Pokémon Academy Chapter 4: Abduction

[Sutoratosu]

((Screw it, I don't think we're gonna get many people coming back, so...))

Mareek hadn't bothered going into the Stadium after yesterday. Or anywhere even in the remote vicinity of it, actually, not even to the stalls or the grounds; doing so would only bring attention he didn't want nor need, that much he was sure of. He hadn't gotten much sleep last night... or any for that matter. And it showed on his face as he leaned back against the rather short oak he had settled under. Hell, he hadn't even seen shade; the entire time he had been in his room, door locked, pacing back and forth, thinking, he just couldn't stop thinking. It was like... there was almost something he had been missing, something he had failed to notice. And Nemo had joined him- If mareek wasn't going to get any sleep, he was going to make damn sure the little killer suffered from it right alongside him.

The feeling had passed quickly though. Soon he was right back to where he had started. Right back to blaming himself. And eventually even that had passed. And he was just walking around for nothing at all. He could've sworn he had heard the pokedex say...something at multiple times throughout the early morning hours though... but Nemo and Erce, neither of them could apparently hear it. The Cripple though; the Riolu, she seemed to notice something, to hear what he had heard. It was the first time Mareek had ever seen her actually pay attention or interact with something over than stare at his face.

"Forward." He muttered, rehearsing the phantasmal voice's message over and over. Nemo still had no idea what he was going on about, keeping his tiny, blood shot eyes fixed on the jumbo screen far off in the distance and it's fabulous display of lights and sound... not that any of that cheerfulness could lift his own spirits. besides himself, the fighting type they had rescued was the only other one with Mareek from as far as he could tell, there was only two capsules on the boy's belt... and the young jackal was curled in a ball in his lap, asleep as usual...

"There can be no road but the road leading forward from disaster...forward is the only way through the fire. Sideways is impossible... backwards is unthinkable... only forward. Forward is the only option there is left. Forward is the only safe direction. Forward is the only direction." Nemo looked up at his train- his warden as the boy carried on, almost seeming as in some trance. If he didn't know any better, he might've thought sleep deprivation combined with the stress of recent happenings, had compounded to drive the boy to lose a bit of his grip on reality... "Forward... I know... know what I heard. Know what they kept whispering...even if none of you except her could've heard it, I know..."

[TurboAura]

Once again Robert could be found just sitting in the stands with his parents and waiting to watch the battles, Nikki on his lap. He strongly hoped that the battles would help him get his mind off things.

[Aurorix]

"Well don't get too exited, because person those people will be cheering for will be Slade Kafkin, after that I'll be able to change things for the better and protect the people and things close to me." Slade said looking up with a hopeful smile on his face as he clenched his fist. He then looked back down at Jacob, "Until then, you keep things warm up there for me. As for me, I'm going to get a drink before the big show, probably a slushy. Well I best get going, good luck out there." The boy said before walking out of the room Flare by his side. For some reason, even in the cold of the winter, he was craving a slushy.

[Jory]

{Jacob}

The Trainer looked at the clock. It's time, he thought to himself. He looked to his Pokemon and nodded, no words needed to convey his unspoken message: We will win. Then, he quickly returned all of them to their Balls and clipped each capsule onto his belt. He took a deep breath and stood up, beginning to walk down the tunnel toward the Arena.

[Chevaleresse]

After gathering his thoughts, Kage stood from where he had been sitting and moved toward the arena. I'd better make this count. Gotta represent the Breeder Program, after everything. Leave the rest for later. He released Lucas about halfway through the tunnel, and the Psychic-type followed behind him on foot, as opposed to his usual perch on Kage's shoulder. Gonna take a while to get used to that. He took up his position on the battlefield, waiting for the signal to begin.

[Aurorix]

After acquiring his drink, Slade headed towards the arena not wanting to miss the battle. Not to his surprise, all the seats were taken before he got there, so he would have to stand and watch the battle. Seeing as there was nothing much he could do about it, Slade began to lean on a guard rail holding his slushy in his right hand as Flare was sitting next to him on his left. He waited for the battle to start seeing as the two are making their way to the field.

[Jory]

{The Arena- Anticipated Match! The Finals Begin!}

The speakers blared as Marco began his commentary of the finals. "Now, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls! Both contestants have taken the field! Now, introducing our guest referee for the match, it's the Winter Cup Champion from two years ago. You know him and you love him, ladies and gentlemen, I give you Bart Jenkins!"

A very dark-skinned teenager of fairly average build who looked about seventeen years old walked out of a tunnel in the middle of the Arena. He stepped onto the referee's platform and waved to the crowd, a bright smile on his face. The camera did a close up of the photogenic young man and his face was plastered on the jumbotron, apparently much to the delight of the screaming girls in the audience. He cleared his throat and spoke, his voice projected on the speakers thanks to a small mic clipped to the collar of his Hawaiian shirt. "Alright guys," he said, looking from Jacob to Kage. "Your match is going to be a Singles Battle involving all three of your Pokemon. You each are allowed one switch. When all three of your Pokemon have fainted, the Trainer with Pokemon still standing will be declared the winner. Guys, I want a clean battle. Bring honor to the Winter Cup. But most of all, have fun," he said amiably. He procured a coin from his pocket and showed it to the combatants. "Heads means Jacob goes first. Tails is Kage."

The young man flipped the coin. The sunlight glinted off it as it sailed through the air, coming back down to land in Bart's hand. "Heads. The first move goes to Jacob." He then smiled. "Release your Pokemon. Then, Jacob, whenever you're ready to begin, you may."

{Jacob}

The teen smiled and looked up at the audience, his eyes full of wonder as he took everything in. In fact, he was so busy doing that that he was caught completely off guard when Bart finished speaking. "Oh... Uh..." He quickly thought and regained his footing, reaching down to his belt. "Alright. You haven't let me down yet today. I know we can do it!" He unlatched a Ball from his belt and threw it into the air. It exploded in a swirling pinwheel of sand, which Teo popped out of. He landed on his feet and gave a gurgling battlecry, challenging Kage and his Pokemon. "Let's see what you've got, roomie!" Jacob said excitedly. This is it! The Winter Cup!

[Sutoratosu]

Nemo...

And so the fireworks really were going to begin. Jacob and Kage... those two that Nemo had heard so much of lately; well, before he went insane and killed his own mentor, that is. So they were the ones who made it to the finals, they were the ones who were going to duke it out to the end. It was strange... there was this bitter taste in the back of his throat. If something, anything, had just gone differently over the last twenty-four hours, it might've been them up on that screen right now.

How had this happened? The one thing he still couldn't comprehend- how he had done it, how he had just suddenly lost control when he had never had an issue with it before? And even more so, why did it happen? It had something to do with evolution, that little he had managed to gleen... but that still didn't explain why he had suddenly just...snapped and killed him. It still didn't explain why the duck he was both good friends and nemesis with was gone now.

"I have no idea what to do with you, ya know?" The voice caught by surprise as he eyes wheeled away from the jumbotron. Mareek wasn't looking at him, eyes still fixed to the screen, but it had to have been him speaking. "Honestly... none at all... Part of me keeps shouting some type of justice should be deal here, something keeps shouting that you should be forgiven, another thing tells me I should just recall you, shatter the trigger on your capsule, and toss you away here and now; just wash my hands of the whole situation."

Nemo scrambled backwards, only to stop. Why was he trying to run? He had no right to run, what he had done was wrong, and Mareek... he had every right to dish out some form of punishment, didn't he? Still though... the last alternative, that final solution, he couldn't help but feel a wave of something he hadn't in a long while creep over him at the mere thought...

"But then there's something different entirely, louder than all of them put together..." Mareek finally turned his gaze onto the little killer."Something that keeps saying to handle this... like Java would've. To not sit here and cry over what's done, but to start doing damage control, start thinking of a way to put things back together and keep moving. That's all it keeps saying, doesn't tell me I have to either forgive you or condemn you...at least not right now." He trailed off, recalling the Riolu as he rose to his feet. His eyes still stayed fixed on Nemo as he towered over him.

"I have no idea what the hell to do with you... and so that's the voice I'm going to listen to. It's what Java would've wanted, I know it is, for me to try to fix things instead of trying to get revenge or crying over things. He would've wanted me to keep working towards our goal, even with him gone. Just because he isn't here anymore, doesn't mean everything we worked for died too. And so... that's what I'm going to do." Nemo honestly didn't know what to think about the proclamation. On one hand, it meant he wouldn't be damned to being stuck within a tiny prison for the rest of eternity with no hopes of seeing the sun again... but on the other, how would he go on from here? Knowing what he had done? Either way though... he saw something in Mareek's eyes. Something he hadn't seen in a while, but was glad to see it alive again. The thing that had made him want to follow him in the first place... that same thing that made him want to keep following him, even now...

"Mistakes were made, things were done that shouldn't have been..." Mareek continued. "It doesn't matter whose fault it is anymore, because in the end; we all contributed to this mess, you, me, and him... and we all suffered from it, obviously one of us far more than the other two. All that matters now is that we learn from it. That we don't forget the reason why we fight because of this, the reason why Java was willing to fight, the reason he died. If we remember, both of us... if we never let ourselves forget, then all of this will have had some actual meaning. I don't know for certain whether or not you meant to do what you did out there... I probably never will. Maybe you really didn't mean it; maybe you'll find redemption for it someday. Or maybe you did... but 'll give you the benefit of the doubt...unless you prove you don't deserve it"

The Boy started off towards the main building on campus, hood pulled over his face as the cold of winter blew right by them. Nemo stood there for a few moments. So this was how it was going to be? He wasn't being forgiven, but he also wasn't being punished. He was just gonna be stuck in limbo... neither innocent or guilty apparently...

"Come on. I never healed you after yesterday, did I?" without a single noise, the small dinosaur nodded his head, chasing after his master on stubby legs. He had no idea what the future would be like... but he was thankful that he was going to get the chance to prove he didn't mean to do it, to make up for everything... to Atone. That much, was certain...

((I'm like 90% certain the medical wing is apart of the main building on campus, so...let me know if I'm wrong or something))

[Chevaleresse]

"Alright, bud, we've got this in the bag. One more push and we take this whole thing home." Lucas walked forward calmly, a determined look on the Kirlia's face. Kage looked up to reply to Jacob. He had forgotten his sunglasses once again, so his off-kilter gaze was likely visible to the other Trainer - though whether anyone else could see it was a different question. "Well, if everything goes according to plan, neither of us will be seeing much of anything." Kage chuckled at his own joke. "I'm gonna be mad if you don't bring your best shot to this, though. Let's do this."

[Jory]

{Jacob}

The young man nodded, then pumped his fist back and smiled. "Let's give 'em one hell of a show! Teo, let's get things started! Antlion Den, go!" With the first command of the battle issued, Teo promptly jumped up and tipped his mouth down, diving into the earth beneath the arena. Suddenly, the ground beneath Lucas turned to sand and began to slope harshly down toward the center of the circular area, with Lucas standing near the perimeter. Oddly enough, it seemed to have no effect on the Kirlia.

{Inside the Arena}

"What an... exemplary... play?" Marco said into the mic, his voice rising in question at the end. "Now that Jacob's done nothing, it seems as though Kage will have a chance to strike for free." The crowd murmured anxiously, wondering why the highly anticipated final round was turning out to be so dull.

{Just outside Uno's Laboratory}

Uno grinned as he exited his lab and walked into the corridor. He immediately turned right and stopped at the sliding metal door next to his. Unlike his colleagues, this lab's occupant had no qualms about marking his territory. Never one for subtlety, were you, Craig? the professor thought to himself as he admired the workmanship on the plaque that read: Professor Craig Juniper in embossed script. Uno removed a device from his lab coat pocket and fiddled with it for a moment before placing it firmly on the door. It was a small metal disc that shone under the hallway's fluorescent lights, bare save for three digits in the center. "Start," Uno commanded. A bright red, blinking 1:00 became 0:59.

The professor turned around, moving only a few steps before a familiar voice rang out behind him. "Professor Uno?" Albert asked. "Start what?"

[Chevaleresse]

That's. . . weird. I don't like this. "Lucas, Calm Mind and stay alert. I don't know what he's trying to accomplish, here." The Kirlia did as he was told; there was no outward effect, but internally he was gathering his energy, building up his mental fortitude and preparing to strike at the first opportunity. What's he doing? Trying to psych me out or something?

[Jory]

((Check the OOC for instructions. BGM optional but advised:))

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRgXGigPKuc

{Outside Uno's Lab}

The timer hit zero. "Just a bit too late, Albert," the Professor said with mock sadness. The door instantaneously disappeared in a flash of red light that was oddly similar to that of a Poke Ball, leaving the way to Redwood's lab completely unobstructed. Uno attempted to rush in through the vacant doorway before his student could catch up. As he turned, there was a flash of white. Suddenly, the Professor's belt buckle shot backward, preventing him from moving through the threshold of the doorway. Albert stood with a Poke Ball in hand, a Probopass floating next to him.

"Great work, Herschel. Now maybe the good Professor wants to tell us why he's breaking into Redwood's lab?" Albert asked harshly, betrayal evident in his voice. "What's going on here?"

Uno laughed, shaking his head. "You always were too smart for your own good. I have no time or need to explain myself to a snot-nosed little brat like you. Simply rest assured that everything I'm doing is for the greater good." He reached to his belt and pulled off a Ball that Albert had never seen before. Unlike most Poke Balls, it was a solid color scheme. However, the entire Ball was a mottled silver. "So you understand that it's nothing personal, you see. I'm simply going to remove you from my path." He clicked the button in the center of the Ball and a Beheeyem appeared in a flash of white light.

Albert only nodded, then pumped his fist. "Herschel, Flash Cannon!" The Probopass fired off a huge white beam, creating a large explosion in the middle of the hallway. As the dust cleared, a shining blue barrier showed around the Beheeyem and his Trainer. Dammit, he's good, the student thought to himself. But I just have to hold him off until help gets here!

"Subject 51, stop playing games." The Beheeyem dropped the shield and charged a large, glowing orange ball of energy, pitching it viciously toward the Probopass.

{The Arena- Finally, some action!}

Just as Jacob was about to reveal his Trapinch's attack, a loud crackling noise could be heard over the speakers. Murmurs came from the audience as the battlers looked around, confused by the equipment malfunction. Suddenly and without warning, the screens around the Arena began to display static. People in the crowd began to look to one another, bewildered at the low quality of the tournament being held. Out of the gray, black, and white fuzziness on the screen, a logo began to coalesce. It was a simple design; a silver metallic pyramid with a simple eye embossed in the material. A voice came over the speaker, apparently addressing the audience.

"Well, isn't this fascinating?" the voice asked. It didn't sound malicious, oddly enough. It sounded like a young man. "A tournament? Held for what purpose, I wonder?" The voice went silent. "Ah, I see. I'm terribly sorry to interrupt, but this is, well... This is rather embarrassing. You know those Pokemon you hold so dearly?"

The audience looked nervously at their Pokemon, wondering what was coming next. Luckily, the voice answered for them. "I'm afraid I need them more than you do."

That was when all hell broke loose. An explosion rocked the campus, seemingly coming from the academic building. The audience members began to panic, rushing in a wave toward the emergency exits in an overwhelming tide of flesh. It would be some time before anyone inside the Arena could even hope to get out through the main exits. Perhaps Waiting Room B had an additional exit?

{Jacob, Kage, & Bart Jenkins- Arena, Main Field: Hostiles inbound!}

Meanwhile, on the main field, Jacob was shocked to see what appeared to be four thick cables drop down from seemingly out of nowhere. He was even more shocked when he began to see two men and women in some really freakin' cool outfits dropping down each of them. He turned to Kage, thinking quickly. "Forget the Finals!" the young Trainer said, wincing as the words left his mouth. There'll be other tournaments. Right now we need to get to safety. "We need to get out of here! Let's head to Waiting Room A!" He took two Balls off his belt, tossing them into the air. Arete and Spitfyre appeared. Seeming to grasp the situation, they prepared for battle. Jacob heard footsteps behind him and turned, ready to fight. However, what he saw delighted him.

Bart Jenkins stood in the middle of the field, looking from one combatant to the other. "Don't just stand there!" he shouted at Kage. "Get your Pokemon ready to battle!" With that said, he reached to his own belt and grabbed three Poke Balls. He threw them into the air, releasing half of his team in one motion. An Infernape leapt into a combat stance mere feet from his master's side. "Alright! Luffy! We've got this on lock. Help protect the first-years!"

By the time the first two students finished preparing, the squadron had finished dropping out of the sky. They appeared to be wearing charcoal combat pants and black combat boots with charcoal zip-up jackets on top. Strangely enough, they were also wearing white metal pauldrons. Through small gaps in the armor one could see a system of pulleys and cables housed within them. To complete their otherworldly ensemble, the people wore white gloves and flared white helmets with shiny purple visors over the eyes. The visors looked like the had some form of HUD upon closer inspection. It was very clear that whoever these people were, they had an abundance of absolutely kickass technology at their fingertips. Two thugs approached Jacob and Kage, while four rushed Bart.

"There's one! Set for stun!" one of the four shouted. They each threw a Poke Ball, in total containing a Klang, two Magnetons, and a Porygon. Luffy the Infernape rushed to intercept them, his fists aflame as he charged into the fray.

Two more charged at Jacob, releasing an Elgyem, a Magneton, and a Lairon.

The final pair ran at Kage, throwing out a Metang, a Voltorb, and an Elgyem.

{Waiting Room A- Phoebe}

The Water-type Trainer grinned smugly as her Blastoise's Hydro Pump attack sent the strangely-dressed mob that had assaulted the room packing. However, she could hear them calling for reinforcements. Shit. This can't be good. She quickly picked up her walkie-talkie, which was squawking like a murder of Murkrow after a midsummer picnic. Through all the commotion she could make out Tyron's voice reporting in about driving off attackers at Waiting Room B. From what she could gather, the whole campus was under attack by these crazy people. They'd come from the forest and from the sky, managing to incapacitate a good portion of the school's in-house security force thanks to the element of surprise and their sheer numbers. The Ymora National Guard was on their way, but it would be at least another twenty-five minutes or so before the first troops would be able to chopper in.

In other words, the Ymora Academy was on its own.

[Felicity]

Claude, Alvin, Lana & Kristen

Many of the students in the crowd began heading straight to Waiting Room B as soon as they realised the main exit was not an option, including a rather fantabulous coordinator, an obsessive Bug type lover, a shy young woman and firecracker of a trainer.

[TurboAura]

Just as most ofhers the sudden event shook Robert with fear and confusion. Before he even took the time to understand he and his family were running right out with Nikki shaking within Robert's grip. Though the confusion he had lost sight of his parents, and along with that the main entrance seemed completely overrun. His choices were either try here and be a sitting Ducklett, or try a different route.

He quickly released Kiai, who looked around at the utter fear and confusion, as well as the Goomy's fearful and Robert's worried expressions. "Kiai, listen. We need to find another exit, okay? I need you to be ready for anything." Robert said trying to get the kind of situation to him. Kiai simply nodded in understanding, the three of them heading out, the first place to check being the Waiting Rooms and heading straight to B.

[Azeria]

Micheal let out a cry when he saw the strange people drop into the stadium interupting the battle and trying to attack everyone in the darn stadium. "The hell did these idiots come from?"He said before turning to James who had already started moving out of the area they were seated in, thankfully it wasnt completely overun by the invaders but he could spot one or two coming their way with Klangs and Metangs floating beside them. "Hey James, go on ahead. I'll catch up with you later." As Micheal said this, his Reuniclus's eyes briefly flashed pink before the thugs were thrown back along with their pokemon.

The ebony haired trainer took his time walking down the stairs trying to head for the main exit but to his dissapointment when he peeked at it from around a corner it was surrounded by the strange people. Seeing this, James knew that trying to rush through would be like running to his own death and decided to go to one of the waiting rooms to see if anyone was there.

[Aurorix]

As the entire stadium roared with confusion and panic, rushing to try and find a way out Slade noticed a couple of his classmates heading to waiting room B. Slade looked at his buddy, Flare, next to him who looked around growling and the running people passing by. "Hey Flare, I'm all up for panicking and rushing to the exit, but it seems a better way has opened up for us." He said pointing down to waiting room B. "I think that'll be the fastest and easiest way to get out figure out what the hell is happening here. Though you're a little too big to be wading through this crowd so I'm gonna have to put you back in your pokeball." The fire dog nodded as Slade put him back and then took out Sasuke's ball and released him. If there are people invading, his smokescreen and double team will be very useful in this situation. With that, the two headed off to Room B to meet up with the others.

[Chevaleresse]

Kage released the rest of his team as quickly as possible with the exception of Virtes; the little Dragon-type was fiery, but not strong enough to battle in this sort of situation. If it came to it, he'd physically defend his team. Before he could follow up on Jacob's advice, his path was cut off by a number of rival Pokemon. Damn. "You ready for this?" he asked his team.

He quickly assessed his matchup, and figured out that he was in some deep trouble. He couldn't easily KO the opposition without doing the same to his own team. He'd have to take out their threats individually. "Alright, al'Thor, use Light Screen and stick to Reina as closely as possible. Reina, I need you to give that Elgyem a nasty Bite." Kage briefly considered the stone he had in his pocket before giving his Kirlia the next order. No, it would hurt more than it would help. "Lucas, why don't we give that Voltorb a little Confusion?"

The Psychic-type was the first to act, though all of his team acted nearly in unison. Telekinetic waves bombarded the Voltorb as the Tyrunt leapt toward the Elgyem, with al'Thor as close to her as the Steel-type could manage without impeding her motion.

[Sutoratosu]

Mareek was standing just outside the doors of the medical center along with a reinvigorated Cubone just as the chaos began in the stadium. He stayed there for a moment, frozen in disbeleif as the static and message ended on the massive overhead screen in the distance... well, no, not disbelief exactly. It wasn't that he had thought something like this was impossible; not with recent events that had made it obvious that some form of terrorism could and would eventually visit the school. He was simply shocked by the fact that it had happened so... so damn soon.

"Does... does this have something to do with the whole situation with Evan?" He reached one hand into his jacket, gripping Erce's capsule firm. "No... this has to, it's the only logical explanation... did...did we trigger this then? When we told Professor Cadmus... were we being watched?" He pushed the thought away, not even wanting to complicate the idea that one of the last things Java had encouraged him to do, one of his best friend's last acts in this life, had now brought serious repercussions.

The boy looked to the small ground type at his side, and, to his surprise noticed Nemo was looking up at him... and noticed there was no fear in the orphan's eyes. Only a strange type of eagerness. Eagerness to redeem himself, to fight to further the goal their fallen friend had worked towards. That, and a massive amount of gratitude to Arceus above that an excellent chance to get started had just fallen into his lap. His look was one full of expectancy. it was almost as if he was trying to ask his master why they weren't already running over to try to do something.

"It's almost the exact issue me and him talked about..." Mareek said. "They could be far stronger than us. We could be no match at our current level... are you sure you want to just go charging in, Nemo?"

Nemo's sole response was that of light blue construct erecting from the palm of his mits, one end held firm like a sword and the over hovering close to the boy's face. He still held his earlier gaze. He didn't care that whoever the badguys here were might be stronger; though he was by no means proud of the act, of the raw betrayal committed just yesterday, he had still managed to kill an individual whom, by the standards of his current ability level, should have been a godly match up to him, an insurmountable wall of opposition. And he had done it while weakened to the point of barely being conscious at that. Maybe it was easy to accomplish such a thing when one stabs their friend in the back, when one is trusted, has the element of ultimate surprise... but right now, nemo did not care. He had faced tough challenges before, He wasn't scared, so why the hell was his trainer?

"He really has changed..." "Alright then... we have to do something, afterall. And it beats hiding like a couple of cowards." And so it was that without another word, Master and soldier began heading off in the direction of the stadium, neither knowing what exactly they could do to help, but both resolved that doing nothing would be unacceptable.

[Jory]

{Outside Uno's Lab- Confrontation!}

Albert grimaced and wiped the sweat from his forehead as his Probopass took another Thunderbolt attack and crashed to the ground in front of him, its Steel body making a loud noise as it ground to a halt. Professor Uno laughed cruelly, pointing to his Beheeyem. "I told you, Albert. Subject 51 is not to be trifled with. I don't see how you could have possibly thought to defeat me in battle when you're still only a student. I'm more than twice your age and have far more than that in battling experience. So tell me, oh pupil of mine, tell me why I'm wasting my time on you."

The student didn't reply, only set his jaw in determination and pulled another Ball off of his belt. "We're not done yet, Professor. I know you've stolen the Master Ball technology from the way you dematerialized that door. A localized molecluar displacement on an object of that mass and composition would take an immense amount of energy, though. How did you get around that problem?" he asked, the scientist in him getting the better of his mouth as he released his next Pokemon. A Magmar appeared and blew a gout of flame into the air, signaling his readiness to battle.

"Energy, my dear boy, is something I have in ample supply. But I wouldn't be as concerned with the specifics as I would be with the health of your precious Magmar. Subject 51, Thunderbolt!"

"Iggy, Flamethrower!"

A blinding yellow lightning chain arced through the air and met a roaring gout of flame, resulting in yet another loud explosion that shook rubble loose from the ceiling.

{Arena Corridors- All NPC students, Claude, Robert, James, and Slade}

As the students made their way out of the student seating section, they found themselves a part of a sizable group making their way toward Waiting Room B. By the time they'd descended from the second floor to the first, all members of the present party had arrived. As they made their way through the lobby toward the tunnel to Waiting Room B, they saw one of the strangely dressed grunts get sent flying through the double doors leading to their destination. An angry, "AND DON'T COME BACK UNTIL YOU DITCH THAT LAME ARMOR!" erupted from the very same doorway. The grunt raised his head off the ground and began protesting that it was in fact totally awesome armor only to have a boulder fly across the room and knock him unconscious.

From out of the dimly lit tunnel walked none other than Tyron, who cracked a smile upon seeing the students. His Golem stood next to him, warily eyeing the windows and single other doorway. "Hey, not bad guys! I was afraid that with the PA system out of commission, people wouldn't know to come down here. But you told them all to help facilitate the evacuation, right?" he asked. However, one look at Lana's guilt-ridden face gave the group away. "Okay, so maybe not ideal, but it was a tough situation to deal with. In fact, it's probably even better considering I'm the only one down here." His face took on a more serious appearance. "These guys have Phoebe pinned in Waiting Room A. The people on the field- Jacob, Kage, and Bart- should be able to get to her and help her out. But we've got bigger problems.

"These guys were good. They used the element of surprise to disable most of our security. But I'll bet they didn't count on the students being able to resist. I don't see why they wouldn't since this is a battling academy, but small groups of students have had success holding key buildings against them. The upperclassmen are the only reason we haven't been overrun yet. Unfortunately, the Ymora National Guard won't be here for another half hour. And at this rate, we won't even last that long." He looked deep in thought for a moment. "The explosions started at the Academic Building. I'd bet anything that's where we need to be right now. But I can't do it alone. There's too many of these grunts." He looked at the students, his eyes begging them to agree to his next proposition. "I need your help. All of you. If we even want to have a chance of the Academy surviving this, everyone needs to do their part." He walked over to the door to Waiting Room B. "There's a tunnel leading outside just through this room. My Cradily is keeping those creeps away from the exit. If you're willing to help, meet me at the entrance to the tunnel. If not, stay here. You'll be safer that way." With that, he disappeared through the door, presumably to wait in the tunnel.

{Arena Center- Jacob, Kage, & Bart}

Jacob jumped into action, taking charge of the situation as the weirdly dressed pair rushed him with their Pokemon. "Teo, now!" he ordered. "Arete, use Sunny Day! Spitfyre, you know what to do! Cook 'em!" In one well-orchestrated move, the battle began to unfold. Teo leapt out from under the ground at the Lairon, taking it by surprise on its exposed underside with a powerful Dig attack. As it came crashing down, the traps Teo had laid during the finals began to take effect. The Lairon became stuck in the sand, the already-weakened Pokmon struggling helplessly as it was mired in the grainy substance. The Elgyem suffered a similar fate, but was able to pull itself out after taking minimal damage. However, the Magneton managed to avoid damage by hovering. Meanwhile, Arete rose her stubby arms to the sky and began to hum. One could swear that the sun's intensity became greater, and the flame on Spitfyre's tail reacted in kind. The Charmeleon inhaled and released an Incinerate attack that swept across the field, catching the Magneton, Elgyem, and Lairon as they entered the fray. The Lairon fainted, having taken a serious beating from the combination attack.

It was time for the counter-attack from the creepazoids' Pokemon. The Elgyem put its hands together. The lights on them glowed as a yellow orb charged in its hands, then fired a Shock Wave toward Arete. It hit its mark, eliciting a cry of pain from the Fairy-type. Meanwhile, the Magneton was preparing a Magnet Bomb to fire at Arete. Jacob was prepared this time, though. As the gray projectiles flew toward his Togetic, Jacob gave the order. "Arete, evade!" The Togetic flitted off with surprising speed, moving toward the Magneton with the Steel-type attack in hot pursuit. Arete pulled up at the last moment and the Magnet Bomb backfired, striking its user head-on.

A series of sharp impacts could be heard from Bart's section of the field as Kage's battle raged on. The Bite attack from Reina landed cleanly, knocking out the frail little Psychic type in one hit. However, the Metang's Trainer was none too happy about his Elgyem fainting. "You've left that little ballerina open! Metal Claw!" he shouted, aiming directly for the exposed Kirlia. The metal construct flew through the air as Lucas attempted to use Confusion. It swung its glowing arm viciously, intending to end the match quickly. However, it was thrown drastically off-course when a Vacuum Wave came from the side, knocking it off its planned path and into the ground. The Metang rose, clearly annoyed by its attack being foiled.

"Hey, kid!" Bart shouted, looking about as pissed off as the Metang his Infernape had just saved Lucas from. "Pay attention to typing! That Metang'll rip your team apart if you don't take care of it first!" In the meanwhile, the Voltorb fired off a Sonicboom at al'Thor, hoping to cause damage regardless of the Light Screen. Immediately after it was lifted off the ground and thrown across the Arena by the Confusion attack, buying Kage time to recover from his mistake.

{Winter Cup Fairgrounds- Mareek}

As Mareek made his way past the Haunted House, he heard the unmistakable sound of a terrified scream and a Pokemon Battle raging inside. Did he want to investigate, or continue onward toward the Arena?

[Sutoratosu]

Both him and Nemo stood there for a moment, comptimplating what they had just heard. The bone wielding Reptile again looked to his master, but his master was occupied only with the darkness stretching beyond the doorway in the distance. He could see that their path had already been decided upon though.

"Forget the stadiums for now," Mareek said. A bright flash of white announcing Erce's release. "They've got the professors there, I'm sure they can handle whatever's going down. And that's not even accounting for the possible number of veteran trainers in the audience who will probably be taking action too." That was right, wasn't it? Afterall, his mother had decided to give him some time to himself and go watch the finals; how many other experienced trainer like her were probably present there as well. The winter cup was a major event...

"Nemo, we're going in. Keep Bone Rush active to light our way." He turned to the giant mantis beside him. A single look between them was all it took for her to know something was going down, something big and bad... "Erce, you stay in the shadows, use your stealth to cover us encase we run into someone. We've got no idea where exactly the scream came from, and things are probably designed to echo alot in there to add to the horror effect." Without a sound, his strongest partner nodded and then lurched forward towards the darkened doorway, blurring and then vanishing completely as if she were a phantom.

"Are you ready, Nemo?" The ground type nodded, holding up his construct and hoping it would be bright enough. Mareek didn't waste another minute, stepping through the door of the attraction, Nemo was right at his side as they tried to hone in on where the ruckus was...

[Jory]

{The Haunted House}

Mareek found himself inside the Haunted House. The screaming and battling appeared to be coming from the floor above him. Oddly enough, once he was closer, it seemed as though the girl's screaming was actually laughter. What the hell was going on in here?

[Sutoratosu]

Well, that can't be good... "Nemo, you see any stairs around here...?" Mareek looked around for the first time since noticing the crying was actually laughter... The Cubone, and his only source of actual light, was nowhere to be seen... How the hell did I manage to lose the equivalent of a walking glow sitck in he-

"Cube!" There was his answer. Not too far off to the left was Nemo, still holding up his Bone Rush as he jumped and down trying to attract Mareek's attention. He finally calmed down and tapped the steps of the staircase once the boy turned.

"Well," The trainer said as he walked over. "You seem to have a knack for finding your way to staircases..." Nemo just starred at him. He had no clue what he was going on about, but that wasn't important right now, and he made sure to gesture up the staircase once again just to make it clear. "Yeah, yeah, we're heading up. Erce, you with us still?" A single buzz of wings was the only answer he got. It sounded close... very close. "Alright... let's go."

The two headed up the stairs without anything else to say. And all the while, Mareek was just imagining what type of scene they might happen across when they finally found the crazy chick and the fighting. Well, at least, it definitely sounded like the laughter of a crazy chick, at least to him...

[TurboAura]

'Everyone needs to do their part'. Of all things, that was the one thing that made Robert want to follow the most. He looked to his Pokemon that were already out, Kiai nodding in agreement and, while a bit shaky, Nikki doing the same. "Okay... It's agreed then." He mutters to them and smiles, keeping a hand ready near his belt just in case he needed to bring the other two in. He follows to the entrance of the tunnel, hoping he can do his part well enough.

Edited July 8, 2015 by TurboAura

[Chevaleresse]

Damn. That was too close. "al'Thor, Pursuit on that creep's Metang! Reina, give it a nasty Bite if it sticks around!" This is bad. Who the hell are these people? "Lucas, intercept that Sonic Boom with Magical Leaf!" Again, Lucas was actually the first to act, scattering the glowing projectiles in a sort of shield between al'Thor and the Voltorb. Reina and al'Thor lunged in tandem, with the Metang just flying over the Tyrunt's head as the Steel-type swung at the opposition.

[Aurorix]

Having all this happen made Slade feel like he was in an action movie. Explosions, a massive amount of attacking enemies, and everyone needed in order to prevail. To be honest with himself, he was scared. Scared that if he continues onward that worse things may happen, but if he stands there or worse runs away things'll never get better. After all the experiences he's had in his life he knows that for sure. It's time he stood up for himself, face things head on and not keep things bottled up inside. This is one, and maybe only chance to prove this to himself and others and there is no way he's gonna turn away from his. Slade looked down at Sasuke who stood besides him, arms crossed and bubble scarf flowing in the wind. Almost as Sasuke knew what Slade was thinking he lifted his right hand up and gave him a reassuring thumbs up saying he's raring to go. Slade grew a confident smirk on his face after seeing the frog's attempt to bring confidence to him. He looked forward towards the tunnel, adjusted his fedora and spoke, "Let's get this train wreck a-rollin', time to save the school." With that the two entered the tunnel in pursuit of the culprits behind this.