RJ "Jay" Writing Ink reads through The Wandering Hippie's review, and then his eyes fall upon the comment on the time.*

Jay: Ah, crapbaskets. Thanks for pointing that out, Hippie. I mean for you guys to start it there, but for the life of me, the words didn't add in. That has been corrected. Now, if you'll excuse me...

*Jay snaps his fingers, and his hoodie's replaced with a more formal hoodie meant to resemble a suit and tie.*

Jay: I have to go and direct a memorial service. Enjoy the chapter, people.

Three minutes. That's how long it'd been since Marcia Diaz, her group of friends, and the two Pokémon set foot in this digital realm. Three minutes since they underwent the process that turned works of fiction like Tron, Code Lyoko, Cyberchase, and Sword Art Online into reality. Or, virtual reality might be the correct term, though no one wanted to argue about it. An entirely virtual world, built to house Pokémon, and they were standing in it. They could reach out and touch it and its inhabitants. They were already used to having actual Pokémon, thanks to Coryn's presence in their lives, but that wasn't the same. That was Comet somehow using magic to bring a creature from a video game to life. To be able to set foot in the world of Pokémon was like nothing they'd ever experienced.

Pokémon, an abbreviation of the words "Pocket Monsters." The games had been around for twenty-six years; the anime for twenty-five. They came out right as video games went mainstream, and anime got its foot in the door in the West on Toonami, Kids WB, and other networks. And while not all of the teens present were gamers, they had all at least heard of Pokémon. The franchise was that famous. So, naturally, everyone, sans Alfonso and Coryn, reacted in the only way possible: standing there and gawking at it like crazy.

Jonah, who normally hid his thoughts behind a mask of impassive apathy, couldn't help but look impressed. He had to admire Comet and Alfonso's ambition...and he couldn't help but think of all the ways he could make money off of this.

Jackson, ever the cool and collected guy, said nothing. He kept a smile, happy to see what his friends had created. Likewise, Karla stood there, admiring the cool place she was in and wondering if she could get away with a cover song of the original theme for Pokémon on YouTube and TikTok.

Aqua, for her part, looked around the land, her eyes sparkling with wonder and amazement as Misty started squeeing in happiness. There were so many other Pokémon around. So many creatures that neither had ever seen before. More importantly, though, so many of them were water-based! More new friends to make!

The ones who had the biggest reactions were Marcia and Ferguson. Both liked playing video games, partly because Marcia became friends with Alfonso and Ferguson. Ferguson, for his part, stared at the sight of the place, his face oscillating between wanting to pass out and feeling like he had died and gone to Heaven. On the other hand, Marcia stood equally shocked, but it went away fairly quickly. Instead, Marcia felt another emotion welling inside her: annoyance. With a scowl, she walked up to Alfonso, grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, and looked him dead in the eye.

"You. Explain this. NOW." Marcia said, pointing to the Park.

"Um, what exactly do you mean by that?" Alfonso asked, confused, nervous, and, to a lesser extent, scared of invoking Marcia's wrath. She didn't show it much, but Marcia could be a force of nature when she got angry. It was kind of awesome, actually...platonically, of course.

"This, Alfonso. All of this," Marcia asked, now visibly irritated. "What is all of this doing in my house?"

"To be fair, we're not in your house right now," Ferguson said. "We're in a virtual world on a bunch of servers-"

"Servers that are inside my house," Marcia pointed out. "Therefore, they're still in my house! And that is a huge problem, Alfonso."

"I am sorry, Marcia, but I do not understand. Why is this a problem?" Aqua spoke up.

"Because I remember having an important talk with Comet, Aqua," Marcia told the Princess. "Of how I didn't want anymore Pokémon brought to life in my family's home. Not one. No Pikachu's, no Psyduck's, no little Eevee's-"

"Oh, I love them!" Ferguson regretted saying that, as Marcia glared at him before she continued.

"-No Magikarp's, no Miltank's, NO EXCUSES." Marcia was pretty pissed off at this point. Not only had Comet and Alfonso gone and made this place behind her back and against her rules, but this was probably why her family's electric bill had gone up in the last month or so. She wasn't happy about this. "Now, where is Comet? I need to give him an earful for this, too."

"How am I supposed to know where he is? I've been with you guys the whole time," Alfonso argued, to which Marcia had to concede the point. That did little to deter her, though.

"Fine, then we'll have to find him in this place. He's certain to have gotten himself into some trouble," Marcia said as she took charge of the situation. "We'll find him, get out of here, and then we can decide what we should do with all...this," she said as she waved at their surroundings.

Surprisingly, Ferguson ended up being the first person to put the pieces together. "No! Marcia, please! You can't be thinking of pulling the plug on this place!"

"Aw, what?" "Boo!" "No way!" everyone protested.

Ferguson ran over to Marcia and practically grabbed Marcia by the arms. "MARCIA, PLEASE DON'T DO IT! YOU WILL BE BETRAYING EVERYTHING YOU STAND FOR AS A GAMER!"

"Okay, first off, please let go before my karate reflexes kick in," Marcia warned him.

"Sorry," Ferguson said as he complied.

"Second of all, Ferguson, I am trying to think of how Alfonso and Comet's little unauthorized project could affect Echo Creek." When she saw several friends weren't following her logic, she sighed. "Look, we've all seen the Jurassic Park films? And that includes the Jurassic World ones with Chris Pratt."

"Say what you want about the plot, but those were some of his best performances," Karla added.

"Yes, he's a national treasure," Marcia agreed. "Now, imagine all that, but replace the Dinosaurs with Pokémon. Pokémon can fly, breathe fire, shoot electricity, move things with their minds, and bend the laws of nature. Imagine the kind of chaos that could cause on Earth!"

"Doesn't sound like that much of a problem to me," Jonah told Marcia, much to her exasperation.

"Well, it is. Think about it: entire ecosystems could collapse as Pokémon overtake the native creatures. Fans of the franchise could go around trying to catch them only to kill themselves! Jerks could end up using them as weapons of mass destruction!"

"Don't you think you're being paranoid, Marcia?" Jackson asked out of concern.

"NO! I'm being realistic! And given how this was all created by Comet, who we all know is capable of being an embodiment of chaos and mayhem, I'm right!" Marcia then let out a heavy sigh as she rubbed her temples. "Look, let's just drop the subject for now and focus on finding Comet," she conceded before turning to Alfonso. "So, where is he?"

"I don't know," Alfonso admitted, much to Marcia's annoyance.

"You don't...know?" Marcia repeated out loud, not happy to hear that.

"But I do know who will know. We need to find the Head Guardian," Alfonso stated, much to the other's confusion.

"I'm going to assume that in this context, that means one of the strongest Pokémon in this place, right?" Jackson asked. Alfonso nodded in affirmation.

"Yep. All we need to do is head into the forest beyond these plains, and we'll find them in no time," the boy said before motioning them down the hill. "Come on, follow me."

"And how will we get past all the Pokémon in our way? I don't think we can fight through all of them," Marcia pointed out.

"I probably could with my alchemy," Jonah said, mostly to irritate the girl.

"No need to fight them. All of the Pokémon here aren't hostile. As long as we don't try and harm them, they'll leave us alone. Now, come on, guys. Let's give you a tour of the Park!"

That was all the group needed to hear as they followed Alfonso down the hill into the greater Park. Marcia, though, hung back, clearly hesitant about doing this.

"I've got a bad feeling about this."


Play The Greatest Pokemon Route /bcgvYhvRN8g

As the group began to make their way through the Park, they continued to be amazed by what they saw. Despite some of them thinking that Alfonso's previous claim was made to tease Ferguson, it soon became apparent that he wasn't bluffing. There were, in fact, members of virtually every Pokémon species present throughout the Park.

Just down the hill into the plains region, the group managed to see a pack of Poochyena and Mightyena running through the open field as they tried to chase down a herd of Tauros, clearly looking to make a meal out of one of them. As disturbing as it was to see these creatures that they'd watched since childhood fight and kill each other, Alfonso told them that this Park was meant to mirror an actual ecosystem rather than the "E for Everyone" rated world of Pokémon. Ergo, while they could subsist on berries, they still had to kill to survive. It was...honestly impressive to the likes of Marcia, reminding her of some of the Walking With... documentaries she watched as a kid.

It also became apparent that, like in the real world, the more social Pokémon behaved according to a hierarchy. As a rule, the largest and most intelligent of them would serve as the leaders and use their moves to protect themselves and others. Usually, that would mean these groups would be led by the evolved forms of Pokémon, such as a group Venusaur watching over the smaller Bulbasaur and Ivysaur as they rested and relaxed in the grass, using their natural photosynthesis to gather energy. Some of the Bulbasaur could be seen playing with a bunch of Chikorita and a few Jigglypuff. Thankfully, none of the Jigglypuff used Sing to put anyone to sleep or had markers to draw faces on them.

As they pressed onward, they passed by some rivers, and Misty got very excited and started struggling to get out of Aqua's hands. It soon became apparent why. The little Horsea had spotted a few water types in the water. A few Mudkip and a group of Squirtle bobbed happily in the water. There weren't any Horsea, as they could only be found in the open sea, but that didn't matter to Misty. She wanted to make new friends. It took the combined efforts of Aqua and Marcia to restrain her. Coryn, on the other hand, had better luck, able to take to the sky and socialized with a group of Tailow and Swellow overhead. Thankfully, they didn't turn him away, and Marcia and Karla kept a close eye on the Hoot-Hoot.

As the group continued through the Park and saw more Pokémon, a single question started to make its way through everyone's heads: how in the Hell did Alfonso and Comet make all of this? At first, they were all too enthralled by the sight of their childhood coming to life to think of asking. At last, though, Ferguson, being the enthusiastic gamer he was, asked the billion-dollar question.

"Dude, I can't believe you and Comet made all of this! Where on Earth did you find the shit to pull this off?"

"Yes, Alfonso. Please enlighten us on how you and Comet went behind my back and made this place?" Marcia sarcastically asked, though, in his excitement, that was lost on Ferguson.

Knowing this would have to be addressed sooner or later, Alfonso hid his nervousness behind a veneer of light-hearted laughter. "Well, my pudgy friend, it's a long and interesting story. A story of ambition, imagination, and making dreams come true. And it all started a few months ago after we got back from Quest Buy..."

End Music


"So, what is this game you wanted to show me?" Comet asked as he and Alfonso sat on the floor in Comet's bedroom as they got ready to fire up Comet's UGC.

"Oh, you're going to love this, Comet. It's one of the most popular video games in the whole world," Alfonso said excitedly. "It's called Pokémon."

"That sounds like a made-up word, Al," Comet skeptically said.

"Comet, at one point or another, every word in every language was something made up. They just ended up catching on and joining the greater languages."

"Touche," Comet admitted. "So, what's this game about?"

"You'll see..." Alfonso said, not wanting to ruin the surprise.

Spongebob Narrator: Thirty Minutes Later...

"I have seen the future, and it is Pokémon!" Comet proclaimed as he found himself enthralled by the games and the titular creatures!


"Of course he acted like that," Jonah said, amused by the notion.

"Classic Comet," Ferguson chuckled.

"I wouldn't find it so funny, you guys," Marcia said, not as amused. "You guys didn't have to deal with Comet running around in the woods trying to capture every animal he could find and then have them fight each other." Marcia could still remember spending a weekday afternoon at the Police Station because Comet tried to capture every stray cat in Echo Creek and teach them how to use Payday. And, if she recalled, Jonah had been in on the whole thing, too! He encouraged him!

"So, how did he react when he discovered that none of the games had every Pokémon in them?" Jackson asked.

"Umm...he took it..."


"NOOOOOOOOO!" Comet cried out as he reenacted that scene with Vader from Revenge of the Sith as Alfonso watched on in concern. And for some reason, he was wearing a hood over his head.

"Can I take this off, please?"


"...Pretty well. After that, the whole thing got dropped for a while. Until one day, Come revealed that he managed to bring Coryn to life," Alfonso continued.

"And I saved him from that beaked guy with the crystals in his eyes," Marcia mumbled to herself. "I also remember telling him that I didn't want him trying to repeat that stunt," she quickly pointed out.

"He might have mentioned something like that. But you know Comet: once he gets an idea into his head, it's hard to talk him out of it," Alfonso reminded her. "So, he started coming over to my house after school, and we tried to figure out the spell he first used to bring Coryn to life."

"How long did that take you guys?" Aqua asked, as she already knew that this was how likely how he created Misty for her.

"It took a week, but he managed to pull it off."


"IT'S ALIVE! IT'S ALIVE!" Comet proclaimed as he held Misty the Horsea in the middle of Alfonso's bedroom. He had remodeled it to resemble Dr. Frankestein's lab for some reason.

"Can you turn my room back to normal, please?" Alfonso asked him.


"And that's he made Misty for you, Aqua. He said he wanted you to have someone to protect you in case another Diavolo showed up."

"And I thank him for that every day, Alfonso," Aqua happily said as Misty cooed in response.

"Okay, so I get all that," Jonah told them as he admired some passing Goldeen in a nearby creek. "But where did this whole Park thing come into play?"

"I'm getting to that. Keep your beanie hat on," Alfonso said. "Remember our group talk on Career Day? How I said that I wanted to create holographic Pokémon battles, and Comet got all excited about it?"

"Oh, yeah, and Brittney couldn't stop drooling about what she wanted to..."

"Jonah!" Marcia snapped at him, daring him to finish that sentence, and the boy kept his mouth shut.

"Well, after he heard that, he came to me with this crazy idea. And I mean crazy by Comet standards."


"You want to do what?" Alfonso asked in surprise as he looked at Comet as they sat inside his bedroom, with Coryn resting on Alfonso's bed.

"You heard me, Alfonso. I want to go through with your idea of bringing Pokémon into the real world." Comet excitedly told him.

"Comet, you remember what Marcia said, right? How she didn't want you to do something like that because she was afraid something bad would happen."

"I know that, Al, but...look, just hear me out, okay?" Comet took a deep breath and calmed down. "Look, I've been watching many shows and movies where people travel to virtual worlds. Like, they literally get zapped into them or use some kind of VR gear to go diving in. Like Tron, Tron: Legacy, SAO, Code Lyoko, and that one Scooby-Doo movie from twenty years ago. Or that cartoon from PBS with the bad guy voiced by Doc from Back to the Future, and the bird voiced by Gilbert Gottfried."

"You mean Cyberchase?"

"Yeah, that," Comet said. "Look, since we figured out how to convert stuff from video games into real life, I started wondering: what if we could do the reverse?"

Alfonso, for his part, couldn't help but be surprised by this idea. "Comet, are you suggesting that we could use your magic to travel inside a computer or video game? Like, physically travel into one and not just use a digital avatar."

"That's exactly what I'm suggesting, Al. I've talked it out with Glossaryck for a few days, and he said it's possible! If I found a way to perfect them, and then we found a way to use technology to replicate that, anyone could do it. We could make Tron real!"

"I...don't know, Comet," Alfonso said, clearly skeptical. "What you're proposing will require a lot of money and equipment, not to mention power, which we don't have."

"Um, you realize that, as a Prince, I'm crazy rich, and I can pay for anything I need, right? I could just ask my parents...no scratch that, my Dad might not go for it, even if I said it was for my magic training," Comet said, quickly dismissing the idea. "But I should have more than enough treasure in the Shooting Star to help. As for power, we have one of the most powerful energy sources in the Universe in my hands" Comet gestured to his Wand. "I'm telling you, Alfonso, we could make this work!" he excitedly told his friend. "All I'm missing is someone who knows how to program and construct the world we can use to test all of this. And that's where you come in. So, are you in or are you out?" Comet held out his hand, urging Alfonso to take it.

Alfonso looked at Comet's hand, then Comet himself, and then looked around his room. He saw some old posters he had of Pokémon and then at a resting Coryn. Finally, he spoke up. "I gotta ask: why Pokémon? You could've used something like Fortnite or Minecraft. Have you seen some of the things that people do with Minecraft?"

"Yeah, but think of it this way," Comet responded. "How many kids out there wish they could play a Pokémon game with every. Last. Pokémon in it?"

"All of them?" Alfonso raised his eyebrows at this.

"All of them."

"Even the Legendaries? Because that seems super dangerous and could easily backfire."

Comet got this look on his face that Alfonso could only interpret as his "thinking face." Finally, he relented. "All right, fine. No Legendaries. That seems too risky, even for me."

"Awesome. Let's do it."


"...And that's basically how it all happened. With his Wand providing the energy necessary, and my understanding of coding and programming, we were able to create Pokémon Park. We used Comet's money to buy whatever we didn't have," Alfonso finished his story as they began to near the forest, leaving the plains behind. Rather than the Pokémon in the grassland, they could now see more insect-based Pokémon, like Caterpie's, Weedle's, Wurmple's, and more. A few Pidgey's and Natu's were resting in the trees while Kakuna's hung from the branches.

"Okay, that answers many questions, but I gotta ask: where'd you guys get the pods? I doubt they're the kind of thing you can buy from eBay."

"Oh, we didn't," Alfonso chuckled. "We got them from the Amethyst Arcade."

"You went to the Amethyst Arcade without us?" Ferguson gasped. "I can't believe you, Al. I thought we were friends!"

"Don't take it too badly, Ferguson," Marcia reassured her chubby friend. "I'm sure they had their reasons."

"We did. Comet heard they were coming up with this prototype for a game with a similar premise, and we offered to test the pods out for them. If it works, they'll use the Park in the new VR Wing they're building." Alfonso said all this so casually made it all the more shocking for everyone who heard that.

"And how much will they be paying you for this?" Jonah asked, thinking of the logistics behind this. "Because I'm pretty sure this kind of place would be worth billions of dollars."

Alfonso shrugged. "Probably, but they said they'd let us keep the extra pods in exchange for a reduced cut of the profits. Art is its own reward."

Jonah shook his head at this. "You poor, poor fool. You have no idea how much cash you will lose out on. Also, I'm pretty sure Nintendo will sue your butts if they find out about this."

"Look, we're going to work out the details later. For now, how about we just focus on locating the Head Guardian and learn what's going on with Comet," Alfonso said, wanting to drop the subject and no one wanting to annoy him even further. Even if the more pragmatic members felt like Alfonso was making a mistake.

After another ten minutes or so of walking through the forest and admiring the Pokémon to be found in it, Karla remembered something important that she wanted to ask. "So, Alfonso, this Head Guardian. What is it, exactly? Because they sound pretty important," the rocker girl asked.

"Oh, they are," Alfonso said. "They're the leader of the Six Guardians. They're the six strongest Pokémon, created to keep peace in Pokémon Park and protect it from viruses and glitches when we can't be there. They were all chosen for their incredible capabilities and power, able to unlock their full strength and protect what we have created."

"If only that were true...Alfonso."

The entire group skidded to a halt at this. The voice they had just now didn't come from any of them, and unless Coryn and Misty somehow developed the ability to speak human language, that ruled them out as well. Plus, there was the fact that the voice seemed to echo all throughout the forest, making it impossible for them to figure out where it was coming from. That, and...it didn't sound like anyone had spoken. At least, not out loud. No, this voice could be heard...in their heads.

To say that the sudden voice was unsettling would be understating it. It left them all pretty disturbed, more so once they looked at each other and silently confirmed that none of them uttered a single word The only ones who didn't look freaked out were Jonah and Alfonso. Though, admittedly, Jonah did join the others in looking at Alfonso, wanting an explanation.

"Anything you want to tell us, Alfonso?" Karla asked, curious as to what was going on.

"Not now, Karla. We gotta move, and fast." Alfonso then continued to walk further into the forest, his pace noticeably faster as he did so. No one else chose to argue this as they followed their guide into the woods.

Spongebob Narrator: Five minutes later...

After walking for a few more minutes in silence, the group managed to make it to a clearing, only for Alfonso to motion for them to stop. It was soon apparent as to why. Lying on the ground underneath a patch of trees was a Pokémon. It wasn't just any Pokémon, though; it was a Pokémon that anyone who played the games would recognize.

No, it wasn't Pikachu. It was another famous Pokémon that struck equal parts fear and awe into all who lay in their presence.

It was Mewtwo, the legendary psychic Pokémon.

"No way..." Marcia breathlessly let out a voice so low that it was practically a whisper. Ferguson almost fainted on the spot for the second time that day. Even the others, who had a more casual knowledge of Pokémon, managed to recognize Mewtwo. Aqua had no idea what the creature they were looking at was, but her instincts could tell her one thing: they were powerful. And potentially dangerous. The only reason she didn't act upon her instincts was that Alfonso, who knew more about this place than she did, maintained a neutral stance.

Correction, Alfonso was very nervous, judging by how tense his body looked.

"Mewtwo!" Alfonso cried out as he ran towards the Pokémon. Before Marcia could pull him back and say that it wasn't safe for him, she soon realized why he was acting the way he was. As they got closer to Mewtwo, they realized they weren't resting but injured. Their body was covered in cuts and injuries, and there was blood from a gash on their forehead. All told, Mewtwo looked like they had been put through a ringer.

"Mewtwo! Are you alright?" Alfonso cried as he rushed to their side and started to look them over. "What happened to you? What did this to you?"

"Do no worry for my safety, human Alfonso. My injuries are merely superficial," Mewtwo said, or rather thought. They used their psychic powers to communicate with others via telepathy. "What is threatening the Park is of much greater concern than what I have endured."

"Bullshit," Alfonso cursed. "If I'm right, then you're on the verge of dying. You should've told Comet or me about this, and we would've brought you some potions!"

"As I have said, my injuries are not as great as they appear. And I have already entered into a healing state. I need only time to recover. Time that the Park may not have."

"Alfonso, what's going on? I thought you said there were no Legendaries in the Park," Marcia reminded him. And from the tone of her voice, it was clear that she wanted an explanation, and she wanted it now!

Alfonso scratched his curly hair and gave a sheepish look that reminded her of a kid caught sticking his hand in the candy jar. Understanding that there was no way for him to get out of this, Alfonso decided to simply admit the truth. "Well, I kind of withheld the truth. Not lied, just withheld all the information until we got to Mewtwo."

"Well, we're here now. So, please explain," Marcia said, impatiently tapping her foot on the ground as she did so.

"Please do!" Ferguson eagerly said, the eagerness in his voice making it clear that Marcia's impatience was lost on him.

"I am sorry, but I am confused," Aqua said. "What is this creature, and why is Marcia so upset about it being here?"

"That, your highness," Jonah told her, "is Mewtwo, one of the most famous Pokémon ever created."

"Emphasis on the 'created' part," Jackson chimed in. He didn't tell anyone this, but he was a casual fan of Pokémon as a kid and remembered a few things. "Unlike almost every Pokémon in the franchise, Mewtwo wasn't born. They were made."

"As in, a group of scientists ripped off Jurassic Park and created a clone of an ancient, Legendary Pokémon known as Mew," Jonah continued. "Except, in their infinite wisdom, they made some adjustments to make them bigger, stronger, and more powerful. Then once they grew big enough, they busted out and went to live in the wild, away from humanity."

Aqua's face fell as she heard about Mewtwo's story. "How sad...they must have felt so lonely." Aqua knew what it felt like to be alone. Her time being held captive by Diavolo, however brief it may have been, had been one of the hardest times of her life. So, she naturally felt sympathy for the Pokémon.

"Aqua, don't feel too bad, alright," Jackson said as if he could sense that Aqua felt upset about Mewtwo. "That was just their backstory in the game and anime, and I'm sure that's not what happened to them in this place."

"No! GOD, NO!" Alfonso cried out in anger. "Comet would never condone something like that! You know that!"

"Yet he would decide to add one of the most powerful Pokémon into his private Park despite saying he wouldn't," Marcia muttered. "You going to tell us why Mewtwo is in the Park.

"Mewtwo was...an exception," Alfonso admitted. "Comet wanted an exceptionally strong Pokémon to lead the Guardians, and given what Mewtwo's capable of and how protective they are of Pokémon, they seemed like the perfect fit."

"Sea. Sea! Sea!" Misty kept calling out as if it was trying to ask the others something. Unfortunately, none of the Humans understood what the little Horsea was saying.

Aqua, on the other hand, did.

"Alfonso, Misty wanted to know what Guardian is and why they sound so important." When the others looked at Aqua with surprise etched on their faces, Aqua said, "My people have the power to communicate with aquatic lifeforms. Misty is no exception."

"I can answer that question...little one," Mewtwo spoke up.

"Mewtwo, don't. You need to conserve your-"

"Do not worry, Human Alfonso. As I have said, my injuries are not as great as they appear. And time is of the essence. The fate of our creator, the one you call Comet, is at stake, as is the fate of this land. Now, allow me to show you what happened using my powers."

Marcia felt a cold chill run down her spine at this, but otherwise, she nodded her head to give her consent. The others all agreed, even Jonah, the most guarded of the bunch. With that, Mewtwo closed their eyes, and everyone felt the Pokémon enter their minds.


Inside what could only be described as a mental mindscape, images began to flash before the group's eyes...or their mind's eye, in this case. They saw Comet, standing in the middle of Pokémon Park and speaking to someone they couldn't see. As he's finished speaking, several beams of light pour down from the sky in front of Comet. Comet shielded his eyes behind his hoodie and waited for the light to subside. When it finally did, there stood a group of several Pokémon: a Charizard, Blastoise, Sceptile, Lucario, Greninja, Gengar, and finally, Mewtwo. Comet then stepped forward and greeted each of them.

"Our creator, the one called Comet, brought us into existence with the help of his magic and resources. He told us that he wanted us to be the protectors of Pokémon Park while he was away. To ensure that no harm could come to the Pokémon that call it home, and that all Pokémon could live their lives in peace, free."

Several more memories began to flash, showing each Guardian working to maintain and protect Pokémon Park, helping Pokémon who needed it, and preventing any glitches from occurring in the Park.

"For many months now, we have done as we were asked. Comet did not force us to do it, though. He told us that we were free to leave should we desire to. I could sense that his intentions were honest, so I carried out his wishes. And Pokémon Park has known peace...until today."

The scene then changed to sometime earlier in the morning, as Comet's walking around the Park with Coryn by his side. Then, all of a sudden, a massive explosion occurs! Comet and Coryn ended up being knocked flat on their backs by the explosion, but they quickly recovered. As they get back up, they see a bunch of Doduo and Ponyta running away in a panicked frenzy, followed by many more Pokémon. And it soon became apparent why. Something was chasing them.

Emphasis on the "something" part because, as Comet and Coryn began to run towards the danger, they saw that what was causing it wasn't even a Pokémon. It wasn't even a real being. It was this tall, black and white amalgamation of cubes, writhing and twisting as they thrashed around like crazy. And whatever the cubes hit began to be corrupted and fall apart. The trees, the rocks, and the ground began to fade away!

"The thing that appeared was a glitch unlike any other. The first glitch found in Pokémon, a Pokémon without any true shape or form capable of destroying the entire game and everything in it. The MissingNo Pokémon. Somehow, a glitch allowed for its creation inside the Park. And once present, it began to corrupt everything in sight. If it were not stopped, Pokémon Park would be wiped out."

As everyone else watches in concern, Comet leads Coryn and the Guardians into battle against the MissingNo. Various images begin to flash in their minds eye: blasts of fire and water, psychic balls of energy colliding with cubes, and Comet trying to use his magic to help them. Without the Wand, though, his success is limited. Finally, Mewtwo charges up their largest attack yet, only for the MissingNo to counter it with a blast of cubes. In what can only be described as a pseudo-beam struggle right out of Dragon Ball Z, the two Pokémon clash...

"Despite our best efforts, the MissingNo was too powerful for us. We were overwhelmed, and I wound up here."

...and Mewtwo ends up on the losing side, flung away to the forest where Marcia and Alfonso would find him.


"I have laid here since that moment, gathering my strength so that I may rejoin the battle. Without all of our combined efforts, the MissingNo will destroy everything in its path...all that we have done will be for naught."

As Mewtwo exited each of their minds, the faces of everyone present began to grow very, very pale. From the sound of things, it looked like Comet was in some really, really, deep trouble. As everyone began to process what they heard, Coryn began to hoot very rapidly, his tone of voice bordering on frantic. No one could make out what he was saying. Fortunately, Mewtwo proved able to understand.

"The Hoot Hoot says that after this, the one called Comet told him to leave the Park, to seek out the Human called Alfonso, and to summon him. That he would hold the key to saving the Park from the MissingNo. But I see that he brought others along with him."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that," Alfonso apologized to Mewtwo. "They didn't leave me much of a choice, though." The glare that Alfonso gave his friends was uncharacteristic of him and enough to make Marcia turn her head away in shame. She quickly recovered, though.

"Yeah, well, you should've told us about this from the beginning," she tried to argue. "We could've helped you by-"

"And how would you do that, Human child?" Mewtwo said as they spoke directly to her. "I saw inside your mind. The fear and concern that you have over the existence of this place. How you would rather it be erased than allowed the chance to spread to your world." Marcia blushed in embarrassment as she remembered what she said earlier.

"Dang, you got called out, Marcia," Jonah told her, only for Mewtwo to turn his attention to him.

"And you are little better, boy. I have seen your thoughts, and all you can think of is how this place can benefit you. How you could earn money for yourself off of this land and the creatures that call it home," they said to him. Unlike Marcia, Jonah didn't turn away or try to deny it.

"Guilty as charged, Lord Frieza. At least I admit it, though," Jonah said. "Also, if memory serves, then Comet and Alfonso were gonna do the same thing, weren't you?"

"It's a work in progress," Alfonso admitted.

"All right, look. Arguing isn't going to help us, and it sure as Hell isn't going to help Comet," Jackson spoke up. "For all we know, the guy's lying battered and bruised in some field nearby, and we've been taking our time getting to him. So how about we heal the Pokémon and help the coolest guy we know?"

Being one of the biggest voices of reason in their group, everyone tended to listen to Jackson when he made suggestions. His cool and collected nature meant that everyone took what he said seriously. Especially Marcia for...obvious reasons.

"As I said before, Human," Mewtwo "spoke" again before beginning to stand up on their two legs, "I am capable of healing myself." To Marcia's astonishment, the previous injuries they saw on them were gone, and somehow, the Pokémon used their powers to heal themselves. "We must hurry. The one called Comet and the Guardians will not last long without aid, and you, Human, hold the key to stopping the MissingNo. before it's too late."

"Lead the way, Mewtwo," Alfonso said seriously before turning around to look at the others. "So, now that you all know the truth, would it be too much to ask for your help?"

"Our help?" Ferguson. "You want us...to help you...fight one of the most famous glitches in video game history before it tears this place a new one?"

"Yep. And if we don't stop it, and this place gets destroyed, we'll die along with it," Alfonso admitted without hesitation. Why bother hiding it now? They deserved to know what they were getting themselves into.

Marcia was the first to speak up, albeit she sighed before doing so. "I guess we don't have a choice since I'm responsible for babysitting that idiot. I'm in."

"We're in," the others piped up at once.

"Hoo! Hoo!" "Sea! Horsea!" Coryn and Misty responded in the affirmative. The whole group was unanimous, and they were gonna help Comet and Alfonso save the Park.

"Very well, children," Mewtwo told them. "Then we must hurry. Time is of the essence, and the others will need all the help they can get." As if to emphasize this point, the faint sound of explosions could be heard in the distance. Columns of water rose from the ground,

With that, Mewtwo began to fly away in the direction that would take them to Comet. Right into the lion's den.

*In Jay's Workspace, we see everyone who's ever appeared gathered together in front of a memorial service with Jay standing at the podium. To the side is a table containing pictures of the cast of Yu-Gi-Oh!, various famous cards from the series, and the Millenium Puzzle, all centered around an image of Kazuki Takahashi, the mangaka of the franchise.*

Jay: And so, with a heavy heart, we mourn the passing of Kazuki Takahashi, the creator of Yu-Gi-Oh!Yu-Gi-Oh! may not have been my first anime, but it was my first experience in Shonen, and it led me to discover pretty much everything there is about anime. So, basically, it helped make me who I am today. And...and...

*Jay starts bawling his eyes out in sadness*

Jay: HE WAS TOO YOUNG TO DIE! OH GOD, WHY?! WHY DID I NOT EVEN KNOW ABOUT HIM UNTIL NOW?! WHYYY?!

*Janna runs up to the podium and puts a hand on Jay's shoulder*

Janna: It's alright, dude. That doesn't make you any less of a fan. You still have all the cards you collected. You're a true fan and have every bit of right to cry like everyone else. He may be gone, but his legacy will live on for decades.

Slick Goku: Facts.

Rex: Da.

DAU Kermit: He was a real one. He possessed the drip on a level few can ever hope to achieve.

TFS Nappa: I still remember watching the series and guest starring on the Abridged Series.

Omnitraxus Prime: The world is a better place thanks to him.

All: Rest in Peace to the King of Games, Kazuki Takahashi!

Kazuki Takahashi

1961-2022

Hey guys, RJ Writing Ink here. That last part wasn't a joke. I am genuinely saddened by the sudden death of Kazuki Takahashi. Yu-Gi-Oh! was my biggest obsession as a child, and watching the anime on Kids WB remains some of my favorite childhood memories. My condolences to Konami, his friends, loved ones, and everyone who worked with him.

By the way, full disclosure: since Mewtwo is, canonically, genderless, I chose to merely use the 'They,' 'Them' pronouns to describe them. Those weren't a typo.

Now then,

READER'S REVIEWS

Julayla: OMG, I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE WHO REMEMBERS THAT SHOW!

LockAndKey989: No. And No. To both of your questions.

95: Easy, Eggman.

NightAroma: Well, as this chapter shows, there are no Legendaries in the Park. Comet's reckless, but he's not that dumb. Mewtwo's the exception to this.

The Wandering Hippie: This isn't just Comet's decision, you know. This is also me voicing my complaints to Nintendo for them not making a game with every Pokémon in it. I NEED a game like that! Also, thanks for pointing out the error. I fixed it.

You know what to do: fave and follow this story, and follow me on Twitter (JZ-Gaming), Insta (RJ Writing Ink), and YouTube (Jungoguy)

See you guys next week. BTW, a Pokémon you know may end up evolving. Or several. Also, if you can figure out what each Guardian has in common with one another, you get a cookie. Now, I'm gonna go read the Yu-Gi-Oh! manga to fill the hole in my heart.