(ELITE) The SNOWPOINT Team

Screams. They rang out like terrifying bells over the howls of the wind, and immediately, Dante knew who they belonged to. His breath caught in his throat for a moment as the thought occurred he might already be too late; he may have already let another pack member die. First Munchkin, then the little pink kitty...

...Now Ciara...

He snarled against the blinding flurry and charged, following the sounds of the steady crescendo of her screams. He didn't care that he couldn't feel his nose anymore, or his feet. He didn't care that he was getting more and more lost into the city,and that even if he found her wounded, he had no way of healing her. No, the only thought in his mind was to get there first, before she died... before he failed her like everyone else.

He leaped over shattered parts of debris, over ruins that littered the city. The snow had covered all the dead here, blanketing it in a fresh layer as if to try and erase it from the town's memory. The blizzard made sure of that, covering up even Dante's own footprints as he raced through the snow. However, bright red caught his eye, and he knew he was on the right track. "CIARA!" he called, but all he heard was more screaming.

He rounded a corner and saw the huge, infected camerupt stomping on a dark mound that could have only been Ciara. Fearing the worst, that he was already too late, he kept his momentum and leaped onto its back, firing a nasty dark pulse down at it. The thing reared up and turned, throwing Dante off near Ciara. He got a good look at her and for a moment, he thought his fears had been realized. She stank of blood and burnt fur and flesh, and he wasn't even sure if she was still conscious. "Ciara?" The name went out, but he couldn't see a reaction.

...No...

....not another one...

A roar to his left reminded him that he wasn't alone, and then Dante realized the actual danger. The signature mounds on the camerupt's back were bulging, oozing with lava, threatening to explode. The beast hunkered down for a moment, and Dante only had a split second to decide. "SHIT--" was the only word he managed to get in before the camerupt's mounds exploded, and Dante threw himself onto Ciara's cold form, protecting her from the blast.

Even as a fire type, the heat was intense. His teeth bared instinctively against it, against the pain as he rode through the attack, hoping that he covered enough of Ciara to prevent any further harm. Not like it was going to do her any help... It seemed hours until the attack relented, the air still sizzling with the heat. He rose, and his teeth bared.

Enough... was fucking enough.

A vicious snarl escaped him, fur bristled, tail held high. "I'm... tired... of you fuckers killing everything.. Everyone..." His icy blue glare bore holes in the undead camerupt, but all he could see was Delia. They were all... just like her. There were no more words now, as his mind filled with unfathomable fury and regret. He could never save them, ever... they all died at the hands of these insane assholes...

Something snapped. He lunged forward, biting onto the thing's face, viciously trying to rip it off of its head. The skin separated, and Dante quickly flung it to the side. Useless. The camerupt could do little to the onslaught; Dante's attacks were quick and destructive, leaving little for the camerupt to do other than back away with the force of the blows. Finally, Dante unleashed a Flamethrower, shoving it back and back onto ice. The heat of the fire evaporated any snow from the blizzard that attempted to thwart his vision, and he could see his victim clearly. It would pay. They would all die at his paws. Starting with this motherfucker right here.

The camerupt slipped, the ice too weak to bear its weight, and it plummeted down into the icy depths, steam hissing from contact. Only when its ugly, faceless head disappeared into the murky black did his own attack stop, his mouth quickly covering in blood from the excursion. He didn't care though. He watched with cold satisfaction as the eyed skull faded from view, lost to the crushing dark.

Good.

He was about to turn to go back to Ciara when an odd sensation fell over him. There was heat again, but within him, welling up into an awful pressure that settled in his chest and temple. He panted and shut his eyes against it; the hell was going on...? The heat and pressure intensified until it earned a small whimper from the hound, feeling like he was about to explode himself. There was a bright light, and for a moment, he thought he passed out.


However, at this pinnacle, it lifted, and the frozen air from the blizzard relieved the heat, allowing Dante to release a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. He opened his eyes and found the world slightly smaller than before. Weird. But it didn't matter... he needed to get to his packmate.

He trotted over, slowing when he got beside her. "..Ciara...?" His voice was soft and careful, not at all like he normally spoke. He lightly nudged her with his muzzle, his heart heavy with loss already. Why was he even trying?

She was gone...

((OOC: LONG POST IS LONG))

"I got the fire going." Alice said, her face beaming with pride. Strix smiled at her, staying as still as he possibly could to keep from waking Hera.
"Thanks Alice, you were great. Why don't you lay down as well, get some rest."

The Espeon was half-singing in her sleep, a happy yet forlorn tune. Strix' ears fell as he just sat and listened. He didn't understand the words but it was beautiful nonetheless.

"U-um, D-Dante said I could t-take shelter here?" a timid female voice broke him out of his thoughts, his sharp gaze falling on the Houndour from outside. The Nidoking nodded at her with a small smile on his fierce face.

"Well come in then. Come warm up by the fire, you look chilled, little one." He said to her, his deep voice echoing through the warehouse.

((YEAAAAHHH BOOIIIIII DANTEEEEE))


Hera had fallen asleep, probably due to some drugs that Strix had used. Dante and Ciara had left, but they should've been back by now. Alice didn't lay down, as Strix suggested, but circled the fire, letting the light dance across her eyes. Outside the cursed blizzard raged on, making Alice thankful for the walls of the Warehouse. However, two of her friends were still out in the storm, and they wouldn't be able to stay warm forever out there. Worse, the Absol was probably still out there somewhere. She had just about made up her mind to go look for Dante and Ciara when someone else came in.

The newcomer was a tiny thing, compared to the others in the group. The coloring and bands on her legs and back were familiar, but what struck Alice the most was the canine's eyes. They looked strikingly like Dante's. Intuition told her this pokemon was a Houndour, the pre-evolved form of the Houndoom that was Dante. The poor thing was shivering from the cold, though there was no surprise there. Even fire-types could only last so long... Nodding her head to the Houndour, she moved away from the fire to make more room. Something still felt wrong to her, however. One person was still unaccounted for. "Where's Yon-Co?" She thought aloud. She had not seen him go out, and was surprised to realize she missed his presence. Perhaps he was a little cute- No. She couldn't think like that. No telling what that would do to Hera, who had obviously had some kind of relationship with him before. She couldn't do that to her friend.

((Skip me.))

Darkness, unbearable pain and darkness. That was all the Mightyena knew. As the beating rained down upon her broken, frail body she had blacked out, leaving her body pleasantly numb. Blood coursed from her open wounds, the burn on her leg becoming swollen and red. If not treated, it would easily become infected. Then, for some unknown reason, the onslaught had ceased and as her mind came back, so did the agonizing pain. She tired to force her eyes open, but she was too weak, it was difficult enough to even draw breath. Her chest barely rose or fell with the soft, shallow intakes of air. To any passerby, she would seem as the dead.

"..Ciara...?"

A voice in the darkness, it seemed so familiar. It almost sounded like Dante, but that was ridiculous. Dante was back with his pack, his own kind, he wouldn't be out here looking for some pitiful mutt no one wanted. And the voice was gentle, kind, and soft. It was not at all like the gruff alpha she knew. But when a light nudge to her side caused her to wince and whimper in pain, she knew it couldn't be a dream. Maybe it wasn't Dante, but someone was with her. She tried to force her eyes open, and only managed to get the right to crack just enough to make out the blurry image of a canine.

The beast before her was magnificent, armored bones decorating its agile frame and power radiating off of it in waves. But his eyes, they were so sad, and so...blue? Could it be? It had to be...Dante really did come for her. But why? When she tried to get up pain coursed through her again and all that came of the attempt was a pained yelp, but it would be enough to let the other know she was alive. She whimpered miserably, her heart and her mind a swirl of confusion. And with the agony she was going through, she could focus enough to put it back together.

All she could do was pray, pray for her alpha to help her.

"Well come in then. Come warm up by the fire, you look chilled, little one." The big Nidoking said, and Inochi nodded. She wasn't as much shivering from the cold as she was from fear. Inochi held her head low as she slowly walked toward the fire. The Luxray that was moving to give the Houndour room. Inochi didn't want to do anything that would make them want her gone, she had just found somemore survivors after she left those survivors back at that cave in the mountains of Johto.

"Where's Yon-Co?" The Luxray asked, and Inochi just looked up to look down again. She didn't know any of there names, just like they didn't know hers, they where just strangers to her. Inochi didn't want any trouble, she just wanted friends, and maybe someone who could help her become strong. What a laugh she was, running and hiding from a leaf on the wind, she mite as well fear her own shadow. Letting out a sigh she lay down near the fire and watched its flames dance.

He had given her up for dead. He kicked himself for being so naive that she would be able to survive the onslaught she had endured. She was another casualty to his inability to keep his damn pack members safe. However, as he nudged her, she winced and yelped, and the newly evolved houndusk started, not expecting such a living reaction out of the brutally injured mightyena before him.

"Shit, you're still--" Dante cut himself off, looking around for any Infected that may have heard her cry of pain. "Sh, sh, sh, try and keep it down, Ciara. I know it hurts. Uh..." His ice blue eyes searched for some way to pick her up and carry her, but without thumbs, without Strix, it was pretty hopeless. He picked up a stick and shoved it to her mouth, hoping she'd grab hold of it. "This is going to hurt, so bite that." After pausing, he then began to wrestle himself beneath her and maneuvered her poor broken frame onto his back.

The blizzard still raged, and he had little hope of making it back to the warehouse; he didn't even know where he was in the city, much less where the warehouse was. Shit. There was a building in the distance, and so he made a beeline for it.

When he got there, he was a little less enthusiastic about it. The roof was all but missing entirely, and half the walls had holes and crumbled under the harsh winds. He'd be worried about it collapsing on them if there were something to collapse. Still, as he glanced out into the bleak white, it was all they had. No scent, no footprints were there to lead him back.

He gently -or as gently as he possibly could- got Ciara off his back, and pulled some wood over her to protect her from the winds. Then, he went to the doorway and howled as loud as he could, hoping his teammates would hear him before the other Infected. "Just stay with me," he said behind to Ciara in between howls. "There's meds left from that box. If we can get you there, then you'll make it. Just... hold on, all right? Stay awake." He howled again, standing in the doorway.

Legends, please...

"Where's Yon-Co?" Alice asked, her ears perking as she looked about. The Nidokings' ears flattened against his head as the rats' name was mentioned. He peered through the door, not really caring much for where he went, but before he could respond, his large ears picked up a different pitch of howling from the winds outside.

His eyes narrowed as he listened more intently, his body stiffening.
There it is again!
The timbre was unmistakable; it was Dante.
Strix gently pushed Hera off his flank and onto the blankets and carefully stood up, taking care not to accidentally step on her.
He stomped to the door, the winds fierce and raging.

Strix looked over his shoulder at the others, his gaze staying on Alice.
"You all stay here. Watch Hera. Don't let anyone touch her." He growled as he stepped out into the blistering winds.

"Dante!" He roared as loud as he could as he pushed his way through the biting cold, looking for any sign of the canine.
"Dante!"

((Skip, my post relies on Yon-co. XD))

It had been a fantastic ream, even if only a dream. I didn't care. She was there. That was all that mattered. Id didn't matter that this was just a matter of my own imagination and not happening in real life- my master's touch felt real and he scent was real. If only for that moment.But things never did stay perfect for me.

Suddenly the entire feel of the world within my head drasticly changed. The sky was suddenly dark, a harsh blizzard around me. It was only then that I realized that my eye and ear had been healed before, as I could no longer see or hear as well. The entire valley, all of the grass and trees, were coated in ice and snow within seconds. I cried out in distress, finding myself out, alone, in the rapidly piling snow around me. My trainer had disappeared. Distress immediately made my heart race and I fought to stand, ice biting at my nose and only eye. I called out her name, my voice shrill, only to be carried off in the wind. She was gone.

Tears began to stream down my cheek, my cries becoming pitiful mews as I fought to be heard above the howling winds. But still to no avail. I was truly alone once more. I choked back a sob as the harsh grip of the freezing temperature threatened to clamp down on my frail body like a vice. Everything had been so perfect only a minute ago, a single minute. Where had she gone?

I cried out once more, raising my head to the dangerous wheather as the single word was ripped through the winds from my own throat. "WHY?" I screamed, feeling my heart threaten to give out from all of the stress. How could life be so CRUEL? Give me the one thing I wanted, more than anything, just to have myself lose it and DIE? Even in a dream it broke my heart.

Something even worse suddenly happened. The feel... the atmosphere changed, sendig all of my fur spiking up in alarm. My instincts screamed at me to run, but where? From what?

My silent questions were awnsered as suddenly the weather changed once more, just as rapidly. There was no more remnants of the blizzard, not a single sign of snow in any direction, but the moon was only a sliver in the sky, barely illuminating the once more green valley. It was dark, and I had to squint my eyes to see, but once they adjusted, I wished that I never would have opened them in the first place. The dip in the land, the place that had been so angelic and perfect before, was now stripped bare. The grass was now a dark tan, dead, and the trees surrownding it were all bare, rotting. But then there were the corpses. Corpses everywhere. They littered the grounds around me as if they had been raining from the sky during the blizzard, no two touching eachother, and no two the same Pokemon.

I was silent and stiff with a fear so much deeper in my entire being, so much more than words could ever describe. The negative energy suddenly around me threatened to suffocate me, restricting my airways and having my heart beat impossibly faster and faster. I forced myself not to glance, not to focus, on any of the mutilated bodies. That is, until I realized that some were familure. I whipped around in horror, realizing that the ones closest to me were the ones I knew. Mother. father. Yon-co. RainFall. Mizua. Astrapi. Jude. Luna. But then... Dante. Alice and Ciara and the Absol, even.

But there was a single one that stood out more than the rest. He was larger than the others. And he was completely skinned alive, only bleeding muscle and bones showing.

Strix.

i screamed.


The little girl didn't seem to respond to my question, simply making her way back to the warehouse instead. I didn't follow her, my ears were perked for the canine duo that had taken off in the other direction. Could they truly survive out there long with the blizzard going? My large ears flicked back with worry but there was little I could actually do. The houndoom, Dante, had already threatened me. It was a horrible and foreign feeling for myself, not being trusted. I had never hurt a soul in my life. But the real questions were why Savanah had freaked at so baddly at seeing me... why had she changed her name, and what happened to her to get those scars...?

I could not help but realize that the confident, bold Espeon I had grown up with was no longer.

But there was no time for that. The others could need me, whether they wanted it or not I was going to be there for my childhood friend. Without a second glance in the direction the two had gone, I spun on my heels and raced back to the warehouse and the place of my Savanah. Just as I entered through the doorway, I could hear the angry Nidoking speaking. I ducked behind a box, out of his sight, as he slipped outside. I flicked my ears forward in confusion. Wha...? But I did catch a distinctly femanin vice saying, "Where's Yon-Co?" A smile split my face. This was not my Espeon, so someone else here must value me after all! I slowly approached the fire that the girls all seemed to just flock to.

I stood upon my hind legs as I entered the light of the flickering flames, posing with my paws on my hips. "Someone rang?

((Ooc; Hera is just squirming a little in her sleep. She didn't actually call out or thrash or anything c: ))

"Sh, sh, sh, try and keep it down, Ciara. I know it hurts. Uh..." She tried to stifle her whimpers, but her wounds were fresh and open, and every movement sent white hot agony straight to her brain. She was grateful for the stick Dante gave her and bit down as hard as she could, nearly snapping it. At the rate she was grinding at it, it would become stuck on her fangs later, but it was worth it to have an outlet for the searing pain. What she didn't expect was him wrestling his larger frame under her.

He...he was carrying her. Dante was actually carrying her. This was almost too much to handle, and for a moment the dark canine was sure she was dreaming. He fought the blizzard, her blood still running hot down her coat and his, and got the to a somewhat sheltered building nearby. Somewhat being the key word because a lot of the structure was missing or burned away, but at least it helped block out the wind and snow. Helped, but didn't stop it.

"There's meds left from that box. If we can get you there, then you'll make it. Just... hold on, all right? Stay awake." Ciara tried to focus on his words, but a lot of it was coming in really fuzzy. She could only make out every other one, but she knew she heard awake. He was probably worried about her slipping into a coma or freezing to death. With the amount of pain she was in, coupled with her blood loss, she wasn't too sure how long she would be able to keep her eyes open. Dante began howling, loudly, and didn't seem to care a lick for any infected that might hear. He was trying to save them.

He was trying to save her.

((Skip, Inochi really doesn't have anything to do ;-; She is just laying down next to the fire doing nothing.))

Howl after howl sounded from Dante's throat, trying to get someone's attention that wouldn't try to kill him. His heart beat like a damn drum in his chest; all this howling was bound to attract something, but more than likely, it would be an infected, and then there really would be trouble. He could see Ciara was fading fast, and there was nothing he could do other than make things worse.

However, in a small reprieve of his howling, he heard a fellow voice on the air. "Dante!" His posture perked at his name, though it was easily missable by the howling winds. "Dante!" Strix. He knew that voice now, despite only being with the big purple dino for a couple of days now.

"STRIX!" he barked back, hope managing to flutter up. He let loose a flamethrower as a marker, a light in the damn flurry. He turned back to Ciara and nuzzled her chin. "Come on, stay up." His voice was gruff, as normal, but there was an edge of fear to it. "Sleeping's bad for you. Strix is coming, and then we can get you going again..." He looked to the leg and sincerely hoped she could keep it... He went back to the doorway and shot out another flamrethrower, and howled again, trying desperately to guide Strix to them.

Legends knew he didn't need to get stuck in the snow again...

Strix roared his name as loud as he could into the winds, but he was no match for the sheer power of the blizzard. Snow was already building on his body, burning his skin where it got underneath his heavy armor. His natural weakness to the cold was beginning to show. His ears lay stiff against his head as he pushed himself through the mounting snow, his heart beating fast.

I hope he found Ciara...
What if I don't find them soon?
They can be buried alive in the snow!

"DANTE!" He roared again, using his large claws to amplify the sound. The Nidoking heard nothing as he stood still, listening for any hint of the Houndoom.
Suddenly, he saw an orange flame a short distance away shoot out and then quickly disappear. The purple creature barreled forward, ignoring the burning and biting winds.

"Dante!" He shouted as he flew towards the black silhouette amidst the white flurry, falling into the building half blind. The Nidoking got up slowly as he shook himself of all the ice and snow.
"All this damned snow! We need to get the fuck out of he-"
He turned about and started, retreating a few steps as he beheld a large canine that he had never seen before.

The Nidokings' gaze narrowed as he peered at him, and then the Mightyena at his feet, who was covered in burns and cuts, and bleeding out very quickly.
Ciara...! His heart leaped into his throat as he saw her broken body.
Strix' ears lowered as his gaze went to the creature before him.
It looks like a Houndoom...it has the black body and horns, but its appearance is...different...he couldn't be responsible for those wounds...could he?...
The Nidokings' gaze locked with the hounds' brilliant blue eyes in wary confusion.

"Dante?..."
It has to be.
"The fuck happened!?"

Alice nodded as Strix barreled out the door. Of course she would protect Hera. She wouldn't let anyone touch her. Except Strix, of course. She giggled to herself at the thought. She hoped Dante was okay, of course. And Ciara. They had to still be alive. They'd come so far, they were all such close friends now...

Dark thoughts brewed inside her head as she stared at the flames. A peppy voice pulled her mind away, however. Yon-co had returned! ...Oh crap.

Alice was forced to bury her face in her paws to hide the fact that she was blushing. Why was she blushing?! "I was just curious... Is all." She spoke through the muzzle of her own feet.

No. No. No no no no no no no. The sight before me was too horrible- too...realistic. The pure, cold hard fact that this was indeed only a dream was washed away compltely by the sight before me. Yes, Alice was dead. Yes, Dante was dead. Yes, even Yon-co and Ciara and the Absol were dead... But Strix? No. It was too much to bear.  How could it become worse?

As the scream was ripped from my throat, shooting through the air like invisible lightning, I knew that it was about to get a whole hell of a lot worse. Movement. I saw movement. My head whipped around to see a single corpse rise for a few meters away. It was a face that I recognized and bile rose in my throat as the scream was cut short. RainFall. The normally powerful and sleek Dragonair was disfigured. Her entire stomach had been slashed open, organs pouring aroung her as she fought to raise her head. Her eyes were glowing crimson red as she lifted her head to face mine. Memories of training together with this Pokemon- living and thriving together- flashed before my eyes as I absorbed the sight of her rising from the dead. The gorgous horn had been roughly torn from her head, showing gore and bone from the inside of her skull. She gave a low moan, beggining to pull her serpentine body across nearby bodies towards my direction. Mine. 

I could no longer call out; I was dead silent with horror. I could only stand and watch as one of my lifetime team mates moved closer to kill me. RainFall hissed, a low and frightening sound, and somehow that broke my trance. I spun on my paws, fighting to gain leverage and flee. But I was met with another rising body. The Absol. She was not as I had seen her last- there was no intelligence to her glowing eyes- and she had new wounds around her throat. I skidded to a stop before her, barely a paw's length from her, starin up at her in silent horror as she,too, hissed at me. 

I knew then that I was in trouble.

There had been hundreds upon hundreds of bodies littering the ground. If RainFall and the Absol were 'alive'... Then that could only mean...

The electricity and urgency to flee was so strong in the air, I swear I could taste it. My pelt was standing on end as I stared up at the Absol, my horrified amber gaze meeting her hungry crimson one. With a screech, she lifted one heavily taloned paw, aiming right for me. But I instantly dove underneath her, bending my legs so that I would stay as short and close to the ground as possible and avoiding infection. I heard an angry bellow and glanced over my shoulder just as I escaped the Absol. My eye nearly buldged out of my head- it was a Charizard, it's wings shredded and it's flame out, but with three sharp claws now shredding it's stomach. The Absol spat back at it, but the thing just roared in return. I flinched and turned away as hot lava flowed from it's mouth onto the undead beast.

But as I fled past the bodies, my sleek paws holding steady as I raced through the dead grass, the undead seemed to rise as if I were the one awaking them. I forced myself not to look at any in particular, lest I recognize someone else, and just danced out of the reach of them. Almost all of the living corpses would snap out a hand or paw without warning, aiming to trip me. But if that happened it would all be over. I could only aim for the dead forest. I could flee through there. But as my breathing became faster and deeper, my lithe legs bringing me closer to the forest I grew up in, I finally saw with horror that I was truly doomed. Many undead of all shape and size and color and type were stepping sloppily out of the dead trees. My heart sank. Undead behind me. Undead before me. I was trapped.

I could only fight. But that was not even an option. So I just kept running. I screwed my eye shut, lowering my head and flattening my ears. I looked like a bull as I blindly aimed for the belly of the undead before me.

 

I was more than a wee bit supprised at the reaction of the Luxray. She seemed to first look releived, but then just as quickly buried her face in her paws. A light chuckle came from my lips as I walked closer. She was an interesting one, to say the least. Almost as cute as my Savanah. The Lioness' voice carried softly through the air as I approached the Espeon. "I was just curious... Is all." I only half heard her. My Savanah... My dear Savanah. She was curled up on the ground, one paw over her face but a ever so soft whimper escaping her. My ears fell. Was she having a nightmere?

I moved closer to the Eeveelution, gently placing myself by her head. She could not have been able to rest too often in the horrible Epidemic... I didn't have the heart to wake her. My small paws gently stroked her unscarred cheek, my sadness ahining through black eyes. My poor dear... 

As I slowly settled myself next to her, my gaze flickered to the silent Houndour and back to the Luxray. It was only then that I realized I was alone with three chicks and another soft chuckle came from me. Oh how Savanah would have teased me if she had been her old self. 'What, ya think you could make a move on all three? In your dreams, rat!' she would tease me playfully, a confident glint in her eyes. I slowly ran my tail along her side, trying to calm her shivering. Where was that glint now? 

I forced my thoughts away, slowly liftin my gaze back to the Luxray. I smiled at her but my voice was soft. "H-how long has she been with you?" I asked slowly, nodding to the Espeon. I never had been one for awkward silences.

Even over the howling of the powerful canine beside her, and the roar of the wind, she could still make out the soft sounds of someone replying. Her suspicions were confirmed when Dante began yelling for Strix, but by that point the world was starting to go fuzzy. "Come on, stay up. Sleeping's bad for you. Strix is coming, and then we can get you going again..." " Ciara tried to fight the obvious signs of concussion and blood loss as her body tried to slip into unconsciousness, but even Dante's voice wasn't much help anymore.

A slight bit of adrenaline shot through her as Strix burst through the door, helping to jolt her to reality once more. "Dante!" The loud voice was like a thunderous boom going off in her head as nothing but pain shot through her body. "All this damned snow! We need to get the fuck out of he-" She tried to look at the Nidoking when he paused and caught him staring at Dante. She realized that he must not have been able to recognize the dark hound in his new form right away either. "Dante?...The fuck happened!?"

"Kennyth..." she whispered, a pained whimper escaping. Though at this point, she wasn't sure if it was from the actual pain or from the sorrow of seeing her former friend and ally like that, who also then tried to kill her. A single tear found its way from her eye and ran over the gash on her muzzle, causing her to hiss in pain. She just wanted all the pain to stop, it was slowly killing her and soon she was sure she would go crazy from it. But what could she do in her condition but lay there pitiful, like a newborn pup?

Inochi sat on her own next to the fire, not saying a word as he watched the flames dance in front of her. She hadn't been paying to close attention to the Luxray and Raichu, she hadn't even noticed the Raichu had come here till now. The Houndours hears twitched as he said something she did not quite catch, but it was probably not aimed at her, nothing of impotence ever was.

Inochis let out a sigh, her breath making the fire flicker a little before going back to normal. What was she doing here? There was nothing for her here, and yet, she couldn't bring herself to leave again. Maybe she did belong here, she just didn't know her place in this pack, this team. She raised her head, her paws fidgeting a little as her gaze wondered over to the Luxray, then to the Raichu who was comforting the Espeon.

She looked down at her paws. She wanted to say something, but she couldn't speak. "Umm... m-my name i-is Inochi." She forced herself to say, They should at least know her name. "W-what's yours?" The question was directed at both pokemon. Inochi didn't care much if they didn't respond, she wouldn't push it.

Dante let out a relieved sigh as Strix literally fell through the doorway, cursing and spitting about the damned snow. While Dante couldn't agree more, Strix's face fell when he saw Caira's broken, burned form. He turned to the fire dog for an explanation, but the nidoking gave him the hairy eyeball, as if he didn't recognize him. "...Dante? The fuck happened?!"

He didn't hear Ciara's little whimper of a name, instead giving Strix a quick rundown of what happened while situating himself behind Ciara, to help move her if need be. "Well, Ciara ran off into the city, so I went after her. The damn blizzard made everything fucking impossible to track, so I had to go off of her screaming..." He looked down at the fallen mightyena, guilt entering his expression before continuing. "When I got there, there was an infected camerupt beating the shit out of her, and..." A growl began in his throat, and he had to shake his head to stop it. "...Long story short, I beat it, got her here and started howling. We need to get the fuck out of here; I'm sure more than just you heard me. We can jabber back at the warehouse."

He looked to the empty doorway, where the blizzard still raged. "You grab her and I'll keep the ice off you, like at the avalanche. Ready?"

Strix listened, his eyes going from Dante, to Ciana, and then back as he put the story together.
"We need to get the fuck out of here; I'm sure more than just you heard me. We can jabber back at the warehouse." he growled as he padded to the doorway.

The Nidokings' gaze grew dark as he looked down at the bleeding hound.
We shouldn't move her in the state she's in...but...he's right...if the others get attacked, they probably won't be able to fend them off...

"You grab her and I'll keep the ice off you, like at the avalanche. Ready?"
Strix' hard eyes looked about, spotting a dark green tarp draped over a pile of mechanical devices. Without a word, he stomped over and grabbed it, promptly shredding slices of it off with his sharp claws.
"We can't take her like this." He growled as he knelt down in front of her, the tourniquets in claw.
She won't make it if we don't stop the bleeding.
"Alright, Ciana. You need to stay awake." He said firmly, quickly wrapping the plastic around her forearm and tightening it above the wound.

"Ah, hardly a mosquito bite." He said anxiously, watching the blood drip down his arm as he held her paw up.
He did the same for the other major wounds, putting as much pressure on them as he dared.
"Okay, almost done." He growled, his arms and claws slick with her blood.
We need to keep her warm.
He grabbed the tarp and tossed it over her, picking her up as gently as he could with her wrapped inside, belly up.

The Nidoking nodded to the fire hound, holding Ciana close to his chest as he approached the door. A sudden violent banging from the opposite end of the buiding sounded over the storms howling. Strix looked at the hound hurriedly.
"Let's go!"

Alice felt a strange sensation when Yon-co padded over to Hera. She couldn't feel angry, no, of course not. The poor Espeon was half-dead, and it was her fault. What did she have to be angry about? Regardless, she couldn't shake the feeling that she didn't like Yon-co being with Hera. Hera had Strix now, perhaps that was it. The newcomer's introduction caused Alice to shake her head. She was the eldest of the group while Strix and Dante were away. It was time she started acting like it.

Proudly, Alice stood up and circled the fire. "My name is Alice." She directed the response to Inochi, but made sure to speak loud enough that Yon-co would hear her. "As for you," she said, turning to the Electric type. "Hera joined us shortly after we arrived here, if I remember correctly." Alice hated thinking about the strange way they had all suddenly been teleported to the mountain, and the deaths that surrounded that time. "But what about you?" She asked Yon-co. "How do you know her?" A stray thought pricked her brain, and she added, with a grin, "Yonny?"

I was running, running for my life. I was going to ram my way throughthe wall of undead or would die trying. The dead world I now found myself in was all too real to just be a dream anymore. The blood pounding in my ears, the dry dirt beneath my paws, the stentch of death and decay in my nose. No. It was all too real.

A feline screech began to rumble in my throat, tearing at my insides until my jaws snapped open to let the feirce battlecry fill the air. The scream cut through the howls and groans of the undead around me, giving renewed strength to my limbs. With my ears flat against the back of my skull and my peircing feline gaze snapped right ahead, there was nothing else to be done. The undead in front, the one I was mere seconds from, stepped forward with a massive roar. It was a Charizard, it's red eyes gleaming and the flmae on it's tail long since dead. Molten lava fell out of the bottom of it's jaws, the fire having long since burned through it's head to reveal bone, as well as the wings completely shredded, only small patches of skin stretched over exposed bone and gore. And still I ran valiantly forward, my screech openly defying the feirsome roar of the powerful undead. 

And then I smashed into it.

The world became chaos. My head rammed with as much power as I could muster into the gut of the beast. There wasn't even a grunt from the undead and my battlecry was abruptly cut short to a scream of pain as the Charizard brabbed my by the throat. Three short but powerful fingers wrapped around my neck with awe inspiring power and I immediately began to thrash as my air was cut off. The Charizard snarled in morbid glee, it's mouth long since losing the capability to smile but it's eyes giving the same emotion. Meanwhile my own vision swam, my forpaws clawing in vein at the single arm that heald me above the ground while my hind legs thrashed, clawing everything in their path. But still the beast merely heald me, relishing it's viteim, while I slashed at the skin on it's arm and stomach.

I was more than sure it was the end, another roar escaping the dragon as my limbs already began to grow weaker and weaker with each movement. I was going to die. The once mythical beast brought it's discusting head down, face to face with me, and  reathing on my struggling body with it's hot breath. I would have coughed had I been physically capable. My single eye widened with horror, staring up at the beast with silent pleas even as the light began to fade from it. My vision was begining to swim. My entire body fell limp, my eye drooping close. 

No... I tried to fight it but it was too late. It was too late. The last thing that I could hear was a roar from behind... Wait, a roar from behind?

Suddenly I was flying through the air, landing with a thump onto the ground. First thing I did was gulp in air, my chest heaving, and ignoring the pain that gripped my throat. My gaze suddenly flashed open. Why had the undead suddenly released me?! I managed to look over my shoulder in the direction of the beast only to see a mindblowing sight. My eye nearly boggled out of my head. A great beast was arm to arm with the dragon, very clearly overpowering the dragon. His flesh was exposed, blood being splashed all around him and falling in puddles beneath him as he lasted out at the Charizard with his tail, emmiting another bellow as he protected me, even after death.

Strix.

 

I watched as Savanah twitched in her sleep, an expression of distress coming to her facial features as her eyebrows came down closer to her eyes. My dark eyes were full of sadness. What exactly was she dreaming about? A small voice brought me from my thoughts. "Umm... m-my name i-is Inochi." I turned to regaurd the Houndour with a compassionate smile. The poor thing looked half scared outta her pelt! "W-what's yours?" Her momentary courage seemed to faulter with the las inquiry. I stood, my long tail flicking behind me as a huge grin split my face. "The name's Yon-co, little lady," I replied cheerily. In all honesty I was worried about my Savanah and stressed about that Dante characer, but sharing negative feelings never did anything to solve them. 

The Luxray then took to her feet with such a fluid grace that my gaze snapped to her, eyes wide with wonder. She moved around the fire as if it were a foe she had to keep in check. "My name is Alice." Her voice shook me from my thoughts and I just couldn't resist a soft snicker to myself. Here I had been imagining her all full of badassery only to hear her with such a lady's name like Alice. But then her peircing gaze came to my direction and I sobered my expression. "As for you, Hera joined us shortly after we arrived here, if I remember correctly." Confusion darkened my eyes. Came here? What did she mean by that? My lip twitched unhappily. Odd. "But what about you?" Alice asked, adressing myself. "How do you know her?" I blinked, her question taking me almost completely off gaurd. Everyone seemed to hate me just showing up- it was nice that someone showed intrest in me. But her added smirk brought a playful grin to my face once again. "Yonny?"

But it was so familure that it hurt.

S- Hera had been the same way. She had a fire within her heart that did not revolve around battling and she had always teased me. Although she had never used that nickname, she had called me by many things in good humor. It seemed that she had disappeared with the horrific scars. But forcing that out of my head, I focused on Alice. The lady had asked me a question or two after all. My grin returned to normal and a chuckle escaped my pudgey stomach. I replied with a wink. "Well, Allie, I was actually in Johto looking for my lost trainer and Sa- Hera. Some weird..." I frowned, trying to think of how to describe what had suddenly taken me to this land of anow. "Force, I guess, brought me here. Was cold as hell out there so I have been in the warehouse for days now. But as to how I know Hera, we go way back." My eyes took on a faraway glow as long since passed memories playing in my eyes. "I was the first Pokemon our trainer captured, besides Hera of course. We traveled Johto for many years. She was my best friend," I admitted with a sheepish grin. But I stopped there, waiting for Alice's response.

Didn't want to bore the lady, did I?

Ciara could only listen as she heard the two males talking about moving her. She knew they were right, that the howling and the fire would have attracted more than just Strix, but the thought of moving caused a shiver of pain to wrack her body. A few more tears found their way from her eyes and the salty sting as they hit her wounds caused her to flinch. "We can't take her like this."

He sounded so gruff, even as he knelt down to help her. Ciara looked up at the large dino in front of her and forced a weak smile, hoping she didn't look as pathetic as she felt. It was strange to her, these two putting themselves in danger to save her. She had never been wanted before, so she hadn't realized it when they had let her stay that she was actually welcome. But, the idea of being one of the pack, finally, helped to put her heart and her mind at ease.

Strix picked up her paw and felt herself seize as the pain registered, all of her muscles tightening until she was rigid. Her ears drooped sadly as he assessed the damage. "Ah, hardly a mosquito bite." She chuckled lightly at his words, knowing that he was just trying to make her feel better. He began wrapping her wounds tightly, and while it was painful it did help cease the blood that had been flowing from her body previously. "Okay, almost done."

She felt him wrap her in a thick sheet of some kind, and figured it was to help protect her from the bitter cold outside. The males seemed ready to go, and Dante had a plan to help keep the ice at bay, so she gave Strix an appreciative lick on his claw to let him know that she was ready too. "Let's go!" And they were off.

So there names where Alice and Yon-co. They where nice names, but Inochi couldn't think of anything else to say to them, and they seemed to have started a conversation all on there own, and she didn't want to to say anything to interrupt. Her ears where down as she lay her head on her paws, her eyes nothing more then slits. She didn't want to listen to there conversation, and she wasn't hungry enough to go look for food, so the best she could do was sit still and not do anything at the moment.

Letting out another sigh, the flames flickering as her breath reached it. What would her life have been like if she had not been abandoned as a pup? Would she have learned to get over her fear? Would she have been a Houndoom by now? So many questions, and no one to give her an answer.

Though Strix's fingers were large, uncoordinated and stubby, the houndusk was all too glad for them. The nidoking managed to get tourniquets in place, then wrapped Ciara up in the tarp before banging started to echo ominously throughout the small cabin. "Let's go!" Strix shouted, which Dante couldn't agree more with.

They bolted out into the snow, and Dante's first priority was to cut a path through the stuff so Strix could travel through it easier. However, instead of his normal stream of flame, the flamethrower he let loose not only cut through the snow, it obliterated it. The trench went well over his and Strix's head, and for a moment, Dante was completely dumbstruck. 'What... What the hell was that?!'

But there was no time to waste. The banging turned into roars and cries of anger, and Dante turned to see a small horde gathering on the snow-laden broken roof. He snarled and let out another flamethrower, which not only caught the infected aflame, but the roof as well. "Shit! Time to move, big guy!" he called, leading the way through the trench. He wasn't sure what exactly had happened to him, why he had gained the power boost, but he was relatively sure it was from the weird episode after fighting the camerupt.

'It was almost like evolving,' he mused, recalling when he had first evolved into a houndoom. 'But... Houndoom don't evolve... They can't evolve... Right?' Doubt filled him as he finally got a glance at his feet, which, instead of being black with the two rings on his ankles, were now completely white with small holes on the top, showing the ebony fur beneath. At the sight, he almost tripped over himself, mind reeling. "What the fuck...?!" he exclaimed to himself, now oblivious that Strix was behind him.

He stopped, looking over his new form, trying to get a grasp of what he now looked like. His spiked back, his now completely boned tail, the strange faced necklace that ringed his clavicle. Even his muzzle was white. What the hell was he now? In his frantic looking over of himself, he saw Strix and Ciara, and suddenly remembered himself. Beauty concerns would come later. This was kind of important.

He blazed the trail down, occasionally hopping up the snowbank to see where they were going. It was a rounded, curving path, but eventually, Dante managed to find his way back to the warehouse, the ground coming up to meet the building. He trotted up, shaking himself free of snow as he set foot back into the building, looking over everyone as he panted. The rat seemed pretty comfy, Alice was confidently striding about the fire, Hera was sleeping -albeit not very peacefully- and the pup looked just as pathetic as he'd left her. He sighed, then cleared his throat to pronounce himself. "...We're back."