New Scene(Previously_On_Trigamon) {
@Recap
}
New Scene()
Flygon zips through the trees trying to avoid Salamence’s flamethrowers. Ash has Pikachu thunderbolt Salamence multiple times, but Salamence always dodges the attacks, occasionally crashing into trees to do so.
Sensing that they are getting far from Butler’s main platform, Flygon makes a loop, flying right over Salamence, and then turning right-side-up, a maneuver that makes its passengers somewhat nauseous. In response Salamence hurls it’s flamethrower around, singeing Ash’s hair and shirt, before firing another flamethrower directly at Flygon. Ash taps Flygon to descend out of the way just in time.
Salamence fires a fire blast downwards, and Ash has Pikachu counter with thunder. The explosion lights up a large section of the forest, obscuring Salamence’s view and allowing Flygon to put more distance between them, shooting back towards the platform.
Ahead of them, Coal and Butler continue their duel, Butler fires spells at Coal, but Satolite whisks him out of the way, allowing Coal to deliver a blast of energy at the platform. Butler blocks the energy targeting him, but electricity strikes Kirlia and Dusclops, knocking out the prior and damaging the latter. From above, Coal’s Pelipper’s ice beam lands the KO on Dusclops.
Butler ignores his fainted pokémon as he strategically positions himself to prevent Coal from landing on the platform, blasting spells at Coal’s shield. One of these explosions forces Coal backwards a bit, allowing Butler to cast a much larger spell with his wand. Satolite jerks Coal out of the way, as the spell shoots past him like a meteor, and explodes in the distance.
Coal: Heh.
Butler: Something funny?
Butler now catches in his peripheral vision what Coal was laughing at: Ash and Max on Flygon are barreling towards Butler, with Salamence on their trail far behind them. Butler starts to cast a spell, but Flygon headbutts him in the chest before he can say more than the first syllable.
Pikachu: PIKA!
Pikachu jumps off of Flygon the second of the collision, while Butler is knocked backwards off of the platform barely catching the edge in his hand. Coal glances back at Salamence as Flygon turns another loop. Feeling something move on the platform, Coal sees Butler starting to climb back up onto the platform, and gives him a swift, electrified kick in the face, knocking him off the platform completely. Charging a charge in his fist, Coal spins around to face Salamence, which surprises him by diving under the platform.
Ash: Coal!
Max: Can you get Jirachi out?!
Coal: I’ll try…
Coal attempts to extract Jirachi from the machine, but discovers that Jirachi is sealed by several magical barriers. As he examines them, a massive fire attack strikes him, damaging some of the outer barriers as well as moderately injuring Coal. Seconds later as Coal recovers Butler lands Salamence on the platform, and Salamence charges at Coal. Coal strikes it with electrified punches several times, before he is forced to put up a barrier to block Butler’s spell. Salamence takes this opportunity to bite Coal’s hand. Coal’s arm sparks, which Salamence ignores for the most part as Coal flinches in pain.
Butler: Tesserum okolae–
Butler is cut off as Flygon strikes him with dragon-breath, causing the unfinished spell to jar Ash and Max. At the same time, Pikachu delivers a massive shock to Salamence, allowing Coal to hit the side of Salamence’s head with such force that the dragon pokémon is forced to let go of his other hand. Butler takes damage from this attack, too.
Taking damage from both sides, Butler attempts to repel both Coal and Flygon simultaneously, and the blast shakes the entire platform, causing two of the cables securing it to snap and the platform to shift significantly, knocking both Coal and Salamence (which Butler is still riding on) off of the platform. No longer seeing Coal, Butler instructs Salamence:
Butler: After them!
Ash looks back to where Pikachu is on the platform, then steers Flygon quickly to avoid twin attacks coming from Butler and Salamence. QST.camera now shifts to where Coal is still hanging onto the platform, in much the same way Butler had been to the platform’s other side.
Coal: The animancer is tougher than I thought…
New Scene(ShiftNegativeTemporal)
Benjy, Brock, May, and Dianne are running towards where the laser is starting to draw the Groudon’s body on the ground.
Brock: Everyone remember your objectives?
Benjy: We’re cutting those cables…
Benjy’s voice waivers with slight uncertainty.
May: Can we do that?
Dianne: And we’ve got the laser!
Dianne’s voice is highly stressed and slightly angry. Dianne and Brock now change directions slightly from the direction of Benjy and May, who are running towards where the cables are overhead.
May: How are we going to…?
May and Benjy stop running, allowing Benjy to catch his breath enough to talk.
Benjy: With razor leaf.
May: You mean, Bayleef?
Benjy nods, and the Millennium Gameboy Advance glows.
Yami Benjy: Bayleef! Use razor leaf on those wires!
Bayleef emerges from it’s ball, and takes a second to see where Yami Benjy is pointing, then starts casting razor leaves up into the night. May stands back.
Yami Benjy: Up a little bit!
Bayleef: Bay!
Bayleef’s leaves now start going further, not higher.
Yami Benjy: Other way up!
Bayleef: Bay!
Bayleef nods, and starts firing more upwards. May stares at the cables.
May: Are they hitting?!
Yami Benjy: A little more; now volley!
Cutscene(Close up on the cable) {
A razor leaf strikes the cable, damaging it slightly. This is followed by more leaves, about a third of which do slight damage to the cable.
}
May backs up, anticipating when the cable breaks and comes down.
Across the clearing, Brock and Dianne run to where the laser is drawing on the ground. Both bear witness to where the laser splits a rock with it’s beam, burning a line into the ground. Dianne begins to study the mechanism intently.
Brock: Dianne, leave this to me!
Without waiting for Dianne to respond, Brock calls on Forretress:
Brock: Forretress, explosion!
Forretress shoots out of its poké ball and spins towards the laser.
Brock: Hit the source of the beam!
Dianne: Don’t let it touch you!
Forretress aptly spins around the beam as it moves and collides with something close to the beam, detonating in a massive blast. The blast is sufficient to stop the beam for a split-second, but the laser is unharmed as Brock runs to recall his falling pokémon:
Brock: Forretress, return!
Forretress returns to it’s poké ball in a flash of red light, while Brock stares at the laser confused.
Dianne: Like everything nowadays, it’s protected by a magical barrier.
Brock: A what?
Dianne: Brock, leave this to me.
Brock: What are–
Dianne pulls a small something out of her sleeve.
Dianne: ADEAT! (Ah-day-awt)
With a pulse of light, the something transforms into what looks like a magical girls’ staff.
Dianne: Stand back.
Brock backs away from Dianne nervously.
Dianne: Tesserum arpetayamar (arp-et-ay-ah-mar) locious! (low-shus)
Suddenly a magical beam erupts from the tip of Dianne’s staff, rocketing towards the field around the laser. It collides with the barrier, making it glow.
New Scene()
High above on Salamence, Butler notices the field glowing and immediately deduces what must be going on. Flygon now attacks at Salamence, but the later flees, shooting towards Dianne, (which Ash and Max don’t realize) leaving Ash and Max perplexed, and they quickly turn back to try and save Jirachi.
Revert Scene()
Dianne’s beam’s striking the field makes it glow with more and more energy, as Butler approaches swiftly on Salamence, unnoticed by Yami Benjy, May, Brock, or Dianne. Butler then proceeds to fly Salamence towards Dianne.
Butler: Dianne; how dare you!
Dianne: Just a little more…
Butler: How dare you, my ministra, go against your magister!
Brock: What?!
Dianne: Any second now–
Butler: Butt out!
Brock: Is that what this is about?! Your po–
Butler: SACRORA!
A giant blast of energy shoots down towards Dianne and Brock. Acting quickly, Dianne kicks Brock in the stomach knocking him a couple yards backwards and out of the way of the spell.
New Scene()
Across the meadow, Bayleef has taken down two of Butler’s cables, but countless more remain. Benjy and May watch in horror as the spell strikes Dianne with a massive explosion. The shockwave causes the the Millennium Gameboy Advance to pulse.
Benjy: Yami me?
Back across the meadow Brock rushes to Dianne’s side.
Brock: Mudkip! Lotad! Water gun, razor leaf!
Both of Brock’s pokémon emerge from their poké balls, and immediately attack Salamence.
Butler: Stirum!
Butler’s spell knocks the two attacks aside, and then begins to charge his wand with white light, causing Dianne to gasp in horror.
May: Brock!
Brock gasps as Butler fires the white light at him and Dianne. Back on Salamence, Butler gives a sigh of relief and starts to smile as he sees Benjy and May rushing towards Brock and Dianne despite Dianne’s frantic attempts to keep them away.
QST.camera now zooms in close (and goes into slow motion) as Benjy and May desperately try to outrun the spell, trying to get to Brock and Dianne first. Running across the meadow, Benjy almost trips on a root, and almost falls, but regains his balance moving just fast enough to get hit with the white spell in his backside. Slow motion ends and QST.camera zooms back to Butler who expectantly waits for the result of the spell, and then nervously tries to understand why his spell just disappeared as Benjy, May, and Bayleef come to help Brock get Dianne back to her feet. QST.camera now returns to the ground, where May is helping Brock carry Dianne.
May: What just happened to that spell?!
Brock: Maybe he had a change of heart?
Confused, Butler starts charging white light in his wand again, but this time it crackles with some blue sparks.
May: I don’t think so!
Dianne: Acidic reality…
Brock: What’s that?
May: Incoming!
Benjy, who had bent down to pick up Dianne’s staff, now stands up as Butler fires his spell at them again. Brock stumbles backwards.
Brock: Benjy!
Benjy turns, but is unable to avoid this spell, which strikes him in the shoulder, and disappears.
Dianne: Acidic reality completely blocks all forms of magic. It’s a special ability, like a pokémon ability, except that its usually found in humans.
Benjy: Son of a monkey…
Benjy looks down at his arms, examining his shoulder. Dianne then cries out in pain.
Dianne: Ah!
Brock and May put Dianne down on the ground again, and Brock starts to get out his first aid kit.
Brock: Dianne!
Dianne: Benjy, negate his magic… (frantic)
Benjy stares at Butler, watching him carefully.
Benjy: That’s going to be hard to do…
May: What why?!
Benjy: Because I don’t believe in magic…? (nervous)
As soon as Benjy says this, Butler unleashes a volley of spells, all of which shoot towards Benjy, May, Dianne, and Brock.
Benjy: What is he doing…?
Dianne starts to say something, but just smiles instead. Seconds later Benjy is struck by the massive barrage of spells, none of which seem to affect him. (Each spell appears to disappear as it hits him)
Benjy doesn’t make a move at first as he stares in confusion at the blasts of light raining down upon him. However after roughly 20 seconds, Benjy gets the confidence to glare straight up at Butler through the light, causing the spells to be consequently negated at a point closer and closer to Butler. On instinct, Benjy attempts to swat the light away, which appears to send out some kind of invisible shockwave. A second later, Butler finds himself unable to cast magic, much to his utter astonishment.
New Scene()
By now, the anima laser has finished drawing one entire side of Groudon’s body.
New Scene()
Coal has now managed to mostly pull himself up onto the platform. Satolite flies overhead, trying to break through the barrier around Jirachi.
Coal: Hold on…
Satolite stops the zapping and eyes Coal expectantly, who begins to spark with electricity of his own.
Coal: Electric Dragon’s barrier crusher!
Coal zips towards the module with an electrified fist, and hits something hard. Something invisible appears to give way. But as Coal attempts to pull back, he finds that his entire arm is stuck in something invisible.
Coal: (bleep).
Satolite has also noticed what has happened to Coal, and flies about nervously, zapping the barrier repeatedly, despite Coal’s warning it not to. It zaps Coal as well, and he flinches, almost jerking himself free of the forcefield.
Ash: Coal!
Coal looks up to see Ash and Max on Flygon coming towards him.
Max: Get out of the way!
Coal sparks again trying to free himself from the invisible forcefield.
While Ash and Max look on in confusion, Flygon strikes the barrier with a blast of dragon-breath, which causes a small explosion allowing Coal to extract his arm. Coal now swings his sparking arm like a sword at an invisible barrier around Jirachi, and Max gasps in horror.
Seconds later, Coal crushes the magic barrier which breaks into a cloud of smoke. Flygon lands in this cloud of smoke and as Ash and Max disembark, Flygon flaps it’s wings to blow the smoke away. Max makes a b-line for Jirachi, despite Coal’s call for him to wait.
A cracking sound reverberates as Max rushes to haphazardly extract Jirachi, zapping himself in the process. Both Ash and Coal cringe watching as Max desperately tries to extract Jirachi, seemingly oblivious to any pain he might be in. Satolite flies by grabbing and tearing away a piece of equipment with it’s tractor beam, tossing it into the forest as Max finally pries Jirachi free, and yanks it from the terminal, falling on his back on the platform.
Jirachi doesn’t seem to be conscious quite yet, though this doesn’t stop Max from holding it tightly. Coal walks over to the machine and dispels another barrier with the wave of his electrified arm and begins to examine it.
Ash: It’s still running?
Coal: Shouldn’t be for long though.
Coal walks back towards the control panel on the platform and presses a button. The console lights up requesting a password.
Coal: Hmm… Password…
A split-second later, Coal sees something in his peripheral vision, and turns around, yanking Ash out of the way.
Ash: Ack!
Ash crashes to the platform in a sitting position just as a small, focused, beam of red light shoots by where he was located. One second later, the red beam crashes into a stone cliff in the distance, and the cliff lights up in a massive explosion, followed by an explosion from overhead, which Ash now sees is from Flygon and Salamence exchanging fire attacks. Max has already climbed onto Flygon, and it jumps into the air to avoid another fire attack. Ash jumps to his feet.
Ash: Pikachu, thunder!
Pikachu launches an electric attack at Salamence just as Butler launches another spell, both attacks collide and explode. Coal pulls Ash aside again as blue rays flood down from the blast, causing the platform to start to dissolve where they hit.
New Scene()
Butler glares down from Salamence.
Butler: Go after Jirachi.
Salamence roars and starts to fly after Flygon, and Butler jumps off, down towards the platform.
Revert Scene()
Ash and Coal stand on the platform, waiting for the debris to clear so they can see what Butler is doing above them. The dust sparks with blue electricity, and suddenly Butler emerges from it with one hand glowing with white light, outstretched as if to punch them. Coal responds with one of his electric punches, and the result is a powerful circular shockwave that illuminates the night.
QST.camera switches to a top-down view where the two attacks create a massive quasar-like disk across the entire canyon. Reverting QST.camera back, Ash and Pikachu are both singed by their proximity to the explosion. Coal strikes Butler with a blue thunderpunch. More energy is released as this reacts with one of Butler’s spells, forcing Ash and Pikachu to use the machine that previously held Jirachi as a shield.
*Magical flashes happen while Coal and Butler say these next lines, QST.camera stays focused on Ash*
Coal: Tell me something; how is it that that thing is still running when we took out the power source?
Butler: You honestly thought I was going to only make one Groudon?
Coal: It’s what you needed, right?
Butler: Yes, but Maxie would be much more satisfied if every Team Magma member could have a Groudon at their disposal.
Coal: All of them?!
Ash gulps.
Butler: Why not?
Coal: You’re messing with life!
Butler: So was Sendra.
Butler smiles mischievously.
Coal: You’re not Sendra! You’re a human being!
Butler and Coal’s attacks collide in a shower of sparks. With no where to take cover, Ash and Pikachu are forced to endure the pain where they hit them.
Butler: What’s done is done. So take this!
QST.camera moves back to Coal and Butler, and after Butler’s comment, Coal strikes Butler with enough force to knock him ten feet backwards. Butler now charges forwards with both hands glowing with red light. Coal jumps about six feet in the air to clear Butler, and kicks Butler in the backside so that he slams into the console. This forces Butler to release the red light in his hands, which shoots down into the canyon, and explodes with a massive force as soon as it collides with the rock, shaking the platform. Butler smiles as Coal approaches behind him.
Butler: I already have enough energy for *one* Groudon…
Back where he has taken shelter, Ash gasps upon hearing this.
Ash: And it’s almost complete…
New Scene()
Benjy, Brock, Dianne, and May continuously strike at the laser as it moves along it’s track. But despite being pelted with fire, water, and grass moves, the laser holds strong.
Running to keep up, Brock ties a piece of string to a rock, and whipping it around like a cowboy with a lasso, hurls it at the laser. The rock and string crash into the magical barrier protecting the laser, causing the barrier to pulse and shatter. Enlisting the aid of Beautifly, May orders an all out attack on the now-vulnerable laser. A five-way attack converges (Beautifly, Bayleef, Mudkip, Torchic, and Lotad) and the laser is finally knocked from the mechanism, and unearthly light starts spraying upwards out of the pipe in unearthly rainbow colors.
Horrified, and without hesitation, Dianne draws her staff and plants it into the ground.
Dianne: Animus thero! (dramatic)
A quarter-second after Dianne’s incantation finishes, a massive, unearthly pulse of rainbow light explodes from the wire, but Dianne’s spell acts as a shield protecting everyone from the extremely high-intensity light.
Refresh Scene()
The area around Benjy, Brock, May, and Dianne is unchanged, while the rest of the canyon is growing into an unearthly jungle right before their eyes. As Benjy, Brock, and May look around, they see Dianne collapsed on the ground, unmoving. Brock rushes towards her.
Brock: Dianne!
Brock trips on a root and goes sprawling, forcing him to look down at the grass. Brock shudders violently. May approaches Brock.
May: What’s wrong?
Brock: The grass is wilted…
May suddenly looks up.
May: Why is the grass wilted here when the forest around us has more life than ever!
Benjy: It must have to do with Dianne’s spell…
At this, Brock jumps upright and rushes over to Dianne.
Brock: Dianne! Dianne!
Brock reaches Dianne and puts his hand on her side, then grabs her arm checking for a pulse.
May: Hold on, why didn’t she just have you block it?
Benjy: Maybe I can’t block anima? I have no idea?
Brock turns Dianne over, checking her other arm for a pulse, then lets Dianne’s arm fall limp and quickly starts searching in his backpack for a stethoscope as May gasps. The Millennium Gameboy Advance shines from behind Brock, as he quickly applies the stethoscope to Dianne.
Yami Benjy: She’s dead, Brock.
This doesn’t stop Brock from listening more closely for a heartbeat as Bayleef, Beautifly, Lotad, Mudkip, and Torchic gather around.
May: W-Why?
Yami Benjy: I don’t think acidic reality can block anima.
Tears start to form in May’s eyes, and in the eyes of all of their pokémon while Brock looks for some sign of life in Dianne’s lifeless body.
Yami Benjy: Brock.
Brock doesn’t acknowledge Yami Benjy’s voice.
Yami Benjy: She sacrificed herself to save all of us from a fate far worse than death. Brock…
Brock suddenly turns around and glares at Yami Benjy.
Brock: GET BACK! (almost scream)
May: I’ve never seen Brock sound like that!
Yami Benjy darts forwards to Brock, and before he can react pinches him on the shoulder. Brock falls unconscious while May gasps. She then flinches as Torchic and Beautifly return themselves to their poké balls.
Yami Benjy: It’s okay; he’s just sleeping. I did the thing Coal does.
Mudkip and Lotad now return themselves to their poké balls; Yami Benjy recalls Bayleef. May steps closer to Yami Benjy as they both gaze at the massive jungle that sprang up around them.
May: What did you mean by a fate worse than death?
Yami Benjy: You see the forest? That’s what would’ve probably happened to our bodies.
May now shirks backwards, staring at the forest in horror. Yami Benjy bends down and picks up Brock.
Yami Benjy: I believe that Dianne knew what would happen when we destroyed the laser.
May: So what is that?
May gestures at the massive jungle.
Yami Benjy: I don’t know exactly, but I would guess that it’s over a thousand bran-new species of life-forms brought into being by the anima explosion.
May: And are we going to have to go through that?
Yami Benjy: No. Don’t touch it, don’t go anywhere near it.
May: So then how do we…
Yami Benjy: Hope for an aerial rescue. If nothing comes, when the sun starts to rise, I’m going to try to use a dangerous spell known as Hope of Mourning.
May: What’s Hope of Morning? Won’t it already be morning?
Yami Benjy: Mourning as in mourning for the dead. It’s the safest way we have to get out of here.
May: Huh? Since when do you know magic?
Yami Benjy: Watching Dianne made me remember something. Going through that jungle, our bodies would be too warped by the anima.
May: What does the spell do?
Yami Benjy gulps.
Yami Benjy: It will let us enter, and escape via the afterlife without dying ourselves. Getting back to this life won’t be all that difficult either. I somehow remembered the incantation when I was knocked out.
May says nothing, but shivers violently
Yami Benjy: Maybe I shouldn’t have told her…
Benjy: How did you remember?
Yami Benjy: It was a sensation I had. I’m surprised I remember it, I can’t recall much aside from the names of the various Pokémon and Trigamon.
New Scene()
Flygon and Salamence have stopped chasing each other and stare transfixed at the warped forest. Max looks wildly around for Salamence, until he suddenly sees Salamence, about fifty feet away, transfixed. Jirachi moves ever-so-slightly in Max’s arms, as Max stares down at the bizarre jungle in confusion.
Max: What is that?
Flygon: Fly.
Salamence roars something incomprehensible, and Flygon responds with a roar-like cry of it’s own.
Max: Salamence doesn’t seem interested in chasing us anymore… What’s going on?!
The dragon pokémon continue to converse in their respective languages, leaving Max confused.
New Scene()
Back on the platform where Coal and Butler are still fighting, Ash witnesses the strange explosion of anima as the laser is broken, and stares in confusion.
Ash: What was that? Pikachu?
Ash turns to see tears running down the face of the electric pokémon, and Pikachu buries it’s face in Ash’s leg.
Ash: What’s going on?
Ash starts to jump down, but quickly remembers he’s on the platform and stops himself, then quickly stands up, being careful not to get hit by Coal and Butler’s magical attacks. Butler knocks Coal flying, almost over his terminal, but Coal changes directions mid-air and sends Butler flying to the other side of the platform with another punch.
Ash: Coal!
Coal turns part of his attention to Ash, all the while keeping an eye on Butler as he struggles to get back up.
Coal: ?
Ash: There was a large explosion a few moments ago, and this giant forest just popped up!
Coal: Giant forest?
Butler: So your friends broke one condenser. I have half a dozen backups to finish the job.
Ash and Coal gulp simultaneously.
Butler: But playtime’s over. I have to get serious now.
Coal: You thought that I was just venting this entire time or something?! You have to stop! This isn’t going to end well!
Butler: I’ve come too far for that. So just–SKYCALOSA!
Butler throws a massive pillar of light at Coal and Ash, and Coal rushes at it with an electrified punch. The resulting explosion throws Ash, Coal, and Pikachu back against the console on the platform, though mostly uninjured.
Butler: Trellansdwoo!
The spell doesn’t immediately fire from Butler’s wand; he has to flick his wrist hard to get it to work, and even then the spell goes off course, striking cliffs nearby with the red beams intended for Ash and Coal; these beams explode on impact in bolts of blue light. The look on Butler’s face indicates that the spell didn’t go as planned, and he starts to step closer to Ash and Coal, only to discover that his Kirlia is holding onto his leg tightly.
Butler: Kirlia!
Kirlia: Kirr! Kirr! Kirlia!!!
Pikachu: Pika-Pi!
Butler: Get off!
Kirlia: LEE!
Butler tries to shake Kirlia free, but it won’t let go.
Coal: If you won’t listen to us, at least listen to your own pokémon!
Butler points his wand at Kirlia and mumbles something incomprehensible. Suddenly a bolt of green light strikes the pokémon and it falls to the platform unmoving. At the same time the panel behind Ash beeps, prompting him to turn around. Butler takes this opportunity to strike at both Ash and Coal with a burst of green light, but the attack reflects harmlessly off of one of Coal’s magical shields. Simultaneously, a faint buzzing is heard as one of Butler’s backup lasers springs to life to complete the design.
Revert Scene()
Flygon and Salamence survey the strange forest, leaving Max in confusion. Then Max spots something and signals to Flygon
Max: Hey! Down there!
Flygon’s gaze, and a quarter second later (real time) QST.camera follows the direction Max points in, to a light in the forest. Salamence sees it too. As QST.camera focuses in, it appears to be someone waving with something glowing. Flygon and Salamence both take off towards the light. (Flygon at Max’s request, and Salamence after it in curiosity; QST.camera zooms out to view their flight)
New Scene()
In the dead zone in the middle of the anima jungle, the light and waving is revealed to be May waving with Celebi on her head, using flash. Both dragon pokémon land next to Yami Benjy, Brock, and May. As soon as Flygon lands, Max disembarks.
Max: May!
May: Max! You’re okay!
May tearfully embraces her brother, while Yami Benjy seems to communicate with Salamence. Flygon holds Jirachi in it’s arms, and Celebi senses this, and goes over to wake the other legendary pokémon, with a gentle tap on Jirachi’s forehead.
Suddenly Salamence sees something that makes it recoil. Max looks up just long enough to see Salamence staring in horror at Dianne’s lifeless body. The dragon shivers in a way more resemblant of a dog than a dragon. Flygon notices this.
Flygon: Fly?
Salamence says nothing verbally, but shivers again, and in a thought bubble, QST.camera sees Salamence remembering Dianne. It gulps again as the thought bubble disappears from the camera. Suddenly a buzzing sound makes everyone turn to see a bright beam of light in the distance shoot into the canyon, continuing the picture where the last beam left off.
May: I thought we destroyed it?!
Yami Benjy: It appears Butler has backups.
May: Does that mean Dianne died for n–
Yami Benjy: Not if we can break the rest of them quickly.
Salamence makes a rumbling noise.
Jirachi: Salamence says but if we do that, we’ll end up just like Dianne!
Yami Benjy: Not if we take them out from a sufficient distance. We were too close to this one when it blew.
Max gulps in tears, and Flygon walks towards May and Max, then thumps the ground with it’s tail. Max climbs on, and Flygon thumps again, which Max has to explain to May that it is Flygon’s way of inviting her aboard, too. Next to them, Yami Benjy shakes Salamence’s paw, and it allows him to climb aboard, after securing the unconscious Brock.
Yami Benjy: I’ll tell him the whole carnival was just a dream.
Max: Everyone ready?!
Yami Benjy: Yup!
May: M-hm!
Flygon and Salamence now beat their wings and slowly take to the sky.
Revert Scene()
The wind blows through Dianne’s hair as she lies on the forest floor, deceased.
New Scene()
Ash stares speechless as Butler walks towards Coal with his wand raised. In a split-second move, before Ash or Butler can react, Coal rushes Butler, striking him with a thunder-punch and then an electrified kick, followed by another punch that knocks Butler off the platform. Ash says nothing, but just stares in shock.
Coal: Ash! Take cover!
Ash: What!
Coal: We’re out of time!
Ash gulps and rushes in the direction that Coal is pointing with Pikachu at his heels. As he reaches the other side of he platform, Pikachu rushes to inspect Kirlia, which appears deceased, but Pikachu cannot confirm it. Across the platform, Coal strikes the console with a powerful, electrified kick.
Coal: Electric dragon’s nova claw!
Using claws of electricity, Coal pierces the control panel causing a devastating explosion that he is seemingly caught in the middle of. Ash gasps.
New Scene()
Flying above the warped forest, Flygon and Salamence attack the barrier around the backup laser, desperately trying to break through it. May calls Beautifly to attack the barrier too, and after about ten seconds, the barrier shatters, and as it does, the laser stops firing without having to have been broken itself.
May: What does this mean?
Yami Benjy: Either one of two things: either Coal finally broke the controls, or the diagram is complete.
Max looks over towards the platform that sparks as if something has been destroyed, then down towards the drawing, which now appears complete.
Max: Or both!
May: So what happens now?
Yami Benjy: Hopefully it’ll just be a Groudon-themed garden.
As Yami Benjy says this, energy pulses shoot around the perimeter of the drawing.
Max: Why do I have a feeling that we aren’t going to be that lucky.
Revert Scene()
Ash stares in Coal’s direction as the dust from the explosion is still too much to see if Coal is okay.
Butler: What a fool.
Ash and Pikachu immediately turn to face Butler, who is levitating with magic. Ash grits his teeth in anger. In the distance, two more platforms light up, also suspended by cables.
Ash: Pikachu thunder!
Butler: You honestly think you can hit them from–YAAAH!
As thunder strikes him hard, Butler realizes too late that he had been Ash’s target all along. Thunder ends with Butler panting, and Ash has Pikachu use thunder again. This time it strikes Butler, after about one second Butler is able to use his wand to send the electric attack back towards Ash and Pikachu.
Fortunately, the attack never connects, and instead jumps over Ash’s head to Coal’s outstretched fist.
Coal: Electric dragon’s sky knife!
Coal swings a punch in Butler’s direction and a jolt of electricity sails at Butler, breaking through some magic barrier and sending Butler flying through the air. For some reason, Butler seems unable to cast a spell to save himself.
Coal walks over to Ash.
Coal: I knocked out his magical abilities for a few seconds.
Coal: And lets hope he hits the ground before he gets them back.
Ash turns to face Coal.
Coal: Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to take out those power cells.
Coal gestures at the other platforms.
Ash: So that’s what they are–
Coal: See you soon Ash!
Coal now takes a running start and races out onto one of the suspension cables, sparking as he does so.
Ash: So that’s magic, huh?
Pikachu: Pi-Pikachu…
Ash slowly bends down and picks up Kirlia. Then shudders and quickly puts it down.
Pikachu: Pika!
Ash gulps and a tear starts to roll down his cheek. On the other side of the platform, the destroyed console pulses with energy and bursts into flames. Suddenly, another pulse of energy shoots through the platform, zapping Ash and Pikachu. This is followed by severals more shocks which knock Ash to his knees, and blow out some of the support cables. As the burning, sparking platform starts to tilt, Ash worries that he’s going to fall. But the spreading fire is making this an all the more appealing option.
The platform slowly reaches nearly vertical, causing Ash to fall along with Pikachu through a curtain of flames.
As Ash falls, the flames on his clothes are quickly extinguished from the wind. Ash gulps, then feels something land on his back (we see just a bit of Satolite) and closes his eyes (the screen shows what Ash sees)
QST: ~1 second wait.
Pikachu: Pika-Pi!
Ash opens his eyes to see that he’s flying over the forest. Satolite coos. And Ash relaxes a little bit, realizing what’s going on. As Ash looks down, he sees that the diagram is complete and that pulses of energy are rapidly shooting around it.
Ash: What’s going on…
May: Ash!
Ash looks forwards to see May and Max on Flygon and Yami Benjy and Brock riding Butler’s Salamence.
Ash: Hey guys!
Max: Ash! Bad news!
Ash: What?
May: Dianne’s dead!
Ash gasps in horror
Max: And it looks like Butler’s picture is complete!
Ash: So what happens now?
May: Benjy said it would probably be a Groudon-themed garden.
Yami Benjy: If we’re lucky…
May: But we’re not, are we…
New Scene()
Underneath the platform that Butler and Coal had been fighting over, Butler is holding onto some rocks as he stares upwards at the platform (now more upside-down then right side up) with anger boiling. Unbeknownst to him, Kirlia’s burning corpse has started falling from the platform, and strikes Butler right in the eyes as he watches his machine fall apart. This knocks Butler from the rock and down the steep rocky incline to the forest floor. Above Butler, his platform, now only being held in the air by two support cables, has twisted almost completely upside-down.
A few seconds after Butler hits the ground, the platform is completely upside-down, then twists a little bit beyond that, causing one of the two remaining support cables to snap. The one cable now remaining is pulled from the rock as the platform plummets to the ground, towards a large area a few yards from Butler.
Revert Scene()
From the air, Ash and company watch as the platform falls. They stare in horror at what is shown to the viewer as the platform crashing downwards. When the platform finally hits the ground, it explodes in a tremendous explosion that illuminates the entire canyon.
Ash and company aren’t the only ones who are watching this; from cliff sides several thousand pokémon watch the explosion with the same child-like sense of wonder, then as the light from the blast fades, turn away and start to evacuate their homes.
Revert Scene()
May: So… Is it over?
Ash: I don’t think so… Look at the ground!
Yami Benjy and Max now also glance at the ground, which is shaking and pulsing with a massive amount of energy.
May: Do you think the explosion caused all that energy?
Yami Benjy: It’s extremely unlikely. All that was put there by the laser.
Max: How sure are you?
Yami Benjy: Ninety-nine percent. If we have anything to regret, it should be that we let that anima ray close the loop. It made a circuit, which means.
May: Means what?
Yami Benjy: I’m not sure, but I am sure that that closed circuit was somehow necessary…
Down below them, the ground continues to pulse with energy and starts to rise.
…///To Be Continued///…
©July 5, 2014 by Benjamin Strauss