Save a Life...

[Birdybot]

Sulteron raced through the first town, not caring about the people complaining loudly as she pushed past them. Their curses were blocked out of her mind. Her face was red with exhaustion, her breath coming in short pants. She felt as if her lungs would explode; she couldn't seem to get enough air into the burning organs. Her Absol, Tayeko, raced at her side, urging her on while Jizu, her daemon, fluttered ahead as a Tailow to give her motive, not that she'd need any more than her current one. She needed to get to the Pokémon Center. At her belt rested the Pokéball of a Suicune... a dying Suicune. She could remember too vividly the gaping bullet wound, and the wolf's request for her to take her to a Pokémon Center. She wished she had a bike. Or even better, that the route she had been travelling on passed by a road where she could hitch-hike.

~Come on, come on! Sulteron, you're nearly there; I can see it!~[/color] Tayeko yelled to his trainer over the protesting shouts of a bustling crowd of shoppers. Sulteron nodded, running even faster. Her long Espeon tail was out of the way of her legs, and the jewel on her forehead was flickering softly. She could hear her heart pounding in her head as she finally came in sight of the blue tinted glass sliding doors. She had sprinted her way through a route, and now she longed to be able to sink into a chair.

Ignoring the burns of people's amazed stares at the back of her head, Sulteron raced up to the counter. There was an orderly line of people waiting to be served, but Sulteron couldn't exactly wait for that. She was sure people wouldn't mind; it was a matter of life or death, after all. Not even stopping to catch her breath, she called to any Nurse Joy which was behind that counter. "Please! Someone help me! Suicune's dying! Suicune was shot!" she called, loud enough that the women would hear. She was surprised at how shaky her voice was, and was certain then that some of the liquid on her face was tears rather than sweat. She must look a state, an exhausted young girl crying for help when a Suicune was shot... she noticed that any eyes that hadn't been on her were watching now. Even to people who were having a Pokémon battle had stopped to watch. Jizu whimpered on Sulteron's shoulder, becoming an Eevee as they waited for a response. Sulteron gripped the great, dying wolf's Pokéball tightly in both hands, visable to the Nurses.[/size]

[Halofire]

It was silent as the crowd stared at the girl who was screaming about a dying Suicune. Most of them didn't believe her, and a few whispers began to cut through the silence, their rasping sound quickly magnifying. Many of the people thought she was crazy, and only a few wondered if maybe she was telling the truth.

The nurses weren't taking any chances though; One of them began pushing through the milling crowd, trying to get to the 'morph and her dying Suicune. "Excuse me, please move, I need to get through!" she shouted exasperatedly as people began shuffling out of her way. Her Sentret daemon clung tightly to her shoulder, his tail curled around her arm, trying to avoid being touched by other people as the nurse pushed through them. Finally, panting, she reached Sulteron.

"Did you say a Suicune? There's no time to waste, we need to get it to the emergency room, now!" Without waiting for a response, she grabbed Sulteron's arm and pulled her through what had once been a crowd, but because of the nurse's previous efforts luckily the way was cleared as people stood on the sidelines and watched. Most of the looks were skeptical, some scared. The other nurses were rushing around, trying to get everything ready and hopefully save the great wolf's life.

[Birdybot]

Sulteron nodded, life taking on a somewhat dreamlike quality as she was pulled through what once was a crowd. Ignoring the mutters and points, some of which she could hear were doubtfull an extremely insulting way, she allowed the nurse to lead her to the emergancy room. Ordinarily, she would have stopped to gaze at the vast amount of medical equipment, and the several rare Pokémon. She passed little Pichus and Starlys that had been pushed to hard in battle, to some shapes she couldn't name and she could swear she saw a Dragonite being treated. She stared down at a large bed. It was large enough to accomodate Segonami the Suicune.

She made eye contact with Nurse Joy as she pulled out a strange Pokéball. When Sego had gone inside, it had taken on a slight blue tint and there was a small image of a drop of water over the button. Gingerly, her fingers found said button and pressed it. The resulting burst of light was the brightest she'd ever seen be emitted by a Pokéball, and in a split second a great wolf was lying on the bed. Her great head was screwed up in pain, her eyes open a little. One leg and her chest was crudely bandaged and there was a splatter of blood over the white material.

Sulteron crouched down beside the great Pokémon and stroked her head. "Don't worry, you'll be all better soon.~ she insisted. Jizu, in the form of a Pidgey on her shoulder, nodded frantically. The Espeon 'morph then turned to the nurse again. "We found her on Route Two. She'd been shot in the leg and chest by Team Tsuasa. I think she's broken a rib or something. Please get her better." she explained. Jizu gave a little angry chirp at the mention of Team Tsuasa.

[Halofire]

There was a collective gasp at the sight of the great water wolf lying terribly injured on the bed. The nurses quickly began hooking up various wires to it, putting an oxygen mask over its mouth and carefully removing the bandages to reveal the extent of the injury underneath. In the background, a slow beeping could be heard. It was the heart rate of the Suicune, and it was deifinitely foreboding at its sluggish rate, as if the heart hadn't too much blood left to pump.

Underneath the bandages, the fur was caked with blood, dried at the edges where it stuck up in little spikes, but a lot of it was still damp and bright, bright red. The small holes could be seen, on in the chest area, below the heart, and another in her leg. The bullets would have to be removed, and there would need to be muscle grafting in the chest if the Suicune was to have the use of her legs, and more muscle grafting in the leg so that she could use it as well. Meanwhile, if a rib was broken, it would be hard to care for; the wolf would be able to move, yes, but breathing would be difficult and painful. Unfortunately, there really isn't much to do for a broken rib, and the best treatment is to let it heal on its own.

Nurse Joy looked at Sulteron. "This is going to take all day, probably through the night, too... do you want to get a room here to spend the night?" Her voice was shaky. Meanwhile the doctors had put some sort of blanket over the unconscious wolf and were taking X-Ray photos. "Confirmed broken rib, but no other skeletal damage!" One of them shouted, and they started taking more photos to see the extent of the muscular damage. There was a definite air of hurrying in the air, with an underlying buzz of excitement; after all, Suicunes don't go to the Pokemon Center every day. Meanwhile, some nurses were explaining to the crowd that they needed to take care of the Suicune first. Some people seemed angry, even though it was Segonami's life on the line. A lot of people were understaning though, or maybe their Pokemon weren't in as bad shape, but slowly the crowd dispersed.

[Birdybot]

Sulteron stepped away from Segonami, allowing the doctors to do their work. She nodded grimly at the nurse. She understood how serious this was. The muscle tissue would have been damaged, and a broken rib could mean peirced lungs and probably even more damaged tissue. Hopefully the main blood vessels like the aorta weren't damaged. "Yes, I'd like a room. Hopefully being a legendary might help Sego a little. I just want to know why Team Tsuasa would want to kill a Suicune... they sicken me. I think I'll call the police and rangers to let them know. After that, I'll probably head over to the gym. After all, I wouldn't want to get in the way while you operate." she bowed her head in respect and walked out the room.

Jizu was in a state of shock, making it hard for Sulteron to concentrate; he kept falling off her shoulder. Eventually, she hugged him tight, and he became an Eevee. ~Sulteron, I think that Team Tsuasa are more of a threat than anyone realised. They made the evil demon thingys come, and now they're attempting to murder the legendary Pokémon. It's... it's barbaric!~ he wailed as she sat down in front of a phone. Quickly, her fingers pressed the buttons to call the police; 999. ((911 for Americans)) The Espeon 'morph was guided by a robotic recorded voice to finally come in contact with someone.

"Hello? This is Karl, cheif of Silav Town police." a deep voice told her. "Is there a problem?"
Sulteron sucked in a deep breath. This might be hard to say, and her voice was still shaky. "Yes, Sir. Well, I don't need assistance or anything, but I want to give information. It... it's about Team Tsuasa."
"Really? That's brilliant, it's about time we shed some light on them!" Sulteron could tell that Karl was beaming.
"No, it's... bad news. Sorry. You see, on route two, there was a storm, and I'm sure you probably saw it from Silav. I know what caused it. Not Team Tsuasa, but a Suicune. It's a long story. You see, I heard gunshots and found Suicune lying, severely wounded. The bullets narrowly missed her heart. She said I should catch her in a Pokéball and take her to Silav Town's Pokémon Center, so I did. It's pretty serious and the doctors have just started work on her. She told me it was Team Tsuasa who did it, and they clearly meant to kill her." Sulteron explained.
There was a pause. "Oh... oh sweet Arceus. Team Tsuasa...? Kill...? Suicune...?! I'll alert all the policemen and the rangers. Thank you very much." Karl said, before hanging up.

Sulteron and Jizu exchanged grim glances. The Espeon 'morph stood up, Tayeko nuzzling her. She smiled faintly, rubbing his fur. The Absol grinned. ~Don't worry, Sulteron! Sagonami will be all right, yeah? Come on, let's get a quick trip to the gym in before be go to stay here for the night.~[/color] he said. Sulteron nodded, checking that all her Pokéballs were at her belt. Her fingers lingered on Sego's, then she led the way out of the Pokémon Center. It would be a quick visit, and if anything happened, the Pokémon Center would contact her on her mobile phone, right? She walked to the gym, and stepped inside the building. "Hello? I'm Sulteron, and I wish to challenge the gym leader." she said boldly as she walked in Silav town's gym.[/size]

[Halofire]

At first there was no one in the main lobby of the gym. The walls were green, with many potted plants along the walls and various pictured of grass-type Pokemon pinted neatly on the walls. The overhead light cast a healthy glow over the room, surely a good change from the Pokemon Center room where everybody had been rushing around, no?

A door on the wall opposite Sulteron suddenly opened with the slightest creak, and from behind it stepped a woman with red hair who could only have been in her twenties, with a Cherubi daemon. "A challenger, huh? That should make the gym leader happy. Sulteron, right? Follow me, please." She swung the door wider for the 'morph and went back through it. Through the door a large room could be seen, about half the size of a football field, with a bright light coming from above, illuminating the woman who had just summoned Sulteron inside.

[Birdybot]

Sulteron became extremely nervous as all the bright light illuminated her. Being a creature of the light, the light made her feel better, but she was extremely nervous about her first gym battle. True, all the Pokémon in her party had been trained to level 16, but the gym leader was still going to be tough. She reckoned she'd be lucky to make the battle using two Pokémon like the leader would. She chewed her lip. Jizu became a Bayleef, suiting the present environment more. Tayeko sniffed. As a Dark type, he clearly didn't approve too much of all this light.

Sulteron stepped forward to what was clearly her spot on the arena; it was the nearest one and a vacant one. She looked over to the other side, where the gym leader probably was. What was her name again... Eli? Erika? Oh, right- Elika! And her daemon was a Roselia, right? The Espeon 'morph took in a deep breath. "Hello, gym leader Elika. My name's Sulteron, and I'm here for my first badge. Tayeko, let's go!" she called. Tayeko grinned, pleased to be chosen. True, he had thought she would choose Lenyi, a Fire and Flying type, and so super effective, but he wasn't going to complain when fighting in a gym battle. The shiny Absol struck a typical menacing battle pose, muscles tensed and ready for anything.

[Halofire]

Elika smiled at the new challenger. She liked meeting the trainers that came in through the gym doors, and seeing how well they battled. Her Roselia daemon bowed politely and raised his blue-flowered hand into the air as his human pulled a Pokeball out. She almost twirled as she tossed it into the air, and a shower of pink petals burst out of it and formed into her first Pokemon, an Oddish. The entrance was unusual... a seal, maybe?

"Hello, Sulteron. As you know, I am the Sento Town gym Leader, Elika. I accept your challenge." Her daemon lowered his hand and almost seemed to dance, while the Oddish swayed from side to side in a cute manner, hardly threatening, unlike the growling shiny Absol that was to be her opponent.

"You may make the first move." Elika said politely. She could tell that this trainer was determined, and wouldn't go down easily. Good.

[Birdybot]

Sulteron smiled. A seal? Wasn't that what those things on Roselia's Pokéball were called? She thought that was what they were called. Perhaps now she had settled on a team to go through the gyms and elites with, she could put seals over their Pokéballs. Maybe. But back to the present; Elika had given her the first move. Sulteron wasn't sure whether to use Leer; she knew Grass types often learned lots of stat changers, and Oddish might know a move that would raise it's Defense back to normal again. So perhaps she ought to test it. As she knew at the moment, Grass types did not have very good Speed, but excelent Defense. Well, as Tayeko was a fast Pokémon and knew lots of speedy moves, this would be to her advantage. "Tayeko, use Quick Attack!" she called, smiling confidently.

The Absol also smiled. Quick Attack was an attack that hardly ever missed, so Oddish was likely to be hit this turn. He knew that, as usual, his trainer was probably testing the opponent to see how hard they would have to work. He himself wondered how hard. Well, on with the attacking. The red wolf darted forwards, racing at the Oddish.

[Halofire]

It seemed that Elika was ready for a straight-out assault such as this. The Oddish was hit, yes, but it managed to keep its footing as Elika politely said, "Oddish, would you be a dear and use Sweet Scent?" The little blue Oddish swayed around and released a heavy cloud of sweetly-scented pink pollen. The scent was very distracting; even Elika was feeling its effects. Luckliy, she had had this happen to her many times before, so it wasn't as potent, and she could keep her battle determination.

[Birdybot]

Tayeko caught scent of the fresh, flowering, sweet smell. Oh, that was so good. He sniffed it up, sighing in contentment. He couldn't remember why he was here, but why think about anything when there was this lovely, delicious, feat-for-the-nose smell? His eyelids drooped, and he was completely relaxed. This was the life. When Sulteron retired, he wanted her to have caught an Oddish so it could Sweet Scent their house. He had a stupid grin on his face, and it was obvious that he wouldn't do anything unless Oddish hurt him really badly.

Sulteron caught a sniff, and could understand why this attack always tended to attract Pokémon. It was very distracting... no! Even if Tayeko wasn't, she had to remain focused. "Tayeko, snap out of it! The battle, remember! Tayeko? Come on, we can do this later! Tayeko? Tayeko, please!" she called, remaining polite to her Pokémon but her pleas were to no avail. Tayeko simply waved a paw and shook his head, gulping in more wonderful air. Having such a good sense of smell was proving to be a bit of a bad thing at the moment.

[Halofire]

Elika smiled as the shiny Absol was enraptured by the sweet-smelling air. That would give her a free hit that likely wouldn't be dodged. And the earlier hit on the Oddish was not to be ignored, so Elika commanded, "Oddish! Use Absorb now, please!" The Oddish swayed and little glowing green balls came out of its leaves and flew at Tayeko. Even if is was a weak attack, it would replenish at least some of the damage dealt to the little weed Pokemon. So far, the battle seemed to be in Elika's favor, but Sulteron could change that in a moment if Tayeko returned to his senses.

[Birdybot]

Tayeko sniffed deeply, but the nice smell seemed to be in less quantity now. He was completely ignoring whatever the silly Oddish was doing, waving it's leaves, and the Absol was trying to see where the smell had gone. Of course, Oddish had simply finished making the smell and Tayeko had smelt it all up, but he wasn't exactly going to give up something that good, was he? He only returned to this world as he felt a dull prick in his side, followed by more and more painful ones as the Absorb hit. He whined as he felt the little orbs tickle him, making him feel slightly weaker as they emerged, heading for Oddish. He may have been hit and Oddish may be stronger, but at least he was back in the battle.

"Good, Tayeko, you're back to your senses! Brilliant! Right, let's get Oddish with a Faint Attack!" Sulteron called happily. A grin passed over the shiny's face, too. He liked Faint Attack. It was unmissable. The wolf's form flickered once, twice, before he disappeared completely. He would reappear behind Oddish for his attack.

[Halofire]

The smell was fading from the room, returning it to its usual earty scent, and the Absol seemed to be coming back from its trance, its mind being less clouded by the powerful smell. Oddish's attack seemed to have pulled it fully from its nearly drunken stupor, and it was obvious Sulteron hadn't missed this indicator either.

Elika knew what was coming, but she also knew she couldn't do anything to stop it. She also figured that Sweet Scent wouldn't be as effective twice, so she went with a new tactic.

The wolf appeared behind Oddish to deliver his attack, smashing the little weed Pokemon in the back. It let out a cry and struggled, obviously surprised by its opponent's sudden reappearance. "It's okay, Oddish, but please use Acid now!" Elika said, and the Oddish prayed a toxic green substance from its leaves at the Absol, less likely to miss due to the close proximity between the two combatants.

[Birdybot]

Tayeko moved to dodge, but he hadn't so much as put a paw in front of him when he felt the burning acid claw at him painfully. He whined, but luckily he didn't seem to be poisoned, just hurt painfully. His paws clawed at the fur where the Acid attack had hit, but it was over anyway. His whine turned into an angry snarl. He couldn't let this little Oddish hurt him! After all, look how small it was!

Sulteron could see Tayeko wasn't happy. "Tayeko, don't worry! You're doing really well!" she said to him. He felt a little better, it was clear. "Now, let's use Scratch while it's close!" she called.

Tayeko nodded. His claws were nice and sharp, and ruby red. He reared onto his hind legs to attack. It would be as speedy, but it would be more powerful. He leaned back, pulling his front leg back to strike Oddish. He let loose the Scratch. Did it hit?