Pokémon: Equestrian Adventures

by Banshee531


Team Shadow Strikes PT2

Canterlot City, five years ago...

The sun had set, delving the city in darkness. Many of the citizens were fast asleep, the only lights in the city being street lamps. But as the night covered the buildings, a singular light shined in the black void. It was at the Sparkle household, the source of the light being the bedroom of one Twilight Sparkle.

A ten year old Twilight Sparkle was sitting at her desk, eagerly scratching her pencil on a long piece of paper. She was currently working on her notes for an essay Professor Celestia had asked her to write, dictating the differences in Pokémon egg groups. Her work was tireless, doing everything she could to get her masterpiece done on time. Of course, the fact that she had two weeks to complete it was entirely lost on her, but that didn't matter.

And as she did this, her work was suddenly interrupted when she heard a loud clattering sound outside her window, "Huh?" She turned to the glass, only to see nothing. Shrugging, she looked back down to her paper, only to hear another bit of noise, "What is that?" She got up and opened the window, her eyes glancing around in the darkness, "Hello?"

But as she said this, a strong gust of wind blew into the room, lifting her notes into the air. Twilight gasped at the sight, quickly trying to grabs the paper...but it was too late. The pile was sucked out of the window, making her go wide-eyed. "Shoot!" She put some clothes on over her pyjamas, spinning to leave the room. And as she grabbed the doorknob-

"Hoo." Twilight spun back around, gasping as she now saw a Psychick on her desk, some rolled up paper sitting in its beak.

The Pokémon and Twilight stared at one another for a few seconds, only for the Psychick to drop the paper. It then turned back to the window and spread its wings, Twilight reflexively yelling, "Wait! Don't go!" The Psychick's head spun around, raising an eyebrow as she slowly moved over to it, "Don't be afraid." She shined a small smile, "Thank you for returning my notes."

"Hoo," his body moved around to line up with his head. "Hoo, Hoohoooo." It was here that another gust blew into the room, causing Psychick to shiver.

"Gosh, it's cold tonight." Twilight added as she shook as well, only for a bulb to shine over her head. "Say, would you like to stay in here and keep me company while I work?"

"Hoo," he did a small nod before flying onto a nearby bookcase. Twilight giggled before getting back to work, the bird soon flapping down to watch was she was writing. She had the feeling this was gonna be the start of a beautiful friendship.


The Present...

"Twilight...Twilight!" The girl's eyes flickered open at the sound of her name, making her try to stretch out her arms...only to feel her body tighten.

"What?" She looked down next, now seeing she was tied up. A long coil of rope was constricted around her, pinning her arms to her side while her wrists were tied behind her back. Her ankles were also tied together, making it impossible to move.

"Good, you're awake." She glanced over to see her brother and friends sitting in a line beside her, all tied up the same way.

"What happened?"

"We've been captured by team Shadow," Shining answered as Twilight started to stare at their surroundings, now seeing they were in a square room made entirely out of metal, most likely the back of the truck as it was shaking as well.

"Right...I remember now," Twilight muttered as she shook her head, "They used that weird sound system to hurt our Pokémon." A gasp escaped her mouth next as she tried to feel for her Pokeballs, her tied up hands making it difficult.

"They're not there," Flash added, "We already checked. All our Pokeballs are gone." Twilight's eyes went wide in horror.

"What?! But that means Owlicious, Shine and Peewee...oh no! We've gotta get out of here!"

"Twilight, calm down!" Shining yelled, making Twilight look over at him, "I know you're worried, I'm worried about my Pokémon too. But panicking isn't gonna help us. We need to stay calm and think careful about what we can do."

"But what can we do?" Spike muttered out, "We've already tried untying ourselves and that didn't work."

Doc grumbled in agreement, "Those grunts sure know how to tie a knot. There's no way we can get out of these."

"For now, let's not think about what we can't do, and focus on what we can." The others nodded and began moving around, Shining tumbling over to where he assumed the doors were. He knew two or three guards were likely stationed outside, making him whisper, "And then there's Doom. I have to stop him."


Meanwhile...

Doom was now in front of the temple, staring up at the giant doors. They were exactly like the image he had been shown before, three squares on each door with another three connected to both with splits down the middle. Each square had the image of a Legendary Pokémon inside of them, the left squares having a Raikou, Regice and Virizion on them, the right ones having Entei, Registeel, and Terrakion and the middle ones having Suicune, Regirock and Cobalion.

The sight made him shine a giant grin, knowing the door must have took a long time to carve. He knew the sight meant one thing: He was close to his objective. That is, till he heard one of his scientists deny him.

"What do you mean you can't get it open?!"

"We're trying sir!" a scientist grunt whimpered out, "But the lock mechanism is highly advanced despite how long ago it was created."

"Can't you just force it open?"

"If we do that, the entire temple would collapse in on itself. We need to unlock it the correct way, which will be difficult."

Doom let out a long groan, now seeing what he meant. It was a stone tablet that was almost as tall as Doom, the top having a square outline with several stone tiles set in an eight by eight formation. Each tile had a different shape, including one that was missing, allowing Doom see a L-shaped line there that connected to the tiles above and to the right of the missing section.

"Hmmm..." he grabbed the tile to the right and pushed it to the left, finding it move easily and fill the space, only to show a new empty space. This one was an upside down T-shape, connecting the tiles above and to the side. "It's a puzzle."

"That's right, sir. We believe that the tiles need to be moved to certain spots in order to open the door, with the lines coming together to make a picture."

"So by solving the puzzle, you open the doors."

"Exactly. But that's the issue," Doom turned back to him with a long glare, "None of us are able to solve it." Doom then looked away, now seeing several scientists taking pictures of the puzzle while running them through several image processing apps. "I'm sorry, but puzzle solving wasn't part of our job needs."

Doom shook his head and sighed, "Just tell me when you've figured it out." The scientist nodded and walked away as a grunt now walked up.

"Sir, the prisoners are all awake."

Doom shined a big grin. "Good. Nothing like a little mocking the weak to improve my mood."


"You got it?" Flash asked Doc, both now back to back as the Gym Leader was trying to use his tied up hands to untie Flash.

"Almost," he replied as he felt the end of the knot in his fingers, "I think this is it." He pulled on the end, only for Flash to yelp out in pain. "Sorry," he let go, only to pull on another bit of rope and get the same reaction. "Sorry."

"Ow...maybe this isn't gonna work."

"I agree. It's too dark, and having my own hands tied is not helping."

The others sighed at this, only for their ears to perk up as they now heard sounds of locks being messed with. Turning to the noise, they flinched when the doors flew open and light shined inside. Squinting at the sight, they now saw a certain shadow cover the area as it walked in.

"Morning everyone," he laughed, "Comfortable?"

"Let us go!" Spike yelled as he tried to get up, only to be pushed back by a boot to his chest. "Augh!" The others called out his name as they tried to shuffl over to him, Doom laughing as his Skulerror lowered itself into the truck and crawled along the ceiling.

"You don't seem to understand the situation you're in right now. You...are my captives. You do as I say or things will get bad for you."

Flash glared back at him, "You don't scare us! You might have us tied up, but we're gonna get out!"

Doom kept laughing as he crouched down to his eye level, "And how is a weakling you going to do that?" He didn't blink as he waited for a response, the two remaining silent until Flash looked away. "That's what I thought. Just behave and nothing too bad will happen to you...or your Pokémon."

Doom then stood up and gestured to outside the box, now seeing two grunts standing just outside the truck. One was holding a device they assumed was the controlled the soundwave machine while the other carried a metal briefcase. That grunt opened it, now showing eighteen Pokeballs inside.

"Some of the Pokémon in here a pretty rare, especially yours...champion. I'm sure it'll go for a high price. Enough to fund Team Shadow for a good while." The four trainers all growled at him, the image making Doom laugh. "Oh please, stop trying to be intimidating, its not working. Just behave and wait until we're finished what we're doing here. Do that and when we leave, we won't take your Pokémon with us when we leave you behind...probably. We'll at least need to get rid of yours champion. Can't have you interfering with our goals."

Everyone kept growling, only for Twilight to yell out, "Why are even doing this?!" He slowly turned towards Twilight as she continued, "You unearthed an archaeological sight, attacked people without provocation and sent Pokémon wild with pain, all just so you can get your hands on some artifact you're not even sure exists?!"

Doom stared at her for several seconds, only to walk over lean down with a grin, "Oh, it exists. And with it, our leader will change this world for the better."

"Leader?"

"Team Shadow's mysterious leader," Shining grumbled, "Not much is known about him, but there are plenty of rumors. One even talks about how he was found by Pokémon as a baby and was raised by them."

"That's ridiculous," Spike added. "Nobody could be raised by Pokémon."

"He was," Doom replied as he stood up, "That little rumor is true...but he also lost his family when a group of stronger Pokémon came into their territory." He turned around, now staring at the temple in the distance, "That day he learned Team Shadow's greatest philosophy, that might makes right. Only the strong survive in this world, which is why he strives to be the strongest. That way, the world can be bent to his whim."

"You really think the world will bow to you because you're strong?"

"Of course," Doom looked back at the group with an even bigger smile, "And when we have the artifact, the strongest Pokémon in the world will be ours to command."

"There's more to this world than just being strong," Shining instantly replied.

"Oh really?" Doom turned to him. "Remind me, you're considered one of the most influential people in Equestria, am I right? But that's only because you're champion, and you're only champion because you were strong enough to take the title from the previous one. Your strength earned you the respect you have now. That's the same way we will gain control over everything."

"Then what?" Twilight asked next. "Even if you that over Equestria, what then?"

Doom let out a cackle, "Then the rest of the world will follow. Eventually, Team Shadow will be the ultimate authority." Twilight glared at him, the rest giving the same looks. Seeing this, Doom shook his head, "Oh stop it. We're doing this for everyone's good. There are far worse people out there, allowed to do what they want because weak people manage to Sneasel their way into power. When our leader stands at the top, our world can finally live in absolute peace. That's why we're doing this. That's who we are: The good guys."

"You're nothing but a lunatic," Doom froze before slowly turning to glare at Shining Armor as he continued, "Criminals like you always try to make your actions sound noble. Just admit it, you're only doing it because you like it. Isn't that right?"

Doom let out a hiss as he slammed his foot into Shining's chest, making him grunt as he was pushed into the box's wall. "Don't think you're so great and pure, champion. Sometimes, extremes need to be made for the greater good."

Shining coughed out in pain despite the smile now adorning his face, "That's the kinda justification those who know they're in the wrong tell themselves." Doom growled before turning to jump out of the truck, slamming the doors shut.

"Now what?" Spike asked.

"I'm not sure," Shining sighed as he picked himself up. "While they have our Pokémon, we can't hope to try an escape."


Doom stomped back to the temple, seeing the scientists still working on the lock. "Well?!" The scientists froze at his roar, most trying not to turn and look at him.

"I-I-I...I'm sorry s-s-sir. W-w-we're trying every possible algorithm, b-b-but nothing's working."

"Idiots!" He pulled out a Pokeball, "Forget this. Scrapummel!" He tossed it into the air, summoning the jacket wearing monster, "Rip those doors open!"

"NO!" The scientist screamed, jumping in front of them. "Sir, you know what'll happen! You might not have it now, but you'll never get it if you collapse the temple on top of it!"

Doom let out a roar of frustration, looking down at puzzle and seeing they hadn't even moved a single piece yet. "Enough! There has to be someone here who can do this!"

"I-I-I'm s-s-sorry sir, but we're trying our best-"

"SHUT UP! JUST GET IT DONE NOW!" Doom yelled before turning around, hissing as he started to make his way back to his truck, "I'm surrounded by imbeciles..." He slumped down in a chair by the vehicle, only for a bulb to shine in his head, "Hmm....I wonder."


"Grrrr!" Flash grunted as his teeth gripped the rope around Twilight's wrists. "Mmrph!" Flash then opened his mouth and began to spit, "Blaugh! Yuck...stupid rope."

"Just give it up Flash." Twilight sighed while shaking her head, "It's not gonna work."

"Well we gotta do something!" Flash barked back, "It's not like they're just gonna open the doors and let us out!"

KER-THUNK!

They turned to the sound, now seeing a pair of grunts open the doors, "Come on, you're getting out of here."

The five exchanged glances before they were suddenly untied, only for the grunts to put blasters to their backs before taking them out of the truck. After that, they were led over to Doom with his Scrapummel and Skulerror. A big grin was on his face, making them all growl as Shining asked, "What do you want?"

"Why, your help of course." This made them all go wide-eyed as he pointed at the temple, "You're going to help me open these doors. In return, I'll let you keep your Pokémon when we're done." A moment silence followed this, only to see more glares, "Well?"

"You can't be serious. We can't trust you to keep your word!" Shining replied.

"That's right! What's stopping you from changing your mind once we've helped you?" Twilight added.

"Don't think you can treat us like kids," Flash finished, "We're not idiots."

Doom sighed, shaking his head. "You try to be reasonable. I guess the weak will always be stupid. Alright..." the grunt holding the Pokeball case ran up to him. Opening it up, Doom traced his fingers over the balls before taking one out. "We'll do this the hard way."

He opened the ball, soon revealing Owlicious. "Hoo?" He asked as he started to look around, only for Skulerror to suddenly wrap his tail around him. "HOOOOO!"

"NO!" Twilight screamed, only for a pair of grunts to grab her ropes, "Let him go!"

"Oh, I will," Doom chuckled as he shined a big grin, "But not before you help me open those doors."

Twilight's eyes shifted between the two, now seeing Skulerror tighten its grip around the owl before bringing its claws up to her Pokémon's neck. The sight made her let out a long sigh, "Okay! Okay...I'll do it."

"Excellent. Get to work." Doom laughed as he gestured for the grunts to keep the others pinned. As this happened, he, Twilight, Scrapummel, Skulerror and Owlicious moved to the doors while Shining began to glance around, now seeing a grunt holding a controller.

"Here it is," Doom chimed in as he showed her the puzzle. "Figure this out and unlock the doors...or else."

Twilight sighed, glancing over at Owlicious as Skulerror chuckled at her, "Hold on," she whispered before looking over the tiles. Adjusting her glasses, she did a long sigh before her brain began to work. "Let's see here..."

With that, she began to work on the riddle. She started with the left side and top, shifting the sliding tiles from the edge. After about a minute, she managed to make the top line and left side fit perfectly. Doom saw this, making him massively grin as she started the process over again, soon getting another L-shaped line done. And as she did this, the image began to take form, now showing the picture of Alicormony and Dischaos. The two's bodies were angled so their faces and tails touched, forming a heart-shape between them.

And as the last tile were slid into place, the image started glowing a blue light. That light spread to the rest of the door, the patterns now glowing before the doors started moving backwards. Everyone watched in awe as the temple opened up, revealing a short tunnel with a downward stone staircase.

"Finally!" Doom laughed as he and Scrapummel began to walk up to the doorway before looking back at Twilight. "I thank you. Now..." Twilight felt a grunt grab her, "Tie them all back up and put them in the truck."

"What about our Pokémon?" Twilight yelled as she glanced over at Owlicious, still seeing Skulerror holding him tightly.

"Be good and I'll keep my promise...maybe." Doom cackled before he and Scrapummel walked into the temple, disappearing into the darkness.

"Let's go!" A grunt holding Shining told him. But as he began to pull on the champion, he suddenly found an elbow slam in to his gut. "Blaugh!"

The others turned to this, only to see Shining tackle a nearby grunt to the ground, rolling off him while grabbing his stun gun. Before they could react, Flash and Doc followed Shining's lead and thrusted their elbows into their holder's guts, knocking them away. Spike then scooped some sand with his feet, closing his eyes before kicking them upward. The sand hit the grunt's face, making him yelp as Spike got free.

While that happened, Shining fired an electric bullet right at Skulerror, "Skull!" It cried, its grip on Owlicious instantly loosening.

"Hoo!" Owlicious roared as he got free, taking to the skies as it flew over to its owners.

"Stop them!" One grunt ordered, another nodding as it put its hand on the soundwave controller.

"Oh no you don't!" Flash roared as he tackled the grunt, the controller flying out of his hands. He then pushed Flash off him, quickly grabbing the controller again, only for Flash to grab hold of it as well. Both now held a side, beginning a tug of war as Shining, Spike and Doc tried to fight off the other grunts.

Seeing the commotion, Twilight looked up at her Pokémon and yelled, "Owlicious, use Confusion on these three!"

"Hoo!" The Psychick fired off its psychic beam, the grunts around her all now clutching their heads in pain.

"Let's see how you like getting your heads assaulted," Twilight mocked before going over to the door puzzle, quickly shifting several pieces around. "Gotta keep that monster locked till we get rid of these goons." The door began to shut again, leaving the grunts leaderless as she turned back to the battle, now seeing Owlicious descend to her level, "Good work-look out!"

On instinct, he leapt to the side just in time to dodge a Poison Jab from Skulerror. The flying skeleton hissed as it started to chase after him, trying to grab him in its claws. "Hoo!" the owl yelped, spinning around as he dodged a few more swipes.

While this happened, Flash was still trying to get the controller, both pulling at the device as Shining kept knocking out grunts with the electrogun. He then spotted the grunt holding a certain familiar box, quickly sniping him with one shot. "Augh!" he screamed before falling over, Shining instantly dashing to the case as the other grunts tried to chase him.

"I got you guys," he grabbed the case and opened it up, the grunts now throwing Pokeballs at him. Seeing this, he grabbed the first ball he recognized. "GO!" He tossed it up, unleashing a Pokémon that looked like a hulking dinosaur with a spiked back and wrecking ball tail.

"ANKYLOAD!" It roared as it landed, causing the ground to shake.

Flash and the others looked away from their fights and saw the Ankyload standing in front of Shining, gasping as Flash spoke up, "Wait, is that-"

"The Ankyload that evolved from the Armadiload Professor Luna revived?!" Doc finished as the grunts let out their Pokémon, revealing a bunch of Skullimor, Diggersby and Shadusk.

"Spike Cannon!" The spikes on Ankyload's back glowed before firing, hitting all opponents except a few of the Skullimor as they flew above the shot line. "Now, use Tail Hammer!" It charged as its tail began to glow, Ankyload spinning around to slam it into the Diggersby and Shadusk, sending them flying as Shining pulled out a Premier Ball. "Springer!"

The ball opened before the Riolu escaped, "Riolu?"

"Go help Flash!" Springer spun around and saw Flash still fighting the grunt for the controller. Nodding at the sight, he went into Extreme Speed, zigzagging around the crowd of grunts while forming an Aura Sphere.

"Rio!" He roared as he fired the orb.

Flash saw this and gave the controller one last strong tug, pulling it into the path of the orb. "What?!" The grunt yelped as he turned to see the Aura Sphere coming right for the controller, only for it strike the device, making it explode, "NO!"

"Nice one bud!" Flash cheered, Springer shining a thumbs up. "Now we don't have to worry about the sound thingy."

It was here that several more grunts ran up, all pulling out Pokeballs as they summoned some several Excadrill, Skullimor and Frillace.

"GUYS!" Everyone turned to Shining and watched him throw every single Pokeball into the air, unleashing all their Pokémon.

"Gust/Tore/Leaf/Car/Rush/Wagon/Gear/Tock/Ledge/Nee!" Everyone's Pokémon roared as they appeared, all turning and running up to their trainers. Peewee, Skyler and Steeledge reached them first, all keeping the flyers at bay while the others began to battle any enemy they could find.

The only one who wasn't fighting was Shine, the Ponyta simply trying to get to her trainer, only to find her path blocked by a Shadusk. "Dusk!" It raised its glowing claws, only for Hopper to slam into him.

"Rush!" Hopper roared as the Shadusk was knocked away, making Shine smile. But as she did this, she saw a Diggersby about to charge at him with its giant ears.

"Nee!" She fired a Psybeam at it, blasting it away. Hopper then told Shine he was going to help her get to her trainer, both now in hot pursuit to Twilight.

As for the trainer, she and Owlicious were continuing to battle against the Skulerror. "Confusion!" Owlicious fired its psychic beam again, but Skulerror blocked it with its glowing claws.

"Skull!" It swung them in a X formation, Owlicious barely dodging it.

"This isn't good," Twilight muttered, seeing Confusion and Peck had little to no effect on her enemy while also noticing Skulerror was to big to use Sky Drop on. "Owlicious can't beat this thing."

"Nee!" She turned to see Shine and Hopper race to her side, the Ponyta leaping into her arms.

"I'm okay," she assured her. "But Owlicious…" They all turned to see Owlicious dodge another Poison Jab, only to get hit by a X-Scissor.

"Hoo!" He cried as he was smacked into the dirt, Skulerror now preparing to hit him with another Poison Jab.

"Hopper!" Twilight called out, the Velocirush zipping ahead to intercept. "Use Bite!"

"Rush!" He quickly chomped down on the Skulerror's tail, making it yelp out in pain.

"SKULL!" It cried out as it tried to fly away, only to pick up Hopper in the process. "Lerror!" It began to flick its tail around, but Hopper continued to remain firmly latched on. "Skull!" It wagged its tail up in front of it now, allowing it to see Hopper as its eyes began to glow red.

Next thing Hopper knew, a beam of red light shot out and struck his head. "RUSH!" He cried out in surprise, accidently letting go before gravity sent it back to the earth. Luckily, the sand cushioned his fall, summoning a dust cloud before the Pokémon began to pick itself up.

"Hopper?" Twilight saw the Velocirush turn to her, his eyes now very unfocused.

"Rush!" He growled at them before charging, attempting to bite Twilight and Shine, but the trainer was able to jump out of the way.

"He's confused!" she yelled as Hopper charged at him again, "Owlicious, help us!" The Psychick quickly pecked his head, making him look up and try to bite the owl, but he kept himself out of the Pokémon's range. "That's good. Keep him busy until the confusion wears off."

Skulerror saw this and smirked as its eyes began to glow red again, now firing two Confuse Rays. The first struck Owlicious and the second being Shine, the two suddenly freezing as the effects sunk in. "Guys!" Twilight screamed before feeling Shine begin to struggle in her arms, forcing her to drop the Ponyta as she started running around with a look of fear in her eyes.

"Nee!" To her, the usually comforting image of her trainer/mother was now distorted into an image of a dark monster with sharp teeth and claws. "NEE!" She started firing Psybeam attacks in every direction, Twilight crying out as she leapt back from the attack.

Owlicious was just the same, "HOO!" it cried, closing its eyes while putting its wings over its face.

Skulerror laughed at the sight as it began to fly over the area, "SKULL!" He roared, the other Skullimor now hearing his instructions. One by one, their eyes all began to glow before they started launching a barrage of Confuse Rays down at their opponents.

"Leaf!" Prongs was the first to be hit, causing him to stagger as his eyes became unfocused.

"Gear!" Higear cried as he was hit next.

"Carrr!" Viper grunted, the both now becoming befuddled.

"Oh no...don't let those beams hit you!" Shining yelled, the Pokémon all doing their best to dodge...only for all of them to be struck.

"Gust/Ledge/Wagon!" Skyler, Steeledge and Peewee cried as they fell from the attack, the confusion now settling in.

"Spran!" Riptide dodged a Confuse Ray before slamming an Excadrill with his Aqua Tail, only to get side struck by a Diggersby. "Tore!" He yelped as he rolled on the ground, allowing a Skullimor to hit him. "Nee!"

"Gear!" Higear attempted to use its Gear Grind to protect itself, the gears blocking two attacks before a third struck, "High!"

"Psyshock!" Doc ordered, Tockwork raising its gun arm to fire the blasts. The shots struck several Skullimor, knocking them down like flies before one hit him with a Confuse Ray.

"Tock!" Tockwork fell to its knees as the Confuse Ray began to mess with it's systems.

Springer jumped from side to side, doing anything he could to not get struck. "Ri, ri, ri, riolu!" He back-flipped over a Shadusk that was trying to attack from behind, causing it to be struck by the Confuse Ray. He formed an Aura Sphere as he landed, which he thrust into the Shadusk's back. But as it dropped with spirals in its eyes, Springer found himself surrounded by a circle of Skullimor.

"RIOLU!" he screamed as five Confuse Rays hit him at once.

Shining had just knocked down another grunt when he saw his Ankyload get hit, its size making it an easy target. "No! Return!" He recalled the Pokémon into its Pokeball, only to see the others now being succumbed to the confusion's effects. Springer, Prongs, Viper and Steeledge all became aggressive, trying to attack anything that came into view while Peewee, Riptide, Skyler and Higear all started clinching in fear.

"Shine! You have to stop!" Twilight yelled as she dodged another Psybeam, Shine firing blasts everywhere in fear. She then saw Hopper charging at Shine, gasping at the sight, "Look out!" Shine fired another Psybeam, knocking Hopper flying back. "No no no..." She turned to her other Pokémon, "Owlicious, you have to wake up! I need you!"

Owlicious heard this and opened his eyes, only to see a terrifying image where Twilight stood. "HOO!"

He shut the eyes tightly again, making Twilight grimace, "Please! You have to-look out!" she screamed as the Skulerror flew down and clutched its tail around the owl's neck.

"HOO!" He cried as Skulerror raised him into the air. He turned his head around, only to scream as he now stared at Skulerror's face, which had become even more scary due to the confusion.

"Skull..." Skulerror raised its tail, glowing purple with a Poison Jab.

"NOOOOO!" Twilight screamed, suddenly going into a sprint before leaping at Skulerror, knocking it down and losing its grip on Owlicious. The owl fell to the side as Twilight tried to keep Skulerror pinned. "Owlicious, you're stronger than this confusion! Please, don't let it or your fear make you lose sight of that!"

Hitting the dirt made Owlicious feel a certain tingle in this head, allowing him to hear Twilight's words. But as he opened his eyes, he went wide-eyed as he once again saw the scary images.

"Skull!" Skulerror roared as it pulled up its tail and wrapped it around Twilight, flicking her off of him.

"Augh!" She cried as she flung away, her body rolling across the ground before landing near Owlicious. She let out a long moan as she slowly opened her eyes, now seeing him still cower in fear. "Owlicious," she pulled him into her arms, the owl thrashing out....only for her to hold him closer, "I'm here. I'll protect you."

Owlicious heard the voice and slowly opened his eyes, still seeing the scary figure. But Twilight's voice kept coming from it, causing the image to slowly change as his eyes came into focus.

"I'll protect you."

And as those words went into his ears, the image stabilised and showed his trainer looking down at him. "Hoo..." he calmly hooted before seeing Skulerror floating up with a raised tail, "HOO!" On instinct, he leapt out of her arms and flew straight for the monster. The words he heard Twilight say before echoed in his head as he charged, knowing she was right. "HOOOOO!" He roared as a blue aura appeared around his outline, making Twilight and Skulerror go wide-eyed.

He then beat his wings and sent the light off of him, the attack instantly striking Skulerror. The attack exploded in his face, making him cry out, "SKULL!"

But as this happened, the light morphed into a shockwave that flew in every direction, hitting everyone in the vicinity. This included the confused Pokémon, whose confusion status seemed to vanish as soon as the wave passed them. "Ri?" Springer yelped as he looked down at himself, blinking before flexing paws, "Riolu?"

"What just happened?" Spike asked as Peewee hugged him, the teen now seeing him back to normal.

"Owlicious just used Mind Force," Doc added with wide eyes, "It's a Psychic attack that damages an opponent, but also removes mental status conditions of any nearby Pokémon like confusion, sleep or infatuation."

"Talk about great timing," Flash cheered as he kicked a grunt's rifle out of his hands before knocking him away. His Pokémon followed suit, all resuming the giant battle.

"Ankyload!" Shining threw his Pokeball, summoning his dinosaur Pokémon as the fear of confusion vanished. "Let's finish this!" The Pokémon let out a long roar as he began swatting away the grunts' Pokémon, Doc and Spike following suit with their own commands. As this happened, Shining turning to Twilight with a big grin, "Great work sis! But learning that moves does more than just get rid of the confusion."

"Skull..." Skulerror moaned as it picked itself up, growling at Owlicious as the bird got into a battle ready position.

"Right! Let's do this!" Twilight said as she pointed at the monster, Shine and Hopper now moving to her side.

"Hoo...HOOOOO!" Owlicious roared, only for his entire body to explode with light. This caught everyone's attention, making them turn to see Owlicious grow larger, only to fade into something new. It looked like the Psychick, though it now stood at about Doc's height. Its wings were much larger, so large that they looked like they could wrap around it like a cloak. The owl still had the almost cream colored circles around its eyes, but now also had a ring of dark brown feathers circling the edges and were connected by a line of dark brown feathers above its beak that made it look like it was wearing glasses. Finally, it had a large bushy monobrow of white feathers above its eyes that were shaped like an M. The new Pokémon spread its large wings and let out a mighty squawk. "OWLOLAR!"

Everyone gasped at the sight, Twilight fully wide-eyed as she almost fell to her knees, "Owlicious...you evolved." she whispered, "Of course. Learning Mind Force let's you evolve. So now you're an Owlolar."

"Lar!" Owlicious nodded before spreading his larger wings. With one great beat, he took to the skies, Skulerror joining him in the air as the two stared each other down.

"Confusion!" Owlicious unleashed the blue beam, Skulerror raising its claws in defense. But as the blast struck, the force slammed the Skulerror back.

"LAR!" Owlicious roared as he charged at the monster, Twilight ordering Peck as his beak extended in a glowing light.

Skulerror growled back as it fired a Shadow Ball back, only for Owlicious to easily dodge it before stabbing his beak. "Skull!"

"Now use Sky Drop!" Owlicious then grabbed Skulerror's tail before flying upward, spinning like a top before swinging Skulerror downward. "Mystical Fire!"

"Nee!" Shine's horn ignited before she drew a flaming circle in the air, "TAA!" She fired a burst of fire through the circle, the flames striking Skulerror.

"Skull!" Skulerror cried as it then hit the ground as Hopper charged in and bit its tail. "SKULL!" It yelped, Hopper letting go and jumping back before it could retaliate. Skulerror then fired a Confuse Ray, hitting Hopper's head.

"Rush!" He cried as the confusion began to sink in.

"Oh no you don't! Mind Force!"

"Owlolar!" Owlicious's body glowed before he beat his wings, sending the light at Skulerror.

"Skull!" It turned to the blast before crossing its glowing claws, unleashing an X-Scissor to block the attack. But as the blast was defended against, the shockwave flew across the area and cured Hopper again.

At the same time, the rest of Twilight's friends were now turning the tables. Confusion now no longer a problem, they ripped through the grunts' ranks with ease.

"Aura Sphere!"

"Ri!" Springer slammed the orb into a Diggersby, knocking it back as Peewee, Skyler and Steeledge knocked out the last of the Skullimor.

"Let's see how you like this!" Shining told a grunt he had just tied up. He then turned to see the rest of the army now being incapacitated, all now being tied up by Flash or Doc while Spike took their Pokeballs and returned the knocked out Pokémon.

All that was left was Skulerror, who Twilight was still fighting, "Psybeam and Confusion!" Her Pokémon fired the blasts at the monster, who tried to block them with a Shadow Ball. But the Psybeam struck down the ball, only for the Confusion to fly through the smoke and hit it.

"SKULL!" It cried as it fell to the ground again. And as it tried to pick itself up, it saw the others gather around Twilight.

"You okay?" Shining asked, Twilight nodding back.

"I'm fine," she turned to her partner. "We're all fine, thanks to Owlicious."

While she said this, Flash took this moment to scan the Owlolar with his Pokedex.

Name: Owlolar
Category: Scholar Pokémon
Type: Psychic/Flying
Info: The evolved form of Psychick. With its powerful mind, it never forgets something. Its more powerful wings allow it to travel further distances, helping in its aim to spread knowledge and learning throughout the world.

"Awesome!" Flash cheered, only for his ears to shiver as a loud roar came from Skulerror. Everyone turned to see it hiss as it slowly took to the sky with a blood red glare in its eyes.

"Don't give it a chance! Long range attacks!" Shining told the others, the group nodding before giving their commands.

"Air Cutter, Water Gun, Energy Ball and Flamethrower!"

"Gear Grind, Psyshock and Air Cutter!"

"Mystical Fire!"

"Dragonbreath!" The nine attacks flew up at Skulerror, who began firing rapid fire Shadow Balls in return. But as it blocked the barrage, the Dragonbreath, Mystical Fire and Water Gun got through.

"Skull!" It cried as it felt the attacks, trying everything it could to keep itself in the air. However, as it did this, Owlicious suddenly appeared above it with a deadly glare in its eyes.

"Mind Force!" Skulerror thrust its claws at him in response, but it was too later. With one mighty beat of his wings, the light shot of the owl's body and hit Skulerror point blank.

"SKULL!" It screamed over the explosion, the shockwave spreading over the field and pushing it into the dirt. A pillar sand followed as it landed, kicking up a cloud of dust as well.

Seeing this, Owlicious flew back down to the others as Twilight said, "Wow...you're amazing Owlicious!"

"Lar!" He cheered back, only for them all to turn and see the cloud fade, showing Skulerror picking itself up.

"You gotta be kidding! How much can that thing take?!" Spike yelped in response.

"Skull..." it hissed weakly as it tried to take to the air. But as it leapt up, its wings gave out, making it fall over before swirls appeared in its eyes. "Error..."

Everyone sighed in relief with Spike falling to his butt, "We did it."

"Not yet," Shining pointed at the temple. "We still have to stop Doom."

"Why don't we just leave him in there?" Flash asked. "He can't escape, so let's just keep him locked inside until Hard Case gets here."

Shining sighed and shook his head, "I wish it was that simple. Unfortunately, I don't know what that supposed treasure really is down there, and if he gets his hands on it, who knows what might happen. We have to stop him before he gets the chance." He turned to Twilight, "Open it up."

Twilight nodded and moved over to the puzzle, beginning to shift the pieces around until it remade the image of Alicormony and Dischaos. And as the last piece was put in, the doors began to open. Shining turned to Ankyload, patting his side. "Stay here and guard the entrance. If anyone except us tries to get out, stop 'em."

"Load!" It roared back before the others ran inside.

"Owlicious, stay here and help Ankyload."

"You too Tockwork and Higear."

"Skyler, Prongs and Viper, you guys keep watch too."

"Hoo/Tock/Gear/Gust/Leaf/Car!" The six of them replied as they stood by the doorway, all giving saluting gestures.


Doom and Scrapummel were calmly strolling down a staircase, about to reach the bottom as they now saw a new large set of doors.

"Scrapummel." It nodded and pushed the doors open, its strength barely able to push them aside. And as the doors began to shift, Doom let out a long happy sigh, "Finally..." he walked in as his Pokémon followed, only for his smile to suddenly vanish. "What?"

The chamber he had arrived in was empty. No artifact or anything. Instead, three statues stood in the middle of a round room, all made of stone...and they resembled Suicune, Entei and Raikou.

"What? But...how?! It should be here! Where is it?!" He yelled as he ran to the middle of the room. But as he did this, he saw another door on the other side of the room, making him smile again, "Ah. Guess this place is bigger than it looks. Come Scrapummel, let's-" He turned to his Pokémon, only to see him show a grimace on his face. "Scrapummel? What's wrong?"

The sound of cracking stone suddenly hit his ears next, Doom now seeing light suddenly began to cover the statues. Glowing light began to consume all three, only for the rocks to fall to the ground...revealing all three beasts in their true forms.

And before he could say anything, they turned to Doom and pounced.