Chapter 49:

Serena's Night-Mare

Maskara Island

The day after Ash's victory at Rosalind's Pokemon Gym, the group decided it was time to leave Venesi City and head towards Snowbank Town, in the northmost part of East Tandor. They'll have to cross Maskara Island, then take a ferry and go to Silverport Town first.

"Come on Dunseraph, you can do it! Steel Wing!" Ash commanded.

"Duuuun...!" Dunseraph concentrated as he channeled his inner power to his wings, which began to flicker with a silvery light.

"Pi, pika, pikachupi!" Pikachu, perched on top of the dragon's head, advised. While Steel Wing wasn't exactly like Iron Tail, the principle behind the attacks was the same, so the rodent felt he could help Dunseraph with the move.

The flickered stop as the silver glow became more stable, and the God Snake Pokemon dived towards a rock column – helpfully manifested by Pangoro's Stone Edge so it could be used as target practice – and smashed his wing against it. It managed to cut halfway through the stone pillar before the silvery light disappeared, and Dunseraph cried in pain upon hurting his wing.

"Dun, dunse!" he cried as he nursed his wing.

"Take it easy, Dunseraph. You almost got it there!" Ash encouraged his Pokemon.

"Chupi!" Pikachu agreed.

After spending the whole morning and a good part of the afternoon walking, the group decided to set up camp and do some training per Ash's suggestion. Despite defeating Rosalind, the raven haired teen knew he couldn't slack off, as his victory was a very narrow one, and he wanted to be better prepared for his match against Vaeryn.

And of course, Dunseraph wasn't the only Pokemon trying to learn a new move.

"Chilles!" Archilles growled as he dashed forward, while a claw-shaped green aura appeared around one of his front claws, delivering a wide swipe mid-air.

"Well done Archilles! Keep going and you'll have that Dragon Claw down in no time!" Ash encouraged his last captured Pokemon.

"Archi!" Archilles happily cried in return.

But Ash and his Pokémon weren't the only ones hard at work, since Serena wanted to make sure she would be ready for the Grand Festival, even if it was more than a month away. A month passed very quickly after that.

"Alright Coatlith, once again, Dragon Rage!" Serena commanded.

"Cooooo...!" Coatlith cried as blue and purple bits of flame poured from her mouth, before opening it, launching a blazing torrent of the same color over Sylveon, who had volunteered to be the dragon's 'training dummy', so to speak.

"Yes! Very well! Keep practicing and you'll have it in no time!" Serena told her, beaming.

"Co, coatlith!" Coatlith happily cried upon hearing her trainer's praise, before continuing practicing the move on Sylveon.

"And Delphox, let's see that Mystical Fire!" Serena asked her starter Pokemon.

Delphox nodded and drew a fire circle with her ignited wand. But when she was about to launch a stream of flames through it, said circle quickly broke down and the fire petered out, resulting in a mere Flamethrower.

"Deee..." Delphox sadly moaned.

"Hey don't worry, nobody expects you to get it the first try," Serena reassured her, placing a comforting hand on the Fox Pokemon's furry shoulder. "Remember, be persistent and you'll do it!"

"Del!" Delphox nodded, and continued trying to master the move.

She glanced at the rest of her Pokemon, who were either trying to master new moves like Delphox or Coatlith, or simply honing skills they already had, like Pangoro or Syrentide.

And then there was Oblivicorn, who was lazily lying under the shade of a tree, training being the last thing on her mind.

The honey blonde frowned as both anger and frustration bubbled inside her. So far, she hadn't made any progress with Oblivicorn, who refused not just to train or battle under her, but to even listen or even acknowledge her as her trainer, which was starting to get under her skin. She was about to power walk towards her and give her wayward Pokemon a piece of her mind before she stopped herself.

"No, I can't come as forceful, or else I'll make everything worse," she reminded herself, while taking a deep breath in order to calm down, and continued walking at a more relaxed pace.

However, when she was about to reach her asleep Pokemon, something Ash said drew her attention.

"Come on Greninja, that move will be ours today!" Ash said, crossing his arms in front of his face. "Let's do it, together!"

Even if they weren't in the middle of a fight, the transformation triggered by the Battle Bond wasn't any less spectacular, as Ash's Kalosian started transforming while inside a spiraling torrent of water, which condensed into a watery shuriken which was attached to his back. Was Ash trying to do what she was thinking...?

"Now, Greninja, let's take all of our power and bring it forward!" Ash excitedly said, pumping his fists. "Water Shuriken!"

"Greeeeee...!" Greninja began as he was engulfed by a vortex of water for the second time in a row. When the Vortex burst, there was a massive blazing orange shuriken. "NINJA!"

"That's not enough! Let's keep pushing forward!" Ash shouted, though Serena could sense some strain in his voice, worrying the honey blonde. "There's still more to that attack! One more push Greninja!"

"G-Gre...!" Greninja tried to pour even more of his and Ash's power into the attack. A third watery vortex began to form around him. Serena could hear Clemont and Bonnie gasped as Greninja pushed his limits even further beyond. "Nin-jaaaaaaa...!"

"Argh!"

The watery vortex petered out, dissolving into nothingness, as both trainer and Pokemon collapsed on the ground, clutching their bodies in pain.

"Ash!" Serena cried, as he rushed towards him, Clemont and Bonnie doing the same, while some of their Pokemon went to assist Greninja.

"Ugh..." Ash groaned as he tried to get up. His head was spinning. He felt a hand gently but firmly grabbing his shoulder.

"Easy there, Ash," Serena's voice said. "Take it slow."

As his head started to slowly spin, his vision focused and became less blurry. Serena, Clemont and Bonnie were all around him, looking worried. A couple meters away was Greninja, back in his normal form, being helped to sit up by Pikachu and Delphox.

"What happened...?" Ash asked.

"Both you and Greninja were trying to go for that buffed up version of the Water Shuriken, and then BLAM! Both of you collapsed!" Bonnie said, making a clapping noise with her palms for added emphasis.

"I see," Ash said, as disappointment filled him. "So it happened again, huh..."

"A-Again?" Clemont croaked. "Has... has this happened to you before?"

"Yeah, during a sparring match against Serena the day of our date at Venesi City," Ash said, recalling that sparring match against Serena's Coatlith.

"No, it wasn't as bad that time," Serena said, before looking Ash in the eye. "You collapsed and were in pain, but you didn't faint like it happened now.. Ash, what were you trying to do?"

"I feel there's something more to Greninja's power. I know it!" Ash said, sparing a glance at his trusty Kalosian Pokemon, who appeared to be recovered. "I just thought if we tried a little harder, we might be able to pull that Water Shuriken after all..."

"Ash, after what happened here, I don't want you to do this ever again," Serena stated. Ash was ready to protest, but his girlfriend's glare silenced him. "You can't keep hurting yourself and Greninja like this! What if something happened to either of you that leaves you with permanent side effects, huh?"

Ash wanted to protest so badly, but he found himself unable to. Serena brought up a very good point, and even if he didn't do it for himself, he had to do it for Greninja.

"Alright, this will be the last time we'll try to do that," Ash stated.

Serena smiled. "Good. Plus, you don't need any kind of super move to be strong and win. Just keep training like you've always been doing, and everything will be fine."

"I know, but..." Ash began, as he grabbed a handful of grass from the ground. "It's just so frustrating! I know we're on the verge of something amazing! I know there's just something missing in order to make it work, but I can't figure out what it is..."

"One thing's for sure, you're not going to do it by overexterting yourself and Greninja like that," Serena told him.

"I know, I shouldn't have pushed myself and Greninja like that. But I just felt that if I just tried a trifle harder…" Ash wondered.

"Maybe it's not a matter of trying harder," Bonnie chimed in.

"Huh?" Ash said, tilting his head, his curiosity aroused by Bonnie's observation. "What do you mean?"

"I mean... what if it's like Mega Evolution? You know, Mega Evolution can't happen without a Keystone and a Mega Stone. So maybe you need something like a Keystone to make that attack work," Bonnie explained.

"So, kinda like a Z-move?" Ash asked, his mind going to Leona whenever she used those moves. "I dunno. But I don't feel that's what we're missing."

"Maybe the move needs to meet some conditions for it to work," Serena interceded. "Like how Counter won't work unless hit by a physical move first, or how Sucker Punch only works if the opposing Pokemon is readying a move. Oh, and there was this move I learned about during my research, Aurora something, that only works when it's hailing."

"Oh, that reminds me!" Clemont said, his face lightening up a little. "I was planning to test Mega Evolution with Electruxo now. Maybe you should do the same with Archilles."

"You're right!" Ash said in realization. "Oh man, I was so blinded by wanting to master that advanced form of the Water Shuriken that I forgot about that I could Mega Evolve Archilles now."

Upon hearing that, Archilles shot Ash a flat stare.

"So, are you up for a sparring match?" Clemont asked.

"Sure-" Ash began.

"Yes but better rest a little longer. It's still early, and better make sure you're at your best," Serena told him. But despite her gentle tone, Ash knew that she wasn't going to admit any rebuttals.

"Alright," the raven haired teen agreed.

"Good. I'll go bring you something to eat," Serena said, as she walked towards their camp.

After resting a little and eating a small sandwich, Ash was ready to continue his training. Just like Clemont suggested, the two of them fought with their respective Tandorian starters, trading a few attacks in their base form as a warm up. Clemont was the first one to give a go at his new power up.

"The future is now thanks to Mega Evolution! Come on Electruxo, show them what you can do!" Clemont said, as he touched with two fingers the Keystone on his lightning bolt-shaped golden cufflink.

The Keystone and the Mega Stone attached to Electruxo's collar began to glow, shooting tendrils of light towards each other. As the tendrils merged and linked trainer and Pokemon, Electruxo began to glow brightly as his body grew and shifted. As Electruxo stopped glowing, the Mega Evolution helix flashed in front of him, bringing the process to an end.

"Whoa! Electruxo looks so cool Mega Evolved!" Bonnie cooed.

Mega Electruxo retained the same body shape, though his skin was now a darker shade of blue, his dorsal fin way more prominent, and red and blue fins had formed at the end of his legs and tail. There were four red tentacle-like appendages ending in round yellow bulbs, two growing out of his head and the other two from his rear.

"Ele, electrux!" Electruxo cried as the four bulbs at the end of the red tentacles crackled with yellow electricity.

Then, the sky began to slowly darken as it was covered by gray clouds. There was thunder, followed by rain.

"It's raining?" Bonnie asked. "But I thought you guys said it would be sunny today!"

"Nenene!" Dedenne protested as well.

"This is no natural rain. There were almost no clouds a minute ago, and now it's overcast," Clemont observed, but smiled upon realizing what was going on. "Of course! Eectruxo's ability upon Mega Evolving must have changed to Drizzle!"

Serena pulled out her Pokedex and checked Electruxo's entry. "Hey, that's right!"

"Alright Electruxo, let's see how strong you are now! Between Mega Evolution and the rain, your Water-type moves have to be a sight to behold!" Clemont said. "Aqua Jet!"

"Ele!" Electruxo cried as water began to swirl around him, covering him entirely in liquid, before shooting forward. The water cloak was so big and roared with such intensity that rather than a watery missile, Electruxo looked like a living tsunami.

"Dodge it with Flame Impact!" Ash ordered.

The fire on Archiless' elbows, knees and tails flared with more intensity, albeit a bit less than usual thanks to the ongoing rain, as fire spread all over his body, before moving sideways. However, he wasn't fast enough and Electruxo managed to graze him, causing enough harm to blast the Fire Raptor Pokemon backwards.

"Chilles!" Archilles cried in pain.

"So powerful!" Bonnie said in amazement.

"Between the Mega Evolution, the rain, and the fact that Archilles is very vulnerable to water, no wonder he took such a hit," Serena said.

"El, elec!" Electruxo cried, puffing his chest in pride at the sight of his own power.

"Ar! Archi!" Archilles growled, jumping back to his feet and looked at Ash.

The raven haired teen nodded, understanding perfectly what the Fire and Ground-type Pokemon wanted, and held the shuriken-shaped necklace that held his Keystone. "Come Archilles, let's do it, together! Mega Evolve!"

The process started anew, with Archilles glowing bright and changing once the forked beams of light shot by the Mega Stone on his collar and the Keystone Ash was touching merged, the transformation ending with the Mega Evolution gelix flashing in front of him.

"AAAARCH!" Archilles roared, letting out a plume of fire from his mouth.

Like Electruxo, Archilles' body shape remained largely unchanged, being that of a two-legged theropod, though his body was less lean and more thick and packed with muscle. There were now multiple orange feathers at the side of his face, his elbows, knees and tail. The red shells on his head and back now had white spikes growing out of them. While his elbows and knees were no longer on fire, the flames from his head and tail were much bigger now.

Then, the rain stopped, and just like they came, the clouds disappeared just as quickly. The sunlight appeared to be much brighter, and the temperature began to rise.

"The weather changed again," Bonnie said. Then she beamed and pointed to the sky. "Oh, look, a rainbow! So pretty!"

"That has to be an ability of Mega Archilles," Serena stated. "I remember Trevor's Charizard also had such an ability upon Mega Evolving that made the weather all nice and sunny."

Not that it had helped him much.

"Yeah, that's Drought," Clemont confirmed. "So, Electruxo and Archilles have weather-altering abilities upon Mea Evolving, huh? Interesting."

"What's Metalyx's ability, then? Because we saw her Mega Evolve a few times and the weather didn't change," Bonnie asked.

Serena had her Pokedex in her hand already, trying to find the answer. "Metalynx's ability upon Mega Evolving is Fireproof, which reduces damage taken from Fire-type moves," she read, before pocketing the device. "Guess we haven't seen it in action since none of the Pokemon she had fought against while Mega Evolved used Fire-type moves."

"Still, it's a good ability to have, given Metalynx's overall vulnerability to fire," Clemont added.

"I'll keep that in mind for the future," Ash said, before his eyes returned to his Mega Evolved Pokemon. "Shall we continue the battle?"

"Sure!" Clemont replied. "Come on Electruxo, use Scald!"

"Counter with Flamethrower!" Ash replied.

The battle resumed. Bonnie and a number of Pokemon watched it completely enraptured, but Serena unfortunately had something that required her attention. Something that she has been putting off for quite some time now, but felt that she should solve as soon as possible.

Upon reaching her wayward Pokemon, napping under a tree, Serena took a deep breath, steeled herself, and smiled.

"Hey there," Serena sheepishly greeted. "Can we talk?"

Oblivicorn merely opened her eyes, glared at Serena and closed them again.

"Listen, I know things between us have been less than great," Serena cringed inwardly at how much that euphemism understated the situation between trainer and Pokemon. "But things aren't going to get any better if we just pretend like there's nothing wrong."

Oblivicorn laid there, pretending to be asleep.

"Come on. I know I did something to earn your scorn, but I won't be able to make up for my mistake unless you tell me what I did wrong," Serena insisted.

Oblivicorn didn't pay her any attention.

"Unless you think I have to figure it out myself," Serena said in a mildly defeatist tone. If that was the case, she didn't know where to begin. She had replayed time and time again the events surrounding Oblivicorn's evolution, and she couldn't remember doing anything to anger the Fairy and Dark-type Pokemon.

As usual, Oblivicorn didn't react to that either.

Serena sighed despondently. "Come on Oblivicorn, I'm trying to make an effort. Just give me a hand here! Uh, hoof?" she quickly amended.

Oblivicorn opened her eyes again, shooting Serena an unamused stare, before getting up on her four legs and slowly moving away.

"No!" Serena said, quickly getting in the way of Oblivicorn, who seemed surprised by Serena's sudden boldness. "I'm not going to give up until you tell me what's wrong!"

Oblivicorn's surprise was quickly replaced by annoyance as she tried to sidestep Serena, but the honey blonde continued to obstruct the equine.

"So please, tell me! Help me here!" Serena pleaded, as she continued to block the Pokemon from moving. "You can't be okay with this either! I know you're unhappy, I can see it in your eyes!"

Oblivicorn huffed, her annoyance slowly turning into anger. Serena knew that she needed to tread carefully, since the Dark Horse Pokemon had shown in the past not to be above harming her directly. But Serena didn't care.

"I know that deep down, the little Minicorn I rescued from that Team Omega base is still there! You have to-" Serena said, but suddenly stopped.

Serena's heart skipped a beat as Oblivicorn fixed her with the most hate-filled glare the honey blonde had ever seen, feeling like she was next to a bomb that was about to go off.

And indeed, it went off.

Letting out a loud neigh, Oblivicorn reared back, dangerously waving her front hooves at Serena, who yelped in terror and fell back on her butt.

"Oblivicorn...!" Serena pleaded, as she saw the Dark Horse Pokemon walk dangerously towards her, her yellow eyes glowing with an eerie glint. "No, please, don't..."

"GORO!"

One moment, Oblivicorn was in front of the fallen Serena, stalking towards her, and a moment later there was a black and white blur, followed by a hit, and Oblivicorn was sent flying sideways.

"Pan, pangoro!" Pangoro angrily yelled, placing himself between Oblivicorn and Serena, punching his open paw.

"Pangoro!" Serena called, her heart beating so fast it threatened to burst out of her chest. "Th-Thank you!"

"Syl!" Sylveon cried, as she landed next to Pangoro.

"Co, coatlith!" Coatlith cried, floating above the other two Pokemon, the three of them forming a barrier around their trainer.

Oblivicorn quickly got back to her hooves, shot Serena one last hateful glare, and galloped away.

"No, wait, don't go!" Serena said as she tried to reach after her, but Oblivicorn quickly disappeared in the distance.

"Serena!" Ash said, as he, Clemont and Bonnie rushed to her. "Are you okay?"

"What happened? Did Oblivicorn try to attack you again?" Bonnie asked, worried.

"Yes, but that's not important! She ran away again!" Serena said, before looking at Coatlith. "Coatlith, I need you! Help me find her from above! Everybody else, return!"

"Serena, wait!" Ash pleaded, but Serena didn't listen to him. The only thing on her mind right now was Oblivicorn.

Jumping onto Coatlith's back just before recalling the rest of her Pokemon, the jungle dragon soared into the sky, flying in the same direction Oblivicorn had run away. In no time, it gained enough altitude to allow Serena to spot the runaway mare.

"Come on, come on," Serena nervously said, as she began to look around. From her vantage point in the sky, she could see many Pokemon wandering around, but none of them were Oblivicorn. "Can she run so fast to lose us already...?"

"Coat!" Coatlith cried, encouraging Serena to keep looking as she kept flying at a steady pace.

"You're right. I said I wouldn't give up on Oblivicorn, and I won't!" Serena declared, as she continued to look down. Then, she saw a black blur blitzing through the grass, sometimes hidden by the trees, but there was no doubt it was Oblivicorn. "Over there! Quickly, don't lose sight of her, Coatlith!"

"Li, lith!" Coatlith affirmatively cried, as she followed the speeding equine.

Serena was confident that Oblivicorn wouldn't be able to get away no matter how fast she ran. Eventually, she'd reach the coast, and it's not like the people operating the ferry would allow a seemingly wild Pokemon into the ship.

"Serena!" Ash's voice snapped her out of her thoughts as Dunseraph caught up with Coatlith, the angelic dragon also carrying Clemont and Bonnie on his back besides his trainer.

"Guys, I'm seeing Oblivicorn down there!" Serena said. "Once she reaches the shore, let's land and get ready for the worst! I'll try to reason with her, but I'm afraid she won't come back quietly."

"Hey... it doesn't look like she's heading to the shore..." Ash pointed out.

Looking back at the black and red blur, Serena realized it was true. She was heading towards a small mount at the northern edge of the island.

"Wait, isn't that...?" she began.

"The Labyrinth. The tunnel people used to travel to the northern part of the region before they put the service ferry in use," Clemont explained.

"She isn't trying to go there, isn't she?" Ash asked. "A Pokemon like Oblivicorn won't be able to move that well inside a cave..."

"Maybe she realized we were tracking her from above, so she decided to use that cave to lose us," Clemont surmised as she adjusted his glasses.

And indeed, much to Serena's frustration, Oblivicorn disappeared behind the entrance to the Labyrinth.

"Let's go. She won't be able to run that fast inside a cave," Serena commanded, her voice like cold steel, as Coatlith began to descend.

"Of course. I don't know how, but we always, always manage to get inside some stupid cave..." Bonnie protested, letting out a huff.

Once they reached the entrance to the Labyrinth, the group dismounted from their flying steeds, recalled them back to their respective pokeballs and penetrated into the cave. Ash let out Archilles while Serena released Delphox, so the two Fire-type Pokemon would provide illumination to the pitch black cave.

"So, do any of you guys know anything about this Labyrinth place?" Bonnie asked, arms crossed and brow furrowed, her displeasure for having to go through another cave evident. "Because the name alone doesn't fill me with confidence."

Serena already had her tablet opened with a website on information of the cave up. "According to this, it's a place people come to find Mega Stones and fossils, similar to Comet Cave," Serena explained. All of them looked at each other a little worried, the events of that cave still present in their minds. "Though, it says that as long as we don't perturb the local Pokemon, they'll leave us alone and we'll be fine."

"Well, that's something. At least we don't have that dumbass Theo with us to provoke Pokemon into attacking us," Bonnie said, a little more relieved.

"Bonnie!" Clemont chastised her.

"What? It's true!" Bonnie protested. "Don't you remember that all that went wrong in Comet Cave was because Theo went and attacked that Comite? Because I do."

"I know but... you don't need to be so mean," Clemont said.

"Yeah. And even if Theo was with us, I'm sure he learned from the experience and wouldn't cause any problems," Ash said, his voice full of confidence in the redhead.

No one contested Ash. As they walked, some Pokemon that lurked in the dark scurried away the moment they were illuminated by the light provided by the Fire-types, like a pair of Modrille who quickly dug underground, or a Sableye that ran away after hissing at the outsiders.

"So, how are we going to find Oblivicorn?" Bonnie asked. "Because this cave looks to be pretty big. She could be anywhere,"

"Now that's a good question," Ash agreed, looking around as he scratched his temple.

Clemont snickered as his glasses shone with an eerie light.

"Oh no..." Bonnie moaned.

"I'm glad you asked, little sister, because I have the perfect invention to help us with this! The future is now, thanks to science! Clemontic Gear On!" Clemont said in a bombastic manner.

Clemont's Aipom Arm picked from his backpack the invention in question and placed it on his hands. It was a contraption shaped like a Magnemite, with a pair of satellite dishes on its top and a long cable with a connecting port on it.

"Behold, the Locator of Lost or Escaped Pokemon!" Clemont said, showing everybody the mechanical Magnemite. "This invention of mine is able to locate and track down any Pokemon that belongs to a trainer!"

"Science is so amazing!" Ash gushed, stars twinkling in his eyes.

"Indeed. I've been working on this for some time, given that this isn't the first time one of our Pokemon gets lost," Clemont explained, and Serena's mind went to the most recent occurrence, Dedenne being lost in Baikal Forest and running into the Anthell. If it wasn't for Pikachu, who knows what would have been of the little rodent in that den of ravenous bugs. "With this, we'll be able to find Oblivicorn no matter where she is!"

"Really? That's great!" Serena said, sharing Ash joyous mood. "How does it work?"

"First of all, do you have Oblivicorn's pokeball?" Clemont asked. Wordlessly, Serena handed him the requested object, and the inventor attached it to the long cord. The screen, which was where Magnemite's eye would be, lighted up, as the satellite dishes on the top began to spin. "Alright, I got a signal! She's not that far away. Come on, we'll follow her in no time."

"Good. Lead the way, Clemont," the honey blonde said.

Clemont nodded, and following the indications displayed on the screen began to walk, with Ash, Serena and Bonnie quietly following him, flanked by Delphox and Archilles.

They walked in silence for some time, the only noise coming from their own steps, the soft hums and beeps from Clemont's machine, water droplets falling from the stalactites to the ground, and the quiet murmurs of the wild Pokemon wandering the area. That was, until Ash decided to break the silence and asked Serena something.

"Uhm, Serena, if you don't mind me asking..." Ash quietly began. "What happened with Oblivicorn? Why did she get all angry like that?"

"I was just trying to get her to open up to me, so we could fix our relationship, and then she became so furious all of sudden..." Serena began.

"What did you tell her that would make her react that way?" Ash asked. "I can't imagine you saying something so offensive to make her react like this."

Serena had replayed the events of the day Minicorn evolved in her mind time after time in order to find out what went wrong that day. She didn't find anything, but it's possible that given how tumultuous that day turned out to be, she had missed some crucial detail. However, since Oblivicorn's latest outburst had happened not even an hour ago, everything was fresh in her mind.

"I was only asking her to open up to me so we could talk and put this behind us," Serena said, as she began to replay the conversation – or better said, monologue – with Oblivicorn until she became enraged. She gasped and brought her hands to her mouth. "Oh no...!"

"What? What did you tell her?" Ash asked.

"I said that I knew that the Minicorn I rescued from Team Omega was still there," Serena said, as the realization filled her with a sense of unease and even dread. "What if... what if that's the reason behind Oblivicorn's rowdy attitude? Because deep down I still see her as a Minicorn and refuse to accept her as what she is now?"

"Come on Serena, you know that's not true. You always treat all your Pokemon the same both before and after they evolved," Ash reminded her.

"This isn't the same. Ash, you know I was so eager for Minicorn to turn into Kiricorn, but then she touched that Dusk Stone," Serena told him. "I like to think that I would accept every Pokemon no matter what... but what if that's not true? What if I'm only deluding myself into thinking that I accept Oblivicorn for what she is, but she knows I'm lying to her?"

"Serena, we both know that's not true. There's no one more loving and compassionate than you," Ash stated, grabbing her hand. "And even if you made a mistake regarding Oblivicorn, I'm pretty sure you'll be able to fix it and convince her you meant no harm."

"Pi, pika!" Pikachu nodded in agreement.

"You think so?" Serena asked, as she grabbed her blue ribbon, and smiled. "Thank you."

Ash smiled back at her. "Plus, if all else fails, remember what I told you."

"Have faith in my Pokemon, and they'll believe in me as well," Serena repeated, like a proud student showing what she learned to her teacher.

"We're getting close!" Clemont said out loud.

"Really?" Serena asked, the excitement in her voice obvious.

"According to the locator, Oblivicorn is inside the chamber just behind that entrance!" Clemont said.

Excited by the prospect of finding Serena's wayward Pokemon, the group rushed to cross the tunnel Clemont had told them to.

What they saw, though, wasn't something they were expecting.

"Oh... there she is," Ash said in a muted tone.

Because Oblivicorn was there, just like Clemont had stated. What Clemont's device failed to warn them was that Dark Horse Pokemon was at the other end of a large fissure in the ground that split the chamber in two, almost ten meters long and three meters deep. At the bottom of the fissure there was a torrential river, the water flowing filling the air with noise. There were five pillars of rock that connected both ends of the fissure, explaining how Oblivicorn had crossed it.

The rebellious mare quickly noticed the four humans' presence, and turned towards them, staring at them in a way that almost dared them to come and get her.

A challenge Serena was more than ready to accept.

"Wait, Serena. Let's use our fliers to carry us across the gap," Ash suggested.

"We do that, and Oblivicorn will just run away again," Serena said, taking a step forward.

"Serena, you aren't planning on crossing that by yourself, are you?" Clemont asked, his voice laced both worry and incredulity. "Those pillars don't look very stable! Plus, they're probably wet, so you won't be able to get a stable footing on them!"

"I know, but I need to do this," Serena said, now at the edge of the crack. She looked at Oblivicorn. "Oblivicorn, whatever I did to you to earn your scorn, both now and in the past, I'm sorry. I'm very sorry."

She hopped onto the first pillar, and landed with little difficulty. Oblivicorn didn't move from her spot.

"If you no longer want me as your trainer... I will respect your wishes and let you go. I say I wouldn't give up on you, but I don't want you to be unhappy. If you're not meant to be at my side, then so be it."

She hopped onto the second pillar.

"I'm still not sure what made you turn your back on me after you evolved. I tried and tried, but I came up with nothing," Serena continued. "If you think that I don't like you better than you were a Minicorn, or that I would have preferred if you were a Kiricorn... that's wrong! I will love you no matter what, like I love all my Pokemon!" Serena shouted.

"Del, delphox!" Delphox cried in agreement, something Serena deeply appreciated.

Oblivicorn continued staring at her, looking almost intrigued. Were Serena's words getting through the equine's head? The possibility filled the honey blonde with resolve.

"I promise you that I will give you all the love and respect you deserve! Just please, give me a second chance!" the Kalosian girl pleaded.

The gap between the second and third pillar was a little wider, but Serena was able to cross it. Her feet nearly slipped, as the surface was very wet, like Clemont had stated.

"I will be the best trainer I can be for you, Oblivicorn! But I can't do that if you don't let me!" Serena said. She then averted Oblivicorn's gaze.

Serena dared to look at Oblivicorn. The mare was there, looking at Serena intently. The honey blonde wondered if the Dark Horse Pokemon had chosen to stop at this location to put her through a trial or sorts.

If that was the case, Serena was going to do everything in her hand to pass it.

"So, what do you say, Oblivicorn?" Serena asked.

Oblivicorn didn't reply. So the honey blonde jumped towards the next pillar.

"AH!"

However, just as she landed, her feet slipped, making her lose her balance and pummel to the torrential river down below.

"DELPH!"

"SERENA!"

"PIKAPI!"

"Splendifowl, grab Serena-"

"Quilladin, use Vine Whip-"

However, Serena didn't fall, and remained mid air. She noticed that something was grabbing her by the back of her shirt. Looking up, she saw that said something was Oblivicorn, standing on the top of the pillar while grabbing Serena with her mouth.

"Oblivicorn! You save-WHOA!" Serena was interrupted by Oblivicorn hauling over her with incredible force, making her land on her back.

The Dark and Fairy-type Pokemon then hopped from one pillar to the next until she reached the edge of the crack where Ash and the others were. Once safe, Serena dismounted her.

"Oblivicorn..." Serena said, her voice almost a whisper. "You... you saved me!"

Oblivicorn neighed softly, as she gently nuzzled Serena's face. The honey blonde smiled as she rubbed the mare's head. She could feel that whatever the Pokemon's hostility towards her was now gone. It was now or never.

"Ash, the PST, please," Serena requested. "I have the feeling it will be different this time."

Ash didn't say anything, and merely pulled the device out of his backpack, and handed it to Serena.

"Oblivicorn..." Serena said, as she moved the mic close to the equine. "Will you talk to me?"

This time, Oblivicorn didn't remain silent, and began to softly growl and snort into the mic.

[Serena I... I'm so sorry... now I see, I've been acting so stupid...] Oblivicorn began.

"It's okay, Oblivicorn. I'm not mad at you. In fact, I'm very happy to see that you're talking to me again," Serena replied, rubbing the equine's head. "Though, will you tell me why? Why were you acting that way? It is something I said? Something I did?"

Oblivicorn remained silent.

"Come on, please tell me. Don't be afraid," Serena prodded.

[It...it was when I evolved...] Oblivicorn began. [That other human girl was about to give you the stone of light, which I wanted so I could evolve, and you were so happy that I was going to evolve into Kiricorn...]

"Oh, Oblivicorn..."

[B-But then... Bonnie brought the stone of dark... and the moment I saw it... I don't know what came over me that compelled me to touch it and... I turned into what I am now,] Oblivicorn recounted.

"Oblivicorn... don't you like what you are now?" Serena asked.

Oblivicorn shook her head. [No. I didn't mind if I was a Kiricorn or an Oblivicorn. But I knew you wanted me to be a Kiricorn.]

"Oblivicorn, I would never force you to evolve one way or another. That decision would have been yours and yours only," Serena insisted. "I wanted you to be a Kiricorn. But if you wanted to be an Oblivicorn, I would have supported you as well."

[That's what I thought. But after I touched the stone of dark and evolved... it was then when I realized what I had done,] Oblivicorn continued. [Then I saw you, as you saw my new form for the first time... and you flinched.]

Serena gasped, as her jaw dropped. She recalled that moment, and realized that yes, her reaction had been one of surprise the first time she had seen Oblivicorn, mostly because she didn't even know she could evolve into something other than Kiricorn. And said new evolution had quite the imposing appearance.

"Oh, Oblivicorn..." Serena said, hugging the Dark Horse Pokemon's head. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! I was so insensitive back then... no wonder you hated me..."

[I never hated you,] Oblivicorn said, much to Serena's surprise. [No matter how much I wanted to, I couldn't bring myself to hate you.]

"But then, why did you act like a jerk towards Serena?" Bonnie asked, crossing her arms. "She was nothing but nice to you!"

[You are right. I was afraid that by evolving into what I am now, I had disappointed Serena, and sooner or later, she would reject me,] Oblivicorn admitted. [So I thought it would be less painful if it was me who rejected her first.]

"Oblivicorn, I would never reject you no matter what you are..." Serena said.

[I know that now. I think deep down, I knew it all along. That's why I tried to run away. But no matter how many times I rebuffed you, I acted hostile, or even tried to run away, you never gave up on me,] Oblivicorn said, and Serena couldn't help but feel a little pride over her perseverance bearing fruit. [You even risked your life to get me back. And when you almost fell from that rock...]

"That's when you realized that Serena was sincere, right?" Ash ventured to ask.

[Deep down, I already knew that. No, that's when I finally realized what a big mistake I have made. That no matter what, I loved Serena, and now I was going to lose her forever because of my stupidity,] Oblivicorn said, the sorrow in her voice being amazingly replicated through the PST. [Thankfully I was fast enough to catch you.]

"That's something I will never forget, Oblivicorn. Thank you," Serena said, rubbing the equine's forehead.

[You were in danger because of me, so there's nothing to thank me for,] Oblivicorn said. [Now Serena... even if I know I don't deserve it, will you forgive me? I've been acting like a fool this whole time, and you almost lost your life because of it.]

Serena smiled sweetly at the Dark and Fairy-type. "Only if you forgive me for reacting the way I did when you evolved."

Oblivicorn nodded. Serena hugged her Pokemon, as a feeling of relief over the fact that she and Oblivicorn had finally been able to reconcile washed over her body. After breaking the hug, Serena took the pokeball still attached to Clemont's device and recalled the Dark Horse Pokemon.

"Welcome back, Oblivicorn. We all missed you." she said to the pokeball in her hand. After putting it away, she turned towards the rest of the group. "So, should we go back? I think we spent enough time here."

"Agreed. I'm super glad that Serena and Oblivicorn patched things up, but whenever we're in a cave for long something awful happens, so we should leave quickly," Bonnie said.

No one objected to that, and the group turned back and headed towards the entrance. Once out of the cave, they would take the ferry that would bring them to the next destination in their journey, Silverport Town.

Silverport Town

Sometime before Ash and his friends traversed the Labyrinth in order to find Oblivicorn, in Silverport Town a contest was about to reach its climax, with a Cocancer and a Espeon fighting in the final match, with the Espeon trainer having a little over half his initial points, and his opponent only having one third left.

"Come on Espeon, we're almost there! Psybeam!" Espeon's trainer, a black haired boy, commanded.

"Take it, Cocancer!" Cocancer's trainer, a brown skinned girl with dreadlocks, said.

"A bold move from Leona! Is Cocancer's lack of speed the reason behind such a decision, or is she planning something else?" Jillian commented.

Espeon's forehead jewel began to glow with the colors of the rainbow, before firing a beam of psychic power of swirling colors which smashed against Cocancer. The Beach Pokemon growled in pain as Leona's points dropped to just one fourth, but it held on.

"Now, Grass Knot!" Leona ordered.

As it was enduring the Psychic-type move, Cocancer's eyes glowed green as it slammed one of its pincers into the ground. The very next second, several roots burst from under Espeon, wrapping around it and leaving the Sun Pokemon immobilized.

"And Leona traps the opponent with a clever tactic!" Jillian excitedly observed, just as Espeon's trainer's points dropped, though they were still above Leona's. "Though Travis is still in the lead, and there's less than one minute left! What will Leona do now?"

"How about this?" the Alolan girl asked, grinning widely as she showed her Z-Ring, a green crystal embedded on it. Leona quickly went through several poses, ending with a motion that involved spreading her arms outwards above her head. A bright green aura surrounded Leona's body, which was quickly transferred to Cocancer. "It's time, Cocancer! Bloom Doom!"

"Co, coca!" Cocancer cried before slamming both pincers into the ground, and the battlefield was quickly covered in grass and beautiful flowers of many colors.

Then, a mass of leaves and flower petals began to gather around the still trapped Espeon, encasing it inside a massive flower bud. As the bud blossomed, it exploded into a blast of yellow and green light.

"Espeon!" Travis cried.

When the move ended, Espeon was laying in the middle of a crater, its limbs sprawled and its eyes all swirly. A buzzing noise rang.

"Espeon is unable to battle! That means that the winner of this match is Cocancer! And thus, Leona is the winner of the Silverport Town Contest!" Jillian declared, and the public went wild.

Half an hour later, Leona, changed from her contest outfit to her usual clothes (though with a jacket thrown it, Silverport was way too cold to wear a top that left her arms and shoulders bare), left the Contest Hall as she headed towards the Pokemon Center. Now that the contest was over she had nothing to do there, but it was too late to go somewhere else, meaning that she would have to spend another night here. Oh well, it wasn't like she and her Pokemon couldn't use the rest so they could resume their journey completely refreshed.

As she walked through the empty streets of Silverport Town – it was a bit late, and the evenings in that place proved to be cold – she opened her case with five ribbons on it, which would secure her a spot in the coming Grand Festival.

"Well, there have been some bumps in the road, but I finally did it," the Alolan girl said, admiring her five ribbons. "Now to the Pokemon Center, and tomorrow I'll take a ferry back to Venesi, and train like crazy until the Grand Festival!"

"Excuse me, miss!" a male voice said.

Leona stopped and looked in the direction of the voice, and saw a brown haired boy, maybe a year or two older than her, running towards her with a pain expression.

"Oh, hello!" Leona said, quickly taking notice of the young man's distress. "You look troubled. Do you need help with something?"

"Yes, yes I do!" the boy answered, almost in a pleading tone. "I-I was training with my Pokemon on Route 16, to the north of here, and he fell down a crack near the base of the mountain, and it can't climb back! You're a trainer, don't you? I'm sure one of your Pokemon can help it come out!"

"Oh my goodness, that's horrible!" Leona gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. "Of course I will help you! Lead me to the place!"

"Oh, thank you, thank you!" the boy said, as he ran towards the north of the town. "My name's Maury, by the way."

"Leona," the Alola native replied. "And don't worry, your Pokemon will be safe and sound in a jiffy!"

A few moments later, Leona and Maury had left Silverport Town and were walking through Route 16, which surrounded the base of Mount Lanthanite and was the only path that took to Snowbank Town. The route was mostly a gray rocky path surrounded by many steep cliffs and very little in the way of vegetation, making it one of Tandor's most desolate routes.

"So, where is your Pokemon?" Leona asked. "We've been walking for quite some time..."

"Don't worry, we're close!" Maury assured, before suddenly running and disappearing behind a corner. "Over here!"

"Wait a minute, not so fast!" Leona said, as she tried to keep up with him. "I know that you're worried for your Pokemon, but I can't run as fast as you!"

However, upon turning the corner, she saw no one. She looked around, rather worried. "Maury?"

"Over here! Come on, don't fall behind!" Maury's voice echoed, but she was unable to track where it came from.

"I said don't go so fast! Where are you?" Leona asked as she ran towards the place she believed Maury was, but once again no one was there. "Maury? Come on, this isn't funny!" she protested, as she looked around. "Great. I don't even know where I am. How am I supposed to find my way back to Silverport...?"

"Are you lost, missy?" a voice said in a mocking tone from above.

"We can help you find your way back," a second voice said. "For a price, that's it."

Looking upwards, Leona saw two people standing on a cliff at each side of her, wearing strange dark blue uniforms with armored parts, face-concealing helmets with a green horizontal visor, and a green Omega symbol on their chests.

"You... you guys are Team Omega!" Leona said, taking a step back.

"Bingo," a third voice said from behind. Leona turned around and saw a third Team Omega member cutting her way. This one was much bigger, and his uniform was more heavily armored, his helmet having a Y-shaped visor instead.. "And if you're smart, you'll give us your Pokemon and that pretty bracelet of yours without making a fuss."

"Like hell I'm going to give you my Pokemon or my Z-ring!" Leona said, two pokeballs already in hand. "Golem, Vaporeon, teach these guys a lesson!"

The pokeballs opened upon hitting the ground, releasing the Megaton and Bubble Jet Pokemon, who took fighting stances.

"I was hoping you'd say that," the third Team Omega member, who looked to be the leader, said with a chuckle. "Come on guys, show this little girl how out of her depth she is!"

"Yes, Captain Darren!" the two grunts said at once.

"Go, Gliscor!"

"Come out, Tofurang!"

Leona's eyes widened upon seeing the Pokemon the Team Omega members had sent: unlike the usual Gliscor and Tofurang, these Pokemon were dark blue with some parts bright green, with an aura of the same color glowing around them, as well as red glowing eyes. They were also wearing high-tech looking collars on their necks with an Omega symbol on them.

"W-What the...? Nuclear Pokemon!" Leona stammered in shock.

"Surprised, little girl?" one of the grunts said in a mocking tone.

"N-Not at all!" she said, trying to put on a brave face. "I have already faced this kind of Pokemon before, and I can beat them again! Golem, Thunderbolt! Vaporeon, Bubblebeam!"

And thus, Leona's Pokemon engaged Team Omega's Pokemon in combat. She made sure that her Pokemon wouldn't take any unnecessary hits, since Nuclear Pokemon had a frightening attacking power, but were very fragile. Keeping her head cool and directing her Pokemon as best as she could, Golem and Vaporeon were on the road to victory.

"Pajay, Nuclear Wind!"

Before Leona had time to react, her Pokemon were swept away by a tornado of green mist blown by a Pajay that wasn't there a couple seconds ago. When did that guy send his Pokemon? While the attack wasn't enough to knock her Pokemon out, it did create a window of opportunity for Gliscor and Tofurang to do so.

"Hey! What the hell!?" Leona protested.

"What, did you expect us to play fair or something?" the Omega Captain chuckled. "This ain't a league match, girlie."

"Oh, well, in that case, come out everyone!" Leona shouted, sending her other four Pokemon into battle.

"That's more like it!" the Captain said, weirdly excited. "I love to fight against an enemy that doesn't hold back! Go Gyarados, destroy!"

Leona's blood froze upon seeing the nuclear Atrocious Pokemon materialize in front of her, its terrifying presence already eroding her Pokemon's resolve.

Needless to say, the battle didn't go in Leona's favor. The Gyarados and the Pajay proved to be very powerful opponents, able to hold their own against Leona's team. And just like they did before, the grunts' Pokemon took any opportunity to land a cheap shot and knock out one of her Pokemon. One by one, all of Leona's Pokemon fell prey to the Nuclear monsters.

This wasn't a battle she could win. So there was only one thing she could do now.

"Jerbolta, quickly! Run away and seek help!" Leona pleaded.

"J-Jer?" Jerbolta asked just as he dodged an Aqua Tail from Gyarados, clearly unwilling to abandon her trainer.

"Do it, Jerbolta!" Leona pleaded, just as Decidueye was knocked out by a powerful Air Slash from Pajay. The Alolan girl could hear the two Omega grunts stomping towards her. "Come on Jerbolta, just leave already! You're my only hope!"

"Jer, jerbolta!" Jerbolta cried, tears welling in its eyes, before the shiny Pokemon blitzed away.

"Don't let that Pokemon escape!"

Those were the last words Leona heard before something hard hit her head, and she saw nothing but darkness...


Author's Note: And at last, Serena finally found what was the problem with Oblivicorn, and they were able to reach an understanding and repair their broken bond! Yay! I hope you liked this little plotline, and if you didn't, well, I hope you're happy it's finally over.

In the meantime, Ash and Clemont made some progress in their training, at least when it comes to Mega Evolution, as they were able to mega evolve Archilles and Electruxo without any issues. Regarding Greninja, well, it seems like Ash is till missing something before he can make a breakthrough.

Say hello, to Leona, who finally got her last ribbon after losing to Serena in Amatree. Unfortunately, her joy was short lived, given that she got the attention of Team Omega. Also, I'm pretty sure you can get an idea of what happened to Alain and Mairin after they followed Maury somewhere else.

Thanks a lot to TheDoctor1998, MegaSalamence64, Fox McCloude, Brightnova169, Hirowriter and MarcusDarkus87 for reviewing the last chapter, and special thanks to Viroro-kun for betareading this chapter, whose edits and suggestion made it so much better.

Next chapter, the Team Omega arc begins! Oh boy, I've been so eager to finally get to that one, since it's one of the most action-packed arcs of the entire story. In the meantime, don't forget to leave a review with your thoughts on this chapter. See ya!