Welp, it's Monday, not Sunday. Proofreading took the extra day. Despite this being my busiest week yet, I pumped it out because this was my favorite chapter to write.
Chapter 4)
The Dark Rollercoaster (Arc I Beginning)
Leo laid face-up in the grass when the sudden attack knocked the wind out of him. He doubled in pain, rolling over to his side, where he caught a feint glimpse of Shank and another creature wrestling. The figure was completely indistinguishable, yet the light-absorbent skin was all but uniform, and when it turned its attention to Leo's sudden recovery, Leo made out exactly what the creature was.
Why is a Banette attacking us-
The Banette lunged at Leo, piercing his shoulder with 3 shadowy claws. Leo still recovered his breath and hastily stood, ready to help Shank in battle. Yet when he lurched forward, he was knocked down by a sudden movement of the floor beneath him.
Wait, that isn't possible. I'm on solid ground...
Leo lie on the grass taking stock of his situation, quickly gathering three things. The Banette was still battling Shank - his shoulder was now dripping blood - but the most pressing of them all was a towering Rhyperior in the distance, manipulating the very ground beneath him with its hands.
Leo tried to recover himself again but was quickly swept off his feet once more, receiving massive brunt force damage to his metallic skeleton. His entire body now radiated a pulsating pain, but he was determined to stand up to his adversary.
Leo suddenly glimpsed an auric ping from the foe, and closed his eyes to focus on it, recalling what Shank told him.
The yells behind him didn't sound at all pleasant; they belonged to Shank, after all. Leo knew he would have to swiftly take down his match to help Shank, but he couldn't help to think to himself for a moment.
Why are these pokemon attacking us? What're they after?!
More and more thoughts raced to the surface in Leo's mind, but the one that won was a significant find to combat the bulky Rhyperior. The aura Leo collected from his foe gave him a much-needed tactic, and the moment the earthquake ceased, Leo leapt forward in a speedy counterattack. The stunned Rhyperior attempted to stop him by manifesting jagged stones, but Leo quickly fought through them. His paw glowed a bright orange hue as he violently struck the foe with his palm.
The Rhyperior doubled over and let out a cry of pain, signifying Leo had been right - the rocky bulk of the foe was the most weak to his type of attack. Leo went back in to deal a finishing blow, but was smacked away as the Rhyperior rebalanced himself. Leo grunted as he hit the ground, rolling to lower the damage he took.
Damn it, I need to do something quick!
The Rhyperior began shaking the ground once again, which forced Leo to recoil as he foolishly blocked the attack with his paws - but instead of stalling the attack, he fired a speedy, devastating wave of crimson energy which subdued the Rhyperior - it had been knocked out.
What the hell did I just do?
Leo had no time to celebrate his victory, and even less to wonder what he'd just conjured - Shank and the Banette were still locked in heavy dueling, Shank looking significantly worse off.
"Are you alright, Shank?!" Leo yelled across the hill, sprinting as fast as Lucario-ly possible.
Shank responded by beating the Banette away with his tail for enough time to reply.
"You need to use steel type moves!" Shank yelled, but he was hardly even able to pull himself up for the Banette's counteroffensive.
Leo was still totally unsure how to attack at all as a pokemon - he wasn't even sure what had fainted the Rhyperior. His adrenaline from his combat with the Rhyperior had begun fading and the radiant pain had sprung back up, more notably on his shoulder.
Leo once again closed his eyes and focused on the battle, but was too exhausted to use his aura. He arrived to help Shank up off the grass, but the Banette launched a ghostly orb at Leo, ending the attempt with both lying face down in the grass. Leo's shoulder hurt more than anything, and he seethed in pain as the Banette towered over him.
"Ahh, a real Lucario! I thought you were a Zoroark at first, but you'll fetch a wonderful price to Kolva." The Banette smiled a large, mischievous smile. Leo regained enough strength to half-heartedly swat at the foe with his paw, but it phased right through the creature. Another black energy pulse to his chest and Leo found himself fighting to stay awake through the immense pain, lying still in the dirt. Leo saw Shank in his peripheral stand up, ready to ambush the foe, when a thin, speedy torrent of water knocked him down from seemingly nowhere.
"Watch your back, Gawlo." A shout arose from the bottom of the hill. "He stood up. You can't keep losing your guard."
Shank didn't move another muscle, and Leo surmised he was unconscious.
"Sorry, Bubble." Gawlo shot back. "But this Lucario is our payday. We're set for a long, long time!"
"Hard to get paid when you're dead." Bubble's low-pitched voice grew louder as he walked closer to Leo. "What happened to Okili?"
"This here Lucario knocked 'em out." Gawlo growled. "I told you he's not cut out for our group. We should've just stayed a duo, the feared Banette and Inteleon, he's a liability."
"That liability saved your life when you decided to challenge that Mimikyu." Bubble retorted. Gawlo grumbled disapprovingly and followed Bubble.
Meanwhile, Leo feigned unconsciousness to listen to them. He mustered the little energy he had left to map the aura they gave off in his head; they were stealing Shank's supplies whilst talking.
"Feed Okili some of this Dragapult's berries." Bubble ordered Gawlo. "We'll pawn the rest. Nice job."
Leo's aura also betrayed that Shank wasn't actually out of the count; as the two foes walked towards the Rhyperior, Shank tossed himself an oran berry the Inteleon sloppily dropped whilst sifting through the bag.
Leo wanted to tell the Dragapult his plan to ambush the thieves again, but he knew any amount of talking was a bad idea as they'd just finish them off for the final time.
Leo tried to figure out any possible way to convey his plan - symbols wouldn't work, they might turn around and see. They can't make noise. The only option was...
Leo concentrated his remaining energy on his thoughts, and directed the thought at Shank.
Shank. Can you hear me? Wait for one of them to come back alone, and I'll stand up. When they inevitably attack me, you take the opportunity to hit them with your tail. We'll go from there.
Shank gave Leo a vague nod and closed his eyes. Leo quickly followed suit and waited for them to come back. Leo could hardly concentrate on his aura still, growing increasingly exhausted with the excruciating pain still coursing through his veins. Despite all odds, he detected Bubble coming back.
"Gawlo, contact Kolva as soon as possible. I'll figure out what to do with these mons." Bubble yelled across the hill.
Leo couldn't make out the response, but he thought it likely didn't matter.
Bubble made his way towards the duo, now equipped with a crystal and a large bundle of rope.
5 seconds, Shank.
Bubble began unwinding it and mumbling to himself. Once he turned his full attention to the rope, Leo shot up and leapt at the Inteleon, which begun a wrestling match on the grass. Bubble quickly pushed away and charged a pulse of high-velocity water at Leo.
Shank's counterattack consisted of a ball of energy hitting Bubble, but it was too weak to even stop the lizard's water attack. Once Leo was once again out for the count, Inteleon turned his attention to Shank, but Gawlo had already arrived to subdue him.
Gawlo charged at Shank with 3 ghostly claws, ready to end the fight for the final time, but the attack never landed. Instead, someone had intercepted the Banette and delivered an attack to it so powerful it lay unconscious. Shank yet was in no mood to fight, and not only was Leo critically injured and drenched but his final gambit had failed and the energy he'd mustered up had done none for help.
Leo lay helpless, fighting to stay conscious through the eye-watering pain that permeated his body, and the fiery pulse of his right shoulder. The sounds of fighting were far from over, but when he turned around to watch the battle, Leo would've gasped if he wasn't breathing so hard.
What's a Bisharp doing here?
An unmistakable name was etched into the back of the Bisharp - 'Axel'. Leo knew from what Xaliz had told him that he was dangerous and likely from the very government he'd need to avoid - but then why was he fighting Bubble?
Leo recovered enough energy to use a little bit of aura, still attempting to remain perfectly still to fool the combatants into thinking he was out. He watched the fight on the ground - Axel and Bubble were fighting on and on, and Bubble's crystal that he brought to the scene glowed brighter and brighter as the fight wore on.
"I've had about enough of this, already!" Bubble yelled. He squeezed the crystal, which now emanated rays of blinding, blue streaks of light. Axel yelled indiscernibly and attempted to retreat to little avail, as the supercharged water torrent broke his run. The torrent quickly morphed into a water spout as it flung Axel across the hill.
Come on, I've gotta do something, but everything hurts...
Leo remembered his sister. The taunting from the guy with the watch. His main goal in life now was to find his sister, at all costs, even himself. Leo's anger went unchecked as he built up a fury morphed from pure rage - if he was going to be stopped from seeing his sister again, the people - or pokemon - that wronged him would pay dearly for it. Shank was unconscious now and Axel flung away by a giant water spout, so it was all up to him. His anger numbed all the pain he had eaten, and his arm glowed a blood red tinge as he channeled all his energy towards it.
Leo leapt up and yelled what could only be described as a war cry - that was the last thing he remembered before he woke up, atleast.
Leo's mind slowly defogged as he groggily opened his eyes to a domesticated environment - he'd been placed in a bed. He was nowhere he remembered, so he surmised that they'd lost the fight and were taken somewhere.
A fear which was assuaged when Shank flew over to his bedside.
"Oh, you're awake."
"Did we get taken? What happened?" Leo asked, but Shank ignored the question.
"Axel told me what you did." Shank explained. "Axel, come here! He's awake."
Axel made his way from around a wall and stared at Leo.
"Axel, tell 'em what happened please. I don't think he remembers, which isn't too surprising to me."
"Shank told me you 'don't know any moves', which definitely conflicts with using reversal against that water lizard." Axel chuckled. "You just suddenly leapt forward at high speed and summoned a reversal strike straight into their skull. I'm surprised they're not dead."
"Well, reversal isn't known to kill unless the user is dying." Shank clarified. "So even though you beat their skull in, it wouldn't cause enough damage to kill them, thankfully."
"W- what about Axel?" Leo asked. "Isn't he supposed to be like, part of the government or something?"
"Story for later." Axel frowned. "We're allies now though. I explained it all to Shank while you were out."
"Where's Bubble, and-"
"We brought him and Gawlo into the resistance courts to await sentencing." Shank explained.
"No trial? Just sentencing?"
Axel spoke up. "Depends on who turns 'em in. If you're trusted enough - like Shank here is I'd presume - they can skip straight to sentencing."
Don't know what I expected, of course their criminal system is wildly different from America. I need to stand up and continue...
"Leo, don't." Shank prevented Leo from getting up. "You heavily overexerted yourself and you've been out all night."
"I woke up for a reason." Leo scowled. "My mind thinks my body's ready."
Shank shrugged. "If you say so."
Leo slowed his pace and crawled out of the bed.
"So, where are we?"
"Vemine security checkpoint." Axel clarified.
"And what about Xaliz?"
Shank sighed. "He'll probably be waiting at Echo Garden for a bit, or he'll fly back. So much for 'flying ahead to warn of danger'."
Leo was already bored. "So, what do we do while we wait for him?"
"We need to hone our skills." Shank admitted. "Those crooks almost beat us pretty bad."
"That water spout was massive - hey wait, Shank, what did you with that Inteleon's water crystal?" Axel added.
Shank responded by reaching into his pouch and tossing it out.
"You kept it?" Axel asked.
"Why not, do they not deserve it for what they did?" Shank retorted.
Axel went silent with that logic. Leo took the opportunity to inquire about him.
"I thought you said you were as good as dead, even with the healing."
"Well, I was- but your supplies lasted me long enough to get to Luvanhalla hospital. As soon as I was treated, my superiors wanted me to go back out and track you again. And so I did, but on my own terms." Axel smiled.
"But why would you want to carry out those orders..?"
"The orders weren't to kill you. They wanted you back alive, for what reason I don't know. I'd always been told since I joined the Salaxan ops that Lucario were always evil and out to cause chaos and destruction. That they're ruthless, and all they care about is blood... so when you came to me, I gave up. I thought you were there to end me. But you saving me changed my entire viewpoint."
"Well, I can't speak for other Lucario, but I'm far from bloodthirsty- hell, I've protested every fight. Anyways, thank you so much for saving us, Axel." Leo teared up remembering his sister - he would live to search another day. "You don't understand how much it means."
"Please don't thank me." Axel protested. "It's the least I could do- you saved my life. We're merely even."
"Sorry to ruin your precious moment, but we need to restart our journey ASAP." Shank interjected. "Axel, thank you for helping us. We owe you. We will begin on our way now-"
"I'm coming with." Axel blurted.
"Well, um, if you wanna."
"Yes." Axel stated. "I can't just return to Salaxa now, and after Leo here saved my life - I can't keep working for an entity that will kill Leo at any chance they get."
"Ok, let's get moving."
Leo, Axel, and Shank departed from the place - Leo couldn't quite call it a home, it was much too small and only had two rooms. They cleared security, albeit with great difficulty as Axel's presence wasn't quite comforting to the guards, but Shank overruled any suspicion they had.
When they passed the second checkpoint, Leo squinted his eyes and looked at Shank with a puzzled look.
"Where did you get so much authority over this city?"
"Remember when I told you you would know my secrets in due time? It's not that important, but if it helps motivate you to awaken your aura..."
Leo chuckled. "I don't actually care that much. Just curious."
Leo hadn't fully recovered from the fight yesterday - he didn't feel like it was a whole day ago, but then again, he was used to that feeling. Leo looked up at the sky and guessed they had a little more than half the day left.
They walked on through the untouched nature, through the forest they had come through the day prior, to the same hilly plains they were attacked in. Leo insisted on regular breaks to keep his body sharp, but his legs slowly gained chronic pain. His shoulder had almost completely healed, but his right arm, specifically the paw, also felt highly bruised. After inquiring about how he gained that injury, Axel decided to give a full account of what happened.
"After I was flung away by the water spout, I watched from a tree I had landed in." Axel explained. "Bubble was recovering from the Z-move, when you sprung up and bashed his skull in with some awesome red glow. Then you just kinda stood there for a few seconds before collapsing."
Shank looked at Leo with a somber expression. "Leo, you need to be extra careful to make sure you control any anger."
"It saved us though." Axel piped up.
Shank sighed. "It saved us, perhaps. But once Leo is stronger... it can and will cost us dearly."
Leo didn't listen very intently, he was leaving this planet once they found a wormhole after all.
"Anyways, after you passed out Leo, I fed Shank some of his berries and he woke up. Bubble and Gawlo were dragged back to Vemine, but the Rhyperior was long gone."
Shank followed up. "On the bright side, this fight ended up paying our supplies. They had a pretty large bounty on them, apparently they robbed people all across the tundra."
"Ok, we need to stop here." Leo complained.
Axel shook his head. "Again? Leo, we need to-"
"Yeah, I know." Leo gave Axel a look of remorse. "But my legs have hurt all day, and walking on and walk doesn't make them feel any nicer."
"Hey, since you can't walk, might as well train!" Shank suggested.
Axel found a log and sat on it from a distance observing Shank and Leo.
"Why do you insist on training me so much?" Leo said with his head buried in his paws.
"Because, Leo." Shank flew closer. "I want you to concentrate your aura on my thoughts. You will know what I mean once you see what I mean."
Leo didn't have the willpower to object and closed his eyes to concentrate on whatever Shank meant. He found success relatively quick, which shocked him. He could make out a few figures, but nothing more. Leo tried to look deeper, but his aura was suddenly cut off by a wave of exhaustion that brought Leo to a halt.
"Seems you did pretty well!" Axel shouted to Leo.
"He did alright," Shank replied, "but he needs to learn how to conserve energy while in aura mode."
"Shank, why don't you train with me?" Leo meant as a sarcastic remark, but he was hardly surprised when Shank agreed to.
"Why then, I've got a great idea!" Shank exclaimed. "Leo, you close your eyes and try to dodge my dreepies with only your aura."
"What?! How fast are they-"
"Mach speeds!"
Leo chuckled. "Yeah, ok, how fast are they really?"
Shank stared Leo in the eyes. "I'm being dead serious. Mach speeds. If you get hit, it's steel on steel, don't worry."
Yeah, isn't that how knives get sharpened? Can't wait to become a living blade.
Leo made it known that he desperately needed some rest. Shank countered with one oran berry.
"Fine, whatever." Leo mumbled, snatching the berry and gorging himself on it. "Guess I could get used to this diet."
"What, have you never eaten a... oh, I guess you haven't, nevermind."
Shank offered Axel a berry, which he rejected. Shank instead tossed the berry up, which he intended to catch in his mouth - if it weren't for a Swellow swooping in and snatching it. Leo quickly made a dash for the bird, pushing through light shrubbery in the light forest biome. As he reached up to grab it from the bird, his paw instead shot a high velocity wave of energy which collided with the bird, grounding it.
Leo turned his paw to his eyes as he caught his breath, but it was the same 3 fingered limb with a spike opposite its palm. Shank and Axel quickly caught up to Leo, and Shank smiled as he addressed Leo.
"See? You know moves. That move is called Vacuum Wave."
"So, I do." Leo admitted, chuckling. "I just don't know how I summoned it."
Axel spoke up. "You're a Lucario, which can manipulate aura, and since Vacuum Wave is a special attack influenced by aura, you easily used it."
"So, if aura sphere is also influenced by aura, why can't I do that?"
"Remember what I told you?" Shank said. "Aura sphere is a controlled manifestation of aura. Vacuum Wave, but more specifically special attacks in general, are largely uncontrolled uses of aura. That's why aura sphere never misses, and also why it's harder to utilize."
This dumb Veras logic makes no sense.
"This berry is no good anyways." Axel whined. "It's got dirt on it now from the bird's fall."
"It taught the bird a lesson though!" Shank corrected Axel's pessimism.
Leo looked around at their surroundings and took in the forest as his two friends conversed. The forest was a beautiful, lush sea of trees and shrubbery, just like the forests at home. The key differences laid in the color of the bark - white, not brown, and many of the shrubs had giant berries. Leo wasn't sure why those weren't picked and eaten, but he had a more important goal on his mind.
Leo tried to find a way into their conversation, and eventually weaseled a comment into a small patch of silence.
"We need to hit the road." Leo reminded them.
"Leo, liven up-"
"He's right, Axel." Shank interrupted. "C'mon, let's go."
Leo's pain returned after the excitement from the bird had worn off, yet it didn't hurt nearly as bad. Shank had told him that recovery was mind over matter, and now Leo was seeing that firsthand. He also swore pokemon healed way faster than normal, recalling his shoulder and how it had fully healed and the first hour in Veras where he had foolishly struck himself twice.
My leg feels just as bad as the other leg, and the gash on my paw from striking the tree is completely gone.
Despite the advantages of his new form, quite possibly the most annoying part of it was his new tail. It often scared him when he brushed it against things, his brain having been previously wired not to have nerve endings there. His main grievance with it was the fact that it supported his weight, so he had an extra dimension to walking. At first, the decrease in balance could've been shrugged off as adapting to his new body, but it became increasingly obvious that his tail was making him more unsteady overall.
Leo once again looked at the sky.
It's becoming sundown... I hope we're not sleeping on the forest floor.
Despite his determination for adequate bedding, it was becoming increasingly more and more obvious that they would have to do exactly that. They walked for a little while more, occasionally seeing some life - a Kakuna here, a Shellos there, but the life abruptly ended near a forest clearing.
"We're stopping here for tonight, any further and we would freeze to death in our sleep." Shank declared.
Axel and Leo both spoke simultaneously. "Wait, you mean-"
"Yes, we're at the tundra edge. We've got approximately one hour to kill before nightfall, so why don't we engage in some training?"
"Can't we atleast get some food first?" Leo complained.
"Sure!"
Shank opened his pouch and tossed Leo and Axel two leppa berries each.
"These are pretty small.. how do you stay alive on such a small diet?" Leo inquired.
"Well I don't know what you ate back at Earth," Shank responded, "but just a few of these will last you the whole day. What was your species on Earth, anyways?"
"I was a human."
"'Human'. That's a pretty nice species name. What species is your god?"
Leo thought for a moment. "Depends on what religion you adhere to, but most people on Earth believe that god is also human."
Shank's squinted his eyes as he stared at Leo with an interrogative look.
"You're the same species as your god?" Shank exclaimed. "What kind of powers did you have?"
"What is 'religion'?" Axel asked.
"Yes, I guess I'm the same species - but so is 8 billion others. And as for religion, it's too complicated to explain."
"8 BILLION?!" Shank shouted. "The whole population of all the species combined in Veras is merely 50 million!"
Axel chuckled. "I have a little bit of information about Earth, Shank, but correct me if I'm wrong Leo. Humans are the dominant species of Earth, and they either keep the other species as pets or hunt and eat them."
"Oh, kind of like we eat Magikarp or Bouffalant?" Shank said.
"Yeah, but I don't even like killing Magikarp.. can't imagine how cruel humans are to hunt and kill every other species." Axel replied.
"I see where they come from though." Shank said. "It's their fault for being tasty."
Axel shrugged. "I guess that's one way to put it."
Leo was having trouble getting into their conversation once again, and just gave up putting effort into it. He knew how socially inept he was, and pondered why he even got himself in this situation. The conversation ended with Shank flying to Leo's side whilst he laid on the ground watching the sun fall as night loomed closer and closer.
"Guess we can train the detective part of your aura tomorrow."
"Where's Axel?" Leo asked.
"He walked off to get bedding." Shank replied. "You know how to do Vacuum Wave and Reversal, which aren't exactly known for being beginner moves. Can you do anything else?"
"How am I supposed to test that?"
"You probably didn't learn the moves normally, so you don't have them as instinct." Shank guessed. "Try to channel your aura into searching yourself."
Shank's advice was fruitful, but instead of telling Leo the move, it just made him remember how he had originally struck Okili.
"When I struck Okili with my paw, it glowed an orange tinge." Leo explained.
"Ah, I remember." Shank replied. "That's force palm. It's a more beginner move, I believe Yolsa knew it from when he was a Riolu."
"Force Palm, Reversal, and Vacuum Wave." Axel shouted from a distance.
"Did you get bedding?" Shank inquired.
"Enough to not have the ground suck the heat overnight." Axel replied.
Shank and Axel taught Leo how to make a makeshift bed from the thatch and sticks Axel had collected.
The once vibrant pink-orange sky turned grayer and grayer, enveloping the forest edge in an expanding denial of vision. Leo wasn't nearly as tired as Shank and Axel on account of having slept unconscious for much longer than they had, but he too advanced further to the lull of sleep as he laid on the thatch bed.
Before long, Leo was the only one awake. The most he did was silently chuckle to himself at how Shank slept- he almost felt sorry for him given the fins blocking him from turning. Leo slept on his side, which made him thankful fate didn't turn him too into a Dragapult- but he shot that down quick, thinking he'd rather have less sleep than a murderous government on his tail.
That analogy actually works now... what a world.
Leo eventually gave up trying to sleep and sat up, using his aura to detect the foliage in the pitch black night. The braids on his head flared as he cautiously stepped around the forest and near a creekbed, where he channeled his aura into an attempt to fire a Vacuum Wave.
No success.
He tried again but giving his mind the pretense that he was in danger if he didn't conjure it; this time it worked. The wave shot into the creekbed sand, creating a pop as a geyser of sand engulfed Leo.
Aren't I a genius for using it so close to myself?
Leo prepared to head back, but his aura felt uneasy, as if someone was watching him. He strategically walked back to make little noise, but the feeling never dissipated.
Leo made it back to the bed, his friends still fast asleep. He laid down too and prepared to drift off.
This time, his luck granted him release for a change.
Day 1, Anna is kidnapped by a group of thugs,
Day 2, Leo finds a new world full of creatures and bugs,
Day 3, A party of three fights some bandits,
Day 4, Leo and the group learn their new gambits.
Arc I - Infiltrating Horma - "Horma's Special Guests"
Chapter 5 Should come out Sunday or Monday, but I guess I'm notorious for lying here.