Pokemon battles on motorcycles!

While the mystery of the exploding Rocket Base weighed on their minds, the rescue team and rescuees had larger concerns. Primarily, getting help for everyone who was hurt.

Unfortunately flying was no longer an option. Both Charizard and Arnold were unconscious and Pidget had worn himself out in the initial brawl. This meant that they had to march through the woods on foot back to civilization, while carrying anyone who wasn't able to travel on their own.

This took some time.

It was long past sundown by the time they saw the lights of Viridian City, and both Misty and Ash were struck with a bit of déjà vu. Admittedly they'd still had some sunlight the last time.

There was a bit of excitement when the doctors at the Human Center (not to be confused with the Pokemon Center) realized they were treating Professor Oak. Trying to explain the truth of what had happened proved difficult, mostly because no one was sure what had happened to the Professor.

The Pokemon Center easily accepted all the injured and tired Pokemon, although there was a brief flash of recognition and concern when Nurse Joy saw Pikachu and Misty. No doubt she remembered what happened last time they visited her.

"I'll be honest, I'm a little bit disappointed," Karen admitted as the uninjured trainers went to their rooms.

"Why? We won!" Leaf seemed quite pleased with the current circumstances.

"I know, it's just I expected Team Rocket to put up more of a fight," Karen admitted. "I called back my best fighters, I psyched myself up for a massive battle, and other than the brawl outside I didn't get to see any action!"

"Ash and Professor Oak would disagree with you." Misty slyly pointed out.

"I said that I didn't get to see any action you punk." Karen flicked her in the head. "It is what it is I guess. Maybe they'll come back for more."

"Why would you hope for that?" Brock groaned and rubbed his face.

"There are still the ones we have locked up in Professor Oak's lab," Misty remembered. "Maybe you can fight them tomorrow?"

Leaf blinked in confusion for a moment, "Oh yeah, you mentioned them. Did you just leave them there?"

"They're locked in the closet."

Recovery went differently for everyone but by late afternoon the next day, everyone was ready and eager to go home.

Ash had appreciated the chance to meet his new teammates. He was a bit worried about Spearow (or Ruth apparently) at first but it seemed she had nothing to do with the flock that chased down himself and Pikachu that first day.

On the way home, now that his Trainer-Mom had a proper cast and sling for her arm, as well as having eaten a proper meal, Ash was able to hug her and say sorry.

He'd already done both technically but he felt the need to do it again.

"You were right about Team Rocket being dangerous," Ash told her. "I'm sorry you got hurt because of us."

"Ash, I don't blame you at all for this." She comforted him. "I blame them, well, some of them. It's a bit complicated."

"I don't know what to feel." He forced himself to admit. "I feel sorry that you got hurt, but then I think of other people getting hurt because of them and I want to stop that from happening!"

"Remember when we talked after you fought them in Celadon?" Delia asked him and he nodded. "I told you that they were dangerous, because I was worried about you. I don't want you to worry about me. I also remember telling you to get the police and other law enforcement involved the next time you fought them."

"They came out of nowhere in Vermillion!" Ash defended the Pokemon Center fight.

"I meant coming to save me on your own." She ruffled his fluffy head. "Not to say I'm not grateful, I can't describe how happy I was to see you. But…"

"But I couldn't." He didn't take the obvious route of agreeing with her. Even if he knew he should have. "I couldn't have sat there while someone else tried to save you. I had to do something to help."

His Mom sighed and pulled him into another hug. "I don't think I can or should try to stop you from trying to help and do the right thing, but please be careful."

"We will." As careful as they could be at least. This was about the moment he realized they had a bit of an audience. He fought to hide his embarrassment as he asked. "I meant to ask, could my friends stay with us? Misty already did sort of but she might need to stay awhile actually. I don't know about Brock and Karen."

Delia blinked. "I thought they were going to stay with us already. I've been trying to think how everyone will fit!"

"If it's too much trouble we can figure something else out Miss Ketchum," Brock suggested, Ash's friends had been quiet while he had his moment with his Trainer-Mom.

"Nonsense! We can make it work!" She paused and did a quick head count of trainers and Pokemon. "Somehow!"

Misty was curious about Ash's room. The other night the entire group had crashed in the living room on the main floor. Given the circumstances, this could perhaps be forgiven. But Ash had remembered his promise that Misty could use his room when she came to Pallet Town with him.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, he did not have a human-sized bed she could use.

His "bedroom" was a spare room in the house where Delia kept most of his stuff. There was grooming supplies like brushes and shampoo, but also plenty of toys. Everything from simple chew toys to more complicated ones like puzzles.

Ash said he never managed to finish those.

While this was technically fine, she could still use her sleeping bag and the group could buy some air mattresses for their stay, she was a bit more confused by the thing Ash called his bed.

"Ash." She said calmly and with patience. "That is a cardboard box."

He had dropped his illusion and curled up with a blanket inside said box. It wasn't even a particularly large one. Duct tape wrapped the corners, barely holding it together after years of use.

"It's my bed!" He sat up and grinned at her.

"Ash, why do you sleep in a cardboard box?" She needed to know.

He thought about it. "It's comfortable."

"Pika-pika." Pikachu shook his head and poked at the box.

"I don't want one of those weird Poke-Beds!" He whined. "I want my box!"

"That box looks like it's on life support." Misty had to point out.

"I've fixed it!" He sounded oddly defensive about it. "This is my box and I love it!"

"Pika-chu." Ash's partner whispered conspiratorially to Misty. It was a shame she still couldn't understand him.

"Is everyone going to fit in here?" Misty checked. It wasn't the smallest room in the world but it was smaller than her own bedroom back in Cerulean City. Which might not be her bedroom anymore.

Her sisters had probably started using it for something else.

Ash and Pikachu shared a glance and the electric-type shrugged. "Maybe? Pidgeotto said she made a nest outside when she was sent back to the lab, she might use that. I don't know if Storm will hang out with the rest of the Squirtle Squad like your Squirtle, at least not now that she's been discharged."

"When did that happen?"

"Right after I sent her out when Professor Oak brought her and the others."

"Pikachu pi." Pikachu scurried over to a set of drawers and pulled out a blanket covered in images of Kangaskhan. "Pika!"

"That's Pikachu's blanket for when he spends the night," Ash explained to Misty. "But I guess we should try to figure out how everyone else will sleep, we don't have a full-size bed so we can't do what we do at Pokemon Centers…"

"We could go on a shopping trip," Misty suggested. "I was thinking of getting an air mattress so I'm not just on the floor."

"Oh, good idea!" Ash nodded. "If we get three of them then we have three more boxes! Then we'll only need to find another two! Or not, depending on Pidgeotto and Storm."

"I cannot begin to explain how that wasn't my point." She rolled her eyes, half annoyed, half amused.

"Boxes make things better." He insisted, "they are safe and comfy and protect against wind!"

"We're inside! How much wind could there be?"

He paused, that thought had not occurred to him. "Well, if there is any my box will protect me!"

Misty groaned and rubbed her face. "No matter how many boxes we have, I don't think my team will fit in here too. Not unless we all sleep in a giant pile."

"Pi!" Pikachu pointed out. "Kachu pika."

"Yeah, that's not the best idea." Ash grimaced. "Sunny gets really hot, and now that he's evolved he's probably gonna be even warmer!"

His grimace turned to horror. "His tail might light the box on fire…"

Needless to say, the sleeping arrangements were not sorted out for some time.

"Look how big you've all gotten!" Now that they weren't in immediate danger, Delia was free to admire the growth of Ash's team.

"We did a few evolutions since the last time you saw us." Ash admitted with a slight chuckle.

"I can see that!" Delia rubbed Sunny's head and he basked in the praise. "I'm a little surprise you evolved."

"I decided to didn't want to be afraid of changing." Sunny admitted. "...can I call you grandma now?"

Pikachu choked a laugh and some of the others chuckled. Art immediately started working out how to mix Delia and Grandma together. Ash translated for Sunny and Delia's eyes went wide and a little blank.

"Grandma…" She pulled her ponytail around her head and started inspecting it. "I'm not ready! I don't want curly gray hair yet!"

"Mom!" Ash laughed and calmed her down. "You're fine."

"I don't have to call you Grandma…" Sunny claimed but he sounded a little sad. "It's like with Dad, it is a little unfair to you. How about Grand Trainer?"

"Grand Trainer?" Pidgeotto mused. "I like that, and it goes double for me!"

"Grand Trainer it is then!" She laughed as it was explained to her. "Although what does that make my new team to you then?"

"...Aunts and uncles?" Pidgeotto shrugged. "What do you think Uncle Ash?"

He sighed, "That's never going to stop is it?"

"I will always bring it back."

"I'm not used to having the house so busy!" Delia couldn't decide if she was delighted or not by that.

On the one hand, it was exciting having such a flurry of activity every day, on the other hand, it could become a bit exhausting. But then again she only had one hand for the moment.

"I was a little surprised there was nowhere we could stay," Brock admitted, he had offered his help around the kitchen since he knew so much about cooking. She was still down an arm so the help was appreciated. "I know Pallet Town isn't the most popular destination but Professor Oak is famous enough I thought businesses would be appearing in his wake!"

"It's weird for me to think about sometimes," Delia admitted as she did her best to cook one-handed. "I know he's supposed to be world famous but he's always been the nice and kind of goofy scientist up the road for me."

"As for why there aren't more businesses around here… I couldn't tell you for sure. Maybe instead of encouraging more businesses Professor Oak discourages them, or at least overdevelopment."

Brock paused for a moment. "That makes sense now that I think about it. He studies Pokemon and Pallet Town growing and developing the environment around it wouldn't be good for that."

"Possibly, and he might just like it this way." Delia hummed. "Now that I think about it the town has stayed mostly the same for my entire life. There have been little changes here and there, and we've been pretty good at staying up to date with technology, but if ten-year-old me walked down the road today she might not even notice she was in the future."

"At least not until she saw her backyard had been turned into a water park." Brock pointed out and took a glance out the window. "Misty and her team seem to be enjoying it."

Delia smiled softly. "I'm glad. After everything I heard happened with her home I don't mind letting her stay here, but I think we need to figure out something a little more permanent. I should talk to her about it…"

Mr. Mime, or Mimey as Delia had started calling him, literally swept through the room as the conversation lulled. She hadn't quite intended to take him home with her but he had followed along anyway. Now he seemed to see himself as some sort of housekeeper. He helped with chores and even started wearing one of her aprons.

She hoped he wasn't doing it out of some sort of guilt for hurting her when she managed to break him out of that prison. She didn't hold it against him, he had been scared and stopped as soon as he realized he was seriously hurting her.

"You said you lived here your whole life?" Brock checked, reigniting their talk.

"Most of it at least." She nodded. "I did travel for a little while when I was a trainer but… I never got anywhere. I don't normally talk about it but I tried a few times actually. Each time I just felt like I was doing something wrong or that it wasn't for me."

"What changed?"

"My parents died."

Brock nearly took a chunk out of his finger when he heard that but managed to correct himself. "I- I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to-"

"Don't worry about it!" She insisted. "It's been awhile and… well it still hurts but I can talk about it now. My diner was theirs. I have just as many memories spending time there as Ash does now. I was their only child so everything went to me, Professor Oak and my friends helped me sort things out. I've been running it ever since."

She frowned as she debated how to elaborate. "Well, sort of. I'm skipping some of the messier details of it all. Shelldon was relatively fine with it all, but he was fairly bored sitting around. Pix had already begun her career as a mascot and ended up doing that full time. And Arnold…"

That still stung, his angry, almost hateful glare stuck with her even now. Seeing him up close for the first time in years the previous day, and injured because of her… that hurt too.

Not wanting to dwell on that memory she continued, "So I started running the diner, going through the motions. I was still a girl then, my friends kept traveling, others younger than me started their journeys. I just stayed and worked my diner."

"Were you okay with that?" There was an odd vulnerability to Brock's question.

"I was not okay." She almost laughed. "But I survived. I kept going and I wont say I didn't spend nights wishing I hadn't kept going on journeys, that I hadn't done something different. But all the what ifs in the world won't change a thing. I helped Professor Oak in my free time, learned more about Pokemon, I got to know everyone in town more than I used to. And I experiment I learned so much about cooking."

"It's hard to say when I realized I was content. I didn't just wake up one day and decide my life was perfect. I didn't go looking for extra fulfillment. I just slowly got used to doing things and apart from the occasional fantasy I found myself settled. I can't ignore Ash getting brought into my mess either. Sweet little Zorua poking his nose into everything and surprising me with his illusions."

"I won't say I wouldn't change a thing. I can think of several things I wish had gone differently, especially losing my parents. But I can say I'm happy with how it all turned out. I don't need a goal to strive for, I just need to do my best everyday."

"That's what I've been doing." Brock admitted. "But I want more."

"More?"

"I want to have a goal. I want to know where I'm going. I've been doing my best to be helpful but I feel like I'm just following along. I'm scared of life running past me."

"Brock you have plenty of time." She comforted him. "You don't have to have it all figured out, as happy as I am with things now I know they will change, I have a lot of life ahead of me still. You have even more! You don't have to pick a goal you have to focus on, you can just work on getting better however you want."

He glanced at her. "I'm not getting better like I want though. I'm just going through the motions, I'm not accomplishing much."

"Are you sure about that?" She asked and pointed at the parts of the meal he'd helped her prepare. "Who said you had to accomplish "much?" Just try to accomplish something. Eventually those accomplishments build up."

The boy looked thoughtful but not wholly convinced and Delia felt like she needed to encourage him a bit more, or even give him something to focus on. "How about you help me at the diner for a few days?"

"Really?" He seemed a bit surprised at the suggestion. "I mean I'd be happy to but are you sure you can run things with your arm?"

"You said you wanted a goal? Well here's a short term goal for you, help me keep my restaurant running with my broken arm." She gave him a slight smile. "Think you can do it?"

Brock stood a little straighter and cracked his knuckles. "I'll do my best."

"That's all you need to do."

"Come to gloat have you?"

"No, not really."

"I assure you this is merely a setback."

"Uh-huh."

"Once I achieve my freedom, I will destroy you and all you hold dear. I will restore the Great Three and They shall transform the world to better suit Them!"

"You mean kill everyone. Including you."

"Yes- I mean no! Not me! I am their loyal servant!"

A part of Ash questioned why he was even trying with Diglett. The ground-type had proven time and again that he wanted nothing but to cause pain. The only reason he'd caught the other Pokemon was so that they could keep better track of him.

Really, Diglett wasn't any better than Sabrina, Damian, or Team Rocket. He might be better than AJ though? Maybe.

"I don't understand why we're even bothering." Pikachu unknowingly echoed Ash's thoughts.

"Because you know your doom is approaching heretics!" Diglett sneered at them. "And you're doing everything in your small power to forestall judgement day!"

"I just want to understand," Ash admitted, both to Diglett and himself. "I don't get you. I've met other bad people but they're bad for things that make sense. Like they want to be stronger, or they want money, or they want friends, or they just like being mean."

"How is it so hard to understand I want to bring about paradise?!"

"I'm repeating Ash here, but did you not notice what your so-called God did the moment it woke up?" Pikachu checked. "You know? The screaming? The destruction? Any of that?"

"That reminds me, where did you hide the prison?" Diglett's nostrils flared as he glared at them.

"We couldn't tell you even if we wanted to," Ash answered honestly. "We gave it to a smart strong guy."

"Probably shouldn't have given him that much…" Pikachu mused but Diglett's shriek of rage made them both wince.

"HOW DARE YOU?! DO YOU MAKE IT YOUR LIFE MISSION TO RUIN EVERYTHING I SEEK TO ACHIEVE?!"

"Hey! You came after us! Even that first time! That dummy Gary was following your holes thinking they were tracks! You attacked us numbskull!" Pikachu snapped at the ground-type.

"You were following me!" Diglett seethed. "Looking for the ruins too no doubt! Trying to steal my glory by finding the relics of destruction! You forced me to return in shame!"

"Wait, I thought you were worried we were going to steal your rocks?" Pikachu made a time out motion. "I swear I remember you saying that."

"I admit I was less informed to the true nature of my goal." Diglett admitted. "I now understand better what I searched for, to call them rocks was ignorant of their true glorious purpose."

"Why couldn't you have kept looking after we were gone?" Ash asked. "I mean, we were just there that day, you could have come back any time to look. Why did you stay away until we left on our journey?"

"I LOST THE TRAIL YOU IDIOTS!" Diglett shot to the edge of his artificial floating island and shook the entire thing, splashing water on himself. "I TRIED TO FIND IT AGAIN! SO MANY TIMES! IF IT WEREN'T FOR YOU I WOULD HAVE FOUND THE RUINS AND THE RELICS! THE PROPHECY WOULD BE ACHIEVED!"

"Instead I had to return in shame! "The Failure." Years of mockery when I was the one who was most worthy! I studied for years! I learned secrets deeper and darker than any other! I know the truth of our world and the Great Three are the Ones who will reveal it to us all!" Diglett continued to rant. "But I had to get rid of you first. My pride demanded it. Only then could I leave my shame behind and take my rightful place."

"Ash, this isn't going anywhere," Pikachu whispered to his partner.

The Zorua was forced to agree. Diglett was now raving and describing the paradise the Great Three would surely bring about (and definitely not just destroy the world). "We're gonna go for now Diglett, okay?"

Diglett paused his speech long enough to glare at the pair. "I despise you."

"Thanks, see you later."

A column of steam shot into the sky in a field near Pallet Town.

"People around here know the difference between steam and smoke right?" Eve checked, feeling a twinge of concern.

"I don't know the difference either except that there is one." Selene claimed as they watched. "They both happen when things are hot."

Her companion paused as she debated how to phrase it. "Steam is when water is burned, smoke is when anything except water is burned." Not entirely accurate but good enough for Selene.

Storm and Sunny were putting their attacks to the test against each other. Sunny had always had a lot of raw power, even before evolving. Now he was determined to figure out his new limits and surpass them.

Likewise, Storm was eager to continue increasing her strength. Ever since she'd evolved she'd found herself growing stronger. Especially after their training marathon on Cinnabar. Now that she had Hydro Pump under her shell, she was beginning to develop into a heavy hitter herself!

The current steam column was a result of Sunny's Flamethrower and Storm's (carefully aimed) Hydro Pump colliding in the middle of the field. They'd originally planned to do this at Professor Oak's lab but realized they should stay away from trees as much as possible.

"You guys are amazing!" Pie the Caterpie exclaimed. He'd come to watch the other Pokemon train and was mesmerized by the power unleashed.

"Thank you!" Selene smiled at the bug-type. "Shelldon and Ash could probably help you train to be strong too!"

"That's why I challenged him!" Pie nodded. "He looked really tough, so I thought if I wanted to be tough I should join his trainer!"

"Shelldon is built different." Eve muttered to herself as the dueling evolutions paused their beam struggle. "I'm actually curious how we'd do against him now."

"I think we could win this time!" Selene slammed a fist into her palm. "The last time we trained with him was in Saffron City! That was before we fought Nidoking and Nidoqueen the first time!"

"You can beat him?!" Pie had stars in his eyes.

"Maybe." Eve allowed. "Not sure when we'll get a chance to put it to the test, he's barely left your trainer's side."

"Oh yeah that was scary." He nodded but didn't sound very scared. Good for him.

"Again!" Sunny stamped a foot. "I almost had it that time!"

"Sunny, I appreciate your determination but the fact you're able to stop one of the most powerful water-type attacks with Flamethrower is impressive enough on its own!" Storm told him. "Maybe don't fly too close to the sun."

He looked up at the star itself and she sighed. "That was not encouragement to think about flying to the sun."

"I wasn't." The Charmeleon said a bit too quickly.

"Yes you were."

"Guys!" A shout caught their attention. "Can I come down now?"

"…I'd almost forgotten he was up there." Selene admitted.

Art's training had a few different focuses, refining his attacks so he didn't waste energy, adapting his battle strategy to be more efficient instead of showing off, and working on his ability to maintain his attacks.

Currently, he was working on the latter. This was achieved by using Psychic to lift a chunk of earth into the air and maintain its shape and mass for longer and longer periods of time.

"Yeah, I think you beat your record, you can come down!" Eve shouted to him.

"I think I can go bigger next time!" He declared waving his new steel stick in the air. "This new wand is great!"

"Oh yeah, I meant to ask before, where did you get that?" Sunny asked him as the team closed ranks.

After the loss of his stick against Camerupt Art had been despondent. Ash had tried training with him normally the first day (before the swap with Sunny) but they'd made a curious discovery. Art's moves seemed to work better when he had a focus of some sort. He could use Psychic and Psybeam without it but he couldn't use Mystic Fire, all he'd managed was a few sparks.

Ash had talked with Storm and Pidgeotto, and they realized it would take a lot more time to refine Art into the battler he was destined to be. Art had obviously been upset about missing out on the battle but had accepted after Pidgeotto pointed out he could use the time to find a new stick.

Apparently, this had been a quest unto itself.

"Well," Art grinned, obviously eager to tell the story. "My quest began on Cinnabar Island! After I realized that I was without a way to use my awesome powers I set about finding a new wand!"

"We knew that part already." Eve started but Selene shushed her.

"Shh! I want to hear what happens!"

"So, I went browsing! First, I tried picking up random sticks, trying to find one that was like my old one. But no matter how many I tried none of them seemed right! After getting rid of a bunch of bad sticks, I was stuck. I thought there must be a better place to find sticks, so I went to find a stick tree!"

As the young Ralts spoke, he waved his arms in grandiose fashion to accent his story and help make his points. Selene, Pie, and Sunny were utterly enraptured by his story. Storm listened with passing curiosity as Eve had resigned herself to fate.

"I found a mighty tree! So big and old that it must have been at least three times older than me! Using one of the less sticks, I started pulling down branches and taking shards from the trunk! But still! None of them felt right for me."

He drooped now, showcasing the despair he must have felt.

"My quest led me across the sea next! I found myself in a wood fort, my friends far from me, I looked for old people to giver me advice! First I tried the evil one, he wasn't any help. Then I tried the wizard! He couldn't understand me. Which meant old people had failed me!"

"I walked around on my own, searching for a new stick. There were plenty of different sticks around here, but none of them felt right to me. But then I found it! It stuck out of the ground, placed there by some super cool smart awesome person a long time ago! I didn't know what it was, but I knew it was for me!"

Art stabbed his wand into the ground in mimic of how he found it. "With all my strength I pulled on it, but it wouldn't budge! I had to use all my power, but I was able to free it from its prison! And I knew I had found me new wand! It has chosen me just as I chose it! With it I will do great and freaking cool things!"

Sunny and Selene clapped; Pie probably would have if he had the arms for it. Storm joined with a softer clap after a moment and Eve just sighed.

"I hope it wasn't anything important."

Art basked in the attention. "I am pretty great right? I need to tell Dash the story too! Oh and Pikachu and Pidgeotto I guess."

"Dash- Ash." Storm caught herself, "and Pikachu are still talking to Diglett… I thought they'd be done by now actually."

"Moon have mercy on them." Selene shook her head. "He is not pleasant to talk to."

"If I had to pick between being stuck in a room with Pikachu, and being stuck in a room with Diglett? I'd pick Pikachu." Eve admitted, truly showing how distasteful she found the ground-type. "At least I can trust him not to attack me in my sleep."

"Yeah he only does that to Dad." Sunny nodded. "Wait, I thought Pidgeotto went with them?"

"You missed that part." Storm told him. "She went with Pidget. Apparently, they want to catch up with family or something."

"I can't imagine that ending well." Eve surmised and got a look from both Selene and Storm.

"Is it just me or are you a lot more bitter?" Storm checked.

Eve paused and thought about it. "Huh, I haven't really noticed. I suppose I have been more pessimistic about things lately."

"Maybe it has to do with your type change? I know dark-type moves affect your emotions." Selene checked.

"Not quite right. It's more accurate to say that your emotions affect dark-type moves. But you're still right, I'll try not to be so negative with my comments. Unless it's relevant."

"Alright then, back to it!" The Clefable encouraged. "Sunny, Art could you help me out? I want to try something."

"What's the plan?" They moved away from the others a bit.

"When I was fighting Camerupt, he managed to break through my Protect." Selene began explaining. "I was still forming it but it did make me wonder if it was possible to break, and if it was, could I make it stronger?"

"Huh, so how do we do this?"

"Simple!" Selene told them to stand there and she walked a little bit away. Then she used Protect, the shimmering shield appearing in front of her. "Blast me with all your might!"

The two younger Pokemon shared a worried look. "Are you sure?"

"I will be the immovable object!" Selene took a stance.

Without anymore discussion, the two unleashed Flamethrower and Mystic Fire at the same time. The two attacks crashed into Selene's Protect, and then sputtered out as they stopped using the attacks.

"No, that wasn't enough." Selene shook her head. "Could you two try to keep it up for longer?"

As they went about testing Selene's defensive limits, the column of steam had gotten the attention of an observer, who now was drawn closer by the current spectacle. "What is this?"

"That really is a lot of firepower." Storm mused, shielding her eyes from the light. "We're standing way over here and I'm starting to cook."

"I feel like I should get further back." Pie decided and started to move away but paused. "Who's that guy?"

"What guy?" Eve followed his gaze and saw the observer. "Oh, that guy…"

"Is he wearing a beret?" Storm asked as he approached the trio.

"…I know it probably doesn't happen often but the last time a stranger came up to me out of the blue I got kidnapped." Pie reminded them.

"No Ash to translate… hang on." Eve started carving some words into the dirt.

The man in the beret paused in front of them, and saw the writing. "Hello, who are you…" He read and blinked. "You can write?! Marvelous!"

Selene, Sunny, and Art had noticed the visitor by now and came over to investigate.

"Please answer the question." Eve pointed at the words with her paw.

"Oh right, sorry, you caught me off guard Miss Umbreon. My name is Cleavon Schpielbunk, and you and your friends here might be exactly what I need for my next movie!"

"Judging from your expressions, you haven't had much luck?" Professor Oak rolled his wheelchair over to Ash and Pikachu.

"I'm not sure what to do with him," Ash admitted. "We can't leave him alone, we can't let him go, we can't take him with us."

"I think I've made my position clear." Pikachu had nothing else to add.

"There are people and facilities designed for holding Pokemon like him." Professor Oak told the pair. "I can see about getting in touch with the local Ranger Union. They'll probably have a better way for containing him than I do."

"To be fair, your way works pretty well." Pikachu grinned a bit. "He's very annoyed by it."

"That reminds me," Ash snapped his fingers. "While we were talking to him, he brought up being "so close" to the thing that he failed to get. He was a little vague but it sounded like it might be related to the Tomb and the legend of the Crystal Caverns."

"Hm." Oak tapped his chin. "I'm not sure what specifically he could be looking for, but I might have an idea."

He rolled over to his desk and dug through the paperwork a bit. "Aha, a few weeks ago construction workers uncovered what appeared to be some sort of ancient ruin. I won't bore you with the legal complications but the site is currently being excavated. I can't tell you for sure its what your "friend" was looking for, but it's the only lead I have for you."

"We can check it out." Ash thanked him as he handed the trainer a few pieces of paper. He glanced it over and took a look at the picture of a doorway. "…it's definitely old looking."

"I think most rocks look old." Pikachu pointed out.

"Rocks are pretty old in general." Ash claimed and Professor Oak sat up a bit straighter.

"Speaking of old rocks, follow me, I have something to show you." The professor led them out of the room and down the hall to one filled with advanced looking lab equipment. Sitting on a table of some sort with a bunch of devices pointed at it was Ash's rock.

"What are you doing to my rock?"

"Confirming my suspicion." Oak tapped it with a pencil. "This is indeed an old rock, but more importantly, it is a fossil."

"Come again?" Pikachu stared.

"Specifically, I believe it is a Cranidos fossil." The scientist continued. "More commonly referred to as a Skull Fossil. I'm quite astonished you managed to find one, where exactly did you get it?"

"I bought it from Brock's dad." The fact his rock was a fossil was pretty cool, but something about Professor Oak's interest seemed a bit odd to him. "I mean, I didn't know he was Brock's dad, but he was selling a bunch of rocks, I thought the pattern on this one looked cool so I got it."

The man chuckled. "Why does it not surprise me, regardless, now that you know do you want to take the next step?"

"…what next step?"

Professor Oak briefly summarized the process of fossil revival to the pair, watching their excitement begin to skyrocket.

"My rock is going to turn into a Pokemon!" Ash was all for going through with it. "This is awesome!"

Pikachu was a mix of baffled and eager. "I can't believe the rock you picked up is a Pokemon. I wonder what they'll be like? Will they have their memories? Or are we basically creating a brand new Pokemon?"

"I hope they like us, and battling." Ash decided. "I mean, if they don't that's fine but we'll need to figure something out then."

"Brock might have some ideas. I mean I don't know what type Cranidos is but obviously they come from rocks!"

"I need to look up what Cranidos looks like!" The Zorua realized, he couldn't put a shape to the name for once!

"Don't get ahead of yourselves." Oak warned them with a chuckle. "I can't just push a button and make it happen. I do have the equipment here but it will take some time. A week, maybe two."

The mention of time sobered Ash a bit. "They probably won't get to take part in the league then. I don't think we'd be able to train enough to get them ready."

"The sooner the better though!" Pikachu insisted. "Even if they can't compete they'll get to see what happens!"

"Good point." Sadly this would be the end of Ash's cool rock, but hopefully it was the start of Ash's cool new teammate!

"So do you just work here now?" Misty asked Brock that night at Delia's Diner. The group was allowed to stay past closing so it was just them and their Pokemon and Delia with hers.

"I guess so? Miss Ketchum suggested I help out here after seeing me in the kitchen. I guess she was impressed with my skills. I'm being paid at least."

"Which is unfair, we never got paid." Pikachu muttered sourly.

"We got unlimited access to the Pokemon Chow." Ash reminded him.

"We get that at your house anyway!"

"Do we get the employee discount at least." Karen smirked with a raised brow.

Brock laughed. "We're all houseguests of the owner, except for Ash who is one of her Pokemon. I don't think there's a reason to worry about the bill."

"Ask him now!" Art hissed to Sunny at the booth next to them.

"Ask me what?" Ash's juvenile paternal instincts triggered.

"Dad can we make a movie?" Sunny asked, poking his head over the buffer and doing his best to look adorable.

That didn't quite have an effect on Ash yet, but he didn't see any problem. "Sure! That could be fun, don't overwhelm yourself with stuff though! We're still training for the league too and you guys need to make sure you rest!"

"The league is so far away though!" Art swooned dramatically. "We don't have to worry about that yet!"

"You have no perception of time." Pikachu told him and went back to sucking ketchup out of the bottle with a straw.

"Hey! I'm like…" He tried counting on his fingers before remembering he didn't have any. "Eleven now!"

"Eleven what?" Eve insisted.

"Eleven."

"What are they asking about?" Misty couldn't help her curiosity.

"Sunny and Art want to make a movie." He shrugged at her. "I wouldn't be surprised if your team starts getting involved too."

"Of course." She sighed. "At least they'll have fun outside of training. I told you about my new training style right?"

"You told me at least." Karen nodded. "It sounds interesting if nothing else, let me know how it works out for you."

"It kind of reminds me of homework." Brock chuckled at his thought. "Make sure you have Ice Beam finished by the end of the week!"

"What is this homework you speak of?" Ash couldn't help his confusion.

"So, uh, should we tell him it's an actual movie?" Storm whispered to Eve.

"Not until I'm finished looking over our contracts."

"I- wait do you hear that?" Karen cut herself off and looked to the window to the kitchen as a shrill sound began to emanate.

"-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!" A ball of fur limbs and cardboard rocketed out of the kitchen, landed on the bar and then jumped again.

"EATEATEATEATEATEAT!" The furious creature chanted, lobbing boxes of food at the trainers and Pokemon, he continued this chant until he landed, out of boxes and then jumped through the air again and back to the kitchen. A final cry of "ENJOY!" Echoed behind him.

Ash reapplied his illusion that burst when his food clocked him in the head. "Thanks Mank!" He shouted.

"You're welcome!" was the slightly muffled but still fairly loud response.

"I think I understand why he wasn't allowed to help during the day shift." Brock began checking his own meal to make sure it survived the serving process.

"His screams just reminded me, where is Pidgeotto?" Pikachu recalled another fairly loud Pokemon. "She's been gone all day."

"She might be caught up with her family reunion." Selene suggested.

"Now repeat after me." Pidgeotto raised her voice. "Dad! You're a deadbeat!"

"Dad! You're a deadbeat!" A small army of Pidgey chanted.

"I know he's a jerk but is this really necessary?" Pidget asked his older sister.

"No, but I'm still annoyed with him."

"That's fair. And he is kind of a deadbeat."

"Right?"

Sunny was nervous.

He probably shouldn't be doing this.

It's not that he wasn't allowed to do this. No one had told him not to. But it seemed like a bad idea.

So why was he doing it?

That was what he kept asking himself as he approached Diglett's prison island.

The ground-type noticed him approaching and roused, looking at him with disdain, but a tiny bit of curiosity as well. "Well, if it isn't the little lizard. Did you get taller?"

His question seemed genuine so Sunny chose to answer. "I evolved saving Dad. I'm still getting used to it."

"Good for you." Diglett sneered at him. "What do you want?"

"I want to talk." Sunny sat down facing Diglett.

"Talk? To me?" Diglett chuckled. "Why? Didn't your fake human master already try this?"

"Dad's not my master he's my Dad." Sunny shrugged. "I wanted to ask you some stuff."

"Well, it's not like I have anything better to do." Diglett rolled his eyes. "Might as well stimulate my mind somehow. At least you're not as bad as those other two."

"Why are you so angry all the time?" Sunny asked.

"Why shouldn't I be?" Diglett answered with a question of his own. "I have a lot of things to be angry about! I've been embarrassed, I've been beaten, I've been imprisoned, I've lost everything I sought to achieve!"

"But do you like being angry?" Sunny wanted to know. "Cause I don't."

"Good for you."

"Except I do feel angry." Sunny looked at his claws, larger and sharper than the paws he'd had before. "More than I should. I keep snapping at people. I don't like it. I talked to Dad about it and we talked to Eve, she thinks it's just hormones and stuff. It's exactly what I was worried would happen when I evolved."

"Why do you fight it then?" Diglett asked a proper question of his own. "If this is "natural" for your kind, then embrace it. Take the rage and use it. You have gained strength, and fuel for it. Make it your own! Unleash it! Who cares about the pathetic weaklings who caution you against it!?"

"I care." Sunny glared a little. "Just because I'm angry with them doesn't mean I stopped liking them. And I'm getting angry over little stupid things. I don't know how to control it, Dad and I have been working to find me outlets but I want to understand it. I thought maybe you would know more about being angry."

"...I suppose you assumed correctly." Diglett was forced to admit. "Since you truly seem to be asking for my advice I shall be generous. Anger is a fuel. But fuel does not last. You will find it drains over time, you must not let that happen. Focus your anger. Find something to focus it on. Hate that thing and the anger will flood into you whenever you remember it. If you need to clear your head for a delicate task, avoid the hated thing. Forget it for a time, it will come back all the stronger."

"Does that really work for you?" Sunny asked, thinking of how they'd defeated Diglett himself with little difficulty.

"Of course it does!" Diglett tried to rise to full height. "It… it should."

The ground-types voice cracked a bit and Sunny moved to his next question. "Why do you worship the giant?"

"That's the Great Three to you lizard!" Diglett snapped, coming out of his stupor. "You might as well ask why I dig through the earth, or why you walk upon it. It simply is. You do not question a fact."

"I mean, I'm not questioning that it exists," Sunny claimed, he still shivered sometimes when he thought about that thing. "I want to know why you care about it so much. You don't worship the holes you dig do you?"

"I worship Them because They deserve my worship. They are the ones who shaped this world. They are the ones who ruled it. They are the world as it should be. They are a God and must be paid the proper dues from those who live in Their shadow." Diglett explained the basis of his faith.

"That doesn't sound very nice."

"I'm not sure if you've noticed with your head full of love and fluff but the world's not a nice place." Diglett mocked.

Sunny slumped a little. "I know."

That seemed to catch Diglett by surprise and the Charmeleon continued. "I know the world's not a nice place. I've seen it. I've seen so many bad things. The world isn't nice. But there are nice things in it. And those are important. I think those are the most important parts. And your giant isn't nice."

He stood up. "Thanks for talking to me Diglett. Have a good night."

Diglett watched Sunny leave silently. A mad, wretched part of him wanted to cry out, to get the last word in.

To ask him to come back.

But he remained in the gathering dusk. Silent. And alone.

"Alright, so we've been taking it kind of easy on training the past couple of days," Ash admitted to his team a few days after the rescue mission. "I know most of us have been doing something but I haven't been driving us that hard. I figured everyone needed a break."

"Time to add some new goals to the list?" Pidgeotto guessed.

"Not entirely," Ash admitted. "We'll get to that though. First, we're going to be refining things. During that last battle with Blaine, I noticed a few things that we should work on. I need to be harder on myself too. I know I'm not battling that much but it feels wrong not to keep up my own training."

"You mean Shelldon is going to start doing surprise training sessions again." Pikachu tried to grin but it faltered as he remembered his own experiences.

"Also that. But to lay things out, we're not going to be going dawn to dusk like we did with Blaine, I was worried while we were doing it, and keeping that up until the league seems like it's asking for trouble!"

"Instead I'm going to alternate. I can't focus on everyone every day, so the way we'll do things is every day I'll work with four of you, and the other three can do their own light training but you'll have the freedom to mix it up how you want."

Sunny raised a hand. "How do you decide who trains what day? And how does the uneven number work."

"Someone is going to do serious training two days in a row, but I'll try to mix it up." Ash explained. "Not much we can do about it until Cranidos is ready…"

"That reminds me, are we going to talk about that?" Art asked. "We get to be friends with a dinosaur!"

"Assuming he wants to be friends with us." Selene reminded the other fairy.

"Why wouldn't they want to be friends with us? We're us!"

"Last part of the plan, every few days, like every four or five, we're going to do a full battle with Karen or Misty. We might do smaller spars in between but I think a full battle will help us test our progress better!" Ash explained, bouncing on his toes a bit at the thought.

"We won't fight Leaf?" Eve checked but Storm seemed to understand.

"She's also training for the league, right? We don't want to give her any hints about what we're working on in case we have to battle." She reasoned out.

"Exactly!" Ash nodded. "I wish we could battle her, we never got a chance before but at this point, we should wait until the league to do it!"

"Did she get enough badges?" Pikachu checked. "I'm not sure what she was up to before flying into the old man's window."

"Pidget says they just finished up," Pidgeotto mentioned. "They were in a similar boat to us. Except they got to rest on their laurels a bit longer before being hit with a crisis."

"We're just gonna be sitting here training for weeks then?" Art checked. "Can't we travel while training too?"

Ash shook his head. "I'd rather stay close to home while we practice. But we can go on a few trips. There's an archeology thing we need to check out!"

"That thing Professor Oak told you about?" Eve remembered, "You think it has to do with Diglett?"

"Maybe?" Pikachu shrugged. "It's an old ruin and Diglett was looking for something in an old ruin."

"That is an incredibly slim chance of connection."

"Probably but it could still be interesting," Ash claimed. "Anyway, let's figure out the groups for today so we can get started! We have a league to win!"

"You'd like to set your "home" as my laboratory?" Professor Oak seemed a bit surprised by the request but quickly started to understand. "Ah, right, you can't have your Pokemon sent back to your gym anymore."

"Yeah." Misty had remembered she needed to sort that out and Ash had offered to take her up to the lab. Delia had come along with them to check on Professor Oak.

"I'll look into sorting out the paperwork." He accepted easily enough. "But I will need some information from you, including your current place of residence."

"She's staying with us." Delia explained. "Although I'm not sure the current arrangement is permanent…"

Ash looked a little upset at the words but Misty didn't mind, she'd expected it. Not in the "I don't want this girl in my house" way and more in the, "I was not prepared to have this girl in my house" way.

Delia's next words confirmed it, but in not how Misty expected. "I mean you're sleeping on an air mattress! We need to get you a proper bed at least!"

"I would say Pikachu and I could find you a box." Ash admitted, "but you didn't seem that interested."

"I'd like a real bed please." Misty insisted. "I don't want you to have to buy me one though! I have one back in Cerulean. If you're really okay with me staying for a while I could try to get it brought here."

"You'd have to call your sisters again," Ash warned her and she frowned. Warning them about Team Rocket had been one thing, but this felt different.

"That leads into the second point actually." Professor Oak frowned at them. "You're a trainer and that gives you certain autonomy and legal statuses, but you are still a minor. You need a legal guardian listed on your registry."

Thus far, that had been Daisy.

Misty did not want it to keep being Daisy. That meant Daisy would be able to get involved with her life however and whenever she chose.

"I-" She looked at Delia. Misty didn't want to have to ask this woman who had already opened up her home to her. It was unfair to her to ask more after everything she'd already done. A smaller part also wanted to stand her ground and not accept any more charity, even though she desperately needed it.

Swallow both her pride and shame she made her request. "Miss Ketchum, could you please act as my legal guardian? For now at least?"

Delia turned her chair so she was facing Misty. "Misty I don't know you as well as I know Ash or even Gary. But every time I have spoken to you or interacted with you, you've done nothing but impress me with your drive and responsibility. More than that, I know Ash trusts and loves you, and so do your Pokemon. If you want me to act as your guardian I'd be honored."

The girl sagged with relief while Ash grinned. "Thank you."

"Besides, if you're staying I bet we'll get to know each other a bit more. And you have a Squirtle on your team! Obviously, you have a good head on your shoulders." She nodded sagely and the other three chuckled.

"I am going to have to call my sisters though." Misty sighed. "I need to work things out and pick up the stuff I didn't take with me already."

"You did have some of it sent to my house already." Delia reminded her with a wry look at Ash. "I wonder whose idea that was?"

"I told you we were sending it!" Ash protested.

"You asked if I could hold onto some of Misty's things! You sent me a wardrobe, a bike, and twenty Battles and Behemoths books!"

"Wait you have my books!?" Misty perked up. "Where?!"

"I put them in a box in the attic, I couldn't fit them on my bookshelf, I took a look at them but wasn't sure where to start!"

Misty twiddled her thumbs a bit. "Want me to show you?"

"It's really interesting!" Ash encouraged his Trainer-Mom. "We did some stuff with it in Rota!"

"We need to continue that actually…" Misty realized. "But we're missing Mina and Vulpix…"

"Who is Mina?" Professor Oak asked, not recognizing the name.

"It's a secret." Ash gave a foxlike grin. "But we'll see her at the league! We can work it out then."

"I must admit I'm impressed with the changes you've made to the script!" Cleavon admitted to Eve over coffee at Delia's Diner. "Some of them are quite inspired. But I do have concerns."

"LIKE WHAT?" Eve typed out on the text-to-speech device she'd borrow from Professor Oak. Once she'd managed to explain her idea (she'd needed to write it down) he'd been happy to help.

Of course, the first thing she did when she got it was ask him dozens of questions about all sorts of topics. He was an intelligent man, the only thing that had stopped her was he was still recovering and needed rest.

"Production costs mostly." He checked the script and the newly made contracts for the cast and crew. "I have a few backers based on previous projects but I don't think they'll give me enough money for all this. Especially these sets! Oh, they'd be marvelous if we could pull it off."

"I BELIEVE I HAVE A SOLUTION." Eve grinned in a manner similar to her trainer. "HAVE YOU HEARD OF MOON FLAKES CEREAL? I BELIEVE I CAN GET A SPONSORSHIP."

"Truly?!" Cleavon seemed thrilled at the prospect. "How?"

"I KNOW SOME PEOPLE. ALSO WITH PRODUCT PLACEMENT. THE FEAST SCENE NEAR THE END OF ACT II WILL INCLUDE VARIOUS MOON FLAKES PRODUCTS."

"Miss Eve, I believe you will make the best co-writer, co-director, co-executive producer I have ever worked with." Mr. Schpielbunk reached out and shook Eve's paw, the beginning of a beautiful partnership.

At least until the move was finished.

"Where did you get the coconut?" Misty stared at a relaxing Karen.

The older girl was lying on a floating blow-up chair in the Blastoise-made pond in Ash's backyard. She was wearing sunglasses, a bathing suit, and a sun hat. Misty thought she looked like she was on vacation.

"Found it." Karen paused sucking down her drink to answer before taking another slurp.

Apparently, she and her Pokemon had decided today was their break day. Most of them were relaxing in similar ways, although Graveler was avoiding the water like the plague. Absol was relaxing on a near identical floaty, next to her trainer. Riolu and Snover were both in motion though, one of the Squirtle Squad seemed to be giving them swimming lessons.

"You found a coconut? What did a Swellow carry it here?" Misty rolled her eyes.

"What type of Swellow? Hoennian or Unovan?" Karen checked.

"Why would that matter?"

"I mean how many coconuts could a Unovan Swellow carry?"

Misty shook her head. "They aren't even different regional variants, they're both just Swellow. And you still haven't told me where you got the coconut!"

"Look if you want one you just have to find one for yourself." The older trainer had barely moved through the entire conversation and did her best to settle back into relaxation. But it quickly became apparent that Misty wasn't going anywhere.

"So are you going to keep staring at me or did you want something? Other than a coconut that is." Karen pulled down her shades to survey Misty with an icy stare.

"I wanted to know what you were doing." Misty was in no place to judge really. She'd used the miniature water park herself several times now. "My Pokemon are a bit busy today."

"Doing what?"

"As you know Zoldi-"

"Cut!" Eve shouted. "No using "as you know," it's cliche."

"But Zoldi already knows this." Staryu sounded very annoyed. "We're only explaining this for the audience's benefit!"

"He's right actually." Storm checked the script. "This is probably the worst way to do this scene."

"...ugh." Eve started poking buttons on her text-to-speech device for her co-director's benefit. "I guess we need to do a prologue scene now."

"Just to avoid saying "As you know?" Squirtle checked. "If it's a problem why would you leave it in the script?"

"Did I?" Eve looked at Storm.

"Uh, yeah you did actually."

"What was I thinking?! Right, we need to scene change to make the prologue now…"

"Why can't we just finish this scene first and then do the prologue?" Sunny asked.

"Because the prologue might change how we do this scene!" Eve finished typing on the text-to-speech device and it translated her decision to Cleavon.

"Making a movie with Ash's Pokemon." Misty shrugged.

"Good for them." Karen went back to slurping her drink.

She continued to lie there for a few minutes before sighing. "You're still here."

Misty crossed her arms and kicked at the ground. "Everyone else is busy. Brock is helping at the diner, Ash is training with everyone who isn't making the movie, my Pokemon are making the movie, and I don't know what to do."

"Why don't you go for a bike ride?" Karen asked her.

"Because I don't have-" Misty froze and a look of pure joy spread across her face. "My bike! I need to find out where Delia put it! Finally!" She instantly vanished back into the house.

Absol twitched in her nap and sat up, looking around with mild concern. Karen noticed this and realized what it implied.

"You know, it would probably be a good idea for me to warn her about some disaster involving her and her new bike." Despite this prediction, the teenager made no effort to move.

"Absol." Her Pokemon gave her a deadpan stare.

"Just because it would be a good idea doesn't mean I'm going to do it." Karen put her drink down and put her arms behind her head. "I'm comfy."

Hearing this, Absol put her head back down and decided to get back to her nap. She could warn her trainer about the mild sunburn she was going to get. But she was comfy too.

"Wait… so when you asked if you could make a movie…" Ash stared with wide eyes at the giant future castle set.

"Yes, we're making an actual movie." Storm sighed. "I wanted to tell you sooner but they said it would be better to surprise you."

"THIS IS SO COOL!" Ash started running around the set looking at all the cool details. "How did you build this so fast?!"

"Taking a sponsorship from Moon Flakes has its benefits." Cleavon smiled. "Also hiring Machamp Construction and Shell Landscaping and Contractors.

"Hey lil' bro." Shelldon waved as he pushed a trailer past them.

"Hi Shelldon!" Ash waved at his Mom's starter.

"I also wanted to make sure we had at least a full week of proper training before we told you," Eve explained, sitting in her director's chair. "Since we knew you'd get distracted by this!"

"I'm getting distracted by the fact we didn't notice." Pikachu looked up at the structure. "Seriously, how did we miss this?"

"We put camouflage tarp over it whenever we're not doing an exterior scene." Selene pointed at a pile of painted cloth.

"Is that why the sun has a smiley face sometimes?" Pikachu checked. "I thought I was going crazy."

"You already did that," Ash reminded him.

"Oh yeah, I made friends with you." The two struck their tongues out at each other before devolving into giggles.

"Your ability to understand Pokemon must be incredibly useful!" Cleavon admitted. "I've been relying on Miss Eve's text-to-speech device, how do you do it?"

Ash glanced at his teammates. "We didn't tell him anything, obviously," Storm promised him.

He debated, it would be really useful to be able to use his illusions to help make the movie. "Mr. Schpielbunk do you want to know a secret?"

"Today on another human learns Ash is a Pokemon…" Pikachu began narrating.

"Why do you keep coming back here?" Diglett asked Sunny the fourth time he visited. "What are you trying to gain?"

"Uh," Sunny thought about it and scratched his head. "Knowledge I guess? You're interesting to talk to."

"Yes, because of course you're not trying to convince me to join your pathetic little band of heretical fools."

"I don't want you to join us." Sunny admitted catching Diglett by surprise. "I think you'd cause problems and I'm not sure we could trust you."

"You are correct in that at least." The ground-type chuckled darkly. "I would finally be free. Not to mention my hatred of your foul leaders."

"I mean you don't need to like all of us."

Diglett snorted. "I've seen your merry band, it's all sunshine and rainbows with you."

"Like, Pikachu and Eve don't like each other." Sunny elaborated. "But they trust each other. If things get bad they know they can count on each other. And I know I can count on my whole family. I don't think any of us could count on you."

"You think if we were allies I wouldn't save your life?" Diglett concluded.

"Well, would you?"

Diglett glowered but didn't answer. "What are you here for tonight?" He asked instead.

"Oh, right, I wanted to know if you liked games."

"Games?" Once again the Fanatic was taken by surprise. "What sorts of games?"

"You know, like tic-tac-toe, baseball, checkers…" Sunny listed a few that came to mind.

"What is this… checkers you speak of?"

"Alright Team Go, status update!" Chase demanded from his co-conspirators.

"Agent T status update! Leaf is training on Route One, but she's got her Jigglypuff with her again." Trace started his report. "And Chou is sleeping on her Charizard on the roof of their house today."

"Darn, nothing to see there. Not unless we want her drawing on our faces again." Chase huffed with crossed arms.

"It took days to clean off." Elaine agreed. "Anyway, Agent E status update! Gary is training up behind Professor Oak's lab. And Miss Ketchum's Zorua is training some of his team at the field south of town!"

"How did Miss Ketchum's Zorua become a trainer anyway?" Trace checked. "Does she not know her Zorua isn't a human?"

"I mean, I'm not going to ask!" Elaine shivered. "Her Blastoise is scary!"

"So we have to pick Gary or Zorua." Chase, aka Agent C debated the options. "As the democratically elected leader the choice falls to me!"

"The election was rigged," Trace complained and slumped against the side of their headquarters.

"Yes it was, I rigged it," Chase confirmed.

"You should have saved more of your allowance." Elaine, the corrupt voter told the honest voter.

"I say we watch Zorua, I don't like Gary." Chase decided.

"At least you make decent decisions." Trace sighed. "I hope he's training with his Pikachu again!"

"I want to see Charmeleon!"

"I'm sorry, haven't you two seen his Clefable?!"

Pidgeotto watched the three nine-year-olds turn to bickering about their favorite members of her team. It was pure coincidence she'd built her nest in the same tree as their treehouse. They had a surprising amount of knowledge about the goings on around town.

Also, it proved Ash had not been nearly as careful growing up as he had led them to believe. She would definitely be rubbing that in his face.

After she figured out how to get revenge on Team Go for not realizing that she was obviously the coolest member of Ash's team.

"Leaf." Karen did her very best not to raise her voice with the younger girl. The fact she was newly well-rested helped a little bit.

"Yeah?" Leaf turned, stroking her fake goatee with dramatic slowness.

"Did you know that Jigglypuff was going to put us all to sleep?" The girl had invited them to a concert her teammate was putting on. Apparently, she was a good singer but had a few self-esteem issues around it.

Karen now discovered there was a good reason for that.

Absol had skipped the concert (the little fink) and only came along after to pass out Chesto Berries. She had not stopped laughing the entire time she'd been there.

"Well, I know she's put us to sleep every other time she gave a concert, and that she draws on our faces when we fall asleep…" Leaf admitted. "But I thought we'd be able to stay awake for sure this time!"

Fanghorn (now an Ivysaur) tapped himself on the forehead with one of his vines. He had a lovely collection of hearts and stars drawn on his face.

"You didn't think to warn us?" Misty asked, using a washcloth to try to wipe her face off.

"I thought maybe if you didn't know it wouldn't have happened?" She shrugged. "I guess that didn't work."

"Wouldn't it make more sense to warn us ahead of time so we could prepare?" Brock asked with a sigh. "Also do the glasses make me look smarter?"

"No, it makes you look like you have circles around your eyes," Karen told him and turned back to Leaf.

The girl had a thoughtful look. "You might be right, that might have helped! I'll try that next time."

Art said something to Ash, Pikachu groaned and looked at the disguised Zorua. His mustache shrunk as he pursed his lips. "I don't know let me try it!"

His illusion vanished, revealing his true form, and then he used it again and was back in disguise, now without the marker on his face. "Did it work?"

"Pika!" Pikachu started complaining. "Pikachu pika pichu pi!"

"Cool!" Ash grinned and Karen resisted the urge to strangle him. Selene asked a question and Ash blinked at her. "Huh, hey Leaf does Jigglypuff know she can sing without using Sing?"

Leaf looked like the gates of heaven had opened in front of her. "That's genius! You're a really good trainer Ash!"

"Thanks! But you're pretty good too!"

"I hate children." Karen declared.

"Last I checked you're a children too," Misty told her with a smirk.

"Teenagers are not children. We are teenagers."

"Whatever you say children." Misty continued to use the incorrect form.

"I don't suppose you know an easy way to clean this off?" Brock checked with Leaf. "I have my shift in ten minutes."

"Oh yeah! We figured out a really fast way to do it!" She nodded enthusiastically. "Eomer, Shirudo!" Leaf called her Nidorino and Shellder respectively. "You know what to do! Sludge Bomb and Bubble Beam!"

Karen started waving her arms, "Wait no-no-no-"

On the bright side, Brock made it to work on time.

"Grantorf never told you what happened to your father." Daruman held his laser sword at an injured Lonk.

"He told me enough! He told me that he was a wizard!" Lonk shouted.

"No Lonk, I am your mother!"

"It is not your right to deny the return of the king!"

Cleavon and Eve leaned in, digging into the emotions portrayed by the actors, Pidgeotto flipped through the script. "I'm sorry I thought Grantorf was king? And if Daruman is Lonk's mother doesn't that mean his father couldn't be a wizard since they're not supposed to have kids?"

"Just stop questioning it, Eve says she's using statistics about audiences' favorite scenes and lines." Storm had given up questioning things by now.

"Yeah but shouldn't it still make sense?"

"I don't know anymore."

Days passed, and training continued. The movie also continued filming and Eve realized that they hadn't actually named it yet. Regardless she insisted the show must go on.

As planned Ash started challenging his friends to battles to help his team grow stronger. Misty was first up and it had been everything he wanted from their match.

Pidgeotto had finally been allowed to strut her stuff. Roost and Feather Dance had proven incredibly useful utility moves and she delighted in using Hurricane to flatten her opponents utterly.

Misty's team hadn't been pushovers of course. Per request, they fought near a pond, ironically one Ash had used years ago to check his human illusion for mistakes. This gave her team a bit of an advantage, but she'd pointed out that Ash's Pokemon needed experience fighting on different types of battlefields.

It was true, but that hadn't stopped Art from creating his own floating terrain and attacking from there. His own training was paying off in spades, his desire to show off was manifesting in more constructive ways instead of just raw spectacle.

Things were pretty close at first, but when Ash brought Pikachu out Misty had struggled to counter him. They'd been working on figuring out a technique like Gary's to shed the electricity but they hadn't mastered it yet.

In the end, Staryu managed to take down Pikachu but he had exhausted himself in the process. The trainers decided to end it there, even though Ash had two Pokemon left technically.

"Ash, you're starting to scare me," Misty admitted to him the next day. "Your team is getting ridiculous."

"Is that a good thing?" He checked.

"It's impressive, and a little frustrating." She told him. "I need a way to counter electric-types. I can't be a water-type master if all it takes is one Pikachu to demolish me!"

"To be fair, I am not just any Pikachu." The Pokemon in question said smugly.

"I guess that's the problem with focusing on one type." Ash considered. "I mean, you had Dratini too but Pidgeotto took her down pretty early."

"She has the least battle training, I wanted to make sure she was involved," Misty explained. "I know I could try catching a new Pokemon like Quagsire to deal with it, but that feels like cheating in a weird way."

"That's no reason not to catch a Pokemon." Karen told her. "Just because it's not the solution you want doesn't stop it from being a solution."

"I'm not sure it would stop Pikachu anyway." Pidgeotto noted, "he hasn't tried an electric attack on a water-type that was part ground-type yet. Would he still need to get them wet or would it just work?"

"Good question." Pikachu looked thoughtful.

"That's a scary look on him." Misty joked when she saw Pikachu's expression. "Anyway, we're going today right?"

"To the ruins?" Ash nodded. "Yeah, Mom said she was going to get some lunches put together for us. Brock is helping with the bags."

"I'm sad to miss filming today but I really want to see this." Eve couldn't hide her excitement. "I wonder what we'll find?"

"We might not find anything." Storm cautioned her. "The archeologists have been there for weeks now."

As the others talked Pidgeotto came over to Sunny. "So, how are your talks going?"

He cringed, "You know about those?"

"I noticed you disappearing and wanted to make sure you were okay." She explained. "I haven't been listening in, but I have kept a bit of an eye on you, just in case."

"I can handle myself." Sunny huffed a bit.

"Course you can, but if he tried a surprise attack it's good to have backup."

Sunny sighed, "I don't know why I keep going to talk to him. He's… different. He's not my friend, he's not my family. But he's not really my enemy, not anymore. He looks at things differently than everyone else."

"Not my place to tell you who to talk to." Pidgeotto claimed. "But I will tell you to be careful."

"Pretty sure everyone should be when talking to him. I know he's dangerous, I just don't think he will attack without a reason." At Pidgeotto's incredulous look he elaborated. "His reasons don't have to make sense but he does have them."

"Ah."

"Anyway, enjoy your trip into a horrifying underground ruin!" Pidgeotto told Sunny and the group at large. She had no intention of being trapped underground.

Soon enough Brock joined them and they set off from Pallet Town. The site was a few miles south east, they started in the morning and the sun was beginning to climb toward noon by the time they arrived.

"Lunches now or later?" Storm joked as Eve rushed to the tents ahead of them.

Confused cries from the dig team welcomed them. Eve had jumped on a table and was flipping through a research notebook, speedreading the important details.

"You!" A young woman (actually more of a girl than a woman) approached the trainers. She spoke with a Kalosian accent. "Is that your Umbreon!?"

"That's Eve." Ash told her as though it explained everything, and to be fair it technically did.

"Yes I am, but answer my question." The girl answered which just increased the confusion.

"These are the ruins of Pokemopolis!" Eve declared from the table. "Oh we need to get in there now!"

"Look if she's yours can you get her under control, we're trying to do important research here!"

Explanations were had and some of the confusion began to clear up. The girl who approached them was Dr. Eve, which explained her response to Ash. Her team were the ones exploring the ruins and performing research on them.

She was less than impressed with their credentials of "Professor Oak sent us because a Diglett was looking for ruins near Pallet Town four years ago."

It took some time, and some pictures of the Tomb for her to finally allow them to carefully look around their digsite. The main door stood ominously against a cliff, a giant bell resting over the entrance, but the team had found a few other entrances in the nearby area.

The context was somewhat interesting. As the story went Pokemopolis had been destroyed by a great storm. Whether the storm was a natural phenomena or was caused by a powerful or angry Pokemon was unclear.

What was clear was that Eve (the human) was a much worse storyteller than August was. Eve (the Umbreon) said she'd do her own research once they got back home.

"Have you found any artifacts?" Brock questioned while the others inspected a map of the underground complex.

"A few things. Some artifiacts that proved this was Pokemopolis," One of the other researchers claimed, he gestured at a tent that was filled with relics. "Including our very own prophecy of doom!"

"I see now! We have been summoned here to forestall judgement day!" Staryu realized.

Karen took things with more table salt. "A prophecy of doom?"

"Well of course!" Dr. Eve nodded along with her contemporary. "Every archeologist needs to dig up a prophecy of doom at some point in their career! Normally more! I believe the current record is twelve."

"What's the prophecy?" Misty asked, "Staryu wants to defy fate."

"I wouldn't worry about that, usually these are harmless." The professor said but brought them over to a table with a stone tablet.

Eve held it up and started translating, "it says, "Beware the two great powers of destruction, the shadow of the dark device will grapple with the prisoner of the unearthly urn, the sacred city shall be no more as day is swallowed up by night. Darker still for you when they return to lay waste the world, but no human knows the secret to soothe the powers and guide them back to the shadow world."

"Time to save the world again." Pikachu sighed and cracked his knuckles.

"What do you mean again?" Selene asked.

"I mean I beat the "Great Three," I think that counts as saving the world."

"What do you think Ash?" Misty questioned him. "Think any of these are Diglett's relics?"

"Maybe these two?" Ash looked at a pair of striped artifacts, one resembled a firework and the other just looked like a spoon. "I think we should look around inside at least."

That took an additional bit of convincing but Dr. Eve and the Professor allowed it.

"Just don't touch anything! And follow the lights we haven't finished exploring yet!" Dr. Eve demanded.

"We're definitely going to explore one of the parts without lights right?" Art checked as they entered the ancient doorway.

"I kind of hope so," Sunny admitted.

As soon as Absol crossed the threshold she froze and turned around. "Right! Time to leave!"

"Oh cool, we're in danger!" Art looked interested at the prospect.

"Absol's danger sense?" Brock guessed as the dark-type attempted to leave only to freeze again.

"Oh, no no no!" She turned in a circle a few times, growled and whined, then hunched down covering her face. "Great! We set things in motion! If we stay it will be less bad than if we go! Great job gang!"

"All we did was walk in a door!" Squirtle defended their actions.

"There's something evil down here." Riolu stared with wide eyes down the corridor.

"Hmm." Eve inspected the support columns along the walls. "These look familiar, sort of. They're in better condition though. Let's keep looking!"

"Are we not going to talk about the danger?" Brock asked as the others continued.

"Absol said it was going to be worse if we left," Ash explained.

"Hurry up! Discoveries are waiting for us!" Eve rushed ahead, Art hot on her tail.

"What was that Absol doing?" Dr. Eve and the rest of the team had seen Absol's circle of doom.

"Sensing danger, she does that," Misty explained. "There's danger here apparently."

"...I don't suppose I could change my mind?" She asked.

"You could come with us if you-" The dig team piled in behind her with their tools grasped and ready to go. "-like." Karen finished weakly.

It didn't take them long to find something actually. This was Riolu's fault.

Eve (the Umbreon) was gushing over some carvings on the wall. "Ash get your pictures! These are the same motifs from the Tomb! If this place wasn't built by the same people I'll eat Pikachu's tail!"

"Why my tail specifically?"

"...I feel compelled to remind you that the Tomb was a prison for that giant Dugtrio." Storm reminded Eve.

"Ah, fascinating! These carvings are exactly what I needed to confirm my hypothesis!" Dr. Eve began writing in a notebook.

"Well done once again Eve!" The Professor applauded her.

"Aha!" Riolu was glaring at the wall. His eyes bearing a faint shimmering effect. "I found the evil!"

"Wait Riolu don't!" Absol tried to stop him but without a moment to spare he leaped at the wall and started driving his aura enhanced fists into it.

Both Eves were horrified by the utter disregard for the ancient structure. But Riolu didn't stop until he had carved his way through the wall and into a hidden chamber.

"Aha! I have made a new discovery!" Eve the human scrambled through the gap in the wall, the other digsite members quickly following behind.

"I'm pretty sure Riolu made it actually." Misty tried to say but was ignored.

"Alright, this is going to be messy, get ready to start firing attacks at that thing." Absol announced seemingly at random.

"At what thing?" Ash asked but got his answer when Dr. Eve picked up some sort of black object.

"Ah, perhaps this is the dark device spoken about on the tablet?" The Professor asked, leaning in to inspect it.

Absol flinched, "No wait, get them away from it! I made a mistake! We needed them to stay away not come with us! No, this is wrong! It's happening again!"

The Pokemon looked at her with worry as she began to mutter and repeatedly wince, her breathing picked up and she started hyperventilating.

"What's happening to Absol?" Karen demanded.

"I don't know! She said she made a mistake?" Ash tried to explain.

"The evil is getting stronger!" Riolu realized, "We woke it up!"

"You woke it up!" Squirtle snapped at him.

"I'm still trying to figure out what's going on." Sunny looked back and forth.

Throughout the panic of the trainers, the archeologists continued to gush over their new discovery. This was interrupted by Absol leaping at them and tackling Dr. Eve, ripping the dark device out of her hands.

"GIANT!" Absol howled, then a flash of red struck everyone in the hidden chamber and they vanished in a swirl of light into the three orbs. They rose from the ground and began floating toward the horrified onlookers.

"ABSOL!" Karen was alarmed at the disappearance of her Pokemon.

"I think we should do what she said!" Storm announced and fired a Hydro Pump at the dark object.

"She said giant!" Sunny reminded them. "As in the giant?! Like the Dugtrio?!"

"Doesn't look that big to me!" Art fired Mystic Fire at the object but it continued to approach them.

"Get back!" Brock shouted at the others as the Pokemon attacks failed to slow it down.

They retreated back down the corridor, firing attacks as they went, but as the device continued to approach them it became obvious there was an invisible force surrounding it. The ground cracked in the shape of footprints and the walls of the corridor crumbled as something marched through them.

Soon they were back in daylight and rushed toward the campsite for some shelter. "What did that thing do to Absol?" Karen demanded as they paused to breathe for a moment.

"I don't know?" Ash shook his head. "She shouted "giant" though!"

The humans grew horrified expressions. "You mean like the Dugtrio?"

Unfortunately for them, they got their answer.

This one knew how long it had slept.

Years a slave. Followed by years a prisoner. Each second counted with loathing.

It gladly drank the spirits that foolishly reached out for his prison. Their life gave it power, it could taste freedom.

The little ones fled before it, stupidly trying to stop it. Let them run, let them try! The fun of the game! The sheer joy of watching the fear on their faces, the one pleasure allowed to it during its time as a slave.

But it was a slave no longer. It was free. Free of prison, free of control.

Every second had been counted. Now it would dole out an eternity of suffering for each one.

"That is a giant Gengar." Misty summarized staring at the humongous Pokemon grinning maliciously down at them. Dark clouds began to gather overhead.

"I think I can shock this one too!" Pikachu fired a Thunderbolt at the creature, it barely even flinched. In fact it actually turned away.

"YOU WHO HAVE FREED ME." It spoke with a grinding shrieking voice. "YOU SHALL DIE LAST. YOUR PRIZE. YOU SHALL WATCH."

With those words it turned and began marching away from the ruins, beginning to make its way toward the nearest population center.

"Why is it always us?" Karen bemoaned as the monster crushed the forest beneath its heels. "Come on we need to-"

Karen stopped and turned without another word. Walking toward the tent full of relics. "Karen?" Brock grabbed her arm but she wrenched out of his grasp. "Karen where are you going?!"

Ash and Misty tried to get in her way but she just shoved past them, her eyes glowing orange.

"We need a plan!" Eve shouted to the others.

"Deal with the Gengar!" Brock shouted and got a hold of Karen, physically stopping her from moving. "I'll figure out what's happening to Karen!"

Brock and Karen's Pokemon continued to go after the seemingly possessed teenager while the others attempted to regroup.

"Where's it going?" Misty stared at the path of destruction.

"It looks like it's heading toward Pallet Town." Storm guessed. "We need to stop it before it gets there!"

"Come on!" Ash began to run, "It may be big but it's still a Pokemon! We can hurt it!"

"Our attacks didn't seem to be doing much!" Selene pointed out as they began chasing after the monster.

"We'll figure something out!" Pikachu insisted as storm clouds continued to gather overhead.

Gengar paid them no mind as they caught up, it maintained a simple walking pace but it's huge stride allowed it to cover a considerable distance.

Ash and Misty set to work trying to slow it down. Misty's Pokemon used ice-type attacks to freeze its legs in place. Selene and Art used Psychic to build a barrier in its path, Storm used Reflect to help reinforce it. Sunny, Pikachu, Eve, and Ash himself set to work attempting to damage it.

The giant easily shattered the ice around its legs, it smashed through the barrier and the direct attacks didn't even phase it.

Back at the camp, things weren't going much better. Everything not nailed down was flying through the air. Brock had been clocked in the head by a statuette of a Psyduck. Karen seemed the only one unaffected by it all and continued walking toward a pair of artifacts. The striped spoon and rocket-like object Ash had noticed earlier.

Riolu floated near a table and kicked off it, using his momentum to crash into his trainer. He punched her in the gut again, but she didn't break out of her trance. He grabbed her head, staring into her glowing eyes with his own. "PLEASE!" He begged, seeing her aura fight and lash out against the intruder.

"You can fight it!"

Her normal bright glow had been penetrated by an outside force. A malicious orange glow wrapping itself around her soul and mind. Karen was fighting it but she couldn't get a hold on it, it was a snake trying to devour her will.

Trapped in her own mind Karen screamed as her body moved against her will. She hated this, imprisoned, unable to move or escape. A sickening pleasure tinged the intruder as she warred with it.

Aura was life energy. This creature was attempting to control Karen's aura. She fought against it on a battlefield she'd never been able to master or even touch before.

She had no control of her own body, her senses were locked, so when she heard a voice not her own beg her to keep fighting, she grit her metaphysical teeth and with a surge of mental fortitude grasped her captor by its orange psychic neck.

Karen tore the possession off with a scream and collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily and blinking in the gathering darkness. Her hands were tinged with a blue light. She looked up and saw Riolu, glowing brightly as well looking at her with a mix of relief, joy, and excitement.

An old mirror floated past and the teenager caught a glimpse of her reflection for a moment. Her eyes were glowing with a shimmer just like Riolu's did when he used aura sight.

It took her a moment to realize what she'd just done and when she did she started laughing.

"All these years!" She nearly became hysterical. "years of trying! And it's a freaking possession in an ancient ruin! It's ridiculous!" She pounded the ground with a half-sob half-laugh.

"I knew you were the best!" Riolu's voice sounded in her mind again and another round of laughing sobs ripped through her.

The force reeled back as its possession was cast off. It briefly considered trying again on the same target, but found another possibility nearby. If Karen had looked up she would have seen the orange snake wrap itself around Brock and take control of him instead.

As it was, she pulled herself together just in time to see him insert the striped spoon into the other artifact and allow another giant to break free of its prison.

They had been trapped, so close to each other. Yet it had been denied. The other did not care, the other sought naught but vengeance.

This one wanted dominance.

The suffering of the little ones could wait, Gengar would kneel before it.

Miles away in Pallet Town, the growing storm did not go unnoticed.

Pidgeotto was the first one to figure out her trainer and friends had been caught up in another dangerous adventure. Seeing as it seemed to have moved above ground she decided to go find the fire and maybe help fight it. Assuming the fire was the problem and not Sunny trying to fix things.

Professor Oak saw what was happening and it didn't take long for him to work out it was in the direction of the ruins he pointed Ash towards. Seeing as he was still injured he called for Gary and asked him to check it out.

Gary was annoyed at the interruption to his training but when his grandfather mentioned ancient civilizations his curiosity got the better of him.

Delia was concerned by the storm, and even more concerned once the giant Pokemon came into view. Not feeling like she had a way to help stop the problem, she did her best to batten down the hatches and protect things from the wnd and rain.

Leaf and Chou took a bit longer to get involved, that was because they didn't realize the severity of the problem until they saw the giants. As soon as they did the girls jumped into action and went with their teams to fight the big scary monsters.

Cleavon Schpielbunk started recording and wondered how they could work this into the movie.

There was one other spectator of note.

Diglett stared at the gathering storm and remembered the echoes of a prophecy. A directive he had taken with pride that led him to years of shame.

"There's the storm…" He wondered if his most loathed duo had actually tried to find the relics. But even if they did, that didn't make much sense.

The prophecy spoke of three powerful relics, similar in material to the prison of the Great Three. Two of the relics were at constant odds with each other, but the third would keep them in balance.

It was why he thought they were rocks at first, he assumed they were the same type of ore that the prison had been forged from. His later research had revealed they were not stones at all, but relics of great power.

With this knowledge, he realized that the relics were the tools of the Great Three. This meant his failed pilgrimage was more of a failure than even the false prophet had realized. The Great Three would use Their tools to cleanse the world, and then renew it when the storm had passed.

So how could the storm be forming without the Great Three there? Were They there? Had the hated ones been lying about the prison?

He desperately wanted to know what was happening, and if the morons had dragged the Charmeleon into things. Diglett found himself a bit attached to that one. He was a fool like the others, but only out of ignorance instead of stupidity. He could be taught.

The storm had spread and began shaking the trees around his prison. The water splashed up onto his island and he slid back from it only for drops of water to begin falling onto him. Lovely.

Then one of the trees fell on his island and it began sinking.

He really wished he knew how to swim.

Although, as he eyed the metal lip of his dirt bowl and the sandy bottom of the pond, an idea began to take hold. The Vaporeon Paddle might be beyond his skill set, but maybe he could do some underwater excavating.

Diglett began attacking the lip of his island as the water enveloped him.

"Ashy-boy what the did you do?!" Gary demanded when he saw the giant Gengar.

"We were just exploring some ruins!" Ash defended himself, he'd reapplied the illusion as soon as he spotted Gary approaching. "Then… it doesn't matter! Help us stop it before it gets to town!"

"GUYS!" Misty pointed back down the path of Gengar's destruction. Standing over the campsite was a second giant Pokemon, an Alakazam marked with the same patterns as both the Dugtrio and Gengar.

"ANOTHER ONE?!" Pikachu demanded as he saw the Alakazam raise its giant spoons.

A beam of light slashed across the land. Pillars of strange looking rocks erupted like a jagged mountain range and struck Gengar, cause him to stumble. Alakazam burst into movement, charging across the terrain toward its enemy.

"PHANTOM!" It howled in a deep voice that shook the earth and sky. Gengar recovered and turned just in time for Alakazam to crash into it and send it crashing into the forest.

"WHERE DID THAT ONE COME FROM?!" Pikachu demanded.

"I don't know, where did you find the first one?" Pidgeotto landed on Ash's head.

"Do you mean the Gengar or the Dugtrio?" Sunny asked as the two giants began to tear into eachother, ignorant of the people and Pokemon at their feet.

"What about the Dragonite?" Selene asked.

"Guys!" Storm snapped her fingers at them. "Focus! Giant Pokemon, how do we stop them?"

"I don't know!" Pikachu glowered at the monstrous forms that loomed over them. "With Dugtrio all I had to do was shock it! That's not working on these ones!"

"We should get back!" Misty shouted as a tree came crashing down next to them.

"Seriously, first you cause a volcanic eruption, now this?!" Gary shouted at Ash as they ran.

"That was Blaine! How did you even know I was fighting him?!"

A torrent of fire lit the sky over their heads as a Charizard blasted Flamethrower at the heads of the dueling giants. They remained ignorant and continued their battle.

"Well, well." A girl with bright red hair in a giant bun landed next to the gang. "Destroying the world and now you come crawling to me for help?"

The trainers shared a look. "Who are you?" Gary asked.

"Hi guys!" Leaf dropped from Pidget and did a rolling landing, ending on her butt and sitting in front of the others. "This looks fun!"

"What about this situation is fun?" Gary demanded.

"How do you not remember my name?" The girl on the Charizard demanded.

"I remember yours, do you remember mine?" Leaf asked her with narrowed eyes.

"That's not important… uh… Bush?"

"Leaf."

"I knew that."

"FOCUS ON THE GIANT MONSTERS!" Gary snapped at them.

"We've been hitting Gengar with everything we have! I'm not sure he's even slowed down! I don't know how we could stop them." Misty explained quickly. "What was it the tablet said? No human knows the secret to stop them?"

"Maybe a Pokemon does then?" Leaf looked expectantly at Ash.

"Diglett didn't say anything about more giants!" He protested.

"Diglett?" Chou looked on in confusion.

"Wait are these his rocks?" Leaf checked and gasped at them. "Did you try to take his rocks after all?!"

"What are you blabbering about?!"

Ash tried to step back for a second. Even with their new strength, they couldn't stop these things. That meant they needed to think about this differently. The raw power of the giants was too much for them to match, which meant they had to use other means.

At least for the moment, they seemed focused on each other. The devastation was still a problem but at least they weren't marching toward Pallet Town anymore.

But how to stop them for good? Was there a way to get them back in their prisons like Dugtrio? They had been asleep for years, what had waken them up? Just disturbing the relics?

Wait a second, Ash had an idea.

"Ash's eyes just glowed, he has a plan," Eve announced gleefully.

"Leaf do you have Jigglypuff with you?!" Ash ignored Eve's comment and cut into the argument between the girl and Gary.

"Huh?" She glanced at him. "Yeah, she's with me, why?"

"Charizard!" Ash turned to the girl (who he vaguely remembered as the other Pallet Town trainer) and her mount. "Could you fly Selene up near the ear of Alakazam? Pidgeotto could you do the same with Jigglypuff?"

"Wait, I think I get it." Misty guessed Ash's idea. "Will that work? None of our other moves have done anything!"

"We have to do something!" Ash insisted, "I'm going to call Professor Oak and tell him to call that Brandon guy! He seemed like he knew about this stuff!"

"What about us?!" Charizard let her trainer down. "You expect us to just sit here?"

"The rest of us can keep attacking the giants!" Ash declared. "They might not notice Selene and Jigglypuff but we need to make sure!"

"Time to see how far I can fall without dying." Pidgeotto mused as Jigglypuff climbed on her back.

"My team will focus on Alakazam!" Ash announced, "Misty could you help us out?"

The teams divided and set to work while the sleep team took to the air, and began looking for an opening.

It was chaos on the ground though, the rain was coming down now and the ground shook every time one of the giants took a step. Pikachu unleashed Thunder, Eve fired Dark Pulse, Art used Psybeam, and so on.

They unloaded all their most powerful attacks, desperate to do some sort of damage or just to get their attention so Selene or Jigglypuff could come in to use Sing.

Eventually, for better or for worse, they succeeded.

Eve managed to hit Alakazam in the eye with a Dark Pulse. The giant staggered, clutching at its face and Gengar swung an arm at it, sending it crashing to the ground. When it got back up, it had new targets to take out its anger on.

Staryu and Starmie were sent flying through the air. Misty and Dratini had a tree come down on top of them, trapping them. Ash managed to grab Art and jump out of the way of a rapidly growing chasm in the ground.

The Zorua turned and watched with horror as Sunny teetered at the edge of the chasm. "Sunny!" He shouted and dropped Art at a safe distance and started running, intent on trying to jump it and get Sunny away from the edge. The fire-type had lost his balance and was scrambling for a foot or handhold.

Then something unexpected happened.

A stone column shot out beneath Sunny just as he lost his grip, it caught him rather than let him fall into the depths. Ash changed trajectory and jumped on the outcrop, scooping up the younger Pokemon and tossing him over the edge and to safety. He quickly followed behind, and having a bit of a height advantage he was able to get over and check over Sunny.

"Are you okay?!" He had felt his heart stop when he saw Sunny fall, he checked him over for bruises and scrapes. "I'm sorry I wasn't faster I-"

"What. Have. You. Done?" A familiar voice demanded and both Pokemon turned to see Diglett glaring at them.

"Diglett?" Sunny stared with shock. "Wait did you…"

"You're the least foolish of these fools." Diglett turned to the giants and stared at them. "What are these things?!"

"Wait aren't these the ones you were looking for?" Ash was confused now.

"What? Why would I be looking for these? What are they? These aren't the Great Three!"

"But they were in relics just like the Dugtrio!" Ash told him and Diglett stared at him, eyes going wide with disbelief, denial, and horror.

As things on the ground grew tense Pidgeotto managed to get close enough to Alakazam for Jigglypuff to start singing. The normal-type pulled out her microphone and her voice echoed over the battlefield and even the storm.

How she was able to project so well was a mystery, but the distant echoes of it even reached the campsite near the ruins, although it was too far away to truly effect the ones remaining there. Brock and Karen were recovering from their possessions and working out what to do next.

Then the bell over the ruins started to glow.

Back on the battlefield the trainers and Pokemon began to pass out, and a slight drowsiness affected the giants. But it wasn't enough to put them to sleep.

Pidgeotto struggled to maintain consciousness and when she couldn't keep it up any longer tried to angle herself into a glide toward the nearby water. Hopefully, the splash would wake her up.

"Wait, you two liked my song?" Jigglypuff didn't realize the true complexities of the situation. She was just happy two Pokemon had actually stayed awake through one of her performances.

"Brock." Karen started as the bell lifted into the air and another giant shape began to take form. "If we're going to die, I love you."

"I-" he stammered, not finding the words, and for the first time since he approached her, took the initiative and pulled her into a kiss.

Above their heads, the giant Jigglypuff looked at the chaos, saw the storm, and knew what He had to do.

The giants were not natural. They were the result of maddened experiments on a dragon of nightmares. A fiend that warped the skies and lands to bring about destruction and agony. An echo of its own tormented existence.

Jigglypuff was one of the few who existed free from the control of Cold Stone. But He had been imprisoned along with the others. Unlike them, He had volunteered for it, He knew He was too powerful and dangerous. He would rather sleep the eons away in peace than tear the world asunder.

As He watched His tormented brethren wage war with eachother and threaten their fragile world. He took up his bell and began to sing.

For leagues in every direction, all living things heard His song and fell into deep slumber. Alakazam and Gengar realized what was happening and turned to face Jigglypuff but it was too late. They too fell asleep at last, their destruction brought to a halt.

The last giant nodded, His work not yet complete. He pulled the end off His brush and set to work painting the runes of sealing. Circles around the eyes, a line connecting them, a squiggle above the mouth, a dot on the cheek, and a triangle on the chin.

As the others shrunk, returning to their prisons, He turned the brush on Himself. It was time to go back to sleep.

"I never realized archeology could be so dangerous!" Leaf admitted as they sat amidst the destruction. None of them knew quite how long they'd been asleep for but the giants were back in their prisons at least.

"You have seen monsters like those before you said?" Dr. Eve had begun interrogating Brock and Karen once the pair had awoken and joined the others.

"How many more giants do you think there are?" Misty asked Staryu, holding her head in her hands, she was exhausted.

"They may lurk in all places, hidden in the depths of the earth like these have been, or perhaps in the sea as the great dragon was." Staryu mused. "Perhaps though… we should not go looking for them."

"I didn't know you could say something intelligent!" Dratini was surprised.

"Who's coming?" Gary was talking on the phone to his grandfather. "Who's Brandon? Ash mentioned him. Wait what does he have? Why?"

"Glad we could get involved to help save the day." Chou put her hands on her hips. "No need to thank us!"

"I don't think we did anything." Her Charizard mused as her trainer climbed back on.

"I don't know how you got out." Ash had confronted Diglett after checking on his team and making sure they were okay. "but… you saved Sunny's life. I thank you."

Diglett barely spared him a scowl, instead staring at the relics, resting on the ground where they had fallen. "Those were not gods."

"No, they were just big and strong." Sunny agreed.

Diglett remained silent.

"I haven't forgiven many of the people who hurt us," Ash admitted after a moment. "I never wanted to. And you hurt us a lot, but I guess we hurt you to start with. But you saved Sunny, you didn't have to do that. I don't know why you did but I can't thank you enough. If you're willing…"

He swallowed. "Do you want to join us? Officially I mean? Maybe we can start again."

Diglett stared at the relics a bit longer. "Join you?" He laughed but it was hollow. "I want nothing to do with you anymore. I have wasted enough time chasing you and a dead dream. Do what you want."

With those closing remarks, he burrowed into the ground and trailed away.

"Goodbye!" Sunny called after him. "And thank you!"

There was no response.

"Maybe I should start following you around." Brandon noted as he carefully collected the relics of destruction. "You seem to have a knack for wandering into archeological discoveries."

"I can't believe I'm meeting Brandon!" Dr. Eve had stars in her eyes. "Your discoveries are what inspired me to get my PHD!"

"You have one of those?" Brandon seemed surprised. "You don't look a day over thirty!"

"He's technically correct." Brock joked.

After some debate, the group had chosen to travel to Professor Oak's lab to recover and settle things. Brandon had arrived not long after sunset. His research on the shield prison had offered him some insights on how to contain these new ones without accidentally setting loose the monsters inside.

"Pokemopolis though…" He rubbed his chin. "I thought Pokelantis would be… never mind. I guess I need to double-check my notes on a few things. Also, schedule a trip to Galar. I was planning to go anyway, I know a few people who might be helpful in the Crystal Caverns expedition."

"You're going down there?" Ash blinked at him. "Sorry if the Tomb is a bit broken."

"Most old things are." Brandon admitted before wincing and shooting an apologetic glance at Professor Oak. "Sorry."

"Just a tad insensitive." The man sighed. "So Diglett is gone as well then? Do you still want me to contact the rangers about him?"

Ash considered, "I don't think so. I think we have an understanding now."

"Hopefully it doesn't come back to bite us." Pikachu muttered darkly.

"He won't." Sunny promised looking out the window at something. He smiled and came over to join the others. "Guess we still have more training to do, right?"

"Fighting a volcano? That's one thing. Fighting a giant? Apparently, that's still beyond us." Storm shook her head with a bit of amusement.

"It's up to you guys if you want to focus on training tomorrow." Ash told his friends. "After today, I think we could all use a bit of a break."

"Actually I'd like to ask you to come by tomorrow Ash." Professor Oak overheard him. "I should have someone you'd like to meet."

It took a moment for Ash and his team to understand Oak's hint, but when they did none of them could keep the excited grins off their faces.

"I really wish I knew how to turn this off." Karen groaned as she looked around the room. "So many lights."

"You can turn it off?" Riolu asked her.

"Supposedly?" She shrugged helplessly. "Also this is going to take some getting used to. Not used to having a voice in my head."

"I'm not leaving!"

"Are you food?" Were the first words out of Cranidos's mouth.

Ash shared a concerned look with Storm. "No, we're not food."

"Oh." Cranidos looked sad. "I don't know what food is but I know I really want it. Do you know how to get food?"

"We know some people who make really good food!" Art told him and grabbed one of his stubby arms and started to shake it. "I'm Arthalothadamesh but most people call me Art!"

"People have names now?!" Crandios went cross-eyed. "wait I think I had a name. Or was that not me? Am I remembering a not me? Am I supposed to exist?"

He blinked a few times. "I still want food. It goes in your mouth right?"

"Most of the time," Pidgeotto told him. "I think you need a bit of help getting used to the modern age. How about we go on a picnic? We can get food and you can meet everyone!"

"I guess we could use a bit of a break. I need to review Cleavon's script changes anyway." Eve noted. "He recorded the giants fighting you know? It's pretty impressive. The beam struggle is incredible."

"I don't know what a picnic is but if it involves food I want to go to one!" Cranidos began to salivate. "Food is important!"

"Yes it is!" Pikachu agreed. "Maybe we can show you how to cook!"

"What's cooking?"

"It's when you make food!" Pikachu began heading toward the door and the others started to join him.

"That sounds like the most amazing thing I have ever heard!" Crandios eagerly followed along, Art balancing on his round head.

"How many things have you heard?" Selene asked him as they walked.

"Not many."

"I take it first impressions are going well?" Professor Oak smiled at the Pokemon.

"Mostly, he seems a little confused but he's friendly." Ash grinned. "Thanks for well, telling us he existed!"

"I hold knowledge as the highest privilege I possess." The man chuckled. "Speaking of, have you thought about what I told you?"

The mood soured a bit. "Mewtwo."

"I suggest you keep your eyes open. It may just be coincidence but you have the interesting habit of wandering into important events and into the path of powerful entities." Professor Oak noted.

"If we run into Mewtwo we'll be careful." Ash promised, "he sounds dangerous."

"Incredibly so." Oak sighed, looking at his legs. "It's funny, I always knew I'd end up in one of these, I didn't expect it to be like that."

Ash frowned and with a bit of impulsiveness hugged the old man. "I'm sorry you got hurt because of me."

Oak patted him on the back gently. "It's not your fault Ash, and if you do want to follow the trail past Team Rocket follow it back to me! I was the one who allowed you to be a trainer."

"But I was-" Ash cut himself off and chuckled a little bit. "Alright, fine I won't think about it."

Pidgeotto had doubled back and flew back into the lab. "Are you coming? The others are already down the hill."

"Oops! Bye Professor Oak! I'll see you later!" Ash waved and dropped his illusion. Pidgeotto adjusted her pose slightly and he scrambled onto her back. Both Pokemon quickly flew out the window and after the others.

Professor Oak smiled after them for a moment but it began to fade. "It is really is my fault. I shouldn't have kept asking you about the future."

'Sam.' Alakazam's telepathy caught his attention. 'Arnold is causing a ruckus the coral. He wants to know why his offspring are divebombing him just to call him a deadbeat.'

"Duty calls." Professor Oak sighed, and allowed his worries to fade away for a moment.

"Cranidos huh?" Brock was enthusiastic about Ash's new teammate. "I wonder if my dad knew what he was selling you?"

"That is a very good question." Misty blinked at the realization. "You should ask him. Hey, Karen, what does Cranidos look like?"

"Stop asking me how people look!" The teenager groaned, covering her eyes. She still turned toward Cranidos and the others. Pikachu was introducing him to his Pokemon Biscuits and the reborn fossil was in love.

"He's purple. I don't know what that means. I don't know what any of these colors mean." She slammed her head into the table. "No Riolu that doesn't help!"

"Riolu didn't say anything?" Ash hadn't heard him at least.

"I guess I could talk out loud too. I like some of you." Riolu decided. "Not all of you yet though. Want to do that today?"

"Since Absol requested the day off, it's my job. Please stop punching everyone." Graveler pleaded with the fighting-type.

"You could…" Misty trailed off when she saw Karen's expression.

"I am not calling him again. Riolu was one thing. Do you have any idea what he will be like if he found out I actually figured out how to sort of use my aura abilities?"

"No, and I don't think I want to." Misty admitted.

"So how are your memories?" Eve asked Cranidos, taking a break from script editing. "Can you remember things from before you were a fossil?"

"Yes? No?" Cranidos looked confused. "I have pictures in my head of doing things but I don't think it was me doing them."

"Is inherited memory a thing?" Storm asked Eve. "Maybe he's not the Cranidos who became the fossil, but a clone of them?"

"What's a clone?" Cranidos asked.

"Uhh…" Sunny stared at him and tried to figure out how to explain. "Dad could you make a copy of me for a second?"

"Sure!" Ash focused and an illusionary Sunny appeared next to the original.

"Wow!" Cranidos was amazed at this display of Ash's ability.

"This is a copy of me!" Sunny presented his duplicate. "Dad made it with his illusion, but it's not real."

He waved an arm through it and the illusion vanished. "But humans figured out all sorts of science stuff! They can make copies of things that are real! That might be what you are!"

"I'm a real copy?" Cranidos looked confused. "Is that bad?"

"No, it's cool!" Art encouraged him. "It means the old you existed and now there's a new you! If you become a fossil too then there might be another you someday!"

"That does sound cool!" Cranidos decided.

"Food's almost ready." Brock announced, "For those of you who haven't filled up on snacks!"

"For all of his faults, the electric mouse of doom is a master of delectable baked treats!" Staryu defended himself.

"Thanks, I think, and I'm pretty sure we all still have room."

They dug in, unaware of a Fearow with a camera flying high above their heads. What did catch their attention was the buff trainer in a vest sauntering over the next hill.

"Hey! I'm looking for a Pokemon Trainer named Ash!"

Cue the theme song!

It's happening

It's happening happenging hapenging hapgin pahb

*deep breath*

I need you to understand.

That I have waited years to get to the first movie.

And I did it. I ACTUALLY DID IT!

Well sort of. Still gotta actually write the dang thing.

Also remember when I said this chapter would be a shorter one?

Me neither!

What happened was I started writing and realized I would have to cut some things to keep the plot moving and mentioned that in discord and a bunch of people said that they love the more domestic kind of fluff and character interactions I do so I decided screw it and just let my creative go nuts.

Where the heck to begin?

I suppose let's start with the wrap up. Yes! Professor Oak is alive! I thought I made that obvious last chapter but a bunch of people seemed to be worried about that. He did not however get out of things completely unscathed.

Giovanni didn't though. He's dead. Although someone did suggest he be an empty husk after Mewtwo wiped his mind clean and while interesting I always planned to give him the axe there.

And Ash's room! He sleeps in a box! I got this idea after someone started reading this for the first time and mentioned they hoped Ash would collect boxes on his journey (since he lived in a box when he was little) and I immediately asked myself why didn't I think of that?!

Brock finally talks about some of his insecurities and Delia remembers some of hers. I enjoyed that scene. Speaking of Delia bonding, welcome to the household Misty! You're not adopted (yet(?)) but she's not homeless anymore!

And Diglett, ah at last we started to deal with that problem. As I started writing it I realized Ash isn't in the habit of forgiving people in this fic. But there's someone else with a different perspective having some growing pains who might be interested in talking…

Speaking of things from the early story, FINALLY Cranidos! I have seen so many different theories about that rock Ash got in chapter 11. From Mega Stones, to Key Stones, to Evolution stones. Some people got it though. I was honestly worried I didn't do a good job of describing it.

For the most part I've tried to keep Ash's Pokemon to ones that would make sense for him to find in Kanto. The only time I broke that rule was Art in Rota but as we see in the anime Rota has a bunch of Pokemon from other regions living there.

But I wanted to give Ash a fossil, and there was Flint with his rock shop! And Cranidos is one of my favorites. My first Pokemon TCG deck was a Rampardos themed one. Cranidos and Rampardos were my favorite fossils ever since.

Anyway, finally touching on some more episodes from the anime (not sure if the gym stuff counts?) making a movie, and the giant Pokemon, again something that I have planned and planted for a long time!

Now then, Diglett is having some development and a crisis of faith, I'm sure thats fine.

Lot's of other fluff and domestic stuff. Chase, Elaine, and Trace as the next "generation" of Pallet Town trainers. Of course they're watching the older kids do their cool training for the league!

And Absol continues to suffer. She's going to be kicking herself after next chapter.

I could keep going honestly, the giants, Karen's aura, Misty's bike, Jigglypuff… the list goes on.

This was a fun chapter.

Next one will be a crazy one.

Speaking of, I want to temper one expectation. I would certainly like to get it done next weekend but with everything I have planned for it, and a desire to do it the justice it deserves it might take longer. Just a heads up ahead of time.

…also the giants episode was so freaking weird. I rewatched it to get the details right and it is just strange ride.

Reviews!

Uber Ghidorah: Yeah the gag really doesn't make that much sense does it? Their fate is still a bit up in the air, for the moment at least.

Strike Wyvern: Rock was actually a friend! Yeah, really weird Charizard knows Sunny. Time will tell I suppose. Had to get Mimey into things somehow! And as I rediscovered this chapter, retreading Indigo League episodes is a trip and a half! What if Mewtwo is actually Two Mew in a trenchcoat?

vulpixtales: he ded. (Also Mewtwo will have several thoughts about Ash)

AzureGreatheart: Don't get your hopes up for knowing when he'll evolve. I did figure out when and how it will happen recently actually, but it's a long way off. And yes! Mewtwo chapter! Hopefully one! Oh Arceus how long will it be?

LEGOBRICK13: Look, Team Rocket are simple creatures. They see Pokemon, they take Pokemon! They see 10-year-old girl, they run from 10-year-old girl! Exactly Team Rocket should have thought of that when they got the dental! Ash just has a good nose and I am really glad I have kept that consistent throughout the story. Interesting allegations against the Indigo Champion.

The one who reads and writes: I want to be polite.

Pecan Crisp: Because I am dumb. (I've fixed it now)

EeveelutionLover8: Yes. He is truly dead. Oh Team Rocket is going to be a bit messy for a bit… if it survives at all.

MysticStormDragon: Glad you're still reading! It was never really my intention to have Ash always winning and as I said, he did have a few losses but they weren't really big ones. I needed to break his foundation a little bit for him to grow. I think I got a little too comfy with the status quo. The Butterfree effect is my favorite way to write fanfics. I love seeing how things spiral from a single change. Now admittedly I have shifted other things as the fic has gone on but most changes can be traced back to Ash simply being a Zorua. Kanto suffers from so much early installment weirdness and just regular weirdness as well. Also Takeshi Shudo. We all suffer from him.

HoodedGenius98: It's possible but unlikely. While they did have it rough after she saw the state the Pokemon were in she might not want to let them near her family.

oblivionknight7: Bosses need to remember employees names!

Pokemonever1994: Look, good food is good food. And while Team Rocket is evil, they're also pretty goofy. Yeah Oak had it a bit rough there, but Giovanni definitely got it worse. I won't get into the Masked Man yet, he's set up for later. And a chapter about Leaf's adventures could definitely be a lot of fun. I'll consider it.

But yeah that's a wrap. See you (hopefully) next weekend or the (more likely) weekend after!

Discord: discord gg kESdTfhAwG

TVTropes: tvtropes org / pmwiki / pmwiki php / Fanfic / ZoruaTrainer

~FriTik

R&R