Moon and Lillie returned to Lusamine's office. By this point Moon had dried her tears and put on a brave face. This was her only way of dealing her nonexistence in this Alola. While Moon looked fine, the others could see on Lillie's face that something was up. "Are you all right, Moon?" Ash was the first one to ask.
"Just fine." Moon responded with a nod, placing her arms behind her back. "Sorry for worrying all of you."
"I guess she took it rather well…?" Takeba said quietly. She was trying to read the room and Moon was giving mixed symbols. To be fair, no one could quite read Moon right now either.
"I would've taken it a lot better if I wasn't told I didn't exist. So thanks for that, Faba." Moon was going through all sorts of emotions right now. But clearly she was upset at how blunt Faba was at delivering news.
"I am very sorry…!" Faba exclaimed. Moon's tone was not lost on him.
"Seriously, you can't go around telling people that." Elizabeth huffed.
"It's just a simple truth…" Faba adjusted his goggles. "There are likely other worlds where you don't exist as well." He told Elizabeth, but again, not the time or place.
"STOP IT!" Elizabeth yelled.
"…" One could see the distress on Moon's face, masked with a pout.
"Anyway…" Lusamine was trying to change the topic now that Moon returned. "Moon. I know this isn't what you need to hear right now, but keeping this information from you will only do more harm. As it stands right now, we have no way of returning you home. But I think that's for the best since you have a target on your back."
"I guess so." Moon shrugged. "I didn't know I had people after me…and it wouldn't be good for me going back as I am now."
"Do you know why they were after you?" Wicke inquired.
"Uhm…" Moon rocked her head back and forth. "No. They said I stole something, but I have absolutely no idea as to what that could be." It was quiet before she then had an idea. "Oh, actually…" From her short pocket, she pulled out a strange key; the only thing in her inventory that she had no recollection of. "I have this."
"How did you obtain that!?" Faba was the first one to ask. "That key is an important piece to one of our machines at Aether!"
"Is it?" Moon stared at the key. She was about to hand it over then realized that this was the key from her world, not theirs. This information was really messing with her and she groaned quietly to herself.
"Yes. It effectively serves as a power switch for a device that opens up Ultra Wormholes." Lusamine explained. "Without it, the machine barely functions. There are ways to force the machine to work, but it doesn't for very long and is very ineffective."
"So if we put the pieces together…" Rotom was adding everything together. "Moon comes from another Alola and that Team Rainbow Rocket is after her. But if she has this key that means they must be unable to freely open Ultra Wormholes-roto!"
"So…they're after me because they can't freely move about between worlds?" Moon scratched her head. "I don't remember how I got this, but I guess I must've been aware of what they were planning and stole it…"
"It seems like you were thinking ahead at the time." Lana said with a nod. But that still beget the question as to what exactly was happening over in Moon's Alola? It couldn't be anything good with that Team Rocket roaming about, but it didn't seem like bringing that up was a wise idea.
In fact, Lusamine was likely aware that the situation in Moon's Alola wasn't…the best, all things considered. But worrying Moon over something like that was counterintuitive. There was no reason to make this poor girl suffer or worry anymore today. "I think that key would be safer in your hands."
"You're trusting me with it…?" Moon pointed at herself.
"I think it's a good move!" Ash said with a firm nod. "You've kept it safe this far. And we'll be here to help you!" Ash and the rest of his friends all held friendly smiles. But those smiles just couldn't quite resonate with Moon.
"You did try to protect Lillie, so…" Gladion mumbled. But his voice was still loud enough for Moon to hear; whether this was intention or not wasn't clear.
"…Okay, thanks." She managed a halfhearted smile of her own. She wouldn't deny their help, but nothing was going to stop her from feeling like an outcast since she technically was.
"Shadow Pokémon, another Alola…" Wicke was keeping track of all of this. "Moon, if you have any more questions, I'm sure that Professor Burnet will be happy to aid you. She works with us and knows about Ultra Wormholes as well."
"And we have but one more question for you all before you leave." Lusamine said, gesturing to Marcus and the others. "I know this may seem out of the blue, but since Alola seems to have one more wave of danger coming its way, I'd like to ask if you'd be a part of the Ultra Guardians. We were going to disband them soon, but…"
"You mean we get to wear those cool outfits?" Marcus asked.
"You thought those were cool!?" Takeba's eyes widened in horror. As the fashionista, this wounded her.
"They're surprisingly comfortable." Kiawe added as if that would convince Takeba otherwise.
"If we're going to be staying in Alola for a while, I don't see why not." Grace shrugged her shoulders. "If Cipher is still standing on its last legs, then I say we go for it. I don't like leaving things half finished."
"We'll join the Ultra Guardians, then." Scott said simply.
Lusamine clasped her hands together. "Wonderful! I'll need you all to stay just a little longer then so we can take your measurements!" She had to make their outfits perfectly tailored after all.
"Yes, please take my measurements." Elizabeth said on instinct. "I also call dibs on black and red!"
"I want pink!" Takeba shouted.
"…I'm already pink." Lillie mumbled.
"I don't particularly care." Scott said.
Mallow leaned over, giving Moon a smile. "What about you, Moon? Do you want to join the Ultra Guardians as well?"
"Ah…" Moon thought about it for a moment before shaking her head. "Sorry, I don't think I'm suited for that sort of thing. Protecting Alola...should be your guys' job." As in she felt like she shouldn't join the Ultra Guardians because this Alola wasn't hers to defend. It had gone on safely without her, and her inclusion wouldn't change much, she thought.
"Well, we'll always have a spot open if you change your mind!" Ash gave Moon a childish grin. Pikachu also did the same.
"While we take care of your friends, the rest of you are free to go home. It's been a long day." Lusamine said while standing up from her seat. "We'll let you know when we have an idea of Team Rainbow Rocket's next attack. The next time they plan to strike, we will be prepared to counter attack! But you have my word that they will not be able to strike for a while, so you can relax."
"I'm so hungry…" Sophocles was ready to go home and eat!
Just before Lillie and Gladion could leave, Lusamine moved faster than light, wrapping her arms around both her children to embrace them tightly. "And I'm so glad my babies are safe! You two fought so hard out there, I'm proud of you!"
"M-Mother…!" Lillie was so embarrassed by this!
"M-Mother…" Gladion grit his teeth, glancing away with embarrassment written all over his angsty expression. They understood that Lusamine was worried about them, but did she have to act like this in front of everyone!? At least it got a good laugh out of everyone.
Everyone except for Moon, who was starting to see more and more how this Alola differed from her own, despite its similarities. "…"
.
.
In an undisclosed location somewhere in Alola….
There was a lab somewhere within the Alola region. Trudley returned to what was Chiper's temporary base of operations, panicking after the events of the Shadow Drapion. "We got a problem, boss! The Shadow Drapion has been captured!"
His large afro jiggled at the news. Miror B turned around, jiving in place. "Oh, is that so? Now that has just gone and ruined my dance flow! Is what I would say if this wasn't an acceptable outcome."
"Huh?" Trudely tilted his head. The peon of Miror B did not understand. "But that means the International Police are onto us now! They know we're here in Alola! I barely escaped that blue haired chick from Kalos the other day, too!"
"It sounds like they're really onto us…" Said Folly, the other peon of Miror B. "What do we do, boss? They're gonna hunt us down!"
"Let them." That voice came from Cipher's former head scientist: Ein. Everyone's favorite. "They can run around in circles attempting to pinpoint our location, but they won't find us in time before our grand plan begins."
"You can stop pretending like this is a group effort." Miror B said while grinning at Ein. "We all know you're acting on your own interests. But that's just the thing I like about your groove, Ein old friend! I'm just interested in snagging as many Pokémon as I possibly can before putting the world under the Miror B groove!"
Ein's shades hid the exasperated roll of his eyes. "And yet you released me from prison; not Venus, not Gorrigan, not Ardos."
"Because you were the brains of the operation!" Miror B responded with a wide grin. "Venus is lovely, but she's fallen so far from grace after that tournament in Kalos. And Lovrina turned into a goody goody! Now she works for the International Police and the only one capable of combating her brain is the original scientist behind the project!" Also, Miror B only had enough time to break one person out of prison.
Ein was well aware Miror B was just saying the things he wanted to hear, but this was fine. It served as proper motivation. "Lovrina has been a thorn in my side from the very beginning. I'll gladly be rid of her. That being said, the capture of Shadow Drapion doesn't matter, for that was a test. When the HQ in Kalos fell and I was imprisoned, the data was stolen away by the International Police. Luckily your sticky fingers snagged the few remaining Shadow Pokémon in our possession."
"Because the boss is amazing!" Folly grinned.
"Yeah, sure," Ein ignored the two grunts and continued talking, bringing up a map of the Alola region for all to see. "I've been doing some research on Alola and digging deep into its culture. That's when I discovered something interesting. Z-Power is a source of energy only found within the Alola region. I thought Mega Evolution could be the pinnacle of Shadow Power, but I see now that there were even more options than before. So, what would happen if we mixed Z-Power with Shadow Power?" As Ein spoke, held up a Z-ring. Obviously it was obtained through dubious means, but this was the catalyst for his new experiment. "Z-moves are strong moves, but they are fleeting. If we could replicate that strength permanently…"
"Oh ho!" Miror B clasped his hands together, performing a flip and stylishly stuck the landing. "Using the peak of Z-Power to flood into a Pokémon, along with Shadow Power? Now that sounds like a devilishly powerful combination!"
"Uh," Trudely spoke up. "But do you really think we can get away with such a thing freely? Isn't this place protected by like, four Island Guardians? I've heard they're really strong!"
Ein pressed a button, showing Tapu Koko, Fini, Bulu, and Lele on the screen, each one on their respective island. "The Island Guardians. Protectors of Alola. Yes, after a certain point, I doubt they'll leave us to our own devices. But that is perfectly fine. I want to catch their attention down the line…because I wish to catch them."
"Bold plans!" Miror B was loving it. A daring dance! "The climax of your research, I assume?"
"Indeed." Ein nodded. "Once I have completed research in Alola, I will aim to make the Tapus mine as Shadow Pokémon! Then Alola will have no choice but to bow to me."
"That's a pretty huge jump." Folly said. "I know you guys managed to get Mewtwo as a Shadow Pokémon, but you had a much bigger operation then. We're just…a few dudes."
"You don't think I've accounted for that? The first thing I want to do when we have more firepower is release a few of our allies from prison." Ein said. "Even if they've fallen from grace, even I know we cannot hope to win the coming war with such a small force. There is also one thing I'd like to try before aiming for the Tapus."
"And that is?" Miror B lifted a brow, sliding in place.
"There is a strange phenomenon I've learned recently known as Ultra Wormholes. Supposedly they lead to other worlds. Creatures who reside in these other worlds are called Ultra Beasts." Ein adjusted his shades. "I would like to see if I could have them under my grasp as well."
"You just keep doing you, darling." Miror B said while waving a hand. "You're free to do whatever you like. After all, I busted you out to help me, and you seem to have that covered!"
The condition for Miror B not turning Ein back over was to aid him. Ein accepted these conditions and was pleasantly surprised to find that he was generally left to do as he pleased so long as Miror B approved, and Miror B was rather generous if it meant he could capture more Pokémon. "Heh. You won't regret it. And if possible, I need to find another contender for Shadow Trainers. XD-002 was a fine prototype…"
"You know…" Trudely began. "The ones who caught Shadow Drapion? It was that kid and his friends from Kalos, the ones who stopped you guys before."
This information made Ein's eyes widen in delight. "…Is that so? I think this will be a very fun opportunity. The Shadow Initiative will lead way into the Shadow Project's Second Coming!"
.
.
A few days had gone by. It was early morning and Takeba was reading up on the Island Challenge. Now that she had a Z-ring, obtained through her questionable methods, she was trying to decide what she wanted to do first. Eventually she got an idea and closed the book, pumping a fist into the air. "It sounds like we'll have some hard battles ahead of us in the future. So that's why I'm going to buckle down and challenge a Kahuna!"
.
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Next Time: Takeba's Trial.
