This article is about an episode of the Pokémon animated series that has not been dubbed into English. As such, its coverage may contain romanized Japanese names, rather than dub names.
Spoiler warning: this article may contain major plot or ending details.
Plot
As the Brave Olivine approaches Mount Pericarp, the Rising Volt Tacklers and their allies go over their plan one more time: they will divide into two teams, where Roy, Ult, and Friede will approach from the air and attract the Explorers' attention, while the other Trainers representing the 18 Tera Types will land and make their way towards the Laquium Core at the center of Laqua on foot, where Amethio and the Six Heroes will also be headed. The rest of the team will stay aboard the airship at the foot of the mountain, ready to take off if necessary. Dot emphasizes the importance of not letting any of the 18 Tera Type Pokémon be defeated, or otherwise, Pagogo won't have the power necessary to erase the Laquium Core. In Pericarp Town at the foot of the mountain, the townspeople act concerned upon noticing the Rising Volt Tacklers on the approach, but Yuha, who has actually met them before, angrily calls everyone out and expresses his complete faith in Liko and her friends. With the Brave Olivine slowing down on its final approach, Pagogo sends out a beam of light into the sky to act as a beacon for the Six Heroes. The landing airship is spotted by the Explorers, with an unsurprised Spinel ordering the Explorers agents to move out as planned to stop the Rising Volt Tacklers.
While Roy, Ult, and Friede make their planned approach from the air, they are intercepted by Coral and Sidian, only to lure them away from the others as they make their way through the woods, noticing the absence of Pokémon, caused by the Explorers' activity. A sudden barrage of Dark Pulses stops the land team, signaling them that the enemy is nearby, whose attacks Diana's Arcanine and Captain Pikachu intercept to protect everyone. In order to preserve Pagogo, Liko climbs on the back of Diana's Arcanine with Diana, Ann, and Cap and flees while Dot, Nemona, and Penny stay behind to fight the enemy, sending out Gholdengo, Decidueye, and Jolteon, respectively, to do so. The trio have their Pokemon attack the bushes the Dark Pulses are coming from, unveiling a trio of Cofagrigus and Runerigus. Nemona has Decidueye use Spirit Shackle on a Runerigus, while Penny has Jolteon use Thunderbolt on one of the Cofagrigus. Dot tries to stop them, sensing a trap, but the attacks are fired, taking down their respective targets suspiciously easily. The reason behind the easy defeats is quickly revealed when the two defeated Ghost Pokémon's Destiny Bonds activate, causing Decidueye and Jolteon to faint on the spot. Nemona and Penny recall their fainted Pokémon as their enemies, Rubina and Indi, reveal themselves. Nemona and Penny are outraged by their underhanded tactic and send out Ribombee and Vaporeon to join Gholdengo in the battle. However, their opponents use Destiny Bond again, forcing the trio to hold off on attacking to avoid repeating their previous mistake. Rubina and Indi capitalize on their hesitation and have three of their Pokémon use Curse, starting to deal damage on the trio's Pokémon, while one of the Runerigus uses Mean Look to prevent them from switching out and removing Curse's effect.
To Dot's delight and the enemy's frustration, Gholdengo turns out to be completely unaffected by Curse, thanks to its Ability, Good as Gold. As the enemies continue using Destiny Bond, Dot and Gholdengo remain as the only ones capable of breaking the stalemate, though Dot remains hesitant due to the burden her plan would have on Gholdengo. The Coin Entity Pokémon, however, is ready to take on this burden, so Dot has it use Make It Rain, defeating all four opposing Pokémon with a single attack. With only Gholdengo being defeated by Destiny Bond, the damages are minimized and Nemona and Penny are able to recall their Pokémon. Dot demands their enemies move aside, but instead, they send out a new trio of Cofagrigus and Runerigus, forcing the trio to send out Quaquaval, Pawmot, and Flareon to defend themselves. Rubina and Indi reveal that they're aware of the Rising Volt Tacklers' plan that requires all of the 18 Tera Types, use Strong Spheres to power up their Pokémon, and prepare to repeat their earlier strategy again. However, before Curse can be activated, an attack coming from the woods strikes the Ghost Pokémon, catching Rubina and Indi by surprise. Simultaneously, a Dusknoir emerges from the shadows and negates the attempted Curse. Seizing the chance, Nemona has Pawmot use Double Shock, which defeats all of the Cofagrigus before they can use Destiny Bond. The three Runerigus try to use Destiny Bond, but the appearance of a BloodmoonUrsaluna intimidates them so much they stop using the move, giving Penny's Flareon a chance to finish them off with Heat Wave. Being out of usable Pokémon, Rubina and Indi are forced to retreat and prepare the next phase of their plan. Dot, Nemona, and Penny are greeted by their unexpected helper, Hamber, who has now repaid his debt to Dot. Hamber barely has time to introduce Ursaluna to the trio before a squadron of Explorers agents appears to confront them. Hamber tells the trio to move on. They thank him and run off as Hamber prepares to cut loose against his new adversaries.
Elsewhere, Roy, Ult, and Friede confront Coral and Sidian, who come to realize they've been led away. ChalceTeleports in with her Xatu and declares their intention to defeat the three of them so that Terapagos can't use its power to erase the Laquium, revealing the Explorers' knowledge of the Rising Volt Tacklers' plan to Roy, Ult, and Friede as well. Chalce recalls Xatu and sends out Medicham to fight, while Coral and Sidian decide to battle using Glalie and Aerodactyl, respectively. Roy expresses his surprise at Sidian choosing to battle with a Pokémon other than Garganacl, with Sidian declaring that he's not going to reveal his tactics to them. Friede decides to also keep his own tactics hidden, recalling Charizard and sending out Starmie instead. Roy and Ult follow the example as well by recalling Kilowattrel and Dragonite and instead going with Lucario and Sableye. All three of them Mega Evolve their respective Pokémon, but to their surprise, the three Explorers Admins do the exact same with their own Pokémon, showing that they too have surprisingly close bonds with their Pokémon. Coral's Glalie uses Blizzard, creating such a vicious snowstorm that it obstructs the Rising Volt Tacklers' view of their opponents, with Sidian's Aerodactyl ambushing Lucario with Iron Head, which it quickly dodges. To counter the Blizzard, Friede has Starmie use Agility, dispelling the snowy winds. While Starmie and Lucario start attacking Medicham, Ult's Sableye manages to jam Glalie's mouth with its big gem. Although this inadvertently allows Glalie to use the gem defensively against Sableye, Glalie's Ice Spinner eventually sends the gem flying, allowing Starmie to catch it and return it up Sableye, who starts admiring the Mysterious Pokémon. Taking advantage of the situation, Aerodactyl attacks Starmie with Rock Blast, which it easily deflects, while Sableye in turn protects Starmie from Glalie's Sheer Cold. The confrontation between Mega-Evolved Pokémon rages on while Liko, Ann, Diana, and Cap approach the clearing at the center of Laqua.
This is the longest period of time between the introduction of a move in the core series games and its first appearance in the animated series, excluding moves that have yet to debut.
