Master vs Pupil

“This just doesn’t add up….. No! I refuse to believe this!” Ashton yelled as he stood on the roof of the Black Wing’s stronghold. Standing before him was the former captain of the kingdom of Rohta’s Dragon Masters Unit, and Ashton’s teacher. Ruby dangled over the ocean, frightened and sick with worry for her young master.

“This just can’t be! Captain Lance would never betray his kingdom!” Ashton began to slap himself across the face in the hopes that this hallucination would release him. “This isn’t real. This isn’t real. This isn’t…” He stopped when he felt something grab his arm. “That is quite enough, Ashton.” Standing before him was indeed Lance. “You should know better than anyone that I am the leader of the Black Wing.”

By now Ashton was to the brink of tears. “No…..why would you?! Why would you betray us?!” Ashton sobbed as he dropped to his knees. But Lance kneeled down and placed a hand on Ashton’s shoulder. “Come now, you are still my pupil. There is no reason for you to be so upset.” Ashton gazed up into the eyes of the man who had trained him. Lance was still smiling, much like he used to. “But…..why?” Ashton asked. Lance calmly replied, “Because this kingdom needs to be shown the truth.”

Lance stood up and took a few steps back. “As I’m sure you are aware of, the members of the Black Wing treat their dragon mounts as equals. They eat at the same table and support each other in combat, much like you have with Chiara. We are not monsters. We simply wish to show the people of this kingdom that Pokemon are the same as us.” With that, Lance glanced upwards at the top of the lighthouse above them. “Ah, I was wondering when he would be back. Come on down! There’s an old friend here to see you!”

Ashton stood up and looked skyward. He saw what seemed to be a long and slender body with a pair of wings at one end coming down at him. “No way….. Is that…?” Ashton had no more time to speak as the form swooped down and entangled his body, being very careful to not cut itself on the zweihander resting on Ashton’s back. Once he had calmed down a bit, Ashton looked to his left and saw a pair of beautiful black eyes glittering in the moonlight. “Dimitri? You…evolved?”

Lance let out a chuckle, “Dimitri was very much against me defecting from the Dragon Masters Unit. He wanted to see you again so much, I had to hold him back on a few occasions.” Ashton blushed slightly as the Dragonair coiled around him tightly, cooing softly as he nuzzled his old friend’s face. As he stroked the serpent’s body, Ashton whispered, “You’ve gone from adorable to majestic. I missed you greatly, old friend.” Just then, Ruby screamed, “Lord Ashton! Have you forgotten about me?!”

Ashton looked back over the parapet to see Ruby still dangling over the ocean below. “Oops….. Yes. Captain Lance! Please release her! It is rude to take women hostage.” Lance’s tone of voice became much more serious as he spoke, “I cannot release her just yet. Before I do so, you must make a decision. Will you join us?” Ashton became silent as he heard the change in his mentor’s voice. “Why do you need me, of all people?” Lance proceeded, “Because you have witnessed the atrocities inflicted on Pokemon firsthand. You have the same hatred that I do.”

Ashton gulped, fearing what his master was about to say. “Before I decide, please tell me. Just what is the Black Wing trying to attain? And what are the steps to reaching that goal?” Lance nodded, “Yes, you have every right to know.” He then began to pace back and forth with his spear behind his back. “It was the night that those barbarians crippled your beloved Serra. I had never felt such rage at my own kind. If I had not killed them myself, they would never have received justice. The queen knows of everything that happens everyday in the kingdom to the Pokemon that reside in it, yet she does nothing. The humans care nothing for them when they are all the same. I will purge this kingdom of these wretched savages and rebuild it from the ground up as a utopia where humans and Pokemon live as equals!”

Ashton shuddered as he whispered, “Genocide.” Lance then brought his spear to his right hand and spoke, “The only reason why I remained at the academy after that fateful night was to train you. You were like the little brother I never had, Ashton. I wanted you to be a warrior that fought for Pokemon, not for the wretched monsters that enslave them. Now, what will it be? Will you join me in creating the perfect kingdom? Or will you vanish with this hellhole of a nation?”

Ashton was finding it hard to believe that his own teacher had become a terrorist blinded by hatred. “Captain…will all humans be massacred? Every last one?” Lance shook his head, “Not all of them. You, as well as the members of the Black Wing, will be spared.” Ashton then shouted, “But what about the Kingdom of Clavice?! They will not take kindly to the genocide of the people of Rohta! They have one of the finest military forces we know of! A single criminal organization can’t possibly hold its own against them!”

Lance just stood there for a moment, and then began to laugh. “True. We would stand no chance against them. But I have a secret weapon at my disposal. One that is capable of reducing this entire kingdom to a burning wasteland!” Ashton gave his master a very skeptical stare. “Um…sure. And just what would that weapon be?” Lance shook his head, “I will only disclose that to the members of the Black Wing. So will you join us?”   

Ashton closed his eyes as Dimitri steadily tightened his grip around his body. “Captain…..” Ashton then yelled out, “Nothing good will come of this! Genocide only brings hate and ruin! No one will be happy if you follow through with this!” Lance sighed with displeasure and asked, “I was certain that you would understand. I did not wish to see you die, but if that’s how it is…..” He then called out, “Dimitri! Dispose of this obstacle!”

Before Ashton could react, Dimitri constricted Ashton’s body to the point that he could not move. “Lord Ashton! Don’t let them do that to you!” Ruby screamed as she tried to loosen the knot binding her hands. As Ashton struggled to avoid falling over, Dimitri brought his face in front of Ashton’s and began to gather volatile orange energy into his mouth. “No….. Dimitri, you’re not really going to…”

“You had your chance, but now we must part ways. Do it, Dimitri!” Lance commanded. Unable to free himself, Ashton could only stare into the gaping maw of his old friend as he gathered his strength for a Hyper Beam to blast his head off. “Dimitri….. Do you really hate me so?”  

Ashton finally fell backwards, knocking the wind out of him. With tears in his eyes, he whispered, “So it was all a lie. You always wanted to kill me…..” Just then, Ruby cried, “Lord Ashton, I know you can get out of that hold easily! Just remember what you did with me and Laika in the Black Woods!” Ashton remembered having heated his body to a degree where it was too hot for the two ladies to withstand. However, he sighed, “No….. I will not harm a friend as dear as you, Dimitri.”

Having heard this, Dimitri began to fidget. Surprised, Ashton looked up into the Dragonair’s eyes and was stunned to see confusion and pain in them. “Dimitri, are you questioning yourself?” Ashton was further surprised to see the dragon crying. “You don’t want to disappoint your dearest friend, but you don’t want to have to hurt another friend in the process.” The glowing orb of energy in Dimitri’s mouth began to dissipate as he quivered in both shame and uncertainty. “Captain Lance is not the man we once knew. He has become obsessed with committing genocide on the humans of the kingdom. And if he is so willing to throw away someone he sees as a brother, then how long will it take for him to throw away his closest…..NO!” Ashton barely rolled sideways to avoid a stab from Lance’s spear. “Don’t let him deceive you, Dimitri! Finish him!”

Dimitri stared up at his dearest friend, mortified that Lance had attempted to skewer Ashton while he was still coiled around him. “That thrust….. You intended to kill us both!” Lance hoisted his spear to his shoulder, “He shouldn’t have hesitated. When I give an order, he should follow it without objection. Now, END HIM!” Dimitri looked back at Ashton, pondering what he should do. It took a moment, but the Dragonair uncoiled himself and wrapped himself around Ashton’s upper body, but in a fashion that allowed for full freedom of movement.

“So, you betray me as well, Dimitri?” Lance growled as he brought his spear into both hands. The Dragonair growled angrily as Ashton shook his head, “You’re even less of a man than before. You claim to want to found the perfect kingdom, where humans and Pokemon coexist as true equals, but you really intend to enslave them as your pawns. You say that Pokemon are equals, but how can that be true when you kill anyone that thinks for themselves?! If Pokemon are just like us, then why do you kill them for questioning their own actions?!” Lance very coldly replied, “It’s quite simple, really. If you’re not with me, then you’re against me.”

Ashton stroked the head of Dimitri and whispered, “There is a Suicune standing at the entrance to the fortress. Fly down there and wait with her for me. I’ll be along shortly. I promise.” The Dragonair shook his head and nuzzled tightly against Ashton’s face while sobbing. “No, you must leave this place. You will only get in the way, and I do not wish to lose you. Dimitri, look at me!” The Dragonair looked up at him with fearful eyes. “Calm yourself. I don’t fight opponents I have no hope of besting. I will survive this duel. My one request is that you wait in safety outside. Please.”

The Dragonair seemed to calm down slightly, but just then he glanced over towards Ruby’s location. With a whisper, Ashton spoke, “Thank you. I’ll owe you one if this works.” Just then Lance, fresh out of patience, tapped the floor with his spear handle, “Anytime now! Let’s do this while we’re still young!” With a smirk, Ashton reached for the hilt of the Flamberge and shouted, “Gladly! Follow after me, Dimitri!” The Dragonair spread the wings on his head wide and floated above Ashton. “Have at you, Captain!”

With the Flamberge in his right hand, Ashton made a leaping chop at his former mentor. “Oh please. My weapon is not so fragile!” To block the attack, Lance held his weapon sideways, but groaned in discomfort caused by the tremors of the impact. “Did you like that? The undulating blade design of the Flamberge sends some nasty vibrations through the weapon it happens to strike, spreading down into the wielder himself. Dimitri, it’s your turn!” The Dragonair let out a shrill cry as he swooped overhead with a Hyper Beam in his mouth.

“Tch, this is bad!” Lance grumbled as he tried to break free from the Flamberge’s weight bearing down on him. But just when it seemed that Dimitri was about to blast Lance, he flew past him towards the sea! “What the…..HEY!” Lance realized all too late where Dimitri was flying to. As he unleashed the Hyper Beam, Ruby screamed, “No, STOP!” However, the beam sliced right through the rope instead! Dimitri then caught the rest of the rope that was still holding Ruby’s hands in his teeth and swooped out of sight towards the ground. “Yes! Thank you, old friend!”

“You forgot the most basic rule of battle. How sad.” Lance performed a backwards somersault with his feet planted against Ashton’s abdomen and tossed the unsuspecting knight a good distance. As Ashton climbed to his feet, Lance made a sudden wide slash, just narrowly missing Ashton’s face. As he took a good look at his foe, Ashton noticed something about the Ahlspiess spear. Roughly half of the weapon consisted of the blade itself. What was even stranger was that the spearhead was more like the blade of a sword. It could be used to cut as well as to impale. “Now I see why you specialize in that weapon. It’s quite balanced. Like a sword and spear rolled into one.”

Lance brought his spear to both hands and began to slowly inch towards his pupil while whirling it around at the sides. “It’s rather ironic. You and I are the finest knights in the entire kingdom. Tonight, we’ll know which of us is the superior of the two!” When Lance came within reach, Ashton made a quick thrust with the Flamberge. But Lance sidestepped the attack and performed an underhand upward swing, knocking the Flamberge upwards and sending Ashton staggering backwards from the imbalance in weight. While Ashton was unable to defend himself, Lance made a swift slash across the face, spraying Ashton’s blood along the stone floor.

“GAAHHH!!!” Ashton brought a hand to the right side of his face, a clean cut running from just in front of his ear down to the chin. “Ashton, let’s stop this. You were never able to match me from the start. Come, this world still needs you. Together, we can forge a true utopia. Don’t force me to kill you!” However, Ashton was now overcome with rage, pity, and disappointment. “Shut up. Just shut the hell up!” He brought the Flamberge to his right hand while his left held his right cheek, trying to stop the bleeding. “You turned your back on your kingdom. You attempted to have me and Laika murdered at the town square. You damaged my family’s estate while inflicting dire injury upon Chiara. And you even sank so low as to take my youngest servant and friend hostage! I can never forgive you!” As flames began to enshroud him, the Vulcan Warrior screamed, “Lance, you shall burn in Hell for your treason!”

Using only one hand, Ashton slashed away at his former teacher, pushing him towards the wall. (I always knew about Ashton’s pyrokinetic powers, but it far exceeds anything I could have expected!) The traitor was only barely able to endure the blows Ashton was landing on him, even though he was successfully blocking each blow. Just then, Ashton leapt skyward and took the Flamberge in both hands. “Now die!” Like a bird of prey, he came diving down into the floor, smashing his sword against it with a massive crash! The impact created a crater below him. Lance was only barely able to dodge the attack, but the shockwave sent him sprawling across the floor and against the parapet that overlooked the ocean.

“Such strength….” Lance caught his breath as he climbed to his feet. “Wait…where’s my…?” Ashton spoke up, “You mean this? Or rather, whatever’s left of it?” He then kicked a small metal fragment over to Lance. "Now what are you gonna do? Your weapon has been shattered. You can’t possibly hope to win now.” Lance held the metal shard in his hands. “My own weapon…destroyed so thoroughly?”

Ashton pointed his weapon at the traitor, “If you surrender now, I promise to make your end swift and painless.” However, Lance began to laugh manically instead. “Oh yes! I really should not have expected any less from the infamous Vulcan Warrior! I’m embarrassed to have doubted you! You really have surpassed me in every way.” After a moment of more laughter, Lance settled down and chuckled, “And yet, you are still going to die here.”

Ashton snorted, “Just take a good look at yourself! You’re in no position to make threats.” Lance gave an eerily evil smirk and asked, “Oh, am I? Then I suppose that secret weapon I was talking about several minutes ago doesn’t apply to this situation?” Ashton once again grew skeptical and asked, “Oh please. If that was true, there surely would’ve been rumors flying around the kingdom.” Lance then laughed, “But there are. Didn’t Chiara tell you the rumors before you came out here? Knowing the scholar she is, she must have been eager to share them with you.”

Ashton felt a chill flow down his spine, even with the flames flickering all over him. “No….. Are you saying that sea monster is…?” Lance smirked, “Precisely.” With that, he performed a back flip and stood atop the wall overlooking the sea. “You will witness the end of the Kingdom of Rohta and the birth of the Utopia of Equality!”

Below the fortress, the sea began to ripple as a colossal shadow loomed just under the surface. Above, Lance bellowed, “Now arise, my faithful servant! Let us go forth and bring a new order to this land of savages!” At those words, a massive pillar of water burst from the sea! Once the creature within the pillar had stopped ascending, the water fell back into the ocean, revealing the beast’s true form.

Ashton stood aghast at the sight of what loomed over the entire fortress. “That shape….. Is it…a Dragonite? Impossible! Dragonite…..are not capable of reaching…..such size…” The creature that stood before the hideout was completely covered in shadow, with its two eyes glowing in the darkness like a pair of beacons.


Lance gave one last cackle as the massive creature gently lifted him to its forehead. “By this time tomorrow, the Kingdom of Rohta will be reduced to ashes! And you, my dear Ashton, will serve as its sole human witness!”