Chapter 131: The Wish Star Jirachi — It Can Grant Wishes!
Farnes was the name of a region — a landscape of quartzite sandstone peaks and spires.
It sat southwest of Mt. Chimney and directly north of Lavaridge Town.
Carried by Armored Mewtwo's psychic flight, the three of them arrived in the Farnes region that afternoon.
The environment was extraordinary — dense, thriving forest, lush and green, teeming with Pokémon going about their lives in cheerful abundance.
"It's so beautiful. The plants here are incredible."
Lillie breathed in the fragrant air and looked around with wide, wondering eyes.
"Mm. It's not that far from Mt. Chimney, but the vegetation here is extraordinary." Caitlin looked around in quiet agreement. Mt. Chimney was a dormant volcano — volcanic ash fell continuously in the surrounding area, keeping temperatures elevated and the plant life thin. The contrast with this valley was striking.
"That's because a certain Pokémon has been channeling energy into this land continuously. Farnes thrives because of it."
Mammon reached up and picked two bright red apples from a nearby fruit tree, wiped them on his sleeve, and handed them to Caitlin and Lillie with a smile.
"Qi qi~!"
Tapu Fini was instantly beside him, tugging at his attention with an air of deep personal grievance.
"Yes, yes, you too."
Mammon had long since accepted that Shell Lady simply did not enjoy staying in her Poké Ball — she appeared wherever she liked. He'd also noticed that for all her aloof posturing, Tapu Fini was, in practice, the clingiest member of his main team.
He picked two more apples and passed them over.
"Qi~" Tapu Fini's eyes curved with satisfaction. She took a bite and let out a pleased little sound.
"A Pokémon did all of this?" Lillie was genuinely astonished. A single Pokémon maintaining an entire region's vitality and growth? "That's incredible."
"It's called Jirachi. A mythical Pokémon, according to legend." Mammon nodded.
A mythical Pokémon. That explained it, Lillie thought. She had a reference point for legendary Pokémon now.
"Legend has it that once every thousand years, if Jirachi hears a pure, clear song, it will stay awake for seven days." Mammon's mouth curved slowly upward. "And there's something else rather remarkable about it."
He paused for effect.
"When it wakes from its cocoon of sleep, it grants whatever wish is written on the tags on its forehead. Any wish, apparently."
He emphasized that last part.
"Is that true?"
"Wait — it can really grant any wish?"
Both Caitlin and Lillie stopped and stared at him.
"Whether it's truly any wish, no one knows for certain. Normal wishes should be fine." Mammon laughed. Asking Jirachi for literally anything seemed a little much to demand from the little star baby.
Jirachi used its own energy reserves to fulfill wishes — as the film's villain Butler had demonstrated, the first time he'd taken Jirachi, the attempt had failed because Jirachi hadn't absorbed enough comet energy yet. The second time, Jirachi was simultaneously absorbing comet energy while attempting to resurrect Groudon on Butler's behalf — and even then, only managed to produce a grotesque imitation of one when Ash interrupted the process.
Incidentally, Mammon had never quite understood Butler's logic. He was trying to resurrect a Pokémon that can't fly using a scale from a Pokémon that can't fly and asking Jirachi, whose power has nothing to do with that, to make it happen. The can't fly Groudon would probably want to thank Butler's entire family for the result.
Comet energy wasn't unlimited. Mammon doubted Jirachi could conjure an Alpaca out of thin air. But a Shiny Rayquaza, or a Shiny Zygarde — those might be in the realm of possibility, actually. He seemed to recall that both a Shiny Rayquaza and Shiny Zygarde had been caught in the Pokémon Horizons anime, so clearly it wasn't impossible.
"A mythical Pokémon that can grant wishes—"
Caitlin's eyes shimmered slightly. She didn't have any particularly grand ambitions at the moment.
If she had to name one—
Get stronger. And — become Mammon's rightful partner. Show every scheming woman who kept sniffing around him exactly what that meant.
"If I wished for Mammon to fall in love with me — would that count as a normal wish?"
The thought crossed both Caitlin's and Lillie's minds at exactly the same moment, with perfect, unspoken synchronicity.
"So we're going to find Jirachi, Mr. Mammon?"
Lillie's energy immediately picked up several notches. This timing was perfect.
"That's the plan. According to what I've researched, the thousand-year comet is due to arrive soon. When it does, Jirachi just needs to hear a pure song to wake."
Mammon smiled.
(According to the film's lore, it also needed a person of pure heart to be near when it woke — otherwise it would sleep another thousand years. But it was worth noting that in the actual film, the person whose song eventually woke Jirachi was May. And May had genuinely heard Jirachi's telepathy even while it slept.)
"A song? I can do that!" Lillie was immediately confident.
She had, after all, played her flute and evolved Nebby all the way into Lunala. She had experience.
"If it's Lillie, I'm sure it'll be fine." Mammon smiled back.
This was also exactly why he'd brought her to Farnes. By his assessment, Lillie qualified on both counts — pure heart, clear voice. And if she didn't work for some reason, Armored Mewtwo could presumably deliver some form of psychic wake-up service to a sleeping mythical. A Pokémon that woke to a song should be reasonably susceptible to a Dark-type psychic trigger. He was curious about Jirachi's limits.
More than that — he genuinely liked Jirachi. The little star baby was adorably appealing.
He also wondered: would Jirachi still sleep after being caught? Or would it be fine so long as it wasn't overexerting its energy? Jirachi seemed to fall into exhausted sleep after using its power to recover — which was fascinating in itself.
Lillie flushed slightly at Mammon's words, but her smile was radiant.
Caitlin glanced at Lillie. Composed, as always.
This girl definitely has ulterior motives. But she wasn't particularly threatened. A girl who wasn't even a Trainer wasn't competition Caitlin was paying close attention to. At most Mammon would experience something new and then move on — as long as she didn't end up like Courtney, refusing to leave the room for three hours, she wasn't worth worrying about.
The three of them pressed deeper into the region and eventually arrived at the entrance to an underground valley.
Two people were already waiting there.
"Butler, I presume?"
Mammon looked the young man over — purple hair, white outfit. Butler: a magician of considerable renown, and before that, a scientist for Team Magma, until Magma discarded him. An insult he'd apparently carried in his chest ever since.
"And you are—?"
Butler's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Courtney won't be coming. She's unwell today."
Butler's face went dark immediately. His jaw tightened, knuckles whitening.
Even Courtney didn't trust him.
He'd assumed that Courtney, a fellow scientist, would understand him better than most.
"Don't misread this. No one is dismissing you. Don't let that sensitive pride of yours do your thinking." Mammon had read the situation in about two seconds.
This person was someone whose powerful self-regard had led him somewhere unfortunate. Then again, anyone who'd willingly collaborated with Team Magma wasn't exactly a study in good judgment.
"…?" Butler blinked.
"Since we're here — you probably haven't heard. Team Magma no longer exists."
"What?"
Butler went rigid. Team Magma no longer existed?
"Literally. They were absorbed and dismantled by our organization. I have some appreciation for your abilities — if you're interested, you're welcome to join us. I can offer you a much larger stage."
Mammon was in reasonably good spirits, and honestly, Butler's talents were real even if his personality was complicated. Beyond his scientific background, he was an accomplished professional magician — useful for generating revenue, useful for research.
"…"
Butler's expression shifted through several things. His mind was clearly churning.
All that effort. All that research, all those documents, all that time — just to find Jirachi's resting place.
He'd been so close to proving his theory correct. To wiping the smirks off everyone who'd ever laughed at him.
And now he was being told Magma was already gone.
What had any of his years of work even meant? Butler felt the particular hollow feeling of someone who had poured everything into a cause that had evaporated underneath him.
"Take your time. Give me an answer in a bit." Mammon could see the internal storm clearly enough.
"Mewtwo."
"It's in there."
The violet flames in Armored Mewtwo's eyes flickered. Something in the valley — a distinct presence, faint but unmistakable.
The three of them entered. The air inside was noticeably cool. Armored Mewtwo raised one arm. A section of rock wall split apart, and a purple crystalline object rose from within, held aloft by psychic force.
"Is that Jirachi?"
Both Caitlin and Lillie looked at the drifting purple crystal with open curiosity.
"That's it. But it's still sleeping — hasn't woken yet."
Mammon caught it as it floated over, turning it in his hands with an easy smile.
"It's remarkable."
Lillie couldn't quite find the right words. Something that slept for a thousand years at a stretch and granted wishes when it woke — there was no good way to describe it.
"This world is full of things like that."
Mammon laughed quietly, studying the purple crystal.
Green light bloomed from his palm. The Power of Viridian — the energy of nature, flowing steadily from his hand into the crystal.
The crystal appeared completely unaffected. No response. No telepathic murmur.
Though it did seem to glow a little more brilliantly.
"Pff — even the Power of Viridian doesn't do it. How deeply are you sleeping?"
Mammon snorted and withdrew his hand. The sleeping little star didn't react, but every drop of energy he'd sent in had been absorbed completely.
Greedy.
"Fine. We wait for the comet."
He slipped the crystal into his dimensional pack. No signs of imminent awakening — no rush.
Back outside the valley, Butler and his childhood friend Diane were still standing there. Butler appeared to have settled somewhat.
"Might I ask your name, sir?"
Butler stepped forward. With Magma gone, his obsession with Jirachi had deflated considerably. He'd been chasing it to prove himself, to prove his theories, to make the people who'd laughed at him choke on it. With Magma already dissolved, much of that urgency had dissolved with it.
"Mammon. Changed your mind?"
"Is Courtney — Lady Courtney — one of your subordinates?"
"She is."
"Not only Courtney — the former leader of Team Magma, Maxie, is also under me. I won't sell you a dream, Butler."
Mammon said it simply and directly.
"Join us, and with your abilities, your future is genuinely promising. Stepping on the people who laughed at you — not an impossible goal."
Butler's breathing quickened involuntarily. This was an offer he couldn't refuse.
"Please allow me to join."
"Good. Contact Courtney — she'll set up your placement. You brought useful intelligence this time, so I'll have her give you favorable terms."
"Thank you, Lord Mammon."
Butler stepped back with an elegant bow. He was, at his core, an exceptionally polished showman.
"Please permit me a small expression of gratitude."
He produced a top hat, passed one hand over it in a smooth arc, and drew out a single beautiful rose.
"I'm sure your companions would be pleased."
Butler withdrew gracefully, inwardly delighted with himself. Perfect. Earn goodwill from Mammon and his lady companions simultaneously — he had outdone himself.
"You—"
Mammon's smile faded. He took the rose, then turned to look at Caitlin and Lillie.
Lillie was looking down with a slight flush.
Caitlin's cheeks had taken on a faint color as well, and she'd turned her head with great composure to look at something to the side.
Neither of them had stopped watching him from the corner of their eyes.
Mm.
Who does the flower go to.
Mammon felt a cold sweat coming on. Butler, you absolute— He was going to make sure Courtney found the most inconvenient assignment possible for this man.
"Wow~! What a beautiful flower — could I have it?"
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