Changes made Septerber 14/15th:
Marius now has a hinted back-story, which changed his relationship with his Pokémon.
The radio conversation was extended.
Marius was made slightly more expressive.
"Captain Stu, what do we do?! Should we turn back?!"
Marius Stu, the seventeen-year-old captain of the M.S.V. Charlie looked over his ships bow towards the skies and seas ahead. With all the years he spent either by the ocean or on it, he easily recognized the signs of the approaching storm. "No, the storm is coming too quickly. We can't escape and I doubt the ship will survive," he said with an almost frightening amount of calm.
This caused the sailor to enter a terrified panic. "What do we do?! I don't want to die?! I've got a wife and kids!"
Marius sighed in exasperation then walked past the ranting sailor and leisurely strolled to the control room. He flipped a few switches which sent a signal to the nearest coast guard. "Hello?" asked a male voice through the speakers.
"This is Marius Stu of the M.S.V Charlie. A storm is approaching my vessel and I do not expect it to survive. Send Rangers and rescue teams after the weather clears."
This was followed by a brief moment of silence. "And would you like fries with that order?"
Marius raised a single eyebrow. "I would prefer something more substantial upon rescue."
The speaker screeched as it tried to process the sound of a face hitting a desk. "For the love of ... Marius, would it kill you to show some emotion in your life?!"
"How would an emotional reaction kill me?"
The speakers screeched again, then the voice on the other side sighed. "Do you even hear yourself? That ship belonged to your father. Besides Radiance, it's all you have to remember him by."
"What about photos?"
The radio only screeched a little when the man on the other side elected to use his palm instead of his desk. "That's not the point. Are you really okay with losing your dad's ship like this?"
"It's my ship now."
"Damnit Marius, stop harping on the details and answer the question!"
"No, I'm not okay with it," he said as calmly as ever. "But I'm not going to risk my men's lives over a ship."
The man on the other side sighed. "Do you think they can get to you before the storm?"
Marius glanced outside and saw that the storm had already managed to reach him. "It is impossible."
"Okay. I'll tell everyone I can to look for you and your crew after the storm. ... And, don't die on me buddy; not until I finally beat you in a battle."
"I understand Bright, and ... thanks." He turned off the radio then grabbed receiver for the ship's speakers and switched it on. "This is your captain speaking. All hands are to release their strongest water types overboard and command them to rescue any people or cargo knocked overboard. Lives take priority; this is an order."
He switched off the receiver and stepped out with a single Pokéball in hand. Within was his only Pokémon, a Milotic his father named Radiance. Once he stepped outside, he was buffeted by a torrential downpour. "Radiance!" He threw the ball which released his Pokémon into the water before returning to him. "Wait beneath the waves and rescue anyone thrown overboard."
She looked around at the storm than at him with sad eyes and spoke in some high pitched tones and tics. Even though the sounds' meanings were lost to Marius, he mostly understood what Radiance said. "I'll be okay!" She continued looking for a few moments before doing as he commanded. He looked at his crew and found that two were missing. "Where are they?" he asked the nearest man.
The sailor needed no more to know what he meant. "Lilly-livered cowards fled on their Pokémon's backs the instant they let 'em out!"
Marius looked to stern and saw the two riding on the backs of a Seadra and a Dewgong. They were too far to hear anything he'd say and to get them would only risk more lives. He sighed in regret then turned towards the other sailor. "Tie down the cargo and hold on to the ropes."
"Shouldn't we be inside captain!"
"No. Our Pokémon can't save us from inside if the ship sinks."
At this point, the sailor could barely make out his captain's voice over the sound of torrential rain. "Aye aye sir!"
He went to relay the command as Marius tightened the nearest ropes. As he moved on to the next rope, he felt a sudden wave of drowsiness hit him. He tried to lock his arm into the next rope, but a powerful wave hit the boat and threw him from the cargo; causing him to hit the ships railing headfirst "Rest now my children, for when you awake a whole new world shall be your home."
Marius tried to open his eyes but winced when he felt a piercing headache. With his second attempt, he noticed that he was at the bottom of the ocean. In an instant, he noticed at least four unusual anomalies, but they could wait until he reached the surface to breath. One glance upwards revealed that the surface was likely too far for him to reach in time, but he would try regardless.
He could not feel his arms, so he mimicked the motions used by Pokémon that had horizontal fins. He kept his movements slow so he could conserve as much oxygen as possible, but he was still moving faster than expected. Once the surface looked within reach, he poured on all the power he could for the last sprint.
This proved far more effective than expected as not only did he reach the surface, his body completely left the water. During the short moments he spent in the air, he recalled the oddities from before. First, the waters he is in are too shallow to be the same ones he fell overboard from. Second, Radiance wasn't anywhere to be seen, and he knew how protective of him she was. Third, half the water Pokémon he saw appeared to be sleeping or waking up. Fourth, he never actually felt the need to breath. He hit the water then rose back through the surface and surveyed what he could see. Upon realizing that he was higher above the surface than he should be, he looked down at his body. It was in this moment that something happened to Marius that rarely happens to him: he was surprised. "I am a Gyarados," he stated with a new, somewhat rougher voice. It it wasn't in such bad taste, he would have found the irony humorous.
A few kilometers away, Celestia's sun began to rise over a city that floated under the ocean's surface: the city of Marelantis. Within the tower closest to the surface, a single half-pony half-dolphin began to rise from her slumber. Her skin, blue as the clearest ocean, sparkled as the sun's light peaked through her windows. She woke with ease and took a deep breath from an enchanted air bubble covering the upper half of her bed. She then swam over to a vanity made from a massive sea shell and grabbed a soft sponge designed to fit to her hooves, then she carefully scrubbed her body from head to tail: she was Queen Oceania of Marelantis; leader of all Hippocampi of the oceans, and it would not do for her to look anything less than her best.
She experienced her coronation only two short years ago; in the presence of the Equestrian princesses no less. There had yet to be an opportunity to prove her leadership skills and she would have to constantly be a shining example Marelantis's best until such an opportunity arose. It was fortunate that with her prominent mane and powerful tail, she looked the part.
She placed the sponge back down and smiled. She could feel her excitement bubbling as this day would be the day that she would be able to attend a concert by the Pony of Pop herself, Sapphire Shores. She swam towards her door eager for the following day but paused when she noticed what looked like pink coral with a white underside next to her door. Considering the four uniformly spaced three-pronged rounded spikes along the topside, she figured that it must have been some sort of gift from one of her city's many artisans. It was odd for a gift to be placed in her door rather than being presented during open court, but she decided that she could question why it was placed in her room as she slept at a latter time. She swam over and touched the piece of art, only for it to move more than expected. "Corsola."
She froze as the coral turned towards her and looked up with confused black eyes and a small but discernible mouth. "Coooorsola?" it said quizzically.
"It speaks," she said with rising panic.
Author's Note
Here is my small addition the fan group. I recently came up with this little idea while on a small break from my TorikoXover. I hope you all enjoy this and the chapters to come. This will only be set on the first day of the event, at which point this story will end. Even with only one day, there's quite a lot planned. Enjoy.
Changes made September 15th
Small additions made to add slightly more lore to the hippocampi
Marius runs into his Milotic in his second scene.
"It speaks?" Queen Oceania said with the ultrasonic version of the Equestrian language her kind used to speak beneath the waves. She swam backwards with such force that she slammed into the back wall, which rendered any future effort to distance herself from the creature futile. With no other option, she released a hyper-sonic scream that would have drawn attention from every citizen in Marelantis if it weren't for many similar screams happening at around the same moment.
The pink coral creature found itself on the receiving the brunt of her scream and decided to get as far away from the offending sound as possible. The window near the Dewgong and Ponyta hybrid was unfortunately the only way out. With all the speed she could muster, the creature swam through the window and as far from the screaming Pokémon as she could. "Cooooorrrrsolaaa!" came her own scream.
In the instant the coral creature was gone from sight, the door to Oceania's room swung open with such force, it looked like it would be torn from its hinges. On the other side of the door floated a distinctly male hippocampus that Oceania recognized as High Chancellor Aqueous. He possessed green colored skin that was dulled in a way that showed his age much like wrinkles did for ponies.
When he looked through the room, he noticed his queen looking back at him with an expression of calm regality; he knew better however. "Pardon the intrusion your highness." Only when she nodded back at him did he enter the room and close the door. He then pressed a button near the door that was designed to trigger enchantments that insulated the room from any sound going in or coming out. The device was in place for the purpose privacy, but it served well during Oceania's rare emergencies.
Once a small click announced that the isolation was complete, she swam forward at full speed and wrapped the stallion in her hooves. "Father!" she cried out into the side of his neck. "I was so scared!"
Aqueous stroked her mane/dorsal fin gently with one hoof while patting her back with the other. "There there my Sapphire of the Sea, everything will be okay. What happened to frighten you so?"
"I woke up ... and cleaned my ... skin like every ... morning before ... heading out," she said while sniffling with every pause. "I saw this ... cute pink piece ... of coral next to my door ... and thought you put it there." She backed away from him and performed an exercise where she'd exhale her air into her mouth until it could hold no more before returning it to her lungs. Once she finished recycling her air, she looked directly at her father with nervous eyes. "When I touched it, it moved and spoke a word I've never heard before. I was startled when it turned to face me. It swam through my window during my panic."
Aqueous nodded in understanding with his doubt hidden within. Even with how ludicrous his daughter's story was, he knew three things with absolute certainty. First, was that even as a foal, she didn't possess too great of an imagination. Second, she was no liar. Third, he heard similar screams coming from all over Marelantis, and not all of them sounded like hippocampi. "I understand. We should inform the rest of the palace that you are well then set out to find evidence of your claim. ... Do not forget the royal circlet." he added upon noticing her preparing to leave. "You mustn't forget that while small, that crown represents the willingness to move forwards to be open to all the voices around you." She nodded and grabbed a well polished gold circlet that was perfectly molded to her head like it had been for her father before her and for many kings and queens before then. With a shared nod, they left the room; though Oceania couldn't help but feel some disappointment alongside her fear: there was no way they would be having Sapphire Shores's concert now.
Some distance away, Marius continued to observe his new body. He thought to himself that he could be dreaming, but immediately dropped the notion. He had dreamt of being a Pokémon before, but his dream self would never have the presence of mind to ask if he was dreaming. Dream or not, hee decided from that it would be best to act as if everything happening to him was real.
Marius rose back up and observed the ocean's horizon in attempts to find some sign of land. This proved a fruitless search as he was too far out in sea to spot any even at his height. If searching on his own wouldn't work, he could ask directions. Considering he was a Pokémon, he would have to ask another Pokémon.
He dove into the water and spotted a nearby group of Mantyke, Mantine, and Remoraid. The instant one of them spotted him approaching them, they swam to the surface and began to fly well away from his reach. With a moment of observing his surroundings, he noticed that all the other Pokémon were also further away than when he last looked. This was only natural: human's weren't the only ones who knew to stay away from Gyarados.
He sighed then decided he could find land on his own by checking the slope of the sea floor. He found out which way it was before long then prepared to swim off, but paused before doing so: he could hear what sounded like screaming coming from the opposite direction. He swam towards the sound without hesitation. Restoring his human form could wait, but people and Pokémon in danger couldn't. He swam as fast as he could afford while planning on how to handle the situation upon arrival.
It was pandemonium. Hippocampi swam in all directions in order to escape large creatures that somewhat resembled normal sea-life. Oceania's attention was most drawn to large blue jellyfish with singular blades sticking out and large red gems on their heads as well as towards a group of three dark sharks with four evenly spaced fins and a yellow X on their heads. She brought her trembling hooves in close and hugged herself tightly. She remained like this for a few moments while recycling the air in her lungs. Once she calmed, she turned towards the dulling dark red commander of the guard, Captain Trident. "Do you have orders for me your highness?" he said through a small mouthpiece used magically draw oxygen from the water.
"Captain, gather as many citizens as you can into the Bubble Stadium; priority shall be given to Ponies, Gryphons and other terrestrial citizens as well as foals. I want as many platoons of five that we can spare to comb the city for citizens unable to escape. Exercise caution around these creatures: we do not know what they are capable of. I will be at the stadium momentarily to check on progress."
He bowed to her. "Understood your highness."
Once he left, Oceania and her father were left alone. She then began to cry thick tears that separated from her face before mixing with the seawater. "What do we do?! This is a disaster!"
Aqueous placed his hooves on her shoulders. "Calm yourself daughter. Today will be the day that decides if you'll remain on the throne or not; of this I'm sure. The command you gave there was splendid and you should take pride in that. Now, you must quickly decide upon the next course of action."
She wiped both her eyes then nodded to him before looking over the area. With another nod to herself, she reached her decision. "Princess Celestia may know about these creatures. I will contact her and request assistance."
Aqueous restrained his urge to sigh. "Remember the ways of the hippocampi your highness. Those with the wisdom of years may guide their path, but it is up to the young to lead our people into the future. You may chose to accept her aid, but the decision is yours alone." She nodded back to him with a heart heavy with the burden she bears then began to swim back to the castle.
It only took a few minutes before Marius could make out the sight of some kind of city floating beneath the waves. The fact that nothing was supporting the structure from below suggested that it had some form of buoyancy and propulsion that kept it in place. The golden city had other rocks floating around it that were covered in seaweed; the way they were set up could only mean it was some sort of farm. Whatever creatures called this city home were far more advanced than either Pokémon or man. Marius could only hope that they were receptive to the aid he intended to provide them. The screams were dying down, but he could still hear some: likely thanks to sound carrying better in water than in air.
He had no idea how to use attacks, but he knew that his form alone would be enough to intimidate most Pokémon into behaving, but the number of different screams meant a widespread problem. This didn't matter. Big problems always end up being sorted out eventually; Marius only needed to contribute, but he still needed to find a problem first. He ultimately decided that surveying from above would be the best course of action, but he'd have to arrive first.
"Stop right there monster!"
Marius turned toward's the voice's source and found a very fast and very familiar Milotic swimming straight for him. "Radiance?"
"AQUA TAIL!" Her tail was coated in a concentrated flow of water. She reached Marius and slammed her tail right on Marius's head. "TWISTER!" Before he could recover, a spiraling torrent of violet energy slammed into him and proved more damaging than the prior attack. He was once again given no time to respond when she wrapped her tail around his neck. "Where is the ship and what have you done with my trainer?!" Marius tried to choke out an answer but the grip was too tight. She loosened up. "Speak!"
"Radiance, it is me, Marius"
Radiance released her grip completely and backed away from him with widened eyes before lowering her gaze; which caused shadows to be cast over her eyes. "You." The venom in her voice was the only clue to her hostility before she reared her head back with an off-white orb formed over her mouth. "ICE BEAM!"
He hardly had any time to avoid the jagged white beams he knew would be coming. "Radiance, you need to calm down!" Her response was to angle the attack up and coat his lower half in a thin layer of ice. Marius grunted in pain: Ice Beam was her most effective attack against him thanks to his flying typing. He could consider his self lucky Milotic can't learn electric moves.
She wrapped her tail around him again and look at his eyes with a deadly glare. "I don't know how you know those names, but I don't care. Lie to me like that again and I will end you."
With that threat handing in the 'air,' Marius's mind raced to find a response that she would believe; he needed something they had in common: hopefully he was right. "I don't know. I fell asleep and woke up here."
Radiance scrutinized the Gyarados in her grasp with a point-blank glare. "Fine, but if I see you in that city..." She left the threat hanging and swam towards the city.
Marius watched her leave while weighing his options. He could try to find a human settlement, but he doubted that the response would be much better than Radiance's. He ultimately chose to continue towards the city, but to also keep a safe distance. He didn't know how to convince Radiance of who he was, but he could deal with that later.
~~Dear Princess Celestia~~
No, this was the ancient ruler responsible for the day; she needed something more formal. Oceania continued to attempt writing a letter to the Princess of the Sun while inside of the Dragon Fire chamber. The room was an enchanted air-space where water-wheelchairs were forbidden; along with any other source of water: they couldn't risk getting either the paper or the fire wet. The hot air was drying her skin as a result and only making it more difficult for her to think.
~~To the Honorable Princess Celestia:~~
~~This is Queen Oceania seeking consultation towards a~~
She shook her head and tossed the paper aside: this was far too urgent to start with pleasantries. Her eyes widened for a few moments as she realized that she was wasting time on the perfect letter while her citizens needed her.
To the Honorable Princess Celestia from Queen Oceania:
URGENT: Marelantis has been overrun by large unknown sea-creatures! My citizens are panicking and none know what to do or what these creatures are! I seek assistance and your counsel at the earliest possible time!
She tossed the letter into the flame and wasted no time crawling/flopping over to the veil that separated air from water. She took a few practiced breaths to oxygenate her blood and prepare for what could be a long time underwater. So long as she kept calm, she could be without air for at least thirty minutes.
She dove into the water and spent a good portion of her time swimming over her city and checking for any individuals that her guards may have missed. She saw many of the strange creatures including one that even from a distance looked like the very picture of elegance and beauty, but she forced her gaze not linger on any of them for too long. She spent close to fifteen minutes looking over Marelantis before letting out a small sigh along with a similarly small air bubble. She looked towards the Bubble Stadium where numerous adult hippocampi floated around the massive under-sea air bubble along with the majority of the city's guard and service personnel. Some of the less hostile appearing creatures looked on from a fortunately safe distance. If she didn't know better, the creatures seemed curious.
She could only hope that they didn't do anything when she got there. She turned towards the stadium but froze at the sight of nearby movement. She looked down and saw a large red fish half the size of an adult hippociampus swimming straight for her. It had yellow dorsal and anal fins that resembled crowns as well as white pectoral and tail fins. It also had a pair of yellow whiskers as long as it's own body. It was crying as it swam to her with an unstable path that seemed like it didn't know how to swim. "Help?!"
Her eyes widened; she already heard one speak but that wasn't a word she understood. From the voice, it sounded like a very young filly. When she looked to see why the fish would ask for help, she froze at finding the same three dark colored sharks that she saw a short while ago. They chased after the fish slowly while spiraling around in some sort of formation. They didn't even seem interested in catching their prey. "Slow down little Magikarp, we just want to play." All three laughed as if that was some sort of joke.
As the red fish tried to swim past her, two of the sharks suddenly sped up and herded it back to her. Oceania finally moved when the fish hugged itself as close to her body as possible. "Look what we got here guys; two for the price of one."
"What should we do with them boss?"
They circled around them twice while one of them hummed a haunting tune the whole time. "I know. Let's have a party"
"Yeahhhhh, a partyyy," drawled the other two simultaneously.
"We've got a Magikarp and a ... a." Oceania tensed up when the lead shark had its nose against her muzzle in the blink of an eye. "What are you?" She gulped, trying to work up any trace of courage she had in order to answer, but it was futile as she felt like she was literally looking fear in the face. "What's wrong?" he asked almost sympathetically. "Sharpedo got your tongue." He suddenly snapped at her with a bite that barely scrapped against her nose.
She backed away and let out a good portion of her remaining air. The sharks looked at the air bubble for a few seconds then back at her. The lead shark's already large mouth spread out into a massive toothy grin. "We've got ourselves an air breather boys." He once again resumed his point-blank stare. "We don't like air breathers."
"Stop it." The three sharks and Oceania were taken aback by the young female voice coming from the red fish. "You're meanies. Daddy's Sharpy is nice."
They looked at each other for a few seconds before bursting out into raucous laughter. "Hey, hey, guess what guys." The leader and the other stopped laughing and looked on at the speaker expectantly. "We're meanies." This somehow intensified the following round of laughter.
As they continued laughing, the pair squeezed closely together. Oceania could feel powerful trembling, but couldn't tell if it was from the fish or herself: likely both. The leader snapped his fangs again and gave the fish the same point-blank stare Oceania received. "You said daddy's Sharpy? He sounds like one of those trained pansies." He chuckled darkly. "Do you actually think that a human is your daddy? You're a Magikarp. You can't have a human daddy."
"I am hooman."
The sharks glanced at each other for a moment then started laughing again. "He must have messed you up good."
"I bet that human didn't care about you at all."
"All he wanted was a nice strong Gyarados; probably hoping that you'd be nice and obedient if you thought he was your daddy."
"You're wrong!" They stopped laughing again. "My daddy loves me!"
The lead shark looked at her with an upturned nose. "Then why did he throw you away?"
That one line felt like knives being driven into their hearts. Oceania for the first time wanted to say something against the three talking sharks, but two things held her back: her fear and her air. The fear and stress of the encounter provided a substantial drain on her oxygen supply. Unconsciously, her hooves came up to her throat.
The sharks immediately recognized the signs and turned their attention back onto her. "Oooo, looks like the air-breather is running low."
"Let's see how long till it passes out."
"Sounds good, let's have some fun with this." The sharks began swimming around them in an erratic pattern that left no opening for either to escape. "Do you know why we don't like you air-breathers, you're water-types that can't even breath underwater." She gasped when a set of teeth scrapped across her tail. "We can breath air just like you but if you guys stay underwater too long and you pass out just like those terrestrials. A joke is what it is; a really bad joke."
"Boss."
The lead shark stopped and looked at another that had already stopped and was looking off in another direction. "What is it? Can't you see that I'm in the middle of something?"
"Gyarados."
Oceania watched in confusion when the leader's eyes widened in unrestrained fear when it looked the same direction a the other. "Swim away, swim away!" All three turned away from the direction they were looking and jetted off at sudden speeds. The currents left in their wakes shook the two around like helpless dolls and forced out what little oxygenated air remained in Oceania's lungs.
When she regained control, she found herself looking at exactly what had scared off the sharks. Even with blackening vision, she recognized what looked like a blue sea-serpent with a gaping mouth swimming towards them at speeds faster than any hippocampi could hope to swim; however, it didn't seem like it noticed them yet. It's attention was too focused on the city below.
She hazily looked up and down; there was no way she could get to air in time. She glanced to the fish, the Magikarp that had won over he heart. If she couldn't get away, she'd at least allow this young girl to escape. She looked at her and smiled. "Get away. I'll distract it." Oceania only managed one sudden movement towards the monster until both her body and mind began to slow down.
After reaching the underwater city, Marius immediately began looking for signs of trouble in the city below. He had chosen to stay high up to avoid a potentially dangerous encounter. All of the screaming he heard on the way had stopped and the city was devoid of life barring the excellent condition everything was in. "Don't hurt her!" He glanced up towards the sudden voice and spotted a figure he was a mere second from ramming. He barely avoided colliding by utilizing a precision that his body knew better than his mind.
A quick look around revealed a Magikarp and what he'd imagine a water-type ocean dwelling Ponyta to look like: it was blue with a sea-green dorsal fin and a small crown on it's head. The Magikarp was barely managing to swim towards him while the Ponyta was limply being spun around in the ocean currents. Despite his knowledge of basic information on all known water-types and ocean dwellers, he had no idea what this Pokémon was. He nudged it with his tail to no response. "Are you okay?" he asked with his deep monotone. He spotted a small number of air bubbles escaping it's mouth.
Upon spotting a small number of air bubbles escaping it's mouth, he instantly scooped the Pokémon into his large mouth and swam to the surface as fast as he could. Just like the last time he did this, he sailed into the air. Gravity eventually stopped his ascent, causing his momentum to carry the Pokémon up and out of his mouth. He lost sight of it when he crashed back into the water. Once he rose back out, he found the Pokémon coughing and sputtering: the sudden collision with the water likely being what jump-started its breathing. "Good."
Its eyes widened then turned towards Marius. Once she did this, she screamed with a clearly female voice then swam back until backing into something else. Marius glanced up and recognized the object as a Lapras; he immediately thought it strange for one to be alone. The water Ponyta looked at both of them and clearly was deciding between the ferocious Gyarados or the gentle Lapras. Considering how obvious the choice was, Marius felt no offense to her decision. The Lapras picked her up in its mouth and placed her on its shell. "Worry not little one, you are safe with me." The voice was strong, gentle, and clearly male.
Once the Lapras looked back, Marius nodded to him. "Hello Lapras. Do you know where we are?"
The Lapras tilted its head at the question. "You are unusually calm in comparison to any Pokémon, yet you are a Gyarados. As for your question, I do not know. I was in my Pokéball before waking on these waters. My I ask why you are calmer than any of the other Pokémon I've met with?"
"I was not born a Pokémon. I was human before coming here."
"I see. I have encountered others claiming the same; this only raises more questions. Perhaps this little one can provide some answers." He turned towards the strange Pokémon. "Excuse me, but can you tell us where we are?"
During their conversation, Oceania's mind was going a mile-a-minute. Lapras, Pokémon, human: she was only familiar with one of the words, and that's only because the sharks and fish from before were saying it. There was also how she could hear the sea-serpent actually speaking; though its growling monotone voice sounded almost heartless to her. Finally, if the gentle tones and squeals coming from the large sea-turtle were any indication, the two creatures were having a conversation. The turtle looked at her face to face and let out more gentle tones. It matched her confused look with its own and let out more tones. "Are you trying to tell me something?"
The creature nodded back at her. It closed its eyes for a second then opened them again. "Can you understand this?"
Oceania put her hooves to her head in panic. "My head! Was that ... did you just talk to my mind."
The creature sang out some more tones that managed to calm her. "Please do not panic. We will not harm you. If you'd like, you can ask me any question. I will answer to the best of my abilities."
She looked up at his eyes and only saw a gentleness in them that rivaled her own father's. She nodded back and gulped. "What are you?"
"If you ask of I alone, I am a Lapras. If you are asking about all of us, we are Pokémon."
"What's a Pokémon?"
The Lapras looked at her for a few moments with only slightly narrowed eyes. "You have never heard of our kind? ... This is troubling. I would not mind telling you more, but I hope that you'll first indulge me with an answer to one of my questions. Where are we?"
"You-you're above Marelantis." Her eyes widened suddenly. "The Bubble Stadium!" She jumped off of Lapras's back and dove into the water. As she did this, Marius noticed something different from when he first saw her: he could have sworn she was wearing a crown before.
Lapras looked at the Gyarados and chuckled. "That was unexpected. I suspect that we should follow her." He craned his head to the side at noticing something behind Marius. "After we've first spent time speaking with our very important guest here."
Marius turned back and nodded in acceptance of the Lapras's plan as northern winds blew across his fins. If anything could answer their questions, a legendary could.
Oceania swam with all the speed she could muster. She could no longer waste time on being afraid; she needed to check on the well-being of her citizens. It was fortunate that the creatures she now knew as Pokémon were paying more attention to the massive bubble surrounding the stadium than on her. She dove beneath them then up into a tunnel that was filled with air. The guards immediately saluted at her presence. "Your highness!"
She dragged herself out of the water and walked towards them using the golden walkway. "How's the evacuation?"
"Most civilians have been evacuated from the city and those that remain are too well entrenched for us or the creatures to approach. The creatures have made no attempts to infiltrate the Bubble Stadium from the outside, but there are some that were inside originally. We've expelled most, but I've heard that two remain due to the insistence of Mrs. Sapphire Shores. That is all I know."
Oceania nodded in response. "I shall speak with Mrs. Sapphire Shores personally."
"Understood."
Oceania walked past the guards and found the stadium filled with griffin, young and old hippocampi, some zebra, and of course ponies. Like hippocampi, the ponies came in all sorts of colors with their manes either being one color or a or a few different colors. Pony manes differed by being soft and flowing in comparison to the dense keritin that turned hippocampi manes into suitable dorsal fins. The ponies also had fur, and by extension: Cutie Marks.
Oceania looked at the marks with a sense of jealousy; she'd give up her throne if it meant having one. Like ponies, hippocampi possessed a talent from birth that they would usually discover at some point in their lives, but they in some cases failed to notice because of their lack of Cutie Marks. Oceania was one such hippocampi.
She shook her lamentations from her mind upon reaching the door leading to the backstage area. This door was being guarded by a hippocampi and a pony. They glanced at her for a moment then returned to stoically gazing directly ahead. "Your highness," started the hippocampi. "Before you enter, you should be aware that two of the creatures are inside. We have guards watching them, but they have yet to show signs of hostility. One is able to speak and claims to be some sort of king."
Oceania allowed her eyes to widen in surprise. If this one was a king, then it might have some manner of control over all the other Pokémon. "Allow me to pass. I shall speak with this king."
Once they nodded, she walked passed them and opened the door. "Presenting her Highness, Queen Oceania!"
"Why hello OC-E-AN-I-A! How are you doing this SPEC-TAC-ULAR morning!"
Oceania could only look on at the blue haired cream-coated earth-pony with a sense of shock when she suddenly hugged her. She had heard of Sapphire Shore's forward personality before, but this was beyond her expectations. "I-I-I ... I've been better."
"We'll I've been FAN-TAS-TIQUE! These two have been an AB-SO-LUTE joy to talk to! Why don't you introduce yourself dear?"
Sapphire Shores stepped aside to allow Oceania full view of the two Pokémon that she was warned about. One had an indigo colored body shaped similarly to a porpoise except with the vertically angled tail fins of a fish. It had yellow coloration shaped like water-goggles around its eyes and two shining balls that were held out by blue branches on its forehead.
The other one had a stout pink body with a short pink tail. It stood on two legs and had its paws locked behind its back. I had some kind of cloth wrapped around it neck that alternated between red and white. On its head was a large grey spiral shell that had two large horns on the side, four smaller horns at the top, and eyes in the middle. She jumped when the eyes actually looked at her directly.
She felt relief when the pink Pokémon turned towards her to reveal its wide gentle eyes and an oval shaped cream-colored muzzle. It took two steps towards her then gestured to the other Pokémon while bowing. "Hello your highness. This is Bright, and I" he pointed at his self "am Slowking.
Author's Note
First I'll say that I know that hippocampi myth says they breath underwater, but I found that having them being sea-mammals made more sense to me and opened up more writing opportunities. Second, I know that this chapter left a lot of unanswered questions, but I intend to have them all wrapped up by the end of this. Third, anyone is free to ask questions, but I will only answer to someone who is writing something in the main folder of the New World New Way group. Anyone who guesses something correctly will get their comment confirmed though. Lastly to anyone I give advanced information to, please keep spoilers out of the comments.
There won't be an update for a while since I'll be writing a long overdue chapter for my main story first.
