Chapter 200: Eternatus, Jigsaw Edition
Natsume decided to set out at once. But before leaving, he had to ask Mewtwo for a favor.
When he entered the study, he found Mewtwo sitting at the desk with impeccable posture, diligently reading.
"The League's construction crew may arrive in the next few days, but I need to be away," Natsume said, handing Mewtwo a thick stack of documents.
Closing the book, Mewtwo looked at Natsume with a touch of annoyance. "Then why don't you just give them your requirements directly?" It was clearly a bit piqued at being interrupted.
"No, important projects must be delivered face-to-face. With your telekinesis, confusing them into thinking you're me shouldn't be a problem."
Mewtwo frowned but eventually nodded. Through its recent reading, Mewtwo had come to understand that many of the League's procedures were incredibly convoluted. It seemed to be an unavoidable trend with free services—to prevent people from taking advantage, they added layers of bureaucracy and restrictions.
"There's one more thing," Natsume added, lowering his voice. "See if you can, under the pretext of helping out, slip away with a small amount of lab materials. I remember the League allows for up to ten percent material loss."
Mewtwo's mouth twitched. "Do you want me to build your Motor Rotom while I'm at it?"
Over the past few days, Natsume had chatted with the Pokémon whenever he had the chance, and Mewtwo had gained a solid grasp of Natsume's goals.
"Sure, I'll leave that to you then." Natsume placed a USB drive into Mewtwo's hand. "If you hit a wall, consult the Central AI and talk it over."
With that, Natsume's figure vanished into thin air.
"..." Mewtwo stared silently at the USB drive. It finally understood why Natsume had been shoving books about vehicle mechanics in its face lately. It had wondered what that had to do with being a researcher.
Mt. Moon Summit
After a long journey, Dragonite finally carried Natsume to the peak.
"Woo—woo!" A massive Dragonite waved her arms and hopped in place, overjoyed.
Natsume felt dizzy from her enthusiastic embrace.
"Wow, Natsume, is this the most skilled excavator among your Pokémon?" Professor Oak appeared, staring at the giant Dragonite in amazement. It had only been a few months, but she seemed even larger than before.
"No, she just insisted on coming along," Natsume said, struggling free from her arms.
Dragonite couldn't fly, so they had relied primarily on Natsume's telekinesis for the trip. However, with Dragonite's wings providing thrust and Natsume steering, their speed had exceeded expectations.
"Ahem... with a body that size, she looks like a descendant of that giant Dragonite from the lighthouse, doesn't she?" Professor Magnolia stepped out from the side, circling the Pokémon in wonder. "Perfect timing—this one looks like a natural at digging!"
Natsume rubbed his nose. If they were talking about digging, his center-parted digging specialist was actually number one; even a Diglett couldn't compare. Though he was curious why the Professors needed a Pokémon skilled at digging, he focused on the primary objective.
"Professor Oak, where is that half-slab? Let me have a look."
"The slab? Follow us."
Natsume followed them into a newly excavated cave. Inside, a dazzling array of black shards filled the workspace.
"What are these?" Natsume picked up a palm-sized fragment. It was dark purple, nearly black in some spots, and felt like a piece of cold crystal.
He looked up at a larger piece on the table, as tall as a person. This dark-purple chunk gleamed with a metallic chill. Its fracture face retained bone-like patterns, and scorch marks spread from the edges like vein-like cracks. Natsume's eyes roamed over the other fragments, noting numerous signs of combat.
"You noticed it too, didn't you?" Professor Magnolia sighed.
"These... look like pieces of carapace from Eternatus," Natsume said, fixing his gaze on her. As the leading figure in Dynamax research, she would know best.
"Yes," she nodded. "Initially, our investigation into the Dynamax energy under Mt. Moon led us to believe it was related to the Clefairy. That was until we found a shard like this in a Clefairy den." She pulled a tiny piece of carapace—no larger than a fingernail—from her pocket. "From that moment on, a bold hypothesis took shape. Perhaps, deep within Mt. Moon, another Eternatus is buried."
Natsume nodded; he had already suspected as much. "And its condition isn't great?"
Professor Magnolia shook her head sharply. "Not just 'not great'—I suspect it no longer has any life signs. The deeper we dig, the denser the Dynamax energy becomes, and we keep unearthing more of these shards."
"I see." Natsume understood. If its Divinity had been shattered, there was no way the body could have stayed intact.
"Based on geological estimates, the time of death was roughly three thousand years ago." Magnolia's brow furrowed. She knew better than anyone how terrifying Eternatus was. How could there be a second one? And how did it die so miserably, as if it had been blasted to pieces?
"Aren't there attack marks on these fragments?" Natsume pointed to the table.
"There are. We analyzed them, hoping to reconstruct the battle. Take a look." She handed him a sheaf of papers.
Natsume scanned the reports. The marks indicated Fire, Grass, Electric, Fairy, and Dragon-type attacks. Traces of nearly every type were present, and surprisingly, the frequency of each attack was almost identical.
"Was it a group effort? A gang-up?" Natsume guessed.
"It couldn't have been. Look at the back pages."
Natsume flipped to the end. The analysis of the fracture faces showed that these fragments had all been split in a single instant.
"In a group attack, you wear the opponent down over time. This, however, was absolute overpower," Magnolia said, her own brow furrowed in confusion.
What kind of Pokémon could use all types at once and shatter Eternatus in a single blow?
Natsume's eyes lit up. He had been fixating on switching types, but using all types together might be even stronger. If a theory existed for switching types in a Motor Rotom, there had to be a way to fuse them. He just needed the right method.
This made him even more interested in the remains. This Eternatus was likely from a parallel timeline that possessed such technology. If he could find the core, he might be able to reverse-engineer it.
"What are you two discussing?" Professor Oak emerged, holding a glass jar. Inside, resting on a layer of cotton, was the half-slab.
Natsume's eyes were glued to it instantly. Among items related to Legendary Pokémon, slabs capable of bearing Divinity were prime targets for his Rotom project.
"Let me see." Natsume carefully took the jar. A ghostly blue aura rose from his eyes as his telekinesis seeped into the stone.
The slab was black, engraved with numerous purple stars. At its center was a circular void, now halved into a semicircle. The purple stars were smeared into lines, like rays of light supplying energy to the center. As Natsume delved deeper, he realized the internal structure was identical to the one found in the underground temple.
Strange—are these slabs universal carriers?
He recalled how the previous slab had changed to bear the "humanity and bonds" of Ash Ketchum. But as Natsume pondered this, a sudden, intense surge of sorrow and resentment rushed out of the stone, slamming into his mind.
It's been three thousand years, and the resentment is still this strong?
Enjoyed the story? Support me and get access to early chapters by joining my Patreon!
Find me at: Patr*eon*.com/Resium
Free members can read 10+ Chapters Ahead of Release
Paid member can read 150+ Chapters Ahead of Release
Stories Available
Honkai? No, This Is Daily Life
Hogwarts Pet Master
Pokémon: Who Let Him Leave Pallet Town!
Scrolling Yu-Gi-Oh! Shorts