Pokémon: Aftermath #3b - Candice and the Battle for Snowpoint [IC]

[Felicity]

Adam grinned. "Got that covered" He said as Lockhart continued to fly, swiping the Drowzee with a powerful Sucker Punch, though he was dazed by the flash. "Lockhart, try and swoop around!" He ordered, but lockhart was having trouble complying, his sharp avian eyes seriously affected by the Drowzee. It was all he could do to keep flying, away from the edge of the roof. "Make an opening for Lockhart!" Adam continued to yell, getting visibly more agitated.

[krim]

{Conclave}

Sighing Nemir thought "Why can't anything ever go as planned? "Because you aren't very good at planning." Vis responded. "Charge up a shadow ball. You can let the aura spheres fade if you have to. I think we can catch this hypno by surprise, or at least take a shot at another of her pokemon." he thought. Adam shouted for an opening, and he knew to take the chance. Stepping on to the roof he yelled "Vis. Now!" Vis had had time to charge the shadow ball, and it had grown quite large by the time he sent it spinning towards the hypno. "Step back into the hall if you can. This mother isn't going to play fair, so neither will we." he thought as he moved backwards himself.

Edited February 12, 2015 by DragonMasterKrim

[Flux]

Flux was ready as Candice prepared her double team. He was sure that Ogre would want to attack each apparition one by one, but Flux knew that he wouldn't be fast enough for that sort of tactic.

"Ogre, Protect!" he called out. Ogre glanced over a metal shoulder, a look of disappointment apparent on his face, but he complied. A transparent shield shimmered around the Aggron as he braced for the attack. Flux watched as Miki commanded Raito, taking out all but one of the clones. He was impressed. Raito was fast, even moreso than many Jolteons he had seen. It had also been a rather clever counter on Miki's part. He gave a nod of approval to the girl before returning his gaze to the battle.

[Jory]

Jory looked on in concern as the Hypno continued battling with Carissa as its hostage. No, not yet. I can't let the Mother distract me. The most important thing is that we defeat her, he thought to himself as the Zangoose and Scizor sped toward each other. "Shredder, meet that Bullet Punch with your Fire Punch! Go!" the Trainer shouted. Shredder's front paws began blazing as the Normal-type moved ever close to the Scizor, planning to meet it head-on. As he approached his foe he leapt forward, diving toward the Mother's Scizor as he swung a vicious Fire Punch to meet the Bug-type's attack.

[SilverJakler]

Seth hurried up the stairs as fast as he could, not stopping for anything. Once he got to the Mother's room he found the staircase leading out the window, along with the signs of a struggle and the sounds of battle nearby. He bolted for the last staircase and made it to the roof in no time at all and saw the battle before him.

"Yo, how's about we join the fight?" he exclaimed to the others.

[DarkLight]

{Flux}

As a result of Ogre's Protect, Lassie's incoming Shadow Ball bounced off of the shield harmlessly, leaving her open for an attack.

Miki gave a thumbs up to the professor as the Froslass echoed what appears to be a small whine of disappoint. Now the question is what her Jolteon should tackle on: The hail that could make Lassie evade most of their attacks or Lassie, herself, since she is now vulnerable to their assault.

'We need to preserve Ogre and Raito's health too. Hail is not only helping Froslass, but it also whittles down Raito and Ogre...' "Flux, I am going to go and get rid of the Hail for us so that she could stop hiding and Ogre will do more to a Froslass than a Jolteon can with one hit." Miki said before she addressed her Jolteon, who was shaking off the ice that pelted him. "Make it rain for us, boy!"

"Ooohh, what a party pooper indeed! We can't have that!" Candice chuckled. "Lassie, Icy Wind on the Jolteon!"

As Raito called out to the sky to summon a Rain Dance, Lassie began to float gracefully over to him and was about to blow a chilly wind in order to slow him down...

((Froslass will take a direct hit if you want to choose to directly attack her~))

[Flux]

Flux grimaced. He was put in a tough spot right now. He could either send Ogre to attack the Froslass while it was distracted, giving him a good chance at scoring a hit, or he could send Ogre to defend Raito from the incoming attack. He knew Ogre was getting worn down from all the hits he had taken, though the Aggron would never show it, and he wasn't sure how well Ogre would handle another attack. Logic dictated only one choice, no matte how harsh it may be.

"Ogre run in for a Head Smash, now!" he called out. "This is your chance: the Froslass is distracted! Make the most of it!"

In an instant, Ogre unleashed a deafening roar, lowering his head as he sprinted towards the Froslass with surprising speed for a creature of his size and weight. It seemed that Ogre also wanted to make the most of this.

((I feel like this is a trap, but we're going for it anyway!!!))

[DarkLight]

((Big risks = big rewards))

{Flux}

Rain slowly replaced Hail, making the Froslass an easier target for her opponents to spot. As the watery droplets came down, Ogre crashed into the frail Lassie before she could move away. The Froslass shrieked in pain as she was sent tumbling back to Candice's side of the field.

"Lassie! Can you keep going?" Candice called out. The Froslass grunted a little before she managed to pick herself back up with her two sleeve-like arms. Lassie then floated unsteadily, panting from the brutal assault that she just took, but made no attempt to step down. It was clear that the battle was coming to a close. "Alrighty then! Let them taste an Ominous Wind!"

Lassie was only happy to get some revenge. She flapped her arms wildly, generating blast after blast of ghostly winds that are headed straight for the duo.

"Flux, can Ogre use Thunder? Raito can take a hit so we team up on her and finish it off." Miki asked as she put up her hood.

[Tacos]

Diana was overjoyed to see another person show up. "Oh my gosh! The more the merrier! We're just a few steps closer to genocide. But don't worry, when you're all dead, I'll examine your bodies in the name of science. Oh this shall be so fun!" Diana jumped for joy, extending her limbs in the air with every leap. She was actually dancing across the roof. Because of this, she was paying no attention to her poor Scizor. In fact, she had only owned Scizor for a few weeks, so he wasn't the greatest battler. He had no way to prepare for the incoming barrage of attacks and cowered in fear. He sat with his claws over his head as the fire singed his skin and the rocks snapped his bones. He released a pained moan before he was fainted. Diana was incredibly frustrated. She pointed her finger out accusingly. "You dimwits! I was going to harvest his corpse and study it. You... you... BASTARDS!" Diana gasped and held her hands to her mouth. She took her hands away for a brief moment. "Look what you did! You made me curse! You are an awful lot!" She shook her head before reaching for what looked like a Dive Ball. She tossed it out and released a fierce Sharpedo. She giggled a little bit. "This is my friend. I call him Left Shark. He's normally on the left side of the tank when I let him and his buddy munch on disloyal acolytes." The tablet on the ground next to her displayed Sharpedo with the title: "The Devourer."

[Azeria]

"Heh,a Water type? Even if it can float on land it's at an immense disadvantage,Nappy rock tomb once more,i don't want to see a twitch from that thing!"Micheal screamed as the Snorlax once again had rocks surrounding it before they launched at the Shark."Guys,keep an eye out for that thing,if it's ability is what i think it is we want to keep lowering its speed!"

[SilverJakler]

"I'll take that as a yes, then. Giga, let's rock!" Seth sent him out, fully recovered from his fight with Candice and ready to roll. "Alright, buddy, how's about you send an Electro Ball to the "Left Shark".

Giga charged a ball of electricity in his right arm then chucked it at the new, possibly uncoordinated enemy.

[Flux]

"Flux, can Ogre use Thunder? Raito can take a hit so we team up on her and finish it off."

Flux smiled. "Why of course. Ogre's favorite move actually falls under what we scientists refer to as special attacks. Thunder is just another stone along that path." He turned to the Aggron, who was beaming and clashing his fists together, all too obviously overjoyed that he had finally hit the Froslass. Flux just sighed and held his head in his hands. "Ogre... you heard her. Charge up Raito with a Thunder!" Ogre's grin widened at the mention of a special attack. His metal body and horns made physical attacks much easier for him, but he enjoyed the feeling of wielding the power of a special attack. Electricity crackled around Ogre's body, brightening with each passing second. Ogre roared as he released the electricity, shooting it towards Raito all at once.

[Felicity]

Lockhart, having recovered from the Hypnos blinding light had swooped around once more. "Lockhart, Hostage, now, make sure to be wary of that damn hypno again!" Lockhart swooped once more, a talons ready for another sky attack, but this time Lockhart got Adams meaning. He didn't mean take back the hostage, he meant take one... Who said they had to battle this psycho... ockhart flew, swerving as he got within a few feet to make a grab at the Mother rather than Carissa

[Jory]

Jory nodded, approving of Adam's strategy. "Quick, Shredder, make her choose! Give that damn Hypno a Quick Scissor!" he shouted. A blur shot across the battlefield as the supercharged Zangoose fired itself at the Hypno, bounding across the ground with astounding speed. As it approached the Hypno its claws began to glow and it brought them out to the side, leaping toward its foe with uncanny accuracy. However, Shredder became apprehensive as he neared the Psychic-type. The Hypno might try to use Carissa as a shield, so he had to be prepared. He formed a backup plan quickly, sheathing his claws as he threw his shoulder forward with an unexpected Double Edge attack.

[DarkLight]

{Flux and Murdoc (and Grass if you happen to have time to drop in)}

Miki beamed at the scientist before she turned to deliver her final command. "Rai! You heard us! Finish her with Thunder!"

The Jolteon braced himself as the lecherous wind hit his face, growling quietly until it blew past him. He then felt Ogre's electricity course through his fur, re-energizing him in the process. Raito let out a happy cry before he charged up for a Thunder. His muscles tensed up as he glared at Lassie; electricity began to crackle around his yellow and white fur.

Realizing the dangerous situation, Candice gasped and quickly ordered Lassie to move out of the way of incoming thunderbolts, but Lassie reacted too late. Raito released a massive thunderbolt straight into the air, creating an explosive thunderstorm around the arena. Several seconds later, lightning bolts came crashing down the icy terrain. Candice's Froslass managed to dodge each of them left and right before her exhaustion finally caught up to her. Before she could react, Lassie was finally struck with a blast of lightning. A loud shriek could be heard in the gym as the electricity shocked the Froslass' ghostly white body. After this agonizing treatment, the electricity began to recede along with the thunderstorm. As the thunder resounded dully in the background, Lassie finally collapsed, splattering the water around her.

Candice grinned widely as she unclipped her Froslass' capsule from her belt. "Thank you Lassie, for everything. I'll get you back real soon." She whispered the last statement so that nobody else could hear her. "And so, since I'm out of Pokemon, Team Dusk is declared the winner! Give them a round of applause!" Candice declared as cheerfully as she could. Whoops and cheers immediately erupted the ex-acolytes as Candice made her way over to congratulate Flux and Miki. "If I could give you an Icicle Badge for your amazing efforts, I would. Alas, that will not be the case today. Soooo, to make up for that, I will gladly offer my allegiance to your underground network. And I'm sure these girls will love it too." She gave a nod in their direction before she pointed to the back room. "Now then, why don't you get your Pokemon some rest back there first? I'll see to it that you get out here safely, just in case the patrollers are back. That goes for whoever else is up there! Don't leave until I say so!"

"T-Thank you, Candice!" Miki stuttered humbly. She was honestly just surprised that they won. Another victory, another step closer to freeing Sinnoh from Dawn's reign. Her Jolteon then jumped into her arms, barking loudly at their achievement. "Umm... Flux, I'm going to go to the healing room first. Thanks for helping us there!" With an awkward bow to Candice, Miki began to walk off to the healing room with her Jolteon in her arms. It was a strange scene, as the yellow Eeveelution wasn't making an attempt to walk over there himself; his legs were just failing around as Miki attempted to drag him there as gracefully as she could.

----------------

Jon had to put his hands on his ears as the group of girls cheered obnoxiously as the battle ended. He had already healed up Kyte, his faithful Swampert, as soon he walked off the field, so he was sitting in the bleachers watching the battle go on. He eyed the girls suspiciously, still not trusting them in the slightest. It was then that he found two familiar faces in the crowd. Since when did they get here though? He must have missed them while the acolytes were shuffling into the gym. Seeing that nobody else more trustworthy was available at this point, Jon made his way over to Sarcus and Alina. "Hey. Sorry I didn't notice you before. Acolytes must have blocked my view."

[Flux]

Flux gave a wave to Miki as she headed off, before walking towards Candice. He gave a sly smile as he reached her and held out a hand.

"I have to say, you're one tough cookie. There's no way Ogre could've handled you alone out there."

The Aggron turned at the mention of his name, giving a cry of protest at the context. Flux laughed.

"Regardless of his opinion, it's the truth. I'll need to build myself a strong team again before we have a rematch." He paused, looking in the direction Miki had headed. "I suppose I should go get him healed up. Listen... take care of yourself, ok? I don't know the specifics on what will happen to the city now, but stay safe, all right?" He waved before making his way towards the healing machine, flashing a smile on the way.

[Tacos]

Left Shark was a quick, independent Sharpedo who didn't need a trainer. He was very quick and agile, swerving between the hails of rocks and making a loop in the fluid air, allowing the Electro Ball to pass by him before fizzling out. He then swerved to the left and began to dart towards Adam, who seemed to be the most vulnerable of them. His speed increased suddenly as he was surrounded in a cascade of flowing water. Diana was amazed by her pokemon and stared in awe, stars almost twinkling in her eyes. She held her hands up to her mouth and twirled around on one foot excitedly, babbling about how cool Left Shark is. She was far too distracted to notice Lockhart closing in on her. So, one could imagine her shock when she felt a sudden tug on her messy, auburn hair, and began to lift from the ground. She looked up and her face turned into a pout. "You birdbrained imbecile. Put me down!" She began thrusting her fists towards Lockhart's legs in an attempt to break them, hoping she could both harvest the blood later and be able to escape from his clutches.

Hypno saw the Shadow Ball coming from a mile away and put up a protective shield to block the oncoming attack. He then saw his trainer being abducted by the bird. Hypno, unsure of what to do, grabbed Carissa and placed her in front of him, where her head lolled onto her shoulder out of fatigue. Because he couldn't control the dark bird with his psychic powers, he guessed he had to resort to physical violence. He pulled Carissa's head off of her shoulders and held his hands firmly around her neck, sending a threatening glare to the Team Dusk members in front of him. He assumed that Shredder would hit the girl if he came any closer.

[SilverJakler]

Seth noticed what the Hypno was trying to do, but he needed to protect his teammate from the beast that was current speeding towards him.

"Yo, Giga, intercept that thing with a Quick Attack!" Ready for the next move, Giga charged as fast as possible to try and intercept the shark currently headed straight towards Adam, a trail of white light following behind him. He ran blindingly fast, hoping to ram the Sharpedo in the side to veer it off course, while adding on a bit of damage as well. Giga would be able to make it, but just barely, hopefully taking advantage of the psychotic mother's... predicament.

[Felicity]

(Conclave)

Lockhart, not particularly bothered by the mothers attempts to break his legs, flew over the edge of the building, circling far away to avoid the hypno using any of it's abilities shouuld he drop her. Adam on the other hand almost froze. It wasn't until he saw the yellow mass of Giga starting to move that his own brain again to function again. He didn't dare tak a step though, his body locked into position. Taking a deep breath, Adam called out to the mother in Lockharts talons. "Call off your pokemon now. If anything happens to a single one of us, Lockhart will make sure that your face hits the street faster than you can blink" Adam ordered. He was perfectly aware of the Hypno's threatening actions but he knew Team dusk had to be the ones in charge. That started with giving the orders. Provided they didn't come from a mouth frothing with blood.

[krim]

"Vis, charge up another aura sphere, and get ready to fire!" Nemir thought stepping back into the room. He hoped Diana would give in, but it was better to be safe in case she tries anything.

Edited February 28, 2015 by DragonMasterKrim

[DarkLight]

{Flux and Murdoc}

Candice let out a wide smile and took Flux's handshake. "Hey now, I think I should be saying this to you! I did happen to get all of you inside the city safe and sound, right? I'm more than just a pretty face~" she winked. "Now get going and meet me at the entrance!"

As Flux and Ogre crossed the battlefield and into the healing room, Candice's smile was slowly faded. She walked briskly back to the nearby bleachers and put on her winter coat, letting out a heavy sigh as soon as she was zipped up. The Ice leader then lifted her right foot, then her left, and then her right again, and slowly made her way to the entrance. One could see Candice pause and glance at every corner, every nook, and every inch of this gym after each step; her tears were threatening to seep out of her light-brown eyes as Candice took (what probably would be) one last look at her beloved gym. "If they only knew what would happen after this..." she whispered to herself as she placed herself by the glass doors. As the usually peppy woman waited for Flux, Miki and the rest of Team Dusk to arrive, she unclipped Lassie's Pokeball and petted it gently.

--------------

"I guess we better get going," Jon told Sarcus and Alina as he watched Candice slowly made her way to the doors.

Without another word, Alina nodded and began making her way through the acolytes to rejoin Candice. Jon also began walking after her, stopping after a few steps to wait for Sarcus to catch up.

On the other side of the bleachers, Lupus and Lobo sighed with relief as the battle ceased. They, too, began making their way over to join Alina and Candice.

-------------

Miki was finally able to reach the healing room and wrestle Raito back into his capsule in order to heal his wounds. After the healing machine completed its process, Raito immediately jumped back out from his Luxury Ball and gave a satisfied yip before running out, only to bump into Flux' legs in his haste.

The Japanese girl grinned and made way for Flux to use the elaborate machine. "Umm... Thanks for the help out there. I guess we really did it!" She said lamely, attempting to make a conversation. As she looked around her nervously, Miki spotted an upset Candice by the entrance. She gestured towards the gym leader with a nod of her head. "Do you think Candice is okay? She wasn't like this before when we beat her..."

((Everyone, besides the naive acolytes, could see Candice's expression. You may ask what's wrong if you want~ This is also a chance for everyone here to regroup before we head outside and see Drake's body ))

[Flux]

Flux glanced back over his shoulder, following Miki's gaze.

"Hmm. She seemed like her usual upbeat self when I talked to her just a moment ago... Give me a minute to heal Ogre and then we can see what's up."

Worried thoughts ran through Flux's head as he placed the Heavy Ball in the machine. Was Candice hiding something from them? Could it possibly have something to do with the end of their conversation? He grabbed Ogre's ball out of the machine as it finished, giving Miki a nod as he walked back towards Candice.

"Hey, is something wrong? You don't seem like the same Candice I just spoke with a moment ago..."

[DarkLight]

{Flux and Murdoc}

"Hmm? Oh n-no, it's nothing really!" Candice replied to Flux, forcing a weak smile through her tears. "Just w-wanted to say how proud I was of my Pokemon!"

"Umm.. No offense, Candice, but it didn't look like that at all." Alina finally spoke up. "You looked upset more than anything..."

"Hey, no need to point it out. If she doesn't want to talk about it, then leave her be." Lupus replied to his teammate. His Houndoom gave a snort of approval and made a funny face, attempting to make Candice laugh.

Miki had followed wordlessly behind Flux, remaining silent all the while. She didn't want to say something at first, afraid that she could upset the kind gym leader even further. "Ms. Candice, i-if you want to talk about it, you can... We wouldn't mind helping you after what you have done for us..."

------------------

Outside of the gym, the citizens of Snowpoint were hovering around the fallen Dusk member by the conclave. Some were eyeing the nearby Crobat warily, others were whispering and pointing to the body. Suddenly, a loud, commanding voice could be heard above the din.

"MOVE IT! The offering is this Saturday, not today!"

Several onlookers quickly moved to make a path for the patrol squad to view Drake's lifeless body. A taller acolyte, presumably the leader, stepped forward to assess the situation. She stopped just short of where the blood stained the pure white snow, wrinkling her nose in disgust as the smell of decaying tissue reached her nostrils. The acolyte was already furious about the rebels escaping her back in the mountains, and she comes back to deal with this. This was just not her day... She jammed her steel-tipped boot into the man's body, hoping to release some stress, when a flying purple blob then knocked her back a few feet.

"W-WHO DID THAT!?" she screamed angrily as she attempted to catch her breath. Her eyes then fell upon an equally annoyed-looking Crobat. "Ohhh~ So he was your trainer." The bossy acolyte finally looked up at the conclave. "I see... So the rebels are finally making their move, no wonder our Mother killed him then. Well, it's not like our Mother could be taken down that easily. " she scoffed at the feeble attempt up above their heads. The woman then invited her patrol group to come closer with a wave of her hand. "Let's clean this up; Mother Diana would love to examine this body. And we even have a Crobat as a cherry on top." She grinned at the Crobat, who was preparing to counterattack...

[Tacos]

{Conclave}

Diana was far too insane to negotiate with. "Oh that would be so lovely! I could be dissected and examined! They could pick my brain and discover the reasoning as to why I am soooooo genius!" She held her hands to her cheeks and began shaking her head back and forth out of excitement. "You can have the girl, I don't care anymore. I can't dissect her if I die!" She released her face and grabbed her two pokeballs, absorbing Left Shark and Hypno. She threw her arms out, her body suddenly shaped like a crucifix. "I'm ready baby Drop me like a rock!"

[Felicity]

Adam nodded, Lockhart complied, Diane flew.