August Catch-all

[friendlyflower]

Who: Flowey & Perrin, Bigby, Akechi, Siffrin, Siffrin (again), Chara
What: Quests!! The boy's got his non-existent hands full again! (Exploration: Yellow, Carts Before Charts, Flower Showers, Play Nice) 
Where: New territory beyond the middle forest; places in and around the new Outpost
When: Throughout August
Warnings: Pokemon battling (violence/injury), severe weather, Flowey's trauma (mentions of/themes of depression, depersonalization, guilt, child death, murder)

Comments

[wolfcut]

[ A walk in the park turned complete shit show. What else should he have expected.

Entering the basin may have been unexpected, but the storm — he could have known better. He should have known better. Between the lingering static and shift in air pressure, the signs were about as subtle as a punch to the gut, and yet here they are, ready to get swept away by quickly rising waters. Chalk it up to dulled senses and being more than few years out of practice, sure, but his internal frustration is hardly the priority when he's not the only one caught out here.

He shields his face from the heavy rain as it beats down, eyes locked on Courier Six even as Flowey shouts beside him. For a moment, his brows furrow, uncertainty rising until the Dragonite finally swoops in close enough to them both. The winds hardly make that look easy, despite his apparent collected demeanor.

While roughly the same size, he helps hoist the Sunkern up into Perrin's pouch first, knowing the most at risk here is clearly the one lacking an obvious way to swim. Seed secured, he follows in right after with little pride. The sooner they can get moving, the better. ]

Keep low for now, Six! The lightning— [ And as if on cue, there's another quick flash, followed by a roar of thunder. He lowers himself a bit deeper into the pouch, eyes still peering out ahead. His fur seems to be bristling with electricity as he glances at Flowey now. ] Stay focused on our right. I have the left. Anything unavoidable... we'll clear it. [ Are their moves even strong enough to clear rocks and debris? Only one way to find out. ]

[friendlyflower]

Got it!

[Flowey, admittedly, isn't sure what he can do-- but he won't let himself be useless. Time seems to slow as he takes in every detail around them with a practiced clarity.

And then he spots a piece of driftwood hurtling at them like a javelin in the gale. Flowey shouts to alert Six and, as if on instinct, fires a menagerie of seeds at it. The wind carries nearly all of them away- probably doing more harm than good- but a few of them might be able to divert the projectile from its path. (Or maybe his warning helped Six avoid it-- or maybe Six takes the hit. Flowey can tell little from the bag without risking falling out.)

Flowey curses himself. If only he were stronger. Leech Seed is meant for casting a wide net and draining the life out of foes, not shooting like bullets.

To the east, the sky reaches down; a tornado meets the water, forming a waterspout. To the west, lightning blinds him, and he just catches a glimpse of a tall tree going down in flames. A flock of disturbed Spearow and Fearow rise into the storm, aiming to direct their rage at the nearest targets in sight-- them.]

[shotinhead]

[ You might expect Courier Six to swear. And he is - but internally. Courier Six growls, his body being hit by some of the debris of the driftwood. Some of it had been knocked off, but at least the main bit had broken away.

Still, the Dragonite moves on. He can barely see in this storm, his wings sometimes skimming the wising water. Yet, it almost seemed controlled.

For if he was close to the edge, keeping himself close to the seas yet not in them, wouldn't it be safest? And in the distance, he can see something.

He doesn't know they're the ruins they're looking for. In fact, his mind has gone into full survival mode. ]

[wolfcut]

[ Bigby's gaze follows the strike of lightning as it hits a tree to the west, but Flowey's warning quickly diverts his attention. His cheeks begin to spark, driftwood fast approaching, only for the Sunkern to beat him to it. He holds, unsure at first of what to make of the barrage of seeds, but it appears enough to keep Courier Six from taking the full brunt of it. No reason to expend unneeded energy. Instead, with ears pinned back, Bigby looks up at their pilot first before peering ahead once more. Staying the course is about all they can do, but how much more could the Dragonite take?

There's no time to speak on it though, not when another situation begins to rear its many heads. His ears flick back up, the cries from afar suddenly growing closer. As if the storm isn't enough to deal with — now they have a whole flock to fight through. ]

Six, company! [ Yelling against the howling wind is a feat all on its own. He shifts to speaking to Flowey as he shuffles through his pockets. ] Make that move of yours hurt this time, got it? Deep breath. Sharp exhale.

[ Bigby knows using Grass moves against Flying-types is an exercise in futility, but wearing them out across a distance at least has some advantage. If nothing else, they'll make coming in close frustrating. With his own ammo, he fires two Seed Bombs toward the flock, hoping to steer a few Pokémon off course. ]

[friendlyflower]

[Deep breath. Sharp exhale. His addition of Bullet Seeds to the onslaught manages to hit a few Spearow and knock them out of the group, feathers flying in the wind, but the flock as a whole remains undeterred. They come down on Courier Six and the bag especially, eager to stop those damned seeds. Flowey finds himself being slashed and torn at by sharp talons, but it feels like a mercy compared to what happens next:

A hole tears in the bag. The gale pulls Flowey through. He plummets like a rock toward the churning waters below.

He's so stunned that he doesn't even manage to scream.]

[shotinhead]

[ Oh fuck.

There is a moment where it feels like time slows. Where it feels like everything has stopped, and he's about to make a choice that changes everything.

But Courier Six can't abandon Flowey. He snarls out, in that sort of gruff voice only a pissed off adult can: ]

Bigby, grab the seed! I'm swoopin'--!

[ And he is, his wings beating with a bit of heat - a Heat Wave, trying to use it as a barrier to scare some of the birds off. ]

[wolfcut]

[ There's a sudden flash of light, a Thunder Shock finally going off once those birds get too close. A few pull back, unable to withstand a super effective move, but with his focus on the rest of the flock, he doesn't realize what else just happened until it's too late.

Oh fuck.

Bigby tries to reach for Flowey before he plummets completely, but with arms as short as his, the attempt is nothing but futile. ]

Shit. Shit. [ His heart begins to race, even as he braces for the dive. A few birds stay in pursuit, pecking at him as he leans himself out of the bag in preparation. All he can do is growl, unwilling to pay them mind when there's a bigger priority at stake. Luckily, Perrin's Heat Wave manages to ward them off for now, just in time for him to lean over and wrap his arms around the Sunkern. ]

... S-sorry, kid. [ They're practically skimming the water now, but between the rain and wind, he can't manage the strength to fully pull Flowey back up. That and beside, the hole in the bag isn't getting any smaller. Perrin would likely need to hold at least one of them. ] Hey, Six! A little help?

[ There's some urgency in his voice, despite holding his expression together. He can feel himself start to slip. ]

[friendlyflower]

[The onslaught scorches or scares off the smaller Spearow, but the largest Fearow unleashes a screech of rage and aims a nasty Drill Peck directly at Courier Six. He could deflect or dodge the blow... or he could save Bigby and Flowey.]

H-hey! Watch out, idiot! And don't drop me!!!

[The ruins of the massive building cast a colossal shadow over them. And even though its maw is full of shadows and dust, it promises a break from the rain and terror-- at least for a moment.]

[shotinhead]

[ In his mind, there was only one thing Courier Six could do. He could protect himself, be the selfish bastard people expected.

Or he could protect those who needed him. His... allies? Perhaps friends, if he could trust them. He could, though, trust them enough to not let them die. He turned to the building, seeing it...

And his movement sped up. His first ExtremeSpeed, suddenly moving as he grips his claws into the others, letting the bag fall apart.

...

And then, he crashed into the ground, wing slamming into ground, but his body sheltering the others from the worst of it. ]

F-fuck... that was a gift...

[wolfcut]

[ While Flowey shouts, Bigby simply looks up, eyes narrowing at the Fearow readying a Drill Peck. Instinctively, he begins to growl — low, guttural, teeth bared. Sparks fly off bristled fur. His hold grows tighter. The bird is honed in on Courier Six now, but Bigby knows the two of them are easy pickings if the Dragonite decides to cut his losses.

Keyword being if.

Instead, his ears fall back, feeling Perrin's claws wrap around them as his pace suddenly speeds up. The building moves closer and closer into view until, finally, they dive down right at its entrance. Despite the immediate pain, there's still enough adrenaline to push himself back up quickly. He glances at the other two first, pulling off a piece of Perrin's bag that got caught on him with a slight groan. His first thought is to just toss it, but then he realizes when Courier Six speaks.

Oh. ]

... C'mon. Just get inside. Quickly. [ While he can help Flowey get back up if he needs it, Perrin is another matter. Instead, he places one paw against him, offering the scrap to him with the other. ] Look. We'll get it fixed. After we survive this shit storm.

[ He's not going to bother asking how everyone's feeling after a rough landing when he already knows firsthand. ]

[friendlyflower]

[As much as Flowey wants to make a snide comment about the stupid bag, he does owe Courier Six and Bigby his life right now. He grumbles as he picks up another scrap of the bag with his vine and offers it to Six.]

Yeah. Shit storm is right. [He learned a new word today. At least there's that.] I'm sick of this stupid place. We got sent here to die.

[He enters the ruined building, hopping over roots that have split the stone flooring. Nature has reclaimed this place; everywhere he looks there's ivy, leaves, vines. Clay pots have split open, dandelions burst through cracks in the ground. The air would be a little cleaner for it if not for all the dust.

Because the further they venture in, the more furniture they find in the ruins-- collapsed shelves, with only the barest tatters of ancient tomes left upon them. They're completely unsalvagable, most of them already more soaked-through rot than paper.]

... This place look familiar to anyone?