Lucario, Chapter 1 Part 1

Some people live an entire liftetime and wonder if they have ever made a difference in the world - others make a stand and know that they made a difference in the world.

                              - Ronald Reagan



Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Lucario and the Scrí of Solice

Chapter 1: Riolu



_{40 years before the events of Red/Blue Rescue Team...}

Riolu tumbles backwards, digging his claws into the ground to halt his trip. He jumps to his feet, dodging out of the way as Regiqua's fist slams into the ground next to him. He spins around and swings his staff into the Pokemon's arm. The wood bounces off with a dull thud, not even leaving a scratch. The Regiqua grunts in annoyance and swats Riolu away with the back of its hand, sending him flying into the wall. Barely any force applied on Regiqua's part and it nearly breaks Riolu's back.

He slides slowly to the ground, panting heavily. He wipes a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth and rises to his feet. He retrieves his staff from the ground and charges once more at the Legendary Pokemon.

It is ironic how greatly your life can change in such a relatively short period of time. Six months ago Riolu never would have dreamed of meeting a Legendary Pokemon, much less fighting one, yet now here he is, going toe-to-toe with the almighty Regiqua... and getting his ass kicked. It was a mistake challenging it, he can see that now, but it is too late to back out now.

He was once a normal kid with normal, everyday problems, not a care in the world. But that changed six months ago when his life was turned upside-down by a horrible tragedy. He was youthful, adventurous, friendly, always ready for a challenge. He never liked to fight, but ultimately he didn't have a choice. He never would have thought that one day he would be fighting a Regiqua. No one did. He was usually the one to end fights, not start them.

His staff - a long, durable, mahogany quarterstaff - was crafted for traveling, not for combat, though its durability made it an effective weapon. The staff was crafted and given to him by his father, also a Riolu, when he began exploring outside of the town. It was meant as walking stick, but after Riolu was attacked by a group of Beedrills his father confessed that he had really given it to him to defend himself; not all Pokemon are as friendly as those in Cate (Kay-tuh) Town.

Riolu once had a dream, now long behind him, of traveling the world, meeting all the different kinds of Pokemon. This was a dream shared by many young Pokemon, especially his friends Abra and Houndour, but none as fervently a Riolu. His father once had that dream, but he gave it up when he met Riolu's mother. He never lived his dream, that is why has been helping his son so he would be able to.

Everyone knew Riolu's dreams would take him far one day... but no one could have imagined just how far they would take him, what he would become, the incredible things he would accomplish because he followed his heart.

And no one could have foreseen the catalyst that would change Riolu's life forever.... Cate Town was built at the base of a great volcano, one everyone thought to be extinct. They were wrong. Mt. Cate's eruption on that fateful day sparked a chain reaction of natural disasters all over the world, shaking the planet to its very core. The town was right in the lava-flow's path. Only an Arceus-sent miracle could have saved it from its inevitable doom.

They were able to evacuate most of the town, but Riolu refused to abandon several young Pokemon trapped by the lava, among them his friends Abra and Houndour. He was able to reach and free them, but a chunk of the town's wall collapsed, spewing lava across their path. Now they were all trapped, surrounded on all sides by lava on a rapidly-shrinking island.

In the moments before they knew it was the end, that miracle finally came in the form of a shadowed, mysterious Pokemon. It leaped nimbly and gracefully from building to building, landing on even the smallest points with ease, heading straight for Riolu and the others. It had long ears and stood on its hindlegs. Its fur was mainly blue with strips of black and a golden torso. Riolu could not see its face, but something about it called out to him, like he had seen it somewhere before.

Without a word the Pokemon transported the group across the river of lava one-by-one, depositing them a fair distance beyond the shore. With each trip the number of landing points grew fewer and fewer until, when it came to Riolu's turn, there was no way across. All that lay before them was lava and their little world was growing ever smaller.

Without hesitating their savior turned to the left and leaped onto the town wall, still holding Riolu. He negotiated the top of the wall like a cat, jumping over the gaps without breaking stride. Halfway there the wall finally gave way to the lava-flow and collapsed completely. The Pokemon leaped from chunk to chunk until the lava settled then used the new chain of islands to go the rest of the way.

They covered most of the distance jumping from island to island, but suddenly they ran out of islands to jump to.

Balanced on top of a slowly sinking pillar, Riolu could see how close they were: twenty feet to freedom. They were so close.... One more landing spot was all they needed, then they could jump the remaining distance... but there were no more; all that stood between them and the shore was molten lava.

Riolu looked up, his savior looked down, and their eyes met.... In that face Riolu saw not a mysterious, unknown Pokemon, but the face of a Riolu... his face. Older, more mature and wizened, but his nonetheless.

Suddenly Riolu felt a ball of energy against the small of his back and next thing he knew, he was flying over the lava, propelled forward by the Pokemon's attack. He crashed into the ground and rolled several feet before coming to a stop, far beyond the fiery shore. When he looked back, expecting to see their savior following, the Pokemon was nowhere in sight and the pillar sank beneath the lava.

They never saw that Pokemon again and its fate would forevermore remain a mystery. Did he escape somehow or did he perish beneath the tide? Riolu would never know the answer, but he knew that he owed that Pokemon his life for what it did that day.

Only one Pokemon in the village believed their story: Raichu the village elder, who recognized their descriptions of the Pokemon. There is an old legend of a Pokemon that appears when someone is in mortal danger, a savior when all hope is lost. Its existence has never truly been proven, but many times Pokemon claim to have been saved from certain death by a Pokemon bearing the same description.

The Pokemon they saw was the legendary Lucario, a being shrouded in great mystery. Many folk-tales surround Lucario, describing it as a Pokemon of great strength yet great compassion for others. Only the ones it helps see it.

According to Raichu, Lucario was in fact a real Pokemon that existed many centuries ago in the Legendary Past. Its was world-renowned for its agility and endurance. However, he was killed in a battle with the Legendary Pokemon Regigigas. He hated combat, saying, "Violence only brings more of a mess for someone to clean up," but he was willing to defend those who could not defend themselves. He was willing to give his life to save others and proved it that day.

Lucario's death was never actually confirmed, though; he was seen to have fallen in battle, but his body was never found. Thus Lucario fell into legend and folk-lore. Many people believe that he is still alive, still protecting others to this day. He became a symbol of hope and a brighter tomorrow, of rescue when all hope seems lost. Lucario lives on in the hearts of many and shall never truly die as long as there is still hope in this world.

Excited by this tale and that moment at his most naive, Riolu declared that he would be just like Lucario one day.

After the survivors took refuge in the nearest - yet physically far away - town, Bedrock Ridge, Riolu and his friends Abra and Houndour set out to see the world.

Not long after leaving Bedrock Ridge they arrived in the small village of Rivsen. Here they learned that following the eruption of Mt. Cate, natural disasters began occurring all over the world: earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, hail storms, blizzards, tsunamis, everything. It did not happen all at once; the disasters started small at first, but they have been steadily growing more frequent and no one can explain it. The worst damage is up north in the Metal Mountains and in the Eslith Region, in the foothills of the Metal Mountains.

After a large earthquake promptly occurred in Rivsen, Riolu and his friends found something worthwhile, something that would make more of a difference than traveling around the world... in fact, they might just see the world in the process. Not only that, but they were capable of doing it. They could make a difference in the world instead of fantasizing about it... they could follow in Lucario's footsteps.

In the months that followed, Riolu and company traveled from town to town as they heard about a disaster occurring in an area. They helped rebuild and rescue Pokemon in trouble. Over time they were joined by many other Pokemon; some among the people they saved, others coming to similar revelations that Riolu had. They knew him as Silver the Riolu.

It went on like this for a long time, but then the disasters started getting worse. Not only more frequent, but larger in size and more destructive. Riolu and his team were unable to keep up with demand and there weren't enough Pokemon volunteering to help out. People were losing faith in Riolu and his team.

They were finally forced to split up when a tremor hit two towns in the Eslith region, Eslith Town and Dark Hollow, destroying much of both of them. Riolu insisted that he could handle a single town on his own and Abra and Houndour reluctantly agreed to take the other one.

During the mission Abra and Houndour were warned by a villager that the disasters were starting to affect some Pokemons' minds, driving them wild. Confident they could handle a few crazy people, they ignored the warning and were therefore unprepared for the fight they were forced into with an Aggron. The Pokemon was impossible to reason with, forcing them to take it down. With Aggron out-cold and now much more prone to listening, they learned that both towns were being affected by this, the other even more so.

Fearing that Riolu was in danger, they raced to the nearby town of Dark Hollow. The battle was already over by the time they got there; the town had been reduced to little more than rubble. For once in perfect agreement, they were determined to find Riolu, convinced he was still alive. All they found of him was his green Pecha Scarf, torn to shreds. The scent trail led them in circles and they were unable to locate their friend and leader.

Unknown to Abra and Houndour, Riolu was still very much alive; he had been carried off by a Fearow during the fighting, thus his lack of a scent trail. Unable to regroup with his team now, Riolu set out for Bedrock Ridge. However, he was not returning home.

Everything he planned, all of his dreams and wishes, was falling apart. He thought he was strong enough, but he was wrong. His last hope was Sea Foam Caves, the resting place of the fabled Scri of Solice. It was guarded by Regiqua, greatest of the Regi Legendary Pokemon. If he could defeat Regiqua, he would possess power rivaling even the legendary Lucario.

He had not a single damn idea what he was getting himself into. Legendary Pokemon are not called 'legendary' for nothing; they are the most powerful Pokemon in the world... and he is trying to defeat one with a stick.

Riolu is hurled backwards as Regiqua punches him in the gut, slamming him into the wall. He hangs there for a second, stuck in the crater, his eyes flooding with tears. Regiqua is so powerful... how could I have been so naive as to believe I could defeat it...?

He starts to slide down the wall but Regiqua grab him and slams him into the ground. Riolu goes limp, pain flooding his entire body, unable to fight anymore. His vision is failing. He is dying and he knows it.

Regiqua backs away, knowing it has won, and turns to face the crystal.

Riolu lies there silently, broken and bloody, his short life flashing before his eyes. All of his friends probably think he is dead by now; there was little of that town left and there would be no scent for Houndour to follow. If there had been, Riolu knows that Houndour would have gone to the ends of the world to find him.

He smiles as he remembers Houndour and Abra, his two best friends. The pain is so intense he can no longer feel it. To think they started this adventure following such a childish dream... and look at everything that became of it. They made a difference in the world, inspired others to stand up for what they believe in... just like Lucario, all those years ago.

As Riolu remembers Lucario and what he knows he saw that day, despite what others might think, he remembers that there is so much left to do. The disasters are getting worse, Pokemon are turning wild, and the world needs someone... someone like Lucario, now more than ever. His paw curls around his mahogany staff, gripping it tightly. He has too much to lose to back down now. "If it is my destiny to die this day," he growls as he rises to his feet, a mysterious energy flooding into his body, "by Arceus, I'll give this beast a fight it'll never forget...."

A silver aura surrounds Riolu as he turns to face Regiqua. He raises his paws to his chest, driven by instinct, palms outward and crossed. A blue ball of energy forms in the center of his palm, growing bigger by the second. He bends his knees, leaning to the right and back, spreads his legs apart, and moves the orb to his side, now holding it between his paws.

As the orb reaches a foot in diameter, Riolu thrusts his arms forward, firing the ball of aura energy at Regiqua. Rather shrugging it off, Regiqua staggers forward from the force of the blow. Riolu doesn't know whether or not he hurt the Legendary Pokemon... but he sure pissed it off.

Regiqua spins around and raises its arm, firing Hydro Cannon at Riolu, the first time it uses an actual move during the battle.

His collision with the wall behind him feels like hitting a cement wall at 70 MPH.  Riolu screams in agony, no longer able to hold his cries in. The Regiqua has been holding back this entire time, refraining from using any moves so that it can get the most out of this fight. Now that he pissed it off, it is done toying with him....

This time instead of Hydro Cannon, Regiqua charges Hyper Beam and Riolu knows he is dead....