Sinnoh. Mount Coronet. Afternoon.
Mount Coronet. The mission here was to do one simple thing. Embed Scotaloo's Quilava with the mystical magic that legends say this mountain possesses. The only way to receive a Hisuian Typhlosion in the future was to allow the magic here to flow into Quilava. Though, the amount of time for that to happen was unknown.
The moment the fillies stepped into the mountain, they were met with a massive cave which made up most of Mount Coronet, though there were several above-ground areas in which it snowed constantly, showing the climate of Sinnoh some more.
The first thing they found was how there were bridges here at Mount Coronet. These were man-made as many others had been at Mount Coronet before but no one to this day has seen a trace of a Cyndaquil.
"So, we're just gonna stay here and hope that some magic comes by?" Silver Spoon questioned Scootaloo.
"That's right." Scootaloo had already sent Quilava out, immediately sitting down with him. To Scootaloo, not much action was needed for this to be possible due to the main objective. "All we gotta do is sit and hang around here until the magic comes. That's that."
"Quilava."
"Hmm..." Diamond Tiara squinted her eyes as everyone else did the same, waiting for this mysterious magic to reveal itself. Everything would fall silent very soon as immediately, it all became very uneventful. "This can't be it. That's all we're here to do?"
"Well, we can't think of anything else. It's pretty simple, really." Sweetie Bell added. "We're just here for one thing."
"But Scootaloo did say it would take some time. We don't know how long it would take." Silver Spoon said. "But...We don't have to sit around forever. If we move, Quilava's still gonna be inside the mountain. I say we check out the sights here. Like Spear Pillar. They say that something with Dialga and Palkia happened up there." Silver Spoon then held out the map, focusing on Spear Pillar, which was at the very top.
"We don't have to sit around, but I'm gonna do it just because." Scootaloo shrugged. "Plus, we might leave if we get a sign that the magic's done entering Mount Coronet. Maybe if there's some flashes or something like that."
"Well...you can do that. I'm feeling adventurous compared to you all. I might end up catching some Pokemon here too. Of course, nothing that'll mess up my home and have access to a move for the Normalium Z." Diamond Tiara decided to move across Mount Coronet instead of just staying static the whole time. "What can I find?"
"Uhh...The Pokemon found us before we did." Apple Bloom pointed out as they were currently being watched. Apple Bloom spotted these Pokemon first before alerting her friends.
When they all turned their heads, standing across the long bridge was a Medicham. But it was soon revealed to be three Medichams as the arms of the other two were moving from the side behind the first Medicham, giving the fillies an illusionary show.
It certainly grabbed the attention as the three Medicham were moving their heads one by one in the motion of a snake, impressing the fillies some more. After applauding them, the Medicham took a bow before leaving. Seeing the Medicham encouraged Sweetie Belle to do one thing.
"Hm. Actually...I might need something like that. The unicorn pondered. "Not the trick they just did but maybe a Pokemon just like Medicham. They can do a lot."
"I'm already going ahead! Psychic-Types are okay for the house as well! Wait for me, Medicham!" Diamond Tiara already pranced off, pursuing the Medicham once they left. Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom and Silver Spoon would follow Diamond Tiara's lead while Scootaloo would just stay on the spot with Quilava, waiting for the magic to appear.
She was going to have to wait for a while as there wasn't a sign yet. But she wasn't the only one waiting for a sign. Or rather, someone else was receiving signs within Mount Coronet.
On the fourth level of this titanic mountain, a fairly rare Pokemon lived there. That would be an Absol, considered rare to some and could only be seen by either powerful trainers or when it brings about a warning of a disaster.
But at this moment, Absol had been disturbed. Not by any noise within the mountain. That happens all the time with the amount of Pokemon living here. Instead, it came from its horn and that meant that a potential disaster was coming. That's what it always meant after all.
"Absol?" Absol stood up as the horn was vibrating at an intense frequency. The disaster was greater than what Absol was expecting as it made the Disaster Pokemon gasp. Whatever Absol was sensing was potentially reaching the Sinnoh Region. Or maybe, it was already here.
Route 208.
This disaster wouldn't be caused by natural events. Instead, it would be done by someone. Near Mount Coronet, a gateway had been opened up. As usual, this was by a Travel Sphere but not from anyone from the Ranger Union or Canterlot.
This gateway had been opened up by none other than the dominant ruler of Magehold and the leader of the Dread League. Peering through the gateway with a devious smile that only foretold horrible things to come was the Lich Queen.
Rosa Maledicta.
After deciding to get out for a while to kill her boredom, she wanted to interact with the Pokemon World. But not in the same way many others wanted to. Rosa Maledicta was here to do one thing. Fulfil her twisted satisfaction that could only be found at Magehold. Sinnoh was the region she managed to enter on this day.
When arriving at Route 208 in the Sinnoh Region, Rosa was met with a lush field of grass spreads from Mt. Coronet's sheer rock face, creating a vista of contrasts. It was so beautiful. But the moment Rosa took one step, these lush fields had been affected by a malicious dark wave of magic.
This wave spread across the grass, instantly wilting them. Flowers too had been eliminated by Rosa Maledicta's magic, losing their beauty and all the time they took to get to this point. It had all been wiped out just like that, appearing lifeless.
But it didn't stop there. Rosa had then summoned thorns from the ground as these thorns ended up replacing the various blades of grass that were once alive. Now, this part of Route 208 housed blades of thorns. These thorns moved with the same momentum and erratic behaviour of a spider as cracks could even be heard from them.
The thorns also started extending in length from their erratic movements, spreading further as Rosa walked through this blackened and prickly field that she formed herself. The increased length of the thorns started masking her appearance as she then walked on a tower of thorns that formed in front of her. There, she was able to get some height and overlook this world.
The Lich Queen's eyes were averted towards Mount Coronet and its amazing height. So far, she hadn't done anything to anyone else but Rosa was planning and waiting, deciding to take her time when it came to her malicious acts. To her, it required some thought and creativity.
"These thorns don't grow as nicely as they do back at Magehold." She said with a somewhat exhausted tone. Even though she got to do something outside of Magehold at last, she looked to be too unimpressed so far. But that could change depending on how things would go for her.
After all, she was here to have fun.
Mount Coronet.
Pursuing the Medicham still was Diamond Tiara, joined by her friends as Sweetie Belle was looking to catch herself a new Pokemon for the sake of new contest moves.
"Wait! Come back!" She cried out, trying her best to catch up with the Medicham. But as if they were teasing her, the Medicham continued to be elusive, stylishly doing flips all over the place to reach different levels. "Ugh! They're so stylishly evasive!"
"Maybe we can cut 'em off at another side!" Apple Bloom suggested as they would intercept Medicham from a different angle. The girls all took different pathways that would at least connect to the same area. Diamond Tiara and Sweetie Belle really wanted those Medicham as it was worth coming to Mount Coronet.
As for the Medicham, they would indulge in this.
However, something else was coming to Mount Coronet during this chase. And the first one to notice it would be Silver Spoon. When taking a new path, she looked to the side which showed the outside of Mount Coronet. And right there, her eyes managed to catch a disturbing sight.
The thorns from Rosa Maledicta were nearby, approaching Mount Coronet gradually. The earth pony had to adjust her glasses to see if she was seeing this correctly. Indeed she was. Those were thorns, packed with a sinister feeling. But below, far away from the higher parts of the mountain, the thorns had already arrived.
These black thorns started wrapping around the bottom of the mountain as there was an abundance of them that were constantly growing. They wrapped around the mountains as if they were dressing it, but it wasn't under Rosa's command.
Rosa didn't have control over the thorns despite summoning them. Instead, she was letting them do their own thing while she would wander off. She had no interest in Mount Coronet. To her, it was just a regular mountain.
And over at the bridge, Scootaloo and Quilava were still sitting around, trying to meditate. But there wasn't a sign of the magic coming through. Quilava didn't feel anything though. The thorns crept into Mount Coronet, being sharp enough to pierce through it. Their intentions were unclear as they slithered in, reaching the first level.
"Quil...Quilava?" Quilava's nose picked up a scent. This scent resembled that of a back garden. Or any garden. He was already sensing the thorns, believing there to be plant life in this place. As for Scootaloo, she was already getting tired of sitting around. No progress could be found or felt at all.
"Aah...It's not good." Scootaloo stood up. "Do we really have to stay here for a long time for the magic to show up? I can't wait that long. Maybe that lady from before can tell me how long we need to be here. If I knew where she was.."
"Lava." Quilava suddenly nudged Scootaloo, hoping that she could smell what he was smelling. The scent of a garden and plant life was nearby somewhere.
"Hm? What's up, Quilava?" Scootaloo asked before she and the Fire-Type turned around, hearing something creep up on them. It sounded like something wrinkly and crooked was nearby, scratching up on the mountains. Those were the thorns, slithering into this level. "What the...?"
The thorns slowed down a bit. Only when coming across Scootaloo and Quilava. It already sensed life within the mountain to show up here and it had already come across its first sign of life. Scootaloo and Quilava weren't sure why there were suddenly thorns creeping up here, neither were they comfortable with this. Neither of them felt safe as Quilava got on all fours, staying cautious.
"Quil...!" Quilava growled at the thorns before getting in front of Scootaloo. That's when the thorns promptly took action when slowing down for a while.
One second they were slow and now they were incredibly fast. At great speeds, the thorns came flying in, passing by Scootaloo and Cyndaquil. Scootaloo gasped as the thorns passed her face, smashing through the wall in the mountain. Her pupils shrunk as she shuddered, knowing that a great sense of danger was around her. The thorns were hostile, immediately targeting against Scootaloo with more coming her way.
"Lava!" Quilava was still here, being Scootaloo's bodyguard. He used Flame Wheel, curling into a ball and summoning a ferocious aura of fire. Before a thorn could touch her, Quilava intercept them, crashing through the thorns, snapping them and setting them on fire.
"Oh! Nice save, Quilava!" Scootaloo exclaimed. But she wasn't out of the clear yet. Now that these thorns were fully hostile, their increasing numbers would only mean they would continue attacking. More of them crept from the corner, going after Scootaloo and Quilava. "Uh, time to go!"
Right away, Scootaloo and Cyndaquill made a run for it from the number of thorns that had shown up. But Quilava would e the one to protect her with what he had. He turned around, using Flamethrower on the thorns, burning them away. However, even though he was able to properly fight back against them and had the advantage over these thorns for being a Fire-Type, there was still an abundance of them coming.
Not just from this direction but everywhere else. After all, the thorns were wrapping around the mountain gradually. And from how many they were, it was possible that they could take the entirety of Mount Coronet. To wrap around the largest mountain in the world would certainly be a sight to behold.
But someone here had already sensed a bad feeling about these thorns without even being aware of them prior to this. Absol. Thanks to its horn, it could already sense the coming disaster.
"Absol!" Absol ran as fast as it could, warning the other Pokemon here. The horn could also somewhat describe the disaster and thanks to that, Absol could let them know that being inside the mountain right now wasn't as safe as it would usually be.
The Pokemon living here watched Absol run by, crying out and warning them along the way. It didn't stop in its tracks to shout at them. It just kept running, passing on these crucial words to every Pokemon it saw. And luckily for Absol, all the Pokemon here knew to believe it.
If Absol senses something is wrong then something is wrong undoubtedly. All the Pokemon listened to Absol, heeding its warning. Their only warning was to leave here. However, that would also pose a problem as they would soon find out. Pokemon from all across Mount Coronet were starting to move once Absol ran by just to pass out the warning of a coming disaster.
Naturally, Diamond Tiara and the others would see the various Pokemon here moving rapidly. They stopped in their tracks in different pathways to see all kinds of Pokemon they would've eventually run into fleeing.
"What's up with them?" Sweetie Belle wondered as even a Gyarados was swimming away in a lake that could be found in this mountain. Chingling, Bronzong, Golbat, Graveler and more were all in a hurry.
Apple Bloom moved to the side to avoid the rolling of the Graveler that came by. Powerful Pokemon such as Machoke had also heeded Absol's warning, seeing a disaster as something that not even brute strength can solve.
As for the Medicham, they were informed of this as well. They ceased their little fun game with the fillies just to focus on pressing and serious matters. Diamond Tiara saw how the Medicham joined the crowd of Pokemon, running with them as this chase had come to an end for something the rest of the fillies were unaware of at the moment.
But very soon, they would be.
The thorns had sped up from every side. When Absol reached a part of the cave that lead to the outside, it and the other Pokemon discovered that the thorns had already wrapped around a good chunk of the mountain. "Sol?!"
Mount Coronet had been covered by dark thorns. One second, they were slow and the next, they were fast enough to encase the entirety of Mount Coronet. This was because much like how they sensed Scootaloo and Quilava, the thorns sensed plenty of life within the mountain to move faster. And it only took 7 minutes to do so.
These thick thorns created multiple layers as they instantly locked everyone here inside the mountain. The outside could barely be seen. There were so many layers that not even the sun rays came through. Not just that, the thorns broke through the walls, sending more inside to cause more trouble. Absol and the other Pokemon focused on the thorns that managed to enter here, seeking nothing but hostility.
Though they were locked in, these Pokemon could still defend themselves. But no one, except for Absol, was ready for the abundance of thorns that they had yet to see, even when being locked in by these ones.
"What's happening? Why are there so many thorns?!" Silver Spoon backed away as the thorns uncomfortably crept up on her. Much like the motion of a snake, the thorns were taking their time against their prey. Silver Spoon scrunched her face before quickly throwing out her Poke Ball.
"Glameow!" Out of it came her partner Glameow, who was met with these dark and mysterious thorns that seemed to be alive. So alive that they could be careful and plan out attacks. "Meow?"
"Sorry to let you come across this, Glameow!" Silver Spoon shrugged as Glameow was already bothered. She could do without any serious events since this was a festive time. The Pokemon Festival was all about having fun but somehow, there was always something that came along to interfere.
And most of the time, the timing is the absolute worst.
Right now, Mount Coronet was locked. No one could get in and in one could get out. Naturally, the large number of thorns that wrapped around the mountain could be seen from afar since Mount Coronet could always be seen from various distances.
All the while, Rosa Maledicta didn't care that much. After all, she felt the thorns do their own thing. Speaking of Rosa, she was already on her way to one of the cities here. And the nearest one she would reach would be Hearthome City.
Hearthome City. The Pokemon Festival.
Over at Hearthome, while enjoying the festival, many of the people here couldn't help but look at the mountain in the distance. They saw how there was something dark around it. Though there were many thorns and many layers, the prickly parts couldn't be seen to really tell that they were thorns.
When entering Hearthome, there was already a massive atmosphere change for Rosa Maledicta. And for a place such as Hearthome, this atmosphere change was stellar. After all, This friendly city started as a place where people and Pokémon gathered, then grew into a centre of commerce. But immediately, Rosa's presence changed that.
The people, ponies and Pokemon here at Hearthome couldn't help but feel that something was off. And that was unnatural for them since they all never had such heightened senses before. And they didn't. That was just Rosa's presence as she did a casual walk. She blended in with the crowd of ponies, seeming normal as she wasn't wearing anything.
Rosa may be the leader of an entire nation of vampires but she wasn't a vampire herself. She was just a unicorn with tremendous magical power. Therefore, she blended in perfectly without needing to worry about the sun. Rosa smiled as she was loving how focused the people, ponies and Pokemon were when looking at the mountain and especially this eerie feeling they were getting.
Rosa Maledicta arrived at Amity Square, a notable attraction is Amity Square, where Trainers relax with their Pokémon, though no one was relaxing right now thanks to the ominous feeling.
Rosa sat at a table, deciding to slow things down. As if she wasn't already doing so. She sat next to the pool at Hearthome while everyone else discussed the strange feeling they felt but couldn't find, even though it was among them. This was more up her alley. Rosa could practically hear their emotions.
"Something about this is too satisfying. A drink would make this perfect." Rosa spoke, loving how she affected everyone with her presence. No one in Hearthhome looked to be having a comfortable time. They wished they could see what was getting under their skin and making them uncomfortable.
But they couldn't.
Except, there was one individual who seemed unphased. Rosa already spotted her in the distance. The one individual who still had a smile on her face, not worried about this strange feeling that was permeating the atmosphere and was even wondering why everyone had switched emotions compared to how they were feeling today and yesterday was Hearthome City's Gym Leader.
Fantina.
This was interesting to Rosa. Someone could resist the terrifying presence that she already spread. She used her magic to summon a drink, taking a sip from it while eyeing down Fantina. Rosa Maledicta was already aware that in this world, the Humans were the ones to watch out for. Mainly those greatly involved with Equestria. And Fantina was one of them.
Rosa Maledicta was finally at the Pokemon World, letting the thorns do their own thing while she would indulge herself in what makes her happy. But before she could continue enjoying herself, Hearthome City's Gym Leader Fantina had to be acknowledged as the journey continues.
Chapter 862 End.