Omni Force: ORIGINS

by NegaiFreak

Where did it all start, you might wonder? Well, some stories aren't about just beginnings. They're also about how bonds between our heroes were forged. Join in as we partake in this 100-chapter story of how the Omni Force came to be, with each member getting a tale for themselves! PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!

2. Ash Ketchum

After a bit of a long break from this new story, we're finally back to "Omni Force: ORIGINS"! I'm actually a bit shocked we managed to get this far already! I was nervous about getting into this for the longest time, wondering whether or not I could successfully make these origin stories for the Omni Force and if I'd be motivated to make up their stories.

To be honest, ones I fear getting into the most are yet to come, mainly because I haven't yet interacted with certain characters. However, that's a problem better dealt with in the future. For now, it's time we get into the character of the day for this chapter. And what a time it is for me to be writing about him now…

Ash Ketchum was a part of my childhood. Pokémon itself really sparked a lot of creativity in me, and it was part of the motivation for me to start FanFiction in the first place. As time's gone on, and now that his era is over as of the time this chapter's posted, I've come to appreciate him a lot more.

As his adventures continue in our hearts, I hope we see him again sometime in the future. But for now, it's time for us to get into his story as an Omni Force member! Ladies and gentlemen, here's Ash's story!

OMNI FORCE: ORIGINS

It does feel like it's been a while, hasn't it? I know all of you are clamoring for these origin stories, but they do take time. Thankfully, we have plenty to spend upon this tale. Though, we aren't starting with Ash right away…

UNIVERSE-57

MOUNT RUSHMORE

"So you brought us here to show us the Plumbers' latest science experiment?" Ben inquired of his grandfather as he and Gwen followed him down the halls of the secret base.

"It's potentially going to be a breakthrough in our technology with Azmuth's assistance," he pointed out to his grandchildren.

"Wait, Azmuth?!" Gwen exclaimed in surprise, "How'd you get him to help out with this?" she inquired curiously.

"Well, we told him about our plans, and he offered to help oversee the project," Max told her.

"And what is it?" Ben asked as the group turned a corner. He and his cousin looked over and gasped to see the giant, ring-shaped contraption inside the large room before them, with six blue tubes pumping a form of energy into it.

"Whoa…" both Ben and Gwen uttered in awe as they wandered in. Several Plumber scientists were present, performing analyses and configuring machinery. Looking around, the Omnitrix bearer took notice of one figure in particular. It was a creature that appeared to be five inches tall. He resembled an anthropomorphic grey frog, with gills and sticky skin. He had bulbous green eyes with rectangular black pupils. Four thin tendrils grew out of his lower jaw, while two longer ones grow out of his upper jaw, giving him the appearance of having a beard. He wore a dark green jumpsuit, with a lighter green hourglass symbol on his chest. Bronze-colored plating covered the base of his neck, shoulders and wrists. A belt of the same color surrounded his waist.

"Hey, Azmuth!" Ben called out, getting his attention as he spotted the eleven-year-old boy jogging over to him.

"Well, if it isn't the little miscreant parading the galaxy's most dangerous weapon on his wrist…" he muttered as he turned to face the approaching Ben.

"Uh…" he uttered, unsure as to how to respond, "Nice to see you too, I guess?" he said with a shrug.

"What is all this?" Gwen asked as she came over.

"Curious, huh?" Azmuth assumed, "That right there is an ethereal amplifier, meant to strengthen any portal-based technology," he explained to the pair, while Max approached, "Your planet's Plumbers wanted to have the ability to travel into the Null Void and develop a base of operations there," he mentioned further.

"The Null Void?" both Ben and Gwen repeated in surprise, turning to their grandfather.

"Grandpa… isn't that dangerous?" the latter of the two inquired out of concern.

"By having a base of operations in the Null Void, we can keep track of the threats we throw in there, along with making sure they don't get out," Max replied thoroughly.

"So this… amplifier thing's supposed to make a portal big enough for you guys to bring in all sorts of stuff for your base?" Ben presumed.

"That's the idea," his grandfather responded.

"Of course, we're only testing for the moment," Azmuth confirmed, hopping up onto the Plumber's shoulder, "First couple runs haven't gone as planned…" he pointed out, much to the concern of Ben and Gwen, "Don't worry, no one's gotten hurt," he assured to ease their minds, "The portals just haven't expanded properly," he noted, "It's almost as if they're reshaping to a different destination…" he mentioned curiously.

"Azmuth, sir," one of the female scientists chimed in as she approached, causing him to perk up, "We're ready to begin our fourth test," she confirmed.

"Excellent," the Galvan responded, "Hopefully today, we'll have a bit of luck with you all here," he remarked with a grin. A few moments later, the group was standing off in front of the amplifier, with the scientists readying the settings to the exact specifications they were provided.

"Beginning Null Void portal amplification test four," the lead scientist affirmed, flicking a few switches before slowly pushing a lever. A yellow beam then shot out into the ring-shaped device, forming a portal that steadily grew until it reached a size big enough for a person to fit through.

"Portal is steady," one of researchers confirmed.

"Now activating the ethereal amplifier," another stated, pressing a button. The blue tubes upon the device shined brightly. Steadily, the portal grew larger.

"The portal is now expanding to a hundred-twenty percent of its current limit," the lead scientist confirmed.

"Well, that sounds promising…" Gwen commented. Azmuth narrowed his frog-like eyes curiously.

"Now rising to a hundred-forty percent capacity…" a male researcher confirmed. Sparks were coming off of the portal. Meanwhile, Ben's attention was attracted to a faint green glow from the Omnitrix, which started blinking.

"Uh, Azmuth?" he said, trying to get the Galvan's attention. All of a sudden, a breeze started to kick in, causing the group to flinch as it pulled on them and the scientists.

"Portal's… at a hundred-fifty and climbing still…!" one grunted out before feeling his body starting to get pulled toward the rift.

"This… hasn't happened before!" another exclaimed, "The portal never expanded this far yet!" he mentioned in fright, "Shut it down!" he insisted.

"I can't!" the lead scientist responded, "The projector's stopped, but the amplifier's still going!" she pointed out, "We need to pull the plug, now!" she advised of her colleagues. Meanwhile, Max took hold of Azmuth as he and the others felt themselves get pulled towards the rift. All of a sudden, Gwen slipped.

"Ah!" she yelped, sliding on the ground toward the enlarging portal, "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!" she screamed.

"GWEN!" Ben and Max cried out. The former quickly activated the Omnitrix, pressing its button to make the dial pop up. He didn't even think to see what alien form had been selected, slamming the dial down to envelop himself in a green flash of light. When it subsided, it revealed he had turned into Four Arms, who lunged out to grab his cousin. Unfortunately, he ended up getting pulled in himself, yelling as he and his cousin tumbled through the portal.

"BEN! GWEN!" Max cried out.

"Kill the amplifier!" Azmuth shouted. Luckily, one of scientists was able to pull the plug of the device out, causing the portal to instantly dissipate. Most everyone sighed with relief, save for Max. "Don't worry, Maxwell," the inventor assured, "They're in the Null Void, but we can search for them," he promised.

"Uh… Azmuth, sir?" one of the researchers chimed in, getting his attention.

"What is it?" he asked.

"We're unable to locate either of the kids heat signatures in the Null Void…" the researcher confirmed in reply, much to his and Max's shock. However, the Galvan cleared his throat.

"The scanners we placed must not be able to detect two humans from where they are…" he presumed, "Have them hone in on the Omnitrix's signature," he advised.

"We… already tried that, sir," the lead scientist responded, causing Azmuth's eyes to widen, "Wherever those two are…" she continued, "it's not the Null Void," she said.

Quite the opener, isn't it? This was Ben's first step official step into the multiverse. And now, he's about to be introduced to the world… of Pokémon.

OPENING

Insert "Hero" by Martin Garrix X JVKE

Opens with a ten-year-old Ash Ketchum putting on his clothes, tightening his gloves and adjusting his cap in preparation for his first-ever journey. However, he oversleeps and misses out on getting the Pokémon he wanted to start with. Instead, he winds up with Pikachu.

Through hijinks and all sorts of mayhem in which Pikachu doesn't obey Ash, he's still willing to protect him from a wild flock of Spearow. The Mouse Pokémon then jumps onto Ash's shoulder before lunging up and unleashing a powerful Thunderbolt, scaring off the flock. Afterwards, the two of them pay witness to a Ho-oh flying by them, marveling the sight of it. The two look to each other and smile, ready to really begin their journey together.

After meeting Misty Williams and Brock Harrison, Ash continues traveling all around Kanto, earning gym badges and vying to take his spot in the Pokémon League. Unfortunately, he ends up losing as the crowd boos him. He lowers his head in shame and frustration, wondering if things'll change.

As he continues his journey, he meets all sorts of friends around the world, encountering and catching new Pokémon. His team consists of Butterfree, Pidgeot, Bulbasaur, Charizard, Squirtle, Kingler, Primeape, Tauros, Muk, Snorlax, Lapras, Heracross, Bayleef, Quilava, Totodile, Noctowl, Donphan, Larvitar, Sceptile, Swellow, Corphish, Torkoal, Glalie, Staraptor, Torterra, Buizel, Infernape, Gliscor, Gible, Unfezant, Oshawott, Pignite, Snivy, Scraggy, Leavanny, Palpitoad, Boldore, Krookodile, Greninja, Talonflame, Hawlucha, Goodra, Noivern, Rowlet, Lycanroc, Incineroar, Dragonite, Gengar, Sirfetch'd, and Dracovish.

As Ash continues to battle through league after league, meeting all sorts of trainers, he gets to the finals of the Lumiose Conference against Alain Regulus. It seems as if he's about to lose, only to hear his friends yelling out to him from the stands. However, he suddenly sees the Fairy Tail guild mark upon his short-sleeved jacket, enticing him to keep on his feet and stay in the battle.

He thinks back to all of the times he's gone and helped others, from battling alongside Ben Tennyson to help subdue an out-of-control Kevin Levin, taking on enemy forces with Naruto Uzumaki, joining Gingka Hagane in the battle against Diablo Nemesis, and fighting the Consortium with Rex Salazar. As he looks back on those memories, he smiles as he's joined by Rook Blonko, Hinata Hyuga, Korra Sato, Natsu Dragneel, and Rainbow Dash. He also ends up running into Mirajane Strauss, staring at her in wonder as she becomes his crush.

He commands his Pikachu to unleash a Thunderbolt onto the amalgamated Kevin, followed by having him use Volt Tackle to attack Shizuku before she can unleash her Water Style techniques. We also see him practicing to use ninjutsu under the Raikage, Ay, who nods at his progress, while Pikachu cheers. We see him and an older Gingka spar prior to their involvement in the Fourth Great Ninja War.

We watch as Ash continues to help his friends, with his Pokémon battling against the forces of the dark guild, Tartarus. It's the first time one of his Pokémon, being Greninja, evolves in a universe outside his own. They work together to fight alongside their friends of Fairy Tail. Ultimately, we see Ash standing tall as he hoists a trophy proudly into the air, with many cheering for him. He smiles brightly, looking forward to the future ahead…

END OPENING

ASH KETCHUM

UNIVERSE-8736

SHAMOUTI ISLAND

A yellow rift suddenly opened up in the middle of the dark, cloudy sky, with both Gwen and Four Arms falling out from it. The former looked to see that they were heading towards a body of water below. Reacting quickly, the latter grabbed hold of his cousin, maneuvering himself to hit the water back first, sinking into it momentarily. He emerged seconds later, gasping for air, followed by a wince.

"You okay, Gwen?" he asked of the orange-haired girl.

"Been better…" she admitted in reply, "But… where are we?" she asked as she looked around, "Doesn't… seem like the Null Void…" she pointed out.

"Yeah, you're right…" Four Arms agreed. A sudden gust blew by, with the waves swelling as the pair found themselves being pushed towards the shoreline of the nearby island. The Tetramand decided to start swimming with the current of the water, heading for the beach. Meanwhile, his cousin took notice of the peculiar wildlife around them, consisting of the red schools of fish, the star-shaped creatures, and even the blue jellyfish with eyes. Upon arriving at the shore, the Omnitrix symbol upon Four Arms' shoulder blinked red, timing out in a flash of light as he turned back into Ben.

"So what now?" he asked, turning to his cousin.

"Well…" she uttered, making a pink light come off of her hands before magically forming a small fire with some deadwood on the sand to warm herself, "I think we should just wait for Grandpa and Azmuth to find out where we are," she advised.

"Sounds boring to just wait…" her cousin muttered, folding his arms behind his head.

"Of course you'd think that…" Gwen grumbled with a shake of her head, only to see the Omnitrix bearer walk off, "Hey, where are you going?" she asked.

"To find out where the heck we are," he answered, "Wherever this place is, it's definitely not on Earth," he pointed out to his cousin's surprise, "You saw those weird fish and stuff, right?" he inquired, "Better not to sit around when we need help, pronto," he noted.

"W-Wait up!" Gwen stammered, hurrying after him up the steps to the streets. As they wandered into the local town, they couldn't help but notice the festivities occurring. It seemed normal enough with all of the people out and about. But there were the various creatures amongst them that surprised the pair. They seemed to be coexisting with the people, enjoying the festivities all the while. One mammalian, quadrupedal creature dashed past the pair, causing them to yelp.

"Vee?" she squeaked, glancing back at them.

"Aw, aren't you the cutest…?" Gwen cooed as she crouched down, letting the creature come close for her to pet. Ben sighed, looking around the town. It felt like it was Earth, but at the same time, he knew it wasn't.

"Pikachu, wait up!" a voice cried out, getting his attention. Running past him with a red cap held in his mouth was a short, chubby rodent-like creature. He was covered in yellow fur with two horizontal brown stripes on his back. He had a small mouth, long, pointed ears with black tips, and brown eyes. Each cheek was a red circle. He had short forearms with five fingers on each paw, and his feet each had three toes. At the base of his lightning bolt-shaped tail was a patch of brown fur.

"Whoa, what?" Ben uttered, only to turn and end up getting bumped into, falling onto the ground in a pained grunt, "Ow…" he groaned out.

"You okay?" his cousin quickly asked as she went over to his side. He looked over to see that the person who bumped into him was a skinny, slender preteen with a dark shade of cyan hair, slightly tan skin, and brown eyes with two distinctive lightning bolt-like markings underneath each one. He wore a blue short-sleeved jacket with gold trim, white collar and sleeves, a dark teal T-shirt, blue jeans with light blue cuffs, black and white sneakers with red dots, and green fingerless gloves with light green borders.

"Ow… sorry…" he apologized, getting back onto his feet, "Pikachu, hold on!" he called out, racing after the yellow rodent-like creature.

"Pikachu…?" Gwen repeated in confusion, while her cousin got back up, staring at the boy who had just crossed paths with him. He seemed to be around his age, though maybe a little younger. And yet, something was compelling him to follow that boy. He ran after him. "Hey!" his cousin shouted, "Doofus, you can't just take off!" she yelled as she hurried in pursuit of the Omnitrix bearer. She then noticed that the creature she had been petting was following her, much to her surprise.

It wasn't long before they arrived back at the beachfront, where a beached boat lied. The Pikachu and the cyan-haired boy were there as well, with the latter reclaiming his red cap from the rodent-like creature, placing it upon his head. It was a red-and-white hat with a green stylized 'L'.

"Why'd you have to grab my hat like that, Pikachu?" the wearer asked.

"Peekah, pika…" he responded to his confusion, seeing him wave his paws.

"Hey!" Ben's voice suddenly exclaimed, causing the boy to jolt in surprise. He turned to see him there with Gwen.

"Uh…" he uttered with a grimace, "Look, I'm really sorry for bumping into you…" he apologized as he waved his hands in a placating manner, "I've just got some things I need to do right away," he told the Omnitrix bearer.

"What kinds of things?" he inquired back, arching an eyebrow.

"Ready to sail, Ash?" a voice called out, getting their attentions. They turned to see a dark green-haired woman with a backwards cap and an orange suit hop down onto the beach. She took notice of Ben and Gwen, blinking in surprise. "Who're your new friends?" she asked curiously.

"My name's Ben," the Omnitrix bearer answered, "And this is my cousin, Gwen," he added in introduction, gesturing to the orange-haired girl. The brown-furred creature from earlier approached, hopping up onto her shoulder as she yelped in surprise.

"Veevee!" she squeaked happily.

"And that Eevee must be your Pokémon, too!" the woman realized as she approached.

"My… what?" Gwen uttered out of confusion.

"Uh, we can talk about that later," Ben decided, turning to the cyan-haired boy, "So your name's Ash, right?" he inquired of him.

"Yeah…" he responded with a nod.

"What important stuff are you up to?" he asked to his surprise, "'Cause I want in," he confirmed, causing him to gasp.

"Wh…?! Ben?!" Gwen exclaimed.

"Hey, might as well do something while we're waiting," her cousin pointed out, "Besides, guy sounds like he needs help for this one," he mentioned, gesturing to Ash.

"Oh, I don't wanna make trouble for you…" he assured with his hands raised.

"It's no trouble at all," Ben affirmed to his surprise, "Besides, helping people just feels right, you know?" he added. The cyan-haired boy was shocked.

"Well in that case, you're more than welcome to come aboard my ship!" the green-haired woman declared to the pair.

"W-Wait a second!" Gwen stammered.

"Thanks," Ben said gratefully, "So, ready to do whatever?" he inquired of Ash, who was still a bit surprised. However, Pikachu hopped onto the Omnitrix bearer's left shoulder, giving him a friendly nuzzle.

"Peekah, pika!" he squeaked assuredly. Ash grinned.

"Okay, let's go!" he insisted of the group.

X

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. O Chosen One, into thine hands, bring together all three. Their treasures combined tame the Beast of the Sea.

What I've just recited is the prophecy of Shamouti Island. And lo and behold, Ash is our Chosen One. His quest, brought to him by the islanders, is to obtain each of the three orbs from the isles that surround the main island. And now, he's been joined by the pair of Ben and Gwen…

I do wonder what'll happen…

"So… you've never even heard of Pokémon before?" Ash inquired of Ben, sitting on the deck with him, Gwen, Pikachu, and Eevee, while Maren steered the boat they were aboard.

"Nope," the Omnitrix bearer answered, "We just dropped out of the sky and saw all the weird… animals around the island," he told the Pokémon trainer, "To tell you the truth, I thought we were on another planet at first," he admitted to his confusion.

"Well, it sounds like another world since you just ended up dropping in," Maren commented from the wheel.

"Even though you don't know about this world at all, you still wanna help…" Ash pointed out.

"Better than just sitting around and doing nothing," Ben replied, folding his arms behind his head. Pikachu curiously walked over, staring at the bulky, watch-like device upon the boy's wrist.

"So this… 'chosen one' quest…" Gwen began, "You need to find the three spheres from each of the smaller islands and then bring them back?" she presumed of Ash.

"That's pretty much what they told me," he replied with a nod.

"Ugh…" the orange-haired girl groaned out, "What if Grandpa Max or Azmuth find a way to reach us?" she inquired of her cousin, "Wouldn't it be better to just stay on the nice, safe island instead of going headfirst into danger?" she questioned further.

"Veevee…" Eevee squeaked from her lap worriedly.

"Hey, we could learn a lot from something like this," Ben noted, "Figure out how this world works compared to ours, ya know?" he mentioned.

"I like that attitude of yours, Ben!" Maren complimented, "Anyways, we're on course," she affirmed to the group, "We should be at the first isle—!" A clap of thunder interjected her as she and the others flinched, with Eevee burying herself into Gwen's lap. She held her closely, standing up alongside the others. Rain began pouring down, while the waters started getting choppy.

"Uh, wasn't the sky just clear like five minutes ago?!" the orange-haired girl inquired emphatically.

"Different world, remember?" her cousin noted, climbing up the deck with Ash.

"I hope the legend ceremony doesn't include…" he began as waves kept splashing onto the boat, "a funeral!" he exclaimed, quite concerned. Thankfully, the storm ended, but the sea was still getting rougher. Those aboard the boat held on tightly as they traversed the rocky waters leading to the first isle. The boat itself managed to get through most of the danger unscathed. However, as it flew over more of the rocks, one managed to clip off its rudder, which Gwen noticed flying off and splashing into the water.

"Um, guys?!" she cried out, getting the attentions of those at the wheel, "We might have a big problem!" she exclaimed.

"Ah!" Maren yelped upon realizing that she couldn't steer, "The rudder!" she yelled. Luckily, the boat had gotten through the dangerous waters, flying out and crashing onto the shore. As it tilted a little, Ash yelled as he barely managed to grab hold of the railing in the nick of time, also catching his partner in the process. Ben held onto the railing as well, while Gwen sat in the corner of the stern, holding onto Eevee protectively. Fortunately, the boat stopped moving, allowing for the group to see that they ended up beached upon the shore.

"So which island are we on now?" the Omnitrix bearer asked curiously.

"Fire Island," Maren answered, climbing down onto the deck with him, while Ash hopped onto the ground, "At least we made it, but…" she tried to say.

"Pika!" Pikachu suddenly squeaked, hopping off of the boat and running off towards the nearby steps.

"Pikachu!" his trainer cried out, "Where you going?!" he yelled in question, chasing after him.

"Ash, we shouldn't split up! The storm might kick up again!" Maren warned as the wind was growing stronger. As the Pokémon trainer pursued his Pokémon up to the steps, he stopped at the archway, turning back to the driver.

"Pikachu's been acting really weird ever since we got the mission!" he pointed out to her, "I gotta find out why!" he affirmed, hurrying off.

"Ash…" Maren uttered worriedly.

"I'll go with him," Ben decided, hopping onto the ground, "Gwen, stay here and try to fix up the ship," he insisted of his cousin, running off.

"Hey!" she yelled, followed by letting off an exasperated sigh. The Omnitrix bearer hurried up after Ash and Pikachu, traversing the steps. For a place named Fire Island, it certainly didn't seem to have any association to the element in question, especially with the raging wind blowing by. The trio kept on going up the steps, unaware of the three figures lurking nearby behind one of the rocks, peeking out deviously at them.

As they reached the end of the pathway, Pikachu led Ash and Ben to a pedestal where a shrine lied. Both boys blinked in surprise. The shrine itself was a fiery stone statue of a bird-like creature. The Mouse Pokémon climbed upon its head.

"Pika, pika peekah, peekah chu," he told the two boys, repeatedly tapping the head of the statue with his right paw, enticing them to look to see the red sphere in its mouth.

"That what I think it is?" the Omnitrix bearer presumed.

"The ancient sphere…" Ash uttered in realization. He reached out to take hold of it with his right hand, trying to pull it out. Seeing what he was doing, Ben grabbed it himself, pulling hard with his new friend. They gritted their teeth and grunted, all while Pikachu cheered them on. Ultimately, they pulled it out. And then, the wind died down.

"Okay… that's weird…" the Omnitrix bearer admitted upon noticing, "Guess the sphere's some kind of… weather-changer?" he guessed unsurely. Ash looked at the sphere, lightly gasping as he saw its fiery glow.

"Pika," Pikachu squeaked, getting his attention as he saw his partner hurry down the steps, ready to head back.

"Your buddy seems more into this mission than you…" Ben pointed out.

"Yeah…" Ash agreed, pocketing the Fire Orb in his vest before heading off with the Omnitrix bearer towards the steps that would lead them back down the mountain.

"Guess who, Pikachu~?" a voice echoed from the top of the steps at the landing.

"The heck?" Ben uttered in confusion as he approached.

"Was that…?" Ash started to guess, only to widen his eyes to see who was there. Standing upon the landing were Jessie, James, and Meowth.

"Prepare for trouble, like you've never seen!" the former of the trio exclaimed.

"And make it double, we're about to get mean!" her male partner proclaimed on.

"Uh… who the heck are you guys?" Ben asked, raising an eyebrow. The Team Rocket members all fell over in shock.

"We're in a hurry here!" Ash pointed out, "And the weather's looking bad!" he added as the wind was starting to pick up again.

"It has been bad…" Jessie agreed as she stood up with her colleagues, "Isn't that always our luck?" she presumed, right before pointing down at the trio, "But our luck's changed, and our ship's finally come in!" she proclaimed. As if on cue, a boat suddenly flew up behind them, causing Ash, Ben and Pikachu to gasp in surprise.

"Is something wrong?" James inquired, turning with his colleagues to find the vessel about to crash onto them.

"AAAAHHH!" they screamed, running down the steps and tumbling aside as the boat tore down the steps. The Omnitrix bearer noticed that Gwen and Eevee were aboard it, along with Misty Williams, Tracey Sketchit, and Melody.

"Gwen?!" he yelped out, quickly running away with Ash before they could accidentally get hit by the boat, which came to a stop. Its sail retracted, along with the metal mast.

"You guys okay?" Gwen asked as she hopped onto the ground with Eevee in her arms.

"Uh, would've been fine without you just flying in on a boat…" her cousin retorted to her chagrin, "Weren't you supposed to be waiting with that Maren lady?" he inquired.

"We gave her a ride since she wanted to help out," Misty chimed in as a reply, getting his attention as he looked over, "Hi, Misty," she introduced with a wave, "Your name's Ben, right?" she presumed. The Omnitrix bearer blinked in surprise, looking over to his cousin, who cracked a grin.

"Figured you could use the help…" she remarked as she shrugged.

"Vee!" the Evolution Pokémon squeaked happily.

"Well, I hope you're happy, Mister Hero!" Melody suddenly reprimanded of Ash, getting their attentions, "If you would've just listened to me in the first place and stayed at the party like I told you to…" she began muttering, "we wouldn't be stranded out here on this island," she pointed out.

"Welcome to my world…" Misty chimed in exasperatedly, "I have to deal with his stubborn attitude every single day…" she noted.

"Oh, you'll get used to it," Melody affirmed, "It's just something you're gonna need to work on when the two of you get married," she told the Water-type gym leader, making her blush.

"Take that back!" she shouted.

"Uh…" Ben uttered.

"So did you guys get that sphere thing?" Gwen asked of him and Ash, changing the subject.

"Yeah, right here," the Pokémon trainer replied, pulling out the Fire Orb for her to see.

"It's weird, though…" Ben admitted, getting the group's attention, "For a place called Fire Island, it doesn't live up to the name…" he noted.

"Yeah, you're right…" Ash agreed, "Wouldn't the Pokémon that guards the island be here?" he presumed. The others blinked in surprise, looking to each other worriedly. Just then, they noticed sparks of yellow lightning coming from the edge of the mountainside.

"Vee!" Eevee squeaked with fright, burying herself into Gwen's chest as she trembled.

"Guys…?" she uttered worriedly. She looked out with the others, spotting something coming. Soaring overhead was a large, avian Pokémon with predominantly yellow plumage. It had small, triangular eyes with black around them and a long, thin, light orange beak. Its wings and tail were a mass of spiky feathers and there were black feathers covering the back of its wings and inner tail feathers. A large crest of spiked feathers surrounded its head. Its thighs were tan, and it had thin, light orange legs. It had feet with three forward-facing toes and one backward-facing toe; each toe had a short talon.

Electricity was crackling all around its body, firing off bolts of lightning randomly towards the ground. Ben, Gwen, Ash, Pikachu, and the likes of Team Rocket all ducked underneath the boat, while those aboard it took cover themselves. As the lightning subsided for the moment, the Pokémon trainer peaked out to see the Electric Pokémon.

"Pikachu, it's Zapdos…" he noted to his partner, who hopped onto his right shoulder. The legendary bird screeched, unleashing more bolts of lightning from its body. They struck the rocks around the shrine, making them glow a bright blue and crackle with electricity.

"What's it doing…?" Gwen wondered aloud, watching it soar by and continue to fire off lightning. It then started floating over the landing, descending towards those below. They ducked for cover again, letting it fly by. It screeched loudly again. At that moment, Pikachu climbed onto the boat, taking on a serious expression as his cheeks sparked with electricity.

"Uh, what's he doing?!" Ben asked in concern.

"Pikachu, no!" Ash cried out. But the Mouse Pokémon didn't listen, coating his own body in electricity before firing off a small bolt of lightning to strike Zapdos upside its head. It stopped for a moment, flapping its wings. It then unleashed its own bolt of lightning, striking Pikachu squarely in the chest and making him tumble back. "Are you okay?!" his trainer immediately asked in concern. Just then, the Electric Pokémon let out another powerful screech as the electricity shrouding its body shined brightly. It descended onto the shrine, with the electricity causing all of the rockwork around to shine blew. Everyone was left awed at the scene, while the electricity continued to crackle about.

"I don't get it…" Gwen said, "Why would Zapdos be here instead of the fire titan?" she inquired.

"Something's wrong…" Melody realized with a grimace. Pushing himself up and crawling forward, Pikachu made electricity spark around his body again.

"Kaahh!" he exclaimed, unleashing a small bolt of lightning onto Zapdos, who hardly seemed fazed as it screeched from its perch, "Pee kahh!" he yelled again, releasing another bolt that struck, causing the Electric Pokémon to unfold its wings. Everyone looked at him in confusion. His attacks weren't doing any harm to his foe…

"Pikachu's pretty tough…" Jessie commented, "but Zapdos isn't even feeling his attacks!" she pointed out.

"Those aren't attacks, Jessie," Meowth chimed in, "Pikachu's tryin' to talk to Zapdos," he noted, much to the surprise of his colleagues as the Mouse Pokémon released another lightning bolt onto his target, "It's sayin' 'What are you doin' over here on Fire Island, Zapdos?', and 'Where's Moltres?'," he translated.

"Good questions…" Jessie said.

"So Moltres must be the true guardian of the island…" Gwen realized.

"But then, what happened to it?" Ash wondered aloud.

"Pee… KAAAHHH!" Pikachu exclaimed, releasing another bolt of lightning onto Zapdos. It finally appeared to pay mind to the Mouse Pokémon, glancing over. The electricity around it subsided for a moment.

"RROOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" it screeched, releasing its own bolt of lightning to strike Pikachu as the others gasped.

"Pi?!" he yelped in surprise after a moment. The Electric Pokémon squawked loudly as his electricity continued to channel to Pikachu.

"Translation?" Jessie inquired of Meowth.

"What's it saying?" James asked on.

"It's saying 'Moltres used to rule here'," the Scratch Cat Pokémon replied, "'But now that Moltres is gone, lightning shall rule over fire'," he translated, "'And I claim this island as my own from this day forward!'," he finished, "Heh," he huffed, "I guess Moltres flew to coup," he realized with a shrug.

"Well, I guess it's no wonder there's been bad storms…" Gwen commented.

"Yeah…" Tracey agreed, "With Zapdos able to lay claim to this island, the effects of its power are spreading…" he pointed out.

"Sounds to me like we gotta stop it, then," Ben decided as he punched his left hand. He then pressed the Omnitrix's button, making its dial pop up. The green hourglass symbol inverted into a diamond, with a silhouette appearing within it. Gwen gave off a nervous grimace.

"Ben… maybe that's not such a good idea…" she suggested.

"What's not a good idea?" Ash asked in response, "What are you doing with that weird watch?" he inquired on of the brunette-haired boy.

"Let's just say I've got my own way of dealing with problems where I'm from…" he responded, rearing his right hand back, "It's hero time!" he exclaimed, slamming the dial down. A green flash of light enveloped his body as it began to transform. A blackness spread along his body, going up to his head as his eyes combined into a single green one. Antenna sprouted from his head like extension cords with copper plugs at their tips, along with a tail. Round copper plugs also appeared upon his fingertips, while his hands became four-fingered. His feet only had two front toes. As the light dissipated, the Omnitrix symbol was upon the center of his chest, which was white.

"Huh?" he uttered in surprise. Gwen widened her eyes with a nervous grimace. Everyone else was just stunned.

"WWWWHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTT?!" they all exclaimed.

"He just… turned into a monster?!" Tracey presumed out of shock.

"He doesn't look that scary, but…" Melody started to admit.

"Ah…" Ash uttered in disbelief.

"Doofus!" Gwen shouted, getting the alien's attention, "Maybe wait until we're actually in danger to do that!" she yelled to him.

"Hey, if I knew I was gonna turn into this new guy, I wouldn't have!" he retorted.

"RRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Zapdos screeched, unleashing random bolts of electricity all throughout the area. The one-eyed alien took notice.

"Uh oh…" he uttered, seeing the lightning coming his way. He reflexively threw his hands out in defense, only for the electricity to be absorbed into his fingertips, much to everyone's shock. "Whoa…" he uttered afterwards, "Felt all tingly there…" he admitted with a chuckle.

"What just happened…?" Jessie asked.

"Seems our new monster's a living lightning rod…" James realized in reply.

"Which means Zapdos can't zap us…" Meowth added.

"A lightning rod?" the one-eyed alien said in confusion.

"You absorbed the electricity, doofus!" Gwen pointed out, causing him to widen his eye. He then grinned.

"I wonder…" he said, stepping forward. Zapdos squawked loudly as it fired off another ray of lightning at the one-eyed alien. He stuck his antenna forward, easily absorbing the electricity. "Ha!" he laughed proudly, sticking his hands forward, "And what goes around…" he continued as the Electric Pokémon stopped releasing its lightning, "comes around!" he yelled, firing off blue beams of electricity from his fingers. They struck Zapdos before it could take off, sending it tumbling through the air.

"Ah!" Ash gasped out.

"Peekah…" Pikachu uttered in amazement. However, the Electric Pokémon flapped its wings, flying back up.

"RRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" it screeched angrily.

"Sorry, pal, but I don't think you're supposed to be here!" the electric alien pointed out, unleashing more beams onto Zapdos, who flew around them before firing off another volley of lightning bolts from its body. Its foe absorbed them with ease again, retaliating with his electric rays.

"How did he do that?" Ash asked with shaking eyes, while Pikachu hopped onto his shoulder.

"Long story…" Gwen answered as she approached, "More importantly, this might be good for us," she pointed out, "If Zapdos is already here, then its island is unguarded," she noted, "We can take the orb there and then have just one left to get," she mentioned on.

"Oh, yeah!" Ash exclaimed in realization.

"Excuse me, Mister Hero," Melody chimed in, "but last I checked, it's not exactly great weather for us to be going around to the other islands," she noted seriously, "Besides, didn't you wanna get outta here?" she inquired of Gwen, getting her attention.

"Well… maybe at first…" she admitted in reply, "But there's a serious problem here," she said to the twin-tailed girl, "If the Moltres that Zapdos was talking about is missing, then we should find out why," she insisted, "And I think getting the orbs like you said Ash is supposed to do could help," she added as she turned to the Pokémon trainer. Melody blinked.

"So is she his girlfriend?" she presumed, turning to Misty and Tracey.

"What?! No!" Gwen exclaimed with a blush across her cheeks.

"Vee! Veee!" Eevee squeaked out, getting her attention.

"What's wrong? What is it?" she asked of the Evolution Pokémon. As Zapdos and the transformed Ben continued exchanging electrical blasts, the ones shot by the Electric Pokémon suddenly veered upward.

"Huh?" its foe uttered in confusion. It seemed as if all of the electricity was being channeled into the sky. Those below widened their eyes. Descending toward the island was a massive airship, which stayed aloft thanks to its multiple fans situated on each notch in a concentric circle, and on the side of the craft. "Uh… that's new…" the one-eyed alien remarked aloud. Everyone stared in awe, seeing Zapdos' electricity get drawn into the lightning rods at the bottom of the airship. After a few moments, the energy around the Electric Pokémon subsided. It screeched loudly at the airship, while weak sparks crackled around its body.

Panels of the airship then folded open. Several rhombus-shaped devices shot out, heading for Zapdos. It flapped its wings and took off into the air, trying to fly away. The lightning attacks it unleashed were too weak to fully repel the devices, as they attempted to entrap him in a field of electricity.

"Hey, knock it off!" the one-eyed alien yelled, firing off his own beams of electricity to strike the rhombus-shaped devices. He managed to blast a few of them apart. But then, two converged onto him, entrapping him in an electrical cage. "Ergh…!" he grunted out.

"Ben, just absorb it!" Gwen cried out, "It's an electromagnetic field!" she yelled on.

"Agh…" her transformed cousin grunted, "Thanks for the feedback, Gwen…" he grumbled gratefully, only to widen his eye in realization, "Hey, yeah…" he uttered out, "I think I know what to call this guy!" he proclaimed, absorbing the surrounding electricity into his plugs, causing the rhombus-shaped devices to fall to the ground, "Say hello… to Feedback!" the alien introduced proudly as he landed, readying his hands. However, he then heard a beeping noise, causing him to grimace. He looked down to see the Omnitrix symbol blinking red. "Aw, no!" he exclaimed, becoming enveloped in a red flash of light. When it subsided, it revealed he had turned back into Ben.

"So not good…" he muttered out. Zapdos suddenly flew by, forcing him to duck down in a yelp. Some of the rhombus-shaped devices pursuing it actually ended up activating around those near and aboard the boat, entrapping them in an electromagnetic field. They floated up, heading for the airship. "Guys!" Ben cried out, running over to them. A pair of the devices also captured Zapdos, bringing it up as well. The Omnitrix bearer could only watch helplessly as they were pulled into the vessel, with the panels closing up. "Oh man…" he grumbled, clenching his fists.

X

So you may be asking, how did Moltres disappear? Well, allow me to introduce the antagonist of this tale, or rather, the obstacle our heroes must face. Lawrence the Third, a man seeking out the legendary Pokémon, came to Shamouti Island and its isles to capture the trio of Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno. So far, he now has the first two…

Along with a little extra…

"V-Veee…" Eevee stuttered in fright while still being held in Gwen's arms.

"Sh… it's okay…" she assured in a calming voice, gently petting the Evolution Pokémon, "Huh…" she sighed, "Well, good news is Ben's not captured with us…" she pointed out as she and the others were entrapped in a large cage that hung from a chain, "He'll come to our rescue, I know it," she affirmed on.

"Speaking of which, you got some explaining to do!" Misty shouted, causing her to flinch, "What the heck was that?!" she inquired.

"Yeah, that guy turned into some kinda freaky monster!" Tracey pointed out.

"Did he… become some kind of Pokémon?" Ash asked on. Gwen exhaled an exasperated sigh again.

"He… became an alien," she answered to the group's surprise, "Let me explain," she requested before they could ask any more questions, "While we were on vacation last year, my cousin found this device called the Omnitrix, which fell down from the sky," she told him, "With it, he can turn into all sorts of aliens, which he uses to stop bad guys and save people in trouble… like us," she mentioned thoroughly.

"Whoa," Ash uttered.

"Hold on…" Misty chimed in, "How come we never heard of something like that?" she questioned curiously.

"Probably because we're from… a different world?" Gwen responded unsurely, "Ugh, the whole thing's been such a mess…" she admitted as she rubbed her head. Just then, a loud screech caught her attention as she looked over, spotting the entrapped Zapdos struggling against its binds.

"Zapdos…" Tracey uttered, turning to his right to spot another captured creature. It was a large, avian Pokémon with golden plumage. It had a long, flowing head crest and a billowing tail, both made of reddish-orange and yellow flames. Additionally, its wings were also shrouded in fiery plumage. It had a long, thin neck, a pointed, brown beak, and small, triangular eyes. Its thin, brown legs had feet that had three forward-facing toes and one backward-facing toe. It had short talons. "And Moltres…" the artist noted on.

"I get it…" Gwen uttered in realization, "Moltres must've gotten caught by whoever's controlling this place," she pointed out, "and that's why Zapdos went to lay claim to Fire Island," she added.

"So the question is…" Jessie chimed in.

"Who's in charge here?" James asked for her.

"I'm afraid to find out…" Meowth admitted. Looking around, Melody noticed a stone tablet that was encased in a glass display.

"Hey, what's this?" she asked, enticing the others to look over and see the tablet as well, "Disturb not the harmony of fire, ice, and lightning, lest these titans wreak destruction upon the world in which they clash…" she read.

"Fire… lightning…" Gwen listed off, looking back and forth between Moltres and Zapdos, "Guess that means whatever ice is, it's gonna start laying claim to the other two islands…" she inferred grimly. Just then, she and the others heard something clang nearby. From the painted ceiling above came down a large, mechanized chair. Sitting in it was Lawrence, who smiled as the chair locked into place as it turned to face those that were captured.

"Well, this certainly is a pleasure…" he remarked, "Though an unexpected one…" he added in admittance.

"Vee…" Eevee squeaked, still somewhat scared. Seeing that made Gwen give off a glare towards the man.

"Who are you?" she asked of him.

"Oh, where are my manners?" he said, standing up from his seat, "You may call me Lawrence," he introduced, coming down the steps, "What do you think?" he inquired of his captives, "Moltres, the bird of fire, and Zapdos, the bird of lightning," he listed off, "Of course without Articuno, it's not a complete set…" he pointed out, making Ash and Misty give off angered expressions.

"That's disgusting!" the latter exclaimed, "The way you talk, it's like Pokémon are things to collect, like dolls or stamps!" she noted in frustration, "What kind of trainer are you?!" she inquired vehemently.

"I'm afraid I'm not a trainer, young lady," Lawrence replied, "I am merely… a collector," he affirmed, "I began my collection with a Mew card," he continued, "and now I have all this…" he mentioned with outstretched arms.

"Sounds to me like you're more of a poacher than a collector…" Gwen noted with a glare.

"Hm," Lawrence huffed, turning to approach his mechanized chair. He pressed a button upon it, causing the bottom of the cage to open beneath her and the others, causing them to fall out onto the floor. "Legendary Pokémon are ones I'm especially passionate about," he told the group, "And soon, my collection itself… will be legendary," he proclaimed as he turned to face the others. Ash growled at him, but then noticed a hologram appear. It was of a large avian Pokémon with predominantly sky blue plumage and wings. On its forehead was a crest that consisted of three, darker blue rhombus-shaped feathers. It had circular red eyes, a short gray beak, and long, thin gray legs. Each foot had three forward-facing toes and one that faced backward. On its chest was a mass of pale blue, downy feathers. Its long, streamer-like tail was longer than its body and the same shade of blue as its crest.

"Sensors indicate that Articuno is changing course," an A.I. program informed as the Freeze Pokémon's hologram was flying about.

"I'm afraid now, you'll have to excuse me," Lawrence said, sitting upon his chair before it rose up back through the opening in the ceiling.

"So… he's going after Articuno next?" Jessie presumed.

"If he is, he'll have the complete set…" James noted in reply.

"And what then?" Meowth wondered aloud, "Triple Yahtzee?" he guessed.

"The legend…" Melody uttered, getting everyone's attention as they looked over at her, "Could it be…?" she inquired. Meanwhile, a blizzard was raging about Shamouti and its three isles. Flying through it was an insectoid alien that had four, insect-like, flat legs with two arms, whose hands were human-style ones with three clawed fingers. He had four small eyes on long stalks connected to his large head. His wings were light green and very fragile with lines on them, and his limbs were a brown-greenish color. He also had a sharp, blade-like black-tipped tail.

He wore a white sleeveless jumpsuit with black lining, which covered most of his body including his head and tail, his hands had a black coloration similar to fingerless gloves, and his eyes were green. His mouth had a tongue and gums that were green in coloration, and he had squarish teeth. He wore the Omnitrix symbol on the top of his forehead.

"Aw man…" he groaned as he grimaced from the cold weather, "Now I wish I was Heatblast…" he muttered out, flying after the giant airship. Then, he heard an unfamiliar screech. "Huh?" he uttered, followed by narrowly evading the zigzagging blue beams of light shot his way as he yelped.

Flying by was Articuno, who was releasing the rays randomly in every direction from its mouth. The beams were freezing up the trees below in ice, along with the ocean water. Stinkfly watched it soar onward, continuing to shoot off its icy rays.

"That's not good…" he realized, heading after it, but also making sure to keep his distance. As the blizzard did eventually subside, along with the sun dawning out over the sky, those aboard the airship in the collection chamber looked outside in intrigue.

"Well this sure beats an inflight movie…" Jessie remarked.

"But it's not gonna get any better," Gwen pointed out, "If that guy gets Articuno, who knows what'll happen…" she inferred grimly, while Ash clenched his fists.

"Disturb not the harmony of fire, ice, and lightning," Melody's voice echoed from afar, getting the group's attention as they saw that she was reading from the encased tablet, "lest these titans wreak destruction upon the world in which they clash," she read on, "What if the ancient legend is coming true?" she presumed.

"If it is true, all intelligent life will be destroyed…" James concluded.

"That's right…" Jessie responded.

"And I'll be…" her partner started to say.

"You'll be fine," Meowth joked.

"Okay, enough!" Gwen shouted, getting everyone's attention, "Even if this legend thing is true, we still need to stop this guy from getting his hands on whatever he's after with these legendary Pokémon," she advised seriously of the group.

"Yeah, we gotta do something," Ash agreed.

"Let's start by setting Moltres and Zapdos free!" Misty insisted.

"Yeah, but how?" Tracey asked, "I'm sure if your cousin was here, he could turn into something to break them out of those weird machines…" he noted over to Gwen, who lowered her head slightly.

"It's okay!" Ash assured, turning and heading over to the imprisoned Moltres, "We'll set them free ourselves!" he declared, letting Pikachu hop off of his shoulder and assume a ready stance.

"Peekah!" he squeaked in agreement as electricity sparked from his cheeks. Gwen blinked in surprise before chuckling a little.

"You sound just like Ben…" she noted, carefully setting Eevee onto the floor before heading over to the capped boy, "Let me help," she insisted, "Ben's not the only one who can surprise you…" she mentioned, making a pinkish light shine upon her hands to everyone's shock. She reared her arms back, yelling as she swung them forward, unleashing discs of magical energy onto the entrapping rings around Moltres. However, a force field was projected around it, taking the discs with ease as they dissipated. "Okay… should've expected that…" Gwen admitted with a groan.

"Maybe you just need a little more help," Ash suggested, causing her to perk up. He reached down to his belt and pulled out a Poké Ball, enlarging it with a press of its button. "Charizard, I choose you!" he exclaimed, tossing it forward. It popped open, and its light shot out and formed upon the floor, dissipating to reveal the Flame Pokémon.

"ROAAAAAAHHHHRRR!" he bellowed out.

"Whoa…" Gwen uttered in amazement. Charizard unleashed a stream of fire from his mouth, while Pikachu fired off bolts of yellow lightning onto the force field surrounding Moltres. Though the attacks weren't doing much to the containment, it did cause the Flame Pokémon within to open its eyes, glancing over at those trying to release it.

"Fire and electricity aren't enough…" Misty noted.

"And neither was that weird thing you just did…" Tracey added over to Gwen.

"Vee!" Eevee suddenly squeaked as she ran over to the young mage's side.

"Uh, Eevee?" she uttered in confusion. All of a sudden, white stars of light appeared around the Evolution Pokémon, who fired them out onto the containment with Pikachu and Charizard. Gwen smiled. "Thanks for the help," she said gratefully, readying another pair of pink energy discs upon her hands.

"We can't just go worrying about Moltres, though," Tracey pointed out, "Zapdos needs to get out, too," he mentioned, looking over to the entrapped Electric Pokémon.

"Well, if things are about to get ugly…" Jessie began as she and her fellow Team Rocket members turned to the other containment, "we might as well try Weezing!" she advised of James, who pulled out and readied a Poké Ball of his own.

"Right! Go!" he yelled, tossing the container forward. It popped open, with its light spilling out and forming in midair to reveal the Poison Gas Pokémon.

"Weeezing, wee…" he wheezed out, tackling the container, only for its force field to knock him away. He bounced around before coming to a stop upon the floor, much to the shock of the Team Rocket members.

"Come on, ya big palooka! Get up and fight!" Meowth yelled insistently.

"Ugh!" Jessie groaned, taking out a Poké Ball of her own, "Let's try Arbok!" she decided, opening it as the white luminosity that shot out formed upon the floor and dissipated to reveal the Cobra Pokémon.

"Sha bok, shabok!" she hissed out.

"Now, Arbok! Use Poison Sting!" her trainer commanded. Rearing her head back before throwing it forward, the Cobra Pokémon unleashed a flurry of white-glowing needles from her mouth. They struck the containment of Zapdos repeatedly, making it perk up with curiosity. In the meantime, Ash readied another pair of Poké Balls in his hands.

"Squirtle! Bulbasaur! I choose you!" he called out, letting the containers open as their respective lights formed upon the ground. They dissipated to reveal both the Tiny Turtle Pokémon and the Seed Pokémon. The two of them joined Pikachu, Charizard, and Eevee, unleashing their attacks onto the field around Moltres, making it spark. Gwen readied her hands again.

"Mechanae Discombobulus!" she chanted, unleashing bolts of pink energy as if they were lightning onto the containment field, combined with the yellow lightning, flames, water, vines, and energy stars. Ultimately, an explosion erupted, breaking a hole open in the airship as smoke flew out. Noticing from afar as he was flying over, Stinkfly blinked in surprise.

"Hope you guys are there…" he muttered, heading towards the airship as fast as he could. Inside, the smoke started to clear, with the group having been knocked down from the blast. The rings that surrounded Moltres clattered, getting their attentions as they gasped to see the Flame Pokémon itself stomp out.

"RRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" it screeched as its flames burned brightly. It then unleashed a powerful blast of fire, causing everyone to reflexively duck. The flames engulfed the container around Zapdos, causing it to explode as well. The Electric Pokémon flew out from the smoke, bathing itself in electricity before releasing a lightning bolt onto Moltres, making it cry out in pain. However, it withstood the blast, flying up and soaring out of the airship.

"Whoa!" Stinkfly yelped as he took notice of it. He then saw Zapdos flying out from another hole it made, streaking by him and releasing flurries of lightning bolts. "What the heck's going on in there?" the Lepidopterran wondered aloud, flying into one of the holes. He landed down as the Omnitrix symbol started beeping and blinking red. It timed out in a flash of red light, transforming him back into Ben.

"Hey, guys!" he called out, "You here?!" he yelled on.

"Ben!" his cousin exclaimed, running over to him alongside the others.

"What happened?" the Omnitrix bearer asked, "I was flying over when I saw Zapdos and some fire bird pop out of here…" he pointed out.

"Yeah, that was Zapdos and Moltres," Gwen confirmed in reply, "They were being held captive here by this guy trying to collect both them and another one, Articuno," she explained on.

"Articuno?" her cousin repeated in surprise as he blinked, "I think I saw it earlier!" he admitted to the group's surprise.

"What?! Where?!" Melody asked frantically.

"It was flying around one of the islands, freezing everything in ice," Ben told her in reply, "Guessing it planning on taking those other birdbrains' islands since they were gone," he presumed.

"Well, we broke them out…" Ash noted while returning Charizard, Bulbasaur, and Squirtle to their Poké Balls in beams of red light, while Team Rocket did the same with their Pokémon. Just then, a sudden rumble caused those inside to stumble for a moment in surprise.

"Though in hindsight, that might've not been the best idea…" Gwen admitted. As it turned out, Moltres and Zapdos were both enacting their vengeance onto Lawrence for capturing them. With torrents of fire and discharges of lightning respectively, they were destroying many of the fans keeping his flying fortress aloft. And as such, it was descending rapidly towards one of the islands.

"Oh, this is bad…" Misty realized.

"Mayday," the A.I. system's voice chimed in, getting the group's attention, "Prepare for crash landing on Lightning Island," she advised.

"Hold onto something!" Ben yelled quickly. Those of the group quickly grabbed onto the glass casings around them, bracing themselves. The flying fortress crashed onto the island, with pieces of it falling into the water, including Melody's boat as it splashed down safely.

"Well… guess the worst's over now…" Meowth assumed as he and the others stood back up. Unfortunately, he couldn't have been more wrong. The fortress was starting to tilt, having landed upon a ledge. A piece of it broke down the stonework, causing those in the collection room to run away in order to avoid getting caught up in the destruction. As the cloud of dust subsided, Gwen looked out and widened her eyes. The three legendary birds were flying about, screeching angrily. It seemed as if they were ready to fight each other.

"Oh no…" the mage uttered, while Eevee hopped onto her right shoulder.

"Come on, let's hurry!" Tracey called out, getting her attention as she saw him and the others running towards the makeshift ramp that had formed thanks to the opening formed from the crash. They hurried down as the airship was still tilting, yelling all the while before they began rolling towards the ground. Luckily, they arrived safely, with Team Rocket leading the retreat as everyone followed behind.

"So I'm guessing because of this collector guy, you couldn't get the other spheres?" Ben presumed as they kept running.

"Wait, look!" Gwen exclaimed as she pointed towards a stone shrine nearby, "That must be where the lightning one is!" she realized.

"Oh yeah!" Ash exclaimed as he blinked, "That weird voice in the airship said we crashed on Lightning Island, didn't she?" he guessed.

"Peekah!" Pikachu responded with a nod.

"Worry about the darn sphere after we keep ourselves from getting squashed!" Melody cried out. Just then, one of the airship's fans crashed into the shrine, with the impact's force being enough to knock everyone down onto the ground.

"Agh…" Ash groaned out as snow blew about. At that moment though, his partner took notice of the yellow orb that rolled up in front of them. He blinked in surprise, grabbing it as its lightning-like energy reverberated from within.

"Okay, great, we got it," Ben noted as he stood up, "Still gotta move, though…!" he mentioned in panic. At that moment, a screeching Zapdos was fast approaching, with electricity crackling around its body.

"Look out!" Misty yelled as she and the others got up, hurrying away as Zapdos discharged another bolt of lightning towards them. Ben grimaced, trying to reactivate the Omnitrix, only for its red glow to shine in his face.

"Aw, man…" he groaned with frustration, "Feedback would totally mess that overgrown chicken up…" he proclaimed.

"Quit complaining and hurry!" his cousin shouted, "I think I saw the boat fall into the water earlier!" she pointed out to Melody, getting out of here, "If we get out of here and get to the third island for the last orb, we can fix all this!" she affirmed.

"That's if the legend really is true…" the islander responded worriedly. Moments later, the group was aboard the boat, with Melody prepping for departure. Meanwhile, Team Rocket watched the battle between Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres rage on above them.

"I'd hate to get burned by their fire…" Jessie commented.

"I'd hate to get zapped by their lightning…" James added.

"I'd hate to get hit by… their droppings…" Meowth mentioned, covering his face with his paws. More of the legendary birds' attacks were striking near the group. Melody was trying to start the boat's engine, only for it to start sputtering.

"Oh, not now!" she complained with a grimace. Meanwhile, Ben noticed the green glow coming from the Omnitrix.

"I got this!" he proclaimed, pressing the button upon his device to make the dial pop up, cycling through his array of potential transformations.

"Oh really?" Jessie wondered aloud.

"Do you have some freaky monster that can kill three birds with one stone?" James presumed.

"Or maybe a 'get us outta here' kinda thing?" Meowth inferred. The Omnitrix bearer slammed the dial of his device down, enveloping himself in a flash of emerald light. A blackness spread along his body with green-glowing lines that were circuitry-like. A circle formed upon his head, while the front of his torso was white, with the Omnitrix symbol at the center of his chest. The light subsided, revealing him as the humanoid alien.

"Stand back," he advised, merging into the boat. It became coated in black with green, circuitry-like lines, much to everyone's surprise except Gwen's. At that moment, one of Zapdos' lightning bolts struck down, razing through the ice before creating a massive, fiery explosion. In doing so, a waterfall was suddenly created from the basin, flowing down into the sea. With control over the boat established, Upgrade turned the boat towards the waterfall. "Okay, hold on tight!" he insisted of those aboard.

Suddenly though, a large boulder fell into the water just behind him, causing a wave to surge up and propel him and the others forward. They flew off at the edge of the waterfall, yelling all the while. All of a sudden though, a typhoon of water broke through the ice below, catching the upgraded boat before it could crash onto the ice. As it tore its way through, carrying the vessel towards the main island, an echo could be heard.

"Wait, what's that sound?" Melody asked from the top deck.

"Beats me," Upgrade answered as his ring glowed, "What the heck's carrying us?" he questioned. Meanwhile, Team Rocket was uncovering a folded life raft at the stern, making it inflate as they contently sat upon it. Gwen looked to see that she and the others were not just fast approaching Shamouti, but also a large shrine that had seven stone structures set up around the altar. The typhoon suddenly tossed the boat onto the island, causing the raft Team Rocket was aboard to also go flying up over the mountain beyond the shrine. The boat crashed at the very edge in a flurry of snow.

"Ugh…" Gwen groaned, "Why can't we just get a nice, safe landing?" she complained in question.

"Veevee…" Eevee squeaked out in agreement. Just then, they felt the boat start tilting.

"Uh oh!" Upgrade yelped, "Quick, everyone off!" he cried out to those aboard.

"Come on!" Tracey yelled as he grabbed Melody's hand. Hurriedly, everyone still upon the boat scrambled off. The Mechamorph ultimately emerged from the vessel, jumping off of it onto the island's ledge with the others. He looked back to see the boat crash down onto the ice hard, with pieces of it breaking off.

"Ooohh…" he winced out.

"Wait, where even are we now?" Gwen inquired aloud.

"Vee?" Eevee squeaked as she noticed something, enticing her and the others to look over. Standing at the shrine itself was a bipedal Pokémon with a living conch shell latched onto his head. He was primarily pink, with a pale yellow muzzle and scaled belly. His feet and hands each had a single clawed digit, while the hands themselves also had a clawless thumb. Around his neck was a spiny ruff with alternating red and white stripes. The shell on his head had a spiral shape with two horns near the base. A red gem resided in the center of it, and its eyes were visible on the back.

"The heck?" Upgrade uttered in confusion. The strange creature turned to Ash.

"Take the treasure… and put it there," he advised of him, gesturing back towards the shrine.

"You can talk?" Ash inquired out of surprise.

"Who even are you?" Gwen inquired.

"I am what they call Slowking," the creature answered, "I watch over this shrine in wait for the chosen one," he mentioned, "And now, I see he's finally arrived with the treasure," he added over to the Pokémon trainer.

"Pika, peekah," Pikachu said to him as he placed his paws onto his knee. Blinking in realization, the capped boy reached into the pockets of his vest, pulling out the two orbs he had obtained.

"Oh, right," he remembered.

"Peekah chu!" his partner advised, heading up the steps to the shrine, enticing him to follow. The shrine itself was somewhat draconic, having an open mouth with three small pedestals inside. Ash noticed that each of them had a window in which he could see one of the surrounding isles.

"Fire Island…" he uttered, placing down the Fire Orb on the leftmost pedestal, "Lightning Island…" he continued, putting the Lightning Orb onto the rightmost pedestal. That left the one in the middle empty.

"So, you're Ash?" Slowking's voice chimed in suddenly, causing the Pokémon trainer to flinch in surprise, as the Royal Pokémon had appeared right beside him, looking into the shrine, "You're one treasure short," he pointed out.

"Yeah, I know, but…" Ash started to reply, "how'd you know my name?" he asked curiously. Just then, he and the others heard a familiar screech from afar. Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno still clashing with each other, unleashing beams of fire, lightning, and ice to create massive explosions in the distance.

"Oh, that's not good…" Upgrade noted aloud. The legendary trio's battle was approaching the island. From afar, Team Rocket crawled over to witness the scene, gasping with fright.

"Ben, do something!" Gwen insisted of her cousin.

"All right, all right!" he responded, making the ring at the center of his head glow a bright green. He then fired off a powerful laser beam, striking Articuno as it tumbled through the air. "Ha!" he laughed triumphantly, "Next time, you might stay in the freezer where you belong!" he quipped. However, the Omnitrix symbol at his chest started beeping, blinking a bright red. "Uh oh," he uttered before becoming enveloped in a flash of red light, turning back into Ben.

"Maybe save the taunts for after we stop the giant element birds?!" his cousin shouted to his chagrin. Having recovered from its tumble, Articuno continued unleashed its zigzagging rays of blue light with Zapdos' discharges of lightning and Moltres' barrage of flames. All three of them were heading for the shrine. Running out in front of the others, Ash outstretched his arms.

"CUT IT OUT!" he yelled to the legendary birds.

"Hey, get out of there!" Gwen cried out, thinking he was about to get struck by their attacks. But all of a sudden, another typhoon erupted from the water, striking the trio of titans and blowing them back. Those by the shrine saw a massive figure climbing up from within the vortex, causing them to widen their eyes.

It splashed apart, revealing a large Pokémon that resembled a combination of a dragon, a plesiosaur, and a bird. It was primarily silver-white, but it had blue undersides with slightly varying tones. It had a ridged mouth similar to a beak, although it had pointed teeth on its lower jaw. Its head had a point to the back, and its eyes had pointed blue spikes on them. It also had a long, slender neck and a smooth, streamlined body. Dark blue plate-like protrusions ran down the length of its back, and there were two smaller, more pointed ones on the end of its tail. It had large wings that resembled arms.

"What… is that?" Ben asked in amazement as the air appeared to sparkle around the behemoth.

"The great guardian… Lugia…" Slowking answered, astonished himself.

"I can't believe it…" Melody uttered out.

"Lugia…?" Ash said.

"Pika…!" Pikachu gasped softly in wonder. The trio of Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno flew about as they faced down their newest foe. It echoed out a soft cry, which sounded much like a song.

"That sound…!" Melody exclaimed, reaching into her satchel for something. She pulled out her ocarina, looking at it curiously.

"So what now, guys?" Ben asked. All of a sudden, Zapdos started firing off more bolts of lightning towards Lugia, who flew away from them with ease. Articuno and Moltres followed up with their own attacks, which the Diving Pokémon managed to evade. It dove down towards the frozen sea below, letting the trio of titans pursue it.

Folding its plates back, Lugia increased its speed, smashing through the ice into the water with ease. Submerged within, it then created another typhoon, rising back up to the surface. Breaking through the ice, it almost struck its trio of foes again. This time though, after evading, Articuno was quick to fire off zigzagging rays of blue light, freezing the vortex completely in ice.

However, Lugia broke free it a burst blue luminosity, being shrouded by it. What followed was its trio of foes pursuing it again with their attacks, appearing to be working together. The three of them fired off bursts of lightning, ice, and fire, striking the Diving Pokémon. However, it had blocked them all off with an energy barrier it conjured around itself. It deflected the rays onto its foes, making them falter as they were struck. Lugia soared past them as they attempted to recover, blowing them back.

"Uh, this is good, right?" Ben presumed of the group at the shrine, "That Loogie thing can handle those overgrown chickens?" he questioned.

"Though the guardian of the sea shall arise to quell the fighting," Melody began, getting his and the others' attentions, "alone, its song will fail…" she noted, sounding as if she was paraphrasing, "Thus the Earth shall turn to ash…" she finished grimly.

"This looks bad…" Slowking bluntly pointed out, while the rest of the group watched the battle rage on. Lugia was continuing to evade Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno's attacks, which were razing about the frozen sea and striking parts of Shamouti as well. The Diving Pokémon then flew out in front of the island, conjuring its barrier to defend itself while also protecting the shrine from its foes' attacks. However, its shield soon failed as it ended up struck by yellow lightning, followed by the icy blue rays of light and superheated flames. An explosion engulfed it to the group's shock, seeing it plummet out from the smoke, crashing into the frozen sea below. What followed was the trio of legendary birds firing off their attacks at where their opponent had landed, engulfing the area in a cloud of steam.

"Hey, stop it!" Gwen yelled out. The steam dissipated, revealing the frozen hole over where Lugia had fallen. Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno screeched, flying about and continuing to unleash their respective attacks randomly.

"Oh man…" Ben uttered, bracing himself with the others as the wind was starting to pick up. Things weren't looking good. And it would only get worse if nothing were done…

X

Pokémon are much more in tune with nature than humans. And with the imbalance taking place on Shamouti Island, many have gone to gather at the battleground where the world's fate may be decided. Along with them, the likes of Professor Samuel Oak, Professor Philena Ivy and Delia Ketchum are also heading for the epicenter of this great battle. Just what will happen because of it, I wonder?

Well, I'm not telling…

"Look at them all…!" Ben gasped out with widened eyes, seeing the abundance of Pokémon out on the frozen sea or up in the air.

"I get it…" Gwen uttered in realization, "They must've come because they know about the danger, right?" she inferred.

"There's only one hope…" Slowking chimed in, "Only the chosen one can bring the treasures together to help the water's great guardian…" he told the group.

"But the legend says its song will fail!" Melody pointed out.

"And thus the Earth shall turn to Ash," Slowking noted, turning to the Pokémon trainer.

"Wait…" Gwen said, "So the 'Ash' from the legend… is Ash?!" she presumed out of shock.

"It's right in the legend!" Misty realized, "The Earth shall to turn to Ash!" she pointed out.

"Ash, it's talking about you!" Tracey concluded.

"I'm the… chosen one?" the capped boy questioned in surprise.

"Pika pi…" Pikachu responded with a nod.

"Weren't you saying you chose to do all this?" Ben inquired, folding his arms over his chest.

"W-Wait a minute…" Ash stammered, stepping back nervously, "Training Pokémon's tough enough…" he pointed out, "But… savin' the world's way too hard…" he proclaimed. Hearing that, Ben blinked in surprise.

"I know it doesn't sound easy, Ash…" Misty chimed in.

"But you're the only one who matches the legend perfectly!" Tracey added, "So what do you say?" he inquired of his friend.

"Well, right now, I wish my mom had named me something else…" he admitted in reply.

"Hey," Ben said, approaching him as he looked over, "See this thing?" he questioned, showing him the Omnitrix, "I didn't get to choose it for myself," he confessed, "Wasn't even meant for me in the first place," he added in admittance as he shrugged, "But… I still got it," he pointed out, "And I've been helping save people in my world a lot of times, even though I could've just turned the other way," he mentioned on.

"What my cousin's saying is, whether or not you're chosen to be something doesn't mean you can or can't do it," Gwen explained.

"Well, I guess you got a point…" Ash admitted, scratching at his left cheek.

"Besides, you always find a way to get us into trouble," Misty pointed out.

"Yeah, but nothing like this!" the capped boy argued. The group then heard the legendary birds screeching from afar.

"Any chance we could get some help from Way Big or… anyone who can fight those three?" Gwen inquired of her cousin, who glanced down at the Omnitrix. It was still glowing red, much to his dismay as he sighed.

"Not yet…" he answered. Just then, Melody blinked in realization.

"Lugia…" she uttered, quickly reaching into her satchel to pull out her ocarina again, "The sound it makes is just like the song from the legend!" she noted. She started playing the instrument, creating a harmonious and calming tune. In the depths of the sea, Lugia's body became shrouded in a multicolored light as it heard the melody, with its eyes shooting open. Everyone watched on with bated breath as Melody finished her song. All of a sudden, a typhoon of multicolored light burst out from the ice, with the group at the shrine widening their eyes to see it splash apart, revealing the Diving Pokémon there.

'The song…' it uttered telepathically, causing everyone to blink in surprise upon hearing its voice, 'The song has restored my strength,' it confirmed.

"Whoa…" Ben uttered in amazement.

'But it alone cannot bring harmony to the three warring ones,' Lugia mentioned.

"What do you mean?" Ash asked.

'When the treasures of fire, ice, and lightning are aligned,' the Diving Pokémon began to reply, 'my song shall harmonize with their powers and tame the beasts both above and below the sea,' it explained.

"Sounds simple enough…" Gwen commented.

'But this can only come to pass… with the help of the chosen one,' Lugia confirmed.

"But what can I do that somebody else can't?" Ash questioned curiously.

'Only in the hands of the true chosen one will the Ice Sphere glow like the others,' the Diving Pokémon told him, 'Its power awakened,' it added. The Pokémon trainer looked out towards the island where the final orb lied… as the trio of legendary birds were still battling.

"I have to go… there?" he presumed.

'The choice is yours,' Lugia affirmed, 'You must go only where your heart leads,' he advised of the capped boy.

"Maybe I…" he tried to say, looking out at the last island again. Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno were still rampaging about in front of the island. Concern and anxiety spread along Ash's face. He really wasn't sure about doing this. But then, he felt something tug at his right pant leg. He looked down to see Pikachu there.

"Peeka chu," he said assuredly.

"I… can?" his trainer inquired, earning a nod in response from the Mouse Pokémon. All of sudden, five bursts of white light shot out from his pants as he yelped, shaping into form to reveal Bulbasaur, Charizard, Squirtle, Snorlax, and Lapras. "Do… you guys think so, too?" he inquired of them. They all voiced out their agreements, nodding their heads.

"Even if you weren't chosen, you'd still wanna help anyway, right?" Ben inquired of the Pokémon trainer, while Gwen smiled. Ash blinked in surprise, shocked by the encouragement of the others. But it made him smile.

"Okay…" he uttered, evidently touched by his friends' kindness to him. He teared up, tipping the brim of his cap over his eyes. "I'll do whatever it takes to get that third treasure!" he vowed, "But… what if I mess up?" he inquired worriedly, "What if… I…?" he continued to ask, only for a hand to come onto his shoulder.

"We'll be right by your side," Gwen assured, causing him to perk up and see her there with Eevee upon her shoulder.

"Yeah," Ben agreed.

"You can do it," Misty said.

"We know you can," Melody added. With that, Ash twisted his cap around backwards.

"Yeah, you're right! I can do it!" he exclaimed determinedly, "I'm the chosen one!" he declared. At that moment, Ben noticed a green glow coming from his Omnitrix, signaling a completed recharge.

"Yes!" he yelled excitedly with a pump of his fist, getting everyone's attention as they saw him press the button of his device, making its dial pop up, "And the chosen one's about to get that last sphere thing with the help of XLR-Eight!" he proclaimed, slamming the dial down in an emerald flash of light. When it subsided, it looked as if he had disappeared.

"Uh… Ben?" Ash uttered in confusion.

"Where'd he go?" Misty inquired.

"Did he turn invisible?" Tracey wondered aloud. Gwen looked down and blinked.

"Oh no…" she muttered out, smacking herself in the face. The others looked down and gasped. Standing on the snow in Ben's place was a grey-skinned, frog-like, bipedal alien that was only six inches tall with large green eyes, which had rectangular pupils and horizontal eyelids. He wore a white jumpsuit with a thin vertical black stripe down the front, his forehead had a larger version of the jumpsuit's stripe, and the Omnitrix symbol was on his back.

"Aw man…" he groaned, "I would've been better off as me…" he muttered. Moments later, he was standing on Ash's shoulder as he was trudging through the snow at the island's shore with Pikachu to follow. He yelped as his steps were showing just how deep the snow was.

"Right now, I feel more like the frozen one…" he joked, right before falling over in a yell with Grey Matter.

"Ugh…" the Galvan groaned, "At this rate, we're never gonna get anywhere…" he complained.

"Yeah…" Ash agreed sadly.

"Peekah pi!" Pikachu squeaked, getting their attentions as they saw him point towards the damaged boat they had arrived on, still beached on the snow. Ash noticed the ropes sticking out from the bow, along with a piece that looked big enough to act as a sled.

"Thinking what I'm thinking?" Grey Matter asked of his friend, who cracked a grin and nodded. Moments later, Bulbasaur, Squirtle and Charizard were pulling along their trainer, who had ropes around each of them tethered to the piece of the boat he pulled off as a makeshift sled.

"This is a lot better than walking!" Ash remarked, "We'll be there in no time!" he assured confidently.

"Peeka chu!" Pikachu cried out in agreement.

"Let's just hope it's fast enough," the Galvan upon the Pokémon trainer's shoulder said, "And if those oversized birdbrains get in our way, we at least have a backup plan," he mentioned, glancing back at Shamouti. As it turned out, a helicopter had been heading towards the island, which Team Rocket took notice of it as it was getting thrown about thanks to the strong winds. It eventually ended up crashing nearby, with its tailpipe breaking off. Luckily, those inside didn't appear to be injured. Professor Samuel Oak was the first to disembark, followed by helping Professor Philena Ivy and then Delia Ketchum. As they got out with the reporting crew they had come with, the villainous trio saw the broken tailpipe propeller. They looked back at the raft they had with them, grinning as they started forming a plan in their heads.

"Hey," a familiar voice chimed in, getting their attentions as they turned to see Gwen there with Eevee beside her in a battle ready stance, "Mind if we lend a hand?" she requested, placing her hands onto her hips. Meanwhile, Ash, Pikachu and Grey Matter were still being pulled across the frozen sea, while Lugia was soaring after them. However, they soon found themselves being ambushed by Zapdos and Moltres, who were heading their way, launching discharges of lightning and streams of fire respectively.

"Uh oh!" the Galvan yelped. Luckily, Pikachu and Charizard released their own blasts of respective lightning and fire, countering those of their foes in a fierce explosion. Ash and the others hurried through the smoke, bracing themselves for whatever lied ahead. At that moment, he, Pikachu and Grey Matter gasped to see Articuno diving down, with a blue light shining from its mouth. It fired off zigzagging beams of luminosity.

Luckily, Lugia flew in front of the group, conjuring an energy shield around itself to take the attack, blocking it from striking the others. It moved aside as the Freeze Pokémon glided by, with Charizard having to tilt himself in order to avoid getting clipped. The group continued their charge, with the trio of legendary birds still after them. Lugia was quick to knock them away, allowing its allies to hurry onward.

They then decided to focus their attacks on the Diving Pokémon instead, who dodged them easily, luring them away. Unfortunately, it led to one of Zapdos' lightning bolts razing through the frozen water ahead of Ash and the others. The ice broke as they tried to get across, with the Pokémon trainer quickly returning Charizard to his Poké Ball in a beam of red light before he could end up falling into the water.

As the makeshift sled and the ropes came undone, he, his remaining Pokémon and Grey Matter hurried away as waves of water were about to crash down onto them, only for Articuno to freeze them up with its rays of icy energy. What was left behind was now a thick barrier of ice, blocking off the group from getting closer to the isle. Ash stood up, seeing the trio of legendary birds now raging against each other, while the freezing wind blew about. He looked ahead at the blockade ahead of him and the others.

"We'll never get there now…" he realized sadly. His Pokémon were also dismayed, while Grey Matter growled in frustration. Just then, he and the others heard a whirring in the distance.

"What the heck?" he said, turning with the group to see something coming towards them.

"Who could that be?" Ash wondered aloud.

"Hey, doofuses!" Gwen's voice called out to his and Grey Matter's surprise, seeing her sitting at the front of the raft with Eevee in her lap, while Team Rocket was behind her, "Need a lift?" she presumed of them, being aboard the vehicle that was moving thanks to a rotor fan at the stern, controlled by Meowth.

"If those kids think we're here for trouble…" Jessie began.

"We're certainly going to burst their bubble…" James affirmed.

"Uh, what are you doing?" Gwen asked of the pair.

"Instead of causing tribulation…" Jessie continued, seemingly ignoring her.

"We've undergone a transformation…" James declared.

"Though it's way outside our usual range…" Jessie kept going.

"We're going to do something nice for a change…" James decided.

"Seriously, what are you guys doing?" Gwen questioned again, sounding somewhat irritated.

"Jessie!" the female of pair exclaimed as she stood up.

"James!" the male echoed, standing up as well.

"Up 'til now, Team Rocket's been quite unscrupulous!" Jessie proclaimed as she and her partner held hands.

"Being good guys for once would be super-dupulous!" James announced proudly, while leaning to the side like his partner.

"Dat's right!" Meowth agreed as he hopped over, latching onto his friends' arms. Gwen blinked twice.

"Is this really the time…?" she inquired in exasperation.

"Vee?" Eevee squeaked in confusion.

"Those guys again?" Grey Matter said, climbing atop Ash's head.

"What are they doing here?" he wondered aloud. Not too long after, the two of them joined the group aboard the raft as they flew over the ice barrier, landing down and continuing along towards the isle. "You wanna help?!" the Pokémon trainer exclaimed in question after hearing what Team Rocket was planning.

"Of course!" James responded.

"We don't want the world destroyed!" Jessie pointed out.

"Even if we survived…" James continued.

"There'd be no one left to steal from!" Jessie noted, finishing his thought.

"Kinda seems a bit backwards, but alright…" Grey Matter muttered with a shrug, "Where'd you get the rotor?" he asked of his cousin.

"A crashed helicopter back on Shamouti," her cousin responded to his surprise, "Don't worry, everyone that was in it is fine," she affirmed reassuringly. The Omnitrix symbol upon the Galvan's back started beeping and blinking a bright red, timing out in a flash of red light before he transformed back into Ben.

"We better hope Lugia's able to keep those overgrown chickens away from us…" he pointed out.

"Otherwise, we'll be on a permanent vacation if we don't get to that island!" Meowth remarked, pointing ahead, "Let's do it!" he yelled. The raft sped onward, but was being caught up to by Moltres.

"Uh oh!" Ben yelped. His cousin made discs of pink energy appear over her hands before she chucked them out at the Flame Pokémon, striking it and knocking it back. It gave off an angered expression, ready to attack.

"Evasive maneuvers!" Jessie cried out.

"On the double!" she and her fellow Team Rocket members exclaimed additionally, pulling on the ropes of the raft to make it move aside, avoiding both Moltres' flames and Zapdos' lightning. Lugia dove in, shielding them from Articuno's freezing energy rays with a barrier it projected around itself, flying off after the trio. That allowed for those aboard the raft to speed onto the island unhindered.

"Woohoo!" Meowth exclaimed as they leapt onto the snowbound hill, climbing up it speedily. They dashed through the snow-covered forest, heading under the archway leading to a path into the mountainside.

"Up there!" Ash pointed out.

"Peekachu!" Pikachu exclaimed.

"Veevee!" Eevee squeaked. The raft sped into the cave, climbing up the path quickly. Through the twists and turns, the group was hurrying to where they needed to go, crossing an icy bridge in the process into another cave. They finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel they were traversing, leaping into the icy area that was where the shrine was located. The raft slowly came to a stop at the edge of the steps.

"Pika!" Pikachu squeaked, hopping off with Eevee and heading up to the shrine with Ash and Gwen to follow. Meanwhile, Ben stood up, glancing back as he could the screeches of the legendary birds in the distance.

"Might wanna hurry, guys…" he advised.

"Don't rush us!" his cousin insisted in response.

"Peekah chu!" Pikachu exclaimed, pointing towards the Articuno-like shrine. In its beak was a blue orb.

"That must be the Ice Sphere…" Gwen realized. Ash walked over to grab it, pulling as hard as he could. He grabbed it with both hands, prying it free in a yelp as Ben and Team Rocket approached. They looked at the orb, seeing a blue glow appear as it rested in the Pokémon trainer's hand. "Guess that confirms what Lugia was saying…" Gwen noted with a grin to Ash.

"Pikah!" Pikachu suddenly shouted, heading back over to the raft with Eevee.

"Okay, you got the third treasure!" Meowth confirmed, "Now come on, let's head back to the island!" he beckoned.

"Right!" Jessie responded.

"I almost forgot!" James admitted, hurrying back to the raft with his colleagues. Pocketing the Ice Sphere, Ash followed them with Ben and Gwen. However, as they were about to get onto the vehicle, Articuno flew over, letting out a screech.

"Ah!" the group gasped, with Meowth starting the raft's rotor as it began speeding off. Ash and Gwen were quick to get aboard, but Ben was left behind as he rolled aside to dodge the zigzagging rays of blue light shot from the Freeze Pokémon's mouth.

"Ben!" his cousin cried out.

"Don't worry, just—! LOOK OUT!" he yelled, interjecting himself. A lightning bolt suddenly rained down in the group's intended path, causing an explosion that blew them off of the raft as they went flying. Gwen was quick catch herself, Ash, Pikachu, and Eevee with a ramp of pink light she formed, while those of Team Rocket fell onto the ice. Ben grimaced, seeing that Zapdos and Moltres were also overhead. The Flame Pokémon reared its head back before unleashing a powerful stream of fire from its beak, threatening to incinerate the others. They quickly ran off before they could get engulfed in the flames.

"We gotta get outta here!" Ash exclaimed, while James and Meowth were desperately to pull away the blocks of ice that had fallen at the entrance.

"In case you forgot, those three aren't gonna let us!" Jessie pointed out emphatically. Ben clenched his fists in frustration. But then, he noticed a greenish glow coming from the Omnitrix, signaling a completed recharge. He quickly held it out in front of himself, pressing its button to make the dial pop up.

"Okay…" he uttered, "For once, please give me someone that can handle all three of those guys long enough for my friends to do their thing," he requested, slamming the dial down in a green flash of light. A blackness coated his body as his eyes combined into one green one, with antenna popping out from his hairless head, along with a tail, all of which had copper plugs. When the light subsided, it revealed that he had turned into Feedback.

"Yeah, now we're talking!" he exclaimed excitedly. He then blinked in surprise to see Articuno strike Moltres with its freezing rays of blue light, followed by it getting hit by Zapdos' bolts of lightning. It fell to the icy ground and was subsequently struck by the Flame Pokémon's fire in another blast, sending it tumbling over and crashing against the shrine. The electrokinetic alien gritted his teeth. "Alright, that's enough!" he declared, sticking his antenna up. The discharges of lightning that the Electric Pokémon fired off towards those below ended up veering over to Feedback, being absorbed into his body as if he were a lightning rod. He then stuck his fingers out, firing off rays of blue energy that struck both Zapdos and Moltres, sending them tumbling back.

"Ben!" Gwen cried out.

"Go!" the electrokinetic alien yelled back, "I'll hold these birds off!" he decided, unleashing more bursts of blue energy out at the pair of Zapdos and Moltres.

"Pika, peekah!" Pikachu squeaked, having climbed up the side of the mountain with Eevee.

"Vuh, vee!" the Evolution Pokémon exclaimed.

"Come on, let's go!" Meowth yelled, pointing towards the pair. He, Ash, Gwen, Jessie and James hurried up to them. The Team Rocket members tumbled down onto a ledge once they reached the top, with Pikachu and Eevee leading the two children down after them. They ran in pursuit as well. As they hurried on, Lugia glided over.

'The treasure?' it echoed telepathically to the Pokémon trainer. He pulled the Ice Sphere out from his vest pocket.

"We got it!" he affirmed, showing it to the Diving Pokémon. It nodded, lowering itself slightly.

'Get on,' it advised.

"Oh boy…" Gwen muttered with a grimace, while Eevee hopped up onto her head.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried out, enticing his partner to climb up onto him. Both he and the young mage hopped aboard Lugia, who started to ascend.

"Don't leave without us!" Jessie cried out as she, James and Meowth were in hot pursuit of the group now aboard the Diving Pokémon. They leapt up, managing to grab onto its right leg before it rose into the sky.

"Whoa…" Gwen said in amazement as she and Ash held on. All of a sudden, they were ambushed by Zapdos firing off a bolt of yellow lightning their way, which Lugia evaded by veering aside. Moltres was also in pursuit, launching a stream of fire. However, it was suddenly knocked away by the electrical beams of blue light shot from Feedback, who was sliding down the mountain.

"Nice try, beaky!" he yelled out, "But there's no you or the zappy chicken are laying so much as a scratch on—!" His remarked was interjected as he suddenly tripped, falling down in a yelp onto the snow.

"Ooh!" Ash winced out upon noticing, while Gwen sighed. Lugia then ascended into the air as Moltres and Zapdos flew after it.

'Hold on tight,' it advised telepathically of those aboard it. However, the two legendary birds were still managing to catch up with it, unleashing their respective attacks onto the Diving Pokémon, who was barely managing to avoid them. It was being forced to fly back towards Ice Island.

"We're slowing Lugia down! The three of us are too heavy!" Jessie emphatically pointed out as lightning bolts seared by them.

"Let's try Weight Watchers!" James exclaimed.

"It's too late for that!" his partner shouted back.

"I hear it's never too late if you REALLY STICK TO THE PROGRAM!" Meowth screamed out while flailing in panic. The three Team Rocket members yelled as they held on for dear life, with Lugia barely managing to avoid more of Zapdos' lightning discharges.

"If we don't let go, they might not make it back!" Jessie noted to her colleagues.

"Let's protect the world from devastation…" James said.

"Guess we gotta let go…" Meowth sadly realized.

"Are you guys ready?!" Jessie cried out in question.

"Let's do it!" James responded. Together, the three Team Rocket members released their grasp on Lugia. Ash, Gwen, Pikachu and Eevee took notice.

"What are you doing?!" the former exclaimed in shock, while the others widened their eyes.

"Team Rocket's blasting off for good!" the trio echoed as they fell towards the frozen sea below, holding hands all the while.

"No!" Gwen screamed.

"Team Rocket!" Ash cried out, while Lugia flapped its wings to fly even faster thanks to the weight removed from its right leg. Luckily, the trio wound up splashing into the water, emerging and gasping to find the multitude of Pokémon present. The Pokémon trainer and the young mage took notice, too.

"Lugia, why are all those Pokémon down there?" the former of the two asked as they were gliding along.

'Because they feel they must be here, in case they are needed,' the Diving Pokémon answered.

"But… what could they do to help?" Gwen inquired.

'They are not sure,' Lugia responded, 'And that is why they are here,' he mentioned to those aboard its back.

"What do you mean?" Ash questioned.

'That just one Pokémon could help the world would be worth the journey for thousands of them any day," the Diving Pokémon replied thoroughly, 'But this day, the one that can make all the difference… is you,' he told the Pokémon trainer, making him crack a smile.

"Peekah chu," Pikachu agreed as he nodded. Gwen and Eevee smiled. Meanwhile, Feedback was running over, seeing how far ahead Lugia was from Moltres and Zapdos.

"Phoo…" he exhaled with relief, putting his hands onto his hips, "Guess the job's just about done…" he presumed proudly.

"You sure do like sayin' things too soon, huh?" Meowth's voice chimed in, getting his attention as he turned to see him, Jessie and James climbing out from the water.

"Oh, you guys," the electrokinetic alien said, "Don't worry, those birds aren't catching up with Lugia anytime soon," he assured confidently, looking back out towards where they were heading, "At this rate, the world's gonna be—"

"Wait, what's that?" Jessie asked, interjecting Feedback as she pointed to her left. He looked over with the others at Lightning Island, where the fallen airship lied. Meanwhile, Lugia was fast approaching Shamouti.

"Hey!" Ash cried out as he waved to his friends, who were still at the shrine. All of a sudden though, Pikachu and Eevee perked up in surprise. Ash and Gwen turned to see the incoming capture devices, surrounding Lugia and encasing it within a sphere of electricity, zapping it and those inside. It shrieked with agony, struggling against the devices as it crashed into the frozen sea.

"GWEN!" Feedback screamed, running out as quickly as he could. Luckily, Lugia was quick to resurface for the sake of its passengers, but the capture devices were around it. Opening its mouth, a yellow-orange ball of energy formed in front of it. With its body shrouded by a blue glow, the Diving Pokémon fired off multiple beams of energy, which then converged into a single beam surrounded by a torrential wind. The electrokinetic alien widened his eye, seeing the beam tear across to Lightning Island and slice through the remains of the airship in a massive explosion. From inside, Lawrence found himself needing to flee in order to avoid getting crushed by debris.

Meanwhile, the capture devices had gotten themselves around Lugia, who prepared another yellow-orange orb of energy in front of its mouth, aiming for the sky. It unleashed another massive beam, having it tear through the sky before moving its head to have it knock away Zapdos and Moltres, blasting the ice apart as well before finally subsiding. With that, the Diving Pokémon started plummeting with its passengers, crashing into the water below. Though the capture devices had broken off, it was barely conscious, descending deeper into the depths as its passengers came off.

'I… have failed…' it proclaimed, its voice echoing to a still-conscious Gwen, whose eyes shook. Determinedly, she swam up with Pikachu and Eevee, grabbing Ash along the way. They arrived at the surface after a moment, each catching their breath. However, the Pokémon trainer had lost consciousness.

"Ash, are you okay?!" the young mage asked, trying to shake him awake. Pikachu and Eevee did the same. As they did, the sky was darkening, with tornadoes and lightning raining about. All hope seemed lost…

X

Having transformed back to normal from Feedback, Ben hurried along in spite of the raging storm. He was shocked by how quickly things had changed in a matter of moments. He didn't think that the airship would still be functional after it had gotten grounded. Cursing himself for making that mistake, he shook his head, heading to the edge of the frozen sea, seeing the water wave about. He looked around desperately for a sign of his cousin and Ash.

"Gwen! Ash!" he yelled out.

"Ben?!" the young mage's voice exclaimed to his surprise, enticing him to look out and see her in the water with Pikachu and Eevee, "Where are you?!" she cried out in question.

"Over here!" the Omnitrix bearer shouted, causing her and the others to spot him waving to them, "Don't worry!" he yelled reassuringly, "Once the watch gets recharged, I'll pick you guys up and—!"

"No!" Gwen interjected, "You don't need to worry about us!" she assured, "We can get Ash to the shore!" she affirmed, "You go find Lugia!" she insisted of her cousin, "It's still sinking down there!" she pointed out. At that moment, the Omnitrix shined green, signaling a completed recharge. Its user was conflicted, wanting to help his cousin. But he also knew that she could handle herself in a crisis. And if the Diving Pokémon really was in trouble, he needed to help it.

"Okay, got it!" he responded, pressing the button of his device to make its dial pop up, with the hourglass symbol inverting into a diamond shape, with a silhouette of Heatblast in the middle. He twisted the dial a couple of times to switch between his potential transformations, finally finding one in particular. He slammed the dial down, enveloping himself in a green flash of light.

When it subsided, it revealed that he was a humanoid, fish-like alien, having a number of traits similar to regular aquatic life. He had shark-like teeth, alligator-like scales, and had a phosphorescent light on his head. His body was mostly grey and he had four-fingered hands. He wore the Omnitrix symbol on a black patch over his left pectoral. He dove into the water, with his legs coming together into a fishtail with triangular lines. In the meantime, Gwen tried to swim over to the shore.

"Come on, wake up…" she pleaded of Ash, who was still unconscious.

"Peekah pee! Pika!" Pikachu cried out. The waves were getting progressively worse, especially as they were pushing the group away from the island shore.

"Huhh…" Gwen shivered out, "It's getting way too cold…" she noted. Eevee looked at her in concern, knowing that she was trying her hardest to get her new friend back to the island. So was Pikachu. A determined look came across the Evolution Pokémon's face.

"Veeeee…" she uttered out, shutting her eyes in intense concentration. The young mage noticed.

"Uh, Eevee?" she said, "What are you—?" All of a sudden, the Evolution Pokémon's body became enveloped in a bright white light. Her legs became slender with dainty paws, while her tail became thin and forked. Gwen's eyes widened before she, Pikachu and Ash were shrouded by a blue light. They were psychically lifted out from the water, levitating over to the shore. Misty and Tracey had just arrived, widening their eyes as they saw them be gently placed down at their feet.

"Are you okay?!" the gym leader inquired immediately, while Pikachu shook himself off.

"It's not me you should be worried about…" Gwen argued in response, looking back at the ocean, "Eevee just—!" All of a sudden, a figure leapt out from the water, landing beside the group. It was a quadrupedal, mammalian Pokémon with slender legs and dainty paws. She was covered in fine, lilac fur. Her ears were large, and she had purple eyes with white pupils. There were tufts of fur near her eyes, and a small, red gem embedded in her forehead. She also had a thin, forked tail. She shook herself off, approaching the astonished group.

"Espee?" she squeaked with a tilt of her head as she approached Gwen, whose eyes were shaking.

"Eevee…?" she guessed. The Sun Pokémon gave her an affectionate lick to her left cheek, making her giggle. She hugged her happily in relief. However, her concern then shifted to Ash, who hadn't woken up. Moments later, she and Misty were trying to nudge him awake, giving him chest compressions.

"Come on, Ash, breathe!" the latter of the two girls pleaded.

"You can pull through, come on!" the former yelled.

"Peekah pi…" Pikachu squeaked worriedly, while Espeon watched on in concern. Just then, the Pokémon trainer awoke, much to everyone's relief. He blinked, widening his eyes.

"The sphere!" he exclaimed as he sat up. He reached into his vest pocket, pulling out the shining Ice Sphere.

"Ash, maybe you oughta' take a second to catch your breath…" Gwen advised, "We barely got ourselves out of there…" she pointed out. However, the Pokémon trainer tried standing up, only to falter.

"Ash…" Misty uttered, seeing him turn around to try and walk up to the shrine. However, he almost fell forward, only to be caught by Tracey.

"Ash, you're in no condition to be moving around!" he pointed out emphatically.

"Let me go!" the Pokémon trainer insisted to his surprise, breaking free from his hold, "I gotta do this!" he affirmed, weakly trudging onward. However, he faltered again. Luckily, he wound up caught by Gwen, who put his right arm over her shoulders.

"Well, you're not doing it alone," she promised, giving him a grin. She helped up the steps, with Pikachu and Espeon pushing them along. Though Ash was worn, he was determined to fulfill his role and save the world. He and the others arrived at the shrine, taking a moment to catch their breaths.

"You made it!" Melody called out, with Slowking and Togepi beside her, as the latter chirped happily.

"Have you brought the final treasure, Ash?" Slowking inquired as the Pokémon trainer jogged over with the others.

"Here it is, Slowking," he responded, pulling out the Ice Sphere to show him.

"You must be the one to place it then," he pointed out, turning to the shrine. Ash hurried up the steps to it, with Pikachu to follow. Thunder clapped, while tornadoes swirled about in the distance. As he approached the shrine, the capped boy looked at the orb in his hand, seeing its glow. He placed it upon the last pedestal, backing up a few steps. Everyone watched on, wondering what was about to happen.

The three spheres started shining brightly, with their lights coming together to glow green. The same luminosity spread about, suddenly blowing the snow away as the group gasped. They watched as a greenish-glowing water poured out from the shrine, flowing to each of the columns surrounding it. Each of them became enveloped in an emerald glow before turning from stone to seemingly ice.

"Wha…?" Gwen uttered in disbelief as she blinked twice, trying to make sure she wasn't seeing things. Misty smiled in realization, turning to Melody.

"The song," she pointed out. The dark-haired girl nodded, heading up the steps to the shrine herself. She looked over to Ash briefly before readying her ocarina. She played its melody, with each note causing a column around her to glow for a moment. As the song echoed throughout the sky, it caught the attentions of the downed trio of Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno, all of whom perked up curiously. Rays of sunlight peeked out, while the tornadoes died down. A gentle breeze washed over those at the shrine, as they could now see the hibiscus flowers that had been covered by the snow, which surrounded them. They then yelped in surprise as the green water flowed out beneath their feet, spreading to the edge of the island and flowing into the sea.

The water was enveloped in an emerald glow, much to everyone's shock. The trio of legendary birds took the clearing sky, screeching as they flied together, no longer adversaries of each other. Within the sea, Ripjaws noticed the green glow washing over him, stopping in surprise. He then barely managed to move aside to avoid the torrent of water that rushed up to the surface. It emerged in an instant, splashing apart to reveal a reinvigorated Lugia, who flapped its wings. Those upon the island smiled, while the Piscciss Volann resurfaced, gazing up at the beautiful sky as the Diving Pokémon flew about with Moltres, Zapdos, and Articuno.

"Wow…" he uttered out of amazement. Lugia then descended by the shrine, landing next to Ash and the others. It folded its plates upon its back before gesturing for the Pokémon trainer to climb aboard. He pointed to himself in surprise, only for the Diving Pokémon to nod in confirmation.

"Pika, peekah," Pikachu insisted, climbing up onto Ash's shoulder. They both boarded Lugia, who unfolded its plates before taking off once again. The Pokémon trainer and the Mouse Pokémon were marveling the experience. They had just saved the world… and were again riding on the back of a legendary creature.

As Melody continued playing on her ocarina, another amazing phenomenon occurred. An ocean current suddenly spouted up from the sea, spanning across the archipelago as everyone watched in awe of its beauty. Even Lawrence, who had survived the ordeal, was amazed. After a little while, the current descended back into the sea, as did the legendary birds to their respective islands. Melody stopped playing her ocarina, dropping to her knees. She was amazed that her people's song had helped restore harmony to the island. She clutched her instrument close to her heart, grateful for its aid.

X

"Gwen!" Ben cried out as he ran up the steps to the shrine, embracing his cousin in a bear hug, making her yelp in surprise. However, she laughed.

"I'm okay, I'm okay…" she reassured repeatedly, patting his back. The sky was dusking as Lugia flew aloft from the shrine, as everyone looked up at it.

'The beast of the sea has been tamed,' it confirmed to the group, 'The fate of the world could not have been in better hands,' it added, flying off.

"Bye, Lugia!" Gwen cried out in farewell, while Ash blinked in surprise. They watched the Diving Pokémon soar down into the sea, disappearing completely.

"Well… that turned out to be one heck of a day…" Ben admitted, folding his arms behind his head, "Hey, where'd that cat, uh, fox, uh… Eevee go?" he wondered curiously as he looked around. His cousin chuckled, crouching down next to Espeon.

"This is Eevee, doofus," she pointed out, "Or… was…" she corrected sheepishly before the Sun Pokémon nuzzled affectionately against her, making her giggle.

"She must've evolved to help you and Ash," Misty realized as she approached with Togepi in her arms.

"Evolved?" Ben repeated in confusion.

"There's a lot you could learn about Pokémon," Ash chimed in, getting his attention, "Just like there's a lot I could learn about being a hero," he mentioned sheepishly.

"For your first time, I'd say you did a great job," Gwen commented as she stood up, sharing a smile with the Pokémon trainer.

"Ash!" a voice suddenly echoed, getting their attentions as they looked over curiously. Climbing down the mountain was Delia, with Oak and Ivy to follow. As soon as she reached the ground, the young mother jogged over.

"My mom?!" her son exclaimed in surprise. She ran across the shrine to meet him. And she didn't look happy.

"All right, start talking!" she demanded with her hands at her hips, "You are in big trouble, Mister!" she shouted.

"But… Missus Ketchum…" Misty chimed in, "Ash just helped save the whole world…" she pointed out.

"It's true," Gwen added with a nod.

"Oh, he did, did he?" Delia questioned back to their surprise, "Well, I could've lost my whole world…" she noted.

"Huh?" her son uttered out of confusion as he blinked.

"Every day, I worry about you and wonder if you're alright," she admitted to him, "I know I can't stop you… from doing the things you need to do…" she continued as her eyes shook, "I just can't help missing you all the time!" she confessed with a shake of her head. Ash's look turned serious with understanding. "You're a Pokémon trainer, and that's just how it is," his mother said, "But next time…" she kept going, "could you try to save the world just a little closer to home?" she requested of him, while Oak and Ivy jogged over.

"…I guess I could give it a try…" Ash replied after a moment.

"And remember…" Delia continued, "every day… you're my hero," she affirmed with a smile. Her son blinked in surprise… and then smiled.

"Thanks, Mom," he said gratefully, while the wind gently breezed by.

"Peekah chu!" Pikachu squeaked happily. Everyone smiled, glad that things had gone well in the end. At that moment though, Espeon suddenly perked up as she sensed something, walking off to the side.

"Uh, hey…" Gwen called out, walking over to her. All of a sudden, a yellow portal opened in front of the group, causing them to gasp in surprise.

"Is that…?" Ben started to guess, only to notice the blinking light coming from the Omnitrix. His cousin sighed with a smile, turning to the others.

"This is our ticket back home," she confirmed.

"Wh-What?" Ash stuttered, "Wait, your home's through there?" he questioned on.

"We think so, I guess," Ben replied, "But hey, this was fun," he affirmed with a grin, "Maybe we'll see each other again someday," he suggested as he shrugged. The Pokémon trainer seemed rather saddened about his new friends leaving, but decided to smile.

"Thanks for everything," he said gratefully. The pair smiled back, ready to wander into the rift. However, Gwen felt something tug at her left pant leg. She looked down to see Espeon there with a pleading look in her eyes. Blinking in surprise, the young mage teared up a little.

"I'm sorry…" she apologized, crouching down to hug the Sun Pokémon, "But I don't think you can come with me," she pointed out.

"Why not?" Ash said as he approached with Pikachu, "If she wants to come along with you, then that's her choice," he noted to Gwen's surprise.

"But… there's not really… Pokémon in my world…" she mentioned worriedly.

"Then she can be the first," Misty affirmed as she approached, "Here," she offered, handing the young mage a Poké Ball, "That'll help keep her safe," she assured.

"My word…" Oak uttered in disbelief, "Just what did we miss…?" he wondered aloud, rubbing the back of his head. Meanwhile, Espeon looked to Gwen expectantly. She tapped the Poké Ball against her head, causing her to turn into a reddish light that flew into the container, which reflexively closed. Its button blinked a bright red for a few moments before stopping with the sound of a click. The young mage stared at it curiously afterwards.

"And you can let her back out whenever you want," Misty added to her. She let off a smile, standing up.

"We'll come back someday, I promise," she vowed.

"And we'll show you our world, too," Ben mentioned in promise. He and his cousin waved goodbye to their friends, heading into the rift, which disappeared moments later. Delia blinked twice.

"Who…were those two?" she asked curiously of her son.

"They're my friends," he answered simply.

"Peekah, pika!" Pikachu squeaked in agreement.

UNIVERSE-57

MOUNT RUSHMORE

Both Ben and Gwen emerged from the yellow portal, landing on the floor. The rift behind them disappeared instantaneously as they looked out to see their grandfather standing alongside the scientists, who seemed stunned.

"Ben! Gwen!" he exclaimed with relief.

"Grandpa!" they cried out, running over to embrace him warmly as they laughed.

"Huh…" Max sighed, "Don't ever scare me like that again, alright?" he requested of his grandchildren.

"What, like we don't always do that?" Ben retorted in question, earning an elbowing from his cousin before they shared another laugh.

"It's… almost unreal…" the lead scientist admitted, getting their attentions as they looked over to see her staring at where the portal had been, "We expected you two to be in the Null Void, but…" she continued.

"Oh yeah, we ended up someplace kinda crazy!" the Omnitrix bearer pointed out, "There were all these weird animals called Pokémon and people who could put them in these ball things…" he noted in remembrance.

"I actually have one of them, too!" Gwen mentioned, taking out the Poké Ball she had. She opened it up, causing a burst of light to shoot out onto the floor, much to the scientists' surprise as they stepped back, seeing it shape into form. It dissipated to reveal Espeon, who looked around curiously.

"Espee?" she squeaked in confusion.

"Well, that's… something…" Max commented. The Sun Pokémon came over, nuzzling against Gwen, who giggled happily. Ben then blinked in realization.

"Aw, man…" he groaned out, "I could've gotten one, too…" he complained.

"What's it called?" Max asked of his granddaughter, who petted the Sun Pokémon.

"Well, her name was Eevee…" she replied, "But I guess now, she should have something more… official," she decided, glancing up in thought, "How about… Esper?" she suggested. The Espeon smiled.

"Peeon!" she exclaimed with a nod, making her new owner smile.

"Unbelievable…" Azmuth said as he approached, getting the group's attention, "To think that this experiment would open up so many possibilities for the future…" he pointed out.

"What do you mean?" Ben asked.

"Huh," the Galvan chuckled, "You don't even realize what you stepped into," he noted as he turned to the Tennyson family, "You just helped prove the existence of the multiverse," he stated.

"The… multiverse?" the Omnitrix bearer repeated, slightly widening his eyes.

This was only the beginning of Ben's journey to find the people he'd come to meet as his friends. As for Ash, he would get to see his multiversal companions again in the future. Maybe not just yet, but someday.

Pokémon are extraordinary creatures. And if they can connect beyond just their own universe, then what kind of future may be in store? Well, you probably know by now…

But don't worry, this won't be the last time you'll see Ash in this grand set of tales. We'll return to him soon enough. For now, let's take a quick reprieve… So long, everyone!

ENDING

Insert "Kitakaze" by SIX LOUNGE

Opens with Ash waking up in the morning, only to realize that he's late. He fumbles out of bed, getting himself dressed before heading out the door. Pikachu hurries after him, hopping onto his shoulder. His trainer grins, running along the dirt road to his next adventure.

He remembers many events throughout his time as a trainer, meeting Misty, catching Caterpie, earning his first gym badge from Brock, helping the abandoned Charmander, letting Butterfree go, and earning his spot in the Pokémon League. He trips and falls over, though he makes certain to catch Pikachu before he can hit the ground, too. The Mouse Pokémon yelps with concern, but luckily, Ash is able to push himself back up. He then notices that his hat is missing, only to have it be handed to him by none other than Ben, making him smile.

Ash continues reminiscing on his experiences, thinking back to when he traveled around the Orange Islands, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, Unova, and Kalos. He remembers all of the tough battles he faced, whether it was Drake, Harrison, Tyson, Brandon, Tobias, Cameron, or Alain he faced. He comes to a stop for a moment, looking up at the distant horizon. A rainbow suddenly streaks by, enticing him to look over. He smiles as he spots Ho-oh soaring by, its feathers giving off a brilliant sparkle.

We see him getting married to Mirajane as the audience cheers for them, followed by the pair seeing the birth of their first child, Leslie. As the song winds down, we see Ash showing his daughter the wonders of the Pokémon world. Time goes by, and Leslie is about to depart for her first journey. Ash gifts her a visor to complete her outfit, smiling proudly at her. He watches her head off, ready to see what kind of future awaits him and his family.

END ENDING

In my mind, the best way to introduce Ash into the story was through one of the movies. And The Power of One fit the bill perfectly. I really enjoyed going through this, especially with giving Gwen more to do this time around. Ben still played a part, but I figured having Gwen take on more of a role would be fun to do.

So that's about it for that! Up next will be Naruto Uzumaki's story! That one is gonna be interesting given the circumstances of what I'll be focusing on. Thanks for reading, everyone!