Sorry it's been so long; a combination of classes, work, and WoW kept me from getting back to this story. I'll try and get back to updating it regularly again soon.
Mastering a New Start
Chapter 25: Forest Chase Part Five;
'I Will Not Abandon Him!'
High up in the leafy canopy of a thick forest, a powerful wind began to blow, causing even the sturdy trees to sway slightly. The source was a massive column of swirling wind and leaves that reached from the ground to above even the treetops. A large, feathered form could just be seen within the wall of wind, a look of hard determination in her eyes as she sped through the cyclone.
Pidgeotto's stunned body fell through the air, the flying-type having been so disoriented by the Voltorb's Explosion she was having trouble just determining which way was up. As the plummeting bird struggled to recover, the thick branches and sharp twigs of the treetops grew closer and closer. Finally, Pidgeotto managed to regain control of her fall just in time to maneuver her way through the tangle of plant life below her, eventually coming to a stop on a branch just below the forest canopy.
Pidgeotto turned to look back at the cliff she had just fallen from with concern; despite the disorienting blow dealt from the explosion, she had still seen that the rest of her friends had fallen from the cliff just like she did. She knew deep down that all of them could take care of themselves, but that wasn't enough to keep the bird from worrying. Forcing down a sudden wave of panic, Pidgeotto spread her wings wide as she prepared to take off.
"Excuse me, where do you think you're going?" The bird quickly turned to find the source of the new voice, finding a Pokemon slowly hovering through the forest canopy. She was clearly insectlike, but had an almost human build; she had a red exoskeleton, except for the yellow of her chest and the lower half of her face, and her four segmented arms ended in what appeared to be white gloved hands. When she eventually came to a rest on a nearby branch, her translucent wings folded up behind her back and were promptly covered by a red and black shell. As Pidgeotto began to answer the Ledian's question, the bug-type quickly stopped her, holding out one of her many hands in a halting gesture before she spoke.
"No, don't tell me; you're going to find your trainer, this 'Mark' guy I've been hearing so much about, right?" Pidgeotto was only partially successful in her attempt to mask her shock, having realized that the Ledian before her was from Versum. The bird roughly brushed aside her surprise and put on as tough a face as she could manage, fixing the bug with a hard glare.
"So, what do you want?" Pidgeotto was glad that at least her voice came out sounding confident, because she felt anything but confidence at that moment. If the encounter did come to a fight, she would have the type advantage, but the Ledian didn't seem worried in the slightest; in fact, the bug-type seemed almost bored as she considered the bird's question. After a few moments of casual thought, the Ledian spoke up.
"Well, Agent 432 told me to kill you." The words came out in a lazy, matter-of-fact tone, spoken as if the bug would have as little trouble killing Pidgeotto as she had talking about it; however, even as that sunk in, the Ledian continued. "But, I don't really feel like putting in that kind of effort right now, so I got a proposal for you."
Pidgeotto was taken aback by that, both because a Pokemon from Versum was making a deal with her, and because the Ledian was apparently willing to disobey an order from her trainer. However, she needed to find Mark and the others, and she was sure she could manage whatever this Pokemon would ask of her if it meant getting to them faster. With a sharp nod, the bird signaled that she was listening, and the bug-type went on.
"Well, it's pretty simple really. From what I've heard, all Versum is interested in is that trainer of yours; I think the only reason they want you and his other Pokemon dead is so you won't try and interfere with whatever they want him for. So, all you have to do… is never go near that human or his Pokemon again. I doubt Versum will bother to check and make sure that I actually killed you, so you'll get to live and you'll never hear from us again. I know I can trust you to keep your word and, despite what you may think, I assure you that you can trust me to keep mine. So, what do you say?" The surprise in Pidgeotto's face only lasted a moment before the bird's face grew dark.
"Forget it." With that said, Pidgeotto launched herself into the air, swiftly accelerating to her top speed as she closed in on the bug. "If staying loyal to my trainer means you're going to kill me, then go ahead and try!" Wind roared past Pidgeotto as she raced forward in a Quick Attack, keeping a careful eye on her new opponent as she closed in.
Suddenly, Pidgeotto's charge was cut short as she slammed into something hard, causing her to spin from her intended path. The bird quickly righted herself and turned back to the Ledian, only to find the bug-type surrounded by a fading sphere of yellowish energy. Pidgeotto silently berated herself as she realized what happened; Ledians were natural users of Reflect and Light Screen, it should have been obvious that one would have no trouble dealing with direct attacks.
"Ah, good. If that's really the best you can do, I won't have to put much effort into this anyway." With that, the Ledian's wing cases opened, and a dull buzz rang out as the bug-type lazily lifted herself into the air. Pidgeotto held her position in midair, watching her opponent's movements as she frantically thought about what to do.
The Ledian was soon at the same height as Pidgeotto, arms dangling lazily at her sides and that bored expression back on her face. Suddenly, the hum of the Ledian's beating wings grew louder as silver energy began to flow through them. A split second later, the energy burst forward, coming at Pidgeotto in the form of a Silver Wind attack.
The flying-type was just barely faster than the projectile, managing to shoot upward just as the attack passed beneath her. Pidgeotto went back on the offensive immediately, unleashing a twin Gust attack with a powerful flap of her wings. The Ledian didn't even blink as she extended one of her arms, allowing the white energy of a Light Screen to surround her and knock the incoming attacks aside.
Even as her Gust attacks were sent spiraling off into the forest, Pidgeotto continued her assault, launching herself at the bug once more. Once again, wind whistled by as the flying-type began another Quick Attack; as she expected, a sphere of yellow energy came up to block her path as the Ledian brought up another Reflect. The bird banked upwards to avoid the barrier and gave a powerful flap of her wings once she was above the bug, launching a Gust attack straight down.
As the Reflect was only meant to stop physical attacks, the completely energy-based Gust attack went through it easily. However, the Ledian was undaunted, hovering out of the attack's path without even a change in her expression. The burst of white energy continued on, its impact with the forest floor giving a dull thud just as the bug-type went back on the attack.
After flipping herself so that her front was facing upward, the Ledian unleashed another Silver Wind from her wings. The silver energy blazed through the air, quickly making its way into Pidgeotto's path. Though the flying-type tried to evade the attack, she didn't have room to maneuver, and the Silver Wind attack slammed into her, eliciting pained groans from the bird as the small bits of energy cut into her.
Though the force of the blow forced Pidgeotto up slightly, it wasn't long before the stunned bird was falling again, plummeting toward the unforgiving earth at dizzying speeds. The flying-type tried frantically to reorient herself, though her efforts were hindered by the numerous branches that almost seemed to reach out and strike her as she fell past them. With a sudden burst of movement, Pidgeotto managed to break out of her fall and turn so that she was facing her insectoid opponent once more.
When she realized that the Ledian wasn't bothering to come after her just yet, Pidgeotto used the time to consider her opponent. As powerful a defense as Reflect and Light Screen were, they required a great deal of concentration to maintain. If she could only find a way to put enough of a strain on the Ledian's defenses, she could break the bug-type's control over them, finally giving her a chance to counterattack.
With her new battle plan in mind, Pidgeotto flew up towards the Ledian, all the while inspecting the surrounding area to ensure that she would have enough room to do what she was planning. As the bird came near the bug-type's height, she quickly changed course, and began to circle around her opponent. Bit by bit, Pidgeotto began to gain speed, her form vanishing into a gold and brown blur as she raced in an upward spiral.
Within moments, powerful winds began to come up from the movements of the speeding Pokemon. A massive Whirlwind quickly formed, enveloping the still hovering Ledian, who threw up a Light Screen in response. The air became filled with the sounds of roaring winds and the frantic rustling of entire treefuls of leaves as the Whirlwind pulled them from the ground as well as from nearby trees.
It quickly became difficult for Pidgeotto to see her opponent through the rampaging winds she had created. However, what little she could see made it clear that the Ledian had yet to take any real damage through the barrier she had brought up. Wind, leaves, and other debris continuously obscured the bird's view of the inside of her Whirlwind, so she didn't see what was coming when she felt a powerful blow driven into her.
As the impact forced Pidgeotto out of her Whirlwind, she found the Ledian with a fist buried into her side in what was clearly a Mach Punch. The bug-type did seem winded from holding back the bird's last attack, but that didn't seem to be nearly enough to stop her. The Ledian finally jerked her fist from Pidgeotto's body, but that was of little comfort as the bug positioned her arms in what was clearly preparation for her next attack.
The next several moments went by in slow motion as the Ledian's Comet Punch seemed to smash into her entire body all at once. Blow after blow pounded into her, each hit sending waves of pain throughout her form even as the next strike buried itself into her. Her face, her wings, her body, every part of Pidgeotto felt like it was being pummeled at the same time; the fact that the wind was constantly forced out of her to the point that she couldn't even breathe was all that kept her from screaming.
After what seemed like an eternity, the assault abruptly ended with a vicious hook that sent the bird plummeting to the earth once more. This time, there was nothing to stop her fall, and her body was far too wracked with pain to even consider stopping herself. Within moments, the ground rushed up at Pidgeotto, and a thunderous crash punctuated by a pillar of dust mark her impact with the forest floor.
The Ledian set down lightly on the ground near her fallen opponent, giving a light sigh as she did so. The bug-type had never really liked having to exert herself much, so she was more appreciative of having a trainer and not having to constantly fight for food or survival than most Pokemon were. Because of that, she was willing to do whatever she had to for her trainer, as long as it didn't involve fighting too often; of course, if she could manage to complete her missions without force, that was great, but if she had to subdue or even kill, that was fine too.
And of course, that overly-loyal Pidgeotto just had to make things difficult. Fortunately, she didn't seem to have too much actual fighting experience, even if the bird had been tougher than she expected; that Whirlwind attack alone had taken a lot more out of her than she cared to admit. The Ledian grinned at the small crater with satisfaction, waiting for the dust to settle so she could ensure that the Pidgeotto was dead.
Suddenly, there was a movement somewhere in the still swirling clouds of dust. Suddenly, a feathered figure burst haphazardly from the haze, dark bruises all over her body clearly visible even through her feathers. Pidgeotto stumbled slightly as she made her way forward, but she managed to pull herself to an upright position in front of her opponent; the Ledian couldn't help but take an involuntary step back at the sight of her opponent taking what should have been a fatal attack and getting back up again. The shock soon gave way to frustration, and the bug-type couldn't help but burst out in aggravation.
"Why are you getting back up? What could possibly be so important that you would go this far? You couldn't beat me when this fight started, so surely you know that can't beat me like you are now." The Ledian was quickly silenced when Pidgeotto lifted her head so that the two were face to face. Despite the bird's bruised, wounded, and seemingly useless body, her eyes were hardened with a determination and ferocity that made the bug-type shrink back.
"I may still be new to battling, but my trainer needs me. I know that he needs me to beat strong opponents like you, and I will not let him down, especially not here. I don't care how strong your defenses are, or how many attacks you hit me with, or how many times you offer to let me live. No matter what happens… I will not abandon him!"
With that, Pidgeotto gave two powerful flaps of her wings, sending out two Gust attacks; however, the projectiles went wide, going up into the canopy of the forest. The Ledian forced herself to calm down, telling herself that no matter how tough the bird talked, there was still no way she could win; after all, that last attack proved that she couldn't even aim straight anymore. The bug-type drew herself into a fighting stance, preparing to deliver one final attack on the flying-type before her.
The Ledian's movements were cut short when she heard a crashing sound coming from above her. Quickly turning her head up to find the cause, the bug-type found an avalanche of thick branches coming down at her. Giving a distasteful grimace at having to put forth still more effort, the Ledian quickly brought up a Reflect hold back the bombardment.
Though the Reflect was more than able to hold back the foliage crashing into it, keeping the barrier intact was quickly beginning to take more concentration than she could manage. With branch after branch piling up, it wasn't long before pain seemed to flare through the Ledian's mind as keeping up the Reflect became too much for her. With that barrier gone, the branches and debris that had piled up above her immediately caved in, burying her.
The Ledian was tough though, managing to push away enough of the debris to give herself room to tunnel her way upward through it. It took a few minutes, but the bug-type forced her head through the type of the pile, breathing heavily from exertion. However, the Ledian's attempts to take in more oxygen were interrupted by a flapping of wings accompanied by faint grunts of pain.
The bug-type looked up just in time to see a feathery figure racing at her, that frightening determination still burning in her eyes. Pain ratcheted its way through the Ledian's body as Pidgeotto clotheslined her with a Wing Attack, sending the bug flying backward. The insectoid Pokemon groaned as she painfully crashed into the earth, but managed to wrench her eyes back open to catch sight of her opponent taking to the sky before turning back in her direction.
The Ledian forced herself to stand once more, looking up at her feathered opponent as she began to dive downward. Preparing to meet the bird's attack, the bug-type began to bring up another Reflect. However, nothing happened; even as the Ledian kept trying, she simply couldn't concentrate enough to use her defensive moves.
Pidgeotto continued to close in, and the Ledian retaliated by opening her wing cases, allowing familiar silver energy to flow through her humming wings. With a desperate yell, the bug-type launched a Silver Wind attack at the still approaching bird, shuddering slightly from coaxing still more energy from her already weakened body. However, as wave of energy approached Pidgeotto, the speeding flying-type tore through the attack like it was nothing.
Her first two attempts to stop the bird having failed, the Ledian pulled herself into a fighting stance, clenching her fists as she prepared to knock the flying-type out of the sky. However, as Pidgeotto closed in, the bug-type froze up as she locked eyes with the bird. The last thing the Ledian saw were a pair of avian eyes, hardened with a terrifying determination, before a blinding pain sent her into unconsciousness.
Pidgeotto slid bonelessly across the ground, her body too weak to even control her flight after putting the rest of her effort into the Quick Attack that finally brought down her opponent. The bird slowly came to a stop just within view of the fallen Ledian. As Pidgeotto relished in her victory, she considered what the bug-type had told her about Versum and their intentions; it wasn't much, but it was definitely something worth telling the others.
After several minutes, Pidgeotto finally felt recovered enough to get back to her feet. However, she was still too weak to fly well, so she had no choice but to continue her search in a somewhat awkward walk. As she began to set off, she caught sight of the still-unconscious Ledian, and felt the need to say one last thing before she left.
"Make sure you tell your friends at Versum this: don't ever try to keep me from my trainer."