FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

A sibilant breeze whisked throughout the arena of Pokﾃｩmon Stadium. It sent a small patch of dust rising from the soil. Having been reddened by blood, the collection of discarded particles had a similar appearance to autumn leaves, their colorful display reminding onlookers of change and their inability to prevent it.

A trail of the filthy leaves scattered from the empty spot where Lucario had stood a quarter of a second earlier. They led in a direct line towards the indomitable Blaziken, whose beak was halfway agape in shock. Lucario stood crouched beside her, his sharp elbow lodged deeply into the upper section of her stomach. Her normally rock-hard abs were bent and twisted, trying to accommodate this unexpected entry but failing miserably.

As another quarter of a second passed, everything happened all at once. The colorful dust began swirling around in massive amounts as Torana coughed hard, reeling over in pain from the mighty blow. The momentum of the attack finally caught up, her body being thrown back like a speeding bullet, crashing down on the ground almost twenty feet away. A stream of blood raced up her throat as she coughed up some of it, landing with a splash on the sandy soil next to her. For the first time in her life, Zerobi noticed that her eyes were not following the crimson red she desired so, but much like Celebi's they were fastened securely on Lucario and wide open in surprise.

Lucario exhaled. Pulling his elbow back and standing up, he carefully placed both hands on his knees. As he looked up he noticed that Brendan was displaying a very disturbing expression of a face caught between complete amazement and utter devastation. Bending over toward Torana, Lucario decided to smile.

"What was that you said about shitting out my broken dreams?" he asked with a mocking tone, tapping the side of his leg confidently.

"... Lucario! Way to go!" Zerobi burst out as she finally came back to her senses, "Why didn't you tell me you'd learned ExtremeSpeed?"

"E-ExtremeSpeed? No..." Celebi gasped quietly while measuring the distance Torana flew and gauging out the strength of the hit, "That impact was far too powerful for that!"

The term 'ExtremeSpeed' brought Lucario thought back to his days of training, how Mew had told him of a move even more useful than the aura sphere. By mastering the latter he needed to be able to steer and overload his mitochondria, detonating them into a splendid burst of pure energy. However, according to Mew, using this blue fire to burn the opponent or oneself was never the purpose of the technique. Supposedly, by mastering complete control over his body, he could make the surrounding mitochondria absorb the excess energy and instantly put it to use, massively boosting his output for a split second. Failing to employ it countless times during training and against the hunter, the latter of which had nearly resulted in his and Zerobi's deaths, it was only when watching the Blaziken do practically the same thing with her Speed Boost that he realized how easy it was and dared to try again.

"Torana! Go for his legs!" Brendan shouted orders, obviously having figured out the nature behind Lucario's skill, "They're thin! Weak! There's no way they can take a hit after a run like that!"

"Sorry, but that's not the case..." Lucario explained while shaking his head cockily, "So, maybe I haven't been training as much as you, but I've been walking... My god, have I been walking..."

A shudder passed through Lucario as he thought back to his absurdly long travels.

"How did you spend your last year? Me? Oh, nothing, I just walked halfway across the globe," Lucario muttered with a shrug as the Blaziken made an attempt to get up, "My legs know suffering you can't even imagine. This is nothing!"

"You think... You can outrun me...!?" Torana growled menacingly.

"Actually... Lately I've been practicing these to be able to outrun bullets," Lucario said confidently while pointing at her, "Compared to those, you're pretty sluggish."

Torana grit her beak together in frustration as she stood up. She had not felt this overwhelmed by an attack since her days as a Torchic, picking fights with Pokﾃｩmon a few too many levels above hers. Since evolving and learning the Speed Boost, there was no longer anyone able to match up to her without resorting to cheap tricks. For nearly a decade she had been forced to beat up weaklings and clean up rabid wilders at her master's request. Now, she was finally facing someone ready to put up a fight, even finding a way to outmaneuver her peerless speed. Feeling herself filling up with excitement, she could not help but smile back at Lucario.

"Well then... The Poliwag has grown two arms..." she whispered, talons gleaming dangerously as she clutched them, "Let us see if he knows how to use them!"

The Blaziken flexed with her upper muscles, calling forth two pillars of fire by her feet.

"Me first!" Lucario shouted, pushing a large group of mitochondria from his stomach region down to his legs. Torana's fire engulfed her legs and disappeared within as Lucario's aura exploded and the surrounding mitochondria sucked it up. Wanting to test their speed against one another, they ran towards each other with harmful intents. Both too fast to even be seen by the untrained eye, the Blaziken noticed Lucario disappearing half a second before she felt herself getting rammed in the stomach again, then quickly punched in the chest and headbutted in the face. She had endured several ExtremeSpeed users in the past, but none as ungodly quick and strong as this one. Unable to withstand the unexpectedly powerful assault, she stumbled back and fell over.

"Is... That really ExtremeSpeed...?" Zerobi whispered to herself with confusion, watching the mighty Torana drop so easily. She knew ExtremeSpeed was a useful move for gaining priority in a clash, but even something like a regular body slam or mega kick should be able to do more damage. Celebi felt equally stumped as she analyzed the situation and nature of Lucario's move. However, it did not take long for her bright mind and advanced reasoning to bring about a conclusion.

"I-I've got it!" Celebi burst out in amazement, "It's... His weight!"

Zerobi looked at her with confusion, Lucario's ears perking as he wondered if she was planning on calling him fat.

"He has far less steel in his body than an average Lucario, which I assumed would do little but increase his weaknesses..." Celebi explained while shaking her head in disapproval, "... Not to mention his less than exemplary diet of hardly eating anything..."

Lucario wondered what she was talking about, remembering that he had definitively eaten two full meals in the past two years, both of which were varied and quite nutritious. He had also forced down a berry or two in the past few months, wondering how Zerobi was able to keep such a slim figure despite eating as frequently as thrice per week.

"This senseless starvation has led to reduce his body weight to the absolute minimum!" Celebi exclaimed with clarity, "ExtremeSpeed lets a normal Lucario move at a blinding pace, but with someone as light as he is... I have never seen anyone move that quickly! Not even Zapdos!"

Torana groaned as she sat up, placing a leathery talon by her forehead. Although her body had now reached utterly ridiculous levels of speed, the sharpness of her own reflexes and nerve signals remained the same. While it might be possible for her to parry Lucario's ExtremeSpeed, she was not able to even see him move before getting struck several times. Trying to think of a solution, her inner thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice echoing from the PA.

"Hehehe... Cute widdle Sui's a great tracker, but far from my strongest fighter. I doubt he would've gotten up after another onslaught like that..." Brendan snickered confidently into the microphone, keeping his legs propped up on the podium in front, "But then again... Torana's not in a different league for nothing..."

Hearing her master's words of confidence, the Blaziken quickly stood up. When she found herself confused over how to counter an enemy, he was always the one to help her out. She knew this time would not be any different.

"I think this had gone on long enough, Torana..." Brendan whispered slowly, his expression looking slightly more bitter than before, "You have my permission to use fire."

"... Oh, great. Fun's over," Zerobi groaned helplessly. Lucario clenched his fists in anticipation, watching the Blaziken do the same thing with her talons. Readying himself for yet another charge, she was upon him, and only then did he realize the unimaginable levels of speed she had reached alongside his own. He felt himself struck on the hip by an attack so fast he was unable to even determine its nature, although from the creaking of his bones he was certain that it was yet another powerful kick.

"Ah!" Celebi gasped with shock as Lucario was thrown into the wall in a painful manner, "ExtremeSpeed only lasts for a second, but that Speed Boost seems to be permanent! Lucario, keep using ExtremeSpeed! If you do not, you will lose!"

The Blaziken watched as Lucario sat up and suddenly started rubbing his legs with a pained expression. Thinking she had somehow missed her target and struck his calf instead of hip, there was a certain sense of familiarity about his action. She thought back to her early days of mastering the Speed Boost, remembering the severe pain running through her then untrained limbs.

"Ah. I see. How reckless of you to use such a strenuous technique with such flimsy legs," she said bluntly as she walked closer to him, trying to get a better look, "Did you not say that all your walking had strengthened them?"

"Sh-Shut up!" Lucario growled in response, doing his best to hide the fact that he was experiencing some unexpected recoil after his last attempt at using his new technique. A deep burning sensation lingered in every part of his legs, one that had increased tenfold after the second use. His instincts warned him not to use it again since he would likely lose focus due to the added strain. Although if the Blaziken was not about to slow down any time soon, and he had to keep on fighting with his damaged abdomen and nearly useless legs, he saw little chance of winning.

"Maybe if you were to gain a little more weight and mass, they'd be able to handle the stress better?" the Blaziken continued undauntedly while continuing to approach him, "Or perhaps... This is the limit for a Lucario's muscles?"

"... I don't need legs to beat someone like you!" Lucario shouted as he suddenly thrust out his arm, an aura sphere heading directly towards Torana's head. Although the aim was perfect and she had no hopes of dodging it previously, compared to Lucario's ExtremeSpeed the sphere was not quite as fast and had no way of homing in on her. With a casual flick of her neck, she let the blue fire fly past her, only brushing up slightly against one of the appendages sticking out of her face and ruffling a few feathers. She continued walking until she was right in front of him.

"What a shame," Torana sighed in disappointment as Lucario slowly let his arm fall, his face etched in horror, "It seems I have powered up a little too much."

"Yes... You have!" Lucario yelled as he suddenly lashed out with his full body, attempting to grab a hold of Torana's legs. She felt his feeble hands try to get a grip around her thick limbs, watching with amusement as he helplessly fumbled around. Then, in an instant, she felt an unexpected searing pain strike through her being. Looking down, she saw that Lucario had given up on grasping her and had simply pressed his palms up against her kneecaps, a blue glow emanating from them.

"Grr!" Torana growled before kicking Lucario in the head, throwing him away to the side. Suddenly she crouched over, the pain in her kneecaps steadily increasing and spreading out across the rest of her legs. Lucario coughed as he sat up, but still had an air of confidence about him.

"Y-You caught me off guard at first... But I have just gained very intimate familiarity with that technique you use," Lucario tried to speak, still rattled about from the strong blow to the side of his head, "Hurts, doesn't it? Sure... You might be able to take the strain better than me... But that doesn't mean it's not there!"

The Blaziken gnashed her beak together, feeling her legs crumble under the seemingly unending stream of pain. Her shoulder had been hit by aura earlier, but had recovered rather quickly. Her legs were greatly worn out from being forced to constantly move faster and faster, turning the once impervious pillars quite fragile and bad receptors for the scathing blue fire. The pain disappeared from her mind for a second as an agitated voice suddenly blared out over the stadium.

"Fire! Use fire, damn it!" Brendan's voice echoed as he screamed in excitement, "Burn to the ground! BURN!"

Lucario and even Zerobi covered their ears to shield themselves from the loud noise. Celebi recovered from the blasting sound waves first, and was left wondering why the Blaziken had yet to use any fire-based attacks, despite having been given permission to do so for quite some time. Torana sighed as she turned towards Lucario, trying to keep her aching legs steady.

"A flamethrower aimed at your head," she said sternly, staring Lucario deep in the eye in order to reach him. Pondering her meaning, she suddenly opened her beak with a jet of fire shooting out of it towards him. In the split second he was given before being cremated, his brain was able to put two and two together as he ducked, the beam of fire passing directly above his head.

"A flame kick right directed at your feet," the Blaziken continued, suddenly crouching down as she made a sweep at Lucario. Already aware of what was going to happen, he was easily able to jump over it, seeing a trail of embers left behind where her leg had passed through. Not only that, but her movements seemed notably slower now compared to before. It seemed his attack against her legs were taking its toll.

"What the hell are you-" Lucario started, but was immediately interrupted by the Blaziken.

"You grew a set of arms, and immediately used them to become a full Poliwrath," Torana explained slowly, Lucario's apparent confusion forcing her to clarify, "You still have some more tricks to show me, don't you? It would be a shame to finish prematurely by setting you on fire!"

"... O-Of course," Lucario stammered, feeling peeved that he had not won yet despite fighting for so long. The Blaziken was truly showing her experience, countering and nullifying the ExtremeSpeed not even Lucario had planned on using. If at all, whatever new strategy he could come up with would probably not have any lasting effect upon the fiery veteran. Breathing heavily and aching all over, he knew he would not last much longer. Every second that passed was one second closer to when he would finally collapse from exhaustion and find himself at the non-existent mercy of Brendan. Unwilling to face such a conclusion, he dashed towards Torana, longing to finally deliver the punch that would keep her down.

Taking a step forward, Torana prepared herself for the attack. A sharp pain shot through her damaged legs, and she felt that there was no chance of running around like before. Even so, her Speed Boost was still very much active, and let her limp ahead at an even quicker pace than Lucario was running. They clashed together, angrily wrestling against each other with their arms, both combatants too tired to try anything fancy.

"Your arms seem OK!" Lucario respectfully complimented her before kicking her afflicted calf hard, "How 'bout your legs!?"

Torana squealed in pain for a second, before immediately collecting herself.

"One for me..." she muttered as she forcefully sent her knee deep into Lucario's abdomen, "... One for you!"

Lucario kicked at her legs while Torana kneed him in the stomach for a while until the two fighters separated, both in too much pain to continue the struggle.

"... What kind of battle is this...?" Zerobi muttered to herself, watching the Blaziken limp around at super-sonic speed with Lucario shuffling back while clutching his aching belly. Their struggle turning more and more desperate, she knew that any reasonable trainer would have called back their Pokﾃｩmon by now, sparing the world of such a pitiful sight.

Brendan scratched the underside of his chin, undaunted by the development of the battle. Even as Torana staggered back and forth with crippled legs, he could see the beauty in what he had created. Through sweat and tears, he had given shape to a warrior of the 'Uber' class, paying meticulous attention to every last muscle in order to make the perfect fighter. Veiled by feathers and a well-toned body rested the strength of a true monster. Eleven years ago she had stood in this very stadium, undefeated and unmatched. Indeed, such would still be the case had it not been for Ethan and his wretched Trick Room.

Brendan sighed. He knew her loss was not Ethan's fault, but rather an effect of his own shortcomings as a trainer. May had always told him he would not be able to win by excelling only in strength. The vivid sight of her accusing face, crushed like a grape beneath the weight of a particularly large rock flashed through his mind before he forced the memory away. He did not have time to sink into despair once more, because he knew his Pokﾃｩmon needed him.

It concerned him somewhat that Torana assumed he would not be able to figure out that she was warning Lucario before using fire, forcing him to question if he had overestimated her intelligence. Ever since she was a cute little Torchic she had followed his orders, but rarely to the letter. He did not mind it all that much; she was a free spirit after all and always got the job done in the end. Not to mention, he knew better than anyone that his orders were not always the best course of action. If she believed she could win while refusing to exploit Lucario's weakness to fire, he would fully support her decision. However, Brendan had just seen the Lucario pull out an impressive show of ExtremeSpeed out of nowhere, and knew that another lucky critical hit could mean the end for his Pokﾃｩmon. He could not accept it. After all his Blaziken had done, she deserved nothing less than a complete victory. Unlike him, she was destined for triumph and glory, and through her he would be able to acquire it as well.

"Torana! It's time to finish things with your ultimate technique!" Brendan suddenly shouted with a powerful voice as he stood up, "End it with the Scorching Typhoon! The Inferno Cyclone! The Flare Whirlwind! The Pyre Tornado!"

The Blaziken looked up at her trainer for a moment, before slowly lowering her gaze towards Lucario.

"Seems that our time is coming to an end," she said quietly, "Better go hug the walls. Things are about to heat up."