Part I: Aura in Iron
Riolu woke, cold.
The fire that once brought warmth to him was gone. He sat up and looked at the pile of ashes that was the last bonfire that warmed him. It was long gone, but he had made enormous efforts to keep the ashes from disappearing with the wind.
He reached out and felt the dirt where the bonfire once burned. He collected as much as possible and embraced it in a tightened fist before releasing it in a thin, steady stream with the wind.
The sunlight welcomed him from the cave entrance and he knew it was time to go in search of food. He was tired of berries, though. Berries and more berries were the only thing he had been eating for the last weeks. He felt ashamed he couldn't bring himself to hunt; each time he tried he remembered the last day he went hunting.
The thing was even if he messed up this time no one else but he was going go pay for his errors. Charmeleon was gone. Nobody would protect him, and probably, it was for the best.
Riolu exited his cave. His legs moved on their own knowing he didn't want to. He didn't have the mental energy to go about exploring.
He pondered, there was a good amount of bushes to get berries from nearby. He didn't have to get too far from his cave. His lonely cave.
He turned around looking for nothing and a memory struck him. Beside the cave entrance the rock wall was dented and destroyed at some parts. That was the result of countless hours of training. The trees around that zone were all bended or toppled. There was no grass covering the area since it was all dirt after practicing moves and techniques. Charmeleon really invested time on him.
"You have an interesting potential," Charmeleon once said to him.
"Forget that," he told himself. Unconsciously he decided to explore around a bit and there was a rule for that.
"When you go to uncharted areas never get distracted. You never know who is lurking around." Another of Charmeleon's teachings. The least Riolu could do was did as he was taught.
He had an idea where to find something else than berries. Apples would be delicious and there were a few trees in that area. He just had to walk for a bit.
The path he was following was an uncommon one for him. He took his time walking normally and not making much noise.
Aware of his surroundings he heard a quarrel nearby. He put into practice the movements he had done hundreds of time and in the blink of an eye he climbed a tree, hiding himself among its leaves.
In the distance he saw the survival of the fittest in its best expression.
A nidoking struggled with the powerful grip a machamp had on him.
These mountains were home of powerful pokémon and embraced the inhabitants to a life of constant danger and forced the necessity to be strong. Riolu did not remember the name Charmeleon called the mountains but he did recall the experiences the fire-born had told him about the area. Not everyone could live here if they did not plan to be food.
Riolu had seen fights like this before (he have even been in one), two pokémon at their most powerful form fighting over a territory…or just for food. No weaker pokémon could mess with them without consequences and thus they were respected like kings across the mountains. But when the respect between two kings was none war was bound to occur.
The nidoking may have been strong but in close range combat he was no rival for the terrifying strength of the four-armed pokémon.
As the machamp used his free hands to hit the nidoking head and shoulders over and over, a twinge of fear began to bother Riolu. He shook his head. That was ridiculous. He was in a safe distance hiding among the trees. Hiding cowardly among the trees. There was no way he could result harmed. As natural as it was, this senseless fear annoyed Riolu.
"But fear is the first step toward courage," he remembered Charmeleons' response at Riolu behavior.
He sighed and looked at his paw. It was slightly shaking. "I guess it's normal."
Riolu intended to continue watching the fight. But the only thing he found was an ice beam coming at him.
A stray attack!
There was no time to think of a plan. Instinct took over. Riolu threw himself off the tree he was on. He saw how the ice beam pierced through the leaves, leaving an icy path behind. If that had hit him it would have been bad news.
Actually Riolu had never seen the consequences of an ice beam. However, he was told of the results if one hit you. If you are not made for cold, your body would be suddenly be drained of all heat, your hands and feet would be close to useless, your muscles stop responding and you experience stiffness. And if nothing is done not only certain parts of the body will get a blueish tone, amnesia and irrational behavior with take over and it eventually kills you. That was the shortened version that was told to Riolu and was enough to make him afraid of said attack.
He evaded the beam. At the instant he knew he was in danger, he jumped off, his main priority, well, not dying; however, as he fell he realized he had no idea what was going to be his landing spot. The landing would probably leave him sore in the best scenario.
The wind hit his body as if trying to stop him from falling. That was not possible, though. He braced himself and hit the ground.
There was a yelp.
It was not him.
His backside hurt and his paw felt weird but his landing spot was not as rough as he expected. He looked under him and found the answer why.
Riolu scrambled to his feet which made him realize he hurt his right leg. He gave a few steps back, careful of his leg.
He looked at his "landing spot". A machop was splayed on the ground. He made weird noises as his lungs struggled to catch a breath.
Did he almost kill Machop by falling on him?
Riolu watched him and connected the dots. The fear was now real. If the machamp was related to Machop and it found the two of them in this position, Riolu was a dead pokémon.
Evolved pokémon and young pokémon of the same kind often traveled together and on top of that they could be family. This way, not only the young pokémon could learn from the evolved pokémon but they could also be protected from any predators… or falling pokémon.
Riolu wanted to run away. There was no need for staying here. However, he caused this, and it was not the right thing to do if he just walked away and left Machop choking on the ground. What if the machamp was not related to Machop and nobody helped him.
Riolu moral issues were interrupted when the unlikely victim got his attention.
Machop seemed to be recovering. He was on his knees catching his breath again.
"Hey, sorry, are you okay?" Riolu said. He scratched his temple. "I did not mean to fall on you."
Machop did not say anything. He was in the same position.
Riolu approached and was about to help him when Machop reacted.
Riolu received a punch in the face. He stumbled backwards but didn't lose his footing.
"What do you think you are doing?" Machop growled. Angry. But not as angry as Riolu.
"It was an accident! What is wrong with you?" Riolu took a paw to his head trying to suppress the throbbing. That was a strong punch Machop landed on him.
This sort of situation are the ones which lead to a fight. And this sort of fights are the ones who finish with only one pokémon standing. Riolu had gotten in something he was not going to get out of without fighting. Escaping was not an option now. That disappeared alongside his concern for machop.
"I don't want any trouble," Riolu said. Maybe he could still dodge the battle. Machop was about to respond but he did not let him. "Yes! I fell on you, but I just slipped off the tree!"
"Is it my fault that you are brainless? I don't think so. You are not going to get away so easily, freak."
Riolu heard every word with rising loathe. He hated when others called him like that. There was no reason to say that.
There is no case. He is senseless, Riolu thought.
It's been so long since the last time Riolu engaged into a fight. He wasn't in the mood and was out of practice. This was a bad idea, no doubt about that.
"You certainly don't know who you are messing with." And with that Machop lunged forward. Riolu was able to block one and then another punch. Machop's strength was something to be reckoned with.
Machop quickly went from the last punch to a grip. He crouched and took a hold of Riolu's torso. When Machop stood up, he lifted Riolu into the air. He only had time to think what was going to happen. His body, though didn't react in time.
Machop took Riolu over him and arching his back he dropped Riolu on his back.
Every inch of Riolu's back hit the ground. The pain rapidly went to his capacity of breathing. He forgot this, though, and used his momentum to roll backward and create distance.
Riolu stalled the fight for a moment so he could catch his breath. He was getting an idea of Machop's fighting style. It was just brute force. Nothing special.
That last move on Riolu was his mistake. He was bigger and probably nearly as strong. He trusted in his agility as well.
"Already regretting messing up with me?" Machop said. "Come on, give me some fun!"
He is cocky. If he lands another hit on me, he will get confident, Riolu thought.
Riolu advanced slowly, embracing himself for what was to come. He already had an idea to punish Machop's cockiness. He wanted to destroy him now. Beat him to death… But he didn't want those thoughts getting in the way of his strategy. Brains over muscle.
Machop entered into Riolu's range with a fighting stance. He covered his face behind his arms and seemed to be readying an attack.
Riolu was not going to get an effective result if he attacked now. He waited.
He opened his defense a bit in an attempt to lure Machop.
Success.
Before throwing the punch, Riolu got a glimpse of Machop's annoying smirk. It was not going to last long on his face.
Machop's fist hit Riolu's face but due to his positioning the punch barely did any damage only grazing his skin. However, for Machop it was perfect.
"Did you like that?" Machop asked. "Here's more!"
Machop opened his defense and threw a punch at Riolu's face. This time he reacted fast. He sidestepped the punch and grabbed Machop's fist. With his free paw Riolu connected a powerful punch at Machop's uncovered face. Machop's arm loosened up. Riolu used the arm he used to punch Machop to quickly wrap his opponent arm and twisted it behind his body. Machop had to bow as a reaction. Riolu found himself behind Machop with his arm extended and locked under submission.
"Now you are going to like this," Riolu's words sent shivers down Machop's spine.
Riolu reeled back his free arm and brought it forward striking Machop's back with a force palm—still not releasing machop's arm. Bones snapped as machop's body jerked forward but his arm stayed behind.
Riolu released him and looked at how Machop fell on his knees defeated. Machop screamed which worried Riolu a bit since it could attract attention. He wasn't going to let this opportunity pass, though.
He walked around the kneeling machop to face him. "This is what you asked for." He punched machop in the face. Teeth flew.
"N-No," Machop stammered as he saw Riolu's paw closing in, aiming at his neck.
As Riolu's grasp was about to close on Machop's neck something grabbed him from behind and immediately threw him to the side.
"What do you think you are doing to my brother?" a shiny machop stood beside the defeated machop. He glared daggers at Riolu.
"Your brother began this," Riolu responded.
The shiny glanced at his brother and said something. Then faced Riolu again. "How dare you?"
There was no time to respond as the shiny was already running toward Riolu. Fast bullet punches struck Riolu before he could react. He took advantage of Riolu's confusion to grab him by the neck and smash him on the ground.
He is a lot stronger, Riolu thought.
A knee to the side and a couple punches to the face was enough to put Riolu almost out of combat. He threw a few punches but didn't land any.
He pushed the shiny away with his legs and stood up.
He was quick to return to the action and kicked Riolu in the stomach. He bent over and the shiny connected an uppercut. Riolu was thrown back and fell on his rear. His sight was blurry. Was he not going to get out of this one?
The shiny hurried at Riolu and wrapped his arm around Riolu's neck and arm. He felt the increasing pressure on his arm.
He is going to break my arm.
Riolu knew very well that being by himself and a disability like a broken arm normally resulted in death inside these mountains. That's it if he came out of this battle with only a broken arm.
The cry of a staraptor echoed above their heads. Immediately after a strong gust of wind separated Riolu and the shiny machop.
Now what?
A staraptor landed between the machop brothers and Riolu.
Wait! I know her!
Riolu watched in awe at how majestic the sky -born pokémon looked. Her extended black and grey wings made her look larger and threatening yet magnificent. The flapping of her wings created a circular patch of grass around her that gave her the protagonism of the scene.
"Okay," Staraptor said. "I think this is enough, I ask you to leave."
The two machop didn't respond. Instead the shiny shifted his position to look bigger and glared at Staraptor wanting to say something.
Before he could speak up, Staraptor interrupted. "Unless you don't want to leave this place at all," she threatened while her black and red crest shaded her predator's eyes.
"I think my brother and I will leave," the shiny said. He helped his brother up—who constantly complained about his arm. Unlike his shiny brother, Machop looked over his shoulder and locked gazes with Riolu. He perceived a strong need for revenge.
Staraptor watched as the two brothers disappeared into the forest.
"Thank you, Staraptor."
"I owed one to you and Charmeleon. That was all. "
"I understand. Still, you saved me." All Riolu wanted was to show his gratitude.
"Now we are even."
There was a moment of silence. Riolu's wounds began to cause pain on his body. It was going to be a rough way back home.
And I did not get any food. Great.
"By the way," Staraptor said. "I heard what happened to Charmeleon. A shame. I did not expect that for one of the Iron Clan founders."
The Iron Clan. The place where Charmeleon once belonged to. Before he left it to join me. I always wanted to visit it with him.
Riolu resisted the urge to blame himself for Charmeleon's fate. It would not sound good. "I know. I –I miss him." He just let it out and looked at the ground. It was uncommon for pokémon to reveal something like that.
Staraptor eyed him questioningly. She didn't expect that answer. Riolu was still young. He probably wasn't good hiding this feelings. After all, in these mountains lone pokémon like him had slim chances of making it far. The ones that do, though, turn out strong and determined. She remembered Charmeleon.
"Staraptor, do you think is a good idea to go to the Iron Clan?"
Staraptor wondered why he would want to go there. "The Iron Clan are not known to receive outsiders so easily. However, given who you are it should not be difficult to be received."
"Be aware, though, Riolu. They will ask questions," Staraptor's words made Riolu doubt. He tried not to lose his cool in front of her. "One of their founders is gone and they will want answers. And that place. Some of the pokémon that are part of that clan are pretty dangerous."
Riolu pondered on her words. He would have to remember that. "Alright. Still, I have to go somewhere and I thought that the place Charmeleon came from was a good starting point."
Staraptor inspected Riolu up and down. The fighting-born sure looked bad. A swollen face, a slight limp and his stance was a bit hunched. He could turn into a prey of some bigger pokémon in his way back home. She sighed and said, "Listen I have to go, do you want a ride back home?"
She does not want to show it, but she is really nice. "I would like to, but I need to get some food and the apple trees I had in mind are nearby. Thank you, anyway."
Staraptor rolled her eyes. What was she doing? "Come on, I will go with you then take you back home."
Riolu tried to collect his food as fast as I could as to not waste Staraptor's time. Some time later he was dropped at my cave by Staraptor.
"Now I owe you one, Staraptor."
"I guess so," she smirked.
"Seriously, thanks for everything. Hope we meet again soon."
"I am sure we will eventually, Riolu. Good luck in your trip."
And Staraptor took off to the skies. She was a good pokémon. Riolu wondered when he was going to meet her again. And most importantly why. Surely not in a good situation.
Riolu spent the night waking up at random times, something that had been happening since... then. He had gotten used to waking up tired, which later in the day paid toll on his body.
This was the day. He was leaving his home. The cave that was home for Charmeleon and Riolu for roughly 30 days. They had moved not much ago due to some issues with other pokémon.
He wondered what he should take. There was one thing that he didn't need to even consider taking. He instantly picked up the satchel he once made with Charmeleon–an invention he learned to do from the humans. He packed everything he deemed necessary. Little things he owned mostly, some food and a couple of things that could get him out of a tight spot.
It was going to be long trip. Or at least that's what he thought. He knew the location of the Iron Clan because he was told, but he himself had never gone there.
And so he exited his cave with mixed feelings. The first rays of sunlight hit his body and casted the shadow of his tall—for a Riolu—figure.
He began to walk. Eventually his home disappeared from sight and he was into the wild. For the first time he was the only one he could depend on.
What Riolu didn't know is that his path had already been determined. No matter how it branched or where he chose to go; every option came together at the end to take him to a world where every pokémon who enters eventually gets lost.
The crowd was still dispersing after the last fight. The sandslash versus swellow battle had everyone on the edge of their seats.
After several weeks of ruling the arena, the red side trainer was finally close to losing. Swellow had made an amazing comeback in a fight everyone thought was lost from the start.
Then, the incredible happened. A bold series of decisions put swellow in a tough spot. Afterwards a well-aimed stone edge pierced through one of swellow's wings. The shock was overwhelming for the blue side trainer as he watched in horror his swellow plunging to the arena's dirty ground.
The trainer shouted command as soon as the flying type hit the ground but it was too late. Without any order from the red trainer the sandslash pounced on the swellow and impaled the pokémon's chest with his claws–the red fluid dripping victoriously from them.
Another week undefeated.
However, this was not the only event happening. Near the center of the venue even more people was gathered. A hubbub of shouts filled the area around it. The lights above revealed two trainers battling. The fight wasn't popular because of its intensity but for crushing victory taking place.
Amidst a cacophony of people yelling and among metal bars that caged him, Abomasnow looked around him. He didn't know much of what was going on here.
He was released outside this cage not much ago. He remembered walking among humans and pokémon alike. His uncontrollable nature turned obedient after getting to know his trainer violent response against insubordination. The lights above him were very bright hiding none of the events taking place around him. He was in the middle of a hubbub of shouts and cries from pokémon.
The cages, the battlegrounds, and the atmosphere in general was not what he imagined to be under a trainer's command was like. He had heard tales. So when his actual trainer caught him–as furious as Abomasnow was with himself for making poor decisions–he knew it wasn't the end of the world. There were other options and maybe he could even escape back to his old life.
However, the vibe he got here wasn't welcoming. He wasn't sure if what he saw was a trick of the lighting, or maybe the salvage people blocking his view made it seem different, but he got a glimpse of a battle, or rather the end of one. A sandslash stood in front of a fallen swellow. The earth-born claws were dripping with blood. It looked deranged, how his body moved erratically, his breathing apparently uneven–albeit it could had been an exhausting fight and Abomasnow mind was making up things. The arena they were battling was littered with feathers and a few of the sandslash's back spikes.
And then Abosmanow knew it wasn't his imagination. The earth-born reared back and impaled the swellow in its heart more than once even though the pokémon was clearly dead.
Now, the killing of the swellow didn't even make Abomasnow flinch, he had done plenty of that back in the mountains he lived. However, he was told again and again that humans never let a pokémon die. That they were important for them and that fighting was a mean to discover the stronger warrior rather than a death battle. At the end of the day it was only a friendly competition. And yet Abomasnow saw all these people cheering and shouting as the carnage unfolded in front of them. The reality didn't match with the stories.
A sudden shout from his trainer released Abomasnow from his reverie and took him back to the cage he was in. He wasn't aware what was going on exactly.
He knew he was on the blue side, though. His trainer had sent him out as a last resort. But why? His opponent had the advantage being an iron-born pokémon.
Abomasnow knew he was strong and back where he lived he was widely respected. Yet here he couldn't feel any more insecure facing his opponent. In the red side stood a scizor. His metallic skin shone under the reflectors that illuminated the arena and made him stand out as the dominant one.
His stoic gaze was overwhelming for Abomasnow. He felt desperate.
The people seemed to be rooting for the scizor. The atmosphere was so full of energy that it was crushing down Abomasnow into the ground. He wanted out. He looked above him. Steel bars prevented any kind of escape. He was trapped against his will. He looked behind him at his trainer. He looked worried but not for Abomasnow. And the people spectating the incoming fight acted more like cruel circus tamers rather than humans.
And then he looked at the red side trainer. The man's eyes were shadowed by his hat. His mouth, though, was set in a firm line that combined with his calm yet imposing stance. He watched the arena with his arms crossed. When his eyes happened to fall upon Abomasnow he suddenly felt like he was a little snover once again and the red side trainer towered over him.
What came next happened all too fast. A human gave a quick presentation which was heard all around the arena and the fight started. Both trainers shouted commands. Abosmasnow tried to follow the orders as best as he could but the scizor was more a monster than a pokémon. Before he knew he had been defeated.
He had been told about the pokémon fights human hosted. They were intense and competitive, but it was no more than a friendly way to discover the strongest fighter. This time, however, there was no friendliness, no mercy. Only a reckless scizor that put him down without much effort.
Somebody stopped the fight. However, Abomasnow considered that it was too late.
He was on the ground watching from an uncomfortable position how the only one to leave the cage was the scizor. He walked out calmly—received by his trainer.
It was different for Abomasnow. Nobody came for him. He felt his strength fade away; his eyes were heavy. And something red started to form under him.
The final thing he heard were the last words of the announcer. "—and we will be eager to meet you again here in the Red Arena!"
AN: Okay, after a looong time of having this in my head and talking about it, imagining how the scenes would play out and just right out planning it. Now, it's finally here
:) If you liked it, if you have a suggestion, spotted any error or just wanna say hi, please comment, I'll be glad to read the reviews.
The cover, which is the first work in which I have done drawing, digital conversion, and coloring, will probably be in deviantart (Arcansy) xD And hopefully if I have the time I'll add a new drawing with each chapter; don't expect much, though.
CuREOsity #1: The opening line of the story is a direct reference to a novel and was one of the first things that came to my mind when I thought about this story a few years ago.