A Mega Encounter!
Rockruff let out a sad whimper as she ate alongside the other Pokemon, the puppy Pokemon looked as depressed as her new trainer did. While he had brightened up a bit the previous night Dawn couldn't help but notice that Zach was looking depressed once more, no doubt Morpeko had haunted his dreams. Zach's hand reached out as he began silently stroking Rockruff behind her ear, the puppy wagged her tail lightly as she continued to stare off into the distance. A light smile crossed Dawn's face at the sight, the two would definitely benefit from having the other to cope with. Rockruff was abandoned by her trainer while Zach was abandoned by his Pokemon, both also immensely cared for their partners before they were abandoned despite the flaws they had, no doubt the bond between the two would become unbreakably strong as time progressed!
"You sure you're fit for traveling today?" Korrina questioned him while lightly tilting her head. "We don't have to go through Mt. Coronet today if your mood's got you down again."
"No no, I-I wanna get going! Being around here will only make me remember... new scenery will be a nice change of pace." Zach clenched his fists before standing up. He knew that he'd have to fill in the gap that Morpeko had left eventually but he just didn't feel like he had it in him at the moment, sure he could simply just capture a Shinx but he felt it too soon to capture another one. Perhaps there was an Electric type attack or two that he could teach his current team to compensate for the lack of Electric Pokemon?
"You sure?" May asked with visible concern as she edged closer to him before placing her hand against his. "Well if you need time to yourself feel free to speak up, we won't judge you for it."
"I'm sure but thanks," Zach gave her a reassuring smile before turning to face Korrina. "You ready to get this show on the road?"
"Of course, Lucario and I are eager to find that Mega stone! Right girl?!"
"Carrr!" Lucario yipped out in agreement as the two eagerly turned towards the direction of Mt. Coronet. "Let's get going!"
"We're going through the mountain?" Dawn tensed up as they approached the cave entrance. Dawn had always had a fear of tight spaces and the cave being full of Pokemon like Zubat sure didn't help things! Even though it took longer going up the mountain rather than going right through it, Zach had offered to take the long way during their previous trip. The resulting delay had caused Dawn to miss out on the previous Contest which May had ended up winning but there was still plenty of time before the next Pokemon Contest in Floaroma Town along with more than enough Contests left that she'd have plenty of time to get five ribbons before the Grand Festival!
"That's where the Mega Stones are, yep!" Korrina exclaimed with an excited grin.
Zach gave Dawn a look before reaching out to hold her hand. "I'll be right here, I won't let anything happen to you." He offered her a reassuring smile while Dawn blushed as red as a tamato berry before quickly pressing herself up against his side, her left arm wrapped around his chest as she leaned her head against his shoulder. Though the thought terrified her she knew Zach would feel complicated on breaking his word to Korrina and she wasn't sure if she could make the journey over the mountain all by herself, he had to carry her half the way last time! Being next to him like this made her feel safe though and she figured if she needed to, she could just close her eyes and envision them being somewhere a lot more open and warmer like perhaps a beach!
May gave the two a jealous look before a lightbulb went off and she began shivering while giving a frightened look towards the cave. "I-I'm afraid of the dark d-do you think that I could squeeze in there?" Dawn could sense that May was lying as an excuse to get closer to him but she didn't have it in her to say anything right then.
"I-If it helps then sure!" May flashed an appreciative smile his way before quickly rushing over to his left and copying Dawn as she pressed against the side of his body before wrapping her right arm around him, her head leaning up against his shoulder and edged closer to his head than Dawn's was. "Oh yeah, I could get used to this!"
Lucario looked at the two girls before shaking his head as they began walking into the cave system. There were a few rocks scattered about within the cave that were obviously Geodude and Graveler sleeping so the group carefully maneuvered around them as to not disturb them. Both Lucario kept an eye out for the Mega stone, their ears twitching as they attempted to detect it. Eventually a fight would be difficult to avoid as a Onix had chose to sleep directly in front of the path that lead deeper into the cave system.
Korrina let out an excited shout as she began to point towards the Onix. "Alright Lucario, let's go this-"
"Hold up, you mind if Lucario and I handle this one?" Zach asked as he held his Rotom Phone out in front of him. "This says that Onix is around our power level, it'd be easy for you to handle it but my team could use the experience!"
Korrina glanced back at him before giving an enthusiastic smile as she waved him on. "Go right away then, I'd love to see your Lucario in action!"
"Thanks," Zach gave her a light smile before nodding towards Lucario. "Okay buddy, let's use Aura Sphere!"
"Carr!" Lucario clamped his paws together as he charged up the sphere of aura before firing it across the cave, the attack struck Onix's body and the rock snake raised itself up while emitting out a loud roar as a yellow-orange beam of energy began charging within it's mouth.
"Hyper Beam... dodge it quick!" Lucario quickly maneuvered away from the blast, just narrowly avoiding it as the attack exploded on the spot where he was mere seconds ago! "Now race up and use Bone Rush!"
Lucario let out a battle cry as he summoned his aura infused bone club before rushing at Onix and taking a hard swing! Onix collapsed shortly after impact, the rock snake hit the cavern floor with a loud thud which resulted in several Zubat flying down from above as they made a quick exit from the area! Piplup raised his hand and shook his flipper at the bat Pokemon as they flew above the group.
Korrina gave an impressed look as she eyed the downed Onix. "Not bad, your Lucario made short work of it!" Lucario smirked from her compliment before turning to face his trainer as he heard the sound of a Pokeball enlargening. Zach was about to throw a Pokeball at Onix but upon thinking about Rockruff he put the ball away and threw a Sitrus berry at Lucario.
"Give that to Onix, hopefully he'll move out of the way." He decided against capturing Onix as he didn't want Rockruff to feel as if she wasn't welcome, capturing another Rock type wouldn't be good for her right now.
"Huh, he sure is compassionate isn't he?" Korrina noted as she watched Lucario offering the berry to the weakened Onix, the Onix gave an appreciative look as he took the berry and gave the jackal a nod of respect before burrowing beneath the ground and allowing for the group to proceed further into the cave system. "Most trainers I've met would simply catch Onix and release it later or push it out of the way."
"He's always been that way, it's how he and Riolu first met!" Dawn exclaimed. "He cares a great deal about Pokemon, even M-" She cut herself off as she realized she was about to namedrop Morpeko.
"It's one of his many admirable traits!" May spoke up as her grip on him tightened. Zach gave off a blush while Dawn narrowed her eyes. At first Dawn thought May's attraction towards him was purely based on his physical traits but the more time she spent around her she began feeling more threatened, it was clear May's feelings for him were as genuine as Dawn's own feelings!
"Well it'd be cruel to just leave Onix like that," Zach explained as he spoke up. "What if another Pokemon appears and gets territorial? Onix could get hurt or worse! Besides we were the ones to disturb it only right to make things right."
"Spoken like a champion!" Korrina grinned as she reached out and gave his arm a light punch. "Come on, we're getting closer!"
Korrina led the way as they ventured deeper into the cave, the jackal's ears continued to twitch as they constantly flickered their heads back and forth in search of the Mega stone. Eventually something caught Dawn's eyes as she saw something a shimmering light in a nearby wall. "Is that a Mega stone?"
"Let's find out, Lucario use Force Palm!" Zach shouted out. Lucario quickly raced forward before thrusting his palm up against the cavern wall resulting in a bit of rock falling loose before a golden object fell from the wall and into the jackal's hand. Lucario rushed back to his trainer before holding it out to him with a questioning look.
"Car?"
"That's a nugget, not a Mega stone." Zach shook his head before Lucario turned and offered the nugget to Dawn. "They're valuable but useless otherwise."
Dawn slipped the nugget into her bag as the search continued. The group searched through the cave for what felt like hours and the search was starting to feel like a wild goose chase, they did uncover a few gems such as a few evolution stones, some more nuggets and some pearls but there wasn't any sign or trace of a Mega Evolution stone of any sort! However just before they were about to call it quits for the night both Lucario suddenly perked up as they turned to face a nearby tunnel before turning to face their respective trainers as they uttered out a growl.
"Carrr!"
"It's Lucarionite, it has to be!" Korrina shook with excitement before uttering out an excited squeal as she rushed on ahead. "Let's go Lucario!"
The two eagerly raced on ahead into the tunnel before soon coming across a dead end, the wall in front of them had a light twinkle to it and Lucario was gazing directly at it while Zach's Lucario arrived and let out a bark before pointing at the spot with his paw.
"Alright that has to be it!" Korrina leaped enthusiastically into the air before pointing at the wall. "Use Force Palm!" She directed towards Zach's Lucario as hers didn't know the move anymore. Zach's Lucario gave her a stare before shaking his head.
"Lucario only listens to me," Zach offered a sheepish smile as he and the others caught up. "Lucario mind doing as she says?" Lucario gave a nod before thrusting his palm up against the cavern wall resulting in the wall breaking apart as the Lucarionite fell out and landed into the paws of Korrina's Lucario!
"Carrr!"
"Yay, we've got it!" Korrina cried out before punching the air in front of her. Lucario let out an excited yip before a white and red blur shot out in front of her, snatching the stone right out of her paws! Lucario let out a surprised yip before growling as she turned in the direction of the blur which soon came to a halt to reveal a Mega evolved Medicham!
"Medicham!"
"I should have known it was too easy, there's a guardian here!" Korrina let out a light growl as she threw out her arm. Medicham's fist suddenly glowed a fiery red as she lashed out at Korrina's Lucario, Zach's own Lucario quickly raced away as to allow the two plenty of room for their battle!
Zach's eye looked upon Medicham's fiery fist before he turned his gaze towards Lucario while a thoughtful expression formed across his face.
"Extreme Speed!" Korrina's Lucario quickly zoomed away in a white blur before reappearing behind Medicham! "Screech then follow up with Bone Rush!"
Lucario let out a loud screech that echoed through the tunnel resulting in everyone covering their ears as the effects of Screech intensified!
"Arceus that was loud..." May groaned out.
Lucario then summoned up her aura infused bone club before taking a swing at Medicham! The Mega Pokemon was pushed forward and knocked off her feet for a moment before swiftly recovering. She turned to face Lucario as her eyes turned a bright blue color while a similar glow surrounded Lucario, the jackal then let out a startled yip as she was thrown up into the air before quickly slammed against the ground by the telekinetic force! Lucario rubbed her head as she slowly stood up before uttering out a growl as she locked eyes with the Fighting/Psychic type Pokemon!
"Alright Lucario use Screech again!" Korrina shouted as the trainers and Piplup covered their ears as Lucario let out another loud screech. "And now finish things off with Bone Rush!" Lucario took a hard swing before she battered Medicham away and sent the Pokemon flying across the tunnel! Medicham landed with a thump before a bright pink glow surrounded her body as she returned to her normal state, swirls visible within her eyes as she let out a defeated moan. The Lucarionite slid out of her hand and onto the cavern floor and Korrina's Lucario was quick to pick it up before eyeing it with a growl of satisfaction.
"Carr!"
"Alright Lucario!" Korrina cried out. "Now let's try this out, let's show these three the power of our bond with Mega Evolution!" Korrina activated her keystone resulting in a bright pink glow surrounding Lucario's body before the light faded to reveal the form of Mega Lucario! Lucario looked down at her paws before looking at a reflection of herself in a nearby puddle as she let out a growl followed by a smirk. Korrina let out a loud cheer as she raced towards Lucario and threw her arms around her partner. "We did it, we've unlocked power of Mega Evolutuion!"
"Carrr!"
"Huh, she's almost like a female version of you." Dawn noted as she gave Zach a light glance.
"No she's not," Zach waved it off with a light laugh before sweating as he saw the two excitedly leaping about while hugging. "...Okay I guess she is."
"Car..." Lucario sweated as well before Korrina and her partner Pokemon separated and began making their way back to the others.
"We can go now!"
"Carr!"
"Gosh that was exciting, I can't wait until we can use that new form of yours in action!" Korrina shouted out with quite the excited grin across her face. Lucario nodded enthusiastically in agreement with her as the group stepped out of Mt. Coronet.
"Finally..." Dawn breathed out with a light shiver, thankful to get out of there. Although she enjoyed being as close to Zach as she'd been throughout the day she hoped they wouldn't have to go through there again any time soon!
"Well Lucario and I are looking forward to battling you once we get stronger!" Zach exclaimed before turning to his own Lucario. "And hopefully it won't be too long before we've got a Mega Evolution of our own!"
"Carr!" Lucario cried out in agreement.
"That sounds like it'll be a blast, Lucario vs Lucario! Hopefully the field will be more even then so I don't crush ya!" Korrina chuckled while Zach and Lucario flashed each other nervous looks before rubbing the back of their heads.
"We don't plan on that happening again, next time we aim to win right buddy?!"
"Car!"
Korrina smirked lightly before coming to a halt as they reached the nearby Pokemon Center, the blonde girl turned to face the others before speaking up. The sun had long since set while the group had been within the tunnels so it wouldn't be long after entering the building that they'd all want to hit the sack and get some rest.
"Seeing how I'll likely not see any of you all before then I'd like to go ahead and say my goodbyes, I'm waking up bright and early tomorrow so I can get a head start to Jubilife City! I'm gonna hop on the first plane back to Kalos and show off my newly obtained Lucarionite off to my granddad!"
Dawn couldn't help but frown, it was nice having another girl around especially as Korrina wasn't fawning over Zach half the time like May had done! "Goodbye Korrina and good luck, I hope you become a Mega Evolution guru!"
"Safe travels, see ya!" May added on with a light nod while offering the blonde a smile.
Korrina turned to the two with an eager expression. "You can count on it! I'm looking forward to battling all three of you to see if you've got what it takes to handle Mega Evolution!" Korrina exclaimed before pointing towards Zach. "Of course I'm most curious about you and your own Lucario, you two seem to have quite the connection and I'm looking forward to seeing how strong you've become when I make my return!"
"Lucario and I will try to make it the best battle you've ever had!" Zach promised with a light smirk. "Right buddy?"
"Car!" Korrina let out a light giggle before giving the pair a wave as she headed on into the Pokemon Center with the rest of the group following her in shortly after. Korrina healed up her Pokemon at the front desk before heading towards the stairs. Zach healed up his Pokemon shortly afterwards before making his way towards a nearby bookstand that was next to the Pokemon Center's Pokemart. Dawn healed up her team as well and was about to make a go towards the stairs before noticing a familiar face sitting in a nearby chair.
"Zoey!" She exclaimed causing the red head to shoot up before turning to face her.
"Dawn, what a surprise! I thought for sure I'd see you at the Oreburgh Contest but you weren't there!"
"Yeah well... I sorta had to go the long way around," Dawn exclaimed.
"Don't tell me, your boyfriend's claustrophobic?" Zoey asked before Dawn quickly raised her hands and shook her head back and forth.
"Nono, i-it's not his fault at all! I-It was me, I'm the one who was afraid!" Dawn then cast a warm glance towards Zach as she spoke. "H-He actually carried me most the way over the mountain..."
"Sounds like he truly cares about you, you've certainly made the right choice in a man. Hope everything works out for you two,"
"Thanks Zoey," Dawn gave her friend an appreciative smile before giving her a light bow. "What are you doing here though? I thought you'd be halfway to Floaroma Town by now?"
"I decided to pass on that one, I've got an idea for a new performance but it requires two Water types and I've only got one. I heard that the nearby lake is a great place to capture some Water Pokemon so I decided to take a look for myself to see if there's anything that I can catch!"
Zach looked between the two before slowly approaching. "Dawn I don't mean to interrupt but we're making good time so far, you mind if we take a break from traveling tomorrow? I'd like to try and teach Lucario a new move."
"Carr!" Lucario let out an excited cry as he was now staring at the Pokemon Move Technique book that Zach had just purchased.
"Sure I don't mind!" Zach smiled at her words before bowing with an appreciative look.
"Thanks Dawn, you're the best!" His words caused her cheeks to light up like a tamato berry. "Come on Lucario, let's head up! We can wake up bright and early to begin practicing!"
"Car!" The two raced up the stairs while Dawn stared after them with an affectionate smile before turning back to Zoey.
"Sounds like you'll be free tomorrow then, wanna join me? You can catch another Water type for yourself!" Zoey grinned before looking down as Piplup began leaping up and down with an enraged look while shaking his flipper at Zoey.
"Pip pip Piplup!" He cried while stating that Dawn didn't need another Water type when she had him!
Dawn let out a light laugh before shaking her head. "Piplup's right I don't need two Water types, I'd like my performances to be diverse." Dawn then glanced towards the stairs as she began remembering how Zach had caught Buneary for her. Though he hadn't officially caught Buneary he still helped in capturing one for her and she knew that Zach was wanting to get a Water type of his own lately maybe it was time for her to return the favor and capture something that she thought would suit him and his team? "But I will help you, maybe I can even find a Pokemon that I feel would be right to give him!"
Piplup crossed his arms as he gave a nod of satisfaction, finding that a much more appealing thought.
"Well then that's settled then!" Zoey grinned before closing the book that she'd been reading prior to Dawn's arrival. "I'll see you tomorrow morning then!"
Dawn looked down at Piplup. "Hopefully we'll find something that suits him, it'll also be a great opportunity for you to get some experience of your own!"
"Pip Piplup!" Piplup enthusiastically cried out.
Korrina's gone for now but she'll return later~
Hope you all enjoyed, let me know if there's anything that you'd like to see or suggest!