24x16 - Absol Absolved! (The Detested Absol!)

[bunniefuu]

[playful music]

[warbles]

[narrator] Ash's goal is to battle one of the world's greatest Trainers, Leon.

Goh's goal is to catch one of every kind of Pokémon, including Mew.

This is the story of their adventure-filled journey

through the world of Pokémon.

[camera shutter clicks]

[bright music]

-[Cerise] An investigation? -[Goh] Right.

This guy we know, Hodge, contacted us. He's from the Hoenn region.

We became friends during the Battle Frontier Flute Cup.

-What's the investigation? -[Goh] His uncle owns a hot spring resort.

The hot water suddenly just went away.

-You see? Here it is. -[Cerise] It just stopped?

[Goh] Yup. And about the same time, someone apparently saw Absol.

Are you serious?

Supposedly Absol made the hot springs dry up.

At least that's what the rumor is.

[Rotom phone] Absol. The Disaster Pokémon.

A Dark type.

Absol appears when it senses a disaster is about to happen.

As a result, people mistake it for a catastrophic omen.

[Ash] So they want us to investigate Absol.

[Goh] They used to call Absol, the Pokémon who brings disaster.

And it seems there are people who still believe it.

It's a superstition.

So, I was thinking we'd go and see what's up. Right?

-[Pokémon gibber] -[Goh] Hmm.

It sounds exciting.

Then I think you two should go out and help your friend Hodge.

[Ash and Goh] Thanks.

♪ Take me on a journey ♪

♪ Please choose me ♪

♪ We could be the best team of all time ♪

♪ We'll do everything together ♪

♪ Learning, training, never stopping ♪

♪ Go, go, go ♪

♪ Anywhere you're going, so am I ♪

♪ Take me on a journey to your heart ♪

♪ The journey to your heart ♪

♪ Pokémon! ♪

[theme music]

[Ash and Goh] "Absol Absolved!"

[narrator] Our heroes and their Pokémon have arrived in Lavaridge Town,

located in the Hoenn region.

The town's famous hot springs make it a popular place for tourists.

Oh.

-[Hodge] Hey. -Hari!

-[Ash] It's Hodge. -[Goh] Long time, no see.

[Hariyama gibbering]

-Hariyama. -Good to see you, guys.

Goh, you've brought along quite a Pokémon.

-Say hi to Grookey. -Grookey.

Grookey. Nice to meet you.

[grunting]

Huh?

[grunting continues]

[gibbers] Grookey.

-[screams] -Pika?

[crashes]

[Hodge groaning]

[gibbering]

[grumbles]

That didn't hurt. I didn't feel a thing.

I'm so glad you and Hariyama are doing great.

Hariyama.

-Pika! -Grookey, key!

-[Ash] Everything's all closed up, huh? -[Hodge] It's awful, right?

Nobody can use the hot springs, which means no more tourists.

And that can't be good for a tourist spot.

The whole town, including my uncle,

is blaming this whole hot spring mess on Absol.

And boy, are they angry.

But isn't that superstition?

I'll show you. Come on.

[tranquil music]

-What's that? -According to my uncle,

it's a monument that's been here since ancient times.

[mysterious music]

That's Absol?

-Pika? -Grookey?

[Hodge] Starting long ago, every time Absol would appear,

the town would experience disaster.

They say that this monument was put here as a warning for future generations.

Just take a look over there.

It looks like Absol appeared when the hot springs dried up back then.

So that's why they're convinced Absol's the one who caused it?

[Hodge] I don't really get it myself, but my uncle and the townsfolk are mad.

So I thought if I talked to you, we could somehow figure it all out.

You know, Hodge, you're a good guy.

[grunts] Keep it to yourself.

[Hodge] Here's the inn my uncle runs.

[all gasp]

[tense music]

Uncle, what are you doing?

If it isn't Hodge.

We're taking care of this Absol problem, once and for all. Come along.

-Once and for all? -We can't take it anymore!

We'll make sure Absol doesn't mess with the town's peace ever again!

[all] Yeah!

Hey. Wait a second.

[Uncle] Who are these guys?

Ash and Goh are friends of mine.

Grookey and Pikachu, too. I asked them to help investigate.

Really?

[shudders]

Ha! These kids don't look like they could be any help at all.

-What? -Grookey!

But, sure. It never hurts to have more people around.

Come along with us.

It's possible Absol appeared to warn you that something bad was gonna happen.

Messing with it would be a gigantic mistake.

[scoffs] Some nerve you've got.

-You have no idea. -If you've got proof, bring it on.

[Uncle] Are you kids here to throw a wrench in what we're trying to do?

We're asking for time.

We're here to investigate and find out the real reason.

What if you're wrong and Absol's innocent?

So come on, give them a chance.

These two are really smart when it comes to knowing about Pokémon.

You've got two hours.

If you can't figure it out by then, that's it.

[Ash and Goh] Mm-hmm.

[Grookey gibbers]

-[Ash] Not a drop of water. -Pika!

So, Hodge, when did the hot springs start to dry up?

Probably around two weeks ago or so.

[Hodge] My uncle saw Absol in the mountains

just as the water suddenly started cooling off,

and before long, the water stopped completely.

[Rotom phone trills]

So, the water in Lavaridge Town comes from a spring in Mt. Chimney?

That's right. It comes from a spot in the mountain

and is brought here by some sort of pipe.

All the townspeople are scared of Absol,

so they haven't gone anywhere near the water source.

The fact that it went lukewarm first makes me wonder.

Grookey.

Ash, why don't we go see for ourselves if we can discover any other clues?

-Okay. -In the meantime,

I'll try to get my uncle to listen to reason.

I'll let him know there are better things to do with his time.

-Sounds like a good idea. -Don't worry, I've got this.

[Goh] With only a single path leading up to Mt. Chimney,

there's no way we're ever gonna get lost.

This is getting kind of fun.

[gibbers]

[both panting]

[both gibbering]

-[grunting] -This is pretty steep.

Sure is.

[mysterious music]

Finally. Looks like we're almost up there.

-[whooshes] -[gasps]

[Grookey shudders]

-It's Absol. -Pika.

Absol.

Absol!

-Look out! -[Pikachu] Pika!

-[Grookey groans] -Are you all right?

-Pika… -What did you do that for?

[Absol grunting]

[all scream]

[grumbles]

[gibbers]

Absol, sol!

[gibbers]

[screaming] Grookey!

-[gasps] -[Grookey grunts]

[groans]

[Goh] Grookey.

Are you all right?

-Aw. Take a rest for a while. -[zaps]

-So Absol got away -Oh, man.

[Goh] What would make Absol suddenly attack us out of nowhere like that?

[Ash] Now what do we do?

There's no choice. We need to find another route.

-Right. -Pika.

-[Goh grunting] -Hang on a second.

Pikachu.

[all screaming]

It's the pipe.

We just need to follow it, and it will lead us right to the spring.

[gasps] There it is.

[Ash] Thank goodness. What a hike!

[Pikachu] Pika?

[light music]

Whoa, it's frozen solid.

[Goh] So this must be the reason the water stopped flowing.

Pika.

-[grunting] -[clinks]

But why would the water freeze over?

Normally, no matter how cold the weather, hot spring water won't freeze.

[Goh] That's because it's heated and pushed to the surface

by underground magma.

So that means something must've happened down underground.

Hmm, but how are we going to get down there to investigate it?

Hah. I thought this might happen. Quick, let's go.

-[trilling] -Tran.

Now, Trapinch, it's time to use Dig.

[gibbers]

[thudding]

[Goh] Nice digging.

Trapinch?

Hey! What's going on down there?

[Goh gasps]

[shivering]

Sorry, Trapinch. It must've been really cold.

[Goh] It's frozen.

Something's really weird here.

-[wind blows] -[all shiver]

-So cold. -Pikachu.

[shuddering] I don't think I've ever been this cold.

[all quivering]

[Goh sneezes]

-Huh? -Pika.

[suspenseful music]

-What is that? -Is that a Glalie?

Glalie!

[Ash] Who's that Pokémon?

-Pika? -Absol.

Pika, pika.

[tense music]

[grunts]

[Rotom phone] Glalie. The Face Pokémon. An Ice type.

Glalie's body is made of ice so hard, even fire won't melt it.

It can instantly freeze the humidity in the air.

-Glalie! -[both scream]

Pikachu, use Electroweb.

[gibbers]

[expl*si*n]

-Glalie! -[all scream]

-[sneezes] -Freezing.

[Ash shivers]

-'Kay, Pikachu, this time… -Wait a minute.

-[both gasp] -How come?

Do you think that it's Glalie who's responsible for all of the ice?

Glalie.

[Goh] It might have friends nearby. Let's lie low and follow it.

[quirky music]

[both gasp]

[Glalie] Glalie.

-Glalie? -Glalie?

Sno…

-Hey, it's a Snorunt. -So, it did have friends nearby.

[chimes]

[Rotom phone] Snorunt. The Snow Hat Pokémon. An Ice type.

Snorunt can only live in frozen conditions.

It survives by eating ice.

[Ash] Hey, maybe Snorunt got lost and wound up here.

[Goh] This mountain is way too warm for Snorunt to stay.

That's must be why they froze everything, so Snorunt could live there.

So, if we just do something about the Glalie,

the hot springs will warm up.

And in that case, it means catching Pokémon.

[Ash and Goh gasp]

-Pika. -It's Absol.

[Pokémon gibber]

-[grunts] -[all gasp]

What are you getting in the way for, Absol?

[Goh] We finally understand what happened here.

[both gasp]

[pensive music]

[Absol grunts]

I wonder why Absol keeps on attacking us.

It probably has a reason.

You know, Ash? I wanna believe in Absol.

I feel just like you do. But I…

The look in Absol's eyes…

Huh. I wonder if Absol could have come all the way out here

to try to warn us about something.

[Goh] Hmm.

[rotom beeping]

[phone rings]

Hey there, Goh. It hasn't been easy here.

-Have you figured anything out yet? -[Goh] Yeah.

The reason the hot springs stopped

is several Glalie are living here and froze the hot water solid.

That's unbelievable. So, it wasn't Absol after all.

About that, there's something I'd like to ask you, okay?

No prob. What's up?

[Goh] I want you to check if the same thing that's happening now

was drawn on that stone monument we saw earlier.

-I'll get on it right away. -[phone beeps]

Sorry, Uncle. I'll talk to you later.

-I've got to do something. -[receding footsteps]

Hmph.

What's up, Goh? Why did you ask Hodge to do that?

I think there are several disasters Absol was warning us about

that are carved into that monument,

and if one of them happens to match the situation we're investigating now…

Then maybe that could help us understand

what Absol's been trying to tell us all along, you know?

-That's right. -[phone rings]

-Huh? -[phone beeps]

-Hello? -[Hodge] Goh, bingo.

There's a picture of the source of the hot springs freezing over.

Huh?

-[Goh] What's up? -[Hodge] I don't really get it.

It's next to a carving of the mountain erupting.

[Hodge] You think that they happened at the same time?

Huh? Thank you so much, Hodge.

-What was that about? -[phone beeps]

I'm pretty sure what Absol was trying to tell us…

[Goh] It's this.

[Ash] Huh? An eruption?

Three hundred years ago, some Glalie got lost,

and they froze over the hot springs.

Then, when the ice heated back up,

it let off a ton of steam which then erupted.

-Huh. -Pika?

When there's a whole lot of steam underground,

the pressure can really build up, you know? Think of it.

Like when you shake up a carbonated drink

-and the gas expands until… -[expl*si*n]

-[hisses] -Whoa, that's really bad.

As soon as the ice melts, the very same thing could happen again.

And that's why Absol got in the way when you tried to catch the Glalie.

Yeah. We've still got time.

[expl*si*n]

-Pika! -[Ash] What was that?

[Goh] A burst of steam.

The beginning of the eruption. We gotta hurry.

[enchanting music]

Hey, Goh? You said we'd stop the eruption, but how can we do it?

[Goh] We break up the rocks and let the steam escape.

[Ash] Right. Got it.

Cinderace, go!

[trilling]

Cinderace.

Pyro Ball. Let's go. [grunts]

Cinderace!

Cinderace.

Cinder…

Pikachu, use Thunderbolt.

Pika… chu!

-Those rocks are really tough. -[Pikachu grunts]

-Try it again. -Right.

-Cinderace, use Pyro Ball. -Pikachu, use Thunderbolt.

-Cinderace! -Pikachu!

[both gasp]

-It didn't work. -Ab!

-[both gasp] -It's Absol.

[screaming] Absol!

[Ash] Whoa!

[yells]

[both gasp]

[epic music]

[shouting]

-Wanna help, too? -Yeah.

[screaming] Absol!

-All right, Pikachu, use Thunderbolt. -Cinderace, use Pyro Ball.

-Cinderace! -Pikachu!

Absol, absol. Absol!

[expl*si*n]

[cracks]

-Yes! -But it's not working fast enough.

[Pikachu gasps]

[panting] Absol…

[groans] Absol.

-Absol? -Now what?

[yelling] Absol!

[expl*si*n]

-Absol did it. -[all scream]

Huh?

Absol!

[both gasp]

[steam hisses]

[epic music]

[whirring]

[chimes]

[Rotom phone chimes]

[Rotom phone] Absol has been registered to your Pokédex.

[gibbers]

[Goh grunts]

[trilling]

Absol, I'm so glad you're okay.

[Goh] The steam's been let off safely and things are calming down.

-So, no eruption? -This should make things normal again.

-[Ash giggles] -Pika.

Thanks so much for warning us about the danger, Absol.

I'm sure you've gotta go.

Absol.

Uh, what's going on?

[gasps] You don't mean there's another disaster.

[sighs]

[Goh gasps]

-Huh? -[trilling]

[gasps]

Absol's just letting you know it's glad that you caught it.

Oh.

You mean you'll come with me?

[chimes]

Goh, that's amazing.

-Pika. -Cinderace.

[cheerful music]

Absol, let's be good friends.

[tranquil music]

Ahh, the hot water feels so good.

-It doesn't get any better than this. -The water temperature's perfect.

[Pokémon gibber]

Grookey, key.

You know, Grookey, I'm so glad you're feeling better.

Grookey.

Thanks a lot, guys. Because of your help, the hot springs are back to normal.

[Hodge] Soon, we'll take the Glalie and Snorunt to a much colder place.

I'm sure Mt. Chimney's not ideal for them at all.

That's the right thing to do.

How did the talk with your uncle and his friends go?

They're done blaming Absol, right?

It's kind of funny you should bring that up.

[Hodge] My uncle always has a way of, uh…

I have to apologize.

-With… -Cold water?

Pika?

Thing is, since the Glalie went through all of that,

Uncle wants to freeze himself, too.

But why?

I didn't understand what you and Absol were trying to do.

Since you did everything you could to save our town,

if I don't apologize, it'll haunt me forever.

Won't you please forgive me?

[all scream]

[Uncle] We made such a mistake. Thank you for everything.

[quivering]

You can stop now. We totally understand how you feel.

Now, please get into the hot spring.

[chuckling] Are you feeling better now?

Oh, yeah. It does my heart good to know that it's all hot water

under the bridge, if you catch my drift.

[both] Huh?

[snickers] My uncle likes to tell a lot of dad jokes.

So, humor him, okay?

-I get it. Water under the bridge. -Huh?

-Wish I did. -[all laugh]

-[all gasp] -[Uncle grunts]

Hey, that hurt. Not really.

[all laugh]

[narrator] With Absol in the clear and impending doom avoided,

Lavaridge Town is at peace, as the journey continues.

[closing theme music]