Yeah, quick warning, it actually gets a little dark towards the middle of the story to the end, so some readers might not be able to stomach it. Just saying.

The trio had just entered Viridian Forest when they met against their first wild pokemon.

More specifically, first group of pokemon.

Ash raised an eyebrow. He had just stumbled upon a Beedrill colony. It also appeared to be mixed with a Combee colony as well.

'Human,' spoke out a voice. 'Why do you come across our territory?'

Ash turned around and gasped. A Vespiqueen was before him, head tilted slightly in curiosity.

"Sorry for the intrusion," he apologized. "But I was just starting my journey when I stumbled upon your colony. I hope that I'm not interrupting anything."

After a brief pause, the Vespiqueen nodded. 'A plausible alibi. Very well. For the duration of your stay, I promise you no harm from my colony should you agree to not harm my followers.'

"Fair enough."

Loch tilted his head in relief. 'Wow, crisis averted. Last thing I need is to be swarmed a bunch of bugs.'

Suddenly, a small group of Beedrill appeared before the queen.

'Your Majesty!' called out one. 'Our scouts report seeing a large flock of Spearow headed this way!'

'Is it hostile?'

'Evidently. We left a few warriors behind to stall for time, but I'm afraid that we need more support.'

The Vespiqueen nodded. 'Call forth the Guard. We must protect the rest of the colony.' The group of Beedrill saluted before heading off to follow their monarch's orders.

The Vespiqueen then looked at the trio. 'I apologize that we could not meet under more favorable conditions, but I must prepare for battle. I advise you to stay behind the lines until the danger has passed.'

Ash looked at Chrome and Loch, and the trio came to an unspoken agreement. "With all due respect, your majesty, we would like to aid you in this battle."

The Vespiqueen did not reply but gave a grateful nod before heading to the front lines.

'Alright, so what's the plan, boss?' asked Loch. He was itching for a fight ever since they left Pallet Town.

"Actually," replied Ash. "I think that Chrome has more expertise than us in this area. What do you think?"

Chrome mulled for a bit, although slightly surprised that Ash wanted his opinion.

'Well, I advise staying away from the actual fighting. It will be too chaotic with the colony and the flock attacking each other. MaxProb of success and survival indicates that we attempt to attack them form the side, weakening their forces. I'd advise striking their left flank. Meanwhile, we could also attempt to help protect the forest pokemon that may be caught in the crossfire. Is that alright with you?' While speaking, Chrome had unintentionally changed into 'mission' mode.

Ash blinked before nodding. "Yeah, that seems pretty good. My only concern is that you have mostly melee attacks. You'd probably become injured pretty bad during this fight."

'I have endured far more stronger opponents than a flock of wild Spearow. I'll be fine. What I am concerned with is you, Ash. Mistress J told me that you have some skills in fighting, but they won't help much against an enemy that is faster and can also hover ten feet off the ground.'

Ash nodded, seeing the wisdom in Chrome's words. Without missing a beat, the group headed to the battleground.

What greeted them was a Fearow and the Vespiqueen have a stare-off, neither pokemon giving an inch to the other. Around them lay their warriors, eager to step in should anything happen.

'Why have you entered our territory?' demanded the Vespiqueen.

The Fearow gave out a screech. 'Nothing personal, it's just that we're expanding our territory. A shame that you are in the way ... I don't think you would be so kind as to simply leave?' it asked mockingly.

The Vespiqueen shook her head before summoning her guard, an action that was reciprocated on the other side.

Then all hell broke loose.

Pokemon attacked pokemon, endlessly battling one another. If an opponent fell, the fighter simply moved onto the next.

Ash, Chrome, and Loch went to the side and hit from the left flank. For Loch, he would stun the Spearows or ram them with Quick Attack. As for Chrome, he settled to knock out the Spearows with rapid slashes or a barrage of Stone Edges. Between the two of them, they managed to keep them away from Ash.

Meanwhile, Ash was helping usher the nearby pokemon away from the battlefield.

It was going fine until a group of Spearow noticed Ash. Shrieking, they dove down, aiming to pierce the human, too quick for Chrome or Loch to notice them.

Ash noticed them, and his eyes widened, but by then it was too late. Their Pecks had torn apart his shirt and some blood was dripping out of a few wounds.

"!"

Ash stumbled backwards in surprised, but was given little chance to be surprised as the Spearow dove at him once again.

'Ash!'

Chrome lept in front of his trainer before unleashing a barrage of Stone Edge to deter the would-be attackers.

'Are you okay?' demanded Chrome as he began inspecting Ash for injuries.

"I'm fine," insisted Ash, as he brushed away Chrome's worry. "Just go help out."

Chrome looked at Ash in the eyes before nodding and dashing away.

'This has gone on too long.'

Chrome dashed to the front of the battle and issued a challenge.

'Hey, you stupid chickens! Get your ass over here!'

Immediately the fight stopped, everyone looking at him in curiosity or amusement.

'Yeah, that's right,' muttered Chrome. 'Just keep your attention on me.'

The Fearow hovered in front of him. 'Tell me, do you have a death wish?'

'Well, I have a wish, and it's your death, so yeah.'

The Fearow smirked before becoming impassive.

'Kill him.'

At once, the Spearows began conglomerating into a massive form in front of Chrome, who had his arms crossed over his torso.

'Any last words?' asked the Fearow in amusement.

'Yeah, three actually, but I'd prefer to state them while you are attacking me.'

With that, the mass of Spearows descended on Chrome.

All the spectators watched with wide eyes. A few Beedrill set out to help him, but the Vespiqueen held them back.

'Wait. Something is off. He's far too confident.'

It appeared that the Fearow also noticed this and its eyes widened as it realized its mistake.

'Get out of there, you fools!' it demanded as it quickly flew out of the immediate vicinity.

It was too late, however. By then, the Spearows' inertia prevented them form changing direction and Chrome smirked.

'Checkmate.'

A blinding light shone in his torso, although upon closer inspection it came form the blades on his arms. The light got brighter and brighter as the Spearow neared until it appeared to look like the sun. Once the closest Spearow was touching him, he uttered his next two words.

'Metal Burst.'

Chrome threw his arms out, releasing the massive energy that had been continuously piling up. The light enveloped the Spearow mass and completely obliterated it.

So bright was the light, that it appeared as if a star was born.

A few seconds of silence drummed through the air. Mercifully, the explosion was not loud enough to perforate any eardrums.

Once Ash's vision returned, he was absolutely stunned. There Chrome was, standing regal and absolutely undeterred from what happened before, aside from some heavy breathing.

In front of him was an absolute nightmare.

Spearows laid still in the ground before him. A few of them twitched, and even fewer managed to get up but most of them were not moving.

Ash realized with a lump in his throat that they would never move again.

The Fearow descended slowly, looking warily at the sight before it. 'What have you done?' it croaked out as it gazed upon its fallen comrades.

'I have merely turned their power upon themselves,' replied Chrome with an impassive facade.

'Liar!' hissed the Fearow. 'Murderer! Bane of my kind! You have slaughtered so many of my comrades, so many of my family! You must pay with your life!'

Chrome shook his head. 'I regret the consequences of my actions but not the action itself. You brought your kind to fight us. You decided to initiate this feud. It was you who decided to launch your family against me. It was not I that killed them, but you.'

The Fearow shrieked in fury. 'I will have my vengeance fulfilled, no matter how long it may take me! I swear, with Lord Arceus as my witness, that you will pay!'

Chrome sighed before walking away. 'I will not fight a broken warrior. Leave, and never come back.'

The Fearow tried charging at him, but then Beedrill's lined in front of him. Realizing that he could not win, he spat out a few obscenities before leaving, followed by whatever Spearows were still alive.

Afterwards, the colony began to bury the dead. Both side had taken losses, although the number of Spearows fallen far exceeded the casualties of the colony.

'Human,' asked the Vespiqueen. 'Are you okay?'

Ash looked up from where he was sitting. "Hm? Yeah, I was thinking about something."

'I assume that this was the first time you witnessed death, correct?'

Ash let out a sigh. "Yeah, I mean, sis did warn that this was natural and would happen, but I just thought ..."

'You hoped that you would never witness it with your bare eyes.' Ash sighed and nodded, putting his head in his head.

'Human, look at me,' stated the Vespiqueen.

'You have a life ahead of you. Don't get too depressed over the course of today's events. Every minute, every second, a conflict like this usually happens. I, too, dislike such fighting, but I can do little about it. It is in our nature to fight. To compete with one another. All this thrives from the need to survive.

'I must admit, this is a terrible thing for a child as yourself to witness, but it is better that you understand now than to remain ignorant for your life. You need not worry about the fates of others. Instead, look inside of yourself and ask what you yourself can do. Who knows? Maybe you can fix this lifestyle of ours. But that will never happen unless you stop dwelling in the past.

'Once, a raiding party snuck past my guards, and wrecked havoc from within. It was not until the chaos had quelled that I realized the true extent of their attack. Many of our innocent civilians had died, including the children. Some of them were mine. Was I bitter about it? yes. however, I knew deep down that no matter how earnestly I attempted to right their deaths, I could never bring them back. So I was forced to move on.'

Ash looked at the Vespiqueen in sympathy. He had never realized just how much other people went through. Living in Pallet Town had limited his vision, but now taht he was out, he was suddenly exposed to the harshness of reality.

'Enough about me,' stated the Vespiqueen. 'I must thank you for your help. I would like for you to have one of our children to look after, if it is not too much for you. If you can look after her, I am forever grateful.'

Ash smiled before hugging the Vespiqueen. "Of course."

Afterwards, the trio left the colony.

'Hey boss, you gonna be okay?' asked Loch from Ash's shoulder. He was worried when he saw his trainer's look from seeing the corpses.

"I'm okay," replied Ash, holding an egg in his arms.

'Ash,' said Chromes seriously. 'I regret being the bearer of bad news, but I am positive that we will encounter a battle like the one before at least one more time in our journey.'

Ash laugehd out loud, startling the two pokemon.

"You guys don't have to worry about me all the time. The Vespiqueen was kind enough to explain it all to me.

"If we find ourselves in another battle next time, I want to stop it before anyone gets hurt."