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Near West Exit

"Bold." Boldore said in a low tone. He turned and pointed a leg around the bend to where Henrietta was waiting for everyone to arrive at. He'd kept himself out of sight of the West exit guard just to be safe.

Near South Exit

Crap.

Darumi had done the same, keeping himself clear of being spotted by the guard. And Robby? He'd just strolled right on up to the guy. Keeping his eyes on the two to see what would happen, Darumi began to build his energies. If a fight broke out? The whole plan was down the drain.

Big Stadium: Concert Stage

Pachi sighed at the Tall Man's comment. Her eyes peeled away from examining her nails momentarily to look at Helena and the other musicians. "Tact, Lawrence. I expect you to have more than that."

Her eyes met Helena's and she gestured for the girl to walk over to her chair. This pop idol was Kero's daughter? Pachi had never met Kero before, but based on the horror stories she had once heard, she had assumed his daughter would be more...not a pop idol.

****

Big Stadium: Exterior, West Exit

Reid hung up the phone as soon as he realized the line was dead, then spun around to face Henrietta. He smirked smugly, not wanting to lose composure in front of the girl. She didn't know his abilities were somehow being jammed, and that was the only advantage he had.

"Henrietta," he mused, tapping his index finger to his temple. "What brings you to the Big Stadium? I don't really need to ask, I'm just trying to be polite-"

He was cut short as the large monitors high over the doors of the stadium used to display snippets of the sports games crackled to life. As soon as they were on they began to play Pachi's broadcast, just as she began.

Reid was speechless. Terrorism? It wasn't a factor he had counted on. Before his telepathy was blocked he had sensed many members of the WG inside the stadium. But there had been another faction of scattered people amongst the audience as well. Just how many of these terrorists were there?

Down the street, he could make out the faint sound of a revving engine and screeching wheels, along with the hollering of a madman driver. He had never been so relieved to hear the Rangermobile approaching.

And then, from even farther away, he began to hear police sirens. Lots of them. Which was not nearly as relieving.

Reid noticed that Takamaru had now joined them. So he had become friends with Henrietta? They must have banded together after the banquet a couple of days ago. Which meant he could drop the act in front of them both.

Where was Jackie? Not being able to sense his Hitmonchan nearby was like being without his security blanket. If Henrietta and Takamaru decided he was the enemy, he could be in for a fight. The last thing he wanted to do in front of the police was to draw attention to himself.

"You must have realized by now that this isn't Team Plasma's doing," he told them both, standing up straight and readjusting the lapels of his gakuran. "Otherwise I'd be in there myself."

****

Big Stadium: Exterior, South Exit

Celt tilted his head up at Robby and quit picking his nose when the mountain boy approached. He grinned as he flicked up his wrist, coiling the yo-yo back into his palm. "Sounds like you're trying to make a poser outta me, mate," he said in his thick Australian accent. "I stand this way cause it's comfy, see? Workin' hard for the pose would go against the value of nonchalant, wouldn't it?"

Police cruisers started coming out of the streets, skidding to a stop at the lawn of the stadium. Cops sprang out, readying their stun batons and police trained pokemon. The same thing would be happening at the Western and Eastern Exits. Celt kept grinning, then tapped Robby on the shoulder.

"Now be a good rolly polly and run on out of here." He paused as he looked Robby over once more. "...or whatever it is you do instead of running. Can't be seen fraternizing on the job. It's bad for publicity."

Celt snapped his fingers. At the edge of the stadium lawn, the grass began to rip out of the earth, followed by chunks of dirt as the cops were stopped in their tracks. Poking out of the lawn was the curled up body of a Sandslash, tearing across the lawn at racecar speeds to create a perimeter.

A megaphone sounded from one of the cruisers. "Release the hostages or we will resort to drastic measures," boomed a cop's voice. Celt rolled his eyes.

"Really now? The government's dogs, resorting to drastic measures? What a surprise." He shuddered, rubbing his arms in mock fright. "I'm quiverin' in my boots."

Then he stood up straight again, pointing to the newly carved perimeter as his Sandslash rolled up to his side. "Any of you pigs cross the line and we stop playin' games. We don't negotiate with scum in uniform."

Side:

"Well, you're right..." Robby began, but let the odd man start his business with the police first. Far be it from him to stop someone's "cool guy" act. And he did a pretty good job with the whole line thing, but something told Tobb that it had been done before.

"But y'know, if you can't get it down naturally... Doesn' that just mean you're just not a natural 'n all?" Darumi seemed not to be catching his attention, though. Normally Robby would give it enough to start making the meal, but right now... This was important. "Like those guys there. Over 'n the cop group. They got the serious guy thing down. If you're specifically actin' nonchalant when it's not naturally who y'are, then doesn' that mean you're runnin' from somethin'?" Television said so.

"Oh, and this guy yours? He's a little uncomfortable tuggin' my leg."

Big Stadium: Concert Stage

Helena considered it for a moment. On live television it would look terrible for her but that could be explained away easily she figured. Helena took the seat and looked out at the audience.

If there was a single thing she could do - she would have.

Big Stadium: Exterior, West Exit

Henrietta didn't bother listening to Reid as much as she should. Not because she didn't consider him a threat - mostly because there were more important things then what he was saying. Like saving lives. He drove off and she turned toward Takamaru.

"The plan is-

BOOM!

-ruined."

She turned in the direction of the explosion and started that way.

Big Stadium: Exterior, South Exit

Darumi looked at the explosion. Oh, this was bad. Very bad.

Henrietta rounded the corner and spotted Robby. They couldn't wait on Luka, Wayne and Salieri anymore. They had to end this, here and now. If they were gonna break in before the guy got anymore back up he had to go down, in an instant.

"Robby! Take him out, now! Darumi!"

Darumi flared up. The door was blocked, and this was a human. Totally not his territory. He side stepped Robby. He'd break the door, Robby breaks the human, and they lose no stride.

Darumi lunged for the door, preparing a Rock Smash to just power straight through it.

Big Stadium: Concert Stage

Pachi went back to examining her nails as Helena took a seat next to her. They were positioned so that they could both see the whole stage and spectator floor, with the wall of the sidewings behind them. Zero blindspots, not that Pachi would be surprised by an attempted sneak attack. That was her territory.

"So."

The exotic woman reached out for a glass of water at her side, brought to her courtesy of the terrified stage manager. She lifted up her bandanna momentarily to take a sip.

"Your father is a soldier, and you're a pop singer. Quite a divergent career path." Pachi dangled the glass of water out in front of Helena, offering her a sip.

****

Big Stadium: Exterior, South Exit

Celt rolled his eyes. Robby's headbutt was coming just as Darumi was about to break through the door. The Australian youth ducked and then twirled his finger around again.

And Darumi would spin to a complete 180 degrees, just as the Rock Smash was initiated. Only now instead of facing the door, the attack was facing Robby: the headbutt and the Rock Smash would collide unless there was interference.

Meanwhile, Celt had rolled out from between the two and stood up straight again. He clicked his heels, and Takamaru would recognize what was going on: wheels popped out of his shoes, turning them into rollerblades. "You're not the type of rebel who belongs here, mate. Go back to fighting Weight Watchers."

He held onto his stomach, getting a good laugh out of his own joke. Sandslash idly scratched at his ears, not taking his eyes off of the door.

Celt's eyes darted over to Henrietta, and a smirk crossed his mouth. "Well hello there, girly." He licked his lips as the wheels on his rollerblades began to spin on their own, coasting him towards Henrietta slowly. "Funny, you don't look like the trouble making-"

He paused his sentence as a shadow began to grow between them. Celt looked up to see the source of the incoming darkness: an airborne mailbox, heading straight his way. Celt grit his teeth, then flicked his wrist.

The yo-yo sprang forth, and it's outer casings began to spin. They revealed hidden blades, wickedly sharp and curved. The blades began to spin, turning the yo-yo into a buzzsaw.

Celt pulled the yo-yo up, and it extended out to the mailbox. With a sharp metallic sound it shredded through the steel, slicing the mailbox cleanly in half. Both parts fell to the ground ineffectively to his sides as he was showered by the falling letters.

"Tch." He batted away some of the falling letters as he tried to look for Henrietta through the rain of mail. "What a bother."
"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME?!"

A fist shot through the letters right into Celt's face, knocking him to the ground before he sprang back to his feet. He sighed as he rubbed his cheek. No blood. Ouch, though.

The rain of mail ceased, revealing Salieri to be standing on the other side. "You got me all worried over nothing, and then you call me a-oh, you're not Wayne. Nevermind."

Sal looked to her side at Henrietta and Takamaru, giving them a "hello" nod. "Hey guys, have you seen Wayne?...not that I care."

Celt spat on the ground, looking amused. "Now we've got two girlies. And one of them's feisty. I like that in a girly."

Now he had out a second yo-yo, also in buzzsaw mode. "Too bad I'll have to slice ya both."

Before Salieri could respond, the yo-yo's shot forth, spinning rapidly to carve straight through their targets. The targets right now were Henrietta and Salieri, and unless they could avoid getting hit they'd both end up half the women they used to be.

Big Stadium: Concert Stage:

Pachi rose an eyebrow, then shrugged and retracted the glass. "We aren't here to hurt you. We're here to help you."

She drank the rest of the glass and put it back in the seat's cupholder. Then she leaned back and glared off into the distance towards the camera room. For a moment, she pulled down her bandanna.

****

The Bullet: Bridge

"Where are those files!?"
"Status report on the scouts?"
"Check the mainframe, it has to be the mainframe!"
"I need those files now, people!"
"That's not the source! Get your facts straight!"
"There must be a contact point! Scan the grid again!"
"Where the <********> are my GODDAMN FILES!?"

With no way to contact the police in Nimbasa City, the crew of The Bullet could only gauge the situation on the ground from the live broadcast in the stadium. Previously, the Freedom Liberation Force hadn't been taken seriously, but that's only because they were ineffective. The world had been blindsided, the government included.

And so there was chaos on the bridge as people ran to and fro, trying to find the location of the signal jammer while figuring out an effective countermeasure. Pokemon scouts had been sent out across the city to locate the machine. The wait for them to return was long, and also fruitless.

Amongst those watching the TV broadcast were two Interpol Agents. Agent Looker stroked his chin. "This is a fiasco, is it not, Circa?"

Agent Circa nodded, folding his arms as he tilted his head while watching the screen. "Of course it is, Looker. Has there been any word from the island yet?"

Looker checked his xtransceiver, then shook his head. "HQ has no words. But, however! Communications are still active with the world at large so I have, therefore, concluded only Nimbasa is being blocked. A healthy assumption, yes?"
"I agree."
"What we must do is arrive on foot to investigate! Appearing on the scene to save the hostages, our focus must be this-"

Circa's former calmness switched to a look of grimness as he gripped Looker's shoulder. "My apologies for interrupting, friend, but do you see that in the corner?"

His partner stepped forward to get a better look while Circa zoomed in and increased the resolution. Pachi had gotten Helena to take a seat next to her. "No, no, no! That's Kero's daughter, is it not? This Pachi character, she has taken her personally."

"Looker..." Circa gulped as Pachi looked directly at the camera. She pulled down her bandanna, revealing a tiny smirk before she pulled it back up and winked. "I think I remember who Pachi is now."

Looker's eyes widened. "Remember?"
"DUNA DUNA DUNA DUUUUUUN~!

Both of the agents looked down at Looker's xtransceiver. "The island! It's returning the call!"

****

Big Stadium: Exterior, South Exit

Yo-yo blades?

Salieri shifted her legs to brace herself, waiting for the yo-yo to come near. In that brief moment beforehand, she took a deep breath and grit her teeth.

Her palms clapped down on the yo-yo's sides just before the buzzsaw sliced through her chest. The Battle Girl's grip was shaking as the blades continued to spin, but she held it steadily away from her..

And suddenly they retracted as the yo-yo reeled back, taking Sal with it. She let go but still lurched forward as the weaponized toy wound up again into it’s wielder’s palm.

Celt was on the move, his rollerblades carrying him quickly across the lawn towards her. Salieri noticed that even though he was coming at her at speeds she could compare to most cars, his legs were barely moving: the wheels were spinning on their own.

She regained her balance just as Celt flipped backwards. He extended one leg for a flashkick, but went way faster than his previous acceleration had let on. He just sped up midair!?

Sal had been prepared to block before, but the sudden burst of speed took her off guard as his foot slammed square into her jaw. The Battle Girl's body lifted off the ground and was sent flying backwards, where she landed next to Takamaru.

"Ugh." She spat some blood out on the ground as she stood up, cracking her neck while glaring at the grinning Celt. He then took notice that her skintone had become slightly tanner, like she had come back from a long day at the beach.

If it hadn't been for her toughening up her skin a notch right before the blow, it could have broken her jaw. Her nostrils flared. “This guy’s not Plasma at all,” she growled, rubbing her cheek to ease the soreness. “Is someone going to tell me what’s going on?”

“It’s simple.” Celt spun around on his heel while walking the dog with his yo-yo. “We’re here to bring you a message. Bout how the bad guys are behind you.”

Sal looked over her shoulder at the police, then back at Celt. “And how we, the good guys, are trying to get you outta this mess the call politics. The government’s a poison, girly. We just want to let you know that.”

“So…you took a bunch of people hostage to tell them that the other guys are bad guys. Right.” Salieri nodded and placed her hands on her hips. “That’s nonsensical.”

Celt frowned, annoyed. “It’s a lot more complex than that. We’ve got bigger plans than just a little lecture. Not that I’m stupid enough to tell you, though.” He rolled backwards so he could face the four members of the Legends Crew.

“If this goes right, no one’s gonna get hurt ‘cept for the ones in our way. You don’t wanna cross us, kids.” He motioned for them to leave. “So scram. No one’s getting through this door.”

Salieri looked back at the police again. They weren’t daring to cross the line in the lawn. After all, they were the real enemy of the terrorists. If they tried to get in, someone inside could get killed. There were way too many people inside to safely storm the place. We’re just random bystanders to these guys…well, I guess we actually are just random bystanders. What am I doing here? Terrorists? I never told Henrietta I’d fight the war on terror. This is insane.

“You know what? I really don’t care about any of this.” Salieri backed off with her hands in the air. “Yeah, our legal system is kind of bullshit. Way too paranoid and harsh on criminal activity if you ask me. But you guys are nuts, so you’re both assholes. I don’t feel the need to get mixed up in something this stupid.”

She sighed, and gestured to Henrietta, Takamaru and Robby. “…But these guys are my friends. My only friends, actually. And you just tried to cut one in half. So I should probably stick around for a little while to guarantee you get at least a few broken bones before I’m out of here.” Salieri pointed at Celt in frustration. “I just want you to know that I’m only fighting you because no one messes with what's mine. Friends included.” She hesitated, before adding, "Also you keep calling me girly and it's annoying."

Celt groaned, then facepalmed. “It was just a warning shot, girly. No need to get self righteous.”

“Self righteous. Classic. You’re a funny guy.” Salieri released Chen Zhen, who floated atop his Air Balloon beside his trainer. She grinned, bearing her canine teeth while her eyes twinkled with a hint of sadism. Sal cracked her knuckles. “I like beating up funny guys.”

Now Celt was grinning too. “So you wanna try and fight me then, mates?” The wheels on his rollerblades spun again, carrying him to right in front of the exit door. He beckoned for them to come closer and licked his lips.

“Bring it.”

((So posting order is, Celt->legends crew? Basically Robby, Takamaru and Henrietta go, then Sal and Celt in Jump's post?))

Unlike everyone else, Robby hadn't exactly gotten to move too far from the exit to engage the guy, so when he retreated, the obese lad was nearby. And therefore, pretty much cut off from the planning. Unless, of course, that bug...

Nah, it wouldn't be able to lift him away. The lad's hand lifted, aiming to use the Australian's own momentum as he came towards the exit to break his balance, or something else perhaps, as he mostly braced himself.

And hoped. The turning around thing meant he had to move as little as possible. Maybe keep his footing.