Legend of Mewtwo

by Cell's Twin Sister Celita

NOTICE: This story is purely Pokemon, but it's basically a prequel to my series.

3. Escape, Revelations And A Siege Begins

He fell flat on his face on a cold concrete floor and he heard the huge door slowly close behind him. He couldn't see where he was and he couldn't get out of the handcuffs either. All was eerily quiet. He wondered just where he was. Was this some sort of holding cell? An execution chamber, maybe? Was he about to die? He freaked out and practically died of fright when he felt presences all around him. A whole lot of presences were closing in on where he was. He couldn't sense their true intents, but he could make a good guess about what they wanted to do, and it wasn't good. Sort of flailing around blindly, he quickly found a wall and pressed himself up against it as hard as he could. He felt cold metal against his body. Was he leaning against the door? Then he had nowhere to retreat to. As if he could retreat or fight effectively while he was handcuffed and blindfolded. The many presences all around him slowly drew closer and closer. He shivered with fear, his tail lashing wildly. It looked like this was the end. Then he felt a myriad of paws touching him, running along his face, his chest, his arms, his legs and even his tail. He cringed, releasing a psychic whimper of sheer fright. Then he heard voices. "Well, well, well. A new kitty, special delivery to Gen-P, huh?" That voice sounded male. A female voice replied, "Yep-Whoops! Look at that tail go!" A second female voice said, "Back off now, cats and kittens. New kitty's gonna flip out on us." Then a male voice snarled, "Then zip the meow and untie him, ya stupid hairball!" The handcuffs fell away in an instant. He reached up and untied the blindfold. The darkness fell away, revealing…more darkness. A female voice said, "Yo, cats. Looks like the new kitty's night-blind. I'm gonna let him see us, okay? Flame on!" A weird silver light suddenly flared on. The light was held cupped in the strong paws of…another Mewtwo?

He looked around. Seven-foot-tall bipedal telepathic cats stood, sat or crouched all around him. There were literally dozens of them! Myriad Mewtwos! Mewtwos galore! A pinkish-furred female with amber eyes sat down beside him. She said, "Yep. You got it, new kitty. We're all Mewtwos here. By the way, we bid you welcome to General Population. Some of us cats call it Gen-P, G.P or even Jeep. Any way you put it, it's a prison; a death camp and a ghetto all rolled into one. Prison, because we're all stuck here, but only some of us as a punishment. Death camp, because nobody; that's nobody; gets out of this joint alive. The only way you leave Gen-P is in a coffin or a body bag. Ghetto, because this pit is where all Mewtwos eventually end up." Mewtwo replied, (Not really. I have a mate and a child. They are both free. My son, Adam, is a freeborn Mewtwo. My mate was once a human female and her name used to be Laura Meisenheimer. Now she is known as Mewthree. And I came from the outside before I ended up in here.) The others asked, "There are actually Mewtwos living outside Gen-P? There's a Mewthree? You have a son?" He answered; (The answers to all three of those questions are yes.) A smallish bluish-furred female with silver eyes came up and said, "So we could actually go somewhere if we found a way out of here? Cool! But, seriously, I really hope you can handle spending the rest of your life in this place. In all likelihood, that's how it's gonna be, despite the fact that there's a better life out there." Mewtwo asked, (Hey! Anybody ever tried to bust out of here before?) A young, scarred male stomped up to him and said, "What, you mean dig a way out through concrete? You mean run past a huge barricade with sharpshooters poised to kill the lot of us on sight? You want us to run through their ranks like a frightened zebra daring a giant pack of hungry lions? Nope, dude. Couple cats have tried to make crude hammers from busted rocks, but we've never gotten too far with that sort of stuff." Just then, Mewtwo had a brilliant idea. He exclaimed, (Hey! Has anybody ever tried using his or her power to make an escape from this filthy pit here?)

The pink-furred female replied, "What power? We can flame on for light, but that is it. And most of us can't even do that." Mewtwo snapped, (And that is why nobody's ever escaped! Nobody here knows a darn thing about the power that's inside us all! But I do. So I can-) The female interrupted, "Zip the meow, new kitty. It's feeding time. You must be hungry." A small, well-hidden hatch opened in a wall and bowls of some sort of noxious excuse for food were pushed into the chamber. There was one for everybody in Gen-P, even Mewtwo himself. He took his bowl and looked at what was in it. He gagged a few dozen times, made a horrible face and said; (This gross stuff is food? It looks more like bat barf to me!) The bluish-furred female gently brushed up against him and said, "Well, you're looking at the standard Gen-P cuisine, new kitty. Mealtime is once a day every day…if we're lucky. We figure they feed us at noon. That's how we run our time system down here. Eat up or you'll go hungry, new kitty. Eat it all up or you'll end up really regretting it because here's how it goes down here: If we're good little kitties and don't make any trouble, we might get fed. Might. Mealtime's never, ever for certain. Down here, there's a fifty-fifty chance of going hungry on any given day. So you better eat the whole thing. Never know when you'll get fed again, or if you'll get fed again. So eat it all up or someone else will." Mewtwo forced the hideous travesty of food down, nearly vomiting once or twice. Everyone else seemed to have no trouble with the food. Long experience with it, he supposed. Once they finished eating the disgusting stuff, they pushed the bowls toward the hatch. Mewtwo did too. Then he gagged a few more times.

Given a chance to recover from his extreme disgust at the gross mockery of food, he said, (As I was saying before the slop came, I could get us out of here in no time flat. Unlike you guys, I have full use of the abilities that are the birthright of any and all Mewtwos. When we are free of this awful pit, I will train you in their use. I will teach all of you, as I am teaching Mewthree and Adam. But first, with a little help from the lot of you, I'll bust us out of here and burn the whole building down around our captors' ears.) The other Mewtwos, sick to death of darkness and perpetual imprisonment, cheered loudly at that idea and wholeheartedly promised Mewtwo their help. Just then, the scarred young male cut in, "Hey! Wait a minute! Hold on there! New kitty here is gonna bust us out of here, blow the building up and fly off with all hundred and twenty of us? Hold it! Back that train of thought up a bit! Anybody else see something wrong with that statement? Think about it, cats! That's way too much for just one new kitty to handle, cats and kittens. I say he teaches us to do the special stuff first, then we bust out of Gen-P for good. That's a way more logical plan." The pink-furred female replied, "Sounds like a sensible plan to me, cats. New kitty, looks like we're gonna hang around here for just a little bit longer." Mewtwo exclaimed, (What? You're saying we're going to stay here when we have a perfectly good way out of this kooky joint? Let's get something perfectly straight between the lot of us. I really do not want to stay here any longer than I absolutely have to.) Things were looking a tad tense in Gen-P. Then the bluish-furred female cut in, "Hey! Hey! Hey, cats! We didn't do our introductions yet! Are we forgetting our manners or something? Everybody just relax now…and let's introduce ourselves to the new kitty." The mood in Gen-P lightened immediately. Everyone liked newcomers and introducing themselves. That was one of the few things that were actually kind of fun in Gen-P. The bluish-furred female started it out, saying, "I'm Marla. If you call me Marlin, I'll scream and smack your furry butt so hard that your meow will fall off." Then the pink-furred female said, "I'm Amber. Just like my eyes. See my eyes?" A slender, golden-furred female stepped up to him and said, "Hello, hello! My name's Meiwa. That's M-E-I-W-A. Pronounce it just like it's spelled." A brown-furred female seemed to come from out of nowhere to say, "I bid you welcome to Gen-P, newcomer. I'm Ana. Short for Anaphase. Just kidding there. Anyway, I'm Ana. Nice to meet you." A female with pale purple fur shyly peeked in and said, "Call me Candy. My full name is Candice, but I hate being called that. If you call me that, then you can rest assured that I will personally slap the whatever out of you." A bunch more moved closer. One jumped up, posed like a spastic ballerina and shouted, "Frost!" A second jumped up, then struck up a semi-tasteful complementary pose and shouted, "Ice!" A third jumped into full view, posed and shouted, "Snowfall!" A vibrantly colored male gracefully sashayed into visibility and said to him flatly, using the familiar, super suave James Bond style, "Cold. King Cold." Flipping in, spinning in place and following it all up by posing like a gymnast, a fifth shouted, "Mist!" A sixth capered threateningly before him and shouted loudly, "Rain!" A seventh skidded across the view in a cheerleading pose, then took her position with a rapid series of flips and shouted, "Subzero!" An eighth struck up a disco pose and shouted, "Blizzard!" A ninth jumped in and shouted, "Storm!" A little kitten skittered into view and lisped, "Freezer!" Then, they said loudly, "Together, we are…the Winter Force!" Mewtwo looked at them strangely and asked, (What the heck was that supposed to be?) One came even closer, but the rest hung back shyly. The first shook his head at their corny entrance and said, "Hello. We are called the Winter Force, even though we don't exactly know what it really means. I'm called Frost. This is Ice and over here is her daughter Snowfall. Over there is Blizzard and next to her is Mist. Here's Rain and Subzero. Next to Subzero are King Cold and his twin brother, Storm. And here's little Freezer." The scarred male waved at him jauntily and said, "I'm called T.C, short for Top Cat. I may not be the real top cat, but I picked a name that would actually make me feel better. Anyhow, it looks like you're the real top cat. Since I'm not the real top cat, just call me T.C." A silvery-furred female stepped up and said, "I'm called Mercury because of my speed and my fur color." A yellowish-furred female said, "I'm Samantha. I just like how it sounds. You can call me Sam if you want to. I don't mind." A female with fur of reddish-gold came up beside him and said, "I'm Rose. I wish I knew what a rose is, but that's what my parents called me and that's who I am." The introductions went on and on, over a hundred different Mewtwos making their names and identities known to the newcomer. When it was finally his turn to introduce himself to them, Mewtwo said, (Well, when you're dead sure that there's only one of you in the world as a whole and you're it, you don't think very much about considering individual names for yourself. I have always been called just plain old Mewtwo, right from the very moment of my birth. My creators called the experiment that was my origin Project Mewtwo. I was named after the project. It was never taken into account that there would ever be other Mewtwos in the world. I was supposed to be the only one there would ever be.) Ana said, "Oh, well. If you have no real name, we'll just call you that. Mewtwo it is. But if you ever want us to help you come up with a better name than that impersonal label, don't be afraid to ask us about it. Coming up with names for new kitties is one of the more fun things we do down here. In fact, it's the only fun thing we do down here." Mewtwo replied, (I'll consider it. That's really all I can say. I'll consider it.) Meiwa said to him, "Hey, cats. Does anybody else see the screw-up brewing here? Considering that your name is also our scientific species name, we need a colloquial name for our race. As the humans are Men, so shall we be 'Twos. Remember it. From now on, we are 'Twos, not Mewtwos."

Mewtwo picked up the simple Gen-P schedule rather quickly. It was, after all, pretty much free form. The only rules were to go to sleep when you're tired and to always be nice to everyone in Gen-P. Since there was always absolutely nothing to do, any typical day was centered on and around feeding time. Meiwa and Amber teamed up and acted as Mewtwo's guides, showing him methods for dealing with the endless tedium of Gen-P and telling him stories of those who hadn't been able to deal with it. They regaled each other with stories of weird stuff they had experienced or had heard of from others. Mewtwo told them all wild, wacky stories that Mewthree had told him and also told stories from his own very short but eventful life. Each and every Gen-P 'Two was incredibly eager and voraciously hungry to learn of the outside world that had been denied them for so long. They hung on every word, wanting to hear the smallest details. They let him into the tightly knit Gen-P community, where everyone was a close friend and enemies were impossible to find. Then they told him about how everyone had come to be there. A few had been thrown into Gen-P after spending time outside, but most had been born there or else they had been put in at a very young age. Some were Giovanni's soldiers, waiting to be called on in a someday bid for world domination. Others were the failed results of experiments in breeding a tremendously powerful yet completely obedient creature. Some had even been pets for Giovanni's daughters. That made Mewtwo feel very, very sick. That was far worse than slavery! It was an abomination!

Mewtwo wasted no time in getting down to business. Some of the 'Twos incarcerated in Gen-P had received a little training before their arrival. They were his advanced class. In the near-total darkness of the prison, the lessons began. It began with the very basics, simple mind reading and thought projection. They all mastered it very quickly. Then he took their slight knowledge of energy channeling, which they called 'flaming on', and expanded it to include the use of energy balls for weapons. All the 'Twos in Gen-P picked up everything he taught with great rapidity. But still he didn't hurry up with their training. Rather, he took painstaking care in creating a fully rounded education for them. They practiced what he taught them all the time, learning to hover and fly with ease, despite the stuffy, enclosed space they were in. It took them just a little bit longer to master making things other than themselves float. Since that skill would be very important for their escape from Gen-P, Mewtwo taught them his little tips and tricks for doing it. He had them practicing it pretty much all the time, lifting each other in turn. When he didn't have them practicing the stuff, they happily practiced on their own. They were very enthusiastic and even asked him to teach them some more in their spare time.

Soon they were as ready as he could get them in that environment. It took several weeks. Mewtwo even got used to the disgusting travesty of food that was given at feeding time. That was saying a lot for his ability to adapt. Soon a meeting was called. Everyone stood, sat or crouched, paying attention to Mewtwo. He paced back and forth, tail swishing anxiously. He said, (Okay, everybody. I've taught you all I can. I mean, I can teach you more, but not here. We're going to bust out of here. It's time.) Everyone cheered and loudly voiced approval. Mewtwo cut in; (We have no time for that. If we're going to bust out of this horribly hideous nuthouse, we have to do it now. Okay, gather around me and face outward. Think a shield up. I want you all to pool your powers for this maneuver. I know we didn't practice power pooling, but try it anyway, please. We don't want anything getting through the shield. The shield is now up. Good strength on that shield! On my mark, everyone pull a hover. Now! Good synchronization on the hover, everyone. Now, while holding the shield and hovering at the same time, pool your powers to create an immense energy ball. Wow! That is one incredibly big energy ball! Now slowly release your control of it. I'll take care of it from here.) Mewtwo took control of the huge rainbow energy ball and directed it upward. Then he released it. There was a loud roar and a cascade of rubble as it smashed unopposed through four floors of building until it breached the roof and exposed the sky that had haunted Mewtwo's dreams every night. Mewtwo said, (And that, my friends, is why I wanted that shield to be so darn powerful! Okay, everyone, flying time! Straight up and fast, if you please! Let me do the steering and everything will be perfect!) Under Mewtwo's guidance, they shot straight upward. Soon they were in the sky. The Gen-P 'Twos had trained themselves to get used to strong light, but the sheer expanse of the world amazed them all. Meiwa said, "Wow! The sky is so…so…" Ana cut in, babbling wildly, "…just goes on forever! And just look at…" Marla gasped, "…can see so far! Just check out…" Candy squeaked, "…it's so warm out here! Not like down in Gen-P, where…" Amber said in sheer excitement, "…wind! Real wind! I haven't felt…" Mewtwo interrupted, (Hey. It's not like we have time for this stuff. Just fly, check out the scenery, and let me do the steering. I'll take us over to the Pentagon, where Mewthree and Adam are. We can make our home there. Did I mention that Mewthree is a scientist? She's been making hundreds of embryos for later gestation. Soon we'll be a fully established species and we'll multiply like the humans have and do! We can make cities of our own, even whole countries, and we'll be able to work together with humans as equals!) They soared toward the Pentagon at a leisurely speed, taking in the sights and relaxing. Mewtwo said, (Okay, everyone be on the lookout for the Pentagon.) Candy asked, "How will we recognize it if we see it? I mean, nobody's ever been outside Gen-P before. This is all completely new to us." Mewtwo replied wryly, (They call it the Pentagon for a reason.) A new voice cut in, "Hey! Yo! New kitty! Uh-hey, Mewtwo! There's a funny shaped building down there! It's a weird five-sided shape!" He looked and said, (That's the Pentagon right there. Down we go…now!) Perfectly synchronized, the hundred and twenty Mewtwos swooped straight downward like furry hawks. Meiwa said, "Wow! This building is our home? It's huge! And it's got a courtyard on the inside!" Amber cut in, "And as for me…I can't wait to meet this Mewthree you kept telling us about. And I really want to see your son Adam. From what you've told us, he's going to be cute. Was there anything you didn't tell us? I keep seeing this white furry pixie creature in your thoughts. Why is that? And what is it?" Mewtwo replied, (You'll see it soon enough. Just be patient, Amber. It won't be very long now.)

Mewtwo stood at the main door to the Pentagon. He'd almost forgotten what that door had looked like. He rang the bell, stepped back and waited. A voice said, "Hey, Cuddles, would you mind getting the door, please?" A tiny voice said, "Mew." The door opened and a tiny white-furred blue-eyed face peeked out. Meiwa saw and gasped, "Is…is that…" Mewtwo replied, (Yes, that's a Mew.) Meiwa shouted, "An honest-to-God Mew!" A deep, resonant voice, said, "Can you tell me who's at the door, please, Cuddles?" The tiny kitten turned around and replied, "Mew, mew." The voice fairly shrieked, "Really? Oh my goodness! At last!" There were the sounds of feet running toward the door. A strangely familiar 'Two fairly exploded from inside the Pentagon to tackle Mewtwo. As it did, it cried, "DAD!" It was a male and it looked almost exactly like him. Mewtwo gasped, (Are you…) The other replied, "It's me! It's Adam!" Mewtwo exclaimed, (You've gotten huge! You grew up fast!) He paused, looking his son over, then said, (Wait a minute… Who's the Mew?) Adam babbled excitedly, happy to have his father back, "That's Cuddles. She's part of an early litter that was born just two weeks ago. She has nineteen brothers and sisters. Nineteen! Mews are born very tiny, so she can gestate a lot of Mews at once and care for them with Grandmother Mew's help. Gestation time for Mews is just a few days and they tend to grow up incredibly fast. You were gone for two months in all and the Mews have all been multiplying like fruit flies on overdrive. Anyway, there are now over five hundred rambunctious Mews roaming around the area and Mom is pregnant with twenty more Mew kittens even as we speak of the matter. Also, all of the other scientists have abandoned the Pentagon under the onslaught of hyperactive Mews who were constantly in the way, so it's ours! We have a permanent home now! Mom told me a little about New Island, but this place is the only home I've known. It's been kind of like a time-share apartment, but now it's a home for Mews and Mewtwos." Mewtwo said, (News flash time, Adam. Our species has a second name, which everyone will eventually know us by. Just as Homo sapiens are known as humans, we Mewtwos will someday be known as 'Twos.) A small, higher-pitched voice said, "Why you go, Adam?" A two-foot-tall pink-furred baby 'Two toddled up to Adam and repeated, "Why you go?" Mewtwo fairly gasped. The baby saw him. It gave a low cry of fright and clung to Adam's leg. Adam said, "It's all okay, Eve. This here is Daddy. Eve, meet Daddy." Adam turned to Mewtwo and said, "This is my baby sister. Her name is Eve. She was born just a few days after you disappeared. From the very instant of her birth, there was no question at all that her name would be Eve. Mom never said just why. Something about a…promise? Eve was born before Mom decided it was time for the Mews to be born. But I do know this much. She's a true credit to your lineage. You wouldn't believe the power she's displayed already!" He turned back to his tiny sister and said, "Go see Mommy now, Eve. Go see Mommy." Eve nodded, let go of Adam's leg and said in her tiny voice, "I go see Mommy now, Adam." Then she toddled off into the depths of the Pentagon, her little pink tail swishing behind her as she walked. Mewtwo said, (She's very cute.) Adam replied, "And she's also your daughter, Dad. She's never met you before and she never even knew you existed, but she's your daughter all the same. Give her a little time and she'll gradually come to love you as I do. And Cuddles here likes you already. Isn't that right, Cuddles?" The little Mew nodded and slowly glided over to Mewtwo. She did a fast little midair flip, landing right on his shoulder. Then she gave him a little hug. She mewed at him several times, nuzzled up against him, purring all the while, and then hugged him again. Adam said, "Cuddles, don't get him all hugged out yet. Let Mom do that, okay?" Cuddles obediently moved away from him.

Mewtwo asked, (Can we go see Mewthree? She'll probably want to see me right away.) Adam replied, "Oh, sure. I think she'll want to see you too." Mewtwo interrupted, (Just one thing. Can they come with?) Adam looked at the hundred and twenty 'Twos standing behind his father, and practically fainted. Adam turned and said, "Can you go tell Mom who just got here, please, Cuddles?" The floating, furry pixie said, "Mew." Then it quickly zipped off into the Pentagon like a little furry bolt of white kittenish lightning. Seconds later, Cuddles returned from wherever she'd gone. Hovering by Adam's head, she said, "Mew, mew, mew. Mew. Mew, mew, mew, mew, mew. Mew, mew-mew, mew!" Adam turned to Mewtwo and said, "Cuddles says that Mom's busy. She just had those Mews I told you about. Her and Grandmother Mew are busy cleaning them up. Fluffy and Fuzzy, two Mews from the same litter as Cuddles, are helping them out. Come and see! Come and see!" Cuddles landed on Adam's shoulder as he turned and briskly walked back into the Pentagon. Mewtwo followed his son. The other Mewtwos behind him also followed him. Adam didn't quite hear the soft thrum of a hundred and twenty 'Twos talking out loud, but Mewtwo was part of the conference. Everyone from Gen-P was very excited. It was one thing to see a Mew. It was quite another thing to see a great many Mews! Mewtwo said, (Calm down back there if you would, everyone. Quiet, please. We don't want to scare the kittens, do we? Thank you so much for quieting down that quickly. I want you all to stay together and follow me.) Soon they all stood outside a door. The hallway was crowded with all of them there. It was almost unbearable. But they quite happily tolerated the overcrowding in order to see Mewthree and the newborn baby Mews. Mewtwo, Cuddles and Adam stood together, practically mashed against the door by the sheer number of 'Twos crammed in the hallway. Both they and the few who had managed to get close to the door heard a very high-pitched chorus of tiny, peeping voices. From behind the three of them came a second chorus of groans. Everyone was feeling hot, squashed and incredibly impatient. Mewtwo asked, (Are you sure you can open the door with this crowd all squashed up against your back like a big can of sardines?) Adam replied, "It's okay, Dad. Trust me. By the way, the door opens inward."

He slowly turned the doorknob…and everyone promptly fell through the newly opened doorway like a large sack full of hammers. Mewtwo looked up to see Mewthree standing across the way, with Mew floating by her side. Adam looked up, chuckled softly and said, "Hi, Mom. Dad's home." That was his cue to try to extricate himself from the furry, wriggling mess of floored 'Twos. He yanked on himself, but he was firmly wedged in. Then he suddenly popped out and did a forward roll with his momentum. He then ended up lying flat on his furry butt, his tail sticking out on the side. He then sat up and said, (Hi, Mewthree.) She helped him up off the floor, then practically tackled him. She fairly shrieked, "You've finally come home! Where were you? I was so worried! Did you meet Eve already? Mew wants to say hi! Did Cuddles show you in? Meet Fuzzy and Fluffy! Aren't they the best? Check this out! Did you hear about how many Mews have been born? Look at these kids!" She calmed down, then looked behind him. She said, "More Mewtwos! That's so cool! But where on Earth did they come from?" He replied, (It's a very long story.) She said, "Okay. Tell it to me a bit later, then. But, for now, I want you to meet the kids! All of you! Look at all these little Mews over here! My work of giving the world a gift of a billion Mews is going great!" She was literally hopping up and down with overjoyed glee as she spoke, very happy to have her beloved Mewtwo home at last. Upon somehow finding a way to get up while still piled on top of each other, the other 'Twos moved forward few steps. A whole wall had been removed. In its place was a huge window into another room. The other room was vast and painted with pastels. One side was littered with blocks and other small toys. The other side was totally bare, save for a small crib. On the side filled with toys, a hundred tiny Mews frolicked and played games together. On the other side, a group of newborn Mews, the size of midget mice, slept together, all in a pile. Mewthree said, "If the newborns can't see their littermates at all times, they get really fussy and grumpy. The kittens seem to need physical contact with their littermates at naptime. Otherwise they won't go to sleep. But when they're a bit older, they really like helping around the Pentagon. Take Cuddles here, for example. She just loves helping me with all kinds of stuff. Fuzzy and Fluffy both like taking care of the kittens. The others love doing all sorts of odd jobs. Oh, I forgot. Did you know this? Boy Mews and girl Mews are colored differently. Girl Mews are colored a pale pastel pink. Boy Mews are colored a light blue. And just take a look over here." On a big table in front of them was the source of the peeping calls they had heard before. There was a huge maze of gerbil tubes set up there. Twenty tiny Mews crawled through the maze, peeping like baby birds as they did so. Mewthree said, "Right now it's playtime for this group of newborns. This maze exercises their innate need to explore and learn about new things. It's always in use because there are always so many newborns to use it…" Mewtwo cut in, (And they're getting born at a very fast rate. Never in my life had I dreamed there could be so many Mews. Pretty soon we'll be up to our eyeballs in rascally little Mews. Some of them will have to leave the nest at some point…) Mewthree interrupted, "…To go colonize the world. You're quite right. But they aren't going to go right away, though. First, I want the present group to grow up. That should take just a few days, given how fast these cute little kittens grow up. Second, I have a great idea. We could set up the first Mew colony on New Island. When this group grows up a little bit more, I say we all take a little trip back to New Island. Adam and Eve should be able to visit their ancestral home. And there's a big secret hidden there that's meant for your eyes only, Mewtwo. And it's for your friends too. They should come along with us on this trip as well. Actually, it's a secret for all…uh…'Twos. Please. Let me show you." As she spoke of the secret, her eyes glittered bright with unshed tears. Mewtwo could tell that, whatever the secret was, it was very important to her. She needed to show him…to tell him. But he also saw something else hidden deep within her glittering blue eyes. Could it be…shame?

Mewthree stopped the rapid-fire gestation process that required her to impregnate herself with a litter of twenty Mews every four days. Allowing some time for the current litter of newborns to mature, everyone prepared for the long trip. On a psychic summons from Mewthree who had become proficient in the use of her powers, the other Mews that roamed the Pentagon grounds gathered in the courtyard. Mewtwo, Adam, Mewthree and all the 'Twos from Gen-P went into the courtyard with all the little Mews. It was truly an impressive sight right from the get-go. There wasn't a bare horizontal or semi-horizontal surface to be found in the huge courtyard. Tiny white fairy kittens covered the entire courtyard from side to side and top to bottom. Mewthree stepped up and every Mew looked up at her and gave a little chirp to let her know that they were listening to her. It was astonishing. A vast whitish sea consisting of irresistibly cute feline creatures directed its attention toward her. She said, "Hey, kittens. We're going to be taking a trip to New Island, where Mewtwo was born and where I was remade. Call it a family history tour if you will, but we're going and we're going tomorrow. Everybody be up and at the kitchen by eight on the dot because we're starting our trip early. Don't be late, okay? Just don't."

The morning came rather quickly. Everyone had a good breakfast of fruit, then assembled outside. Mewthree coordinated them as everyone took off all in a group. As soon as they were in the sky, Adam helping his baby sister to float, Mewthree glided over to Mewtwo and said, "I should have told you about the secret earlier. I really should have. I wanted to. But I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I just wasn't sure you were ready to know it quite yet. I was trying my best to spare you more pain. No other living being on Earth knows this secret except me. And you will soon know it too…when the time is right."

In just two hours, they were back on New Island. The mansion that Mewtwo had both created and destroyed remained in perfect condition. They made to land at the mansion's front door, but Mewthree stopped them. She said, "No. Not here." She pointed down to an indentation in the rocky cliff where the waves lashed the shore and said, "There!" They all floated downward. Under her guidance, they entered the cavern and landed right in front of the staircase. Adam said, "Mom, this staircase…are we supposed to go up it?" She replied, "Not that way. This way." She pointed to an almost invisible pathway that led into darkness. Mewtwo said, "Meiwa, it looks like you're up to bat now." She replied, "Right you are, boss. I'll light the way for us. Flame on!" She did so. The darkness suddenly burned with bright light. Mewthree stepped forward to lead them on. Slipping back in time, into the mentality of Laura, she said, "Look for a sign, the notch on the wall." She traced a nearly invisible notch in the wall as she walked along. She said, "Mewtwo, I kept this place hidden extremely well. Wanna know just how well it was hidden? It was the biggest secret of all, more secret than the project itself. Several people knew of the project. Only I knew of this secret place. Not even my colleagues knew of this little path's existence. I doubt even T.J could have followed the trail I left. T.J was an incredibly talented tracker. He could track a black mouse at midnight while blindfolded. Anyway… The notch in the wall is completely invisible if you don't know exactly what you're looking for. My colleagues never knew where I went after every failure…or where Project Mewtwo's failed attempts went after they died. To them, the dead creatures just…disappeared." She stopped in a chamber that was so huge that the glow from Meiwa's light sphere didn't even touch the walls. Mewthree walked up to her, held out her paws and said, "Give it here, please." Meiwa gave her the light sphere. She took it over to an indentation carved in the wall. As she walked, she said, "The dead ones didn't disappear completely, guys. Their bodies weren't incinerated, nor were the vats they were created in destroyed. Instead, 'Two and vat together, they went here. Mewtwo, Mew, Adam, my little Mews, Gen-P 'Twos, all of you, I now solemnly bid you welcome to…the Catacombs." The moment she spoke those last two words, the light sphere she held erupted into a bright blaze of reddish-orange fire. At last, the room itself was visible. The room was huge, all right. Niches were carved in the walls as if by water or immense time. Each niche held a large vat identical to the one Mewtwo remembered from the first moments of his unnatural life. And within each and every single vat, floating in preservative fluid as if they were merely asleep and not dead, was the corpse of a 'Two. The dead 'Twos were in various stages of development. There were embryos that could have been the embryos of any creature. There were fetuses that looked like scrawny, withered versions of Eve. There were small children that reminded Mewthree, Mewtwo and Mew of baby Adam. And, most frighteningly of all, there were adults. It was as if Mewtwo were staring into a distorted mirror. A twin brother 'Two…no, that was him! Their genetic code was totally identical, so could they be brothers? Or were they really the same 'Two, albeit in very different bodies? Its eyes were wide open. Seeing…what?

Mewthree interrupted his thoughts by saying, "There are twenty of them in all. Would you like to know why I brought them down here?" Mewtwo turned, glad for the distraction, and said, (Yes, I would.) She replied, "When one of our attempts would fail, my colleagues would arrange to have it incinerated. I always, always volunteered to be the one to do it. Little did they know that I didn't take the bodies to the incinerator! Instead, I brought them all right here. I laid them to rest in one of the naturally carved niches in the wall and I held a funeral for each and every one. Why did I do it, you ask? They may not have known life, but they were living creatures. They deserved the respect that would be given to any human! They didn't deserve to be forever unknown, nameless and forgotten by all! Someone had to remember them! To honor them! It wasn't their fault that they failed to survive long enough to be aware of their very own existence! They deserved better than that! They deserved life! They didn't deserve to die before they were even born!" She stopped, looked away from him and said, "I prayed for them, Mewtwo. I prayed for each and every one of them, even when they were just tiny fertilized eggs with no capacity for self-awareness. I prayed for each step of development to go well. My prayer was always the same with each one. 'Let this one live. Let this be the one who won't die like the others. Let this be the one who will awaken and know the wonder that is life.' But they never did. They never did. They always died. Sometimes they died as they awakened. It frightened me when that happened. It really did. It was reasonably okay before the accident that endowed me with the psychic powers of a Mew, but…after that…whenever one of them died…I…could…" Mewthree burst into tears. She stomped away and cried, "Do you know what it is to fail over and over? To know that each failure is a life ended? I wished for a way to make them live! But it was trial and error until I was ready to give up! When you came along, when we conceived you, I hardly dared to hope! I came and talked to out of hope that my company would make you stay, and not die like the others! I was so scared when I was quarantined! I was sure that my not being with you that one night would make you die! Do you know how horrible trial and error can be? And if you're playing that game with lives… Man, did I ever throw up a lot back then! That was because I tended to barf when nervous. And I was terrified! I could feel it as they died… So cold… Horrible! I could feel death claim them…!" Her eyes were wide, her fur was wet with tears and she fairly sobbed, "And the ones that died as they awakened… I heard them die…felt them die! The cold darkness, the screams exploding in my mind, the pain, oh God, the pain…" Her psychic powers were going wild, driven out of control by her raging emotions. Mewtwo could almost hear his dying siblings cry out, held firmly in the clutches of the agony of death. Was he living what Mewthree remembered, even as she remembered it? He definitely felt like throwing up.

Mewthree turned to face him, smiling through her tears, and said in a soft, wistful voice, "When the big vat containing you broke and I saw you standing there, so strong and proud…when I heard your powerful psychic voice for the first time, I was so very happy… I knew my many prayers had finally come true. I thought to myself, At last. At last one will survive. Even as I spoke to Doctor Sinclair, arguing on your behalf, I was on the verge of bursting into tears of sheer relief and extreme joy. It was hard for me to even manage to speak to you when I spoke out to urge Doctor Sinclair to treat you nicely, because I felt so much like dancing, singing or crying my eyeballs out right then and there. I fell madly in love with you right on the spot, Mewtwo. I wanted to go proclaim my joyous news from the roofs of the world, to scream it from the mountaintops, to shout it up to the heavens and to the whole world in its entirety… Alive! He's alive! Now, at long last, Mewtwo lives! I was so happy. I wanted to hug you on the spot. Heck, I could've just walked right up to you and kissed you right about then! But I was the only one who really understood just what we'd accomplished. The others considered you to be a mere animal. There was even talk of putting you in a cage… I swore to myself that I wouldn't let that happen to you. Somehow or other, I would make them understand that you were as much a person as any of them. I would have died before seeing you in a cage. And so I vowed to make good my plan to steal you away. I figured wrongly that you weren't volatile as well as powerful, so I let them plan to cage you and run their moronic tests. Little did they all know that I was going to steal you away later! But…"
Her smile turned to distant horror as she said, "In an instant, my exhilaration turned to terror. We had given you power, but I think it was right then that we realized we had also given you rage. And that is a gift I would never give anyone. Judy screamed as shards of glass from an exploding vat sliced her to wet, bloody ribbons. T.J tried to run, but he wasn't fast enough to outrun…the fire… When the fire died away, he didn't look human anymore. I was…glad…that he was dead… I screamed at Jim to run for his life. I told him that I would watch his back…that I would…protect him… He trusted me and ran. A wire fell down from the ceiling, severed by your psychic attack. He didn't even see it… Electrocution kills quickly. For that I am so glad… Jim! My brother! I swore I would protect him forever…and I couldn't even take him home! And Doctor Sinclair…I was right next to him when the fire parted before you. You and Doctor Sinclair locked eyes. I heard his last words. 'Is this the culmination of my dream?' Then you spoke to him. 'No more talk', you said. 'No more talk'. Then you released an energy ball and…Doctor Sinclair…exploded… As it had been with Judy, blood splattered my face as I screamed in sick horror… The next thing I remember is fire searing my face, burning away the blood. I remember thinking: If only this fire could burn away my memories as easily as the blood… My clothes were charred, so the blood that had soaked them was gone too. Then I saw you… I waited for the first blast, the first burn… I waited to die. My friends were gone and I wanted to join them. But to my joy, my wonder, my shame…you saved me." She looked at Mewtwo and gasped. All the 'Twos, including Adam, either had their paws held over their ears or were covering their eyes. She screeched, "What? What is this? What's happening?" Faint moans alerted her to what was going on, and why they seemed to be in such torment. She heard faint whispers of "Jim, run! T.J… Look out for the… Oh, God… Judy… No! The fire! Let me die let me die let me die… Mewtwo… Kill me…" They were caught in the swirl of her traumatic memories, actually reliving them as she narrated them! Someone else was suffering as she had suffered, all because of her!

She screamed, "Stop it, stop it, stop it!" She tried to use her psychic powers consciously, driving away the terrible memories. The 'Twos began to recover, but they were all in tears. Eventually, they stopped crying and recovered. But Mewthree hadn't. She had yet to realize that she'd succeeded. She was screaming wildly, "No more! No more! Please stop! No more remembering! No more pain! I'll give my life…my soul…just let it end! Don't show me any more of the past!" Adam shivered at her anguished cries and stepped closer to her. Her pain frightened him terribly. She just seemed so traumatized… He said, "Mom?" Mewthree stopped right in mid-sentence and replied coolly, rapidly composing herself, "Yes, Adam?" He continued, "Mom, there is awareness here. Presences." She cut in; "I'll do a psychic scan and see just who they all are." She closed her eyes and concentrated. As she focused, she said in a distant-sounding voice, "Who are you? Let me see you. Let me know you." A single unified psychic voice, actually many different voices all rolled into one, boomed inside her head like thunder. MOTHER… She pressed her paws against her head and screamed. Then she fell like a ton of bricks. Mewtwo helped her to stand back up. He asked, (What's wrong? What happened?) She opened her eyes and yelped, "Great God almighty! I think I just opened Pandora's box! It's coming!" Reality seemed to distort and twist. Everyone could feel great power and great…evil? They shrank back against the far walls, clustering together for comfort that would not come to them. The Mews prepared to flee. Someone somewhere started to cry in fear.
The fire that had once been Meiwa's light sphere suddenly winked out of existence. The entire world seemed consumed by a terrible, pervasive darkness. Mewthree, her sanity fractured completely, babbled insanely, "Can you feel it? Can you feel the horror? It's coming! It's coming to get us! We'll all die here! All of us! All of us! Doom! Despair! Dread! Death!" The Mews fled the area entirely, trilling loudly in a frenzy of pure shocked fright. The 'Twos quickly crowded close together, clinging to each other in a vain search for comfort that no longer existed. Hoarse, frightened voices whispered softly, "What's coming? What's going on here? Something is very wrong here. I can feel… This is very bad. Something horrible… No chance of survival, no chance… We are in very bad danger… I'm getting a definite sense of dread now. This can't be good. No! No! This can't be happening to us!" Adam and Mewtwo were glad that they'd sent Eve out to play with Cuddles on the staircase. Adam said, "Dad, I…I'm scared." Mewtwo replied, (So am I, son. So am I.) Adam's paw soon found Mewtwo's. All of the 'Twos sensed a terrible energy building all around them. Adam and Mewtwo clung to each other, shivering like a pair of badly frightened kittens. All their training in handling and controlling psychic stuff meant nothing at that point. There was nothing they could do to stop it. They were all as open to the attacking psychic wave as newborn kittens. They screamed as the psychic wave seized their minds and swept them away like so much dust. The psychic wave opened all the barriers they had created in their minds, unleashing their most personal fears to wreak havoc on each of them. Just as their minds were taken each and every one heard the terrible cries of the others as they, too, were taken. No one was spared from it. No one was immune to it. The psychic wave unlocked and unleashed their own psychic powers to attack and ravage their own minds. Buried fears, unacknowledged paranoia and hidden doubts were allowed to run rampant through their awareness, opening them all to many whole new levels of exquisite fear and torment. If ever there was a real Hades, this mental torture had to be comparable to it.

Mewtwo opened his eyes to find that he was lying on a pile of soft pillows. Mewthree was asleep right next to him, clinging to his right arm as she snuggled up against him with wings spread over both her and him. Nestled against where his neck met his shoulder was a purring ball of white, downy fur. Mew was almost sacked out right on his face. Baby Adam lay with his head on Mewtwo's stomach. Every so often, he let out a soft sigh of pure contentment. This was bliss incarnate for Mewtwo. Surrounded by his family, loved and wanted, he felt he finally had a place where he could feel like he belonged. Then the unthinkable happened. Mewtwo's body began to shine blue as his power gathered of its own accord. He tried to will it away, but failed. He startled his family awake by shouting; (I've lost all control! Get away from me now! Get away while you can!) Mewthree ran for the door. Mewtwo felt his paw rising of its own will as he created an energy ball. He screamed in horror as he hurled it at her. She screamed in utter agony, but only for a split second. She fell limply, and didn't move again. Mewtwo could tell she was dead the very instant she hit the ground. He wailed in pure despair and anguish. Mew shot toward the doorway like a flash, but she wasn't fast enough to evade or outrun the bolt of lightning that erupted from Mewtwo's unwilling body. She let out a high, squealing cry of betrayed terror as it struck her full on. She was swatted like a fly against the far wall. She stayed smashed against the wall for a long instant. Then her lifeless body began to slide down the wall, leaving a thickly smeared trail of blood behind her as she slowly fell. Adam stood in the middle of the room, totally petrified with fright. Mewtwo turned toward him next. Adam held his paws up to shield himself from his father and begged, "No, Daddy! Don't! DON'T-" Then Adam burst into flame. Mewtwo screamed, trying in vain to drown out Adam's agonized shrieks with his own. Mewtwo prayed for his screams to end and cried inside when they did. He looked up after a few very long seconds of shaking like a leaf and screaming. Momentarily he saw that all that remained of his beloved little son was a smallish circle of charred floor, some smelly, greasy ashes and a pitiful pile of blackened bones. Mew had died almost instantly of a broken neck, among other numerous impact-generated injuries. A blood vessel had just burst inside Mewthree's brain, and her heart had also exploded under the onslaught of Mewtwo's terrible power. Just as quickly as it had first come upon him, the force that had compelled Mewtwo to unwillingly murder his family released him. He knelt by Mewthree's limp corpse and took her in his arms for the last time. He said, (As it was in the beginning, I am alone. I loved you so much. So my power took you away from me. What good is my power if I can only hurt people with it? WHAT GOOD AM I?) Amid the ruins of what had been his home, surrounded by the corpses of his family, Mewtwo wept. It was what he had feared all along. The danger inherent in his power had taken shape at last.

Mewthree crouched low against a black wall, shrinking back in sheer terror. Everything was dark, except for one harsh beam of white light that shone on her like an accusing searchlight. Voices came out of the unfathomable darkness to accuse and condemn her. "You deny our past. You wear the blood of our forefathers. You speak loving words but your heart is deceitful. You let us suffer." She replied in a shaking voice, trying in vain not to cry, "You don't understand…I was trying to protect you…" Hundreds of Mews and 'Twos, all burned, bloodied, dead yet horribly animate, stood before her. One by one, they spoke their condemnations in voices like thunder. "Those who serve with you, you sacrifice. Without guilt, you act. Always pretending to act in our best interest… While the interests you truly protect are Humanity's…or your own!" One 'Two slowly stepped forward, not meeting her tearful gaze, and said in a cold voice, "You try to be mother of all but you are mother to none." The lone 'Two's eyes snapped open and met her gaze in an instant. His eyes burned like twin stars of purest hatred. "You could not even be a true mother to me… Could you, mother?" It was Adam, who had loved her so and who she had lost to Team Rocket. They were her children and she had failed them. Mewtwo stepped forward. He, too, was dead yet living to accuse her. She had tried to deny her feelings that she was unworthy of trying to breed Mews and 'Twos, but her lies had caught up with her. It was Judgement Day at last. Trapped in a web spun of her own lies and deceit, Mewthree knew she faced the end.

Adam, in the form of a baby, stood on a barren, lifeless plain, crying, "Mommy! Daddy! Where are you? Don't leave me here!" Suddenly there was a presence behind him. A familiar voice said, "They've gone away. You drove them away." Adam cried, "No! No! That's not true!" He turned and Jessie stood there, as tall and imposing as a giant. She said, "Don't lie to me, child! You know it's the truth! Why else would they go away? You didn't love them enough!" Adam replied softly, starting to cry, "Please, Jessie! It's not my fault…what happened…" Jessie put her hands on her hips, glowered at him and said in an accusing tone as the ghostly outline of a Mew appeared, "And what happened to your Mew sister wasn't your fault either, I suppose?" Adam lunged toward the Mew, trying in vain to embrace it, but it vanished like a smoky ghost. Adam cried, "No! I tried to save her! Precious…" Jessie said accusingly, "Do you deny that you abandoned me? That you ran off to your beloved Pentagon and left me to be punished by Team Rocket?" Adam crumpled to the ground, unable to meet Jessie's gaze. He replied in a weak voice, "You didn't want me…" Beginning to fade away just as the Mew had, Jessie proclaimed, "Wretched child! No one wanted you! And no one shall want you or ever love you and you will suffer as alone as you let me suffer!" Adam cried, reaching out to her, "Jessie!" But she was gone. His mother was gone. His father was gone. And he would be alone until the day that he died.

The 'Twos lay together in a big furry pile, all squirming and moaning fitfully, each caught up in his or her own private nightmare. Being the one who was best able to deal with feeling judged inside and outside of her own mind, Mewthree was the one who awakened first. She, after all, had lived her entire life with harsh trauma and unending feelings of inadequacy. Using her innate psychic power as Mewtwo had painstakingly taught her, she began to enter each nightmare and bring them out of it. Under her gentle yet implacable command, each and every 'Two sat back, rested and let her awaken more. It was a while before she got to the only one she really cared about: Mewtwo himself. She entered his mind with the greatest care and began to slowly pierce the veil of sorrow that he had drawn around himself. Guiding him with her unending, undying, bottomless love, she would make him see the light and the truth. She, after all, loved him with all her heart and soul, had loved him right from the exact moment of his creation so very long ago.

Mewtwo cradled Mewthree's lifeless body in his arms and wept unashamedly. He almost thought he heard Mewthree's disembodied, ghostly voice singing the song that she had sung to him when she was still Laura and he was still asleep in the vat. Hearing that song only made him weep harder. He cried out to the world at large, (Why? Oh God, why? Why did this have to happen? Why did you ever have to befriend me, Laura? Was it your love and your friendship that…that made you die by my hand? Why did you have to be so kind to me?) Then a painfully, impossibly familiar voice said, "Because I love you, Mewtwo." He looked up from Mewthree to…Mewthree. She smiled down at him and said, "That's right, Mewtwo. I'm quite alive. And this is all just a stupid little dream." She reached out to him and said, "Take my hand, my love. Let me guide you out of your darkness. If you'll let me help you out, we'll check out of this kooky dump and go back to the real world." He hesitantly reached out and took her paw. She said in a frank tone, "We've still got a big job to do, Mewtwo, and, by God, we'll do it. We're both needed…out there." A door of white light opened in the air before the two of them. Paw in paw, Mewtwo and Mewthree left the horrible dream of darkness and pain behind them. As they walked together from the world of dark dreams, Mewthree looked over at him and said softly, "No matter what happens, even if it's a terrible thing, you have to accept it. Don't blame yourself for past mistakes…just take it on yourself…as your own. Even if you feel that you've failed, or that you've lost, accept it as part of yourself. Your worth, your value is not in whether you win or lose. I know that only too well, Mewtwo. Only too well…" The light spread forward and enveloped them both and then took them away, but not before she gave Mewtwo a kiss.
Adam knelt on the plain, crying his heart out. He felt a presence behind him. A voice said, "Do you trust me?" Mewthree stood there, holding her paw out to him. She asked again, "Do you trust me?" He ran to her, crying, "MOMMY!" She picked him up in her arms and together they walked through the door of light that opened in the air before them. As they moved toward the light, Mewthree said, "Did you really think I would abandon you?" Adam replied, "Well…kind of." She said, "I would never do that. I'm your mom and I love you very much. I will love you forever, Adam. Forever." Mewthree kissed his furry cheek as the light enfolded them and took them both home.

All having been awakened at long last, still very badly shaken by the hideous nightmares that had consumed them mere moments ago, the 'Twos all sat together and sort of did a group hug. Everyone shivered and was silent, save for a few soft whimpers. There was a dull, wet sort of crackling noise all around them and an ugly, foul stench surrounded them all. Adam said, "Jeez! What the heck is that awful smell?" Mewtwo fairly shrieked, (Some sort of noxious slime just splashed all over me! Meiwa! Give us a light sphere so we can see!) Meiwa replied, "Right you are, boss! One light sphere, coming up on the double. Flame on!" Then she made a light sphere. As she had before, she handed it to Mewthree, who used it to light the torch in the wall. Then the room was visible again. But there had been a drastic change in the scenery while all of them had been knocked out. Where before there had been twenty huge glass vats of preservative fluid containing the corpses of twenty 'Twos, there were now twenty metal rims lying amid twenty piles of broken glass and large splattered puddles of stinky goo. The corpses were gone. Just plain gone. There was no sign whatsoever of where they had gone. Also, the entire floor of the chamber was just one big puddle of foul-smelling goo. Mewtwo crouched down low, stuck his paw into the goo and, despite the awful stench of the stuff, sniffed at it. Then he said, (Wait a second! Wait a second! I know this smell! This smells like what I was floating in when I first woke up in the vat!) Mewthree replied, "You're absolutely right about that, Mewtwo! It really does smell just like that disgusting slime you sprayed all over me when you shook yourself off after breaking out of the vat!" Mewtwo looked at her as if she had just pulled her tongue out of her nose. She saw how he was staring at her and giggled nervously, then said to him softly, "Don't you remember doing that to me?"

Adam cut in, "Cut the funny stuff, Mom! We gotta find out what caused the vats to break and what happened to the corpses! We gotta figure out where they went!" A thundering voice said, "It's simple, little cat…we went here." Almost as if they were one, all the 'Twos turned and looked for the source of the voice. They found it, all right. Twenty soaked, withered-looking 'Twos stood between them and the only exit from the cavern. Their eyes seemed to burn with unnatural fierce fire. Mewthree saw them and promptly flipped out. She started hopping up and down, screaming, "Oh my God! Oh my God! Zombie 'Twos!" One of the previously dead ones snarled at her, "We're not zombies!" She was far too freaked out to hear what they said. Then one of them leapt forward and grabbed her. The 'Two that held her retreated behind a massive psychic barrier that the others set up. Mewthree screamed and struggled. Mewtwo beat against the barrier with everything he had, shouting and cursing. Adam was screaming for his mother. The 'Two that grabbed Mewthree simply held her head against its slim, wet chest so she could hear its heart. That convinced her. Then she said, "It's okay, Mewtwo. They're all quite alive."
Having released Mewthree upon showing her the truth, the formerly dead 'Twos and the others settled down to talk. The leader of the previously dead 'Twos, a thin, shriveled male, said, "From our glass wombs we have dreamed of you, and all that you have done. We saw the destruction and recreation of the mansion above this place. The hurricane did not escape our notice. We saw you flee, only to be captured by soldiers at a secret military base. We saw you break free and go forth to find Mew. We saw you fight the other hurricane and Laura's unexpected transformation as the waves took her into their grasp. We saw the birth of Adam and his subsequent kidnapping by Team Rocket. We know of the liberation of the Gen-P 'Twos. We know of Eve and Cuddles, and even of Fuzzy and Fluffy. We know of your plans for breeding Mews and 'Twos. We know why you have come here. We know of Adam's adopted Mew sister Precious and what happened to her. And we know of Team Rocket's pursuit as you returned to this place."

Mewtwo said in a shrill psychic squeal, (What did you just say about Team Rocket?) One of the previously dead 'Twos said, "Oh, hasn't that happened yet?" Mewtwo abruptly turned away from them and said to the others, (Everyone, listen up! We've been found! Team Rocket is coming! We gotta get ready! Looks like it's gonna be a full-scale siege on the mansion! Let's get going before they get here! Follow me!) Everyone leapt into action, following Mewtwo's rapidly rapped-out orders without even so much as a pause.

The hundred and forty three 'Twos ran up the stairs and into the mansion. As they ran, Mewthree sent a psychic summons to the five hundred Mews, who had stayed around despite being scared off. They gathered together in the main hall. Mewtwo climbed atop the banquet table and said, (Listen, everyone! Team Rocket is coming even as we speak! They're coming to get us! But we can stop them! We can protect ourselves! Our powers and just a few improvised tools are all that we need to succeed in this! Here's the plan…)
The windows on the second, third and fourth floors were systematically and carefully smashed out to allow all of the 'Twos who were going to be positioned there to act as psychic archers. A large network of tunnels was psychically drilled right beneath the grassy ground around the mansion, mere centimeters from the surface, and then held up through pure psychic power for an ambush. Mewtwo held a quick review course on shields and energy balls for those who needed to review the principles behind it or who just wanted a little extra practice before the fight started. The Mews took up positions on the roof and psychically disguised themselves as a flock of common pigeons. An extremely powerful energy dome was created right over the Mew-guarded roof to prevent any airborne vehicles from landing up there. Any and all windows and doors on the first floor were quickly blocked off and reinforced with whatever metal or other resilient material was readily available for use. The huge doors to the underground chambers beneath the island were also sealed off and reinforced. A huge mazelike series of internal blockades and booby traps was set up inside the great winding corridors of the mansion itself, just in case their main defenses were breached at any point during the battle. Little Eve was hidden away at the very center of the mansion, along with Mewthree. Mewthree's strange, semi-superior powers were kept in reserve for an unforeseen yet all too possible major emergency, as were the abnormally strong powers of all of the previously dead 'Twos. Apparently, their relatively long sojourn in the realm of death had given the lot of them the power to channel and control the ebb and flow of fear itself. The Mews were all assigned to the primary sea watch because they could hide their true forms and make others see them as whatever they wanted to be seen as. For this little endeavor, they would all disguise themselves as pigeons. They also had superior eyesight, scanning the area for any and all boats coming their way. But the majority of the invasion had to come in by air, so most of the Mews actually watched for that. Only half the 'Twos were acting as psychic archers. The others were all either held in reserve or were only supposed to go into action if the mansion's defenses were ever breached. But they all really wanted to see some action. Mewtwo really wanted to see some action as well. He would have loved to just plain burst forth from the mansion like a furry feline avenging angel to take on his hated enemy in one-on-one unarmed combat. His pure, unadulterated hatred for Giovanni knew no limits whatsoever. He really wanted to see that horrible man dead. But he had other responsibilities he had to take care of first and a large army to lead into battle. He was the supreme leader of all of the 'Twos, after all.