The Children Are Hunted

She moved him aside gently and carefully froze the bars. Her tail turned metallic. She slammed the iron tail into the bars, causing them to shatter. Alyss winced. "Ssh!"

"Hard to be quiet when breaking into a vent like that," Arca muttered teasingly and hurried inside, stepping lightly. "She glanced back at Esper. "You coming along or not?" Alyss was focusing more on Arca's hearing than Esper's senses. Psychic senses were good but instincts you're born with as a creature were just as useful.
 
"That's just what I was trying to avoid," Esper mumbled as he followed her. He had forgotten that his muttering carried across the links as loud and clear as speaking. He ran silently through the air vent, continuing to scout for anyone that was nearby. Now that he was inside the building, it was easier to to sense them. He counted 11 humans, and roughly 4 pokemon per person. He could smell them. Most were asleep, but a few weren't, he choose paths in the vents, trusting Arca to follow his lead, that took them close to the ones that were awake. He was intending to listen in on what they had to say, then go look somewhere else. He didn't think that he would find anything that he could make sense of, but that's why he wanted Alyss in the link with them. She was a human, and more importantly, she thought like a human! Esper and Arca were driven mostly by instinct, so something that went over their heads, she would be able to unravel for them. He stopped at a vent and looked down. A human was inside. He was muttering to himself, but Esper could hear it clearly.
"Why the hell do we need to guard this place. Those damn kids haven't even shown up yet," was along the lines of what he was muttering. Guard a gym? From kids? But, kids were the ones supposed to use the gym! This was very confusing.
 
Alyss tried to see through Esper's eyes but winced and stopped that idea. Not his trainer, seriously not a good idea. That man was talking about kids! Could it be what that man had been talking about? They're looking for children... and trainers are pretty much the only ones with any need to visit the gym. "They looking for child trainers..." Alyss hissed to herself. "Why? Arca." Arca opened her ears wider.

"Esper..." Alyss mumbled urgently. "This might be a guess but... do you see any... um what's the word... like a symbol, an ID maybe on that guy?"
 
"I'll try. But please, try to speak with your mind. We will hear you through the link. It will be difficult, Arca, but I don't want to get caught trying to communicate. But we should be fine, he doesn't seem to have heard us. Now, let's see here," Esper said patiently. He strained his eyes. The man was unfortunately not carrying any ID. Esper performed a feather light scan of the man's mind. Linked as he was, with the pressure of two extra minds on his own, he didn't trust himself to do anything heavier. He wasn't detected, but to his frustration could only pick up surface thoughts! And those thoughts were obsessed with complaining about guard duty. Esper looked again for something to identify who he was working for exactly, but couldn't find anything out. He couldn't glean anything from this man.
"Maybe we should go find someone asleep, and check their belongings," Esper said. He located the closest one to him, and sniffed out a path through the air ducts to get above the room. He headed in that direction, believing that Arca could keep up.
 
Arca sighed and followed, padding after him silently. Alyss shook her head quietly, still thinking. Esper... I... I might be wrong but... I think that if those are from the AAPM, those guys are after your trainer. I dunno... it's just what's in my head. Arca carefully stood by the vent, listening to him snore.

"Any suggestions for how to quietly get down there?" she asked.
 
"I think you may be right. And there is no need to go anywhere. I can move things around from here. Unfortunatly, the room is dark. It's going to be hard to see what I'm doing. But, first things first," Esper said. He then scanned the human sleeping below him. He was asleep, so his thoughts were easier to read. He was also worried about some plan that was in action here. He was afraid of them getting caught, and going to jail. Esper couldn't get much more than that from him without waking him. He didn't bother to relay what he found. The two of them would have seen it through him. He turned his attention to the room. His night vision wouldn't cut it.
"Arca, is your night vision any better than mine? Can you see what that is over in the corner there?" Esper said, directing the Glaceon's attention to a dark mass. Esper thought it may have been clothing, but couldn't tell for sure.
 
Arca nodded and widened her eyes, trying to clarify the image with her eyes. "I think you're right Esper, that looks like a coat." She examined carefully to make sure. "Yes it is."

Alyss shivered. "Check for a badge of some sort please." She knew something was in place for certain now and the desperation which this seemed to be done was worrisome and made her think of the way Theo described the latest actions of the AAPM.
 
"Can you get a good look at it? If our suspicions are right, then you'll be looking at the sleeve on the right side," Esper said. He lifted the coat up to the vent. He nearly lost it once, but managed to hold it steady. He turned it so that the aformentioned area was in front of the grate. Even he could see that it was an AAPM coat. He gave a mental sigh and lowered the coat back to it's orginal postion. Then he hit a problem. Thomas wanted to go to the gym! Esper couldn't let him walk into a trap. The safest thing for him would be to get his trainer as far away as possible! But Thomas wouldn't leave without the badge! And if he knew the AAPM was here, he'd be determined to go in and stop them! What could he do! He started to panic, but instead of bolting, like he wanted to, he remained still and silent. He soon sensed someone else awake in the building. This one was different. He could sense the fear in this one all the way from where he was.
"I'm going to see who is so scared. I'll be back soon. You can come too, or keep exploring on your own, either one is good with me. Just don't get caught!" Esper said. He had a feeling he wouldn't like what he found when he found it.
 
Arca shrugged and followed him. Someone was getting hurt by the sounds of things: hurt or- She cut off the thought, sensing Alyss' concern and slight worry. No need to make her think depressed thoughts now. Besides, she knew the Espeon was likely still a bit tired from today's training. It was best to work as a team. She heard the sound of fast, sharp breathing in her ears and knew that the person's adrenaline was kicking in.

"Come on," she hissed, forgetting to speak mentally. "This is not good."
 
Esper didn't need to be asked to hurry. He was moving as fast as he could to reach whoever it was. They clearly weren't supposed to be here, because Esper could sense the people that were still awake head for whoever it was. Esper heard a powerful mental shout. It hurt his brain.
"VAN!!! HELP ME!!!" the voice said. Esper reared in pain from the power of this shout.
"GAH! That was painful! Le- lets hurry. We can't waste any time," Esper said after he could concentrate again.

Vulpix heard someone shouting for help. Someone that sounded very familiar. He got to his feet and sniffed the air. It smelled wrong. Something was going on at the gym. He looked around. Esper and Arca were gone. Vulpix tried to place the voice. It wasn't either one of them. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. Whomever it was had called for him! They called him Van.
"Winny! What have you gotten yourself into!" Vulpix muttered, and ran off in the direction of the gym.

(OOC: Shameless minor character reinsertion! I choose you!)
 
(XD hey it works!)

Alyss winced in pain, clapping her hands quietly over her ears. "Not good," she whispered, hearing Vulpix taking off over the screaming pain. She really wished Zaria hadn't given her her dislike of Psychic types now. "Esper," she mumbled. "Vulpix is heading toward the gym. Be careful."

Arca stopped just in front of an opening. "Think we've found it." She kept listening, hearing loud footsteps beneath her paws.
 
"Great! Just what we need what now! Ug, we can't worry about that right now. We have to save this person," Esper said. He heard the footsteps too.
"Where'd that Wynaut go?" the man that had been griping said.
"I don't know! Man, Toni is going to kill us if we don't find the intruder!" a second voice said.
"If she doesn't, then Commander Morgan will!" the first man said. Commander Morgan? When did he get promoted. Then a third man joined the group.
"We've got the Wynaut trapped in the lower battle chamber! But we have another problem. Someone found a broken vent outside. It wasn't the way the Wynaut got in. Which means we have more than one intruder! Let's use the Wynaut as bait. Come with me!" the third man said.
"Yes sir!" the other two said, and ran off. Esper breathed a sigh of relief.
"This Wynaut is to be bait is she? Well, we may be able to rescue her. Let's meet up with Vulpix before he does something stupid," Esper said. He began walking back to the entrance.

Vulpix stopped at the rocks. He looked around them and saw a Scizor guarding an open duct. He smiled to himself. A scizor wouldn't even slow him down. He ran up, covering himself in fire. The Scizor went down. No one had seen him, and if they had, he didn't care. He sniffed the open grate.
"Arca?" he said aloud. Yes, that was definately her scent. What was she doing here? The scent wasn't that old! Well, he'd worry about it after he saved Winny! He entered the grate, and surpressed a shudder. His claustrophobia was the only reason he hadn't been a higher rank before he left the RDM.
 
Arca sniffed. She could smell him not that far away. Suddenly she paused and stepped back. She could tell he was close by, and there was the vague scent of fear on his body. "Vulpix," she whispered faintly. "Are you all right?"

Alyss outside, was running everything through her mind. She clenched her fingers on the wood. This was bad, very bad. They were in a trap and they knew it. "Tell me if you need help. I may be injured but I can do something."
 
Insert Training Here.

The newly evolved Volcan was powerful.

Volcan: (level 24) Flamethrower, Ember, Smokescreen, Quick Attack (Learning: Wild Charge)

Volcan had give Dragonair quite a shock with those electric impulses. Mark himself was confused. How had Volcan used an Electric attack. Wasn't he a fire type? Mark was confused.

"Wait. That looks like an Electric attack."

"Yeah, you see. Pokemon can learn moves other than their type."

"Well, I know that. But, an Electric move?"

"Yeah. I don't understand Pokemon. They are so complex. But, I understand that they have incredible power."

Slowly, each Pokemon in his team was trained. Through intense courses, each Pokemon leveled up around 5 levels. Some learned new moves, others didn't. But, Mark did his best on each training session. Clair was beginning to think that Mark had a chance. Maybe, he could beat Regis. At some points, Mark's eye would glow, but nothing would happen. Clair had yet to learn of his power. She had no idea what it was. But, Mark was beginning to get an idea.

Next. Mebeh, Mark's Power Revealed. Any Theories? Post in OOC Thread.

Forgot this:

Gligar: (level 28) Faint Attack, Bulldoze, Brick Break, Fury Cutter, Acrobatics
Ducky: (level 24) Water Pulse, Aerial Ace, Bubblebeam, Featherdance
Fighter: (level 27) Rock Throw, Chip Away, Wake-Up Slap, Bide
Fright: (level 22) Rollout, Shadow Punch, Iron Defense, Mega Punch
Buggy: (level 23) Protect, Silver Wind, Struggle Bug, Razor Leaf
 
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"Arca! What the hell are you doing here?!" Vulpix asked in a tense whisper.
"If it comes down to it, wake Thomas and Marcus. The three of you may be able to mount a respectable rescue for us. I don't want it to come to that, but if it must, it must. If you lose contact with us, assume the worst," Esper said gently.
"Oh, get out of the way! I don't have time for this! Winny is in trouble!" Vulpix said. He tried to shove past the two of them. Esper bit him on the back of the neck and forced him to the ground.
"Listen to me, you irksome little pup! You can't run around half cocked like that! That would take you right into the trap! Use the brain you were born with!" Esper said to him.
"Bah! You're a fine one to talk! What about when Thomas was in trouble!" Vulpix shot back angrily.
Even at those times, I listened to reason! If you just rush in recklessly, you won't help anything! You'll make it worse!" Esper said.
"Let me up, you overgrown pink feline!" Vulpix spat. He gathered his paws under him and pushed as hard as he could. Esper's head slammed against the top of the duct causing an all mighty racket. He let go, and took a few dizzy steps. His head hurt, but what terrified him was that he couldn't focus his mind.
"Uh... What good would it do Winny if you get caught?" Esper asked shakily. Vulpix stopped and stared at him.
 
Arca hissed in fury and walloped both with her tail, lighter on Esper. "Honestly, would you two men shut up and let me hear?" she scolded, looking annoyed. "Do either of you have a brain?" Looking at them both, she huffed and tore off, listening for the sounds from before. "Look Vulpix, your friend is in danger but that is no reason to hit another friend you childish little brat! And now you've likely called them all down on us you imbecile! Now grab Esper and carry him. God knows never to trust you in a rescue mission." She was a fast and quiet runner, her ears twitching.

Alyss heard these words and knew she couldn't obey. It would leave that other boy defenseless and that was the last thing they needed. She just hoped it wouldn't happen.
 
Esper got hit with the glaceon's tail. He stumbled a little bit. His thoughts were scattered, and he couldn't sense anything.
"I... I think I have a concusion. Don't let me go to sleep. I might never wake up if I do," Esper said. He felt Vulpix carrying him, and made no move to stop him. Vulpix, even with Esper's added weight, was keeping pace with Arca easily. Though he wasn't a quiet runner.
"... Do you even know where you're going?" Vulpix said, coming to a stop. He sniffed around.
"I smell her this way. Are you sure you know where you're going?" Vulpix asked again. He waited for the answer, instead of running off down the hall like he desperately wanted to.
 
Arca didn't even twitch. "Then you go that direction. I hear something this way and it's bugging me. Go and save your friend and keep Esper with you. I'll meet up with you later!" She bolted off without waiting for an answer. If her ears were right, there was someone crying.

"Arca what is it?" Alyss whispered.

"That voice I keep hearing... it's echoing through the ducts but I just know... It's Silas Alyss! I know it's him."

Alyss blinked. That boy had been missing for years. It wasn't a surprise, given his powers but... "How can you be sure?"

"I can hear a Leafeon crying! I know that crybaby anywhere! And that brat would hide here, there's a forest nearby." The albino girl suppressed a smile. Arca always became so uncouth when she was angry.

Alyss smiled openly now and rose the wind up slightly. "Okay then... I'll see what I can do to help." She waited and whispered. "Don't worry about Arca. She'll be fine. Get your friend Vulpix! Follow the scent and hurry. It's best if at leasst one of you doesn't get caught."

(Silas will probably not come back after this minor point I'm showing him in XD.)
 
Explosive Actions.

Even with Mark so close to understanding his true power, it was Clair who discovered it. She was quite amazed when she realized what it was. It was incredible. But, back to how she actually found it. Clair was watching Mark train on their way to Venice. The train station was maybe a few miles ahead in the next city, Depok. So, for now, they were walking there. Then, they would continue on that train's path to Jakarta where they would take the plane to Venice. They decided to rest for the afternoon.

Mark had taken out Volcan. They were in the center of a forest clearing and Mark was trying to grow his Flamethrower. He would try to lash each tree with the fire, leaving a blunt mark. But, it would teach him focus. Volcan at first would burn the bark of the tree, but soon, he was able to leave X's on the trees. Volcan was learning how to control his Flamethrower better. Now, it was Mark's big challenge. Curving the Flamethrower. He and Volcan focused. Volcan shot out a Flamethrower and then was supposed to curve it before it hit the tree. At the moment, Volcan would incinerate any tree that crossed the path. He couldn't curve it at all, not the smallest degree. Mark analyzed the problem.

Problem: Volcan can't curve his Flamethrower.
Reason: Standing still.
Solution: Change his position during the fire.

This time, he held onto Volcan as he let out the Flamethrower. Mark shifted his hold on Volcan. The Flamethrower curved out of control and started a fire on the tree. Dragonair, who was peacefully sitting by Clair, took out the fire with her Aqua Tail swinging some embers onto the grass near Volcan. Mark was about to get up when a Pinsir who had been disturbed by the fire came by and bit down on Mark before running away.

In pain, Mark screamed. The embers around him reimbursed. The pain was overwhelming. There must have been some kind of poison in that bite. The fire around him began to grow. Mark hated wildfire. Ever since the afternoon on that Hot Air Balloon. No, he wouldn't think about that. Clair yelled for him to stay still, but he became nervous. As he grew more scared, the fire intensified much more rapidly. Clair grabbed her secret Pokeball. She had never used this Pokemon before, she had recently caught it. It wasn't a Dragon Pokemon...but...she sent out her Mime Jr.

"Mimee, please use your Hypnosis on Mark!"

The small Mime Jr. had some challenge concentrating on Mark, but eventually, he calmed him down into a small sleep. Dragonair put out the fire.


Mark awoke an hour later by a sizzling fire.

"Mark, I think I know what your power is. Could you...could you put your hand over that fire and focus?"

Mark was confused but he did as he was told. He focused his energy on the fire and on his hand. Slowly the fire grew around his hand. It warmed him but it didn't burn.

"You can, somehow, intensify a situation. That's how we survived the fire. You intensified my cape's fire-resistance and Volcan's fire absorbency. I wonder what else you can do."

Mark place his hand on the grass and focused. The grass climbed around his hand shot straight up. "Wow." he whispered.
 
(OOC: Sorry, I got really busy helping my sister out with something.)

Vulpix didn't hear Alyss. Esper hadn't brought him into the link. But he heard Arca. He wanted to go help her, but Winny was more important to him than someone he had never met, So he rushed off after her scent without a second glance. Maybe he would go help Arca after he saved Winny. He reached an area above an old battlefield. He saw about 4 humans surrounding Winny. Winny herself had Safeguard up at full power. Three of the humans were simple AAPM grunts. Vulpix could take them in his sleep. But that forth one. She was nothing special to look at, but Vulpix could believe that she was not one to be trifled with.
"Why have you roused me so late at night! I have battles to do tomorrow!" the woman said. She was the gym leader? Why was she working with the AAPM, unless...
"That *****!" Vulpix muttered.
"Sorry Leader Toni! We have surrounded this RDM spy! We have tried to capture her, but she keeps using Coiunter and Mirror Coat! Our pokemon aren't strong enough!" the bold grunt said. Good girl Winny, keep them on their toes.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me! Golem! Deal with this!" Tomi said. She called out her Golem. Golem used Rollout, and smashed through Winny's defenses. Vulpix was surprised. Winny could stall anyone! And that Golem smashed through her with no effort at all! This was bad. Winny was getting back to her feet. Vulpix had to act. He set down Esper, and burst out of the vent.
"Idiot!" Esper said to him.
"Leave her alone!" Vulpix shouted.
"Van! You're here! Watch out, that rock type is tough!" Winny shouted.
"Ah... You enjoyed our company so much you decided to come back!" Toni said. She had heard of his imprisonment. Maybe she was one of the ones responsible for it! Vulpix bristled.
"Get him!" Toni said. Vulpix didn't even let the others call out their pokemon. They were reduced to ash within seconds from his Flamethrower. He was left, growling at Toni, who had a smug smirk on her face, though she was seperated from him by that Golem. And Winny would be useless in this fight, if she was ignored. Vulpix assumed she would be.
 
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