New Scene(Previously_On_Trigamon) {
@Recap
}
New Scene()
Ash, Max, May, and Yami Benjy stare at the ground in horror as it starts to rise all across the canyon. As it does, Flygon, Beautifly, Salamence, and Satolite begin to fly higher, and away from the rising ground. At this point Jirachi stirs and begins to look down at the rising ground.
Jirachi: Someone’s calling! Over this way!
Max: Which way?
Jirachi says something inaudible and Flygon hears it, and takes off in the direction of the trailer with Beautifly, Salamence, and Satolite flying after it. Behind them, the ground is still rising, and sucking the life out of all the trees that were growing on it. In the clearing, Dianne’s body starts to age drastically before she is swallowed up by the bubble of ground that is slowly taking the shape of a gigantic Groudon.
New Scene()
The four flying pokémon land at the side of a pond, about a quarter-mile from the giant Groudon-creature. May and Max disembark Flygon (May recalls Beautifly), and Satolite lets Ash (and Pikachu) down gently. Yami Benjy carries Brock, still unconscious, off of Flygon, and props him up against a tree.
Max: Jirachi, you said someone was calling to you?
Jirachi: M-hm! He’s right over there!
Jirachi points, and the group sees Absol sitting on it’s hind legs, staring upwards at the Groudon-shaped creature.
Ash: Absol!
Absol: Sol…
Absol doesn’t take it’s eyes off of the creature rising from the earth.
May: So that’s a Groudon?
Yami Benjy: It supposed to be…I guess. But there are several things wrong with it.
Max: Like what?
Yami Benjy: It doesn’t feel like a pokémon…
May: Eh? Lets test it…
May takes out her pokédex and points it at the Groudon creature, however it doesn’t seem to be picking up anything.
Max: Maybe we’re too far away?
May: I don’t want to get any closer…!
Ash looks down at the ground, clearly distraught.
Ash: I doubt it’s a Groudon.
May: What do you mean?
Ash: Given the way that it was made.
Ash does air quotes as he says "made" in the above line.
Ash: Something someone told me a couple years before I started my journey.
Flashback() {
Ash sits in a classroom while the other students file out of the classroom. His teacher is a woman dressed in black, who’s head isn’t shown on QST.camera. Ash squirms in his seat.
Ash: …
Teacher: Ash, I asked you to stay after class so I could answer your question.
Ash: But my mom is waiting…
Teacher: It’s ok, she won’t be worried. The trouble with a question like that is that too little information can be very dangerous. There are creatures you can train that are not classified as pokémon, many many of them. Some of them are docile, some of them can be very dangerous. Whatever you want to raise, research it thoroughly.
}
Ash: I think this is one of the things she was talking about…
A bunch of dead leaves blow past Ash. In the distance, the creature becomes more distinctly Groudon-esque, towering over the landscape at around 200 feet tall, and still growing.
Max: Looks like a Groudon to me…
May: Well, I’ve never seen one, but…
May flinches and stops talking as the grass around them and the trees suddenly start dying.
Max: I’m feeling sick.
Yami Benjy: That’s no Groudon… It’s way too big…
May: I’m feeling sick too…
Yami Benjy: It’s draining this… anima… an an alarming rate.
Yami Benjy turns to Ash, May, and Max, who are all shivering.
Benjy: So that’s why all the pokémon were fleeing…
Yami Benjy: But some of them aren’t fast enough…
QST.camera shifts up wards as some of the fleeing Tropius fall out of the sky, and crash into the dying cliffs, where their fate is unknown.
Yami Benjy: Why am I not affected by…
Absol: Ab! Ab! Sol! Sol! Sol-sol! Absol-sol-sol!
Pikachu: Pika!
Max: J-Jirachi, do you know what Absol is saying?
Jirachi: Absol says that the all the life force is being used to sustain the Groudon. It’s called ‘equivalent exchange.’
The Millennium Gameboy Advance glows, causing everyone to jump. Weakened by the lack of anima, May stumbles and almost falls on her face.
Benjy: In other words, conservation of energy. It’s taking all this life force to bring that creature to life.
Max: Hold on, why aren’t you affected, Benjy?
May: Maybe it has to do with him being from another universe?
Ash groans and is forced to sit down, and Benjy rushes over towards him, then looks over his shoulder at the Groudon-monster which is now almost fully formed.
May: It’s taking our life force too!
Max now collapses to his knees, and as he does, he touches the ground and suddenly screams. Instantly, Ash, May, Max, Benjy, Absol, Jirachi, Pikachu, Brock, Flygon, and Salamence are all pushed about an inch into the air and a strange light surrounds them like a coat, before disappearing and letting them back down.
May: What was that?!
Ash: That!
QST.camera split-screens to show everyone’s expressions, and then in the center Dianne’s artifact glowing with white light.
Max: It’s protecting us…
May: But I thought Dianne was…
QST.camera comes out of a split-screen, and then suddenly the light fades from Dianne’s artifact, and it turns gray and shatters.
Ash: Aack!
Max: I’m not feeling any worse though…
May: Maybe Dianne somehow stopped it from taking our anima?
Ash suddenly stops shaking.
Ash: Yeah, me too.
Benjy: Something doesn’t make sense though, in the context of conservation of energy, or equivalent exchange as you call it.
Ash: You mean that it’s taking all these lives to power one life?
Benjy: Exactly, and this is even with the power of the Millennium Comet. It’s what Butler planned to use, so that alone should have been enough if he knew what he was doing.
May: Maybe because it’s so big?
Ash: Large creatures and small creatures all require the same amount of anima.
Benjy: Which makes me wonder how much it wants, is it just going to keep absorbing anima?
The creature has now stopped forming, and takes it’s first step and roars. Ash and company tremble.
Jirachi: It wants all the anima that it can get.
Max: Jirachi, how do you know this?
Jirachi: It’s what Dianne said.
This comment leaves Ash and company dumbstruck.
Ash: She’s alive?!
Yami Benjy: She may be in a state between life and death.
Jirachi: And Dianne says kill!
May: Kill it?! But doesn’t it also–
Jirachi: It has no feelings, no emotions, no sense of right and wrong. All it does is consume, that’s all it will ever do.
May: But kill it?!
Jirachi: We have to, before it destroys the entire universe.
Ash and company gasp at this revelation.
May: Hey! Where’s Absol?!
New Scene()
Butler, injured, looks up at the massive creature stomping around the cavern, sucking the life force out of it. Butler pants, happy to have his experiment succeed, and likely not to be fully aware of the nature of the result.
Butler: I’m going to call you, Groudontwo.
Narrator: And what are the base stats?
Butler: Lets see: you look like you have 350 HP, 250 attack, 260 defense, 500 special attack, 400 special defense, and probably 120 speed.
New Scene()
Absol bounds through the dying forest to where Groudontwo is examining it’s surroundings and finally jumps onto a large rock where it has a clear shot at the back of Groudontwo’s neck, thanks to the dying forest. In the distance, Groudontwo places it’s hand on one of the rocky cliffs and causes the entire forest under and near it’s hand to wither.
New Scene()
Coal sees this, from where he is standing on a cliff a good ways away. He has now wreaked the final power source.
Coal: What the zark is that thing…
Revert Scene()
Absol: Ab… SOL!
Absol charges up a massive amount of energy when it says the first syllable of it’s name, and releases this energy on the second. The energy shoots across the forest and strikes Groudontwo in the back of the neck, doing negligible damage. The attack does get Groudontwo’s attention, and as it turns around it’s tail causes one of the cords Coal is walking on to snap. Coal does an seemingly inhuman leap from the snapping cord to a nearby pillar.
Seeing that the attack did almost nothing Absol fires a couple more razor winds which also do negligible damage, and prompt a response from Groudontwo: it extends a claw, and one of it’s nails turns into a blue-green tendril, and they extent towards Absol, whom furiously attacks the tendril. This damages the tendril slightly, but not enough to stop it from catching and engulfing Absol, sucking it back into Groudontwo’s main body.
New Scene()
Ash and company watch this in absolute horror as the tendril sucks up Absol and then retracts into Groudontwo’s hand, re-acquiring the form of a spike. Following this, all of the spikes along Groudontwo’s back turn into tendrils, and shoot out over the cavern, presumably looking for sources of anima.
Benjy: We need to mobilize! There’s no reason why it’s not going to come after us too.
Flygon and Salamence now beckon Ash and company aboard.
Jirachi: Dianne says kill!
Ash: And how are we supposed to do that?!
Benjy: I wonder…
Benjy stares up at Groudontwo nervously.
Yami Benjy: What is it?
Benjy: If I can get the events to mimic the events of the pok´mon movie "Jirachi–Wishmaker." The plan relies on Butler having a backup device somewhere, but…
Yami Benjy: Go for it!
Benjy: Huh?
Yami Benjy: 50% chance of success. Better than anything else we have.
Benjy turns around to see Max standing to Flygon’s left, May standing between Flygon and Salamence, and Ash standing to the right of Salamence.
Benjy: Ash, Max! You guys get on Flygon! May, help me get Brock secured on Salamence!
May gulps.
Ash: Why that arrangement?
Benjy: I’ve worked it through in my mind.
Ash doesn’t question the idea any further, and he and Max quickly get on Flygon.
May: He’s worked it through in his mind? What does that mean?
Benjy: May! I need your help with Brock!
May comes rushing over and helps Benjy position Brock on Salamence, then climbs on herself. Benjy now boards Salamence in front of Brock (unconscious) such that Brock is between him and May.
Benjy: He’re the plan: We need to locate any other equipment Butler brought with him and didn’t use. There might be something we can–
Yami Benjy: Is that?
Benjy: –reverse the polarity on and–
Yami Benjy: Something’s coming!
Benjy gulps.
Benjy: Liftoff NOW!
Flygon and Salamence beat their wings and take off into the sky, with Flygon moving about twice the speed of Salamence. As soon as Salamence is fifteen feet in the air, one of Groudontwo’s tendrils whips into the clearing at around 45 miles per hour, breaking trees and draining their anima when it collides with them.
Ash: Not a moment too soon! (To Max)
Both Dragon pokémon beat their wings faster, as the tendril comes crashing through the clearing, then seconds later shoots upwards at Salamence. Salamence dodges, and Benjy looks down to see where the tendril is, and shivers, appearing to suffer from both motion sickness and vertigo. The tendril lashes at Salamence again, and misses again thank’s to a sudden dodge, but Benjy is now pre-occupied with trying not to throw up. Salamence barely dodges a third time as it flies higher.
May: Benjy! DO SOMETHING!
Benjy: Uhh…
Yami Benjy: I’m stepping in.
The Millennium Gameboy Advance glows brilliantly. Yami Benjy, no longer sick, quickly uses his blade-mitten to cut the tendril as it prepares to strike again. The tendril hisses and starts to regenerate.
Yami Benjy: Satolite!
Satolite: Coo!
May turns in surprise to see Satolite is flying level with them.
Yami Benjy: Take Brock somewhere safe, ‘kay?
Satolite: Coo!
Satolite extends a blue tractor beam down at Brock, and lifts him off Salamence’s back. Relieved of this weight, it allows Salamence to dodge the next strike with impressive agility. The tendril then targets Satolite, which takes off in a burst of speed, proving far too fast for the tendrils to follow. Groudontwo sends another tendril after it, and another after Salamence anyway, but even Salamence is now too fast. As it soars out of the way, it blasts both tentacles with a flamethrower, causing them to explode and once again start the ten-second process of regeneration.
New Scene()
Above the forest, Team Rocket’s balloon becomes a target and the three jump ship as a tendril ensnares the balloon, sucking it up completely. Groudontwo fails to notice Team Rocket themselves as they parachute from their balloon.
Jessie: Son of a (bleep)! What is that?
Meowth: I have no (bleep)ing idea!
New Scene()
Satolite zips through the dying canyons of Ferina chased by Groudontwo’s anima-hungry tendrils. Brock’s weight does little to hamper Satolite, as it moves far faster than what’s pursuing it, eventually loosing the tendrils altogether.
QST.camera moves upwards to where Flygon agily dodges another tendril.
Ash: Max, do you see anything we can use to…?
Max: Down there! Look!
Ash: It’s Coal!
Ash and Max stare down at the power cells that Coal has destroyed.
Max: Oop– I hope those weren’t–
Ash: Hey Coal!
Coal doesn’t appear to hear Ash, but the noise causes several tendrils to come shooting at Flygon. Flygon does it’s best to dodge them, destroying several as it tries to escape, only to eventually be latched onto. Beating it’s wings furiously, Flygon breaks away with the help of Pikachu’s thunder, only to be ensnared by another.
Max: Help!
This causes Coal, below them to look up and gasp, and as a result fall off the cable he’s walking on as Ash, Max, and the Pokémon struggle to break free. They do moments later with a popping noise due to Jirachi’s teleportation. Down below, Coal lands on his feet, and makes a lightning-fast leap to the side to avoid another tendril. The tendrils chase Coal under a rocky overhang, but Coal proves to be too fast for them. Several explosions are heard (from Coal zapping the tendrils) before Coal emerges on the other side.
QST.camera now zips away where Flygon and it’s riders are in the sky, far out of Groudontwo’s reach. Max congratulates Jirachi at a successful escape while Ash surveys the ground below.
Ash: Is that… Butler?
Max: What?
Jirachi: What?
Ash: I thought he was dead… Where’s he going?
QST.camera now zooms in on Butler running.
Coal: Hey you!
Butler turns towards the direction of the sound, and as a result runs straight into the trunk of a dying tree. Butler quickly extracts himself and turns to face Coal, who is running at him.
Coal: There you are, you (bleep)! Where’s the zarking ‘off’ switch for that thing?!
Butler: There isn’t one.
Butler smirks.
Butler: And even if there was, you would have destroyed it already.
Coal: Then where’s a backup device?!
Butler: Backup?
Coal: I know you have some!
Butler: You mean the broken thing back at the carnival? I didn’t have a lot of time you know. Besides, I won after all. Why stop it now?
Coal doesn’t reply verbally, but instead shoots forwards with a massive bolt of energy, colliding with Butler and sending him flying backwards into a rock. Butler stands up quickly.
Coal: I won’t ask again! Where’s your off switch?!
Butler: Just go home already!
Coal turns to see one of Groudontwo’s tendrils shooting towards them.
Butler: Avada körma!
The spell shoots towards Coal who dodges the first blast of green light, only to be hit with another, which causes a massive explosion. As the dust clears, Coal is still very much alive, and kicks Butler in the stomach with enough force not only to smash him into the rock, but also to cause the rock become full of cracks, and threaten to crumble. The slightest bit of blood is now visible on Butler’s chin.
Butler: If I’m going down, you’re going first.
As Butler finishes his comment, a tendril strikes Coal in the mid-section of his back. As it drags him backwards, Coal sparks furiously and another tendril comes for Butler. Before either tendril can suck either up completely, a flamethrower burns the tendrils off of Coal and Butler. Butler looks up, pleasantly surprised to see Salamence above them.
Butler: Salamence!
May: Up yours, (blee-bleep)!
May’s comment comes off on deaf ears; QST.camera goes into split-screen (Coal and Yami Benjy) long enough for Coal to wonder:
Coal: Where’d she learn to swear like that?
Coming out of the split-screen, Butler throws a spell at Salamence, but it is nullified by Yami Benjy. In retribution Salamence fires a flamethrower at it’s former trainer.
New Scene()
More tendrils are after Satolite, but it out-flies all of them, keeping close to the rocky cliffs which are looking more and more lifeless. Suddenly a barrage of tendrils attempt to enstrangle Satolite, but it zips out of the way, zooming into open air. Brock flinches slightly as the air blows on him, but he doesn’t wake up.
Refresh Scene()
Satolite has completely lost the tendrils again, and it lays Brock down on a ledge 250 feet high and roughly 400 feet from where Groudontwo is sucking up all the anima. After laying Brock down, Satolite sparks defensively.
New Scene()
Salamence is now hurling it’s flamethrower about in an attempt to dispel the tendrils that have now surrounded itself and it’s riders, as well as Butler and Coal. Coal strangely salutes Yami Benjy, then takes off running. No longer having to deal with Coal, Butler fires a spell at Salamence, but it fails to connect due to the number of tendrils around them. The spell hits a tendril instead and making it whither slightly.
After this, Benjy, May, and Salamence’s views of Butler are obscured as they are forced to fight their way out of the mass of tendrils. May screams and a tendril almost hits her in the face before Salamence and Yami Benjy burst out of the mess with fire and light. Tendrils still chase after them as they flee on an exhausted Salamence.
Behind and below them, Butler now finds that he can no longer free himself, and Groudontwo catches him and slings him, as well as a bunch of other ensnared pokémon, towards it’s mouth. Feeling tingly, Butler finally gulps as he realizes what’s happening, and that’s it’s not what he intended.
Butler: That thing… It’s not what I thought… It’s not Groudon… It’s definitely something, but it’s not Groudon! And if it’s not stopped, it’s going to destroy the entire forest–no; the entire planet!
With this, Butler gulps and teleports out of the tendril. Watching this from afar, May almost faints as tendrils try to ensnare them as well. Suddenly noticing them flying at a downward angle, May gasps as Salamence, no longer able to keep itself airborne, glides towards the rocky cliffside.
Refresh Scene()
Salamence’s landing throws a cloud of debris into the air, as well as ejecting May and Yami Benjy onto the rocky ground. May crashes to the ground on her back and Yami Benjy lands hard on his side right next to her, with his head striking May’s chest. Both turn red as soon as they realize this.
Narrator: What the (bleep) are the writers thinking?! Now is not the time for fan-service!!!
Yami Benjy and May both do their best to stand up, wincing in pain from their injuries.
May: Salamence!
The dragon pokémon doesn’t respond immediately, and May turns around quickly to see if it is okay. She can’t see Salamence on the rocky ledge above them (because they are very close to the cliffside, the ledge that Yami Benjy and May are on is only about four feet wide)
Nervously, May quickly turns back around to face the direction of Groudontwo. As she does, a tendril hits her in the upper chest out of nowhere and quickly oozes around her upper body. As it plucks May off of the side of the cliff, Yami Benjy grabs her outstretched arm with the arm that he didn’t land on, anchoring himself to the cliffside with magical circles under his feet. May screams again, and Yami Benjy tries to hang on to May’s arm, but the tendril is slowly ripping her away.
Yami Benjy: NO! This can’t–
Benjy: Don’t give in!
As Yami Benjy starts to let go, the MGBA gives off a pulse and Benjy’s grip tightens around May’s wrist as she is forced to let go of his wrist.
Benjy: I know how this wants to end! But this is not anime, it’s real life! I don’t care how big that thing is; it’s not size that matters! It’s by spirit alone! And no one rips things out of my hands, ever!
With one massive yank, Benjy rips May from the tendril and she comes crashing into him still covered in tendril goo, knocking them both down. The tendril recoils, then prepares to strike again, but before it can make contact the MGBA pulses with light and a golden barrier, this time with bizarre patterns blocking the tendril. As the tendril begins to push on the barrier, the barrier fires a golden jet of energy into the tendril, crystalizing it and destroying it.
Yami Benjy then leaps to his feet, still holding on to May’s wrist and forces her to run as another tendril starts to come after them. After about 20 feet, the ledge collapses beneath May and Yami Benjy, but fortunately Salamence is there to pick them up, and flies out from the little cover they had, launching a huge fire blast at a tendril that has picked up on their location, as it zooms into the sky, trying to get away.
May: …
Yami Benjy: Even if we could fight it as equals, we’re way too injured to engage it directly.
New Scene()
Groudontwo’s walking in Benjy and May’s direction breaks the remaining cables causing Butler’s "batteries" to crash to the ground and burst into flame, but the flames are quickly extinguished as the energy is drained from the batteries along with the surrounding landscape.
New Scene()
As Satolite watches over Brock, Coal shoots over the edge of the cliff into the air above it, as if he has run straight up the rock face. Satolite sparks in surprise as Coal sails onto the cliff, landing with a loud thud. Satolite continues to spark slightly to express it’s discomfort over the surprise.
Coal: Hm…
Coal starts walking towards Brock and Satolite, causing the later to spark defensively.
Coal: Easy! Easy…
Satolite doesn’t stop sparking as Coal approaches, and Coal reaches out his hand to Satolite and pats the half-machine half-bird Trigamon on the head, which does a little to calm Satolite. Coal seems unaffected by the sparking for the most part. Coal then turns to Brock, and is forced to turn back to Satolite instantly when it nips his hand.
Coal: OW!
Satolite continues to spark, and then leaps onto Coal’s head as he begins to inspect Brock, as Coal’s hands are now out of it’s nipping distance. Here, Satolite crackles with electricity as Coal reaches for Brock’s forehead…
QST.camera now zooms back out over the dying landscape of Ferina.
New Scene()
Salamence lands on a rocky ledge with May and Yami Benjy, panting heavily.
May: We can’t just keep running like this!
Yami Benjy: I know, but that means we have to attack.
May hiccups.
Yami Benjy: Or flee altogether, but I’m not doing that while our friends are still out there.
May: I wouldn’t dream of that…
May trembles as Salamence tries to shake the cramps out of it’s wings.
Yami Benjy: I know it’s a long shot, but do you have a plan of attack?
Cutscene() {
The cutscene goes through various memories of May’s for about 2 seconds, spending about 0.1 seconds on each memory
}
May: Me?!
Yami Benjy: Right now I have one hope, which comes from a movie I once saw. Flygon is faster than Salamence, so Ash and Max are better suited to carry it out.
Yami Benjy’s voice is temporarily muted to QST.camera while he describes "Jirachi, Wishmaker" to May. Groudontwo’s stomping can be heard throughout the canyon while this is going on. QST.camera tehn zooms out.
Refresh Scene()
Yami Benjy: But there’s no guarantee that any of it will happen that way in real life.
May: You said Ash and Max stopped Groudon by working with Butler?
Yami Benjy: In the movie. But given his attitude, that doesn’t seem likely, does it? While the big picture was the same, it got a lot of the details wrong.
May: What happened to me?
Yami Benjy: I can’t tell a lie; that thing sucked you into it–in the movie…
May gasps and starts to turn white.
Yami Benjy: Of course, you got out fine when it was destroyed and everything was returned to normal.
May falls backwards.
May: Now you tell me…
May: So what we need to do is replicate the events in the movie, right?
Yami Benjy: Of course, if we do that, and you do get swallowed, along with Brock, there’s no guarantee that you’ll get out when, and if, its destroyed.
May: But if everything that happened in the movie happens in real life…
Yami Benjy: The movie got some of the details wrong. I’m not going to risk that one of those details will turn out to be your survival.
May: Wait. How could that happen?
May: Benjy. What was I doing when I–
Yami Benjy: I can't remember.
May clenches her fist.
May: This might just be a wild guess, and I haven’t seen the movie, but it seems like Brock and I must have had to distract that thing when–that’s it!
May shakes slightly.
May: Benjy. We’re going to have to buy Ash and Max some time if we want them to succeed. There’s no way they can locate that thing with all those tendrils chasing them!
Yami Benjy: Hm…
May: All they need is a little time!
Benjy: Putting your trust in something like this is too far fetched! It might work in some anime show, but this is real life!
Yami Benjy: I’m not taking a blind leap with our lives at risk.
May glares at Yami Benjy, then rushes towards Salamence, which turns it’s head.
May: Salamence!
Yami Benjy catches May’s arm before she can reach Salamence.
Yami Benjy: Let me finish! The way that thing is interacting with its environment is not like I saw in the movie. Something’s different, which makes me worry about Ash and Max…
Yami Benjy lets go of a now rubber-legged May and walks to the edge of the cliff and gasps.
New Scene()
In the sky, Flygon squawks loudly as it gets ensnared in another tendril, and all have to be teleported away by Jirachi.
Ash: I can’t find anything!
Max: There has to be something!
Flygon now goes into a steep dive to avoid another of Groudontwo’s tendrils, zooming around trees to try to escape. The movement has Ash and Max feeling somewhat ill. Pikachu zaps several of the tendrils chasing them as Jirachi pants, tired of teleporting them every couple minutes.
As the tendrils close in on Ash and Max, Max discovers that, much to his horror, Jirachi has fallen asleep. Unable to escape by teleportation, Flygon makes a 280º turn sticking close to the ground, while Pikachu hurls a thunderbolt at the tendrils, which does next to nothing, not even slowing them.
Pikachu continues attacking as Flygon flies into an underground tunnel about ten feet ahead of the tendrils, with the tendrils very slowly catching up as Flygon traverses the tunnel and flies out into the open again. Now ambushed by more tendrils, Max is nearly pulled off of Flygon by one of them, but Ash grabs him and Max only loses his shoe. Pikachu attacks them again, but this doesn’t do anything as Flygon barely manages to avoid tendril after tendril by the proverbial skin of it’s teeth.
Coming down from the sky, another tendril shoots at Flygon from a 10:00 position, and Ash gasps. Seconds later, the tendril is incinerated by a jet of fire, which sweeps backwards causing the tendrils chasing them to recoil. Ash looks upwards.
Ash: Benjy! May!
Above them, Yami Benjy and Salamence counterattack Groudontwo’s tendrils with magic and firepower. (Yami Benjy is manipulating magic bombs)
May: Did you find anything?
Max: No…
May: (bleep)! Benjy?!
Yami Benjy: You guys, run!
Max: Why is Flygon slowing down!
Ash: Flygon!
With this, Groudontwo sends a mess of tendrils in their direction.
Benjy: Nine seconds to impact!
Salamence suddenly roars, and Flygon seems to get an energy boost, and continues fleeing.
Benjy: Three seconds!
Yami Benjy gestures and Salamence suddenly turns just in time to avoid the tendrils converging on their location, leaving both dragons fleeing in parallel. Despite the boost in speed for Flygon, both dragons start to get weary and falter. With tendrils rapidly approaching, Yami Benjy starts to glow from head to toe. Golden energy encircles the two dragon Pokémon and they surge forwards into the air.
Refresh Scene()
Ash sighs in relief seeing that they are now out of Groudontwo’s range. Groudontwo now turns it’s attention to sucking every last trace of anima out of the canyon. It roars, and the cliffs start to fall apart.
On the cliffside, Coal watches this nervously, before QST.camera returns to the two dragon pokémon and their riders sailing smoothly through the night.
Yami Benjy: We’ve done all we can… We need to flee.
Max: You’re giving up?
May: What about everyone else?!
Ash: What about Brock and Coal?!
Yami Benjy: Satolite should have brought Brock to safety by now. Coal seems to know what he’s doing. He should be fine.
Groudontwo roars again in the distance.
May: I thought you were going to battle it!! (To Yami Benjy)
Max: Battle that?
Ash: How?
Yami Benjy grits his teeth
Yami Benjy: That was a test. We appear to lack the firepower to make any sort of dent in it. Forget about what I said, May.
May crosses her arms in front of her chest, still grasping Salamence with her legs.
May: …I’m not suicidal…
Ash: Huh?
Max: Hey, down there!
Yami Benjy: Did you find something?
Ash: It’s a light!
May swallows hard.
Yami Benjy: Set course for the light!
New Scene()
Butler moves around a different looking platform, busily working with his machinery.
Butler: What went wrong? What went wrong? Why did this…
Butler stares off into the distance at Groudontwo, when something overhead catches his attention. The platform this time is anchored to a rocky clifftop that juts out over the canyon. Just as Butler is about to dismiss what he saw:
Yami Benjy: Hello again…
Butler turns to face Ash, May, Max, Yami Benjy, and the two dragon pokémon.
Butler: …
Butler collapses to his knees panting.
Butler: You’ve got to help me! That’s not Groudon, just a monster…
Max: *Help* you?
Butler: If you don’t, then the entire planet is going to be destroyed. I need to borrow Jirachi…
Ash, May, and Max stare at Butler speechless.
Butler: Just borrow…
May: What are you going to do?
Butler: I’m going to throw everything into reverse. If I’m successful, we should be able to dissolve that thing into a giant fountain of anima.
Max: But Jirachi’s exhausted…
Butler: Jirachi just needs to pull the anima out of the ground. It won’t hurt…
Max: I don’t trust you!
May: Its just like what Benjy said…
Butler: Please! If you don’t, we’ll all wither away to nothing.
Ash: Can we trust him?
Butler: Use your pokédex on that thing! See for yourself.
Ash nods, and points his pokédex at Groudontwo. The pokédex searches for a couple seconds before identifying:
Ash’s Pokédex: You are pointing your pokédex at what is known as a ‘Spirit Absorption Beast.’ How the (bleep) are you still alive?
Ash stares in shock at his pokédex.
Ash: I’ve never heard this thing curse before…
Butler: And it never will again if you don’t hurry!
Yami Benjy: Hand over your wand.
Butler looks nervously at Yami Benjy.
Yami Benjy: I’m waiting.
Butler now pulls his wand out of his sleeve and hands it to Yami Benjy.
Yami Benjy: The other one too.
Butler gulps and pulls the other wand out of his boot and hands it to Yami Benjy.
Ash: So we’re doing this?
Yami Benjy nods. Max asks a very dazed Jirachi how it’s feeling, and Jirachi agrees to use the device, but Max worries as to whether or not Jirachi is really aware of what’s going on.
Butler: Alright, alright. I need to get this thing adjusted…
Butler looks at the side of the terminal where Jirachi would control the anima, and begins adjusting dials and switches, and clipping wires into place. As Butler does this, Jirachi floats out of Max’s arms and into the machine. Butler then presses the start button.
Butler: The question now is how powerful is that thing… This will need some time to charge before it can…
Max: What kind of a scale are talking about?
May: Ash, try your pokédex!
Ash points his pokédex at Groudontwo again, and the pokédex clicks.
Ash’s Pokédex: Radius of effect is currently 500 meters.
Butler: 500 meters means lets see… I’ll use T-E-I over C squared. Multiply by residual anima, and…
Butler’s machine beeps, and several panels light up. One is on a console and displays the number 110.
May: What’s that?
Butler: It’s a representation of electro-magical power in the system right now. There’s not much we can do now until it charges up.
Ash and company shutter.
Butler: Given that thing’s radius of effect, we’re going to need at least eight thousand teravolts of electric and magical power. Over nine thousand to be safe.
Narrator: Why can’t we just let that meme die?!
Max: What happens if there isn’t enough power?
Butler: Then it won’t be enough to pull the anima out of that S.A.B.
May: Jirachi, are you ready?
Jirachi: Ready!
Ash: I hate to say this, but I think it just noticed us…
Max: It did!
May: And we’re only at 315!
Butler: It must’ve finished pulling the anima out of the canyon…
Ash: That fast!
Butler: Took it almost three times at long as should have, given the amount of anima that should have been in this canyon…
In the distance, Groudontwo takes thundering steps towards them.
Yami Benjy: 390 now.
May: Not fast enough!
Yami Benjy: I’m guessing Jirachi stands out like a sore thumb, anima-wise. Would it work to take Jirachi out, to lead it away, then zip back when it’s finished?
Butler seems to consider this briefly.
Butler: Too risky.
Ash: What do you mean?
Butler: Jirachi is channeling the anima. Without Jirachi, the whole thing could explode! If only Kirlia could channel that much…
Butler grits his teeth.
Ash: If only you hadn’t killed it…
May: He killed it?!
Butler: That was just a sleep spell you saw.
Ash: I don’t believe it!
May: Did we just let him put Jirachi–
Yami Benjy: Enough.
Ash, May, and Max stare at Yami Benjy.
Yami Benjy: I’m going to oversee this device. If I find that that it does something other than what was stated…
Butler flinches.
Yami Benjy: I won’t hesitate to destroy both of them.
Yami Benjy: Benjy…
Benjy: What?
Yami Benjy: I need your help. We need to…
Benjy: You don’t need to say any more.
Ash: Meanwhile, I’ll keep an eye on this murderer.
Butler: I’m not a murderer! All I did was make her fall asleep!
Ash: You call that sleeping?!
Butler: It’s a deep sleep, like a coma–
Ash: Silence!
Butler stops talking immediately.
Max: Jirachi, are you feeling okay?
Jirachi confirms that its feeling okay. In the distance, Groudontwo is walking closer.
May: If there was only a way to delay it until the machine is powered up…
May’s Memory { Yami Benjy: The movie got some of the details wrong. I’m not going to risk that one of those details will turn out to be your survival. }
May: …
Cutscene {
This cutscene plays in a window over the majority of the screen, a white cloudy border surrounding the cutscene. The cutscene is of a younger May sitting on a swing in Petalburg, talking to a girl with gray-blue hair, standing across from her.
May: And why didn’t you…
Girl: If they wanted my cooperation then they could have gone the extra step of explaining it.
May: But they said it was complicated…
Girl: It doesn’t matter. Without an explanation, it’s a shot in the dark.
The girl clenches her fist.
Girl: Just because it’s been okay every time in the past doesn’t guarantee the same result in the future.
May.voice.audio_override: Why am I remembering this…
May.voice.audio_override: Think, May, think!
May.voice.audio_override: Wait… It’s the risk…
}
Back in the present, Groudontwo lumbers closer.
May: Benjy can’t actually explain why everything is so close to the movie he saw! And since he can’t explain it, then there’s no guarantee that… At times like this, they say one should have faith… But I’m not that dumb!
Ash: Benjy! We’re at twenty three hundred! We should make it!
The MGBA pulses.
Benjy: If the power is going to increase linearly. It’s not though.
Max: What are you trying to say?
Benjy: It’ll be harder to charge power the more power we have.
Benjy: This thing seems to have another purpose other than draining anima… And I’d be an idiot not to know what it is. Of course it’s designed to create a Groudon… The question is whether Butler’s that dumb…
New Scene()
On the cliff overlooking the cavern, Coal watches from a crouched position as Groudontwo lumbers by.
Coal: Of course, it’s going to be drawn to Jirachi as soon as it’s sucked the canyon dry just like a moth to a flame. Given that Jirachi can pull anima out of a comet about 200 miles overhead, who knows what this thing will do with that power.
Coal then turns his attention back to Brock’s forehead, and sticks his hand down, into Brock’s forehead, and searches around, then pulls out a robotic arm, and places it with a bunch of other mechanical equipment in a pile next to him.
Coal: An active N.O. channel is a terrible thing to waste.
…///To Be Continued///…
©July 15, 2014 by Benjamin Strauss