Un-fashionably late

Death to the robot.

He felt his heart nearly stop as the little penguin reached out to the post office's door, his hands clinging to the pavement below him in meaningless attempt to stop it.

"NOOO!" He roared... before the doors swung open.

And revealed a another, bigger penguin.

"... How does that even work?" Who the fuck kept all these penguins?

He didn't get a response— not a proper one, at any rate. What he got instead was a high pressure water-laser, at point blank at that.

For the second time that day, his life flashed before his eyes.

And the sound of popping and crunching filled his ears, dragging a pained hiss out of him as something semi-lodged onto his back managed to pop out and unflatten itself, taking on a semi-spherical shape as it quickly zoomed to hover before him.

Oh, right. Garo!

A barrier popped into place as the blasts of water and ice came towards them.

mAxEpnIG

tl;dr:
-Garo used Protect.

It was madness.

It was akin to a shootout between the police and gangsters, or cowboys and bandits, or a random selection of Christmas shoppers and two penguins. Pumps and Beams and Gleams and Bolts flew, with both sides scrambling to hastily dodge the attacks of the other. There were many casualties. What could be done against such senseless violence...?

Well, Protect. That was perhaps the only bright idea John Sullivan had had all day, and it spared him from the fire both enemy and friendly. He had successfully maintained what little dignity he had left.

Everyone else, though? It was like a warzone. Two Thunderbolts, one from Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki's Nihilego and the other from Elise Calcifet's Mismagius, both launched forth, and forced the Iron Bundles to scramble and dodge. In doing so, their eyes were diverted from the Dazzling Gleam sent forth by Jack Napier's Gardevoir, preventing them from being flashbanged. However, they failed to account for Momo Sakai's Rotom, whose Discharge sent electricity through both of them, a jolt that did not do lasting damage, but certainly left them stunned for a moment.

Likewise, Momo Sakai's Cherrim used Sunny Day in an attempt to change the weather, which worked for a few seconds, before the weather abruptly changed back to snow. Clearly, she wasn't the only one with a vested interest in the weather. Somewhere, there was an Abomasnow working very hard to maintain the festive atmosphere, and he'd be damned if he let it slip.

The two Iron Bundle's had been split up, but they were still united in purpose. As the smaller Iron Bundle's beak began to whir and widen, the larger would provide a Helping Hand, empowering his ally. Thus, a powerful Beak Blast would be unleashed, like a tank shell being launched right into the centre of the party!

---

The next deadline is for 8PM GMT, 10th December 2023.
Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki Elise Calcifet Jack Napier Momo Sakai John Sullivan

Un-fashionably late

Death to the robot.

Everything was going to hell.

"No, what is it with today?" He shouted as he palmed his Orbeetle's back, his scales spreading over the still injured bug. '

As its carapace popped and healed into place, the Orbeetle's eyes gleamed, before entrapping itself into a semi-transparent cube made of sheer psychic energy.

It glimmered magenta as it solidified, before suddenly spreading outwards to envelop a large area around them. Checkered patterns spread all over its semi-transparent surface as it grew, enveloping both the robots and the party of foolish humans trying to ruin christmas.

Trick Room was in place— So Doug grabbed his bug, and zoomed out of the blast's past while screaming at the top of his lungs.

"No, really, what the hell is up with today!!!?"

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tl;dr:
-Garo used Trick Room.

The Beak Blast was launched forth, and there was a rush to defend against the highly destructive attack. Some chose to hunker down, like Elise Calcifet and her Ampharos, using Protect to try and soften the blow. Meanwhile, others counter-attacked, strike back with the offending Iron Bundle. In short succession, Momo Sakai's Rotom, Elise Calcifet's Mismagius, and Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki's Nihilego fire off a Shadow Ball, a Thunderbolt, and a Power Gem all in quick succession. This time, however, the Iron Bundle is still reeling from the recoil of its own attack, and left utterly unable to dodge. First, the Shadow Balls hit it, sending it stumbling back. Then, the Thunderbolt zaps it, leaving it to momentarily malfunction. Finally, the Power Gem punches a hole right through the Iron Bundle's Bundle, causing what little remains in its bundle to slide out.

With a beep and a boop and a prolongated groan of pain, the smaller of the two Paradox Pokemon finally collapses in a heap, its blue eyes darkening as it shuts down. Before long, it is still little more than a still shell of its former self. The cause of this chaos is no more.

Ironic. He wanted to save Christmas, yet he could not even save himself.

Not that he's dead, mind, simply powered down. Besides, his parting gift is still flying free, as the Beak Blast continues to surge forth. Here, Jack Napier's Lucario steps forth, Countering the projectile. While it cannot fully stop it, it can redirect it, sending it high into the air before it falls down... Right atop the fleeing John Sullivan.

BOOM! The explosion sends the misfortunate man and his Pokemon flying into the distance. It seems he finally got his wish - He'll be troubled by the penguins no more. Well, no more after he hits the ground, anyway.

But though they had taken down one opponent, there was still one more they had to face. Fuelled by a desire for vengeance, the remaining Iron Bundle turned towards its foes, and though it was not programmed for hate, one could certainly feel it radiating from the machine. Reaching down, it plucks one last gift from the burst sack of its fallen peer - A Magnet Bomb, and one that seemed particularly potent, too. With a single tap, it armed the grenade and tossed it forth towards the assailants, before letting loose another burst of suppressing fire with a Hydro Pump!

---

The next deadline for this raid is 8PM GMT, 14TH DECEMBER 2023.
Hyakkaryōran Tsubaki Elise Calcifet Momo Sakai Jack Napier
John Sullivan has missed two rounds, and been kicked from the event.