Kalos. Snowbelle City. Snowbelle Pokemon Center. The Pokemon Festival. Nightfall.
"Here it is!" Luna reunited with Darkrai who was still resting up at Snowbelle City, under the care of Nurse Joy. She held up a new Sea Temple Crystal up to the Pitch Black Pokemon, showing how it resembled the night sky and was made after her image. "This will help us against Galaxy Master. It's the exact opposite of that one crystal that brought him to life. But, we'll use it only when needed."
"When will it be needed?" Darkrai asked.
"After what you told me, Darkrai, I had second thoughts. It's best that we speak to Galaxy Master, especially with what I learned in the Hyperdream. And if diplomacy fails us, then this crystal will solve our problems."
"I do hope you sort that out soon." Nurse Joy chimed in. "Though, wouldn't it be better to have another hero working side-by-side with you? Seems like a good thing."
"Well, yes. He's a hero but he's currently on the wrong side." The Alicorn replied. "If we speak to him, we might change his mind. Unless the Rift gets in the way again. But right now..." Just then, feeling some fatigue Luna yawned, stretching out her hooves before slumping against the wall. "I've exhausted myself recently."
"I'll take over for the Dream Realm in that case."
"No, Darkrai. You still need to heal. Besides, I have a plan for this. I can send one of my past selves from the Hyperdream to handle it all. It is truly convenient...and helpful." Exhausted, Princess Luna put herself to sleep, dozing off immediately.
"Sleep tight, princess. As for you, Darkrai, you should really get some rest as well." Nurse Joy suggested. "It's good for your body and allows you to heal."
"I've never slept before. Never felt the need to."
"But you can sleep, right? Oh, unless you're immune to Sleep." Nurse Joy gasped, realizing that Darkrai might be exempt from sleeping since he has the power to manipulate and put others to sleep.
"No. I can fall asleep. My own Dark Void can be used against me. You just won't see my species sleeping anytime soon. Or ever." Darkrai sighed, holding his injured arms. "I've never even attempted to sleep with how cautious I am."
"Well...how about we try it out for the first time?" Nurse Joy kneeled, going the extra mile to help Darkrai some more. Way more than just healing him, she wanted to show him one of the most pleasant experiences in the world. "I remember when I was young, all of my sisters would be so active it was impossible to sleep."
"All of them?"
"All of them." She repeated as Darkrai thought about the astronomical number of Nurse Joys in the world. "The same goes for cousins too. Our mother sang one song a special song that was passed down from generations that can soothe anyone. Human, Pokemon and I can guarantee even ponies."
"I'll take it. What's the song?"
"About that...I forgot!" Nurse Joy chuckled, making Darkrai sigh. "I became a nurse earlier than my sisters so the song escapes me! But...there's an alternative. It comes straight from a place known as Alamos Town in the Sinnoh Region. It's just as effective. Right, Chansey?"
"Chansey."
"It doesn't usually have words but some say that its beautiful melody is enough to warrant an amazing communication. So sit back, relax and let this song drift you away. And look outside at the beautiful snow and the way it falls."
"You make it sound like a big deal What's it called so that I can remember it? Just in case."
"It's called Oracion. Chansey." Nurse Joy revealed its name before nudging at Chansey. Chansey dimmed the lights just to set the mood. Once those lights were down, Nurse Jou could begin, taking a deep breath first.
"Let's walk together as we gaze ahead
Just let me hear your voice again
Let's walk together, even on your lonely days
When you find yourself unable to speak out, just wrap your hands around my shoulders
Let's always continue to seek out
Our hearts are racing in excitement
Even when we're making a little detour, right?
Our journey continues on, even onto the future
Of course, I find your smile
To be my favourite of them all."
Darkrai's eyes started lowering. This harmonic melody truly soothed the soul. A feeling that Darkrai had never experienced before entered his body. The voice of Nurse Joy brought serenity. Even a damaged Pokemon such as Darkrai couldn't help but feel some sort of healing as Nurse Joy contained.
"Let's run together in this wide world
Untold encounters still await us
When we've grown even stronger
We can even embrace anyone's weakness, right?
Let's traverse the world and laugh it out
Perhaps forgetting those morning greetings at night
Whatever happens ahead
It's not motivating to be alone
It's good to achieve our dreams together
It's good to watch the Rainbow together
I will travel across time to see you
To hear your peaceful melody
My dear, you are my one and only
Forever in my heart, you'll be
I will walk through Storms
Just to see you
Sail through raging Seas
My dear, please play your melody
To calm the beasts
We may fall in the shadows
But the Sun will always rise
My dear, I'll always find you
Through Time and Space."
Darkrai was asleep. Never before had he gone to sleep by himself. But it was beautiful. Truly an experience that would've come one day because of the individuals he was surrounded by. All was calm now at Snowbelle City.
"Sleep tight, both of you." Nurse Joy stood up, ready to call it a night. She would finish things up here with her and Chansey covering the Moon Princess and the Pitch Black Pokemon with light and soft blankets. Usually, these blankets are meant for Pokemon but thanks to Luna's size she was eligible for them.
As for Nurse Joy, even during nightfall, she was still somewhat busy. Granted, she would wrap things up before clocking out. Going up to her desk, she turned on her computer to see what could be finished up for today. But upon checking her computer, something stunned her, grabbing her full attention.
"Oh my. A large array of books has been stolen across Kalos?" Nurse Joy gasped, trying not to wake Luna and Darkrai up. But perhaps, not paying attention to them at the moment could be considered a mistake.
Out of Luna, something emerged from her. Specifically her horn. Matching the pattern of the night sky outside and the special crystal she just made, a magical aura reminiscent of that celestial body had silently slithered out of her horn.
By going undetected, this night sky pattern blended in with the darkness and the crystal, managing to leave the hallway. After getting out of sight from anyone within this Pokemon Center, the wispy aura then manifested itself. Or rather, herself.
Nightmare Moon had emerged, leaving Luna yet again. This time, without the help of Mesprit. Thanks to Mesprit splitting Luna and Nightmare Moon into separate entities just for a warning of what's to come, the taller variant of Luna was free to make her own actions.
"I'll admit. That was a nice song. But I can't be stuck here forever. I'm my own pony now." Nightmare Moon complimented Oracion as she heard it despite Luna being asleep. She had her own senses as well. "I doubt I can do much with how Equestria's changed. So...what can I do?"
Kalos. Kiloude City.
Kiloude City. This city, popular with Pokémon Trainers, is a typical example of southern Kalosian life. However, none of that mattered at the moment. What did matter were the current events happening within this city. And not for the better.
Commotion and pandemonium filled the city. Mainly from what looked to be a high-speed chase. Running through the streets of Kiloude City was a large chariot with bat wings on the sides of these wheels that seemed to resemble spikes.
This navy blue chariot was currently being pulled by nothing. It was moving on its own. At least, that looked to be the case. In reality, something was blending in the darkness. A large aura of shadows was pulling the chariot but was invisible to others. This shadow creature wasn't just pulling the chariot with its strength, but also an array of books. Specifically, Pokemon Books. Much like what Nurse Joy discovered on her computer various books from Kalos had been nabbed. And by who?
The Dread League.
7 cheeky vampires were within the chariot, carrying out the mission of finding anything about Yveltal. Even a clue. So for these vampires, the best option was to just take every book in Kalos. Kiloude City was another city that had its library ransacked and potentially everywhere else in Kalos would be attacked.
"Stop right there, Dread League!" Chasing them down was Officer Jenny and her officers, riding a motorcycle with Arcanine in the partner seat. "You won't find an inch of Yveltal in those books!"
"Says you~There's nothing good about not giving anything a shot!" A young vampire stuck her tongue out at Officer Jenny, taunting her. "Oh, but they're actually catching up pretty quickly. How fast are those two-wheeled things?"
"Ah, it's fine." A larger vampire replied before sticking his head out of the chariot, facing the officers. "We can just leave this behind and it'll be alright." By using Curse Magic, this vampire dropped a substance from his wings. This substance had a pulse of shadows within it as crawled through the ground, also resembling that of water.
"As if!" Officer Jenny, however, wouldn't let herself be stopped by one obstacle. Upon witnessing the incoming liquid shadows that were covering the street, she had to improvise. "Arcanine, Fire Spin!"
"Arca...Nine!" By facing the ground, Arcanine unleashed a vortex of flames from its mouth. That vortex ended up propelling Jenny and her motorcycle into the air. And with the right height too as these shadows were terrifying widespread. Jenny managed to evade the shadows, but the same couldn't be said for the rest of the officers.
They came to a screeching halt in front of the shadows, slowing down their bikes. The shadows latched onto their tires, threatening to rip them apart. While they couldn't evade it, they at least had their Pokemon to fend it off.
Officer Jenny went ahead though. Once the chariot drifted to another part of the street, Jenny and her Arcanine went ahead, keeping up the pursuit.
"Funny. Didn't we run into someone similar to her a few hours back?" Another vampire asked, noticing how she has seen Officer Jenny before. Little did they know about the massive family line of Jennys.
"Who cares. She's persistent though. And gaining on us!" Indeed. While they were conversing, Officer Jenny was managing to catch up with the large chariot. "Do you think the books are weighing us down?!"
"We're not losing them if that's what you're thinking!" A vampire shouted back as Officer Jenny ended up racing side by side with them. She had them right within her sights.
"Arcanine! Fire Spin, once more!"
"Arcanine!" Arcanine would attack from the sides, either facing the chariot or the vampires. Either way, the vampires weren't risking it any of those chances as Fire was a threat to them for obvious reasons. A stream of fire came crashing out, attacking the side of the chariot.
However, instead of making direct contact, a veil of shadows protected the chariot from any harm. The vampires giggled after making that quick save but it wouldn't be enough to stop Officer Jenny.
"Time to lose her. Faster!" The vampire bellowed at the shadows. And as if it had sentience, the shadows responded to her. Without giving a good cue as to how they increased their speed, the shadows accelerated. They rushed past Officer Jenny, moving at a quicker speed than her motorbike. But not by much.
"Oh yeah? Arcanine! Extreme Speed!"
"Arcanine!" Arcanine hopped out of the partner seat, deciding to show them what a true speed increase looked like. Without losing any momentum, Arcanine took its speed to the extreme, leaving behind white afterimages as the Legendary Pokemon had the means to catch up.
"No way!" The younger vampire's jaw dropped, witnessing the speed of Arcanine in all its glory.
"Alright. She is beyond persistent. But she can't keep it up forever!" The vampires would do everything in their power to stop Jenny. And of course, that involved some chaos. By accelerating their chariot, people and Pokemon were put in danger.
The chariot almost hit some of them during its speed increase. Without a care, lives were being endangered as the chariot even went off-road. Many festival objects were knocked over by the chariot or just the speed of it when it passed by. Arcanine jumped over these obstacles with Extreme Speed before reaching the back of the chariot.
After catching up, Arcanine got on the very top of the chariot, using the momentum of Extreme Speed to do so. Now, it was closer than ever to the chariot but the main goal was to try and stop its movements.
"Off our chariot, mutt!" A vampire immediately emerged from the chariot to meet with Arcanine. She spread her wings, making sure that in case this rapid chariot knocks her over, she'll be fine either way.
"Canine!"
"Pfft. The Guard Dog of the Underworld Cerberus is scarier than-" Before she could finish, Arcanine had used Fire Spin, nearly engulfing her. The vampire's pupils shrunk as she narrowly managed to evade the flames. "Nevermind!"
"Arcanine!" Arcanine advanced, using Crunch as it took a mighty leap. It was up to the vampire to figure out what to do against the Fire-Type, especially causing how threatening Fire was to a vampire. Once Arcanine came close, the vampire held her wings out, suddenly allowing Arcanine to bite them. "Ca?" But something was wrong. Arcanine's body vibrated. It felt like it bit into metal.
Which is exactly what happened. The vampire's wings suddenly became metal, causing her to chuckle accordingly for pulling such a trick. "Hah! Get off!" After catching Arcanine by surprise, she swivelled her body, attempting to launch the Legendary Pokemon.
However, she may surprise Arcanine but she couldn't get rid of it. Arcanine held on, even if the wings felt like metal. "A-Arcanine!"
"Hm?! Hey! You should be in pain right now!" The vampire growled, flapping her wings and swivelling rapidly just to try and throw the Legendary Pokemon off. "Let go!"
"Great work, Arcanine!" Officer Jenny bellowed. "Just keep them occupied, okay?!"
"A-Arcanine!" Arcanine would do just that as he finally let go of the vampire's wings. However, while having some mild air-time, it took the time to unleash Fire Sin, causing the vampire to cower. By cowering, it only allowed the flames to damage the chariot some more.
"That Pokemon looks like it's a loyal dog. Which means we can exploit that." The younger vampire said with a cheeky expression, looking back at Officer Joy. By holding a pitch black orb, this orb had sent out some magic in the form of a black vortex. This black vortex went straight for Officer Jenny while also carrying nearby objects.
"Arcanine?!" As to be expected, Arcanine was worried about the safety of its trainer more than anything. But Arcanine also knew Jenny could handle herself. But not in this case.
Officer Jenny's eyes opened, slowing down her motorcycle. The vortex was certainly wide enough to grab her as it tore through the sides of other buildings. Thankfully, coming to her rescue was Arcanine, who hopped off the chariot just for its trainer.
"Arca!" Arcanine used Fire Spin, intercepting the powerful vortex with its own vortex. Right in front of Jenny, the two vortexes had clashed, combusting and cancelling each other out. A great save on Arcanine's part, however, this allowed the vampires to keep going. Not to mention that they already gained a speed increase from earlier.
Officer Jenny held onto her helmet from the vortex explosions, keeping herself steady. Everything needed to calm down just for this. No one had been hurt thankfully, but either way, the vampires managed to get the upper hand. Or rather, upper hoof.
The shadows continued to veil the chariot, only further concealing it. They looked to have left the city while leaving behind a trail of destruction. Officer Jenny got off her bike, aiming to see if everyone else was okay after the destruction that was left behind by the vampires.
"Hmmm..." Either way, the vampires managed to escape with nothing lost. However, Jenny, along with all of her family members, would not cease their goal to stop the Dread League. For the safety of this world and for the other world. "Arcanine...get to sniffing."
"Success!" As for the vampires, after leaving the city, they already found somewhere to hide. Far from the city, they chose to hide out in a swamp. It wouldn't be a problem for them considering where they live.
They cheered together, raising their hooves as they successfully gathered a massive array of books. By far, the largest haul for this Yveltal mission. "One of these books just has to have something about Yveltal. We've gathered the most books out of anypony back at Magehold." The young vampire said.
"They'd better. Otherwise, that officer could catch up soon. You know how dogs are with their immense scent." The metal-winged vampire replied as they all collectively opened the books. "Are you hearing this, your majesty?"
"Loud and clear." As always, they were communicating with the Lich Queen, Rosa Maledicta, even from this distance. "I'm proud of you all for this haul. Now, search and see what you can find about Yveltal."
"Already on it, your excellence!" They started reading as fast as they could. What about Yveltal could they find here? Despite how many refuse to learn about Yveltal due to how dangerous it is for all life, information about the Destruction Pokemon still existed.
It was rare, but it existed.
Officer Jenny was currently having Arcanine sniff them out. Thanks to when Arcanine bit onto the wings of one of the vampires, it had a scent that it could follow. Though they may have escaped from Kiloude City, the hunt was still on. At the same time, the vampires burned minutes that would soon become hours for them. However, that wouldn't be an issue for them unless the Sun comes up.
They read and read every single book here, not stopping until they get something. Of course, they made sure to focus on history books more than anything. Those mattered more.
"Oh! Look at this!" That's when the youngest vampire here found something, prompting all the others to rush to her side. The intensity in her voice brought a good sign. On this page, it showed an ink drawing of Yveltal. And right next to it was a certain region.
The Holon Region.
"This was written by some guy who had a freaky experience with Yveltal." The young vampire pointed out. "So much so that he gave everyone a warning when making this."
"Is that why there are only two pages?" The larger vampire squinted. "This is the thinnest book I've ever seen."
"Looks like he never finished making it. Maybe. Oh well." The metal-winged vampire shrugged. "What matters is what the book says!"
"Right, right. Uhh...It says that Yveltal is a Pokemon that shouldn't ever be disturbed. It only appears when the time is right. When life needs to be destroyed so that Xerneas can rebirth it. I made this so-"
"Skip to the part that matters." A vampire interrupted the younger vampire. "We already know this."
"My bad. Um, it says here that he once spotted Yveltal at a region known as Holon. Or more specifically, the smaller region that was near Holon, known as Torren. It's smaller in comparison to Holon but there, Yveltal seemed to have marked its territory. While its whereabouts in Torren are unknown, there exists a constant flow of destruction so volatile that no one can approach it. If they do, total destruction is all that will meet them."
"Aha! We have something!" The larger vampire exclaimed, raising the thin 2-paged book. "Thank you, Author...Au...Augur? Ah, whatever. At least we know where we can find Yveltal."
"Maybe. If Yveltal made someplace in Torren its territory, then we have to find which part it could be. Can't be too hard. It's apparently so dangerous no one can approach." A taller vampire replied.
"Good...Head to Torren." Rosa Maledicta spoke to them within their minds, listening in on it all. "But I'd best be careful when getting there."
"We'll be fine. We know what we're getting into." The young vampire and the others shrugged off whatever dangers that would come their way. They were used to danger after all.
"No. I'm talking about something else. It seems that a pony by the name of Daybreaker, who comes from another universe, is also set on stopping our plans. Her forces will show up. Be ready as you always are."
There was a lead on Yveltal. And all they needed was a thin book that only had two pages and gave a warning. But to the Dread League, that warning was a welcome message. A message to find Yveltal's territory. And potentially, Yveltal itself.
As the journey continues.
Chapter 886 End.