"Simply put, there's a vast ocean of shit you people don't know shit about. Rick knows every fine grain of said shit...and then some."

-Abraham Ford; from The Walking Dead (roughly 2015)

"Tell me, Faba, why would those wretched children betray me the way they did?" Lusamine stood in her laboratory, her arms folded across her chest. The blonde woman felt a sense of anger bubbling deep inside her; and it only seemed to grow stronger with each passing day. Lusamine's three children — Gladion, Lillie, and Lani — had, in her mind, betrayed her love. They stole from her, rejected her love and adoration. To the older woman, that was the ultimate sign of disloyalty and ugliness.

Faba, one of Lusamine's most trusted scientists, stood behind her, one hand under his chine, while his other hand was placed on his hip. Faba had been helping Lusamine with her experiments, in hopes that one day the Aether Paradise president would be able to achieve her goal. But because her children had stolen the company's most valuable experiments, Lusamine's goal was put on a standstill. "I can't say I know, ma'am," he replied, his tone lazy, almost indifferent. "Children are nosy, filthy things. Always getting themselves into things that don't concern them."

Lusamine's face scrunched up. "Those are not my children," she seethed. "If they had been loyal to me, then I'd consider it. They're ugly now. They're not worthy of my love."

"Of course," Faba replied. "We'll get those Pokémon back, ma'am. Once they're in our possession again, we'll proceed with the plan."

Turning to look at her scientist, the Aether president's face darkened. "I'd hope the retrieval happens soon, Faba," she replied in a low tone. "I can't keep putting this off. We've wasted too much time already." Placing her hands on her hips, Lusamine looked away from her scientists. "If the Wormhole could be opened, then..."

"Yes," Faba said, his eyes narrowing slightly. "The retrieval shouldn't be long, I assure you. The Wormhole will open, and they'll be able to come through."

A feeling of calm radiated from Lusamine. From the day she first learned about them, the Ultra Beasts, she wanted them for herself. In her mind, the Ultra Beasts were beautiful. Especially Nihilego. That particular Beast was Lusamine's favorite. She wanted Nihilego like she needed air.

"Don't fail me, Faba," she murmured, her voice smaller than usual. That was the effect the Ultra Beasts had on her. "I can't afford anymore failures. Understand?"

"Of course, ma'am."

. . . .

Lani should be happy that Ash didn't try anything. He was more interested in her Pokémon than he was in her, but there was no happiness coming from Lani. In fact, no one in the trio felt any happiness or relief. Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town may have been interested in Marowak and Mimikyu, but that didn't mean he was as innocent as he portrayed himself. Marowak was not only convinced he wanted to fight the young Trainer if another encounter happened, but he convinced himself Ash had accomplices hiding in the shrubbery waiting to come out. Mimikyu was positive that Ash's Pikachu would do some kind of surprise attack on the group the second their guards were down. Lani herself was afraid of what she didn't know. Ash's enthusiasm threw her off a bit, so she wasn't sure how to properly react.

While Lani had convinced herself that Ash couldn't be an employee of her mother's, that didn't stop herself from thinking he may know Lusamine in some way. The Aether Paradise, where Lani spent a couple years with her mother and siblings, had people who weren't employees but were known to keep an eye out for any particular activity. Ash could've been one of those people.

A shiver ran up the young girl's spine. She could only hope that Ash wasn't that.

"Are you both OK?" she asked, glancing at Mimikyu and Marowak. "Do either of you want to rest for a bit?"

"(No)," Marowak said, his voice firm. "(We can't stop. Not now. We don't know what kind of tricks Ash has up his sleeve)."

"(I have a feeling Marowak is right)," Mimikyu murmured. "(Ash could have something waiting for us, waiting to attack once we're vulnerable)."

"So keep going?" Lani asked. "That's the decision?" When both Pokémon nodded, Lani nodded in return. She trusted their judgment, if that was what they wanted, she'd go with it.

. . . .

"What do you think was up with that girl?" Ash murmured. Ever since he and Pikachu had continued their journey back to Professor Kukui's place, the girl had been on Ash's mind. She was really standoffish, and it only took the young Trainer a good couple minutes to realize it. It wasn't like he could go back and ask her what was wrong, he didn't even know where she had gone once he left. All he wanted was to get to know her Pokémon! Had he come off too strong and it surprised her? Maybe. Sometimes Ash could get a little over-excited. How else was he supposed to react? He got to see an Alolan Marowak and a newer Alolan Pokémon.

"(I don't really know)," Pikachu said. "(I think she was a bit uncomfortable with how you approached her, though. Her Marowak didn't seem too pleased, either)."

Looking down, Ash tried to think over how the encounter went down. He knew that the Cubone line had a hard history when it came to their mothers, so maybe Rotom-dex was more responsible for Marowak's reaction than he was. But, in hindsight, Ash didn't do anything to stop Rotom-dex from saying Marowak's entry.

"Do you think we'll see her again?" he asked.

"(Maybe)," Pikachu responded. "(But Alola has four separate islands. She'll probably be going to another one for all we know)."

Setting his jaw, Ash knew that he had to see her again. He wanted to make amends with her, to show her he wasn't a bad person. If he was given the opportunity to explain the situation, then things would be good between them. That was Ash's promise.

(A/N):

I know this chapter is short, and probably not that good, but here it is! It's a bit of a jumble between Lani's POV, Lusamine's POV, and Ash's POV. What do you guys think?

I own nothing in this fandom. All I can claim are my OCs and the subplots I put in.

Before I wrap this author's note up, I'd like to thank the kind reviewer, eevee, for the reviews they left. I greatly appreciate everything you've said! Hopefully I can hear from you again, my friend.

Thanks a bunch.

Willow