Chapter 12: Ponyville's Siege

Ash and Pikachu returned to Ponyville where they saw chaos. The homes and buildings among the villagers suffered massive damage while the two were out in the Everfree Forest to see Zecora. Someone came from behind the visiting pair. "Ash!" voiced Spike. "Pikachu!" Ash and Pikachu turned to see Twilight's dragon.

"Spike!" he recognized. "What's going on?"

"Two bad guys Twilight and her friends are familiar with came back and attacked Ponyville! They have Twilight!" This made Ash cringe when Pikachu's ears perked and he looked up. Celestia and Luna flew into Ponyville and over a path. Ash and Spike eyed them as well.

"You know something's wrong when Princess Celestia and Princess Luna come flying in. Let's go and see what we can do." The idea made Spike weary but mounted Ash before they headed to the scene. Celestia and Luna spotted Twilight, Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow, Pinkie and Rarity in an electrical cage. Two giant figures stood tall: a red Minotaur with black fur below the hip and a white mane to match his goatee. He also had two giant devilish horns. The other was a gray simian with white fur around its face and black armor with a black horned helmet.

"Tirek!" growled Celestia, identifying the Minotaur.

"And the Storm King!" realized Luna, mentioning the simian. The Storm King turned to the princesses and shot lightning from a black staff that had a cyan crystal embedded, directed at Celestia and Luna. They got shocked and fell from the sky, crashing into a heap.

"Princess Celestia!" gasped Twilight. "Princess Luna!" The downed princesses struggled to get up, only to have the Storm King make a cage made of lightning.

"Now, this is what we have been asking for," Tirek sneered. "We have three of the Alicorns in our grasps."

"And how many more do we need to take control of Equestria?" the Storm King asked. Ash, Spike and Pikachu reached the sight and looked around a damaged building.

"Who in the Houndour are they?" whispered Ash.

"Tirek is the Minotaur," Spike quietly identified. "I heard Twilight defeated him and he was imprisoned in Tartarus. The Storm King… I heard he was destroyed by Twilight."

("Well, he's there,") Pikachu squeaked. Tirek lifted Twilight by the neck.

"TWILIGHT!" the other ponies cried.

"Now, Princess Twilight," Tirek scowled. "Word in Equestria is that a new colt has appeared. Care to explain?" Twilight feigned to mention Ash.

"Twilight!" called out Celestia. "Don't bring him or the creatures up!" The Storm King grunted at Celestia neighing to Twilight's struggle.

"Silence!" he scowled. Ash saw enough. He felt the need to act and save his friends.

"I can't stay on the sidelines now!" he growled.

"But you can't!" protested Spike. "They're too powerful, even without the Alicorn Amulet on Tirek's neck!" Ash looked again and saw the amulet.

"Thanks for telling me," Ash grinned. Tirek gripped Twilight's neck tight, making the Princess of Friendship irk in pain.

"Apparently, this colt and his creatures are something interesting to see," he sneered. "I can imagine his face once I take your Alicorn magic and end you!" Twilight became frightened, her life at risk. With Pikachu on his back, Ash raced and leaped at Tirek.

"Quick Attack!" he shouted. Tirek turned around where Ash punched the Minotaur in the face. The punch lifted Tirek's arms up, one still holding Twilight where Pikachu smashed the Minotaur's thumb. The attack freed Twilight who flew away and intercepted Ash's fall. All three landed on the ground on their feet and hooves.

"Fatal mistake!" the Storm King as he thrust the staff. Lightning shot out but Pikachu intercepted the shot.

"Pikachu!" cried Twilight. Pikachu's face had a grin before it shot out yellow lightning that coated his body. The lightning nailed Tirek and the force sent him flying away from the ponies. After crashing in the dirt, Tirek reeled in some pain. The ponies couldn't believe Pikachu's power of absorbing and using the Storm King's lightning.

"What!?" the Storm King gawked after seeing Tirek take a shock. He looked to Pikachu and notice the tail. "What kind of sorcery is this!?" He fired another shot of lightning, prompting Pikachu to emit more of his. Both sides couldn't get an angle and both stopped their abilities.

"You're not the only one who has electricity, Storm King," Ash warned.

"Then I'll take it from you!" roared Tirek as he gathered energy between his crooked black horns. It shot out and blasted Ash. He felt the blast and flew several feet before rolling in a heap in pain.

"Ash!" the ponies cried out. Ash struggled to get his hooves underneath him as the Storm King snagged Pikachu.

"Now, I can take your lightning and further become more powerful," he grinned while Pikachu fought to free himself. He unleashed another blast of electricity but it didn't phase the simian. In fact, his muscles became apparent while he was getting jolted.

"Pikachu, you're powering the Storm King up!" shouted Rainbow. Pikachu stopped before Ash rushed after the Storm King. He lowered his head and clipped the Storm King's knee. He dropped Pikachu but Ash raced ahead.

"Pikachu, do what you can to free everyone!" he ordered. Pikachu ran over to Celestia and Luna and planted his tail to the ground while thrusting his head at the cage, absorbing the electrical energy.

"That little pony," Tirek snarled. Ash stopped and turned to see Tirek getting to his hooves. Twilight's friends began to recover.

"It's about time we get back at those two!" scowled Rainbow.

"No, we must retreat!" urged Rarity.

"It's bad enough dealin' with one bad guy at a time!" huffed Applejack. "Two is downright insane!" Those ponies retreated. Celestia and Luna stood between Tirek and the Storm King from reaching the ponies.

"I will claim them, you inferior Canterlotians!" bellowed the Storm King. Rainbow and Twilight circled around and looked for Ash.

"Rainbow, it would be better to hide from these guys!" warned Twilight.

"Come on, Twilight!" protested Rainbow. "Ash is only an Earth Pony in Equestria! He needs our help!" Ash ran in a fixed direction as white chimpanzees came in to surround Ash, now a sitting duck. Ash turned, seeing nowhere to go. He had a sneer.

"Vine Whip!" he shouted. Twilight and Rainbow blinked as one chimpanzee leaped but a vine lashed out, snagging the attacking monkey before it was flung out of there. Ash and the chimpanzees turned to see Bayleef and Spike emerging.

("Saved ya, darling!") she teased.

"You knew the Storm King had his flunkies attacking," Spike teased.

"Isn't that why I trusted you with my Pokémon?" grinned Ash. More chimpanzees charged when a blue wheel raced in, rolling over and knocking down the little monkeys. The wheel straightened out, revealing Phanpy. "Nice Rollout, Phanpy!" More of the chimpanzees raced after Ash and Phanpy but Bayleef held Totodile who fired streams of water that made the chimpanzees run, afraid of water. Out of nowhere, Noctowl flew in but Cyndaquil breathed flames after lighting his back. The chimpanzees scattered and Twilight and Rainbow gasped.

"Never tell me his Pokémon can't defend themselves or Ash," Twilight mentioned.

"That's for sure," Rainbow gulped. Without warning, lightning crackled the air, forcing Ash and the Pokémon to scatter. Bayleef dashed to save herself with Spike on her back. Other Pokémon ran after seeing the size of the Storm King and Tirek. "Ash, get a move on!" Not hearing Rainbow, Ash stood his ground at the charging pair. Tirek fired a beam from his horns as Ash jumped. It hit but did not hurt Ash. Instead, he felt helpless in the air.

"This colt has a lot of spirit on him," Tirek noted.

"That is something to behold, which I can claim when you're done," the Storm King wished.

"Gladly…" The Minotaur flung Ash through the air where the Storm King fired another bolt. It shot Ash down to the outskirts.

"ASH!" cried Twilight. Rainbow's mind did a double-take.

"Isn't that where the Blade of Courage is!?" she pointed out. Twilight gawked, knowing that Ash had no clue about the Blade of Courage. The two marched on, ready to make Ash surrender himself. He reeled in pain as he tried to stand.

"That hurt!" he groaned. Behind him was the Blade of Courage. He realized his Pokémon stood no chance against Tirek or the Storm King. 'I gotta get these two out of Ponyville! I need something!' That's when he looked back, finding the Blade of Courage. He became skeptical. 'A sword?' He was within reach of the Blade of Courage but didn't go after it when he turned back to Tirek and the Storm King came after him. He felt that there wasn't another option 'Guess I got no choice.' Tirek enveloped one more fireball as Rainbow, Twilight, Celestia and Luna arrived with Pikachu on Luna's back.

"Now, young colt!" snarled Tirek. "Allow me to bring you back where you belong!" The fireball came hurtling toward Ash how grabbed the hilt of the Blade of Courage. He gave one look to the fireball. It exploded as soon as it reached Ash. Those flying saw the explosion and gasped, fearing the worst.

"ASH!" the princesses cried out. They wanted to fly towards the blast to see if Ash could be saved.

"Oh, pity," Tirek mocked. "That was the Blade of Courage forged by the fang of Singebringer. Too bad that was destroyed."

"Oh, the First Dragon that a foolish pony slew," the Storm King remembered. "Heard only a special somepony was worthy of the sword."

"Oh, well… It's better destroyed since neither of us could wield it. No matter." That's when a miracle happened.

"Thanks for telling me this sword's backstory," Ash grinned. Tirek and the Storm King turned back to the flames before they saw Ash standing up straight with the Blade of Courage, a scimitar with two fangs at the tip. Everyone gawked, seeing Ash with the Blade of Courage. Even Twilight had difficulty believing the feat.

"The Blade of Courage!?" she realized. "Ash pulled it out!?" The Minotaur and the simian weren't intimidated by Ash's new weapon.

"Matters not!" the Storm King scoffed as he fired volleys of lightning bolts. However, the Blade of Courage was aglow as Ash charged in. He swung the blade so hard, the bolts scattered in various directions. Pikachu intercepted one bolt, feeling recharged and shooting another blast of electricity that destroyed the ground just below Tirek. The push of the electric discharge slowed Pikachu's fall enough to where he'd be unhurt.

"This is unacceptable!" the Storm King shouted. "Your spirit and your sword will be ours!"

"As well as the power of the Alicorns' magic!" growled Tirek as they vanished with a puff of smoke. Ash and Pikachu smiled, knowing that Ponyville was saved as ponies filed and came to see the ordeal. Ash grinned, ready for the two should they return.

"Now, they see and know what we're made of," he huffed.

("And we know what they can do-") squeaked Pikachu when the herd of ponies emerged and journeyed to Ash, including Fluttershy, Applejack and Pinkie. Twilight flew to Ash and Pikachu, the Mouse Pokémon noticing. ("Twilight?") Pikachu's query made Ash turn to the Princess of Friendship.

"Ash…" she voiced. "You- You pulled it out! Nopony could!" Ash blinked.

"Huh?" he wondered. "Pulled what out?" He lifted the Blade of Courage to get a better look. "You mean this? I had no choice! I had to save you guys with anything I can find! This sword was it!" Celestia and Luna came down to clarify the ordeal.

"But Ash…" voiced Celestia. "Don't you realize? The sword you have is the Blade of Courage, the legendary blade that was embedded in the magic stone!" Ash and Pikachu gawked while the trainer lifted the sword. It began to shine again, making Ash intrigued.

"You're no ordinary sword, that's for sure," he believed. Luna stood by Ash, ready to conclude the finding.

"The Blade of Courage, forged from the fang of the first dragon, has chosen its wielder." Everyone, including Spike, knelt to Ash. There was a new hero that was emerging as a Cutie Mark formed on Ash's flank. It was the sword with a Pokéball as the guard that was between the handle and the blade. No one knew, not even Pikachu.

("Talk about becoming VIP,") he pondered.

"This is going to be massive," Ash shuttered. 'This is a big deal for them, now that I have this sword… and with those two in the mix and powerful they are, I'm going to need training.' He came to Celestia and Luna with something in mind. "Princess Celestia… Princess Luna…" Celestia and Luna stood and turned to Ash and Pikachu. "I'm going to need to train for anything with those two and whatever else comes to Ponyville or Canterlot or wherever they'll strike." Celestia and Luna realized Ash's new focus.

"Say no more, Ash," Celestia agreed.

"We'll help you with any training that comes your way," Luna added. Twilight's mind became clouded in the mystery as to why the Blade of Courage was now with Ash.

'This doesn't make any sense!' she minded. 'Ash isn't a pony! He isn't even from Equestria! Why!? Why does he have the Blade of Courage when nopony could pull it out!?' Ash has help for the upcoming battle against the Storm King and Tirek. There are answers to fill the questions Ash will have about having the Blade of Courage.

TO BE CONTINUED…

(A/N: Today, we also welcome new President of the United States, Joe Biden and Vice President, Kamala Harris. I hope that a better tomorrow starts tonight.)