(ELITE) The MAHOGANY Team

Max hadn't planned on actually falling asleep, but her body always had a way of telling her to fuck off. Granted, due to the pain on her back and having to sleep in a very uncomfortable position, the sleep wasn't restful. She had a death grip on her bag, and due to how she had curled up, the bag was covering the pocket over her stomach. She barely heard Archer's voice, "Time to wake," but when he kicked her feet, her eyes snapped open in terror. She made the mistake of rolling onto her back and hissed in pain as her body reminded her of what happened yesterday. Fucking hell. First people she's met in almost four years, and she gets taken hostage and then fucking flogged for no reason. And people always wondered why she had a cynical streak. Archer was quick to remind them what they needed to do, "Need to get back to digging." She quickly rolled to her stomach to stand up, and her back heavily protested the movement. All she could do was grit her teeth and bear it.

The sudden movements startled Misty awake, but the Ponyta quickly grabbed a hold of herself. Seeing Max in so much pain continued to incite a fire in her belly, and the knowledge that she couldn't do anything only made it worse. Misty joined her trainer in standing, and tried to offer her support. She looked at Max in shock when she realized what the stubborn girl was doing. Instead of offering her bag to someone else to carry or trying to make Misty carry it, the girl was wearing the backpack backwards so that the load was on her front instead of her back. She wasn't sure if there was still a gag rule, however, so she had to remain silent and hope Max would give up and find a way to tie the thing onto her.

Barely acknowledging the others, Max gingerly made it back over to where she had been digging and started again. Between her bag being in the way and the pain in her back, she was unfortunately moving a lot slower than she had been yesterday.

The stress of the day prevents Daisy from getting a restful sleep, her body forcing itself awake at irregular intervals. With no sky above her head, she can never tell the hour, nor how long her bursts of sleep last. Not for the first time since being taken hostage, Daisy wishes Maggie could be here with her, or Snowy. Any of her Pokemon, really; their presence would be a comfort in this maelstrom of hatred and tension. Her heart weighs heavily as she thinks of Valjean, wondering if they would ever see each other again. It's her fault they're in this mess. If only she'd taken another path...

Eventually, Daisy gives up on attempting to get more sleep. She'd drifted off only to be caught in a nightmare, forced to watch a bullet be put through Snowy's skull as retribution for a slight Daisy could not remember; she woke up in a cold sweat, her heart beating so rapidly that it almost made her sick. After that, Daisy's thoughts run too quickly for her brain to settle down, the woman occasionally seeing glimpses of her Togetic friend painted red with blood. For hours, she had to remind herself that these images weren't real, and that it'd all been a nightmare.

Daisy doesn't know what time it is when their captors awaken, but she's somewhat relieved to see that the first to rise is Archer. The infinitely more rational and sane one, along with the only one of the two who understood their plight all too well. He's the one who'll be their best chance at escaping. Together, they all could work to rid this entire earth of Ariana...but such thoughts seem too idealistic for early morning. Better to grit her teeth and bide her time than waste energy fantasizing.

"Time to wake," Archer says; though she hadn't actually been asleep, Daisy was lying down, leading to her feet being lightly kicked. She struggles past weariness to stand up, her eyes feeling like ten tons of bricks were placed upon her face. "Need to get back to digging."

Daisy isn't too happy about being reminded of their task, but she says nothing. Complaining would not only fail to help, but it'd bring hellfire down upon her as well. Thoughts of Snowy and Daisy's thrice-damned dream help keep her mouth shut; she would dig for a thousand more years if it meant keeping that nightmare from becoming a reality. She returns to digging with the rest of them, though Daisy has to keep herself from looking over at Max with concern. The girl has refused to let go of her backpack even if it meant the thing got in the way, and Daisy can admire that sort of determination. Still, she shouldn't be doing this, not with her wounds still fresh and the risk of infection or tearing all too real.

Godfuckingfuck.  

The smallest bit of movement has them both waking, Saturn's much less restrained than her own-- as her eyes open she feels him jerk beside her, though thankfully he refrains from making any kind of noise.  

If I sit up would I make myself a target?  Probably.  Well, not if Ariana isn't awake, but it's hard to tell if Mother dear is or not.  No visual of her from this angle.  Better to play it safe.  She feels Saturn move just the tiniest bit closer to her and wishes she could conspiciously roll over and maybe throw an arm over him, but it's better not to risk that.

Funny how a day of hell can make rest impossible to get regardless whether you slept or not.  Guess she'll be laying here until either sleep claims her again or someone signals that it's time to get up.  Someone moved, so... likely won't be long.

And it's not.  At least Archer isn't rough about it.  Kind of rude, maybe, but his voice is... well, it's not neutral but it's not loud or angry, and compared to the dumpster fire that was yesterday, that's kind of relieving.

"Hnnnn..."  It's a very soft whine, but she tenses all the same, hoping Ariana didn't hear the noise.  Luckily, Saturn drew his feet in when he made it, so the sound of his boots scraping across the floor should muffle it enough-- Mars probably only heard it because she's right there, right?

He pulls himself into a sitting position alongside her, the shadows under his still closed eyes heavier than usual.  This woman better not set his health back too far.  It's not that great to begin with.

Saturn rubs his eyes and opens them, glancing around the room with the slightly interested way only someone far too tired to fully comprehend reality yet can.  Mars pats his back, making him struggle not to sharply draw in breath as said reality crashes down around him.  Oh, that's right.  This... awfulnes.

How much further...?  She can't possibly kill them all right?  What does she plan to do when they get whatever she's here for?  He watches Mars stand up, eyes dull, staring at her outstretched hand for a full minute before realizing what it is.  He takes the hand and she hauls him up, his thin frame wilting under the weight of his usual issues and their uncertain future.  Shoulders hunched and arms crossed into something more of a hug than any kind of more dominating or defiant stance, he glances back at the digging that's still left an internally groans.

Will she even let them eat whatever food they may have in their packs, or does she expect them to get digging straight away?

Max answers the question by returning straight to digging, Saturn wincing as he kneels down beside her to work and Mars settles on his other side.  

She's so fiery and determined but she should really lessen her load.  It's not like he knows much of medicine, but he knows that the added burden of the backpack is a terrible idea.  "I'll... carry that for you... if you want...?"

((I'll remove the offer if Maximum prefers.))

Archer subtly sighed in relief as everyone went back to their digging without any objections or sass. Seemed Ariana's display yesterday did the trick. His eyes went to the poor victim of the former's outburst, vaguely aware of just how much pain her back must have been in. What he really wasn't looking forward to was what would happen when her sweat went into those wounds.

Ariana, on the other hand, rose with a satisfied stretch and moan. "Now this is what I like to see!" she cooed, prompting a few of her Pokemon to flock around her. "What a beautiful sight. My devoted hostages toiling away as I wake. Well done, everyone. Keep yourselves in line like this more often and things like yesterday will just be... bad dreams. Isn't that right, little Maxie-poo?" She laughed at her own terrible joke and stood, stretching a little more before she strutted over to their line, coming to a halt beside Archer.

"Such obedient little drones. Shame a simple flogging put them all in their places so quickly, right? I wouldn't have minded making a few more examples out of them." She gave a cruel laugh and draped herself over Archer's shoulders, using a finger to trace and play with his sideburns. "Wouldn't you agree, Archer?"

"...I'm far more practical, Ariana. You know that." It was difficult, keeping the disgust out of his voice. Thankfully, his monotone was fairly practiced now.

"Ugh. You mean boring."

"I'd rather just get what we came here to get and then leave."

"Exactly. Boring." She pushed herself off of her fellow Rocket admin and yawned. "But I suppose one of us has to be. Otherwise, nothing would get done. Listen, girls," Ariana began as she suddenly switched gears. At least she wasn't touching him anymore. "To reward you for being so diligent, we dig for... two hours and I'll let you break and eat. Okay?" Her grin grew. "See what happens when you just... obey? Much better, isn't it?"

"Now this is what I like to see!"

The shiver of disgust that went down Fenix's spine was visible to anyone nearby. She shook it off and continued digging through her portion of the wall but every swing channeled more and more rage until her arms felt like they were vibrating to the bone with every blow. "What a beautiful sight. My devoted hostages toiling away as I wake. Well done, everyone. Keep yourselves in line like this more often and things like yesterday will just be... bad dreams. Isn't that right, little Maxie-poo?"

Fenix's gaze drifted to the young girl at her side, a pitying frown on her face at the display of her trying to dig with a backpack strapped to her stomach. Her back would be angry for days and it would only get worse before it got better if Ariana didn't let the doctor-chick treat the injuries more seriously. Pain. Does. Not. Make. Productive. Hostages. It only makes compliant ones. Fucking idiot. Ariana was going to have no one to blame but herself after she flippantly killed everyone off.

"Such obedient little drones. Shame a simple flogging put them all in their places so quickly, right? I wouldn't have minded making a few more examples out of them. Wouldn't you agree, Archer?"

"...I'm far more practical, Ariana. You know that." At least one of the two asshats had sense. While Archer didn't disgust Fenix to the point Ariana did he was still a Rocket and therefore an asshat like the rest of them. He was just one she wouldn't kill unless pressed to. They continued babbling for a minute but one part of their conversation caught her attention. What did they want down here? Fenix knew she was just here to steal some tech but they were looking for something specific.

"But I suppose one of us has to be. Otherwise, nothing would get done. Listen, girls," Oh goodie. "To reward you for being so diligent, we dig for... two hours and I'll let you break and eat. Okay? See what happens when you just... obey? Much better, isn't it?" You mean we get to work even harder and the most innocent person in the group gets whipped? That kind of obeying? Because that's what fucking happened. ARGH she just wanted to scream and rip Ariana's fucking head off.

Flynn was starting to panic at the rage rolling off of Fenix. He once again crept closer to the group and tried letting his calming aura settle her temper. The Sylveon had been trying to re-stack his Calm Minds after he woke up but if she kept drawing attention to herself, and subsequently him, through her anger there would be no saving her. He wasn't strong enough to fight against the type disadvantages without being fully bulked. He could only hope Ariana's games kept her too distracted to do anymore permanent harm like with poor Max.

The only male hostage started working on one side of her while Fenix took the other side. Thankfully, things were quiet. Maybe Ariana wouldn't get mad... A sudden movement caused her to wince, but she shut her lips so that any sounds were muffled. The tensing in her muscles must have caught the blue haired guy's attention; he quietly offered, "I'll... carry that for you... if you want...?" The offer made her pause for a second, but she forced herself to continue digging as she thought. If she had been in perfect health, the answer would have been an easy 'no.' However, moving was already putting her in pain, and she knew that once she started sweating, the salt was going to burn. Giving her bag, which held her supplies and few mementos, to anyone seemed wrong and a bad idea to her, but she had to think about surviving this hell hole. If she became useless.... Ariana might decide she was dead weight... It didn't help that she could still feel Misty's eyes burning into her. She would rather tie it onto the Ponyta, but unless they stumbled across some rope, that seemed like a pipe dream.

Before she could think any further, Ariana's chipper voice mockingly lauded them,"Now this is what I like to see! What a beautiful sight. My devoted hostages toiling away as I wake. Well done, everyone. Keep yourselves in line like this more often and things like yesterday will just be... bad dreams. Isn't that right, little Maxie-poo?" She simply nodded in response; not trusting her voice to sound even remotely normal anyway. She didn't agree with the red headed bitch, but she had enough self preservation skills to keep it to herself. Max didn't trust Ariana's 'promises' anymore. Ariana was just going to fuck around with them until they died or got what they came here for. "Such obedient little drones. Shame a simple flogging put them all in their places so quickly, right? I wouldn't have minded making a few more examples out of them." God, how did this bitch survive with her carelessness. Did she really think that they'd be useful to this adventure if they were all in severe pain? "Wouldn't you agree, Archer?"

Archer was level in his response, "...I'm far more practical, Ariana. You know that." If there was any comfort to be had in this shit situation, hopefully he could keep her from simply playing with them to death. Considering his own situation... Max hoped that maybe he wasn't so browbeaten as to throw out a chance of getting out. Last night had showed them a lot of things, but it was clear Archer and his Pokemon didn't want to be here. Or at least here with Ariana. She had her Pokemon, but... they should be able to outnumber them...

The rest of the conversation continued in a similar fashion until Ariana finally turned her attention back to the hostages, "Listen, girls. To reward you for being so diligent, we dig for... two hours and I'll let you break and eat. Okay?" Again, Max wasn't sure if she believed the red head's deal, but they couldn't do anything to debate or argue. She vaguely wondered how they were supposed to tell time down here, but she wasn't going to ask for fear of sounding like a smartass. "See what happens when you just... obey? Much better, isn't it?" The last question made her grit her teeth in anger. I did, and it did me a fat lot of good. While compliance was good for holding out, this wasn't going to be sustainable.

After a few moments of digging, she suddenly remembered that she had never responded to the blue haired guy's question; Ariana had taken all of her attention. Two hours. Could she hold out that long? Since she had started moving, her body had warmed up, and it wouldn't be much longer until the sweat started. She side eyed him as she tried to make her decision. One, could handle it, and two, what if he tried to take it? Once again, she was reminded of Misty when the Ponyta had run into her group, and she felt intensely guilty at the thought of making someone who looked that frail carry her burdens. He had offered... But what if he wanted to take her stuff? The logical part of her reminded her that he couldn't run anywhere, and the more compassionate side argued that if he stole anything, it would probably be food because he needed it. Her intense paranoia tried to bring up that he could be looking for favors, but that was again quashed by how damn skinny he looked. She had no doubts that she could kick his ass if he did try anything, and guilt tripping wouldn't work either. Necessity would make the decision for her. She paused digging with one hand and then the other as she painfully shrugged off the military backpack and nudged it towards him. Her voice was quiet and raspy from last night's events still, "If you're sure. Thanks."

While Misty had hoped Max would finally see the light on the matter, it was still shocking to the Ponyta to see her human actually trust someone with her bag. She realized that Max was likely already in a lot of pain since she gave in much more easily than expected. Pity filled her gaze as she observed the humans at work, and she desperately wished that she could have been some use for it. It was her fault that she and Max were here to begin with, and it was maddening to know that she couldn't help her trainer. So far all she did was provide light. The Sylveon, Flynn, was hanging out around Fenix, so Misty tried to maintain closeness to her trainer. Since she knew that Max was still going to worry about that bag until it was in her arms again, Misty kept a close eye on the guy and the bag.

Daisy knows there's no chance of her convincing Max to put the backpack aside, and doesn't take the risk of speaking to her. She isn't close enough to the girl, anyways. However, the only other man here other than Archer does address Max, which Daisy didn't expect. The blue-haired boy had been so quiet, and with how small he is, one would think he'd be the last to speak up to a fellow hostage. Well, other than the girl he's trapped here with, of course.

"Now this is what I like to see!" Mew above, Daisy could have gone several lifetimes without hearing that cruel voice again. With Ariana fully awake, the tension in both her mind and body rises to an almost painful level, but she has to keep digging. The aches in her hands, arms, and back are nothing compared to the suffering that could happen. Anyone here would only need to take one look at Max to understand that.

"What a beautiful sight. My devoted hostages toiling away as I wake. Well done, everyone. Keep yourselves in line like this more often and things like yesterday will just be... bad dreams. Isn't that right, little Maxie-poo?" Disgusting. Her mockery towards Max is like poison, and there's nothing Daisy can do about it. Even if they did 'keep themselves in line', Ariana would still find some excuse to punish them, to keep inflicting pain and indulge her selfish, savage desires. Daisy knows better than to trust that obedience would magically make any of this bearable, at least in the long run.

"Such obedient little drones. Shame a simple flogging put them all in their places so quickly, right? I wouldn't have minded making a few more examples out of them. Wouldn't you agree, Archer?"

"...I'm far more practical, Ariana. You know that."

Daisy couldn't care less about their shared words. With the newfound knowledge of Archer's plight, she's fully convinced that the man would rather be anywhere than near his fellow Rocket. There's no way they wouldn't have the advantage of numbers...but there's still a whole host of other problems. Archer might not turn against Ariana. Any one of them could be shot dead. In this place, a fight breaking out among these exceedingly powerful Pokemon could result in everyone being buried underneath rubble. Daisy would love nothing more than to focus on getting them out alive, but the tedium of digging and the soreness of her body makes it difficult to focus.

Listen, girls," Ariana addresses them, and Daisy has to double her focus towards digging to prevent her anger from becoming too obvious. Wear your heart on your sleeve, and your hand might be cut off. For now, emotional stoicism is her best bet at avoiding Ariana's wrath. "To reward you for being so diligent, we dig for... two hours and I'll let you break and eat. Okay? See what happens when you just... obey? Much better, isn't it?"

It's about as great as a swift punch to the jaw, Daisy thinks bitterly, but she doesn't dare voice that thought. Her own endurance isn't exactly impressive, but she's definitely strong enough to handle two hours of this labor. It's Max and the blue-haired boy that concern her. It's good to see that the former has let him carry her bag instead of personally bearing the weight, but even so, could the two of them last for the next couple of hours? Max is injured, and the boy is so skinny, like he hasn't eaten in a long time...

Her worry won't stop increasing, it seems. Daisy wishes she could be given the opportunity to redress Max's wounds; a lot of damage can be done in the span of two hours.

She doesn't even get to answer.  Ariana's voice cuts through, gleeful and cheery.  "Now this is what I like to see! What a beautiful sight. My devoted hostages toiling away as I wake. Well done, everyone. Keep yourselves in line like this more often and things like yesterday will just be... bad dreams. Isn't that right, little Maxie-poo?"

Eat an entire ass.

"Such obedient little drones. Shame a simple flogging put them all in their places so quickly, right? I wouldn't have minded making a few more examples out of them."

... Does... she have any brains at all?  Doesn't she realize that crippling them with pain would backfire?

"Wouldn't you agree, Archer?"

"...I'm far more practical, Ariana. You know that."

Thank you, Archer.  Mars sighs inwardly in relief.  At least someone with a weapon is on their side.

"Ugh. You mean boring."

No, efficient.  Idiot.

"I'd rather just get what we came here to get and then leave."

"Exactly. Boring."  She yawns, like that punctuates how boring he is. "But I suppose one of us has to be. Otherwise, nothing would get done."

... Huh.  She actually admits a flaw?  Maybe she should tuck that away; save it for later...

"Listen, girls,"  Saturn winces.  Oh god, now what.  "To reward you for being so diligent, we dig for... two hours and I'll let you break and eat. Okay?"  She pauses for a moment, probably watching them, and her voice is a purr when she speaks again.  "See what happens when you just... obey? Much better, isn't it?"

I hate you...

"If you're sure. Thanks." His head jerked back at the sudden answer to his earlier question, and he almost fumbles the bag as it's pushed into his hands.

"O-oh- y-you're welcome," he mumbles, slinging it on. His own bag was left where he slept, so... this backpack wouldn't be causing him problems.

Two hours... he can last that long and he's sure Mars, Fenix, and Daisy can... but can Max?

If she can't will Ariana hurt her...?  His stomach is twisting again, but he grits his teeth and forges onward.

Ariana was in such a fantastic mood, she didn't even bother pressing the hostages for what they were talking about. While Archer heard their small conversation, it was at least good to know that Ariana was indeed so self-assured while in her high she grew careless. Very careless. It didn't bode well for his immediate future, since she was only this way after last night's events, but it meant that if there was going to be correspondence between them and himself for some sort of mutiny, they'd be able to do so. If only he had a psychic pokemon...

The next two hours were silent, save for the occasional humming or offshoot comment from Ariana. But once Sin's nose gently pushed against Archer's leg, he felt a small bit of relief. Maybe Ariana's mood would last them some time before she had her next little meltdown. He looked to her, already munching on some jerky, and stated, "Ariana, it's time."

She turned to him, apparently too lost in her own good mood and jerky to remember what that even meant. "What are you even talking about?"

"Food break for the hostages," Archer replied with his normal monotone. As he watched her roll her eyes, he quickly added, "They're useless starving."

"Ugh, I forgot. Fine. Take a little break. God, this is taking forever."

Flynn's aura was helping but only slightly, allowing Fenix to channel her rage into her swings instead of out loud. The metal and rock meeting violently with her metal rod caused vibrations to shoot up her arms and penetrate deep into her shoulders but she grit through the pain. She needed to vent into this obstruction or she would plunge this metal right into Ariana's whore mouth and make her choke on it. God why was there no booze in this place?!

Through her rage filled haze she only half heard the quiet plea from the small young man to take Max's backpack but she did catch her handing it to him out of the corner of her eye. It gave her some relief to see the wounded girl less encumbered but one look at Ariana had her back to boiling in no time. Why. Would. This. Never. End? Why couldn't she just kill these idiots and get what she came for then fuck off? That was the plan the entire time and it was only the hope she could still find it following the Queen of the Sluts that kept her from fucking off when she had the chance. That and making sure the kids didn't die.

"Ariana, it's time."

Oh thank fuck. Fenix's plunged her metal rod into the wall and stared at Ariana as she feigned her ignorance. Or maybe she was really that stupid as to not remember her own words barely hours after saying them. "What are you even talking about?"

"Food break for the hostages. They're useless starving." And bleeding, and unconscious from pain, but Ariana didn't care about that part either so why should food matter?

"Ugh, I forgot. Fine. Take a little break. God, this is taking forever."

"You're fucking telling me," Fenix grumbled under her breath behind a muted growl. Flynn flinched hoping Ariana or her devil-pokemon didn't catch her words.The Pokemon would have been much faster and better equipped to dig than three kids and a nurse with no callouses. But Ariana wanted to prove her authority and make the humans do it. Fucking trash.

She abandoned her pole where it still stayed buried into place and walked over to the doctor, nodding her head to indicate Max as she spoke softly. "Hey Doc, you got any painkillers left for the kid? I'm waiting for her to drop any second now and I don't want Queenie getting any ideas." The Sylveon at her side slipped away as it seemed Fenix was finally calming down now that she had pushed most of her rage into the wall they were trying to break through and made his way over to Tyranny.

"Um, excuse me," He kept his voice low and his face neutral, trying to not alert any of Ariana's pokemon that he was trying to initiate a direct contact with one of their captors, but he needed information. "May I speak to you a moment?"

The blue haired guy was startled by Max's out of nowhere answer, but he quickly stammered out, "O-oh- y-you're welcome," and threw the bag over his own shoulders. The tripping over his words eased her anxiety a bit; he was less likely to cause a confrontation if he was that nervous. Once the matter was settled, she focused again on the wall, and when she reached her arm, she felt a tug somewhere near the side. Shit. She huddled closer to the wall so that wouldn't have to bend her body any more than she had to.

"Ariana, it's time." By the time Archer's voice finally rang out two hours later, her back was on fire. Her back felt warmer and stickier than the rest of her body, and only by refusing to change her position for the last hour had made the pain somewhat bearable. She didn't stop, despite Archer's words; he wasn't the one truly in charge.

Ariana was either clueless or being even more sadistic with feigned surprise, "What are you even talking about?" Max wouldn't discount the idea that she would "forget" in order to make them suffer more.

"Food break for the hostages," Archer reminded her. "They're useless starving."

"Ugh, I forgot. Fine. Take a little break. God, this is taking forever." Once Ariana had released them from working for a few moments, Max finally stopped moving. However, she didn't move out of her crouched position beyond shifting her legs so that she was laying on them while remaining bent forward. She threw her hand out, palm up, to the guy next to her so he would hand her the bag back. She didn't speak for fear of her voice cracking and causing an emotional cascade. They couldn't afford one of those right now.

Nobody said anything as the time crawled along, which all things considered was somewhat of a blessing. Even if it made the hours feel slower and more tedious, boredom and being stuck dwelling on anxious thoughts far outstripped Ariana deciding to 'punish' another hostage. Every so often, Daisy would glance over at Max and the boy with blue hair, worrying all the while.

"Ariana, it's time." What a relief. If she's feeling fatigued and aching, then she can't imagine what Max is experiencing, or even Fenix-those angry movements were difficult to miss. Everyone here needs a chance to care for themselves before being thrown back into the metaphorical fire.

What are you even talking about?" Had she truly forgotten, or was she only faking ignorance? It's almost sad how Daisy can't tell.  

"Food break for the hostages. They're useless starving." At least one of them is thinking ahead, though it seems a rather moot point upon thinking of how Max had been whipped. Efficiency isn't a high priority in the mind of the captor who happened to hold power over everyone here, at least for the time being. Gods, that needs to change, and soon.

"Ugh, I forgot. Fine. Take a little break. God, this is taking forever."

It might go faster if the job hadn't been thrown upon a bunch of angry, weak, or timid hostages, but what did Ariana know about being smart and efficient? Daisy is glad to give her body some rest, stretching out her sore arms and legs. They're not happy with the exertion, to say the least, but at least now her muscles wouldn't seize up on her whenever the work continued.

It's difficult to miss Fenix's approach, what with her bright hair and all. Daisy only has a few moments to wonder what the woman's intentions are before she speaks, but it can't be anything that bad. Fiery and free-spirited as Fenix is, none of her actions have indicated malice to anyone who hasn't earned it. For Mew's sake, she even bowed down to Ariana to try and spare Max undeserved punishment. Not that it'd gotten them anywhere...

"Hey Doc, you got any painkillers left for the kid? I'm waiting for her to drop any second now and I don't want Queenie getting any ideas." For a second, Daisy is puzzled-is she talking about the Nidoqueen, or...? The thought is quickly discarded, however; she has to focus on helping Max for now. Her painkillers hadn't been holding up well even before arriving here; thankfully, most of the used-up pills were for smaller or more specific conditions than what Max had. It's one bright spot in the midst of this entire mess.

"Yes, I should have something for her. Give me a second," Daisy says, keeping her voice down like Fenix had done; it was best not to draw a lot of attention to themselves. Daisy's bag of supplies is thankfully not too far away, and she doesn't need to go to great lengths to retrieve it. Just as she suspected, there are painkillers left inside one of the kits, though the bottom is approaching a depressing and concerning emptiness.

"I really need to change her bandages, too," Daisy murmurs, though she is really speaking more to herself than to Fenix. The pills would likely knock Max out if too much was taken, so she kept the dosage a bit smaller than she would've liked. Max would have to deal with more pain, but it would be a far trade-off compared to her passing out and potentially becoming, yet again, the target of Ariana's wrath.

(note from me: I'm sorry, this post is really low-quality...Phoenix, or Max, feel free to control some of Daisy's actions if you need to, like handing the pills over or something, I don't want to slow down plot.)

"Ariana, it's time."

Saturn jolted a touch at the suddenness of a voice among all the other noises, Mars notes out of the corner of her eye. She doesn't stop digging quite yet; best not to until the crazy lady says they can. She's the one in charge, after all. Un-fucking-fortunately. "What are you even talking about?"

Wow, she must have a short term memory. Moron. Ugh, it's so frustrating to not be able to voice any of her opinions.

"Food break for the hostages," She can only assume Ariana made some mocking gesture because Archer has to point out the obvious to her. "They're useless starving."

"Ugh, I forgot." You forgot. "Fine. Take a little break. God, this is taking forever."

Fucking finally. She drops her tool and moves to Saturn, who is now sitting with his back to the wall, watching the girl with a touch of anxiety. She sits beside him, the two automatically putting their heads close together to communicate in murmurs.

"How're you holding up?"  

He doesn't answer for a minute, and she raises an eyebrow. Saturn sighs.

"Poorly," he admits. "Bad... bad thoughts. But I'll survive. Unless she decides we won't." He's actually confident enough in his own messed up mind that he's staking 'odds of a bad end happening' on 'Ariana murdering us all.' Okay, good sign. Sort of. Better than 'I want to die and I'm ready to make that happen,' but it's not like she's ever gotten that answer from him ever. Whatever issues he has, something is making him determined to press on. Good to know even captivity by someone who is obviously evil to her core hasn't changed that. "Physically I'm doing as fine as you could expect."

Awesome. That's the answer she was hoping to hear. Grabbing her pack, she returns to his side and opens a pack of rations.  "Here. I know you don't like eating but down here, in this situation, you need it."

He nods and accepts his portion without a word on the matter.  

"How're the muscles?"

"Sore. But workable. You?"

"Same." But probably less sore than his, and that part goes unsaid but understood. Saturn had never been much more than twiggy even back when he'd been healthy, though he'd definitely looked much stronger back then than now. "At least everything should feel a little better by the time the break is over."

"Mmhm."

(They're just talking quietly by themselves here; they don't want to bother anyone, so they won't talk to anyone right now. But feel free to have someone speak to one or both of them.)

Archer kept an eye on the hostages as Ariana wandered around, her disinterested boredom making her restless. Her dear Vileplume followed her, and some giggling could be heard between the two. Repulsive. The soundtrack to Archer's nightmares was those awful, awful sounds. Still, it was good that the two of them were more or less distracted as the hostages began to converse among themselves. That was something he definitely wanted to allow and encourage without making it obvious he was starting a goddamn coup.

"Um, excuse me," the Sylveon spoke softly, as he approached Tyranny. Her head turned slightly to look at him, her ear primed to Ariana's direction out of a force of habit. What could he want? Correction: what could he want that he thought she would be able to provide it? "May I speak to you a moment?"

With a single glance to her trainer, Archer gave a small nod, trusting his pokemon's judgement, and returned his eyes to other parts of the room. The Persian returned her attention to the older Fairy type, tilting her head. "Sure thing, big guy," she answered in a low voice. "Probably should make it quick before Her Highness hears. What's up?"

Truth be told Flynn was incredibly nervous about speaking to the Persian, especially with Ariana so close by, but she would probably be more forthcoming with information than her rather stoic partner. "Sure thing, big guy. Probably should make it quick before Her Highness hears. What's up?" Flynn nodded and cleared his throat softly, more out of nerves than actually needing to. "Well, it seems you and your trainer are as much prisoners in this as the rest of us though even when it was just the two of them alone he didn't leave. Why? Is there some power she holds that the rest of us don't see? Something...something that could hurt us if we did anything against it?"


"Yes, I should have something for her. Give me a second," Fenix let out a small sigh of relief at those words and stood watch over Daisy while she dug through her bag. She kept her eyes trained on Ariana even as the doctor mumbled to herself, something about bandages, but found what she was looking for. She walked with Daisy over to where Max was curled up by herself and once again took up a guard position. "Hey kid," she whispered. "The Doc's got something to help with the pain. Let her help yeah?"

She once again kept her gaze locked on Ariana and only stole a passing glance at Archer while Flynn continued to chat up the Persian. If Ariana saw Max getting help she didn't know if the woman would care or not, and obviously they went through her bag so they knew the brunette had meds, but she wouldn't risk Max looking weak. The weak would be tossed to the dogs and Fenix wasn't going to let anyone succumb to that.

((Sorry for the weak quality, trying to recreate the post I lost yesterday was aggrivating))

Max felt a slight fuzzy pressure on her hand directing it to her bag that had been placed on the ground next to her. She looked up to see Misty giving her a concerned look, but, thankfully, she said nothing. Max took a deep breath before making herself shift into a proper sitting position and stretching out her legs on the ground. The movement caused a searing pain across her back, and she stopped there. She wasn't going to push herself to stand until she had to. Afterwards, she tugged her bag closer to her lap to see what remained of her and her Pokemon's food supplies. She first pulled out her water canteen and placed it between her legs, and then winced when she pulled out one of the bags that had contained some Pokemon berries. It wasn't that the movement had aggravated anything, but the fact that even in the firelight she could see that the bag had been crushed. Whatever berries had been in there were pulverized. Worried, she looked through the rest of them, and she breathed a sigh of relief when it looked like that was the only one to suffer such a fate. While she rearranged her bag to hopefully prevent a similar thing happening again, she quietly asked Misty, "Anything you want?"

The Ponyta offered while nudging the bag with the smashed berries,"I... I can eat some of that."

The small human quirked her eyebrow at the statement, "You sure about that? There's no telling what it tastes like now."

"Better than wasting it. And you've said something before about how they go bad quicker like that."

"Point..." Discussion over, Max opened the bag a little and positioned it so that Misty could simply dip her head down and eat the contents. Now that her Pokemon had been taken care of, she pulled out an old breakfast bar. The taste was a little stale, but she hardly noticed it. When you haven't eaten a "fresh" one in years, it was easy to forget how the taste changed. As she munched, she tried to glance around to see where everyone was. Thankfully, the psycho red head was simply dicking around with her Vielplume, and didn't seem to care much what the rest of them were doing. Archer played the part of a dutiful guard, and Max couldn't help but feel conflicted. He was instrumental for why Ariana had them all like this, but the man was living something she would consider her own personal hell. The other prisoners had bunched up in groups; and Max noted with some surprise that Fenix had chosen to go talk to the doctor lady.

Trying to ignore the pain must have caused her to space out; she hadn't noticed when Fenix and the doctor lady had approached her. She sat up straight and winced when the fiery blonde spoke to her, "Hey kid. The Doc's got something to help with the pain. Let her help yeah?" When she realized who was speaking and what was said, the girl relaxed a little bit, but the sudden movement made her sit stiffly. There was genuine confusion and surprise on her face as she was handed a small pill that she vaguely recognized as a knock off brand painkiller. Were they really helping her out this much?

Either way, she wasn't sure how Ariana felt about her hostages fraternizing, so she moved quickly to take the pill with a quick swig of water from her canteen. Event though she had suffered blood loss, she couldn't drink as much as she wanted. She had no idea how long this venture was going to last, and running out of water could be a death sentence somehow. She highly doubted they would go back to the surface to get something like that. After she swallowed it down, she muttered a quiet, "Thanks." Hopefully she'd be able to work a little faster if she could ignore the pain more. She could already feel Melody whacking her head with a wing for that line of thought, and the owl's absence was keenly felt.

Walking alongside Fenix, Daisy makes her way over to Max and her Ponyta. The thoughts of both her own nightmare and that of being unable to do anything about Max's horrible wounds weighs down upon her shoulders, but she can't let it show. She has seen worse than this, but never has Daisy felt so helpless, even with patients she was unable to save. At least then, Daisy could do something to ease their pain and comfort them. Here, in this place and with the constant threats of a sadistic Rocket admin breathing down their collective necks, true camaraderie feels impossible. What else is Daisy supposed to feel other than frustration when she can't even do a simple bandage change?

"Hey kid. The Doc's got something to help with the pain. Let her help yeah?" Their sudden arrival seems to take Max by surprise, or rather, Daisy thought it looked like surprise. She hopes they haven't startled her too badly.

"Here you are," Daisy says, handing the painkiller over. She wishes there was something stronger Max could take, but they would have to work with what they had. The bewildered expression on the girl's face hints that she probably didn't expect to receive anything; if that's true, and not a feeling Daisy is projecting upon her, then this entire situation has managed to become even more unhappy. Even now, it still breaks her heart to think of how little trust and cooperation anybody can afford to give these days. Considering how Max has been treated during this so-called escapade, Daisy can't count her confusion as a surprise.

Before Daisy can even offer some of her own water to help the pill go down smoother, Max has already taken it using water from her own canteen. Seeing that only reminds her of how little prepared any of them are for a venture through this unstable building; Johto may have been reduced to a ruin of what it once was, but it still has more resources than this sorry place can possibly contain. Ariana could starting acting like the most innocent and gentle person put upon this planet, and they would all still be in peril anyways. What kind of fool hatched a scheme to drag hostages into a break-in without any sort of long-term supplies? Well, it's not like Daisy can complain when the alternative likely would have been a bullet to all of their heads.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome," Daisy responds with a smile, or at least her best attempt at one. The painkiller may not have been the strongest in the region, but it should help some. With that done, it's best for her to walk back and not crowd around Max or her Pokemon. The girl likely wants to spend whatever time is still allocated to them in peace.

"I miss our pokemon," Saturn mumbles.

"I'm debating letting Hellena..."  

Saturn shakes his head, Mars sighing. She knows what he's going to say before he says it. "Bad idea. They'd kill her. Even if you did ask Ariana's permission and she said yes, Hellena would immediately want to fight them. It just wouldn't end well."

"Probably should make it quick before Her Highness hears. What's up?"  Both heads turned to look, but Saturn's attention is stolen almost immediately by the doctor, Fenix, and Max.

"Yes, I should have something for her. Give me a second." Saturn sighs in relief along with Fenix and watches as she roots around in her bag, praying that she did in fact, have something for Max. Thankfully, she does. As soon as Fenix has it in her hand, she slips over to Max and offers it to the girl in a whisper. "Hey kid. The Doc's got something to help with the pain. Let her help yeah?"

The girl accepts the medicine with a muttered thanks.

"You're welcome," the doctor replies, her smile strained. Saturn clears his throat.

"I c-can carry the backpack for you for the entire time we're here, whenever you need to keep strain off of your back? You need the help."

"Well, it seems you and your trainer are as much prisoners in this as the rest of us though even when it was just the two of them alone he didn't leave. Why? Is there some power she holds that the rest of us don't see? Something...something that could hurt us if we did anything against it?"

"There absolutely is," Tyranny replied in a low whisper. She looked around casually a moment to make sure no unwanted ears were listening. "She's had a death grip on Archer for years now. Brutally abuses him into submission. Which you heard. It's been going on for years and that... that does shit to you. Every time he's tried to fight back, he's regretted it. She'd do the same to any of the trainers here. She's not above anything, Sexy, and that's what makes her so dangerous. So advise your Blonde Princess to keep her tits in her shirt?"

"There absolutely is," Flynn's ribbons stilled as he felt worry grip him and fought to keep his ears perked in case they gave him away. He wasn't even supposed to be talking to the Persian but he had to help Fenix somehow. "She's had a death grip on Archer for years now. Brutally abuses him into submission. Which you heard. It's been going on for years and that... that does shit to you. Every time he's tried to fight back, he's regretted it. She'd do the same to any of the trainers here. She's not above anything, Sexy, and that's what makes her so dangerous. So advise your Blonde Princess to keep her tits in her shirt?"

Flynn felt his heart break for the poor human as his pokemon described him losing faith in his own freedom. Archer had only subtly been able to offer what remorse he could since Ariana was always watching like a rabid, hungry wolf and even that was going to run out sooner or later. He especially shuddered at the mention of Ariana doing the same to any of the other humans and he certainly hoped she didn't mean exactly the same. But the problem in all of this was Fenix. She was getting angrier and angrier every hour and eventually something bad was going to happen.

"She's not the kind to go down without a fight, you've seen only a fraction of that. I doubt very much Ariana would even be alive right now if there weren't others involved. From what I've seen of her, and what she's told me, she's not afraid to die and she is going to fight back too hard sooner or later. I'm just trying to find out if...if there is some way to help her when that happens." He looked over at Archer sadly. "Maybe even help from someone who isn't me."

The doctor lady smiled back, "You're welcome," before backing away from her and Misty. Max appreciated the extra space it gave her; it was still weird and stifling to be around so many humans. The hostage situation didn't help. Ariana still wasn't looking this way, so Max tried to enjoy the few seconds of peace the break offered.

The younger red and blue duo had been sitting away from everything else, and Max had afforded them as much privacy as she could by intentionally blocking out their whispers.The blue haired boy surprisingly spoke up again, "I c-can carry the backpack for you for the entire time we're here, whenever you need to keep strain off of your back? You need the help."

Max was more than a little surprised and blinked owlishly at the offer as she processed it. The issues she had buried earlier reared again as she tried to figure out if he was doing this for altruistic reasons or something else. The first time she could easily believe as a simple offer, but this was something potentially long term. There was also the issue of looking too weak. Lastly, she really hated asking for help. She weakly countered, "You've got your own stuff..."

"And I'm sure he's thought of that," Misty reminded her. In a much quieter voice she pleaded, "Please. If they could tie it to me, that could be an option, but we don't know what's down here, and I," she paused as she realized the full weight of her words, "May need to fight." The last phrase caused the Ponyta to shudder. Max laid a hand on the Ponyta's head as she tried to comfort her. The main reason Misty had survived before meeting them had been that she could outrun the undead.

"You're right," she admitted to both Pokemon and human. "I'll take you up on that offer, then. I'll try to pay you back somehow." She put the half-eaten bag of berry mash, her canteen, and half of the breakfast bar back into her bag. Then it finally occurred to her that she was missing some important information. "Uh... This is embarrassing. What's your names?"

(Please skip me. Not really sure what to put for this round, since Daisy is keeping to herself.)

"You've got your own stuff..." she points out. But she's wavering...

Not that he can blame her. She clearly doesn't like stranger intervention much, but her back... well, that's not going to give her too much of a choice. Not really.

"And I'm sure he's thought of that," her horse points out. Her voice dips lower, though it's not difficult to hear it, sitting right near her as he is. "Please. If they could tie it to me, that could be an option, but we don't know what's down here, and I... may need to fight." The little pony shudders. Saturns eyebrows pucker; while not one to smile much, the little frown on his face is a bit more pronounced.

Poor little thing. Max comforts her Pokemon with a pat.

"You're right," she admits. Thank god. "I'll take you up on that offer, then. I'll try to pay you back somehow." Putting some things back in her bag, she pauses. "Uh... This is embarrassing. What's your names?"

The simple question sends his mind into a stutter. Saturn? Julian?

"He's Saturn," Mars answers her smoothly. Though unsure if he likes the answer she gave, he has to be grateful for that she answered for him before there was any chance for silence to drag suspiciously. "And I'm Mars."

"Y-yeah." He exhales, feeling some of his anxiety leave him with the breath. What's done is done.

It's better that Mars answered with his nickname, really. Saturn is the name I committed my crimes under. I shouldn't be allowed to dodge that by using another name.

"What about yours?"

"She's not the kind to go down without a fight, you've seen only a fraction of that. I doubt very much Ariana would even be alive right now if there weren't others involved. From what I've seen of her, and what she's told me, she's not afraid to die and she is going to fight back too hard sooner or later. I'm just trying to find out if...if there is some way to help her when that happens." The Sylveon looked sadly at her own trainer, but Tyranny's face remained unchanged. "Maybe even help from someone who isn't me."

"I can guarantee you," the Persian replied once more in a low voice, "that if your girl so much as flashes Ariana a defiant eye again, she's going to kill someone next. It doesn't matter that your girl could kill the woman with her thumbs if the situation were different. It isn't different. And it won't be different until she gets what she wants. So keep your girl under control." The Persian gave Flynn a pointed, hard stare before ending the conversation by walking away and slowly slinking around the group.

Ariana had quickly grown bored of their little friendly to-do, and cleared her throat. "That's enough chit-chat," she announced, putting her hands on her hips as she shifted her weight from one leg to the other. "Back to work. Now."

"I can guarantee you that if your girl so much as flashes Ariana a defiant eye again, she's going to kill someone next. It doesn't matter that your girl could kill the woman with her thumbs if the situation were different. It isn't different. And it won't be different until she gets what she wants. So keep your girl under control." Flynn understood the strain that everyone was under being essentially ruled by Arianna but the scornful dismissal had him scowling after the retreating Persian. "A simple 'no' would have sufficed," he muttered as he turned back to rejoin his own companion. At least Fenix was honest about being a bitch.

Fenix had spent her time watching over the small group as Max was taken care of and the two kids talked to her, mostly to make sure Ariana didn't get a wild hair about them making nice and needing to flaunt her dick again. But even though her eyes were trained on Ariana that didn't mean she didn't catch the introductions and the names of the two kids had her bored expression shifting into a displeased frown. Mars and Saturn. Those names were not unfamiliar to her and they brought up a lot of questions regarding exactly why Ariana was keeping them here.

She was surrounded by Rockets.

Having spent years heeding Grandpop's advice about staying away from the organization she had not only ended up captured by one but several were with her. How the heck was she supposed to explain this one to the old man if she found him? Damn it. Her hands tightened around her crossed arms as she felt the overwhelming need to punch something creeping up inside of her. And right about then was the time Ariana decided to speak. "That's enough chit-chat."

Fenix scowled and dropped her arms, pushing off of the wall she had been leaning against. "Back to work. Now." Flynn flinched at Fenix's ire, feeling it grow with each passing minute. He reached up with one of his ribbons to tug on her wrist, pulling her attention away from their captor and back to what she should be doing. "Not yet...please not yet," he begged in a hushed whisper. Fenix pitied the older pokemon and gave him a few affectionate pats before nodding her agreement and picking up her tool. The sooner they got through this the sooner she could steal what she needed and be fucking out of here. May as well get back to work then. Fucking Queen Bee.