The Aura Pokemon: A Study On The History Of The Lucario Evolutionary Line
The Electric Mouse Pokemon. The Flame Pokemon. The Tiny Turtle Pokemon. Almost all pokemon have these small titles, recorded even in the Pokedex due to their ubiquity since ancient times. Though they have been supplanted by genus and clade classification in the realm of science, they remain in common use, with almost everyone able to recognise a pokemon simply from these little nicknames. Usually, they refer to some element of their taxonomy or power that is notable and unique to their line, but there is one notable exception:
Lucario. The Aura Pokemon.
Aura is everywhere. All living beings larger than four inches possess it, including humans and pokemon alike. For Pokemon, and those few humans born as Aura users, it is the source of their power; for others, it is a key part of many forms of technology, such as the Capture Styler used by Rangers to transmit their feelings to assure pokemon they mean no harm. So why is it Lucario that is
the Aura Pokemon? Why is this specific line so heavily associated with the source of pokemon power that it is used to define them more than anything else? In this report, I will be taking a brief look at the history of the Lucario line and its relationship with humanity, and attempt to determine just why they, above all others, are defined by their Aura.
Taxonomy
Lucario, and their previous form Riolu, are distinctive Pokemon indeed. Though recognisably caniform, they are among the relatively few anthropomorphic pokemon - in other words, they share their body shape and size with humans. Indeed, even a Riolu's skeletal structure is notably similar to that of a human, though with the caveat that they have digitigrade legs rather than plantigrade. The most obvious difference, of course, is their head, which is entirely canine - though closer to that of a Houndoom than the common pet Lillipup or Growlithe. When evolving, the bones become metallic in structure, primarily high carbon steel, and spikes emerge from the metacarpals and sternum, resulting in the new Lucario gaining their secondary steel type.
The line is omnivorous, but are primarily adapted for eating meat, hunting in packs and using their ability to detect other life from a distance to pursue prey. Wild Lucario hunt for the Riolu in their pack, and tend to embark on hunts roughly once a week, foraging on a somewhat more frequent basis. Their primary prey varies between packs, but most seem to prefer hunting larger, more solitary species, subsisting off each kill for some time, rather than hunting smaller prey more regularly. Though Lucario can, like all Steel type pokemon, eat metal, they do not find it particularly palatable, and most records of Lucario willingly subsisting on metal is in times of scarcity, where they will prioritise giving meat and berries to their pups, or when a Lucario has sustained severe injuries, in which case other members of their pack will eschew some of their usual activities to search for ores containing sufficient iron and carbon to repair the damaged bones.
Both members of the line possess unique organs hanging from the back of their head, attaching at the base of their ears. Riolu have two, and Lucario four. These appendages notably react whenever a Lucario channels their Aura, rising and waving about even when there is no wind.
Typing And Moves
As mentioned beforehand, Lucario are Fighting/Steel pokemon, with Riolu being purely a Fighting type prior to evolution. As with all Pokemon, their typing has a significant impact on their lives - like all Fighting Type pokemon, they are driven to train constantly, even when lacking reliable access to food. Riolu in particular train to an almost obsessive degree, seeming to be determined to test the limits of their famed endurance (even young Riolu are able to remain awake and active for days at a time). Their secondary typing, however, seems to leave remarkably few signs - Lucario are not subject to the alien, difficult to comprehend thought process of many steel types, though they can achieve incredible degrees of focus, and as mentioned earlier, dislike eating metal. As with all exceptions to the rules around typing, debate rages as to why this is, with the two most prominent theories being either that the lack of the Steel type in the first stage reduces the effects, or arguing that it is due to the low quantity of metal in their body (only the skeletal system is metallic).
The natural learnset of a Riolu is roughly the norm for a first stage fighting type, barring the notable preference for the moves Vacuum Wave, Counter and in especially strong examples, Final Gambit. Of course, as they are Fighting types, a Riolu's innate learnset is extremely unlikely to be all they know - Riolu are noted to have a habit of experimenting with their moves when adolescent, and Lucario will actively teach their pups moves they consider useful when playing. However, upon evolution, the variety of moves the line is capable of learning explodes in size - many trainers have reported recently evolved Lucario abruptly revealing highly advanced moves such as Dragon Pulse, Earthquake and Steel Beam with seemingly no prior experience, and they learn new moves at an incredible rate. Attempts to ask Lucario who have learned to communicate why this is have been met with confusion and frustrated apologies - Lucario, it seems, know as much about their wide moveset as we do.
Lucario's abilities are Steadfast, Inner Focus, and more rarely, Justified. However, Lucario is known to be capable of Mega Evolution, and studies on volunteers indicate that assuming this form changes their ability to Adaptability regardless of what their normal ability may be.
Behaviour And Ecology
Lucario are a social species, like most caniform pokemon. Wild Lucario live in packs formed by an extended family, with most packs consisting of a lead pair, their siblings and first cousins, and the various pups. Packs live together in caves or, in forested areas, shelters made from sticks and leaves, preferring to make their homes difficult to find. Pups are raised communally - the Lucario trailing watchfully behind a group of adventurous Riolu siblings is as likely to be their aunt or older cousin as it is to be one of their actual parents. Lucario are Diurnal, though they sleep rather infrequently. In most packs, both parents are equally involved in raising pups and gathering food, with mated pairs switching which of them is staying to watch over their and their relative's young and which of them head out to forage roughly once every two or three days. During hunts, all Lucario in the pack move and fight together, with the recently evolved Lucario charged with shepherding their siblings and cousins while observing their parents and relatives to learn how to hunt themselves. A similar phenomenon occurs during territorial conflicts or when a pack is attacked by another predator or, worse, poachers, with the exception that one of the lead pair and their strongest siblings will remain with the youngsters in case of a surprise ambush the adolescent Lucario may be unable to protect against.
Riolu pups hatch from their eggs after roughly six months, generally born in late January. Like most Pokemon, Riolu emerge from their eggs already well developed by comparison to humans and the few non - pokemon animals, fully capable of walking and already knowing at least one move. Young Riolu are irrepressibly curious and adventurous, constantly sneaking out from their territory to explore. It is often not until their own evolution that they realise they are followed on these expeditions by their caretakers, something the elder Lucario seem invariably amused by. When not exploring, Riolu generally play with their siblings and cousins, sparring and training together as well as chasing or playing hide and seek. Often, their parents will join them in their games, teaching them new moves or giving them pointers by play fighting. Riolu reach adolescence at the age of seven, which is also when most wild Riolu will evolve, and are fully grown by the age of 10 - though as with many species, an adult, unevolved Riolu is an uncommon sight in the wild.
Lucario are extremely protective of their young, with it being rare for less than half the Lucario to be at their nest except in times of famine. When not resting, training or watching over their pups, Lucario will generally patrol their territory, either alone or in the company of their mate or a sibling. Lucario are avid foragers, and have a noted love of the taste of fruits and Sitrus berries. However, they primarily search for status berries, the medicinal properties of which are taught to a Riolu early in their life, stockpiling them at their nest in event of injury. Though slightly less determined to train themselves into the floor than adolescent Riolu, Lucario generally spend several hours a day training, refining both their moves and their unique Aura related abilities. Packs often develop a distinct fighting style even from neighbors, with packmates sharing new moves with each other and regularly sparring. Lucario mate for life, with pairs courting each other by challenging the most powerful opponent they can as well as each other. New mates generally have their first litter after around two years, either with one of the pair leaving their pack and joining their mate's - which one does so appears to be mostly random and down to their preference - or, rarely, establishing a new pack elsewhere. Invariably, however, the new pair will remain close to their home, and will often visit the pack they were born in. Lucario in the wild have similar lifespans to humans, with most living fifty to sixty years - trained Lucario have been known to remain in good health well into their nineties.
Lucario and Riolu are both in possession of human-type intelligence, with Riolu being around as smart - and, to the aggravation of their pack and, for domestic Riolu, their human partners, about as mature - as an eight year old child, and Lucario being indistinguishable in terms of intellectual ability from the average human adult. Lucario packs are often among the most powerful predators in their territory, with very few species willing to prey on one - particularly if they are smart enough to realise the likelihood of the dead Lucario's pack hunting them down. Hunting Riolu is near suicide for most, with how protective Lucario are and how many are usually in the vicinity. However, some species are dangerous, arrogant or desperate enough to try, with the most common predation being by either Dragon, Psychic or Fire pokemon individually powerful enough to overmatch an unprepared Lucario, or by other pack hunters opportunistically taking advantage when they have superior numbers. Such incidents are often met with vicious reprisals by the deceased's vengeful pack, with other pack hunting species in particular often being attacked again and again until they leave the territory altogether.
When not being attacked or harmed, Lucario tend to be quite cordial with other species in their territory. Lucario packs will often bond with other social Pokemon, and it is relatively common for a Lucario to venture into the territory of another Fighting type to challenge them to a spar. Lucario have roughly the same sense of morality as humans, emphasized by their ability to sense other's emotions through their aura, and will often come to the aid of other pokemon in crisis, even those they would usually prey on. It is often said that a Lucario will only bond with a trainer with a strong sense of justice, and while this is slightly exaggerated, it is certainly true that Lucario will rarely tolerate the presence of a human from whom they sense malicious intent.
The Ranger Union has currently classed the Lucario species as At Risk. With packs unwilling to leave their territory even in dire situations and their habitual efforts to do good leaving them more prone to injuries and deaths than would be expected from a pack hunter of their average strength, their numbers fell drastically over the past few centuries. Lucario packs are often found in isolated areas, and wild caught Lucario are a rare sight. Due to possessing human intelligence, breeding domestic Lucario is illegal - anyone whose Lucario has a litter is in for a rather intense encounter with their local Ranger until and unless the Lucario in question explains it was their decision.
Humans
As with many species with human type intelligence, Lucario have had a long and complex relation with humanity. In early times, Lucario were among the first Pokemon to welcome humanity. Many early civilisations have been found with traces of Lucario living nearby, and there are famous cave drawings in Mount Coronet showing the ancient inhabitants of Sinnoh being defended by Lucario from Ghost and Dragon pokemon they could not defeat. But then, as with so many other intelligent pokemon, the Industrial Revolution came. At first, the Lucario did not mind humanities' industrialisation, but as the damage grew, their empathic abilities and human like morals caused more and more Lucario packs to oppose human industrial expansion.
The response, so very often, was violent.
As with almost all Pokemon communities, Lucario packs began to turn their back on humans. More and more often, they left human territory, until in some areas it had been generations since anyone had seen a Lucario except one attacking those that were killing their homes. But as with everything, things are getting better. Huge reparations have been made to the remaining Lucario packs, and almost all of their territories are now protected areas. Though human poachers remain a major threat due to the line's power and rarity, the once omnipresent hostility seems to, at long last, be nothing more than history.
The Aura Pokemon
Of course, no discussion of Lucario is complete without addressing perhaps their most renowned trait. As with all Fighting type pokemon, Riolu are born innately able to control their Aura - but this does not fully convey the story. A newborn Riolu has roughly the same level of
control of Aura as, say, a Machop of their age, but there is a significant difference. Riolu cannot just control Aura, but
feel it - from the moment they are born, a member of the Lucario line can sense and identify the Aura of all other living things around them. Even at birth, Riolu can perceive the Aura emitted by a human or pokemon nearby, and determine their emotions, impressions, and, in extreme cases, even thoughts solely from the fluctuations in their Aura, and the range and precision of the ability only increases with age and training, giving them their own title - the Emanation Pokemon.
For Lucario, this sensitivity increases by an order of magnitude.
Though all Fighting Pokemon have a high level of Aura control, the natural ability of a Lucario is so high that many pokemon in competitive circuits likely are inferior to a freshly evolved, seven year old wild Lucario in their control of Aura. Not only that, but Lucario have far
more Aura than most Fighting Pokemon - their signature move is, quite literally, simply concentrating raw Aura into a sphere and firing it, yet it is the equivalent of Flamethrower, Ice Beam and Thunderbolt in power and reliability. And not only
that, but their innate sense is stronger than ever - a famous experiment by Professor Rowan once demonstrated that an elderly Lucario, blinded by an accident years prior, was able to identify not just the presence, but the species, power, and emotions of Pokemon and humans alike that were over a kilometer away at the time, and tell his trainer exactly what they were doing at the time. Other Lucario can use their Aura to transmit their emotions and thoughts to communicate with humans, like the effect of a Ranger's Styler in reverse. At close quarters, Lucario can even predict an opponent's next action before they even begin, discerning their intended action just from their Aura. Indeed, such is a Lucario's ability to perceive Aura that they often experience stress when in public from constantly being bombarded with thoughts and emotions they did not wish to be privy to, a symptom otherwise only experienced by powerful Psychic pokemon.
So why is it this way? What is it about Lucario that gives them this sense, and why is it that other Pokemon, even the few other species with such innate mastery of Aura, do not? There is no known answer, and even Lucario themselves seem just as clueless - interviews with Lucario capable of communicating invariably end in the Lucario noticing the oddity and becoming just as confused as the interviewer. There are, however, a few hints;
The unique organs on a Lucario's head were for years assumed to simply be a curious aesthetic anomaly. However, during the Renaissance era, many scholars in regions where Lucario were previously common noticed that whenever a Lucario unleashes their Aura, either in battle or when using their senses, their appendages would glow more brightly than the other black furred parts of their body and wave as if blown by a strong gust of wind - even when inside a closed room. Studies since then have still not determined the exact function of these organs, but reports from both trainers and Lucario themselves seem to indicate that damage to these appendages impairs their unique ability - Lucario who have sustained severe wounds often report having difficulty precisely controlling their Aura when it is released, and finding their senses less accurate then normal. However, while these organs seem to be related to a Lucario's Aura senses, they seem to be completely unrelated to the unusual power
of their Aura - even Lucario who have had one or more of their appendages completely amputated are no weaker than they once were, they simply cannot
control that power as precisely as they once could.
Lucario are among the species known to be capable of undergoing Mega Evolution, and gain the standard increase in strength, speed and durability associated with the form. However, Lucario who undergo the transformation and experienced the side effects of it backfiring (typically caused by the Pokemon in question and their trainer failing to completely stabilise the bond between them) reported, in addition to the usual concerning physical symptoms and heightened aggression, that they also suffered changes to their Aura sense, simultaneously becoming overwhelmingly sensitive yet also seemingly leaving them unable to perceive emotions like they usually can - an experience most of them found rather distressing. However, when the transformation functions correctly, the Aura sense instead becomes even more precise - some Mega Lucario are able to transmit their emotions and thoughts so precisely as to be indistinguishable from actual Psychic telepathy, and the enhancement to their battle prowess needs no introduction.
And finally - though I previously stated Lucario are the only ones with these strange abilities, this is not entirely accurate. Records of ancient times often speaks of an order of human warriors who fought to protect the balance between people and pokemon. Able to summon their Aura in a burst of bright blue light, feel the emotions of others, and calm the rage of rampaging pokemon, these Aura Guardians were once the most famed heroes of the regions in which they lived, until a thousand years ago, when they, like all human Aura users, faded away as their numbers dwindled for reasons still unknown - alongside the blue furred, canine pokemon that were so often seen by their side.
It's unknown how accurate the legends of the Aura Guardians truly are, or why their powers were so similar to that of Lucario, but anthropologists visiting Lucario packs have more than once been told stories, stories of brave humans with just hearts who asked Lucario to fight by their side and who were blessed with powers the same as their own - and the details of those stories are oh so similar to those passed down by humans of the Aura Guardians of their homeland.
