Chapter 4: The Confusion of the Fog
"What...? What is this? I feel like... something's watching me or somehow...!?" Hikaru thought as he was about to call Leafeon, by trying to push his thought off of his mind. But just before he could call the first attack, a bright purple light came out of nowhere, coming from above the tower!
Everyone, including Brock and Alice all turned in surprise to see what was going on, as the glow caught the attention of all the citizens of Alamos Town as well! As the glow went on, Hikaru felt something powerful coming from above as he widened his eyes.
"What...!?" Hikaru could say silently as he couldn't shout his shock as the glow went on, with the Twinleaf boy still feeling a powerful presence from above. Everyone watched as the glow continued to go on, surrounding all of Alamos Town, until the sudden event stopped.
Once it did, everyone was puzzled for what had happened, as Ash was the first to speak up. "What was all that?" Ash asked. "Pika..." Pikachu said, expressing on how puzzled he felt. "The sky just lit up...!" Dawn said worriedly, as Piplup kept staring at the sky in confusion.
For Hikaru, he was more than just puzzled of what happened just now. He folded his arms, trying to think over of what happened so far as he narrowed his eyes.
"Someone was watching us from above... But from where and why? This is starting to be even more confusing than when Darkrai appeared..." Hikaru thought as he felt Monferno climb up onto his left shoulder.
He also felt a slight nudge on his right leg, coming from Leafeon. The Twinleaf boy looked to see his two evolved Pokémon worried for what happened as Hikaru gave a weak smile. "You two are probably wondering why this is all happening, right?" Hikaru asked silently.
Both Monferno and Leafeon nodded together, causing Hikaru to sigh before he felt a familiar presence behind him as he turned to hear a dark voice. "Go away..." Darkrai croaked out darkly.
This caught everyone's attention as they all turned to see the Pitch-Black Pokémon coming out from the shadows! Before Hikaru could try talking to the Dark Type, Ash was the first to run and confront the mysterious Dark Type!
"Darkrai!?" "Pika Pika!" Ash cried out while Pikachu confronted the Pitch-Black Pokémon angrily.
"Wait, Ash! I don't think-" Hikaru started to say until a familiar voice reached the Kanto trainer before he could! "Ah ha! Lickilicky!" Baron Alberto cried out as he sent out his partner to face his enemy. As the Normal Type appeared, a woman's reporter spoke, commenting on Alberto's bravery.
"Leave it to the brave Baron to find Darkrai in a flash!" The woman reporter cried out.
As her two assistants cried out their comments about the Baron, the Twinleaf boy narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "He couldn't have picked a better time to mess things up even more...?" Hikaru scoffed as Alberto turned to Darkrai, making a challenge!
"There is no escape! Alright, Lickilicky! Gyro Ball!" Baron Alberto called as Lickilicky did so! Spinning with his power and strength, the Normal Type aimed to bash into Darkrai, only for Darkrai to dodge and immobilize Lickilicky with a Shock Wave attack!
While this left Lickilicky stunned for a moment, the Twinleaf boy tried to stop the meaningless battle by getting in between the two Pokémon, with Monferno and Leafeon at his side. "Stop it right now, Alberto! The culprit of this mess isn't Darkrai!" Hikaru cried out angrily.
This protest only left Alberto annoyed as he scoffed. "Rubbish! How can a child like you know on what's right or wrong? Lickilicky! Use Hyper Beam!" Baron Alberto said annoyingly, allowing Lickilicky to blast the powerful attack towards Darkrai, much to Hikaru's annoyance.
"Dammit! I said, stop!" Hikaru yelled until Darkrai dodged. As Hikaru watched with widened eyes, the Pitch-Black Pokémon created a dark ball that seemed to be similar of what he threw to both Ash and Hikaru once!
"Dark Void!" Darkrai yelled as he unleashed the Dark Void attacks. "Darkrai, no!" Hikaru called out, only for his protest to come too late. As the Dark Void was launched, many Pokémon of the civilians and Trainers were caught in a nightmare, much to their Trainers' horror.
One of the Dark Voids unfortunately hits Leafeon, causing her to squeal in surprise before she fell asleep by the Dark Void's effect. "What!? Leafeon?!" Hikaru gasped as he caught his Grass Type before she fell as Dawn, Brock, and Kai came over to see what was going on.
"What in the world is that!?" Kai asked, as he sounded as if he'd never seen Darkrai before. "It's Darkrai!" Brock answered as Dawn tried to strike back with Buizel at her side. "Quick, Buizel! Use Water Gun!" Dawn cried out, much to the Twinleaf boy's surprise.
"Dawn, wait!" Hikaru yelled out, only for the Water Gun to be shot and miss Darkrai! The Pitch-Black Pokémon dodged it easily as he created more Dark Void attacks! "Dark Void!" Darkrai yelled as he shot more voids to trap more Pokémon into nightmares!
One of the victims this time was Buizel as Dawn gasped to see her Water Type be engulfed in the nightmare like the other Pokémon have! "Buizel!?" Dawn gasped, causing Hikaru to grit his teeth. He looked down to see his fallen Leafeon as he began to feel frantic.
With his face darkening, he turned to Dawn with Leafeon in his arms as he tried to give the Verdant Pokémon to her, leaving the Twinleaf girl surprised for a moment. "Hikaru...? What are you...?" Dawn started to ask as Hikaru made a serious request for his Grass Type.
"I'm going to get to the bottom of this... Can you look after Leafeon for a minute...?" Hikaru asked, causing Dawn to hesitantly take Leafeon into her arms from Hikaru as she cared for Buizel as well. "Wait! What are you trying to do!?" Dawn started to ask until Hikaru ran off.
As Darkrai flew away to make his escape, the Twinleaf boy and Monferno made chase to confront the Pitch-Black Pokémon. As Hikaru ran, determination burned in his soul as he kept running.
"I have to know the answers... If Alamos Town is in danger, then Darkrai has to be the only one knowing the answers why that is!" Hikaru thought as he picked up the pace. Ash followed his Sinnoh friend, with Pikachu at his side. "Hold up, Hikaru! Wait up!" Ash called out as he chased after the two to join the conflict.
What the two boys and their partners didn't notice was that Baron Alberto was following them with the reporters, as he hoped to increase his popularity by defeating Darkrai, who he believes is the culprit for the mess that's happened so far.
At a dark alley, Hikaru continued to make chase for the Pitch-Black Pokémon as Monferno turned to his human brother in question. "Mon? Monferno Mon?" Monferno asked as Hikaru gave a glance to his Fire Type starter.
"If you're asking me on why I'm trying to stop the others from hurting Darkrai, Monferno... Then, it's because, well... Do you remember when I told you about Palkia appearing in my nightmare?" Hikaru asked, causing Monferno to remember as he nods, before allowing Hikaru to continue on.
"Like I was trying to say before... with the image that Darkrai showed me and Ash in our nightmare... It made me start to think, that Darkrai was trying to warn the two of us of a serious conflict that was about to happen..." Hikaru said before he continued on.
"That conflict involves Palkia, which could be the reason why it was shown in our nightmare." Hikaru explained, now allowing Monferno to understand as the Twinleaf boy looked at his Playful Pokémon with a worried expression on his face.
"You think I'm crazy about this?" Hikaru asked, allowing Monferno smile softly before he shook his head. "Mon! Monferno!" Monferno cried out. He would believe his human brother to the very end, even if meant confronting a dangerous Pokémon.
"I don't think you're crazy, Hikaru..." Ash called out, causing the two to turn and see Ash and Pikachu catching up to them. The Twinleaf boy frowned before he asked his Kanto friend. "How long have you have been listening?" Hikaru asked as Ash frowned, before he answered.
"Long enough to hear you mention about one of the Legendary Pokémon, Palkia..." Ash said as Pikachu got onto his shoulder. The Twinleaf boy frowned again before he sighed. "So, do you really believe on what you're saying? That I'm not crazy about this whole situation?" Hikaru asked.
"Hey... We've had the same nightmare when Darkrai trapped us in that mess, right? I've seen the image before... And with the way you're saying it, it has to make sense..." Ash said, catching the Twinleaf boy off guard as he watched the Kanto trainer smile.
"I don't really get it myself, for why Darkrai would trap many Pokémon in nightmares... But if it has something to do with the problems that are occurring around Alamos Town, then I'll stick with you, because you seem to know most of the situation!" Ash said confidently.
"Pika! Pika Pika!" Pikachu agreed. The resolution from the Kanto trainer left the Twinleaf boy smiling as he nodded to his Kanto friend thankfully. "Thanks, Ash..." Hikaru said, earning a nod back from Ash as the boys continued to walk in the alleyway to find Darkrai.
But as they were walking across the dark alley, the boys and their partners widened their eyes in surprise to see something floating in their way! It seemed to be a Bibarel... but a spirit form of Bibarel! The spirit floated in front of them before it disappeared into another wall.
"You guys saw that, right?" Ash asked as Hikaru nodded in affirmation. "It's a Bibarel's spirit... But, why is it floating all the way here?" Hikaru asked, causing the Kanto trainer to be more confused, until Pikachu noticed something up ahead!
"Pika!" Pikachu said, catching the boys and Monferno's attention. The four of them all turned to see a familiar shadow making its way out of the alley as Hikaru widened his eyes in realization. He ran to the shadow, trying to call the Pitch-Black Pokémon back.
"Darkrai, wait!" Hikaru called as the shadow stopped, before it changed into a physical form by coming out of the ground. Darkrai floated to see the Twinleaf boy and the Kanto trainer confronting him, alongside with their partners.
"Darkrai... When you used Dark Void on both me and Ash... you showed us an image... An image of Palkia! Why did you show us Palkia in the first place?" Hikaru asked as Ash just listened to his friend speak. Pikachu and Monferno kept watch as the Dark Type kept floating.
"A crisis is happening... Because of two..." Darkrai said darkly, catching both boys and their starters by surprise.
"A crisis?" Ash repeated in confusion.
"Because of two?" Hikaru repeated along.
Both Monferno and Pikachu were confused by them answer as the Twinleaf boy tried again. "Two? Who are those two? Are they the culprits of the situation that's happening in Alamos Town?" Hikaru asked. Darkrai tensed a little before he tried to speak.
But before the Pitch-Black Pokémon could give out more answers for the boys, Lickilicky suddenly came from behind them! Both Hikaru and Ash turned to see Lickilicky facing Darkrai again, alongside with Alberto and the TV crew! "I'll handle this! Darkrai is mine!" Baron Alberto said confidently.
"Baron!?" Ash said in surprise as Hikaru scoffed before he got in between Alberto and Darkrai. "Hold it! Darkrai has nothing to do with the problems that were occurring in Alamos Town!" Hikaru snapped as the Baron scoffed before he stepped up in annoyance.
"Get out of the way, you brat! Don't you realize that many Pokémon are caught in nightmares because of that creep, especially your own!? What more proof do you need that Darkrai is responsible for all this mess!?" Baron Alberto said angrily, causing Hikaru to tense.
As the Baron reminded him of Leafeon, the Twinleaf boy's face darkened a little, before he glared back. Before he could speak back however, the Baron aimed towards Darkrai as he commanded Lickilicky to attack! "Lickilicky! Use Hyper Beam!" Baron Alberto called out.
"Wait!" But Hikaru's call was ignored as Lickilicky launched the Hyper Beam attack towards Darkrai! The Pitch-Black Pokémon easily evaded it however, before it surprised Lickilicky with another Dark Void attack!
This shocked the Baron along with the TV crew as Lickilicky was now the next victim of the Darkrai's Dark Void. As it had fallen asleep, the evolved Normal Type stumbled a little before it fell to the ground. As it did so, it began to flinch, turning its head right and left several times!
"Lickilicky!" Baron Alberto called out before he glared at the Pitch-Black Pokémon. As Hikaru turned, he watched to see Darkrai disappearing again as he widened his eyes. "Wait, Darkrai!" Hikaru said again, only for Darkrai to vanish by the time Ash arrived at Hikaru's side.
Baron on the other hand, tried to shake his Lickilicky awake, only for his attempt to be futile. "Get up, Lickilicky! This is no time for a nap! Gah!" Baron snapped before he was unintentionally licked by his partner!
For the Twinleaf boy, he clenched his fists before he glared at the Baron, who kept trying to wake his Lickilicky up, despite on how futile it was. But before he could say something, the spirit of the Bibarel floated out of the wall again and floated around everyone!
While Ash was bewildered, the TV crew were shocked as Baron just watched as the spirit floated around. "Again...?" Ash said in surprise as the small cameraman spoke his surprise. "What's that thing!?" The cameraman gasped as the reporter woman made a guess.
"An ultra rare Pokémon!?" The reporter guessed, causing the assistant to freak out a little. "That flies through walls!?" The assistant said as Baron scoffed, making his comment about the Bibarel's spirit. "Hmph... It can't be real." Baron said as he began to stand up.
But as he did so, both he and Lickilicky began to glow! And to everyone's surprise, as Baron was rising up to try and see where Darkrai had ran off to, his body began to change shape, turning him... into a Lickilicky! This freaked the TV crew out, while bewildering the boys and their starters.
"Maybe so... But it doesn't explain on what you're up to!?" The reporter woman shrieked as Baron (Lickilicky) turned to the crew with an annoyed look on his face. "What!?" He snapped as the cameraman stuttered, as he was seeing this through camera.
"The camera does add a few extra pounds!" The cameraman shrieked as the assistant stammered. "B-B-B-Baron...?" The assistant gulped as Baron snapped at the three, annoyed with their shocked expressions. "Spit it out, I say!" Baron snapped.
While he was snapping at the TV crew, Hikaru sweat dropped at seeing the arrogant man becoming the shape of his Pokémon. "What in the world...?" Hikaru could only say as Ash shook his head, not wanting to believe on what he's seeing.
"Man... I must be having another nightmare... Pikachu, I want you to hurry and wake me up!" Ash said, causing Pikachu to nod. "Wait, what are you-!" Hikaru tried to say until the Electric Type shocked his human partner, causing him to yell in pain before leaving him in daze.
"Okay... I'm good..." Ash said, feeling paralyzed by the Thunderbolt attack. "Are you serious...? If I'm seeing this too, then this can't be a dream or a nightmare, Ash..." Hikaru said in disbelief while Monferno just snickered for the stunt that the Kanto trainer had pulled just now.
While Ash was recovering from his shock, the reporter woman slowly took out her small mirror to show to Baron, allowing him to see what he had become. Looking at the mirror, Baron widened his eyes before he rolled out his Lickilicky tongue. It was at that point when he cracked.
"MY ROYAL TOOONNNGUUUEEE!" Baron screamed out loud.
Meanwhile, at the Pokémon Center...
Nurse Joy was checking on Leafeon's condition, along with Buizel's, as Brock, Dawn, and Piplup knelt besides her. While the nurse was checking the Pokémon's conditions, Brock began to fidget nervously as he looked around the room where all the other Trainers were.
"Nurse Joy... I think I could use an exam, too..." Brock said nervously as he looked back to where he was looking at. Turning to where Brock was looking at, both Dawn and Nurse Joy widened their eyes to see spirits of both Buizel and Leafeon floating around them!
"It's these... hallucinations!" Brock said as the spirits floated around. "But, I see them, too!" Nurse Joy confessed as the spirits kept floating around. All the Trainers were seeing the spirits as well as the checkup exam continued on.
While the spirits went on floating around, Tonio and Alice came by with a Pidgey and Murkrow in their arms with Chansey at their side. As Chansey laid the blanket down for the two small Flying Types to lay on, Alice turned to Dawn with a concerned look on her face.
"I guess you're all still a look shook up..." Alice said sadly as Dawn nodded back.
"I think you're right..." Dawn said as Piplup looked at the two Flying Types in concern.
While the checkup continued on, both Ash and Hikaru came running into the Center with Ash crying out the shocking news. "Guys! We got a problem!" Ash yelled, with Pikachu agreeing. Dawn frowned, before she noticed Hikaru with Ash as she smiled a little in relief.
That smile dropped down again as she turned to the Kanto trainer. "We've got a problem here, too!" Dawn said as the boys stopped and looked behind them as Hikaru spoke in a stern way. "I don't think it's us having a problem... It's him who's having a problem." Hikaru said seriously.
Everyone turned to where the boys had came from as Baron (Lickilicky) came through with an annoyed look on his face. "Really? Well, excuse me, people! But you don't know the meaning of the word 'problem'!" Baron snapped as he put his thick arms on his thick sides!
At first, silence rose in the air until Dawn let out a shriek of surprise as she didn't know who this really was.
"Since when did Lickilicky talk!?" "Piplup!?" Both Dawn and Piplup expressed their surprises as Baron twitched his eyes in annoyance. He shook his head before he revealed his status as Baron Alberto.
"I am NOT Lickilicky! I am the Baron Alberto!" Baron snapped, shocking both Dawn and Brock. "No way..." Dawn said in disbelief as Brock and Nurse Joy just watched in bewilderment. Hikaru sighed as the Baron confronted Tonio, demanding a cure for his original form.
"Quick, Tonio! Turn me back at once!" Baron snapped as Alice gave a funny look to the Lickilicky. "You act like Alberto..." Alice said nervously as Hikaru spoke, as he was still annoyed for what the Baron had caused during his talk with Darkrai.
"The freak is telling the truth... He transformed into Lickilicky right in front of our eyes... It was when Darkrai trapped Lickilicky in a nightmare with his Dark Void attack..." Hikaru said seriously as Monferno got onto his left shoulder.
"FREAK!? Who are you calling a freak, you little brat! It's your fault that I became this way in the first place!" Baron snapped as he towered over the Twinleaf boy, who didn't step back as he glared at the arrogant man.
"Speak for yourself! Darkrai would never have trapped Lickilicky or the other Pokémon in a nightmare if you hadn't picked a fight with him in the first place! It's your fault that all the Pokémon are stuck in their nightmare!" Hikaru lashed back, causing the Baron to flinch in surprise.
But before he could try and lash back, the TV crew came with Lickilicky on their backs. "We saw it, too! We saw... the whole thing... with our... eyes!" The reporter woman grunted as she and her crew dropped Lickilicky on the ground, the three being exhausted for carrying the Normal Type.
"Heres the real deal as proof..." The assistant groaned as the others stood in surprise. Tonio frowned before he checked on Lickilicky to see what happened as he spoke. "The real world merged with the dream world!" Tonio said, catching everyone's attention.
"What are you talking about?" Alice asked as her childhood friend explained.
"All these Pokémon are dreaming that they're chased by something frightening!" Tonio explained as Hikaru widened his eyes a little before he narrowed them again. Kneeling to where Leafeon was, the Twinleaf boy rubbed her head, trying to keep her comforted while she sleeps.
"If they're dreaming that way, then..." Hikaru started to say before he stopped himself. Saying it now wouldn't get him or the others anywhere, as it could only make them feel more desperate. While he comforted Leafeon, Baron glared at the scientist with an impatient tone.
"And what about me!?" Baron demanded as Tonio crouched down before making a hypothetical guess.
"I guess Lickilicky must be dreaming that it turned into you..." Tonio spoke, much to Baron's annoyance as he took a step back in shock. "Say what!?" Baron snapped as Tonio continued on with his explanation.
"The space around our city is being acted on by a powerful force, creating a space-time anomaly... resulting in all of the strange things we've been witnessing!" Tonio explained as he checked the status of Alamos Town, as he seemed to have picked up a force that's was surrounding the whole town.
"But why...?" Alice asked as she was starting to feel puzzled with the whole situation. "I don't know..." Tonio said with a frown. It was at that point when the Baron declared Darkrai as the culprit once again for this whole mess.
"It's that Darkrai! Every time it appears, strange things happen! Don't you see!?" Baron snapped as Tonio frowned, as he was unsure whether to believe that fact or not as he sighed. "Perhaps..." Tonio said as Hikaru narrowed his eyes.
"Darkrai mentioned something about the strange things that were happening around Alamos Town... Something about two beings causing these strange situations... Like the strange pressure we felt when we first arrived in town..." Hikaru explained.
"You mean... that time when we were flying above the town, with Alice guiding us?" Dawn asked, causing the Twinleaf boy to nod. But Alberto wasn't having any of this as he stomped over to his partner, trying to get him awake with an annoyed look on his face.
"Lickilicky, you must wake up this instant and go destroy Darkrai!" Baron snapped as he tried to lift Lickilicky's head to snap him awake. The Twinleaf boy could only shake his head and face palm for the impatience that the Baron was doing.
"That idiot... He got Lickilicky and all the other Pokémon into this mess, and now he's forcing his partner to be awake...? A fool will remain as a fool, huh..." Hikaru said bitterly as Alice gave a sad smile to the Twinleaf boy. She understood on how annoying this was, especially with Alberto around.
"You have to forgive him... He really does care for the people in Alamos Town, but he can easily take things the wrong way..." Alice said as the Twinleaf boy sighed. It was at that time when Kai, Maury, and Allegra came running in with a new problem at hand!
"Listen, people! We're stuck!" Allegra said with a serious look.
"It's the craziest thing!" Maury added as Kai added the finishing touch.
"We're trapped in town and we can't leave!" Kai explained.
This shocked everyone as all the Trainers left the Center to follow the three, along with the group, Alice, Tonio, Baron, and the TV crew. As everyone arrived to where the bridge was, the bridge seemed to be covered in fog, preventing anyone from seeing where it could go.
Allegra took out a Pokéball as she threw it up, revealing a Honchkrow! As soon as it appeared, Allegra made the order to drive the fog away. "Now, Honchkrow! Defog!" Allegra cried out.
At the order, the Big Boss Pokémon shot sharp energy waves at the fog, attempting to make it go away, only for nothing to happen! The fog remained, much to everyone's shock and surprise. "Defog didn't do a thing!?" Brock exclaimed as Kai frowned, before he explained.
"No matter which way we try to escape, we always end up where we started!" Kai explained, leaving Ash to make his decision to try and see for himself. "I'll be right back!" Ash exclaimed as he and Pikachu ran ahead. Hikaru frowned before he followed, with Monferno at his side.
Together, both Ash and Hikaru kept running straight on the bridge and into the fog! But as the boys and their partners kept running, they found themselves only to run to where they were running from! "But... I know we ran straight...!" Ash said in disbelief.
The Twinleaf boy frowned before he looked back to where the fog remained. "I know we did... But it's just like what Kai said... No matter which way we try to escape, we'll only end up where we started..." Hikaru said, folding his arms.
"Pika...?" "Monferno...?" Both Pikachu and Monferno were unsure on how to take this situation as the boys rejoined with the others. By the time everyone realized that it was futile to leave, Baron made another arrogant declaration of Darkrai being the culprit!
"It's that Darkrai! No doubt it's up to one of its evil tricks! And nothing's going to change until we destroy the nasty demon!" Baron snapped arrogantly, ticking Hikaru off as he scoffed. Even if he spoke now, it still wouldn't change Baron's mind, no matter what he did or say.
"It's nice to see Baron Lickilicky back up to speed!" The woman reporter commented, annoying Baron as he used Lick on the reporter! "It's Baron ALBERTO!" Baron snapped as the Lick shook the woman by surprise as she let out a shriek of surprise. "My makeup!" The reporter shrieked.
Ignoring her complaint, Baron turned to the Pokémon Trainers along with the four trainers to lend him their strength.
"Pokémon Trainers! Lend me your ears! Your strength and your expertise! We must destroy this loathsome and evil Darkrai! And now, follow me into the fray!" Baron called out loud, which seemed enough to encourage the trainers to join the arrogant man.
"Right!" The trainers call cried out. With that said, Baron began to lead the other trainers in town so that they all could find Darkrai themselves. Maury, Kai, and Allegra all looked at each other before Allegra made the question to the two.
"What do you think?" Allegra asked as both Kai and Maury had the same answers for this mess.
"They need us." Kai said, earning a nod from Maury.
"Yeah..." Kai said, allowing him and the other two to join the group to battle Darkrai. While the three were leaving, Dawn and Brock turned to both Ash and Hikaru. "They need us, too..." Brock said, as Dawn only gave a hesitant nod. "I guess so..." Dawn said until Hikaru spoke up.
"Hold up... Are you two saying that you agree with that man? There's no way Darkrai would trap us in the town..." Hikaru said in disbelief as Alice walked up, agreeing with the Twinleaf boy.
"You're right... The truth is, I don't think Darkrai is behind any of this, too..." Alice said as the group turned to her.
"What? But... it must be Darkrai... I mean, he's the one that trapped many people's Pokémon in nightmare, right?" Dawn asked as Hikaru made the correction to her words. "Actually, that was only self-defense... Remember, that it was Baron who caused Darkrai to fight back..." Hikaru said sternly.
That convinced both Dawn and Brock to back down as Ash spoke up. "Yeah... What he said... After what Hikaru told me, I don't think Darkrai is responsible for the mess that happened so far..." Ash explained as Dawn turned to the Kanto Trainers in surprise.
"What do you mean...?" Dawn asked. At that point, the Kanto trainer turned to his Sinnoh friend, who nodded in understanding as he spoke up, with his belief still in tact. "There's something I should've told the two of you about the nightmare Ash and I had together." Hikaru explained.
"What about it...?" Dawn asked again as the Twinleaf boy explained.
"When Ash and I were stuck in the nightmare, Darkrai had came out of nowhere and showed us an image of a colossal Pokémon... We think that Pokémon... is Palkia, one of the Legendary Pokémon in Sinnoh." Hikaru explained.
This shocked, Dawn, Brock, Alice and Tonio as the scientist spoke first. "What? Palkia!? Are you sure...?" Tonio asked, earning a nod from the Twinleaf boy. "Yes... When I saw Palkia, I realized that Darkrai was trying to warn us of something... Something that involved Palkia in this crisis..." Hikaru explained.
Alice sighed in relief, before she smiled at the Twinleaf boy. "If Darkrai did show you that in your nightmare, then that has to be the proof that Darkrai isn't evil..." Alice said as Tonio spoke again.
"You're right... Darkrai isn't evil, Alice." Tonio said, catching the group and Alice's attention. As they all turned to him, the scientist began to explain about his past with Alice. "I know that because, back when I was a boy, Alice and I were playing together in the garden." Tonio explained.
Flashback
Young Tonio was running around the garden to search for Alice when a familiar voice caught his attention.
"Tonio! Yoo-hoo! I'm up here! Come on up and play with me!" Young Alice said happily. The young boy looked to see his childhood friend up on a high cliff as she began to run ahead playfully! The young boy widened his eyes as he tried to warn Alice to stop.
"Ah! It's dangerous up there! Look where you're going!" Tonio cried out. But to his dismay and shock, Alice didn't listen as she kept running, only for her to run into a cliff that was breaking apart! "Don't worry! I'm fine- Ah! AHHHHHH!" Alice started before she screamed.
She began to fall off from a high height, as Tonio tried to make a run for her, attempting to save her despite on how far he was from her. "ALICE!" Tonio yelled as he tried to run faster. But as Alice continued to fall, something caught her and saved her from her fatal injury.
The young boy widened his eyes as he kept running to see to who saved his friend. But by the time he got there, he only noticed a shadow rushing out of sight, as if it was trying to get away from something.
Tonio ran over to Alice to check her condition before he sighed. She was alright. No bruises or scratches were on her. Then, remembering the figure that saved Alice from her fall, the young boy looked up to see a large and dark figure up ahead.
But it was only for a second that the figure had disappeared back to the ground again, becoming a shadow.
To be continued...
Hikaru's Team:
Monferno: (M): (Flame Wheel, Fire Spin, Mach Punch, Fury Swipes)
Luxio: (F): (Thunder Fang, Spark, Hidden Power, Iron Tail)
Leafeon: (F): (Razor Leaf, Synthesis, Shadow Ball, Iron Tail)
Buizel: (M): (Ice Beam, Aqua Jet, Swift, Water Gun)
Dratini: (M): (Wrap, Thunder Wave, Twister, Dragon Rage)
Next chapters:
Chapter 5: Palkia VS Dialga! Another Dimension!
Chapter 6: Play the Oración! Battle for Hope!
Chapter 7: Reach the Top! Fight, Darkrai!
VOL 2:
Chapter 1: Enter Shaymin and Giratina!?
Chapter 2: The Route to the Flower Garden
Next chapter preview:
Alberto: Why you... If no one can help me defeat you, then I'll do it myself!
Hikaru: This pain... Why... does it hurt so much? It's like... my heart is trying to escape from my body...
Tonio: The distortions of space... There's no doubt about it! This is... Dialga... and Palkia...
Hikaru: This can't be... The two legendary Pokémon of Sinnoh... are against each other!? But why...?
Alice: Please, stop this, you two! Stop fighting! You have no reasons to hurt each other!
Darkrai: ENOUGH! Leave... and GET OUT! You will not... destroy this place... and Alicia!