A Protect surrounded me as Ultra Beasts dashed in from all sides. Out of reflex, I flinched and ducked down as multiple Beasts crashed against the shield with excessive force, bouncing off backwards. Their first strategy was obviously to capture me as soon as possible, but luckily Slowking saw through it.
Immediately, the shield began to falter and crack due to the magnitude of Ultra Beasts attacking it, and I knew something needed to be done quickly. Dusty, Sycamore, and Zabu suddenly hopped into the fray, combining their attacks to blast away the Beasts trying to break the shield. All the while, Slowking was trying her best to keep the shield up and at the same time defend the unprotected areas with physical attacks.
As soon as most of the attackers were fended off, I heard Slowking's voice in my head.
Get ready to move! I can't keep the shield up for too much longer! I stood back up and took a deep breath as the battle raged on around me. The anxiety and stress were killing me, as well as the pain from all the running, but this was the most prepared I'd be.
Ready, Slowking!
Run directly left, now! Hide behind the gravel pile! Dashing forward with all my might, the shield disappeared right as I was about to run into it. I didn't look back, hearing all kinds of moves clashing and other unpleasant sounds from behind me. Suddenly, there was a large explosion that nearly deafened me. I jumped behind the gravel pile and turned around to see Slowking floating in the air, her eyes aglow with pink Psychic powers. All around, some Ultra Beasts began to topple over, hit by a disastrous Psyshock. Keep moving! Run around as much as you can, Slowking yelled out to me in my head. As I was about to move, Eliza's Greninja came out of nowhere from high up and landed to the left of me.
"Don't let him get away, Greninja!" I heard Eliza yell from the road. Knowing Greninja wasn't going to attack me, I figured the best way to get away from him was to try and be as unpredictable as possible with my movements. Following my instincts, I jumped onto the gravel pile just in time, right as it tried to lunge and grab me. I tore up the pile and jumped off the top, once again narrowly avoiding its grasp. I looked out at the battle midair.
Slowking was now slinging Shadow Ball after Shadow Ball at the Ultra Beasts, hitting them with almost perfect accuracy. She was trying to keep Pheromosa busy at the same time, just so she wouldn't go after me. Some Ultra Beasts had fallen, not expecting the sheer power of Slowking alone.
Sycamore was dashing around using Quick Attack and using his Force Palm full blast on some of the beasts. At times, he tried to use Aura Sphere, but he still didn't have the hang of it, so he prioritized his other moves. I watched as he connected a Force Palm with so much power, a Kartana flew all the way back off the cliff.
Dusty was using a combination of all his moves. Sometimes he would use Acid Spray to weaken an enemy before finishing them off with a Sludge Bomb. Other times he would place down Toxic Spikes in front of rushing enemies, hoping they would connect. As I turned to look at him, he was just about to connect a Body Slam into a Buzzwole.
Zabu was dashing around at high speeds and using Fury Swipes to tire out the enemies and weaken them little by little. I watched as a Xurkitree collapsed to the ground out of exhaustion after she hit it with Fury Swipes over and over.
As I reached the ground, I instinctively tucked my body in and rolled, nullifying any damage from landing too hard. But instead of getting up and running away, I couldn't stop my momentum. Clumsily, I tripped over the tire tracks and fell to the ground, right in front of the main battle. Looking up to the left, I saw Pheromosa using Lunge on Slowking, but now I was in the way. I covered my eyes, bracing for impact.
Suddenly, Slowking shielded me again with another Protect. As Pheromosa bounced off, the barrier shattered into a million pieces before fading into dust. Opening my eyes, I heard in my head,
Go! I will keep Pheromosa busy! Slowking suddenly stiff-armed Greninja, holding him back for a second from catching me. Taking the hint, I sprung back up and into action as fast as possible, once again bobbing and weaving through the fight.
Although Slowking stopped him briefly, I thought I could hear Greninja right on my tail as I ran, so I tried not to hesitate. I did my best to duck and slide through it all, as well as jump in between raging battles; I've never made so many reckless decisions in my life. I slid under Xurkitrees' arms, dodged around Buzzwoles' trying to grab me, and jumped over Kartanas' attacks. Finally, after making it past one last Xurkitree and narrowly avoiding the grasp of Greninja once more, I felt like I was going to pass out; I was pushing myself too hard.
Calling out for Slowking's help in my head, I could only hope she heard. I felt my legs start to cramp out and my speed was slowing. Fearing Greninja was about to grab me, I jumped behind the other gravel pile. I needed a second to rest, or else I would surely pass out.
Suddenly remembering the Oran Berry in my pocket from earlier, I reached for it; that would at least give me a little boost of energy. As I brought it out of my pocket, Greninja jumped over the pile and landed in front of me. Seeing as I was at arm's length, there was no way I could get away from it this time. Quickly deciding, I threw the Oran Berry right at him; it hit him right in the middle of his head and bounced off, eventually splattering once it reached the ground. Greninja flinched and backed up, obviously surprised.
Seeing my chance, I hopped back up on my feet again and ran up the gravel pile as fast as possible, still gasping for air. As I was about to crest the gravel pile, I felt something wet and slimy grab onto my leg and stop my momentum. I crashed onto the pile hard, knocking the last of the wind out of me. I couldn't move for a moment, stunned from the fall and lack of breath.
Turning around, I caught a glimpse of Greninja pulling me towards him with his long tongue. I tried to grab onto the gravel pieces, but none of them were attached to anything so I couldn't hold on at all. Desperately, I opened my mouth to yell for help, but nothing came out; I was gasping for air too hard.
Turning to my right, I saw Slowking in over her head. She was using Protect on herself as a barrage of attacks from Pheromosa and three other Ultra Beasts hammered her shield. Dusty and Zabu were both busy too, back-to-back while fighting off a group of four Ultra Beasts. There was only one Pokémon left to help me.
Sycamore! I need help! I'm behind the right gravel pile! Quick, Greninja's got me–
Before I could finish my thought, a figure leaped up into the air over the gravel pile and lunged at Greninja. There was a small explosion as Greninja flew backwards; I immediately felt the grip on my leg loosen as Greninja sped back towards the woods. It bounced off the ground a couple times before stopping inches before hitting a tree. I looked up to see Sycamore land valiantly in front of me.
"Sycamore… You actually...came…" I managed to say, still panting.
That is what I am here… for. I will stay with you. Keep behind… me, the grisly voice said in my head. I smiled and took his paw as he stood me back up. Back towards the woods, Greninja had recovered from the blast and retracted its tongue back in. Just then, there was another similar explosion to my left as a shockwave of psychic energy ran through the air. A Kartana flew by us, almost clipping Sycamore. It hit the ground hard and bounced once before coming to a complete halt before Greninja. The Ultra Beast tried to get back up but had enough. It laid on the ground, fainted. For some reason, I was happy to see it down and out.
I heard a noise and turned back up front to see Sycamore and Greninja battling it out in front of me. They clashed, dashing around at crazy speeds. Suddenly, a dark ghostly ball flew into my view and collided with Sycamore, knocking him to the ground.
"Sycamore!" I cried out, standing up to help. As soon as I took one step, I was instantly surrounded by Gengar and his lackeys on all sides. They appeared from the ground and created a circle around me.
"Hit him with your Hypnosis attack, Gengar!" I heard Eliza yell. I felt more fear envelop me as the Gengar and Haunters' eyes began to turn to a ghostly purple glow. As I was about to close my eyes and cover my ears to attempt to stop any effects of Hypnosis, Slowking hit Gengar with a sturdy Shadow Ball, sending him back towards Greninja. Greninja dodged Gengar as it bounced off the ground and hit a tree. Gengar slid to the ground, fainted. His lackey group of Haunter immediately gave me up and dashed over to see if their leader was okay.
"Yes!" I yelled, glad she was always on top of things.
Keep moving! Stay behind Lucario if you need to, Slowking called out to me in my head, dodging more attacks in the process. I was about to do just that when I turned to see Sycamore send a weak Aura Sphere into the ground at Greninja's feet, creating a dust explosion and covering the nearby area. Sycamore wasted no time afterwards, immediately bounding back over to me.
Luke… I believe we should try… using our Mega Evolution. My face immediately turned red, completely forgetting about the power Uxie bestowed us. Slipping my sleeve down to inspect the bracelet, I turned to Sycamore.
"A-are you sure? We don't know what power it holds..."
Look around. At this rate, we are close to losing… We do not have much of a choice. Taking a second to think about it, I quickly analyzed all that had happened so far. Although we'd powered through in the beginning of the fight, the large number of Ultra Beasts were starting to overpower us, and it wouldn't be long before exhaustion would over-encumber us. Not to mention, Ultra Beast backup could certainly be on their way. Knowing he was right, I looked deep into his eyes and nodded.
"Right, let's do it! It's all or nothing!" Nodding back, Sycamore then jumped in front of me and placed his paw over his gauntlet. I could feel the energy flowing in between the stones, as if they were reacting to each other. Just as I was about to put my hand over my own bracelet, a voice screamed out into the air.
"Do not touch that bracelet, human!" Surprised, I turned my attention back to the middle to see Slowking gazing at me. She sported an angered face and looked like she meant business. "You and Sycamore cannot handle the power of Mega Evolution yet! You must only use it when there is no other option!"
Wondering what else we could do, I was about to protest when I noticed Pheromosa approaching Slowking from behind. She was preparing an attack of some sort, but Slowking wasn't paying attention to her. Before I could even try to scream out for her to turn around, Pheromosa struck a powerful Lunge into her back; I gasped as I saw them crash into the ground with an eruption of dust. In the wake of the attack, dirt and rocks exploded into the air around them, covering nearly all of the clearing in a cloud.
While Sycamore watched in horror too, Greninja flew in out of nowhere and pinned him to the ground. Not expecting the attack and still weakened from all the previous fighting, Sycamore could not escape from his grasp. I then turned to see Dusty and Zabu still back-to-back, but now being overrun from the Ultra Beasts from all sides. It was only a matter of time before they would be overwhelmed. With no one to assist me, I was utterly helpless.
Suddenly, Pheromosa landed in front of me, trying to trap me in. I backed up in an effort to get away from the beast but slipped and fell on the gravel pile. More and more beasts began to surround me, their battles finished. All of those remaining around me were covered in bruises and scratches, showing their resilience.
I heard Eliza's laugh in the background as Pheromosa moved aside to let her in.
"Well, it seems you put up more of a fight than I expected. Too bad it's your last one!" She chortled loudly, as my face turned bright red. "How does it feel to finally lose against me, stalker? Huh?" I cringed, unable to speak. As much as it pained me, there was nothing I could do about her taunting me. I'd lost, and there was no way out of it... And we were so close to the portal too; it was just down the road! I felt like all my emotions were about to burst out, but I was too exhausted to release them.
"Typical stalker; completely speechless. Hopefully Darkrai and Necrozma will give you a little bit of backbone in Ultra Space..." She let out a devious smile akin to Gengar. "Pheromosa, grab him and open the portal. Ultra Beasts, grab his Pokémon too. We're heading back to Ultra Space!" The Ultra Beasts quickly rejoiced as Pheromosa picked me up off the ground. I didn't bother to struggle, knowing it would just prove to be useless.
Slowking, Sycamore, Dusty… And Zabu, too… I guess this is finally it.
I thought, completely defeated. In all my life, I've never felt so depressed and distraught; it was almost like some part of me died. Knowing I'd failed not only my partners, but the entirety of both the Human World and the Pokémon World filled me with grief.
I looked around one last time to see all my partners fainted on the ground. Zabu and Dusty laid face down, finally inundated by a group of Ultra Beasts. Slowking was on her side in the impact crater, not moving. Sycamore continued to struggle but couldn't get past Greninja holding him down. As the Ultra Beasts came in to pick them all up, the tears finally began to roll out of my eyes. Stopping a little ahead of the middle of the parking lot, a portal suddenly opened with the signature Ultra Beast black hole with red lightning arcing around it.
"Pheromosa, you go first with the stalker. Once you're successfully through, we'll bring the other Pokémon in as prisoners." Pheromosa nodded and headed for the portal. I winced, knowing the end was near. My mind went blank as the fear developed into sorrow inside of me.
Here we go, I painfully thought as Pheromosa was about to step in.
Do not lose hope yet, human!
All of a sudden, I felt something push Pheromosa with great force, flinging us both forwards. In response, she let go of me and I went flying towards the road. I face-planted hard, and eventually came to a painful, gravel-y stop. From behind me, there was an electric sound and a distinct 'shlorp'. Turning my head, I saw the last of Pheromosa slide into the portal with a red flash and then completely out of sight. Everyone turned to the middle of the parking lot to see Slowking kneeling, up on one leg.
"All of you, go! Go now!" Slowking cried. "Now is your chance to get away! You have everything you need to succeed! I believe in you!" More and more tears began to flow out of my eyes as I realized what was happening.
"What the– Ultra Beasts, focus on getting the human to the portal! Don't let him get away!" Eliza demanded. Just then, I noticed that all of my Pokémon had joined my side.
"Leave me! You can still make it!" Slowking yelped out again, as the remaining Ultra Beasts ran towards us.
"N-no! I can't leave you behind, Slowking!" I yelled, starting to sob. As the Ultra Beasts were about to converge on us, a huge Psychic shield covering the whole path appeared in front of us. The Ultra Beasts crashed into the barrier, surprised it had been put up.
Suddenly, I felt something skinny and metallic grab me under my arms. Glancing around, Dusty, Sycamore and Zabu were all standing around me. How and when they'd got there was beyond me. They then hoisted me up, Sycamore grabbing my back and Zabu supporting my legs atop her head. It didn't even take me a second to realize where they were taking me.
"No, stop! We need to go back!" I yelled at them. They ignored me, dealing with my struggles and continuing to take us towards the forest. "Slowking!" I cried, still trying to break free.
By now, the Ultra Beasts and Greninja were attacking the Protect Slowking had put up while simultaneously trying to find a way around; the shield started to split and crack from all the attacks combined.
Listen up, all of you. Head down the path, and then make your way into the woods. It will cover your trail for a little bit, hopefully shrouding your position for as long as possible. If you continue to take the back trails, they will lead you to the bridge in no time…
Slowking, don't do this! We can all make it– we can still save you! This doesn't have to be goodbye! The shield was about to shatter...
Lucario, Garbodor, and… Liepard. It seems this is it for me, but not for you. Take care of the human for me. And human… No, Lukas. It was a pleasure to help you these past couple days. I will be rooting for you! Farewell… The shield broke completely, and the Ultra Beasts began pouring through.
"SLOWKING!" I bawled as my Pokémon began to run faster down the trail. Looking up one last time as we turned the corner, I watched the sun completely set over the mountains behind the parking lot. Below, I saw Slowking being picked up by Greninja as we turned the corner and ran out of sight. The tears kept coming, knowing what they would do to her next.
I continued to try and break free from my Pokémon as we made our way through the dense forest.
"We need to go back! Slowking needs us! Please!" I pleaded. It seemed to be quiet all around us except for my yelling and the cracking of branches under their feet, but Sycamore, Dusty, and Zabu just kept running; low branches and thick bushes slapped me in the head and whacked against my body along the way. I quickly stopped complaining and struggling, as I was getting too many leaves and pine needles in my mouth. To add to that, I was also completely exhausted from the ambush; I couldn't take much more without a long rest.
But what pained me the most of course, were Slowking's extreme actions. I tried to tell myself she was okay, but I knew deep down I had to face that she was gone. I couldn't stop seeing her. Everywhere I looked, I saw her friendly face. I heard her deep, soothing voice telling me that everything would be fine... But knowing that she wasn't there to tell me those words broke my heart.
I was so preoccupied that I didn't notice what was happening in front of us. Suddenly, I felt weightless, as if I was falling. I snapped out of my grief for a moment to realize that was exactly what was happening. Before I had a chance to even feel scared or yell, I hit a steep incline and began tumbling down it. After bouncing about three times on wet, soggy leaves, I reached flat ground and slid to a stop on my back.
Suddenly, a terrible pain in my left leg pierced through my body. Immediately wincing as a groan made its way out of my mouth; pulling back my pants leg, I saw a terrible bruise forming just above my boot. I couldn't tell if it was broken, but it certainly felt like it. Nonetheless, I still tried to stand up since I knew I needed to get far away from the parking lot, but the injury was just too great, and I collapsed back to the ground. The emotions came back as I gave up hope and laid staring up at the splotches of clear, pink-and-blue sky between the many tree branches covering the forest canopy. The dim stars high above twinkled in the twilight.
All kinds of thoughts ran through my head at breakneck speeds. I tried to make reason with myself, but the stimulus of everything around me was too great to take my mind off of it.
Think! You need to think! Every thought I attempted to formulate was lost among the others. I was aggrieved with pain, tired, scared, grief-filled, hungry, and most of all, saddened. I just couldn't think straight. Yet, the small voice in the back of my head yelled at me to continue on.
Keep going! Find your Pokémon! The portal is closing soon! You need to hurry! However, it was again quickly suppressed by other, more troubling thoughts. I was worried about being lost, being caught, and worse yet, failing the Pokémon World. I suddenly felt dizzy, and my vision began to fade. What was the point of even continuing on? I was too injured to move and one of my best friends was gone. I'd completely given up.
"Gar?" I suddenly heard beside me. I looked to my right to see a friendly and familiar face. Dusty immediately rushed in, seeing me in this terrible condition.
"D-Dusty…" I mumbled, in between sobs. I put my head in my hands as he picked me up off the ground. I was embarrassed to be crying again and completely out of hope.
"Garb…" he said again, looking around quickly with a worried look. I felt a gust of air hit me as Dusty dashed off, presumably to find Sycamore for some help. As he did, I opened my eyes again. It was hard to see through the tears, but somehow, I made out his determined face. Although Dusty wasn't looking at me, I could see his conviction and confidence pouring out, putting all his effort into getting me aid; I felt it briefly pierce through my pain and sadness. The voice in the back of my head was finally loud enough and cried out,
You can't give up yet! You've got your Pokémon to help! How can you give up when everyone is counting on you? I gasped and sat up, suddenly filled with a bit of hope.
"Dusty, I…" I blubbered over my words as he continued to run through the forest. Dusty looked down for a quick second and let out a big open mouth smile that warmed my heart even more. I wanted to thank him, but the sadness and pain immediately washed up in my head again.
As we headed off together, I was starting to calm down a little. The worst of the pain from my left leg injury was gone, but it still hurt something fierce. I clutched my hand into a fist and tried to bear as much of the misery as possible. Luckily, the troubling thoughts were beginning to recede; I started to give myself small pep talks in my head, just to cheer me up and give me a small boost of confidence.
Suddenly, Dusty stopped walking. He set me down on the forest floor against a stump of a tree.
"Gar, Gar!" Dusty called, a little bit louder than his normal talking voice. There was a pause of silence until I heard something rustle to my right. Quickly turning my gaze, I saw Sycamore's blue radar-like ears pop out from underneath the long branches of a pine tree.
"Sycamore!" I called.
Shh! You will get us caught if you… talk any louder. He emerged from the side of the tree and walked over to us.
"I-I'm so happy to see both of you are okay... But where's Zabu?" I asked. Sycamore and Dusty looked at each nervously before they turned back to me.
I hoped we would find her on our way to retrieve you… But she is nowhere to be found… I think, for now... We must continue on without her… There was a brief pause before one of us talked again. I broke the silence.
"So, what happened? How did you drop me?"
I was not giving enough attention, and tripped on a log… After I dropped you, we all were lost… Luckily, I found Dusty first, and we split up to look for you and Zabu… I am so sorry for my mistake… It looks like I injured you badly...
"Oh, this? It hurts a little, but I'll survive. I know you didn't do it on purpose, Sycamore. We all make mistakes, and you know I forgive you." I said, flashing a smile. Sycamore blushed before there was another pause. The air was still thick with tension as both Pokémon stared off in opposite directions, avoiding eye contact with me. Nobody wanted to talk about what'd just happened. I sighed, feeling the same way.
"Guys… I don't know what to say… What Slowking did… Leaves me speechless…"
I feel the same way… Slowking's sacrifice could have been avoidable… And yet, she continued on with it, fully knowing the direness of our tasks. I may have learned almost all of the words in the English language back at school, but even I cannot express what I am feeling right now…
"Garb…" I turned to Dusty who also looked just as sad. There was another pause as I turned around to face Sycamore again. He was staring up directly at the forest canopy.
The day we met her... After our heated battle, she did not hesitate to take care of our injuries. And almost every day after that, she continued to support us and made sure we would not fail on the road ahead, all out of the kindness of her heart… Slowking was a true friend to me, and to all of you too– and I did not even have a chance to thank her… I thought I saw a tear creep out of his eye before he completely turned away from me.
So, in her honor, we must prove that her decision was not in vain… We must not give up now or ever... To show her we truly cared for her help and for what she stood for!
"Gar, Gar!" Dusty suddenly added, with a nod.
He said that he agrees too, Luke, Sycamore said before turning back to us. Suddenly, I felt a boost of confidence. Hearing all that from my partners really filled me with determination. I don't know why it made me feel that way; maybe it was just good to know I was understood? Suddenly, I felt the emotions rising to my mouth and couldn't help but speak.
"Sycamore's right– I can't just give up because we lost Slowking! Although it hurts to know she isn't here with us anymore... That doesn't mean I should just give up because she's gone! I-I need to show her that her decisions truly helped us succeed! She told us to never lose hope, and here I am doing just that. From now on, I promise I won't give up anymore! Hear me, Slowking? I don't know where you are, but you can count on me never giving up again!" I yelled, my voice echoed up into the sky, quickly lost in the wind and serenity of the woods. The determination and confidence melted away as I covered my mouth, realizing what I'd just done.
I turned to Sycamore and Dusty who I assumed would be shushing me, but instead, they were both tearing up. Like me, they turned away trying to hide their tears, cheeks red-hot with embarrassment.
"...Hey, don't worry you guys… We've still got each other, right? We have to keep going for Slowking, and for the Pokémon World!" I cringed a bit after talking; I was never very good at making people feel better, and my words just seemed cliché.
Let us continue moving… We will continue to look for Zabu along the way. But if we do not find her, she must be left behind… We do not have much time to spare. Sycamore suddenly said, beckoning for us to follow him. He quickly wiped his tears away with the side of his paw before starting off. Dusty then picked me up and began following close behind. However, I wasn't finished yet.
"You guys, wait." Sycamore stopped and turned around while Dusty looked down at me. "Thank you, both of you. You always make me feel so much better. I don't know what I would do without you guys…" I was about to say something, but that last line weighed down the rest of my thought process. Nonetheless, both of them smiled and began the trek through the forest again. Looking up at the sparkling stars again through the canopy, I saw the last of the pink sky melt away into blue.