(A/N: So I just realized I have now surpassed the length of my previous story, HURRAY FOR ME!)

Chapter 17: Coming Up Short

Mightyena and I quickly ran upstairs, hoping to catch Summers. Once we got to the next room, we saw that the room was the command center. Maybe I could've found out what they were planning but I didn't have the time. If we didn't catch Summers, we'd lose him for good.

Not only was it big, but there was no one here as well. "Keep your eyes open," I said to Mightyena, knowing he could hear me. I kept mine open as well, but still saw nothing.

All of a sudden, the same feeling I had experienced before hit me again. It hit me so quick that I fell to the ground in pain.

Mightyena noticed me in pain. "Chris, are you alright?"

"It's happening again," I said in pain. Although it was hard, I pulled out one of the syringes given to me and injected it into my neck, quickly relieving the pain. I fell to the ground, gasping for air.

"Very impressive." I looked up and saw that Summers had appeared. "I did not think you would've stolen some of those syringes."

"It's over Summers," I said, getting to my feet. "You have nowhere else to run."

Summers just laughed at this. "Oh Chris, you haven't quite gotten it yet. Although, I am impressed by your skills as a trainer."

"How can you even be a trainer?" I said.

"You could hardly call me a trainer," Summers said. "The Pokemon I catch are mostly for my own purposes."

"So you just capture the big strong ones just so you can have authority over others?" I said, disgusted. "You make me sick." Mightyena bared his teeth in agreement. "Pokemon are meant to be trained and loved, not used as weapons."

"It's interesting you say that now, when before you weren't even a believer in them?" Summers said, smiling. "I had known long before you about the Pokemon. The portals you encountered have happened long before, and the conflict with Palkia, Dialga, and Giratina only made them more constant, meaning we could in and out faster taking and capturing more Pokemon. The Pokemon you saw down there is but merely a fraction of the total number found in this world and yours."

"You're insane," Mightyena said.

"Oh yes, I almost forgot about your talking friend," Summers said. "Trust me, once we find a way, we'll make sure to take care of your friends as well."

"You wouldn't dare!" Mightyena growled.

"What are you talking about?" I said.

"Isn't it obvious? Your friend here is from the same world as that Pikachu," Summers said, "As how he got here, I haven't the slightest idea."

I then heard what sounded like a helicopter. "Enough of this!" I said. "Mightyena use Take Down!"

Mightyena charged at Summers, but Summers was one step ahead of us. He ran straight out the window and caught on to one of the rails of the helicopter.

"Damn it!" I said, realizing he had probably called. I looked out the window but the helicopter was already too far away.

(A/N: Okay, this might end up being the last song I provide in this story. The song is called "Enclosure.")

"Chris, I'm sorry," Mightyena said, putting his head down in shame.

"Don't worry about it," I said, about to pet him. "Um, you don't mind if I...?"

"Go ahead," Mightyena said, smiling. I then pet him on the head, realizing how soft his fur was.

"To be honest, I owe you my life back there," I said. "I don't think any of us could've taken on that Houndoom."

All of a sudden, I started to hear a beeping sound. I looked around for the source but couldn't see it. I went over to the controls, seeing what it was. My heart stopped when I noticed the beeping was coming from a detonator placed on the main console.

Then, the beeping stopped, and I knew what was about to happen. "Son of a-" I managed to say before the detonator went off.

Ash, Dawn, and Brock, meanwhile, were helping the Pokemon escape from their cells. Not wanting to stay there any longer, the Pokemon quickly ran out of the base and finally back into the wildlife.

"Well, I guess that's all of them," Brock said.

All of a sudden, a large explosion came from above, shaking the ground beneath them.

"What was that?" Ash said.

Dawn, realizing what was probably going on upstairs, then cried, "Oh no! Chris!" she said, while trying to go upstairs. However, parts of the ceiling were starting to fall down, blocking her way up.

She was about to take the elevator until Ash grabbed her arm. "Dawn! We have to get out of here!" Ash cried.

"No! I'm not leaving without Chris!" Dawn said.

"If we don't get out of here, we'll all get buried by the rubble!" Brock said.

Dawn looked up, and with a pained look, she followed the others out of the base.

*I regained consciousness, seeing the burning room I was in now. I realized what had happened, and was lucky to be alive. I tried to get up, but I could barely move, and was in major pain.

"Mightyena? Are you alright?" I said.

"I'm here Chris!" he said, as he appeared in front of me.

"I can't move," I said. "Listen, you have to get out of here, just save yourself."

"No, I'm not leaving you behind!" Mightyena said. "If I have to drag you, I'll do it!" He then grabbed me by the collar with his teeth and started to drag me towards the stairs.

"Why, why are you doing this for me?" I said.

"Because you are the one who can stop this evil for good," Mightyena said in my mind. "The job isn't finished yet."

I realized that he was right. Arceus knew what my role in this was, meaning it was my destiny to stop them. I then tried to get to my feet, and although it was rather painful, I was able to get to my feet. "Then let's finish it then."

(A/N: Okay, so I sort of lied. Anyway, this is one of those things where you have to go inside a song to a certain part. Now, I think you remember the title theme. Well, if you remember the last part of it, that's what I'm talking about. Kind of one of those heroic ballads.)

Ash, Dawn, and Brock stood outside, waiting. Despite the base collapsing, they saw no one coming out.

"No," Dawn said, tears in her eyes. "It can't be true. There's no way."

Pikachu was holding Pikette, who had tears in her eyes as well, but Pikachu had them in his eyes as well, hoping, praying that his friend was alright.

"Dawn, I'm sorry," Ash said. "But don't forget, if he is gone, he died as a hero. You should be proud of him."

Dawn looked at him and smiled, while tears streamed down her face. "I know Ash, I couldn't be anymore proud of him already."

*They were about to leave until Dawn saw something. "Could it be?" she said. She looked closer and indeed saw someone coming out, along with a Pokemon. She then realized it was me and ran towards me, overwhelmed with joy. She grabbed me and gave me a big hug, but then stopped realizing I was in pain. Ash and Brock came over while Pikachu and Pikette ended up jumping right into my arms, both giving me a hug.

"Good to see you're still in one piece," Brock said.

"I'm just amazed how we both survived that," I said, looking at Mightyena.

We walked away from the base and sat down, mostly because I was still exhausted. "So he got away, huh?" Pikette asked.

"Yeah," I said. "But I know this isn't over."

"No it's not." We looked over and before us stood Arceus.

"Arceus!" we all said.

"All of you have done well," Arceus said with a smile. "But the battle has only begun I'm afraid."

"What do you mean?" Ash asked.

"The ones that you seek to defeat are still at large and are regrouping," Arceus said. "They will be returning to their former world."

"My world?" I said.

"Yes, that is there first step," Arceus replied. It then looked at me. "So, I see you have finally met your guardian."

"Guardian?" I said. I looked to Mightyena. "What do you mean guardian?"

"You see, Mightyena has been looking over you since you were young," Arceus explained. "He has always been with you."

"Always? But he's a Pokemon, which means..." I said.

"Yes Chris, you were born in this world, but to protect you from any danger, you were brought to the world you know so well," Arceus said.

Dawn laughed. "You know, somehow, "I told you so" just doesn't quite say it."

"So, is Mightyena from the same world as Pikette?" I asked.

"Yes." Pikette then looked at Mightyena, who stared back and smiled, giving her a wink.

"Well, I'm sure this is going to be an interesting adventure," I said, scratching Mightyena behind the ears, which he seemed to like. He then jumped on me and started licking my face, causing me to laugh.

"So what do we do now?" Brock asked.

"Now is the time to go back to your world, and stop the evil that is spreading there," Arceus said. "But I must warn you, this will not be easy, not knowing what to expect."

"Well, I've done many things that seemed impossible to some, so I feel like I can handle it," I said.

"Very well, I can open a portal to lead you there, unless you feel like there's something else you must do here first?"

I looked to Dawn, while she looked back. "Well, there is one thing. I promised a friend that I would see her compete at a Pokemon Contest," I said, giving Dawn a wink. "And I don't like to break promises."

Arceus smiled. "I see. Well, whenever you need me, just call me and I will be there." And with that, he vanished.

Dawn went up to me and gave me another hug. "Chris, that's so sweet of you! Thank you so much!"

"Of course Dawn," I said. "Besides, I can't let Pikette be upset about not being able to do the contest."

"I heard that," Pikette said, smiling.

(A/N" And without further adieu, I bring to you the credits song. Originally, I was going to have the song "Eternal," but I decided to use a different song. The name of it is "Life in Technicolor II" by Coldplay. AND REMEMBER TO ADD THE II! Just so you're not ripped off of that. Anyway, yes there will be another sequel, which will probably be the concluding one for this series. And I'll say it now, this one will probably be somewhat to a lot darker. But anyway, I thank my supporters for the reviews. Actually, I remembered now, this part isn't the end but, well, you'll see.)

Epilogue

"So, you really think he's that important?"

"No doubt about it, Colonel. I knew his father when we were both part of the Special Forces."

"I see. Very well Snake, bring him in. I hope you're right about this."

"Have I ever been wrong before?"

Soundtrack

1. MGS2 Main Theme – Harry Gregson – Williams

2. Going Down The Rapids – Koji Kondo

3. Requiem of Spirit – Koji Kondo

4. Encountering Mightyena in the Forest (Encountering Midna in the Cell) – Koji Kondo

5. Arceus (The Spirit Eldin) – Koji Kondo

6. This Year's Lovin' – David Gray

7. Rosetta's Comet Observatory 3 – Koji Kondo (I couldn't think of a title for this.)

8. Moving Mountains – Two Steps From Hell

9. Eternal – Evanescence

10. The Guardian's Song - ? (Not sure who did it.)

11. Spirits' Peace – Koji Kondo

12. Enjoy The Unknown – And One

13. Wild Pokemon Battle (Diamond/Pearl) – SSBB (We'll just put that.)

14. Lux Aeterna – Clint Mansell

15. Adler Asks Chris to Join Him (Zant Asks Midna To Join Him) – Koji Kondo

16. Preparing to Attack the Base (Preparing to Ride to Kakariko) – Koji Kondo

17. Team Galactic Battle – SSBB

18. Mightyena's Theme (Ike's Theme) – SSBB

19. Darkrai Theme - ?

20. Enclosure - Konami Computer Entertainment Sound Team Japan

21. Life in Technicolor II – Coldplay