Sam's question hung in the air, unanswered. It seemed multiple members from both sides had intentions much like his own, and many mumbled questions all at once. The result was that nobody got an answer, instead realizing their mistake and opting to study each other, waiting for somebody to make a move. The man who looked like a doctor was a middle aged man, lanky, and seemed to be slightly overwhelmed, even prior to their meeting. The woman with him appeared to be a doctor as well, a pretty woman whose purple hair was now a mess from helping carry the Regime agent between them. At first glance the Regime uniform disturbed Sam, but upon further inspection he noticed that the uniform was in very rough condition. The Regime had strict standards on uniforms, and this one surely would not meet their requirements. It was Shadow Division garb like Sam had seen many times before, but if he wasnt mistaken this particular uniform was also out of date. The Shadow operatives he had run into as of late wore a different variation of this one. The gears in his head continued to turn, but thankfully just as the silence was becoming unbearably awkward, more tremors shook the ground beneath them, although these were considerably less violent than the ones before. With them, Sam and many of the members were able to hone in on the origin of them as smoke poured into the sky from the North. Sam's sense of urgency returned at the sight and he now turned to the doctors, demanding the stage the small alley served as. "My name is Sam Fisher. Im with the Rebellion. I need to know where that smoke is coming from. There could be injured people and pokemon that could use our help. Your soldier is injured, and we of the Rebellion refuse to attack a defenseless and unconscious man." Sam said defiantly, proud of who he was. He had acted fast, knowing full well that he was not only speaking for others, but speaking for perfect strangers. The way he saw it, you were either with the utter atrocity that was the Regime, or you were against them. Neutrality was merely cowardice. He was hoping to receive support, but stepped out on the ledge knowing full well he may do this alone. If that's the way it had to be, then so be it. He had Bo, and that was enough. He had spent years seeking the leaders of the Rebellion to the end of the country and back, to no avail. If they didnt exist, they did now. Sam would make sure of that. He spoke to the entire group now, "Anyone here who wants to come with me is welcome. I intend to help anyone still alive and do whatever I can to further damage the Regime. If anyone knows the way, feel free to lead." Sam said, opening his stance and gesturing his arm back towards the street. "Anyone who is with the Regime...leave now and no harm will come to you." Sam said, somewhat urging the last line out of his lungs. He was merciful to their pokemon, but admittedly struggled with the manner in which he usually dealt with Regime members. Letting them go was not something he did lightly, however he could potentially be severely outnumbered here, not knowing the true allegiance of those with him. He let the words ring through the empty alley, all too aware his hopes for the Rebellion now rested on the shoulders of a group of strangers in a small alleyway in New York City, so very far away from where his journey began.

Christopher Hawkins

"Wait, you too?" said Kale, pausing. "It was a trap. Eve, run." Suddenly, Kale and his Eevee set off in a run, heading towards the city.

"What the-" Chris mumbled, realising the turn of events that would make someone thing that they had been lured into a trap. After realising this, Chris ran to catch up with Kale, with Duskull following behind. After a few minutes of running, Chris stopped to catch his breath. He looked around - Kale was nowhere to be seen. Duskull flew up above the trees, but he couldn't see any sign of him either. "I guess we'll have to go on without them," Chris told Duskull. "Skull," Duskull replied.

Chris and Duskull could see the city from where they were, and continued walking towards it. However, it looked much darker than it should be. When they got closer, they realised that there had been a power cut. "There could be injuries!" Chris told Duskull, setting off into a run towards the city, with Duskull alongside him, mostly invisible.

@Natsucooldude



"You wont be able to handle this yourself, doctor. Two hands are better than one."
Odette took a step back after the boy vomited. How gross! Her attention was soon diverted as a giant bird flew out of the ground. It was definitely a shock and seeing it chased by a bunch of other pokemon somehow made her sad. She recognized it as the legendary bird pokemon, Zapdos and wondered how long the Regime had planned to keep it hidden. It wasn't right to keep pokemon cooped up. Lys sensed her anger and mewed at her quietly, breaking the girl out of her thoughts. Right. They needed to get the heck out of here before someone caught them. With the power now out, she assumed it would be silly to try and go out the gate now. They would have to find another way.

When the doctor suggested they go to the Wardenclyffe compound, Odette sputtered.
"How do you expect us to get in?" she hissed, "That place is off limits to just about everyone!" Still, if this kid was going to be saved, she would have to listen to the doctor. She had no idea where to get medical supplies, so she had no ideas on going anywhere else. All she had were some ragtag inventions that were absolutely no help. She and Lys knew how to get to the park, that was no trouble. With the power out, it would be easier to sneak around. The only problem now was making sure they didn't get caught. For that, they would need to rely on her trusty espeon. The pokemon would be the only warning they had.

Lys understood her duties and moved forward to check to see if it was all clear. Odette went back to the unconscious man and aided the doctor with carrying him.
"We will go with you, it would be wrong to leave you by yourself, especially after all you did to help my dear Lys. I owe you one." She shouldered the burden and waited for Lys to signal them to follow. It didn't take long for them get on their way.

Jethro rolled his eyes at the dramatic speech of one of the self-proclaimed rebels. "Can you talk less and move more? I respect people who don't waste time with speeches." He started dragging the unconcious man forward, and to his suprise found a set of hands helping his endeavour, the espeon's owner. "See, she knows what's up... You coming?" Jethro either didn't care or hadn't noticed the treathened demeanours of the others present. They hadn't said anything, or at least anything substantial enough to respond to in the moment.

To the luck of Jethro and his companions, the doctor knew the area well. It wasn't that much of a problem for him to find a path towards central park that avoided major roads and security checkpoints. A necesarry skill for someone who sometimes had to move quickly through the city when a patient of his had an emergency.

---

It didn't take long for the group to come upon central park. Moving covertly was quite easy once they were under the cover of the trees and other undergrowth. The air was thick with the crisp smell of ozone. Jethro wondered why, there wasn't that much electrical equpment around here, was there?

And then they cleared a bush, and walked into a hellish scene of destruction. Where everyone had expected a single compound, a deep crater in the ground lay. The three or so topside buildings were damaged, one had collapsed completely. Looking down, one could see a vast maze of corridors, storage rooms and monitoring equipment. The facility was in utter chaos. Much of the central superstructure had been blown apart or melted through, likely by an extreme electrical discharge. The outlying corridors had collapsed or were in the process of collapsing. At the bottom stood a ruined device, a containment cell of some kind, shaped just large enough to contain a certain thunderbird.

The scene was punctuated by the sparking of ruined capacitors still discharging their residual charge. From everywhere, the wailing of humans and pokemon could be heard, crying out for help. What capable facility personnel remained had set up a triage in one of the two intact topside buildings. It was obvious what security the facility had had been reassigned to search and rescue operations in the rubble of the lower facility.

Jethro stared at the scene. His oath as a doctor screamed at him to report to the field hospital, but his sense of self-preservation told him to remain hidden. "Hmm... what are we gonna do now? I was hoping on sneaking in and taking some equipment, but I don't think that's an option now... Anyone have a new plan?"

@A Tattooed Girl

Indigo leaned forward in response to a force to his back, catching himself with a step forward. Maximilian spun about, lowered, practiced, between Indigo’s legs. Nails scraped against concrete. The spines erupting from his back began to shake and glow. His eyes were arched. The source of the push apologized, and Maximilian took another look. The glow dissipated. His ears and eyes took to synchronized patterns of movement, evaluating Brynn silently. The heel of one of Indigo’s black shoes patted against Maximilian’s purple, spiny hide. Maximilian stood to full height once again. Indigo lifted a leg over the Nidoran♂ and planted it beside his leg, turning about himself. His pupils dilated. She had a cap pulled backwards, a plain white shirt, and a wrinkled leather jacket over the shirt. Her breath was audible and her hair was just a tad unkempt. Indigo shook his head lightly and placed two fingers as a ‘V’ on his temple. Focus.

She must have been running from something. Before Indigo took a step forward, the Espeon had already moved in front of him to check the mouth of the alleyway. Her body language didn’t relay a sense of danger. Indigo readjusted his frames and lowered his chin to face the girl once again.

“I know as much as you,” Indigo said. He looked to the sky again as another clap of thunder raged the scene. Time was running out. “We’ll figure it out as we go.” Was this what it was to be Rebellion?

@DarthSeverus394

Sam spoke volumes when the sky spoke so much louder. It wasn’t a time for a political speech, but the action warranted bravery. Then again, bravery was different from courage. If Sam was afraid of the chaos around them, he didn’t show for it. He showed empathy, extending a hand to a man with Regime attire. Furthermore not picking a fight with any Regime members that might be amongst them. It was a change of heart from the forest just days earlier. Was it the change of setting? It was difficult to think against thunder.

On their way to the compound, Indigo ran up beside of Sam and held his jaw agape a moment. “What changed your mind?” Indigo said between pants of breath, in reference to sympathizing with the Regime.

--

They made their way to the compound, under guise of apocalypse. The station was in a state of fallout. The sounds of human wailing racked on Indigo’s ears, but the cries of Pokémon were nearly enough to overtake him. He knelt down. Indigo shivered, dragging his nails into the dirt. He repeatedly balled handfuls of dirt into his hand, compressing them back into the earth. His eyes stayed focused on the ground, teeth gritting together. They continued to hide behind bushes. Was this what it was to be Rebellion?

Indigo thought back to all of the times he’d hid behind bushes and people had suffered, where Regime officers had used force to incapacitate the innocent. If Indigo had interfered, he’d be on the ground with the others. In a prison with the others. Dying with the others. But that didn’t mean anything to his dreams at night. And there were so many this time.

@Natsucooldude

“There are pokémon that will die without us. How cruel are we to stand aside and do nothing?” said Indigo. It was more of an insult than a plan, and an illogical one at that. Despite his strong words, Indigo had no solid plan to offer, and remained hidden in his hypocrisy. His dramatic statement relied on the fact that the Regime would ignore their war for the time being. Indigo looked up to the golden sky. There were greater powers at work now. Surely the best course of action wasn’t to retreat? Indigo thought of no better plan, but said nothing of the matter. He looked to the wounded man who was wondering in and out of consciousness.

“Doctor,” Indigo said, face returning from the sky. He’d overheard the dressed woman say he was a doctor in the alleyway. “You’re not with the Rebellion. You can help this man and all of them better than any of us can. Go.” Was it cowardice or a sense of self-preservation that didn't offer to go with him? Common sense or a lack of self-confidence? By any means, Indigo offered no helping hand.

The Wardenclyffe Compound. Constructed during the years 2223 to 2229 under the false pretense of being a simple, small-scale military outpost meant to better protect the citizens of New York from internal threats, the electric fence and night patrols in Central Park had never done an especially good job of helping Manhattan's citizens feel safe. A highly secure location despite the seemingly questionable need for its existence, its true purpose had always been to house an advanced underground facility designed by Dr. James Hessemer for the explicit purpose of containing the legendary Pokemon, Zapdos, and harnessing its vast power for the sake of the Regime.

It was in complete shambles.

As Dr. Jenner stepped into view of the still-active spotlights that surrounded the compound's main gate, he could practically taste the destruction in the air. The usual patrols were nowhere to be seen, having either been recalled into the compound or sent off to chase down the escaped Pokemon, but a very small contingent of guards still manned its entrance, glaring suspiciously at him as he approached the gate. Compared to the peacekeepers in the city, their Pokemon were visibly stronger, healthier, and in all likelihood more accustomed to combat - the soldier who approached Jenner did so with a rhydon and sandslash at his sides, both of which had taken up aggressive postures of their own accord the moment they had seen Sabi. The seviper looked down at them both, amused rather than intimidated; she knew how much of a threat she posed to them.

"This is a restricted area," the soldier recited once the two humans stood face to face with one another. "Identify yourself immediately."

"Dr. Nicholas Jenner," Jenner answered with a hint of poorly-concealed exasperation, unclipping the security badge from his coat and handing it to the man for inspection. "Head of Research at the Seattle National Laboratory for Pokemon Research - before my reassignment, at least, but seeing as my access rights remain untouched and I've known about this facility since before it was even constructed, I'm sure that you can at least allow me to come in as a visitor."

The man looked the badge over to his satisfaction before responding, his tone authoritative and humorless. "We're operating on a state of high alert. Visitors already on the premises are to be contained within the secure areas of the facility until the situation is under control, but I have no reason to allow you entry before then."

Unamused, Jenner took his badge back and glanced over the man's shoulder, into the crater where the steel interiors of what were supposed to be several underground corridors still glowed red from the heat, their normally hard edges fused into the exposed dirt around them. The shouting of rescue teams attempting to coordinate their efforts as well as the plaintive cries of those in need of their help filled the night.

"I can assume," Jenner began, giving the soldier a downward look, "that your communications equipment was sabotaged at the beginning of this attack."

The soldier remained silent, unwilling to confirm his assumption - or that the damage had even been caused by a deliberate attack.

"...And the auxiliary power is clearly working," the doctor continued, "so whoever did this couldn't reach the generator on... I believe it was level D, yes? But the wiring for the radio tower crosses the hallways on the very first level at least twice, and anyone with access to the facility could plant an explosive there. I take it the other two bombs were used to disable the grounded blast doors that should have come down to fortify the central containment unit and disconnect it from the primary power grid."

"Sir," the soldier finally interrupted, "I cannot authorize you to enter the compound until this crisis has been resolved. Please leave or I will have to remove you by force."

"I've written papers about how inefficiently this place was designed," Jenner growled. "So why don't you stop wasting my time and contact your superiors so that they can give me whatever permission I need to walk through this gate and restore it to working order, hm?"

This time the soldier scowled but hesitated to offer a proper rebuttal, and after a moment of thought, pulled out his personal radio and stepped back enough that the speaker on the other end couldn't be heard. Dr. Jenner watched him impatiently, placing a hand against Sabi's scales as she stared down at him. He had no actual intentions of repairing the facility, even to the limited extent that such a thing was possible; what interested him instead was the information that was stored within. Even if he could no longer realistically meet with the rebel forces responsible for such destruction, the ongoing crisis had still created an unexpectedly convenient cover for him to dig through the prison's data-banks and make off with whatever he liked. The Regime would blame the intrusion upon whomever had sabotaged the facility, and if that information came into rebel hands...

He smiled in spite of himself, earning a dubious look from the guard in front of him. That could certainly lead to some very frustrating setbacks for his self-assured employers.

"Here," the soldier said after a moment, offering his radio to Dr. Jenner. "Explain what you think you can do and what you'll need to accomplish it."

Accepting the device, the doctor raised it to his ear and spoke in a cordial tone, entirely unbefitting of the situation at hand. "Good evening," he said, grinning smugly at the soldier in front of him. "Whom do I have the pleasure of speaking to tonight?"

Normally it would have been difficult to find a top secret government facility, or at least a specific one, but in the current situation it was actually quite easy. Kale merely needed to find someone and ask them where Zapdos had come from. After a few minutes he found a nice old woman who pointed him to central park. There he discovered others approaching with multiple pokemon, most likely resistance. Joining up wasn't the best idea right now, as far as he could see, as he didn't know how the Regime would react to them.

Instead, he hid behind a tree, Eve at his side, and watch the situation to see what would happen.