Okay, here we go! Aeris has an update! Please be sure to read the notes after this chapter, as they are important!


Yota stood behind Reiko's workstation, listening to Cheryl speaking on the tiny ear bud he was wearing. He'd taken to wearing an MP3 player to work over the past few weeks, storing it in his jacket pocket. No one suspected that he'd switched it for a walkie-talkie with headphones attached. His face was passive as the woman in the enclosure spoke to the Pokémon. And then Cheryl stood up. This was it. Win or loose, they'd redeem themselves here. He clapped his hand down on Reiko's shoulder. "Now."
Evetwo felt the rings dropping off when the lights went out. She froze for a moment, overwhelmed. The sheer energy that erupted in her amazed her. Is this what Cheryl meant by full power? She didn't stop to think about it. There were shouts as she darted out of the enclosure. The light was low, a few battery-operated devices and one bright LED from a surge protector. It was enough for Eve; oblong pupils widened to large rounds as her eyes adjusted to the dim light. She could see; the humans could not. A definite advantage. The psychic paused a moment, uncertain. The blinded humans were fumbling about for any source of light they could find. It was rather pathetic the way they crashed into one another in the darkness...

"Keep moving!" Evetwo started at the voice of her 'friend' before moving again. Thirty seconds, right? She rammed her way across the room, somewhat satisfied at the dull thunk as she knocked one of the idiot scientists out of the way. From the sound of the 'hey!' that followed, she was able to identify him as one of the men who so frequently stuck her with needles. The Pokémon remembered all the times this man had sneered at her and wondered if this wasn't a nice opportunity for vengeance. Eve stepped on the man, probably harder than she should have, and heard a sharp crack beneath her. The man howled, and Eve realized she must have broken right through an arm or a leg. Oh, well. He deserved it. There was a bright light from her left; someone had found a flashlight and turned it on to investigate the pained cry. She could see the man coming after her, only to be intercepted by another man who seemed to have either tripped into him or rammed him with a shoulder deliberately, she couldn't be sure. Evetwo decided that either way, she needed to take advantage of the distraction. She made for the double doors leading out of the room, only to stumble into a pitch-black hallway. Visibility, even for her keen eyes, was at nearly zero. The only light was coming from the room behind her, and it was minimal at best. Then the voice called to her again. "To your right! Right, and straight through the doors! Bust out!" Right, right, which way was right? EveTwo took a chance and shot off to one side, and apparently it was right, because she collided headlong with the doors just as the back-up generators came on and the lab behind her was illuminated. She could hear shouting from behind her and a grunt from the other side of the door as a human headed for the lab was knocked aside. Evetwo stared up the stairwell. The stares looped around, up and up and up, leaving a gap where she could see straight to the top. "Fly!"

Training, she'd only been able to rise a few inches above the ground, but now she found that she could practically soar with just a little thought. Up, up, up, and right through the roof. Eve shook her head and made a mental note to use some sort of barrier next time. That had hurt! She stood in mid-air, trying to get her bearings, only to hear a crack below her. Something went zinging past her. Evetwo blinked. They wouldn't! With the next shot, she actually saw the small dart as it whizzed past her head. Someone was shooting at her from inside the stairwell. Eve darted to one side, out of sight of the gaping hole, and looked around her. Which way, which way...

"Over here! Towards the trees, hurry!" Well, the coaxing had steered her out of the lab, hadn't it? Evetwo swooped down low, taking cover in the tree line. "Keep coming this way. When you see the lightening-struck stump, hang a left." Left sounded easy enough; just go the opposite way from where she went in the building. She darted in and out of the trees until she came to what had to be the stump- a gnarled, charred monument of wood rising from the ground- and turned to her left. "Now just go until you feel like stopping, and I'll meet you there!" Garnet eyes blinked at the strange instruction. Until she felt like stopping? What was that supposed to mean? She couldn't stop until she found a good place to hide, far, far away. "Well, you won't find anything after the sun goes down, so you really ought to stop and rest."

"Who the hell are you, anyway?"

"Wow, hello to you, too. And after I helped you out of there, even."

Eve slowed slightly. The terrain was uneven. Hills, she decided. These were hills, and hills lead to mountains. Mountains could be difficult for humans to climb, especially at night, which was fast coming. So if she went into the mountains before nightfall, the humans wouldn't be able to follow her until morning, by which time she'd be gone. Right?

"Yeah, that sounds good. Fly a little more to your right."

Evetwo kept going straight. "I know I did not say that out loud."

"You're not going right," her mental companion sang out. The Pokémon scowled and altered her course. "Atta girl. You listen so much better than some of my other cases."

"Where are you?"

"Not much further, just keep going. You'll be in a safe spot soon enough. Humans can't come this far into the mountains without getting lost, just like you thought."

The psychic clone stubbornly remained silent, heading deeper into the mountains as the sun slipped away over the horizon. Finally, she slowed to a stop within a great ring of trees. This seemed as good a place as any. Evetwo needed her sleep.

There was a rustle in the bushes, and Evetwo heard a very soft, very real meowing behind her. "Yeah, I figured this was where you'd stop." The clone spun around, and found herself face-to-face with the biggest blue eyes she'd ever seen...


Four people disappeared into the shadows after the breakout. They scattered in different directions, each with the same goal in mind. Twisting and turning through the portside city, they all eventually reached the same building, a tiny bar on the edge of town where the sailors and locals mingled, and no one asked questions. One by one, they dropped into a corner booth. It was a long time before one of them spoke.

"Carson's right arm was snapped virtually in half. She stepped on him on the way out."

"He deserved it."

There was another long silence, and then, "My head still doesn't feel the same from getting slammed with that door."

"My shoulder's out from ramming Diego."

"Think they're on to us yet?"

"No telling."

Nobody in the sedate group seemed to want to talk for very long. Finally, they went their separate ways. Since the virus that shut down the power systems could be traced directly to Reiko's computer terminal, the young woman would have to leave town. She didn't mind. Kazu had offered to accompany her, and they planned to go somewhere far, far away, where Team Rocket couldn't find them. Maybe back to Hoenn, where Kazu grew up. Team Rocket wasn't well established there.

Cheryl didn't need to worry about her grandmother any more, either; the elderly woman had grown stronger, and had moved back in with Cheryl's mother. Cheryl had a small but sufficient amount of money in the bank. She thought she might start over in Kanto.

Yota, who could have left things as they were and stayed in his home, was packing up to move back to Saffron City. Going back to medical school sounded good right now. Maybe become a neurosurgeon...

Walking out of the bar in pairs, none of them looked back. Their sins atoned for, they all hoped that maybe now they could be free.


It was a tiny, tiny Pokémon. The only reason it made eye contact with her at all was because it was hovering several feet in the air. At first, she couldn't understand how. It was, by all rights, a cat. A little bitsy kitten with pale pink fur. But there it sat never the less, floating in midair, defying all logic and gravity.

Evetwo took a step back. Somewhere, something inside of her knew this creature. Something deep in her heart feared it, was awed by it. Somehow, she knew it was important...

The cat moved closer, circling her, examining her. It's tiny head moved up and down, and it paused for a minute to bat at her long, tangled hair. "I've got to say," it finally mewled, "You're not what I expected. Smaller, for one. And this hair! I didn't see that coming."

The larger Pokémon turned towards the kitten warily; she didn't want it behind her back, not in the least. "Who are you?"

"You really don't know me, then?" The pink Pokémon lowered slightly in the air, the movement reminding Evetwo of a sigh. "Not even a little, by instinct?" Eve shook her head. "I don't even feel a little familiar to you?" Another slow, serious shake. It- she- the cat looked disappointed. "Well, that's not fair. We're pretty much related and all, and you don't even know me."

"Related?" Evetwo felt a dawning apprehension. There was only one Pokémon that she could even conceive being related too... the one they said she was created from...

"Got it in one." The Pokémon did a little twirl in midair. "Mew's the name. It's good to finally meet you face to face, Evetwo."


Somewhere in the midst of the Johto region, a young trainer woke in the middle of the night to find an Eevee nudging at her. The Pokémon was holding a beeping device in its mouth. The Pokémon gear, or Pokegear for short, was invaluable to a young girl on the road. It operated as a map, a radio, and, most importantly, a phone. Right now, the device was making a soft, steady chirping sound- the phone was ringing. The girl fumbled to accept it from the Pokémon and squinted to see the number on the lit screen. Her face wrinkled into a scowl. "Fuck off, daddy dearest." And the girl rolled over and let the phone ring, her Eevee snuggling against her side sympathetically.
Mew wasn't there when Evetwo woke up the next morning.

The Pokémon clone woke up with a start in the middle of the woods. It took her a few minutes to reorient herself after the chaotic events of the previous night, but once she had, the absence of her pink 'friend' was the first thing she noticed. Sitting up, she stared, wide-eyed, at the surrounding trees and rocks and general forest scenery. Nope. Nothing pale pink and fluttery here. "Mew?"

There was a rustling in the bushes behind her. Evetwo spun, expecting an attacker, but found only the missing Mew. Mew looked up at her, perched on top of a large can of sorts. "Good morning!"

"What's that?" Eve stared at the can. That had not been there before, she was positive...

"Breakfast!" The kitten- Eve couldn't think of her any other way, she was so small- sounded cheerful as she popped the lid off of the jug. Thick, fresh milk lay inside.

"Where did you get that?"

"From a farm down the mountain. Don't worry, they had plenty." Mew eagerly stuck her nose into the milk jug. Evetwo stared for a moment, before walking over and settling into a sitting position to watch the little cat.

"Do I get a turn, or are you going to drink all of that in front of me?"

Mew looked up with a rather startled expression that could only be described as Stantler-in-the-headlights, and it occurred to Evetwo, rather dismally, that it had never occurred to the smaller psychic that she would need to share. The feline studied the clone, and the latter could almost hear the former weighing food over 'family' before Mew shrugged. "Heck with it. I'll go get you one."

"I should think that one there would be more than enough for the both of us."

"Mine!"


The Pokegear was ringing again. The Pokegear had been ringing all morning! Fifty times the girl must have checked the caller I.D. only to put the device back in her pocket in disgust. Now, for about the fifty-first time, she checked the I.D. And finally, finally answered the call. "I'm going to assume from the endless calls I've had to ignore today that it went well."

Yota laughed on the other end. The Eevee could hear him clearly, perched on her trainer's shoulder as she was. "Yeah, pretty well. They never saw it coming."

"And your team?"

"I have to catch up to Cheryl still. Reiko and Kazu, I'm letting go. They've done what they can. So right now, it's all you."

"There's not a psychic in this world that Espeon can't track once she has their signature."

"That's what we're counting on."


"So, where exactly are we going?" Mew had been in a rush to get moving that morning, scarcely giving Evetwo a chance to finish eating. The clone was still trying to figure out how that tiny, tiny frame held all that milk.

"Well..." Mew wove in and out of the trees, and Eve had to work quickly to keep her in sight. Her seeming inability to move in a straight line made her hard to follow. "I have some business to take care of. I have an over-due stop to make to see someone."

"Who?"

"Oooh, just an old acquaintance, someone I'm supposed to check on regularly but don't. Now that you're up and about, thought, I really, really need to get to it."

"What have I got to do with it?"

"Well," Mew stopped so abruptly that Evetwo almost crashed into her. The cat looked around before changing course slightly. "This old acquaintance of mine is pretty smart, see? I think maybe he can help you."

"Oh..." Evetwo paused, only for a moment, to examine some berries on a vine. They'd been on the move for hours now, and she was starting to get a little hungry. When she looked up, Mew was gone. "Hey!"

The feline popped up, quite suddenly, right in front of Evetwo's nose. "Yeah?"

Eve squeaked audibly and backed up so fast she almost tripped over her own two feet. "Don't do that!"

Mew blinked. "Hey, you vocalized."

"Say what?"

"You squeaked. Like, with vocal cords. Like normal Pokémon do. I didn't expect that."

"Uh-huh." Eve decided to ignore Mew for the time being and went back to examining the berries. Mission one: determine if they were edible.

"They are, but too many and you'll get sick. Try those ones over there." The intrusion annoyed Evetwo, and she lashed her tail a bit to drive the kitten back. Nevertheless, she went to examine the other berries as suggested. The constant intrusions into her mind bothered her, but there wasn't a thing she could do about it while she was hungry. Poking at the small red berries testily, she found one that seemed about ready to drop off of its vine and pulled it free. It was pretty good, actually. The Pokémon smiled, just a little bit. It was certainly much better than the junk they had fed her at the lab, even if she didn't feel full for quite so long.

"So, Mew, tell me about this friend of yours."

Mew glanced up from her own berry gathering. "You mean my old acquaintance? What's to tell? He's not really a friend, just... someone I know."

"Pokémon or human?"

"Pokémon."

"What's he like?"

"Well, you'll just have to find out when you meet him, won't you?" Mew tugged at a vine, revealing a variety of berry Evetwo had yet to see. "Come here, I want to teach you about these."

And she wouldn't say another word about her 'acquaintance.'


"I don't care what you have to do, just find it and bring it back! If this specimen is lost, I am holding you personally responsible!"

Sitting in a dimly lit corridor, the two teenage boys could do nothing but listen to the angry voices coming from the plush office. Neither of them wanted to have to go in there, not with the boss in one of his moods. But the files had to be delivered straight to the boss, and somehow, they'd drawn the short straw again. They always drew the short straw when the boss was in a bad mood.

"Hey, Bu, think they're done yet?"

Buwaro Ferai glanced over at his partner. "No, Ray, I do believe they're still yelling. You might want to get your ears cleaned, everyone can hear it but you."

Ray Makai shrugged nonchalantly. "They can't go on much longer, can they? I've heard Ji say she's sorry about fifty times now. What do you think happened?"

"I have no-" Buwaro trailed off. The door to the office swung open, and out walked a very tense Jianna. Neither youth had ever seen the woman look quite so shaken. Then again, neither youth had ever heard of the boss getting so mad at his favorite tamer, either. There was a lengthy silence before either of the Team Rocket grunts thought of anything to say.

"So, think we should go in now?"

Sometimes, the idiocy of his partner amazed Buwaro, it really did. He would have said so, too, had they not heard a deep, commanding, "Next!" coming from the office. Buwaro stood, making sure he was presentable before entering the room, Ray tagging behind.

"Sir, we've brought the latest results on the droid project..."

Giovanni stared at him a moment before nodding his head. "Ah, yes. That. I trust you have good news for me?"

"I'm afraid not, sir. The heads of the operation say they've hit a brick wall, so to speak. They request more funding..."

"I can read the files for myself, thank you." Giovanni's voice sent chills down the young Rocket's spine. He stepped forward hurriedly and deposited a thick manila envelope on the desk before turning to retreat, only to be halted by his boss. "How long have you boys worked for me?"

"A year and a half, sir."

"And you have nothing to show for it?"

Buwaro winced, and Ray stepped forward. "With all do respect, sir, we were placed on the droid project practically from the day we started. We have nothing to show because the project is going nowhere. It's out of our hands, sir."

Giovanni was eyeing them both critically. "Yes," he said, "I suppose being placed on a slow project would slow your individual progress. Tell me, how would you boys like a job with more lucrative possibilities?"


Big shout out to Ray and Buwaro, two very good friends of mine with whom I discuss ideas, A LOT! They've made their appearance as bumbling idiot Rockets! I recommend you ALL go read Buwaro's Tales of Flame as soon as possible, it is really, really cool, and you'll thank me for it later. Don't be daunted by the high chapter number, you can easily fit three or four of his chapters into one of mine. Believe me, you're gonna thank me for this later. Especially if you lot catch on to things rather quickly. Heh.