Events: Ash catches a Gulpin
New Scene(@Temporal=Night)
May folds down the sixth section of the wishing star as Ash and company walk through the night. Rustboro shines in the distance, and Celebi and Jirachi stare at the night sky.
May: Just one more day…
Max: Stop counting already!
May: …Sorry…
May continues walking with her limp.
Ash: My feet hurt…
May: Your feet hurt?! My foot was nearly eaten by a giant worm!
Max: You guys are making my butt hurt.
Benjy: And my head is going to hurt worse than it already does if we, I mean you, don’t stop complaining about things we can’t fix.
Brock: We could always set up camp here…
Benjy: We’re literally less than a mile from the pokémon center, it would be easier to just finish this leg of the journey.
May: Easy for you to say, it wasn’t your foot that almost got eaten by a subterranean horror!
Max: Whatever…
New Scene()
Ash and company walk through the brightly lit streets of Rustboro with May limping behind them, until they arrive at the pokémon center. The doors open and Ash and company walk in, seeing no one at the front desk, Ash walks up and rings the bell. After a few moments, Nurse Joy returns to the desk and everyone, excluding Max, hands their pokémon to Nurse Joy to heal.
Nurse Joy: My, you kids are out late.
Benjy nods absentmindedly and Nurse Joy puts the poké balls in the healing machine. Brock starts to flirt with Nurse Joy, which startles her, but Max drags him away. As the healing machine runs, Nurse Joy notices that May is limping.
Nurse Joy: Excuse me, are you limping?
May nods.
Ash: A strykewyrm sunk it’s teeth into her foot today.
Nurse Joy: A strykewyrm?!
Ash: What’s so surprising about that?
Nurse Joy: Strykewyrms don’t live here on Fenyra…
Max: But that’s what the pokédex said it was…
Nurse Joy: What’s your name?
May: Uh, May…
Nurse Joy: May, I need you to sit down and show me where it bit you.
May: Okay…
May sits down on the couch-bench while Nurse Joy brings over a table for May to put her foot on. May starts to take off her shoe, but Nurse Joy requests that she do it, and May allows her to. Nurse Joy removes the bandages slowly to reveal that May’s foot is a bit swollen, which makes Ash, May, and Benjy uneasy looking at it.
Nurse Joy: My goodness… Blissey, fetch the disinfectants please!
Nurse Joy: This strykewyrm, what did it look like?
Ash starts to describe the strykewyrm’s appearance, and Nurse Joy confirms that what they are describing indeed sounds like a strykewyrm.
Ash: So question, if strykewyrms don’t live on Fenyra, then how did it get here?
Nurse Joy: It must’ve been someone’s pet that they brought over from Gielinor, and it must’ve somehow gotten loose. There are other explanations too, but a little more far-fetched. But this is just bizarre…
Blissey now emerges from the back room with some medical supplies and Nurse Joy motions for Ash to give her and Blissey some room, which they do.
New Scene()
In a back room of the pokémon center, May lies in the top bunk of a bunk-bed with her injured foot exposed from under the blanket, tightly wrapped in new bandages. Ash lies in the bunk bed beneath her. Outside the window, the moon is nearly full. As everyone sleeps, a squelching noise is heard outside. QST.camera moves outside the window to check this out.
Here, Gulpin are emerging from under the pokémon center into the nearby field.
New Scene(@Temporal=Morning)
Light shines through the windows, awakening Benjy first who is sleeping in a chair with his hands folded in his lap. Benjy gets up and stretches, yawning quietly. He then starts to make his way into the front of the pokémon center.
QST.camera follows Benjy into the doorway to the main room seemingly in somewhat of a daze (as he just woke up); he rubs his eyes as he approaches the doorway, then jumps as Nurse Joy rushes past the doorway talking on a small hand-held radio.
Nurse Joy: What do you mean we have a code green? Where are they?!
Benjy: Code green?
Yami Benjy: Don’t ask me, just stand back and…
Blissey rushes by the door in somewhat of a hurry.
Benjy: That was what I was going to do anyway.
Max: Benjy? *yawn* What’s going on?
Benjy: Huh? Don’t know. Just woke up and found them carrying on about some code…
Nurse Joy: It’s green! Code green! (worried)
Nurse Joy doesn’t say this in response to Benjy and Max, but to someone on the radio as she passes by the door in the other direction.
Max: Code green… What is that?
Benjy: I don’t know, say we find out?
Max nods, and Benjy reaches in his backpack for Satolite’s ball.
Benjy: Hey Satolite, you feeling adventurous today?
Suddenly Satolite pops out of it’s ball, surprising Benjy and Max. Satolite looks at Benjy and Max curiously.
Satolite: *whirr* *beep* *blip*
Max: Nurse Joy mentioned something about a "code green," do you think you can find out about that for us.
Satolite flaps it’s wings and lands on Benjy’s head, staring out the window. It then stretches its wings, looking through the window. Somewhere in the pokémon center, Nurse Joy is on the telephone asking, "where are they?" Satolite raises an eyelid hearing this, then sniffs the air?
Max: Um… Scan anything?
Satolite: Coo…
Satolite now lifts off Benjy’s head, sniffing with it’s eyes closed, and with a giant boost of speed, flies through the window, shattering it.
Max: Oops…
May: You think Satolite will be okay?
Benjy and Max turn around to see May standing behind them, using a single crutch to support herself and not put too much weight on her injured foot.
Max: May, you’re up too?
Benjy: Anything that wants to harm Satolite is going to have to catch it first, and that’s no easy task.
Benjy yawns slightly as he finishes saying this.
May: I’m hungry for breakfast…
May starts to enter the main part of the pokémon center but Max stops her, commenting that Nurse Joy looks really busy. May explains that she’s just getting breakfast.
Nurse Joy’s Voice: THEY’RE IN THE FOOD STORE!? (horrified)
All three jump, and May nearly falls over. Then they come quickly running out to where Nurse Joy is looking, in the pokémon center’s pantry are a couple dozen Gulpin, each eating the cereal and pokémon feed, an entire box at a time. Seeing this, May shivers and almost falls over, but Max helps stabilize her.
May: W-what are th-they?! Max–
Max: Got it…
Max pulls May’s pokédex out of her pocket and points it at the Gulpin.
May’s Pokédex: Gulpin, the stomach pokémon. Most of it’s body is comprised by it’s stomach, which contains enzymes to dissolve anything. When digesting this pokémon expels vile gasses from both it’s mouth and it’s rear.
May cringes as her pokédex displays this. Seconds later one of the Gulpin burps and May and Max cringe and back away.
May: Uh…
Max: …oh.
Continuing to back away, May and Max finally are hit with the full force of the stink, and turn to run. May is unable to run due to her crutches, and crashes to the ground instead. She yelps, but isn’t badly injured, and a Chansey quickly comes running to help her up.
Chansey: Chansey-chan?
May: Thank you, I’m ok.
Chansey: Chan-sey!
While May supports herself on a table, Chansey hands her her crutch.
Ash: What’s going on here?
Brock: Why is everyone so…
Chansey: Chansey–
Blissey: Blissey–
Chansey and Blissey stare at the food cupboard, with Blissey making a small effort to direct everyone else’s attention to it. Ash and company all stand behind the two pokémon, staring at the Gulpin devouring the pokémon center’s food.
Ash: Man, they’re really gulpin’ it down.
#Reference: Pokémon Episode of which this is a parody: "Gulpin it Down"
May: Did it just eat the entire bin of food?!
May starts to back away again, and almost falls over due to her crutch. Fortunately, Brock is able to stabilize her before she can fall.
Brock: Quick, everyone, guard our food!
Ash, Max: Right!
Ash and company hurry back to the room where they spend the night, and immediately start gathering their belongings. Max opens up Brock’s supplies to find that several Gulpin are already in the bag.
Max: They’re in our food!
Benjy pulls back the blanket on a lumpy lower bed to discover that the lumps are actually Gulpin
Benjy: They’re in the beds!
Ash stares at the Gulpin in the bed, absolutely horrified. A scream then echoes from the bathroom.
Ash, Benjy: May!
Cutscene() {
Ash bursts into the bathroom behind May who is staring at the toilet, absolutely horrified.
May: They’re in the toilet!
Max now appears behind Ash, his glasses reflecting light.
Max: At least now we know why their breath is so bad.
May backs away from the toilet nervously.
}
Ash and company stand in the room where they spent the night, trying to salvage their possessions.
♫Narrator: One morning our allies woke up in bed;♪
♫There were Gulpin on the floor and on their heads;♪
♫Gulpin on the walls and Gulpin in halls;♪
♫Gulpin here, Gulpin there–♪
♫Gulpin were (bleep)ing everywhere.♪
QST.camera zooms out as the song finishes to reveal that Gulpin are on both the ceiling and the walls. This includes a Gulpin that is climbing over another.
Brock: This is bad…
May: At least it can’t get any worse, right?
Max: Let’s not go there…
Benjy: Just where are they coming f–
Cutting Benjy off mid sentence is an alarm in the pokémon center, which starts blaring, and Ash and company cover their ears. Benjy jumps and almost trips over a Gulpin that looks almost as surprised as he is. Ash and company look around wildly in confusion for about five seconds until Nurse Joy comes on the speakerphone.
Nurse Joy: HELP! This is an emergency, we are currently being overrun by Gulpin. This is an emergency, we are currently being overrun by Gulpin.
Nurse Joy’s voice is softer than the alarm, but still very loud.
Nurse Joy: And now back to our normal alarm.
With this, the alarm goes back on, and Ash and company grab their things and run from the room into the hallway which is now swarming with Gulpin.
Max: How bad could it be?!
Benjy: WHAT DID YOU SAY?
Max: HOW BAD COULD IT BE?
All of a sudden, the grates pop open on the ceiling and Gulpin pour out throughout the Pokémon center as Ash and company attempt to make it to the door. As they make it into the main room of the pokémon center, the Gulpin become waist-high, and still pilling in through the ceiling.
May: HELP!
Officer Jenny: Hold on! Meganium, Tangela, vine whip!
Shooting through the mass of Gulpin, vines grab Ash and company by the torsos and yanks them through the four-foot-going-on-five-foot mass of Gulpin around them. As they are pulled out of the pokémon center, they land on the hard sidewalk. Brock helps May to her feet, and Ash helps Benjy to his.
While Brock waits no time in displaying his gratitude to Officer Jenny, Benjy stares back at the pokémon center where the Gulpin are swarming.
May: Benjy?
Benjy: Where did they come from…?
Ash: Beats me… Huh?
Ash turns his attention to Officer Jenny who is more than a little freaked out about Brock’s reaction to being saved.
Officer Jenny: I’m telling you! You have Nightingale Syndrome…
Brock: And are *you* the nightingale–
Brock is cut off as Benjy grabs Brock’s arm and hauls him away from Officer Jenny, while Ash, May, and Max just look at Officer Jenny nervously.
Ash: We probably should be going now…
Max: Um… Ash?
Ash turns to see where Max is looking, and sees that Benjy has stopped dragging Brock. Ahead of Benjy is a park, which is covered in Gulpin. (Literally 25% of the ground has a Gulpin on it, and the Gulpin are eating everything)
Brock now manages to remove his arm from Benjy’s grasp, but instead of returning to try and flirt with Officer Jenny, just stares at the park. Ash, May, and Max also come over to stare. As they watch this, a Gulpin falls out of a nearby tree onto May’s bandana, which she quickly removes, and then flips out at seeing the Gulpin. Ash and company now shiver as they come to the realization that Gulpin are everywhere.
Narrator: And the repel's effect wore off…
Ash: Hey Officer Jenny?
Officer Jenny doesn’t reply, and when Ash and company turn around to see why this is, they see Officer Jenny in the distance riding away as fast as she can on her motorcycle. May sighs seeing this, disappointed and a little worried.
Ash: What you you think we should do?
Max: I think we should assume that she’s going to go handle it…
Ash now turns to Benjy, who is staring in the direction that Officer Jenny sped off in.
Ash: Benjy?
Something sparkles in the sky in the distance over where Officer Jenny was headed. As Ash and Benjy watch, Satolite flies towards them.
Benjy: You find out anything?
Satolite: Coo…
Satolite zooms down and lands on Benjy’s arm, opening the computer monitor on it’s backside. On this, Satolite displays a rough map of Rustboro showing a simple animation of a group of four Gulpin going around and eating various plants thus leaving the city barren.
May: Let me get this straight. You’re saying that they group of Gulpin are moving around the city eating everything, and then moving on?
Satolite beeps.
Max: Was that a yes?
Now using it’s monitor, Satolite displays the image of a green check mark next to a chibi version of May.
Brock: So that means, in the park they’re going to…
Satolite displays a picture of a barren tree on it’s monitor. Suddenly a shriek is heard from somewhere down the up the street.
New Scene()
In a nearby bakery, a woman is standing, staring horrified at a Gulpin on the bakery counter. Said Gulpin has just eaten a loaf of bread that she was about to give to a customer (another woman), and said baker is the one that shrieked. Ash and company come running to the bakery as this occurs.
May: What’s wrong?
The baker and her customer stare at the Gulpin which continues to suck up the crumbs on the counter.
Ash: I got this one! Poké ball go!
Ash throws a poké ball, hitting the Gulpin. Both women let out a sigh of relief as the ball wiggles, and finally clicks. Ash removes the ball from the counter and adds it to his belt.
Baker: Thank you…
As the baker says this, more Gulpin emerge from the grates unnoticed by everyone.
Woman: But this is troubling. Where there is one Gulpin, there are usually–
Man: AH!
Everyone turns to look at an elderly man sitting at one of the tables enjoying his breakfast holding a newspaper. The man has just put the paper down to find that a Gulpin has eaten his breakfast. The man stares in shock at the Gulpin, which promptly eats his newspaper.
Woman: Another poké ball, if you wouldn’t mind…
Ash: Coming right–
Ash starts to throw the ball.
May: Ash, wait!
May doesn’t block Ash, but rather points out three other Gulpin that have emerged from the grates. The two women see this and back away.
Ash: You know what they say, "time to catch ‘em all!"
Ash starts to reach for more poké balls.
Max: They’re in the display too!
QST.camera now moves down to show that the Gulpin are gulping down all of the baker’s samples. As the baker looks down, she suddenly sees that the floor is covered in Gulpin and screams. Her scream appears to weaken the ceiling slightly, but enough such that piles of Gulpin start coming down. Ash and company flee the bakery with the other four patrons while the baker screams, still trapped behind the counter.
Benjy is the last to leave the building, and as he does, the Millennium Gameboy Advance starts to shine.
Yami Benjy: Bayleef, vine whip!
Bayleef emerges from his poké ball and looks at the woman that Yami Benjy is pointing to (telling him to "attack") curiously.
Yami Benjy: I need you to pull her to safety!
Now understanding, Bayleef extends his vines and grabs the woman by the shoulders and pulls her forwards, extracting her from the pile of Gulpin, and toppling the counter over in the process. The Gulpin are somewhat upset by this, and fire sludge bombs at Bayleef, who jumps out of the way dragging the baker with him. The sludge bombs still strike the baker, Bayleef, and Yami Benjy.
Ash: Hey, if that’s the way you want to play, Pikachu thunderbolt!
Some of the Gulpin now jump to body slam Pikachu as Pikachu launches thunderbolt. This causes thunderbolt to go in weird directions, striking many of the Gulpin, who come raining down on Pikachu. Ash gulps, and now works to extract Pikachu from the mound of Gulpin.
Pikachu: Pika… Chu…
Pikachu shakes as Ash extracts it, suffering from temporary paralysis. Several of the Gulpin nearest Pikachu are also noticeable paralyzed, most likely from Pikachu’s static ability.
Ash: Pikachu…!
Random_Guy_in_Lab_Coat: I know you’re concerned and all, but I think that Pikachu would be better off if you just used a paralysis heal.
Everyone now turns to face the scientist. The Gulpin, now left alone move in to devour everything in the bakery
Yami Benjy: Excuse me?
May: Who are you?
Brock: Why are you here?
Random_Guy_in_Lab_Coat: Some Officer Joy or someone who sounded important requested my presence. So here I am, Professor Piper at your service.
Max: Never heard of him. (Whisper to Ash)
Piper: …Except I have no idea of where this person hangs out. You wouldn’t happen to know where she is, would you kids.
Brock looks over Professor Piper nervously.
Brock: Wait, who did you say you are again?
Piper: I’m Pokémon Professor Piper, who are you?
Brock: I’m Brock, the former leader of the Pewter City pokémon gym.
Piper: Oh. I’m Professor Piper, nice to meet you, Brock of the pewter gym. What do you do, help them with physical fitness?
Max: Wait, does this guy really not know what a pokémon gym is. (Whisper to Ash)
Ash just observes Professor Piper in embarrassment.
Piper: Wait, what was I supposed to be doing again?
Brock: I think Officer Jenny called for you…
Piper: Is that a bakery? I’m awfully hungry…
Ash and company all stare at the Piper, confused. Piper asks the baker about food, and she explains to him that the Gulpin ate it all.
Piper: But you can’t have a bakery without food…
Suddenly footsteps are heard and everyone turns as Nurse Joy races up the street.
Nurse Joy: Professor Piper!
Piper: Huh?
Professor Piper looks around wildly in every direction except the one that Nurse Joy is running towards them from.
Nurse Joy: I’m over here!
Piper turns around.
Piper: Oh there you are. What did you call me about again?
Nurse Joy: The Gulpin! They’re everywhere!
Piper: Yes, there does seem to be an outbreak. What about it?
Nurse Joy: We need you to get rid of them! That’s your specialty!
Piper: No, you’re thinking of Professor Piper…
Nurse Joy: You’re Professor Piper!
Ash and company stand back eyeing Professor Piper.
Brock: Does this guys strike you as a little, uh, eccentric?
Ash: Not really. Just really really confused.
May: Yeah, he’s not like Professor Birch at all…
Yami Benjy: I’m sure it all can be explained by whatever was previously put in his piper.
QST.camera now reverts to Nurse Joy and Professor Piper.
Nurse Joy: Piper, we need to get to the police station ASAP.
Piper: Is something the matter, officer?
Brock: It’s okay, Professor, we just need your help with something…
Piper: Help?
Nurse Joy: Repelling the Gulpin…
Nurse Joy turns to Ash and company, pleading with her eyes.
New Scene()
QST.camera zooms onto the Rustboro Police Station, a small light-blue building, and then inside the building where Ash and company stand with Officer Jenny, Nurse Joy, Professor Piper, and a couple of other people. On one wall is a giant grid of the city which displays the Gulpin population density in each area of the city. Ash, May, and Max crowd around the board, but Officer Jenny shoos them away, wanting Piper to look at the board.
Professor Piper: That’s quite a mess of Gulpin, why would you want to attract more?
Officer Jenny: We don’t, we want to get rid of them!
Professor Piper: Then why did you attract them in the first place?
Officer Jenny is now about ready to (literally) tear out her hair.
Nurse Joy: Are you feeling okay, Professor?
Professor Piper: I’m better yes, thank you. Air travel always makes me sick to my stomach.
Officer Jenny: Now that your bout with amnesia is over, how do you suppose we get rid of them?
Professor Piper: I don’t know exactly, maybe you shouldn’t have built a city in the middle of their natural habitat.
Nurse Joy: You want us to move the city?!
Brock: I don’t think that’s what he was implying…
Yami Benjy: In theory, Celebi could take us back in time to when Rustboro was first founded. We could then warn the founder, have him or her choose a more optimal location, and thus avoid the problem entirely…
Benjy: That could have unforeseen consequences. How about not…
Professor Piper: I really don’t know what to do. I’ve never seen this many Gulpin before.
Max: Even the professor doesn’t know?
Professor Piper: But if you look carefully, you’ll observe a pattern.
May: A pattern?
Professor Piper: The Gulpin go wherever there is food.
Ash: We knew that…
Professor Piper: If you look at the grid…
Nurse Joy: Ah! They’re closing in on the bakery on North Elm Street!
Officer Jenny: On it!
Officer Jenny runs for her motorcycle (parked outside the building), and then takes off down the street. Ash and May nervously watch her go.
Nurse Joy: Um …Professor?
Professor Piper: They’re moving quickly… This gives me an idea. All pokémon love pokéblock. In fact, I’ve never seen a pokémon that doesn’t love pokéblock. Thus, I believe if we utilize pokéblock we can lure them out of the city.
Benjy: Just one problem with that idea…
Professor Piper: What would that be?
Benjy: Where are we going to get that much pokéblock?
Professor Piper: We are going to use one pokéblock.
Brock: Excuse me, but how is one pokéblock going to attract fifty thousand Gulpin?
Nurse Joy: I’m curious too, professor…
May: Max, I think this guy is a few tracks short of a railroad. (whisper to Max)
Professor Piper: An ordinary one would be insufficient. However, I have prepared my specialty.
Brock: Specialty?
Professor Piper: Professor Piper’s patented perfectly putrid pokéblock. Made exclusively from one-hundred-percent natural raw sewage. Now try saying that ten times fast.
Ash and company shutter, while Piper winks at Nurse Joy.
Professor Piper: Maybe it sounds nasty to you, but to a Gulpin, it’s a gourmet meal.
Ash: Do they really eat raw sewage?
Professor Piper: They live in the sewers for a reason.
Max: I’m going to be sick.
Brock is also starting to look green. May excuses herself and runs to the restroom.
Brock: And how will you do this?
Professor Piper: Allow me to demonstrate.
New Scene()
Outside the police station, May joins Ash and company with Nurse Joy and Professor Piper. Piper is holding the controls to a 3-foot-high missile that is stationed on a launchpad outside the building.
Professor Piper: Now children, observe.
Piper presses a button and the missile launches, emitting a nasty stench that nearly knocks out Ash and company, but soon lifts as the missile zooms off into the distance.
New Scene()
The missile zooms around the city, causing the Gulpin to stop what they are doing and follow it. The lower right corner of QST.screen now switches to inside the police station where Nurse Joy surprisedly admits that the missile idea is working. In the top left corner of the screen, the missile zooms by Officer Jenny, and the Gulpin following it cause her to loose control of her motorcycle and crash into a tree.
New Scene()
With the Gulpin following the missile, Professor Piper announces that the remote control’s range only works for a small radius, and that in order to get the Gulpin out of the city they will have to follow the missile from a safe distance.
Nurse Joy says that she’ll get the hazmat truck, but Professor Piper doesn’t wait and takes off down the road flying his missile like a toy rocket. While Piper does this, Ash and company pile into the hazmat truck after Nurse Joy, and she opens the door of the garage and drives out. (Note, the garage door closes after her)
Nurse Joy: May, how’s your foot feeling?
May: Um… Okay I guess. It’s a little bit tingly.
Nurse Joy: I want to have another look at it when this Gulpin mess is all over.
May: Um… Okay.
As Nurse Joy drives after the missile, they approach a bridge which Professor Piper is standing on the nearside of. On the other side of the bridge is forest.
May: Wow, he’s fast.
QST.camera now switches to Professor Piper.
Piper: Now off you go! (To his missile)
The missile now flies over the bridge towards the forest.
Nurse Joy: Hey Professor!
Piper: Ah, there you are…
Ash: There’s going to be one very happy Gulpin. (whisper)
Ash and company now turn to watch the missile fly off into the distance. All of a sudden, a giant mechanical hand grabs it. QST.camera split-screens showing everyone’s expressions of shock at this phenomenon.
Nurse Joy: Heavens to Murgatroyd…
Piper: What’s going on
A chuckle comes from overhead, and Ash and company look up to see a silhouettes of Team Rocket’s balloon
Jessie: Hey you down there! Prepare for trouble.
James: And make it double.
Piper: What the (bleep)?
Jessie: To protect the world from devastation.
James: To unite all peoples within our nation.
Jessie: To denounce the evils of truth and love.
James: To extend our reach to the stars above.
Jessie: Jessie!
James: James!
The silhouettes now gain color, revealing Jessie and James.
Jessie: Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!
James: Surrender now or prepare to fight!
Meowth pops up from between Jessie and James.
Meowth: Meowth, that’s right!
Team Rocket survey the shocked expression of Ash and company, and those with them.
James: What’s with all of the shock?
Meowth: You see, with a pokéblock this rare…
Jessie: It would be a horrible waste to use it on nasty little Gulpin.
The Gulpin meanwhile are amassing under Team Rocket’s balloon.
Jessie: We have a much better use for it.
Wobbuffet now emerges from it’s poké ball.
Wobbuffet: Wobbuffet!
Meowth: You’re LATE!
Wobbuffet: Wobbuffet…
Nurse Joy: How did Team Rocket find out about this?!
Professor Piper doesn’t respond, but wears an extremely worried expression.
Brock: They must have been spying on us…
Yami Benjy: But they missed one critical detail…
May: You guys realize that pokéblock is made of raw sewage, right?
May’s comment comes off on deaf ears for several seconds while both groups stare at each other. (In James’s next comment, quotes are used to show where James does air quotes as he talks–he does a lot of them)
James: Of "course" it’s "made" of "raw sewage."
Jessie: You really think that this many Gulpin could be fooled that easily?
Meowth: Uh… Maybe they can't… Look below…
Beneath Team Rocket’s balloon, the Gulpin are amassing.
Meowth: Quick! Get down!
James: They really think we’re going to feed them…
Jessie: James, uh…
Meowth: They’re going to attack!
Team Rocket dives down into the basket of their balloon as the Gulpin all fire sludge bombs. The sludge bombs strike Team Rocket’s balloon and look like they’re going to pop it, but the sludge bombs don’t, and just manage to coat it in sludge, which slowly drips down back onto the Gulpin.
Ash and company stare at this in disbelief.
Brock: How did it survive that?! (horrified)
James replies while hiding at the bottom of the balloon.
James: Hehe… Our balloon is bomb-proof!
Benjy: How is that even possible…?
Meowth: Over the last couple episodes, we’ve been researching things called "bloons."
Max: "Bloons"?
James: Natural, sentient, balloons. The black ones appear to be immune to explosives.
Meowth: So we identified the chemical composition of their skin, and made out new balloon out of it!
The mass of Gulpin look nervously at Team Rocket’s balloon.
Ash: We’re still getting that pokéblock back! Pikachu–
Pikachu: Pika!
Benjy suddenly holds out his hand to cut Ash off.
Benjy: Wait, Ash. (whisper)
Ash: Why? (whisper)
Benjy: The Gulpin are going to follow the pokéblock. If Team Rocket leaves with it, the Gulpin will follow them and we’ll be rid of them. (whisper)
Ash: Hey, that’s true… (whisper)
James: What’s the matter, afraid of harming your treat?
Jessie: Now lets see, which of our pokémon would benefit most from this.
Narrator: No there’s a hole with no bottom…
The Gulpin stare at Team Rocket angrily, and Meowth taunts them. However he is forced to retreat to the safety of their balloon’s basket when the Gulpin all fire sludge bombs at him.
May: They’re going to eat it in front of them?!
James: Of course, Team Rocket has absolutely no shame.
Brock: Seriously, wouldn’t it be safer to take it somewhere else?
Team Rocket ignores Brock
Benjy: Ash? (whisper)
Ash nods, trying to contain his laughter and nervousness.
Ash: Pikachu, thunderbolt!
Pikachu’s thunderbolt arcs towards Team Rocket’s balloon, but does nothing to it.
Ash: What… What?! Why?!
Piper: The Gulpin's sludge has created a protective layer on their balloon thing. In other words, they must’ve known you were going to try that attack.
May says it’s her turn, and starts to call on Beautifly, but Professor Piper says that he’ll handle Team Rocket. Team Rocket view this with amusement as Piper walks forwards through the mess of Gulpin to the point where he is standing directly under the basket of the balloon. Team Rocket mock him, and declare that it’s time to eat the pokéblock, and start to retract the mechanical arm, despite the missile’s struggle to escape. QST.camera briefly split-screens as Ash and company watch nervously.
Piper though remains serene and pulls out his pipe, and starts puffing large pink clouds of smoke, which greatly confuses Ash and company. As Professor Piper puffs his pipe, the struggle of Team Rocket to retract the mechanical arm intensifies, with the missile fighting to break free. Ash starts to call on Corphish, but Nurse Joy tells him to leave it to Professor Piper, and Ash hesitantly follows her instructions.
Back at Team Rocket’s balloon, Team Rocket is still fighting to retract the mechanical arm, and is slowly succeeding, but at the same time, their eyes are all starting to get red. Team Rocket notices this about each-other, wondering what Piper’s got in his pipe. Meowth suggests that they steal it too.
Team Rocket is quickly becoming disoriented, and they start to lose control and collapse in a heap. As a result, their balloon starts to drift away, which is seen by Ash and company.
Ash: What’s going on…?
Narrator: I think our friend Coal could explain it easily…
Team Rocket: Looks like Team Rocket’s drifting away… (relaxed)
QST.camera now switches to Team Rocket in their balloon, all sitting, leaning up against each other with very red eyes. As the balloon drifts away over the water, QST.camera switches back and their balloon releases the missile of Professor Piper’s.
May: He did it!
Brock: And without even firing a shot…
Officer Jenny: And now to get our rocket back on course…
Officer Jenny reaches down and picks up the controls for the missile, having the missile start to make a loop over the water with the intention of sending it off into the forest. However, midway over the water, the missile suddenly runs out of fuel and plummets towards the water. QST.camera split-screens on everyone as everyone gasps.
Refresh Scene()
Everyone stares at the missile (including Professor Piper) as it plummets towards the water. Seconds later, the missile hits the waves, breaking apart with a loud *crack*, then sinking into the water.
Max: Aww man…
As the missile sinks, the sea begins to look more and more polluted. The smell now hits strikes Ash and company and they all cringe, holding their noses and trying not to vomit. Professor Piper now starts heading back over towards everyone else.
Narrator: Wimps…
Professor Piper: Actually, those children seem to interact quite strongly with their environment…
Officer Jenny: Did you say something?
Professor Piper: Just talking to the voices.
#Author_Note: WIMPs = Weakly Interacting Massive Particles (i.e. Dark Matter)
As Ash and company look out over the water, dead Magikarp and dead Tentacool float to the surface of the water. May cringes.
May: Are they all… D-dead?
Officer Jenny: It would certainly appear that way.
Fumes from the water now rise to where Wingull are circling in the sky. The Wingull fall into the water, dead after being struck by the toxic fumes.
Brock: Uh…um…
Narrator: Fish need to swim and birds need to fly, but they don’t last long if they try.
#Tom_Lehrer_Reference: "Pollution"
Nurse Joy: What have you done?!
As the toxic water becomes more toxic, it starts to corrode the bridge’s supports. Ash and company gasp.
Professor Piper: It appears that we have created a mess that rivals the famed Lake Springfield in it’s toxicity. I’m making a note here, huge success…
#Simpson's Reference: Simpson's movie; Portal_Reference: "Still Alive"
Officer Jenny: Would you mind if I hurt you?! (angry)
Professor Piper backs away from Officer Jenny, nervously.
Officer Jenny: Please. Understand that I need to… (angry)
#Reference: "What Have You Done" by Within Temptation
And without further ado, Officer Jenny slaps Professor Piper hard enough to make him drop his pipe.
Ash: Hold on, isn’t Tentacool a poison-type?
Brock: Yeah, but I guess that doesn’t mean it’s a sewage-type. May, could you use your pokédex on one of those Magikarp?
May nods and takes out her pokédex, pointing it at one of the dead Magikarp.
May’s Pokédex: Magikarp, the fish pokémon. Magikarp is an extraordinarily weak pokémon that can only flop and splash around. However, it can survive in any body of water, no matter how polluted.
Max: No matter how polluted…
May: What the zark did you do?!
Benjy: Um, guys…
May: Something the matter?
Benjy nods, and gestures to all of the Gulpin, which are now oozing towards the water’s edge.
Nurse Joy: They’re coming right for us!
Brock: Quick! This way!
Brock grasps Nurse Joy’s hand and attempts to outrun the Gulpin. The rest of Ash and company take off after him (and Officer Jenny too) by running along the shoreline. As they run, Brock lets go of Nurse Joy’s hand. However, after about fifty yards the group realizes that they are surrounded by an enormous field of Gulpin all coming towards them. Nurse Joy screams, and Brock tries to comfort her, but she just screams louder.
Benjy: We left Piper behind!
Brock: Who cares about him!
May also starts screaming as the horde of Gulpin approaches their feet, and Benjy promptly plugs his ears. The Gulpin now have reached their feet, and rapidly stream right by them towards the water’s edge. As soon as May and Nurse Joy realize this, they calm down a bit, allowing Benjy to unplug his ears. The group all turns around to watch as the Gulpin ooze one after another towards the toxic water. The Gulpin don’t stop at the water’s edge, and fall, one line after another, into the water.
Everyone backs up slowly trying not to get caught in the undertow as the Gulpin all push into the water, with a series of plops.
Ash: You think that was his plan all along?
Officer Jenny shutters at the thought. Nurse Joy takes a long look at Professor Piper, peacefully smoking his pipe.
Nurse Joy: I sure hope not.
Yami Benjy: I think it was. If you remember the story of the Pied Piper, he led all the rats into the sea with music. Our Professor Piper led all of the Gulpin into the sea with sewage.
Benjy: …Completely destroying the ecosystem…
By now, the last of the Gulpin have fallen into the disgusting water.
Benjy: I think we’re giving this Piper guy too much credit…
New Scene(@Temporal = Late_Afternoon)
In the police station, Benjy sits at a desk with Officer Jenny, working on some kind of calculation, while Officer Jenny types something up on the computer. Professor Piper stares out the window absentmindedly, smoking his pipe.
Officer Jenny: You sure those numbers are right?
Benjy: I’ll check them again if you want…
Officer Jenny: It’s fine. I just can’t believe it…
Suddenly, the video-screen next to Piper buzzes to life, with Nurse Joy from the Pokémon center on the monitor.
Nurse Joy: Officer!
Nurse Joy and Benjy both turn to face the screen. Ash now appears behind Nurse Joy on the monitor.
Officer Jenny: Is something wrong?
Ash: Yeah, the sewers are all backed up!
Nurse Joy turns to Ash in shock.
Nurse Joy: Say what?!
Officer Jenny: Joy, what was your original news?
Nurse Joy: Our instruments have detected something massive in the harbor!
Officer Jenny: In that cesspool?! Something is alive?!
Nurse Joy nods.
Benjy: Ash, the sewers are all backed up?
Ash nods.
Benjy: Let me check that.
Officer Jenny makes no motion to stop Benjy as he runs from the room.
Officer Jenny: I’ll send Deputy Matt to meet you at the center. I’ve got to deal with this report right now, so the idiots in congress don’t vote to do something stupid.
Nurse Joy: Understood.
New Scene(@Spacial = Pokémon_Center)
May sits on the couch-bench where Blissey inspects her foot.
May: So Deputy Matt is coming here?
Nurse Joy: No, he’s going to meet me at the Utility Facilitation Center in the north part of town. Ash, Brock, I’m going to need your help.
Ash: Um… ok…
Brock now zips between Ash and Nurse Joy.
Brock: All you need to do is ask, princess. Your wish is my command–ah!
Brock yelps as Max grabs his ear.
Nurse Joy: I’m going to need you to stay here and take care of any injured pokémon that arrive. Also, check on your friend periodically *Nurse Joy gestures to May* to make sure her foot is properly healing.
Ash: And what do I do?
Nurse Joy: When we get there, I’m going to need you to keep a close eye on the east terminal. It’s very important, the situation could change at a moment’s notice.
Brock stares at Ash in disbelief, while Ash nods.
New Scene()
As the sun sets, Benjy runs across Rustboro carrying a beige folder of paperwork with Satolite flying not far behind, easily keeping pace with him. Benjy rushes through a street where all of the shops all have illuminated signs, and a number of people are milling around out in front. Benjy agilely moves between people, overhearing various snippets of conversation, such as people discussing the Gulpin problem and the toxic mess in the bay. Someone random claims that Professor Piper is a quack.
Benjy: I can run farther here than I could back home. I wonder if there’s less gravity…
New Scene()
Benjy approaches a large building with a burnt-out neon sign on the front, just as Nurse Joy is about to let herself and Ash into the building.
Ash: Hey, Benjy… What have you got there?
Benjy: This…
Panting, Benjy presents the file folder to Nurse Joy who takes it, then opens the door to the building, letting the three of them inside.
Inside the building, Nurse Joy points Ash to the east terminal, instructing him on how to use the intercom (hold down the yellow button and talk into the speaker); she then asks Benjy if he "got that." Benjy replies that he did. Before Ash and Benjy leave to go to other terminals, Nurse Joy powers on the main screen to discover (after a half-second of loading) that the water level in the sewers is higher than it should be, and many yellow leaves are moving through the water.
Nurse Joy: What are those.
Benjy: Looks like Gulpin to me…
Nurse Joy: But why?
Benjy: Probably finished what’s in the bay and gone to look for more…
Nurse Joy: Um… Then check the upper terminal, it keeps tabs on the water level.
Benjy nods, and heads off in the direction that Nurse Joy points him in. (His left from entering the building, the opposite direction as Ash)
New Scene()
Benjy emerges from the staircase at a terminal monitoring the bay conditions. Benjy bends down and starts to read the data, commenting on how warm the bay is. Satolite lands on the equipment and starts sniffing around. The intercom turns on and Nurse Joy asks both Benjy and Ash if they found what they were looking for, and Benjy pushes the yellow button, confirming he has reached the point after Ash does.
<All communication via intercom>
Nurse Joy: See anything unusual?
Ash: The entire section is flooded…
Benjy: Are there yellow leaves?
Ash: The water’s too deep and murky to tell.
Nurse Joy: Hold on, I’m going to flush them out.
Benjy: Wait! First we need to find out what’s causing the clog!
Nurse Joy: What do you mean?
Benjy: We’ll cause the sewer to rupture!
Nurse Joy: You might be right; I’m no physicist. Ash quickly, can you see were the clog is?
Ash: No, how do I–
Nurse Joy: Hold control and press the arrow keys to change frame.
Ash: Okay…
–Five second pause–
Nurse Joy: Find it?
Ash: Not yet; still searching…
Benjy taps his fingers on the machine nervously.
Ash: Found it!
Nurse Joy: What’s the sector number? It should be displayed at the top–
Ash: A6–
Nurse Joy: Got it! I’ll shut the appropriate flush gates and…
Ash: The walls are covered in Gulpin!
Nurse Joy: We’re going to flush them back out. Benjy, you should see the pressure suddenly spike.
Benjy: Got it.
Nurse Joy: Here we go–
Benjy watches the pressure gage, and after about ten seconds it starts to increase, then suddenly skyrockets.
Benjy: Was that supposed to happen?
Yami Benjy: Probably not…
Benjy looks up at the top of the console, and sees several red lights flashing.
Benjy: We’ve got a problem! (urgent)
Nurse Joy: What kind of problem?! (urgent)
Benjy: Pressure’s in the red! All lights are flashing red! (urgent)
Nurse Joy: Stand by, I’m going to try to flush it again! (urgent)
Without warning, the Millennium Gameboy Advance emits a bolt of light.
Yami Benjy: NO! DON’T! (urgent)
</All communication via intercom>
Yami Benjy’s attention is suddenly caught by a siren that goes off in the room.
Yami Benjy: DO YOU HEAR ME NURSE JOY?! DON’T FLUSH THE P–
As Yami Benjy dashes over to the alarm, a small earthquake knocks him off his feet, to the point where Yami Benjy goes crashing onto all fours.
Yami Benjy: She did it, didn’t she…
Benjy: She did…
…///To Be Continued///…
© March 8, 2014 to December 1, 2015 by Benjy Strauss