"Hmm?"
Giovanni walked across the pile of rubble, with Alakazam silently following beside him.
As he searched for clues, Giovanni suddenly realized that something felt off beneath his feet.
"Alakazam, clear away the rubble."
"Hu~"
A blue glow of psychic energy flickered in Alakazam's eyes as it lightly waved its spoons. In an instant, the stones beneath Giovanni's feet floated into the air, revealing something hidden beneath.
Alakazam even used its powers to stabilize the surrounding debris, preventing it from collapsing back into the opening.
"A… shrine?"
After taking a quick glance, Giovanni leaped down without hesitation, landing on the exposed stone platform. He crouched, carefully observing the structure.
Alakazam followed, floating downward while simultaneously sealing the opening above with the levitated rocks. It then continued to clear the underground space, expanding the revealed area.
Finally, a bright glow emanated from Alakazam's body—it had used Flash to illuminate the surroundings.
Giovanni nodded approvingly.
But what lay before him made him sink into deep thought.
Why was there a shrine inside Mt. Moon? And how was it connected to Maki's disappearance?
Most importantly, Giovanni had no prior knowledge of such a structure existing inside the mountain—meaning the Pokémon League likely didn't know either. Otherwise, they wouldn't have sent such a small investigation team after the collapse of Mt. Moon.
"Hu~"
"Did you find something?"
"I can sense traces of spatial distortions here," Alakazam communicated telepathically.
"A distortion? Can you reopen it?"
Alakazam closed its eyes, concentrating for a moment before shaking its head.
"No, a spatial rift definitely existed here not long ago, but it has fully closed. Forcing it open again would be nearly impossible through external means."
Giovanni trusted Alakazam's judgment—after all, a Pokémon adept at Teleportation would naturally be highly sensitive to spatial fluctuations.
Now, Giovanni was nearly certain that Maki's disappearance was linked to this sudden shrine and the spatial rift. But where did the rift lead? And what happened that prevented Dragonite from pulling Maki back—causing them both to vanish? Giovanni had no answers.
Pulling out a communication device, he made a call.
"Put all your current projects on hold. Within three days, I need a device capable of opening a spatial passage at its weakest point."
The person on the other end hesitated for a moment before urging Giovanni to reconsider.
"But the experiment is almost—"
Had Maki been here, he would have recognized the voice—it sounded like Ariana.
"Stop everything."
"…Understood."
Ariana's heart sank.
No one understood the importance of the Mewtwo Project to Team Rocket more than she did. The organization had sacrificed countless resources over the years to make it happen.
What could possibly be so urgent that Giovanni would suspend the experiment? Ariana didn't ask—but she followed his orders without hesitation.
After the call ended, Giovanni's expression grew even more serious.
If a spatial rift had once existed here, then it meant this location was a naturally weak point where the Pokémon world connected to another dimension.
Team Rocket had long conducted research into space-time technology. Now… he could only hope they had enough time.
...
Meanwhile, Maki remained oblivious to Giovanni's urgency—or rather, even if he knew, it wouldn't change his situation.
Compared to the chaos outside, his life on the island was surprisingly peaceful. Thanks to Mohn's years of survival experience, Maki had managed to get by—albeit just barely.
"Sigh… I still need to find a way back. But even Mohn, who's been here for years, hasn't figured it out. How am I supposed to do it?"
Lying on a wooden lounge chair crafted by Mohn, Maki spat out a blade of grass from his mouth. He originally thought chewing on it would make him look cool—until he accidentally bit down and crushed it.
Instantly, a bitter taste spread across his tongue, making it go numb.
And Mohn?
He was lying on a chair right beside him.
"Hah… Who knew borrowing Pokémon's power could be so comfortable~? By the way, that Onix you caught is really obedient. It works tirelessly without a single complaint."
Mohn glanced at the Onix in the distance and praised it.
"I specifically chose this Onix because of that. Right, Mawile?" Maki grinned, turning to Mawile.
"Maw!"
Mawile nodded in agreement.
"So please feel free to work it as hard as you like… Right, Onix?"
Onix was just about to protest when it caught sight of Mawile giving it a warning glare.
"Rooaaar~" …I'm totally volunteering.
That said, Onix's primary usefulness lay in clearing land. It wasn't exactly ideal for tending crops—given its massive body, a single roll across the orchard would wipe out everything.
The real MVPs for farming were Dugtrio. In Alola, Alolan Dugtrio were even considered the incarnation of the Earth Goddess.
Why an Earth Goddess though?
Maybe it had something to do with their signature golden curls?
"Logically speaking, if there are Onix living here, Dugtrio should be nearby too."
Maki pondered aloud.
Dugtrio typically lived in tunnels they dug themselves or those carved out by Onix, since Onix also loved burrowing underground.
"On an island like this, Dugtrio should be common. But in all this time, I haven't seen a single one."
Mohn shook his head.
Dugtrio were naturally friendly toward humans and often helped farmers in fields. Because of this, they were widely beloved in both Alola and other regions.
Given their adaptability and ability to modify their environment, they were usually found wherever the soil was good.
"Huh? There aren't any Dugtrio here?" Maki blinked in surprise.
"I don't know why, but that's just how it is," Mohn said, sounding equally puzzled. If Dugtrio were around, his work would have been much easier.
"Well… I know just the Pokémon to ask."
Maki stroked his chin.
"Mawile, go ask Onix what it knows."
There was a local resident right here, after all.
If they needed answers… why not just ask?
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