"Ah! It's Absol," Max cried out.
Absol's scythe-like horn sent out a powerful Razor Wind. Max quickly hugged Jirachi and ran to the side. Absol sent out another Razor Wind, and Max changed direction.
"Go, Jigglypuff, use Sing on Absol!" Ash, who had arrived after hearing the commotion, commanded. Jigglypuff took out its microphone, and as expected, Absol was hypnotized. Jigglypuff smiled at it.
After Ash helped it distinguish its moves, he kept giving it a new value system, like how using the Sing move to hypnotize people was its best performance.
[Absol]
[Strength: Pseudo-Champion-level - Mid stage]
Wattson looked at Absol and said, "Legend says that it's a Pokémon that only appears when a disaster is about to happen. What is it doing here?!"
"Absol, you're here to pick me up!" Jirachi suddenly said via telepathy.
Everyone was shocked. Absol was Jirachi's companion. They decided to have a good talk with Absol after it woke up.
Late at night, the three of them gradually fell asleep, but Ash knew that Butler would make his move tonight. He waited for him to fall into the trap and reveal his true colors!
Before long, Butler indeed crept into Ash's room. Just as he was about to pick up Jirachi, who was next to Max, "Great Magician Butler, what are you doing?" "Pika~" Ash and Pikachu stared at Butler!
Everyone else also woke up, looking at Butler with confusion. Max hugged Jirachi tightly; after all, someone trying to steal Jirachi in the middle of the night couldn't have good intentions!
Butler was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing. "Haha, I can't believe you found me out! I didn't want to involve you, but since you're looking for death, don't blame me! But how did you know it was me?"
"Jirachi is from Forina, and Jirachi said that Absol came to pick it up. So, the one who found Jirachi's crystal..." Ash didn't finish, but the meaning was clear!
"Haha, you're a smart one, Ash! But you'll pay for your cleverness!" Butler laughed, then muttered to himself, "I'll make the Team Magma members who looked down on me see how great I am!"
"Team Magma! You're from Team Magma!" Everyone was shocked and got ready for battle.
Butler threw a Poké Ball. "Dusknoir, use Psychic!"
[Dusknoir]
[Strength: Pseudo-Champion-level - Early stage]
Dusknoir's eyes glowed red, attacking Ash and the others. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" A bolt of electricity struck, dispersing the red light.
Just then, Diane rushed in and pulled Butler away. "Butler, please, don't continue with this!"
"I can't give up! I'll succeed next time! Diane, believe me, I'm so close!" Butler's crazy eyes met Diane's.
Diane tried to stop him. "Please stop. I don't want you to do this!"
Butler had no choice but to push Diane away and command, "Dusknoir, use Shadow Ball!"
"Awoo~" A wave of Razor Wind hit, dispersing the dark purple Shadow Ball. It was a now-awake Absol, who looked at Butler with a furious glare!
"Pikachu, Electro Ball!" Pikachu's tail gathered a golden electric ball and attacked Butler, while Absol also launched a Razor Wind! It hit the ground in front of Butler and Dusknoir, creating a cloud of smoke!
Seeing this, Diane tried to get Ash and the others to escape the scene. "Everyone, follow me!" After a moment's hesitation, Ash and his friends followed her.
Diane took Ash and his friends to her trailer and drove away.
In the trailer, Jirachi spoke, "I want to go back. I want to go back to Forina!"
"Jirachi said it wants to go back to Forina?" Diane, who was driving, asked after hearing Jirachi's voice.
"Mhm!" Everyone nodded.
"Forina is the place where Butler found Jirachi. Butler used to be a scientist with ties to Team Magma. He wants to bring Groudon back to life!" Diane explained Butler's identity and purpose.
"Groudon?" May and the others [?_??].
Ash didn't hold back this time and explained, "Groudon is a Ground-type Continent Pokémon. In myths, it appeared as the creator of the land, a legendary prehistoric Pokémon. It must be Team Magma's goal. The Team Magma members we met before were probably looking for a way to awaken Groudon!"
"Mhm! I didn't expect you to have already met Team Magma! Sigh~ After his experiments failed, Butler was expelled by Team Magma, but he ended up finding Jirachi in Forina."
Max naively thought that Jirachi could grant wishes. "Does he want to ask Jirachi to grant his wish?"
Diane shook her head and revealed Butler's true purpose. "No. Butler's real goal is to use Jirachi to harness the immense energy of the Millennium Comet. In order to wake Jirachi up, he needs a boy to be its companion. He's been doing his magic shows on tour, waiting for a boy to show up."
Ash shook his head internally. How could he create Groudon just by using the power of the Millennium Comet? If anything, Groudon is much more powerful than Jirachi. Jirachi just has a powerful ability, but it doesn't know how to use it!
Everyone looked at Max. He's the boy. But what they don't know is that it's not just Max, but Ash too!
"Ms. Diane, how long will it take to get to Forina from here?" Ash asked.
"About four days by car!" Diane replied after thinking for a moment.
Max's expression became determined. "Taking Jirachi back to Forina is what I should do as its companion!"
Everyone agreed! The trailer continued on toward Forina.
The next day, Diane and May sat together and talked. Diane reminisced to May, "Butler and I were childhood friends. When we were little, he loved inventing things and was a person who loved to surprise people..."
May asked worriedly, "About Butler... is he going to be okay?"
Diane said with a firm expression, "In four days, Jirachi will go back to sleep for another thousand years!" Diane then stood up, walked to the door, and looked at Jirachi through the window. "When that happens, his ambition will naturally end! At that point, he'll definitely go back to being the old Butler!"
Time flew by, and Jirachi had less and less time left. Max looked at Jirachi with a worried expression. "I'm not going to be able to see Jirachi anymore soon!"
(′?w?)ノ(._.`) Ash walked over and comforted him. "To a comet, a thousand years is probably just a moment. To Jirachi, sleeping for a thousand years might also be just a moment!"
Ash stood up and looked at the sky. "Therefore, seven days is just an instant, but it's an instant that is even more unforgettable! As long as you leave beautiful memories for each other, you'll always be together!"
Max also stood up and smiled again. "Right! I understand!"
On the sixth day, after passing through a canyon, they parked the car by a cliff. Diane turned to Ash and the others and said, "We're here! This is Forina!"
Ash and his friends looked out at the scenery. Countless massive stone pillars stood in a lush, dense forest. The sight was magnificent and captivating!
"This is Forina! It's like a paradise!" Ash said, marveling at the beautiful scenery before him.
They then walked down a mountain path, seeing all sorts of Pokémon living in the forest: Swablu and Altaria flying in the sky, Nuzleaf in the trees. The peaceful environment made Ash and his friends feel a sense of calm they had never felt before.
Jirachi said happily, "I like it here!"
"We like it here too!" everyone said with a smile. "Pika~"
To be continued...