Clash of the Jackals!
Zach and Dawn had set up camp a few miles from Oreburgh City and after Dawn had finished cooking up some food for the two of them they released their Pokemon so that they could all eat together as was tradition for the group. Morpeko immediately proceeded to scarf his serving down his throat before making his usual attempt at stealing from one of the other Pokemon, he reached for Scorbunny's bowl only for the rabbit to push it away and shake her head at him. Morpeko let out a growl as his fur started changing to purple and black once more while his eyes glowed a sinister red.
"Morpeko!" The rodent hissed. His cheeks began to spark as he prepared to deliver a shock to the Fire type's body but Lucario was quick to act, summoning an aura infused bone club before leaping in front of his teammate and deflecting the attack away by twirling his club! The electrical attack hit a nearby tree and sent a white and blue squirrel Pokemon crashing to the ground with an alarmed cry, Dawn quickly rushed over to assist the squirrel while Morpeko glared up at Lucario with a furious expression. "Morpeko!"
"Car!" Lucario growled out as he glared right back at Morpeko.
"Lucario's right, Morpeko. You can't just keep stealing food from your teammates, we're supposed to be your friends! If you just asked politely and without shocking me or Dawn then I'd happily give you some extra food!" Zach explained to Morpeko as he walked over. Morpeko turned to glare at him as his cheeks started to spark once more before delivering a powerful shock to his trainer!
"Carrr!" Lucario exclaimed at the sight before turning back to Morpeko with a growl as he swung his aura infused bone club at the rodent and sent it flying across the clearing! Morpeko landed against a tree trunk with a thump before leaping up and down with a rage filled cry, whatever he had said Lucario looked uncomfortable and didn't attempt to translate for his trainer. Morpeko then turned around before rushing off into the nearby forest!
"Morpek!"
"Morpeko get back here, you don't know what's out there!" Zach shouted after him but Morpeko ignored him and kept running into the forest as the sun began to set. Zach let out a frustrated growl before racing after Morpeko. "Dawn look after the others!"
Dawn looked up from the injured squirrel Pokemon to see Zach and Lucario racing off after Morpeko. "Don't you worry, I'll keep a close eye on them!" She then turned back to the squirrel Pokemon and offered it a friendly smile as it began to stir. "Hey there, sorry about that. My friend's Pokemon is quite the troublemaker, you okay?"
"P-Pachirisu..." The squirrel gave her a smile indicating that it was alright. Dawn let out a sigh of relief before speaking up once more.
"You're not hungry by chance are you? We've got plenty of food!" She offered resulting in the Pachirisu shooting up with an energetic look across her face.
"Pachi!" She cried out as Dawn giggled before waving her hand as she directed Pachirisu towards the others.
"Morpeko?!" Zach called out as the two followed Morpeko's trail of destruction. Several Pokemon such as Bidoof and Shinx were knocked over but none of them displayed signs of injuries so they continued racing after Morpeko. The small rodent was quite quick as no matter how fast they ran they just couldn't catch up to him and eventually his trail ran dry as his pawprints disappeared and there was no trail of any kind to rely upon! "Lucario, your aura picking anything up?"
Lucario's eyes glowed a bright blue as he scanned the area around him before pointing to the west. "Car!"
"Alright, let's get after him!" The two continued to race after Morpeko before eventually coming across a trashed campsite. The tent was in ruins and the supplies were thrown about and torn apart, there was no sign of Morpeko either as the rodent had apparently run off shortly after possibly terrorizing a poor camper.
"Well that's great, we'll have to come back and offer to pay for the damage once we've got him." Zach's hand touched his forehead as he groaned out. Lucario crossed his arms and nodded with a frustrated huff before a sphere of aura went flying by his head just barely missing him! Lucario let out an alarmed shout before the two turned to look at the culprit and spotted another Lucario, this one female based on the growl emitting from her throat.
"Car!" The female Lucario cried out angrily as Zach's Lucario quickly raised up his paws and shook his head.
"Car, carrr!"
"She thinks that we did this?! Look Lucario it wasn't us, well it was just but it was a runaway Pokemon! I'll gladly pay for any damages caused once I catch up to him." Lucario narrowed her eyes at Zach before firing off an aura sphere at him! Lucario quickly leaped in the way and took the hit, letting out a pained grunt as he dropped to his knees. Displaying a sheer difference in power level between the two Lucario as she was vastly stronger than Zach's currently was. However while she was stronger, Lucario retaliated quickly with an aura sphere of his own that was larger than hers had been! The female Lucario widened her eyes at the sight while her trainer had caught up right at that second.
"Whoa what happened here?!" The trainer was a girl around the same age as Zach and Dawn, she had a light skin tone along with a pair of light gray eyes while her long yellow hair was currently tied in a ponytail. The girl's outfit consisted of a white top that had a light red strip that went horizontally along the lower level of the shirt while two thin lines of a similar color went diagonally upwards along her arms, her skirt was a similar design as it was white but had several red triangles along the ends of it. She was also wearing a pair of white gloves, one of which appeared to have what Zach recognized as a Keystone attached to it! Much like the rest of her outfit, her running shoes were white with some traces of light red. The girl's eyes then shot wide open as she watched Zach's Lucario fire off a large sphere of aura!
The female Lucario was knocked off her feet but didn't look as damaged as Zach's had been upon getting struck with the attack. Lucario stood back up with a impressed smirk before rushing forward with an aura infused bone club while Zach's Lucario summoned up his own, the two Lucario clashed their bone clubs against one another while letting out a series of growls before the girl spoke up to announce her presence to Lucario.
"Lucario stop!"
"You too Lucario!" Zach called out as the two Lucario immediately ceased their attacks upon their trainers instruction. The blonde girl walked towards Zach while her eyes remained locked on the trashed campsite for a bit before looking towards him.
"That wasn't you was it?" She asked sounding curious rather than upset.
"Of course not-Well I am to blame I suppose, it was my Pokemon who did it but he's on an out of control rampage! I'd never do this sort of thing on purpose, I'm so sorry it happened and am more than willing to pay for damages." Zach and Lucario bowed as they apologized to her.
The girl raised an eyebrow before speaking up. "This Pokemon... is it a Dark type?"
"As a matter of fact he is Dark type or rather he's Electric and Dark but how did you know?" Zach looked up with a puzzled look before the girl gently brushed it off with a wave of her hand.
"It wasn't that hard to guess, you've got a powerful amount of aura residing within you based on what I've seen." She explained, crossing her arms as she looked his Lucario up and down. "People with strong aura levels such as yourself typically have a hard time bonding with Dark types on account of that, oh I just realized we haven't introduced ourselves! I'm Korrina, Gym Leader in training and future Mega Evolution guru!"
"The name's Zach, possible future Sinnoh champion? Regardless my dream is to become a champion and Lucario and I work hard every day to ensure that we'll reach that dream!"
"Carrr!" The two punched the air excitedly while Korrina let out a light giggle.
"Zach, eh? That's a nice name." Zach tilted his head lightly as she spoke, he didn't pick up on it before but the girl definitely had what sounded like a Kalosian accent!
"Pardon my asking but are you from Kalos by any chance?"
"That I am!" Korrina smirked. "I've come here to find a Mega stone for Lucario, I heard that the Sinnoh region's Mt. Coronet is full of Mega stones so I've come here in the hopes of locating Lucarionite!"
"Well if you want I can help you find one, having two Lucario searching will make things easier and it's the least I could do on account of Morpeko trash-Oh Arceus, Morpeko!" Zach quickly bowed to Korrina once more. "I'm so sorry for running off mid-conversation but I promise I'll be back as soon as I find him!"
"Carrr!" The two gave Korrina and her Lucario a wave before rushing back into the forest. Korrina stared after them for a moment before turning to face Lucario.
"He sure is strange but I like that!"
"Morpeko where are you?!" Zach called out despite how much trouble Morpeko was proving to be his he had a genuine worried look across his face. He turned to face Lucario before speaking with a concerned tone. "I'm starting to get worried, he can definitely handle himself but if he runs into a pack of Ursaring or a Onix then he's screwed!"
Lucario nodded before placing his paw on his trainer's shoulder, letting him know that everything would work out fine.
"Arf!" A canine Pokemon's yelp could be heard up ahead causing the two of them to speed up before they came across a large and open clearing. Morpeko was right up ahead and still in his Hangry form as he stood over an unconscious Rockruff. Morpeko was stuffing his face with some berries that Rockruff had apparently been eating before perking up as he heard footsteps, he turned to face Zach and Lucario while letting out a growl as his cheeks sparked.
"Morpeko, I think you've had enough! You've hurt countless Pokemon and destroyed a trainer's entire campsite in your endless quest for food, you're going back to your Pokeball!" Zach activated the Pokeball's button to return Morpeko but the rodent quickly zoomed to the side causing the beam to hit the ground, Morpeko then let out a screech as he charged towards his trainer! Lucario tried to grab the small rodent but he slipped right through his paws and between his legs! Morpeko then leaped up as the familiar blue ball of energy formed around his body, the attack made contact and sent Zach flying back and off of his feet while Morpeko's ball went flying up into the air! Morpeko gazed at the ball in frustration before giving it a powerful shock and destroying it right before their eyes!
"M-Morpeko...?" Tears started flowing from Zach's eyes while Lucario stared with a shocked expression before growling at Morpeko. "You really don't like me, do you?"
"Morpek!" Morpeko shouted, leaping up and down with frustration shining brightly in his eyes. "Morpeko, mor pek Morpeko!" The rodent turned around and began scampering off while Zach hung his head in shame, tears falling from his eyes as one of his Pokemon had chosen to abandon him. The sound of a Pokeball a few moments after did get his attention though, he looked up and sniffled lightly before being greeted with quite the heartbreaking sight as Paul stood where Morpeko had gone off to while the Pokeball within the boy's hand chimed to announce the capture. Paul smirked before turning his gaze towards Zach.
"Your Pokemon abandoned you? How pathetic, even more so that you're actually crying about it! You're sixteen, a trainer like you shouldn't waste such time on petty emotions!" Paul shook his head before glaring towards Rockruff. "As for you, you know how humiliating it is to lose to an Electric type?!" Rockruff hung her head and whimpered once more as Paul scolded her.
"I thought making you scavenge for your own food would be a suitable punishment for your last loss but I guess I was wrong, you blew your third strike!" Paul held up a different ball as Rockruff let out an alarmed bark and quickly shook her head with a pleading look. "Goodbye." Paul turned with a heartless look before walking away. Rockruff attempted to follow him but was still weakened from her encounter with Morpeko that her legs gave out. She stared after Paul with a pleading look before howling out as she pleaded for him to come back for her!
Zach meanwhile collapsed onto his rear as he watched Paul leaving with Morpeko's ball before shortly burying his face into his knees as he just let the tears flow out.
"Car!" Lucario placed his paw on his shoulder in a comforting manner before walking over to comfort Rockruff as the puppy was in a similar state of emotion, howling out in pain and sorrow while tears flowed through her eyes.
"Blaziken!" A Blaziken burst from a nearby bush and looked frantically around before his eyes rested upon the crying trainer and Pokemon. Blaziken frowned before looking back as he waved his hand lightly, signaling to his trainer that it was safe to come out.
"Blaziken what's going on-Zach?!" May cried out as she quickly raced to her friend's side. "Zach what happened? Are you okay?!" May placed her hand on his shoulder which seemed to help towards calming him down enough that he started speaking up though he sniffled every few words.
"I-It's Morpeko... h-he... Morpeko broke his Pokeball and abandoned me!" Zach cried. May frowned upon hearing that, she had no idea what that was like as it never happened to her but she could still sympathize with him. She sat on the ground while placing an arm around his shoulder before leaning her head up against his.
"I'm here for you if you need some company," She figured that Dawn was probably too far to hear Rockruff howling otherwise she'd have come to investigate by now much like she had. "I actually have no idea what it's like to lose a Pokemon like that but you sure didn't deserve to get dumped like that, you're an amazing trainer and both Riolu and Scorbunny have an immense love for you, I'm sure if you've caught another Pokemon since last time that they most likely love you as well."
"Carrr!" Lucario cried out in agreement as he pet Rockruff along her back, helping calm the depressed puppy down before she lured in some Ursaring to their location. "Carrr!" He cried out reminding his trainer about Starly, the bird was so devoted to his trainer that he willingly chased after an Aerodactyl to help rescue Piplup along with himself!
"W-Well there is Starly..."
"See? I'm not saying emotions are bad, you're free to feel upset by that but you shouldn't let it hold you back! Morpeko was a fluke, you've still got Pokemon who love you! Heck I know you've got people like that too, Dawn and Barry both like you and so do I..." May placed her hand atop one of his own as she offered him a warm gaze. "I'll always be there for you."
Zach smiled lightly though tears were still very much flowing from his eyes as he sniffled. "T-Thank you May..." He softly spoke before wrapping his arms around her body. May's cheeks glowed brightly as a rather large smile crossed her face before she wrapped her own arms around him, holding him for a few moments. Though May was very much enjoying it she regretfully spoke up as she knew it was dangerous for them to be out in the forest this late.
"We should get you back to Dawn, she's likely worried about you." May removed a handkerchief from her pocket before handing it to him. "Here, in case you wanna clean yourself up before we get there."
Zach gave her a grateful smile before wiping the tears and snot off his face, now that he'd calmed down a bit he remembered about the Pokemon that Paul abandoned. "Oh right, Rockruff!" He shot to his feet before quickly racing towards the puppy, Lucario backed away as he approached as to avoid making Rockruff feel like she was overcrowded. "Rockruff I-We were both abandoned today... I... I know it's sad to think about but I'd feel very guilty just leaving you out here like this. W-Would you... would you like to join my team? I promise to never abandon you... I'd never do that to any of my Pokemon! Y-You'd be well loved and amongst friends. W-What do you say?
"Car?" Lucario tilted his head as he watched Rockruff slowly raise her head up, the puppy Pokemon turned to look at Zach before looking down at the ground once more. She then let out a sigh before standing up onto her feet, giving him a nod before following it up with a bark.
"Ruff!"
Zach smiled lightly before holding out an empty Pokeball for her. "This is yours, w-welcome to the team Rockruff!"
Rockruff raced forward and headbutted the Pokeball before the bright red light consumed her body, the puppy disappearing in a bright red light as the ball began shaking within his hand before chiming to announce the capture complete!
"Pachi!" Pachirisu cried out energetically upon finishing the food that Dawn offered her, turning to thank the blue haired Coordinator as she giggled out.
"No need to thank me, I was glad to help." Dawn then glanced towards Piplup and Buneary before looking towards Scorbunny and Starly, no doubt about it she'd need to capture another Pokemon soon. She didn't plan on catching a whole lot of Pokemon as there wasn't a need for a Coordinator to have a massive array of Pokemon but she wanted to have at least a full team of six! "Pachirisu, would you like to join us? I'm a Pokemon Coordinator and I think that the two of us could put on quite the performances together!"
"Pachi!" Pachirisu's eyes shimmered brightly with excitement as the squirrel gave a swift nod. Dawn smiled before producing an empty ball and held it out for Pachirisu before the squirrel leaped up and tapped it with her tail, disappearing in a bright beam of light before the ball shook within her grasp and shortly chimed out afterwards!
"Alright, welcome to the team Pachirisu!"
"Pip, Piplup!" Piplup chimed in while leaping for joy as they welcomed their new teammate to the group!
Korrina tapped her foot while impatiently looking towards the forest as she started to wonder if perhaps she should have offered her assistance to him. Her eyes then lit up as she saw Zach returning, his eyes slightly watery while one of his hands was being held by a strange brunette girl their age. "What's up did Morpeko... die?" Korrina cautiously asked.
"N-No, he's still alive!" Zach quickly assured before hanging his head as some tears started to flow again at the thought of Morpeko breaking his ball. "He... he abandoned me, he broke his Pokeball and ran off!"
"Arceus..." Korrina gasped. "I'm so sorry to hear that!"
"Whose this?" May questioned before her eyes looked upon the trashed campsite.
"I'm Korrina! Who are you, his girlfriend?" Korrina asked. May's face instantly turned red as a tamato berry at the idea.
"Ye-No!" She quickly corrected herself though she wished it were true. "The name's May!"
"This is the girl who I told you about, Morpeko trashed her campsite and I'm gonna help her find Lucarionite in return. I-I'll still pay for the damages though!" Zach quickly spoke up.
"Don't worry about it, I don't do much camping! Besides the Mega stone is more important to me!" Korrina grinned while her Lucario gave a grin of her own.
"Well you're welcome to come back with us, you don't need to stay here tonight." Korrina glanced around at his words before nodding her head. Although she didn't mind sleeping out in the open doing so in the forest probably wasn't ideal.
"Sure, lead the way!"
"He sure has been gone for awhile..." Dawn muttered as she sat outside of her tent, watching where Zach had gone off to with a worrisome look.
"Scor..." Scorbunny flattened her ears as she gazed off in the same direction, she was also getting worried.
"Perhaps we ought to go look for him?" Dawn suggested.
"Scor!" Scorbunny shot up with an eager expression but before she could take a single step, Lucario stepped out of the bush.
"Lucario!" Dawn cried out before Zach stepped out after. "Zach!" She rushed forward and pulled him into a tight hug, her head pressed right up against his as a warm smile crossed her face. Scorbunny rushed forward and wrapped her arm around Lucario's leg as she greeted him in a similar manner while Buneary was practically shooting daggers at Scorbunny from the look she was giving her!
"I'm so happy you're okay! I was worried that-Your eyes! What happened?!" Dawn exclaimed before looking him over with a worried look. Her eyes then noticed that a Pokeball was no longer on his belt. "Morpeko...?"
"He abandoned me..." Dawn lowered her gaze before pecking his cheek.
"It'll be okay, I'd never abandon you! If you need to talk more I'm here for you!"
"N-Nah, I-I just want to not think about it anymore. I just get depressed the more I think about it." He sighed out before May and Korrina stepped out from behind him.
"Okay she has to be your girlfriend, right?" Korrina asked upon noticing how Dawn was holding him along with the look she had as she looked at him. May froze for a moment as she looked at Dawn for the answer.
"Ye-No, we're just best friends!" May breathed a sigh of relief while Korrina narrowed her eyes, she had just met both and she could tell they both liked him!
"Dawn t-this is Korrina, Morpeko... he trashed her campsite. I-I offered to help her find Lucarionite in Mt. Coronet in return!"
"Lucarionite? Isn't that the Mega stone?" Dawn questioned before her eyes lit up from amazement as Korrina lifted her hand to show off the keystone attached to her right glove.
"Yep!"
"T-That's so cool, how do you get a Keystone? I-I'd like to Mega Evolve my Buneary when she evolves, I can just picture how amazing the contest appeal will look!"
"And I'd love to Mega Evolve Blaziken!" May exclaimed.
"Well you've got to beat a Mega Evolution guru like I'm training to become, or one finds you worthy enough to pass one onto you." Korrina explained. "Otherwise you'll have to look in the wild and those can be trickier to find than Mega Stones, at least with Mega Stones Pokemon are drawn to their matching Mega stone if they happen to stumble near it in the wild."
"Ah perfect, so all I've got to do is beat you once Lucario and I grow stronger!" Zach smirked.
"I'm actually going back to Kalos once I've got the stone but I'll be back at some point!" Korrina grinned before giving him a wink. "I look forward to battling you once more!"
"If you all don't mind, I'd love to tag along." May spoke up. "I just won my second ribbon and I'm headed through Mt. Coronet much like the two of you, I aim to compete in the Fallarbor Town Contest!"
"Sure, you can tag along!" Zach immediately accepted her offer. Dawn clenched her fists at how fast he'd done that before loosening them as he continued. "I imagine it's pretty boring traveling across that mountain by yourself besides if Dawn falls asleep on my back again it'd be nice to have somebody to talk to." Dawn blushed heavily as she looked away from him.
"Exactly, thank you so much!" May gave him an appreciative smile before looking towards Korrina. "What about her though? Surely we're not leaving her outside of a tent."
"She could sleep with me." Zach said innocently before May and Dawn were quick to shout simultaneously.
"No!"
"She can have your tent but you're sleeping with me!" May grabbed hold of his arm before Dawn glared at her and grabbed his other arm.
"No way, he's sleeping with me!" Dawn cried out.
Korrina watched with an amused smirk before speaking up. "It's perfectly fine, I don't mind sleeping outside! Unless of course it's raining." She chuckled. "He can keep his tent." May and Dawn gave one another looks before letting go of his arms.
"Perfect, I'm glad it all worked out then!" Zach grinned. Honestly he was glad he'd be alone, he knew there was a good possibility that the Morpeko scenario would haunt his dreams and he didn't want Dawn to see him crying.
And so Morpeko the troublesome rodent has run off! Who will fill the electrical void that the rodent left behind?
Hope you all enjoyed it! Let me know if there's anything that you'd like to see or suggest!