I awoke to screaming.

Everyone stirred with differing levels of lethargy, some scrambling to their feet and looking about while others slowly rolled onto their back. I was thankfully among the first on my feet.

First I noticed the dozen small brown…pods on the floor, dome shaped and slowly crawling about slowly. They appeared to move without much purpose, at a slow meandering pace that didn't seem to have any goal in mind.

Then I noticed the source of the screams: one of the scientists was on the ground, muffled cries erupting out from under one of said brown pods as it clung to his face, as he scratched at desperately and attempted to pry the dome off of him. My attention returned again to the small brown pods and I began scrambling away from them as they approached, throwing myself atop one of the tables in the room, knocking over the animatronic that previously occupied the precious space. One of the other scientists dashed over to his tortured colleague and wrapped his fingers around the edge of the pod, heaving with all his might, even as the man's screams increased in volume, before the pod finally came free with a sickening slurp, and the sight forced the would-be rescuer to drop the pod and the contents of his stomach.

What had once been eyes had been reduced to pits filled with clear, viscous fluid that drippedfrom the sockets as the man trashed and wailed. The man's face was completely and totally shredded, such that it resembled more a sickly collage of bone, rended flesh, and scattered strips of skin racing it's face. The jaw hung open further than anything resembling the human form, a tongue lulling out lazily as screams burst forward from the gaping throat.

The mastermind of such work- the unassuming pod- skitted across the floor as it was dropped by the sickened scientist, red eyes and long, bloody appendages darting and squirming as it came to a stop on its back, before going still, and a sudden shine erupted from its body.

Another scream- from the rescuer. While struggling, another pod came behind him, and long, razor sharp appendage swung out from under its shell, slicing through skin, flesh, and bone behind the man's ankles, bringing him to the ground. The dome paused for a moment, and then launched itself on top of the screaming, squirming victim, before being joined by three others. Everyone was on their feet now, eleven scientists and one old hermit squirming away from the vicious creatures as they slowly approached.

'Wait, where is Rui? Scar? Robert?' My eyes darted about the room, looking for my companions to no avail, leaving me only with my worst assumptions. I took the closest weapon in my reach, a chair, and jabbed a single leg down on one of the pods that was attempting to crawl up the side of the table, and several of the others follow suit as they scramble to the opposite corner of the room, picking up all manner of items- chairs, machine parts, bottles- even an odd purple rock finds itself into the mix, which smashes one of the pursuing pods into several pieces, and for a moment, their courage builds.

And then promptly disappeared, as the dimming of the glow of the first pod fades, and I turn my neck in the direction of the dimming light, and no longer does a mere dome occupy the space, rather, two long blades attached to a thin body, supported by long legs and holding up a massive, triangular shaped head with eyes- eyes that fixated on the soft, pink two legged creatures huddled in one corner of the room. A shrill gurgle erupted from somewhere within its throat, without any meaning, but a flourish of its long arm-blades and a lunge communicated its intents all too clearly.

No sooner did it move than does a larger brown blur burst through the door, and at a breakneck pace slammed into the hunter as it lunged forward, lifting the smaller creature and carrying it directly into the adjacent wall in a loud crash before falling to the ground. I struggled to make out what was happening, but a flurry of rapid motion is all that could be made out of the ensuing struggle, blades darting, limbs flailing, fists flying. The larger assailant seemed to take a hit in the side, but retaliated with a shove that is powerful enough that it gives it enough time to jump on top of it's bladed quarry, pinning it on its stomach by the with its superior weight, its shoulders fixed in place by a pair of arms that snakes around its arms and shoulders, meeting in interlocking fingers behind it's neck, and then a pained voice.

"What da FUCK are ya waiting for!? Hit the damned things!"

The ladscape of the battlefield suddenly changed. The smaller pods were mostly on the opposite side of the room, cornering the again emboldened scientists, but two of the creatures that were digging into the corpses of the fallen scientists detached and began making a B-Line to aid their bipedal brethren, as the third continued gorging itself.

That left me with a clear path.

I took it.

My feet met the floor quickly without a second though, my feet pounding rapidly into the ground as they carried me to the purple stone that crushed one of the pods. Sinking my fingers into the holes and grooves for an easy grip, as one might hold a bowling ball, and I lifted the heavy stone from the pod's crushed remains, and I took off running again, and I found myself in front of the pinned creature, looking into its eyes.

And then I swung the rock down on it.

Hard as the creature's carapace was, it stood no chance compared to the weight of the porous stone, immediately cracking on contact, a shrill, wet screech coming from its throat, it's eyes full of pained fury.

And so I swung down again.

And again.

And again.

I screamed as I brought down the odd stone a final time, leaving behind only shattered remains of its. The thing's body still squirmed frantically, barely pinned by the person on top of it as its movements slowly died. David slowly stood up, careful to avoid the blades in case they sprang back into death throes, to which David responded with a savage kick in the side that sent it rolling into a corner, and then turned his attention to the domes.

I raised the rock that had given me so much success, turned towards the advancing domes, and swung-

And stumbled as stone refused to leave my hands, dragging me to the ground with it, with slimy yellow strands of something wrapped around my arm.

David skirted around two of the creatures just out of reach in an attempt to get behind them , hands shifting through his jacket before withdrawing a short but stout folding knife. Their attention diverted from me again, I saw another opportunity, and dove forwards, raising my one arm with some effort and bringing the stone down on the closest, crushing it beneath the stone's weight. I stood up with some difficulty and prepared another strike, prompting the remaining dome to quickly turn away David and towards me.

And then it flew, cloaked in water, almost too quick to track, and slammed into the stone I was holding, sending me reeling back and onto the ground. The creature waved its claws menacingly, before David appeared behind it, more quietly than his size would suggest, and placed the tip of his knife under the edge of its shell and flipped it over. The creature only managed to begin squealing before David raised the knife and brought it down on the creature's less protected belly, and then plunged it again, leaving any cries for help silenced.

I looked back towards the rest of the creatures, who had paused their advance on the scientists, a subtle wave of realization flowing over them. And then one cloaked itself in water, flying towards one of the scientists- a young thin man with green hair- and struck him in the chest. Everyone froze and watched with morbid curiosity as the man stumbled back, wheezing, and wrapped his arms around his chest as his body was wracked with violent coughs- blood and spittle flying from his mouth with each wheeze. After a painfully long minute, the man gave a wet, strangled whine as his shoulders sagged, his arms falling away from a collapsed ribcage, before falling on his back and stilling.

'Oh no.'

"Run."

"DOWN!" I heard a roar from my left, as David came to the same realization, but only half of the scientists complied before the creatures threw themselves forward in similar jets of water, flying over the heads of those that moved quickly enough and into the rigid bodies of those that were still stunned, sending them flying in random contortions. A mad scramble ensued as the quick attempted to disentangle themselves from the limbs of flying bodies, scrambling to the opposite corner, away from the oncoming death domes as they distracted themselves with the broken, groaning bodies of their quarry.

I quickly turned my attention to the door, dashing as hard as I could away from the massacre, before the creature that remained on the dead body, jumped into the doorway, evidently bored with its kill, and ready for another fresh kill. I desperately skidded to a halt, ducked, and raised the stone.

And then it started to glow.

David again appeared beside me and slammed all of his weight into the creature as it grew in size, only for the small, evolving creature not to budge. I watched in shocked surprise as David snaked his hands around its abdomen and pumped his legs, attempting to lift it up, with similarly dismal results. After a few seconds later, I recovered my wits, and brought down my lucky rock upon its swelling head, only to be thrown back with great force the moment I made contact, the ineffectual strike sending a shock up my shoulder, causing me to grunt.

"AAAAAAGH!"

'I know that voice, oh finally, thank you.'

Scar appeared in the doorway behind the evolving creature, roaring savagely and axe already in a powerful swing. The blade of the axe cut through the air with a deadly swish, projected with such force I flinched in anticipation of the impact.

Dink.

The axe bounced off ineffectually, a not-inconsiderably sized chip wedged into the point it made contact with the creature to show for its efforts. The creature stopped glowing, showing off its blades triumphantly in response to our attempts to interrupt its evolution.

"AAAAAAAGH!"

A second swing of the axe accomplished what the first did not, passing through the creature's thin neck easily, and continuing until the axe imbedded itself solidly into the opened door next to it. David and I leapt back as the creature entered its death throes, its newly earned bladed arms jerking for several seconds before it stilled, and David leapt over the fallen monster and into the hallway. I stood still for a moment, processing, until I noticed a glow out of the corner of my eye, and turned just in time to be nearly trampled by a swarm of the surviving scientists, stumbling past one another in a bid to get to the door, and I found myself abruptly thrown out of the way, giving me a clear view of the glowing that had originally captured my attention.

'Oh shit.'

Eight of the domed creatures were not evolving into their more deadly bladed forms.

"Run!"

I didn't need to be told twice, lunging through the door and slamming it shut behind me, only to run into Scar's hand.

"Where is Rui and Robert?"

That set off alarm bells in my mind, "They weren't with you?"

"No, I was with the Brat, moving those…machines outside." I looked to the pack of fleeing scientists, running in the direction of the stairwell, only to feel Scar lightly shove me again, "Do not follow the pack. Come with me to find them."

I hesitated for a brief moment, uncertain, 'There's safety in numbers, right?'

"Who do you think would win in a fight? All of those scientists, or Scar and his axe? Besides, you're not actually going to let those two go and die, are you?"

I winced and closed my eyes a moment, memories of the last man and woman I had traveled with passing through my mind, nausea arising alongside them.

'Not again…'

I felt myself stumbling forward suddenly, yanked out of my memories as Scar pulled me towards him and away from the door.

Crack.

A single blade cut through the door.

Crack. Crack.

Multiple blades began erupting from the door, tearing out wide gashes of the wood.

"We are running now." Scar said flatly, and began sprinting down the hallway, opposite of the stairs. Not seeing much choice, I followed shortly behind, pushing myself forward at a full sprint. A final, definitive crack and a shrill shriek alerting us to the danger behind.

Scar slammed a fist into the doors lining the walls as he passed, sometimes once. We rounded a corner just before another shrill shriek alerted us to the next attack- another one of the hunters again cloaking themselves in water, and against all good sense, I looked back, watching as it blew past the corner, into the brick wall beside it- and to my surprise- shattered, falling apart in a mess of broken limbs as it collided with the wall.

'That is useful to know.'

Scar's legs began peddling faster, flying far ahead of me as he continued slamming a fist into the doors, then suddenly turned, running back towards me, opening a door and diving inside. I looked back, finding they still hadn't rounded the corner, and followed him. My eyes darted about the dark room- some sort of computer lab, with many small desks with bulky desktops atop them, with small spaces beneath them- plenty of spaces to hide. Scar was already sliding for a desk a third down the room, moving more quietly than I thought possible. I speed-walked down the hall at a brisk pace- as quietly as I could manage as well, intending to hide beneath the desk closer to him.

"Not here." Scar whispered harshly, his frame crammed beneath the desk and around the chair, his hand pointed to a desk further down, on the opposite side, "There."

The skittering of clawed feet outside the door gave provided no room for debate, and I quickly slid into place where I was instructed, holding my breath as the sound of footsteps passed our door, followed by the clicking and odd stutters of pokemon name speak, passing us by.

I slowly exhaled as my eyes adjusted to the room, finally feeling some of the tension leave my body.

'But how does this help us find Robert and Rui?'

Tap. Tap. Tap Tap Tap. BANG!

My eyes darted around the darkened room, eyes desperately using the light from the lone window in a vain attempt to locate the source of the noise, my eyes finally resting on Scar, from where he lay curled beneath the table, his fist rapping on the desk above him.

"What are you doin-" I began to whisper harshly, but I froze as I heard another clatter outside the door, and then a sound of clicking, followed by a low hiss.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

'Oh shit, now we're in for it. Stay calm, stay calm, it might not find you.'

A final long crack signified the end of the door, and the sounds of wood hitting the ground echoed through the room as I heard the intruder tear it's way through the door, and take a single definitive step inside.

Click. Click. Click. Click.

I slowed my breathing as the sound of claws tapping the ground slowly drew closer. Mouthing a silent prayer to whoever might here, while looking to Scar expectantly. The bandaged beast of a man placed a finger to his lips, then pointed towards me, then mocked tapping on the ground.

'What?'

I shook my head rapidly, not willing to become Scar's sacrificial mareep- 'was that why he saved me and protected me in the first place? To buy himself time when we encountered something he could not beat? He had been willing to trade me to the old-man in the cabin- why not this?'

Scar continued miming the movement for several seconds, not understanding my outright refusal. When I shook my head again, and held out my hand to say stop- his demeanor changed. He stared at me for a moment, the sounds of claws on tile filling the silence. Scar held out three fingers, and slowed his miming.

Clack

Scar dropped one finger, and deliberately slammed his opposite hand down towards the floor, hard, stopping it only the instant before it crashed against the floor. Leaving me somewhat confused.

Clack

Scar dropped another finger, so only one was raised, and again brought his hand down hard, this time allowing the tips of his fingers to rest quietly on the floor. My heart pounded in my chest as I realized his intent.

'He won't, he's bluffing!'

"Since when has Scar ever bluffed!"

'I can't get out of here without him!'

'If he wanted me dead, really, I'd already be dead!'

"For crying out loud! Just do it! You've done worse before!"

'Lose-lose- just have to trust him again. Not my choice.'

Clack

Panic overcame all of my hesitation, and I immediately slammed both of my palms onto the ground in front of me, then immediately threw myself back, as far under the desk as I could possibly squeeze myself.

CLACK CLACK CLACK CLACK CLACK CLACK

I froze as two massive brown feet stepped into view- attached to much longer legs and a much wider torso- a veritable giant compared to the ones that assaulted us in the room with the scientists- perhaps as tall as Scar, perhaps taller, and coming straight for my hiding place.

Scar's axe shot out from his hiding place, the shaft tripping the giant creature as it passed, sending it tumbling past. Scar erupted out from his cubby, lifting the desk over his head and bringing it down on the sprawling creature with an audible crack, pinning the creature. Scar took up the axe again, and rushed over to the creature as it attempted to recover, hefting his weapon of choice and bringing it down without a peep.

Crack!

The creature squirmed and attempted to lash out on the ground as the blade bit into its neck, a futile attack that Scar stepped over and onto the creature's head, pinning it further, before bringing the axe down again. And again.

Crack!

Crack!

With a final strike the creature's head parted from its body, it's arms still flailing wildly even as Scar sent it away with a kick, before stepping back and watching for a stifling minute before the limbs came to rest.

"Come now." Scar's voice cut through the silence, bringing a definite end to the immediate danger, and I slowly dragged myself out from the under the table. "We will wait here a moment, for them to disperse, then fetch Robert and Rui and leave this place.

I nodded, finding comfort in the fact that Scar could beat the things, even if it required a precise trap to do so. "You know where they are?"

"I have guessings"

We waited for several more minutes before setting out, when the halls were empty save the growing sounds of clacks that prompted Scar to grab me and dive into the nearest room for another moment more. Once more Scar pulled a similar trap against one of the pokemon that roamed the hall, but they were far smaller than the first, and removed with even less difficulty. It was slow going, but we avoided conflict. It was ten minutes before we found Scar's destination, and in hindsight, that answer to the mystery of missing persons in the night seemed obvious.

Scar lightly tapped on the door, waiting a second before entering, walking down the length of the room while lightly tapping on the doors that lined the right side of the room, each one swinging wide open until he reached the second to last.

"Out."

The door slowly swung open, revealing Robert and Rui, precariously balancing on the seat of a toilet, arms outstretched to the sides of the stalls to hold themselves up. Rui was the first to speak. "Scar? Crescent? Oh thank Arceus, Logos, and whoever else. We thought you were one of them."

"We are not." Scar answered curtly. "We are leaving."

"You don't have our weapons and supplies." Robert whispered harshly, "We need to get them first, we won't last a week without them."

"We can and we have." Scar replied flatly, "But you are right to be concerned, I will watch what I can do."