Chapter 5
"Pokémon Of Myth And Legend"
We found only one other book that had information on Mews. It was called "Pokémon of Myth and Legend". It was organized somewhat like a Pokédex, only it was in book form……The thing that scared me was that the book was over a two hundred-something years old, and Mews were already considered to be mythical back then……
The excerpt on Mews was near the back. There were some other Pokémon that I'd heard of before in there, like Moltres, Zapdos, Articuno, Gyarados, Eevee, Arcanine, Ninetales, Raichu, Poliwrath, Starmie…all of the stone evolutions, in fact…Except, it didn't mention anything about Clefairy, Jigglypuff, or Nidorans…There were also ones that I was completely unfamiliar with, like Lugia, Espeon, Umbreon…I did recognize one other one……Hou-oh…The bird I'd seen went I left Pallet……Pikachu recognized it too, even though the picture was a little different from the actual bird…
There was a lot of information in every Pokémon entry, so that made the book really thick.
…We're never gonna finish this in one sitting, I said.
"………You're probably right…" Mayo admitted.
"Pikachu…"
'Yeah…'
……Do you think he'll let us borrow this? I asked.
"Of course he will!" Mayo winked, "Come on. Let's go ask him!…And then we'll ask if I can get a starter Pokémon!"
A……Mayo, wouldn't it be better to ask for one thing at a time…?
"Oh, come on, Asha! He's my grandpa! He's not gonna let not have what I want."
…That was a very confusing sentence……I decided not to argue with it.
* * *
He let us keep the book…The only thing that was preventing us from leaving right away was Mayo's stubbornness.
"Grandpa! I know I can handle a Pikachu! Please!?"
Why does she want a Pikachu so badly, anyway…?
"Pikachu……"
'I'm getting bored……'
…Yeah, me too…
"I'm sorry, May, but Ash only got his Pikachu on a special condition. If you-"
"Asha!! Tell Grandpa that I can handle a Pikachu!!"
If it'll get us outta here……
"…She can probably handle a Pikachu…"
"…Ash……" Professor Oak began.
"If she wants a Pikachu, I don't see why you can't give her one! Everyone else got a choice! Why can't she?"
Professor Oak sighed. "Kids these days………Alright, May. Come here."
He walked away from the table that we were all standing around and opened up a cabinet on the far wall. Inside were two Pokéballs.
"May, inside one of those Pokéballs is a Pikachu. I'm not going to tell you which one. You get to keep whichever one you choose."
She gulped and looked back and forth at the Pokéballs. I could tell that she really wanted the Pikachu……I tried to figure out for myself which one had a Pikachu in it…On the outside, they looked exactly the same, but on the inside……
Mayo picked up the one on the right.
…The Pikachu was in the one on the left.
Professor Oak smiled. "So May, why don't you show us all what Pokémon you got?"
"Um…Okay……uh……Let's see…um………Oh, I know! Poké…mon…go!"
She kind of half threw, half dropped the Pokéball. She couldn't really throw it without hitting someone. There was a brilliant flash of light, and we all saw a tiny brown Pokémon with big ears, a big tail, and a big, fluffy mane.
"Uhhh…What's that?" Mayo asked.
"That's an Eevee," Professor Oak told her, "It's known as the evolution Pokémon, because it has the ability to evolve into three different types of Pokémon using evolution stones."
Mayo stared at her new Pokémon. Anyone could see how disappointed she was……except for Eevee.
"Eee!" it cried and jumped into her arms.
I gawked.
"Hey, why didn't you do that when we first met, Pikachu?" I asked.
"Pikapika…"
'I didn't like you.'
"Grr…"
"Here, May," Professor Oak said, "A Pokédex and Pokéballs. You're now ready to start your journey."
"Uh…Thanks," she said, taking them from him.
"Eee!" Eevee sang.
"…Eevee really seems to like you, May," he said with a smile.
"Yeah……"
"So, let's get going?" I asked.
"Sure," Mayo said.
"Pikachu!"
"Eevee!"
* * *
Mayo went home with her new Eevee, and I went home with my new book……That amazed Mom…
"Ash! What's that!?" she asked when she saw me carrying it in the door.
I closed the door behind me, transformed, then fell to the ground because of the weight of the book.
…Um…It's a book, I answered.
"No, I know that, but……why do you have it?"
I'm gonna read it.
"Such a big one? Shouldn't you start on something smaller?"
Mom! I'm not that dumb! I know how to read!
"Okay, Ash……"
That left me with the problem of getting the book into my room…I tried carrying it, both physically and mentally, but both ways were too tiring.
"Pikachu…ka?" Pikachu asked wearily.
'Why don't you just Teleport it there?'
…That's a good idea.
I Teleported the book there, then floated up to the second floor to make sure I had actually gotten it in the right place. Pikachu bounded up the stairs after me.
Amazingly enough, I did manage to get it in my room…It ended up disturbing several objects, but I was still very pleased with myself.
I sat down on the floor next to it and opened it up to the first page that talked about Mews. Pikachu sat next to me, and we read it together.
Mew
Said to be the rarest Pokémon in the world. Many legends have aroused from tales of this mythical Pokémon. Most claim that the Mews are gifted with powers far beyond any Pokémon in the world, some say they are even more powerful than every other Pokémon combined. They were said to be the most versatile Pokémon in the world and were able to learn almost any attack.
It is agreed by most that Mews are a catlike creature, but some have said that Mews resemble humans even more. Most mythologists agree on the first theory.
In many legends, Mews were said to be abundant hundreds and hundreds of years ago, but they died out or disappeared for some reason. This has been proved false, as no fossil records have been found showing any sign of the existence of Mews at any time, thereby classifying them as mythical creatures.
……I'm real……I know I am……Mewtwo's real too…We couldn't exist if Mews were just a myth…
Mews are often portrayed as having a playful demeanor, but they are said to hold wisdom older than time itself and live longer than all else combined. They often help other creatures, rather than fight.
It went on like that for a while. A lot of it I knew to be true, and a lot of it, I knew had to be false. But there was so much more that I had never thought of before.
I didn't get very far the first time I read it…Pikachu got bored quickly and started amusing itself with the other things in my room, but I couldn't stop reading it. I read some parts over and over again, trying to make sense of it all.
Richie came in the room shortly. We were sharing. There weren't enough rooms in the house for everyone to have their own.
"Hi, Ash…" he said.
Uh-huh.
"Umm…What are you reading?"
…A book.
"Oh………um…What's it about?"
……………Nothing.
"Oh………So it's very interesting, huh?"
Yeah.
"………Do you know what time it is?"
…Nope.
"Oh……Well, I'm going to sleep……"
Good night.
"………Aren't you?"
No.
"Uhh………Do you mind if I turn off the light?"
No.
"Mmm……You're gonna stop reading?"
No.
"Uhh……How are you gonna see in the dark?"
I'll be okay.
"If you say so……"
He clicked off the light, then got into my bed. Since I wasn't hurt anymore, I had to let him have the bed. It was too big for me anyway, and besides, after sleeping in a cave, the floor of my room was a luxury.
It was still easy to read, even with the light off. That was one of the good things about being a Mew, night vision.
There are many legends that deal with Mews. The first one covered here is simply called The Legend Of Mew. It's a commonly known fairy tale, with no basis on reality.
The version in this book was a little different from the one that Mayo and I had read in Professor Oak's lab, but the idea was still the same…I didn't appreciate the comment on how it had "no basis on reality".
This guy's trying to make me sound like a freak!
I knew that wasn't true. Whoever had written that book had no idea that over two centuries later, a real Mew would be reading it……
……It's still making me sound like a freak…
There were more "legends" and "myths", but they were all just short stories about nothing important. I wanted something that was actually useful……
…I don't remember falling asleep…but I guess I did……
* * *
'Ashura……'
'Are you never gonna leave me alone?'
'Ashura……the Mew who reads…'
'And what's wrong with that!?'
'………You'll never find what you're looking for.'
'…That doesn't mean I can't try.'
'……You'll never find what you're looking for, in anything created by humans……'
'……What do you mean?'
'The humans know nothing. They would not know reality if it slapped them in the face. They cannot help you.'
'………So who can?'
'…I can…'
'Yeah right.'
'You don't believe me?'
'I still don't know who you are. You could just be a figment of my imagination…'
'I am not.'
'Then who are you?'
'………Ashura……'
'That's not who you are!'
'No……I didn't say that…'
'What!? Then what were you-!?'
'Shh……Just calm down, Ashura.'
'No!! I refuse to-'
'Do not waste your energy, Ashura……You'll need it.'
'I know that!'
'But you don't understand what I'm telling you.'
'Uh…No. I don't.'
'………You will soon see…'
'…How soon is soon…?'
……