Kanto. The Tree of Beginning. Afternoon.
During their visit to the Tree of Beginning, Ash and his friends had been attacked by Regirock, Regice and Registeel. The guardians of the Tree of Beginning. Exempt from this was Ash as he had already been here. The tree did not see him as a threat. However, the same could not be said for most of his friends.
Applejack and Rarity had come face to face with Regirock within a cave. The fearsome Rock Peak Pokemon refused to let them go any further, blocking the entrance. By taking Ash's advice, they would not show hostility, however, that was fairly difficult since Regirock was being extra aggressive in this instance.
"REGIROCK!" Regirock had gone for Hammer Arm, lunging at Applejack and the others.
"Sorry about this, Ash, darling! Pheromosa, Triple Axel!" Rarity ordered, going against Ash's request.
"Mosa!" Pheromosa blocked Regirock's incoming Hammer Arm with a single kick. The ground below shook with shockwaves coming out, blowing away some of the rubble. Pheromosa tried getting the next kick off, only for Regirock's arm to keep her locked there for a moment. To make matters worse, Regirock's hard body was a grand weakness to Phermosa's fragile body. "Ph-Pheromo...!"
"REGI-REGIROCK!" Using its defence, Regirock had the capability to also use its other arm to strike Pheromosa's active leg. Pheromosa felt Regirock's gutsy impact which was a problem for her frail body. A staggered Pheromosa forced her to be unable to dodge in time whilst being stuck in this position.
Pheromosa's Lissome Body was trembling as Regirock ended up winning the close quarters struggle, pushing the Lissome Pokemon back. Pheromosa's legs had been injured prior to this battle and that pushback only worsened this as she slid on the ground, wincing.
"Pheromosa! You're far too fragile for this one! Please, return!" Rarity held out Pheromosa's Poke Ball, knowing that Regirock was too rock-hard for Pheromosa to break through.
"Mosa!" But Pheromosa refused to return. She held her arm out, shouting at Rarity to put the Poke Ball away. Pheromosa didn't want to go out so easily all because she was fragile against a hard-bodied Pokemon.
"Stubborn girl. That's what we like to see!" Applejack could respect Pheromosa's drive to not give up as she grinned with respect. "Sceptile, help her out! Use Frenzy Plant to hold Regirock down!"
"Scep...Tile!" Assisting Pheromosa, Sceptile dug his hands into the ground, summoning massive roots. Regirock's arms and legs were held back by these massive roots, restraining the Rock Peak Pokemon from any further action.
"Don't think little of us! Pheromosa, Triple Kick!"
"Riolu, Vacuum Wave!"
"Rio...!" Delta Riolu jumped off of Applejack's back, manipulating the air to utilize it as an attack. "Lu!" The Embalming Pokemon unleashed a wave of wind with Pheromosa dashing next to it. Pheromosa came crashing in on the restrained Regirock with three consecutive kicks to its body. And delivering that fourth blow was Vacuum Wave. An explosion of Infinity Energy occurred from these impacts with super-effective damaging going through. The impact was also enough to move Regirock away from the entrance.
Pheromosa jumped back with Riolu landing on her shoulder. With all of those hits, they believed that Regirock was staggered for a bit. They took the chance to leave this area away from Regirock, not wanting to engage with it any further. But that was not the case at all. Instead, once the smoke cleared, Regirock was revealed to have not only withstood those Fighting-Type moves thanks to its absurd defence, but it had also broken the roots via Hammer Arm.
"ÜN ÜN ÜN!" Regirock had used the strength of Hammer Arm to rip the roots in half, startling the group. They flinched when seeing Regirock breaking free from Frenzy Plant as while they did manage to leave this cave, Regirock would not let them escape.
"Seriously?!" Applejack roared before holding onto her hat with the Mega Stone hairpin accessory glinting. "Fine! If you're so tough then-"
"No, Applejack!" Rarity stopped her before she could use Mega Evolution. "If we continue any further, this tree might continue seeing us as a threat! We should just leave that Regirock!"
"...Fine." Applejack pulled back from using Mega Evolution as Pheromosa moved at breakneck speeds to get away from the Rock Peak Pokemon, taking the entrance without a second thought. They understood that further hostility would not make things any better. Right now, they were lucky to have gotten through the entrance while being carried by Pheromosa and her amazing speed.
Regirock knew it couldn't keep up with Pheromosa, but that didn't stop its pursuit. The Rock Peak Pokemon moved back into the entrance, aiming to take another route. It knew the ins and outs of this cave as its biggest advantage.
Meanwhile, the same problem had surfaced with Regice. Goh, Starlight, Spike and Equestrian Haxorus found themselves on a cliff with the Iceberg Pokemon standing in front of them.
"REGICE! RE-REGICE!" Regice did not waste time as it had used Ice Beam, unleashing a chilling beam of ice onto the four of them. Haxorus grabbed everyone, ducking with them immediately as the beam froze the wall behind them.
"Haxorus, Close Combat!" Spike shouted out.
"Haxo!" After saving everyone from Ice Beam, Haxorus approached Regice with the intent of fending it off and giving his friends a chance to escape. They weren't here to battle, they were here to find Mew. Haxorus delivered a constant flurry of punches to Regice. Each hit was as hard as the last with sparks flying out of Regice. Haxorus' arms became a blur as it was a surprise that no shards were coming out of Regice from these devasting hits. Unlike Regirock, Regice was lacking in physical defence, making each of these hits a genuine threat to the Iceberg Pokemon.
"REGIIIIIICE!" But Regice ended up stopping Haxorus' Close Combat before he could finish it by grabbing his arms. It's rare for a Pokemon move like this to be stopped midway but only a Legendary could do it so effortlessly.
"Hax?"
"REGICE!" After grabbing onto Haxorus' arms, Regice had used Ice Beam from its face, unleashing it onto the Axe Jaw Pokemon. Haxorus, unable to break free, was met with the violent chill of Regice's ice.
"X-Xorus!" Haxorus cried out as parts of his body had been frozen over. He backed away, shivering afterwards.
"Haxorus, no!" Spike gasped. But thankfully, Haxorus was resilient enough to withstand a super-effective attack. The same went for Regice.
"REGICE!" Regice continued its attack by using Ice Beam once more, only for Starlight to intervene. She put up a protective barrier of magic, blocking the incoming beam of ice and giving Haxorus enough time to break free from the ice.
"Ugh!" But even with Starlight's impressive magic, the strength of Regice was something to be reckoned with.
"Iron Tail, Haxorus! Knock Regice off!"
"Haxo!" Haxorus broke free of the rest of the ice, advancing towards Regice. Regice was too focused on Starlight's shield, allowing for Haxorus to get a free and clean hit off. A smack to the body by Haxorus' Iron Tail allowed for Starlight to be safe as the Iceberg Pokemon was knocked off balance.
"REGIIIIIIICE!" Regice cried out, falling off the cliff. But, it still had the ice platform from before that it had made, landing on that instead.
"Guys! There's another entrance there!" Goh pointed to a nearby entrance that would lead elsewhere to the cave. Anywhere away from hostile threats would do perfectly for them.
"Say no more!" Spike dug into his backpack, going for the next Poke Ball. Haxorus had done his job, knocking Regice over who was certainly feeling the staggering impact of Iron Tail. "Flygon! Help out!"
"Flygon!" Out came Flygon as their main mode of transportation to the other side. The ravine was the only obstacle left for them to deal with as it had previously had a vine bridge before being destroyed by Regice. Haxorus reverted into an Axew before climbing onto the Ground-Dragon-Type with Spike, Starlight and Goh.
It was a shame that none of them could fully go through with Ash's advice. But then again, even Ash would know that something like this would happen either way. He did say they had to defend themselves and this was certainly their best way of defending themselves. Flygon took flight, carrying them off the cliff and over the staggered Regice.
Speaking of Regice, despite it taking such heavy blows, it still would not let them escape. Regice may be lacking in the physical defence, but that didn't stop it as even when staggering, it found the strength to get up. "RE-RE-REGICE!" This time, Regice had used Avalanche.
By manipulating the atmosphere, the Iceberg Pokemon managed to summon an avalanche of snow from the ceiling. Flygon looked up to see the Avalanche approaching, covering most of the air. "Gon?!" Flygon's eyes expanded for a bit as it started flying haphazardly to avoid the falling snow, which was continuous via Regice's control instead of a single instance of it being used.
Goh and the others held onto Flygon tight, feeling the rocky movements and even some of the chilling aura from the descending snow. Starlight shielded Flygon from the cold via magic coating around its body. Flygon greatly appreciated this as it allowed for better focus. The Mystic Pokemon locked onto the entrance as the snow was starting to cover him.
Normally, this would be where Flygon felt an intense beatdown and punishment through its cold-blooded body but Starlight's magic said otherwise. Thanks to this, Flygon managed to escape through the entrance, evading Regice.
Regice witnessed them escape, standing there for a moment. Much like Regirock, it decided to continue moving, using the rest of the tree to its advantage with all of its various pathways. It wasn't over yet. The Regis would not stop until all of them were dealt with.
And as for Registeel, it was having a face-off with Twilight and Pinkie Pie. They were intruders as well as the opposing stood afar from each other on different cliffs, right between a massive lake in this crystal-infested area. Twilight gulped, knowing that Registeel's intent to destroy her and her friends was high but sparing the Pokemon was a given.
"Mew! Mew-Mew!" Knowing of what Registeel was planning, the two Mew had hovered over to the Iron Pokemon, immediately trying to convince it from ceasing any attack.
"¤¸¸.•´¯`•¸¸.•..>> 𝓻𝑒ＧᎥ丂𝐓ⓔ𝔼ˡ <<..•.¸¸•´¯`•.¸¸¤." Registeel spoke in its bizarre and indescribable language once more, hearing the two Mew out. Registeel learned of their reasoning for being here. To see the other Mew that lived here. Registeel understood that completely.
But that did not change its mind. Twilight and Pinkie were still seen as threats. Registeel turned away from the two Mew before then using Zap Cannon. A giant ball of lightning was shot out with Twilight and Pinkie leaping out of the way. Zap Cannon's impact on the ground caused a deluge of electricity to go about before fading away.
"Mew!"
"¤¸¸.•´¯`•¸¸.•..>> 𝓻𝑒ＧᎥ丂𝐓ⓔ𝔼ˡ <!" Registeel still wasn't changing its intention of getting to Twilight and Pinkie as it had used Heavy Slam, leaping off of the ground and into the air with an impressive jump. While in the air, Registeel rotated its body rapidly, aiming to slam the full weight of its body onto them both.
"I think not!" Twilight stomped her hoof before summoning a reflective shield of magic. Registeel came crashing down, only to be bounced back as if it was on a trampoline by Twilight's magic.
"ø¤º° 𝐫𝒆𝓰𝓲丂𝓽έ𝕖ｌ °º! The Iron Pokemon went flying from Twilight's reflective shield. The result was it banging into some of the cliffs, unable to control its momentum thanks to its heavy body. After crashing into some cliffs, it ended up falling into the massive lake afterwards.
"Sorry!" Twilight apologized to Registeel who made a fairly big splash when sinking into the lake. Registeel's weight was its weakness when it comes to the lake. A fairly quicker defeat compared to the other two Regis. "Let's keep going! Quick!" Now was the best time to leave before the chance of Registeel getting up could resurface.
However, despite its heavy body, much like the other two Regis, Registeel would not let up. In fact, sinking into the lake was prime for another advantage. Secretly, without Twilight and the others knowing, an underwater entrance existed that Registeel had used.
Twilight's group passed through the upper passageway, looking for the right path that would lead them to the top. There were a few pathways to choose from, but they mainly went for the one with a steeper path.
But the second they went for that steeper path, popping out of that pathway was Registeel who was waiting at the entrance. Unexpectedly, it had caught up after sinking into the lake . "ø¤º° 𝐫𝒆𝓰𝓲丂𝓽έ𝕖ｌ °º!"
"That's not possible!" Pinkie Pie screeched once the Iron Pokemon showed itself.
"The other way! Quick!" Twilight suggested going for the other pathway to the right. They fled from Registeel who went for Hyper Beam. The beam's destructive power tore through the walls, shaking this cave in the process. Registeel started moving, proving to have the same speed as the other two.
"It'll only listen to Pokemon but it won't stop attacking us! Mew! Mewie! You two might have to go and find Mew without us!" Twilight suggested as the cave trembled once more. "You'll be put to risk if you stick by us! Eve, you go too!"
"Mew?!"
"Is that a good idea, Twilight?!" Pinkie Pie questioned before suddenly tripping over. This was because of Registeel shaking the ground with Stomping Tantrum. Registeel had then dug its hands into the walls, dragging them across the cave which caused massive rocks to fly at Twilight and Pinkie.
Pinkie was the first target with a massive boulder coming her way, only for Espeon to intervene with Psychic. "Esp! Espeon!" She had then shot it back.
"Mew-Mew!" Mew, along with Espeon did not want to leave Pinkie Pie and Twilight behind but Mewie would gladly advance to meet the third Mew, not wasting any time. "Mew?!" Pinkie's Mew was shocked to see that Mewie would leave that fast after Twilight's suggestion.
"ø¤º° 𝐫𝒆𝓰𝓲丂𝓽έ𝕖ｌ έ𝕖ｌ!°º" All the while Registeel was picking up some speed along the way, using Flash Cannon from its face Twilight ducked, holding Pinkie in the process as a hole was blown through the cave. Registeel essentially made a new exit for them.
"Through there!" Twilight shouted as they had gone for the newest exit made by their pursuer. Mew looked ahead, still a bit perplexed that Mewie would leave them. However, he had to continue as Twilight, Pinkie and Espeon jumped through the hole.
Registeel would take another route that it and the other Regis knew about. They were truly never-ending in their pursuit to terminate those who are not Pokemon.
Speaking of which, Applejack and Rarity managed to end up near a forest area within the Tree of Beginning. They could no longer see Regirock within their sights, giving them time to rest. Pheromosa's legs were injured from battling Regirock, who was by far the most durable Pokemon she's had to encounter so far, being a grand weakness for her lissome body.
"P-Pheromosa..." Pheromosa sat on the ground, holding her leg as even running with it all the way here caused some problems.
"You did well, Pheromosa. That brute Regirock wouldn't have stood a proper chance against you if the circumstances were different." Rarity said, massaging Pheromosa's injured leg. "Take a rest for now." She then recalled Pheromosa to her Poke Ball, keeping her safe in the meantime.
"Thought that Regirock would've talked it out first..." Applejack sighed, removing her hat. "So much for being a peaceful place if they're the ones who start attacking us."
"It is a shame. But if this tree has been here for years, it would make sense for them to be so defensive. Others must've come here and done horrible things for the tree and the Regis to see them as a threat." Rarity stood up. "If that Regirock shows up, I have my Milotic who will shower it till it falls."
"Let's keep heading to the top. Wherever it is." Applejack replied as Sceptile helped put her hat back on. Their goal to reach the top and find Mew was still on despite the pursuit of the Regis.
However, the Regis weren't the only thing they should be worrying about. Near the forest, something was sprouting up. The second defence option of the tree that was arguably better than the Regis. It appeared in the form of a strange orange-like goopy substance that first popped out of the trees and soon the ground. They took on the shape of familiar Pokemon. Mainly Fossil Pokemon.
By emerging from the trees and ground, these were none other than the same forces that once attacked Ash and his old friends years ago.
The White Blood Cells.
The tree had amped it up, now summoning these deadly cells in the shape of Fossil Pokemon. Now Twilight and her friends were prime targets for these cells as the closest to them were Applejack and Rarity. The cells broke out of the forest, soon reaching the flat land area that the two ponies stood on.
"W-What is that thing?!" Rarity was the first to notice as the cells started slithering and sliding in their direction. The two of them didn't want to find out what those cells were at all, so the time to flee was now.
"R-REGIROCK!" Until the circumstances worsened. Finding them by taking different routes was Regirock. It had burst through the trees, appearing before Rarity and Applejack by ascending into the air spinning for a bit.
"Not again! Why now?!" Applejack screeched.
"I suppose leaving it alone does not change the tree's view on us! It still sees us a threat!" Rarity backed up, seeing that she and Applejack were being blocked on both sides by Regirock and the White Blood Cells.
"ÜN ÜN ÜN!" Regirock had used Hyper Beam, building it up to blast them. It was either Hyper Beam or the White Blood Cells that would eat them. Either way, the options were not in their favour.
"Sceptile!" Sceptile grabbed onto them, being the next best way to flee. His vines. He unleashed his vines, causing them to fly far to the nearest cliff. Instead, they wrapped around some of those glowing crystals that hung on the walls. Sceptile pulled himself up, just in time to evade Hyper Beam from Regirock.
"REGIROCK!" Until Regirock started moving Hyper Beam, blasting the walls and the cliffs that were everywhere to reach where Sceptile had zoomed to. The cliff that Sceptile latched onto had been blown off, causing his momentum to be halted.
But what's worse was that Sceptile had nothing else to cling to now that the cliff and other cliffs had been blown away by Regirock's Hyper Beam. In short, they were all going to fall. "S-SCEPTIIIIIILE!
"GAAAAH!" The two of them screeched as Regirock needed time to recharge. However, the White Blood Cells were right underneath them, threatening to consume Rarity and Applejack the moment they touched the ground.
"Leavanny! Help!" Rarity counted on her next Pokemon to save her. Any of her 12 Leavanny would do. She raised one Poke Ball into the air, summoning one of the Leavanny.
"Leavanny!" Leavanny emerged. Knowing that the situation was dire, Leavanny used the one move that was close to Sceptile's vines but arguably thicker. String Shot. "Lea!" Out of Leavanny's mouth came a thick silky thread of string. With his expertise in thread weaving, Leavanny had made a net of string that latched onto the nearby walls, what was left of them anyway.
This net had caught them as Leavanny made a successful safe. However, that wouldn't mean too much as Regirock was still below them. Along with the White Blood Cells which were starting to eat away at the string.
"Saved us for now! But how are we going to get out of this?!" Rarity wondered. While Leavanny did save them from having a hard fall, they were still cornered. More White Blood Cells were showing up as they had minimal options once more. The White Blood Cells spread across the rest of the Tree of Beginning, making sure that there was nowhere else for them to escape.
The cells then scattered, latching parts of themselves onto Rarity and Applejack. They could not escape from them for much longer as they were already large enough to encompass the flat land and the forest nearby.
Sceptile, Leavanny and Delta Riolu were ignored as Applejack's hat was the first to be swallowed up. Regirock immediately stopped, knowing that the cells would handle things from here. Applejack's wriggled around with the cells forcing Sceptile and Riolu away from her. The same went for Leavanny to Rarity.
"Sceptile!" Sceptile went to try and cut the White Blood Cells, only for his attack to do absolutely nothing. The blade didn't even slice it in half. It simply bounced back. Leavanny and Riolu tried the same with Vacuum Wave and X-Scissor, failing to do anything.
These cells were seemingly immune to Pokemon attacks entirely. A perfect weapon against other creatures and the ultimate defence against those who try and destroy it.
"O-Our Pokemon, Rarity!" Applejack growled, going for her saddlebag as one of her hooves had already been overtaken.
They wanted their Pokemon to be safe from whatever happens next. They knew the Pokemon wouldn't be harmed after all. With the last of their hooves that hadn't been overtaken, they sent out each of their Pokemon. The 10 Golett, 11 more Leavanny, Ampharos, Milotic and Pheromosa had been sent out, only to see their partners be pulled away by these strange substances.
"All of you! Take care, okay?!" Rarity was mustering up the last of her words as her face was the last to be swallowed up. "I love you all, darlings!"
"This ain't the end, ya'll! We'll be back! That's the honest truth!" Those were Applejack's last words before also being taken by the cells. The Pokemon were in absolute shock as their trainers had been swallowed up so easily. Regirock said nothing. only turning around and walking off, leaving the Pokemon to be utterly distraught.
"Phe...Pheromo..." Pheromosa got on her knees, mortified by what she had seen. The cells along with Rarity and Applejack were gone.
"Sceptile...?" Sceptile touched the ground, trying to see if he could feel for Applejack. But he couldn't. Riolu trembled as he feared he lost another loved one so soon. He started trying to feel for Applejack's Aura, going to find it somewhere. All of the other Pokemon started tearing up, already missing their trainers. Some didn't lose hope after hearing what Applejack said, but it was hard for them not to feel so devastated.
The White Blood Cells spread far enough to catch the attention of Goh, Starlight, Spike and Axew who were on the back of Flygon still. They made their way through an upper cave which revealed more White Blood Cells popping out of the walls. Starlight grimaced at the sight of these liquid forces as one of the cells almost touched her.
Flygon was safe, even though he was instinctively flying out of the way. So was Axew. Flygon could see the exit to the cave, flying as fast it could. However, the blood cells only worsened as one of them extruded a part of its liquid gelatin-like body, grabbing onto Starlight's tail.
Starlight's mouth opened as that single part was enough to pull her off Flygon. "Goh! Spike!" She screeched, holding her hoof out.
"Starlight!" Goh grabbed Starlight's hoof as Flygon was forced to try and slow down. Spike joined in, also grabbing Starlight's hoof to try and pull her back. But that was all pointless as the White Blood Cell simply expanded itself. It was practically impossible for anyone to escape its grasp. "Hang on!"
"I can't...!" Starlight winced as she had used her magic to dig into her saddlebag before that would be taken away. Out of it was her Poke Ball and the only Pokemon inside. Hatterene.
"Hatterene?"
"Hatterene, use-" But before Starlight could give out a command, the White Blood Cell managed to overpower Goh and Spike, successfully pulling Starlight away. Not only that, but it removed a piece of itself, allowing it to hop onto its next target, which was Goh in this case.
"Ah!" Goh was hit by the White Blood Cell while Starlight was being dragged to the ground, using her magic to try and force herself back up. The cell was already spreading throughout Goh's body, pushing him off of Flygon.
"Goh! Starlight!"
"Flygon?!" Flygon immediately stopped in its tracks, no longer flying to the exit. Goh went for his Poke Balls next, thinking about the safety of his Pokemon. At least, the ones he had on hand right now, which were Cinderace, Grookey, Drizzile, Scizor and Raichu.
"Cinderace?"
"Hatterene! I don't know what's going on, but take care!" Starlight closed her eyes, realizing that her attempts were futile. "N-No need to worry!" Those were her last words before being dragged underneath with the White Blood Cells.
"We'll be back somehow! Just hang in there!" Goh yelled as he was also dragged underneath. Those were the next two taken away as the cells targeted Spike next.
They immediately got to Spike by appearing from above via sneak attack. And unfortunately for Spike, having a small body meant that it was easier for the cells to pull him away faster than the rest. Spike gasped as the cells were already going for his head.
"Axew!" Equestrian Axew grabbed onto the cells that covered his friend's head but it was all futile. Spike could not see but he could feel with his last moments. He grabbed onto his bag, ripping it off. That force allowed all of the Poke Balls inside to come tumbling out, freeing the rest of his Pokemon too from being swallowed.
His Salamence, Druddigon, Goodra and Deino were all free to witness Spike be swallowed up. Spike couldn't muster a word from his covered face, but he was certainly saying something sweet before being dragged to the ground off of Flygon's back.
"Xew! Axew!"
"Hm?" Stopping in his tracks was Ash. He was with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, heading to the top together. They were the only ones who hadn't come across a Regi. But they would come across something. This odd feeling that he sensed felt too familiar.
"What's up, Ash?" Rainbow Dash asked. And as soon as she did so, the velocity and speed spreading of the White Blood Cells eventually found themselves where Ash and the others way. "Ew! Gross!"
"Aren't those Fossil Pokemon?!" Fluttershy squeaked, hiding behind Ash. The cells found themselves the next two targets to consume. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. After that, they would pursue Twilight and Pinkie Pie as they started slithering toward them.
Rainbow Dash already had the intention of blowing away these cells, unaware of what they truly were. A Poke Ball containing any of her Pokemon had been held out with a grip strength ready to launch it at full power.
"Wait, Rainbow Dash." Ash stopped her suddenly. And for a good reason. The moment the White Blood Cells got close, they slowed down. For one reason only. Not for the Pokemon. But for Ash.
The White Blood Cells and essentially the Tree of Beginning recognized Ash. From his Aura to his appearance. And why would it? Ash did help save the Tree of Beginning after all. He was a human that they would not attack as the White Blood Cells stopped in their place.
"These are White Blood Cells, you guys." Ash introduced. "They protect the Tree of Beginning along with the Regis."
"Oh." The two pegasi spoke.
"Guessing it sensed you guys and started spreading everywhere," Ash said. "It might've gotten everyone else, swallowing them up."
"S-Swallowed them?!" Fluttershy yelled with her heart sinking.
"But no need to worry." Ash smiled, turning to the White Blood Cells. "Everyone that came here with me is my friend. If you have them, please let them go." He requested the substance.
The White Blood Cells understood clearly. Since they were friends of Ash, they were no longer deemed hostile. This time, Mew was not needed to bring them back. The cells would do it themselves. But not without something to assist them. Ash noticed that his body was glowing in response to the cells' actions.
"Huh?" He looked at himself, seeing that his Aura was exuding. Indeed, Aura and the Tree of Beginning had a powerful connection. While Mew wasn't needed, something else had to assist in the resurgence. Ash's Aura was the key as it had helped in bringing his friend back
Over with Sceptile and the others, as they sat and stood there, weeping for their trainers, all those tears subsided once those gelatin-like cells reappeared. The crystals started glowing a bluish colour. All of them across the tree as out of these cells, their trainers had returned.
Rarity and Applejack were spat back out, blinking as they were reasonably befuddled, perplexed and downright blown back by what they had just witnessed.
"Oh...Oh my." Rarity fell on her back. She needed some time to rest but her Pokemon would not allow them. Milotic and the others rushed over to Rarity while she was on her back, picking her up. A hug was due for this. They had only been gone for a few seconds but they felt so emotional with that little time. "Gh! Y-You all...! I can't breathe!"
"Sceptile! Sceptile!" Sceptile and his elated spirit picked up Applejack with Rilou grabbing her hoof.
"Yeah, I'm back. Told ya we'd return." Applejack giggled. "Not sure how though."
Returning were Goh, Starlight and Spike next. They had also been spat out by the cells with all of the crystals responding to the Aura of Ash. Axew had been knocked over once Spike was shot towards him. The two dragons rolled on the ground as Goh bumped right into Cinderace.
"Axew? Axew!" Axew, who was on the ground, noticed the return of Spike after a fairly hard crash to the face. But that pain didn't mean anything now.
"See? No need to worry." A confident yet still horrified Spike said as Goh's Pokemon flocked to him. Hatterene didn't want to show heavy emotions to anger herself. Now would be the worst time for that to happen. But Starlight's eyes perceived Hatterene's true emotions either way even if she didn't want to show them.
Exempt from the cells and frankly the only ones to have a close call were Twilight and Pinkie. The cells didn't reach them at all. They simply stopped under Ash's Aura and descended to the ground. Speaking of which, Twilight held the crystal piece she took earlier as it had also reacted to the Aura.
"This is Ash's Aura..." She recognized it instantly. This signature Aura glow belonged to Ash Ketchum, no doubt. Her group continued on their way up as they noticed how Registeel ceased following them. It and the other two Regis had been informed of Ash's presence. Friends of Ash are free from harm.
Ash's Aura faded away as he had done his part in returning his friends. Afterwards, the White Blood Cells left, no longer needing to stay active for the meanwhile. Ash felt some Delayed Aura Ataxia in him which made his body twitch. Thankfully, he didn't pass out nor was it a crucial effect.
"Uh...What just happened?" Rainbow Dash questioned.
"Don't worry about it. Let's keep going." Ash casually replied. "We're almost at the top. Pikachu recognizes parts of this place, right?"
"Pikachu!" Pikachu certainly did as Mew brought him here once. He could tell that they were close at this point so the best thing to do was to keep on moving. Rainbow Dash still wanted answers while Fluttershy also kept going without asking any questions. The multi-coloured-maned mare paused for a moment, looking at the glowing crystals that responded to Ash's Aura seconds ago. Eventually, she stopped questioning it, following her friends.
The objective to see the third Mew carried on with all threats being tossed aside. Granted, it was terrifying for them, being swallowed up and chased down by the Regis. But on the bright side, if they were to ever return, they would have nothing to worry about as the journey continues.
Chapter 748 End.