Equestria. The Sea Temple, Samiya. Afternoon.
"The King of Pokelantis?! This is his crystal?!" Ash and Pikachu were in disbelief. An old name had returned to their ears. And more than that, his appearance had been fully shown to them. The King of Pokelantis.
"Oh yes. He commissioned it. And it's been kept here ever since." Alo explained. "I believe that's all of the personal crystals that we know about but there might be more somewhere within the temple."
"Ash. Pikachu. Do you know who that is?" Twilight asked after seeing Ash and Pikachu's reaction to the King of Pokelantis.
"Yeah. We do. I met him before but not in person." Ash would face Twilight before looking back at the light projection of the King of Pokelantis. "It was back at Hoenn. I had my body possessed by his spirit way back then and I only knew about his voice. I barely had control over myself but thanks to May and the others, I broke free."
"Oh. Then you can already guess and answer why he commissioned his own personal crystal then, your majesty," said Alo.
"Mhm. He wanted to take over the world once and planned to use Ho-oh to do just that. But Ho-oh ended up destroying his entire empire. I guess he had another way of trying that if that failed." Ash explained what he recalled from years ago. "But since he's gone that didn't work out either."
"So you got experiences with having evil kings within you," Applejack said, referring to how Sombra was identical. Sombra would even eye Applejack down, which resulted in the Earth Pony putting on a cheeky grin.
"How'd someone like him even get to Samiya in the first place?" Twilight questioned. "And what was that crystal even for?"
"The King of Pokelantis once had a treaty with our previous king from long ago. Thus, he and his subjects could enter the Sea Temple without any issues. We believed there were no issues at all. This was before we became protective of our home. The King of Pokelantis has always had an interest in the crystals and the wealth of power they had to offer. Of course, he would want that power for himself. So, he asked for his own crystal, receiving the trust of the old king. And I do say, he was relatively skilled in keeping that trust. I believe these are the words that he said when making that crystal."
Alo would interact with the crystal once more, using its power to make the light projection of the King of Pokelantis speak, showing more of what these crystals can do and why someone would want them so much. Once more, Ash heard the voice of the King after all these years.
"I require a crystal that will grant me everlasting life. Since there is no way to stop this enigmatic disease, I must keep myself alive for as long as possible." The King of Pokelantis demanded. "This crystal shall be placed at the epicenter of my castle, becoming a source of immortality for me and my subjects."
"He just outright asked for something like that?" Applejack uttered. "Pretty gutsy."
"He always strived for immortality. That way, he would rule the world forever, going through every event and knowing everything throughout the ages. But our previous King of the Sea was ahead of him, despite seemingly going along with what the King of Pokelantis requested. He went through with making the crystal but made sure the King of Pokelantis would never get his hands on it. The crystal I'm holding now does not even grant immortality."
"It doesn't? Then what does it do?" Fluttershy asked.
"Truth be told, I have no idea. All I know is that crystals lose their purpose when the crux of their existence is gone. With the King of Pokelantis gone, their full potential is locked away and they can only perform what other crystals are capable of. But our previous king made sure that immortality would never come from this crystal, even if we had it for ourselves."
"The King of Pokelantis is still around though. Well, he's trapped in an orb but I guess that's enough to lock away the true power of this crystal," said Ash as he recalled how the King of Pokelantis was only sealed back in an orb. Technically, he was still around to this day, managing to evade his passing, albeit now being trapped within something that he could not control.
"Pikachu..."
"He's still around?!" Twilight and the others gasped. They believed he was long gone by now but in reality, the King of Pokelantis was still alive in the form of a spirit. His body may be gone but not his spirit.
"Even in the modern day, he still manages to strive for immortality it seems," Alo replied. "Well, that only means that this crystal's potential is still there but it's laying dormant. If the king does ever return, then we can see why it truly exists."
"Let's hope that never happens," Paradise said, preferring that the King of Pokelantis stayed sealed.
"No need to worry about that. Brandon's keeping a good eye on him. It's still pretty crazy that he showed up here before. Samiya's got a lot to offer, huh?" Ash nodded his head, amazed by all the history Samiya held.
"Oh, isn't it?" Alo chuckled with a proud tone in his voice. "We've been through quite a lot. Most of it has been troublesome but...it is what it is. The King of Pokelantis opened our eyes to the kind of threats that would come for our crystals. And from how his empire was, we're thankful that none of them ever came back here. I'm not even sure if the King had anyone to take up his throne due to his ultimate goal. Anyway, shall we get going? We will find Galaxy Master as soon as possible, your majesty."
"Oh yeah! Another trip around the world!" Ash raised his fists into the air, excited to travel the world in the Sea Temple.
"Pikachu!"
"Make yourselves comfortable and we shall be heading along. With the crystal guiding us, we should move as fast as perhaps a Sharpedo at best." Alo faced the crystal that created Galaxy Master, poking his staff against it. The light would then reflect off the staff, shooting a beacon into the air as it then touched the ceiling. With the light becoming a beacon, the power of the crystal would affect the entire temple. Only a further demonstration of what these crystals were capable of and why someone would want them.
Spreading the light across the entire Sea Temple in a matter of seconds, the Sea Temple would start moving. Leaving the waters of Deerling Forest, it would follow a set path that would lead the Temple and everyone within it to Galaxy Master. Things started off slower than expected but this was merely the buildup.
For now, they would all have to spend their time in the Sea Temple now that it was on the move. It would be just like taking the Royal Unova or any ship but on a much larger scale. To kill some time, Ash and his friends would discuss about the Knig of Pokelantis for a bit after the story Alo told them.
"You have a habit of letting others possess you, Ash," Twilight said, bringing up the fact that Ash has been possessed multiple times from what she's seen and heard.
"I do?" Ash looked up, thinking about how many times he's been possessed in some way. Thinking back on it, it was quite a lot. "Yeah, you're right about that. I should keep count."
"At least it doesn't get out of hand when you're possessed," Applejack added. "That King sounded like he came pretty close to doing so."
"Yeah. He had a Pokemon Battle with my body when he took over. Wasn't exactly the best at it too. I got to see what he looks like at last and boy, he's pretty fierce-looking, right?"
"He reminds me a bit of Ghetsis, doesn't he? But that hair of his is a much darker shade of green." Twilight recalled how the visage of the King had slight similarities to Ghetsis. From the green hair to the red eyes. And if she wanted to push it even further, the black clothes.
"Those piercing red eyes...They looked just like his." Fluttershy replied. "And I guess yours too, Sombra. You both have that intensive gaze."
"Hmph." Sombra scoffed, appearing in his shadow form while traveling next to Ash. "My gaze is fiercer than whatever this Ghetsis character has. But I will admit it is impressive. We even have a name for something like that."
"Yeah? What is it?" Ash asked before stopping to pet a group of Spheal that rolled over to his group.
"It's called the Gaze of the Supreme King. It's only meant for those of royal status who have such a gaze. Some say that the gaze can cause many magical reactions in whoever sees it. And don't even think about considering yourself to have that gaze. Your eyes are not red. Even though I've never seen any reactions from it..."
"Yeah. I can't have it. Haha!" Ash chuckled.
"But perhaps I do." Suddenly, someone would reply to him, joining in on this conversation. When looking up, someone sat on a ledge, looking down at Ash's group. Those same crimson eyes from before were staring at Ash's group, but specifically Ash himself.
There, the group would spot a girl sitting on the ledge before hopping off of it. And it was a high jump as well, making her landing even more impressive. Sticking the landing, she revealed herself.
"Green hair...Red Eyes...Deja Vu." Applejack rubbed her eyes. She found it rather disturbing that someone else with a shade of green and red eyes had shown up, having a scowl on her face. It even shocked Twilight and Fluttershy while Paradise was unphased. Those intensive red eyes were certainly prominent today. From the King of Pokelantis, Sombra, and this girl. The girl would even glance in the direction of Twilight, Fluttershy, and Applejack, making their hearts jump.
"Ah, Diadora. Landing on your feet again from such a high place?" said Alo, speaking the name of this girl. "You haven't met the king yet, have you? Such an entrance to make in front of his majesty."
"It's cool. That's a sweet way to make an entrance. Name's Ash. Diadora, right?" Ash greeted himself to her.
"Pikachu!"
"Hm. So of all people...it had to be you that became king." Suddenly Diadora spoke in a rather disdainful tone that went with her scowling face. "That's disappointing."
"Eh?" Ash and Pikachu blinked. The nearby People of the Water heard Diadora's words, gasping and stopping what they were doing. Diadora had just brazenly spoken to their king in such a way, essentially calling him a disappointment.
"Diadora...You mustn't be rude to his majesty." Alo slid over, clearing his throat after Diadora spoke those rather disdainful words. "Especially when the substitute king is here."
"I heard that!" Sombra heard Alo's words as he was once again called a substitute king, which he did not prefer. Sombra saw himself as an equal to Ash and perhaps even higher.
"She's certainly different from the rest, isn't she?" Twilight whispered as so far, Diadora carried a different aura and mood than the rest of the People of the Water. As seen by the People of the Water, they were all jolly in many ways, happy with themselves while being protective of their home.
"Ash Ketchum, right? I didn't want to believe that you'd be the King of the Sea." Diadora continued.
"Well, I am." Ash laughed. "Pleasure to meet you. You've got that look in your eyes for sure. I know it from anywhere."
"You should know it. I'd expect you of all people to." Diadora crossed her arms, continuing to speak to Ash in a rather distasteful way.
"Uh...Wait, do I know you?" Ash scratched his hair. The green hair and red eyes weren't exactly helping even if he noticed that combination.
"Forgive her, your majesty. Diadora is a rather brazen girl..." Alo bowed. "Diadora. Must you be so rude? We've spoken about this. In front of royalty, you must be respectable."
"Not to him." Diadora jeered. "I figured I'd meet you at last when I got back to Samiya. I was gone during the attack of the Dragon Force and when I heard you showed up again...That was just annoying."
"What's your problem?" Twilight grumbled, finding Diadora's attitude to be rather rude for no apparent reason.
"Ash saved your home if ya haven't realized." Applejack joined in. "You're talking pretty wild for someone who just met him."
"If anyone deserves to be on that throne, it's me." Diadora pointed at herself. "Not you, Ketchum."
"You see...Diadora here is also royalty." Alo revealed. "Her parents are unknown but she does have royal blood within her. We found her years ago as a child, alone near an island that was on the verge of sinking. Thus...she became one of us." Alo explained, revealing something truly outstanding about Diadora.
"She's royalty!?" They all exclaimed. A true royal was standing before her. Not just royal in name but also by blood.
"Indeed. Unfortunately, she has nothing to rule over. We're not sure what kingdom she originates from. Neither does she. But we enjoy the company either way and I promise you she's not usually like this."
"That's enough out of you, Alo," Diadora said, suddenly forcing Alo to freeze and keep his mouth closed. Diadora had this rather commanding voice to her. Fitting since she was known to be royalty. She just had the natural voice of a ruler. More so than Ash. "I've been wanting that throne for a long time. That was taken from me ever since we were all sealed with the Sea Temple. And along you come, freeing us all and becoming the King of the Sea. You're not even actual royalty. Neither do you have royal blood in you? You're just some kid from the boonies."
"Take that back!" Applejack stepped forward, growing tiresome of DIadora's insulting words.
"It's fine Applejack." But Ash would stop her, preventing Applejack from doing anything. He appreciated that his friends would stick up for him, but his rather silent reaction to this made it clear that he was hearing Diadora out.
"It should've been me." Diadora closed her eyes before turning around. "And what's worse is that it had to be a Ketchum of all people. Black hair, dark eyes and an annoyingly optimistic look on your face. That's the Ketchum Trademark." Those were her last words in this conversation before she walked off.
She left Ash's friends feeling a few reactions. Twilight and Applejack had cross faces while Fluttershy was rather perplexed by this. Sombra simply laughed at this, loving every bit of it while Paradise was completely neutral.
"Oh, dear!" Alo held his hair. "I'm terribly sorry for that, your majesty! She just showed up and insulted you! Please! Forgive us for that level of rudeness!"
"Bahahaha!" Sombra cackled. "What an interesting girl! My boy, you've made yourself quite the enemy!"
"Huh. Well, that was something. I get where she's coming from though..." Ash said as he wasn't that struck by Diadora's words. Instead, he understood her.
"You do?" Twilight tilted her head in confusion.
"Your majesty. She, unfortunately, cannot become the new ruler of the Sea. Becoming the King or Queen of the Sea is different from how most monarchies are formed. You've experienced it yourself when you obtained the Sea Crown. There have been only two kings and queens who have worn the Sea Crown. and you are the third king."
"It'll be rough traveling with her..." Applejack groaned. "But Ash. You're really gonna let her get away with that? I've got a bad feeling of what she might do."
"Applejack's right. She wants that throne for herself. And even though there's only one way of getting it, who knows what she might try now that you're here." Twilight shared those same worries and so did Fluttershy.
"I hear you guys. I'll keep an eye out. And when we meet again, I'll take to her." Ash reassured his friends, staying completely calm while most of them, apart from Paradise, were worried. "For now, let's focus on meeting with Galaxy Master, okay?"
"Pikachu!"
After that surprising interaction, they would get on with their day, exploring more of the temple while it was moving across the seas. After leaving Deerling Forest's lake, the Sea Temple would enter the wider waters of Equestria, which allowed it to speed up. The momentum boost was certainly felt and yet everything was safe within it. With crystal being the guiding beacon, it was only fixated on one location.
Galar.
Galar.
Speaking of Galar, Galaxy Master's interception of the Dread League was over. The Dark Garden that the Dread League made had been completely destroyed. The garden was in shambles with all of its plants being sliced and wilted. All thanks to the light of Galaxy Master which also came from the Sea Temple Crystals.
He stood over the destroyed garden with a heroic pose alongside his Pikachu and Bayleef. More of the Sun had been shown, beaming down on the beautiful land that was now free from the garden.
As for the vampires, most were dazed and some were planted into the ground itself. Some were still standing, scowling, growling and hissing at Galaxy Master after he ruined their plans.
"That puts an end to your Brutal Botanic Behaviours!" Galaxy Master bellowed, speaking in a triumphant voice. "I'd suggest surrendering since you have nothing else to grow here."
As for the Canterlot Guards, they did not engage in battle with Galaxy Master. And for a good reason. They were merely undercover. When getting away from the battle, they took the time to hide while Galaxy Master spoke in his usual heroic tone.
Free from Galaxy Master and his Pokemon, they took the time to immediately write about this to Princess Celestia. She had to know about this time. A letter was being made by the Canterlot Guards, quickly reporting what they had experienced. From Galaxy Master's return to the destruction of this Dark Forest.
"You caped nuisance!" A vampire thundered with veins popping out of his head. "You realize you've alerted our majesty! She's obviously been watching our battle even from afar, and you've made a horrible mistake interfering with us!"
"Hmph! Good. Your Lich Queen should feel annoyed. And she should be wary. Everything she plans to do will come to an end as long as I am around! The Superstar! Galaxy Master!" He would strike a pose once more, creating a galactic-colored explosion behind him.
"Galaxy Master! Galaxy!" A voice cried out to him after he struck his pose. He would quickly swivel his head, seeing someone run down the hill nearby. But it was someone that he had familiarity with judging by the way he reacted.
"Ah! My trusty sidekick! You're a tad late to it all, but that's fine." He spoke to a pony who was apparently his sidekick. After all these months, he shows up with a sidekick. As if his Pokemon weren't his sidekicks already. As for this pony, she would reveal herself when moving through the sun's rays. "Did you bring enough, Potion Nova?"
"I always bring enough. But if you're leaving like that...bring me with you instead of just vanishing." Potion Nova sighed. "I don't think there should be any Despair Plants growing from this. You might've destroyed them all with how the garden turned out."
"Hm-hm. You're the expert here, Potion Nova. Then...we can apprehend these vampires and finish things up here."
"I'm not going in because of this guy..." One of the vampires grimaced as she did not want to meet her end in this fashion. None of them did. Seeing that Galaxy Master had them outclassed, the vampires would suddenly retreat. They would use the one method of retreat that was rather destructive and was shown first by Night Sprout back at the Canterlot Junior Cup.
Self-Combustion.
The bodies of the vampires would glow all of a sudden as the magical energy within them was being unleashed. They grinned maniacally, knowing that they would regenerate back at the Necro Chamber afterward. Not only that, it was an easy way to cause some damage. Galaxy Master stood at the ready while Potion Nova hid behind him for safety. The explosions went off, encasing the area in a dark and green paroxysm of Curse Magic.
"Pulsar Barrier!" Galaxy Master yelled as she created a barrier of pulsar energy, shielding himself and his allies from the explosion. A quick and easy save as they were all left untouched. The same couldn't be said for the garden. All of the vampires were gone, combusting themselves to make a quick getaway. And there was seemingly no way to stop them from performing such a destructive act. "They're gone. APprehending them will be rather difficult if they just do that."
"What now? I think we should head back and call it day, Galaxy." Potion Nova recommended.
"Hm. You're right. We'll look out for the Dread League once more. No doubt, I've got the attention of their Queen." Galaxy Master would then walk off with Potion Nova, quickly returning Bayleef as an array of star particles.
The Canterlot Guards peeked around the corner, witnessing the departure of Galaxy Master. It was less bombastic than when he became a beam of light to travel around. Whether it was by making an entrance or leaving. With their letters being written, they also had no reason to be here anymore. Not when Galaxy Master cleared the area for them.
They could be seen as a positive, however, it could also be seen as a negative. With the vampires gone, they could not find Magehold, so they were back to where they started. However, judging from Galaxy Master's words, they can expect to see the Dread League somewhere in either region once more.
As the journey continues.
Chapter 67 End.