(ACE) The VIRIDIAN Team

The air was uncomfortably quiet as the small group trekked through the forest. No one really spoke, maybe for fear of attracting the wrong kind of attention from either friend or foe. Skoll himself kept his gaze darting from tree to tree, making sure they weren't being followed. While he knew his companions -or at very least the charizard- could handle themselves, it was force of habit to watch for anything else rustling in the vegetation.

He was not one for starting idle conversation, nor was he one to continue it, so no words came from him. Still, the tense quiet was void of even normal sounds, such as birds singing, and was only disturbed by the occasional scream or bestial roar. Those tended to make him pause, letting him judge how far away the sounds were, before continuing on his path toward the city. This strange atmosphere made him anxious, his ever-twitching wings betraying him. He hoped they would get to the city soon...

((I had no idea EVERYONE ELSE was gone >> Sorry, Even!)))

The silence - or at least as much of a silence as you could get when there were undead monsters roaming around the area - tended to wear on Brimstone just a bit. While he wasn't one for pointless conversation either, the fact that no one was talking proved to irritate the large charizard. It was true he didn't like being bothered, but at the same time, he did like some entertainment.

His eyes, while less acute than they were in his youth, proved to still be sharp enough to catch the scyther's twitching wings. The charizard grunted and changed his pace so that he was walking side-by-side with the scyther, a sly smirk adorning his gnarled and scar-ridden face. "If I didn't know better, I'd say the bug is a bit nervous."

While the tone of his voice had an obvious jibe to it, Brimstone seemed to have intended the comment to be a bit more light-hearted than insulting. He twitched his tail, ignoring the fact that the flaming tip had managed to scorch some of the grass that had made the poor choice to grow along the path.

((Not a problem xD I didn't realize they were all gone either, lol))

The charizard's voice suddenly rumbling beside him startled the scyther a bit, visibly flinching some when he spoke. "If I didn't know better, I'd say the bug is a bit nervous," the reptile chuckled, a sly gin spreading over the old leathery face. Skoll shot a glance at him before returning his gaze to the road. Dammit. He hadn't wanted anyone to notice... especially the giant fire dragon setting everything behind him on fire.

Still... the old beast reminded him too much of Ari, and he couldn't help an exasperated sigh. "...I just want to find my sister and be done with this damn goose chase," he mumbled. "I guess in the back of my mind, I have doubts to whether or not she'll still be alive when I find her... Dumb girl goes after everything like a rabid gyarados." He took another look at the charizard and sighed again, ridding himself of some anxiety. "But I guess there's some hope-- you survived... Though I can't say if she's as smart as you. Rabid gyarados, after all." He simply hoped Ari would find the same strain of luck...

"Heh..." the way Skoll spoke about his sister simply caused Bimstone to grin slightly. Though the insect's comment about the old charizard being smarter than the girl caused the dragon to burst out with a loud, growl-like laugh.

"Your name was Skoll, right?" he asked, again turning his emerald gaze to the mantis he was walking beside. Without even waiting for a confirmation, he continued. "Listen to me, Skoll. My brain had no part in my survival. Since I left Cinnabar I have been operating on instinct and vengeance, taking out whatever of the parasites I see and ensuring they are consumed in a fiery blaze. If she is acting the same, then she is probably fine. Instinct is a powerful defense."

It was a surprising offering of comfort. Even though the charizard was gruff and largely battle-oriented, he was, at one point, a leader after all. There were other traits that made a leader a good leader other than the capacity to obliterate any enemies.

Brimstone remained silent for a moment before continuing once more. "When you do find her, make sure you introduce me. Females that act with such ruthlessness are rare. I'd like to meet her."

It was strange to be comforted by the charizard, much less being comforted in general. He stared in disbelief as they walked along the path, confused as to why the charizard was being so... nice? Still, the lizard's comments did complete their task of easing his mind a little. Even if the bug of doubt was still nestled firmly in the back of his mind...

"When you do find her, make sure you introduce me. Females that act with such ruthlessness are rare. I'd like to meet her," Brimstone chuckled as they walked, to which gave Skoll a reason to laugh.

"...If I do find her, and we're still in this group, I think she'd take all the privilege of introducing herself," he mumbled with a smirk. "She likes people with similar mindsets... and challengers."

Brimstone's smirk was still fixed firmly on his gnarled features as Skoll responded. It seemed that the scyther had at least managed to relax a bit - he had even offered up a laugh of his own - and the large dragon deemed that to be a success.

After all, brooding simply clouded the mind and made one's instincts sluggish.

"Challengers, eh? Well, we'll have to see who has a bigger kill tally," he extended his wings slightly, almost as if to emphasize what he was going to say next. "If she's topped mine, I will be impressed."

He turned his attention to the scenery up ahead, and he scanned the environment that was visible between the trees. The foliage, while it had been thick and hindering through much of their journey, seemed to be slowly thinning out. Even though Cinnabar lacked forests, it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that they were approaching the edges of the forest - or at least a fairly large clearing.

"Hmph... cover is going to be lacking soon," the charizard commented. He grinned. "I hope there are plenty of parasites to rend."

"Challengers, eh?" Brimstone replied with a grin. "Well, we'll have to see who has a bigger kill tally." He extended his wings slightly, smirk still on full. "If she's topped mine, I will be impressed."

"If she hasn't beaten it, she's certainly up there," the scyther retorted with a small smirk to match Brimstone's. "You have instinct, she has bloodlust."

Skoll's gaze lifted at Brimstone's later comment on the trees. Indeed, the trees were thinning and the grass began to lush. He had mixed feelings of coming out of the forest, with its protective canopy. But that same protection was also a prison, and he was glad to be free of it. He cracked his neck and shoulders before continuing onward wanting to spot the city soon. There was a building nearby that he recognized as the checkpoint trainers had to enter before entering the forest itself. "Looks like we're close," he remarked.

"A force to be reckoned with," while Brimstone did respond, his attention was now entirely focused on their new surroundings. While he had been lumbering along the path on all fours - it tended to be easier to balance that way - now that the building was in view he pushed himself into a full bipedal stance.

He took a heavy whiff of the air and snorted, blowing a stream of smoke from his nostrils in disgust. "I smell decay." The statement was made using a matter-of-fact tone, but the disgust on the charizard's face was clear. Whatever scent he had caught belonged to something that had probably been rotting for a while.

The dragon dropped back to all fours, lashing his tail in a mixture of irritation and excitement. "Either some two-legged fleshbags met an unfortunate end, or we're going to get some excitement before the city."

Skoll instinctively scraped his blades together upon the mentioning of possible enemies ahead, sharpening them. He simply nodded and tromped ahead, making his way to the building quickly, going faster than the rest of the group. The others seemed to have lagged behind during his and Brimstone's conversation, but it didn't matter now. There were things to kill.

He didn't wait for Brimstone to catch up before taking in the dingy appearance of of the building and leaning into the closed doorway to listen. There was silence for a moment before the soft squishing sounds of meat and blood being devoured echoed within. He frowned and looked back to the fiery dragon. "Looks like a little of A, a little of B..."

Brimstone grunted as he followed Skoll, his green eyes flickering from one direction to another as he kept his senses alert for any disturbances outside the building. There didn't seem to be any, which was at least one stroke of luck. That meant that any and all enemies would have to flood out a single doorway - a situation that made them quite easy to pick off.

As Skoll spoke, the charizard absently spat a small, liquidy ember on the ground before extinguishing it with one of his claws. "Well. Works well for us. They will be distracted." He eyed the door, seemingly sizing up the strength of the barrier. He grinned.

"As I see it, we have two options. One, I can just raze the place to the ground in a fiery inferno, or two, we bash in the door and get our claws bloody. Your choice." Either option seemed to excite the dragon, for he was already digging his claws into the ground and lashing his tail back and forth. Either way, the parasites would die, and he'd gain retribution for one more child or mate that he had lost to the vermin.

((Just to give a heads up, Lute's character has been accepted! So she'll be posting after me from now on =3 Lol, just in time to get a third person in on the action xD))

Luzige was loftily lounging on a large branch of a tree, munching on one of the few Oran Berries that he could salvage from the once peaceful, now disastrous Viridian Forest. His mandibles sank within hard skin of the blue orb, savoring it's taste. Flicking his ears, he rose at the scent of something that doesn't belong in the forest.

Smoke.

Fur bristling, he carefully looked around, holding the Berry in his mouth. Smoke meant fire. Fire meant forest fire. Forest fire meant bad. Very bad. Gulping down the Oran with one movement he shot a Spider Web to another branch, swinging towards the scent. He had to stop the fire before it spread! If the trees caught on fire, oh his lovely food, it would all be burnt down! Oh but roasted Caterpies did sound pretty good about now... Back on topic.

Luzige stopped at a tree near the edge of the forest, his eyes catching sight of a group of living. He could see what was causing the small fires now, a massive orangey-red dragon whose tail lit the grass on fire! Beside him was a... The Arachneon gazed at awe, his jaw dropping as he examined the Scyther. Large, nicely built body, and it was a bug. It was almost love at first sight! Oh how Luzzy wanted to pounce on it, feasting upon it's exoskeleton, and those wings looked mighty delicious as well.

Before the Arachnid could do anything, however, the Scyther began to scrape it's blade. Luzige winced at the thought of being caught in those sharp appendages, and decided to instead wait for an opening to attack instead. He strained to hear what the duo were saying. "As I see it, we have two options. One, I can just raze the place to the ground in a fiery inferno, or two, we bash in the door and get our claws bloody. Your choice." He blinked, confused. Were they talking about the building up ahead? They must've smelled the death-scent, it reeked all the way back to the more thicker areas of the forest. The Arachneon hung from the tree from his tails, deciding to watch for a bit before joining in.

[OOC: Heya! 8D Very excited to be on this team. <3]

Esmee was lost in her own world of thoughts. Though she loved being around these fighters, it made her feel even more weak. All she could do was scratch a bit, nothing big. Such tactics were fine when the world had been normal, but now it just didn't cut it.

Esmee looked up to see a building in front of them. It reeked horribly, and they weren't even that close yet. "As I see it, we have two options. One, I can just raze the place to the ground in a fiery inferno, or two, we bash in the door and get our claws bloody. Your choice." Esmee definately prefered the first option.
"I, uh, think you should just raze it. I mean..." Esmee flexed her toes, trying to help get her point across, "I can't really fight." She hated to admit it, but it was true. Looking sheepishly at the Charizard and Scyther, she added, "Unless you guys can teach me...?" It was worth a shot, right?

The scyther looked back to the building as the charizard spoke. "I think it'd be best if we did this... without fire." He looked back to Brimstone, giving him a smirk. "Don't want to burn the whole place down... And I'm not a big fan of fire." Plus, he wanted to get into the building... he felt eyes on him.

Esmee's question brought his attention away from the feeling of being watched. "Teach you?" Skoll repeated, genuinely confused. "...I'm not sure I can teach you anything." He merely lifted a blade. "After all, you and I don't have anything similar. If anyone could teach you, I'd look to the Eevees... which seem to have disappeared..." Again.

Skoll gently tested the doors, seeing they were locked. He could simply slice the things open and charge in, guns blazing... but that wasn't his usual style. Oh God, he was starting to become more like Ari... He frowned at the thought. 'Keep your head on, Skoll. No need for such reckless behavior.'

Brimstone grunted, an idle trail of smoke slipping from his nostrils as he calmed the fires that had probably already been bubbling in his throat. Of course an insect wouldn't like fire. Even so, the support for his first idea that came from the glameow earned a smirk as he leaned his head a bit closer to the small feline.

"Unless you can get lava to bubble up that pretty little throat of yours, there isn't much I can do either." His emerald eyes slid back to the doorway that the scyther was now testing, as the flame on the dragon's tail flared even brighter. "But, I don't think you'd get a chance to get your claws in those parasites anyway."

The charizard seemed oblivious to the stealthy approach that Skoll was attempting to take. He limped closer to the door, and only offered a brief "This way's more fun," before he heaved himself up on his hind legs and brought his claws crashing into the door.

The wood splinted immediately and fell inward with a cascade of wooden shards. For as much as Skoll wanted to avoid reckless behaviour, Brimstone was resorting to it at every turn.

((Terribly sorry for the wait. Had some things come up.))

Ooh! And there was a kitty too! She looked so pretty, yet so delicious... Luzige smiled, maybe he would spare the cat, but eat the others. [Especially the tastiest of the bunch, the Scyther!] The Arachneon carefully watched as the Charizard approached the door, and he adjusted his lenses with his paw to get a better view. The firey dragon brought the door down in one blow! Watching in awe at the action, peering into the dark building.

The area reeked of even more rotten, dead scents. The spider-eeveelution did a dramatic gag, giggling before hopping down from the tree, landing feet-first on a rock. Ooh, he couldn't take it anymore! He had to have a piece of this action! Jumping on the stone excitedly, he gave a dumb grin, eyes bright with joy.

"Oh, oh! Mind if I join it too?" he asked. "I'd love to kick some infected ass!" Luzige was eager, almost too eager for a fight. He was getting so hungry just by the thought of it!

The air was still and quiet. In a small clearing, saplings and brush on all sides, the calm was almost peaceful, if you could ignore the fact that there were dead bodies painting the ground. Whatever had happened there occurred long ago, weeks, maybe even months. The corpses were stiff and decayed, flesh long gone and replaced by brittle bones and leathery hide. Dark stains upon the ground reflected the gore that once decorated the delicate grass, staining it forever. It was here that it happened.

The air began to ripple, energy seeming to amass in mid-air in waves that focused on a central point. There was a buzzing sound and a brilliant flash of pink light, and where once there was nothing, a small Abra sat. She was fairly small, for an Abra, but looked like any other of her kind. Except, for some strange reason, she had a small pair of human glasses upon her nose. The Abra, eyes still closed as she dozed, lifted her head to sense her surroundings. Noticing the death around her the small fox began to panic, and the air began to ripple again. But before she could execute another Teleport, her energy dropped to zero.

It seemed, in her terror, she had used the last of her Power Points in escaping from her home in Orre. She had landed in some unknown place, sure she had never been there before, and was now absolutely frightened. If she couldn't escape, what could she do? She didn't have the power to fight the infected that assaulted her and her family. Her low level saw to that. Trying not to panic she focused again, and could sense other Pokemon not far from her. Praying to whatever deity would listen she hoped they weren't infected, and went off to find them. For all her strategies, one fact always proved true. There was safety in numbers.

((OOC: Woot! Introducing my little Kenna! Looking forward to being in this team!))

((In a hurry, can't post, please skip.))

So much for the stealthy route. "This way's more fun," Brimstone's deep growl of a chuckle sounded as he reared up, revealing his true height, and came crashing through the doors. Skoll heaved a sigh and couldn't help but think of Ari in the charizard. Those two would have a blast together...

"Ooh!" an unknown voice sounded as a creepy dog-bug... thing dropped down from the trees. "Mind if I join, too? I'd love to kick some infected ass!" It had eight eyes and fangs displayed in a wide dopey grin. What the hell was this thing?! Skoll could only blink in reply; at least it wasn't trying to eat him?

"...Suit yourself, Creepy," he muttered as he charged into the fray, not wanting to be left alone with the new guy. The Infected in there were numerous, and Skoll had an easy time dismembering whatever he came across. Sandslash, Nidoqueen, Beedrill, Pidgeotto, Chansey; all nameless faces he passed as his scythes cut through each and every one of them easily. His agile movements prevented any harm, whizzing through the undead crowd in zigzags and turns. They couldn't touch him.

"...Suit yourself, Creepy," Luzige's grin widened even more, letting out a yip of joy as he hopped up and down. This is gonna be soooooo much fun! Thoughts ran through his mind, completely ignoring the 'Creepy' comment. Hoards of infected and the likes began to pour from the broken door, and slowly dragging his tongue across his lips before leaping at a delicious Beedrill, clinging to it's lower body as if it were his life.

The bug began to shake frantically, hissing and screeching as it attempted to throw the Arachneon off, but he stubbornly clung, diligently dragging his tongue across it's exoskeleton gleefully. "So delicious... Sweet tinted with sour..." He jabbed Acrobatic legs into it's body, before withdrawing his paws and licking any substance that was caught on them. The Beedrill began to shake violently, before the bug-type eeveelution used a second Acrobatic to kill it.

As he nibbled on one of the bug's wings, his ears flicked back and forth. His ears were large, perfect for picking up noises, and was there... A buzzing sound somewhere? Must be the delicious bugs, calling to me to eat them... he mused. But... Maybe it was a group of undead coming from behind them? In his curiosity, he shot a Spider Web onto a branch, climbing up and surveying the area. His eight eyes caught something... Yellow in the distance. Maybe it was a Kakuna! Hungrily, he dashed through the foliage, stumbling and skipping towards the yellow blotch.

Luzige's thoughts proved wrong when the figure turned out to be an Abra... But a living one! Living were always more delicious than undead, they had a much more pure taste. What were those things that the psychic-type wore on it's face? Tilting his head to the side, he carefully popped his head through a bush, flicking his ears. "Hiiiii! I'm Luzige, who're you?" he asked, cheerful as ever. "Oh, and how'd you get to Viridian Forest? Never seen you before." He'd never seen an Abra in the forest, nor this particular living. [Although he's never seen the giant red dragon, pretty kitty, and delicious bug either.] His two tails swayed quietly, ready to latch onto a branch if needed.

Kenna approached the scene just as a small group tore through a gathering of infected inside a building. Her eyes shot open, violet irises growing big and glittery, as she watched the battle unfold. Adrenaline began pumping through her as she took particular interest in a Scyther carving his way through the bulk of the horde. His movements were quick and precise, a favorite tactic of the young strategist, and his skill was a pleasure to behold. There was, however, one problem. Kenna closed her eyes as a vision began to play out in her mind.

The vision released her, and Kenna immediately assessed the battlefield. She saw the makings of her vision in the works and quickly formed a strategy to correct for it. There would be no time and no way to warn the Scyther of the danger, so she would have to handle it herself. She spotted the Nidoqueen and the Pidgeotto, the last pieces of the puzzle, and acts. Using a Psychic, she picks up the Pidgeotto and hurls it into the Nidoqueen, knocking them both to the ground. That would leave the Scyther plenty of time to notice the danger.

"Hiiiii! I'm Luzige, who're you?" Kenna let loose a scream as the insect popped out of the bushes, right in her face. She had been so into the vision she never even saw him coming. 'Bad strategy, Kenna,' she scolded herself. "Oh, and how'd you get to Viridian Forest? Never seen you before." V-Viridian forest?! How in the world did she end up there! She'd never been to Kanto before! She quickly teleported several feet away from the strange looking insect before trying to answer. "I, uh...I don't know how I got here, honestly."

((OOC: Received permission from Sil to use Skoll in her vision.))

((I don't know where everyone is, but Zero is still in the forest waiting for everyone to come back, wherever they may be.))

Expert slices and dices flew through the air in a lethal fury, his blades a deadly twister. He paused when he saw a pidgeotto and nidoqueen trying to recover from what looked like a collision, but Skoll didn't care. Their heads rolled off as easily as the others, but a scream made his head turn back to the forest. It was obviously female, and though he doubted Ari would ever scream in anything other than a war cry, he shot out of the building toward the sound, leaving the rest of the Infected to Brimstone.

The scyther skidded to a halt when he found Creepy and an abra with... glasses... talking. Panting slightly, he frowned down at the two, unsure of which one he'd rather be closer to. "...What are you doing?" It was an honest question, since he really didn't know who screamed -though it was probably the abra- or what the hell had happened. He also didn't keep in mind his blades were soaked with infected blood, which was also sprayed on his being.

As soon as he talked to the Abra it let out a scream. "I, uh...I don't know how I got here, honestly." Luzige slightly tilted his head sideways in thought. "Oh, did you teleport then? Your species is known to teleport!" he hummed, thinking about Abras. All he knew was that the Psychic types teleported everywhere... And they probably tasted good.

His ears perked up and his eyes brightened as he smelled blood coming their way. Infected, death-scented blood. His muscles tensed until he heard the familiar voice. "...What are you doing?" Oh, it was his lovely dinner. The Arachneon gave a happy yip, bouncing up and down. "Oh oh, I found this Abra here! She says she doesn't know how she got into the forest, but she seems cool! She also looks really tasty!" he spoke extremely quickly, as if he was hyper on... Something.

"Soooooo~" giggling, he climbed up a tree and hung from a branch, looking at all of them upside-down. Occasionally he would look back to where the infected poured out, catching glimpses of a few twitching and moving upon the many piles of decapitated corpses. "What's your name, miss, mister?" he looked to the Abra and Scyther respectively, nibbling on the hard bark of a tree. "As you might already know, I'm the almighty Luzige!" the bug-type joked, amidst his hyperactive swaying. An infected Caterpie crawled close to him, and the eeveelution gave a swift bite to the neck to kill it. "Deed youm mmfknow thwat bugz tmfaste good?" he mumbled through the Caterpie in his mouth, cracking open it's body. Luzige's eyes were shimmering with delight.

The bug...thing...just kept babbling. Kenna was having a hard time focusing on it to understand, and it was giving her a headache. The little Abra was having such a hard time, she never even saw the Scyther approach. "...What are you doing?" Her head shot up, looking directly at the mantis despite her eyes never opening. She offered him a small smile that immediately fell at the next words from the other 'bug'.

"Oh oh, I found this Abra here! She says she doesn't know how she got into the forest, but she seems cool! She also looks really tasty!"

Tasty? TASTY?! Kenna let out another scream and a Teleport, popping back behind the Scyther and praying that he wouldn't just turn around and attack her. How could that thing think she looked tasty? She wasn't food, she was a scholar! She cringed as the creature babbled once again, asking her name, before suddenly lunging at an infected Caterpie. Kenna gagged, and had to force herself not to throw up, as he spoke with a mouth full of bug. She really didn't want to answer someone that wanted to eat her.

...He really should have expected it. Creepy being... well, creepy. He eyed the screamer abra up and down like a piece of meat and then scurried into a tree to demolish a caterpie with his pretty face. Appetizing. "Deed youm mmfknow thwat bugz tmfaste good?" Creepy queried, to which Skoll frowned more; "Bugs taste good"? What the...

"...You... realize you look like a bug too, right?" He didn't really move when the Screamer had teleported behind his leg; he was a little more concerned that this Creep paraded the fact that he dined on bugs. Guess who was a bug? Yeah. "So... why don't you eat yourself?"