Fossil

Somewhere...

"Damn those kids! They stole whatever was left!"

"Calm down, Jessie..."

This is Team Rocket—or more specifically, the Meowth of Team Rocket.

After all, Meowth is practically the mascot for James and Jessie...

They're hiding out in a room, maybe to avoid other Team Rocket members, considering they were planning to steal the credit for any success.

Or perhaps they were hiding from the players...

"Strange, the radar shows a lot of people gathering in one spot. Are they planning something?" Meowth, who was checking the radar, asked James.

They're not exactly the smartest, but when it comes to building gadgets, they're masters—if they have the money and the tools.

"How would I know, but it doesn't look good. Let's grab whatever's left and get out of here."

The three nodded in agreement and began searching the room.

They went from one room to another, only to find them all empty.

"What the heck?! There's really nothing left?!"

"How will we ever get praise from the Boss now..."

They all sighed, until Meowth accidentally bumped into something.

"Huh?"

There were two stones by his feet... and they looked a bit strange.

Could it be... NO WAY?!

"JAMES, JESSIE! LOOK AT THIS!!!"

The two turned to see Meowth holding two fossils.

"FOSSILS?!"

"WE'RE SO LUCKY!!"

The three of them jumped up in joy, with James and Jessie cradling the fossils like they were precious babies.

"Alright! No matter what happens, as long as we have something to give the Boss, we're good to go!"

"Let's get out of here!"

The three of them quickly exited the room, looking for a way to escape.

Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed, startling all three, causing them to cover their ears.

Everything around them shook, filling them with fear.

"RUN, RUN, RUN, RUN!!!!"

Running as fast as they could, the more they hurried, the more they lost their sense of direction.

"ARE WE EVEN GOING THE RIGHT WAY?!"

"HOW SHOULD I KNOW?!"

Suddenly, the ground beneath them cracked and started to collapse.

"YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!!"

They tried running in a different direction, but the ground there also started to give way.

"We're trapped!!"

"Do something, Meowth!"

"Why are you asking me??"

The ground continued to crumble, causing Jessie to lose her balance.

"Agh!!"

Seeing Jessie about to fall, James's brain kicked into overdrive.

He threw his fossil aside and grabbed Jessie's hand, causing his fossil to drop.

Meowth quickly rushed over to help, and the two of them strained to pull Jessie back up.

"UGHHHHH!!!"

Using all their strength, James and Meowth managed to pull Jessie to safety.

"Your fossil! You didn't have to throw it away!" Jessie exclaimed.

James scratched his head, looking a bit embarrassed.

"But... your life is more important than a fossil, right? Besides, I didn't want to lose you..."

...

Did you just flirt with me?

Seeing Jessie's face and Meowth's mischievous grin, James realized he'd said too much.

"AGHH NO! THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT!!"

"No need to explain, I get it," Meowth said, jumping up to pat James on the shoulder.

James and Jessie exchanged glances and then quickly looked away, feeling embarrassed.

"...well, at least we still have one fossil left. That's more than enough."

"Yeah..."

Just as they were trying to find a way out, a net suddenly shot out and trapped them.

"WHAT?!"

"WHO DID THIS?!"

The three of them were caught in the net as a man approached them, laughing.

"Thought I wouldn't find anything, but the treasure just came right to me."

"Who are you?!"

"Doesn't matter who I am. All you need to know is that I appreciate your help."

He snatched the fossil from Jessie's hand.

"DAMN IT, GIVE THAT BACK!"

The man walked away, leaving the trio furious.

"We'll definitely get our revenge!!!"

Suddenly, a nearby machine that had been damaged earlier began to malfunction and exploded.

BOOM!

The three of them were sent flying into the sky, each with their own thoughts.

"Why does our luck suck so much..." James sighed, already resigned to his fate.

"I WILL DEFINITELY GET REVENGE!!!" Jessie screamed, enraged that their last fossil had been stolen.

"Next time we'll prepare a machine for self-defense," Meowth muttered, scratching his head.

"THIS IS SUCH A FRUSTRATING FEELING!!"

A flash of light lit up the sky as they soared away.

***

"Hmmm, oh here it is."

the man with purple hair muttered as he sifted through the rubble, smiling as he spotted a peculiar stone.

He picked it up, examining it closely to confirm what was inside.

"Mega Stone," he whispered to himself, grinning as he pocketed the find.

He then pulled out a modern-looking watch, pressing a button to initiate a call.

A holographic screen projected from the watch, revealing a shadowy figure sitting in a chair, gently stroking the head of a Persian.

"Boss, I've found it," the man, known as Petrel, reported.

"Good job, Petrel. What about the other tasks?" the figure asked, his voice cool and composed.

"All failed, sir," Petrel admitted.

"Hmm. While those tasks were mere distractions to conceal our true objective, it's disappointing they were defeated so easily. I wonder who could have been responsible?"

"I'm not certain, but there was one boy I distinctly remember. His appearance was more memorable than the others."

"Go on."

"The boy wore an outfit with red accents and had a Pikachu," Petrel described.

"Hmm... very well. You've done well, Petrel. You may disconnect."

"Understood, sir," Petrel replied before ending the call with a sigh of relief.

The reason why the Boss had assigned those operatives to steal fossils, capture Clefable, and obtain the Moon Stone was to create a smokescreen for their true mission.

After all, for the Boss, sacrificing a group of grunts for a Mega Stone was well worth it.

And if those grunts had somehow succeeded in their tasks, it wouldn't have mattered much—those items weren't of significant value to him anyway.

After all, a leader of Team Rocket who wasn't ruthless wouldn't have earned the title of the most dangerous criminal in both the Kanto and Johto regions.