Chapter 207: Preparing to Reveal Lileep
Though the encounter had been strange and unsettling, Master Axel couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to the story. But after wracking his brain, he came up with nothing and had no choice but to let it go.
After opening a portal out of the Hidden Land, the group returned to the provincial capital. Master Axel and the Director went straight to a Pokémon Center to have their partners treated, while Basalt was left at a guesthouse to rest.
Alone in his room, Basalt paced back and forth, a mix of excitement and curiosity bubbling within him. He was dying to open his spatial bag and check on the Larvitar egg and the Smooth Rock Crystal.
"No, no. I have to resist the temptation," he told himself, his fists clenched. "I'll check on them when I get back to the Cinnabar Sanctuary."
He still wasn't sure what level of Pokémon could sense the crystal's power. It had been undetectable to the Masters' non-Rock-type Pokémon, but the Elite-level Tyranitar had sensed it instantly. He couldn't risk it.
Three hours later, Master Axel and the Director returned.
"Basalt, I'm sorry about what happened today," Axel said, his face filled with apology. "I will report this to the highest levels of the League. That Tyranitar's behavior was completely unacceptable."
"Uh..." Basalt just smiled awkwardly. He couldn't very well tell them that the rampaging Tyranitar was his future ace's father.
"It's alright, Axel. It was an unforeseen circumstance," the Director interjected. "Let Basalt get some rest. We're leaving first thing in the morning."
"So soon?" Axel asked, trying to persuade them to stay. "You've come all this way. You should at least let me show you some proper hospitality."
"I'm afraid we can't," the Director said, his expression turning serious. "Something big is about to happen. I have to get back to headquarters and be ready."
"Something big?" Axel's interest was piqued. Basalt's ears perked up as well.
"I can tell you this much," the Director said with a smile, clapping Basalt on the shoulder. "And it concerns you, Basalt."
"Me?" Basalt was baffled. How could he possibly be involved in the League's top-level plans?
"That's right," the Director nodded. "Get ready, Basalt. If all goes according to plan, we may be revealing Lileep's existence to the world very soon."
"What? Reveal Lileep?" Basalt was shocked. "But you said I had to keep it hidden."
"He's right," Axel chimed in. "Shouldn't we be keeping this a secret? We should be buying up all the fossils from other countries and letting them regret it later."
"We've already taken care of that," the Director said with a smug smile. "Over the past few months, we've had agents all over the world acquiring fossils. According to our scientists' estimates, we now possess roughly half of the world's known supply. It cost a fortune, but it was worth it."
"Half the world's supply?" Basalt gasped. In less than two months, his nation had cornered the global market. He could only imagine the rage and envy of the other major powers when they found out. And it was all thanks to him and Dr. Martin.
"Then why reveal it now?" Axel and Basalt asked in unison.
"It's a long story," the Director said, looking up at the ceiling. "All of the Five Great Powers have been working on fossil revival. And we've all been following the same path: using Life Energy to activate the fossils. We've been locked in a research arms race, spending hundreds of billions every year. But... our success didn't come from Life Energy. It came from Dream Mist."
"We've recently received intelligence that the Unovan scientific community is beginning to doubt the Life Energy approach. Some of their scientists are proposing new avenues of research, and Dream Mist is one of them. So... to keep them on the wrong path, the higher-ups are planning to set a trap. And that may require us to reveal Lileep's existence as 'proof'."
"So I'm going to be famous?" Basalt's heart soared. The moment Lileep was revealed, he and Dr. Martin would become household names, their places in history secured.
"Famous?" the Director scoffed. "And have every foreign power trying to kidnap you, read your mind, or assassinate you? Is that what you want?"
A cold shiver ran down Basalt's spine. "On second thought, never mind. Pretend I don't exist." The familiar feeling of helplessness washed over him. I'm still so weak.
"I'll just have to wait," he thought. "Once the revival machine is repaired and we can mass-produce Fossil Pokémon, my Lileep won't be such a target."
His main task now was to get stronger, to reach the advanced tier before the new school year started. And if all went well, the Larvitar would have hatched by then. The thought of it made his heart race.
After a night of rest, Basalt and the Director boarded a flight. The Director was heading back to the capital, and Basalt was returning to the Jiangnan region. Agent Zhou was waiting for him at the airport in Centralis City and escorted him back to the Cinnabar Sanctuary.
Once there, Basalt had Bronzong take him to a remote, secluded spot. "Bronzong, block the area with your psychic power," he commanded.
He opened his bag. The Smooth Rock Crystal was slightly smaller than before. The Larvitar egg, which had been a solid gray-green, was now speckled with tiny golden dots.
"So the egg has been absorbing the crystal's energy," he said, a grin spreading across his face. He wasn't worried about the egg absorbing the energy; he was worried it wouldn't. The more it absorbed, the stronger its potential would be.
"Keep drinking it up," he whispered to the egg. "My future is riding on you."
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