"Furthermore, have you located Jirachi yet?" the Pope rasped, his brows furrowing into tight knots. "Jirachi is the final, indispensable piece of our grand design. Without it, we miss the opportunity to harness the energy of the Millennium Comet. If we cannot awaken Lord Arceus, all our efforts will have been in vain."
"Please, Lord Pope, do not trouble yourself," Brandon promised with absolute confidence. "I have already pinpointed the locations where Jirachi is most likely to appear. My teams are already on the ground. We will bring the Wishing Star to you before the comet reaches its zenith."
"Good. I trust you, Brandon. My time is running out... I only hope to see Arceus released from its seal within my lifetime." The Pope rubbed the corners of his eyes with a gnarled hand, squeezing out a few "crocodile tears" of feigned devotion.
Infiltration of the Sacred Lake
The moon had reached its peak, casting a silver sheen over the tranquil lake. In the surrounding woods, Bug-type Pokémon moved through the undergrowth. Suddenly, Feng Che appeared in a swirl of psychic energy.
"Come out, Ditto. Transform into a Floatzel."
Ditto observed the sentries playing in the shallows. Its body rippled and expanded, engulfing Feng Che until a perfect replica of a Floatzel stood in the forest. Feng Che waddled out onto the shore with practiced ease. The Temple's Floatzel, seeing the familiar form and the specialized Temple marker on Ditto's "wrist," didn't even pause their games, allowing him to slip into the depths.
The lake was immense—nearly the size of Snowpoint City itself. Beneath the surface, the water was patrolled by high-level Gastrodon and Lumineon.
The Gastrodon sat motionless on the lakebed like giant, slimy slugs, their dual Water/Ground typing making them perfect sensors for any vibrations in the mud. Lumineon, with their deep teal bodies and pink-spotted tails, emitted a soft blue luminescence, acting as living streetlights for the Temple's underwater territory.
"This lake is too large for a manual search," Mewtwo noted via telepathy. "And these Pokémon are highly trained. If I use a wide-range psychic scan, I'll trip every alarm in the Temple."
"The container holding the Jewel is made of a rare material designed to reflect psychic waves," Feng Che added. "Even a God-tier scan would miss it. We have to do this the old-fashioned way."
Secrets of the Marsh
Feng Che drifted past a particularly large East Sea Gastrodon.
Gastrodon: Another boring day. The Priests are so paranoid... they cleared out every wild Pokémon just to leave us, the Floatzel, and the Lumineon.Gastrodon: They told us if any other species shows up, we scream. I hate it here. I miss the Great Marsh.
Feng Che's eyes narrowed. The Great Marsh? Gastrodon are the primary partners of the monks at the Pastoria Great Marsh. They aren't traded lightly.
Gastrodon: I wonder what deal the Great Marsh made with the Temple. One day I'm at the temple, the next I'm sold to these fanatics in the north.
"So, Pastoria City has officially sided with the Temple," Feng Che analyzed. "If the Marsh, the Bertha clan, and the Volkner family are all in, then Celestic Town is facing a six-front war: the Temple, the League, the Bounty Hunters, and three of the most powerful elemental clans in Sinnoh."
"The Pope is playing for keeps. I need to get this Jewel and then warn Zinnia and Cynthia. If Celestic Town falls, the Garden family is next. My family is my resource line; I won't let it be cut."
The Discovery
Gastrodon: I'm going to sleep. Maybe I'll dream of home.
"That Gastrodon's inner monologue was a lucky break," Feng Che thought. "I was about to send out Greninja and Gyarados to help, but that would have triggered the alarm immediately."
Feng Che commanded Ditto to create dozens of tiny, independent clones. These "Mini-Dittos" transformed into small Lumineon and Floatzel, fanning out across the lakebed with a specific instruction: Find an ancient staff-like object.
"Mewtwo, I have a theory," Feng Che whispered. "If Ditto devours the Jewel of Life and uses it as a permanent battery, could it maintain a God-tier transformation indefinitely?"
"Theoretically, yes," Mewtwo replied. "But the Jewel's power is volatile. We can test it; if Ditto starts to break down, we simply extract the Jewel."
"You could also aim for the Mind Core of Regidrago in Celestic Town," Mewtwo suggested. "The Dragon Titan you hold is only half-complete. If you fuse your Power Core with their Mind Core and fuel it with the Unown, you'd have a beast that could rival Rayquaza."
"That depends on if Cynthia is willing to part with it," Feng Che said, frowning. "And even then, I'd have to ensure the two halves are from the same original specimen, or the rejection would be catastrophic."
Just as he finished the thought, one of the "beady-eyed" Lumineon clones swam toward him. Clamped firmly in its small mouth was an ancient, ornate staff crafted from weathered wood and encrusted with centuries of lake silt.