Flipping the Script [Event]

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Everspring Vale: Round 2.

Last time Osiris had stomped through these grounds, he'd met a very good friend and had a very bad day. The dratini had been woefully underprepared, weak, unimaginative, and a burden to the people that he wanted to take care of. Today, he wasn't much different. The most prominent difference was that he was aware of it and actively looking to flip the script, thanks to some much-needed advice he'd gotten.

It was time to really, honestly challenge himself for the first time. Fully, fairly, and most importantly safely. The dragon worm slithered through the tall-grass of the Vale's many forestlike areas, ducking through bushes and between trees as he searched for good match-ups. He'd brought his satchel with him this time around, packed full of supplies and useful items in case he found himself hurt, needing an edge in a fight, or a way out of a sticky situation.

It was time to do this right.

43 - 20 (entry): 23 energy

Suddenly, each slash and grip into her flank grew deeper. While the ursaring had managed to get a latch on her favorite walking snack, she found herself in agony over the metallic claws that really seemed to tear through her tough scales like paper. Fortunately for her, the Ursaring made the mistake of releasing her once it had its hold on Osiris. The Thunder Wave, however, stopped it from getting anywhere.

Without even a split second of hesitation, rows of icy spikes covered her teeth. She turned into the Ursaring with her head tilted sideways. With as much strength as she could gather together, with all the pent up rage and frustrations from this and earlier encounters, she crunched down onto the Ursaring's starving slender stomach. The icicles impaled the paralyzed bear with only the intention of digging deeper. Her powerful jaw crunched into the suddenly-not-as-dangerous normal type. The claws of he ursaring struggled and swiped at her face, but the moment it landed a good score across her snout was when she lifted her head.

Whether Osiris was still attached to the Ursaring or not, she began to whip her head about and shake the bear as if it were merely a dog's toy. With a good and powerful chuck, the ursaring was sent into the air only to crash back down into the river just before the bidoofs' dam-face down. A deep and irritated grumble rippled as her red-stained maw spat out a few shards of ice.

"W-wow," Osiris exclaimed weakly, laid out on the ground a few paces away from the tyrantrum's feet. "That... yeah, jaw strength, I figured as much." A breathless chuckles escaped him and were thusly immediately cut off as he discovered laughing was suddenly painful.

The ursaring's uppercut hadn't sent him flying, no, but when Victoria had laid into his attacker, he was shaken free pretty easily. Osiris counted himself lucky for not getting squashed in the ensuing struggle, and for having a companion as hardy and powerful as Victoria in the first place. That wasn't to say he'd gotten out of it with nothing but a stern reminder not to play around with the big boys - the gashes the bear pokemon left him with were serious. He was bruised and cut deeply, even if he'd been in this position many-a-time before by now.

"H-hey! Watch - ... ah, nevermind." one of the bidoof had spoken up from a modest distance away, suddenly stuck with several hundred pounds of unconscious ursaring in front of their dam. The sight of Victoria, triumphant with the blood of her attacker still dripping from her maw, very quickly dissuaded the beaver pokemon from finishing his complaint.

The sight had him smiling a little to himself, injury be darned. He'd brought some supplies with him though, so he wasn't too worried about things - a few berries and bandages and he'd be as good as new. "I think I'm good. Or I will be, after a little doctoring up," he spoke up honestly if a little tremulously. He looked back up at the tyrantrum, slightly shaken but still game to continue, ready to hop back up and continue as soon as she gave the signal.

The look she cast at the bidoof that spoke out dared him to continue his sentence. The weakling had the sense to back down. Her eyes shifted away from the dam and probably-dying-for-all-she-knew Ursaring to look back to the wounded wyrm. She bore her own wounds as well, long gashes of red far darker than the dyed markings she adorned. She hadn't known this kid for long. In fact, she'd known him for a grand total of what-less than an hour? Still, she studied him for a good and probably highly uncomfortable moment of silence as they bled together.

She turned back East, towards the river and the dam, and started to walk. Without a single word to either the dratini or even herself, the dragon's footsteps splashed and disturbed the river. A quick study of the water was surveyed before her jaws suddenly lunged into the waters and snapped down onto the limp lump of brown fur. The head of the Ursaring was yanked above the surface as the tyrant dragged him out of the waters and back into Osiris' presence. The bear's weight was dropped before the wyrm. A good nudge from her snout rolled the bear onto its stomach before she pressed her massive foot down onto the spine of the creature, ensuring her weight pressed down just enough so that the mammal wouldn't be capable of escape.

Finally, she issued her command to Osiris, "Wake him up."

Osiris watched dumbly as his companion turned on a dime and marched back in the direction of the ursaring she'd tossed like a softball. His head was whirling with possibilities - did she want to interrogate the thing? See if he had anything worth taking? Was she not satisfied with the short fight? Maybe Victoria was hungry? He didn't know and he was kind of scared to find out, but here he was watching silently as the tyrantrum dragged him right out of the stream and dumped him on the ground.

"Uh - I - okay," he stuttered, confused and a little intimidated, but obedient regardless. Osiris looked down at the big unconscious bear, not even sure how to wake it up. His tail slithered up and nudged it roughly in the face, mindful of its mouth and sharp teeth. No dice. He moved his tail and hovered it above the ursine pokemon's nose, tickling it roughly, and was rewarded with a few minute twitches of the snout.

Hm. Well, maybe if that got a reaction - Osiris channeled another thunder wave above the ursaring's nose, doing what he could to dampen the power and voltage on it. A quieter crackle of static emanated, and with a loud bbZZT! the ursaring was rudely startled awake. Before it could do much but come awake and produce a confused growl, its head rocked back briefly before coming forward with a mighty ACHOO.

Blinking tiredly with fatigue and bewilderment, it only took the bear another moment to realize its situation. Osiris backed up hastily as it tried in vain to struggle free, bucking upward against Victoria's weight, but it soon learned that this was folly. The ursaring sagged in defeat, its eyes flickering between Osiris and Victoria, fear and panic evident in its gaze. For his part, Iris just looked up at his comapanion with a mix of curiosity and trepidation; what did she want from the bear, exactly?

Her limited patience wore thin, not with Osiris but with the ursine monster beneath her. Most of her weight was shifted onto the leg that didn't pin down the bear, but any more was unnecessary. It was helpless beneath her. Each breath from her was steady and slow. The comical sneeze failed to bring forth any level of amusement.

The moment the ursaring struggled, she imposed more weight onto it. The breath was forced out of the normal type. She could feel her opponent give up the struggle and forfeit itself to whatever it was that she had in her will. Gradually, her head descended to the side of the Ursaring's. A breath of light frost was directed into his face, each breath of her's was visible as the cold particles expelled hung into the air like lightly fallen snow.

"That was quite the lovely introduction you gave to us Mister Bear," a soft and gentle voice almost whispered to the Ursaring, "You'll have to forgive my boorish behavior, I realize now that it would have been a great discourtesy to you if we weren't to return the sentiment." The tyrantrum's head tilted to the side to have a better view of Osiris as she continued with a command, "Little boy, introduce yourself to our friend here."

"Um, well, alright, I'm... I'm Osiris," the dratini complied, still mostly at a loss but unwilling to press any kind of issue. "Y-you can call me Iris, I guess." Or he could, if Victoria wasn't about to take his head off or something.

Aside from a passing glance, the ursaring seemed totally uninterested in the dratini to the side, understandably more concerned with the giant dinosaur queen crushing his spine. It recoiled from the icy gust breathed into its face, lips pulled back in a snarl that was betrayed by the naked suspense and fright evident in its expression. Its back surged up and down in the barest amount of slack provided by Victoria's uncompromising grasp, trying desperately to catch its breath and summon some kind of strength.

Or maybe it just wanted to squeak out something pathetic enough in an attempt to garner pity or mercy. "Sorry," the bear uttered, quiet but rough. It was obvious that it was not at all a sincere apology, and more of a plead for its own life. It was surprising enough to Osiris - he figured the guy was totally wild, or just crazy.

[Content Warning: Things are getting a little spicy down there. Don't look if you're sensitive.]

The dratini was a good boy. The ursaring was not. She could feel each desperate wriggle the predator made beneath her claws. The bear's pitiful utterance only incited a ear-splitting snarl followed by a sudden increase of pressure onto the bear's spine, "DO NOT speak unless you are spoken to!" she snarled with authority, demand, and venom. She held the weight down on the Ursaring only briefly before she permitted some relief. Still, she kept just enough to hold him down.

Another icy huff was directed into the ursaring's face. "We're not looking for a meaningless plea for pardon. It's very rude to jump to conclusions about what the guests of your home do and don't want. A true gentleman would have asked," her voice lowered back down to the more composed tone she had before her demand. Her eyes softened as a wide smile stretched across her bloodied jaws. "Now that Osiris has given his name, it's time for me to give mine."

She straightened her neck out and lifted her body slightly as she cleared her throat. She looked down upon the pinned normal type and declared with a voice that oozed with pride, "I am Victoria, queen of the Blacktooth Kingdom. It is an absolute honor to meet you Mister Bear." One of her tiny claws were held over her chest, theatrically referring to herself before she gestured down to the normal type.

"Now that we are all properly introduced, Mister Bear...I want you to take a good long look at little Osiris here." She fell into a silence. She allowed the bear plenty of time to gaze upon the dratini, wounds and all. Once she was content, her head lowered back down to the ursine's level. Her sweet and innocent tone dropped as a guttural gowl replaced it, "Remember his face and remember his name. Imprint it into your thick and tiny little bear-brain." Her foot began to press down on the Ursaring again, the pressure grew more and more until all of her weight was down on the bear's back-merciless towards whatever damage she inflicted. "Remember that he's mine and remember it well, Mister Bear. For it is now your responsibility to spread the gospel that not a scale is to be touched on little Osiris' body in the land of Everspring Vale. If I hear so much of a peep that a scratch was inflicted against him, then I will return. I will find you. And I will take more than just your arm!" Her voice shook with intensity as her final words were uttered.

She did not wait for a retort or response as her snout suddenly twisted and snapped onto Ursaring's arm. Her jaws crushed down onto it, but she made sure not to bite through. Instead, she would occasionally release and work her way down the Ursaring's arm with the aim to break and shatter it at every point she could find. She held full intent of ensuring that it wouldn't ever be able to heal properly and leave the weak little Ursaring with a constant reminder of his mistake.

This is what she wanted.

Osiris wasn't sure what to make of things.

At first, what Victoria said made some amount of sense. She was a powerful dragon, and she'd just run face-first into an obstacle that she couldn't single-handedly destroy. It was understandable that she had some frustration to work out, and this ursaring was as deserving of being her punching bag as anything, considering how it ambushed them. But as she went on, alternating from booming and intimidating to soft and mocking, he had to wonder if that's what this was.

Then she introduced herself, and Osiris' jaw dropped. He was so stupefied by her, the fact that she was a queen, that when she directed the ursaring's attention to his bloody form Osiris looked down at himself like he too was unaware. The dratini swallowed a thick lump in his throat, ruled by panic and gratitude and amazement, watching this tyrantrum physically dominate her beaten foe and take him, some nameless, faceless baby dragon under her protection.

Watching her destroy the bear's arm was... gruesome, and terrifying, but he didn't feel incredibly threatened. How could he, when she'd just declared for the whole forest to hear that she was looking out for him now? Instead, all he could process was how grateful and astonished he was by this tyrantrum, the ursaring's frantic grunts and screams of pain only background noise to him. By the time she was finished with her work, the normal-type was in and out of consciousness, absent, pained whines and moans escaping him while he cradled his bloody mess of an arm.

And Osiris was left staring up at her in awe and fear, shaking slightly, jaw working listlessly as he tried and failed to form words to... say something, he was sure. "I - you're a queen - I should've - you didn't have to..." he finally managed, trailing off stupidly as he failed to put the words together. The dratini heaved a shaky breath, closing his eyes for a moment as he inhaled and exhaled deeply. "Thank you," he forced out at last, calming himself somewhat, his eyes dropping to stare at the ursaring again.

It was grisly and savage, but Osiris couldn't remember that last time someone made that significant and meaningful of a gesture towards him. In a twisted way, he was seriously touched.

Once she was satisfied with her work, she released the ursaring-both his arm and his body. Her foot stepped off as her red maw dripped with the evidence of her handiwork. It was obvious to her that this Ursaring thoroughly learned his lesson. She took in a long and deep breath, held it for two seconds, before she released it slowly. The frost that physically tainted each word just seconds before was gone, as the infuriated and mocking look from before was placated. That whole encounter was therapeutic in a way. It was the first time she had ever exerted her physical dominance over another to such a degree personally-if the failure of the Regigigas didn't count.

While her eyes were closed, she could still hear the dratini's words. At first, she thought the little dragon was about to go on about how she didn't have to do any of that, how cruel she was to the beast, and how he disapproved of her actions. It was a thought that caused the anger to seep back into her. Osiris, however, surprised her with words of gratitude. She opened her eyes to look down on the smaller wyrm. That big, cocky, and downright sly grin returned.

"It's what I do," she responded to the dratini sincerely. Her movements were much slower and far more careful than before, but her tail shifted around her body as much as it could and lowered to the ground. It provided a far more convenient ramp for Osiris to climb aboard, "Hop on and patch yourself up as much as you can while we go. It might be a while before we come across someone capable of fixing you up better than I could with these puny claws," she instructed.

----

Off in the bushes, a golden furred creature surveyed the scene in the shadows. It watched as the local inhabitant was tortured and beaten down with wounds that she was almost certain would inevitably lead to his demise. The nine-tailed creature's eyes narrowed. The justice dealt back to the Ursaring was horrifically imbalanced.

She wasn't at all confident that she could best the Tyrantrum herself, but she'd need to do something about this...monster. Perhaps, she could point the beast towards someone who could "take care" of it?

Osiris silently obeyed, hopping onto the tyrantrum again and slithering up to reclaim his spot behind her crest. He wasn't too worried about the extent of his injuries; he'd packed some things to heal himself with in case he got into trouble, and it looked like they were going to come in handy after all. Getting in and out of his satchel while hitching a ride on a moving dinosaur would be tricky, though, and he might just wait until they got to someplace safe before seriously trying. Nothing was stopping another pokemon like the ursaring from tearing into them after turning a corner, after all.

"I can't believe you're a real-life queen," he said after a few moments of silence, voice still a little shaky but tinged with noticeable admiration. "That's... amazing. What's your kingdom like? Do you have knights and everything?" the dratini couldn't stop himself from asking, childlike wonderment taking control of him briefly.

He wanted to visit, he realized. Osiris wanted to see what kind of place she'd carved out of the mountains and called her own. Did she have citizens like him under her protection? She must have, considering how naturally she stood up for him. The thought filled him with warmth - Victoria was scary sometimes, but it seemed like a good thing for a queen to be, after everything he'd witnessed. How else was she going to chase off all the bad pokemon that went after her people?

There were the questions. It was the skitty all over again, but it was the kind of attention she relished. She was eager to speak of her pride and joy, even if there wasn't much to it in reality. "It's small and new still," she informed the dratini before she set off back west. The ursaring was abandoned to what she presumed would be further torment by the nearby bidoofs-if they even bothered to help the bear at all.

"There are very few knights, but we are still small enough so that we don't need to be too concerned about protection. The locals believe us to be in over our heads and generally leave us alone. They assume that we're going to perish against the elements of Blackspear." How wrong they were in her book. So long as she was around, she was going to keep on pressing this kingdom until it developed into a thriving citadel-even if it takes whatever family she might end up having generations.

"But even if my land is not yet impressive, my title still stands as a figure to be respected," she added on, remembering how the skitty seemed to think she was a little more on the dull side because of this. She had a good feeling about Osiris though, especially after that little display she just presented to him. She had absolutely no right to such respect in reality, but it was still something she came to demand of others.

That explained why he hadn't heard of this kingdom yet. Something like that would be big news if or once they started gaining some momentum, he'd think. Kingdoms were cool. Osiris wondered what kind of knights she had at her disposal - like actual escavaliers and everything, or were they just a bunch of strong dudes who called themselves her knights? Either way, it was bound to be awesome.

"Well, those guys sound dumb," Osiris said with a tone of someone who knew better. "This is their chance to pitch in and help get you guys settled, now that you can actually use the help. Once the kingdom gets big and powerful, you're not gonna have any reason to wanna look out for them, but if they gave you a hand, that'd be different. They're wasting their chance."

If it were him in that position, he'd take one look at a freaking tyrantrum and just assume she was able to accomplish what she set her mind to. Founding a whole kingdom in the mountains was a bit ambitious, sure, but she was probably strong enough to do it. Guys like that ursaring wouldn't stand a chance against her, for sure, and already she proved herself to be proactive in the defense of her territory. That's why she was here in the first place, he realized. The tremors from the giant were bothering her people, so she came to put an end to it.

Pretty awesome, in his book.

"Indeed," she responded to Osiris, "The locals in Blackspear are cruel and selfish, while the absol in particular are territorial. Some of their tribe aren't pleased about my decision to settle there and occasionally come down from the mountain to try and dissuade us." Her steps were steady, but slow. She took a bit more caution with her surroundings as she conversed with Osiris, wary of any potential threats that might jump out at them with how suddenly that Ursaring came upon them.

Her diligence went rewarded, as a flash of fur suddenly appeared just ahead of them. She stopped in her tracks with a low and irritated grumble, ready to assault this newcomer with extremely violent intentions. Fortunately, the ninetales was quick to explain itself, "Hello! Ah-please, I'm not here to fight!" The desperate tone in the ninetales' voice was enough to prevent her charge. Her glare centered in on the vixen's friendly yet nervous smile.

"I-I heard you get instructions from those bidoofs back there a-and uh...I thought someone should tell you that they miiight have directed you in the wrong path-on accident i'm sure!" the ninetales was quick to add on, "T-The big guy, you see, he's actually heading in this direction, so the two of you would end up meeting him there if you go this way. You'd have much better luck going out the other and then just circling around.."

It was kind of refreshing to see something in the Vale that didn't want to immediately murder him. For a moment, Osiris was reminded of that kind furret who saved him and Kiba from drowning, who then went on to patch his wounds out of the goodness of its heart. Everything around here seemed to be absolutely pure of heart or downright savage - maybe it was something in the water?

Either way, this fox pokemon was clearly trying to help. "I mean, they didn't come off as really sure of themselves, to be sure," Osiris mumbled quietly, attempting to be audible to Victoria but not the ninetales. Whether or not the fox's sensitive ears picked up on him, he wouldn't know - he was kind of stupid. "Buuuut, I think we'd be able to feel the giant's footsteps, either way. I don't think it's that dangerous to keep going if that's what you wanna do."

To the ninetales, he perked up from his position on the tyrantrum's head and pitched his voice to carry. "Thank you! We got pretty turned around and they're the first pokemon we saw that could offer directions. Is there any kinda landmarks we could look for goin' that way? I can be kinda bad with directions!" he called back, absolutely honest. The bidoofs did seem honest to him, but that didn't mean they knew what they were talking about.

"Well, what you wanna do is head further east a little until you get to the desert, past the geysers. He's on the move and should be further south by the time you two get there. Head out towards the desert and then you can skirt around the edges to head to Grassveil," the fox instructed.

Victoria's eyes narrowed at this vixen. She wasn't quite sure about this, but it's not like she doubted the bidoof's words, why start with her? She certainly seemed like she knew her way around a lot better than those doofuses.

"The geyser field is how you'll know you're halfway there, then after that is The Fallen Pine-one of the biggest trees in the forest that fell a long time ago. Just keep going until you hit that and follow the direction the tree's tip points in and you'll be out of here in no-time!" The golden fox beamed merrily.

The tyrantrum studied the stranger. A long and uncomfortable silence overcame her before she gave a snort. "Alright. Thank you," she concluded. The rex was hesitant, but none-the-less she turned around and started on her way.

The ninetales gave a wave with her paw in farewell with a bright and friendly smile on her muzzle. The clever girl watched as they were sent in the direction of the desert, a harsh environment filled with nasty locals that would love to take down a creature of the tyrantrum's size. She just had to hope they were strong enough to do it.