Team Valiant
Luke emerged from the hospital,
breathing a sigh of relief; all the survivors were admitted and the Machop that
was poisoned would soon make a full recovery; it seemed an ordinary antidote
had been all it took to cure the poison, even with the corruption the
Tentacruel had been hosting -the rest of which had gone away on its own, being
too little to take over the Machop. That alone, after all the horrors he had
seen before, had made up for all the foreign terror he had experienced that
day.
"..All in a day's
work..." He muttered as he began to make his way back to the forest where
his home was, but his mind drifted as he walked. The Pokémon -the corrupted
Pokémon, mutated and twisted by an evil beyond anything he had ever seen in his
life. The strangers from another world, despite him not believing the first one
who had arrived, only to be proven wrong when a second person, someone who knew
him and that he knew well, suddenly passed over into their world as well.
Something horrible was coming... and
right now only he, his friend Katsumoto, and his two guests knew about it.
When he got back home and walked
inside, following the short tunnel to his door, he found Volcan and Serena both
seated on the sofa, lost in thought. He could not blame them; such strange
things were happening to them now. They had been transported to a foreign
world, transformed into beings they had no idea ever existed, and the only one
they could depend on right now was a complete stranger -not that Luke minded
helping them... but nevertheless he could not imagine what they were
experiencing.
Luke walked into the living room and
sat down on the couch next to them. "...Can I get you two
anything...?"
Volcan looked over at Luke, and then back at
Serena. "Just some water, please," she replied. "Rather
thirsty."
He nodded, walking over to the sink
and filling a glass of water, then walked back and gently placed it in front of
her before sitting down again.
"Hey, Luke..." Volcan
began. "Look, if you at all feel uncomfortable with any of this, or if you
feel Serena and I may be a danger to your family, just say the word and we can
find somewhere else to stay. Camp in the woods, maybe. I don't want you or your
wife and son to feel insecure."
Luke looked to them for a moment.
"...I understand your concern...but we're quite safe here..." He
returned. "No one suspects a home that's underground..."
"Still... I can't help but feel
responsible for what's happening out there," said Volcan. "I don't
want to put you in danger just for us."
"I assure you we'll be fine,
Volcan..." Luke tried to reason with him
Volcan sighed. "I hope you're
right..." He said.
Luke looked around a bit.
"So...about these...demons. Where are they from?"
"It varies," replied
Volcan. "On my world, there are numerous neighboring realms, not all on
the same time stream but around the same Universe. Nine of these realms are
inhabited by Demon races; beings literally formed from negative emotions and
the dark deeds of others, some even from people who were once ordinary. They
are literal incarnations of corruption and evil, possessing dark powers of
various kinds.
"The ones I'm most familiar with are
from a place known as the Realm of Destruction, and they're some of the most
dangerous among all the dimensions. As their name implies, they thrive on
causing death and desolation to realms they visit, they're wild and
uncontrollable, and only take orders from the strongest of their kind."
Luke nodded, leaning forward and
listening with great interest. "And who would you say is the strongest of
these creatures...you did mention a name once or twice..."
"That would be Kalo'Temir; he
is unquestionably among the strongest," replied Volcan. "The most
powerful are called Arch Demons, and there's one higher than them called a
Demon Lord, the master of the entire realm and its most powerful being. All
others answer to the Demon Lord, but below them, the Arch Demons are the
rulers. Kalo'Temir is second only to the Demon Lord himself, stronger than the
other 3 Arch ones by far."
Luke shuddered a little at that,
honestly intimidated to hear that piece of news. "...Do you think he might
be responsible for this?"
"It's possible," replied Volcan.
"I already know he can travel between dimensions; he did it when he took
me. But what he could be doing to cause these anomalies between your world and
mine, it must be big."
"Well...if it is him, then we have to
stop him and put an end to all this chaos...and...find a way to get you two
back home..."
"I don't know how we can stop
him if it is him," replied Volcan, rubbing his chin in thought. "It
took eight of us to beat him before; one of those beings were a Demigod, one
Archangel-level Kitsune, two immortals, two superhuman Chi fighters, and me and
my rival. Even between us, we barely beat him... his power was beyond
belief."
"It won't stop us from
trying..." Luke returned firmly.
Volcan nodded in agreement.
"Right... you won't see me backing down from it."
"With that in mind. where should
we start looking?" Luke asked. "I'm still unfamiliar with how these
creatures work..."
"I don't know," replied
Volcan. "The only thing I can think of is we find more of these anomalies
and see if we find any clues around them. Maybe even see if one of them really
does lead back to my world and see what I can do from that side."
"It's worth exploring...only
problem is, these anomalies appear at random...one might be going on right now
in a faraway land and we wouldn't know..."
"Well, we got a pretty good
compass to spot them with; those bright lights happen when they open,"
remarked Volcan.
"True..." Luke agreed.
"But again they appear at random...we can't exactly be prepared for them. I
suppose all we can do is wait and find others to act as our eyes and ears,
letting us know when they appear."
At that, Volcan suddenly perked up.
"Waaaait a minute... didn't you say you had a team?"
Luke's ears stood upright and a smile
slowly crossed his face. "...That's right...! I could have them stay on
the lookout for anything out of the ordinary!"
"It's our best shot for
now," stated Volcan.
"I agree," said Serena,
finally speaking.
Luke nodded softly. "I suppose I
should gather them around...would be a good chance for you to meet them
all."
Volcan nodded. "I guess that
makes Serena and I part-time members, eh?"
"That would seem
accurate." Luke said as he bade for them to follow him outside.
Volcan and Serena stood up from the
couch and followed after Luke, both of them feeling much more confident they
could find a way home now.
Luke lead them both outside of his
house, then he raised his paw and fired an Aura Sphere into the air above,
which exploded with a large plume of blue smoke. "...And now we
wait..."
"...Better than a flare
gun," remarked Volcan, chuckling.
The first to arrive was Katsumoto,
since he was the closest to the house. He nodded to Luke in greeting, and the
same to Volcan, but then he saw Serena and once again he blushed upon setting
her eyes on her, quickly averting his gaze before she could notice...
The second member to arrive soared
overhead, then dive-bombed toward the group in a blazing ball of fire.
"WHOOHOOOO!!!" He whooped before quickly levelling out and skidding
to a halt in front of Luke and Katsu.
"DAMN that never gets old!" The third member, a Talonflame, said as
he did a small hop of excitement.
"Stylish as always, Eagle
Eye..." Luke commented.
"You know it!!"
"Whoa... a flaming
flier," remarked Volcan.
"Kind of reminds me of you,
only... more hyperactive," remarked Serena.
The fourth member seemed to
just....faze into existence next to the Talonflame. A rather muscled up
Zoroark, though not as big as Katsumoto...oddly enough, he looked rather
familiar to Volcan upon his arrival...
"...Why do I feel like I've
seen him before?" Volcan wondered aloud.
Luke smirked to Volcan. "Ah
yes...remember that shadow you saw leaping from rooftop to rooftop?"
"That was him?" Volcan
asked.
The Zoroark looked to Volcan and smirked.
"What, you never saw a Zoroark leap all over town before? Practically my
job...next to workin' with these guys."
"I'm... not from around
here," Volcan remarked, plainly.
"Ah. Well name's Hank."
He said, giving him a wink and a thumbs up. "Though I'm mostly known by my
vigilante name, the Dark Night around these parts."
"..." 'I should just keep
that one to myself,' the Blaziken thought.
The next member to arrive seemed to
pop up from the ground, a Dugtrio. Its heads poked through the ground one by
one. "So what needs tunneling this time?"
"A... three headed mole?"
Serena asked, blinking in confusion.
"Is it that hard to
believe...?" Came a fifth voice behind Volcan and Serena, sounding cold
and toneless almost.
The two of them jumped at the unexpected
voice and slowly turned around, facing the owner of the voice, which belonged
to a frog like Pokémon -a Greninja, standing upside down on a tree branch, his
long tongue scarf billowing in the soft breeze to the left. On each leg were
pouches containing different ninja tools and strapped on his back was a typical
ninjato.
"And who's this?" Volcan
asked.
"That would be Kage," Luke
answered.
The Greninja leapt down to join the
rest of the team, landing without making a sound. Hank smirked softly upon his
entrance. "Peh, show off."
"As if you're one to
talk..." Kage returned calmly.
Luke cleared his throat to get
their attention, then he turned to Volcan and Serena with a smile. "Allow
me to introduce to you, Rescue Team Valiant." Luke said as he went through
his allies one by one, "You both know Katsumoto by now. He's the Mighty
Blade and Tank of the team." He explained. Katsumoto bowed his head lowly
in respect toward Volcan and Serena.
"Already seen him in action;
definitely a good one to have on our side," said Volcan.
The Talonflame hopped up to them
"Sup biatches! Name's Eagle Eye! I'm the Air/Fire Support of the
team!" He said with a cocky attitude. "Ain't nuthin that can hide
from me!"
"Not exactly humble is he?" Serena
muttered to Volcan.
"About as humble as Korban
after a beat-down on a contract," returned Volcan.
The Dugtrio approached next.
"I'm Doug, The Tunnler and Demolitionist of the group. Anything that needs
digging or excavating, I'm your guy."
Volcan and Serena both nodded to him.
"Nice to meet you," said Serena.
Then the Zoroark was next to speak.
"Name's Hank, I'm what you'd call the Trickster of the group...and I also
act as the interrogator of the group, 'cuz well....let's just say I know how ta
make Pokémon talk..." He said with a devilish grin.
"Sounds like you're a persuasive
type of guy," Volcan remarked
"You've NO idea, buddy..."
Hank said, still grinning, his eyes flashing briefly as he grinned.
Finally it was the Greninja's turn,
but he remained silent for a bit before he finally spoke. "....I go by the
name, Kage....I am the Shadow...."
"Uh... not talkative, is he?" Volcan
asked Luke. "That was kind of... vague."
"What he lacks in speech, he
makes up for in his prowess as a shinobi..." Luke returned.
"Sounds like a few guys I've
met," remarked Volcan
"That so?" Luke asked. "I'm to
assume they're one of your allies?"
"...No, actually," replied Volcan,
shifting uncomfortably. "Just the opposite."
"Ah..." Luke returned, then
he turned to his teammates. "For those of you who are unaware, this is
Volcan and Serena....It may sound hard to believe, but these two are not from
around here...rather...not from this dimension..."
Hank, Doug and Eagle Eye looked to
Volcan and Serena oddly. "...Wait, so you're telling me that these chumps
are from some kinda alternate reality?" Eagle Eye asked.
Luke glanced over to Volcan. "It
may be better if you two explain it," he suggested.
"I agree," admitted Volcan. He
stepped forward, regarding all of the members of Team Valiant; he felt a little
uncomfortable with all of their eyes on him, but with a deep breath and running
over his words in his head, he began his explaination. "I know it sounds
like a lot to take in. But I can guarantee you all, it's the truth, and a
recent incident out at sea helps fortify my evidence, because a presence
normally only seen on my world has been brought to yours. Corruption, emanated
by supernatural forces; several Pokémon who were afflicted with it turned into
mindless monsters.
"Both Luke and Katsu can verify
this; they fought against several of these corrupted Pokémon. I helped but...
unfortunately since this body isn't like my own I have no clue how to use it
properly yet. Anyway, I'm getting side-tracked; the corruption that has
affected Pokémon in this world comes from a race known as Demons who are literally
living embodiments of Negative energy, created from the emotions of others or
crimes against nature across time and space. They're -pure- evil, and those who
fall to their corruption slowly become the same thing."
"D-D-D-Demons?!?" Doug
stuttered. "Like...the kind in those kids storybooks that make em behave
at night!?"
"Worse than that,
Doug..." Katsumoto stated.
"Much worse," replied
Volcan. "My experiences are mostly of the ones from a single plane, but
the fact their presence is here means something is happening on the rifts of
space and time; it could mean those demons are trying to come here, to spread
their evil to this world. I don't quite know how Serena and I got pulled here
but we come from a realm ruled equally by two races; humans, and anthropomorphics,
or humanoid animals; picture any one of you with four or five fingers, longer
legs and about 3 feet taller you've got a general idea of what most anthro's
are. They vary from one species to another."
"That sounds
kinda....Farfetch'd....eh?" Eagle Eye said with a snicker.
"If I could prove it to you
guys somehow, I would; right now all I have is my word," continued Volcan,
his voice becoming dark, serious and quite convincing. "But, whether or
not what I'm saying is true or all my memories are some wild dream, demons are
coming to your world; they will kill and destroy everything and everyone they
see. Young and old, male and female, living being or constructed building, they
don't care. They will cover this entire world in blood, darkness and evil.
Right now, the only ones who know this is coming... are the ones standing right
here."
Luke stepped in and nodded.
"He's telling the truth, I'm afraid. Which is why I've called you all
here." Luke said in a stern tone. "I need you all to spread out and
keep an eye out for any sort of anomalies. You'll know if one's happening,
because the area will be shrouded by a bright light."
"When you see those lights,
let us know, pronto," Volcan added. "And whatever you do, don't try
to take on the corrupted Pokemon alone; where there's one there'll be dozens.
If there's no sign of them having any control of themselves left either, don't
hold back; it's too late to save people that far gone to the corruption."
The way he said that... it sounded like Volcan was speaking from experience.
"...You've had experience with
these demons before..." Kage stated, keeping his arms crossed.
Volcan's visage darkened.
"That's... not a tale I like repeating..." he said. "But I can say
I've had first-hand experience with the corruption of demons myself." He
relaxed a little. "There is some good news however; if caught in the early
stages, the corruption is removable, and we already found out how." He
looked at Luke as he said this. "Luke here saw the corruption as a dark
aura, attempting to take the place of the victim's aura.
"Using his ability to manipulate
aura he was literally able to pull the corruption free and make it disperse.
This won't work on those who are completely succumbed, but those who still show
signs of their free will have a chance." His eyes narrowed again. "Be
careful though; an essence of corruption powerful enough will either try to
take another host or it will physically manifest and come alive."
"Sounds easy enough to
avoid." Eagle Eye stated with a cocky tone. "No one's faster than dis
guy!"
"Your hubris will be your
downfall one day, Eagle Eye..." Katsumoto stated while rubbing his
forehead softly. Kage, however, had a rather piercing look in his eye as he
looked on at Volcan, as if seeing right through him... Volcan had nothing else
to say, though; he had given them all the details he could on what to expect,
leaving Luke to finish things off.
"If there are no questions, then
you're all dismissed." he stated, then waved his arm to the side.
"Scatter!" With that, the entire team all took off in different
directions to keep a lookout for any further anomalies
Volcan let out a sigh of relief.
Serena looked up at him and leaned against his leg. "Are you okay,
Volcan?" She asked.
"Just... some bad
memories," he replied.
"I know... it's hard to keep
having to relive that," agreed Serena.
Luke turned to Volcan and gently placed a paw
on his shoulder. "Try to relax...I'm sure we'll find a way to overcome
this dilemna..."
"I hope so," said Volcan.
"This world is in grave danger... I've been able to protect my home world
but will I be capable of helping to protect this one?" He sighed.
"All of my powers are gone, and I'm left in a body I don't even know
yet."
"Well, we can still take time to
train you and unlock more of your potential moveset..." Luke offered.
"Looks like I'll have to,"
said Volcan. "I'll just have to be extra careful as well..."
"I have to learn my powers in
this body too," agreed Serena. "I want to help, and I won't be able
to do that if I..." She blushed, "...can't even walk in a straight line..."
Luke nodded. "Katsumoto would be
a good teacher for you then, since he's also primarily a quadruped, and is a
pure water type such as yourself."
Serena nodded, but then blushed.
"He seems... uncomfortable around me though," she said. "Are you
sure he would want to train me?"
Luke smiled a little. "He may
seem like he is; but in all honesty, I think he would like to get to know you
more..." Luke commented, kneeling down and patting her shoulder.
"Okay... I suppose it wouldn't hurt to
ask him," she admitted, nodding.
"We should get started very
soon," said Volcan. "We need every moment to prepare for what's
coming."
Luke nodded. "Let's head to a more
open part of the forest so we can continue training." Luke said, motioning
for Volcan to follow.
"Where should I go find
Katsu?" Serena asked.
"He'll mostly likely patrol
around the town border...he doesn't really venture into town unless he has
to." Luke commented.
Serena nodded. "Okay. I'll go have
a look around then," she said. "I'll let you two train by
yourselves."
"If you need us, Serena, just
head to Luke's place and wait there," instructed Volcan.
Serena nodded. "Okay," and
carefully trotted off to find Katsu.
Luke led Volcan more into the forest away from
his house, eventually arriving at a large clearing in the woods, taking a few
steps away from Volcan before turning to face him. "Alright let's get
started."
"Alright," began Volcan.
"We already found out I know Fire Punch; what else can I learn?"
"Well there's Blaze Kick...we
tried that earlier, but it is rather hard to pull off..." Luke thought out
loud. "Let's try Sky Uppercut...it's a pretty simple move to perform...and
it allows you to hit Pokémon that take to the skies..."
"But you can't fly; how would
we test it?"
"But I can still jump very
high. And it doesn't have to be used on flyers." Luke stated. "It's just
a move that can be used to counter
flyers."
Volcan nodded. "Makes sense. Okay;
ready when you are."
Luke nodded and got into a stance.
"The key is to strike from below like a normal uppercut, but rather than
stopping, you continue to follow through until you and your opponent are in the
air..."
"I imagine Blaziken are good at
this because they can jump ridiculously high?" Volcan asked.
"There's that." Luke
commented.
"Alright then what're we
waiting for?" Volcan asked, adopting a fighting stance.
"For you to attack first."
Luke commented with a small smirk.
Volcan grinned, and then ran at Luke,
taking a leap into the air and front-flipping before he came down with his foot
extended. Luke held out his arm and blocked the kick, skidding a little before
he weaved around Volcan and let him pass by, back flipping away and re-stancing
again, waiting for his next attack.
Volcan turned around after landing,
and barked out a laugh at Luke, but much to the surprise of both of them, a
stream of flame also burst out! "Eh?!" Volcan yelped after closing his
beak.
Luke quickly ducked low and
flattened his ears to avoid the flames, though he smirked a little upon
standing up again. "Seems you somehow unlocked Flamethrower."
"Sorry!" Volcan exclaimed.
"Didn't mean to do that; I didn't burn you, did I?"
"I'm fine." Luke reassured.
Volcan took a breath to relax
himself. "Okay... note; do not focus energy to mouth before
laughing."
Luke reassumed his stance, beckoning
Volcan to approach him again. Volcan returned to his own fighting pose, inching
closer to Luke a little at a time, always keeping his eyes on the Lucario.
In a quick step, Luke then dashed
toward Volcan, arms at his sides as he approached. Volcan waited until Luke was
close enough before he delivered a spinning kick towards him, sweeping his leg
through the air as if to hit multiple enemies at once. Luke slid under his leg
as it swished over him, then retaliated with a quick rising kick from below to
Volcan's jaw before backing up some and firing an Aura Sphere from one paw
right at his chest.
Volcan went flying onto his back,
grunting painfully, but leapt back to his feet again, charging a fire punch and
running at Luke again. Luke, knowing that if he even touched Volcan's hands to
try and block his strikes he would be injured greatly, instead weaved and
started hopping backwards as Volcan came rushing in with a flurry of Fire
Punches. Even Luke would slip up eventually with such a furious onslaught
coming at him, and sure enough, at one point he stumbled a little and was
leaning back on one leg, open for a punishing strike.
Volcan landed a powerful blow on
Luke's stomach, but actually drew back a little at the last second to cause him
no serious harm, and then leapt back from him for only a split second for
unleashing a Jump Kick towards him. Luke grunted and rolled on the ground once
before landing in a crouch, grunting from the hit he took. Upon seeing Volcan
fly right for him with a flying kick, he flinched for a bit, but remained calm.
When the kick seemed sure to hit, Luke shifted his feet a little and right as
it was about to touch his nose, he just....vanished...like he wasn't even
there.
"The hell...?" Volcan
landed carefully, and began to look around for Luke, surveying all of his
surroundings and already expecting an ambush from any side...
"Where are you looking?"
Luke called from behind Volcan, a fair distance away from him, standing tall
and with a small smirk on his face.
"Oh that is so cliché,"
Volcan groaned before he rushed at Luke and thrust his elbow at him. He,
however, managed to catch it and flip Volcan over his shoulder, and then backed
away just as he hit the ground, landing again in a soft style stance. Volcan
sprang back to his feet, and once more returned to his own fighting stance,
this time making sure to let Luke be the one to attack.
"You're learning quickly I must
admit...pretty soon I'll have to go all out on you..." Luke commented.
"This body may not be as strong
as my own, but my reflexes and my skills haven't changed," returned
Volcan.
"And judging by your reaction,
I'm guessing you've faced quick opponents before?"
"Oooohhh yes," replied Volcan,
eyes wide as he remembered the foes he had faced. "Faster than a bat out of
hell."
"Then maybe I should put your
reflexes to the test..."
"Bring it on," said
Volcan. "I regularly fight a Sergal who moves faster than the blink of an
eye."
Luke was a little confused.
"....Ser....gal...?"
"A race back in my world; very
rare but each one I've met, unique," remarked Volcan. "Tell you
later; all I can tell you is that this guy was fast enough to be in your face
the second you blink and literally deflect projectiles moving the speed of
sound, with a sword."
"...That... seems
unlikely...." Luke stated, but he still kept his stance regardless.
"You doubted me being from
another world; you think I'm making THIS up?" Volcan asked, shrugging
helplessly.
Luke shrugged as well. "I
suppose it doesn't matter at this point."
"Alright, now come on
already!" Volcan barked at him. "Come and get me!"
Luke then darted to Volcan, though
rather than strike him head on, he darted to his back and struck his neck
before retreating and skidding to a halt, rising back up quickly and firing
roughly three Aura Spheres at him before disappearing again. Volcan wasn't
falling for it, though; he carefully dodged each of the attacks, and watching
carefully for Luke, he managed to spot the Lucario as he came at him, and
caught an oncoming punch from him with his left hand.
"Gotcha," he said, before
yanking on Luke's arm and striking him in the forehead with his right elbow.
Luke grunted from the strike, though he still held his form and quickly lifted
his feet up and double kicked his beak, landing on his back before rolling to
his feet and thrustng a Force Palm into Volcan's chest.
Another attack which Volcan caught,
just barely, before trying to deliver another punch with his other fist. Luke
quickly raised his other paw and caught Volcan's fist in it, leaving the two of
them at a standstill.
"Yanno, my grandpa taught me
this is one of the worst situations you can be in," Volcan remarked.
"But he also taught me how to get out of it..."
Luke raised an eyebrow at that claim, still
struggling against Volcan's strength as the standstill continued. "...And
that is?"
"With a cheap shot!" Volcan
barked before he jerked back a little, pulling Luke towards him, and then
SLAMMING his head against Lukes', the bone of their skulls audibly connecting.
Luke's skull rattled a little from the impact, his eyes slightly rolling back
from the intense pain he felt in his head before he roared in pain, jerking his
head back and letting go of Volcan's hand to grasp his head, yelping in a mix
of pain and surprise.
And that was when Volcan lunged
forward, grabbing Luke around his middle in a powerful embrace before lifting
him up, jumping forward and diving back into the ground, although Luke landed
on something rather soft taking away some of the impact, but it was still
enough to steal some of the air out of his lungs.
After that, Volcan reared back, drew
back his fist, and punched at Luke's face, but stopped just inches away, before
he poked him on the nose. "And, shattered cartilage," he stated.
Luke looked up at Volcan, panting a
little as he recovered from being winded. "....Well that was
something..."
Volcan chuckled and got off of Luke,
offering a hand to help him up. "I do learn pretty quickly," replied
Volcan. "Didn't hurt you, did I?"
Luke grunted and gently took Volcan's
hand. "Mph...a little, but it's part of sparring...What doesn't kill you makes
you stronger."
"Well, if you ever meet my Uncle, you'll
find living proof of that with him," replied Volcan, patting Luke's
shoulder. "And yet I never got the chance to even try Sky Uppercut."
"You'll get your chance, don't
worry." Luke returned.
"Well... I'm feeling kind of peckish;
shall we go get a snack before we keep going?" Volcan suggested.
Luke nodded. "Sounds good. I know just
what to make." He said as he led Volcan back to his home for some grub.
~~~~~
Serena wandered outside the edge of
town, searching for Katsu. A few times, she was afraid she'd become lost, as
she didn't really know her way around and would retrace her steps to start
over, a couple of times even calling out to Katsu as she looked for him
As she walked though, she bumped into
a rather broad and muscled up Samurott donning a kimono, looking down at her as
she bumped into him. "You called, miss...?"
"Oh... there you are," she
said, and then cleared her throat. "I'm sorry to intrude, but I was hoping
you might be able to help train me in using this body? I'm afraid I'm...
completely clueless as to what I can do in this form."
He was silent for a moment as he
looked down at her, a small blush once again appearing on his cheeks as he looked
away for a moment. "I see. I suppose I could put time aside to aid you in
your struggles."
"I-If this is a bad time I
could come back later," she offered.
"No it's alright. I can put
aside my duties for now... besides, as powerful as we are as a team, I cannot."
He paused for a moment before correcting himself. "WE cannot be around all
the time to protect you."
"Of course," she said,
nodding. "Where would be a good place to train, then?"
"Preferably somewhere near
water..." Katsumoto stated. "We can use my home...it's near a lake..."
"A lake? But isn't the nearby
town near an ocean? Lakes aren't usually so close to the sea," remarked
Serena.
"That's because my home is
quite far from the town...I live in isolation by choice..." He returned.
"Oh... how long will it take
us to get there?" She asked.
"A half hour's walk...but I can
take us there quicker with my Aqua Jet..."
She nodded. "Okay," she
agreed
Katsumoto then sat down in front of
her so she could climb onto his back. "Best you hung on tight...you can
bite into my kimono if you must..."
"Okay" she returned,
climbing carefully onto his back, hoping she didn't step on anything sensitive
as she did. The touches of her paws were light and gentle, and when she laid
down as flat as possible against his back, she was securely in place. He could
feel her form through the back of his kimono...
He was blushing rather vibrantly now
that he felt her form against his back, but he dared not to show her. Instead
he kept his gaze straight ahead and quickly darted forward with his Aqua Jet,
travelling rather quickly through the forest toward his home.
Serena almost fell off, but
gripping with her paws she managed to stay on his back, and watch over his
shoulder to see where they were going.
After roughly six or seven minutes,
he slowed down until he skidded a little, arriving at a small hut right by a
small lake roughly the size of a water resevoir. "We're here..." He
said as he sat down again for Serena to climb off.
Serena stepped off of his back, and
found herself a higher spot where she could survey the area around the hut. It
was completely surrounded by the thick forest, nothing but large green trees
that seemed to shelter the hut and the lake from the sun above.
"This place is
beautiful," she said. "It... actually kind of reminds me of Vinge and
Buniq's homes, back on my world."
"I'm sorry, I'm not familiar
with those names... are they friends of yours...?" He asked, looking back
to her.
Serena nodded as she turned back to
him. "Yes. Vinge is an Ice Phoenix, who's been on our team much longer
than I have," she explained, sitting down. "He's... actually very
much like you; he prefers his seclusion, far away from the crowd and noises of
the city, he's very intelligent and a cunning swordsman. Buniq is a Werecat,
and a born leader; she inspires people to carry on even against difficult odds,
and has a certain effect on others that make them trust her, very much like
Volcan himself. She's also an excellent tracker, but... she's not a very trusting
woman."
"I see...well I'm not exactly that
intelligent like your ice friend...I only know enough to survive and think
quickly while in a battle..."
"That's sort of what he does,
but he is also an excellent strategist," replied Serena. "He analyzes
opponents as he fights them, eventually coming up with methods to defeat them.
In all the time I've known him he has never lost a battle to the same person
twice."
Katsumoto nodded. "He sounds
like quite a warrior...it would be an honour to clash blades with such an
adversary..." Katsumoto stated. "Alas, I rely only on my
swordsmanship and my raw power...I am the tank of the team because I trained my
body to possess incredible strength and stamina...I am stronger than most
typical Samurott."
Serena nodded in return. "If
ever we get the chance to, I'll gladly introduce you to all of my
friends," she promised.
He smiled a little, walking closer
to her as well. "I'd like that..." He returned, staring down at her
with a soft smile, still blushing a tad.
"So... should we begin
training?" Serena suggested, before the situation became awkward.
He blinked a few times before
responding. "Yes, we should..." He said, averting his eyes a little.
"Let's see...if I remember correctly, Vaporeon are primarily distance
fighters...so I suppose we should start with a simple Water Gun attack..."
"Okay." She stood up and
turned in a safe direction. "How do I do it?"
"Well, the way I learned it
was to focus your energies on shooting water from your mouth... I'm not sure it
it's the same for other Water Types, but it's worth a shot regardless..."
She shut her eyes and did so,
taking in a deep breath and focusing her energies before exhaling. Some water
came out, but it didn't go very far; only a couple of meters before it sagged.
"Oh," she whimpered, scolding herself silently.
"That was good for a first
attempt." He said to her. "Try again...you'll only improve with hard
work and tenacity..."
She nodded, and gave another try.
She made two more failed attempts before, on the fourth try, a powerful stream
finally erupted and snapped off the limb of a nearby tree. She closed her mouth
and saw the damage she had done, allowing herself a small, satisfied smile.
"I... I got it!" She exclaimed.
Katsumoto smiled. "You see?
You can do it." He said with praise. "And quite quickly as well...I
had to work to make mine snap a limb off a tree, but I suppose it's because I
was a young Oshawott at the time..."
"It's probably because I'm
using it like my own powers in my real body," replied Serena. "You
see, in my true form, I'm a Hydromancer; I can manipulate water through
elemental magic. These powers actually feel quite similar, although I'm
controlling them as much physically as mentally."
"Well I'm not sure what this
Hydromancy is, but a Pokémon's elemental abilities stem from their own
strength...the stronger you are, the more powerful your moves will
become."
She nodded in reply. "i guess
that makes sense," she said
"Let's try another move...something more
physical..." he suggested. "How about Aqua Tail..."
"Okay. How do I do it?"
"The same way you would try a
Water Gun, but focusing on your tail instead, then lashing out with it at your
opponent."
"Okay," she returned,
nodding, and so prepared to use the attack. She did as instructed, focusing her
energy into her tail and waited to see if something happened. This time she
nailed it on the first try. Torrents of water surged around her tail, ready to
pummel any unsuspecting target. And so she lashed at the nearest target, a
stump of a broken tree, and struck it with her tail; the enhanced attack
slammed against the stump, leaving a noticeable dent in the stump after her
attack landed.
"That was... easy," she
remarked.
Even Katsumoto was surprised.
"...That was very good." He said, quickly calming down and smiling to
Serena. "It would seem you're more of a physical attacker than a distance
one."
"Well... yes," she replied.
"I mostly fight defensively, using my shield to protect the flanks of my
comrades until the fight gets in close, and then use that and my
strength."
"I see. So in your world you
are also a close combat type..." He returned, rubbing his whiskers a
little. "It seems we have that much in common...."
"Yes... although,
I really don't like fighting that much" she admitted. "I try to avoid
it as much as possible... I'll protect my friends, putting myself between them
and a dangerous person but... I don't like hurting others, even if they're
evil..."
Katsumoto looked at her for a
moment longer. "...It seems you also are aware of the most important trait
of being a warrior..."
"There's a saying back in my
world... 'the greatest battles are the ones never fought'," returned
Serena. "Or... something like that. I am still learning the common
languages of the world; I speak in an ancient tongue, normally."
Katsu nodded, gently taking her paw in his.
"You are right in a way...but the trait I was looking for was to know when
to draw your weapon..."
She looked at his paw briefly, and
shyly pulled hers back, her tail flicking uncomfortably. "Yes I... believe
there's a saying like that as well..."
He also blushed a little
uncomfortably, lowering his paw and averting his eyes a bit, remaining silent
for a while.
"Now, um..." Serena
began. "Next step?" She asked, trying to get their minds back on
track.
"Y-Yes...forgive me." he
returned, turning back to look at her. "Let's try a Quick Attack...it will
allow you to strike before your opponent and can even interrupt your foe from
making a move on you..."
"Okay..." She looked
straight ahead. "How do I do it?"
"Because this is a Normal Type
attack, no focusing is required...just charge in as fast as you can and tackle
into your target full force..."
"Alright..." She found a
good, open stretch to try the attack and broke off into a run, going as fast as
she could possibly manage.
For a moment, it seemed like she
had managed to perform the attack flawlessly on the first try... until an
unseen obstacle appeared just after she was out of sight of Katsu, who had been
unable to keep up with her; he heard her cry out in pain just seconds after,
followed by several dead leaves scattering everywhere, where she had vanished.
Katsumoto's eyes widened a little
when she saw her vanish. "Serena!" He called after her, running to
where she disappeared to.
He found her lying on her side a
short distance away, one of her legs curled painfully against her chest. When
she saw Katsu approaching, she looked up at him. "I... I hit a tree
root," she said. "I think it sprained my ankle."
He froze upon hearing that, then
lowered his head quickly. "I'm sorry...I wasn't aware there was any
exposed roots...forgive my lack of foresight..."
"It's okay," she replied,
trying to get up. "Hazards are always part of training."
"No, don't strain your
injury." He said as he stepped before her and gently supported her by
rearing up on his hind legs and lightly scooping her up in his large arms.
"We'll continue when you're ankle is better..." He said as he took
her to his hut.
"Okay..." She returned.
"I'm... sorry for being a burden..."
"You are not a burden, else I
would not have saved you when you first arrived..." He returned as he
entered the hut. "Life, no matter how large or small, is precious, and it
is my duty to protect those lives of friends and strangers alike..."
She looked at him, impressed by the
code and ethics he lived by, and deeply reminded of her friends back home; many
of them had chosen to follow a path like that as well, and had lived up to it
for several years now... most especially Volcan. She turned her gaze back down
towards herself, slipping into deep thought and reminiscing about home.
He gently set her down on a bed and
pulled the covers over her gently. "I'll get you some water...is there
anything else you require...?"
She looked at her ankle. "Ice,
if you have any; it'll help with the pain."
He nodded, and then went to his
small pantry to grab a bag of ice from the makeshift cooler he possessed. He
then took a small bowl and filled it with water before heading back to her and
placing the ice on her leg, and the water in front of her head.
She gently lifted herself up and put
her muzzle into the bowl, drinking some of the water gently and wiping off her
mouth with her tail when she had her fill before laying back down again and
sighing.
Katsumoto gazed at her for a bit as
she lay down, feeling a strange warmth in his chest he was not familiar with.
It made him blush quite hard as well as confused him a bit. "Erm...If you
need anything else I erm...I will be outside..."
She nodded to him. "Thank you,
Katsumoto," she said, gratefully.
He nodded to her, still blushing even
as he turned and headed out the door. He walked to the waters edge and sat
down, looking at his reflection* ...What's coming over me...? *he asked
himself. "Why do I feel so warm around her...?"
~~~~~
After a short, second bout of
training, Luke and Volcan arrived back at the Lucario's home, only for him to
find he had forgotten something back in town he'd meant to pick up; some lemons
for the fish he was going to cook that evening.
"Dammit...I need to go back
into town for a bit." Luke said as he closed the cupboard with an
irritated scowl on his face. "Forgot to pick up some lemons..."
"Mind if I come along? Could
use a stretch for my legs after that last throwdown."
"I don't mind. I could use the
extra hands." Luke returned, walking toward the door of his house.
"We only just need a few to properly marinade the fish."
Volcan nodded and caught up to Luke,
following him out of the house. "Alrighty then. Maybe we can make that
trip without something else eventful happening."
"Don't jinx it..." Luke
returned as they headed for town.
Later on, they arrived in the town,
heading down to the market where the produce sales were located. They found
some fresh lemons easily enough at one of the stands; after buying enough
lemons, they started on their way back to Luke's house, but down at the docks,
they saw something; a large crowd was gathered near the beach, surrounding
something.
Volcan noticed the crowd, and
groaned. "Don't tell me there are more corrupted swimmers over
there..."
Luke narrowed his eyes at the sight
of the crowd, then he made his way over and budged his way through the crowd to
see what all the commotion was. And there, beached on the sand, was the large
slimy form of a Tentacruel, laying on the beach with half of its tendrils still
trailing back into the water. What caught his attention though were the tears
in its body, as if something had tried to claw its way into its head. The
Tentacruel was unmoving, and no longer had an aura; it was dead, and not going
to rise again anytime soon.
Luke's eyes widened up at the sight.
"...Arceus Almighty..." he gasped as he kept gazing at the deceased
Tentacruel.
Volcan made his way through the
crowd, and saw the downed body as well. "Yikes... someone had a bad
day," he said, approaching the carcass and looking it over, finding a few
open wounds on the body, which he looked closely at, humming in suspicion.
"Hm... I know cuts, and these weren't done by a blade or claws..." He
ran his finger along the wounds.
"It would have to take something even
larger and more violent to take down something like this..."
"What type of Pokemon has
really, really big teeth?" Volcan asked, looking at the tears.
"Judging by these wounds, this guy was bitten, then tossed around in his
attackers mouth, causing this shredded skin, and bleed-out in the water."
Luke thought for a
moment, crossing his arms as he thought about every Pokémon he knew that had
large sharp teeth. "...Well...there's Gyarados..."
Volcan continued looking over the
Tentacruel, until he spotted something along its tentacles that caught his
attention. "Luke... you better come see this," he said, lifting up
the tentacle he was looking at in his hands -carefully, in case the creatures'
natural venom was still active.
Luke walked over toward where Volcan
was standing to see what he had discovered. "What is it?"
"Look here," he said,
pointing to the end of the tentacle, which was shorter than it should have
been... "This tentacle wasn't
torn... it was cut." He looked at the Tentacruel. "I think this is
the same corrupted Tentacruel we fought out on the water. Check his eyes; see
if they're damaged at all."
Luke nodded and quickly headed
around toward its head, checking on the eyes finding that the right eye was burned
shut, and the other was sporting a visible pre-mortem bruise around it. "...Looks
like you're right. This IS the same Tentacruel that was possessed last
time."
"This thing was a bugger to fight on its
own; what the hell could do that to it?" Volcan asked.
"Your guess is as good as mine..."
Luke returned. "Maybe it was one of those demons..."
"Well... the corruption that
was in this guy is gone now," stated Volcan. "If it merged with
whatever attacked this one, it could be at a higher rank now."
Luke had an uneasy feeling in his gut after
hearing that. "By rank, you mean...?"
"Demons have their own
ranking, depending on how evolved they've become," said Volcan. "I
told you about Kalo'Temir; next to Demon Lord, he's at the highest of the ranks
which is Arch Demon. Down from there is Major, Greater, Lesser and Minor; the
minors are the weakest and least intelligent, comparable to the drones of an
ant colony; mindless and often quite stupid, but capable of following
directions. Up until Major, the demons don't get much smarter but once they hit
that rank, they develop the ability to learn."
"And the demons we've
encountered so far...they're minor Demons?"
"Minors and lessers,
yes," replied Volcan. "A Greater demon would be a tougher one but if
we come across one that's gotten smarter, things are going to get..." Suddenly,
there was a long, low moan that seemed to echo from the water, carrying over
the shoreline to reach everyone's ears. Volcan frowned. "What was
that...?"
Luke quickly turned toward the sound,
his ears flicking quickly as the sound reached his ears. "...Something not
normal..."
"Why does that make my skin
crawl?" Volcan asked sarcastically.
"We have to get everyone out of
here."
"Definitely," agreed
Volcan, standing up from the Tentacruel and getting away from the water. Luke
followed suit as well, quickly running toward the crowd and ushering them away
as best he could.
The people at first weren't
responding to him, wondering what it was he was ushering them away from, when
another long moan was heard, louder this time. Looking out towards the water,
an area just off the shore seemed to rise up and move towards them a single
appendage of some kind protruding from the water and causing a split in the
waves as it rushed toward the shore forming plumes on either side of it, and
the sight of that alone was all the incentive the people needed; they flew into
a panic, and rushed away from the shore, pushing and shoving each other and
screaming in terror.
"Move, move, move!"
Volcan urged, helping up a couple of people who had tripped and ushering them
onward.
Luke also helped usher the crowd
away to a safe distance, even carrying some children who were separated from
their parents to a safer distance before he returned to face whatever was
coming their way.
Out of the water, a long-bodied
creature with a massive head and an equally large mouth burst forth from the
waves, eliciting a long howl that made Luke's spine tingle with fear just from
the volume of it, and the fact it sounded of pain and sorrow, yet the look in
the creatures eyes as it glared hungrily towards the shoreline towards the
fleeing people spoke of a monster hungry for the flesh of mortals. Its entire
body was scaly and its tail ended in a large fin; the scales were blood-red and
its eyes were a solid yellow colour; no pupils, no iris, just an empty yellow
void.
Luke had been right; it was a
Gyrados, but it had fallen to the corruption that had plagued the earlier
Tentacruel. Its appearance was absolutely mortifying, and the drool that
dripped from its gaping maw discoloured the ground where it touched; probably
not a good idea to let that slime touch ones skin... He backed up in both shock
and fright, his eyes wide open and his jaw gaping as he stared up at the
monstrosity before him. Its gaze then fixed on him, and the corrupted Gyrados
let out a low growl before it lunged right for him!
He tensed up for a moment, then he
snapped out of his trance and leapt back quickly before it could nab him,
skidding to a halt and quickly firing some Aura Spheres in defense. However,
his quick-thrown Aura Spheres were too small to inflict any harm to the
Gyrados; he succeeded only in angering it, and it turned towards him before it
inhaled deeply and unleashed a Dragonbreath attack towards him.
He grunted and brought his arms up
in defense, unable to react quickly enough to dodge the attack. Thankfully his
Steel subtype saved him from sustaining major damage, but he still fell to one
knee, his body going numb as he was exposed to Dragonbreath's paralysis side
effect.
With him unable to move the
corrupted Gyrados slithered towards him and growled ferally as it opened its
massive mouth in readiness to devour him, but from the side, Volcan came
soaring into view with a mighty leap, kicking the Gyrados in the side of the
head with all of his might, making its imminent lunge miss Luke, and crash down
next to him instead; Volcan landed on the corrupted Pokémon's head before
leaping off and running towards Luke. "What're you standing there for?!"
He barked, unaware of Luke's status.
"Guh...I was hit with a
Dragonbreath...I'm paralyzed..." He grunted as he tried to move, but was
unsuccessful. His body was far too numb.
Volcan grabbed Luke and carried him
away from the Gyrados as it began to recover from Volcan's earlier strike and
sought them out, but by then Volcan had ducked behind some cover with Luke,
concealing them from sight.
He clenched his eyes shut as he kept
trying to move his limbs, again with no luck. "Damnit...I need a Cheri
Berry..." He groaned.
Volcan looked around. "Where can
I find one?" He asked.
"Most Pharmacies have them...or
you can just pick them from a bush in the forest..."
"Great... if we step out from
back here that thing'll..." He was interrupted as a powerful stream of
water gouged into the ground near them, tearing a small trench through the
stonework and into the dirt and also splashing them somewhat; the un-aimed
devastation was then followed by a furious roar from the corrupted Gyrados
before they heard something be crushed nearby. "Shit; it's on a
rampage!" Volcan barked.
Just then, a flash of jet black and
crimson streaked along a fallen building before it leaped up into the air. The
figure was Hank, rising up above the demonized Gyarados with his arms spread out,
a dark shroud enveloping him that slowly grew bigger. "Night Daze!!"
He roared and the shroud then shot forward, hitting the Gyarados' head and even
causing it's vision to blur slightly thanks to Night Daze's added accuracy
reduction effect.
The Gyrados recoiled from the attack
and hissed angrily, shaking its head to try and clear it, and blinking its eyes
several times as it tried to fix its vision; he'd bought them some time. Then
from behind Luke, a webbed hand held out a Cheri Berry to Luke. When he glanced
back, he saw the hand belonged to Kage, who was kneeling behind him. "Eat
this...quickly.." He said sternly.
"I owe you..." Luke said
as he ate the berry from his hand. Upon swallowing he felt his paralysis
instant clear and he groaned as he had full mobility of his body again.
"You good, now?' Volcan asked
Luke.
"Yes. That berry did just the
trick..." Luke said as he cracked his neck a little. "Though that
doesn't really fix our current problem..."
"No kidding; we've got a
pissed off, corrupted sea serpent that'll turn this town into floating debris
if we don't stop it," said Volcan. "How do we beat it? It have any
weak spots?"
"Well it's a Water/Flying
type...so it's dangerously weak to an Electric attack." Luke said.
"But I know no Electric Type Pokemon, and I don't know Thunder
Punch..."
"Aren't flying types also weak
against rock or ice?" Volcan pointed out.
Luke thought for a moment.
"They are, yes...but again, I don't know any Rock moves, and if I call
Doug, he'll only be in danger of potentially being killed as well."
Volcan looked at Kage. "Can you
use any ice moves?" He asked.
"I know Haze..." He
returned. "But that only helps in concealing my location...It's not an
offensive attack..."
"Ugh... just great..."
Volcan growled. "So we have nothing we can use against this guy except the
Hi-Jump Kick I nearly knocked him out with before; is that what you're
saying?"
"A Hi-Jump Kick would only do
minimal damage thanks to its Flying subtype." Luke explained. "And
you're in danger as well, Volcan. If you get hit by any Water type moves, you
will be gravely injured..."
"Well, thankfully, big
opponents like that are usually very clumsy," remarked Volcan. "That
works to our advantage. Though... doesn't look like that'll be enough if we can
barely hurt the damn thing."
Luke looked up toward the raging
Gyarados as it tore through town, then closed his eyes for a moment.
"...Looks like I'll have to use that then..."
"Use what?" Volcan asked.
Luke slowly lowered his scarf a
little, revealing a yellow jewel with what looked like a black, red and blue
symbol inside it. He slowly touched the jewel and closed his eyes. At first
nothing happened, but then the jewel started to glow brighter and brighter
until it completely shrouded Luke in a blinding light.
"Whoa! What's going on?!"
Volcan barked.
The light was unfortunately also
drawing the attention of the corrupted Gyrados; it turned towards the glow, and
began to drag its massive body towards them, growling louder as it got nearer.
"He's Mega Evolving."
Kage answered.
The light soon grew into what
looked like a crystal sphere around Luke, slowly expanding before it finally
cracked and burst outward in another blinding flash. When the light died down,
Luke's appearance had drastically changed. His fur was more wild and untamed,
his tail was now the same colour as his torso fur and was MUCH bushier, his
dreadlocks became long tendrils with red tips, as well as his paws and feet
also gaining red tips, not to mention he also grew a second set of paw spikes
and had two spikes on his feet as well. To top it all off, Luke's gaze was now
a much sharper, more intimidating glare...
Volcan's jaw dropped and his eyes
widened to the roundness of dinner plates, blown away by what he was seeing,
but suddenly snapping back to reality as the building they were hiding behind
exploded, instinctively jumping away as the corrupted Gyrados barreled through,
roaring as it went right for Luke, mouth wide open to devour him. In response,
Luke quickly held out both paws and quickly charged a large Aura Sphere in
front of him. The second the Gyarados went to chomp on him, he discharged the
sphere right into its mouth and down its throat.
The Gyrados slammed its mouth shut,
seemingly at first mistaking the sphere for Luke, but then it coughed up blood
as its insides were torn up by the attack. It glared at Luke once more, and
swung at him with a Dragon Tail attack. Luke quickly leapt high into the air,
then started darting around the Gyarados with his Extreme Speed, striking at
many points at once before the Gyarados could even react before appearing in
front of it again, quickly tensing his body and emitting a bright red aura
flame around him in preparation for his next attack.
The Gyrados was only getting
angrier, but it was too slow and clumsy to have a chance at hitting Luke. In
its fury, the creature roared loudly to the sky as the very air around it
seemed to shiver with terror, and swirl in front of it like a twister, but not
as fast.
"Uh... what's it doing?"
Volcan asked.
Hank's eyes widened at the sight.
"Oh shit! It's prepping a Dragon Rage!!" He exclaimed.
"That's bad, right?" Volcan asked,
still not fully educated on the fundaments of this world.
"Let's just say if it hits us,
the whole town's gonna get blown away into oblivion as well!" Hank
retorted.
"Oh." Volcan said, with a
cross-eyed expression that practically screamed 'We're fucked', before shaking
his head and turning on the Gyrados. "Okay... suggestions?!"
"Let Luke take care of
it..." Kage said softly, pointing to the Lucario as he was gathering a
massive amount of Aura energy into his paws to counter the oncoming attack the
Gyarados was cooking up.
"Well he better do something
fast, because that leviathan is about to blow!" Volcan barked.
The Gyrados unleashed its attack,
and a force resembling a condensed hurricane tore its way across the ground.
Even at the distance they were, Volcan, Hank and Kage could feel the attack's
effects, and knew that it was too late for them to get away even if they were
to try now...
Luke roared out as loud as he could
before thrusting his paws forward. "AURA STORM!!!" He roared and
discharged a HUGE beam of blue aura energy toward the oncoming hurricane. The
amount of power packed into the attack was enough to tear through the hurricane
at a fair pace and head straight for the Gyarados' face.
The Gyrados tried to charge a Hyper
Beam to counter, but the Aura blast hit home. The Gyrados tried to resist, but
soon after impact, the blast literally blew its head off, and its decapitated
body was sent flying through the air, smashing on the ground some hundred
meters away, and did not move again.
Volcan blinked at the display.
"I did not just see that..." He said. "That was like, something
straight out of Anime!"
"NICE ONE BOSS!!" Hank
cheered as the hurricane quickly subsided as well as Luke's blast. The Lucario
let out a long sigh and panted a bit before his body shone brightly and he
quickly reverted back to his usual self.
"...The Aura Storm..."
Kage said to Volcan. "Luke's most powerful and potentially his most fatal
attack....it's attack strength exceeds that of Katsumoto's Hydro
Cannon...."
"I think even my own Solar
Inferno would be challenged by..." He looked at Kage briefly. "Oh...
right... nevermind. I probably can't even do that in this body."
He shook his head. "If it's
from your dimension, then probably not..."
Volcan looked at Luke; he imagined an
attack like that would be draining, and hoped his new friend was alright... Luke
was indeed slumped over a bit and catching his breath for a fair amount of time
before he managed to straighten up and take a deep breath to recollect himself.
He then turned back to Volcan and the others. "Everyone alright? Any
injuries?"
"We're okay, thanks to
you," the Blaziken replied in assurance, nodding to Luke. "I gotta
say, I never imagined you could have power like that..." He looked up at
the sky. "There's a lot to learn about this world yet, it seems..."
Luke nodded. "It's a move I
don't resort to unless absolutely necessary...and even THEN I have to consider
the ramifications of using it...." Luke returned. "Still...at least
the town and its inhabitants are safe..."
Volcan nodded again. "It's a
shame about all those Pokemon though," he said, sadly. "I of all
people know the terrors of Demonic Corruption... how it's getting to this
world, I don't know, but I feel in my heart that something terrible is going to
happen, and perhaps I was sent here to help protect this world. Fate has a funny
way of putting me in the path of calamities to be the vanguard against
them." He chuckled as he added. "Only this time it's given me a whole
new team to work with."
"Indeed..." Luke returned
with a small smile on his face. "I believe with you around, we might
actually be able to fend off this corruption....for now though, I think we
should return home..."
Volcan nodded. "A good idea. I
want to go check on Serena too, see how she's settling in. Back home she's as
strong as I am - at least in body, but... she's very sensitive."
"I'm sure Katsumoto is taking
care of her...but you're welcome to check on her anytime you desire." Luke
added.
Volcan let out a long sigh.
"I've got a bad feeling about all this," he said, looking at his
hand. "I've got to master this new body for whatever's coming. If I don't,
I have a feeling it'll mean far more than me just losing a fight."
Luke nodded. "We can spend the
next while training you so you can get used to your new body....we'll all pitch
in." Luke offered.
"I appreciate it," he
said, and stretched his arms. "Well... the town's got some cleanup to do.
Let's see if there's any way we can pitch in, then get out of here..."