The old pyramid doesn't see much traffic on the best of days, well off the usual tourist drag and looking a bit shabby, perhaps, in the shadow of grander cousins. The dead entombed here can rest easy, untroubled by tourists' footsteps, the chatter of guides and flash of cameras. The deep inner chambers are silent, watched over by fading hieroglyphics and dusty funerary offerings, until with a buzz and hum of psychic energy three people teleport into the old tomb.
The referee spends a few minutes wandering, admiring the hieroglyphs, but the trainers aren't here to appreciate the architecture. They tromp through the pyramid in search of a good place to fight, flashlights out to supplement the thin streamers of daylight shining between loose bricks. Deep in the heart of the structure they find just the place, an underground chamber maybe four meters on a side, just a dead end intended to deter trespassers. For these particular trespassers, though, the flat, empty space is exactly what they're looking for.
The pokémon appear in flashes of light, the referee is dragged away from the fascinating artifacts, and at last the match is set to begin. Holly the charmander looks around with naked wonder, flaring tail throwing long shadows, its light gleaming off her golden scales. Her first battle! And she gets to have it
here?
Serqet is more comfortable taking up a place beyond the perimeter of the charmander's flickering light. The rude presence of fire notwithstanding, though, the skorupi's pleased by the arena as well. The dry and sandy air, the numerous crevices to hide in--it's practically homey to a bug like her.
Round One
Kung Fu Ferret (OOO)
Serqet (F) <Sniper>
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
- Feeling right at home.
Commands: Toxic ~ Venoshock ~ Rock Tomb
Gzhoom (OOO)
Holly (F) <Blaze>
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
- Excited!
Commands: Ancient Power / Scary Face ~ Ancient Power / Scary Face / Flamethrower ~ Dig (outside) / Dragon Dance / Rock Tomb
Holly doesn't wait to see what Serqet will do, spreading her claws as she prepares to summon energy from the antique stones surrounding her on all sides. The skorupi is faster, though, lashing out with her stinger-tipped tail and scoring a thin cut on Holly's arm.
The charmander yelps, forgetting her attack and rubbing ruefully at the scratch. It doesn't look serious, and when Holly looks back up at Serqet, it isn't in fear. Instead the charmander's face is stretched into a grotesque smile, all her pointed teeth showing and her eyes fairly glowing with malice. Serqet scuttles back a bit, clicking nervously to herself. She wasn't expecting
that response. But Holly simply hasn't realized the seriousness of her injury, oblivious to the potent toxin even now circulating in her bloodstream.
She takes advantage of Serqet's wariness to get off an ancient power this time. Dust and filtering sand drifts down from overhead as a tremor shakes the pyramid, foundation stones splitting with gunshot cracks and fragments of masonry rising to spin in a cluster around Holly, glowing eerie orange and blue. The charmander throws her paws forward and sends the rocks tumbling at Serqet, who skitters desperately for a place to hide but can't outrun the attack. The ancient power throws her against a wall, and for a second she lies still, fuming.
She can't let Holly just get
away with that, though. Serqet collects herself and crawls atop one of the hunks of stone left behind by the ancient power. The scorpion pokémon plants her front claws firmly and waves her stinger slowly back and forth while she concentrates, using her poisonous abilities to call to her venom--even if it's not even in her own body any more.
Holly cries out again as a sudden burning flares in her chest, spreading rapidly to encompass her entire body as the toxic chemicals in her blood react and intensify. The charmander dashes in circles at first, scratching at her scales in an attempt to counteract the acid-stinging sensation, but soon enough she remembers her trainer's command and dives thankfully to the ground, claws tearing at the sand as she rapidly burrows away from the unknown force that's tormenting her so.
Sand flies in all directions, and in a matter of seconds Holly's down at the pyramid's foundations, wrestling with the old stone separating her from the outside. Fortunately the ancient blocks are loose, and the charmander manages to wrestle one aside just enough to slip through.
The pain fades slowly as the venoshock loses its potency, and by the time Holly's broken through to the surface on the far side of the wall, it's gone entirely, leaving her free to scramble out of her hole and gape at the desert and the looming pyramids standing all around.
Meanwhile, Serqet's doing some gaping of her own, staring at the dark hole her opponent left behind. That... wasn't what she was expecting to happen. The skorupi scuttles over to the edge of the tunnel and peers inside. There's no way she can hit Holly with a rock tomb, not if she doesn't know where the charmander is. Serqet turns back to her trainer, hissing and clicking a question. Should she follow? Or should she wait for the charmander to return?
Going back inside the dark, cold pyramid is the last thing on Holly's mind at the moment. She sits and stares up into the almost painfully bright sky, enjoying the heat of its rays on her scales. It's so lovely out here, dry and bright and
hot, and of course Serqet's not here either. No sooner has the charmander stretched out to rest, though, than a sudden twinge of pain makes her curl up, heart pounding. Unfortunately, no amount of sun can purge the poison in her body, and if anything the toxins' influence is growing stronger.
Kung Fu Ferret (OOO)
Serqet (F) <Sniper>
Health: 90%
Energy: 88%
- A bit confused. -2 Speed
Used: Toxic ~ Venoshock ~ Nothing
Gzhoom (OOO)
Charmander (F) <Blaze>
Health: 84%
Energy: 91%
- Am I sick? Currently outside the pyramid. Badly poisoned (2% next round).
Used: Scary Face ~ Ancient Power ~ Dig (outside)
Terrain Notes
There is a narrow tunnel leading from Gzhoom's side of the arena to the desert outside.
Final Notes
- Kung Fu Ferret, you gave four commands, so I simply ignored the last one (acupressure). If you meant for that to be a conditional, make sure you remember to give the conditions under which it should be used.
- No worries, Gzhoom, your commands were fine!
- Kung Fu Ferret's up first next round.