"No! Leo!?" Ash yelled before the Mirage Gengar stole Wes through the wall. His eeveelutions attempted to rescue their trainer, but their attacks only hit the concrete instead of their target. Unfortunately for them, more Mirage Pokemon appeared from the wall, and not all of them were Ghost-types.
One psychic yank later, Espeon held Wes' suitcase with psychic energy. 'Get us out of here!' He shouted to Mismagius.
'But what of...?!'
'He can handle himself! We need to get out of here!' Umbreon interjected before the ghost Pokemon launched themselves at the group.
Mismagius used Phantom Force. Or at least, she attempted to do so before she got struck by a Thunder Wave. Her body tightened to a stop, allowing the Mirage Pokemon to close the distance.
Yet, none of them expected Ash to swipe his hand downward with his eyes glowing faint purple. A pipe above them burst open and unleashed burning smoke on top of the holograms. It gave the group an opening to escape while Ash picked up Mismagius.
"Astro, can you detect those things!? We can't let them keep surprising us!"
'I'm trying! There's a weird blanket over the building that's messing with my Aura! I think it's the machine!'
While Aura sensing was a moot point, everyone's hearing caught the sound of soulless Pokémon cries speeding up to them.
Ash knew facing these fake mons would lead to disaster
. "We gotta lose them!" Fighting them wouldn't work as they were immune to attacks. And their only chance of escape was currently paralyzed.
Wait.
Ash remembered that he got a health kit from Team Instinct when he joined up. It contained 2 of every healing item, including a paralysis heal. "Guys, cover me!"
One of the advantages of being a psychic was that Ash could use his powers to open and fish his bag while he carried Mismagius. This proved to be a boon as a Mirage Ghost Pokemon, consisting of a Dusknoir with two Haunters, flew out of the ground to intercept them.
Ash's battle instincts kicked in as he spotted the fake ghosts charging their attacks. Using his telekinesis, he threw the potion kit forward. The box spilled midair, but Ash yanked back a Full Restore.
The attacks made contact with the potions, causing vapor to fill the area obscure the area between them. But it didn't stop the group behind them from catching up. Ash used the Full Restore on Mismagius.
Mismagius started moving the moment she regained consciousness. She absorbed all 4 into a shadow dimension before leading them past the walls.
+Astro!+ Ash spoke but found his voice oddly distorted. +Can you sense Leo from here!?+
+His name is—+
Unfortunately for Espeon, Astro spoke at the same time as him. +No, I can't sense anything! Where are we?+
+In the gaps between life and shadows, doux enfant.+ Mismagius spoke with a Kalosian accent. +Now, prepare yourself when we exit. Non-ghosts cannot stay here for long.+
As soon as she said this, Ash noticed the Ghost Pokemon Led them inside an empty convention stand. With that, she lowered the attack, but everyone with a corporeal body felt a chill down to their toes.
'Excusez-moi, mes amis. We never stay too long in that move, lest you come out as a—how you say—corpse?'
Ash didn't want that, so he was glad to be out. The feeling lasted for about a second before he noticed it was unusually dark in the tent they were hiding in. What caught the teen's attention was a podium with a cloak over it, as if it was waiting to be pulled off and revealed.
The raven-haired boy didn't know his foot snagged on the lower part of the drape. As he moved away from the object, his leg pulled the loose drape down.
"HI. BILLY ROTOM HERE, TELLING YOU TO BUY BILLY'S APPLIANCES."
The Rotom "talking" with a loud and booming voice scared everyone in the tent. Espeon noticed the machine beneath the Rotom in the glass container and quickly pulled the plug with his psionic powers.
The Rotom kept talking, but the machine was off, and the glass seemed to be soundproof. The others quickly peeked outside of the tent to see if any of the Mirage Pokemon had heard the sudden volume.
Fortune favored them this time as there looked to be no nearby patrol of Mirage Pokemon.
(Here.) Ash used his powers. (Let's talk in a link. I don't think the Mirage Pokemon can detect this.)
(ARE YOU TIRED OF TALKING WITH YOUR MOUTH? DO YOU WISH TO REALLY GIVE OTHERS A PIECE OF YOUR MIND? INTRODUCING BILLY'S TELEPATHY! YOUR'S IN THIS MIND-BLOWING OFFER!)
(Why did you drag him into the link!?) Wes' Umbreon shook his head. (Look, we gotta find a way to save our trainer! Who knows what that freak is doing with him right now?)
The timing of the dark type's words could not be more synchronous. The Mirage Pokemon all screamed before a shadowy aura overcame them.
(Malédictions! Not this again!) Mismagius sighed while the Eeveelution twins groaned.
(What's going on?) Astro felt a chill down his spine as the Mirage Pokémon started to change.
(To make a long story short: it involves a region-wide headache and a copious number of helmet heads and bald people.) Espeon narrowed his eyes.
(Just know that these guys are tougher than they were before. Be prepared for all their cheating moves.) While Umbreon began to speak, Astro noticed a patrol of Mirage Pokemon stopping and looking in their direction. (Get ready to get us out of here again, Mismagius.)
The ghost Pokemon didn't get a chance to gather energy as Astro yelled, 'Get down!'
Everyone ducked as the tent got pulled away by a single Shadow Mirage Machamp. It didn't take long for other Pokemon to barrel through the stands to surround the group.
Ash spotted a Safari Ball roll near him and remembered one of the stands giving away free unused Safari Balls as part of their promotion.
But his thoughts went away when he saw some of the TVs in the area opened up to reveal Mirage Master.
"Ahh, there you are. I don't know how you escaped my Mirage Pokemon, but that has come to an end."
"Hey! What did you do to Leo!?" 'That'snothisname!' Ash shouted to the masked menace while Espeon tried to correct him.
The teen did not expect the mastermind to laugh in response to a threat. Granted, what could Ash do in this situation? "He's being a huge help for my new... You know what? How about we call them Shadow Mirages? Would you like to help too? I want to see how well my new invention works on trainers."
With a snap of his fingers, the Shadow Mirages started to move. However, instead of using normal moves, the holograms used odd moves involving wrapping themselves in a thicker black aura.
Physical attackers rushed forward like comets while long-range attacks fired an array of dark ice, fire, and thunder. Ash and the others scattered to avoid getting hit. One of the attacks hit the Rotom's container, allowing the ghost Pokemon freedom!
... in an attack-rich environment.
Perhaps freedom was overrated.
As the fighting broke out, more of the tent revealed itself: specialized appliances lined the area behind the Rotom.
The Rotom flew to a fridge before possessing it. 'ARE YOU TIRED OF FRIDGES WITH BAD TEMPERATURES AND SPOILED FOOD?! WELL, LOOK NO FURTHER THAN—'
Espeon, being chased by a Volbeat using Shadow Fire, went out of his way to pass in front of the screaming Rotom. This forced the Rotom to see the incoming attack and jumped into the lawnmower.
'WATCH AS THE BILLY LAWNMOWER TURNS A BORING MONTHLY CHORE INTO A WEEKLY LEISURE WITH NEW FEATURES SUCH AS—'
Umbreon oddly decided to jump over the talking machine while being chased by Shadow Chill. Rotom also avoided this fate and went into a microwave.
—The same time Astro picked it up and chucked it at the Shadow Machamp to slow him down.
Unlike the last two, Astro didn't notice Rotom at all.
Since there were a few more appliances, this went on several more times until Billy Rotom flew into an Alolan Pokedex... just for a fake Weavile to snatch him mid-air.
Now, because most of the group—except for Ash and Astro—spent more of their time messing with the Rotom, they didn't have enough time to escape before they got surrounded by a dozen Shadow Mirages.
Mirage Master clapped with all the sincerity of a politician. "Not bad, kid. You dodge as well as those Pokemon. But this proves my Shadow Mirages are invincible and now have ultimate power!"
Ash started to sweat until he spotted the Safari Balls scattered around the area. A thought occurred to the teen at that moment: how exact were these fake Pokemon?
"It doesn't matter if I even give them the appearance of a Dunsparce. They'll still be the most powerful beings in existence!" As Mirage Master exclaimed this, he made a point and turned most of the Mirage Pokemon into Dunsparces.
Now, excuse this narrator for a random fun fact: Ash Ketchum has always wanted a Dunsparce. Even though the likes of Emily and Gary believed the Pokemon was useless in both battle and anything else, the raven-haired teen wanted to catch this Pokemon because he believed it looked cool.
So, by frustration, desperation, and subconscious need, Ash Ketchum picked up one of the Safari Balls near his foot and chucked it at the nearest Shadow Mirage.
Mirage Master laughed at the attempt.
Or at least, that's what he should have done. What instead happened caused him, and everyone else, to stare in silence as the Poke Ball absorbed and caught the Fake hologram. It even made the critical capture motion before locking.
Ash, after a second of processing, used his telekinesis to pick up the Safari Ball. He opened it up only to reveal nothing but air, yet the boy voiced what everyone was thinking, "I can catch these things?"
Espeon copied the boy with his powers, lifting the scattered Safari Balls around the area before launching them at the blindsided fakes. The result was the same as when Ash threw them: Critical Captures.
'Wow, it was that easy to beat them?' Astro would have lowered his fighting stance if he didn't spot more Mirage Pokemon heading their way.
Umbreon pounced on a ball hidden under debris before tossing it at a nearby Shadow Mirage. 'Everyone, pick up a ball and start chucking!'
'But there' aren't a lot of these left!' Astro cried out as he struggled to find one of the Poke Balls.
Espeon made Wes' suitcase fly over to him. 'Then hold them off! Mismagius, get me out of here!'
This time, the Ghost Pokemon was free to gather energy before whisking Espeon, and the nearby Rotom, away.
'Did they just leave us?!' Astro blinked at where the two just were.
'Yeah, but they obviously have a plan. I hate when my brother does that too.' Umbreon took a stance. 'But here they come!'
Mirage Master panicked as he worked on the console of his Mirage Machine.
"No! NO! I refuse to believe that I overlooked something so simple!" Yet, the fact the boy was making progress against his army only proved his flaw.
"Fine! It's not too hard to get around a Poke Ball. I just have to implant a Trainer ID over all of them." He looked back to the overview of his machine. "And I still have one, don't I?"
Inside his mask, he frowned. "But I'm not taking any more chances." He turned, his cape fluttering as he made a showy motion. "Suicine! Entei! Raikou! End that child before he ruins everything!"
The Shadow Trio didn't even nod before racing toward the young trainer.
Mirage Master turned over to Shadow Celebi. "This has to work! I refuse to be undone by some—"
"—astard!" Wes huffed as he finally undid the locks and got himself out of the shock chair.
His body felt numb from the electricity; it was bad enough that even when freed, the Orreian could only slump to the floor after forcing himself off the chair.
He gasped. "I guess being attacked by my own Pokemon does have plus sides." His mind trailed back to when he was raising Shadow Flaffy. He and Rui were still learning the ropes before he got a nasty surprise with Hyper Mode.
As he found the strength to flip himself over, he exhaled again.
"Great going, Wes." The Snagger stared at the ceiling. "You chose the life that got you kidnapped by a repressed theater nerd with a hard-on for revenge instead of staying in the cushy life with a hot ginger because—and you said this to her— "It's not my style." Arceus-darned-fool. You could have been seeing her in a swimsuit by now!"
Of course, being alone with his thoughts forced him to be honest. "How was it that Rui was the tough one who stood up for me when everyone else in her home gave me the stink eye? Did I really think her life wasn't for me? Or did I not want Rui to suffer because she defended a so-called former thief?" He scoffed. "Maybe I was the coward between the two of us."
"If you were a coward, that would make me a lunatic." Wes looked to his right. When was Rui trapped in a dark, enclosed space with him?
He wasn't going to complain that much if...
"Wipe that smirk off your face, Wes. I'm not really here, you know?"
"I know you're a figment of my imagination, so why aren't you dressed in a hot bikini?"
The image of Rui kept her smile before kneeling and poking Wes' head. "Maybe it's because your brain got fried there for a few minutes."
"I could definitely think clearly even after being shocked."
"Or maybe you just miss my personality more than my looks."
Wes didn't speak after that.
"Well?" Fake Rui put a hand on her chin. "What are you waiting for?"
"My body to stop aching, for one."
"Like that's ever stopped you. You gotta save the world!"
Wes felt his headache coming back. "... Look. I was already getting a headache from hearing about these Not-Shadow Pokemon. Now, I have to be the one to clean up someone else's mistake again?"
"Yep." His figment popped the p. "Cause you're my Knight."
The "nickname" that Rui called Wes when they started to date. The girl was convinced Wes was a knight in shining armor. Yet, the one time Wes tried to question why she believed him to be one, she said,
"Only a Knight does the right thing no matter how stacked the odds are against him." Imaginary Rui finished Wes' thoughts.
Although, he knew it was naïve and wrong. Wasn't that more of a superhero thing?
Yet, despite all his mental complaints, Wes sat back up.
"I wanna go out there and deck the masked freak in the jaw."
"Do that, and he'll blast you with a Shadow Celebi."
"Darn." Wes didn't sound troubled as he started to feel the ground around him.
He smiled as he felt what he hoped was a latch. "Oh no. What a nightmare! I'm trapped in a complex and obviously important part of an elaborate machine with nothing but my years of self-learned mechanical expertise. Whatever will I do?"
'Ash, what are we going to do!?' Astro sped past a shadowy storm and threw the Safari Ball at the hologram Golbat.
One down, but so many to go, and they only had 10 Poke Balls left, and that was after they ran out of Safari Balls. Ash had to use his own supply, and even that was running low.
"Working on it!" Ash slid under a table to avoid an Ursaring before throwing a Poke Ball at the fake Pokemon.
If only ten-year-old Ash Ketchum could see him now. This is not what the raven-haired teen meant by wanting to catch them all.
Speaking of catching, most of the Mirage Pokemon backed away. Those who were real thought this was a good sign.
Until they saw Shadow Mirage Entei take to the field.
'We gotta fight him again!?' 'Wait, you fought him too?' Astro looked at Umbreon before they both shared a confused look.
Ash had a feeling that his usual strategy wouldn't work. But it didn't stop him from chucking a Great Ball at the legendary Pokemon.
Unfortunately for him, the ball bounced off as if rejected, meaning that the Shadow Mirages now had Trainer IDs to prevent their capture.
"Uh oh." Ash managed to say as Shadow Mirage Suicune and Raikou appeared nearby.
With all three Legendary Dogs staring the remaining group down, they started to gather shadowy energy.
'Hey, where's your brother?' 'Trust me, kid. I wish I... do you hear that?'
Ash looked down at Umbreon before noticing even Astro's ears perked up. Before he could ask, he started to hear the sound of something muffled.
To the group's right, the wall broke through by a machine that screamed power and gasoline.
"INTRODUCING: THE BILLY HOVER BIKE! WHY WASTE YOUR TIME WITH REGULAR, TIRE-BREAKING—"
While it was possessed by the telemarketer Rotom.
Umbreon gapped as he saw Wes's bike and spotted Espeon with a cart full of Ultra Balls. The Shadow Mirages backed off as the Mega Rotom bike skidded and circled to the three.
'Get on!' Espeon cried out as the Shadow Mirages started to recharge their attacks.
Ash rode the bike while Astro and Umbreon jumped on the side cart before Rotom pushed the hoverbike to its max speed.
Just in time before the area that they were previously in became a darkened crater.
"AND THAT'S NOT ALL," Rotom shouted as he started moving at speeds that gave legends trouble keeping up with. "WE'LL ALSO THROW IN THIS UNBELIEVABLE SIDE CART ABSOLUTELY FREE IF YOU CALL 895—"
'This is not for sale!' Umbreon looked back up. 'Espeon! We can't catch them normally! Bring that out!' The dark-type cried out.
Espeon gave Ash a look before he sighed. 'You're the only one who can use this, so be careful with it! Alright!?' The psychic-type took out the suitcase Wes had.
As the teen opened it up, Ash blinked as he saw what looked to be some elaborate arm-piece.
"What is this?" The trouble-bound teen asked as he reached for the Snag Machine.
Espeon didn't answer as he used his power to brace it around Ash's arm.
'It'll help capture those fake Pokemon again.' Espeon turned to the side cart where a noticeable pile of Poke Balls sat. 'Use these on them!'
Ash grabbed one Great Ball with the machine and watched how the Poke Ball started to glow with a mysterious light. However, something else came to the mind of the teen. "Where'd you get all these Pokeballs?"
'Uuuuuuuuhhhhhhhh?'
Meanwhile, in a smoking shop nowhere near the fighting...
"No! Not the entire inventory of Poke Balls! Curse that overrated evolution of an Eev—"
Back in the convention...
'A kind-hearted soul gave it to us when we asked.' Espeon found his answer. 'But, the point is...'
The psychic did not have enough time to explain before Rotom stopped his persuasive sales pitching. The S.M. Raikou had caught up with them as subtly as his typing.
Which is to say that it crashed nearby with a blinding flash and deafening boom.
Ash's group flew from the crash but separated from each other.
The teen hissed as he felt a pain in his head. He felt something fall on his stomach. He opened his eyes and raised his brows when he saw what looked like something from an old cartoon with planet-busting aliens.
But his thoughts went wild when he saw S.M. Suicune landing in the tent.
Astro flew in and unleashed a Force Palm on the face of the fake Pokemon. However, even before their upgrades, the common Mirage Pokemon didn't budge from the Riolu's move. It wasn't changing now.
But Astro jumped back and slid to protect his friend.
The Shadow Mirage gathered power—before it and the other legendaries, started to flicker in and out of existence.
Mirage Master looked on with alarm as warnings popped into his main screen. "What!? What's going on?! Why is one of the data transmitters malfunctioning?! Wait. It's not registered?!"
His mask turned to the machine. He knew he made it thick, but why was it quiet?
The mastermind froze in his mind and replayed the last word: quiet. There was supposed to be an adolescent screaming in pain. And he looked tougher than that to fall unconscious by now.
With Mirage Master looking away from Ash and Co., the teen noticed the odd monocle started to glow in a rainbow aura. Ash put the object over his eye and saw a yes or no prompt on the screen:
"Synergy Gauge Maxed out. Activate Synergy Burst?"
Ash didn't know what this machine was. But the faint rainbow glow coming from inside the machine felt... alive. It was like it wanted to help him.
Ash started to think until he recalled he followed his gut feeling about the Poke Balls.
So, as the glasses locked onto Astro, Ash pressed the "yes" prompt.
The moment he did, the device flared to life. Astro sensed a spike of energy he didn't recognize. Wait, no. It felt like the Rainbow Feather but amplified?
Whatever it was, he felt renewed in both body and spirit. Astro sped off, launching a Force Palm on the flickering legendary.
So imagine his and Ash's surprise when the attack created a noticeable shockwave and sent the fake Pokemon flying when no other attack had made them budge.
Ash looked to his right to see a fallen sign of the tent. "Battle AR. Devices from the Ferrum Region capable of rivaling Mega Evolution."
Details later, Ash thought to himself. He got the basics: here's a power-up, now go wild. "Astro, Focus Blast!"
Astro created and launched the empowered attack stronger than either of them expected, causing the empowered fake to fall to its knees as the smoke cleared.
Ash felt a little awkward using his left hand for a Poke Ball throw, but he used the machine and threw the sphere at the Fake Suicuine, catching it even through the Trainer ID.
Astro and Ash shared a look.
"Alright, let's go help the others! How do you feel, Astro?" 'Is it weird that I can taste a rainbow?'
Mirage Master opened the door to the insides of his machine. As he did, he noticed the distinct lack of a prisoner and doodads inside.
Mirage Master stepped inside. The masked man looked down and spotted what looked like a wire. It suddenly tugged, closing the door behind him.
When Mirage Master turned back, he saw a close-up of a fist—
Wes followed through with the sucker punch, knocking the man down and his mask off.
"That was for shocking me... and ya know: causing all this trouble in the first place." Wes obviously had his priorities straightened out.
"You..." To Wes, the voice of the punk who started all this sounded familiar. The man turned his face around, revealing it to be... "Do you have any idea what you've done!?"
"... Punched you in the face?" Okay, so Wes didn't know who the guy was. What? It's not his fault he's horrible at recalling faces, and it doesn't help he's grown up with bald men who looked the same.
"You ruined my machine!" The man with blueish-green hair cried out.
"Wasn't it that nerdy doctor who made this?"
"What!? Are you blind!? I am Dr. Yung!" The Mirage Master cried out, anger apparent on his face over the blatant disrespect to his name.
Wes replayed the events of today in his mind. As he started to recognize the name, a realization came over him.
"Wait a darn second: I don't care." The thief felt good landing another sucker punch before picking the punk up by the collar. "Alright, asshole. I don't have the patience for whatever BS you have against the world, but you're going to tell me how to stop this darn thing so we can all go on with our lives."
"Y-You brute! I can have Shadow Celebi come in and destroy you in an instant!" Dr. Yung tried to grab onto Wes' hand before the Orreian stomped his foot hard down on it.
"We're in your machine, dingus. Make it attack me, and you'll be destroying your own work." And if it happened to use more precise moves, Wes had a good enough shield in front of him.
"Shadow Celebi, come save—" Wes clamped his hand over the jerk's mouth. On second thought, maybe The Snagger shouldn't risk facing something that can use any move it wanted.
Unfortunately, even though the order wasn't completed, Shadow Celebi appeared in the machine.
It wasn't long before Wes felt a psychic pull over him before he found himself pinned to one of the walls.
"Hahaha!" Dr. Yung laughed as he shakily attempted to get back up. "That's what you get for laying hands on me! Shadow Mirage Celebi! End him!"
(Well, drat. Of all the ways I could have been killed, here I am being offed by a loser nerd. Gonzap would have a field day the moment he knew.)
Yet, Wes felt confused when Shadow Celebi turned over to Dr. Yung. That confusion turned to alarm when the empty expression on the pixie turned dark and made a smile far past what its muscles were capable of stretching.
Faster than the doctor could realize, he got pinned to the opposite wall. Pieces of metal bent before trapping both Wes and Dr. Yung.
"W-What!? N-No! Don't tell me it's happening again!"
"What is?" Wes felt a headache coming up.
"One of my first Mirage Pokemon was a Mew, but I made it too perfectly. It had a will of its own and disobeyed my every command. After years of redesigning my machine, I finally caught and assimilated that rogue AI. I put in a data capper to ensure none of my Mirages would never disobey..." Dr. Yung trailed off as he looked at a ripped-up latch. "... me... again..."
Wes had this distinct feeling he accidentally screwed up the one part of the machine he wasn't supposed to.
Screens opened up in the room, revealing all of the Shadow Mirages. Wes and Dr. Yung watched all of the fake Pokemon explode into data...
...before getting absorbed into the false Celebi. Its entire body turned pitch black instead of forest green, and its eyes soaked into blood-red while keeping that smile the likes only horror monsters could pull off.
It gathered energy, and the two trapped could feel the world behind the machine warped under its whims.
Wes made the mistake of looking at the Shadow Celebi, who turned to him with its blood-red eyes and nightmare smile.
It laughed, but the only sound that came out was dead static: oddly but alarmingly fitting to the situation.
Astro rushed forward, brimming with rainbow aura, and followed through with his attack on a staggered Fake Raikou.
However, the image faded, and Astro ended up crashing into a stand that promoted new safety airbags.
He missed all of them and hit the wall.
Ash rushed to his friend. "Astro, you alright?"
'Hey,' He popped his head out of the wall. 'Where'd my enemy go?'
'Where did all of them go?' Espeon asked before he, Umbreon, and Rotom grouped together with the other two.
'Hey! I can feel stuff again!' Astro said as he raised his palm. 'There's a lot of energy going over there.'
As the Riolu pointed, everyone could see the stream of data flying towards where the Mirage Machine was.
'Right,' Espeon motioned everyone to get back on Rotom. 'We still need to save Wes!'
Ash realized something as he got on top of the bike. "Hey, where's Mismagius? And who's Wes?"
'Floor it!' The psychic yelled— a little too angrily—before the hoverbike roared to life, making everyone hold on as it reached maximum velocity in less than a second.
It didn't take long before the group reached where all this madness started: the main convention center.
The machine pulsated as it gathered the data of all previous Mirage Pokemon. In front of the machine, the group spotted Shadow Mirage Celebi.
Its form was drastically different from that of the original Celebi. And as it turned, its soulless eyes gazed down on the motley coterie.
Espeon found himself looking away and focusing on the machine. 'Okay, those things are still invincible. So, we'll ignore it and go straight for the machine!' The psychic type started to concentrate energy to dismantle the machine then and there.
However, Shadow Celebi intercepted the energy before dispersing it with a wave of its hand. It lifted its head, showing its soulless eyes and watching the group.
Yet they watched the false legendary snarl in a way no one expected a Celebi to ever do.
Ash decided to charge a Snag Ball. This was a wise decision because the Shadow Celebi pointed upward and all the fallen debris in the area followed its motions.
Rotom didn't need another order as he rushed forward as a multitude of items attempted to turn them all into stains.
Astro jumped towards debris before using Quick Attack to bounce off them as platforms. The fighting type raced forward to strike the Shadow Celebi with a Force Palm. However, faster than any Pokemon move before it, a green energy blade appeared and clashed with Astro's attack.
Shadow Celebi gripped the handle of the specialized Leaf Blade before pushing Astro away. The Riolu landed with a slide as Shadow Celebi flew in after him with the blade raised.
The Fake Pokemon downed the blade... against a Snag Ball thrown in its direction.
Ash grunted as he started to charge another Snag Ball. Yet Shadow Celebi spotted the teen was no longer on the Rotom Bike. The AI teleported in between the Eeveelutions and the Rotom, who were a few paces away from the Mirage Machine.
It tossed the energy blade up before it split into a hundred copies of itself all pointing towards the three.
'Abandon bike!' Umbreon screamed as the brothers and Rotom scattered before a wave of swords stabbed into Wes' hoverbike. One of the swords ignited the gasoline, causing it to explode.
'Aww man! Our sweet ride!' The dark type lamented the vehicle which was like family to them.
'We gotta get past that guy!' Espeon cried out.
'NOT TO WORRY! WITH THE ALOLAN POKEDEX FEATURE, I CAN PINPOINT THE WEAKNESS OF OUR NEW FOE! AND THAT'S NOT ALL, CALL RIGHT NOW AND," The Rotom went on shouting about a very good deal instead of actually doing what he said he'd do.
Shadow Celebi ignored the talking salesman and started to make the debris gather around the Mirage Machine. In fact, the amount of power it started to gather caused a flux within the area as machines started to flick on and off.
Astro, seeing this, gulped as he felt a spike in energy. 'Hey, Ash. Remember that Rainbow Aura you did? Think you pull it off again?'
"It says not enough energy!" If one couldn't tell by how Ash kept mashing the buttons on the Battle AR, he was quite stressed at that moment.
It didn't take long before all of the machines started to condense and form around the Mirage Machine...
Sabrina finished a recent Gym Battle and sat in her office. She saw Xatu waddling over to her screaming something about a TV, so she used her powers to open the channel.
"For those tuning in just now: There's been some odd form of terrorist attack over in the Sliph Co. Building!"
Sabrina frowned.
"Police have had trouble entering due to strange Pokemon appearing out of nowhere and attacking them from entering. However, they recently disappeared..."
The Gym Leader narrowed her eyes when she saw the TV. Her Gym blinked in and out as if losing power.
"Oh my Arceus!" The TV went back on.
The TV showed that the roof of Sliph Co blew up, and a giant amalgamation of metal all clumped together to form some kind of monster with wings and tendrils unleashed a powerful roar.
"What is happening in Sliph Co!?" Sabrina didn't like the fact she wasn't as clueless as the reporter in this situation. "And wait? Is that? Johnson, zoom over in the right arm: is that a kid hanging on the arm!?"
Sabrina's glass of water broke. "It better not be..."
The camera zoomed in, making Xatu scream out, 'I KNEW IT WAS ASH! BECAUSE I CAN SEE THE FUTURE~ OH NO. SABRINA'S BLOOD PRESSURE IS RISING!'
It was indeed a monster the teen saw at the ends of epic movies. Long, tendrils made of clumped objects, frightening frame, massive power. Though, it felt odd. Why did this thing look familiar to him? For some reason he imagined the monstrosity to be made of dark vines and instead of the top of a building, he imagined the setting to be near a secret lake.
Maybe reaching high altitudes at great speeds was messing with his mind more than he thought. Ash and the others climbed up on top of the arm.
"Okay, how are we going to get our friend out!?" Ash steadied himself as the amalgamation of technology kept growing. "Wait a second. Rotom! You can possess machines, right? Why don't you possess the Mirage Machine? Then you could put it off?"
'THAT IS A INGENIOUS IDEA, ALMOST AS INGENIOUS AS THE DEAL ON THESE WIPES WE'RE SELLING!'
'Uh Ash?' Everyone looked at Astro as he pointed ahead. 'I think our enemy thought the same thing.'
The Shadow Celebi floated in front of the torso of this new monster. It played with the Leaf Blade, splitting it into three before forcing it back into one. It turned towards the group... before splitting itself into 17 Shadow Celebis each using their own type element.
Ash remembered he was out of the building, which meant he could bring out his other Pokemon. "Come on out, guys!"
'Dios Mio! What is this!?' 'Ahh? What a grand beast that has the honor of being felled by the future king of Mt. Moon!' 'I swear on the great ones, Ash. How many moons must pass for this to stop?!' "Wow, friends! We're up so high!'
El Almohada, Prince Nidorino, Notus, and Jigglypuff all saw where they were and acted accordingly. Except for the newcomer, this wasn't an uncommon occurrence to Team Luckless.
"Alright, guys! Here's the short story: we gotta save our new friend who's trapped inside the chest of a sorta-fake legendary Pokemon that has all the powers of every Pokemon on record!"
'Then what is the long version of that story!?' The masked Drowzee couldn't get an answer the Celebi rushed in, all charging their own elements. Ash's team started to run along the arm while looking at the torso.
"Everyone, clear a path for Rotom!"
Prince Nidorino moved first as his Golden Life Orb activated, using Rock Tomb to erect a stone to erupt in the middle of the arm. This caused the metal monster to whine and swing its arm, carrying the rescuers away from the initial strike of the Celebis.
The wind and electric Shadow Celebi moved in, only for Jigglypuff to tag the latter with Strength while Notus intercepted and forced the wind Shadow Celebi to fly upward.
The psychic one teleported right in front of the group and shaped some of the protruding objects into spikes pointed at them.
The spikes sped forward before Espeon and Ash used their own telekinesis. While they couldn't overpower the incoming attacks, the two slowed the attack enough for Umbreon and Astro to speed in and attack the Shadow Celebi. However, the image barely moved from the impact of two different attacks. It raised its hands to summon two more Leaf Blades—
Before a Snag Ball flew in and caught the unaware Celebi.
More Celebi rushed for the group. Ash charged another Snag Ball while looking at El Almohada. "Use Rest!"
Although the masked Pokemon was huffing too hard to respond, he raised his thumb before he fell asleep where he ran. His eyes shot open with glowing eyes. '¡Lucharé contra ellos!' The dreaming wrestler exclaimed before backflipping, grabbing two Celebis as he spun and performing a Cobra Clutch on one of the fake Legendaries while landing on the other.
The psychic pulled harder, making the two Celebis pause in confusion than pain. '¡Asegúrate de favorecer y sigue a este autor!'
Ash threw a Snag Ball at an incoming Celebi, who only cut the ball before it opened up to catch it. One of the Celebis teleported right in front of Rotom. But Astro was ready and tackled the Pokemon away from the ghost-type's path.
Ash figured they were going to get stopped at this rate, so they needed to reach the torso now. "Prince Nidorino, use Rock Tomb underneath us towards the torso!"
A golden shine came from Prince Nidorino's Life Orb. A second later, a boulder erected from beneath the ground, launching them forward towards the torso. The Fake Legendaries gathered psychic energy, but El Almohada spun into the path of all the Mirages and created the biggest Light Screen capable of holding off the attacks.
It lasted for one second, but that was enough for the others to reach the torso.
"Go in there!" Ash shouted to Rotom as he nodded and phased out of the Pokedex.
However, instead of phasing in, a Shadow Celebi phased out face-first, causing Rotom to back off in fear. The Celebi moved the debris around the torso, removing them and pushing the group away from their destination. Since Rotom phased through objects, Shadow Celebi used its psychic powers now that it was no longer being protected.
Shadow Celebi held most of Team Luckless in bent metal. El Almohada was out cold from the other Celebi and even Notus and Jigglypuff could barely put up fights.
Ash struggled as he tried to think of something. However, the Battle AR started to beep at that moment. The raven-haired teen saw that it had enough energy for another Synergy Burst.
Yet, all the fake Legendaries turned to Ash's device. The psychic teen acted quick, using his powers to press the yes function. However, the Shadow Celebi closest to him slashed the device with a Leaf Blade.
The device shattered... unleashing rainbow energy to everyone but Rotom in the area.
Some of their wounds healed; not a lot, but more than enough to give everyone their second wind. All the empowered Pokemon freed themselves before striking whatever nearby clone.
Astro and Prince Nidorino freed Ash and Rotom.
'Go!' Astro pointed. 'We'll cover you two!'
Two Celebis rushed for them. However, they were stopped with a Rainbow Aura before slamming into the ground like anvils. The two downed Mirage Pokemon flickered as if not completely immune to the errors of the others. Perhaps Wes' damage to the machine finally helped them rather than hinder?
'Not so tough now that we can fight back, huh!?' Espeon yelled as he used his new power boost to send more clones flying away. He turned back to Ash and Rotom. 'Save Wes already! And remember his name, darn it!'
The two did as they were told while Team Luckless started their counterattack.
This time, Rotom rushed in...
Ash watched and waited two seconds for nothing to happen. At first, he wondered what had happened.
Then... the entire metallic amalgamation started to change. The familiar red color scheme overtook the joint metal until Rotom's face covered the head of the Mirage Machine.
The Rotom opened its mouth.
"BILLY ROTOM HERE! INTRODUCING THE NEW ROTOM MIRAGE MACHINE! WATCH IN AWE AS I MAKE THESE SHADOW MIRAGES DISAPPEAR!"
The Rotom's eyes started to glow. With a flicker, all of the Shadow Celebis faded away. One seemed to resist the change, signaling that this was the fake that caused this madness.
It seemed to resist its own creation. However, Rotom's eyes and chest started to glow, forcing the fake legend to scream in static before it was erased from existence.
However, before it was truly erased, Espeon and Umbreon spotted the the Shadow Celebi smiling as if realizing something.
Team Luckless sighed in relief. "Yes!" Ash threw his arm with the Snag Machine up. He now felt sore throwing items with it since he wasn't a southpaw. "We did it! We saved everyone! Alright, Rotom, bring out the others and depower the Mirage Machine!"
"BUT WAIT! ... THERE'S MORE!"
Espeon and Umbreon went back into fighting position while Team Luckless stared in confusion. "What? There's more?"
Rotom's body... changed. Instead of the bright and energetic red it always had when possessing a machine, it's body turned as black as the Shadow Celebi. Even it's eyes changed colors to match the AI.
"CALL IN NOW WITH 2 PAYMENTS OF ALL THE MONEY IN THE REGION, AND I WON'T RAZE ALL ORGANIC LIFE TO THE GROUND! MWAHAHAHAHAHA! THIS IS THE DEAL OF A LIFETIME!"
As silly as that cry sounded, it had a background noise of static, signaling that annoying Shadow Celebi somehow possessed Rotom possessing the Mirage Machine!
It started to gather power! Everyone braced themselves for whatever attack was coming their way.
But, nothing happened?
Ash's Poké Nav started to ring, and it rang non-stop. Soon, even from where he was, he could hear more and more phones ringing down in the crowds below. This prompted the teen to take the device and see what was going on.
He only raised his brow when he saw adds and video feeds of Billy Appliances.
The Rotom/Shadow Celebi monster unleashed a wave of Billy Merchandising ads through every digital device in the world! Computers got pop-up ads! Rotom Phones were interrupted and had unskippable videos detailing the features of items like fridges and lawnmowers! And the TV... no one noticed anything and just assumed there were longer commercials in between their programming.
"What the?" "Aww man, don't tell me I got a virus!" "That boy has not even left my city, yet he somehow causes this?" "Wow, I have been thinking of getting a new lawnmower."
Jigglypuff gasped after hearing the many cries of charismatic selling in the distance. 'Oh no! He's hoggin the airwaves with nothing but 30-minute-long commercials! The fiend!'
Umbreon narrowed his eyes. 'Wait. All the power to the world's satellites, and he's just using it to promote his company? I mean... the way he's doing it is illegal, but he's kinda harmless?'
'I think this works in our favor! The Celebi still hasn't fully controlled the Rotom!' Espeon growled before taking a stance, which prompted the others to do the same. 'We need to take it out before it regains full control of itself! As long as we have this Rainbow Aura, we can win!'
Everyone felt invigorated after hearing words of courage. A shame the Rainbow Aura did not feel the same way as it faded from all the combatants.
'... Wow. Today really really really sucks.'
"PLACE YOUR ORDERS TODAY AND BE SURE TO INCLUDE YOUR CREDIT CARD NUMBER, THE THREE DIGITS ON THE BACK, AND THE EXPIRATION MONTH AND YEAR!" There are and will be better war cries to choose from. But Rotom Mirage Machine decided to exclaim that before attempting to crush his former allies.
Ash and the rest of Team Luckless jumped off and landed on parts of the roof of Sliph Co.
'Okay, we need more of that rainbow power to defeat this mega possessed telemarketer!' Espeon stopped as he had this vacant look on his face. It almost looked like he couldn't believe what he had just said. 'If my heart were to pop out of my own chest right now, I'd be fine with it.'
Rotom continued to make aggressive deals while attempting to move its tendrils for an attack. Suddenly, the monster lurched to a stop. Two noticeable spikes shot out of the torso of the Rotom Mirage Machine.
Then the two spikes ripped open from the inside of Rotom's chest, before ripping open a large gash where most would imagine a heart would be.
'I'll accept that on him instead.'
The rest watched as out of the torso, a Metagross flew out. Yet, on top and flying next to the powerful steel type were Wes and Mismagius. And sharper members would have noticed the trapped person under Wes' arm.
"Oh! You guys did a sneak attack! That's smart!" Ash exclaimed while Umbreon looked over at his brother. The psychic gave a weak nod, meaning that he did make a plan with Wes' reserve Pokemon.
Wes spotted and motioned his Metagross to land near Ash. "Hey, are you wearing my Snag Machine?"
"Yeah! It helped us catch those Shadow Mirages! It's really cool how it turns Poke Balls into like a hand of light! By the way, what does Snag mean?"
Wes narrowed his eyes at how Ash missed the fact he's been using a machine that can steal Pokemon from other trainers.
"Uhhh..." Mirage Master groaned as he lifted his head.
"Hey! Dr. Yung! He's alive! Good job, Le... Wes?"
"Yes. That is my name." The Hero of Orre felt a tug on his lips. Huh, the kid reminded him of someone.
"Oooh! Me!" Imaginary Rui waved to Wes and motioned to herself. "You saved me from being kidnapped now he saved you! Sorta. But it totally counts!"
Wes ignored her, which one does to not sound like a lunatic. "Wait, this guy is Dr. Yung? I thought he was the Mirage Master?"
"He was the Mirage Master!?" Ash yelled.
"I guess? I was too busy beating him up to really care about the details."
"I WILL NEVER STOP PROMOTING APPLIANCES THAT IMPROVE LIVING CONDITIONS AT REASONABLE PRICES!"
Wes raised his brow. "Though, I will admit I'm missing the details as to how THAT came to be." He turned around to see the giant Capitalist Rotom gathering an alarming amount of power.
"We tried saving you and met that Rotom. I thought he would help! He possessed a hoverbike first... until it got cleaved in half...?"
"You've really been a big... wait. What was that about a hoverbike?" Wes dropped his sarcasm when he saw the the possessed Rotom lifted its tendrils up.
Everyone dodged the slam of all tendrils that created dust clouds from the impact. As the smoke cleared, Ash's team ran up one tendril while Wes' team trailed up the opposite side.
"Alright, let's finish this!" "Time to end this headache!" Ash and Wes screamed as their Pokemon started to gather energy and pointed towards the Rotom's chest.
Mirage Machine Rotom roared in static as he summoned copies of Shadow Celebis to stop the group.
"Yeah—no. Mismagius, Phantom Force!" Wes' ghost Pokemon vanished with his team. Yet, it didn't stop Team Luckless from advancing closer to Rotom's chest at the same time that Ash started to levitate several Poke Balls with his telekinesis.
In a blink, Wes and his team appeared point-blank in front of the exposed chest.
The Shadow Mirages moved to intercept. However, the closest to interrupting Wes' Pokemon got blindsided by multiple Snag Balls.
Ash knew the Snag Machine could only charge one ball at a time. However, thanks to his psychic powers, he could levitate a charged Snag Ball instead of using it, allowing him to quickly store and throw 5 before and as Wes made his move.
Wes' team had a clear shot, and over Dr. Yung's screams of desperation, the four Orreain Pokemon unleashed a combination attack on the exposed chest of the evil AI.
"THIS OFFER ENDS SOOOOOOOONNNNNN!" Rotom-Shadow-Celebi yelled with all the force one would hear from a dying final boss before being consumed by explosions.
The explosions piled together to create an even bigger explosion. The force of the attack made Ash and most of his team scream as they fell off the building.
Luckily for them, Wes had both an Espeon and a Metagross to catch all of them with Psychic.
"Thanks!" Ash thanked the older teen as he came closer. However, the Kanto native noticed the narrowing eyes on the Snagger. Somehow, it was scarier than even the Shadow Celebi that just tried to kill them.
"What was that about a broken hoverbike? My hoverbike?"
After a nice and long talk about destroyed hoverbikes, Ash and Wes left the building. Yet, when they did, a crowd of first-responders and victims turned over and started to cheer when they saw the two.
"And here we are with the heroes who saved Sliph Co.!" A reporter ran up and pointed the mike near Ash Ketchum. "What do you have to say after unveiling and thwarting Dr. Yung in his attempt at world domination?" Their talk was long enough for the victims to realize what was going on. Not to mention the fact Wes tossed Dr. Yung to the police before he had his (talk) with Ash.
"... He was trying to rule the world?" The teen tilted his head.
The reporter paused before looking over to Wes. "What about you, young man?"
"No comment." Wes spoke with all the emotion of a chair with spikes all over it.
"That will be enough. Thank you very much." The group turned to the new voice. Even Ash knew who it was: the President of Sliph Co.
"Is what I'm saying to the reporter. However, you two young men have more than my gratitude for what you've done today. I would like to give this to you."
He fished his pocket to reveal a Master Ball.
"I'd give you more than one, but these are very hard to make." He said before he handed the sphere to the younger of the two boys. "Is there anything else I can get you?"
"Yeah, send this Rotom back to where he belongs." Wes brought up the possessed Alolan Pokedex.
"Are you listening, camera guy?" The tired Pokemon muttered.
It didn't take long for Rotom's owner, with a well-kept beard, to take the exuberant Pokemon to the nearest Nurse Joy.
"Hey, Wes?" The Snagger turned back to the teen as he removed the Snag Machine. "This is yours."
Wes fit it back on his left hand. Sure, he was missing his blue overcoat, but it felt good to have it wrapped around his arm again, right even.
"You weren't that bad with it. And I can only think of one other person who I'd lend this to." It took Wes a second to realize what he was currently doing: rubbing the head of Ash. The teen whined and tried to fix his hat, but the act made Wes his head. What was it with him and naïve idiots?
"Well, it's been fun, Ash. But I gotta go. With my ride gone, I'll have to walk all the way to my next destination."
"Where's that?"
"Pallet Town."
As soon as the words left his lips, Wes spotted Ash's already big eyes widening. "Hey! I live there!"
Wes fought the urge to curse that the place where he was supposed to end his contract was the same as the kid's hometown. What were the odds of that?
Then again, what were the odds of him being kidnapped and being forced to fight a possessed Rotom while it possessed a powerful machine capable of creating an army of fake-but-not-really Pokemon?
Wes paused as he absorbed the oddity of such a situation, which gave Ash enough time to keep talking. "I have to head back there eventually before going back to Viridian City, we can go together! It's perfect too, I can even get money to pay ya back for all those complicated words for the bike!"
Wes appreciated the thought. He would need money to remake his hoverbike again. And he can only do so much pickpocketing, even if he stole the wallet from the President of Sliph Co.
To be honest? Wes was in no hurry to get this job finished. And a small part of his soul, against the wishes of his brain, body, heart, and the rest of his soul, wanted to be with a traveling companion again.
The silver-haired trainer sighed before looking over at the excited teen. "Alright. I guess we can go together."
Of course, after the hectic day the two trainers had, Wes failed to realize something.
He forgot Ash was a magnet for the most unlikely of trouble.
But don't worry. He'll get plenty of reminders in the future.
{Author Notes}
WHOOOO! Thanks for the 500+ follows! This fic is doing well even though the uploads are infrequent. Hopefully, it's going to change with how I'm slowly regaining my passion for Pokémon stories.
This chapter was stupidly hard to write. I don't know why it was such a struggle to do so, but it was. I hope it's not too bad, even though I just went, "Screw it" and went full crazy and whacky on this.
Enough of me whining, it's time to introduce Ash's new travel companion: Wes from Pokemon Colosseum! Young me was amazed at how cool the guy was back in the day, and I thought that this fic is about crazy fun, why not include a super Anti-Hero who's also a thief?
Everyone hide your wallets!
And also, let's give a warm hand to Dr. Yung! It's thanks to me remembering that the Mirage Movie existed that this arc was able to come out in the first place. (Along with my excuse to bring out a Rotom with Billy May's gimmick. RIP OXYCLEAN man.) ((Wait, who even knows this reference?))
And speaking of Pokémon Specials, I technically combined Mirage and the 4th Pokémon movie with an evil Celebi. Funny how things turn out, huh?
Anyway, if you've read this far, thanks! I hope this story finds you well. There are a lot of crappy things going on, so be safe out there. I do hope it gets better soon for those suffering.
{Extra: For Kazuki Takahashi.}
While Ash and Wes were walking down the street, the raven-haired teen stopped and looked to a glass window they were about to pass by.
"Hey! They've got Yugioh Cards here!"
'What's Yugioh?' Astro asked.
"The Best Card game ever! I used to play that with my friends!" If there was something that could distract Ash from Pokémon, it was definitely the strange yet epic game of Yugioh that captured the raven-haired boy's spare time.
"Yugioh huh?" Wes found himself feeling nostalgic. Being formerly part of Team Snagem, there was a lot of boring parts aside from stealing and selling Pokémon illegally. When one of the grunts stole a pack of cards, the entire Team crowded around whoever would play at the time.
It even led to grunts actively ignoring Pokémon to steal decks just to kill time in that sorry dump of an HQ. Wes recalled the time the cards finally got Gonzap to play.
The two ended up going in and renting two decks and a table to play in.
After setting everything up, they both looked at each other with competitive spirits rising.
They both shouted at the same time, "Let's Duel!"
{Author Notes}
This one's for you Takahashi-senpai. Thanks for making the game that's a huge part of my life. May you show the afterlife the true meaning of the Heart of the Cards.