bridge to White Forest, or go north through a shit ton of more forest towards Opelucid City. You call the shots Sil so I will let you pick which, I can take you either way." Only after he said that last line did he realize how bad it sounded, and he blushed madly and started to stutter. "I...I mean! Uh! I...damn it..." he heaved a defeated sigh. Smooth.

Disappointment ricocheted through Etai as she watched Hannibal get up and shake himself clear of unconsciousness. She wished so badly that they hadn't been mixed up with him in the first place but she decided there wasn't any use worrying about something she couldn't change. Sitting near the others, she nodded softly to the newcomer who came into their small group with Cassius and Cloud. She listened intently to the suggestions the others made of places to go and when it seemed they were done she stood to make her suggestion.

"For me, being in the forests would be easiest. We would have better cover and better places to rest at night and the trees can provide some form of protection against the undead. Also, being a Leafeon, I am more adept at nature and sensing things, like disturbances in the life force of the forest, is easy for me and alerts me to dangers some may not see or food someone may not smell. All in all I think it would be more strategic for us to stay hidden in the relative safety of the trees instead of venturing out into the open where we can be picked off easily by wandering bird types. If we stick to the more covered areas, we should find survival easy." Looking to the others, her brown eyes glinted with a deep green and her tail swayed softly as she waited for what the others would think of her opinions.

((Um, Cloud is just shivering on Cash's back, trying to block out everything while he finds his happy place, so not much for him to do right now. Please skip~))

"...None of your damn business, Hannibal. If you want to go look, then be my guest. Stay there and die with the rest of them while you're at it,"

The houndoom chuckled darkly in response, pleased that Sil hadn’t crumbled at his prying words. He’d known she was going to be a stubborn, headstrong kind of girl from the moment they’d met. She took shit from nobody – he admired that.
“Ever the feisty one...” Hannibal muttered, relieved that neither of the females before him physically retaliated to his remarks. He wasn’t sure if he could withstand another hit just yet. His body relaxed as he silently listened to Cassius’ calling from the distance, the zebra prattling on about directions turned sour by a simple euphemism. He smirked; amused at the zebra’s desperation to resolve his slip of the tongue and avoid any wrath from the deer. They’d make a nice couple, albeit in a love-hate sort of relationship.

Looking back to the thicket in which the zebstrika was currently emerging from, the little bird shaking atop its back, Hannibal’s attention quickly shifted to a canine in the foliage. It took him a moment to identify the species, but taking a few steps forward to get a better look of the newcomer, he soon resolved on a manectric. He smiled, genuinely pleased at the stranger’s arrival. She would be more likely to trust him, to ignore the insults of the group and may eventually prove a contender for removing the muzzle – however, he’d have to make a good impression first. His expression softened slightly, moving away from the tree to sit down a short distance from Etai.
“Good afternoon,” He purred, the muzzle muffling his eloquent, deep voice. “Don’t you think hiding would give us a reason to distrust you?” His tone was light, jokey and accompanied by a false, bright chuckle. The shift in character was hideously apparent.

"For me, being in the forests would be easiest. We would have better cover and better places to rest at night and the trees can provide some form of protection against the undead. Also, being a Leafeon, I am more adept at nature and sensing things, like disturbances in the life force of the forest, is easy for me and alerts me to dangers some may not see or food someone may not smell. All in all I think it would be more strategic for us to stay hidden in the relative safety of the trees instead of venturing out into the open where we can be picked off easily by wandering bird types. If we stick to the more covered areas, we should find survival easy."

Hannibal had the feeling of déjà vu. He was sure they’d previously bickered about the appropriate route to take, but maybe that bump on the head was simply playing with his mind. Either way, he didn’t really care. He had nowhere to go, no loved ones left to find – his main goal in life was to get rid of the muzzle, and at the moment, it seemed this group gave him the greatest chance of securing his dream. And when it was finally removed, he would feast. Berries were too sweet, Hannibal had been craving the tender taste of meat for weeks and now, his hunger was spiralling out of control. As if on cue, his stomach gave a rumble. Etai had left some berries in the thicket and Hannibal intended to get his fill before the group left off again.
“Excuse me a moment,” He rose to his feet, stalking back to the thicket. They wouldn’t leave without him; even if they did, Hannibal had their scents. They wouldn’t get away from him that easily.

As he reached Sil’s now bloodstained home, Hannibal’s eyes fell onto the dead feline rotting away on the ground. The rufflet had some power after all, although it did explain Cloud’s rather fearful state. It didn’t take the canine long to find the oran berry. When he was sure that he wouldn’t be interrupted he crushed the food with his muzzle. The juice spurted at the pressure of the bars, several small segments poking through to Hannibal’s sharp fangs in which he greedily devoured. The desperation was humiliating for the houndoom, so he often made an effort to eat in solitude. When he’d managed to consume the berry in tiny, shredded pieces, Hannibal raised his head, temporarily satisfied with the energy the food had brought. It would never be enough though. His crimson orbs fell back to the liepard.
“I wonder...” Hannibal had never contemplated eating the infected before, presuming that they would taste like any other rotten piece of meat, but they’d always be a last resort. Eying the gory corpse, he eventually emitted a sharp huff before trotting back out to rejoin the group.

Well that plan went smoothly...not. Every single pokemon in the vicinity had spotted her. Damn pastel coat... Lightning thought to herself. At least they hadn't all attacked her. With as much dignity as she could muster, Lightning graceful stepped aside so the zebra could pass by. She followed him, planning to introduce herself to the group properly. Before doing so, she was approached by the houndoom. She noticed the...mask (or whatever it was that he wore) immediately. While Lightning didn't know much about humans, she did know what they did with such devices. They put them on pokemon who were beyond their control, too powerful and strong (though still weak enough to be tamed by a human.)

“Good afternoon. Don’t you think hiding would give us a reason to distrust you?” He said pleasantly. He reminded her of some of the other manectrics she once knew. Very nice and polite on the surface, but really sneering at you on the inside. She ignored this aspect of him for now, though. "Surrounding yourselves with dead bodies gave me more than enough reason to distrust you lot," she replied matter-of-factly. His mind seemed to be somewhere now, as he excused himself and entered the clearing behind them.

Leaving the houndoom to his business, Lightning walked over to the group before her. They seemed to be discussing some sort of escape plan. Apparently, one of the options was to head to a city.

"The cities are all overrun with trainers' pokemon. From what I've seen, they're more varied and powerful than those you'd find in these forests," Lightning warned. "Lightning, by the way."

"Ever the fiesty one..." was Hannibal's spine-chilling retort as he turned his attention to the new pokemon. Creepy. Sil took a few steps away, just so she could get a good distance to really do some damamge when she kicked that creep square in the mouth.

She then was distracted by Cass' odd apologizing. It was weird seeing the zebstrika nearly trip over a person, since he was always so insistent he was the shit. Sil couldn't help a muffled chuckle as he smoothly made his way from the awkward situation. "Classy," she muttered to him.

Everyone seemed to have their own opinion on going to cities... which she already said she didn't want to go to one, so... it was already out of the question. Her ears flicked about in irritation as the conversation continued. The only real bit of news was the newcomer's name, Lightning. Though, she had to admit that the electric dog's quippet to Hannibal was a little much. "Surrounding yourselves with dead bodies gave me more than enough reason to distrust you lot," she snarked back to Hannibal.

Now, Sil was all about teaching Hannibal some manners, as long as the muzzle didn't come off. But this Lightning seemed to think they were ALL brutes, and she wasn't going to have some dog come up and judge her and her newfound companions, Hannibal be damned. "You'd be surrounded with bodies if a whole pride of Infected swarmed you too," Sil retorted with a frown, but her voice remained at normal volume. "If you'd take a look at the bodies before making a judgement, you'd be more sympathetic."

Glad to have that off her chest, she turned back to Cass. "Forest, then. Screw cities," was all she said before turning back to Lightning. "I'm not sure what you want, Lightning, but if you want to follow, then be my guest. Just don't do anything with the creepy dog's muzzle and we'll get along fine."

She then began to make way for Cass to lead as she realized just what she was acting like. "OH MY GOD, why am I a giant B?" she muttered quietly to herself as she waited for Cass to move. Did Hannibal really upset her that much? Maybe Lightning was just irritating her on top of that? Yeah... that sounded logical. Her expression was stale and her ear twitched with anger as she mulled over her actions. That stupid dog was going to be the death of her...

Cash was confused. Everyone was answering the question he posed only to Sil, even though they had already discussed not going to the cities. But there were two forest trails, and he just asked which way Sil wanted to go. By Arceus, these people were dumb. And annoying. And...why was he with them again? Oh right, Sil.

Careful of the Rufflet on his back, he moved past the group and started heading east, to cut through the corner of the forest towards the bridge. White Forest was technically a settlement, but it was so underdeveloped that by the time the epidemic had hit it was pretty much already barren. Humans would have ditched it first chance they got, but there would still be a couple of buildings and a clearing for them to take shelter in when they got there. Maybe even food. Cassius figured it was better than nothing.

Pretty much the only thing on his mind at the moment was how grateful he was that Sil didn't mention, or just didn't notice, his slip up back there. How could he have said that to her? Ugh...he needed to compose himself or this was going to be a long trip. He took a glance behind him to make sure that everyone was following before looking at Cloud, still nestled on his back. He gave the little bird a soft nudge with his nose. "Hey," he whispered. "How you holding up, kiddo? Need to talk?"

Taken a little aback by how the others were acting, Etai padded off a little ways so that she was behind the group before following. She heard the electric type speaking and her good hearing picked up that her name was Lightning which Etai thought seemed to fit the electric type perfectly but she didn't know about judging people anymore. Movement caught her attention at the corner of her eye and she flicked her ear to watch Hannibal rejoin the group and sighed to herself about the almost demonic canine. She wasn't really sure what to make of him but, since she had nothing better to do, she kept pace with him and watched her paws on the ground. "I apologize for my earlier aggression towards you. It wasn't called for and I feel horrible for it." Shyly she looked up into his eyes so he would see the sincere meaning behind her words.