"Oh, yeah! The Alola region!"
Angelo laughed as he saw the tropical region in question come into view. Because they came from the northwestern direction, the first island that came into view was Poni island. Charizard kept on flying, staying on the trail of the darkness, which flew ahead of them. As they passed over the coastline and over land, Flarius said, I take it you are fond of this particular region?
Angelo nodded. "Hoenn may have been the first region I ever visited, but my favorite region I've ever been to is the Alola region."
Interesting. How many regions have you been to?
Angelo blushes and laughs nervously. "Uhhh…Hoenn and Alola…"
Flarius chuckles. Ah. So many regions to choose from.
Angelo grins. "I mean, I also stayed in Kanto for, like two minutes, but I got chased by a pack of Mankeys. Man, that was…scary at the time. I mean, a whole pack of…monkey-looking things coming at you, and they look angry? Yeah, I was–"
Angelo stopped talking as he saw the darkness suddenly dive down in the sky.
"Charizard! Follow it!"
Charizard grunted and went into a dive as well, keeping up with the shadowy blob. The three of them followed the darkness over the Poni Wilds, briefly saw Seafolk Village, and flew over Ancient Poni Path before the darkness finally dove down again over the Vast Poni Canyon. Charizard followed it.
As they flew over the canyon, Angelo grew a little nervous.
What is the matter, Angelo? Flarius asked him.
Angelo sighed. "Well, Alola has something called the Island Challenge. You know what this is?
Yes, I do.
"Well, Vast Poni Canyon is where the Dragon Trial of the Island Challenge takes place. The Totem Pokémon that guards this trial is insane. I never took part in it, but I saw other Trainers attempt it. They all struggled."
Interesting. Let me guess, you wish to fight this Totem Pokémon? Now that you are, you know, able to battle sufficiently?
Angelo placed hand on his chest, gasping in mock shock. "I would never! How dare you! What could possibly make you assume such a thing!?"
Angelo and Flarius then laughed heartily.
"But seriously, I would not wanna fight the Totem Pokémon of the Vast Poni Canyon. His name is Kommo-o. He's awesome, but he's also menacing.
Flarius laughed. It was that bad, eh?
Before Angelo could reply, the darkness ahead of them screeched and flew behind a ridge. A second later, the sound of rigorous clanging echoed out, and the darkness screeched even louder than before, only this time, it was in pain. The shadowy blob then flew back into view, twisting around and screeching in pain.
The culprit then jumped on top of a ridge. Angelo gasped.
"It's a Kommo-o!"
What!? Is it the Totem Pokémon? Flarius asked.
"No, I can tell. Totem Pokémon are usually bigger than their normal counterparts. This one's normal size. Totem Kommo-o is, like, almost 8 feet tall. That one's only slightly over 5 feet, which is normal Kommo-o height."
Interesting.
The Kommo-o roared at the darkness. It banged its arms together, clanging and rattling its scales. Bright purple waves of sound energy flew towards the darkness, causing it to screech in pain once more. It writhed in agony as the Scaly Pokémon assaulted it with sound.
The sound is..hurting it? Flarius asked.
Angelo laughed. "Yeah! Kommo-o's scales are meant to drive away darkness. I guess this is one Pokémon that the darkness can't touch!
The Kommo-o banged its arms together again, and the darkness had no choice but to fly out of reach.
"Charizard! After it!" Angelo said.
Before the Flame Pokémon could make a move, though, the Kommo-o started attacking them with sound. It banged its arms together to send waves of sound energy at Angelo, Flarius, and Charizard. Charizard and Flarius roared with pain while Angelo covered his ears.
"AAAAHHH! WHAT THE HECK!" he shouted.
It…must be…protecting its…young! Flarius cried. It doesn't…know that…we're trying…to help!
That's when the darkness made it move. While Kommo-o was distracted with Angelo, Flarius, and Charizard, the shadowy blob flew towards the Scaly Pokémon and disappeared into its chest. The Kommo-o roared and ceased its assault of sound.
Angelo winced in pain and slowly uncovered his ears.
"Ahh…Ah, ow…Ah, my ears…"
Gah…That…was…Wait! The Kommo-o! Angelo!
Angelo looked over at the Kommo-o to see it trying to fight against the darkness within it, but Angelo and Flarius both knew that it was no use.
Angelo concentrated, and soon the scarlet armor of the Crimson Knight started to envelop him. In a matter of seconds, the Crimson Knight sat proudly on Charizard's back, ready to fight.
And then the Kommo-o succumbed to the darkness.
Its gray scales became pitch-black, while its yellow claws and the edges of its scales became a very dark gray. The white feathers on its shoulders turned blood-red, as well as its eyes, which now glowed.
It turned to glare at the fiery trio and roared, the sound ringing with dark energy. Angelo couldn't help but feel a tiny bit nervous. He gripped Flarius tightly.
Do not be afraid, Angelo, Flarius said. We will win this.
Angelo laughed. "I just…can't look at it without being reminded of Totem Kommo-o."
Charizard roared and prepared to charge forward, then looked up at the rocky ridges and cliffs surrounding them. He grunted in surprise. Angelo followed his gaze and gasped.
Dozens of Jangmo-o and Hakamo-o had gathered to watch this fight. There were even a few other Kommo-o observing them.
"Whoa…That's crazy…" Angelo said.
Do you think they will help us? Flarius asked.
Angelo shook his head. "I get the feeling they live by that one code of 'fight your own battles.' It's an honor thing, or something. So if all they're gonna do is watch…"
Angelo raised Flarius high while Charizard roared, flames billowing out of his mouth.
"...then let's give them a show!"
All the Scaly Pokémon in Vast Poni Canyon watching this fight started to rhythmically bang their scales in unison, creating an almost spiritual beat. The beat of their scales fired Angelo up. His blood ran hot as he stared down his foe. The darkened Kommo-o roared in challenge.
"Charizard! Dragon Claw!"
Charizard roared as his claws lit up with purple draconic energy, then flew forward. The Kommo-o charged forward to meet them, its own claws lighting up with energy as it also used Dragon Claw.
Charizard and the Kommo-o crashed together, their Dragon Claw attacks clashing with much force. The spectating Jangmo-o, Hakamo-o, and Kommo-o all roared and banged their scales harder as the two battling Pokémon collided. Charizard grunted and flew back as the darkened Kommo-o jumped back as well.
"Flamethrower!" Angelo cried.
Charizard dove back in, inhaling deeply and breathing a powerful stream of fire at the darkened Pokémon, who put up its arms to shield itself from the fiery attack.
As Charizard flew past it, Angelo jumped off of his back and landed on the ground. The Kommo-o turned around to face him, growling menacingly.
Angelo charged forward and swung Flarius, only for the darkened Kommo-o to block the attack with its scaly arms. It quickly threw a punch at Angelo, who jumped back and shot a blast of fire from his left hand. The Pokémon swatted the fireball aside and roared. Angelo ran to the side, shouting, "Charizard! Flamethrower again!" as he shot his own stream of fire from Flarius. Charizard roared and flew back in, blasting the Kommo-o from behind with a powerful stream of fire. The darkened Pokémon roared with pain as it was assaulted by fire from both sides.
Angelo then used Torrid Transport to teleport to the flame on Charizard's tail. All the spectating Pokémon gasped as Angelo suddenly appeared behind the Kommo-o, never wavering in the frenzied clanging out their scales. Angelo then tried to stab the Scaly Pokémon from behind, only for it to turn in surprise at the last second. Flarius glanced off of its scales.
Angelo yelped and jumped back as the Kommo-o almost caught him with an uppercut. As its arm went up in the punching motion, the ground suddenly split open in front of it, and a sizable stalagmite erupted from the ground, almost impaling Angelo.
What in the world!? Flarius cried.
Angelo huffed. "I'm just as surprised as you are, man."
That's when Charizard flew in and breathed another stream of fire at the Kommo-o, only this time the flames swirled together into a fiery vortex. Charizard used Fire Spin to once again trap the opponent. The spectating Pokémon all cheered as the molten maelstrom lit up the entire area.
"Nice one, Charizard!" Angelo shouted. He then charged right into the extra-spicy storm, running right through the flames and planning to stab Flarius into the Kommo-o's exposed stomach.
The darkened Pokémon grunted in surprise and put up its arms to shield itself. Angelo grunted as Flarius clashed with its scales, jarring his arm slightly. He jumped back slightly as it tried to slash at Angelo with Dragon Claw, then charged forward and slammed into it with his armored body, using his body weight and heightened strength to shove it back. The Kommo-o stumbled back and hit the fiery wall of the Fire Spin and roared in pain. It turned and tried to force its way through the fire, only to be stopped like it had hit a solid wall. Angelo then ran up to it and delivered a flaming kick to its face, running out of the Fire Spin before it could retaliate.
Being immune to fire means the Fire Spin does not bind you, Flarius noted with admiration. How useful.
Angelo laughed slightly and charged back in, slashing the Kommo-o across the face with Flarius. The darkened Scaly Pokémon roared with pain and tried to swipe at Angelo, only to accidentally touch the wall of fire and recoil.
Angelo was feeling pretty good about himself until he heard the Kommo-o roar louder than ever before. Suddenly, the ground around them cracked and split apart in some places, causing Angelo to lose his balance.
"Whoa! What was that?"
It was then that the Fire Spin wore off, revealing the Kommo-o with its arms raised high.
Of course! Flarius shouted. Kommo-o is able to change the landscape simply by raising its arms. It possesses incredible physical strength to be able to do this.
Angelo gasped. "Holy crap. That's…kinda crazy…"
The Kommo-o roared and charged forward, prepping to punch at Angelo. Angelo raised Flarius and prepared to defend himself, only for Charizard to fly in and slam into the darkened Pokémon. Flame tumbled over Scaly as they rolled to the side. Both Pokémon disentangled themselves from each other and roared. Charizard whipped around and smacked the Kommo-o in the face with his tail. The Kommo-o roared and tried to claw Charizard, but he had flown out of the way by then.
Angelo charged in once again and slashed the Scaly Pokémon across the face. It roared and stumbled back. Charizard then flew behind it and charged forward, cloaking himself in flames. He used Flare Blitz to slam into the Kommo-o from behind and send it forward…right into Flarius, whom Angelo was holding outstretched in front of him.
The Searing Sword made a clean stab through the darkened Pokémon's exposed chest, and it roared louder than ever. The surrounding Jangmo-o, Hakamo-o, and Kommo-o all cheered as Angelo made the killing blow. The darkness quickly ejected itself from its body and flew off, screeching in pain.
Charizard breathed another stream of fire at the shadowy blob. It connected, and the darkness screeched in pain, but it kept going. It then flew off.
Angelo ran over to Charizard and sighed.
"I appreciate the effort, man. We'll have to catch it again," he said.
Charizard grunted. Meanwhile, the Kommo-o that was possessed growled and shook its head, blinking in confusion.
Angelo grinned at the Scaly Pokémon. "You'll be fine. And, hey, about earlier, it's all good. I understand that you were just trying to protect your young. But next time, maybe consider the fact that the person is trying to help. Just a suggestion.
The liberated Kommo-o blinked, then lowered its head. It held one hand over its chest and bowed, as if showing respect to Angelo and Charizard (and Flarius), and the surrounding Scaly Pokémon all roared and cheered, banging their scales in a frenzied beat.
We must go now, Flarius said.
Angelo nodded. He climbed onto Charizard's back, and the Flame Pokémon flapped his wings and took off in pursuit of the darkness. The frenzied scalebeat of the Jangmo-o, Hakamo-o, and Kommo-o seemed to play in Angelo's soul as they flew out of the Vast Poni Canyon, driving him forward and filling him with determination.
ALOHA TO THE ALOLAAAAAA!
(i'm a Cam Steady fan, okay?)
Yes, Alola is my favorite region. I freaking love Gen 7. The whole bit of "stayed in Kanto for, like, two minutes" is based on the fact that, technically, my first Pokémon game was Pokémon Yellow, but I had no idea what I was doing. I was just stumbling through Route 1, not really understanding much, and almost got outskilled by a Mankey. Then, a few years later, I got Omega Ruby, and that, I sort of understood what I was doing.
Enough GameXpert64 lore, back to Angelo.