Can anyone tell where this storyline is headed?

Polaris-Ponyta, Link-Raichu, Charren-Charizard, Tlaloc-Braviary, Kinesis-Alakazam, Yarak-Talonflame

Mewtwo, Lily-Mom Mewtwo, Twilight-young Mewtwo, Chanti/Nebby-Lunala

Chapter 24: Search and Rescue

I clung to my Charizard's back, my eyes watering from the speed of our flight. The wind should have been enough to slap me awake, but I felt my head nod in an unintentional droop. I shook myself. I had to focus. I couldn't hear Mewtwo's voice – I could only feel a distant, familiar glow. He must be unconscious, or he'd be reaching out to help me find him. All I could do was point Charren in the right direction. It was like a compass, but we had no idea how far we'd have to go. Occasionally I had Kinesis, my Alakazam, teleport me as far as he could, but too much teleporting made me feel like I was going to throw up.

Why had they taken Mewtwo? What were they were doing to him? Was he hurt? I'd barely slept the past two days. Or was it three? Surely it couldn't have been more than that. Whenever Charren got tired, I'd return her and switch to my Braviary, Tlaloc. I needed to rest, so I could stay focused on that distant glimmer that drew me toward Mewtwo. I had tried to sleep, but how could I? My friend had been kidnapped. And I knew all too well what kind of people might do that.

My eyes felt so prickly and my eyelids so heavy. My head started to droop again.

"CARA!"

Charren's snarl jerked me back to my senses. I'd slumped forward and was starting to slide off of her back. My bleary eyes saw the fields far, far below me. I scrambled back, adrenaline shooting me into wakefulness. Charren started to dip out of the sky.

"No, I'm okay!" I cried.

Charren snorted in disgust. "You think falling to your death is going to help Mewtwo? You're resting. Right now."

I bit my lip, but didn't protest as Charren landed in a grove. The rest of my Pokéballs burst open on their own. My team was determined to make me take care of myself. I'd assembled a strike team: Pokémon that would be best at searching and infiltrating. I slid off of Charren's back to greet my Pokémon. But when my feet hit the ground, my legs buckled and I staggered several steps before sinking to me knees. Link, the Raichu, put a paw on my shoulder. He gave a reassuring smile. "It's okay, Cara. We all know you'll get him back."

I hugged Link, feeling tears prickle my eyes. Maybe it was just fatigue or the after-effects of the wind. The rest of my Pokémon gathered around and spent several seconds just being close. When I'd breathed and calmed down some, I pulled my sleeping bag out of my backpack. Link got out the food. I'd eaten some while I was riding, but the Pokémon also needed to eat. Charren, Tlaloc and Kinesis especially had been working hard. I started to help set the food out, but Link sparked his cheeks to chase me off.

He grinned. "I've got it. You need sleep. Please."

I returned a tired smile. Of all my Pokémon, there were few that acted as, well, human as Link did. That was because he was from a different world. When I fell through Ultra Space and lost my memories, he'd saved me. I'd landed on a world that wasn't… compatible with humans. Which meant that I wasn't human when I woke up in a new land. I was a Charmander. Link and I had become close friends, forming a team to help with the problems of the region. And when Mewtwo came to take me home, Link had come too. "Thanks, Link. As always."

Polaris's flaming mane lit up the night. I lay out my sleeping bag and crawled inside. My body was desperate for rest, and I would botch my attempts at tracking if I wasn't focused. But then I thought of Lily and Twilight. I'd sent them back to Avalon, along with Ben and Hari. I had to make sure they were safe. I couldn't let anyone know that there was more than one Mewtwo. I also didn't use any of the clones for tracking, though I know they would have been good at it. And they were all eager to help. But I didn't know why Mewtwo had been captured, and I didn't want to put the clones in danger either.

As much as I knew I had to rest, I couldn't stop thinking that every moment spent sleeping was a moment that Mewtwo was imprisoned somewhere. I felt like a failure. Logically I knew there was nothing I could have done. I had been in another world. For weeks, at least according to the time flow of this world. But I'd brought the Mewtwos to Alola. I'd tried to take every precaution, but obviously it hadn't been enough. Maybe it was because of that brief moment when Edward's illusion dropped. Mewtwo had been visible as himself. And with all of the Ultra Beasts attacking the Alola, someone must have gotten an image of him on a news camera or something.

My mind was torn in a million different directions. But it didn't take long before sheer exhaustion dragged me out of consciousness.

…

"CARA!"

The call yanked me out of sleep and I jolted upright. The Pokémon had been curled up around me. They all jumped up in response.

"I've got him!" I shouted. "I can hear Mewtwo! He's close, come on!" I returned everyone except Kinesis, who teleported me as far as he could go. From there, I leapt on Tlaloc's back. I hadn't gotten much sleep. But Mewtwo's voice had been so strong and clear that I felt wide awake for the first time in days. The cold night air froze through my lungs, but I didn't care.

"There!" I shouted as we swooped low over river and hills. By the moonlight, I could see a ledge between two hills. Roots and vines draped over it, creating a sheltered overhang. Beneath the ledge, I saw a purple shadow. Tlaloc landed and I leapt off of his back, I dashed to the overhang and skidded to my knees, falling at Mewtwo's side.

He was slumped against the back wall, but he opened his eyes and managed a smile. I threw my arms around him, sobbing. "You're okay! Thank Arceus, I'm so sorry! I wasn't there to help you!"

Mewtwo was always very awkward about hugs, but this time he smiled and gave me a one-armed hug in return. He probably would have done a full hug, but he looked like he could barely move. "I knew you'd come," he murmured.

I couldn't stop my mouth. It babbled on with a string of nonsense as relieved tears poured down my face. Mewtwo patted my head. I sniffled and managed to swallow the gush of random words. "You got free!"

He nodded. "I had some help." He shifted his arm and grimaced.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

"I will be." He winced again. "But I feel terrible."

"Let's get you out of here."

He shook his head. "I can't."

I gaped at him. "You can't? But what if the people come back for you?"

He shook his head again. "I made a promise. The human who helped me escape. He was hurt. I have to help him."

A human had helped him escape. I gave a cracked grin. "Hope in humanity is restored, huh? Where is he?"

"It's not ready yet. I'll explain more when I've rested."

I should have been wondering how an injured person wasn't ready to be healed yet. But I was too exhausted to put those pieces together in my head. Mewtwo tried to sit up straighter. I pulled off my backpack and stuffed a water bottle into his hands. As he drank, I pulled out my phone and dialed Ben. Too late, I realized that he would be in bed. But Ben picked up immediately.

"Cara?"

"I found him," I gasped.

"Thank Arceus!" Ben almost shouted.

"He's mostly okay. I think we have to fix one more thing before we come home. How is everything?"

"Everyone's safe. No one's been poking around either. Lily upped the defenses, and I boosted the interference for cameras and everything."

"You're awesome, Ben. Can you tell Lily and Twilight that we'll be back soon?"

"They're already here. My shout woke them."

"At least this is a good thing to wake up to." I pressed the phone into Mewtwo's startled hands.

"Ah, hello," he said. He didn't really use phones.

I heard the excited jabbering of Lily and Twilight at the other end of the line. Mewtwo gave them assurances that he was okay and would be home soon. "I just have to finish a couple things. I hear you flew to another world?"

Twilight launched into a tale of our encounters with Necrozma. When he finished, Mewtwo nodded and smiled, "Ah. You're incredible, Twilight." His voice was starting to fade from exhaustion.

"You rest now, Mewtwo," Lily insisted. "We'll see you soon, Feel better!"

Mewtwo handed the phone back to me. I said goodbye, and hung up. Just as I had felt guilty for getting Mewtwo captured, I could tell that Ben and Hari felt guilty too. They'd been the only ones here, and felt responsible while I was gone. I hadn't heard the circumstances of the capture yet, but I knew my friends would have done everything possible to protect Mewtwo.

All of my Pokémon came out to join us. Kinesis formed a protective barrier around our little grotto. Yarak, my Talonflame, took the first watch. The rest of us huddled up in a pile. For the first time in days, I was able to drop into a deep, contented sleep.

…

All was quiet when I opened my eyes. There was just the singing of birds and the sounds of the distant river. I breathed a sigh of relief to see Mewtwo, safe. He was fast asleep, but he looked peaceful. Not feverish or anything. Polaris stood to the side, keeping watch. The others were dozing.

When I stood, Charren sat up. "I found breakfast." She lifted an entire branch covered in plums. It looked like she'd ripped it right off of someone's tree. I grimaced in sympathy for them, but said, "thanks. I'll bet Mewtwo's hungry."

I opened up my pack and pulled out the rest of our food. It wasn't much. I'd been dashing into stores as we travelled. One by one, the other Pokémon raised their heads and started munching on the fruit Charren had brought. Mewtwo was the last to wake. He sat up, looking around in alarm. But when he saw where he was, he relaxed.

"How are you feeling?" I asked, taking a seat next to him.

"Drained. They… they… were extracting my DNA."

"WHAT!" I yelled. The Pokémon all jumped.

Mewtwo nodded. "They were making something from it." He put a hand to his temple and shook his head. "Sorry. I'm still kinda fuzzy. "Something about controlling other Pokémon. No, it made them lose control. There were working on it in the lab. He-the man-saved me at night. They went after him, and I tried to protect him. I lost my bearings, and helping him took the last of my energy. I got as far away as I could before I passed out. I need to find the lab. Find out what they're doing with my DNA."

"No, don't go anywhere near there. We'll find it. We'll figure out what they were making, and destroy whatever they took from you." I handed him a plum.

He nodded, too tired to protest. "They… they were going to test their experiment in the city. They called it R."

"City," I repeated. "Okay. We'll start tomorrow. I think we slept until the afternoon. And I don't want to leave you when you're this tired."

He nodded and ate his fruit. I wanted to ask him about the person he needed to heal, but he fell asleep again after eating.

I turned to my Braviary. "Tlaloc, can you find the city, and fly around to get the layout?"

Tlaloc nodded. He walked out from under the ledge and took to the air.

The smell of the food had drawn a band of wild Bulbasaur. They looked a little nervous around me and my pack of Pokémon. I rolled the spare plums over to them, and they happily started nibbling the fruit. A couple of the braver ones came closer.

"Hey, can I ask you something?"

The Bulbasaur looked up at me, tilting their heads.

"My friend is hurt. He needs to wait here while he recovers. Can you keep an eye out for anyone suspicious?"

They considered this, then nodded.

"Thank you."

When the Bulbasaur got bored of watching us, they headed back to their own business. I started walking up and down the little valley, finding other wild Pokémon to talk to. They agreed to warn us if anyone came by.

They'd taken Mewtwo's DNA. I clenched my fists as I stepped back into the grotto. I couldn't wait to get my hands on these people. I'd destroy everything they'd made. They'd regret messing with my friends.

I heard a small laugh. Mewtwo had opened his eyes. "I recognize that look. You look like you're ready to go on a Dragon Rage."

I laughed, some of my fury burning away. I was just so glad he was okay. "You caught me."

"Tell me what's been happening." His voice sounded weak. I had a lot of questions for him, but I didn't want to press him until he felt stronger.

Twilight had told him about Necrozma, but there was a lot more. "Well, Lillie – the human one – emailed me an update. She couldn't tell me in person because I had to leave right away to look for you. Lillie says thank you. As many thanks as she can give. You gave their dad back. And their mom is recovering too."

"I'll be a memory expert before long." His words muddled together a little bit. But he was listening.

It was just after returning Mohn's memories that Mewtwo was captured. Restoring memories had worn him out. How ironic. When Mewtwo restored my memories on the other world, he'd also been attacked. I bit my lip and continued. "Well, after we defeated Necrozma, Lunala came back to our world. She talked to the Tapus, and Lillie talked to the Kahunas. Julio got Team Skull involved. I, uh, I heard Team Skull took some of the crystals that people were less willing to part with. But less violently than before."

"Desperate times, desperate measures?"

"Yeah, that's about it. Together, everyone managed to gather the Z crystals to restore Necrozma. Apparently another legendary Pokémon actually helped. Zygarde. But I don't know if I'll be able to show my face in Alola much after this. Without their Z Crystals, they can't use Z moves. I think most people understand, but not everyone is so forgiving."

Mewtwo gave a wry smile. "You have a way of fixing things, and breaking other things."

I snorted. "Ah, shush. Well, the Totem Pokémon still have their power. That may be because some of Necrozma's power naturally falls on Alola. Oh, and Lunala is staying with Lillie – the human Lillie – for a little while. I'm going to visit her once everything calms down a bit. See what Lunala wants to do next. And there's one more Pokémon that's, uh, finding a new home. Ben said that a little while ago, another dragon came to Avalon. You know that Reshiram and Zekrom are both staying on the island. So now that Kyurem is free, he wants to stay with them. I haven't been home yet, so I'm not sure how that's playing out. We'll see when we get home."

"It's never boring on Avalon."

"You can say that again. Mew offered to help look for you, but I asked her to help protect Avalon. I didn't want to bring any Pokémon that might be at risk from the people who…" I trailed off. Mewtwo had fallen back asleep. I smiled and picked up my sleeping bag, using it as a blanket over him.

"He's still sleeping?" Link asked.

"Yeah. He's been through hell, it looks like."

Polaris came over to nuzzle Mewtwo's shoulder. "He's on the mend, at least."

"He's strong. He'll be good as new soon." Link shot me a devilish grin. "Besides, Pokémon are a lot sturdier than humans!"

I snorted. "What would us pathetic humans do without you to look after us?" I gestured for the other Pokémon to gather around, to go over plans for tomorrow.

…

The next morning, Kineses, Polaris, and Link stayed with Mewtwo. I took the flying Pokémon with me to begin scouting the city. Charren stayed with me, while Tlaloc and Yarak split up to cover more ground. They'd be speaking to all the Pokémon, to see what they could learn. I didn't even know where we were, so I'd have to gather some human information. I

found a visitor center on my phone. I guided Charren to the right street. I was amazed at how many Pokémon were walking around. People usually kept Pokémon in Pokéballs, especially in cities. But here everyone seemed to have a Pokémon at their side. Charren and I stood, watching the foot traffic with amazement. How cool! Charren waited on the sidewalk while I went into the Ryme City Visitor Center. They actually had a video playing on loop. I watched as they talked about the founder of the city. It turns out that Pokémon are not allowed to be kept in Pokéballs. But there were no battles allowed in Ryme City. What a strange system. I loved that Pokémon roamed free, but it was strange that you couldn't use Pokéballs at all. And I guess the only way to keep order with that system was to ban battles.

With my basic knowledge of Ryme City, I headed out to search. I didn't learn anything all morning. I grew increasingly frustrated. I wasn't a detective, and didn't know a single person here. I couldn't go around asking strangers where people would test substances made from stolen Pokémon DNA. Especially since I couldn't tell anyone about Mewtwo. I started asking Pokémon. But searching an entire city seemed an impossible task.

It was Yarak that made the first breakthrough. Late in the afternoon, he glided out of the sky and landed on my outstretched arm. "I found a Pokémon who thinks they can help. There's a strange gas they've been using to enhance Pokémon battles."

"Is there some sort of speakeasy for Pokémon battles? I thought fights weren't allowed here."

Yarak tilted his head. "Speak easy?"

I explained as I climbed on Charren's back. We flew to the docks. It was about as bland as you could get: warehouses, storage containers, and vehicles for transporting goods. There was a cruise ship coasting along near the coast, but not much activity where we were. Yarak lead the way. Someone was sitting on a crate by one of the buildings. No, not a human. A Mr. Mime. Yarak glided over to land in front of him. Mr. Mime lowered an invisible newspaper, and nodded. Yarak must have greeted him earlier. But when I stepped into view, Mr. Mime stood, looking uneasy.

"Hello," I said to Mr. Mime. "I was wondering if you could help me with something." I pulled off my backpack and took out a paper bag. I opened it, showing him a sandwich. His uneasy expression vanished, replaced with eagerness. "I just have a question. Some people kidnapped a friend of mine, and hurt him. He got free, but they stole some of his power. They're calling it R. You've heard of it?"

Mr. Mime looked at the sandwich, his mouth watering. I next spoke to him in telepathy, giving him a more precise way to respond. Mr. Mime aren't noted for being talkative. "All you need to do is think the directions, and I'll understand."

Mr. Mime nodded. "The Round House. That's where they're using the R. It's not far. Just down the docks."

"Thank you." I handed him the bag.

"It won't be open until dark," Mr. Mime said, pulling out the food. "You're not the first one to ask. But you are the most polite person to ask."

"Thanks again." Other people were looking for the R too? Interesting. As we walked down the dock, I used telepathy to contact Mewtwo. He was awake, and seemed far more alert. "We got the location! It doesn't sound like anyone will be there until dark though." Maybe I could have snuck in before it was open. But it would be better to slip in with the crowds.

"Thanks, Cara."

"I'm going to stay in the city. The less I go to your location, the better. In case anyone follows me."

"That's fine. Good luck."