A low rumble like thunder echoed around Mt. Silver. It came from Raikou simply breathing. Its narrow eyes never left Joe.
Joe was not equipped to fight a legend. Raikou. One of the Beasts. Joe learned about it in school. History class. The species was part of Johto's past. Part of grand stories and mythologies. A member of the species had achieved a tale worth telling and so the species as a whole was revered. Students also took general lessons on Pokemon. A topic they covered were classifications. Legendary Pokemon were a step above regular Pokemon in every way. Absol stood no chance. It could put up a good fight, but it would lose to Raikou. The situation was dire.
Joe was trying to figure it why Raikou would even attack. Legendary Pokemon were elusive. They rarely appeared before others. Why here? Why now? And that fierce glare. There was anger in those pink eyes. Someone had upset it.
Absol barked at Raikou. The Beast's attention shifted, but it didn't respond. Just stared at Absol with annoyance. Absol gritted its teeth. Its horn changed colour. It unleashed another pink arc of energy. Directed it at Raikou. In response, Raikou bit the arc in half. The pink energy dissipated. There was no reasoning with the frenzied Beast. Absol opened its mouth. A dark orb, a Shadow Ball, formed in front of its mouth. It barked and fired the orb at Raikou.
"I'd love to know why you think that's a good idea." Joe commented as the pink arc was negated and Absol started a second attack. Deep down he knew this was the result. Raikou was angry. It wanted a fight. Absol was trying to uphold peace. Naturally the two sides clashed.
Before Shadow Ball even struck, Absol turned, barked at Joe and bolted past him. Joe watched Shadow Ball land. Too big to bite in half. Raikou just let itself be struck in the face. The dark orb burst on contact. Created a plume of smoke. Joe took the hint. He turned. Slipped. Corrected himself. Ran. Joe wasn't one to run from a fight, but he knew his limitations. What was he going to do against Raikou, fist fight it? Granted, it wouldn't be the first time Joe personally fought a Pokemon. He'd put a few rowdy animals in their place. Wrestled with them to assert dominance. Something told Joe a fight against Raikou was one he'd lose though.
Absol looked back over its shoulder. Saw that Joe followed its lead. Good. Raikou pounced and ran after Joe. Not good.
Joe put all his effort into sprinting after Absol. Even if Sprigatito enjoyed battle, she was not fit to fight a legend. She'd be taken out in one hit. The only course of action was retreat. But where to? He couldn't draw Raikou into New Bark. Joe was between a rock and a hard place. Running was the only course of action, but he could only run for so long.
Joe heard Raikou's mighty paws striking ground behind him. Joe's legs pumped hard and fast as he aimed to catch up to Absol. He kicked rocks. Stumbled. Hand met dirt. This environment was not suited to running. He corrected himself fast and carried on. Joe needed every advantage he could get. He shifted his arms. Let his hefty rucksack tumble down the side of Mt. Silver, never to be seen again. A weight off his shoulders. Literally. He was moving faster now. The equipment in his bag could be bought again. He only had one life.
A streak of golden electricity hurtled toward Joe's back. Absol skid to a halt. Opened its mouth. Created another Shadow Ball. Joe ran by. Absol unleashed its attack. The electricity was close but ultimately met ghost-type energy. The two moves exploded on contact, their energies disagreeing with each other.
The sound of things blowing up at his back made Joe eke out every drop of strength he had. Shouted his thanks to Absol.
Absol began running again. Heard thanks on the wind. Suppressed a smile. Absol had done so much for so many people and they rarely thanked it. Finally, someone with manners. Absol stayed behind Joe. That way, any attacks were aimed at Absol instead. Absol could fight back. Deflect or counter.
Joe heard Absol running behind him. He understood the Pokemon well. It was doing all it could to keep him safe. He had great respect for this Absol. It could've fled alone. Saved itself. But it stayed and fought for his sake. He owed Absol big time.
Absol countered half a dozen attacks while Raikou closed in. A human couldn't outrun the Beast. It was inevitable.
Raikou was close enough. It could lock onto its target completely. It called forth Thunder from the skies. Dark clouds spawned out of nowhere. Whirled around each other. A giant bolt of electricity struck the mountain. Destroyed a large chunk of the path. Raikou's eyes reflected Joe and Absol as they were flung into the air, the ground underneath them crumbling.
Joe was caught up in a landslide. Rubble hit his head. He landed on his rear and began sliding down a cliff steeper than the one he'd rescued Jasmine from. He tried to grab rocks as he went but they couldn't hold his weight, or he couldn't get a good enough grip on them.
Absol didn't fall far. It dug its claws into the slope. Looked up at Raikou as the Beast peered over the ridge. Admiring its own handiwork. Absol and Raikou locked eyes. Glared at each other. Absol wanted to spit on Raikou but settled for growling. Retracted its claws. Spun and sprinted down the slope as fast as it could. Eyes focused entirely on the human. Absol watched as Joe flew over the edge.
Time seemed to stop as Joe looked down at the fatal fall. Joe cursed like a sailor. Every word he could think of. Two falls in the same month. Gravity didn't like him, apparently. He felt himself dropping. And then his descent was stopped. Briefly. Absol had kicked off the cliff. Placed itself under Joe. He now rested on Absol's back. But they were still in midair.
They fell together. Absol hit the mountain with four strong legs. Bounded forward. Used gravity to its advantage. Got a few seconds of airtime. Hit ground again. Pushed forward again. Absol ran down the mountain to create as much distance as possible.
Over a minute later they were near the base of the mountain. A minute wiped out days of hiking effort. Absol collided hard with a dirt path. Skidded along it. Dug its claws in. Came to a stop. Absol was panting heavily.
Joe flopped off Absol's back. Fell onto his hands and knees. His stomach wanted to let go of his most recent meal. Is this what it felt for people who experienced sea sickness? His stomach had lurched all over the place. Reached placed within his torso that it shouldn't be in. Breathing properly helped combat the nausea. Joe pat Absol's side. His hand sunk into lovely fur. If this wasn't life or death he'd love to enjoy the soft sensation some more.
"Thanks…" He breathed. Rose to his feet. Stood next to Absol he could get a proper sense of size. Absol had to be at least five-feet tall, not including the horn.
Absol didn't acknowledge. It looked up. Began to growl. Joe looked up. A blinding light struck the path next to Joe and Absol. Raikou had barrelled down the mountain too. Landed right next to them. The ground rumbled and cracked. The immense pressure of its landing, paired with a release of electric power, kicked dust into the air.
Despite his weight, Joe was sent flying down the path. Absol had turned to where Raikou would land last second. Dug its claws in. Absol aimed to meet Raikou straight away with an attack. Absol was blinded by the dirt in the air. It didn't matter. Raikou should be right in front of it. Absol opened its mouth. Created an orb of ice that could send three arcing beams at an opponent. But Raikou was faster. A meaty paw came in from the side. Struck both Absol's head and the start of Ice Beam. Absol was hit into a cliff face. Created a crater in the rock wall. Absol fell to the ground, dazed.
Joe stood up. Watched Absol hit the cliff. A light breeze removed the dust cloud. Raikou was shaking its paw. Getting rid of loose ice. Joe saw Absol try to stand up, but it stumbled. Of course. A hit to the head like that would be enough to take out a boxer, and they get hit in the head for a living.
Joe had a very, very bad idea. He was an idiot though, so it tracked. How far away was he? About twenty metres. Time? Six or seven seconds. It was doable. If Joe was lucky, half of that time would be Raikou figuring out a response.
"Screw it…" Joe muttered to himself. He rushed forward.
It took Raikou exactly three seconds to turn its attention to Joe and respond. Raikou roared. Unleashed electricity at Joe. Its fur bristled from static and the absurdity that a human would approach it like this. Raikou took a step back. Its animal instincts were taking over. Telling it a giant of a man sprinting towards it was not a good thing.
Bolts flew through the air. Joe ducked. Planted a hand on dirt for balance. Dove and rolled to avoid more golden sparks. He had rolled to the right. Where Absol was. He kicked the ground and maintained his momentum. Kept running. Joe was mere metres away. Another attack came. He dodged.
And that was when Joe made a mistake. Joe should've dodged straight onto Absol but he didn't think he had the space for it. So he twisted his body to the side. To the left. The opposite side of Absol. Joe rolled on the ground. Rushed to his feet. He had planned to scoop Absol up and run. Now what? Keep running as a distraction?
Absol forced itself to fight through the confusion. It prepared another Shadow Ball. Stood on unsteady legs, pupils changing size. Faced Raikou.
In those seconds of Joe being on Raikou's left and Absol gearing up to attack on Raikou's right, Raikou felt threatened. The static on its fur built up fast. It created a grand Discharge. An orb of electricity blasted out from Raikou's body. Absol was shoved back into the wall. Joe was less fortunate. He was sent flying off the mountain. The attack damaged his winter coat, cotton trailing through the air after him. The strength of a Pokemon's attack was no joke.
Joe vanished from sight. Absol watched in horror. Snapped out of its dazed state from the dump of new adrenaline. Absol rushed forward. Planned to catch Joe again. Never ignore a foe. Raikou sent a Thunderbolt into Absol's side. It was enough force to knock Absol off its feet. Steam rose from its side as it lay on the path. Absol understood gravity. Enough time had passed. The human didn't survive. For the first time in a long time Absol had failed.
Absol looked up. The Beast wasn't doing anything. It just stood there. This brief reprieve was welcome. Absol had a chance to recover. But it was odd. Like Raikou was awaiting orders. No other reason for the Beast to become inactive.
Absol curled its claws. Grit its teeth. It was angry. No one deserved the fate that had befallen Joe. If Absol just played dead then Raikou might get bored and leave. But no. Absol was angry enough to fight a legend. It was ill-advised, but Absol didn't care. Absol would avenge the human with all its power.
Raikou perked up. Faced New Bark. This was it. Absol sprang up. Caught Raikou off-guard. Jumped back. Created a beam of ice in front of its mouth. Swiped it across Raikou, from foot to face and up the cliff. Ice stuck to Raikou's face as it flexed its leg and paw to shatter the frozen water.
Before Raikou could attack in return, Absol shrouded itself in a white light. Moved rapidly across the cliff face using Quick Attack. Skid to a stop along the wall of rock. The white light dissipated. Absol's paw was engulfed in dark energy. It jumped forward. Slashed at Raikou's face. Skid to a halt on the other side of Raikou. Spun. Absol used a move with the momentum. Another Psycho Cut. As Absol spun the move was fired, striking Raikou in the side.
Raikou finally had enough time to respond. It opened its mouth. A white beam burst forth, gold electricity buzzing around it. Absol dodged. Absol hadn't encountered a Hyper Beam supercharged by electricity before. Something to keep in mind. The path along the ledge got a chunk bore out of it. The Hyper Beam continued to strike a field in New Bark.
The two stared each other down. Absol acted first. Fired another Ice Beam. The attack was dodged. Absol charged. Prepared another Night Slash, this time aimed at Raikou's neck. Absol ducked under Raikou as it wrapped its fangs in electricity and bit down hard. Launched up. Missed the neck. Hit the chin. Raikou had moved back last second. The uppercut had enough force to snap Raikou's head back.
Raikou stumbled back a step. Crouched to the ground. Brought its head down to look at Absol as its foe approached. Raikou took the hit. Retaliated with the same action. An uppercut with Thunder Punch. Absol went soaring. Absol was dazed again. Floating in the sky, by a ridge that led to a meadow. Raikou charged its electricity. Pounced. Floated in midair beside Absol.
One of Absol's eyes turned to Raikou with clouded vision. Absol was struck by a thick white beam. The land was cut up again and Absol went rolling across grass. Absol tried to get up. Failed and fell to the ground. A shadow loomed over it. Raikou. Absol saw the Beast looking down at it.
Absol grinned, one eye closed from the pain. It had been practising a new move recently. Absol was sure it understood the energy signature and how to use it. Absol planted a paw on the ground. Maybe Absol was imagining it, but it thought Raikou raised an eyebrow in curiosity. Probably thought Absol couldn't do much more. Well, Raikou was wrong. Absol still had some frustrations.
The attack was complete. Raikou couldn't it avoid even if it wanted to. Absol channelled energy through the ground. Rock-type energy. A stone pillar rose from dirt. Struck Raikou in the belly and threw it into the air.
Absol rose. Roared. Chunks out of the earth rose and surrounded Raikou. Stone Edge could be summoned from any dirt. Even rocks from Rock Slide. Absol channelled energy through the air. Said energy hit all the rocks around Raikou. More pillars burst forth, punching Raikou for all sides. Absol stepped back, unsteady.
Raikou fell to the ground. Lay there for a moment. It'd taken more damage than expected. It coughed. Stood up. Stared at Absol. Absol, while unsure how long it could keep fighting for, glared back.