The prison break was a resounding success. Ein, Miror B, Trudly, and Folly managed to rescue a sizeable force of Chiper from the hands of the International Police with the help of Miror B's former subordinates: Ferma and Reath. The likes of Nascour, Gorrigan, Venus, Ardos, and Dakim were prepared for one final attempt as the Chiper organization. Upon reaching their new Alola hideout, Venus was the first one to speak, shivering from the abnormal temperature. "Ugh, HONESTLY!? You pick the tropical island getaway to hide away in, and you pick the absolutely COLDEST place!? What is wrong with you!?"

"I don't see the issue. It's quite lovely and serene." Ein responded to Venus' complaint with a causal smile. That only irritated the diva that much more.

"So whose heads are we busting open!?" Dakim's fist slammed into his palm. He was the muscle of the organization for a reason and couldn't wait to get back to doing what he did best!

"I suspect you have some sort of plan, Ein. You wouldn't go through the trouble of rescuing us from prison if you didn't." Nascour said curiously.

"Unless he just missed the company of yours truly!" Venus hummed.

"No." Ein said.

Miror B then started to dance around as usual. "Ah, this feels like old times! The several of us bickering and arguing while discussing the plan~"

Gorrigan felt left out of this, but also didn't care. He was too busy glancing around their current HQ to care. "Hmm…" Trudly, Folly, Reath, and Ferma were too intimidated by the Admin's presence to say anything. All they could do was listen to the conversation that was happening.

"Oh, it's you." Nascour folded his arms across his chest. "It's been too long, Miror B. Did you enjoy snooping under our noses in Kalos?"

"Did you enjoy that groovy thrashing that Sinnoh's Champion gave you? That was a beat I could get behind." Miror B flashed an annoying smile while doing the robot.

"He's got you there." Dakim laughed. And then he was suddenly extremely infuriated because he remembered losing to. "AH! Those damned kids! I just remembered!"

"You mean you forgot?" Venus had a deadpanned look. "I've been clinging to revenge ever since I was thrown into that dirty slammer!" She then flipped her golden brown hair over her shoulder, letting out a haughty laugh. "But I suppose it was all right in the end. After all, I was the cause of that Kasumi girl collapsing in the end. That'll show Grace not to ever mess with me."

"And what about the pink haired one who took you out?" Ein asked.

"Oooooh! I will never forgive that bimbo for defeating me and making me look like an utter fool!" Venus growled.

"Then you're all in luck." Ein gave a wide smile while turning to his comrades. "This will be our final chance to turn the world upside down. You're all gathered here today for the purpose of pushing Neo Cipher back into the world."

"So that's what we're goin' with?" Gorrigan scratched his head like a Mankey. "Fine with me. Just tell me what I need to do and I'll CRUSH the opposition."

"Our objective is quite simple. The International Police have been onto our general location for a while; however they have been unable to pinpoint exactly where we are." Ein turned to a screen, displaying a map of Alola. "So while they are distracted, we use this time to gather data and cause a little bit of havoc to distract them. My end goal is to capture the Island Guardians and have them at our disposal. Before that, I would attempt to capture the beings known as Ultra Beasts."

"Wow, you've thought this through." Dakim said, somewhat impressed. "But what are we gonna do without Shadow Pokémon!?"

"Oh, honey, don't worry." Miror B snickered. "I ran off with all the Shadow Pokémon you had back in your little hideout in Kalos. You can thank me later."

"You were just trying to steal from us!" Venus snapped.

"Haven't you heard? If you love something, set it free. If it's yours, it'll return to you!" Miror B said while moon walking in place.

"I cannot stand you." Venus pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Is there anything we should be worried about on Alola?" Nascour cut right to the chase. "If the International Police are here, then it stands to reason that…"

That's when Trudly decided to speak up, but again, he was extremely intimidated in the presence of these Admins. "A-As it turns out…some of the trainers who stood in your way before are in Alola. Now, we don't know how many, or who, but we've seen that blue haired girl Elizabeth and the guy known as Marcus! So the others could be around!" They never did find out who captured the Shadow Drapion.

"Ooooh! So they are here!?" Venus' eyes lit up with both delight and rage. "I can't WAIT to get my revenge on all of those little brats! What's the first order of business?!"

This made Ein smirk. At long last, his dream of being able to rule the world with an iron fist could finally come to fruition. Evice was defeated by Wes, Greevil was a man who attempted to use the remains of Chiper to strike back, but in the end he was foiled by Michael, Wes was held back by his humanity and Rui, but Ein had no such weakness. This time, the organization would succeed. "The first order of business is…"

.

.

Ash and friends decided to take a relaxing day today, all gathering at the beach to have some fun! It would kill whatever tension remained and they could take the chance to just chill. The last few days had been eventful and they all deserved a chance to relax before thing inevitably picked up. While the group's Pokémon were enjoying their time at the beach, Ash, Marcus, Kiawe, Takeba, Lana, and Scott were all playing volleyball on the beach! Ash, Kiawe, and Scott were on one team, while Marcus, Lana, and Takeba were on the other! Everyone else was just watching the game play out. The game was all tied up at 4 points; whoever got the next Ash hit the ball over the net, aiming for the spot that seemed most open. "Got it!"

"Not so fast!" Marcus dove forward, hitting the ball up.

"And boom!" Takeba followed up. The two of them were in sync and it was somewhat frightening. Takeba palmed the ball over the net, not exactly aiming for anything, but the force of her strike was intimidating.

"Hit it up!" Kiawe told Ash and Scott. There was an odd fire in his eyes and that only meant one thing.

"Right…" Scott nodded, acting fast to push the ball into the air, leaving it open for Kiawe to strike.

Kiawe took a high leap into the air, rearing his arm back. He was so intense one could almost see flames blazing around his arm! It was all dramatic effect, but what he was about to unleash was anything but an effect. "This strike is the zenith of all that I am! INFERNO OVERDRIVE STRIKE!"

"What's he doing…." Takeba took a step back. She got her answer as Kiawe SLAMMED the ball as hard as he could! There was so much force there may have been a trail of flames behind it. Takeba's eyes widened and she panicked. "Oh god! I-I got it…!" She went to run, but tripped and fell into the sand. Luckily her clumsiness allowed the ball to bounce off of her and off to the side.

"Wait…!" Marcus scurried ahead, just barely managing to hit the ball into the air.

And now…it was Lana's time to shine. Her blue eyes flashed yet she was as calm and serene as the ocean. A graceful leap into the air was taken and she spun around, hitting the ball with all her might. "HYDRO VORTEX SLAM!" And to everyone's surprise, her strike was even stronger than Kiawe's! No one had the chance to react as Lana essentially overpowered Kiawe and the ball was in the sand before they realized what was going on.

"…And it's over! Lana's team wins!" Sophocles said!

"Way to go, Lana! You too, Marcus and Takeba!" Mallow clasped her hands together.

"You all did great!" Lillie smiled.

"That game came down to the wire!" Rotom added.

"…." Elizabeth and Grace just looked at each other.

"…What are these kids?" Elizabeth said. She had no idea what she just watched. She was not expecting Lana to be the 'powerhouse' of the group.

"No idea…" Grace shrugged her shoulders. Ash just made weird friends, but they were all good kids.

Kiawe was a good sport about it! But of course his defeat did include him sulking on all fours in the sand. "So close…" This wasn't the first time Lana had outdone him in some sort of physical competition. Why did it not feel like it would be the last either? Well, you know what they say: water does beat fire.

Elizabeth stretched her arms over her head. Truthfully this time off had been nice, but she knew in the back of her head that she really should've been doing her job. Well…her excuse is that they had no leads. "Well, this is fun and all…but what are we going to do about…her?" She pointed to Moon, who was sitting in a beach chair with an umbrella over it. Like everyone else, she had a swimsuit on, but she just wasn't participating with the activities with everyone. Even her Pikachu and Kommo-o had gone to mingle with the others!

"I don't want to sound rude, but why is she here…?" Takeba tilted her head. "I mean, what's the point if you're not gonna try and have fun?"

Ash crossed his arms, eyes closed as he tried to recall what Moon said. "I asked her if she wanted to come with us to the beach, and she said…"

"Um. Sure…I don't mind. But I want to be alone…"

"Oh Moon…" Mallow frowned. "She wants her space, but she doesn't want to be all by herself."

"I guess it's a little hard to fit in when you don't feel like you belong." Sophocles said. There were a few gazes at Moon as she kept to herself.

"I think she wants to join. She just isn't sure how." Ash nodded a few times.

"Well…we need to do something." Scott rubbed his head. "Because that is getting a little…"

What was he gesturing to? Moon and Lillie. They had been sneaking glances at each other the whole time. The atmosphere around them was a little awkward. Lillie was keeping her distance and Moon was keeping here, yet they were unknowingly glancing at each other every so often. Then their gazes happened to meet and everything froze…in the worst way possible. Moon's hazel eyes peered into Lillie's green. It was an awkward stare down and neither was sure how to react; did they look away and pretend not to notice? No, it was too late for that.

"…."

"…"

"…!"

At this point, they realized they had been making eye contact for far too long to ignore it, and then they both ended up looking away awkwardly. It was hard to pretend that mess didn't just happen. Elizabeth made a face. "Did anyone see how awkward that was?"

"I felt how awkward that was." Grace said with a sweat drop.

Moon sat up from her seat, walking off a bit towards nearby Mantine. "Hey, Mantine. Can we surf?" The Mantine made a noise akin to a yes, so Moon happily climbed atop the Mantine and the surfing began! She had to at least do something while on the beach! And she had to get away from Lillie lest they have another awkward moment.

"Ah…" Lillie didn't realize she stopped breathing during that stare down. It only hit her when she was short of breath.

That's when Takeba patted Lillie on the shoulder. "Don't worry. That was awkward for all of us."

"Oh…" That didn't make Lillie feel much better.

.

.

While riding out on the waves, Moon let out a heavy sigh. "That was awful…what was I supposed to do or say? Guh…" She still felt bad for yelling at Lillie the other day. That guilt she carried with her made things awkward for her. The situation between her and Lillie was just awkward and fragile in general. "I wish I knew how to apologize…" Despite being deep in her thoughts, she was still able to Mantine Surf like a pro! A few moments passed when she saw a big wave incoming! "Oh, that'll be fun."

"Help…!" A young boy had been separated from his parents in the water. To make matters worse, that big scary wave was coming and they wouldn't be able to swim out of it!

"Please help our son…!" The mother of the child pleaded. It turns out that a strong current caused by a water Pokémon carried the child away from his parents.

"…!" Moon turned to the child in need, then at Mantine. "Mantine, let's go!" It was just in her nature to help someone in trouble; person or Pokémon. Mantine agreed with Moon and the two sped up just as the wave was beginning to crest over. The people could see such a large wave about to crash down and suddenly they got very nervous. "Come on…"

"Is she gonna make that!?" A bystander asked worriedly.

"Please make it!" The father said.

Moon and Mantine were drawing closer to the child as the wave came down. Veering right, she passed the child, and as she did, she scooped him into her arms. "Don't worry, I got you!" The wave was still coming down, but this was no issue to Moon. She guided Mantine to the edge of the wave, performing the masterful Over the Gyarados spin! This was the second time she pulled off the most difficult stunt in Mantine Surfing, and this time even with extra weight! Her rescue had been nothing short of flawless and stylish. "Here's your child. Be more careful!"

"Of course! Thank you so much!" The mother gave Moon a smile and it was a happy reunion.

"No problem." She flashed a small smile before returning to shore, where she was getting applause from her surfing and rescue. It was embarrassing, even more so as the others ran up to her.

"Moon, that was amazing!" Lana said with sparkles in her eyes.

"Can you teach me to do that!?" Kiawe had a fire in his own.

"That was so cool!" Mallow was beaming.

"Do you just jump at the chance to give us heart attacks?" Elizabeth had to ask. It seems that Moon didn't even realize how close that wave was to crashing down on her and Mantine! They all could've fallen into the ocean!

"Moon, you were really great out there." Lillie said genuinely.

"Thanks…" Moon and Lillie ended up locking gazes again.

"…"

"…"

"…!"

And once again, they had another awkward stare down that ended with them looking away from each other frantically.

"…That's so awkward." Marcus sighed.

Whatever awkward tension in the air would have to wait. Cue Lovrina in a two piece marching across the beach, practically tackling Elizabeth down to the ground. "THERE YOU ARE!"

"AH!" Elizabeth cried out from the sudden assault. "Why are you here!?"

"Who's this?" Lana tilted her head. Introductions were in order.

Lovrina crossed her arms over her chest, practically scowling at Elizabeth. "We found Chiper."

"Oh, really?!" Elizabeth's face lit up. "I guess that means you don't need me anymo-"

"They pulled off a successful prison break at HQ and recovered several key members." Lovrina finished.

That's when Elizabeth started sweating. "Oh. I…I see." And the bad feeling she had earlier was coming back to bite her. "That would be a problem, huh…?"

"So what were you doing this whole time?" Lovrina's piercing gaze went right into Elizabeth's soul. She wasn't happy.

"…I was…working…" Elizabeth trailed off. "Dang, this really is a problem. Cynthia's never going to forgive me if I screw up this badly! I can't ask her on a date properly if I can't even do the one thing she asked of me!"

"…Is that what she's concerned about?" Kiawe's jaw dropped.

"Her priorities are not in the right places sometimes." Takeba said with her index finger extended.

Next came Rui, panting because Lovrina made a mad dash all the way to the airport to hunt Elizabeth. "Y-You…really need to…slow down…" Rui was out of breath. She collapsed.

"Another one." Moon blinked slowly.

"Hi!" Ash waved to his two friends.

"Oh…hey Ash…" Rui waved weakly.

Lovrina pinched the bridge of her nose. "You are like, so, unbelievable. I'll cut to the chase. I'm Lovrina and this is Rui; we're members of the International Police and we're hunting Chiper. We're the Shadow Buster Squad, a unit specifically created to hunt and destroy Chiper! And you're a member too!" She pointed at Elizabeth.

"Right…where's Michael?" Elizabeth asked.

"That twerp's probably grounded or something." Lovrina scoffed, pulling Elizabeth by the arm. "ANYWAY! We have a lot of work to do in Alola now, so you better hurry up and get dressed! Your fun in the sun ends now!"

"Fun in the sun!?" Elizabeth could not believe what she was hearing. "This sun has attempted to murder me on 15 different occasions! The only reason I'm not cooked to a crisp on this beach is because Lillie gave me sunscreen!"

"It's true. She looked like she was great agony." Lillie pointed out.

This was the part where Lovrina noticed Ash, his Alola friends, and the others. "Huh. This is a bigger group than I was expecting, but it works perfectly. For the time being, Ash, you and your friends are a part of the Shadow Buster Squad as well!"

"That's perfect! We were waiting to track them down and take them out anyway." Ash gave a firm nod.

Lovrina's lips then curled into a sly grin. Normally she wouldn't get kids involved in a top secret mission, but since it was Ash and his friends already seemed informed of the situation, she couldn't exactly leave them out of it. "Well well, Alola's already starting off to a great start. Get dressed and come with me. We have a debriefing to do."

Moon was somewhat out of the loop again, just watching Lovrina and Rui. The business with Chiper almost slipped her mind since she had been caught up in her own situation. The more she thought about it, the more she couldn't help but wonder just how her Alola was doing with Team Rainbow Rocket roaming about. How everyone back home was doing. She lagged behind the others while there was but one thought on her mind now. "I hope they're all right…"

.

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Next Time: Ultra Alola.