Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, but I do own the characters in this story.

Marking Territory

"…Go."

Skye blinked, and her eyes widened in surprise. Wh, he… he doesn't mean…?

Her trainer glared at her, pointing off into the swamp. "I said go," he repeated, his voice harsh with anger. "I'm done with you. If you can't even beat a simple Floatzel, then there's no use training you anymore. I mean, hell, you're a Scizor! You're supposed to be strong! But you're not. You're just as weak as you were when you were a Scyther."

Skye flinched at his words, feeling like each one was stabbing her through the heart. Taking a step backward, she opened her mouth to try to respond, but nothing came out. She was frozen. Even if she had been able to speak, he wouldn't have understood anyway.

"Now go," he growled. "Go off and do whatever the hell it is you Pokemon do in the wild, just so long as I never see you again."

Skye didn't move. She couldn't. This was her life, her home; how could she possibly leave it? For the first time ever, she felt tears start to well up in her eyes. She quickly blinked them away. She didn't cry, ever.

Her trainer continued to glare at her for a few moments, before finally reaching into his pocket, from which he pulled out a small red-and-white orb. A Poke Ball. Hers. "Oh, alright, fine," he grumbled. "Let me make this clear to you-" He dropped the Poke Ball on the ground, then stomped on it, crushing it into tiny bits. Skye flinched. "-I'm through with you," he finished. He pointed again. "Now, go."

Skye hesitated, looking first at him, and then at the Poke Ball, and finally at the swamp to which he was pointing. She swallowed. Then, reluctantly, she opened her wings and flew away.

~.~

A Yanma hurried along, its wings buzzing as it darted between trees and swamp reeds. Its eyes constantly roved around, scanning its surroundings for both predators and food; however, it searched mostly for the latter, as it hadn't eaten all day. By now, its hunger was starting to get to it, and it was desperate for something, anything to eat.

Which was why it didn't see the Drapion until it was too late. With a shriek of dismay and a spray of greenish blood, it was grabbed by a purple-and-white pincer and torn in half. Its body continued to twitch for a few moments before finally falling still.

The huge purple creature to which the pincer belonged wasted no time in digging in, tearing bloody chunks from its prey's body and stuffing them into its mouth. Well, that was easy, the Drapion thought with mild disappointment, swallowing down each chunk almost completely whole. It took less than a minute for the dragonfly Pokemon's entire body to disappear down the Drapion's gullet.

Once the scorpion Pokemon had finished his meal, he sighed and settled down into the mud, satisfied for now. Or, at least, his hunger for food was satisfied; his hunger for a good challenge, however, was not. Nothing fights back around here, he lamented silently, grabbing a reed and crushing it between his pincers in frustration. Haven't had a good fight since… probably since I evolved. Even other Drapion are all really weak.

Climbing back to his feet, he glared around at the swamp, making a few smaller Pokemon nearby cringe and dive for cover. He was Goliath, the strongest thing in this swamp, the best fighter for miles around. No one could defeat him. No one dared to challenge him.

Which was exactly the problem. He lived for the fight, and without it, there was nothing. He had been deprived of it for so long, he had to do something about it, or else he would go crazy. He couldn't just waste away like this.

"…Fine, then," he growled at last, glaring at no one in particular as he clacked his pincers angrily, "if you won't challenge me… I'll just have to challenge you."

~.~

Skye sighed as she wandered through the swamp, her armored feet making squelching noises with every step she took. Annoyingly, her metal armor was proving to be a perfect surface for the mud to stick to, and by now dried mud covered her legs almost up to her knees. She had tried to scrape it off with her pincers, but it only replaced itself a few minutes later. To make matters worse, her armor's weight was also causing her feet to sink down into the mud, making each step take even more effort than it would otherwise. Already, she was starting to pant for breath.

Scizor and swamps do not go together, she decided, grimacing as she took another agonizing step forward. While she could have just flown over this unfavorable terrain if she were still a Scyther, she was now a Scizor, which meant that she could fly only for short periods of time due to the weight of her armor. She couldn't afford to tire herself out like that, so here she was, making her slow, painful way through a swamp that seemed specifically designed to thwart her.

As she went, she found her thoughts drifting back to her trainer. Her features hardened as she remembered why she was currently in this mess. That damn Floatzel, she cursed silently, wishing there was some way she could get a rematch with the stupid orange otter. She had already been injured from fighting the Gym Leader's first Pokemon, a Gyarados – which she had barely defeated in the first place – so when she was brought out to finish off the Floatzel, it had taken only a single Brine attack to knock her out, thus winning the match for the Gym Leader. If I hadn't already been hurt, I would've won, she thought, frustrated.

Suddenly, a sound from nearby jolted her out of her thoughts. Stopping right where she was, she tried to remain silent as she looked around, searching with narrowed eyes for the source of the sound. All around her, she saw nothing but swamp and trees. Listening closely for the sound to come again, she tried to figure out what it might have been; she couldn't be sure, since she hadn't been paying attention at the time, but she could swear it had sounded almost like… footsteps…

Abruptly, Skye was tackled from behind, and with a sharp cry of surprise she was knocked face-first into the mud, a heavy weight planting itself on her back and pinning her down. She flailed, struggling desperately to get back up, only to find her arms grabbed and forced to the ground. Her mouth filled with mud, choking her and making her gag, and she tried to lift her head up so she could breathe, but found she couldn't move her head that far. Within seconds, she had been rendered helpless.

Then, she felt herself being rolled over onto her back, and the pressure holding her down let up a little, though there was still just enough to keep her from escaping. Confused, she coughed out all the mud she'd inhaled, then took a deep, ragged breath. What was going on? Why had the creature turned her over? With mud still in her eyes, she couldn't see, and whatever had attacked her was still holding down her arms so she couldn't wipe it off.

A voice spoke to her, deep and gruff. "What are you? I haven't seen anything like you around here before," it demanded, neither angry nor gloating, just forceful.

It took her a second to find her voice. "I… I'm a Scizor," she replied at last, with more than a hint of indignity. "My name is Skye. Who are you?"

There came a snarl of anger, and she was jostled a little, making her flinch. "Goliath," the voice growled, now with an edge of danger to it. "And you, Scizor, whatever that is, are in my territory."

Her anger starting to grow now, Skye struggled against him as hard as she could, but he just tightened his grip on her arms. Maybe if she had a little more leverage, she would be able to break free, but… "Really, now? And how was I supposed to know that?" she growled right back at him. "I don't live here."

"Not my problem," he snarled. "All I know is that this is my territory, and you're in it."

She opened her mouth to try and make a retort to that, but found herself unable to. This brute clearly didn't care if it was an accident or not. Closing her mouth, she instead fumed silently, wishing she had some way of fighting back against her captor. Unfortunately, with her arms pinned like this, there was basically nothing she could do. Almost all of her attacks required the use of her pincers, for one reason or another, so she was practically helpless without them.

"…So," the creature finally went on, "I'll give you two choices: either get out of here as fast as you can and never come back, or… fight me, and if you win, I'll let you do what you please. But if you lose, you die."

Skye hesitated. On the one hand, she wasn't feeling particularly confident about her chances of winning any sort of fight, and she most certainly did not want to die; but on the other hand, she was positively enraged at this individual, whoever he was, and she would enjoy the chance to hurt him in return for treating her like this. Besides, she was starting to miss the battles she used to have with her trainer…

"…Fine," she growled at last. "I'll fight you. Now let me up."

There came a grunt of assent, and then she felt the heavy weight move off of her chest, followed by the force that was pinning her arms. Unsteadily, she picked herself up, shaking the mud off her claws before using them to wipe her face, doing her best to clear the blockage from her eyes. Then, blinking as her sight was restored, she turned and saw her opponent for the first time.

Instantly, she recognized his species: Drapion. He was an insectoid like her, only much less humanoid, with four legs plus two massive forearms armed with pincers, not to mention a tail that ended in a third pincer. His body was purple and segmented, and as he flexed his body in preparation for battle, the pieces of his carapace clacked noisily against one another. His eyes were both confident and intense, glaring at her with an arrogance unlike that shown by any wild Pokemon she had ever seen before, and Skye knew right then that this would be a tough battle.

Well, she thought, spitting out a bit of mud that was still in her mouth before adopting a fighting stance, here we go.

Goliath struck first, letting out a hiss of anger as he charged at her, swinging his powerful claws at her midsection. Skye barely managed to jump out of the way, but the Drapion's claws still grazed her, leaving a small scratch in the black armor on her stomach. Feeling adrenaline start to flow through her, the Scizor quickly retaliated, darting nimbly to one side before launching herself at the Drapion, aiming a metal-coated punch at the back of his head. However, he moved at the last second, and her pincer struck only a glancing blow off of his shoulder.

Lashing out then with one arm, Goliath tried to hit her legs and, hopefully, make her lose her balance, but though she stumbled a bit, she did not fall as he'd hoped. With a growl, she ducked under his arm and then swung her claw at his chest, and this time she connected, sending him sprawling a few feet backward. He blinked in surprise, a bit stunned by the force of the impact. Then, raising his claws again, he lunged right back at her.

She blocked his claws with her own, and the two of them became locked into a deadly contest of strength, each struggling to overpower the other. "…You're… pretty good, I'll… give you that," Goliath grunted, clenching his jaw as he struggled against her.

She gritted her own teeth, pushing against him likewise. "You're… not bad yourself," she muttered, with an effort.

He gave a grunt in response. Then, abruptly, he let go and moved backwards, catching Skye off guard. She stumbled forward with a cry of surprise, and she nearly fell over but managed to right herself just in time. However, this gave Goliath all the opportunity he needed to strike, and he quickly lunged at her, his mouth wide open for biting.

Skye gasped as the Drapion's teeth crunched down on her arm, punching right through the metal armor that protected it. While her armor normally would protect her against such attacks, it was much thinner on her limbs than it was on the rest of her body. Gritting her teeth against the pain, she lifted her undamaged claw and smashed it into the Ogre Scorp Pokemon's head, forcing him to release her arm and stagger backward, momentarily stunned.

Seeing her chance, Skye crouched down and then launched herself at him, flying straight toward him with both claws outstretched. She struck him full in the chest, and they both went tumbling backward into the mud, claws grappling and gripping with one other. Brown ooze splashed everywhere, and they were both instantly covered.

Shaking the mud out of his eyes, Goliath glared up at the Scizor who was now on top of him, her pincers pressing down on his own, and, suddenly, he was struck by how attractive she was. He had never seen one of her species before, but he could tell instinctually that all of her curves were in the right places, her face just the right shape, her abdomen just the right size. She really was a lovely specimen, and she was made all the more desirable by her strength and skill in combat. Dimly, he became aware that she was now straddling him, and he began to feel certain other urges besides fighting instinct start to rise up within him.

Meanwhile, Skye, oblivious to his thoughts, grunted as she tried to press down harder with her claws, struggling to gain the upper hand. Thanks to her injured arm, her strength was starting to flag a little, but she forced herself to continue, determined to win no matter what. She couldn't let some random wild Pokemon beat her, especially after he did something as humiliating as shoving her face in the mud; she had to prove, both to herself and to her trainer, that she wasn't as weak as he'd said she was. Besides, if she lost, the Drapion had made it clear that he would not hesitate to kill her. So losing was not exactly an option.

Suddenly, she felt something… unusual underneath her abdomen, and she blinked, relaxing her grip for a moment in surprise before quickly reasserting it a second later, when the Drapion threatened to overpower her. Nevertheless, she remained acutely aware of something pressing up against her, and she shifted a little in discomfort, her face starting to heat up slightly. What the… is… is he…?

Goliath, meanwhile, continued to glare at her, but although his gaze was still filled with the same territorial fury as before, it now had a hint of… lust to it. He still kept struggling as hard as he could, not letting up his efforts to throw her off, but now the fog of rage in his mind was starting to mingle with another kind of fog altogether. This Scizor was both beautiful and strong, the only one who could match him in a fight, and he decided that, no matter what, he had to have her. But first, he would show her who was in control around here.

Summoning forth a hidden store of energy from within himself, Goliath put all his strength into pressing upward, and he gradually began to push Skye's claws away from himself. Skye's eyes widened as she found herself being overpowered, and she leaned forward, throwing all her weight and effort into fighting back against him, but it was no use. Eventually, she lost leverage, and her arms gave out, forcing her to let go of his claws. Immediately, she was met by a powerful blow to the midsection, and she cried out in pain as she crumpled to one side. With a splash, she fell off of him and landed in the mud.

Within seconds, their positions were reversed, Goliath flipping himself over on top of her and quickly grabbing her arms, pinning her down forcefully on her back. She gasped for breath and tried to struggle free, but once again found herself unable to free her arms. It didn't help that one of her arms was now injured, making her wince every time it was jostled by the Drapion, not to mention she was still reeling from that blow to her midsection.

"…Give… up yet?" Goliath demanded between pants, looking down at her with just a hint of smugness. He knew that there was nothing she could do, and he was clearly enjoying that fact.

Skye glared up at him, but didn't stop her struggles, continuing to squirm underneath him in a desperate attempt to break free. She said nothing aside from the occasional grunt of effort or pain, but by the look of desperation in her eyes it was evident she knew she'd lost. Damn it, she cursed silently.

At the same time, though, she was finding herself inexplicably… turned on by this new development. She usually hated being helpless like this, but seeing this strong male looming over her, her life in his hands to do with as he pleased… for some reason, that hit a weak spot for her. Combine that with the suggestive position they were currently in, and she soon found herself fantasizing about mating with him, feeling his muscular body taking her for his own. Her face began to heat up, and she was secretly glad for the mud that currently hid it from view. Part of her was disgusted at what she was now thinking, but another part of her was hoping that, maybe, just maybe, he was thinking the same thing she was.

Which, of course, he was. Now that he had her in a submissive position, Goliath found his instincts raging up, overwhelming his conscious mind and drowning out all his other thoughts, filling him with nothing but desire. His eyes closed halfway as he gazed at her, panting with the strength of his arousal. Unconsciously, he gripped her arms tighter and leaned down closer to her, and, slowly, he began to rub his lower body against her. He wanted her so badly, and he didn't know if he'd be able to wait.

Feeling this, Skye's eyes widened, and she glanced down at where he was rubbing himself against her, her breath catching in her throat. Her face grew even warmer, and she began to pant as well, a slight tingling sensation coming from between her legs and making her shiver. She had never done anything like this before, so she was a bit nervous, but at the same time, she couldn't wait to experience it at last. If anything, the newness of it all only served to make it seem that much more appealing. Gradually, she stopped struggling.

Eyes clouding over with lust, Skye grunted as she lifted her hips a little, and she began to rub her own abdomen up against the Drapion's, sending shivers of pleasure through both of them. Faintly, Goliath began to sense a sweet, intoxicating smell originating from her body, and he knew that she was just as aroused as he was, that she wanted him just as badly as he wanted her. With a hiss of pleasure, he responded by bearing down on her even harder, making her gasp and arch her back, her senses driven wild by the increased stimulation. The scent became even stronger, multiplying Goliath's instincts, and he knew that neither of them would be able to resist for much longer. Looking down at her with lust-filled eyes, he locked his gaze to her own, and she gazed back up at him, her eyes reflecting an equal amount of desire.

Pausing in his rubbing motions, Goliath shifted his hips back slightly, lining them up with Skye's. She shuddered in anticipation, and her breathing became even more labored now, her arousal driving her to buck her hips upward a little, grinding herself against him needily. With a low growl, Goliath used two of his legs to grip her by her abdomen, trying to keep her in position so he could mate with her. She reluctantly held herself still, her body quivering in both excitement and apprehension as she waited for him to proceed.

At last, Goliath met her eyes again, and he tightened his grip on her as his muscles tensed in preparation, every part of his body poised to take her. Then, with a grunt, he began.

~.~

Never before had Skye experienced anything quite like mating. It was immensely pleasurable, even more so than she had imagined; and for a time, at least, she found that she was able to forget all about her trainer, about the numerous troubles that weighed her down. She knew that she would have to confront these things eventually, of course, but for now, everything was perfect.

Yawning widely, she stretched briefly before laying her head against Goliath's shoulder, feeling worn out after all the exertion she had done. He stirred and opened one eye partially, but otherwise did not move. They were both incredibly satisfied, and neither one wanted to move just yet, both content just to bask in the lingering pleasure of the act.

At last, Skye broke the silence. "…So…" she began, and she stifled another yawn before continuing, "…who won?"

There was a long pause, as they both contemplated that question. Then, finally, Goliath grumbled in response, "…It's a draw, I guess."

Skye blinked, shifting a little as she glanced at him questioningly. "A… draw? …What does that mean, then?" she wondered, hoping he wouldn't still decide to kill her. Sure, they had just had amazing sex together, but that didn't mean he was necessarily any more willing to spare her than he had been before.

He grunted. After a long moment, swallowing down his pride, he muttered, "…You can go free. Stay here or go, whatever you want."

She glanced briefly upward, and she noticed that the sun was starting to sink toward the horizon in the distance, the sky beginning to turn purple and orange. "…Do you mind if I stay with you tonight, actually?" she asked, turning back to him with a questioning look. "It's going to be dark soon, and I don't have anywhere else to stay…"

Blinking, he turned to stare at her. "…Why do you need somewhere to 'stay'? Are you afraid of the dark or something?" he asked blankly.

She paused, and her face heated up very slightly. "Er, no, I… I'm just used to having somewhere safe to sleep. Well, relatively safe, I mean I'm not really all that picky…"

He snorted. "You know what you sound like? You sound like one of those 'humans'," he said contemptuously. "Always afraid of everything, so weak and soft they die if you look at 'em wrong, but still think they own the world."

Fidgeting a little, she looked down, ashamed. "…Well, I… used to belong to a human… That is, until today," she muttered, quietly.

Goliath blinked, then opened his mouth to respond, only to find that he couldn't think of anything to say. For some reason, he suddenly felt bad for saying what he'd just said. "…Ah. …Well… sorry, then, I guess," he said at last, feeling a bit awkward.

She hesitated, but finally shook her head. "No, it's… it's okay. My trainer was kind of a jerk, I don't really miss him anyway. I just… I don't know what to do now. I mean, I've been with humans for my whole life, and now that I'm not with one… I don't know how to do anything…"

Goliath paused to consider that. She had been trespassing in his territory, yes, but now he could see that she probably just didn't know any better, being too inexperienced to recognize all the normal signs of a claimed territory. Could she really be held responsible for something that wasn't her fault, then…? And besides, he had really enjoyed fighting her, not to mention the sex that had come afterward. Maybe, she would be a good choice for… "…Fine. You can stay," he grumbled, giving a nod of assent.

Skye was delighted, but she tried not to let herself show it. "Okay, good," she said with a nod in reply. "And… do you think you could also-"

"Help you figure out what the hell you're doing?" Goliath interrupted with a trace of amusement. "…We'll see."

She nodded again, and for the first time, a hint of a smile crossed her face. Leaning back against the Drapion, she gave a sigh as she rested her head on his shoulder like before. All of a sudden, she was so tired… Between being banished by her trainer, and fighting this Drapion, and then their subsequent roll in the mud, as it were… she was pretty much exhausted. Closing her eyes, she let herself start to drift off.

Before she could, though, a thought suddenly occurred to her. Reopening one eye a fraction of the way, she tilted her head, looking over at the Drapion. He seemed to be pretty exhausted as well, with both of his eyes closed and his head resting on one of his huge, powerful arms, his other arm draped over her in an almost possessive manner. "…Goliath," Skye whispered, trying to get his attention. As she said the name, a bit of a shiver ran through her body; it was a name of strength, and she couldn't help but feel that it fit him perfectly.

He stirred, opening one eye, and glanced over at her. "…Yes?"

Skye briefly hesitated, but then she finally murmured, "Why… why did you do it…?"

Goliath paused, taking a moment to consider that. It was an interesting question, with many different possible meanings… Did she mean why he'd fought her in the first place, or why he'd let her go, or… why he'd mated with her? …Maybe even… all three at once?

At last, he thought of an answer. With the slightest smile, he closed both his eyes again, settling down into the mud underneath him, as he wrapped one arm around her body, pulling her closer against him. Then, his voice barely above a murmur, he responded quietly, "…Just… marking my territory."