"Gengar!" Agatha yelled. "Use Nightshade!"
Gengar's entire body glowed purple-black, lighting the stadium in a hellish light, and the challenger's Rapidash whinnied in pain, its flaming mane and tail suddenly burning dark, its body frozen by the attack. The light faded, and there was a moment of silence before Rapidash trembled and then fell. It didn't get back up.
"Rapidash is down! The winner is Gengar!" shouted the voice on the loud speakers. "Both trainers are down to their last Pokemon! What strategy will the challenger use against his otherworldly opponent?"
The challenging trainer threw a Pokeball, and a Tauros emerged, snorting and pawing the field. Gengar grinned at him, but the announcer seemed impressed by this move. "The challenger's final Pokemon is Tauros! This trainer came prepared, indeed! For any of you who don't know, Tauros is immune to ghost-type moves! How will Agatha handle him?"
"Tauros!" cried the challenger, "Thunderbolt!"
Tauros' horns began to spark as he charged at Gengar, bellowing.
"Gengar! Dodge, and then use Hypnosis!" Agatha yelled.
Gengar tried to jump over Tauros, but halfway over Tauros spun and released its Thunderbolt attack. As electricity streaked through the air, Gengar's eyes lit up, and it sent three rings of psychic waves toward its opponent. All three rings struck Tauros just as the electricity hit its mark. Gengar doubled over, and Tauros' head dropped.
"A critical hit to Gengar!" the announcer cried. "It may be paralyzed, but Tauros is fast asleep!"
As Gengar got to his feat, Agatha cried, "Gengar! Dream Eater!"
A black substance started billowing from Tauros' motionless form, and shot straight into Gengar's wide-open mouth.
Tauros woke with a bellow, red in its eyes, and it whipped itself with its three tails as though to lash the rest of the sleep away.
"Tauros, use Ice Beam!" yelled the challenger. In a flash a light, the blue beam struck Gengar hard, freezing the Pokemon solid in a block of ice.
"Gengar is a solid piece of ice! It looks like it might be all over!"
"Finish it with Thunderbolt!" the challenger yelled.
Another yellow flash of blinding light filled the stadium, the ice broke with a shattering noise like glass, and Gengar dropped to the ground. It lay still.
"Gengar is unable to continue! The challenger wins!"
From where I was hidden in the air ducts above the arena, I smiled to myself. That battle was really something, but more importantly, I now had a new transformation. No one had ever used a Tauros against the Elite Four before, not as long as I had been watching them anyway, and every new Pokemon I saw made me stronger.
I turned to go outside, my stomach growling. I hoped I didn't run into anymon out there, but if I wanted to eat, I would have to risk it. "Transform," I whispered. I could feel my body changing, limbs growing, my color turning from pink to red. It was wonderful being a True Ditto, even though all other Pokemon hated them. They all believed that because we could morph at will, we would use that ability to spy on them. It always made me laugh when I heard a normal Ditto was caught, though honestly I wasn't sure I was willing to give them the name 'Ditto.' Those piss-poor excuses for Ditto could only change if their target was standing right in front of them. What good were they?
I headed over to a nearby stream and took a long drink. Tauros' body was powerful, and I found myself wishing my true form was even half as strong. But no matter. I could stay in this form as long as I wanted.
I looked into the water at my reflection, and felt disappointment knot in my chest. Shit! I still couldn't change the two small spots of pink coloring on my rump.
Deciding that grass would make a decent meal, I started to eat. It was good grass, crunchy and sweet, and for a few minutes I stopped worrying about being spotted. It was a long time since I'd enjoyed a meal this much, and I wondered if Tauros' taste buds were more acute than the other Pokemon's I'd been transforming into lately.
"Hey, I found it!"
I froze, turning slowly toward the Ponyta's voice, cursing myself for dropping my guard. Then I turned and galloped away as fast as I could, toward the stadium. Unfortunately, I ran right into their trap. Before I realized what had happened, three Rapidash, two Ponyta, and a Ninetails surrounded me, boxing me in. There was no where left to run. Thinking fast, I quickly changed into an Alakazam. But just as I started to Teleport to safety, Ninetails used Extrasensory. My vision went fuzzy, my thoughts exploded into chaos, and I tried to stop myself, tried to stop what I was doing. But I couldn't remember what I was doing, and a moment later, the Pokemon disappeared, I was gone. But I didn't know where I was going. I blacked out.
* * *
"Damn, he got away again, boss," said one of the Rapidash.
"Not to worry. I saw him flinch as he left," said Ninetails with a laugh.
"What does that have to do with anything?" asked a Ponyta.
Ninetails smirked. "If a Pokemon cannot concentrate while they Teleport, they can be sent anywhere! Most never return alive."
* * *
It felt like only moments later, I opened my eyes and found myself in a forest I'd never seen before. My neck prickled, and I stared at the trees. For mere plants, I sensed they were emitting a large amount of sentient energy. It was unnerving. I decided not to Transform again, at least not for now. There were not many Pokemon that would actively seek out an Alakazam, and even fewer could get the better of one. I walked through the woods for a good twenty minutes, my mind still clearing, but I did not see even one Pokemon. The longer I walked through the forest, the more uncomfortable I became. I could see nothing, but felt everything, as if the Pokemon were a part of the forest itself.
"HELP! Somepony, any pony!"
What was that? I hesitated, uncertain if it would be safe, but then decided it didn't matter. I wanted to see the fight, especially if it was between Pokemon I'd never seen before. The new transformations could be useful. So I lifted myself into the air, and flew toward the screaming. After about three minutes, I drew near to the commotion. I hid in some dense bushes, and then peered out at the scene.
About fifteen dog Pokemon and six pony Pokemon I had never seen before filled the clearing. The dogs all looked the same, but the ponies were all different. Three were large, one lavender with a single horn, one orange with a big floppy hat, and the last pure, clean white with a horn and a deep purple mane. The other three were smaller, one yellow with a massive bow on her head, one white with a horn, and the last orange with wings.
I was ecstatic. So many new transformations! I fixed my attention on the lavender Pokemon with the horn, and used Transform. But nothing happened. I stopped for a moment, confused. How was this possible? I shook my head, and decided to try the pony with the floppy hat instead. I used Transform again, but once again, nothing happened.
There was only one explanation. These creatures were not Pokemon.
"Help! Please Help us!" screamed the white pony. The dog creatures growled at them menacingly, surrounding them, making the ponies cluster together.
It was strange. The dogs had very little brain function, but the ponies had quite a bit. More than many Pokemon, in fact. Should I help them?
No! I was a Ditto! Every creature I'd ever met wanted me dead. Helping these creatures would serve no purpose. They would probably turn on me immediately, when they figured out what I was. On the other hand, how could I live with myself if I let the foals die?
"Big sis, I'm sorry," said the little pony with the bow.
"I know you are," said the orange pony with the hat.
Damn it. What had happened? How did I get here? Teleporting with no idea where I was going could have brought me anywhere. And here I was, surrounded by woods I'd never seen or heard of, trees with strange energy, and animals that were neither human nor Pokemon. But really, since they were not Pokemon, I guess I could assume they didn't want to kill me. And anyway, if I did save them, I could ask them were I was. But how to help them without scaring them? I would have to transform into a Pokemon that resembled them. A pony with a horn? Only one type of Pokemon came to mind.
"Transform," I whispered.
By now, the dogs had completely encircled the group of ponies. I didn't have much time. I took a deep breath and exhaled swiftly, spewing fire into the clearing, engulfing the ponies completely.
"Fire!" the ponies screamed. I galloped into the fray, using Quick Attack so that I wouldn't harm the ponies with my fire attacks. I smacked the first growling, drooling dog creature, and it fell apart into pieces, only to rebuild itself in seconds. I jumped back as the pack started their slow walk toward me, confused and a little disgusted. So physical moves wouldn't work on them, apparently. But maybe fire would. I just had to be careful not to hit the ponies, or the whole point of this battle would be lost. I set myself aflame, and charged into the midst of the pack, smashing into three of them. Instantly they turned to ash. That was enough for the rest of the creatures. They turned tail and ran away, yelping. The cowards.
With the danger passed, I let my protective Fire Spin die. The six ponies looked around, faces still filled with fright. When they realized that the dogs were no longer there, though, they visibly relaxed. Then they saw me.
"Twilight, what is that?" the three larger ones step out in front of the smaller ones, protectively.
The lavender one replied, "I think it's a unicorn."
"But he's on fire! He surely can't be a unicorn," said the white pony.
"Maybe he's some kind of demon pony," said the pony with the big floppy hat.
The one called Twilight said, "He could have had a magical accident that left him that way. Besides, he hasn't moved since the fire died down. I don't think he's going to attack us."
Magical accident? Yes, yes, that was a great way to explain my form! "Yes," I said. "I had an accident a few days ago. I'm sorry if I scared you."
"You see?" said Twilight. "He's just a unicorn." She smiled at me. "Thank you for the save."
"It was nothing. I would never, ever let foals die." Suddenly, up in the sky a ring formed, a ring with every color in the rainbow. I stared at it. "What the hell?"
What ever it was, it was coming right at me. It came in fast, so I used Bounce, narrowly dodging the attack. It hit the ground leaving a small ditch, and a blue pony climbed out of it a moment later.
"Don't worry, girls! Rainbow Dash is here! I'll beat this thing!" said the newcomer.
"Rainbow! He's a friend!" yelled the lavender one.
"Oh! Oops."
As I started my decent, I realized I was going to hit her. "Move if you don't want to get hurt!" I shouted. She looked up but wasn't fast enough. I come down on top of her with a crash.
I rolled off her and she jumped up. "What the hay?" she shouted at me. "Why did you hit me?"
Before I could even start to say something, though, the white pony slapped Rainbow Dash across the face. "How dare you try to hurt the pony who just saved our lives?" She turned and walked over to me, but I didn't want to have anything to do with that. With every step she took, I took one step back. She stopped and blinked. "Dear, why do you keep backing up? All I want to do is thank you."
"Rarity," the smaller white one said. "Look at him. He's been acting spooked since you started walking towards him."
"She's right, Rarity," said Twilight. The she turned to me. "What's wrong? Why are you scared?"
I took one more step back, and answered, "I'm just not used to having any Poke...Pony try to get close to me without wanting me dead, okay?"
For some reason, they looked horrified.
I blinked. "Was it something I said?"
Before I could react, the small one with the bow grabbed onto my leg. I reared up in surprise, trying to get it off, to no avail. I panicked for a moment, but then I heard laughter, and I gave up on freeing myself.
"Mister, it's all right, no pony here will harm you," said the one that attached itself to me, and the others nodded in agreement.
I wished Rapidash was a psychic type so I could read their emotions and decide if they were truthful or not. But right now, I had no idea where I was or how I'd gotten here. So I guess I'd just have to trust them ... for now. They started to come closer again.
"I'd like a few questions answered though, if that's alright," I said.
They smiled at me, and approached more quickly.
"I have some for you as well," said Twilight. "But not here, this place is much too dangerous. By the way, my name is Twilight Sparkle, that's Rarity, her younger sister Sweetie Bell, Applejack and her sister Apple Bloom. This is Rainbow Dash, and--"
"Her sister?" I guessed.
"I wish," said the unknown little pony. "I'm Scootaloo."
With sparkling eyes, Rarity asked, "And what is my gallant knight's name?"
I was taken aback by this question. Pokemon didn't have names unless we were captured, so I said, "I never had a name. Like I told you before, I never had anyone close to me that didn't want me dead." Then I saw the pity in their eyes, and that gave me a funny feeling. No one had ever pitied me before. I wasn't sure I liked it.
"Your mom never gave you a name?" asked Sweetie, her eyes wide.
With a shrug, I replied, "I never knew my parents. Since day one, I've had to fend for myself. Isn't it the same here?"
Once again, I was faced with seven shocked expressions. Then they start to cry.
What the hell was wrong with these creatures? They went from one emotion to another faster then I could change my shape.
A rustling in the bushes snapped me from my thoughts, and two more mares walked out: a pink one with a curly mane, and a pale yellow one with a pink mane. The pale yellow pony looked at me in alarm, eyes widening, and then ducked behind Applejack The other sprang toward me. A Quick Attack? I crouched defensively, but just before she collided with me, she stopped instantly as if she had no momentum at all.
"Omigodiveneverseenyoubeforeivegottagoplansomethingforyou," the pony said. I stared at her, blinking, confused. Was that even a form of speech?
"Umm... hi?" I said. But she was gone in a poof of dust.
"Oh, don't mind her," said Twilight. "That was Pinkie Pie. She's always like that. And the one behind A.J. is Fluttershy. But we should finish our conversation back in town. Come on," she added.
"Hey, wait a minute, what about his name?" Rainbow demanded.
"Well, I guess we can let him pick out his own name when we get to Ponyville," said Rarity.
They started trotting off, until they realized I hadn't budged. The three small ones came running back to me, and started pushing my hindquarters with all their might. Well, I did decide to trust them, right? So I sighed, and started to follow them toward this town. But all I could think as I walked toward a town I'd never heard of, in a world I never knew existed, with a bunch of creatures who didn't act like any creature I'd ever met, was that I really didn't want to pick a name.
We galloped fast through the forest, and I sensed the ponies were afraid. Several times I glanced over my shoulder to see what they were running from, but saw nothing. What were these creatures so afraid of? Why did they fear these woods so much? Was it just the dogs I drove off, or was there something more here, something worse I didn’t know about? Now that I wasn’t an Alakazam anymore, the forest seemed almost normal and harmless, but the ponies’ fear made me edgy. A twig snapped, making them jump. I was curious. If they were so afraid of this place, why were they here at all?
And more importantly, why were they being so accepting of an outsider, someone they didn’t even know? I fixed my gaze on the pony directly in front of me, the orange one. There was an odd mark on the side of her rump, three apples clustered together, and I remembered Twilight said her name was Applejack. The pony seemed relatively fit, with a shiny coat and strong muscles, but she also looked as if she’d never been in a fight before. I couldn’t see a single scar, cut, or missing piece of fur on her body.
Apparently I stared for too long, because after a moment I heard some snickering from the small foal next to me. I glanced over and saw Applejack’s little sister, Applebloom, smiling at me with an odd, knowing expression on her face. I frowned, confused, and returned my attention back to the path. Maybe it wasn’t polite to stare at other ponies in this place.
After a few minutes, Applebloom said, "Hey, Mister?"
I glanced at her, wondering whether to answer. Finally, I said, “Yeah?”
"We’re friends, right?" she asked.
“Well,” I said, “I’ve never had a friend before, but I guess that doesn’t mean we can’t be.”
"Good,” she said, and lowered her voice. "What do you think of my sis?"
Not thinking much of it, I replied, "Well, she looks pretty fit. She’s got a good build, so I figure she’s strong and has decent endurance. That’s always a plus.”
The little white pony next to Applebloom had apparently been listening in, because she said, “What about my sis? What do you think of her?”
“Uh ... you mean Rarity, right?” I asked. The little pony nodded, so I said, “Well, she speaks really well, and seems to take great pride in her feminine look. But I’ve got to tell you, I’m not sure about either one of them. Their bodies are without a scratch or even a hair out of place. I mean, they seem to love you two very much, so I can assume that they’re kind ponies. But at the same time, they seem really inexperienced."
Obviously, the other ponies were listening to our conversation as well, since they all did a stutter step, and gave me a quick, scandalized glance. Applejack and Rarity both turned red for some reason, and Applejack said, "There ain’t nothing wrong with being inexperienced. I just haven't found that special somepony yet."
"A lady will not do such a thing until she has found her other half," said Rarity primly.
I could tell they were flustered, but honestly, I couldn’t understand why. And why in the world would they need to find ‘that special somepony’ before they learned to battle? Perhaps they were too embarrassed to battle in front of just anyone because their skills were so underdeveloped. Yes, that must’ve been it. “Hey, it’s nothing to be embarrassed about,” I said lightly, “Tell you what. I’ll teach you both." They stopped dead in their tracks and whirled around. The others followed suit. I took a large gulp as I looked into their eyes. They looked pissed.
Now what did I do?
"You have some nerve!" Rarity yelled, and she slapped me across the face. I instinctively jumped away to avoid the rest of her Double-slap. Unfortunately, I landed right next to Applejack. Her face was deep red beneath her hat, and she shouted, "What makes you think we’re even interested in somepony like you!" She turned around and tried to hit me with a hind-hoof Stomp.
I dodged her strike, frustrated by this reaction, and asked, "What’s wrong? Where I come from, we do it all the time with others we don't know! It’s nothing to be ashamed of. In fact, the more we do it, the better. How else are we going to improve our skills?"
This argument didn’t seem to do the trick. Now they looked completely appalled. Rainbow Dash demanded, "What kind of bucked-up place did you call home?"
What kind of question was that? "Well,” I said, “the place I come from is a lot like here, except every ... pony fights one another."
Rainbow Dash gaped at me for a moment, and then understanding blossomed on her face. "Wait, were you talking about fighting this whole time?"
"Of course,” I said. “In my homeland, you need to be strong to survive. Otherwise, you die. Wait. What did you think I was talking about?"
The ponies turned redder than ever, and turned away
What did I say wrong? I couldn’t understand. With my head down, I said, "I’m sorry if I offended any of you. I just never really spoke to other... ponies before, except to trade threats, so I guess it’s my fault."
The ponies didn’t reply. The rest of the walk out of the woods was awkwardly quiet. Every now and then a pony turned her head and looked back at me, but when I tried to meet her eyes, she quickly looked away. These creatures were so strange, I couldn’t understand them.
As we left the woods, I saw that the sun was halfway down. The ponies’ demeanor lifted immediately. The small ones started to jump up and down, and took off at a gallop toward town. The older ponies didn't even seem to notice. They were whispering among themselves, and I could easily guess what – or who – they were talking about. But they could talk all they wanted. I was sure I could find something to do in this town of theirs while they discussed me, even if it was just looking after the small ones. So I started after the three, leaving the others far behind.
I soon made it to the town, and stopped quickly when I saw more ponies, much more. The foals were nowhere in sight, but it was hard to tell in this crowd. There were ponies everywhere, every size and every color, most of them females. They all stopped what they were doing, and stared at me as though I was some kind of monster.
This couldn’t be good. I tensed, crouched defensively, and studied the terrain, getting ready to fight if I had to. However, to my surprise and amusement, they all galloped into their houses. I couldn’t stop myself from laughing incredulously. It was easy to see now why the ponies feared the woods: they were complete cowards. I was willing to bet even a Magikarp could beat these creatures in a fight.
I walked through the empty street. With no destination in mind, I wandered around until I heard hooves behind me. Before I could turn to look, a voice said, "Halt, demon. You are under arrest for disturbing the peace. Lie down and spread your legs."
I looked to my left and saw five ponies about fifty feet away from me, all of them wearing face armor that distantly resembled Marowak’s, except made from metal rather than bone. Two of the ponies had wings, two had neither wing nor horn, and the last had a more elaborate helmet and a horn. Almost disappointed, I decided I should probably scrap my Magikarp theory.
I must have taken too long to give them an answer, because the two wingless, hornless ponies charged at me, and I immediately recognized a Take Down attack. Reacting, I used Agility, and I could feel myself grow lighter and lighter. The ponies were thirty feet from me now. I put on another burst of speed – twenty feet away – and another burst – fifteen feet – and by then it was as though they were moving in slow motion. I lowered my head and charged forward, making it to the first pony in a flash of flame. I smashed into his chest plate, using a Megahorn attack. It sent the pathetic creature flying past his three other friends, but his chest plate took most of the damage. Nonetheless, it was enough to render him unconscious. The closest pony turned her head, eyes wide and filled with fear, and she stumbled away from me.
"Stay there and I will not harm you," I warned her. Then I brought my attention back to the three other ponies, just in time to see the winged ones taking off, coming at me fast. Compared to my Rapidash form, though, they might as well have stood still, and just to show the difference in skill I used Quick Attack. Instead of going head-on, I ran to the side and went around the building next to me. I smacked the first pony going full speed, and she smashed backwards right into her companion, both crashing through the closest building.
Only one left. But as I turned to face the last pony, a strange thing happened. I started to float up into the air, trapped in a big pink bubble. I looked down at my foe and realized his horn was glowing pink as well. That pissed me off, and I began to engulf myself in flames once more, this time using Inferno.
Behind me, I heard a familiar voice cry, "What the hay is going on here?" I turned to look, my concentration broken. It was the five mares who brought me here from the forest. I felt surge of pleasure, and turned back to face my foe. "Now you’re in for it,” I said.
The five ponies trotted over to me. "A little help?" I said.
Twilight Sparkle looked at me, then at everything around me, then back at me again. She looked angry, and I assumed it was because these creatures had attacked me for no reason. So it came as a huge surprise when she turned on me, and said, "We leave you alone for three minutes, and you destroy a building, attack the town guardponies, and knock three out cold!" Her voice throbbed with fury, and I realized the other ponies were glaring at me too.
Taken aback, I said, "Wait. What? I saved your lives in that forest, remember? Now are you going to help me here, or aren’t you?”
Her horn lit up with violet light, and almost at once I began to feel unnaturally sleepy. It was Hypnosis, I realized.
"I thought we ... I thought we were friends," I murmured. With difficulty, I managed to look into her eyes, but I saw no compassion there. None. “You said we were.”
“I’m sorry,” she said coldly. “You’re just too dangerous."
I fell fast asleep.
