//------------------------------// // There are always limits, aren't there? // Story: My Little Pokémon // by Amarvax //------------------------------// Pegalysium. Big Sky. Afternoon. One of the casinos in Big Sky had been damaged. Due to an attack by the Indigo Alliance that wasn't as sneaky as they were hoping for. Their goal was to try and take out Rarity and Spike. Anyone that was friends of Jade. They had used the strongest metallic substance in their nation known as Dynasite. And it was effective. Multiple layers of Dynasite walls had destroyed the floors of the casino, causing a panic. Seemingly, everyone within the casino had been crushed by these Dynasite walls. The members called it a job well done, seemingly believing Rarity and the others had perished. However, that wasn't the case. "H-Haxo..." Haxorus had lifted the walls. He had originally held up the Dynasite walls to try and save his friends. The metal was hard. Even for him. But, he managed to hold it up because of one reason. Emerald Aura. She had used magic in the last second to strengthen Haxorus' muscles. Afterwards, having a lot of time to breathe more, Jade had removed the walls by using her Rift Magic to wipe them out, freeing Haxorus of the stress. Not only that, but Pheromosa successfully saved everyone. By using her great speed, she got everypony out of the casino thanks to Haxorus and Emerald holding back the walls. "Geez...That was too close." Spike sighed. "Are you okay, Haxorus?" "Xorus." "Oh...Thank you so much." One of the pegasi who was being carried by Pheromosa thanked the Lissome Pokemon. They all did. Their lives had just been saved by the most unusual creatures they've ever seen. "Mosa. "What was that metal? Not even Pheromosa could shatter it." Rarity wondered. "That was Dynasite." A pegasus said. "The hardest material here on Pegalysium. But usually, there's never this much in one spot. Well...except for maybe with the Royal Guard and Army." "Those Indigo jerks," Emerald growled. "Trying to get us out of the picture so we can't reach Jade at all." "At least we were near some of them," said Cold. He realized that he had some scratches on him after everything fell apart. His mane was a mess as he shook the rubble off. The law of Pegalysium came over to see what all of this carnage was about. Apart from the royal guard, Pegalysium has another separate force of law in the form of a sheriff and deputies. "What happened here?" The sheriff of this area looked around. "Who did this?" "That's our cue to leave," Emerald whispered to Cold. "But we can tell them that the Indigo Alliance was-" Cold was about to give a suggestion, only for Emerald to shake her head and interrupt him. "Squirt. They don't believe in that stuff, remember? No point in trying to convince them at all. Unless they see them in their robes or something, they're just a myth to them." "Okay..." Cold pouted. It was time for the group to leave. However, they didn't leave without anything. The pegasi here knew of how they had saved their lives. For that, they were very grateful to Rarity's friends. However, they weren't ready to leave just yet. "Hold on." Rarity stepped up as all of the attention was drawn towards her. "Just a quick plea. If we return here, there's a chance that those ponies might attack us again. In the same area or perhaps somewhere." "Wait. You're being attacked? By who?" The sheriff came over as it was his duty to investigate scenarios such as this. "Tell us the names and we'll get right on it." "Oh. Well you see, a friend of ours has been taken." Rarity started explaining. "Her name is Jade Skies. She's a pegasus of a jade colour. Slightly similar to my friend back there." She nudged her head over to Emerald. "We're not friends." Emerald Aura replied, shutting down Rarity's words. "The rest of my friends are out searching for her. She's been taken by-" Rarity then scrunched her face, knowing that no one would buy the whole Indigo Alliance thing. So, she decided to improvise. A way for the law to get involved in all of this as a smile met her face. "Well, a group of unknown ponies. They attacked us this morning and even just recently in this casino. Poor Haxorus almost suffered from poison." "Haxo." Haxorus nodded while Spike patting his leg. "Most likely, the same will happen over and over again until we are out of the picture, sheriff." "I understand. Someponies are out there trying to get you. We'll keep a good eye on the rest of Pegalysium for any odd happenings. But in the meantime take this." The sheriff then pulled something out of his seemingly oversized saddlebag. Out of his bag emerged one of these communication shells. However, his seemed to have a distinct appearance to it. It had a mirror-like substance instead of the shell substance that the rest of them have. "Oh my. What is this?" "Our lawful shell alert. We only give it out to those that need protecting. With this, if you're ever in danger, just speak into the shell and the alert over at our department will sound off. Don't worry. I've got a ton of deputies all across Pegalysium who'll rush to your aid." "This is...perfect! Thank you so much!" Rarity shook the hoof of the sheriff. "But your name. We need to know who you are so that we can come for you." "Rarity is the name, darling. Alright, you all." Rarity then turned to her friends. "Let's get going. Hopefully, we're closer to Jade. And I believe I have a plan to force those hooligans out." "It doesn't involve anypony being harmed, does it?" The sheriff asked. "Not at all. Jade. Cold. Can you two do something for me quickly?" East of Pegalysium. Meanwhile, over at the east, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Pinkie Pie had ended up here due to the wind streams. Unlike everyone else, they didn't come across a city or town. Instead, they found themselves in one of the more unique areas in Pegalysium. Then again, everything here in Pegalysium is unique. They had found themselves in possibly one of the largest caves they'll ever see. And within that cave, it was all covered with Pegalysium's unique gemstones. These Gemstones had the texture and glow of magma. As if they were on fire. "What kind of gemstones are these?" Rainbow Dash went over to the gemstones with her face near one. Once her face was close, she could feel herself becoming warm. Out of curiosity, she poked the crystal with her hoof. Upon contact, she felt a burn, causing her to pull back. "Ow!" "Cast!" And surprisingly, Castform reacted to the heat of this gemstone as well, entering his Sunny Form. "This stuff is hot!" She blew on her hoof. "What's up with these?" "Kinda looks like magma." Applejack observed. "Probably as hot as it too." "That's gotta be hard to grab and keep." The pegasus pouted before flying away from the gemstones. Then again, they were mostly everywhere. "Pinkie Pie. Slurpuff. Got something yet?" "Slurpuff's hot on the trail. Just gotta keep going north." Pinkie Pie answered while Slurpuff led the way. North was a long way from here. And there didn't seem to be any faster means of getting to their needed location. The islands were further apart from each other due to the member using Rift Magic. Getting to Jade was taking longer than they wanted. By advancing through the cave and seeing these magma-like crystals light it up, they came across a part of the cave where the entire ground was nothing but these crystals. As if there was a sea of them. "What's up with this?!" Rainbow Dash bellowed. "There's a whole area with these crystals?" "Ain't no way we're walking through those. Sceptile, get to swinging." Applejack looked to her partner. "Sceptile." "Just use those fake wings Cold gave you." Rainbow Dash spread her wings, ascending into the air. They had easy solutions to this predicament. This didn't seem like a threat at all. Until... "Slur!" "Wait! Slurpuff senses something..." Pinkie halted everyone as Slurpuff's nose was picking up on something new. And it wasn't the gemstones. The Meringue Pokemon sniffed out the area around her, wondering what she was sensing. After a few seconds, she picked up two familiar scents. The first ended up being the gemstones but with a different kind of scent. And the second was something unfamiliar. Slurpuff then deduced that other ponies were within here. But not friendly ones. Right above Rainbow Dash's group, just on the higher part of the cave, Indigo Alliance Members could be seen. Yet again, they had found the targets they were looking for as they spoke through their communication shell. "Grand Judge. We've found more of Jade Skies' friends down below. All of them are still in one piece." A member spoke to Second Wind through the shell. "Good. Unfortunately for them, all across Pegalysium, we have eyes everywhere. Our ancestors truly did an amazing job making sure that nopony would be able to escape the sight of the Indigo Alliance. Deal with them at once." "Yes, Grand Judge." The member replied. Indeed, the Indigo Alliance seemed to always appear at the right moment when searching for their targets. And there was a reason, a disturbing and eerie reason for that. Within the corners of the caves, hiding within and behind the gemstones were these ominous red spheres. The spheres seemed to resemble that of eyes. Even having a darker red circle in the middle to mimic an iris. In a sense, they were like spy cameras but with a magical aesthetic. After finishing the call, the Indigo Alliance took action. They already had something planned but they just needed confirmation from Second Wind. At their disposal, they had a large cauldron of magma. The same magma that was identical to the gemstones. This was all smelted from those magma-like gemstones. They got to work, utilizing the massive cauldron as they poured all of the magma within it through one of the crevices of this cave. But not only did the magma start flowing through, but it also reacted to the gemstones. The Indigo Alliance Members made a run for it as they already knew the situation was about to become less than pleasing. The magma destructively reacted to the stones. Once one drop of magma connected with the gemstone, it exploded, causing a burst of magma to emerge. This only made more magma start flowing. The plan was to drown and destroy them in a sea of magma. And with so many gemstones around, that sea was possible. "Puff...Slurpuff!" Slurpuff then gasped before warning everyone of the impending disaster that was heading their way. "What is it, Slur-" Just as Pinkie Pie was about to ask, bursting through the walls of the cave was a destructive sea of magma caused by the elemental reaction. An abundance of magma that was almost on par with a volcano met with them whilst moving at great speeds. "Woah! Woah!" Rainbow Dash gasped as her quick instincts prompted her to fly off. Mew and Spinda popped out of Pinkie Pie's mane, witnessing the arriving magma whilst Pinkie and Slurpuff also made a run for it. "Mew?!" Spinda?!" Sceptile grabbed Applejack before using his vines to swing out of here. However, it wasn't just one side. Multiple sides had magma bursting out due to the abundance of stones. The incoming magma reacted to the stones on the ground and walls, worsening the situation. An overflow of magma erupted while also causing an outburst after the reaction. An outburst so great that it made the cave shake. Sceptile's vine had been burned away due to the stones. They were even strong enough to burn off Sceptile's vines due to their heat. There was too much magma everywhere, making it difficult to escape. And Mew knew this. "Mew...!" So, to save his friends, Mew would try casting a massive barrier around them. They had all been given a wonderfully large barrier that had shielded them all. And with great timing. The magma had crashed onto the barrier as everyone was safe within it. "Thanks, Mew!" Pinkie Pie thanked him. "Mew-Mew!" Mew raised his arm as everyone was safely guided out of the cave. They knew where they entered before. And even with the overflow of magma, the barrier negated it. Everyone successfully left the cave without a scratch on them. As for the cave, the amount of magma had destroyed parts of it with destructive fury. However, due to the cave being so massive, not much had been destroyed. Mew had lowered the barrier once everyone was safe as they watched the magma fill up the cave. They had witnessed the dangers of this cave and how the stones only added to that danger. They weren't sure how the magma had started, however. "Well...now what?" Applejack asked. "This cave here's the last part of this island up north. I don't see any other islands with clouds up ahead." "I didn't see that coming." Pinkie sighed before having her ears drop. She sat on the ground with a pout. "Now we're just stalling for Jade..." "Mew." Mew felt Pinkie Pie's sadness as he, Slurpuff and Spinda hugged her face for comfort. Pinkie smiled afterwards. Despite all of these delays, she had faith and hope that they would get Jade back. Now, they had to find another way to go up north. Slurpuff was still picking up Jade's scent from that direction. Their trip was long but rigorous. Sceptile got up the tree to see where the rest of the islands were if they wanted to continue north. "Scep?" However, as he stood on the tree, that's when noticed something stunning and shocking just at the west of this area. The Indigo Alliance Members were nearby. They had escaped from the cave right before the magma started overflowing and were still within the vicinity. "Tile! Sceptile!" "What is it, partner?!" Applejack asked as Sceptile used his vines to bring her up. There, Applejack saw them too. Indigo Alliance Members. Right ahead. "There they are!" "Hm?" The members heard the shout of Applejack before swivelling around. Indeed, their plan to drown and burn them in magma failed thanks to Mew. And what's worse, now they knew of their existence. Soon, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie had spotted them as well. "Oh!" After being found, they made the conscious decision to fly off as fast as they could. They couldn't afford to be caught by any means. But Pinkie and the others wouldn't let them do so. "Oh, no you don't!" Rainbow Dash growled before taking off like a rocket. She caused a shockwave from the speed she was moving at as Sceptile used his vines to swing from tree to tree. Mew transformed himself into a Garchomp, allowing Pinkie, Spinda and Slurpuff to get on his back. They were all heading for those members with more than questions being lined up. It didn't matter how fast the Indigo Alliance Members flew. No pegasus can outpace Rainbow Dash. As demonstrated by how she passed by them. The superior pegasus then stopped right in front of them, forcing the members to halt in place. "Aha!" She cried out, startling the members. "You guys aren't going anywhere!" "H-How did she-" One perplexed member looked behind her, wondering how Rainbow Dash could move that fast in just a few seconds flat. "Oh, that speed is just unfair!" Another member gulped as Applejack and the others were approaching. Their escape had been delayed due to Rainbow Dash's speed. The other members felt like this would be a tight spot. But one member had an answer for this. "You morons! We have them here, we can still get rid of them!" She exclaimed. She saw an opportunity to get rid of Rainbow Dash and the others to erase their chances of seeing Jade ever again. They had relied on the Rift Magic like the others. It was the way to go for magic aside from their own. For this usage, the Rift Ponies decided to use the magma from the cave to their advantage. Even from a great distance, Rift Magic allowed them to affect it from afar. Bursting out of the cave was a stream of magma as caused by the gemstones within it. And the stream wasn't directed towards Rainbow Dash. But to her friends. A massive monsoon of magma came flying in, threatening to rain down on Pinkie and the others. "Oh! Guys!" Rainbow Dash gasped as she was about to take off, crying towards her friends. But, this was part of the alliance's plan. To put Rainbow's friends in danger. Because after she noticed the magma approaching, the Rift Magic had been used once more. This time, in the form of the wid currents being changed. Just like before and how everyone got into this mess. Rainbow Dash's flying was thrown off balance as she was pushed back by the wind currents, falling into a cloud lake with a huge splash. "What do we do about that?!" Pinkie Pie screeched as she and the others witnessed the ridiculous amount of magma coming towards them. "Garchomp!" The transformed Mew had used the barrier trick once more to shield his friends. Just like before, the barrier protected them from the magma stream. "Hm." One of the members saw this barrier, knowing that it would just get in the way. "Some of you deal with the rainbow one. We'll take care of those ponies." The members worked in unison. One side would focus on Pinkie Pie and the others while the rest would deal with Rainbow Dash. And speaking of Rainbow Dash, she held her breath within the cloud lake. It was just like ordinary water except with clouds after all. The pegasus knew she had to save her friends before they're scorched and melted away. But before she could fly out of the cloud lake, one of the alliance members had used Rift Magic to summon the hardest material in Pegalysium. Dynasite, of course. Massive cubes of Dynasite came crashing down through the water, threatening to crush Rainbow Dash. The multi-coloured maned mare gasped while holding her breath as she quickly swam away from the incoming cubes. The cubes slammed onto the bottom of this lake, creating visible and fairly large craters. But that was to be expected considering how strong this substance was. Strong enough to even give powerful Pokemon like Haxorus and Pheromosa trouble. More kept flying down as Rainbow Dash wasn't exactly the best when it came to underwater. She was an air pony at her absolute best, not a sea one. Castform came out of the saddlebag, trying to use Weather Ball to melt this metal. Unfortunately, that required him to breathe. While the water allowed him to shift into his Rainy Form, this form did not grant him the ability to breathe underwater. Thus, Castform was unable to use any moves for this situation as he rushed back inside Rainbow Dash's saddlebag. But there was one Pokemon who could perform well underwater without being a Water-Type. Whirlipede. Due to his mouth being hidden through his hard, segmented shell, not needing any mouth-based moves and having high mobility, Whirlipede could work well here. He emerged from his Poke Ball by himself after sensing Rainbow Dash's call for help. "Whirlipede!" Whirlipede cried out before using Steamroller. The Curlipede Pokemon rolled through the lake itself, heading straight for one of the cubes with the aim to ram it. Or even shatter it. Depends on which one happens as Rainbow Dash encouraged her partner. However, she then experienced Whirlipede failing to do so as the cube overpowered him. Whirlipede was knocked back with even his shell being damaged. "W-Whirl!" "Mm-mm-m!" Rainbow Dash cried out for Whirlipede while still holding her breath. As she faced her partner, Whirlipede noticed how an array of cubes were coming towards his trainer and Castform. What's worse was that Rainbow Dash couldn't hold her breath for long. She was already showing signs of struggling. "Pede!" Whirlipede couldn't allow any harm towards Rainbow Dash. He knew that he wasn't strong enough to break the Dynasite. But, he could certainly save his friends. By using Steamroller once more, Whirlipede moved at breakneck speeds through the water, tackling Rainbow Dash as he knocked her away. "Mm!?" Whirlipede saved Rainbow Dash while also saving himself thanks to his speed. He also knocked Rainbow Dash out of the water, allowing her to breathe. "Gah!" Rainbow Dash gasped for air before flailing her hooves underwater. Whirlipede burst out of the water with grace as the Indigo Alliance members looked up at the Curlipede Pokemon. "Whirli!" Whirlipede then spotted those that would harm his friends. To show some payback, the Bug-Poison-Type rolled through the air, smashing into one of the members at full force. "Oof!" He cried out before being forced onto the ground by Whirlipede's impact. Rainbow Dash flew out of the water, ascending above them members. "You guys are gonna pay for that! Castform, Weather Ball, go!" "Form!" Out came Castform, this time transforming into his Sunny Form. By opening his mouth and gathering the power of the sun, the Weather Pokemon unleashed an orb of fire from his mouth. And this time, the pegasi relied on their usual magic, not thinking too much of Weather Ball as they used a shield. Castform's Weather Ball struck the shields, shattering them instantly as the members were then knocked back by the explosion. As for Applejack and the others, the barrier that Mew made was being constantly attacked by an array of magma. Seeing that the magma didn't work, the members chose to use Dynasite themselves in the form of rods. The rods pelted onto the barrier as they were showing significant effects. Mew's barrier was stronger. But the metal known as Dynasite was also strong and capable of being even with seemingly anything. Coupled with the magma streams, Mew's barrier wouldn't last for long as he was struggling to keep them up while flying as a Garchomp." "G-Gar!" "Hang in there, Mew! Just until we get to them!" "Just break already!" The Indigo Alliance member bellowed increasing the intensity, putting extra pressure on Mew's barrier. Sceptile himself was struggling to swing from tree to tree at this rate. The barrier had also covered the trees to allow Sceptile for mobility. Mew's barrier started cracking as his concentration was being dropped with each passing second. His transformation as Garchomp was also starting to give out as the New Species Pokemon held his breath. The Indigo Alliance members laughed as they saw how their methods were working. So, they continued to intensify it as much as they want. But that's when something shocking happened. "!" Without warning, they had all felt their bodies tremble. Their hooves were shaking, suddenly feeling heavy as their knees were also weak. "W-What's happening?!" Interrupted by surprise, each of the Indigo Alliance members couldn't understand the change in circumstances. That is until one of them figured out why this was the case. "The Rift Magic is...too much..." She said as she and the others suddenly passed out. Indeed, they couldn't fully handle Rift Magic due to how tremendous it was. Using so much of only did them in. They all fell to the ground, unconscious as Rainbow Dash and the others witnessed this happen. That's one way to win. The group had landed, meeting up with Rainbow Dash, Castform and Whirlipede. They stood above the passed out ponies and how their bodies failed to sustain the Rift Energy. "Ooh...So they can't handle Rift Magic that much, can they?" Rainbow Dash said. "Well, that's good to know." "Now that we've got 'em we can ask 'em where's Jade. W-When they wake up." Applejack spoke. "Sceptile, tie 'em up." "Sceptile." They would have to wait for them to awake. However, now they had some members that they can interrogate. This was a sign that they could possibly be getting close to Jade. Hopefully. And with this knowledge on how Rift Magic can be overwhelming was major news to pass on. Universe 28. The Empress' spare palace. Laboratory. Day. Meanwhile, over at the lab, Premium Polish's body kept building magic for the Magical Unite without any interruptions. The trap for Celestia and the others had been sprung when they eventually arrive here. And at the same time, the one Canterlot Guard was still being locked up with attempts to convert him. All seem uninterrupted within this castle. That is until a gateway opened up. But not within the castle. Underneath it. Even in this universe, despite the ages that have passed, the Canterlot Mines still exist. The numerous Princess Celestia's, Luna's and Cadence's had arrived here to rescue the filly. All with a unified plan in store as they walked through the gateway. "Eugh. Can't believe I'm seeing this place again." An alternate universe Cadence said as her other selves agreed. "Let's not waste any time. We know what to do." Universe One's Celestia spoke to everyone. "Our priority is getting Premium back and that's it. Plus, we can also count on you since you're an expert on retrieving." Celestia turned around to one other individual. This individual wasn't a pony. But a human. Someone she could rely on and was essentially the catalyst for their victory during the invasion. Pokemon Ranger Jackie. "You can count on me, princess." He gave a proud smile with a grin as his Chatot named Casey was on his shoulder. "Chatot! Count on me, princess!" As the journey continues. Chapter 538 End.