Not to Go Back ;; Hoenn ;; Steven

[KANE]

Adrenaline was a very powerful thing indeed. It gave him a powerful charge, strong enough to remain standing despite having just shot himself. He crossed the distance between them in a heartbeat, grabbing his pokéballs from her. He knew by sight which ones they were - though he had a nagging suspicion that Alyssa might have had put up a resistance. Once again, he settled back into the mindset that he was protected because of his wound; she wouldn't try anything drastic, apparent from the tone of her voice. It was quiet, dotted with something that was unmistakably worry.

"I'll be fine," he muttered, feeling the blood gush from his wound once he grabbed all four of his pokéballs from her. He returned them to their respective positions on him, save for one. It was Wing's pokéball. He would know where to take him; the skarmory always knew where Steven wanted to go. In this case - a doctor where he could get his bullet removed. "The longer I wait, the more blood I lose," he said, almost irritably. He didn't have time to continue speaking to her. This time, the wound he sustained was a real injury. Not one protected by a ballistic vest, not one having its blow dampened.

The former champion, hoping the words would have an impact on the veteran trainer, walked slowly towards the windows at the end of the seventeenth floor. He kept his back straight, emotions relatively in check like he always did. Steven Stone never lost his composure. Daigo would have lashed out like a spoilt brat - but then again, he was too prideful to even think of shooting himself in the back. There were no pulling punches as Steven. As long as he completed his agenda ... as long as the days where he lived as someone else passed ... he narrowed his eyes, pressing the button to summon the elevator.

The lift soon arrived for some mysterious reason, doors sliding open. After his previous encounter with the president at the service elevator, he - despite not wishing to admit it even to himself - was hoping to not see the man. Thankfully, there was none. He glanced back at it, recognizing the now pallid faces of Seth and Raskel. Someone had been rather kind to transport them to the floor Alyssa and he was on. His - their - doings had not gone unnoticed. He glanced away.

A finger clicked the red-and-white device in his hands before the young man returned it to the depths of his coat. Wing stormed forth from his pokéball, cawing as he stomped his mark on the flooring. The skarmory was large, but not large enough to scrape the ceilings - this floor had a particularly tall roof to it. "I assume you have your own way out," he told the female. Which pokémon trainer did not? Even if they weren't keen on using firearms or weaponry other than their own pokémon, they would at the very least have an escape plan in case things went awry.

Now, things were more apt to go pear-shaped with the arrival of two dead bodies in the elevator. Then there was another in his office, Steven thought grimly. When he returned - if he returned, would Maine still be there, or would Tsuwabuki discover his actions? Steven shut his eyes, diverting his pain somewhere else mentally. "Wing," he murmured the steel bird's name; Wing turned to him, titling his head slightly. "Go." The skarmory nodded silently, soaring ahead towards the windows, the wind gusting behind his iron feathers.

[Air Cutter] slicing the air before him, the avian lowered his head and broke the windows. Glass shattered; Wing disappeared before coming back to Steven, half-kneeling to allow him on. The man glanced at Alyssa once last time, before retrieving his cellphone and dialling a rather familiar number. That one person would be able to help him remove the bullet within him; nox's doctors were few and he knew the one from his own region better than the others.

"........"

[KANE]

She decided it best to refrain from resist Steven’s commands in this instance. It would get them absolutely nowhere, as much as she felt she should. Her jaw tilted downwards slightly as he retrieved all of his pokeballs, Alyssa having offered the third and fourth ones soon after her hand was extended with the first two. ”I’ll be fine. The longer I wait, the more blood I lose.” he stated in a manner that could almost be considered impatient. Well duh... she thought in response to his words. Only reason I suggested you resting was so that you don’t pass out and possibly die on the way to get help. She watched him move about the room for a moment before calling forth one of his pokemon. She identified the shape the red burst of energy shooting from the pokeball took before the pokemon took its full form.

Steven’s Skarmory stood before them, announcing its presence as soon as it was able to. Alyssa hadn’t encountered many Skarmory in Hoenn…most of the ones she’d seen were in Johto . Definitely, most of the Skarmory she’d seen had belonged to trainers, but not as many in the wild. They’re not exactly the most common pokemon around though, are they? she mused silently, looking at the strong bird pokemon with almost an admiring light in her eyes. Blinking when Steven spoke, the light vanished as quickly as it had come, and she looked back at him. ”I assume you have your own way out.”

She refrained herself from sighing and/or rolling her eyes in reaction to his words. No… she thought I came into Lux territory completely unprepared to make a fast getaway. Pausing, she silently added, Oh yes, because that’s the smartest thing to do. Opening her mouth, she responded quietly. ”Of course I do. What sort of trainer do you take me for?” Although it wasn’t necessarily her intention for that remark to be heard, it wouldn’t kill her if he did hear it, either.

She stepped forward and dropped hand to her belt, moving three pokeballs back over to their correct side, which was now empty thanks to having delivered Steven’s pokemon to him. She let her fingers remain curled atop the devices as Steven commanded his Skarmory, to do what Alyssa assumed was make an exit for them to get out with. She flinched slightly at the sound of glass shattering although she had been expecting it. Looking up at Steven as his pokemon returned to him, she nodded slightly when he pulled out his cell phone.

Clicking a Timer Ball off of her belt, she tossed it lightly into the air. ”C’mon, Flygon…” she said as the shape of the tall, green dragon pokemon took shape. As the pokeball fell back into the trainer’s hand, the green muzzle of the Mystic pokemon was shoved roughly – although Alyssa assumed he was trying to be gentle – into the side of her head, forcing her sideways in a manner that would have pushed her over had she not been keeping her balance.

”Yeah, yeah, I’m fine…” she said quietly, placing her hand on his nose and nodding slightly towards the ground. The pokemon crouched, lowering his body to the floor so his trainer could climb atop him. Once she was positioned above his neck and shoulders, he clasped her legs firmly beneath his clawed hands, raising his body again and lifting her off the ground. She leaned forward, wrapping one arm around her side, wincing as it pulled slightly at the movement. Placing the other on the side of his neck, she looked again at Steven.

”….just get that bullet taken care of, okay?” she asked, closer to telling him to do so rather than asking to confirm that he would. Flygon began flapping his wings, hovering above the ground and producing a light, pleasant humming sound that almost sounded like singing. Spirit of the Desert… the Veteran trainer mused silently. ”I have a feeling we’ll be seeing each other again rather soon, Mr. Stone.” she nodded slightly, leaning forward and wrapping her arm around the dragon’s neck.

”Let’s go…” she murmured quietly to her Flygon. ”Meteor Falls.” Nodding slightly, the pokemon angled himself to get both he and his trainer through the window without a problem. Glancing a last time at Steven, she added her farewell. ”Until then…”

With that, Flygon took off quickly, zipping through the window at an acceleration rate that let all Flygons become known for their nearly unmatched speed.

[KANE]

"Hmph."

Well, he didn't need to be told to take care of his bullet. Wing was doing that very thing for him. The skarmory glanced up from his half-kneeling position, a hoarse cry ebbing from his throat. The former champion glanced at the iron bird, nodding at it while raising a hand to signal for silence. "Perhaps," he said vaguely, not having the foggiest whether a meeting with one of the nox leaders was on his agenda. As far as things were concerned, he was happier not having someone to meet other than more rocks and stones. How the Akiyama lady factored into it would be - oh, the Falls? Now that was interesting.

Steven tapped his chin, momentarily forgetting about his bullet wound at the thought of one of his favourite haunts. Even as Alyssa left with her flygon, he was still standing in the building, pondering his exploits in the caves. His more recent trips to the location hadn't turned up anything of interest. He had, admittedly, turned to the new region of Isshu for his rock supplies. But now that Alyssa had brought it up, he had to wonder - was there anything he hadn't discovered? Something he had missed in his haste to find the next most interesting rock?

"Wing, what do you think?" the former champion asked calmly, "Do you think I should look into getting a house in Fallabor?" It was another of his statement-questions, where no answer was prompted. The white-haired man sank deeper into his thoughts, mentally trying to think of his current accounts and whether he could afford a home in the ash-stricken town. Farming could be an interesting hobby, if he wasn't checking out the Falls, he thought. It was settled then. He would invest in a -

The steel avian let out a piercing shriek, jolting him out of his thoughts. Silence fell before he glanced in the bird's direction, expression rather curious. "What is it," said Steven, "......." Out of habit, he pressed a hand - oh shit. He was bleeding ... right. Funny how rocks proved to be an interesting anaesthetic. Eyes narrowing, he beckoned to Wing. He needed to find a doctor, yes, get that bullet out of himself ... He clambered onto the tall pokémon, securing himself before he felt - darkness -