Time for Part 2, as we get back to Team Bloodsucker and their allies as they defend their doomed ship from a converging army of Water-types! Will the Abyssal Raiders have even more prisoners to fill their cells with?

Sorry this wasn't up sooner, I've been kind of busy lately.

-.-.-.-.-.

"Rock Throw!"

"Rollout!"

"Shadow Claw!"

"Magical Leaf!"

"Flame Charge!"

All of these cries, and more, rang out into the salty sea air as the Pokemon defended the Windchaser from the attacking Abyssal Raiders. But it apparently wasn't bad enough to have a horde of murderous Water-types swarming around and trying to subdue them – no, the ship was also sinking, thanks to the efforts of General Fang's Carvanha Squad. It was only a matter of time before they would have to make the decision to sink or swim, and no matter what they chose, they would end up captured.

The Raiders were getting battered by the barrage of attacks. Burner flew around whilst pelting them with Air Slashes, Pteryx climbed the mast and shot Dragonbreath after Dragonbreath at the Water-types trying to get at him, and everyone else fought valiantly on.

By now, the ship was a quarter of the way under the water, and still sinking. The Abyssal Raiders, just kept on attacking, knowing that the defendants would be at their mercy sooner or later. The defending Pokemon themselves knew this as well, but that knowledge only made them struggle even harder in vain hope that they would escape.

Eventually, inevitably, someone had to fall. The first one to do so was Okami, bravely fighting at the head of them all with Miranda at her side. She was so busy fending off an attack aimed at her partner that she didn't see the Chinchou sparking up its lanterns in preparation for a Thunder Wave. By the time Okami noticed the bolt of electricity speeding on its way, it was too late. It struck her in the side, with sparks coiling out around her from the site of impact, and she fell to the ground in a paralyzed daze.

The Vaporeon screamed with rage at the sight of her fallen leader and prepared to Tackle the Chinchou away, as it was now advancing on the unmoving Sylveon. But it met her with a powerful Spark attack, knocking the wind out of her and sending her to the deck painfully. Now without any opposition, the Chinchou and two of its colleagues closed in on Okami and began to drag her away.

No one could do a thing about it, as they were all caught up in their own battles. Okami's capture resulted in a point of weakness in the group's defense, and the Water-types surged in to take advantage of it.

Pteryx noticed from his perch and squawked down to his teammates, "Ahoy down there! Incoming wave – ha, wave – of Raiders, so look sharp and fight on for yer freedom! Dragonbreath!" he added, blasting away an eager Mantyke.

Despite the Archen's warning, the attack came too quickly to effectively defend against. A Croconaw's Water Gun temporarily felled Luke, leaving Jowl undefended for the moment. He shrieked in fear as a Tentacool moved in, stunning him with Poison Sting. A moment later, the Eevee was being dragged away as well.

From his height high above the battle, Burner witnessed the helpless Jowl being captured, and dove down to help. However, he was instantly met by a hail of Water Pulses from the mouths of the Carvanha Squad, preventing him from interfering with the captures.

"Those Pokemon are ours now!" General Fang roared from the water below. "I'm not going to let you meddle with our plans again, Burner! Aqua Jet!" He suddenly burst forth and jetted into the sky, surrounded by a barrier of water. Burner easily dodged and looped back to face his foe, now suspended in the air and totally helpless.

"Bug Buzz!" the Moskeeteor shouted triumphantly, flapping his wings once and sending a single sonic boom rushing toward its target. It slammed into General Fang and sent the Sharpedo spinning off past the Windchaser and into the water beyond it.

But even as Burner dealt with General Fang, another capture had been made. A lucky Magikarp flopped out of the water and right up to Pteryx, its desperately thrashing tail whipping him in the face and making him lose his grip. A pained squawk came from his beak as he plummeted uncontrollably into the midst of the battle. An instant later, he had been knocked out by a direct hit from a Poliwhirl's Hypnosis.

The Windchaser was sinking faster now, and was already halfway from descending completely into the depths. It began to lean to one side, forcing everyone to adjust their center of gravity so as not to lose their balance. However, the tilt disrupted Gaby's aim, sending an otherwise perfect Focus Blast spinning away from its original target.

Cobalt quickly leapt in to deal with the Seadra she had aimed for, but the recoil from the Focus Blast had dazed her momentarily. Even as the Riolu administered a devastating Sky Uppercut to the Seadra's chin, another Chinchou hit Gaby in the back with a Thunder Wave, immediately paralyzing her. The Kirlia dropped to the deck, completely at her foes' mercy.

At the same time, Luke was fluttering high above the ship, blasting the Water-types with V-Create and Fire Blast to disappointing effect. If anything, he was hampering his allies with all the smoke thrown up from his attacks. Wisely deciding to stop, he suddenly caught sight of a school of Chinchou running off with Gaby in tow. The Victini made a split-second decision that would ordinarily terrify him, but his friend – no, she was so much more than a friend to him – was in danger, and friendship gave him strength.

I have to save her! the thought roared in his mind, overriding every other thought. Luke's blue eyes narrowed as he folded his arms back and dove like a Staraptor at the Chinchou.

"V-Create!" he screamed as soon as he was close enough. His ears glowed with a fiery energy, and a V-shaped wave of fire shot forth, striking the Chinchou and scattering them all over. The sudden burst of power sent the little Victini spinning out of control. No longer able to control his flight, he landed smack-dab on top of Gaby.

He shook his head to clear it, only to meet Gaby's crimson eyes. Still under the influence of the paralysis, she managed to reach up shakily with a hand and touch the side of his face.

"Good… try…" she murmured with a smile, and Luke almost forgot there was a battle going on around them. But just then, a Thunder Wave struck him, and the Chinchou returned. "Thank you…" he managed to reply in a whisper, before they were both dragged away to a fate unknown.

-.-.-.-.-.

Burner, Drain, Tesla, and Miranda all combined their attacks, making a last stand against the advancing Abyssal Raiders as the ship continued to sink down to a watery grave. Tesla backed up a couple of paces as she shot an Energy Ball in response to a Hydro Pump, and said to her teammates, "You ready to go down fighting?"

Miranda fired a few Aurora Beams to give them some cover, and replied fiercely, "Always!" Drain nodded in agreement even as he blasted a wide Dark Pulse at their enemies, felling several at once.

"Then let us do so!" Burner replied, barraging the Raiders with Air Slashes. The four of them backed up some more, but were met with the rail surrounding the edge of the Windchaser. They were trapped, leaving their only escape the briny deep – where their foes would definitely have the advantage.

But just then, Miranda glanced over the edge of the ship and caught sight of the Carvanha Squad securing the prisoners and attaching Krabby Bubbles to their heads. "They're getting away with our friends!" she shouted, blasting a Relicanth in the face with her Aurora Beam.

Burner looked down as well, only to meet the glaring yellow eyes of General Fang. There was an unspoken challenge in those cold orbs. "Hold off the Raiders," he ordered firmly, thrumming his wings. "I'm going to make sure that no one gets away with anyone!"

The Moskeeteor lifted off and almost immediately dove down like an arrow at the Sharpedo. He was quick to respond, ordering his Carvanha to undergo defensive maneuvers. The fish Pokemon split into two groups and formed circles around the prisoners and the General, firing Ice Beams that lanced into the air. Burner didn't have to even exert himself as he seamlessly avoided each one. "Flame Charge!" he cried, igniting himself and streaking downwards like a blazing comet.

The Chinchou securing their captives looked up just then, saw the diving Mosquito Pokemon, and knew instinctively what he was trying to do. One Chinchou's sense of duty was stronger than the others', and swam in between two of the Carvanha to get a better shot at him. The other Chinchou looked at their comrade as if it were insane.

"Thunderbolt!" he squeaked, sparking up his lanterns. Two small electric bolts flew from the lanterns to form a ball of lightning in the middle. A massive electrical bolt shot out from the ball and struck Burner head-on, dealing super-effective damage. He stopped his attack and fell into the water with a splash.

"Ha! Gotcha now, Burner!" laughed General Fang, a rare occurrence. He moved in to claim the Moskeeteor, only to be met with a fierce flurry of Pin Missiles. The Sharpedo looked up to see the ferocious faces of Team Bloodsucker glaring down at him from the Windchaser. The unconscious bodies of his Abyssal Raiders floated around the sides of the ship.

"You're not getting away with our leader!" screamed Tesla. "Electroweb!" She shot a few electrified nets at him and his Carvanha, which each plunged into the water and snagged several victims. Because the nets were already touching the water when they hit, twelve Carvanha and a Chinchou were instantaneously fried.

General Fang almost panicked as more nets began to sail through the air. But he managed to keep his cool and think up a quick plan. "Carvanha Squad, stop those webs cold with Ice Beam!" he ordered, and the surviving piranha-like Pokemon fired their beams immediately.

The flying nets, already opening to catch their prey, froze solid the moment they met the Ice Beams. One by one, they dropped into the water with individual splashes. Tesla was momentarily confused, and didn't fire any more webs. General Fang used that time to order a retreat.

Three seconds later, they were gone, taking their prisoners with them and leaving the others to sink.

After a moment of shocked and overwhelming silence, Drain immediately took on the role of leader. "Tesla," he commanded, "you, Okami, and Amanita reel Burner in, and a few of those dead Carvanha if you can. We can't let fresh food go to waste." The Conductula nodded and gathered Okami and Amanaita at the side of the ship, already spinning her threads.

"Shadepelt," Drain continued, catching the Purrloin's attention. "If you really are on our side, take as many planks and nails as necessary from those crates. Then, go with Miranda to fix the holes that have been torn in the Windchaser's hull. Go as fast as you can, or we'll sink." The Devious Pokemon, while intimidated at the enormity of the role she had to play, leapt at the chance to prove herself. She and the Vaporeon bustled over to the nearest crate and hastily gathered what they needed.

"As for the rest of you," Drain finished, pointing to Sinestra, Tortuga, and Cobalt, "you'll be working with me to empty out the water already flooding this ship. Grab some buckets and follow me!"

The four Pokemon then rushed down the hatch and into the belly of the ship, ready to empty out the rapidly-submerging hull and to save their boat.

-.-.-.-.-.

The mood in the cell wasn't very cheerful. Then again, it was a dungeon – they aren't supposed to be cheerful. But that's beside the point.

Wyvern and Team Knights were passing the time by telling stories of their past adventures. Lancelot and Arthur were currently in the middle of a tale of the time they had saved a trio of Shroomish trapped within a glittering crystalline cavern from an angry Kabutops. Wyvern was listening with rapt attention, occasionally interrupting with a question.

On the other end of the cell, nearer to the door, Terra, Cenric, and Cliff were talking quietly amongst themselves. Well, it was more like Terra and Cliff were talking – Cenric was off by himself, lost in thought.

Will I ever escape this place? he asked himself. Will I ever get the chance to go searching for my friend again? She could be dead for all I know, but until I find out for sure that she is, then I need to keep wandering.

As he stewed in his own thoughts, Terra and Cliff talked. Their conversation was varied in topics, but none of them were in any way enjoyable to talk about. Who were these Abyssal Raiders? Why had they captured them? What were they planning? Those questions were frequently asked, but never answered.

Finally, after they had been silent for a while, Terra spoke up again. "Remember what we used to do a few years ago?" the Charmander asked, and her cousin nodded. "Yes, I do," he replied. "We were an unofficial rescue team under one of the guilds in the Town of Peace."

Terra smiled at that memory. Although the Guardians ran all of the official, real-deal rescue teams, there were many unofficial guilds scattered around the continent and surrounding islands. Times were tough, and the Guardians couldn't protect an entire landmass – so many local Pokemon in many different places decided to take things into their own hands and form their own rescue team organizations. Terra had been the leader of Team Bluefire, a rookie team that consisted of Terra, her friend Cobalt, and Cliff whenever he visited from the Dunedust Desert.

"How do you think Cobalt's doing now?" Cliff asked, and then grew worried at the look of sadness that suffused his cousin's face. The Charmander's voice was broken as she replied, "There was an earthquake on Diamond Island… and me, Miss Evelyn, and Mister Alphonse were the only survivors…" She choked back a sob as she buried her face in her little hands.

Cliff moved to comfort her, but at that moment there was a sudden commotion that echoed from further down the hall. "Ow! Quit yer scratchin'!" a deep voice complained. From the strained tone of his voice, it was clear that whomever the voice belonged to was struggling with someone.

Then there was a loud crunching noise, and a scream of pain. "OOOWWW!" the voice screamed. "Offa my head!" Another, similar, voice scolded, "Well ya shouldn't have let go of 'im!"

By now, everyone in the cell was looking bemusedly at the tunnel beyond. The commotion sounded as if it were getting louder, until several minutes later, two Crawdaunt guards stomped into view, with their claws clearly full of trouble.

One of them was handling four prisoners – a Victini, Kirlia, Eevee, and Sylveon – while the other was flailing his pincers around and shouting in pain. Attached to his head Turtwig-style was an angry-looking Archen, clamping down with his massive beak.

An Archen's beak was a funny thing – whereas most predatory bird Pokemon had beaks designed more for pecking prey to death and stripping off bits of flesh, the First Bird Pokemon's beak was a lot more primitive. It was used more like a Gible's jaws than a traditional beak, being much more powerful and able to crush the bones of small Pokemon. Add to that a number of jagged fangs protruding from the sharp edges, and you've got one painful bite.

But none of that mattered right now – everyone, and Wyvern in particular, was staring in shock at the new prisoners. His heart leapt as he recognized Gaby, Luke, and Pteryx!

Pteryx is awake, and feisty as ever! Wyvern thought with similar joy, tears flooding his eyes.

The first Crawdaunt opened the cell door and shoved the four Pokemon into the cell. As they hit the ground with thuds and grunts of pain, he immediately went to help his comrade pull Pteryx off of his head. At last, they managed to pry his jaws off, only to have the Archen bite down on the first Crawdaunt's pincer instead.

After five solid minutes of frustrating – and to the prisoners, amusing – struggles, they worked together to hold his arms down and clamp his beak shut. As one, they threw Pteryx into the cell as well, instantly slamming the door shut in case he tried to come after them again. They then bustled off as fast as they could.

"Come back and fight, ya cowardly barnacles!" Pteryx screeched, shaking his fist. Luke groaned and picked himself up. "Pteryx, now's not the time," he muttered, and then his blue eyes went wide as he spotted Wyvern.

Gaby and Pteryx spotted him too. There was a shocked quietness for a few seconds, and then Pteryx rubbed his eyes furiously. "I'm dreamin', right?" he asked, rubbing them again. "One'a them Crawdaunt musta clonked me on the head, right?"

Wyvern sat up and didn't move his gaze from his little brother. "No, I'm the one that's dreaming," he insisted. "You're with me again, and you're all right!"

Pteryx crossed his arms and said, "Of course I'm all right, ya half-wit. I'm Pteryx! Ya think that dumb Fearow was gonna be the end of me?" He was about to say something as well, but it was swallowed forcefully when Wyvern lunged forward and scooped his little brother into his arms tightly.

Luke zipped over and hugged Wyvern's arm, snuggling his head into the Archeops' feathers. Gaby went over as well and quickly hugged Wyvern's middle before retreating again. But the three of them remained in their embrace for a whole minute before they separated.

"Ah, it is Master Pteryx!" crowed Arthur, floating over and bowing deeply. "It is of great pleasure to see you again, fellow knight of the Guardians." Pteryx blushed ferociously and shuffled his talons, looking bashful. The Escavalier extended a lance, the end of which Pteryx grabbed and shook in greeting.

Lancelot sprang from his sitting position and wrapped his arms around Gaby, and she wholeheartedly returned the hug. "I'm so glad to see you're safe," the Gallade said, and she smiled faintly. "I can take care of myself, Father," she said, but squeezed him a little tighter.

Okami and Jowl, meanwhile, were looking around awkwardly at the happy reunions going on around them. Fireclaw hadn't moved, simply observing everything with his usual indifference.

Soon, though, those reunions had ended and everyone gathered in a circle. Introductions were made all around – Okami and Jowl were introduced to Team Knights and the former Team Bluefire, and said Pokemon were thusly introduced to the newcomers. As they had quite a bit of time on their hands (being trapped in a cage and all), they went above and beyond simply saying their names – they went on briefly about their lives in general, what rescue team they were on, et cetera.

However, after about an hour of delightful talking, another sudden commotion cut through the chatter like butter. Every occupant of the now-kind-of-crowded cell stopped and listened to what was going on. It sounded like an argument of some kind – two females by the sound of their voices – and was getting louder by the second. Someone was coming.

"I'm sorry, darlin', but I just refuse to do anymore of these here mundane chores around the fortress! I chipped a nail today washin' the floors in El Nino's chamber!" the louder, rougher voice said.

The second voice was smoother but similarly loud and angry. "Well, if I didn't have to force you to do these 'mundane chores', then you wouldn't do any work at all around here!" it demanded. "I do what El Nino tells me to do, and thus you have to do what I tell you to do! If I was leader of this gang, your jobs would be infinitely worse, believe me!"

The first voice scoffed. "Please, darlin', what could be worse than scrubbin' floors 'till yer paws bleed?" it asked, and the second voice laughed evilly. "What could be worse?" the voice asked rhetorically. "How about digging your own grave? After all, you wouldn't live for three minutes under my rule!" The voice rose in volume until its owner was shrieking at the top of her lungs.

"Like ya could do any work at all if yer life depended on it!" shouted the first voice. "Why don't ya go cry to yer pansy of a husband!"

Instantly, there was a loud explosion that rocked the cell, knocking its inhabitants off balance. Smoke drifted down the hall as the tremor died down.

The first voice changed from loud and raucous to high-pitched and pleading. "Alright, alright! I'll do my duty, darlin'! I'm sorry!" it squeaked. As the sound of footsteps began to echo down the tunnel, the prisoners could just make out the second voice hissing, "Not yet, you aren't. I'd sleep with one eye open for the rest of your very short life, if I were you."

Finally, the mystery of whom the two voices belonged to was solved as their owners appeared at the door. One was a simultaneously grumpy-and-scared-looking Floatzel, and the other was a Frillish with a look of pure murder in her eyes. The cellmates all involuntarily took a step back.

Except Cenric. The Buizel was staring at Vizeli with his eyes bugging and mouth hanging. The latter opened and closed in shock uselessly. But at last, he found his voice, just as Vizeli noticed him as well, with similar surprise.

"M-m-mother?!" Cenric stammered.

-.-.-.-.-.

Gasp! Cue the dramatic music!

*Luke hits "play" on the CD player and country music starts*

Pteryx: "Oh snap! We left in that square dancin' CD from last week's Ponyta rodeo!"

Anyways, moving on… "Reunions in Dire Situations, Part 3" will be up as soon as I can! And as you can imagine, not all of these reunions will necessarily be good…

Stay tuned, and watch for the next chapter!

Cenric: "… … …"

Luke: "Review please~!" *starts dancing with Gaby*

Chapter Question #12: What are your thoughts on the new Pokemon in X and Y? Who are your favorites? Mine are Noivern, Yveltal, Clauncher, and Malamar!