The Portal

As the leader, Yuga watched the fallen Malamar leader and shook the blue crystal in his hand. He turned to the trembling Magneton and two Meowstic nearby and asked, "Do any of you know what this is?"

Several Pokémon quickly shook their heads, indicating they had no idea.

They were all recruited by the Malamar as grunts, so they wouldn't be privy to important information, and the Malamars wouldn't have shared this knowledge with them.

"Do any of you know where the person captured by the Malamars is?"

Several Magnetons exchanged glances but hesitated to speak.

Finally, two Meowstic stepped forward, gesturing for Yuga to follow them.

Yuga recalled his Dragonite and Mismagius, keeping Gengar by his side. He couldn't be certain that there were no other dangers here.

Even towards seemingly harmless Meowstic, Yuga remained vigilant.

Under the guidance of the two Meowstic, Yuga arrived at a large door similar to the room where the Malamars had been.

The male Meowstic levitated using its psychic power and pressed a few times on the keypad lock beside the door. With a click, the large door opened.

Through the open door, Yuga immediately saw Clemont sleeping inside. Unlike the previous dimly lit room, this one was well-lit, and Clemont appeared healthy and peaceful, relieving Yuga.

Seems like he's okay.

Seeing that Clemont was fine, Yuga began to inspect this peculiar room.

This room was very similar to the one where the Malamars had been, resembling a laboratory in its layout.

There were even some sophisticated instruments in this room that weren't present in the other one.

The walls of the room had a central computer screen, accompanied by various consoles beneath it. The complexity of these devices left Yuga feeling dizzy.

Surveying these instruments, Yuga realized they were all high-end scientific equipment. It was hard to imagine how the Malamars had acquired such advanced technology.

The most conspicuous objects in the room were four pyramidal-shaped objects standing in the center. They were black in color with light blue patterns covering their surfaces, and occasional blue energy lines flowed across them.

Four pyramidal pillars surrounded a strange device, and on the device, there was a pure white flower with multiple petals. The petals of the flower continuously emitted red, blue, and black energies, which flowed towards the four pyramidal pillars.

As Yuga approached the four pyramidal pillars and the flower, he felt a palpable wave of energy emanating from them.

What is this?

Yuga looked at the pyramidal pillars and the flower in disbelief, unable to fathom what the Malamars were researching.

The flower didn't appear to be of natural origin; otherwise, it wouldn't have been able to withstand so much energy and would have withered long ago.

"Do any of you know what these are?"

Yuga turned to the two Meowstic and asked.

The two Meowstic shook their heads, but the female Meowstic ran up to Yuga and tugged at his hand.

Gengar had initially wanted to stop the female Meowstic from getting too close, but when he saw Yuga shaking his head, he let the female Meowstic lead Yuga.

The female Meowstic guided Yuga to a corner of the room, with the male Meowstic following closely behind.

Staring at the gray wall in front of him, Yuga didn't understand why the Meowstic had brought him here. Could there be a secret in this place?

The female Meowstic then let go of Yuga's hand and made a beckoning gesture towards the male Meowstic.

The male Meowstic nodded, walked up to the female Meowstic, and held her outstretched right hand.

With their hands joined, the two Meowstic simultaneously placed their other hand against the wall, emitting a blue psychic energy from their eyes.

Ripples resembling water patterns appeared on the wall where the Meowstic pressed their hands.

Then, Yuga heard a click, and in front of him, the wall split open, revealing a long stone staircase on the other side of the doorway.

It seemed that opening this door had consumed a considerable amount of energy from the two Meowstic, as they sat on the ground, panting.

"Are you both alright?"

Yuga asked with a furrowed brow.

The two Meowstic shook their heads and explained the situation.

They were among the first Pokémon forced to follow the Malamars, essentially serving as their henchmen. They were familiar with the inside of this black structure, but the Malamars hadn't disclosed specific details about what it was used for.

The three Malamars were not originally native to this forest; they appeared here decades ago. Initially, they kept a low profile, but soon they began planning to take control of the forest and gradually constructed the black structure over the following years.

As a result, the Pokémon in the forest suffered under their rule. Some wanted to leave the forest but found themselves unable to do so, not even the native Pokémon could escape.

The Pokémon often witnessed the Malamars leaving the forest and returning with various items, but they had no idea what the Malamars were up to.

This black structure, including the laboratories inside, had been constructed over decades using items brought back by the Malamars each time they left the forest.

The door that Yuga faced was constructed later by the three Malamars. Although the Meowstic knew how to open it, they had never ventured inside and didn't know what was within, except that it was related to the laboratory.

Opening the door was straightforward for the Malamars, but it would require significant effort for the weaker two Meowstic.

Yuga had Gengar hold the exhausted Meowstic in his arms and continued down the stone staircase towards the door.

As they descended the stairs, Yuga heard numerous cries of pain and anguish from ahead, causing his expression to change. He quickened his pace and soon witnessed a shocking and infuriating scene.

This underground laboratory was similar to the one above, but it held imprisoned Pokémon, their cries of agony echoing throughout. These Pokémon were confined in cages that were not ordinary; they continuously drained energy from the captive Pokémon, causing their suffering.

Most of the Pokémon Yuga had encountered were kind-hearted, and he had never imagined that there could be evil Pokémon like the three Malamars in this world.