GYM-CHALLENGE

Laurence Anderson

A CITY BESIEGED

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bright light pours through the open doorway, and as laurence walks through, he's greeted by... night? a bone-aching chill sets in, invited by winter and a lack of sunlight. street lights illuminate empty streets, the loud 'crickets' of bug-pokemon give them their only sense of life. there's a stillness that settles, a silence that seeps into your senses.
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it takes a few moments for anything other than the noise of bugs to catch. it starts slowly, in flashes of light that appear in thick cloud cover. then the sounds of booming THUNDER echo in the sky. bolts of lightning rain down indiscriminantly, ERUPTIONS OF FLAME and bright flashes of light follow. descending from the sky, the bird of lightning, ZAPDOS. in the distance, three flares ignite — yellow, red, and blue.[break][break][break]

GYM-CHALLENGE

Laurence Anderson

A CITY BESIEGED

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laurence's advance atop his metagross saves precious seconds, but the sprawl of the city cannot be denied. twists and turns through its alleyways, dodging brick buildings and strikes of lightning, the duo advance onto the red flare. bitter cold wind bites as they advance, but its stifled by an even more alarming, growing heat. as the two approach, they discover the true nature of the CRISIS. [break][break][break]
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FLAMES CONSUME a building like kindling, smoke flooding the sky in thick clumps of black and grey. sounds pierce the air like shrill banshees; yells from below from worried pedestrians, and screams from inside from those still trapped. emergency services echo in the distance, but they're TOO FAR, too late. with no greater power in place, it seems INEVITABLE that lives are to be lost.
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that only leaves the question of what to do?

GYM-CHALLENGE

Laurence Anderson

A CITY BESIEGED

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QUICK on his feet, laurence orders the summoning of a TORRENTIAL RAIN DANCE. it centers itself around the burning building, turning dampening the effects of the flames. but, it's no hydro pump — a lengthy solution to a quick issue. perhaps expecting this, laurence makes a decision. cries of warning from those outside fall onto deaf ears, and heroically, or perhaps studiedly, laurence rushes in.
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the first thing laurence notes is the INTENSE HEAT. it, like the visible smoke, rises and clouds his vision. he can BARELY SEE anything more than TEN FEET in-front of him, made worse by the persistent cough that presses into his lungs. before him are two immediate options — stairs that rise another to another two levels, and the ground-floor itself.
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from first glance, it looks like each floor has at least two doors, each a small apartment of their own. from here, the screams and cries for help seem to come from every level. but he also can't help but notice the wood around him is burning at an insane rate, and the stairs themselves threaten a lack of stability.
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a decision needs to be made.
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TASK

AN APARTMENT COMPLEX SET ABLAZE is no simple task. Once inside, Laurence comes face to face with a decision that could change the lives of an unknown number of people - even his own. Flames lick at the foundation of the building, putting it on the edge of collapse. Furthermore, the stairs themselves are not as steady as they once were, leading to their INEVITABLE COLLAPSE, should they be ascended, descended, or should a short time further go-by.
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Solve the CRISIS by whatever means comfortable. Role-play the interaction as you see fit, but understand there are people on EVERY FLOOR. The more you do, the more likely it is that things could go WRONG.
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ROLL at the end of your post.

GYM-CHALLENGE

Laurence Anderson

A CITY BESIEGED

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THE UPPER FLOORS are no different than the lower ones, complimenting a uniform design. the stark differences, however, are the compelling heat and smoke. with both rising in crisis's like these, those on the top floor are in EVEN MORE DANGER than the ones beneath it.
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"help!" a weak pounding of one of the nearby doors alerts the psychic-type to some form of life, followed shortly by the hacking coughs of a different person in another room. with multiple options, and an oppressive heat and smoke, she had little time to act.

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the door takes a few kicks to properly come off its hinges, but with a weakened frame from the flames, laurence eventually breaks through. inside a WOMAN AND HER ROCKRUFF lie still on the floor, unmoving. heightened by his adrenaline, laurence can see clearly the rise and fall of their chests, though it's weak.
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luckily, however, with swampert constantly applying pressure to the flames around him, the flames pose LITTLE THREAT to the trainer and his pokemon.
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that's not to say that the foundation is safe, as little cracks begin to spiderweb their way through the wood and cement.

TASK UPDATE

Splitting up to shoulder the burden together, gardevoir quickly finds the upper floors CONSUMED BY SMOKE AND FLAMES. Life still clings desperately, even up there, as two distinct sources ping to the psychic-type.
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Meanwhile, below, laurence finds at least one unconscious pair, staving off the flames with the work of his water-type. But, the FOUNDATION IS WEAKENING, and pressure mounts on laurence and his pokemon.
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Solve the CRISIS by whatever means comfortable. Role-play the interaction as you see fit, but understand there are people on EVERY FLOOR. The more you do, the more likely it is that things could go WRONG.
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ROLL at the end of your post to affect an outcome.