Alex returned to the base of the mountain and began to walk towards the Trial guide. Before she could reach it, a middle aged blond man walked onto the path that lead to the beach. "You..." he said when he saw Alex. "You passed Kiawe's trial! Well done!" Alex looked down at the crystal in her hand. It must be easy to spot in the sunlight. "Okay! So that means you can now ride on Charizard... In that case, why don't I tell you about a great way to play with the Pokemon in your boxes! You ready for this?"

Alex cocked her head to the side. She never really considered it before, but what do Pokemon do inside the PC? Can they interact with each other while there? "Sure. What do I do?"

He told her to go to Poke Pelago when she called Charizard. "I'll be waiting for you and your Pokemon to visit!" He waved to her and walked towards Royal Avenue.

"Poke Pelago, huh... I guess I'll have to check that out later." She continued to the Trial guide and held out the Firium Z crystal.

"Ho, that's Firium Z! Congratulations on clearing Kiawe's trial! In that case..." The girl turned and opened the gate, which led into a paved tunnel. "Here you go! You're free to pass. Captain Mallow's trial is up ahead. Go along Route 8 and you'll find it: Lush Jungle!"

"Route 8, Lush Jungle, Captain Mallow," Alex repeated and nodded. "Got it. Thank you!" She continued into the tunnel.

The tunnel itself would be dark, if not for the lights above bathing the whole tunnel in yellow light. She raced down the pavement and slowed her pace when two figures came into view in the sunlight at the other end. The closer she got, Phyco and Soliera came into view. "What is this?" Soliera asked, she and Phyco's backs turned to her. "The numbers keep climbing in my aura readings." Soliera paused, then turned around. "Ah, Alexandra... I bid you Alola."

Phyco turned around as well, and they both did their square wave. "Hmm... This fine tunnel... It is most fascinating to learn that there are a variety of construction methods possible by the Pokemon that lend their aid to humans," Phyco said, looking around the arch formed by the tunnel, then landing his eyes on Alex. "Trial-goers clear many trials. It is only natural, perhaps, that such a trainer would exude aura after coming in contact with so many Totem Pokemon awash in aura. Oh, and you, young lady... You seem to have even more Z-Crystals than when last we met. Do you hope to master the Z-Moves?"

Alex shrugged. "Not really. It's more for the adventure."

"That wonderous light that appears when a Z-Move is used... We once had such a light in our world as well," Phyco continued. "And it was precious to us, even if we did not use it to battle with Pokemon..." 'Our world'? What on earth did that mean?

"Captain Phyco," Soliera said, turning to her companion. "It is nearly time."

Phyco nodded. "While our technology is advanced, it must be modified to work to its fullest with Pokemon. We must go now to meet with a scientist who is versed in the ways of Pokemon, or we will have no hope of achieving such a thing." The two waved once again and walked out of the tunnel.

"Hm." Alex folded her arms while they walked away. What did they mean 'our world'? If they weren't from 'this' world... then where did they come from? There's no use pondering it. Only those two could tell me. She pushed the question aside and walked out of the tunnel, shielding her eyes from the bright light.

The route wrapped around the mountain, curving to the west. Grass patches spread out along the paved road, passing by a mobile, white building. Even further down the road, she could see Phyco Soliera talking to someone down the road. Alex walked towards them, but the duo waved and left before she could reach them. The man they were talking to, a blond man in a lab coat, turned around when he heard her approach. "You there!" he said, looking at Alex. He walked towards her. "Oh, excuse me! I am a scientist. My name is Colress. The theme of my research is: 'Bringing out the potential of Pokemon.'"

Alex nodded. "Um... nice to meet you?"

"What brings out the power of Pokemon is..." he mused. "I believe that is- the bond they share with their trainers!" He paused and looked over Alex. "And thus my attention is drawn to trainers like yourself... Trainers bound to their Pokemon through the power of the Z-Power Ring!" He chuckled softly. "Now that I think of it, I never asked your name." She told him. "Alexandra, is it? I'll remember your name. To commemorate our encounter, let me give you a TM." He held out the item, and Alex took it with a bit of confusion. "If you're able to utilize Flame Charge fully, you'll be able to have a great battle with the totem in the next trial... the trial in Lush Jungle."

He paused again, closing his eyes in thought. "Z-Power... Is it the true potential that I seek? Does it surpass the Mega ring? Apparently, there are uninhabited islands for Pokemon called Poke Pelago here in Alola. Alola is fascinating! I believe that I will stay in Alola for some time!" He smiled. "Well then, Alexandra. I hope you will excuse me. I've had quite the curious request made to me by a couple of most oddly dressed strangers." He then left.

Alex stood in the road, looking down at the TM. She felt she shouldn't be surprised that Phyco and Soliera would have odd acquaintances.

Alex continued down the road, where it began to wrap around the mountain, and saw Hau standing outside the Pokemon Center. He grinned when he saw her and waved, and she ran up to talk to him. "Hey, hey, Alex! You ever heard of that festival plaza thing? I guess it's like a festival or something where lots of people get together and have fun?"

Alex shrugged. "Maybe? I don't really know."

"You!" a woman called, looking at Alex. "I can tell you've been to festival plaza before!"

Alex furrowed her brows. "What? I don't think so..."

"Festival Plaza seems pretty good, huh? Even my gramps tried it out," Hau said. "It's great to meet so many different folks. Now I'm gonna have some fun with my team!" Hau ran off with a big grin on his face. Alex waved and popped into the Pokemon Center. "But why is there one right here?" she mumbled once she was outside again. All that seemed close was a motel that overlooked the ocean.

Alex glanced at a little boy that stood between the Pokemon Center and the hotel. "My bro is super strong at Pokemon, you know!" he said to Alex. "I borrowed my bro's Pokemon. Without asking, actually, but do you want to have a battle?!"

Alex frowned. "You shouldn't take things without asking, but... sure."

The little boy laughed. "I'll beat you, no sweat!"

"What? Why?!" the little boy shouted. "My bro's Pokemon is super strong. Why did I lose?!"

"Hey, you!" shouted an older boy, who came running towards them.

"Oh no!" The little boy looked up at the older boy nervously. "H-hey, Big Bro..."

The older brother huffed. "You brought my Pokemon out again without asking, didn't you?!"

"I-I'm sorry..." the younger brother mumbled timidly.

"And it looks like you got soundly defeated, too."

"Yeah... but all your Pokemon are super strong, Big Bro... I don't get why...?" the younger brother trailed off.

The older brother put his hands on his hips. "Even if they have potential, if you don't let them fight properly, Pokemon can't unleash their full power! You can only understand how strongj your Pokemon are by giving them love and attention on a daily basis." The older brother paused, then sighed softly. "If you want to win with borrowed Pokemon, you need to train yourself, too!"

The younger brother looked down in thought. "I always blamed my Pokemon when I'd lose against friends..." the younger brother said after a pause, then shook his head, "but that's what's been preventing me from really becoming strong..." He looked up at his brother with determination. "I'm going to spend more time with my own Pokemon! And I promise I'll beat you together with them, Bro!"

The older brother laughed. "I won't let you win easily!" The younger brother laughed as well. The older brother turned his attention to Alex. "Sorry you had to get tangled up in this weird situation. Take this for your troubles!" He handed her a Lum berry. Alex rolled the berry curiously in her hand. What does this one do? "Right, I'll race you home!" the older brother said to the younger.

The younger brother waved to Alex. "Yeah, see you around!" The two brother then ran off.

Alex shrugged and opened the door to the motel lobby, looking in curiously. The woman behind the counter glanced up from her magazine when she heard the door open. "I'm afraid we've got no vacancies today," the woman said and shook her head. "Especially not with that room two doors down being rented out nonstop all this time. The boy staying there paid up two YEARS worth of nights when he first got here, though he's not so free with cash now as he used to be..." She shrugged. "Seems like Team Skull doesn't pay well enough to live off of."

"Uh, thanks..." Alex mumbled awkwardly and closed the door. A boy that works for Team Skull? From the sounds of it, this guy didn't cause any problems, but... maybe she should just pop in?

Alex went over and knocked on the door the clerk mentioned. She gasped when the door was cracked open, and Gladion was the one who answered. "Get out," he said without a paused, and immediately closed the door in her face.

Well, she certainly wasn't expecting to find him. He had been staying there for two years? What happened to cause him to leave home so young? He couldn't be that much older than her... It's not like I can go and ask him, either... She sighed and continued on her way.

On Route 5, she found the trial pillars to mark where her next trial must be. She stood outside, putting her hands on her hips. "This must be Lush Jungle then," she said to herself. She took in a deep breath and walked into the jungle.

Mallow stood at the entrance of the jungle, as though she was waiting for Alex. "Thanks for stopping by!" she said when Alex approached her. "Welcome to Lush Jungle, the trial grounds for me, Mallow! You read to get in some hot water? My trial is ready for you, if you're ready for it!"

Alex nodded. "I'm ready to go."

Mallow smiled brightly. "I knew it the first time I saw you and your team... You've chosen only the finest ingredients!" What does she mean by that? "You are the one who got a Sparkling Stone straight from Tapu Koko, aren't you?"

Alex nodded and held up her wrist with the Z-Ring on it. "Yep. It's right here."

"I totally get it now." Mallow nodded. "Okay then, here in Lush Jungle... It's time for Mallow's trial to begin!" She took in a deep breath. "Ah, the breath of the jungle... I can tell just what today's special should be..." She grinned and nodded. "Yup! It's gotta be! My secret specialty: the Super Mallow Special! I'm gonna need you to find three ingredients for me! I'll need a Mago berry, some honey, and a Big Root! Here you go!" she said, holding out a small, yellow cloth bag. "I brought you a Forage bag to hold all the ingredients you'll gather for your trial. If you just tossed all the trial ingredients in your own bag, it would make something all right... Something like a Mallow Mess, I guess!"

Alex chuckled nervously. "Yeah, sounds awfully sticky, too."

"Let's go find the first ingredient right away!" Mallow walked to the west of the jungle. A few Fomantis stood at the base of a large tree, then scurried away when the two girls approached. "Geez, those Fomantis... I wonder if they could tell how strong you are?" Mallow said with a giggle. She turned to Alex. "You can find Mago berries around here. But you'll also find Fomantis living here, 'cause they love Mago berries, too. If you take a Mago berry that the Fomantis had their eyes on, they might not take it too kindly! When you're done gathering ingredients here, just let me know!"

Alex nodded and turned to the jungle. "So keep an eye out for watching Fomantis..." she whispered to herself and walked deeper into the jungle. She found a Mago berry tree she felt was hidden from the Fomantis, reached up, and picked a couple to put into her Forage bag. Afterwards, she ran back to Mallow.

"So, about that ingredient... You sure that's the one you want to grab?" Mallow asked. "If any Pokemon had their eyes on it, you might be taking something the Pokemon thinks belongs to them. And then they may come attack you later."

Alex nodded. "Yeah, I think so."

"Then it's on to the next ingredient! Chop-chop!" She clapped her hands. "Let's keep moving!" The two girls left and went east to another section of the jungle.

The next area had a wide spread of tall grass and flowers. "You can harvest honey from the flowers that bloom here in the jungle! But you'll also find plenty of Pokemon where there are lots of flowers!" Mallow explained. "When you find the ingredients you're sure you want, come show them to me, okay?"

Alex nodded. "Got it." She turned and walked cautiously into the clearing. She moved in and spotted Kiawe standing in the tall grass. Curious, she walked up to him.

Kiawe glanced over when he heard her approach. "People say Pokemon are lured in by flowers and gather around them. Watch out when you see a bunch of flowers if you don't want to get attacked! These ingredients are important for this trial, but they are also very important to the Pokemon that live in Lush Jungle." He looked down at the bone in his hand. "This Thick Club I'm going to give to Mallow, too, was the result of serious effort on the part of my Marowak and I."

Alex nodded. So she should avoid any honey close to flower bunches? That's what it sounded like. Looking around, she just felt equally confused as before, then picking honey from one of the flower bushes. She wasn't sure if she had picked correctly or not. She sighed and returned to Mallow.

"Chop-chop, let's go!" Mallow led her to the next area, where many Sudowoodo shaped trees spread around the area. "A Big Root, huh? You can find them near the trees deep in the jungle that look kind of like Sudowoodo! But you'll also find that some of the trees that look like Sudowoodo ARE actually Sudowoodo! Good luck and watch out! When you find the ingredients you are sure you want, come show them to me, okay?"

"Yeah, of course." Alex turned to face the area and looked around, spotting Lana. She walked over to the girl.

"Oh, Alexandra!" Lana greeted her with a soft smile. "Are you here for Mallow's trial, too?"

Alex nodded. "Yeah. What are you doing here though?"

"Oh, I was just taking a guess. Looks like you got lured in, too, huh? I came because Mallow asked me to bring her some Fresh Water."

"Oh, um... Okay." Alex looked around the trees. Only one looked different; instead of regular feet, it had roots digging into the ground. "This must be it," she said more confidently and dug the root from the ground. She rushed back to Mallow.

"All right, Alex, that's what I like to see!" she said brightly. "Since you've got all the ingredients, let's head back to the entrance." Alex nodded and followed after her.

Once the two were back at the entrance, Kiawe and Lana were there with them. The four of them gathered around a pot that Mallow set up. "Thanks for stopping by!" Mallow said with a big smile. "Lemme check the ingredients you got for me!" she said. "Let's see that Mago berry first!" Alex nodded and opened the bag, but suddenly, a Fomantis cried out angrily and charged towards Alex.

The Fomantis retreated back into the jungle. "Oops! You went and took the Mago berry that Fomantis had its eye on, didn't you?" Mallow said with a chuckle.

Alex sighed. So that was a fail.

"All right then," Mallow continued. "Let's put this Mago berry into the pot, and..." She took the berry and dropped it into the pot. "There! We pour in the Fresh Water that Lana brought us!" She opened the bottle Lana brought and poured in the water. "Next up is the honey!"

Another angrily cry sounded close by, and another Fomantis charged towards Alex.

Another Fomantis sent back, another Pokemon Alex unknowingly took from a Pokemon. "Yeah, I wasn't too confident on that one either..." she mumbled to herself.

"Well, Fomantis sure does love its honey!" Mallow said, taking the honey in hand. "Now we mix the honey using the Thick Club that Kiawe brought along..." Alex cocked her head to the side, wondering what exactly the bone was for. Mallow poured in the honey and mixed the pot's contents with the bone. "And now but not least, the Big Root!" Alex confidently handed it over, and Mallow dropped it into the pot. "And finally, it's finished... with one last pinch of my super-special spice!" She sprinkled in some spice and mixed it again. "Ta-da!" she said, throwing out her arms. "The Super Mallow Special! It's all done and it smells delicious!"

Alex sniffed the air, leaning over to look into the pot. It was actually a dark sort of liquid, with a sweet and spicy aroma to it. She froze; something was staring at her. She slowly turned around, seeing a huge Lurantis creeping up on her. It cried out when she whipped around with a start. It was the Totem Pokemon!

That one wasn't has horrible as Kiawe's trial... Alex thought to herself, watching the Lurantis disappear back into the jungle.

"Wow, Alex, you're even stronger than I thought! You really drew the best out of your team!" Mallow said. "You even quieted down that Lurantis- the Totem Pokemon of Lush Jungle! You battled your way through the Pokemon living here in the jungle to get me the ingredients I need. You and your Dartrix there make a fabulous team!"

Kiawe closed his eyes thoughtfully, resting his chin on one of his fists. "Yes, even back at Wela Volcano Park, my Marowak didn't stand a chance." Alex frowned at him; she had a lot of trouble with him, actually...

Lana giggled. "Nor did the Araquanid that I had trained so carefully..."

Mallow grinned. "Well, looks like you've cleared all three of Akala's trials! An amazing trainer like you, who even cleared my super hard trial, definitely deserves this!" She handed over the Grassium Z crystal. Alex slowly took the crystal from Mallow and smiled.

"Let me show you how to use Grass-type Z-moves! You go, like, 'Graaassss!', okay? Here, watch me!" She moved and squatted down, closing her arms tightly to herself and shot up, throwing her arms out, like a tree growing. "Since you've cleared my trial, Alex, why don't you try raising some Pokemon from Lush Jungle? Here, have some Nest balls!" Mallow held out a small bag that contained the special Pokeballs. Mallow looked into the pot. "Huh? Hey, Lurantis didn't finish its food! Well, can't let it go to waste. Lana, Kiawe- you guys should have some!"

Kiawe grimaced and turned away. "Huh/ Ummm... I'm pretty full right now..." He frowned. "I, uh... I ate a berry. Yeah."

Lana shook her head. "And that food you cooked is suited to Pokemon's taste buds, right? I think it's probably best to save it for when Lurantis wants some more..."

Mallow looked at Lana curiously. "Y'think? Olivia always says she thinks it's delicious. I think people would enjoy food cooked for a Totem Pokemon, too. Your guys' loss!" Kiawe looked like he was trying to hold back a groan. "Well, I guess I'll just go take this to Olivia!" Mallow said and smiled. "See ya around, Alex!" Mallow waved, and the three left.

"Woo!" Alex turned around and saw Kukui walking towards her. "What's that sweet smell I smell, driftin' my way?! Could it be a tasty Mallow Special?" He grinned at Alex. "I heard you cleared Mallow's trial, yeah? All right then, I have a present for you! This little TM right there is Smart Strike- a move that will never miss!" He held out the TM, and Alex put it into her bag.

"There'll be all kinds of discoveries and new experiences to make your adventure brighter!" Kukui continued. "There's a facility, yeah, that I want you to go check out on your island challenge. The Dimensional Research Lab! Let's get on over there with Extreme Speed!" Kukui led her out of the jungle. What was the Dimensional Research Lab? Was it, like... study on alternate dimensions or something?

"Guess I should congratulate you on clearing all three of Akala Island's trials, too," Kukui said once they were back on Route 5. "Congrats! Looks like it's time for you to take on Kahuna Olivia's grand trial! Olivia is an expert user of Rock-type Pokemon. You;re gonna wanna catch some Grass-type Pokemon in Lush Jungle to add to your team. Whenever you're ready for the grand trial, come see me at the Dimensional Research Lab! It's down passed Route 6, yeah, but just ask Rotom if you need some help!" Kukui waved and walked off.

Alex sighed. With another trial completed, she felt like she needed a break. "Maybe I should explore Lush Jungle for a little," she said, turning back into the jungle.