Equestria. Despair Plant Garden. Nightfall.
"Ebony?!"
"Nova?!"
Two potion makers had come across each other and both saw familiar faces before them. Both took the time to process this as one of them had a smile form. That one would be Potion Nova, who recognized her childhood friend. Ebony Rhyme would also recognize her childhood friend, but a smile did not form on her face.
"It is you!" Potion Nova excitedly said before rushing over to her old friend. "I haven't seen you in so long"
"I...I didn't think I'd see you here at all." Ebony was just as surprised as her, backing away when Potion Nova approach. "I thought I'd never see you again after all these years."
"It's only been around 20ish years. But here we are, seeing each other again. We were separated long ago and I even had that same thought of never joining up with you again. What are you doing here?"
"Eh, I'm tagging along with someone, that's all." Potion Nova laughed. "Here on important business. I was expecting a lot, but I wasn't expecting this, that's for sure. How have you been?"
"Oh, I...I've been better. Recently, anyway." Ebony replied as her time at Magehold was mostly full of downs but has recently been gaining ups thanks to Fantina. "Being separated and living in different locations threw me for a loop back then, especially with where I ended up. After all...I'm the one who left. You stayed behind."
"I did stay behind. I was gutted when you left all of a sudden. You never said why actually. Why did you leave?" Potion Nova questioned as the reason for Ebony Rhyme leaving was never explained to her. All she knew was that Ebony left one day and never came back. "The ponies back home at Mareflower said you had to move, but where?"
"You can probably guess. You've been keeping up with the news of the world lately, haven't you?"
"Of course! I've been keeping up like crazy! Pokemon are the best, aren't they? They're just as enjoyable as potions. About that...remember when we used to make potions back then together?"
"Obviously I do." Ebony finally cracked a smile. "Best moments of my life right there." She would immediately reminisce about the past, way back when she was just a filly. And a time before she ended up in Magehold, despite being a vampire.
20 Years ago. A town called Mareflower.
Positioned on the Eastern side of a forest, the crossroad of a town known as Mareflower was home to mostly normal ponies. The crossroad itself looked stunning. With its willow wood rooftops, birch wood walls and rows upon rows of luscious trees on each building, Greenflower has a fascinating atmosphere.
And living here was a young Ebony Rhyme, who was not a normal pony at all. She was a vampire, of course, but the only visible vampiric features were her wings and fang, which was not sticking out like most vampires. And inside one of these lush buildings, potions were being played with.
Ebony Rhyme and her childhood friend Potion Nova were being as childish as they could be, playing with the potions that they made. Granted, they were just as childish as the ponies themselves. That involved potions exploding in their faces when testing them out since they were still new to making them. But they were certainly learning together, even if it was without any adult guidance.
"I don't think this one will do anything for us." Ebony looked at her hooves as she had multiple eyes on them, blinking and looking around. That was the effect of the potion she just made. Impressive, but it gave way to many weaknesses and made things rather bewildering for the little vampire. Her vision had been tampered with as she was struggling to look in multiple directions. "Oh geez..."
"At least the beauty potion will do something for us." Potion Nova said, surrounded by a sea of potions. Some of them had fallen over, leaking potion liquid everywhere.
"You know Nova...Why do you study potions?" Ebony Rhyme asked. "You have magic, don't you?"
"Hm? Why?" Potion Nova uttered as Ebony brought up a good point. Potion Nova already had access to magic since she was a unicorn.
"I don't have magic. That's why I study potions as a substitute. But you have magic and you study them too. Why?"
"Why not? I love potions so much, that's why!" As a child, Potion Nova had the most simple yet effective answer that could be given out. "Plus, I saw you making potions on your own and I couldn't help but help you out. And it was worth it, cause then I wouldn't have gotten the chance to meet you."
"I guess so. Thanks for sticking by with me." Ebony was glad to hear it. She didn't need something long and complex. That's all she wanted to hear.
"But your wings could still be a sign of magic, don't you think?" Potion Nova giggled while bursting out of the sea of potions, making them fly everywhere.
"I don't think so." Ebony shook her head with a smile before having her face hit by potion liquid, forming that smile back into a frown. Flowers would immediately grow on her face due to the potion's effect. The liquid dropped as her smile returned. Back then, this was the most she ever smiled.
"Good times...And now that we've met up, that can continue, right? I was looking forward to a day like this." Potion Nova said.
"Right but...That's not important right now. Potion. You know that I'm a vampire, right?"
"Yeah. I figured. After remembering what your wings looked like after news about the Dread League spread, I found out that you are a vampire." Potion Nova revealed that she knew. Not exactly as a child but when news about the Dread League started growing constantly. "But what does that matter?"
"Huh?" This took Ebony by surprise. Potion Nova knew yet it didn't matter to her at all. That much was clear when she met up with Ebony Rhyme here at the centre of the Despair Plant Garden.
"When I found out you were a vampire, it didn't really change much for me. I always knew there was something different about you when we were young but even then, I didn't care. We had so much fun together that it wasn't something I ever cared about. We were just making memories after all."
"You don't care if I'm a vampire, huh? Even though you know..." EBony lowered her head, biting her lip which was trembling. Hearing all of this from Potion Nova, who once again kept it simple for her, was stunning. It was perplexing to her heart but also soft.
With a smile forming, Ebony Rhyme was glad to hear that her childhood friend never denounced their friendship. She feared that would be the case if they were to ever reunite and here they were, with Ebony's predictions being flipped upside down.
"It's just like how you came to me back then when you saw me make potions. You're way too approachable, you know that?" Ebony Rhyme uttered which prompted Potion Nova to laugh.
"Oh! Anyway, I can't chat now. I came here for that terrifying thing." Potion Nova focused on the mission. "This is the centre of the garden and it's a good time to shut it down with this." She would dig into her bag of potions which was smaller than what it could initially carry. Ebony Rhyme saw tiny potions within as one of them would soon enlarge once taken out. "Stand back, Ebony. This might get dangerous."
"Sorry, but..." Frowning with her heart slowing down, Ebony would suddenly hold her hoof out at Potion Nova's own hoof. "I can't have you do that. I'm the one who's dropping potions down there."
"Huh? Well, why don't we just do it together if we have the same idea." Potion Nova said, believing that Ebony was also here to stop the garden. She had full faith in her friend's heart after all.
"Well, we don't actually have the same idea." Ebony Rhyme feared that this would happen now that they've met up once more. "I came here to finish this garden. Help it reach its max potential as soon as possible."
"Y-You are?" Potion Nova stuttered. "But Ebony...I thought you were..."
"That's one of the things I feared, Nova. You know that I'm a vampire and you don't care. And that's great. But you should know what I'm a part of. I'm a member of the Dread League. That's where my loyalties lie after all." Ebony Rhyme was still a member of the Dread League and was carrying out a mission after all.
"Oh. I see." This gutted Potion Nova but a part of her expected this. It was rather difficult for both of them since they had opposite goals. And these objectives conflicted with their sweet reunion, swiftly souring it. "Well, I can't let this thing continue. The things it'll do when it reaches its full potential are too terrifying, so I need to stop its growth at once, Ebony."
"I can't let you do that, Nova." Ebony Rhyme denied it. In reality, this was for her own safety along with Fantina's. It all tied back to the Lich Queen and the First Lich King. "I'm sorry. It's been wonderful meeting you again, but I need to do this. For my sake, my friend and for Magehold."
"Well...Well then..." This was hard for Potion Nova to stomach as she was struggling to finish her sentence. How could this turn so quickly? Both potion makers looked at each other for a moment. There was a moment of silence with the only sound being the wind blowing. Their manes would blow in the wind as the silence was then disrupted by the sound of a Pokemon attack going off in the distance and the crashing waves below.
Ebony Rhyme had already made up her mind. And it was swift too, but she was only doing this to stay loyal to the Lich Queen. She had always been loyal to Rosa Maledicta but recent events have tampered with that. And it was all thanks to Fantina. However, even with Fantina lighting Ebony Rhyme's light, that drive to gain the Lich Queen's trust was still there, even if she was also working for the first Lich King in secrecy at the moment.
"I-I'll do it before you can stop me!" She decided to make it quick, using the potion she needed to try and shut down the garden. She would levitate it with her magic, quickly attempting to pour it into the centre of the garden.
Ebony Rhyme would react at, using her cloak to grab one of her own potions. She would quickly intercept Potion Nova's potion with her own as the lid would already open up being thrown. Ebony's potion smashed into Nova's.
The liquids from the two potions collided with each other, having different reactions. One was meant to shut down the garden, having a powerful flare of magic erupt from it while the other appeared to be some kind of lightning potion, sending bursts of lightning.
Potion Nova and Ebony squinted at the sight of this outburst as sparks would fly. Vicious lightning bolts came crashing down, hitting the garden violently as some would reach Ebony and Potion Nova. Potion Nova backed away along with Ebony Rhyme until the light came to an end.
"I have a whole bunch of potions with me too as you can see. You won't be stopping this garden from growing, Nova. Sorry about that." Ebony Rhyme said as she had her cloak carry many potions with her.
"Okay then...How about we have a challenge like we used to back in the day?" Potion Nova carried multiple potions with her magic. "But instead of making potions as fast as we can, it all depends on who can get theirs in first." She issued a challenge, which was odd considering the circumstances for this.
"I'll accept it." Ebony accepted the challenge anyway. Immediately, she took a drink out of one of her potions which would affect her body. Potion Nova did the same as both potions would have different effects. The one Ebony drank allowed her to paralyze, sending a paralyzing beam from her eyes. She was willing to keep Potion Nova in place just to stop her actions.
"Yikes!" Potion Nova grimaced as the effect of her potion kicked in right as this paralyzing beam came soaring out. The effect of this potion gave her afterimages, allowing Potion Nova to juke Ebony Rhyme out. The potion was originally meant to psyche Ebony out so that she would be too distracted by all the afterimages.
The afterimages would vanish as Potion Nova stepped back, narrowly evading the paralyzing beam as it would hit a nearby tree. That tree would find itself receiving a strong case of paralysis, even if it did nothing to something that was already stationary.
Ebony would quickly drink another potion as the effect kicked in. Her hoof would extend, obviously being used to try and reach the centre of the garden as soon as possible. In response, the next potion that Nova used was actually done on the terrain itself. This potion would touch the grass, manipulating the surrounding area.
The ground itself would light up, gaining dazzling colours that were blinding to the eyes. And they certainly surprised Ebony Rhyme, stunning her eyes with how bright they were. And as a vampire, this was also a problem for her as she backed away, retracting her extended hoof. Growling at this, Ebony Rhyme would use the next potion on her cloak as soon as possible.
And this one would also interact with the terrain. She threw it against the ground as the effect would retaliate against the light. It would immediately summon a swarm of darkness that overlayed the light, rapidly spreading across this part of the garden. It was similar to that one potion she used to block out sound and communication from the Lich Queen with darkness, but instead of creating a sole space and blocking out the sound, it would darken the area and nothing more.
Potion Nova gasped as everything turned dark for her. The hedges, flowers, plants, trees and many other parts of the garden were masked in darkness, making it hard for her to see anything else but herself. The light she made was gone because of this darkness swarm.
"For a vampire like myself, seeing through the dark is easy." Ebony Rhyme's voice was heard within the darkness as this was used to her advantage. And with this advantage, she would have the chance to move towards the centre of the garden.
"It's a good thing I'm always prepared then!" Potion Nova also had a counter to this. She would soon drink another potion as fast as she could, granting her the much-needed effect. Night Vision. Her eyes lit up, allowing her to see through the dark easily. And with this, she spotted Ebony Rhyme heading for the centre. Quickly, she would use her own magic to stop this, sending out a beam that would affect a nearby rock.
She had normal magic, after all, using that to her advantage. The rock would enlarge in front of Ebony Rhyme, going from a pebble to a tree-sized boulder. Ebony came to a screeching halt, nearly crashing into this boulder as it blocked her path to the centre.
"Maybe if i block it off with this!" Potion Nova then gained an excellent idea. She would try and block the centre of the garden with this large rock, quickly throwing another potion at it. This potion would break against the rock, spreading its liquids onto it. The effect worked on the rock as well, but only for one purpose. Duplication.
The rock would duplicate once, allowing Potion Nova to have an extra rock. One was meant to block Ebony Rhyme while the other would be used to plug the hole. And of course, this required Potion Nova's own magical strength. She used her magic to hold the extra rock, using all of her might on something so large.
However, Potion Nova had a response to this as well. Two responses. She drank a potion that gave her Super Strength, allowing her to easily smash the rock into bits with her hooves, startling Potion Nova. And the second one required extra assistance from someone else.
Her Pokemon. One of her Pokemon showed up and it ended up being her Banette, who would phase through the shattered rock. Potion Nova gasped upon seeing Banette, who could easily pass through this other rock even if she did manage to plug the hole. And not only that, Banette was the one holding another potion.
"Drop it in, Banette! Go!"
"I don't think so! Out you come, Rapidash!" Potion Nova threw out her own Poke Ball with her magic as she had a partner Pokemon as well. But nowadays, who doesn't? And out of it came a Galarian Rapidash instead of the standard Kantonian one.
"Rapidash!"
"Psycho Cut!"
"Dash!" Rapidash would instantly intercept Banette, shooting out tearing blades of Psychic Energy from its horn. The blades would get in Banette's way, rapidly hitting the Ghost-Type.
"B-Bane!" Banette cried out as the potion had also been damaged. One of the blades would cut the potion in half, causing its liquids to drop. However, with a smile forming on her face, Ebony Rhyme predicted something like this would happen. And so did Banette, who also put on a smile. After the potion dropped on it, the Marionette Pokemon would be under its effects as it actually meant for it.
Rapidly, Banette would grow in size, expanding past what it usually appears as. Potion Nova and Rapidash dropped their jaws in the face of this Giga Banette. The giant Banette looked down at them both, standing high and tall, surpassing most of the garden. The other rock would be destroyed once Banette grew, smashing it apart.
"Sweet Celestia..." Potion Nova gulped.
"This will finish things. Use Confuse Ray!"
"Bane!" A gigantic Confuse Ray was imminent. Banette formed a purple ball of energy in between its hands that were as big as its head. The ball then multiplies around the Marionette Pokemon's body as all of these balls were thrown downwards to both Rapidash and Potion Nova. This was certainly something to try and defend against.
"Here goes nothing!" Potion Nova would use her own magic as well, forming a barrier around herself and Rapidash. Right on time as the balls crashed into the barrier, nearly hitting their targets. But with Potion Nova's magic, she not only shielded herself against these attacks, but she pushed them away by expanding her barrier. The energy balls would fly away, heading into the sky before dissipating after failing to hit their targets successfully.
"Are you kidding me?" Ebony Rhyme growled as Potion Nova was keeping pace with her, having the advantage of magic on her side.
"I can do this all day, Ebony. I have all kinds of potions to help me out." Potion Nova smiled. "I think I'll give my Rapidash wings next. She's not exempt from the potions either."
"Rapidash!"
"I can't let this continue..." Ebony Rhyme uttered as she was on a time limit. Fractured Note told her to make this quick after all before the Lich Queen wakes up to see Fantina here. Ebony then climbed up Banette before opening one potion bottle. She was planning to end this as soon as possible, no longer wanting to play around. "Banette! Shadow Ball! I'll throw this in at once!"
"Bane!" Banette would prepare an extra large Shadow Ball. Two of them. At the same time, this potion that Ebony Rhyme held would be the one to help grow it.
"I have a spare, so here goes nothing!" Potion Nova also had the potion she needed to shut this garden down. Since she was working with Galaxy Master, she needed all the spares she could get. "Rapidash, stop that potion with Dazzling Gleam!"
"Dash!" Rapidash would prepare a Dazzling Gleam while Potion Nova readied her own potion. In unison, both attacks were unleashed. Two large blobs and a ray of rainbows. As for the two ponies, both would launch their potions at the same time, going for the hole.
Ebony Rhyme would launch it downwards while Potion Nova used the force of her magic to rocket the potion. Both flew at the same speeds as the only things standing in their way were Shadow Ball and Dazzling Gleam. But once both attacks clashed, the potions would be caught up in them.
The outburst of Infinity Energy engulfed the two potions instantly, forming a flare of both light and dark. Potion and Ebony closed their eyes together along with Rapidash and Banette. All of this energy would be blinding to them as it was even over the centre of the garden. The outburst reached the centre which was soon followed by a howl. One way or another, the garden's very core had been tampered with. But in what way?
The howl was heard by many as the flare of light and dark shot into the sky for many to see. That involved Dimstar, who was still pursuing the People of the Water. They managed to hide from her in the meanwhile which made it all the more terrifying for them.
"You cannot hide from me forever," Dimstar spoke with her voice echoing, still flailing her tendrils around which were knocking over obstacles just to try and find these people. "You are trespassing on Magehold Property. There is no excuse for you at all."
"Hold it!" Finally, she would come across someone. She expected it to be one of the Samiyans, but that was not the case. Instead, encountering Dimstar was none other than Ash's group which consisted of Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and of course, Rainbow Dash. For Dimstar, this did not matter. Her goal was to get rid of all the intruders after all. Ash and his friends were no exception, obviously.
"I'm back for another one. This time, you won't catch me by surprise!" Rainbow Dash declared.
"I thought you met your demise when you fell. I should have double-checked. That was a mistake on my part but it won't matter once I thoroughly deal with you all."
"You're in our way. I gotta meet up with Galaxy Master as soon as possible," said Ash. "I've come this far just to see him and I won't let you ruin that and hurt others along the way."
"Ash Ketchum. Even with your presence here, this is nothing to worry about. Not when the remnants of the Lich King are with me." Dimstar uttered.
Interrupting their conversation was the howl from the middle of the garden, grabbing their attention. The flare of magic from before would suddenly explode, reaching a critical level that was unexpected. Ash and his friends gasped at the sight of this outburst wondering just what could've caused that.
Dimstar narrowed her eyes at the magical outburst, being curious herself. From how titanic this was, it could spell different results for the garden. Good or bad. No one knew for now. But for Dimstar, before she could figure that out, eliminating Ash and everyone on here was a top priority and what truly mattered more than anything as the journey continues.
Chapter 76 End.