GOD
He/Him
41
December 25th
Spikemunth
Northeast
Monster
Rocket Beast
I survived because the fire inside me burned brighter than the fire around me.
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Shred
[player]https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/1045738117665144946/1120882171964563496/that_yoinky_sploinky.mp3[/player] 🎼 We Are Not Checkmated - Disco Elysium The fighting continues. Grapploct manages to hold Moltres down, and Iron Jugulis assaults it with a barrage of attacks. At a glance, it's easy to lie to yourself and think that you're winning. Even if your own Pokemon are wounded, dead, or dying, then surely, your teammates should still be enough to pull you across the finish line. It had been a rough battle, especially after it had revived itself, but it finally looked like victory was within reach.
Yet looks could be deceiving, and though you might be thick as shit, you're not going to make the same mistake twice. If Moltres could revive itself in the lava the first time, then what was to stop it from doing so a second time? Or a third? Or a fourth or a fifth and so on and so on? You might be able to claw back a second kill, but there's no way you'll manage a third.
So, that's your role in this - While everyone else gets the glory, you're going to make sure it doesn't get interrupted again. While your Shredettes get the killing blow, you're going to make sure it stays dead. Words cannot describe how much you hate that you have to do this. You're the leading man of the Postmodern Shredettes. After all, the team itself bears your name! Without you, this entire operation would come apart at the seams and fall to pieces. Yet, these dumb bitches are the ones getting to have all the fun, and here you are, doing fucking grunt work.
But if there's one thing you're good at, it's grunt work. So, like any good grunt, it's time to bite your tongue, swallow your pride, and figure out how the fuck you're going to make this work.
So, question: How does one kill an immortal legend?
Trick question; This bird still isn't a legend, because lLegendary Pokemon still don't exist. But no amount of extremely stubborn disbelief is going to warp the coding of this simulation. So...
Question: How do you kill a bird that revives itself in lava, all while in the middle of an active volcano? Your first instinct is to chop it to pieces, or to melt it down, or to similarly damage its body beyond repair. Except, you don't exactly have the resources to pull that off, and even if you did, there's no guarantee that works. Your second instinct is to try and keep the bird grounded, to force the Moltres to have to die on land rather than magma. But again, you're low on solid ground and short on ways to make more, and given how destructive Iron Jugulis is, you can't bank on any existing ground remaining intact. Your third instinct is to get rid of the lava. At this point, you're pretty sure you've run out of good ideas. Just get rid of the lava? How the hell are you supposed to do that with a single Toxtricity?
...Except, it's not just a single Toxtricity.
As soon as the thought occurs to you, you slap your partner by the shoulder and break into a sprint, signalling for it to follow. It's a treacherous path to get where you need to go, and one wrong step would send you tumbling down to a most unpleasant end. More than once, you have to make a jump across the stuff, and every time, you feel your heart skip a beat when your feet leave the ground. By the time you arrive at your destination, you're wrecked. Between the physical strain and the extreme heat, every breath is a struggle.
But you're here now. Next to Slither Wing, the key to your entire "plan", if it can be called that. He might be awake, but he's on death's door, and he's in no state to fight, but unfortunately, he's going to have to. You're just going to have to motivate him, and that's where things are going to get a little murky.
"Toxtricity, Overdrive."
At first, the lizard seems taken aback by the gesture. His eyes narrow, his claws clench into balls, and he seems to turn his head away from you, as though refusing to cooperate. You understand where the reaction is coming from, but your ability to empathise is hindered by the mounting pressure of the situation.
"Look, I don't like it either! But nobody's got a better plan, and none of us want to fucking die, right? This is all we've got, mate. So, c'mon! Overdrive! NOW!"
Reticence gives way to compliance, because at the end of the day, survival will always overrule the moral high ground. Thus, Toxtricity steps forth, pressing its palms into the bleeding flesh of Slither Wing, and pumping its body full of electricity. Boosted by the electric terrain, it proves a most powerful stimulant, and the insect's eyes go wide as its entire body begins to twitch and spasm. You can be sure that if he's ever going to listen to you, it'll be now. So, taking your chance, you settle right in front of the Paradox Pokemon and rest your hands upon either side of its head.
"Sorry, bud. I know this hurts. Trust me, it's rough for the both of us. I promise, I'll make it up to you later, but right now, you gotta hit me with the biggest Earthquake you've got... Please...?"
There's a pregnant pause after the words leave your mouth. Even at the best of times, you've never really been able to properly control him. He's something of a wildcard, an alien anomaly beyond understanding, a loose cannon that you point in the direction of your enemy and hope it fires. This time, however, you're giving a fairly precise command while under heavy duress. It's the longest of long shots. Any longer and it would be impossible.
Yet as you hear a faint rumbling from under your feet, it's clear that it was just barely close enough.
With the last of its strength, Slither Wing opens up massive cracks deep in the volcano, and in that moment, all of the lava within begins to drain out through these gaps. Before long, what was once the lake of fire appears to have dried up, leaving only dregs behind. You're sure the ecological consequences of the move would be disastrous, but you can hardly give a shit about that. All that matters right now is the opening you've just made.
And then, Slither Wing drops down to the ground. You're not sure if it's unconscious or dead, and given the circumstances, you don't think to check. The knowledge that it's a simulation doesn't make your Pokemon's grisly fates any easier to stomach. No, just because this is all an elaborate fiction, that didn't make this any more tolerable. In fact, that might make it all worse.
The inventor of this technology better hope they never encounter you in a dark alley.
You turn around, just barely able to make out what's going on through bleary eyes. You might not be able to participate directly, but at the very least, you'll witness this fight's ending.
Sylvia Cousteau Xenon Antheil
TL;DR - Shred consigns himself to the role of side character, does some jumpy shit over the lava with Toxtricity, electrocutes his own Slither Wing to make it Earthquake the volcano to drain the lava, and generally has a bad but effective time.
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