Pokemon: A Land in Trial

[Doom]

The card read:
Good luck, my darling. You have full support!
Love,
Your secret admirer

[Raven]

Bria sighed and took the basket inside before looking through it's contents.

[Doom]

The basket contained pastries galore, varieties aplenty. It also contained sweet smelling candles, beautiful hand-crafted bows and ribbons, and very expensive-looking makeups.

[Raven]

Bria blinked and wondered who her "secret admirer" was. Someone she knew, surely? Perhaps not... Regardless, it was a kind gift and Bria treated it as such as she began to put things away, keeping the note on her tabletop with a picture of her parents. She decided that she'd go to get a plant to put in the basket later.

[Doom]

On the street of Bria's house wailed police and ambulance sirens, units rushing to the city center. Many of the citizens rushed from their homes, seeing what the commotion was about, trailing the vehicles.

[Raven]

Bria poked her head out the door. She knew better than to get in the Officer's way, but it could be good for her image if she appeared to see what was happening, calm the crowd, soothe relatives. She decided to see what was going on, and trotted towards the scene after locking her front door.

[Doom]

On the intersection of Cassaway and Vert lay a profusely bleeding Marowak, a hysterical Audino weeping over him. The paramedics began to perform immediate CPR on the victim, half the present police being utilized to tear the frantic Audino away from him. "No!! Salem! My love! They can't take me from you!" A small crowd began to gather around the heart-wrenching scene. Salem glanced through the quickly thickening crowd and widened his eyes when he saw Bria. In a weak voice, he asked the paramedics, "May I speak with her?" He pointed with a shaky hand at Bria through the wall of Pokemon. The crowd silently split apart, leaving a clear path for Bria to walk directly to Salem.

[Raven]

Bria was rather shocked at that, but she wasn't about to deny an injured, possibly dying man her presence. So she stepped forward.

[Doom]

Salem whispered faintly, "The p-people who did th-this to me.....they will do the same.....to everyone....if they aren't stopped......" His lifted head hit the pavement with a sharp crack. The officers now releasing her, the Audino walked without a word to her husband and and kissed his lifeless corpse. "Goodbye, my sweet....goodbye......" One of the officers escorted her to a police car. Sighing, Officer Crofts snapped back into focus when he heard his intercom. "Farce street, we have reports of a wrecked van and public assault on the passengers, all officers to the vicinity A.S.A.P." As a Scizor, Crofts found it faster to arrive at his locations through flight, so he took off. Paramedics put Salem into a body bag, and like weeds reporters swarmed the crowds, but Bria had been concealed by the officers, keeping her out of the sight of the news casts. One officer whispered to her, "Run fast, or these scavengers will tear you apart."

[Raven]

Bria didn't even know this man, what would there be to say? But she did as she was told, and quickly returned to her home, locking the door behind her. How was she supposed to do anything about any of this? She had run for Prime Minister, not Police Chief.

[Doom]

"Please....s-stop-" Another bash to the head, and the Scrafty was knocked out, lying in the alley. His assaulter skittered backwards, chuckling his sinister laugh.
He hissed, "You have the tanks?"
Mariana appeared from behind a dumpster, tossing the contents of a gas can onto the four victims. She whispered, "They're getting what they deserve....Stand aside."
The Durant, Dreg, skittered up the side of the dumpster.

Mariana, inhaling deeply, shot a bout of flame at the the victims slathered in gasoline, just in time to allow Crofts to watch the four of them jolt back to life and run about frantically. The ambulance arrived, only to watch Crofts chase Dreg and Mariana through the alleyways, too late to save them. Crofts wasn't fast enough, and Mariana and Dreg had disappeared from sight. Staring into the streets, he turned and punched a wall, leaving a remarkable dent in the stone. He flew onto the rooftops, scouring the block, but still came up empty handed. "I'll find you, Dreg. I don't care what happens to me, but I'll see to it you die a slow painful death...." He whispered to himself.

Darcy Cerxen, ever the nervous one, rushed from the crime scene to the nearest pay phone after learning the story from a local police officer. She dialed up Bria's house, desperate to check on her, despite Bria's partial spite toward her.

[Raven]

Bria answered the phone with a sigh. She was hopeful that this call would give her a distraction. "Hello??"

[Doom]

Darcy whispered away from the phone, "Oh, thank heavens!"
She put the phone back to her mouth and answered, "Bria! Darling, are you alright? That street shooting sounded awful!"

[Raven]

"Yes, I'm fine," Bria answered. I should be the least of your worries. You should call these people's families if anything! was all she could think.

[Doom]

"Oh, that's good....please, turn to the channel eight news as quickly as you can!" Darcy stuttered. In truth, Salem's only living family was his wife, and the families of the other victims had refused to acknowledge they were related. No one respected criminals. Darcy would have said something, but didn't know Bria was concerned.