National Dex Pokegraphic
Chapter 2: Electric Boogaloo
And His Music Was Electric
By Invalid Value-anon
Dark Skies - Pokémon X & Pokémon Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWS4vYjR3QU
"Well, this is what you wanted, was it not?"
What? What was it that I wanted? I'm very confused...
"You wanted your hard work and effort to pay off. You wanted wonder, excitement, and purpose. You were scared and uncertain. You had so much doubt and regret. Oh, you had so much regret. I have relieved you of those grievances, and have given you this new opportunity in exchange."
My work? My purpose? New opportunity? I don't feel so well... what did you do?!
"You think too much, but your wild inquisitiveness and yearning is why you're here, isn't it? I could not take that from you. I have only taken just enough to not cause complications in your endeavors, but enough to keep you on track. Just keep doing what you've been doing. You will be fine."
My yearning for... what?! What did you take?! What did you take and what else do you want from me?!
"Our time is up. Just keep moving forward. Watch out for that hole in the road."
Through The Threshold * * *
Gate - Pokémon X & Pokémon Y
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fHkWWfSIXU
Mustel jolted awake with a chirp and snarl. A sharp bump of motion traveled up his spine, forcing him to grab at the ground beside him, digging in his claws. He growled in discomfort from the erratic movement as everything swayed about. His thoughts were muddled as the weight of sleep was slowly lifted. He was aboard the wooden wagon being driven across the Grass Continent by an old, darkly furred Tauros, just how he remembered it before dozing off. Serpes was still beside him, coiling up to himself as the snake watched the scenery shift from vibrant greens to dull grays.
The environment changed from its familiar lush forests and verdant fields to muggy, monochrome cliffs and dull, stifling wastelands. The rocky landscape featured stone spires that reached into the darkened clouds, which beamed with distant crackling seams of purple electricity racing back down the spires like lightning rods. The claps of thunder that followed were like distant, angry whispers. There was a persistent prickling sensation along the Cat Ferret Pokemon's skin and fur. The uncomfortable clinging that filled the atmosphere made every little motion an invitation for static electricity to jump and arc between surfaces.
"You finally awake there, buddy? We jussst hit the border of the Amp Plains- crap!" The Seviper rubbed his snout in irritation; a visible pop of electricity had just rolled off his serpentine tongue when he flicked it. He cringed in pain before mumbling out a quip. "Jus' ow ey member et!"
The Zangoose sat up, resembling a ball of dandelion seeds as his fur stood on end. He tried to calm down his unruly hair by licking at it much like the human world mammals he resembled, only to get shocked as well. "Ey luff et ere arredy." The studious Pokemon bemoaned sarcastically through his numb tongue.
The wagon came to a halt before a large divide in the craggy stones. There was a great sense of unease coming from the canyon, as if the very fabric of reality frayed and warped the closer one approached it. A gruff voice spoke up that Team Fangclaw only heard once or twice before they started their long ride here. "Here we are. The Amp Plains Mystery Dungeon. I reckon you guildies have your supplies and things in order? I'll be here until after the next sunrise, that is if you can tell through this awful weather. If anything happens to delay you before then... Well then I'm afraid you'll be walking back to Capim Town. Maybe you'll luck out and catch me along the road on the way back. Hah! ...Stay in one piece out there, boys." The old, weathered Tauros turned to face them with an archetypal bovine snort.
The guildmon pair disembark from the wagon, with Mustel giving an understanding nod. "T-thank you, Mr. Tauros... We'll certainly try to." Before he could make any more small talk with their wagoneer, Serpes hurried him along towards the passage with a scooping motion of his tailblade.
"You can talk to your cow friend on the way back. We'll be in and out of the plains like banditsss, before you know it!" The snake spoke with a confident smile.
Mustel glanced behind himself once more at the trail before facing the matter at hand. "This is... a dungeon? I know I haven't seen many dungeons in my short time here... It's just... it just looks like we're going through a narrow canyon? I can't even see what's on the other side..."
"Not all dungeonsss take place in some dank cave or ancient ruin underground, my friend. Some regions of the sssurface have been warped by the mysteriosity that shaped these dungeons. The Amp Plains dungeon is... overlapped with the natural wonder that is the same named Amp Plains region! Crazy, huh?" The Seviper held an expression of excitement, but it likely wasn't for the trivia he was dropping, more than the riches held within the dungeon.
"Mysteriosity, huh... You're telling me the dungeon and the plains are one and the same? I thought dungeons would be more isolated pockets of... non-euclidean space or something... How does this place even look from the sky?" Mustel gently scratched at his scalp in thought.
"I don't know about your not-accordions ssspaces... As for how these places look from the sky, I don't have the slightest idea. I'm sssure you can read up on that back home. Maybe you can ask one of the Flying-Types... Ah! It'sss time. Best look alive, partner. We're finally here!"
The Zangoose looked around, alarmed by how quickly their environment had changed. They were now standing in an enclosure of jagged cliffs from every direction. The towering stone spires breached their horizons towards the thick, cloudy skies. A light drizzle touched their hides and the atmosphere smelled heavily of ozone. They were greeted by the dazzling strobes of lightning and the roaring blasts of thunder. Mustel looked over his shoulder to find that the path they had taken was gone.
"I'm never going to get used to that." He bared his claws as adrenaline coursed through him. His limbs felt like they were ready to act without his input. Almost every bit of friction behind their movement forced static to light up the air. "W-where are we supposed to find that Jaw Fossil anyway?!"
Serpes flipped out the poster with little difficulty, much to Mustel's continued astonishment, and tucked it into the coils of his tail. He bobbed his head playfully as he read it. "Letsss see here... Tenth floor! One should just be lying about there. I'm not one to doubt my Auntie's intuition on tracking down her treasures. Dungeons always have the most interesssting things in them!"
"T-tenth..." The polecat-like Pokemon looked the area up and down repeatedly. He was momentarily confounded by the fact that this dungeon subscribed to the concept of floors when there was an open sky right above them. "How does this even work?!"
"Something, something, magic. Don't get your fluffy head wrapped up in the mystery of the mystery dungeon, buddy. People smarter than both of us have been trying to figure thessse things out their entire lives. I don't envy them... besssides, you've got Pokemon to worry about, don't you?" The Seviper stowed the parchment. He sharpened his tailblade along the ground with a starry display of sparks. "Once you're done giving yourself a headache, we should probably move along! I can smell and feel ferals coming up on us!" The snake drummed his weapon against the ground excitedly.
Amp Plains (Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness/Time/Sky) - GaMetal Remix
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1OUzem5FQF0
A Plusle, Minun, and an Elekid emerged from behind the stones and crevices in their surroundings, right on cue. Their body language was bestial and ravenous, with their eyes glimmering with a malicious red glow the moment they recognized the intruders. They all let out malicious cries as their bodies crackled with electricity!
The Plusle and Minun hold hands, arcing thick bolts of electricity between them. They both shrieked as they called down an explosive pillar of lightning from the sky aimed toward Team Fangclaw!
Mustel felt his body move faster than his brain as his limbs swept him out of harm's way. He crashed into the wet, squelching soil, tumbling head over tail before stopping. "OOF! HOLY SHIT!!!"
Serpes darted out of the way, faster than a whip, as the Thunder move collided with the ground, sending debris flying into the air. "Hahahaaa!!! Let usss do battle, you little twats!" He springs into the air and lands beside his Zangoose comrade. He swept his blade, forcing the ferals to give them a wide berth. "SWORDS DANCE WITH ME, MUSTEL!" The Seviper cried out excitedly.
"S-sword-... p-phrasing?! SERPES?!" The Cat Ferret Pokemon was left speechless as the Seviper hooked the blunt edge of his tailblade into Mustel's claws. Serpes forced his friend into what could be best described as a haphazardly performance of the Tango, using their combined mobility to evade and confound the onslaught. Shiny, auric blades of energy manifested through their combined actions, encircled them, and empowered them! "SERPES! I'M GOING TO BE SICK."
The snake let go of the cat and sent them both spinning out of harm's way as another bolt of electricity blew up the ground where they once stood. Mustel eventually stopped, wobbling woozily as he clutched at his head. "Ughh... Why?!"
"Do you feel it? It'sss in the ground! It's in the air, Mussstel! It's at your very paws and claws!" Serpes chimed in, baring a toothy smile. His blade and fangs glinted with a razor edge while he wriggled in place with pent up energy. He took immediate advantage of this boon and expertly parried a flurry of punches from the Elekid before striking them aside with a well placed Poison Tail.
"I-if what you say you're feeling is love in the air tonight, I'm leaving...." He shook his head to try and get his inner ear back in order. "Next time, warn me before you do something that insane! Sheesh!" He felt a tingling overcome his arms and examined his claws, noticing the gleam of sharpness running along them. He apparently benefited from the united Swords Dance alongside his companion. "What the... did I always know thi-... Serpes, did you know I knew that move?!" He yelped as a leaping arc of electricity zoomed past him. The Pluse and Minun duo were right behind him and still uniting their combined might against the adventurers.
"Watch your flank there, friend! Alssso... Nope! I just hoped you'd keep pace with me! Maybe you inherited it from someone? Say, what should we call that whole thing we did... a Team Attack? An Alliance? Maybe we can call it a _Buddy Boost_- OOF!" Serpes coughed as the Elekid socked him along the length of his long belly. The feisty Electric Pokemon was drooling purple goop, a telltale sign of poisoning from the serpent's earlier attack. "Okay, you're sssuch a goner for interrupting me!" The Seviper spat a dart of poison at the feral, inflicting Venoshock on it. The Elekid seemed to express agony across its soulless face for a brief second before its body combusted into an explosion of toxins and smoke, leaving nothing in its wake but some bits of Poke coin.
"Inherited... from who?! I'm a human. I wasn't hatched... NOT AGAIN!" Mustel cried out in terror again as he evaded yet another explosion. He dropped to his haunches and flaunted his claws, grumbling and hissing in frustration. He felt the volatile energy coursing through his limbs and it desired an outlet. "Okay... THAT'S ENOUGH OUT OF YOU, YOU BOOTLEG RAT BASTARDS!"
The Zangoose acted first and utilized Quick Attack in an explosive release of tension. He zoomed by the Plusle in a flash as the Electric-Type kept aggressively pelting Sparks. The darts of plasma grazed and scorched his hide. He grimaced in pain while he held up against the attacks. The ferret-like fighter felt his claws shear through his target like wet paper. Before it even knew what happened, the female Cheering Pokemon was bisected in a goreless display. It collapsed in a heap without so much as a whimper and dissolved into smoke. Mustel took a moment to gather what just transpired. "GOD, I wish I knew how to do that on demand..."
The Minun screamed in rage. It sprinted towards Mustel's flank while he was amazed by his own instinctual talents. It burrowed in like a tick, digging in with its sharp little teeth and claws as static ran through it, electrocuting its opponent. The Zangoose let out a howl and stumbled back unsteadily. He clawed erratically at the air in impotent frustration as his muscles acted against him.
"P-PISS. S-SHIT. C-C-CUNTS. N-NI-" The convulsing cat-like creature was tackled to the ground by his snake-shaped companion with a muddy thud. Serpes swiftly pried off the nasty Minun with his teeth in vengeful retaliation and slammed it repeatedly into the ground beside them until it ceased to be.
"Ffff...F-FUCK! S-Serpes?! S-Serpes t-this s-sucks!" Mustel stared towards the cloudy sky, lying flat on his back. He whimpered as his nerves painfully misfired.
His Seviper partner slithered to the weasel's side and urgently stuffed a red berry into his groaning maw, forcing him to chew on it.
"C-Cheri Berry? Thanks..." The Zangoose spoke with an exasperated gasp after swallowing a mouthful of the fruit. He felt his muscles gradually relax once more, much to his relief. His attention briefly took to the skies, which lit up with an especially fierce explosion of thunder and lightning. The light drizzle gradually advanced into a fierce storm, leaving Team Fangclaw unpleasantly soaked.
"Ergh! Up you go, buddy! No need to thank me. We're still just getting started!" The Seviper grunted while he helped Mustel stand. They were a little worse for wear and wary from what they experienced from just the one room in the dungeon. The duo continued their expedition through the floor, gradually adapting to their circumstances, until they finally came across the stairs.
Upon ascending to the second floor, the duo were faced with a flock of bleating Mareep. Electricity arced between their wool coats as they all turned towards the pair of dungeon delvers. Malice was immediately apparent in their eyes as they beamed that unsettling red glow. The duo glanced at one another before they prepared for the new onslaught.
"Nine more floor?!" Mustel asked worringly. He started digging through his Treasure Bag for a solution to their latest fight.
"Nine more floorsss!" Serpes smiled in turn. His mouth and tail both glowed a purple hue as he prepared to strike against their new group of foes.
Beat The Mania * * *
"Hold on there, pal! Do you feel it now?" Serpes asked again while he pilfered through the loot of yet another encounter. He sifted through colorful berries, bits of fabric accessories, and various crystalline wonder orbs that gently rolled along the rain slicked earth. They had progressed through nine floors up to this point. They took a brief respite to gather their strength by the stairs before ascending towards their destination.
With a whine of frustration, the Cat Ferret Pokemon pulled out The Pokedex and flipped to its latest entries to preoccupy his ever bothered mind. The rain dripped off the mystical tome without so much as a smudge. He looked at entries detailing creatures like Mareep and Girafang. "No, Serpes. I still don't know what you're feeling! What I feel is... sore, drenched, I think I'm allergic to Mareep Wool; and I think the last Cheri Berry you force fed me got its stem stuck in my esophagus! Is this some sort of guessing game we're playing? I'm not in the mood, Serpes... This dungeon sucks!"
Serpes motioned his tail towards the ground, scratching lines into the soil. "Sorry, bud! I didn't want to tell you until I was certain myself. Put your ear againssst the dirt and give it a listen. You'll understand soon enough!"
The Zangoose gave his partner a wary gaze. "Seriously? This better be good..." He pressed his head flat against the floor, trying to tune into whatever had Serpes so excited. The background noise created by the rain made it difficult at first. The longer he listened, the more he recognized something that was out of place. There was a harmonic rhythm resonating through the ground... "W-what is this? It sounds like... punk rock?!"
"I don't see any Rock-Types being punksss around here, buddy. I have been feeling those vibrationsss running up my scales since we first arrived to the Amp Plains. I didn't know what to make of it at first. I kind of really, what is it people say? I vibe with it." Serpes hissed gleefully now that Mustel finally grasped it.
"Music in a mystery dungeon. Okay. Cool. Interesting. Question. How the hell is sound traveling between the floors of a mystery dungeon?!" The Zangoose motioned his claws up and down, he demanded some kind of closure to this anomaly, despite the unlikelihood of getting any.
"The myssstery of this beat, uh... it beats me, bud." The Seviper looked towards the stone stairs. The apex of the steps distorted into a translucent haze, as they always did before transporting to the next floor. Serpes placed his tailblade against the bottom of the ascent. "It'sss getting louder... much louder. I think we have a noisssy surprise in store for us. Are you ready for whatever's ahead, partner?"
Mustel approached and put his claw on the stairs alongside his partner. He felt those same rhythmic vibrations run through his claws in greater intensity. "Man... What did we get ourselves into? This can't be the work of ferals, right? I.... I guess I'm ready as I'll ever be."
Team Fangclaw climbed to the tenth floor, wary and uncertain of what finally awaited them.
Battle! Gym Leader Piers - Remix Cover (Pokémon Sword and Shield)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dfxcbHTrPKU
A cacophony of electronic noise, as grating as nails on a chalkboard, blasted through the air. Mustel fell to his knees and bared his fangs, clutching at his long ears. Serpes literally recoiled and buried his head under himself as the sonic whine distorted his senses. They both struggled to see through the violent assault on their senses.
Before them was a display that seemed too organized to be the work of the mysteriosity that controlled the dungeon. Calling it out of place would be putting it lightly.
There was an elevated plateau of stone and spires reminiscent of a performance stage before them. A dark crystal was embedded in the center of the stage, filled with a coiling, red and purple miasma. The ground around it was cracked as if it dropped from the sky. A duo consisting of an Amped Form and a Low Key Form Toxtricity were strumming at their chest ridges at the forefront of the structure. They were jamming out a song together as both a guitarist and a bassist. Between the two was an Exploud. It was roaring out vocals that sounded like little more than fierce and spirited chanting. The pipes on its body were modulating its sounds in various ways, even granting itself its own chorus. In the back was a Rillaboom, providing a rapid fire display of thundering percussion on its wooden drums.
The entire band leered at the new arrivals, their eyes consumed in a crimson haze as the music ceased. For a brief moment, Team Fangclaw felt like they were being genuinely watched by those soulless eyes.
"F-fuck! My ears! Do ferals usually do this?! T-this is all... W-well... It feels staged, pun unintended..." The Zangoose pried himself from the ground and shook his head. He ran to the Seviper's side and dug his serpentine companion's head out from under his own bulk before he placed his attention back on the group of ferals.
"HANDS OFF THE MERCHANDISE! ...Oh, hi Mustel! These guys sure picked a weird venue to hold band practice... Sssay, what do you think that fancy looking rock in the back is worth? Ow!"
The Zangoose frowned and gently bopped his companion on the snout. "We're not having a repeat of you and giant minerals. I don't think we're going to find the fossil with these guys around, speaking of rocks. As unconventional as they look, I think they're maybe some sort of... guardians?" He whetted his claws against one another as he performed a hasty Swords Dance. It didn't seem to work at first, until the auric display of spectral blades fanned around him. The empowering effect took place despite his mediocre attempt at it. "Ergh... W-What are we carrying, Serpes?" He asked as he pulled out his book to try and stitch together a plan of action.
"Um... Cheri Berries, Oran Berries, enough Reviver Seeds to wake the dead, an All Protect Orb, an Escape Orb, and... Whoops!" A bunch of unknown orbs, TM devices, wands, and a sandwich fell onto the floor. "Miscellaneousss... Mustel? I don't think this is a great time for some light reading. The band's closing in..." He frantically scooped up the wares and assumed a defensive posture.
The Rillaboom hoisted its drum set over its shoulder like a certain other great ape carrying a barrel. It hooted and hollered while it pointed its drumsticks at the intruders. The other ferals start descending from the stage in short order to pursue the guildmon.
"Right, right, right... purple guys are electric and poison, the ape is grass; the big mouth is normal. As for the weird rock? I don't know, and I don't like it. We'll check it afterwards. We need to prioritize the ape first; it's weak to poison." He stowed The Pokedex nervously, like he was trying to drunkenly shove a cartridge into a game console. "Get ready to flank the gorilla and just drown him in toxins. On the count of one! Three... Two..."
A wave of crackling energy struck both of the teammates aside, sending them crashing and tumbling along the rain-slicked ground. The Amped Form Toxtricity cackled as it played a little solo in celebration of its attack.
"O-on-one... OH MY ASS!" Mustel dragged himself off the ground, clutching at his chest. "Ow, ow, ow... F-FUCKER! CHANGE OF PLANS! I'M JUST THROWING SHIT AT THEM!"
The Zangoose pulled out a pair of wonder orbs, one in each claw. He prepared to belt them at the performing Punk Pokemon, one after the other.
The first projectile was a Decoy Orb. It shattered against the aggressor's face, leaving the Toxtricity befuddled for a moment. The Low Key Form counterpart started angrily flailing and belting it across the chest and skull in a fit of rage. The second device revealed itself to be a Blowback Orb. It struck the new arrival, who was preoccupied with pummeling its partner. The kinetic magic violently propelled the feral back into the first Toxtricity, leaving both of the guitarists dazed on the floor.
Meanwhile, Serpes had been engaged in battle with the Rillaboom. He snapped and stabbed at them in a fierce back-and-forth of feints and dodges. He had not been successful in inflicting any damage during the entire exchange.
With a repetitious thumping of its drums, giant roots emerged from the ground and ensnared the Seviper! He was hoisted upside down by the tail. "Hehe... Hi there. Hey, Mussstel? Pal? THE MONKEY IS GOING TO PEEL ME LIKE A BANANA!" He struggled and snapped his fangs at the primate whenever it tried to act again, attempting to delay the inevitable. The drummer swung and thrashed the Seviper against the ground, gradually weakening his resolve to fight back.
Yelping in surprise, Mustel dropped to all fours, darted towards the Drummer Pokemon's back, and up their leafy mane. The beast roared in agitation while the Zangoose dug his claws into its scalp. It was thrown off balance as he stabbed and kicked in a frenzy. With both of its arms occupied with the drums, the Grass-Type couldn't do anything except stomp and thrash. "C-crap... My knuckles are starting to hurt... BITE LIKE YOU MEAN IT, SERPES!"
Serpes saw stars and tried his best to dispel them as Mustel's voice reached him. "O-okay, buddy... You're a real fart smeller! Ergh... a real smart feller! I'll... I'll do that!" With one more desperate lunge, Serpes got a mouthful of Rillaboom's wrist. He hissed and sputtered as his fangs glowed, pumping venom into the feral's flesh. The Rillaboom howled in agony as its veins burned, dropping the snake and its drums. "D-did we win?" He fumbled for a berry or three from his bag, neglecting his opponent due to his head injury.
"Venoshock them!" Mustel commanded as the big, angry ape went for him, grabbing onto his back. He held onto the feral's head for his dear life. "FOR THE LOVE OF GOD! VENOSHOCK THEM!"
He pulled his head back out of his Treasure Bag. "V-veno... Right!" Serpes spat out a glowing, purple projectile. The acrid bullet blasted the gorilla in the face, making it stop its retaliatory attack on the Zangoose. He coughed and retched after using the move. "I-I need a moment, buddy... I think I can hear the ocean..."
The Rillaboom fell onto its hands and knees, hacking up purple ooze as its insides melted from its severe poisoning!
Mustel tore into the beast's head over and over, venting all the fear and anger that had built up until that opportune moment. The feral monster collapsed and dissolved from existence out of under the ferret's feet. He fell onto the wet earth with a splat and a tumble. "Oh-oh, m-my fuck." The Zangoose fought to catch his breath in the moment, his eyes snapped warily from left to right in anticipation of another threat. "Is-is it OVER?!"
A loud twang and kabong pierced over the sound of the rain. It was like someone was smashing an electric guitar against the ground, over and over again. Team Fangclaw turned their attention to see that the feral Exploud had just eliminated the Amped Form Toxtricity. It was reduced to a mangled mess that dissolved into smoke. The victim's Decoy Orb effect lasted long enough to attract the ire of the Loud Noise Pokemon.
"A-aw.. Just when I thought my tinnitusss was clearing up..." Serpes arched his body, popping several vertebrae back into place with a hiss of pain. "Mustel? This dungeon sucks." The Seviper regrouped beside his companion, watching their foe advance toward them.
"Yeah, it does... Exploud... Normal-Type. I... I don't know... Shit. I'll flank it from the front, and you get behind it! It's the best shot we have..." Mustel stretched out a few kinks of his own, letting out chirps and whines as he ached. "Ow..." With a pitiful groan, he prepared to leap back into action.
"Mustel, that thing has... horns for tails. I don't mean the sssharp kind, either." The Seviper was quick to address a flaw in the tactic. He raised a scaly brow in concern. It seemed every angle of the monster could lead to retaliation from its sound-based maneuvers.
"I'll be honest... I was just hoping you'd just be proud that I'm tackling the business end of the monster instead of leaving it up to you again. I have no idea what I'm doing anymore." He reached into his bag and pulled out another orb, uncertain of its properties.
"First of all, yes, I am very proud of your bravado! Sssecond of all, I don't have the slightest clue either." Serpes shuffled his bag and pulled out a pair of Blast Seeds. "...I may have a clue! Jussst keep him entertained for me, buddy!" The serpent bolted off towards the Exploud with Mustel in pursuit.
"I-I did say I had no plan but I didn't want to ACT ON A LACK OF ONE EITHER, SERPES! WAIT FOR ME!" The Zangoose bolted after his ally on all fours, trying to close the distance in time. His pupils constricted when he felt the very earth shift around him him!
The Exploud had mounted it's tails against the ground and unleashed an enormous burst of sonic energy. The dungeon floor shifted, pivoted, and crumbled as the blasts of noise ran its course through the terrain. The environment had become more treacherous and difficult to navigate than before!
Mustel paused as jagged stone walls erupted right in front of him. "Oh come ON!" He leapt onto the rough stones and tried his best to scuttle up them. "Ow ow ow... There's that lightning glass..." He continued to climb the rocks despite the great discomfort it caused.
"Up and down... up and down!" Serpes muttered a mantra as he navigated over and under the collapsing terrain with the grace of an eel within a turbulent sea. He managed to reach the flank of the noisy feral but looked as if he arrived too early. "Ssshit... Mustel?"
A wonder orb flew through the air and burst against the Exploud's face just as it started to turn. Its form froze in place, still as a statue. It was a Foe-Hold Orb.
Mustel was perched on top of the wall of jagged stone, snarling in pain from the wear and tear it put on his limbs. "O-oh... Look... I did a thing... Ahaha... Oh God..." He quickly reached his bag for an Oran Berry and crudely burst the fruit between his scratched up paws. "Oh, that's nice... GIVE IT HELL, SERPES!"
Serpes bared his fangs in a serpentine grin and dumped the Blast Seeds down Exploud's literal tail pipes. The snake sprang and slithered away as quickly as he could. "FIRE IN THE HOLE!"
The Exploud resumed animation and leered at the Zangoose. It inhaled a great gust of air from all its openings. Before it could even expel a deadly sonic attack, it exploded in a fiery inferno from the inside out!
Team Fangclaw regrouped after the dust cleared, doing their best to patch their wounds with their dwindling supplies of curatives.
The bookworm guildmon gazed around the scene of destruction and chaos left behind from their battle. Something seemed to bother him despite seeming victorius. "Serpes? How many ferals were there?"
"Two Toxtricity, a Rillaboom, and a Loudred, buddy?" Serpes said as he tried to pry off a berry skewered on his fang with his tailblade. He swallowed the unruly fruit as soon as it came loose. "Why do you asssk?"
"Probably because of that." Mustel pointed at the Low Key Form Toxtricity which had lurched its way back to the crumbling stone stage. It reached out toward the strange crystal which was embedded in its center. "GAH!"
The crystal glowed with an unworldly fierceness the moment the feral Pokemon laid its hands on it. The Toxtricity let out a monstrous howl as the storm clouds above spiraled and turned purple, much like the miasma held within. Its body was consumed in the wicked energy and transformed by it. Something unlike evolution took place as the Pokemon grew to monolithic size. It had assumed a quadrupedal stance. Its body flared with a simultaneous wave of yellow and blue electrical currents, as if it had combined both the Amped and Low Key Forms into one species. It had grown a tail reminiscent of a transmission tower from the human world.
"...I think we need to renegotiate our reward one more time with Auntie when we get back." Serpes quipped before Team Fangclaw prepared to retreat as the gigantic Pokemon looked at them like they were a pair of bothersome flies to be zapped. Its roar shook the very raindrops out of the sky.
Gods Of Thunder * * *
BOSS BATTLE: Remix ► Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Red & Blue Rescue Team
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G9xNq1e-KoU
Mustel and Serpes weaved through the uneven terrain together as the ground tremored with every step the transformed Toxtricity took, causing stagnation in their escape as each quake made them slip and stumble.
"Serpes, if we don't make it out of this alive... I just want you to know..." The Zangoose said, trying to catch his breath.
"What, buddy? Huff, hiss... What isss it?" Serpes kept up, but deliberately slowed to Mustel's pace.
"I... I don't know my name. My real name. I-I've been trying to hide it, but I don't remember much about my human life! I... I've been... There's been something wrong here... I-I think the book's been talking to me. Serpes! I-" A loud hiss interrupted the mongoose's rant.
"Mussstel! ...You've been muttering in your sleep for over a month. It's okay. We can talk later. We will talk later. We're not getting wiped out to whatever the hell thisss is!" The snake kept his eyes straight ahead as they continued to run laps through the dungeon floor.
"H-haha... Ah... Man..." The Zangoose grimaced, knowing there was probably a fair bit to discuss if or when they got out of this. They continued to make rounds through the dungeon floor until the worst was realized.
"There'sss... There's no stairs. We've passed the stage again." Serpes diverted the team's roundabout path to a side chamber. They took a moment to catch their breathes as the monstrous Toxtricity stomped about just out of their reach.
"H-hahaha... Oh my God... My lungs..." Mustel pointed at a rock face within the chamber. There were prehistoric Pokemon remains protruding from the stones. The Zangoose covered his face in grief as he spoke with a whisper. "Of course it's the last place we check. H-how did Anna have a hunch this good? It's a mystery dungeon... How do you find anything in a mystery dungeon?"
"Dungeons ssshift about, bud. It's believed some dungeon rooms just need to come back into rotation with the right conditionsss. It's just a matter of when and where... We better get picking at these until we find what we're looking for!" Serpes replied in hushed hisses. He slid over toward the fossil site and gave the bones a few looks over before excavating with his tail.
"...We really should have asked what a Jaw Fossil looks like. Just look at all of these! I can't tell a hip from a keel in this mess-" Mustel's paused as proudly Serpes spoke up.
"Found it!" The Seviper shoveled out a pristine fossil of a jaw bone with a few teeth still in it from a crumbling stone. He nearly dropped it as a terrifying roar soured the moment and shook the chamber. "And... the Toxtricity found us. Whoopsss."
The massive Punk Pokemon stood in the narrow corridor between rooms. It reared up onto its hind limbs, bracing itself between the walls. It let out another terrifying wail as electricity arced off its body. It raised its crackling arms into the air. Sparking purple plasma gathered in its arms and created a weapon reminiscent of a guitar. With a chilling, guttural growl, it strummed the literal electric guitar. It unleashed a howling shockwave of purple hued energy that obliterated the surrounding terrain.
Team Fangclaw was sent flying and tumbling through the shattered chamber walls, battered and afflicted by the powerful attack.
Serpes was strewn across the ground in a ditch of soil, sparking and twitching from an affliction of paralysis, but otherwise whole. He struggled to reach for his bag before he went limp with fatigue. "Hghsss... Sss-shit... B-buddy?" From his lowly perspective on the ground, he saw the brutalized, furry white form of his companion struggling to rise to his feet. "Mustel..."
Mustel fought to stand as he felt the familiar tinge of poison in his veins. He clawed at his body as if he were trying to stop an itch that was more than skin deep. "N-no... Not like this... N-not right now... Pecha Berry... Need to... need to get to Serpes... Need Pecha Berry... Pecha Ber-... I... I need to think! I need... I can't... I... I don't... I don't need that pussy FAGGOT SHIT. I... I need to RIP and TEAR your throat out RIGHT NOW. That's what I need... God. GOD. I need to... GOD. HOLY SHIT HAVE I HAD IT WITH YOU! I NEED TO FUCKING KILL YOU!!!"
With all inhibition gone, Mustel's Toxic Boost had taken over his senses. His erratically placed Pokemon instincts, which typically struggled to prosper in his anxious, human mind, had now taken control to their worst possible conclusion. Dropping to all fours, the Zangoose bolted towards the Toxtricity with reckless abandon. As the monstrosity stomped and shocked the ground, the Cat Ferret Pokemon had turned into an unrelenting berserker who rolled with the punches as arcs of electricity burned his fur and rocky shrapnel bloodied his flesh.
"YOU CAN'T KILL ME! I HAVE THE POWER OF GOD AND ANIME ON MY SIDE! I AM A SUPER SAIYAN! I AM FUCKING INVINCIBLE!" The deranged weasel screamed as he parkoured up the electric titan's body.
The raging Zangoose leapt onto the Toxtricity's leg and climbed like its hide, like the angriest cat that ever lived. One paw after the other, his claws dug and tore into the transformed behemoth's flesh, leaving cuts that spewed smoke from the simulacrum's flesh. " YOUR FASHION SUCKS, YOUR HAIR SUCKS, AND YOUR TASTE IN MUSIC SUCKS! YOUR FAMILY IS DISAPPOINTED IN YOU!!!"
The behemoth howled out, attempting to dislodge the rabid Pokemon from its leg by kicking and slamming its body against the walls of the dungeon. The structures of the chamber continued to crumble and warp, gradually reducing the floor to a wide, open wasteland.
Mustel propelled himself from the titanic feral's leg and hooked his claws into the adjacent forearm. He continued his clambering ascent with the tenacity of a fleeing squirrel as he left a trail of vicious perforations in the Toxtricity's body. "WHAT. DID. HE. MEAN. BY. THIS?! IT'S TIME TO KICK ASS AND CHEW BUBBLEGUM, AND I'M GOING TO SHOVE MY FISTS, SO FAR UP YOUR ASS THAT I'LL BE PULLING TEETH!"
Once more, the gigantic monstrosity gathered electricity in its body. It was planning to retaliate with one final blow against its pint-sized adversary. It dropped back to all fours with a crash, shaking the Zangoose loose beneath its overshadowing form. "OOF! NOW LISTEN HERE YOU LITTLE BITCH! I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW I GRADUATED TOP OF MY CLASS AT BEATING LITTLE SHITS LIKE YOU! WAKE UP AND SMELL THE ASHES, ASSHOLE! RAAAGH!!!"
Not deterred, Mustel latched back on and made the climb all over again, leaving more cuts and tears in the monstrosity's form. He tried to reach the creature's head in an attempt to deliver a decisive blow despite everything which had taken place.
As fat tendrils of electricity began to arc up and down the Toxtricity's tail, a resounding cry broke through the storming, chaotic heavens.
The Zangoose looked towards the skies, alarmed by the shrill noise. Mustel found the sight sobering, or it at least rendered him more cognitive of his surroundings. He almost couldn't believe what he saw unfold through the insane haze of his Toxic Boost. "W-WHAT?! W-WHO THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?! WITNESS ME!!! W-WITNESS ME DAMN YOU!!!"
The atmosphere distorted and rippled as a piercing avian shriek, like that of a raptor larger than life, broke through the sounds of the rain, thunder, and lightning. The massive silhouette of jagged wings emblazoned the stormy skies. Each flash of lightning illuminated its massive form as it harried the dungeon from above.
With a whine like a jet engine, a massive delta of blinding white and yellow electricity hurtled out of the dark cloud cover and collided explosively with the Toxtricity.
The giant feral attempted to parry and repel the oncoming creature with its another guitar conjured from its acrid, purple lightning. The ground beneath its feet shifted and gave away as the new challenger overpowered it with pulse after pulse of high voltage force. The intensity of the exchange caused what little standing stone was left around them to fly by the wayside and crash against the dungeon's perimeters.
The resulting exchange of electricity and noise was deafening, blinding, and stunning all at once. Mustel tried to brace for the aftermath of an attack that looked impossible to defend against. He couldn't even hear himself scream as a tremendous flash of light enveloped everything. The Zangoose felt the ground leave his feet.
Everything afterwards was a blur of white noise until the sound of rain and thunder gradually returned to the few left standing that could still hear it.
* * *
Pokemon Black & White - Route Gate Remix
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5FohPuuVeI
The Zangoose found himself crumpled against the rough, wet ground, alive. If this was living, he wondered if death would have been preferred to the unbelievable pain he was experiencing. Mustel pulled himself up off the ground, coughing, sputtering, and wheezing as the thin layer of muddied soot and filth clinging to his body dripped into his mouth and nose. He felt the poison had run its course through his body, mercifully not reducing him to a pile of purple ooze and fur.
He noticed a faint glimmer covered his body, akin to a translucent shell of some unknown energy. "W-what? I... I know I don't have Protect... Where... Is..."
The Zangoose found himself alone in the room carved out by the destruction. There was no sight of the giant Toxtricity, or the other powerful Pokemon. The large crystal that aberrantly evolved the Punk Pokemon was absent too, either absorbed or destroyed.
"...Serpes? SERPES?!" Mustel ran himself ragged across the blasted dungeon floor and slid down the pit which he saw his companion in. He lost his balanced and tumbled the rest of the way like a muddy snowball. "Ough! S-shit... Serpes?"
The Seviper was coiled in place, eating a sandwich. He finished the last morsel with the expected grace of a snake and swallowed it whole. He also looked like absolute shit, covered in his own share of dirt and bruises. The glimmer that coated the weasel's body also shielded him. "How'sss it going, pal? You... really tried to give that big bastard a piece of your mind there! That protect orb came in handy for us when... All of that interesting stuff happened... Good thing I inched my way to my bag in time!"
There was a long pause as neither guildmate said anything to one another, trying to parse the events that took place towards the end of their trek. The Seviper squinted at his friend's exasperated and dirty face. He flickered his tongue a few times as they sat there in continued silence before he finally spoke again. "...You want to ditch this disaster?"
"D-did we get the stupid rock?" Mustel asked, walking towards Serpes. He sat down beside the snake and curled his tail around himself. The snake patted his fuzzy friend on the back.
"We got the sssstupid rock." Serpes retrieved the Escape Orb and presented it to the Zangoose's mitts. "Do you wisssh do to the honors?"
Mustel palmed the orb before mentally preparing to use it. "Y-yeah... At the count of one. Three... Two... O-"
"PLEASE, HOLD ON!" A new voice shouted from above. Team Fangclaw glanced up to find themselves stared down by a male Manectric and his entourage of two Electrike. All of them were adorned in scarves and bandanas patterned in colors reminiscent of their own fur and what seemed like badges that incorporated shards of Thunder Stone.
"A moment of your time! We are Team Shock & Awe of the West Amp Plains Manectric Tribe! Our Stormchasers detected a high mysteriosity disturbance originating from this particular stratum! We came here to see if an anomalous shift had-"
"W-We're not doing this. I just want to go home." Mustel dismissed them with an unamused glare.
"Pleasse leave all inquiries for... literally anyone else." Serpes responded in kind, hissing in detestation at the foreign authority.
The Manectric looked at the two in disbelief. He was completely caught off guard by their rude responses. He growled before chastising the pair. "H-how dare you?! Don't you know this is OUR sacred land you're rummaging around in?! We have a strictly negotiated contract with the Federation that we moderate our soverei- Oh... Oh no... Those badges... Then that would mean... Rrggh! WHAT DID YOU IMBECILES DO HERE?! DO YOU KNOW HOW DANGEROUS THE DUNGEON SHIFTS ARE THIS TIME OF THE YEAR?!"
"Definitely not doing this, now. Not playing the blame game..." Mustel repeated his answer while he clutched tightly on the orb. He had no desire to engage them.
"Pleassse leave all further inquiries about what happened to your precious dungeon directly to my scaly posterior." Serpes crudely retorted, gesturing with his tail for them to leave.
The Zangoose sputtered out a laugh at his friend, followed by the Seviper joining in as they both vanished in a burst of twinkling light, teleporting them out of the Amp Plains.
The Manectric evolution lines were left to stew for a moment about what just happened. They tunneled their own perilous way through the dungeon to reach this exact floor, only to find a Zangoose and a Seviper dungeoneering duo of all things in the aftermath of some unknown catastrophe. Not only that, they were members of the infamous Clover Guild!
"Rrrghhble... Grr! ZAPDOS STRIKE THEM BOTH DOWN!!!" The Manectric howled angrily into the sky before slumping in defeat as his proteges looked at him with concern. "I hate my job..."