“Okay, okay, stop!”

Knight wasted no time and descended, the large shipment of supplies making an indentation into the ground. June pinched the bridge of her nose and waved Annalise towards her. “Let me see the map again.”

They’d been on track toward a research outpost for the last twenty minutes, yet they were still wandering the giant chasm without so much as a glance at the structure. Something had to be going wrong here, and Annalise wouldn’t shut up about it. Best to settle this before it got on her nerves.

Or Knights. The bird eyed them both bitterly as June took the map from the ranger’s hands and unfurled it. “Alright, so, that tree was there… and we did pass that fork, with the big rock. Over the ridge, down the side… Annalise, are you sure this thing is accurate?”

She led them perfectly down the described path, and yet they still weren’t there. Hell, instincts told the delivery girl that they should’ve been on the way back to Mauville by now. No matter how many times she looked at the rough sketch of the location, though, there was a lack of click between reality and expectations.

“We should be here,” she pointed toward the right side, then dragged her finger to the clear opposite side, “but we’re… here? Somehow? And that stream up ahead is sure as shit not on here. I think the rangers need to hire some decent fucking cartographers.”

Cartographer? When the fuck did that get into her vocab?

---

annalise henderson howard slayte Shred

 iXdHA3F1

This place is paradise.

It's an untouched expanse of untamed nature as far as the eye can see. There is no civilisation here, no concrete paving over green fields, no skyscrapers trespassing in blue skies. Had the Great Chasm always existed like this, laying dormant beneath the glacial plain above? Or had it been transformed by the influence of the Tera Crystals below? You can't quite say. Either way, you're grateful.

You can only hope it stays this beautiful for a long, long time. In that sense, your enemy is the same as always.

"So, the League is near, are they?" You murmur, the disdain in your voice evident. Why are you not surprised? No doubt they're already planning to domesticate this place, to fill it with factories and universities and office buildings until not a scrap of grass remains. "If we let them run loose now, they'll cause no end of problems later. Let's hunt them down, beat them bloody, send them packing with a warning for their bosses. And if we can snag their maps in the process? I say that's all the better."

With that, you begin to follow in the direction of the footsteps, signalling for Howard to follow. Sure, you aren't on the exact same wavelength, but des that really matter? In the end, you both came to the same conclusion, and that's all that matters.

---

howard slayte june sleigh annalise henderson
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If the rangers had wanted a decent cartographer, they would've hired Howard. It was truly a shame that he was already employed.

"Alright." Howard sighed, clearly reluctant to jump these prospective targets. He did loathe the battlefield, but Shred was a Rocket Beast and he needed to be let off his leash every now and then, lest he start chewing through his collar.

Once torn through, it was very difficult to keep Shred Zeppelin on a leash.

Besides, Rocket's push into Area Zero meant that Shred needed to be seen in action, lest the grunts start to talk. Once grunts started whispering, it was best to crush any rumors before they could catch on and become the accepted turn of events. Before they could become truth, they had to be corrected.

Shred Zeppelin would show himself on the battlefield, for the sake of morale.

"I'll stay here and try to get them from behind. They should be over that next ridge. You want a teleport?" Crumble appeared from his Pokeball and stared at Shred. Admittedly, he stared at everything with his several eyes, but that was besides the point. "Sound like a plan?"

They followed the footsteps over the ridge, and Howard silently groaned. Two people? Not ideal. Howard didn't like even fights, because he wasn't an even fighter. He was an active detriment to whatever side he was on.

Though one of them looked familiar...

---

Shred annalise henderson june sleigh
9WOVpMId

June’s face grew Talonflame red. She shoved the map back into the ranger’s hands and rubbed the back of her head. “Yea, I knew that! Totally. Just. Testing you. Making sure you know where we’re going.”

“Anyway,” she backed off and pointed back to Knight, “sounds like we know where to go now! So! C’mon, get back in the air. We’re almost there.”

“Squaw……..” The bird’s eyes flashed. Bathed in purple, psychic energy, they looked into the distance, somewhere very far away. June rolled her own eyes and walked up to the bird. She then proceeded to kick the pallet it sat on. He didn’t budge an inch.

“Listen, we’re literally almost there, promise! We just need to get across that stream, and then it's a hop, skip, and a jump away,” she bit her tongue. “And I mean it this time.”

Slowly, the large bird came back to reality and the illustrious hue died from his vision. He looked wildly around, on the prowl for some invisible entity. June looked around as well, but didn’t see a single thing. Great, she’d driven the bird insane. Perfect. Just what she needed right now. To argue with a Corviknight right in front of her boss.

“Knight–”

“CORV, CORV, CORV!” He flapped his heavy wings and scattered the leaves off the trees. His head spun around and round like a top, and he moved away from their precious cargo. She bolted out of his warpath, which traveled directly behind them.

Was something over there? June pulled a massive knife from her belt, a gift from Grigori. Razor sharp and dangerous to the touch. It reminded her of the future that was never meant to be. Her left-hand middle finger twitched, “Annalise, I think we might have company. No idea what.”

---

howard slayte Shred annalise henderson

e8UVWKIC

"That'd be nice." You nod in agreement, plucking a Pokeball from your belt. This won't be much of a fight, so you might as well take the chance to debut a new face. You like this one, too. You really think he's got it. "On the count of three, send us in."

With the plan established, you turn your attention towards your unfortunate victims-to-be. At this distance, you can tell there's two of them, and they seem to be riding some kind of bird. Other than that, though, it's too blurry to make out any precise details. Still, that's all you need to know. Two versus two, Team Rocket elites against some poor League schmucks, and you've got the element of surprise on your side? Fucking hell, you almost feel bad for them. Almost.

"One... Two... Three!"

And in the blink of an eye, you're teleported forth, mere metres away from your prey. As soon as you feel the Teleport wash over you, you trigger the release on your Pokeball, and in a flash of red, your Centiskorch bursts forth, its elongated body already rushing out to encircle the pair. Of course, this elaborate ambush would mean nothing if the Corviknight just flew away. Unfortunately for them, it won't get the chance.

"Fire Spin!"

"YOU'RE GOING NOWHERE!"

Flames whip out from the many segments of Centiskorch's body, burning ribbons that reach out and wrap around the surrounding area. Before long, the bird finds itself trapped, with nowhere to go that isn't blocked by a barrier of flickering flame. It's a near-perfect snare, especially against a Steel type. Not that you were planning for that, but hey, you're due for a little luck, aren't you? And now, you've got these two poor sods right where you...

...You...

"...YOU."[googlefont=Rubik Burned]

---

howard slayte june sleigh annalise henderson
wGafPUte

One. Two. Three.

Showtime.

Shred teleported away using Crumble, before warping back to Howard's side. The admin saw his colleague in the distance, and immediately moved into action with the grace of a stumbling dancer. Where Shred was deft and mighty, Howard was willowy and easily broken. Nonetheless, his Pokémon would pick up the slack.

The doll by his side was a leal ally. Once a Pokémon used for navigating ruins was now a weapon of war.

As Centiskorch lights up the sky like a firework, that's when he moves. Claydol's eyes blink in an alien pattern, comparable to the various golems that once protected Hoenn.

"Fire."

It's the same war he uttered to start the battle with PENELOPE LIVY and illeana reyes on the surface, when he and Shred chose to wage war against a god. This time, it would end differently. These two stragglers were not on that level. Howard and Shred would win, because they did not make the same mistake twice.

As Ceruledge erupts from its Phantom Force, Claydol intercepts with its Earth Power. All the while, Howard himself closed the distance from behind. He wasn't as strong as several of the others, but with the armor he wore...

Howard stopped.

"No." His voice was a static squawk, tinged with fear. He recognized the blond girl from the Silent Icelands, but the other...

Fate was cruel, indeed.

---

Shred june sleigh annalise henderson
XTDLwuxT

The Corviknight screeched as flames erupted from seemingly nowhere. Retreat was no longer an option, as the open sky adopted a hellish appearance. Yet even as the flames kissed his feathers and singed them blacker than normal, he wouldn’t give in to despair.

Powerful flaps sent it forward, straight for the attacker. His head came back and rushed for to deliver a powerful Drill Peck into the bug’s exoskeleton.

June had other problems to contend with, unable to shake free of Annalise’s death grip. Even if she fought back, she knew that it was for the best. Howard’s words still clung to the recesses of her mind, even as they literally attacked her. What the fuck was she supposed to do?! She couldn’t run, but she couldn’t fight back without terrible consequences.

If she came out of this chasm alive, she was going to break into a museum and trash all their stupid fucking artifacts.

“Annalise, we need to… need to…” her brain struggled to come up with any course of action. This wasn’t anything like the power plant. This was like the island, but with a few new rules in place. Action wasn’t possible. This wasn’t possible. She was once again powerless. Frustration bubbled in her throat, “Gah, fuck this!”

Fuck it. Howard wasn’t here, and she wasn’t about to die like a fucking dog. These fuckers couldn’t put a name to any face anyway. As long as they couldn’t identify her, then she’d be fine. Self-defense was legal, and she wasn’t really doing this for the League. The Rangers weren’t, like, technically the league anyway right? The politics were way above her pay grade.

As she piled on reasons and excuses, June finally yanked herself out of Annalise’s vice and burst forward. Past the floating embers, around the bright-red centipede, and straight for the Rocket covered head to toe in bandages. He'd look just like the Centiskorch, segmented and crimson, if she was given the chance.

“Why can’t you all just leave me the fuck alone!” The silver knife lunged forward, right toward the Rocket’s gut.

---

Shred howard slayte annalise henderson

ikV9Rd0x

The shock of your unexpected reunion fades, but even as the seconds tick on, your rage continues to burn bright. annalise henderson. One of the interlopers who dared to stand in the way of your truth. Though she was not the one who killed you, she nevertheless stood and watched as you died. She's just as guilty as the rest of them. And now, without the shield of divinity, beyond the sanctuary of the League?

You'll make her pay.

Ceruledges slices at Centiskorch, forcing it to dodge back, yet that in turn leaves it vulnerable to a Drill Peck from the Corviknight. An iron beak burrows deep into the insect's body. However, it won't get away with its attack unharmed.

The fire within Centiskorch's body sudden flares up, its exoskeleton so hot that the air around it seems to warp from the warmth. Then, at point blank, he delivers a Burn Out to the crow head-on. In a single instant, all of the heat stored within the bug's body is released in a blazing inferno, which is unleashed directly into the bird's metal body.

But at the end of the day, that little skirmish doesn't matter. Not in the grand scheme of things. That overzealous taxi is little more than an obstacle in the path to your vengeance. The same can be said about the girl in front of you, rushing towards you with knife in hand. It's shit luck for her, isn't it? To be suddenly ambushed, dragged into this grudge match, and forced to fight foes above her caliber? You almost feel bad for her. Almost.

"GET THE FUCK..."

You'll make this quick: With a brisk sidestep, you effortlessly avoid the pathetic attempt at gutting you. Then, you clench your fist, and swing at her head as hard as you can.

"...OUT OF MY WAY."

---

howard slayte june sleigh annalise henderson
ORtvyTP3

The illusions of a great battle came crashing down. What was supposed to be a simple skirmish between League and Rocket had quickly fallen apart. Now, it was a wrestling match.

Was this what he and Shred were? Thugs? Attacking women from behind and with little warning, out of fear of retaliation? June. Why was she here? She had packages to deliver, grudges to nurse over, another region to be in. She should've been in Sinnoh, Unova, Kalo, or some other region by now.

Why was she here?

"Stop! The fight's done! We can't do this! Beast Z-" Howard's cry was cut off by a large rumbling quake. The earth tremored and groaned as cracks spread across the chasm like latticework. He was used to tremors. As the land quaked, Howard ran towards the fight and blocked Shred's strike.

Despite the alloyed protection, Howard's hand blossomed with pain. Even if Shred was a waste, he was fueled by rage. Rage that wound blind him. Rage that would kill her.

"Fight the blondie! She's who you want!" He shouted as Claydol was struck from above by the Phantom Force. With an ancient whine, the doll responded by trying to slam its body into the Ceruledge, whirling like a Dragon Hammer.

Shred could do whatever he wished with Annalise. She meant nothing to him. If anything happened to June, Grigori would have his head.

"You..." Howard spat at the delivery woman as he attempted to kick her away from the rest of the fight. "...shouldn't be here!"

---

Shred june sleigh annalise henderson
Blocking Shred's attack, kicking June away
Retaliating against Ceruledge with Dragon Hammer
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The direct fiery blast was simply too much for Knight to bear. With one last cry of agony, the metal bird ceased flapping his wings and fell to the ground. He was covered in scorches and burn marks, just like the foe that June had charged.

But this one actually knew what to do in a fight. The only reason she didn’t eat shit was because his ally stepped in to take the blow, a large, metal man donned in full armor. It felt… familiar, but it didn’t look exactly like Howard’s had on the mysterious island. And Howard clung to the past like his life depended on it.

As the earth rumbled on without a care in the world, she did not eat a surely nasty blow to the head, but a strong kick to the ribs. All the breath was forced from her lungs as she fell to the unsteady ground. Even if she wanted to respond, the air necessary was just not there. She was forced to hold her tongue.

But she sure did give him an awful glare, face full of fiery fury. One poke ball called back the Corviknight that twitched, and another released a beast onto the field. If she couldn’t fight herself, she’d compensate with something that’d surely fuck them both to kingdom come.

“I have… every right!” June chucked the Pokémon at the armored menace, and it bounced off his armor with a solid clink. It fell to the wayside, popped open, and–

A dark presence entered the battlefield. Cathode the Galvantula twitched her legs and mandibles in weird, uncontrolled ways as she cried out. Dark-tinted static energy built up in her abdomen before being violently discharged in the form of a Shadow Bolt. It arced straight for the Centiskorch in retribution.

“I’m not gonna let you stupid rocket fucks push me around!”

---

howard slayte Shred annalise henderson
TOTAL: 701
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