//------------------------------// // Chapter 32 - Sweet Nap // Story: Little Lost Raichu // by CommanderX5 //------------------------------// Little Lost Raichu - Chapter 32 - Sweet Nap Reaching the capital of ponies all the way from the south desert while staying out of sight was certainly a time-consuming deal. The troublesome Raichu he encountered alone was most likely capable of outspeeding him on her little feet, and the flying speed of an athletic pegasus was far superior. He had no doubts that the ponies already knew about his existence. All there was left to do was to subtly guide Chrysalis to start their take over immediately. Luckily, his mentor told him about the crystal caverns under Canterlot he could use to get into the city. The pleasant darkness with only illuminating gems reflecting their light over the area was to his liking. To think that ponies completely forgot about this place, and their enemy was hiding under their very capital, Darkrai thought as he levitated through another tunnel, only to stop upon seeing numerous holes and cracks on the ground. Crystal fragments and a pressure of magic still lingered in the area. The walls didn’t have it any better, as if something was slammed into them with a lot of force. Darkrai raised his hand, now holding three fingers against his forehead. So Chrysalis was discovered and dealt with… such a pity… I still had a lot of use for her. Now wary of his surroundings, he started inspecting the area, heading towards a hiding spot where he remembered the former queen to hide her trump card, armor which would let her gain an advantage over the princesses and Royal Guard. The crystals hiding it were no longer in the way while the secret spot in the wall was empty. Darkrai narrowed his eye. The queen indeed took the armor out of desperation, yet lost anyway. The darkstone should make the ponies magic useless in a specific range. The only creatures who could defeat Chrysalis would be other changelings or… a pokemon. He held hand on his forehead again and shook his head. I was planning to get Chrysalis out of the picture once she stopped being useful. With her failure, I may as well forget about her and start my original plan. His mind provided him with images of the magical dark crystals he summoned underground, as well as ponies carrying on with their lives unaware of the curse he planted in them, a fruit of months of preparations. If my estimations are correct, in order to drain the magic from all ponies I cursed in Equestria, I need to activate the spell from the tallest location while still being in range of all cities and towns. With so much gathered magic I should have no difficulty opening portals to my world in Canterlot and use them to summon an army of dark type pokemon. Not only will dark types be immune to unicorn spells, but they’ll follow my orders out of respect, a perfect army that will help me occupy the capital. He tightened his fist as a dark aura surrounded it. The process will alert everyone to my presence, but with my gathered magic I should have no difficulty overpowering anyone who gets in my way. Darkrai glanced at the crystals on the ceiling. Now that I think about it, in the past I didn’t have enough magic to enhance the dark crystals so they would allow me to instantly travel between them. If I want to create a world where pokemon are no longer servants but the masters, being able to travel long distances quickly is a necessity. It may delay creating the portals a bit, but enhancing those dark crystals would become beneficial in the long run. With the plan formed in his mind, he vanished into the shadows, now heading towards the top of the Canterlot mountain. Celestia stood on her balcony with thousands pairs of eyes directed at her, addressing the gathered crowd. Her posture and voice were filled with an air of authority. “Ponies of Canterlot. I understand that the past hours of high alert alongside continuous examination have filled you with anxiety. Which is why I would like to share wonderful news with all of you that should put your worries at ease.” Murmurs filled the crowd as everypony awaited eagerly for the good news, well, almost everypony. Some percent of ponies seemed to instead be focused on a little creature nesting on Celestia’s spread wing. Maintaining a firm stance and not blushing alone proved to be a challenge for the alicorn princess. “Queen Chrysalis, an old enemy responsible for the invasion of Canterlot and capture of leadership figures across Equestria and the Crystal Empire, was captured an hour ago.” The crowd fell into silence before a loud round of applause echoed through the city. Celestia waited a few seconds before raising her cladded forehoof, silencing the crowd. “The threat is not over yet. In her plan for vengeance, Chrysalis summoned a powerful being from another world which has been spreading a curse among the populace. Princess Twilight Sparkle and her student Starlight Glimmer discovered the spell that can remove it, which is why you have been gathered together. Please remain calm and allow us to find and dispel this curse.” She held a forehoof on her chest and lowered her head slightly. “Your cooperation and lack of panic is essential in ensuring the safety of Canterlot.” The murmurs echoed once again. “In the end I would also like to express my gratitude to our changeling allies who played a vital role in discovering Chrysalis’ presence and in her capture.” She gestured for Pharynx to approach the platform, who took firm steps towards the edge, staring back with… a rather unfriendly gaze. More than half of the ponies in the crowd looked back with distrust. “We only performed our duty as allies. I expect that ponies will pull their weight should we require your assistance, and we’ll do our best to improve the performance of the incompetent fighting force you call the Royal Guard,” Pharynx said with a firm tone, earning ire of quite many ponies as the result. Celestia raised an eyebrow. I wish Thorax didn’t refuse to give the public speech. Pharynx is a bit too direct and tactless, certainly not the best at public speeches. She turned to the side, displaying her spread wing. “I would also like to give praise to the visitor from another world who destroyed Chrysalis’ armor while facing the rage of the evil queen, which played an important role in her capture.” She pointed at the ball of fur perched on her wing. “Her name is Nica and she is a Raichu.” She blushed lightly. “She is currently… recovering from the ordeal…” She cleared her throat. “I have trust in her abilities. Rest assured that her power and experience will keep us safe.” Seeing a growing confusion among the ponies, she turned around and walked inside the castle, releasing a breath she didn’t even notice she was holding. Her changeling ally walked by her side. She was quickly greeted by friendly faces. “Pharynx, you can’t insult the Royal Guard in front of the crowd of ponies,” Thorax said as he addressed his brother. “I was just speaking the truth, what’s wrong with that?” Applejack looked to the side. “It ain’t easy bein’ honest. Ya need to consider others feelings first.” Thorax shot the princess an awkward smile. “I’m sorry for my brother’s behavior, but he’s getting better.” Pharynx looked to the side and groaned. “It is quite alright,” Celestia responded with a warm smile. Fluttershy stood on her rear hooves and kept looking at Raichu. “During our cuddling and hugging session, Nica used my wing as a pillow for a few minutes, but didn’t ask me to let her sleep on it. I must say, I’m so jealous.” She held both forehooves on her cheeks and added in a squeaky voice, “Sooo cute…” “I hope it wasn’t too embarrassing, Princess,” Twilight said in concern. “Well… maybe a little, but I will manage,” Celestia said as she felt her spread wing getting a bit stiff. “Where is Luna? Did she go to sleep?” Twilight shook her head. “She’s patrolling the city alongside Rainbow Dash, Daring Do, Rarity and Pinkie Pie. Now that Chrysalis has been defeated and we’re removing the curse from ponies of Canterlot, we expect Darkrai to make a move.” “And we’ll remain here to help as well,” Thorax with with a toothy smile. “I mean… if he’s resistant to your spells, changeling magic may be most helpful.” Celestia glanced at her little passenger and said, “There’s also a possibility that he lied when he told Nica about being immune to our magic. Regardless, we need to stay on high alert.” She spread her other wing and gently touched Twilight’s back. “Lead the way, Princess Twilight. It took me a while to learn how to use that spell of yours, and I will assist anyway I can.” “Thank you,” Twilight said with a smile as they made their way through the door. Met with a salute of her Royal Guards outside, Celestia approached the numerous ponies, who performed a quick bow. “You’re finally here, Princess,” Starlight said as she wiped sweat from her forehead. “There are waaay too many ponies for me to handle.” “I will do what I can, my little pony,” Celestia said as her horn lit in a golden aura. One scan after another, she examined her subjects in search for presence of dark magic. Starlight approached and looked at the spread wing, her mouth started to tremble and her eyes sparkled. “Yes, yes, I know, she looks really cute, but I would appreciate not to stare at my wing as if it was a museum exhibition,” Celestia said, blushing. The majority of her subjects couldn’t help themselves but stare at the creature on her wing, some releasing noises like D’awww and similar or looking at the sleeping creature with a dreamy smile. Even my centuries of experience didn’t prepare me to mask my emotions while nesting another creature on my wing. Starlight scanned a few ponies before stroking Raichu with her hoof and whispering to the princess. “She’s sleeping so peacefully.” Celestia glanced at the curled ball, feeling it wriggling on her wing for a moment. I hope so. According to Twilight, each dream is more like memory of her past, and Luna told me some of them were painful nightmares. I hope this time it won’t be the case. Nica stood on her four feet while in a fighting stance, her tail raised while the thunder-shaped end was covered in a metallic grey. The Infernape she faced two months ago now stood before her while ready to strike. A damaged plain fighting stage being the background of the training. Ever since Astra defeated the champion of Sinnoh and gained such an important title, she has been using her new privileges, convincing the Elite Four to take action against Team Galactic. Gathering intel about local criminal organizations, their motives and goals, trying to gain cooperation from the local police and even international police alike became her main focus. With her trainer busy, Nica decided to step up in keeping herself and the rest of the team in shape. Wearing the belt with her trainer’s luxury balls on her belly, she repeatedly sparred with Flint and his pokemon. More experienced at improvising in the heat of battle while lacking in the vast knowledge her trainer possesed, Nica focused on what she still liked in pokemon battles, teaching, learning and training. With all of her pokemon and four of Flint’s pokemon tired after numerous practices of team attacks, dodging and beam struggles, it was now her turn to improve the use of her tail. “Infernape, Mach Punch!” Flint commanded. Nica leaped backward while swinging her tail, her timing proving slightly too slow as the fist of her opponent struck her belly, pushing her a few meters away. Her feet pressed into the cracked stadium as dust spread around the bronze patches of her rear paws. She maintained her balance, her tail raised once more. “Use Mach Punch again!” Nica waited a second before swinging again, this time a bit too early as her metalic tail struck her opponent’s fist, breaking immediately. She grit her teeth, feeling pain in her tail, yet refusing to take her eyes away from her taller training partner. It seems I’m not the only one who keeps improving. Also, parrying his hits sure is harder when he’s not paralyzed. She narrowed her eyes and concentrated, balancing herself on the tips of her rear legs. Flint placed his hands on his hips. “You’re quite determined with your training, Nica, and quite smart for a pokemon. While I find your trainer’s commanding abilities to be… a bit underwhelming for a champion, I can’t deny that she knows how to train her pokemon. She not only pushed your skills to limits I never witnessed in my life, but also encouraged a lot of individual thinking in you.” He shook his head. “To be honest, I think you would do fine becoming a pokemon trainer while being a pokemon yourself.” Nica didn’t lose her concentration while ignoring the praise. With Infernape becoming faster and more skilled with his attacks due to their training, she needed to improve her timing and the use of her tail in order to keep up. “Fine, fine, Infernape, keep using ‘Mach Punch.’” Nica waited to the last moment before leaping backward and swinging her tail, pushing the fist of her opponent aside. She followed up by pushing her metallic tail against the belly of her opponent. The moment her feet touched the ground, she started hopping up cheerfully with forepaw raised into the sky. She kept cheering and hopping in place as she thought back to the time when she was still a Pikachu, learning how to use ‘Iron Tail’ for the first time. Now that I think about it, when I was a Pikachu, I could swing my shorter tail a bit faster and I quickly learned how to use it for fast combos, mastering the use of it in only four to five months. After becoming a Raichu, my ‘Iron Tail’ gained more reach but I couldn’t swing it as quickly. Nica stopped her cheerful dance, moving her long tail in front of her to look at it and rubbed her chin. When I make this comparison… I can see the pattern. Shorter tail I had as a Pikachu was much easier to use and quick to master, but when I evolved, my longer tail become slower and harder to use. However, while it is way more difficult to master, it gives me so many defensive possibilities. It feels as if it became way-harder to train but a greater reward kind of thing. “Are you ready to practice use of your tail to defend yourself against ‘Close Combat’ or not?" Flint asked while rubbing his afro. “You seems distracted.” Nica blushed and rubbed back of her neck. “I got no idea what you just said, wanna write it in a notepad?” Flint asked. Nica lowered her head and sighed. Despite knowing how to read and write, the language barrier still remained. I envy psychics and legendary pokemon capable of communicating telepathically. It’s so convenient. She glanced at two other trainers, Lauki and Sinori, practicing with their own pokemon on the other side of the arena. With Astra being busy, their befriended trainers decided to stick with her instead in order to improve. Oh... right, I promised Lauki’s Pikachu to help him get better at using his ‘Iron Tail’ techniques. I suppose once I exhaust more of my stamina and acquire a lot of combat wounds from my training with Infernape, I would be able to train with him on a more equal ground. “Hey, everyone, I got great news!” Nica turned towards the source of voice and took a step back. The one shouting was her trainer, Astra, and the tone of her voice seemed more enthusiastic than ever before. Wait a moment… is she… dancing from happiness… that’s not the booksmart always focused long-term strategist I traveled with all this time. Astra approached the gathered group with a few spins and amateur dancing moves, which earned confused and shocked glances from everyone in the large damaged arena. “I have amazing news!” With a wide grin, she looked at each trainer before staring down at Raichu with happiness radiating from her eyes. “The police gained a very important intel about the activity of pokemon hunters. Apparently, the hunters made some sort of a very big deal with the Team Galactic leader.” She grabbed Nica and raised her above her head. “And the police chief asked me personally to assist in their capture. The operation starts tomorrow. We have an opportunity to deal a devastating blow to two large criminal powers in this region. Isn’t that amazing?” Nica smiled widely. An opportunity to put herself in danger and put all of her skills to use in order to protect others. She waved her forepaws cheerfully. “Flint, you’ll join me on this, and I won’t accept no for an answer!” Astra commanded. “S-sure. As long as I can get more of such cheerful emotion into your usually stoic and calm personality, I’m in.” Astra and Nica rolled their eyes. “Oh, I almost forgot.” Astra spoke up with a hint of worry in her voice. “The police chief warned me that the hunters are armed with a very dangerous weapon that can turn pokemon into stone, and there’s a risk that the device hunters use to return pokemon back to normal may not be with them in one of their vehicles… Sooo… any volunteers to take the risk and destroy those weapons before we attack with full force?” Lauki walked away while his Pikachu hid behind a nearby stone. Sinori looked to the side and whistled while her Dewott was covered in sweat, most likely due to internal struggle between determination to protect others and fear of becoming a statue. Flint tilted his head to the side and smiled sheepishly while his Infernape took a step back. Nica’s cheering became even more enthusiastic as she shouted, Nica felt her paws make contact with hot sand and hard stone as she ran through the road made on a stone formation near the desert. Behind her stood her trainer and Flint, while ahead of her stood a group of armed and well-equipped pokemon hunters. Behind the pokemon hunters were damaged armored vehicles, all destroyed due to the heavy firepower of Astra and Flint’s pokemon working together. Each wheel melted and engine busted. Nica narrowed her eyes as she zipped left and right, swiftly evading each petrifying beam as if her life depended on it, each beam leaving a bronze shining mark on the road. With a loud shout, she summoned a ‘Thunderbolt’ to spread across the road, a trick she memorized from watching Lt. Surge Raichu years ago, hitting all the hunters except their leader who jumped onto a nearby vehicle. Now close enough, she jumped towards the hunter who was on the left, slicing his stone-turning blaster with her tail. With each weapon being attached on the hunters’ hands, she started jumping from head to head of her enemies while destroying their weapons. Her ears perked up upon hearing a noise coming from the top of the vehicle, evading in time as a beam petrified the hunter from his head down to his legs. Despite being so close to other hunters, Miss J kept firing her beam at her. Does she have no concern for her own men? How can she use such terrifying weapons against her own followers? She grit her teeth, countering the beam with her own ‘Thunderbolt.' She glanced back at Astra and Flint as their pokemon were now standing in line, ready to attack. A smirk appeared on her face. With all petrifying weapons but one destroyed, her less agile allies could fight with nothing to fear. “First you damage our expensive equipment, and now you’re destroying our weapon before bringing in your main force, impressive,” Miss J said with a clap of her hands. She shrugged and shook her head. “Who do I have the pleasure of eliminating?” “Flint of the Elite Four. I’m here under the champion’s orders to put an end to your crimes!” He clenched his fist and shouted in anger, “I heard about your crimes from the police! You’re not simply stealing or capturing pokemon for money. Your actions caused a lot of pain to the populace and ruined many lives. You crossed the line!” J pointed at the female trainer with orange hair. “Should I assume that you’re the new Sinnoh champion. Interesting.” She held her hands on her hips. Fancy-looking goggles hid her eyes while a confident smile was present on her face. Her uniform and long skirt were dark-violet, her gloves, boots and clothes under the uniform displayed a strong red. Each of J’s subordinates seemed to be wearing a grey uniform, which seemed to act like a body armor. Nica glanced at her trainer, who for some reason seemed fixated on some of the pokemon hunters. She could sense a strong aura of anger and disappointment. The Ninetales seemed to give the hunters a similar stare, his aura similar as well. Something was really wrong. “The silent treatment? Well, I am not surprised.” J snapped her finger as a large quantity of powerful-looking pokemon filled the road. “Even the Sinnoh champion and member of the Elite Four don’t stand a chance against my elite crew.” Lauki emerged from behind his rocky cover with Pikachu on his shoulder. “She’s not alone.” Sinori dropped material with stones painted onto it, only now being visible among the stone wall. Dewott stood by her side. “I don’t know how much our aid can accomplish, but I can assure you, Miss J, the local champion isn’t as outnumbered as you think.” “Two more trainers make no difference. If anything, you’re just an inconvenience.” J chuckled. “I wonder how much money we will get for pokemon of the champion herself on the black market. It should no doubt make up for the destroyed equipment ten times over.” Astra kept approaching with firm steps with Ninetales by her side, not intimidated in the least despite being outnumbered by two to one. She pointed at one of the hunters accusingly. “Emily, is that you? How dare you dirty your good name and pride of a Guardian by working for Pokemon hunters!” “Wait… you know my name?” Emily asked in confusion. “How could I forget it?” Astra looked at Emily angrily. “One time my dad was showing me where he was working back when I was eight, and my mom was busy with her duties and far away, he asked you to give me a tour. You even showed me a pokemon battle in the training area. Even after all these years you still haven't changed your team and fighting stance.” Astra placed her hands on her hips while glancing at each of Emily’s pokemon. “Your powerful and durable attackers; Primarina and Arcanine, both knowing four strong moves with coverage against many types. Your touch tanks; Hariyama and Alolan Muk. And of course your trusty supporter Audino, most likely still using ‘Reflect’ and ‘Light Screen’ to support others.” Excadrill raised his clawed hand and poked his chest with metallic thuds. Astra looked at the ground/Steel pokemon. “Are you Emily’s new pokemon?” Excadrill nodded. J chuckled. “So you’re familiar with the Guardians.” She snapped her finger. “Jimmy, Dawis, Delta, Milan. Show the pokemon champion that the Guardian organization is nothing but history.” Her order caused a few of her followers to take hesitant steps forward, their pokemon followed. Astra held a hand on her chest as tears started forming in her eyes. “It’s me, Astra, the daughter of your former bosses. Does the name of the brave Guardian, Penny Longshot, and name of your commanding officer, General Jeremy Longshot, mean nothing to you now?” Emily took a step back and pointed accusingly. “B-but they hid you somewhere... for your safety. You managed to leave your hiding place and became a champion on your own?” “I did. I took fate into my own hands, used all available resources and trained a powerful team who willingly assisted me in realizing my goals. To the very end I did everything in my power to avenge my parents and continue their work.” She grit her teeth. “Which isn’t something I can say about you.” Emily stomped and yelled, “And what did you expect? When your mother and father were killed by the assassins, the police higher-ups blamed it all on us with fake evidence. We were betrayed by those we protected, hunted and treated like rats on false charges!” Delta crossed his arms and spoke up, “Kanto and Johto higher ups turned on us. Those who avoided capture had to flee to other regions. Some of us struggled to find a different job while hiding our identity, others became pokemon trainers while a few kept fighting crime on their own, yet for trainers and combatants like us, earning money to feed ourselves while in hiding wasn’t easy.” Emily continued, “We were betrayed and our faces are on the wanted list. Even in other regions it would be only a matter of time before others would look upon us as criminals. Why should we fight on the side of the law that turned on us?” J chuckled, which turned into a loud laughter as she held fingers on her forehead. “One’s loss is another’s gain. In the past Guardians were like International Police, but way more numerous and better equipped, capable of fighting side by side with technology surpassing my own. Now some of their members work for me, making capture of even legendary pokemon for my customers a breeze.” “Legendary pokemon? What does she mean by that?” Astra asked, giving the hunters an angered look. Nica jumped backward and looked between her trainer and the hunters. The aura of guilt and regret she sensed skyrocketed. Astra took a few calming breaths before speaking in a sad tone, “I admit, I can’t imagine what it must feel like to be betrayed, but I know the feelings of losing loved ones, it leaves a void and desperation to fill it with something.” She held a hand on her chest. “But I can’t stand and watch how proud soldiers who worked alongside my parents are now those they fought so hard in the past. I beg of you, join me. It’s not too late!” Flint looked at Astra with shocked expression. “Are you crazy? They are pokemon hunters working for the most dangerous criminal in the Sinnoh region. You can’t be considering…” “Shut up!” Astra shouted at Flint in anger before once again addressing the hunters. “I have become a champion and gained a lot of influence, and the police here respect me. If you’ll join my side and help me stop J’s plans, I will be able to clean up your good name. It’s your only chance to start anew and-” “Don’t listen to this naive kid,” J said before shooting a petrifying beam at Astra, which was burned to a crisp by Ninetales ‘Flamethrower’ attack. J groaned before shooting again, only to jump from the vehicle to evade more flames coming from Ninetales’ mouth. Pokemon from both sides now more than eager to fight each other than before. “Make a choice. Will you start anew and help me continue my parent's legacy, or do you prefer to work for someone who doesn’t hesitate to shoot or even sacrifice her own followers for her own gain?” Nica grinned as the five former Guardian members turned against their boss in an instant. It seems Miss J isn’t good at inspiring loyalty. The loss of skilled members and petrifying weapons will cripple her organization, a proper punishment for someone so selfish and cruel. Emily ran towards Astra and spoke up, “Our employer was the leader of Team Galactic and hired us to capture a legendary pokemon named Darkrai so they could use it as a trump card in the realization of their goals. We weren’t told any details about their plans, but they’re most likely still trying to use technology to control him against his will. If we hurry, we can stop them before their brainwashing procedure is complete.” “Traitors!” J shouted as she shot a petrifying beam at Emily, which was deflected by Nica’s metallic tail. Her weapon ended up damaged a moment later by Dewott’s shell attack and Lauki’s Pikachu ‘Iron Tail.’ Using the commotion of the raging battle, J retreated, abandoning her crew who quickly ended up behind bars… with a few exceptions. The former Guardians were in possession of valuable information about J’s organization and her customers, as well as experienced and strong pokemon teams. Was it going to be an agreement to put the former Guardians on ‘Witness Protection,’ allow them to work alongside the police as part of a ‘Criminal Reformation Program,’ or some other method? Astra was going to fight to earn her parent's followers a second chance. Luckily, the backing of Sinnoh Champion had a lot of weight behind it, while provided information proved most useful, making the police chief more willing to making a compromise. Nica asked, receiving a firm nod as her team member destroyed the door in front of them, causing an explosion while the falling door hit the floor with a loud thud. She glanced at a large bat-like pokemon with large wings and scorpion-like tail. Picking up a luxury ball from her belt, she threw it into the laboratory, summoning a large green creature with massive flower on its back. “Darkrai, destroy…” The scientist wearing a labcoat paused in mid sentence as his eyes became heavy, his hand struggling to hold a device responsible for controlling of the legendary pokemon. Bits of sleeping power now reaching his nose. Nica held her breath before jumping forward, slicing the device in the scientist hand with her tail. She shook her head from whatever sleeping powder landed on it and ran towards Darkrai, damaging whatever mind-controlling and restraining devices were present on his body with electricity and ‘Iron Tail.’ She looked up in worry and asked, Darkrai massaged his forehead before his voice echoed in Nica’s mind. I… I’m free… thanks to you… He raised his hand, summoning a ball of dark energy while aiming at the sleeping scientist. His projectile ended up pushed aside by Nica’s tail who now gave him an angered glare. Silence… do you have any idea what those humans did to me? They hunted me restlessly like prey for weeks, turned me to stone, tortured and experimented on me. Darkrai grabbed Nica with his two hands and looked at her with a soul-piercing glare. It’s not enough that they enslave so many species of pokemon and make them do their bidding, now they’re trying to modify us and take away our free will. I’ll never forgive them! Nica could see her fellow team members gathered together, ready to free her if necessary. Her ears drooped as she looked back at Darkrai in pity. She held her forepaws in a pleading gesture. Darkrai placed the Raichu on the closest table and lowered his hands. And where’s your trainer now. Why are devices used to manipulate pokemon on your belt? She did… she entrusted you with her pokemon and this mission? Darkrai glanced at the pokeballs, and next at every pokemon present in the room. Aren’t you just a pet to her? Nica shook her head and placed forepaws on her hips. She poked her chest. Darkrai’s sinister chuckle echoed in Nica’s mind. In other words, due to her equal treatment, you become capable of leading a pokemon team of your own, showing leadership and initiative. I wonder… all pokemon species already possess superior power, but not many possess intellect to rival the humans. He turned around while holding both hands behind his back. Your initiative and leadership skills however are similar to the ones of a human. I wonder… if more pokemon were like you, would it be possible for pokemon to become the masters for a change with humans listening to our will. Nica smiled sheepishly. Of course. Lead the way outside… leader. Nica nodded, only to feel something poke her shoulder, yet no pokemon stood by her side. Nica slowly opened her eyes and yawned. After a moment to stretch her limbs, she lied on the side and looked at the sky, finding it surprisingly dark. Wait a moment… from what I read in books that Twilight gave me to read, ponies can control the weather, why would they… She sat on the soft wing and gasped. The sky was indeed dark while a large gathering of dark clouds started circling above the Canterlot mountain. She glanced at the princess, who looked back at her in worry and nodded. “You’re not mistaken. Darkrai is on the top of this mountain, commanding dark magic of incredible power.” Nica looked at the sky once again and narrowed her eyes. Bolts of electricity escaped her cheeks. It was clear that the translating collar was still in possession of Fluttershy, not that she needed it. In order to fight Darkrai, she needed access to her full power. Suddenly, her eyes became wide in realization. Did Chrysalis summon and tried to use for her vengeance the same Darkrai that the Pokemon Hunters captured and Team Galactic tried to brainwash? Her face softened. She now understood Darkrai’s motivation a bit better. First Team Galactic, now Chrysalis. So much negative influence… Her ears drooped. If her theory was correct, she was about to fight the same legendary pokemon she saved in the past.