My Little Pokémon: Grander World

Sinnoh. Sunwade Gorge. Nightfall.

Sunwade Gorge.

Despite it currently being Nightfall, this mountain pass managed to give off a glow in the night as if it were a street lamp. The entire mountain pass lit up, making it stand out immediately. Ash, Cynthia, Twilight and Fluttershy found themselves here, searching for one of the shards that they were picking up on.

"Sweet..." Ash marvelled at the beautiful sight of this mountain pass once it lit up. "It lights up?"

"Why do you think that's the case, Cynthia?" Twilight questioned.

"Hm. I heard that Sunwade Gorge, despite being relatively new, about 90 Years Old compared to most things from Sinnoh, was made out of the spirit of a Pokemon. It's said that this Pokemon was a very kind one who loved to help others and was always willing to lend a hand. And because of that, this place was created." Cynthia explained. "I'm not sure if that's true or not, but it's an interesting story nonetheless."

"Wow...A Pokemon did this?" Twilight gawked.

"Yes. That's what I heard." Cynthia nodded. "I'm not sure if it's true or not, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was. After all, there are many Pokemon that are capable of creating things like this. Like Dialga, Palkia and Arceus. Whichever Pokemon brought on this, must've had a reason behind it."

"I wonder what that reason is." Fluttershy pondered. "I hope it's a good one."

"I'm sure it is." Cynthia smiled. "But let's keep moving. We're getting close to the shard."

The group continued to walk through the mountain pass, looking for the shard. They would soon come across a pathway that would light up more than the rest, indicating that the shard was nearby. When they got closer, they saw that a plethora of the Pokemon living here were all standing around this one pathway.

"All the Pokemon are around here? What's up with that?" Ash spoke as the Pokemon all looked at them before looking back at the pathway.

"That pathway...the light there is way more concentrated..." Twilight squinted her eyes along with the others. Strangely, this one pathway had a greater amount of light which is probably the reason the Pokemon have gathered around here.

"Is something wrong? Why are you all here?" Fluttershy would fly over, asking one of the Pokemon. The Pokemon responded by pointing at the pathway. "What's down there?"

"Bun! Buneary!" The Buneary tried explaining based on what it knows. All the Pokemon did as Fluttershy took it in. However, she soon learned that all of them didn't really have that much of a clue since no one has really gone into the pathway In fact, a majority of them opted to keep away from it since they previously saw how much it changed.

"Oh my. They said this pathway is new. At least 4 weeks old." Fluttershy translated. "And it's been changing ever since then. They don't know why though."

"Changing? How so?" Twilight asked.

"They said it's been glowing brighter and brighter each day. And sometimes, they hear strange sounds coming from it." Fluttershy answered. "They're worried about it. They even said that something is forcing them to stay away. Like a type of intimidation tactic."

"Intimidation tactic? Are you saying something is trying to keep them away?" Twilight questioned before looking onwards.

"Audino..." Audino would try and focus on the sound the Pokemon apparently heard, using her advanced hearing to pick up on it. She would then gasp when hearing the sound. "A-Audino!"

"What is it, Audi?!" Fluttershy asked.

"Dino Audino!" Audino pointed at the pathway. The sound she was hearing was certainly new. Whatever it was, it made sense as to why the Pokemon were a bit hesitant to go in there.

"It must be the shard then." Cynthia deduced. "The watch led us here and unless there is something else at play, only a shard would be this important."

"Which shard would be responsible for this? The Electric Shard?" Fluttershy wondered. "I mean, it would be strong enough to light the place up, wouldn't it?"

"Only one way to find out. Just hold on, everyone! We'll check it out and be right back!" Ash ran ahead with Pikachu while speaking to the other Pokemon. He was going to investigate the pathway with his friends following behind.

"Ash! Wait!" Twilight called out. "We don't know what's down there!"

"That's why we're checking it out!" Ash replied. "If there's a shard down there, let's grab it as soon as possible!"

"Hah...Why do I even bother saying otherwise?" Twilight shrugged as she soon followed. Right behind her were Espeon, Fluttershy, Audino and Cynthia.

The group would soon enter the pathway, heading deeper and deeper inside. The second they entered, it felt as if their bodies were being welcomed by the light, inviting them inside. The light from the pathway would grow brighter and brighter as they went further in. It was like a beacon of sorts, guiding them to their destination.

"Yeesh...Too bright for my liking." Twilight grimaced. "The light feels good but it's so harsh on the eyes..."

"Espeon."

"What do you think, buddy? Getting a charge from this?" Ash would look at Pikachu, wondering if there was proof of the Electric Shard being here by seeing how Pikachu reacts to it. If he gets a charge from it, then that might be confirmation, however, Pikachu was completely neutral to it.

"Pika..." Pikachu shook his head. Not even a tiny charge could be felt. "Pika..."

"Hm...I guess not." Ash rubbed his chin. "Maybe it's not the Electric Shard after all. Do you think it's because of the Pokemon that made all of this light in the first possible?"

"We'd have to know which Pokemon was responsible for this in the first place." said Twilight while continuing to squint her eyes. She then cast a spell on her eyes that allowed her to see through the brightness. "There we go. That should do it."

"This light...Something isn't right here..." But Cynthia was quick to realize that something was amiss. For all of this light being present here, it wasn't really doing all that much at all. It was simply existing. Not exactly dangerous enough to intimidate the Pokemon.

She would get the answer the further they went. The pathway, while bright and golden, showed them a colour that stuck out from the rest in the distance. Ash was the first to see it. A deep purple glint in the distance.

"Something purple's up ahead." Ash pointed out. "I can't tell what it is though."

"Purple?" Twilight questioned before looking ahead. "Oh yeah. I see it too. What is that? Is that a shard?"

"I...can't tell. I can see it but it looks like it's still so far away." Ash grunted. "It's like it's trying to keep us away."

"Audino..." Audino would suddenly hear another sound. Up ahead, Ash and the others saw that there were more Pokemon here, These Pokemon in particular were being cradled by the light as there was something purple around them. At first, it looked like they were lying down, but the group soon noticed that the purple substance around them was Poison.

"They're poisoned!" Ash and Fluttershy immediately ran up to them. Ash would go to pick up a downed Cherrim that was grunting in pain. "All of them!"

"Cherri..." The Cherrim groaned.

"What kind of Poison is this...?" Fluttershy had never seen a poison like this before. The way the substance appeared was not natural at all. There was something otherworldly about it. It looked like it was physically clawing into the Pokemon, causing them great pain.

"This is no ordinary Poison." Cynthia observed the substance. "This is something else entirely. Something that shouldn't be here..."

"Quick, Audi. Use Refresh on them." Fluttershy said to her Audino.

"Audino!" Audino nodded as she held her arms out, unleashing a beautiful green energy that washed over their bodies. The Pokemon would feel better almost instantly, the poison vanishing from their bodies. Granted, they were still bewildered due to what was previously around them, but they would recover either way.

"Cher...Cherrim!" The Cherrim smiled. After being rejuvenated, it would nuzzle Ash's face out of joy.

"Hehe...Glad you're feeling better." Ash smiled. All the Pokemon that had been healed would gather around them, thanking them for their help. They were all very grateful to them since any longer in here and they may have perished since no other Pokemon wished to go through this pathway.

"Head back to everyone else, alright?" Fluttershy spoke to them all. "But just a quick question. Are there any more Pokmon up ahead that have been affected?"

"Star! Starly!" A Starly cried out, confirming that to be the case. But it was not multiple Pokemon at all. Instead, Starly confirmed that it was one Pokemon only.

"Just one Pokemon?" Fluttershy translated before looking ahead, gazing at the purple glint. Once she learned of this, all the Pokemon would return to the others, leaving the group alone.

The group continued to walk through the pathway, heading deeper and deeper inside. The further they went, the more the light began to change. It was no longer golden in colour, instead, it was now a deep purple. Cynthia would pay attention to how the light acts around this purplish colour, tracing it back to the Pokemon and how they were poisoned.

She noticed how the light was cradling the Pokemon earlier, almost as if it was trying to protect them from the poison. But the deeper they went, they saw that the light was getting weaker thanks to this purple colour being more prominent deeper in. Everyone was coming to the same conclusion on what this might be.

It had to be the Poison Shard.

However, once they got close enough, they saw the Pokemon lying there and it was a Pokemon that was very familiar but strangely different. With a gasp, they saw what appeared to be a Skorupi, but it was purple in colour and had a few extra appendages on its body. It was also radiating a powerful Poisonous Energy from its body, making it look like one big elemental force as its size was much bigger than usual. Its body was also constantly dripping with Poison, melting away at the grass and even damaging the rocks themselves.

"A Skorupi?! What happened to it?!" Twilight questioned as she could feel the Poisonous Energy radiating from it. All of them could. It was so potent that it felt like they were being attacked by it. They were starting to feel what the Pokemon felt when they had been poisoned. Now it was all adding up once Cynthia saw how all this Poison Energy had greatly diminished here.

"This power...! It has to be the Poison Shard! This Skorupi must've been affected by its power which caused this drastic change! And not only that....all that light was trying to protect the Pokemon from the Poison, which is why that one place in particular was much brighter than the rest.

"So that's what that was?!" Ash looked back at Cynthia. He recalled a similar scenario to this. Li'l Kanga had gone through a powerful transformation when exposed to the Dragon Shard and even the Water Pokemon from the seas of Lilycove were affected thanks to Volo's actions.

"Skor...Skorupi!" Skorupi would let out a powerful roar that echoed across the gorge as poison droplets would fly around, landing on the walls and rocks, damaging them greatly.

"Poor Skorupi...It doesn't know what's going on!" Fluttershy frowned. Ash then looked ahead, spotting the Poison Shard within Skorupi's elemental body, confirming that this was the work of the Poison Shard. Skorupi, completely confused and unable to handle all of this power, would start unleashing poison streams from its tail, blasting at the walls and in random directions.

Ash then noticed that there were still some other Pokemon here, surrounded by all this poisonous energy while hiding in holes. But their lives were in jeopardy due to all the poison flying around and their bodies have already been poisoned by all this energy.

"All those Pokemon...!" Ash pointed out. Since these Pokemon didn't have the light around them, the poison affected them at an even faster rate. Fluttershy gasped as she and Audino tried reaching them, only for the poisonous energy to make them both flinch.

"Ngh...!" Fluttershy and Audino grunted as they could feel the Poison trying to affect them as well. They almost dropped from just how startling it was.

"Fluttershy Audino!" Ash would catch Fluttershy while Twilight caught Audino with her magic.

"I...I can't get too close. All that poison..." Fluttershy grumbled.

"If we stay here any longer our bodies will become poisoned as well, no doubt." Cynthia narrowed her eyes as getting that shard would be much harder than they thought. But it wouldn't be impossible. She looked at her finger, seeing that a bit of Poison was already starting to appear. "!"

"We won't miss this chance. Not when we're finally here." Twilight closed her eyes, letting her magic shine as she would surround everyone in a protective coating of Fairy Magic. "There. That should keep us safe for a while. Fluttershy and I will try and save the Pokemon."

"Then Cynthia and I will try and calm Skorupi down and get those shards out." Ash gave a thumbs-up. "Right, Pikachu?"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu nodded, giving his own thumbs-up.

The group would split up, heading towards their respective targets. Twilight and Fluttershy would use their magic to heal the Pokemon while Ash and Cynthia would approach Skorupi.

Meanwhile, Sci-Twi and Volo had finally arrived at Team Galactic's hidden base. It was located in a cave within the mountains, making it hard to find unless you knew where to look. Since there were only three members of Team Galactic left, the base was very much standard in size, but it was still impressive nonetheless.

However, it did not compare to what Team Galactic used to have before Cyrus disappeared. They had been set back ever since then and have not yet recovered at all.

Sci-Twi and Volo were led inside by Mars, Saturn and Jupiter. They were taken to a room that was filled with various computers and technology. This was where they did most of their research and planning.

"This is where we do most of our work." Mars explained. "It's not much, but it's all we have."

"Hm. Being inside a hi-tech place like this for the first time..." Volo whistled when checking the place out. "I must say, it's quite impressive."

"Even if it's not much, we still have the capability to focus on the shards, no doubt. Our technology was made with that kind of power in mind originally." Saturn added. "It's been set back a bit ever since Master Cyrus's disappearance and we've been unable to have something proper to help open that dimension again."

"Hm? Is this him?" Sci-Twi would soon notice a picture of a man in this room which stuck out from all the high tech here. It was a picture of a man with blue hair and a serious expression. "Is this your leader?"

"Yes. That's Master Cyrus." Mars nodded. "He's the one we're trying to bring back."

"Ooh...He looks familiar..." Volo rubbed his chin when observing the picture. He reminded him of someone back in his time. "I'm sure I've seen him somewhere before. I just can't put my finger on it."

"Really?" Saturn raised an eyebrow. "You know Master Cyrus?"

"More like someone who looks like him. I wonder...Your name and your symbol seem to be an extension of the Galaxy Expedition Team. A member of that team was a woman by the name of Cyllene. And believe me, I know that cold stare from anywhere. Seems this is another case of a descendant of someone I know. Small word."

"Master Cyrus's ancestor?" While that wasn't exactly important, it was shocking to the ears of Mars and Team Galactic. "Have you met everyone that's connected to us in some way?"

"Fate has a weird way of bringing familiar faces together, doesn't it?" Volo chuckled. "But enough about that. Let's get down to business. Show me what you got."

"Right." Saturn nodded as he went over to one of the computers, typing away at it. "We've been working on this for years, but we haven't been able to make any progress. We've tried everything we could think of, but nothing seems to work. However, if we can use some of the shards, maybe that can all change. But we need to know how they work first."

"Hm. You want to know how they work, huh?" Volo rubbed his chin. "Well, I can tell you that much. They are of Divine Connection after all, being related to Arceus and everything. Right now, we have 5 at our disposal and that's already reaching a dangerous territory. I've managed to temper the power of the Dragon Shard for the time being to prevent a volatile reaction, but if more than 5 shards are near each other, the outcome could be titanic."

"Like what happened at Lilycove, right?" Mars questioned.

"Right, right." Volo winked while nodding at Mars. "So for now, perhaps you can do something with just 4 shards. I'll hold back the power of the Dragon Shard to prevent any damages. Twilight."

"Right!" Sci-Twi was on it, holding out the Shards they were currently in possession of. The Ghost, Rock, Bug and Ice Shards were unveiled while the Dragon Shard was being held by Volo.

They were already glowing, showing that they were trying to cause a reaction due to the number of shards around each other. The only reason they were being held back was thanks to Volo restraining the Dragon Shard.

"Seeing it up close...They dont' look all that impressive honestly." Jupiter commented on their appearance at the moment even with them glowing.

"Oh?" Volo placed the Dragon Shard on the table, allowing it to glow brightly. He would then place the other four shards on the table, causing them to react even more. "As you can see, these shards are very much connected to each other. They're not just simple rocks. They are fragments of Arceus's Life Plates, which are said to be the foundation of the universe itself. It's no wonder why they're so powerful to cause that level of destruction."

"This is what we need. Let's test the four of them out and see if we can get somewhere." Mars opted for immediate use of the shards. Volo would allow it to happen as Team Galactic took the four shards, bringing it over to their equipment. The equipment in question was a large machine of high quality, having a multitude of wires coming out of it.

This was their only way of tapping into other dimensions but so far, they have failed constantly. Sci-Twi would notice how this machine had tubes next to it and in those tubes was Rift Energy, liquid variations of it. It showed that they even tried using the power of the Rift to try and reach Cyrus but even that didn't work out for them. The shards were their last hope at this point.

"We'll start with the Ice Shard." Saturn spoke as he brought the Ice Shard over to the machine. "If one doesn't work, then we'll add another and see if two does and then we'll go from there."

"Sounds good to me." Volo nodded. "Let's see what happens."

Saturn would place the Ice Shard inside the machine, letting it connect to the wires. The second it did, the entire machine would light up, indicating that it was working. This machine was obviously meant to react to anything related to Arceus, meaning that the Divine Energy from the Shard was actually reacting to this power.

"It's working!" Jupiter gasped. "The machine is reacting to the Shard!"

"Hm-hm. That's a good sign." Volo smiled. "Now let's see what happens when you add another."

"Right." Saturn nodded as he grabbed the Rock Shard, placing it inside the machine. The moment he did, the machine would react again, but this time, it was much more powerful than before. The reaction was so strong that it caused the entire room to shake.

"W-Wah!" Sci-Twi stumbled a bit while Volo remained still. She would hold onto Volo, trying to keep her balance. "What's going on?!"

"In order to bring back Master Cyrus, we need to match the energy that opened the portal to begin with. It has to be something amazingly powerful. It just has to be!" Mars exclaimed as she would then add the Ghost Shard to the mix. "And now, we have three shards! How's that?!"

The result was a spark of energy beginning to slowly materialize out of thin air. Team Galactic had their eyes widened when seeing this. It looked like it was about to become a reality.

"Yes...! It's working!" Saturn cheered. "We're finally getting somewhere!"

"I can't believe it..." Jupiter gasped. "We're really doing it!"

"Just one more shard and we should be able to open a portal!" Mars grinned. "We'll finally be able to bring back Master Cyrus!"

"Oooh. I'm impressed. You've done well." Volo smiled. "But don't get too excited yet. We still have one more shard to go."

"Right!" Saturn nodded as he grabbed the Bug Shard, placing it inside the machine. The moment he did, the reaction was even stronger than before, causing the entire room to shake violently.

"Ngh...!" Sci-Twi grunted as she held onto the table for support.

"It's almost there! Just one more shard and we'll be able to bring Master Cyrus back!" Mars exclaimed. "We'll finally be able to realize his dream!"

However, the spark would just linger there, unable to grow any further. It reached a limit and it wasn't enough to create a portal. Saturn and Jupiter were shocked by this, wondering why it didn't work.

"Why isn't it working?! Why aren't we getting anywhere?!" Jupiter questioned.

"It should be working! The power of the shards should be enough to do something!" Saturn added. "What's going on here?!"

"Oh dear. Seems like this power you're trying to replicate just isn't strong enough yet." Volo shrugged while walking over to them. "Not with just 4 shards. I doubt even the inclusion of the Dragon Shard would work either. Not unless you have all 18 of them."

"What?!" Mars gasped. "You mean to tell us that we need all 18 shards in order to bring back Master Cyrus?!"

"Perhaps. But I'd argue the fact that just 4 of them were enough to cause this reaction, maybe you won't need all 18 to make it work. Maybe. What is amazing power you're trying to replicate anyways?"

"The power in question is on par with both Dialga and Palkia. That was the kind of power that opened up the portal in the first place." Mars revealed the cause of the power. "We need something equally as powerful to recreate it."

"Dialga and Palkia, huh? Well, that's certainly something." Volo rubbed his chin. "But I suppose if you want to reach that level of power, then you'll have to use all 18 shards. And even then, I'm not sure if it'll work. It might be too much for your machine to handle."

"Then what do we do?!" Jupiter questioned. "We've been trying for years to get Master Cyrus back! We can't give up now!"

"I know, I know. It's a shame, really." Volo sighed. "But it's not impossible. After all, we agreed to help each other find all the shards so the possibility of this goal being realized hasn't been taken away just yet. You've had your test run and now it's time for you to go above and beyond that. If you want to see Master Cyrus again, then you'll have to go out there and find the rest of the shards."

"Alright..." Saturn sighed while looking at the spark. "We'll try again when we have all 18. Then it will have to work."

"Ah. But before you do so, there's one thing I need you to try out for me." Volo smiled, having something special in mind. "Your technology is something else. As to be expected from the present. And since you're willing to assist me, how about this? Why stop at just the shards?"

"What do you mean by that?" Jupiter would question him.

"Think about it. They used to be the Life Plates of Arceus." Volo would hold up the Ghost Shard. "But now, they've been split into these smaller pieces. Would it be possible for you to restore them to their original states? After all, you have the technology to do so, don't you?"

"Hm...That is true." Saturn nodded. "We do have the capability to do that. And if we had Life Plates instead of shards...The reaction could be even stronger than before."

"Exactly. So why not give it a shot?" Volo suggested. "Let's try and bring out their true potential. The shards are powerful, but they can be more than that as we already know. Why hold back?"

"I guess that makes sense." Mars nodded. "Alright. We'll give it a shot."

"Good. Now then, shall we get started?" Volo grinned, glad to hear it. The next part of his plan was to try and bring the shards together to their original forms. What they used to be before they shattered.

Sunwade Gorge.

Back at Sunwade Gorge, Ash and Cynthia were dealing with Skorupi who was still radiating Poisonous Energy from its body. It was constantly dripping poison onto the ground, melting away at the grass and damaging the rocks. It was a sight to behold, but it wasn't exactly pleasant to look at.

"Skorupi! Skorupi!" Skorupi roared as it unleashed another stream of poison from its tail, blasting at the walls and in random directions. Speaking to Skorupi wasn't working at all. Not when it was going on a rampage due to how confused it was about this power. It would then spot Ash and Cynthia, crying out towards them.

"No point in speaking to it. That shard is blocking everything else but its immense power." Cynthia observed. "Skorupi will lash out at us without a doubt, so it's best that we take action right away before it worsens. Grab the shard as fast as possible."

"Yeah. I gotcha. Are you thinking what I'm thinking, Cynthia?" Ash smirked while shifting his eyes to Cynthia before looking at Skorupi again.

"Hm." Cynthia smiled while giggling a bit. "I certainly am. You've come far to be on the same page as me, Ash. I'm proud." The two of them had the same idea in mind. Since this was a Poison issue, there was one Type of Pokemon fit for this job. A Steel-Type. Both had their Poke Balls out, throwing them forward as they summoned Pokemon of the same species.

"Lucario! I Choose You!"

"Appear! Lucario!"

"Lucario!"

Both Ash and Cynthia had their own Lucario appear before them, ready to fight. Skorupi would notice their presence, growling at them. It was clear that it was going to attack them, so they needed to act fast.

"Okay, Lucario! See that shard in there? We're gonna grab it and help Skorupi. You can move through that poison no problem, but be careful still." Ash explained to his Lucario.

"Rrr." Lucario nodded.

"You too, Lucario. We need to be quick about this." Cynthia spoke to her Lucario.

"Cario!" Her Lucario nodded.

"Rupi!" Skorupi would suddenly attack, swinging its now enlarged tail down at them.

Both Lucario would hold their arms up, catching the massive tail with ease. They were able to stop the tail from hitting them, but they were struggling to keep it up. The tail was incredibly heavy, even for them. They growled before managing to push the tail off them, zipping to the side as it would come crashing down.

The two of them focused right on Skorupi's centre, running as fast as they could. Skorupi would unleash another stream of poison from its tail, blasting at them. But both Lucario would jump over the attack, landing on the tail.

"Now!" Ash and Cynthia called out.

"Lucario!" Both Lucario cried out as they jumped into the air, flying towards Skorupi's body.

"Skorupi!" Skorupi roared as it tried to blast them with its tail again, but the two Lucario managed to dodge the attack once more. They were getting closer and closer to Skorupi's body, ready to grab the shard.

"Alright! Go for it!" Ash cheered along with Pikachu.

"Pika!"

"Rrr!" The two Lucaro would then run on Skorupi's body, jumping towards the shard. They were almost there, but Skorupi would suddenly unleash the Divine Energy from within that would send a shockwave across the area. This caused both Lucario to get knocked back, falling onto the ground.

"Lucario!" Ash and Cynthia gasped.

"Skorupi!" Skorupi roared as it unleashed a powerful beam of Night Slash from its mouth, blasting at the two Lucario. The two of them leap to the side, barely avoiding it as the beam struck the ground.

Afterwards, Skorupi had used something else other than Poisonous attacks. From its pincers, it unleashed Pin Missile, sending multiple glowing arrows at high speeds. The two Lucario would start deflecting the arrows as fast as they could, but there were just so many of them.

"Skorii! Skori!" Skorupi roared as it continued to fire Pin Missiles at them.

"Ca! Luca!" The two Lucario grunted as they kept deflecting the arrows. They were doing well, but they couldn't keep this up forever.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Pika....Chuuuu!" Pikachu would assist in unleashing a blast of 100,000 volts from his body, striking at the arrows. The arrows would explode upon contact, causing a massive explosion that would knock Skorupi back a bit.

"Sko!" Skorupi cried out as it stumbled back, giving the two Lucario an opening. Their eyes would glint as they rushed in as fast as they could while they still had this chance. However, Skorupi recovered almost instantly, digging its tail into the ground before swinging it around like a whip.

The tail would strike the ground as Skorupi would then use Night Slash from it, summoning an outburst of darkness from below. The two Lucario would flip as the tail began chasing them down as if it were a worm moving through the sands.

"Ca!" Both Lucario cried out as started focusing on evading the tail. They would jump over the tail as it struck the ground, unleashing another wave of darkness. They would continue to do so until they reached Skorupi's body again.

Meanwhile, Twilight and Fluttershy were focused on protecting the Pokemon present here. They managed to enter the holes they all hid in as Twilight placed a magic veil around the hole to block out the battle happening outside. Once she was with the, Audino would then use Refresh to heal them.

It would take a bit longer since they were heavily affected by the poison from being so exposed to it. But they would eventually recover thanks to her healing abilities. Once healed, Twilight would give them the magic coating as well to help them get through the poisonous environment here.

"There you go. You should be safe now." Twilight smiled. "But please stay here for the time being. It's too dangerous out there."

"We'll still need to get to the other Pokemon around here. Some of the holes have been covered with poison all around them." Fluttershy pointed out.

"Yeah...I know. I'm working on it." Twilight sighed. She was trying to come up with a way to save the rest of the Pokemon here, but it wasn't easy. Not when they were being attacked by Skorupi. "Let's try and go from the underground. We'll try our hooves at that." An underground approach was Twilight's next idea as she held out one of her Poke Ball. From it, she summoned her Absol.

"Absol!"

"Absol. I need you to really break through the ground with your horn. Can you do that?" Twilight asked.

"Sol!" Absol nodded.

"I'm counting you then." Twilight said as she and Fluttershy would follow Absol. The Disaster Pokemon would start charging up his horn, focusing his energy into it. He would then slam his horn into the ground, creating a powerful shockwave that would cause the ground to shake.

The shockwave would travel across the area, reaching the holes that had been covered with poison. The shockwave would then hit the poison, causing it to crack and shatter away. This allowed the Pokemon to escape from their holes, running off to safety, but not before Audino went over to them, staving their afflictions with a Refresh.

"There we go! That should do it!" Fluttershy cheered.

"Great job, Absol!" Twilight smiled.

"Ab."

As for the two Lucario, they were still trying to close the distance between them and Skorupi. They were doing well, but Skorupi was not going to let them get any closer. It would continue to attack them with Poisonous attacks but thanks to their Steel-Typing, they could easily move through it, completely immune to it.

"Skori! Skorupi!" Skorupi roared as it unleashed a Night Slash from its mouth, blasting at the two Lucario. They would cross their arms, blocking the attack. However, they were being pushed back by the sheer force of the attack.

"No good. It keeps finding ways to keep its distance." Cynthia narrowed her eyes, seeing how difficult Skorupit was making this. That shard had truly increased its capabilities to be on par with two powerful Lucario.

"If getting up close and personal isn't working, let's try Aura Sphere. Together." Ash looked at Cynthia, knowing what had to come next.

"Of course." Cynthia nodded.

"Aura Sphere!" Both Ash and Cynthia called out as both Lucario would hold their paws out, summoning a sphere of blue energy in front of them. The spheres would grow bigger and bigger before they would throw them forward. The Aura Spheres would fly at high speeds, soon merging as one to create an even larger Aura Sphere that was focused on hitting the centre of Skorupi.

"Cario!"

"Skor!" Skorupi would use Night Slash once more, trying to block the attack. But the sheer power of the combined Aura Sphere was too much for it to handle as it would be blasted away by the attack. The sphere would keep travelling until it struck the core of Skorupi's body, causing a massive explosion. "Skorupi!"

Skorupi was completely staggered when feeling the two Auras around its body, leaving it stuck for a while. This was the moment the Lucario were waiting for and they weren't going to waste it. Together, they lunged towards Skorupi's body, ready to grab the shard.

"Rrrr!" Both Lucario growled as they got closer and closer to the shard. And since Skorupi was staggered, it was unable to stop this. The two Lucario would then reach the shard, grabbing it with their paws. "Lucario!"

Once the shard was out of its body, a Divine Light would erupt from Skorupi's body as its voice would echo across all of Sunwade Gorge. The powerful form it took was starting diminish as it would return to its normal state. The purple colour would vanish from its body as it would stand there, confused by what had just happened.

"Skor...Skorupi?" Skorupi looked around, bewildered. All the poisonous energy in the atmosphere and environment would also fade away as the light returned to the gorge. The Pokemon that were poisoned would feel better as well, recovering from their injuries.

"Nice! Way to go you two!" Ash pumped his fist, cheering for the Lucario.

"Pika! Pikachu!"

"Rrr." Ash's Lucario smiled while holding the Poison Shard out.

"Cario." Cynthia's Lucario nodded, doing the same.

"Skorupi..." Skorupi would look around, seeing that everything was back to normal. It had no idea what had just happened, but it felt like it had been through something crazy. It would then spot Ash and Cynthia, looking at them in confusion. Skorupi, while not being aware of what just happened, felt as if they had done a great service too it. The Poison-Type nodded before walking off, heading back to the other Pokemon.

"Well, we've done it. That's a Shard for us." Cynthia commented.

"Yeah. We did it." Ash smiled before looking at the watch, thanking it as well. It was a good thing they managed to show up here, otherwise the Pokemon would've perished with all of this poison. It was a successful find without a doubt.

The group would soon reunite at the entrance of Sunwade Gorge. They were all glad to see each other again, especially since they were able to save the Pokemon here. The Pokemon were all grateful to them for saving their lives, thanking them for their help.

Now that they had proof of the Device's functions working well, they had the means to find the rest. Granted, some were with Volo which would be easier said than done. Eventually, they would have to cross paths when it comes to all the shards reuniting as one. All three parties would have to do so.

As the journey continues.

Chapter 517 End.