//------------------------------// // Ponyville's Fierce Retaliation // Story: My Little Pokémon: Grander World // by Amarvax //------------------------------// Equestria. Ponyville. Nightfall. "Where are you, ponies?" Currently rampaging through Ponyville was the Despair Plant Bullfrog, led by the wrinkly, creepy and raspy-voiced vampire Shrivel who was on its back. All of them had been saved by Emerald AUra's magic, bringing them to a safe realm for a while. She and everyone else had a plan to overcome their predicament before the entire town could perish. But this absence did not stop Shrivel and the Despair Plant. The tongue of the Despair Plant would smash into the buildings, leaving holes and breaking walls. Nopony else was inside to take any damage whatsoever. "To those who thought they were safe inside, not anymore." With the buildings being destroyed, the mist would expand its reach, now becoming even more threatening than what it originally was. Shrivel cackled as the buildings were being ravaged and violated by Bullfrog's rampage, ruining beautiful architecture and furniture. The mist, while it did not affect objects, would make the ambience of certain homes look awfully dreadful. Shrivel watched as her work was paying off for her. For being the first vampire to attack Ponyville, she felt rather proud of herself. While it was true that other vampires would come here to Ponyville, Shrivel wanted to make herself rather important considering that this was Rosa Maledicta's home before she left all those years ago. Destroying the home of the Lich Queen and the enemies who annoyed her was rather satisfying. And speaking of those enemies, an emerald flash would emerge from the ground, grabbing the attention of the Despair Plant and Shrivel. The light from the flash was sensitive to Shrivel, as to be expected but did nothing to the Despair Plant. And emerging from this light were the citizens of Ponyville. They had been brought back to their town. Mayor Mare, Rarity, Roseluck, Amethyst Star and many others reappeared on the scene as some of them had been cured of their illnesses thanks to Emerald Aura. Of course, this only included the most common illnesses in the world which can be treated with ease and some slightly rare ones. However, those who were suffering from Magehold Curses were unable to be cured. Thankfully, with Emerald Aura's magic, they had temporary immunity to the mist and an effect that would slow down their diseases, giving them a chance to make a turnaround. "Alright. You only have one hour before this runs out." Emerald Aura said to them. "Use that time well to put an end to this as soon as possible." "One hour is fine with us." Mayor Mare groaned, finally being able to stand up properly thanks to Emerald Aura's magic. "Ah, so you're back. Back to see the rest of your town meet its demise." Shrivel said to Ponyville's residents. "How will you act now that your homes are exposed to the mist." "That's fine with us." Roseluck shook her head as the black cracks had already reached her face. "I can guess this'll be over soon." "Pheromosa! Go and find the elixir!" Rarity exclaimed, counting on Pheromosa to find the elixir tat was meant for the Despair Plants. "Mosa!" The Lissome Pokemon was already on it. With a salute, she would take off at breakneck speeds, leaving behind a dust cloud in the process. It was up to Pheromosa to find the elixir and for everyone else to keep the Despair Plant at bay. "Now that we have some immunity, we can perform much better." Rarity uttered, narrowing her eyes at the vampire and Despair Plant. "And at our best, we can certainly put that plant on the backfoot." "Just...please don't go too hard on it!" Daisy pleaded. "Even if it's working for them, we had something when we first met in the Everfree Forest. "Please." "It's fine. It's not like we can even destroy a Despair Plant with what we have." Rarity replied. "Since you can befriend them, we'll make sure that comes by." "Confident that you can win, even if you don't have the means of attaining victory?" Shrivel asked with her raspy voice. "How pitiful. You should have stayed in whatever location you were sent to." "I've heard enough from you. I've been staying inside, highly cautious and wishing to do something about this. Now I have that chance." Rarity's eyes glimmered as she then placed her hoof on her pendant. The same pendant that housed a Mega Stone. With all of her Pokemon out, she was prepared to Mega Evolve one of them. And since the pendant had been chosen, Ampharos was the one for this. "Ampharos! Mega Evolve!" "Ampha!" Ampharos cried out as the light from the Mega Stone and Keystone would fly out. The two lights flew into the air before clashing against each other, forming the DNA Symbol. Ampharos stood there as the combined lights struck down on him, engulfing his whole body. The energies from the lights then granted him further evolution which involved unlocking his latent Dragon Blood and granting him a mane that made Rarity proud. Mega Ampharos had arrived. "Ampharos!" "So your Pokemon grew hair? Is that supposed to intimidate me?" "You'll see that this added beauty of Ampharos is enough to dazzle in all the right ways! Now, Ampharos! Shine!" "Ampha!" And in this form, Ampharos' light was greater than before. From his entire body, a sphere of light would cover him while also brightening Ponyville during its darkest night. This amount of light that Shrivel was being exposed to was absolutely overwhelming. If anyone can generate an obscene amount of light, Ampharos could, among a few Pokemon. And this light was so great that even his friends had to squint their eyes. Shrivel tried to continue hiding behind Bullfrog but the light was too strong to fully avoid. And noticeably, Bullfrog was flinching from this, much to Shrivel's surprise. Since the light was directed at Bullfrog, it was the most exposed to it as its abyss-like eyes stared at it. Shrivel gasped as she saw the Bullfrog slowly back up. "What?! You're flinching from this?!" Shrivel roared. "That's just regular old light! Isn't it?!" "Now, Stoutland! Giga Impact!" "Roserade! Petal Blizzard! "Ampharos, use Thunder!" "Ampha...Ros!" From Ampharos' body, a fierce crash of lightning would erupt from his body, mimicking the sound of thunder. When unleashing it, the lightning tore through the ground before crashing directly into the chest of the Bullfrog. Te Despair Plant croaked after that powerful blast met with it, pushing it back to the point where it almost stumbled. Following up with that were attacks from the other Pokemon. Stoutland got in close as always, using Giga Impact to follow up on that heavy impact. He had his own heavy impact, pushing the Despair Plant further back. This was then followed up by Roserade's Petal Blizzard, pelting it with powerful petals that were plentiful to encompass the entire body of this plant. Other attacks came in. Energy Ball, Swift, Hidden Power, Hyper Voice, Bubble Beam, Power Gem, Inceinrate and many more from Ponyville's Pokemon. They had an array of elements just for the Despair Plant to taste. The fierce flames made it croak even more, damaging its grass body while the repeated barrage of Power Gem, Bubble Beam and Swift would constantly break its focus. It had its body soaked in water while also being exposed to blinding lights in the form of Swift and Power Gem which unleashed their own form of light. The abyss-like eyes gazed into these lights which attempted to blind the Despair Plant but failed to do so. But they did succeed in pushing it back. "String Shot, Leavanny!" "Leavan!" All 12 of Rarity's Leavanny would use String Shot, using this as an opportunity to try and restrain this creation of Magehold. Thick strings were shot out of their mouths and leaf hands, instantly wrapping around the large legs of the Despair Plant. These strings prevented the Despair Plant from falling over since it almost lost its balance. It was kept on its feet once more but this time, they were restrained. The Despair Plant had been slowed down for now. Multiple powerful strings kept it from moving for the time being but already, they were struggling to keep it steady. The Despair Plant's weight complemented its size. And considering how its jumps always shook the ground, those legs certainly had the power to resist. The plant attempted to resist the strings, squirming and struggling while shattering windows with its thunderous croak. The Leavanny all were struggling as well. Even with their combined might, they collectively had to keep their focus and balance, otherwise they would fail to keep it contained until Pheromosa got here with the elixir. "Keep your light up, Ampharos!" "Ampha!" Ampharos would shine once more, unleashing that same overwhelming light. Once the light entered the scene, the Despair Plant flinched once more. It seemed that the light Ampharos was producing in his Mega Evolved state was enough to garner a reaction from this creation of Magehold. "Don't get cocky!" Shrivel snarled at them. "Don't let these short-lifers overpower you, Bullfrog!" With Shrivel's roar, the Bullfrog would respond by using its tongue. It did this while being exposed to Ampharos' light. By focusing on the strings, it managed to swing its large tongue down on the strings, breaking some of them apart. "L-Leavanny!" A few of the Leavanny lost control once their strings were cut in half by this downward tail swing. This left a few more Leavanny to deal with the Bullfrog who was using all of its strength to resist the light. "Meowstic! Use Shadow Ball!" "Rapidash, use Overheat!" "Meow!" Together, the Pokemon of Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo would come together before this Despair Plant could break free. A blob of shadows formed in Meowstic's arms while Rapidash's flames flared up, building up a brutal amount of heat. Rapidash's mouth formed a ball of white fire with a red-orange stream of fire spiralling around him. The Fire Horse Pokemon then fired a stream of white fire with red-orange fire that added the orb within it. Joining it was Meowstic's Shadow Ball. Before it could take out another thread of string, it was met with a fierce flame and a large blob of shadow slapping its face. Once more, it was distracted, losing focus thanks to these constant interruptions. Now that everyone's Pokemon had temporary immunity and had their illnesses slowed down, they could battle at their best. At least, those who haven't been afflicted yet. Those who were afflicted were just given the chance to give what they currently had. Sweetie Belle's Prinplup and Teddiursa unified their strengths, using Whirlpool and Thunder Punch together. As if they were in a Pokemon Contest, Teddiursa slugged the whirlpool with his electrifying paws, causing it to become a Lightning Whirlpool, increasing its strength. The Despair Plant managed to break off all of the strings by relying on its powerful legs, knocking back the other Leavanny. All of Rarity's Leavanny were pushed back, unable to match up to Bullfrog's strength. But the second it broke free, it was met with the Lightning Whirlpool. The Bullfrog's mouth opened as the whirlpool crashed right into it, leaving behind a powerful splash. But it did not stop there. With its body caught in the whirlpool, it was immediately lifted off the ground. Much like a Pokemon, Despair Plant Bullfrog would start spinning inside of the whirlpool along with Shrivel. Since she was still on the back of Bullfrog, she was caught up in this. And they didn't just take damage from this spiralling whirlpool but also the electricity around it with crashed violently. Once the Whirlpool ended, Bullfrog would fly out of it, landing on its back. And when landing on its back, Shrivel took further damage as the Despair Plant's entire weight fell on her. "Gouh!" She cried out in her raspy voice. "Nice one!" Sweetie Belle cheered, applauding the unison of Teddiursa and Prinplup. Everyone else cheered once they got this Despair Plant on its back. They were certainly making some progress. Despair Plants, despite how difficult they were to defeat, could still be knocked around with the right amount of firepower. And with so many residents of Ponyville, they had plenty of firepower. As for Pheromosa, she was already moving from place to place, searching for the elixir. Thanks to the Despair Plant's shattering attack, the elixir had been lost in the chaos and destruction. But considering its size, it shouldn't be too hard to find. Pheromosa quickly kicked away all the rubble, searching for this elixir and wherever it went. Even with her speed and its size, it was still rather challenging trying to find this one elixir. Ponyville, while being a town, was still relatively large in its own way. The Lissome Pokemon kept zooming and dashing, passing by many homes that have yet to be damaged by the Despair Plants rampage. Eventually, she found it. It had rolled all the way next to a tree amidst the confusion and chaos, peacefully sitting there. Pheromosa smiled as she appeared next to the elixir. When looking at it, she saw that it was slightly cracked but thankfully, no major damage had been done to it. It was still sustainable with a lot of liquid inside. The last time it was used was when a single drop of it was unleashed. Now that she had the elixir which was just as tall as her, all she had to do was bring it back. Pheromosa took off once more, quickly rushing back to the scene of the battle before things can get out of hand even more. "Get off of me...!" Shrivel groaned as the Despair Plant immediately got up. Much to everyone's surprise, despite being rather wrinkly and raspy-sounding, Shrivel had some strength to her which was enough to push up this massive plant. But it did noticeably take a bit out of her and the Despair Plant did let itself up as well. "After all of that?" Rarity pulled back in amazement to see Shrivel standing once again. "Shortlifers...! You think you have an advantage just because you managed to knock down Bullfrog...But you still don't have the means to destroy it!" Shrivel snarled and roared at the ponies. She had an insult exclusively for them all, comparing their lifespans to hers which was incredibly short. "And besides...you still have no way to stop the diseases! And you can't stop the other vampires that will eventually show up here!" "Shortlifers is a bit much, isn't it?" Rarity scoffed at that insult. "It seems that your big rampage wasn't as impressive as it appeared to be. Once the lovely residents of Ponyville have the chance to retaliate, you aren't so difficult at all, eh?" Rarity called out Shrivel and the Bullfrog. The only reason why they had such a large disadvantage was thanks to the Disease Mist that Bullfrog generated. Because it afflicted so many of its residents, they were unable to battle at their very best. But once they gained temporary immunity and had the chance to do what they can, they were forces to be reckoned with. "Phero! Pheromosa!" Returning to the scene was the Lissome Pokemon, carrying the entire elixir on her back. She did a great job finding it and getting it here safely, as to be expected from such a speedster. "Excellent work as always, darling!" Rarity excitedly said. "All we have to do now is drop it on the Despair Plant and see what happens." "You won't get the chance..." Shrivel took a deep breath as her voice sounded even raspier than before. "Not for a moment, a second or anything beyond that! I'll shrivel up your entire town!" Shrivel decided to get in on the action herself. She used her Curse Magic once more, furiously slamming her hooves into the ground as her magic would travel instantly. Her Curse Magic was in her name, possessing the power to shrivel anything plant related. And with many plants beneath her thanks to the grass, the magic would affect them greatly. The moisture around Ponyville was instantly being tainted by the Curse Magic, having its entire being shrivelled away. However, it did more than just shrivel the grass and remove its moisture, it turned it against Ponyville's residents. The grass would suddenly latch onto the hooves and legs of everypony and Pokemon touching the ground. It suddenly acted against them when they least expected it. And no one expected this at all. "W-What is this!?" Rarity gasped. "I can't move...! Is the grass alive?!" Roseluck bellowed as the shrivelled grass wrapped around her hooves. "I'll shrivel everything up...even the moisture in the air! There is no plant that I can't shrivel and command to do my bidding!" Shrivel cackled as the entirety of the grass was under her command thanks to her Curse Magic. It was also how she managed to keep the Despair Plant under her control. "This is why the Lich Queen wanted me here, as you can see!" "If she takes the moisture out of the air, it could spell the end for us all!" Mayor Mare was more focused on the moisture of the air being threatened. That could lead to a truly horrific scene. "Let's see how this'll turn out! Will BUllfrog destroy you or will the environment do it? Only one way to find out! Snatch that elixir from the cockroach Bullfrog!" Shrivel focused on the elixir, seeing it as a threat. She wanted it out of the picture in case it did end up defeating the Despair Plant in some way. As such, Bullfrog's tongue shot right at the elixir that Pheromosa held on her back. Even though it was behind her, the Bullfrog wouldn't mind pulling her off the ground and snatching it. However, even with the grass turning on Ponyville's residents, other forms of nature intervened. A stream of Paradise Flowers came flying in, intercepting Bullfrog's tongue. The flowers were abundant, wrapping around the Despair Plant's tongue. The tongue stopped right in front of Pheromosa, who was incredibly close to being caught by it. Her eyes widened as she was nearly snatched off the ground but was saved by flowers. Afterwards, the flowers would throw the tongue of the Despair Plant, causing it to wrap around its body thanks to how long it was. And meanwhile, another group of flowers would fly in. This time, they were daisies. The Daisies and Paradise Flowers would then fly side by side, landing on the roof of Town Hall. The only ones capable of this were none other than the Flora Ponies. Daisy and Paradise had reverted to their original forms, using their Floral Transporation to intercept the Despair Plant and get the elixir. "What?!" Shrivell yelled, looking at the roof of Town Hall. "Those Flora Ponies!" "We got it!" Paradise exclaimed. "It wasn't that hard for us to break free. We can just become what we are and it's as easy as that!" "Splendid work, you two! Now! Pour some of it onto the Despair Plant now!" Mayor Mare shouted as now would be a good opportunity to use the elixir. Everyone else clamoured for them to use it as soon as possible since they made it this far. "Get them, Bullfrog!" Shrivel commanded before hopping onto the Despair Plant's back once more. "I'll make sure those two shrivel up first! They obviously will considering what they are!" "Oh." A nervous Daisy said as now she was a target. Bullfrog took a massive leap into the air, casting a shadow over the two Flora Ponies. Acting quickly, the sisters would use their Floral Transporation once more. They left the roof of Town Hall, heading elsewhere swiftly. And unfortunately, this meant that Town Hall received some heavy damage. The top of it was destroyed by the Despair Plant's lunge, but that was the last of Mayor Mare's worries right about now. "Burn away the grass, Rapidash! Quick!" "Rapidash!" Rapidash and other Fire-Types, would focus their attention on the grass that was now turning against them. Flames would meet with the shrivelled grass, attempting to burn it all away. But even if they do, they'd have to deal with the rest of the grass that was all over the place. And for a Pokemon like Rapidash, the land was his greatest advantage. Meanwhile, Daisy and Flora ended up on a tree which was having its own moisture sucked away. Bullfrog leapt once more, chasing these two down. Daisy and Flora were looking for an opening just to throw some of the liquid onto it, but they haven't found it just yet. They once again travelled elsewhere, causing the Despair Plant to destroy this tree after crashing through it. They went at this once more with the Flora Ponies moving from place to place, evading the Despair Plant's advances. Shrivel was already growing tired of this constant chasing. The Flora Ponies were immune to the grass restraining them as they could simply use their Floral Transporation to ignore it. This allowed them to get around freely as much as they wanted, much to the annoyance of Shrivel. "The mouth! let's just try the mouth!" Paradise suggested. "That might do the trick!" "The mouth?! Okay!" Daisy nodded in understanding. She held the elixir with all of her might despite how heavy it was. Helping her was Paradise who added her own strength. "You two won't get the chance!" Hearing their approaching, Shrivel suddenly leapt off Bullfrog's back, deciding to get in close herself. Right when Daisy and Paradise were ready to launch the elixir, not having enough time to remove the top of it, Shrivel appeared. She actually managed to get the Flora Ponies as opposed to Bullfrog who was too big to ignore. Shrivel lunged at them both, forcing the two Flora Ponies to the ground. As such, the elixir flew into the air, leaving the control of the two sisters. "Daisy! Paradise!" Rarity gasped as part of her face was already starting to be covered in grass that would not let her go. Not only that but some of it was bladed grass, harming those who were already afflicted and making things worse for them. "G-Get off...!" Paradise squirmed, closing her eyes and gritting her teeth as Shrivel pinned her and Daisy down with her superior strength. "You two are plants at your core, aren't you? Then you'll shrivel up easier than most!" Shrivel sadistically said, spreading her Curse Magic onto the two ponies. The fact that they were plants made them vulnerable to this. Highly vulnerable. The two sisters groaned as the magic was already interacting with their bodies, attacking the very core of their being. Their bodies, despite appearing solid and fleshy, had the same feeling as the flowers they originally used to be and travel as. Shrivel grinned before looking up to see the elixir spinning in the air. "Victory is mine!" Shrivel yelled as Bullfrog was already going for the elixir with its tongue, shooting it into the air. "Grr...Roserade! Grab it!" Roseluck yelled. "Rose!" Using her hidden thorns, Roserade unleashed them at the elixir in the air, racing with the Despair Plant. It was a quick race between the thorns and the tongue as both were seemingly tied. However, it looked like Bullfrog had the advantage since it went first, potentially being the first one to reach the elixir. That was until string held its tongue together, intercepting its movements. Once more, Bullfrog's tongue was one inch closer to its target but failed to reach it. And it was all thanks to Rarity's Leavanny. And not just the Leavanny but other Bug-Types of Ponyville's trainers. "Leavan...!" All of them united their strings to hold back Bullfrog's tongue, even if it was for a moment. But this allowed Roserade to win the race. Her thorns caught the elixir first. "Now, pour it, Roserade!" Roseluck screeched at the top of her lungs. "Rose...Rade!" Doing what she could, ROserade used her thorns to snap off the top of the elixir, allowing it to open up at last. And now it was open, the liquid within would drop, being free to land on something else at last. And just as Daisy and Paradise wanted, the mouth of the Despair Plant was the target since it was so wide. The liquid dropped into the mouth of the Bullfrog as the Bug-Types all pulled back their strings. Bullfrog's tongue retracted as its mouth closed afterwards. Shrivel took notice of this, still pinning the two Flora Ponies down. She failed to keep the elixir away from Bullfrog and now a piece of it has entered the Despair Plant. The elixir was then pulled back towards Roserade as she retracted her thorns. Now all everyone had to do was wait and see what would happen to the Despair Plant. And at the same time, worry about their predicament with the grass. The elixir had landed. At last, it made contact with a Despair Plant. But is it for better or for worse and how will affect the current event in Ponyville? As the journey continues. Chapter 141 End.