Chapter 59 - Changed Legendaries
Khrista dove behind the remains of a tree as a bright pink Shaymin with dark blue flowers scurried by. A moment later, Grace tackled the Legendary, calling out, "Shay!"
The Grass-Type jumped in alarm at the sound of the Angeleon's voice, then tried to back up, only for Grace to catch her in a bear hug and held her down.
"Get off me!" Shay snarled, scrambling out of the Angeleon's grip. Then she dashed off before Grace could grab the Legendary again.
Grace frowned at the retreating Grass-Type. "What was that about?"
"It probably has something to do with the...their exposure to the Red Chain," Joshua responded, glancing over at Red and Ash as he paused. "Maybe it changed her attitude."
Ash shrugged, then looked at Khrista, who was still crouched behind the tree. "I don't see why you have to hide back there."
"You never know when one of those Pokemon is going to become hostile," the teen retorted, getting up from her hiding place. "Triple S has been passing over our heads and attacking whatever he might find suitable to be a target."
A blue blur passed over their heads and veered towards Ash, but then slashed the remains of the tree Khrista was behind to pieces.
"See?" Khrista's voice came out in a slight squeak. "That's six times, now."
"Let's just keep moving," Red suggested. "We still have that storm to worry about, too."
"Right," Ash agreed. He promptly took off in a dash. "Last one to Stark Mountain is a rotten Exeggcute!"
Red shook his head in amusement. "Still acts like a ten-year-old," he muttered before taking off after his brother. Joshua and the other two quickly followed, Khrista keeping an eye out for any more Legendaries that might cross their path.
"How do you think we're going to change them back?" Khrista asked Red, motioning in the direction the Shaymin had gone.
"Dialga and Palkia might know," the Kanto Champion responded. "Either that, or Ash could figure something out. Red Chain's control or not, he did put them under in the first place."
Khrista jumped up as she shifted to Flying-Type. "Electricity might have something to do with it. I shook Ash loose with a GigaVolt; maybe a less powerful one might do the same thing."
"You're not releasing anything electrical," Grace responded from where she flew to Khrista's left. "Even with four Electric-Types to help, you were out for two days. And didn't Sparkler say something about Ash having some electricity left in him, too?"
Red looked at the Angeleon in confusion. "What?"
Joshua also looked intrigued. "Have you been hiding something from us, Khrista?"
Khrista smiled nervously at her traveling companions. "I only learned it recently myself. According to Pikachu, Ash has some of the GigaVolt electricity left in his system. Liz's Raichu, Sparkler, said it felt as powerful as Zapdos' reserves. He probably hasn't figured out how to use it yet, though."
Red shook his head. "Great. Looks like Pikachu won't be able to wake up Ash in the morning like he used to."
"Unless he wants to give him a sugar rush," Joshua responded, pointing ahead. "Pikachu's been zapping Ash at regular intervals, and it seems to be keeping him going at a faster speed than humanly possible."
"Probably the electricity," Khrista confirmed.
By the time they had caught up to Ash, the Trainer was sitting a cave at the base of Stark Mountain. Taking note of their arrival, the Trainer got up, a relaxed smile on his face.
"Hey, guys," Ash greeted. "What took you so long?"
"We ran at a normal human pace, in case you didn't notice," Red responded with a smirk. "Pikachu's Thunderbolt didn't hurt, did it?"
Ash shook his head. "It felt like I had just eaten a RageCandyBar or something like that."
"That probably has something to do with the electricity buildup inside you," Joshua noted. Noticing the look Ash was giving him, he explained, "Khrista told us what was going on. In my opinion, I think you've probably become part Pokemon."
Ash's eyes widened. "Seriously? I'm part Pokemon?"
"Probably," Joshua repeated. "It will take some time to figure out how to activate your newfound abilities, but for now, we've got a couple Legendaries to face."
Pikachu nodded in agreement. "We're going to have to move fast. The pressure had already started to drop, and whatever static there is in the air has gone up. A lot."
Red glanced over in the direction they had come from, eyes widening upon seeing the storm front that was coming their way. "Let's get into the volcano and start looking for those Legendaries."
Khrista moved to stand in the entrance to the volcano. "I know the geography from the games' situation, but if the Legendaries changed the maze past here with their abilities, then my knowledge won't be of any help."
"They probably turned it into a Mystery Dungeon," Joshua replied. "We probably should split up into groups so that at least some of us reach them and start fighting them."
"Ash and I are staying together," Red said immediately.
Khrista grinned at her cousin, only to find that he was frowning. "What? Not excited to go along with your cousin?"
"It's not that," Joshua responded. "Ash should probably go with Khrista, Red. If his powers start to manifest, he's going to need someone who can help him get some basic skills learned."
The two brothers looked at each other, considering Joshua's suggestion. A few seconds later, Ash grinned and nodded.
"What about me?" Grace piped up, looking concerned. "You guys might have partners to hang around with, but I don't!"
"You can come with me and Joshua," Red replied, holding out a hand. "You'll probably be safer with us than those two misfits."
"Hey!" Khrista exclaimed, annoyed.
"I've got an idea!" Ash exclaimed suddenly, having completely ignored the jibe. "Let's make this a race - first ones to the top get dibs at battling the Legendaries!"
The other three humans, Pikachu, and Grace looked at the Kanto Trainer. A moment later, a grin came over Khrista's face.
"Yeah! I like the idea!" Khrista started towards the cave entrance. "Let's move!"
The two groups then dashed inside, right as hail started to fall...
Spacial Break
Dialga stirred as he awakened from momentary slumber, something abnormal setting off alarms at the back of his head. -Intruders- he growled.
Palkia stirred as well, the dark red gem on his shoulder glinting dangerously in the dim light. -Three space distortions. Two humans, one Pokemon, summoned by the Master. And one more, who has been changed- The Legendary turned his head to look at Dialga. -The Ketchum boy is no longer under the control of the Master-
Dialga's eyes narrowed. -We shall bring him back-The orange gem on his chest began to glow.
-That will not succeed- Palkia warned. -Another power has taken its place. It is the distortions we should watch-
Dialga's orange gem stopped glowing.-The distortions? Of what use is that?-
-They carry abilities that no other holds. One, though weak, carries great power, and one more has discovered theirs, while the last has yet to learn of her full potential-
Dialga snorted. -Mere otherworlders with abilities far weaker than ours-
-They are not to be underestimated, brother. Each carries a power that rivals that of a Legendary, and teams of Pokemon that could easily defeat us-
Dialga's face contorted into what could have been a sneer. -Then we shall make a team of our own-
Oh, boy, looks like the Legendaries are planning something...and it doesn't sound too good, either.