Hey, guys! :)

Here's the next chapter.

I would appreciate some feedback so that I know you like this story (or maybe not?).

Disclaimer: Look at chapter 1

"We're finally there!" Max exclaimed and ran to a slope. "Haven City!"

They looked down on a contemplative, quite town. There wasn't much to see, some houses, some shops but unfortunately no gym and no contest.

"Finally we're here." Max's sister sighed. "I'm glad we made it here before nightfall."

"Pika!"

The loud yell from a certain yellow companion of the group passed through the landscape and the children turned around quickly.

"What's up, Pikachu?" May asked, surprised about the outburst of the little Pokémon.

"Pika, Pikachu, Pika!" The electric mouse answered.

"Wait! Where's Ash?!" Brock questioned as he finally noticed the absence of their brave Pokémon trainer.

"You're right. I haven't seen him in a while." Max observed. "I thought he was right behind us."

"Yeah, me too." May agreed and looked back in the forest they came through a few minutes ago. "But where is he now?"

"Let's head back, guys!" Brock said and the kids ran back in the wood.

...

"Did you find him?" Brock asked his two friends.

Once they were in the forest again they had split up and searched for their friend.

"No. Torchic and I have searched everywhere." Max answered disappointed.

"I also had no luck. Beautifly flew over the whole forest but nothing." May explained. "And you, Brock?"

"I didn't find him, too." Brock said and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Where could he have gone? And why didn't he tell us?"

"That's not Ash. He wouldn't go somewhere without telling us. Something has happened I'm sure of it." May uttered a worried expression on her face. "Maybe he was kidnapped!"

"Calm down, May. We don't know this." Max tried to soothe her and turned to Brock. "What should we do, Brock?"

The former gym leader looked up in the sky. The sun has almost disappeared and the forest was getting darker and darker.

"We have to wait until dawn. We won't find Ash in this darkness. Tomorrow we come back and look through the forest again." Brock suggested rationally.

"Yeah, you're right." Max replied with a stern nod and grabbed his sister's hand. "Come, May. Let's go."

...

Behind some thick brushes three shifty persons watched the children leave the woods.

"Did you guys here that?" The cat-like Pokémon asked his companions with a wide grin. "The leader-twerp is missing. Do you know what that mean?"

His human friends answered in unison: "Pikachu, we'll catch you!"

"Now that this annoying kid is out of the way nothing will stop us." The red-haired woman announced grinning.

"Right! Without his trainer it will be far too easy to catch Pikachu." The man with the blue hair added happily.

"And the boss will reward us rich when we give Pikachu!" Meowth prophesied with shining eyes.

"We will be rich until the day we die!" The group shouted excited.

Right in that moment they get a call from a rather unexpected visitor.

"Boss, what a pleasure!" Jessie, James and Meowth exclaimed surprised as soon as the boss's face appeared on the monitor of their laptop.

"Save your compliments! I want finally some progress!" The boss replied rather angrily.

This three were getting on his nerves. He honestly didn't know why he hadn't fired them already.

The trio gulped.

"We've made progress, sir." James answered. "We've find out that the twerp – the boy with the strong Pikachu – is missing. Now his Pokémon is without his trainer so we should easily catch it."

"The boy is missing?" Their leader asked with a suddenly quiet voice.

"Yes, sir. He went missing this evening and now is gone without a trace." Jessie explained.

"Do you have any information about the whereabouts of the boy?" Giovanni asked unusually curious.

"No. As we found them again the kid was already gone." James replied unsure of his boss's interest in this kid.

"I want you to find out about the boy's whereabouts." Giovanni declared after a few quiet minutes.

"Uh, boss…?" Meowth asked unsure that he'd understood his leader correct.

"That's an order!" Giovanni yelled angrily and end the call.

"Well, that was strange." Meowth remarked after a pause.

"You're telling me?" James replied with a frown. "Why is he so interested in this twerp?"

"Who knows…? But we cannot disobey so we will search for the kid in the morning." Jessie announced and her companions agreed.

...

The gym in Virdian City in Kanto

With a thoughtful expression the head of Team Rocket paced through his office.

His partner – Persian – watched him with a focussed look in his eyes.

The thoughts of Giovanni were far away in another universe.

The boy was missing – Ash was missing.

With an almost inaudible sigh the man sunk back in his soft armchair.

After a moment he opened a drawer in his desk and took an old photo out of it.

He couldn't count the times anymore when he had look at this picture. This was his sanctuary – his everything.

"I have to find him."

Persian's eyes twitched in his direction, the cat Pokémon looked at him and voiced his agreement.