Hit Count for "The Path of the Aura: Intertwining Crossroads": 15,477.
Hit Count for "The Path of the Aura II: Brothers in Arms": 7,387.
Hit Count for "The Path of the Aura III: Bonds of Blood": 1764
Hit Count for "Diverging from The Path of the Aura": 559
Hit Count for "The First Immortal: Or how I Learned to Create the Pokémon Universe": 1,104
Total Hit Count: 26,291.
Merry Christmas, and enjoy the first of many chapters I'll start to upload biweekly (for the time being) on Sunday.
Chapter LXXII (72): Prism Ambush
"An empire won through audacious and bloody conquest isn't worth having." —Orson Scott Card (285) ("Shadow of the Giant")
83.1: The Fire Rises
Location: Victory Road (Kanto/Johto)
Date: April 6th, 2019
Time: 6:06 AM
Dawn is narrowly breaking over Mt. Silver of Johto, but has already blanketed over Kanto with its sunlight a few minutes earlier. The Victory Road that both neighboring regions share, alongside their respective Pokémon League, even during this time of day, was already gathering some attention to itself through Pokémon Trainers that braved their way through Victory Road the night before.
And that was because this was the day where the Pokémon League would officially begin. And not just in Kanto and Johto, but across Hoenn and Sinnoh and Unova and even Kalos. All of their Pokémon Leagues are connected to each other and are the highlights of each respective nation that are eagerly waited for by all spectators and participants all year.
All of these Pokémon Trainers had braved through Kanto's or Johto's eight Pokémon Gyms and claimed no less than eight Gym Badges that are necessary to even enter Victory Road as a rising star Pokémon Trainer. Anyone else that was here at the Pokémon League was just here as an employee to the organization, or as a flea market merchant that Pokémon Trainers were coming towards in droves to either buy items or trade Pokémon.
Then the opening ceremony for Kanto's and Johto's shared Pokémon League began, with the lighting of the torch that burned with Moltres' fire. Once the Olympic flame was lit, the Pokémon League began, as well as the invasion by Team Prism.
Before the first two Pokémon Trainers in this tournament could even release their Pokémon upon the call of the referee to signal the match, explosions went off throughout the surrounding seats of the arena. Dozens of them, wiping out hundreds of lives in a plume of belching fire and smoke. And while these bodies were either torn apart or silenced by the shockwaves, the arena itself was decimated, when similar explosions rang out underground. The field gave way, swallowing the referee into an early grave and narrowly catching both combating Pokémon Trainers alongside it, had their Pokémon not abandoned the fight outright and rushed to save their human masters.
This happened in mirrored fashion across the other Pokémon Leagues by the other divisions of Team Prism, where explosions would ring out across the stadiums. Hundreds died and thousands more were injured, each across six regions. And the worst part was that no one saw this coming, because there's next to no need for this level of violence unless someone is ambitious enough to take over the world.
A stunned silence clouded over these Pokémon Leagues more densely than the smoke and stench of death. Screams were common alongside the fire, as confused and petrified souls attempted to make heads or tails of this, as well as search for their loved ones in more than one location. Blame was wanting to be put by these people to the people responsible for completely obliterating what was supposed to be the event of the year.
And those "blamed" people emerged from the earth and rained down from the skies shortly after, when the sound of choppers from the skies and vehicular drills from below were audible before both appeared simultaneously.
From these drill vehicles, Team Prim Grunts rose from the brutalized earth, and then got out of these vehicles to stand in the center of these wounded souls. From the choppers, Team Prism Grunts didn't even bother waiting for the helicopters to land, and glided down on their respective large Flying-Type Pokémon.
The Grunts that were responsible for this quickly received a standing negative ovation, with expletives and heavy items being tossed towards these men, women, and Pokémon responsible for this carnage. And much like the destruction that was mirrored across multiple regions' respective Pokémon Leagues, so was the spited retaliatory response.
But this didn't bother the Grunts, not in the least. It only made them feel as though they left some straggling survivors that needed to be put out of their misery. And after unleashing almost a dozen powerful Fire-Type Pokémon and giving them the command to incinerate the stands, they did precisely that. Harsher albeit briefer screams deafened the wounded Pokémon Leagues before silence soon reigned supreme once more.
That silence wasn't everlasting as not only were there still people that were never on the seats to begin with, but a pair of Pokémon Trainers that looked at their hopes and dreams rent asunder and up in flames. Their drives to be the best, like no one ever was, was now replaced with the drives for vengeance, justice, and good vs. evil.
And luckily for these Pokémon Trainers, they're not alone.
Almost all of them, alongside a good portion of innocent civilians within a small radius of them, survive their bath in fire. Through quick thinking and Pokémon that they've shared hardships and inseparable feelings towards, these Pokémon Trainers summon their Pokémon and give them the command to defend them. These Pokémon either come in the form of a Psychic-Type using SAFEGUARD, a pristine Water-Type using WATER SPOUT, or many other a Pokémon that know how to PROTECT or how to WIDE GUARD.
Those that survived immediately stood before Team Prism on the broken ground or flew and/or hovered over it thanks to their specialized Pokémon. And as they stared at Team Prism dead in their eyes, and as they looked at their acquaintances, friends, and rivals, alongside the Pokémon they intended to utilize for the Pokémon League, they no longer stand as opponents against each other. They no longer stand as Pokémon Trainers that strive to become Pokémon Masters.
They now stand as soldiers. Both they and their respective Pokémon. And after what Team Prism did here, alongside all of the other Pokémon Leagues in unified ordinance, they no longer fight for supremacy, but to avenge those that they've lost. And despite the fact that they were mostly children and teenagers confronting experienced adults, they felt determined in bringing those responsible to justice.
Even when it became clear to these rising star Pokémon Trainers that the Pokémon that the Team Prism Grunts were using were just as fully evolved and experienced as their own.
83.2: Does Whatever a Galvantula Does
Location: Team Rocket Main Headquarters (Inside)
Date: April 6th, 2019
Time: 6:33 AM
Despite being in Team Rocket Main Headquarters for over five hours now, no one suspected a thing from these six strikingly similar Team Prism Grunts. They never considered the option that these six humans were actually Pokémon in disguise, through a Zoroark that has astonishing stamina in maintaining her illusions.
And as the hours slowly went by, the knowledge that these six Coadjutors were gaining about this building and what Team Prism was presently doing was coming in abundance.
The schematics of the building was easy enough to follow through the maps that were nailed around the building, as well as through Doublade's extrasensory perception. Electronic key cards were provided to them to open virtually any door in the building, because the Grunts already here believed that these six "Grunts" were transfers from a different HQ building of Team Prism. And the Coadjutors played that off well, mostly because these Grunts assumed too much and did most of the welcome and merry talking.
It was actually a shock that these seemingly good-natured people were fighting for an evil cause.
"(Hmm, guess I don't have to get my seamitars dirty after all.)" Samurott thought with mild disappointment. "(But if I did get a chance to, I might feel mildly guilty.)"
"(Guilt aside, I kind of wanted to strangle some of these humans with my vines.)" Serperior mentioned through thought and through Doublade's psychic influence linking their minds together without the use of manmade technology. "(And I was actually saving up my appetite to swallow one of them whole too.)"
"(Same here.)" Hydreigon added, resisting the urge to salivate, even through the illusion that Zoroark cast over all of them. "(The thought of crunching their bones with my teeth brings me great elation.)"
"(You two are disgusting.)" Galvantula thought hollowly, knowing how voracious both of those Pokémon can be when they haven't eaten anything substantial in weeks. "(Then again, I suppose I'm being hypocritical, considering I was feeding off of the static electricity of Absol's ass, back when I was a Joltik.)"
"(I'll never know the feeling of eating like you guys do, considering I don't have a mouth or internal organs.)" Doublade sulked slightly. "(The best I can do is touch someone or something with my sash-like arms and drain their energy however I see fit.)"
"(I'll just kill them with kindness.)" Zoroark smiled widely through her illusion. "(I don't know if it's actually possible to inflict heart attacks on humans through adorability alone, but I'll find out soon enough. I know some tricks after all.)"
Before any of that can take place, these six Coadjutors knew that they had to locate the prisoner Pokémon that are the Pokémon responsible for putting purpose in their otherwise insignificant lives. They have to find the twelve original Coadjutors of the Pokémon of Prophecy, and reinforce their faith in them by returning the favor in saving them, just as they did to themselves in their own particular ways, from Dusknoir's liberation to Tyranitar's…adoption.
"(The sun's starting to come up over the mountains.)" Serperior noticed through a window that granted a surprisingly beautiful sky view of the area they were presently around.
"(Then that means we don't have much time left.)" Doublade assumed the worst, in order to keep them all focused through some pressure.
"(Zoroark, how long can you maintain this illusion?)" Samurott wondered.
"(Surely you must be growing tired by now.)"
"(Longer than you think.)" Zoroark mentioned, surprisingly still feeling as fresh as when she first cast it over themselves. "(But it's better to conserve our strength, and I can't exactly disengage my illusion in here.)"
"(Not just because of the Grunts here learning of our presence, but because of the security camera that I see are placed in almost every corner.)" Galvantula noticed, having the keenest sense of vision out of everyone, mostly because he has as many eyes as they total in numbers.
"(Can you disable them?)" Samurott wondered, believing Galvantula to have the best affinity for disabling electronics without destroying them and/or leaving evidence because of his Electric-Type attribute.
"(I think so.)" Galvantula spoke confidently. "(But I need to find a vent to crawl through.)"
"(Not to mention indirect guidance in my part.)" Doublade chimed in.
"(As well as a safe place to relinquish my illusion over you.)" Zoroark perked up.
"(I suppose any empty bedroom will do.)" Serperior assumed. "(I don't think they'd honestly put cameras in every bedroom. Sounds like an invasion of privacy if you asked me.)"
"(Well, what we intend to do demands privacy.)" Hydreigon noted, before looking at her human hands that shrouded the head hands she truly possessed. "(And if anyone comes in while you're doing your thing, I won't hesitate to tear their throats off and swallow them n pieces.)"
With a stalwart mentality of success in mind, all six Pokémon disguised as humans that wore the semblance of Team Prism Grunts found an empty room that had a vent large enough for Galvantula to scuttle through. With little physical effort, the metal door over the vent came off, and was set aside over the bed. Then, Zoroark disengaged her illusion over Galvantula, causing the EleSpider Pokémon to feel as though he shrank considerably, as well as had his eyes to the floor.
".. / ..-. . . .-.. / .- / -... .. - / -.. .. -.. -.. -.- / -. - .- .-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.-" [I feel a bit dizzy now...] Galvantula spoke as he wobbled about a bit before shaking his head to recalibrate himself. "-. - .-.-.- / -. - .- .-. ... / -. - - / - ... . / - .. - . / ..-. - .-. / ...- . .-. - .. -. - .-.-.- / .. - .-. ... / - .. - . / ..-. - .-. / .- -.-. - .. - -. .-.-.-" [No! Now's not the time for vertigo! It's time for action!]
The Ark: I. "Farthest Outpost"/Halo 3 Original Soundtrack (Disc 1)/Martin O'Donnell; Michael Salvatori
(Song Begins)
After shaking in place, Galvantula squeezed his way into the vent and crawled through a space that would challenge even his small size by how narrow and claustrophobic the dark walls were. And despite Galvantula's vision being keen enough to make the most out of the lowest levels of light, such as during the dead of night, there was no light here to work with outside of making his own through the occasional static discharge.
Of course, considering how incognito he and the rest of the Coadjutors are supposed to be in this critical situation, with a limited time frame that presently has this building carrying less than 1% of Team Prism staff, he can't afford to be careless or wasteful. And luckily for him, he had close friends guiding him.
"(Keep going straight until you find a pathway several floors down,)" Doublade spoke through their mental link. "(Our friends are imprisoned there. We need to know how they are housed first before disabling the security systems.)"
"(Got it.)" Galvantula confirmed the order.
Progress was slow through these vents because Galvantula was dragging its belly across a confined space, couldn't see outside of Doublade's guidance, and had limited room with his legs to the point where he was even using his pedipalps to slowly scurry across the vents. However, the benefit to this is that he was absolutely silent. And the occasional static discharge that Galvantula was discharging to light his way was far too faint to be heard outside of the vent and be considered as anything resembling intrusion to the Team Prism Grunts that were most likely not around the area.
Eventually, Galvantula made his way down, and traveled faster down thanks to gravity and the use of his web. Also, the overall space of this descending vent was wider, completely freeing Galvantula's legs and body in order for him to stretch and descend calmly.
"-. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- -..- / -. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- .-.-.- / -.. - . ... / .- ... .- - . ...- . .-. / .- / -. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- / -.. - . ... .-.-.-" [Galvantula, Galvantula. Does whatever a Galvantula does.] The EleSpider Pokémon began to hum quietly, as he slowly descended further and further down the building's basement floors through their air shafts. "-. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- -..- / -. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- .-.-.- / -.. - . ... / .- ... .- - . ...- . .-. / .- / -. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- / -.. - . ... .-.-.-" [Spins a web, lightning laced. Stings like hell, more than maced. Look out, here comes the Galvantula.]
"(You're low enough.)" Doublade thought through Galvantula's little jingle. "(Take the path to your left, and keep going until you're standing over the vent door leading to the prison room in question. Our friends will be there.)"
" .-.. .. -.- . / .- / ... - .-. . .- -.- / - ..-. / .-.. .. -. ... - -..- / -. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- / .- .-. .-. .. ...- . ... / .- ..- ... - / .. -. / - .. - . .-.-.-" [Like a streak of light, Galvantula arrives just in time.] Galvantula continued humming. " .-.. - - -.- / - ..- - -..- / ... . .-. . / -.-. - - . ... / - ... . / -. .- .-.. ...- .- -. - ..- .-.. .- .-.-.-" [Look out, here comes the Galvantula.]
The final air duct passageway leading up to the prison cell that Doublade senses the presence of their friends was the widest yet, large enough for even Hydreigon to walk through, but likely not strong enough to support her weight. Once Galvantula scuttled his way over towards the vent door that Doublade mentioned, the EleSpider Pokémon stopped before it. He put his face close towards it so that he could see through the gaps, and take in what was below through his six blue Compound Eyes.
"(What do you see, Galvantula?)" Doublade inquired upon sensing Galvantula had reached the intended destination.
"(Our friends. They're definitely here!)" Galvantula exclaimed, pleased to see them after so long.
"(How are they?)" Serperior asked through Doublade's mental link. "(Please tell me that Team Prism didn't kill them.)"
"(Nope, they didn't. Our friends are alive and well.)" Galvantula said, looking at each and every one of the twelve of them, seeing them all awake albeit lost in terms of countenance. "(But they're all being restrained by some sort of electromagnetic technology. Looks like it's beyond their power to break free of too.)"
"(Figures…)" Zoroark huffed with crossed arms and a peeved look in her eyes. A rare sight in itself as she's usually such a sweetheart and cuddle bug. "(It'll just make it harder for us to free them…)"
"(Can you tell what they're feeling right now?)" Samurott wondered.
"(They're all…staring at something…)" Galvantula said before scuttling to a different corner of the vent he was looking at, in order to see what it is that the twelve Coadjutors below were seeing. "(They're looking at holographic screens. And all of them are dis–!)"
"(Displaying…what?)" Hydreigon demanded. "(Come on, Galvantula. We don't have all day!)"
In Galvantula's mind, where would he even begin to describe what he was seeing that had the attention of his twelve incarcerated friends? Where would he begin to guess how many bodies were lying dead or in pieces through the explosions that have all but outright obliterated the Pokémon Leagues across the regions of the Pokémon World? Where would he begin to guess what his friends are thinking of this situation? Where would he begin to assume what is going on in the minds of the Pokémon Trainers that are now fighting the Team Prism Grunts, absolutely hellbent on vengeance for the tens of thousands that have died in an unified instant?
And this was all assuming that Galvantula was seeing the big picture, which he highly doubted.
"(Well…)" Galvantula eventually broke his prolonged silence to his friends. "(At least we know where those Team Prism Grunts went to…although I wish I never knew.)"
"(At least we know our friends are alright.)" Samurott looked on the bright side, as dim as it was from what he could sense that Galvantula was feeling. "(Now, Doublade, where's the security room?)"
"(Well, first he has to get back to base level.)" Doublade began to sense the location of the room in question. "(And then he has to crawl up to the 20th floor.)"
"(Oh, I hope I can squeeze my way there quickly enough.)" Galvantula muttered before leaving the area altogether.
And as he was doing so, Wanderer Lucario looked up at the vent door that was overhead. He gave off the impression that he was completely unaware of Galvantula's stealth, just as every other Team Prism operative here was. However, that wasn't the case as he could still faintly sense both Galvantula's aura and thoughts. But any more effort into doing so would result in a vicious electric shock that he had no intentions of succumbing to.
"(Good thing you didn't stand around here any longer.)" Wanderer thought, looking back at the screen and seeing the Pokémon Battles that could hardly be considered as so. "(And I hope none of us do either. Then again, as Team Prism continues…this…we learn more about the enemy we'll inevitably be fighting.)"
(Song Ends)
83.3: Security Spider
Location: Team Rocket Main Headquarters (Floor 20 - Security Room)
Date: April 6th, 2019
Time: 7:19 AM
Getting into the security room felt far more tedious than getting down here in the prison room that the twelve original Coadjutors of the Pokémon of Prophecy were shackled in. For starters, there was over twenty floors to climb. And second, those upper vents were narrower than the ones Galvantula got used to scurrying about down here.
" .. / -. - .- / -.- -. - .- / .- ... .- - / .. - / ..-. . . .-.. ... / .-.. .. -.- . / - - / -... . / .- -. / . -. -. / -... . .. -. -. / .-. ..- ... ... . -.. / - ..- - / - ..-. / .- / -... .. .-. - ... / -.-. .- -. .- .-.. .-.-.-" [I now know what it feels like to be an egg being pushed out of a birth canal.] Galvantula crackled the first thing that entered his mind that he can use to distract himself from this laborious and boring process. ".. / -. - .- / -.- -. - .- / .- ... .- - / .. - / ..-. . . .-.. ... / .-.. .. -.- . / - - / -... . / .- -. / . -. -. / -... . .. -. -. / .-. ..- ... ... . -.. / - ..- - / - ..-. / .- / -... .. .-. - ... / -.-. .- -. .- .-.. .-.-.-" [Kind of a shame that Pokémon are too infantile to remember this when it happens. And it also sucks that not all Pokémon are birthed from eggs.]
A bit more crawling through these narrow vents, as he was beginning to feel sore from how tight his body was being pressed into itself in order to fit, made Galvantula wish for something that won't happen.
".- ... . .-. . .-. ... / .- / -... - - - .-.. . / - ..-. / .-.. ..- -... . / .- ... . -. / -.- - ..- / -. . . -.. / .. - ..-.." [Where's a bottle of lube when you need it?] Galvantula wished he could at least secrete something slimy that would make his body glide through here easier, rather than brush and press against it. ".- ... . .-. . .-. ... / .- / ..-. . - .- .-.. . / - - / ... - .. - ..- .-.. .- - . / . .-.. . -.-. - .-. .. -.-. .- .-.. .-.. -.- ..-.." [Where's a female to stimulate electrically?]
Eventually, after enough persistence (and dirty thoughts) through these narrow vents that he wishes were wider, Galvantula finally made it to the Security Room where he saw a couple of Team Prism Grunts sitting and watching the footage being bought to them by almost a hundred different cameras across almost a hundred different screens.
And sure enough, there were only a select few on personal quarters. One in particular was in Giovanni's room, but the whole room was pitch black at the moment, most likely because there was no present need for it with one of their six bosses was currently out and causing chaos.
However, there was another in a prison cell room that had a muscular man shackled and kneeling in the middle of the room. He didn't appear to mind, or perhaps he was simply sleeping to speed up time. Who knows. But at the same time, there was something distinct about that man. Something that Galvantula couldn't put a pedipalp to.
"(I wonder if Doublade was about to talk about him before we got ourselves into this building?)" Galvantula thought, temporarily forgetting that his thoughts are linked and Doublade was listening.
"(I was about to actually.)" Doublade responded. "(Would you like to hear about it now or later, considering you're busy and should concentrate right now?)"
"(Save it for later.)" Galvantula responded almost automatically, despite his burning curiosity in regards to that particular man. "(We'll get to that bridge when we cross it.)"
Slowly, Galvantula manipulated pried off the vent door, thankful that it wasn't screwed shut and was simply wedged into a space just a bit wider so that a sufficient seal was formed. However, because it was metal on metal, Galvantula had to be extremely patient as he was making one corner protrude by a millimeter, and then another corner by the same amount, and then another and another. Each time being more than just a millimeter as the vent door began to come off more and more, until Galvantula's grip on it almost slipped as he was setting it down on the floor.
Both of these security Team Prism Grunts heard absolutely nothing in regards to a Pokémon intruding in this room, ready to incapacitate them and sabotage the security room. They never noticed an EleSpider Pokémon crawling up the walls and then on the ceiling, looking straight down on them. They never even bothered looking between themselves when Galvantula lowered himself via spider web so that he was inverted and dangling between them.
".-. ... ..- .-. -..- / -... .. - -.-. ... . ... ..-.." ['Sup, bitches?] Galvantula spoke quickly, giving these two security guards at least a split-second of realizing the situation they're in.
And they did, but Galvantula was too quick for them. One instantaneous DISCHARGE not only fried both guards into unconsciousness, but it also illuminated the room as it scorched each and every screen that every single security camera was feeding them. From outside the door, the flashes of lightning were visible through the gaps the door made on the floor, and the sound of crackling thunder, shattering screens, and toppling bodies was heavily muffled. And fortunately, no one else heard this and no other Team Prism Grunt was coincidentally walking by anywhere near enough to take note of this sabotage.
"(Alright, I poked all of the eyes of this building.)" Galvantula said as he snapped his own web and landed on the back of one of the Grunts he just incapacitated. "(I'll meet up with you guys now.)"
"(Save your strength.)" Doublade strongly suggested. "(We'll meet up with you this time.)"
"(Oh! Really? Alright then.)" This came as a bit of a relief for Galvantula, considering all that he's done so far. "(I'll just sit here and wait then. These two guards aren't waking up anytime soon.)"
The guard that he was sitting over began to moan and groan at the feeling of having his heart narrowly stop from the electricity that rolled through his body. And then he passed out again when Galvantula nipped him in the back of the neck with a measly THUNDER WAVE attack.
" -.- . .-. .-.-.- / - ... . -.- .-. .-. . / -. - - / .- .- -.- .. -. -. / ..- .-. / .- -. -.- - .. - . / ... - - -. .-.-.-" [Yep. They're not waking up anytime soon.] Galvantula crackled in satisfaction, twiddling his pedipalps with glee.
83.4: Quartet of Missiles
Location: Team Rocket Main Headquarters (Floor 20 - Hallway)
Date: April 6th, 2019
Time: 7:42 AM
True to Doublade's word, Galvantula's friends were there without keeping the EleSpider Pokémon waiting for long. When they arrived, they discovered that the door leading to the Security Room was locked, which didn't really come as a surprise to them.
"(We're here, Galvantula.)" Zoroark spoke up via thought. "(Be a dear and open up the door for us, please?)"
After a few seconds, they heard the door handle begin to twitch from Galvantula fumbling around with it, unlocking it from the inside. Then, the door opened wide enough for Galvantula to squeeze through, as well as allow Hydreigon to peek in and see the damage that has been done.
"(Damn, you deep fried those two guards.)" Hydreigon noticed when she stuck one of her arm heads through the partially opened door. "(Do…do you think there's enough time for me to–?)"
"(No.)" Samurott responded bluntly.
"(But they look so delicious!)" Hydreigon practically whined at the perfectly good meal that was left to go to waste by their current agenda. "(Galvantula left them all crispy and crunchy and crackly and–)"
"(Incapacitated.)" Serperior intruded. "(It's only a matter of time until they wake up and alert the entire building of our presence.)"
"(So wouldn't it make more sense to dispose of the evidence?)" Hydreigon strongly suggested, still trying to worm her way into a position that involves both of those humans disappearing inside her belly. "(I mean, look at them. They look pretty dead to me. And if anyone finds them in here, it'll clearly give away our positions.)"
"(…)" Samurott actually paused to think about the situation.
"(…You do have a point.)" Serperior contemplated, tapping her chin with the tip of her tail.
"(I'm just going to close my eyes and plug my ears now.)" Zoroark said, before she squatted down by the wall, with her head practically between her legs as she knew what would happen next. "(Someone tap me on the shoulder when Hydreigon's had her fill.)"
With that unofficial confirmation, Hydreigon licked the lips of all three of her heads, already beginning to drip three small puddles of saliva down onto the floor in voracious anticipation of her next big meal.
"(Let their wife and children know that they died for a good cause.)" Hydreigon said as she slowly walked over towards two helpless Grunts, stalking her vulnerable prey and earning mixed reactions from her friends. "(And that cause is filling up my b–!)"
Impend/Halo 2 Original Soundtrack: Volume 1/Martin O'Donnell; Michael Salvatori
(Song Begins)
The abrupt silence came when Hydreigon was struck on her right side by what can best be initially described as an oversized purple arrow, before both Pokémon crashed into the wall at the end of the hallway. And when the surprise attack had passed, with Hydreigon's back embedded into the wall and a stunned countenance over all three of her heads, the cause of it clung onto Hydreigon's belly, proud of its dirty attack.
The five other heads of the Coadjutors abruptly turned to notice the oversized purple Bat that clung onto the Brutal Pokémon's body like the walls of a cave.
"Excellent work, Crobat." A voice echoed from the darkness that apparently veiled this Pokémon before its surprise attack. "When we obliterate these six ungrateful intruders, I'll give you first pick on whose blood you'll suck dry."
Crobat acknowledged this with a sharp clicking sound of its mouth, before flying back towards the source of the voice at the same speed as when it attacked. And as he flew back and disappeared into the darkness, Hydreigon came to and removed herself from the wall.
"(If you wanted to be eaten first, you could've just asked.)" Hydreigon thought hostilely, a bit sore on her side and sorer that her words can only exist via thought and not through universal speech. "(Because now, you've just ruled out the possibility of me showing you a semblance of mercy by swallowing you whole and alive.)"
From the darkness, the Crobat became visible as the figure holding it on his arm made himself visible to these six Pokémon. And this man, wearing a uniform bearing Team Prism's name and emblem through an overall higher rank than the common Grunt, had green hair and green eyes, as well as a cruel disposition that relished in seeing innocent Pokémon suffer.
"Impossible…" Doublade spoke up, immediately recognizing the identity of this man. "Proton, one of the four Team Rocket Executives?!"
"Ah, so my reputation precedes me, even to lowly Pokémon such as yourselves." The man identified as Proton appeared to admire the immediate recognition as a sign that his cruel tactics to Pokémon reached far and wide.
"(…Did he see through my disguise this whole time?!)" Zoroark thought, all this time thinking that she and her team had the element of surprise as they were navigating this building under her veil.
"I tell you, it's impressive how versatile Pokémon are in what they can do."
Another voice resonated across the walls of the darkness lingering behind Proton. And when this man stood forward, he wore a uniform strikingly similar to Proton's, with the only differences between the two being the lack of a collar on his uniform, the black of his eyes and the purple of his hair and beard.
"Take you for example, my fair Zoroark." The man spoke up, pointing a finger that his senses perceived as a Team Plasma Grunt, but his mind and honed training identified as a Zoroark. "You're abilities with casting illusions to fool your enemies are impressive, and a constant source of inspiration to better my own acumen for disguises. Sadly, I won't be needing them against intruders."
"You…you're Petrel!" Doublade identified this man as easily as the first, through knowledge that he fortunately has on them that benefit him and his allies.
"And you all must be the ones responsible for taking out our security feed." Petrel pointed out, with a smile that possessed an abnormal happiness that stood in stark contrast to Proton's. "Terribly sorry to disappoint you all, but we know better than to put all of our Pokémon eggs in one bike basket. At least, after Team Rocket became a part of Team Prism anyway."
" -.- - ..- / -.- -. . .- / .- . / .- . .-. . / ... . .-. . / .- .-.. .-.. / .- .-.. - -. -. ..-.." [You knew we were here all along?] Galvantula chattered, although his Morse Code language most likely fell on untrained ears. " ..-. ..- -.-. -.- / - . .-.-.- / .- .-.. .-.. / - ..-. / - ... .- - / - .. - . / -. .- ...- .. -. .- - .. -. -. / - ... .-. - ..- -. ... / -. .- .-. .-. - .- / ...- . -. - ... -..- / .- .- ... - . -.. .-.-.- .-.-.- .-.-.-" [Fuck me. All of that time navigating through narrow vents, wasted...]
"Feel free to shed those disguises, now that we've seen you're true colors."
A third voice, female this time, sounded off behind Petrel and Proton. And once she stepped up, she wore a uniform as similar to the two of them in terms of reflecting a higher rank, albeit differed in color by being a surprisingly pure white, as well as suiting her feminine form in regards to the long skirt that reached her high heel boots. She possessed crimson hair and scarlet eyes, the likes of which could stare the burliest of men into submission.
"Ariana!" Doublade recognized yet again. "Interim Boss of Team Rocket!"
"They don't suit you Pokémon, and they don't exactly reflect your chances of joining us either." Ariana said with a cold, calculative demeanor. "You're far too organized to be passively marked as 'wild' Pokémon anyway."
"Highly doubtful that they're as organized as we are."
The fourth (and final) voice that identified himself behind the darkness stepped forward. And when he did so, he was revealed to wear the male equivalent of Ariana's white uniform. He possesses teal blue hair with an eye color to match. And his overall gait and cocky grin just screamed "authority" over the six Coadjutors looking at him enter the picture alongside his fellow three Executives.
"Last but not least, it's Archer!" Doublade told everyone, making sure that they were on the same level as he. "He once led Team Rocket in Giovanni's absence."
"We don't speak of that. Not in this building anyway." Archer told the dual Sword Pokémon. "And you six intruders are so low in the pecking order that you shouldn't even think of his good name."
Hydreigon eventually walked her way over to her colleagues as the only Pokémon whose illusion was shattered because of Proton's Crobat earlier. And as Ariana mentioned, there really was no point in maintaining failed disguises any longer. So Zoroark shed them and all six Pokémon made themselves evident to the former quartet of Team Rocket Executives that they're not going to back down and will power through them if need be.
Without words, all four of them understood their drive to fight, and responded by sending out three more Pokémon to complement and support the one Proton already sent out. Petrel unleashed a Weezing, Ariana an Arbok, and Archer a Houndoom, one which bared an accessory of sorts in place of the small skull normally found on the center of its chest.
"I don't know what you wish to accomplish here, but you will go no further." Archer told them, as the tension for battle began to build between the fourteen in attendance here. "As the four Executives of the Team Rocket division of Team Prism, we well annihilate you!"
(Song Ends)
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T̍̈͒ͧͫH̋È ͩͣͮ͑̿F͊̚I̋ͣͭR͋̋̉͌̎S̄ͨ̍̇̽̅͂Tͬ̂͛̈́͌͌̈ ͆̃̇Lͨ͌ͫͤ̎̓ͤI̐͐ͬNͨ̏͆͆̽̀͌E͐ͣͫ̏ͫ͐̚ ͬͬͣ͆͐O̒͐͆F̈́̅̎̎͛ͪͭ D͛ͣͥ̇̏̎̑É̂ͫ̆̃̂͊F̑̅ͩ̏ͥĖ̈ͬN̾̈́̇SE̽ͭ̀͊̋͒͗ H̉͋̏A͗̃̽ͦS̎̌ ̈́͌B̈́̑̈́ͩ̍ͯEͤḔ̓̑Ń ͐̾̽͛Aͩ̉̄ͨCT͋̎͊̈I̍͌͛̿̄ͥ̒V̄AͥͬT̍̋ͦ̀̇ͧE͆̌̂̏ͩ͋D͛̔.ͥ̂ͣ̃͐
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Iͭ̃ͨͦͩ̂͐ WIL̔̋̉̍̆͌̄Lͩ̄ͩͮ ̍ͯŘ̊E̿̈́QU̅̍I̎͒̅ͦͤ̅̽RͩE͐ͮ͋ͣ̋ ̔̀̊T͒ͬ̐H̽͆ͯ̿̍͗̚I̎Ṡ ͫ̋T̅̈́̓͌͒̍Î̉͛̈ͣ͗ͪḾͩ̎͊̌͂ͬE̓̐ ̉͒͊Tͮ͛ͯ̂ͣ̾Ôͥ́̊ ͬͧͥ͒̄̽Ăͤ̉́̏̾̑N̐͋̑A̒̒̈́ͩLͬ͋̔̆̊̇Y̋̽̀͐Z͑̾̍̾͆ͩͦEͦ ̐T̑̈̄HEͯͪ̚ F͆͛ͨ͌ͣOͦ̇̎̋ͮ̂U̓Ȓ̓̐͐ E̽̾̍͌LEͩͩ͋̾M̄ͩͨͪ̒EͧN̾ͣT͐ͭ̇AL̽̍ ͬ̾P̈̆Lͪ̑̄̈́̊A͑Tͯ̔̚ES ̑̀I̒ͯ̃ͦ̽Nͥ̀͛̅ ͮ̊ǦR͐E̊̽̇̔Aͮ̓ͤ̎̀̂͋T͂ͬ͗Ẽ̐͗Rͪ ͧͫ͋ͩ̚D̂E͒ͦ̈ͣŤ͊ͪ̏ͤ̈̊Aͫͯ̓́͆I̓͐ͯ͊L̎͊̇.̈͐ͤ͒͆
What I want for Christmas is a Microsoft Surface Book i7 1TB 16GB RAM with Performance Base. Something that'll do it all for me and greatly help me with my art.
When I get one in a few months time, I'll see myself as ready to start taking art commissions.