Mt. Moon lay between Cerulean City and Pewter City. It had once been just another unremarkable mountain, until one day someone discovered Moon Stones there—and overnight, Mt. Moon became famous.
Compared to other evolutionary stones, Moon Stones weren't considered especially rare, but that was only relative.
Even the poorest-quality Moon Stone could sell for tens of thousands, and a high-quality one was priceless.
Pokémon had varying levels of potential, or "aptitude." Normally, this aptitude was extremely difficult to change. But there was one miraculous exception: evolution. After evolving, a Pokémon had a small chance of improving its aptitude.
Some Pokémon evolved once they reached a certain Tier, while others required special methods—like the use of evolutionary stones.
The higher the quality of the stone, the greater the improvement after evolution. High-quality stones even carried a chance of raising a Pokémon's aptitude to a higher grade.
"…But all of this is really just rumor. You can't judge a Pokémon's aptitude with the naked eye. It requires special instruments, and just one test costs tens of thousands. Unless a family is wealthy, they'd never spend that kind of money," Brock explained seriously as they walked along Mt. Moon's path.
Ash's jaw dropped, his face showing clear surprise. "Wait, it costs that much just to test a Pokémon's aptitude?"
"Of course. In truth, the cost of testing isn't that high. But if it were easy to do, then every Trainer would rush to test their Pokémon right after catching them. And if the results weren't good, they'd abandon the Pokémon. That kind of behavior is cruel and strictly forbidden by the League."
"So by making aptitude testing so expensive, it prevents people from casually doing it. Trainers who dream of catching a whole bunch and then only keeping the best don't get that option," Misty added, explaining why the price was set so high.
It wasn't that testing itself cost much—it was deliberately priced out of reach, discouraging most people from even trying.
"But… if they didn't want people testing Pokémon aptitude, then why invent the test in the first place?" Ash asked, frowning.
"Who knows? Maybe someone stumbled on it by accident," Misty said with a shrug, clearly just as baffled.
As the three chatted, they continued deeper into Mt. Moon. The path was long, and since they had to enter the caves, time slipped by unnoticed. By the time they'd finished dinner, night had already fallen.
And then, a cute, playful pink Pokémon suddenly appeared before them. "Clefairy~~!"
Misty's eyes instantly lit up, sparkling with excitement. "It's a Clefairy! Mt. Moon really does have Clefairy!"
Rumors said that aside from Moon Stones, Clefairy lived here as well. Though not strong, they were rare and irresistibly cute—especially popular among female Trainers, Misty included.
She had originally planned to only catch Water-type Pokémon, but seeing Clefairy now, she couldn't help but think having one wouldn't be bad at all.
"So that's a Clefairy, huh? Looks pretty cute," Ash said as he pulled out his Pokédex to scan it.
The Eye of Insight could reveal a Pokémon's aptitude, but not its descriptions or type—that still required the Pokédex. If his Eye of Insight were complete, maybe he wouldn't even need the Pokédex anymore.
[Clefairy: Its adorable appearance makes it highly popular as a pet, though it's not easy to find. Legend says it came from the moon.]
"Huh? A Pokémon from the moon? Seriously?" Ash closed the Pokédex, his face filled with surprise.
Sure, Clefairy was rare—but saying they came from the moon seemed way over the top.
"There's definitely such a rumor, though proving it is… difficult," Brock nodded.
"Why? Isn't human technology advanced enough to reach the moon?" Ash crouched down in front of Clefairy, curiously poking at it. Surprisingly, this wild Clefairy wasn't afraid of him at all. Instead, it smiled at the touch and swayed side to side in a friendly manner.
"Yes, technology should be advanced enough to reach space… but whenever people try to break past the ozone layer, they're mysteriously stopped. So humanity has never actually managed to leave Earth."
Breaking past the ozone layer… Ash frowned, then asked seriously, "What's the ozone layer?"
Brock and Misty nearly tripped on the spot. Sometimes Ash seemed knowledgeable, and other times his ignorance of basic facts left them helpless.
"That's more aerospace knowledge—I don't know the details. Just think of the ozone layer as a protective shield that keeps us from being fried by the sun. Anyway, now's not the time for that! We've run into a Clefairy! Don't you want to catch her? She'll be gone if you don't act!" Brock pointed ahead.
Ash, who had been listening intently, and Misty, who had been sighing in exasperation, quickly turned their heads—just in time to see Clefairy bouncing away deeper into Mt. Moon, clutching a sparkling clear stone in her arms.
"Wait, Clefairy!" Misty shouted as she chased after it.
But before she could reach it, three figures jumped out in front of Clefairy. A net shot out, instantly ensnaring both Clefairy and the glowing stone in her hands.
"What the—!?" Ash and the others froze, staring at the captured Clefairy in shock.
A spotlight flared in the dim cave, illuminating the three silhouettes.
"Since you're so eager to know—"
"—we'll kindly oblige!"
"…"
As the flamboyant lines rang out, Ash and Misty's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Team Rocket! What are you three doing here?!" Ash shouted, calling out their names loud and clear—Team Rocket!
That's right—the ones blocking their way were none other than Jessie, James, and Meowth of Team Rocket's infamous trio.