Ghetsis had overtaken Saddle-Arabia. In a few minutes even. Nopony could stand up to the destructive and overwhelming force of his Hydregion.
"What did I say? I warned you to comply, and now look where you all are." The ponies were all restrained by Team Plasma, tied up and everything. Hydregion loomed over them all, making sure that nopony got any smart ideas and tried to leave. "Now I rule your land! I failed to conquer Unova... but that one single failure never stopped me. Not all."
Colress himself was busy. He was searching through Saddle-Arabia's archives.
"This world seems dependent on magic. Science is barely a factor here. How disappointing."
All seemed bleak for Saddle-Arabia until Celestia's Royal Guards had shown up with some backup.
"Halt! Release all the ponies at once! In the name of Princess Celestia!" A soldier said.
"Oh? And who may you be?"
"I believe they are the guards of that place known as Canterlot. It appears to be the most important location in this world." A grunt explained.
"Canterlot? So that's where the top is. I'll make sure that I don't miss out on that one next."
"You have made a threat against Canterlot. You are now officially deemed a criminal to Equestria. We will be taking you in."
"Take me in? HAH! Not again. Not this time." Ghetsis took out a Pokeball as the guards readied themselves, being cautious. Ghetsis tossed the Pokeball, sending out his Bisharp.
"Bisharp. Deal with these nuisances. Getting rid of you means I eradicate an extension of the Sovereign."
Bisharp lunged forward using Night Slash. The guards had no defense against a Pokemon like Bisharp. At all.
The ponies watched as they saw Bisharp completely decimate the guards. Many of them looked away to avoid what they were seeing. Nopony had ever seen such violence before. Ghetsis watched as he saw them all fall to Bisharp with their armor breaking apart, scattering all over the place.
The guards had been defeated by one Pokemon only as both Ghetsis and Bisharp stood over them. There was only one guard left who wasn't taken out like his fellow soldiers. But he was severely hurt. Ghetsis grabbed the guard by his neck with his staff.
"Tell your princess that eventually her entire kingdom will belong to me. Ghetsis. You can do that can't you little pony?"
The guard was struck with fear as he scurried off, running as fast as he could. Ghetsis laughed as he gained another victory. Conquering Saddle-Arabia was the first major one. And soon everything else will be much bigger.
"We've conquered this place. We'll build our foundation from here. And then everything else will belong to me! And I haven't forgotten about Unova. My world. I'll make sure they feel my revenge. TENFOLD!"
The guard had returned to Canterlot after a long journey. He felt like he was going to pass out. The other guards held him, making sure he wouldn't fall. They guided him to Princess Celestia to hand out the news.
"What happened? You look horrible." Celestia said worryingly.
"It was worse than we ever imagined, Princess. They were too overwhelming. And it was only one of them.2
"Only one? What happened to the other guards that were sent?"
"They were slain. I was the only one that survived." And just like that, he passed out on the floor. Celestia now knew what this Great Disaster was. And it made her worry even more. Passion looked up at her trainer, seeing her eyes intensified.
"Who would be that ruthless...?"
"Kirlia.."
"That kind of malice can only be found in our world," Darkrai explained, lurking in the corner. Celestia and Passion both turned to him. "Compared to your world, the evil that lurks in ours is like no other. Both humans and Pokemon are capable of vile actions. Actions so vile that no one will ever forget the impact it caused."
What Darkrai said was true. Equestria may have its fair share of evil, but it's nothing compared to what the Pokemon World holds.
"What do I do?" Celestia thought long and hard. Until she came up with a conclusion. "The best I can do for now is to try and free those trapped in Saddle-Arabia by their clutches."
The guard who had survived was being taken care of. The doctors tried to help him, but the injuries were like nothing they had seen before. It was almost as if he was cut by both pure steel and darkness at the same time.
Luna had overheard everything, and this made her terrified. She never even thought of someone like that even when she visited the dream world.
Shortly after, the guard had passed away. His body couldn't handle all of it.
Ghetsis wasn't slowing down though. If he was going to conquer, he would have to prove a point and make his moves fast. He had sat down on the throne of the king and queen of Saddle-Arabia, making himself feel more powerful.
"This is wonderful. Then again, this is a world full of pretty colorful ponies. It was obviously going to be easy to conquer."
"Best not get too confident, Lord Ghetsis. Don't want any surprises now do you?" A grunt said.
"Of course. I already know that. But this time, I have a way to make sure that no random 10-year-old boy and his friends stop me. By proving a point. We'll give Princess Celestia's Canterlot a little message eventually."
Cobalion, on the other hand, was still on his way. While he didn't know where Saddle-Arabia was, that wouldn't stop him from getting there.
A day had passed and news had come out about what happened to Saddle-Arabia. It was horrible. And all the ponies sent their prayers to Saddle-Arabia, hoping they are all alright.
Twilight took a newspaper containing this story.
"Saddle-Arabia attacked and taken by a 3 Headed Dragon and its trainer? What in Equestria's name?"
Her friends turned to her, hearing about the news as well.
"It's awful what happened to them." Fluttershy said.
"It gets worse. Apparently, Royal Guards were slain?! And anypony who dared try and escape were also slain." What Twilight was reading was horrifying to her and everypony else. "So this is the great disaster that Celestia foresaw.
Just then, Ash who was also listening was thinking about who could've caused this. 3 Headed Dragon. Entire location taken over. Only one person could've done this.
"Ghetsis."
"Huh?" They all turned to him.
"He's the only guy capable of doing this."
"Who's Ghetsis Ash?" Pinkie Pie asked.
"The worst guy you could think of. He only cares about ruling everything. So much so that he'll make sure that he's the ONLY person who can rule. By getting rid of the competition."
"So you mean he..." Rarity gasped.
"Yeah. With no hesitation. If he's back, then we're all in trouble."
"Woah. Now hold on. We've taken on worse. I'm sure we can beat this Ghetsis guy like we did the others." Rainbow Dash said.
"Ghetsis isn't like the others, Rainbow Dash," Ash replied
"And you heard what Princess Celestia said. This is one problem that even we can't get involved with." Twilight followed.
"I-I guess so. Then what do we do against a guy like him? Everypony can't just sit around and wait for him to do something?"
"Even Princess Celestia isn't sure. It says here that Celestia has never been this nervous before." Twilight pointed out.
"S-S-So. Does this mean this is the end of the line?" Rarity started to panic.
"No, it ain't. Let's not start going crazy and panicking now." Applejack calmed her down.
"Ash. You know about Ghetsis. You can at least tell us and Princess Celestia how to stop him." Twilight chattered.
"Stopping Ghetsis is simple. Just thwart his plans. But that's not an easy task. Ghetsis always finds a way to make it tough for everyone. And his Pokemon along with the rest of Team Plasma's are no different. If he's causing trouble here, that means he wants to rule Equestria."
"Rule Equestria?" They all said.
"He tried to rule Unova once by controlling Pokemon. Especially Reshiram. The Legendary Pokemon."
"Controlling Pokemon? How awful," said Fluttershy.
"Well, you beat him before Ash. So it's obviously not gonna be a big deal when you face him again." Dash uttered.
"I don't know. I can't be too sure. Who knows what he has now in this world."
"Pika."
Pinkie Pie wasn't feeling the dreaded atmosphere, so she had to lighten the mood.
"Let's not worry about it too much. Why don't we all-"
"It's reasonable to worry Pinkie. This isn't a situation we can't take lightly." Ash cut her off. The Mane 6 had never seen Ash and Pikachu so serious like this before. "You gotta tell Celestia about Ghetsis. As fast as you can."
"Ash is right. We have to tell Princess Celestia. That way she'll know who this Ghetsis guy is. Let's go girls." Twilight exclaimed. The gang set off to Canterlot to give the information to Princess Celestia.
Once they reached Canterlot, they let Celestia know immediately.
"So. His name is Ghetsis. An old foe of Ash."
"Yes. And the 3 Headed Dragon is known as a Hydregion apparently." Twilight explained everything to her.
"Now we know of his name and his Pokemon. Thank you Twilight. I urge you and your friends to continue staying in Ponyville until we sort this disaster out. We'll prevent it somehow."
"Understood, Princess Celestia."
"But, there is one thing I want to try. If he is Ash's old foe, then that means that he will know what to do against Ghetsis."
"You're not planning on letting Ash handle him are you?" Rarity asked.
"He has past experiences with him, so he'll know what to do hopefully. I'll be putting all of our faith in Ash and Pikachu."
"That is true. This is his territory." Twilight agreed. "I just hope that he'll be okay."
"He'll be fine. No doubt about it. It's Ash after all." Pinkie uttered.
"But as for everypony else, I fear the worst. A guard had returned from Saddle-Arabia. And the injures that he had were so severe, that no doctor could heal him. The Pokemon that Ghetsis wields could be capable of much more horrifying feats that all of Equestria, even our own world has yet to discover. So much so that they can conquer one kingdom in mere minutes. If I fail, then Ash will be the one to stop Ghetsis. But I cannot just sit around. Which is why... It shall be I that will go first."
"You're going to go, Princess Celestia?!" Twilight bellowed.
"Yes. I've already once sent you to deal with Sombra at the Crystal Empire. Now it is my turn. The ponies of Saddle-Arabia need my help."
"I won't let you!" Luna shouted, disapproving this.
"Luna?" Celestia and everypony else turned to her.
"Sister. I will not let you go. Not at all!"
"Why? If I go I might be able to-"
"I don't want you getting hurt! Everything that has been said about this Ghetsis has terrified me. What he did to the guards and how one of them passed on. I'm afraid of what may happen to you if you go. What if they unleash something much worse on you? I don't want to lose you sister." Luna started tearing up, terrified of what may happen. All these thoughts swirling up in her head of how Celestia could meet her doom.
Her older sister walked up to her, placing her hoof on her back and giving Luna a nice warm hug.
"I understand, sister. I'm scared too. Both of us know little about Pokemon still. But, even still, I have to do something. As my duty as Princess and Ruler of Equestria, I must help those in need. Even if it costs me my life." Celestia gave a smile off. Passion latched on to Celestia, obviously not wanting her to get hurt as well. "Don't worry Passion. It'll be alright. Now. I have to get going."
Celestia was ready to do what she must do. Luna and the others watched as they saw her move along to go and save Saddle-Arabia.
She wasn't the only one headed there. Cobalion was slowly but surely heading there as well. His lack of knowledge about its location didn't stop him at all.
Ghetsis was waiting. Biding his time. Old equipment and tech from his previous Team Plasma base were brought here. Along with Colress's old science equipment. It was starting to feel like home again. Colress had set up a new lab, straight in the king and queen's room, claiming it as his. Hydregion stood by Ghetsis's side, making him even more imposing.
The grunts were given the task of lookout and keeping the ponies in check. If any of them tried to escape, they would be met with harsh punishment from their Pokemon. Or worse, Ghetsis.
Celestia had quickly made her way to Saddle-Arabia, but she was seen by a grunt from high above a building.
"I see a pony. One with a strange mane. Almost cosmic." The grunt explained.
"That's the pony I saw on the flag. It's that Princess Celestia pony!" The other grunt yelled. The top horse was here, and they let Ghetsis know immediately. The ponies of Saddle-Arabia had hope on their faces, seeing Celestia arrive.
"Princess Celestia!"
"She's here to save us!"
They all chattered with joy in their voices. Ghetsis stepped out, just to see her for himself. The two had finally met.
"So. You're Princess Celestia. The number one pretty pony of this puffy world."
"And you must be Ghetsis."
"That I am. The soon to be new ruler of this world. And eventually my original world as well. Just like it always should've been."
"That won't be happening. Not at all." Celestia used her magic to hold the grunts and Pokemon in place as they could no longer keep watch of the ponies, making them escape without any harm done. But Ghetsis resisted her magic. Due to him being supercharged with Aura, magic wasn't very effective on him like it should be. "Who do you think you are? Coming to our world and deciding that you deserve to rule it?"
"Hah!" Ghetsis laughed loudly. "Oh please. All my life I've wanted to conquer and overtake everything. I decided to start small with Unova, but that went nowhere. Now with this second chance that I have been given, along with this overflowing surge of aura, the world can be mine. If I play my cards right."
"Then you'll end up losing as you did in Unova."
"Oh no, I won't. And I'll make sure by getting rid of the biggest threat here. You!"
"Hydregion! Hyper Beam!" Ghetsis commanded his Brutal Pokemon. A golden flash of hyper energy emerged in its mouth as it released a devastating beam towards Celestia. The beam tore through the ground, ripping it apart like it was nothing.
Celestia countered by firing her own beam. One of magic. Both connected as they cancelled each other out easily.
"Dragon Rush!" Hydregion flew through the smoke of leftover beams as it zoomed towards Celestia. Her eyes widened as she was met with an overwhelming menace of attacks from its heads. Celestia couldn't react fast enough as she was met with the attack.
Celestia had never felt so much pain before. It felt like she was getting hit with numerous mountains, over and over again. Hydregion then gripped onto Celestia's neck by biting onto it. Celestia screamed in pain as Hydregion tossed her aside, slamming her down with its tail.
The ponies were in shock by what they were seeing. Celestia being overwhelmed like that.
But due to her status and position, she didn't go down so easily. She had bite marks on her neck along with scratches from the Dragon Rush, but she was still up.
"How stubborn. They always are. Hydregion. Let's see which move you can use thanks to the DNA Mixer. Use Giga Impact!" Hydregion's body was engulfed by all of its power. Celestia had to stop it, so cast a barrier around her. Hydregion came crashing down, striking the barrier with all that energy, creating a powerful impact that shattered the ground and buildings around it. The ponies and grunts were all blown away by the impact as a huge dust cloud emerged.
Celestia was safe, thanks to the strength of her barrier. Celestia then teleported behind Hydregion, finally retaliating. The Dark Dragon Pokemon was struck by a magic beam that sent it down to the ground, breaking through it as it made a huge crater.
"Heh. That all? Fire Fang!" Hydregion flew up, biting Celestia once more, this time on the hoof. Celestia winced in pain as flames were seeping through the holes that Hydregion bit in her. "Hahaha! The ability to use more than 4 moves! That DNA Mixer idea that Colress came up with is his finest work yet. Now! Mix it with Thunder Fang!"
Celestia felt both the surging thunder and scorching fire seep in her, and even surround her. The ponies all looked away in fear as they couldn't watch this any longer. Not anymore. Celestia had to power through it. To protect everypony from someone like Ghetsis. So she let out a mighty shockwave of magic that sent Hydregion flying.
Celestia then unleashed a frenzy of magic beams that rained down on Hydregion. The Brutal Pokemon was overwhelmed by all of that magic as a large pillar of light erupted from the aftermath. Celestia breathed in and out as she turned to Ghetsis.
"Now for you."
"Heh. Please. Do you think it will be that easy? Even if you have managed to take out my Hydregion, you stand no chance against my aura. I don't even know my own strength with this newfound power."
"Then I'll just have to make sure that you don't get the chance." Celestia trapped Ghetsis in a magic bubble, keeping him from making any movements. Ghetsis wasn't bothered by this at all. He gave off a simple smirk and then said...
"Hyper Beam." And just like that Celestia was shot through her back with a Hyper Beam. Hydregion wasn't out at all. Celestia's eyes widened as she fell to the ground with a large gaping hole in her back. She had never felt so much pain before or even a defeat like this.
"PRINCESS CELESTIA!" Everypony in Saddle-Arabia yelled.
Ghetsis walked over to her, looking down at the defeated Princess.
"Did you really think a pony of all things would stop me?" Ghetsis slammed his staff down on her hoof, making her cry out in pain. "I do not have time to be playing with ponies. Only a child would. So long, Princess Celestia." Ghetsis raised his staff up, aiming at Celestia's head, striking it down until...
His staff was stopped.
By Cobalion.
His sword had blocked Ghetsis's staff, knocking it away. Celestia looked up to see Cobalion, right there.
"C-Cobalion."
"You've done well, Princess. Now rest."
"Feh. Even in this world, Unova always managed to come back to me in some way shape or form." Ghetsis said as both he and Cobalion stared each other down. "I'll blow you away as well! Hydregion! Zen Headbutt!" Hydregion concentrated psychic energy in its head as it zoomed towards Cobalion.
The Iron Will Pokemon turned around as it countered by summoning its sword.
"I don't think so." He said as he pushed Hydregion back. Cobalion then used Sacred Sword to slash Hydregion, dealing massive damage to it. All the while, he stood by Celestia, making sure that no one would try and finish her off while he's distracted.
"Crush him with Dragon Rush!" Hydregion roared as it slammed its heads towards Cobalion. Cobalion's sword kept blocking each swing from the heads, preventing them from dealing any damage. Cobalion had then turned around, bucking Hydregion back.
"Give it up. I outclass you in type-matchups." Cobalion demanded.
"You think I'll just give up? I don't play fair." Ghetsis snapped his fingers as the Team Plasma Grunts, who had just recovered from the previous impact sent their Pokemon forward. Now Cobalion was surrounded.
"Drapion! Cross Poison!"
"Krookodile! Shadow Claw!"
"Zangoose! Crush Claw!"
Three Pokemon homed in on Cobalion. But even they couldn't stop him. His sword alone countered each of their physical attacks as he slashed them each, defeating them in one hit. Hydregion attempted to fire from a distance with a Dragon Pulse, but Cobalion used Iron Head to cancel it out.
"Hydregion! Fly up and use Hyper Beam on the ground!" It did just that. Zooming into the skies, the Brutal Pokemon charged up hyper energy. Cobalion knew what Ghetsis was planning. He was going to blow away the entire area to destroy both Celestia and Cobalion himself.
"I won't let you!" Cobalion concentrated deeply, ready to do his best to stop the Hyper Beam. Celestia saw this as she knew that this was too risky for Cobalion. So in order to save everypony, she used every last bit of her magic to teleport Cobalion, her and everypony out of Saddle-Arabia. The Hyper Beam hit the ground as a huge explosion followed suit. The grunts and Pokemon were caught up in the explosion as well, but Ghetsis didn't care if they were destroyed by it. His aura had protected him from the explosion.
He smirked as he knew that he had gained a victory today. With Celestia gravely injured, he had proven his point. Very early on even.
"Excellent. We'll let them take all of it in. Soon we'll make our move on Canterlot and the rest of this pony world."
Celestia had teleported them all into the Canterlot Gardens as she felt like she was about to faint. The hole was still there. Luna flew out of the castle to her sister.
"Sister!" She cried out. Cobalion looked around, seeing that Celestia teleported them all here. Luna landed down, leaning towards her older sister. She spotted the hole in her along with the scratches as she was terrified, along with Passion who watched from the windows.
"Luna. I'm sorry. I couldn't do it." She was severely hurt. Even talking would cause her pain.
"Somepony! Help my sister! NOW!"
Chapter 68 End.