X
With the Lucarionite finally in hand, there was only one last thing to do before Korrina's journey was complete— Cut the stone down to size. It wasn't exactly practical as a fifty-pound block of crystal, so getting it shaven to the standard marble was a no-brainer. Thankfully Geosenge Town had no shortage of smiths with the equipment for such a task. Now, it was a matter of waiting.
Ash and Korrina stood outside by the window of one such smith, the two of them plus Pikachu peering inside and watching the process at work. Though they kept up their air of cool with one another as best as they could, there was an undeniable excitement underlying every word they exchanged.
"Come oooon. Let me and Pikachu take a shot at you first!" Ash asked, continuing the conversation the two had been having. He turned his gaze away from the stone for a moment to face Korrina head-on. "We still haven't gotten to battle a Mega Evolved Pokémon before!"
"Pikachu, pika!"
"Sorry Ash, if you two couldn't handle us before, you've got no chance with Mega Evolution on our side." Korrina's sincere humbleness from the cave was seemingly gone now, replaced again with her bolstering, confident attitude from their first meeting— Not that Ash minded of course.
"Oh, you wanna see how well we handle you this time?"
"Pffft." Korrina snorted, laughing Ash's jeer off without another word, wounding his pride a little in the process. It wasn't that bad, however.
He understood her reasoning. She had promised her grandfather a match after all.
"Just be patient, Ketchum. You'll get your shot at me soon enough," she teased, calling back to their conversation in the cave. Ash recalled the explanation Gurkinn gave him clearly.
"Our family holds two Keystones. One for our successor, and one for an inheritor. A trainer who has proven themself against Korrina may inherit our remaining Keystone, and be bestowed the gift of Mega Evolution."
"When we have our Gym Battle, then you'll get to face my Mega Lucario," she added, giving Ash a grin he soon returned
"I still can't believe you didn't tell us you're the Shalour City Gym Leader," he said with a sneer, jabbing her side lightly before turning and looking back at the gemsmith at work. They'd be done soon. They just needed a few more passes to round out the Mega Stone.
A thought began to turn in Ash's mind.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Hm?"
"Why me?" His opening surprised Korrina, earning him a confused look that deserved a clarification. "Since you're a Gym Leader, there must've been a ton of people who've beaten you already. Why didn't they get the Keystone?"
Korrina snorted again, raising her hand forward as she began to count off.
"For one thing, it only counts if you beat me when I'm using Mega Evolution— No Mega Stone for me means no Keystone for you. Secondly, I don't go easy on people. So, no, a ton of people haven't beaten me. Thirdly—" Korrina reached forward, grabbing Ash by the collar of his jacket. "—I told you already. I like you. And since you asked so nicely, and helped me get the Lucarionite to start with, you get the first shot at becoming the inheritor."
Korrina let Ash go then, crossing her arms as she gave him a look that was halfway between 'You're welcome' and 'I dare you to hit me.'
It made Ash laugh.
"Let's have a great battle then!"
X
The moment of truth had arrived. The combatants, Korrina and her Grandfather, stood on the outskirts of Geosenge town, surrounded by the rocky pillars that would be the stadium of their spar. This was far from the first battle the two had had, and it certainly wouldn't be the last. Yet, this time, things were different. This time, Korrina was certain she could win.
From the sidelines, Ash and the party watched on in pitched trepidation, Ash especially barely able to contain himself. He'd never seen a Mega Evolved Pokémon this up close and personal before, let alone two!
He could feel the Aura pouring from all four of them, the waves of energy that contrasted each side of the field. Gurkinn and his Lucario were cool and firm, their Aura like a tensed muscle ready to strike. Korrina and her partner, meanwhile, were like firecrackers, their Aura almost roaring with their proud battle cries.
"Mega Evolution! From the very beginning!" Gurkinn reached for his Keystone and immediately his Aura began to turn. The waves pouring out of him and his Lucario synchronized, flowed in tandem, until they began to sing in perfect harmony.
"I wouldn't have it any other way!" Korrina slammed down on her Keystone next, as her Aura changed as well. It grew faster, more excited, more everything. Lucario's Aura mirrored hers, its pace accelerating into a runaway heartbeat.
Bands of light shot out from each trainer and Pokémon, binding together until they began to expand. The light soon encased the two Lucarios, brilliant shells of gold and crimson energy forming and wrapping around each of them. Soon, only their silhouettes remained.
Then, they began to change.
The black bands across their skin exploded out, stretching like bolts of lightning from each limb to their chests. Their fists and feet then began to glow, splotches of red forming on them like crimson-hot steel. The most astonishing change of all, however, happened to their hair. Their shorter, organized braids grew into true manes, now waving through the Aura winds.
"Lucario!" With a proud cry, Korrina's partner dismissed the energy, revealing the transformation that had taken place. A moment later, Gurkinn's Lucario followed.
It was time to begin.
"Go Lucario, Bone Rush!" At Korrina's command, the battle kicked into gear. With just a flicker of movement, Lucario disappeared, appearing above Gurkinn's with a staff already procured. His new speed was immense, nearly untrackable to the naked eye.
His opponent, however, was no slouch.
"Lucario." Barely even straining themself, Gurkinn's Lucario expertly caught the overhead strike, bringing Korrina's Lucario to a dead stop. The explosion of their colliding Auras alone sent Ash and his group reeling.
"This is so cool!" Ash's smile grew wider and wider as he watched the clash of fists and energy, each blow making his senses run wild.
Korrina's Lucario separated and went for another strike, while Gurkinn's Lucario swept the former's legs. Korrina's Lucario, however, merely used his hands to summersault away.
Every strike, every move, they were like explosions of energy, waves of Aura similar to nothing Ash had ever felt before. This was battling like nothing he'd ever felt before.
"Aura Sphere!" Gurkinn's command split the air like a thunderclap, as his Lucario disappeared from view. Korrina's Lucario tried to spot where his opponent had gone, but it was too late.
They were already behind him.
"Lucario!" The Aura Sphere was point blank, launching Lucario across the field.
"The buck stops—!"
"Bone Rush!" Cutting through Korrina's command, Gurkinn sent his Lucario flying into action. They disappeared from view once more, appearing in their opponent's path with a single staff in hand. Rearing back, they readied a devastating strike.
"Not on my watch! Lucario, grab their Bone Rush!"
"Huh!?"
Korrina's Lucario turned in the air at the last moment, throwing his body over the staff and latching onto it in the same motion. Then, using his opponent's strength against them, he flew back with the swing, ripping the staff away and pulling it close in tandem.
"Lucario." Korrina's partner grinned as he skidded to a stop, his opponent's weapon in his hands.
"Those two are amazing— I can barely keep up!" Serena's hand went to her chest. Every move, the energy that was being let out, it was so strong that even she and the others could feel it now.
"Isn't it awesome!" Ash, meanwhile, could feel all of it. The clash of energy, the sheer presence the fighters had— it was practically barreling over him. The Aura felt like a storm, like constant waves beating against stone, just ready to blast through.
Soon though, that storm began to shift.
"Lucario, Bone—!"
"Lucario!" At Korrina's call, Lucario lurched forward. Jumping with a sudden burst of speed, he went on the offensive, thundering onto Gurkinn's Lucario with a wild swing.
"Bone Rush, once more!" Gurkinn and his Lucario, however, were speedy on the draw. In a flash, they summoned their own staff, bringing their opponent to a dead stop again. Another wave of Aura blasted out from the collision then, this one even stronger than the ones from before. "Sweep him, Lucario!"
Gurkinn's Lucario pushed their opponent back before diving for his legs.
"Lu!" Yet, Korrina's Lucario dodged it, leaping far into the air, latching onto one of the stoney pillars that framed the battlefield.
"Huh!?"
"Good job, Lucario! Now—!"
"Lucario!" Without a pause, Lucario pushed ahead, springing off the rock pillar. He flew over Gurkinn's Lucario, grabbing them by the shoulders and wrenching them into the air. With a vicious roar, he slammed his opponent down into the dirt, before sending them flying with a kick.
"Hey Lucario! What're you doing, you've gotta— Hey!"
Lucario flickered from view once more, appearing again in his opponent's trajectory. He'd sent them flying, and now he'd send them into the ground.
"Cario!" Rearing his leg back, Lucario delivered a merciless curbstomp into his opponent's gut, bringing them to a dead stop. The wave of Aura that fired out from that collision was staggering, blowing up a cloud of dust and debris that obscured the entire battlefield.
"Lucario!" Korrina didn't even have a command this time. She didn't want Lucario to do anything. She just wanted him to stop.
"Ash, Clemont, what's happening?" Serena was nearly stunned by how fast the battle had turned. Even she could tell something was happening.
"I don't know." Clemont, bearing a face more serious than she had ever seen from him before, shook his head.
"Their Aura… Something about it is off," Ash answered, surprising the both of them. "I don't know what, but it feels off. Something's happening!"
"Pika. Pikachuuu." Whatever it was, it drove Pikachu to tense up, and growl.
The cloud covering the battlefield dispersed with another blast of Aura, revealing what lied underneath: Both Lucarios, hands interlocked as they engaged in a no-holds-barred head-to-head. Gurkinn's Lucario tried their best to maintain their cool, while Korrina's Lucario was barely holding onto his composure. He was fiery, impassioned, growling— Growling?
It was true. Lucario's teeth were bared, his battle cries replaced by guttural snarls. Most frightening of all, though, were his eyes glowing a crimson red.
Something was happening? No, something was wrong.
"Lucario!" With a cry that was more like the roar of a raging beast, Lucario slammed his skull against his opponent's, disorienting them but not fully breaking their hold. That was until Lucario head-smashed them again, and then again.
"Lucario, that's—!"
Before Korrina could even finish interjecting, her Lucario finished the job, shattering his opponent's grip and stunning them completely. With killer efficiency he slammed Gurkinn's Lucario back and pulled them into a tight headlock.
"Lucario! Throw him off, over your shoulder!" Gurkinn's command was clear but no less ineffective. His Lucario tried to wrench Korrina's off, but their opponent cut them at the knees, tightening his grip on their neck.
They were truly and utterly pinned, gasping for air, helpless—
—But not for long.
"Pikachu, Iron Tail!"
Storming onto the field, Ash and Pikachu arrived to turn the tide of the battle. Pikachu leapt from Ash's shoulder before delivering a full force Iron Tail straight down.
"Chuuu— Pi-Ka!" The strike was laser-focused, slamming Korrina's Lucario on the head and giving Gurkinn's Lucario the chance to pull away. "Pikapi!"
"Pull back, buddy, don't get too close!" At Ash's words, Pikachu bounced away, skidding to a stop at Gurkinn's Lucario side, the two of them staring down the rampaging beast that was their opponent. Ash gritted his teeth. "Korrina, I don't know what's going on but you need to get a hold on Lucario!"
"What do you think I'm doing!? He's not listening to me!" she fired back, her eyes a mix of worry and utter indignation. "Stand down, Lucario!"
No dice. Lucario didn't even seem to parse her demand, instead diving straight in for another hit against Gurkinn's Lucario.
"Thunderbolt, Pikachu!"
"Block with Aura Sphere!"
Lucario slammed a fist against his opponent's Aura Sphere a mere moment after it was made, threatening to barrel through it with just another push. It was only thanks to a timely shot of lightning from Pikachu that the two managed to bring Korrina's Lucario to a stop.
Now it was time for the counterattack.
"Iron Tail, slam him down!"
"Go for his legs, Lucario!"
With perfect timing, the twin pair of Gurkinn's Lucario and Ash's Pikachu struck, the latter from above and the former from below. Korrina's Lucario was smashed into the ground, legs pinned by Gurkinn's Lucario as he thrashed about.
"Great job guys!" Ash's heart soared. They finally had an in to wrap up this mess. "Now, Pikachu, let's finish this with Thunderbolt!"
"Piiika! Chu—!?"
Unfortunately, Lucario wasn't going to make it easy for them.
Throwing his shoulders back, he launched Pikachu into Gurkinn's Lucario, loosening their grip and letting himself pull free— at least partially. Dragging himself forward with a frightening speed, Lucario made his getaway, with Gurkinn's Lucario desperately holding onto his legs.
Ash's eyes quickly scanned the field, searching for something, searching for an idea. As he saw where Korrina's Lucario was blindly crawling towards, such an idea came to him.
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt! Keep him going straight!"
"Pika?" A tone of confusion went through Pikachu's voice, one he quickly buried. This was no time for questions. "Piiika— Chuuuu!"
As Lucario's rampage began to drift to the left, a shot of lightning redirected him to the right. When he began to diverge to the right, another shot kept him on the straight and narrow. On and on, Lucario dragged himself forward in an unbending line—
—Until he crashed head first into the stoney henge that overlooked the battlefield.
"Now, Lucario, pin him down with Bone Rush!" Gurkinn cried out.
"You too Pikachu, Iron Tail!" Ash called in turn.
Capitalizing on their opponent's moment of daze, Pikachu and Gurkinn's Lucario rushed into action. The latter immediately produced a set of staffs to lock Lucario down at the waist, while the former crashed an Iron Tail down on Lucario's wrist, sealing it to the stone like a makeshift shackle.
Just in time as well. Korrina's Lucario shook off his stun then and began to thrash about.
"Ghraa! Ghraaa— Rio!" It was hard to even recognize what Lucario was even saying now, his voice reduced to a guttural roar more than anything. He kicked against his bindings, reaching for Pikachu with his one free arm before Gurkinn's Lucario slammed it back into the rock.
No more chances to wait. They had to end this.
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"
"Lucario, Aura Sphere!"
Delivering a double dose of massive damage, Pikachu and Gurkinn's Lucario barreled down on Lucario from each side— Pikachu's Thunderbolt blasting through him while Lucario's Aura Sphere slammed into his chest. This had to be it. This had to do it!
Their hopes were misplaced.
"Cari— Raaaaaaah! Lucaaaaaario!" Despite being pinned down, despite being faced with his supposed equal in Gurkinn's Mega Lucario, despite everything, Korrina's Lucario raged on through it all. He thrashed against his restraints, nearly overpowering both opponents at once as he tried pulling his arms free.
"Pikachu, Thunderbolt, full power!" Ash's command was well-meaning, but it had little effect. Pikachu was already firing at full power. At the pace things were going, it wouldn't be enough.
They needed something else, something to tip the balance, push them over the edge. They needed—
"Fennekin, Flamethrower!"
A column of fire rocketed across the battlefield, as Ash turned with a look of shock and awe.
There, just behind him, Serena stood. A mix of worry and determination was on her face as she and her partner Pokémon stared straight ahead.
Fennekin's attack hit its mark, slamming into Korrina's Lucario and just barely avoiding Pikachu and Gurkinn's partner. After a few moments of sustained fire, the flames petered out, and the final attempt to bring down Lucario came to an end.
A flash of light filled the charred and torn-up battlefield. When it cleared, Lucario's Mega Evolution had faded away. All that remained was the Pokémon himself, just barely holding on to consciousness.
A/N: The Korrina Arc continues now, as things begin to diverge more and more from the timeline we knew. Just what set Lucario off like that, and why was he so powerful?! Find out next time as approach, The Bonds of Mega Evolution!