Episode 142: The Very Best Part 2
Ash, Mirror Ash, Ash the Rainbow Hero, Ash from an alternate world, Ash from an Electric Tale, Dia, and Red stand before yet another version of Ash. It's The Master with his helmet broken away to reveal his face. He looks at the other Ashes with hatred and disgust on his face.
Ash shouts, "No! You can't be me! That's not possible!"
The Master shakes his head. "Your limited perspective blinds you to the possibilities. I've had enough of this world." He snaps his fingers and a portal within a golden ring appears beneath everyone's feet. They fall into it.
The Ashes fall into The Master's layer. It's a room full of incomprehensible technology and machines. The walls are lined with shelves full of thousands of Pokéballs and Master Balls. The Master now sits on his throne up against a glass wall. Through the wall, a similar void to where Mirror Team Rocket was based is visible. Bubbles with various images of different worlds float through the void.
Ash demands, "Who are you!?" He steps forward, but crashes into a force field that becomes visible the moment he touches it.
The Master states, "You'll find the barrier around you impossible to pass. You best get comfortable." He pauses. "As for who I am, is it not obvious? I am the very best, like no one ever was. I am Ash Ketchum."
Rainbow Hero Ash shouts, "There's no way you're one of us! That's not possible!"
"As one of you has already stated. And yet, it is clearly true to anyone who can see. And yet, it is also false. I am not one of you. I am beyond what any of you can achieve. Once I was like you, but I cast aside that life long ago."
Ash asserts, "I refuse to believe that. How could one of us become you?"
Seemingly ignoring the question, The Master stands up and walks along one of the walls lined with Pokéballs. "Do you like my collection? I have captured every Pokémon known to you. Many you don't yet know of."
Red notices as he walks by a spot with a missing Pokéball. "What's that spot for?"
The Master turns back to them suddenly. "This is where the one Pokémon that can never be replaced would sit. This empty spot is what makes me different from all of you."
Alternate Ash realizes, "He doesn't have Pikachu…"
Dia adds, "Or any partner…"
The Master nods. "Yes. Once I had a partner. Pikachu was my best friend. Pikachu was the only one I needed. But when my journey had only just barely begun, Pikachu was ripped from me."
Ash asks, "How…?"
"It happened the fateful day where we met Mewtwo."
The Master's story becomes a flashback. All around the stadium on New Island, Pokémon fight their clone versions in a brutal match. All are exhausted, but none are willing to stop. Above, Mew and Mewtwo continuously ram into each other from within orbs of pink and blue light respectively. They crash one last time, creating a massive shockwave that blasts many of the Pokémon away. They begin to glow with auras of their respective color as they prepare their ultimate attacks. A version of Ash gets up off the ground and sees the harm inflicted on all the Pokémon, original and clone alike. He lunges forward and runs.
Brock shouts, "Ash, wait!"
As he runs, Ash shouts, "You've got to stop right now!" At the same time, Mew and Mewtwo are ready to unleash their attacks. Ash shouts, "Stop!" as he runs for the point where the attacks will meet.
But now things change. Before Ash can be hit by the attacks, Pikachu leaps at him and headbutts him out of the way. Instead of Ash, it's Pikachu who's caught up in the attack.
Misty shouts, "Pikachu!"
Brock shouts, "Oh no!"
From the ground, Ash shouts, "Pikachu!"
Pikachu falls to the ground. Mewtwo asserts, "Fool! Trying to stop our battle!"
Ash runs up to Pikachu. "Pikachu!" He cradles the Pokémon in his arms. "Pikachu…?" His partner turns to stone in his arms. He shakes Pikachu, trying to wake it up. "Pikachu…"
Everyone, human, Pokémon, and clone, begin to cry.
"Pikachu…?" He suddenly shouts, "Pikachu!" He too breaks down sobbing.
The flashback ends, and The Master states, "All the tears in the world couldn't bring him back. My partner, my best friend, was gone. Mewtwo took him from me. Though he claimed that Pikachu's sacrifice made him see the error of his ways, there was nothing that cloned monster could do. Pikachu was gone."
Dia shakes his head in disbelief. "Is he what I would have been if I didn't meet Zeraora…?"
"My so-called friends added insult to injury. They betrayed me."
Ash asks with concern, "Brock and Misty betrayed you? How?"
"They claimed to understand my pain. They claimed that time would heal the wound I felt so strongly. They were wrong! They knew nothing! If they thought that, then they were never my friends! So, I left them to travel alone!" After his brief outburst, he calms back down. "I traveled alone, and eventually I entered the Indigo League. Without Pikachu, I had no hope of winning. But that loss was the wakeup call I needed. Pikachu and I had always said we would be the best. On that day, I swore that I would stop at nothing until I became the very best, like no one ever was. And so, I moved on to a new chapter in my life. I traveled to the Orange Islands. That's where I learned of my importance." He recites, "Disturb not the harmony of fire, ice or lightning, lest these titans wreak destruction upon the world in which they clash. Though the water's great guardian shall arise to quell the fighting, alone its song will fail, lest the earth shall turn to Ash." He pauses. "I was more than just a simple Pokémon trainer. I was, no, I am, the Chosen One. So, I did what was expected of me, and I worked to save the world from the battle between Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno. But I did it in my own way. Aboard Lawrence III's airship. I discovered a Master Ball that was a part of his collection. Using that Master Ball, I captured Lugia and fully embraced my destiny as the Chosen One."
Ash, Mirror Ash, Alternate Ash, and Dia all gasp in horror at this revelation.
"That began my quest to truly catch them all. I wouldn't allow any Pokémon to slip away from me. From that moment on, I was a new Ash. I had embraced who I was always meant to be. With Lugia at my side, no matter how little it wanted it, I went on to compete and win in every Pokémon League I entered. Then, while in the Kalos Region, I encountered the next Pokémon that would help me to achieve my destiny."
He snaps his finger, and a pod raises out from the ground. Inside the pod is a Hoopa. It looks to be in pain.
"This Pokémon has the ability to travel across dimensions and parallel universes. It exposed me to the fact that no matter how strong I became, there would always be other worlds with other versions of me. I could never truly be the very best, when there was an infinite number of other Ashes vying for that title. I could not allow that. So, I took Hoopa's power for my own. No longer bound to my universe, I could capture any Pokémon I wanted, defeat any who claimed themselves stronger than me. At first, I was satisfied to simply defeat my doppelgangers, but recently, when encountering a version of Ash who was saving an Arceus from capture, I captured the Arceus myself. The Doctor used its power to create the Alpha Bomb, a weapon that could destroy entire universes. With it, I could wipe the multiverse clean of all those who claim to be the best. I could truly claim the title for myself."
Ash states with frustration, "So, you really are a madman."
"You think that even after hearing my story?"
"I don't know what I would do without Pikachu, but I promise you, I would not be you!"
Electric Ash announces, "Neither would I!"
Rainbow Hero Ash, "Me neither!"
Alternate Ash declares, "I would never be you!"
Mirror Ash says while crying, "You're a monster!"
Dia asserts, "I did lose Pikachu, but I did not allow myself to stoop so low!"
Red concludes, "We are not the same as you!"
The Master shakes his head slowly as he chuckles. "Clearly you understand nothing. My story was lost on the likes of you."
Red suddenly announces, "I'm done sitting here doing nothing! Go!" He throws an Ultra Ball. From it, his Mewtwo emerges. "Break down this barrier!"
Mewtwo shrieks as it releases a powerful pulse of psychic energy that rips through the barrier imprisoning them.
The Master freezes up as he stares with abhorrence at Red's Pokémon. "How dare you let that monstrosity show its face in my presence!?"
Red chuckles. "I was hoping to strike a nerve. If you think you're so strong, prove it against Mewtwo and me."
"You'll regret issuing that challenge!" A Master Ball disappears from his wall and appears in his arm cannon. He fires it, sending out a Mewtwo of his own. This Mewtwo is covered in armor similar to what Giovanni outfitted Mewtwo in. Like many of The Master's Pokémon, there is a look of pain and anguish on its face.
Ash gasps. "Is that…?"
"Yes. This is the very same Mewtwo that robbed me of everything. I used the second Master Ball I found when I met Mewtwo at Mount Quena. I made sure that Mewtwo would suffer for all the suffering it caused me." He looks to his Mewtwo. "Show this fool his mistake in challenging me."
Mewtwo grunts, "I…am…not…your…slave…"
The Master announces, "Wrong answer." He presses a button on his suit and inflicts pain to Mewtwo through its armor. Mewtwo writhes in pain.
After moments of this, Mewtwo relents, "Fine!" The pain stops. Once he's able to move, he lunges forward and attacks Red's Mewtwo with Shadow Ball.
Red commands, "Swift!" His Mewtwo attacks back with stars made of light. The attacks collide and explode.
Both Pokémon quickly follow-up by covering themselves in a barrier and ramming into each other.
With The Master's attention on the battle, Ash whispers to Dia, "We have to rescue Hoopa. It can summon rings that can let us travel to other universes. It can help us escape."
They both nod. Dia says, "Zeraora and I should be able to break it free."
The Master commands, "Destroy him with Shadow Ball!" Mewtwo creates two Shadow Balls, one with each hand, and flings them at Red's Mewtwo.
Red shouts, "Block it with Barrier! Then follow up with Confusion!" His Mewtwo raises a protective field that stop the Shadow Balls. The moment it's safe, the barrier is lowered, and Red's Mewtwo immobilizes The Master's with a psychic field.
The Master simply orders, "Psychic." With psychic powers of its own, Mewtwo creates a shockwave that blasts through the hold Red's Mewtwo has on it, and also blasts away the Pokémon. Even Red is pushed back by the burst of energy. He stands firm as his coat flies in the wind.
Meanwhile, Ash and Dia have snuck behind The Master to the pod that holds Hoopa. Ash whispers to Hoopa, "Don't worry, we're going to get you out of there."
The Hoopa looks up to him. It looks incredibly weak and injured. It struggles to say meekly, "Hoopa…was…surprised…"
Ash smiles at it. "So was I."
Dia says to Zeraora, "Use Close Combat to break it free."
"Zera." Zeraora leaps at the pod and delivers several mighty punches and kicks, breaking right through it.
Ash catches Hoopa in his arms. "Hoopa, can you ring us out of here?"
Hoopa nods. "Hoopa…can…"
Back in the battle, Red's Mewtwo seems to be losing to The Master's. It pants. Red urges, "We're not out of this yet, Mewtwo! Use Recover!"
Mewtwo begins to glow as it restores its health.
The Master shouts, "A futile effort! Mewtwo, use Psystrike!" Mewtwo summons a field of intense psychic energy around itself, which promptly explodes outwards with a massive force. Red's Mewtwo is knocked away before it can finish healing. It faints.
Red is shocked. "Mewtwo was undefeated…"
Ash shouts, "Everyone! We have our way out! Let's run!" He points to a large ring portal that Hoopa summoned.
Red recalls Mewtwo and makes a break for it. The other Ashes follow behind. Last through the portal is Ash, who takes one last glance back at The Master's face, a twisted reflection of his own.
The Master shouts, "You won't escape me that easily!" He uses his jet boots to dash at Ash. Ash leaps into the portal and The Master follows just before it snaps shut.
Who's that Pokémon!?
Apparently, the heads aren't the only parts of the body that this Pokémon has three of. It has three sets of hearts and lungs as well, so it is capable of running long distances without rest. It was the first Pokémon to physically appear in the anime.
The ring has brought them all to another world. This one features an abandoned city, overgrown with plant life. Scattered across the city are stone statues of various Pokémon with portions broken off to reveal an inner crystalline structure. It's as if they're in some sort of bizarre future, brought there by a ripple in time. A version of Ash, looking mostly like Ash did in Kanto, runs with Pikachu by a giant statue of a Slowpoke. He looks distressed.
The distress is only added to when he sees eight other versions of himself run past him in the opposite direction. The Master pursuing them gives the Ashes no chance to stop.
Ash says to Hoopa, "Quickly, we need another ring! We need to keep running until we lose him!"
Hoopa nods. "Alléhooparing…" It weakly throws a ring ahead to create another portal. They jump in, but so does The Master.
They're brought to a world that seems mostly normal. An Ash, dressed in his world journey clothes, watches as Goh throws Pokéball after Pokéball at a Dragonite. The Dragonite either deflects the Pokéballs or immediately escapes. Goh shouts with frustration, "Why won't it stay caught!?"
As the Ashes run by, Electric Ash remarks with annoyance, "Somebody tell that kid he has to battle the Pokémon first! Everyone knows that!" They escape into another ring.
The next world doesn't feature any new version of Ash. It looks to be aboard the bridge of a spaceship. A Turcell and a Kappaqua wearing white bandannas seem to somehow be piloting the ship. The Ashes appear and disappear quickly, as there's little room to run. The Turcell and Kappaqua both look confused and concerned at the sight.
The next world features yet another version of Ash. He's standing on a road looking down at the city below, where there's a stadium. A sign next to him reads, "Pokémon Puzzle League Village."
The Ashes are quick to appear, and quick to exit through another ring. Before they're gone, Electric Ash comments, "Puzzling."
In yet another world, an uncanny version of Ash, hot off the presses, is arguing with Misty in a school hallway. They're arguing over whether Ash's Pikachu or Misty's Squirtle, which she apparently has, is less behaved.
As the Ashes appear and run through the school halls, Electric Ash shouts, "Stop the presses! And they called my world the strangest! Ha!"
A teacher with graying hair looks out through a door and shouts, "No running in the…halls…" He trails off as he sees the party running by and how they disappear into another ring.
As strange as the last world was, the next is even weirder. Two trainers, one with absurd hair colored yellow, red, and black, and one with only slightly less absurd brown hair are battling with two unknown Pokémon. One is a cybernetic magician, the other a dragon made of fiery plasma. The stranger-haired one declares, "Cyber-Tech Magician, attack with Cyber Magic Attack!"
The slightly-less-strange haired one shouts, "Not so fast! You've triggered my trap!"
They are so caught up in their battle that they fail to notice the Ashes running by their battlefield.
Back in slightly more familiar territory, the next world features Ash, Brock, and Dawn. In addition to Dawn's regular clothes, she also wears a white long-sleeve undershirt and black pants. The three of them are gathered around a holographic display projected from a device that Ash holds.
They're using the holographic display to communicate with a woman who says, "The stars seem to move, but it's actually the Earth that moves."
Ash objects, "But Siara, it's obvious if you look up at the night sky that the stars move."
"That's just an illusion. Think about if you were to spin around in a circle. Everything looks like it's moving around you, but it's actually you that's spinning."
Now Dawn objects, "But you can tell when you're spinning. It doesn't feel like I'm moving right now."
Siara laughs. "But you're actually moving at a thousand miles an hour as the Earth rotates. Even faster if you count the speed of the Earth orbiting the Sun."
The three are so engrossed in their science lesson that they fail to notice the group of Ashes running from The Master. As they run by, Electric Ash says in disgust, "Eew. What are those guys doing? I became a Pokémon trainer to get out of school."
They escape next to a world where a trainer stands in front of a large blue statue in the shape of a Pokéball emblem. The trainer is using a camera to take a picture of his Pikachu wearing a hat, only for another version of Ash to leap in for a photobomb. The trainer and Ash laugh about it, but when the trainer checks the photo, he notices that more than one Ash was in this photobomb, as the group of fleeing Ashes can be seen running behind the hatted Pikachu.
Before they disappear into a ring above a bridge, Electric Ash shouts a word of advice back at the trainer, "Remember to be alert at all times! Stay aware of your surroundings!" But as he shouts this, he ironically fails to realize that a Gyarados has leapt out of the nearby water and is preparing to attack him. He runs into the portal just in time to miss the Gyarados.
In the next world is a park in a city. Three odd Pokémon which almost look like humanoid hedgehogs are battling a monstrous fourth Pokémon that seems to be made of purple smoke. One has blue fur, another silver fur, and the other green. Their battle is interrupted when the Ashes run between them. They watch the group in confusion.
Electric Ash looks back to them and shouts, "Gotta go fast!" This only furthers their confusion.
In a nearly unexplainable sight, people who almost look like Ash, Brock, and Misty are dancing about. With them is a giant Pikachu that goes up to Ash's shoulders who moves rather stiffly. Behind them is an assortment of even more stiff Pokémon of all kinds, such as Pinsir, Pidgeot, Voltorb, Hypno, Geodude, Zapdos, and more. Ash, Brock, and Misty sing together to a backtrack, "One world! Now and forever! Best friends! Loyal and true! One dream! Side by side, there's nothing we can't do! One hand! Helping each other! Each heart! Beating as one! We live, always together! Sharing the same bright sun! You and me and Pokémon! One-!"
Their performance is cut short by the Ashes running by. As they do, Electric Ash frantically searches his pockets. "Shoot! I didn't bring any rotten tomatoes!"
The next ring brings them to the inside of an office building. A boy wearing a red shirt and a white hat with a Pikachu on his shoulders stares down Jessie, James, and Meowth. It's Chase. Team Rocket run past him as they shout, "Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" There's no actual flying away involved in this "blast off." Them pushing past the boy causes him to spin.
He's spun again by the Ashes running by. Electric Ash shouts excitedly, "Let's go!"
Another ring brings them to another world. It's hard to say if the person there is a version of Ash or not. He does have a Pikachu with him but doesn't look anything like Ash. It's a boy in a white shirt featuring an Unown. The Pikachu looks unusually fluffy and wears a detective's cap. It's Tim Goodman and Detective Pikachu, but not the versions that Ash met. The two run as the ground beneath them rips and rumbles.
As the group of Ashes runs by, Rainbow Hero Ash realizes that emerging from the ground is a titanic Torterra. "Guys, we've got to get away from this world!"
Electric Ash sees the Torterra, as well as other ones, and shouts in shock, "Great Gamera!"
The Master is hurled up into the air by the fissuring ground. One of the giant Torterra catches him in its mouth.
Ash shouts, "This is it! Our chance to escape! One last ring, Hoopa!"
Hoopa opens another ring, they escape, and the ring closes before The Master can free himself from the Torterra.
It's Dodrio!
The Ashes find themselves in a snow field atop a mountain in the middle of a blizzard. When the ring closes without The Master emerging, they all erupt in cheer and celebration.
Alternate Ash asks, "Did we really do it? Did we escape him?"
Rainbow Hero Ash exclaims, "That giant Torterra got him! And without Hoopa's he's trapped in that world!"
Mirror Ash sobs tears of joy. "We beat him!"
Electric Ash cheers, "We did it, Jean-Luc Pikachu!"
Ash looks to Electric Ash with confusion. "Jean-Luc Pikachu?"
Electric Ash grins. "Yup, that's Pikachu's name. Pretty engaging, isn't it? I would dare say it's even enterprising." His Pikachu is polishing an arrowhead-shaped gold badge suddenly pinned to its chest.
Ash states in further confusion, "I have no idea what you're talking about."
Electric Ash sighs. "I guess you guys don't have Star Trek in your worlds either. What a shame."
Ignoring this, Dia asks, "So, where are we now?"
The Ashes look around for the first time. Red shivers. "We know one thing about this place. It's cold."
Alternate Ash asks, "What do we do now?"
A muffled voice can barely be heard. Rainbow Hero Ash asks, "Huh, what's that?" From his pocket, he pulls out the communicator he took from The Doctor.
Through it, Mirror Jessie asks, "Can you hear us?"
Rainbow Hero Ash immediately answers, "We hear you! We hear you!"
"Perfect. It was a lot of work to hack The Master's multidimensional comms, but we managed. We were able to track your race through the multiverse. You stirred up a lot of multiversal energies making so many portals. How'd you manage that?"
Ash explains, "The Master had a Hoopa. That's how he traveled worlds. We freed it."
Mirror James responds, "That explains a lot. You need to know, with all that random jumping through the multiverse you did, you discovered the universe of Ash Prime."
Mirror Meowth adds, "I hope you didn't bring The Master with you."
Electric Ash chuckles. "We ditched him in another world. He's trapped there."
"You shouldn't jump to conclusions."
Everyone gasps and looks up to see The Master emerging from a portal above. His armor is dented and damaged, but he still manages to hover with jet boots.
Dia asks, "But how?"
The Master laughs. "Do you really think I would traverse the multiverse without a back-up? I keep a pan-dimensional super-conduit generator in my armor. Hoopa was simply an easier way of traveling across universes. I don't need that worthless Pokémon." He pauses. "I take that back. I do need it for my collection. I'll be taking it back once I destroy all of you, as well as this world. I must thank you for leading me straight to the Prime World. You've made my mission that much easier." He types a command into the control panel on his wrist. Another portal opens and an Alpha Bomb lowers from it.
Mirror Ash shouts, "Stop! You can't!"
"I can and I will. I may not have The Doctor to set the bomb for me anymore, but one command from my suit, and this bomb will detonate." He moves to enter another command.
Before he can, an intense bolt of lightning strikes him.
The Ashes all look to each other, trying to figure out who called the attack. But it was none of them. Then Ash looks back behind them all. "Look! Through the snow!"
A silhouetted figure has appeared. It's shrouded by the blizzard, but it's moving closer to them, and as it does, its features become distinct. It is possible to make out a boy in a hat with a Pikachu on his shoulder.
Ash gasps. "It's Ash Prime…"
Red shakes his head. "No, not Ash Prime… it's…" The figure becomes visible. He looks similar to Red, though he has black hair instead of brown, wears his overshirt unzipped, and has a hat with a blank white face and a badge pinned to it. "It's Red Prime…"
Ash realizes, "They're one and the same…"
The way his hair and coat flaps in the wind combined with the stoic look of determination on his face makes him look like some sort of action hero. Red Prime looks across the Ashes, summing up the scene. He looks up to The Master and points decidedly at him. "…!" Though he doesn't say a word, his body language says everything. He's challenging The Master.
The Master can't help but grin. "As much as I wish to destroy this world, I cannot pass up the opportunity to prove myself superior to the progenitor of all Ashes. I accept your challenge."
"… …" Red Prime says nothing, but still acknowledges The Master.
The Master loads a Master Ball and fires it. He sends out a Ho-Oh.
Rainbow Hero Ash shouts, "That's the Ho-Oh from my world! Ho-Oh!"
Ash holds him back. "This isn't our fight. This is his."
Rainbow Hero Ash nods in understanding, but sighs.
"… … …!" Red Prime points forward, and his Pikachu jumps off his shoulders.
The Master laughs. "Even the archetypical Ash uses a Pikachu! I should not be surprised. Ho-Oh, show this fool my power. Use Sacred Fire."
Ho-Oh knows not to disobey. It attacks by flapping its wings to create a storm of rainbow flames.
Red Prime does not seem intimidated in the slightest. "… …!" His Pikachu leaps straight into the fire, comes out the other side, and attacks with an extremely powerful Thunderbolt. Ho-Oh tries to dodge, but it is unable to in time. Red Prime points to Ho-Oh. "…!" Pikachu lands on the ground and rushes at Ho-Oh with Volt Tackle, leaping at the last minute in order to hit the airborne target.
The other Ashes are left stunned. Ash says with disbelief, "This guy is something else…"
The Master is angered. "I won't allow this! Ho-Oh, use Ancient Power!" Ho-Oh flaps its wings and summons an orb of silvery energy that strikes Pikachu while it's still recoiling away from its last attack. "Now use Sky Attack!" Ho-Oh folds its wings and dives at the struck Pikachu.
All this, and Red Prime remains completely calm and collected. "… … …!"
Somehow Pikachu is able to perfectly understand his wordless command. The Pokémon twists to its side and just barely avoids Ho-Oh's attack. As the Legendary Pokémon soars by it, Pikachu grabs ahold of Ho-Oh's back and attacks with Thunderbolt. This close-range attack leaves Ho-Oh with no ability to dodge and amplifies the damage output.
The Master shouts with anger, "Get that imposter rodent off of you!" Ho-Oh flies about attempting to throw Pikachu off, but Pikachu clings on effortlessly, continuing the Thunderbolt along the way.
Red shakes his head with disbelief. "I thought I was good, but this guy is something else!"
Ho-Oh crashes into the ground. It's been defeated.
Red Prime steps forward as his Pikachu runs back to him and stoically returns to his shoulder. "… … …"
The Master shakes his head. "No! This isn't possible! No! I am the best! I am the very best! Like no one ever was! I can't be defeated! I've come so far! I've done so much! I can't lose! It's impossible!"
Ash announces, "It is possible! Now surrender. We've got you outnumbered and outpowered. You won't be destroying any more worlds!"
The Master says something under his breath.
Electric Ash asks confidently, "What was that? I couldn't hear you."
He screams at the top of his lungs, "I said no!" He presses the button on his wrist, and the Alpha Bomb arms itself with a five second countdown. "I don't care if I don't escape! I will destroy every last Ash!"
Red Prime asserts wordlessly, "… … … …!" He points to the Alpha Bomb.
Ash understands his meanings. "Everyone, attack the bomb! We can beat back the shockwave!"
Together, all the Ashes, save Dia and Red Prime, shout, "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"
Dia adds, "Plasma Fists!"
Red Prime nonverbally commands, "…!"
"Pikaaaaaa chuuuuuu!"
Just as the bomb detonates, the shockwave is met by the eight electric attacks. The shockwave still propagates, but it has been slowed by the attacks.
Ash encourages, "Keep it up, Pikachu! All of you! We can do this!"
Dia realizes, "It's not enough! We need more power!"
Ash shouts, "Then I'll give it everything I got! Let's go, guys!" He throws all of his Pokéballs at once, sending out Solurtle, Dashilisk, Arborrior, Eagladiator, and Ninjitsu. They add their Flamethrower, Scald, Razor Leaf, Gust, and Dark Pulse to Pikachu's Thunderbolt.
Rainbow Ash shouts, "We will too! I choose everybody!" He sends out Charizard, Curemodo, Dashilisk, Arborrior, and Eagladiator, who also add their attacks.
Electric Ash declares, "Us too!" He adds Fearow, Butterfree, Charizard, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur.
Now it's Mirror Ash, "Don't forget us!" His Pokémon are a mirror of Ash's.
Alternate Ash yells, "We'll give it all we got!" He too sends out the same Pokémon as Ash and Mirror Ash.
Dia throws his Pokéballs. "We'll give it everything we've got!" His additional Pokémon are Incineroar, Alolan Golem, Decidueye, and Dusk Lycanroc.
Red shouts, "Never give up!" He sends out Charizard, Mewtwo, Lapras, Scizor, and Jolteon. He immediately Mega Evolves his Charizard into Mega Charizard X.
Red Prime takes a step forward as he pulls out his Pokéballs. "… … … …!" He calls upon a Charizard, Venusaur, Blastoise, Snorlax, and Espeon.
All the added Pokémon help slow the blast wave, but it still moves slowly outwards.
Ash shouts, "It's still not enough! We need more help!"
Hoopa, still resting in Ash's arms, hears this. With a sudden renewal of energy, it suddenly floats up and shouts, "Hoopa will help!" It throws ring after ring, creating multiple portals. Help pours in from them. Ripple in time Ash appears and adds his Pikachu, Charizard, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Pidgeotto, and Kingler. The world journey Ash appears alongside Pikachu, Dragonite, Gengar, Lucario, Sirfetch'd, and Dracovish. Ash from Puzzle League Village adds his Pikachu, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur. Newspaper Ash enters with his Pikachu, Charmander, Bulbasaur, Butterfree, Snorlax, and Clefairy. There's also learning Ash, who comes with Pikachu, Sceptile, Swellow, Corphish, and Donphan. Go photobombing Ash adds his team of Pikachu with his hat, Pikachu with a Santa hat, Pikachu with a witch hat, Pikachu with a party hat, Pikachu a detective hat, and Charizard. Wait, no, it's Pikachu with a Charizard hat. Musical Ash only has his giant Pikachu, and it attacks with strobing lights. Chase brings his Pikachu, Charizard, Gyarados, Dragonite, Kabutops, and Melmetal.
A grand total of sixteen Ashes now attack with all their Pokémon in unison. Their combined power forces back the shockwave from the Alpha Bomb.
The Master can't believe his eyes. "No! This isn't possible! What do you think you're doing!? How are you doing this!?"
Ash looks up to The Master and asserts, "You call yourself the very best, but you're wrong. We're all the very best! All it takes is a dream, a desire to be better, and a partner at your side! That's what makes an Ash an Ash! You lost your partner, and you lost your drive to be better. You assume yourself the best, and that's why you'll fail at your dream! Maybe we'll never be the best in the multiverse, but that won't stop us from trying, because we all have a dream, a desire, and a partner."
Together, the sixteen Ashes, minus Red Prime, announce, "I want to be the very best, like no one ever was!"
The shockwave has reduced down to almost nothing. Hoopa floats above it, and suddenly grows several times in size as it transforms into its Unbound Form. It shouts in its monstrous voice, "Alléhooparing!" Six different rings fly off of its six arms. The rings all swoop in to the shockwave from different angles and move in towards each other until all the rings become concentric to each other and encompass the entire blast. There's an intense rumbling, a massive flash of light, a pop, and then the rings and shockwave are gone. Everyone relaxes.
Hoopa shrinks back down and flies over to Ash. It laughs and asks, "Were you surprised?"
Ash grins back at it. "Very surprised."
The Master has fallen to the ground. He pounds a fist into the snow beneath him. "I was so close!" He looks up to see that he's been surrounded on all sides by Ashes. He looks down in shame.
Rainbow Ash takes back out the cross-dimensional communicator. "Team Rocket, can you hear me? We beat him. We saved the multiverse."
Mirror Meowth exclaims, "You did a lot more than that! You restored the multiverse!"
Electric Ash's head swivels towards Rainbow Hero Ash. His face glows with hope. "Do you mean…?"
Mirror James answers, "Yes! Whatever it is you and Hoopa did with that Alpha Bomb, it sent an inverse pulse to all the erased worlds! They're all back! Each and every one of them!"
Alternate Ash asks with cautious optimism, "I can go home…?"
Mirror Ash sobs tears of joy. "They're all right! Everyone's all right!"
Rainbow Hero Ash marches up to The Master and rips Ho-Oh's Master Ball from the cannon. He throws it to the ground and stomps on it. He then runs over to Ho-Oh, who's just recovering. "Ho-Oh! You're free! And our home is safe!"
Ho-Oh screeches in celebration. Ash pulls out the Rainbow Wing from his bag and watches it glows a brilliant light as its color is restored.
Dia and Zeraora are hugging in celebration. When they separate, Dia asks, "Zeraora, I 've been thinking. We should make out partnership official." He pulls out a Pokéball. "If that's okay with you."
Zeraora doesn't even need to think about it. It touches its paw to the Pokéball and catches itself.
Dia holds up the Pokéball and exclaims, "I just got a Zeraora!" He laughs. "It's been too long since I've done that…"
Red is staring at Red Prime. He says, "I think I know what makes you and me different. You became Champion and finished your journey. You came here, to the most secluded place you could find to train and become more powerful than anyone thought possible. Me? I kept traveling. Becoming Champion was just the beginning for me. After all this time, my journey's still not over. There will always be more Pokémon for me to catch. It's interesting, seeing what could have been. I'm sure you feel the same."
A veiled grin appears on Red Prime's face. "… …"
Ash looks back to Hoopa. "Hoopa, I think we all, more than anything, want to go back home. Can you do that for us?"
Hoopa grins. "Hoopa will do anything for Ashkan and Pikan! Alléhooparing!" Hoopa tosses more rings, creating a portal for each Ash.
Ash says, "Well, I guess it's time for us to go our separate ways."
Rainbow Hero Ash says, "It's been great getting know…well…myself!"
Dia states, "Though we bid farewell, this is not truly goodbye. A part of each of us exists in all the others. Do not forget that."
Alternate Ash asserts, "I never well."
Electric Ash declares, "Thanks for everything, guys! I had a whale of a time!"
Red is confused. "A whale? Surely you mean a Wailord."
"No. Just a whale."
Ash asks, "A Wailmer?"
"No, a whale. You know, the animal."
Ash, Mirror Ash, Alternate Ash, Rainbow Hero Ash, Dia, and Red all ask in confusion, "An animal…?"
Electric Ash laughs. "Wow. I'm not sure how it's possible, but I guess you guys don't have those either."
Everyone departs into their portals one-by-one. Mirror Ash takes The Master with him for Mirror Team Rocket to deal with.
Ash and Pikachu are the last ones remaining with Red Prime. Ash looks to him and says, "Thank you for your help. At first, it was hard to accept that I wasn't the original. But now that I've seen you in action, I'm proud to say I'm based on someone like you. Someday, somehow, I will get strong enough to battle you, and I'll find a way to see you again."
Red Prime grins at him. "… … …"
Somehow knowing what he's thinking, Ash grins back and says, "I can't wait either." He looks down to Pikachu. "What do you say, buddy? Ready to go back home?"
"Chu!"
"Couldn't have said it better myself!" He and Pikachu run into the ring.
Red Prime is now alone. With Pikachu atop his shoulder, he turns around and disappears into the snow.
Ash reappears where he left his world from. Brock and Brenda are sitting down for a picnic lunch. Brenda waves him over. "Ash! Where'd you disappear to?"
Ash runs up to them and gives them a tight hug. "You're okay!"
Brock laughs. "Of course we're okay. Are you okay?"
Ash lets go and chuckles. "I am now, Brock. Everything is okay.
It was a once-in-a-lifetime journey, that was 25 years in the making. It spans everything from cartoons to games to comics to musicals! We all have so much shared history now. We are connected by a love for Pokémon. Remember our past, but also look forward towards future. Who knows what comes next!
Jessie, James, and Meowth—that is, the originals—are tied up and seemingly being forced by learning Ash to communicate with some sort of hip-looking skater/counselor/therapist via a holographic display. Jessie and James seem to be upset at each other, as they refuse to make eye contact.
The hip skater counselor says, "A lot of people bring up the past when they're arguing, but instead you should talk about the problem you're having now. When you use words like 'never' or 'always,' you're exaggerating. That will definitely make someone angry. So, when you do something like blame each other and call each other names, it's like tripping or stumbling when you're trying to get somewhere. In this case, they're communication stumbles. They can make a conflict escalate and turn from a talk into a conflict really fast. There's a way to tell someone how you feel without attacking them, so that a disagreement doesn't become a fight. An 'I' message is a great way to do that."
Jessie, James, and Meowth all groan before they shout, "What did we do to deserve this torture!? Team Rocket wishes they were blasting off again!"
To Be Continued…
Happy anniversary to what I'm sure is many of ours favorite show! Never stop catching 'em all!
For a trailer previewing the upcoming finale arc of Cosmic Quest, check out the Cosmic Quest Official Website.
