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Chapter IV: Destructive Ambition


"Mew, you okay?"

"Huh?" she responded, breaking out of whatever stupor she was stuck in. Upon staring down into her eyes, I could see the area around them were slightly damp.

"Are you crying?"

"No…"

"I… I'm sorry, Mew, but I can't give you a yes or no yet… I'm still trying to process everything. It's… It's a lot."

"Right…"

"Hey… I don't want you to leave, though. I know I sound selfish, but…"

Mew turned towards me expectantly. She looked like a lost kitten in that moment, making me feel incredibly guilty.

"I want to get to know you better, Mew, and I'm not gonna be able to do that if you just disappear again. So, if you're not too angry at me for not accepting, I'd really appreciate it if you'd stay with us for a while."

She remained quiet for a moment in contemplation. After a bit of time, she sighed.

"C'mere."

I froze in suspicious anticipation. Was she angry at me? What was her plan?

"I'm waiting."

Her tone held a slight hint of excitement. Gulping, I plodded forward, allowing the legendary to place her paws upon my forehead. I clenched my eyes shut and said nothing. All I focused on was my own struggle to slow my breathing.

Then I felt it…

The soft glow of her power was dim no longer. Steadily, it felt as if a fire ignited in my chest. This time, however, I chose to accept it, rather than fight her influence.

The fire began burning, the residual heat flooding my system with the bubbly, elated feeling I'd correlated with her power.

"Ray, what's in you right now is yours to keep." her soft voice cut through my thoughts. "It's only an extremely small fraction of my power, but it's more than enough to give you an energy core of your own, so you can make more and get used to it over time. If something happens and I'm not around, you're gonna need it. It's yours, even if you don't want me to stick around in the future."

She withdrew, leaving me behind and under the drug-like effects of her power. Everything felt so… Delightful. I was filled with spontaneous happiness, and it felt like my own. The warmth rendered me as weightless, my mind cleared to a point I'd never been able to achieve before.

I opened my eyes, laughing stupidly. "Mew… This… This is just…"

"A gift from a friend," she finished for me, spinning in mid-air lazily. "Of course, there's more to come should you accept my proposal, but that's your decision to make in your time. Until then, I think I'll hang out with you guys. You're right. Introducing myself like this to you really sucked."

"Th-this is… Mew, I have no idea how to repay you."

"Here, lemme tell you a secret," she responded mysteriously, giggling and lowering herself once more to my height. She gave a joking look around, as if someone was spying on her, before beckoning me towards her.

All I did in response was lean forward slightly, allowing the legendary to move towards the side of my head, and more specifically, my ear.

"You already have," she whispered, barely audible to me. Yet, her voice held a physical quality to it; she wasn't using telepathy just then. Could I understand her native tongue?

I was about to ask her what she meant by the vague statement when I first heard it.

BANG!

The sound was instantaneous, causing me to jump from where I stood. It faded a few moments later, echoing off of the surrounding caverns before leaving behind the dead silence of night.

I saw it then… Floating not a few inches in front of my forehead, behind me from where I originally sat, was a bullet. Stunned for a moment, I stepped out of its intended path.

"W-what the hell?"

"Oh boy, here we go."

I turned towards the legendary herself, presumably responsible for levitating the projectile just inches from my face. Her voice had lost all sense of relaxation, leaving only a tone I wished to not have heard from the legendary.

No words came out of my mouth, other than small stutters and the occasional 'Uhh'. What had just occurred? Was I… Shot at? I blinked for a few moments.

BANG

Another bullet seemingly materialized from nothing in front of me, surrounded in a pinkish tint Mew'd just caught yet another shot, saving my life yet again.

"Snap out of it, Ray! It's the same people from Opelucid."

"H-How'd they find me?!"

"That's the question you're asking?!"

She, by then, bore a wicked scowl on her face, her entire body was now coated in a thick, yet near-transparent layer of psychic energy.

I was still trying to fathom the sudden turn of events, torn away when I saw an anomaly take place a few dozen yards away.

A man, a fully-grown man, was being levitated out of from behind the rock pile he seemed to have been hiding behind. The lack of object responsible for the lifting lead me to believe Mew's psychic abilities was the source.

He dropped a rifle while he was suspended in the air. It was apparent the man was in pain or extremely afraid, evidenced by his writhing in the air.

"Ray, you're to stay behind me, understand? This isn't the only one."

"Can't you just teleport us out of here?!"

"All they're gonna do is keep finding a way to follow us. It's better if I send them a real message, here and now.."

Before I could ask anything more, she spoke again.

"I-I thought you were gonna keep us safe!"

"Nothing's gonna touch you. Got me? It'll be like a battle, I'll do all the hard stuff."

I gulped, seeing no other option than nodding quickly.

"Let's get started, then," the legendary broadcasted; I wouldn't be surprised if it were to everyone in the vicinity. An intimidation tactic, maybe?

What did surprise me, though, was in the instant Mew flicked her wrist, the two levitating bullets under her control whizzed back in the direction they came, multiple times faster than the gun that propelled them initially. I watched as the pieces of metal, coated with a pinkish aura, entered the levitating man's skull, the succeeding force enough to blow his gray matter out yards behind where he floated.

I nearly retched at the sight, but was halted by the adrenaline coursing through my veins. I stared at the legendary incredulously for a moment or two, trying to fathom her rapid change of behavior, and what showed to me as plain bloodlust.

"Doin' okay so far?" she asked nonchalantly, floating lackadaisically around me as if nothing were wrong. It did little to reassure me.

"Umm… No?"

Reading my mind, the legendary addressed me as she continued to get a scope of the scene. "You gotta understand Ray, this is necessary. Blood is only a liquid, not magic or sacred or anything like that."

I nodded weakly, feeling lightheaded and nauseous about what I'd just witnessed. I tried steering myself back to the task at hand, but the anxiety only contributed to my queasiness.

I didn't bother replying further, subconsciously turning to look at the one visible corpse every so often. It wasn't the first time I'd seen death, no, but it was still extremely unpleasant.

BOOM

I let out another, startled yelp as a gargantuan crash resounded from my right; different from a gunshot. Turn out, the source was an extremely powerful dark pulse, colliding with a barrier Mew had made with psychic energy.

Three times in the last thirty seconds she had saved my hide, and that was nowhere near the end of it.

I was faintly aware of the ground starting to shake. I had a fairly good idea of the source, and was confirmed when I turned my head to see an entire hoard of Pokémon, massing in more numbers than I could count, sprinting towards our position in a wide arc.

A brief, terrified look revealed most of the creatures present were dark types; I could feel Mew's annoyance coming off of her in waves.

"Scratch that," she said, raising her telepathic voice to match the uproar. "I don't wanna deal with all this. It woulda been a ton easier if it was just one or two guys thrown at us, but they really went all-out, huh?"

Did… Did Mew take this as one giant game? She didn't seem in the least bit concerned. Meanwhile, I was juggling both between my now terrified nature and the fact that Mew seemed to enjoy the danger we now found ourselves in.

Before I could say anything further, though, she floated down towards the both of us. Not quite in the most patient manner, she picked up and carried Jet towards me with her psychic ability. Now, she was able to reach each of her stubby arms out and touch us both simultaneously.

Nothing happened. For the first time, the legendary's confidence broke, if only slightly. Despite the nonchalant demeanor she threw up, I was able to pick up on the small traces of worry in her telepathic voice.

"Well then… Using Mean Look so I can't get away is pretty cheap. I guess I'm just have to fight my way out, huh? What a bother."

She readdressed the two of us as she floated up and away, a few feet towards the oncoming stampeding horde.

"Jet, can you do me a favor and fly Ray outta here? Go somewhere and just sit tight for a little bit until I come and pick you up. This'll be quick."

With that, she completely disappeared from sight, leaving me fumbling for words. Everything was going too fast for my comprehension. I supposed that was the goal of an ambush, after all. Fearful, I turned towards Jet. The Braviary sent a glance towards me.

The horde was ascending the steady hill now, the hill in which I stood. I wasn't exactly in a position to question Mew's authority here, but she seemed rather comfortable with giving orders. I'd nearly forgotten she was a god altogether with her casual approach in meeting me.

I knew one thing, however, and that was I didn't want to stick around for the aftermath of what was yet to happen.

"You sure you can carry me?" I asked shakily, looking back on the torrent of aggressive Pokémon with terrified anxiety.

Jet, with no other answer, shrugged in uncertainty. Nevertheless, he positioned himself to allow my ascent on his back.

It was a tight fit, of course, and was near-impossible to stay stationary without affecting his wings' range of motion, but there was nothing to be done. I myself was taller than the Braviary, and generally unknowing of how he would proceed to take flight.

Despite the situation, I whispered a quiet, "Good luck," under my breath, hoping Mew would get the message. Despite her odd behavior and tendencies to violence, she was putting herself on the line to protect me. Despite the fact I'd known her for less than a half an hour, I found myself concerned. Perhaps it was her energy within me affecting my emotions.

With that disturbing thought, I gave Jet an affirmative. He began running awkwardly, jumping at random intervals to hopefully catch air under his wings. Strength wasn't the issue here; it was the mere fact I couldn't help but obstruct him.

He changed course suddenly, choosing to run further up the path. I was about to question what he was doing when he took a sharp turn to the right. I held on tight as he legitimately leaped off the side of the path, spreading his wings before he could hit the ground of the steep cliffside below.

We were in the air now, the hard part was out of the way, wasn't it? Nonetheless The next few moments were absolute chaos. What amounted to around a minute went by in what I could've sworn was a few seconds.

Their true target now airborne, the Pokémon below started throwing attacks in our general direction, hoping to bring us down. Dark Pulses, Energy Balls; any projectile they could conjure. The Braviary only narrowly dodged a Hyper Beam; I could feel it's passing heat on my arm.

In the next moment, a well-placed Swift, notorious for never missing, was hurtling towards us at lightning-fast speeds. As the star-shaped energy approached nearer and nearer, I braced for impact. As it connected, Jet faltered ever so slightly, but the attack thankfully didn't have the potency to bring him down.

Amidst the chaos, holding onto Jet proved near-impossible. The only reasonable handhold was around his neck; choking him when he made a maneuver to dodge. My lower half was hanging off of the Braviary altogether.

I looked with fear back down at the scene below us Mew had reappeared, now shining with an ever-intensifying light. I had to look away after a moment, considering now it was much too painful to look at the legendary directly. She seemed too engaged in what she was doing to follow us out. Part of me wondered why she simply didn't fly alongside us.

My theory regarding the legendary's bloodthirstiness was only given more leverage.

BANG

"Ah, shi—" I started to seethe as I felt the bullet enter my lower right thigh. Instantly exploding in a flare of pain, I was caught off-guard, and instinctively let go of my one lifeline while in the air.

"JET!" I screamed as I started plummeting, not fast enough to grab another handhold on the Braviary. The whipping wind proved too loud to hear a response, if any was given.

The next thing I knew, though, I was hurtling towards the ground at lightning fast speeds, screaming all the way. In those few seconds of horrific weightlessness, I took in the view of the chaos below, even if I didn't give it any mind at the time.

Mew was fully enveloped in a gargantuan bubble of psychic energy, large appendages sprouting from the core. These appendages, much like the tentacles of an Octillery, were waving to and fro, some harmlessly in the air, while most were mowing down crowds of enemies, mere ants from my perspective.

Vertical, horizontal; no matter from which direction Mew attacked, all that was left behind was a trail of blood and mutilated corpses. She didn't even seem to notice my predicament.

"MEW!" I tried screaming, my words instantly lost with the wind. I'd hardly even heard myself speak; there was no physical way of translating my message like that.

"Oh no oh no oh no oh no no no no no," I spewed, starting to hyperventilate for Arceus knew how many times that night. I would hit the ground in a matter of seconds, splattered against the mountainside; my premonitions from earlier were about to be realized.

I was acutely aware of a sharp and sudden pain flaring up from my shoulder-region. I quickly turned upward, trying to get a gauge on what was causing it, before I felt myself start to decelerate, and quite rapidly at that, to the point I felt my shoulder pop painfully as it became dislocated.

All I saw before I hit the ground, dug into my bicep, was a single, yellow talon, drawing blood with its iron grip.

The descent was slower, of course, but not enough for me to escape without harm. I still hit the ground, tumbling much harder than was safe. Along with my bullet-wound and the agony it radiated redoubling itself as I connected with the rough rock, my tumble was clumsy. I was aware, as I connected with the ground, of a sharp snap in my left leg.

I lay there after coming to a rest, groaning in pain for an indefinite amount of time, trying to gather my bearings for long enough to relay to Jet what injuries I sustained. His own fall was rough as well, but he seemed to walk away unscathed.

The pain was proving to be too much, because of the accumulation from three different epicenters, it was near-unbearable.

Of course everything only got worse from there.

I was able to get on a single elbow and my knees, albeit agonizingly slow, fast enough to see Jet fending off multiple different enemies with attacks. Mew, much to my horror, was still fighting in her violent yet calm fashion, unaware of our presence.

"MEW!" I tried screaming once more over the chaotic melody of battle. Jet was fading fast, taking too many hits, and had resorted to firing off long-range attacks.

Yet, the enemy Pokémon just kept coming in endless waves. Were they getting reinforcements?

Mew had started leveling enemies in our area, thankfully, but still seemed unaware of our presence. This notion was affirmed when a tendril of psychic power landed mere feet from me, squashing a Weavile in the process.

Jet had fought valiantly, of course, but was overpowered within a minute or two of starting. Enemies came at him one by one; he could only take out so many. By the time he was knocked out and Mew was wrapping up, there were only a few enemies remaining. The culprit of the final blow? A Zoroark.

Yet, much to my horror, this wasn't Somin. No, this Zoroark possessed a slightly darker fur tone, perceptible even in the dim lighting. The bloodthirsty glare it sent me only confirmed my assumption.

"It's sad, actually," the Pokémon gloated in my head as it stepped over Jet's bloodied form, tearing me from my thoughts. "Even a simple illusion can trick legendaries if they're not paying attention."

It took a menacing step forward, deep-red claws gleaming in the moonlight. Desperate, I called for Mew once more.

I, feeling a sudden rush of adrenaline, tried scrambling away, only proceeding a few feet before my legs gave out. It still approached menacingly, licking its lips in anticipation.

The Zoroark stopped a foot in front of me, bending down to grab my face with a paw, used to jerk me up from the ground, sending a whole new wave of agony from my injuries.

The claws, sharp as knives, dug into my face, slicing the skin as if it were butter. Blood rolled down my cheeks, pooling at the chin before falling to the earth in droplets. The creature lifted me up to face it in the eyes, it's strength easily enabling it to carry me off the ground.

"Say hi to Giratina for me."

Even until then, I'd held onto a sliver of hope. Whenever something unfortunate occurred, whether it be as trivial as my struggle to handle training alongside my Pokémon, or something as important as my life in jeopardy, there would always be someone there to help, even if it was at the last possible moment. My team and I were always there for each other when we needed it, I told myself. I could only trust in them to help me once more.

Yet, as I felt the creature's other claw plunge into my stomach, continuing all the way through, therefore fully impaling me, I knew…

I knew no one would come to help this time.

I dropped to the ground after the impromptu skewering of my body, blood draining fast from my midsection. I was acutely aware of the shuffling of paws, an enraged yell, and a blur of black before I finally, thankfully lost consciousness, rid at last of everything plaguing that night.


Somin got to watch as his trainer, the human he'd spent every day of the last six years with, the one who cared for him while he was hurt, and vice versa; the best friend he'd ever had, get impaled directly in front of him.

The worst part was, he couldn't do anything to stop it. He could only keep running as the other Zoroark prepared for the finishing blow.

Yet, he'd made it too late. If only he'd left a second earlier, maybe if he had gone just a little faster, Ray wouldn't be bleeding to death.

In the end, though, there was only one thing left to do, and so he did.

Somin started by going straight for the eyes, tears flooding his own. He watched in satisfaction as the other dark-type's irises, full of surprise, were skewered by his own set of claws.

The creature, charged with the murder of his trainer, stumbled backwards, clutching its face as its agonized screams filled the air.

Somin did not care for the scene around him; a legendary laying waste to the stragglers. He did not care for his fallen comrades, only one of which was still alive. Instead, his red-filled vision was dead-set on the pitiful creature before him.

"Hurts, doesn't it?" Somin hissed, positioning himself to strike once more. "I hope you feel it tenfold in the Reverse World, you fucker."

He charged at the injured Zoroark, not quite knowing if it got the message. Though, he did not care; nor did he have the capacity to care for anything else besides one thing:

Revenge.

He cocked his claw so it would impale the dark-type at just the right angle. The bastard would die in the same fashion as his trainer.

He was correct, but it played out differently than he imagined.

He was almost upon it, poised to strike, when a shockwave of energy unknown blasted into him at full-force. He was sent hurtling backwards, landing on his backside mere feet away from his trainer's corpse.

Enraged at the interruption, he lifted himself swiftly to a knee before getting a grasp on the situation.

The Zoroark's body was hung high in the air, its midsection impaled on a long, yet thick thorn of psychic energy. The creature's mane was tossed about haphazardly, claws hanging limp below. Blood leaked steadily out of the dark-types eye sockets, and now its abdomen, creating a small ocean of red directly below.

Somin could tell that, even from this distance, it was dead. But he was not satisfied.

He did not get the kill.

He watched as the tendril of power disappeared, causing the Zoroark's body to fall to the ground with a wet thud.

Putting on a snarl for what took his prey, rotated his gaze towards the source of the energy; a hardly-composed looking Mew.

Even at the sight of the legendary, his snarl did not falter. Even when the legendary floated rapidly to position, his glare did not waver. The only movement he made was to get down on all fours and stand over his trainer, or what used to be his trainer, protectively.

"Nonononononono!" Somin heard the legendary speak, bringing her hands over her mouth. However, he ignored her words in his own fit of rage.

"You did this," he seethed without thought or precedent, his questions about a 'mysterious presence' now answered. "It was you. It's your fault h-he's gone."

He could say no more, the situation finally starting to catch up to him. He felt himself start to choke up, tears continuing to form in his eyes.

"Somin," spoke Mew, her telepathic voice sounding apprehensive and fearful. "He'll be alright, I just need to—"

"ALRIGHT?!" the Zoroark yelled, outraged, lifting his head to face the legendary. "He's dead! No breathing, no pulse!" to show this, he backed away far enough to allow the legendary to see the damage done.

"THIS!" he screamed, pressing a paw into the gaping hole in Ray's stomach. His tears were freely flowing now, mixing in with Ray's blood and wounds. "How do you expect to fix what there's nothing of? YOU CAN'T! LEAVE US ALONE, YOU BITCH! YOU'VE ALREADY DONE ENOUGH!"

He did not care for the fact he cursed a legendary being. Despite having never seen her before now, he felt as if he was talking to any other Pokémon. No, instead he broke down in sobs, laying down on top of his trainer and holding his corpse as close to him as possible.

"Somin."

He ignored her, clutching Ray so hard he would struggle to breathe, should he still be able to do so.

"Somin."

There was a small bit more urgency in her voice this time, but still, he blocked her out.

"They're coming back," she said quickly, giving little glances to every side. "We need to leave."

"Let them come," Somin spoke, his voice hoarse and broken. Mew was quick to catch what he was insinuating, and sighed worriedly.

"Somin, you and I both know there's a ton reasons for you to live right now, one of them on their way as we speak. You want to keep Vita safe, right? You promised her."

He froze when he heard her words, knowing them to be true. All it did, though, was succeed in making him even more of a sobbing mess as he accepted them. The legendary knew? Of course she did… If she'd been watching the entire time…

"I'll take that as a yes. Lemme take care of these guys. Then we can get out of here and help Ray."

As she said it, leaving the broken Zoroark behind, she backed away a few meters, far enough to form a shining, pink orb in between her paws. It radiated with latent energy, ready to be released. Once fully formed, she set it carefully on the ground.

After satisfaction, she returned, grabbing the Zoroark reassuringly by the arm.

In the next moment, they, along with the limp forms of Jet and Ray, were gone, blinking out of existence like a light.


"What the hell?"

"Ahh! What's going on?!"

"Where are we? What's that light?"

"It's teleportation, we're in the condo!"

"Who's doing it?"

"Guys! Jet's unconscious!"

"Oh Arceus, Somin, are you alright? Why're you crying?"

"Holy… Ray."

That last line came out choked, uttered by a certain Durant who had caught first glimpse of their trainer's corpse. Everyone's attention was instantly set to the object of his utterance.

They were back in the condo, their trainer lying unconscious on the white sofa. Already, what blood hadn't been spilt prior was staining the couch a deep red.

"W-what happened?"

"Ray? Ray!"

Victor rushed forward, breaking the others out of their stupor. Axle and Vita followed closely behind. Mew was nowhere to be found.

WHAM!

The Durant went tumbling backwards, colliding head-on with a psychic forcefield. He was instantly back up, however, staring through the invisible wall. He paced in frustration, trying to find some way around it.

"What's going!?"

"I don't know! Who set up this barrier?!"

"Ray!"

Axle dashed past Victor, ramming head-first into the barrier. He knew it to be there, and held his ground, hoping it would give way. It didn't budge.

"Help me take this thing down!"

"Right!"

While the two males took turns shooting random attacks in the invisible wall's general vicinity, Vita had the time to think.

Ray… He wasn't breathing.

Tears flooded her eyes as she turned frantically, looking to Somin for help.

The Zoroark had his head in his claws as quiet sobs racked his body. It was a pitiful sight.

"Somin! What happened to him?!"

No answer. She advanced on the Zoroark menacingly.

"What. Happened. To. Him?" she asked sternly, met only with silence. "Why's Jet knocked out? What's going on?! Why can't we get near him?!"

No deviation in the Zoroark's behavior was evident.

"So help me Somin… If you don't answer me right now…" she choked. "WHAT HAPPENED?"

Her voice by then was a mix between a hide and a scream. She was almost as emotionally broken as the creature before her.

Yet, instead of defeat, anger flooded her system.

Before she could lash out, however, the ground shook to and fro, light fixtures from the ceiling threatening collapse.

"T-the hell is that?" Axle yelled, struggling to stay upright. Even in the darkness of night, a distant, pink light illuminated them. They turned, apprehensively, towards the source. The sight that met them was not cause for reassurance in the least.

The distant Mt. Chimney, visible from the balcony, was partially enveloped in a violent, pink sphere of explosive energy, tearing apart everything in its wake. It was so bright, it pained the Pokémon present to look at it for too long. They could only imagine what would happen to anyone on the mountain.

"What… We were just… What's going on?!"

"Uhh…" Victor began, stuttering stupidly. He'd stopped his assault on the invisible barrier for a moment and had turned away from the distant explosion to set his eyes upon his trainer again. His fear at what he saw, however, quickly drew the attention of the other Pokémon present.

Mew was now hovering over Ray's body, completely visible to the naked eye. All mouths simultaneously dropped as each and every conscious Pokémon, bar Somin, gawked at her presence.

"No!"

Before any of the Pokémon present could react to Mew's sudden presence, a wave of energy, its source easily ascertained, rushed through them. It left, above all, a sensation of crippling fear. No one in the room moved an inch, the legendary before them seeming a hundred times more intimidating.

The only creature not affected was Somin, too shaken up to perceive anything but the sudden silence surrounding him.

"Everyone out," Mew then broadcasted, her voice sounding as menacing and unpleasant. Victor and Axle gawked at the legendary, wide eyed. The latter decided, reluctantly, to question her.

"Y-you're Mew… Yo-you were t-the one helping Ray b-before?Why? Wha-what happened to him?"

"He was injured," the legendary said in a no-nonsense tone, causing Somin to scoff angrily at the statement of the obvious. "I… I'm gonna fix him," she finished simply, choosing not to reveal much, for fear of an overreaction. Her tone, not reassuring anyone in the least, was jittery.

"Is… Is he gonna be alright?" Victor asked incredulously, trying to get a good view of his trainer.

"He's going to be fine," the legendary said; yet, was that a hint of reluctance in her voice? Was she lying?

"Bull," Somin said from across the room, not even bothering to raise his head. "Guys, he's dead, gone…"

Before Mew could respond, another voice piped in, choked with sobs. "Are… Are y-you sure you ca-can save him? Bring him back?"

Even under the stare of the legendary, which went lengths beyond any intimidation the Serperior could conjure, Vita was unmoving, waiting expectantly for an answer to her question. She tried putting past herself the fact she was speaking to her creator out of pure concern for her trainer.

"Vita," the legendary spoke seemingly having calmed down a small bit, "I can perfectly understand your concern, I'm scared too. He'll be perfectly fine, I promise, and awake soon You're gonna need to rest, though. The next few days are probably gonna be hell."

"What do you mean?" she questioned, looking upon the legendary with wide eyes. She seemed to have answered her own question, her gaze faltering for a moment before returning to Ray.

Silence reigned. Mew had opted not to answer that question.

"You swear he'll live?" she asked once more, her voice lowering. She prayed the sternness in her tone wouldn't upset the legendary, and cause more harm than good.

"I swear," Mew responded, sending the grass-type a soft smile. She levitated towards her, placing a paw on the Serperior's body. "Get to sleep, what I'm about to do is gonna take a while, so you might as well… I'll explain everything in the morning."

"Quit lying to her! Haven't you screwed with us enough?!"

Mew turned to face a belligerent Somin, the Zoroark now on his feet and in a battle-ready stance.

"I want you… To leave… Us… Alone…" he growled, emphasizing every word. "All you've done is give us false sense of hope, just to mess with us! I'm not falling for it!"

"I'm not leaving," was all she said, only serving to enrage the Zoroark further.

"Please, Somin," Vita said unexpectedly from beside their trainer. "I don't know what happened, but I know if anyone can fix it, well… Just, please don't be irrational here."

"NO! I'm being irrational? All you three are doing is blindly trusting the Pokémon, legendary or not, who's responsible for his death in the first place! How could you betray Ray like that? Was I the only one who cared about him?"

"No, Somin," Vita responded, trying to not break down completely altogether. She could tell Somin was struggling to do the same. "I loved him just as much as you did, and if there's a chance, however small, of him coming back to us, you should be sure as hell I'm going to take advantage! What more harm could be done?!"

"She could kill you! At least I still have you, and Axle, and Victor, and Jet! If you were to get hurt, Vita; if she were to destroy…" he trailed off, returning his menacing glare to Mew. "There would be nothing left for me."

"I'm on your side here. You can trust me."

That was the last straw. What the legendary just said; the lie she spouted without second thought. Her reassurance only succeeded in making Somin snap.

The Zoroark sprung at Mew, claws unsheathed. It was a spur of the moment action, and even if he were able to fathom the minuscule odds of becoming victorious, he did not care. He was about to make contact with the side of her head, the legendary not even giving him the pleasure of a straightforward stare, when his entire body was jolted to the side.

His form went hurtling through the air at a perfect ninety degrees of what his original path followed. He went straight through the sliding glass door, the shatter loud enough to be heard for a very long distance.

Growling, he struggled to his feet, bleeding profusely from multiple wounds. Paws glowing purple, two copies of him materialized on either side; his own, modified version of double team.

Mew still had her solemn eyes on a Ray, not moving a muscle. "Stop this, Somin. You're making a scene."

All her words ever did were to enrage him. Letting out a full-on yell, filling the night air with his sound, he dashed forward, followed closely by the two clones.

The entire exchange only lasted a second or two, each of their movements almost too fast to see. He started with a Shadow Claw, trying to stab the legendary in the head once more. An invisible barrier, coming out of nowhere, redirected his paw so that it slid harmlessly to the left.

The clone originally on his right curved inward, jumping above the legendary to use Foul Play, while the last prepared a Shadow Ball. As the first tried bringing its heel down on Mew, however, it was stopped mid-air. Promptly afterwards, the Shadow Ball was fired, necessitating Mew to lean slightly to the side so it would sail over her shoulder.

The psychic power holding the clone in place ended up swinging it around the legendary for half a rotation before releasing it, allowing it to propel into the third clone, shattering both. The real Somin, though, after having recovered, charged forward once more with another Shadow Claw.

No psychic barrier stopped him this time. He yelled in triumph as he made contact with…

No, Mew had teleported slightly upwards a moment before, the Zoroark sailing harmlessly under her. In a cruel twist of fate, however, she ended up using Foul Play herself, making contact with Somin's spine.

He cried out in pain as he was propelled into the ground, tumbling for a few meters before attempting to jump back up.

"Gonna take a lot more than that, you bi—"

He cried out, falling to a single knee. The full effects of the attack were kicking in. Had a single attack, even if he was resistant to its typing, taken that much out of him? Impossible.

The rest of the team was too shocked at the exchange to speak, the entire series of events only lasting somewhere around seven seconds.

The Zoroark, breathing quickly and shallowly with tears, shakily stood, taking slow steps towards Mew.

At one point, though, he faltered, coming down once more to a single knee. Catching his breath, he spoke out to the team.

"Axle, Victor, help me out…" he said, staring at the ground. "She's tiring out, I can tell. We can beat her!"

"Somin," Axle started, in much the same state as Vita, a crying wreck. "I trust Mew. I don't think you're thinking ri—"

"SHUT UP!" he screamed. "If you're too much of a pussy to do it, that's fine. I… I can do this alone."

With that, he growled once more, trying to intimidate the psychic-type, before standing and sprinting towards her.

He'd only made it a few feet away from striking distance when his eyes rolled into the back of his skull and he dropped to the hard floor, instantly unconscious. Mew, who'd finally given him the respect to look at him straightforward, lowered her paw, the pink glow emanating from it dulling and disappearing.

"It is my fault," she broadcasted, whether it was directed towards the team of the unconscious Somin, no one knew. "I'm sorry."

She then turned towards the conscious members of the team, fully gawking at her.

"You all should follow his lead. Like I said earlier, you're gonna need it. You can stay out here if you'd like."

Afraid of angering the legendary to any degree, and to avoid receiving the same treatment the strongest member of their party had earned, Axle and Victor dropped to the floor, in full understanding they wouldn't be able to get a wink of sleep with what happened.

Mew, however, stole their respective consciousness almost instantaneously. There would be no witnesses for what was about to occur, she would make sure of that.

Vita, troubled by Somin's words, was at war with herself. Under the unrelenting, calm gaze of the legendary, though she found herself slowly and reluctantly lowering her head down and closing her eyes, feeling a freezing draft through the broken window.

Yet, no one; neither Somin nor Ray was there to comfort her that night.

The last thing she gave mind before the legendary sedated her was the destruction Mew had wrought on Mt Chimney, all the potential death it had caused. She hoped it was all a nightmare, and soon she would simply wake, coiled around her human and her Zoroark.


Mew's original intentions in wanting everyone gone was so that she could broadcast her worry without making it evident. Now, though, without the presence of spectators, she could fully show her anxiety for what was to happen. She bit her lip anxiously, eyes flitting about the room.

Soon, she was steered back to Ray. He was long dead, she knew, but as long as she held his soul in the vicinity, maybe the transition wouldn't be so bad?

If she'd been more attentive and broken through the illusion, all this wouldn't have started in the first place. Maybe, if she'd stopped Somin from his contact with Ray's wound, the infection itself wouldn't have been able to grow to a point where even she couldn't fix it. Who was she kidding? Hell, if she'd only stopped herself from giving him so much power so quickly.

If that were the case, it wouldn't have been so easily tainted. He would've been walking within an hour or two. She should've given him a preliminary check, before getting back to the condo. By then, it'd spread too far already…

Deep down, she knew what she had to do, but the problem would be explaining the solution, the only solution, to Ray.

Sighing, she shut her eyes, trying to figure out how to best explain what was to happen in terms Ray would understand.


"Hello?"

I looked around the dark void surrounding me; no deviation from the pitch black was present. It didn't even seem like I had a body at the time, seeing as I could not spot arms, legs, or even a torso.

"Is anyone here? Mew? Jet?"

I was scared, beyond all else. With no control over my movements, how was I to comprehend anything about this strange place?"

I started theorizing, as I usually would. No queries made any sense, until a certain thought crossed my mind.

"Am I… Dead?"

I was shocked upon 'speaking' in this state. I possessed no mouth, and therefore could formulate no words. Instead, upon the sentence entering my mind, it manifested itself physically. Was I now using through to to communicate?

"As dead as a doornail."

I spun rapidly to find the voice, one I easily recognized. "Mew? It's not exactly the time for jokes…"

"I wasn't joking," she replied, starting to materialize before my eyes. In the matter of a few seconds, the legendary herself stood, or rather, floated in front of me, speaking with her mouth rather than her mind.

"I'm sorry," she stated without pretense, hoping to get apologies out of the way. "I didn't count on illusions to be part of the equation. I promised you I had the situation handled, but… Here we are."

I opened my 'mouth' to respond, but didn't say anything, holding myself there for a second or two before staring downwards.

"Is the team okay?" I asked soberly, trying not to focus on what came next, after death.

"Why so sullen?" she asked, tilting her head, and once more, ignoring my question. Was this a common theme of hers?

"You said it yourself!" I yelled, starting to become angry. "I'm dead! Any second now, Giratina, or Arceus, or someone is gonna to take my soul to who knows where?!"

"Jeez, is that what humans believe? You're not far off, but wow… You make it look like we don't even care."

"THAT'S NOT IMPORTANT! You promised me you'd keep me safe, you promised! No, and now, I'm never gonna see my team again…" Should I have had the ability to cry, I was sure tears would be freely streaming by then. Yet, my mental voice seemed to reflect my emotions quite well.

"No," Mew said, lowering her voice. "I'm gonna heal you."

"Wait, what?" I responded, my mood sparking back to life. "What are you waiting for, then?"

"That's the problem," she replied, rubbing her arm anxiously. "There was a bit of a… Complication."

"What's wrong?" I asked, letting worry seep into my tone. "I'm still going to be okay, right?"

"Yeah!" she shouted hastily, before reeling herself back in. "But… There was a little, eensy-teensy problem… There's gonna have to be a few… Changes."

"Like?"

Mew sighed unhappily, looking away from me. "I guess this is gonna take some explaining. Sit tight, this'll take a little while."

"O-okay?"

Mew shut her eyes, mentally preparing for her big reveal.

"Your body is no longer habitable," she said simply, and continued before I could respond. "Injuries I can heal, as I would under normal circumstances, but you were… Exposed. I was so stupid… I gave you too much of my power too quickly. Your body didn't have enough time to adjust, so it made you susceptible to infection."

"Okay," I responded, trying to comprehend what she was trying to insinuate. "What's that supposed to mean? Am I sick?"

"Not sick, no. This is a different kind of infection, one I can't really explain in terms you'd understand..." Seeing my confusion, she explained. "Let's just say an outside source… Two, actually, came into contact with your stomach wound."

"So?" I interrogated her, irritably.

"So, my power, in you at the time, was tainted with their… Somin and the other Zoroark's presence. I… I was too late to stop the spread. The product was some sort of new power, one that's not mine, one I can't control."

Continually frustrated with her evasiveness, I snapped. "Goddamn it, Mew, get to the damn point! Quit dodging the question! What's going to happen to me!"

Mew, much to my surprise, actually let out a growl, a physical one, sounding akin to a soft rumble. However, her frustration meant something. Finally, was this a pretense to some answers? Why did she always have to be so vague?

Yet, when I finally got an answer, I very quickly wished I hadn't.

"You're turning into a Pokémon!"

Seeing my shocked silence, she continued, yelling and on the verge of tears. "The new energy acted as a bonding agent, and there's so much of it that it's gonna slowly change your composition until you're a Zoroark in a reaction that will kill you long before it finishes!"

"Zoroark? Wh-why Zoroark? C-c-can't you stop it!?"

"I tried! If the Pokémon that killed you was anything other than dark-type, I may have succeeded! In order to stop this, though, I would have to separate the genes manually, which would kill you faster than the damned thing stabbing you in the stomach!"

"B-but y-you said becoming a Zoroark would kill me on its own! D-does that mean I'll die either way?"

"I also said you'd be okay too, didn't I? That's because you're not gonna turn into a Zoroark."

My mind was spinning; I tried yelling further to calm it. "What? What the hell kinda bipolar answer is that! Tell me what you're gonna do already!"

"Will you LISTEN? If you had the capacity to stop talking for a few moments, I would tell you!"

The void, with her words, seemed to shake violently, a soft rumble heard coming from all sides. Did it fluctuate with the legendary's emotions? My theory was affirmed when Mew took a deep breath, calming the world around the both of us.

"I'm sorry for yelling," she apologized sullenly. "I'm just… Angry at myself," she chuckled. "Jeez, I ended up killing you the first time you met me… That has to be a new record. And here, I thought I would actually do it right this time… Just because I've been alive for millennia doesn't mean anything's changed…"

Instead of speaking up and interrogating her further, I kept my mouth shut. I highly doubted most of her monologue had been directed at me, and to be perfectly honest, I felt awkward having to hear the legendary's inner thoughts.

I knew one thing for sure, however, and that was how apprehensive I felt. The entire situation was laid upon me like a ton of bricks; and now I was being told I could've done nothing to stop it?

"In all my years, I've never been in a situation like this. I've accidentally transformed people in the past, sure, but I can revert my own edits easily. When I transform someone, a small bit of my power remains in them, keeping their genes the way I want them. All I needed to do to revert these changes was to remove myself. You see, I carry the DNA of all Pokémon, and only Pokémon, meaning that when your transformation started without my intent, even I couldn't stop it."

"Isn't it your power that ended up changing me, though? Can't you take it away?" I asked hurriedly, fear seeping into my voice.

"I wish… My energy mutated, to put it simply. My own genetic structure is so malleable, so flexible, that it naturally connected with first foreign contact… I can't control it anymore. And, like I said, if I were to forcefully remove it, irreversible death would be the only result. The only option is to move forward. I'm going to initiate and direct the transformation, letting the infection take over afterwards."

She continued before I could, hoping to give me some semblance of hope. "I'll have to get you help from someone else, and I'm really glad we live in a time now where that's near impossible…"

I was about to ask what she meant by her last sentence, full of sarcasm, when she continued. "In any case, since you knew who I was before coming to meet me today, I can assume you've heard the stories of me changing people into Pokémon as punishment, correct? Not a lot of people know, though, is that if I don't want them to learn a lesson, it's basically a death sentence."

"What? What does that have to do with anything?"

"In almost all instances, people I turn into Pokémon cannot properly adjust to the amount of power they receive, exponential as compared to humans. They end up killing themselves within a few days. It's a special way for me to get away with indirect murder."

"That's… Dark," I replied slowly after absorbing what she said, silently wondering if her illustration would be what would happen to me.

"The answer is no," she said, replying to the question at the forefront of my mind. "There is a solution, but I'm afraid it'll be a MAJOR inconvenience to you."

"... What is it?"

She sighed, looking away as she spoke. "Just know, before I tell you, that I'm going to try my very, very, very, very best to fix it ASAP."

"Please, just tell me," I said, the anticipation causing for more and more anxiety with every passing second.

"I'm gonna… I gotta reduce your strength so you can adjust, but in a way where it won't debilitate you for life. I swear on my life it's the only solution with a decent margin of success. I'm… I'm going to set the stage for it you learn to use your energy naturally, just like any other Pokémon I… I…"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Her trailing off didn't assure me in the least. What did she mean by reducing my power?

"When you wake up," she said, biting her lip in anxiety. "You're not gonna be human, nor are you gonna be a Zoroark… You… You're gonna be…"

She groaned, rubbing her face vigorously with both paws, trying to force the words out of her mouth.

Then she gave up.

"J-just… You'll find out soon enough anyways. I… I can't bring myself to tell you like this. I just… I have to go. Your Zoroark was right."

"Wait wait wait… You're just gonna leave us? We need you!"

"What do you want me to do, Ray, huh? Somin wants to kill me because he thinks your death is my fault! The worst thing about it is the fact he's completely right! Even I can say he's! I need to find Arceus, and I have to fix this. All I'm gonna do is screw up everything even more if I stick around!"

"Somin's rash!" I yelled, trying to convince the legendary to stay, and completely ignoring her mention of the Original One. "Whether he thinks it or not, we need you Mew, more than anything."

"No," she replied ashamedly. "I'll be watching over you guys, helping out if need be. For now, though, I'm just gonna try and fix this. Find Arceus… If I find him, everything'll be fine."

"Arceus… As in, Arceus, the creator?"

"No, a different Arceus. Use your brain, Ray, I know you have one!"

"You don't know where he is?"

"He's been… Missing… For a little while."

"The hell is he on, vacation? Mew, please! I… I don't know what to do… I'm confused, I'm exhausted, and I'm… scared… I'm scared. I need you to be around Mew, I need your help!"

"I… I'm sorry, Ray. I can't." Before I could reply with an argument, she continued. "You like to think about your team helping you through tough times, right? I heard your final thoughts. Your team is there for you this time, they'll help you adjust, I promise."

"Mew, this isn't about you just leaving anymore! Take some responsibility, if you think what happened is your fault! Leave now, and you can forget about me being your trainer! If Somin thinks poorly of you now, make the effort to change that!"

"He needs time… We all do… Understand, though, that I still care about you greatly. You already are my trainer in my mind Ray, please know I'm doing this for the best of everyone. Just like the last few years, I'll be watching over you, even if you can't see me."

She sighed. "I have to go now. Be safe, and please, don't die on me again."

"Mew, wait!" I called as her form started to fade away. "Mew, please! Mew!"

"I'm sorry… I'm so, so sorry. I'll do my best."

She was gone, and I was left alone.


"I'm sorry… I'm so, so sorry."

Mew forcefully shut the telepathic link to Ray's consciousness; he would be unaware of any time passing until…

She didn't want to think about that.

Rubbing away the tears forming rapidly at the corners of her eyes, she started preparations for the impending procedure. She wanted to get it over with as fast as possible; then she could leave and try to work out the guilt rapidly working its way around her spine.

She couldn't believe she was somehow able to screw it all up… Would she be able to fix everything? Or, was that just a reassuring phrase for the human under her care?

Maybe she was trying to reaffirm herself.

Apologizing profusely under her breath, she initiated the transformation.

Her paws had just finished taking on a pink glow as she heard a loud series of bangs at the front door.

"Crap," she muttered under her breath, cancelling the transformation to get a grasp of who else was present.

She was starting to get the first round of aura readings when a man yelled through the door.

"Ray Alston, this is the LPD. We're just here to help, you're not under arrest.."

Liars.

The legendary narrowed her eyes, sending a harsh stare in the door's direction. She was about to smite the fifteen, as she counted, life forms behind the door with a single blast when she gave a second glance at their mentality.

Their intentions were… Pure?

"Please, Ray. We know what you did to at Mt. Chimney, and we know you're being targeted by the UPF. Flannery would like to talk to you about what's going on, as do Drayden and Skyla. Please, we want to help. Just open the door."

What the hell is the UPF?

She lowered her hands, allowing her energy to make its way back into her body. Mew couldn't bring herself to kill innocents, even if they were after her human. Thinking, though, she realized that as long as Ray's team was in public, they would be a target.

She had to get them away from it all.

"Ray?" the man said once more, accompanied by a few more pounds at the door.

"Listen up," Mew broadcasted for all to hear, lifting her head. "I'm in a pretty bad mood right now, so I don't wanna repeat myself. If you all know what's good for you, you'll leave my human alone for a little bit. We're going to go away for a while, get out of all your hair. Try to find us, though, and I'll have to kill each and every one of you. That would be preeeety messy."

"Ray, I don't know if that's your Zoroark or not, but please cooperate, or else we're going to have to use force."

"I don't think ya get it, Zachary Reiman," she stated, using the officer's real name for emphasis. She took a moment to scan through the speaker's mind.

"Yep! I know your name. I know lots of things, like how you live at 1475 Cabin Hill Road in the residential district of Lavaridge, and have two children, age 7 and age 10. Sydney and Hunter, right? Those are nice names. Even though I know your intentions are pure, I'm pretty sure any child would be heartbroken if they had to deal with a dead dad, especially one torn up beyond identification. Or maybe the other way around would work as well to deter you, but hey, what do I know?"

She readjusted herself, facial expression neutral. "Now, I'm going to ask kindly once more. Wouldya do me the favor of leaving us alone, pretty please?"

Mew heard slight scuffling outside, accompanied by a few rushed and panicked voices, before another man, a different one, came to the door.

"Ray, we understand the power you're stuck with right now, and just want to help."

"Yeah, sure you understand, champ. Gotta call BS on that one. Sorry, though, but if you're looking for Ray, I'm afraid you're addressing the wrong person. We'll be taking our leave now."

The legendary then heard, as she was preparing to teleport to her chosen location, a conglomeration of loud voices, accompanied by the loud banging of the door. They were going to break it down.

Mew was quick to obtain an exact jump point, and was initiating the teleportation sequence when the door came down and a whole squad of men, all armed, swarmed the condo.

They got one good look at the legendary, though, floating in front of them, and froze in place.

"Don't follow us."

The team was soon gone, leaving nothing behind but a blood-stained sofa, a giant, broken window, and multiple, shocked and confused soldiers.