vadrok's claws sink deeply into the sands and his bulldozing protects her from the worst of the blast. still, debris flies towards her and she lifts her arms. sand richocets off of her scales after tearing small holes in her underarmour. 

this is my worst nightmare, she thinks through a cough and offers up a shaky thumbs up to desiree. 

"i think i see a few pieces in the sand," she says as she crests the crater they've made. her human legs are clumsy on the sand dunes so vadrok slips beneath her, lifting her with an oof. she slides awkwardly into the saddle, chiding him with an affectionate knock of her knuckles on his spine. he preens. 

she checks on the rest of their team, nodding as elise's hare's protective dome begins to fade, though she lingers on where silverio had fallen. lyune's bellow draws her from her list and she follows his narrowed gaze. in the storm, dark shapes lumber towards them. 

the telltale sound of pokeballs unclasping reaches her ears and she knows instantly that these are not friendly.

"lyune," she says and the side of her mouth twitches in a smile. 

the gargantuan dragon draws back his head, neck curling as violet light shimmers up his throat, and with an earth-shaking bellow, white-hot light screeches from his maw in a sweeping, deadly line towards their assailants. 

"focus their pokemon, but the operatives may have weapons themselves. elise, can you cover silverio?"

Elise Calcifet DESIREE BLOOMS silverio delfino

we kill declan walsh jr.

☉