(ELITE) The SNOWPOINT Team

Things seemed rather depressing here, everyone almost looked on edge and hardly seemed to notice the new Houndoom, even though a Houndoom wasn’t what he really was. "Ah... when I said we were having a bad time of it, I wasn't lying. But enough of that-- past relations and politics have nothing to do with you." Kide turned to look at the feline as it spoke. Though he would have liked to know why everyone was in such a bad state, he decided to leave it, had nothing to do with him.
"It‘s fine." Kide said as he looked around again, at all the new faces and such.
"I am Sylus, dear boy, and while I haven't been a part of this group for long, I do have a long-standing relationship with the leader, Dante. He was the large fellow with the bones. The others I'm sure would be more than happy to supply their names. But enough of that-- who are you, eh? And..." The cats eyes glinted a little, a mischief lighting them gleefully. "...why hide yourself? It's so deceitful to mask yourself when you first meet an entirely new group of pokemon. In this day and age... honesty is a dear, priceless luxury."
Kide couldn’t help but have a somewhat surprised look on his face.
How did he!?
Found out so soon? Guess his transformation wasn’t as perfect as he thought if this cat was able to figure it out rather easily, though maybe it was his scent? Maybe, he really didn‘t smell all to like a fire type after all, should have chosen a better pokemon to mask as. "I‘m Kide." He started, eyeing the feline from ear to tail. “And I have my reasons for hiding myself. But don’t worry, I’ll show my true face soon enough.” He said, a slightly mischievous smile streaking across his houndoom muzzle before it soon faded.
"Oh, but don't worry-- I won't tell." Sylus added, placing his paw to his mouth in a way of saying your secret is safe or something. Kide just nodded in response.

The Zorua perked his ears when the bony guy, Dante, came back with others. "All right, folks... This is what's happening," he started, Kide turning to face his newfound leader he supposed, that’s if he would ever be accepted into the group. Perhaps he should disband his illusion. The cat had a point, why hide when your meeting an entirely new group of pokemon. He would show them his true face later, seemed the large hound had something important to say.
"We're separating into two search groups. Group A will be Wisps, Really-New-Guy, Sylus and Alice as the lead. You'll be searching the neighbouring warehouses for any supplies you can find. Rations, medicine, clean water, whatever. Medicine is top priority for Strix, but we're low on everything else and everyone needs them to recoup. Anything useful will need to be brought back. The rest of you-- Fluffy, Growlithe, Sneasel and I will be going further out into the city. Raiden's staying here, to keep an eye on Strix. Listen for his howl-- he'll do so when he needs help. Any questions?"
Kide figured he was really-new-guy, though seeing as only Sylus knew his name at said time, made sense. He hadn’t been here for very long and already he was being placed in a group to find supplies, which meant going back out into the cold. Maybe now would be a good time to show his real face, after all, if there trusting him with something important the least he could do was tell the truth of what he was.

Kide was about to break his illusion when a very fluffy something ran up to him. “You smell funny!” It announced gleefully. “Not like fire at all. My twin brother is an Arcanine so I know the smell reeeealllly well. You smell like…. Mastema.” Kide raised a brow at this, how was this pokemons twin an Arcanine. Unless this was some new form of Growlithe he doubted the two where really related, unless they shared different mothers but even then.
He let out a sigh. “I don’t know who Mastema is, but I’m Kide, and, I’m not really a Houndoom.” He stated, puffing out his chest as he released his illusion, revealing the small and furry form of a Zorua. “That’s why I smell funny.” He said with a smile to the thing with the winged tails. “Sorry for, hiding myself, I just wanted to know if you could be trusted. I hope you can forgive him.” He said, his attention now to the group leader, Dante. Would he forgive him? Or would he be angry with him for hiding his true face?
Wouldn’t blaim him if he kicked me out back into the cold.
He though to himself, a slightly nervous look in his cyan eyes.

She looked to her feet, trying to get the memories out of her head. No.... She can't worry about that anymore.... Looking to Strix, she tried to pep herself further. She had to defend the living, not the ones who lived before.

"We're separating into two search groups. Group A will be Wisps, Really-New-Guy, Sylus and Alice as the lead. You'll be searching the neighboring warehouses for any supplies you can find. Rations, medicine, clean water, whatever. Medicine is top priority for Strix, but we're low on everything else and everyone needs them to recoup. Anything useful will need to be brought back. The rest of you-- Fluffy, Growlithe, Sneasel and I will be going further out into the city. Raiden's staying here, to keep an eye on Strix. Listen for his howl-- he'll do so when he needs help. Any questions?"

Her eyes widened at the realization that she could help someone. Smiling to herself, she looked up at Dante, who just addressed her. Silently nodding, she stood up. It looked like she was with her two newest acquaintences.

“Uh...yeah. Just to give the heads up, the Mart is overrun...a lot of uh...Sneasel clans… I’ve been here for awhile...the settlements are full of them- I couldn’t get in when I tried for food- almost got killed in the process.”

Well, that's not an option now. Arianna released a soft sigh, hopelessness beginning to seep into her again. But it almost seemed to lighten again as Adara chirped happily.

"Just one! Am I Fluffy? Because that was completely my nickname my whole life!”

It gave her enough happiness to shrug off the sadness. Her paws came off the ground in a hop, and she looked at Rune. "It's alright, I bet there's more places than just the Poke-Mart." she said in a cheerful but quiet tone.

________________________________________________________

"Of course... Dante. ... ...T- Take care of them Dante. I always did look up to you the most and... a-and I am sorry."

Catalyst's throat constricted again, his attention going back to the Espeon. This was way... too much.... He looked to the duo, and saw a white Espeon turn away from Dante. No... I must be hallucinating.... As he blinked, she turned back to violet. God, I must be crazy.... She seemed to stop, taking a glance at him. As her eyes met his, he had to turn away. Tears rolled down his face, dampening his black fur. His mothers image burned into his vision, even under his eyelids.

A trail of red seeped to his paws, and a wet slop was heard as a body was slammed to the ground. He held in a noise of surprise as he felt blood splatter on his face. He barely managed to look up, fear making him tense. Alpha stood, above a light-pink heap in the center of the red. The Eevee's heart stopped for what seemed like hours.

Why.... Why didn't he stop him.... He was the only one who could have stopped him.... Why was he so weak.... He was the guilty one.... Now she's dead.... Dead.... Shizu.... Mom....
Mom....

"This is what sentiment does! It is for the weak! And weakness must be purged! ... You worthless cunt, trying to save your pathetic son. You lowly female. Finally, you got what you deserved. Mothered my children and that's all you're good for." He turned, facing the others in the pack. His face was brutally scarred.
"Anyone else?! Anyone else dare defy ME?!"
The Eevee's ears pressed against his head. It burned... all of him burned.... Dryly, he opened his mouth, his jaw hung. His mother's lifeless eyes stared at him... as if to say-

"Good bye."

His legs buckled. Air floated around him abundantly, though it couldn't find it's way to his lungs. For long minutes he held his breath, trying to fight it off. Be a man.... Be a man.... You're a strong man.... He didn't express his extreme distraught on his face, only by the rivers dripping off of his muzzle. The sorrowful song from outside started, assailing his ears. Looking down at his paws, he saw the surprisingly large tear puddles.

Softly, she sang, her rose fur warm against his ashen pelt. He still remembered his fathers words that day.... But they seemed to hurt less because of her voice.... Her songs would end and her reassurance would come.
"It's ok, Rei.... It'll get better, honey. It's not your fault.... You're  good boy."
But it wasn't enough to mend.... It wasn't enough to fix his wounds.... He would push back, tell her no about a million times with tears in his eyes.
"No.... No it's not.... I'm not a good boy...."
"... Fine."

It echoed in his head.... ... Why wasn't he nicer.... Why wasn't he nicer to her.... Can't take it back, now....

Catalyst felt his breath seep out, even if his lungs ached from oxygen deprivation. Finally, there was the screeching of undead, and it was silent.
The silence was frightening....
... Alone....
... Blank....
Nothing.


"We're separating into two search groups. Group A will be Wisps, Really-New-Guy, Sylus and Alice as the lead. You'll be searching the neighboring warehouses for any supplies you can find. Rations, medicine, clean water, whatever. Medicine is top priority for Strix, but we're low on everything else and everyone needs them to recoup. Anything useful will need to be brought back. The rest of you-- Fluffy, Growlithe, Sneasel and I will be going further out into the city. Raiden's staying here, to keep an eye on Strix. Listen for his howl-- he'll do so when he needs help. Any questions?"

"Alrighty. We'll do our best. You three ready to head out?"

His blue eyes seemed to barely move from where they locked onto. After a long moment, Catalyst simply stood up. He figured the other two would group around them. All he had to do was... try to pay attention.

-----

(OoC: Sil let me post before her, so thank you, Sil! <3 Although, I am sorry this took so long. Shit came up and actually gave me good motivation for this post. lol. (After it got deleted once, gfdi.) But yeah, thanks Sil~ By the way, italics are memories. lol
(P.S.; Sorry, his dad can be a biiit misogynist. ^^;)

Skip please.

    “Am I Fluffy? Because that was completely my nickname my whole life!” Alice cracked a smile at the Aiveon's question, the flying-type's joyous energy beginning to rub off on the lioness. It was nice having someone so cheerful around, that was for sure. “You smell funny!” the fox seemed to now be preoccupied with the newcomer, one of the members of her group. Curious about the eeveelution's comment, she took a few tentative steps closer, mouth open to catch the Houndoom's scent. “Not like fire at all. My twin brother is an Arcanine so I know the smell reeeealllly well. You smell like….Mastema.”
    Despite not knowing what a Mastema was and wondering how in the world the...butt-winged cloud thing had an Arcanine of all Pokemon as her twin brother, Adara was right about the canine's scent. Not a trace of ash or smoke, or even a whiff of charred wood. For a fire-type, he didn't smell fire-y at all. In fact, he smelled a little...dark. It reminded her faintly of a fog-bound night, with dark woods and a full moon overhead. “I don’t know who Mastema is, but I’m Kide, and, I’m not really a Houndoom.” When the illusionist dispelled his disguise, the Luxray's fur immediately shot up, staring at the Zorua in a mixture of surprise and fear as she still vividly recalled the Zoroark they had encountered. She stumbled to suppress her hiss, not wanting to be rude to the newcomer but anxiety still reflected in her eyes. “That’s why I smell funny. Sorry for, hiding myself, I just wanted to know if you could be trusted. I hope you can forgive him.”
    Fair enough. She thought, slowly calming her nerves down before giving Dante a tentative glance. She stumbled back towards the entrance, looking to Catalyst and Sylus before peeking at the white landscape outside. Bringing her attention back to the Zorua, she mumbled, "We should probably start searching...we don't have all day, after all."

Adara smiled as the telltale shimmer of Illusion faded away, the Houndoom melting to reveal a sleek-coated Zorua standing before her instead. He offered his apologies as her smile widened broadly, the small cloud creature practically buzzing with excitement. "You are like Mastema! He was my brother's boyfriend, then they got in a fight and we didn't see him for a while, then we ran into him yesterday and I knew it was him because I remembered his scent but that's why you smell like him! He's a Zoroark and you're a smaller version of one! Oh how exciting!" The Aiveon was spinning in circles after her long slur of words, mostly uttered in a rush using barely more than one breath to complete, utterly happy to see another species she recognized that brought such happy memories. "I should probably run over to the boss man Dante now, but I wanna talk to you some more later okay Kide? Don't get dead!" Adara turned in a whirl before taking off to follow Dante, pausing by Strix's prone form to offer a gentle paw on his leg in reassurance, and easily caught up to him and the other two females.

"Sooooo...." she drawled out as she slowed to a trot at the fire hound's side, voice getting more serious as the time for fun was obviously over. "Where should we start? Have you explored much of the city yet?" The tiny fox was eager to get underway, not really willing to leave the large guy they left behind to suffer any more than he already had. "The sooner we fix Mr. Strix the sooner I can find the lake and my brother again. He's probably looking for me again..." Her voice trailed off as her thoughts turned to the last time she saw her brother. Snatched from her perch upon his head by those awful birds, his cry of fear as she was taken higher and further away from his warmth and affection, falling... the tiny female shuddered as she remembered her imminent death. But then suddenly she was flying, just like those birds. Adara still didn't quite know how she did that but it had gotten her here safely so she wasn't going to question it. Reaching up with one paw she went to stroke her Everston earring for comfort but paused when she swatted empty air.

"Hey! Where's my earring? Pappa's earring! My Everstone! I can't become an Espeon I can't! And heaven forbid an Umbreon! Oh no...this is terrible! I don't want to be one of them..." She sniffled sadly and ceased following her little group, mortified at the thought of continuing would pit her in a battle that would drive from her forever the chance to become a Flareon. Fire...like her brother. She had always wanted that. Now without her earring she was at risk of never seeing that dream come true.

((In case it isn't obvious, lol, Adara has nooooo idea she evolved. She is very smart but misses the obvious quite often XD))

(( Please skip, unable to post right now. ))

“Uh...yeah. Just to give the heads up, the Mart is overrun...a lot of uh...Sneasel clans…” the sneasel warned, nervous of her own words. Dante's gaze went to her, listening intently. “I’ve been here for awhile...the settlements are full of them- I couldn’t get in when I tried for food- almost got killed in the process.”

“Just one!” Fluffy cried out much too happily. “Am I Fluffy? Because that was completely my nickname my whole life!”

I can see why... "All right," was his swift reply, "you can show us the route to avoid, Sneasel. Daylight's wasting. And yeah, that's you. I suck at names." Seeing Alice already take lead of her own small group assured him to get a move on, as they didn't have much time to enjoy the scenery. Without waiting for any other words or wasting his own air, he turned toward the door in a surprisingly energetic trot. "Let's get the fuck out of here."

Gently headbutting the weary doors apart, Dante took his first steps back into the snow and paused. Hera had just gone this way, not an hour ago. But already, the world had erased her very existence. No footprints, no scent... nothing. She was already a ghost, a forgotten thought dissipated into the white blanket that had consumed everything else around them. Taking in a deep breath, the crisp air brought some solace to his frayed, frantic mind. Now was not the time to mourn her. He had important shit to tend to, people to protect. He couldn't let another failure distract him.

A flurry of pawfalls caused him to turn, anticipating some sort of attack when he saw the winged fluff thing barreling full speed toward him, the sight only procuring a sigh. "Sooooo...." she began, her voice trailing as her speed fell, falling in line with him. He began walking once everyone was present, eager to get what they needed back to Strix. "Where should we start? Have you explored much of the city yet?" 

"...Not yet. What I have seen was in the middle of a blizzard. I don't remember much," was his soft, worn reply, his eyes focused on the path ahead. "The sooner we fix Mr. Strix the sooner I can find the lake and my brother again. He's probably looking for me again..." Fluffy continued, her voice droning on meaninglessly in his head. His pace increased to a determined trot once more. The city wasn't far at all, and so he quickened his pace to match his pacing mind. The orange light would only last so long. He needed to get there before dark... needed to...

crunch

A strange sturdiness beneath his foot, like a weird icy rock beneath the cushion of snow. Pausing, his heart began to pound as his eyes fell to his paws and found red. 

Oh, Legends... no...

He glanced back, seeing the gap he'd made between him and the others, a noticeable distance. Fluffy was screaming about some lost earring and not wanting to evolve into an espeon or some shit, but it didn't matter to him. She'd figure out that she wasn't an eevee soon enough; at least, she wasn't any eevee he'd ever seen. But the distance between him and the others was long enough to inspect and truly bury whatever was beneath him. However, the awful, nauseating knot in his empty gut was enough to tell him what he thought he was standing on. "Stay back," he called casually, hoping to hide the fear and anxiety that was creeping up from his gut and into his throat. 

A gentle few sweeps of his paw was enough to uncover the thing under trod to reveal his worst fear. Stained purple fur, already stiff with ice, her innards had already frozen solid, creating a macabre crimson ice pool keeping her legs and middle solidly stable. Her mouth was frozen in a silent scream, eternalizing the horrible pain she must have felt, right until the very end. 

Dante stared down hard at her corpse, the ugly product of her stupid choice frozen forever beneath him. He knew that this would have been the only possible outcome, that there was no way she could have made it on her own. But seeing it, seeing her iced corpse already under inches of snow was another knife to his chest. His eyes fell as his paws began covering her back up, the lengthening shadows a gentle yet urgent reminder that he didn't have the luxury of mourning still. She would have no marker, no way of identifying her final resting place among the other thousands of fallen blanketed by the white oblivion. 

Clearing his throat, once she was properly covered, he trotted away from it, walked toward the city once more. He stopped a few yards further, collecting himself and his strength to continue. He was so exhausted and weak from the day's struggles, but there was no way he could quit now. Too much rested on his shoulders. "Sneasel, come here," he called as quietly as he could. eyes fixated on the almost hidden city ruins. Once he knew the little weasel pokemon was beside him, he muttered, "So how do you suggest doing this quietly, quickly and in a way where we can all make it out in one piece?"


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

Sylus was a little put out when not only was Dante leaving right when the little zorua revealed himself as a sham Houndoom, but no one else seemed to mind. Well, that just wouldn't do. People cooperating and turning blind eyes to deceit? Preposterous. But he was clever enough to know that this wasn't a good time to truly stir anything up; he hadn't even expected the little zorua to be so forthcoming. 

"We should probably start searching...we don't have all day, after all," Alice spoke after the entire reveal, earning Sylus' attention from the now empty doorway. Well, he had at least when they came back for Dante's reaction.

"I would say that we only have a few more hours of daylight before the night comes. And with it, much colder temperatures. Haste would be the most likely asset," he offered, keeping his tone civil.


[[Feel free to look at Hera's corpse as well, just make sure it's after Dante leaves it.]]

“Am I Fluffy? Because that was completely my nickname my whole life!”  The cloud vulpine chirped, her cheery demeanor earning a painful eyeroll from the Sneasel.
"All right,  you can show us the route to avoid, Sneasel. Daylight's wasting. And yeah, that's you. I suck at names." The hound muttered, his hard gaze on her. Rune blinked, her brows falling and mouth curling into a frown as she cocked her head. But before she could correct him, he trotted towards the door with his tail high. "Let's get the fuck out of here."

"Great. A leader that doesn't like names. That's promising." She growled with a heavy sigh, trudging after him. The hound had stopped at the door, giving pause to the white world before them. The chilling air shot past, ruffling her fur and wrapping the dark weasel in its' embrace. Small puffs of steam rose from her open mouth as she followed, glancing cautiously over the terrain. The vulpine bounded forward through the glistening snow, her cheery voice carrying over the quiet forest.
 "Sooooo...Where should we start? Have you explored much of the city yet?"  Rune cringed, but followed in lithe and expert bounds only one of her kind could do. "...Not yet. What I have seen was in the middle of a blizzard. I don't remember much," was the hounds' curt reply, his voice softer than before, strained and heavy with regret. "The sooner we fix Mr. Strix the sooner I can find the lake and my brother again. He's probably looking for me again..."

Rune bounded next to the fluffy thing, listening absently as she carried on. The Sneasels' eyes and thoughts were on the canine ahead, who had picked up his pace. "Honestly, I just want to get back as soon as we can...I can't say I would really enjoy getting eaten." She said between breaths, carefully avoiding the subject of family. "Though I wouldn't mind getting a bite to ea-"

"Hey! Where's my earring? Pappa's earring! My Everstone! I can't become an Espeon I can't! And heaven forbid an Umbreon! Oh no...this is terrible! I don't want to be one of them..."  The Sneasel slid to a halt, confusion on her face. "Earring?...wait-hold on, what's that supposed to ruttin' mean?" She growled, spreading her claws in confrontational annoyance. "What's wrong with Umbreons?...you don't like Dark types?" Rune scoffed, her sapphire eyes narrowing and lips curling into a sneer. "Don't know if you noticed, Fluffy, but you're in the company of a few Dark types..."

 "Stay back," Dante called, interrupting the small weasels' indignant suspicions. Rune tore her gaze from the Eeveelution, her brow furrowing as she watched the canine in the distance. "What's wrong...?" She replied softly, uncaring if he heard her. Her sharp gaze flickered to the tree line, scanning the evergreens' tops as her body lowered into the snow. But as no attack or any other sound came, Rune straightened. "Sneasel, come here."

Obliging the canine, Rune bounded ahead. But as her claws swept over the white earth, her sharp gaze caught a bright stain of red, partially covered ahead of her. She slowed her pace, her heart skipping in her chest as she paused on the edge of the mysterious stain. Dread crept into her throat as she stared at it, her eyes large and ears low.
...Why would he cover...whatever this was...? Her large claw hovered over the disturbed snow, but quickly recoiled. The Sneasel gulped hard before running to the canine, leaving the red patch behind, untouched.

"So how do you suggest doing this quietly, quickly and in a way where we can all make it out in one piece?" He muttered as she padded closer to him, stopping at his side. Runes' ears perked in surprise, her eyes flickering on him before following his gaze. Before them lay the small, quiet city. The fading light threw long shadows, like long claws reaching over the abandoned human settlement. Her heart jumped into her chest as she looked at the city below, biting her lip as her eyes flickered over to a large rooftop in the north-eastern corner. "U-uh...well, we should..." She croaked, her voice cracking in a growing unease. "W-we should run as close to the sunset as we can. If we stick to the treeline and avoid the city altogether, we should...be okay..." She trailed off, her claws clicking together anxiously. "...The only place we might find something is near...the docks...?" She muttered, a grimace growing on her tiny maw as she threw a look up at the canine. "Trust me, the entire town went...Reaver...you don't want to suss out anything you don't need to...not unless you got a death wish."

(don't know what to post for strix atm, cuz he's falling in and out of consciousness. ^^; Other ideas and stuff in discussion too)

    Alice managed to offer a short, polite smile as she watched the Aiveon enthuse about Mastema. Despite how grateful the Luxray was for a more upbeat Pokemon joining their ragtag group, she had not been prepared for someone so...talkative. She suppressed a sigh of relief when the flying-type went to follow Dante's group to the city, ears twitching from her shrill voice as she waited by the door, watching the others begin their journey down to Snowpoint.
    "I would say that we only have a few more hours of daylight before the night comes. And with it, much colder temperatures. Haste would be the most likely asset," the lioness nodded her agreement, taking a tentative step back into the outdoors. The snow crunched under her paws, a single, bitter breeze batting at her whiskers as she trotted forward. She eyed the other warehouses surrounding theirs.
    "We'll start with that one," she motioned with her paw to a building several ways away eastward from their location. "From there, we can work our way back west through the other warehouses. It'll be a single round trip, but if we do find anything worthwhile that we can't haul back on our own, we'll leave it then come back for it after everything's done, 'kay?" the electric-type had already started to walk towards their first destination, flicking her tail for them to follow. "C'mon, let's go!"
    She never liked the way her paws sank into the vast white when she walked. Her feet would always dig a few claw-lengths deep into the snow, and sometimes she would be taken by surprise by hidden pits or concaves in the earth. Despite how pure the shining fields looked like, she was aware of the secrets that it hid beneath. The thought that she was perhaps walking on someone's carcass was enough to make her feel unease, and what if an undead sprouted out? Her muscles were much too weary for another battle.
    When she finally arrived at the warehouse's entrance, she cautiously sniffed around the door, eyes sharp as she analyzed the contents of the building from the outside. After deeming it was safe, she shouldered the door open, causing the frost around it to crackle and break. "Alright," she tugged a smaller crate in front of the door to keep it still. "Time to look for some supplies."

[OOC: sorry this is so late!]

"What's wrong with Umbreons?...you don't like Dark types?" Rune scoffed, her sapphire eyes narrowing and lips curling into a sneer. "Don't know if you noticed, Fluffy, but you're in the company of a few Dark types..."

Adara could have laughed if she wasn't so scared. "NO! I love dark types! Heck my brother's lover is a Zoroark and he is one of my best friends in the world. But have you seen and Umbreon's EARS? I mean who really wants to walk around with black turnips bouncing off of their head? Its weird!" At Dante's bark of warning the flying type hushed, ears flattening to her head as she looked to the fire hound ahead and felt a little miffed when he called for the Sneasel's help but not her as well. She could be useful too, ya know.

Creeping closer she listened in on the discussion and frowned, not really seeing where the point was of going back to the treeline. "If you really want to head towards the woods I can tell you right now there is nothing there. I came from that way chased by a crap ton of birds and everything there is frozen over. If there were any buildings there then they are about ten feet under stiff powder." Looking around Adara noticed a central building that might hold what they were looking for. "If you want supplies you have to get where the humans would have hoarded them. I grew up near a village who always used to stockpile during crisis and in a place this remote, without easy access to food or escape then I can guarantee they grabbed what they could and stashed it somewhere. We just have to sniff it out."

Smiling warmly to the Sneasel Adara lay down beside her and nodded her head towards a nearby tree. "I bet you could climb something that big in a flash, right? Could probably see pretty far from up there. If you can see that big black building over there and tell me if it looks like they may have tried to barricade it I ca bet you that's where we will find food and any meds left in the town. Waddya say?"

((For reference, when Adara is actually in the zone, like the second half of this post, her voice gets deeper into a normal pitch and she actually sounds serious, if even a little sultry. Its one of her best tricks.
I also need to figure out when Strix is gonna yell at Raiden lol. Need to work it out with Ana so I can get plot moving for him leading to my future dual))[/color][/color]

Kide let out a sigh. Other then the strange eeveelutions enthusiasm when she said he was like this Mastema, only, smaller. Most of what the she had said he didn't really catch as she said it rather quickly so he didn't have much time to put them all into words before she ran off to join her group as they left.
He opened his mouth as if to say something, but nothing came out before he closed it again. Guess I should go to my group? He thought, kind of glad that no one seemed upset that he had pretended to be something else. Houndoom probably wasn't the best choice as well, as he lacked any fire type scent.
I should have gone with a Purrlion, least then they probably wouldn't have found out so soon.

"I would say that we only have a few more hours of daylight before the night comes. And with it, much colder temperatures. Haste would be the most likely asset," the persion said, his tone civil.
Kide couldn't help but let out another sigh. "Back into the cold it seems." He said as he ran after them as they left the warmth of warehouse behind and stepped back into the cold. He was grateful for the thick fur around his neck and on his head, and thankfully his fur didn't make him too cold, but he still shivered a little.
"We'll start with that one.  From there, we can work our way back west through the other warehouses. It'll be a single round trip, but if we do find anything worthwhile that we can't haul back on our own, we'll leave it then come back for it after everything's done, 'kay?" The Luxray said, pointing to one of the buildings that where a little ways from where they were, already making her way towards it. "C'mon, let's go!"

Kide found himself more, hopping through the snow then walking, his little body sinking into the snow with almost every step he took, his dark fur having white spots here and there from the white snow that gathered on it.
I hate the snow.
He complained, more to himself then anyone in particular. He was relieved when they finally made it to the first house, Alice making sure it was safe before opening the door and entering, putting something in the doors path to keep it open.
As soon as Kide was inside he shook himself, sending white snow in all directions before trotting farther inside and looking around. He had to find food and medicine, and other stuff. Being with humans since he was an egg he knew what to look for. He raised his nose to the air and began to sniff the air for anything that smelt like food, or healing supplies.

(( Sorry for any spelling or grammar errors. And for the lateness. ))

Voices cracked the walls of his mind's barriers as he walked behind Alice mindlessly. He did not want to think. The large canine floated in the limbo of his own mind.

"I would say that we only have a few more hours of daylight before the night comes. And with it, much colder temperatures. Haste would be the most likely asset."

"We'll start with that one. From there, we can work our way back west through the other warehouses. It'll be a single round trip, but if we do find anything worthwhile that we can't haul back on our own, we'll leave it then come back for it after everything's done, 'kay? C'mon, let's go!"

Catalyst barely nodded his head in response. He cursed himself inwardly at his lack of acknowledgement to what was going on around him. So self-consumed.... A small, chipper voice that he had heard not so long ago bounced in his ears.
"Good luck everyone!" For a moment he paused, and reconsidered this. This was no time to be dwelling on the past.... He need to be in the now. All I can do is to not do it again. All I can do is get better. he tried to numb himself with these words as he moved along, picking his head up. Of course, he never truly felt the impact of the seemingly meaningless statements. But nevertheless, he did what he always did and put the thoughts to rest. The frigid snow touched his paws and a shiver instantly went up his body. Arceus it was cold. He steeled himself and ran out into the snow behind Alice. The sun was casting orange onto the pale land, and it made it seem at least a bit warmer. Catalyst checked up on the others behind him as he walked next to Alice, the Luxray just slightly smaller than him. He saw the snow to his right fade into red, and he sucked in a breath. No. No, it was just, uh, cheriberry juice. Yes. His body ached with fear, trying to tell himself false things to quell his fears. The next warehouse stood plainly in the distance ahead. He watched the lion walk up to the warehouse and look it it. He had to admit... something about her attracted him. Maybe it was the fact they shared some sort of pain.... Maybe he saw it when he looked at her.

"Alright. Time to look for some supplies."

Catalyst nodded at her, waiting for everyone else to begin moving again before walking inside. Padding inside quietly, he looked around in the dark. Even if he had no reason to be afraid of the dark... it still scared him to no end. His vision blurred as he tried to probe any deeper than 5 feet away in the dimly-lit room. Sniffing around, he tried to pick up the scent of anything useful... but found nothing.

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

Arianna bounced cheerfully behind Rune as she made her way towards Dante. At least she would be in the group that her newest friends were in! ... Friends.... She paused a moment, feeling herself well with some odd sensation. The canine didn't know whether to be cheerful or not; the word 'friend' didn't usually mean 'friendly' or 'nice' to her. She shoved it from her head. All of her friends from before weren't really her friends, anyway. No, she would reteach herself what the word meant. She smiled at everyone, and listened to the others.

"All right,  you can show us the route to avoid, Sneasel. Daylight's wasting. And yeah, that's you. I suck at names. Let's get the fuck out of here."

"Great. A leader that doesn't like names. That's promising."

Arianna snickered quietly before turning to look at the others she wasn't going with. Her eye settled on Catalyst, who seemed to be zombified. That was no good.... Smiling, she called out to everyone as she walked out the door with the others.
"Good luck everyone!" she hopped out the door, then bounding outside behind the others.

"Sooooo...Where should we start? Have you explored much of the city yet?"

"...Not yet. What I have seen was in the middle of a blizzard. I don't remember much."

"The sooner we fix Mr. Strix the sooner I can find the lake and my brother again."

The quiet chatter soothed Arianna a bit more than she realized it would. It was good being in a mildly situation. She liked this Adara girl; she wasn't super serious. She didn't dwell on more emotionally disturbing topics, and Arianna respected that. It seemed as though she couldn't stop thinking about things.... Even things that didn't concern her. She blocked out any other things the group was saying in order to isolate within herself to think. Not about anything, but just about things in general. The snow was nice. She had always liked snow.

"Stay back,"

Arianna immediately snapped back from her thoughts, looking around cautiously, then at Dante. He walked forward, covering something with snow. Arianna can only imagine what it was he wanted to hide.... Somehow, she knew it was a body. she slowly trudged away from it, going towards the other two who were ahead of her.

"U-uh...well, we should..." W-we should run as close to the sunset as we can. If we stick to the treeline and avoid the city altogether, we should...be okay... ...The only place we might find something is near...the docks...? Trust me, the entire town went...Reaver...you don't want to suss out anything you don't need to...not unless you got a death wish."

Arianna gulped, not knowing what that word meant but it was obviously making Rune frightened. Keeping close, she still managed to pick up bits of conversation. She wasn't much interested in where they were going as long as they were safe. To be honest, she wasn't familiar with this part of the city. Her family used to spend their days up in the mountains near the town, not here in the urban places. She kept up her brisk pace as they made their way.

-----
(OoC: Wow I am not even going to acknowledge Arianna's post as a post. Thatwaskindashittywow. But sorry I had dropped out like that, guys. I'm back now, though. This was a catching up post. lol.)

Dante stared down at the little black weasel beside him, his mind trying to remain focused on the task at hand to keep the fatigue at bay. "U-uh...well, we should..." she began, the uneasiness in her voice making Dante's tired scowl deepen slightly. "W-we should run as close to the sunset as we can. If we stick to the treeline and avoid the city altogether, we should...be okay..." Her voice trailed a bit, her claws clicking nervously. The hound's eyes flickered to the city for a moment; there was something in there she didn't want to come back across, that was obvious. But why hide it? Why not just say something? "...The only place we might find something is near...the docks...?" Yeah. She didn't want to go back in the city. "Trust me, the entire town went...Reaver...you don't want to suss out anything you don't need to...not unless you got a death wish."

Reaver...? But as he was about to speak, another of the party piped up before him, cutting him off. "If you really want to head towards the woods I can tell you right now there is nothing there. I came from that way chased by a crap ton of birds and everything there is frozen over. If there were any buildings there then they are about ten feet under stiff powder." Turning, Dante saw Fluff-face approach, her squeaky voice decidedly less squeaky. Thank Legends. "If you want supplies you have to get where the humans would have hoarded them. I grew up near a village who always used to stockpile during crisis and in a place this remote, without easy access to food or escape then I can guarantee they grabbed what they could and stashed it somewhere. We just have to sniff it out."

Pretty much taking the words out of his mouth, Dante merely grunted in agreement. No, there was no point in scouring the docks. Anything useful would have been buried beneath feet of hard ice at this point. They didn't have the time or manpower to even attempt that scale of a goosechase. "I bet you could climb something that big in a flash, right? Could probably see pretty far from up there. If you can see that big black building over there and tell me if it looks like they may have tried to barricade it I ca bet you that's where we will find food and any meds left in the town. Waddya say?"

Clearing his throat, his eyes still scanning the snow-blanketed city, his mind ran through dozens of different scenarios to try and gut the city's resources... or at least what remained. "Docks are no good. Too much ice and snow, and I'm not digging around near nightfall for something that might be there. We need to hit the place where there's the highest chance of success. A building fortified and boarded up-- something easier to defend." His eyes widened a bit when they lay upon a central building, one surrounded by clear white. Windows boarded, nasty-looking wires running the perimeter of what he could see. It could easily be assumed that it went around the entire building. "That one."

He looked back toward the others, assessing what they could do. Aerial would be ideal, but who knew what Infected lay dormant in the city? It was too risky. With the lack of buildings and structures around it, it would be difficult to approach the building without being spotted, especially with dark coats... His brow raised a little when Fluff-face's and Growlithe's pelts.

"All right," he began softly, turning more toward them. "We'll approach from the East, to hide in the shadows. When we get to the clearing, Fluff and Growlithe will need to go in first-- you two have the better camouflage. Sneasel, you'll follow once the other two have found a safe way in. I'll bring in the rear. We'll find what we can, and get out before nightfall. We need to be as quiet as possible. In and out. Keep your noses down to make sure we aren't going to accidentally step on an Infected. They might have gotten snowed over, but I doubt that'll stop them from trying to kill us. Any questions?"

__________________________


Sylus frowned as he stared at the shimmering snow spread out before him and his new allies. He'd been comfortably warm for quite a while now, nestled in the safe recesses of the warehouse that was now much worse for wear, and unused to such frigid winds. But as the others moved forward, their paws crunching the new snow, he found himself unable to escape his fate.

He would just have to be cold.

Making his way closer to his fellow feline, silently cursing whatever Legend deemed it best to make this particular town resemble an iceberg, he listened intently to their temporary leader.   "We'll start with that one," the lioness began, motioning her paw towards a building in the near distance.  "From there, we can work our way back west through the other warehouses. It'll be a single round trip, but if we do find anything worthwhile that we can't haul back on our own, we'll leave it then come back for it after everything's done, 'kay?" A silent agreements of nods was her answer, and she confidently made her way toward the furthest warehouse. "C'mon, let's go!"

The air around them was a void of silence, vast and almost overwhelming. The only sounds that could be heard were all from the pokemon around him, as well as his own. Snow crunching, hearts pumping, lungs heaving. Shifts of muscle and fur. A throat swallowing. Tiny, little sounds that should have been swallowed up by the quiet now seemed a cacophony. They were too loud. Something would hear. And while Sylus tended to pride himself in his fighting ability, deep down he knew he was alive at this very moment because he could hide.  "Alright," Alice's voice rang, the sudden change in volume starting him a bit. He was surprised to see the warehouse to close now-- he hadn't even been paying attention. "Time to look for some supplies."

Sylus nodded, eager to busy himself with less maddening thoughts. Turning a corner, eyeing the fallen rafters and pillars, he jumped expertly from perch to perch, reaching the second floor. Everything looked unstable, but if there was anything up there, he was one of the only ones that could reach it. Carefully placing his paws and weight on the rusted flooring, he made his way through the debris, hoping to find something to at least eat.[/color]

(im so sorry guys, i can't post. skip me. just say that rune said some sarcastic stuff once dante rolled out the plan. something along the lines of the plan being a fantastic way to suicide. shes not gonna tell them shes been in the building before.)

    The warehouse was silent, save for the rustling of bags and the shuffles of crates. No one spoke a word, not even a whisper, and Alice managed a bitter smile and chuckled. "Very talkative group I was given." she mused, nudging open a crate and sticking her head inside to reach for a few stray bags. Admittedly, she didn't like this kind of quiet--it was too empty, too cold, like the lack of sound itself was mocking her. Roughly, she plucked the canvas bags out and emptied them, only to find a few cracked Pokeballs. With a disappointed grunt, she nudged them aside, but kept the bags and threw them towards the middle of the warehouse. "Fill those up with whatever you guys can find, it'll make transportation a lot easier."
    Another crate, this one emitting a faint scent, and gently she poked the lid open, only to slam it right back down and gagging at the horrid, putrid stench. Whatever was in that crate was rotting, and had been rotting for a long time. Reluctantly, with fur on end, she shoved said box into the darkest corner, before turning back to more stacks on the other side of the room.
    "So," she was starting to grow desperate for some kind of conversation. If she were stuck with familiar faces she wouldn't have minded, but being stuck with more or less complete strangers who were as silent as a dead mime in an airlock changed the situation altogether. The air was tenser than she would've liked it, the silence stuffy and tangible and above all, it was...awkward. "How did you all end up in Snowpoint? If you don't mind me asking," she inquired, sifting through the contents of one of the larger boxes, eyes lighting up when she discovered cans on what seemed to be wet food. She sniffed it cautiously, before deducing that it was probably still edible--if they could even get it open--and began to fill one of the bags with a few of the cans.

Raiden sighed deeply, shoulders slumping forward as his body began to lower to the ground before dropping with a heavy thud. Strix had been barely conscious through most of the time the others has been gone, looking at the hound maybe once before slipping off into oblivion for the umpteenth time. The dino was all but gone and each minute the two groups were gone was precious time that Strix was losing. If they were gone too long, which they had already been gone for quite a while, they would lose the large Nidoking.

As the Manectric sat guard over the fallen behemoth his tail moved languidly back and forth across the floor, the soft scratching sound a rhythmic beat that allowed his troubled thoughts a place to wander. So much had happened since his burial of the poor female outside. The joining of three new members to the tormented pack, the near loss of another, and a the abandonment of the purple feline. Raiden realized as he mused that when the Espeon had left he hadn't so much as bat an eye. He had been so wrapped up in his own troubles he didn't realize the ones going on around him and had let her walk right out the door. He had done nothing to stop her.

Guilt began to eat away at him as the new fact dawned on him. The electric canid looked to the heavy rise and fall of the chest of his companion. The two purple ones had seemed...close, to say the least. Did the Nido even realize she was gone? Did he know as he dreamed that the one in his thoughts wasn't going to be there when he awoke? And, more importantly, should Raiden tell him?

_______________________________

Adara frowned as Dante said exactly what she said and acted like it was his idea. Rune began to mutter under her breath and the flight fox fought hard not to do the same. Fine. Let the dog act like he had the plan. Whatever. Her brow creased and her frown deepened as the fire hound continued to speak and then decided she and the untrained pup should go in first to the building she already pointed out. While she had no problem doing the scouting, the act in fact being her area of expertise, the pup might prove a danger. She was pale and had a good camoflauge, but she was pure and likely not a good fighter. Adara had been fighting most of her life and would spend more of her time protecting the Growlithe than checking the building. Not a good idea.

At the mention of questions Adara's paw shot straight up and a sarcastic smile replaced her frown. "Just one," she near hissed. "Can I go alone? I work better without a kid to worry about." Her eyes darted from Dante to Arianna and the smile got softer before she added, "No offense cutie, but I don't want you to get hurt. Any beasties about and I may not be able to save you and get the scope of the building." Looking back to Dante she raised one eye ridge as if to ask 'any objection?'.

Kide was sniffing around a lot of the crates, opening a few and wrinkling his nose at the foul smells that emitted from some of them. Either rotting food or something else. If it hadn't been awhile since he had eaten he would have probably lost his lunch from some of the smells. He couldn't help but put a paw over his nose when he passed something that smells like something did their business then decided to stay and rot.
After about what seemed like the millionth box, he finally found something. Cans, of what he guessed was food, before sniffing at them. They looked and smelled edible, but didn't all canned food last longer then boxed or proses or whatever the other humans made. Now if only he had thumbs or one of those tools humans used to open cans. He opened his jaws and picked up one of the cans and began to stack them outside the box before using his paws and nose to roll them to where the Luxray had put the bags. Placing the cans next to them. He had only found about three, but it was better then nothing, and there was still more crates to search.

"So, how did you all end up in Snowpoint? If you don't mind me asking," Alice asked, trying to make conversation he guessed.
"I don't know really." Kide started, looking through another crate that didn't reek of death. "Some sort of bright light, and before I know it I go from a nice warm town to a freezing lake front." His sentience started out nice before irritation filled his tone near the end. He was happy to have gotten off that island, but did he had to end up in one of the coldest places in the pokemon world? It would seem so. "After that I just stumbled here and found you guys." He added through a bag of pokefood. It was a small bag, probably enough of two or three, but it hadn't yet been opened so he figured it was still good. He trotted over to the center and dropped the bag. "How about you?"
Kide twitched his ears before climbing a pile of crates to get at the top. They shook but thanks to his small size and light weight, they didn't keel over, before he began to look through the top crates which he hoped would hold some medicine or better food.

Softly, his eyes scanned the boxes. An air hung about him as he summoned a ghost light, a Will-O-Wisp, to help him look in the darker areas of the warehouse. The dog’s face was stern as he scavenged, edging his nose between boxes and shoving them aside. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but anything was fine. The image of the Nidoking sat in the back of his mind, but his mind removed the blood…. No blood…. His nose caught a scent… one that was too familiar to him…. He pushed a box aside, finding a few bloody bandages. But the thing that debilitated him most was the medical smell on the bandages … the pungent smell of plastic and a powdery substance. With a shuttering heart, he shoveled the bandages onto his nose; like hell he was going to put potentially-infected blood into his mouth. It was only a few splotches, but screw that. He placed them on the ground in his own individual pile, skillfully but messily folding them. Glancing up, he saw the other team members. They were a pretty quiet bunch, huh. Not like he could help it… he was just a shy creature.

"Very talkative group I was given”

He wasn't sure if he visibly made a sign of relief. At least he wasn't the only one feeling the silence. Chuckling softly to himself, he continued to search, this time opening the boxes he was overlooking. Catalyst jumped slightly at the sudden noise of canvas slipping along the concrete floor.

"Fill those up with whatever you guys can find, it'll make transportation a lot easier."

He nodded, stopping his searching for a moment to nudge the bandages into the book bag. I don’t care if I look like an idiot, I am not taking a chance with this infection. Especially if it’s a bandage with red spots on it. Being cautious was something Catalyst took to a bit of an extreme. Quickly, he darted back to his previous actions.

"So…. How did you all end up in Snowpoint? If you don't mind me asking,"

The shadowy canine visibly jerked as he tore off the lid of a box with his teeth. After spitting the fibers of wood from his mouth, he glanced around. Like usual, before he could state anything, someone beat him to the chase.

"I don't know really. Some sort of bright light, and before I know it I go from a nice warm town to a freezing lake front. After that I just stumbled here and found you guys How about you?"

That was odd. Catalyst didn’t exactly know how to react to that, so he simply sighed. He finally started to wonder what he would say. … Surely, he wouldn’t tell them what happened…. He did not want to remember that.
”Ah…. Well, I swam here. Kind of. I got swept away in the rapids of a cold river and I just remember waking up on the ice on the lake here….” he said softly, leaving out anything before that. Never will he want to remember before that. With practiced mental force, he removed it from thought. Back to the focus at hand. With the next box he searched, he finally got fruits for his labor. Big paws dashed to grab a bag and pull it over to the box, making his laboring easier. Tipping the box on its side, he spilled out quite a variety of berries and a potion or two. His smile was proud as he brought the bag back to the middle of the warehouse after filling it with his contribution, and decided to search further. Pulling his consciousness back into himself, he decided the task of searching was calming to his psyche. At least they weren’t fighting off hoards of infected and being torn to shreds. … But they would be soon enough. I’m such a pessimist.
After he looked around and saw there were absolutely no more locked and closed crates on his corner of the warehouse, he decided to skip over to someone else’s side. Catalyst wasn’t sure if he meant to, but the large dog started to help the lioness fill the bags with the cans show found. He took a moment to reflect on how efficient he could be. He muttered to himself ”One corner down, another three corners and a loft to go.” he pranced less than cheerfully over to an unoccupied space, focused on his new job.


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


The snow under her crunched as she shifted.

"Docks are no good. Too much ice and snow, and I'm not digging around near nightfall for something that might be there. We need to hit the place where there's the highest chance of success. A building fortified and boarded up-- something easier to defend. …That one."

Arianna looked up from the patch of snow she had been looking at to carefully inspect the building Dante motioned to with his muzzle. She contemplated for a second, viewing the heavily guarded building. I’m not sure if I even want to go near there….

"All right. We'll approach from the East, to hide in the shadows. When we get to the clearing, Fluff and Growlithe will need to go in first-- you two have the better camouflage. Sneasel, you'll follow once the other two have found a safe way in. I'll bring in the rear. We'll find what we can, and get out before nightfall. We need to be as quiet as possible. In and out. Keep your noses down to make sure we aren't going to accidentally step on an Infected. They might have gotten snowed over, but I doubt that'll stop them from trying to kill us. Any questions?"

The tension between the other three could be cut with a knife. The pup may have been young and oblivious, but she could see the disagreement. Internally, she prayed they would get it together. Arianna’s stomach continued to churn. She had always been a bit of a third wheel, but this was redefining it for her. How helpless could she be? No, she would take this with grace and take it with style and strength. Straightening her posture, she nodded curtly, almost business-like, without any sort of idea that she’d look way too serious doing it. How was it that the only times she tried to be serious came up looking comical instead of the times where she wasn’t? She took half a moment to mull it over.

"Just one. Can I go alone? I work better without a kid to worry about."

Arianna’s jaw hung slack before she could speak. With her heart sinking to her paws, she babbled.
”B-But I… I-I—“ A yip escaped her and she sunk her head in frustration. The young dog was very well capable of proving herself a worthy asset to them. I’m not just a kid! I can handle it! I can show you! I’m not just a kid, I’m an adult! she frantically whispered inside of her head, No, it was the only thing a kid could do, right, sit back and watch the world burn. To frail to handle anything. Though, it was immature to let it bug her so much…. Temper tantrums were not an adult thing to do. She continued to hold back frustration as Adara looked her in the eye.

"No offense cutie, but I don't want you to get hurt. Any beasties about and I may not be able to save you and get the scope of the building."

A whistling whine escaped her throat. Swallowing the lump in her throat, her furry head bobbed in a nod.
”Ok…. I really can handle myself, though….” she whispered the last bit in futile attempt to be accepted. It just would not do, though. Taking a glance up at Rune, her mind eased up. Maybe she could go with Rune and scope things out, right? That was a positive…. For the umpteenth time that day, she steeled up and boosted the positives. Gotta stay positive, gotta stay positive…. Think of the delightful and not the spiteful. she thought sing-songily, her light fur feeling cooler with relief already.

-----
(OoC: The fucking coding made this take a half hour longer than it needed to be. Fuck you too, color codes.)

On cue, Fluffy-thing's paw shot up in the air, nearly getting a groan out of the bone-armored canine. Of course the little cloud-covered pixie thing would have one. Instead of waiting for some permission to speak, she went ahead and began rambling,  "Just one," she began, her voice nearly a hiss.  "Can I go alone? I work better without a kid to worry about." Dante's brow shot up in exhausted surprise. That... really wasn't what he was expecting. ”B-But I… I-I—“ the pup stammered a little in a lower whisper, her voice strained with desperation.

Fluff turned to the white pup and put on a sweeter face, but he wasn't too sure whether or not it was genuine at this point. "No offense cutie, but I don't want you to get hurt. Any beasties about and I may not be able to save you and get the scope of the building." The pup looked about to argue more, but deflated. ”Ok…. I really can handle myself, though….”

Dante sighed, thinking the plan over with fuzzy lenses, the stress and hardships of the day wearing on him. He couldn't seem to think straight, but he still didn't like the idea of her going in alone. He shook his head, looking to her, the pup and Sneasel. No. "No one's going alone." His eyes rested on the sneasel, and he nodded to her. "You'll go with Queen Fluff. Walk beneath her or ride on her stomach. Either way, you're getting a partner in this, Fluff. Pup, you'll stay with me. I hope that's all the questions, because we're losing too much light to keep bickering over semantics. Go."


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


Delicate paws landed with silent ease upon the rotting wooden crates, weight expertly distributed to prevent creaking or breaking. Bright eyes illuminated the darkness as the persian cautiously pressed onward, searching for the little glints of reflected light that betrayed his prizes. As he slithered through the shadows, a small tinkling caught his eye, causing him to pause. The wood beneath his groaned in protest, but Sylus knew it could hold a little more. Carefully, deftly, he extended his reach, claws slowly curling outward to aid him--

CRACK!

A startled yowl escaped his throat as he flailed in panic, the wood splintering and shattering beneath his feet. He crashed to the metal grating floor, thankfully still on the second floor. Groaning, he glanced down to see that the luxray that had been leading them had somehow thought it a grand idea to just start banging bits around. Brilliant. "So," the lioness started, her voice leading him to believe that this was going to be a long, fruitless conversation. "How did you all end up in Snowpoint? If you don't mind me asking,"

Really? he groaned inwardly, unable to suppress a scoff as he shook himself free of rotting debris. Down in unexplored, hostile territory and she wants story time? And this was the pokemon that damned hound trusted with leading another group? Perhaps the old boy's finally trying to actually kill me.

"I don't know really." Sylus froze a moment to see the zorua speaking, trying to tally whether he was surprised or expectant of the small fox to go along with the lioness' strategy for suicide. "Some sort of bright light, and before I know it I go from a nice warm town to a freezing lake front. After that I just stumbled here and found you guys." Sylus shook his head, baffled why they seemed to think that spilling their guts in dialogue was a bright idea away from safe grounds. "How about you?"

”Ah…. Well, I swam here. Kind of. I got swept away in the rapids of a cold river and I just remember waking up on the ice on the lake here….” Ah, and now the one Dante so lovingly referred to as "Wisps" was speaking. Fantastic-- they were all warming up to each other, despite the desperate, frozen environments. How touching. Making his way back to where he'd fallen, he snatched up what had initially distracted him, inspecting the contents. ”One corner down, another three corners and a loft to go.”

The bag that had called out to the persian with its siren song left Sylus' jaws in a somewhat violent manner, careening over the wounded guardrail of the upper level, hitting the concrete below with a loud force, its contents spilling out in the form of strange food packets marked "SPAM". Sylus poked his head out of the darkness glowering down at his talkative comrades, the echo of the hit earlier still in the air. He stared a moment at them, seeming to expect something, when he tilted his head in mock confusion. "...Oh? Are we not trying to make as much noise as possible? Hmm. My mistake." He then pulled back, disappearing back into the dark.

[[Hulul, Sylus is pissy.]]

What did you expect…? You can’t be loved.
You can never be loved.
She never loved you.
Look at what she did to you, even after everything you did for her.
She was terrified of you, she always was.
You saw it in her eyes, you were just too greedy to stay away.

His breath hitched in his chest. The Nidokings’ eyes flew open as he choked in the dark liquid clumping in his throat. Convulsions assaulted the fallen beast, his armored arms swinging into the wooden crates and tossing them against the bare floor in a panic. With a cacophony of wet gags, he spun to his belly, his large arms trembling as he struggled to hold himself up. Thin strands of dark blood streamed from between his large teeth, pooling underneath him like a macabre shadow.

__________________

The Sneasel rolled her eyes, her paw palming her face as they argued.
Suicidal. All of them. Didn’t I just say that that ain’t no ruttin’ place to be. Why’d they even ask me if they were just gonna do the exact opposite! Some leader, herdin’ everyone right into the middle of gorram reaver territory!

"You'll go with Queen Fluff. Walk beneath her or ride on her stomach. Either way, you're getting a partner in this, Fluff. Pup, you'll stay with me. I hope that's all the questions, because we're losing too much light to keep bickering over semantics. Go."
Runes’ mouth fell open in protest.
“No, what?!” She hissed, her large eyes narrowing as they shot to the cloudy vulpine. “N-no that ain’t gonna happen, no way...”
But her words fell on deaf ears once more, leaving Rune knee-deep in snow and standing awkwardly next to the now-not-so-chipper fox. With a dagger-like glare at the hound, she shuffled closer. Her eyes fell to the ground with a heated sigh, her face growing hot.  “Let’s just...hurry up and get this over with.”

(okay, phoe dear, you can have your char decide what you want rune to do. lol sloth thing is amusing as fuck. also, i think i want rune to divert your girl to the north side, where she’s able to access a second story window from a tree. either that, or rune will dash off when they get near enough.. if you guys want to find another way in, thats cool. rune decides that she doesnt like dante and makes her own choice)

    "I don't know really." glad that at least someone was willing to chat, Alice angled herself towards the Zorua as he spoke. "Some sort of bright light, and before I know it I go from a nice warm town to a freezing lake front. After that I just stumbled here and found you guys." she blinked in surprise, processing his words with a furrowed brow as she heaved a crate to the left. "How about you?"
    Alice nodded, the motion faint as she frowned. "A little like your story, kind of," she mumbled. It was back in the Ice Paths, right after her friend's murder. "I felt something odd, almost as if something was sweeping me off my paws. After that I just fell into snow, along with the rest of the group." she shifted with unease, remembering the events that followed. The teleportation itself was not too long ago, a day or two? Too tangled in current matters the Luxray had found little time to reflect on her sudden magic transportation, but within the silence of the warehouse they scavenged she clicked her claws in thought. She was still a Luxio, back then, still young but crumbling and well on her way to breaking apart. She had seen too much death, she concluded, and in that moment the room almost seemed to grow darker.
    It wasn't until she heard the soft voice of the specter did she realize that she had just been standing there, staring off into space. A little startled, Alice shook out her pelt and listened. ”Ah…. Well, I swam here. Kind of. I got swept away in the rapids of a cold river and I just remember waking up on the ice on the lake here….” swept away by a river? A river that ran towards the coldest city of Sinnoh? The electric-type's eyes widened, pausing for a few seconds to glance at Catalyst. "You didn't freeze?" she asked. Snowpoint itself was freezing, she could only imagine what the running water would be like.
    As the Phanteon kept track of his search, Alice nearly jumped at the sudden crash that sounded behind her, whirling around only to be met with a toppled bag with several cans spilling out of it. She lifted a brow. "...Oh? Are we not trying to make as much noise as possible? Hmm. My mistake."
    She scoffed, watching the feline slink back into the darkness. "Looks like someone isn't up for chat," she murmured, laughing a little. She added a few more cans of food to their stash. "I think it's better to talk then to stay silent, at least, right now." she shrugged, moving to the other side of the room. "I'd at least like to get to know the Pokemon I'm working with, and know if I can trust them."

[OOC: post is a little short since I'm packing a few bags b/c my dad's taking the family to a little trip for the weekend. VuV;; Also, I thought of this video when SPAM was mentioned, aha. xD]

(OoC: Skip please.)

((It wasn't your turn Cat, it was mine since I came out of SH two days ago.
But out of spite I skip my turn as well.))

(( Please skip. ))

“Don’t fucking touch me!” The Nidoking hissed through bloodied fangs as Raiden drew closer in concern. A deep snarl vibrated in his throat, with an ill wheezing concealed underneath. Venomous barbs along his ears flared up in defense, the small scales lining his jaw bristling in unison. A ponderous armored claw swung around at the blue canine and missed, only for it to collide with the shattered remains of the wooden crates with a crunch. The poison types’ supporting arm shuddered underneath him, before giving out with a snap.
A shallow thud echoed in the silence as he collapsed in his own blood.
Taking a few ragged breaths, his glare returned to the canine, blood dripping down his neck.
“...Don’t. If you think cozying up now will make up for what you’ve done, you’re dead wrong.” Strix growled, pulling himself to his elbows and knees. “There’s no fixing what you did. Not ever.”

______________________

Rune clung to the underbelly of the cloud fox, her large claws clamped snugly behind her shoulder blades as she ran. The Sneasels’ head craned to the side as she watched the silent, frozen terrain pass.
“Shiny plan. Just shiny.” She growled in exasperation, a heavy sigh escaping her. “Look, I...I don’t think we should be goin’ in there, is all. It ain’t sane.” Rune protested, her voice dropping to a hushed whisper. “There’s reavers there, ain’t you been listening to a word I’m saying? Don’t know about you, but I aim to keep my skin!” The Sneasel took a steadying breath to calm her frantic heartbeats. “Canna food ain’t worth gettin’ raped and gutted for, not by a long shot. And how do we even know if that Dante fella ain’t gonna just leave us? He could just be sendin’ us in to be bait, while he rabbits with all the scratch.”

(hope this is enough to work with for you guys. also experimenting a bit with runes' personality, trying to get a good dynamic going)