Saffron Rocket Base

Giovanni was sat in a chair looking at Petral, Attila, and Hun who stood before him. Petral had just finished giving the report on the Lavender Town mission.

"Despite your incompetence, I have to agree you three did a good job." Giovanni spat. "Even though your time was cut short, by mere children, you were still able to accumulate many ghosts pokemon as insurance incase Sabrina fails to bring in the other M.2."

The three of them saluted the man. "Thank you, sir."

"That said, if I find out you fell to a child again, I will not hesitate to fire you." All three of them gulped as fired meant body bag. "Now, get out of my sight."

The main reason Jessie and Meowth hadn't been called in was down to the fact that they were able to spin the story of defeating their opponent. Plus, they were essentially mere grunts when compared to these three. Failure for them wouldn't have been as egregious.

RK's Training Room

RK had already ensured this room was devoid of cameras long ago, but he had checked it over once more, twice, to ensure he was truly alone. That's because he was having a serious problem, ever since battling Wes, that he didn't want to reveal to anyone.

"So, how long are you going to pretend I don't exist?" A transparent, older Red appeared.

"You're just a figment of my imagination." RK retorted.

"No, I'm part of who you're meant to be." Red declared. "The fact is, you know what Giovani has you doing is wrong. The original Red…"

"That Red is gone, so I'm the only one left!" RK interrupted.

"If you believed that, then you wouldn't feel guilty for using his pokemon or perpetrating crimes with his face. You wouldn't let people refer to you as RK either. The fact is, you know what you're doing is wrong, and that this isn't the life you want."

"Will you just leave me alone?" RK asked.

"The truth is, you feel as though you owe Giovani your life." Red stated. "He had you created, so you serve him; however, you're me as much as I am you. Everything he does and everything he has you do makes you suffer. Speaking of suffering, you can feel the pokemon around you…"

RK punched a nearby wall. "Just shut up!"

"…they suffer because you allow it." Red continued. "You are me, yet you can't be me. You're young, and that thought hurts you. You can't be the father Ash needs nor the husband you should be. As such, you resigned yourself to this, but it doesn't have to be this way."

Red faded, but he always came back. No matter what RK did, he always came back. Seeing Wes, only made this worse. RK just gritted his teeth and punched the wall before collapsing to his knees.

Utility Closet

Jessie and Meowth were in this closest just waiting for a certain someone to walk by.

"He's here Jessie." Meowth declared.

Jessie sprung out and clamped her hand over Mondo's mouth before dragging him into the closet while Meowth closed the door.

"Mondo, it's Jessie and Meowth." Jessie quickly stated. "I'm going to remove my hand, but first I need you to understand that. Nod if you understand that and won't scream."

Mondo nodded so Jessie removed her hand. "Jessie and Meowth senpai, what is going on?"

"Kid, we ran into James out there on our latest mission." Meowth stated.

"You saw James senpai?" Mondo questioned.

After his meeting with James, Mondo wasn't angry with him anymore. In fact, he had come to idolize James more for getting out of Team Rocket. Honestly, he raised a lot of good points, and this organization was terrible with that new perspective.

The more successful you were, the more you were forced to give. Stronger members who took or captured pokemon would be forced to pay 'fees' in giving up those pokemon. Not to mention, Mondo loved his own pokemon, and the cruelty he now saw made him sick.

His mind just would not stop putting his Tauros or Ditto in the positions of these other pokemon. The only reason Mondo hadn't tried to leave was twofold. First, he feared ending up in a body bag. Secondly, he didn't have connections like James.

His parents may be awful people, but it was clear they still wanted their son. There was always that risk that his parents may turn their vast wealth against Team Rocket, and that wasn't something Giovani wanted. The 'official' reason came down to him not being worth it.

"Yeah, we saw him, and he raised quite a few good points." Jessie sighed. "Look, Meowth and I don't know what we're going to do, but you're the only person we can trust in all of Team Rocket. Whatever happens, we want to know that you have our backs."

Maybe this was the answer Mondo was seeking. Sure, Jessie wasn't all that strong and Meowth was just a Meowth; however, they were still two extra people he felt he could trust as well. If he could convince them to see things his way, they could get out together.

"Yeah, you always could count on me, and you can count on me now." Mondo nodded genuinely. "Whatever happens, you have my support."

Mondo truly meant that. Just because he was losing faith Team Rocket and their ideals, it didn't mean he hated Jessie and Meowth. Eventually, the three of them managed to slip out of the closest and go their separate ways for now.

Pallet Town, Oak's Lab…

Oak had just come back from feeding the various pokemon in his corral when Wes stepped out of a shadowed corner. "Professor Oak, we need to talk."

"I take it you let yourself in." Oak commented. "Must be a fairly serious conversation since that's the only time you would."

Wes simply said, "I think we should have a seat as I've found out quite a bit on Team Rocket."

Oak nodded, and the two of them moved to the living room. Once there, Wes removed a laptop from his person and sat it before the professor. Without a word, he opened a video on it.

"This is a battle I had with Team Rocket's Enforcer." Wes stated.

He played the video and Oak watched the battle wondering why Wes felt he had to see it. Eventually, he saw RK using what seemed to be a line up of Red's Pokemon, but it's not like that particular line up was Red exclusive.

That said, the professor did find the wrong side using that line up rather troubling. Then came the reveal and Professor Oak froze in place. He was staring at a ten-year-old Red Ketchum. The same ten-year-old that once came to him for a pokemon alongside his son Blue.

Oak stopped the video and looked at Wes. "W-What is this, Wes?"

"This is proof that Team Rocket's ambition of cloning became a reality." Wes stated. "That is a clone of the former champion raised to work for Team Rocket. He had nothing on Red's skills, but the implications alone."

"I see." Oak sighed. "Who else knows?"

"At this time, besides myself, you, the Elite Four, one individual currently traversing Kanto, and your son." Wes replied. "Red's family doesn't know. Fortunately, Ash was preoccupied the day I battle him."

"Well, this is rather troubling." Oak stated.

"It gets worse." Wes stated. "I should have guessed he'd be behind this, but I wanted to believe he wouldn't tread the same path as his mother."

"His mother…" Oak stared at Wes in shock. "You don't mean to tell me that Giovani is the leader of Team Rocket?"

Wes sighed. "I'm sorry."

The truth is, Oak hadn't seen his old friend in ages now, but he could still remember their time together. With Wes' words, memories of those times played through Oak's mind…

Flashback…

Two ten-year-old children, Samuel and Agatha, came upon their friend sleeping in the field. This friend was Giovani. Samuel had brown hair and wore a black tank top underneath a thin, purple jacket with blue jeans. He was carrying a bucket of ice water.

Agatha had shoulder length, blond hair and wore a pink dress with white trim. She also had a yellow bag slung over her shoulder and red shoes. Giovani had short black hair. He wore a black long-sleeved shirt with blue jeans.

"See I told you Aggs." Samuel smirked. "Gio's just napping instead of training."

"Oh, give him a break Sammy." Agatha stated. "Honestly, you could take some lessons from your best friend on how to lighten up."

Samuel scoffed. "He's not my best friend."

"Sure, he isn't." Agatha stated with a knowing smirk.

Giovani sat up and yawned. "What a good nap." He turned around and looked at his friends. "Oh, hey…" He stopped as he noticed the bucket in Oak's hands. "Samuel…"

Samuel threw the water on Giovani drenching him.

The kid jumped to his feet screaming, "What the hell Samuel!"

"Sammy!" Agatha chided.

"What." Oak shrugged innocently. "I thought he was still asleep. Not my fault he's known to sleepwalk and talk in his sleep."

Giovani was shaking. "W-Wait here you j-jerk." He walked off. "I-I'm going to change, T-then, we're battling."

"See Aggs, I know just how to get Giovani to battle me." Oak commented.

"Remind me again how this is easier than asking him for a battle?" Agatha asked.

"It would be less fun." Sammy commented.

"Oh, of course." Agatha rolled her eyes. "How could I not realize?"

Transition

Giovani had his Nidoran out while Samuel had his Growlithe. It's been a pitched battle, but the result was evident to see. Growlithe was just starting to pant while Nidoran was heavily panting and battle worn.

"Nidoran, don't give up." Giovani encourage. "Strike with peck."

"Growlithe, finish this with flamethrower." Oak commanded.

As Nidoran charged in, Growlithe let loose with a flamethrower resulting in Giovani's pokemon fainting.

"Nidoran!" Giovani ran over and used a potion to help him get back up. "You gave it your best shot."

"Your best still isn't good enough to beat me." Samuel bragged. "Growlithe and I are an unstoppable team."

Giovani stared up at him. "Just you wait because I will beat you one of these days."

"If you want to beat me, train for a good couple of decades." Samuel smirked. "Maybe by then, you'll stand a chance of making that happen."

"Alright, enough of your competition boys." Agatha let out her Gastly. "It's time I get a shot at you Sammy."

"Bring it on Aggs." Samuel declared. "Growlithe and I are ready for anything."

Transition

The three friends had spent all day battling it out with Samuel winning every battle against his friends while Giovani and Agatha ended up tying between themselves. Like every day since they started doing this, they ended up on a nearby hill watching the sun set.

Today, Agatha noticed something flying towards them. "Hey, what's that pink pokemon flying towards us?"

The boys watched as Mew flew by overhead.

"That is…" Giovani began.

"It has to be…" Samuel began.

Together they exclaimed. "…Mew!"

The boys couldn't believe that the legendary pokemon was here in Pallet Town, but they weren't going to miss this. They immediately jumped to their feet and sprinted after the pokemon while Agatha was right behind them. Mew ended up escaping leaving them in awe.

Transition

Samuel and Giovani were young men now and competing in the first Pokemon League. They had made it to the finales where the winner would be the first champion of Kanto. After a grueling match they were each left with one pokemon.

Samuel had his Tauros out while Giovani had his Rydon. Over the years, these two friends/rivals had battled constantly with Giovani never winning once. This time, he was certain he'd win. Finally, he'd overcome his greatest challenge when it mattered to him most.

"Rydon, finish this with drill run!" Giovani shouted.

"Just like that, we win." Samuel smirked. "Tauros, end it with iron tail!"

The two pokemon charged one another with Tauros managing to slam his metal covered tails into the charging Rydon. The ground/rock type collapsed to the ground with swirls in his eyes. Giovani was just stunned as the stadium cheered for his rival.

Everything moved in a blur as reporters crowded around Samuel. They were taking pictures and presenting him with the trophy. This moment really hit home. No matter how hard Giovani trained, Samuel was first while he was second place. The silver medal.

What made it worse was the fact that Samuel never acknowledged their rivalry or friendship. After all this time, that's probably what stung the most. The fact that the one person he had never seemed to share the same feelings about their bond.

As Samuel looked over at his old friend, he noticed the anger that had appeared in his eyes. The way his fist were clenched and shaking. A look of betrayal. That is a look that would stick with Samuel for years to come.

Transition

More decade's past. Samuel was no longer the champion, he had his son, and he had found his interest shifting into studying pokemon. He even decided he'd invent a catalogue to help future trainers understand this world better.

Upon finishing the catalogue, something he intended to turn digital later, he couldn't help but think that this shift in interest was linked back to those early days. The times when he'd go looking for pokemon with Giovani as they trained to be the best.

Oak had originally written his name on this project, but he smiled as he added Giovani's. Having not seen his old friend since that fateful battle, he decided to check up on Giovani at his home in Viridian. Fortunately, he had been there.

"Samuel." Giovani stated coldly as he answered the door. "Didn't expect the champion to pay me a visit."

"Oh, I guess you haven't heard, but I lost the title last year." Samuel smirked. "That loss gave me clarity, and I've been making something I think the two of us could work together on." He presented the packet to Giovani. "I'm going to call it the pokedex."

Giovani was surprised that his name was on this, but he had no interest in cataloguing pokemon. Ever since that lose to Oak, he had thought about how he could beat him. Not just him but prove to everyone that he was the stronger trainer. Then, it hit him.

All those years ago, when he and Oak saw Mew, it had been a playful pokemon. What if a trainer had a pokemon with the power of Mew, yet a serious nature? That is what Giovani had been working towards. This packet gave him a small ember of hope. Perhaps he could bring Oak in.

"This invention of yours sounds cute, but I am on the cusp of something greater." Giovani smirked as he opened the door and let Oak see that his walls were covered with designs for a cloned Mew. "I will create the ultimate pokemon. A creature stronger than any…"

Samuel just burst out laughing. "Giovani, get real." The soon to be professor had mellowed out over the years, but something this ridiculous was letting the old Samuel out. "All of this sounds like when we were little kids playing those crazy games.

Remember? Gio, I'm sending out my Arcanine, but this one is a water type with only the coolest moves. Oh yeah Sammy, well I'm sending out my grass type Ninetales with only the strongest grass moves. I mean, get…"

"Samuel, I'm serious." Giovani declared angrily. "If you want to treat this how you've treated me all our lives, then I never want to see you again." He shoved Samuel out the door. "Take my name off your pokedex because my achievement is all I'll need. Now, never speak to me again!"

Present

"… As time wore on, I began to see everything wrong I'd ever done to my friend." Oak stated. "The biggest mistake I made was never recognizing our bond. Giovani was my best friend, but I failed him more than I ever thought possible."

"I see." Wes stated. "You know, Red once told me Blue was devastated by his loss to him." He looked at the professor. "Did you…"

"I realize now that Agatha and I were all Giovani had since his mom was consumed with Team Rocket." Oak sighed. "Looking back on everything I did, I corrected those mistakes in Blue. Only now do I realize how important it is to have someone there for you. To acknowledge you."

"For what it's worth, Blue is the best gym leader Kanto's got." Wes leaned forward. "Even knowing this, it doesn't excuse what Giovani's been doing. Wherever he's hiding, or whenever he pokes his head out, I will be there to take him in."

"I understand Wes." Oak took a deep breath. "Just, if you find him, call me in. I may be rusty, but I think I can bring him in more peacefully,"

Wes thought about his request and closed his eyes with a sigh. "Given all the good you've done for the pokemon world, I at least owe you that much; however, I will reiterate that he is not getting away.

"I understand." Oak stated.

Wes then stood. "Well, this has been quite informative, but I have other duties to attend to." He approached the door. "Thank you for telling me this."

Wes left soon after as Oak sat there wishing he could change the past. Admittedly, a small part of him hoped that Wes was wrong, but he never could find Giovani after their last meeting.

Unova

A Mewtwo with a lighter shade of gray and green where there is normally purple was flying through the sky with the using their psychic power. They were joined by a Swellow, Staraptor, Braviary, and Pidgeot.

They spoke to the other pokemon telepathically. "Do you think you can keep up with me?" They flew ahead getting the pokemon to pick up speed as they raced along the ocean. "I wish to test the boundaries of my power, so I will go on ahead."

Mewtwo flew even faster leaving the bird pokemon behind. Eventually, she stopped upon hearing a voice in her mind. Someone or thing was talking to her telepathically. This gave Mewtwo the sense that whatever this was, it was psychically strong. Maybe as strong as her.

"I can hear your thoughts. You and I are psychically gifted. Please, come to me."

Mewtwo had stopped. "That voice…"

She locked onto the signature before speeding off towards it.

Snowy Mountain Peak

Sabrina stood atop this mountain wearing a heavy, maroon cloak as she stared into the distance. Eventually, she saw Mewtwo flying towards her. The psychic pokemon landed before the Saffron gym leader. They had a conversation telepathically.

"You" Mewtwo stared at the girl. "You reached out to me with your mind."

"I did." Sabrina nodded as she stared at this pokemon in wonder. "I never imagined that someone like me would be a pokemon."

That was true. For all her life, Sabrina felt alone. Yeah, she valued Giovani for helping her control these powers, but that didn't mean he understood what psychic power was. This Mewtwo did. Even searching for Giovani's Mewtwo never revealed this fact to her.

Maybe it was because that Mewtwo was hiding itself better than this one. Maybe it was because she had never stood before a Mew or Mewtwo before. Whatever the reason was, these two could immediately understand one another despite their different upbringings.

"Mewtwo, I came all this way looking for you." Sabrina stated. "I serve who I serve, but with me you could test your limits. Our psychic abilities could make us a unique duo to the point that we surpass what we find." She held out a hand. "Will you join me? Aid me as I will aid you?"

"I always thought I was alone." Mewtwo thought. "I rejected everything. Then, it was revealed I wasn't alone as other pokemon appeared. Meeting them helped me find where I belong. I've had that all this time, but this girl has had nowhere. Her parents never understood.

While this Giovani helped, he could never forge a connection with her. She deserves what I have had. Admittedly, meeting her reveals what I have always missed. Someone who could understand me as I understand them. Does this justify helping her?

I have seen who she serves, and this Giovani goes against all that I stand for. If I abandon her now, that would be the same as her parents abandoning her for her powers. They did not understand her, yet I understand where she comes from."

"You have heard my thoughts, haven't you human?" Mewtwo asked.

"I have." Sabrina declared. "If you ask me to betray Giovani, I cannot do it. He is the only one who showed me kindness before I controlled my powers. My father only showed kindness after."

"Hm, I will join you, but on two conditions." Mewtwo declared.

"I will hear them out." Sabrina stated.

"One, I am allowed to persuade you away from this current path." Mewtwo declared. "Two, whatever acts we perpetrate must be done in the way which leads to least suffering. If these conditions are broken in any way I deem irreversible, I will leave."

"I understand." Sabrina took out an empty pokeball. "I agree to your conditions."

"Very well, Sabrina." Mewtwo declared. "We are partners."

Mewtwo touched the center of the pokeball and was sucked in. There was the immediate ding of a successful capture. Sabrina, who was always stoic, looked at the pokeball before a genuine smile spread across her face.

"Thank you, Mewtwo." Sabrina thought.

She then put the pokeball on her waist before starting the long trek back to civilization.

Fuchsia City: Train Station

"Man, Fuchsia City is a real dump." Gary sighed as he shifted an egg around in his hand. "If only the gym leader were ready for me to challenge him, I could get out of here already."

Gary was carrying an electric yellow egg with black markings on it. He had won it in some small-town tournament not to long after leaving Vermillion City. He hoped it turn out to be something strong, but nothing said he had to add it to his team.

That was the beauty of catching so many pokemon. As for why this city was a dump, buildings were run down, the huge fern tree in the center of town had withered, and this train station had been closed long ago.

The trainer then walked by a picture of Fuchsia from way back when. "Heh, now that looks like a city which would house a gym." He smirked and walked by it. "If you ask me, that gym leader, Koga, should work to make this city look like that."

He stepped out to the platform only to notice an old lady with blue eyes sitting on a bench. Sure, he came out here, but just to have a quick look around. This woman seemed to have been sitting here for a while.

"Hey lady, what are you doing out here?" Garry asked.

"Oh." She noticed him as he approached. "Why, hello young man. I've just been waiting for the steam train from town. This is the last stop on the line as it comes right through that mountain over there."

"Jeez, this lady must be up there in age because even someone new to town knows this place is closed down." Gary thought.

Suddenly, it began to rain.

"Dear me, it seems to really be coming down." She smiled at him. "Oh, I didn't notice that beautiful egg you have in your hands." She smiled. "I may not see it up close, but I can tell you've been taking good care of it."

"Uh, yeah." Garry stated uncertainly. "I've been taking good care of it in hopes of hatching something strong from it."

"Ah, where are my manners?" The woman questioned. "My name is Edna. What is yours?"

"My name is Garry Oak." Gary replied.

"That is a lovely name deary." Edna stated sincerely.

Before anything more could be said, a young girl came running up to them holding an umbrella. "Grandma, I thought I'd find you here again."

"Oh, hello Katrina." Edna greeted. "This here is Gary, and I met him just a moment ago."

Gary nodded. "Hey there."

"Hello." Katrina greeted. "Gary, tell me; did my grandma cause any trouble?"

This old lady has certainly been odd, but she wasn't causing him any trouble.

Gary shrugged. "Nah, she's just been sitting here."

"That's good." Katrina stated relived. "Now, it's time to go grandma. We don't want you catching a cold."

Edna was staring down the tracks. "Yes." She bowed her head sadly which clued Gary in that maybe she wasn't exactly odd like he thought. "To late for the train to come today anyways."

"Oh grandma." Katrina stated sadly.

Edna stood up. "It was raining just like this on that day so long ago." She approached her granddaughter and took the umbrella. "If only it had been snowing instead."

At this point, Gary was blaming Ash for this feeling of sympathy for that old woman. It's all his fault, somehow, for what happened in Vermillion City. Even though Ash didn't ask for his help and it was really no one… nope, it was Ash's fault one hundred percent.

He glanced over at the bench only to notice a picture sitting there. "Huh, looks like your grandma forgot something."

It was a picture of a younger Edna with some guy.


Team Rocket: I felt it was about time to go a bit into how past chapters have been affecting the Team Rocket side of things.

Giovani: There is an amazing animation on Youtube called Pokemon Giovani. While I changed some things, it still is a huge inspiration for Professor Oak's story in this fanfiction.

Gary's Part: Some of you may know the episode I'm using for a Gary centered story, and I honestly feel that Gary could learn something from this little adventure he'll be partaking on next chapter.