"I'll see you soon Charizard." Ash said, about to step in the lake.
"Ash wait!" Drew called, leaping from a ledge.
"Drew?!" Ash asked. "You're here, how?! Where's Wally?"
"Wally, he didn't make it". Drew said, as Wally's Pokemon gathered around them. "But, it was the strangest thing. Roselia was blasted with this beam of light, and he evolved. Next thing I know I'm surrounded by petals and am suddenly here." Drew said.
"Wally." Ash said in shock. The boy never told his parents where they were going, they'd never know what a hero he was deep down.
"Drew? Ash?" May asked.
"May!" Drew said, rushing over and grabbing her. "What happened?"
"Brendan and I, we fell into a vine covered room, and fought Meganium." May said.
"Then let me guess weird white blobs began appearing?" Drew asked, seeing Brendan's Pokemon.
"I don't know what happened to him, one moment the blobs are surrounding him, and the next I'm surrounded by a blizzard, and now I'm here." May said.
"Just like me." Drew said.
"Fross." A white Pokemon said, trying to comfort May.
"Roserade." Drew's now evolved Roselia said, comforting their trainer as well.
"Ash, what are you doing?" May asked.
"Getting you two out alive." Ash said. "I can't save Brendan and Wally, but maybe I can save you guys along with Flannery and Roxy." Ash said, taking a step forward, only for many thing to launch out of his shadow, Roxy landing on top of him with a kiss.
"We have to stop doing this." Drew said.
"Guys you won't believe what happened!" Roxy said.
"Let me guess, you and Flannery were pitted against a giant Pokemon." Drew said.
"Yeah but then!" Roxy said.
"White blobs appeared, and began attacking." May said.
"But the craziest part is." Roxy said.
"A beam of light hit one of your Pokémon, and they evolved saving you and your Pokémon but not Flannery." Ash said sullenly.
"What do you know, I guess you guys can believe it." Roxy said. "So what did I miss?"
"You just stopped Ash from killing himself." Drew said.
"What?! Why are you doing that?" Roxy scolded.
"To try and give you guys a chance to escape." Ash said. "Roxy, take Pikachu and my Pokémon back to Pallet Town." Ash said, getting back up.
"Ash, you don't have to do this. We're here we can escape together!" May said.
"And maybe if I do this, Brendan and the others will have a chance!" Ash said.
"Ash, they're gone." Roxy said. "I watched Flannery disappear with my own eyes."
"No! They can't be gone!" Ash said, struggling.
"Ash, Flannery's last request was for me to keep you safe." Roxy said. "And I'm not about to let you die in my first five minutes of that."
"Guys, they're coming!" May exclaimed, seeing the white blobs from earlier, snaking their way into the rooms.
"Take them and go!" Ash said.
"We can't take all of you at once." Mewtwo said, counting all the Pokemon.
"What about leaving me." Ash said.
"Ash!" Roxy proclaimed.
"I'll try and stay alive, but get everyone back to safety." Ash said.
"You can barely see, how are you going. To fight them?" Drew asked, as Lucario grabbed him.
"Gahhhh!" Ash screamed, an aura tendril pulsing from each arm. "They're my powers too!" Ash said, sending the tendrils out like whips, keeping them at bay.
Ash kept the blobs at bay, as Mewtwo and Lucario helped the others escape.
'They won't be back in time for us at this rate.' The Primal Force said.
"Are they going to be safe?" Ash asked.
"At this point, yes." The Primal Force said.
Inside Ash's mind scape
Ash's inner self stepped back, looking at the primal force's energy.
"Alright, go ahead." Ash said. "We're doomed anyways."
"About time!" The Primal Force said, taking control.
Back in the real world
An aura tendril launched from Ash's spine, tearing off the wrapping that covered his eyes. They were now a deep red, with The Primal Force in full control. Three more tendrils ripped out from Ash's back as the began using them to climb the walls and onto the ceiling.
The aura tendrils on Ash's arms flailed about, doing little to stop the blobs. As they got ever closer:
Back in the mindscape
"Alright, I can't do this all on my own!" The Primal Force said. "You control your body, I'll control the aura!"
"What's in it for me?" Ash asked.
"If we live, I'll leave." The Primal Force said. "You don't want me, and anything I can teach you, those two numbskulls would have an easier time. You find me a receptacle to store in, and I won't fight it."
"Alright, let's do this!" Ash said, as both took the controls.
Back in the real world
Ash's body went from limp and rag doll like to a more natural state, as the aura tendrils clambered about.
"Up ahead!" Ash said, pointing, and slamming a tendril through several blobs. "Sorry! But it looks like a way out, maybe the way we came in!"
"One way to find out." The Primal Force said, moving them closer to the hole.
As they made their way towards the hole, they saw more of the white blobs heading right for them.
'NO NO NO NO NO WRONG WAY!' The Primal force said, as one of its tendrils jabbed into a blob. The tendrils shuddered for a moment, before the red spikes disappeared and were absorbed, leaving behind a green tendril.
'ASHTON, YOU NEED TO CONTROL ANOTHER!' The Primal Force demanded.
"On it!" Ash said, trying to work in sync with the Primal Force.
Back outside the tree, at the far edge of the canyon
"Go back!" Roxy cried out, as they were set down.
"We are." Mewtwo said. "But you all are now safe, take solace in that."
"What about our friends?" Drew asked bluntly.
"We will do what we can, but it may be too late for them." Lucario said. "I am sorry. I never wanted the rest of you on this trip for that reason."
"Come on Ash, don't die, find a way through this." May said.
Back with Ash
"There's too many!" Ash cried out, as more and more blobs entered the small room.
'Looks like this is it.' The Primal Force said.
"Wait, drop us." Ash said.
'You must be joking.' The Primal Force said. 'That pool is full of pure aura.'
"And they aren't touching it." Ash pointed out. "Whatever that is, it must be safe, or at least safer than these."
'Or it could be more deadly.' The Primal Force said, as Ash had to take control of another of its tendrils.
"At least we'd go out on our own terms." Ash said, releasing his aura tendrils grip from the ceiling. The remaining two tendrils weren't able to support their weight as they splashed into the pool below. Red energy flowing off of Ash's body as he went into a state of shock.
Somewhere
"I have to admit, I did not see you doing that." Trap Ash said with a laugh.
"Ash?" Coordinator Ash asked.
"Yep." Trap Ash responded.
"How are you here? Wait am I dead? Are we dead?!" Coordinator Ash asked.
"Not exactly, you're in the realm of aura. A place that connects us on a deeper level." Trap Ash said. "When you fell into that pool, your mind was sent here."
"Then how are you here?" Coordinator Ash asked.
"Deep meditation." Trap Ash said. "I just happened to be checking in on you when you jumped in."
"Okay, but who is he?" Coordinator Ash asked, seeing an older gentleman behind Trap Ash.
"Sir Aaron, of the Aura Guardians." The man said. "I believe you know my Lucario."
"You're… you're…" Coordinator Ash stuttered.
"Old, dead, real." Sir Aaron said. "I had no idea my Lucario was trapped in my staff, or even how you released him. I spent the last 30 years of my life thinking he had died in battle."
"Wait so you lived on without Lucario?" Coordinator Ash asked.
"I did, and I've been watching you." Sir Aaron said. "Your friend here May be a living aura master, but I have a few hundred years of extra practice. Take a look."
A window like view opened, showing the white blobs dispersing front an energy wave.
"Where'd that energy come from?" Coordinator Ash asked.
"From you, or rather the Primal Force, when you jumped in the pool, that energy was released." Sir Aaron said.
"Wait, look it's Brendan, and Wally, and Flannery! They're okay!" Coordinator Ash exclaimed seeing their comatose bodies in the room his was in.
"Yes, they will survive, thanks to you." Sir Aaron explained.
"But what about me? Can I go back?" Coordinator Ash asked.
"Once you've healed." Trap Ash said.
"But I just healed myself!" Coordinator Ash said in exasperation.
"Not that kind of healing. When our bodies use up all of our aura reserves, we can enter a meditative state to begin growing them back quicker." Sir Aaron said.
"When that happens you'll end up here, or at least adjacent to here." Trap Ash said.
"So we won?" Coordinator Ash asked.
"Yes, now I do have a request of you." Sir Aaron said.
"Of course, whatever you need." Coordinator Ash said.
"Tell my Lucario to find his place in the world." Sir Aaron said. "I lived a long and happy life, and I want the same of him."
"I'll also tell him you said hi." Coordinator Ash said.
"You'll tell him I said hi?" Sir Aaron said in confusion.
"Yeah, like just hello." Coordinator Ash said.
"I would never say something as simple as that." Sir Aaron said.
"Don't worry, it just means he's going to let Lucario know you're doing just fine." Trap Ash explained. "Despite being dead for roughly 1,000 years."
"Okay, yes tell him I said hi." Sir Aaron said.
A few days later, back in the real world
"He's waking up!" Roxy cheered.
"Oww, no need to shout." Ash said, sitting back up.
"You had us worried there for a bit." Brendan said. "How're you feeling?"
"Sore." Ash groaned.
"That's reasonable, you've been in that bed for three days." Wally said with a laugh.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Flannery asked.
"Yeah, just tired. Hey why do I have a blindfold back on?" Ash asked.
"Hehe, funny joke Ash." May said.
"No, I'm serious, why did you put a blindfold on me, the Primal Force is gone." Ash said.
"Ash, no one put a blindfold on you." Brendan assured.
A while later
"I'm not sure what happened." The doctor said. "Ash's eyes are simply unresponsive to light."
"Is it possible something happened when he was cured." The Princess asked Lucario.
"If the primal force was using his eyes, maybe." Lucario said.
"He was." Ash said. "We we're working together, and decided that if we were going to go out, it was going to be on our terms."
"But you're alive." Lucario said.
"I know, but I almost wasn't. When I fell into the pool, I was thrusted into the aura realm." Ash said, as he began to retell the events in the realm.
"Lucario, will you be okay?" The Princess asked.
"I will manage." Lucario said. "But I feel I cannot stay here and also fulfill Sir Aaron's wishes."
"And what about Ash's sight?" Brendan questioned.
"I will search for answers, if I find something, I will let you know." Lucario said.
"How will you know where we are?" Wally asked.
"Don't worry about that, I'm sure he'll just know." Ash said.
"What about you four? Where are you off too now?" Brendan asked.
"There's still that contest happening in a few days." Drew said.
"We thought Ash would be staying." May admitted.
"Until I can actually see again, I think I'm going to stay away from contests." Ash admitted. "It's hard to practice an appeal if you don't know what it looks like."
"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Roxy asked.
"I'll be fine, now go you have catching up to do." Ash said.
"So just like that, you're leaving?" Wally asked, seeing Flannery try and sneak out.
"I'm not needed here." Flannery said. "I don't know if I really was, but this is it."
"Will we see you again?" Wally asked.
"Maybe, in time." Flannery said. "Until then, take care of each other."
"We always have." Wally said, watching Flannery leave.