[center][IMG]http://i67.tinypic.com/2pzxlvr.png[/IMG]   [img]http://i65.tinypic.com/21o8tg4.png[/img]   [IMG]http://i65.tinypic.com/b66f5i.png[/IMG]   [img]http://i66.tinypic.com/dyqee0.png[/img][/center]

[center][h2][color=lightcoral]Lily,[/color][color 33ec06] Marcus,[/color][color 8a3dff] Emma,[/color] and [color 0095ff]Grant[/color][/h2][/center]
[center][h3]A Hole Lotta Trouble[/h3][/center]
[hr]

As Marcus knelt back down into the trench to regain his composure, a shape from one of the other teams caught his eye. A large scorpion, comprised of one eye and one long, slender leg was stumbling over towards them. He looked at it uneasily, trying to subtly draw his comrade's attention to it. [color 33ec06]"Watch yourself folks, we got another one incoming."[/color] He kept a steady eye on it, trying to figure out what it's deal was, before a guttural bellow drew his attention. Cal seemed to be making her way over to it, so his attention was best used on the source of the anger.

He turned just in time to see something large hurtling through the air. Something very large...and coming directly at them. Indeed, it would appear as if the fishmen had been promoted from lackeys to ammunition. Marcus reflected on this situation very eloquently, allowing his teammates to also appreciate the grievousness of their position:

[color 33ec06]"HOLY SHIT![/color] he yelled, immediately hitting the dirt.

Lily laughed gleefully at the fishman's roars of pain. She probably sounded sadistic being so happy about it but she couldn't help it. Hurting the monsters meant that they were one step closer to finishing this nightmare of a battle... well, that or one step closer to getting hurt more by the bellowing beetleman. She was just about to peek out of the trench when Marcus' voice caught her attention. [color=lightcoral]"Another one incoming? Haven't we had enough?"[/color] she asked. But before she could look at what Marcus meant, she heard an angry yell from the unearthed beetleman and then something large flying towards them. Something that was screaming and shooting out scales. Something that had a black string tied around its wrist, the other end of which was was still attached to her own wrist. Even when Marcus yelled out and hit the dirt and even when the scales rained down around her (and for once missing hitting her), all she could really say was [color=lightcoral]"Oh."[/color] 

Grant was too busy trying to catch the breath that had been forcefully knocked out of him from the fall he took into the trench he had just made that by the time he heard Marcus's outburst, it was too late. He opened his eyes a sliver and saw... the hell was that? He tried to focus on the falling- wait that was coming toward him. By the time he finished his confused thought, he felt the force of however much force a fishman would deal to him. All the breath he spent all that time catching was knocked out of him once more as pain spread throughout his torso. A pained, [color=0095FF]"GAH!!!"[/color] came from him the moment the fishman made its impact.

Marcus felt the rush of wind above his crouched form, and heard a loud impact as the fish was expertly catapulted into their makeshift trench. He seemed to be fine at least, his shoulder still throbbed with unnerving warmness, but he had been fortunate in the fact that the fishman had missed him completely. His head turned slowly to see the final resting place of the beast, his stomach sinking low when he saw the very-much-human legs sticking out from underneath it.

Lily watched silently as her black string once again dissipated into thin air as the catapulted fishman died on impact. She looked at it for what seemed like the longest time, its face melting into the face of a man she didn't quite recognize. His eyes were wide and staring blankly at her while his mouth moved soundlessly like a fish out of water. [color=lightcoral][i]Is he trying to tell me something? What is he trying to say? Maybe if I move closer I can figure it out. Maybe if I---[/i][/color] 

[color 33ec06]"Jesus Christ! Grant! Talk to me man, you alive under there!?"[/color] he said, his voice frantic, while propping himself up against the fish and trying to roll it off his teammate.

Lily's thoughts were interrupted by Marcus' frantic voice. She blinked and then the fish was no longer a man. It was a very dead fish with the injuries that she had just a few minutes ago. And below its unmoving, lifeless body was one of her teammates. Grant. She would have helped out but the vision that she had just seen confused her. Ghosts from her past, most probably. Why were they showing themselves in the middle of the battle? She was having difficulty focusing as it is. Her mood plummeted.

Was he alive? He could still feel pain. Did that mean he lived through that? No, of course he was alive. No way was he dying to some fish being thrown at him. He struggled, opening his eyes once more.. something ran down his chin. Blood? Was it blood? No, no it was just some saliva that must've flown out from his mouth when he let out that sound in pain. Just then, he noticed the weight of the fishman on him. He struggled beneath the body trying to push it off, and he can see one of his teammates helping him with the task. A thought occurred to him, seeing his chains waving just above him.

[color=0095FF]"Marcus.. back off from the body...! I've.. I've got it!"[/color] His voice sounded strained in his ears, but that's probably to be expected with the fishman on him. He waited for Marcus to stop pushing before he made contact with the fishman body with both his chains. The feeling of weight against him was obviously much lighter than the ground itself, but it was still there. He lifted the fishman's body from his own, taking in a deep breath.

[color 33ec06] "Alright, well...if you say so!"[/color] Marcus said, raising his hands in an almost 'I'm innocent' motion. There was no time to argue, and he saw the chain attach itself to the corpse. If he could chuck a boulder, then Marcus trusted Grant's ability to lift a dead fish off himself.

Lily looked on in amazement as Grant lifted the corpse off of himself. [color=lightcoral][i]Wow...[/i][/color] she thought idly. It was a good ability. Destructive and helpful at the same time. Chains and monsters, blood and death. Despite the war still going on around them, she found her mind drifting off from one thought to the other. Their dead classmates, how many were still standing? How many were injured? How many were dying? How many monsters were still there? Will the battle end? She thought about her worth in all this. Sure, she was able to make herself a little useful. But what about later? Would she be able to help out the injured after the battle? Would there be an after the battle? Will she be able to survive and be able to help out? She sat down onto the ground and hugged her knees to her chest. 

He turned back to look at the combatants, his heart leaping when he saw the beetleman reach for another fish. [color 33ec06]"Um. Guys. I don't want to be the bearer of bad news, but he's about to do it again!"[/color] he paused for a second, looking almost pitifully over at Lily, where she sat. [color 33ec06]"Lil's, I hate to say it, but it might be time for Plan B, unless either of you can think of anything better."[/color]

Lily slowly looked up at Marcus. [color=lightcoral][i]Plan B...[/i][/color] She thought back to what she had said to him earlier. [color=lightcoral][i]...you can shoot me and I'll transfer the injuries to it. Perfect way to get even with me too...Still a good plan, a good plan...[/i][/color] She nodded. [color=lightcoral]"I'm okay with Plan B."[/color] 

Marcus sighed, almost wincing at the nonchalant way Lily agreed to the plan. He winced even more when his brain came up with a plan, and the exact injuries that would benefit the group huddled in the trench.

Grant sat up in time to hear the news about the giant armored man about to throw another fish. Wait, another one? [color=0095FF]"The hell.. he's gonna do it again?"[/color] He complained. He let out a frustrated sigh, using the dirt beside him to pull himself up as the fishman's corpse hovered at his side with the help of his chains. No way in hell was he letting that beetle of a man get away with throwing a fish at him. He peeked above the trench to see the man approaching. If he was gonna enact revenge, better do it quick. He already had 'fling the fish back at the beetle and see how [i]HE[/i] liked it' in his mind, but he doubted that would leave much of an impact at all. [color=0095FF]"What now, what now, what now, what now..."[/color] Quietly came from his mouth in panic when he realized the girl, Lily, had a grenade belt. Grenades. There's that feeling of an assault of knowledge bombarding his brain again. [color=0095FF]"I got an idea."[/color] He'd say simply, raising his hand, and the fishman corpse raising in sync.

Lily followed Grant's eyes as he looked at the grenades that were strapped onto her hips. She shook her head. [color=lightcoral]"I'm not allowed to touch them. So your plan better not involve me handling any of them,"[/color] she said in a flat voice. Self doubt was creeping into her head and it wasn't helping much with her mood. If only she could remember who she really was and why she had the x mark on her neck then maybe she can be a bit more helpful, do a little more.

Marcus also followed Grant's eyes, his face paling a slight amount around the same time that Lily spoke. At least Lily was taking her duty of not blowing them up seriously, but it still seemed as if it were about to happen again. [color 33ec06]"Aaaaand what would that be...?"[/color] he said, the question very slow and [i]very[/i] hesitant. A sudden peek at the Beetle-Man behind them spurred him into action, however, and he spoke a bit quicker: [color 33ec06]"Actually, you know what? Just explain while you do it; we're running short on time here!"[/color]

Meanwhile, across the battlefield Emma stood taking in the results of her and Kusari's attack. Evidently it was a success, the doll toppling to become one with the ground. Emma allowed herself only a moment to celebrate, clapping her hand together with a small smile. She took a moment to survey the field, scanning to see if there was anyone else to help. In truth she would rather declare her work done, but she knew better than that. Either that or she was afraid she would disappoint her new 'classmates' by flaking out on them in the middle of a life-or-death battle. She noted the position of her teammates, wincing as she saw Lawrence attending to an injured Christmas. She shook her head. She wouldn't be able to help there, as much as she might have wanted to. She was more worried about the 'eyepion' killing someone, even if they were on a different team. Emma glanced at Kusari and gave her a smile and a nod, gesturing to indicate that she was going after the eyepion.

She didn't really have time to exchange pleasantries with Lazarushian woman, even though she would've preferred to chat with Kusari instead of diving back into the battle. Instead she chased after the errant eyepion, who had by now joined blue team. She arrived shortly behind it to find a new set of monstrosities- fish men, beetle men, and the corpses of monsters aplenty. She glanced around for the Blue X's, finding only the blue haired girl with the sword. She saw the beetle man moving towards a trench, yells emanating within. [color=8A3DFF][i]The rest of blue team.[/i][/color] Emma decided. She ran past the eyepion, taking a wide path around it to avoid drawing its attention, heading towards the trench. She reached it and jumped in.

She landed next to Lily, Marcus, and Grant. She looked across the trio. There was a man sized fish in the trench. The girl had grenades. A beetleman was queuing up another fish. [color=8A3DFF]”Uhhhh... hi?”[/color] was what escaped Emma's mouth.

The golden haired girl was still doubting herself and contemplating on how she'd handle the pain from Plan B when a girl landed beside her. She blinked and looked at her. [color=lightcoral][I]What was her name again?[/i][/color] She remembered seeing her in that orientation they were in but no matter how hard she wracked her brain, she couldn't come up with a name. Did it really matter? She lifted a hand and gave her a small, lazy wave. [color=lightcoral]"Hi,"[/color] she greeted.

Marcus visibly jumped when another figure came tumbling into their little hidey-hole. He hadn't been expecting the second fish to hit so soon, and he fumbled with his pistol for a moment, intending to draw it, but not quite getting that far. For, it was not a fish that had landed in their midst, but a girl; one who appeared to be the same age as the rest of them. He stared dumbfounded for a moment, processing. She didn't appear to be a monster, and she certainly didn't seem to be trying to kill them, which made her friendlier than most of what was on the battlefield.

[color 33ec06]"H-hello?"[/color] he stammered. [color 33ec06]"Welcome to the shitshow, Mrs...?"[/color]

[color=8A3DFF]"Emma... or Em, either way is fine."[/color] She said, managing a smile even though she was in a trench that they might very well soon die in. [color=8A3DFF]"I'm from the, uh, red team."[/color] She said with a hint of hesitation. She felt a little odd about the whole situation- the 'whole situation' encompassing everything that had happened since she was captured. She was hardly used to using superpowers to fight monsters. 

While the new girl that dropped in introduced herself to the others, Grant was busy peeking over the trench at the impending doom that was the giant armored man. [color=0095FF]"Let's just get this over with.."[/color] He'd mutter, walking over to Lily, who had the belt of grenades. [color=0095FF]"I'm taking one."[/color] He declared simply before doing as he said, and stepped back to his chain-supported fishman corpse, rotating it around so the mouth of said corpse was pointing up. He observed the corpse from top to bottom quickly, realizing that the legs of the corpse would probably be a problem with the fishman corpse's air accuracy. He took took a few deep breaths before focusing more on the form of the corpse's legs, which at the moment seemed to vibrate and shake before being drawn to each other, sticking.

Grant grabbed one of the legs and gave a good pull, and no matter how much he did, they stuck together like glue. Very, very strong glue. Figuring that was good enough, he 'willed' the mouth of the corpse open with the help of his chains, detaching a chain after he did. The weight that pressed down against Grant's being grew noticeably, but there wasn't time to worry about it. He attached one chain, precisely on the pin of the grenade before dropping it into the fishman mouth, closing it with his chain. It looked very... bizarre, a chain attached to the corpse while also another seemed to just phase into it. After doing all this, Grant peeked above the trench, seeing the giant, armored, beetleman approaching. [color=0095FF]"Alright... three..."[/color] The chains began to reel back, one chain following the grenade pin's movement. [color=0095FF]"Two..."[/color] His eyes narrowed as he gazed on at the approaching beetleman. [color=0095FF]"One!"[/color] He gulped down a lump in his throat as his chain pulled the pin of the grenade in the fishman's mouth, and a split second after, the corpse was flung from the trench, as if it was a javelin, aimed toward the approaching enemy. Immediately, as both of his chains detached from their objects, the weight lifted from Grant's body. He let out a deep breath, leaning against the dirt beside him once more.

[color=lightcoral][i]Emma. Gotta try to remember that.[/i][/color] Lily thought to herself, repeating the name over and over in her head to make sure she doesn't forget it. She was still repeating the girl's name in her head when Grant walked over to her. She looked at him, nodded and then simply watched him take a grenade from the belt she was still wearing. She didn't really mind. The grenades were probably better in his hands than hers. What was he planning to--- [color=lightcoral][i]Oh.[/i][/color] Once again, she found herself watching in amazement at how Grant used his powers as he executed his plan. [color=lightcoral]"Fish grenade,"[/color] she muttered as she watched her team mate chuck the grenade stuffed dead fish back to the beetleman. Her eyes followed it as it sailed overhead, her mind already looking forward to the mayhem it will cause. Strangely, the idea seemed to lift her mood up a bit. She would have stood up and peered out of the pit but she and Marcus still had something to do. She figured that it'll be easier if she was sitting down. Falling flat on her face wasn't exactly inviting.

Meanwhile, Marcus had snapped back to the testy topic of Plan B. He gave Lily a pained look before speaking. [color 33ec06]"Alright Lily...if you're sure about this..."[/color] he said slowly, his words very unsure and almost apologetic. [color 33ec06]"...if you're not going to back out, then I think our best bet is to hit him in the knees; that'll at least reduce his mobility if we need to get out of this pit in a hurry."[/color] A double shot from both Grant and Lily would probably make short work of the creature, but it also gave them some breathing room if it managed to survive the assault.

[color 33ec06]"Now...here's the [i]really[/i] hard question..."[/color] Marcus said, once again wincing through clenched teeth, [color 33ec06]"...do you want to do it, or would you rather somebody else do it for you?"[/color]

Lily laid her hands on her knees. It made sense. Injuring the monster in its knees would possibly render it unable to walk...just as she would be unable to walk before she transferred it. It didn't matter. Ending the battle and surviving were their goals. A little pain was nothing. She nodded slowly. [color=lightcoral]"No, there's no backing out of this. I suggested it after all. And it works well enough,"[/color] she tried giving Marcus a small smile of assurance but it ended looking awkward. She can never really smile properly when she was in one of her sadder moods. She sighed. [color=lightcoral]"I don't think I can do it myself. I'd probably be too scared...so I think it'd be best if you do it."[/color] She extended her legs out away from her. She gestured towards her knees. [color=lightcoral]"Shoot when you're ready."[/color] She looked up at him and saw the uncertainty in his eyes. [color=lightcoral]"Just point and shoot. No real need to worry about me. I'll be fine. I've done it twice already. Point and shoot. No need to think too much about it."[/color] She had no idea if her words would offer him assurance more than her awkward smile could.

Emma glanced at Marcus, and then at Lily. She blinked. Wait, what? [color=8A3DFF]"W-what are you guys doing?"[/color] She said, distinctly [i]not[/i] smiling, worry in her voice evident. Was he... going to shoot her in the knee? [color=8A3DFF][i]No, there's no way that's their plan. I must be misunderstanding something...[/i][/color]

The small golden haired girl looked towards their guest from red team and shrugged as if what they were about to do was something they did on a regular basis. [color=lightcoral]"Plan B,"[/color] she replied before turning her attention back to her shooter.

He figured as much. There'd be too much risk and hesitation associated with shooting herself in the leg, and Lily didn't need to worry about it any more than she had to. Marcus returned an equally awkward smile, eyes darting over to Em, while he hesitantly brought up his gun. [color 33ec06]"Trust me, it's not a plan I like, but she'll be fine; it's her power. Still, just promise me one thing, Lily: No hard feelings?"[/color] he said, a forced chuckle escaping his lips. [color lightcoral][i]Point and shoot[/i][/color]. At least she was trying to make him feel better about it. He aimed the barrel directly at one knee; one was all they'd need for now, and he didn't want to do it more times than they had to. He gave one last reassuring look at Lily. [color 33ec06]"On three. One..."[/color] he didn't finish the countdown as he pulled the trigger. In his mind, it'd be like taking off a band-aid, and was probably something that should be done without tensing up for it.

Hopefully Lily felt the same way.

Emma gave the two a look of incredulity. She covered her ears. [color=8A3DFF][i]He's really going to shoot her... I should've stayed with Kusari...[/i][/color] She lamented to herself.

Lily looked at Marcus and then gave him a curt nod. Of course there won't be any hard feelings. Why would there be? It's not as if he was doing it cause he wanted to. It was--- All thoughts flew out of her head as the gun shot rang out. Her eyes widened and she bit her lip as pain immediately spread through her leg. She closed her eyes tightly as she tried not to scream, figuring that if she did, Marcus would only feel bad about it. But the pain was so intense that a whimper escaped her lips and tears streamed down her face. 

[i]Hailey![/i] She heard someone call out. A man's voice. [i]Hailey![/i] The same name but this time, it was a woman's voice. Hailey? Who was Hailey? Someone in their team? [color=lightcoral][i]Do I really need to know who Hailey is? Do I even care? Will knowing who she is make this pain go away?[/i][/color] Lily thought to herself. 

[i][b]Hailey, don't you dare ignore me, young lady![/b][/i]

[color=lightcoral]"Hmmm...?"[/color] The voice sounded angry and it sounded like the person saying it was just right next to her. She reached up and wiped her tears with the back of her hand. Did she even want to open her eyes?

[i][b]HAILEY![/b][/i] 

The female voice was angrier now. [color=lightcoral]"What?"[/color] she demanded as she opened her eyes. She found herself staring at Marcus, the still smoking gun in his hands. She furrowed her brows, trying to make sense of it all. And slowly, she remembered the fishman flying towards them, the beetle man yelling out in fury...Plan B. [color=lightcoral]"Plan B,"[/color] she said as if to remind herself what she needed to do. She gritted her teeth and focused. [color=lightcoral][i]The pain will go away soon...[/i][/color] she reminded herself as the black string reappeared on her wrist, the other end wrapping itself around beetleman's wrist. It didn't even take long for Lily's knee to be good as new.