Chp 12B
	"Here we go. Ready?" 

	"Mm-hmm."

	"Hit it. Let's do this." 

	A moment later, the ceiling burst in, three pokemon dropping in after the rubble: a scizor, a charizard and a mienshao. The scizor dashed forward, smacking aside two machoke who were stunned by the sudden explosion. 

	"We need to move fast!" Hunter yelled after his comrades. He smashed his way through a door and into the hall beyond. Marie and Flare were quick to catch up, and they split up to clear each room. 

	They went through, systematically knocking out every pokemon they came across. They met up again in front of a large metal door. 

	"Hunter, help me push this open." Flare growled. With their combined might, the door began to budge, but it didn't move enough. It was locked. 

	"Hyaa!" Marie yelled as she flipped spun through the air, hitting the door low with a foot and high with a punch. There was a metallic snap on the other side as the locks broke from the force. With a loud grinding, the doors slid open. 

+++

	Outside, two large forces of pokemon were battling on the rocky mountain. To fit the war like battle, thunder rumbled in the distance, a herald of the coming storm. Bodies littered the field as casualties piled up. 

+++

	The doors opened enough for the trio to get through. Inside, they found what seemed to be a storeroom, filled with boxes. In the center of the room was a large aggron. He turned around, a red gleam in his bloodshot eyes. 

	"YOU!!!" He roared. His arm shot straight out and clasped the air. A honedge floated out and into his hand. With colossal steps, he charged forward, horns bared. 

	Hunter leapt into the air, fluttering his small wings for extra height. He made it over the aggron, spun in midair and swung his claw back with bone crushing force. The attack bounced off the aggron's armored skin. "Marie, Boss is all yours!" He shouted to the mienshao.

	"Got it!" She shouted back. She went into the charge, slipping in between his sharp horns. She used his head as a foot hold, and brought a paw down for a powerful smash, but Boss swung his head, launching her into the air. She acrobatically maneuvered, kicking off the ceiling and falling down with a high jump kick. Boss raised his arm, bearing the sword pokemon. Her foot impacted it, all the force being nullified by the ghost type. She kicked off once again, escaping the retaliatory swing off his other arm. 

	"Blast Burn!" Flare roared, raising his tail in front of his mouth. He breathed out a massive wave of fire towards the aggron. The ocean of fire cascaded into him and a weak cry sounded out from the honedge. Out of the flames, Boss emerged, heading straight for Flare. He was exhausted from the sheer power of the attack and was unable to dodge. Boss lowered his head and rammed his horn nose right into Flare's chest. The two upper horns scraped past him, not impaling anything. 

	Flare grunted loudly, blood dripping from his maw. Boss drew back, revealing the gaping wound in the charizard's chest. As he drew back, honedge flung out of his hand and slashed towards Flare's face, cutting off one of his horns. 

	"BASTARD!" Marie screamed wildly as she charged Boss, using her entire body as a weapon to strike at him, the sound of crunching steel echoing with each impact. She finished with a powerful whip like strike from her arm fur. The attack was strong enough to push the aggron back, causing him to wobble from the pain. 

	He turned his gaze to the mienshao now, rage filling his eyes even more. He took one step forward but stopped when he felt something around his head. From the corners of his eyes, he could see red shell, that of Hunter. 

	"Master!" Honedge screamed as it swung through the air, trying to get Hunter off. His other claw shot up and caught it mid swing. Hunter's eyes were wild and his breathing ragged. Without a word, he clamped down, snapping the sword pokemon in half. He began to close his grip on Boss' head. The aggron struggled, attempting to reach back, but his stubby arms were not long enough. Hunter felt his weight begin to shift backwards and went into action. With all the force he could muster, he clamped down hard and swung his other claw down in a fearsome brick break attack. He felt bone crack under the swing, and with the integrity compromised, the other claw crushed the remainder of Boss' head. 

	His body shook weakly, before falling back slowly. Hunter had enough time to get out from under him, before he came crashing down. 

	"Flare! Flare! Please, say something!" Marie cried out, kneeling next to the wounded charizard. She reached back and into the box on her side, taking out a handful of sitrus berries. "Here, eat." She urged. 

	Flare groaned and weakly munched on a couple of them. The flow of blood slowed, but he was still severely wounded. 

	"H-h-here." A meek voice said. 

	Marie looked up to see a shaking quilava come out from behind some boxes, holding an odd berry. Flare turned his head and drew in a deep rattling breath. 

	"No, that's enough." Hunter said, stopping him. 

	"But... he..." Flare started.

	"No more blood needs to be spilled. It's over." Hunter stepped towards the quilava, who visibly flinched. "We're not going to hurt you. What's your name and what is that?" 

	"I-I'm Hearth. This is one of the berries we made, it will save him." 

	Hunter reached out to take it with a blood soaked claw, reconsidered, and used his other one instead. He took the berry and quickly put it into Flare's mouth. Flare grimaced and swallowed it. The wound on his chest stopped bleeding and quickly began to close. It seemed like a miracle when all that remained was a bloody scar. 

	"Marie, stay here. I'll go find someone." Hunter said, rising and headed for the exit. He went out and navigated the halls. As he went, he passed a few other pokemon, who flashed their badges to him. He did the same, and they rushed past, continuing to clear the remainder of the facility. He found his way out and ended up looking out at the battlefield. 

	"Oh Arceus." He said to himself. The rain had started, leaving red rivers flowing through the rocky terrain. Many bodies littered the ground, and the surviving members of the Blade were tied up after having surrendered. "We did the right thing." Hunter reassured himself. "Didn't we..." 

+++

	Hunter bolted upright from his bed. He drew in a few deep breaths and turned to the window, seeing the sun coming over the horizon. He sighed, rubbed his face with his claws, and got up to go for his morning walk. He exited his room, passed through his office, and into the map room. "Zys?" He asked. The deoxys was sitting in the center of the room, leaning against the model with closed eyes. He walked over and knelt down next to him. "Do you miss them?" 

	"%%%" He groaned. Hunter could not decipher the noise, but he could sense the sadness. 

	"They'll be back soon. If I talk to them, I'll let you know how they're doing." Hunter rose and walked down the stairs and out to the front of the base. He took a deep breath of the morning air and exhaled slowly. "Not again."