Pegalysium. Sky Monarch. Nightfall.
At the Sky Monarch, the Unown were wreaking havoc upon the capital. Many of the residents of this noble area had been caught by the red chain made by the Unown.
The biggest target here was King Paramount, who had Rift Energy within him, making a threat in the eyes of the Unown. Many of King Paramount's troops defend him from the Unown but some had already been caught by the red chain that held the residents. The Unwon scavenged the palace, searching high and low for King Paramount while also having the troops get in their way.
And speaking of King Paramount, with Queen Luminary by his side, they had concealed themselves with an invisibility spell. Possibly the best spell to have right now.
"Why are they only after you, dear?" Luminary asked. "Why not me?"
"Obviously, Second Wind sent them. But...there has to be something more to it, otherwise, you would've been pursued by them as well. Perhaps, it's something that I have."
"Something that you have?" Luminary repeated before gasping. "You don't think they're after the secret of Pegalysium, do you?"
"No. That wouldn't require me at all. It might be the Rift Magic that I have." Paramount caught on quickly. There would be only one thing that was different about him. Something that was never there in the beginning. He was on the nose about why the Unown were pursuing him. If anything, the Unown could've just simply ignored him, much like they did with Luminary. Second Wind, while behind all of this, was not the one who was focused on Rift Energy. Not when she had the power of the Unown.
"Oh. That would make sense..." Luminar nodded slowly. "What then? If they're after that kind of magic in you..."
"Isn't it obvious? These strange letter Pokemon have some innate ability to bend reality to their will. So in response, I will do the same. This Rift Magic will be put to good use."
"But you still don't know everything about it! And we still haven't found Shooting Star yet. I'm getting too worried right now." Luminary's panic levels were starting to show themselves. And for a good reason. Her son had been humiliated, captured and now her kingdom, or rather the entire nation was under attack by the Unown.
"It'll be fine." But Paramount was there to comfort her, placing his hoof around the queen. Then, next to utilizing the Rift Magic, Paramount sprung an idea to possibly put an end to this Unown Assault. "Despite how powerful they may be, I believe there might be something we can use against them."
Drifting Peaks. Nightfall.
Meanwhile, over at the Drifting Peaks, Garnet, Kaleidoscope and Clear View were present there as they have been before during their first time here. Mostly Garnet who has visited this area three times now.
They had witnessed the flow of Destiny Magic through the air as it had expanded across all of Pegalysium. No one would ignore that, only the ones who were asleep were unable to witness it.
"Should we be worried about that?" A clearly nervous Kaleidoscope asked, visibly aiming her hoof at the skies.
"Let's not worry about that for now. First, we need their help." Garnet spoke as she and her friends stopped before the grotto. And residing there as always were the Pokemon that lived here.
Charizard, Mantyke, Pidgeot, Nidoran, a Bulbasaur and a Heracross, Bonsly and some Carbink. They were all still here, immediately recognizing Garnet, Kaleidoscope and Clear View.
"Bulba? Bulbasaur!" Happy to see them again, Bulbasaur jumped over Heracross before landing right on Garnet, knocking her over.
"Gah!" Garnet screamed as Bulbasaur had performed a powerful hug for its size, pinning Garnet to the ground as some of the Manytke and Nidoran had gathered around them. "O-Okay! Knock it off, Bulbasaur! I know it's been a while!"
"Oh, they're extra friendly, aren't they!?" Kaleidoscope had been picked up by Heracross. "W-We only visited this place once!"
Clear View wasn't as overwhelmed by the hugs. She enjoyed them very greatly even if they were powerful, mainly coming from Charizard and some Pidgeot. They enjoyed this hugging session for a few seconds, giggling throughout it. Eventually, it had been broken off, giving Garnet and Kaleidoscope some time to breathe.
"Okay..." Garnet sighed. "It's good to see you all again. But, unfortunately, we can't have a full-on happy reunion right now. As much as that would be nice."
"Bulba?" Bulbasaur and the others were disappointed in Garnet's response.
"I know. But, we can still spend time with each other. Right now, we need your help. For the first time even. One of my friends, Shooting Star's been taken." Garnet started explaining, lowering her head and thinking about everything that had happened to Shooting Star today. "First he was humiliated and now he's been turned to the wrong side. It's all so horrible and for it to happen one day."
"Hera?" Heracross and the others looked at each other, listening closely to Garnet's explanation
"And as his friend, I want to help. Even if I'm maybe, most definitely, getting myself into some heavy and bad territory. But at least I won't be doing it alone." She then turned to Kaleidoscope and Clear View. "My friends are here to help me with that. And I was hoping you'd do the same. Since you're also our friends. So, will you?"
"Charizard..." The Pokemon of the grotto took a moment to think about it. They weren't quick to decide as Garnet was hoping they would help. Right as the Pokemon were pondering, appearing above the grotto was a glimmer of light.
Looking up, the group had seen this glimmer twinkle before then imploding. At first, it looked like a shooting star had suddenly shown up out of nowhere. Instead, it was something crucial. That was not a shooting star, but a flash of teleportation.
Bayleef had been seen flying out of the light with her eyes closed. Her fate-changing leaf searched for the safest possible place nearby at the moment and thus, the grotto was found as so far, it was safe. "Bay!" Bayleef cried out before being quickly saved by Charizard who had caught her. "Bay?"
"Char!"
"Who's that Pokemon?!" Garnet gasped.
"It's Bayleef! Twilight told me about that one!" Kaleidoscope replied. "But...how did she get here through that light?"
"Bay...Bay...." Bayleef panted as she was currently exhausted. Mainly from all the running, she's been doing. She quickly hopped out of Charizard's arms once the Flame Pokemon descended, frantically yelling and jumping about. "Bay! Bay-Bay!"
"Bulba!" Bulbasaur used its vines to hold Bayleef still from all of her frantic runnings across the place. Bayleef was too distressed to slow down.
"Bay? Bay!" Bayleef, soon realizing that she was surrounded by not just Pokemon, but familiar faces in the form of Garnet and Kaleidoscope prompted her to start asking them for help. "Bay!"
"She seems distressed." Garnet noticed. "What do you think happened?"
"It might have something to do with that light that went across the area. And I'm guessing she got here by her leaf." Kaleidoscope explained.
"I'm sorry, did you say her leaf?" Confused by what her history-loving friend had said, Garnet rotated her head with a perplexed expression.
"Right. That flash of light confirmed that this is Fluttershy's Bayleef. Her speciality is that she has the power to change the fate of those she cares for her. And I'm guessing it must've triggered during something dangerous which brought her here." Kaleidoscope explained. Garnet blinked for a bit whilst Clear View nodded in understanding. "And if she's here without Fluttershy, that means something awful must've happened!"
"Bay!" Bayleef cried out, replying to Kaleidoscope. Afterwards, she lowered her head, thinking about Fluttershy, Audino and her friends. Right now, the Unown was causing havoc with many in danger. Charizard and the others had heard enough.
Thanks to Bayleef, they knew that everywhere across Pegalysium was a red-zone for danger. And soon, that could involve the grotto that they lived in. They made up their mind. Charizard walked up to Garnet, suddenly picking her, Kaleidoscope and Clear View up.
"Huh?" uttered Garnet as Bayleef was picked up by Heracross. "Oh. D-Does this mean you'll help us?"
"Charizard." They certainly were. Judging by the nod of their head and the look in their eyes, they would indeed help out. They were all coming along. Whether taking a ride on the back of the Pidgeot and Heracross or having the ability to float, much like the Carbink. Mantyke was a different story. It would use the sea clouds as it means of transportation.
"Bay...Bayleef." Bayleef teared up a bit from this support. Charizard and everyone took flight as they were off to the far more populated areas of Pegalysium. Immediately after ascending into the skies, they could already just vaguely see flashes of red lights happening in the distance, glinting from different islands.
Garnet and everyone spotted these red glints as Bayleef knew all too well what they were. And it terrified her. "That one looks like it's coming from Feathercoast!" Garnet recognized Feathercoast's sky island in the far distance. "Quick, Charizard! Everyone! That way!"
It was off to Feathercoast first. Hopefully, they weren't too late. And Bayleef was hoping that it wasn't too late to find Fluttershy and the others before the worst could happen.
Within the temples.
The many temples scattered across Pegalysium of ancient times still remained during this Unown attack. And within these temples, searching for treasure as always, were Team Rocket.
They made the best decision to go after the temples. So far, they are the only locations where a plethora of treasures could be found with high levels of riches aside from Big Sky.
"I can't believe they would all just abandon this place and leave this valuable treasure here. Sucks to be them!" Jessie giggled, showering herself in all of the treasure.
"This time, please don't spend it all, Jess." James leaned in as while they were all happy to find some treasure once more, they feared that they could end up losing it again due to risky choices. Mainly from Jessie's side. "We couldn't buy anything to eat after just one day of using it. Plus, I think a Munchlax ate some."
"Relax. I'll be sensible this time." Jessie said with honesty, and yet, there was a foreboding sense of total loss that came from her sentence that shuddered James and Meowth. "In any case, let's hurry back to the ship with all of this before those islands decide to start moving."
Team Rocket then left the temple, rushing off to return to their Rocketship. Luckily for them, the path that they took to reach this temple was connected to Lulolum Island, so any thoughts about running into edges that led to the open space of the skies were thrown out of the window.
However, Team Rocket were soon met with a shocking sight in the distance when going down the path they came from. They came to a screeching halt once witnessing the lights coming from Lulolum Island, where their Rocketship was docked at.
The lights of the Unown went off as the red chains complemented these terrifying colours. They even dropped their treasure upon this crimson sight. Naturally, they felt as if they should be worried about this. Everything they run into has a high chance of involving them being attacked and blasted off given the circumstances. And it just so happens that not only was this light coming from Lulolum but everywhere else.
"Just our luck..." Jessie lowered her head. "Why can't we have or keep nice things for one day!"
"It's not over yet!" James slid over as he and Meowth focused on the positives. "We can still evade this. We just have to play it smart!"
"Then we'll be smooth sailing in spirits and on those clouds!" Meowth chimed in.
"I hope you're right. Let's get all of this onboard before whatever that is finds us!" Team Rocket went full throttle, heading back to Lulolum just to place their treasure within the Rocketship. And hopefully, they wouldn't be attacked by the Unown, until they end up discovering that the Unown were behind all of this
Mirror side of Lulolum Island.
The only place that would be permanently exempt from the Unown would be the other hidden side of Lulolum Island and the town that mirrored it. Home to the Indigo Alliance.
Within the main building, Fluttershy was still a captive there. But she would no longer be one. Instead, she could become something far worse. A Cloven. A pony drenched in Reanimate Tears that would essentially make her identical to a zombie and that terrified Fluttershy.
A vat of Reanimate Tears had been poured inside of the Dynasite box that she was trapped in, filling it up gradually. Everyone within the building were starting to leave. They had all passed by Fluttershy, not paying too much attention to her despite how she was staying in the air to at least avoid being touched by the tears. But eventually, they would reach her height.
Keeping on guard of Fluttershy of the night would be Thunder Stamp. He quietly sat there as many ponies of the Indigo Alliance left the building to clock out for the night. "When we wake up tomorrow morning, all of Pegalysium will be a perfect paradise for us." One pegasus said.
They were all ecstatic about the outcome of all of this. Very soon, the utopia that the entire Indigo Alliance desired would become a reality thanks to the power of the Unown. And all they had to was just go to sleep and let the Symbol Pokemon do everything for them.
"I know right? I didn't think some letters would end up granting us that wish though. How strange." Another pegasus said among the group as they all chuckled after leaving the building.
Once they all left, Thunder Stamp got off from the table he sat on, opening the doors and windows to take a peek. Fluttershy watched as this burly pegasus shifted his eyes onto the street of Lulolum's other side. Fluttershy could see that the box was filling up quicker than usual the more that was added.
Even the aura that the Reanimate Tears gave off was getting to her. Fluttershy felt numb. A feeling of lightheadedness and nausea took over and she felt like she would pass out in a few moments. Her head was swelling as her vision was being blurred out. Fluttershy was also finding it hard to breathe among all of this. An overwhelming feeling of dread took over and for a moment, she thought the uncomfortable feeling would only get worse and worse. She felt thirsty as well, holding herself to try and reduce it, but it was useless.
Just then, Thunder Stamp moved away from the window before entering another from, leaving Fluttershy here. Fluttershy was hyperventilating, banging on the Dynasite box, even though she knew it was pointless. However, as she hovered there, having less space to go with the box being filled up, Thunder Stamp returned to the room.
And he was wearing something new. A light red suit could be found all over him along with a mask. He then approached his fellow pegasus as Fluttershy backed away, whimpering and fearing what this could mean. But then, all of a sudden, the vat had stopped.
The Reanimate Tears had ceased flowing once Fluttershy opened one eye. And the cause of this was Thunder Stamp. By using the power of the Unown, he had put a stop to the flowing of the Reanimate Tears. To top it all off, he ordered the Unown to get rid of those tears by taking them out of the box via a simple hoof raise since his consistency of speaking was non-existent.
The suit made sense as the Reanimate Tears had been dropped onto the outside. The suit protected him from the tears, making him immune from it. Afterwards, he had been dried off thanks to the Unown using Hidden Power Fire to do so
.
"You..." Fluttershy uttered, descending once the box was completely empty. "You helped me?"
"Mmm." He nodded, taking off the mask while grunting. A shocking revelation that there was indeed someone that would help her, it just wasn't any of her friends. Rather a member of the Indigo Alliance.
"Oh. Thank you." Fluttershy was relieved by this. A sense of shining hope erupted within her heart. It was never gone but it was brighter than ever now. "Um, could you let me out of the box now, please?"
"..." Thunder Stamp shook his head before pointing to the windows and doors. Despite his absence of words, Fluttershy could understand him. She dealt with all kinds of creatures whether they be animals or Pokemon, so various speech patterns were easy for her.
"Oh, not right now? Okay." Fluttershy translated. "But wait, how come you're helping me, aren't you with the Indigo Alliance?"
Thunder Stamp, in response, took off the entire suit before revealing something special around his neck accessory. Or rather inside of it. Slipping underneath it was a badge. A tiny one but a badge nonetheless of two wings and a shield in the front.
"You're undercover!" Fluttershy gasped after seeing his badge. "Oh, that makes sense!"
Thunder Stamp then observed his surroundings once more before then tapping on the box of Dynasite. He then ordered the Unown to free Fluttershy and they did just that. By capitalizing on the tiny hole at the top, the three Unown used their combined powers to expand the hole, making it available for Fluttershy to fit through.
And once it opened, Fluttershy flew out without a second thought, finally free and exempt from harm. "Thank you all so much!" Grateful for them saving her life, she flew into Thunder Stamp and the Unown, hugging them. Thunder Stamp's eyes widened whilst the Unown felt overwhelmed. Soon, her eyes expanded, realizing that it wasn't yet time to celebrate. Not with her friends and everyone in danger.
"Oh! I can't stay here for much longer! Audi, Rarity and everyone else are probably dealing with the rest of the Unown!" She put her hands over her mouth, fearing the worst. Especially for Audino and Bayleef. One was injured and fainted while another was a prime target for the Unown via erasure.
"Hmm...Mmm." Thunder Stamp grabbed Fluttershy's attention, using wing patterns to communicate with her.
"You're right. It's too dangerous to be outside right now. But I really want to help my friends." Fluttershy lowered her head. She was in deep enemy territory right now with everyone on this side of the island being a part of the Indigo Alliance. "W-What do we do?"
"Hmm." Thunder Stamp would take everything from here. All Fluttershy could do now was stick by him until they were safe. Luckily, the Unown were here to help. All three of them. Three Unown weren't as impressive as the rest that were outside, but they could still prove to be helpful either way.
Pegalysium Capital. Sky Monarch.
Over at the Sky Monarch, the entire capital had been overrun and taken over by the Unown. All that was left was the palace which already appeared to be in shambles. The chain had caught up to everyone so far, restraining them all. But there were still some pegasi remaining.
The Unown were all currently flying in one consistent direction. They had already dealt with all of the palace's guards, making them a part of the red chain that was never-ending in its length.
And in that direction, King Paramount, another wield of Rift Magic was within their sights. Paramount stood there, completely stationary as he knew of the severity of his own life. But standing there was bizarre as the Unown immediately zoomed at him the moment they tracked down the Rift Energy within him.
Paramount stood there stone-faced as some red rays for Hidden Power already came his way. But to the surprise of the Unown, once the rays appeared, they had only dissipated once three feet in front of the king. Paramount then let out a slight smile as the Unown advanced, getting closer to the king.
They tried again, using Hidden Power, only for it to dissipate once more. Paramount still kept his stoic face as the Unown and their Hidden Power proved to be useless, much to the shock of the Symbol Pokemon. As far as they know, Hidden Power always works no matter what.
Paramount then backed up against the wall, finally moving as that prompted the Unown to get closer, preventing him from escaping. "Perfect," Paramount uttered. "Now!" He then raised his voice, flying to the side once the Unown got close enough.
It looked as if the Unown would crash into the wall, except that was not the case. They had phased through it as it wasn't a wall at all. Paramount's Rift Magic had then revealed it to be a massive door that was wide open for all the Unown to pass through. Once they passed through, they had entered a room full of nothing but Dynasite.
In fact, even the door was made out of Dynasite. Heavy, but not impossible to close for Paramount's magic. And assisting in this endeavour was his wife Queen Luminary. Once the door was closed, she and Paramount combined their magic with a dash of Rift Magic in the mix.
Together, they had cast a spell on the door and the entire room of Dynasite. The Dynasite had been fortified by Paramount's Rift Magic, causing the Unown to be blocked off. Not only that, but the spell also cast a seal. Laced with Rift Energy, this seal consumed anything near the vicinity of this room, essentially mimicking what Shooting Star had done to the entirety of Pegalysium.
Only in this case, Paramount had used Rift Magic coupled with Luminary's magic to block off the Unown. And it proved to be highly successful. Once trapped, all of the Unown that had come to Pegalysium tried breaking free. But lo and behold, the spell and influence of Paramount utilising Rift Magic said otherwise.
Rumbling could be heard from the door as the seal prevented them from fully getting through. Coupled with Dynasite that had been fortified under the control of Rift Magic, this proved to be a challenge for the Unown.
"There. That should hold them. Hopefully for a long time." said Paramount.
"Great. All that's left is freeing them all from that chain." Luminary sighed. "And finding our son."
"Your Majesties!" Interrupting their conversation was Tip-off who zoomed around the corner, bumping into the walls. "Ow!"
"Tip-off. What is it?" Paramount flew over to Tip-Off once he bumped his head. His eyes rotated for a bit before collecting himself. "And how are you exempt from the chains?"
"Dodging is in my family blood..." Tip-off sighed. "But, your Majesties, listen. Your son. He's returned."
"He has?!" Erupting with a booming voice was Luminary as she appeared in front of Tip-off's face in a second, shoving Paramount out of the way. "Where?!"
"I-I'm afraid he didn't come alone. And it wasn't with our guards. He's with Second Wind." Tip-off wished he could've given them good news but that didn't seem to be the case right now.
Instead, while Shooting Star did return, it wasn't under good spirits or even his usual self. When rushing out of the palace, they stood before the balcony where they saw the horrifying truth for themselves.
Shooting Star hovered there. And right next to him were some more Unown and showing herself to the Royal Family with a smug and condescending look on her face was Second Wind as she removed the hood from her robe. "Don't be too surprised at my return. This would happen eventually and it would be on this level of alerting."
"You! Second Wind, what did you do?!" Luminary roared at her.
"I've done quite a few things that have had a large impact. I'm sure you can figure out at least one of them by now." She flailed her hoof at them.
"What is he wearing?" Paramount noticed Shooting Star's new outfit. He was wearing something similar to the Indigo Alliance, mainly because he was one of them now. "You didn't..."
"I did." Second Wind winked. "Your Cutie Mark fits you perfectly, your majesty. You sure do know how to adapt. Yes, your son here is the newest addition to the wonderful Indigo Alliance. Took some time, but it worked out, didn't it?"
"You would dare go after him when he's at his most vulnerable....!" Words could not describe how angered Paramount and Luminary were. Their son had been turned to the Indigo Alliance at his weakest point which only infuriated them to an all-time high.
"I did. But I also granted his wish. Second Wish chuckled. "I took away the humiliation he felt during the morning from those previous pegasi and allowed him to become serene of mind. Now, he's fulfilled the role of the next Pegasus of Destiny with my help. And of course, all that sweet Destiny Magic had shown itself."
"What?! Impossible!" Luminary gasped.
"Tsk. Tsk. Not impossible with the power of the Unown." Second Wind said otherwise. "With this legendary magic, your son here has blocked off all entrances and ways to enter Pegalysium and will soon make Pegalysium the correct utopia it needed to be. Without your interference, your majesty."
"How dare you! You would take our s-" Just then, Luminary's sentence had been cut off. She couldn't say her next sentence with a complete set of words. "Our s-" Desperately, she was trying to say son, but it was futile. Much like with Cloudflare, the altered memories began affecting those close in Shooting Star's life.
"Ah. Looks like it's reaching you as well." Second Wind leaned in. Luminary realized that she couldn't even call Shooting Star her son anymore. Memories of her and Shooting Star were beginning to slip away. "But I want this to last a bit before you fully forget about him."
"Son!" But Paramount could speak his name still. "The way you obtained the Destiny Magic was now the way to go!"
"It's the only way I could've." Shooting Star spoke back. "After what happened today, I'm grateful to Second Wind for having me gain this magic. It was my destiny, wasn't it?"
"You can shape your own destiny! Windkiss returned for one last time to tell us that! You don't have the follow the path that the previous Pegasi of Destiny had followed and-"
"Ah!" But cutting him off was Second Wind. "We're wasting enough time here as it is! Unown! You know what you want with the king. Feel free to go for it."
The Unown would gladly do it. They approached King Paramount, ready to rid him of this existence. Paramount, Luminary and Tip-off were on their own now with no guards to defend them. The two royal pegasi merged their magic to create a protective barrier, right on time as Hidden Power had already been used.
"What, I thought we were just going to meet them." Shooting Star turned to Second Wind. "Wait you ca-" But once, again, Second Wind had cut somepony off. In this case, she used the power of the Unown to stop Shooting Star for a moment.
And in that instance, his memories had been tampered with once more. Altered enough to put him in a perplexed and befuddled state where he could only close his eyes and feel dizzy. "Just hold on there, Shooting Star," said Second Wind as Shooting Star had passed out. "Very soon, you won't even remember him."
Second Wind then turned to the King and Queen as they were currently fending off the Unown, using all the spells that they could use. This was the most pressurizing moment in their life so everything they had to offer had been unleashed. Tip-off cowered in fear, hiding behind the King and Queen.
"While they're at it...I believe now would be the best time to use Pegalysium's secret." Second Wind left the Unown to their own devices, deviating from the conflict. She would go for Pegalysiuym's greatest secret. Something that was too valuable to ignore.
And it wasn't hidden away at all. It was out in the open as Second Wind already knew of its existence. Years of the Indigo Alliance and their actions within Pegalysium were responsible for this knowledge being passed on.
And the secret in question could be found at the front of the palace. Mainly the door that was shaped like a clock. Second Wind stood before the clock door, placing her hoof on it, feeling the clean texture from it.
"It's so out in the open and yet using it is nigh-impossible. Unless you are Pegasus of Destiny." The Grand Judge deviously smirked, turning to Shooting Star who was brought here by her magic. "With this Destiny Magic, I can unlock the secret of this door and do what other members of the Indigo Alliance were never able to do."
"The door!" Tip-off noticed Second Wind's location, sneaking away from the conflict as to not be hit by anything from either side. He scurried to the door as quickly as he could before Second Wind could use the power behind the clock door.
"I've been waiting for this!" She then picked up Shooting Star as he was starting to wake up after a few seconds. "Pegalysium will finally be made in the image that we've chased for so long! We will rewrite time!"
As the journey continues.
Chapter 713 End.