"Moltres." Synergy's voice intoned as she looked out at the arriving legendary bird, her system having catalogued it ever since her visual senses had acquired a clear glimpse. "The legendary flame bird, part of Kanto's legendary weather trio."
Ash, who had woken up, looked groggily round as he tried to cover from his sudden rousing. "Huh? What's going on?"
"Moltres the legendary bird has arrived, young one." Synergy replied to Ash, never taking her eyes off of the fast approaching Pokemon.
Ash paused rubbing his eyes, before looking eagerly up with wonder in his eyes. "Wow! A legendary Pokemon?!" Ash babbled out excitedly. "What's it doing here?!"
Synergy, however, had none of Ash's excitement as her eyes narrowed upon the bird. "Unknown." She responded with a tone of caution. "Please be alert. Legendary class Pokemon are notoriously deadly creatures."
A sudden burst of wind upon the duo caused Ash to cling on tighter whilst the robotic Pokemon didn't even blink - the heavy metal chassis of the Pokemon would not be unbalanced by such a force. But the sight before her did send warning signals to sound in her mind.
The area had been bathed in a warm orange glow as the legendary bird slammed down upon the top of another peak just twenty metres away. The bird was a uniform golden yellow, right from the top of its head down to the dark scaled feet of the legendary Pokemon; a vibrant gold that contrasted against the night and shimmered alluringly against the fiery glow of its flames. The flames burnt like a controlled plume, emerging from the back of each wing of the bird and pluming outwards to the extent that it looked like it rolled over half of each wing each time the bird moved its wings against the wind current. The same flames rolled out of the bird's tail feather's too, lighting up the entire area an orange tint; as the remaining flames emerging from the top of the Pokemon's head allowed the glinting black eyes to be seen staring purely at Synergy.
The bird was seemingly content to stare at the robotic Pokemon for a few moments, unmoving in a seemingly contrasting comparison with its pluming flames which blew outwards into the Northern-facing wind currents. The golden bird cocked its head slightly as Synergy slowly reached up and pulled Ash down from resting atop her shoulders, the boy still staring in awe at Moltres as he was placed gradually with care onto the ground with his own two feet.
When Synergy took her eyes off of the bird for a slight second to see if her charge was alright, they darted back to the flaming bird who had remained precisely where they were. Seeing it was doing nothing but evaluating her, Synergy decided to get it started. "Why are you here?" She spoke out to the legendary Pokemon, who eyes narrowed back at her.
Moltres looked at Synergy for a second before it stamped one foot forward and let out a harsh cry with a beat of its wings. Ash reacted with a gasp to the now angry looking bird, whose eyes had narrowed fiercely upon Synergy, before Ash backed up behind the metal Pokemon with a whimper. His mood having taken a serious U-turn now to one of fear.
Synergy's own eyes had narrowed in response to the challenging question Moltres had posed to her, but upon seeing Ash now looking scared to the extreme, her eyes took on a deadly glare at the legendary bird. Before the computer in her mind triggered, and the black pupils in her eyes faded to reveal the pure, blood-red sclera of the optical units.
"Possible threat recognised." The indifferent tone of the robotic voice intoned out, causing Moltres opposite the metal Pokemon to better posturise itself for a fight with a glint in its eye. "This unit means no aggravation upon your territory, Moltres. We were merely passing through after this unit was unwittingly stranded here with the boy after an emergency teleportation."
Moltres continued glaring at Synergy, pondering upon her words before he refuted them - rising itself up to its fullest height upon its legs and spreading its wings wide; giving off a loud screech.
"Threat condition elevated. Warning - priority one endangered." Synergy spoke with a cautioning tone as the robotically taken over Pokemon glanced down at the cowering boy, before fixing Moltres with a glare. "This unit gives Moltres a warning - although it still has not finished the building sequence, what has been passed will allow for a sufficient threat to be posed to you. Stand aside, or this unit will engage in combat."
Ash looked up at Synergy with wide eyes at that ending statement, but Synergy paid no heed as the now computer-driven Pokemon kept both eyes upon the challenge in front of her. Moltres looked at the robotic Pokemon, completely understanding as it then gave a final harsh cry before leaping up and taking off, swooping directly at Synergy.
"Threat confirmed. Responding." Synergy intoned as she grabbed Ash and dived to the floor, avoiding the talons on the out-stretched legs of the flaming bird as it dived to try and claw or grab at her. The flames allowed Synergy to track Moltres as it banked right and gained height - the orange plume giving off a fierce heat against the cool night sky like a beacon to her senses. Synergy looked at Ash, the blank red eyes still managing to convey concern.
Grabbing the boy's arm, Ash gasped at the sudden movement by the metal Pokemon before looking up at her, but the Pokemon seemed fully concentrating upon what she was doing. Ash watched as the hand grabbing his arm glowed a bright blue, the energy from before returning as he recognised it from her using it to shatter the machine and defeat the police. However, this time, it wasn't used for anything offensive as the energy moved from her hand and directly onto his skin.
Funnily enough, it only caused the skin to tingle before it dissipated from below the wrist, only enveloping his own hand. Seemingly being absorbed by his own body, Ash watched as the blue energy died down after only a couple of seconds of transfer, by which time another loud screech echoed across the landscape. Synergy's own eyes looked at Ash's with the same concern, yet a commanding look in them. "Run, Ash." Was all the Pokemon said before she pushed the boy down the path they'd been on and turned back around.
Synergy looked as Moltres swooped down from the sky again, before standing straight and bracing herself. The computer was running through predictions of what the bird might do, but in the end the metal chassis of the Pokemon was still bound by physical limitations and there would be no avoiding everything.
The flaming bird gave a hiss before opening its beak wide and spitting out a small fireball at the metal Pokemon, a glowing hot orange which rapidly streaked downwards towards Synergy. An alarm seemed to go off in her head, her senses circling the fast-oncoming projectile in a cautioning red before the computer-driven mind reacted. Synergy once again began to move, breaking out into a full sprint just a moment before the adeptly recognised move Incinerate touched down upon the rocks where she had been before she dodged.
Moltres did not break from his swooping dive, instead, the bird's eyes seemed to glean at Synergy having moved forward - and closer to him. The flaming bird further streamlined itself against the current as well tucking its wings in - and turning it into a fully-fledged dive as the white streaks of a tell-tale Aerial Ace began forming. Fast reaching terminal velocity, the bird roared towards the metal Pokemon.
Having only a second to brace herself, Synergy reacted by gathering the increasingly familiar blue energy into her arms as the shroud around the limbs forth before swinging them forth to launch a wave of energy at Moltres just a moment before the bird reached her. Colliding head-on against the rippling wave of energy just a few metres above the ground, Moltres was only stopped for a brief moment before with a massive shriek, pulverised straight through the move. Synergy's eyes widened as the blazing mass slammed straight through and careered right into her.
The metal Pokemon let out a robotic snarl as the sharp beak slammed against her torso, sending them straight to the floor which then turned into a reverberating sound as the heavy metal chassis impacted roughly into the floor. The passing flames of the Pokemon did as much super-effective damage against Synergy as the half-effective flying type move had been, registering straight into the computer that physical contact with the flames should be avoided. It was a legendary fire-type, after all. However, the wave of energy beforehand had done its job at slowing the bird's rate of descent and lowering the amount of damage Moltres had inflicted upon her.
The computer hadn't dropped the ball though, as Synergy quickly registered the sounds of the legendary Pokemon slamming into the ground and sliding to a halt, the rough sounds of rock and gravel obviously being torn up under sharp talons. A quick roll to the left avoided the sudden downward stab motion of a peck attack by Moltres, who quickly repeated the motion to try and catch the robotic Pokemon off guard. It wasn't to be for the flaming flying-type as Synergy merely jabbed her arm into the ground and lifted her body away - rolling into the momentum to lift herself into a crouch.
A shriek of indignation from Moltres was all the warning Synergy received before the beak of the bird lit a harsh orange. Flames were suddenly expunged from the mouth of the legendary Kanto bird, washing the area in a fiery inferno as the Flamethrower attack was centralised upon Synergy sitting in the middle of it. Moltres narrowed its eyes as it saw how ineffective the flames were actually being before cutting it off and going in.
Synergy had quickly raised her own arms in response to the split-second warning she had, the computer quickly supplying all the information she needed to throw up an impromptu Protect - the dark green, wide translucent screen covering the area just before her. Just in time too, as the flames rolled in and slammed against it, but luckily for the steel-type, the screen held against the flamethrower attack. Synergy was given no time to react however, preoccupied as she was with supplying energy to the protective screen in front of her, as Moltres swept right through the flames in front of her. The yellow beak of Moltres glowed a bright white as the bird's eye looked smugly at the robotic Pokemon before smashing straight through the protective screen with his high speed and physical output by the strong beak attack.
Although slowed by the protective screen as well before it shattered, a strong hit to the same area for a second consecutive time caused a fracture to split in the navy blue chest-plate as Synergy was thrown back by the force. Slamming against some rocks, the robotic Pokemon let out a deep groan before suddenly looking right up in front of her at the sound of a loud squawk. There the bird was, trying to press home it's advantage as it rushed forth - beak glinting a bright white once more...
However, Moltres had been too predictable now in using the same attack a fourth time. Just as Moltres was about to reach her, a final stamp into the rock by its foot sending sharp talons embedding straight through the stony ground, the computer reacted. Synergy jerked to the right from her lower position as she stamped her own metal foot into the ground, standing suddenly taller than Moltres who could only watch in surprise as it went careering straight into a rock instead.
That wasn't all, as Moltres yanked its head from the rock, it gave a shriek of indignation as a metal hand roughly grabbed the underside of its thin throat; the appendage careful to avoid the burning flame on top. It quickly gave way to a cry of agony as the claws upon the metal hand were smoothly stabbed right through the soft tissue of the neck, before finally transitioning to spluttering choke as the other metal hand impacted the face right under the left eyeball of the bird. Being as heavy as it was, and as solid as the metal chassis was against soft tissue, the punch formed an immediate bruise as Moltres's neck was sent immediately flying back at a painful angle; the body quickly following as the legs beneath Moltres gave way at odd angle.
A follow-up attack by Synergy was prevented by the strike of a wing at the metal Pokemon, who dodged back to avoid the flaming limb from striking her. Given the breathing room he so desperately needed, Moltres took to the skies in a split second following a stronger flap of its wings.
This time, Moltres wheeled round, a look of fierce rage upon his face as he glared intensely at Synergy below him. Synergy looked back up with a calculating, concentrated look as she regarded her options, analysing what the bird Pokemon would do next. It was revealed as a white hue covered each of Moltres's wings, before the bird went into a steep dive straight at her.
Synergy knew she couldn't let that hit her - not only would it deepen the injury upon her torso, but the super-effective flames covering each wing would be damage she'd be better off avoiding as well. The previous close-quarter engagements had ended 75% of the time in the bird's favour after all. She could always try and dodge, but the computer analysed the timings - it was quicker to go on the offensive. Moltres didn't know that she had longer range attacks, after all.
The bird was a very difficult target to hit, of course. Diving at speeds which rivalled any human jet, it was fast closing in on her - and she had no time to waste completing the mathematics of an untested move. It was better to make sure she didn't miss. Luckily, she had just the move.
Synergy's fist suddenly erupted in a dark blue, a swirling circular mass of energy shrouding the robotic padded hand which quickly formed a sphere. Lining up her senses with the incoming bird, Synergy thrust her hand forward - and discharged the high energy, blue sphere right at Moltres. The flaming bird quickly saw this vibrant ball of energy pulsing through the air at speeds matching its own, and quickly pulled out of its dive as it decided it wanted to avoid being hit by the projectile.
Synergy's zoomed in optics saw clearly the utter surprise, and then pain, written all over Moltres's face as the ball of energy slammed into him despite the bird putting quite a few metres of air between it and the trajectory of the energy ball. Nevertheless, Moltres was sent toppling from the sky as the energy ball dealt a high amount of damage to it, impacting straight into the stony ground of the hills area they were in. Synergy only watched on, bracing herself as the computer recorded the successful use of the move she'd used.
Aura sphere. One of the few ranged attacks that perhaps never missed, only prevented, given its tracking abilities.
PALLET TOWN, OAK'S LABORATORY.
Professor Oak had been sitting at his desk, finding himself quite busy as of recent given the incident involving the Ketchum residence having his staff look it over and the duties of the lab to attend to, not to mention the research projects which constantly required his approval and oversight. So it was fair to say that as he sipped his coffee overlooking a particular report, he got annoyed as a nagging message popped up on the front of his computer - beeping loudly and startling him somewhat.
That annoyance quickly turned into shock, and then abject concentration as he read through the message.
Oak quickly swore as the urgency of the message set in, before looking round to make sure none of his staff had heard him. It wouldn't do for his friendly reputation. Sweeping that aside, the Professor picked up the phone as he read through the message another time, quickly dialling a number from memory as worry contorted his features.
After a few pulsing tones from the phone line, there was the audible sound of a receiver being picked up and being operated by someone. "Hello, this is Pokemon Researcher Bill speaking. Who is this?" A light tone of voice came from down the other end.
"Ah, Bill. It's Oak." Professor Oak spoke into the phone, getting a recognising 'ahhh' sound to emanate from the phone.
"Oh, hello Sam! But, it was only last night you called me and sent over those documents! I trust you know that there's no way that I could have gone over them all in that time?" Bill spoke with a confused tone at the end.
"Of course Bill." Oak spoke into the phone. "But you must understand, quite the emergency has come up right about now."
"Oh, I assume you'll be needing my help for something then." Bill stated, getting an affirmatory hum from the other researcher. "Hit me with it then."
"Well, it actually has to do with that newly created Pokemon from here in Pallet Town. You did read over some of that, right?" Oak questioned Bill urgently, worry in his voice.
Bill sounded concerned at the tone of Oak's voice, but didn't comment upon it. "Of course, I've had a brief look through much of it, it is very interesting. But there's a lot to unpack. I believe you've sent me a copy of all of the biology and specification notes the police recovered from the Ketchum basement on the Pokemon, right? Much of it written by Delia Ketchum, one of your senior assistants?"
"Yes, that's all correct." Oak confirmed. "What were you able to glean from it, Bill?"
"In regards to what, Sam?" Bill questioned back. "I may have only just started a brief portion of it now, but there's already much I can correlate and theorise on its biology, physical prowess, typing, electrical systems, and more. You're going to have to be more specific!"
"Let me spell it out to you then, Bill." Oak stated. "Just half an hour ago, the observatory in the Orange Archipelago set up for monitoring the movements of the Legendary Kanto bird species picked up the distinct movement of a Moltres moving west. Now, movement reports of the birds are rare, let alone sightings, and so it was monitored closely as it went to Pikan Island. It remained there, in the Northern end of the island and yet its movements were still erratic. They could deduce that Moltres is fighting something, Bill."
"Oh dear." Bill stated, sounding concerned. "That does sound worrying, legendary Pokemon don't fight very often. But what does this have to do with me? The observatory would already have all the information on Moltres to hand."
"That's not it, Bill." Oak sighed into the phone. "They learned what it may potentially be fighting. They called the three settlements on the Island to instruct them to move to safer ground in case the fighting should shift in any direction, and whilst doing so they inquired if any particularly strong or strange Pokemon had been sighted. The farmers market had - one farmer gave a particularly accurate description of a six foot tall, heavily armoured black-and-blue synthetic Pokemon."
"Oh." Bill's voice went quieter. "Oh, that is very bad news."
"That's why I need your help, Bill." Oak spoke into the phone. "They wanted my opinion on how much of a danger this new Pokemon is, and what a fight between it and a legendary would look like. They have no idea what action to take, and need to know how much force they need to bring."
"Oh dear." Bill muttered, getting Oak's complexion to darken further as he recognised the tone as Bill about to explain something he wouldn't like to hear. "You seem to be taking this very seriously, Sam, and yet I cannot help but think that your underestimating the situation still."
That certainly gave Oak pause. "What do you mean, Bill?" He spoke gravely into the phone.
"I suppose Pokemon biology always was my area of expertise." Bill muttered again, before speaking clearer. "The potential power this thing has, is astronomical Professor. So much so that should it meet certain conditions, the Pokemon will be more than a match for Moltres." Sensing Oak about to speak, Bill decided to stress his warning. "Sam, I would argue that this thing is, in fact, a new legendary Pokemon."
"It has that much power?" Oak spoke flabbergasted. "But we don't know if it's a legendary, quite a few trainer's Pokemon have surpassed Moltres, surely-"
"No, Sam." Bill interrupted his fellow scientist. "Don't lose sight of the facts. Those trainer Pokemon had years of training and conditioning and are backed up by a trainer with lots of experience themselves. We're talking about a newly created Pokemon, just days old, that could fully defeat Moltres if it's limitations are taken out."
Oak's face had certainly darkened by now. "You'd better explain to me, what makes it such a danger, Bill." He stated, straight to the point.
A sigh over the phone gave the other researcher time to gather his thoughts. "How good a researcher was Delia Ketchum, Sam?" Bill asked.
Professor Oak blinked at the weird question. "She was beginning to have my extent of knowledge when I was her age. She had already begun to formulate her own ideas and theories, having published a few papers of her own. Why?"
"That's what I was afraid of, Sam." Bill stated, leaving Oak waiting for a clarifying answer. "All these documents stating the specifications of this Pokemon from Delia are thoroughly detailed, but there's also quite a few handwritten notes here admitting that there was a lot of unknowns surrounding the creation process of this Pokemon. Heck, we don't even have that, Sam. Just the specifications of what this Pokemon should be, with power projections and what-not. Not a single detail into what materials were used, nor how they got about growing the creature. It's a large unknown, Sam, with power projections stating it could be a champion's Pokemon right now as it is."
Oak scribbled down a few things, before shifting the phone. "Alright Bill, I'm starting to get an idea of the risk here. But what can you tell me about it?"
"That's a fair enough question, I suppose." Bill responded. "Well, first thing to take note of is the fact that although its partly biological in nature, certainly having a brain, it's over 90% synthetic. In fact, the brain is the only biological organ there, and what keeps it as a Pokemon rather than a robot. It's got an actual computer in it's brain area labelled the 'intelligence unit', Sam, where the brain is in control of the computer and can call upon a whole database of general topics. A good analogy here would be to use battle techniques and manoeuvres which are less commonly well known for a greater chance at surprising it."
"OK." Oak responded as he started a fresh page of notes. "Please continue."
"The Pokemon is definitely a steel type, Sam, though I'm sure you already worked that out." Bill spoke, getting an affirmatory grunt from Oak. "Probably also the fact that it's got a second typing. From these specifications, I'd say it's either electric, psychic or dragon, mainly due to this 'unknown energy' Delia has written about that the Pokemon will most likely use for combat applications. Possibly even fighting too, given the close-quarters aspect of the Pokemon. It does warn the Pokemon will be deadly at close range."
"That sounds feasible." Oak stated, but then frowned. "Though this 'unknown energy' could be part of the plasma system, Bill. Delia already wrote on how it uses the plasma as an inexhaustible fuel system, it wouldn't be too far-fetched to say that it would use it in combat too."
"That's a good theory, Sam, but the biology disproves it." Bill overturned Oak's point. "Get the diagram of the energy channels of this thing, and you'll see what I mean."
"Give us a second." Professor Oak requested as he pulled apart a nearby stack of paper quickly, rifling through it before pulling out a sketched diagram of the Pokemon facing forwards; lots of tube-like channels running through its body from the main limbs to a main one feeding into the head area. "Got it."
"You see how the biggest channel runs from the plasma core in the chest to the brain area? And then how the two tubes on the outside run from the head and back into the shoulder plates where it feeds back into the core?" Bill asked Oak, who replied in affirmation. "It's a looped system, my friend. It runs from the core up to the brain where its processed and energy taken in massive amounts from the plasma, before then looping the de-energised plasma back to its core. Not a single bit of the plasma is meant to leave this looped system, Sam."
"Then do you have any idea what this 'unknown energy' is, Bill?" Oak asked with a frown.
"Not a clue, Sam, not a single bloody clue." Came the frustrated answer. "It definitely is linked to the plasma, as the unknown energy is actually created, or converted, from the plasma processed in the brain area. Whatever this unknown energy is, it's the Pokemon's most offensive technique, I'm sure of it."
"It could be linked to the telekinetic-like abilities of the Pokemon." Oak theorised.
"That's likely." Bill stated. "But you'd have to get your hands actually on the Pokemon to work out how, Professor. I can tell you right now that these documents are too incomplete, unknown, to be able to work out the majority of this created creature."
"Ok, thanks Bill." Oak spoke. "But just to go over that last point. The head seems to be one of the most important areas, right? What with all this energy conversion, a computer and the only biological organ?"
"That's right, Sam!" Bill stated. "If you want to take this thing out, aim for the head."
"Speaking of which, how would you rate Moltres's abilities to take it out?" Oak questioned.
"It depends, Sam." Bill replied, a bit of uncertainty in his voice. "We both know of Moltres's abilities, being Kanto researchers of course. It has the hidden ability flame body, which causes fire-type damage to foes on contact when it deliberately attacks. But it's most powerful ability would be it's equivalent to blaze - a sudden boost to it's fire-type moves; except for the fact that it could activate it at will."
"Yes. And I imagine should Moltres activate that ability, it'll put the surrounding environment at risk." Oak pointed out.
"Precisely, Professor. Let's just hope the area they're in isn't flammable." Bill spoke. "Once it activates it's own Blaze ability at will, this new Pokemon will be in trouble given how such powered-up fire attacks would be superior to a steel-type. However, that's only if the Pokemon sticks to normal rules. And we both know that's not likely to happen, given how unknown this thing is. In fact, the steel-type still has limitations applied to it from the looks of these specs."
Oak was silent before he sighed. "...How so?" He inquired, feeling he was going to regret it.
"Apparently, it's not done building yet. As it is, the Pokemon was supposed to still be having its computer coded, and according to Delia that was supposed to take three years. That's Delia's last entry. Obviously, the process was interrupted somehow - and I imagine it's capable of self-building or modification, Sam. It would be stupid of us to rule it out when most Pokemon can evolve themselves." Bill explained. "Among a couple of other things..."
"What is it, Bill?" Oak asked.
"Look, Sam. The point is, Moltres and this potential legendary are gonna pull out the big guns." Bill stressed. "Moltres with its heavy attacks, and this new Pokemon its heavy defence stats and 'unknown energy'. The thing could've done building by now, or it could take further weeks. Who knows? But we can only assume this 'unknown energy' will come out to play as well as Moltres's own abilities. Whatever happens, this fight's going to be nasty."
"Will Moltres win, Bill?" Oak asked, looking for a clear answer.
Bill sighed, before speaking. "It's hard to say. But given the bird's type advantages, and this new Pokemon's inexperience with using its greater power potential and the limitations upon it - yes; I would say Moltres would win if nothing changes in this metal Pokemon."
PIKAN ISLAND.
The dust cleared from Moltres's forceful descent and crash into the landscape, revealing a very angry looking legendary. Moltres was glaring down at Synergy from the top of another hill crest, much of it now flattened with rubble strewn and still sliding down the slopes. Moltres shook dust off from one wing and then the other without breaking eye contact with the robotic Pokemon, who only braced herself. Seeing the defensive posture of his opponent, Moltres smirked slightly before flapping both wings wide open and unleashing a shriek, in a spectacular show of intimidation as his whole body became consumed with flames.
The orange flames wreathed across the legendry's body, literally setting its golden feathers ablaze with a rolling, combusting inferno which in turn caused the entire area to be bathed in an intense orange glow from the pluming flames. Giving a last shriek, Moltres beat his wings to take off - launching a series of fiery pellets in an Ember attack as he swept by.
Seeing the wide range of the attack, Synergy quickly sprung up another protect screen, causing the small-scale but wide-ranging attack to harmlessly fizzle against the barrier. Cutting it off as soon as the ember attack passed over her and continued raining down behind her as Moltres flew on by, Synergy turned around and thrust her arm forth. The fist lit up with blue energy as the computer-driven robotic Pokemon commanded the telekinetic-like power to act - realising that the only far-ranged attack she had right now was aura sphere. And Moltres would be stupid to allow her the time to charge up the new, inexperienced move.
So instead, Synergy grabbed hold of Moltres and threw her arm back, yanking the bird straight from its flight path with an indignant squawk and send him barrelling straight back to Earth. As the air roared around Moltres as he couldn't even form an aerial ace to hit Synergy with as his descent was controlled, he still had a few seconds to counter-attack from his position. Right as his neck and face were bent to face the ground below in another turbulent turn of his descent, his beak lit up with a mouthful of flames which were then promptly spat at Synergy below.
Synergy's system had only time to blare a warning as she cancelled the controlled manoeuvre she had Moltres trapped in, but it was far too late as the area was only lit up for a brief second. The fire stream hurtled at a pace much greater than Moltres's descent, the huge glob of a roaring inferno slamming dead-on where Synergy was standing, getting a reverberating robotic noise to sound out as the bonfire consumed the Pokemon. The powered-up, super effective move clearly did it's job as Synergy was sent thrown out by the blast's shockwave, eyes closed so as not to blind the visual receptors as damage was visible all over her body.
Moltres only had time for a brief view of his work before he slammed into the ground too, letting out a huge shriek of pain as his body gave way into the hard, unforgiving stony terrain - having been too late to pull out of the forced dive. To make matters worse, rubble thrown out by his explosion now pelted the bird, from small individual, stinging pellets to entire rocks which slammed against the bird's torso.
The fire from the blast burn move died down after a few seconds, leaving only flaming flickers and a glowing red, scorched ground as the blackened crater measured more than six metres in radius. Moltres, having fired off the move as one of his most powerful fire attacks as a last-minute attempt to make his opponent pay, was now struggling for his desperation as the consequences of blast burn made themselves known. Struggling to even stand, Moltres hauled himself to his feet as his muscles screamed out in stress from the knock-back of using such a move which would've rendered other Pokemon immobile.
Synergy had no such issues.
A deluge of rock caved outwards as a furious metal Pokemon emerged from having been buried within, sparks flying out from the helmeted facial area as one of the face plates covering the mouth had been snapped off. Instead, a straight, crimson glowing line two centimetres wide lit up the left side of the face, only adding to the angry visage Synergy was now glaring forcefully at Moltres with, who stared back. Cracks ran deep all over the soot-covered, blackened armoured plates on Synergy's body, making her body an almost uniform black against the metal frame beneath apart from occasional glints in the moonlight. In fact, the chest-plate itself was bent at angles, a deep render running straight through part of it which Synergy quickly snapped off herself with a movement of her right arm. Tossing the fragmented metal aside, the robotic Pokemon let out a growl before beginning to move at the bird whose eyes in turn narrowed and took a defensive posture this time, ready to brace against his opponent who was fast gaining speed.
A blue aura covered Synergy's claws as she charged, a metallic white sheen coating them beneath the blue cloak signifying the preparation of metal claw before Synergy thrust the attack forth. Moltres in turn responded by covering his entire wings in the same, metallic white sheen which halted the burning flames on them and using his left wing as a shield against the down-coming claws of his opponents. Sparks actually escaped the clash of metallic appendages which created a gyrating, deafening screech. Moltres glared fully at Synergy over the top of the metallic wing he was using as a shield, to which Synergy responded by moving back the other face plate and hissing deeply at the with the angry, soul-less visage of a glaring red face; something which caused Moltres's eyes to widen slightly as they became unnerved.
Quickly, Moltres retaliated with a swipe of the opposing wing against Synergy's arm but it was quickly blocked by the death grip of the other hand - the metal claw in that hand clamping down and actually splintering into the metal wing. Trying again, Synergy raised her left arm off the wing and in the same swift motion, punched at Moltres's face over the wing - but the flaming bird moved just in time to raise that wing to act as a shield again. Letting out another hiss, Synergy quickly lashed out with her left leg by raising it up and kneeing the wing out the way - leaving the metal claw free to continue forth and swipe at Moltres's face.
A roar of agony sounded out then, Moltres stumbling back and losing the metallic sheen in his wings as blood flew out from the set of four, deep red claw marks which marred the left sides of his face. Indeed, the entire left eye was rendered gouged out as the deep scars carved right through it to the bone beneath, blood flowing out in thick quantities. Shaking his head and letting out another shriek of pain, Moltres glared at Synergy out of his right eye, murder clear in his intent.
The flames burnt ever brighter with an even higher pitch of cackling, to the extent that white could be seen on the torso of the bird as the fires burnt ever brighter; but Moltres's recovery period had allowed Synergy time to charge up a move. A blue aura sphere streaked across the small distance, but Moltres wasn't caught off guard this time - a green protect screen sprang up and caused the aura sphere to disintegrate against it and wash away as the screen successfully held. Before even the entire vestiges of the aura sphere faded away, Moltres stopped feeding energy to the protect move and gathered energy in his right wing which he held aloft for only a second.
Beating it down quickly, Moltres twisted his body to unleash the move hurricane - one of the most powerful flying-type moves, it was only fed and formed in an instant by the intense Blaze ability Moltres had which fed it energy. Streaking across in a retaliatory manner, Synergy tried to leap out of the way of the twisting, fast-moving howling winds but found herself to be unsuccessful as the joints in her right leg gave way - she'd taken too much damage from the blast burn; and applying too much force onto it made it give way.
Synergy found herself being slammed into another rocky hill for the second time that fight, rocks pelting her and only adding to the damage as the small twister imploded and only forced her against the rock-face. Trying to move herself, Synergy managed to make her left leg jerk from her imbedded position before she collapsed over onto the slope and started sliding down quickly as her limbs had sustained too much damage.
If this had been a regulated battle, Synergy would've fast been declared the loser at this point. But it wasn't, and Moltres was out to return the favour of shed blood.
The robotic Pokemon hadn't even slid halfway down the mountain when two strong talons successfully grabbed her upper arms and yanked her from the side of the mountain, the crunching force of the grip causing sparks to appear from in between the splintered armour plates. Feebly swiping at one of the talons with a clawed hand, Moltres only dived down to the left which caused the arm to be thrown back and Synergy's head to be jerked about the place - before levelling out and flying for a little more with his defeated opponent as he gripped the limbs with his full strength; rendering the armour plates in his grip.
Spotting a suitable clearing, Moltres dived down and released Synergy from roughly thirty metres above the forested covered base of the hilly terrain, sending the metal Pokemon soaring and colliding straight with the dirty ground of a clearing. The shoulder plates on Synergy were completely shattered and torn off by the impact, leaving the obsidian black, metal body of the Pokemon exposed completely in the frontal region. A harsh white scrape was visibly scratched into the torso from the rough landing, contrasting against the darker shades and highlighting how damaged Synergy actually was as she winced in her prone position. Smaller such scars littered her body, splintered armour plates covering the remainder of her body from what had not already been torn off. As it was, the helmet area had a huge crack in the top, looking like it was just one blow away from falling off as it had done its job in protecting the vital sensory receptors in the head area from damage.
Looking up slightly with sluggish analysing times, the computer-driven Pokemon watched as Moltres flew down and touched down just in front of her prone position. Feeling the robotic joints in only three of her limbs working, Synergy slowly tried to back-pedal away from the flaming bird who looked smugly down at his broken opponent who was visibly shattered. Letting out a caw of pleasure, Moltres's beak slowly lowered to smirk at his opponent, the gashes on the left side of his face having healed enough to stop the bleeding and leaving only a twisted smirk. The flames on Moltres died down to just a soft orange glow, leaving them only running once more on the head, wings and tail as the bird Pokemon savoured the defeat of one of his toughest opponents.
He paid the price for his arrogance as a heavy metal foot collided with that same scarred, lopsided area, reopening the wounds and divulging another shriek of agony from the bird. Getting over the pain and blinking droplets of blood from his only remaining eye, Moltres roared out his fury and coated his right wing in a metallic sheen once more that glinted in the moonlight as he raised it in a swift motion. Striking the left leg of the robotic Pokemon in revenge, he cancelled the move as a satisfying snap rang out from within the metal limb as it went limb; signifying that the synthetic joints within had broken beyond use.
Taking a moment to wipe blood from is face and smearing the crimson liquid all over his wing, Moltres didn't take notice of Synergy flipping herself over and crawling out of the clearing pace by pace, arms working to claw her way out as warnings blared from the computer in her brain. It was only for a brief moment however, as Moltres had fully restored vision in his right eye and looked back to slowly fleeing opponent. Eye glinting contented, Moltres only stalked forth and slammed his right foot on top of Synergy's back which caused a spasm to occur in the robotic Pokemon as the talons pierced right through the backs splintered armour plate.
Finally deciding to end it, Moltres removed his leg from Synergy's back and took note of where the weakest area was. Spotting the largest crack just above the spinal armour, Moltres gave a grin - before his beak lit up with a white sheen and his neck darted forth in a strong peck attack. Synergy let out a robotic shriek as 'SYSTEM FAILURE' popped up over her vision, the armour plate on her spinal area having been shattered by the blow and even scarring through the black metal beneath that. Another precise, lethal strike by the hardened beak completely opened up the weakened metal back. A whole section of robotic parts now lay exposed, the thick metal supports that controlled the movement of the waist and below laying fractured somewhat over the spinal area as wiring, much of it severed and sparking, was visible.
Lining up his beak for a final attack, Moltres savoured the death of an opponent he begrudgingly admitted to respecting for her strength in his mind.
A FEW METRES AWAY.
Ash had been shoved down the gentle hilly slope, causing a cry to escape him as he tumbled down the hard surface, jarring and bruising him but otherwise leaving him unharmed as he came to a rolling stop at the bottom after just a few seconds. Standing up, Ash winced as he rubbed a particularly tender part of his arm from his descent, before proceeding to rub the worst of the dust off of him.
Looking around, the young boy felt very alone then. At least Synergy had been there when his mother died, but now? There was no-one. In the span of two days, he could lose two of the people responsible for caring for him - and Synergy had been a good friend, however short his time with her had been.
But a shriek from above him assaulted his ear-drums, striking a chord with the boy and terrifying him to no end at the sheer primal displeasure within it. Whatever was going on up above, even Ash's young mind knew things were getting ugly as Synergy's last words resonated in his head. With a whimper, Ash began to do just that.
Running away from the hills, it took the boy quite a few minutes to get off of the rocky ground, pumped with adrenalin as they boy was as he continued to run into the forested area. Finally running out of breath, Ash collapsed against a tree. Desperately clawing in breath, he stayed there for a minute to recover before staggering away from the tree to continue what his friend said - but his body was too immature. Collapsing on all fours, Ash crawled to a tree to sit against it.
A bright orange flash against the night sky caused him to whimper again, drawing his knees in protectively as he started to cry again - out of fear, both literally for himself and Synergy. The past two days had taken a dreadful toll on his mind, with only the overbearing qualities of the robotic Pokemon there to distract him from it and guide him where he would be lost. But now, he had no one.
At least ten minutes or more must have passed as Ash cried to himself under that tree, before a high-pitched blast rang out and shocked him deeply, getting him to gasp. Even through the shadows and foliage of the trees, Ash watched scared as a huge orange plume of fire soared into the night sky, getting him to pause in his crying as a pained shout from the bird rang out as another smack occurred across the landscape. Ash truly feared now, greater than before, as he turned around and began running again - away from the dreadful battle site as higher amounts of adrenalin spurred him on.
It was for nought, as though he was forcefully slowed by his labouring breath, the fight came to him. Slamming down just ahead of him came a huge crash, dust thrown up into the air as metal clanking sounded out. Initially confused but hopeful, Ash then hid as another, softer landing being touched down then. Shimmying up to a tree, Ash peaked around to see what was going on, heart beating as he slowly peaked his head round.
The forceful impact against metal sounded out as the big golden bird Pokemon slammed his shining white beak against Synergy's back, causing he to spasm as the armoured plate completely fell off her back - before the bird did it again. Ash had to put his hand to his mouth from crying out as the black metal that was Synergy's skin was cracked open, sparks flying everywhere as the metal innards lay exposed. And worst of all for Ash, he had a grand view of the flaming bird's beak glowing more intense as it readied itself.
Something snapped in Ash then. He'd been crying for all back then, fearing, when it turned out she was still alive. And now, all he could remember was his mother dying.
"NO!" Ash screamed out as he darted out from behind the tree, running over and throwing himself over Synergy. Anything else he had to say got lodged in his throat as fear overcame him once more, but he stayed resolutely where he was. Moltres, shocked at this development, lost the glow in his beak as he actually stepped back to completely get himself off the robotic Pokemon.
"Ash..." Synergy spoke weakly, but was interrupted as her frame spasmed again, sparks flying out from her destroyed circuitry.
Moltres glanced down in interest at the human child, before he let out a caw of displeasure at this intervention. Reaching down, he carefully nudged aside the boy, overwhelming the boy's grip on the Pokemon to push him off of it's frame. However, the boy appeared stubborn.
"No." Ash repeated as he shielded Synergy again when Moltres stood back up, getting the bird to narrow its eyes in displeasure. Apparently, it didn't like it's mercy being trampled on if the fiery glow in its beak was any indication.
An action that was once more thwarted as Synergy's hand glowed blue before twisting left, influencing her power over the bird Pokemon as she yanked it to the side once more. Moltres let out a cry of indication as small, harmless flames left his mouth as his neck and body was forcefully twisted left, making him lose balance temporarily.
"Ash... run..." Synergy repeated her earlier command, but Ash proved obstinate.
"No." Was all Ash had to say as he looked down at his broken friend, whose crimson eyes looked weakly back, sparks flying some more.
Synergy's system recognised faintly the refusal in his voice, noting down the psychological stress upon Ash and how it would take longer than they had to convince him otherwise. Scenarios to protect the boy ran through the computer then, 100% of which ended in failure as the ever-present 'SYSTEM FAILURE' ran through her head. However, the recent notification of an anomaly was given more processing power of the limited capacity she had at that time.
"Error." Synergy spoke, getting Ash to look scared at her before the looming shadow of Moltres having regained balance started to appear. "Ash. A chip in the back area. Small, rectangular. Causing unknown anomaly. Please remove."
Ash quickly looked to the back, not quite understanding as he looked at the broken section of the back - and quickly spotted what his friend must've meant plugged in between the spinal area.
"Error." Synergy repeated, her eyes darting up at Moltres who looked down at her before releasing another shriek of indignation at his still obstinate opponent. "Quickly, Ash."
OAK'S LABORATORY.
"From the sounds of it, Sam, it's already malfunctioned." Bill confirmed Oak's worst fears. "Written right here is a list of priority commands the Pokemon's software was supposed to obey, including absolute loyalty to the trainer it goes to and a general dislike of hurting people. Yet, we've seen it had no problem putting two police officers in the hospital. No, the Pokemon has malfunctioned because it wasn't done being built yet. It was supposed to take three years just for coding and conditioning the Pokemon, Professor, according to these specifications, before it was 'supposed to be finished being built for combat after being conditioned.' If my fears are right, Sam, the intelligence unit isn't really damaged, but more like it's priorities have changed."
"To what, Bill?" Oak expressed urgently.
"Think about it, Oak. The coding sequences already inputted into the Pokemon were probably scrambled from a forceful finish to the building process, rendering all conditioning to it useless. From the testimony of one Officer Jenny, the Pokemon refused to relinquish over Delia's son despite it having no idea what was going on and relying upon some computer for guidance, completely inexperienced. That scenario doesn't make sense, as the Pokemon wasn't fearful or emotional, or seeking to escalate the situation until Ash Ketchum was involved. Likely, this 'priority one', the first command to be obeyed above all, was scrambled into now having loyalty to Ash." Bill explained. "I don't know what other commands have possibly survived, but it's a big unknown as to what's deviated from the specs."
"Thank you Bill, that's very helpful." Oak stated. "I'll just-"
"You should probably know one last detail, Sam." Bill interrupted Oak again, who listened with a close ear. "These commands were set in something called an 'inhibitor chip', a computer part from the sounds of which was actually meant to limit the Pokemon's power and system to what the trainer desired. So long as it remains in, Professor, then the computer and brain of the Pokemon remain separated rather than conjoined as they should be in their biology. It's located on the spine of the Pokemon where the central electrical processing unit is."
"What are you saying?" Oak questioned worriedly.
"I'm telling you, Sam, that the inhibitor chip reduces the amount of power and abilities the Pokemon has, as well as making the computer in its head area harder to operate." Bill highlighted his concern to the regional Professor. "It would enable the Pokemon to call upon it's full power and computer at it's own command rather than be limited by the chip should it be removed; not to mention the protective commands would be removed. Who knows what could go wrong if it's removed?"
"I see. Thanks Bill. I'll bear that in mind." Oak stated, listening to Bill for a final time. "Don't worry, I know just what to do - no, he won't be involved. Last thing we need is to escalate the situation. No, I'll be calling Johto, thank you."
Oak ended the call quickly, before quickly going through his list of Johto contacts. He just hoped he was in time - taking a look at the update to the message revealed how the supreme gym leader was on the way. But he knew it wouldn't be enough - with luck, reinforcements would be there in ten to fifteen minutes.
PIKAN ISLAND.
Ash ripped out the sparking square part, the small computer chip in his hand glinting in what light could be found before he threw it away and looked at Synergy. The robotic Pokemon looked gratefully to Ash then, before the light in the visual receptors faded completely, leaving the facial area completely unlit. Ash took a second, before he choked up at what had happened - even Moltres paused to look further at what had happened; finding it strange that the boy who had initially protected his opponent had then killed her.
He was shocked as a deluge of sparks erupted from Synergy's back, getting Ash to yelp and back up a bit to avoid them as Moltres only stayed wary for any tricks his opponent might pull, but watching to see if she really was dead.
He was soon proven wrong.
"System reboot."
A bright white glow overtook the area then as Synergy's frame was completely engulfed in the light, causing Moltres to shriek as he backed away; now thoroughly alarmed as the aged Pokemon recognised the signs of Pokemon evolution. Ash screwed his eyes shut against the intensive light, hands put in front of his eyes to try and shield from the blinding aura.
It died down after just a few seconds, causing both blinded beings to blink slowly to recover from the now absent light - but when Moltres's vision was restored, he shrieked out in fury. Ash could only gasp happily.
Synergy had completely recovered, and had become better than ever it seemed. Hauling herself to her feet, the Pokemon balanced itself before taking stock of the situation. Spotting Ash first, Synergy gave an eye-smile. "Hello, Ash." She greeted kindly.
"Your OK!" Ash shouted out, relief evident in his voice.
"But of course, young one." Synergy replied in the same kind tone. "And fully upgraded, it seemed."
Indeed, looking at the robotic Pokemon, Ash could see she was entirely back to normal - with multiple differences. For one thing, the size difference between child and Pokemon had gotten bigger - Synergy stood at more than seven feet tall and a whole head taller than Moltres where they had been equal before. Her armour plates had been fully restored, navy blue glinting in the moonlight on all of her limbs and torso from where before it had been cracked off. Two additions on the forearms were visible, a rounded block of metal which had been added on top of, and become part of, the armour plate. A spike could be observed pointing out of the additions, leading to dangerous connotations. To top it all off, the two tubes leading to the shoulder plates now glowed a permanent dim blue.
As it seemed the robotic and bird Pokemon were about to duel again, a third party made themselves known. Dropping down from the sky, what emerged was evidently a dragon Pokemon with a human on its back - who promptly jumped off and grabbed Ash. Synergy's eyes instantly hardened as Moltres re-activated it's blaze ability and eyed up the dragon.
Orange and scaled, standing seven feet tall was a dragonite - a pair of short wings on its back as two antennae were attached to its head. The human was identified as wearing a red jacket with slicked-back dark hair, but it was hard to make out details in the dim moonlight. Not that it mattered to Synergy as she stepped up to the newcomer.
Eyes widened, Drake - supreme gym leader of the Orange Archipelago, made a quick decision. If this Pokemon was as hostile as it was portraying, and the fact that it looked like it didn't have a scratch on it from fighting a Moltres who was visibly scarred, then he knew he was outmatched. "Dragonite, get us out of here!" The man urged, whose dragon responded to with a short roar and blasting off into the skies. He had badly underestimated the situation, and was just glad he could get the kid to safety.
Fist charging with blue energy, Synergy looked like she wanted to bring the dragon back to earth - but didn't for Ash's sake. She found a suitable target instead in Moltres as an ember attack slammed into her from behind, getting a warning message to flag inside her now-clear mind and for her back plate to be filthened with black marks. Otherwise, the robotic Pokemon looked unharmed as she only turned her head and raised an eyebrow.
"Tch." Synergy audibly hissed out, unnerving the bird. "Annoyance."
A thrust of her arm sent the the bird Pokemon slamming into some trees as her opposite hand charged up an aura sphere, noticeably in much quicker time than before, as it blasted off at the impact site of Moltres. A short blue explosion blew out then, satisfying Synergy as she watched, which turned to annoyance once more as she saw Moltres fly out of the explosion.
The bird was heavily damaged, however. The battle had become far too protracted for its stamina capabilities, and given the scars and bruises littering the majestic gold Pokemon, it was nearing the last of its strength. But that didn't stop Moltres from trying to win again, against a recovered Pokemon whose strength had increased considerably. The pride of the Kanto bird trio was well known.
Its beak lit up orange as it accessed the highest level of fire-type moves it knew - explosion. It took a second to charge, but it would be well worth it for its opponent who would not be able to outrun, or indeed survive, this explosion. It would end it here.
Successfully having charged the energy needed for the attack, Moltres turned back in a turn of flight to aim directly at his opponent - only to blink as the robotic Pokemon wasn't anywhere to be seen. He couldn't even begin searching, either.
"Be gone." A synthetic voice intoned from his right side, getting Moltres to wheel around in absolute shock and even fright as it tried to locate the source of the totally unexpected, and near, voice. Having only enough time to see the blue and black tall robotic figure hovering in the air less than a metre from him, Moltres watched as Synergy lashed out with her right arm in a curved motion before he could even unleash the fire from his beak at the correct angle.
A blade the same same as her forearm emerged instantly at Synergy's command from the raised armoured plate, sliding out and locking into place mid-swing as a blue aura then infused into the blade as energy ran along its metal. Given the steep sharpness of the blade, and the strength leant from the energy, the swing from Synergy's arm completely decapitated Moltres. The blade rendered through the flesh instantly of the thin neck, slicing cleaning through muscle and even bone with the power of it as the head of the bird instantly was disconnected from its body.
The flaming plume on its head was instantly snuffed out as the remaining flames took a second to die, before Synergy watched coldly as her now certainly dead opponent fell lifelessly into the forest below. Glaring icily into the distance, Synergy hovered as her temperature sensor took a second to pinpoint the fleeing dragon Pokemon with her charge before she rocketed off after it.
Drake received the absolute shock of his life, only managing to keep hold of the child as the robotic Pokemon appeared out of no-where, air waves actually washing over Pokemon and man as Synergy stopped beside the flying dragon. Eyes widening at the furious, narrowed crimson eyes which stared coldly at him, Drake was about to snap an order when the synthetic Pokemon moved faster - utilising a blade on one of its forearms to stab deeply into dragonite's hide. Releasing a deep roar of agony, dragonite tried to attempt evasive manoeuvres but Synergy easily kept up - reaching an arm out to grab Ash who only sat there eyes wide.
However, it was Synergy's turn for her eyes to go wide as another dragonite rocketed into view above her, only having enough time to view the red-headed man riding on the back of the dragon which had been faster; much faster than even she had been. For the dragonite's hand exuded a white hue then before crashing down onto Synergy's helmet with a powerful brick break move.