Chapter 6

 

            Mew…

            Mew was a legendary pokemon. Legendary pokemon were not supposed to exist. But after Flannery managed to catch Moltres in the depths of Victory Road, that was no longer the case.

            She didn’t’ want to know…

            But she was good – one of their best, he had said, and so now she and Ash were trekking through the jungle. Apparently Ash had pitched a fit in his father’s office, which relegated Tyson to work with another team – some scientific exploration in Seafoam Islands.

            She was glad the bastard was gone.

 

            Ash had started treating her oddly too, giving her looks all the time. Pity. She didn’t need his pity.

            She didn’t need anyone’s pity.

            She didn’t!

            Oh, but she was angry though, quite angry… and she was tired too, so tired…she just wanted it all to end really.

            She was!

            Who knew? Maybe this mission was sufficiently dangerous…

 

            A flash. Pink fur. Mew? Had to be. Watched her Dragonite and Gyarados battle it, watched as they were thrown back, watched as Ash tossed a Snag Ball that exploded within a foot of the pokemon. Oh dear.

            Watched as Ash was taken away.

            Didn’t watch any longer. Sent out Duskull, seek… and then…. Found him, Mew was apparently going to throw him to starving wolves or something. Lovely.

            Knocked him out and then offered an exchange. Mew didn’t care, a life was a life, and then there was a bright flash of pain.

            When she woke up – and she hadn’t expected to wake up, unless this was all a dream, she was in a cave. It was pretty and sparkling with crystals and muted blue light. Undersea paradise? Lovely.

            There was a pokemon there she vaguely recognized.

            “Lugia?

 

            She should have thrown a Snag Ball like a good little Rocket, but Giovanni wasn’t here, and she was dead, so why did it matter now?

            < Child… >

            Warm, melting tones, pulling her out of her shell – and then she was in his arms and she was crying.

            It wasn’t fair!

            < Father… > Word slipped almost unbidden from her mouth – no wait that was telepathy. How on earth…? She wasn’t psychic! All she could do was heal a little bit; that was all nothing special…

            She wasn’t psychic, was she?

            < I’m so sorry, child… I should have never agreed to the test. But now you’ve passed, and you’ve twenty-seven chances more… no, more than that. You’ve eighty-one chances this time, as a reward… of a sort. >

            She didn’t understand what he was saying, something about chances but he was holding her and for once it wasn’t sexual!

            It felt familiar, like she belonged here…

            Lugia was a man?

            Yes, a man with long white hair and dark blue eyes, and he could be her father for all she knew, both her parents had died – or left – before she was two years old…

            Before she knew what was happening, she was on fire, but it was blue fire, and it felt right, and then blue turned red and gold and silver and finally a beautiful black color… and she felt clean for once.

            Fire had done what hours of showers could never have done.

            She was purified, cleansed, and blessedly once again whole…

 

            < Poor child… >

            Lugia was furious. Why would he not be? No parent should have let his or her children suffer needlessly. But he and Honou had agreed to Serebii’s clamoring for a test.

            Serebii needed to see if their children were still ‘pure’ and ‘innocent' and ‘fitting to be Realm Guardians.’. Well, his child hadn’t broken under the suffering, thank goodness, and Honou’s hadn’t *really* suffered, but Honou’s child was also Serebii’s Chosen, which stacked the deck.

            Serebii had really wanted Lance to fail, to die, to despair, but… she had passed. Even in this weaker form, she had passed.

            He was glad.

            And now, it was time for reckonings…

 

            < Well, how brave… >

            Ash woke with a throbbing headache. “Where is she?” He demanded.

            Mew tsked. < Dead of course. >

            “What?”

            < Threw her to the wolves, she died, you’re free to go. Don’t try to capture me again. >

            … She was dead? Lance was dead? That made no sense! It was impossible! She couldn’t be dead! It’d only been about an hour since he’d seen her last, smiling. How could she be dead? How?

            She can’t be dead!

            < Denial is such an odd thing. She’s dead, all right? Go home. Tell your father to leave me alone. >

            She can’t be dead! She can’t be! I won’t let her- I can’t – I mean, why?

            She died for me?

            No way… no one cares for me that much. Father wouldn’t die for me. Why would Lance? Does she really hate her life that much? Was it something I did?

            Oh, what can I do?

 

            I feel miserable. I feel… Well, like I’m a horrible person I guess…

            Why didn’t I stop her?

            He stared at the pit Mew had dropped Lance in, watching the wolf pokemon prowl around. Horrible….

            There was a flash and a blade was in his hand. It was gold; well, the hilt was gold… the blade was black, lightning? Yes, lightning.

            He must be hallucinating.

            I’m sorry…

            He pressed the tip of the blade against his chest and closed his eyes.

            There was another bright light.

            < Pass… >

 

END FIC.

Completed 7/4/05

Stupid CUTCO job…

Phantomness: Aight. End fic. Darkfic all the way now!

Ash: Bloody tests!

Lance: You said it…

Aight, 3x3x3 tests = 27, they passed, this time they get 7x7 which is 49 more chances… How do I derive these things? Eh, it’s a Chinese numbers thing. No really. I don’t have a fancy explanation this time! I was going to give them 81 more chances but that would take too long to write… aight, back to 81 if I add in Letter Series…8 is 3^4, next time they’ll win 3^5 chances…