The Ketchum Family - An Amourshipping Story

by RazorKeyboard

This is the story of what happens after Ash wins the Masters Eight Tournament. (Amourshipping Fanfic) What will happen when Ash and Serena reunite? Where will their journeys take them? I don't have any profanity or overly dark elements in my story. Things will get steadily steamier between Ash and Serena as things progress. All main characters are 18 years or older.

3. Curiosity Killed the Chaser

Soft sheets, a warm bed, a lovely pillow and comfy pajamas; all of these things surrounded Chloe and left her feeling happy and peaceful. She floated at the edge of consciousness, just awake enough to be aware of her wonderful environment, but still enjoying the restfulness of sleep. Her breathing was slow and her mind was quiet. The tiniest of smiles pulled at her lips as every muscle in her body soaked in the soothing relaxation that-

"COME ON, CHLOE! WE'RE GONNA BE LATE!"

Chloe flinched and cried out in surprise. She sat bolt-upright in the bed of the Pokémon Center, eyes wide and mouth open. It took a moment for her eyes to focus on Goh standing at the foot of her bed. He stared back at her with an intense expression. A moment later, he gasped and his face changed to one of astonishment.

"WHAT KIND OF A WAKE UP CALL WAS THAT!?" Chloe shouted. She glared at Goh and crossed her arms. "What are you staring at?!" she said pointedly when Goh kept his gaze fixed on her.

"Uh….. your hair!" Goh replied, still looking astonished.

"Huh?" Chloe glanced over her shoulder and saw that her Maroon locks were a massive, tangled, mess.

"AUGHHH!" she screamed. Like a bolt of lightning, she dashed to the bathroom and began frantically brushing at her hair. "Why does this always happen!?" she moaned.

Goh walked up to the open door and looked in on his friend with a tentative expression on his face. "How long is that gonna take?"

Chloe shot Goh a venomous look. "It's gonna take a lot longer with you watching me. Go away! Let me work!"

Goh made a sour face and turned to walk away, grumbling as he did so. "Should've woken you up earlier," he said offhandedly.

Chloe pulled on her hair, wetted it, fluffed it and used all the tricks she knew to try and tame the mess. It helped, but there was no way she could get it reigned in before they had to leave.

"GOH, GET IN HERE!" she shouted.

Goh dashed to the bathroom door. "Now what?!" he groused.

Chloe slapped a hairbrush into his hands. "Start at the top and work your way down!" she commanded.

Wearing a perplexed expression, Goh followed Chloe's request and began helping get her hair under control. It took the two of them about fifteen minutes to finally restore Chloe's hair to its usual long, braided form. She then changed into her traveling clothes, grabbed her backpack and chased after an apoplectic Goh.

"HURRY CHLOE!" Goh shouted, running in a northerly direction from the Pokémon Center.

Chloe sighed and pumped her legs to keep up with him. "We're plenty early Goh!" she called after him. "You're not gonna miss out!"

"I don't care!" Goh replied. "Today's the day I'm finally gonna catch Mew! I've waited my whole life for this. I'm not gonna stop until I've got Mew's Pokéball in the palm of my hand!"

Goh grinned from ear-to-ear and raced ahead. Chloe let out a tired exclamation and chased after him as best as she could. Fortunately for Chloe, the campsite for Project Mew was only a couple miles north of the Pokémon Center. She was gasping for breath when Goh finally stopped running and took in the sight of the small encampment.

"This is it!" he whispered. "I'm finally gonna catch Mew!"

The makeshift site was centered around a trio of tables piled with cases and equipment. There was a large RV off to the side and a small enclosed trailer. A few crates had been set out and there were some scientific instruments deployed. There were a few dishes and antennas attached to poles. There were also a few tents set up around the area. Overall, it looked like someone had taken a lot of equipment right out of a lab and set it down near the edge of a forest.

The forest they were near was located far to the west in Johto. It was well away from the big cities. The Pokémon Center/ranger station they'd stayed at was the only structure for many miles.

Goh grinned and walked into the camp. As he neared the center of the site, a brown-haired young man leaned into view from behind one of the tents.

"Finally made it, huh?" Gary quipped, sending Goh a sidelong glance.

Goh looked elated and dashed to Gary's side. "Wouldn't miss it for the world," he said energetically.

"It's sort of ironic you say that," Horace said, walking into view. "This could be the biggest discovery the world has ever know."

Danika stepped into view from behind the RV. "Fame, glory, attention, you can have it all after today," she said with a subtle smile. "If you're into that sort of thing," she added with a wink.

"I will be satisfied with a job well done," Quillon spoke, walking up from the center of the campsite. "You all can have the… fame, if that's what you're after."

Goh clinched his left hand into a fist. "I'm after Mew! That's what I want!"

"And you will all fulfill that dream by the end of the day," a man in a lab coat said as he walked by the impromptu gathering. Goh had never seen this man before. He was of average height and looked to be past middle aged. He was light skinned and his short, gold hair was somewhat balding. He spoke in a smooth, assuring voice.

Goh blinked. "Huh? Who's that?" he said to no one in particular.

"That's Doctor Melcher," Professor Amaranth said in a proud voice.

All of the chasers turned to face the leader of their team.

"He's been in contact with me for quite some time," Amaranth continued. "He's developed an impressive array of devices which we'll use to track and possibly catch Mew."

"Exactly right, Professor," Melcher said from behind the trio of tables. "Why don't all of you come over here and I'll show you the gear you'll be using today."

The professor and the five chasers all walked toward the tables at the center of the campsite. Chloe stood at the edge of the site and hesitated. She felt very out of place standing next to all these accomplished trainers and scientists. She was just a little girl from Vermilion City at the end of the day. Did she even belong here?

Chloe shook aside these fears and doubts. She was here to help Goh fulfill his dream. She didn't need to be an awesome trainer or a brilliant scientist. As long as she cheered Goh to victory, that's all that mattered. She stepped forward and stood at the edge of the chasers as Doctor Melcher began his explanation.

The doctor picked up a metallic device which looked like it would fit on one's forearm. It had a pair of raised ridges which ran the entire length along the top of the device. At the back of the unit was a small, empty recess. Additionally, there was a small screen build into the top of the device between the two ridges.

"This is going to be the primary device you use to find, track and control Mew," Melcher said in a grandiose tone. "This vambrace contains a tracker, a communicator, a teleportation inhibitor." Melcher pointed to the empty recess. "And this spot here will contain the components of a tether beam device."

All of the chasers exchanged surprised and confused looks.

Horace spoke up. "I thought we were just going to study Mew and attempt to capture it if the opportunity presented itself."

A grin pulled at Melcher's lips. "You are, young man," he said with an element of glee. "However, all of our information indicates that Mew will flee at the slightest sign of trouble. All of these magnificent devices are designed to keep Mew from escaping and give you time to…. study or maybe capture it."

Goh couldn't stop grinning. All he wanted to do was strap on one of those vambraces and run out into the forest in search of Mew.

"It sounds to me like some of those devices could be dangerous," Gary said, his tone critical. "What exactly is a tether beam?"

Melcher looked at Gary and smirked. "The tether beam device is my own invention," he said confidently. He picked up two separate metallic devices from the table and assembled them with a push and a twist. The complete device looked like a small three-legged tripod with a small box atop it. The back of the box had a small panel with a few buttons and the front possessed a tiered orange recess which resembled a a projector.

Melcher looked very proud. "This device projects a field which will keep Mew from fleeing. It will… "tether" it essentially, allowing you to study or capture it."

Quillon leaned forward and looked carefully at the device. "So it is a restraint of sorts. How much force does it project on Mew?"

Melcher set the device down on the table. "All of this is based on Pokéball technology," he said in a reassuring tone. "The tether beam will gently pull on Mew just as your Pokéballs gently keep your Pokémon protected and safe while they are minimized.

"That's so cool," Goh said, eyes wide in amazement.

"What about this teleport inhibitor?" Danika asked, gesturing at the vambrace.

Melcher clasped his hands together and looked eager. "Yes, my greatest invention. This will keep Mew from simply warping away the moment it spots you!"

"How exactly does it do that?" Gary said in a skeptical sounding tone.

Melcher worked his mouth and looked thoughtful. "Imagine a trampoline," he said after a moment. "When Mew attempts to jump through to somewhere else using teleport, this device puts a trampoline in its path and Mew is bounced back to where it started."

"And this is safe as well?" Quillon asked in a pointed tone.

"Absolutely," Melcher replied.

Goh had walked to another table and was looking at an open case containing a bunch of strange looking blue Pokéballs.

"What are these things?" he asked.

Melcher turned toward Goh and smiled. "Those are the custom made capture balls you'll use to catch Mew!"

"Couldn't we just use standard Ultra balls and the like," Horace replied.

Melcher chuckled and then composed himself. "Oh, no… definitely not. Mew is far too powerful for a standard Pokéball." He walked to the open case and picked up one of the blue spheres. It looked a lot like a standard Pokéball except it was colored all blue and had four raised knobs embedded into the top of the device. "These are designed to resist Mew's attacks and efforts to escape."

The doctor tapped the ball to enlarge it and the tossed it into the air. The device slowed and began to hover. A moment later the four knobs detached from the device and formed a diamond shape in front of the ball. There seemed to be a faint shimmering field being projected between the floating knobs.

Melcher grinned and spoke in an energetic tone. "When used, the ball will deploy a capture field and attempt to draw Mew in. While that is happening, the ball will be protected from damage by those small devices."

"That is sooooo COOL!" Goh shouted, eyes wide and mouth agape.

"And I suppose this is safe as well," Danika commented.

Melcher nodded, "Absolutely!" He slightly inclined his head to the side and then continued. "Although you will likely see Mew struggling to avoid being caught, but that's what all Pokémon do."

Melcher picked up a couple more of the blue Pokéballs. "Additionally, these devices are designed to be used in concert with one another."

The chasers looked puzzled.

Melcher continued. "Normally you wouldn't throw more than one Pokéball at a Pokémon. These balls, however, can help each other in the capturing process. Each one will help in containing and capturing Mew, so if you see one isn't enough to complete the capture, simply throw another."

Melcher continued speaking, explaining how the different devices worked and demonstrating how to use them. He showed off some other tools as well. There was a psychic beacon he believed could be used to lure Mew and a powerful sensor built into the vambrace which could be used to detect the creature.

Chloe listened to all of this information with rapt attention. She loved all things science related and this was the side of Pokémon she could get really excited about. She hoped one day she could come up with amazing inventions which could improve the world.

As Goh and the rest of the chasers began practicing with the equipment Chloe began to wander around the campsite, looking at the various bits of scientific machinery. She saw devices she was familiar with and others she wasn't. She spent a minute ogling a miniature mass spectrometer and then moved on to other interesting objects. As she casually walked around, she spied a small open case sitting on a table. It contained several glass vials containing small yellow/orange crystals. Chloe felt a tickle in the back of her mind, but she couldn't recall the memory which was being triggered. She shrugged and moved on.

After nearly half an hour of training, the chasers were ready. Goh and the rest of the crew loaded up their equipment and prepared to head out.

"You mean we only get four of these capture balls, each!" Goh said in dismay.

Melcher nodded. "Yes, they are incredibly hard to manufacture. I was lucky to produce this many."

Goh didn't like this news. Given his history with Pokéballs he would have preferred to have many more of the blue devices.

"Is that the plan, Professor?" Quillon said to Amaranth. "We're going to capture Mew?"

The professor adjusted the vambrace on his left forearm and looked at Quillon. "Perhaps, but if we can make contact and reason with Mew, perhaps befriend it, I think that would be the best outcome."

Quillon looked at his own vambrace. "These devices might be useful then. If we can keep Mew from running away, we can at least have a chance to talk to it."

"My thoughts exactly," Gary spoke up. "I'd rather not capture Mew if we-"

"You don't wanna capture it?!" Goh said in dismay. "Why else are we here?!"

Danika sent Goh a smile. "Don't worry Goh. We'll probably end up capturing Mew. We just don't want to act rashly and harm it accidently."

Chloe breathed in sharply as her memory suddenly triggered. Hearing the word 'harm' had brought back a scientific article she'd read a few months ago. It had detailed a type of crystal which had been found to possess anti-psychic properties. In the article, they'd shown that the crystal could suppress the attacks and abilities of psychic Pokémon. It had also shown that the crystal could be harmful to the psychic Pokémon.

Chloe felt doubt and concern gnaw at her. Doctor Melcher had assured them that his devices were safe. Was he lying? Was she completely wrong in her concerns? Chloe frowned, looked down at the ground and poked at the dirt with her toe. She needed to at least say something to Goh.

Goh was grinning from ear-to-ear. He stowed the parts of the tether beam device inside the vambrace and checked the blue capture balls. This was it! He would finally fulfill his lifelong dream!

"Hey Goh," Chloe said humbly. She couldn't quite maintain eye contact with him.

"Hey Chloe," Goh said absently, not truly acknowledging her.

Chloe pressed her lips tightly together as she struggled to voice her doubts. "Hey, Goh, how much do you know about Doctor Melcher?" she finally squeaked.

"He's great!" Goh said absently, still not really acknowledging Chloe.

Chloe bit her lip and hesitated. She could see how eager Goh was over searching for Mew. She really didn't want to get in the way of his dream. It didn't hurt to ask a little question though, did it?

"Goh, when I was walking around the camp I-"

"Okay everyone," Professor Amaranth suddenly spoke in a booming voice. "Let's make this expedition one for the history books!"

Gary, Quillon, Danika, Horace and Goh all gathered around the professor. All of them had a gleam in their eyes and an energy about them.

The Professor smiled. "Today, we will try to unlock one of the great mysteries of the Pokémon world! Today we will finally learn more about Mew!"

All of the chasers voiced their agreement.

Chloe, meanwhile, started to feel smaller and smaller in the presence of this group. She was just a little girl from Vermilion City after all. Everyone else was amazing and talented. What did she know about crystals and devices?

The professor tapped a button on his vambrace and a holographic map of the nearby terrain appeared in the air.

"We believe Mew is somewhere in this forest," he said, pointing to the map location that was near them. "We will fan out and start searching. We'll use the beacons to see if we can attract Mew and keep working until we find it."

The chasers all nodded and voiced agreement again.

The professor deactivated the holographic map and pointed to the nearby tree line. "Let's get started, we don't want to waste daylight."

The chasers talked amongst themselves about where they would go and how they would search. Chloe bided her time and then approached Goh.

"So, where are we going?" she asked, feeling nervous and excited at the same time. This was a big adventure for her.

Goh suddenly looked tense. "Uhhh," he hesitated.

Chloe continued looking at him but said nothing.

Goh suddenly cleared his throat and tried to put on a serious expression. "Chloe I think you should stay here," he said firmly.

Chloe heard the words and flinched. "What! Why!" she gasped.

Goh appeared uncomfortable. "Look, it's gonna be dangerous and we're gonna have to move fast."

Chloe felt a wave of hurt and disappointment rush through her. Her throat began to tighten and her eyes started to become wet. Why was Goh saying this?

"I really think it's best if you stay here," Goh said. He started to look more confident and continued. "I've got to move fast. I can't be looking out for you while we're out there."

Chloe choked down a sob. "But then why'd you bring me along if you're just gonna leave me behind?" she said sadly.

Goh didn't have an answer for that question. He looked nervous and then tried to grin. "Look, you'll be here for when I bring back Mew. It'll be a huge event. Won't that be cool?"

Chloe's shoulders slumped and she looked down at the ground. "Yeah, sure," she said in a heartbroken tone.

Quillon turned to face Goh. "We're moving out!" he said sharply. "Are you ready Goh?"

Goh glanced at Quillon and then back at Chloe. "Yeah, I'm ready," he replied.

Chloe looked up and blinked her eyes clear of tears. She briefly glanced over Goh and then frowned.

"Goh, where's your survival gear?" she said with some concern.

Goh looked perplexed. "Survival gear?" he replied. "I've got all the stuff from Doctor Melcher."

Chloe shook her head. "No, I mean like food and water. Fire starter, rope, first aid-"

Goh scoffed. "I don't need that stuff, Chloe! I'm gonna go catch Mew! I've got my Pokémon and the rest of the team. If I need any help, I'll just get it from them."

Now Chloe looked annoyed. "You should at least take a rope and first aid kid. If you get hurt-"

"That'll just slow me down," Goh retorted. "I've got everything I need!"

Chloe's expression was somewhere between angry and concerned. "Fine!" she said sharply, crossing her arms and looking away. "Just make sure you don't get hurt!"

"Come on, Goh!" Amaranth called.

Goh turned to leave and then glanced back at Chloe. He hesitated and then spoke quickly.

"See you soon, Chloe," he said. He then turned and ran after the rest of the chasers.

Goh dashed away toward the tree line. Chloe maintained her dismissive pose for a few seconds and then relented. Her anger fell away and she looked after Goh with an expression of concern. She felt a cold knot of worry start to form in her stomach.

"Please don't get hurt Goh," she said softly as he disappeared into the forest.

---

The chasers slowly moved into the forest and began getting a feel for the equipment Doctor Melcher had provided them with. The communication gear was excellent, the sensors worked properly, however, no one knew if the psychic beacon functioned or not. They would have to find out.

The forest varied in how dense the foliage was. Sometimes there was very little underbrush and other times it was completely overgrown. The one thing which was consistent was the lack of clearings. The trees which surrounded them weren't extremely tall, but they were thick and pervasive.

Roughly an hour passed and Professor Amaranth called for them all to meet up.

"I think we'll stand the best chance to find Mew if we all fan out and start sweeping toward that mountain," the professor said, pointing toward the small mountain in the distance.

"Do you think splitting up is wise?" Quillon replied in a doubtful tone.

"It's not like we're going to be that far apart," Danika said cheerfully. "We can always communicate," she added, tapping the vambrace attached to her arm.

"I agree with splitting up," Horace said. "We've all got these beacons. The further spread out we are the better the chance that Mew will sense us."

"You really think these things are gonna work?!" Gary responded in a sarcastic tone, holding up one of the small psychic beacons.

Horace smiled. "Well, we won't know unless we try. If the doctor says this will attract Mew, I think we should give it a go."

Quillon and Danika nodded in agreement and Gary shrugged indifferently. They turned to look at Goh, who was captivated by the sensor readout on his vambrace.

"What do you think Goh?" Quillon said dryly.

Goh blinked. He hadn't heard a word of the conversation. "Uh, I think it sounds like a good idea," he said with a tense smile.

The other chasers all regarded Goh with frowns of varying intensity.

"That's what we'll do then," Professor Amaranth said. "Everyone fan out and form a line. We'll move toward the mountain and hopefully contact Mew."

The chasers organized themselves and spread out across a large section of the forest. Horace was on the far right of the line. Goh was next, then Danika, Gary, Quillon and finally on the left was Professor Amaranth. All of them started slowly moving forward, always watching their sensor display and the forest for any sign of their quarry.

Each of the chasers had a different search technique. Professor Amaranth used all the tools available to him. He checked his sensors, activated the psychic beacon and used his own detector which he'd built for Project Mew. He also watched the forest for any signs of Mew and listened carefully to the activity of the native Pokémon.

Quillon occasionally activated the beacon, but most of the time he kept it shut off. He preferred to use his experience in tracking to watch the forest for any signs of Mew.

Gary didn't bother with the beacon at all. He watched the sensor readout on his vambrace and kept his eyes peeled for any sign of movement amongst the trees.

Danika used all the tools available to her but she focused her gaze on the movements of the foliage. She suspected that Mew would cause some sort of disturbance in the weather and she would be able to see the leaves moving as a sign that the legendary Pokémon was near.

Goh marched forward, beacon held high and face glued to the sensor readout. He nearly tripped and fell a dozen times as he failed to see roots and holes in his path.

Horace moved slowly and carefully. He kept the beacon activated but had it clipped to his belt. He split his attention between the sensor display and the forest. He would occasionally stop and be still, listening to the forest and feeling the environment. It was during one of these pauses that Horace saw a contact appear on his sensor display.

He breathed in sharply and scanned his surroundings. The small contact started to move toward him and Horace acted. He crouched down and quickly dug a small hole in the earth. At the same time he activated his communicator.

"Everyone," Horace said in a hushed voice. "I have a contact moving toward me. I don't know if it's Mew."

Horace was glad that he was using the earpiece which came with the vambrace to hear the other chasers. If the speaker on the vambrace had been used, Goh's shouting likely would have scared everything within earshot away.

"WHAT!" Goh exclaimed. "WHERE ARE YOU!?"

"Goh quiet!" Quillon said harshly.

"Oh, right!" Goh replied nervously.

Horace placed the beacon in the small hole he'd dug and began covering it up with dirt.

"I'm near the foot of the ridgeline," Horace said, glancing over his shoulder at the nearby rocky crags. He looked at his sensor readout and saw the contact was much nearer than before. "The contact is close. I'm going radio silent."

With that, Horace turned off his communication device.

---

Goh felt elated. It took everything he had to keep from shouting in celebration.

"Come on guys, let's find Horace!" he said enthusiastically.

"Hold on!" Quillon said forcefully. "We need to organize and group up. We have to have a plan. We can't just go running in randomly."

"Quillon is right," Amaranth said. "Let's all meet up with Goh and then we'll move toward Horace."

Goh felt mortified. He was going to have to wait while Horace had a chance to capture Mew.

"But…. Horace is gonna need….. help!" Goh said through clinched teeth. "We need to get to him!"

"If Horace needs help he'll call for it," Gary said.

"That's right," Danika added. "Plus, knowing him, he'll take his time and study Mew first. He'll probably have it eating out of his hand by the time we get there."

This thought alarmed Goh. He glanced around and felt frantic. He had to get to Mew before it was captured or tamed by someone else.

"Come on!" he hissed under his breath, willing the other chasers to move faster. "Get here already, come on!"

---

Horace took slow, shallow breaths as he watched the location where he'd buried the psychic beacon. He'd been skeptical of the concept of using psychic waves to attract Mew, but apparently it had worked.

The small, pink Pokémon made a quiet cooing sound and slowly floated out of the foliage. It drifted over to where the beacon was buried and looked around at its surroundings. It then changed its orientation in the air so it could stare at the ground where the beacon was. It had what Horace guessed was a curious expression on its face.

The chaser would have loved to simply watch and study the Pokémon but he knew what his objective was. They would capture and study Mew and then release it. Hopefully they would befriend it in the process. Horace smiled at the thought of Mew actively helping them make countless discoveries. The possibilities were endless. This would be the biggest event in the history of studying Pokémon.

He reached his trembling right hand across his body and depressed the button which activated the teleport inhibitor inside the vambrace attached to his left forearm. The light turned green and he felt relief knowing that Mew could not simply teleport away.

Horace started to retrieve his Pokéball which contained Virizion but then stopped. How much better would everything be if they could simply befriend Mew rather than capture it? With Mew unable to teleport, he could at least try to talk to the legendary creature.

Horace smiled and put away his Pokéball. The other team members would be here soon so if Mew didn't want to communicate with him, they could assist him in capturing it.

Horace took a breath and stood up. He stepped out of the bush he'd been hiding in and walked forward into sight of Mew.

Mew made a surprised warble and looked at Horace. It floated a short distance away from him and stared back with wide eyes.

Horace smiled and stopped walking. He held his arms slightly out to his sides in a nonthreatening pose.

"Mew, it's such an honor to meet you," he said, his voice shaking with emotion. "I'm part of a team which wants to learn more about Pokémon and more about you."

Mew cocked its head to the side and cooed.

Horace couldn't believe he was actually talking to Mew and it was listening to him. "I really hope you'll help us out," he said breathlessly. "There's so much we could learn. So many new-"

Mew suddenly performed a playful loop and Horace saw the Pokémon dissolve in a burst of blue light. It was teleporting away.

At that same instant, Horace felt the vambrace vibrate slightly and a brief humming sound emanate from inside the device. A moment later, Mew reappeared exactly where it had disappeared only this time there was a burst of sparking yellow energy mingled with the blue energy of teleport. There was also a sharp crack like lightning and Mew let out a pained cry.

The device had indeed prevented Mew from teleporting, but a sick feeling instantly took hold inside Horace's stomach. The teleport inhibitor seemed to have harmed Mew in the process.

Before Horace could put his thoughts in order, Mew's face scrunched up in anger. It looked at him, its eyes turned red and Horace suddenly felt an incredibly powerful invisible force slam into him, sending him flying backwards through the air.

He tore through a couple of bushes and then his left side deflected off of a large tree. The entire world spun before his eyes as his body pin-wheeled in midair. A moment later, he saw the ground rushing toward him. He felt a hard impact and everything went black.

---

Goh was almost coming out of his skin with anticipation. Danika and Gary had reached him. Quillon had just come into sight.

"Can we get going now!?" Goh said tensely.

"Just cool it," Gary chided. "Wait for the professor."

Goh wrung his hands and stared in the direction where Horace was. He couldn't stand the fact that at this moment, someone else was possibly capturing Mew. How could-

Suddenly, a loud crack like lightning sounded and all the chasers turned to look in the direction of the noise. A few seconds later, they could hear something crashing through the foliage.

"Should we-" Goh started to say.

The other chasers began sprinting toward the noise and Goh immediately followed after them. Gary and Danika pushed ahead through the undergrowth. Goh was a few strides behind them and Quillon was some distance back. The two lead chasers broke through a thick bush and suddenly took in the sight of a floating, pink, cat-like Pokémon, just a couple dozen strides in front of them. Its movements seemed to be a little lethargic as it drifted in the air.

Goh came into sight of Mew and gasped. His long-time dream was finally before him. Gary and Danika exchanged glances and Mew abruptly wheeled around to face them.

"Hi Mew!" Goh said in a friendly tone, briefly reverting back to his six-year old self.

Mew let out a screech and reared back. A moment later a massive sonic attack pulsed out from the legendary Pokémon, directly at the chasers.

Gary, Danika and Goh all gaped in surprise and dove out of the way. The sonic wave blew apart the foliage and sent a cloud of shredded leaves into the air. Gary and Danika scrambled to their feet. Goh was stunned and shocked by the unprovoked, brutal attack. This wasn't the Mew he remembered.

"Teleport inhibitor," Gary called out, activating his device.

Danika followed suit and activated her inhibitor as well. She grasped her Pokéball and sent out Azumarill.

Gary sent out Electivire and clinched a fist. "Okay Electivire use-"

Before Gary could finish his sentence, Mew sent a stream of bright amber energy into Electivire. The impact propelled Gary's Pokémon backward with such force it plowed a large furrow into the ground before smashing through a tree and flying out of sight.

Gary was left speechless.

"Use Ice Beam," Danika shouted.

Azumarill cried out and fired a jagged beam of freezing, white energy at the aggressive legendary creature. Mew immediately formed some kind of shield around itself and the beam was completely absorbed.

The next moment, Mew cried out and a pulse of psychic energy knocked Gary, Danika and Azumarill all flat on their backs.

Mew turned and began to flee. Its movements were not as fast as before however.

Quillon ran into view and looked as the other chasers picked themselves up from the ground.

"I've gotta get Electivire!" Gary said abruptly, running back in the direction his Pokémon had been tossed.

Quillon looked at Danika. "What happened?!" he asked sternly.

Danika rubbed at her neck. "Mew just attacked us all of a sudden," she said in a shaken voice. "It's really powerful. Just like we thought."

Quillon frowned. "Looks like we'll have to use these capture devices after all," he said unhappily.

Professor Amaranth burst out of the foliage. "Is everyone all right?" he asked quickly.

"It knocked out Electivire," Gary said as he returned to the group. "Didn't even get an attack off…"

Amaranth scanned their surroundings. "Where's Horace?" he said, a look of concern appearing on his face.

"No idea," Danika said, recalling Azumarill.

Goh had finally recovered and risen to his feet. "Come on!" he said frantically. "We've gotta get after Mew!"

Professor Amaranth held up a hand. "Stop!" he said firmly.

Everyone turned to look at him.

The professor looked very intense. "We are dealing with a very dangerous situation now! We have to be smart. We need a better view of the situation."

Amaranth gestured at the nearby ridgeline. "Goh, I want you to climb up on that ridge and get above all these trees. Let us know where Mew is going. Perhaps you could even get ahead of it if we push it toward the mountain."

Goh felt dismayed. "But, I want to stay down here and catch it!"

"Mew is bigger than your own personal goals," Quillon chastised. "This is about all of humanity and Pokémon."

"The Professor is right," Danika said in a kind voice. "We need you to be a spotter for us."

Goh wanted to argue, but he knew there wasn't time. He swallowed his pride and nodded heavily. "Okay, I'll go."

With that, Goh started running toward the rocky outcropping. The rest of the chasers turned and started dashing through the bushes in the direction Mew had fled.

After a minute of running, Quillon sent out Weavile and Danika sent out Urshifu.

"Everyone stay sharp and use all your skills," Amaranth said. "This is why I selected only the best!"

The other chasers all acknowledged his words and continued racing ahead.

---

Goh raced along the rocky crags, trying to find a way to the top of the ridgeline. He moved quickly, jumping across large cracks in the rocky surface. He scampered up small ledges, clawing at the gritty surfaces with his fingers and leveraging himself up with his elbows and feet.

"Can you see it Danika?!" Gary called over the radio.

Goh stole a glance to his left but he couldn't see much of the forest. He was still too far down the cliff face.

"Only glimpses of movement!" Danika replied forcefully as the noise of foliage slapping against her body sounded over the channel. "It's still too far ahead!"

"I'm sending Weavile in!" Quillon said abruptly. "That should slow Mew down enough for us to catch up!"

Goh suddenly felt a surge of fear inside him. What if they confronted Mew and he wasn't there?! What if he wasn't the one to catch the mythical Pokémon?!

"NO! NO!" Goh exclaimed, gritting his teeth. He pushed himself to scramble up a pair of ledges and began running along a narrow sliver of rock. Large crevasses opened to either side of him.

"I can't lose now! I'm gonna catch Mew!" he shouted to himself.

Goh made a daring leap and cleared a large crack in the rocky surface. He was almost to the top of the cliff and then he would have a clear view of everything that was going on. Goh ran toward another crevasse, intending to jump across it. Just as he reached the edge and planted his foot to lunge forward, a bunch of small pebbles he hadn't spotted gave way beneath his shoe, sending his leg skidding out from underneath him.

Goh gasped in surprise and tried to steady himself. A moment later, he ran out of cliff and fell over the edge of the crevasse. For one terrible moment Goh tumbled through the air. He caught a glimpse of the jagged rocks below and suddenly realized that this wasn't going to be like the many times he'd fallen before. This was a long way down and there was no chance he'd be getting up from this fall.

Goh cried out in mortal fear and a moment later a white flash burst out from where his Pokéballs were stored. Cinderace appeared and swung into action. The Pokémon had sensed the danger and quickly grabbed hold of Goh. It used its strong legs to kick off against the wall of the crevasse, somewhat slowing their fall.

Goh held tight to his Pokémon as it bounced from wall to wall, desperately trying to save them both. They were still falling with considerable speed and the rocky floor of the crevasse rushed toward them. With a final huge effort, Cinderace jammed it feet against the narrowing walls and slowed their descent a moment before they crashed to the ground.

Goh and Cinderace slammed into the rocky floor. Goh felt pain and shock throughout his body, but he didn't feel anything break and as he stared up at the sky through the narrow gap of the crevasse, he clearly wasn't dead. He lay on his back for several seconds and then slowly sat up, wincing as he did so.

"Hey Cinderace, are you okay?" he asked in a shaky voice.

His Pokémon was sitting a short distance away. Its face was scrunched up in pain and it was holding its left leg. Goh let out a gasp of dismay and pushed himself to his feet.

"Oh, no! Are you hurt bad?!"

Cinderace let out a pained groan and continued holding its leg.

Goh knelt down next to Cinderace and examined his Pokémon. "Can you walk?"

Cinderace hesitated and then tried to move its leg. The rabbit Pokémon immediately tensed up and let out a cry of pain. Hot tears started to flow from its eyes.

Goh closed his eyes and let out a sigh of regret. "You did really well, Cinderace," he said softly. "Thanks for saving me!" He held up the Pokémon's Pokéball and recalled it.

Goh tapped the device to reduce it and then stared at it for a moment.

"Soon as I get Mew, we'll get you taken care of," he mumbled. He stowed the Pokéball and stared up toward the top of the crevasse. He was a long way down.

Goh frowned and looked toward either direction the crevasse ran. The gap was pretty narrow and rough. He couldn't see any way out and the walls were too steep to climb. He was trapped.

Goh looked up again and groaned. "I should've brought a flying type." He sighed and pressed the button on his communication panel to open a channel.

"Quillon, Danika! This is Goh. I'm trapped in a crack in the mountain. Can someone come help me out?"

"Goh, are you okay?" Professor Amaranth quickly asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Goh replied. "I just can't get out on my own."

"I can see it!" Gary said suddenly over the radio.

"Quick, don't let it get away!" Danika replied immediately.

Several seconds passed and Goh began to feel a pit of dread forming in his stomach.

"Hey, can anyone help me out?!" he said.

"Sorry Goh," Quillon said in his typical emotionless voice. "If you're okay, we'll come back for you later. Right now, we're on Mew's trail."

Goh gasped and the channel went dead.

"OF ALL THE….. SELFISH….. BACKSTABBING!" Goh shouted. He ground his teeth for a second and then tried climbing the wall of the crevasse. For the first few seconds, he made great progress. He started to feel like he might be able to climb out on his own. Then he lost his grip and slid back down the short distance he'd climbed. He was trapped.

His shoulders slumped and he let out a moan of defeat. He felt as if the whole world was against him. He was about to miss out on possibly the greatest discovery in Pokémon history. He was going to miss out on his dream.

He dropped to one knee and tried to hold back tears of frustration and anger. How could it end like this?! Trapped at the bottom of a pit.

Then, a thought suddenly occurred to him. He looked up at the top of the crevasse and then back down at the ground.

"Augh," he moaned. "She's never gonna let me live this down."

---

Weavile moved with lightning speed and kicked off of two trees before diving toward Mew. At the last second, the legendary Pokémon launched a burst of fire which forced the dark type to abort the attack and twist out of the way.

Urshifu and Arcanine were next. The two Pokémon attacked simultaneously, approaching the pink Pokémon from two opposite sides. Mew deployed a shield and both Pokémon slammed into the invisible barrier. A moment later, Mew cried out and sent hundreds of green missiles flying in all directions. The darts exploded on impact, peppering Danika and Gary's Pokémon.

"Quickly Professor!" Danika shouted.

Sweat rolled down Professor Amaranth's brow as he rapidly assembled his tether beam device. He'd done this a half dozen times in the camp, but now, with Mew unleashing attack after attack, it was much more difficult and stressful.

Mew swept a beam of crackling yellow energy across the forest, raking Urshifu and Arcanine. Both Pokémon were shocked and sent flying. They crashed to the ground, unconscious and unmoving.

Gary and Danika recalled their defeated partners and sent out Blastoise and Azumarill respectively.

The tether beam device snapped together and Professor Amaranth activated it. "Okay, it's ready!" he said sharply.

Blastoise and Azumarill began frantically launching water attacks to keep Mew distracted. Even in its weakened state, the legendary Pokémon vastly outmatched them all. What attacks it didn't dodge it simply deflected with a shield.

Amaranth set the device on the ground and activated the tether beam. A moment later, a blast of yellow energy shot out of the device and enveloped Mew.

Mew screamed and thrashed suddenly. It immediately turned and started to speed away from the source of the beam. The pink Pokemon's movement was abruptly stopped by the beam and then violently yanked backward.

"Is it working properly?" Gary said, sounding befuddled. All of them were captivated by the sight of the legendary Pokémon struggling against the tether beam. It was something which was both amazing and horrible to behold.

"I don't like this!" Danika said, her tone suddenly growing fearful.

After several thrashing movements, Mew suddenly curled into a ball and began to glow brightly.

"Danika, get ready for capture," Amaranth said.

Danika nodded and pulled out one of the blue Pokéballs.

Strange things then began to happen. All sound seemed to become muffled and the light began to grow dim. The only thing still clearly visible was Mew and the brilliantly shining aura surrounding it. All color seemed to drain out of the world and all sound seemed to cease except for the rushing of air and the throbbing of Mew's energy.

Then, all sound abruptly stopped and the chasers stood unmoving and staring at the shining star that was Mew. Then that star exploded with a shrieking howl that shook the earth!

Dozens of beams of white energy shot out from Mew in all directions. They swept across the forest, cutting through trees and obliterating bushes. Some of the chasers cried out in fright and others remained silent. All of them dove for whatever cover they could find. They scrambled behind rocks, trees, stumps, anything that could offer protection. For several incredibly long seconds all of them cowered in fear of their lives. Then, it ended.

The chaos didn't end however. Dozens of trees had been sliced apart by the beams and for the next several seconds the sound of massive logs crashing to the forest floor filled the air. All of the chasers and their Pokémon continued to cower as the ground shook from the impacts of countless trees. Eventually, the devastation subsided and a few of them rose to their feet.

Professor Amaranth was the first to rise. He looked around at the destruction with wide eyes. Every tree surrounding them for some distance had been sliced in some way. Some had been cut close to the base and others were sliced some ways up off the ground. Mew was nowhere in sight and the sky was shining above them. There was still a lot of dust and smoke in the air and it caused his throat to tickle.

"Gary, Danika, Quillon!" he called out. His heart ached at the thought that he may have just lost his entire team.

"Here!" Gary called out. The young brown haired man stood up from between some fallen trees and waved at the professor.

Quillon stood up as well and was about to speak when Danika screamed in pain and distress.

All three of them quickly looked around and moved to the fallen woman. She was located between several fallen trees.

Danika was struggling to keep from screaming again. Her face was scrunched up and she had her left hand covering her eyes. The chasers immediately spotted the source of her distress. The lower part of her left leg was trapped underneath part of a fallen tree.

Amaranth quickly maneuvered between the trees and crouched at her side.

"How bad is it Danika?" he asked gently.

She made a rasping sound as her lungs spasmed from pain. "It's broken," she said, speaking through clinched teeth. "I felt it snap."

Regret weighed down on Amaranth and he quickly began attending to Danika. He opened his first aid kit and administered a powerful painkiller to the injured girl.

Quillon and Gary stood silently and watched. They exchanged looks and Quillon was the one to speak.

"Professor," he began quietly. "Should we continue the chase?"

Amaranth took a heavy breath and paused for a second. He then nodded solemnly. "Yes, we can't let all of this be for nothing." He gestured at Danika. "I will stay here and take care of her. You two continue on."

"Go get that thing!" Danika grunted painfully.

Quillon and Gary nodded and set off on the chase. Gary retrieved Blastoise and Weavile ran along with Quillon. Mew was still on their sensor display and this spurred them to move faster. Both of them wanted to capture the Pokémon which had hurt their fellow chaser.

---

Goh sat on a rock with his elbows propped on his knees and his palms supporting his cheeks. He sulked as the minutes ticked by. He could feel his dream slipping away by the moment. How did it come to this?! He sighed and groaned. There was nothing he could do but wait.

After what felt like hours, the light shining down into the crevasse suddenly shifted and Goh looked upward. Far above him, silhouetted against the blue sky, was the very distinctive shape of Chloe's head. She was on her hands and knees, peering down into the crevasse. Her long-braided hair dangled over her shoulder and swayed slightly as it hung in space.

"There you are!" she said with a cheerful smile.

"Hey, Chloe," Goh replied in a dejected sounding voice.

"Are you okay?" Chloe called out.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Goh grumbled. "Get me out, quick!"

Chloe raised an eyebrow at Goh's comment and ducked out of sight. A minute passed and then a long rope was tossed over the side of the crevasse. The rope had plenty of length and the end, with some slack, slapped down to the rocky floor near Goh. Chloe leaned over the side of the crevasse again and looked down toward Goh.

"All ready," Chloe chirped happily.

Goh wasted no time and grabbed hold of the rope. He planted his feet against the wall and began quickly climbing.

Chloe looked distressed. "Wait, you need to tie yourself on and let me help!"

"No time!" Goh grunted as he continued to climb. "I've got to get after Mew!"

Chloe made several faces depicting varying levels of concern and nervousness as Goh climbed to the top. Eventually he made it within reach of Chloe and she promptly grabbed hold of him. With a tug and a grunt, the maroon-haired girl yanked him out of the crevasse and onto the rocky slab.

Goh was breathing hard and took a moment to recover from the exertion of the climb. Chloe untied the rope from around a large rock and began wrapping it into a loop.

"Looks like it pays to be prepared, huh Goh," she said with a hint of chiding in her tone.

Goh frowned and groaned. It took him several seconds but he sighed and spoke in a grateful voice.

"Thanks for bringing that stuff along, Chloe."

Chloe beamed and chuckled softly. "Like I said, you can't just go running off on an adventure, unprepared. You need to make sure you've got everything to stay safe and navigate."

"Yeah, yeah," Goh mumbled. He rose to his feet and scanned his surroundings. "We need to figure out where the rest of the team is," he said to himself.

Chloe pulled out a map and compass. She began unfolding the paper and looking around.

"If I can find a few landmarks, I can figure out exactly where we are."

While Chloe messed with the map, Goh climbed to the top of a large rock formation and looked down at the forest below. It only took a moment for him to spot a clearing of trees that hadn't been there before. Some smoke was rising from that location and it looked like a part of the forest had been suddenly cut down.

Goh began looking through the forest near the location and caught sight of a flash of light under the treetops some distance away from the cleared area. Goh focused his gaze and could see movement and what seemed to be Pokémon attacks. His heart immediately began to race. He saw that the action was moving toward the large mountain which was all he needed to know.

Goh bounded down from the rock formation and looked at Chloe.

"Come on! We need to get going!"

Chloe was still fiddling with the map and compass. She looked up at Goh with a perplexed expression.

"What, wait, we don't know where we are yet?!" she replied.

"Doesn't matter!" he said enthusiastically. "I know where Mew is and that's all I need to know!"

Goh started running and Chloe looked distressed. She quickly folded the map, stashed it and the compass in her backpack and began chasing after Goh.

"Slow down!" she shouted after him. "Don't fall in another hole!"

Goh instinctively wanted to disregard Chloe's advice, however, he had nearly died a little while ago. Without saying a word, he somewhat slowed his stride so he could better avoid any pitfalls.

---

Gary tossed a Pokéball forward and Umbreon emerged. "Let's go, use Dark Pulse!" he commanded.

The dark type fired a beam of purple energy at Mew. The legendary Pokémon blocked the attack with a shield and then countered with a torrent of water.

"Go Weavile!" Quillon commanded as he, Gary and Unbreon all avoided the water.

Weavile leapt forward and slashed at Mew. A shield appeared and Weavile's attack was deflected.

Gary sent out Blastoise and ordered more attacks. Quillon deployed his Honchkrow and sent it circling around Mew, periodically firing attacks.

Mew bobbed and weaved, countered fired and blocked with its shield. Blastoise went down and Gary sent in Tyranitar. Honchkrow was blasted from the sky but Mew took a massive hit from Umbreon and Weavile in response. It seemed impossible, but Mew appeared to be tiring.

"Come on Weavile!" Quillon shouted, urging his Pokemon to new heights of strength.

Weavile streaked into action and channeled energy into its claws for another Night Slash attack. Mew again blocked with a shield, but then, the shield broke!

Quillon and Gary gasped in surprise as Mew took a direct hit from Weavile.

"We've almost got it!" Gary exclaimed.

A second later, Mew turned on Weavile and unleashed a point-blank attack which sent the dark type hurtling through the air until it smashed into a large tree.

Quillon winced and send out Urshifu. "Get ready for capture!" he said grimly.

Gary nodded and retrieved a blue Pokéball with his right hand.

Quillon clinched his hands into fists. "With everything you have!"

Urshifu leapt into the air and charged at Mew. Mew turned and directed a devastating beam of multicolored energy at the oncoming Pokémon. For a couple of seconds, Urshifu's attack met Mew's in a struggle of wills. Then Urshifu was overpowered and sent flying.

The brief distraction was all Gary needed. He threw the capture ball and it struck Mew.

"YES!" both chasers exclaimed.

The four knobs on the capture ball deployed and formed a diamond shaped just as Melcher had demonstrated. The ball then opened and dark red energy began to flow out of Mew and into the floating knobs. Mew cried out and thrashed wildly against the grip of the capture ball.

Quillon prepared to throw a second ball but suddenly stopped.

"Something's wrong," he said, watching Mew's desperate behavior.

"Yeah," Gary said uneasily.

The two chasers and their remaining Pokémon stood watching and listening as Mew struggled and screamed against the capture ball. Mew fired a series of attacks at the ball but they were deflected by the shield generated by the floating knobs.

"That device is hurting Mew!" Quillon stated flatly.

Gary swallowed and looked around. He wasn't sure what to do.

Mew, however, wasn't done just yet. It formed a ball of blue energy and pushed it against the capture ball's shield. The barrier began to glow and then suddenly shattered. The capture ball was vaporized and Mew was freed.

Mew then looked at the chasers and their Pokémon with glowing red eyes. Gary and Quillon were thrown to the ground however Umberon and Tyranitar were unaffected by the psychic pulse. Mew then turned and started to flee. It nearly fell out of the air and struggled for a moment to continue. After a second, the legendary Pokémon disappeared out of sight.

Gary and Quillon collected themselves and sat up. They both looked dismayed as they came to grips with the fact that the capture ball had been hurting Mew.

"How did this happen!" Quillon said angrily.

"We need to tell the professor," Gary replied.

At that moment, the communicator beeped and Horace's voice came over the channel.

"Can anyone hear this?" Horace asked.

"Yes, Horace, I can hear you!" Professor Amaranth replied over the radio.

"Oh thank goodness," Horace replied, sounding relieved. "I was knocked out and my communicator was broken. I finally got it repaired."

There was a pause and then Horace continued in a more serious tone. "Professor, there's something you need to see."

---

Goh climbed over rocks and avoided crevasses. Chloe followed, struggling to keep up with Goh's fast pace. They were moving along the ridgeline and making steady progress toward the mountain. Abruptly, Goh's vambrace started to beep.

Goh looked at the device and his face suddenly lit up.

"WHERE! WHERE!" he shouted scanning the sky.

Chloe came to a stop and gasped for breath. "Where… what?" she said.

"It's Mew! It's sensing Mew!" Goh said quickly. A second later Goh nearly fell over as he spotted the pink Pokémon rising out of the forest and moving toward the mountain. It was quite a distance away though and Mew was small to the eye.

Goh nearly jumped up and down. "COME ON CHLOE! LET'S GET TO THE MOUNTAIN!" he shouted. With that Goh raced forward, bounding across the rocks.

Chloe sighed and began trudging forward again. "Sure, just leave the girl all alone in the back with the heavy pack," she said to herself.

Time passed quickly. Goh moved quickly and Chloe lagged behind. The only time Goh stopped was to scan the mountain with Chloe's binoculars, looking for Mew. He found nothing however and quickly resumed his rapid pace.

Chloe struggled to climb over the rough terrain. She and Goh had been racing along the rocky ridgeline for several minutes since the last break. Goh was determined to reach the mountain as soon as possible and he was continuously moving at a rapid rate.

Chloe climbed over a pair of large rock shelves and let out a cry of effort. She was feeling exhausted.

"Goh, wait!" she shouted, doubling over and planting her hands on her knees. She gasped for breath and listened to the sound of her heart pounding in her ears.

Goh looked over his shoulder, frowned and skidded to a stop. "Come on Chloe! We can't stop for rest!"

"That's easy…. for you to say," she said, gasping for breath.

Goh made a frustrated face, looked toward the mountain and then at Chloe. He let out an annoyed groan and dashed to Chloe's side.

"What have you got in here anyway!" he said sharply, opening the backpack.

"It's all important supplies," Chloe replied. "Everything we'd need to survive and stay safe."

Goh pawed past a pair of binoculars, several maps, first aid kit, a large bag of trail mix, another large bag of trail mix, another large bag of trail mix…

"How much stuff have you got in here?!" he said, surprised at what Chloe had managed to fit inside the pack.

"Just a couple of days of supplies," Chloe said, looking over her shoulder at Goh. "I wanted to make sure we could survive if we got stranded."

Goh pulled out two of the three bags of trail mix and suddenly spotted the bottom of the pack was lined with bottles of water. A lot of bottles of water.

"How much water did you bring!?" Goh exclaimed.

"Three days worth," Chloe said smartly. "A person needs to drink approximately three liters of water each day to-"

"You don't need this much," Goh said flatly, yanking bottle after bottle out of the pack.

"Hey! What if get stranded!" Chloe protested.

Goh didn't pay Chloe any heed and kept pulling out bottles until there were only four left.

"There," he said, closing the pack. "Four bottles left. Two for you and two for me."

Chloe looked unhappy but as she hefted the backpack she smiled subtly at the decreased weight.

"Better," Goh said.

Chloe let out a small groan. "I sure hope we don't get thirsty."

Goh grinned. "I'm sure we'll catch Mew way before that happens.

With that, he started running again. Chloe followed after him, her step now much lighter and quicker. They soon reached the end of the ridgeline and found themselves at the foot of the mountain. Goh wasted no time in beginning to climb.

"You really need to slow down, Goh!" Chloe chastised as he scrambled up a series of rocky ledges.

"I've gotta get Mew!" Goh replied.

Chloe let out an exasperated sigh and began carefully climbing up after Goh. The mountain wasn't a sheer face of rock, but rather a large number of stepped ledges. Nonetheless, if one began to fall, they could very easily tumble down from one ledge to the next, likely breaking innumerable bones in the process.

As Chloe started to get higher and higher, she felt fear start to build inside her. This wasn't what she was used to. She preferred to stay in a lab and read about adventures, not go on them. The highest she ever got off the ground was when she was at the top of the ladder at the library. Now she was climbing over rocks, hundreds of feet off the ground, where a single misstep could mean her tumbling to her death.

As if sensing her fears, the ground suddenly began to shake and Chloe gripped tightly to the slab of rock she was currently scaling.

"GOH! WHAT IS THAT?!" Chloe shouted.

Goh looked a little concerned. "I'm guessing it's Mew! It must be doing something!"

"IT PROBABLY DOESN'T LIKE THAT WE'RE TRYING TO CATCH IT!" Chloe said, her voice shrill from fear.

The ground continued to shake and there was suddenly a deep and earthy cracking sound as rocks began to shatter. Goh and Chloe looked up the mountainside and saw several large slabs of rock had broken loose and were starting to tumble down toward them.

"OH NO!" Chloe screamed.

Goh gritted his teeth and threw a Pokéball. "Golurk, help us!" he shouted.

Goh's Pokémon appeared and promptly planted itself in front of the oncoming rocks. It swung one of its fists and shattered the first of the boulders.

Shards of rocks peppered the area around Goh and Chloe. Chloe let out a scared yelp, covered her head and ducked behind a rock shelf for cover. Goh scampered so he was near Chloe but he kept his head up so he could see what was happening.

"Keep knocking them down, Golurk!" Goh shouted.

Golurk stood fast and punched boulder after boulder. Whatever force was at work seemed to sense the resistance and the mountain shook again. More rocks broke loose and began crashing down the slope.

Chloe whined in fear as she huddled beneath the small ledge. Every few seconds there was an incredibly loud *SNAP* *CRACK* as Golurk punched another boulder. Small bits of rock and other larger pieces rained down on her. She desperately hoped she and Goh didn't die in this onslaught of nature.

The mountain rumbled again and an even larger chunk of rock began sliding down the hillside. This piece of mountain was bigger than a house and torn up the rock face wherever it slid. Chloe glanced up from her hiding place and her eyes went wide at the sight. This massive piece of earth would crush them all like they were nothing.

"GOLURK!" Goh shouted.

The Automation Pokémon didn't hesitate and threw itself in front of the massive rock. It met the oncoming behemoth with a clinched fist and a deafening impact sounded. The massive boulder broke apart, but the constituent pieces engulfed Goh's Pokémon and began sweeping it down the mountain side.

Goh and Chloe ducked for cover under the rock slab as the massive wave of rock washed over them. After a few intense seconds, the rockslide ended and the two friends peeked out from their hiding place. They coughed on the clouds of dust which hung in the air and scanned their surroundings.

"Golurk!" Goh called out.

The dust started to clear and Chloe abruptly gasped and pointed down the mountainside a short ways.

"Look!" she said, in a distressed voice.

Goh turned to see what Chloe had pointed at and saw Golurk. His Pokémon was lying face down, half buried in rock. There was no sign of movement.

"Golurk!" Goh shouted.

There was no response. Goh didn't fancy trying to climb over the unstable rocks to reach his Pokémon so he raised Golurk's Pokéball and recalled the creature.

Chloe looked upset. "Is it…. okay?" she asked hesitantly.

Goh stared at the Pokéball for a long moment and then gritted his teeth. "I'm sure it's fine," he said, stowing the Pokéball. "Come on, we've gotta keep going!"

Chloe let out a weak moan of concern. Under normal circumstances, she would have turned around a long time ago, but this was Goh's lifelong dream. She really wanted to see him achieve it. She crushed down her worries as best as she could and followed after Goh as he started climbing again.

Goh and Chloe continued scrambling over rocks and moved higher up the mountain. Goh continued to move recklessly and many times he lost his grip and roughly slid down a rock face. After one particularly hard fall Chloe dashed up to him, distressed to see how many cuts and scrapes her friend had accumulated.

"Goh, you're getting really hurt!" she said, her voice tight with concern.

Goh grunted in pain and looked at his arms. He had several large scrapes and a nasty gash which was bleeding. Chloe moved to retrieve her first aid kit but Goh rose to his feet again.

"No time to stop," he called back. "We're almost there!"

Chloe let out a whine and continued following him. "You really need to slow down!" she called out.

They kept climbing and soon reached a section of the mountain which featured a large, flat area. The massive shelf of rock looked out over the forest below, offering a spectacular view. As Goh took a few steps on this new part of the mountain, he felt a tingle in the back of his mind. Some kind of sixth sense telling him that his quarry was here.

"I think Mew's here!" Goh whispered to Chloe.

Chloe breathed in sharply and whispered back. "You do!"

Goh nodded and slowly crept forward. Because this part of the mountain was partially flat, some trees and brush had grown up. Goh moved into some foliage at the base of a rock wall and used it for cover as he slowly searched the area. His eyes widened and he gasped involuntarily as he caught sight of the Pokémon he'd searched so long for.

A short distance away, sitting atop a rock near the edge of a sloping mountainside, was Mew. Goh felt his stomach flutter and his legs shake. It had been so long since he'd made this Pokémon his life-goal. Now all he had to do was catch it!

Goh spent several long seconds taking in the sight of the legendary Pokémon. It was completely motionless as it lay on the rock. It looked tired. It was the perfect opportunity.

Chloe reached Goh's side and took in a sharp breath. "Hey! Isn't that-" she began to whisper.

Goh immediately pressed the palm of his left hand over Chloe's mouth. "Shhhhhh!" Goh hissed. He sent Chloe an intense look to keep her quiet and then began removing the small pieces of equipment from the device on his left forearm.

He first turned on the teleport inhibitor and then assembled the tether beam device. He powered on the small gold-plated, tripod mounted, machine which would keep Mew from fleeing and then took a breath. This was the moment he'd been waiting for his entire life. He abruptly felt a hand gently squeeze his left shoulder.

He turned toward Chloe and saw she was looking at him with shimmering eyes and a smile. "Good luck Goh!" she whispered.

Goh felt a burst of warm feelings inside him. It was great to see Chloe supporting his quest! He reached into his short's pocket and retrieved one of the blue capture balls. He tapped it to enlarge it, held the device in his left hand and took a breath.

"This is it Chloe! Time to capture Mew!"

Chloe nodded and looked intently into his eyes. "I'm with you Goh," she said boldly.

Goh was a little surprised at Chloe's attitude. She wasn't normally this eager to get involved with Pokémon battles. He grinned. "You ready," he whispered.

Chloe nodded again.

Goh pushed the button on the tether beam device and it began its activation sequence. He checked to make sure the teleport inhibitor was activated and then stood up, partially emerging from the bush. He strode forward, Chloe at his side matching him stride-for-stride and walked toward Mew. The small, pink, cat-like creature stirred slightly and slowly turned its head to look at him.

Goh took a few steps forward and grinned. "Mew, I'm Goh and I've waited all my life to capture you!" He hefted the Pokéball in his left hand. "Okay, let's-"

At that moment, the tether beam activated and a bright spear of yellow energy shot out of the device. The energy slammed into Mew, surrounded it and the legendary Pokémon began to cry out in pain.

Goh hesitated as the small Pokémon thrashed and screamed while in the grip of the tether beam.

Chloe looked shocked and upset. "Goh! Is it…. supposed to do that!?"

Goh froze for a very long moment as he remembered all of Doctor Melcher's assurances that the devices they were using were safe, gentle and wouldn't harm Mew. He stared at Mew; saw how its face was scrunched up and how its limbs flailed desperately. Was it being hurt by the tether beam?... No! It was just struggling to break free, like all Pokémon do. That's all it was.

"I'm sure it's fine," Goh said to Chloe. He took a step forward to gain momentum and hurled the blue capture ball toward Mew.

"IN THE PALM OF MY-" Goh cried out.

Mew's head suddenly whipped around and its gaze fixed on the incoming capture ball. The Pokémon's eyes glowed red and the capture ball abruptly stopped in midair. A moment later the ball vibrated and then exploded into dust.

Goh gasped in surprise but before he could react, Mew shifted its gaze toward him and Chloe.

Goh suddenly felt a massive, invisible force shove him backward and he, along with Chloe, were hurled away from Mew. Both of them slammed into the rock wall with enough force that Goh saw stars burst in front of his eyes and Chloe thought she might pass out.

The two of them fell to the ground and struggled to get up. Each of them held their head and groaned in pain.

"Right," Goh said in a shaky voice. "Gotta weaken it first."

Goh retrieved a Pokéball and tossed it forward. "Inteleon, let's do this!"

Goh's Pokémon emerged and stood ready for action.

Goh winced and pushed himself to his feet. "Use Snipe Shot!"

Inteleon flourished its hands and then directed a series of compact water bursts at Mew. Goh could hardly believe it when they struck home. Mew was about to be his! Goh began to retrieve his second capture ball.

Without warning, Mew suddenly thrashed and flew toward Inteleon. The legendary Pokémon cried out and unleashed a blindingly bright lance of crackling yellow energy which Goh assumed was some kind of electric attack.

"INTELEON, LOOK OUT!" he screamed.

Inteleon barely had time to flinch before the bolt of devastation slammed into it. The water Pokémon was launched into the rock wall with enough force to leave a crater in the hard surface. The smoldering form of Goh's Pokémon fell out of the indentation and thudded to the ground.

Goh swallowed as he began to wonder if he'd bitten off more than he could chew. He grabbed his three remaining Pokéballs and tossed them forward. "I need you all!" he said desperately.

Absol, Raichu and Darmanitan all emerged. They stared at the thrashing legendary Pokémon and announced their readiness for battle.

Goh recalled Inteleon and swept his hand in a horizontal motion. "Keep Mew distracted!"

Goh's Pokémon rushed forward and began launching attacks at the flagging legendary creature.

While this was going on, Chloe was still trying to recover from being slammed into the rock wall. She blinked her eyes and shook her head, trying to clear the dizziness from her mind. She felt woozy and hoped she wouldn't be sick. With arms and legs shaking, she stood up and watched Goh send his three remaining Pokémon into battle.

Absol dashed forward and launched a Night Slash attack. Raichu darted to the side and fired a Thunderbolt. Darmanitan stood its ground and waited. Mew retreated as far as it could from the incoming attacks. It flew out into the air past the end of the cliff but was suddenly stopped in its tracks by the tether beam. The legendary Pokémon struggled against the beam, but couldn't break free.

Goh grinned and clinched his fists in eagerness. "Great! It can't run away!" he shouted.

Goh started to dash out onto the mountainside but his feet began to slide out from under him. The slightly sloped surface and abundance of small pebbles made it extremely hard to keep one's footing. It also made it very possible that if one started sliding down the mountainside they would likely keep going, right over the edge of the cliff.

Chloe saw Goh starting to slide and gasped in fear. She immediately shrugged off her backpack and yanked the rope off the back of it.

"Goh! hold on!" she shouted, running to a small tree sprouting up through the rock. She quickly wrapped the rope around the tree and tied it off. She then made her way to a still scuffling Goh, nearly slipping and falling herself as she moved on the sloped surface.

"I'm fine!" Goh growled indignantly.

"You'll fall off the cliff if you start sliding!" Chloe barked at him. She wrapped the end of the rope around Goh's midsection and tied it securely.

Goh tested the rope and then turned his attention back to Mew.

"I'll stay up here and keep a hold of you," Chloe said.

"Sure, whatever!" Goh replied.

Chloe used the rope to steady herself as she walked back up the mountainside. She then pulled up the slack, braced herself and watched as Goh moved to command his Pokémon.

"Please don't get killed," Chloe murmured as she felt a tear of fear flow from her right eye.

Goh scrambled partway down the mountain and Chloe let out more rope. He looked toward Mew and gritted his teeth.

"Raichu, use Thunder Wave!" he shouted.

The electric mouse cried out and sent the attack toward Mew. Mew looped through the air and avoided the attack. It fired back some kind of red pulse at Raichu.

"DODGE!" Goh screamed.

Raichu did so and zipped out of the way just before the red energy blast caused the rock where it had been to explode and melt.

"We've got to attack together," Goh muttered. "Absol, use Dark Pulse! Darmanitan, use Incinerate!"

Both of Goh's Pokémon responded and launched their attacks. Mew managed to avoid the Dark Pulse but was partially struck by the Incinerate.

"YES!" Goh exclaimed. "Raichu, use Thunderbolt again! Everyone else, keep firing!"

All three of Goh's Pokémon began launching attacks. Mew ducked and juked but was struck by a couple of the attacks.

Goh withdrew another one of the blue capture balls and waited. "Come on, just make an attack!"

Mew did exactly what Goh expected. It abruptly stopped dodging and fired an attack at Absol, a sizzling white beam of pure energy. Goh tossed the capture ball and Absol was engulfed by the attack.

Chloe gasped as she watched Goh's Pokémon get thrown halfway up the mountainside by the force of the attack. Once the dust cleared, Absol didn't so much as move. However, at the same time, Goh let out an elated cry. The capture ball struck Mew's midsection and began to deploy.

The blue knobs on the top of the blue sphere suddenly detached from the device and quickly floated so they were evenly spaced in a diamond shape in front of the ball. The capture ball then opened up and dark red energy began flowing out of Mew and into the small floating knobs. Mew thrashed and cried out in agony.

Chloe felt her heart start to ache as she watched Mew scream and flail. This didn't feel right at all. Mew was clearly in pain.

"GOH, I DON'T LIKE THIS!" Chloe shouted at the top of her lungs. Unfortunately, between the noise of the battle and Goh's utter fixation on Mew, her plea went unheard.

"It's finally happening!" Goh said, his eyes wide in amazement. "You're gonna be mine!"

Mew however, was not finished. The Pokémon abruptly wheeled around and raked the mountainside with a torrent of water. Goh ducked and avoided getting hit directly. Darmanitan was not so lucky. Goh's Pokémon took the devastating impact and was blasted part way up the mountainside before it began to tumble back down, quickly accelerating toward the cliff edge.

Goh frowned and quickly pulled out another capture ball. "I guess you need two!" he said sharply.

"GOH! DARMANITAN!" Chloe screamed.

Goh glanced to the side and saw that his unconscious Pokémon was sliding down the mountainside and would plunge over the cliff in seconds. Goh, hesitated, and then pulled out Darmanitan's Pokéball. He recalled his Pokémon and then grunted in frustration as Mew started to dodge again.

Everywhere Mew went, the deployed capture ball followed it. Mew tried to launch an attack at the device, but the capture field deflected it. Frantic, Mew used attack after attack, trying to find a weakness in the diabolical machine. All of the attacks failed however, and Mew began to summon a sphere of blue energy. Its energy reserves were depleted, though, and it struggled to do so.

Goh recalled Absol and turned his attention to Raichu. He held his third capture ball in his left hand and bit his lip in uncertainty. He was down to his last Pokémon. He would only get one chance at this!

"Use Thunderbolt Raichu!" Goh shouted. "and when Mew attacks, don't dodge!"

Raichu looked stunned at the instructions and glanced toward Goh.

Goh sent his Pokémon a reassuring look. "We've got to bait out an attack. This is the only way!"

Raichu still looked uncertain but furrowed its brow in determination and turned to face Mew. Goh's Pokémon let out a loud cry and unleashed the electric attack.

The bolt of lightning struck Mew, caused the legendary Pokémon to flinch, shake its head and for the blue sphere to dissipate. Mew focused on Raichu and a moment later sent a stream of golden energy toward the electric mouse.

"All right!" Goh cried, tossing the capture ball.

The blue device struck Mew and Mew's attack struck Raichu. Goh's Pokémon let out a brief squawk of fright which abruptly ended as it was engulfed in an explosion.

Tears were running down Chloe's face as she watched Raichu's unconscious form tumble across the rocky terrain. The unconscious Pokémon slammed into a rock and came to a stop. There was no sign of movement.

She remembered playing with several of these Pokémon, giving them food, laughing with them, watching them grow bigger and stronger. Seeing them getting blasted one by one was deeply upsetting to her.

"I sure hope it's worth it Goh!" she croaked in a tear-filled voice.

The second capture ball deployed its knobs and took up position on the opposite side of Mew as the other ball. It too began draining dark red energy from the legendary Pokémon. Mew flinched and thrashed. It let out a howl of agony and seemed to weaken further.

Goh was grinning from ear-to-ear. He looked at Raichu's unconscious form and raised its Pokéball.

"Great job Raichu!" he said sincerely, recalling his Pokémon. He then turned back toward Mew.

Goh watched as Mew continued to fight against the two capture balls. Amazingly, it was refusing to give up. Goh slowly nodded in respect of his opponent's strength and determination. He pulled his fourth and final capture ball from his pocket.

"I guess you'll need one more," he said slowly.

Goh hefted the blue Pokéball in his hand and squeezed it tight.

"In the palm of my hand," Goh murmured to himself. He took a step and prepared to throw the device.

At that moment, Mew suddenly curled into a ball and began to glow a bright yellow and gold color. Goh stopped his throwing motion and looked on in awe as the most powerful Pokémon to ever exist gathered its full might.

Chloe took a quick breath and whined in fear as Mew seemed to be sucking all energy into itself. The entire mountainside seemed to become quiet except for the sound of rushing air and a low throbbing sound. Everything started to grow dim and lose its color except for the ever-brightening glow surrounding Mew. Then, for one heartbeat, everything went dead silent.

Chloe somehow knew what was about to happen and she threw herself to the ground just as the entire world seemed to explode.

A light as brilliant as the sun burst forth and a shrieking noise which sounded like the very fabric of space was being rent asunder assaulted Chloe's ears. The girl from Vermilion City buried her face in the rock and covered her head with her arms as dozens of beams of pure energy shot out of Mew and tore apart everything they touched. The beams moved slowly, raking across the mountain and the sky, shattering rock and cleaving apart vegetation.

The entire mountain shook as if the earth was trying to break itself apart. Chloe whimpered and prepared herself for the end. At any moment, she expected to feel a massive impact or a sharp pain that would herald her death. Tiny fragments of rock stung her skin as they peppered against her. She tensed and then….. it ended.

The roaring sound faded and the bright light dissipated. Chloe was trembling and it took her a moment to accept that the armageddon had ended and she had survived. She slowly lifted her head and looked across the mountainside. Tears were streaming down her face and she wiped at her eyes to clear them. The smell of ozone and burnt everything filled her nose. She coughed on dust and slowly rose to her feet on shaking legs.

Chloe took a step and looked down the mountainside toward where Mew and Goh had been. "Goh!" she called out in a tentative voice.

As Chloe took in the level of destruction, she started to suspect that her longtime friend had perished. How could anyone have survived this?!

As the dust cleared, Chloe saw that Mew was still hovering a short ways away from the mountainside. The creature was continuing to struggle against the two capture balls but the tether beam was no longer functioning. Chloe guessed that it had been destroyed in the devastation.

Then, near the edge of the cliff, Chloe spotted movement. Her breath caught in her throat as she saw Goh stagger to his feet and hold his head in his hands. She let out a brief sob of relief and gasped in a breath.

"GOH!" Chloe called out, she waved her arm in an effort to get his attention.

Goh looked up toward her and waved back. Then the mountain started to rumble again. Chloe braced herself and looked around. She couldn't see any falling rocks above her. A moment later she realized that this was because the falling rocks were actually below her. She looked toward Goh's location and saw a series of large cracks suddenly spider-web across the part of the mountainside nearest the edge of the cliff; the part of the mountain directly under Goh's feet! Goh looked left and then right, suddenly realizing his peril. Part of the mountain was collapsing.

"GOH RUN!" Chloe shouted.

Goh took a step, but the rocky surface he was standing on suddenly began to fall away. He sent a frantic glance toward Chloe, and for an instant, she saw complete fear in his eyes. Then the rocks crumbled and Goh abruptly fell out of sight along with a large part of the mountainside.

"GOOHHH!" Chloe screamed. A moment later, the rope near her feet suddenly snapped taut as Goh was saved by the safety line.

Chloe stared at the rope as her emotions u-turned from total horror to immense elation. She immediately grabbed hold of the rope and began to pull.

"Hold on, Goh!" she shouted.

Chloe braced her feet against some upright rocks and used her arms and the strength of her legs to reel in a length of line. She reached forward and then pulled in more rope. Under normal circumstance Chloe wouldn't have possessed the strength to perform this task, however, she was fueled by adrenaline and driven to save Goh. Even as the line became harder and harder to pull, Chloe only redoubled her efforts and cried out in effort as her muscles burned from exertion.

Unknown to Chloe, however, was that the rope had become wedged into one of the many jagged nooks that covered the freshly shorn cliffside. As Chloe pulled harder, the rope only wedged in tighter and the sharp edges of the rocks began to efficiently cut through Goh's lifeline.

Chloe gritted her teeth and pulled with all her might. The rope abruptly went slack and Chloe fell backward, landing hard on her posterior. The frayed end of the line whipped up over the edge of the cliff and Chloe realized that the rope had broken. She felt an icy cold dagger stab straight through her heart.

"NOOOO!" she screamed.

Chloe's lungs spasmed as she was wracked by a couple of sobs. She let out a desperate squeak and began rapidly pulling the rope to herself. She wanted to quit, she wanted lay down and weep, she wanted to curl into a ball and die but she pushed past all these feelings and kept going. She had to see if Goh was truly gone.

Chloe grasped the end of the rope in her left hand and wrapped a few loops around her palm. She gripped the rope tight and then started down the sloped mountainside. As she moved, she glanced up at Mew and saw that the Pokémon was trying to summon a sphere of blue energy.

Chloe's feet skidded on loose pebbles and she fell down on the sloped surface. Her legs received a few scrapes but she quickly regained her footing and carefully continued until she reached the edge of the cliff. She pulled the rope taught with her right hand and then used the line so she could safely lean out over the side of the mountainside. She looked down and let out a joyful cry. Goh was desperately clinging to the cliffside a short distance down from her.

"Goh!" Chloe shouted.

Her friend looked up at her, his eyes wide with fear.

Chloe quickly unwrapped the rope from her left hand and tossed it over the side. To her dismay, the line was too short and hung out of Goh's reach. He briefly tried to climb up to reach it, but some of the cliff crumbled and he immediately returned to clinging to the rock face.

Chloe thought quickly and pulled up the line. She again wrapped the rope around her left hand and then gathered the slack up with her right.

"I'm coming Goh!" Chloe shouted. "Hold on!"

Goh looked up at her and gave a tense smile. Chloe looked down at Goh and then also saw just how long of a fall it would be if either of them lost their grip. She swallowed and crushed down her fears. There was no time for her to be scared!

She took a series of rapid and tense breaths and then leaned out over the side of the cliff. She carefully planted her feet against the side of the rock face and began to rappel down, just like she'd seen rock climbers do in videos.

Even though it was only a short distance, every movement was terrifying for Chloe. Her breaths were short and fast and her hands turned white from how tightly she was gripping the rope. After what felt like forever, she reached the end of the rope and looked at Goh. He was still just a little beyond her reach and so she steeled herself and let go of the rope with her right hand. She gripped the wrapped line in her left hand and turned her body so she could reach toward Goh with her right arm.

"Grab on, Goh!" Chloe cried out.

Goh was still clinging to the rock face and slowly reached out with his left hand. Chloe had to adjust herself slightly, but with a final effort, their fingers touched and then their hands locked tightly together.

Both of them let out a sigh of relief just as Mew let out a cry of effort. Above them, the legendary creature had finally summoned a sphere of blue energy and managed to destroy one of the capture balls. Mew slumped from exhaustion but then recovered and started to summon another sphere of blue energy.

Goh felt his heart suddenly ache. Mew was about to escape. He'd lost his chance to capture it. He was about to miss out on his lifelong dream!

Goh felt sick to his stomach as he started to pull himself up. How could it all end in failure after all this?! He glanced down to see where he should plant his feet and that's when he saw the distinct blue color of a capture ball nestled in a small cranny in the side of the cliff.

It was the capture ball he'd been holding when Mew had unleashed its massive attack. He'd assumed it had been lost, but now it was just a short distance away from him, nearly within his reach. With just a little effort, he could have the device in the palm of his hand and then he could have Mew as well!

Goh shifted himself and reached for the capture ball below him and to his right.

Chloe wasn't prepared for the movement and cried out in fright and surprise as she felt Goh move away from her.

"GOH! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!" she screamed.

Goh's fingertips were just a few inches from the capture ball. "I can reach it!" he said in a detached sounding voice. "I can catch Mew!"

Goh stretched for the ball and Chloe gasped and whined in fear as she felt her grip weaken slightly. She wasn't an athletic girl and she didn't possess anywhere near the strength to pull Goh up on her own. She clamped down with both her hands as tightly as she could but she was helpless as Goh reached away from her. It felt as if her arms were being pulled out of their sockets and she squirmed and kicked her legs as her body was pushed beyond its limits.

"Goh, please!" Chloe whimpered. "Just climb up!"

Goh didn't hear her. His eyes were fixed on the blue Pokéball. It was so close now. Just another couple of inches! "I've almost got it," he said greedily.

Tears were starting to flow from Chloe's eyes as she felt herself being pulled downward. It was as if death had a hold of her and she was being inexorably drawn toward her end. She gasped, gritted her teeth and pleaded with Goh. Nothing got through to him though.

Goh made a small lunge toward the ball and his fingers brushed against the sphere. Simultaneously, Chloe felt her body stretch painfully and the rope wrapped around her left hand drew so tight that its fibers bit into her skin. Finally, she felt a small pop inside her left hand which was immediately followed by fiery agony.

Chloe let out a long screaming moan as raw pain lanced down her arm but somehow she held on to the rope and to Goh. She knew she couldn't last any longer though, this had to end!

"GOOOHHHHH! STOP!" she screamed with everything she had.

The frantic emotional outburst cause Goh to look up at Chloe and he saw her terrified state. Her eyes were wet and wide with fear. Her face streaked with tears and her expression one of total desperation. She sobbed and whimpered, her gaze directed at Goh.

"Chloe!" Goh gasped. He suddenly became aware of their incredibly precarious situation and cried out in fright. He quickly reached up and grabbed hold of Chloe's outstretched hand with his right. He then used his legs and boosted himself upward.

It took a tricky maneuver, but Goh climbed up Chloe's back and took hold of the rope. She threw an arm over his shoulder and weakly held on to him as they shifted positions. Goh firmly took hold of the rope and began to climb upwards while Chloe clung to his back. Mercifully, it was only a short climb, and within seconds Goh was dragging himself and Chloe up onto the mountainside.

Goh crawled on his hands and knees for a few feet and then rose to a standing position. He pulled Chloe up with him and helped her back up the sloped mountainside. Chloe kept her injured left hand cradled against her midsection as they moved.

They quickly reached the top of the slope and set their feet on blessed level ground. Goh grabbed Chloe's backpack and slung the straps around his shoulders. He then took one last look back at Mew. The legendary Pokémon was using its blue sphere of energy against the second capture ball. Soon it would be free. Goh felt his heart ache and then he turned to go.

Goh led Chloe by the hand and dashed away from the devastated mountainside. He pushed past the brush and started descending the various rocky slopes. He dropped down small ledges and scrambled over boulders. Chloe stayed with him, doing her best to maneuver while keeping her injured left hand clutched against her chest. Eventually, once they'd put a fair amount of distance between them and Mew, Goh moved to a small patch of bushes and hunkered down amongst them with Chloe. Both of them were breathing hard and they spent the better part of a minute just gasping for breath.

As the adrenaline slowly faded from their systems and their breathing got under control, Goh and Chloe began to process what had just happened. Chloe began to tremble and her breathing became ragged. Her eyes filled with tears and she started to quietly sob as all the terrifying emotions she'd just experienced finally caught up with her. She tried to hold in the tears but failed to do so. She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapped her arms around her legs and buried her face in her thighs as tears streamed down her face and her body shook from wracking sobs.

Goh, meanwhile, felt terrible. He'd failed in his mission and Chloe had gotten hurt. All his Pokémon were hurt as well and they had nothing to show for it. As Goh considered what to do he thought about how close he'd been to catching Mew. Could he really give up now after he'd put in so much effort? If he pushed just a little further, he could achieve his goal, he could return a hero!

He still had the Pokéballs he'd originally brought with him and there was still that capture ball somewhere on the side of the cliff. Maybe, with a little luck and some cunning he could sneak up on Mew and snag it! It had to be exhausted, it couldn't be that hard.

Goh started to form a plan in his mind and slowly moved to exit the clump of bushes they were hiding in. Chloe looked up and saw Goh's movement. She instinctively knew what he was thinking and planning. She opened her mouth and spoke in a tear-filled, gravelly voice.

"It's not worth it Goh!" she cried.

The sheer agony in Chloe's voice caused Goh to turn around. He blinked and stared at Chloe.

"What do you mean?" he said, sounding surprised. "Chloe, Mew's my dream. It's all I've ever-"

Chloe choked on a sob and shook her head in an emotional flourish. "Mew's not everything Goh!" she whined. "There's so much more….."

Goh froze and said nothing. Chloe's stricken appearance held his attention.

Chloe struggle to speak and sniffed back tears. "If you head out there again you won't come back, Goh!" she said in an emphatic wail.

At this, Goh gasped and for the first time real doubt entered his mind.

Chloe wept for a moment and then continued in a softer and more somber tone. "There's so many great things in your life, Goh. Your mom and dad, all your friends, your Pokémon." Chloe swallowed and carried on. "Is trying to capture Mew more important than all that? Is it more important than your life?!"

Goh wanted to fire back a retort, but he had nothing to say. Chloe's words had cut him to the heart and he suddenly felt a massive amount of guilt weigh down on him over everything that had happened; everything that had happened because of his quest to capture Mew.

Goh slowly sunk to his knees and found himself staring at Chloe's left hand. It was swollen and she was keeping it protected as best as she could. That injury had happened because of him and his quest.

Goh pulled out his Pokéballs and held them in his hands. All of his Pokémon had given everything they had in service to his quest. All of them were injured, some badly so. As Goh stared at his Pokéballs he finally started to gain some perspective on how reckless and obsessed he'd been. He'd forgotten about everyone and everything other than his desire to catch Mew and everyone else had paid the price.

Tears welled up in Goh's eyes as he realized how much he'd failed all of his friends.

"I'm so sorry!" he cried out abruptly, hugging his Pokéballs to his chest. "Cinderace, Inteleon, Raichu, Golurk, Absol, Darmanitan. You all were counting on me and I let you down!" Goh gritted his teeth to keep from sobbing. "I wasn't thinking of you!"

Goh briefly looked up and caught Chloe's eye. He immediately felt a huge amount of guilt over everything that had happened to her and he averted his gaze.

"I'm sorry, Chloe!" he croaked. "I'm sorry you got hurt!"

Goh struggled against his tears for several long moments, while Chloe looked on with a contemplative expression. Her lips then turned up in the tiniest of smiles and she scooted over so she was sitting next to Goh. She reached across with her right hand and placed it on his shoulder.

"I forgive you, Goh," she said in a soft and kind voice.

Goh looked up at her a shocked expression on his face. "What?!" he breathed.

The smile on Chloe's faced expanded slightly. "I forgive you," she repeated. She took a breath and then continued. "I know you really messed up but I still wanna be your friend. I don't hate you Goh!"

Now tears were running down Goh's face. "You don't?!" he said in an amazed voice.

Chloe shook her head and the two friends stared at each other in silence for a time. Finally Goh swallowed his tears and opened his mouth.

"I'd still like to be your friend Chloe," he said, hesitantly.

The smile on Chloe's face grew again and she nodded. "Then we're friends," she chirped.

Both of them started to smile now and Goh felt the burden of guilt start to lift from his shoulders. They chuckled and the mood started to improve.

Chloe sent Goh a sidelong glance. "Although, do you think the next adventure we go on could be a little safer?" she asked with a small laugh.

Goh chuckled and Chloe joined him. Goh then looked at Chloe's injured hand and frowned.

"Hey, is your hand gonna be okay?" he asked cautiously.

Chloe glanced at her left hand and raised it slightly. "Yeah, I think so," she answered. "I probably broke a metacarpal, so it should be fine once we get to a doctor."

Goh raised an eyebrow. "Mega-carp what?" he asked.

Chloe let out an amused sigh. "You really need to read more, Goh," she replied.

Goh looked a little nonplussed but said nothing. Both of them wiped at their eyes and stilled their emotions. Chloe then looked at Goh and let out a small gasp.

"Goh, you're still bleeding!" she said.

Goh looked at the gash in his arm and saw it was indeed still bleeding. "Oh," he replied.

Chloe made a determined face, rose to her knees and moved so she could retrieve the first-aid kit from her backpack which was on Goh's back.

"Just a second," she said. She quickly opened the kit, pulled out a bottle of clear liquid and a pack of small gauze pads. She soaked one of the pads in the liquid and began gently cleaning Goh's cuts.

A moment later Goh suddenly flinched and cried out. "OW! That burns!" he exclaimed. "What is that!?"

Chloe's gaze narrowed and she smiled in amusement. "It's alcohol, Goh," she stated plainly.

"It sure hurts!" Goh moaned.

Chloe chuckled. "That means it's working," she said sweetly. "Now, hold still."

Chloe spent some time cleaning Goh's wounds and bandaging the bigger ones. She then attended to her own cuts, which were much fewer in number. By the time Chloe packed away her first-aid kit, the sun was starting to sink toward the horizon.

They both stood up and Chloe retrieved her map and compass so she could begin finding a route back to the campsite. Goh then suddenly remembered Professor Amaranth and the rest of the team. They were probably looking for him. Goh activated the communicator in the vambrace and called out.

"Professor Amaranth, can you hear me?"

A moment passed and the professor replied, sounding relieved.

"Goh, we've been trying to contact you. Are you all right?"

Goh felt both happy and sad. On one hand he was glad to hear from the rest of Project Mew, but on the other, they'd failed in their mission.

"I'm fine," Goh answered. "Chloe came and helped me. How are you all doing?"

The professor let out a grim sigh. "Danika has a broken leg and the rest of us are a little worse for wear."

Goh flinched in surprise but the professor continued before he could say anything.

"Goh, this is important!" Amaranth said forcefully. "Do not confront Mew! Do not use any of Doctor Melcher's devices! They are harmful to Mew!"

Goh swallowed and decided that he didn't need to convey the events of the past few hours. "Okay," he said tensely, "anything else?"

The professor was silent for a moment. "Can you find your way back to the Pokémon Center?" he asked.

Goh glanced at Chloe and she smiled and nodded. "Yeah, sure, no problem."

"I'd suggest you go there," the professor responded. The campsite probably won't be there much longer.

Goh thought the professor's comment was a little strange but he didn't ask questions. "We'll head for the Pokémon Center then," Goh replied.

The communication channel was silent for a moment and then Amaranth spoke.

"I'm sorry this didn't go according to plan, Goh," he said somberly. "I'll contact you later once we're all back home."

"Yeah, same here," Goh replied.

"Travel safe, Amaranth out," the professor replied.

Goh closed the channel and looked at Chloe. "Any idea where we should go?" he asked.

Chloe smiled and pointed with her right hand. "That way until we hit a small creek, then we head south."

Goh smiled and moved so Chloe could stow her map and compass inside the backpack he was wearing. The two of them shared a chuckle and then set off down the mountain.

The orange light from the setting sun shown off the boulders and cast long shadows from the scarce trees dotting the mountainside. After they walked a short distance, Chloe realized that they wouldn't be able to make it to the Pokémon Center before night fell. They would have to make camp and fortunately Chloe had brought the needed equipment.

Goh rolled his eyes as Chloe smiled smugly and chattered about being prepared.

"I know most people figure you can just use a Pokémon to light a fire, but what happens if it gets knocked out or it can't-"

Chloe abruptly stopped speaking and froze in her tracks. Goh took two steps further and then turned back to look at her, a puzzled expression on his face.

"Chloe?" he said cautiously. Her eyes were wide with distress and her body seemed to be trembling slightly.

"G-G-Goh," she struggled to whisper.

Goh leaned closer to hear what she was saying.

Chloe could barely move her lips and put immense effort into each word. "I…. c-can't….. m-m-move….."

Goh didn't have time to think as a menacing warble sounded behind him. He whirled around and saw the Pokémon he'd sought for so long hovering a short distance away. Mew, its eyes glowing red and body angled in a threatening pose, it stared at him and slowly began to advance toward him.

Goh swallowed and took a step backward. "Mew, I'm sorry," he stammered. His mind raced and he realized the legendary creature was likely enraged by the suffering Doctor Melcher's devices had inflicted on it.

Mew didn't reply and only continued its slow advance.

Goh tripped and fell on his backside. He gasped and crawled backwards away from the oncoming Pokémon.

"I didn't mean to hurt you!" he said desperately. "I just wanted to catch you! I just want to be your friend!"

Mew let out an angry cry and kept floating closer.

As Goh crawled backwards, the vambrace on his left arm clanked against the rocky surface. Goh suddenly got an idea. He quickly removed the vambrace and grabbed a nearby rock.

"I didn't mean for any of this to happen!" Goh shouted. He then forcefully brought the rock down on the vambrace with a lout metallic crunch, partially smashing the device. Goh rapidly repeated the action several times and bashed the vambrace into pieces.

Goh looked up and saw Mew was just a short distance from him. He could feel energy radiating off of the Pokémon and he felt very vulnerable and defenseless.

"Please, forgive me!" he begged.

Mew cocked its head and made a cooing sound. Its eyes suddenly changed back to normal and it pulled back from Goh. Chloe abruptly stumbled as she regained the ability to move. She looked at Mew and the legendary Pokémon let out a soft melodic cry, performed a playful loop and then zipped away in the direction of the mountain.

Goh watched it leave and then let out a huge sigh. Chloe walked up to him and gently placed her right hand on his shoulder.

"Looks like Mew forgave you too," she said softly.

"Yeah," Goh breathed. He looked up at Chloe and they exchanged smiles. He then rose to his feet and looked in the direction they were heading. "Come on, let's get going."

They traveled for another hour and then found a small clearing where they could make camp for the night. Goh gathered materials for a fire and Chloe used her matches to get a small blaze going. They munched on the bag of trail mix and drank some of their water as the evening sky slowly turned pitch-black and the stars came out. They talked a bit about the day's events and stared into the crackling fire as it threw off sparks.

They didn't have a tent or sleeping bags so they simply sat around the fire until the flames began to die down and they started to feel tired. They wished each other good night, lay down next to the glowing embers, closed their eyes and drifted off to sleep.

They each dreamed of the day's events, albeit with some subconscious changes. Goh saw himself facing off against a swarm of Mew and battling hard against them with his entire collection of Pokémon. Things looked grim for him but then Chloe arrived with Eevee. Eevee somehow split apart and evolved into all of its different evolutions. Together, they drove off the swarm of Mew and found themselves standing in a beautiful field of flowers. Flowers that were just like the one Chloe always wore in her hair. Chloe stared into Goh's eyes, her own eyes shining with emotion. Without a word, they came together and wrapped their arms around each other in a wonderful, warm embrace.

Chloe meanwhile dreamed that she was on an expedition somewhere near the South Pole. She climbed over mountains of snow and huge glaciers. Suddenly, she found Goh clinging to the side of a massive sheet of ice. Without hesitation, Chloe planted her ice axe into the ground and tied a rope to it. She then jumped over the side of the cliff, swinging on the rope in a big arc, and snatched Goh up in her arms. Her momentum carried her back up to the top of the cliff and the two of them crashed down in the snow. Chloe felt cold, but Goh crawled over to her and wrapped his arms around her to keep her warm. She happily embraced him and felt totally at peace.

---

Professor Melcher carefully packed another batch of equipment into a case and locked it securely. He stared up into the night sky and let out a frustrated groan. His prize had escaped him today. It didn't matter though; it was merely a temporary setback. He'd watched on his tracking display as one by one the signals coming from his equipment had gone out. He had no idea what had become of the so-called 'chasers,' and he didn't care. He would find a new bunch of wide-eyed fools to retrieve Mew for him.

The doctor carried the sealed case into his RV and then returned with an empty one. He set the new case down on a table and walked to collect more of his instruments. As he reached the edge of the campsite and reached for one of his antennas he spotted movement at the edge of his vision. He looked to his left and saw the chaser named Gary casually leaning against the front of the RV. His head was tilted down toward the ground and his arms were crossed.

"You planning on going somewhere doctor?" Gary stated in a sarcastic tone.

Melcher recoiled and took several steps backward. He suddenly heard the case he'd set on the table get slammed shut forcefully. He gasped and whirled around to see Quillon directing an intense glare at him, hand resting on the now closed case.

"More like leaving the scene of the crime," Quillon said in a cold voice.

Melcher opened his mouth to speak but Horace stepped out of the shadows and walked up to the gold-haired man. The white-haired chaser pulled out a vial of yellow/orange crystals and held them in front of Melcher's face.

"Wanting to make sure nobody found out about these!" Horace said angrily.

Gary and Quillon moved closer while Horace set the vial down on the table.

"When my communicator broke, I opened it up to try and fix it." Horace yanked open the panel of his mangled vambrace and pulled out one of the crystals. "That's when I found these!" he shouted. "All of these devices, all of your 'inventions' for capturing Mew," Horace growled, grinding his teeth in anger. "Absolutely disgusting!"

Melcher held his hands up defensively and managed a smile. "Now, look I'm sure I can explain-"

"You've said enough!" Professor Amaranth barked. The professor had entered the campsite and was supporting Danika with one of his arms.

The female chaser had a splint attached to the lower half of her left leg and was using a large branch as a makeshift crutch. She made a grimace as the professor untangled himself from her and let her lean against one of the tables.

Amaranth walked right up to Melcher and roughly sized hold of his jacket with both his hands. The professor's face was twisted up in anger and he nearly lifted the doctor up off the ground.

"As bad as it was to create these… machines," Amaranth spat. "The fact that you sent MY TEAM up against one of the most powerful Pokémon in the world with devices designed to harm it, IS UNFORGIVABLE!"

Doctor Melcher was visibly trembling and the other chasers stood silently, waiting to see what their team leader would do.

Amaranth barred his teeth for a second and then spoke again.

"You're very lucky that no one was killed, doctor, because if that had happened, I'd be meriting out justice myself!"

Melcher swallowed but said nothing.

At that moment, the sound of a siren echoed through the night air and some red and blue flashing lights faded into view down the long road leading to the ranger station.

Amaranth looked at the lights and then back at Melcher. "As it is, they're the ones who'll decide your fate," he said in a menacing tone.

The ranger jeep came to a stop a short distance from the campsite and Amaranth released Melcher. Gary and Quillon promptly moved to his sides and roughly took hold of his arms. They forcefully yanked the doctor toward the ranger jeep, glaring at him the entire time.

"Come on, doctor!" Gary sneered, "time to face the music."

Amaranth watched them go and then slowly turned to look back at the forest they'd just come from. He had a matter of honor to attend to.

---

A soft breeze, a cool mist, the lovely sound of wild Pokémon and a warm hug; all of these things surrounded Chloe and left her feeling happy and peaceful. She floated at the edge of consciousness, just awake enough to appreciate being alive and having survived yesterday's encounter with Mew. Her breathing was slow and her mind was quiet. The tiniest of smiles pulled at her lips as she felt the person she had her arms wrapped around shift their body. This person also had their arms wrapped around her and she felt their hands twitch ever-so-slightly.

Chloe sighed happily and slowly opened her eyes. Goh opened his eyes at the same moment and the two friends took in the sight of each other. Their faces were less than an inch apart and their soft breathing tickled the tiny hairs on each other's mouth.

They had gone to sleep the previous night separated by a short distance, however, during the night the fire had cooled and in their sleep they had instinctively moved toward the nearest source of warmth, each other.

"Hey, Goh," Chloe said softly, not yet fully awake.

"Hey, Chloe," Goh answered, also not fully awake.

The two of them sighed and rested peacefully….. until they finally came fully awake and realized their situation!

"AUUGGGHHHHHHHH!" they both screamed in dismay. They instantly separated and crawled a short distance away from each other. They sat absolutely still, mouths agape, faces red, completely frozen by shame, embarrassment and surprise.

Finally Chloe spoke in a rapid burst.

"Let's pretend this never happened!" she said emphatically.

"K!" Goh replied instantly with equal fervor.

They slowly met each other's gaze and shared embarrassed smiles. They laughed nervously and then rose to their feet.

They ate a humble breakfast of trail mix and drank the last of their water. With their bodies reenergized, they set out to the south, looking to find the Pokémon Center and then return back to civilization. They traveled at a casual pace as they moved through the forest. The traumatic events of yesterday had given both youths a new appreciation for life and peace. They walked in silence for most of the time as they contemplated everything that had happened.

It was well into the afternoon when they finally came into sight of the Pokémon Center. Goh and Chloe both let out a sigh of relief and exchanged happy chuckles. Their terrifying adventure had finally come to an end. They headed inside, Goh, seeking treatment for his Pokémon, and Chloe, seeking treatment for her hand.

A few hours later, the two friends sat in the lobby of the Pokémon Center munching on a simple meal and drinking some pleasant tasting juice. Chloe's left hand was now in a cast and both of them had a bunch of bandaids covering their various cuts and scrapes. Goh had a large compression bandage attached to the gash on his arm.

The two friends looked at each other. Chloe smiled and Goh looked forelorn. When Nurse Joy had been bandaging them up she'd commented that whoever had taken care of the first aid had done a good job. She'd said that they would be fine and that there was almost no chance of infection thanks to how well the wounds had been cleaned.

Goh had been waiting for Chloe to make a snide comment, but, to his surprise, she'd only smiled happily and sent Goh a satisfied look. Goh had appreciated her restraint. He felt unhappy enough as it was and didn't need Chloe rubbing it in.

As she looked at Goh, Chloe's smile fell slightly and she set down the bottle of juice she'd been drinking.

"Are you feeling sad Goh?" she asked gently.

Goh's face scrunched up as he felt guilt and shame wash over him. "I really blew it Chloe!" he said quietly. "I nearly got everyone killed."

Chloe nodded and then smiled. "Yeah, but we're all okay. It all worked out. Just learn from the mistake and move forward."

Goh's shoulders slumped. "Move on to what?!" he moaned.

"Hmm," Chloe replied, raising an eyebrow.

Goh's lips trembled and his eyes started to tear up.

"Mew was my dream! I totally messed that up. What else am I supposed to do now?!" He closed his eyes and clinched his teeth. "I'm just a failure….. I'm useless!"

Chloe thought for a moment and then spoke in a kind tone. "You're not useless Goh," she said. "You do amazing things."

"Like what?!" Goh said bitterly. "Falling down a hole and getting rescued by you?!"

Chloe paused a moment and then continued. "I wouldn't have been here to do any of those things if it wasn't for you," she said plainly.

Goh stared at Chloe with a perplexed expression and she smiled.

"Remember when you first met Ash," she began. "I wasn't really interested in Pokémon or adventures." Chloe looked out the large windows of the Pokémon Center as she reflected on her recent past. "I saw you two doing all kinds of amazing stuff. Traveling the world, catching Pokémon," she turned and looked directly at Goh. "Making friends," she said pointedly.

Goh blushed slightly.

Chloe let out a small sigh. "I guess I realized that I couldn't just stay hidden away in a school or a lab my whole life. I wanted to see more of the world and do more."

She looked sweetly at Goh. "You inspired me to do all that Goh. You pushed me to be a better person and grow."

Goh frowned. "That was all Ash," he muttered. "He was the amazing one."

Chloe shook her head. "No, it was you!"

Goh didn't know what to say.

Chloe held Goh's gaze for a moment and then continued. "Ash is amazing and that's why he didn't inspire me as much as what you did."

Goh still didn't know what to say.

"You did a bunch of stuff that was uncomfortable for you, Goh," Chloe said. "You made mistakes, you took risks and you kept going when you messed up." Chloe blushed slightly. "I was always afraid of making mistakes and you taught me that sometimes you have to take risks and that means sometimes you mess up."

Goh swallowed and felt himself getting choked up from Chloe's kind words. "I inspired you?" he said, completely surprised at hearing this.

Chloe nodded. "I'd never figured that you'd do anything amazing, and then suddenly you were making me look like a boring little school girl! I figured, if you could do it, maybe I could too."

Goh immediately looked nonplussed. "Gee, thanks," he said sarcastically.

Chloe chuckled and spoke in a happy tone. "My point is that you've done some impressive things Goh. You caught a lot of Pokémon and traveled the world. You almost captured Mew! How many people can say that?"

Goh started to look a little more upbeat.

"I'm sure you can find another dream to chase," Chloe said. "You've still got a lot of Pokémon to catch, after all."

Goh's eyes suddenly brightened. "Yeah, I do, don't I?" he said. His face suddenly fell. "Do you think my Pokémon will still wanna be my friends after everything that happened?"

Chloe looked confident. "If Mew could forgive you, I'm sure your Pokémon can too."

Goh made a thoughtful expression and nodded slowly.

At that moment the large television in the Pokémon Center switched to a newscast and Goh and Chloe heard the sound of Professor Amaranth. They turned to look at the screen, curious what was going on.

Professor Amaranth was standing in front of a police station with a grim expression on his face.

"Once my team discovered the true nature of the devices we called off the search and returned to the camp," he said. "All I can say is I hope he pays for such an abominable act!"

The newscast suddenly switched to a young, female reporter with a picture of an unhappy Doctor Melcher with the words "Harmful Technology" in bold red letter beneath it.

"Doctor Melcher was taken into custody late last night by a team of Pokémon Rangers," the reporter said in a serious voice. "It's unknown if Mew was harmed by the illegal devices, but from what Professor Amaranth said, the Pokémon escaped into the forest."

Chloe pursed her lips and leaned toward Goh. "You probably shouldn't say anything about what happened on the mountain," she whispered.

Goh looked a little nervous. "Yeah," he whispered back.

The two of them spent a few minutes watching the news program and then Nurse Joy called out that Goh's Pokémon were healed and waiting for him. Because of Golurk's size, Nurse Joy had sent Goh's Pokémon outside and the young man from Vermilion City dashed out the doors to reunite with his team. He found them all standing on the small battlefield next to the Pokémon Center. Goh skidded to a stop and felt a moment of worry. Would his Pokémon still want to be his friends?

"Hey, guys," Goh said hesitantly.

Cinderace and Inteleon looked at each other and then the entire group of six charged forward with big smiles, eager to embrace their trainer. Goh was first surprised and then overjoyed. He grinned from ear-to-ear and ran toward his Pokémon, happy to be with them again.

Chloe looked on from the edge of the battlefield, smiling and holding her gently clinched right hand over her heart. She wiped a tear from an eye and walked forward to join Goh and his Pokemon.

---

It took two days for Goh and Chloe to return to Vermilion City. A few hours into the afternoon, they approached Cerise Laboratory and felt a huge wave of relief wash over them. Their short but extremely dangerous adventure was officially at an end.

Goh glanced over at Chloe and hesitated to speak. "So, what now?" he finally said.

Chloe looked at him with curious expression. "Hmm?" she hummed.

Goh pursed his lips and then continued. "What are we gonna do now? It's just us now. No more Ash to go on adventures with."

Chloe looked to the side and thought for a moment. "Well, I've been thinking of helping my dad out with research here," she said. She looked toward Goh, her eyes bright with energy. "I'm sure he's still gonna need field work done. He'll have more adventures and mysteries in the future for you to explore." Chloe then chuckled happily. "I'm sure I could come along on some of them."

Goh slightly tilted his head to the side in consideration. "Just the two of us, huh," he replied.

Chloe nodded, "sure, why not?"

Goh looked toward the lab and frowned. "Do you really think your dad will let you go on adventures with me after…. everything that happened?" he said in an unhappy tone.

Chloe held up her cast-covered left hand. "What, you mean this?" she commented.

Goh's eyes tracked to the cast. He looked regretful and nodded.

Chloe smiled. "Well, I just got my hand tangled up in a rope when I was helping you climb up some rocks," she said casually. "Just an unfortunate accident, that's all."

Goh looked surprised. "That's what you're gonna tell him?" he said.

Chloe lowered her hand and looked directly into Goh's eyes. "It's not really a lie since that's basically what happened."

Goh raised an eyebrow and Chloe continued. Her expression became a little more emotional.

"I like going on adventures too, Goh," she said softly.

The two of them shared a meaningful stare, then Goh smiled and held out his right hand.

"Until the next adventure?" he said.

Chloe smiled and shook Goh's hand. "The next adventure," she said with conviction.

They unclasped their hands and Goh took a step back. "I guess I'll see you later, he said.

Chloe nodded. "See you later Goh."

He hesitated a moment and then started to walk away. He stopped abruptly and looked over his shoulder. "Hey, Chloe," he began.

Chloe was still watching him and she inclined her head, inviting him to continue.

Goh paused and then spoke in a quiet voice. "I'm really glad we're friends."

Chloe smiled subtly and blushed slightly. "I'm glad we're friends too, Goh," she said softly.

Goh smiled, sighed and then turned to look forward. With a laugh, he dashed straight ahead and quickly ran out of sight.

Chloe stood in front of the lab for a few seconds staring in the direction Goh had gone. She then sighed happily and headed inside.

---

Professor Amaranth walked slowly through the dense forest. The stars of the night sky twinkled above and the crunching of his boots on the forest floor seemed loud in the strange quiet that hung in the air. He kept walking, not concerned with keeping track of his location or looking any of the nearby wildlife. He was on a singular mission, a matter of honor, something which had to be put right.

He glanced down at the psychic beacon he was holding in his left hand. It was active and currently transmitting the strange waves which had successfully attracted Mew before. If the silence of the forest was any indication, the beacon had been successful yet again.

Amaranth continued on, walking without any real sense of direction or objective. He simply needed to traverse the forest and wait.

He wasn't sure how long he kept walking but abruptly he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and got the distinct sensation that he wasn't alone. He froze in his tracks and slowly began to turn around.

The professor breathed slowly as he completed his turn and took in the sight of Mew. The legendary Pokémon was hovering a short distance away, its eyes glowing red and its body angled for combat. Amaranth held his arms out to his sides and slowly leaned forward so he could set the psychic beacon on the ground.

"I was a fool, Mew," Amaranth spoke in a humble voice. "My team and I were deceived. We came here and used devices that hurt you."

Mew let out a small, high-pitched growl.

"We never intended to harm you," Amaranth said emphatically. "We only wanted to learn about you and increase our knowledge of Pokémon. We wanted to become your friend."

Mew cocked its head to the side but said nothing.

Amaranth slowly dropped to one knee and bowed his head. "All of what happened was ultimately my fault," he said humbly. "I was blinded by the possibility of discovery. I should have been more attentive."

Mew still didn't respond.

Amaranth gritted his teeth and then continued. "I accept whatever you think my punishment should be," he hissed. "I have no excuses." He then closed his eyes and prepared for the end.

The end didn't come however, instead, after several inexorably long seconds, the professor felt something nudge the top of his head. He opened his eyes and looked up into the calm face of Mew. The Pokémon was hovering just a few inches away and had a curious expression on its face.

The professor gasped in surprise and amazement. Mew chuckled, performed a back flip and then dissolved in a burst of blue light.

Amaranth remained in a kneeling position for a minute contemplating everything which had happened. He smiled and shook his head. Even after so many years of study, Pokémon still surprised him.

He rose to his feet, looked down at the psychic beacon and then used his booted foot to smash the device into pieces. He let out a satisfied sigh and then turned to begin the long trek back to the Pokémon Center.