May opened her eyes slowly and looked around, rubbing her head. She looked around, "…Ow…"
Everything around her was quiet.
As her vision cleared, she slowly looked around in confusion. She was lying on polished wooden flooring, and around her were massive decorative pillars with elegant carvings running along them. Sunlight filtered in through open sections of the walls, letting warm air drift through the room.
"…Huh?" May pushed herself upright quickly and looked around harder, "Max?" she called out immediately, panic creeping into her voice as she stood up fully, "Max?!"
The last time she saw Max, he was in the stadium stands. She was just about to get to him, and then they all started glowing, and now she was here.
"Max!" she shouted louder this time as she started moving through the room quickly, "Max, where are you?!"
She turned a corner into another large chamber, only to freeze when she heard the slow sound of footsteps.
Thump.
Thump.
May immediately spun around and reached for a Poké Ball.
But then an elderly voice spoke calmly, "My, quite energetic already, are we?"
May blinked. Slowly walking out from another hallway with his hands behind his back was Spenser, looking surprisingly calm despite everything that had just happened.
"O-oh, it's you, the um-o-um, I mean, Mr. Spenser." May let out a breath of relief before quickly looking around again, "Wait, have you seen Max?!"
Spenser stroked his beard thoughtfully, "No, unfortunately. It seems Guile scattered everyone quite thoroughly."
May bit her lip anxiously. Max was somewhere out there alone. And with all those crazy Pokémon running around, and that maniac doing whatever he was doing
"Easy now," Spenser said gently, noticing the panic on her face, "Panicking will cloud the mind."
May took a slow breath, trying to listen to him, but her hands still clenched tightly at her sides.
"…Right," she muttered, though her voice still carried worry.
Spenser gave her a small nod before turning and calmly beginning to walk down the hallway, "Come. Standing still will not help your brother either."
May quickly followed after him.
As they walked, she kept glancing around nervously. The building really was beautiful in a strange way. Warm sunlight shone across polished floors, banners hung along the walls, and the open architecture let the wind drift naturally through the halls.
"…Where are we exactly?" May finally asked.
Spenser smiled faintly, "The Battle Palace."
May blinked, "Oh."
That explained the fancy atmosphere.
"The Palace was built around understanding one's Pokémon without relying entirely on direct commands," Spenser explained while walking calmly beside her, "Battles here are decided as much by trust and emotion as they are by strategy."
"Trust, huh…" May said as she looked down at her Poké Ball belt and rubbed one finger over Combusken's Poké Ball.
Spenser's eyes shifted toward her for a moment, "You trust your Pokémon deeply."
May looked surprised, "…Well, yeah. Of course I do."
"And they trust you."
"…I try my best."
Spenser hummed quietly. For a while, the two simply walked through the long elegant halls of the Battle Palace.
May kept glancing around anxiously every few seconds.
Noticing that, Spenser finally spoke again, "You care for your brother deeply."
May blinked, "Well, yeah."
Spenser smiled faintly, "You answered that quickly."
"Because it's obvious," May muttered, "He's my little brother."
"And yet," Spenser said calmly, "you are blaming yourself for not reaching him in time."
May froze for half a second, "I—"
"You looked toward the stadium stands before you looked at your own surroundings," Spenser continued gently, "Your first instinct was not confusion. It was guilt."
May looked down slightly, "…Maybe."
The older man didn't pressure her further. Instead, he simply continued walking beside her, "The mind is a noisy thing," Spenser said after a moment, "When fear enters it, we often begin imagining every possible disaster all at once."
May let out a small laugh, "Yeah...sounds about right."
"But fear itself is not weakness."
She looked up slightly at that, "Fear means something matters to you," Spenser explained, "A person without fear is often simply someone with nothing they value."
May quietly thought about that while they walked. Eventually, they entered a wider chamber. The Palace itself felt less like a battle facility and more like a temple.
"…It's weird," May admitted quietly.
"What is?"
"I know everyone else is probably fighting right now." She rubbed her arm slightly, "Everyone's probably doing something important."
Spenser's eyes shifted toward her, "But?"
May hesitated, "…I don't know if I can do the same."
That made Spenser finally stop walking. May paused too, blinking as he slowly turned toward her.
For a moment, he analyzed her like he was looking at her soul, because he kinda could do that. It's a long explanation, but we don't have time for how his powers work.
"You trust your Pokémon," he said.
May nodded immediately, "Of course."
"You trust your friends."
"…Yeah."
"But you do not trust yourself."
May's breath caught slightly. The silence was loud because she didn't have anything to rebut.
Spenser smiled gently, though there was understanding in it rather than criticism, "That is a difficult burden to carry."
May looked away, "…I dunno." She rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly, "Ash told me that I don't need to be able to do anything special to be useful, that I bring me, and that's enough, but I still don't know what that means…"
"Interesting. How does that make you feel?" Spenser asked, rubbing his beard.
"I dunno...it feels like everyone has something special about them." She looked down at her hands, "And I'm just…"
"You feel smaller," Spenser finished for her, "When you stand next to your friends, am I correct?"
May's eyes widened slightly, "…Kinda."
Spenser nodded slowly as if that confirmed something, "You believe your successes are accidents or are based on others."
May's silence answered for her.
Spenser hummed thoughtfully, "That is a dangerous habit."
May frowned slightly, "How?"
"Because eventually," he said calmly, "a person who refuses to acknowledge their own worth will begin believing they do not deserve the things they have earned."
And that hit right on the money. Sure, May had been acting better since last time, and she was doing better at accepting help, but in the back of her mind there was still the little nagging feeling that she wouldn't be as far as she was if it wasn't for Ash and the others helping her.
Spenser looked forward again, "The young often believe confidence is loud," he said as he resumed walking, "But true confidence lies in the ability to trust your own heart even when uncertainty exists."
May looked down at her reflection in the polished floor, "…That sounds hard."
"It is." Spenser smiled knowingly, "Most worthwhile things are."
May seemed to understand as she took Combusken's Poké Ball and held it in her hand, looking at it, and she smiled slightly when she remembered her friends.
Then Spenser rubbed his chin and looked closer at her, "…Curious."
"Hm?" May looked up, finally noticing that Spenser was staring at her.
"There is something unusual about you."
May blinked rapidly, "Uh...what?"
Spenser stroked his beard slowly.
"I cannot fully place it yet." His eyes softened slightly, "But your spirit feels familiar in some way."
May stared in confusion, "Spirit?"
"Yes," Spenser said, rubbing his chin, "I wonder, have you ever—"
But right before Spenser was going to say something, they heard the sounds of roaring and Pokémon cries.
May and Spenser looked down the hall and saw multiple frenzied Rental Pokémon staring at them and growling like ferocious beasts.
Spenser sighed softly, "…And it appears our conversation must pause," he muttered as he grabbed a Poké Ball.
May looked down at Combusken's Poké Ball, and she took a breath and got ready, "Okay, let's do this!" she said with a little more confidence. After this talk, she felt a little lighter somehow, and she was ready to unleash it.
—
Brock groaned quietly as he slowly opened his eyes, "…Ugh…"
The first thing he noticed was that the floor beneath him was metal. The second thing he noticed was that something soft was pressed against his shoulder.
Brock blinked a few times before turning his head slightly.
Then he immediately froze.
Lucy was sitting beside him. Very close beside him.
The Pike Queen had one arm wrapped around his shoulder to keep him propped upright against the wall, her long hair brushing lightly against him as she checked the hallway ahead cautiously. Brock's brain short-circuited instantly.
Meanwhile, Lucy noticed movement beside her and looked down, "…Oh." Her eyes widened slightly, "You're awake."
Brock immediately sat up way too fast, "Y-YES I AM COMPLETELY AWAKE THANK YOU FOR ASKING!"
His head immediately spun from standing too quickly. Lucy quickly grabbed his arm before he could fall over again, "Careful."
Brock stared at her.
Lucy stared back calmly.
However, inside Lucy's head she was screaming. Her internal self was blushing hard as she held Brock's arm.
Lucy somehow maintained a perfectly composed expression through sheer force of will, "You hit your head pretty hard," she said smoothly.
Brock, meanwhile, was actively trying to act normal in this situation, "Oh wow, your hands are really soft, I mean, thank you for keeping me up—"
Lucy's face heated slightly, and that's when she noticed it.
Oh no.
She was holding onto his biceps, and it was hard for her to let go, but she pried her hands off his muscles even as she wanted to kick herself for doing it.
"You are welcome," she answered with remarkable composure considering that, internally, she was currently dying.
Brock finally managed to regain enough brain function to look around.
The hallway around them was narrow and metallic, with strange glowing lights running along the walls. Multiple branching corridors stretched out in different directions, "Where are we?"
Lucy slowly looked around too, "We're in the Battle Pike."
Brock blinked, "Oh." That explained the ominous atmosphere.
Then Brock rubbed the back of his head, "Well, first thing's first." He gave Lucy a reassuring smile, "We should find a way out and regroup with everyone."
Lucy's heart nearly exploded as she looked at Brock smiling at her. On the outside, she only nodded calmly, "Yes. That would be logical."
Brock stood up fully now, adjusting his shirt slightly before offering her a hand, "Ready?"
Lucy stared at the offered hand for half a second too long.
Brock was helping her up. Like a gentleman.
This is fine.
She calmly placed her hand in his, and Brock helped pull her up with an easy smile.
But on the inside she was screaming like a fangirl.
Then suddenly, the automatic system in the Pike lit up as it started flashing red.
"Oh no," Lucy muttered immediately.
Several nearby doors hissed open, and multiple virtual trainers stepped out, seeing them and pulling out Poké Balls.
Brock sighed as he cracked his knuckles slightly, "Looks like we're gonna have to fight our way out."
Lucy covered her mouth as Brock stepped in front of her, thinking that Brock was acting so cool, but she shook her head and slapped her cheeks slightly, taking a breath, "Yes, let's do this," she said as she gulped and pulled out a Poké Ball.
—
{Over with Green and Greta}
Green hit the ground shoulder-first and immediately rolled back onto her feet.
"Okay! That was rude," she complained while brushing dust off her shorts, "Seriously, can Guile do anything normally?"
A loud crash echoed nearby.
Green looked up just in time to see Greta command her Breloom to punch a rampaging Hariyama directly in the stomach hard enough to stagger it backward. Then it slammed into it with a glowing [Sky Uppercut].
"EAT THIS!" Greta shouted.
Hariyama blasted through part of a broken arena wall and crashed into the dirt outside.
Green blinked, "You know, every time I see you fight, I get a little more concerned."
Greta cracked her knuckles proudly, "Eheheheh! Good battle!"
The two girls finally got a better look at their surroundings.
They were still inside the Battle Arena facility, except unlike the others, the Battle Arena wasn't some enclosed maze or giant building. Parts of the walls had been destroyed during the chaos earlier, and outside they could already see panicked civilians running around while frenzied Rental Pokémon rampaged through the area.
A Fearow screeched overhead while several people ducked for cover.
Green immediately pointed upward, "Eevee, [Swift]!"
Eevee leapt from her shoulder and launched glowing stars into the air, knocking Fearow off course before it could dive at the civilians.
"You have an Eevee?" Greta asked as she pointed to another flying Fearow for Breloom to snipe out of the air.
"I haven't decided what to evolve her into," Green said as Eevee shot out another barrage of stars toward more flying Pokémon, "Besides, she's strong enough like this."
"Fair enough," Greta said as her Breloom's arm stretched and grabbed the Fearow before slamming it into the ground.
Another explosion echoed through the Battle Arena as a wild [Flamethrower] blasted across the battlefield and slammed into one of the arena walls.
"MOVE!" Green shouted.
A group of civilians ducked down just in time as Eevee leapt off Green's shoulder and tackled a frenzied Manectric sideways before it could fire again.
The Electric-type skidded across the dirt, growling wildly, its eyes glowing unnaturally, "Yeah, that's definitely not normal," Green sighed, rubbing the back of her head.
"Take things easy to start with?!" Greta barked while dodging under a charging Primeape, "How're we supposed to take THIS easy?!"
Breloom stretched its arm out and clotheslined the Primeape directly into the ground.
"Way to go!" Greta pumped a fist, "Eheheheh!"
Green snorted despite herself, "You're enjoying this way too much."
"Battle's battle!" Greta laughed, "If strong opponents show up, I'm gonna fight 'em!"
"That's not the concerning part."
Another loud screech echoed overhead.
This time, three Fearow swooped downward together toward the fleeing civilians.
Green immediately pointed upward, "Eevee, [Swift]!"
Greta grinned instantly, "Breloom, jump!"
Eevee's glowing stars shot upward while Breloom launched itself high into the air using the debris like stepping stones.
The combination attack was almost stupidly effective.
The [Swift] barrage scattered the Fearow formation long enough for Breloom to grab one by the legs midair and swing it directly into another one.
The third Fearow tried to escape, only for Eevee to suddenly appear on top of its head.
Green smirked, "Gotcha."
Eevee blasted it point-blank with an [Iron Tail]. The Fearow spiraled into the dirt outside the Arena.
The nearby civilians stared wide-eyed.
Green gave them a quick thumbs-up, "Don't worry! We've got this!"
"Go get somewhere safe!" Greta added loudly, "And don't stop running!"
The civilians quickly nodded and hurried away. Green let out a breath while Eevee hopped back onto her shoulder proudly.
Greta stretched her arms, "Huuuh...Man. This is getting fun."
Green gave her a look, "Your definition of fun is terrifying."
"Huh?" Greta blinked, "You don't like battling?"
"I didn't say that." Green crossed her arms, "I love battling."
Then she grinned slightly, "But I prefer battles where buildings AREN'T on fire," she said, pointing to the wall that was literally on fire.
"…Fair."
Another crash echoed nearby. This time, a massive Rhydon burst through part of the outer wall, roaring wildly.
"Oh, come on!" Green groaned, "How many Pokémon are there?"
Greta rolled her shoulders excitedly, "No clue! Let's beat up all of them and find out!"
Green stared at her for a second, "…You know what? I respect the energy."
"Eheheheheh!"
The Rhydon charged as the two girls got into their stances, ready to keep fighting.
—
{Meanwhile}
Wally groaned softly as he pushed himself up from the grass, "…Ow…"
For a second, his vision swam, but eventually things came back into focus. He rubbed his neck slightly and looked around. It looked like he was in a forest or something.
Wally slowly stood up and looked around, trying to find anyone, "Hello?" he called as he started walking, since he might as well. It's not like he could just stay here.
But then a loud explosion suddenly echoed nearby.
Wally nearly jumped out of his skin.
Then came yelling.
"COME BACK HERE YOU COWARD!"
Wally blinked. Was that...Mr. Tucker?
Wally hurried through the trees before finally breaking into a clearing and immediately froze.
Tucker was standing in the middle of a dirt road dramatically pointing into the distance while Salamence roared behind him.
His coat fluttered in the wind.
"…You VILE FIEND!" Tucker shouted at absolutely nobody currently visible, "Do you hear me, Guile?! I'll hunt you to the ends of the earth!"
Wally stared, "…Mr. Tucker?"
Tucker immediately spun around, "Oh, it's you, Wally, right?"
Wally let out a relieved breath, "Oh thank goodness…" Then he blinked again, noticing Tucker's expression.
But then Tucker grabbed Wally by the shoulders dramatically, "Are you injured?!"
"I-I'm okay!"
"Excellent!" Then Tucker immediately turned and pointed toward the horizon again, "Then we ride for vengeance!"
"…What?"
"Guile has insulted my Battle Dome!" Tucker declared dramatically, "He interrupted the tournament! Attacked the audience! Stole Jirachi! Crashed through my BEAUTIFUL ceiling!"
He pointed upward like he was mourning it personally.
"There is now a Salamence-shaped hole in my roof, Wally!"
"…I mean, technically Salamence was yours—"
"THAT ISN'T THE POINT!"
Wally flinched slightly. Salamence awkwardly looked away.
Tucker clenched a fist dramatically over his chest.
"That armored menace has crossed a line from which there is no return!" Tucker declared, "And worst of all, he interrupted my speech I was gonna do."
"…That's what you're upset about?!"
"It was a REALLY good speech!"
Tucker suddenly looked around, "Now then! We must regroup with the others!"
Wally nodded quickly, "R-right!"
But just then, the trees nearby started to move.
Tucker's expression immediately sharpened, and Wally reached for a Poké Ball nervously.
Then a massive Aggron burst out of the trees roaring wildly. Behind it came multiple Rental Pokémon charging through the forest in a frenzy, including but not limited to a Swellow, a Nidoking, a Crawdaunt, and a lot more they couldn't see yet.
Wally paled slightly, "…Oh no."
Tucker, however, slowly grinned, "Oh yes, I've been meaning to let off some steam," he said as he pointed forward and Salamence stomped ahead.
"Come now, Wally. Let's beat these Pokémon, then find everyone else," Tucker said.
"O-okay," Wally gulped as he grabbed one of his Poké Balls. Looks like they were doing this.
—
Gary groaned as he slowly sat up off the cold metal floor, "This is why I hate teleportation."
He rubbed the side of his head before blinking and looking around, and since he had done his research before coming here, he could tell this was the Battle Factory.
"Ugh…" Gary turned his head and saw Brendan nearby rubbing his forehead while sitting against one of the walls.
Brendan blinked a few times, "…Why do I feel like I got thrown by a Hariyama?"
A third groan came from nearby.
Noland pushed himself upright while adjusting his jacket, "…Everyone alright?"
"Still alive," Gary answered.
"Same here," Brendan added.
Noland walked over to them as he looked around and also recognized this place, "We're in the Battle Factory."
Gary wiped off his jacket, "Could be worse."
Right as he said that, the lights overhead flickered ominously.
"…You had to say it," Brendan muttered.
Gary ignored him and pulled out his phone immediately, "We should contact the others first."
Noland nodded quickly and grabbed his own phone, "Agreed."
Gary immediately tried calling Ash, but it went to voicemail, like wherever he was didn't have signal, "…Great." He tried Green next. Straight to voicemail, "Seriously?"
Meanwhile, Noland scrolled quickly through his contacts before selecting one, "…Come on, Anabel, pick up…"
It rang once, but then went to voicemail.
Noland frowned slightly.
"…Not good."
Brendan looked between them nervously, "Maybe the signal's jammed?"
"Possible," Gary admitted, "Or he put them in places that don't get any signal."
"There are places like that here." Noland lowered his phone slowly before looking toward the massive exit doors leading outside, "Either way, sitting here won't help."
He started walking toward the doors. Gary and Brendan followed.
Noland reached the control panel beside the exit and pressed the release switch, but nothing happened.
"…Hm." He pressed it again, and still nothing.
Brendan blinked, "…Please don't tell me we're trapped."
Noland narrowed his eyes slightly before manually trying to force the doors open, but they were metal doors, and Noland was not that strong. Even when Gary and Brendan tried helping, they couldn't open them.
But then they heard the sounds of the conveyor belts starting to move, and the screens around them turned on.
Several mechanical doors opened around the room. Then platforms began rising upward from the conveyor belts, and Virtual Trainers started walking out, locking onto them and seeing them as challengers.
"Looks like if we want to get the doors open, we're gonna need to fight," Noland said, grabbing a Poké Ball from his belt.
"Can't we say we give up so it lets us leave?" Brendan suggested.
"No. We're not supposed to have our regular Pokémon. This facility scans each person, and since we have our own Pokémon, it considers us intruders, so it's not letting us go unless we win forty consecutive battles," Noland explained.
"Just great," Gary sighed heavily before pulling out a Poké Ball, "Well, guess we're speedrunning this."
Brendan stretched his arms behind his head, "Okay, honestly? This is kinda stupid enough to be fun."
Noland gave a tired sigh before pulling out his own Poké Ball, "Please save the enthusiasm for battle thirty-five."
Then the Virtual Trainers lit up and started approaching the trio.
—
When Nora reappeared, she ironically enough landed with most of the other spectators. It looked like they were on the other side of the island, and she had also found Max and was taking care of him.
Nora was moving around, trying to get people somewhere safer than here, even though she didn't know where that would be. Her first thought was maybe to get to one of the boats, but that wouldn't work. There was only one boat right now, and the others wouldn't come until hours later.
And what made it harder was that she had to fight some of the wild frenzied Pokémon. Sure, she had some help from the other trainers in the group, but all in all she was the one doing most of the work.
And worst of all, she didn't know where any of the others were at. She tried calling Ash, but it went to voicemail.
Meanwhile, she was here being the most stable person.
Max was sitting nearby with a few younger kids while a trainer used their Growlithe to keep watch. Max looked worried, but he was trying really hard not to panic.
But then a loud explosion echoed somewhere in the distance.
Nora clenched her fists, "Come on…" she whispered quietly, "Just hold together…"
Then suddenly above them, a strange red-and-blue blur streaked across the sky before stopping overhead.
Someone was floating there: white hair, a blank look on his face, and his arm transformed into what looked kinda like red-and-blue tentacles.
But Nora recognized him immediately.
It was Damian.
But she couldn't speak, because she knew Malde was going to do something to him, but not this.
Damian touched the ground softly. He didn't say anything. He simply looked over them with a blank expression.
Nora slowly stepped forward in front of the civilians protectively, "…Hey," she called carefully, "Can you hear me?"
The strange flesh around Damian's arms twitched, then Damian slowly raised one arm.
The red-and-blue mutation along it suddenly shifted and expanded into a long spear-like shape.
Max's eyes widened, "LOOK OUT!"
Damian vanished, and Nora immediately threw herself sideways as the spot she'd just been standing in exploded apart.
Damian looked at the crater he had just made and pulled his arm out, looking back at Nora as she breathed hard.
"Damian, it's me, Nora, your friend. Snap out of it!" Nora tried to get through to him.
And maybe it worked, maybe it didn't. She couldn't tell because Damian pulled his arm out of the ground and reformed it into the tentacles and faced her, then looked at all the other people.
Nora gulped.
This wasn't working.
Which meant, unfortunately, she needed to fight him.
So she slowly stood up as her legs shook and stood in front of all the people, "Damian, I'm going to snap you out of it, s-so, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to beat you up!"
—
Meanwhile, back with Ash and Brandon, they had finished clearing out multiple floors' worth of Virtual Trainers and frenzied Pokémon.
Ash was doing fine. On weaker Pokémon, he could use his own weaker ones to save the stronger ones for more important fights.
Meanwhile, Brandon only had six Pokémon. The three Pokémon he had been using were too tired to keep fighting, so he was down to the Regis, which he didn't want to use yet.
But thankfully, when they got to the fifth floor, Brandon stopped Ash and started feeling along the walls, looking for something.
"What's up?" Ash asked.
"I know on this floor there is a secret room where I keep all the artifacts I find on my adventures. Usually I donate them to a museum or add them to the Pyramid to help the atmosphere."
"Okay, and?" Ash asked.
"And," Brandon continued as he found a loose brick, "it has an emergency exit we can use," he said as he pushed the brick and the wall began to move, revealing a hidden doorway.
Ash blinked at the hidden doorway, "You seriously have secret passages in your secret pyramid?"
Brandon crossed his arms, "It's important to be prepared."
"That is absolutely something a supervillain would say."
"I get that a lot."
Pikachu snorted from Ash's shoulder while Vee let out an amused chirp from the bag.
The hidden passage beyond the wall was completely different from the rest of the Pyramid. The normal carved stone hallways gave way to rough ancient rock, the air colder and heavier somehow.
Brandon's expression slowly became more serious as they walked deeper inside.
"This area wasn't originally part of the Pyramid," Brandon admitted quietly.
Brandon ran one hand lightly along the ancient wall, "These ruins were discovered underneath the area years ago. Older than almost anything else in Kanto."
"Ruins?"
Brandon nodded slowly, "The remains of Pokélantis."
"Ah, I see." Ash narrowed his eyes and sighed. He already knew that whole story.
But then, when they got to the main room with the statue of the king and murals of Ho-Oh on the walls, Ash noticed the shadows moving along the walls.
Then ghostly laughter echoed through the ruins. Multiple glowing eyes suddenly opened in the darkness.
"Of course," Brandon sighed tiredly.
A swarm of Ghost Pokémon burst out from the walls: Banette, Dusclops, Haunter, Mismagius, and they all had the eyes of the frenzied Pokémon.
"Really? Down here too?" Ash muttered.
Brandon immediately reached for a Poké Ball before stopping himself.
Right. His usable team was already too tired to fight.
Ash noticed immediately.
He grabbed a Poké Ball off his belt and tossed it over, "Catch."
Brandon caught it cleanly and blinked as he released it, seeing what it was, "A Vibrava?"
"Use him," Ash said casually while grabbing one of his own Poké Balls, "He listens pretty well."
"You trust me with your Pokémon?"
Ash looked confused, like he had just asked a stupid question, "Yeah? Besides, do we have much of a choice?" he said as he threw out his own Poké Ball, letting out Lairon.
So they started battling this new horde of Pokémon. Thankfully, it was not hard since they were just attacking randomly. Half of the attacks hit themselves.
But then from the ceiling, one Haunter looked at them, then over at the stone Poké Ball next to the statue, and it could feel all the cursed energy in it.
The Haunter laughed, then flew over, grabbing it and hurling it directly at Ash.
Brandon noticed, and his eyes widened instantly, "Ash, don't touch—!"
Too late.
Ash caught it cleanly on instinct.
The second his fingers wrapped around the stone, darkness exploded outward.
The ruins vanished.
Ash suddenly found himself standing in complete blackness. Then it cleared, and it looked like he was in a throne room.
Then on the throne, someone was sitting there.
A man who looked exactly like the statue.
The evil king of Pokélantis.
"At last…" the King said, his voice echoing unnaturally, "Another vessel."
Shadowy energy exploded forward and wrapped around Ash's body.
The King smiled cruelly, "Your body shall become mine—"
Then Ash looked up, but he just chuckled, "…Oh please."
Blue Aura erupted from Ash's body, and the shadows around him shattered instantly.
The King's eyes widened, "What?!"
Ash rolled one shoulder casually like he was stretching.
"So let me guess. This is supposed to be my mind, and you're trying to take it over. Gotta say, I don't really like the decoration. It's cheesy. Now as for you, your head is quite high."
Before the King could react, glowing blue chains formed in Ash's hands instantly. The chains shot forward.
One wrapped around the King's neck, two more wrapped around both arms. The King was violently yanked off the throne and slammed onto one knee.
"What is THIS?!" the King roared while struggling.
Ash walked forward and stomped on the King's head, forcing him onto the ground, "I said your head is quite high. You're in my body, and I don't appreciate rude guests."
The King tried to yell, but his mouth was pressed against the floor, so Ash continued.
"You want to play tenant? Well, we can talk about what you'll pay for rent. I kinda liked that shadowy thing you did. I think I'll be taking that."
Meanwhile, on the outside, after Brandon finished off the last of the Ghosts, he quickly ran to Ash and shook him, "Ash, are you still you?"
Ash blinked and looked at him, "Yeah, why?" he said as he spun the stone Poké Ball on a finger, "Did you think this weak guy could do anything to me?"
Brandon looked at Ash with his mouth open like a fish out of water.
Ash walked over, putting the stone ball back on the pedestal, "That guy was weird and annoying, but we need to go, right?"
Brandon blinked, looking at Ash one more time, "Uh, sure. Oh, here's your Pokémon back by the way," Brandon said, handing him Vibrava's Poké Ball again.
Ash took it and returned both Pokémon.
"Alright, let's go. We need to find everyone," Ash said.
Brandon finally snapped out of his trance and started leading the way so they could get out of here and turn this around.
Meanwhile, as Ash walked behind Brandon, he looked at his fingers and, with a little effort, tried something. Shadows appeared on his fingertips that he could manipulate. He smiled as he dismissed them.
Looks like, in a way, he'd gotten some of this...let's call it Cursed Energy.