(ACE) The OLIVINE Team

The memorial faded to silence; the burial was said and done.

Rebel and Miyu remained near each other physically but oceans apart emotionally might’ve been an understatement. A single inhale to ask a question, most likely in concern of her best interest, was hushed immediately by a warning lash of her tail. Reb complied; believe it or not, he did have a sense of inhibition and saying a word right now felt like it might not end terribly well.

Her eyes were fixed on the mound of dirt. General curiosity was twisted into morbid questions about post-death that added anxiety to the list of things she didn’t want to deal with.
"Come on everyone." Thoughts dissipating like a bell of clarity had rung, both Eeveelutions stood. Miyu’s legs wobbled like she was standing on appendages of jelly, but nonetheless took a place walking behind Cinder obediently. "....We're going to the Battle Arcade.." The Quilava’s tone was delicate but the meaning of the words was nonexistent. Battle Arcade. She had no idea what that was and didn’t have the concern to wrack her brain over it. "Once we get back into the Frontier area we'll head east."
Faux padded to the forefront and past Cinder. "We should probably still use the Battle Castle as our shelter." She said coolly. "Or a fall back in an instance where we get separated."

The pavement was sunkissed and warmer than the grass, their destination shortly ahead with no obvious threats in their line of sight. Surrealism seemed to hang on the air given the mixed moods supplied by the environment; a bright sun and clear skies didn’t set the scene for returning from a funeral, and for someone who lived in the world before it went to hell, the twinge of dread creeping up Reb’s spine and spiking his fringes felt almost unreasonable. All the while, he, himself, felt like he was watching everything from a spectator’s point of view. He passed it off as an uncomfortable blend of exhaustion and nerves heightening his mind that could be as clear as mud some days.

“So, I hate to be that guy, but has anyone scouted this place at all yet?” Rebel asked. Having lived with humans at least half of his life, he could honestly say he still didn’t understand them - why did this place look like upside down Christmas ornaments on platforms?

((OoC - Sorry for bad quality. My mind is elsewhere right now…))

"We should move on."
Just like that, it was over. With a heavy heart Etincelle gave a parting glance at the grave and padded off after his companions. Mel had started up before him, walking solemnly behind Cinder but close to Miyu, and he found himself bounding after her. Falling into step beside her the Electrike can see the pained frown spread across her maw, her hanging head probably lost in thought though he couldn't tell for sure without her eyes. Tilting just a step closer he brushes his head along the side of her shoulder and chest, but instead of her usual lean back the Nintales flinched. Her body stiffened, paws nearly buckling, and a moment later she bound forward without a word.

Etin's expression grows into a mixture of worry and sadness as his head tilts to the side. She's hurting. The loss had been rough for her, was this just her way of processing it? I thought girls liked to talk about things. Sighing through his nostrils he hurried after the others, his small pause bringing him to the rear of the group. Give her time, see if she comes around.

Though Cinder tried to breath life back into the grieving Pokemon most her words held little to make conversation out of. It was only when they made it back into the Frontier area and Rebel spoke out a concern that Etincelle found himself aware once more. “So, I hate to be that guy, but has anyone scouted this place at all yet?” Etincelle's paws came to a sudden halt, his body jerking forward for a moment at the sharp stop. Just the day before he had scouted out the Battle Castle with Rosko by his side. Together they searched, discovered, and fought to keep their teammates safe. That journey had brought the two close, or so he felt it had. If things had gone appropriately they would be doing that again today, in a new place, confident in their art but cautious to its dangers.

But life didn't work that way. Despite their careful searching and honed senses they had allowed for an intruder to find them. For all they knew this new place of obscenely dangerous. No one knew its ins and outs, or even if it was structurally sound. "No," Etincelle breathed out a whisper. His pink eyes were wide, and while they were staring right at the Battle Arcade all he saw was the possibilities of its insides. Puffing up his chest the small hound stood a little bit taller as he spoke, "but I can go on ahead. I was a scout before and I'll gladly do it again." If he had to do it alone, then so be it.

"Etincelle.." The Ninetales whined from behind him, one of her paws gingerly outstretched. You don't have to fill his shoes.. He had shooed her away in place of the fellow hound but now he didn't have that option. Now he would be on his own, trying to take on a risky double role in a new place, and there was no way she would stand for that. "No, I'll go with you." Her voice was firm, and almost angrily bold, but letting Etin of all Pokemon go off alone was not an option.

Cinder took in a deep breath, her eyes locked on the red and blue shapes of the Battle Arcade. Though time had not done it justice its bright colors were only somewhat faded and dirty. Compared to that around it it was still a beacon of attention and appeared to be in good standing.If its been left alone it could make for some cool salvaging.. But her thought bubble popped as Rebel brought up a very important and worrying point. “So, I hate to be that guy, but has anyone scouted this place at all yet?” She had a decent memory of the Battle Frontier, its basic layout and the meaning to its buildings. It had been one of her obsessions after all, but actually physically scouting out the place? "I don't think so," she murmured awkwardly, eyes falling away from the growing shape of the Arcade. "Etin," she starts to ask, turning her head around to the electric type. "You didn't happen to--" but the words fall flat on her tongue, too hard to speak, and too soon.

After a small pause Etincelle nearly sighed the single word. "No." Well, at least he was honest. When he continued, however, Faux's paws nearly scraped the ground. "but I can go on ahead. I was a scout before and I'll gladly do it again." Her ears were already perked and scanning for anything suspicious, but something about the hound's tone or maybe his wording was setting off alarm bells. Was that the start of a suicide mission? "No, I'll go with you." Mel quickly stepped in, possibly picking up the same vibe. Mel," Faux warned, the logistics of a blind scout outweighing the partnership, but she stops herself at the sound of a shaky whimper.

"My name i-is Arry." The child repeated its name, its voice trembling and clearly unsure of what to do. Faux shifted the weight on her shoulders. the feeling being mutual. A child.. now? What if this place was dangerous? Could they really handle watching a kid when they had to watch their backs? But we can't leave him. Even if Arry was to stay in the Battle Castle with a guard that would be a huge burden; they would lose manpower and have a communication issue. Ethically, they couldn't send him off either. Faux's eyes climb up to Mel's wondering how she would handle a babysitter position. It would not go well.

The fox's faint griping and muttering did not miss Cinder's ears, but nor did the Arry's innocent request. "Did we have any berries left?" She asks while looking between everyone. They had divvied up all they had but maybe someone hadn't finished their food. We'd have to head back, she noted mentally while her paws were nearly on the Arcade grounds. "We'd be burning daylight going back." Faux pointed out as she rounded her way past the Quilava. "And we are already this far. We should move forward." Cinder frowned, hoping the child could understand. "Alright." She sighed, rubbing one paw awkwardly across the nape of her neck. "We'll try to find something in this new place, okay Arry?" Her flames flickered shamefully. What had they roped this poor kid into?

Regardless, Cinder knew Faux was right. Heading back to the Battle Castle would gain them nothing, and as her paws hit the ground just a few yards from the Arcade's entrance she knew her excitement would not let her turn back. "It looks pretty good still." She thought aloud, eyes sparkling with awe at the tunnel shaped entrance. Her paws buzzed, ready to bolt inside and explore, but they were also wary and forced her to pad toward the threshold slowly. "Looks like the door is ajar too," its large glass panes were long since darkened and dirty from neglect. "Which is good cause I think its electric."

Pacing along the building in search of anything concerning Faux was relieved to find it surprisingly void of any pools of blood or churned up soil. Nothing has been killing out here. The fox knew not to get too excited, as the same could be said for the Battle Castle aside from its walls being cracked. Sniffing the air it too didn't hold the overlaying scent of rot that hung around lingering undead. Trotting back toward the doorway Faux's ears were up high. "Nothing seems to be nesting outside." She confirmed to them. "Though we should still move as a group in case of ambushes."

"I don't think so," the Quilava responded with an ever-so-uncomfortable quietness. The feeling shifted into the Joltie’s shoulders as well; this could go really well or be cataclysmic, and uncertainties weren't ever a friend. Not in this world. "Etin," she shifted the conversation to the other Electric canine, "You didn't happen to--" But the sentence crumbled into flat silence save for the breaths of the group.
"No." Made no bones about it. "but I can go on ahead. I was a scout before and I'll gladly do it again."
…? Rebel quirked his brows quizzically. With the past events, it wasn't obvious that going in alone would end badly damn near every time? Do you want to die?

Mel’s apprehension was more than apparent, luckily; Rebel had a gut feeling reasoning would be stars easier for her. "No, I'll go with you." Wait, no, that's even worse! He wasn't suggesting anyone go in, he just asked! What kind of man would send a lady in to scout?!

“B-but what if there's something really bad in there?” Miyu blurted. More or less she was staying out of this, but… “If we don't know what we’re dealing with, isn't there advantages in numbers? I mean… we move slower but…” She trailed purposefully, placing her sight on anything except Arry. The youngster had returned to her side, which in her mind made the sentence accidentally seem like she was referring to him. That's not what I meant…

“Subjective,” Rebel responded. “Scouts get in and get out unnoticed easier, which could prevent a fight. But if they are detected, piece o’ cake to kill compared to a group. You only think from one angle.” He could feel the glare on Miyu’s face. If looks could kill, he would've gotten smoked for that lesson in rationale.

While Miyu was used to realism when stacking survival odds, he'd neglected to consider the Aron. Rebel angled his muzzle ever-slightly to look at him and hoped he wouldn't straight up flee at the mangled sight. "My name i-is Arry." The anxiety in the kid’s voice was clear as a bell despite his efforts to push it back. Damn valiant for such a little guy.
“Hey there,” the undead offered, “m’name is Rebel. Don't be so nervous, kiddo.” His somber expression faded to a friendly half-grin towards the Aron. Were all ankle biters this on edge with strangers? Even when I was a kid, I kinda got a kick out of pissin’ people off.

"I'm hungry, c-can I have something t-to eat?"
Both siblings kept silent. Neither were willing to be the one that denied the kid a meal; even without any cruel intent, it seemed like one hell of a harsh thing to do.
“Cinder has a good idea, I bet there's something tasty in here,” Miyu whispered to the Steel-type following the unavoidable ‘no,’ “we can eat together if you want.” She’d be a liar if she claimed not to empathize with him.

"It looks pretty good still." A smirk etched onto Rebel’s face, both confused at the Fire-type’s wonder and entertained by it. "Looks like the door is ajar too," Well that was one thing going well for this operation. "Which is good cause I think its electric." The glass panes had accumulated hella a lot of grime, but at least no one had written ‘don't do it, you will die inside.’ So that was something too.
“Well, me and Etin are Electric too. I'm sure we could do somethin’ if worse comes to worst.”

"Nothing seems to be nesting outside." Faux reported upon her return, "Though we should still move as a group in case of ambushes." The Joltie gave a quick dip of his muzzle in compliance and strode inside.
“Sooo, Battle Arcade… am I stupid for hoping to play Space Invaders…?” He asked. It felt like his own voice was too loud in the abandoned facility, even in a hushed tone.

The room just had a desolate sort of sense to it. That thought remained in the Eevee’s subconscious as she explored, curious but too nervous to stray more than a couple yards. “It’s weird,” she commented in a low voice, “outside is just as devastated but it feels normal. In places like this, it's such a lonely feeling… it's like the building itself is sad about the epidemic…”
“Sympathetic for buildings now?” Rebel teased; his attention was elsewhere but still, he was unable to resist given his winning personality.
“Shut up.”

((OoC; I have no idea. I suddenly forget how to end a post every freaking time lol, as seen above ;w;))

A bolt of palpable tension passed between the fox and the hound, antagonizing some sort of escalation. Mel felt her blood boiling, like one more 'no' would put her over the edge. "Mel," Faux growled, and after three more heartbeats the Ninetales backed down, her body turning and weaving to the other side of the pack. With her head down she muttered under her breath, "You can not stop me." Etincelle's hackles twitched, raising and falling as he tried to calm himself. She's upset. He reminded himself once more, but even that did little to quell the hurt.

"My name i-is Arry. I'm hungry, c-can I have something t-to eat?" The kid's quivering voice struck hard sympathy from both Pokemon. I forgot about the bars. Had he been serious about that? Steel types did need vast minerals to keep up their composition but to actually eat metal? I hope that's not all he eats.
"Did we have any berries left?" Cinder asked, making Etin probe his memories of the previous day. "I don't believe so. At least not enough for everyone." Faux's train of thought mirrored his, and even as Cinder reassured the kid that there would be something at some point but Etin couldn't help but feel bad for him. Poor little guy probably doesn't understand. Standing a bit taller the Electrike decided, right then and there, that he wouldn't let the child feel left out. Miyu whispered something to the kid as he padded over, a smile across his gums. "We'll find something. Then we can tell all sorts of stories, okay?"

When they made it up to the building Etincelle was instantly on the case. Heading straight for the door he peaked his head inside, and while it was darker than the outside would it was still bright enough to see a bit in front of him. Well I don't see any undead or bodies. The undead had been up and personal in the Battle Castle so things were already looking up in that respect. "It smells strangely.. dry. Like all the moisture was burned away." Mel's voice spooked him, the soft touch of her fur suffocating as she stood above him. With a soft yelp the Electrike flinched, his shoulder slamming the side of the door as it sparked defensively. The Ninetales gave a similar yelp and hoped back while a slow, pathetic whir made the sliding doors open just a bit further. "Mel!" He hissed beneath his breath. Well, any sort of stealth they had was already dead.

While most the group acknowledged hearing her the doting pair seemed oblivious. Spooked by his own interest Etin stumbled and shocked not only the Ninetales but the doors as well. They gave a weak whine, their energy source lacking as they tried to move further apart to allow them all unrestricted entry. "What did I just say?!" Faux growled with an annoyed sigh as she bound forward. He ears were stiff, listening carefully for the sound of anything approaching. Nothing. I guess it could have been louder. Her shoulders slack and tails fall as she pads after those who had already entered, but she is far from not alert.

Cinder held her breath as she stepped inside. When they got to the Battle Castle it had been a long day. They were tired and stressed, and the morning was fill with panic, much like today, but she wouldn't let this be a repeat event. With her golden eyes wide the starter Pokemon took in the buildings presence, her flames offering precious extra light. "It's amazing," she breathed, stunned by all the dim monitors, lights, buttons that seemed to decorate the room. It was just the entry, where trainers signed up to participate, but it was still awesome. Against the far wall laid a large desk, the registry point she assumed, with a door on either side of it. A massive monitor hung above above the desk with a jagged crack running through it. Now why would anyone break that?

There were paths on both sides of the room, but Cinder dragged her eyes away from the distance in favor of the walls and desk in search of signs or placards as she walked forward. She couldn't read, but if there were any maps or pictures of the buildings layouts it could really help them. Unfortunately, the only one that caught her eye was next to one of the side paths, and it was one she vaguely recognized as a bathroom symbol. “Sooo, Battle Arcade… am I stupid for hoping to play Space Invaders…?” The Jolteon's light-hearted comment nearly spooked her, but after a moments hesitation she gave a weak laugh. "Gosh, I haven't heard of those in forever."

The Quilava's ease seemed out of place and almost disturbing to Faux. Her ears were still tall and steps silent as she padded around investigating. How can she be so awestruck by dust and dark halls? Did she have no sense? “It’s weird, outside is just as devastated but it feels normal. In places like this, it's such a lonely feeling… it's like the building itself is sad about the epidemic…” Miyu had the right of it. An air of sorrow clung to the space, the musty smell and sadness in neglected machinery not helping its case. By the next moment the kit was bickering with the Jolteon, the tension of the space lost for a moment. "That is probably because its a den." Faux explained cautiously, her voice low. "Outside humans walked and passed by, but buildings are where they live and rest. They are places of safety and life, and to have that be empty.. you can feel that its out of place." Sniffing at a long dead and dried out potted plant the fox frowned. The life was sorely missed. "Not that people lived here, but the effect is the same."

A weak but heavy thud threw Faux's head around to see Cinder jumping onto and over the desk. What in Arceus name.. The Quilava rummaged around, her paws stepping over keyboards, files, and other stuff she did not care about. "You'd think they'd have a map or something.." She grumbled to herself as a stapler thumped to the ground. "I guess we just have to do things the old fashion way." She's looking for a map? Well that was.. unexpectedly selfless. Padding up to each doorway Faux sniffed and peered down the halls. "They each seem to branch." She comments, realizing the number of hiding places was going up.

He was so irritating! It wasn't enough to call her out not once, oh no, twice, and then disregard both situations like he couldn't care less! The kit’s anger poured out of her mind in the form of a scowl drilling at the Jolteon’s shape shrinking with each stride away from her.
"That is probably because its a den." The heat burning under Miyu’s cheek fur faded slowly with each moment her attention was redirected towards Faux. "Outside humans walked and passed by, but buildings are where they live and rest. They are places of safety and life, and to have that be empty.. you can feel that its out of place."
“Aww… this was safety but even that couldn't save them…” Sadly she had little to no fond memories of humanity, but the number that must've had gone through hell in death was too high, even for a species that showed her no affection. Even the porta-bucket plants weren't spared death. "Not that people lived here, but the effect is the same."

The Evolution Pokémon mulled for only a moment until a thunk! captured both foxes’ stare and brought it to Cinder bounding up and over a desk with the accompanying seconds carrying the sounds of her scavenging through piles of useless human stuff. “Whatcha looking for?”

"You'd think they'd have a map or something.." Cinder complained, dropping some other human belonging to the ground, whether accidentally or in retaliation unclear. "I guess we just have to do things the old fashion way."

“Is this place really that big??”

"They each seem to branch." Stretching her compact body to see beyond Faux, the sights was met with dread. She meant the halls. Ugh... halls weren't high on her list of favorite things…

---

Slow pawsteps brought the Jolteon closer to conversation distance with Mel while maintaining his half-assed objective to find anything of interest. “It was an accident, Mel,” he offered with inconspicuous concern, “no bigs.” The muscles which would've rolled his absent eyeball hung uselessly from the socket. Rebel sighed, lifting his paw to shove them, along with the optic nerves, back into the empty space. Be nicer to the lady, would ya? He chastised the Shiny Electrike silently. It wasn't like she meant any harm with the door fiasco, damn…

He brushed his paws over some paper and circular metals before recognizing them as money. Shame nobody used that stuff anymore…
Rebel hooked a claw under the coin and flipped it for no reason besides his amusement. Tails, huh…

((OoC; I'll try to lengthen this tomorrow. I can't keep myself awake right now, fallen asleep like five times lol.))

Etincelle's visage sullied into a scowl, his annoyance growing as the larger fox seemed completely untroubled by the mini incident she had caused while strolling into the building. A small pang jabs his heart as he recovers himself and pads inside. Hurting was one thing but that was just flat rude. Let it go. He reminded himself knowing that fair judgement wouldn't pass right now. It's not like I'm alright either.

While the tiny hound was not well versed in buildings this one definitely felt more solemn than the last. There was something off, like a hopeless feeling that even Miyu picked up on. Faux gave a short explanation that, if anything, made him feel even worse. "Hopefully this building didn't have to watch too much devastation." Sure, it wasn't alive, but how many people and Pokemon had sheltered here? How many perished or succumb here? Those records could be in the very material of this building, a story that no one would want to be a part of.

With the Electrike finally off her tail Melanie padded about the space while sniffing for anything suspicious. Her claws clacked against the floor, giving her some sense of the rooms depth as she listened to their sound and those of the others. So far this space seemed smaller than the Battle Castle. Maybe that would be for the better? A familiar but long since heard ting bounced against her earfur, the sound of a coin falling an ever ingrained noise. Padding toward the sound, and Rebel's striking scent heavy near it, Mel smiled as she tried to speak. "Coins?" She asks rhetorically. "I wonder what they did with those here." From her understanding trainers didn't pay to partake in the Battle Frontier, but she could be easily mistaken.

She didn't have long to muse on that thought though."They each seem to branch." Faux remarked after checking each hallway, her need for progress coming back. "I hope you're not suggesting we split again." Mel groaned, her voice edged weakly with worry. So far every split had caused some sort of issue. "Well of course." Etin quickly followed her up with a smart alec tone that boiled her inner flame. "If we're gonna scout this place out at least two groups would make things much faster." The Ninetale's frowned bitterly, and while she could not see it she could feel Etin giving a similar expression back to her.

Whipping her head and tails around Mel gave one flat, "No," to Faux before angling her head back toward Etincelle. "Faux said to stay together, and you'll just wander off on your own." A low growl rumbled in her throat. "It's like you want to end up like Rosko." The Electrike's pink eyes widen, teeth clenching together as his gums pull back in horrified shock. Damn.

His stomach was growling as if it wanted food badly, but they didn't go back to the place they came from. "We'll find something. Then we can tell all sorts of stories, okay?" Stories? Arry loved some good stories. Maybe something happy since he's been alone for a long time. The Jolteon, Rebel he called himself said something that's silly. “Sooo, Battle Arcade… am I stupid for hoping to play Space Invaders…?” What is Space Invaders? Was it something yummy? The Aron could tell this could be the place where he gets something yummy. Arry stuck close to Cinder and Faux in case any mean pokemon came out. He wasn't sure though if he could fight to well. Not when he's unsure of whether the mean pokemon could be stronger. “It’s weird, outside is just as devastated but it feels normal. In places like this, it's such a lonely feeling… it's like the building itself is sad about the epidemic…” Truthfully the place was in such a sad state that withered plants was all brown and dry. Even the flowers was dry to the point it looked very sad. He had to be strong though. "Outside humans walked and passed by, but buildings are where they live and rest. They are places of safety and life, and to have that be empty.. you can feel that its out of place." The sound of it was sad even for the steel type. How many more will get hurt by the mean pokemon? It was beyond his understanding, but he wanted to be tougher and stronger. For now though he would stay close to Cinder and Faux as well as Rebel, Miyu and Mel. He was unsure about Etin yet.

"Coins?" Arry looked at Mel. "I wonder what they did with those here." If he knew what they was for he'd say something, but since he's only a kid and hasn't really gone to far, the answer isn't there for him to say. "They each seem to branch." Does she mean like a split in the path? Truthfully staying together is more safe than being split up. However, Etin thinks otherwise. "I hope you're not suggesting we split again." Oh boy this sounded like something even Arry wouldn't do and he's only a kid. "If we're gonna scout this place out at least two groups would make things much faster." The steel type thought that might be dangerous. "Faux said to stay together, and you'll just wander off on your own." What was said then made him think of the body that got put into the hole that Mel dug up. "It's like you want to end up like Rosko." The Aron walked over to Rebel and sat beside him. Sounded like the Ninetails and the electrike are arguing. He had his mind more set on food and was to hungry to put up with them at the moment.

"I-is there food here?" Asking the Jolteon might have been the first thing, but surely they'll just have to look for it. His attention was on Miyu who happened to be near his age. She looked pretty and loved things that normally eevee just up and eat. Though it was nice to have someone just as young as he is, he felt that he needed to learn how to fight. Looking at Rebel's exposed bones, he must of had it rough, but seen plenty of fighting. "Whatcha doing?" Arry asked Rebel. Seeing the Jolteon flipping a coin. Though his stubby little claws wouldn't be able to flip a coin it looked like something that his trainer would've collected. The coin somehow looked amusing though. There might be some more coins around which he could play with, but it seemed like the one Rebel had was the only one so far. I wonder if there's anymore coins around. They look fun to play with That said Arry watched Rebel flip the coin until they moved again.

Cinder huffed, her paws arching to her hips as she gave up on her search for a map. "Heh. Did they just expect their guests to know where to go?" Humans, what good were they? From her perch on the desk she could see Faux sniffing at one of the doorways. Hopefully it would be intuitive. The fire type had no doubt in her mind that the main stage was behind them, that's how a lot of her gym fights were set up after all, but the other room eluded her. Sure, she had a rough idea of what they could lead to, the restrooms being obvious on the one path, but it wasn't enough to cover the entire building. “Is this place really that big??” Miyu asked, drawing the Quilava off the desk. "The Battle Caste was pretty big, and most these facilities are the same size to hold a lot of contestants at once." A constant stream of challengers with Pokemon in their 'balls or not would definitely need room to breathe. "Plus, this one was supposed to have a lot of like, side games and stuff, so I'd think it would be a little bigger."

Those lingering thoughts were quickly popped as Melanie gasped, "I hope you're not suggesting we split again," and bickering broke out between her and Etincelle once more. Cinder frowned, her head tilting away. Had she missed something, weren't they a bonded pair? I mean, Faux did say to stay together but- "It's like you want to end up like Rosko." The Quilava nearly choked on her own spit. "Mel!" She gasped, utterly shocked. What the actual hell?!

"That's enough!" Faux barked, her voice suddenly booming despite their combined efforts to be quiet. "Melanie, you do not disgrace the dead." With a leap the small fox jumped to the center of the room, her many tails high and her her stature completely forgotten. "Nor was that appropriate in any way." That was three times too many. Something, maybe the hounds death, had damaged the pair's wavelengths. The concern was there, she could see that, but it was not being expressed appropriately. "Etin is right; two groups would be fastest though one would be safer." With two obvious paths, and probably more branches the further they went two groups would be the efficient strategy. "However," her pale eyes tilted to the male of similar size. "Your insistence on going speaks of ill intent, Etincelle. I don't know what that intent is, but you can not go through with it."

Casting her gaze across their six, no seven, members the fox took in a deep breath. "We will go as two groups." She paused only slightly to watch the hound and other fox's expressions. "But the two of you will be together. You have the best combined forces, so whatever issues you have- drop them." After that jab Faux doubted Etin would be pleased but she was not about to double back again. "Happy? Good. Not happy? Deal with it." Together they might be unhappy but if she had separated them Mel would surely rebel and cause even more problems.

Sitting back on her haunches Faux pressed one paw against her forehead. "Rebel-- could you go with them?" She grunts from underpaw. The Jolteon had a decent sense of humor that could bring the pair around, but Faux was more interested in his serious side. If they went at it again he wouldn't let it escalate. Peeking her eyes open from beneath her pads Faux blinked at the child and Eevee. He seems to like her. The foxes had been grumbling too, but unfortunately she had not caught why. "Miyu, Arry, would you be okay heading out with Cinder and I?" If nothing else she could keep the littlest kid calm and under her watch.

"Do I have a say in this?" Cinder asked but there was no hint of challenge to her question. "You can say yes. The sooner we have this place checked out, the better." They had lost time due to casualties.. and if they got caught here at nightfall they would only be asking for more.

"The Battle Caste was pretty big, and most these facilities are the same size to hold a lot of contestants at once." There was a twinge of sympathy in the caramel fox’s heart for the folks that had to build these places. Walking around them sucked, yeah, but bless those poor souls that had to balance all the walls and glue on the roof… "Plus, this one was supposed to have a lot of like, side games and stuff, so I'd think it would be a little bigger."
Miyu’s tongue peeked from the side of her mouth with a contemplative hum. “So, what did the contestants win, Cinder?” She asked-- there had to be a point besides the little badgeys like at Gyms, right?

The coin made a second metallic clink with another flip, yet again landing on tails. If he were the superstitious sort, he might've been concerned. But like hell a coin could tell the future. Or change it. Or whatever. "Coins?" The Ninetales asked, quizzically smiling but still… it was a smile. "I wonder what they did with those here."
“Beats me, but you could sell your soul for money, maybe it ain't a stretch that someone would bribe Frontier staff to stay in the game, right?” His paw stamped firmly on the coin, the Jolteon gave a good natured smirk, though seemingly menacing to no fault of his own. “It’s landed on heads twice now, I guess that means we’re gonna have some good luck after all.” Nobody would hold it against him if he fibbed with positive intent, right?

The subject returned to their game plan, and expectedly, they would be splitting into dual squads. The task was simple but had obvious risks of which Melanie was going to argue in opposition of.
"I hope you're not suggesting we split again." Which was understandable. At least to the Eevee siblings… but Etin? Not so much. The duo broke into a spat over the matter, with the Electrike being more inclined to smart off at her than act reasonable. What were they so pissed about? Seemed more personal than anything else… “Guys, c’mon.” Rebel held his paw up in that, chill out and stop fighting manner, but no dice. Fine, let ‘em get it out of their systems…

"It's like you want to end up like Rosko."

Well, that escalated quickly…

“That isn't true, is it? Etin?” Miyu clumsily refound her place by Cinder, having the single stride she made towards the canine terminated by the jump scare-inducing sound of Faux’s voice in the otherwise dead-silent room. "That's enough!" The Vulpix made a single bound into the room’s center, tails high and form radiating ire. "Melanie, you do not disgrace the dead. Nor was that appropriate in any way."

Reb’s face was somber, maybe a bit sympathetic. Both parties were reprimanded by the Vulpix-- ‘til today, the fox and the hound were thick as thieves it seemed. He didn't believe it was meant to shame Rosko; maybe a reality check to the kamikaze Electrike gone awry.
"We will go as two groups." Faux instructed, "But the two of you will be together. You have the best combined forces, so whatever issues you have- drop them. Happy? Good. Not happy? Deal with it."
“Who am I with?” Initiative might've been the Jolt’s MO, but not even he was looking to make things more problematic at this point.
"Rebel-- could you go with them?" He nodded and padded to the designated group, tossing a “Sure thing,” in response.
"Miyu, Arry, would you be okay heading out with Cinder and I?"

Miyu stood up straight, having been slouching a moment before. “Yeah, sounds good!” The Eevee’s eyes wandered to Arry, over by Reb. She frowned. "I-is there food here?" Rebel acknowledged the kiddo by raising his ears, but kept his sight on the coin he had relocated. “I'll keep an eye out,” fuck that pun wasn't intended, “uh, so, if I find something good, your name is on it. Okay, pal?”
Reb flipped the coin a final time, undoubtedly showboating in front of the Aron. "Whatcha doing?"
“Nothin’ much,” he placed his pad on the silver and slid it Arry’s way, “Wanna try? That side is called heads. It's good luck.”

She.. how could she..? “That isn't true, is it? Etin?” Etin stood in silence, mouth agape and barely heard the Eevee's small voice. A cold sweep passed over his pelt, like a mixture of horror and dread coming alive, but his thoughts are torn from it at a roar. "That's enough!" Both his and Mel's heads turned toward the smaller fox but the tension did not break between them.

"Melanie, you do not disgrace the dead." "I didn't!" She protested, "Rosko had died like a warrior, but his death was an accident." Couldn't Faux see that? Couldn't any of them see Etin's behavior had changed?? "Nor was that appropriate in any way." Gritting her teeth the Ninetale's ears fall back. So what if it wasn't; when was an appropriate time to slap some sense into somebody? Sometimes the truth fucking hurts. A grunting huff threw her ears back up, the sound coming right from Etincelle's direction. The fur along her neck stood even higher, but Faux did not give her a chance to retaliate.

"Etin is right; two groups would be fastest though one would be safer." "See? Its logical." The Electrike boasted, puffing up his chest. "Faux knows what she's talking about." "However, your insistence on going speaks of ill intent, Etincelle. I don't know what that intent is, but you can not go through with it." The air expels from his lungs, crestfallen. All he wanted was to keep everyone safe! The faster they looked over the place the less time they would be in danger. "I didn't-" He starts, ready to clear his name, but the Vulpix was not stopping. "We will go as two groups." He frowned, the sour expression growing deeper as the other fox mocked, "See? Logical."

"But the two of you will be together. You have the best combined forces, so whatever issues you have- drop them."
"What?! No!" "What?! No!" They gasped out in unison. There was no way-- "Happy? Good. Not happy? Deal with it." Turning their muzzles toward each other both Pokemon gave low growls. So that's how it was? Without another word they looked away from one another and individually walked to the right hall furthest from the fire types.

The small electric type sat, shoulders hunched and expression foul. Was Faux trying to cause another scene? Honestly.. “Who am I with?” Rebel asked, boosting the Electrike's ego that another Pokemon was okay with the multi-group idea. Better yet, Faux stationed him with them before taking the remaining Pokemon for herself. He couldn't help but wonder why she didn't keep Miyu with him, but he didn't give the idea much thought.

Melanie gave a dejected sigh, her tails sweeping across the floor as she gave the hall a careful sniff. How far did it go, how much did it branch? A foul smell crinkled her snout but it didn't match the scent of undead. Rebel's paw slid across the floor and the high sound of the coin made her ear twitch. “Wanna try? That side is called heads. It's good luck.” Maybe I should give it a toss.. Should she ask? Even if she couldn't see the result herself she definitely felt like luck was on her side. Etin sighed and started to pad into the hallway without word. If people bribed the Frontier staff then they had to be really powerful. There is no way you could take them yourself. Taking a deep breath the fox headed after them. The hall here felt a lot darker than the Battle Castle's, but also more open with unknown rooms. "Something sure smells awful." She commented matter-of-factly. And its not just Etin's attitude.

The Ninetails and the Electrike started arguing with each other. However, the vulpix had stepped in and stopped the fighting. "That's enough!" Faux yelled. It was enough that Arry jumped a little off the ground, but a small clink sound was made as he lowers a bit. The Jolteon slid the coin to the aron as he does he says something to him. “Wanna try? That side is called heads. It's good luck.” The steel type tries to flip the coin, but his stubby legs can't seem to get the coin to flip. The child tilts his head sideways a bit wondering how Rebel done that. Truthfully he wanted to keep trying, but Faux went onto scolding the dual that was arguing. "Melanie, you do not disgrace the dead." It scared him a little when Faux continued to scold them. "Etin is right; two groups would be fastest though one would be safer." In some form of sense, Arry would rather have them stay together. Though Mel was the one to bring Arry to a field full of flowers, he'd do something nice and give her a pretty flower as well. "See? Its logical." But is it safe though? What terrifies Arry the most other than other fighting with each other is the mean pokemon hurting them. "However, your insistence on going speaks of ill intent, Etincelle. I don't know what that intent is, but you can not go through with it." Ouch, she got him on that.

The Aron continued to try to flip the coin, but he kept pressing on the middle. It made a tiny sound every time his little claws touched the coin. Arry giggles trying to flip the coin. When he finally did the coin bounced off the ground and landed on tails. "Aww, darn I'll get it next time." Though he was happy still that he made the coin flip in the air a little bit, he would try again to get heads. "But the two of you will be together. You have the best combined forces, so whatever issues you have- drop them." They had issues with each other? Maybe the electric type did, but Melanie was being nice to Arry. "Happy? Good. Not happy? Deal with it." When Arry looked around though, the jolteon was gone. He looked over and seen him leaving with Mel and Etin."Miyu, Arry, would you be okay heading out with Cinder and I?" The Aron walked over to Faux and took a deep breath to keep himself from his shyness. "Yeah, I hope we can find something nice. Maybe a soft thing to bring along." That would be wonderful if they found like a pillow or a blanket or even a nice soft couch to lay on.

In some thought Arry wondered if Etin didn't like him. He seemed to think that the electric type didn't want him around. Arry wanted to ask Faux or Mel if Etin hated him, but Mel was with him and Faux may not know. With his little legs he walked over to Cinder and Faux with a little smile and looked over to Miyu who was coming with them. "I wonder if we'll see some more coins. They look fun to play with." Rebel must have gave him a good impression if he wanted to play with coins, but maybe they'll collect them as they go. "Miyu, think we'll find some fun with Cinder and Faux?" Of course though they'll have to make sure the place is safe first before playing. After he asked Miyu he looked at the small duo and gave a smile. "I'm ready. I'll stay right by you two." He then waited by Cinder ready to go.

“Yeah, sounds good!” "Yeah, I hope we can find something nice. Maybe a soft thing to bring along." Cinder let out a soft, hurried sigh of relief that no one else was being difficult. And those two are children for legends sake. Was that why Faux added them to their party? Cinder grimaced at the idea. If it works it works. Faux probably knows what she's doing. Putting that worry aside the Quilava dropped to four paws and started to walk toward the western corridor. "I'm ready. I'll stay right by you two." With a soft chuckle Cinder smiled at the kid. "I bet we find something totally cool." There would be metal for sure, but maybe maybe there would even be a toy of some sort to keep the tyke entertained.

Though Cinder stopped the fox was already ahead of her and sniffing cautiously. "Should I lead?" The starter asked as more of a suggestion. With her bright flames it would give them the most range of sight. "Don't go too far ahead." With a nod she stepped forward, taking the lead of the group though she was not separated from them. While she could still see where her paws were without her flames it was darker than the Battle Castle for sure.

The brightly colored walls looked grey in the dimness but offered little in the way of stuff to investigate. "We shoulda picked the other way." Cinder half-joked, her steps slowing as the hall made a hard right turn. While the hall continued onward the Quilava's attention switched to the door-less opening on the left side. "..Or not." Though her time in them was limited the multiple rows of weird boxes and tables, colors and shapes could not be mistaken. Dashing forward the female lost all hesitation as she shouted, "An arcade!" The flooring changed to carpet, and the ancient scent of an area that once had food and life wafted up from it. "Oh man where is the prize counter!"

"Cinder!" Faux hissed threw clenched teeth, but she already knew it was a losing fight. "Watch yourself; there would be undead about. Or worse." The bright orange and yellow light of her flames seemed to bounce all over the room with excitement the fox could not understand. "They aren't even on." She grumbled beneath her breath as she padded into the Arcade area. If nothing else they needed to check it for threats.

"Miyu, think we'll find some fun with Cinder and Faux?" The aforementioned Eevee paused mid-lick, letting her stubborn fur spike back up while she hummed in thought.
“If there’s any fun to be had, I think we’ll be the ones to find it!”

The kit’s paws worked double time to keep her small body in a comfortable amount of warm light. It was sooo dark… most folk would say they weren't afraid of the dark, ‘just what's in it,’ but she disagreed. The absence of light was nightmare fuel at it’s near finest. It was vulnerability.
"We shoulda picked the other way." What?! The Eevee’s body jolted, eyes straining to find the issue-- having been overly immersed with darkness, which obviously led to theories of ghosts, she missed Cinder’s joke entirely. She ducked a little closer to Arry as their path took a right, as did they. "..Or not." Cinder flew through the shadows, taking the precious light source along with her through the entrance on their left. "An arcade!"

“Ah! Wait for us!” The request tapered into a whine bouncing with her tiny form after her friend.
She would take a moment later to appreciate the human’s choice to lay carpet here; but for now, she was content inspecting the games.
"Watch yourself; there would be undead about. Or worse." Okay so Faux’s warning might've been directed to the Quilava - currently speeding around the room with euphoria - but the Eevee gave an “Okay.” of adhering.

It took less trouble than she expected to clamber up to the controls panel of the machine. Cool as pressing the buttons was, and moving the joystick, it kinda… got old fast. Didn't humans do this for hours and hours at a time? Power must make one heck of a difference. “Hey, Cinder,” she ever-cautiously called to the flame bouncing through the dark, “you think they'd work if we had Etin or Reb give ‘em a good zap?”

Her little body dropped back to the floor with a quiet thunk. “I wonder what else is here?” Drawing up beside Arry, she made her best pleading face. “Hey Faux, if we’re super careful, can we look around a little?”

---

Meanwhile silence hung over the other group. Being exuberant in life, as well as death, the Jolteon considered clearing the thick tension with some less than mature antic… but the male’s gut gave him an undeniable sense that the action would be less than appreciated.

"Something sure smells awful." Mel threw out there curtly. Rebel’s senses perked in response, along with fringes and tongue. “Your words wound me.” He quipped dryly. “Anyway. Can you tell which way, Mel?” His sense of smell, while still functional, wouldn't be his most beneficial attribute. At least not right now, while a hindering amount of dried blood caked his nostrils. But that didn't particularly concern him. Nah, it was pretty early in to find a bad sign, even if it was just a rancid smell, and that troubled him slightly. Are they gonna be able to work together if we find somethin’? By no means did he expect them to throw each other to the wolves, but a lack of teamwork could have a devastating end. The fact only one of his eyes glowed in the inky black hall was proof.

“Your words wound me.” The jest may of meant to lighten things, but the large fox could only huff and twist her lips into a forced smile. "Least that's the only thing," she cracks back, the joke weak and not nearly to the humor level of the Jolteon. She was never blessed with comedic prowess, but in light of events it was hard to even muster that fail of a joke. “Anyway. Can you tell which way, Mel?” Rebel continued, the 'discovery' more important than reviewing personal skills.

Placing her head near the floor and then bringing it up as she sniffed the Ninetales cringed heavily, a paw reaching up to shield her nose from the awful scent. It was a mixture, like that of a swamp where all the rotting plants gave off different odors. "Is there a door on the left side?" She groans through her covered snout. The noxious smell definitely seemed to be wafting from that side of the hall. Etin's paw steps quickened, his pace hurried as he took the lead and boldly announced the obvious, "There is, not far off." Almost immediately after he also flinched, face grimacing. "Legends.. that's foul. It's.." His voiced trailed as he padded forward, the answer already clear in his mind. It was a smell that, even after years of abandon still rang true to what it was, something that no creature could deny or mistake. Reaching the doorway Etin saw that it was ajar and, without a second thought, placed a paw against it and pushed it inward. "...a latrine."

The blue tiled floor was dark with filth, the stalls marred, and the walls stained with substances the electric type did not want to know. "You'd think humans would take care of something like this." In truth, he had seen very little of human restrooms, but if they left them in this sort of state then they had to be a sorry lot. Scanning the dark room for any signs of movement the Electrike saw nothing and wished he had not opened the door so far. "Guh.. there's another on this side." Melanie mumbled from the other end of the hall, her claws gently brushing the heavy door. However, it was fully shut, and she was not about to let the reek seeping from beneath its frame out to gag them any more.

But Melanie was not satisfied with some stinky latrines. Much to her displeasure she continued to sniff and scent, her stomach churning as she tried to decipher what else was around them. "No, no." Padding a short ways forward she fought back her gag reflex. "There's something else? Gods, these things are nearly masking it, but I think something died or is rotting further in." Whether it was an undead or a body, she didn't know, but to that rancid meant it was still actively rotting.

Faux felt her brow twitching as the Quilava galloped around like a child on their nameday. In truth, the building had only given off signs of abandon and not disease but you could never be too careful when exploring unfamiliar ground. What if there was a literal nest of undead waiting for them around the next bend like in the Battle Caste? That would be just our luck. Still, this Arcade only smelled of stale snack foods and dust, not the putrid stench of multiple undead. Stepping stiffly into the play area the fox listened intensely for any unwelcome presence but only heard Miyu ask, “you think they'd work if we had Etin or Reb give ‘em a good zap?”

Cinder stopped, her paw slowly falling away from a joystick on one of the machines. "Oooh, probably! That'd be so cool to see it all up and running." Hoping away from the machine and onto another that had strange stationary motorcycles fashioned to it the Quilava mused, "Man Faux, you should of thought out the type spread better for a building derived from an Arcade. Electricity would be great right now."
"I'd rather our teammates not kill each other than endorse in lollygagging with ancient machines." Though the fox cynical, and the spread would have been poor either way, she fell back into her silence as she considered the kit's idea. The arcade was one thing but what about the whole building? A new base of operations with power.. we could move the cameras, have functioning healing areas, food stor-- The thoughts were brilliant, a return to society that could aid them, but it fizzled and returned her mind to reality as both kids asked gently, “Hey Faux, if we’re super careful, can we look around a little?” "Can we Faux? We'll stay close enough to hear you."

They hadn't been exceedingly quiet since arrival and nothing had shown up yet. The room might of been the rundown neglect scene again and not that which she was imagining but the danger was not known to be extremely high. As long as someone remains on watch. Which, as a surprise to no one, would be her. "Just try not to go too far. My hearing is keen but it has its limits." If this direction had tourist and guest entertainment she doubted it would go much farther before hitting heavy security doors. Implying they aren't broken. Eyes closed and ears high the fox listened to each Pokemon's tiny foot patters. If this was a moment of peace they deserved to have it.

Cinder slouched on the side of the motorcycle and it tiled slightly to one side. Would it shift more if it was on, she wondered, or just move more readily? All the joysticks, knobs, and buttons still worked even if all the things were off but they still didn't do anything. Her excitement was already waning for a desperate longing to play around. Bounding off her bike Cinder lept for the prize counter and snack bar only to be stopped by the shiny glass of a crane game. Prizes were still stacked up high on the inside, and while the claw wouldn't move without power the starter was determined to get something out of these games. Her flames fettered out and the cool touch of the plastic brushed against her warm fur as she crawling inside the prize hatch.

"Can we Faux? We'll stay close enough to hear you." Double puppy eyes engaged! Resistance was futile! Not even Rebel could disappoint the eyes-- well, actually, there were a few times, but she would eventually win with tears. The guy hated seeing girls cry, which was a times four weakness he should've hidden. Poor guy…
"Just try not to go too far. My hearing is keen but it has its limits." Victory! The kit turned to her exploring companion with a bubbly grin, then back to Faux. “Yes ma’am! Thank you, Faux.” Miyu dipped her head towards the Vulpix, paws flicking with each step through the Arcade. What should they do first…
"What if we found something to play with Miyu? We could have Faux or Cinder watch us play." The puzzlement disappeared from her face in an instant, replaced with the evilest grin such a harmless creature could muster. The prize counter had toys surely, and even better that they wouldn't have to redeem an absurd amount of ticket thingies for something! C’mon, who hadn’t ever thought of just hijacking one of these places? And to add insult, she’d never got the chance even try to win something, for obvious reasons… “Yaaas, great idea!” She cheered and cut into a beeline for the counter. “We shall surpass humanity in one hijacking!”

Her tail shot up in surprise, which quickly became bewilderment-- behold, disappearing through the prize hatch of a claw game was a Quilava butt. “Wow, that's an interesting prize! A Cinder!” Miyu snorted with an exhale in amusement, raising her paw to her chest haughtily, “Luckily I already have one~ Don't get stuck!” She waved her tail to Arry as a beckon that she was moving forward, then bounded.
“Okey dokey, I guess just go berserk! Don't grab anything stinky though-- wait, do you have a good sense of smell?” She asked. Her interactions with Pokémon were kind of limited throughout her life… she sincerely didn't know how many species had keen smell. “I can make double-sure things are safe if you want~ in an abandoned place like this, blood isn't the only issue. Mold and things like that can make you feel icky too.” Her tongue peeked from the corner of her lips in distaste. “Ahh!”

She descended from her perch on top of the glass counter into the actual containment area, scrabbling by knocked over prizes and messing up the ones that were lucky enough to remain correctly positioned. Her prize of choice was in a box, which she wasted no time in snaking behind and nudging it back into the open with a thunk! onto the carpet. “Please let it be battery operated,” she whined between mouthfuls of cardboard and packaging. “Ohh my god.” The globe fell from the mauled box, no cord… package of… batteries! Yes! Yes yes yes! “Arry, Arry! Wait ‘til I set this up, it's the coolest thing ever!”
Rebel had done this before, years ago with a handheld game the two of them nicked from someone-- the Joltie’s human was constantly messing with technology, so learning batteries was easy peazy.
It was kind of straightforward back then… put the batteries in the hatch… put the cover on…
Boom!...

“Huh? Why isn't it working…” She frowned and clawed the batteries back out, only to replace them again. “That sucks…” Once more.

The globe sprung to life, the interior filled with something like lightning dancing erratically in front of her eyes. “I did it! Aaah, Arry! Watch!” The female placed her paw on the globe, feeling somewhat like a goddess as the plasma bolts chased her touch. “Hehe. I've seen these things, but I've never got to touch one.”

---

Damn, he felt bad for the lady… a good sense of smell had to be about a bitch to have in a world where most of the population was rotting. Mel’s initial response to the second scent check was a harsh wince. Reb didn't blame her for covering her nose.
"Is there a door on the left side?" She asked. Final answer: yes, but Etin beat him to the punch like they actually were on a gameshow. Didn’t know you were an aficionado for nasty ass rooms, fam…
"There is, not far off." Quicker than quick, the Shiny’s face twisted in the very same disgust as Melanie’s, "Legends.. that's foul. It's.."

The Jolteon stood a bit higher, peering over Etin’s height at what caused the guy to lose track of his sentence. "...a latrine."
Rebel huffed and padded away from the door-- the apocalypse could steel your nerves against a lot of things, but dirty bathrooms were still fucking disgusting.
"You'd think humans would take care of something like this." Etincelle commented.
Reb shrugged lazily. “Eh. I ain't gonna pretend humanity made half a lick of sense to me, but I can't blame them for not venturing into the end of the world to clean a bathroom.”

"Guh.. there's another on this side." Their scenting sleuthette pointed out another oddity of humans-- they had to have different rooms to piss in. So freakin’ fickle. "There's something else? Gods, these things are nearly masking it, but I think something died or is rotting further in."
“Would that make our luck shittier, or just worse…?” Ba-dum, tshhh. No he wasn't trying to be a comedian evident by his still-deadpan tone, ‘trying’ being the keyword. Sometimes bad puns just happened whether appropriate or not.

He metaphorically gave the middle finger to the bathrooms and proceeded into a section of the building which took a swan dive from ‘dark,’ into a pool of ‘fucking dark.’ Rebel’s fur charged quickly and threw a stray bolt into the room for some light. It might've lasted a fraction of a second, but a majority of the room responded to the light with a cold, metallic reflection. “Well, someone get my mad scientist coat, we done found the Frontier’s creepy ass side project…”

That ideal was unfounded but this metal plated hellhole was an odd find indeed. Wonder what it was for…

“Eh. I ain't gonna pretend humanity made half a lick of sense to me, but I can't blame them for not venturing into the end of the world to clean a bathroom.” Rebel's words made perfect sense but didn't stop Etincelle from wanting to gag. Even if the place went to hell they still had to go in there right? They actually stomached that environment for sensitive act? "It still just isn't right." He grumbled mostly to himself as he followed after Mel. The few interactions he had had with humans were all sour, but you'd think in their own homes they'd have some decency.

The Ninetales tried not to breath too deeply as she tracked the putrid scent. They passed a few extra rooms and things but none held smells of interest or even similar intensity. "Legends, its so foul," she gagged aloud. "I'd be surprised if the wallpaper wasn't peeling off." Was it? The floor didn't feel clean but she couldn't tell if that was paper bits or something else. “Would that make our luck shittier, or just worse…?” Rebel joked, to which Etin responded with an awkward laugh, "Why not both?" What is the entire side of the building just turned into a giant cesspool, and they had only scratched the filthy surface?

But the Electrike tried not the think about that option. The mix of hallway turns and lack of windows told the hound they were heading into the entire of the building. That, and the fact the meager light seemed to disappear into total darkness. "I'm not sure about this Mel." He warns her cautiously. "I don't know if you can tell, but its getting really dark." As though he had spoken a cue the hall came to an end with a heavy grey door. "Well that's not ominous at all." A strange door at the end of a dark path with a horrible scent coming from it? Totally safe, totally good.

The Ninetales was gagging, her stomach in knots. It was the smell of rot. Awful, thick rot. Her whiskers sense the door and prevent her from walking headlong into it, but her judgement can not stop her from placing one paw on it and giving the gentlest push. Is there an undead back there, or just a corpse? Guess they'd soon find out. The door crept open, the hinges giving a weak moan but no other resistance other than a slow swing. A sharp hiss hits her ears, presumably Etin in a tizzy again, but it was too late now. The scent wafts out in full force but Mel's senses 360 as the crackle of electricity hits her ears. Her legs buckle, dropping her safely to the floor as the bolt zooms overhead.

The cold, lifeless f'ting of metal rumbled from the energy of the surging attack. For a split second everything is lit, a nightmare room of metal, monitors, buttons, and then darkness as the light vanished. “Well, someone get my mad scientist coat, we done found the Frontier’s creepy ass side project…” Funny, and not wrong by the looks of it, but Etin's body had flushed in a cold sweat. There was something there, something red and shiny. "I saw.. I saw.." He whispered, voice nearly shaking, but didn't have to finish as a low growl called back from the dark room. The shuffling of something moving, the scratching of claws on metal, whatever it was it was coming there way. "There's something in there!" Etin roared, his voice strained as he tried to keep it hushed while urgently loud enough that it grew shrill. His shiny blue coat filled itself with electricity, his Spark a ready defense that just happened to light up the room as a giant, and very undead, cat loomed in front of them.

It was a double effort and it had worked. Faux has given in to the duo's pleas, now they can explore around. "Just try not to go too far. My hearing is keen but it has its limits." Yes, now they can have fun and see what things they can find. Miyu agreed to what Arry said about finding something to play with. “Yaaas, great idea!” It was time to set operation playground into effect. The eevee was the one to set up the entire plan. “We shall surpass humanity in one hijacking!” Toys for the taking and this place was full of games and toys in the machines. One even looked like a Lugia plush and another had an Aggron plush alongside a Ho-oh plush. This was a treasure trove of toys and one of them was moving. It looked a lot like Cinder which Miyu pointed out right away. “Wow, that's an interesting prize! A Cinder!” Arry giggles as he watched the eevee puff her chest out. “Luckily I already have one~ Don't get stuck!” Of course Cinder wouldn't get stuck that easy with her body.

Miyu waved her tail to notion for Arry to follow her and like so he did. His tiny footsteps was muffled by the carpet. The toys though, he'd love to have them all to play with. Some big and small it didn't matter to Arry as long as he could share with Miyu. “Okey dokey, I guess just go berserk! Don't grab anything stinky though-- wait, do you have a good sense of smell?” Good question, did he have a good sense of smell? The Aron sniffed around for a bit, but couldn't pick up anything from what maybe the others could. Arry shook his head no as it wasn't the greatest sense he had. Mostly either metal or ore would make it easy since his line was known for that kind of thing. “I can make double-sure things are safe if you want~ in an abandoned place like this, blood isn't the only issue. Mold and things like that can make you feel icky too.” Mold sounds icky and gross. It would make the child's stomach churn and get him sick. Noticing that Miyu had jumped onto a glass case, Arry couldn't get high enough to even get half way. His iron shell made it impossible for him to jump high. “Please let it be battery operated,” It looked like a glass ball with something in the center. What kind of toy is this thing that Miyu has brought out. Arry ran to the open area under the counter gate and sat beside Miyu. “Ohh my god.” Sounds like it she found something that she needed. “Arry, Arry! Wait ‘til I set this up, it's the coolest thing ever!” It must be something cool when it works. The steel type was excited to see what it does. 

Miyu put the batteries in it and put the cover on. It didn't work from that first attempt. Maybe the batteries might be in backwards. One thing did go on Arry's mind. What's a battery? Does it taste good? However, something told him not to even try to eat it. As if it was bad for him to even try one. That thought went away quickly in spite of it maybe bad for him to try. “Huh? Why isn't it working…” Though he couldn't see what Miyu was doing, he heard noises of batteries coming out and back in. “That sucks…” One last attempt and finally after that a third times the charm it works. Electricity is flowing from the center of the globe thing. “I did it! Aaah, Arry! Watch!” Miyu put her paw on the globe and the electricity went to where she was touching. He didn't know what this thing was, but it was a cool toy if they was to take it with them. “Hehe. I've seen these things, but I've never got to touch one.” Arry gave it a go and the electricity followed his little leg until he moved away.

Maybe Faux would let them take it with when they go further. "This is a cool toy Miyu. Its so fun to touch it." Arry said in excitement. He never really had much for toys other than chew toys. With Miyu though, he felt that he found a friend that he could be with all the time. Where to explore next was up to Miyu since this place was rather big. "Where should we go next? This toy is awesome though, wish we could take it with us." The Aron was smiling away seeing the electric current dance on where Miyu was touching.

Dark. Cold. Metal. Where was she, how did she end up here? This place was like that of her captures. Lifeless. It needed to be destroyed and purged from this planet. But first, the big cat needed her bearings, her strength. With staggered steps Amber paced back toward an alcove in the room formed by machinery. This room was much too dark to see but her salvation lie beyond its walls where her x-ray vision picked up light. By looking beyond she could vaguely see what was before her and to most it was not a pleasant sight. Something had died here several days ago and its body was rotten and bloated. A disgusting, scavengers prize that the hunter was not too proud to partake in. She had devoured a fair portion of the Azumarill already but her hunger never seemed sated.

Crunching through another bite of its fatty flesh the Luxray listened for anything that would give her direction. The whoosh of the wind, the dripping of water, the crinkling of movement, or... The calls of prey. Pulling up her head with one last mouthful Amber swallows roughly as her ears stand to attention. "Well that's not ominous at all." Her good eye wide goes wide and head snaps toward the sound. There were others beyond the wall heading her way. There was direction. Her claws slip from their sheaths and dig into the metal flooring. Were these creatures lost innocents or prey?  

A door opens and floods the room with light, stunning the Luxray for a moment as she adjusts her vision without blinking. The warm scent of their bodies plus that of old blood brush her senses and her tongues pulls back into her mouth. Life. Her tail flicks across the cold floor as a flash of light enters the room, blinding Amber through her eye still remains open as her body stiffens. An Attack? Attack. Violence. Danger?

Her vision returns and the silhouetted creatures come into a hazy focus. They were not attacking but the scent of fear washes over her palate. Were they lost here? Shifting her paws to a proper pounce position the lion listens intently to one shaky voice. "I saw.. I saw.." Such fear, so strong it was making her thoughts race. Her tail sweeps again, curling across the floor before straightening out behind her. She would save them, she would show them this was the wrong path--

"There's something in there!" It cried, its fear scent overwhelming the feline as its blue fur became visible with bright crackling lightening. Electricity? No, she was electricity. She was retribution. Its fear would make it attack though it knows not its enemy? She would make them pay if they tried to use her own power against her! Against her when she had done nothing! A growl rumbles in the Luxray's throat, her fangs glowing with their own lightening as her body tensing. Leaping toward the doorway her depth perception must have been disrupted from the light changes as she both overshoots and heads more for the wall. But her instincts were kicking in and she could not refuse.

Her fangs bury themselves in the nearest machine, the metal crunching under her force as her electricity floods into its wiring. Suddenly, it whirs into life beneath her, buttons all over the room lighting up as a wall of video monitors start to show static. The lights above flicker on and off as she pries herself from it and drops to the floor. The machine sparks, the jump not intense enough to keep it going as one by one the suddenly mechanisms shut back off. With a heavy growl the Luxray poses for another attack, a shiny light green sphere forming at her jaws, ready to show these aggressors she was the light.

Squeezing her hips inside the Quilava perched on her hindpaws and clambered on top of the plastic cube corner of the prize chute. With a short fall she belly flops into the stuffed animals, and is pleasantly surprised by now soft they are. Not only that but there was no gross dust cloud above her. Perfect. These toys had been kept pristine thanks to the casing. Even if she couldn't properly play the game she would still get a decent prize. Digging around through the toys the fire type couldn't get a decent look at any of them before a muffled voice came through the thick plastic. “Wow, that's an interesting prize! A Cinder!” Popping her head up through the plushies Cinder gave a dumb face and stuck out her tongue. "They must be rare or something." Not that she thought herself rare, of course. “Luckily I already have one~ Don't get stuck!”

With a soft chuckle Cinder waved one paw and went back to digging while she mumbled, "I'll try not to!" If she had to she could burn her way out, right? That'd be a real shame. Pushing that thought away the Quilava started looking at each plushie as best she could and tried to see what choices she had. There was a fair number of Pidgeys and Pikachus, but she was not interested in that common fodder. There were also loads of the Johto starters, but to have a toy of her past self would be kinda creepy, wouldn't it? Piling everything into the corner the weasel tried to find the rarer toys or any old leftovers that had fallen to the bottom. There were some Pichus (cute), Eevees and their family line (which she wouldn't pick for Miyu's sake), and the occassional random Johto native Pokemon. Grabbing a Wooper in her paws Cinder started into its blank face and felt herself cringe. No.

Faux sat tall but her muscles were relaxing. It was still quiet even as the group got rowdier. Had the collection of machines and inanimate objects been too boring for undead? It is the Battle Arcade, its probably mostly wires and steel. Maybe they would luck out for once.
There was a small pop, and suddenly the lights flickered. Faux jumped to her paws in an instant, and the lights continued to flash. Some of the games gave quiet whooshing noises and static cackling as power went through them for the first time in years. The once dark, dank room was alive, sorta, for a few moments before the flashing stopped and it all fell quiet again.

The short display was enough to completely put her on edge and the fox's senses went into overdrive. She listened and sniffed, searching for any electrical or ghost beast that had messed with these relics. Other than hot dust she could pick up nothing new. Not even the hall gave off any new noises. "...That better be the others getting into mischief." She assumes roughly, speaking just loud enough for the others to hear her while she trotted into the center of the Arcade. They were a couple of electric types after all. At least, it better be them. Passing by several machines Faux walked past Cinder who had crawled out of the crane machine. A pile of stuffed animals sat at the foot of the box and the Quilava said boldly, "I got enough for everyone, if they want them."

A Yanma in the pile caught her attention, its colors still bright and beautiful. "How thoughtful," she says in passing, and forces her eyes off the plush to check near the prize counter for anything suspicious.

"This is a cool toy Miyu. Its so fun to touch it."
The Eevee’s mouth spread into a triumphant grin. Her facial features were lit and tinted neon by the plasma ball she took enough pride in that one might assume she was the creator and copyright holder of the entire concept-- honestly, even that wouldn't have made this moment any cooler. Just for an instant, that flicker of childhood wonder was restored in the kit.
“Watch this--” Miyu urged her Aron friend, posing with her forepaws resting on the crown of the lamp. “You are no match for the mighty Miyu!” The lightning danced around her paws, making the role play evermore convincing. The imaginary enemy’s reign of entropy was not to last as the child rose onto her hind legs completely and pretended to throw something like a special, war ending attack.

The great hero burst into a fit of giggles and stumbled back, landing her compact form spine down onto the plush carpet. “Saved! The world is saved!”

She rolled back onto her paws and shook her pelt out, muttering an apology in embarrassment. Kinda took that a little far, heh…
"Where should we go next? This toy is awesome though, wish we could take it with us." Arry asked. Miyu lifted her paw from the plasma ball and perked her ears up curiously. Well, humans were really fond of electronics, but there had to be something that didn't require a zap to function. “Let's see what's over there!” She said over her shoulder, having already began with a bound.

The shape was pronounced in the shadows, but definitely not sentient-- she’d noticed it a while earlier and it hadn't moved an inch. Her curiosity brought her before the shape, inspecting it with a touch of her nose. “It's, uh…” Well… it kinda looked like the top was decorated with a giant plastic Popplio and Togekiss. Huh. “Maybe you play on… oh, that's exactly what it is!” She corrected herself, bounding up the miniature set of neon green stairs. “It’s a playground!” Maybe a mini scale one, but gosh darnit, it had a set of slides on either side of the stairs, beyond scaling platforms for accessing them. Humans were fascinating with the things they created!

She hastily scouted their discovery, confirming its safety for some shenanigans. At worst, the biggest risk was falling off the platforms where railing was broken off. Which was no risk, really~! They just had to pay attention!

“Race!? Race me to the bottom, Arry!” She barked, shooting across to the corkscrew slide and waiting for her friend to get ready.

Miyu’s focus was shattered by a pop, unmistakable to the kit as an electric reaction. The entirety of the room was now filled with light and the quiet sound of long-resting electronics resurrecting. The fox shot down the slide and stumbled across the floor with the momentum. “I don't know if that was a good or a bad thing, Arry… let's go back to Faux for a sec, okay?”

"...That better be the others getting into mischief." The vigilant Vulpix guessed, taking one stride into the center of the room for every three steps the Eevee took to close the distance between them.
“They have Rebel with them,” Miyu sighed inwardly, “I wouldn't put it past him to have caused this, honestl--…”
Wait. The sentence hitched on her tongue, witnessing a horde of plushes in a pile at the Quilava’s feet. She derailed the train of thought immediately and broke away from Faux’s side to stare at the collection in half-belief. Well, when in Rome, steal their plushies!
"I got enough for everyone, if they want them."

“Arry, you wanna pick first?” Miyu gestured to the stuffed animal heap. Honestly, they were all adorable in their own right, so which one she got didn't matter much. “You think there's a snack counter somewhere?” The smell of old food made it seem likely, but the million dollar question was if something had withstood the test of time here.

---

The room was silent.

Now, the discovery of the creepy metallic chamber had been unsettling, but it wasn't a showstopper. A heavy frown set on the Jolteon’s face at being left in the dark - no pun intended - meanwhile something else was an obvious cause for concern. His fur rose higher, stiffening.
"I saw.. I saw.."
The shiny’s unsteady voice disappeared under the sound of a low growl from the deeper reaches of the shadows. Rebel immediately went on high alert, responding to the sound with a snarl of his own. The darkness felt heavier, more threatening as something began to stalk in their direction and for obvious reasons, it didn't seem friendly…

"There's something in there!" Yeah, no shit, but the Jolteon was too far lost in the enemy to call anything out. Etincelle’s fur crackled with electricity, illumination from the Spark bouncing over the form ahead of them-- the wildly bouncing bolts lit only portions of it at a time, but it was clearly twice Reb’s height and just as dead. Goddamnit.

Even though he wasted as little time as he could in attacking, the Shadow Ball just got there too late-- the Luxray leapt, fangs alit with lightning, and bit into a-- wait, what the fuck?!
The zombified cat chose a machine as it’s target, crumpling the electronic between its jaws. The room was filled with noise, the sound of powering up machines, static, lights coming to life-- it was so loud to ears that were adjusted to near-total silence. Rebel recoiled from the excess light, adjustment quick but the cat was already down onto floor level by that time-- and then the electricity failed and once again, complete darkness. Bitch.

The cat’s growl rumbled through the room as though a response to his mental chastising, but the green orb standing out from the shadows was infinitely more concerning than a pissing competition between the two undead. “Well, fuck me,” the Jolteon growled. A split-second Protect shielded the trio, “I’ll break it’s goddamn spine the second I can.”
It was a fucking Electric-type. Of-fucking-course. Two out of his three attacking moves would do piss for damage. Good thing his morality was far outweighed by his instinct to kill. The Joltie’s barrier fell and he threw a second Shadow Ball in the undead’s direction.