After paying five hundred Pokédollars per person to the clerk, they each collected their thirty Safari Pokéballs before venturing into the Great Marsh. They had a half-hour time limit. The Marsh consisted of six areas stretching northward, all connected by a tramline. The first thing the Trainers did was flail their arms at the stinging mosquitoes that hung over the marsh in an oppressive cloud.
"I'm going to be eaten alive!" Hannah cried.
"This Marsh is too close to nature!" Manny yelled, running back and forth while Mint capered in dismay.
"I'll try Repel!" Hanny said.
"But we're trying to catch rare Pokémon here!" Manny objected.
"I DON'T CARE!" she declared, spraying the Repel all over her body. She continued flailing. "IT'S NOT WORKING!"
"I'm going back inside!" Manny announced, but a stranger's voice interrupted his retreat.
"Hi there, would you care to buy some mosquito repellant for one hundred Pokédollars?"
The trio ran to the makeshift kiosk nearby. In their distress, they had not noticed it before. The proprietor grinned at them, protected as he was by his product. He was a short, thin person, with dark brown, very smooth skin, with hardly a wrinkle to be seen. Wriggling like mad Caterpie, the Trainers slapped bills onto the counter, receiving three large plastic tubes in return.
"It's waterproof, sweatproof, hypoallergenic, PABA-free, non-comedogenic, fast-absorbing, has no shiny finish and leaves no oily or greasy residue. It goes on fresh and stays on all day, leaving your skin soft and smooth. It also has a SPF of 100," he informed them.
"I don't understand half of what you just said, but thanks," Mint sighed with relief as he and his friends slathered the green-white cream all over their exposed head, neck and arms. The repellant smelt faintly of grass and flowers.
"This feels wonderful! If it does everything you say then why don't you sell it commercially?" Hannah asked.
"I don't want to. Run along, children!"
They obliged. The Marsh lay before them; an expanse of watery, muddy swampland that was completely uninviting and smelly. The first thing Mint did was get stuck in the mud. He struggled, popping out.
"I lost my shoes!" he realised, squelching about in the muck. He bent over, trying to dig out his footwear, but lost balance and fell over with a wet splat. "I'm sinking!"
Hannah grabbed his backpack, yanking him out of the mire. He now looked and smelt like his fetid surroundings.
"Aw man, I liked those shoes! I've worn them since we started our adventure together!"
"You think you've got problems!" Manny shot back, his voice high-pitched with alarm. "I just rested my backpack on a rock, and it sank into the mud along with the rock! HELP ME GET IT BACK, YOU GUYS!"
He summoned Torterra and Vaporeon. Torterra immediately began sinking into the mud.
"Tor!" the huge Pokémon cried out in horror. "Terra!"
"Por!" Vaporeon yelped in panic, biting down on Torterra's thick shell, trying to pull him out. All the water Pokémon managed to do was chomp a mouthful of dirt and rock off of the shell. He spat it out, jumping up and down in anguish at seeing his friend sink. "Va-POR-e-ON!"
"Vaporeon, freeze the mud with Ice Beam!"
One concentrated arctic blast later, Torterra was frozen solid and unconscious, but alive. Manny covered his face with both hands, overcome by his impressive failure.
"Why the heck did you put your bag on a rock?" Hannah asked with both hands in the air for emphasis.
"I wanted to take out my fishing rod."
"You'll just be fishing out a popsicle this time," Mint snickered. Manny bopped him on the head, but regretted it, as his fist was now covered in slime. Snickering even more, Mint tossed a Pokéball. "Infernape, you're strong enough to dig out Torterra. Help us!"
The fire Pokémon burrowed at a fantastic rate around Torterra. It then burrowed below, heaving the seven-hundred-pound turtle onto the bank in one go.
"Wow, your Infernape made that look easy!"
Mint flexed both arms. "Infernape can take down your Torterra any day of the week."
"Infer!" his Pokémon called out, tossing a large ball of muck onto the bank beside the frozen Torterra. Manny cried out with joy.
"My backpack!"
He scraped frozen mud off of it, hugging it like a long-lost pet. Infernape leaped out of the hole, covered in cold stinky grime, but not caring in the least. He was, after all, Mint's Pokémon.
"Uh, Manny? Aren't you forgetting something?" Mint reminded him.
"Buh? OH! Torterra, Vaporeon, return!"
"I meant you forgot to say 'Thank you'."
"Thank you, Mint. Thanks, Infernape!"
"Nape!" the monkey gave a thumbs-up before returning to his Pokéball.
Manny kept his dirty backpack firmly strapped on for the remainder of their adventure in the Great Marsh. Hannah and Mint each caught a Tangela, Yanma, Barboach, Whiscash, Skorupi, Croagunk and Carnivine. Manny caught a rare Tropius.
"Yay! A Pokémon that can learn HM Cut, Fly, AND Defog! Between this and my Bibarel, I now have access to all eight HM moves!"
"Congratulations. Meanwhile, my team of six Pokémon knows all eight moves among them, and I don't have to lug around two extras," Hannah said.
"Teaching them too many moves is wrong! They should only learn four each!"
"What do you think this is; a video game? Pokémon can learn as many moves as they like! Orric can use Cut, Strength, Rock Smash, Rock Climb, Earthquake, Stone Edge, Razor Leaf, Swords Dance AND Flash! Specialisation is for non-Pokémon insects!"
Manny was nonplussed. "How does Orric perform Flash?"
Hanny performed a clap burst with jazz hands. "Magic."
Soon after, Hannah caught a Wooper.
The tiny blue-skinned water Pokémon looked up at Hanny with its beady little black eyes. It cocked its oversized head to one side. "Woooo-PAH!" it exclaimed with a very wide smile.
Hanny let out an almost supersonic shrill of joy.
"IT'S SO CUTE! IF MY PARTY WASN'T ALREADY FULL UP I WOULD USE YOU RIGHT NOW! DID YOU HEAR THE SOUND IT JUST MADE?!"
She babbled like that for a few minutes, hopping around her new Wooper, inspecting him from every possible angle.
"LOOKIT THE LIDDLE TAIL!" she shrieked, hugging it.
"Wooooooo-PAH!"
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Your name is YIPPY!"
Manny and Mint covered their ears. While Hannah made a fuss over Yippy each and every step of their exploration, Manny and Mint discussed the insanity of their female companion.
"Is she bipolar?"
"Naw, Manny, she just loves Pokémon. Cute Pokémon. Violently."
The time limit bell rang, forcing the Trainers to retire. Mint had to fly back home to get new shoes, so Manny and Hanny took turns showering at the local Pokémon Centre before flying back to Eterna City. Hanny would not leave Yippy in his Pokéball, and cuddled him in her arms, even when flying on Wise Shitashi.
"Wooo-PAH!"
"SO CUUUUUUUUUUUTE!"
888
Under the gathering gloom of Eterna Forest, the Chateau appeared far more sinister at night. The moonlit shadows made the building look like an ancient horror ready to devour the children. Manny and Hanny met Mint waiting for them. He was clean and sported shoes that looked just like the ones the Marsh ate.
"Do you have a closet full of identical clothes?" Hanny asked him.
"Manny and I do. Don't you?"
"No, I'm normal. Try not to squeal like a Spoink at all the ghosts inside."
Mint shivered. "Ugh."
Manny flexed his arms. "Nothing can faze me after what I went through with Giratina."
Filled with bravado, Manny entered the rickety old mansion, leaving the front doors swinging in the breeze.
"Man, it is dark in here. I think I'll summon Rapidash. How about you, Hanny?"
There was no reply.
"Hanny…? Mint?"
No answer. The wind had stopped. No sound but his own breathing.
"Oh, I get it now. A ghost is doing this!"
Manny reached for his belt. Six spheres were missing. His shoulders felt lighter.
"Heh, wow. It's making me believe my Pokémon and backpack are gone. What next? Will it sneak up behind me and yell 'BOO!'?"
Instead, Manny felt the cold chill of death stroke his spine.
"Oooh! The classic chill running down my spine! This ghost is good!"
The boy then lost motor control and flopped onto the ground like a Slaking.
"Hahaha! They didn't mention this one in the cartoons! I can't even twitch my toes!"
The boy then lay there for the next few minutes musing at his 'horrible' predicament. When the minutes stretched on, he ceased being amused. When minutes became hours and moonlight filled the mansion, he began calling for help. In the back of his mind, he knew it was an illusion, but on the other hand, he needed to use the bathroom. His voice became sore and a little frantic after a fruitless hour of calling out, so he decided to fall asleep instead.
When he awoke, Manny was lying in a hospital bed, with sunlight filtering through the window slats. His mother was sitting next to him. The look on her face did not give him hope.
"Manny!"
He tried to roll over, but couldn't. He tried to lift, even wiggle a finger, but couldn't.
"Mom, is this real?"
"Manny, where are Mint and Hanny?"
"They went with me to the Chateau."
"Listen. Gardenia called me yesterday and told me when and where you were rude to her. You didn't answer your phone. I tried Hanny and Mint, but they didn't pick up, either. I went to the Chateau myself. I found you lying there alone. Your backpack and Pokéballs were missing. You didn't wake up when I smacked you, so here you are in Eterna hospital."
"I didn't get any calls from you yesterday. The ghost blocked wireless signals, kidnapped my friends AND took all my stuff? Where'd they go?"
"I don't know. Nobody knows. They're conducting a search."
"I don't think they'll find them until the ghost lets them go. That place is haunted, you know."
Manny tried to move again, but no signals were getting to his limbs.
"Why can't I move?"
"The doctors have no idea. They conducted an MRI scan earlier this morning, and nothing showed up abnormal."
"This is all an illusion."
"I'm sure it is. Cynthia's on the way to conduct a paranormal exam."
The Champion arrived with her grandma and Lucian in tow. They and their Pokémon, undisputed masters of the mind and the beyond, scanned Manny for a few hours. They got no results.
"It isn't any paralysis caused by Pokémon. Spiritomb doesn't detect other ghosts or a curse afflicting you. Alakazam can't find any external psychic influence on your mind or body. What happened in there?" Lucian asked.
"I walked through the Chateau door at night and fell over."
"I'm out of ideas. We'll get Giratina from your PC," Cynthia said.
"Thank you. If I had taken her in the first place, she would have protected me and my friends from the ghost."
Johanna stayed with Manny as he lay there on the hospital bed. He had to be fed by a nurse and use a bedpan, but that was okay; the legendary ghost dragon was sure to help him with this paranormal problem.
Johanna's phone rang. "Cynthia? Hold on."
She put her on speakerphone: "Manny, we're logged in to the PC at the Pokémon Centre. Your storage system is empty - your Pokémon, emails, items - everything."
"The heck is going on?!"
"We wish we knew. We checked Mint and Hannah's storage systems - also empty. It's like they were erased from existence."
"I can't believe the ghost did all that. Wait, I know what happened! The illusion isn't just me. This whole world is an illusion! You and Mom and this paralysis... none of it is real! I'm still dreaming!"
"If that's true, I hope you wake up soon."
Though he knew he was trapped in his mind, the illusion did not go away. One day, two days passed. Manny was becoming impatient with his inert body. He performed mighty struggles to break free of the illusion - or was it reality? - but it was useless. Days turned into a week, and doctors suggested that Manny be cared for at home.
He couldn't even play his PS2. He just lay in his room, day after day, while his mother tended to his biological needs. He became extremely frustrated, and spent his waking hours screaming at his empty room, and at his mother, who had done nothing to deserve his anger.
Then, his voice began to go. It was not just his sore throat. He could feel control of his voice slipping further and further away. Eventually, he was mute, and could only move his eyes. He had to be tube-fed. Then, his eyes stopped moving, and his mother had to close his eyelids lest they dried. He could still hear and feel everything when he was moved back to the hospital.
He heard doctors and nurses coming and going, felt them open an eye and shine a bright light that he could not cringe away from, felt various needles go into his flesh, heard as he was loaded into the big MRI machine.
Then came the most terrible thought of all: What if this was not an illusion? What if an evil ghost really had erased his friends?
He was no longer a Trainer or even a boy. He was a living corpse, worse than a zombie because his mind still worked perfectly. His mind screamed, but his mouth could not, would not. His mind writhed and contorted, but his hands and feet could not, would not. Every waking moment, his mind screamed until he was mentally exhausted, then slept. Every day, he heard his mother sobbing and touching his face, asking him to wake up. He dreamed of flying, only to awaken to his body-coffin and resume his silent howling.
After a few weeks of this, which to Manny were a few years, he one day heard a doctor suggest that they stop feeding him. He heard the resounding hand slap that, no doubt, came from his mother, but every fiber of his body strained to beg the doctor, "Please kill me."
888
With that fatal thought, Manny woke up in the Old Chateau. The first thing he did was fall down because he had, apparently, been standing. He then realised he had control over his bodily functions, and wept. He scraped the old floorboards with his fingernails, doubled over in the sweet agony of being mobile. It took him a good few minutes to recover from his bout of joyous blubbering. He rolled over and got to his feet. He had feet again! He had arms and hands again! He touched his own face for the first time in months. He then reached down, finding his Pokéballs fastened to his belt. His backpack hung from his shoulders. He was human again.
He shuddered, but not from the cold. Had that living nightmare all been an illusion? How much time had passed? He summoned Rapidash. By the bright firelight of her mane he saw two figures standing right beside him. He screamed and jumped, causing Rapidash to neigh with fright and rear up on her hindlegs.
"Hanny and Mint! You guys!"
He could not remember ever feeling so happy to see another person. He walked to Hannah. Like Mint, she was staring off into space. The moment Manny touched her, she collapsed onto the ground. When she opened her eyes, it was as though the soul behind them had disappeared. The first thing she did was lunge at Manny and embrace him in a deathgrip.
"You're real. You're real!"
"I can't breathe!"
"You're real!"
She began keening, and Manny joined her. He had a voice again! He had found Hanny! It was too much to bear after that months-long horror. When they calmed down, Hannah broke her vicegrip, but would not let go of his hand. She didn't bother to wipe her tears, and neither did he.
"What happened to you?" he asked. "I was paralysed for months, unable to move, speak or open my eyes!"
She was shaking violently but stammered out her words. "Everyone was gone! No humans, no Pokémon, not even regular animals and insects! Just plants! I wandered all over Sinnoh, from the Great Marsh to the peak of Mount Coronet. The towns and cities were there, but nobody in them, not even ghosts! I had all the food and water I could ever eat, but there was nothing, no-one to share it with!"
Hannah clung to him again. She was still shaking.
"I tried the Internet. Not one of the thousands of social networking sites had recorded a single user logging on or making a post. Not one. I must have pressed the F5 key a million times. I tried the radio and even Jubilife TV but only got static. I learned how to use one of the boats at Canalave City. I learned how to read coordinates and sailed west until I hit the mainland. There was no-one! I learned how to drive a car. The port was deserted; every town I drove to was deserted! Everyone on the planet was gone!"
She began sobbing again. Manny clung to her, reveling in the ability to exert any kind of force with his arms. He stroked her blonde hair while Rapidash whinnied and nosed the two humans, wondering what all the bawling was about.
"I'm so glad it wasn't real, Hanny. Let's see about Mint."
Mint reacted the same way Hannah had: he crumbled onto the ground before realising he was looking at two living, breathing humans. He hugged the life out of them. His nightmare was exactly the same as Hannah's: no humans, Pokémon or other moving creatures anywhere; just plants and empty cities. He had not gone further than Sinnoh, though.
"I just walked off the top of Spear Pillar," he confessed with a straight face, as though he had just said the most reasonable thing in the world.
Hannah nodded. "I jumped off a cliff. Clichéd, I know."
Manny sighed. "I heard a doctor recommend that they stop feeding me. I wanted to ask that doctor to kill me."
"I'd've done the same," Mint said.
"Me too. I couldn't take it anymore. I'm just a kid!" Hanny cried. "Why would anyone do this to us?"
"I am getting the heck out of here," Mint said, scrambling for the door. Manny, Hanny and Rapidash followed suit. They did not stop running until they were safely within Eterna City. People were still walking the streets at this hour, and the three children effused warmth and happiness at these complete strangers.
Hannah beamed at a middle-aged gentleman. "What's your name, sir? Francis? That is the best name in the whole world! Reach safely home, Francis!"
"Do you need help loading that truck, sir? I'd be delighted to help!" Manny said, then began hefting cardboard boxes with a stupid grin on his face.
"Your daughter or son will become a beautiful lady or handsome man!" Mint told a couple who were pushing their baby in a pram.
The three Trainers spent the next hour complimenting and helping anyone they could find while Rapidash grazed under a tree. When they were spent, the Trainers retrieved Rapidash and settled in for the best sleep of their lives at the Pokémon Centre.
888
The next morning, the three Trainers each had the best shower of their lives. They then proceeded to have the best breakfast they had ever eaten. They laughed and chatted with the other Trainers and even the staff members, creating a joyous atmosphere. A few of the people they had met the night before passed through the Pokémon Centre and remarked at how lively and happy the three children were.
Later that morning, the Trainers bade farewell to their new friends and flew to Sunyshore City. As they crested the clouds, they spoke loudly above the rushing wind.
"It feels good to fly again," Manny said. He didn't care that he was crying like a baby. "Up! Up and away!"
"Everything feels good, even the sunlight," Hannah said. Mint just cried 'Wheeee!' and did a barrel roll with Togekiss. When the Trainers landed in Sunyshore, they headed for the Gym and asked to see Volkner. The Gym Leader met them outside.
"Hey guys, what's up?"
"Can we see your Rotom, please?" Manny asked.
"Manny, I told you I wouldn't make it easy for you! You have to see one for yourself at the Old Chateau!"
As though of a singular mind, the three Trainers began to smile at Volkner. They were not pleasant smiles. His flesh crawled.
"Volkner, unless you summon your Rotom right here, right now, we will burn down your Gym," Manny said in the sweetest voice.
"We will burn down the entire city of Sunyshore," Hanny said with a mellifluous voice.
"Then, we'll begin burning down the towns and cities, one by one, until you show us your Rotom," Mint said with honeyed words.
Volkner swallowed the lump in his throat. The children were still smiling at him. They were the most beautiful, serene smiles that had ever graced human faces.
"R-Rotom, I choose you."
The three children opened their Pokédexes, recorded the tiny electric ghost, then walked off without a word.
"D-do you have any idea why those kids seemed almost eager to incinerate everything I know and love?" Volkner asked his small friend.
Rotom shrugged its little lightning-bolt wings, nonplussed.