It had been two days since Sato and the others descended from the snowy mountain, and their destination, Veilstone City, was already within sight.
The three of them had assumed that nothing unexpected would happen on the way, but now, staring at the Pokémon blocking their path, they all felt a rising sense of urgency.
But that urgency wasn't about reaching Veilstone City faster… it was the intense interest they all had in the Pokémon before them. A burning urge…
To catch it!
"Lucario, pick one of us. If you lose, you'll obediently become our partner!" Mark wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, trying to sound fierce.
----
Ten minutes earlier -after leaving the mountain- the three of them had entered a lush, dense forest, heading straight toward Veilstone City. Confident in their strength, they didn't even consider taking a detour.
On this final day of their trek, a sudden disturbance broke out nearby. Without needing to speak, all three of them immediately ran toward the commotion.
That's when they saw it… a dazzlingly cool Lucario, moving with seamless flow as it pounded a sinister-looking Skuntank into the ground.
It was clearly just the moderate-power move Bone Rush, but in Lucario's hands, it looked like a display of pure artistry: effortlessly flashy and impossibly stylish…
"What a damn good Lucario."
"Now this… is interesting~"
Sato and Joseph voiced their admiration at the same time. Then they glanced at each other, and in that moment, both could see the blazing desire to capture it burning in the other's eyes.
Sato may have specialized in Dark-types, but this Lucario's quality transcended type preferences.
And if that became a concern, he could always turn to Bruno, who still owed him a favor. Getting guidance on training a Fighting-type wouldn't be difficult.
Not to mention, when Sato quietly activated his long-unused Dark Energy: Emotion Feedback, it confirmed that this Lucario's Fighting-type potential had already reached Elite Four level…
Joseph had also taken a liking to Lucario. Aside from its impressive battle performance, Lucario was one of the rare few that could learn Heal Pulse.
That alone made it a perfect fit for his capture criteria!
Perhaps it was their burning stares, but Lucario -blessed with extraordinary sensory perception- felt incredibly uncomfortable under the attention.
So when its final Bone Rush strike connected with Skuntank, Lucario smoothly transitioned into a Fling, launching the Skuntank straight at them.
Unfortunately -or maybe not- the smelly missile that was the Skuntank didn't veer left or right. It crashed squarely into Mark, knocking him flat to the ground…
A 70+ kilo Skuntank landing on your body, plus its revolting stench… this easily hit the threshold for life-threatening trauma that qualified as grounds to catch a new Pokémon.
In other words, Mark now had the right to challenge for a new partner, and Lucario just happened to be standing right there.
Sato and Joseph froze. Of course, they realized the same thing. And they also knew just how rare it was for Mark to get a shot at catching a Pokémon.
The two of them went quiet for a moment. The fire in their eyes began to fade.
'Maybe… this Lucario was destined for Mark all along.'
Otherwise, why would a Skuntank, launched so violently, hit Mark of all people, when it was clearly Sato and Joseph who had been staring at Lucario so intensely?
Right at that moment, Mark shouted at the top of his lungs, "LUCAAAAARIO! Pick one of us! If you lose, you're gonna become our partner!"
At the crucial moment, Mark actually gave Lucario the right to choose. Then he turned to Sato and Joseph and huffed in indignation.
Clearly, their act of stepping back had wounded his pride instead.
Lucario stared expressionlessly at the three of them, gripping its still-glowing bone club, clearly resisting the urge to bash all their heads in.
'I, Lucario, a being rarer and stronger than pseudo-legendaries, and you're seriously passing me back and forth like this?' (メ｀[])/
'Do I not deserve respect?!' （╯‵□′）╯︵┴─┴
'Did any of you even bother to ask my opinion?!' ┴─┴︵╰（‵□′╰）
'Lousy humans… take my bone!'
─┴︵╰（‵□′）╯︵┴─
"It's coming, it's coming~ Lucario's coming over! Who's it gonna pick?!"
Mark had no idea that Lucario's eyes were blazing with fury. He just stood there eagerly, waiting for it to make a choice.
"LUUUUUCA!"
Lucario suddenly let out a low roar. It planted its feet hard, dashed forward in a blur, and unleashed a flurry of Bone Rush strikes.
Target: Sato, Joseph, and Mark.
Swish~ Swish~ Swish~
"…"
Three swings in a row missed entirely, leaving Lucario looking a bit awkward.
It glanced up to see that all three of them had dodged its "half-hearted" attacks.
…Though Joseph and Mark's evasive maneuvers were a bit clumsy, from Lucario's perspective, these three hateful humans had once again disrespected it.
'I even went easy on you! You're ordinary humans… just lie down already! Why are you bouncing around like a stubborn Heracross?'
Lucario wanted to recover its pride and was just about to attack again when three flashes of red light suddenly surrounded it.
Lucario… was trapped. Togekiss, Houndoom, and Gallade had each taken a position, cutting off any escape routes.
"Strong drive to fight. Not bad, definitely worth training."
"Arm strength's a little lacking, probably due to poor conditioning. That's something I can help with."
"Hehehe, can't hit me, can't hit me~"
All three of them voiced their thoughts. If they didn't have to hold back for Mark's sake, then let's make it a fair contest!
"Lucario, hurry and pick one. Listen, my Togekiss totally can't beat you. Pick it, pick it! If you beat it, you'll be free!"
"Toge!" Togekiss turned and glared at its unreliable Trainer, wings twitching with the urge to let him taste an Air Slash firsthand.
"…Weak Pokémon choose weak opponents. My Houndoom? You can't beat it." Sato took the opposite approach and went straight for provocation.
"He~ Pick Gallade. A battle between Fighting-types could help you unlock greater insight," Joseph said with a smile, his words lacking all sincerity.
…But then Sato and Mark suddenly noticed a faint green glow surrounding Joseph. He was shamelessly using his Viridian Power to boost his affinity.
Sato and Mark weren't having it. 'What, only you get special powers?'
Mark suddenly closed his eyes, clasped his hands in prayer, and began to awaken some invisible force within him.
For a moment, something felt different… and yet also the same.
Sato wasn't about to back down. Dark Energy surged around him, thick and ominous.
To Lucario, Sato suddenly became an overwhelmingly dangerous presence, his oppressive aura making it hard to breathe.
And just then, Sato spoke coldly, "…Too scared to challenge this power? A weak Pokémon will always stay weak."
The provocation hit maximum level. His words were pure mockery.
Lucario kept a blank stare on the surface, but inside, it was in total chaos. If it had the vocabulary, it would've been swearing nonstop.
Sato's taunts filled it with rage. Joseph's warmth tugged at it. But for some reason… Lucario had a strange gut feeling.
That it belonged… to Mark?