MARCH UPDATE

POSTED ON Oct 18, 2018 12:17:07 GMT

react: it's all he can do, it's all he has been doing since the start of the ambush. control is fought for but the scale never tilts in his favor because his arrogance won't allow it. like roots in the ground that stretch on for far too long, his arrogance refuses to let him gain the edge. as long as he remains planted in his spot, the battle will never be in favor.

which is why he finally moves. armaldo follows.

riolu's ripped hand is the consequence that befalls for daring to oppose sootopolis' gym leader. for daring to oppose a once-rocket beast. that side of him remains dormant but with each attack, each near-death calls, it slowly rises, bubbling towards the surface ready to explode.

like nikolai, escavalier is familiar with pain. each attack is a cry for him to surrender, to succumb to the excruciating pain. but like his trainer, he's just as stubborn. FORCE PALM, HYDRO PUMP, FUTURE SIGHT; all the attacks are taken at full force but he remains standing, unwilling and unsatisfied. there's rage in escavalier's eyes when he shoots forward to stab slowking right in its exposed head with a well-timed REVERSAL. blastoise might have a shell as thick as fernando's head but it can't stop a boosted X-SCISSOR that's aimed at the fleshy fat that is blastoise's legs. in the face of two opponents, escavalier refuses to back down.

GUILLOTINE misses, but bisharp had expected it to. the steel-type can't fight a long-rage battle and the sceptile is helping him in that regard: closing the distance for its X-SCISSOR and LEAF BLADE. a preemptive IRON DEFENSE renders the attacks useless: leaves simply bounce off the thick surface of bisharp's skin. sceptile might have been able to slice shiftry, but bisharp is no twig. his IRON HEAD slams into the body of the sceptile, taking it to the ground and with one foot over it, bisharp looks to end it with a precise GUILLOTINE.

nikolai won't fall for the bait.

click.

armaldo's CRUSH CLAW slashes at the ground, causing large chunk of rocks to fly towards blastoise and the man hiding behind it for multiple ROCK BLASTS. but this is a cover, a distraction for a well-timed X-SCISSOR to blastoise's other leg.

nikolai starts moving backwards, slowly.

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POSTED ON Oct 18, 2018 15:29:08 GMT

RETREAT

so he finally pushes forward. it's about damn time. fernando's itching in anticipation, ready to enact the second phase of his battle plan.

escavalier is nothing less than a menace. no matter how much they whittle it down, it will not fall. but, that too, is well within calculations. in a battle of attrition, the numbers advantage will prove too much to surmount. the various health pools between them will strangle the pokemon's waning vitality. it's only a matter of time. and, at this pace, having to contend with so many different targets is slowly taking its toll. switching targets, reacting to attacks, they're all additional factors that add a buffer between escavalier's actions. the window to react expands. it only gets harder from here.

REVERSAL comes through and slowking cannot avoid it in time. the only defense maneuver bow, parrying the strike with the helm of its crown. part of the stone shell crumbles but it provides a solid substitute for the slowking's flesh. blastoise is no different. the only difference is that it surges forward, providing the physical husk that creates distance between the two and the rest of fernando's team. with a solid push off the ground, blastoise rescinds into its shell, rotating into a clockwise RAPID SPIN, purposed to launch the escavalier backwards. anything to create a much needed distance. armaldo's sudden charge to battle places it perfectly on path to being bulldoze by the bowling ball blastoise.

relying on a single source to provide an undecided outcome is poor practice. it forces fernando to act. anything to leverage as much control of the circumstance as he can influence. that's why he runs. each step bringing him further from the battlefield. closer into the sanctuary of the cavern's shadows. here, he finds a better vantage point to observe the chaos unfold. a pair of balls populate both hands. fernando waits. ready to act.

any moment now.

eyes draw to sceptile's situation and it doesn't look good. terrible, in fact. neither of its attacks provide anything of substance. instead, the backlash of X-SCISSOR's recoil provides an opening that bisharp would be moronic to pass up.the following successions of attack leaves it pinned, an opportune condition for it to end it right there. try as it might, sceptile cannot struggle for long. both hands come up in defiance, trying to MEGA DRAIN the strength out of bisharp's GUILLOTINE. the blades meet flesh and sceptile is losing the tug of war, slowly allowing the blade to cut clean through its hands. it almost slices through its
claw entirely, threatening to bring down and end to sceptile's neck.

the momentary dizziness that comes from the impact of slowking's cranium against escavalier's spear starts to wear off. just in time for the pokemon to catch sight of its comrade in peril. since blastoise seems adequate on its own, slowking diverts its attention to more pressing matters. the power struggle between bisharp's beheading prove the opportune minute to nail it with a well place HYDRO PUMP. fernando keeps an eye on the attack, ready to recall the sceptile should it miss. the blood that spills from it's lacerated palms drips all over the sceptile's face. it pushes back desperate, unwilling to give into an untimely death.

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POSTED ON Oct 19, 2018 3:04:31 GMT

the scale starts to tilt.

escavalier's successful attack is short-lived as blastoise's RAPID SPIN pushes him away before he can deliver the final blow to slowking. the damage is minimal; he catches himself in the air, barely impacting against the ground when he lands. the mistake comes from the RAPID SPIN that, while successful in creating distance, leaves a wide gap in their defenses, one that's susceptible to being exploited.

armaldo sees it: the small opening of a window. ROCK BLAST looks to slow the spinning blastoise down just enough for him to prepare multiple HARDENS, and when the water-type nears, armaldo turns his back to it and takes the brunt of the impact, meeting it head-on and holding it in place. his feet digs into the ground under the high pressure, but for now, he holds. he paves the way and creates a bigger opening for escavalier to strike.

and strike he does. blastoise's mistake leaves slowking vulnerable. while distracted by the HYDRO PUMP, escavalier charges with immense speed, leading with his IRON HEAD that cuts through the air and any obstacles in the way. the impact collides against the body of the slowking, slamming it into the ground only for escavalier to ram his lance into slowking's chest, right into its heart for a REVERSAL. the rage in his eyes never fades.

slowking is as useless as the HYDRO PUMP it attempts. bisharp is more than aware of his surroundings and gives up control over the sceptile in order to dodge the heavy stream of water. he anticipates the red beam of light that comes from the cuck's pokeball and moves to intercept it. the red light bounces off his steely ass, leaving sceptile defenseless against bisharp's GUILLOTINE.

ASSURANCE makes sure of it.

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POSTED ON Oct 19, 2018 4:42:28 GMT

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TRANSITION

sacrifices must be made. pawns die so that the bishops can make their move. this is no different.

what they sacrifice is not the life of their comrades but rather their positions and with it the element of surprise. the moment blastoise leaves slowking to its own devices, the attention of the others also divert to the otherwise stationary pokemon. burdened by the crown that acts as a conduit for its psychic powers, slowking is deprived of the same mobility afforded to the others. it has to rely on the PSYCHIC powers of the others to make it out alive.

the battle between brawn versus brain is one that sides with however can close the gap. escavalier may try to utilize this advantage but will find itself BLOCKED off. the reverberance of steel on steel denotes the bronzong's entrance into the sunlight, gleaming with the glow of the sun as it PROTECTS its brother in arms. the perpetual, undisturbed usage of FUTURE SIGHT allows the pokemon to time its entrance impeccably, punctual to what would otherwise would be a tragic ending.

armaldo can only hold onto blastoise for oh so long. once the pressure resides, once it bucks, providing a cushion for the impact that comes, it's time for the scales to shift. up close and personal, there's no escape from the attack that follows. the fact that armaldo's back is exposed makes it harder to respond to even more so when blastoise's hands spring out hold it in place. from its spot, fixed onto armaldo's back, blastoise can let loose a full powered HYDRO CANON. the might of the blast is enough to disintegrate the hardest stone, turning it into fine dust that's left to be washed away.

a slight of acrobatics make the bisharp a nuisance. not impossible but certainly annoying. watching it contort in a way that prevents fernando from recalling the sceptile forces him to change his plan. if he cannot recall revoke the injured then he'll bring forth the healthy.

one.

two.

three.

four.

they're a whole series, a squadron that's released onto the floor and primed for battle. the only foresight nikolai will have is in the SNOW WARNING that brings forth the HAIL. things are about to get a lot colder before they get better.

the slightest ease up on sceptile allows it to break free. just because fernando expects the pokemon to return doesn't mean that they share the same sentiments. nothing is certain until the action is completed. being recalled is no different. which leaves the sceptile to fend for itself. it doesn't take much to DETECT the second attempt at GUILLOTINE. it's so obvious that sceptile almost predicts it entirely. however, knowing, and subsequently avoiding it is not enough. the pokemon needs to create distance and flees with a spurt of AGILITY. there's no need to parry, just run. what the bisharp had done to its hands has little effect on its run speed. so long as sceptile's faster than its pursuer, it'll be in the clear.

but why leave that up to discussion? in an exchange of speed, perhaps it can be argued that one is faster than the other. when suppressive fire is added in, the discussion becomes moot. the combined firing squad of abomasnow, glalie, and aurorus gun the bisharp down in a rain of ICE SHARD and ICE BEAM. the glaceon provides a HELPING HAND, bolstering the ferocity of their attacks while reinforcing their defense with a transparent BARRIER.

once the distance is set there's no need to hold back. sceptile is returned and the field settles in. the combined BLIZZARD of three cascades the field in a bone chilling freeze. the leftover dampness of various water attacks aspirate the area of its heat. every drop becomes a hazard, especially whatever lingers on escavalier's armor. instantaneously, it erupts, threatening to split the steel pokemon's armor like chapped skin.

what goes unseen amidst the blanket of white is the glalie that charges forward. the further the better. it needs to set a point to rally against.

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POSTED ON Oct 19, 2018 5:42:15 GMT

strength in numbers. escavalier's rage grows exponentially when his REVERSAL is parried by an invisible shield, a PROTECT that emerges when bronzong does. he finds himself BLOCKED off, unable to flee like it was ever an option. the PROTECT might keep slowking safe but it leaves bronzong in a precarious spot, prone to the unforgiving REVERSAL. the tip of his lance drives into the red of its eye; quick with his movements, escavalier swivels and shifts so their positions are reversed which allows him to stab his lance into slowking for a REVERSAL. no more PROTECTS can save the fat pig.

blastoise is a nuisance but it is easy to counter. its short arms latch on to armaldo's back but that's where their height differences come into play. the thick of blastoise's cannons can't reach and extend far enough when armaldo's CRUSH CLAW digs into the ground only to lunge him backwards into blastoise's body, avoiding the full force of the HYDRO CANNON that blasts into the ground. nikolai has to sidestep to avoid it. blastoise's attack is taxing and costly as it allows armaldo to slash his CRUSH CLAWS repeatedly into the flesh that is blastoise's neck, looking to behead the water-type turtle.

sceptile escapes; there's no helping that. what also can't be helped is the SNOW WARNING that foreshadows a greater threat. or threats. nikolai knows what's coming and there's nothing he can do to stop it.

a BLIZZARD encapsulates the battlefield.

the small amount of water still clinging on to escavalier freezes and cracks away at his shell. bisharp's left stranded on his own and has to take the ungodly assault of ICE BEAM and ICE SHARD. he's more than quick enough to dodge the first but the ICE SHARDS are trickier. thankfully, his IRON DEFENSE holds up and every shard shatters upon impact, barely doing any damage even with glaceon's HELPING HAND. he doesn't move back, instead, he moves towards the trio.

bisharp won't back down, not even against three.

his IRON HEAD strengthens his defenses, bracing him against the thick of the cold as he rams it into aurorus' giant leg. a swift NIGHT SLASH is sent to the glaceon before he rams his IRON HEAD into abmasnow's gut, rendering it immobile even if only for a few seconds.

no more.

the battle must end.

pushed to the very brink, he won't be victim to this onslaught any longer. nidoking and nidoqueen enter the fray.

"target."

both their RIVALRIES are in effect. nidoking's FOCUS ENERGY and nidoqueen's SUPERPOWER makes their attacks that much more deadly. if they can't change the weather then they'll embrace it.

they will overpower it.

their combined EARTH POWERS shakes the foundation they stand on, sending tremors echoing across. the ground snaps open, ripping into various pieces as it crushes the trio ice-types. what isn't crushed is only impaled by the sharp edges of stone the EARTH POWER creates.

their strength is unmatched.

their ferocity is unrivaled.

the scale further tilts.

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POSTED ON Oct 19, 2018 8:09:38 GMT

ABSOLUTE

a sonic boom sounds in the distance. his work in sootopolis is long done. that means only one thing. reinforcements.

the escavalier has gone unchecked for too long. now that glalie is out on the field, it's time to put the pokemon in check. all that time waiting in plain sight, CAMOUFLAGED, ignored, allows it to find the perfect position from the pokemon's shadow. a signature SHADOW SNEAK allows it to give it a tongue lashing, becoming the bondage that BINDS the pokemon in a cross knot. its arm and armor may prove impenetrable but its flexibility is bound by the structure of its joints. the restriction in its range of motion doesn't allow it to move as freely as it'd like. bronzong can stomach the blow but kecleon's interference stops it from trading places. slowking's PSYCHIC fortifies their hold, DISABLE consolidates keeping it in place.

blastoise is a nuisance because it won't go down. the shell is adamantine but that doesn't mean the flesh is brittle. with time, the armaldo will erode at the pokemon's flesh but without a honed blade a clean cut is impossible. by the time the attack starts to make its mark, the pokemon has already retreated to the asylum of its shell. the rumbling inside tells that something brews inside.

HAIL continues to fall. the temperature is well below freezing. the change in the environment sets the stage perfectly for the next phase. this is no BLIZZARD. this is a tundra, altered by the force of not one but three. power in numbers and with it comes an amplification of their efforts.

moving forward proves a fatal mistake. they just don't realize it yet. with nothing sent to impede the glalie's advance, there's no stopping what's to come. if only he knew.

the IRON HEAD breaks aurorus' bones but renders bisharp useless. the moment it makes contact the bisharp will feel its muscles snap, paralyzed by the THUNDER WAVE that radiates from the aurorus' flesh. in exchange for aurorus, the glaceon and more importantly, abmasnow, are safe. this allows glaceon's BLIZZARD to continue uncontested. abomasnow is different, setting up for the finale by INGRAINING itself into the ground. thick roots seep into the earth and settle into the foundation. there's no uprooting it from what comes next.

the nido's come out and fernando finally has to commandeer the situation. "special defense!" an EARTHQUAKE right now will prove fatal to his plans. that's why he locks it away with bronzong's IMPRISON. that only leaves a few earth based moves that transcend the effective range of just physical strikes. EARTH POWER falls within his calculations and a LIGHT SCREEN is put up. the MIRROR COAT that comes from glaceon causes a temporary pause to its BLIZZARD, causing the aurorus to pick up where the glaceon leaves off. the EARTH POWER slaps them around a bit but the LIGHT SCREEN filters through most of it. the same cannot be said for the source of the attack. a mystical force causes the attack to redirect, skewering them on great spires that make their attack look pathetic in retrospect.

"start it!"

another command and the FUTURE SIGHT comes in. this time they're targeted at what fernando's considers nikolai's most entrusted pokemon. they're the same ones he used to lay siege in silph. this time they'll fall. the PSYCHIC that comes thereafter is set not to pick them up but to attack their mind, to crush the small peanut that nidoking calls a brain. it's against league regulations but who gives a shit. reducing it to a vegetable spares it the pain of what's to come.

"absolute."

fernando tosses riolu's pokeball back into the fray. it's aimed this time, squarely into the air and ejects the pokemon up into an arc. it goes straight up, above them all, soaring into the sky. the hole in its paw is still pronounced but it knows its job. it might be the last time it sees the sun but riolu's too afraid to turn back. it doesn't matter. it's too late. there's no turning out the moment fernando pitched his ball.

"zero."

it's a whisper in the wind. silent as the GRASS WHISTLE that seeps into the howls of the BLIZZARD. the sound of battle dies when a fissure of sound erupts from the space of their battle. the pieces are in place and triangular formation is set. riolu's up in the air, able to serve as a temporary source with COPY CAT, abomasnow is INGRAINED closest to fernando, setting the boundary of where to stop, but it is glalie, who stands near nikolai, unchallenged, that serves as the epicenter.

it all comes at once.

it's instant.

nothingness. the entirety of the area between the three pokemon becomes solid ice. the impact of their influence creates a vacuum that nulls whatever heat that isn't snuffed by the earlier BLIZZARD. even the hail stops. not because abomasnow can't but because each there's nothing left to freeze.

moisture?

none.

temperature?

gone.

even the very air they breathe becomes a weapon against them, transitioning into a solid form and entombing anyone caught in the SHEER COLD.

not one instance. not even three. when the points convene, the impact of the inverse flux in temperature creates a nova that freezes time for everything caught. they're all on ice. even fernando's pokemon are not spared.

ice moves are ineffective against steel types.

yes, because they have a solid foundation that ignores the impact of frozen projectile. unlike rock, they cannot be cracked by the stress that comes from ice expanding within its many pores. so, why do they fall now?

because SHEER COLD transcends an ice type move. it is the be all that ends all.

and fernando dares to intertwine them into something else? something greater?

what allows the move to annihilate is that it doesn't rely on the physical aspect of it. the power comes from the absence of heat. energy cannot move and therefore the body cannot either. not just muscle, but organs, blood, the basic bodily functions that require movement to ensure survival. hypothermia is due to set in and what few heart beats they have left are brought to a stop.

fernando stares at the ice sculpture before him. they loom into infinite, reaching out for the sun. it's towering. intimidating. how fitting that the entire arena turns into NEVER-MELT ICE.

it leaves him shivering, bound to succumb from the same condition should he stay exposed to it.

something about it doesn't let him tear away, as if staring into a physical manifesting of his tumultuous heart.

he hopes it breaks.

ZERO

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POSTED ON Oct 19, 2018 12:01:10 GMT

the scale fucking freezes.

there's no point describing the battle because it doesn't matter, not when the whole vicinity is encapsulated by a sudden SHEER COLD. the sole survivors that narrowly avoid being frozen in ice are the abomasnow and its trainer, though as the temperature continues to drop it's unclear how long either of them will last.

thawing free is one thing. surviving the cold is another.

the feeling is indescribable. numb doesn't do it enough justice because in truth, he feels nothing. it's as if time stopped for him in that moment and while he's on the edge of the ice sculpture, it does little in the grand scheme of things because he can't react. he can't thaw himself free. there's nothing he can do but to be at the mercy of his opponent's reckoning.

the bell tolls for his past crimes and finally, after all these years, someone has come to collect.

for moments, everything is silent.

the battle looks to be over.

but, complacency is a bitch.

there's no sound, no sight or any indication of what's to come. the bell might toll but it's not only for nikolai. there are more than one evil in the cavern below, and the law of the universe states that light cannot exist without darkness. the same can be said about darkness: it cannot exist without light. there needs to be a balance.

balance comes in the form of a silent ROCK SLIDE.

rocks fall simultaneously, raining down from the heavens with no indication, no signal of what's to come. at least not until it's too late. the first barrage of ROCK SLIDE falls atop the unfrozen abomasnow, crushing it like a bug. the second set falls a mere second later, looking to topple over and crush the trainer that stands there so confident, so cocky.

but it's not enough. darkness has yet to be fully challenged.

the ROCK SLIDES, while intending to kill, also serve as a distraction, a cover for what's truly behind it, hidden from sight:

an aerodactyl.

the dinosaur's IRON HEAD ignores the outcome of the ROCK SLIDES and targets only one man, regardless of what he might do. AGILITY and HEAT WAVE counteract the slowness the cold inflicts. ROCK HEAD further aids his IRON HEAD. nothing can stop him. his wings are tucked into his body and they only spread again at the very last second, mere feet away from the ground. his IRON HEAD will finish off what the ROCK SLIDE can't:

maiming the enemy.

wings spread in an instant and a loud roar shrieks across the battlefield, echoing with violent ring as aerodactyl soars across the low ground. the outcome of his onslaught doesn't matter, not now, so he doesn't even spare a glance back to look. instead, he allows the entirety of his body to heat up: molecules shift and bounce, faster and stronger, until steam starts to rise off his bare skin.

by the time aerodactyl lands, his body's counteracted the cold that's present in the cavern. he shakes his body, flaps his wings, as if preparing himself for a task that requires too much of him but he knows it's something he has to do. standing close to nikolai, he allows his body to ignite in flames.

HEAT WAVE spawns.

sizzling in nature, the piercing hot heat travels across the cold and slowly melts away at the ice that cocoons his trainer. with nothing to stop aerodactyl, the heat starts melting away, bit by bit, ever so slowly but it's reaching nikolai, and freeing him is the only thing that matters, even if aerodactyl has to give his life for it.

the bell tolls but nikolai has nothing left to give. the same can't be said about fernando.

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POSTED ON Oct 22, 2018 4:14:44 GMT

VICTORY

that's what he's waiting for. everything until now has been a giant diversion in order to pull out nikolai's trump card. only when pushed to desperation, to the drink of death, does fernando expect him to reveal his last card. and, as usual, fernando is ready. maybe this will teach him a lesson. never bet against the house. the odds are never in your favor.

it starts with aerodactyl. it isn't alone. not by far. porygon proves too important and much too weak to enter the battle. that's why fernando keeps it away, where it can function as their supplementary artillery support. throughout the battle, a few well placed ZAP-CANNONS would have done wonders. would have saved sceptile from almost losing its hands and ultimately its head. but that would ruin the element of surprise. instead, fernando has it wait until the very last moment, until he's defenseless and has no choice but to interfere. silent and unseen matter not. the porygon is an observer. from afar, it keeps an eye for a certain fatality, ready for the moment it needs to come in to preserve fernando's life. the master comes before all and porygon cannot disobey. it's been programmed to do so.

as the battle lulls nikolai into a false conclusion, the amount of variables start to decrease. it makes it easier for porgyon to calculate. a simple DOWNLOAD of the terrain's information allows the pokemon to cross configure the speed, probability, and trajectory of the falling debris. precise, deliberate ZAP CANNONS rip through anything that can pose a danger to fernando. it doesn't take much effort once porygon has a good LOCK-ON the hazards. the rocks shatter into dust. harmless.

even so, fernando trusts no one. trust no allegiances and especially not another's capabilities. the resounding sizzle of the various ZAP CANNONS alert abomasnow that somethings off. an impulsive WOOD HAMMER comes with a swing of its thick arm, connecting in an uppercut that pulverizes any remnants of ROCK SLIDE that dare threaten the duo. again, fernando trusts no one and is ready on the draw. two more pokeballs fall and from them come his answer to aerial superiority.

salamence's broad wingspan shields him from any dangers. the great beast is able to PROECT its and greatest ally as fernando feels the comfort of charizard's heat. "bon appetit." last words for aerodactyl before it's designated as their lunch. and, as fortunate would have it, their lunch comes lurching forward, battering against the density of salamence's PROTECT. an IRON HEAD isn't enough to pierce the rugged scales that used to coat shellgon's body. nothing is. the aerodactyl bounces off with a resounding thud, ignoring the temporary defense before fleeing back to its master. this time, it won't be alone.

fernando's dragons of prey follow in close pursuit. the time it takes to thaw nikolai is all they need to pounce on the fossilized pokemon. with their combined efforts, it makes aerodactyl regret every being revitalized. the wild shrieks it lets out when the two lay siege to its body with their combination of DRAGON CLAW and THUNDER FANG make it sound like it's being eaten alive. which, to be fair, isn't too far from the truth.

a rippling sonic boom is what signs its death warrant, the vibrations rocking the cavern's overhead and warning of new arrivals. fernando's garchomps enter the fray, both hurtling at the downed pokemon, ready to join in. DRAGON CLAWS do short work to the pokemon's rock hard hide, tearing flesh as the pokemon dig in. aerodactyl may prove speedy, a top tier predator of the skies, but even it cannot escape all four dragons. not when its priority lies on ensuring that its trainer survives. as prophesied, the aerodactyl becomes their lunch, pinned down by the wings with charizard's foot sharp against its neck. a fitting morsel for their efforts. only due to training to they slow their appetite, tactfully keeping the pokemon alive until fernando gives the command. what better punishment than being eaten alive?

charizard's temporary heat is all the fernando needs to warm his bones. the cold sets in but the temporary relief alleviates the cold's bitter sting long enough for him to charge. he finally believes nikolai has nothing left, which allows him the shelter to approach in person. the cavern may remain below freezing but that does little to cool his temper. pure unadulterated rage carries him forward. he only has so long before the permafrost settles in. fortunately, it's all he needs. especially since defrosting isn't as simple as having the ice melt. prior to being thawed, all that air had to become something. and it did. it was ice, filling every orifice up to nikolai's lungs. when he comes too, he'll find himself choking on the water, levying trying to breath and stop himself from drowning on what's left inside his body. it'll leave him disoriented and on his knees, wheezing for his life.

just the right position for fernando to land a clean kick to his face.

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TAG WITH @nikolai

POSTED ON Oct 22, 2018 4:45:05 GMT

HEAT WAVE takes far too long. it manages to successfully thaw out his trainer but it leaves the aerodactyl susceptible and vulnerable, like bait dangling in water just waiting to be eaten. fernado's dragon latch on in an instant: DRAGON CLAW and THUNDER FANG immobilize the dinosaur. retaliation doesn't come because he has nothing left to give. he's done his duty. nikolai's free.

everything's numb, and cold, and hot—all at the same time and it's then that he comes to. he awakens from his frozen slumber practically gasping for air but when he inhales, nothing comes in. the water in his lungs refuses to let anything else in. he chokes and shivers, trembling as he struggles for air. water is exhaled, spit out, but he still can't regain his bearings.

panting, choking, it all mixes together as he's slumped over on the ground. his hands trace the bare surface of the ground, feeling the grooves and the smell rocks that litter the ground. everything is unfamiliar, everything is foreign; he's left stranded, dazed and confused, on an island far too cold with no air to breathe.

when he finally finds some form of stability, he spits out the remaining bit of water and opens his eyes, though not nearly in time to even react to the kick to his face. it cracks his nose, that's not new, but what's new is the lack of control of the situation. he's not used to it.

his body flails from the kick, falling back down to the ground. he manages to stop the fall with his hands but the disorientation overcomes him. he scrambles on the ground, shifts so he's on his back. eyes open to see fernando towering over him, looming and threatening, but there's nothing he can do to stop him.

he spits blood and raises his hand in a worthless attempt to defend himself. "stop—" nikolai doesn't surrender. he never has and never will. but in that brief moment of death, he contemplates it. his hands are trembling and it's not from the cold. the realization is sickening:

fernando is in control.

in the background, aerodactyl continues to get eaten alive.

FERNANDO SILPH

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silph

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twenty-nine

august 12th

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silph co. ceo

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POWER IS TAKEN, NEVER GIVEN—SO TAKE WHAT YOU ARE OWED

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TAG WITH @silph

POSTED ON Oct 22, 2018 6:35:53 GMT

persephone amavi likes this

SPOILER: Click to show

DEFEAT

"you fucked up."

he can feel nikolai buckle under his foot. the satisfying sound of skin against boot makes him shiver. he's going to enjoy this.

"i will tear off your fucking head and shit down your throat. do you know who the fuck you're messing with?"

bloodlust drives him for another attack. he has no qualms with hitting a man when he's down. no, he relishes it. brings his beheeyem to join him, to use its alien powers to tamper with his memory. every time he even dares to think about persephone amavi or thalia black , what he'll see is this battle unfold. fernando wants him to remember this, to never dare intrude on his domain, to never touch what belongs to him and only him.

"i will kill you. your family. your mother and father. your cousins, they're children. everyone you ever met. everyone you fucking care about, you little shit."

fernando watches his miserable form try to put up some sort of defense. another kick swats it away. this time he grabs him by the hair. this time he gets his hands dirty. nikolai will taste dirty. whatever lingers of their kisses, the taste of their skin, fernando will wash out by scratching up that pretty little face of his until it's sanded down to raw skin.

"I WILL RAZE SOOTOPOLIS. I WILL FUCKING SINK YOUR CITY TO THE DEPTHS OF THE OCEAN. DO NOT FUCK WITH ME, TRASH."

eventually, he relents, letting him go and able to breathe. beheeyem keeps him live with RECOVER but even its psychic powers isn't enough to sustain him. the desert ruin had crippled LILLIAN GLASS and taught fernando a valuable lesson. the body is frail but the spirit will persist. as long as he doesn't snuff out nikolai's life all at once, he will persevere. and deliciously so. the longer he stay conscious the more fernando can vent. punches turn into kicks and fernando can hear the crack of ribs after a well placed heel.

"i will tear every fingernail from your body. i will pluck ever hair on your body. I WILL END THE WORLD just to see you die again."

wrath turns into passion and fernando loses himself in it. it takes him a while until he's just as out of breath as his victim. heaving, chest puffed with each exhale. the severity of his revenge has met its conclusion. he feels a deep calm wash over him. it comes with a realization.

he can't control them. persephone amavi , thalia black . they're their own persons. passions of the heart can only be realized by the intentions of the loved. fernando knows he cannot keep them to himself. they're free to express it however they see fit.

which means he has to look deeper. to cull the competition at its roots. a snap of his finger brings his dragons forward. there's no need to kill the aerodactyl. he'll leave it in just as bad a shape as its owner.

first, he incapacitates his pokemon. fernando takes away his weapons.

"castrate him."

all of them.

the screams echo in the cave but no one will hear them. no one will save nikolai from his fate. a debt long made is paid for in full and for that, he's allowed to escape with his life. his bleeding is taken care of, reluctantly, by the very man who looks to destroy him. his pokemon too, will find themselves alive in due time. all it cost him was his future family and his manhood. fernando instructs them to take away the rest of his genitalia for good measure.

leave no loose ends, ever.

-------

fernando makes his leave after thawing out his pokemon. he leaves no trace but water and blood that seeps into the ground. today marks the start of his revenge. and only now does he realize the gratification of the act. to feel power over the powerless, to enact his will against the helpless.

power corrupts and this is just the first taste.

NIKOLAI PETROV

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NOODLES

NIKOLAI

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TWENTY-FIVE

CYBER BOY

GYM LEADER

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i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

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TAG WITH @nikolai

POSTED ON Oct 22, 2018 8:43:48 GMT

persephone amavi likes this

there's nothing he can do. there's no reaction except for pain but even that doesn't last forever. numbness overcomes him with each punch, each blow that's dealt until he's at the brink of death. he edges close to it, dances on it but an alien force refuses to let him cross over. beheeyem's RECOVER refuses to let him die. by the time fernando's exacted his rage, nikolai's barely breathing.

hushed, pained breaths escape his bloodied lips as he lingers on for his dear life. words are barely heard and go unrecognized. he can't give a reaction. all he can do is breathe and wait.

charizard approaches.

his eyes are barely open at this point but he knows what's coming. he's still alive for a reason. he might not be able to speak anymore but his mind still functions. his mind's infested with knowledge from the life he's lived, from the things he's experienced. one doesn't become a rocket beast by pure chance. the title is earned.

fernando's mistake is assuming he's won. fernando's mistake is letting complacency fill him. fernando's mistake is not letting him die.

his body might be broken but his soul will never break.

'now.'

in a blink, the very fabric of nature is ripped apart, opened and from it comes salvation. gallade's WIDE GUARD blocks charizard's hungry jaws from crushing nikolai's manhood only to follow it with a precise PSYCHO CUT to shove the charizard away. gardevoir is there with a HELPING HAND and a DISARMING VOICE that shrieks across the whole vicinity, immobilizing as MAGICAL LEAVES are sent slicing across at everyone.

all it takes is a second of precise planning and coordination.

there's nothing to stop their TELEPORT out.

the title of rocket beast may be stripped but nikolai will never shed himself free, and maybe that's not such a bad thing. it's a part of him and it makes him who he is today. it takes him for too long to realize that he's not alone anymore.

queen's confiscated gardevoir. the league's gifted gallade. persephone's team. he might have lost his team today but he's alive, and that's all that matters.

the TELEPORT take them to the edge of victory road, nearing the pokemon league because he had a feeling he would end up there. from there, he'll make his escape with the help of persephone.

zebstrika carries his body on her back as she WILD CHARGES towards the pokemon league, not willing to stop for anything or anyone.

drampa carries his body on his back as he FLIES towards the pokemon league, not willing to stop for anything or anyone.

there's only one real body but which is it? zoroark's ILLUSION hides the truth and allows for their escape. gallade and gardevoir are assigned to each method of transportation. their defenses are set up, their escape is all but confirmed.

celebrate, for fernando is victorious on this day. but he won't ever taste it again:

victory.

DRAMPA (BESERK) - PROTECT | SAFEGUARD | HYPER VOICE | DRAGON PULSE | FLY | PLAY NICE

FERNANDO SILPH

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spiral

silph

SIR

twenty-nine

august 12th

saffron

oppressive

silph co. ceo

council member

1997 height

POWER IS TAKEN, NEVER GIVEN—SO TAKE WHAT YOU ARE OWED

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TAG WITH @silph

POSTED ON Oct 22, 2018 12:11:36 GMT

FINISHER

WIDE GUARD never comes to pass. the SHADOW SNEAK allows decidueye ample time to break it down with its PHANTOM FORCE. the pokemon's not fernando's own but Leon Vercetti 's steady training has left the pokemon patient, able to wait until the very last moment to strike. fernando's kirlia was a TELEPORT user so he knows the process well. that's why he has another answer for the attempted escape.

mimikyu is not far behind. it briefly stretches out of its own SHADOW SNEAK, enough so for the doll on its head to wave back and forth at around the same time that gallade's PSYCHO CUT is launched. the saunter of the ragged doll is a submissive TAUNT that goads all enemies to only rely on offensive attacks. that proves enough to put a damper on their TELEPORT. gallade and gardevoir are trapped. even worse, the mystic BLOCK of bronzong is still in place. the magic IMPRISONS them, even if the pokemon is frozen. and, should the magic prove insufficient, the mystical linger of a SHADOW TAG preys on every enemy present. the source remains unscene but the pokedex knows which pokemon lies in the darkness, which one finds its home in the darkness.

a DESTINY BOND spreads out to those that dare oppose fernando's wrath. decidueye knows better, it has the FORESIGHT to predict where the pokemon will land. several SPIRIT SHACKLES fire off in rapid succession, each one precise, each one trained with the disciple of hoenn's elite united service. it's an aim that will do Leon Vercetti proud and bind each enemy to their shadow. no TELEPORT, no jumping, no movement that require them breaking from their shadow. any move used to deter it will force the pokemon to punish accordingly, a solid SUCKER PUNCH ready and waiting should either lash out.

the DISARMING VOICE does little to stop them. his mimikyu is undisturbed, unfazed at the cost of its DISGUISE. this chance allows it to come in close, braving the MAGICAL LEAF as it come in for a plain TACKLE. until it suddenly disperses, a clean FEINT ATTACK that allows it to strike at gardevoir's exposed weak spot.

beeheeym's HEAL BLOCK prevents them from regenerating. fernando may not know the pokemon's moveset but he knows its potential. kirlia knew HEAL PULSE so there's no reason this one won't too.

gallade proves a bigger problem. yet, it finds itself circled by the four sacred beasts. salamence takes the forefront in INTIMIDATING it with a SCARY FACE. the FLAMETHROWER that comes out is combined with charizard's FLAME BURST. garchomp braves the fire, physically giving him the hands that comes with DRAGON CLAW.

meanwhile, ditto has TRANSFORMED into a different from. this time it's bronzong. another nuisance that's ready to BLOCK any escape. a FUTURE SIGHT allows it to gaze forward, ready to counter any possible move. the IMPRISON still stands, leaving them unable to PROTECT against their combined assault.

fernando doesn't quite. he may have dropped the ball but it won't be the only one. another pokeball falls and another pokemon enters the field. his magneton comes out and it quick to steady its aim. it LOCKS-ON nikolai this time. the ZAP-CANNON comes out ready to fry him into burnt remains. maybe it'll warm up his frozen body. only one thing is certain. a single hit from it will leave him paralyzed for weeks.

NIKOLAI PETROV

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NOODLES

NIKOLAI

HE/HIM

TWENTY-FIVE

CYBER BOY

GYM LEADER

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i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

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TAG WITH @nikolai

POSTED ON Oct 22, 2018 19:37:46 GMT

TELEPORT never comes into play. the trio he has waiting on the other side of victory road is never utilized, and the moment the TELEPORT fails, the psychic-types relay the message on as they combat the onslaught they're been subjected to from the SHADOW TAG. the SPIRIT SHACKLES renders whatever little hope they have left of escaping in one piece. like nikolai, they are now at the mercy of fernando.

gardevoir: a fake TACKLE into FEINT ATTACK stumbles the psychic-type but it doesn't do nearly enough. her HELPING HAND is still strong as she turns to aid the gallade with a DISARMING VOICE. she surges forward, DOUBLE TEAMING to help combat the four sacred beasts that trot forward. her illusions are enough to disrupt as they take garchomp's DRAGON CLAW.

gallade: the flames lick away at the bare surface of his skin PSYCHO CUT engulfs his arms as the surge of energy looks to redirect some of the heat, and even though he's aided by gardevoir's HELPING HAND, it's not enough to negate all of the damage. but that's not what he's trying to do.

the redirection of the flames give gallade a split moment to shift everything off to the side, PSYCHO CUTTING the magneton. it's not enough to stop the LOCK-ON but it's enough to disorientate, to buy time. gardevoir holds the dragons off long enough with DISARMING VOICE to allow gallade to shift, positioning himself in between the ZAP CANNON and nikolai. the attack flies straight into him; electricity surges through his body and renders him paralyzed by the end of it, dropping him to the ground, but his duty is complete: nikolai is safe, at least for now.

they're all just buying time.

FERNANDO SILPH

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played by

spiral

silph

SIR

twenty-nine

august 12th

saffron

oppressive

silph co. ceo

council member

1997 height

POWER IS TAKEN, NEVER GIVEN—SO TAKE WHAT YOU ARE OWED

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part of

TAG WITH @silph

POSTED ON Oct 23, 2018 5:42:08 GMT

CONCLUSION

the DISARMING VOICE does little to live up to its name. it may pierce at the dragon's heart, urging them to calm their hostility, but that doesn't take hold. they persevere, the gallade poses too much a threat for them to stop there. survival comes first. they're quick to follow but gallade proves too dexterous. and that speed is paid for when the gallade finds itself robbed of its mobility. twinges of electric shock tear at every fiber of its muscles. it won't be moving anytime soon.

the entirety of fernando's current team turns to gardevoir. they take their turns, layering their attacks in a method that leaves it disable but not dead. he has sympathy for the evolution line. it reminds him of his own, the one he lost in the desert ruins. as long as the SHADOW TAG, SPIRIT SHACKLE, BLOCK, and TAUNT remain in effect, there's not much nikolai can do.

mimikyu is the one to approach nikolai's disabled body. fernando's more cautious now. how many asspulls can one man pull? he has the rest of his arsenal ready, waiting. expecting. what he needs is their pokeballs. every single one. it'll allow him to return the threats to where they belong, out of his sight and away from the field. those stuck in the ice will have to wait. for now, he's sated with pocketing the ralt's evolution line. a fine addition to his repository. the dying aerodactyl is a consolation prize.

"you're quite the pest. any last magic tricks?"

another ball fills fernando's hand. it's one of his last ones. the ammo belt hidden by his coat is almost empty. he can only go on for so long.

maybe now nikolai will refuse resistance. there's not much he can do now. fernando finally has him at his mercy.

NIKOLAI PETROV

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played by

NOODLES

NIKOLAI

HE/HIM

TWENTY-FIVE

CYBER BOY

GYM LEADER

37 height

i used to dream in the dark of palisades park.

awards

241 posts

DOLLARS

part of

TAG WITH @nikolai