Hey! Delusional Potato here, working on my first collab story with Neo Dragon X! I guess I'll be handling the even chapters while he handles the odds. I hope you guys enjoy our story!

The shining castle of Canterlot glittered in the afternoon sun The beautiful white paint of the castle shone like pearls as it sat on the side of a tall mountain. Within the castle was a gorgeous white alicorn mare with a flowing, multi-colored mane. She currently stood at the window of her throne room. Her hooves and chest were adorned with golden jewelry, and a small, golden tiara sat upon her head, nearly hidden by her mane. Her eyes sparkled like amethyst, adding to her graceful appearance.

Just then, she turned, seeing something forming behind her. A golden portal appeared, growing larger as a new creature stepped out of it. This newcomer was other-worldly, almost equine-like, but not quite. His body was pure white, much like the alicorn he was visiting. Golden bars were attached to his sides, adorned with emeralds at the ends. His face was gray, and his eyes were emerald with scarlet pupils. He was a few feet taller than the equine he was visiting. The alicorn was not startled by this newcomer. Instead, she approached him, affectionately nuzzling him. He returned the gesture before they split apart.

"It's been a while, Arceus." The equine began, looking slightly disdainful towards the newcomer.

The creature called Arceus looked down, embarressed slightly, "I'm sorry, Celestia. You know my duties in the pokémon world come first."

"It's been months though," Celestia argued, "You have to have found him by now."

"Darkrai is tricky," Arceus explained, "I can't stop until I know his evil ways have been put to rest. Ever since my sons, Dialga and Palkia fought relentlessly, I've been concerned about Darkrai's return. No pokémon is truly evil, but I believe he is an exception."

Celestia was concerned. Arceus had been hunting this "Darkrai" character for ages now with little to no rest. She had never met Darkrai personally, but by the way Arceus talking about him, he was clearly a threat.

"What about Giratina?" Celestia questioned, "Luna has been worried sick about him."

"He's still following up on a lead for Darkrai," Arceus explained, "Thus, our lead brought us here, for some odd reason."

Celestia cocked an eyebrow, "Wouldn't we know if he was here?"

"No," Arceus shook his head, "But both me and my brother are sure that Darkrai has come here. He may seek shelter somewhere where no one shall ever think to look. He loves dark and deserted places, though. Is there anywhere that may match that?"

Celestia shrugged, "I'm sorry, but I don't know anywhere off the top of my head."

Arceus didn't say anything. His emerald eyes were closed and his head was down. He slowly turned away, silently floating towards the window on the other side of the room.

"Celestia," He began, "Darkrai may be weak now, but if he can regain strength, it may be the end of all of us. He is not one that should be taken lightly," The alpha pokémon turned to the alicorn, "What if he allies with one of your enemies?"

Celestia shook her head, "Impossible. Nightmare Moon has been cast out of my sister's body, Discord is in stone, Queen Chrysalis and the changelings have been scattered and weakened severely, and King Sombra has been destroyed by the Crystal Heart."

Arceus looked over the beautiful city of Canterlot, "What if he managed to gain enough power to bring one of them back? From what you have told me, it seems as if Sombra shares much in common with Darkrai. They both share the same objectives in that they wish to rule in fear and darkness..."

"That's ridiculous," Celestia laughed, approaching the lord's side, "It would be impossible to bring back Sombra unless Darkrai managed to find an anchor point; something that Sombra could hold onto without completely dying."

Arceus looked down, "That doesn't change his being here. If he can regenerate his powers, he could bring back one of your enemies and ally with them. It wouldn't be hard to bring the bitterness back to Luna's heart, nor would it be hard to break open a stone prison or gather up the changeling army again."

"I think you're stressing too much," Celestia insisted, "Maybe you should rest. Tomorrow you can set out and look for Darkrai. Me and Luna will be glad to accompany you."

Arceus shook his head, "Too dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt."

Celestia raised a very unamused eyebrow, "You're talking to a princess who has kept her empire safe for thousands upon thousands of years. You're concerned about my safety?"

Arceus mustered a chuckle, "I suppose you're right, but I can't take the risk."

Celestia calmly leaned on the alpha pokémon's shoulder, "Please, just stay here for the night. I promise we can start looking for Darkrai tomorrow."

Arceus hesitated for a moment, "Very well. Only tonight. When the sun rises tomorrow, I will be off again."

In one of the palace towers, an ebony-colored alicorn napped. She had a beautiful flowing mane of stars that lit up the currently dark bedroom. Her hooves were adorned with light purple jewelry, and a small, black necklace decorated with a crescent moon hung around her neck. Her light blue eyes were closed as she lightly snored.

A loud sound awoke her. A portal of purple appeared in her bedroom before a large, basilisk-like creature calmly exited it. The gray basilisk had golden plates adorning his face and his legs. Six golden rib bones wrapped around his neck, and the three golden claws at the end of each of his six legs. His ginormous black wings were currently folded against his sides, the red spikes that tipped the ends facing outwards so as to not impale the great dragon's sides. Usually, he was much larger, but he had shrunken himself down in order to fit in the room.

"Giratina!" The alicorn cried, running to embrace the basilisk, "I've missed you so much!"

The creature called Giratina mustered a smile, "I have missed you too, Luna."

Luna backed up, her smile suddenly dropping, "So... Um... What of Darkrai?"

Giratina looked down, "Apparently, while my nephews Dialga and Palkia fought, they created a hole in time and space that allowed Darkrai to travel to a different world; this world to be exact. At least, that's what my brother speculates."

"That's horrible," Luna gasped, "Well, we must stop him!"

"Actually, it will be only me and Arceus," Giratina quickly interrupted, his red and black eyes showing slight reluctance, "He's our enemy, and it's up to us to stop him."

"But..." Luna began. Her expression suddenly became stern, "It's our land that he had invaded!"

"That's Arceus' orders," Giratina explained, "I can't fight with my brother and expect to win. We'll probably start out again as soon as Arceus is done with reporting to Celes-"

Just then, a white flash blinded both of them. Giratina's brother was standing there, seeming giddy and quite happy. If he could, he probably would be smiling.

"My brother," Arceus said to Giratina, "We're staying the night here in Equestria. We'll set out tomorrow to hunt for Darkrai once again."