A Rival Appears.
Co.Written by: xBUBBA1995x
Sounds of rushing wind filled the Charizards’ ears as he soared through the sky. An ocean of cloud below him obscured the ground and made it impossible to tell just how far he’d flown. After leaving his brother, Seth behind in the Everfree Forest, the fire Pokémon had simply flown around, not having a goal in mind.
“Perhaps I should get some food though,” his stomach rumbled loudly in agreement and Ignis began his descent.
The sight that awaited him below the cloud ocean was breathtaking. A city of gleaming crystal spread out on the ground below and from his vantage point, Ignis could see that it was shaped like a giant snowflake.
“You’d never find something like this back on Earth,” Ignis said to himself. “Simply amazing.”
Over the last few days, ponies and Pokémon had seemed to be settling down and getting used to one another, but that said, Ignis chose to land just outside the city so he wouldn’t startle anyone. Folding his wings over his shoulders like a cape, he walked into the city and began looking for a place to eat.
Several ponies had been shocked to see a tall dragon walking the streets, but seeing as how their national hero was a dragon, most gave him a polite smile or a friendly wave. One particularly courageous filly even ran up to him, latching onto his thick tail and hugging it.
“I’m terribly sorry about her Mr. Dragon,” A young mare, presumably her mother said. “She’s a real hooffull.”
Ignis just nodded and after waving goodbye to the pair, ducked into the café. Everypony fell silent when the little bell rang and the dragon stepped inside. He was curious as to why the top of the door frame was scorched though.
Ignis ducked his head and gazed at the menu, it was a good thing this this particular café included pictures with their menu, cause he’s be damned if he could read it. When a nervous-looking waiter came over to take his order, Ignis pointed to a few things and dropped some gems on the counter.
“A-are you quite sure? This is way too much,” the waiter said, staring at enough jewels to buy everything on the menu twice over.
Ignis just nodded and pointed to what he wanted, and then held up three fingers.
“Okay, so triple portions then, right away sir!” the waiter vanished into the kitchen to oversee the order personally as Ignis waited patiently at the counter. He had found the gems while exploring some mountains, they had been surprisingly easy to dig up actually and apparently they could be used as currency.
“Beats have to forage for my own food,” he chuckled. The waiter soon emerged, Ignis’s order in his telekinetic grasp.
“Thank you for your patronage sir! Have a marvellous day!” He stutted.
Ignis simply nodded and took the large paper bag with his food in it. Walking back outside and into the bright sunlight, he spread his large wings and took off once again to the skies. After a few minutes, he came across a large lake just outside of town and landed near it.
“This looks like a nice spot,” he mused and sat down on the grass. Opening the bag, he pulled out the first of his treats, steamed buns filled with vegetables and chicken. Turns out that the café chef was a griffon and there were some menu items that catered towards a more carnivorous diet. And with Pokémon appearing, their business should prove quite profitable.
“Mmm,” he had a bun pierced on each claw and popped them one by one into his mouth, finishing off his food with record time. “Ah, I am o hitting that place back up before I leave.”
As he got up to stretch, he ‘felt’ something, something he hadn’t felt in a while. A smirk crossed his face as he gazed across the lake and saw what he was looking for; a large Blastoise was sitting on the other side,
“A strong opponent.”
*~*
Eclipse had decided to take a break from life in the castle. Between the kissy faces John and Holy Heart were making at each other and Joltik being… Joltik, the stoic Water-type needed to relax, and a day swimming in the near by lake was just what he needed.
A thudding sound nearby caught his attention though and he looked up to see a large Charizard land nearby.
“How may I help you?” he asked, perhaps the Pokémon was simply lost?
“You’re strong, fight with me!” Well, so much for relaxing.
“I do not see why I should,” Eclipse’s gaze met Ignis’s. Something in his eyes told him why, and he knew that this was something that he shouldn’t back out of. Whoever this Charizard was, he was powerful. But there was something that the fire lizard seemed to be forgetting. “Ah… now I see. You do know I have a rather severe type advantage,” Eclipse pointed out.
“And if that’s all it took to win, why does anyone fight at all?” The Charizard’s answer made Eclipse smile, it was a good answer.
“You have my interest Charizard,” The Blastoise got to his feet and produced his water cannons. “My name is Eclipse and I shall do battle with you!”
“I am Ignis Crescent, brother to Seth Crescent!” His wings flared open and he flexed his razor-sharp claws.
“That sounds like a human name,” Eclipse said, as the two Pokémon began to slowly circle one another.
“I am a Charizard, born a Charmander. My trainer and I are brothers and I took his last name as my own!” The two Pokémon had an unwavering gaze that never left each other. They both knew that a foolish first move could end in disaster.
“It is rare to see such camaraderie these days,” Eclipse replied, this Ignis was good. In a flash, Eclipse aimed his cannons and fired a Hydro Pump. With luck, this fight was already done.
No such luck existed however as Ignis ducked the attack and then dashed forward, closing the gap between them. As long as he stayed close, Eclipse couldn’t aim his cannons, but he had to watch out for a point blank shot from Eclipse. Moving in close, Ignis readed a Power-Up Punch.
As his fist slammed into Eclipse's face, Ignis was surprised that the Blastoise didn’t move. He just stood there and took it. Then he gave Ignis an excited grin. As if he knew this battle would be great!
Ignis’ eyes widened as Eclipse grabbed his arm. Flapping his wings, he began to lift Eclipse up into the air. Only for Eclipse to give him a hard yank, and lifting his became harder and harder, as he continued to do it.
He’s stronger than I thought! Good! Ignis told himself.
“You know the thing about getting close to me is,” Eclipse started, before giving one last yank. Bringing Ignis to a hard landing on the ground. “Is that I,” Lifting Ignis to his feet, Eclpise gave him one hell of a headbut. “Know what I,” Still holding onto Ignis’ arm, Eclipse pulled him close again, only to hit him with another headbut. “What I am doing!” Again, Eclipse brought Ignis in, but this time he delivered a punch that knocked the wind out of him, as well as knocking him a good ten feet back.
‘Alright then… it seems close range fighting isn’t go to work.’ Ignis told himself as he pulled himself to his feet.
‘He’s stronger than he looks...’ Eclipse told himself, as he rubbed his jaw around. ‘That almost dislocated my jaw.’
Ignis decided that it was time to switch tactics, he spread his wings and flew straight at Eclipse.
“Again? Have you not learned anything?” Maybe Eclipse was wrong about this one. Ignis just smiled as he raced right past Blastoise and before the water pokemon could wonder why, the tailwind that Charizard was dragging behind him caught up, knocking Eclipse off balance.
“Clever, but not clever enou-” Ignis suddenly made a sharp turn and fired a point-blank Flamethrower at the off-kilter Blastoise.
“Time to roast!” The attack bathed the area around Eclipse with searing flames, but it too failed as Eclipse withdrew into his shell and used Rapid Spin to disperse the attack.
“Heh, nice try but fire won’t work against me!” Now that Ignis was at a distance once more, Eclipse aimed his cannons and fired a barrage of Hydro Pumps.
Flying around like an aerial acrobat, Ignis easily dodged all of the attacks. Then fired out a massive ball of flame at Eclipse. Retreating in his shell, the attack hit point blank. A massive explosion rang out, making a lot of smoke.
Then, from within the smoke a single blast of water whizzed out. Moving to the side Ignis effortlessly dodged the attack. Then the ball of water exploded. Turning around, Ignis saw storm clouds start to form. Eclipse had used Rain Dance...
‘Clever...’
“Come on down, and fight like a real Pokémon!” Eclipse taunted. Knowing that the Charizard could not resist, he readed himself for the attack to come with an Iron Defense.
In an instant, Ignis’ wings started to glow. And before Eclipse could react, he was hit dead on. The Air Slash struck dead center, blades of hardened air knocking Eclipse back several yards. He even crashed through a tree or two, before landing in the near by lake.
“I need to take care of this storm first,” Ignis landed and his right hand began to glow a burning red before he released the energy into the sky, activating his Sunny Day attack. The water that Eclipse had disappeared under barely rippled, making it impossible to predict where the next attack would come from.
“Then I suppose I should force his hand!” Ignis took to the skies once more and opened his mouth. “Dragon Pulse!” He roared as the blast of draconic energy arced towards the lake. It never hit as a ball of blue energy erupted from the water, shattering the attack, and leaving Ignis open to be struck by another Pulse move, Water Pulse.
“Grah!” the dragon had no time to recover after using Dragon Pulse and was hit in the chest by the explosive water move. He fell from the sky, hitting the ground hard.
“Water Pulse, and that last attack was Aura Sphere... perhaps he has experienced too?” Ignis’s moveset was tailored towards his Mega Evolution, and judging from the way Eclipse fought, the turtle had also had some experience with Mega evolving.
“This just got a lot more fun~”
“Yes,” Eclipse yelled out, as he shot out of the water. Taking a massive amount of water with him, which seemed to follow his movements. “It is! Now taste my Waterfall!” Spinning in the air, the water then fired itself at Ingis. Ignis jumped to the side, and the attacked missed. Only for Eclipse to slam into him, knocking him back.
Now it was Ignis’s turn to obliterate the foliage as the water move sent him flying. Despite being weakened by Sunny Day, it was still a super effective hit by a powerful pokemon and it took most of the dragon’s strength just to get back up.
“Not bad,” he panted. “I called it right after all, you’re damned powerful and you make a worthy opponent!” One more time, Ignis took to the skies and began to formulate his counter-attack. Once he reached his target height, he suddenly split into a bunch of copies as he used Double Team.
“You’re a fool! Do you think raising your evasion is going to help you?” His cannons clicked and he aimed into air. “Now try this one! Rapid fire Aura Sphere!” The sounds of cannonfire filled the air as Eclipse fired dozens of spheres at the clones. By sacrificing power, Eclipse could increase his rate of fire, useful for fighting multiple targets.
The clones stood no chance as the attacks homed in on them, annihilating the clones one by one until none remained. The problem was... that the original was gone too.
“Where did he go?” Eclipse wondered, scanning the skies for his adversary.
“You’re looking in the wrong place bub!” Eclipse looked down and saw Ignis flying straight at him, the dragon’s belly mere inches off of the ground and moving at an incredible speed. There was no time to counterattack, but he wasn’t concerned. Right before Ignis struck, Blastoise crouched ever so slightly and then jumped, but that’s what Ignis was hoping for.
As the Charizard flew under him, his tail wrapped around Eclipse’s leg and then Ignis slammed his claws into the ground to stop, catching Eclipse with the whiplash of his tail and slamming him hard into the ground.
“You aren’t the only one who can modify attacks!” Ignis roared and inhaled a huge lungful of air. “Searing Flamethrower!” By cutting the range and allowing a brief charge up, Ignis could double the power of his flames and blast the enemy with a white hot inferno.
Even after withdrawing into his shell and using Iron Defense, the flames beating down on him were intense, a weaker pokemon would be done in by this attack for sure.
It was a real good thing that Eclipse wasn’t a weak pokemon.
He began to spin and use Hydro Pump to beat back the flames, the area erupting with a hissing cloud of steam as fire clashed with water. It was enough for Eclipse to escape and put some distance between them.
“Hah.. not, bad!” Eclipse said, dousing his overheated shell with water. “I was actually worried for a second there.”
“And I thought I may have had the upper hand for a second there.” Ignis’s goal was to beat Legendary Pokémon, so there was no way he’d lose to a Blastoise. “I think it’s about time to wrap this up!”
“I couldn’t agree more!” Eclipse nodded. “Time to end this. One attack, one Pokémon left standing!”
The air itself seemed to stand still as the two Pokémon once again stared each other down. A replay of their first move that was now going to be their last. A single leaf floated down from a tree, dancing softly in the air until it hovered above the lake. A few seconds later, the leaf touched the water, sending small ripples along it’s mirror like surface.
They struck.The two pokemon unleashing their most powerful attacks, Eclipse firing both barrels of his Hydro Cannon, while Ignis unleashed his Solar Beam, it’s power bolstered by his Solar Power Ability.
The two titanic attacks collided and then passed by one another, striking their intended targets with full force, resulting in a massive explosion that could be seen and heard for miles around, but was most noticeable by the nearby Crystal Castle.
*~*
As Eclipse and Ignis sat at the edge of the lake, the both of them just stared at the now half empty lake. The energy was drained out of them, and both of them could not move that well. It was apparent to them that they were equally strong, and would not be able to ‘one up’ the other for a long time. Yet this did not stop them from smiling. It had been a long time since they fought someone as strong as themselves.
“Through the years that I had fought Team Rocket, as well as anyone that go in John’s way,” Eclipse started. “You are the only one that I would love to fight again.”
“I don’t think that will be anytime soon,” Ignis told me, with a smile on his face. “By the way, who is John.”
“My partner. We have been together for more than ten years,” Eclipse smiled. “You know, with all this noise we made, he should be here soon. He is helping the ponies in the area deal with Pokémon.”
It was at that moment, a large group appeared at the other end of a lake. Several large Ponies branding armor stood ready to fight, as well as one without armor. With them was three Pokémon. An Infernape, small Joltik, and a… rather odd looking Luxray. They then made a ‘bee-line’ for them
‘Why is that Luxray black and yellow?’ Ingis thought.
“Eclipse,” The Infernape spoke. “What,” He sounded mad. “In the,” Very mad… “Hell are you doing out here, and what was that explosion?”
“I was training, John,” Eclipse started. “Considering we don’t know what is going to happen in this world, it would be wise for me to stay at the top of my game.”
“What happened to the water in the lake?” A green unicorn mare asked. “And why are there so many craters around here?”
“The craters were made as we fought,” Ingis spoke up. “As for the water, most of it was blown out of the lake as our last attacks struck.”
“And, who might you be?” The Infernape known as John asked, in a cold calculating voice.
“I am Ignis Crescent, brother to Seth Crescent!” Ignis introduced himself, still tired from all the battle.
“Well Ignis,” John then gave Eclipse a cold calculated look, as if sizing up the situation. “I take it from the area around here, too the way you and Eclipse look, that you were the one that started the battle? And that you are about the same level in power?”
“Yes, John,” Eclipse spoke up. “We are equal, in battle,” Eclipse game John a big smile. “And I must say, I could not be happier.”
“Yes,” Ingis added in. “Eclipse and I are equal... for now, and I now consider him a rival. One that I must best, before I can become stronger that the Legendary Pokémon.”
John let out a long sight. “So let me get this straight,” John asked. “The two of you engaged in a Pokemon battle, one that caused a massive explosion, and ended in a tie?’
“Yes.” Both Eclipse and Ignis said at the same time.
“Damn, I wish I could have seen it,” John stated. His tone of voice turning around. He then smiled. “The next time you two fight, we have to have it set up for ponies to see. They would love it.”
“I don’t think having a crowd near suck a massive explosion would be wise,” An orange pegasus intervened. “John, what are you orders on the situations?”
“Well, Flash Sentry. The rest of the guards may return to the Crystal Empire,” John placed his hands behind his back. “As far as I can see it, the threat has passed. This was just an ordinary Pokémon battle between two pokemon. When I return, I shall give Princess Cadance and Sir Shining Armor my report on the whole situation.”
The Pegasus named Flash Sentry nodded. “You heard him, the rest of you, move out!” Shor of the green mare that has yet to be named and Flash Sentry, the rest of the ponies started to head out.
“I do not think I formally Introduced myself,” John started. “I am John, once a part of the International police, and am now helping the Crystal Empire with Pokémon affairs,” He moved his hand to the mare next to him. “This is Holy Heart,” He gestured to the ball of yellow fur that was Joltik. “And this is Joltik.”
“I am not Joltik anymore, John! I am the king of all Pokemon, and I demand that you call me as such,” The small child called out. “Don’t make me throw Holy Heart into the dungeon!”
“...” John didn’t have anything to say to that.
“It is nice to meet you, John,” Ignis stood up, and flapped his wings. “But I must go.”
“Wait,” Joltik intervened. Everyone looked at him. “On second thought, I take it back! if I just threw Holy Heart in the dungeon John would enjoy it too much!”
This brought a laugh out of Eclipse, but John just facepalmed. “I’m afraid to asked.” Holy said.
“I’ll tell you later,” John said to her, his face blushing mad. “As for you Ignis, if you really must go, then you are welcome here anytime. It has been a long time since I have seen anyone fight Eclipse to the point of exhaustion,” John smiled. “Not even the rest of my pokemon together can that.”
Holy Heart’s eyes went wide. “What, John, you’re joking, right?”
“I did say he was my strongest Pokémon, when I introduced you to him, didn’t I?
“Well, yes, but…” Holy just shook her head, still not surprised.
“Ignis,” Eclipse started, turning to the Charizard. “Keep getting stronger,” He lifted his fist for Ignis to bump it. “Because next we meet, I am going to win.”
“You can try,” Ignis fist bumped Eclipse then took into the sky. “Until next time, Eclipse. Don’t get soft.”
Ignis began to take to the sky. His body was weak, but he had to keep moving on. If he was going to best the legendaries, he had to keep pressing on. Find those who are strong, and becoming strong in turn. But he could not help but feel sad as he left. Eclipse was a worthy Rival, and he could not wait for the rush of battle he would have to face with him next.
“You know, I think I’m on the wrong plane. Do you think you can go back down there, and drop me off?” Ignis jumped at the sudden voice. Looked to his back he saw Joltik sitting there.
He then let out a long sight, as he turned around.