Tales of a Nomad

[darkcowboy]

Chapter 1 – Cool Hand Lucario​

“Even Pokemon who’ve been bad have to go away for awhile,” a distant voice said as Luke awoke in iron gloves and a muzzle. “You’ve been very bad, and we’ve got a place picked out just for you. Of course, we’ve never had a Lucario before.”

Luke glared at the man and simply growled through the muzzle that had been placed on his snout.

With a smirk, the police officer gestured to his Rhydon who mirrored the man’s smirk.

Leaning forward, the Rhydon came within an inch of Luke’s blue, pointed ears. “That’s why you shouldn’t attack innocent Pokemon and people.”

Luke didn’t acknowledge the Rhydon’s comment. He would have his chance eventually. He’d show them all that it wasn’t he who attacked the Pokemon Center in Olivine.

Without anyone noticing, Luke had managed to unlock the iron gloves that prevented him from using moves like Aura Sphere and Force Palm. They were suppressing his abilities.

“Rhino, watch the prisoner. I’m going to check with the pilot to see how much longer ‘til we get to the island,” the officer said as he left the cargo hold of the C-12 airplane, and ascended the ladder to the cockpit.

This is too easy. He just left me alone with a rock-type. I can take him out easily, then the plane’ll be mine, and I can get back to the Kanto Region, Luke thought to himself as the iron gloves slipped off of his paws.

“You’re gonna wish you’d stayed in those gloves, runt,” The Rhydon growled as he rose to his full height, barely letting his nose touch the roof of the airplane.

Luke removed the muzzle from his snout and met the Rhydon’s eyes with a cold stare. “No my friend, it’s you who’ll wish I’d stayed in those gloves, gigantor.” He began manipulating the aura around him into a blue sphere, roughly the same size as a baseball.

The Rhydon’s eyes widened as Luke released the small but potent ball of energy into him, throwing him to the floor.

“What the hell’s goin’ on back there,” the pilot shouted as the airplane suddenly began listing to the left.

“I should’ve taken into account the fat bastard’s weight,” Luke hissed to himself.

“Get a hold of her,” the officer’s voice echoed.

“I’m trying! You can’t just correct an eight ton banking maneuver! She could come apart!”

Luke opened the rear cargo hold doors while the officer and the pilot argued. “Freedom at last…” Luke crooned to himself as he reached up to grab a parachute off of the rack.

“Not so fast, pipsqueak.” Luke suddenly felt his airway cut off, as a stone hand wrapped itself around his throat, and lifted him into the air.

Luke, feeling as though the world were now spinning, drew in a small amount of energy at the center of his paw. Concentrate. Draw all the energy around you, into a tight area, he told himself over and over until he was satisfied with the amount of energy he had gathered. Now let it go, like a shock wave.

Rhino was thrown back from the immediate dispersal of energy from the Force Palm attack.

“It’s been fun Rhino, but now I’ve gotta jet,” Luke quipped as he strapped on the parachute. “We should do it again real soon.”

As Luke finished, the officer came out to find out why the cargo bay door was open.

“So long officer,” Luke shouted, flipping the man a lazy wave as he dove out of the open door.

Luke pulled the rip-cord, releasing the parachute and slowing him down enough to slowly drift down into the ocean.

======================================================

Vermillion City

Luke hopped off of the Wailord’s back, into the waters and began swimming to shore. “Thanks pal,” he said as he looked back at the Wailord who was now sinking back into the water.

“No problem, kid,” he replied before disappearing completely.

Luke swam to the beach, and trudged out of the water. His attempt at drying himself sent water flying all over, but in the end he was somewhat dry.

He entered the city, with a minor look of contempt. Luke didn’t hate humans, but he never fully understood them.

Passing a window, Luke noticed a breaking news bulletin on several television sets inside the store.

“Ladies and gentlemen we are coming to you with breaking news. The Lucario responsible for the vicious attack on Pokemon Center workers and injured Pokemon has escaped from custody. The head of the Pokemon Rangers had this to say:” the screen shifted over to a clip of the large balding man in a black suit and black tie.

“We are doing everything we can. We urge citizens to call us if the Pokemon is sighted, and most of all we urge citizens not to take matters into your own hands. This Lucario is dangerous and places no value on Pokemon or human lives.”

Luke looked around at the crowd that was gathering at window. “Eheheh… nothin’ to see here people. Just a lone, wild Pokemon passin’ through.”

From the back a voice shrieked. “It’s him! It’s the wild Lucario!”

“Uh-oh… this is not good,” Luke grumbled to himself as sirens began to sound in the distance.

An officer made her way through the crowd, as Luke tried to part the sea of people. “Make a path! What’s going on here?!”

Luke couldn’t seem to make his way through the crowd. Another thing Luke didn’t understand about humans. Here the news said he was supposedly deadly, yet these people were just standing there gawking.

“YOU,” came the authoritative voice of Officer Jenny.

“Just close your eyes and pretend it’s a bad dream,” Luke called with a wink.

“Everybody down,” Jenny shouted as people began to run from the spectacle.

Daylight. A path in the crowd opened as Jenny’s Arcanine came on the scene. “BYE!!” Luke shouted as he ran through the crowd.

“Arcanine, corner him!”

As the Arcanine came close to him, lips curled and fangs revealed, Luke was preparing a trick for the unsuspecting Pokemon. “You’re under arrest,” the canine growled.

Luke grinned revealing the two longest of his fangs. “Come and get me, if you think you can.”

Arcanine came closer… right next to a fire hydrant.

“Hook, line, and sinker,” Luke said as three long claws extended from his paws, dark shadowy things that could rip through any matter.

“That’s Shadow Claw! Arcanine move,” Jenny called.

Before he could react, Luke swung missing him entirely, and cutting the nozzle off of the fire hydrant. Water sprayed everywhere, including all over Jenny and her Arcanine. As the two stood up, and surveyed their surroundings, they both noticed Luke was gone.

“Where’d he go??”

Luke chuckled as he ducked into an alleyway. “That was too easy.” He glanced around at the new environment. “Now to get outta here without being seen.”

 

[darkcowboy]

Chapter 2 – Fists of Steel and a Heart of Gold​

The alley was dark and cold; just the way Luke expected it. It always seems to turn out like this, Luke thought sadly as he sat down next to a dumpster. His paws ached from the running, and he was running out of energy.

The silence was broken by the sound of a young girl running through the alley, chased by two men.

As the men clumsily tripped through the alley, Luke felt a sharp pain in his tail accompanied by the sound of a loud crack.

Luke yelped loudly, grabbing his tail. After a moment of nursing his tail, he realized that the girl was probably in some kind of trouble. With that in mind, Luke chased after the men.

The girl led them through many twists and turns in the hopes of losing the two, but her attempts ended in failure. Her pursuers cornered her in a dead end at the end of the network of alleys.

“Is it her, Joe,” one of them asked the other.

“I don’t know. Lemme get the device.” The other took a device out of his pocket, and aimed it at the girl. After several clicks and beeps, the device hummed to life and began its function.

With a look of satisfaction, he looked up at his partner. “That’s our girl.”

“That’s good to know, but I don’t think she wants to leave with you,” Luke called from behind them.

The two men whirled around to see that Luke was a few feet back from them, holding a charged sphere of blue energy.

“It’s none of your concern, tiny.”

“That’s right. Now Slowbro, go!” One of them grabbed a pokeball from his waist and threw it out. The ball burst into a cloud of smoke, releasing a large pink Pokemon with a Cloyster latched onto his tail.

“Kadabra, do your thing,” the other called as he released a tan and purple Pokemon with a star on his forehead and a spoon in his hand.

Luke released his attack on the two Pokemon but to no avail, as the two were both psychic-types. The Aura Sphere attack fell harmlessly on the two Pokemon.

“Well, I think, we’ll have try somethin’ else then,” Luke said with a half grin. The two pokemon watched curiously as a wave of darkness passed through the alley. It seemed as though some evil force was blocking all light from the inside of the alley.

Three dark claws extended from Luke’s paw as he swiped at Kadabra with a hard left swing. The attack connected with the Pokemon’s torso causing him to howl in pain. Luke disappeared into the shadows of the alley while the men stared in shock. This was fun; he could toy with these guys all night, but the girl appeared to be injured. Getting her somewhere safe was the top priority.

“Slowbro, use Disable!”

The Slowbro concentrated, and released his attack which pulsed throughout the alley.
Laughing, Luke projected his voice throughout the alley. “You’re kidding, right? I have an arsenal of techniques at my disposal. Honestly, I think you boys should just run along.”

They won’t leave, not without me, a voice echoed in Luke’s mind.

Who are you, Luke replied to the voice. He looked at the girl who was staring at him intently.

The girl nodded, and then gestured toward the men.

“Hey, boys. I’ve gotta end this quick,” Luke announced as he dropped from a nearby fire escape.

“What are you talkin’ about?”

Luke formed a ball of energy in his paws. “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your problem anymore.” The ball of energy turned red and yellow.

When Luke felt that he couldn’t hold the energy anymore, he released it into a beam of orange light that knocked the men and their Pokemon down.

When the men got up, Luke and the girl were gone.

Luke stepped out of the alley carrying the girl on his back. “Hey. How’d you get inside my head like that,” he asked when they were well enough away that the men wouldn’t hear them.

“I thank you for your help, but I really must be going. It won’t be long before more of Team Rocket’s men come after me.”

Luke raised an eyebrow before setting the girl on the pavement and taking three steps back. “That was Pokespeak. You’re no human at all, are you?”

The girl shook her head. “No, I’m not. I’m a Latias. If Team Rocket finds me-“

Luke put a paw over her mouth. “Who is this Team Rocket you keep talkin’ about, and why should I be scared of them?”

“You’re not from around here are you? Team Rocket is the most feared gang of men who exploit Pokemon for their own selfish gains.”

“Back home, we had Team Galactic to deal with. That was a lotta fun…” Luke glanced at the girl who was favoring her left arm. “I think we need to get you to a Pokemon Center.”

“Please, if you get involved, they might take you too,” she pleaded.

“Ha. Them and the police, both,” Luke picked her up again and began carrying her.

===================================================

Vermillion Pokemon Center

“I’m afraid she’ll have to stay here a while,” Nurse Joy explained to Luke, who seemed preoccupied with being recognized. “Does she have a trainer?”

Luke looked at Joy quickly and then looked away. “Umm, no. I found her being chased by some local thugs.”

“Are you her friend?”

“I’ve never seen her before in my life.”

“In that case, she’ll have to stay until her wing is fully recovered,” Joy explained.

“I thought Latios and Latias used telekinesis to fly,” Luke said as he scratched his head.

“That’s true, but I don’t want her in the wild with an injury like the one she sustained.”

Luke looked back at the door only to see a police officer stroll in. “She kept saying a group named Team Rocket attacked her. If you can, you should be on the lookout for two men. One with an injured Kadabra, and the other with a possibly injured Slowbro,” he said while hiding behind Nurse Joy.

“How do you know they’re injured,” Joy said with a suspicious glance at the officer.

“I did the injuring.”

Joy looked down at Luke. “Could you excuse me for a moment,” She said, turning away only to be stopped by Luke.

“Please don’t go get that officer. I’m really quite harmless,” Luke said quickly.

“Tell that to my niece and all the Pokemon you attacked in Olivine City,” Joy hissed.

Luke stared for a moment, his lips parting for a moment. “That wasn’t me. I never attacked the Pokemon Center in Olivine City! I was framed!”

“Oh sure, how many Sinnoh Region Pokemon go wandering around attacking Pokemon Centers?!”

Luke looked at his feet. “I know that it seems like I’m the villain here, but I’m really not. I’ve never harmed a Pokemon that wasn’t trying to grind me into dust, and I’ve never attacked ‘em from behind.”

“That’s not enough to convince me,” Joy said angrily as she turned, only to be stopped again. This time by a little white and red Pokemon, tugging at her apron.

“You believe him, don’t you,” Joy said kneeling in front of the dragon Pokemon.

The Latias nodded silently.

Joy sniffled, and wiped a tear from her cheek. “Ok. I won’t tell the officer, but you both need to spend the night, while all of this blows over.”

Luke nodded, while Nurse Joy went to divert the police officer’s eyes from Luke’s general direction.

As the officer left, Luke looked up at the Latias. “I guess that makes us even,” he said quietly.

“Not even close. You saved me from being exploited by Team Rocket. They would have done all manner of inhumane experiments on me. All I did for you was keep you from getting sent away,” she replied with a smile.

Luke smiled slightly. “If only you knew what life on Paradise Island was like.”

 

[darkcowboy]

Chapter 3 – Old Debts​

The rain came down heavily. Lightning split the sky as an injured Kirlia named Salem, lay in the mud crying. He was fairly young and wasn’t conditioned for battle, but that didn’t stop the trainer from attacking him out of sheer spite.

Salem tried to crawl away from the merciless trainer and his Pokemon, but there was no escape. Every move he made was blocked by the trainer’s Weavile.

“Please… don’t hurt me any more… please,” Salem whimpered to the Weavile who laughed.

“I’m sooo sorry, but it’s just so much fun,” the Weavile replied, stepping on Salem’s throat.

“Weavile, finish him,” the trainer commanded with no hint of remorse in his voice.

An evil grin flashed across the Weavile’s face, as he prepared to use a Night Slash attack that would ultimately end Salem’s life.

A dark aura appeared around the Weavile’s claw, as he took a final slash at Salem, only to be stopped by iron hard claws, which protruded from black paws on blue furry arms.

The Weavile stepped back somewhat, as he was now face to face with a Lucario. “Ah, fresh meat. I’ve never had the pleasure of fighting a Lucario before.”

Salem looked up at the Lucario, and recognized him automatically. “Luke? You came to save me!”

Luke didn’t look at Salem, nor did he acknowledge him. “You’ve gone too far today, Weavile.”

“Don’t be so melodramatic,” the Weavile said as he stepped back even more. “Honestly, you’d think someone, had just killed a Kirlia or something.”

Luke lunged at the Weavile, iron claws extended to their full length.

The Weavile howled in pain as Luke sank three claws into his left shoulder, and raked them across the front of his torso, spilling blood everywhere.

Luke’s left paw came around with so much speed that it couldn’t be seen by either Salem or the enemy Weavile. A jaw cracking connection was made between Luke’s paw, and the Weavile’s lower face.

Flames now covered Luke’s right foot, as he spun around quickly, in a roundhouse kick. Another connection was made with the right side of Weavile’s head, sending him tumbling to the ground next to Salem.

“You’re lucky that I’m sparing your life,” Luke growled angrily.

“Luke, look out,” Salem cried, just before Luke put his paw out to catch a Pokeball that had been thrown at him.

Luke held the Pokeball in his paws for a moment, then dropped it and looked up at the trainer who’d thrown it. “Tisk tisk. You shouldn’t have done that. I understand that you have to catch Pokemon to be a great trainer, but to apply such brute force to your tactics, I can’t accept.”

“What do you know about it? You’re just a soft heart in a hard shell,” the trainer shouted.

“Real power isn’t measured by a being’s willingness to kill. Real power is measured by a being’s ability to restrain himself,” Luke said as he moved closer to the trainer. “You and I are weak, because we can’t restrain ourselves.”

“What do you mean ‘you and I’?”

“I mean that I see no mercy in your future…” Luke said as the shadows engulfed them both. Three long claws made of dark energy appeared at Luke’s paws as he moved in to strike. He brought his claw down onto the unnerved trainer, slashing right through his torso.

No damage was done to his physical body, but Luke could see the damage done to his aura. It was turning from a bright blue to a shadowy purple, as the trainer sat down under the trunk of a tree.

Luke raised his paw to the sky. “Now for the finisher.”

As he began to bring it down, a green form jumped in the way of the attack, causing Luke to purposely miss his foe, and hit the tree trunk just above his head.

“Luke, don’t do this… please,” Salem said, now standing in the trainer’s lap.

“Salem, get out of my way.”

“Don’t you see?! You’re becoming the trainer, and his merciless Weavile. Just let it go!”

Luke stepped back and looked at himself. His fur was covered in mud and blood. Luke turned around. “What have I done?”

A human hand touched his shoulder, causing him to jump. Looking back, Luke saw a man in a red and yellow uniform, who was now holding Salem in his arms. “You did what any Pokemon or human would have done to him had they seen what you saw here today. But you had the strength to stop yourself before someone got killed. I’m proud of you for that.”

“And who are you,” Luke asked quietly.

“My name is Johnny Slade, and I’m a Pokemon Ranger. Unfortunately I’m going to have to take you to the authorities, and let them decide what to do with you.”

Luke stared down at Slade’s feet. “Am I going to be punished by the humans?”

“No. You’ll be sent to a wildlife preserve, where Pokemon are sent when they’ve done a great deal of damage to life or property. It’s more like relocation. You’ll still be wild but in a different place,” Slade explained.

================================================== ==

Luke sat up quickly, his fur standing on end. “Dreamin’ about the old days again, dummy,” he said to himself while flattening the fur on his arms and chest. Rolling out of the bed, Luke stumbled to the window of the second story guest room, and looked down on the street.

The sun had already raised high above the earth, and was now happily beating down on the harbor to*wn.

“Luke? Were you having a nightmare,” Latias’ sweet voice said from the door.

Luke glanced at the Latias who had come over and was now hovering by his side. “No. Just a dream.”

“Luke, I’m psychic. Plus you were talking in your sleep.”

“I can’t lie to you, can I, Latias,” Luke said smiling sadly.

“Please, call me Lanai. It’s the name I was given by the girl that helped me escape from Team Rocket.”

“Okay, Lanai.” Luke’s smile grew somewhat. “Four years ago, a friend of mine was nearly killed by a trainer and his Weavile. I took it upon myself to exact revenge, but my friend stopped me. The horrible thing that I almost did, has haunted me ever since.”

“He must’ve been a pretty bad friend, if he couldn’t keep your sorry ass outta trouble,” said a familiar voice.

Luke looked at the door to see a tall figure standing in the doorway. “Salem, is that you??”

The Gallade stepped forward and nodded. “It’s been a couple years.”

“Yeah, I suppose it has. What brings you here,” Luke asked.

“Well, when I hear that my best friend just tried to kill twelve Pokemon and a PokemonCenter nurse… I think its time you and I have a chat.”

“You think it was me too, don’t you,” Luke said, folding his arms.

“You have it all wrong! I’m psychic. I can tell just by lookin’ atcha, that you didn’t do it. I came, to see if I could help. After all, I owe you my life…”

Luke grinned. “Alright. Let’s see whatcha got.”

The room suddenly shook causing Luke and Salem to be thrown violently to the ground, as the sounds of bewildered screams could be heard downstairs.

“What the hell was that,” Luke shouted as they clamored to their feet.

“I don’t know. Let’s check it out,” Salem replied, running out of the room.

Luke glanced back at Lanai, and stopped. “You stay here. It could be your pals from the alley.”

As Lanai nodded, Luke left the room and joined his friend on the stairs as a wave of Rockets ushered into the lobby of the PokemonCenter.

One of them grabbed a boy by the collar. “Where’s Nurse Joy,” he shouted angrily.

“I-I don’t know,” the young boy wailed, tears streaming down his cheeks.

“Let that boy go,” a stern voice yelled amongst the angry roar. All faces in the room turned to Nurse Joy who was standing on the counter next to an angry Blissey. “What is it that you want?”

“I want Latias and I want her now, or this little boy gets fed to my Houndoom,” the Rocket said without batting an eye.

Luke leapt down from the stairs, onto the counter next to Nurse Joy.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Nurse Joy answered, narrowing her eyes.

There was a moment of silence as Luke eyed the leader of the Rockets. All that could be hoped for was that the leader was dumb enough to believe Joy’s lie.

“Boss, she’s lying! That’s the blue mutt that ambushed us in the alley behind the Poke Mart!”

The leader was now eyeing Luke. “Is he now? What do you say, shorty? Is she here or not?”

Calmly, Luke took a deep breath. These “tiny” jokes were getting tiresome. “Move on.”

“What if we don’t wanna go,” a voice shouted from the crowd.

A sound near the exit caused all of the grunts in the room to look at the glass doors which were sliding shut, followed by the prompt shutting of the iron shutters, which prevented break-ins during the night. Salem appeared between the grunts and the door.

Luke grinned. “If you don’t wanna go, then you’re stuck in here with me ‘n’ my friend there.”

Another moment of silence was trailed by a short chuckle from the leader. “Do you hear that, gentlemen? We’re trapped! All forty of us. Against these two.”

“You don’t wanna push me friend,” Luke said with a dark undertone.

“Actually, I think I do. ATTACK,” the leader cried, as his Houndoom lunged at Luke. The battle was on. A swarm of Pokemon came at Luke, but was quickly dispatched by a Vacuum Wave attack, while Salem crossed blades with a Scyther during the chaos.

Luke rammed an electrically charged fist into the face of a Blastoise who had his water cannons trained on Salem. Another Thunderpunch put the Blastoise down on the ground.

Outside, sirens blared heralding the arrival of the cops, as a Mightyena blasted his way through the iron shutters that blocked the exit.

“Every man for ‘em self,” a grunt shouted at the top of his lungs.

Luke and Salem chased the perpetrators into the street where they were corralled into a circle of police cars, and Pokemon. In a panic, one of the Rockets’ Pokemon attacked one of the police cars, causing it to somersault violently into the air.

Predicting its landing, Luke dove into an officer who had been in the predicted landing spot, while the car made its dramatic landing, right where Luke had foreseen.

For a second, Luke and the officer stared at each other, Luke straddling her stomach.

“You,” she exclaimed while the other officers busied themselves with trying to catch the fleeing members of Team Rocket.

“Would you believe me if I told you there was a completely logical explanation for all of this,” Luke asked hesitantly.

“Get OFF! Now isn’t the time for this,” Jenny shouted angrily after pushing Luke off of her, forcefully. She turned and began helping her fellow officers by calling out her Squirtle and her Arcanine. “Zen, use Blizzard! Arcanine use Fire Spin!”

Jenny’s Squirtle nodded and unleashed snow and ice from all over the city street, which caused the Rockets to slip and fall on the suddenly frozen cement, and Arcanine followed up with a fire storm which encircled the fallen Rockets.

Luke saw this as an opportunity to grab several iron bars from the construction site across the street from the PokemonCenter.

While the Rockets were still trapped in the fiery tornado, Luke hurled the bars high into the sky, and using Psychic, Luke positioned the bars to land in a perfect circle.

When the bars landed, they stood straight in the air, creating a makeshift jail cell for the Rockets to sit in while the police rounded up their Pokemon.

“Thank you for that, Lucario,” Jenny said, wiping sweat from her brow.

“Always happy to help. Crooks like these should get locked up,” Luke answered, his back to Jenny.

“I…” Jenny faltered for a second. “Thank you for saving me.”

“You gonna… slap the cuffs on me,” Luke asked after turning to face her.

“No. Not… not this time. My superiors told me you were evil, with no regard for Pokemon or human life. What I saw here today contradicts that.” Jenny paused to interpret what she was saying. It had been a long time since she had spoken with her heart. “I hope that one day you find what you’re looking for, whatever it is.”

Luke looked her in the eyes, which appeared to be filling with tears. “Thank you. I do have one request though.”

“What is it?”

“Contact the Pokemon Rangers, and get in touch with Johnny Slade. Could you tell him that I’m alright?”

Jenny nodded numbly.

Luke turned and went back into the PokemonCenter with a strange feeling. As he ascended the stairs, and entered his room, he found Salem sitting on his bed. “Where’s Lanai?”

“She left. I don’t know where or why, but she was babbling about being a jinx and causing problems wherever she goes,”Salem answered. “I tried to stop her, but she wasn’t having it.”

“Damn,” Luke shouted as he rammed his fist into the wall. “C’mon, we’re going after her. The wild is no place for the injured.”

“But, what about the humans?!” Salem called after Luke who had rushed out of the room and down the stairs. Salem stood up and looked around the room. “Typical Luke. Rushin’ head first into danger.” With that said, Salem exited the room. “Luke, wait for me!” he called.

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

Very interesting. But how is it Luke can speak like humans while every other pokemon can't?

 

[darkcowboy]

its a Lucario thing. if you'll look him up in the pokedex, it'll tell you he can understand and mimic human speech. plus he can do it in the movie, but i usually don't rely on movies for proof of anything.

 

[Blackjack Gabbiani]

The dex entry only says that it can understand human speech--something most pokémon seem to be able to do anyway--not that it can speak/mimic it. And the one in the movie didn't "speak" per se--if you notice, he didn't move his mouth, meaning that it was mental communication rather than verbal.

 

[darkcowboy]

"Lucario are also able understand human speech; some people say that Lucario can also speak it, though only one has reportedly done so." - Bulbagarden

Cowboy does his research.

I will admit though, "mimic" came from a different dex entry that i was reading at the same time as Lucario. But urban legends are so much more fun when they're real. XP