Danica walked onto the set of the movie the next morning, so nervous that she was shaking. Even with Combusken at her side, the prospect of being in an actual movie was almost too much to bear. Combusken looked at her with concern written all over his face.
"Danica are you ok?" he asked.
"Oh!" she yelped, jumping a little in surprise. "Y-Yeah I'm fine…"
"You're going to be great. Just relax and be the amazing person I know." He reminded her. Danica visibly relaxed her body and gave him a genuine well-earned smile.
"Thanks, Combusken. I needed that." She replied. Combusken smiled back at her until they both saw Sterling running towards them.
"Danica darling!" he cried out, clasping his hands onto her shoulders. "It's wonderful to have you here! Simply wonderful!"
"Thanks…I'll do my very best to help however I can." She assured him.
"I know you will! And you're just the kind of heroine I need for this action-packed movie!"
"Well then…what do you need me to do?"
"I need to know everything about you!"
"Huh?!"
"I'm reworking the entire story around your character! So I must know everything about you to make the flow perfect!" he explained.
"W-Well um…" Danica gulped. She knew full well that telling him everything would include some things that she herself had only found out about a week ago. And she still wasn't sure that these truths were something that she wanted to broadcast to others yet. Especially not through a possibly international released movie. She glanced at her partner who seemed to understand what was going through her head. With a reassuring look from him, Danica took a deep breath and finally answered. "Well, I guess…the most important thing to know about me is how much I love Pokémon."
"Of course! Of course! All Trainers love Pokémon!" Sterling nodded.
"It goes beyond that." Danica quickly interjected.
"Beyond?" he questioned.
"I have a certain…bond with all Pokémon. While I'm still closest with my own Pokémon like everyone else…I have the ability to kind of…I guess the best word would be "sense" what all Pokémon are feeling. I can understand them on another level, even if I can't understand what they're saying." She explained further.
"How interesting…" Sterling commented. "What's the source of this sixth sense?"
"I…I don't know." Danica lied. "But it's core to who I am."
"Interesting…a hero who can empathize with Pokémon just as well as with people." He muttered to himself. He quickly grabbed a notebook and pen off a nearby table and jotted down some notes. "This is very very good. Keep going. I saw you produce some kind of shield during the fight last night. Explain that to me."
"Well, that's a family trait. A power to see and control Aura that my ancestors have passed down. But that takes time and practice to master fully. The shield yesterday came up by accident." She admitted as Sterling took down notes.
"I must know what other Pokémon you have with you. I want your entire team to be on full display in this movie."
"Sure." She nodded. She pulled out her other three pokeballs and tossed them, letting out Zigzagoon, Tropius, and Ralts. "Everyone this is Sterling. The director of the movie I told you about."
"Zigzagoon!" Zigzagoon snickered.
"Trop." Tropius nodded to Sterling politely.
"Ralts!" Ralts waved excitedly.
"And of course you already know Combusken." Danica added, gesturing to her partner. Combusken crossed his arms across his chest with a confident smirk.
"I feel it with these Pokémon too! Just like you, they'll all make amazing actors!" Sterling exclaimed. "This all is fantastic! This movie will be even better than I could have imagined! I must go fix the script! All of you go through make-up and wardrobe and I'll meet you on set!"
"O-Ok…" Danica nodded. And just as fast as he had appeared, Sterling rushed off to do his rewrites. "If only I knew where to go to do that…"
"Ra ralts!" Ralts called, tugging on her leg. Danica looked at the little Psychic type and saw that she was pointing towards a section of the set where there were people setting up the scene and some others putting makeup and clothes on the extras.
"That's probably it. Nice work Ralts." Danica smiled. Ralts smiled back at her and the group walked over to the crew. "Excuse me? Is this where we come for makeup and costumes?"
"That's me." A brunette woman called out. Danica and her Pokémon walked over to her and she smiled. "You must be Danica right?"
"That's me." Danica nodded.
"Well first off, congratulations on getting this part." The woman said. "Second off, my name is Victoria. I'll be taking care of you while you're on set. Makeup, costumes, hair, even just if you want a glass of water, you just let me know."
"O-Oh there's really no need for that. I'm sure I can get my own water." Danica replied, a bead of embarrassed sweat rolling down her temple.
"Ah, and you're humble to boot. I love it." Victoria commented. She patted a chair in front of a lit mirror and smiled. "Come on and sit here. I'll get you all ready to go."
"Thank you." Danica replied, sitting down in the chair. Victoria quickly got to work styling Danica's hair and putting on makeup. "So…how much do you know about Sterling and this movie?"
"More than most." Victoria answered. "His dad was a big star at the original Pokéstar Studios in Unova. Sterling's dream was to write and direct a movie that his dad stared in. But unfortunately, his dad died in a car crash a few years ago."
"Oh no…that's awful…" Danica said, her face falling.
"It was really hard on Sterling. That's why he wants this first movie to go off well. He wants to continue his father's legacy. Even improve upon it."
"I can certainly understand wanting to do your family proud." Danica nodded.
"As for the movie itself, it follows the same theme of family and teamwork. The Mecha Tyranitar that you fought yesterday was a prop from this movie. The robot will be an out-of-control device that was originally created to help with natural disasters. You and your Pokémon will be agents of a Hoenn Defense Force that are sent in to stop it." Victoria explained.
"So…it'll be all scripted out? What the robot will do and what lines we'll have?" Danica asked.
"More or less. The thing about Pokéstar Studios is that while there is a loose plot, the battles and dialogue chosen by the actors are real. So you and your Pokémon will have to battle the robot. But if something were to go wrong, we have a kill switch that will shut it down quickly so no one gets seriously hurt." Victoria further explained.
"I see…" Danica gulped.
"Don't worry. From what I heard you and your Pokémon handled yourselves very well last night. You'll all be fine." Victoria smiled.
"Thank you. I'll do my best." Danica nodded. Within an hour or so, Danica's hair and makeup had been done and she had gotten into her costume, a red jumpsuit with gloves, boots, and a red helmet and electronic visor. She met back up with her Pokémon and found each of them had been given an accessory with the same emblem that was on her uniform. "Wow! You all look great!"
"Thanks." Combusken smiled with an armband around his right arm.
"Ral!" Ralts squealed with a little cap on her head.
"Zigzag!" Zigzagoon agreed, wagging his tail with his band on it.
"Tropius." Tropius nodded with his own band around his neck.
"Danica darling!" Sterling called as he ran towards her. "The script is finally done!"
"That's great Sterling." She replied.
"Oh and you all look fabulous as well! Perfect!"
"Thank you." Danica said with a small blush. "So should we start at the beginning?"
"No actually!" he answered.
"Huh?" she questioned.
"The part of an action movie that everyone wants to see is the big climax fight. So we must shoot that first in order to set the tone for the rest of the movie!" Sterling explained.
"So…we're going to fight Mecha Tyranitar today…? Right now?" she gulped.
"Yes exactly! Let's get into positions everyone!" he replied before running off. Danica gulped nervously before turning to her Pokémon. Each of them gave her a nod of confidence and slowly her nerves began to fade.
"Alright…let's do it." She and her smaller Pokémon climbed up onto Tropius's back. Tropius took off from the ground and stayed level in the air just off-screen to prepare for their entrance.
"Let's shoot this people! Just do what comes naturally!" Sterling called out to them. With a nod from Danica, all the cameras got into position. "And action!" at his call, the Mecha Tyranitar was turned on and it began destroying the life-sized set, dozens of extras screaming and running away from it as it marched slowly down the street.
"Where's the Defense Force?!" a woman screamed.
"Please help us!" another yelled. The Mecha Tyranitar swung its arm and sent debris hurtling towards some of the extras who all braced for the impact.
"Gust attack now!" Danica called on cue.
"Trop!" Tropius called, flapping his wings hard and sending a gust of wind onto the set and blowing the debris away from the people it was going to land on.
"Look up there!" a man called, pointing up at Danica and her Pokémon as they flew onto the set. "It's the Hoenn Defense Force!"
"Everyone evacuate the city as fast as you can!" Danica ordered. "We'll handle the robot!" the people in the streets thanked her and took off running down the streets. The Mecha Tyranitar roared loudly and fired off lasers from its eyes towards Danica and her team.
"Ralts!" Ralts screamed. Danica gasped and was able to put up a force field with her Aura at the last minute. The beams bounced off her shield and the shield fell seconds later.
"We have to stop that thing!" she told her Pokémon. "Combusken use Double Kick! And Zigzagoon use Scratch!"
"On it!" Combusken answered.
"Zig!" Zigzagoon agreed. Combusken picked Zigzagoon up in his arm and leaped up off of Tropius's back. The jump sent him up high, even higher than the Mecha Tyranitar. With a midair spin for extra power, Combusken threw Zigzagoon right at Mecha Tyranitar before following right behind. Zigzagoon extended his claws and scratched at the robot's outer metal shell until Combusken landed a Double Kick not far from him. Mecha Tyranitar stumbled back a bit, but this time it stayed upright easily.
"Oh no!" Danica gasped. The Mecha Tyranitar suddenly began to reach up towards its head where the two Pokémon were standing. "Get out of there you two!"
"Hang on!" Combusken yelled as he grabbed Zigzagoon. He jumped off the robot's head just before they could get grabbed and landed back onto Tropius.
"Are you guys ok?!" Danica asked. Both Pokémon nodded and she sighed in relief. "Its hull is too hard to break through. We need to find a way to-" she's suddenly cut off by a scream. Everyone turned their attention back to Mecha Tyranitar to see the robot picking up a young child actor in his giant claw.
"Help me!" he yelled towards Danica.
"Tropius get us in close! Ralts get ready to use Confusion!" she ordered. Tropius nodded and flew in towards Mecha Tyranitar as fast as he could. "Now Ralts!"
"Ral!" Ralts called, jumping off Tropius's back. She caught herself in the air with Confusion before surrounding the young boy with Confusion as well.
"Give her some cover fire!" Danica told her remaining Pokémon.
"Tropius!" Tropius yelled, sending out a barrage of Razor Leaf at Tyranitar's head.
"I'm on it!" Combusken joined in, launching into Quick Attack after Quick Attack on the robot's head. Distracted by the attacks, Mecha Tyarnitar's grip on the child loosened enough for Ralts to levitate him out of the robot's grip. She lowered him down safely to the ground before releasing her Confusion.
"Thank you!" he waved to her before running off down the street. Ralts gave a small wave back before levitating herself back up to Tropius. She landed on his back just as the Mecha Tyrnitar took a swing of its massive arm at the group. Tropius and Combusken broke off their attack quickly when they saw the arm coming at them. Combusken quickly got back to Tropius and Tropius moved out of the range of Mecha Tyranitar's arm and up into the air higher than the Mecha Tyranitar could reach.
"We've got to find a way to get past that hull…" Danica muttered to herself. It was at that moment that she noticed something. A good-sized cut in the hull could be seen near the neck of the robot, most likely formed during the onslaught of Razor Leaf. Danica was suddenly struck with an idea. "That's it! Tropius go straight in for the head."
"Pius!" Tropius answered, beginning a descent towards Mecha Tyranitar.
"Zigzgoon!" Danica called to her Normal Type.
"Zig?" he asked, looking at her curiously.
"When we get close I need you to get inside that opening and find the power source. We'll provide you as much distraction as we can. Can you do it?"
"Zigzagoon!" he nodded. Danica nodded back and within seconds they closed in on their target.
"Now!" Danica called. Zigzagoon leaped off Tropius's back and landed square on Mecha Tyranitar's head. At that same time, Ralts launched a Magical Leaf attack on another part of the head, covering up the impact of Zigzagoon. The robot turned its head in the direction of the attack and roared as the three remaining Pokémon launched attacks after attacks.
"Zigzag!" Zigzagoon snickered. He carefully made his way down the robot's head and squeezed inside through the opening from before. He crawled through the mechanical guts of Mecha Tyranitar until he found himself near what looked to be a massive engine. With a mischievous smirk, he moved in closer.
"Dodge now!" Danica called. Tropius obeyed her command and narrowly dodged the swing of Mecha Tyranitar's tail. Ralts tried to launch another Magical Leaf attack from Tropius's back, but the leaves were destroyed by a laser from its eyes. Combusken even landed another Double Kick, but it only left him open for a hit from Mecha Tyranitar's arm which sent him flying towards the ground.
"Tropius!" Tropius yelled, flying fast enough that Danica was able to catch Combusken in her arms before he hit the ground.
"Combusken are you ok?!" she asked with great concern.
"I'll be fine…" he assured her. Mecha Tyranitar took a big step towards them and Danica could see how tired the three of them were. They didn't have the strength to launch another attack. The robot's eyes began to glow and prepare for another laser blast and Danica braced for it with her Pokémon. All of a sudden, whirring noises were heard and the blast never came. Danica and her Pokémon looked up to see the Mecha Tyranitar seemingly shutting down. The lights in its eyes slowly turned off and the joints became stiff. Eventually, the robot lost its balance and fell backward, landing on its back in the middle of the street. After a few moments of stunned silence, Tropius flew down to the ground where Ralts, Combusken, and Danica hopped off.
"Zigzagoon?! Zigzagoon are you ok?!" she yelled as loud as she could. A few moments of more silence passed before suddenly a bit of the rubble around Mecha Tyranitar began to shift. Danica ran to it with the rest of her Pokémon close behind. They arrived where the shift occurred just in time to see Zigzagoon pop his head out of the rubble with chewed wires in his mouth.
"Zigzagoon!" he announced proudly.
"That was amazing!" Danica cheered. With a big smile, Zigzagoon jumped up into her arms. She caught him and accidentally fell backward, but still hugging him and laughing as the others soon joined in on the hug as well. "You guys are all the best!"
"And cut!" Sterling suddenly called. All the actors and crew relaxed finally as the eccentric kid leaped up from his chair. "That was even more amazing than I could have ever dreamed!"
"I have to admit, that was intense and the most fun I've had in a long time." Danica admitted, getting up onto her feet and dusting herself off.
"Definitely!" Combusken agreed.
"If all of the scenes of the movie go over even half as well as that one did then we're going to have one hit of a movie!" Sterling declared.
"You really think so?" Danica asked with a smile.
"No doubt about it!" he replied. Danica looked back to her Pokémon and smiled.
"You guys want to keep going?" All three of them cheered happily in response. "Then let's do it."
After about a month of filming, Danica's movie was finished and then released in the Pokéstar Studios Theater. At first, not many people were coming to the theater in general, much less coming to see her movie in particular. But the people who did come see the movie began to give rave reviews, telling their friends and family about how good the movie was. Eventually, more people began coming in and the cycle repeated several times until the movie had earned an amazing profit within its first month.
"Whoa…" Danica whispered as she read the newspaper in her room at the Pokémon Center. The paper was running a story about not only how successful her movie was, but also how it has begun to inspire others to try their hand at making a movie in Pokéstar Studios.
"What's up?" Combusken asked her.
"Our movie has done even better than Sterling said it would." She explained.
"It was so much fun to make. I'm glad it's doing well." He replied. They both heard a knock at the door in the middle of their conversation. Danica set the paper down and opened up the door to her visitor.
"Oh, Sterling. Hi." She greeted him.
"Danica darling! Wonderful to see you!" he responded in his usual loud and excited tone.
"What are you doing here?" she asked curiously.
"I'm here with offers for you to do more movies! Everyone wants their stories to be directed by me with you as the star!" he explained. Danica's jaw literally dropped at the news as she struggled to find a response.
"You…You're serious?" she stuttered.
"Very!" he said, showing her a stack of scripts that he had pulled from his bag.
"Wow…" she gasped.
"I know you only did my movie to give Pokéstar Studios a chance. But I do hope you'll consider accepting. I think we could make a great team. If you want to that is." He offered. Danica began to think long and hard about Sterling's offer. She had so much fun making the movie with her Pokémon. They were all working together and showing off their skills and talents without the need for competition. And the truth was she really wanted to do it again. But doubts began to creep into her mind. Was she making a mistake by clinging to this trainer path so soon? Soon though she was pulled out of her thoughts by Combusken's claws gently touching her hand.
"Combusken?" she asked, looking at him. He gave her a smile and instantly her fears vanished. She knew her Pokémon had as much fun as she did making that movie and it helped them all grow even closer. It wasn't a hasty decision. It was just her path finally becoming clear. "I'll do it."
"Alright!" Combusken cheered.
"Wonderful!" Sterling exclaimed. "Hold onto something Danica! We're in for an amazing ride!"
To be Continued...