New Scene(Previously_on_Trigamon) { … }
Ash, Brock, Aiko, and Pachira escort Black✭Star and Tsubaki from the house into the front "yard" where three Officer Jennies are waiting. Black✭Star and Tsubaki’s hands are bound by string shot. Yami Benjy also joins the group from Yuuma’s treehouse.
Officer Jenny1: I’m sorry kids, we couldn’t find a snowmobile.
Narrator: Why are they looking for a snowmobile again? Oh, right, to test if she’s a witch.
Officer Jenny2: Are these the assassins?
Brock: M-hm.
Pachira: You know, we could have used your help actually catching these guys, instead of looking for a…
Pachira trails off as Officer Jenny2 cuts the string shot on Black✭Star and Tsubaki’s hands, which appears to make Ash nervous.
Officer Jenny1: Well you did okay without us it seems.
Officer Jenny3: So what brings you here? (stern)
Tsubaki says nothing in response, but removes a badge from her wallet and hands it to Officer Jenny3.
Officer Jenny3: So they’re DWMA students.
Officer Jenny2: Explains why their after the witch…
Ash: Except when we checked the DWMA website, she wasn’t listed…
Officer Jenny1 strokes her chin thoughtfully
New Scene()
In Yuuma’s room, Ciri leans against Yuuma’s bed as Yuuma continues to read her manga. But unlike Yuuma, Ciri seems ready to bolt at a moment’s notice in spite of her injury. Zumi also waits right below the windowsill, wiggling her ears trying to pick up all sound coming from the people below
Revert Scene()
Officer Jenny1: This stinks. Of course she isn’t on their list. They’re a group of Gielinorian refugees.
Ash: Say what?
Aiko breathes a breath of relief, while Tsubaki squirms.
Officer Jenny2: Jenny, contact the DWMA. If this is what it looks like it’s highly illegal.
Black✭Star: And that would be?
Officer Jenny1: Orchestrating an attack on a Fenyran pseudo-citizen.
Black✭Star: Tsubaki, smoke–
Officer Jenny1: You’re NOT in trouble!
Black✭Star and Tsubaki both stare at Officer Jenny1 while Ash, Brock et cetera back away nervously.
Officer Jenny2: Either there was a nasty mix-up somewhere or something illegal was done at a higher level than you.
Officer Jenny3: I’ve got them on the line now.
Phone: You have reached the DWMA service desk, how… (faintly)
Officer Jenny2: Enter the override code.
Officer Jenny3: Roger.
Officer Jenny2: For the last time! My name is Jenny!
Ash, Brock, Aiko, Pachira, and Yami Benjy now back close together closer to the tree. Yami Benjy look just about ready to activate blade gloves. Despite everything, Officer Jenny1 is still keeping a close eye on Black✭Star and Tsubaki, presumably to ensure they don’t pull anything funny. After about fifteen seconds, Officer Jenny3 hands the phone to Officer Jenny2.
Officer Jenny3: Crafty reaper.
Officer Jenny2: Hello?
New @Screen Format( Double-screen, Diagonal-split )
In the upper left-hand hand corner is displayed the three Officer Jennies with Black✭Star and Tsubaki, while in the lower right-hand corner is displayed the Grim Reaper (@QST.get: "Soul Eater") at his desk on the phone.
Grim Reaper: Hello, what seems to be the matter?
Officer Jenny2: Two of your "students," reaper.
(Officer Jenny2’s voice changes when she says the word "students.")
Grim Reaper: Oh dear, what have they gotten themselves into this time. And would you mind telling me who it is? That might help straighten things out.
Officer Jenny2: One thing at a time, please.
Grim Reaper: Oh very well.
Officer Jenny2: We’ve intercepted an assassin targeting a Gielinorian refugee, whom he claims is a witch.
Grim Reaper: Say what? Where are you?
Officer Jenny2: I’m calling from Selviña, Hoenn region.
Grim Reaper: And have you been able to perform the Snowmobile test?
Officer Jenny2: I’m in Hoenn…
Grim Reaper: Yes, but… Let’s see, Hoenn…
The Grim Reaper pulls out an atlas and flips through it
Grim Reaper: I’ll take that as a no.
Officer Jenny2: Correct.
Grim Reaper: I don’t recall sending anyone to Selviña. Please give me a minute.
The Grim Reaper gets up and leaves his desk, leaving the phone off it’s hook. On the other end, Officer Jenny2 hands the phone to Officer Jenny1. After a few seconds, the Grim Reaper comes back.
Grim Reaper: So it turns out we did send someone to Selviña, but the mission is highly classified, so I can’t really disclose any details.
Officer Jenny1: So classified that you can’t release information to the local authorities?
Grim Reaper: Well…
New Scene()
Ash and company, along with the four girls sit and stand around a large table as Brock helps Aiko make something to eat. (Benjy is standing); it’s now late afternoon. After a few seconds, someone knocks at the door. Benjy darts through the room to open it, and in doing so *almost* trips. Despite this, Benjy opens the door, allowing Officer Jenny into the room. Black✭Star and Tsubaki aren’t anywhere to be seen.
Officer Jenny: Sorry about the wait.
Brock: Don’t worry about it–
Aiko: What’s going on?
Officer Jenny: It’s a long story, but to put it in a nutshell they had bad intel.
May: Bad info?
Officer Jenny: The DWMA serves as an anti-terror organization. They try and track down, and kill, evil spellcasters. These range from certain witches to corrupt Mahserrat to a large array of evil-doers.
Liru: They kill them?!
Officer Jenny: DW stands for "Death-Weapon," so yes they do. Unfortunately, this time they’re intelligence gathering was unbelievably bad.
May: And that means?
Officer Jenny: I should probably close the door.
Aiko nods, and Officer Jenny enters the room and closes the door behind her.
Officer Jenny: It’s just something I would never expect from the DWMA.
Max: What do you mean?
Officer Jenny: Well, part of it was that their assassin didn’t completely read the job request.
Ash: Did you just say?
Officer Jenny: Yuuma was supposed to be brought back to be interrogated, not killed outright, but that’s a minor point at this point. Their "assassin" was sent out in response to a report filed by a visiting representative about a specific incident of which I couldn’t get the specifics, except that it had something to do with anima. They automatically assumed that a witch was involved.
Max: Anima?
May: Wait, what about anima?
Yuuma: What’s anima?
Officer Jenny: It’s a term used for living things by research magi.
Benjy: They didn’t say…
Officer Jenny: It took a fair bit of prying to get them to expose anything. But I don’t think they have a good idea of what happened, themselves. A colleague of mine is putting in an override proposal to get that report, but until that goes through were in the dark.
Pachira: But it was something that only a witch was capable of?
Officer Jenny: The DWMA’s default logic is that everything is the result of terrorist witches. Given what they deal with, their right about 80 percent of the time. However, there is cause for additional concern. Since they’re Gielinorian refugees, this might be politically motivated, which is highly illegal.
Benjy: So…
Officer Jenny: It’s beyond our level of police work. Our supervisor will make sure that they remain safe.
Ciri stares at her hands, fidgeting.
Ciri: Anima…
Officer Jenny: Good job taking down that assassin by the way.
Officer Jenny chuckles.
Officer Jenny: But this doesn’t look like your aunt’s work.
Ciri: Didn’t even occur to me…
Ciri looks surprised as she ponders the possibility.
Brock: Her aunt?
Officer Jenny: Typical mad scientist. Not a biologist though. Not the kind of person who’d go messing with anima.
May: But do you think it could be a witch? Another witch?
Officer Jenny: It’s way to soon to make that call. It’s possible, but it would be extremely abnormal. Given that we don’t have any other data, so it’s unlikely there’s anything going on. It was probably just an excuse to send the DWMA out, really. But the provincial police will handle it. They’re on par with the DWMA agents, in case things go downhill.
Ash: Is that likely?
Officer Jenny: No, but it happens every few years. I really shouldn’t give out the specifics though.
Refresh Scene(@Temporal = Evening)
Ash and company, along with the four main characters from Magical Pokan, are now gathered around the table. Ash, Benjy, and Aiko are peering over an atlas while Brock aids in the kitchen to make dinner. Liru has taken it upon herself to help feed the pokémon.
Ash: So they’re all the way over here?
Benjy: Yeah, it looks like Death City is right on the border of Orre and Vena.
Max: You mean Syña and Vena.
Aiko: I heard it was pronounced Symya.
Ash: No, it’s part of Orre. That dotted line means it’s a sub-region. I think it was annexed during the godwars.
Pikachu jumps up onto the table by way of Ash’s back, and something starts sizzling violently in the kitchen.
Benjy: Whatever. On a world-wide scale we’re still right in their backyard.
Max: Kind of odd though that the regions don’t get along too well.
Ash: You know what they say. The legendary blue fairy was supposed to have come here from the east to escape her pursuers.
Max: What are you trying to say?
Aiko: Blue fairy?
Ash: It’s a story that my second-grade teacher told me. A legendary spellcaster known as the "Blue Fairy" came from the east. I don’t know–
Ash is cut off as a girl shrieking is heard from the kitchen and grease is heard spattering and burning. Benjy jumps up to go assist, and runs to the kitchen door. As he does, Zumi quickly runs up his back, and jumping over his shoulder coats the kitchen in ice with an ice beam, instantly putting out the small grease fire. Zumi then goes over to help Pachira unstick herself from the ice, while Benjy carefully treads across the ice to assist Brock with getting free of it.
Benjy: Something catch fire?
Brock: Yeah, I'm not used to these Gielinorian recipes.
Pachira now starts to cry.
Brock: And judging by her ability, she's not either (whisper)
Aiko now enters the room, and offers to take over, cracking the ice on the ground that she walks on.
Benjy: Yeah. Brock, Pachira is it?
Pachira nods.
Benjy: Takes me a while to learn names. You guys should go get cleaned up.
May enters the kitchen behind Benjy.
May: Benjy, can you cook?
Benjy: I can make sure things don't explode...
Aiko has now started to get to work, and May goes to assist her while Benjy works to clean up the ice. Benjy's actions make Zumi a bit worried, but Aiko comforts her as she walks back across the kitchen, crushing the ice beneath her feet, assuring the Azumarill that she did the right thing. Benjy now has cleared the ice away from the counter, and is able to start sponging up the grease. Absorbed by his task, Benjy is unaware as May flinches, watching Aiko nonchalantly reach her hand into boiling water.
Refresh Scene(@Temporal = Evening)
Aiko and May now bring dinner out of the kitchen while Benjy is seen cleaning behind them. Seeing this, Ash and Liru quickly put the maps away. As the group starts eating, Ash notices that Ciri is absent from the table.
Ash: Hey, where did Ciri go?
Pachira and Yuuma both look up at Ash’s comment.
Brock: Not sure.
Zumi now jumps off of the table, her ears perking up as she does so, and lands with a thud on the floor.
Brock: Ash, can you check Yuuma’s room, I’ll check the basement–
Zumi: Azu!
Max: And you’ll check… okay.
Zumi: Azu!
Zumi nods, and darts off.
Max: Brock, we’ve got this.
Liru: It’s not like Ciri to pass up free food…
Yuuma: It’s not like you to pass up free food you nut.
Ash: Okay.
The sound of something slipping comes from the kitchen and Benjy mutters something incomprehensible under his breath as Ash exits the room with Pikachu at his heels.
New Scene()
Ash tiptoes up towards Yuuma’s room and peers in the window. Ciri is sitting on the floor, slightly hunched over in the moonlight staring at a pad of paper, but due to the lack of lighting it’s impossible to make out what’s on it from where Ash is standing. Ciri’s arm is still bandaged.
Pikachu: Pika chu…
Ash: I’ll bet not getting into junior high hurts a lot more than she lets on.
Ash swallows, then walks over to Yuuma’s door and tries to open it, knocking twice when he discovers that it’s locked. Ciri doesn’t seem to notice, and Ash recoils slightly, then knocks again. After the first knock, the handle turns and the door opens, leaving Ash staring face-to-face with Ciri’s Flygon. Ash almost falls off the porch in surprise, but manages to catch himself as Ciri’s Flygon welcomes him inside.
Ash: Thank you.
Flygon bows slightly.
Ash: Hey Ciri… (softly)
Ciri fails to respond.
Ash: Ciri–
Ciri looks up.
Ash: You feeling alright?
Ciri looks down at her arm, before looking back at Ash and responding.
Ciri: Hold on.
Ciri turns back to looking at her notebook, prompting Ash to turn on the light, now closing the door after him. Ciri shields her eyes with her uninjured arm.
Ash: Uh… Sorry–
Ciri: No, I needed that.
Flygon: Gongon…
Ash turns to stare at Flygon, which is slightly bewildered by the light. Ash apologizes to Flygon, which shakes it off pretty quickly and climbs up onto Yuuma’s bed and curls up. Now taking interest in what’s Ciri’s working on, Ash asks her about it, peering down at her notebook:
Ash: What are you doing?
Ciri: I know something you don’t.
On Ciri’s notebook, she has two large areas circles, and the circles marked with labels "Anima incident" and "Mew Aqua" Each circle has an arrow to the other, each marked with with a capital letter. Below, Ciri has a pair of equations written:
f( X | Y ) = k1 f(P)
f( Y | X ) = k2 f(Q)
Ciri: I’m trying to determine…
Ash: What’s Mew Aqua?
Ciri: Something…
Ciri now leans back agains the wall, and looks up at Ash.
Ciri: I don’t actually know what it is. That’s part of the problem. But given the context in which I heard about it–
Ash: What was that?
Ciri: I heard about it from a friend from school. She got a part time job where they’re looking for it.
Ash: But what does that have to do with–
Ciri: It’s how they know if they found it that leads me to think it has something to do with anima. They are supposed to sense it somehow.
Ciri: Which was something she obviously didn’t mean to say…
Ash: Sense it?
Ciri: Which means it’s extremely likely that it’s connected to anima. And determining the connection is what this equation is. X and Y are what are called random variables.
Ash: Um?
Question marks appear briefly around Ash’s head and Pikachu’s head.
Ciri: Both of these events are somewhat unusual. What the two equations are for: if these two things are connected. All I can guess is the probabilities for right now.
Ash: But they both happened, so doesn’t that mean…
Ciri: I want to know the probability that since one happened…
Ash: But they both did happen…
Ciri: But if they didn’t…
Ash: ?
Ciri: It’s on the tip of my tongue… The conditional probability! I want to know the chance that given one, the other had to have happened.
Ash: But they both did happen! Therefore–
Ciri: But they might be independent events! We don’t know that!
Ash: But clearly they aren’t!
Ciri: But they might be!
Flygon wags its tail on the bed eagerly.
Ash: Come downstairs and I’ll show you!
Revert Scene()
Benjy has now finished cleaning the kitchen from the ice-and-grease mess, and Aiko looks around, much relieved at the way it works. Benjy looks down at his hands and wipes the excess water on his shirt.
Pachira: Benjy, come join us!
Max: Yeah, before wolf-girl finishes it all!
Benjy nods and walks towards the dining room. As he enters the dining area, Ash opens the door with Ciri behind him.
Zumi: Azu!
Zumi rushes towards Ciri, and has to visibly resist the urge to jump into Ciri’s arm, after seeing the bandage on her(Ciri’s) arm.
Ash: Hey everyone! Ciri’s made a discovery!
Max: A discovery?
Benjy: Hm?
Brock: What kind of discovery?
Ash: Ciri, tell them!
A pause causes Ash to look back at Ciri, whom is visibly nervous, standing behind Ash. Pikachu taps Ash on the shoulder with it’s tail.
Ash: Ciri?
Ciri: Um…
Brock: Hm?
Ciri: Um…
Pachira: ?
Ciri looks hopefully at Ash, then sighs.
Ciri: He thinks I–
Ciri looks around the room and gulps.
Max: Come on Ciri, sit down.
Ciri nods and walks over to the table, where she takes another deep breath.
Brock: So what did you find out?
Ciri now places her notebook on the table, where she stares at it for a brief second.
Ciri: You guys know anything about Mew Aqua?
Ash and company look at each other in hopes of some kind of answer.
Max: I don’t know, what is it?
Ciri: I don’t know. But Jenny said something was wrong with the anima.
Brock: But Officer Jenny thought it was just an excuse though…
Benjy: I think it would be easier to overreact to something minor than to make something up.
Pachira: But if you don’t know anything about it, then why even bring it up?
Liru: Yeah…
Aiko: Ciri, I’m listening.
Brock: Where’d you hear about it?
Ciri: A friend from school.
Ciri shudders slightly.
Ciri: She landed a part time job where she’s supposed to look for it.
Pachira: But how do you know it has anything to do with anima?
Ciri: Because of how she said it. She was supposed to sense it with her body somehow… Sounds like anima right?
Brock: And you think that’s what they were sent on a mission about?
Benjy: There’s no way to know.
Benjy looks around the room, and Ciri nods her head in agreement.
May: Was that why you were all the way up north?
Ciri: M-hm. I was checking the fire swamp. Couldn’t find anything that fit the description.
May: And that was?
Ciri: Just something that made your body react. I don’t technically know if it’s even related to anima, but it–
Aiko: It almost certainly is.
Ash and company turn towards Aiko.
Aiko: Sounds exactly like anima. Somehow the DWMA got wind of it, so they sent out someone to take out a witch, which is all they really know how to do–
Pachira: But what is it?
Benjy: We don’t know.
Pachira: Then why worry about it?
Benjy: Because what you don’t know *can* hurt you. And it’ll be hard gathering data on just a name.
Pachira: So don’t worry about it! Leave it to the authorities…
Ash: You’re from Gielinor, right? Then you should know just how bad the authorities are with things that are out of the ordinary.
Liru: Sheesh.
Yuuma: Could be dangerous though, right?
Benjy: Maybe, maybe not. If they asked a kid to look for it.
Refresh Scene()
Yuuma is sitting by the fire in the living room reading her manga while Max is playing with (stroking) a small yellow puppy on the floor. Azumarill is sleeping on some magazines on the coffee table while other pokémon are spread out by the fire. In the dining room, Benjy, Ash, May, Ciri, and Aiko sit around the dining table pouring over maps and diagrams. Ciri’s pokégear is sitting on the table, opened, as is Ash’s pokédex.
Benjy scribbles out a diagram in his notebook and then turns the page and starts copying down more data.
Ash: It’s the blind leading the blind…
Benjy: Except blind people can feel their way around. We’ve got next to nothing.
May: And the pokédex won’t tell us anything about Mew…
Ash: It’s never done that before though…
Benjy picks up the pokédex and looks at it.
May: Maybe it’s some kind of protection from bad guys.
Benjy: Possibly…
Ash: Or maybe they don’t know much about it…
Ciri: We know tonnes about Mew
Benjy: I’m going to try something. Just a guess, but I’m going to try Celebi’s number?
Ash: Why Celebi?
Benjy: It’s very similar to mew. Lets see if there are similar protections.
May: You know Celebi’s number?
Benjy: It’s 251.
With this, Benjy presses (search)-(2)-(5)-(1)-(go) on the pokédex and, stares at it while the pokédex searches. After a few seconds though, it comes up with "pokémon has not been discovered."
Aiko: Looks like you’re right, May. But why…
Benjy: And now when I call on Celebi…
Benjy removes Celebi’s ball from pocket and places it on the table, then presses the button to call it. Celebi emerges in a flash of light looking around curiously.
Celebi: Cele?
Benjy briefly explains what’s going on to Celebi, who flies over to the pokédex, and Benjy has to ask it to back up a bit. Pointing Ash’s pokédex at Celebi, the pokédex gives a description of Celebi.
Benjy: And now when I press that again…
Celebi snatches the pokédex out of Benjy’s hands, staring at it curiously.
Benjy: Celebi, can you push search, then two, five, one, go?
Celebi stares at the pokédex.
May: I don’t think it knows which button is which…
Benjy: The one on the bottom with six characters.
Celebi lands the pokédex on the table, and then hits the buttons in order, with Benjy having to point out the "go" button as well. Celebi jumps back as Ash’s pokédex goes into a search, but eventually comes up with the same result.
Ciri: Are you sure Celebi is number 251?
Benjy: Yup.
Ash: And Celebi was the one to push the buttons too…
Aiko: We pressed 151 before, right?
Benjy: That was Mew. Try 385.
May: What’s 385?
Benjy: Jirachi.
Celebi has now lost interest in the Pokédex and flies off into the kitchen, this allows Ash to put in Jirachi’s number, but after a few seconds the pokédex comes up with the same result.
May: That’s odd.
Aiko: What we really need is a Mew.
Benjy: I think we’ve got evidence enough.
Ciri: There’s definitely some kind of protection.
Ciri sighs, loudly.
Ash: You sure about that?
Ciri: I vaguely recall Celebi being number 251, also. But I didn’t know about Jirachi.
Aiko: Lets try Manaphy
Ash: What’s Manaphy?
Benjy: Number 490.
Ash enters the number, but once again there’s the same result.
May: I’ve never heard of that pokémon…
Ciri: I take it it’s related to Mew, Celebi, and Jirachi?
Benjy nods.
Ash: Or maybe we’re just on the verge of a huge discovery…
Benjy: Rediscovery. Something reeks…
Following this comment, May suddenly turns bright red.
Aiko: May, are you okay?
Benjy: …of a conspiracy.
QST.camera now shifts to a tiny (~1cm) robotic Ledyba on the wall. It’s eyes glow red (pulsing) as it records sound.
New Scene()
Team Rocket huddles in the bushes somewhere nearby with headphones and binoculars.
Jessie: Pokémon so protected that they can’t be searched on the pokédex?
James: Shh…
Meowth: And it sounds like the twerps caught a Celebi and Jirachi, two really rare pokémon.
James: Hey, what’s a "Manaphy" guys?
Jessie: I don’t know.
Meowth: Probably another really rare pokémon.
Jessie: And this "mew aqua" stuff, doesn’t it make you all greedy inside?
James: But what is it?
Meowth: It’s probably something that’s secreted by Mew.
James: So Mew has secrets?
Meowth: Not secret, secrete. As in…
Meowth says something that doesn’t get broadcast to the audience, but Jessie and James look at Meowth in disgust.
Jessie: That’s a lovely picture.
James: But if it’s valuable…
Meowth: We just need to make sure we get to it before they do.
Jessie: And how do you suppose we do that?
Meowth: I have an idea…
Revert Scene()
Inside the treehouse, Ash, May, and Max are lying down in the living room where Yuuma is still reading her Manga. This leaves only Aiko, Benjy, and Ciri at the table, staring at the data. As they stare at the data, the sound of bouncing on a bed can be heard above them.
May: Do you hear that?
Ash: Sounds like springs. Hey you guys, you hear something strange?
Ciri: You mean from above us?
Aiko: You guys stay here, I’ll check it out.
Ciri: But Aiko! It could be dangerous!
Aiko: And your injured.
Ciri gulps.
Aiko: Ciri, let me handle it.
Benjy: Then Aiko, be back within twenty minutes.
Aiko: I can do that. Thank you.
Ciri slumps into her chair and squirms as Aiko exits the room.
Benjy: Sorry…
Ciri: Don’t worry about it.
Ciri now scoots away from the table and stands up, and immediately there is a knock on the door.
Ciri: That was fast.
Benjy also gets up from the table, and goes to the door. Benjy bends down to look through the peephole, and then stands back up.
Benjy: Who are you?
Ciri: It’s not Aiko?
???: We’re researchers. We heard you know something about Mew aqua?
Ciri: What?
Benjy turns to Ciri, who shrugs. Cautiously, Benjy opens the door, to reveal two researchers, one male, one female, and between them, an unnaturally small man.
Man: We heard you know something about Mew Aqua?
At this, Ash and May also get up and start to come to the door.
Benjy: Mew aqua?
Benjy turns towards Ciri, who steps behind him.
Lady: I’m sorry, we’re researching a substance called Mew Aqua. We heard you know something.
Benjy: We don’t know much. What do you guys know about it?
Lady: What a coincidence, we don’t know much about it either! But it would help us if you could tell us what you do know.
Yami Benjy: Benjy, something’s strange about these guys.
Benjy looks from one "researcher" to the next, and the down at the little man.
Benjy: We don’t actually know anything more than the name. And you guys obviously know that much. You probably know more than we do. What have you found out?
Lady: Look, we know you know something, so please just tell us. It’ll make things a lot easier for all of us if…
The Millennium Gameboy Advance glows brightly.
Yami Benjy: All we have to go off of is the name. Why are you after it?
Man: W-what do you mean? We’re researchers! That what we do.
Lady: I’m going in.
With this the lady pushes past Ciri and Yami Benjy while the tall man and the short man following her. The short man jumps onto the table as Ash and May quickly arrive to intercept them.
Lady: Do you kids know anything about Mew aqua?
Ash: N-no…
Lady: You must know something–
May: CIRI!
Benjy: Shouldn’t have opened the door–
The man quickly plucks the micro-Ledyba robot from the wall before anyone notices, while the little man studies the diagrams on the table.
Little man: This looks interesting–hmm…
As the little man looks over the documents, Ciri approaches him.
Ciri: What do you think you’re doing?
Little man: Don’t mind me little girl.
Ciri: Get off!
Instantly, Ciri swings a massive punch, striking the little man in the backside of the head and sending him crashing into the wall (putting cracks in the wall), where his clothes fall off, revealing him to be a Meowth.
Meowth: Oww.
This energy pulse causes Yuuma to put down her manga and come over to where the lady is trying to interrogate Ash and May.
Yuuma: Who are these guys?
Yami Benjy: They just barged in.
Pikachu sparks at the lady as she confronts Ash.
Yami Benjy: A Meowth…
Benjy: It’s Team Rocket!
Yami Benjy: You sure about that?
Benjy: One hundred percent.
Yami Benjy: You two, you wanted information, right?
Man: Uh, yes–
Yami Benjy: Then how’s this.
In a quick surge forwards, Yami Benjy activates one of his blade-mittens, this time a fair bit longer than usual, in effect turning his hand into a short-sword. With a single slashing motion, Yami Benjy cuts through Team Rocket’s disguise, revealing their shirts underneath.
Ciri: Um…
Ash: It’s Team Rocket!
Lady: No-no, this R! It stands for "research!"
Ash and company don’t look like they’re buying this.
Meowth: Uh, Jess… I think our cover’s blown…
With this, Jessie and James quickly retreat backwards aways.
Lady: Then if that’s the way you want to play, prepare for trouble!
Man: And make it double!
Lady: To protect the world from devastation
Man: To unite all people within our nation
Lady: To denounce the evils of truth and love!
Man: To extend our reach to the stars above!
Suddenly the man snaps his fingers and a smoke bomb goes off, filling the entryway with smoke. After a half-second the smoke parts to reveal Jessie.
Jessie: Jessie!
The smoke now parts to reveal James.
James: James!
Jessie: Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!
James: Surrender now or prepare to fight!
Meowth: Meowth, that’s right.
The smoke now dissipating, revealing Jessie, James, and Meowth in the entrance hall. Behind them, much to everyone’s surprise, the man and woman are still standing with their Meowth. This man and woman look almost identical to Jessie and James.
Ash: Um…
Max: Hold on…
Meowth: Allow me to introduce you to our stunt doubles. Jessie_double, James_double, and my favorite, Meowth_double.
May: They have stunt doubles?
Narrator: This is still canon, right? Let me check–
Jessie_double: What do we do?!
Meowth: We take it by force!
James: Lets go! Cacnea!
James_double: Lets go on the double! Cacnea_double!
James calls on his Cacnea, and his double also calls on a (shiny) Cacnea. Both emerge from their pokéballs and immediately hug their trainers.
Jessie: Our turn! Seviper! Dustox!
Jessie_double: Seviper_double! Dustox_double!
Jessie: Seviper!
Jessie_double: Seviper_double!
Jessie & Jessie_double: Poison tail!
Ash: Pikachu thunderbolt!
Max: Jirachi psychic!
As both Seviper lunge forwards with poison tails barred, Pikachu and Jirachi counterattack with a ball of electric and psychic energy, which strikes the pair of Sevipers in mid-air. Yami Benjy and Ciri jump backwards to shield themselves from the the explosion as both Sevipers are thrown backwards onto their trainers.
Jessie: Ow!
Jessie_double: Ouch!
Jessie: Dustox! Poison sting!
Jessie_double: Dustox_double! Poison sting!
Both Dustox take off into the air, and rain poison sting down towards Ash and company. In response, May calls on Torchic and Beautifly requesting that they use ember and silver wind respectively. As the attacks collide, ember and silver wind do some damage to the pair of Dustox, but the attacks don’t stop a few poison stings from raining down on Ash, May, Ciri, and Yami Benjy. May shrieks as a poison sting strikes her and falls to the ground, with Ash rushing to tend to her.
Yami Benjy: Celebi, psychic!
From behind him, Celebi fires a blast of psychic energy ensnaring the two Dustox and instantly knocking them out. Jessie’s double looks slightly distraught by the phenomenon, while Jessie just looks angry.
Meowth: Our turn!
Meowth and Meowth_double now jump down and rush towards Ash and company. In a split-second move, Yami Benjy activates his other blade-mitten and slashes at both Meowths, sending them both flying. They both crash to the ground behind Team Rocket and their doubles, knocked out.
James: That’s enough, Cacnea, pin missile!
James_double: On the double, Cacnea double!
Before either attacks can fire Ciri steps aside, turning towards the wall and raising her hand as if saluting it.
Ciri: Zumi!
Zumi immediately blasts both Cacnea with an ice beam, freezing them both to their trainer’s shirts in a large chunk of ice.
James: Eek!
Yuuma: What’s going on?
Ash: Their trying to steal… um…
Ash now helps May back to her feet. This takes a couple seconds.
Ash: I’m not quite sure actually.
Max: They’re always trying to steal something…
Meowth: We were trying to steal the mew aqua.
May: But we don’t have any, let alone know what it is!
Meowth_double: But if you don’t know what it is, how do you know you don’t have any?
Max: Thats a surprisingly good question.
Yuuma: But who are you?
Meowth: We’re Team Rocket!
Meowth_double: And Team Rocket_double!
James_double: So what now?
Jessie: We go to our backup plan.
James_double: What’s that?
Meowth: Steal Pikachu!
Yuuma: I won’t let you!
With this Yuuma leaps onto the table.
Yuuma: Hyatura tunin!
At this, the air around Yuuma’s hands begins to glow, and a magic circle appears in the air.
Jessie_double: She knows magic?
James_double: What’s that do?
Max: Well given the fact she’s a witch, she’s probably going to turn you into mushrooms.
New Scene()
Outside the treehouse, both sets of Team Rocket rush into the night, then make a 90º angle turn and take off in the direction of Oldale.
Team Rocket & Team Rocket_Double: Looks like the Team Rockets are blasting off again!
Revert Scene()
The Millennium Gameboy Advance glows brightly as Benjy cleans up the papers. Ciri inspects May where she was hit with poison stings. Yuuma jumps down from the table, visibly proud of what she did.
Max: Did they take anything?
Ash: I have Ciri’s pokégear!
Max: I have the pokénav!
Sitting down, May checks for her Pokédex and confirms that she has it.
New Scene()
Deep in the woods at night, the Team Rockets stop to catch their breath.
Meowth_double: Lets not do that again…
Jessie: James did you get anything?
James: Just this…
Team Rocket’s eyes water as James pulls the item out of his pocket.
James: This!
Jessie: Is that the twerp’s pokédex?
Jessie_double: You stole his pokédex?
James: It’s not Pikachu, but it’s better than nothing…
James_double: Why’d you steal it?
Meowth: We’re Team Rocket, that’s what we do.
Team Rocket and Team Rocket_Double stare at each other for a few uncomfortable seconds.
Meowth_double: Then we quit. You promised us honest work!
James: Did we really?
Jessie_double: Yes you did!
James: I’m serious, did we really?
Meowth: Well, it’s well known that…
Meowth_double: Hmph!
With this, Jessie_double and James_double turn around to shun Team Rocket and disappear off into the woods. Team Rocket watches them go, a bit upset.
Jessie_double: Well a pokédex is still better than nothing.
Meowth: Yeah, I wonder what the boss will say.
Jessie: I wonder if we’ll get promotions?
James: Hey I’m the one who stole, therefore I should get a–
Meowth’s ears perk up, cutting James off.
James: Promotion?
Suddenly, a gust of wind blows by Team Rocket, followed by a spec of white light in the distance. In a split second motion Satolite zips by Team Rocket, between Jessie and James, whisking the pokédex out of James’s hand before anyone can react.
New Scene()
Satolite holds onto the pokédex with it’s tractor beam as it flies above the trees into the night sky, towards the treehouse. Team Rocket’s voices can be heard in the night, below it.
Jessie: And now we have nothing again…
Meowth: Jessie your clothes!
Jessie: Eek!
James: This is not supposed to be an ecchi anime!
New Scene()
Back in the treehouse, Satolite enters the room and places Ash’s pokédex on the table. Benjy pats it on the head affectionately.
May: That was weird…
Benjy: I can say that I’m more than a little creeped out…
Narrator: Finished checking, yup, that was canon.
Benjy shivers slightly.
Ash: And what happened to Aiko?
Ciri: Aiko?!
Benjy: I’d better…
Ciri rushes outside, followed by Benjy, and then Yuuma. They are all followed by QST.camera.
Ciri: Aiko!!!
Benjy: She’s over here!
Benjy, Ciri, and Yuuma approach Aiko, who is staring at them, looking catatonic.
Yuuma: Aiko? Are you okay?
Aiko: Error, does not compute.
Ciri: Lets get you inside!
Yuuma tries to lift Aiko, but the latter is too heavy. Benjy is eventually able to help Aiko walk inside. QST.camera follows them as they guide Aiko inside the house.
May: Aiko? What happened?
Aiko: Error, does not compute. Segmentation fault, core dumped. Now printing stack trace.
May: What?
May is cut off as Aiko shoots a storm of papers out of the top of her arm, causing Ash and company to jump backwards.
Yuuma: Uhh…
Ciri: Aiko!
May and Max now scramble to grab all of the papers spewing out Aiko.
Benjy: Hold on! She must have a reset somewhere!
Yuuma now scoots up a chair behind Aiko, hitting her in the back of the legs and causing her to sit down.
New Scene(@Temporal = Morning)
Aiko sits at the breakfast table with Ash, May, Max, and Yuuma.
May: Are you sure you can’t remember anything?
Benjy: May, I cleared her RAM. That data’s gone, and I can’t make heads or tails of the core dump.
Walking by, Benjy looks over at Ciri, who is still staring at a page, tracing a line with her finger.
Max: Where’s Brock?
Benjy: Still asleep I guess.
Ciri scrunches up her eyebrows as she tries to decipher the printout.
Ciri: Makes no sense…
Benjy: I think it’s assembly.
Ciri: You mean like instructions on how to build her
Benjy: Not exactly, it’s more of how her, um… hardware processes things.
Ciri: Well I’ve never seen anything even remotely like it before.
Benjy: Could’ve been a RAM dump.
Ash: Did you think Aiko can read it?
Benjy: She can, and reading it caused her to crash. Happened late last night.
Aiko nods glumly.
Yuuma: Do you think it has anything to do with Mew Aqua?
Ciri: Doubt it.
Benjy: Did you find anything about an exception?
Ciri: No patterns over four letters that could be interpreted as words, or even a coherent phrase, save for a copyright notification.
Benjy sighs, and sits down. Suddenly, a flier catches his attention. Benjy reaches for it and pulls it out, looking it over.
Benjy: Hey, Yuuma. What’s this?
Benjy holds the flier up for the others to see. Yuuma looks at it curiously.
Max: Is that a renaissance fair?
Benjy: Not sure, but those crystals around the castle look interesting.
May: Looks fun also.
Ciri: I know crystals are related to magic… That is, unnaturally large ones, but I don’t know about anima.
May: It’s the festival of the aura guardian. You know how they say all living things have aura?
Ciri: Okay, that changes things.
Ciri scratches her chin, thoughtfully. At this point the door opens and Brock enters the room, looking tired.
Ash: Brock, where were you?
Brock: …
Max: It’s a potential lead on the Mew Aqua!
Brock: That’s great…
Brock sits down at the table, and Benjy hands him a small breakfast, which Brock starts eating.
Brock: …But I think I’ll sit out on this one.
May: What?
Max: He’s coming…
Brock: …Max, I didn’t sleep well.
Max: That’s what happens when you bounce on the bed all night.
Brock now finishes his breakfast, and excuses himself, walking out of the room back outside. Ash and Benjy chase after him.
Ash: Hey Brock!
May: We’re going to need your help!
Brock: You can handle this one on your own.
As Brock starts to walk outside, The Millennium Gameboy Advance glows brightly and Yami Benjy grabs him by the ear before he can ascend the steps to higher into the tree.
Yami Benjy: Brock. You’re coming with us.
Brock: Benjy, not this time.
Yami Benjy: Well your ear is. Do you wish to remain attached to it?
With this Yami Benjy gives a gentle tug, forcing Brock to move away from the tree. May, Max, and Ciri now exit the main part of the treehouse.
May: Come on, Brock, let’s go!
Brock: Then tell Benjy to let go!
Max: Where’s your sense of adventure?
As Ash and company now depart from the treehouse. Liru holds her ear nervously, watching from a room above them with Pachira. Yuuma and Aiko wave goodbye along with Ash and company, however Yami Benjy is still holding onto Brock’s ear.
Brock: Can you please let go now?
Yami Benjy: Let me think about it.
…///To Be Continued///…
© November 16, 2012 to December 10, 2015 by Benjy Strauss