The BLACKTHORNE Team

"Vladimir is fine.There is no need for formal titles in this distressing world we are encased in." Whatever formal titles were, Derek had no idea, but he didn't really care. Written in the Fates hadn't responded yet, but the Eevee just wondered why Vladimir was staring at him like that. It was kinda weird. "Yes perhaps we should young Derek,we must seek a fortified area in which to use as a both a shelter and a fortress." Fortified? Fortress? How in the world was Derek supposed to know what those words meant? At least he knew what shelter was-now the Eevee knew what the Ninetales was talking about, sort of. "This region is covered in rocks and rough ground.Over there next to that clifface rising above our current ground is a boulder which we should be able to fit behind.However,we will need to take watch as the top will remain undefended from aerial attacks." Derek tilted his head in utter confusion. Vladimir used way too many puzzling words and sentences. Wasn't there anyone around who could talk in a basic way, like Derek did? However I'm open to suggestions for a secure fortress.Where ever we decide to hide I'll take first watch while you sleep.I shall wake you an hour after dawn I will take my rest.While I sleep Written In The Fates and Derek you two will need to see if there is any berries or water.However,Written you are unable to fly so you and Derek will need to stick together.If you are attacked, escape and run here.If you happen to collect the berries and water unscathed divide them evenly among the six of us."

Okay, now Derek got what Vladimir was saying! He knew where to find berries and water, and was willing to share with these guys. "I know where I can find food and stuff!" Derek exclaimed with enthusiasm. "I can show you where."

If she could compare her life to anything in the world, it would be to a long passage within a dark cave. Within there, she would flounder about helplessly within the blackness, but along the way she would find friends and teammates who would help her along the way. She would still be developed within the treacherous dark, but not alone; indeed, the more she reflected on it, she was never alone...

The small Eevee had introduced himself as Derek, and seemed slightly confused as to why she couldn’t fly. It’s a long story, Derek. Sighing to herself, she hopped after Vladimir, noticing that the Ninetails almost had a gleam within his eye as he looked at Derek. It only took a moment for the Swellow to comprehend what the look meant - Vladimir was viewing the Eevee as if he were a student of his! Clucking her tongue slightly in amusement, she listened intently to Vladimir as he spoke of finding a place to recover and recuperate as they awaited to meet up with Rocket and Bass once more.

When Derek had spoken that he knew where replenishing resources could be found, Written nodded in favor. “Oh my, please do lead the way!” The Swallow Pokemon nodded with jubilee, glad to find something to fill her stomach. I can’t remember the last time I ate! How long ago was it, really? Her stomach grumbled in protest, and Written decided it was better not to count how many days had it been that she had eaten anything fulfilling.

As for Rocket and Bass... She could only hope that the two of them would return alright. Although their relationship grew slowly, she found that she really treasured their company (despite their odds). There was that large Torterra, his friendly demeanor very charming, albeit just a bit on the loud side. His tree had Pecha berries too, so that was a plus! And Rocket, though having a complicated character, was truly a reliable friend. Just like in adventure novels, one always finds a partner by their side.

Tilting her head upward to push her glasses back, Written looked at the small Eevee, then to the larger Ninetails, before going back to Derek. Indeed, the group they all resided within was an odd and definitely misfit one, but for some reason or another, their individual puzzle pieces fell into place soundly. “Lead the way, Derek, lead the way.” Clutching with one talon a pencil and in the other a Chesto berry, Written in the Fates was ready for whatever came at her. With my friends, that is.

... and she was certainly not by herself. With a huff of determination, she stepped towards the end of the tunnel, looking out into the night sky.

Rocket moved quietly but quickly through the dark, damp cave. He was pretty sure that they had been lucky this time and that Bass's yelling had somehow managed not to attract unwanted attention. Maybe this cave in particular was uninhabited. Still, the Torterra was suddenly very quiet. Rocket began to think that he had offended him in some way, so decided to try and lighten the mood a little bit, albeit quietly.

"Hey, I know it looks all doom and gloom right now, but it could be worse. Just imagine if we were stuck in here with Vladimir. But then again, I doubt he could've gotten his big head through that hole."

The Gabite chuckled at his own joke as he came to another steep pathway. He dug his claws into the dirt and hauled himself up. Once at the top, he stomped and swore as it appeared to be a dead end. He was just about to tell Bass to turn round and go back when he noticed a large vertical crack in the centre of the wall. Closing one eye and peeping through it, he saw the interior of an immense cavern, within the centre of which there was a huge pool of water.

"Hey, big guy, I think I've found it!" Rocket hissed to Bass as the Torterra reached the top of the path. "I can see a light up ahead; no doubt that leads out into Route 45. Well, it'd better or else we're fucked."

Rocket stood back a little to allow Bass to look through the crack and began to wonder how they were going to break through. His Iron Tail attack might do the trick, but he doubted that his relatively small frame would be able to break straight through a solid wall. A huge Pokemon like Bass on the other hand...

"So, do you think you can break through there?"

Something felt strange ... almost as if he'd seen the other side of the wall before. He wanted to go through and find out, but at the same time there was a little voice at the back of his head that told him it was a bad idea and that he should stay away. He tried to ignore it as he waited for the Torterra's answer.

"Hey, I know it looks all doom and gloom right now, but it could be worse. Just imagine if we were stuck in here with Vladimir. But then again, I doubt he could've gotten his big head through that hole."

“Excuse me?” The Torterra was slightly confused, to say the least. He didn’t understand what the Dragon-type meant by the “big head through that hole” comment, but he was pretty sure it wasn’t intended to be nice. Bass would have asked about how Vladimir’s could be described as big seeing as it was the average size for a Ninetails, but then again, he didn’t want to annoy his poor companion.

So instead of saying anything, the big tortoise continued on, following the Gabite who had begun to laugh at something he’d found funny. They had both continued moving until they’d reached a steep pathway, well at least for Rocket.

"Hey, big guy, I think I've found it! I can see a light up ahead; no doubt that leads out into Route 45. Well, it'd better or else we're fucked." A way out? At this, Bass moved towards the crack, just to take a peak to see if it was in fact true. All he could really see was a cavern with a pool of water in the center.

“Are you sure this’ll lead us back to the others-”

“So, do you think you can break through there?" Blinking in surprise, Bass turned to the Gabite. He couldn’t believe he was trusting him with BREAKING through a wall. Didn’t he know the consequences in doing such a thing. First of all, it would create one hell of a loud boom, alerting their enemies of their presence. Two, for all they knew, the force of the impact could shake the cave enough from the roof above to let loose and bring the roof down. Three, well, you couldn’t really rely on the guy with any sort of job seeing as he’d find a way to screw it up.

The Grass-type was just about to disagree when suddenly, a roar followed by a bright flash that had come from further down the cave. ‘Oh no....’ Oh no was right seeing as a horde of Zubats and Folbats alike came flying towards them.

“I guess now would be as good a time as ever to break down that wall, huh?”

Route 42/Night (14)
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"I know where I can find food and stuff!I can show you where."
Hmmm, resourceful and he seems to have an adequate memory. I'll need to learn his move-set to see his physical capabilities. A bit naive, something that might prove to be a resource or a obstruction.

“Oh my, please do lead the way!Lead the way, Derek, lead the way."

Heh, she seemed overjoyed at the prospect of food.

"Indeed Derek, show us the location and we shall provide the means"
My paw was still covered in an almost notable amount of clotted blood. This was necessary to prevent it from reopening.My muzzle was clear of blood except for the very tip I decided to clean the rest when we get to the water source.

"Cease your pace for a brief moment."
I look at Derek and Written, one is young and inexperienced, the other is weakened and unable to properly defend herself in her current injured state. I am unsure of Bass and Rocket's current state, but divided we can not stand. We should wait for them...

However, I may be putting on a courageous act but I am exhausted and hungry. Written's case is more worrisome, without her flight she can't use most of her attacks or communicate if we are separated. She is a valuable member of are nomadic clan, for without her we would crumble.

"Written, you should recuperate on my back, you need to regain some of your stamina." I turn my gaze to Derek."Keep to my left, do not walk ahead or stray behind. If you notice an assailant before I do alert me. Now lead the way."

Derek was glad that Written in the Fates and Vladimir were letting him lead the way. They must've been really hungry. Derek was so excited about it, he nearly darted straight to his berry stash, but then Vladimir told him to stop. Derek was thoroughly confused: why did he want him to stop when the Ninetales had just told him to lead on? Derek sat down for a second as Vladimir looked over him and Written. The Eevee was eager to show them where to go, since the pair seemed really hungry, but waited for Vladimir to speak again. The Ninetales then told Derek to stay near him and not run off. Slightly disappointed, Derek went over to Vladimir. "Okay, I have a food stash not far from here," he told the others. "But it's not much..."

Did she deserve to be helped, when she could barely do anything in return? When she was disabled, unable to help those around her? With a sigh and a huff, she could only stare helplessly...

Written had been hopping along rather peacefully (with the exception of her wings, but that's besides the point), following Derek in anticipation of the berries that were to come, when Vladimir 'ceased' his movement, calling a halt to all their actions. The Swellow immediately stopped, and just for a moment, realized how much she had changed. Long ago, she swore that she would not have stopped; or at least, she would have questioned the order entirely. The aftermath of the epidemic. Wincing to herself at the reminder of what she had lost, the Swallow Pokemon turned back towards the Ninetails.

"Written, you should recuperate on my back, you need to regain some of your stamina." The phrase was simple, concise even, but despite that, the Swellow was entirely touched. Glancing around towards the thick forest and the dying light of the day, Written in the Fates felt her heart burst with new found love for the friends made here. Tilting her head upward, her glasses were once again righted upon her beak, and with that, she nodded with much thanks towards the fire fox. It was only then that she realized just how awfully tired she was, and how eager she became as she hopped onto Vladimir's back.

"Thanks, Vlad,I really needed this." she whispered tiredly, only now letting herself take a breather. When was the last time that she had actually relaxed? Instead of questioning others, I've begun to question myself. Settling gently into his naturally warm fur, Written stared out into the darkness, wondering how the boisterous Rocket and silly Bass were doing. As two ground types, they both must be adequate underground. Ruffling her feathers, the Swellow could only hope that they would make it out alright and meet up with them safely. I could only hope...

With a heave, Written brought her mind back to the job at hand. They were to travel as a pack, as a designated unit working as a team; and they could do that, if they allowed themselves to. Taking a surveillance for the immediate area, the Swellow could only noticed winged shadows in the nearby trees. Hrm... That was never a good sign. Narrowing her eyes with suspicion, Written tapped a talon on Vladimir's fine fur. "Vlad, outer reaches of the forest - there's birds lurking about." With a sincere look at Derek, whom she really did not want to scare with more frightening birds coming their way, she prepared to use a Supersonic to defend herself.

... as her nightmare nearly came true with each passing event, where her friends perished and she was the only one to survive because they were helping her. No, she would not allow that to happen; the only thing that could stop her from helping would be death itself, and even by that she hoped to be by their side spiritually.

Bass seemed a little hesitant at Rocket's request for him to knock the wall down. Sure there was a risk of the ceiling caving in, but as long as they got through the hole and into the cave in time they'd be OK. In fact it'd probably be beneficial; no Infected would be able to follow them in.

But they also wouldn't be able to get back if they needed to.

While Rocket scratched his cheek and tried to find a solution that wasn't completely crazy, he was quickly distracted by a great roar from behind followed by a blinding flash of light. He quickly shielded his eyes and as the light faded he jumped a foot into the air as he spotted a horde of Zubat and Golbat charging at them.

“I guess now would be as good a time as ever to break down that wall, huh?”

"Yeah, now would be great," Rocket said irritably, but couldn't help but grin at the large group of Infected Poison-types heading straight towards him. "I'll hold them off. You just get to work on that wall, yeah? And hurry!"

When the first Zubat was mere inches away from him, Rocket leapt up into the air as his tail began to glow with a bright, silvery light. He span around and knocked the undead flying into a wall with a powerful Iron Tail attack. Upon landing he dished out one Dragon Claw after another, intent on preventing any of them from getting past him and interfering with Bass's work. There were loads of them, more than he had expected, and he was beginning to get a few nicks and cuts from where a few of them had managed to dodge his attacks.

A few tiny injuries like that weren't about to stop him though. He almost wanted to scream down the cave for more of them to come. To him, the more the better.

"Yeah, now would be great."

Yup, he was mad. 'What else is new.' He really was/is a screw-up. It was an incredibly true sentiment, one that would always channel his anger and frustration out. In the end, the Torterra decided to use his emotions to help him smash his way through the wall. Behind him, Bass could hear the sounds of fighting and more reinforcements coming down their way.

By this time, he'd already managed to bust a hole big enough for the Gabite to get through. The only problem was his ginormous size, for a turtle.

"WHY CAN'T THIS DAMNED WALL JUST CRUMBLE ALREADY?!"

Okay. So he was annoyed- no wait. That's pretty much the understatement of the century. No. Bass was pissed. The Grass-type didn't really know why. Maybe it was just that time-of-the month for male turtles, but whatever, he was still irritated beyond belief. And the fact that a few stray Zubats and shit had come flying his direction did nothing to calm him down.

"IF'VE." One hard whack here. "HAD." Another there. "ENOUGH OF THIS SHIT!" Aaaaaaaand one good hit right in the middle. The last crack managed to strike a homerun right down the middle and created a hole big enough for the two of them to pass through. Smirking at his handiwork, Bass began to make his way, venturing deeper into the unknown.

Route 45/Night (15)
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As Written in the Fates clambered upon my back and remarked her thanks, Derek responded to my earlier statement.

"Okay, I have a food stash not far from here,but it's not much..."

Do not worry, Derek, I'm sure--

A crash akin to thunder resounds throughout the area. My ears ring but a smirk pulls my lips back over my teeth.

Well it seems the rook has made his move. I wonder if the bishop is still with him?

I turn back to the path we are on.I tilt my head to look at Derek.

Well Derek we must take the Queen to the end of the board for now she is but a pawn.

((OoC:To limit confusion Vlad is overhearing the sound Bass caused when he broke through the wall. He is speaking in chess metaphors and sees each of the people as pieces. Bass is a rook. Rocket is a Bishop. Written is a queen.However he calls her a pawn because of her thoroughly degenerated state. He views the place where Derek is leading them as one end of the board and when they arrive they shall turn her into a queen. I left some people out. He views Derek as Knight and Rio as a queen on the opposite side.))

Derek really liked the forest, and completely forgot about caution as he lead his new friends to the food stash. The rather naive Eevee didn't notice the shadows of wings in the trees, completely focused on where they were heading. But a booming crash brought Derek back to earth with an unpleasant jolt. “What in the world was that?“ Derek asked, startled, but Vladimir only said a bunch of phrases that only confused the Eevee even more. Didn't this fox ever speak normally? Derek could only guess that the Queen Vladimir mentioned was Written in the Fates. Besides that, Derek was left in the dark. “Don't worry, we should be almost there!“ Derek announced cheerfully. Hopefully nothing had gotten into his stash.

(I hate these short posts...hopefully they'll get better soon!)

This was beginning to become ridiculous. Actually, this entire time has been on the verge of going over nuts, but this time, yes, this time it jumps over it completely and across it.

“Well Derek, we must take the Queen to the end of the board, for now she is but a pawn.” Written cawed nervously at that, quickly taking it up that he was speaking of her. It didn’t settle her nerves however, as the flapping of wings continued and seemed to be coming closer. The Swellow allowed her eyes to dart around anxiously as the trees rustled with death. We’re in grave danger. The little Eevee was going to learn that soon enough, and Written knew that Vladimir had caught onto the situation. They were sure to be outnumbered, and beaten to a pulp if things don’t get evened out soon.

That was when the onslaught began. Pidgeys, Spearows, and their entire evolution lines exploded from the trees all around them, their loud bays and shouts drilling into Written’s head. Their pecking followed soon afterward, and she swore that the relentless beaks would never stop. We’ve got to do something! I’ve got to do something! It was beginning to feel utterly hopeless. If only she could fly, then Written would be able to distract a few of them while Vlad and Derek took care of the others. Then with unspoken teamwork they could wipe out this flock. But I’ve got to fly...

Written in the Fates grunted in determination, and with a flap of her wings, she had taken to the sky, leaving behind her spot upon the Ninetails’ back. It took several moments for the fact to register that she was flying once again! The Swellow almost felt overcome with emotion (she never knew how much she missed flight until she couldn’t fly at all), but whatever sentiments she were to have, she did not have the time for. The fight was far from over, the victory far from their grasp. Written darted in between the birds, ramming into whichever she can with Quick Attacks.

“Vlad! Derek!” She called to them through the thick of battle, drawing closer to the ground despite the attacking infected. Derek was a young Eevee - would he be alright? Surely by the way he had first stared at her, a bird such as the ones trying to kill them, meant that he was frightened by their flying foes? All the more to help him. Shooting a quick glance towards Vladimir, she flew forward along the ground, using Supersonic on the closest Pidgey. There was too much, even with all three of their powers, they could only last for so long. Hopefully Rocket and Bass may come back soon. Her blue wings glistened in the night sky, and Written had never felt so great and horrid at the same time.

... she had been returned a nature-given gift, only to face a much more threatening danger.

They just kept coming! No sooner had he cleared the last bunch of Infected Zubat and Golbat, a shitload of Crobat came flapping towards him as well! Rocket was more than happy to dispose of them too, but the Gabite was starting to get a little tired. He bled from a few wounds and bite marks on his fins and neck. Panting, he wielded one Dragon Claw after another, desperate to keep them away from Bass while he did his work on the wall.

Lots of yelling, a rumble and a tremor in the ground suggested that the Torterra had done his job correctly. Rocket took down the last Crobat with an Iron Tail and quickly turned and limped through the hole after Bass.

"Whoa ... you ... you actually did it ... Nice work," he panted, heading straight to the pool of water to wash his wounds before anything unwanted slipped into his bloodstream. "Let's get a move on, eh? We need ... to find the others."

But Rocket somehow felt that the danger hadn't passed yet. That flash of light, the roars ... something had provoked those Poison-types to attack and whatever it was was no doubt still in the caves and looking for them.

"You go on ahead," he told Bass. "I'll take up the rear in case anything else decides to pay us a visit."

((ooc: Im sorry but I really just can't think of anything. oh and to help things along, let's just say that Bass's a little hesitant to leave Rocket to take the rear after seeing his wounds and tries to convince the Gabite that he, Bass, should just take watch at the back rather than the front ))

Route 45/Night (16)
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A torrent of flying pokemon rose from the trees like a Golbat out of hell. Some looked like they were freshly infected, others looked to have decayed past the point of controlled movement flying erratically.

As Written left my back a fully undead Pidgey flew towards me.

"Insipid creature, if you think a frontal attack will work on me, YOU HAVE GRAVELY MISCALCULATED!"

I sprang at the beast with my claw outstretched towards its grotesque face. I missed but, that was the point. As it swerved to my left, I used flamethrower to blind it. I then used my left claw to drag it back to earth with me. As it struggled to escape my claws I went to work on its head with Ember, until finally it's head exploded from the heat. All of this took place with in a minute.

Swiveling my head to the side I saw a Pidgeotto and a Taillow heading towards me at break neck speed. I waited till the last second before jumping into the air, while my tail wrapped around the small rubble lying around.

As the Pidgeotto used wing attack, I threw a sharp stone concealed in my tail at its forehead. However the Taillow managed to cut my right arm with its talons. Through the pain I managed to bring my paw up to block it from using gust. I hit the ground on my back. As pain wracked my spine the Taillow aimed an Aerial Ace at my stomach.

I managed to roll to the side and avoid its beak.I used extrasensory to stop it from taking back into the air. I swiftly used quick attack to knock the Taillow down. Using the rock I had in my tail I managed to crush its beak to a cracked shape. I then shoved the rock down its throat and pounded it until it came out of the back of its head.

I looked around
Left
Right
Forward
Backwa-
DEREK!!

A Fearow was aiming its beak at the young Eevee's spine.

~Theres no time!~

I raced across the ground jumped over Derek and took the hit intended for him right to the chest!!

((OoC:He's not done yet folks.))

Derek didn't have much time to think before a storm of crazed birds burst out to attack them. Written had begun to fly again, and Vladimir was attacking a lot of the new enemies, but the Eevee was so confused he didn't know what to do. Derek wasn't very powerful, and he couldn't attack the frenzy of flying enemies. But the worst came when a Fearow went right for Derek; he was so shocked he had no time to move before the Ninetales came and took a hit right to the chest. "Vladimir!" Derek cried out, and thinking the fox had been killed, he jumped up at the Fearow and sunk his sharp little teeth into its right wing. The bird screeched and tears came down Derek's face, but the determined Eevee refused to let go as vile-tasting blood filled his mouth.

She was losing hope. No, they were losing hope, in the face of this dying battle. So why did she not give up? Why is she still striving to help? Why...?

Written swore to herself that her heart had never beat so frantically - and it was sort of ironic, seeing as the foes she was fighting no longer had beating hearts. Or just flat-out freaky, The Swellow ducked under the battling bodies of the other birds, cursing as she ended the life of a fellow Swellow. Written in the Fates slammed into several of the other Pokemon, her adrenaline getting the best of her.

Stopping mid-flight as she spun to disperse the crowd of attackers, the Swallow Pokemon spread her wings and darted upward. Spearows were beginning to gather and chase her as a flock, and after narrowing her eyes, Written used Quick Attack and crashed into them headfirst, leaving a trail of a blue smear behind her. Ha! She thought to herself in victory as they looked about in confusion and then in hurt as she rammed into them.

She roughly landed on the ground, but not without seeing a Fearow bring its furious beak onto Vladimir. “Vlad!” Just for a single moment, the entire world seemed to stop, and Written’s eyes instantly began to fill with tears. Another friend, one that she had finally begun to actually rely on... was he going to die too? Now on the earth, Written lay on her chest in despair, choking back her emotions. The world blurry from the tears in her pupils, the Swellow swayed upward onto her feet, knowing she had to go on. First Tony... now Vladimir... who else am I going to lose?

Written wiped her wing along her beak, taking away her tears. Whatever sacrifices were made were so that others could live another day. Taking a deep breath, she threw a Supersonic against her foes, tears once again staining her feathers. How much will she have to suffer before it all ends? How long ago had it been that she was truly the innocent bird she remembers? Stepping backward and away from the fight, the teary eyed Swellow noticed a Wooper amongst attacking birds. “Get... get away!” She will not let another die if she had some to say about it.

How long could she go on before it became too much for her?

"No, really, I'd rather do it," Rocket replied sharply as Bass began to question his actions. "No offense or anything, but I'm faster than you. I'd be better at it. And don't let these pathetic little nicks and cuts bother you. It's nothin', trust me."

He cast a wary eye behind him, then looked forward and leaned to the side so he could see past Bass's huge form. There was a faint light coming from round a corner up ahead.

"There! I bet that's it!" he said, swallowing his own words and picking up the pace and walking beside Bass instead of behind him. C'mon, big guy, let's get the hell out of here. The others will be wondering where we are. Besides, this place is giving me the creeps..."

He still had that strange feeling that he had experienced before and somehow it was no telling him to get out of there as soon as possible. The thing that disturbed Rocket was how it was no longer because of whatever was following them before. He picked up his walking speed more still, overtaking Bass as they turned the corner and saw, with great relief, the exit to the cave.

Once outside, Rocket filled his lungs with fresh air and immediately began to look around for any sign of Written and the others. The terrain was a little harsh with rocky alcoves and hills alongside a few trees and small patches of grass.

Sounds of a conflict in the distance reached the Gabite's ears. He turned his head towards the source - a little further south - and turned to Bass.

"I can hear stuff going on down there somewhere," he said, pointing his claw. "It might be the others ... c'mon, let's go see." He began running in the direction of the sound, hoping that he wasn't leading them both into chaos.

"No, really, I'd rather do it. No offense or anything, but I'm faster than you. I'd be better at it. And don't let these pathetic little nicks and cuts bother you. It's nothin', trust me."

“O-okay...” It was official. He, a big, supposedly strong, Torterra had just proven himself to be about as useless as a leaf blowing in the wind. The poor guy was pretty damn disappointed, though, knowing that he had most likely stood in the way of his frie-no, acquaintance. Actually now that he thought about it, Bass had, more than likely, annoyed the hell out of the Gabite.

Sighing in dejection, the Torterra watched as Rocket cast a wary eye behind him, then, turning back and leaning to the side, noticed a faint light coming from round a corner up ahead.

"There! I bet that's it! C'mon, big guy, let's get the hell out of here. The others will be wondering where we are. Besides, this place is giving me the creeps..."

Before Bass could even get a word out about watching out for those infected, Rocket had shot off towards the opening, leaving the Torterra to bite the dust. ‘Looks like we’re finally gonna catch up to the others. Thank Arceus!’ The day ahead looked bright and promising, but even so, the big, hulk of a pokemon couldn’t shake off this feeling that had settled at the bottom of his stomach, making him feel both unsettled and worried. He didn’t know what the future held, but he had an idea that it wouldn’t be pretty.

Letting out another sigh, this time of exhaustion and fatigue at may lay ahead. The Continental Pokemon really didn’t feel up to running after Rocket and had decided that maybe it was probably just best to take up the rear. ‘Oh well. At least we’ll be out soon.’

Route 45

“Ah, it feels good to be back.” Bass could only bask in glory at the sweet evening chill that wrapped itself around the Torterra, rustling his leaves as he padded towards the other half of their group, just up ahead. It seemed, though, that the group was involved in some sort of conflict. It seemed Rocket picked up on it too as he turned to the Grass-type. "I can hear stuff going on down there somewhere," he said, pointing his claw. "It might be the others ... c'mon, let's go see." And off he went, towards the direction of the fighting.

‘Of course he would. The guy’s a pretty free spirit, after all.’ On the other hand, however, Bass had decided to just watch the battle from a distance, knowing that he’d only screw something up and make the situation worse. Scanning the area, the Torterra had nearly missed the purple fur Luxray standing by the thick green grass watching his companions. Just then, it’d began to move towards his fr- ACQUAINTANCES! Why can’t he get that right?!

Anyways, back to the situation at hand. The Luxray was making its way to the others, Roaring the whole way there, which had just about scared the small fry off. ‘What is this? That’s an infected, right?’ The pokemon looked infected, but at the same time extremely scared. Even so, the Torterra could only ponder in confusion as to why he felt nothing towards the infected Luxray, no feeling of contempt, rage, worry, etc.

‘Maybe I should just head up there and introduce myself. Who knows, I could make friends with the newcomer, despite its otherwise infected nature.’ And so off he went to introduce himself, maybe even learn his/her story and get over his underlying rage towards all undead bastards. ‘I can only hope my expectations will be met and that this Electric-type meant no harm.’