The Multiverse Theory is a proven concept in the world of Pokémon. I am simply one piece of a long list of evidence. My name is Lillie. Many see me as a smarter than usual girl compared to other kids my age. My mother sees me as an asset. My brother thinks I am a traitor.
And me?
I am Lillie. I see myself as an opportunist. This is my second life. My past name, family, and friends do not matter anymore. What does matter is my knowledge and how I can use it for my personal gain. And maybe take over the world. I am still undecided on that last one.
They will kneel before me!
Another day of experiments, another day of failures. Lusamine was getting more and more frustrated as the weeks, by now months, progressed without any significant breakthrough. It couldn't be so hard, could it? They had everything they needed. They had the Pokémon, they had the machinery, and they had the data. And yet, they once again failed to open a single Ultra Wormhole. The most they had accomplished today was making the air flicker with lights. A sign that they were on the right way, yet was so far the only result they had to offer.
Lusamine resisted the urge to tear her hair out. Once again, she wondered if Faba was as smart as he claimed to be or if he was simply one of those ass-kisser types. Oh, who was she kidding? He was an ass-kisser. Sadly he had the book smarts and the lack of conscience needed to perform the work. It didn't change the fact that he had been a massive failure as of late. Maybe a small cut in his paycheck would motivate the scientist to do better in the near future.
As the woman was pondering about all the ways she would chew out Faba the following day, the teleporter inside her office activated. Aside from herself, only two people had access to the device without her prior consent. The first one was Wicke, whose workday had already ended. The second one was her own daughter, Lillie. One look in the direction of the teleport-panel proved it was the young girl who had arrived unannounced inside her office.
People often joked that Lille was the pre-evolution stage of Lusamine, and the older woman could see why. The girl had long, blonde hair like her mother. Unlike Lusamine, Lillie had braids falling in front of her shoulders. Also, the hair of the younger girl did not reach the taille. Lillie's dress was simpler than Lusamine's in design but cuter. Instead of trousers, Lillie wore knee-high socks, and her shoes were not the high-heels that the mother wore. Those would come later in life.
To Lusamine's slight surprise, her daughter arrived inside the office, holding a tea-set on a plate. Lillie appeared to be slightly disoriented from the sudden teleportation. She even mumbled something along the lines of: "I'll never get used to this." Nevertheless, the girl approached her mother's work desk with confident steps, her face impassive as she did so. "Good evening, mother," she addressed Lusamine in a polite tone. "I thought some tea and biscuits would do you some good after a hard day of work."
Lusamine nodded in slight appreciation. I routine fashion, the girl placed the cup on Lusamine's desk before filling it with tea made of Roselia leaves. She added the right amount of sugar and milk to the hot drink before presenting it to her mother. She accepted the cup and took a slight sip out of it. The tea was just as she liked it to be. That was something Lusamine could appreciate about Lillie. Despite being a child, she made herself as useful as she possibly could be. And although Lillie was smart for an eleven-year-old, she couldn't help with any of the important things. Instead, the girl opted to do whatever she could. Be it something as simple as bringing food and beverages or helping set up an experiment, Lillie did her part. The young blonde even went so far as to make sure that Cosmog was well fed and healthy enough to survive the next experiment.
Just thinking about the little puff-cloud soured Lusamine's mood immediately. Why was this stupid, little thing just so uncooperative? All she wanted was one simple Ultra Wormhole. Just one. Was that too much to ask? The woman would have thrown the half-filled cup to a wall if she hadn't noticed Lillie still standing in her office.
"Is there anything you need, Lillie? If so, it has to wait. I have much important work to do." Yes, after a day of highly illegal experiments, which all failed, Lusamine still had to deal with the day to day paperwork that came with running an organization as big as hers. The woman would be lucky to get six hours of sleep at night, given how much of her time was spent working on her little project.
"Today was another failure, wasn't it?" Lillie said in a matter-of-fact tone. Lusamine could feel her eyebrow twitch in annoyance. The last thing she needed was a reminder.
"So? Why do you feel like it is any of your business?" Lusamine asked in a tone that said her patience had already run out for the day.
"I believe I have a solution to your problem," Lillie answered with certainty.
To this, Lusamine raised an eyebrow? Her daughter had a solution to opening an Ultra Wormhole? A solution that Faba, Wicke, and many other people with more than one science degree had failed to find over the past few months? That was a bold claim to make, especially for an eleven-year-old.
"Oh, do tell." Lusamine placed the cup on her desk and leaned forward. "What is your solution that can magically allow us to succeed?"
Seeing as she wasn't outright rejected, Lillie began to talk. "Allow me to explain." Lille took a seat on the opposite side of the table. "As we all know, Magicarp is arguably one of the weakest Pokémon in existence. Some would even go as far as say it is weaker than a Kricketot. However, if sufficiently trained, Magicarp evolves into one of the strongest species known to humankind: the Gyarados."
The older blonde was about to say something snippy but caught her tongue. Her daughter wasn't one to waste her time. She was probably going somewhere with this.
"Another well-known fact is that even the smallest Pokémon is capable of mortally wounding the average human. Of course, not every Pokémon is a born powerhouse. Most, if not all, need sufficient training before they become a danger to anyone. A Pikachu that recently evolved from Pichu won't be able to kill anyone unless the victim is suffering from a heart condition. But, given time and sufficient training, that changes. As it grows, a Pikachu will be able to store more and more energy. Eventually, it will be able to store enough energy that it can become a real danger."
Lillie paused for a moment, letting her words sink in. "Of course, such growth doesn't happen overnight. A lot of training, dedication, as well as making sure the Pokémon is properly taken care of will allow the said Pokémon to reach its full potential."
By now, Lusamine was seeing where her daughter was going with her explanation. Leaning back, the woman put one leg over the other and looked her daughter straight into the eyes. "You propose we put the Cosmog through a training program, correct?"
Lillie nodded in return. "That's right."
Lusamine resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "And how will this help? Not to mention the fact that this Pokémon only knows the move Splash. How do you create a training program for a Pokémon that only knows a useless move?"
Apparently, Lillie had seen that question coming. Oh, who was Lusamine kidding? Of course, her daughter was prepared. Lillie was smarter than to propose something so ridiculous without any arguments to back up her proposal.
"To answer your questions in reverse order. Cosmog could be trained the same way you train a Magicarp. Splash can be used as a training exercise, similar to rope jumping. I do not know how much effort Cosmog puts behind floating from one end of the room to the other, but maybe having it run around... or float around, I guess, at a reasonable pace could be another step. Its latent psychic powers should become stronger over time, as they do with most psychic-types. Once it finally has a psychic move, it can be used as a basis to train Cosmog's psychic abilities."
Lusamine thought about her daughter's explanation. In theory, it sounded possible. Then again, in theory, they should have already been able to open an Ultra Wormhole by now.
"To answer your first question," Lillie continued, "as of now, Cosmog is the equivalent of a double-A battery. Yes, technically, it can provide the energy to run a car. But in reality, you won't get enough energy to start the thing. Luckily for us, Pokémon aren't stuck in being double-A batteries for the rest of their lives."
Lusamine frowned at the explanation her daughter had given her. She said that the Cosmog they had was too weak to provide them with the energy necessary to open Ultra Wormholes. While it sounded plausible, there was a contradiction in Lillie's explanation. Cosmog itself came from an Ultra Wormhole. Now, unless there happened to be another Cosmog on the other side of the portal, it meant that the Cosmog they had was fully capable of opening Wormholes itself. Then again, it didn't change the fact that they had been unable to open a Wormhole themselves.
"I understand if you don't believe me," Lillie spoke up. "But I brought this up for a reason. I am no doctor, but as of late, I have noticed that Cosmog is more and more tired after each experiment. And while Pokémon are resilient, they do have their limits."
Lusamine narrowed her eyes. For a moment, she could have sworn she heard a smug tone coming from her daughter's voice. Did she imagine things? Lillie's face appeared to be as impassive as ever. The girl appeared to be patiently waiting for her mother's response, her gaze not flinching for even a split-second. Maybe Lusamine was overworked?
"I will have to check the medical records to see whether your claims are valid or not," Lusamine answered, already accessing her personal computer. "What you say holds some logic to it, but guarantee can you give me our current method won't produce results eventually?"
"Oh, there is nothing wrong with what we're doing now, as it has proven to be the most efficient way," Lillie clarified. "I believe, emphasize on believe, that Cosmog at its current stage is not capable of producing the necessary energy required for the overall end goal. And wouldn't it be better to er on the side of caution? After all, we only have one Cosmog. It's not like we can go into the wild and catch another one, in case this one perishes."
Lusamine bit her lower lip upon seeing Cosmog's medical data. Despite providing it with enough nutrition and even some vitamin supplements, the Pokémon's health was declining at an unacceptable rate. Granted, almost nobody had cared much about the health of the psychic-type, as it was simply a means to an end. Lillie was right, though. They only had this one Cosmog. The chances of another one suddenly appearing out of thin air were astronomical, to say the least. If this one were to die, everything would have been for nothing, and Lusamine's dream would never come to fruition.
The older blonde took in a deep breath, exhaling slowly. She would ask her staff to do a more thorough checkup to be sure. But if Lillie's warnings turned out to be true, they would have to change their approach regarding Cosmog.
"Judging from the way you have been talking, you already have some ideas regarding this... predicament."
Lillie nodded. "I do, mother. I have been looking up the proper care of psychic-types, as well as training methods. I also have a few ideas of my own but found them inferior to what I have found out from professionals. Generally, those ideas can be summed up in two ways. The first would be to use the facilities here at Aether to prepare a training program for Cosmog. We have everything we need here: monitoring and training equipment, food, medicine, supplements, and a lot of people here are already familiar with Cosmog."
Lusamine nodded. Aether specialized in rehabilitating Pokémon and eventually releasing them back to the wild. This sometimes included giving the Pokémon some rudimentary training.
"Yes, we have everything we need right here. Which begs the question, what is this second way that you have thought of training Cosmog?"
"In two words: field training." Lusamine raised an eyebrow. Lillie might appear to be still her stoic self to an outsider, but she could see the subtle changes in her daughter's body language whenever she got nervous.
"As impressive as our facilities are, they still cannot mimic the outside environment 100%. Studies prove Pokémon grow up the best outside, preferably amongst other Pokémon. Now, we have Pokémon here, but I am talking about a more permanent companionship. Pokémon here come and go weekly. Another point that cannot be underestimated is that Cosmog fears most of Aether. It is already not inclined to work together with us. Up until now, this hasn't been necessary. However, if we wish to change our approach, getting Cosmog's trust is key. The more it cooperates, the easier of a time all of us will have. For all, we know a bond is what is needed to unlock its full potential, similar to the Umbreon, Espeon, and Sylveon evolutions. Although I admit, this point is pure speculation on my part."
Lusamine suppressed the urge to smirk after her daughter was done explaining herself. Oh, the sly little girl her daughter thought herself to be. The motivations of the younger blonde were plain as day to see to the older one. There was only one person in the entirety of Aether that the Cosmog trusted, and that was her daughter Lillie. Lillie kept Cosmog company, would hold the little Pokémon in her arms, speak encouraging words to it. No doubt, her daughter wanted to have Cosmog to herself. There were plenty of reasons for her daughter to wanting the little Pokémon to herself, and none of them mattered. There was only one thing that mattered. Was this Lillie's way of trying to run away from home? It would certainly fit her modus operandi. Unlike a certain boy, Lillie thought things through before committing to anything and was usually capable of suppressing her more childish impulses.
Or maybe Lillie truly believed she could best help her mother by training Cosmog on the islands. So far, Lillie had been exceedingly loyal to Lusamine and her cause. She helped where she could, always listened to everything Lusamine had to say, and even ratted her own brother out when he stole the prototype and made a run for it. The fact that he still got away lay entirely in the fault of her idiot employees. Or ex-employees, for that matter.
"I am curious," Lusamine spoke up after some thinking. "How would this "fieldwork" of yours look like." The woman noted the one second of hesitation before her daughter answered.
"In short? Pokémon training. The person in charge would use their own pokémon and the environment to train Cosmog. To make sure nothing goes wrong, they would make weekly reports back to Aether, preferably visual, but audio at the very least. Additionally, we have small Aether stations all over Alola. Those could be visited to make more thorough check-ups on Cosmog. This would go on from six months up to a year to see if there are any measurable changes in Cosmogs power level. If this turns out to be a waste of time and resources, we might as well bring him back and make sure we don't accidentally kill it."
So cold. So calculated. Lusamine felt a shudder run down her spine. She couldn't say why, but something about the way her daughter spoke of the matter unnerved her ever so slightly. Lillie had presented an acceptable plan. The regular contact requirement made sure they wouldn't lose sight of whoever took care of Cosmog. The Aether stations meant Cosmog could easily be recalled back to the Foundation, as each station was equipped with a transfer system. And it was true. Pokémon did grow up the best among other Pokémon.
The only question now was, who could they trust not simply to run off with Cosmog to parts unknown? Gladion had not been the only thief. Out of three prototypes, the second one had been stolen as well, despite the increased security. The culprit was long gone, taking the next best plane before anyone even noticed the theft. And that's when it hit Lusamine. Lillie was actually the perfect candidate for the job.
She was around the age when people started their island challenge, making her eligible to be a Pokémon Trainer. The weekly updates meant she always knew where her daughter was at any given time. As her mother, Lusamine could restrict Lillie's access to her bank account, something she had completely missed before Gladion emptied his own. For all she knew, he could have used the money to jump on a ship and sailed to Johto. Lillie wouldn't be able to do that. And finally, Lillie was the only human that Cosmog trusted. Oh, sure, Lillie's motive in helping her mother might be questionable. But, so far, her daughter had gone above and beyond to help her mother out whenever she could. Maybe Lusamine was simply paranoid. Maybe this would all work out for the best.
Of course, there was still the first solution that Lillie had offered. Namely training Cosmog within Aether itself. But given how the Pokémon usually cowered in a corner whenever someone other than Lillie approached it, Lusamine doubted it would bring any results. The third option was to disregard this entire conversation and go on as usual. But wasn't it the definition of insanity to do the same thing over and over, expecting different results?
Later that evening, once she had returned to her own room, Lillie sighed in relief and fell face-first into bed. She had done it. She had actually done it. Not only had she convinced her mother of allowing her to take the island challenge, but no, she would also be taking Nebby with her! Her plan went far better than she expected. She thought she would have to bring up the topic multiple times, watch as Nebby's health deteriorated more and more before her mother finally caved in and granted Lillie's wishes. The girl made a mental note to put up some extra prayers for the big doggo in the sky. Or was it a goat? She could never tell the difference.
In any event, she had her mother's blessings to become a Pokémon trainer. Who would have thought? Lillie always thought her mother was completely against the idea of their children becoming trainers. Apparently, she was wrong. Or did she do something to cause this kind of butterfly effect to happen? Ah, who cares? She shouldn't look the gift Rapidash in the mouth. The fact remained that she did it. After years of watching Pokémon from afar, she finally had the chance to enslave -ahem- become friends with some Pokémon of her own. And as a bonus, she got Nebby to be her first official team member. She would have squealed in delight if it weren't for the fact that she was too exhausted to do so. Talking to Lusamine always drained her to the point of exhaustion. Her words were carefully chosen, her sentences meticulously structured, and her voice sometimes strained on how hard it was to play cool around that woman.
Lillie knew better than anybody else that her mother had more than a few screws loose. Lusamine was the one who dressed her up like a Nihilego after all. Not to mention the way the woman had raged after Gladion had pulled his stunt of abducting Type: Null. The blonde girl had been sure she was going to get a few bruises at the very least.
Shaking the old memories off, the girl turned around on her bed and stared at the white ceiling of her room. As much as she would love to relish the fact that she had achieved her goals, she couldn't help but worry about what she had gotten herself into. Being a Pokémon Trainer wasn't as easy as the games made it out to be, naturally. But the perils of being a trainer were the least of Lillie's worries. Yes, she had Lusamine's blessing to take Nebby with her. In return, her mother expected to see results in a reasonable timeframe. Now, if these were the games, all Lillie would have to do was to turn on the experience share and level Nebby up until she evolved. But real-life wasn't that easy. The games were limited to numbers. Those numbers did not exist in the real world.
There was no guarantee any of her plans on training Nebby would work. She had done as much research as she could on training Pokémon. Be it reading, watching videos, or even talking to visiting trainers. But would it all work out? Would her mother maybe change her mind on a whim and say that Nebby would stay? How much time did Lillie really have before her mother became too impatient? Was she even capable of being a trainer? It sounds so simple on paper. But Pokémon had more needs than the average pet. Battles weren't turn-based in real-life. Could she even handle seeing her Pokémon getting injured? Did she have the wits and the smarts to become a halfway decent trainer?
"What the hell are you thinking?!" Lillie cursed herself out. Jumping out of bed, she stomped over to her mirror and looked straight at her reflection. "Now listen up, missy! We have been working years to get where we are today, and you're getting cold feet now? Well, suck it up! It's too late for take-backs! This is our opportunity, and I am not going to let you make it go to waste! We're going out there! We're going to crush everybody standing in our way! And when we're done, they'll be laying on our feet, begging for mercy!"