//------------------------------// // Touchstone Past // Story: My Little Pokémon // by Amarvax //------------------------------// Pegalysium. Ethereal Pavilion. A View of 210 years ago. Day. Over at the Ethereal Pavilion, a Time Projection of the past was being shown to Ash and his friends. Currently, they were met with a 210-year past experience that involved the creator of the Ethereal Pavilion and the one pony who was correlated with time, Windkiss. "Wow! Did we go back in time?!" Pinkie Pie gasped. Judging by how they were seeing Windkiss, who existed 210 years ago, she believed they travelled back. After all, Windkiss did invent the Clock Door and create the Avus-Pegasus. "I don't think so." Cynthia shook her head, quickly disproving it. The second she went to touch the walls, her hand phased through them. "We're only receiving a view of the past instead of physically being there. This whole thing is a projection. Just like how the Time Flower works." "Oh. That reminds me of a book I read when I was younger during Christmas." Bertha said. "Except it was the other way around. Well, while we're here, one of us should take notes on what we're about to see here." "Already on it!" Twilight already had a notebook and a pen in her possession the moment Bertha brought it up. Their conversation would soon end once they saw movement from Windkiss. And the first moment was her making the diary for the first time. The diary was already made with the first few words being written down. Afterwards, she used her own magic to coat the diary in that ethereal aura, shielding it from any future harm. "There. With this Ethereal Time Veil, it won't age at all. It'll be constantly in this state." Windkiss caressed the book before then carrying it over her head via levitation. Watching this, Ash and the others now had the information of how this book stayed so clean. Windkiss might as well be Dialga's counterpart in this world. Now they were wondering if Palkia had a counterpart somewhere in this world. Entering the room were a few ponies wearing cloud-like cloaks while also having bodies that glowed constantly, resembling the same getup that King Paramount and his family aimed to disguise themselves in. "Lady Windkiss." They spoke with an echo in their voice which reverberated across this room. "Congratulations on this Pavilion's creation and official opening." "Thank you. And I just got done making this Temporal Diary." She held the diary out to these glowing ponies. "My very first one! I'm saving this as a time capsule for anyone to view!" "Lady Windkiss. You can't just keep using your magic for such small things." Another glowing pony said to her with a fussy tone and posture. It's better spent for bigger things that truly matter." "She's right. Your magic is one of a kind. Being able to interact with time is an astonishing magic, Lady Windkiss. Nopony in your family line has ever achieved something like this, so be careful." "Besides...if it's something small, I could do with a younger face." One of them wished to have a younger complexion, requesting Windkiss' power. "But this does matter to me." She looked down at the diary. "I, funnily enough, don't have enough time to do the little things that entertain me that much. That's why I made the Ethereal Pavilion. It'll be the definition of fun for certain. Oh and uh, here you go." Granting this pony her wish, she flapped her wings, using her innate magic. The concept of time was hers to control. This kind of magic could only be considered a spell to many and even a power that a powerful Pokemon, such as Dialga, would possess. But Windkiss was that exception even though she did have that status and title as the First Pegasus of Destiny. "She can just do that?" Ash got in close to this magical memory, kneeling to face the glowing pony after he witnessed Windkiss' stellar power in action. "Awesome!" "Pikachu!" "That's probably how she made the Clock Door and Avus-Pegasus then. It was probably a huge flow of her Time Magic that made it. Or something else." Twilight theorized as they all continued watching the events unfold. "The Royal Family will love it. Anypony will, honestly. But I'm not done yet. It's only the first day after all. There's more that I want to add very soon." "Then, what is your next command, Lady Windkiss? As your Royal Sages, we can guarantee that it will come to fruition. Hopefully, it doesn't take too long, just like with this pavilion." "Well, it's also about the Ethereal Pavilion. And the way it appears." She placed her hoof on the walls. "I think you already know what I want to do in the future. But, I have something greater in mind." "The pavilion? Oh, the fact that it looks like the Planet we live in?" One of the sages answered, causing Windkiss to nod in confirmation. "What about it?" "Well, I got this map from those great cartographers. They already made a map of the world and how it currently looks." With a flap of her wing, she summoned a map that was made by Starmap's family. Of course, way before Starmap was even born. Ash and his friends already knew this after what Princess Celestia showed them. "You see, we're up here, at the very top of the planet. It's where the clouds mostly gather and where the Sun shines the most." "Mhm. It's beautiful isn't it?" The sages spoke amongst themselves, admiring how high up they were. Prior to Pinnaculum Pegalysium's existence, the original Pegalysium was the highest location in the world." "Right, right. But what about everything else? The more I look at this map, the more I start to wonder. This is the only way we can see the rest of the world and as it stands...we've only seen so little of it. There's so much more all over here." She moved her hoof across the map, referring to every other land that was much lower than Pegalysium. "The Lower Lands?" The sages then looked at each other before bringing up the existence of those areas. "I thought her parents did their best to keep that place a secret?" "The Mapmakers are too good. Despite never being to the lower lands, they know exactly how the planet is shaped. Their magic is just as impressive as Lady Windkiss." "Are we sure it's magic? I hear it's just a bloodline skill." "There's more down below that we haven't seen. Plus, you don't have to keep it a secret from me. I know all about the three pony tribes after all." Windkiss grinned as this knowledge wasn't a mystery to her at all. "And out of those tribes, not every pegasus stayed in the skies and decided to go even further up, right? That's how Peaglysium was born from something so small. But I'm wondering about the other tribes and what they're doing now." "It's best not to know." A sage shook her head, rejecting Windkiss' words. "Just a word of mouth, but I hear unicorns will zap you out of the sky with their magic and begin to consume you." "I hear the earth ponies are brutes. The physical strength they have is something else. I'd rather not be pinned down by one at all." The sages began speaking amongst each other. "Ah, you all are just talking nonsense. Word of mouth doesn't hold too much weight if no one can prove it." She wrapped her hooves around the sages. "Point is, I want to see more. Or rather, I want everypony to see more. If we can see what's below us and who can speak to, it'll be too amazing not to love. Of course...that comes with a few problems." "You mean the Indigo Alliance? Bah, why should you fear them, Lady Windkiss? You're too great for them to pose a threat." "That may be true. But it bothers me that we still don't know where they are. What's worse is that they're after what I made. Making this Ethereal Pavilion is a way to get away from all that, but it'll still be difficult since they're lurking around somewhere. I left the Clock Door in the care of the Royal Family but..." "Ah! Your mother warned you not to worry about them, Lady Windkiss." A sage quickly slid over, stopping Windkiss from continuing any further. "The Indigo Alliance, as she puts it, are more of a nuisance than a threat to you. Your existence as a Magical Prodigy is proof of that." "Who cares about prodigies?" She pouted. "What's the point if that one group is so shifty and sneaky? Might as well just be going about with my day, not paying them any attention. But if I don't, then they'll definitely take advantage of all of Pegalysium. And worse, I think even the entire world." She held up the map. "What if they know about the wider world and what's down there? What's stopping them from going after it?" "Well..." The sages weren't sure how to respond to that. "Aaahh...I'm already worrying inside a place full of enjoyment." She put her hooves on her head, groaning. "What to do..." "Um...Well, that's why we're also here. Your mother warned us about this." Another sage stepped up, placing his hoof on Windkiss' head. "In her words, again, you're still somewhat young to get this all out of your head." "It's the other way around." Windkiss sighed "When I was young, I didn't think too hard about it. But now that I'm older, it's easier to see it all." "If it will make you feel any better, the pavilion's first form of entertainment might work." A sage suggested. "After that, we would still need to add some more. Might take some time but..." "I already saw the Sky Fish show though." She turned around, facing away from her helpers. "And I've even downed myself by even thinking of the Indigo Alliance. Wish I didn't...but when else are they going to strike? They already made their move 2 weeks ago?" "Well, to cheer you up, you can finish everything else you've been working on! How about that Instant Drink of Thought Spans!" "They might know everything by reading everyone's minds with that drink. It's best not to make it at all. I'm the only one who knows the recipe after all." "Speed-Reading Glasses! Nothing wrong can happen with those little things!" "What if they read through all the secrets?!" Once again, Windkiss had something to worry about. She took whatever her sages recommended and brought a negative spin to it. "They can learn so much in seconds without even needing to take their time!" "The Wonderful Pot of Affluence!" "What does it do again? I stopped working on it months ago to care that much. Plus, it could be used for greed?" "What about the Mystic Harp? Or even the Heartsworn Cube. Or the-" "It's not good! Everything can be used by them." Windkiss exclaimed. "They already took my Time Ruby among many other things. If I keep making more objects, they'll keep pursuing them. And no matter how secretive I make them, somehow, they find a way to discover them. The Ethereal Pavilion is the one exception to this since it's only about entertainment and nothing else. Everything else..." "Alright then. We'll leave you to it, Lady Windkiss. You clearly need some time to yourself." The sages would soon leave the room, letting Windkiss have a moment of peace. That bright smile faded away the second she brought up the Indigo Alliance and the fears that came with it. Upon leaving the room, the sages began talking amongst each other, hoping that Windkiss wasn't hearing them. They spoke in secrecy, referring to the Pegasus of Destiny. "She's wonderful but her main weakness is how much she worries...Do you think she takes after her father?" "More like her uncle. Either way, I'm not sure this pavilion will suffice as a way to stave all of that away. At least, with how it's going." "What should we do? We can't just make the Indigo Alliance go away, let alone find them. Perhaps we should relay this to her parents." But alas, despite their words, Windkiss heard it all. She had an exceptional hearing but nothing too crazy that would match that of Audino's or even Fluttershy's. After hearing the sages chat with each other, the Destiny Pegasus opened her diary, reaching a new page. In that page, she would soon write new words, updating herself without even waiting until tomorrow. This was an instance that she wanted to jot down. And right then and there, the diary that Twilight currently had started flashing yet again. "Huh?" Twilight looked over at the diary, seeing the constant flashing from it. Right afterwards, the magical flashback on this scenario ended as the diary turned to the next page by itself. Ash and everyone saw how the flashback materialized out of thin air, becoming beautiful wind particles in the process. "That's it? What a bummer to end on." Rainbow Dash shook her head. "Seems the Indigo Alliance were still as troublesome as they ever were 210 years ago." Rarity said. "And she looked so happy in the beginning. She was even already aware of Equestria's potential existence down there." "It makes sense why the pavilion looks like this as well," Cynthia added. "Even with where she was, that map helped her see the planet and even everything she couldn't reach. What does the next page say, Twilight?" "It says..." The second Twilight spoke, the diary would once again speak for her, exuding Windkiss' own voice. "Dear Diary. This time, I managed to open up with the right saying. So that's a plus. But, today wasn't the best day. The Ethereal Pavilion's finally here and all. But it happened again. My fear of the Indigo Alliance. I can't stop thinking about them after what they've done. I can still remember when I was little. I was born with this amazing magic and one of my parent's servants worked for the Indigo Alliance. Since then, my fear of them only started building up, especially when I got older. I have a lot of items that I want to finish, but I'm too scared to, especially with the Indigo Alliance being around." "Is this one of them?" Fluttershy asked, wondering if the diary was another special item that the Indigo Alliance would want. However, considering that it was still here after all these years along with the Pavilion being rid of the Indigo Alliance, it was safe to say that it was just a standard diary with magical properties. "I've already scrapped some ideas. Thankfully, only I know how to make them. No one in the Indigo Alliance will ever know how and that's for the better. But, I started this pavilion to ease not just my mind but everyone's mind of them. What good is that if I'm already thinking about them in the Ethereal Pavilion? My sages don't sound like they have all that much faith in me. And they're probably right. If this keeps up, then this will all be for nothing. Whoever's reading this, hopefully, you understand what I mean. Please turn to the next page and the next touchstone on the wall." "Well, do any of you?" Applejack questioned. "Cause I sure do." "It's a shame it took so long for the Indigo Alliance to be found out. And even then, when we stopped them for the very first time, Second Wind only made a stronger one. The Indigo Union, right?" said Rarity. "But it's fine now. Thanks to what Shooting Star told us, Windkiss managed to see a major defeat thrown at the Indigo Alliance after she helped free him from their control." Ash brought the positive side to it. "That's still a problem though." "What actually happened with that? I'd like to know." Cynthia requested, having no idea what kind of mess the interactions with the Indigo Alliance, now known as the Indigo Union entailed. Meanwhile, Twilight would fly over to the wall, focusing on the next touchstone to see what memory would come from that. She was hoping for something more positive. That was a possibility considering what Windkiss became at the very end. With another touch of this touchstone, the light would materialize things yet again. However, this time, it showed an arrow instead of Windkiss. This arrow pointed towards the nearby door, essentially telling Twilight and her friends to continue on their way. Nothing else was here to see in this room. There was more waiting for them in this Earth-shaped building and potentially, more wonderful sights in store as they followed that glowing arrow, given to them by Windkiss herself. Kalos. Out in a forest. Afternoon. Elsewhere, Nightmare Moon was on her own, out in a forest in the Kalos Region. She was here for two reasons. To give Team Rocket and Luna's Pokemon a chance to sleep, if her magic truly did work that away and to catch a Pokemon of her own. Mainly because Mator and her team, the Matori Matrix might prove to be troublesome if Luna's Pokemon, Jessie, James and Meowth couldn't get any rest at all. "You there!" Nightmare Moon spotted a Pokemon that interested her. In this case, it was a Scrafty. "Scrafty?" Scrafty turned to face Nightmare Moon once she descended. Her pitch-black wings of the night spread out viciously before closing. She stood upright, wanting to show a sense of superiority against anyone in front of her. "You look rather strong. That posture of yours is proof of that!" "Scra?" Scrafty looked at its own posture. In reality, Scrafty's posture wasn't as mighty as Nightmare Moon described it to be. Far from it. But, Scrafty took some pride in that, putting on a proud face. "Yes, yes. Which is why you are the perfect Pokemon to join me. You shall be my newest ally." "Scrafty?" "I hereby declare you as the newest Pokemon of Nightmare Moon! Soon to be the Lunar Empire by the way, if you must know." She flaunted her mane. "I promise you, the pinnacle of power is waiting for you when you join my side. Especially with what we shall face off against. But after you join my team, we shall increase our numbers! If we have enough time, that is. What say you?" "Scrafty." Scrafty shook its head, denying Nightmare Moon's offer. "Denial?!" Nightmare Moon pulled back before clearing her throat. "Ah. Of course. It's all a matter of testing them. Catching you means engaging in a battle with you, correct? Why did I suddenly forget that? Very well. I will ace your test with flying colours, Pokemon!" "Scrafty." Scrafty merely facepalmed before going along with it. To indulge in Nightmare Moon's bombastic words and declarations, Scrafty would make the first move, going for Stone Edge. By stomping on the ground, Scrafty summoned large blue crystals that tore through apart, slicing apart any grass that stood in its way. "Hmph! I shall send-" But in that instance, Nightmare Moon realized something. She had left all of Luna's Pokemon to rest. That meant all of them. None of Luna's Pokemon were by her side at all, making her a solo act now. And when looking into Luna's saddlebag, it only involved empty Poke Balls. "Ah. I may have forgotten the essential part of a Pokemon Battle." Just now realizing that she was on her own, this allowed the crystals to hit her. Nightmare Moon was met with a strong hit to the chin by the first crystal before receiving a barrage of them via the remaining ones. She grunted before being sent flying into the air. She moved like a ragdoll, crashing into the ground right afterwards. "Scrafty! Scra-Scra!" Scrafty chuckled at her, laughing at Nightmare Moon's misstep. And even Nightmare Moon was embarrassed by this. Removing her face from the ground, she blushed a bit, forgetting the most vital part of a Pokemon battle. The Pokemon themselves. "Grr! Silence! It was a misstep! Cease your laughter at once!" She roared at Scrafty. But Scrafty, being the hoodlum that it was, would continue laughing, ignoring Nightmare Moon's order. "Very well then...who said I have to use a Pokemon to engage in battle?" "Scra?" After hearing that, Scrafty's eyes opened with its laughter abruptly stopping. Those words meant only one thing. Scrafty hoped it heard that right. Judging by what Nightmare Moon said, she wasn't going to use a Pokemon at all. Instead, it would be something far more primary. Herself. "I shall battle you with my own abilities!" Nightmare Mare moon declared, putting on a menacing smirk. "Intimidated now, are you? Never expected to battle the trainer themselves, hm? Well, prepare yourself! I will be far more terrifying that any Pokemon you've met!" Nightmare Moon would retaliate immediately via a blast of magic, using the most common form of magical attacks. But as an alicorn, this common attack was extremely powerful to the point where no one should underestimate it. "Scrafty!" Scrafty certainly knew this as it cartwheeled out of the way, narrowly evading Nightmare Moon's attack as the nearby trees were blasted through. Afterwards, Nightmare Moon unleashed repeated magical bolts from her horn, shooting in droves. "Scra!" This forced Scrafty to evade them repeatedly. With impressive evasion and agility, the Dark-FIghting-Type jumped over, slid past and flipped over many of the bolts while approaching Nightmare Moon. The alter-ego of Luna was struggling to land a clean hit as Scrafty's movements were immaculate. "All the more reason I must catch you!" But that only motivated Nightmare Moon some more. Something this fast had to go on her new team. With bigger motivation, she then transformed her magical attack into an expanding dome of magic to try and catch Scrafty. "Scrafty!" Scrafty was caught by surprise by this expansive dome once it got close enough. The dome would blow it away, pushing Scrafty back while landing some hefty damage. "S-Scra!" But Scrafty wouldn't let her get a free hit in without any consequences. After being pushed back, Scrafty used Payback, shooting out black tendrils from its body which would fly back to Nightmare Moon. A quick barrier was formed by the alter-ego, shielding herself from the tendrils. Fixated on getting close, Scrafty would approach with Drain Punch, covering its hands in pulsating orange energy before then suddenly taking off with an afterimage being left behind. "Ty!" Scrafty managed to close the gap at last, lunging through the air. Nightmare Moon would meet Scrafty head-on with her own physical attack. That would be horn, covered in magic, of course. Drain Punch and Nightmare Moon's horn clashed directly, sending out orange and blue sparks while forming a mild shockwave. The two of them stayed in one position with either side trying to push through with brute force. "Truly impressive! You'll do perfectly against that Matori when she shows up! And whoever you partner with, shall learn from your example. Then, we shall become unstoppable the more we grow! Why doesn't that seem like a fair deal?" "Scrafty!" "I have no idea what you are saying. Scrafty, is it? I swear to defeat you and catch you, making you my first partner!" "Sorry. That won't be happening." A voice replied to her, grabbing Nightmare Moon's attention. Right then and there, the moment she fixated on something else, Scrafty gained the upper hand, overpowering her horn before slugging Nightmare Moon in the face with Drain Punch. "Scraf!" "Gouh!" Feeling that Drain Punch, Nightmare Moon once again became like a ragdoll, this time, tumbling on the ground before then crashing into a tree, almost knocking it over. Scrafty's fist even ended up smoking from the impact that came from the initial hit. "Ugh...W-Who dares...throw me off guard?!" "That would be me. Scrafty's Trainer." The trainer of Scrafty was responsible for this. But it was a familiar face. A face that Nightmare Moon could recognize, but only thanks to Luna's experience. It was Hollow. He showed up, standing next to his Scrafty. Nightmare Moon wouldn't need to ask questions about who this was. She already knew clear as day. "It's you!" She pointed out, raising her hoof vigorously. "Now, uh...Why are you trying to catch my Scrafty? I mean, you sounded very epic with those words, I'll be honest. But this is my Pokemon." "I uh...W-Wasn't aware." The alicorn stammered, scratching her mane. "I assumed it was a Wild Pokemon because it was so out in the open." "Ah, that makes sense. Well, can't blame you too much for that. Uh, Princess Luna?" Hollow even noticed parts of Luna in Nightmare Moon immediately. "Not Luna! But Nightmare Moon!" She stood back up in an instant once Luna's name came up. "Refer to me as the correct variant, please." "Sure..." Hollow shrugged, looking at Scrafty, who would do the same. Hollow had no idea who Nightmare Moon was with no collection of her anywhere apart from the mention of Nightmare Night in Equestria. "Wait, are you a princess?!" "Yes. Soon to be Queen, might I add." She waved her mane elegantly. "And with an empire holding the largest group anyone will ever see! Of course...that involves me having a Pokemon on my side. My own Pokemon that is. Which I do not have, unfortunately." She grizzled her teeth. "Restrictions galore are my greatest bane at the moment." "Well, at least you tried catching one. Albeit in a physical way. You don't have any Poke Balls on you?" "I do. But not a single starter Pokemon to assist me. And what's worse, I don't have enough time to do this. Not when I need to be back at the Pokemon House. I should have probably gone there first now that I think about it. Then, Matori would never get there before me." "Ah, that's all? No problem. You're in luck right about now! If you didn't know, I'm a teacher who lets others new to Pokemon know all about Pokemon. Well, the essentials anyway. Right over at the Pokemon School." "Oh, I already know who you are, Hollow." Nightmare Moon casually said his name, startling Hollow. "I need no information or lessons about Pokemon. I know enough. More than you think." "Oh. Okay then. What about this Matori character then?" "Someone I need to embarrass." She rubbed her hooves together. "A Team Rocket member who aims to beat me to the Pokemon House. Obviously, that's not going to happen! But it could if my own team can rest up with enough energy to spare. Catching a Pokemon is only a backup plan in case they don't rest at all." "Team Rocket?!" Hollow was alerted by this, rushing over to Nightmare Moon. So did Scrafty as they both got up in her face. "You said they're heading to the Pokemon House?! It's not the ones who help Fluttershy, right?!" "N-Not at all. They're with me." Nightmare Moon stammered once Hollow got close. "And you are intimidatingly tall, actually." "Scrap all that Pokemon-catching business. I need to get to the Pokemon House." Unsurprisingly, Hollow found this to be exceedingly serious. After all, he's had some experience at the Pokemon House as well, becoming familiar there. He would not hesitate to help protect it at all. Especially if it came from the worst kind of Team Rocket Members. "Glad to hear that." Nightmare Moon grinned as she unexpectedly found herself a new ally. She was expecting to catch a Pokemon, but arguably, she got someone better than that. Someone who was good friends with Fluttershy and the Pokemon at the Pokemon House as well as being an ally to Equestria. Either one works, so as long as Nightmare Moon could overcome Matori. All that smack-talking needed to be backed up, after all, otherwise, Matori would be successful. Time was of the essence for her as the journey continues. Chapter 936 End.