The night stretched endlessly over Canalave City, silent as a tomb.
A man in a blue suit and gentleman's hat strode forward, a Lucario shadowing his steps.
Riley gazed at the murky sky, lips pressed thin, fighting against the heavy weight of drowsiness.
Up close, one could see the dark circles under the eyes of this high-level aura wielder.
Riley hadn't slept for two days and nights.
Not because he didn't want to—but because every ti he closed his eyes, nightmares dragged him under, jolting him awake in a cold sweat.
He had co from Iron Island aboard Lance's ship to investigate the source of these nightmares.
"The shrine on Newmoon Island… Darkrai isn't there."
Riley adjusted his cap, muttering:
"Judging by its movents, tonight's most likely destination… is Canalave City."
Every year, the two Pokémon inhabiting Newmoon Island and Fullmoon Island migrated in a set pattern.
And these Pokémon weren't unique—they even traveled in herds.
As Iron Island's trainer and a high-level aura wielder, Riley saw it as his duty to diate their conflicts.
Justice. Duty. Sacrifice.
These were the hallmarks of an aura wielder.
Lucario remained silent, its crimson eyes reflecting the dark sky—until a sliver of moonlight pierced the clouds.
The black clouds parted, revealing a sacred, luminous figure beneath the crescent moon.
"Cresselia?!"
Riley stood frozen under the moonlight, disbelief etched on his face.
The crescent-shaped horns, the pale blue hull-like body, the twin violet ribbons swaying from its chest, and the pink ring-shaped wings behind it. Its narrow eyes glead silver.
The Lunar Pokémon, Cresselia.
It hovered in the air, bathed in moonlight, staring intently into a patch of darkness.
Among legendaries, it was known to dispel nightmares, weave pleasant dreams, and soothe those tornted by darkness.
"For it to appear here…" Riley gripped his cap, lowering his head. "Then that ans—"
"Darkrai is nearby!"
...
Canalave City, Police Station near the Library.
Officer Jenny rubbed her heavy dark circles and stifled a yawn behind her hand.
Drowsiness washed over her as her head bobbed forward.
Thud!
Jenny slumped onto the desk, her head resting on her arms, fast asleep.
Clatter…
The flashlight on the desk rolled to the floor, its yellow beam shining onto the window.
A shadowy, mist-like humanoid figure flickered across the circular light patch on the glass.
...
The tranquil night sky over Canalave City was bathed in moonlight, with only a few houses still glowing faintly.
"Grandma, tell the fairy tale about Canalave City again!" A young girl's voice chid.
"It's late. If you don't sleep, Darkrai will co and take you away."
"Wow, so it's a bad guy?"
"The world isn't just about good and evil."
Grandma spoke slowly: "There are Pokémon bound by circumstances, and there are Pokémon who help others. What matters is how you see them—they'll see you the sa way."
"Haaah…" The little girl rubbed her eyes. "I'm sleepy, Grandma."
"Grandma is too… Should I have Marill sing you a lullaby?"
"No! You sing it!"
A dark figure flitted past the roof of the house, and silence returned.
...
"They say this ti of year is when Darkrai and Cresselia migrate."
In a jeep, Professor Bill gripped the steering wheel while speaking to Professor Oak in the back seat.
Crystal, in the passenger seat wearing a white round hat, eyes gleaming:
"Unrecorded data… Professor Oak, should I prepare to catch them?"
"Natsu already provided Darkrai's Pokédex data."
Professor Oak smiled. "Besides, Leader Byron surveyed the area—there won't be any disturbances these days."
"But I heard…"
Bill scratched his curly hair, glancing ahead and lowering his voice. "Leader Byron spends most of his ti training on Iron Island. He barely handles Canalave City's affairs."
"That's because his son, Mr. Roark, often takes over at Kurt's Gym."
Crystal smiled. "Maybe it's his way of training his child."
The jeep rolled on through the night, drowsiness creeping in.
As they waited for the traffic light to turn from red to green…
"Haaah—" Bill covered a yawn, rubbing his eyes. "Strange… I went to bed early last night."
Thud!
Bill's head hit the steering wheel as he dozed off.
Crystal, strapped in, slumped forward. Professor Oak in the back seat crossed his arms, snoring loudly.
Ahead of the jeep, a shadowy figure rose—Darkrai.
It glanced at the moonlit sky, then at Cresselia bathed in silver light.
Darkrai shot into the air.
...
"Beep… Detecting unusual energy pulse!"
Rotom Pokédex flailed its chanical arms in alarm.
"Analysis suggests a 999% probability of Darkrai presence, Rotom!"
Natsu shot Rotom an unimpressed look, then jerked his chin upward.
"You needed analysis for that?"
"Darkrai's literally right there!"
Rotom Pokédex: "..."
Click—
"Captured valuable footage, Rotom!" Rotom gloated.
Natsu: "..."
At least the flash was off—no risk of alerting them.
Right now…
Natsu stood on a fourth-floor balcony, his view unobstructed.
Below stretched a dense, shadowy forest.
Above it, two Legendary Pokémon faced off.
Darkrai hovered amid swirling black mist, claws spread, the shadows around its shoulders rippling.
Cresselia, backed by a crescent moon, stood bathed in silver light, watching calmly.
Neither Pokémon paid attention to Natsu spectating.
In a flicker, they clashed.
Darkrai fired a Shadow Ball, only for it to vanish against Cresselia's Light Screen.
Raising its sharp claws, Darkrai's cold eyes glead as it flickered above Cresselia—Shadow Claw slashed down!
Cresselia's body suddenly radiated a brilliant halo—Lunar Dance coalesced into Moonblast, silver energy erupting outward!
Boom!
Both Pokémon staggered back, panting, before squaring off again.
[Will you assist—]
[Darkrai / Cresselia?]
If this were a dungeon, the prompt would've appeared already.
But this useless System stayed silent—Natsu gritted his teeth.
Do I have to issue my own quest now?!
Gengar licked its lips, scribbling in a notebook, studying the battle techniques.
"Gengar~" A hint of disappointnt flickered across its face.
Natsu fell into thought.
Darkrai and Cresselia… both traveled in herds.
And their instant hostility? Just their nature.
Power-wise…
The Darkrai from Alamos Town was the strongest—Legendary-tier.
This one? Elite Four level at best, maybe on par with Tobias's Legendary Pokémon.
"Seems Moe-Moe's asleep."
Natsu glanced back, then touched the Lunar Feather glowing faintly in his pocket.
"Bringing key items… never fails." He muttered.
"Sylveon!"
A beam of light burst from the Poké Ball—Sylveon erged under the moonlight, eyes fixed on Cresselia.
It tugged Natsu's sleeve with a ribbon, eyes shimring.
Natsu blinked.
"Sylveon." Its baby-doll eyes glead with determination.
If it could learn from Cresselia…
Even if this one wasn't as strong as Alamos Town's Darkrai, it'd still grow.
"Sylveon!" Its bow glowed as it called again.
"Got it."
Natsu sighed. "But no wrecking the house with Moonblast. Professor Rowan's lab is fair ga. Deal?"
A sweet smile spread across Sylveon's face.
"Sylveon~!"
For a mont, Natsu felt like a proud dad whose daughter finally outgrew her rebellious phase.
"Alright then."
He flipped Gengar's Poké Ball in his palm, gazing at the night sky.
"Sorry, little Darkrai!"
...
"We have to stop their fight."
Riley landed on Salance in the woods behind the library.
The sound of running water led him to a clearing—where two Pokémon clashed fiercely.
Dark Pulse collided with Moonblast, explosions of black and silver lighting up the night.
Riley shielded his eyes—then froze.
At the epicenter of the blast, a Gengar hovered, a shimring Protect barrier around it.
Crack!
The barrier splintered under the force.
"No way…"
Riley's voice was hoarse with disbelief.
"It's blocking attacks from two Legendaries… alone?!"
Even with Protect, this was insane!
"Gengar!"
Suddenly, Gengar raised its hands—twin swirling black vortices ford in its palms.
The opposing energies were sucked into Dark Void.
Like a reversed explosion, silence fell.
Darkrai and Cresselia stared, stunned.
"Gengar~! ㄟ(≧◇≦)ㄏ"
Gengar grinned, rging the two voids into one giant orb—then turned to Darkrai.
Darkrai: "..."
Its icy deanor cracked—fear flickered in its eyes.
Darkrai: Σ(°△°|||)︴
Why does this guy know Dark Void… better than ?!
That's my signature move!
Only the Darkrai family learns this—who ARE you?!
Cresselia gazed at Gengar, dazed.
One second. Two. Three…
Its glowing halo dimd as it shyly lowered its head.
Riley stared at the sky, speechless.
The sight of Gengar would be burned into his mory forever.
"Just… whose Trainer is that?" His voice was rough.
"Gengar."
A commanding voice rang out.
Riley turned—his Aura flared wildly, as if terrified of the man approaching.
Eyes wide, Riley stamred:
"N-Natsu-sensei?!"
Natsu ignored him, watching the sky.
"Dark Void."
Riley whipped around—Gengar's hands glowed as a swirling vortex ford.
Impossible!
A move only Darkrai could master!
How did Gengar learn it?!
Then—
The black orb erupted, dragging debris, water, and wind into its wake—before detonating on Darkrai!
BOOM!!
Natsu's eye twitched.
He hadn't ant to cripple Darkrai…
Dark Void was supposed to just put it to sleep, not deal damage.
Scaring it off should've been enough.
But this…
Well, aside from this Darkrai being weaker than Alamos Town's…
The two Pokémon had worn each other out first.
Natsu: "Whatever… illegal moves aren't exactly rare for ."
As the dust cleared—
Darkrai hovered unsteadily, arms crossed, energy erratic.
Gengar radiated an aura of dominance—like a seasoned elder.
And behind Gengar… that Trainer exuded sothing inexplicably terrifying.
Darkrai's eyes darted nervously.
"Sorry, but could you leave Canalave City?"
Natsu tried communicating via Aura.
"I know you an no harm… but there are important people here right now."
"Please go." He narrowed his eyes. "Or else…"
(I'll have to 'heal' you with a full-force attack before sending you off!)
(Even I struggle to control that technique!)
"Gengar!" Gengar hovered beside him, hands on hips.
Darkrai shuddered.
Compared to its centuries-old elders, it was still a prodigy among Darkrai.
But this Gengar used Dark Void better than it did?!
This shouldn't be possible!
"Human, are you threatening ?" Darkrai hissed. "You think you can?"
Natsu nodded. "I get it. Legendaries have pride…"
"Let make this clear!" Darkrai roared. "If I want to leave, NO ONE can stop !"
Natsu & Gengar: "..."
Riley & Lucario: "..."
"And by 'no one,' I an ALL of you."
Darkrai glared around.
"Not even Arceus could keep here! I an it!"
Then, it sank into the shadows—leaving only swirling mist and glowing blue eyes.
"This isn't fear. It's a tactical retreat. Understood?"
Natsu: "Of course. By all ans."
Darkrai exhaled in relief, vanishing completely.
A final telepathic whisper drifted by:
"Hope we NEVER et again!"
Under the moonlight, the night was peaceful once more.
Riley removed his hat, awed.
"Natsu-sensei, it's an honor."
"Who are you?" Natsu blinked. "Sir Aaron ca back to life?"
Riley: "...That's my ancestor."
"Oh, right." Natsu nodded. "You're Iron Island's Sir Aaron—wait, Riley!"
"…Yes."
Riley explained tracking Darkrai to Canalave City.
Natsu listened, then glanced at Cresselia still hovering nearby.
"Guess we can chat a bit longer."
Cresselia descended gracefully, nodding.
[Thank you, human.] Its telepathy was gentle.
"No problem." Natsu waved. "No gifts needed—just a Lunar Dance and so feathers."
Cresselia: ???
Lunar Dance summons the moon's power—but at the cost of the user's energy!
Is this guy trying to kill ?!
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