FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Branches snapped, and brambles snagged as they were pushed aside, leaves crunching to announce the racing footsteps through the forest, as if the fury of the Pokemon's rush wasn't enough in the first place. The crashing of his body through the underbrush set off the wildlife in the forest around him, arousing a chorus of shrieks and howls. Each sound from the forest intermingled with his harsh breathing, the panicked footsteps as he crunched through the forest bordering the small town, and the shouting of the trainer fighting through the underbrush after him. The human sounded close, and by no means any less angry than he had been earlier.

Alongside the shouting, the Lucario could also hear the sounds of another Pokemon crashing through the undergrowth, baying and barking in response. The barking chilled the fighting Pokemon to his bone, and forced him to put more speed into his flight. A short vault over a downed tree dropped him down further than he anticipated, however, jarring his already sore legs and sending him sprawling to the detritus that littered the forest floor. Scrambling to his feet, he shot back forward with a push from his feet, closing his eyes and leaning forward as he crashed through a section of stinging brambles with a cry of pain, tripping and stumbling back forward onto his front once again. This time, the Pokeball held in his grip slipped, and bounced away from him.

Immediately, the Lucario pushed himself onto all fours, brushing his hands back and forth while he frantically searched for the tiny sphere.Why? Why did it have to be that ball? His eyes darted back and forth, while his head swiveled about. Panic began to seep its way into the usually calm Pokemon's core the longer it took for him to find it, and he silently cursed the trainer for using the black-and-white patterned object on him. Hope faded, and he began pushing himself off of the ground to resume his flight without his ball, when a mewl off to his left made him start and turn to see a small Purrloin with the Pokeball in its mouth. The Pokemon, probably nothing more than a kitten, dropped it in front of him, earning a tender pet, before a howl erupted from behind him; a howl he knew all-too-well, and one that sent a shiver of real fear through him. Houndoom!

A glance at the now cowering feline Pokemon made him realize how far the human hunting him was willing to go, to get him back. A glance over the Purrloin was enough to reveal another. And another. A family of them, with the mother sheltering her kittens under a moss-covered log.

'Stay. No sound.' He told them, giving the kitten close to him a push and a flick of his snout toward its mother. With the crashing through the forest getting closer, he stood and did what his instinct told him otherwise: The Lucario turned on his heel, and sprinted to his right, down the bank of a small stream, deliberately making as much noise as he thought necessary. The shouting of the human increased, along with another bone-chilling howl from the hell-hound pursuing him, and he stopped for a moment, turning around in the direction he had come. His first thought was the Purrloins he had left behind, and a momentary pang of regret shot through his core, until with a thunderous crash the canine tracking him burst through the trees and into the clearing. It left a split second to react, allowing him to duck at the right moment, as the dog flew over his frame in its attempt at a tackle, before he sprinted back into the forest in the direction he had been heading before. Speed was his ally against the Houndoom, but only just.

Only days before, the Lucario had been a Riolu. Trusting in his trainer, and willing to put his body through the stress of evolution, he had shown the human his friendship by transforming into his most desired Pokemon, but his trainer was not who he had thought. Upon evolution, his trainer pit him repeatedly against his other Pokemon. Even when he had refused, he was forced to fight, or suffer consequences, until, finally he could not take it, anymore. Now, he fled through the forest surrounding Nuvema Town with his Pokeball in his clutches from the Pokemon that always scared him with its devotion to his trainer's violence. The howl of rage as he escaped the Houndoom was proof of its vicious attitude, and only by weaving through the progressively denser tree trunks was he able to eventually evade the now enraged tracking dog, even as the smell of smoke and hellfire began to tickle his nose. A few short moments later, and he was dashing across a small dirt trail, passing a building filled with awe-struck humans before he slipped into a section of tall grass, heading toward a small cave he knew was nearby.

A few short steps was all he was able to make in the grass, before with a shrieking cry from above he was slammed to the ground by an impact that forced all of the air from his lungs. He struggled against claws that held him to the Earth, earning a squawk from above him as his captor hopped off, and with a gust of wind retreated. It gave him the chance to stand, cradling his Pokeball to his belly as he gasped for air and searched until he found the Braviary climbing above the trees for a second assault. The bird Pokemon suddenly dived toward him, swooping low and folding its wings like a torpedo while using its tail to steer, a move the Lucario recognized: one the humans aptly called 'Brave Bird'. One chance...

He widened his stance, narrowing his eyes while the feelers on the back of his head lifted, allowing him to see the Aura surrounding the charging avian, and at the right moment the Lucario drew back his fist. With a snarl, he closed his eyes and lunged forward, surging his own Aura through his body into an lightning-charged sucker punch. The impact told him his strike had met its mark, and the indignant, wailing squawk from the Braviary told him that his unpracticed move had succeeded. He opened his eyes in time, to see the punch sending the bird over his head where it collapsed in a paralyzed heap on the edge of the tall grass. Before he could attempt to flee once again, the pursuing Houndoom scrambled from the edge of the forest and onto the trail with a triumphant howl, staring him down as they began to circle.

'Well!? What are you waiting for?' He spat at the dog, taking a tentative step backward. A rustling behind him made him spin around, however, to bring himself facing the trainer he had been evading as he emerged from the trees, breathless.

"There you are!" The human brought his fingers to his mouth, issuing a sharp whistle before waiting. After a few seconds, the human whistled again, cursing to himself before looking at the sky. "Where is that damn bird?"

Lucario chuckled, making the trainer round on him again, and he shot a red-eyed glance at the unconscious Braviary. The trainer followed his gaze, before letting out a cry of anger directed at the bird.

"It looks like you're not good for nothing, after all, Lucario." The trainer stomped over toward the fallen bird, kicking the downed Pokemon and making Lucario wince. "Unlike some creatures, now wake up, you worthless bird!" Lucario watched as the trainer gruffly threw a revive packet at the downed bird, making it cry out weakly as it came to, before being kicked again by the human. "How many times have I told you? Don't. Play. With. Your. Food. You. Stupid. Bird!" Its trainer punctuated every word with a savage kick to the Pokemon's midsection, just below its wing, ending his outburst with a particularly hard stomp that made the Braviary scream in pain. "Shut up! You can complain all you want later, because it looks like somebody else is taking your spot at the Pokemon Center, this time."

Lucario stared at his trainer, his jaw agape, at what he had said. 'No healing at a center!?' He glanced at the Houndoom behind him, who snickered as the bird Pokemon was retrieved into its ball once again.'It is paralyzed!' He took a step toward his trainer, growling with his pointed ears laying flat against his head, but a snap of the human's fingers stopped him in his tracks.

"Now, don't get too big for your britches, Lucario. You did a good job on Braviary, so..." The human held out his hand expectantly, glaring at him. "... let's give your ball back, and we'll get you all rested up for your training." He glanced toward the Pokeball in his grip, and looked at the trainer for a moment before stamping his foot defiantly, and glaring the human down.

'No.'

"What are you just standing there, for? I said give me the Pokeball!" Again, Lucario acted in defiance, shaking his head at his trainer with a grunt.

'You should do as you are told, Lucario.' The Houndoom behind him let out a savage chuckle, and he could feel the dog getting closer to him. 'You would not want to make Master angry, again. You know what happened last time you did that.'

'I am not yours.' Lucario tucked the ball up against his chest tightly, and glanced around him. His eyes locked on the building behind Houndoom, and to his left. If I can reach the fence...

"Give. Me. The--hey!" Lucario bolted, shoving past Houndoom as he sprinted with all of his body's speed toward the white picket fence that surrounded the small yard, while a small group of humans watched on, apparently speechless. He gathered his strength to make a jump, when he was tackled by the dog, a heavy paw jammed into his back, a single word grumbling out of his mouth into the dirt:

'Almost...'

"Good boy, Houndoom." A few rushed footsteps brought his trainer next to him, while the dog Pokemon kept him pinned. "What are you people looking at? Never seen a runaway Pokemon before?" They started to say something, but his trainer quickly told them to shut up. Suddenly, the weight was off of his back, and his trainer grabbed him by the scruff of his neck. With a yelp, he was lifted painfully while his legs were held by Houndoom, and he began fighting with the human over his Pokeball. "Give it to me, you miserable mutt, or I swear you'll be no better than that bird you smashed." Lucario just tugged harder, growling loudly as the struggle continued. "Just give it to me, damn it!" He received a hard yank on his scruff, making him yelp again, and a crazy notion formed in his head. Pinned, unable to take one hand off of his ball, and his trainer willing to do whatever it took to get it from him, Lucario did the only thing he could think of.

With a savage snarl, unbecoming of a Lucario, he sunk his teeth into his trainers hand. Immediately he was rewarded with a howl of pain from the human, but before he could pull it away, Lucario bit down harder. He could taste the blood from the human in his mouth, and hear the wailing from him, but he closed his eyes and hung on as tightly as he could with his jaws, until he received a kick to his stomach. He rolled onto his knees, wheezing slightly, but still in possession of his ball, as his trainer scrambled away, holding a bleeding hand and shouting at the Houndoom.

"Teach him a lesson! No Pokemon bites me and gets away with it!" Lucario stood up, staring the hellhound down, only to be tackled in a searing blast of flames. He let out a cry and allowed his ball to go flying from his grip, clutching at his body as he tried to regain his stance. In a last-ditch attempt, he summoned in front of him a pulsing, glowing sphere while glaring at the other Pokemon, but the Houndoom was faster. In a flash, the Aura he had summoned dissipated as he was staggered back, and pinned to the fence he had tried to reach earlier. The air was flooded with shouting while he struggled to push the Houndoom off of him, and the dog unleashed a flaming bite toward his face. His struggling turned into pained thrashing as the burning fangs from the dog sunk into the left side of his head, his fists mindlessly beating against the Houndoom as chaos erupted. In seconds he was pulled away over the fence, amid a chorus of commands to Pokemon. The Houndoom was launched away from him, ripping his face open as the dog's jaws scissored shut to attempt to hold on, by a Dewott executing a blinding Aqua Jet dash.

Lucario saw nothing after being hauled over the fence of the Daycare, but he heard the screams of other trainers in battle, and the howling of the Houndoom in retreat before the pain in his head overwhelmed his body. The last thing he did see, was a female racing toward him with a potion spray, shouting something to the other Pokemon. He felt the suddenly comfortable confines of his Pokeball, and Lucario curled up inside the digital enclosure, cradling his face with his hands, to rest as fatigue took away his consciousness.