(ACE) The STARK Team

Shinra hoped that this would be the last death she sees in a while. It would be completely torturous to have to see new allies dropping like flies. They would have to stay on their guards if they wanted to survive.

The small group walked along quietly. No more monsters were around, but Shinra still felt a bit on edge. She always knew about the dangers around her, but actually wittnessing them made it feel real. She couldn't help but jump a little when she was addressed. "Might I ask what your name is, Eevee?" Delta said. Shinra blinked. Oh yeah, I haven't introduced myself... She realized. Heh, her mom would be so upset at her lack of manners..."Ah, I'm Shinra. All of...that,"she motioned to the area the attack happened,"made me forget to introduce myself."

Suddenly, Shinra heard movement. She swirled around to face it, determined to prevent another surprise attack. Out of the darkness came a Charizard. Suprisingly, it looked alive and well!
"Hello there, I'm Grim."

Their luck had done a total 180. Not only was there another living being, but an amiable one! Shinra dropped her defensive pose and smiled back. "Hi. Nice to see another survivor. I'm shocked you made it here unscathed. I'm Shinra, by the way." To know that the world world hadn't turned into a big ball of zombies (at least, not completely) brightened the Eevee's mood significantly.

((sorry for the skippage xP))

Walking with the others, Xela was in a completely different place. Her body kept pace while her mind replied the death of Loli over and over again in her head and each time it played she felt even more guilt wash over her for not helping out her new friend who had needed her. Numb to everything, she didn't even notice the new Pokemon come down and she stared at them blankly while turmoil ensued throughout her mind.

Shinra had introduced herself as such, apologizing that she had not done so before. No need to be sorry... Delta blinked with sorrowful eyes, knowing that the Drifloon's death was hard on each of them. He flicked his tail in concern, trotting after the Eevee with a chaste frown. The Herdier yawned slightly as the long day began to catch up on him, but he forced himself to widen his senses. They needed him now more than ever to be a strong point and protect them from outside dangers. There has been proof enough that this world is no longer as safe as it were before.

Suddenly a Charizard seemed to have come from nowhere and now stood before them, an unreadable expression on its face. Delta let the light illuminating from its tail brighten the cave, reflecting in his eyes mysteriously. Hrm. Staring in the eyes of the fire type, the Loyal Dog Pokemon felt something itch in his hide - this fire lizard was hiding something, he could feel it in his marrow. He dismissed his wariness, however, giving the Charizard the benefit of doubt. Any and all living should put aside differences in the face of this epidemic.

The Eevee had quickly introduced herself jovially, and Delta had to share in her optimism. It was certainly something to meet new Pokemon, especially when the gift of life was becoming scarcer each day. "Delta, hello." He couldn't help but let his words fall into concise sentences as he glanced at Xela, realizing with a jolt that she still had not said anything since Loli's death. Although he wasn't the best at comforting, at best he could only support them from afar, but for the sake of Xela, he would have to try.

"Do you... need some alone time, Xela?" He whispered to her quietly, pressing against her in quiet support. Delta felt himself become embarrassed at how quickly he had to close the space between them, but at the moment he simply brushed it off. There were obviously greater things to be worried about.

Shinra was caught completely by surprise when she heard a sneeze and the subsequent appearance of a pikachu. She had been so happy to see another living pokemon that the presence of another had gone over her head.
Surprise was really all she felt, though. The pikachu had been too close to Grim for it to be something dangerous. What sane pokemon would let an infected so near?

Truthfully, the pikachu's physical appearance did startle and slightly scare Shinra (the growling not helping.) Any fears Shinra had, however, were quickly dismissed. The better, more reasonable side of the eevee had control, and it knew jumping to conclusions wasn't a smart thing to do.

"I'm just a no good monster."

Smiling softly, Shinra stepped a bit closer to the pikachu. "I doubt it. If you were a monster, you'd be too far gone and unreasonable to even have that thought."

Walking beside the others still Xela was in a strange place in her mind. Every death she had ever witnessed played through her mind and she barely watched where she was going. If it weren't for Delta being her guide on where to go, she probably would've fallen off the side of the mountain by now. Blinking she numbly turned towards Delta as he pressed against her and his words finally registered in her mind.

"Do you... need some alone time, Xela?" He whispered to her quietly, pressing against her in quiet support.

Cocking her head to the side she stopped and stared at him blankly. She knew what he said but it just wasn't making sense with the rest of her mind. It was at that moment Delta should have realized that something was seriously wrong with Xela. She just stared blankly at the others as if she didn't know what they were or why she was there. Being in shock was an understatement for her at the moment.

Delta bit back a whimper as Xela didn’t reply to his question, her downward stare sweeping across the others blankly. What happened to you...? It was scary to see the once strong and graceful Delcatty looking so broken and lost. He withdrew from her quietly, still keeping a close distance, and looked at her gently. “Take a few deep breaths, alright? Be positive. For me.” The Herdier hadn’t noticed how much he missed her soft chuckles and bright outlook. He truly did miss that side of her.

The Loyal Dog Pokemon looked at the other Pokemon as his ears caught the sound of a sneeze, flicking them in surprise as he noticed a Pikachu amidst the Charizard. An odd pair. Licking Xela’s ear in comfort once again, he padded forward to greet himself more properly with the new acquaintances. But as he neared, his eyes traveled away from the Charizard’s defensive face to that of the Pikachu’s. Hm! His eyes widened as he took in the Pikachu’s marred face.

“Good evening, to the both of you.” He addressed the Charizard as the Pikachu brought itself down with words, Shinra herself reassuring it that it was no monster. “I find nothing wrong with you, Pikachu. Unless, however,” Delta growled the words this time, scuffling a paw in aggression. “you pose a threat to any of my familial, then we’re going to have a rather hefty talk.” It didn’t matter to the dog whether or not either of them were hideous; as a gentleman was always told, it was the inside that counted.

“I am Delta, and behind me is Xela. A pleasure.” Short and to the point, Delta made it a point that he was not to be trifled with. “And I don’t fancy others who hide things. It makes a horrible first impression.” For some reason, despite not feeling anything negative about him specifically, the Pikachu had rubbed the Herdier the wrong way. Maybe it was how he feels so bad about himself so easily, or how right off the bat he presumed they would hate him, but ugh, Delta certainly did not enjoy the electric type’s character.

It's been hours.
It's been hours since she sought to this mountain for Heatran.
It's been hours since she began walking the rocky mountain, despite her diamond-like hooves, it tired her.
Lithium; Alkali Metal with the atomic number of 3. Also the name of our trusty blue-flamed Ponyta who had been walking this mountain endlessly to search for Heatran; She needed advice. Lithium needed advice, how to survive, how to not be a social bitch. The cave wasn't as dark as expected, since Lithium had her trusty blue flames to guide her! [But annoying as hell, she has to fight off a bunch of infected and undead]
Indeed, the Ponyta was a shiny Pokemon, differently colored, but like any normal Ponyta, still eats the same, same habitat, same other shit, etc. It's just the color and of course her personal features of a scarf and a jar. Wonderful items they were, she was amazed how they didn't burn when they touched her flames. Must be magic [According to the Chemist, they can't burn anything out!]

The Ponyta huffed, her legs tired, but she finally heard something actually useful for once; speech. Actual correct grammar, Pokemon speech. Oh hell yes. She trotted to the source, only to trip and fall as the cave rumbled along with a fiery voice, "How dare you say that, HIDING THINGS?! I WAS MEARLY PROTECTING HIM INCASE YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED NOT EVERYONE WOULD SEE PAST THE SCARRIG TO WHATS UNDERNEATH WHEN THERE ARE CREEPY ASS ZOMBIES RUNNING AROUND! DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY TIMES TWAIN AND I HAVE BEEN ATTACKED BY OTHER LIVING BECAUSE OF HOW FUCKING JUDGMENTAL THEY WERE!? NONE OF THEM EVEN BOTHERED TO WAIT FOR AN EXPLANATION AS TO WHY HE LOOKS LIKE THIS THEY JUST FUCKING ASSUMED! You think I made a bad impression on you? You have just made a horrible impression on me you judgmental jackass."

Beautiful. Either there's a Pokemon with serious trust issues and misunderstanding just as Lithium or it's fucking Heatran hatin'. The Fire Horse just ducked toward behind a boulder, watching from afar. She could actually see them thanks to this weird lava dripping out of one Pokemon's mouth and it's flame tail. She could just simply make out the outlines of five figures. She half-worried that her blue flame could attract attention, but nonetheless continued to eavesdrop and watch. The Ponyta gulped as she noticed a spark aim at one of the figures, the source of the spark running off. She should really jump into the game of socializing now.

The Fire Horse trotted around the group, hiding in the shadows, she made it as quiet as possible. Screw them though haha, she'll just go after the source of the spark, deeper into the cave. Though as Lithium came closer to the source of the spark she also heard another thing; Crying. She was terrible at making others feel better, it always eats up her insides, but makes her feel like a bitch if she ignores.

"Wh-why does everyone..every-everyone hate me without even g-g-getting to know me first...?" It was the source of the spark.

The Ponyta opened her jaw, about to speak, but closed it immediately, just taking another step forward before starting her stupid statement, "I didn't get to know you... And I don't hate you." She called out, she was aware the source was behind a boulder, but she did nothing to go towards it. She felt better just talking rather than look at someone in the eye. Lithium hid her jar underneath her scarf after saying that, realizing it was showing. No one should look at that now, right?

((I'm having a bit of writer's block, please skip))

[OOC: Skip me right now. Xela is in a daze still and someone should try to pull her out of it xD)

“... You have just made a horrible impression on me you judgmental jackass." Delta listened to the words in deep silence, and by the time she had finished the Herdier kept his steeled but at most calm gaze upon the Charizard. What was a mild warning soon became his morale - he would not allow such a distressed and dangerous fire type near Xela and cause the already rattled Delcatty to lose it. Hm. Delta remained relaxed and composed, his face not revealing whatever emotions he may be feeling, remembering that his Master had once said that a gentleman’s greatest weapon was indifference.

“I do not care for your opinions on me,” he began with a lucid voice, allowing his eyes to burrow in towards the Charizard. “and I have other things in my life to be worried about than your life’s issues.” Delta flicked his tail, before widening his eyes in mild shock to see that the Pikachu had shot an electrical jolt straight towards Xela. With a fluid and almost seemingly smooth action, the Herdier had slid from his position to the voltage’s line of movement, taking it straight on his head.

His mind seemed to sizzle and buzz, his eyes entirely white and blind for a moment, his fur sticking on end. But Delta stayed put, a small growl emitting from his lips. Had he not just warned them that they were to avoid hurting Xela? The Loyal Dog Pokemon stood from his position on the ground, not realizing that he had fallen on his side, and uprightly looked at the fleeing figure of the Pikachu. I expect nothing less from a coward. If there was one thing he learned from his travels, it was that he had to face his problems in life right from the start before they held complete control over him. Curling his lip in disgust, Delta wished that the Pikachu would have known that.

The Herdier turned around, before having a second thought and twisting his head towards Shinra. “We’ll be traveling with you for a bit...” Delta trailed off at the end, not wanting to give his exact reasons for why he had decided to come along so abruptly - but truth be told he noticed that Xela had simply... lost herself. Padding up to her once again, he sniffed her pelt in concern. “Xela? Xela, dear. We’ll follow Shinra, find food and shelter. Please, Xela. We must strive forward.” Delta walked in a brisk circle around her, licking her ear in support. He’d have to take point of their duo for a bit. “You must strive forward. Please, Xela, look me in the eye.”

He whispered softly now, pressing his ears down upon his head with just a tad bit of fear. “Xela. Come back to me. Please.”

Things went south real fast. Shinra had trouble keeping up with what had happened and why. One minute they were civil, the next minute there want yelling and attacks being thrown. When Delta was hit by a bolt of electricity from the pikachu, Shinra immediately rushed to his side, concerned about the dog's condition. Thankfully, though, he was fine. Shinra wanted to say a few words herself, but before she could do so the charizard was heading off, flapping her wings intentionally hard enough to create blades of wind. Shinra stepped forward, taking the brunt of the attack herself. It didn't do too much damage, though she did get a few cuts here and there. Oww...

“We’ll be traveling with you for a bit...” She heard Delta say. She nodded in response. It was safer in groups anyway. Besides, Xela looked like she was still in pretty bad condition. Concerned, Shinra said softly, "Xela, it'll be okay. I...I know what happened back there was horrible, and it bothers me too, but we have to move on. The same thing's happening everywhere now, so while we can mourn for a while, we can't let it take us over." The eevee wasn't exactly a pro a comforting, but she hoped what she had said helped, even if only a little.

"Wh-who's there?" The trembling voice asked, Lithium gave a snort, "A bit rude to ask for my name before giving yours," the Shiny Ponyta said jokingly, "Nonetheless, I go by the Alkali Metal; Lithium. It would be nice if I could see you as I greeted you though." Lithium tilted her head over to look a bit behind the boulder, only to see nothing from her view. She was frankly disappointed in not being able to see the source of the spark, he put off an interesting show earlier.

She played around the rocks down near her hooves as she awaited a reply, though she felt another Pokemon watching the twosome speak. Lithium didn't relaly know how to react to this, besides simply continuing the conversation between her and the one behind the boulder. The Ponyta glanced down at her jar that was hidden underneath her scarf, thankful that it was too dark to be able to see her treasure.
The Fire Horse won't even allow an invisible being see her jar.

[Ooc: Argentum skipped me ^^;;;;]

((I'm a dummy head, skip please.))

Caught up in her own nightmarish thoughts, Delta's words finally pierced through to her and her blank stare finally took on the wisdom her eyes had always shone and she titled her head to Delta who looked terribly scared and worried. "Delta? What happened? Why do you look so sad?" Xela couldn't understand why he looked so scared and she stepped forward and pressed her muzzle against his chest, a tear falling down her cheek and she didn't understand why she was crying. "Xela, it'll be okay. I...I know what happened back there was horrible, and it bothers me too, but we have to move on. The same thing's happening everywhere now, so while we can mourn for a while, we can't let it take us over." Shinra spoke to her also in a worried tone and Xela nodded dumbly to her wishing she knew what they were talking about.

[Skip, Lithium really has nothing to do without Crimson here ^^; ]

(errr skip please my post depends on Negative10)

“Delta? What happened? Why do you look so sad?” The Herdier immediately perked his ears at the sound of her voice, surprised to find that it was not broken with sadness or loss. Rather, the Delcatty just seemed confused as to why he was speaking to her in such a downtrodden tone. Taking a step back to examine Xela completely, Delta cocked his head in question. Do you really not know...?

“Hm... I suppose we can discuss it later.” He was still worried. Just a second before, the cat had been traumatized to the point that surroundings and events were null and void to her. The next moment, and Xela is simply lost to the situation. Perhaps this is a side-effect of the trauma... The Loyal Dog Pokemon shook his head, sighing as he turned to the Eevee. “Shall we follow the others, Shinra?” Delta brushed his fur comfortably against Xela’s before beginning to pad down the tunnel.

In all frankness, the dog didn’t fancy the pair that they had recently met - more so the brash Charizard, but the Thunderbolt was completely unnecessary! - but he couldn’t help but feel his curiosity be piqued. Despite how critical the Charizard had been and how fearful that Pikachu had initially acted, Delta was interested to know their backstory, good morals or not. Is it proper to ask of their history...? The normal type pressed onward, pushing the thought away. In this ragtag world, etiquette might as well be out of the question.

Delta rounded the corner, wondering where in the world the two could have gone in this large mountain. It’s not hard to get lost in these caverns. The Herdier noted absentmindedly attempting to find solid form in the lucid darkness. In the near distance, he could make out the red flame of the Charizard from before. Hm... Forgetting about the mistresses he had been with just moments before, the Herdier came forward, only to see the flickering of a new fire - a blue flame that created a different shadow that casted itself on the mountain’s wall. Ducking behind a large boulder, Delta paused in wait while the others caught up to his position. Who might that be? He supposed he would find out soon enough.

((OOC-due to homework and guest I can not post. I apologize))

[Ooc - Skip ^^ Interact with Lithium?]

Xela's response confused Shinra. A minute ago she seemed hopelessly depressed, apparantly tramatized by Loli's death. Now here she was, confused about why they were trying to cheer her up. I don't know whether to be relieved or more worried... Shinra glanced in Delta's direction, curious if he were just as shocked as she was. Though he was somewhat hard to read, the surprise was there. "Hm... I suppose we can discuss it later.” He said, concern clearly in his voice. He then turned his attention to Shinra, asking if she was ready to move on. She nodded in response, walking alongside the pair.

They walked queitly along the natural paths of the mountain, everyone apparently in their own little world of thoughts. Shinra couldn't wait to leave this place, to be completely honest. It reeked of sulfur, and the air was impossible to breath thanks to all of the ash floating around.
A faint glow ahead of them caught Shinra's attention, as well as Delta's. Though the dog took cover behind some rocks, Shinra continued to walk forward. The red glow was definately that of the Charizard's tail. The dragon didn't seem to have any problems with her in particular, so perhaps a direct approach wouldn't go too badly.
"Hey there, you calm now?" She called out.

[ooc: skip, way too busy ;-; ]