Ash nodded, confirming Blaine's guess.
Before MEGA Evolution appeared in the public eye, Ash wasn't planning on revealing this evolution. If it were made public, even Professor Oak probably wouldn't be able to gather any Key Stones and Evolution Stones.
These things are extremely important to the Elite and Champion, and even in other parallel worlds, not many people possess MEGA Evolution, let alone places like theirs where MEGA Evolution hasn't been discovered yet.
So, Ash wants to collect as many MEGA Evolution Stones and Key Stones as possible before MEGA Evolution is discovered.
On one hand, it's to equip the Pokemon he has that can undergo MEGA Evolution. On the other hand, he hopes to get one for Misty and Brock too. When it comes to good stuff, Ash always thinks of his friends first.
"When did you start collecting them?" Gary asked curiously.
"Just a few days ago. I had Professor Oak help me collect them, but I only showed him what the two items looked like without telling him their specific effects. Otherwise, I was afraid that Professor Oak wouldn't be able to resist researching them with other professors, which would have exposed it directly."
Gary pulled a face at these words, "So you got my grandpa to be your tool? Good one!"
"I want one too!"
"Uh... That depends on whether Professor Oak collects extra Key Stones. Trainers only need one Key Stone. As for the MEGA Evolution Stones, it depends on whether your Pokemon still have ancient genes and whether there's a corresponding MEGA Evolution Stone for them."
"MEGA Evolution Stones are different from Key Stones. They're not universal; they have to be used according to the type of Pokemon. Each type of MEGA Evolution Stone corresponds to a different Pokemon, so MEGA Evolution is indeed a troublesome system. Evolution Stones are already rare, and they have to match the species, which is indeed quite troublesome."
Ash's words slightly dampened Gary's enthusiasm. It turned out that MEGA Evolution was even more troublesome than he imagined. Even if his grandpa did collect plenty of MEGA Evolution Stones, whether or not any could be used by his Pokemon was still unknown.
As for how to identify the types of MEGA Evolution Stones and which Pokemon can MEGA evolve, even asking Ash wouldn't yield an answer, as Ash only discovered it by chance. How could he know which Pokemon could MEGA evolve?
This is something they'll only figure out once his grandpa collects enough MEGA Evolution Stones and tests them one by one, or they could then reveal the truth about MEGA Evolution to his grandpa and have him help with the research.
"Wait a sec, Ash, you said that MEGA Evolution requires a corresponding MEGA Evolution Stone to evolve, right?" Blaine suddenly recalled something and asked.
"Yeah, like for my Gardevoir, the MEGA Evolution Stone is only usable by Gardevoir, and other Pokemon can't use it."
"How did you discover this? Do you have other MEGA Evolution samples?" Blaine queried, because without multiple MEGA evolved Pokemon, it would theoretically be impossible to discover this point.
Since Ash isn't a researcher, he doesn't know which Pokemon have ancestral genes. So it's possible that Gardevoir's MEGA Evolution Stone not working on other Pokemon is just because those other Pokemon don't have the activatable ancient genes.
"I do have another Pokemon that can MEGA evolve, and I also obtained its corresponding MEGA Evolution Stone. Technically, that Pokemon was the first of mine to MEGA evolve, while Gardevoir was the second."
"You wouldn't be talking about Aerodactyl, would you?" Brock asked with a peculiar expression, because the first discovered MEGA Evolution Stone was found in Aerodactyl's habitat. So if Ash had a Pokemon that could MEGA evolve, it would most likely be Aerodactyl.
Ash nodded in agreement; there's no need to hide that Aerodactyl can MEGA evolve anymore.
Since Blaine has already battled, Aerodactyl's MEGA Evolution will eventually be unveiled to the public anyway, so they might as well talk about it now.
Blaine was stunned hearing that, "So, kid, you already have two MEGA evolved Pokemon? Keeping it quiet and getting rich secretly, huh!"
But that's not the key point; what's crucial is...
"So according to what you said, these two Evolution Stones of mine should belong to some specific Pokemon as their exclusive Evolution Stones, right? The key to distinguishing them should be the pattern in the middle of the stone, and the patterns in the middle of these two stones are different, meaning the two Evolution Stones correspond to two different Pokemon."
Blaine opened a safe beside him, once again revealing the two MEGA Evolution Stones inside.
The gene-like streaks in the middle of the two stones are purple-blue and purple-pink, clearly indicating they're not of the same type.
Ash also knew little about the types of MEGA Evolution Stones, so he couldn't determine which Pokemon these two stones belonged to. He'd have to get them first and ask in the group to find out.
But if the patterns of the two stones are different, then they should be the evolution stones of two different Pokemon.
"They should be two different Evolution Stones. By the way, Blaine, what did you say earlier? These two Evolution Stones suddenly appeared when Mewtwo first came into being?"
"Yes, I can confirm it appeared out of thin air. But Ash, there's one more thing I should tell you, and that's that these two Evolution Stones... have some sort of connection with Mewtwo. I'm not sure what connection it is, but these two Evolution Stones are definitely related to Mewtwo."
Blaine closed the safe again and continued: "This safe is capable of blocking superpower detection, so Mewtwo has never discovered that I'm holding these two Evolution Stones. But when I occasionally opened the safe, I saw through the monitor that Mewtwo would have a strange reaction, meaning that Mewtwo would have a sense when these two Evolution Stones appeared. This doesn't quite match what you said, Ash!"
Ash had explained that each Pokemon requires a different Evolution Stone for evolution, and the method of distinguishing different types of Evolution Stones is through the pattern in the middle.
The two Evolution Stones in his possession are clearly different, yet Mewtwo is responsive to both. Why is that? Could it be that both stones are for Mewtwo's evolution?
"And one more thing, according to Professor Augustine Sycamore's research, the higher level of evolution is actually the activation of ancient genes for a type of atavism. How can Mewtwo, as an artificial Pokemon, have genes for atavism?" Brock questioned at this point as well.
The mystery seemed to thicken at this moment, and the meaning behind these two Evolution Stones seemed very complex.
If these two stones are truly linked to Mewtwo, does that mean Mewtwo could also MEGA evolve?
But MEGA Evolution is clearly an ancestral phenomenon within Pokemon genes. As an artificial Pokemon, how could Mewtwo have anything ancestral? Could it be caused by its Mew genes?
Even if that's the case, why would an exclusive MEGA Evolution Stone for Mewtwo form around it? These mysteries may only be resolved upon meeting Mewtwo and seeing Team Rocket's leader.
Right now, all they're pondering is merely speculation. Whether those two MEGA Evolution Stones are truly Mewtwo's, and whether they can really allow Mewtwo to MEGA evolve, can only be answered when they meet Mewtwo.
"Take them with you, if you get the chance to meet Mewtwo, consider it as doing me a favor by answering this question. But I still want to say... unless you have a Champion Peak-level Pokemon or battle power, your only option upon encountering Mewtwo will always be—run!"