The Capture: Stark Mountain

By LeavanDragon/Stacey Carver, Jr.

Stark Mountain. Harsh heat, falling ash that contrasted the pure white snow, and blazing magma that flowed constantly, melting everything thing in its wake. The blazing landmark was alive, as only the most hazardous and aggressive pokemon roamed the terrain, keeping a constant watch over their territory.

Flocks of Skarmory and Fearow jetted high above the sky, in constant battle, while Rhydons and Camerupts met at the grasslands down below, establishing their dominance with earth shaking power. Lava erupted from the crust of the earth, roaring as it created fields of fields of fire home to Magbys and Torkoals. Stark Mountain, a place where no man was welcomed, and only the strong survived. Its volcanic peak looking down upon the Battle Frontier, a undying challenge to thrill seeking trainers who loved blistering battles.

A lone trainer traveled across the soot filled grasslands, his body grayed by the constant falling ash, filthy from traveling a large distance. As he walked across the field, a brown pokemon crawled by his side, its lubricated body leaving a trail of slime, as its brown shell shined from the sun's glare. It towered over him, large and dominating at 6 foot 5, a behemoth in comparison to the rest of its species. The two approached the entrance to the mountain, coming to face halt in front of steep wall, unclimbable by human means.

"Triton, use rock climb."

The trainer gave his pokemon, a robust Gastrodon, a humorless order which was complied with complete obedience. The trainer would hop on its back as the sea slug scaled the wall with ease, reaching the top in over a minute. Coming to the top of the wall, they arrived at the mouth of a dark cavern, blocked by a types, a Magmar, and a Gligar, a flying and ground type. They were locked in a hostile standoff, a abject natural confrontation the trainer couldn't care to watch as he and the pokemon advanced.

"What nuisances…Triton, wipe them out with surf."

In a vicious upsurge of vigor, Triton used its dominion over water to generate a tide which crushed and swept to the two pokemon out of its trainer's path with ease. Its trainer murmured to himself in annoyance, his clothes soaking wet. He cursed himself, knowing he was to blame for his current state. But atleast he longer was covered in ash. Pulling out a trainer card from his pocket, he shined the doused ID before holding it up to the sky, the name "Leavan" shining with a metallic hue. He sighed and walked into the dim cavity, putting the trainer card into his pocket.

"Well..lets try this again..."

The cavern was dark and perilous, but he wasn't bothered, making a sharp right turn as he flipped through another page of a dirty journal. These caves, the patterns, he had memorized they all through multiple trips. Every path, scouted, all dead ends, accounted for, even pokemon too were preemptively avoided almost all together with his notes. He was not interested in them anyway. He just wanted to reach that room, so he could see that idol once again.

Leavan treaded silently, not uttering a word as he advanced towards his destination with a purpose. One could this was just simply going through the motions for him. He felt no fear here or uncertainty as he traversed the fiery den. He had spent every waking moment of his life in preparation for this moment. Stark Mountain was no more than a dungeon to him. A challenge that with enough memorization could become repetitive and linear to get through.

To that end, rather than think about the dungeon, Leavan thought about his end goal. He took in the heat, embracing the intense warmth of the mountain. Slowly, his mind began to put together his desired image, his imagination taking hold. The mighty metallic mask, shining a with a silvery gleam, the reddish-brown body, which exuded a ominous crimson aura. And the eyes, those red orange eyes which glowed with the intensity of the setting sun. He heard its roars echo through the hellish halls, calling him to come closer. Even now, in adulthood, he felt enamored with the mythical beast, the thought of its presence sending a chill down his spine ironically.

As he reached the end of the hall, he found himself in dark cavity of the mountain. It was oddly cool and silent, the room seemingly empty with exception of Leavan. The trainer looked around, eyes scanning the chamber suspiciously. Had he come to early, or too late? It should've been here, he knew it would be. The time of year was right, the mountain was active, and the stone was nowhere to be seen. Taking a pokeball from his pocket and clicking the button, a pokemon would come, this time more serpentine its nature, as its pudgy yellow body would appear happily greeting its trainer with a wag of its drill tail. Leavan would look at the Dunsparce and smirk, before his face would retain its serious nature.

"Happy to see you to too Dune. However, let's get serious for now. Can you check for a heat signature around this area?"

The pokemon happily complied with its master's orders, the drilled tail being stabbed into the ground as the reptilian pokemon would flick a forked tongue out, activating its infrared sensing. It was in that direct moment, as the pokemon caught on to one distinctive heat signature, it ceased movement, only shaking in fear as its eyes and tongue were pointed upward. Leavan would look the land snake with a perplexed expression, and looked up as well, before pausing in horror, amazement and excitement all at the same time. The feelings would converge into a mesh, as he heard the groans of the sleeping deity above him, not yet ablaze with activity.

"Shaa…..aa…."

The trainer stood still, memories flooding back, as if he was literally dreaming, reality and imagination mixing with one another. He was now a child, separated from his parents, without a pokemon to protect himself, their calls having been drowned by the mountains roars. He was cornered by a multitude of wild pokemon, all native to this dungeon, and had no escape. In his desperation, he looked up, and screamed, hoping for someone to answer his pleas for help. And this pokemon, as if a burning seraph from the heavens, answered his call as the chamber lit up with light and heat. He remembered feeling terrified of its power, as the pokemon hanged over him from the ceiling, its very might making him fall over. He remembered the molten and burning saliva, nearly burning him as it dripped from its silver maw and onto the ground next to him, sizzling.

"tsssss…"

In an instant, memory would fade and reality would set in, even as images began to mirror one another. The pokemon began to open its bright eyes, shining like that of the sun. Its body, formerly a dark brown shade, would flash like a lightbulb which lit up the chamber with a orange red glow, the sound of flowing magma now being heard through the walls. Its iron bangles would shimmer softly as they restrained its power, releasing a metallic glow. Leavan began to sweat, his heart starting to accelerate with the tension of the room. He tried to say something, but a only parts of dialogue would come out. He couldn't do this. Not against this pokemon….no, this monster.

"Ah….I…..Dun…..Someone...anyone…."

Its jaws opened, letting out a haunting groan, heat beginning to emanate from it. He recognized this move, but it was different from their first meeting. No, this was not the move that regressed his sight, but a different one. Leavan would shift an eye to his pokemon, the pitiful creature now looking at him for orders, shivering and sweating. He knew it was afraid, and wondering why its trainer wasn't giving orders in this situation. He was letting it down, and letting himself down too. The heatran would the unleash a terrifying roar as it aimed a heat wave down at the trainer and his pokemon, Leavan jumping towards Dunsparce and barking out a order immediately to retaliate.

"Heatraaaaa! SHAAAA!"

"Dune, activate protect now!"

In an instant, a green shield would appear around trainer and pokemon, protecting them from the intense heat wave that almost enveloped them, the whole room being filled with hot air as Leavan found it harder to breath. They had to get out of here. They had to run and beat this creature. The boy and his Dunsparce would quickly dash towards the entrance, the young man returning the snake and heading into the catacombs. He heard the mythical beast shuffling behind him as it traveled across the walls of the cavern, its metallic claws digging in and out of the rocky surface. Leavan would look around, knowing the pokemon was gaining on him, trying to find a way to outsmart it. But how? In this place, they were at a disadvantage, unable to face Heatran in a straight one on one fight. But maybe...if he could flush it out of the the tunnels, they might have a chance to face it directly! Tossing out his gastrodon, pokemon and trainer would turn around to face the approaching beast, with the large pokemon looking at its trainer with skepticism.

"Don't worry, we've got this! FLood the tunnels with surf now!"

The pokemon would heed Leavan's command, as Gastrodon generated a powerful deluge which burst out from its body. The wave across the cavern, heatran finding itself struggling to keep its grip on the wall, before being swept up by the artificial rapids pointing towards the exit. Leavan would be riding on Gastrodon's back, the pokemon pushing the water back the way they came as to take the battle with Heatran outside. Leavan would rub the pokemon's back, urging it to keep pushing.

"Keep moving, we have to get it outside! This should definitely weaken by the time we get to the entrance!"

Leavan would grin nervously. Perhaps he could do this, despite the warning people gave him. As the young man smiled as they neared the entrance, his grin would quickly fade as the currents were suddenly directed to the left, out of Gastrodon's control. The trainer looked at his pokemon with a wide eyed expression, the slug returning the same look as the looked around for answer to this, before finding themselves riding through a gaping hole in the wall. Leavan would frown as the water levels began to decrease, with heatran revealing itself from the top side of the hole, which had it made with earth power.

The lava dome pokemon roared, jumping towards them with a shining face as it tackled them with iron head, sending both trainer and pokemon into a wall. As they were sent flying, Gastrodon would position itself in front of its trainer, slamming into the wall and hitting the ground upside down, allowing Leavan to fall onto its soft underbelly. Leavan looked at Gastrodon and would give a thumbs up as it staggered onto its foot.

Heatran continued to advance, unfazed the powerful flood thanks to its defense. Both pokemon and trainer still stuck in its domain, it came forward with a powerful crunch on Gastrodon. The pokemon would be crushed between its jaws and tossed it into the ground unconscious. Leavan cycled through pokemon, next, bringing out Zeroara, a pokemon of similar status to that of Heatran but not from sinnoh, and not as rare. The trainer would point forward, commanding Zeroara to go on the offensive, refusing to run away for the whole battle.

"Zeroara, hit Heatran with brick break! Lets try to send it back!"

Zeroara would nod to its trainer, electricity crackling around its body as its arm's began to glow, muscle now filled with extreme power. The pokemon would burst forward, moving so fast that it disappeared, before reappearing before Heatran, and sending a right hook at its face, aiming to send it reeling onto its backside. The Mythical pokemon would stand its ground, claws digging into the earth as Zeroara punched it with ground shaking power, attempting to retaliate with a iron head. The thunderclap pokemon would jump back with lightning speed, skidding back to its trainer's side, Leavan's eyes scanning the area for anything might give them a advantage.

"Damnit...on its turf we have limited options...Where the hell are we? Zeroara, can you distract it for a bit?"

Leavan would run to take a look around the area, Zeroara diverting Heatran's focus to it as the pokemon jump forward. Emanating electricity from its claws using plasma fists, the two mythical beasts jumping into conflict as the ground rumbled. Leavan, running through the area would that Heatran had led them into a much wider cave area, filled with flowing rivers of lava, rocky terrain and very few openings. The trainer grit his teeth, the only viable passage to the outside world being on the other side of this cavern, strategically out of their grasp. Even in such short time, Heatran had led them to the perfect spot that gave it the best options.

"Shit, the exits far out of reach, we'll have to hold out against Heatran to reach it."

As Leavan finished up his thoughts, Zeroara would appear next to him, panting as Heatran would appear, having chased after it. Snickering, its body showed little signs of damage from their skirmish, though Zeroara too was untouched, however fatigued from trying to distract Heatran. Leavan would toss out his Abomasnow this time, the pokemon emitting a cool aura facing the steep cliff. Both Leavan, as the trainer would point towards the the exit in the distance, returning Gastrodon and Zeroara while he had the chance. Heatran would roar, its bellows sounding like a command to face it in battle. Leavan would turn to the pokemon, his face now blank as his finger was still pointed towards the exit.

"SHAAAAA! HEEEEAAAA!"

"You want to face us so badly? Try and catch us then. Vanilla, rock climb!"

The Abomasnow would jump onto the steep walls and begin to climb, scaling the walls with surprising vigor and speed, despite its size. The Heatran would momentarily be surprised, before jumping after the trainer and his pokemon, shuffling its way across the walls with extreme tenacity. The pokemon would shoot a heat wave forward, attempting to blow them off of the wall, however, would be surprised as the heat wave was blocked, as Dunsparce would peer out from Abomasnow's fur, gazing back at Heatran. The pokemon would roar, speeding up, its face now red with fury, beginning to glow with the power of iron head. It lunged forward, aiming to smack the trainer and his teammates into the wall, however, as it came forward, the pokemon felt its body stiffen, as the Dunsparce would gazing at it with glowing red eyes, using glare. The pokemon, no longer attached to the wall, would fall into the lava below, making a huge splash as Leavan would rub Dunsparce's head.

"Good job Dune, that should keep him dazed!"

Both trainer and pokemon rejoiced, as they neared the exit, the light to the outside world growing larger. The Abomasnow would land in front of the opening, which displayed a ocean view, mean they were now on the opposite side of the mountain. Leavan would smile, finally finding the exit. Inhaling, he would close his eyes as the ground began to shake around them, the sound of bubbling magma able to be heard.

"And he should resurface in three...two...one."

A explosive magma vortex would rise behind Leavan and his pokemon, as they turned around to view Heatran, now angry as it was sitting on a magma geyser, glaring at Leavan and his pokemon. The trainer smiled, seeing the pokemon so angry, and set the final stages of his plan in motion. Hopping on Abomasnow, and facing the outside, he would point outwards again as Heatran burst forward, carrying with a wave of magma which rode.

"Alright, Vanilla, let get going! Rock climb!"

The Abomasnow would jump, this time sliding down the mountainside as Heatran burst forward from the same opening, carrying with it a magma wave that flowed down like a avalanche, burning everything in sight. The pokemon would use earth power, summoning up earth pillars in an attempt to halt them. Leavan called out to his Abomasnow to dodge left and right based on the approaching projectiles, the sharp pillars rising quickly as they bobbed and weaved out of the way, the chase tearing apart the cliffside.

The trainer, taking out a small note from his pocket, would call out his Flygon and Dunsparce as they neared the ocean, the snake pokemon riding the sand dragon as they took to the skies. On this note was a list of command Leavan had written and illustrated out for the pokemon to follow, while Heatran chased him and Abomasnow down the mountain. Flygon would fly to the bottom of the mountain which met the ocean, carving a make shift earth ramp using fissure and dragon claw. Leavan and Abomasnow, now coming down the mountain would come down the mountain and go flying off the ramp. Heatran stopping at the two would flying into the air above the ocean, roaring in victory.

"HEEEEAAATRAAA-"

"Flygon, now! Earth power!"

In an instant, the pokemon would feel the earth underneath of it rise as it put into the air using earth power, the pillar it was stuck on hanging over the ocean. As the pokemon attempted to return to land while the pillar was still stable, from the other side, charging forward with overwhelming strength, was dunsparce, bursting the aura of a dragon rush. The Heatran, eyes widening in awe, attempted to find ground and rebuttle with iron head, but it was too late. With no ground to stand on, and Dunsparce overwhelming it with charging force, Heatran flinched and was sent flying over the blue waters.

"That's right! Now Dunsparce, your dragon rush has finished this!"

"Traaa!?"

As the pokemon flailed in a panic, falling towards the blue water, a pokeball would come flying into its side. Tapping the button on the ball, was absorbed into its red light, the device shaking as it approached the ocean. As it neared the ocean below, it shook vigorously, the light on the ball shining once, twice, then a third time as it clicked, sealing the Lava Dome Pokemon within it, and falling into Leavan's hand as he stood on a icy platform with Abomasnow. The trainer smiled, and would hold the ball up before his face. That power he couldn't forget was now his, and with it, the beast that haunted childhood clasped in his hands forever in his control. And so, with out tale, the fires of fear are put to an end...

END