Disclaimer: The usual. Note that this is a disclaimer, disclaiming that which is to be disclaimed, ergo, the following. MEWTWO! This is fan fiction, so don't go falsely reporting it as being original. It bugs me to have my stories deleted for someone else's ignorance.

Schizo 2: Arato Kazuyoshi

Chapter 6: Mewtwo

This chapter is devoted to Mewtwo. I've been ignoring him too much, even though he's always been there for me. Cheers.

"You're going where?"

"Elsewhere. Kaze says there's a temple in this world, where the monks are aware of spiritual things."

"What kind of things?"

I started to answer Elin's question, but Kaze kicked in there. "They are knowledgeful in the matters of spirits and bodies. They may have some useful skills or knowledge to teach Loren and Mewtwo, considering their spiritual state."

"I know from personal experience that having more than one mind at work in our body's a little awkward," Tom said, "but I did some reconnaissance earlier today, and it looks like the Nagano crew're coming back soon, with something that Nagano himself is terrified of."

"Which, in itself, isn't saying much," Kaze answered, "but I fear this force may be more than the three of us can handle."

"Which is why I will stay here." I said.

"Well, then. Problem solved. Hm? That doesn't sound like you, Loren. You should be putting up more of a-"

"Whereas I will be going." I interrupted.

There was a pause.

"Okay, so one of you's going, and one's staying, but who's who?"

-I will be staying, in case there is an attack. Loren will wander in spirit form to the temple.- Mewtwo answered for me.

"The head monk there can sense spirits nearby. He will be able to help Loren, even if he is in spirit form." Kaze finished.

"And what will this achieve us?" Tom asked, sceptic as ever.

"We don't know, but we hope he will gain something useful that could help him with his challenger problem." Kaze said, getting nods from everyone except Tom.

"Hope?"

"Yes, Tommy-boy, we HOPE we'll achieve something with this. Lighten up." I sighed.

"Blergh."

So, not long afterward, I set off, searching for the temple that Kaze had mentioned. Kaze only knew the direction and remote region of the temple, which made my task that much harder. It was due north from Kaze's house, and was located in the Kamiushi Mountains. Snow-peaked even at this time of year, apparently.

Of course there was one thing none of us had taken into account.

"Get back here, Loren!" Tom yelled out, flailing his arms in the air. Needless to say, there was no response. Tom turned back to look at Mewtwo, who now also seemed a bit distressed.

Of course, true to his character, any emotion was deeply hidden within, so only a widening of Mewtwo's eyes betrayed any emotion out of the ordinary.

No-one had remembered that Mewtwo couldn't talk without his powers.

Both Tom and Elin had now turned to look at Mewtwo, who, in turn, was cursing inwardly. How could we forget? How could I forget? Damn. Mewtwo turned to look at the two humans, now staring at him. He paused. What now? Are they expecting me to say something? Fools! They know I cannot. After brief consideration, Mewtwo simply turned and walked away.

Tom turned to Elin, with a very odd expression on his face. One that said "We're all going to die."

"I know," Elin answered. "Maybe we can get him to write it down, if he has something to say."

"I get the feeling that, apart from the fact that he probably can't write, considering the shape of his hands, he probably wouldn't want to, anyway. He's probably seen Ranma's dad bouncing around as a panda, holding up signs, looking ridiculous. After all, Loren does read that, so I doubt he could avoid seeing it."

"Don't think I've seen that. Anyway, let's get a bit of training done. Mewtwo'll probably seek down Kaze. Those two seem to gat along."

True enough, ten minutes later, Mewtwo and Kaze were enveloped in a game of chess, in which Mewtwo seemed to be winning easily. His lack of psychic powers had not affected his intelligence, and his foresight was not entirely psychic. Kaze, on the other hand, having devoted his life to the art of the ninja, hadn't spent much time exercising his logic in the form of games. Despite his excellent skills of battle, he wasn't much good at chess. Not compared to Mewtwo, in any case.

The game ended in Mewtwo's checkmate. Kaze admitted his defeat.

"I have witnessed your psychic power in the past, but I wonder if you might join me in a bit of training, so that I could evaluate your physical strength?"

My physical strength is like my psychic strength. Though not nearly as powerful, still very substantial. Very well, let us see if you can teach me some strange form of using it. Mewtwo nodded.

Kaze stood up, gesturing in the direction of his training grounds, situated behind his house. Mewtwo stood up as well, and the two set off for the training grounds.

Earlier on, Kaze had given everyone a full tour of his training grounds. There was a flat grassy area for sparring purposes right behind his house. Here, Tom and Elin were sparring even at the moment. Beyond that, to the right, there was a destruction area, complete with vertical bamboo poles and tatami rolls for cutting, horizontal boards, stone slabs, and ice blocks for breaking, (which he portals in from a stash he has in a cold place), various similar installations for kicking, and a diverse set of other instruments and fixations, including a wide set of targets for different uses.

In addition to all these outdoor systems, he had, in his large indoor dojo, various bags for punching, kicking, stabbing, smacking, and all other manner of words. He also had ropes and chains suspended from the support beams, on which one could practice climbing. Also, in the way of climbing, he had arranged the entire building so that he could practice his climbing, sneaking and other such ninja skills.

Currently, Kaze led Mewtwo to a wooden stand outside, onto which he quickly and fluidly portalled a large block of ice about 20 cm thick and about 2 feet wide.

"I understand that your skills are mainly offensive, so why don't we start with that?" Kaze said, gesturing to the block.

As a weapon of destruction, they are indeed. You wish for me to break this? Mewtwo looked at the block, slightly perplexed.

"Break it. All right, watch me, first." Kaze stepped up, raised his hand slowly, paused, then brought it down, uttering a fierce cry of power, cleanly breaking the block in two with his wrist.

Mewtwo looked at the two smaller blocks. He paused, then lifted one up with his left paw. Then, after another pause, brought his right one down, breaking the block into numerous pieces in his hands. The pieces crumbled down to the ground. He turned to Kaze. Child's play.

"Want a bit more of a challenge, do we?" Without waiting for an answer, Kaze portalled in three more blocks, piling them atop of one another. He then turned to look at Mewtwo.

Too easy. Mewtwo shook his head.

"No?" Kaze portalled in three more, at which Mewtwo point Mewtwo raised all fingers on one paw. Kaze portalled in three more, stacking them atop the pile, resulting in nine blocks of ice, atop one another, reaching up to almost 3 metres. Mewtwo smirked. "You want a table to stand on?" Kaze asked, looking up at the stack.

Mewtwo shook his head, then gestured for Kaze to stand back. This should be more of a challenge. I will have to concentrate in order to accomplish this. Kaze stepped backward, giving Mewtwo some space. At this point, the growing stack of blocks had attracted Tom and Elin's attention, and they were now staring in interest, their spar completely forgotten.

Mewtwo took a deep breath.

Why am I expending my energy on breaking blocks of ice? Is it to entertain a group of humans, even if they are friends of Loren? Ah, Loren. The human with whom I share a body. Though I find him pitiful in many ways, I cannot bring myself to dislike him.

He kneeled slightly.

Perhaps it is self preservation that disallows me from causing an internal conflict within our being. But why? Why can I not spurn him and take over? Mason. He did this to us. But I do not share Loren's hate for him.

He paused there, then leaped upward, reaching to 2 metres above the stack.

Why?

He rolled forward, doing a midair somersault, bringing his tail down on the stack as he fell. A huge void went through the stack as every block broke in two, the topmost ones shattering completely, all of them collapsing downward, breaking the bottom ones into smaller pieced as well, making a large pile of ice in the ground as Mewtwo landed on his feet, executing a further back flip away to avoid the falling ice.

Loren is affecting me.

Once the crashing, crumbling noise had died down, Mewtwo looked at the pile of ice for a moment, his tail changing position every now and then. He turned to look at Kaze, who had a very amused expression of his face. Kaze started clapping his hands together, shaking his head, smiling widely. Tom and Elin joined in after they had snapped out of their amazement.

Mewtwo simply stood, appreciated by all around him.

Mewtwo sat, watching the setting sun, which had now coloured the horizon with brilliant, warm colours. Red, orange, pink, purple, and yellow littered the top of the hill that began to cover the view of the sun, slowly diffusing day into night.

I have changed. The others do not notice, but I do. My mind has become more playful. I do not fully comprehend it, but it is happening.

He breathed in deeply, held it for a moment, then exhaled slowly.

Simply the fact that I accepted being stuck with this human for the rest of one of our lives is against my nature when I was created. But then, I have changed. He is not the first human to have influenced me. But I do not enjoy having to share my entire existence with another.

The horizon was starting to dull, and a few stars has already appeared.

Or do I? I used to mourn my fate of having to live by moonlight. Now I am accepted as one of this group, and I am never alone. But is this desirable company? I am of the core part of this group, and yet I do not belong. One might say I am the strength of this group, and yet Loren is the leader. Yet he does not lead me, and I do not lead him. Neither of us is superior to the other. Perhaps this is because we are as one. Perhaps because of Loren's nature.

The sky was almost completely dark now, and all but the dimmest stars were visible. The near full moon shone bright over the valley.

But what is Loren's nature? He is kind. Sometimes too kind for his own good. He is sociable. Seldom without a friend nearby. Of course now, he is never.

Moonlight.

Am I his friend?

Is he my friend?

He heard steps from behind, and suddenly Kaze was sitting next to him, also gazing up at the moon. Kaze didn't say a word, and Mewtwo wouldn't have even if he could have.

The next day, Elin found Mewtwo training with Kaze again. Kaze seemed to be trying to teach Mewtwo the art of continuity. He said that Mewtwo tended to put all his might into single attacks, and remain vulnerable afterwards, so now he should try to chain attacks together, using less force with each. This was in the inside dojo, where Kaze was pulling on random switches, causing random sandbags to swing at Mewtwo, who was attaching them as they came.

She turned to her left to see Tom practicing to punch through a thick board. To her, it looked rather hopeless, but Tom remained determined to drive his hand through the board, and was currently hardening his fist.

She decided to join everyone else in training, and went to the grassy sparring area, standing in the middle. She slowly lifted her left hand to the top of the sheath of her katana, situated at her waist. She slowly brought her right hand to the hilt of her katana, then unsheathed in one swift stroke. She then proceeded to execute a kata (series of movements) that Loren had taught her as the beginning of her travels with the two boys.

I was now floating above a large forest which seemed to have no end. After having travelled for 2 days straight, I was rather relieved that I was a spirit, and therefore I was immune to such things as hunger, thirst, cold, and fatigue. My spirit for, however, did not liberate me from the torture of boredom. Flying above even the most interesting of landscapes wouldn't keep me interested for two days straight, and I was now exceedingly bored.

Oh, why did I volunteer for this? Well, first of all, because Mewtwo usually does this stuff, and second, because I'm better with people, so if this temple monk guy really can hear me, we'll achieve more this way.

It suddenly occurred to me that Mewtwo really did usually do the wandering.

I guess it's a good thing he finally got the chance to hang around in physical form. Must be frustrating to be insubstantial all the time... Well, actually, I can say it is. Those apples looked good... Anyway. Guess I ought to give him more air time. And more credit. I do rather misuse his powers. That must bug him... I guess I'll give him more influence when I get back.

He is my friend, after all.

But am I his friend?

"You're used to blowing away everything with one strike. The way you did the other day. But your physical strength, though great, doesn't have the same range. You can't blow away twenty people with one physical strike. And remember, as I'm sure you do, that people are fragile. You don't need to expend so much strength on individual enemies, when you can, instead, easily defeat lots of people with small, fast attacks. I would remind you that you have an extra limb, compared to people, but you're well aware of that." Kaze drilled Mewtwo as he continued to send random sand bags at him.

With my powers, I did not need to have such alternatives. However, there may be truth in your speech. Without my powers, I can only attack in a maximum of five directions at a time. Mewtwo used his fists, claws, feet, and tail to attack each sandbag as it came, now only expending enough energy to stop their movement, as opposed to blowing them off their ropes in bursts of sand.

Kaze suddenly stopped sending targets at Mewtwo, who turned to look at him.

"Let's try something else, now." Kaze walked over to a human shaped dummy near the wall. "This is a dummy with similar characteristics to humans. It has skin that is as elastic and strong as human skin, and it had all the things a human has it him. Blood vessels, muscles, though they aren't really muscles, like the blood isn't really blood. Heart, guts, all the goodies. Even the bones are similarly strong to those of humans. We can practice our special attacks on this."

Special attacks? Mewtwo looked at the dummy, then at Kaze. Why?

"I'm going to teach you some, because they are extremely efficient in battle. For instance," Kaze brought a dart from his sleeve and stabbed it into the dummy's neck. He twisted, and pulled it out. Torrents of 'blood' poured out, flowing through the wooden grating it was standing on. "Stabbing someone in the neck artery can kill them in seconds. And, with your claws, this should be very easy. And, by the way, I had a friend put a spell on this dummy, so it regenerates." He said as the hole in the dummy's neck started to seal up. "So you can practice as much as you like. Try it."

Artery... Mewtwo paused, then spread his fingers wide, his 1/2 inch claws protruding from his the tips. He reached forward, and quickly poked the dummy in the neck, pulling his paw away before the blood flow could start. However, it didn't.

"This is why you need to practice. You just stabbed him in the windpipe. Other than having a new hole to breathe through, he's fine. You need to stab here," Kaze put a finger on his own neck, "where you can feel the pulse. Feel it."

Mewtwo retracted his claws and felt Kaze's neck, feeling around, looking for points where a pulse could be felt, and where not. After he got a feeling for it, he quickly turned and stabbed into the dummy, again bringing his hand back as quickly as he has extended it, and watched the 'blood' flow. Interesting.

Kaze watched for a moment, and after about 10 seconds, he turned to Mewtwo. "He's dead now. You killed your enemy, and expended approximately the same amount of energy as it takes to raise your hand to your mouth to cover your yawn."

Mewtwo watched the hole seal up, then looked at Kaze.

Show me more.

Third day in a row now. I couldn't stand it much longer. These trips may not be physically taxing, but they're murder to one's sanity. I was not flying over some snow-capped mountains, but I couldn't be sure if they were what I was looking for. There were so many places that looked the same.

Then I saw the temple. It was a large, Japanese temple, like you see in movies, but this was real.

Finally.

Mewtwo lay on his stomach on his futon, resting his head against his crossed arms. His futon being Loren's futon, but then, same thing. He was staring off into the opposing wall, deep in thought.

It was morning, but not time for breakfast yet. It was light outside, but Mewtwo had other things to think about.

I am receiving more attention that I am accustomed to. More, in fact, than I would prefer. Normally Loren would be the surface person and I would have my peace. Now I am suddenly made the primary socialiser. But then, is this a bad thing? It is pleasurable to have more attention than usual, since I have long been a loner. Is it not better to be included in something than to be excluded? It depends on the nature of that something. It may be preferable to be excluded from unenjoyable activities.

He breathed softly, smelling the cotton from his futon and the straw in the tatami.

But these are not unenjoyable activities. It has been long since anyone has taught me as a teacher. Loren and his friends have taught me many things, but not as mentors. Here, I have learned many useful skills, even if they may become obsolete when I regain my powers. But are they accepting me as one of them, or are they simply using me to fill their featureless days?

Mewtwo didn't believe this.

No. That is not like them. They are kind. They are unlike Giovanni. Then why do they make me perform feats of power for them? Personal recreation? No.

Mewtwo sighed.

All will return to normal when Loren returns.

It was at this moment that he heard a knock on the shoji to his left. Not being able to answer verbally, he knocked the floor in response.

The shoji slid open and Elin peeked in. "Um, Mewtwo?" She looked at Mewtwo, lying on his futon, looking at her expectantly. "Um, we were wondering if you could help us with something." She smiled cutely.

We? Mewtwo sat up. Since he was not human, the teenage girl's smile did not produce any such feelings as would be aroused in a human teenage male, but he didn't see anything against helping out. It will at least take my mind off these matters for a while. He nodded. He raised a finger to indicate for Elin to wait.

"Okay, I'll wait outside." Elin said, smiling, and closed the door.

Mewtwo was, again, alone in his dim room, the morning light filtering in through the paper walls. He got on all fours and stretched in a feline manner, his front paws forward, back arched downward. After that, he shook himself off, now feeling more vitalised.

Damned if he'd let anyone see him do that.

"Tom got the idea of building something. He was bored, so he started thinking about old times. Then he remembered a class trip we took some years ago. He remembered a certain game used to play on that trip. It's a traditional Finnish game, and it's called Kyykkä." (A.N no-one ever try to pronounce that!) Elin explained as she and Mewtwo left the house and went outside, where Tom and Kaze were standing, facing a large pile of logs.

A game. Mewtwo looked at the pile of logs. What does this game entail? And you mentioned building something. Mewtwo said to himself, too used to his telepathy to have stopped doing so.

Tom and Kaze turned to look at Mewtwo. "Ah, so you decided to come. We were afraid you wouldn't be interested." Kaze said to Mewtwo.

"Well, now that we're all here, let's get down to business. Let's start making the equipment." Tom said, picking up a saw.

"Wait, Tom." Elin stopped him. "Perhaps we should explain the game to Mewtwo, first. Easier to make stuff when you know what it's for."

"Right, okay. Here's the idea. We draw two rectangles on the ground, about three by five metres, longitudinally parallel to each other, about three metres apart. We are divided into two teams. Each team is given a set number of cylindrical wooden blocks, about 10 cm in diameter, and about 15 cm high. Each team sets these blocks inside their rectangle, in any setting they want. Then, once this is done, each team is given a number of mallets. Rather similar to cricket bats, really, except a bit heavier, I think. Then, each team proceeds to throw these mallets, from their own rectangle at the other group's rectangle, in an attempt to knock out the blocks. Of course the target rectangle is vacated for the procession of the throwing. First team to knock out all the opponent's blocks wins." Tom finished.

"Simple." Elin said.

Mewtwo was not so convinced. He looked around at the others, unsure of what to do.

Kaze noticed this, and came to the rescue. "You'll understand better when you see it. For now, we just need to make the things. We'll work on the blocks until Tom's prepared the first mallet, so we can use it as a model. Tom, use your powers to speed it up."

"Yeah, yeah." Tom turned away, heading off to make his mallet.

"In the mean time, Mewtwo and I will start sawing these logs. They're approximately the right thickness, and Elin can remove the bark, cut off what's left of the branches, and perhaps shave off some of the edges." Kaze said to Mewtwo and Elin. Elin nodded. Mewtwo hesitated for a moment, then slowly nodded. "Right. Let's get to work."

Mewtwo picked up the next log from the pile and held it for a moment as Kaze finished sawing the previous piece, discarding the leftover block, which was too small to be used. Mewtwo then put the log down on the x-shaped log-holder and held it down as Kaze measured the next piece and began to saw.

"Question for you, Kaz'." Tom said without looking up from over at his place, where he was carving off large pieces of wood from a log with one of Kaze's many, many knives. A tanto, in this case. "If, as people are so fond of bloating, a katana can cut through one of these logs, why are we using such tools as these?" He paused for a moment. "Just making conversation, here, by the way."

"I understand. The reason why we're using these tools is that these tools are meant for this purpose. A katana, while it is able to cut through a log given sufficient skill and power, is not meant for such feats. A katana is meant for cutting people, not wood. Besides, it would dull the blade and we'd have to spend the rest of today and tomorrow cleaning and resharpening it."

"Quite. How're things over there, Els?" Tom asked Elin, who was currently carving the edges off one of the blocks from the pile that was forming in a line, together with the log pile and the sawing block.

"Not bad. I was just wondering when Loren'll be back. He's been gone for four days now." She was silent for a moment, then looked up at Mewtwo; "not that we don't enjoy having you around for a change, Mewtwo, we do, but I'm just kinda worried."

Mewtwo waved it off dismissingly. Of course they missed their friend. Loren had been gone for four days, without any trace.

But was he worried?

No.

Just expecting.

"Anyway, when's lunch?"

I flew up high enough to see over the surrounding mountains, trying to find my bearings. Finished here. I looked town at the Temple, where the head priest was waving me off. I looked back up at the mountains. Now I just need to find my way back...

"Quick, you have to make a decision!"

"But.. It's difficult..."

"There's no time for that, just pick one!"

"But what if..."

"What if? It's not like there's a bad alternative."

"True." Tom picked a straw. It was short. Mewtwo's was also short.

"So Tom's with Mewtwo, I'm with Kaze." Elin said, grouping over to Kaze, while Tom and Mewtwo went over to the other rectangle.

"Now set your blocks. You have 2 minutes." Elin said. She and Kaze proceeded to distribute their blocks in a fashion that suited them.

Tom turned to Mewtwo. "We have at least two simple tactics. Wither we distribute them all over the place so they can only pluck them off one or two at a time, or we can clump 'em together so they support each other."

Mewtwo looked around at the rectangle. He held his paws before him, facing each other, making slight back-and-forth movements.

"Yeah, away from the sides, that's obvious." Tom answered.

Mewtwo kneeled down and drew a small rectangle on the ground. He drew a bunch of dots in the middle, with some scattered around the centre.

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking," Tom answered.

"One minute!" Elin shouted from the other side.

"Let's get to it." Tom and Mewtwo proceeded to place the blocks as planned.

Mewtwo was found it irritating to have to run around after the blocks instead of using telekinesis as he usually would. Still, he showed none of this. No need to appear irritable at a time like this.

"Time's up!" Elin shouted. Toms and Mewtwo looked over at Elin and Kaze's rectangle. It seems they had had similar thoughts, as they had made small clumps and scattered them around their rectangle. They were in groups of six, in bowling-pin formations, placed on different sides of the rectangle.

"Okay. Let's flip a coin for who goes first," Elin dug out a coin from her pocket. "Call it in the air." She threw it up.

"Heads!" Tom shouted.

"Elin caught the coin, and flipped it onto her wrist."Tails."

"Bleh." Tom exclaimed. He moved to the side, out of the path of the projectiles. Mewtwo followed suit. Tom started pacing up and down the side of the rectangle. Mewtwo stood and watched as Kaze gave Elin a slight bowing gesture, indicating to the bats. Elin gave a slight smile, picked up a bat, holding it with two hands, and walked over to the edge of their rectangle.

They have included me in this, their social activity. Because they need even teams? No. It is because they see me as one of them.

Elin tossed the huge block of wood. It struck the central formation of Mewtwo and Tom's arrangement, sending a few blocks tumbling toward the rear of the rectangle. Nothing out yet.

"We're up," Tom headed over to their rectangle. Mewtwo picked up the bat that Elin had tossed and took it to the side as Tom entered with a bat from their pile. Tom turned to Mewtwo. "You wanna go first?"

Mewtwo showed him an open palm, then indicated to the other side of the playing court.

"Suit yourself." Tom turned to look at the other side. He did a bit of calculating, then pulled back, swung around, and tossed the bat with both hands, sending it smashing into one of the packs in the other play field. The rearmost blocks in the formation went flying, one of which went rolling off to the side, ending up at Elin's feet.

"Murder attempt! Minus one point!" Elin shouted and everyone laughed. Even Mewtwo was amused, though he did not laugh audibly.

Elin picked up the block and tossed to the side, where they would be collected.

It was Kaze's turn. He picked up a bat, holding it with one hand, leaning against his shoulder. He walked to the middle of their play area.

Do they accept me as an equal? And if so, when did they begin to? And why?

Kaze reared back a bit, then swung forward, tossing the bat forward. It struck the central cluster of Tom and Mewtwo's arrangement, scattering half of it, sending three blocks out of the field.

It is irrelevant. What is important is that they do. They accept me as one of them. No more questions. It is time to live life as it is.

Tom cursed at Kaze's success. He Looked at Mewtwo. "Give 'em a..." He stopped short.

Mewtwo was smiling. It was slight, barely noticeable, but it was a smile.

"What are you smiling about? We're losing!" Tom turned and gathered the out-ed blocks.

Mewtwo picked up a bat, holding it with one hand, letting it hand by his side. He studied the placing of the opposition's blocks, and decided upon his tactic. Holding the bat in his right hand, he turned left, then tossed the bat with a backhand motion. It struck a six-pack and sent all the blocks flying. Most stayed within the boundaries, but two rolled out.

"Three-three even," Elin announced.

"Yeah!" Tom grabbed Mewtwo's hand, giving it a good squeeze. Mewtwo squeezed back, surprising Tom with his power. Tom squeezed harder, turning his hand inward at the same time. Mewtwo squeezed harder, also opposing Tom's turning force. The two locked in a game of power.

"Heads up!" Elin feigned a tossing motion with the bat she was holding. Both Tom and Mewtwo let go, heading over to the side of the court.

Tom turned to Mewtwo as Elin tossed, knocking out several blocks. "This isn't over," he said with a smirk.

Mewtwo smirked back.

Chapter 6. Enjoy? No? Lemme know! Please review. Someone. Anyone. More to come.