"The 'anatomical juxtaposition of the two orbicularis oris muscles in a state of contraction' is a precise medical description of a kiss." -Ultidragonlord
THAT SYLVEON
I'm starting to get a little self conscious about these chapters, because I'm genuinely concerned - I have no idea what chapter number this one is, and I refuse to start counting. I hope you're all prepared for this one, anyways. What awaits you?
Also, I'd like to thanks a few friends on the That Universe discord server in HotRamen, KariffChief, Raging Sylveon and Pablo Escobar. These four not only made a family tree for this series, but also made a massive log of EVERY CHARACTER in That Glaceon. Literally everyone. Did you know there was a Quilava in the 12th chapter of That Glaceon that got knocked over, and didn't even get to enjoy his lunch? Poor guy. If you want that Quilava to enjoy his sandwich, join the discord server, and check out the massive list for yourself! Thanks guys!
LuanOTP owns nothing. FRENCH IS NOT MY FIRST LANGUAGE.
...
Cassidy slumped in the Bursyamo's deckchair. The seat she sat on screamed of Brendan. Shape, colour… Smell even. However, this wasn't where she wanted to be. Cotched comfortably in the back garden of the prestigious house, the Glaceon eyed her nephew-in-law, Barry, fooling around with one of his electric type friends in the gazebo. They seemed to be playing a video game there. She let out a disappointed huff, but did her best not to cry.
Looking up to the greying sky, she bared her teeth, and closed her eyes. It was agony to sit and grit the pain of feeling useless. Tilting from side to side, she fought against sniffing. The heavy beat of the setting sun made her feel like she was melting. Merely wondering about her endangered husband threatened to put her to tears.
Some footsteps came from the doorway to the kitchen. The Glaceon kept her loopy ears alive just to make sure her mind wasn't playing tricks on her. A Zoroark emerged from the entrance, carrying a box of chocolates and a smile to boot. Two out of the three things to make anyone happy.
"Zoey!" Cassidy yelled, gawking at the box that she held in her paws. "I don't believe you're here!"
"I know, right. I hate having to come here because of the traffic, but today's different." she happily joked, hopping into the deckchair on the grass right next to the tanning Glaceon's. "How're you holding up?"
"I'm okay. I just can't get that stupid Flygon out of my head… Aren't you afraid for Cooper?"
The dark type's smile flattened out a little, but didn't completely disappear. "I mean, I suppose a little. But you know. Gotta keep up hope somehow." She then presented the now open box toward the needy ice type. "Hey, care for a bit of choc? All girls need some choc once in a while, right?"
Cassidy's icy scowl had thawed into a warm beam.
"I suppose you're right."
Reaching over, the ice type mother fed herself with some caramel filled delights to uplift her mood. She'd be a liar if she said it didn't work. Though, the Eastern clouds that covered the sky beckoned her in their direction. Taunting her, even. She turned back to Zoey, who had a mouth chock full of chocolate.
"But Zoey, haven't you thought, if there's anything you could do? At all?"
Chew. Chew. Swallow. Cassidy's hopeful gaze met her unprepared stare.
"I don't know. I suppose there's something we could do. But, it's way too dangerous, and-"
"But that's my daughter!"
Zoey froze, stupefied. In all of her life, never had she seen the Glaceon yell back at her. Meanwhile, Cassidy felt her cheeks flare up.
"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to shout at you, or anything, but…" The ice-type's glare dropped to the mint carpet. "That's my own daughter there. I can't just sit here and just hope! I want… I want to know if there's something I could do to just… stop all of this senseless violence! It's so stupid!"
The Zoroark gleaming garnets evaded eye contact with the frustrated mother, before having them settle upon her again. However, they released a more confident aura.
"Ugh... I could never say no to you, Cass, could I?"
...
…
Gazing out from the passenger seat of the window, Julley felt the silence in the car poke him like needles. He'd turn from time to time, to perhaps wake Cooper up while he piloted the vehicle across the monotonous motorways, or just to respond to Tyson's quarterly check-ups. The only ambience from the car was the whirring engine, and the occasional snore from the slumbering Blaziken. A green sign whished by from beyond the barriers of the window. 'East Latias - - 10' it read.
Rain gradually begun to patter against the glass windshield. Julley had only just noticed how grey the gathering clouds had become. The wipers had to be enabled to deal with it. The landscape was the same. If not glaring down the seemingly endless freeway or across the central distribution, there would be nothing but lush, jade, unkept fields, separated by hedges that stretched for miles. Glance to the other side, and you'd only get a vehicle either overtaking them on the furthest right lane, or a car jetting down in the opposite direction across the metal fence.
Another sigh, as the Umbreon let his imagination get to work. He imagined… Wooloo. Snow white wool-jacketed Pokemon hopping over the zooming hedges. Anything to get his mind off-
"Hey, so uh…" spoke up Tyson from the backseat, after a marvellous twelve minutes of silence. "This Flygon dude… What's his name?"
That Flygon… Not very long lasted. Wooloo aside, Julley turned his head to respond.
"His name is Gauvin. I don't really know much else about him, though."
"Probably some Kalosian douchebag."
Tyson couldn't help but chuckle at the snideness of the comment from Cooper.
"What an ordeal. Hey, uh, who was that señorita who was giving you trouble during high school, Julley?"
"Oh, Are you talking about A-Abby, Tyson?"
The Typhlosion clasped his hands together. "Y-Yeah, her! This is beginning to remind me of the stories you used to tell me, dude."
Garnet irises wandered the interior of the car for any excuse to change the subject. Although, his surroundings hadn't changed for the past couple of hours.
"Hold on, did you say Abby?" Cooper interjected, routinely checking his side and rear-view mirrors. "You know, my Zoey had a relative called Abby. Was she an Absol?"
The Umbreon's ears stood straight up in the air. "Huh? Yeah… H-How are they related?"
"Let's see… Right, so that Abby was adopted by some really far out guys under the same name as Zoey's. But she straight left to live on her own, because she wasn't fond of the snobs. I kinda ain't either."
Julley's heart had bolted right off the mark, and raced as if something was chasing it. Thankfully, no one caught his expression before he had fixed it. However, Arceus would describe it as 'stupid'. Pursing his lips, he wasn't sure how to take the news.
"Don't tell me she was a pain to you during high school, Jull."
"Uh… Y-Yeah, maybe a little bit."
Cooper guffawed, making the Moonlight Pokemon feel a bit smaller than he already was. The patter of the rain seemed to intensify on the windshield.
"If only she could look at you now, eh? Also, could one of you guys back there pass me some gum? There should be on in the compartment behind Julley's seat."
"Sure, I've got it." Tyson agreed, fishing in the pockets behind the Umbreon's chair. Just like that, the conversation was killed off, and the distressed father took to gazing back at the grey skies and olive fields.
Another sign flew by. 'East Latias - - 7' it had said. The group headed closer and closer to their fate. Julley caught a glimpse of the time on the dashboard. Right on schedule. Thinking back to the plan that he had formulated a few hours ago on the spot had put him at ease, but only did so much for his shivering paws, and chattering teeth. Now, his mind started to become blank, and his ears filled with excruciating white noise, to the point he couldn't even hear his own thoughts. The Umbreon gasped as blood was drained from it's vessels in his head. It was only moments before he'd drop on his side, unconscious. His vision grasped at straws to clear away the impending white light that overcame his sight.
"..."
"..."
"Hey Julley? You alright there, man?" questioned Cooper, now chewing on a piece of gum.
"Yeah. I'm fine."
Julley was brought back to reality at the brink of panic exhaustion. He shook his head, trying to fumble his mind back into place. Taking a few deep breaths, and shutting his eyes for a moment, he was able to retake control of his senses.
It'll all be okay, Julley. Just calm down.
I know right. You're stressing me out. My doctor said I can't get stressed because of my blood pressure.
Right. Um, anyway, you and Arceus have our backs in this one, right? Right?
…My doctor also said my blood sugar's low so it's hard to make decisions.
Thanks for your help, uh… I guess.
The motorway's horizon seemed to reveal a few skyscrapers. Not as tall as they used to be back home, and certainly incomparable to Johto, but large for what they were. The group of tall constructs seemed to be cornered by large overbearing emerald-leaved trees, that Julley found slightly creepy. By the time that had reached this side of town, the moon had parted the sodden clouds to greet the four upon their arrival.
"Ay Julley? That looks it, right?" said Cooper, taking in the dark glow of the approaching city. "We better wake up Brendan."
"I t-think so? I've never gotten to come here, though."
Tyson shook the snoozing Blaziken awake, who yawned and lazily fixed his bowtie and sunglasses. "Hey. Wake up, ya potato."
"I'm awake, I'm awake." slurred Brendan, blinking rapidly. "Have we arrived already?"
"Yuh. Bienvenidos á la ciudad de East Latias, I guess."
They had ventured further. The amount of cars that Julley counted seemed to decrease the more they entered the city. He gazed outside the window, ignoring the intermittent raindrop that'd trickle down against the opposite side of the glass. The streets were dark, and now soaked in the recent blanket of rain. Every irregularly flickering street lamp would illuminate a lopsided trash can, the front of a decrepit convenience store, or a Pokemon dragging themselves across the pavement, weathering the rain with a scowl. It made Julley feel hollow on the inside, knowing that he grew up in a city right next to the ramshackle projects and it's miserable inhabitants in the east.
Glancing through the opposite side, several groups of shady Pokemon eyed the vehicle disparagingly. It was a gift from Arceus that they couldn't see through the windows. Otherwise, they'd notice a very out of place Umbreon not accustomed to the depressing and derelict living conditions.
Cooper turned into a nearby parking lot after sneaking a look at his GPS. The car rolled into a bay, and the infernal engine ceased it's roars after about three hours of constant use. Immediately, the car became as dark as the night sky outside, that still continued to relentlessly let down torrents after torrents of rainwater.
"Alright. We're well away from the docks, with, uh…" Cooper took the time to check the time on his phone. "Three quarters of an hour to spare." he quoted, setting the electronic device down and gazing at the perturbed father in the passenger seat. "'Kay Julley. Where do we go from here?"
The Umbreon took a deep sigh, in hopes of calming himself down. The situation that held their fate began now, and all four of their lives depended on whether this scheme ended up in their favour or not.
"R-Right. So, umm… Cooper and I will head to uhh… Maybe the roof of that building over there." The dark type pointed to a deteriorating property across the street that had a good advantageous view of the pier beyond the tar summit. "And, we'll scout out the area just to make sure everything is safe. Then, uhh, we'll let you guys know when it's safe to regroup. Hopefully we could go right down the road, and past the warehouse to confront that guy."
Getting all of that out was more than just a hassle for the dark type. Thankfully, it was regarded with content murmurs and grunts of agreements.
Brendan reached inside of his suit blazer, and pulled out a handgun, complete with a silencer to boot. "It's a decent plan to me. We won't really be needin' these, will we?"
"Better safe than in a hearse, I'd say." carelessly quipped Cooper, motioning to the back of the car. "Also, could we put on those vests of yours, Brendan? I'd hate to see this thing get hot without any sort of protection."
"I hear ya."
The Blaziken took a quick glance around the car, before stepping out and heading to the boot. Meanwhile, Tyson caught a glimpse of the Umbreon's miserable expression. The only thing glowing about him were the sets of rings set about his silhouette.
"Hey, Julley. Cheer up, man. We'll get your Anais back no sweat." optimistically assured the Typhlosion, attempting to ease the mood with one of his signature simpers. Miraculously, it worked to get Julley to nod in agreement.
"Thanks, Tyson. I hope so."
Brendan returned, a briefcase in his talons. "This place is weirdly quiet. Anyways, I got more than just some assault vests in this thing."
Cooper cocked his head. "Quiet? We better keep our voices down. What else do you have in that case, dude?"
The Blaziken coolly wagged his head upon opening the case, and brandishing four sets of walkie-talkies. Of course, they were still in their plastic casing. "Take a look at these. Got them a while back for some fun on camping trips with Barry, but now we can really put them to some use."
He handed them out to each of the members in the car, as well as the useful assault vests that may just come into handy. Julley took the vest, that seemed to be a little bit big for him, and fumbled with the straps to put it on.
"Y-You uh, really prepared for this, Brendan." gently remarked Julley, finally hoisting the protective garment over his head.
The Blaziken popped his transceiver in his inner blazer pocket. "When I heard what happened, how could I not be?"
"Thanks a bunch, man." confidently gratified the battle-ready Jolteon, who turned to Julley. "Ey, Julley, we better scoot, eh?"
"Yeah, probably." After sighing, the Umbreon grasped the handle of the passenger car door. "By the way, i-if we don't respond after twenty minutes, maybe you should come get us."
"No worries 'bout it. Good luck." saluted the Blaze Pokemon.
"Yeah, let us know if everything's alright as soon as possible!" hastily blurted Tyson, the Typhlosion.
"Thanks. See ya in a bit."
Following Cooper's departing farewell, both Eeveelutions left the car, and analyzed the parking lot that they had settled in. Granted, it was as dark and derelict as the rest of the city upon coming here. Moss grew on the cobblestone path leading to the main road, settling between Julley's feet as he stepped upon the footpath. He grimaced at the feeling. The merciless rain that assaulted the run-down city made him shiver
Looking up, he caught Cooper's gleaming azure orbs eyeing the shelter that they had set their eyes on in the car. It only had one story above ground level, that belonged to a closed, battered convenience store that had it's windows smashed in.
"So is that where we're headed?" spoke up Cooper, raising an eyebrow at the rickety structure across the road.
Julley nodded, and so, the two crossed the quiet, sodden road. Between their objective and another abandoned shop to their left, a light-lacking alleyway presented itself, as well as all of it's treacherous potential.
The Jolteon of the two-Pokemon troupe bit his lip, yet the dark type seemed so sure. Rain and moonlight dazzled themselves on the Umbreon's small silhouette, yet his rings glowed with power.
"I think I see some stairs." Cooper said, struggling to keep his eyes open with the fervent drizzle pouring from the sky. "You want to go down here?"
"Yeah, I'm sure we could get to the roof through here." replied the Umbreon, progressing into the darkness as if he was suddenly an inhabitant of this area, let alone the alleyway.
"Gotcha."
With Cooper in tow, Julley found that he was correct - to a specific degree, however. Metal stairs awaited the duo. It's black paint overcome by the rust in the downpour. It took them to the first floor, but not quite to the top. Nonetheless, the pair traversed the slippery steps, and reached a window that led to the establishment's upper interior. The Umbreon squinted, and tried to get a visual of the inside.
"What do you see?"
The Umbreon wiped the scattered raindrops from the cracked glass.
"Uhh… The entire floor s-seems to be empty. F-Furniture wise, I mean." whispered the father of two, who's bodily luminescence brought colour to the alley.
"Nice. Step to the side for a sec, Julley."
The Umbreon took a step back, glaring at the soaked electric type, who now stepped into before the window. Cooper lay on his back, curling his legs up like a spring being hydraulically compressed. He then shuffled until he looked ready to let the hammer hit the bullet.
"Uh, sure, what are you gonna d-"
One fell swoop, from two flexed sets of glutes, quadriceps and calves, thus the window flew out clean from it's frame. It flipped through the air, then shattered on the wooden floor of the ill-lit room. Julley had watched the process in amazement. The Jolteon stood up, dusting his elbows of any unwanted grease.
"And how about that, Jull?" the wisecrack sallied, peering through the open pane, before hopping into the pitch black room.
The dark type leaned over the square opening. "T-That was pretty impressive. Is there anyone in there?"
"Nah. It's all clear."
Julley followed through, taking in the darkness that surrounded him and his brother in-law with one deep breath. He trotted across the room, making it to the over side of the unfurnished area while steering clear of the broken glass pieces. More windows, cracked, smudged, and the like, were fitted into the wall in the direction of the violent seas on the horizon.
"Geez. I didn't wanna have to say anything, but this place is a dump." critically analyzed the Jolteon, eyes darting over all four the dimly lit walls. The tapping of the intrusive weather shower drowned out his speech. "Can you believe people actually live here?"
Wiping his paws on a carpeted yet hygienically neglected section of the flooring, the grieved father of two shook his head. "Not at all. I-I heard there are better parts of this town, though. M-Maybe we just got unlucky."
"Could be so. Garbage weather to be happening too." he commented, shaking his merigold jacket of the rainwater from outside. "Let's scout the area, then let the these dudes know."
"Right. Y-You're right."
Footsteps came from his side as the Umbreon stared out the window. Cooper joined his viewing of the large downhill summit that led to various small-storeyed infrastructures, a rather wide house, then finally, a large wooden pier, stretching out across the beach for at least a third of a mile. Julley couldn't catch a glimpse of anything resembling a Flygon, Sylveon, or anyone susceptible of being the desert dragon's accomplices.
"Hey. You might need these."
Albeit startled by the Lightning Pokemon, the thirty-two year old turned to the golden furred quadrupedal, who had a set of binoculars in his paws.
"Woah. D-Did you always have these on you?" astoundedly questioned the Umbreon, accepting the binoculars into hands of his own.
Cooper shrugged his shoulders. "Staring at stars is my job. Gotta be prepared."
"O-Oh. That's pretty clever. Thanks."
"Don't sweat it." The Jolteon then reached into his snow white mane, pulling out the walkie talkie entrusted to him by the Blaze Pokemon, Brendan. He held a yellow button on the side of the transceiver, and held it close to his mouth. "Hey, Tyson? Brendan? Do you guys copy?"
A crackled voice transmitted from the speaker.
"Hey, Cooper! Tyson here. We hear you loud and clear."
"Nice. We're in the house off on the left side of the street going down the hill. Are you guys alright?"
There seemed to be some sort of snickering undertones going on in the Typhlosion's background. He still responded, though.
"Yeah, we're still here in your car. Is it all good over there?"
Cooper glanced at the Umbreon glaring through the magnifying lenses. "S'alright. We're on the lookout right now. Hey Julley, do you see anything?"
The observer of the soaked city nightlife slowly peered about a bleak, jet black landscape, sands snuggling next to the ferocious winds. He pursed his lip, before forming a donut of sorts with his mouth.
"O-Oh! I uhh… I see someone!" yowled Julley, pointing at a speck on the window. Of course, he referred to the objective beyond the glass. "W-Woah! There's like… two of them! On those roofs over there!"
"Huh?" Cooper directed his vision to wherever the Moonlight Pokemon's digit led. "Darn. Must be that Flygon's cronies." he hissed under his breath. He then clicked the button on the transceiver again. "Tyson! Brendan! It might be go-time. Julley's got a vis on some crooks on the roofs of the buildings."
"Heard. Brendan, we gotta go. Give us a sec, Cooper."
"Gotcha."
Julley took away the binoculars from his face, and gave the Jolteon in cooperation a worrisome glare. Too bad he couldn't see it in the unilluminated room. "I-I didn't expect this guy to have a whole squad with him too! I think they're carrying weapons!"
"What?! You serious? Lemme have a look."
"Yeah! H-Here."
Cooper was given the binoculars to use. He numbly grunted in frustration.
"Arceus. He's really gonna put up a fight. What're we gonna do about those dudes?"
Scratching his head aggressively, Julley tapped the floor as his ear twitched suddenly.
The Lightning Pokemon found the sight to be a little bit discomforting. "Hey, is everything alright, Julley?"
Nodding, and taking deep breaths, the father who had dread picking at his weak shoulders lifted his head. "Yeah, I-I'm fine… Thanks… Sorry, I was just thinking. I might have an idea."
"Idea? Well, go ahead, then."
His paw now held a walkie talkie, extracted from his lucky chest tuft. The Umbreon brought a digit down on the yellow button, while inching the communications device closer to his maw. "Brendan, Tyson. Can you guys h-hear me?"
"Yuh. We're still in the car. What's up, Julley?"
Feeling at ease once hearing the soothing Blaziken speak, "W-We might have to cancel our regrouping plan. There's a bunch of G-Gauvin's guys waiting on the rooftops. D-Do you think you coul-"
"Finally! I thought you never ask. Don't worry, I'll have 'em with the silencer on."
The Eeveelution's ears slanted backwards cumbersomely. "N-No! You don't have to shoot them, do you? I-I was thinking you could like… uhh… knock them unconscious, or something?"
"..."
"H-Hello?"
"Yeah, I read you. Tyson 'n' I will sort 'em out. You'll have to direct us, though."
"N-No problem."
…
...
Enter the long lasting duo of Brendan Bursyamo and Tyson Tornupto, who finished gearing all their goods from the car. The latter had left his blazer in the car, equipped in only an assault vest obscured by his jetblack waistcoat, all sitting above a white button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up. As for trousers? He doesn't wear any. Meanwhile, the Typlosion had opted to just don his tactical garments over his original battling apparel. Simplicity in it's finest. Rain continued to pour down like there was no tomorrow, placing a frown on both of the fire type's faces. The downpour was so eager, the latter Pokemon had to put his hood up and whine.
"Ay Dios mio. Brendan, this place is a nightmare."
Brendan shielded himself from the rain using a talon. It proved to be as ineffective as promised. "You're telling me, dude. Worst time to wear a suit ever." he fished around for the walkie talkie he had temporarily placed in his waistcoat pocket, and put it to his beak. "Julley? Give us the directions."
The decoder device rumbled with sound. "S-Sure… Uh, do you guys see that store across the road? The store with the broken window."
The fire types turned to their left. Seeing a building with similar features to what the Umbreon through the device had described. Above the ground floor, in the wall of the second storey, a window displayed a golden glowing silhouette, with scarlet eyes that Tyson and Brendan could recognise from anywhere.
"Y-Yeah! I see you two!"
Tyson waved slightly giddily. "Hey, we see you too!"
"Swell. So where do we head?" deadpanned Brendan, hating the feeling of the downpour settling into his exotic feathers. "Not a fan of the rain, you know."
The glow from the window ceased. Presumably off to another glass pane for a better view. "R-Right. So umm… continue down the road- no, sidewalk, until you see the l-library on your left. There's someone up there on the roof. You should probably uhh... stick to the shadows."
"Gotcha." Brendan slid the talkie back into his waistcoat pocket, and turned to his longtime battling partner and rival. "Tyson, on me."
Led by the Blaziken, the two stealthily hopped the metre-tall withering hedge that separated the car park from the main road, landing on the sidewalk with a splodge. To their left, the parking lot they had just departed. On their right, an abandoned shop that had a barely noticeable honey-yellow gleam emanated from the upper storey window. Therefore, there was only one direction left to inspect, and that was in front of them.
The road progressed downhill. The heavy downpour was spoilt for choice between flowing down the summit or giving in to an uncovered manhole. Brendan and Tyson merged into the shadows cast by a terraced set of various shops on the left side of the road. The forsaken stores had all seemed to be forgotten to nature, habited by unruly moss betwixt various nooks and crannies. Rebellious ivory snaked down the interior and exterior brick walls of the jilted structures. The duo waded through the surface run-off, keeping close to the wide, and uncommonly shattered, panes that made up the fronts of the shops. From time to time, the father of three would steal a look over his shoulder at his thirty-one year-old cohort from way back when, made a snivelling example of from the weighted drizzle that didn't look like it was ceasing anytime soon. Returning to face forward, he'd wipe the limitless droplets from his feathers, squint his eyes and press on.
"Hey, Brendan! This looks it!" whisper-yelled Tyson, reaching in front of him to tug on the silky Blaziken's sleeveless clothing. He then pointed to a sign that titled the shop they stood before. "The Library!"
"Huh?" he murmured, attentively turning around and following the direction that the Typhlosion's digit stuck out in, and read the letters atop the shop's front aloud. "The Li-ar. Well, close enough. I'm sure there's a way to the roof if we head inside."
"Well after you, then."
Brendan took a deep breath in, and narrowly stepped through a sizable hole in the display window that put him right before the main counter of the dim universal knowledge centre. The main floor was a metre below the level of the street outside. A splash proceeded right after he set foot in the main hallway. The Blaziken grimaced as he glanced down. Both of his legs were submerged with grime-filled water that dared to reach his waist. The entire library seemed to be undergoing a local flood of its own. Fantasy novels and informative atlases were turned to nothing but mulch and paper maché in the aftermath.
"Aw, this is disgusting…" mumbled the fire type, shuddering in sync to every wave of water and sodden books that clashed against his shivering legs. "I feel like I've stepped on a Grimer or something…"
"You really look like you're enjoying yourself there, 'mano." snidely jestered Tyson, who had opted to subtly sneak through the wooden doors, proving to be a much better option He trotted down a few steps from the entrance, nearing the surface of the rather large puddle. "Let me uhh… Try and take a step in… Augh, ew! This is disgusting!"
"Hey, keep your voice down!" hastily scolded the Blaze Pokemon. "Don't wanna get made early. Although, it is kinda gross."
"Sorry… Hey, do you see stairs over there?"
Brendan rotated in the resistive murky waters, guided by another one of Tyson's beige furred fingers. Beyond some overturned bookshelves (with their respective books) partially floating in the liquid debris, a set of stairs vertically curved in a spiral toward the upper floor. Their next goal.
"Yeah, I see 'em. Let's get going." the avian commanded, trying his best to waddle through the pool of a public area, while Tyson followed closeby. He armed himself with a walkie talkie, and spoke into it. "Hey, Julley? Cooper? We're in the library."
The latter's voice replied to his situation report. "Good goin'. We've got eyes on the road outside the place, as well as the roof. So, we'll let you know if anything goes down."
"No problem."
The line was cut for now. Brendan and Tyson reached the stairs, eventually waving farewell and good riddance to the green untouched waters. After shaking themselves clean of grime, Tyson pressed on up the staircase that guided him to a dilapidated ornate door. Brendan was occupied wringing his waist coat in the meantime.
Tyson inspected the door cautiously, fixing his gaze on all of the rough edges in it's chiseled patterns. Splinter's from it's wooden frame had taken turns dropping to the soggy rouge carpeted floor in numbers. The Typhlosion's hand advanced toward the corroded knob, yet halted a centimetre away. His azure ears rose slowly.
"…"
"…"
"...you heard something? Gauvin said 11 on the dot."
Tyson froze.
"Just go an' check, ya nincompoop."
"Fine, fine."
Footsteps grew louder with each passing millisecond, bringing Tyson to a frightening conclusion. With little time remaining, he silently pounced back down the staircase, where he had left his Blaziken of old.
"Brendan, we gotta make ourselves scarce…! Someone's coming!" cried the Volcano Pokemon in hushed tones, grabbing his fellow fire type by his coat to head back into the water.
"What the heck…!" groaned Brendan, hurriedly stepping down back into the murky depths.
The steps got louder and quicker. Quiet splashes accompanied desperate wading. The duo had managed to creep under a half-submerged bookcase in haste, crouching such that their torso and lower-halves were completely underwater.
The door had swung open. A dash of light swept the entire flooded area from the top of the stairs. Brendan sunk a little bit - the tip of his beak penetrating the surface of the water. Tyson just hoped the assailant wouldn't bother to check under the bookcase. Neither wanted to poke their head out from the cover to identify whoever danced their light around the room. Reflections from the walls and the surface of the pool struck Brendan like a bombshell, once he figured out how green the water truly was.
"..."
"...Clear!"
Click. The illumination ceased. A decrescendo of footsteps, then a slam. The type of slam that indicated something closing swiftly. Tyson looked at the dark silhouette of Brendan. Above the surface of the water, he brought his talons to gesticulate getting a look of the situation.
Reluctantly, the Typhlosion nodded, before turning around and ducking under the water to re-emerge on the other side of the bookshelf. Gentle swishes of the water accompanied the Volcano Pokemon's silent surveyal.
"...Yeah, I think that dude is gone."
Brendan released a sigh of relief, as he lifted the bookshelf to crawl out from under it and join his friend on the foot of the stairs. A talon ran through the dripping feathers atop his head.
"Geez Louise, that could've been an issue if we got caught." said Brendan, remembering to watch his volume. "Great. Plus, my shirt is ruined."
Shaking his fur dry one more time, Tyson clasped his hands. "I'll buy you another one if we get out of this alive. What do we do now?"
"Right. I say, we sneak real low, 'n' surprise 'em."
"After you."
Rolling his eyes, Brendan wagged his talon for the Typhlosion to follow him up the stairs. Keeping their moves as noiseless as possible, the pair approached the door. Tyson held the side of his head, shut his eyes and used his senses of hearing.
He pulled his head away from the door, and whispered to his feathered partner in crime. "There's at least 2 guys in there."
Brendan nodded, before taking a step back.
"What are you thinkin'?" asked Tyson, watching carefully, the smirk on the 'Ziken's beak.
"...TM32."
"Oh… Alright, gotcha."
...
…
…
...
A dark room gave host to two Pokemon; a Golem and a Beartic. The latter was stuck in a seat, weariness gripping them to a wooden chair in the corner of the room. Meanwhile, the ground and rock type was rotating glaring outside the windows, seeking their targets. A scoped rifle in hand.
Leaning back with a yawn, the Beartic stretched his hands over his head. "'Ey Gary. Do ya see anythin'?"
The Golem, Gary, had turned around, rifle pointing to the ceiling. He then shook his head.
"Nuh uh, nothin', Kirk. I even double-checked the roof a couple minutes ago. I hope we get paid if it's a no-show."
"Yeah, so do I." the Freezing Pokemon huffed, looking around the room. "Ran into a lady of the night earlier. She said she wouldn't mind cuttin' half for a quickie, but then I was like; Tch. You're shiny? No thanks. If things continue going the way they are right now, I might just link back with her again."
Gary returned his gazed back to the glass pane, watching the downpour with a miser expression. "Of course ya did."
*KLANG*
The door was forced off its hinges, careening from the wall and onto the floor after doing a few flips in the air. Gary was the first to react, as Kirk lost his balance from the sudden brouhaha. The Golem faced the now doorless entrance, where a Typhlosion held a Blaziken above his head. It was an odd sight. Nevertheless, Gary knew what he was trained for. Shoot first, don't ask any questions at all. He fumbled to get his rifle pointed toward the duo of assailants.
"Get some!" cried Tyson, already one step ahead, executing his side of the plan. Using the muscles in his arms, legs and core, he dashed his lighter friend at the ground and rock type taken by surprise.
Brendan, who now sailed through the air, spun and stuck his legs out moments before the point of contact between his feet and the Golem's poor face.
"What the fuck?!"
Stunned by the sheer force of the Blaziken drop-kicking the Megaton Pokemon out of the blue, Kirk called out profanities while spectating his colleague soar across the room, denting the brick wall on the other side. The Beartic shot up, and hurriedly felt his body for a weapon that could easily give him the edge in this battle.
"Brendan! He's lookin' for a weapon!" warned Tyson from the doorway. Brendan immediately snapped his head to the ice type, who had just unveiled a handgun from his teal fur.
Upon shooting up on his two feet, the Blaziken swung a leg upwards, aiming at the Beartic's wrist. Upon impact, Kirk yelped in pain, grabbing his arm with his free hand as the gun he once held flew into the air.
Seeing an opportunity to act, the fighter reeled back an arm, and threw a punch at the unsuspecting ice type - right in his muzzle.
"Fuck!" wailed Kirk, stumbling backwards and clutching his pounding nose. However, he was kept from going anywhere by the fire and fighting type holding him by his chest tuft. Keeping one eye open, Kirk saw the weapon that was once in his hands drop en route to the wooden floor just to his right.
The gun hit the floor.
*BANG*
A brief luminescence painted the walls gold from the sparks that flew out from the pistol.
Thud. The sound of a body hitting the ground resounded in the small room. For that second, time seemed to stop. Brendan turned around, still tightly gripping the Beartic to whom he had just delivered a blow.
Tyson was propped on his elbows, paw rested on his abdomen that was shielded by his uniform and tactical vest.
"Geez, Tyson!" worriedly yelled the avian - a poor groggy Beartic still in his grasp. Brendan gave him another punch to his kidney for good measure. "Are you hit?"
Gazing at his clothed stomach, the Typlosion noticed a shimmering silver cylinder fall from his vest.
"No, thankfully not. Phew. It hit the vest." elucidated the fire type, wiping sweat from his brow. "I owe you one. I really thought I was brown bread when that thing went off."
Brendan sighed exasperatedly. "I'm just happy you're alright. I don't know what I'd tell Bonnie otherwise." After finishing that sentence, the father to a trio of children decided to send the Beartic to dreamland by jetting a placed right hook to his jaw. The ice type fell back like a stringless puppet - plopping onto the chair they found him in, unconscious. "Take a seat, pal."
After taking precautionary glances at both the Golem and the Beartic to ensure they were knocked out, Brendan strolled over to the handgun that held a lot of dangerous potential. He handled the weapon by it's grip, pointing the barrel to the floor.
"Hey, good going, by the way." Tyson commented, although it sounded more like a grunt as the Volcano Pokemon struggled to stand up from the floor. "Although, that's not quite what TM32 means."
The 'Ziken chuckled, removing the filled magazine from the ranged weapon, followed by cocking and discarding the rest of the frame. The cartridge found itself in his pocket. "Pfft, no one else did. Not even coach Wheezle. Well… Maybe Sally did."
"Haha, nice. She was a nerd."
"Hah, nice one."
"Kirk? Kirk? J'ai entendu une coup de feu. Comment allez-vous?"
That voice didn't seem to come from any of them. The fire type duo shared tense stares, before settling their eyes on the seemingly lifeless ice mammal.
"Génial, il est mort. Maintenant; la guerre a commencé."
Whoever had been speaking had their voice amplified through a radio transceiver left on the floor beside the 'sleeping' Beartic. Brendan annoyedly snapped his fingers, though Tyson still had that pale look about him.
"What'd he say?"
Azure orbs darted out the window, watching the storming seas with anticipation.
"We've been made; he knows we're here."
...
Originally, this was supposed to be one big chapter. However, I decided to split things into bits just to make reading easier. Plus, I'm sure you didn't want to be kept waiting for that long. Thanks to all the support of everyone in the server! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Next one will hopefully be up soon. Tell me what you thought about it!
-LuanOTP