Here's Chapter 24!

Warning for blood and sad, death scenes!

Enjoy!

Aura Warrior: Ace

Chapter 24: Fireheart's Sacrifice

Meanwhile, on the back side of the Densetsu Mountains, the leader Kin was almost reaching Tyrano's hideout. He held on to the cliff wall as the winds blew hard that it could send him flying should he let go. He stared at the edge of the cliff above him and waited.

"He was there. He didn't show himself, but he was there. He's just waiting for my attack." He then looked down and saw the wind breezes coming from the chasm. "If I use the wind, I can jump over and come out from behind him. I must go for it!"

He then let go and the wind pushed him up the cliff. Just as he predicted, there he was, The Rogue One Eyed Tyranitar, Tyrano, waiting for him from behind the edge. "There you are, Tyrano!"

Tyrano then used his claws and swatted the golden Lucario into the air and prepared his killing blow. Kin gasped as he was nearing his claws, but at the last minute, he barely dodged it and landed in front of the huge beast. The two Pokémon stared while bearing their fangs at each other. Tyrano then began slashing his claws in rampage, but Kin dodged them all without a scratch. He had to think of something and fast.

Was it with a victorious plan that the leader jumped into Tyrano's hideout or was it with suicide in mind?

Kin knew a way to attack but it might be too risky. "In over 100 years, this tactic has been passed down from father to son. Now is the time to use it!" He then charged at Tyrano until he began moving extremely quickly, almost become a streak of light as he flew right through Tyrano's claws. The claws suddenly were cut off from the attack, blood splattering from it. Tyrano roared in agony.

It happened so fast. Right when the leader had disappeared in a flash of light, was half the frame ripped apart by the Leader's sharp fangs. But the leader was unharmed. In order to break the high speed, he had to throw himself against a tree. The pain paralyzed him and made him defenseless. This technique, known as the Light Attack due to the user having the speed of light, demands all of his strength and powers.

But then, Kin heard something behind him. He turned and gasped as several more Rock Type Pokémon appeared behind him. They attacked him and threw him into a deep ditch. Then they tore down heavy trees and throw them on Kin, burying him alive!

The beasts then heard a monstrous roar and turned to see their boss Tyrano. Truth is told, the one that the Leader thought it was Tyrano, was actually a doppelganger and Tyrano's son, Scar, who is serving as a substitute. The giant Tyranitar who now showed himself was the real Tyrano who was now mega evolved and twice his size. The nerve damage had affected his body and made him gigantic, giving him the name "The Dark Demon of Hell!"

The now large united pack was reaching deeper into Tyrano's territory. They all notice the lack of Pokémon in the area, leaving it extremely quiet.

"That's strange. They aren't showing themselves." Jack wondered.

"We're only halfway there. Don't let your guard down." Ace instructed until he suddenly stopped in his tracks. "What is that?"

They all could see a huge wall of fallen trees and logs blocking their path. It was the size of half a house.

"Could this be a trap?" Hakutaka asked, gaining the attention of Kai.

"A trap?"

"Wait here." Hakutaka jumped to the top of the wall and scouted the area behind it. There was a huge plain and trees beyond it, but no sign of the enemy anywhere. "I don't see anything, but their scent is everywhere."

"Of course it is; it is their territory!" Buck replied.

"In any case, we have to keep moving!" Ace said.

"Understood." Hakutaka nodded as he crossed over the wall while the others followed. But then as they walked the grass, they felt movement underneath it. Akru gasped as he alerted the others.

"I just felt the ground move!"

"I find it very soft under my feet!" Haku agreed as it they found it strange.

It wasn't long that the ground began to shift and a Rhydon bursts out of the grass, surprising everyone! The Rhydon began slashing the Pokémon, killing three of them. Then two more Rhydon appeared out of the ground as well and began attacking. This was the enemy's plan to lure the pack and ambush them from underneath. Finally, their leader, which was a one limbed Rhyperior, joined in the fight.

"It's Gaia!" Ace shouted in horror. Gaia saw Ace and used Hammer Arm on him, but Ace dodged it and began an away.

"Ace, watch out!" Hakutaka shouted as Gaia chased Ace through the plains.

"Get to your positions! Surround them!" Jack ordered. However, the Rhydon didn't give the pack members any time to organize themselves. The ambush caused them to panic and left them unable to execute any attack formation, so they just had to fight however they can.

The Kohaku brothers were attacking one of the Rhydon when they saw Ace trying to escape Gaia. "Ace's in danger! Protect him!"

Ace ran with all his might, trying to get away from Gaia. He wanted to help his friends but how can he with Gaia at his tail. He then barely dodged another Hammer arm attack from him and continued to run.

Hakutaka, Jack, and their platoons proceeded to assist their leader. "He's only after Ace!" Hakutaka shouted.

"Of course! He's trying to take out our commander!" Jack realized Gaia's plan as he then attacked Gaia alongside Rannoch and Hakutaka. Ace managed to escaped and sought refuge in an abandoned shed ahead of him.

Ace jumped inside to recover until he sensed a presence inside the shed with him. "Who's there? Show yourself!" He shouted.

"Ah, that voice…"

Ace gasped as he recognized the stranger. "That voice!"

"It's me." The stranger was revealed to be none other than Bowen, finally here at last to join the fight.

"Bowen?!"

Outside the shed, Gaia fought with the pack as they surrounded him, after finally defeating his subordinates. He slashed away any Pokémon nearing him and swatted them off of him. Gaia growled as he saw the abandoned shed where Ace hid and went after him.

"Hold it!" Fireheart stood in his way. "I'll be your opponent!"

"Don't do it, Fireheart!" Hakutaka shouted.

"Not even you can fight him alone!" Jack agreed.

Fireheart glared at Gaia who proceeded to attack with Hammer Arm. Fireheart jumped at him, dodging his attack, and hit him with his infamous Close Combat attack, repeatedly punching and kicking the opponent at a fast speed. With this super effective move, he brought down Gaia in one attack as Gaia struggled weakly in the ground.

Jack and the others were amazed by Fireheart's legendary strength. "Incredible! Just as I expected from the strongest fighting Pokémon in the world."

"Well done!" Buck congratulated Fireheart as he came close to Gaia. "He's done for!" Unfortunate for Buck, Gaia woke up with a start.

"Buck! Look out!" Fireheart yelled as Gaia rose up and his horn glows white and extended. Buck became paralyzed with shock as Gaia's Megahorn came closer to him. Everyone gasped in horror as they watched the scene. Fireheart managed to get Buck out of the way, but got stabbed from the back to his chest from the Megahorn. He was critically injured while trying to save Buck, as blood flowed out of his chest.

"FIREHEART!" Hakutaka yelled. Gaia swatted both fire Pokémon out of his way as he walked towards the shed.

"Forgive me, Fireheart!" Buck cried as Fireheart struggled to get up. "It's my fault."

"Stop, Fireheart!" Jack tried to stop him from rising up.

"We need to take care of your wounds first!" Rannoch replied.

"None of you interfere!" Fireheart seriously spoke. "I'll settle this myself!"

In the shed, Ace and Bowen suddenly heard Gaia's roar. They gasped as Gaia's face suddenly bursts from the wall and growled at them. Bowen suddenly stood up and glared at the Rhyperior, not moving an inch.

"Bowen, please just leave this to me! You're still too weak!" Ace pleaded as he noticed the old wounds from his fight from Vermillion.

"Ace, remember this: a warrior cannot, under any circumstance, show weakness to his enemy. Even when he's facing death, he must stand firm!" Bowen seriously explained while facing Gaia. "Your tenacity in a time of desperation determines whether you live or die!"

Bowen's defiant stance subdued Gaia. It was evident in how the Rhyperior stood immobile, powerless to move, but still glaring at Bowen.

Ace knew that they both had to do something and quick. He then saw a rope hanging on a hook next to them. "That's it!" He then grabbed the rope and wrapped him all around Gaia, who came crashing through the wall.

"I see! Right! Me too!" Bowen realized as he grabbed the other end of the rope and helps Ace in the process. Gaia was angered by this and stated knocking down the beams holding the shed stable.

"Look out!" Ace cried out to Bowen while they braced themselves as the falling debris fell on them. Gaia escaped from the shed while the pack went towards the shed rubble, worried for their friend's safety.

"Ace!" Hakutaka cried out to him.

"Ace! Are you alright?" Jack called out.

"Ace! Answer me!" Hakutaka searched until he heard Ace's voice. "Hakutaka-san!" He saw Ace through a gap in the rubble. "I'm alright! Please just go after Gaia!"

Behind a lake, Gaia tried to remove the ropes off of him. It wasn't long until he saw Fireheart, though heavily wounded, standing in front of him. "We have some unfinished business to finish!"

"Fireheart, let me help you!" Buck joined his side.

"Don't worry about me! Help Ace instead!" Fireheart shouted. "You're the only one who can lift all those heavy beams."

Buck understood the situation. "Alright. Fireheart, don't you dare die on your own!"

Fireheart narrowed his eyes as he knew how this fight will end. "The last responsibility of a Densetsu Warrior is to be an example for young fighters! I'll at least serve as a guide for the next generation of warriors... That is the way how this fighting Pokémon will die! "

He then pushed Gaia with all his strength while grabbing the rope into the lake and dragged Gaia down to the bottom.

"FIREHEART!" Buck yelled as they saw both Pokémon falling into the water.

The Infernape knew both he and Gaia shared the same weakness of water, so he wanted to finish the fight underwater. For Fireheart, who had the power to single-handedly defeat giant Pokémon, it was not impossible to take Gaia down. However, as badly wounded as he was now, he had no choice but to put his life on the line. As he reached the bottom, he tied Gaia to a log, but his leg was caught in the rope he had used.

"Shit!" He cursed as he watched Gaia drowning.

On the surface, Buck lifted the heavy beams so that Ace can escape the rubble.

"Hurry, Bowen!" Ace shouted once he escaped, surprising everyone. "What? Bowen's here?!" Hakutaka asked as Bowen ran out the rubble.

"Bowen! What are you doing here?" Jack said surprisingly.

"Never mind me! What about Gaia?" Bowen wondered.

"Fireheart dragged him down into the lake with him!" Buck answered.

"What?! Fireheart!" Ace went to the lake where the others watched the air bubbles rippling in the water. Ace, worried for Fireheart, jumped into the lake came down to save him.

"Ace!" Hakutaka and Jack followed in pursuit as they dived in.

Ace swam deeper until he saw Gaia struggling to escape from the rope, gasping for air. He swam past him as he searched for Fireheart. "Fireheart…Where is he?!" It wasn't long until Ace, Jack, and Hakutaka found him. "There!"

"Ace! What are you doing? Go back! Don't come down here!" Fireheart shook his head, hoping to send them away.

"What's wrong, Fireheart?" Ace wondered why he was chasing him away until he gasped as and the others saw his leg trapped by the rope, preventing him to escape.

"His paw…" Jack gasped.

Fireheart nodded his head. "If you loosen the rope around my paw, then Gaia will be freed, as well."

"This can't be happening!" Ace's eyes widen in shock.

"All of you, leave me and go back! I die for my friends! There is no better end!"

While Ace stayed, Jack and Hakutaka turned and swam towards the surface for air. "I can't hold it anymore! I have to get some air!"

"I'm not going anywhere! I won't go back without you!" Ace then tried to bit the rope free, but Fireheart hit him with his front paw and sent him back to the top of the lake, thereby sacrificing himself to ensure Gaia died with him.

"Farewell, Ace. Become a great warrior!"

Jack and Hakutaka finally made it to the surface gasping for air! "Gaia's dead!"

"Really?! Then what happened to Fireheart?" Buck asked worriedly.

"He's still down there, caught in the rope!" Jack answered.

"Ace… What happened to Ace?" Bowen asked.

"He's staying by Fireheart's side!" Hakutaka answered. They all watched with worry until Mako pointed to the water where Ace finally rose up.

"Ace!" Hakutaka cried.

"Ace, hang on!" Jack grabbed Ace before he could drown.

"Pull him out, quickly!" Bowen ordered as Jack and Hakutaka dragged Ace towards the shore where all their friends gathered around them. "I'm glad you're all right! What about Fireheart?"

Ace got up and gasped as he turned to the lake. "Fireheart, he…" They all watched as the air bubbles suddenly stopped bubbling in the surface. Ace gasped as he realized that Fireheart is gone. Bowen and Buck's faces became sadden by this.

"Forgive me…Fireheart…" Buck whispered as tears began to form. It was then he gasped as he saw red dots appearing in the water. "What's that?"

As the pack silently mourned for their friend's death, they saw the red dots, which they realized that it was the blood from Fireheart's injuries, rising to the lake's surface as it formed into a shape of a flame.

"Look! It's a flame!" Jack pointed out. "It's Fireheart's soul… His heart and soul as a huge burning flame!"

"A fire in blood…The burning fire of his life." Ace watched in awe and sadness at the flame symbol representing Fireheart's life leaving this world. "Fireheart!" He sadly cried as he and the others mourn and wept over the passing of, truly, the strongest fighting Pokémon in the world.

The undefeated champion and the strongest fighting Pokémon, Fireheart, had left the world. However, his final moments had been heroic. As befitting his namesake, a flame symbol appeared on the water's surface…marking the end of his tumultuous life.

Now the final battle will soon begin... on the next chapter! So keep reading!

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