My Little Pokémon

by Amarvax

Merry Dread

Equestria. Ponyville. Local Hospital. Nightfall.

Ponyville was recently covered in ink and now that was swiftly replaced by the drench of water. It could be considered a soggy mess now after everything that transpired. The important thing was that the Memory Demon was defeated but as a cost, four individuals took significant damage.

Ash, Twilight, Bayleef and Victini. Bayleef and Victini found themselves being healed up at the local hospital and the Pokemon Center. Audino's Heal Pulse wasn't enough. As for Ash and Twilight, it was the hospital for them.

Ash received a black spot on his chest thanks to the Memory Demon which brought along some severe pain. This black spot of ink also resembled the magic that one of the other vampires, Melody Moon, possesses. He laid there on his bed holding his chest as the spot had yet to leave. A Heal Pulse from Audino didn't do the trick and unfortunately, the doctor couldn't do any better.

"Sorry. This is out of my expertise. Again." The doctor shrugged. "I can let you rest up and that's about it. This needs Magical Involvement from Princess Celestia or Princess Luna. For you, Ash. Princess Twilight. You can just lay there and recover but this black spot is all about magic."

"Thanks anyway." Ash groaned before looking over at Twilight who was on the other side. Twilight, after taking a harsh explosion which she barely managed to resist with the best of her abilities, was keeping herself conscious only because of the Rift Magic within her. "Twilight. Are you doing any better?"

"I don't know. Glad I became a vessel for this magic just for this one moment. But that Memory Demon was way more troublesome than we expected. And there are 14 more that we have to deal with?"

"At least we stopped it." said Rarity. "Although, you've all been badly injured. Maybe you should stay here before doing anything else. Especially you, Ash. You'll be too eager to get back into the action."

"Hehe...yeah." Ash laughed as there was no disputing that at all. Even when he's injured, he would try and chime in. But by laughing, Ash triggered the black spot some more, causing him to strain.

"Pika-Pi!" Pikachu would climb up the bed in response to Ash's pain. Meloetta and Hoopa would soon gather around him too with stressful expressions.

"Don't worry, Pikachu. But man, this stuff is rough. Sitting up hurts and so does laughing." Ash sighed. "It's gonna take something else to get it out."

"Water and wind won't wash it away either," Applejack added. "That demon left something pretty bad behind. This ain't like the other ink blots."

"I've called Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. They're still with Iris right now." Spike held up his Xtransceiver. "They'll be here as soon as they can. They're kinda preparing for the worst to come."

"How can you still smile even when you're in pain?" Standing in the corner, away from everyone else, was none other than Sombra. He already left Ash's body, deciding to stand on the outside. Though he stated that he wouldn't walk around Ponyville, for this one instance, he made an exception but only for Ash's condition."Impressive. Very impressive."

"Sombra. Do you know about this?" Ash asked, hoping that Sombra's knowledge could extend far enough to know about this spot. He seemed to know about the Memory Demon and the box from earlier.

"You will need magic to rip it out. That spot is eerily similar to a curse that already exists. But that one requires music along with unrelenting heat to make it work. That is the superior version compared to what you received."

"Is there a way to get rid of it?" Sweetie Belle asked, hoping that Sombra could also find a solution to this. She felt comfortable asking the former tyrannical ruler of the Crystal Empire solely because he practically saved her life from a potential explosion.

"Hmmrgh..." Sombra grumbled. Unfortunately for him, he knew that Ash was far too valuable to him. Since he and Ash were connected, if Ash goes out, Sombra would follow suit and there was no way to prevent it. "For my own sake...I must share this. But only for my sake. You're all lucky. Because of how the Umbrum have relations to the Dread League, this is the greatest opportunity for you to know various secrets."

"The Umbrum are connected to the Dread League? So you know everything about them?" Ash asked.

"Not everything. But quite a lot. It all has ties back to the Crystal Empire since that is the closest to Magehold. All the Umbrum were imprisoned in another realm but before that, I learned that they once moved through the underworld casually without being locked up. Those demons and that box did come from the underworld after all. As for that spot, your ruler is the answer. I can confirm that Celestia is the only one who can remove this."

"Why only her?" Rarity threw more questions in.

"Do you think those demons were just being held back just because they had nothing better to do? That's far from the truth." He shook his head. "The 100 Demons once attacked the world centuries ago before the box was even made. They were free to do whatever and cause as much chaos as they could with seemingly no limitations. This world would look a lot differently if they were given more time to unleash their destructive urges. But even before your Princess was born, someone stopped them."

"Was it another princess?" Rainbow Dash was expecting it to be another princess. Possibly an alicorn if all 100 of them were defeated.

"No one knows. Not even the Umbrum. What is known is that it was the representation of the True Sun. The Sun may appear yellow and orange but it is actually white. Some say that it was the higher cosmic forces up there intervening. But despite how brief the appearance of this Sun-clad pony was, it used the brilliance of the Sun to overpower every curse that those demons brought with extreme justice. Much like your princess, it was able to control the Sun itself. But instead of just moving it across the cosmic skies, they say that it could bring the Sun to Earth."

"Wow! That sounds amazing!" That story was stellar to the ears as Sweetie Belle's eyes lit up. "Do you think we could find whoever that is?! That'd be a lot of help!"

"Yes! Let history repeat itself!" Rarity nodded in approval.

"Impossible." But Sombra shut them down. "Despite what I said, there is one other thing known about this solar entity. It used up so much power in its battle against the 100 Demons. And unexpectedly, it was far too weak to do anything else. No one knows how, but it ended up falling, dissipating into nothing but tiny solar particles. However, though its existence was brief, some Umbrum say that it returned to the stars, resting at its home. But that's a lie. Queen Rabia knows that to be the truth. But the actual truth of what happened to it is a mystery."

"So what does this have to do with Princess Celestia?" Twilight groaned while sitting up. "Aside from the Sun connection?"

"Though the queen might not see it, I do. I believe your princess is the answer to that mystery. Moving the Sun is nothing to scoff at. To do such a thing, the common answer is being an alicorn or possessing high magical power. But, the Sun isn't just some celestial body in the sky. Not at all. The Sun possibly has something special within it that no one has yet to discover."

"For once...I don't know about that." But even Twilight found that to be a bit out there. "I always thought that it was just the way the magic in this world works. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna create the light and darkness by manipulating the Sun and the Moon and even when Princess Luna was gone for thousands of years, Princess Celestia could control both. It might just be that their magic is just right enough. It's their special talent.

"It is their special talent. Although, it seems like somepony still needs to learn a bit more about the world she lives in. What you're saying makes sense. But much like how you discovered the existence of aliens, there are wonders out there you have yet to truly see. And frustratingly, I will never have my chance to conquer those wonders thanks to my current state. But anyway...now you know. However, for your sake, you should hope that your princess can pull it off."

"Hmph. I'm getting there, okay?" Twilight grumbled before slumping onto the bed. She hated the fact that Sombra was potentially right.

"On the bright side, I can wait for Celestia. I've got faith in her that she'll pull it off." Ash gave a thumbs-up while having one eye open from all the pain. "Hopefully, pretty soon."

"You'd better hang in there, boy. You're far more resilient than most other humans and even these ponies. I don't expect you to go out like this." Sombra replied.

"Wait a sec...where's Pinkie Pie?!" Rainbow Dash noticed that the entire time, Pinkie Pie was nowhere to be seen. She never showed up once when the Memory Demon attacked.

"Don't worry. I checked up on her." But Spike had that covered with his Xtransceiver. With it, he could check up on his friends to see what they were up to. And from his words, he could guarantee that Pinkie Pie was doing fine. "She wasn't with us when we went to Canterlot and came back. Pinkie went to Manehattan instead. But what about Stoutland?"

"That demon said it took over Mayor Mare by showing up in a book. The crafty little thing...So right as it stole Mayor Mare's body, it must've attacked Stoutland too." Rarity answered.

"Fluttershy said she'd go and check up on him. He might still be in Town Hall. Hopefully he's doing alright." Spike added. "But don't we have 14 more of these demons to worry about?"

"The rest of the world definitely has to worry about them. If you all had trouble with one demon at its best potential then what do you think 14 more can do? And you have to worry about the other vampires that are roaming around." Sombra warned them. "So, do you think you can set out there and stop them?"

"I've got a better idea." Ash groaned while leaning forward. "We'll try and find Opal first. She's taking charge of this entire thing. And as for all the vampires, there's one way to stop them all."

"Hm. Going for the main problem first, eh? Clever. I didn't even have to tell you to do that." Sombra approved.

"Go after Opal first? Finding her will be tricky, won't it?" Spike questioned. "Where's she even at?"

"We don't know where she's at. But we can do one thing. We can try and force her out." Ash grinned as for once, he came up with a plan that was centred around ending this. Sure, he was a sucker for action, but when his friends are all in peril, that's when things change for him.

Opal Vivacity was certainly the main problem here. And from all of Ash's experiences, taking down the ringleader was the way to go as it would topple everything else. Of course, finding her was the biggest problem and there were still other problems out there to handle. From what Sombra said, this foreboding sense of dread wasn't going to stop at just the single demon they encountered.

---

Manehattan. Contest Hall. Nightfall.

Manehattan. Currently, Pinkie Pie found herself having a ball there. That is until she was told about the 15 Demons and the Vampires thanks to Spike. 15 Demons and various vampires to worry about, especially during the night. But she wasn't the only one who learned about this.

Pinkie Pie would also come across Coco Pommel who was to be expected over at Manehattan. At the moment, Coco and her Glaceon had just finished up a Pokemon Contest, removing all dresses and accessories.

"That's a bit scary to hear about it. I didn't think vampires were actually real." said Coco, who finished up placing her contest equipment away. "But why only 15 if it's a box of 100?"

"No clue." Pinkie Pie shrugged. "But no need to worry. We'll be fine by the end of this all. Don't let that distract you from your Pokemon Contests. By the way, great job on winning this one."

"Thanks. I think I'm ready for the Grand Festival by this point." Coco blushed. "It took a while but here we are. Besides, I would've been scolded by Mawile if I got too tense at the last moment. For the Grand Festival, I can't afford to feel tense even there. Even if it's the biggest part of a Pokemon Contest."

"Ah, I'm sure it would've been fine. But if you're still feeling pretty tense, you can always chat with Rarity and Sweetie Belle. After they recover from what just happened." Pinkie held her Xtransceiver out to her. "One knows a lot about contests thanks to Dawn and the other-"

Just then, right as her Xtransceiver was held out to the fashionista, right then and there, with the only warning being her Pinkie Sense, the device melted. It was thanks to her bizarre Pinkie sense that she was able to jump back. The device that was used for communicating with her friends was gone. Just like that.

"Mew?!" Mew, who was holding Glaceon's face, stopped what he was doing to notice this. Glaceon, who was letting it happen, would avert her attention elsewhere.

"M-My Xtransceiver..." Pinkie Pie's jaw dropped.

"Did your tail just react to the danger around you? Impressive." Just then, another voice reverberated across this room. It didn't come from Coco Pommel at all. Someone else was here. Pinkie Pie, who looked at her hoof to see if there was any damage, quickly swivelled.

Sitting next to the plethora of rental dresses was the concealed appearance of another pony who had the shadows to hide most of her, until they started moving away. Was she here the entire time? No one could answer that quite clearly. She just snuck up on them without a sound.

"Maybe I shouldn't think about it too much. I have your attention now." The pony continued before showing a rather cunning smile on her face. After looking at her, Pinkie Pie noticed vampire wings on her. As if that wasn't a dead giveaway.

"Vampire!" She screeched at the top of her lungs. Coco would soon grimace from this bellowing side before hiding behind Glaceon.

"Mew?!"

"Just so you know, there's a reason why we only sent out 15." She then hopped off the chair, adjusting her lavish scarf. "But you don't need to know that."

"Has she been here this entire time?" Coco shuddered.

"Not in here. I was outside for a while before showing up in this room. Unfortunately, I missed out on the contest. But...no way I was going to be in there in the first place. Too many lights for my taste." She rambled as if being around Pinkie Pie and Coco was casual despite the fact that she was a vampire. "But enough about me. Was that important?"

"Pretty important..." Pinkie Pie's ears dropped.

"Good to know. I made the right choice coming after you first, Pinkie Pie. Quite the celebrity, aren't you?" The vampire would close her eyes while putting on a rather smug smile. "A celebrity of meddlesome friends. So it's best that you don't get in touch with them ever again."

"Mew...!" That was a genuine threat. It was easy to see that. Mew got in front of Pinkie Pie, immediately becoming defensive to whatever could come this way. Glaceon would do the same, snarling at the vampire. Since Mew was a cat, the best he could do was hiss but his hiss wasn't that similar to a cat at all.

From what they saw, this vampire was involved with melting after the Xtransceiver just melted on the spot. For Glaceon, that could be troublesome if it worked in the way she believed.

"Merry Dread is my name." She introduced herself. "And I won't have you snarling and growling at me. Not when your trainers disapprove. Isn't that right, you two?"

"Mew?" Mew wondered what Merry Dread meant by that. It wasn't what Mew was thinking. Pinkie Pie didn't shake her head or tell Mew to calm down. Instead, something far worse happened. Unexpectedly, Pinkie's hoof wrapped around Mew's body, grabbing the New Species Pokemon. "Mew!"

But it wasn't a friendly grab or a hug. Instead, this was vigorous. A vigorous hof grab came from Pinkie Pie which would harm Mew instead of comfort him. "S-Sorry Mew! I didn't mean to...!" But from the tone in Pinkie Pie's voice, this was not intentional. Her hooves were visibly shaking as if she was trying to resist something.

Glaceon gasped before having her tail stomped on. By none other than Coco Pommel. It was a similar situation. Coco's hooves were trembling too. "Glaceon?!"

"Glaceon! I'm sorry! I can't feel my hooves that much!" Coco apologized as both Pokemon were being restrained by their own trainers, which was an unpleasant feeling on both sides.

"Hmm..." Merry Dread pondered while looking at this scenario. "Actually, maybe it'd be better if it was the other way around." Just then, by emanating magic from her vampiric wings, Merry was able to reverse the scenarios with ease.

Mew would suddenly feel control of his body being taken away as he would use his Psychic powers against Pinkie Pie. The New Species Pokemon would force Pinkie Pie off of her, restraining the earth pony. "M-Mew...!"

As for Glaceon, she would instantly freeze Coco Pommel by using her natural chilling capabilities that came from her fur. The ice would rapidly move across Coco's body, holding back her hooves. Glaceon tried stopping this, but the best she could do was slow it down. The ice would catch half of Coco Pommel, freezing her left hooves and her face.

"That's better," Merry smirked. "The stronger force is the better option. But don't hold out on me. I know you each have more Pokemon to spare. So I'll just take them off you right now. Mew. If you would..."

"You're controlling our Pokemon?!" Experiencing the first taste of what a vampire was capable of, Coco experienced Curse Magic for the first time. It was simple but effective and yet a common theme with the Dread League and those involved with them. Control.

"Duh. What else would it be? It's rather common back at Magehold. We just love control and possession~" She giggled as Mew would take Pinkie Pie's Poke Balls. All 7 of them with each containing 6 Slurpuff and one Spinda. Coco Pommel had Mawile's Poke Ball taken away from her as she was only with two Pokemon this time.

"K-Knock it off!" Pinkie Pie protested while straining herself. She would try and raise her hooves, only to accidentally hit herself in the face.

"I'd rather not. Let me have this, please. There's already a demon outside and it will hog all the glory with what it's capable of. You understand, right?" Merry would reveal that one of the 15 Demons had been released already. And at this very moment, it was on the outside while Merry handled things on the inside. "There are still people and Pokemon in this hall, right? It's smaller but I'll take what I can get."

And to make matters worse, the Xtransceiver that Pinkie Pie had was kaput. Merry Dread already knew what to do about that device, knowing how extremely valuable it is.

"Now, Pinkie Pie. You're friends with Fluttershy. This is a staggering advantage that I've made here. Would you mind taking us to her so we can recruit her? It's Opal's order, not mine."

"Mm-mm!" If she could shake her head, she would. Pinkie Pie greatly rejected this. "No way!"

"Figures...That'll only bring some hassle. Alright then. I'll just head to where she's at. Wherever she may be. I only found you because of this contest. Lucky me, right?"

"Mew! Glaceon! You have to break free!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed. "I don't know but you've gotta do it somehow cause...this is really starting to hurt!"

"This is...s-s-s-so cold..." Coco shuddered as the ice was continuing to spread. Even Pinkie was feeling this harsh chill.

"I refuse to let them let you go. Unless...you're willing to sell your soul." Merry brought up a dangerous offer. And right s she did so, the Box of 100 Demons appeared right next to her, materializing out of the air. A horrifying proposition had been made to them both.

The second case of the Dread League initiating their attack had been revealed. This time, it was in Manehattan with the culprit being a controlling pony by the name of Merry Dread. And with the Box of 100 Demons in her presence, Pinkie Pie feared what would happen next. But judging by what the vampire uttered, there was already a clear answer as the journey continues.

Chapter 969 End.

Comments

[ArcticAce01]

Oh no. A new Vampire makes her appearance and Pinkie and Coco are in trouble now

[cutting clouds]

30 days. here we go

[Winsor27]

I see the curse of Merry Dread is the same as Seilah from Fairy Tail