Ch.54
Evening the Odds
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"Absolutely not," Maya informed the former heiress bluntly causing Catherine to huff and fold her arms while Luka put her paws on her hips and narrowed her eyes at the dragon slayer while Dmitri, Maris, and Tomoe watched this unfold from the side.
"Oh, come on! We just want to go sightseeing around Veilstone!" Catherine protested indignantly with Luka nodded passionately with her eyes briefly glowing bright gray before going back to their normal hue causing the dragon slayer's eyes to flash crimson before Maya let out a soft sigh and crossed her arms.
"You can go only if you agree to be in locations that Jet, Delia, Dmitri, and I can easily reach you if something happens and I want you back here at the Pokemon Center before it gets dark," Maya conceded causing the former heiress to jolt and spare a glance at her girlfriend before eagerly nodding at the terms and gave a respectful bow to the dragon slayer which was a gesture Maya returned.
"I'll see you guys later and maybe I'll bring back another teammate with me!" Catherine shouted happily as she grabbed Luka's wrist and dragged her along to the city excitedly where they quickly went out of view causing the dragon slayer to sigh softly and turn to Dmitri who stood up straight.
"(I'm really starting to like Lady Shiina,)" Tomoe whispered to Maris who let out a puff of air from her nose before turning to the otter with her paws on her hips and a teasing grin on her face.
"(Oh goodie, you guys can talk about the shitty kingdoms in the days of old till the miltanks come home,)" Maris remarked playfully causing Tomoe to raise a brow while the martial arts pokemon resisted the urge to put a palm to her face while Dmitri lightly nudged both of them in their sides when Maya cleared her throat.
"Um...I just want to do some training with Kiera and Sparkplug and possibly convince a pokemon to join my team, Mrs. Shiina. I promise I'll be careful and I'll stay nearby the Pokemon Center just in case something happens," Dmitri explained to the dragoness who blankly looked down at the battle ace who averted his gaze and awkwardly rubbed the back of his head before the dragon slayer let out a breathe and nodded before pulling Dmitri in for a hug which the battle ace returned.
"That's fine, just don't do anything stupid, you hear? I don't want to see you get hurt again like you did back at Hearthome," Maya responded under her breathe while unconsciously hugging the battle ace tighter causing Dmitri to nod slowly before widening his eyes as he could faintly hear the dragon slayer sobbing for a bit before she composed herself and gently pushed him away.
"Jet and I will be here in the practice fields at the Pokemon Center so you know where to find us if you ever feel that you're in trouble," Maya told the battle ace causing Dmitri to stand up straight and nod vigorously causing the dragon slayer to nod back before walking back to the pokemon center and waving over her shoulder causing Maris to put a paw on her hip while Tomoe crossed her arms.
"(Master, I apologize, but if Lady Shiina had not imposed these terms, than I certainly would have to ensure your safety,)" Tomoe suddenly commented causing Maris to snort and narrow her eyes at the otter who didn't back down and glowered at the martial arts pokemon.
"(Wow, enforcing your will over others without their consent; I wonder where I heard this before...oh...right,)" Maris remarked disdainfully causing the otter to scoff and put a paw on her hip as she tilted her head and raised a brow at her master's girlfriend.
"(Do not be mistaken, Shaolin. I would have discussed the terms with Master and if he found them to be too constrictive, we would work out a compromise,)" Tomoe retorted with ire causing the significantly shorter martial arts pokemon to stomped towards the samurai before Dmitri gently, but firmly clasped Maris's shoulder and raised a brow.
Stopping in her tracks, Maris let out a breathe and awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck before shrugging and shaking her head before stepping back.
"(Alright...can't get away with nothin,)" Maris grumbled while putting her paws behind her head causing Dmitri to grin as he started to make his way towards one of the routes leading to Veilstone until he heard someone approaching him from behind.
Turning his head, Dmitri eyes widened when he saw Delia and Lopunny walking towards them causing the otter to relax her grip on the hilt of her seamitar while Maris casually waved to the dragon tamer and the bunny pokemon who returned the gesture.
"Hey Dmitri, I just want to know where you going and when I can expect you to be back at the Pokemon Center," Delia requested politely causing the battle ace to nod and clear his throat while Maris restrained the great urge to let out a loud, drawn out groan complete with throwing her arms up in the air.
"I'm just going to do some training with Sparkplug and Kiera in a clearing I saw when we were walking to Veilstone and maybe convince another pokemon to join my team. I promise we'll be back before curfew, big sis" Dmitri explained to the dragon tamer calmly causing Delia to tap her chin while Lopunny put her paws on her hips and stared at her trainer before the dragon tamer nodded.
"Alright, that's fine. I already know Catherine's going sightseeing and she knows I expect her back before curfew and I don't need to tell you that the same applies to you," Delia stated firmly while folding her arms causing Dmitri to nod while Maris snorted and rolled her eyes while Tomoe subtly nodded in approval while rapping her paw over the butt of the hilt of her sword.
"(Yes mom,)" Maris mumbled causing Delia's eyes to flash blood red and glower darkly at the martial arts pokemon before calming herself and returning her gaze back to her little brother who looked back at her patiently.
"Of course, sis. I'll be back before you know it," Dmitri responded cheerfully causing the dragon tamer to serenely grin and chuckle under her breathe while Lopunny folded her arms and smiled at the battle ace as her trainer pointed her index finger at her younger brother.
"If you're out past curfew, I'll implement my own punishment along with the one my mother will give to you," Delia informed the battle ace while still wearing the same sunny smile on her face causing Dmitri to laugh nervously and rub the back of his head while Maris winced and unconsciously rubbed her butt.
"I think Maris and I are a little too old for spankings, Delia," Dmitri joked causing the dragon tamer to laugh and shake her head as she put a hand on the battle ace's shoulder.
"Heh...neither you or Maris aren't big or old enough that I can't take you over my knee, little brother," Delia replied teasingly as she ruffled his hair before pulling Dmitri and Maris into a hug with Lopunny before the friends broke off the hug as the dragon tamer sent out her team and decided to train off to the side in order to let the people around them pass.
"(Delia spanked you guys?)" Tomoe questioned with a smile tugging at her lips causing the martial arts pokemon to blush deeply and scowl while Dmitri nodded with a grin on his face and shoved his hands into his pockets.
"Or she would give us punishments according to the thing we did wrong;" Dmitri explained to the amused otter who shot Maris a glance with a raised brow causing the martial arts pokemon to tightly grip her arm before huffing.
"(Don't remind me; I still remember when she made me run laps around the track while being chased by Zweilous when I ditched gym,)" Maris recalled gruffly causing Dmitri to laugh heartily only for Maris to shoot him a furious death glare that made the battle ace reduce his laughter to mere chuckles.
"You can't really blame Delia for that, though. Giving ironic punishments just comes natural to dragons," Dmitri pointed out with a small smile still on his face causing Maris to snarl under her breathe and flick Dmitri in the shoulder while the battle ace let out one last chuckle before taking a deep breathe in and letting it back out.
"Okay...okay, but serious talk. Maris, I love you, but we won our last two gym matches because of you so for this one I want Kiera and Sparkplug to take center stage, okay?" Dmitri told his girlfriend politely causing Maris to scowl, pace around in circles for a bit, and pounded her knuckles together with an audible crack before giving a reluctant nod.
"(You're not going to put Tomoe through her paces?)" Maris inquired curiously while putting her paws on her hips causing Dmitri to sigh and nod while Tomoe folded her arms and blankly stared at her master and his mate.
"(Here's the difference between us, Shaolin; you were trained for combat, I was trained for war. There's a stark difference between the two as fighting techniques that are perfectly acceptable on the battlefield are banned from your controlled combat,)" the samurai answered bluntly causing Maris's eyes to widen before she calmed herself and crossed her arms and gave a knowing nod causing the otter to raise a brow.
"(Hey, don't worry about it. Fighting dirty is essentially second nature to me and although it's not exactly the same as the militarized fighting styles from the days of old, there are still some similarities that I understand why you'd want to warm the bench,)" Maris empathized with her teammate causing the otter to narrow her eyes at the martial arts pokemon before going back to a stoic gaze and gave a simple nod in response as Dmitri put a hand on Tomoe's shoulder causing the samurai to stare at him blankly.
"That's why we're going to help train you to use the appropriate amount of force necessary even when going for non-honorable strikes like groin attacks, throat punches or eye strikes," Dmitri assured the otter who pursed her lips and shrugged at what her master said while Maris put her paws behind her head and stared straight ahead.
"(If you say so, master,)" Tomoe responded softly while letting one arm rest at her side while using her other paw to grip the hilt of her blade as Dmitri rubbed his eye for a bit before starting to walk to the clearing for training with his girlfriend and bodyguard walking beside him.
"(I don't know, Dmitri. Me thinks the samurai doesn't have it in her,)" Maris offhandedly stated with a slight grin on her face causing the otter's brow to twitch irritably and to clench the hilt of her sword tighter before letting out a breathe and narrowing her eyes at the martial arts pokemon.
"(I have survived many battles, Shaolin; I think I'm more than up to the task of learning different combat methods that conflict with my own,)" Tomoe rebuked with a paw on her hip causing Maris to yawn and shrug a bit before dropping into a fighting stance causing Dmitri to raise a brow and stare at his bodyguard.
"(Prove it; right here, right now,)" Maris challenged her ally while bringing her paws up causing the otter to raise a brow and spare a glance at Dmitri who rubbed the back of his head before nodding causing the otter to unsheathe her blade and point it at the martial arts pokemon.
"(Very well, Shaolin,)" Tomoe stated while readying herself before Dmitri got in between them and held his hands up causing both Maris and Tomoe to relax a bit and glance at one another before staring at their trainer confusedly.
"Not in the middle of the road, you guys," Dmitri requested causing Maris and Tomoe to scan their surroundings and saw bystanders walking around them while giving them disdainful or confused looks causing the duo to awkwardly rub their heads.
"(Ah, that's not fun, but I don't want to hurt these people either,)" Maris mumbled under her breathe as she stretched her shoulders with a loud yawn and fell in line with her boyfriend while Tomoe let out a breathe before resting a paw on the hilt of her blade.
"(Neither do I and that was nearly something I overlooked; I'll try not to let it happen again, master,)" Tomoe assured her charge who nodded at what she said as Dmitri started walking towards the clearing for training with his girlfriend and bodyguard in tow.
"(Something on your mind?)' Druddigon asked the bunny pokemon while throwing a fast, withheld jab at her face causing Lopunny's eyes to widen and to cover her entire head with her ears while digging her heels into the ground, but even then the force of the punch caused Lopunny's head to snap back and made her hiss.
Fighting off the encroaching dizziness while staggering back, Lopunny vigorously shook her head and brought her paws up once again before slowly circling the dragon who mimicked this action while holding his claws up like a boxer.
"(It's just that...I've never heard of these Blades of Righteousness or whatever and suddenly they're doing everything they can to hurt my friends,)" Lopunny responded angrily, but with a hint of fear as she illuminated her paws and ears with bright stars before throwing a flurry of palm heel strikes and slaps at the fairy tail dragon who casually blocked the combo before trapping one of the bunny's arms underneath his armpit and thrusting his palm onto her sternum.
Hissing, Lopunny flowed with the momentum of the blow that made her stagger back and rolled backwards where she got onto her feet once again while Druddigon nodded in approval and waited for Lopunny to attack.
"(Well for starters, they come from my home region, Unova, but to give you some perspective they are, or they were, a trio of legendary pokemon tasked with defending pokemon kind while also being the middlemen with humanity. They...either forgot or disregarded the secondary purpose of their existence and unfortunately, history has proven that the latter seems true,)" Druddigon stated with a shake of his head as Lopunny threw a restrained palm heel at her friend who brought his forearm up to block the blow and rammed his shoulder into her chest.
"(What happened that made them think like that?)" the bunny pokemon inquired curiously as she rubbed her chest with her paw to get some feeling back into it before starting off her attack with quick punches with her giant ears that Druddigon weathered like a shield.
"(Time and ignorance; at first they carried out both their duties fairly well, but as the years passed they began to think that humanity would only see their kind as tools, servants, and hesitant allies at best. Yet they still continued doing the tasks they were assigned in the hope that this line of thinking would change,)" Druddigon elaborated causing the bunny pokemon to nod as she suddenly rammed her knee forward causing the dragon to bring a claw down and push the knee strike aside while weaving his head when a punch from Lopunny's giant ear passed mere inches from his face.
"(I...don't know if I want to hear what comes next,)" Lopunny admitted honestly as Druddigon spun to the side to avoid another punch from Lopunny's ear and attempted to use the momentum to ram his elbow onto her head, but Lopunny barely managed jumped back in time as the the fairy tail dragon's abrasive elbow grazed her cheek causing a little droplet of blood to plop down on the grass.
"(I don't either, and hearing about it still causes me feelings of dread. The Swords of Justice thought they had forged a strong kinship with a human, a king nonetheless, after so many years of being aloof guardians and distant onlookers of both species, but he was only using them to secure his power and forward his kingdom's expansion,)" Druddigon explained causing the bunny pokemon to look down at the ground sadly before bringing her head back up and slowly circling the dragon who remained where he stood and moved around to match her position with his claws up.
"(When they found out that all the villages and people they wiped out under the belief that they were threats to both pokemon and humanity, Cobalion, the leader of the first Swords of Justice, just snapped. She returned to the kingdom and she...she and the Swords of Justice slaughtered everyone in the kingdom, sparing no one regardless of age, and burnt the kingdom to the ground which was the first of many pointless sieges in the Poke-Human Wars,)" Druddigon finished while closing his eyes and giving a slow shake of his head causing chills to go up Lopunny's spine upon hearing what the predecessor's of her current enemies were like.
"(Geez...I had a feeling that these guys were bad, but hearing that...)" Lopunny trailed off incredulously as she threw a couple of quick jabs and a rising knee strike at the dragon who blocked each one and shoved her back.
Grunting, the bunny pokemon flowed with the impact of the throw and rolled up to her feet with her paws up while the dragon let out a sigh and gave a small grin at the bunny pokemon.
"(It's okay to feel scared,)" Druddigon kindly assured his friend who didn't say anything as she rushed toward her sparring partner and jumped in the air with her knee extended causing the dragon to sidestep the blow and crouch before throwing a powerful lariat at Lopunny's back leg.
Yelping, Lopunny uncontrollably flippled forward and skid across the ground face first like someone being thrown from the windshield of their car at high speeds causing the bunny pokemon to cry as she felt her back contort painfully and felt as if her skin was being flayed as she violently tumbled across the ground before coming to a stop. Gritting her teeth, Lopunny at last managed to roll with the momentum and get onto one knee with one paw resting on the ground while her other paw rested on her leg where she breathed heavily with beads of sweat plopping to the earth.
"(I know, but these guys are willing to do whatever it takes hurt us and our friends just to get to Dmitri and I'm not about to let that happen,)" Lopunny stated passionately as she rose to her feet with herculean effort and brought her paws up while Druddigon blankly stared at her and slowly advanced toward his sparring partner.
"(There's more to it than that, isn't there?)" Druddigon pointed out causing the bunny pokemon's gaze to darken and upon summoning stars around her paws and giant ears, the fairy tail dragon noted that instead of looking akin to the bright night sky that brought wonder to the onlooker's eye, they instead looked took a blood red shade which spelled doom for everyone.
"(I'm not losing friends again because I was too weak to do anything,)" Lopunny responded in a deathly calm voice before launching a furious assault on her sparring partner who's eyes widened when he was suddenly put on the defensive before narrowing his eyes.
"(Lopunny...what happened with Li, Delia, Dmitri, and Catherine wasn't your fault. Alice, and the New Swords of Justice, are to blame for all the pain and suffering you're going through right now,)" Druddigon assured his friend while Lopunny let tears freely stream down her face as she angrily glowered at the dragon before adding more force and ferocity into her blows while Druddigon calmly weathered the powerful blows raining down on him like a hailstorm.
"(Every time something threatened my friends, I was always too weak to do anything to help! I couldn't save Li from Alice, I couldn't save Delia from Arbok, I couldn't save Dmitri from the forward team, and I couldn't save Catherine from that swarm of pokemon!)" Lopunny screeched in a mix of white hot rage and despair as she threw all her weight into a powerful roundhouse kick aimed at the fairy tail dragon's head causing Druddigon to bring his forearm up and stop the blow dead in its tracks causing a powerful shockwave that made the grass and trees blow back a little.
"(Do you honestly think that being strong would have changed anything?)" Druddigon stated calmly, but firmly causing Lopunny's eyes to go as wide as saucers before she uncertainly glanced off to the side before putting her leg down and slumping to the ground.
Covering her body with her gigantic ears, Lopunny closed her eyes and let tears fall down her face as Druddigon sat down next to her and pulled her in for a hug which the bunny pokemon didn't object to.
"(Lopunny, you can't be held accountable for Li's demise because you were barely a juvenile when it happened and the strongest you could have been at that stage wouldn't have saved him no matter how hard you fought,)" Druddigon explained to his friend while the bunny pokemon sniffled and wrapped a giant ear around his waist causing the dragon to sigh and lay down on the grass on his back while holding Lopunny close to him.
"(You're definitely not responsible for Delia, Dmitri, and Catherine getting hurt in Hearthome because you were busy defending the city,)" the fairy tail dragon went on causing the bunny pokemon to let out a huff and fold her arms before glancing at her friend with her eyes narrowed while the dragon slowly turned his head to look at her.
"(Exactly, if I had just stayed closer to Delia when Alice and her army of pokemon attacked and or if I had just went to check up on Catherine when that mob of pokemon attacked Hearthome-)"
"(Then Kricketune would have been severely injured or killed in action had you left him to fight Rhyperior alone and a lot less lives would have been saved if you broke formation and went to check up on Catherine when she already had Luka, Graveler, Floatzel, Kricketune, and Ursa to reinforce her,)" Druddigon softly cut his friend off while causing the bunny pokemon's eyes to widen before she let out an angry breathe and shook her head while clenching her fists as the dragon put a claw behind his head and stared up at the clouds.
"(You really know how to make everything I want to do sound wrong, huh?)" Lopunny remarked irritably causing the dragon to chuckle as the bunny pokemon used her giant ears as a pillow and looked up at the clouds with her friend.
"(I'm not trying to be mean, I'm just saying that you can't go on in life thinking that every little thing that happens is your fault. If you do, you're never going to be happy and in the end you're only going to destroy yourself,)" Druddigon advised his friend while sitting up a bit causing Lopunny to uncover her body with her ears and bring her knees out a bit before placing her paws on her legs while looking forward with an uncertain expression on her face.
"(It's hard not to,)" Lopunny responded simply causing the fairy tail dragon to put a claw on his friend's shoulder as causing the bunny to wrap a giant ear around his wrist.
"(Don't worry, either me or Haxorus will be the first one to tell you you did something wrong,)" Druddigon joked causing Lopunny to chuckle under her breathe as they watched Delia stand her ground as Hydreigon's muscular tail smashed into her forearm when he attempted to land a blow on his trainer's ribs causing tremors to go up the dragon tamer's arm.
"(Do...do you think that we can win this?)" Lopunny inquired curiously as she got onto her feet and brought her paws up causing Druddigon to glance at his friend and stand up with his claws up like a boxer as he threw a withheld jab at the rabbit pokemon.
"(I believe so; Catherine already knows what it's like to fight heinous foes so her experience will be valuable for the battles to come and Dmitri has the enviable ability to rally allies to him which may not seem like much, but our group is few in number compared to our enemies and because of that we'll need all the help we can get,)" Druddigon reasoned causing Lopunny to huff as she weaved her head out of the way and rammed her knee into her friend's gut who didn't react and shoved his forearm onto Lopunny's chest causing the rabbit to fall back.
"(As for my friends and I save for you, our clan elders taught us certain areas of expertise to prepare us for war if the need arised like math, astronomy, and geography,)" the fairy tail dragon explained as the rabbit pokemon hit the ground back first causing Lopunny to grit her teeth and let out a breathe before putting a paw on her chest.
"(Um...I haven't I been taught this stuff?)" Lopunny stated gruffly as she nipped up to her feet and thrust her foot forward causing Druddigon to wrap his claws around her ankle and thigh tightly hug her knee to his chest before falling backwards with Lopunny overhead causing the rabbit pokemon to gasp.
"(Sorry about that, but that's why Delia, Haxorus, Hydreigon, Dragonite, and I are going to try to teach you now and believe it or not, your chances of survival have improved,)" Druddigon responded as the rabbit pokemon harshly hit the ground chest and chin first causing tingles to go up Lopunny's spine as she bit back a curse and used her free leg to draw back her leg and ram her knee into Druddigon's chin forcing the dragon to release his grip on her leg.
"(How so?)" Lopunny asked confusedly as she rolled to the side and climbed back to her feet while carefully advancing toward the fairy tail dragon who thrust his palm forward causing Lopunny to side step the blow and wrap an arm and giant ear around his wrist.
"(You have at least some knowledge now about what we're up against and so you'll know what to expect from our enemies,)" Druddigon replied as the bunny pokemon quickly encased her paws and free giant ear with stars and bashed them against the fairy tail dragon's head while Druddigon blocked the blows as best he could with his free hand.
"(Well...I guess the saying knowledge is power will be put to the test,)" Lopunny mused as nearly smashed her giant ear onto Druddigon's head like a hammer only to stop the blow mere inches away from his forearm when the timer suddenly rung.
Sighing, Lopunny relinquished her grip on her friend's arm and respectfully bowed to him which was a gesture her friend returned as Delia stretched her arms and let out a yawn as she walked towards the rabbit pokemon.
"Alright, instead of fighting, I thought I'd teach you navigation instead," Delia stated as she held her hands close together and used draconic energy to form the energy into the big dipper which wasn't to scale in her palms before sitting down cross-legged.
"(I'm ready,)" Lopunny replied as she sat down on her feet and put her paws on her thighs while sitting up straight causing the dragon tamer to give a proud smile and cleared her throat.
"That's what I like to hear; if you're ever lost, just use this constellation and the other ones I'm about to show you to find your way," Delia explained causing the rabbit pokemon to intently nod while leaning forward as the dragon tamer began explaining the constellation's practical functions along with the history behind it while Lopunny narrowed her eyes and did her best to take in all the information being given.