XY106: Meeting at Terminus Cave!

Meeting at Terminus Cave! (Japanese: ついの洞窟！動き出したZの謎！！, Hepburn: Terminus Cave! The Mystery of Z is Set in Motion!!) is the 9th episode of Pokémon the Series: XYZ.

Synopsis

Ash and the gang arrive at the Terminus Cave, but Squishy soon run off to the spot where Zyarde was attacked by Team Flare and the later appears appears and attacks the gang to retrieve the Zygarde core.

Episode Plot

From a distance the gang sees and enters a mine, the Terminus Cave. Team Rocket observes as the gang climbs onto the platform towards the entrance and decides to follow them so they can capture Pikachu. Serena reads the cave used to be an old mine, but now it's abandoned and serves as a habitat for Pokémon, as Bonnie notices an Ariados, a Shuckle and a Lairon. Suddenly, Squishy jumps out of Bonnie's bag and hops off. The gang gives chase after Squishy, who seems to be looking for something. Serena calls out Braixen to illuminate the dark cave while Clemont activates a device for the same purpose. The gang crawls and climbs through the cave, wondering where Squishy has gotten to. Clemont is exhausted, but Squishy comes to the end of the chasm and leaps down.

Bonnie tries to follow Squishy, but Clemont holds her back. Since it is quite dark below, Ash calls out Noibat, who uses Supersonic to find a path, while Clemont calls out Luxray to use its vision to guide them. They find the entrance and go through it, but are followed by Team Rocket who call on Gourgeist to illuminate the path.

Squishy arrives at a pool illuminating the surrounding area in a green glow. It dives into the pool as a device senses its presence. Outside, men in red notice on the radar Z-1 has arrived and report to the headquarters. Squishy swims inside the pool and starts gathering energy. Meanwhile, Luxray senses something and runs off. The gang follows it thinking it found Squishy.

Squishy emits a wave to communicate with the other being Z-2, who has been wounded. The grunts see the radar has sensed the energy waves coming from Terminus Cave, enabling them to locate Z-2. Xerosic, inside the base, calls Aliana and Mable who call Z-1 foolish as they have found where it is. Z-1 tells Z-2 it must escape and notices the gang's arrival. Bonnie clarifies Squishy must not leave their sight and wander on its own. Squishy however, disappears, surprising both the gang and Team Rocket, the latter watching from above. Bryony arrives in Terminus Cave with her grunts, but is intercepted by Celosia, who claims she is late. Bryony ignores her, focusing instead on capturing Z-1.

The gang continues their search for Squishy, who is nowhere to be found. Bonnie and Ash strongly believe it to still be inside this cave. They call for Squishy, who lies on a stalactite. Suddenly, the gang is attacked by the men in red, who order them not to move. Drapion uses Sludge Bomb, meant as a warning from Celosia. Bryony and Celosia activate their goggles and search for Squishy. Celosia finds Squishy, allowing Bryony to hit it with her weapon. Squishy falls into the pool and swims off. Celosia and Bryony attack with their weapons but miss their target. Bryony fires a beam, which blows Squishy out of the pool and bashes it against a stalagmite. Bonnie is shocked to see Squishy wounded. She tries to go to it but Ash restrains her just in time as Drapion fires another Sludge Bomb. The gang decides to counterattack, while the men in red call out a pack of Houndour and a few Skorupi.

Ash calls out Noibat, who uses Supersonic on Drapion, distracting it so as to get a Tackle in. Bryony's Bisharp uses Iron Head on Noibat before using Metal Sound on everyone. Celosia orders a grunt to capture Squishy, but the grunt is hit by Seed Bomb as Team Rocket joins the fight. They recite their motto, but are insulted when Bryony replies with "...And?" Jessie and James are furious, for they claim to have Z-1 in their possession. Bryony and Celosia are unamused. Ash calls out Greninja, who retrieves Squishy, dodging a Cross Poison from Celosia's Drapion in the process before being hit by a Stone Edge from Bisharp. Pikachu, Braixen and Luxray use Thunderbolt, Flamethrower and Swift, but are countered by the grunts' Houndour and Skorupi's Dark Pulse. Greninja returns Squishy to Bonnie, who praises him. Celosia is angry, for Squishy is much more powerful then it looks. Bryony shushes Celosia to stop her from giving away important information. Jessie asks what Squishy could be, but Celosia refuses to give info to "idiots". Drapion uses Sludge Bomb, hitting everyone in sight. Bryony demands Squishy, but the gang promises to protect it at all costs. Bryony and Celosia see they are too stubborn and plan to attack. Squishy starts glowing, illuminating the area and revealing many "Cells" in the area, making Serena wonder if they are Squishy's friends. Squishy starts absorbing the "Cells" and transforms into its hound-like appearance, surprising everyone is shocked at this turn of events. Squishy activates its new form's powers, defeating both Teams Rocket and Flare in a single blow. After the attack, Bonnie finds this hound, who runs off. Bryony calls out Liepard and Celosia her Manectric, but the two are stopped by Pikachu and Greninja.

Liepard uses Shadow Claw which Greninja counters with Cut before being hit by Manectric's Thunderbolt. Pikachu uses Iron Tail on Manectric. Ash, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie arrive with Braixen and Luxray, though Greninja stands up and syncs its mind with Ash, transforming into its aqua-shrouded form in which it uses Water Shuriken, which is countered by Manectric's Shock Wave. Manectric follows up and hits Greninja with Scratch; mysteriously, Ash also feels the pain. He suddenly has a vision of Manectric and orders Greninja to use Cut. Manectric is defeated, so Liepard uses Shadow Claw. Greninja responds with Aerial Ace, countering Liepard's attacks and knocking it out. Greninja reverts to its original form and kneels exhaustedly along with Ash. Celosia and Bryony escape using Manectric's Flash. Team Rocket runs off as they also have a plan. With the battle now over, the gang notices Bryony and Celosia are gone. Squishy reverts to its original form and releases the Cells before turning invisible. Serena and Clemont wonder about Ash, who replies he felt like becoming Greninja for a second. Bonnie is concerned about Squishy.

Outside, Celosia and Bryony are pondering about their defeat. They notice the gang coming out of the cave and believe they should keep an eye on them, since they're connected to Z-1. Team Rocket finds Celosia and Bryony, claiming despite Team Flare's plans, this world belongs to their boss, Giovanni. Team Rocket runs off, though Celosia and Bryony find them pathetic. The gang searches for Squishy, wondering where it went. Clemont thinks Squishy ran off not wanting to cause any more trouble, but Bonnie reminds him that Squishy protected them and is thus their friend, to which the other three see she is correct. Bonnie promises to find Squishy, who watches them from behind the trees.

At headquarters, Xerosic and Lysandre watch the footage of Z-1. Xerosic believes Z-1 contains more power than they think. Lysandre asks about Z-2, to which Xerosic assures him it will be captured soon enough.

Debuts

Pokémon

• Celosia's Manectric
• Bryony's Liepard

Trivia

• "Pokémon Quiz:" Drapion (JP)

  

• "Who's That Pokémon?:" Drapion (US)
• This is the last episode aired in 2015.

Mistakes

Celosia's Manectric used Scratch in this episode, a move it cannot legally use in the games.