Earth's Protectors

by nld200xy

A new breed of villains have risen up to terrorize humans in the form of Pokemon, powerful creatures with the strength to end mankind. Luckily, a group of heroes are trained to protect the humans from this menace. Heavily inspired by Kinnikuman, this is something I've wanted to make for a long time.

1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own the Pokemon franchise or its characters. Also, the concept is heavily inspired by Kinnikuman.

It was a fine night in Tokyo. The sky was nice and clear and the stars were bright as things could not have looked better. It was so nice, in fact, that a young woman was walking home from the store with groceries in her hand, not even feeling the need to drive to the store and back. That was just how peaceful a night this was, or so it seemed.

Just as the woman was humming a happy tune, she failed to notice a set of glowing eyes following her. In fact, these eyes belonged to someone who had been hot on her trail since she had left the store, but this was no ordinary person. He was a reptilian creature that stood on two legs and had orange skin. A big crest that resembled a Mohawk rested atop his head as he also sported loose yellow skin that resembled baggy trousers and a scarf, the lizard seeming to be having a bit of trouble keeping the lower skin up as he had to hold it up with his hands.

He had a devious grin on his face as the woman was still oblivious, the lizard waiting for just the right moment to strike when the woman stopped at a red light, his grin widening as he sprang off the ground, aiming a kick straight for her head with his knee pointed out. The woman was just about to take in the hit when suddenly, a brown and red streak flashed through the sky, hitting the lizard hard and sending him flying into a lamp post, the woman hearing this as she turned.

The woman's saviour was another odd being, this one being a monkey with white fur covering her torso, head and legs and brown fur covering the rest of her body, a stream of fire representing long hair coming from the top of her head. She also sported golden knee pads, shoulder pads and breast plates.

"I know you," the woman uttered, her eyes wide open as the monkey turned to her and said, "Save the pleasantries. You should run now," the woman nodding and saying, "Thank you, Miss Infernape, Ma'am."

The woman sprinted off as the lizard shook his head, grunting, "Ya must feel real special, what with everyone and their grandma knowing your name," slowly rising to his feet before adding, "But that was a lucky shot."

"You know who I am yet you have the gall to claim you can defeat me?" Infernape remarked, folding her arms with a look of anger in her eyes, the lizard retorting, "Of course. Ya may have been a legend back in the day, but you and your comrades are getting old now, and ya know it too. Why else would ya drive that lady away instead of letting her stay to watch the show?"

Infernape's eyes widened as she stood still, the lizard smirking and adding, "It's cause ya know you're gonna lose, that's why."

"I don't wanna hear that from a troublemaker like you!" the monkey retorted, springing off the ground and flipping vertically toward the lizard, aiming a kick at his head.

The lizard spotted an opening, leaping toward the monkey shouting, "HIGH JUMP KICK!" sending his knee hard into her gut before she could lower her leg. Infernape's eyes were once again wide open as she coughed up a bit of blood, falling hard on her back, the lizard landing and folding his arms, snickering wickedly.

"It's time to make way for the next generation, lady," the lizard taunted with a smirk, "Ya probably could have beaten me back in your prime, but not anymore," Infernape trying her hardest to get up only to receive another kick to her face. Even she had to admit that this lizard was right as she lay there, allowing the reptile to make his escape.

The following day, a meeting was held on a nearby planet known simply as Hero Planet, the place where a lot of these strange creatures first originated. The meeting in question was located in a big building called the Tower of Justice where those of high status and power went to discuss major issues. And this was certainly one of those issues.

"This is terrible," one representative, a yellow caterpillar with a horn and a grey moustache named Weedle stated while looking at a screen with what looked like a series of maps for areas of Earth on it, "Crime is at an all-time high ever since these new villains showed up," Infernape sitting in one of the chairs and lowering her head, sighing, "I'm sorry."

Weedle took a deep breath and turned to her, stating, "Don't apologize, Infernape. We've all faced at least one of these threats and each and every one of us has failed."

A variety of others sitting in their own seats also had looks of shame on their faces. It was as Weedle had said. These evil beings were dominating and it was only a matter of time until mankind would bow to their knees.

"Well, what are we supposed to do!?" one of the creatures, a buffalo with an Afro spat, slamming his hoof against the table, "Are you saying we should sit back on our asses and let them take over!?" Weedle shaking his head and remarking, "No," a hybrid of a shrew and a pangolin asking, "Then what are you suggesting?"

The caterpillar took a deep breath and replied, "It's time to pass on the torch. Our time has ended, but our children have the potential to be just as good as we once were if not better. It's time to put our faith in a new generation of heroes."

All of the others stared until a blue tortoise rose her hand, asking, "With all due respect, sir, are you suggesting we send our kids into battle? My daughter just turned fourteen," the pangolin nodding and adding, "Mine's almost fifteen. Granted, she'd love to follow in my footsteps. She's made that very clear, but she's too young for this. We didn't fight evil until we were in our twenties."

"I'm not going to pretend that you don't have a point," Weedle remarked with a sigh, "But look at the situation as it is. We need to act fast. These new villains have youth on their side, something we don't have," the others nodding in understanding as the caterpillar added, "If we could even defeat one of these new villains, I would consider waiting a few years before making such a decision, but let's face it, as it stands, this is our only option."

At this moment, one particular being living in a small cottage on Hero Planet had woken up for some breakfast, not really thinking about anything else. This creature in particular was a more human-like specimen with bluish-grey skin and a short snout. His face was reptilian in a sense and he had a rather impressive physique with red stripes on his arms and he seemed to only wear a speedo. His head was lined with three light-brown ridges and he even had four sharp teeth that could be seen whenever his mouth was open.

While eating breakfast, a young human woman entered the kitchen and said, "Good morning, Machoke," the boy blinking and saying, "Wow, you're up early, Mom. What's the occasion? Is Dad finally coming back home?"

The woman let out a sigh and replied, "I wish," looking at a photo of a similar-looking being, only this man was light-blue, had yellow fish lips and four arms, the woman shaking her head and saying, "No, son, I received an important message last night from the Tower of Justice."

Machoke blinked, clearly confused as to what this had to do with him as the woman smiled bright, saying, "You're going to be a hero, son," all going silent as Machoke asked, "What?" the woman's smile widening as she added, "The government has issued that you along with a lot of others with the blood of heroes in their veins must attend Hero School."

Machoke's eyes widened, the boy too shocked to even protest against this as the woman added, "Those who graduate will be sent to protect Earth from evil. You'll be fighting bad guys just like your father," Machoke staring silently before nodding slowly, a fake grin on his face as he uttered, "Um, yeah, that sounds awesome," the boy laughing nervously before adding, "I'll go get my things packed."

But just as Machoke was about to head to his room, his mother replied, "Already taken care of," pulling out his backpack, the boy blinking and asking, "You sure you didn't miss anything?" the woman shaking her head, her smile still on her face as she flashed a toothy grin, uttering through clenched teeth, "Head outside to the car, honey."

Seconds later, Machoke's mother was pulling on his legs as he clung to the side of the entrance way to his house, wining, "NO, I DON'T WANNA GO!" the woman sighing, "Stop being such a baby," Machoke remarking, "I don't like fighting!"

The woman gritted her teeth and grunted, "So help me God, I will get you into that car, young man!" Machoke laughing and shouting tauntingly, "And what's a normal Earthling going to do about it, huh?"

The woman applied extra force as the boy finally let go, waving his arms, desperately trying to grab onto something else only to wind up being forced into a vehicle parked out front. The woman entered the driver's seat and sported a sweet smile, asking, "Is your seat belt done up nice and tight?" Machoke letting out a sigh and strapping himself in, groaning, "Yes, mom," the woman nodding and starting up the engine, the car rising up off the ground and taking off.

The school in question that Machoke and many others were being taken to was located within the vicinity of the Tower of Justice. It had only recently been made in response to the attacks on Earth, but because Hero Planet consisted of beings with out-of-this-world abilities, making an entire building in less than a week was easy.

And at around noon, all of the potential heroes were starting to arrive, only unlike Machoke, these people actually wanted to be here. Most of these students were related to the previous generation of heroes while others came from families who had not really used their abilities to fight evil but certainly possessed the power to do so. And there was certainly a high number of creatures of various shapes and sizes, all of them wanting to do their absolute best to fight for the sake of mankind.

One particular being among them all was a slender girl with a lower body resembling a slim white gown to match her snow white torso with a green rim on the inside. There was also green surrounding her chest area and extending out to her arms and hair, a red spike coming from her chest with a rounded one sticking out of her back.

It seemed not everyone here was willing to fight evil as this girl looked nervous beyond compare, trying her best not to make eye contact with anyone. However, her fear seemed to leave her when a boy rested a hand on her shoulder and said, "It's okay, sis. I'm here for you, remember?" the girl turning with a bright blush and saying, "You're right. Sorry."

This boy, who seemed to be the girl's brother, had a very similar colour scheme as he was clearly the same species, though the rest of his appearance differed quite a bit. His lower body and head was white while the rest of him was green, and rather than having hair, he had a helmet formation atop his head with a blue spike attached to the back half of it. His arms were less human-like and more like sickles and rather than having a gown-like lower body, he had rounded hips with long, strong legs. Like the girl, he also had two spikes sticking out of his chest and back, only both were pointy as opposed to just one.

And of course, there was so much more, such as turtles, snakes and even anthropomorphic flowers, and not all of them grew up on Hero Planet. In fact, Machoke was the only one of these students who actually grew up on the planet. The parents of the others had already made Earth their home and as such, the rest of these future heroes were born and raised on Earth in various different countries, all of them even sporting accents native to these areas.

A blue dog was currently looking over the students who had arrived, the doors not yet open as he said, "Alright, looks like almost everyone is here and accounted for. There's only one missing," a car pulling up as he smiled and said, "And speak of the devil, he's here."

The door opened up as Machoke was forced out of the vehicle, landing hard on his chin and grumbling curses under his breath, all of his things tossed right into the back of his head as his mother waved, exclaiming, "Bye, son! Make me proud!"

The car took off as Machoke barked, "YOU WITCH!" everyone in the area staring awkwardly at him as he got up, grinning nervously, the dog taking a deep breath thinking, 'Oh god, he's just like his father.'

With that, he cleared his throat, regaining his composure and stating, "Welcome, one and all to the first day of Hero School. For the next month, you will be training hard as those who graduate will be assigned to protect Earth. Anyone who fails to graduate will have to stay here for another month and this will continue until you qualify," Machoke's eyes widening, his jaw dropped as he resisted the urge to speak out against this. After all, he had no say in his enrolment and had never fought in his life. This was the worst possible thing that could ever happen to him.

"Pathetic," came a female voice from behind him, the boy slowly turning to notice a tall chicken that resembled a phoenix behind him.

The majority of her body was covered in red feathers with yellow ones covering her ankles and the area right below her chest. Covering the chest and making up her long hair were white feathers. Currently, this chicken folded her arms and stared at Machoke with a look of anger, saying, "I expect better from the son of the great Machamp."

The others in the area stared in shock as a robot with a ball-like head, one eyeball and two magnets coming out of the sides stated, "Ah, I can't believe I didn't see it sooner. He certainly has Machamp's physique, though he does lack the two extra arms," Machoke blinking in confusion as a small blue turtle exclaimed, "Wow, so you're Machoke! Your dad's a legend among legends!"

Machoke blushed, laughing nervously before forcing a triumphant look thinking, 'May as well try to soak up the glory while I can,' but just as he was about to do so, the chicken let out a sigh and said, "Don't be fooled, everyone. This kid may be related to Machamp, but he sure as hell isn't like Machamp. I could tell right from the moment I saw him."

Machoke stared in shock and confusion as she sighed, "Your father was a powerful man, truly worthy of his respect. You, on the other hand, reek of cowardice. Let me guess, you didn't actually want to come here, did you?" Machoke letting down nervous sweat and uttering, "Is it really that obvious?" only for the blue dog to glare at the chicken, barking, "Enough, Blaziken! You can have small-talk during lunch break and after the following classes are finished, but right now, you are all to follow me."

Upon hearing the bird's name, other students immediately started whispering among themselves, the magnet cyborg whispering, "I should have known that was the daughter of the great Combusken! Though what's her deal? Her mom and Machamp were great friends."

Machoke did not even care about that as he groaned, "So much for the hero treatment," the young white and green girl tapping him on the shoulder, a shy look on her face as she uttered, "Um, if it means anything to you, I didn't want to come here either."

Machoke blinked and bit his lower lip, letting down light tears and sniffing, "You have no idea how beautiful it is to hear someone else here say that," the girl's brother walking ahead and signalling her to follow, saying, "Come on, Gardevoir," the girl nodding and exclaiming, "Coming, Gallade!" before running off and shooting Machoke one last little smile before sticking close to her brother.

Machoke took a deep breath, following the students to class. The thought of there being another who felt the same way about attending Hero School that he did was at least comforting to a certain degree, but even so, this did not change that fact that Blaziken was right. He was not fit to be a hero.

After walking to the first training area, the dog turned to his students and said, "I haven't properly introduced myself yet. I am but one of many instructors here at Hero School, and my name is Riolu," everyone staring in absolute amazement.

Even Machoke, despite his lack of knowledge, did know this name. Riolu, much like Combusken and Machamp, had an incredible reputation.

"Now with that out of the way," the dog added, pointing at the training equipment before everyone and adding, "Welcome to your first training exercise," Machoke noticing that the area was full of punching bags, the boy saying, "Alright, this is okay. A few punching and kicking exercises. I can live with that."

That was before he noticed what happened next as another old hero, a badger with a flaming neck named Typhlosion entered the area, Riolu saying, "Miss Typhlosion here has arranged an added element to make this exercise more, shall we say, challenging."

Everyone stared as the badger smirked, saying, "Feast your eyes on this, students," rolling up into a ball and shouting, "FLAME WHEEL!" covering her body in fire and rolling past the punching bags, lighting them on fire.

When Typhlosion returned to her regular state, she smirked and said, "Alright, try hitting the bags without burning yourselves," some of the students staring in terror at the sight of this, Gardevoir trembling with fear as Gallade patted her on the shoulder, saying, "It's okay, I'm sure you can manage this," Machoke glaring at Riolu and barking, "ARE YOU INSANE!?"

"Need I remind you this was not my idea but Miss Typhlosion's?" Riolu remarked, "Besides, some adversaries on Earth might have bodies that can harm you just as much as you harm them, if not more. If you can hit these punching bags without hurting yourself in the process, you're more than ready to take on opponents like that," Machoke uttering, "But that's impossible."

"No it's not," Blaziken remarked, walking over to one of the bags and raising a foot, ramming it hard into the bag and bringing it back just as quickly as she had sent it forward, Riolu saying, "See, that's a good way to do it. By making her kick as fast as possible, she was able to avoid having her foot out long enough to have it burned," Machoke grumbling curses before sighing, "Fine, I can do that too! Just watch me!"

The boy walked over to one with a smug grin directed at Blaziken while saying, "Anyone can do what you just did," sending a kick into one of the bags but keeping his foot there too long and burning it, falling on his back and crying out in pain while Blaziken sighed and shook her head.

"It's also worth note that the same technique doesn't always work for everyone," Riolu replied, "Blaziken's body may be capable of such speed, but not everyone's body can pull off those kinds of reflexes. You must find another way to use your natural abilities to your advantage," Machoke fuming.

Gallade performed beautifully by standing on his tip-toes and spinning his arms around like blades, forming a sharp twister and hitting it multiple times, many impressed by this tactic. Gardevoir even managed to do a descent job by sending slaps with a good amount of force to move the bag while still delicate to the point where she seemed to be using the momentum of her swings to blow the fire away from her.

Though she was not as fortunate as Gallade as after ten hits, she ended up getting a light burn. After receiving it, she squeaked a bit but shook her head, took a deep breath and said, "No, I'm going to be a strong. A hero should be able to tolerate pain," looking at Gallade and asking, "Right?" the boy nodding and replying, "You'll be ready for this soon enough, sis."

Machoke could not believe this. The only other person who did not feel fully confident in her abilities ended up doing loads better than him. Sure, she did get burned, but only after hitting the bag ten times, which was more than could be said for the boy.

Almost immediately after time with the punching bags was up, everyone was led to the next area, which involved everyone having to lift weights, Machoke blinking and saying, "Okay, I can probably handle this."

He then flexed his muscles and grinned, saying, "Not bad at all," looking around and thinking, 'I actually have the biggest muscles of anyone here. I may actually dominate everyone in this category.'

Riolu smiled at the students and said, "This is a simple training round. For this one, our fitness instructor, Mister Graveler, will decide which weight is most suitable for you to work with," a boulder with two arms among the students waving at an older boulder with four arms, a rougher build and small legs and exclaimed, "Hi, dad!" Graveler grinning and replying, "Hey there, Geodude, my boy! Looking strong!" Machoke blinking and thinking, 'I almost forgot a lot of students here are related to the instructors.'

"So," Riolu said, turning to Graveler, "what weight do you think we should start with today?" Graveler replying, "Well, I'd like to go easy on the newcomers."

Machoke took a deep breath and thought,, 'Thank you, lord,' the boulder tapping his chin and adding, "So I was thinking a minimum of two thousand pounds should suffice."

Machoke's eyes widened, his jaw almost hitting the ground as he spat, "TWO THOUSAND POUNDS!? ARE YOU MAD!?" Blaziken groaning, "Come on, that's child's play for us," Machoke staring at her and barking, "You do know two thousand pounds is a ton, right!?"

Blaziken smirked and remarked, "I'm surprised you actually know that. Maybe you do have some intelligence in you," Machoke retorting, "Well, if you're so tough, you can go first!" the chicken scoffing, "Gladly," making her way over to the weight provided for her.

And with almost no effort at all, the chicken grabbed hold of the iron bar with both of her hands and lifted it high above her head, most of the heroes acting as if this was nothing special as Graveler said, "Not bad," Machoke blinking and saying, "Hey, maybe this isn't so challenging."

The boy walked over with a grin and said, "Me next," Graveler smiling and replying, "I like your enthusiasm," Machoke saying, "If someone like Blaziken can lift this, I can lift it with one hand!"

With that, the boy attempted to lift it only to find himself unable to move it, the boy saying, "Okay, maybe I'm getting ahead of myself," this time applying both hands only to end up budging it slightly above his feet and no further, the boy dropping the weight and breathing heavily, sweat pouring down his face.

Graveler shrugged and said, "Nice try. I recommend exercising those muscles of yours," Machoke staring as Blaziken sighed, "Having a nice physique is one thing, but actually using those muscles and building your strength is another."

Machoke fumed as Gardevoir walked over to Blaziken and asked, "If you don't mind me asking, why do you hate Machoke so much?" Blaziken shooting the girl a glare and remarking, "That is none of your concern!"

Hearing this, Gallade walked over and retorted, "Hey, don't talk to my sister that way! She asked you a question, and very nicely at that!" Riolu and Graveler wondering if they should separate the two of them when Blaziken walked away from the other students herself, not wanting to talk to anyone.

The truth was that Blaziken had always had a deep hatred towards Machoke's entire family. She hated how Machamp had all the glory while her mother, Combusken was always second-fiddle. Sure, the two of them fought side-by-side many times, but it was always Machamp delivering the finishing blows and getting all the praise with Combusken getting lip-service. Blaziken swore that she would end this trend by up-staging Machamp's son, but seeing that he was such a weakling and a coward made her sick. She was easily better than him and it did not feel satisfying knowing she would not have to put any effort into it.

Gardevoir looked at her with a depressed look, Gallade sighing, "Forget it, Gardevoir. You're a great person and she just doesn't see it," the girl shaking her head and replying, "I'm not offended, I'm just concerned," Gallade giving his sister a confused look as she held her hand up to her heart and added, "She seems so sad."

Either way, weight-lifting was soon out of the way as it was time for the day's final exercise. For this one, treadmills were set up as Riolu said, "As you can probably tell, this is a speed exercise. Jolteon here has chosen a way to motivate you all to run the fastest you can."

A bright yellow fox with spiked fur grinned at the students and exclaimed in at a speed almost too quick to hear, "I've chosen a great way to get your spirits high!" whipping out a cup of coffee from nowhere and gulping it down before pulling out a switch and pressing a button on it.

The ground at the end of the treadmills came open as spiked walls rose up on platforms, the students staring at this with fear, even the bravest ones as Jolteon squealed, "THIS IS SO EXCITING! If you're not fast enough, you'll end up hitting the spikes, so you'd better be prepared! All you gotta do is outrun the treadmill for twenty seconds! I'm sure you can all handle that!"

Gardevoir trembled as Gallade said, "Don't worry, you're one of the fastest people I know," the girl nodding with a light smile.

"Spikes or not, this actually isn't too bad," Machoke replied, Blaziken asking, "You sure of that?" the boy nodding and replying, "If there's one thing I do have experience with, it's my feet."

Ten heroes tried out the treadmill, Blaziken being one of the first to go as she easily overpowered the machine, running so fast in fact that she managed to reach the front of the machine in less than ten seconds and leap over the machine that told how fast it was going, everyone clapping as Jolteon spat, "WOW, THAT WAS AMAZING!"

After that, Blaziken sat in a corner and pulled out a bag of chicken feed, munching on it. Machoke went up next as he ended up standing next to the machine Gardevoir was using, the girl smiling and saying, "Good luck," Machoke nodding and replying, "You too," the machines once again starting up.

Strangely enough, it seemed Machoke's talk of being fast enough was actually true as he managed to run on time with the machine's speed. Blaziken scowled at the sight of this before spitting one of her seeds right at his ankle, Machoke's eyes going wide as it hit him like a bullet, the boy losing his balance and sliding back-first into the spikes, crying out in agony.

Everyone gasped as Jolteon shouted, "OH, THAT LOOKED PAINFUL!" Riolu glaring at Blaziken and barking, "Blaziken, I know you have some sort of grudge with Machoke, but that was going too far!"

Machoke groaned while slowly staggering away from the wall as Gardevoir whimpered, "He needs medical treatment," Riolu nodding and replying, "You're right. Someone take him to the nurse's office."

At that moment, a groundhog walked over to him and said, "I'll help," Machoke uttering, "Thanks."

The groundhog led him toward a certain area, Riolu stating, "Watchog, that's not the way to the nurse's office," as the groundhog grinned before saying, "I know it isn't."

Everyone gasped when suddenly, his arms ripped open to reveal giant needles, his tail end coming open to show a yellow abdomen with a stinger underneath. Soon his entire body had come apart, everyone gasping as a large wasp with two giant stingers for hands appeared.

As if that was not bad enough, a big white square with poles on the ends and ropes attached to said poles rose up from under them. This was a fighting ring, the sort of thing heroes and villains alike often settled their disputes in, and as if this was not bad enough, a big cage surrounded it as well, Riolu asking, "Who are you?"

"I am Beedrill!" the wasp replied with a wicked laugh, "If you're wondering where Watchog went, let's just say he met an unfortunate accident on the way here," everyone staring in absolute horror, Blaziken also in shock. She had been partly responsible for this and felt a little bad about that.

"In case you're wondering how I got this to work," Beedrill explained, "I've been studying the layout of this facility since I got here. I know you guys keep training rings around here and this specific one is for practising cage matches, so when I saw Machoke get badly injured, I thought of this as a perfect opportunity to lure him over here so I could kill him and no one could stop me!"

Machoke stared in horror and barked, "But why me!?" Beedrill replying, "It's simple! You may not be on the level of your father, but your family is still considered a major threat among villains everywhere! If I take you out, they'll recognize me as their superior and give me a position of high power! As if you being weak isn't enough to make this all possible, your injuries have made things so much simpler!"

Machoke trembled in absolute horror as even the instructors could not do a thing about this. This was the perfect plan. The only way Machoke could possibly get out of this was to defeat Beedrill in a fight, but could he pull this off with his lack of skill?