Chapter 12: Bonds of Mega Evolution Pt. 1
"Dragon Rush!"
"Air Slash!"
"Grauu!"
"Grauuu!" Ash and Red nearly sent a concussive wave around them when their attacks met, giving those around them a slight breeze across their sweaty skin, particularly the two knights.
"Dragon claw!"
"Fire Punch!" Ash and Red's sparring swords met at the exact same time their Charizard's claws did, and both fire lizards almost mirrored the knights' movements.
Pikachu, Fletchling, and Lucario all panted heavily while resting behind Ash/Charizard while Sceptile, Noibat, and Kirlia did the same beside Red/Charizard. Each had their turn going against each other in an intense sparring match beside the brothers and now merely rooted on their respective Charizard.
"Pika!"
"Fletch!"
"Kirl!"
"Noi!"
Lucario and Sceptile didn't cheer but watched their companions' mega evolution stones closely. Both gazed down at the stones on them and sighed with immense guilt and shame. However, as they turned back to the battle, both thought they saw someone or something watching them from the rocks on the coastal ridge.
"Grouuu?"
"Tile?" Whatever it was quickly retreated.
Finally, the two brothers and Charizards stopped to catch their breath, and all four drenched in sweat.
"Assez?" Ask asked, earning a nod from his brother.
"Oui, let's get cleaned up now. I want to get some recon in before doing recon."
"Why not send Charizard or Noibat now?" Ash asked, earning intense laughter from Red.
"Because brother, I want to fly!" Red shouted while pointing to Serena, who flew over the ocean in her wingsuit alongside Charla, Fennekin, and Pancham, who rested on her back.
Ash smirked before both brothers grabbed a barely conscious Clemont by the legs, who lay in the sand, completely red in the face, struggling to breathe.
"Let's go, Clemont."
"Mercy." He struggled to speak. Despite this, Ash and Red both saw noticeable results in the squire. For one thing, his scrawny body was starting to show signs of real muscle, nowhere near theirs or most knights, but certainly an improvement.
Additionally, Clemont's fighting skills were starting to reach what someone would consider adequate for a common footsoldier at least. Still, it was better than nothing, and if the rumors about Count Grant campaigning against the Galar in the area was true, it might prove vital.
A few of the pokemon went to join them, but both Charizards remained behind.
"Grauu."
"Grauu." Each gave a spirited criticism of the other's abilities, but soon they both took notice of the Charizardite around both of their necks. They thought back to Daniel and Alain's Charizards mega evolved forms and longed to know what it felt like, feel their true potential surpassed.
"Grouuu!"
"Tile!" Lucario and Sceptile gave their companions extremely stern looks, making them sweatdrop sheepishly before quickly remembering Daniel's warning. Still, both Charizards felt slightly frustrated at their lack of progress towards the matter, if only they had a master of Mega Evolution like Daniel and his pokemon to teach them.
After a brief bath in the ocean, the group met back up on the beach for breakfast.
"Serena, you're flying is so amazing!" Bonnie cried with stars in her eyes.
"You really have taken to it, Serena." Ash added while placing his hand on her shoulder.
"Merci." Serena blushed slightly as she brushed Pancham while Fennekin and Charla eagerly waited for their turn.
"Not just you, Charla as well."
"Grauu." Ash and his Charizard added, making Charla blush intensely.
"I just realized something. Charla is the only Charmander in the world who can fly. That's really something, isn't it." Clemont said introspectively.
"Serena, can Bonnie brush your hair?" Bonnie asked as she saw Serena switch to Fennekin.
"Oui." Bonnie eagerly raced over and very carefully began following the Princess's example.
"I'm so happy you grew your hair back out." Bonnie said. Ash too noticed that his wife's hair was back to its original length before she cut it after escaping Lumiose city, and perhaps slightly longer.
"Well, people were getting used to me with short hair. I may have to change it up again after my next performance."
"Why not grow it out longer?" Ash suggested.
"Do you like it that way?" Serena asked, making him slightly flustered.
"Well, I." Red smirked intensely while shaking his head.
"Viens maintenant, she's your wife, little brother. Stop acting like you're still secret lovers." Serena giggled slightly at Red's comment while Ash sweatdropped, wondering if perhaps Red had a point.
Pikachu and the others seemed to agree and similarly chuckled. That was until they saw something or someone watching them just like before.
"What is it!? More Shinobi, Galar!?" Ash, Red, and Clemont sprung to their feet while Bonnie wrapped her arms around Serena in fright. The young men and pokemon looked around for a minute but saw nothing.
"Hmmm." Ash wasn't quick to lower his guard just yet. Since leaving Ambrette Town a few days earlier, they'd passed a few farming and fishing villages, none of whom seemed troubled by Galar routiers, at least since Count Grant returned.
A few of the fishing settlements suffered attacks from Galar pirates, but after Serena convinced the Kalos sailors to fight back, the raids ceased. Even so, they weren't convinced of their safety, not with Cyllage City and a Galar garrison there so close.
Ash's Charizard took a step forward, and then, the observer revealed himself.
"Ty!"
"Eh!?" The entire group muttered in disbelief while Bonnie's face turned bright red and her eyes to massive hearts.
"Mignonne!" She screamed while clasping both hands together and floating above Clemont, who almost jumped.
"Wait, how is that physically possible?"
"Tyrunt!" A Tyrunt came sprinting from the cliffside straight for Ash's Charizard full of enthusiasm.
"Tyrunt!" Tyrunt finally reached the massive fire-lizard and began snapping his jaws at him with a clear challenge.
"Tyrunt! Tyrunt! Tyrunt!"
Charizard looked like he might've raised an eyebrow if he'd had one. Bonnie, couldn't contain herself anymore and sprinted in front of him.
"Mignonne! I real Tyrunt!" The Tyrunt sweatdropped when he saw Bonnie's overeager expression and backed up slightly. Tyrunt was rock-dragon pokemon that lived in Kalos millions of years prior and were long thought to be extinct.
However, a few years prior, Count Grant discovered a small population living in deep underground ecosystems beneath his County and domesticated them.
Bonnie tried to hug the Tyrunt, but he leaped clean over her and once again issued a challenge to Ash's Charizard.
"I think he wants to battle Charizard." Serena said, earning an interested smile from Ash. Ever since he heard about Count Grant's discovery, he'd been interested in training a Tyrunt himself.
"You'd better catch him, Ash, cause if you don't, I will." Red said in a tone that made it very clear he'd follow through on the promise.
"If you caught him, he'd stay with us!" Bonnie exclaimed.
"I think he'd be a good match for you." Serena added. Charla, however, was more interested in the prospect of seeing Charizard battle Tyrunt.
"Tyrunt, you can battle Charizard, but if he wins, you stay with us and learn how to fight with him."
"Pika!" Pikachu ran up to Tyrunt and explained to him precisely what Ash meant.
"Ty." Tyrunt stroked the bottom of his jaw for a moment as he contemplated Ash's offer. The knight glanced over at his brother, who smirked and motioned for his own Charizard to come over.
"You're being too chivalrous Ash. I'll give you one more minute." Red's Charizard mirrored the second knight's expression, but Ash didn't waver.
"Runt!" Tyrunt eagerly leaped up and down while snapping his jaws.
"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed, nodding.
"Alright! Let's go, Charizard!"
"Grauu!"
"Tyrunt!" The Tyrunt roared while unleashing a series of rocks at Charizard via ancient power. The small pokemon clearly knew his stuff, as such a move would've caused significant damage had it landed, but alas, Charizard proved superior.
"Dragon claw!"
"Grauu!" Charizard easily smashed the incoming rocks into pebbles with his glowing claws, making the Tyrunt almost yelp in surprise before looking down at his own longingly. However, after a moment, he shook his head and leaped up at Charizard, attempting to use Bite.
"Fire Blast, but don't hurt him." Charizard thought a full-powered Fire-blast was just right for the little Tyrunt but decided Ash was probably right and instead unleashed a half-powered fiery symbol right into Tyrunt's open mouth.
"Ahhh! Tyrunt!" Bonnie yelped when she saw the rock dragon all but enveloped into smoke. Moments later, he appeared on his bottom with a crestfallen expression and covered in soot.
"Runt." Tyrunt coughed.
"Tyrunt is unable to battle. Charizard is the winner!" Clemont cried.
"Bien! Great work Charizard." Charizard didn't consider it a real challenge but was pleased by the results nonetheless. Ash knelt down and took a wet rag to clean some of the soot off Tyrunt.
"Are you ok?"
"Runt." Tyrunt nodded, looking somewhat sad at the ease of his defeat, at least until Charizard gave him a challenging huff.
"Grauu." Charizard growled, telling Tyrunt he expected better next time.
"Tyrunt!" Tyrunt's spirit instantly returned, and he leaped up, declaring next time he'd win.
"He and Ash are going to get along just fine." Serena said warmly as Bonnie finally managed to hug the Tyrunt.
"Hold on. I just realized that if that is a Tyrunt, we can't be far from Count Grant!" Red exclaimed.
"Eh? Why?" Bonnie asked.
"No, I think Red's right. These Tyrunts are his pride and joy, and there's no way the men he left behind would've let them fall into Galar hands. Which means he must be nearby!" Ash shouted.
"Count Grant. Should, should we try to find him?" Serena nervously asked. The others, save Bonnie and Dedenne, shared her unsureness. On the one hand, if Count Grant did have a small army with him, it would be safer for passage than traveling so close to a Galar controlled city. But if he was actively fighting the Galar, it could draw them into a fight.
"...Serena, it will take us four of five times as long to go around, and there's a good chance we'd run into Routiers eventually anyway. Do you feel comfortable passing into possible danger trying to find the Count?" Ash asked while placing a hand on her shoulder.
Serena took a deep breath before hardening her expression and nodding.
"Bon, Clemont, let's get armored up." Red said.
"Oui." Clemont wasn't enthusiastic about such a prospect but knew Red wasn't wrong either. The squire put on their armor, the pokemons' and his own, while Serena donned her wingsuit.
"If we do run into trouble, I can get myself and Bonnie to a safe distance."
"Bien pensé." Ash said before turning to Tyrunt.
"Tyrunt, do you know Count Grant?"
"Pika, Pikachu!" Pikachu explained Count Grant, and Tyrunt's expression turned exceedingly happy.
"Runt!"
"Can you show us where he is?"
"Tyrunt!" Tyrunt waved his claws east and started to walk in that direction. The others followed him as their path took them away from the rocky coast and towards more inland forested areas. However, as they got further, Red felt his heart race upon seeing clear signs that multiple skirmishes had happened there earlier.
"Did someone try to hide their things from the routiers?" Bonnie asked when she pointed to a row of dirty mounds with stone markings placed over them.
Serena covered her mouth and then quickly turned Bonnie's head away.
"Pika." Pikachu and the other Pokemon tried not to think about it, even after fighting in many campaigns. However, Ash, Red, and Clemont remained focused on their task and continued following Tyrunt, at least until they heard something in the distance.
"Se regrouper! Maintenant toi Furfrou!" Someone shouted while the sounds of clanging metal and pokemon movies almost drowned it out.
Ash threw his hands up, halting the others.
"...It's a battle." He muttered.
Serena did her best to remain calm and nodded.
"Bonnie, let's go somewhere safe." Serena reached for the little girl, but Bonnie seized Clemont's arm, a desperate and terrified look on her face.
"Brother, s'il te plaît don't go! You're not a fighter-" Clemont lowered his head slightly and knelt down in front of her.
"Ça va aller." Bonnie started to tear up a little as Serena took her in her arms.
"Please, don't do anything reckless." She pleaded with Ash, who placed his hand behind his head.
"When have I ever done something like that?" Serena turned to Red.
"Je l'ai."
"Merci."
Serena, Bonnie, and their pokemon left for a safer area while the three young men lowered their visors and drew swords. Tyrunt intentionally slowed his pace as they approached a hillside and saw it, a fierce melee spread across the forest floor.
A hundred or so Kalos men-at-arms with a handful of dismounted knights mixed in among them formed a solid wall opposing a slightly larger formation of Galar men-at-arms/knights. Both sides had dozens of pokemon among them in the melee, but also outside the main skirmish beside smaller groups of crossbowmen, longbowmen, and men-at-arms battling along the edges to prevent one side from outflanking the other.
Groups of Galar longbowmen attempted to form up, but the fast-moving Kalos crossbowmen and their Vivillon prevented this.
"Pour Kalos ! Pour l'espoir!"
"Hawl!" Ash, Red, and Clemont felt their hearts soar upon learning that none other than Arnaud led these troops, and upon closer inspection of their banners, they realized it was his company.
The Captain and his Hawlucha brought down a Galar knight and his Machoke, and with a thunderous roar, his formation pushed forward, despite their slight numbers disadvantage. Polearms, swords, and maces met bucklers, brigandine, and plate as the two sides furiously tried to break the other's cohesion.
The Galar forces wore matching blue and white paint across their armor, faces, and hair while carrying banners just like Earl Milo's but with drops of water instead of greenery.
"What should we do?" Clemont asked before Red pointed to the nearest group of Kalos men-at-arms outside the formation and then a Galar knight riding a Corviknight overhead, about to come in on the Kalos ground troops.
"Ash help the men on the edge and then outflank the main formation. I'll clear the skies." Red said, earning a nod from his brother.
"Oui, Clemont, you think you can keep those longbowmen scattered?" Ash asked. Clemont raised his visor and adjusted his glasses with an eager expression.
"Aucun problème!"
Red climbed onto his Charizard's back while his other pokemon, save Noibat, remained on the ground with Ash.
"Stay close to Ash and be careful." Red instructed their pokemon.
"Tile"
"Kirl!
"Allons-y!" Ash and Red both roared alongside their Charizards.
"Pika!"
"Runt!" Ash's Charizard and Fletchling flew just over him while Pikachu, Lucario, Tyrunt, Sceptile, and Kirla ran beside him. Even through his helmet's visor, Ash saw the look of horror on the nearest Galar soldier's face as he closed in on him.
"Pika chu!" Pikachu quickly blasted Linoone beside this soldier and opened the door for Ash to parry his polearm's spiked and thrust his sword forward into the man's exposed face.
"Runt!" Tyrunt eagerly charged into the melee beside Ash, crashing into a pair of Carkol, a bit recklessly. Even so, quick backup from Kirlia gave him an edge, allowing Ash to go after the next man-at-arms. This soldier, however, wasn't taken off-guard and swept towards the knight's legs with his polearm.
Ash moved fast and kept the pressure on with a fury of sword and buckler strikes that forced his opponent onto the defensive. While his polearm gave the soldier a slight reach advantage, Ash proved the superior fighter.
With a few well-placed blows from his buckler, Ash got within reach, and grabbing the tip of his sword, he bashed across the man's sallet-helmet and upper gambeson with three successive murder strokes sending him sprawling to the ground.
Finally, a Galar knight turned to face Ash, sword drawn and held with both hands.
"Grimmsnarl use dark pulse!"
"Fire Blast!"
"Grauuu!" Charizard swooped in and blasted the Grimmsnarl back as his knight met Ash. Both knights attempted to precisely guide their blade tips towards a gap in the other's armor, which proved easier for Ash given his Kalos armor covered more of his body than typical Galar armor, including his face.
Even so, the Galar knight put up fierce resistance and proved incredibly strong, shoving Ash back multiple times.
"Play rough!"
"Heat Wave!" Charizard swooped in again and unleashed his fiery heat right into the Grimmsnarl before he could complete play rough. Similarly, Ash clashed with the Galar knight again but allowed the Galar knight's sword under his arm while dropping his own. In doing so, Ash crashed his right elbow into the Galar's upper breastplate and threw his left hand beneath his right leg.
Using effective leverage pushing forward with his right arm and back with his left, Ash carried his opponent onto the ground and swiftly pounced, pulling a dagger from his belt and stabbing the knight's exposed face.
"Pour mon frère à Lumiose, vous Galar Tempig!" One of Arnaud's men-at-arms cried as he locked his arm under a Galar soldier's and bashed his head with a buckler.
The handful of Kalos men-at-arms/pokemon near Ash now quickly gained the advantage with his help and within a minute or so killed the squad of Galar soldiers opposing them.
"Merci, monsieur. I don't recognize you from the company. Are our reinforcements from Count Grant on the way!?" One of Arnaud's soldiers eagerly asked, making Ash sweatdrop beneath his helmet.
"Peut-être. But right now, we need to help the captain! Allons-y!" Ash and his pokemon led the squad of Kalos men-at-arms/pokemon to the nearest skirmish where the Galar outnumbered Arnaud's men.
Further back, a dozen or so Galar longbowmen managed to get out of crossbow range and form up alongside a half-dozen Dewpider.
"Make ready! Knock your arrows, draw, loo-" The ground beneath these men shook slightly, and within moments, each collapsed beside the Dewpider's.
"By!" Bunnelby burst up and unleashed mud shot moments before Chespin did the same with pin missile. The longbowmen staggered to their feet and tried to get away with dewpider only to see Clemont across from them.
"Going somewhere?" The squire smiled beneath his helm while drawing a hand cannon. Moments later, six crossbowmen flanked him, now also wielding hand cannons.
"Zap Cannon!"
"Lux!" Luxray blasted the remaining Dewpider at the same time Clemont's men barraged the longbowmen with lead.
Above them, a Galar knight on his Corviknight swooped in alongside a half-dozen Corvisquire, attempting to attack Arnaud's formation from above. A few moves from pokemon in the melee kept them at bay but also prevented them from pressing their Galar opponents.
"Flamethrower!" The knight and his Corviknight turned just in time to see Red's Charizard zooming in.
"Watch out!" The Corviknight managed to evade, but four Corvisquire dropped from their air, covered in black soot after the flames engulfed them. Noibat came in just behind the fire and similarly slashed the remaining Corvisquire out of the sky.
"Corviknight, use drill peck on that gadgie!"
"Air Slash, but move to the side!" From the knight's comment and Corviknight's flight pattern, Red recognized that Corviknight wasn't coming for Charizard but him. Sure enough, the Kalos knight saw his Galar counterpart raise his sword to strike Charizard, but he wouldn't get the chance.
Charizard flew at Corviknight in a manner that blocked him from attacking Red and let the fire-lizard rake his side. This also put Red in just the right spot to parry the Galar knight's sword and slash back, managing to nearly drive the opposing knight from his saddle.
Unfortunately, Corviknight managed to pull away in time to prevent this.
"Flamethrower!"
"Grauu!" Charizard breathed fire all around Corviknight, who struggled to avoid it, narrowly missing flames more than once.
"Use brave bird. Knock his newtons out!"
"Corvi!" Corviknight glowed blue and shot at Charizard like one of Clemont's hand cannons.
"Fire punch!" Charizard spun himself out of the way but did so in a manner that only moved him directly under Corviknight. Once there, he slammed both fiery fists into the bird's underside.
"Corvi!" Corviknight squawked in agony.
Red immediately went on the attack, bashing back the Galar knight's sword and buckler with a series of unrelenting strikes before allowing the slightly dazed man to overextend himself with a counter-attack. Seizing the opening, Red grabbed his sword by the tip and jabbed the tip into his foe's exposed face.
Charizard sent the Corviknight and the knight's body tumbling to the ground with another Fire Punch.
"Grauuu!" He roared in victory while Red similarly grinned down at the battle beneath them. Clemont and a group of crossbowmen turned hand cannoneers successfully prevented the longbowmen from forming up, while Ash found similar success on the flanks.
One by one, he rallied the separated squads and overcame their opponents before leading thirty or so men-at-arms and three knights into the Galar formation's exposed right flank. The fighting wall now buckled under a determined attack from two directions until finally, a renewed effort from Arnaud shattered their cohesion.
"Effronté!" The captain roared as monsieur Raymon followed close behind with his Pyroar. The Kalos soldiers put their Galar adversaries to flight and pursued the stragglers.
"Run you lavettes! Remember, we'll cut the draw fingers off any longbowman we catch!" Arnaud declared.
Red was about to join in when he and Charizard heard something in the distance.
"Eh?"
"Noi!" Noibat yelped when he used echolocation to find what lay ahead. Charizard and Red soon understood, for a squadron of Galar knights mounted on Rapidash led by a knight captain on a Dragonite rushed in.
"With me, brave fellows!" The young knight cried, lance raised. This knight's armor more closely resembled Kalos variants, though with his face still exposed. He, too, wore blue colors on his armor plates and matching facepaint contrasting his chocolate brown eyes and messy brown hair hidden beneath the helmet.
However, unlike the other knights, black patterns mixed into his armor's paint in a manner that almost made him look like a Lucario, with a similar semi-muscular build.
"Take heart, soldiers of Galar! Be not afraid!" He cried with bursting enthusiasm while flying overhead. Red almost found himself slightly intrigued when he noticed the formation this knight captain, who looked roughly his age, used, offered a better defense to the retreating Galar soldiers instead of trying to flank Arnaud's men at the expense of his own.
Even so, Red couldn't let the enemy rally and readied himself to attack. However, just before Charizard could do so, he, Noibat, and their trainer heard something else.
"Continental Crush!" The voice sent a shiver down Red's spine, and he looked down to see another group of Galar knights appeared, though dismounted. Standing in the middle alongside a deeply scarred Metagross loomed the black armored knight, sir Mercer.
Even from the air, Red saw the look of vile hatred in the Galar knight's expression when their eyes met, which soon turned to malevolence as revealed a strange bracelet on his left metal gauntlet with a brown octahedron shaped crystal in the center.
From there, the knight seemed to make an odd pose, lunging forward and almost seeming to flex. Yet none of this prepared them for what happened next.
The Megagross seemed to mirror this pose, and what was, without a doubt, the strongest rock slide Red never imagined possible bore down upon then.
"Fais attention!" Galar and Kalos soldiers alike scattered as the avalanche descended upon them.
"Are you daft!" The Galar knight on a Dragonite roared to sir Mercer, who seemed to ignore him. Charizard and Noibat desperately tried to evade the incoming Continental Crush but to no avail.
"Grauuu!" Charizard wailed from the super effective move which send him crashing into the ground.
"Red!"
"Pika!"
"Tile!"
"Kirl!"
"Grauuu!"
"Rangs de formulaire!" Arnaud roared. His knights, men-at-arms, and pokemon regrouped with incredible efficiency, placing their polearms out while the various pokemon unleashed moves straight into the incoming Galar Rapidash.
These two actions dissuaded the Galar mounted knights from charging their foes. Yet, their captain ultimately achieved his goal of rallying the broken infantry, who now regrouped and launched a counter-attack on Arnaud's formation.
Ash, however, no longer cared about this and quickly mounted Charizard in a desperate attempt to reach his brother.
"Se dépêcher!" Ash cried while Charizard flew over Arnaud's company.
"Pika!" Pikachu frantically shouted while pointing to their left.
"Dragon Rush!" Ash and Charizard turned just in time to see the Dragonite racing straight for them, his rider's lance aimed for Ash.
"Dragon claw!" Charizard made a sharp turn, barely countering the Dragonite and pushing him back. Luckily it was enough for Ash to avoid the lance.
"Thunderbolt!"
"Pika chu!" Pikachu blasted the knight's lance with electricity, forcing him to drop it while Dragonite hastily moved aside.
"Get him Mimikyu!" The knight cried. Ash and Pikachu's eyes widened when they saw possibly the strangest thing they'd ever seen, even odder than Charla.
What looked like a worn and dirty hand puppet of a Pikachu revealed itself on the knight's shoulder and stared at Pikachu almost like a poltergiest.
"Pika." Pikachu felt his fur stand up a little.
The Mimikyu lunged off his trainer and unleashed shadow sneak towards Pikachu, who similarly had to jump off Ash.
"Grouuu!" Lucario brought his paw up and gave Pikachu something to kick off and land softer. However, he didn't have much respite, for the Mimikyu came right after in relentless pursuit.
Fletchling, Tyrunt, and Lucario tried to help, but a pair of Corvisquire kept Fletchling busy, and two more pokemon rushed beneath the Dragonite, clearly also belonging to the same knight.
"Scyther!"
"Grouuu!"
Ash's Lucario and Tyrunt stared at another Lucario and Scyther opposing them.
"Runt!" Tyrunt didn't wait and raced straight for the Scyther, snapping his jaws at the bug pokemon's blade arms. However, the two, Lucario, took a much more measured approach, both measuring each other up and taking fighting stances.
"Grouuu!"
Meanwhile, Red slowly felt his vision return and struggled to get up.
"Merde." The knight tried to hold his throbbing head but only felt a cold helmet.
"Charizard!" Red almost jumped when he saw his beloved companion pinned beneath a massive boulder, unable to move. The knight tried desperately to get the rock off him but to no avail.
"Kill him!" Red saw sir Mercer's Metagross rush towards Charizard using meteor mash, fiery evil in the knight's eyes.
"This is for Rhypherior!"
"No!" Red threw himself in front of Charizard.
"Tile!" At the last moment, Sceptile leaped before them both and blocked meteor mash with leaf blade.
"Him!" Mercer snarled. Sceptile's eyes met Metagross's, and both pokemon exchanged an intense gaze.
"Iron tail!" Red cried, and Sceptile's tail hardened into metal before he exchanged blows with Metagross.
"Kirl!" Kirlia ran over and looked at Charizard in horror.
"Kirlia, get it off him, use psychic!"
"Kirl!" Kirlia aimed both paws at the boulder and with great difficulty, slowly lifted it up.
"Charizard, s'il te plaît, get up!" Red and Noibat desperately moved him aside while Mercer grinned at his fellow knights.
"Sir Mercer, your Metagross might get caught in the crossfire."
"He'll be fine."
Meanwhile, Charizard and Dragonite continued to exchange blows. Charizard's dragon claws met Dragonite's dragon tail with neither able to gain a clear advantage.
Ash and the knight's duel mirrored this, as both clashed with sword and buckler, to no apparent end. Every time Ash tried a different technique, the knight managed to counter, while his own efforts against Ash proved similarly fruitless.
Sweat trickled down their bodies, sending bits of blue/black face paint onto Dragonite's armor plates.
"Yield and let me ransom you, sir!" The knight cried in a tone that Ash could only describe as sincerely gallant. It would've impressed him had it not come from an enemy combatant.
"Toi en premier!" Ash countered. He grabbed the tip of his sword and attempted to use a murder stroke while Charizard readied Dragon pulse.
"Thunder punch!" The knight caught Ash's sword pommel with his own and with a powerful thrust upward, sent Ash's weapon flying.
"Merde!" Ash jerked backward, but not fast enough, and felt the pain across his upper body when the Galar knight struck him with his buckler and very nearly shoved the tip of his sword into Ash's visor.
At the same time, Dragonite's claws surged with electricity, and he caught Charizard's jaw, forcing it shut and punching his stomach with his free hand.
"Dragon rush!" Ash and Charizard recovered, despite their pain, and using the blow from Dratonite's momentum, managed to break free of his grip and turn around at a sharp angle.
Too sharp for Dragonite, as it were. Glowing violet, Charizard snarled and smashed into Dragonite's exposed stomach.
"Nite!" The dragon bellowed in horrible pain.
"Dragonite, hold on!" His rider cried while lunging at Ash. The Kalos knight used his buckler and plate armor to deflect the incoming sword and seize the knight's arm despite not having his sword.
"Gaaah!" The Galar knight desperately tried to break free of Ash's arb bar but to no avail and within moments felt his sword fall free. Ash seized the weapon, but the knight soon escaped his reach.
Dragonite saw what happened and furiously backed up to save his trainer. Back on the ground, Pikachu continued to avoid Mimikyu's attacks, eventually leaping to the side away from one.
"Thunderbolt!"
"Pika chu!" Pikachu filled Mimikyu with electricity and hurled him away.
"Damn, he's good. It looks like we'll need to step it up!" Ash and Charizard's eyes widened when they saw the knight make the same movements that Leon did in the battle up north.
Within moments, the Dragonite glowed slightly violet and appeared as a colossus version of himself looming over Charizard.
"Grau!" Charizard and Ash both shared a panicked expression before looking down at the Charizardite Z around his neck.
At the same time, Red/Noibat just managed to get Charizard back onto his feet when they saw the four knights surrounding sir Mercer prepare various poses just as he had.
Red gripped both his pokemon within reach and braced himself.
"Pour Kalos!" The ground shook as an artificial earthquake moved under the Galar and only the Galar forces. All four of the enhanced moves flew off-mark.
"What the bloody Hell!?" Sir Mercer snarled.
Dozens of Arnaud's men began laughing as a squadron of Kalos knights mounted on Rapidash charged in, lances lowered. At their head came a massive armored Tyrantrum, roaring as he caused ground quakes with each step.
Sitting on his back was another armored knight with a distinct sigil on his breastplate.
"Runt!" Tyrunt leaped up and down in glee.
"Count Grant!" Someone cried. The Kalos knights moved in like pincers, clashing with their Galar counterparts on the wings. Grant himself came to Red's aid, hurling Metagross back with Bulldoze and scattering the other pokemon with Earthquake.
"Grawww!" Tyrantrum nearly crushed sir Mercer with his colossal foot, forcing him backward.
"Damn it! Metagross, get back here!"
Sceptile panted heavily as he stumbled over beside Red.
"Kirl!" Kirlia frantically helped him remain standing, as Red was too busy with Charizard.
Elsewhere, the gigantamax Dragonite hurled his titanic tail towards Charizard, who desperately evaded the strikes, until one hit the back of his tail and sent the Charizard flying.
Ash considered touching his keystone for the briefest moment but instantly felt himself and Charizard level out.
"Eh?"
Pikachu and Tyrunt both looked up in equal confusion before realizing a psychic move caught them.
"Pika?"
"Runt?"
Ash and Charizard looked down and saw another mounted rider racing towards them. However, this wasn't a knight. The man wore a hooded brown robe with a distinct pendant around his neck and an Alakazam riding behind him.
Ash saw the man's hood lower upon closer inspection, revealing a shaved head. This combined with his attire, made the knight gasp in disbelief. It was a priest.
The Galar knight and his gigantamax Dragonite looked down at the priest with a hint of hesitation.
"A clergyman? He's not even armed. Use dragon tail on those knights!"
"Nite!" gigantamax Dragonite readied himself to smash the Kalos knights on the left who verged on routing their Galar counterparts.
"Alakazam, psychic!" The priest touched something in the center of his pendant, causing Ash and Charizard to gasp when they saw a familiar colorful sphere form around Alakazam until he took his mega evolved form.
"Alakazam!" Mega Alakazam caught gigantamax Dragonite's tail in mid-air and sent him backward with a flick of his wrist.
"Psybeam!" Mega Alakazam quickly followed up with a blast that hit gigantamax Dragonite in the dead center of his body, nearly throwing the knight off his back.
"Sir Zach! We need to get out of here!" A Galar knight from below cried as they fled alongside their once more broken infantry.
"So be it. Let's go!"
Lucario breathed heavily as he and his opponent broke off their attacks. Ash's Lucario gave Sir Zach's a look of mutual respect before allowing him to retreat alongside the others.
"Pikachu, guys, êtes-vous ok?!" Ash asked when he and Charizard landed.
"Pika!" Pikachu exclaimed, still pleased with his victory over the unsettling Mimikyu.
"Bien, come on, we need to check on Red-" Ash started before he saw his brother unharmed alongside Count Grant.
"Merci Reduka." He sighed.
"Ash!" Clemont stammered as he ran over.
"Clemont, bien. Are you hurt?"
"No. It looks like we found Count Grant."
"I think you mean he found us." Ash corrected.
"Come here, bâtard!" A viscious voice snarled.
"No, no wait please!" Ash, Clemont, and the others turned to see one of Arnaud's men-at-arms standing over a Galar longbowman. Both young men and their pokemon watched in horror as the Kalos soldier tried to cut off the man's draw fingers.
"Let's see you use that damned weapon now!"
"No! I'm begging you!"
"Assez!" A sharp voice cried out before Ash could. All eyes turned to the priest, his blue eyes glistening in the sun as he came over and seized the soldier's blade arm.
"Mercy! That is what is owed a defeated enemy!"
The man-at-arms scowled at the Galar soldier.
"What mercy did they show our men in the north!? To our countryside? To Lumiose city!"
"Are you a better man then? What virtue is to show no mercy to an enemy if the Galar do the same!" This seemed to strike a nerve, and the soldier walked away.
Ash, Clemont, and the others watched in awe as the priest knelt down and comforted the Galar soldier who still trembled.
"Be at peace, poor lost child."
"Monsieur Ash!" Count Grant's voice snapped them out of the trance, and both young men turned to the approaching Count.
"I almost couldn't believe it when Captain Arnaud told me, yet here you and monsieur Red stand."
"Oui, these fine young chevaliers are the flower of chivalry! It does my heart good to see you both alive and well!" Arnaud almost laughed jubilantly.
"Mon Seigneur." Ash said, trying to ignore feelings of resentment towards the Count after he abandoned them in the north. However, to his surprise, he saw unmistakable guilt and angst on Grant's face was as he looked at the two young knights.
"I'm told the Princess is with you as well."
"Oui." Grant froze and went pale. His body shook as he turned to see Serena, who'd just landed with Bonnie. The Princess's eyes met the trembling Count's, and all went silent.
"Your majesty...Pardonne-moi! Pardonne-moi!" Grant nearly neared up and fell to his knees before Serena's feet. Arnaud wasn't sure what might happen next, but Ash, Red, Clemont, and Bonnie did.
Serena bent over slightly and wrapped her arms around Grant's shoulders.
"Je vous pardonne." The warmth of Serena's voice spread to all those around her, and Ash saw a similar expression on the priest's face when he saw this. Soon, Ash and Red exchanged glances with him, particularly his Mega Alakazam.
Author's note
Thus we finally arrive at Cyllage City where we meet Sir Mercer again and Sir Zach, as well as another new character
Yes, Sir Mercer was using Z-Moves those will be part of the story
However, now Ash and Red might just have a proper teacher
So until next time,
Please review, comment, suggest, or ask (VIA PM)