By Destiny's Path
by Yami
Part I
- - - - -
Far away in a seemingly forlorn place, stands one who is indeed very alone. Others are always about her, those who respect and obey her word. Her presence and deeds are uncanny, unmatched by those like her. But none are quite like this girl. Much has occured before and behind her weary eyes. Many of which are passing by them right now. Past experiences are not easily forgotten by these eyes, and those who are caught in their gaze do not easily escape on their own.
However, this is not how she is alone. Tall and fair she stands, though very disheartened she currently is. In her life she has been given many things, oppurtunities, choices. In all her time, she has strived to take them back, for many occurances have retracted them from her grasp and kept them away as their own. This still is not unlike her current case, with chance finally having done so again. But now lives are in the balance, and their destiny lies within her.
- - - - -
"Welcome back, my dear. I hope you know now that your rightful place will always be with Team Rocket." There came no response, not even a change in glance. The looming voice of Giovanni, leader of Team Rocket, echoed in the nearly empty halls of the remote base. Whenever the two passed members of the organization, they stumbled and hastily saluted, half in respect, half in fear, yet wholly in a degree of hope. The mighty Rocket One had finally returned, once again at Giovanni's side. "Much has changed since your... disappearance." She knew the words he chose were not those in his mind. She hadn't disappeared, she left - ran for her life, hoping never again to return to these walls, never to return to this life. But she has. The power is once again hers.
They both walked to the remotest corridor of the base, which in turn led to a maze of passages. They both knew the way well. One could be lost in this labyrinth for days without hope of discovering an exit. In mere minutes the two reached the end of the dim and winding steel corridors, located deep underneath the base and far from the knowledge of those inside it.
Inside is met a large room in a captivating circular shape. The room is not lit much better than the path that lead there. A directing blue-green glow lightens the room, yet not enough to reveal its location to those who seek it. On the far wall, a large screen is mounted, controlled by an impressive computer. The floor is discretely tiled with metal panels. Any one could give way to reveal any number of surprises. With the exception of a large desk with the same flavour as the rest of the room, it is barren.
With the press of a button by Giovanni, a chair rises from the floor, centered with the screen. "Please," he says, directed his arms towards the chair in a pleasing manner. Slowly, she crosses the room and sits in the chair. Giovanni's glare never faltered as she did this, though her's still remained in deep thought.
Before he lifted his gaze, he looked her over one last time. She sat with legs tightly together, her hands placed on them, and her arms relaxingly set in front of her - her head was not up. At once a feeling of duty overcame the joy, for lack of a better word, that had overcome him at her return. She did indeed have a very commanding presence about her: she wore a unique uniform: a black jacket covering over the short white dress underneath, cut short enough to reveal the bottom section with its three stripes. The stripes are also shown on the top of each long white glove and boot. The stripes were a sequence of three: two black with a red in between. The jacket was cut high across the chest and buttoned only up the right side. It presented on it the traditional red "R" worn by all members of Team Rocket. But the thing that Giovanni took the most notice of was the necklace hanging low onto the "R". It was a small Poké ball attached to a cord of string. The very sight of it caused memories to flood into his mind, but he shook them off as fast as they came - many were uneasy. Her brown hair hung long and encompassed her all around. A shorter lot was parted to one side, and two shorter were carefully placed by each eye. All this did not take away from those eyes: they are very dark; deep and penetrating; hard to avoid. At the moment they were focused on far away things; her thoughts were in the same places. The moon is low in the sky tonight, she thought uneasily. Something is amiss, I can feel it. But what...?Before she could finish her thoughts, she was interrupted by Giovanni.
"As I said, much has changed since you have been here last. We have had to change ranks in order to add new recruits. New projects have begun, many members have been assigned to a few long-standing assignments: searches, collecting data, etc. Fortunately, accidents in these areas have become extremely sparatic. Our successes have dwindled slightly, no help from the younger recruits..." He continued these types of reports for some time. His tone was very business-like. I feel like he's not even speaking to me. She raised her eyes from the blind spot at which they were resting and began to search each side of the room, half expecting to find an audience of on-lookers, all the while careful not to move her head. That is when she noticed the room had grown darker and shadows began to creep up alongside the walls. She felt a shiver run through her, but discovered it was in fact a chill. Slowly she withdrew a breath and watched as it streamed out of her mouth.
As if only now taking notice of her, Giovanni casually and inattentively addressed her discomfort: "Cold, my dear? It is winter and we are far underground. Perhaps warmer dress is required?" She was now clutching her arms, and only now did she finally look up at his face. It was grim and undiscerning. He didn't seem to be bothered by the cold. Suddenly, a swift and unnatural breeze blew across the room. It swept her long flowing hair in a cascade across her face. She clentched her eyes shut and tried to make sense of what was occuring. When the wind finally ceased, Giovanni walked over to her, bent down low and whispered slowly into his daughter's ear, "Many things have changed, Destiny. Many things, indeed."
- - - - -
It was cold outside. As Destiny stood on the near edge of the cliff, overhanging a wide and ageless gorge, her mind wandered once again. She was still disturbed by what had happened in her father's underground room. She did not heed his advice to dress warmer; she merely walked speechless from the room after Giovanni had left, and proceeded outside in order to clear her thoughts. She was very distraught, especially for someone of such a young age. Wisdom of unlived years were with her, and the burden of too many rest on her shoulders. Still, she stood proudly, not showing the wear she carried.
It was early, and the first signs of the sun were appearing on the far horizon. Every time she peered onto the plains from this overhang, she has been overwhelmed. Not only by its immensity and beauty, but by the fact that she has never had the chance to see it closer. She longed to, but was always advised against it. Normally she would not acknowledge such a warning, but she was prevented from ever crossing into the valley. Something always seemed to hold her back.
-
She sat and watched the sun rise, leaning against a tall, bare tree. She was miles from the base, from the small world she was again a captive of. She liked it this way. As she gazed at far off mountains and trees, words rose into her mind; from a memory long forgotten:
'Do you see that, Destiny?' The voice was soothing, comforting to her mind.
'See what?' was the response she gave, but it was not her voice. It was one from long ago. 'I don't see anything.'
'Look harder, Destiny. Tell me what you see, far off, down inside the forest. '
Destiny remembered gazing hard over this very plain, trying to see what this person wanted her to see. Now, she could see images from this memory. She still could not see the woman whose gentle voice was speaking to her. Suddenly, in her memory, her eyes picked up something.
'I see... I see smoke! There's smoke in the forest down there!'
'But what is different about it? Look closer, at the colour.'
'It - it's blue? Blue smoke? What's burning down there?' The woman didn't answer. Destiny could feel how hard her stare now became towards the forest. 'Do you think there's a Pokémon down there doing that? Could it be some Fire type?'
'I don't think there is anything burning down there.' Coming back to reality, Destiny felt a chill of anxiety run through her. She hadn't realized how strange that message was all those years ago. Tears came to her after she began to think about it, but for another reason, alongside the forgotten mystery of the forest; the woman who was speaking to Destiny then is no longer with her. Her mother never figured out the mystery of the forest's smoke.
-
"Your pardon, miss," a mid-level Rocket clothed in a standard white uniform appeared suddenly from behind. He called from a distance, not daring to disturb his commander. "Rocket One is being called for. There is a briefing which requires your presence." There was a touch of awe in his voice. Destiny could feel the anxiety swelling up from him, though still far away she stood. She rose silently and strode to where he stood. He stiffly saluted her as she approached. She stopped beside him and threw a sly smile in his direction. She passed in front as he escorted her to the hall where the briefing was to be held.
His sharp green eyes darted back and forth as her pace slowed and they approached the door of the base. It was mid-morning and already the clouds dominated the sky. The Rocket ran to the door and opened it before she reached it. He stood awkwardly and she was quite amused. She knew this Rocket well and was amazed at his formality. As she watched his action, he tried to avoid her sight but could not escape their wonder. Caught in the gaze, a comforting countenance overcame her and with a matching ambience, bid him go ahead of her while she took the door in her hand. The Rocket's blue hair hid his face the rest of the way, but she could see his ease in his steps. "Good day," he bid her at the door of the briefing room and quickly took off, not risking to be seen by any inside.
As he turned the corner, out of sight he met an equally ranked Rocket with long, flowing red hair with a glaze of crystal over her blue eyes. Immediately they took up conversation - she was trying to ease his mind off of his completed job. At their feet, they passed a Meowth crouched on the floor and against the wall. It was intently watching Destiny as she hesitated at the door. With a sigh Destiny walked in and the Meowth took up new post at the same door, peering through the only clear patch of the clouded window. He murmered inaudibly to himself, but "Good luck" seemed to poke through.
-
Destiny was entirely uninterested in the briefing. It concerned a project that had evidently been going on for some time and had only recently begun to have troubles. She looked through the portfolio sitting in front of her chair as soon as she sat in it, but paid no more attention to the matter. Her thoughts strayed again to the blue smoke in the lower forest. What can make smoke but doesn't burn? So deep in thought, she did not care if others noticed her lack of attention. Giovanni had been aware of this, but did not consider it further. If it wasn't fire, than what? Only these questions concerned her now.
Destiny almost did not notice when the meeting ended. One final thought had been overshadowing her mystery; one she did not want to consider, but found it hard to avoid when all other options became void: What if it wasn't smoke at all?
She walked from the room and down the far hall where she was met by the Meowth who had been watching her before. It spoke: "Yer back." With a short glance they walked off together. There was a silence before Destiny answered the Meowth, but it answered for her. "We just ain't sure how much of ya is back," he paused, "ta that." He gestured in the direction of the briefing room. He walked a few more paces and stopped in front of Destiny. "It wadn't the same wit'out ya. If no one else admits it..." the Meowth looked at his feet and then back up at Destiny's curious face. Then with a smirk, he finished with a touch of delight, "I missed ya, Destiny." A smile came over her. This was the warmest she had felt since her return. It was comforting to know her old friend was still there for her.
- - - - -
In a place of magnificence hidden in an untouchable land filled with a blinding elegance, a most unnatural creature resides in its depths. It is changing. The origin of this creature was full of anguish. This Pokémon was used since the beginning of its life, and its pain goes further. Even now, out of the clutches of its makers, their deeds haunt his mind and body. What was thought to be perfected has begun to fail. What...what is happening to me..? I can't contr--arrggghh!! The pain is almost unbearable. It is driving this being insane; tearing at the very fabrics of his already fragile mind. Why...? uhnng--the pain....
The strain is mutating his body, nearly beyond aid. Without the mental balance Mewtwo once attained, old feelings of rage and revenge have the chance to surface, to take control; to let Mewtwo seek out the one man who is unconditionally responsible for his suffering.
This battle has been taking place for weeks, slowly destroying Mewtwo's will; his subconscious invading his every thought, past harm lingering in his mind. The physical and mental strain was unrelentless, everlasting in his mind, until at last, Mewtwo broke. With hate burning in his eyes, the name of the one who had him created for his own selfish means rose in his mind and overtook him. Giovanni.... he must pay.
- - - - -
Destiny, with Meowth at her side, sat relaxed against the same tree from the morning, looking out at the same view, thinking the same thoughts. Meowth on the other hand was quite content: his mind was flooded with pleasant memories reaching all the way back to when he was first found and taken in by Team Rocket. Hmm... those were the days... He crawled onto Destiny's lap and curled up close to her. She smiled warmly at him, took off her gloves and pet him lightly. Back in the old days, t'ings were better. Destiny and me, we had it good. But that was before.... before da boss an' dat professor started their experiments. I wish I could go back to when not'in' could get ta us. With that, Meowth slipped into sleep and dreamt of old times he would never forget.
I remember dis: it's when dey first found me. I just ran away from the city and from dat girl Meowth. I felt like the whole world was against me, but dat's when I saw her. She was just walkin' on the same road as me, with her head down; she didn't even notice me comin' the other way. She wouldn't 've seen me at all if she hadn't dropped her Poké ball.
"Hey! you dropped this."
"Hm?" She was so different then. It was almost five years ago; I almost forgot how much she actually changed since then.
"I said ya dropped this." I showed her the Poké ball in my paw. She gasped and searched her belt to make sure it was hers. She gave me a relieved look an' said:
"Thank you." She knelt down and took it, but then she gave me a weird look. "You can talk..?"
"Yeah, kid," I said. "I tought myself; to walk and talk too."
"That's amazing!"
"Yeah, well... I should get goin'."
"Wait! Where are you going to?" I really didn't know; I just wanted to get away. That's when she came over. She was more like she is now right then. "Do you have anything to eat?" She didn't bother to wait for my answer; she wouldn't o' let me say 'no' anyway. For the next few minutes she just sat with me off to the side of the road while I ate. After I was done, I saw that she'd been lookin' me over the whole time. Then she said, "You don't have anywhere to go."
"No." I didn't know what else ta say. I was thinkin' about it while I was eating, but nothin' was comin' to mind. "I ain't got no one I can turn to; I was on my own before I went to that city. Then I was just part of some measly gang. Nothin' I can really call 'home.'"
"I've been thinking, Meowth," she'd been lookin' away until I said I'd been alone. "I've been thinking that if you have no where else to go, you could come with me. You can leave if you want to, but I promise it would be better than just wandering by yourself. What do you say?"
I was in shock. No one had ever been nice ta me before, no human! I couldn't believe what I was hearin'! She probably guessed what I was thinkin' from my face. All she did was say, "Come on," and we were off. I didn't know where to then, but if I had, I might have thought different.
Meowth woke up to find Destiny gone. The sun was beginning to go down and the valley below was filling with shadow. He got up with a start and began to look around. He saw her nearly a mile down the edge of the ledge on another overhang. The wind was picking up and clouds were coming close overhead, storm clouds. He could hear thunder rolling over the distant hills. He ran as fast as he could to Destiny; a feeling of distress told him to hurry. When he reached her side, his suspicions were made certain. He looked up at her face and saw fear shrouded in deep thought. She was staring hard into the valley. Half panting Meowth managed to say, "What's wrong?" She didn't need to answer. He looked in the direction of her gaze: out of the midst of the forest's dark roof came a thin stream of blue smoke.
- - - - -
The sun was down. The clouds were thick, blocking out the stars and the full moon above. Rain was pelting the ground with heavy bursts. Lightning cracked in the distance with an explosive shockwave of deep, rumbling thunder, lighting the entire sky even as it diminished. This is not enough to stop Destiny, not now, not with this one chance finally given to her after years of waiting in curious thought. She must visit the source of the smoke that has haunted her, if not for herself than for her mother, who passed without unveiling the mystery.
With only a darkly colored cloak to protect herself from the elements, Destiny set out with only a light pack with supplies to last through a night or two and a small lantern in hand. She began to make her way hastily to the valley's border, not yet daring to use a light lest to reveal herself. Before she could get more than half a mile away from the Team Rocket base, she was stopped by a voice calling out to her: "Destiny! Wait!" She turned squinting from rain rushing down her face. She saw three figures: Two were members of Team Rocket, clad in their white uniforms: Jessie and James. The other, the one who had called to her, was Meowth. "Stop!"
"No! I have to go!" She felt strange hearing her voice after such a long term of silence; she was especially surprised by its commanding tone. Its power staggered the three, and herself, but Jessie spoke out: "Where are you going?"
"To the valley, to the forest. I have to!" The power of her voice had lost some of its vigor, but her meaning stayed strong.
"You'll never make it through the storm! Please, don't go!" James, who had been scared stiff by Destiny's presence only that morning, gathered all his courage in his plea. Unfortunately, it was in vain. The determined flame in her eyes was enough to dispell any hope of stopping her. She was going to challenge the storm and all that stood in her way.
"I have to go."
-
It took only an hour to reach the overhang where she had twice stood that day. She gazed to the spot in the forest where the blue smoke eminated, and looked for the most direct path to it. After setting her route, she searched the cliff wall for a way down. She traveled the edge for some time, occasionally testing a spot. She worried, for the rain had made the valley walls slick and untrustworthy. After maybe another hour of careful consideration, Destiny chose her path: the wall had been slightly sheilded from the wind; it faced the direction of the wind and was under the cover of a mighty tree. To this tree she tied a long rope, and in turn tied the other end in a knot. She threw the rope down the cliff and fell face to what she had feared: the rope was too short. It reached nearly a quarter of the way down. She had hoped for it to reach another few meters down where there was a small ledge, seemingly wide enough to gain ground on.
Even so, her greatest fear was missing the smoke before it vanished. Gathering her might she grasped the rope tight through her gloves, and took a small leap down the cliffside. She stilled herself with her cloggy boots and took the moment to pear down the wall: it was a long and steep fall. She turned away and clenched her eyes shut. She had never been fearful of high heights; in truth, she craved them. That's one of the reasons she trains flying Pokémon (among others) so very well.
She gathered her thoughts and continued as fast and carefully as she could down the cliff. She made it down the length of the rope safe enough, even though the wind was picking up. Destiny stayed herself on the knot at the end of the rope. She looked down to where she had seen the small ledge; it was about five meters below her, but to her surprise, larger than she had thought: her view had been skewed by a curvature in the cliff wall. It stuck out nearly three feet behind her foothold. After some quick debate, she decided the only way was to risk a jump. She did not want to involve her Pokémon in this matter. She had no idea what the source of the blue smoke was, and wanted to make as discrete a journey as possible.
Lightning flashed again and the wind changed direction. It now blew into the wall she traveled down, and it was strong. She took the oppurtunity swiftly and jumped for the ledge. She hit the ledge hard and close to the edge. As she tried to balance herself, a gust blew across the cliff wall. Lightning struck the tree above and it fell down into the valley in flames. Part of the rubble was blown at Destiny and struck her. She slipped off the edge and began to fall. She found a small nook in the cliff wall and got her footing as best she could. Then, just as swiftly, she pulled out a small dagger she had at her belt, behind her back. She thrust it deep into the soft ground of the ledge with all the strength she could manage. The nook supporting her foot suddenly gave way and fell, but to her surprise, she heard it hit something not very far down. Still hanging from the ledge with the support of the dagger, she dared to look down. The ledge had blocked her view of this: the ledge was in fact the roof of a small cave nestled into the wall of the cliff.
With her remaining strength, she grabbed the ledge with both hands, pulled the dagger from the ledge and swung down into the alcove. It was surprisingly deep, large enough to fit a dozen people comfortably. She rested here for awhile, thinking how to get down the rest of the wall. The wind and rain was still in a fury, if not more than it had been before. Soon she spotted a narrow path in the cliff wall. It was within range of the alcove; this had probably been a path for travelers. Without taking the time to wonder who or what could have made the path or how long it had been there, she slid down to it and continued swiftly down. The path widened as she flew down its many leagues. By the time she reached its end and the foot of the valley she was in a full run.
The first that she halted for some time was after she ran a few paces into the forest. She looked back, her face was covered with windswept dirt and rain. She looked up the wall and the length she had traveled to the forset: she guessed it was nearly three miles from the overhang to the forest entrance, but a four mile journey that she had taken.
It was now the heart of the night as she again began to make her way to the smoke. She often looked up at the sky for the blue stream and for any sign of dawn; she feared the smoke may disappear then. It was three hours since she had left the base.
She ran most of the way there. Once the smoke seemed to be right above her, she walked and scanned the forest with watchful eyes. She brought out her lantern and wandered in the same area for some time, always checking the sky and the smoke. The forest was very thick and as dark as the sky itself. The roof was so dense that only half the amount of rain falling poured onto the forest floor. Occasionally, lightning would strike inside the forest. This time it struck close, very close; Destiny could feel the thunder's vibrations go straight through her. Where she guessed the lightning must have struck, a bright flash lingered after the strike. It faded into a blue light: it was at the source of the blue smoke. Suddenly the smoke enveloped the floor in all directions like a thick mist.
Destiny hurried to the spot. She stopped when she met the pillar of blue smoke; it was a magnificent display of alternating blue lights. Now that she could finally see the smoke close enough, it didn't seem to be smoke at all. It was closer to some kind of light, fixated at this one point. Curiosity told her to reach for the light. She touched it for only an instant; as soon as her hand passed into the light, a surge of energy passed through her. She thought she heard a voice call out quietly inside her head: get out. She pulled her hand away as fast as she could, severing the strange connection. Then she turned and ran. Still staggering, she slipped and collapsed on the muddy ground. She turned around to face the light while reaching out for her dropped lantern. A fast wind blew through the trees causing rain to slash her face. The smoke swelled around her and she was forced to breathe it in. This time she felt a presence in her mind and she heard the voice again, this time sharp and fierce: Run! Get out!. The message left her dizzy but still stumbling, she fled, leaving the lantern behind. Fear controlled her body, but her mind was caught by the voice; she knew that voice, that feeling.
When she reached the forest edge, she called out her Pidgeot and took flight back to the overhang. When it landed she again collapsed on the ground, exhausted. Jessie, James, and Meowth ran to her after she lifted herself, still breathing heavily. The throbbing in her ears was overwhelming, but she managed to catch one of them asking, "Are you all right? What happened? What was down there?"
Catching her breath, she looked over towards the forest: she saw the light get swallowed into the trees and shoot into the air at an incredible speed. She hung her head with rain falling fast on top of her, and panted softly to herself: "The smoke..... psychic... energy...... he's.... back..." All went black and she remembered nothing from then.
- - - - -
