"Yeah, have Gladion and the others send people to look around. If they can find Akari, that'd be interesting."
Damian thinks it over and settles on this idea.
He'd been ignoring this angle before.
On a subconscious level, he'd always assumed Dawn was Sinnoh's "protagonist," but that doesn't rule out Akari existing too.
Unova has both Hilda and Rosa sharing the spotlight, after all.
About an hour later, the four of them are still flipping through the Ancient Verses and chatting.
Damian has to admit, it's pretty fun.
He's also very interested in Cogita, the one who recorded these ancient poems, because Cogita is an extremely key figure in Pokémon Legends.
Her identity and background are very mysterious.
She knows a ton about Legendary Pokémon; even Enamorus is her partner and willingly travels with her everywhere.
According to Cogita herself, all those legends and bits of info she knows were inherited from her ancestors—she's only passing them on to Akari.
But that's exactly the thing: she knows way too much.
And she's way too mysterious herself, to the point people can't help wondering if she might be a Legendary Pokémon in human form.
If he ever gets the chance to go back to Hisui, he definitely wants to have a long chat with that woman.
Well, there's another important reason too—Damian really wants Cogita's body.
White hair is rare in the Pokémon series, and Cogita's got the whole package: looks, aura, figure, all top‑tier.
But she's a woman of the Hisui era.
If he ever does make it there, they can talk then.
"Miss Sheena, I have a bit of a presumptuous request. Would that be convenient?"
Damian thinks it over, then speaks to Sheena.
"Please go ahead, Mr. Damian."
Sheena smiles at his words.
She still has a very good impression of Damian.
He's sunny, speaks with poise, and is clearly knowledgeable—it's easy to feel comfortable around someone like that.
"Then I'll be blunt. Would it be possible for us to have a look at that divine relic, the Jewel of Life?"
Damian doesn't beat around the bush.
He really is very curious about the Jewel of Life.
Especially since it's a treasure formed from five Plates fused together.
Sheena freezes at that.
Her little face immediately scrunches up.
Anything else is fine to talk about, but the Jewel of Life…
"Damian?!"
Cynthia's heart gives a jolt.
Her delicate features shift as well.
This is exactly what she was afraid of.
Damian might not be wholly depraved, but he's definitely not a "good person" either.
Wanting to snatch a treasure like the Jewel of Life really wouldn't be surprising for him.
But Cynthia very much does not want to see that happen.
Sheena welcomed them with such warmth and openness, shared Michina Town's history and her precious Ancient Verses without holding anything back.
For them to rob her now of the treasure her family has guarded for generations, the one imbued with her ancestors' hopes…
That really would be awful.
"Relax. I'm not plotting anything. I just want a look at it, purely out of curiosity."
Damian can't help a laugh and shakes his head.
Claiming he has zero designs on the Jewel of Life would be a lie, but he hasn't lost his mind.
What would be the point of robbing it?
If this world's Arceus worked like the movie's Arceus, Damian wouldn't hesitate to steal it.
But the key difference is that this Arceus is completely unharmed—and might even have the Mythical Plate.
Even if it hasn't touched the real world in ages, if Damian stole the Jewel of Life from Sheena and one day Arceus woke up and learned about it…
Who knows what Arceus would do?
Damos and Arceus got along well.
Arceus taking care of Damos's descendants and reclaiming the Jewel of Life personally isn't exactly impossible either.
So Damian might be tempted by the Jewel of Life, but not enough to grab it by force.
Cynthia exhales quietly.
Since Damian's put it that way, he probably won't do anything rash.
"By rights, it's not allowed. But… I really do feel like I'm fated to meet the three of you. So let's do this—please promise you won't tell anyone what you see today. Can you do that?"
After a long internal struggle, Sheena bites her lip and still agrees.
"I can swear to Arceus on that."
Damian smiles faintly.
"We'll keep it secret, absolutely."
Cynthia answers in all seriousness.
"Then please, follow me."
Sheena lets out a long breath and leads the three of them to the time‑space device.
The device can detect the stability of time and space—a very strange item in its own right.
Sheena presses a spot on the console in front of it.
Mechanisms click, and a metallic flower‑shaped structure slowly rises.
"Please look. This is the Jewel of Life."
The flower‑device gradually blooms, revealing what lies within.
A gem suffused with soft green light, brimming with life energy, appears before the four of them.
The gem's core gleams with radiance that's almost dazzling.
Formed from the fusion of the Ground, Water, Grass, Electric, and Dragon Plates, this divine relic doesn't just hold the power of those five Plates; they complement each other.
As a result, the Jewel of Life possesses an incredibly strong life force.
Use the Jewel of Life—and in the blink of an eye, a withered land can burst back into lush vitality, green and full of life again.
"Beautiful…"
Damian can't help breathing it out.
The Jewel of Life really is breathtaking.
Purely in terms of looks, it's way prettier than the Blue Orb or even the Lustrous Globe.
But…
Damian studies the Jewel of Life, thoughtful.
"Isn't it? We've always been protecting it, just waiting for the day Arceus descends again."
A look of pure anticipation blooms on Sheena's face.
She dearly hopes she'll be the one of her line to finally see Arceus appear.
Unfortunately, the time‑space device hasn't shown any signs of fluctuation.
That means the "beginning between" is still completely quiet.
She doesn't know if she'll get to see Arceus in her lifetime.
Caitlin and Cynthia are also studying the Jewel of Life closely.
"Something's off."
Damian's voice suddenly cuts in.
"Mr. Damian? What is it?"
Sheena looks over, puzzled.
"This gem is off."
Damian's eyes narrow.
"?"
Sheena freezes.
"Miss Sheena, you have a special gift as well, right?"
"Huh? Yes, I inherited the power of Overcoming from my ancestors."
Sheena's even more lost.
"I've got a special ability too. It's a power granted to me by the Viridian Forest I was born in."
Damian lifts his right hand; a soft green glow lights up.
"Your power of Overcoming doesn't give you much of an edge when it comes to sensing. That's probably why you never realized it—but this Jewel of Life… there's basically no energy inside."
Damian speaks slowly.
"?"
Sheena still doesn't quite follow.
"What Damian means is, this Jewel of Life is fake. It's just a pretty bauble—there's no divine power inside."
Caitlin explains.
With Damian's nudge, she's sensed it too.
Her Psychic power is strong enough to confirm it.
"What?! This is impossible!"
This time, Sheena understands—and her face goes white.
This is the Jewel of Life her bloodline has passed down and guarded for generations.
How could it be fake?!
"Could there be a mistake?"
Cynthia's brows knit tight.
"No. This gem really is 'empty.' It's just a nice piece of crystal. If you don't believe me, Sheena, pick it up and throw it on the floor."
Damian shakes his head.
Sheena's face is bloodless now.
Even her body is trembling.
She still can't bring herself to believe it—but without question, she's afraid.
"If it really were a Jewel of Life made from Arceus's Plates, it'd be indestructible. Even Pokémon attacks couldn't break it."
"But if it shatters… then there's only one explanation."
Damian looks at Sheena—and she instantly understands what he's implying.
Somewhere along the long years, the real Jewel of Life was swapped out.
"I…"
Sheena's hand reaches toward the Jewel of Life, shaking uncontrollably.
She knows Damian's logic makes sense.
She has to verify it herself.
But the psychological pressure is crushing; her movements are painfully slow.
Her fingers finally brush the Jewel of Life.
It isn't heavy.
Sheena lifts it, then draws a deep breath.
"Relax. If it's genuine, it won't break."
Damian's voice at her ear.
Sheena clenches her teeth.
Then she opens her fingers.
The Jewel of Life falls.
Clack—
The instant it hits the hard ground, the "Jewel of Life" gives a brittle crack.
A heartbeat later, it splinters apart.
It really is just a crystal ornament.
Sheena's head swims.
Her vision goes black at the edges.
Her whole body suddenly feels like all the strength has been drained out of it; she can't even stand.
"Sheena!"
Cynthia hurries to catch her.
But even with a supporting arm, Sheena's knees buckle and she sinks to the floor, blank eyes fixated on the shattered Jewel of Life.
"How… how could this… how could it be…"
Sheena stares dully at the fragments scattered on the ground.
It really is just a fake.
So what was the point of her guardianship all this time?
She's always waited with such longing, hoping one day Arceus would appear so she could present the Jewel of Life and thank Arceus for its grace a thousand years ago.
Now she can't even imagine it—if she'd actually gone before Arceus with this counterfeit Jewel of Life, what would Arceus have thought of her?
"Sheena, pull yourself together. Has anyone ever snuck into the ruins before?"
Cynthia tries to pull Sheena up, but she's limp.
All she can do is hold her and ask gently.
"No. No one."
Sheena's eyes are reddening as she shakes her head over and over.
"The Jewel of Life… I've always seen it as more important than my own life. Other than Kevin, no one even knows where it is."
"And Kevin's grown up with me since we were kids. He's a ruins guardian like me. There's no way he'd steal the Jewel of Life."
Her voice is already breaking.
"So the only thing we can be sure of is that the Jewel of Life's been fake since at least your ancestors' time."
Damian hadn't expected this.
Even with the difference from the movie, the Jewel of Life still ends up swapped.
In the movie, it was Damos's treacherous subordinate Marcus who stole the Jewel of Life and replaced it with a counterfeit.
Then Damos's line guarded that fake for generations—until Arceus, awakened into the real world, shattered it with a single stomp and realized it was false.
The real Jewel of Life had been hidden in the ruins all along.
Marcus never had time to get it out; he died together with Damos when Arceus went on a rampage after being betrayed.
"Uu…"
The guardian girl's composure finally shatters.
She covers her face and sobs.
She has no idea what she's supposed to do now.
It'd be one thing if she at least knew who stole it.
But she doesn't even have that.
She doesn't even know if it was taken in her generation.
How's she supposed to look for it?
There isn't even a starting point.
"Stay strong. If you have the manpower, send people to search the ruins and the area around Michina Town first."
"Or ask Pokémon to help. They're more sensitive to treasure that's full of energy. You might be able to find something."
Damian's not hinting anymore; he's spelling it out.
"Pokémon… right, Pokémon!"
Sheena finally remembers.
She might not know where to look, but they might.
She hurriedly wipes her tears away and pushes herself to her feet, running out of the ruins.
Her footsteps are quick and uneven; you can feel her urgency.
"Sheena?"
The three of them follow after her.
Cynthia gives Sheena a puzzled look.
Sheena stands in front of the ancient temple, hands clasped to her chest, eyes squeezed shut.
A strange wave of energy surges from her.
"Please help me! Dialga!!"
~~
Get early access to 130+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
patreon.com/PokemonStoryWeaver
~~~
Every 100 Power Stones = 2 extra chapter