(ACE) The MARSH Team

Martha flinched as Mum extended her hand to her, half-expecting a thwack across the head. But the Kangaskhan's gaze was soft as she beckoned her Martha to come closer. "No little one, no," she said softly. "Shh...No one's blaming you. C'mere, sweetheart." The gentleness of Mum's voice calmed Martha's nerves immediately, but it also surprised her. She was so certain that everyone would be angry with her for making a bad situation a lot worse. Still, she slowly toddled over to Mum, wiping her tears.

As she walked, Virgil spoke: "You're fine, Martha... The bird hurt me much more than you did... It just surprised me is all, no need to be upset. Once Mom takes care of it, I'll be fine, I promise." Martha sniffed, looking the Liepard straight in the eyes. She wasn't sure whether he was saying it or not just to calm her down, but his words provided more comfort nonetheless. She gave him a trembling smile as she wiped her eyes again. "O-OK ... But I'm still r-really sorry," she said, her voice still a little shaky but she was glad to acknowledge that the tears were no longer falling. It looked like things were going to be OK after all.

"In fact, I could use your help," Mum said as Martha reached her. "Poor Virgil here still has that stupid feather-head's talons stuck in him." Martha giggled a little at 'feather-head.' "I need to pull them out, but Arceus is hurt too. Could you get some of those berries to her while I help our little kitty?" Martha nodded and immediately gathered an armful of berries and wobbled over to the Drapion, being careful not to drop any. The berry that she had used earlier to try and coax Arceus was still where she had left it. She hoped with all her little heart that she would be OK...

When she reached Arceus, Martha dropped the berries but then picked up the biggest, juiciest-looking Sitrus Berry of them all. She gently tapped the Drapion and held the berry near to her nose and mouth. "U-Um ... Arceus? I have a berry here for you. Please wake up..."

Amita looked around before she looked at mom and said quietly and nervously, Mom, I'm going to see if I can find some more berries for everyone, especially for Virgil. She waited for conformation from the Kangaskhan before she flapped her wings to take flight in the air and began to scan all the nearby trees for some more berries that will help bring all energy that had been lost in the battle back for everyone, especially for the ones that got hurt in the battle with the Braviary like Arceus and Virgil. After a few scans she was able to spot a few more Sitrus berries that were ripe enough to eat. She dived down and gently took the berries into her battled clawed talons, making sure that she didn't ruin them with the sharp points on her battle claws.

Damn. Damn, damn, damn.

Arceus still could not freaking move but at least she could think. The Drapion groaned silently. She HATED not being able to move. To talk. To be LOUD. She just hated it. Hated, hated, hated it.

She ran through a long line of many curses within her head, trying with all of her might to just open her eyes. No, at least TWITCH one goddam eye. Her claw had twitched a minute ago. But fucking no. She could not even open ONE eye. So she continued raging and cursing in her mind. She could not do anything else. But- wait! Arceus could hearthe others speaking and Rhea had said her her name! And something about Martha... Damn. She hated being useless.

She was awear of movement around her and heard the timid voice of the pink fluff ball she knew and loved. Martha was trying to urge her to eat the berry. But she could not MOVE. The Drapion would have snapped at the sheep if she could fucking MOVE. But she could not. So no fucking go, bro. 

However, unawear to Arceus herself, but her other clawed arm twitched. A low moan escaping her mouth the only sign that she was even alive.

((Ooc; Permission for Martha to forcefeed the berry or something :B))

Rhea smiled as Martha visibly calmed, some of her usual pep coming back. The last thing she wanted was for the little lamb to be afraid of her, but she was really protective of her children. All of them. Virgil was shifting in her arms and she looked down to see him staring at the talons. The position looked uncomfortable, but then again, he was a cat. They could bend in the strangest ways. "Go ahead."

The Kangaskhan gave Virgil a soft smile and a nod before reaching down to grab hold of the remains of the bird. She had a couple berries left in her pouch to help heal him once they were out, because the only thing probably saving him from blood loss was the fact that they were still in him. Once they were out the ground would be painted red, and he would need all the help he could get. She gave a heavy sigh and placed her free hand on Virgil's side to brace him. "One...two...THREE!"

On the final count she pulled as hard as she could and the first foot was out. Unfortunately for the Liepard, there was still one left. She didn't give him a count for the second, but instead pulled it as fast as she could so that the old pain would dull him to the new. it might still hurt, but at least it wouldn't be as bad as it would have been had she waited. She pulled out the berries and put them in front of Virgil, keeping her other hand on his wounds to try and stop the blood from rushing out. "Eat them," she begged. "Quickly Virg. Please."

As he relaxed against Rhea, the liepard continued to prepare himself for a great load of pain. She counted down, which only increased his anxiety. And then, she pulled.

Another yowl escaped him, even while forcibly trying to silence himself. He flailed a bit under Rhea's free hand, while the rest of his body instinctively fought to run. However, he stayed where he was and settled for his limbs flinching and his tail lashing. She quickly pulled the other, and he could see blood pumping from the gouge wounds. It painted his indigo and butter coat red, and streamed to the ground, pooling quickly. He soon saw berries in his line of sight, and heard Rhea pleading him to eat them.

He was no fool; he knew that he would likely bleed out if there weren't berries or not. There was nothing here that would serve as a tourniquet, and it was difficult to tourniquet an entire half of the body. He ate them, trying to get them down as quickly as possible before he passed out. He succeeded, and attempted to put a paw on one of the wounds to try and stop the bleeding. "Shit..."

"Arceus?" Martha beamed as the Drapion moaned and twitched her arm. At least she was alive, but it didn't look like she could move very well. Martha realised that she had to help Arceus to eat the berry, so she very carefully opened up the Drapion's mouth and placed the berry inside, being sure not to push it too far down her throat and choke her. "Try to chew it," Martha encouraged gently.

(I'm running out of things to get Amita to do so I'm sorry if my posts continue to be short)

Amita soon had the berries she had spotted earlier and once she was sure they were safe in her talons she began to head back down to where the others were at. When she saw all the blood around Virgil she grew worried. She knew that it was too much blood and for him to be able to survive they need to stop the flow of the blood and bandage it up. I'm going to find something to use as bandages so we can stop the blood flow, she said once she had the berries laid out near Virgil. She then took flight once again and began to search through the trees for big leaves that could be used as bandages for now. Once she spotted them she used her beak to grabbed them and pulled them from the trees before she headed back to where the others were and held the leaves out to Mom hoping she will take them.

The blood was coming worse than she feared, and poor Virgil wouldn't have enough berries unless she could tie him off somehow. The large dark bird dropped off some leaves and berries next to her, and Rhea couldn't help but growl at it. In her mind, she knew that the Honchkrow was only trying to help, but something in her just really wanted the bird to get the hell away. Maybe it was just because of what happened to Virgil. Yeah, that had to be it.

Trying not to give it another thought she quickly grabbed the pliant leaves and tried wrapping them around the poor cat's frame. They weren't very strong, but with enough of them she was able to make a decent bandage. However, it would be purely temporary. She needed to get some potions in him to close those wounds, and fast. Seemed like they might have to try for the gate after all, and see if there was any way to try and salvage whatever may have been left behind. But..."Hey Virg, want me to carry you?"

Though he didn't trust the Honchkrow at all, he knew the small berries she had brought over would be his only saving grace. As Rhea placed the leaves on his side and back, he reached with his thin paws to grab more berries and shoved them sloppily in his mouth. The light headedness was beginning to settle, but the berries helped keep it at bay. If he lived through this, he'd have to thank the bird...

His ears flattened against his head as he realized just how much time, energy and food they were wasting on him. He'd probably just eaten three days of rations were he at home, and guilt gripped him. If he were going to die, they shouldn't bother... death was the first and foremost lesson this and the old world gave... you just had to accept it. When Rhea asked him if she needed to carry him, he shook his head.

"...No... No, I... I should be ok... as long as the bandages don't fall off..." He tried sitting up of his own accord and found himself a little dizzy, his upper half wobbling a little bit. He forced himself to stop, but he was sure Rhea's hawk eyes saw the moment of weakness. "...We should get moving... I've lost a lot of blood and the zombies'll be all over this..." He pondered just admitting he wasn't going to make it and for them to run, but he also didn't want Rhea knocking him unconscious, either.

So much happened. So quickly.Everything was normal, then there was a screech, and everything went wrong. Virgil was now injured, and Carmen could do nothing about it. She had run. The screech, and then Virgil getting put in danger. Something happened inside her, and she ran. She ran right into the trees and hid. She didn't know why, but she just did it. It was terrifying, she had never run from a fight before, and suddenly she and the others were out in danger, and for the first time ever, she ran in fear. And hid.

She hated herself. Why, now of all times, when they were in danger had she run? And now, Virgil was seriously injured, in danger. It was all her fault. Now she could never return to the team. Never. She had run, and she could not return, not with the guilt, she couldn't be with them, and see there nasty glares. She let them all down. She let Virgil, and Mum down. Was Fynne OK? She should have stayed, she could have fought. If she had stayed, would Virgil have been injured? It was all her fault. She knew they would not accept her.

She watched, from afar. In the trees. She could have done something for them, but she hadn't and so now she would make sure that she was always watching, and making sure that they would have what they needed as much as possible. She owed Virgil that, and maybe the pink fluff-ball. Fynne would get what he needed as well. Food, she would hunt for some. Shelter, she would make some if she had to. Warmth, easy for her. But they would not see her doing it.

She heard Amita say she would find large leaves for bandages, so Carmen quickly gathered the largest leaves which had fallen to the floor-no doubt from their weight-and climbed some trees, placing them on top, in plain sight. She didn't think Amita had saw her.

She still couldn't figure out why she had run when it slowly dawned on her. She had been living alone, fighting alone, surviving alone. the first undead she comes across with others, she runs in fear, her heart pounding. She cares for them, well some of them. She must have been concerned for their safety, and misread the fear for them as fear for herself. She ran in fear because she was concerned for them. It didn't sound logical, but it made sense if she had misread the fear. After all, who wouldn't be scared when friends, and some others, not mentioning any names, just that bugs and certain birds were not at the top of her list at the moment.

"I'm sorry, guys, but next time, I won't run, I'll be here, you just won't see me. You won't ever see me again, but I'll be there for you for as long as I can be."

Why would they want to see her. Why would they want to see someone who ran in fear, even if it wasn't for her, especially someone who they had previously hated, and had not come to like her yet. She didn't even think Mum would notice or care for her missing. Why would she? She hadn't liked her either. None did.

"I promise, I will be there." she said as tears dripped from her eyes.

Martha was surprised to see Carmen again; she was fairly sure that the Charmander had gone for good once the Braviary had arrived. Carmen looked a little shaken as she rejoined the group. Martha gave her a reassuring smile as Carmen got closer to her.

"I'm sorry, guys, but next time, I won't run, I'll be here, you just won't see me. You won't ever see me again, but I'll be there for you for as long as I can be ... I promise, I will be there."

Martha noticed that Carmen was crying and quickly toddled over to her and gave her a soft, warm hug. "Don't cry, Carmen," she said, then found it a little funny that she was telling someone else to stop crying when minutes earlier she herself had been bawling her eyes out. "It's OK to be scared sometimes. We were all scared too! But it's all OK now and you don't have to hide yourself. Does she, Mum?" Letting go of Carmen she looked up at the Kangaskhan. While Mum had forgiven her for accidentally hurting Virgil, would she be prepared to forgive Carmen who had not helped during the fight?

While waiting for what was to come next, Martha headed back to Arceus and continued to try and awaken the Drapion with gentle words and the occasional tap or stroke on the head.

(Silver are you going to kill Virgil off. I hope not he is a great Liepard)

Amita listen to all that was being said and she didn't like what she was hearing. She knew the wound was bad on Virgil and it will only get worst if they don't get out of this place soon and find a place that will have herbs or some kind of berries that will help Virgil heal. It may be slow healing but at least he will survive. She looked up at the sky knowing that by looking up there that she may be able to find a way to get them all out of this marsh and have Virgil in a better place where he can heal while they rest while he is healing. At least she hopes there is a place like that and that they will be able to handle any infected that will head their way. She looked at the cat and said softly, Look, I know you don't like me Virgil and that you may even hate me but I can carry you on my back in the air if you will let me. That way you can rest and allow those wounds to heal. She sighed softly and looked at mom. She showed in her stance and in her eyes that she was fully willing to do this for Virgil and that she knew the wounds were bad.

Damn. Damn. DAMN. And once more... Damn.

Arceus was still in the middle of her mental rant as the minutes ticked by. She completly missed the return of the stupid lizard but could hear Martha speaking it's name. Huh. She had not even thought about it but it HAD been quite a while since she had seen the little nuisance. Even before the stupid bird attacked. 

Realization dawned on the bug and she would have let her jaw drop if she had been able to move... And standing... And yeah. 

That little bitch!! She left RIGHT as that bird attacked! I got my ASS handed to me and she simply HID? That was not okay in Arceus' head, not at all, and what little respect she had for the chick's guts evaporated like morning dew. However a smug satisfaction also burrowed it's way into the Drapion's head. She HAD been in the right all along! All of that cocky and irritating speaches from Carmen were ALL FAKE. And while Arcues listened to Martha plead to Rhea not to banish her, she felt an emotion that she did not want:

Pity.

Now that she could hear Carmen properly, she could hear the clear distress in her voice. Hell, was she even CRYING? The little thing had not even known any of them for more than a day! Had she no pride? But still, the sense that Carmen deserved a second chance continued to leave a bitter taste in Arceus' mouth. Damn. I AM going soft. But just as the thought left her, it seemed that the berries Martha had so loyally forced into the Drapion finally paid off. Arceus found that she could finally mover her arms- ABOUT TIME- and she slowly blinked open her colorless eyes. The blurry form of Martha came into focus and she forced a tired smile. "Hey there fuzz ball."  Arceus lifted her head and arms slowly, bending her long neck to allow her to look around properly. Damn. Things looked bad. Mom was holding the cat, lookig far more than distress, Amita was hovering near them looking equally as unhappy, Carmen was falling over herself in apologizing, and Martha was right by the Drapion's side.  Arceus gave her a grateful nod before laying her head back down again. "Just gimme a minute... I'll be fine in a sec." There was a large, throbbing dent in what would be her right temple. The chink in her hard exoskeleton hurt like a bitch. She didn't want to push things too hard.

Areus simply waited to hear what Rhea would say to the distressed lizard. She was not ready to admit that she felt sorry for her quite yet. But if the Kangaskhan did in fact try to make her leave for her cowardice... Well, the Drapion would find a way to help her. Even that big mouth didn't deserve to be all alone. 


Fynne was alone. All alone. Oh, how he HATED that prison he was in. He hated that he had to be in it so much. He hated being away from Arceus. He hated being left out of the know as to if she was alright or not. He hated not being to even TELL if she was alright or not- emotions all blended together and never gave him any real clues as to what others feel... It mad him sad. Or, at least he THOUGHT it was sad.

But even woth so many thoughts swirling around his vast mind in the empty prison, he could still hear the voices outside. There was loud speaking... Were they happy? Sad? Angry? The one distinctive voice trembled a lot. Was that joy, then? Or was she furious? Fynne gave a low, mournful roar. He was so confused. He had never been able to tell happy from sad or even angry. They were all loud, shaky voices, and simular facial expression. But he heard a softer voice, a foreign tone, but one he recognized. Arceus! 

Suddenly he was upon his feet, roaring up at the invisible exit. His gold eyes were now frantic. Arceus sounded wrong! Her voice was too quiet, too low! What if she was hurt?! Fynne roared again, much louder this time as he put his entire body into it. He had no words to say, he just wanted out. He wanted someone to hear him and let him out.  For Arceus.

Arceus.

((Ooc; Permission for someone to let him out. Doesn't matter who. c: ))

Rhea gave a nod to Virgil when he said he didn't want to be carried, but still had concern in her eyes. She watched him carefully to make sure he didn't put too much strain on himself, and prepared herself to go for him if it looked like he would fall. She scoffed slightly at the Honchkrow's offer to carry the injured feline as well. If he wasn't oing to let Rhea herself carry him, why would he let her?

"I'm sorry, guys, but next time, I won't run, I'll be here, you just won't see me. You won't ever see me again, but I'll be there for you for as long as I can be ... I promise, I will be there." Oh damn it, the little fire lizard was back. She had thought it fled and gone when the bird swooped down, and was somewhat annoyed to see it again. The little female had been nothing but trouble since they met, and didn't want to have to babysit Carmen when Virgil was so injured. And the drama queen act? Seriously pushing it. But then Martha had to go to its rescue, and Arceus gave her a strange look, so she couldn't put the little one out after that.

She just gave an annoyed look to the tiny Char, never saying yes or no to her staying, and just started after Virgil. She caressed her egg in an attempt to soothe her frustrations, hoping that the thoughts of her baby would make everything seem better. She didn't want the little one to hatch out here in the dangers of the Marsh. She stepped up close to Virgil before whispering down for his ears alone, "If your blood doesn't attract more dead things, her big mouth certainly will." The annoyance was clear in her voice, but none of her earlier rage. The little one was, after all, only a child. An arrogant, selfish, annoying as hell child, but a child none the less.

It was everything Virgil could do to put one bloody paw in front of another, and the little charmander's reentrance was something of a shock. One moment, she wasn't there, and another, she was there, weeping and crying about... something. He was too focused on his own wobbly legs to really know. However, as Martha consoled the little fire lizard, the bird came up to him.

"Look, I know you don't like me Virgil and that you may even hate me but I can carry you on my back in the air if you will let me. That way you can rest and allow those wounds to heal." Virgil had to refrain giving a distasteful frown; he was in no position to be catty. No pun intended.

"...Thanks for the offer, but... I'll decline. If I need help, Rhea will carry me... Besides, you need to be unladen to fly. I may not look like much, but I tell you, I'm nothin' but dead weight," he chuckled weakly as he continued on his path. Once away from the others slightly, Rhea bent down to whisper something in his ear.

"If your blood doesn't attract more dead things, her big mouth certainly will." He could help but a small snort of laughter, even if it hurt. His teeth flashed in a grin, and he turned back to the large kangaskhan.

"Not bitter at all," he mused up at her, emerald eyes, though tired, sparkled with amusement. The wind shifted, and he paused in his labored padding. There was a scent on the air... Such a familiar scent...

_________

There he was.

Months and months of fruitless searching over mountains and deserts and foreign regions, Seth finally found his prize, his victim, his fucking brother. The asshole that left them all to die. A silent snarl crept up on his lip, and he had to repress the urge to growl. His tail in his hand, ready to attack, he grinned as he saw and smelled that his brother was wounded-- heavily so. However, the grin faded when Virgil paused to sniff the air, and Seth realized the wind had shifted. 'No! If he spots me...'

He cursed under his breath as he knew his only advantage was the element of surprise, and it was about to be taken away. As the look of realization passed over his brother's face, Seth lunged from the brush, tackling the liepard with all of his might and fury. He had obviously caught Virgil off guard, and used that to grab the thin neck between his hands and clenched, wanting to choke him. "S-Seth?!" Virgil choked, to which the smeargle's grip strengthened.

"You think we wouldn't find you, asshole?!" he raged, his voice thick with anger. "You think you can just leave and never come back, abandoning us to this hell?! I'll kill you, like the fucking rat you are! Fuck you, fuck you, FUCK YOU!" he roared, punching the cat with his right paw. As Virgil lay beneath him, properly stunned, Seth glared to the others.

"Make one move to save him and I'll gut the rest of you. This is personal!" he snarled, tail held out like a weapon in front of him as his left paw stayed on Virgil's trachea.


((OOC: Lol, no, I'm not going to kill Virgil off. : P Permission for Rhea to attack Seth.))

Sorry, didn't realize it was my turn, Skip please. Just say that Carmen can't make up her mind to help him, or not to, so she just watched in horror at the sight of the Pokémon attacking Virgil.

"Hey there fuzz ball," Arceus grinned as she flickered her eyes open and slowly raised her head. Martha bounced off the ground in happiness. "Oh, Arceus, you're OK," she beamed, wrapping her little arms around the Drapion and giving her a gentle hug. "I'm so glad," she said, pulling away. "I was worried that you wouldn't wake up, you know?" Her smile dropped a little as Arceus laid her head back down again. "Just gimme a minute... I'll be fine in a sec." Martha looked concerned again as she reached over for another Sitrus Berry and held it towards Arceus's mouth. "Here, have another one."

A muffled noise came from Fynne's Poke Ball. Martha picked up the device and examined it. She gasped as it began to shake in her hands. "Um, I think Fynne wants to come out," she said, tossing the Poke Ball a few feet in front of her. She was pretty sure that that was how it worked...

Mum hadn't said anything to Carmen and Martha took that as a good sign. Virgil stood up and tried to walk but then the Liepard stopped and sniffed the air. Martha sniffed too and caught an unfamiliar scent. Before she could ask Virgil what was wrong, however, something came charging out of the undergrowth and tackled the Liepard to the ground. Martha let out a horrified gasp and rushed forward. She recognised the new Pokemon as Smeargle, a Pokemon from Johto just like her. He was shouting terrible things to Virgil, calling him horrible names ... Martha wouldn't stand for it. She puffed out her chest and marched straight for the Smeargle, but he turned to face the rest of them and snarled: "Make one move to save him and I'll gut the rest of you. This is personal!"

Martha stopped in her tracks, the threat having unnerved her. This Smeargle certainly looked like he meant every word. However her caring nature kept shouting at her to try and stop this so, without moving, she glared at the newcomer. "Let him go!" she yelled. "Don't hurt Virgil, he's our friend! Let him go right now or ... or I'll hurt you!" The orb on the end of her tail began to glow and she hoped it would intimidate the Smeargle enough for him to release Virgil. Then again, she was small, pink and fluffy - looking frightening was one of the hardest things for her to do.

(This is seriously going to be a very short post because I don't really have anything else for Amita to do)

Amita heard Virgil's words and sighed softly. She can tell that the cat really doesn't like her and there wasn't anything she could do about it. She looked at the others to see that they are all fine, which she was glad to see. She got ready to take flight in the sky so she can try to look out for any possible attacks. She felt like a disappointment since she wasn't able to catch the last infected in time which caused the others to get hurt. She gently flapped her wings and took flight but didn't go to high when she saw the Smeargle coming at Virgil. she wasn't sure on what to do but she remained close to keep watch.

"Not bitter at all." Rhea just offered Virgil a smirk and a shrug, playing like she had no idea what he was talking about. As much as she felt the need to take care of the others, the Liepard was the easiest to get along with out of all of them. His personality complimented hers pretty well, and it was obvious that he was used to taking care of others rather than be taken care of. Rhea slowed to a stop when she saw the feline beside her taking in the air. What the...?!

In a blur of cream and blue Virgil was gone, tossed a few feet away with the force of the attacker. When they settled, she could clearly make out a Smeargle, with his hands wrapped around Virgil's throat. "You think we wouldn't find you, asshole?! You think you can just leave and never come back, abandoning us to this hell?! I'll kill you, like the fucking rat you are! Fuck you, fuck you, FUCK YOU!" An anger like she had never felt before filled her, and her body glowed fiercely dark with the raw power of her Outrage. She had nearly lost the cat to that fucking bird, she was not going to let some stupid dog take him now! Fuck that!

She stormed over to the struggling pair, and a set of ice blue eyes settled on her as she approached. "Make one move to save him and I'll gut the rest of you. This is personal!" The purple haze around Rhea began to pulsate with the furious beating of her heart. "Personal? PERSONAL?! I'll give you fucking personal!" With a mighty swing of her arm she backhanded the foul creature, sending him flying off Virgil and into a nearby tree. Her move Outrage forgotten, the glow dropped, and she stomped over to the figure as he recovered from the blow. She grabbed his neck, wrapping her clawed fingers around it tightly, and squeezed.

Rhea pulled the victim right up to her face and let out a loud roar. "How do you fucking like it, you little shit?!" She was taking far to much pleasure in the grinding of the fragile bones beneath her hand. Startled at the realization that she was moments away from killing him, Rhea tossed the Smeargle to the side angrily, letting him fall where he may. She wasted no time going back to Virgil to stand in front of him protectively. "Touch my son again, and I'll rip your fucking guts out. You hear me?" The dark, deadly growl at the end of her sentence was a warning to the canine that she meant exactly what she said.

((OOC: Recieved permission to treat Seth like a ragdoll this post, lol))

The pressure and slowly closing darkness in Virgil's vision was quickly and abruptly brought to a standstill as a large brown blob that could only have been Rhea simply picked up his angry brother and tossed him. Bereft of air, it was all the wounded liepard could do to simply lie there and pant, his small frame exhausted with the past few hours of the day. Maybe he should have taken some of that sleep....

Seth, however, was faring less well. The others seemed to adhere to his threat, but the kangaskhan was a little more attached to his brother than he had thought, and he suddenly found himself against a tree. "Personal? PERSONAL?! I'll give you fucking personal!" the kangaskhan had roared, and the smeargle managed a glare before she picked him up by his thin neck, right in front of her face. "How do you fucking like it, you little shit?" she growled before letting him fall into a graceless heap at her feet, taking her stance in front of his brother. "Touch my son again, and I'll rip your fucking guts out. You hear me?"

"Your SON?!" Seth exclaimed, baffled. "He's as much your son as I am your fucking daughter!" He rose, rubbing his now very sore neck. "...Look lady, I don't know what kind of delusion you're under, but that cat has a lot to answer for, like leaving his 15 siblings to fucking rot while this hell comes up! Just fuck off and let me do what I need to, all right?"

Virgil managed to get to his feet and limped to Rhea. "...Rhea... please don't hurt him..." His voice was hoarse, strained, but his expression was serious. "Seth..." he turned to his brother, and words failed him. "...What happened...?"

Carmen could barely believe what was happening. While they had all been threatened, Mum took no notice and violently attacked the creature which had leaped from the bushes. A Smeargle. However, Mum seemed to be losing control, as she nearly killed him. She soon regained her senses and let him go. While he was attacking another one of them, he was not infected, and so did not deserve death.

She quickly moved to Virgil, and threatened Smeargle, claiming Virgil as her own son. Carmen realized how much she cared about him, and figured that she hadn't done much right by her, especially ditching, leading to Virgil getting inured, and momentarily beaten mercilessly. Mum ignored the warning and attacked. She hadn't cared for her won safety, only Virgil's.

It was clear that the Smeargle knew Virgil, for it claimed that he had left his siblings, though how Carmen knew Virgil, not that she really did, she couldn't believe he ever would do that. Virgil was barely able to talk, but knew that some sound was coming out of his mouth, even if Carmen could only hear a low groan.

Now that everyone had stopped moving, Carmen ha a clear train of thought. The next move that Smeargle would make would either be away from the group, or towards them. And if it was the latter, then Carmen was going to attack. She would not allow it to even get a possible chance to deal any of them damage.

Mum swung into action the second that the Smeargle had given her the opportunity, just as Martha had expected. The Flaaffy flinched a little as she tossed him around like a rag doll and bellowed into his face. While she certainly didn't like the newcomer for attacking Virgil so violently, she wasn't sure if she would be able to watch Mum murder him. Luckily that didn't happen. Once she had thrown the Smeargle from her grasp, Mum stood over Virgil like a giant sentinel. "Touch my son again, and I'll rip your fucking guts out. You hear me?" the Kangaskhan growled.

Knowing that she had everyone else on her side, Martha trotted up to Mum's side and Charged her power. "Yeah, leave Virgil alone, you big bully!" she snapped, stamping her foot. "Virgil is our friend, and whatever he did you have no excuse to attack him like that!"

"...Rhea... please don't hurt him..." croaked a voice from behind. Martha was surprised to see that Virgil had gotten to his feet. He looked straight over at the Smeargle. "Seth...What happened...?" "Seth?" Martha tilted her head curiously. Carmen looked like she was getting ready to fight if necessary and Martha did the same. Then she waited to see how Seth would respond. She didn't want to hurt him, but if he attacked she knew she'd have no choice. She wasn't about to let her friend get hurt any further.

((Damn, sorry for the wait guys, but please skip me. Arceus is zoning out from that head injury and Fynne is standing gaurd next to her. Sorry for holding everyone up :c ))

"Your SON?! He's as much your son as I am your fucking daughter!" Rhea just shot the mutt a smirk as she crossed her arms, leering down at him like a petulant child. "Well, let me tell you, you make one ugly fucking girl, daughter of mine." She sneered as the mutt stood once again, and spread herself as far in front of Virgil as she could. "...Look lady, I don't know what kind of delusion you're under, but that cat has a lot to answer for, like leaving his 15 siblings to fucking rot while this hell comes up! Just fuck off and let me do what I need to, all right?" What the hell was he talking about? 15 siblings? Hot damn.

Rhea stood poised, ready to strike as soon as the dog made its move, when Martha showed up next to her. "Yeah, leave Virgil alone, you big bully! Virgil is our friend, and whatever he did you have no excuse to attack him like that!" Rhea wore a proud smile on her face, happy to see the girl standing up for herself so well. She gave Martha a wink before turning her snarl back to the Smeargle.

"...Rhea... please don't hurt him..." The Kangaskhan's face fell as Virgil pleaded with her. He wasn't serious, right? "This thing just tried to kill you Virg! You can't expect me to let that go! Especially after what just happened..." She shuddered as she remembered the winged demon, and then to have this kid come swooping in right after that attack and try to take him..."Seth...What happened...?"

Wait. Seth? Who the hell was Seth? Did Virgil-did he know this freak?! "Wait one damn minute here!" she screamed out angrily. "Let me get this straight." She pointed one clawed hand at Virgil, "You know him," she pointed the other hand at Seth, "and he knows you. But, he just tried to kill you...and...you're okay with this?" She let her hands fall before throwing them up in the air and flopping down in a sitting position. She turned to Virgil with a very confused expression, and let out an exasperated sigh. "Did I miss something?"

((Relax, Timon XDDD))

Seth smirked as the Kangaskhan began to freak out a little, and with the flaaffy's little outburst, the smeargle merely flipped her off, a gesture he'd come to know well from stealing from the humans. The delusional woman finally asked what the hell was going on, and since she seemed to trust Virgil's words -for whatever reason- Seth made a small bow and gestured to his brother. "Go on, 'Virg'," he mocked with the nickname, "tell her."

The liepard sat, sighing, looking to the others. He gave a nod of thanks to Martha, then looked to Rhea. "He's my half-brother. We share a father. Both of my parents were pretty useless in the parenting department and, well, it fell to myself and my oldest younger sister. She would care for the younger kids and I would go and scavenge for food. It was fine for a while, but one day I was caught by a trainer and brought here, to whatever country this is." His ears went back, his heart heavy. If Seth was here... that meant...

"Bullshit!" Seth roared, his white fangs bared. "You abandoned us, and because of you, they're all fucking dead! You hear me?! They're DEAD!" With that, he lunged forward, ready to kill once more.

((Permission to anyone to stop Seth))